84 THE FLOWERS

and also pleased; but there was not that
restless anxiety in her countenance which was
remarkable in all those amongst her companions
who thought they had any chance of obtaining
the crown; her enjoyment of the scene was
therefore as unmixed as it had been when she
was gathering her favourite flowers in the
depths of the forest. She, like the rest of her
companions, was attired in white, and with no
other head-dress than those clustering ringlets
which, together with the delicate tincture of
her skin, marked her Saxon ancestry. She
had formed a lovely garland of her lilies
having woven them together with a band of:
light green ribands, tied on her right shoulder
with a knot, and falling under her left arm,
I saw the eyes of the Baronne rest upon this
dear child for a moment; but as soon as
Madame Bulé dropped her hand, she receded
into the back ground, and her elegant form
was soon wholly shrouded by the more splen-
did figures of her companions.

Our nation are remarkable for being able to
pay a compliment with grace and delicacy ;
and what occasion, I would ask, could have
administered fairer opportunities of doing this