"I am sorry, father (said the abbess), that these are your sentiments, for they are not mine; but if Albertina prefers returning a beggar to'

"A beggar' repeated the father. "Yes (said the abbess, firmly), a beggar; for by the will of her father, the convent where she takes her vows is to possess her fortune; and as she well knows that he never would have sanctioned her returning to the world, she surely cannot think of claiming, the deceased signor's property, which it is evident he meant to employ in the service of the church,'

"And can you then (cried the father in a tone of indignation), think of appropriating the possessions of this orphan

"No, Father Velasquez (replied the abbess), I call Heaven to witness that, should she prefer any other convent to ours, I would with pleasure resign' the hope of enriching ourselves; but the

Virgin forbid, that when I have the power to punish, I should reward sacrilege; were I to do so, I should consider myself as an abettor in the crime."'

"The benevolent father saw that it would be vain to argue with the abbess; he knew the disposition of the holy mother of St. Catherine's; but that she should think of enriching the convent, by appropriating to it the whole possessions of the hapless Albertina, was so glaring an act of injustice, that he wondered at her open avowal of it.

"Poor Albertina! (said he, mentally); in a convent thou wilt be miserable; yet what other asylum hast thou? thy youth and loveliness would be but snares. to thee in a world, where without friends or fortune, thou must be wretched.'

"But when Albertina again knelt at the confessional; when the father saw her lovely form withered by secret sorrow; the resolution he had made to be silent gave way to the emotions of pity

with which his heart was filled; and he mildly asked her the cause of her dejection.

"A burning blush suffused her cheek, but it almost instantly gave place to an ashy paleness, and she hesitated how to reply.

Oh!

"I fear, my child, that you are not happy in your mind (said Velasquez); the death of your father was I know a severe stab to your tranquillity, but there is something more, I am convinced, that presses upon your spirits.' "Albertina burst into tears: holy father (cried she), I scarcely dare own it even to myself, but though I have from my infancy known that I was destined to a monastic life, yet I feel an unaccountable repugnance to it; yet, what can I do? Alas! I was even before my birth a destined victim'

"She stopped, frightened at what had escaped her.

"I know not what to say to you, my child, (cried Velasquez); I think it

might be possible to obtain from the church a dispensation for your mother's vow; which, in strict justice, I know not that you are obliged to fulfil; but what, my poor child, could you do in the world? The abbess, I fear, possesses a power which she is determined to exercise, of appropriating the fortune of your late father to the use of her convent; you have no relations on whose bounty you might rely for protection and sup port; what, therefore, I must repeat, would become of you?'

"At the mention that it was possible for her to avoid a monastic life, the eyes of Albertina sparkled with joy; but when the father painted what her situation must be in the world, their lustre was again dimmed by tears.

"Try, Albertina (said the friar), to reconcile your mind, if possible, to the destiny your parents intended you for; but if you cannot, yet let your spirits not sink in despair; remember, my child, that you are not obliged to take

the veil immediately: you may take your own time to decide, and Heaven may, and I hope will, restore your mind to peace.'

"The father now bestowed upon her his benediction, and she departed. Velasquez was the confessor of the Marquise Tivoli, one of the richest and most benevolent women in Naples:

Though pious, the marquise is no bigot; she has no children, (thought Velasquez), and her near relations are not people who would be envious of her bounty to an orphan; if she did but interest herself for Albertina, the poor child would be saved from the gloomy fate that otherwise awaits her.'

"Father Velasquez was a true dísciple of that meek Saviour, who “went about doing good:" he lost no time in speaking of Albertina to the marquise, and he pleaded her cause so powerfully, that the benevolent marquise resolved to afford the young orphan her protection; provided that Albertina gained permis