and is spurned by the old Count,” said the lady, as they joined the dance.  The revel was at its height when a priest appeared, and withdrawing the young pair to an alcove, hung with purple velvet, he motioned them to kneel.  Instant silence fell on the gay throng, and not a sound, but the dash of fountains or the rustle of orange groves sleeping in the moonlight, broke the hush, as Count de Adelon spoke thus: 

“My lords and ladies, pardon the ruse by which I have gathered you here to witness the marriage of my daughter.  Father, we wait your services.”  All eyes turned toward the bridal party, and a murmur of amazement went through the throng, for neither bride nor groom removed their masks.  Curiosity and wonder possessed all hearts, but respect restrained all tongues till the holy rite was over.  Then the eager spectators gathered round the count, demanding an explanation.

“Gladly would I give it if I could, but I only know that it was the whim of my timid Viola, and I yielded to it.  Now, my children, let the play end.  Unmask and receive my blessing.”

But neither bent the knee, for the young bridegroom replied in a tone that startled all listeners as the mask fell, disclosing the noble face of Ferdinand Devereux, the artist lover, and leaning on the breast where now flashed the star of an English earl was the lovely Viola, radiant with joy and beauty.

“My lord, you scornfully bade me claim your daughter when I could boast as high a name and vast a fortune as the Count Antonio.  I can do more, for even your ambitious soul cannot refuse the Earl of Devereux and De Vere, when he gives his ancient name and boundless wealth in return for the beloved hand of this fair lady, now my wife.”

The count stood like one changed to stone, and turning to the bewildered crowd, Ferdinand added, with a gay smile of triumph, “To you, my gallant friends, I can only wish that your wooing may prosper as mine has done, and that you may all win as fair a bride as I have by this masked marriage.”  S. Pickwick

    Why is the P. C. like the Tower of Babel? 
    It is full of unruly members.

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    The history of A squash

Once upon a time a farmer planted a little seed in his garden, and after a while it sprouted and became a vine and bore many squashes.  One day in October, when they were ripe, he picked one and took it to market.  A gorcerman bought and put it in his shop.  That same morning, a little girl in a brown hat and blue dress, with a round face and snub nose, went and bought it for her mother.  She lugged it home, cut it up, and boiled it in the big pot, mashed some of it with salt and butter, for dinner.  And to the rest she added a pint of milk, two eggs, four spoons of sugar, nutmeg, and some crackers, put it in a deep dish, and baked it till it was brown