Her sole
ornaments were a diamond star in the hair and an antique gold circlet
on one of her bare arms. The white dress, trimmed on one side of the
bosom to the opposite side of the waist with a garland of artificial
flowers, looked simple, yet very elegant. The eye of the most critical
woman could find no fault in the harmony of the toilette, the coldest
man could not avert his gaze from the head, which constantly called
forth the two comparisons to a Greek cameo, or a nixie, comparisons
which the beautiful woman was compelled to hear so often that they
seemed unbearably commonplace.
The young lieutenant--a count--who sat at her left hand, was probably
whispering something of the sort into her little ear, for her face
assumed a repellently cold, bored expression, and her eyes were fixed
dreamily on vacancy,--many times farther away than the earth from the
sun,--from her gallant neighbor, the table, and the hall. But
Bergmann's gaze must have followed her all this distance, for it
suddenly met hers, and the tall, grave fellow flushed under her pensive
glance.
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