this young lady had no common character; and, neglecting his move at
chess, he looked up at Grace as much as to say, 'DRAW HER OUT, pray.'

But Grace was too good a friend to comply with that request; she left
Miss Broadhurst to unfold her own character.

'It is your move, my lord,' said Lady Catharine.

'I beg your ladyship's pardon--'

'Are not these rooms beautiful, Miss Broadhurst?' said Lady Catharine,
determined, if possible, to turn the conversation into a commonplace,
safe channel; for she had just felt, what most of Miss Broadhurst's
acquaintance had in their turn felt, that she had an odd way of
startling people, by setting their own secret little motives suddenly
before them, 'Are not these rooms beautiful?'

'Beautiful!--Certainly.'

The beauty of the rooms would have answered Lady Catharine's purpose for
some time, had not Lady Anne imprudently brought the conversation back
again to Miss Broadhurst.

'Do you know, Miss Broadhurst,' said she, 'that if I had fifty sore
throats, I could not have refrained from my diamonds on this GALA night;
and such diamonds as you have! Now, really, I could not believe you to
be the same person we saw blazing at the opera the other night!'

'Really! could not you, Lady Anne? That is the very thing that
entertains me. I only wish that I could lay aside my fortune sometimes,