lodger's face, when he asked if you were his enemy or his friend. I know
he is thought to be handsome--but, Mr. Gerard, those beautiful eyes of
his sometimes tell tales; and I have seen his pretty complexion change to
a color that turned him into an ugly man. Will you tell me what you wrote
when you answered him?"

I repeated what I had written, word for word. It failed to satisfy her.

"He is very vain," she said, "and you may have wounded his vanity by
treating him like a stranger, after he had given you his writings to
read, and invited you to his room. But I thought I saw something much
worse than mortification in his face. Shall I be taking a liberty, if I
ask how it was you got acquainted with him last night?"

She was evidently in earnest. I saw that I must answer her without
reserve; and I was a little afraid of being myself open to a suspicion of
vanity, if I mentioned the distrust which I had innocently excited in the
mind of my new acquaintance. In this state of embarrassment I took a
young man's way out of the difficulty, and spoke lightly of a serious
thing.

"I became acquainted with your deaf Lodger, Cristel, under ridiculous
circumstances. He saw us talking last night, and did me the honor to be
jealous of me."

I had expected to see her blush. To my surprise she turned pale, and
vehemently remonstrated.

"Don't laugh, sir! There's nothing to be amused at in what you have just
told me. You didn't go into his room last night? Oh, what made you do