Page:Sarah Sheppard - L. E. L.pdf/69

 smiles far before all the toys with which he sought to please her; through the growing consciousness that she really loved him with the true love of woman, united with the quick perception that his affection for her was only that of a parent for a child, of a brother for a younger sister; through all the fresh deep misery of knowing that he was beloved by another, and that other loved by him again; through all the pure, noble, disinterested and self-sacrificing feelings which prompted her to devote every energy to the comfort and happiness of her unconscious rival, till the last sacrifice was completed, and she had saved Leoni's life at the price of her own; through all this, we feel Amenaide to be one of the sweetest portraitures ever sketched of woman's character, as developed in her affections. Among the lovely descriptions, the profound knowledge of the human heart, and the truthful sentiments which fill this poem, there are two especial points of interest; the one is where Leoni's love for Irene is represented as felt and understood by Amenaide, from innate consciousness of her own heart's experience; she herself loved: how could she mistake the presence or absence of love in others? Then, too, her self-devotedness; no revenge mingled with her thoughts of Irene; it was enough that she was loved by Leoni; her happiness was now identified with his, and must be promoted. Men have represented a Constance bowing her pride to follow the train of a Marmion; and a Kaled forgetting all else to soothe the caprices of a Lara; with a hundred similar instances. Their conception of woman's generosity reaching no further than to suppose it capable of leading them to follow the fortunes of the beloved objects, a devotedness which would be repaid by their constant presence. It remained for