Mr.Percy smiled rather contemptuously.
"Do these accidents often happen ?" he asked.
"Dear me! no.

I never knew anything to go wrong where Elise had the management, before.

But I must go and look if they are coming." He hurried out, but scarcely passed the doorway when the lost musicians appeared, under the guidance of Maurice and Henry Scott.

They were not, perhaps, quite beyond suspicion as to sobriety, but there was no fear of their being unable to do their duty reasonably well.

The happy news of their arrival being made known by the commencement of a vigorous tuning, the doors of the dressing-rooms opened, and the ball-room began to fill.
The common opinion of Cacouna had undoubtedly been that Mr.Percy--the Honourable Edward Percy, whose name was in the Peerage--would dance the first quadrille with Mrs.Bellairs.But sovereigns are permitted to be capricious, especially female ones, and the Queen of Cacouna was not above the weaknesses of her class.