The Volume Of The Sacred Law.

other , the spire of the cathedral of the county town could be distinctly traced if a clear sky was behind it . ft was Christmas Eve , and not a flake of snow had fallen yet , but the frost was intense , and the whole country was bejewelled with the hoary tracery of a hard winter . There was unusual excitement

at Culverhouse Court , and guests were arriving on foot and in carriages at the main entrance , which was used but on great occasions . It was the custom of the house en eacli Christmas Eve to invite the tenantry and villagers—as many as could come—to the ancestral feast , which for the past three hundred years had never

been missed . The holders of the famil y honors had religiously obeyed the demands of this custom , which was to open the house to all who chose to enter , and there to proclaim the history of the family in the galleries that were lined with the portraits of their ancestors . It was a curious formality , but one that had become ,

through the refinement of years , a very impressive ceremony , and greatly anticipated by the members of the household . The farm laborer , decked in his Sunday black , elbowed thus once a year against the finer gentlemen from town , and highly-bred ladies lost all their worldly pride among their sisters from the dairy or the cottage .

Lord Culverhouse received his guests in person . He was a man who had seen fifty such Christmas Eves as this , yet not a

thread of his hair had changed its color . His proud and noble presence only added welcome to his lowly

visitors , whom he greeted with the hand of fellowship and a smile that had never yet belied his heart .

He had in his day been a noted athlete , and his fine form bore nobly the pride of his race . Around him

were gathered the more immediate members of his house . Lady Culverhouse was dead — thank God

—LORD CULVERHOUSE .

these four years past , but the place of hostess was filled , and filled to perfection , by the Lady Caroline , his elder daughter , who was her mother in face and features , and the proudest possession he ever had . There was one other daughter , younger , but more beautiful , and she it was who lived in the hearts of all the villagers and poorer folk on the estate . Even in

her father ' s hall , crowded as it was fast becoming , she sought out the humbler of the guests , and was sitting among them , helping their enjoyment along witli her ceaseless chatter and smiles . Lad } ' Alice was indeed the guiding spirit of the house , and , what is more , adored her brother , whose presence this

evening was , of course , expected , though he had delayed his coming to the last . The influx of guests had almost ceased , and the great hall of Culverhouse was crowded with at least three hundred persons , presenting a most brilliant sight . The great chandeliers which hung

from the oaken ribs of the roof were ablaze with lighted candles , and candelabra of all designs filled the vacant brackets in the walls . The trophies of the chase hid the wainscot of three centuries old , and armor and weapons from the Wars of the Roses , from Agincourt , and even from the bloody fields of the Norman era , converted

tlie apartment into a museum of priceless relics . As the assembled guests roamed from side to side , feasting themselves uoon the historical memories that these things engendered , there came from the organ-gallery above sweet strains as of angels singing of the birth of another Christmas . Lord Culverhouse had completed his reception , and yet he

moved not from the position he had taken up an hour ago . There had come upon his face an unusual look of anxiety , and Lady Alice , for one moment free from the attentions of her guests , crossed over to her father to inquire why he waited . " Your brother is not here , dear . What makes him late , to-night ,

I wonder ? " " Oh ' he will conic , I have no doubt . " And hardly had she spoken , when the young lord , ulstered and muffled from the cold , bounded lightly through the great doors , and , without the slightest hesitation , threw his arms round his favorite sister , and kissed her

cheek . " Father , I am late ; but , excuse me , sir , and introduce me to those friends I have not the honor of knowing personally . " He was pleased , was the Earl , at the manliness and buoyant spirits of his heir . He helped with his own hands the ulster from

his son's shoulders , before a servant could step forward for the purpose , and offering his arm to Lady Caroline , and followed by his son , escorting Lady Alice , he walked through his guests to the upper end of the hall , where he took his stand upon the low dais usually occupied by musicians on state occasions .

" I have the honor , " said the Earl to his assembled guests who stood or sat in front of him , " to welcome most of you again to my house to perform the ceremony which many of you have assisteel at before . It is , of course , more pleasant to us than to you to wander through our galleries and to talk of the doings of our race . But beyond this mere custom , this yearly ceremony gives us an

opportunity , which we prize most highly , of welcoming our friends from the villages round about , whose daily associations will not permit them to pay us more frequent visits . You know it has been the pride of our ancestors to live amongst yours , to work side by side for mutual welfare , and to become , as it were , members of

one large family . That it has been my earnest wish to follow in their footsteps , and to find in every man and woman on my estate a personal friend , my equal in all things but mere worldly belongings , I trust you will believe . And accept the hospitality of our house this night to ratify the bond for another year . My son , who I hope

will in the course of nature follow me in the regard you have for us all , will , I believe , uphold the honor of our race and increase , if by any means he can find it possible , the prosperity and happiness of you all . " This little speech was met with much applause , and appealed to the hearts of the more lowly , who seemed to be impressed

by anything coming from the lips of a landlord whom they respected . But , quite beyond any sentiment the occasion might arouse in their hearts , they had a very high opinion of the ladies of the house , and their presence as much as anything aroused the hearty cheers that filled the hall . Presently the clock in the great

turret , that rose from the timbered roof , struck ten , and at that hour it was usual for the ceremony to begin . The folding-doors of the great gallery were flung open by a powdered flunkey just as Lord Culverhouse was leading his more immediate friends , and the whole company flocked into the apartment , where all the best memorials of the House of Culverhouse were stored .

The room ran along one entire front of the house , and was lighted by twelve large , oriel windows from the north . In each nook was a seat , upon which many noted guests had at times gone by settled themselves to rest on a hot summer ' s day . Along the opposite wall and upon easels and screens scattered over the floor the ancestral pictures were hung . Under each was a tablet ,

bearing the name of the being depicted therein , and particulars of his life , and the Earl immediately began to point out the celebrities amongst them . From canvas to canvas he passed , describing