"Who pleasure follows pleasure slays; God's wrath upon himself he wreaks; But all delights rejoice his days Who takes with thanks, yet never seeks." COVENTRY PATMORE. Two days after this, I was surprised by the appearance on my plate, at breakfast, of two notes. The first proved to be an invitation for a party from a Mrs. Humphrey, cards for which Mrs. and Miss Churchill had received a week ago. "Well!" exclaimed Josephine, unceremoniously, "I wonder what inspired Mrs. Humphrey to send you an invitation." "It would be difficult to say," I returned, taking up the second. "Certainly no suggestion from you." "Alps on Alps!" exclaimed Grace, looking over my shoulder. "Tickets for the Charity Ball! What next?" "What, indeed," I said. "John, some more sugar in my coffee, if you please." "Really, you don't seem much excited by your invitations. I suppose you don't intend to accept them?" "Accept them!" echoed Josephine. "What an idea! It would be perfectly absurd to think of it, when it's understood that she's not out yet." "I think I'll risk that," I answered, decidedly. "If Aunt Edith has no objection, I will avail myself of any invitations that I may receive for the next ten days. After that, Lent, you know, will decide the matter for us all." "You must follow the dictates of your own judgment," returned my aunt, coldly. "Staying at home was your own choice, going out is at your own option." "I know, dear aunt," I replied, with unaltered _sang froid_, "that you would do anything to indulge me in anything reasonable, and as I have quite set my heart upon this, I am sure you will not make any objection to it. You are the last person to put anything in the way of my pleasure and advantage." "Pleasure and advantage are not always synonymous terms, my dear. What you might be pleased to consider pleasure, I might look upon as anything but advantageous, you know." "Oh! we shall not differ as to that, I fancy. You cannot be more careful of me than of Josephine, and she has certainly tested pretty thoroughly the merits of the question. I should not think of going out as she does, to two or three parties of an evening, and spending the intervening hours of daylight in bed; but just three or four balls before the season closes, to see what it's all like, I really must enjoy, with your permission." "Or without it," muttered Josephine. "You have enough _aplomb_ to sustain you in that or any other impertinence you might undertake." "Josephine," said her mother, sternly, "you forget yourself. My dear," to me, "you know I shall put no obstacle in the way of your enjoyment. You have my full permission to do as you think best." "Thank you," I answered; "and I have the greatest desire to go to one of these mammoth charity balls. How lucky that it comes to-night, and that Mrs. Humphrey's is to-morrow, so that I can go to both." "In what, if I may ask," said Grace, "do you propose appearing?"