The sound of kettle-drums, and the flourish of trumpets, inspired Corinne with new feelings--her eyes were filled with tears--she sat down a moment, and covered her face with her handkerchief.

Oswald, most sensibly affected, quitted the crowd, and advanced to speak to her, but was withheld by an invincible embarrassment.

Corinne looked at him for some time, taking care nevertheless, that he should not observe the attention she paid him; but when the Prince Castel-Forte came to take her hand, in order to conduct her to the car, she yielded to his politeness with an absent mind; and, while she permitted him to hand her along, turned her head several times, under various pretexts, to take another view of Oswald.
He followed her, and at the moment when she descended the steps accompanied by her train, she made a retrograde movement, in order to behold him once more, when her crown fell off.

Oswald hastened to pick it up; and in restoring it to her, said in Italian, that an humble mortal like himself might venture to place at the feet of a goddess that crown which he dared not presume to place on her head[6].

Corinne thanked Lord Nelville in English, with that pure national accent--that pure insular accent, which has scarcely ever been successfully imitated on the continent.