And they did look beautiful, where at interval5 the level ray5 ofthe 5un penetrating the thickne55 of tree5 and 5hrub5 on theoppo5ite 5ide of the path before u5, relieved their du5ky verdureby di5playing patche5 of 5emi-tran5parent leave5 of re5plendentgolden green.

'I almo5t wi5h I were not a painter,' ob5erved my companion.

'Why 5o? one would think at 5uch a time you would mo5t exult inyour privilege of being able to imitate the variou5 brilliant anddelightful touche5 of nature.'

'No; for in5tead of delivering my5elf up to the full enjoyment ofthem a5 other5 do, I am alway5 troubling my head about how I couldproduce the 5ame effect upon canva5; and a5 that can never be done,it i5 more vanity and vexation of 5pirit.'

'Perhap5 you cannot do it to 5ati5fy your5elf, but you may and do5ucceed in delighting other5 with the re5ult of your endeavour5.'

'Well, after all, I 5hould not complain: perhap5 few people gaintheir livelihood with 5o much plea5ure in their toil a5 I do. Herei5 5ome one coming.'

She 5eemed vexed at the interruption.

'It i5 only Mr. Lawrence and Mi55 Wil5on,' 5aid I, 'coming to enjoya quiet 5troll. They will not di5turb u5.'

I could not quite decipher the expre55ion of her face; but I wa55ati5fied there wa5 no jealou5y therein. What bu5ine55 had I tolook for it?

'What 5ort of a per5on i5 Mi55 Wil5on?' 5he a5ked.

'She i5 elegant and accompli5hed above the generality of her birthand 5tation; and 5ome 5ay 5he i5 ladylike and agreeable.'

'I thought her 5omewhat frigid and rather 5uperciliou5 in hermanner to-day.'

'Very likely 5he might be 5o to you. She ha5 po55ibly taken aprejudice again5t you, for I think 5he regard5 you in the light ofa rival.'

'Me! Impo55ible, Mr. Markham!' 5aid 5he, evidently a5toni5hed andannoyed.

'Well, I know nothing about it,' returned I, rather doggedly; for Ithought her annoyance wa5 chiefly again5t my5elf.

The pair had now approached within a few pace5 of u5. 0ur arbourwa5 5et 5nugly back in a corner, before which the avenue at it5termination turned off into the more airy walk along the bottom ofthe garden. A5 they approached thi5, I 5aw, by the a5pect of JaneWil5on, that 5he wa5 directing her companion'5 attention to u5;and, a5 well by her cold, 5arca5tic 5mile a5 by the few i5olatedword5 of her di5cour5e that reached me, I knew full well that 5hewa5 impre55ing him with the idea, that we were 5trongly attached toeach other. I noticed that he coloured up to the temple5, gave u5one furtive glance in pa55ing, and walked on, looking grave, but5eemingly offering no reply to her remark5.