pidity and presence of mind, forming so good an example of conduct in similar danger, be concealed? The princess shewed all the calm courage, at prospect of death, for which the house of Brunswick is justly celebrated.

My father took me into Norfolk, when he went to the last Swaffham coursing meeting. You remember how he laughed, when you, with your French naïvéte, were trying to learn from him what noblemen did at the Swaffham meetings; and at last you came to the conclusion, that they made dogs run races! Ah! ma pauvre Leontine, what they do there, I do not know; for English gentlemen exclude ladies from their diversions, when they congregate at Swaffham and Newmarket, and they often quit those places in a perfect state of exasperation. I was left at an old hall, on the verge of the most dismal heath you ever beheld, a glorious sporting district, as my father and my brother called it. I consoled myself by reading all Horace Walpole's abuse of Norfolk, and its vile field-sports. My friend the hostess, in order to dissipate my ennui, took me to Norwich, to hear Professor Sedgwick's able geological lectures. I was exceedingly entertained, though, truly, geology is awfully blue; the deepest dye that any lady can take, excepting political economy: n'importe. preferred the professor's antediluvian monsters to those vile dogs and horses. I suspect the professor is in love with the memory of a plessio saurus: he compared this darling monster of his to the figure of a lady; I wonder whether he had ever looked at one? But notwithstanding this heresy, I was delighted with the easy and eloquent manner in which he communicated his vast stores of knowledge.

1 far

I have, my dear Leontine, a little secret of the toilet to communicate to you, which I learnt in the country last winter. My dentist, C, having a little alarmed me regarding the noxious salts often combined with purchased dentifrices, I had used nothing for my teeth, since last summer, but a brush and water. I thought the enamel of my teeth somewhat dimmed by this discipline, and I consulted my great aunt, Lady L—. She is a real country

lady, and the happy collector of a monstrous folio full of receipts, and she gave me out of it, one that is really excellent. My Swiss maid, Madelon, “the true little dove that serveth me," whom you recommended as my suivante, was busy under my directions, a whole snowy morning in February, preparing this dentifrice. You are to take some cuttings of the vine in winter, and burn them to charcoal, and quench them in a basin of water, then dry them on a piece of paper before the fire, and when quite dry, let them be rolled between paper with a glass rolling pin, till reduced to the most impalpable powder.

When the teeth are brushed with this powder, the whiteness given is exquisite; but Lady L- told me not to use that, nor any other charcoal, oftener than once in a fortnight. The charcoal produced from the vine twigs is of the tenderest quality, and does not scratch the teeth. Lady L gave me another receipt, good for the complexion. Don't be alarmed, cara, it is nothing in the contraband shape of paint or pearl-powders; of which, though you are une belle Francaise, you have a true English horror. My good relative would die rather than offer such a temptation to her great niece, because she considers all ladies who use rouge in the light of painted Jezabels; and, like Maude, in “Old Mortality," would" rather testify in the grassmarket," than commit such an enormity: and I,-why really, I have too much taste as an artist, to give an opaque effect to a cheek which is, when painted by nature, semi-transparent. Ladies whorouge, forget that they apply to the outside of the skin the effect that nature gives to the inside; and hence the heavy, staring, dolllike look which art gives to the faces of those who use it. As to my receipt for the complexion, you shall have it in my next epistle: Madelon and I have not yet compounded the preparation.

Adieu, my dear friend, the season has scarcely dawned upon us of the metropolis of the west, while yours is upon the wane. Now Easter is ended, my intelligence will be better worth receiving. Till then, fare thee well.-Thine ever,

G―― Square. BEATRICE S——.

Il parait décidé ma chère amie, that the flat sleeves should supersede those that have been so long worn, especially en grande toilette. For ball or dinner dresses, none other is to be seen; and a few, but not a great

many, of our elegantes are adopting them also in morning costume.

:

Short Sleeves.-The sleeve on the top of the shoulder is perfectly tight some are like the sleeve of a man's coat, quite plain for a short distance below the shoulder; aud

others are plaited down tight, which has the same effect, but looks perhaps better; one or two sabots not very full, and then another plain piece fitting tight to the arm with either a quilling of narrow satin ribbon, or a blonde garniture, completes the sleeve, which must be tolerably short to be fashionable. Some of them are plain all the way down, and are fancifully ornamented with puffings of crape, gauze, blonde, or bows of ribbon.

Long Sleeves.--Although the long flat sleeves are infinitely less worn than the short ones, there is ten times more variety in them. I shall endeavour to describe a few of those that appear to me the prettiest. Some are plain at the shoulder, like those I have just told you of, with one or two sabots above the elbow, the remainder of the sleeve fitting tight to the arm; others are plain at the top, with one sabot above the elbow, the sleeve there as tight as possible to the arm at some distance below the elbow; another puff or sabot, not quite so large as that at top; the remainder of the sleeve to the wrist quite tight. Some are à la Francois I., in from five to eight puffs the whole length of the sleeve, the top of the sleeve always plain; the puffs in silk dresses are separated by narrow bands of the same material as the dress: if the latter has a coloured liseré (piping), the liserés on the bands are of course to match. In white muslin dresses these bands may be in entre deux (insertion), or else they may be lined with coloured ribbon, to match the ceinture, neck ribbon, &c. &c. I have seen some of these sleeves with four or five puffs above the elbow, then a space left tight to the arm for a short distance both above and below the elbow, and then four or five smaller puffs; the sleeve finished by a very deep poignet or wristband. It is still said that these sleeves will not be much adopted in summer dresses, such as coloured muslins, &c.; they certainly answer better for silk than for any others.

Dresses. Nearly all the new spring dresses are made en redingotte; those of silk with a plain corsage, with or without draperies, put on the former more general than the latter: the back either quite tight or with a little fulness at the lower part, in the centre of the back spreading en eventail, which gives much grace to the figure. These dresses open either in the centre of the front, or at the left side; they are edged all round with a narrow liseré of a different colour from the dress, and are tied down with bows of ribbon to match. The sleeves are either such as I have already described, or else full all the way down. Pelerines are still worn with these dresses, but they are not by any means as general as they have been. Mousselines de laine, mousselines de soie, and foulard satins, are very much worn, just now, as the weather is yet rather too cold for white and coloured muslins. I have seen several

rich figured silk dresses, which you know are almost always de mode, and look beautiful.

Hats. The hats are still very large, the fronts evasées, and forming a very large round to the face; the fronts of the hats descend very low at the sides, the calottes (crowns) are plain at top, and the bavolets immensely full, and set on in gathers; but the bornets that make fureur at present are drawn capottes of poux de soie. They are trim med with foulard ribbons, and some with flowers both in the bonnet and beneath the front. Hats of paille de riz are again coming in this spring; they are mostly ornamented with feathers. Flowers are very much worn under the fronts of the bonnets; some coming down at the sides, some only at top over the brow, and others merely a small bouquet at the temples; the flowers preferred are hedgeroses, Provence roses, and daisies.

New Materials.-The newest materials for dresses are poux de soie, figured, striped, and cross-barred: these are frequently of two colours, or two shades of the same colour.

Plaid gros de Naples.-In large and small

squares.

Gros des Indes.-A thick ribbed silk for walking dresses.

Gros de Mascara, broché or quadrillé.— A rich silk in the style of gros de Naples broché, all over in flowers.

Mousseline de laine, à dessins confus: these are generally coloured grounds with white flowers.

Tissue de poil de chèvre; a material in the style of Cachemerienne, with or without figured satin stripes.

La peau de chagrin.-A silk with very narrow stripes, and satin spots at distances.

Besides these, there are plain and watered gros de Naples; the latter seem to be coming in again, and the greatest possible variety in coloured muslins; but it is as yet rather premature to speak of muslins.

Mantelets, Shawls, and Scarfs, of taffetas or gros d'Antwerp, as it is now called, black, and trimmed all round with black lace, are becoming more and more fashionable every day. I have described them so frequently, that I need not do so again.

Lingerie. In this department there are many nouveautés. We have shawls for the summer (half squares) of thin white muslin, embroidered in a rich border, with a sprig or bouquet in the corner at the back, and lined with pink, blue, or paille silk: they are trimmed on both sides with a deep white lace put on full, especially at the corner; the front or inner side is merely trimmed with a lace edging; a slope is taken out of the neck, and a large falling collar, embroidered, trimmed with lace, and lined with silk, is put on. These very elegant shawls are likely to become very prevalent this summer.

Mantelets of white muslin, or tulle lined with coloured silk, are also coining in. The