“The father never came again.  The child, finding herself after a certain length of time thrown upon the charity of her former instructors, was glad to become under-teacher in their school.  The rest of her history may be told in a few words.  From under-teacher she became head-teacher, and at eighteen passed as governess into a private family.  At twenty she removed to Paris, and set foot for the first time in the land of her fathers.  All was now changed in France.  The Bourbons reigned again, and her father, had he reappeared, might have reclaimed his lost estates.  She sought him far and near.  She employed agents to discover him.  She could not believe that he was dead.  To be once again clasped in his arms—­to bring him back to his native country—–­to see him resume his name and station—­this was the bright dream of her life.  To accomplish these things she labored in many ways, teaching and writing; for Hortense also was proud—­too proud to put forward an unsupported claim.  For with her father were lost the title-deeds and papers that might have made the daughter wealthy, and she had no means of proving her identity.  Still she labored heartily, lived poorly, and earned enough to push her inquiries far and wide—­even to journey hither and thither, whenever she fancied, alas! that a clue had been found.  Twice she travelled into Switzerland, and once into Italy, but always in vain.  The exile had too well concealed, even from her, his sobriquet and his calling, and Hortense at last grew weary of failure.  One fact, however, she succeeded in discovering, and only one—­namely, that her father had, many years before, made some attempt to establish his claims to the estates, but that he had failed for want either of sufficient proof, or of means to carry on the proces.  Of even this circumstance only a meagre law-record remained, and she could succeed in learning no more.  Since then, a claim has been advanced by a remote branch of the Sainte Aulaire family, and the cause is, even now, in course of litigation.”

She paused, as if fatigued by so long talking; but, seeing me about to speak, prevented me with a gesture of the hand, and resumed:—­

“Hortense de Ste. Aulaire continued to live in Paris for nearly five years, at the end of which time she left it to seek out the members of her mother’s family.  Finding them kindly disposed towards her, she took up her abode amongst them in the calm seclusion of a remote Scotch town.  There, even there, she still hoped, still employed agents; still yearned to discover, if not her father, at least her father’s grave.  Several years passed thus.  She continued to earn a modest subsistence by her pen, till at length the death of one of those Scotch relatives left her mistress of a small inheritance.  Money was welcome, since it enabled her to pursue her task with renewed vigor.  She searched farther and deeper.  A trivial circumstance eagerly followed up brought a train of other circumstances to light.