MADAME LA MARQUISE.*

Madame la Marquise is a very clever book, and at the same time a. very disappointing on.; for while the first volume is fresh, spark- ling, and interesting, the second and third, though they manage to.

retain much of these qualities, are so needlessly spun out and so. marred by frequent discussions on religion, one of which is carried

on in the midst of a hot flirtation, as to become at times absolutely wearisome. Perhaps this may be fairly laid to the charge of the. mysterious rule which seems to insist on all novels being published in three volumes ; but we wish the author had had strength of mind to refuse to bow to this Gessler's cap of the publishers or the public.. However, there is so much originality of observation, so much dis- cernment of character, in parts so much power, to be found in thern

book, that it is worth while to toil over the wastes of sand in order to arrive at the oases. The opening scene, a very pretty descrip- tion of a fête at the convent of the Saud Cur at Mont- pellier, introduces us to Adrienne de Motteville, the heroine,, to her cousin Agnes, who is contrasted with her throughout,. and to Henri, brother of Agues. These three characters, Adrienne, with her sweet, trustful simplicity her yet unacknow- ledged capacity of love and longing for love, the want of which she has to endure so long ; Agues, beautiful, good-natured, selfish, utterly heartless, yet with something about her that induces us tee pity rather than despise her ; Heusi, full of devotion and of sup- pressed passion, are cleverly indicated at the beginning and well sustained to the end. The idle chatter of the two girls, and the. more serious talk of their parents over the impending events of the marriage of Adrienne to the Marquis de Falloux, courtly, old, and rich, and of Agnes to the Couut,, also rich, but young and handsome, prepares us in some measure for what is to come. Poor Adrienne I Entirely ignorant of the world and its ways, she looks forward to her marriage as a releaso. from the strict discipline of the convent life; she has only one fear, and that is that she may feel dull. Her arrival at Falloux, the Marquis's chateau, is the first shock ; a cold air seems to breathe from the description of her reception in the " company rooms" by Mdlle. de Falloux, her sister-in-law, a very awful and. ceremonious old lady, who, accustomed to rule her brother in all things, has been astounded at his sudden obstinacy in taking a. wife contrary to his sister's wish, and receives his young bride with the most chilling stateliness and decorum. The disagree- able promise of her first greeting of Adrienne is amply fulfilled by her conduct afterwards ; her continued infliction of her presence on Adrienne, impelled by a dreadful desire for her improvement,

would soon render life intolerable to the Marquise, but for the appearance of a new personage, the charm of whose society breaks

the chill and dullness which are beginning to weigh down Adrienne.. This personage, one of the best drawn and most interesting in the book, is a large dog, by name Moses. The commencement of his relations with his mistress is very characteristic. She bee stopped in passing the stables to look at the horses and talk to. Jerome, the coachman :—

" As Adrienne was leaving the courtyard something large and soft ran up against her. She looked round ii.nd saw a quaint-looking dog, quite black, very long curly hair, and hie bend so covered that it waa difficult to see either eyes or nose. Ho was large, about the size of lb sheep."

She inquires why she has not seen him before, and Jdrenne replies that he has probably been at Toulon, as there has been a review there, and Moses is very fond of sights :—

"'You are not in earnest, Jdriline, are you?' asked Adrienne, at the same time stooping down to the dog.— Don't touch him, Madame,' exclaimed Jerome hastily, ` he is not to be depended on till he knows you. Oa yea I I am quite in earnest ; Moses would have gone to Paris to see the grand wedding, had it not been too far.' While the coachman Misspeak- * Madame to Marquise. By the author of "Dada Singleton," "Altogether Wrong,' "A Winter Tour in t$pain," Sc. Loudon. Tinsley Brothers. Ling, Moses looked up in Adrienne's face with a serio-comic expression ; his long hair fell back from his head, and you saw two largo brown eyes. They were beautiful oyes. He seemed satisfied with his inspection, for be jumped up on Adrienne, his fore-paws nearly reaching her shoulders. For a moment she felt alarmed, fearing the dog might By at her. JerCime called him off and was about to drive him down, when the dog began to lick Adrienne's hand, and then throwing his head back, gave forth a prolonged sound, something between a howl and a bark."

From this moment a warm attachment springs up between Adrienne and Moses, who is a dog capable of most intense devo- tion to one person (indeed, he meets with his death, which we cannot but regard as a needless and cruel piece of tragedy, in diverting to himself the rage of a furious bull who is about to attack Adrienne), but bent on having his own way with everyone oleo, so that he gets the Marquise into scrape after scrape, especially with her sister-in-law, whose bête noire he becomes. So bitter against Adrienne is this dreadful old lady, that when Henri de Mot- teville comes to pay a visit at the chateau, she does her best to make the Marquis believe that he is in love with Adrienne and that she returns his love. Meanwhile we have an episode of a young priest, who is taking the duty of the cure in the village, and who really is desperately in love with Adrienne.

The description of his painful struggles between his duty and Cis overmastering passion, which finally drives him to suicide, and the unhappy story of his life, which he tells to Adrienne on his .death-bed, exhibit more po wer and more depth of feeling than th e rest of the book would lead us to expect. As a relief to the tragedy of this incident, we have the visit of Agnes de Motteville to the chateau. Her presence works an entire change ; she coaxes the Marquis into submission to all her whims, and avenges Adrienne's wrongs by riding roughshod over all the pet prejudices of Mdlle. de Falloux. She is assisted by Moses in wearing out the last remnants of the old lady's patience, and accomplishing her com- plete discomfiture. A passage-of-arms has just taken place between the young and old lady, impertinence on the one side, insolence on the other

will not sit in the room with that brute' suddenly exclaimed Adele, who with the rest was now sitting at the breakfast-table.—' Whet 'brute ?--me?' said Agnes at once, really not quite sure whether she did not mean her, especially as she saw no one to whom it could apply. 'Brother,' continued the distressed lady not heeding the countess, you know my antipathy to that dog, and yet you sit there quiet, never attempting to turn him out.'—' What dog Adele ? I don't know what you mean. I see no dog,' replied the Marquis.—'No but I feel him,' she shrieked out now, and starting up from her chair, 'got away, you beast, look here—at my new dress I Did you ever see anything like it ? 'Oh, M. le Comte, I conjure you to help me ; look here, I shall bo torn to pieces I am ashamed of you, brother. Beast—brute—get away!' and at length Mdlle. de Falloux, who had vainly endeavoured to make Moses leave his hold of her dress, which he had torn to ribbons in several Discos, now took up a large knife, and would doubtless in the fury of the moment have reeked Isle] her vengeance on him, if her brother had cot seized her arm and so saved the dog's life!"

This passage reminds us that there is one grave fault throughout the book—a reckless disregard of grammar. Such phrases as "she shrieked out, and starting from her chair," ending a sentence, occur with unpardonable frequency. After this last feat of Moses the party breaks up and goes to Paris, Mdlle de Falloux alone re- maining behind. The second volume introduces us to Adrienne's English relations, and notably to her cousin Ivor Trevor, the (hero. He is evidently intended to be a young man who combines a powerful intellect and earnestness of purpose with an irresistible charm of manner, but he is in reality little better than a disagree- able combination of a prig and a flirt. We find him in the depths of despair because, having left the Army as being too idle a pro- fession for his great views, for the Church, he suddenly finds that this conscience is unequal to the strain of ordination. After some wavering, he makes up his mind, and tells his father that he cannot income a clergyman because "lie does not think all that is taught in our Church is correct." This determination causes the greatest grief to his father, a clergyman himself, whose ambition is to see Ivor following his own profession ; there is great disturbance throughout the Trevor family, and finally Ivor determines to travel to improve his mind. His travels bring him to Paris, and he is no sooner arrived there than he makes love hotly and (indiscriminately to both his married cousins. Adrienne's heart is really touched, but his interview with Agnes serves to bring out the best side of her character. After this performance he starts for the Holy Land. Adrienne and her husband go to stay with the Trevors, and while they are there, Philip Trevor, Ivor's uncle,

writes him a letter describing an incident in Moses' career which is too good not to be quoted :—

"It was one morning as we were about to sit down to breakfast, the man-servant the Marquis brought with him came into the room and spoke man undertone to Adrienne. I saw the inan's face foretold no very serious matter, for apparently it was all he could do to keep serious.

Adrienne, however, looked very much frightened, and rose quickly from the table. Grandpapa, excuse me a moment ; Moses —' and before I heard more she was outside the room. The Marquis raised his eye-

brows. That dog,' he said, will one day do something for which tie will be hanged !'—' What is it?' I asked.—' Indeed,' he replied, 'I did not hoar more than you did, I suppose.' I suggested our going to see, and we were but just in time to witness the strangest sight you ever saw in your life. Adrienne was at the hall door, and Moses holding iii his great, huge, ugly mouth a little baby, not more than a fortnight old. Outside and coining up were some ton or a dozen people, armed with

sticks and hay-forks, and two of them had guns. What is all this ?' I exclaimed.—' Oh, grandpapa,' cried Adrienne,' I know what it all means. Moses has stolen a baby.' "

Poor Moses! this is his last exploit before his death :-

" A truer or more devoted dog never lived. His instinct was such that it approached nearer to reason than with many a human being. There was the same something wanting in him that is missing in woman,—a something that, if possessed, would render him perfect."

In the last volume we find Ivor Trevor lingering at Vevay with two or three friends and travelling acquaintances, minor characters who are all very cleverly sketched ; the scene in which Miss Sinclair pro- poses to Gerard Mousley, being exquisitely funny. From Vevay Ivor goes on to Granada, while his two cousins, Adrienne and Agnes, whose husband has been kind enough to die, so as to leave him a clear stage, travel to Naples, of which, as of the other places through which they pass, we have a very picturesque description. Here Ivor meets them, and the complications which arise from this meeting we leave those who wish to read what is really a very interesting novel to find out for themselves. The death of the Marquis de Fallout, which occurs not long after this, and just as he and Adrienne have learnt to know and appreciate each other, is very pathetic.

Novels may be divided into four classes, — those in which the characters and events are natural and uninteresting ; those in which they are interesting and unnatural ; those in which they are both unnatural and uninteresting ; and those in which they are both natural and interesting ; and, on the whole, Madame la Marquise belongs to the last of these.