A PAGE FROM MYTHOLOGY BY THE WAY AND A LETTER A man's brain can accept only so many blows or surprises at one time; after that he becomes dazed, incapable of lucid thought.

At this moment it seemed to the Chevalier that he was passing through some extravagant dream.

The marquis was unreal; yonder was a vapor assuming the form of a woman.

He stared patiently, waiting for the dream to dissolve.
He was staring into a beautiful face, lively, yet possessing that unmarred serenity which the Greeks gave to their female statues; but it was warm as living flesh is warm.

Every feature expressed nobility in the catholic sense of the word; the proud, delicate nose, the amiable, curving mouth, the firm chin and graceful throat.