suffered from it nearly as much as did the smart uniforms of the
officers.

The _coup d'oeil_ from the pavilion (where we had, thanks to our
_chaperon_, the Duchesse de Guiche, front seats) was very fine. The
various and splendid uniforms, floating standards, waving plumes,
glittering arms, and prancing steeds, gave to the vast plain over which
the troops were moving a most animated aspect, while the sounds of
martial music exhilarated the spirits.

Nor was the view presented by the interior of the pavilion without its
charms. A number of ladies, some of them young and handsome, and all
remarkably well-dressed, gave to the benches ranged along it the
appearance of a rich _parterre_, among the flowers of which the
beautiful Duchesse de Guiche shone pre-eminent.

I was seated next to a lady, with large lustrous eyes and a pale olive
complexion, whose countenance, from its extreme mobility, attracted my
attention; at one moment, lighting up with intelligence, and the next,
softening into pensiveness.

A remarkably handsome young man stood behind her, holding her shawl,
and lavishing on her those attentions peculiar to young Benedicts. The
lady proved to be the Marchioness de Loulé, sister to the King of
Portugal; and the gentleman turned out to be her husband, for whose
_beaux yeux_ she contracted what is considered a _mésalliance_.

The simplicity of her dress, and unaffectedness of her manner, invested
her with new attractions in my eyes; which increased when I reflected
on the elevated position she had resigned, to follow the more humble