from
the action, it seemed inevitable that he should have fallen into the hands of
the bloody Holkerstein; and under circumstances which would point him out to the
vengeance of that cruel ruffian - as having been the leader in the powerful
resistance which had robbed him of his prey.
    Stung with the sense of her irreparable loss, and the premature grief which
had blighted her early hopes, Paulina sought her refuge in solitude, and her
consolations in religion. In the convent, where she had found a home, the
ceremonies of the Roman Catholic service were maintained with the strictness and
the pomp suitable to its ample endowments. The Emperor had himself, as well as
several of his progenitors, been a liberal benefactor to this establishment. And
a lady of his house, therefore, recommended by a special introduction from the
Emperor to the attentions of the Lady Abbess, was sure of meeting kindness and
courtesy in every possible shape which could avail to mitigate her sorrow. The
Abbess, though a bigot, was a human being, with strong human sensibilities; and
in both characters she was greatly pleased with the Lady Paulina. On the one
hand, her pride, as the head of a religious establishment, was flattered by the
extreme regularity of the Lady Paulina in conforming to the ritual of her house;
this example of spiritual obedience and duty seemed peculiarly edifying in a
person of such distinguished rank. On the other hand, her womanly sensibilities
were touched by the spectacle of early and unmerited sorrow in one so eminent
for her personal merits - for her extreme beauty, and the winning sweetness of
her manners. Hence she readily offered to the young Countess all the attentions
and marks of sympathy which her retiring habits permitted, and every species of
indulgence compatible with the spirit of the institution.
    The whole convent, nuns as well as strangers, taking their tone from the
Abbess, vied with each other in attentions to Paulina. But, whilst acknowledging
their kindness, she continued to shrink from all general intercourse with the
society about her. Her attendance was constant at the matins and at vespers; not
unfrequently even at the midnight service; but dejection was too rooted in her
heart to allow her any disposition to enter into the amusements or mixed society
which the convent at that time offered.
    Many noble strangers had been allowed to take up their quarters in the
convent. With some of these the Abbess was connected by blood, with others by
ties of ancient friendship. Most of this party composed a little society apart
from the rest, and continued to pursue those amusements or occupations which
properly belonged to their stations and quality, but