There was a strong wish on the part of Mrs. Morley to bring about the
union of these two. She had a great regard and a great admiration for
both. To her mind, unconscious of all Graham's doubts and prejudices,
they were exactly suited to each other. A man of intellect so cultivated
as Graham's, if married to a commonplace English "Miss," would surely
feel as if life had no sunshine and no flowers. The love of an Isaura
would steep it in sunshine, pave it with flowers. Mrs. Morley admitted
--all American Republicans of gentle birth do admit--the instincts which
lead "like" to match with "like," an equality of blood and race. With
all her assertion of the Rights of Woman, I do not think that Mrs. Morley
would ever have conceived the possibility of consenting that the richest
and prettiest and cleverest girl in the States could become the wife of a
son of hers if the girl had the taint of negro blood, even though shown
nowhere save the slight distinguishing hue of her finger-nails. So had
Isaura's merits been threefold what they were and she had been the
wealthy heiress of a retail grocer, this fair Republican would have
opposed (more strongly than many an English duchess, or at least a Scotch
duke, would do, the wish of a son), the thought of an alliance between
Graham Vane and the grocer's daughter! But Isaura was a Cicogna, an
offspring of a very ancient and very noble house. Disparities of
fortune, or mere worldly position, Mrs. Morley supremely despised. Here
were the great parities of alliance,--parities in years and good looks
and mental culture. So, in short, she in the invitation given to them
had planned for the union between Isaura and Graham. To this plan she
had an antagonist, whom she did not even guess, in Madame Savarin. That
lady, as much attached to Isaura as was Mrs. Morley herself, and still
more desirous of seeing a girl, brilliant and parentless, transferred
from the companionship of Signora Venosta to the protection of a husband,
entertained no belief in the serious attentions of Graham Vane. Perhaps
she exaggerated his worldly advantages, perhaps she undervalued the