“What do you mean by that?"

"That she is disposed to engage herself in affairs which are generally considered out of her sphere."

"I must take the hint: perhaps she is more the general of bownoghs than her lord and mas ter?"

"Not only so, she is lord and master of the general himself."

"Does she possess this influence over her husband ?"

"She does."

"She is, therefore, a dangerous enemy, and let me again warn you to beware of her."

"For your sake I shall be on my guard; but you are not jealous ?"

"Jealous! No, but—”

"But what? What, Ellen,-in tears!"-kissing her till she smiles like the sun through a summer's shower.

CHAPTER XXV.

"Here treacherous poisoners urge their fatal trade.”

"Yet there is credence in my heart,

CREECH.

That doth invert the attest of eyes and ears,
As if those organs hath deceptious functions."

SHAKSPEARE.

OLD bachelors, be they even Jesuits, find themselves at fault in judging of human nature, as it developes itself in women; they should, therefore, carry on their operations as independently of feminine agency as possible; or, like the horse in the fable-who, when trying to catch the stag, allowed a man to get upon its back-they may find they have employed a power which has mastered them. The operation of a woman's mind is fully understood by woman only. It is a piece of beautiful machinery, that requires the apprenticeship of marriage to learn anything about. It is, therefore, dangerous for a bachelor to touch it. Abstract philosophy will never do here. Were a philosopher to enter one of our modern, cotton-spinning factories, he might, by

putting his finger upon some little crank, set a number of levers moving, wheels turning, and bobbins spinning and buzzing, which it might puzzle him to stop. Away they go, "rattle-rattle,”"buzzbuzz,"-producing a most awful noise; some moving slowly, but powerfully; others more swiftly; and the little wheels and bobbins like lightning itself. He stands confounded at the effects of his fiddling, till a factory girl, who knows all about the bobbins and wheels, comes up, and by a touch of her slender fingers, stops them, or sets them going again, at pleasure. "La sir, it's quite easy.'

"I fear," said the Jesuit, who had overheard the conversation between the Earl and Miss Spenser, in the abbey, "I fear," said he to his companion, "that this letter of Lady Margaret's-which I made her write-will do no good, but that it may do a great deal of harm. I was not aware of the strength of her passion for him, or I would not have asked her to interfere at all. If she becomes his mortal enemy-as his marriage with this girl is likely to make her she may work him, and our whole cause, a world of injury : in the fury of her passion she might destroy everything."

"What, therefore, is to be done ?" said Mac Rory.

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We must prevent this marriage. There is more necessity for doing so now, than ever."

"They propose to celebrate the nuptials in a month," said Mac Rory.

"That gives us time to arrange our plans.-I see,” said the Jesuit, after a long pause—“ I see but one way of preventing it."

"What is that?" replied his young companion. "Can you not imagine? Come, it is time you should learn to plan and devise, as well as execute, and obey. It is time I should invest you with the toga and initiate you in the esoterica of our order. It is thus the parent bird encourages its young to use its wings and leave the nest. You must soon leave my wing altogether; it is, therefore, time you should try your own strength.'

"As bird each fond endearment tries,

To tempt her unfledged offspring to the skies,
He tried each art, reproved each dull delay,
Allured to H- - ! and led the way."

"What say you? What would you propose ?"

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To carry off the maiden," replied Mac Rory. "Good," said the elder Jesuit, smiling, "you shew the daring of a young eagle, which makes its first swoop upon a lamb; but something even greater is required in this case.

"To carry off the Earl ?"

"Better still; but you have not yet risen to the height of holy daring which this case requires.

Besides, either of these measures, though displaying wisdom and decision, would not suit under present circumstances. Were you to lay a finger on her, he would be like a bear, as the Scriptures saith, robbed of her whelps; and to attempt violence to his person, in the way of confinement, would be an indignity he could never forgive: you must therefore guess again."

"You are nearer the mark now; yes, we must remove the old priest."

"Where?"

"Where do you think?"

"I could carry him, where the Earl would never find him."

"Could you take him where he would never miss him, or look for him, or suspect us of violence ?"

No, that would be impossible."

"There is nothing impossible to a resolute mind. There is, notwithstanding, such a place as I have mentioned; and it is not far from where we stand." "Where ?"

"There!" said the Jesuit, in a whisper, pointing his finger among the tombs.

"What?" said the young man starting back, "would you murder him, and he a priest ?"