A crystal lamp, suspended from the arched ceiling of a lofty chamber, shed a soft moonlight over the silken tapestry of the bridal bed where Ryno was slumbering upon the bosom of the happy Aliande. The beauteous bride was watching the peaceful slumber of her beloved partner with mingled and undefinable feelings of joy and sorrow, when she suddenly heard a rustling of the drapery, and immediately the well known form of the sorceress stood before her. 'You are happy, Aliande?' she asked. 'Unspeakably!' murmured Aliande, hiding her blushing cheek in the bosom of her faithful foster-mother. 'Does your heart suggest no wish yet ungratified?' 'Only one!' timidly answered the lovely bride. 'Yet one?' rejoined the astonished Hiorba. 'Thus it is with poor mortals. Upon the highest pinnacle of earthly happiness they are still tormented by insatiable aspirations. Confide your secret wish to me, my daughter.' 'During the bridal supper, as my husband was giving a rapid sketch of his knightly adventures, and painting the charms of the various damsels he had saved, in glowing colors, I began to fear that I--perhaps soon--might be no longer the _only_ object of his love.' 'Already jealous, Aliande, on this your bridal night!....' 'Death, rather than a rival!' 'What is your wish of me?' asked Hiorba. 'To relieve me from the torture of uncertainty, I desire a faithful monitor which shall inform me when Ryno kneels before strange altars, that I may win back the idol of my heart with redoubled love, or,--learn to despise and scorn the inconstant.' 'An unfriendly star rules over both you and me,' said Hiorba in a desponding tone. 'I am convinced that the fulfilment of this wish will make you most miserable, and yet I am constrained by a power greater than my own to grant it.' She stamped upon the floor, and immediately two hideous gnomes appeared with a time-piece made of the most costly materials, curiously wrought into the form of a temple of Venus. 'Take this production of magic art,' said Hiorba, 'but conceal it carefully from your husband, lest in the exasperation of conscious guilt he should destroy his innocent accuser. This clock will always stand still, this bell will always remain silent, and this mirror will reflect only your own features, so long as Ryno remains true to his vows; but should he ever yield to the common vice of his sex, voluptuous melodies will issue from the temple, the index will indicate the time, and the crystal mirror will reflect the image of the favored rival.' Aliande was about to express her gratitude, but Hiorba interrupted her. 'Thank me not,--for with this present you receive enduring sorrow and late repentance. Soon shall I greet you a second time, but then it will be in tears.' She spoke, and disappeared. CHAPTER VIII.