dress and manner, together with my ignorance of the Swedish language, had rather a favorable effect. She certainly looked complimented and gratified. I saw her turn round her head as we stood up, and laugh at the other girls, which I interpreted to mean that she, of all in the room, had succeeded in catching the distinguished stranger. Well, the music started-it was a German waltz. I stood holding on to my partner as the ivy clings to the solid oak. Never did I feel so firm a girl. Had she been formed of lead she could not have felt more substantial. Now, thought I, away we'll spin over the floor, a living duet, altogether accidental, but beautiful to behold

"Like the sweet, tunes that wandering meet,

And so harmoniously they run,

The hearer dreams they are but one."

There was only one consideration that gave me any particular anxiety. Being of a light and slender figure, I had some apprehensions that in the giddy whirl of the waltz this powerful young lady might accidentally throw me out of balance and create an unpleasant scene. However, there was no time for reflection. At a given signal, away she started with tremendous energy. I did my best to whirl her round, and don't think it would be possible for any body to do any better under the circumstances; but she didn't keep time-or I didn't. Round and round the room we flew, to the inspiring strains of the music, with an undulating motion very difficult to conceive, and still more difficult to execute without danger to the other dancers. The warm blood rushed to my face; my head grew dizzy: the only thing I saw was that this style of waltzing must end in destruction to myself or somebody else. I was fairly lifted off my feet at every turn, and found myself absolutely hanging on to my partner to keep from falling. She never relaxed in her vigorous movements one moment; but as the music increased in spirit, so did she. The room was filled with waltzers. It was impossible to be flying

about in this way without hitting somebody. I knew it from the very beginning, but what could I do? The first man down was an old gentleman. I begged his pardon, and helped him up again. Next I was dashed against a young lady. She and her partner both went down. I helped them up, and begged pardon again, which was granted with great good-humor. After that, most of the waltzers began to get out of the way, so that we presently had a more enlarged scope of operations. I fancy there was something uncommon in my style of waltzing that attracted attention. It was not long before we had the entire circle to ourselves, the crowd standing around and manifesting the most intense appreciation of our efforts. All went on very well for a while, Up and down the room, and round and round we whirled, and at every whirl there was a murmur of admiration and applause. My beautiful partner shook her sides as if convulsed with an earthquake-I could feel the motion, but was unable to conjecture the cause. Possibly she was getting agitated-or it might be that sentiments of tenderness were stealing over her heart. That idea, or something else, confused me. I struck out one foot a little awkwardly. She tripped against it, whirled me half round in attempting to gain her balance, and then we fell. It was very awkward. What rendered it still more unpleasant, every body began to laugh. People always do laugh at the misfortunes of others. I would have picked the young lady up at once, or at least tried it (for she was rather heavy), but the fact is, I fell underneath, and was utterly unable to move. Had I been pinned and riveted to the floor, I could not have been in a more helpless position. A man whose natural instincts are polite is surely a subject of sympathy and commiseration under such a pressure of difficulties as this. I breathed hard, but was unable to get out a single word of apology, till, with a laugh and a bound, my fair partner regained her feet, and then she very goodnaturedly assisted me in regaining mine. Mortified be

She

yond measure, I conducted her to a seat. As I was passing out of the room soon after, a new waltz struck up. The dancers went at it again as lively as ever. I turned to see what had become of my partner. was whirling over the floor with undiminished energy in the arms of a young gentleman in military uniform. He may have been more accustomed to waltzing than I was, but I think any person present-not excepting the young lady herself-would have been willing to admit that his style did not compare with mine in force and individuality. It certainly produced no such effect upon the audience.

I walked back to town a sober and thoughtful man. This dancing business is a very foolish pastime. It may do very well for giddy and thoughtless young persons, but for men of mature years it is the height of folly. I am surprised that they should be led aside from their customary propriety by the fascinations of beauty.

The sun was just setting. Its last rays rested upon the ruined walls of the Observatory. I followed a crowd of citizens who were slowly toiling up the stone steps, and, after a pretty hard climb, was rewarded with a magnificent view of the city and surrounding country. The rocky pinnacle upon which the Observatory stands. rises some three hundred feet above the banks of the river, and overlooks a large portion of the valley of the Aurajiki. The winding waters of the river; the green fields; patches of woodland, villas, and gardens; the blue mountains in the distance, and the silent city lying like a mouldering corpse beneath, presented a scene singularly picturesque and impressive. I sat down upon the ruined walls and thought of Abo in its glory-the ancient head-quarters of Christianity in Finland; the last abiding-place of the beautiful Caroline Morsson, the peasant queen of Sweden, wife of Eric XII., who died here, and whose remains lie in the Cathedral-the city of the mighty hosts of warlike Finns who fought under the banner of Charles XII., and made a funeral pyre of their

bodies upon the bloody field of Puttara. The present Finns are of this heroic race. Not less brave, yet less fortunate than the Spartans of Thermopyla, they have lost their country and their freedom, and now groan under the oppression of a despotic government.

While thus musing on the past, a strain of delicious music broke the stillness. I rambled over the granite cliffs in the direction of the sound, and soon came to a grove of trees, with an open space in the middle, occupied by a band of musicians, who were surrounded by a group of citizens, thus pleasantly passing the summer evening. Booths and tents were scattered about in every direction, in which cakes and refreshments were to be had; and gay parties of young people were seated on long planks so arranged as to make a kind of spring seats, upon which they bounced up and down to the time of the music. Children were playing upon the grass, their merry shouts of laughter mingling pleasantly with the national air performed by the band. On the moss-covered rocks sat groups of young ladies, guarded by their amiable mothers or discreet duennas, as the case might be, trying hard not to see any of the young gentlemen who lounged about in the same vicinity; and young gentlemen prowled about puffing cigars as if they didn't care a straw whether the young ladies looked at them or not-both being, of course, according to the established usages of society, natural enemies of each other. For the life of me, I can't tell why it is that young ladies and gentlemen should be thus everlastingly at war. Would it not be better to kiss and make it up, and try, if possible, to get along peaceably through the world?

But the steamer blows her whistle-the bell rings—I must hurry on board. Good-by, dear Finns, big and little, I like you all. God bless you! Good-by old Abo, with your ancient church, and your moss-grown streets, and deserts of houses-I feel sorry for you, but I can't help it! Good-by, Russia! If I don't call again, attribute it to no want of interest in the great cause of civili

zation. Just drop me a line and let me know when the serfs are free and a constitutional government is established, and I will strain a point to pay my respects to Alexander II. I rather like the young man, and have an idea that he is capable of noble deeds and heroic sacrifices. But he must abolish his secret police, punish them for whipping women, open universities upon a liberal basis, throw the camarilla and the aristocracy overboard, quit murdering the poor Poles at Warsaw, and do several other things before he can have my support. Should he accomplish these beneficial reforms, and at any future time think proper to settle in my neighborhood, where the climate is more genial, I shall cheerfully vote for him as mayor of the city of Oakland.

CHAPTER XXIV.

STOCKHOLM.

THE passage from Abo to Stockholm occupies about eighteen hours, and in fine weather affords a constant succession of agreeable scenes. With the exception of about four hours of open sea in crossing the Gulf of Bothnia, the steamer is constantly surrounded by islands, many of them highly picturesque, and all interesting from their peculiar geological formation. Occasionally the island winds like a snake through a wilderness of naked granite boulders, round and slippery, and barely high enough out of the water to afford a foundation for a few fishermen's huts, which from time to time break the monotony of their solitude. Sometimes the channel opens out into broad lakes, apparently hemmed in on all sides by pine-covered cliffs; then passing between a series of frightful crags, upthrown, as it were, out of the water by some convulsion of nature, the surging waves lash their way through the narrow passages, and threaten each moment to ingulf the frail vessel, or dash it to atoms against the rocks. The greatest danger in mak