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+Project Gutenberg's The Making of a Saint, by William Somerset Maugham
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license
+
+
+Title: The Making of a Saint
+
+Author: William Somerset Maugham
+
+Release Date: March 14, 2012 [EBook #39143]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MAKING OF A SAINT ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was
+produced from scanned images of public domain material
+from the Google Print project.)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+NOVELS AT SIX SHILLINGS EACH.
+
+_Uniform with this Volume._
+
+=Tales of Unrest.= By JOSEPH CONRAD.
+
+=The White-headed Boy.= By GEORGE BARTRAM.
+
+=The Mutineer.= By LOUIS BECKE and WALTER JEFFERY.
+
+=The Silver Christ=, and other Stories. By OUIDA.
+
+=Evelyn Innes.= By GEORGE MOORE.
+
+=The School for Saints.= By JOHN OLIVER HOBBES.
+
+=Outlaws of the Marches.= By LORD ERNEST HAMILTON.
+
+=Hugh Wynne.= By DR WEIR MITCHELL.
+
+=The Tormentor.= By BENJAMIN SWIFT.
+
+=The People of Clopton.= By GEORGE BARTRAM.
+
+=Pacific Tales.= By LOUIS BECKE.
+
+=Prisoners of Conscience.= By AMELIA E. BARR.
+
+=The Grey Man.= By S. R. CROCKETT.
+
+=An Outcast of the Islands.= By JOSEPH CONRAD.
+
+=Almayer's Folly.= By JOSEPH CONRAD.
+
+=The First Fleet Family.= By LOUIS BECKE and W. JEFFERY.
+
+=The Ebbing of the Tide.= By LOUIS BECKE.
+
+=Tales of John Oliver Hobbes.=
+
+=The Stickit Minister.= By S. R. CROCKETT.
+
+=The Raiders.= By S. R. CROCKETT.
+
+=Nancy Noon.= By BENJAMIN SWIFT.
+
+=The Lilac Sunbonnet.= By S. R. CROCKETT.
+
+=A Daughter of the Fen.= By J. T. BEALBY.
+
+=The Herb Moon.= By JOHN OLIVER HOBBES.
+
+=Mrs Keith's Crime.= By MRS W. K. CLIFFORD.
+
+LONDON: T. FISHER UNWIN.
+
+
+
+
+THE MAKING OF A SAINT
+
+By the same Author
+
+LIZA OF LAMBETH
+
+_Second Edition. Cloth, 3s. 6d._
+
+'There has not been so powerful a story of the lowest class as "Liza of
+Lambeth" ... since Mr Rudyard Kipling wrote the "History of Badalia
+Herodsfoot." We are not sure, indeed, that this new story does not beat
+that one in vividness and knowledge of the class it depicts ... he has
+an almost extraordinary gift of directness and concentration, and his
+characters have an astounding amount of vitality.'--_Standard._
+
+'Those who wish to read of life as it is, without exaggeration and
+without modification, will have no difficulty in recognising the merits
+of this volume.'--_Athenaeum._
+
+'He has performed his task with singular ability. No one can read his
+book without being convinced and saddened by its evident truth and
+accuracy.'--_Literary World._
+
+'The characters are depicted with great vigour, and stand out before us
+as lifelike as if we were actually standing in the street listening to
+their talk.'--Review of Reviews.
+
+'Liza's portrait is so complete and so strong that even now her ghost
+refuses to be laid.'--_Literature._
+
+'Liza is a living creature from the beginning to the end.'--_Queen._
+
+
+
+
+THE MAKING OF A
+SAINT
+
+BY
+
+WILLIAM SOMERSET MAUGHAM
+
+LONDON
+
+T. FISHER UNWIN
+
+PATERNOSTER SQUARE
+
+1898
+
+[_All Rights reserved_]
+
+    Quanto e bella giovinezza,
+      Che si fugge tuttavia;
+    Chi vuol esser lieto, sia,
+      Di doman non c'e certezza.
+
+    _Youth--how beautiful is youth!_
+      _But, alas, elusive ever!_
+    _Let him be light of heart who would be so,_
+      _For there's no surety in the morrow._
+
+
+
+
+The Making of a Saint
+
+
+
+
+INTRODUCTION
+
+
+These are the memoirs of the Beato Giuliano, brother of the Order of St
+Francis of Assisi, known in his worldly life as Filippo Brandolini; of
+which family I, Giulo Brandolini, am the last descendant. On the death
+of Fra Giuliano the manuscript was given to his nephew Leonello, on whom
+the estates devolved; and has since been handed down from father to son,
+as the relic of a member of the family whose piety and good works still
+shed lustre on the name of Brandolini.
+
+It is perhaps necessary to explain how the resolution to give these
+memoirs to the world has eventually been arrived at. For my part, I
+should have allowed them to remain among the other papers of the family;
+but my wife wished otherwise. When she deserted her home in the New
+World to become the Countess Brandolini, she was very naturally
+interested at finding among my ancestors a man who had distinguished
+himself in good works, so as to be granted by the Pope the title of
+Beatus, which was acquired for him by the influence of his great-nephew
+not very long after his death; and, indeed, had our house retained the
+prosperity which it enjoyed during the fifteenth and sixteenth
+centuries, he would undoubtedly have been canonised, for it was a well
+certified fact that the necessary miracles had been performed by his
+remains and that prayers had been regularly offered at his tomb, but our
+estates had dwindled, so that we could not afford the necessary
+expenditure; and now, when my wife has restored its ancient magnificence
+to our house, times, alas! have changed. The good old customs of our
+fathers have fallen into disuse, and it is impossible to create a saint
+for ready money. However, my wife desired to publish an account of her
+pious ancestor. But a difficulty arose in the fact that there were no
+materials whatever for any relation of the life which Fra Giuliano led
+when he had entered the Franciscan monastery of Campomassa, and it was
+obvious that, even if there had been good works, prayer and fasting
+could not have afforded a very interesting story; and so we have been
+constrained to leave untold his pieties and recount instead his sins,
+for which there was every facility in the memoirs he had himself left
+behind him.
+
+Not content with writing the story of his own life, Fra Giuliano begins
+with a mythical Consul of the Roman Republic, who is supposed to have
+founded the family by a somewhat discreditable union with somebody
+else's wife. He then carries the story through countless ages till he
+arrives at his own conception, and the prodigies attending his birth,
+which he describes with great minuteness. He gives very amply the
+history of his childhood and boyhood, the period he spent as page at
+the Court of the Bentivogli of Bologna, and his adventures in the
+Neapolitan armies under the Duke of Calabria; but the whole story is
+narrated at such length, with so many digressions and details, and is
+sometimes so vague, incoherent and disjointed that, with whatever
+editing, it was considered impossible to make a clear and continuous
+narrative.
+
+Fra Giuliano himself divided his life into two parts: the one he named
+the Time of Honey, being the period of expectation; the other the Time
+of Gall, being that of realisation. The second half commences with his
+arrival at the town of Forli, in the year 1488, and it is this part
+which we have decided to publish; for, notwithstanding its brevity, this
+was the most eventful period of his life, and the account of it seems to
+hang together in a sufficiently lucid fashion, centring round the
+conspiracy which resulted in the assassination of Girolamo Riario, and
+finishing with the author's admission to the Order of St Francis. This,
+then, I have given exactly as he wrote it, neither adding nor
+suppressing a word. I do not deny that it would have pleased me a little
+to falsify the history, for the Anglo-Saxons are a race of idealists, as
+is shown in all their dealing, international and commercial; and truth
+they have always found a little ugly. I have a friend who lately wrote a
+story of the London poor, and his critics were properly disgusted
+because his characters dropped their aitches and often used bad
+language, and did not behave as elegantly as might be expected from the
+example they were continually receiving from their betters; while some
+of his readers were shocked to find that people existed in this world
+who did not possess the delicacy and refinement which they felt
+palpitating in their own bosoms. The author forgot that Truth is a naked
+lady, and that nudity is always shameful, unless it points a moral. If
+Truth has taken up her abode at the bottom of a well, it is clearly
+because she is conscious that she is no fit companion for decent people.
+
+I am painfully aware that the persons of this drama were not actuated by
+the moral sentiments, which they might have acquired by education at a
+really good English public school, but one may find excuse for them in
+the recollection that their deeds took place four hundred years ago, and
+that they were not wretched paupers, but persons of the very highest
+rank. If they sinned, they sinned elegantly, and much may be forgiven to
+people whose pedigree is above suspicion. And the writer, as if
+unwilling to wound the susceptibilities of his readers, has taken care
+to hurl contempt at the only character whose family was distinctly not
+respectable.
+
+Before making my bow, and leaving the reader with Filippo Brandolini, I
+will describe his appearance, shown in a portrait painted in the same
+year, 1488, and till the beginning of this century in the possession of
+my family, when it was sold, with many other works of art, to travellers
+in Italy. My wife has succeeded in buying back the portraits of several
+of my ancestors, but this particular one is in the collection of an
+English nobleman, who has refused to part with it, though kindly
+allowing a copy to be made, which now hangs in the place formerly
+occupied by the original.
+
+It represents a middle-sized man, slim and graceful, with a small black
+beard and moustache; an oval face, olive coloured, and from his fine
+dark eyes he is looking straight out into the world with an expression
+of complete happiness. It was painted soon after his marriage. He is
+dressed in the costume of the period, and holds a roll of parchment in
+his hand. At the top right hand corner are the date and the arms of the
+family; or a griffin rampant. Gules. Crest: a demiswan issuing from a
+coronet. The motto: _Felicitas_.
+
+
+
+
+I
+
+
+'Allow me to present to you my friend Filippo Brandolini, a gentleman of
+Citta di Castello.'
+
+Then, turning to me, Matteo added, 'This is my cousin, Checco d'Orsi.'
+
+Checco d'Orsi smiled and bowed.
+
+'Messer Brandolini,' he said, 'I am most pleased to make your
+acquaintance; you are more than welcome to my house.'
+
+'You are very kind,' I replied; 'Matteo has told me much of your
+hospitality.'
+
+Checco bowed courteously, and asked his cousin, 'You have just arrived,
+Matteo?'
+
+'We arrived early this morning. I wished to come here directly, but
+Filippo, who suffers from a very insufferable vanity, insisted on going
+to an inn and spending a couple of hours in the adornment of his
+person.'
+
+'How did you employ those hours, Matteo?' asked Checco, looking rather
+questioningly at his cousin's dress and smiling.
+
+Matteo looked at his boots and his coat.
+
+'I am not elegant! But I felt too sentimental to attend to my personal
+appearance, and I had to restore myself with wine. You know, we are
+very proud of our native Forli wine, Filippo.'
+
+'I did not think you were in the habit of being sentimental, Matteo,'
+remarked Checco.
+
+'It was quite terrifying this morning, when we arrived,' said I; 'he
+struck attitudes and called it his beloved country, and wanted to linger
+in the cold morning and tell me anecdotes about his childhood.'
+
+'You professional sentimentalists will never let anyone sentimentalise
+but yourselves.'
+
+'I was hungry,' said I, laughing, 'and it didn't become you. Even your
+horse had his doubts.'
+
+'Brute!' said Matteo. 'Of course, I was too excited to attend to my
+horse, and he slipped over those confounded stones and nearly shot me
+off--and Filippo, instead of sympathising, burst out laughing.'
+
+'Evidently you must abandon sentiment,' said Checco.
+
+'I'm afraid you are right. Now, Filippo can be romantic for hours at a
+stretch, and, what is worse, he is--but nothing happens to him. But on
+coming back to my native town after four years, I think it was
+pardonable.'
+
+'We accept your apology, Matteo,' I said.
+
+'But the fact is, Checco, that I am glad to get back. The sight of the
+old streets, the Palazzo, all fill me with a curious sensation of
+joy--and I feel--I don't know how I feel.'
+
+'Make the utmost of your pleasure while you can; you may not always find
+a welcome in Forli,' said Checco, gravely.
+
+'What the devil do you mean?' asked Matteo.
+
+'Oh, we'll talk of these things later. You had better go and see my
+father now, and then you can rest yourselves. You must be tired after
+your journey. To-night we have here a great gathering, where you will
+meet your old friends. The Count has deigned to accept my invitation.'
+
+'Deigned?' said Matteo, lifting his eyebrows and looking at his cousin.
+
+Checco smiled bitterly.
+
+'Times have changed since you were here, Matteo' he said; 'the Forlivesi
+are subjects and courtiers now.'
+
+Putting aside Matteo's further questions, he bowed to me and left us.
+
+'I wonder what it is?' said Matteo. 'What did you think of him?'
+
+I had examined Checco d'Orsi curiously--a tall dark man, with full beard
+and moustache, apparently about forty. There was a distinct likeness
+between him and Matteo: they both had the same dark hair and eyes; but
+Matteo's face was broader, the bones more prominent, and the skin
+rougher from his soldier's life. Checco was thinner and graver, he
+looked a great deal more talented; Matteo, as I often told him, was not
+clever.
+
+'He was very amiable,' I said, in reply to the question.
+
+'A little haughty, but he means to be courteous. He is rather oppressed
+with his dignity of head of the family.'
+
+'But his father is still alive.'
+
+'Yes, but he's eighty-five, and he's as deaf as a post and as blind as a
+bat; so he remains quietly in his room while Checco pulls the strings,
+so that we poor devils have to knuckle under and do as he bids us.'
+
+'I'm sure that must be very good for you,' I said. 'I'm curious to know
+why Checco talks of the Count as he did; when I was here last they were
+bosom friends. However, let us go and drink, having done our duty.'
+
+We went to the inn at which we had left our horses and ordered wine.
+
+'Give us your best, my fat friend,' cried Matteo to mine host. 'This
+gentleman is a stranger, and does not know what wine is; he was brought
+up on the sickly juice of Citta di Castello.'
+
+'You live at Citta di Castello?' asked the innkeeper.
+
+'I wish I did,' I answered.
+
+'He was ejected from his country for his country's good,' remarked
+Matteo.
+
+'That is not true,' I replied, laughing. 'I left of my own free will.'
+
+'Galloping as hard as you could, with four-and-twenty horsemen at your
+heels.'
+
+'Precisely! And so little did they want me to go, that when I thought a
+change of air would suit me they sent a troop of horse to induce me to
+return.'
+
+'Your head would have made a pretty ornament stuck on a pike in the
+grand piazza.'
+
+'The thought amuses you,' I answered, 'but the comedy of it did not
+impress me at the time.'
+
+I remembered the occasion when news was brought me that the Vitelli, the
+tyrant of Castello, had signed a warrant for my arrest; whereupon,
+knowing the rapid way he had of dealing with his enemies, I had bidden
+farewell to my hearth and home with somewhat indecent haste.... But the
+old man had lately died, and his son, proceeding to undo all his
+father's deeds, had called back the Fuorusciti, and strung up from the
+Palace windows such of his father's friends as had not had time to
+escape. I had come to Forli with Matteo, on my way home to take
+possession of my confiscated property, hoping to find that the
+intermediate proprietor, who was dangling at a rope's end some hundred
+feet from the ground, had made sundry necessary improvements.
+
+'Well, what do you think of our wine?' said Matteo. 'Compare it with
+that of Citta di Castello.'
+
+'I really haven't tasted it yet,' I said, pretending to smile agreeably.
+'Strange wines I always drink at a gulp--like medicine.'
+
+'_Brutta bestia!_' said Matteo. 'You are no judge.'
+
+'It's passable,' I said, laughing, having sipped it with great
+deliberation.
+
+Matteo shrugged his shoulders.
+
+'These foreigners!' he said scornfully. 'Come here, fat man,' he called
+to the innkeeper. 'Tell me how Count Girolamo and the gracious Caterina
+are progressing? When I left Forli the common people struggled to lick
+the ground they trod on.'
+
+The innkeeper shrugged his shoulders.
+
+'Gentlemen of my profession have to be careful in what they say.'
+
+'Don't be a fool, man; I am not a spy.'
+
+'Well, sir, the common people no longer struggle to lick the ground the
+Count treads on.'
+
+'I see!'
+
+'You understand, sir. Now that his father is dead--'
+
+'When I was here last Sixtus was called his uncle.'
+
+'Ah, they say he was too fond of him not to be his father, but, of
+course, I know nothing. Far be it from me to say anything in
+disparagement of his Holiness, past or present.'
+
+'However, go on.'
+
+'Well, sir, when the Pope died the Count Girolamo found himself short of
+money--and so the taxes that he had taken off he put on again.'
+
+'And the result is--'
+
+'Well, the people are beginning to murmur about his extravagance; and
+they say that Caterina behaves as if she were a queen; whereas we all
+know that she is only the bastard of old Sforza of Milan. But, of
+course, it has nothing to do with me!'
+
+Matteo and I were beginning to feel sleepy, for we had been riding hard
+all night; and we went upstairs, giving orders to be called in time for
+the night's festivity. We were soon fast asleep.
+
+In the evening Matteo came to me, and began examining my clothes.
+
+'I have been considering, Filippo,' he said, 'that it behoves me on my
+first appearance before the eyes of my numerous lady loves to cut the
+best figure I can.'
+
+'I quite agree with you,' I answered; 'but I don't see what you are
+doing with my clothes.'
+
+'Nobody knows you, and it is unimportant how you look; and, as you have
+some very nice things here, I am going to take advantage of your
+kindness and--'
+
+'You're not going to take my clothes!' I said, springing out of bed.
+Matteo gathered up in his arms various garments and rushed out of the
+room, slamming the door and locking it on the outside, so that I was
+left shut in, helpless.
+
+I shouted abuse after him, but he went away laughing, and I had to
+manage as best I could with what he had left me. In half an hour he came
+to the door. 'Do you want to come out?' he said.
+
+'Of course I do,' I answered, kicking the panel.
+
+'Will you promise not to be violent?'
+
+I hesitated.
+
+'I shan't let you out unless you do.'
+
+'Very well!' I answered, laughing.
+
+Matteo opened the door and stood bolt upright on the threshold, decked
+out from head to foot in my newest clothes.
+
+'You villain!' I said, amazed at his effrontery.
+
+'You don't look bad, considering,' he answered, looking at me calmly.
+
+
+
+
+II
+
+
+When we arrived at the Palazzo Orsi, many of the guests had already
+come. Matteo was immediately surrounded by his friends; and a score of
+ladies beckoned to him from different parts of the room, so that he was
+torn away from me, leaving me rather disconsolate alone in the crowd.
+Presently I was attracted to a group of men talking to a woman whom I
+could not see; Matteo had joined them, and they were laughing at
+something he had said. I had turned away to look at other people when I
+heard Matteo calling me.
+
+'Filippo,' he said, coming towards me, 'come and be introduced to Donna
+Giulia; she has asked me to present you.'
+
+He took me by the arm, and I saw that the lady and her admirers were
+looking at me.
+
+'She's no better than she should be,' he whispered in my ear; 'but she's
+the loveliest woman in Forli!'
+
+'Allow me to add another to your circle of adorers, Donna Giulia,' said
+Matteo, as we both bowed--'Messer Filippo Brandolini, like myself, a
+soldier of distinction.'
+
+I saw a graceful little woman, dressed in some Oriental brocade; a
+small face, with quite tiny features, large brown eyes, which struck me
+at the first glance as very soft and caressing, a mass of dark,
+reddish-brown hair, and a fascinating smile.
+
+'We were asking Matteo where his wounds were,' she said, smiling on me
+very graciously. 'He tells us they are all in the region of his heart.'
+
+'In that case,' I answered, 'he has come to a more deadly battlefield
+than any we saw during the war.'
+
+'What war?' asked a gentleman who was standing by. 'Nowadays we are in
+the happy state of having ten different wars in as many parts of the
+country.'
+
+'I was serving under the Duke of Calabria, 'I replied.
+
+'In that case, your battles were bloodless.'
+
+'We came, we saw, and the enemy decamped,' said Matteo.
+
+'And now, taking advantage of the peace, you have come to trouble the
+hearts of Forli,' said Donna Giulia.
+
+'Who knows how useful your swords may not be here!' remarked a young
+man.
+
+'Be quiet, Nicolo!' said another, and there was an awkward silence,
+during which Matteo and I looked at one another in surprise; and then
+everyone burst out talking, so that you could not hear what was said.
+
+Matteo and I bowed ourselves away from Donna Giulia, and he took me to
+Checco, standing in a group of men.
+
+'You have recovered from your fatigue?' he asked kindly.
+
+'You have been travelling, Matteo?' said one of the company.
+
+'Yes, we rode sixty miles yesterday,' he replied.
+
+'Sixty miles on one horse; you must have good steeds and good
+imaginations,' said a big, heavy-looking man--an ugly, sallow-faced
+person, whom I hated at first sight.
+
+'It was only once in a way, and we wanted to get home.'
+
+'You could not have come faster if you had been running away from a
+battlefield,' said the man.
+
+I thought him needlessly disagreeable, but I did not speak. Matteo had
+not cultivated the golden quality.
+
+'You talk as one who has had experience,' he remarked, smiling in his
+most amiable manner.
+
+I saw Checco frown at Matteo, while the bystanders looked on
+interestedly.
+
+'I only said that,' added the man, shrugging his shoulders, 'because the
+Duke of Calabria is rather celebrated for his retreative tactics.'
+
+I entertained a very great respect for the Duke, who had always been a
+kind and generous master to me.
+
+'Perhaps you do not know very much about tactics,' I remarked as
+offensively as I could.
+
+He turned and looked at me, as if to say, 'Who the devil are you!' He
+looked me up and down contemptuously, and I began to feel that I was
+almost losing my temper.
+
+'My good young man,' he said, 'I imagine that I was engaged in war when
+your battles were with your nursemaid.'
+
+'You have the advantage of me in courtesy as well as in years, sir,' I
+replied. 'But I might suggest that a man may fight all his life, and
+have no more idea of war at the end than at the beginning.'
+
+'It depends on the intelligence,' remarked Matteo.
+
+'Exactly what I was thinking,' said I.
+
+'What the devil do you mean?' said the man, angrily.
+
+'I don't suppose he means anything at all, Ercole,' put in Checco, with
+a forced laugh.
+
+'He can answer for himself, I suppose,' said the man. A flush came over
+Checco's face, but he did not answer.
+
+'My good sir,' I said, 'you have to consider whether I choose to
+answer.'
+
+'Jackanapes!'
+
+I put my hand to my sword, but Checco caught hold of my arm. I recovered
+myself at once.
+
+'I beg your pardon, Messer Checco,' I said; then, turning to the man,
+'You are safe in insulting me here. You show your breeding! Really,
+Matteo, you did not tell me that you had such a charming
+fellow-countryman.'
+
+'You are too hard on us, Filippo,' answered my friend, 'for such a
+monstrosity as that Forli is not responsible.'
+
+'I am no Forlivese, thank God! Neither the Count nor I.' He looked round
+scornfully. 'We offer up thanks to the Almighty every time the fact
+occurs to us. I am a citizen of Castello.'
+
+Matteo was going to burst out, but I anticipated him. 'I, too, am a
+citizen of Castello; and allow me to inform you that I consider you a
+very insolent fellow, and I apologise to these gentlemen that a
+countryman of mine should forget the courtesy due to the city which is
+sheltering him.'
+
+'You a Castelese! And, pray, who are you?'
+
+'My name is Filippo Brandolini.'
+
+'I know your house. Mine is Ercole Piacentini.'
+
+'I cannot return the compliment; I have never heard of yours.'
+
+The surrounders laughed.
+
+'My family is as good as yours, sir,' he said.
+
+'Really, I have no acquaintance with the middle-classes of Castello; but
+I have no doubt it is respectable.'
+
+I noticed that the listeners seemed very contented, and I judged that
+Messer Ercole Piacentini was not greatly loved in Forli; but Checco was
+looking on anxiously.
+
+'You insolent young boy!' said the man, furiously. 'How dare you talk to
+me like that. I will kick you!'
+
+I put my hand to my sword to draw it, for I was furious too; I pulled at
+the hilt, but I felt a hand catch hold of mine and prevent me. I
+struggled; then I heard Checco in my ear.
+
+'Don't be a fool,' he said. 'Be quiet!'
+
+'Let me be!' I cried.
+
+'Don't be a fool! You'll ruin us.' He held my sword, so that I could not
+draw it.
+
+Ercole saw what was going on; his lips broke into a sarcastic smile.
+
+'You are being taught the useful lesson of discretion, young man. You
+are not the only one who has learnt it.' He looked round at the
+bystanders....
+
+At that moment a servant came to Checco and announced,--
+
+'The Count!'
+
+The group broke up, and Checco advanced to the further end of the hall,
+with Ercole Piacentini and several other gentlemen. Matteo and I
+lingered where we were. There was a rustle, and the Count and Countess
+appeared attended by their suite.
+
+First of all my eyes were attracted to Caterina; she was wonderfully
+beautiful. A tall, well-made woman, holding herself proudly, her head
+poised on the neck like a statue.
+
+'One would think she was a king's daughter!' said Matteo, looking at her
+with astonishment.
+
+'It is almost Francesco's face,' I said.
+
+We both had an immense admiration for Francesco Sforza, the King of
+Condottieri, who had raised himself from a soldier of fortune to the
+proudest duchy in the world. And Caterina, his natural daughter, had the
+same clear, strong features, the strong piercing eyes, but instead of
+the Sforza's pock-marked skin, she had a complexion of rare delicacy and
+softness; and afterwards she proved that she had inherited her father's
+courage as well as his appearance.... She was dressed in a gorgeous robe
+of silver cloth, glittering and shimmering as she walked, and her hair
+was done in her favourite manner, intertwined with gold and silver
+threads; but the wonderful chestnut outshone the brilliant metals,
+seeming to lend them beauty rather than to borrow it. I heard her speak,
+and her voice was low and full like a man's.
+
+Matteo and I stood looking at her for a minute; then we both broke out
+'_Per Bacco_, she is beautiful!'
+
+I began thinking of the fairy stories I had heard of Caterina at Rome,
+where she had enchanted everyone by her loveliness; and Sixtus had
+squandered the riches of the Church to satisfy her whims and fancies:
+banquets, balls, pageants and gorgeous ceremonies; the ancient city had
+run red with wine and mad with delight of her beauty.
+
+Suddenly Matteo said to me, 'Look at Girolamo!'
+
+I lifted my eyes, and saw him standing quite close to me--a tall man,
+muscular and strong, with big heavy face, and prominent jaw bones, the
+nose long and hooked, small keen eyes, very mobile. His skin was
+unpleasant, red and coarse; like his wife, he was dressed with great
+magnificence.
+
+'One sees the sailor grandfather in him,' I said, remembering that
+Sixtus's father, the founder of the family, was a common sailor at
+Rovese.
+
+He was talking to Checco, who was apparently speaking to him of us, for
+he turned and stepped forward to Matteo.
+
+'The prodigal has returned,' he said. 'We will not fail to kill the
+fatted calf. But this time you must stay with us, Matteo; we can give
+you service as well as the Duke of Calabria.'
+
+Matteo smiled grimly; and the Count turned to me.
+
+'Checco has told me of you also, sir; but I fear there is no chance of
+keeping you, you are but a bird of passage--still, I hope you will let
+us make you welcome at the Palace.'
+
+All the time he was speaking his eyes kept moving rapidly up and down,
+all round me, and I felt he was taking in my whole person.... After
+these few words he smiled, a harsh, mechanical smile, meant to be
+gracious, and with a courteous bow moved on. I turned to Matteo and saw
+him looking after the Count very sourly.
+
+'What is it,' I asked.
+
+'He is devilish condescending,' he answered. 'When last I was here it
+was hail fellow, well met, but, good God! he's put on airs since then!'
+
+'Your cousin said something to the same effect,' I remarked.
+
+'Yes, I understand what he meant now.'
+
+We strolled round the room, looking at the people and talking.
+
+'Look,' I said, 'there's a handsome woman!' pointing to a voluptuous
+beauty, a massive creature, full-brested and high-coloured.
+
+'Your eye is drawn to a handsome woman like steel to a magnet, Filippo,'
+answered Matteo, laughing.
+
+'Introduce me,' I said, 'if she is not ferocious.'
+
+'By no means; and she has probably already fixed her eyes upon you. But
+she is wife to Ercole Piacentini.'
+
+'I don't care. I mean to kill the man afterwards; but that is no reason
+why I should not make myself pleasant to his spouse.'
+
+'You will do her a service in both ways,' he replied; and, going up to
+her, 'Claudia,' he said, 'your fatal eyes have transfixed another
+heart.'
+
+Her sensual lips broke into a smile.
+
+'Have they that power?' She fixed them on me, and made room on the couch
+on which she was sitting. Neither Matteo nor I were slow to take the
+hint, for I took my place and he his leave. 'I wonder you have not
+already fallen victim to Madonna Giulia,' said Claudia, looking
+languorously at me, and glancing over to the other lady.
+
+'One does not worship the moon when the sun is shining,' I replied
+politely.
+
+'Giulia is more like the sun, for she gathers all men in her embrace. I
+am more modest.'
+
+I understood that the rival beauties were not good friends.
+
+'You boast that you are cruel,' I replied. She did not answer, but
+sighed deeply, smiling, and fixed on me her great, liquid eyes.
+
+'Oh, there is my husband.' I looked up and saw the great Ercole glaring
+viciously at me. I laughed within myself.
+
+'He must be very jealous of so beautiful a wife?' I asked.
+
+'He torments me to death.'
+
+Under these circumstances I thought I would pursue my advantage; I
+pressed closer to her.
+
+'I can understand it: the first moment I saw you, I felt my head whirl.'
+
+She gave me a very long glance from beneath her eyelashes. I seized her
+hand.
+
+'Those eyes!' I said, looking into them fervently.
+
+'Ah!' she sighed again.
+
+'Madam,' said a pageboy, coming up to her, 'Messer Piacentini begs that
+you will come to him.'
+
+She gave a little cry of annoyance.
+
+'My husband!' Then, rising from her seat, she turned to me, holding out
+her hand; I immediately offered my arm, and we solemnly crossed the
+room to Ercole Piacentini. Here she bowed very graciously to me, and I
+smiled on the happy husband with the utmost sweetness, while he looked
+very grim and took not the faintest notice of me; then I marched off,
+feeling particularly pleased with myself.
+
+The Count and Countess were on the point of taking their departure: they
+were followed by Ercole and his wife; the remaining guests soon went,
+and in a little while there were left only Matteo and myself, two other
+men and Checco.
+
+
+
+
+III
+
+
+Checco led us to a smaller room, at some distance from the great hall of
+the reception; then, turning to a man I did not know, he said, 'Did you
+hear the Piacentini?'
+
+'Yes!' he answered; and for a moment they looked at one another
+silently.
+
+'He would not have been so bold without good cause,' added the man.
+
+I was told that his name was Lodovico Pansecchi, and that he was a
+soldier in the Count's pay.
+
+Checco turned round and looked at me sharply. Matteo understood what he
+meant, and said, 'Have no fear of Filippo; he is as safe as myself.'
+
+Checco nodded, and made a sign to a youth, who immediately rose and
+carefully closed the door. We sat still for a while; then Checco stood
+up and said impatiently, 'I cannot understand it.' He walked up and down
+the room, stopping at last in front of me.
+
+'You had never seen that man before?'
+
+'Never!' I answered.
+
+'The quarrel was brought on solely by Ercole himself,' said the youth,
+whom I found to be Alessandro Moratini, a brother of Giulia dall' Aste.
+
+'I know,' said Checco, 'but he would never have dared to behave thus
+unless he knew of some design of Girolamo.' He paused a moment to think,
+then turning to me again, 'You must not challenge him.'
+
+'On the contrary,' I replied, 'I must challenge him; he has insulted
+me.'
+
+'I don't care about that. I will not have you challenge him.'
+
+'This concerns myself alone.'
+
+'Nonsense! You are a guest of my house, and for all I know it is just
+such an opportunity as this that Girolamo is seeking.'
+
+'I don't understand,' I said.
+
+'Listen,' said Checco, sitting down again. 'When Sixtus obtained
+possession of Forli for his nephew, Girolamo Riario, I, like the fool I
+was, did all I could to bring the town to his allegiance. My father was
+against the plan, but I bore down his opposition and threw the whole
+power of my house on his side. Without me he would never have been Lord
+of Forli.'
+
+'I remember,' said Matteo. 'You used Sixtus to keep the Ordelaffi out;
+and you thought Girolamo would be a catspaw in our hands.'
+
+'I did not give the city for love of a person I had never seen in my
+life.... Well, this was eight years ago. Girolamo took off the heaviest
+taxes, granted favours to the town and entered in solemn state with
+Caterina.'
+
+'Amid shouts and cheers,' remarked Alessandro.
+
+'For a while he was more popular than ever the Ordelaffi had been, and
+when he went out the people ran to kiss the hem of his garment. He spent
+the great part of his time in Rome, but he employed the riches of the
+Pope in beautifying Forli, and when he came it was one round of feasts
+and balls and gaiety.
+
+'Then Pope Sixtus died, and Girolamo settled here for good in the palace
+which he had commenced building on his accession. The feasts and balls
+and gaiety continued. Whenever a distinguished stranger passed through
+the town, he was welcomed by the Count and his wife with the most lavish
+hospitality; so that Forli became renowned for its luxury and riches.
+
+'The poets ransacked Parnassus and the ancients for praises of their
+rules, and the people echoed the panegyrics of the poet....
+
+'Then came the crash. I had often warned Girolamo, for we were intimate
+friends--then. I told him that he could not continue the splendour which
+he had used when the wealth of Christendom was at his command, when he
+could spend the tribute of a nation on a necklace for Caterina. He would
+not listen. It was always, "I cannot be mean and thrifty," and he called
+it policy. "To be popular," he said, "I must be magnificent." The time
+came when the Treasury was empty, and he had to borrow. He borrowed in
+Rome and Florence and Milan--and all the time he would not retrench, but
+rather, as his means became less, the extravagance became greater; but
+when he could borrow no more outside, he came to the citizens of Forli,
+first, of course, to me, and I repeatedly lent him large sums. These
+were not enough, and he sent for the richest men of Forli and asked them
+to lend him money. Naturally they could not refuse. But he squandered
+their money as he had squandered his own; and one fine day he assembled
+the Council.'
+
+'Ah, yes,' said Alessandro, 'I was there then. I heard him speak.'
+
+Checco stopped as if for Alessandro.
+
+'He came to the Council chamber, clad as usual in the richest robes, and
+began talking privately to the senators, very courteously--laughing with
+them, shaking their hands. Then, going to his place, he began to speak.
+He talked of his liberality towards them, and the benefits he had
+conferred on the town; showed them his present necessities, and finally
+asked them to re-impose the taxes which he had taken off at the
+beginning of his reign. They were all prejudiced against him, for many
+of them had already lent him money privately, but there was such a charm
+in his discourse, he was so persuasive, that one really could not help
+seeing the reasonableness of his demand. I know I myself would have
+granted him whatever he asked.'
+
+'He can make one do anything he likes when he once begins talking,' said
+Lodovico.
+
+'The Council unanimously voted the re-imposition of the taxes, and
+Girolamo offered them his thanks in his most gracious manner.'
+
+There was a silence, broken by Matteo.
+
+'And then?' he asked.
+
+'Then,' answered Checco, 'he went to Imola, and commenced spending
+there the money that he was gathering here.'
+
+'And what did they think of it in Forli?'
+
+'Ah, when the time came to pay the taxes they ceased their praises of
+Girolamo. First they murmured beneath their breath, then out loud; and
+soon they cursed him and his wife. The Count heard of it and came back
+from Imola, thinking, by his presence, to preserve the town in its
+allegiance. But the fool did not know that the sight of him would
+redouble the anger of the populace. They saw his gorgeous costumes, the
+gold and silver dresses of his wife, the jewels, the feasting and
+riotry, and they knew that it came out of their pockets; the food of
+their children, all that they had toiled and worked for, was spent on
+the insane luxury of this papal favourite and his bastard wife.'
+
+'And how has he treated us?' cried Lodovico, beating his fist violently
+down on the table. 'I was in the pay of the Duke of Calabria, and he
+made me tempting offers, so that I left the armies of Naples to enter
+the papal service under him. And now, for four years, I have not
+received a penny of my salary, and when I ask him, he puts me aside with
+gentle words, and now he does not even trouble to give me them. A few
+days back I stopped him in the piazza, and, falling on my knees, begged
+for what he owed me. He threw me violently away, and said he could not
+pay me--and the jewel on his breast was worth ten times the money he
+owed me. And now he looks at me with frowns, me who have served him
+faithfully as a dog. I will not endure it; by God! I will not.' He
+clenched his fists as he spoke, trembling with rage.
+
+'And you know how he has served me,' said Checco. 'I have lent him so
+much that he has not the face to ask for more; and how do you think he
+has rewarded me? Because I have not paid certain dues I owe the
+Treasury, he sent a sheriff to demand them, and when I said I would not
+pay them at that moment, he sent for me, and himself asked for the
+money.'
+
+'What did you do?'
+
+'I reminded him of the money he owed me, and he informed me that a
+private debt had nothing to do with a debt to the State, and said that I
+must pay or the law should take its course.'
+
+'He must be mad,' said Matteo.
+
+'He is mad, mad with pride, mad in his extravagance.'
+
+'I tell you,' said Lodovico, 'it cannot be endured.'
+
+'And they tell me that he has said my tongue must be silenced,' added
+Checco. 'The other day he was talking to Giuseppe Albicina, and he said
+"Let Checco beware; he may go too far and find the hand of the master
+not so gentle as the hand of the friend!"'
+
+'I, too, have heard him say things which sounded like threats,' said
+Alessandro.
+
+'We have all heard it,' added Lodovico. 'When his temper overcomes him,
+he cares not what he says, and one discovers then what he and his silent
+wife have been plotting between them.'
+
+'Now, sir,' interrupted Checco, speaking to me, 'you see how things
+stand: we are on thin ground, and the fire is raging beneath us. You
+must promise not to seek further quarrel with this countryman of yours,
+this Ercole Piacentini. He is one of Girolamo's chiefest favourites, and
+he would not bear to see him touched; if you happened to kill him, the
+Count would take the opportunity to have us all arrested, and we should
+suffer the fate of the Pazzi at Florence. Will you promise?'
+
+'I promise,' I answered, smiling, 'to defer my satisfaction to a fitter
+opportunity.'
+
+'Now, gentlemen,' said Checco, 'we can separate.'
+
+We bade one another Good-night; Alessandro, as he was going, said to
+Matteo, 'You must bring your friend to my sister to-morrow; she will be
+glad to see you both.'
+
+We said we should be enchanted, and Alessandro and Lodovico Pansecchi
+left us.
+
+Matteo looked at Checco meditatively.
+
+'Cousin,' he said, 'all this looks very like conspiracy.'
+
+Checco started.
+
+'I cannot help it, if the people are dissatisfied with Girolamo.'
+
+'But you?' pursued Matteo. 'I imagine you do not greatly care whether
+the people are taxed or no. You knew the taxes would have to come on
+again sooner or later.'
+
+'Has he not insulted me by sending a sheriff to demand his dues?'
+
+'Is there nothing further than that?' asked Matteo, looking at his
+cousin steadily.
+
+Checco lifted his eyes and gazed back into Matteo's.
+
+'Yes,' he said at last; 'eight years ago I was Girolamo's equal, now I
+am his servant. I was his friend, he loved me like a brother--and then
+his wife came, the daughter of Francesco Sforza, the bastard--and
+gradually he has lifted himself up from me. He has been cold and
+reserved; he begins to show himself master; and now I am nothing more
+than a citizen among citizens--the first, but not the equal of the
+master.'
+
+Checco kept silence for a moment, and in his quietness I could see the
+violence of his emotion.
+
+'This concerns you as well as me, Matteo. You are an Orsi, and the Orsi
+are not made to be servants. I will be no man's servant. When I think of
+this man--this bastard of a pope--treating me as beneath him, by God! I
+cannot breathe. I could roll on the floor and tear my hair with rage. Do
+you know that the Orsi have been great and rich for three hundred years?
+The Medici pale before them, for they are burghers and we have been
+always noble. We expelled the Ordelaffi because they wished to give us a
+bastard boy to rule over us, and shall we accept this Riario? I swear I
+will not endure it.'
+
+'Well said!' said Matteo.
+
+'Girolamo shall go as the Ordelaffi went. By God! I swear it.'
+
+I looked at Matteo, and I saw that suddenly a passion had caught hold of
+him; his face was red, his eyes staring wide, and his voice was hoarse
+and thick.
+
+'But do not mistake again, Checco,' he said; 'we want no foreign rulers.
+The Orsi must be the only Lords of Forli.'
+
+Checco and Matteo stood looking at one another; then the former, shaking
+himself as if to regain his calmness, turned his back on us and left
+the room. Matteo strode up and down for a while in thought, and then,
+turning to me, said, 'Come.'
+
+We went out and returned to our hostelry.
+
+
+
+
+IV
+
+
+Next day we went to Donna Giulia's.
+
+'Who is she?' I asked Matteo, as we walked along.
+
+'A widow!' he answered shortly.
+
+'Further?' I asked.
+
+'The scandal of Forli!'
+
+'Most interesting; but how has she gained her reputation?'
+
+'How do I know?' he answered, laughing; 'how do women usually gain their
+reputations? She drove Giovanni dall' Aste into his grave; her rivals
+say she poisoned him--but that is a cheerful libel, probably due to
+Claudia Piacentini.'
+
+'How long has she been a widow?'
+
+'Five or six years.'
+
+'And how has she lived since then?'
+
+Matteo shrugged his shoulders.
+
+'As widows usually live!' he answered. 'For my part, I really cannot see
+what inducement a woman in that position has to be virtuous. After all,
+one is only young once, and had better make the best use of one's youth
+while it lasts.'
+
+'But has she no relations?'
+
+'Certainly; she has a father and two brothers. But they hear nothing or
+care nothing. Besides, it may be only scandal after all.'
+
+'You talked as if it were a fact,' I said.
+
+'Oh, no; I only say that if it is not a fact she is a very foolish
+woman. Now that she has a bad reputation, it would be idiotic not to
+live up to it.'
+
+'You speak with some feeling,' I remarked, laughing.
+
+'Ah,' answered Matteo, with another shrug of the shoulders, 'I laid
+siege to the fort of her virtue--and she sallied and retired, and mined
+and countermined, advanced and drew back, so that I grew weary and
+abandoned the attack. Life is not long enough to spend six months in
+politeness and flattery, and then not be sure of the reward at the end.'
+
+'You have a practical way of looking at things.'
+
+'With me, you know, one woman is very like another. It comes to the same
+in the end; and after one has kicked about the world for a few years,
+one arrives at the conclusion that it it does not much matter if they be
+dark or fair, fat or thin....'
+
+'Did you tell all this to Donna Giulia?' I asked.
+
+'More or less.'
+
+'What did she think of it?'
+
+'She was cross for a while. She wished she had yielded sooner, when it
+was too late; it served her right!'
+
+We had arrived at the house, and were ushered in. Donna Giulia greeted
+us very politely, gave me a glance, and began talking again to her
+friends. One could see that the men round her were more or less in
+love, for they followed every motion with their eyes, disputing her
+smiles, which she scattered in profusion, now upon one, now upon
+another.... I saw she delighted in adulation, for the maker of any neat
+compliment was always rewarded with a softer look and a more charming
+smile.
+
+Matteo surpassed the others in the outrageousness of his flattery; I
+thought she must see that he was laughing at her, but she accepted
+everything he said quite seriously, and was evidently much pleased.
+
+'Are you not glad to be back in Forli?' she said to him.
+
+'We all delight to tread the ground you walk on.'
+
+'You have grown very polite during your absence.'
+
+'What other result could have been, when I spent my time thinking of the
+lovely Giulia.'
+
+'I am afraid you had other thoughts in Naples: they say that there the
+women are all beautiful.'
+
+'Naples! My dear lady, I swear that during all the time I have been away
+I have never seen a face to compare with yours.'
+
+Her eyes quite shone with pleasure. I turned away, finding the
+conversation silly. I thought I would do without the pleasant looks of
+Madonna Giulia, and I decided not to come to her again. Meanwhile, I
+began talking to one of the other ladies in the room and passed the time
+agreeably enough.... In a little while Giulia passed me, leaning on the
+arm of one of her admirers. I saw her glance at me, but I took no
+notice. Immediately afterwards she came again, hesitating a moment, as
+if she wished to say something, but passed on without speaking. I
+thought she was piqued at my inattention to her, and, with a smile,
+redoubled my attentions to the lady with whom I was talking.
+
+'Messer Filippo!' Donna Giulia called me, 'if you are not too engaged,
+will you speak to me for one moment?'
+
+I approached her smiling.
+
+'I am anxious to hear of your quarrel with Ercole Piacentini. I have
+heard quite ten different stories.'
+
+'I am surprised that the insolence of an ill-bred fellow should rouse
+such interest.'
+
+'We must talk of something in Forli. The only thing I hear for certain
+is that he insulted you, and you were prevented from getting
+satisfaction.'
+
+'That will come later.'
+
+She lowered her voice and took my arm.
+
+'But my brother tells me that Checco d'Orsi has made you promise to do
+nothing.'
+
+'I shall get my revenge--having to wait for it will only make it
+sweeter.'
+
+Then, supposing she had nothing further to say to me, I stood still, as
+if expecting her to leave me. She looked up suddenly.
+
+'Am I incommoding you?' she said.
+
+'How could you!' I replied gallantly.
+
+'I thought you wanted to get rid of me.'
+
+'How can such an idea have entered your head? Do you not see that all
+men lie humble at your feet, attentive to every word and gesture?'
+
+'Yes,' she answered, 'but not you!'
+
+Of course I protested.
+
+'Oh,' she said, 'I saw very well that you avoided me. When you came in
+here--you hardly came near me.'
+
+'I did not think you would notice my inattention.'
+
+'Certainly I noticed it; I was afraid I had offended you. I could not
+think how.'
+
+'My dear lady, you have certainly done nothing to offend me.'
+
+'Then, why do you avoid me?' she asked petulantly.
+
+'Really,' I said, 'I don't. Perhaps in my modesty I thought it would be
+a matter of indifference to you whether I was at your side or not. I am
+sorry I have annoyed you.'
+
+'I don't like people not to like me,' she said in a plaintive way.
+
+'But why should you think I do not like you? Indeed, without flattery, I
+can assure you that I think you one of the most beautiful women I have
+ever seen.'
+
+A faint blush came over her cheeks, and a smile broke out on her lips;
+she looked up at me with a pretty reproachful air.
+
+'Then, why don't you let me see it more plainly?'
+
+I smiled, and, looking into her eyes, was struck by their velvet
+softness. I almost thought she was as charming as she was beautiful.
+
+'Do you really wish to know?' I said, in reply to her question.
+
+'Do tell me!' she said, faintly pressing my arm.
+
+'I thought you had so many admirers that you could well do without me.'
+
+'But, you see,' she answered charmingly, 'I cannot!'
+
+'And then I have a certain dislike to losing myself in a crowd. I did
+not wish to share your smiles with twenty others.'
+
+'And would you for that refuse them altogether?'
+
+'I have always avoided the woman who is the object of general
+admiration. I think I am too proud to struggle for favours; I would
+rather dispense with them.'
+
+'But, then, supposing the lady wishes to favour you especially, you do
+not give her the opportunity.'
+
+'That is so rare,' I replied, 'that it is not worth while breaking the
+rule.'
+
+'But it may happen.'
+
+I shrugged my shoulders. She paused a moment, and then said,--
+
+'You do like me, then, after all?'
+
+I saw a slight trembling of the lip, perhaps the eyes were a little
+moist. I felt sorry for what I had done.
+
+'I fear I have given you pain,' I said.
+
+'You have a little,' she replied.
+
+'I am sorry. I thought you did not care.'
+
+'I like people to love me and be pleased with me.'
+
+'I do both!'
+
+'Then you must show it,' she replied, a smile breaking through the
+beginning of tears.
+
+I really had been brutal, and I was very sorry that I had caused a cloud
+to gather over her sunshiny nature. She was indeed very sweet and
+charming.
+
+'Well, we are good friends now, aren't we?' she said.
+
+'Of course.'
+
+'And you'll come and see me often?'
+
+'As often as you will allow me to,' I answered. She gave me her hand to
+kiss, and a bright, happy smile lit up her face.
+
+'_A rivederci!_' she said.
+
+We went home, and Matteo found waiting for him a message from Checco,
+bidding him leave the inn and take up his quarters with me at the
+Palazzo Orsi. On arriving, we found Checco excitedly walking up and down
+a long corridor lined with statues and pictures.
+
+'I am glad you have come,' he said to Matteo, taking his hand and
+nodding. 'You must stay here; we must all keep together now, for
+anything may happen.'
+
+'What do you mean?' asked Matteo.
+
+'The catastrophe nearly came to-day.'
+
+We both looked at him with astonishment, not comprehending. Checco stood
+still abruptly.
+
+'He tried to arrest me to-day--Girolamo!' Then, speaking very quickly,
+as if labouring under great excitement, 'I had to go to the Palace on
+business. I found him in the audience chamber, and we began to talk
+certain matters over, and I grew rather heated. Suddenly I noticed that
+the place had emptied itself. I stopped in the midst of my sentence and
+looked up at Girolamo. I saw he was not attending to me; his eyes were
+fixed on the door.'
+
+Checco was silent, and drops of perspiration were standing on his
+forehead.
+
+'Yes! Yes!' we both said eagerly.
+
+'The door opened, and the Master of the Guard walked in. "By God!" I
+thought, "I'm trapped!" "I have been waiting for you, Andrea," said
+Girolamo. Then he turned to me, and said, "Come into the Room of the
+Nymphs, Checco. I have some papers there to show you." He took hold of
+my arm. I loosed myself. "I pray you, excuse me," I said, "I have some
+very urgent business." I walked to the door. Andrea glanced at his
+master, and I thought he was going to bar my way; I think he was waiting
+for some sign, but before it came I had seen through the open door Paolo
+Bruni, and I called out, "Paolo, Paolo, wait for me. I want to talk to
+you urgently." Then I knew I was safe; he dared not touch me; and I
+turned round and said again, "I pray you, excuse me; my business with
+Paolo is a matter of life or death." I brushed past Andrea and got out.
+By Heaven! how I breathed when I found myself in the piazza!'
+
+'But are you sure he meant to arrest you?' said Matteo.
+
+'Certain; what else?'
+
+'Andrea might have come in by accident. There may have been nothing in
+it at all.'
+
+'I was not deceived,' answered Checco, earnestly. 'Their looks betrayed
+them--Andrea's questioning glance. I know he wants to kill me.'
+
+'But would he dare seize you in cold blood?'
+
+'He cares for nothing when he has an object in view. Besides, when he
+had me in his power, what could have been done? I know Girolamo too
+well. There would have been a mock trial, and I should have been
+condemned. Or else he would have me strangled in my cell, and when I had
+gone you would have been helpless--my father is too old, and there would
+have been no leader to the party but you--and what could you do alone?'
+
+We all remained silent for a while, then Checco broke out.
+
+'I know he wants to rid himself of me. He has threatened before, but has
+never gone so far as this.'
+
+'I agree with you,' said Matteo; 'things are becoming grave.'
+
+'It is not so much for myself I care; but what would happen to my
+children? My father is safe--he is so old and helpless that they would
+never think of touching him--but my boys? Caterina would throw them into
+prison without a scruple.'
+
+'Well,' said Matteo, 'what will you do?'
+
+'What can I do?' he answered. 'I have been racking my brains, and I see
+no way of safety. I can wear a coat of mail to preserve me from the
+stray knife of an assassin, but that will not help me against a troop of
+soldiers. I can leave Forli, but that is to abandon everything.'
+
+'No, you must not leave Forli--anything but that!'
+
+'What can I do? What can I do?' he stamped his foot on the ground as if
+almost in desperation.
+
+'One thing,' said Matteo, 'you must not go about alone--always with at
+least two friends.'
+
+'Yes, I have thought of that. But how will it all turn out; it cannot
+last. What can I do?'
+
+He turned to me.
+
+'What do you think?' he said. 'He means to kill me.'
+
+'Why not anticipate him?' I answered quietly.
+
+They both started up with a cry.
+
+'Kill him!'
+
+'Assassination! I dare not, I dare not,' said Checco, very excitedly. 'I
+will do all I can by fair means, but assassination--'
+
+I shrugged my shoulders.
+
+'It seems a matter of self-preservation,' I said.
+
+'No, no; I won't speak of it! I won't think of it.' He began again to
+walk excitedly up and down the room. 'I won't think of it, I tell you. I
+could not.'
+
+Neither Matteo nor I spoke.
+
+'Why don't you speak?' he said to Matteo, impatiently.
+
+'I am thinking,' he answered.
+
+'Not of that; I forbid you to think of that. I will not have it.' Then,
+after a pause, abruptly, as if he were angry with us and with himself,
+'Leave me!'
+
+
+
+
+V
+
+
+A few days later, Matteo came to me as I was dressing, having rescued my
+clothes from him.
+
+'I wonder you're not ashamed to go out in those garments,' he remarked,
+'people will say that you wear my old things.'
+
+I took no notice of the insult.
+
+'Where are you going?' he asked.
+
+'To Madonna Giulia.'
+
+'But you went there yesterday!'
+
+'That is no reason why I should not go to-day. She asked me to come.'
+
+'That's very obliging of her, I'm sure.' Then, after a pause, during
+which I continued my toilet, 'I have been gathering the news of Forli.'
+
+'Oh!'
+
+'Madonna Giulia has been affording a great deal of interest....'
+
+'You have been talking to the lady whom you call the beautiful Claudia,'
+I said.
+
+'By the way, why have you not been to her?'
+
+'I really don't know,' I said. 'Why should I?'
+
+'You told me you had progressed a long way in her favours during the
+half-hour's talk you had with her the other night; have you not followed
+up the advantage?'
+
+I shrugged my shoulders.
+
+'I don't think I like a woman to make all the advances.'
+
+'Don't you?' said Matteo. 'I do!'
+
+'Besides, I don't care for the type; she is too massive.'
+
+'She feels very much hurt at your neglect. She says you have fallen in
+love with Giulia.'
+
+'That is absurd,' I replied; 'and as to her being hurt at my neglect, I
+am very sorry, but I don't feel any obligation to throw myself into the
+arms of every woman who chooses to open them.'
+
+'I quite agree with you; neither she nor Giulia are a bit better than
+they should be. I'm told Giulia's latest lover is Amtrogio della
+Treccia. It seems one day he was almost caught by old Bartolomeo, and
+had to slip out of the window and perform feats worthy of a professional
+acrobat to get out of the way.'
+
+'I don't think I attach belief to all the scandal circulating on the
+subject of that lady.'
+
+'You're not in love with her?' asked Matteo, quickly.
+
+I laughed.
+
+'Certainly not. But still--'
+
+'That's all right; because, of course, you know it's notorious that she
+has had the most disgraceful amours. And she hasn't even kept them to
+her own class; all sorts of people have enjoyed her favours.'
+
+'She does not look very much like a Messalina,' I said, sneering a
+little.
+
+'Honestly, Filippo, I do think she is really very little better than a
+harlot.'
+
+'You are extremely charitable,' I said. 'But don't you think you are
+somewhat prejudiced by the fact that you yourself did not find her one.
+Besides, her character makes no particular difference to me; I really
+care nothing if she's good or bad; she is agreeable, and that is all I
+care about. She is not going to be my wife.'
+
+'She may make you very unhappy; you won't be the first.'
+
+'What a fool you are!' I said, a little angrily. 'You seem to think that
+because I go and see a woman I must be dying of love for her. You are
+absurd.'
+
+I left him, and soon found myself at the Palazzo Aste, where Donna
+Giulia was waiting for me. I had been to see her nearly every day since
+my arrival in Forli, for I really liked her. Naturally, I was not in
+love with her as Matteo suggested, and I had no intention of entering
+into that miserable state. I had found her charmingly simple, very
+different from the monster of dissipation she was supposed to be. She
+must have been three or four-and-twenty, but in all her ways she was
+quite girlish, merry and thoughtless, full of laughter at one moment,
+and then some trifling thing would happen to discompose her and she
+would be brought to the verge of tears; but a word or caress, even a
+compliment, would make her forget the unhappiness which had appeared so
+terrible, and in an instant she would be wreathed in smiles. She seemed
+so delightfully fragile, so delicate, so weak, that one felt it
+necessary to be very gentle with her. I could not imagine how anyone
+could use a hard word to her face.
+
+Her eyes lit up as she saw me.
+
+'How long you've been,' she said. 'I thought you were never coming.'
+
+She always seemed so glad so see you that you thought she must have been
+anxiously awaiting you, and that you were the very person of all others
+that she wished to have with her. Of course, I knew it was an
+affectation, but it was a very charming one.
+
+'Come and sit by me here,' she said, making room for me on a couch; then
+when I had sat down, she nestled close up to me in her pretty childish
+way, as if seeking protection. 'Now, tell me all you've been doing.'
+
+'I've been talking to Matteo,' I said.
+
+'What about?'
+
+'You.'
+
+'Tell me what he said.'
+
+'Nothing to your credit, my dear,' I said, laughing.
+
+'Poor Matteo,' she answered. 'He's such a clumsy, lumbering creature,
+one can see he's spent half his life in camps.'
+
+'And I? I have spent the same life as Matteo. Am I a clumsy, lumbering
+creature?'
+
+'Oh, no,' she answered, 'you are quite different.' She put the
+pleasantest compliments in the look of her eyes.
+
+'Matteo told me all sorts of scandal about you.' She blushed a little.
+
+'Did you believe it?'
+
+'I said I did not much care if it were true or not.'
+
+'But do you believe it?' she asked, insisting.
+
+'If you'll tell me it is not true, I will believe absolutely what you
+say.'
+
+The little anxious look on her face gave way to a bright smile.
+
+'Of course, it is not true.'
+
+'How beautiful you are when you smile,' I remarked irrelevantly. 'You
+should always smile.'
+
+'I always do on you,' she answered. She opened her mouth, as if about to
+speak, held back, as if unable to make up her mind, then said, 'Did
+Matteo tell you he made love to me once, and was very angry because I
+would not pick up the handkerchief which he had condescended to throw.'
+
+'He mentioned it.'
+
+'Since then, I am afraid he has not had very much good to say of me.'
+
+I had thought at the time that Matteo was a little bitter in his account
+of Donna Giulia, and I felt more inclined to believe her version of the
+story than his.
+
+'He has been beseeching me not to fall in love with you,' I said.
+
+She laughed.
+
+'Claudia Piacentini has been telling everyone that it is too late, and
+she is horribly jealous.'
+
+'Has she? Matteo also seemed certain I was in love with you.'
+
+'And are you?' she asked suddenly.
+
+'No!' I replied with great promptness.
+
+'_Brutta bestia!_' she said, throwing herself to the end of the couch,
+and beginning to pout.
+
+'I am very sorry,' I said, laughing, 'but I cannot help it.'
+
+'I think it is horrid of you,' she remarked.
+
+'You have so many adorers,' I said in expostulation.
+
+'Yes, but I want more,' she smiled.
+
+'But what good can it do you to have all these people in love with you?'
+
+'I don't know,' she said, 'it is a pleasant sensation.'
+
+'What a child you are!' I answered, laughing.
+
+She bent forward seriously.
+
+'But are you not at all in love with me?'
+
+I shook my head. She came close up to me, so that her hair brushed
+lightly against my cheek; it sent a shiver through me. I looked at her
+tiny ear; it was beautifully shaped, transparent as a pink shell.
+Unconsciously, quite without intention, I kissed it. She pretended to
+take no notice, and I was full of confusion. I felt myself blushing
+furiously.
+
+'Are you quite sure?' she said gravely.
+
+I got up to go, foolishly, rather angry with myself.
+
+'When shall I see you again?' I asked.
+
+'I am going to confession to-morrow. Be at San Stefano at ten, and we
+can have a little talk in the church when I have finished.'
+
+
+
+
+VI
+
+
+There had been a great commotion in Forli during the last two days; for
+it had become known that the country people of the Count's domain had
+sent a petition for the removal of certain taxes which pressed so
+heavily upon them, that the land was speedily going to ruin. The
+proprietors were dismissing their labourers, the houses of the peasants
+were falling into decay, and in certain districts the poverty had
+reached such a height that the farmers had not even grain wherewith to
+sow their fields, and all around the ground was lying bare and desolate.
+A famine had been the result, and if the previous year the countrymen
+had found it difficult to pay their taxes, this year they found it
+impossible. Girolamo had listened to their arguments, and knew them to
+be true. After considering with his councillors, he had resolved to
+remit certain of the more oppressive taxes; but in doing this he was
+confronted with the fact that his Treasury was already empty, and that
+if the income were further diminished it would be impossible for him to
+meet the demands of the coming year.
+
+It was clear that the country could not pay, and it was clear that the
+money must be procured. He set his eyes on the town, and saw that it was
+rich and flourishing, but he dared not, on his own initiative, propose
+any increase in its burdens. He called a council, showed the state of
+his affairs, and asked the elders for advice. No one stirred or spoke.
+At last Antonio Lassi, a creature of the Count, whom he had raised to
+the council from a humble position, rose to his feet and gave utterance
+to the plan which his master had suggested to him. The pith of it was to
+abrogate the taxes on the country people, and in compensation place
+others on certain food-stuffs and wines, which had previously gone free.
+Girolamo answered in a studied speech, pretending great unwillingness to
+charge what were the necessaries of life, and asked several of the more
+prominent members what they thought of the suggestion. They had met
+Antonio Lassi's speech with silence, and now applauded Girolamo's
+answer; they agreed with him that such taxes should not be. Then the
+Count changed his tone. He said it was the only means of raising the
+money, and gathering anger from their sullen looks and their silence, he
+told them that if they would not give their sanction to the decree, he
+would do without their sanction. Then, breaking short, he asked them for
+their answer. The councillors looked at one another, rather pale but
+determined; and the reply came from one after the other, quietly,--
+
+'No--no--no!'
+
+Antonio Lassi was cowed, and dared not give his answer at all. The
+Count, with an oath, beat his fist on the table and said, 'I am
+determined to be lord and master here; and you shall learn, all of you,
+that my will is law.'
+
+With that he dismissed them.
+
+When the people heard the news, there was great excitement. The murmurs
+against the Count, which had hitherto been cautiously expressed, were
+now cried out in the market-place; the extravagance of the Countess was
+bitterly complained of, and the townsmen gathered together in groups,
+talking heatedly of the proposed exaction, occasionally breaking out
+into open menace. It was very like sedition.
+
+On the day after the council, the head of the customs had been almost
+torn to pieces by the people as he was walking towards the Palace, and
+on his way back he was protected by a troop of soldiers. Antonio Lassi
+was met everywhere with hoots and cries, and Checco d'Orsi, meeting him
+in the loggia of the piazza, had assailed him with taunts and bitter
+sarcasms. Ercole Piacentini interposed and the quarrel nearly ended in a
+brawl; but Checco, with difficulty restraining himself, withdrew before
+anything happened....
+
+On leaving Donna Giulia, I walked to the piazza. and found the same
+restlessness as on the preceding days. Through all these people a
+strange commotion seemed to pass, a tremor like the waves of the sea;
+everywhere little knots of people were listening eagerly to some excited
+speaker; no one seemed able to work; the tradesmen were gathered at
+their doors talking with one another; idlers were wandering to and fro,
+now joining themselves to one group, now to another.
+
+Suddenly there was a silence; part of the crowd began looking eagerly in
+one direction, and the rest in their curiosity surged to the end of the
+piazza to see what was happening. Then it was seen that Caterina was
+approaching. She entered the place, and all eyes were fixed upon her. As
+usual, she was magnificently attired; her neck and hands and arms, her
+waistband and headgear, shone with jewels; she was accompanied by
+several of her ladies and two or three soldiers as guard. The crowd
+separated to let her pass, and she walked proudly between the serried
+rows of people, her head uplifted and her eyes fixed straight in front,
+as if she were unaware that anyone was looking at her. A few
+obsequiously took off their hats, but most gave no greeting; all around
+her was silence, a few murmurs, an oath or two muttered under breath,
+but that was all. She walked steadily on, and entered the Palace gates.
+At once a thousand voices burst forth, and after the deadly stillness
+the air seemed filled with confused sounds. Curses and imprecations were
+hurled on her from every side; they railed at her pride, they called her
+foul names.... Six years before, when she happened to cross the streets,
+the people had hurried forward to look at her, with joy in their hearts
+and blessings on their lips. They vowed they would die for her, they
+were in ecstasies at her graciousness.
+
+I went home thinking of all these things and of Donna Giulia. I was
+rather amused at my unintentional kiss; I wondered if she was thinking
+of me.... She really was a charming creature, and I was glad at the
+idea of seeing her again on the morrow. I liked her simple, fervent
+piety. She was in the habit of going regularly to mass, and happening to
+see her one day, I was struck with her devout air, full of faith; she
+also went to confessional frequently. It was rather absurd to think she
+was the perverse being people pretended....
+
+When I reached the Palazzo Orsi I found the same excitement as outside
+in the piazza, Girolamo had heard of the dispute in the loggia, and had
+sent for Checco to hear his views on the subject of the tax. The
+audience was fixed for the following morning at eleven, and as Checco
+never went anywhere without attendants, Scipione Moratini, Giulia's
+second brother, and I were appointed to accompany him. Matteo was not to
+go for fear of the presence of the two most prominent members of the
+family tempting the Count to some sudden action.
+
+The following morning I arrived at San Stefano at half-past nine, and to
+my surprise found Giulia waiting for me.
+
+'I did not think you would be out of the confessional so soon,' I said.
+'Were your sins so small this week?'
+
+'I haven't been,' she answered. 'Scipione told me that you and he were
+to accompany Checco to the Palace, and I thought you would have to leave
+here early, so I postponed the confessional.'
+
+'You have preferred earth and me to Heaven and the worthy father?'
+
+'You know I would do more for you than that,' she answered.
+
+'You witch!'
+
+She took my arm.
+
+'Come,' she said, 'come and sit in one of the transept chapels; it is
+quiet and dark there.'
+
+It was deliciously cool. The light came dimly through the coloured
+glass, clothing the marble of the chapel in mysterious reds and purples,
+and the air was faintly scented with incense. Sitting there she seemed
+to gain a new charm. Before, I had never really appreciated the extreme
+beauty of the brown hair tinged with red, its wonderful quality and
+luxuriance. I tried to think of something to say, but could not. I sat
+and looked at her, and the perfumes of her body blended with the
+incense.
+
+'Why don't you speak?' she said.
+
+'I'm sorry; I have nothing to say.'
+
+She laughed.
+
+'Tell me of what you are thinking.'
+
+'I daren't,' I said.
+
+She looked at me, repeating the wish with her eyes.
+
+'I was thinking you were very beautiful.'
+
+She turned to me and leant forward so that her face was close to mine;
+her eyes acquired a look of deep, voluptuous languor. We sat without
+speaking, and my head began to whirl.
+
+The clock struck ten.
+
+'I must go,' I said, breaking the silence.
+
+'Yes,' she answered, 'but come to-night and tell me what has happened.'
+
+I promised I would, then asked whether I should lead her to another part
+of the church.
+
+'No, leave me here,' she said. 'It is so good and quiet. I will stay and
+think.'
+
+'Of what?' I said.
+
+She did not speak, but she smiled so that I understood her answer.
+
+
+
+
+VII
+
+
+I hurried back to the Palazzo and found Scipione Moratini already
+arrived. I liked him for his sister's sake, but in himself he was a
+pleasant person.
+
+Both he and his brother had something of Giulia in them--the delicate
+features, the fascination and the winning ways which in them seemed
+almost effeminate. Their mother had been a very beautiful woman--report
+said somewhat gay--and it was from her the sons had got the gallantry
+which made them the terror of husbands in Forli, and Giulia the coquetry
+which had given rise to so much scandal. The father, Bartolomeo, was
+quite different. He was a rugged, upright man of sixty, very grave and
+very dignified, the only resemblance of feature to his children being
+the charming smile, which the sons possessed as well as Giulia; though
+in him it was rarely seen. What I liked most in him was the blind love
+for his daughter, leading him to unbend and become a youth to flatter
+her folly. He was really devoted to her, so that it was quite pathetic
+to see the look of intense affection in his eyes as he followed her
+movements. He, of course, had never heard a word of the rumours
+circulating about Giulia; he had the utmost faith in her virtue, and I,
+it seems to me, had gained faith from him.
+
+After talking a while with Scipione, Checco came, and we started for the
+Palazzo. The people in Forli know everything, and were well aware of
+Checco's mission. As we walked along we were met by many kind greetings,
+good luck, and God speed were wished us, and Checco, beaming with joy,
+graciously returned the salutations.
+
+We were ushered into the council chamber, where we found the councillors
+and many of the more prominent citizens, and several gentlemen of the
+Court; immediately the great folding doors were opened and Girolamo
+entered with his wonted state, accompanied by his courtiers and
+men-at-arms, so that the hall was filled with them. He took his seat on
+a throne, and graciously bowed to the left and to the right. His
+courtiers responded, but the citizens preserved a severe aspect, quite
+unsympathetic towards his condescension.
+
+Girolamo rose to his feet and made a short speech, in which he extolled
+Checco's wisdom and knowledge and patriotism, saying he had heard of a
+controversy between him and Antonio Lassi on the subject of the proposed
+tax, and consequently had sent for him to hear his opinion on the
+subject.
+
+He stopped and looked round; his courtiers obsequiously applauded. Then,
+at opposite ends of the room, doors opened, and through each filed a
+string of soldiers; the citizens looked at one another, wondering. A
+flourish of trumpets was heard in the piazza, outside, and the tramp of
+soldiers. Girolamo waited; at last he proceeded,--
+
+'A good prince owes this to his subjects--to do nothing against their
+will freely expressed; and though I could command, for I am placed here
+by the Vicar of Christ himself, with absolute power over your lives and
+fortunes, yet such is my love and affection towards you that I do not
+disdain to ask your advice.'
+
+The courtiers broke out into a murmur of surprise and
+self-congratulation at his infinite graciousness; the trumpets
+flourished again, and in the succeeding silence could be heard cries of
+command from the officers in the square, while from the soldiers
+standing about the hall there was a clank of swords and spurs.
+
+Checco rose from his seat. He was pale and he almost seemed to hesitate;
+I wondered if the soldiers had had the effect which Girolamo intended.
+Then he began to speak, quietly, in even, well-turned sentences, so that
+one could see the speech had been carefully thought out.
+
+He called to mind his own affection for Girolamo, and the mutual
+friendship which had solaced many hours of doubt and difficulty, and
+assured him of his unalterable fidelity to himself and his family; then
+he reminded him of the love borne by the people towards their ruler, and
+their consciousness of an equal love on the part of the Count towards
+themselves. He drew a picture of the joy in Forli when first Girolamo
+came to it, and of the enthusiasm caused by the sight of him or his wife
+walking through the streets.
+
+There was a little applause, chiefly from the Count's suite; Checco
+paused as if he had come to the end of his preface, and were gathering
+himself up for the real matter of his speech. There was deadly silence
+in the hall, all eyes were fixed on him, and all minds were asking
+themselves, 'What will he say?' Girolamo was leaning forward, resting
+his chin on his hand, looking anxious. I wondered if he regretted that
+he had called the meeting.
+
+Checco resumed his speech.
+
+'Girolamo,' he said, 'the people from the country districts lately sent
+you a petition, in which they showed their sufferings from rain and
+storm and famine, their poverty and misery, the oppressiveness of the
+taxes. They bade you come and look at their untilled fields, their
+houses falling to ruin, themselves dying by the roadside, naked and
+hungry, children expiring at their mothers' breasts, parents lying
+unburied in the ruin of their home. They bade you come and look at the
+desolation of the land, and implored you to help them while there was
+yet time, and lighten from their backs the burdens you had laid upon
+them.
+
+'You turned an eye of pity on them; and now the land smiles, the people
+have shaken themselves from their sleep of death, and awakened to new
+life, and everywhere prayers are offered and blessings rained on the
+head of the most high and magnificent prince, Girolamo Riario.
+
+'And we too, my Lord, join in the thanks and praise; for these to whom
+you have given new life are our cousins and brothers, our
+fellow-countrymen.'
+
+What was coming? The councillors looked at one another questioningly.
+Could Checco have made terms with the Count, and was it a comedy they
+were playing? Girolamo also was surprised; he had not for long heard
+praise from any but his courtiers.
+
+'Eight years ago, when you acquired the sovereignty of Forli, you found
+the town weighed down under the taxes which the Ordelaffi had imposed.
+Depression had seized hold of the merchants and tradesmen; they were
+burdened so that they could not buy nor sell; they had given up effort,
+and the town was lying numb and cold, as if dying from a pestilence. The
+streets were deserted; such people as there were moved sadly, and with
+downturned faces. The inhabitants were becoming fewer; there was no
+motion, no life; a few years more and Forli would have become a city of
+the dead!
+
+'But you came, and with you life; for your first deed was to remove the
+most oppressive imposts. As the bow, doubled up, when the string is
+loosened shoots back with a sudden impulse which propels the arrow to
+its mark, so Forli rebounded from the weight it had borne before. The
+Goddess of Plenty reigned in the land; it was the sunlight after storm;
+everywhere life and activity! The merchant wrote busily at his desk, the
+tradesman spread his wares anew and laughed in the joy of his heart. The
+mason, the builder, the blacksmith returned to their work, and through
+the city was heard the sound of hammering and building. The news spread
+of a beneficent lord, and the goldsmith and silversmith, the painter,
+the sculptor, came to the city in throngs. The money passed from hand to
+hand, and in its passage seemed to increase by magic. On the faces of
+all was happiness; the apprentice sang as he worked, and mirth and joy
+were universal; Forli became known as the home of delight; Italy rang
+with its feasts and celebrations--and every citizen was proud to be a
+Forlivese.
+
+'And everywhere prayers were offered and blessings rained on the head of
+the most high and magnificent prince, Girolamo Riario.'
+
+Checco paused again. An inkling of his meaning was coming to his
+hearers, but they dared not think he would say what was in all their
+minds.
+
+'Then,' Checco went on, 'you re-imposed the taxes which you had taken
+off.'
+
+'That is a lie!' interrupted Girolamo. 'They were imposed by the
+council.'
+
+Checco shrugged his shoulders, smiling ironically.
+
+'I remember quite well. You called a meeting of the Ancients, and
+showing them your necessities, suggested that they should re-impose the
+taxes.
+
+'I forget if you reminded them that you could command, and that you were
+placed here by the Vicar of Christ on earth.
+
+'And you forebore to let us hear the ring of trumpets and the tramp of
+soldiery in the square. Nor did you think so numerous a suite necessary
+for your dignity.'
+
+He looked round at the soldiers, thoughtfully stroking his beard.
+
+'Proceed!' said Girolamo, impatiently; he was beginning to get angry.
+
+Checco, in talking, had recovered the assurance which at first seemed to
+fail him. He smiled politely at the Count's command, and said,--
+
+'I will come to the point at once.
+
+'You replaced the taxes which you had taken away, and thereby undid the
+benefit you had done. The town soon felt the effect of the change; its
+prosperity is already declining, and it is not doubtful that a few years
+more will bring it to the condition in which you found it. And who
+knows, perhaps its last state may be worse than its first?
+
+'And now you propose to make the townspeople pay the duties which you
+have taken off the countryfolk. You have sent for me to ask my advice on
+the subject, and here I give it you.
+
+'Do not put on, but take off. In the name of the people, I beseech you
+to do away with the taxes you imposed four years ago, and return to the
+happy state of the first years of your rule.'
+
+He paused a moment, then with outstretched arm, pointing to the Count,
+he added solemnly, 'Or Girolamo Riario, the magnificent prince, may
+share the fate of the Ordelaffi, who ruled the town for two centuries
+and now wander homeless about the land.'
+
+There was a cry all round the room. They were astounded at his audacity.
+Girolamo had started in his chair--his eyes were staring, his face red;
+he was dumb with rage. He tried to speak, but the words died in his
+throat, and nothing was heard but an inarticulate murmur. The soldiers
+and courtiers were looking at one another in surprise; they did not know
+what to do or think; they looked at their master, but found no help in
+him. The citizens were bewildered, and by turns felt wonder, dismay,
+fear, pleasure; they could not understand....
+
+'Oh, Girolamo!' said Checco, unmindful of the excitement round him, 'I
+do not say these things in enmity to you. Come among your people
+yourself, and see their wants with your own eyes. Do not believe what
+your courtiers tell you--do not think the land in your charge is a
+captured town, which you can spoil at your pleasure. You have been
+placed here as a guardian in our perils and an assistance in our
+necessities.
+
+'You are a stranger here; you do not know this people as I know it. They
+will be faithful, meek, obedient--but do not rob them of the money they
+have hardly earned, or they will turn against you. Forli has never
+supported an oppressor, and if you oppress them, beware of their wrath.
+What do you think are these soldiers of yours against the wrath of a
+people! And are you so sure of your soldiers? Will they take part for
+you against their fathers and brothers, their children?'
+
+'Be quiet!' Girolamo had risen from his seat, and was standing with his
+arm threateningly upraised. He shouted so as to drown Checco, 'Be quiet!
+You have always been against me, Checco,' he cried. 'You have hated me
+because I have overwhelmed you with bounty. There has never been trouble
+between me and my people but you have come to make them more bitter
+against me.'
+
+'You lie!' said Checco, passionately.
+
+'Oh, I know you, Checco, and your pride! As Satan fell by pride, so may
+you, notwithstanding all your riches and power. You thought you were my
+equal, and because you found me your master you gnashed your teeth and
+cursed me.
+
+'By God, you would kill me if you could!'
+
+Checco lost his calm, and gesticulating wildly shouted back at Girolamo.
+
+'I have hated you because you are a tyrant to this town. Are these not
+my fellow-citizens, my brothers, my friends? Have we not been together
+since childhood, and our fathers and grandfathers before us? And do you
+think I look upon them as you who are a stranger?
+
+'No; so long as you obtained money from the rich, I said nothing. You
+know what sums I have myself lent you; all that I freely give you. I do
+not want a penny of it back--keep it all. But when you have extorted the
+uttermost from us, and you turn to the poor and needy and rob them of
+their little, then I will not keep silence. You shall not impose these
+taxes on the people! And why is it you want them? For your riotous,
+insane extravagance; so that you may build yourself new palaces, and
+deck yourself in gorgeous robes, and buy diamonds and precious stones
+for your wife.'
+
+'Do not speak of my wife,' interrupted the Count.
+
+'So that you may pile gold in the hands of the parasite who makes a
+sonnet in your praise. You came to us and begged for money; we gave it
+and you flung it away in feasts and riotry. The very coat you wear was
+made out of our riches. But you have no right to take the money of the
+people for these ignoble uses. You are not their master; you are their
+servant; their money is not yours, but yours is theirs. Your duty before
+God is to protect them, and, instead, you rob them.'
+
+'Be silent!' broke in Girolamo. 'I will hear no more. You have outraged
+me as no man has ever done without repenting it. You think you are
+all-powerful, Checco, but by God you shall find that I am more powerful!
+
+'Now go, all of you! I have had enough of this scene. Go!'
+
+He waved his hand imperiously. Then, with a look of intense rage, he
+descended from his throne and, scowling, flung himself out of the room.
+
+
+
+
+VIII
+
+
+The courtiers followed on their master's heels, but the soldiers stood
+undecided. Ercole Piacentini looked at us, and spoke in an undertone to
+the Captain of the Guard. I thought they were discussing the possibility
+of boldly arresting Checco on the spot, which they doubtless knew would
+be a step very acceptable to Girolamo; but he was surrounded by his
+friends, and evidently, whatever Ercole and the Captain wished, they
+dared nothing, for the former quietly left the chamber, and the
+soldiers, on a whispered order, slid silently from the room like whipped
+dogs.
+
+Then the excitement of our friends knew no bounds. I, at the end of the
+speech, had seized his hand and said,--
+
+'Well done.'
+
+Now he was standing in the midst of all these people, happy and smiling,
+proud of the enthusiasm he had aroused, breathing heavily, so that a
+casual observer might have thought him drunk with wine.
+
+'My friends,' he said, in answer to their praises, and his voice
+slightly trembled, so that his sincerity was conspicuous, 'whatever
+happens, be sure that I will continue to uphold your rights, and that I
+will willingly give my life for the cause of justice and freedom.'
+
+He was choked by the violence of his emotion, and could say nothing
+more.
+
+The cries of approbation were renewed, and then, with an impulse to get
+into the open air, they surged out of the council chamber into the
+piazza. It was not exactly known what had passed in the Palace, but the
+people knew that Checco had braved the Count, and that the latter had
+broken up the meeting in anger. Wonderful rumours were going about: it
+was said that swords had been drawn, and there had almost been a battle;
+others said that the Count had tried to arrest Checco, and this story,
+gaining credence--some even saying that Checco was being kept a
+prisoner--had worked the citizens to fever height.
+
+When Checco appeared, there was a great shout and a rush towards him.
+'Bravo!' 'Well done!' I don't know what they did not find to say in
+praise of him. Their enthusiasm grew by its own fire; they went mad;
+they could not contain themselves, and they looked about for something
+on which to vent their feeling. A word, and they would have attacked the
+Palace or sacked the custom-house. They surrounded us, and would not let
+us pass. Bartolomeo Moratini pushed his way to Checco and said,--
+
+'Quiet them quickly, before it is too late.'
+
+Checco understood at once. 'Friends,' he said, 'let me pass quietly, for
+the love of God, and do you return to your work in peace. Let me pass!'
+
+Moving forward, the crowd opened to him, and still shouting, yelling and
+gesticulating, allowed him to go through. When we arrived at the gate of
+his palace, he turned to me and said,--
+
+'By God! Filippo, this is life. I shall never forget this day!'
+
+The crowd had followed to the door, and would not go away. Checco had to
+appear on the balcony and bow his thanks. As he stood there, I could see
+that his head was whirling. He was pale, almost senseless with his great
+joy.
+
+At last the people were persuaded to depart, and we entered the house.
+
+We were in Checco's private room. Besides the cousins and myself were
+present Bartolomeo Moratini and his two sons, Fabio Oliva and Cesare
+Gnocchi, both related on the mother's side to the Orsi. We were all
+restless and excited, discussing the events that had occurred; only
+Bartolomeo was quiet and grave. Matteo, in the highest of spirits,
+turned to him.
+
+'Why so silent, Messer Bartolomeo?' he said. 'You are like the skeleton
+at the banquet.'
+
+'It is a matter for gravity,' he answered.
+
+'Why?'
+
+'Why! Good God, man, do you suppose nothing has happened!'
+
+We stopped talking and stood round him, as if suddenly awakened.
+
+'Our ships are burnt behind us,' he proceeded, and we must
+advance--must!'
+
+'What do you mean?' said Checco.
+
+'Do you suppose Girolamo is going to allow things to go on as before?
+You must be mad, Checco!
+
+'I believe I am,' was the answer. 'All this has turned my head. Go on.'
+
+'Girolamo has only one step open to him now. You have braved him
+publicly; you have crossed the streets in triumph, amid the acclamation
+of the people, and they have accompanied you to your house with shouts
+of joy. Girolamo sees in you a rival--and from a rival there is only one
+safeguard.'
+
+'And that--?' asked Checco.
+
+'Is death!'
+
+We were all silent for a moment; then Bartolomeo spoke again.
+
+'He cannot allow you to live. He has threatened you before, but now he
+must carry his threats into effect. Take care!'
+
+'I know,' said Checco, 'the sword is hanging over my head. But he dare
+not arrest me.'
+
+'Perhaps he will try assassination. You must go out well guarded.'
+
+'I do,' said Checco, 'and I wear a coat of mail. The fear of
+assassination has been haunting me for weeks. Oh God, it is terrible! I
+could bear an open foe. I have courage as much as anyone; but this
+perpetual suspense! I swear to you it is making me a coward. I cannot
+turn the corner of a street without thinking that my death may be on the
+other side; I cannot go through a dark corridor at night without
+thinking that over there in the darkness my murderer may be waiting for
+me. I start at the slightest sound, the banging of a door, a sudden
+step. And I awake in the night with a cry, sweating. I cannot stand it
+I shall go mad if it continues. What can I do?'
+
+Matteo and I looked at one another; we had the same thought. Bartolomeo
+spoke.
+
+'Anticipate him!'
+
+We both started, for they were my very words. Checco gave a cry.
+
+'You too! That thought has been with me night and day! Anticipate him!
+Kill him! But I dare not think of it. I cannot kill him.'
+
+'You must,' said Bartolomeo.
+
+'Take care we are not heard,' said Oliva.
+
+'The doors are well fastened.'
+
+'You must,' repeated Bartolomeo. 'It is the only course left you. And
+what is more, you must make haste--for he will not delay. The lives of
+all of us are at stake. He will not be satisfied with you; after you are
+gone, he will easily enough find means to get rid of us.'
+
+'Hold your peace, Bartolomeo, for God's sake! It is treachery.'
+
+'Of what are you frightened? It would not be difficult.'
+
+'No, we must have no assassination! It always turns out badly. The Pazzi
+in Florence were killed, Salviati was hanged from the Palace windows,
+and Lorenzo is all-powerful, while the bones of the conspirators rot in
+unconsecrated ground. And at Milan, when they killed the Duke, not one
+of them escaped.'
+
+'They were fools. We do not mistake as in Florence; we have the people
+with us, and we shall not bungle it as they did.'
+
+'No, no, it cannot be.'
+
+'I tell you it must. It is our only safety!'
+
+Checco looked round anxiously.
+
+'We are all safe,' said Oliva. 'Have no fear.'
+
+'What do you think of it?' asked Checco. 'I know what you think,
+Filippo, and Matteo.'
+
+'I think with my father!' said Scipione.
+
+'I too!' said his brother.
+
+'And I!'
+
+'And I!'
+
+'Every one of you,' said Checco; 'you would have me murder him.'
+
+'It is just and lawful.'
+
+'Remember that he was my friend. I helped him to this power. Once we
+were almost brothers.'
+
+'But now he is your deadly enemy. He is sharpening a knife for your
+heart--and if you do not kill him, he will kill you.'
+
+'It is treachery. I cannot!'
+
+'When a man has killed another, the law kills him. It is a just revenge.
+When a man attempts another's life, the law permits him to kill that man
+in self-defence. Girolamo has killed you in thought--and at this moment
+he may be arranging the details of your murder. It is just and lawful
+that you take his life to defend your own and ours.'
+
+'Bartolomeo is right,' said Matteo.
+
+A murmur of approval showed what the others thought.
+
+'But think, Bartolomeo,' said Checco, 'you are grey-headed; you are not
+so very far from the tomb; if you killed this man, what of afterwards?'
+
+'I swear to you, Checco, that you would be a minister of God's
+vengeance. Has he not madly oppressed the people? What right has he more
+than another? Through him men and women and children have died of want;
+unhappiness and misery have gone through the land--and all the while he
+has been eating and drinking and making merry.'
+
+'Make up your mind, Checco. You must give way to us!' said Matteo.
+'Girolamo has failed in every way. On the score of honesty and justice
+he must die. And to save us he must die.'
+
+'You drive me mad,' said Checco. 'All of you are against me. You are
+right in all you say, but I cannot--oh God, I cannot!'
+
+Bartolomeo was going to speak again, but Checco interrupted him.
+
+'No, no, for Heaven's sake, say nothing more. Leave me alone. I want to
+be quiet and think.'
+
+
+
+
+IX
+
+
+In the evening at ten I went to the Palazzo Aste. The servant who let me
+in told me that Donna Giulia was at her father's, and he did not know
+when she would be back. I was intensely disappointed. I had been looking
+forward all day to seeing her, for the time in church had been so
+short.... The servant looked at me as if expecting me to go away, and I
+hesitated; but then I had such a desire to see her that I told him I
+would wait.
+
+I was shown into the room I already knew so well, and I sat down in
+Giulia's chair. I rested my head on the cushions which had pressed
+against her beautiful hair, her cheek; and I inhaled the fragrance which
+they had left behind them.
+
+How long she was! Why did she not come?
+
+I thought of her sitting there. In my mind I saw the beautiful, soft
+brown eyes, the red lips; her mouth was exquisite, very delicately
+shaped, with wonderful curves. It was for such a mouth as hers that the
+simile of Cupid's bow had been invented.
+
+I heard a noise below, and I went to the door to listen. My heart beat
+violently, but, alas! it was not she, and, bitterly disappointed, I
+returned to the chair. I thought I had been waiting hours, and every
+hour seemed a day. Would she never come?
+
+At last! The door opened, and she came in--so beautiful. She gave me
+both her hands.
+
+'I am sorry you have had to wait,' she said, 'but I could not help it.'
+
+'I would wait a hundred years to see you for an hour.'
+
+She sat down, and I lay at her feet.
+
+'Tell me,' she said, 'all that has happened to-day.'
+
+I did as she asked; and as I gave my story, her eyes sparkled and her
+cheeks flushed. I don't know what came over me; I felt a sensation of
+swooning, and at the same time I caught for breath. And I had a sudden
+impulse to take her in my arms and kiss her many times.
+
+'How lovely you are!' I said, raising myself to her side.
+
+She did not answer, but looked at me, smiling. Her eyes glistened with
+tears, her bosom heaved.
+
+'Giulia!'
+
+I put my arm round her, and took her hands in mine.
+
+'Giulia, I love you!'
+
+She bent over to me, and put forward her face; and then--then I took her
+in my arms and covered her mouth with kisses. Oh God! I was mad, I had
+never tasted such happiness before. Her beautiful mouth, it was so soft,
+so small, I gasped in the agony of my happiness. If I could only have
+died then!
+
+Giulia! Giulia!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The cock crew, and the night seemed to fade away into greyness. The
+first light of dawn broke through the windows, and I pressed my love to
+my heart in one last kiss.
+
+'Not yet,' she said; 'I love you.'
+
+I could not speak; I kissed her eyes, her cheeks, her breasts.
+
+'Don't go,' she said.
+
+'My love!'
+
+At last I tore myself away, and as I gave her the last kiss of all, she
+whispered,--
+
+'Come soon.'
+
+And I replied,--
+
+'To-night!'
+
+I walked through the grey streets of Forli, wondering at my happiness;
+it was too great to realise. It seemed absurd that I, a poor,
+commonplace man, should be chosen out for this ecstasy of bliss. I had
+been buffeted about the world, an exile, wandering here and there in
+search of a captain under whom to serve. I had had loves before, but
+common, grotesque things--not like this, pure and heavenly. With my
+other loves I had often felt a certain ugliness about them; they had
+seemed sordid and vulgar; but this was so pure, so clean! She was so
+saintly and innocent. Oh, it was good! And I laughed at myself for
+thinking I was not in love with her. I had loved her always; when it
+began I did not know ... and I did not care; all that interested me now
+was to think of myself, loving and beloved. I was not worthy of her; she
+was so good, so kind, and I a poor, mean wretch. I felt her a goddess,
+and I could have knelt down and worshipped her.
+
+I walked through the streets of Forli with swinging steps; I breathed in
+the morning air, and felt so strong, and well, and young. Everything was
+beautiful--all life! The grey walls enchanted me; the sombre carvings of
+the churches; the market women, gaily dressed, entering the town laden
+with baskets of many-coloured fruit. They gave me greeting, and I
+answered with a laughing heart. How kind they were! Indeed, my heart was
+so full of love that it welled over and covered everything and
+everybody, so that I felt a strange, hearty kindness to all around me. I
+loved mankind!
+
+
+
+
+X
+
+
+When I got home, I threw myself on my bed and enjoyed a delightful
+sleep, and when I awoke felt cool and fresh, and very happy.
+
+'What is the matter with you?' asked Matteo.
+
+'I am rather contented with myself,' I said.
+
+'Then, if you want to make other people contented, you had better come
+with me to Donna Claudia.'
+
+'The beautiful Claudia?'
+
+'The same!'
+
+'But can we venture in the enemy's camp?'
+
+'That is exactly why I want you to come. The idea is to take no notice
+of the events of yesterday, and that we should all go about as if
+nothing had happened.'
+
+'But Messer Piacentini will not be very glad to see us.'
+
+'He will be grinding his teeth, and inwardly spitting fire; but he will
+take us to his arms and embrace us, and try to make us believe he loves
+us with the most Christian affection.'
+
+'Very well; come on!'
+
+Donna Claudia, at all events, was delighted to see us, and she began
+making eyes and sighing, and putting her hand to her bosom in the most
+affecting manner.
+
+'Why have you not been to see me, Messer Filippo?' she asked.
+
+'Indeed, madam, I was afraid of being intrusive.'
+
+'Ah,' she said, with a sweeping glance, 'how could you be! No, there was
+another reason for your absence. Alas!'
+
+'I dared not face those lustrous eyes.'
+
+She turned them full on me, and then turned them up, Madonna-wise,
+showing the whites.
+
+'Are they so cruel, do you think?'
+
+'They are too brilliant. How dangerous to the moth is the candle; and in
+this case the candle is twain.'
+
+'But they say the moth as it flutters in the flame enjoys a perfection
+of ecstasy.'
+
+'Ah, but I am a very sensible moth,' I answered in a matter-of-fact
+tone, 'and I am afraid of burning my wings.'
+
+'How prosaic!' she murmured.
+
+'The muse,' I said politely, 'loses her force when you are present.'
+
+She evidently did not quite understand what I meant, for there was a
+look of slight bewilderment in her eyes; and I was not surprised, for I
+had not myself the faintest notion of my meaning. Still she saw it was a
+compliment.
+
+'Ah, you are very polite!'
+
+We paused a moment, during which we both looked unutterable things at
+one another. Then she gave a deep sigh.
+
+'Why so sad, sweet lady?' I asked.
+
+'Messer Filippo,' she answered, 'I am an unhappy woman.' She hit her
+breast with her hand.
+
+'You are too beautiful,' I remarked gallantly.
+
+'Ah no! ah no! I am unhappy.'
+
+I glanced at her husband, who was stalking grimly about the room,
+looking like a retired soldier with the gout; and I thought that to be
+in the society of such a person was enough to make anyone miserable.
+
+'You are right,' she said, following my eyes; 'it is my husband. He is
+so unsympathetic.'
+
+I condoled with her.
+
+'He is so jealous of me, and, as you know, I am a pattern of virtue to
+Forli!'
+
+I had never heard her character so described, but, of course, I said,--
+
+'To look at you would be enough to reassure the most violent of
+husbands.'
+
+'Oh, I have temptation enough, I assure you,' she answered quickly.
+
+'I can well believe that.'
+
+'But I am as faithful to him as if I were old and ugly; and yet he is
+jealous.'
+
+'We all have our crosses in this life,' I remarked sententiously.
+
+'Heaven knows I have mine; but I have my consolations.'
+
+So I supposed, and answered,--
+
+'Oh!'
+
+'I pour out my soul in a series of sonnets.'
+
+'A second Petrarch!'
+
+'My friends say some of them are not unworthy of that great name.'
+
+'I can well believe it.'
+
+Here relief came, and like the tired sentinel, I left the post of duty.
+I thought of my sweet Giulia, and wondered at her beauty and charm; it
+was all so much clearer and cleaner than the dross I saw around me. I
+came away, for I was pining for solitude, and then I gave myself up to
+the exquisite dreams of my love.
+
+At last the time came, the long day had at last worn away, and the
+night, the friend of lovers, gave me leave to go to Giulia.
+
+
+
+
+XI
+
+
+I was so happy. The world went on; things happened in Forli, the rival
+parties agitated and met together and discussed; there was a general
+ferment--and to it all I was profoundly indifferent. What matter all the
+petty little affairs of life? I said. People work and struggle, plot,
+scheme, make money, lose it, conspire for place and honour; they have
+their ambitions and hopes; but what is it all beside love? I had entered
+into the excitement of politics in Forli; I was behind the veil and knew
+the intricacies, the ambitions, the emotions of the actors; but now I
+withdrew myself. What did I care about the prospects of Forli, whether
+taxes were put on or taken off, or whether A killed B or B killed A, it
+really seemed so unimportant. I looked upon them as puppets performing
+on a stage, and I could not treat their acts with seriousness. Giulia!
+That was the great fact in life. Nothing mattered to me but Giulia. When
+I thought of Giulia my heart was filled with ecstasy, and I spat with
+scorn on all the silly details of events.
+
+I would willingly have kept myself out of the stream which was carrying
+along the others; but I could not help knowing what happened. And it was
+indeed ridiculous. After the great scene at the Palace people had begun
+to take steps as if for big events. Checco had sent a large sum of money
+to Florence for the Medici to take care of; Bartolomeo Moratini had made
+preparations; there were generally a stir and unrest. Girolamo was
+supposed to be going to take some step; people were prepared for
+everything; when they woke up in the morning they asked if aught had
+taken place in the night; and Checco wore a coat of mail. On the Count's
+side people were asking what Checco meant to do, whether the ovation he
+had received would encourage him to any violent step. All the world was
+agog for great events--and nothing happened. It reminded me of a mystery
+play in which, after great preparation of dialogue, some great stage
+effect is going to be produced--a saint is going to ascend to heaven, or
+a mountain is to open and the devil spring out. The spectators are
+sitting open-mouthed; the moment has come, everything is ready, the
+signal is given; the mob have already drawn their breath for a cry of
+astonishment--and something goes wrong and nothing happens.
+
+The good Forlivesi could not understand it: they were looking for signs
+and miracles, and behold! they came not. Each day they said to
+themselves that this would be one to be remembered in the history of the
+town; that to-day Girolamo would surely leave his hesitations; but the
+day wore on quite calmly. Everyone took his dinner and supper as usual,
+the sun journeyed from east to west as it had done on the previous day,
+the night came, and the worthy citizen went to his bed at his usual
+hour, and slept in peace till the following sunrise. Nothing happened,
+and it seemed that nothing was going to happen. The troubled spirits
+gradually came to the conclusion that there was nothing to be troubled
+about, and the old quiet came over the town; there was no talk of new
+taxes, and the world wagged on.... Checco and Matteo and the Moratini
+resigned themselves to the fact that the sky was serene, and that they
+had better pursue their way without troubling their little heads about
+conspiracies and midnight daggers.
+
+Meanwhile, I laughed, and admired their folly and my own wisdom. For I
+worried myself about none of these things; I lived in Giulia, for
+Giulia, by Giulia.... I had never enjoyed such happiness before; she was
+a little cold, perhaps, but I did not mind. I had passion that lived by
+its own flame, and I cared for nothing as long as she let me love her.
+And I argued with myself that it is an obvious thing that love is not
+the same on both sides. There is always one who loves and one who lets
+himself be loved. Perhaps it is a special decree of Nature; for the man
+loves actively, caresses and is passionate; while the woman gives
+herself to him, and is in his embrace like some sweet, helpless animal.
+I did not ask for such love as I gave; all I asked was that my love
+should let herself be loved. That was all I cared for; that was all I
+wanted. My love for Giulia was wonderful even to me. I felt I had lost
+myself in her. I had given my whole being into her hand. Samson and
+Delilah! But this was no faithless Philistine. I would have given my
+honour into her keeping and felt it as sure as in my own. In my great
+love I felt such devotion, such reverence, that sometimes I hardly dared
+touch her; it seemed to me I must kneel and worship at her feet. I
+learnt the great delight of abasing myself to the beloved. I could make
+myself so small and mean in my humility; but nothing satisfied my wish
+to show my abject slavery.... Oh, Giulia! Giulia!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+But this inaction on the part of Girolamo Riario had the effect of
+persuading his subjects of his weakness. They had given over expecting
+reprisals on his part, and the only conclusion they could come to was
+that he dared do nothing against Checco. It was inconceivable that he
+should leave unavenged the insults he had received; that he should bear
+without remark the signs of popularity which greeted Checco, not only on
+the day of the Council meeting, but since, every time he appeared in the
+streets. They began to despise their ruler as well as hate him, and they
+told one another stories of violent disputes in the Palace between the
+Count and Caterina. Everyone knew the pride and passion which came to
+the Countess with her Sforza blood, and they felt sure that she would
+not patiently bear the insults which her husband did not seem to mind;
+for the fear of the people could not stop their sarcasms, and when any
+member of the household was seen he was assailed with taunts and jeers;
+Caterina herself had to listen to scornful laughs as she passed by, and
+the town was ringing with a song about the Count. It was whispered that
+Girolamo's little son, Ottaviano, had been heard singing it in ignorance
+of its meaning, and had been nearly killed by his father in a passion of
+rage. Evil reports began to circulate about Caterina's virtue; it was
+supposed that she would not keep faithful to such a husband, and another
+song was made in praise of cuckoldry.
+
+The Orsi would not be persuaded that this calm was to be believed in.
+Checco was assured that Girolamo must have some scheme on hand, and the
+quiet and silence seemed all the more ominous.
+
+The Count very rarely appeared in Forli; but one Saint's day he went to
+the Cathedral, and as he came back to the Palace, passing through the
+piazza, saw Checco. At the same moment Checco saw him, and stopped,
+uncertain what to do. The crowd suddenly became silent, and they stood
+still like statues petrified by a magic spell. What was going to happen?
+Girolamo himself hesitated a moment; a curious spasm crossed his face.
+Checco made as if to walk on, pretending not to notice the Count. Matteo
+and I were dumbfounded, absolutely at a loss. Then the Count stepped
+forward, and held out his hand.
+
+'Ah, my Checco! how goes it?'
+
+He smiled and pressed warmly the hand which the Orsi gave him. Checco
+was taken aback, pale as if the hand he held were the hand of death.
+
+'You have neglected me of late, dear friend,' said the Count.
+
+'I have not been well, my lord.'
+
+Girolamo linked his arm in Checco's.
+
+'Come, come,' he said, 'you must not be angry because I used sharp
+words to you the other day. You know I am hot-tempered.'
+
+'You have a right to say what you please.'
+
+'Oh, no; I have only a right to say pleasant things.'
+
+He smiled, but all the time the mobile eyes were shifting here and
+there, scrutinising Checco's face, giving occasional quick glances to me
+and Matteo. He went on,--
+
+'You must show a forgiving spirit.' Then, to Matteo, 'We must all be
+good Christians if we can, eh, Matteo?'
+
+'Of course!'
+
+'And yet your cousin bears malice.'
+
+'No, my lord,' said Checco. 'I am afraid I was too outspoken.'
+
+'Well, if you were, I have forgiven you, and you must forgive me. But we
+will not talk of that. My children have been asking for you. It is
+strange that this ferocious creature, who tells me I am the worst among
+bad men, should be so adored by my children. Your little godson is
+always crying for you.'
+
+'Dear child!' said Checco.
+
+'Come and see them now. There is no time like the present.'
+
+Matteo and I looked at one another. Was all this an attempt to get him
+in his hand, and this time not to let him go?
+
+'I must pray you to excuse me, for I have some gentlemen coming to dine
+with me to-day, and I fear I shall be late already.'
+
+Girolamo gave us a rapid look, and evidently saw in our eyes something
+of our thoughts, for he said good-humouredly,--
+
+'You never will do anything for me, Checco. But I won't keep you; I
+respect the duties of hospitality. However, another day you must come.'
+
+He warmly pressed Checco's hand, and, nodding to Matteo and me, left us.
+
+The crowd had not been able to hear what was said, but they had seen the
+cordiality, and as soon as Girolamo disappeared behind the Palace doors,
+broke out into murmurs of derision. The Christian sentiment clearly
+gained little belief from them, and they put down the Count's act to
+fear. It was clear, they said, that he found Checco too strong for him,
+and dared nothing. It was a discovery that the man they had so feared
+was willing to turn the other cheek when the one was smitten, and to all
+their former hate they added a new hate that he had caused them terror
+without being terrible. They hated him now for their own pusillanimity.
+The mocking songs gained force, and Girolamo began to be known as
+Cornuto, the Man of Horns.
+
+Borne on this wave of contempt came another incident, which again showed
+the Count's weakness. On the Sunday following his meeting with Checco,
+it was known that Girolamo meant to hear mass at the church of San
+Stefano, and Jacopo Ronchi, commander of a troop, stationed himself,
+with two other soldiers, to await him. When the Count appeared,
+accompanied by his wife and children and his suite, Jacopo pressed
+forward and, throwing himself on his knees, presented a petition, in
+which he asked for the arrears of pay of himself and his fellows. The
+Count took it without speaking, and pursued his way. Then Jacopo took
+hold of his legs to stop him, and said,--
+
+'For Heaven's sake, my lord, give me a hearing. I and these others have
+received nothing for months, and we are starving.'
+
+'Let me go,' said the Count, 'your claim shall be attended to.'
+
+'Do not dismiss me, my lord. I have presented three petitions before,
+and to none of them have you paid attention. Now I am getting desperate,
+and can wait no longer. Look at my tattered clothes. Give me my money!'
+
+'Let me go, I tell you,' said Girolamo, furiously, and he gave him a
+sweeping blow, so that the man fell on his back to the ground. 'How dare
+you come and insult me here in the public place! By God! I cannot keep
+my patience much longer.'
+
+He brought out these words with such violence of passion that it seemed
+as if in them exploded the anger which had been gathering up through
+this time of humiliation. Then, turning furiously on the people, he
+almost screamed,--
+
+'Make way!'
+
+They dared not face his anger, and with white faces, shrunk back,
+leaving a path for him and his party to walk through.
+
+
+
+
+XII
+
+
+I looked at these events as I might have looked at a comedy of Plautus;
+it was very amusing, but perhaps a little vulgar. I was wrapped up in my
+own happiness, and I had forgotten Nemesis.
+
+One day, perhaps two months from my arrival in Forli, I heard Checco
+tell his cousin that a certain Giorgio dall' Aste had returned. I paid
+no particular attention to the remark; but later, when I was alone with
+Matteo, it occurred to me that I had not heard before of this person. I
+did not know that Giulia had relations on her husband's side. I asked,--
+
+'By the way, who is that Giorgio dall' Aste, of whom Checco was
+speaking?'
+
+'A cousin of Donna Giulia's late husband.'
+
+'I have never heard him spoken of before.'
+
+'Haven't you? He enjoys quite a peculiar reputation, as being the only
+lover that the virtuous Giulia has kept for more than ten days.'
+
+'Another of your old wives' tales, Matteo! Nature intended you for a
+begging friar.'
+
+'I have often thought I have missed my vocation. With my brilliant gift
+for telling lies in a truthful manner, I should have made my way in the
+Church to the highest dignities. Whereas, certain antiquated notions of
+honour having been instilled into me during my training as a soldier, my
+gifts are lost; with the result, that when I tell the truth people think
+I am lying. But this is solemn truth!'
+
+'All your stories are!' I jeered.
+
+'Ask anyone. This has been going on for years. When Giulia was married
+by old Tommaso, whom she had never seen in her life before the
+betrothal, the first thing she did was to fall in love with Giorgio. He
+fell in love with her, but being a fairly honest sort of man, he had
+some scruples about committing adultery with his cousin's wife,
+especially as he lived on his cousin's money. However, when a woman is
+vicious, a man's scruples soon go to the devil. If Adam couldn't refuse
+the apple, you can't expect us poor fallen creatures to do so either.
+The result was that Joseph did not run away from Potiphar's wife so fast
+as to prevent her from catching him.'
+
+'How biblical you are.'
+
+'Yes,' answered Matteo; 'I'm making love to a parson's mistress, and I
+am cultivating the style which I find she is used to.... But, however,
+Giorgio, being youthful, after a short while began to have prickings of
+conscience, and went away from Forli. Giulia was heart-broken, and her
+grief was so great that she must have half the town to console her. Then
+Giorgio's conscience calmed down, and he came back, and Giulia threw
+over all her lovers.'
+
+'I don't believe a single word you say.'
+
+'On my honour, it's true.'
+
+'On the face of it, the story is false. If she really loves him, why do
+they not keep together now that there is no hindrance?'
+
+'Because Giulia has the heart of a strumpet and can't be faithful to any
+one man. She's very fond of him, but they quarrel, and she takes a
+sudden fancy for somebody else, and for a while they won't see one
+another. But there seems some magical charm between them, for sooner or
+later they always come back to one another. I believe, if they were at
+the ends of the world, eventually they would be drawn together, even if
+they struggled with all their might against it. And, I promise you,
+Giorgio has struggled; he tries to part with her for good and all, and
+each time they separate he vows it shall be for ever. But there is an
+invisible chain and it always brings him back.'
+
+I stood looking at him in silence. Strange, horrible thoughts passed
+through my head and I could not drive them away. I tried to speak quite
+calmly.
+
+'And how is it when they are together?'
+
+'All sunshine and storm, but as time goes on the storm gets longer and
+blacker; and then Giorgio goes away.'
+
+'But, good God! man, how do you know?' I cried in agony.
+
+He shrugged his shoulders.
+
+'They quarrel?' I asked.
+
+'Furiously! He feels himself imprisoned against his will, with the door
+open to escape, but not the strength to do it; and she is angry that he
+should love her thus, trying not to love her. It rather seems to me that
+it explains her own excesses; her other loves are partly to show him
+how much she is loved, and to persuade herself that she is lovable.'
+
+I did not believe it. Oh, no, I swear I did not believe it, yet I was
+frightened, horribly frightened; but I would not believe a single word
+of it.
+
+'Listen, Matteo,' I said. 'You believe badly of Giulia; but you do not
+know her. I swear to you that she is good and pure, whatever she may
+have been in the past; and I do not believe a word of these scandals. I
+am sure that now she is as true and faithful as she is beautiful.'
+
+Matteo looked at me for a moment.
+
+'Are you her lover?' he asked.
+
+'Yes!'
+
+Matteo opened his mouth as if about to speak, then stopped, and after a
+moment's hesitation turned away.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+That evening I went to Giulia. I found her lying full length on a divan,
+her head sunken in soft cushions. She was immersed in reverie. I
+wondered whether she was thinking of me, and I went up to her silently,
+and, bending over her, lightly kissed her lips. She gave a cry, and a
+frown darkened her eyes.
+
+'You frightened me!'
+
+'I am sorry,' I answered humbly. 'I wanted to surprise you.'
+
+She did not answer, but raised her eyebrows, slightly shrugging her
+shoulders. I wondered whether something had arisen to vex her. I knew
+she had a quick temper, but I did not mind it; a cross word was so soon
+followed by a look of repentance and a word of love. I passed my hand
+over her beautiful soft hair. The frown came again, and she turned her
+head away.
+
+'Giulia,' I said, 'what is it?' I took her hand; she withdrew it
+immediately.
+
+'Nothing,' she answered.
+
+'Why do you turn away from me and withdraw your hand?'
+
+'Why should I not turn away from you and withdraw my hand?'
+
+'Don't you love me, Giulia?'
+
+She gave a sigh, and pretended to look bored. I looked at her, pained at
+heart and wondering.
+
+'Giulia, my dear, tell me what it is. You are making me very unhappy.'
+
+'Oh, don't I tell you, nothing, nothing, nothing!'
+
+'Why are you cross?'
+
+I put my face to her's, and my arms round her neck. She disengaged
+herself impatiently.
+
+'You refuse my kisses, Giulia!'
+
+She made another gesture of annoyance.
+
+'Giulia, don't you love me?' My heart was beginning to sink, and I
+remembered what I had heard from Matteo. Oh, God! could it be true?...
+
+'Yes, of course I love you, but sometimes I must be left in peace.'
+
+'You have only to say the word, and I will go away altogether.'
+
+'I don't want you to do that, but we shall like one another much better
+if we don't see too much of one another.'
+
+'When one is in love, really and truly, one does not think of such wise
+precautions.'
+
+'And you are here so often that I am afraid of my good name.'
+
+'You need have no fear about your character,' I answered bitterly. 'One
+more scandal will not make much difference.'
+
+'You need not insult me!'
+
+I could not be angry with her, I loved her too much, and the words I had
+said hurt me ten times more than they hurt her. I fell on my knees by
+her side and took hold of her arms.
+
+'Oh, Giulia, Giulia, forgive me! I don't mean to say anything to wound
+you. But, for God's sake! don't be so cold. I love you, I love you. Be
+good to me.'
+
+'I think I have been good to you.... After all, it is not such a very
+grave matter. I have not taken things more seriously than you.'
+
+'What do you mean?' I cried, aghast.
+
+She shrugged her shoulders.
+
+'I suppose you found me a pretty woman, and thought you could occupy a
+few spare moments with a pleasant amour. You can hardly have expected me
+to be influenced by sentiments very different from your own.'
+
+'You mean you do not love me?'
+
+'I love you as much as you love me. I don't suppose either you are
+Lancelot, or I Guinevere.'
+
+I still knelt at her side in silence, and my head felt as if the vessels
+in it were bursting....
+
+'You know,' she went on quite calmly, 'one cannot love for ever.'
+
+'But I love you, Giulia; I love you with all my heart and soul! I have
+had loves picked up for the opportunity's sake, or for pure idleness;
+but my love for you is different. I swear to you it is a matter of my
+whole life.'
+
+'That has been said to me so often....'
+
+I was beginning to be overwhelmed.
+
+'But do you mean that it is all finished? Do you mean that you won't
+have anything more to do with me!'
+
+'I don't say I won't have anything more to do with you.'
+
+'But love? It is love I want.'
+
+She shrugged her shoulders.
+
+'But why not?' I said despairingly. 'Why have you given it me at all if
+you want to take it away?'
+
+'One is not master of one's love. It comes and goes.'
+
+'Don't you love me at all?'
+
+'No!'
+
+'Oh, God! But why do you tell me this to-day?'
+
+'I had to tell you some time.'
+
+'But why not yesterday, or the day before? Why to-day particularly?'
+
+She did not answer.
+
+'Is it because Giorgio dall' Aste has just returned?'
+
+She started up and her eyes flashed.
+
+'What have they been telling you about him?'
+
+'Has he been here to-day? Were you thinking of him when I came? Were you
+languorous from his embraces?'
+
+'How dare you!'
+
+'The only lover to whom you have been faithful, more or less!'
+
+'You vowed you did not believe the scandals about me, and now, when I
+refuse you the smallest thing, you are ready to believe every word. What
+a love is this! I thought I had heard you talk so often of boundless
+confidence.'
+
+'I believe every word I have heard against you. I believe you are a
+harlot.'
+
+She had raised herself from her couch, and we were standing face to
+face.
+
+'Do you want money? Look! I have as good money as another. I will pay
+you for your love; here, take it.'
+
+I took gold pieces from my pocket and flung them at her feet.
+
+'Ah,' she cried in indignation, 'you cur! Go, go!'
+
+She pointed to the door. Then I felt a sudden revulsion. I fell on my
+knees and seized her hands.
+
+'Oh, forgive me, Giulia. I don't know what I am saying; I am mad. But
+don't rob me of your love; it is the only thing I have to live for. For
+God's sake, forgive me! Oh, Giulia, I love you, I love you. I can't live
+without you.' The tears broke from my eyes. I could not stop them.
+
+'Leave me! leave me!'
+
+I was ashamed of my abjectness; I rose up indignant.
+
+'Oh, you are quite heartless. You have no right to treat me so. You were
+not obliged to give me your love; but when once you have given it you
+cannot take it away. No one has the right to make another unhappy as you
+make me. You are a bad, evil woman. I hate you!'
+
+I stood over her with clenched fists. She shrank back, afraid.
+
+'Don't be frightened,' I said; 'I won't touch you. I hate you too much.'
+
+Then I turned to the crucifix, and lifted my hands.
+
+'Oh, God! I pray you, let this woman be treated as she has treated me.'
+And to her,'I hope to God you are as unhappy as I am. And I hope the
+unhappiness will come soon--you harlot!'
+
+I left her, and in my rage slammed the door, so that the lock shattered
+behind me.
+
+
+
+
+XIII
+
+
+I walked through the streets like a man who has received sentence of
+death. My brain was whirling, and sometimes I stopped and pressed my
+head with both hands to relieve the insupportable pressure. I could not
+realise what had happened; I only knew it was terrible. I felt as if I
+were going mad; I could have killed myself. At last, getting home, I
+threw myself on my bed and tried to gather myself together. I cried out
+against that woman. I wished I had my fingers curling round her soft
+white throat, that I could strangle the life out of her. Oh, I hated
+her!
+
+At last I fell asleep, and in that sweet forgetfulness enjoyed a little
+peace. When I woke I lay still for a moment without remembering what had
+happened; then suddenly it came back to me, and the blood flushed to my
+face as I thought of how I had humiliated myself to her. She must be as
+hard as stone, I said to myself, to see my misery and not take pity on
+me. She saw my tears and was not moved one jot. All the time I had been
+praying and beseeching, she had been as calm as a marble figure. She
+must have seen my agony and the passion of my love, and yet she was
+absolutely, absolutely indifferent. Oh, I despised her! I had known even
+when I adored her madly that it was only my love which gave her the
+qualities I worshipped. I had seen she was ignorant and foolish, and
+commonplace and vicious; but I did not care as long as I loved her and
+could have her love in return. But when I thought of her so horribly
+heartless, so uncaring to my unhappiness, I did more than hate her--I
+utterly despised her. I despised myself for having loved her. I despised
+myself for loving her still....
+
+I got up and went about my day's duties, trying to forget myself in
+their performance. But still I brooded over my misery, and in my heart I
+cursed the woman. It was Nemesis, always Nemesis! In my folly I had
+forgotten her; and yet I should have remembered that through my life all
+happiness had been followed by all misery.... I had tried to ward off
+the evil by sacrifice; I had rejoiced at the harm which befell me, but
+the very rejoicing seemed to render the hurt of no avail, and with the
+inevitableness of fate, Nemesis had come and thrown me back into the old
+unhappiness. But of late I had forgotten. What was Nemesis to me now
+when I thought my happiness so great that it could not help but last? It
+was so robust and strong that I never thought of its cessation. I did
+not even think the Gods were good to me at last. I had forgotten the
+Gods; I thought of nothing but love and Giulia.
+
+Matteo came asking me to go to the Palace with him and Checco, at the
+particular desire of Girolamo, who wished to show them the progress of
+the decorations. I would not go. I wanted to be alone and think.
+
+But my thoughts maddened me. Over and over again I repeated every word
+of the terrible quarrel, and more than ever I was filled with horror for
+her cold cruelty. What right have these people to make us unhappy? Is
+there not enough misery in the world already? Oh, it is brutal!
+
+I could not bear myself; I regretted that I had not gone to the Palace.
+I detested this solitude.
+
+The hours passed like years, and as my brain grew tired I sank into a
+state of sodden, passive misery.
+
+At last they came back, and Matteo told me what had happened. I tried to
+listen, to forget myself.... It appeared that the Count had been
+extremely cordial. After talking to them of his house, and showing the
+beautiful things he had collected to furnish it with, he took them to
+Caterina's apartments, where they found the Countess surrounded by her
+children. She had been very charming and gracious, even deigning to
+compliment Matteo on his gallantry. How it interested me to know all
+this! The children had run to Checco as soon as they saw him, dragging
+him into their game. The others looked on while the Orsi played
+good-humouredly with the little boys, and Girolamo, laying his hand on
+Checco's shoulder, had remarked,--
+
+'You see, dear friend, the children are determined that there should not
+be enmity between us. And when the little ones love you so dearly, can
+you think that I should hate you?'
+
+And when they left he had accompanied them to the gates and been quite
+affectionate in his farewell.
+
+At last the night came and I could shut myself up in my room. I thought
+with a bitter smile that it was the hour at which I was used to go to
+Giulia. And now I should never go to Giulia again. My unhappiness was
+too great for wrath; I felt too utterly miserable to think of my
+grievances, or of my contempt. I only felt broken-hearted. I could not
+keep the tears back, and burying my face in the pillows, I cried my
+heart out. It was years and years since I had wept, not since I was
+quite a boy, but this blow had taken from me all manliness, and I gave
+myself over to my grief, passionately, shamelessly. I did not care that
+I was weak; I had no respect for myself, or care for myself. The sobs
+came, one on the heels of another like waves, and the pain, as they tore
+my chest, relieved the anguish of my mind. Exhaustion came at last, and
+with it sleep.
+
+But I knew I could not hide the change in me, and Matteo soon noticed
+it.
+
+'What is the matter with you, Filippo?' he asked. I blushed and
+hesitated.
+
+'Nothing,' I answered at last.
+
+'I thought you were unhappy.'
+
+Our eyes met, but I could not stand his inquiring glance and looked
+down. He came to me, and sitting on the arm of my chair, put his hand on
+my shoulder and said affectionately,--
+
+'We're friends, aren't we, Filippo?'
+
+'Yes,' I answered, smiling and taking his hand.
+
+'Won't you trust me?'
+
+After a pause I answered,--
+
+'I should so much like to.' I felt as if indeed it would relieve me to
+be able to confide in somebody, I wanted sympathy so badly.
+
+He passed his hand gently over my hair.
+
+I hesitated a little, but I could not help myself, and I told him the
+whole story from beginning to end.
+
+'Poverino!' he said, when I had finished; then, clenching his teeth,
+'She is a beast, that woman!'
+
+'I ought to have taken your warning, Matteo, but I was a fool.'
+
+'Who ever does take warning!' he answered, shrugging his shoulders. 'How
+could you be expected to believe me?'
+
+'But I believe you now. I am horrified when I think of her vice and
+cruelty.'
+
+'Ah, well, it is over now.'
+
+'Quite! I hate her and despise her. Oh, I wish I could get her face to
+face and tell her what I think of her.'
+
+I thought my talk with Matteo had relieved me, I thought the worst was
+over; but at night melancholy came on me stronger than ever, and I
+groaned as I threw myself on my bed. I felt so terribly alone in the
+world.... I had no relation but a half-brother, a boy of twelve, whom I
+had hardly seen; and as I wandered through the land, an exile, I had
+been continually assailed by the hateful demon of loneliness. And
+sometimes in my solitude I had felt that I could kill myself. But when
+I found I was in love with Giulia, I cried aloud with joy.... I threw
+everything to the winds, gathering myself up for the supreme effort of
+passion. All the storm and stress were passed; I was no longer alone,
+for I had someone to whom I could give my love. I was like the ship that
+arrives in the harbour, and reefs her sails and clears her deck,
+settling down in the quietness of the waters.
+
+And now all was over! Oh God, to think that my hopes should be shattered
+in so short a time, that the ship should be so soon tossed about in the
+storm, and the stars hidden by the clouds! And the past delight made the
+present darkness all the more bitter. I groaned. In my misery I uttered
+a prayer to God to help me. I could not think I should live henceforth.
+How could I go on existing with this aching void in my heart? I could
+not spend days and weeks and years always with this despair. It was too
+terrible to last. My reason told me that time would remedy it; but time
+was so long, and what misery must I go through before the wound was
+healed! And as I thought of what I had lost, my agony grew more
+unbearable. It grew vivid, and I felt Giulia in my arms. I panted as I
+pressed my lips against hers, and I said to her,--
+
+'How could you!'
+
+I buried my face in my hands, so as better to enjoy my dream. I smelt
+the perfume of her breath; I felt on my face the light touch of her
+hair. But it would not last. I tried to seize the image and hold it
+back, but it vanished and left me broken-hearted....
+
+I knew I did not hate her. I had pretended to, but the words came from
+the mouth. In my heart I loved her still, more passionately than ever.
+What did I care if she was heartless and cruel and faithless and
+vicious! It was nothing to me as long as I could hold her in my arms and
+cover her with kisses. I did despise her; I knew her for what she was,
+but still I loved her insanely. Oh, if she would only come back to me! I
+would willingly forget everything and forgive her. Nay, I would ask her
+forgiveness and grovel before her, if she would only let me enjoy her
+love again.
+
+I would go back to her and fall on my knees, and pray her to be
+merciful. Why should I suppose she had changed in the few days. I knew
+she would treat me with the same indifference, and only feel a wondering
+contempt that I should so abase myself. It came like a blow in the face,
+the thought of her cold cruelty and her calmness. No, I vowed I would
+never subject myself to that again. I felt myself blush at the
+remembrance of the humiliation. But perhaps she was sorry for what she
+had done. I knew her pride would prevent her from coming or sending to
+me, and should I give her no opportunity? Perhaps, if we saw one another
+for a few moments everything might be arranged, and I might be happy
+again. An immense feeling of hope filled me. I thought I must be right
+in my idea; she could not be so heartless as to have no regret. How
+willingly I would take her back! My heart leaped. But I dared not go to
+her house. I knew I should find her on the morrow at her father's, who
+was going to give a banquet to some friends. I would speak to her there,
+casually, as if we were ordinary acquaintances; and then at the first
+sign of yielding on her part, even if I saw but a tinge of regret in her
+eyes, I would burst out. I was happy in my plan, and I went to sleep
+with the name of Giulia on my lips and her image in my heart.
+
+
+
+
+XIV
+
+
+I went to the Moratini Palace, and with beating heart looked round for
+Giulia. She was surrounded by her usual court, and seemed more lively
+and excited than ever. I had never seen her more beautiful. She was
+dressed all in white, and her sleeves were sewn with pearls; she looked
+like a bride. She caught sight of me at once, but pretended not to see
+me, and went on talking.
+
+I approached her brother Alessandro and said to him casually,--
+
+'I am told a cousin of your sister has come to Forli. Is he here
+to-day?'
+
+He looked at me inquiringly, not immediately understanding.
+
+'Giorgio dall' Aste,' I explained.
+
+'Oh, I didn't know you meant him. No, he's not here. He and Giulia's
+husband were not friends, and so--'
+
+'Why were they not friends?' I interrupted, on the spur of the moment,
+not seeing the impertinence of the question till I had made it.
+
+'Oh, I don't know. Relations always are at enmity with one another;
+probably some disagreement with regard to their estates.'
+
+'Was that all?'
+
+'So far as I know.'
+
+I recollected that in a scandal the persons most interested are the last
+to hear it. The husband hears nothing of his wife's treachery till all
+the town knows every detail.
+
+'I should like to have seen him,' I went on.
+
+'Giorgo? Oh, he's a weak sort of creature; one of those men who commit
+sins and repent!'
+
+'That is not a fault of which you will ever be guilty, Alessandro,' I
+said, smiling.
+
+'I sincerely hope not. After all, if a man has a conscience he ought not
+to do wrong. But if he does he must be a very poor sort of a fool to
+repent.'
+
+'You cannot have the rose without the thorn.'
+
+'Why not? It only needs care. There are dregs at the bottom of every
+cup, but you are not obliged to drink them.'
+
+'You have made up your mind that if you commit sins you are ready to go
+to hell for them?' I said.
+
+'It is braver than going to Heaven by the back door, turning pious when
+you are too old to do anything you shouldn't.'
+
+'I agree with you that one has little respect for the man who turns monk
+when things go wrong with him.'
+
+I saw that Giulia was alone, and seized the opportunity to speak with
+her.
+
+'Giulia,' I said, approaching.
+
+She looked at me for a moment with an air of perplexity, as if she
+really could not remember whom I was.
+
+'Ah, Messer Filippo!' she said, as if suddenly recollecting.
+
+'It is not so long since we met that you can have forgotten me.'
+
+'Yes. I remember last time you did me the honour to visit me you were
+very rude and cross.'
+
+I looked at her silently, wondering.
+
+'Well?' she said, steadily answering my gaze and smiling.
+
+'Have you nothing more to say to me than that?' I asked in an undertone.
+
+'What do you want me to say to you?'
+
+'Are you quite heartless?'
+
+She gave a sigh of boredom, and looked to the other end of the room, as
+if for someone to come and break a tedious conversation.
+
+'How could you!' I whispered.
+
+Notwithstanding her self-control, a faint blush came over her face. I
+stood looking at her for a little while and then I turned away. She was
+quite heartless. I left the Moratini and walked out into the town. This
+last interview had helped me in so far that it made certain that my love
+was hopeless. I stood still and stamped on the ground, vowing I would
+not love her. I would put her away from my thoughts entirely; she was a
+contemptible, vicious woman, and I was too proud to be subject to her. I
+wondered I did not kill her. I made up my mind to take my courage in
+both hands and leave Forli. Once away, I should find myself attracted to
+different matters, and probably I should not live long before finding
+some other woman to take Giulia's place. She was not the only woman in
+Italy; she was not the most beautiful nor the cleverest. Give me a month
+and I could laugh at my torments....
+
+The same evening I told Matteo I meant to leave Forli.
+
+'Why?' he asked in astonishment.
+
+'I have been here several weeks,' I answered; 'I don't want to outstay
+my welcome.'
+
+'That is rubbish. You know I should be only too glad for you to stay
+here all your life.'
+
+'That is very kind of you,' I replied, with a laugh, 'but the
+establishment is not yours.'
+
+'That makes no difference. Besides, Checco has become very fond of you,
+and I'm sure he wishes you to stay.'
+
+'Of course, I know your hospitality is quite unlimited; but I am
+beginning to want to get back to Citta di Castello.'
+
+'Why?' asked Matteo, doubtfully.
+
+'One likes to return to one's native place.'
+
+'You have been away from Castello for ten years; you cannot be in any
+particular hurry to get back.'
+
+I was beginning to protest when Checco came in, and Matteo interrupted
+me with,--
+
+'Listen, Checco, Filippo says he wants to leave us.'
+
+'But he sha'n't,' said Checco, laughing.
+
+'I really must!' I answered gravely.
+
+'You really mustn't,' replied Checco. 'We can't spare you, Filippo.'
+
+'There's no great hurry about your going home,' he added, when I had
+explained my reasons, 'and I fancy that soon we shall want you here. A
+good sword and a brave heart will probably be of good use to us.'
+
+'Everything is as quiet as a cemetery,' I said, shrugging my shoulders.
+
+'It is quiet above; but below there are rumblings and strange movements.
+I feel sure this calm only presages a storm. It is impossible for
+Girolamo to go on as he is now; his debts are increasing every day, and
+his difficulties will soon be impracticable. He must do something. There
+is certain to be a disturbance at any attempt to put on the taxes, and
+then Heaven only knows what will happen.'
+
+I was beginning to get a little vexed at their opposition, and I
+answered petulantly,--
+
+'No, I must go.'
+
+'Stay another month; things must come to a head before then.'
+
+A month would have been as bad as a year.
+
+'I am out of health,' I answered; 'I feel I want to get into a different
+atmosphere.'
+
+Checco thought for a moment.
+
+'Very well,' he said, 'we can arrange matters to suit us both. I want
+someone to go to Florence for me to conclude a little business matter
+with Messer Lorenzo de' Medici. You would be away a fortnight; and if
+you are out of sorts the ride across country will put you right. Will
+you go?'
+
+I thought for a moment. It was not a very long absence, but the new
+sights would distract me, and I wanted to see Florence again. On the
+whole, I thought it would suffice, and that I could count on the cure
+of my ill before the time was up.
+
+'Very well,' I answered.
+
+'Good! And you will have a pleasant companion. I had talked to Scipione
+Moratini about it; it did not occur to me that you would go. But it will
+be all the better to have two of you.'
+
+'If I go,' I said, 'I shall go alone.'
+
+Checco was rather astonished.
+
+'Why?'
+
+'Scipione bores me. I want to be quiet and do as I like.'
+
+I was quite determined that neither of the Moratini should come with me.
+They would have reminded me too much of what I wanted to forget.
+
+'As you like,' said Checco. 'I can easily tell Scipione that I want him
+to do something else for me.'
+
+'Thanks.'
+
+'When will you start?'
+
+'At once.'
+
+'Then come, and I will give you the instructions and necessary papers.'
+
+
+
+
+XV
+
+
+Next morning I mounted my horse and set out with Matteo, who was to
+accompany me for a little way.
+
+But at the town gate a guard stopped us and asked where we were going.
+
+'Out!' I answered shortly, moving on.
+
+'Stop!' said the man, catching hold of my bridle.
+
+'What the devil d'you mean?' said Matteo. 'D'you know whom we are?'
+
+'I have orders to let no one go by without the permission of my
+captain.'
+
+'What tyrants they are!' cried Matteo. 'Well, what the hell are you
+standing there for? Go and tell your captain to come out.'
+
+The man signed to another soldier, who went into the guard-house; he was
+still holding my bridle. I was not very good-tempered that morning.
+
+'Have the goodness to take your hands off,' I said.
+
+He looked as if he were about to refuse.
+
+'Will you do as you are told?' Then, as he hesitated, I brought down the
+butt-end of my whip on his fingers, and with an oath bade him stand
+off. He let go at once, cursing, and looked as if he would willingly
+stab me if he dared. We waited impatiently, but the captain did not
+appear.
+
+'Why the devil doesn't this man come?' I said; and Matteo, turning to
+one of the soldiers, ordered,--
+
+'Go and tell him to come here instantly.'
+
+At that moment the captain appeared, and we understood the incident, for
+it was Ercole Piacentini. He had apparently seen us coming, or heard of
+my intended journey, and had set himself out to insult us. We were both
+furious.
+
+'Why the devil don't you hurry up when you're sent for?' said Matteo.
+
+He scowled, but did not answer. Turning to me he asked,--
+
+'Where are you going?'
+
+Matteo and I looked at one another in amazement at the man's impudence,
+and I burst forth,--
+
+'You insolent fellow! What do you mean by stopping me like this?'
+
+'I have a right to refuse passage to anyone I choose.'
+
+'Take care!' I said. 'I swear the Count shall be told of your behaviour,
+and nowadays the Count is in the habit of doing as the Orsi tell him.'
+
+'He shall hear of this,' growled the Piacentini.
+
+'Tell him what you like. Do you think I care? You can tell him that I
+consider his captain a very impertinent ruffian. Now, let me go.'
+
+'You shall not pass till I choose.'
+
+'By God! man,' I said, absolutely beside myself, 'it seems I cannot
+touch you here, but if ever we meet in Citta di Castello--'
+
+'I will give you any satisfaction you wish,' he answered hotly.
+
+'Satisfaction! I would not soil my sword by crossing it with yours. I
+was going to say that if ever we meet in Castello I will have you
+whipped by my lacqueys in the public place.'
+
+I felt a ferocious pleasure in throwing the words of contempt in his
+face.
+
+'Come on,' said Matteo; 'we cannot waste our time here.'
+
+We put the spurs to our horses. The soldiers looked to their captain to
+see whether they should stop us, but he gave no order, and we passed
+through. When we got outside, Matteo said to me,--
+
+'Girolamo must be planning something, or Ercole would not have dared to
+do that.'
+
+'It is only the impotent anger of a foolish man,' I answered. 'The Count
+will probably be very angry with him when he hears of it.'
+
+We rode a few miles, and then Matteo turned back. When I found myself
+alone I heaved a great sigh of relief. I was free for a while at
+least.... Another episode in my life was finished; I could forget it,
+and look forward to new things.
+
+As I rode on, the March wind got into my blood and sent it whirling
+madly through my veins. The sun was shining brightly and covered
+everything with smiles; the fruit trees were all in flower--apples,
+pears, almonds--the dainty buds covered the branches with a snow of pink
+and white. The ground beneath them was bespattered with narcissi and
+anemones, the very olive trees looked gay. All the world laughed with
+joy at the bright spring morning, and I laughed louder than the rest. I
+drew in long breaths of the keen air, and it made me drunk, so that I
+set the spurs to my horse and galloped wildly along the silent road.
+
+I had made up my mind to forget Giulia, and I succeeded, for the
+changing scenes took me away from myself, and I was intent on the world
+at large. But I could not command my dreams. At night she came to me,
+and I dreamed that she was by my side, with her arms round my neck,
+sweetly caressing, trying to make me forget what I had suffered. And the
+waking was bitter.... But even that would leave me soon, I hoped, and
+then I should be free indeed.
+
+I rode on, full of courage and good spirits, along endless roads,
+putting up at wayside inns, through the mountains, past villages and
+hamlets, past thriving towns, till I found myself in the heart of
+Tuscany, and finally I saw the roofs of Florence spread out before me.
+
+After I had cleaned myself at the inn and had eaten, I sauntered through
+the town, renewing my recollections. I walked round Madonna del Fiore,
+and leaning against one of the houses at the back of the piazza looked
+at the beautiful apse, the marble all glistening in the moonlight. It
+was very quiet and peaceful; the exquisite church filled me with a sense
+of rest and purity, so that I cast far from me all vice.... Then I went
+to the baptistery and tried to make out in the dim light the details of
+Ghiberti's wonderful doors. It was late and the streets were silent as
+I strolled to the Piazza della Signoria, and saw before me the grim
+stone palace with its tower, and I came down to the Arno and looked at
+the glistening of the water, with the bridge covered with houses; and as
+I considered the beauty of it all I thought it strange that the works of
+man should be so good and pure and man himself so vile.
+
+Next day I set about my business. I had a special letter of introduction
+to Lorenzo, and was ushered in to him by a clerk. I found two people in
+the room; one, a young man with a long, oval face, and the bones of the
+face and chin very strongly marked; he had a very wonderful skin, like
+brown ivory, black hair that fell over his forehead and ears, and, most
+striking of all, large brown eyes, very soft and melancholy. I thought I
+had never before seen a man quite so beautiful. Seated by him, talking
+with animation, was an insignificant man, bent and wrinkled and mean,
+looking like a clerk in a cloth merchant's shop, except for the massive
+golden chain about his neck and the dress of dark red velvet with an
+embroidered collar. His features were ugly; a large, coarse nose, a
+heavy, sensual mouth, small eyes, but very sharp and glittering; the
+hair thin and short, the skin muddy, yellow, wrinkled--Lorenzo de'
+Medici!
+
+As I entered the room, he interrupted himself and spoke to me in a
+harsh, disagreeable voice.
+
+'Messer Filippo Brandolini, I think. You are very welcome.'
+
+'I am afraid I interrupt you,' I said, looking at the youth with the
+melancholy eyes.
+
+'Oh no,' answered Lorenzo, gaily. 'We were talking of Plato. I really
+ought to have been attending to very much more serious matters, but I
+never can resist Pico.'
+
+Then that was the famous Pico della Mirandola. I looked at him again and
+felt envious that one person should be possessed of such genius and such
+beauty. It was hardly fair on Nature's part.
+
+'It is more the subject than I that is irresistible.'
+
+'Ah, the banquet!' said Lorenzo, clasping his hands. 'What an
+inexhaustible matter! I could go on talking about it all day and all
+night for a year, and then find I had left unsaid half what I had in my
+mind.'
+
+'You have so vast an experience in the subject treated of,' said Pico,
+laughing; 'you could give a chapter of comment to every sentence of
+Plato.'
+
+'You rascal, Pico!' answered Lorenzo, also laughing. 'And what is your
+opinion of love, Messer?' he added, turning to me.
+
+I answered, smiling,--
+
+    _'Con tua promesse, et tua false parole,_
+    _Con falsi risi, et con vago sembiante,_
+    _Donna, menato hai il tuo fidele amante.'_
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+    _Those promises of thine, and those false words,_
+    _Those traitor smiles, and that inconstant seeming,_
+    _Lady, with these thou'st led astray thy faithful lover.__
+
+They were Lorenzo's own lines, and he was delighted that I should quote
+them, but still the pleasure was not too great, and I saw that it must
+be subtle flattery indeed that should turn his head.
+
+'You have the spirit of a courtier, Messer Filippo,' he said in reply to
+my quotation. 'You are wasted on liberty!'
+
+'It is in the air in Florence--one breathes it in through every pore.'
+
+'What, liberty?'
+
+'No; the spirit of the courtier.'
+
+Lorenzo looked at me sharply, then at Pico, repressing a smile at my
+sarcasm.
+
+'Well, about your business from Forli?' he said; but when I began
+explaining the transaction he interrupted me. 'Oh, all that you can
+arrange with my secretaries. Tell me what is going on in the town. There
+have been rumours of disturbance.'
+
+I looked at Pico, who rose and went out, saying,--
+
+'I will leave you. Politics are not for me.'
+
+I told Lorenzo all that had happened, while he listened intently,
+occasionally interrupting me to ask a question. When I had finished, he
+said--
+
+'And what will happen now?'
+
+I shrugged my shoulders.
+
+'Who knows?'
+
+'The wise man knows,' he said earnestly, 'for he has made up his mind
+what will happen, and goes about to cause it to happen. It is only the
+fool who trusts to chance and waits for circumstances to develop
+themselves....'
+
+'Tell your master--'
+
+'I beg your pardon?' I interrupted.
+
+He looked at me interrogatively.
+
+'I was wondering of whom you were speaking,' I murmured.
+
+He understood and, smiling, said,--
+
+'I apologise. I was thinking you were a Forlivese. Of course, I remember
+now that you are a citizen of Castello, and we all know how tenacious
+they have been of their liberty and how proud of their freedom.'
+
+He had me on the hip; for Citta di Castello had been among the first of
+the towns to lose its liberty, and, unlike others, had borne its
+servitude with more equanimity than was honourable.
+
+'However,' he went on, 'tell Checco d'Orsi that I know Girolamo Riario.
+It was his father and he who were the prime movers in the conspiracy
+which killed my brother and nearly killed myself. Let him remember that
+the Riario is perfectly unscrupulous, and that he is not accustomed to
+forgive an injury--or forget it. You say that Girolamo has repeatedly
+threatened Checco. Has that had no effect on him?'
+
+'He was somewhat alarmed.'
+
+'Besides?'
+
+I looked at him, trying to seize his meaning.
+
+'Did he make up his mind to sit still and wait till Girolamo found means
+to carry his threats into effect?'
+
+I was rather at a loss for an answer. Lorenzo's eyes were fixed keenly
+upon me; they seemed to be trying to read my brain.
+
+'It was suggested to him that it would be unwise,' I replied slowly.
+
+'And what did he answer to that?'
+
+'He recalled the ill results of certain recent--events.'
+
+'Ah!'
+
+He took his eyes off me, as if he had suddenly seen the meaning behind
+my words, and was now quite sure of everything he wanted to know. He
+walked up and down the room, thinking; then he said to me,--
+
+'Tell Checco that Girolamo's position is very insecure. The Pope is
+against him, though he pretends to uphold him. You remember that when
+the Zampeschi seized his castle of San Marco, Girolamo thought they had
+the tacit consent of the Pope, and dared make no reprisal. Lodovico
+Sforza would doubtless come to the assistance of his half-sister, but he
+is occupied with the Venetians--and if the people of Forli hate the
+Count!'
+
+'Then you advise--'
+
+'I advise nothing. But let Checco know that it is only the fool who
+proposes to himself an end when he cannot or will not attain it; but the
+man who deserves the name of man, marches straight to the goal with
+clearness of mind and strength of will. He looks at things as they are
+and puts aside all vain appearances; and when his intelligence has shown
+him the means to his end, he is a fool if he refuses them, and he is a
+wise man if he uses them steadily and unhesitatingly. Tell that to
+Checco!'
+
+He threw himself into his chair with a little cry of relief.
+
+'Now we can talk of other things. Pico!'
+
+A servant came in to say that Pico had gone away.
+
+'The villain!' cried Lorenzo. 'But I daresay you will want to go away
+too, Messer Brandolini. But you must come to-morrow; we are going to act
+the Menacchini of Plautus; and besides the wit of the Latin you will
+see all the youth and beauty of Florence.'
+
+As I took my leave, he added,--
+
+'I need not warn you to be discreet.'
+
+
+
+
+XVI
+
+
+A few days later I found myself in sight of Forli. As I rode along I
+meditated; and presently the thought came to me that after all there was
+perhaps a certain equality in the portioning out of good and evil in
+this world. When fate gave one happiness she followed it with
+unhappiness, but the two lasted about an equal time, so that the balance
+was not unevenly preserved.... In my love for Giulia I had gone through
+a few days of intense happiness; the first kiss had caused me such
+ecstasy that I was rapt up to heaven; I felt myself a god. And this was
+followed by a sort of passive happiness, when I lived but to enjoy my
+love and cared for nothing in the world besides. Then came the
+catastrophe, and I passed through the most awful misery that man had
+ever felt: even now as I thought of it the sweat gathered on my
+forehead. But I noticed that strangely as this wretchedness was equal
+with the first happiness, so was it equal in length. And this was
+followed by a passive unhappiness when I no longer felt all the
+bitterness of my woe, but only a certain dull misery, which was like
+peace. And half smiling, half sighing, I thought that the passive misery
+again was equal to the passive happiness. Finally came the blessed state
+of indifference, and, except for the remembrance, my heart was as if
+nothing had been at all. So it seemed to me that one ought not to
+complain; for if the world had no right to give one continual misery,
+one had no cause to expect unmingled happiness, and the conjunction of
+the two, in all things equal, seemed normal and reasonable. And I had
+not noticed that I was come to Forli.
+
+I entered the gate with a pleasant sense of homecoming. I passed along
+the grey streets I was beginning to know so well, and felt for them
+something of the affection of old friends. I was glad, too, that I
+should shortly see Checco and my dear Matteo. I felt I had been unkind
+to Matteo: he was so fond of me and had always been so good, but I had
+been so wrapped up in my love that his very presence had been
+importunate, and I had responded coldly to his friendliness. And being
+then in a sentimental mood, I thought how much better and more
+trustworthy a friend is to the most lovely woman in the world. You could
+neglect him and be unfaithful to him, and yet if you were in trouble you
+could come back and he would take you to his arms and comfort you, and
+never once complain that you had strayed away. I longed to be with
+Matteo, clasping his hand. In my hurry I put the spurs to my horse, and
+clattered along the street. In a few minutes I had reached the Palazzo,
+leapt off my horse, sprung up the stairs, and flung myself into the arms
+of my friend.
+
+After the first greetings, Matteo dragged me along to Checco.
+
+'The good cousin is most eager to hear your news. We must not keep him
+waiting.'
+
+Checco seemed as pleased to see me as Matteo. He warmly pressed my hand,
+and said,--
+
+'I am glad to have you back, Filippo. In your absence we have been
+lamenting like forsaken shepherdesses. Now, what is your news?'
+
+I was fully impressed with my importance at the moment, and the anxiety
+with which I was being listened to. I resolved not to betray myself too
+soon, and began telling them about the kindness of Lorenzo, and the play
+which he had invited me to see. I described the brilliancy of the
+assembly, and the excellence of the acting. They listened with interest,
+but I could see it was not what they wanted to hear.
+
+'But I see you want to hear about more important matters,' I said.
+'Well--'
+
+'Ah!' they cried, drawing their chairs closer to me, settling themselves
+to listen attentively.
+
+With a slight smile I proceeded to give them the details of the
+commercial transaction which had been the ostensible purpose of my
+visit, and I laughed to myself as I saw their disgust. Checco could not
+restrain his impatience, but did not like to interrupt me. Matteo,
+however, saw that I was mocking, and broke in.
+
+'Confound you, Filippo! Why do you torment us when you know we are on
+pins and needles?'
+
+Checco looked up and saw me laughing, and implored,--
+
+'Put us out of torture, for Heaven's sake!'
+
+'Very well!' I answered. 'Lorenzo asked me about the state of Forli, and
+I told him. Then, after thinking awhile, he said, "Tell this to
+Checco--"'
+
+And I repeated word for word what Lorenzo had said to me, and, as far as
+I could, I reproduced his accent and gesture.
+
+When I had finished they both sat still and silent. At last Matteo,
+glancing to his cousin, said,--
+
+'It seems sufficiently clear.'
+
+'It is, indeed, very clear,' answered Checco, gravely.
+
+
+
+
+XVII
+
+
+I made up my mind to amuse myself now. I was sick of being grave and
+serious. When one thinks how short a while youth lasts it is foolish not
+to take the best advantage of it; the time man has at his disposal is
+not long enough for tragedy and moaning; he has only room for a little
+laughter, and then his hair gets grey and his knees shaky, and he is
+left repenting that he did not make more of his opportunities. So many
+people have told me that they have never regretted their vices, but
+often their virtues! Life is too short to take things seriously. Let us
+eat, drink and be merry, for to-morrow we die.
+
+There was really so much to do in Forli that amusement became almost
+hard work. There were hunting parties in which we scoured the country
+all day and returned at night, tired and sleepy, but with a delicious
+feeling of relief, stretching our limbs like giants waking from their
+sleep. There were excursions to villas, where we would be welcomed by
+some kind lady, and repeat on a smaller scale the Decameron of
+Boccaccio, or imitate the learned conversations of Lorenzo and his
+circle at Careggio; we could platonise as well as they, and we
+discovered the charm of treating impropriety from a philosophic point of
+view. We would set ourselves some subject and all write sonnets on it,
+and I noticed that the productions of our ladies were always more highly
+spiced than our own. Sometimes we would play at being shepherds and
+shepherdesses, but in this I always failed lamentably, for my nymph
+invariably complained that I was not as enterprising as a swain should
+be. Then we would act pastoral plays in the shadow of the trees; Orpheus
+was our favourite subject, and I was always set for the title part,
+rather against my will, for I could never bring the proper vigour into
+my lament for Eurydice, since it always struck me as both unreasonable
+and ungallant to be so inconsolable for the loss of one love when there
+were all around so many to console one....
+
+And in Forli itself there was a continuous whirl of amusement,
+festivities of every kind crowded on one, so that one had scarcely time
+to sleep; from the gravity and instructive tedium of a comedy by Terence
+to a drinking bout or a card party. I went everywhere, and everywhere
+received the heartiest of welcomes. I could sing and dance, and play the
+lute, and act, and I was ready to compose a sonnet or an ode at a
+moment's notice; in a week I could produce a five-act tragedy in the
+Senecan manner, or an epic on Rinaldo or Launcelot; and as I had not a
+care in the world and was as merry as a drunken friar, they opened their
+arms to me and gave me the best of all they had....
+
+I was attentive to all the ladies, and scandalous tongues gave me half a
+dozen mistresses, with details of the siege and capture. I wondered
+whether the amiable Giulia heard the stories, and what she thought of
+them. Occasionally I saw her, but I did not trouble to speak to her;
+Forli was large enough for the two of us; and when people are
+disagreeable why should you trouble your head about them?
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+One afternoon I rode with Matteo a few miles out of Forli to a villa
+where there was to be some festivity in honour of a christening. It was
+a beautiful spot, with fountains and shady walks, and pleasant lawns of
+well-mown grass; and I set myself to the enjoyment of another day. Among
+the guests was Claudia Piacentini. I pretended to be very angry with her
+because, at a ball which she had recently given, I had not received the
+honour of an invitation. She came to me to ask forgiveness.
+
+'It was my husband,' she said, which I knew perfectly well. 'He said he
+would not have you in his house. You've had another quarrel with him!'
+
+'How can I help it, when I see him the possessor of the lovely Claudia!'
+
+'He says he will never be satisfied till he has your blood.'
+
+I was not alarmed.
+
+'He talked of making a vow never to cut his beard or his hair till he
+had his revenge, but I implored him not to make himself more hideous
+than a merciful Providence had already made him.'
+
+I thought of the ferocious Ercole with a long, untrimmed beard and
+unkempt hair falling over his face.
+
+'He would have looked like a wild man of the woods,' I said. 'I should
+have had to allow myself to be massacred for the good of society. I
+should have been one more of the martyrs of humanity--Saint Philip
+Brandolini!'
+
+I offered her my arm, suggesting a saunter through the gardens.... We
+wandered along cool paths bordered with myrtle and laurel and cypress
+trees; the air was filled with the song of birds, and a gentle breeze
+bore to us the scent of the spring flowers. By-and-by we came to a
+little lawn shut in by tall shrubs; in the middle a fountain was
+playing, and under the shadow of a chestnut-tree was a marble seat
+supported by griffins; in one corner stood a statue of Venus framed in
+green bushes. We had left the throng of guests far behind, and the place
+was very still; the birds, as if oppressed with its beauty, had ceased
+to sing, and only the fountain broke the silence. The unceasing fall of
+water was like a lullaby in its monotony, and the air was scented with
+lilac.
+
+We sat down. The quiet was delightful; peace and beauty filled one, and
+I felt a great sense of happiness pass into me, like some subtle liquid
+permeating every corner of my soul. The smell of the lilac was beginning
+to intoxicate me; and from my happiness issued a sentiment of love
+towards all nature; I felt as though I could stretch out my arms and
+embrace its impalpable spirit. The Venus in the corner gained flesh-like
+tints of green and yellow, and seemed to be melting into life; the lilac
+came across to me in great waves, oppressive, over-powering.
+
+I looked at Claudia. I thought she was affected as myself; she, too, was
+overwhelmed by the murmur of the water, the warmth, the scented air. And
+I was struck again with the wonderful voluptuousness of her beauty; her
+mouth sensual and moist, the lips deep red and heavy. Her neck was
+wonderfully massive, so white that the veins showed clear and blue; her
+clinging dress revealed the fulness of her form, its undulating curves.
+She seemed some goddess of Sensuality. As I looked at her I was filled
+with a sudden blind desire to possess her. I stretched out my arms, and
+she, with a cry of passion, like an animal, surrendered herself to my
+embrace. I drew her to me and kissed her beautiful mouth sensual and
+moist, her lips deep red and heavy....
+
+We sat side by side looking at the fountain, breathing in the scented
+air.
+
+'When can I see you?' I whispered.
+
+'To-morrow.... After midnight. Come into the little street behind my
+house, and a door will be opened to you.'
+
+'Claudia!'
+
+'Good-bye. You must not come back with me now, we have been away so
+long, people would notice us. Wait here a while after me, and then there
+will be no fear. Good-bye.'
+
+She left me, and I stretched myself on the marble seat, looking at the
+little rings which the drops made as they fell on the water. My love for
+Giulia was indeed finished now--dead, buried, and a stone Venus erected
+over it as only sign of its existence. I tried to think of a suitable
+inscription.... Time could kill the most obstinate love, and a beautiful
+woman, with the breezes of spring to help her, could carry away even
+the remembrance. I felt that my life was now complete. I had all
+pleasures imaginable at my beck and call: good wines to drink, good
+foods to eat, nice clothes; games, sports and pastimes; and, last of
+all, the greatest gift the gods can make, a beautiful woman to my youth
+and strength. I had arrived at the summit of wisdom, the point aimed at
+by the wise man, to take the day as it comes, seizing the pleasures,
+avoiding the disagreeable, enjoying the present, and giving no thought
+to the past or future. That, I said to myself, is the highest
+wisdom--never to think; for the way of happiness is to live in one's
+senses as the beasts, and like the ox, chewing the cud, use the mind
+only to consider one's superiority to the rest of mankind.
+
+I laughed a little as I thought of my tears and cries when Giulia left
+me. It was not a matter worth troubling about; all I should have said to
+myself was that I was a fool not to abandon her before she abandoned me.
+Poor Giulia! I quite frightened her in the vehemence of my rage.
+
+The following evening I would not let Matteo go to bed.
+
+'You must keep me company,' I said, 'I am going out at one.'
+
+'Very well,' he said, 'if you will tell me where you're going.'
+
+'Ah, no, that is a secret; but I am willing to drink her health with
+you.'
+
+'Without a name?'
+
+'Yes!'
+
+'To the nameless one, then; and good luck!'
+
+Then, after a little conversation, he said,--
+
+'I am glad you have suffered no more from Giulia dall' Aste. I was
+afraid--'
+
+'Oh, these things pass off. I took your advice, and found the best way
+to console myself was to fall in love with somebody else.'
+
+There was a little excitement in going to this mysterious meeting. I
+wondered whether it was a trap arranged by the amiable Ercole to get me
+in his power and rid himself of my unpleasant person. But faint heart
+never won fair lady; and even if he set on me with two or three others,
+I should be able to give a reasonable account of myself.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+But there had been nothing to fear. On my way home, as the day was
+breaking, I smiled to myself at the matter-of-fact way in which a woman
+had opened the little door, and shown me into the room Claudia had told
+me of. She was evidently well used to her business; she did not even
+take the trouble to look into my face to see who was the newcomer. I
+wondered how many well-cloaked gallants she had let in by the same door;
+I did not care if they were half a hundred. I did not suppose the
+beautiful Claudia was more virtuous than myself. Suddenly it occurred to
+me that I had revenged myself on Ercole Piacentini at last; and the
+quaint thought, coming unexpectedly, made me stop dead and burst into a
+shout of laughter. The thought of that hang-dog visage, and the
+beautiful ornaments I had given him, was enough to make a dead man
+merry. Oh, it was a fairer revenge than any I could have dreamed of!
+
+But, besides that, I was filled with a great sense of pleasure because I
+was at last free. I felt that if some slight chain still bound me to
+Giulia now, even that was broken and I had recovered my liberty. There
+was no love this time. There was a great desire for the magnificent
+sensual creature, with the lips deep red and heavy; but it left my mind
+free. I was now again a complete man; and this time I had no Nemesis to
+fear.
+
+
+
+
+XVIII
+
+
+And so my life went on for a little while, filled with pleasure and
+amusement. I was contented with my lot, and had no wish for change. The
+time went by, and we reached the first week in April. Girolamo had
+organised a great ball to celebrate the completion of his Palace. He had
+started living in it as soon as there were walls and roof, but he had
+spent years on the decorations, taking into his service the best artists
+he could find in Italy; and now at last everything was finished. The
+Orsi had been invited with peculiar cordiality, and on the night we
+betook ourselves to the Palace.
+
+We walked up the stately staircase, a masterpiece of architecture, and
+found ourselves in the enormous hall which Girolamo had designed
+especially for gorgeous functions. It was ablaze with light. At the
+further end, on a low stage, led up to by three broad steps, under a
+dais, on high-backed, golden chairs, sat Girolamo and Caterina Sforza.
+Behind them, in a semicircle, and on the steps at each side, were the
+ladies of Caterina's suite, and a number of gentlemen; at the back,
+standing like statues, a row of men-at-arms.
+
+'It is almost regal!' said Checco, pursing up his lips.
+
+'It is not so poor a thing to be the Lord of Forli,' answered Matteo.
+Fuel to the fire!
+
+We approached, and Girolamo, as he saw us, rose and came down the steps.
+
+'Hail, my Checco!' he said, taking both his hands. 'Till you had come
+the assembly was not complete.'
+
+Matteo and I went to the Countess. She had surpassed herself this night.
+Her dress was of cloth of silver, shimmering and sparkling. In her hair
+were diamonds shining like fireflies in the night; her arms, her neck,
+her fingers glittered with costly gems. I had never seen her look so
+beautiful, nor so magnificent. Let them say what they liked, Checco and
+Matteo and the rest of them, but she was born to be a queen. How strange
+that this offspring of the rough Condottiere and the lewd woman should
+have a majesty such as one imagines of a mighty empress descended from
+countless kings.
+
+She took the trouble to be particularly gracious to us. Me she
+complimented on some verses she had seen, and was very flattering in
+reference to a pastoral play which I had arranged. She could not
+congratulate my good Matteo on any intellectual achievements, but the
+fame of his amours gave her a subject on which she could playfully
+reproach him. She demanded details, and I left her listening intently to
+some history which Matteo was whispering in her ear; and I knew he was
+not particular in what he said.
+
+I felt in peculiarly high spirits, and I looked about for someone on
+whom to vent my good humour. I caught sight of Giulia. I had seen her
+once or twice since my return to Forli, but had never spoken to her. Now
+I felt sure of myself; I knew I did not care two straws for her, but I
+thought it would please me to have a little revenge. I looked at her a
+moment. I made up my mind; I went to her and bowed most ceremoniously.
+
+'Donna Giulia, behold the moth!' I had used the simile before, but not
+to her, so it did not matter.
+
+She looked at me undecidedly, not quite knowing how to take me.
+
+'May I offer you my arm,' I said as blandly as I could.
+
+She smiled a little awkwardly and took it.
+
+'How beautiful the Countess is to-night!' I said. 'Everyone will fall in
+love with her.' I knew she hated Caterina, a sentiment which the great
+lady returned with vigour. 'I would not dare say it to another; but I
+know you are never jealous: she is indeed like the moon among the
+stars.'
+
+'The idea does not seem too new,' she said coldly.
+
+'It is all the more comprehensible. I am thinking of writing a sonnet on
+the theme.'
+
+'I imagined it had been done before; but the ladies of Forli will
+doubtless be grateful to you.'
+
+She was getting cross; and I knew by experience that when she was cross
+she always wanted to cry.
+
+'I am afraid you are angry with me,' I said.
+
+'No, it is you who are angry with me,' she answered rather tearfully.
+
+'I? Why should you think that?'
+
+'You have not forgiven me for--'
+
+I wondered whether the conscientious Giorgio had had another attack of
+morality and ridden off into the country.
+
+'My dear lady,' I said, with a little laugh, 'I assure you that I have
+forgiven you entirely. After all, it was not such a very serious
+matter.'
+
+'No?' She looked at me with a little surprise.
+
+I shrugged my shoulders.
+
+'You were quite right in what you did. Those things have to finish some
+time or other, and it really does not so much matter when.'
+
+'I was afraid I had hurt you,' she said in a low voice.
+
+The scene came to my mind; the dimly-lit room, the delicate form lying
+on the couch, cold and indifferent, while I was given over to an agony
+of despair. I remembered the glitter of the jewelled ring against the
+white hand. I would have no mercy.
+
+'My dear Giulia--you will allow me to call you Giulia?'
+
+She nodded.
+
+'My dear Giulia, I was a little unhappy at first, I acknowledge, but one
+gets over those things so quickly--a bottle of wine, and a good sleep:
+they are like bleeding to a fever.'
+
+'You were unhappy?'
+
+'Naturally; one is always rather put out when one is dismissed. One
+would prefer to have done the breaking oneself.'
+
+'It was a matter of pride?'
+
+'I am afraid I must confess to it.'
+
+'I did not think so at the time.'
+
+I laughed.
+
+'Oh, that is my excited way of putting things. I frightened you; but it
+did not really mean anything.'
+
+She did not answer. After a while I said,--
+
+'You know, when one is young one should make the most of one's time.
+Fidelity is a stupid virtue, unphilosophical and extremely
+unfashionable.'
+
+'What do you mean?'
+
+'Simply this; you did not particularly love me, and I did not
+particularly love you.'
+
+'Oh!'
+
+'We had a passing fancy for one another, and that satisfied there was
+nothing more to keep us together. We should have been very foolish not
+to break the chain; if you had not done so, I should have. With your
+woman's intuition, you saw that and forestalled me!'
+
+Again she did not answer.
+
+'Of course, if you had been in love with me, or I with you, it would
+have been different. But as it was--'
+
+'I see my cousin Violante in the corner there; will you lead me to her?'
+
+I did as she asked, and as she was bowing me my dismissal I said,--
+
+'We have had a very pleasant talk, and we are quite good friends, are we
+not?'
+
+'Quite!' she said.
+
+I drew a long breath as I left her. I hoped I had hurt; I hoped I had
+humiliated her. I wished I could have thought of things to say that
+would have cut her to the heart. I was quite indifferent to her, but
+when I remembered--I hated her.
+
+I knew everyone in Forli by now, and as I turned away from Giulia I had
+no lack of friends with whom to talk. The rooms became more crowded
+every moment. The assembly was the most brilliant that Forli had ever
+seen; and as the evening wore on the people became more animated; a
+babel of talk drowned the music, and the chief topic of conversation was
+the wonderful beauty of Caterina. She was bubbling over with high
+spirits; no one knew what had happened to make her so joyful, for of
+late she had suffered a little from the unpopularity of her husband, and
+a sullen look of anger had replaced the old smiles and graces. But
+to-night she was herself again. Men were standing round talking to her,
+and one heard a shout of laughter from them as every now and then she
+made some witty repartee; and her conversation gained another charm from
+a sort of soldierly bluntness which people remembered in Francesco
+Sforza, and which she had inherited. People also spoke of the cordiality
+of Girolamo towards our Checco; he walked up and down the room with him,
+arm in arm, talking affectionately; it reminded the onlookers of the
+time when they had been as brothers together. Caterina occasionally gave
+them a glance and a little smile of approval; she was evidently well
+pleased with the reconciliation.
+
+I was making my way through the crowd, watching the various people,
+giving a word here and there or a nod, and I thought that life was
+really a very amusing thing. I felt mightily pleased with myself, and I
+wondered where my good friend Claudia was; I must go and pay her my
+respects.
+
+'Filippo!'
+
+I turned and saw Scipione Moratini standing by his sister, with a number
+of gentlemen and ladies, most of them known to me.
+
+'Why are you smiling so contentedly?' he said. 'You look as if you had
+lost a pebble and found a diamond in its place.'
+
+'Perhaps I have; who knows?'
+
+At that moment I saw Ercole Piacentini enter the room with his wife; I
+wondered why they were so late. Claudia was at once seized upon by one
+of her admirers, and, leaving her husband, sauntered off on the
+proffered arm. Ercole came up the room on his way to the Count. His grim
+visage was contorted into an expression of amiability, which sat on him
+with an ill grace.
+
+'This is indeed a day of rejoicing,' I said; 'even the wicked ogre is
+trying to look pleasant.'
+
+Giulia gave a little silvery laugh. I thought it forced.
+
+'You have a forgiving spirit, dear friend,' she said, accenting the last
+word in recollection of what I had said to her. 'A truly Christian
+disposition!'
+
+'Why?' I asked, smiling.
+
+'I admire the way in which you have forgiven Ercole for the insults he
+has offered you; one does not often find a gentleman who so charitably
+turns his other cheek to the smiter!'
+
+I laughed within myself; she was trying to be even with me. I was glad
+to see that my darts had taken good effect. Scipione interposed, for
+what his sister had said was sufficiently bitter.
+
+'Nonsense, Giulia!' he said. 'You know Filippo is the last man to
+forgive his enemies until the breath is well out of their bodies; but
+circumstances--'
+
+Giulia pursed up her lips into an expression of contempt.
+
+'Circumstances. I was surprised, because I remembered the vigour with
+which Messer Filippo had vowed to revenge himself.'
+
+'Oh, but Messer Filippo considers that he has revenged himself very
+effectively,' I said.
+
+'How?'
+
+'There are more ways of satisfying one's honour than by cutting a hole
+in a person's chest.'
+
+'What do you mean, Filippo?' said Scipione.
+
+'Did you not see as he passed?'
+
+'Ercole? What?'
+
+'Did you not see the adornment of his noble head, the elegant pair of
+horns?'
+
+They looked at me, not quite understanding; then I caught sight of
+Claudia, who was standing close to us.
+
+'Ah, I see the diamond I have found in place of the pebble I have lost.
+I pray you excuse me.'
+
+Then as they saw me walk towards Claudia they understood, and I heard a
+burst of laughter. I took my lady's hand, and bowing deeply, kissed it
+with the greatest fervour. I glanced at Giulia from the corner of my
+eyes and saw her looking down on the ground, with a deep blush of anger
+on her face. My heart leapt for joy to think that I had returned
+something of the agony she had caused me.
+
+The evening grew late and the guests began to go. Checco, as he passed
+me, asked,--
+
+'Are you ready?'
+
+'Yes!' I said, accompanying him to Girolamo and the Countess to take our
+leave.
+
+'You are very unkind, Checco,' said the Countess. 'You have not come
+near me the whole evening.'
+
+'You have been so occupied,' he answered.
+
+'But I am not now,' she replied, smiling.
+
+'The moment I saw you free I came to you.'
+
+'To say good-bye.'
+
+'It is very late.'
+
+'No, surely; sit down and talk to me.'
+
+Checco did as he was bid, and I, seeing he meant to stay longer,
+sauntered off again in search of friends. The conversation between
+Checco and the Countess was rather hindered by the continual
+leave-takings, as the people began to go away rapidly, in groups. I sat
+myself down in a window with Matteo, and we began comparing notes of our
+evening; he told me of a new love to whom he had discovered his passion
+for the first time.
+
+'Fair wind, foul wind?' I asked, laughing.
+
+'She pretended to be very angry,' he said, 'but she allowed me to see
+that if the worst came to the worst she would not permit me to break my
+heart.'
+
+I looked out into the room and found that everyone had gone, except
+Ercole Piacentini, who was talking to the Count in undertones.
+
+'I am getting so sleepy,' said Matteo. We went forward to the Countess,
+who said, as she saw us come,--
+
+'Go away, Matteo! I will not have you drag Checco away yet; we have been
+trying to talk to one another for the last half-hour, and now that we
+have the chance at last I refuse to be disturbed.'
+
+'I would not for worlds rob Checco of such pleasure,' said Matteo;
+adding to me, as we retired to our window, 'What a nuisance having to
+wait for one's cousin while a pretty woman is flirting with him!'
+
+'You have me to talk to--what more can you want!'
+
+'I don't want to talk to you at all,' he answered, laughing.
+
+Girolamo was still with Ercole. His mobile eyes were moving over the
+room, hardly ever resting on Ercole's face, but sometimes on us, more
+often on Checco. I wondered whether he was jealous.
+
+At last Checco got up and said Good-night. Then Girolamo came forward.
+
+'You are not going yet,' he said. 'I want to speak with you on the
+subject of those taxes.'
+
+It was the first time he had mentioned them.
+
+'It is getting so late,' said Checco, 'and these good gentlemen are
+tired.'
+
+'They can go home. Really, it is very urgent.'
+
+Checco hesitated, and looked at us.
+
+'We will wait for you,' said Matteo.
+
+Girolamo's eyes moved about here and there, never resting a moment, from
+Checco to me, from me to Matteo, and on to his wife, and then on again,
+with extraordinary rapidity--it was quite terrifying.
+
+'One would think you were afraid of leaving Checco in our hands,' said
+the Countess, smiling.
+
+'No,' returned Matteo; 'but I look forward to having some of your
+attention now that Checco is otherwise occupied. Will you let me
+languish?'
+
+She laughed, and a rapid glance passed between her and the Count.
+
+'I shall be only too pleased,' she said, 'come and sit by me, one on
+each side.'
+
+The Count turned to Ercole.
+
+'Well, good-night, my friend,' he said. 'Good-night!'
+
+Ercole left us, and Girolamo, taking Checco's arm, walked up and down
+the room, speaking. The Countess and Matteo commenced a gay
+conversation. Although I was close to them I was left alone, and I
+watched the Count. His eyes fascinated me, moving ceaselessly. What
+could be behind them? What could be the man's thoughts that his eyes
+should never rest? They enveloped the person they looked at--his head,
+every feature of his face, his body, his clothes; one imagined there was
+no detail they had not caught; it was as if they ate into the very soul
+of the man.
+
+The two men tramped up and down, talking earnestly; I wondered what they
+were saying. At last Girolamo stopped.
+
+'Ah, well, I must have mercy on you; I shall tire you to death. And you
+know I do not wish to do anything to harm you.'
+
+Checco smiled.
+
+'Whatever difficulty there has been between us, Checco, you know that
+there has never on my part been any ill-feeling towards you. I have
+always had for you a very sincere and affectionate friendship.'
+
+And as he said the words an extraordinary change came over him. The
+eyes, the mobile eyes, stopped still at last; for the first time I saw
+them perfectly steady, motionless, like glass; they looked fixedly into
+Checco's eyes, without winking, and their immobility was as strange as
+their perpetual movement, and to me it was more terrifying. It was as if
+Girolamo was trying to see his own image in Checco's soul.
+
+We bade them farewell, and together issued out into the silence of the
+night; and I felt that behind us the motionless eyes, like glass, were
+following us into the darkness.
+
+
+
+
+XIX
+
+
+We issued out into the silence of the night. There had been a little
+rain during the day, and the air in consequence was fresh and sweet; the
+light breeze of the spring made one expand one's lungs and draw in long
+breaths. One felt the trees bursting out into green leaves, and the buds
+on the plants opening their downy mantles and discovering the flower
+within. Light clouds were wandering lazily along the sky, and between
+them shone out a few dim stars. Checco and Matteo walked in front, while
+I lingered enjoying the spring night; it filled me with a sweet sadness,
+a reaction from the boisterous joy of the evening, and pleasant by the
+contrast.
+
+When Matteo fell behind and joined me, I received him a little
+unwillingly, disappointed at the interruption of my reverie.
+
+'I asked Checco what the Count had said to him of the taxes, but he
+would not tell me; he said he wanted to think about the conversation.'
+
+I made no answer, and we walked on in silence. We had left the piazza,
+and were going through the narrow streets bordered by the tall black
+houses. It was very late, and there was not a soul about; there was no
+sound but that of our own footsteps, and of Checco walking a few yards
+in front. Between the roofs of the houses only a little strip of sky
+could be seen, a single star, and the clouds floating lazily. The warm
+air blew in my face, and filled me with an intoxication of melancholy. I
+thought how sweet it would be to fall asleep this night, and never again
+to wake. I was tired, and I wanted the rest of an endless sleep....
+
+Suddenly I was startled by a cry.
+
+I saw from the shadow of the houses black forms spring out on Checco. An
+arm was raised, and a glittering instrument flashed in the darkness. He
+staggered forward.
+
+'Matteo,' he cried. 'Help! Help!'
+
+We rushed forward, drawing our swords. There was a scuffle, three of us
+against four of them, a flash of swords, a cry from one of the men as he
+reeled and fell with a wound from Matteo's sword. Then another rush, a
+little band of men suddenly appeared round the corner, and Ercole
+Piacentini's voice, crying,--
+
+'What is it? What is it?'
+
+And Matteo's answer,--
+
+'Help us, Ercole! I have killed one. Checco is stabbed.'
+
+'Ah!' a cry from Ercole, and with his men he rushed into the fray.
+
+A few more cries, still the flash of swords, the fall of heavy bodies on
+the stones.
+
+'They are done for!' said Matteo.
+
+The shouts, the clang of metal woke up the neighbours; lights were seen
+at the windows, and night-capped women appeared shrieking; doors were
+thrown open, and men came out in their shirts, sword in hand.
+
+'What is it? What is it?'
+
+'Checco, are you hurt?' asked Matteo.
+
+'No; my coat of mail!'
+
+'Thank God you had it on! I saw you stagger.'
+
+'It was the blow. At first I did not know whether I was hurt or not.'
+
+'What is it? What is it?'
+
+The neighbours surrounded us.
+
+'They have tried to murder Checco! Checco d'Orsi!'
+
+'My God! Is he safe?'
+
+'Who has done it?'
+
+All eyes were turned to the four men, each one lying heaped up on the
+ground, with the blood streaming from his wounds.
+
+'They are dead!'
+
+'Footpads!' said Ercole; 'they wanted to rob you, and did not know you
+were accompanied.'
+
+'Footpads! Why should footpads rob me this night?' said Checco. 'I wish
+they were not dead.'
+
+'Look, look!' said a bystander, 'there is one moving.'
+
+The words were hardly out of the man's mouth before one of Ercole's
+soldiers snatched up his dagger and plunged it in the man's neck,
+shouting,--
+
+'Bestia!'
+
+A tremor went through the prostrate body, and then it was quite still.
+
+'You fool!' said Matteo, angrily. 'Why did you do that?'
+
+'He is a murderer,' said the soldier.
+
+'You fool, we wanted him alive, not dead. We could have found out who
+hired him.'
+
+'What do you mean?' said Ercole. 'They are common robbers.'
+
+'Here is the guard,' cried someone.
+
+The guard came, and immediately there was a babel of explanation. The
+captain stepped forward, and examined the men lying on the ground.
+
+'They are all dead,' he said.
+
+'Take them away,' said Ercole. 'Let them be put in a church till
+morning.'
+
+'Stop!' cried Checco. 'Bring a light, and let us see if we can recognise
+them.'
+
+'Not now, it is late. To-morrow you can do what you like.'
+
+'To-morrow it will be later, Ercole,' answered Checco. 'Bring a light.'
+
+Torches were brought, and thrust into the face of each dead man.
+Everyone eagerly scrutinised the features, drawn up in their last agony.
+
+'I don't know him.'
+
+Then to another.
+
+'No.'
+
+And the other two also were unknown. Checco examined the face of the
+last, and shook his head. But a man broke out excitedly,--
+
+'Ah! I know him.'
+
+A cry from us all.
+
+'Who is it?'
+
+'I know him. It is a soldier, one of the Count's guard.'
+
+'Ah!' said Matteo and Checco, looking at one another. 'One of the
+Count's guard!'
+
+'That is a lie,' said Ercole. 'I know them all, and I have never seen
+that face before. It is a footpad, I tell you.'
+
+'It is not. I know him well. He is a member of the guard.'
+
+'It is a lie, I tell you.'
+
+'Ercole is doubtless right,' said Checco. 'They are common thieves. Let
+them be taken away. They have paid a heavy price for their attempt.
+Good-night, my friends. Good-night, Ercole, and thanks.'
+
+The guard took hold of the dead men by the head and by the feet, and one
+after another, in single file, they bore them off down the dark street.
+We three moved on, the crowd gradually melted away, and everything again
+became dark and silent.
+
+We walked home side by side without speaking. We came to the Palazzo
+Orsi, entered, walked upstairs, one after the other, into Checco's
+study, lights were brought, the door closed carefully, and Checco turned
+round to us.
+
+'Well?'
+
+Neither I nor Matteo spoke. Checco clenched his fist, and his eyes
+flashed as he hissed out,--
+
+'The cur!'
+
+We all knew the attempt was the Count's....
+
+'By God! I am glad you are safe,' said Matteo.
+
+'What a fool I was to be taken in by his protestations! I ought to have
+known that he would never forget the injury I had done him.'
+
+'He planned it well,' said Matteo.
+
+'Except for the soldier,' I remarked. 'He should not have chosen anyone
+who could be recognised.'
+
+'Probably he was the leader. But how well he managed everything,
+keeping us after the others, and nearly persuading Filippo and me to go
+home before you. Caterina was in the plot.'
+
+'I wonder he did not defer the attempt when he found you would not be
+alone,' I said to Checco.
+
+'He knows I am never alone, and such an opportunity would not easily
+occur again. Perhaps he thought they could avoid you two, or even murder
+you as well.'
+
+'But Ercole and his men?' I said.
+
+'Yes, I have been thinking about them. The only explanation I have is
+that he placed them there to cover their flight if they succeeded, and
+if they failed or could not escape, to kill them.'
+
+'As, in fact, they did. I thought I saw Ercole make a sign to the
+soldier who stabbed the only living one.'
+
+'Possibly. The idea was evidently to destroy all witnesses and all
+opportunity for inquiry.'
+
+'Well,' said Matteo, 'it will show others that it is dangerous to do
+dirty work for the Riario.'
+
+'It will indeed!'
+
+'And now, what is to happen?' said Matteo.
+
+Checco looked at him, but did not reply.
+
+'Do you still refuse to do to Girolamo as he has tried to do to you?'
+
+Checco answered quietly,--
+
+'No!'
+
+'Ah!' we both cried. 'Then you consent?'
+
+'I see no reason now for not taking the law into my own hands.'
+
+'Assassination?' whispered Matteo.
+
+And Checco answered boldly,--
+
+'Assassination!' Then, after a pause, 'It is the only way open to me. Do
+you remember Lorenzo's words? They have been with me every day, and I
+have considered them very, very deeply: "Let Checco know that it is only
+the fool who proposes to himself an end, when he cannot or will not
+attain it; but the man who deserves the name of man marches straight to
+the goal with clearness of mind and strength of will. He looks at things
+as they are, putting aside all vain appearances, and when his
+intelligence has shown him the means to his end, he is a fool if he
+refuses them, and he is a wise man if he uses them steadily and
+unhesitatingly." I know the end, and I will attain it. I know the means,
+and I will use them steadily, without hesitation.'
+
+'I am glad to hear you speak like that at last!' said Matteo. 'We shall
+have plenty to help us. The Moratini will join at once. Jacopo Ronchi
+and Lodovico Pansecchi are so bitter against the Count they will come
+with us as soon as they hear you have decided to kill the enemy of us
+all.'
+
+'You are blind, Matteo. Do you not see what we must do? You mistake the
+means for the end.'
+
+'What do you mean?'
+
+'The death of Girolamo is only a means. The end is further and higher.'
+
+Matteo did not speak.
+
+'I must keep my hands clean from any base motive. It must not seem that
+I am influenced by any personal incentive. Nothing must come from me.
+The idea of assassination must come from outside.'
+
+'Whom do you--'
+
+'I think Bartolomeo Moratini must propose it, and I will yield to his
+instances.'
+
+'Good! then I will go to him.'
+
+'That will not do either. Neither you nor I must be concerned in it.
+Afterwards it must be clear to all minds that the Orsi were influenced
+solely by the public welfare. Do you see? I will tell you how it must
+be. Filippo must help us. He must go to Bartolomeo, and from his great
+affection for us talk of our danger and intreat Bartolomeo to persuade
+me to the assassination. Do you understand, Filippo?'
+
+'Perfectly!'
+
+'Will you do it?'
+
+'I will go to him to-morrow.'
+
+'Wait till the news of the attempt has spread.'
+
+I smiled at the completeness with which Checco had arranged everything;
+he had evidently thought it all out. How had his scruples disappeared?
+
+The blackness of the night was sinking before the dawn when we bade one
+another good-night.
+
+
+
+
+XX
+
+
+I seemed to have slept a bare half-hour when I was awakened by a great
+noise downstairs. I got up, and looking out of the window saw a crowd
+gathered in the street below; they were talking and gesticulating
+furiously. Then I remembered the occurrence of the night, and I saw that
+the news had spread and these were citizens come to gather details. I
+went downstairs and found the courtyard thronged. Immediately I was
+surrounded by anxious people asking for news. Very contrary reports had
+circulated; some said that Checco had been killed outright, others that
+he had escaped, while most asserted that he was wounded. All asked for
+Checco.
+
+'If he is unhurt, why does he not show himself?' they asked.
+
+A servant assured them that he was dressing, and would be with them at
+once.... Suddenly there was a shout. Checco had appeared at the top of
+the stairs. They rushed towards him, surrounding him with cries of joy;
+they seized his hand, they clung to his legs, some of them touched him
+all over to see that he was indeed unwounded, others kissed the lappets
+of his coat.... Bartolomeo Moratini entered the court with his sons, and
+the people shrunk back as he came forward and embraced Checco.
+
+'Thank God you are saved!' he said. 'It will be an evil day for Forli
+when anything happens to you.'
+
+The people answered in shouts. But at that moment another sound was
+heard without--a long and heavy murmur. The people surrounding the
+doorway looked out and turned in astonishment to their neighbours,
+pointing to the street; the murmur spread. What was it?
+
+'Make way! Make way!'
+
+A strident voice called out the words, and ushers pushed the people
+aside. A little troop of men appeared in the entrance, and as they sank
+back there stepped forward the Count. The Count! Checco started, but
+immediately recovering himself advanced to meet his visitor. Girolamo
+walked up to him, and taking him in his arms kissed him on the cheeks,
+and said,--
+
+'My Checco! My Checco!'
+
+We who knew and the others who suspected looked on with astonishment.
+
+'As soon as I heard the terrible news I rushed to find you,' said the
+Count. 'Are you safe--quite safe?'
+
+He embraced him again.
+
+'You cannot think what agony I suffered when I heard you were wounded.
+How glad I am it was not true. Oh, God in Heaven, I thank Thee for my
+Checco!'
+
+'You are very kind, my lord,' answered our friend.
+
+'But it is some consolation that the miscreants have met the end which
+they deserved. We must take steps to free the town of all such dangerous
+persons. What will men say of my rule when it is known that the peaceful
+citizen cannot walk home at night without danger to his life? Oh,
+Checco, I blame myself bitterly.'
+
+'You have no cause, my lord, but--would it not be well to examine the
+men to see if they are known in Forli? Perhaps they have associates.'
+
+'Certainly; the idea was in my mind. Let them be laid out in the
+market-place so that all may see them.'
+
+'Pardon, sir,' said one of his suite, 'but they were laid in the Church
+of San Spirito last night, and this morning they have disappeared.'
+
+Matteo and I looked at one another. Checco kept his eyes fixed on the
+Count.
+
+'Disappeared!' cried the latter, displaying every sign of impatience.
+'Who is responsible for this? Offer a reward for the discovery of their
+bodies and of any accomplices. I insist on their being discovered!'
+
+Shortly afterwards he took his leave, after repeatedly kissing Checco,
+and warmly congratulating Matteo and myself on the assistance we had
+given to our friend. To me he said,--
+
+'I regret, Messer Filippo, that you are not a Forlivese. I should be
+proud to have such a citizen.'
+
+Bartolomeo Moratini was still at the Palazzo Orsi, so, seizing my
+opportunity, I took him by the arm and walked with him to the statue
+gallery, where we could talk in peace.
+
+'What do you think of all this?' I said.
+
+He shook his head.
+
+'It is the beginning of the end. Of course it is clear to all of us that
+the assassination was ordered by the Count; he will persuade nobody of
+his innocence by his pretended concern. All the town is whispering his
+name.
+
+'Having made a first attempt and failed, he will not hesitate to make a
+second, for if he could forgive the injury which he has received from
+Checco, he can never forgive the injury which he himself has done him.
+And next time he will not fail.'
+
+'I am terribly concerned,' I said. 'You know the great affection I have
+for both the Orsi.'
+
+He stopped and warmly shook my hand.
+
+'I cannot let Checco throw away his life in this way,' I said.
+
+'What can be done?'
+
+'Only one thing, and you suggested it.... Girolamo must be killed.'
+
+'Ah, but Checco will never consent to that.'
+
+'I am afraid not,' I said gravely. 'You know the delicacy of his
+conscience.'
+
+'Yes; and though I think it excessive, I admire him for it. In these
+days it is rare to find a man so honest and upright and conscientious as
+Checco. But, Messer Filippo, one must yield to the ideas of the age one
+lives in.'
+
+'I, too, am convinced of his noble-mindedness, but it will ruin him.'
+
+'I am afraid so,' sighed the old man, stroking his beard.
+
+'But he must be saved in spite of himself. He must be brought to see the
+necessity of killing the Count.' I spoke as emphatically as I could.
+
+'He will never consent.'
+
+'He must consent; and you are the man to make him do so. He would not
+listen to anything that Matteo or I said, but for you he has the
+greatest respect. I am sure if anyone can influence him it is you.'
+
+'I have some power over him, I believe.'
+
+'Will you try? Don't let him suspect that Matteo or I have had anything
+to do with it, or he will not listen. It must come solely from you.'
+
+'I will do my best.'
+
+'Ah, that is good of you. But don't be discouraged by his refusals; be
+insistent, for our sake. And one thing more, you know his unselfishness;
+he would not move his hand to save himself, but if you showed him that
+it is for the good of others, he could not refuse. Let him think the
+safety of us all depends on him. He is a man you can only move by his
+feeling for others.'
+
+'I believe you,' he answered. 'But I will go to him, and I will leave no
+argument unused.'
+
+'I am sure that your efforts will be rewarded.'
+
+Here I showed myself a perfectly wise man, for I only prophesied because
+I knew.
+
+
+
+
+XXI
+
+
+In the evening Bartolomeo returned to the Palace and asked for Checco.
+At his request Matteo and I joined him in Checco's study, and besides
+there were his two sons, Scipione and Alessandro. Bartolomeo was graver
+than ever.
+
+'I have come to you now, Checco, impelled by a very strong sense of
+duty, and I wish to talk with you on a matter of the greatest
+importance.'
+
+He cleared his throat.
+
+'Firstly, are you convinced that the attempt on your life was plotted by
+Girolamo Riario?'
+
+'I am sorry for his sake, but--I am.'
+
+'So are we all, absolutely. And what do you intend to do now?'
+
+'What can I do? Nothing!'
+
+'The answer is not nothing. You have something to do.'
+
+'And that is?'
+
+'To kill Girolamo before he has time to kill you.'
+
+Checco started to his feet.
+
+'They have been talking to you--Matteo and Filippo. It is they who have
+put this in your head. I knew it would be suggested again.'
+
+'Nothing has given me the idea but the irresistible force of
+circumstances.'
+
+'Never! I will never consent to that.'
+
+'But he will kill you.'
+
+'I can die!'
+
+'It will be the ruin of your family. What will happen to your wife and
+children if you are dead?'
+
+'If need be they can die too. No one who bears the name of Orsi fears
+death.'
+
+'You cannot sacrifice their lives in cold blood.'
+
+'I cannot kill a fellow-man in cold blood. Ah, my friend, you don't know
+what is in me. I am not religious; I have never meddled with priests;
+but something in my heart tells me not to do this thing. I don't know
+what it is--conscience or honour--but it is speaking clearly within me.'
+
+He had his hand on his heart, and was speaking very earnestly. We
+followed his eyes and saw them resting on a crucifix.
+
+'No, Bartolomeo,' he said, 'one cannot forget God. He is above us
+always, always watching us; and what should I say to Him with the blood
+of that man on my hands? You may say what you like, but, believe me, it
+is best to be honest and straight-forward, and to the utmost of one's
+ability to carry out the doctrines which Christ has left us, and upon
+which he set the seal with the blood of His hands and feet and the wound
+in His side.'
+
+Bartolomeo looked at me as if it were hopeless to attempt anything
+against such sentiments. But I signed him energetically to go on; he
+hesitated. It would be almost tragic if he gave the matter up before
+Checco had time to surrender. However, he proceeded,--
+
+'You are a good man, Checco, and I respect you deeply for what you have
+said. But if you will not stir to save yourself, think of the others.'
+
+'What do you mean?' said Checco, starting as if from a dream.
+
+'Have you the right to sacrifice your fellowmen? The citizens of Forli
+depend on you.'
+
+'Ah, they will easily find another leader. Why, you yourself will be of
+greater assistance to them than I have ever been. How much better will
+they be in your strong hands than with me!'
+
+'No, no! You are the only man who has power here. You could not be
+replaced.'
+
+'But what can I do more than I am doing. I do not seek to leave Forli; I
+will stay here and protect myself as much as I can. I cannot do more.'
+
+'Oh, Checco, look at their state. It cannot continue. They are ground
+down now; the Count must impose these taxes, and what will be their
+condition then? The people are dying in their misery, and the survivors
+hold happy those who die. How can you look on and see all this? And you,
+you know Girolamo will kill you; it is a matter of time, and who can
+tell how short a time? Perhaps even now he is forging the weapon of your
+death.'
+
+'My death! My death!' cried Checco. 'All that is nothing!'
+
+'But what will be the lot of the people when you are gone? You are the
+only curb on Riario's tyranny. When you are dead, nothing will keep him
+back. And when once he has eased his path by murder he will not fail to
+do so again. We shall live under perpetual terror of the knife. Oh, have
+mercy on your fellow-citizens.'
+
+'My country!' said Checco. 'My country!'
+
+'You cannot resist this. For the good of your country you must lead us
+on.'
+
+'And if my soul--'
+
+'It is for your country. Ah! Checco, think of us all. Not for ourselves
+only, but for our wives, our innocent children, we beg you, we implore.
+Shall we go down on our knees to you?'
+
+'Oh, my God, what shall I do?' said Checco, extremely agitated.
+
+'Listen to my father, Checco!' said Scipione. 'He has right on his
+side.'
+
+'Oh, not you, too! Do not overwhelm me. I feel you are all against me.
+God help me! I know it is wrong, but I feel myself wavering.'
+
+'Do not think of yourself, Checco; it is for others, for our liberty,
+our lives, our all, that we implore you.'
+
+'You move me terribly. You know how I love my country, and how can I
+resist you, appealing on her behalf!'
+
+'Be brave, Checco!' said Matteo.
+
+'It is the highest thing of all that we ask you,' added Bartolomeo. 'Man
+can do nothing greater. We ask you to sacrifice yourself, even your
+soul, may be, for the good of us all.'
+
+Checco buried his face in his hands and groaned,--
+
+'Oh, God! Oh, God!'
+
+Then, with a great sigh, he rose and said,--
+
+'Be it as you will.... For the good of my country!'
+
+'Ah, thanks, thanks!'
+
+Bartolomeo took him in his arms and kissed him on both cheeks. Then
+suddenly Checco tore himself away.
+
+'But listen to this, all of you. I have consented, and now you must let
+me speak. I swear that in this thing I have no thought of myself. If I
+alone were concerned I would not move; I would wait for the assassin's
+knife calmly. I would even sacrifice my wife and children, and God knows
+how dearly I love them! I would not stir a finger to save myself. And I
+swear, by all that is most holy to me, that I am actuated by no base
+motive, no ambition, no thought of self, no petty revenge. I would
+willingly forgive Girolamo everything. Believe me, my friends, I am
+honest. I swear to you that I am only doing this for the welfare of the
+men I love, for the sake of you all, and--for Liberty.'
+
+They warmly pressed his hands.
+
+'We know it, Checco, we believe it. You are a great and a good man.'
+
+A little later we began to discuss the ways and means. Everyone had his
+plan, and to it the others had the most conclusive objections. We all
+talked together, each one rather annoyed at the unwillingness of the
+others to listen to him, and thinking how contemptible their ideas were
+beside his own. Checco sat silent. After a while Checco spoke,--
+
+'Will you listen to me?'
+
+We held our tongues.
+
+'First of all,' he said, 'we must find out who is with us and who is
+against us.'
+
+'Well,' interrupted Scipione, 'there are the two soldiers, Jacopo
+Ronchi and Lodovico Pansecchi; they are furious with the Count, and said
+to me a long while since that they would willingly kill him.'
+
+'Our six selves and those two make eight.'
+
+'Then there are Pietro Albanese, and Paglianino, and Marco Scorsacana.'
+
+They were devoted adherents of the house of Orsi, and could be trusted
+to follow the head of the family to the bottomless pit.
+
+'Eleven,' counted Bartolomeo.
+
+'And then--'
+
+Each mentioned a name till the total was brought to seventeen.
+
+'Who else?' asked Matteo.
+
+'That is enough,' said Checco. 'It is as foolish to have more than
+necessary as to have less. Now, once more, who are they?'
+
+The names were repeated. They were all known enemies of the Count, and
+most of them related to the Orsi.
+
+'We had better go to them separately and talk to them.'
+
+'It will want care!' said Bartolomeo.
+
+'Oh, they will not be backward. The first word will bring their
+adhesion.'
+
+'Before that,' said Checco, 'we must make all arrangements. Every point
+of the execution must be arranged, and to them nothing left but the
+performance.'
+
+'Well, my idea is--'
+
+'Have the goodness to listen to me,' said Checco. 'You have been talking
+of committing the deed in church, or when he is out walking. Both of
+those ways are dangerous, for he is always well surrounded, and in the
+former, one has to remember the feeling of horror which the people have
+for sacrilege. Witness Galeazzo in Milan and the Medici in Florence. One
+is always wise to respect the prejudices of the mob....'
+
+'What do you propose?'
+
+'After the mid-day meal the--our friend is in the habit of retiring to a
+private room while his servants dine. He is then almost alone. I have
+often thought it would be an excellent opportunity for an assassin; I
+did not know it would be myself to take the opportunity.'
+
+He paused and smiled at the pleasantness of the irony.
+
+'Afterwards we shall raise the town, and it is well that as many of our
+partisans as possible be present. The best day for that is a market-day,
+when they will come in, and we shall have no need of specially summoning
+them, and thus giving rise to suspicion.'
+
+Checco looked at us to see what we thought of his idea; then, as if from
+an after thought, he added,--
+
+'Of course, this is all on the spur of the moment.'
+
+It was well he said that, for I was thinking how elaborately everything
+was planned. I wondered how long he had the scheme in his head.
+
+We found nothing to say against it.
+
+'And who will do the actual deed?'
+
+'I will!' answered Checco, quietly.
+
+'You!'
+
+'Yes, alone. I will tell you your parts later.'
+
+'And when?'
+
+'Next Saturday. That is the first market-day.'
+
+'So soon.' We were all surprised; it was only five days off, it gave us
+very little time to think. It was terribly near. Alessandro voiced our
+feelings.
+
+'Does that give us enough time? Why not Saturday week? There are many
+needful preparations.'
+
+'There are no needful preparations. You have your swords ready; the
+others can be warned in a few hours. I wish it were to-morrow.'
+
+'It is--it is very soon.'
+
+'There is less danger of our courage failing meanwhile. We have our goal
+before us, and we must go to it straight, with clearness of mind and
+strength of will.'
+
+There was nothing more to be said. As we separated, one of the Moratini
+asked,--
+
+'About the others, shall we--'
+
+'You can leave everything to me. I take all on my hands. Will you three
+come here to play a game of chess on Friday night at ten? Our affairs
+will occupy us so that we shall not meet in the interval. I recommend
+you to go about as much as possible, and let yourselves be seen in all
+assemblies and parties....'
+
+Checco was taking his captaincy in earnest. He would allow no
+contradiction, and no swerving from the path he had marked out--on the
+spur of the moment.
+
+We had four days in which to make merry and gather the roses; after
+that, who knows? We might be dangling from the Palace windows in an even
+line, suspended by elegant hempen ropes; or our heads might be
+decorating spear heads and our bodies God knows where. I suggested
+these thoughts to Matteo, but I found him singularly ungrateful. Still,
+he agreed with me that we had better make the most of our time, and as
+it accorded with Checco's wishes, we were able to go to the devil from a
+sense of duty. I am sure Claudia never had a lover more ardent than
+myself during these four days; but, added to my duties towards that
+beautiful creature, were routs and banquets, drinking-parties,
+gaming-parties, where I plunged heavily in my uncertainty of the future,
+and consequently won a fortune. Checco had taken on his own shoulders
+all preparations, so that Matteo and I had nothing to do but to enjoy
+ourselves; and that we did. The only sign I had that Checco had been
+working was a look of intelligence given me by one or two of those whose
+names had been mentioned in Checco's study. Jacopo Ronchi, taking leave
+of me on the Thursday night, said,--
+
+'We shall meet to-morrow.'
+
+'You are coming to play chess, I think,' I said, smiling.
+
+When, at the appointed hour, Matteo and I found ourselves again in
+Checco's study, we were both rather anxious and nervous. My heart was
+beating quite painfully, and I could not restrain my impatience. I
+wished the others would come. Gradually they made their way in, and we
+shook hands quietly, rather mysteriously, with an air of schoolboys
+meeting together in the dark to eat stolen fruit. It might have been
+comic if our mind's eye had not presented us with so vivid a picture of
+a halter.
+
+Checco began to speak in a low voice, slightly trembling; his emotion
+was real enough this time, and he did all he could to conceal it.
+
+'My very dear and faithful fellow-citizens,' he began, 'it appears that
+to be born in Forli, and to live in it in our times, is the very
+greatest misfortune with which one can be born or with which one can
+live.'
+
+I never heard such silence as that among the listeners. It was awful.
+Checco's voice sank lower and lower, but yet every word could be
+distinctly heard. The tremor was increasing.
+
+'Is it necessary that birth and life here should be the birth and life
+of slaves? Our glorious ancestors never submitted to this terrible
+misfortune. They were free, and in their freedom they found life. But
+this is a living death....'
+
+He recounted the various acts of tyranny which had made the Count
+hateful to his subjects, and he insisted on the insecurity in which they
+lived.
+
+'You all know the grievous wrongs I have suffered at the hands of the
+man whom I helped to place on the throne. But these wrongs I freely
+forgive. I am filled only with devotion to my country and love to my
+fellowmen. If you others have private grievances, I implore you to put
+them aside, and think only that you are the liberators from oppression
+of all those you love and cherish. Gather up to your hearts the spirit
+of Brutus, when, for the sake of Freedom, he killed the man whom above
+all others he loved.'
+
+He gave them the details of the plot; told them what he would do
+himself, and what they should do, and finally dismissed them.
+
+'Pray to God to-night,' he said earnestly, 'that He will look with
+favour upon the work which we have set ourselves, and implore Him to
+judge us by the purity of our intentions rather than by the actions
+which, in the imperfection of our knowledge, seem to us the only means
+to our end.'
+
+We made the sign of the cross, and retired as silently as we had come.
+
+
+
+
+XXII
+
+
+My sleep was troubled, and when I woke the next morning the sun had only
+just risen.
+
+It was Saturday, the 14th of April 1488.
+
+I went to my window and saw a cloudless sky, brilliantly yellow over in
+the east, and elsewhere liquid and white, hardening gradually into blue.
+The rays came dancing into my room, and in them incessantly whirled
+countless atoms of dust. Through the open window blew the spring wind,
+laden with the scents of the country, the blossoms of the fruit trees,
+the primroses and violets. I had never felt so young and strong and
+healthy. What could one not do on such a day as this! I went into
+Matteo's room, and found him sleeping as calmly as if this were an
+ordinary day like any other.
+
+'Rise, thou sluggard!' I cried.
+
+In a few minutes we were both ready, and we went to Checco. We found him
+seated at a table polishing a dagger.
+
+'Do you remember in Tacitus,' he said, smiling pleasantly, 'how the plot
+against Nero was discovered by one of the conspirators giving his
+dagger to his freedman to sharpen? Whereupon the freedman became
+suspicious, and warned the Emperor.'
+
+'The philosophers tell us to rise on the mistakes of others,' I remarked
+in the same tone.
+
+'One reason for my affection towards you, Filippo,' he answered, 'is
+that you have nice moral sentiments, and a pleasant moral way of looking
+at things.'
+
+He held out his dagger and looked at it. The blade was beautifully
+damaskeened, the hilt bejewelled.
+
+'Look,' he said, showing me the excellence of the steel, and pointing
+out the maker's name. Then, meditatively, 'I have been wondering what
+sort of blow would be most effective if one wanted to kill a man.'
+
+'You can get most force,' said Matteo, 'by bringing the dagger down from
+above your head--thus.'
+
+'Yes; but then you may strike the ribs, in which case you would not
+seriously injure your friend.'
+
+'You can hit him in the neck.'
+
+'The space is too small, and the chin may get in the way. On the other
+hand, a wound in the large vessels of that region is almost immediately
+fatal.'
+
+'It is an interesting subject,' I said. 'My opinion is that the best of
+all blows is an underhand one, ripping up the stomach.'
+
+I took the dagger and showed him what I meant.
+
+'There are no hindrances in the way of bones; it is simple and certainly
+fatal.'
+
+'Yes,' said Checco, 'but not immediately! My impression is that the best
+way is between the shoulders. Then you strike from the back, and your
+victim can see no uplifted hand to warn him, and, if he is very quick,
+enable him to ward the blow.'
+
+'It is largely a matter of taste,' I answered, shrugging my shoulders.
+'In these things a man has to judge for himself according to his own
+idiosyncrasies.'
+
+After a little more conversation I proposed to Matteo that we should go
+out to the market-place and see the people.
+
+'Yes, do!' said Checco, 'and I will go and see my father.'
+
+As we walked along, Matteo told me that Checco had tried to persuade his
+father to go away for a while, but that he had refused, as also had his
+wife. I had seen old Orso d'Orsi once or twice; he was very weak and
+decrepit; he never came downstairs, but stayed in his own rooms all day
+by the fireside, playing with his grand-children. Checco was in the
+habit of going to see him every day, morning and evening, but to the
+rest of us it was as if he did not exist. Checco was complete master of
+everything.
+
+The market-place was full of people. Booths were erected in rows, and on
+the tables the peasant women had displayed their wares: vegetables and
+flowers, chickens, ducks and all kinds of domestic fowls, milk, butter,
+eggs; and other booths with meat and oil and candles. And the sellers
+were a joyful crew, decked out with red and yellow handkerchiefs, great
+chains of gold around their necks, and spotless headdresses; they were
+standing behind their tables, with a scale on one hand and a little
+basin full of coppers on the other, crying out to one another,
+bargaining, shouting and joking, laughing, quarrelling. Then there were
+the purchasers, who walked along looking at the goods, picking up
+things and pinching them, smelling them, tasting them, examining them
+from every point of view. And the sellers of tokens and amulets and
+charms passed through the crowd crying out their wares, elbowing,
+cursing when someone knocked against them. Gliding in and out, between
+people's legs, under the barrow wheels, behind the booths, were
+countless urchins, chasing one another through the crowd unmindful of
+kicks and cuffs, pouncing on any booth of which the proprietor had
+turned his back, seizing the first thing they could lay hands on, and
+scampering off with all their might. And there was a conjurer with a
+gaping crowd, a quack extracting teeth, a ballad singer. Everywhere was
+noise, and bustle, and life.
+
+'One would not say on the first glance that these people were miserably
+oppressed slaves,' I said maliciously.
+
+'You must look beneath the surface,' replied Matteo, who had begun to
+take a very serious view of things in general. I used to tell him that
+he would have a call some day and end up as a shaven monk.
+
+'Let us amuse ourselves,' I said, taking Matteo by the arm, and dragging
+him along in search of prey. We fixed on a seller of cheap jewellery--a
+huge woman, with a treble chin and a red face dripping with
+perspiration. We felt quite sorry for her, and went to console her.
+
+'It is a very cold day,' I remarked to her, whereupon she bulged out her
+cheeks and blew a blast that nearly carried me away.
+
+She took up a necklace of beads and offered it to Matteo for his lady
+love. We began to bargain, offering her just a little lower than she
+asked, and then, as she showed signs of coming down, made her a final
+offer a little lower still. At last she seized a broom and attacked us,
+so that we had to fly precipitately.
+
+I had never felt in such high spirits. I offered to race Matteo in every
+way he liked--riding, running and walking--but he refused, brutally
+telling me that I was frivolous. Then we went home. I found that Checco
+had just been hearing mass, and he was as solemn and silent as a
+hangman. I went about lamenting that I could get no one to talk to me,
+and at last took refuge with the children, who permitted me to join in
+their games, so that, at 'hide-and-seek' and 'blind man's buff,' I
+thoroughly amused myself till dinner-time. We ate together, and I tried
+not to be silenced, talking the greatest nonsense I could think of; but
+the others sat like owls and did not listen, so that I too began to feel
+depressed....
+
+The frowns of the others infected me, and the dark pictures that were
+before their eyes appeared to mine; my words failed me and we all three
+sat gloomily. I had started with an excellent appetite, but again the
+others influenced me, and I could not eat. We toyed with our food,
+wishing the dinner over. I moved about restlessly, but Checco was quite
+still, leaning his face on his hand, occasionally raising his eyes and
+fixing them on Matteo or me. One of the servants dropped some plates; we
+all started at the sound, and Checco uttered an oath; I had never heard
+him swear before. He was so pale I wondered if he were nervous. I asked
+the time: still two hours before we could start. How long would they
+take to pass! I had been longing to finish dinner, so that I might get
+up and go away. I felt an urgent need for walking, but when the meal was
+over a heaviness came to my legs and I could do nothing but sit and look
+at the other two. Matteo filled his tankard and emptied it several
+times, but after awhile, as he reached over for the wine, he saw
+Checco's eyes fixed on the flagon, with a frown on his forehead, and the
+curious raising of one corner of the mouth, which was a sign he was
+displeased. Matteo withdrew his hand and pushed his mug away; it rolled
+over and fell on the floor. We heard the church bell strike the hour; it
+was three o'clock. Would it never be time! We sat on and on. At last
+Checco rose and began walking up and down the room. He called for his
+children. They came, and he began talking to them in a husky voice, so
+that they could scarcely understand him. Then, as if frightened of
+himself, he took them in his arms, one after the other, and kissed them
+convulsively, passionately, as one kisses a woman; and he told them to
+go. He stifled a sob. We sat on and on. I counted the minutes. I had
+never lived so long before. It was awful....
+
+At last!
+
+It was half-past three; we got up and took our hats.
+
+'Now, my friends!' said Checco, drawing a breath of relief, 'our worst
+troubles are over.'
+
+We followed him out of the house. I noticed the jewelled hilt of his
+dagger, and every now and then I saw him put his hand to it to see that
+it was really there. We passed along the streets, saluted by the
+people. A beggar stopped us, and Checco threw him a piece of gold.
+
+'God bless you!' said the man.
+
+And Checco thanked him fervently.
+
+We walked along the narrow streets in the shade, but as we turned a
+corner the sun came full on our faces. Checco stopped a moment and
+opened his arms, as if to receive the sunbeams in his embrace, and,
+turning to us, with a smile, he said,--
+
+'A good omen!'
+
+A few more steps brought us to the piazza.
+
+
+
+
+XXIII
+
+
+Among the members of the Count's household was Fabrizio Tornielli, a
+cousin of the Orsi on the mother's side. Checco had told him that he
+wished to talk with Girolamo about the money he owed him, and thought
+the best opportunity would be when the Count was alone after the meal
+which he was in the habit of taking at three. But as he was very anxious
+to find the Count entirely by himself, he begged his cousin to make him
+a sign when the time came.... Fabrizio had agreed, and we had arranged
+to stroll about the piazza till we saw him. We came across our friends;
+to me they looked different from everyone else. I wondered that people
+as they passed did not stop them and ask what was disturbing them.
+
+At last, one of the Palace windows was opened, and we saw Fabrizio
+Tornielli standing in it, looking down on the piazza. Our opportunity
+has come. My heart beat so violently against my chest that I had to put
+my hand to it. Besides Matteo and myself, Marco Scorsacana, Lodovico
+Pansecchi and Scipione Moratini were to accompany Checco into the
+Palace. Checco took my arm and we walked slowly up the steps while the
+others followed on our heels. The head of the Orsi had a key of gold,
+that is to say he was admitted to the ruler's presence whenever he
+presented himself, and without formality. The guard at the door saluted
+as we passed, making no question. We ascended to Girolamo's private
+apartments, and were admitted by a servant. We found ourselves in an
+ante-room, in one wall of which was a large doorway, closed by
+curtains....
+
+'Wait for me here,' said Checco. 'I will go in to the Count.'
+
+The servant raised the curtain; Checco entered, and the curtain fell
+back behind him.
+
+Girolamo was alone, leaning against the sill of an open window. He
+stretched out his hand kindly.
+
+'Ah, Checco, how goes it?'
+
+'Well; and you?'
+
+'Oh, I am always well when I get among my nymphs.'
+
+He waved his hand to the frescoes on the walls. They were the work of a
+celebrated artist, and represented nymphs sporting, bathing, weaving
+garlands and offering sacrifice to Pan; the room had been christened the
+Chamber of the Nymphs.
+
+Girolamo looked round with a contented smile.
+
+'I am glad everything is finished at last,' he said. 'Eight years ago
+the stones with which the house is built had not been hewn out of the
+rock, and now every wall is painted, everything is carved and decorated,
+and I can sit down and say, "It is finished."'
+
+'It is indeed a work to be proud of,' said Checco.
+
+'You don't know how I have looked forward to this, Checco. Until now I
+have always lived in houses which others had built, and decorated, and
+lived in; but this one has grown up out of my own head; I have watched
+every detail of its construction, and I feel it mine as I have never
+felt anything mine before.'
+
+He paused a minute, looking at the room.
+
+'Sometimes I think I have lost in its completion, for it gave me many
+pleasant hours to watch the progress. The hammer of the carpenter, the
+click of the trowel on the brick were music to my ears. There is always
+a melancholy in everything that is finished; with a house, the moment of
+its completion is the commencement of its decay. Who knows how long it
+will be before these pictures have mouldered off the walls, and the very
+walls themselves are crumbling to dust?'
+
+'As long as your family reigns in Forli your palace will preserve its
+splendour.'
+
+'Yes, and it seems to me that as the family will preserve the house, so
+the house will preserve the family. I feel myself firmer and more
+settled in Forli; this seems like a rock to which my fortunes can cling.
+But I am full of hope. I am still young and strong. I have a good thirty
+years of life before me, and what can one not do in thirty years? And
+then, Checco, my children! What a proud day it will be for me when I can
+take my son by the hand and say to him, "You are a full-grown man, and
+you are capable of taking up the sceptre when death takes it from my
+hand." And it will be a good present I shall leave him. My head is full
+of plans. Forli shall be rich and strong, and its prince shall not need
+to fear his neighbours, and the Pope and Florence shall be glad of his
+friendship.'
+
+He looked into space, as if he saw the future.
+
+'But, meanwhile, I am going to enjoy life. I have a wife whom I love, a
+house to be proud of, two faithful cities. What more can I want?'
+
+'You are a fortunate man,' said Checco.
+
+There was a short silence. Checco looked at him steadily. The Count
+turned away, and Checco put his hand to his dagger. He followed him. As
+he was approaching, the Count turned again with a jewel that he had just
+taken from the window sill.
+
+'I was looking at this stone when you came,' he said. 'Bonifazio has
+brought it me from Milan, but I am afraid I cannot afford it. It is very
+tempting.'
+
+He handed it to Checco to look at.
+
+'I don't think it is better than the one you have on your neck,' he
+said, pointing to the jewel which was set in a medallion of gold hanging
+from a heavy chain.
+
+'Oh yes,' said Girolamo. 'It is much finer. Look at the two together.'
+
+Checco approached the stone he held in his hand to the other, and, as he
+did so, with his other fingers pressed against the Count's chest. He
+wanted to see whether by any chance he wore a coat of mail; he did not
+mean to make the same mistake as the Count.... He thought there was
+nothing; but he wished to make quite sure.
+
+'I think you are right,' he said, 'but the setting shows off the other,
+so that at first sight it seems more brilliant. And no wonder, for the
+chain is a masterpiece.'
+
+He took it up as if to look at it, and as he did so put his hand on the
+Count's shoulder. He was certain now.
+
+'Yes,' said Girolamo, 'that was made for me by the best goldsmith in
+Rome. It is really a work of art.'
+
+'Here is your stone,' said Checco, handing it to him, but awkwardly, so
+that when Girolamo wanted to take it, it fell between their hands.
+Instinctively he bent down to catch it. In a moment Checco drew his
+dagger and buried it in the Count's back. He staggered forward and fell
+in a heap on his face.
+
+'Oh God!' he cried, 'I am killed.'
+
+It was the first thing we had heard outside. We heard the cry, the heavy
+fall. The servant rushed to the curtain.
+
+'They are killing my master,' he cried.
+
+'Be quiet, you fool!' I said, seizing his head from behind and with my
+hands on his mouth dragging him backwards. At the same moment Matteo
+drew his dagger and pierced the man's heart. He gave a convulsive leap
+into the air, and then as he fell I pushed him so that he rolled to one
+side.
+
+Immediately afterwards the curtain was lifted and Checco appeared,
+leaning against the door-post. He was as pale as death, and trembling
+violently. He stood silent for a moment, open-mouthed, so that I thought
+he was about to faint; then with an effort he said in a hoarse, broken
+voice,--
+
+'Gentlemen, we are free!'
+
+A cry burst from us,--
+
+'Liberty!'
+
+Lodovico Pansecchi asked,--
+
+'Is he dead?'
+
+A visible shudder passed through Checco, as if he had been struck by an
+icy wind. He staggered to a chair and groaned,--
+
+'Oh God!'
+
+'I will go and see,' said Pansecchi, lifting the curtain and entering.
+
+We stood still, waiting for him. We heard a heavy sound, and as he
+appeared, he said,--
+
+'There is no doubt now.'
+
+There was blood on his hands. Going up to Checco, he handed him the
+jewelled dagger.
+
+'Take this. It will be more use to you than where you left it.'
+
+Checco turned away in disgust.
+
+'Here, take mine,' said Matteo. 'I will take yours. It will bring me
+good luck.'
+
+The words were hardly out of his mouth when a step was heard outside.
+Scipione looked out cautiously.
+
+'Andrea Framonti,' he whispered.
+
+'Good luck, indeed!' said Matteo.
+
+It was the captain of the guard. He was in the habit of coming every day
+about this hour to receive the password from the Count. We had forgotten
+him. He entered.
+
+'Good-day to you, gentlemen! Are you waiting to see the Count?'
+
+He caught sight of the corpse lying against the wall.
+
+'Good God! what is this? What is--?'
+
+He looked at us, and stopped suddenly. We had surrounded him.
+
+'Treason!' he cried. 'Where is the Count?'
+
+He looked behind him; Scipione and Matteo barred the door.
+
+'Treason!' he shouted, drawing his sword.
+
+At the same moment we drew ours and rushed for him. He parried a few of
+our blows, but we were too many, and he fell pierced with a dozen
+wounds.
+
+The sight of the fray had a magical effect on Checco. We saw him
+standing up, drawn to his full height, his cheeks aflame, his eyes
+flashing.
+
+'Good, my friends, good! Luck is on our side,' he said. 'Now we must
+look alive and work. Give me my dagger, Matteo; it is sacred now. It has
+been christened in blood with the name of Liberty. Liberty, my friends,
+Liberty!'
+
+We flourished our swords and shouted,--
+
+'Liberty!'
+
+'Now, you, Filippo, take Lodovico Pansecchi and Marco, and go to the
+apartment of the Countess; tell her that she and her children are
+prisoners, and let no one enter or leave. Do this at any cost.... The
+rest of us will go out and rouse the people. I have twenty servants
+armed whom I told to wait in the piazza; they will come and guard the
+Palace and give you any help you need. Come!'
+
+I did not know the way to the Countess's chamber, but Marco had been a
+special favourite and knew well the ins and outs of the Palace. He
+guided me to the door, where we waited. In a few minutes we heard cries
+in the piazza, and shouts of 'Liberty.' There came a tramp of feet up
+the stairs. It was Checco's armed servants. Some of them appeared where
+we were. I sent Marco to lead the others.
+
+'Clear the Palace of all the servants. Drive them out into the piazza,
+and if anyone resists, kill him.'
+
+Marco nodded and went off. The door of the Countess's apartments was
+opened, and a lady said,--
+
+'What is this noise?'
+
+But immediately she saw us, she gave a shriek and ran back. Then,
+leaving two men to guard the door, I entered with Pansecchi and the
+rest. The Countess came forward.
+
+'What is the meaning of this?' she said angrily. 'Who are you? What are
+these men?'
+
+'Madam,' I said, 'the Count, your husband, is dead, and I have been sent
+to take you prisoner.'
+
+The women began to weep and wail, but the Countess did not move a
+muscle. She appeared indifferent to my intelligence.
+
+'You,' I said, pointing to the ladies and women servants, 'you are to
+leave the Palace at once. The Countess will be so good as to remain here
+with her children.'
+
+Then I asked where the children were. The women looked at their
+mistress, who said shortly,--
+
+'Bring them!'
+
+I signed to Pansecchi, who accompanied one of the ladies out of the
+room, and reappeared with the three little children.
+
+'Now, madam,' I said, 'will you dismiss these ladies?'
+
+She looked at me a moment, hesitating. The cries from the piazza were
+growing greater; it was becoming a roar that mounted to the Palace
+windows.
+
+'You can leave me,' she said.
+
+They broke again into shrieks and cries, and seemed disinclined to obey
+the order. I had no time to waste.
+
+'If you do not go at once, I shall have you thrown out!'
+
+The Countess stamped her foot.
+
+'Go when I tell you! Go!' she said. 'I want no crying and screaming.'
+
+They moved to the door like a flock of sheep, trampling on one another,
+bemoaning their fate. At last I had the room free.
+
+'Madam,' I said, 'you must allow two soldiers to remain in the room.'
+
+I locked the two doors of the chamber, mounted a guard outside each, and
+left her.
+
+
+
+
+XXIV
+
+
+I went out into the piazza. It was full of men, but where was the
+enthusiasm we had expected, the tumult, the shouts of joy? Was not the
+tyrant dead? But they stood there dismayed, confounded, like sheep....
+And was not the tyrant dead? I saw partisans of Checco rushing through
+the crowd with cries of 'Death to all tyrants,' and 'Liberty, liberty!'
+but the people did not move. Here and there were men mounted on barrows,
+haranguing the people, throwing out words of fire, but the wind was
+still and they did not spread.... Some of the younger ones were talking
+excitedly, but the merchants kept calm, seeming afraid. They asked what
+was to happen now--what Checco would do? Some suggested that the town
+should be offered to the Pope; others talked of Lodovico Sforza and the
+vengeance he would bring from Milan.
+
+I caught sight of Alessandra Moratini.
+
+'What news? What news?'
+
+'Oh God, I don't know!' he said with an expression of agony. 'They won't
+move. I thought they would rise up and take the work out of our hands.
+But they are as dull as stones.'
+
+'And the others?' I asked.
+
+'They are going through the town trying to rouse the people. God knows
+what success they will have!'
+
+At that moment there was a stir at one end of the square, and a crowd of
+mechanics surged in, headed by a gigantic butcher, flourishing a great
+meat-axe. They were crying 'Liberty!' Matteo went towards them and began
+to address them, but the butcher interrupted him and shouted coarse
+words of enthusiasm, at which they all yelled with applause.
+
+Checco came on the scene, accompanied by his servants. A small crowd
+followed, crying,--
+
+'Bravo, Checco! bravo!'
+
+As soon as the mechanics saw him, they rushed towards him, surrounding
+him with cries and cheers.... The square was growing fuller every
+moment; the shops had been closed, and from all quarters came swarming
+artisans and apprentices. I made my way to Checco and whispered to
+him,--
+
+'The people! Fire them, and the rest will follow.'
+
+'A leader of rabble!'
+
+'Never mind,' I said. 'Make use of them. Give way to them now, and they
+will do your will. Give them the body of the Count!'
+
+He looked at me, then nodded and whispered,--
+
+'Quickly!'
+
+I ran to the Palace and told Marco Scorsacana what I had come for. We
+went into the Hall of the Nymphs; the body was lying on its face,
+almost doubled up, and the floor was stained with a horrible stream of
+blood; in the back were two wounds. Lodovico had indeed made sure that
+the Count was safe.... We caught hold of the body; it was not yet cold,
+and dragged it to the window. With difficulty we lifted it on to the
+sill.
+
+'Here is your enemy!' I cried.
+
+Then hoisting him, we pushed him out, and he fell on the stones with a
+great, dull thud. A mighty shout burst from the mob as they rushed at
+the body. One man tore the chain off his neck, but as he was running
+away with it another snatched at it. In the struggle it broke, and one
+got away with the chain, the other with the jewel. Then, with cries of
+hate, they set on the corpse. They kicked him and slapped his face and
+spat on him. The rings were wrenched off his fingers, his coat was torn
+away; they took his shoes, his hose; in less than a minute everything
+had been robbed, and he was lying naked, naked as when he was born. They
+had no mercy those people; they began to laugh and jeer, and make foul
+jokes about his nakedness.
+
+The piazza was thronged, and every moment people entered; the women of
+the lower classes had come, joining their shrill cries to the shouts of
+the men. The noise was stupendous, and above all rang the cries of
+Liberty and Death.
+
+'The Countess! The Countess!'
+
+It became the general cry, drowning the others, and from all quarters.
+
+'Where is the Countess? Bring her out. Death to the Countess!'
+
+A cry went up that she was in the Palace, and the shout became,--
+
+'To the Palace! To the Palace!'
+
+Checco said to us,--
+
+'We must save her. If they get hold of her she will be torn to pieces.
+Let her be taken to my house.'
+
+Matteo and Pansecchi took all the soldiers they could and entered the
+Palace. In a few minutes they appeared with Caterina and her children;
+they had surrounded her and were walking with drawn swords.
+
+A yell broke from these thousands of throats, and they surged towards
+the little band. Checco shouted out to them to let her go in peace, and
+they held back a little; but as she passed they hissed and cursed and
+called her foul names. Caterina walked proudly, neither turning to the
+right nor to the left, no sign of terror on her face, not even a pallid
+cheek. She might have been traversing the piazza amidst the homage of
+her people. Suddenly it occurred to a man that she had jewels concealed
+on her. He pushed through the guards and put his hand to her bosom. She
+lifted her hand and hit him in the face. A cry of rage broke from the
+populace, and they made a rush. Matteo and his men stopped, closing
+together, and he said,--
+
+'By God! I swear I will kill any man who comes within my reach.'
+
+They shrank back frightened, and taking advantage of this, the little
+band hurried out of the piazza.
+
+Then the people looked at one another, waiting for something to do, not
+knowing where to begin. Their eyes were beginning to flame, and their
+hands to itch for destruction. Checco saw their feeling, and at once
+pointed to the Palace.
+
+'There are the fruits of your labours, your money, your jewels, your
+taxes. Go and take back your own. There is the Palace. We give you the
+Palace.'
+
+They broke into a cheer, a rush was made, and they struggled in by the
+great doors, fighting their way up the stairs in search of plunder,
+dispersing through the splendid rooms....
+
+Checco looked at them disappearing through the gateway.
+
+'Now, we have them at last.'
+
+In a few minutes the stream at the Palace gates became double, for it
+consisted of those coming out as well as of those going in. The
+confusion became greater and greater, and the rival bands elbowed and
+struggled and fought. The windows were burst open and things thrown
+out--coverlets, linen, curtains, gorgeous silks, Oriental brocades,
+satins--and the women stood below to catch them. Sometimes there was a
+struggle for possession, but the objects were poured out so fast that
+everyone could be satisfied. Through the doors men could be seen coming
+with their arms full, their pockets bulging, and handing their plunder
+to their wives to take home, while they themselves rushed in again. All
+the little things were taken first, and then it was the turn of the
+furniture. People came out with chairs or coffers on their heads,
+bearing them away quickly lest their claim should be disputed. Sometimes
+the entrance was stopped by two or three men coming out with a heavy
+chest or with the pieces of a bedstead. Then the shouting and pushing
+and confusion were worse than ever.... Even the furniture gave out under
+the keen hands, and looking round they saw that the walls and floors
+were bare. But there was still something for them. They made for the
+doors and wrenched them away. From the piazza we saw men tear out the
+window frames, even the hinges were taken, and they streamed out of the
+Palace heavily laden, their hands bloody from the work of destruction.
+
+All over the town the bells were ringing, and still people surged into
+the piazza. Thousands had got nothing from the Palace, and they cried
+out in anger against their companions, envious at their good luck. Bands
+had formed themselves with chiefs, and they were going about exciting
+the others. Checco stood among them, unable to restrain them. Suddenly
+another cry rose from a thousand throats,--
+
+'The Treasury!'
+
+And irresistible as the sea, they rushed to the Gabella. In a few
+minutes the same ruin had overtaken it, and it was lying bare and empty.
+
+Scarcely one of them remained in the piazza. The corpse was lying on the
+cold stones, naked, the face close to the house in which the living man
+had taken such pride; and the house itself, with the gaping apertures
+from the stolen windows, looked like a building which had been burnt
+with fire, so that only the walls remained. And it was empty but for a
+few rapacious men, who were wandering about like scavengers to see
+whether anything had been left unfound.
+
+The body had done its work and it could rest in peace. Checco sent for
+friars, who placed it on a stretcher, covering its nakedness, and bore
+it to their church.
+
+Night came, and with it a little peace. The tumult with which the town
+was filled quietened down; one by one the sounds ceased, and over the
+city fell a troubled sleep....
+
+
+
+
+XXV
+
+
+We were up betimes. The town was ours, except the citadel. Checco had
+gone to the fortress, which stood above the town, to one side, and had
+summoned the Castellan to surrender. He had refused, as we expected; but
+we were not much troubled, for we had Caterina and her children in our
+power, and by their means thought we could get hold of the castle.
+
+Checco had called a meeting of the Council to decide what should be done
+with the town. It was purely a measure of politeness, for he had already
+made up his mind and taken steps in accordance. With the town so
+troubled, the citadel still in our opponent's hands, and the armies of
+Lodovico Moro at Milan, it was hopeless to suggest standing alone; and
+Checco had decided to offer Forli to the Pope. This would give a
+protection against external enemies and would not greatly interfere with
+the internal relations. The real power would belong to the chief
+citizen, and Checco knew well enough whom that was. Further, the lax
+grasp of the Pope would soon be loosed by death, and in the confusion of
+a long conclave and a change of rulers, it would not be impossible to
+change the state of dependence into real liberty, and for Checco to add
+the rights and titles of lordship to the power. On the previous night he
+had sent a messenger to the Protonotary Savello, the papal governor of
+Cesena, with an account of what had happened and the offer of the town.
+Checco had requested an immediate reply, and was expecting it every
+minute.
+
+The Council was called for ten o'clock. At nine Checco received
+Savello's secret consent.
+
+The President of the Council was Niccolo Tornielli, and he opened the
+sitting by reminding his hearers of their object, and calling for their
+opinions. At first no one would speak. They did not know what was in
+Checco's mind, and they had no wish to say anything that might be
+offensive to him. The Forlivesi are a cautious race! After a while an
+old man got up and timidly expressed the thanks of the citizens for the
+freedom which Checco had bestowed upon them, suggesting also that he
+should speak first. The lead thus given, the worthies rose, one after
+another, and said the same things with an air of profound originality.
+
+Then Antonio Sassi stood up. It was he who had advised Girolamo to
+impose the taxes on the town; and he was known to be a deadly enemy of
+Checco. The others had been sufficiently astonished when they saw him
+enter the Council chamber, for it was thought that he had left the town,
+as Ercole Piacentini and others of the Count's favourites had done. When
+he prepared to speak, the surprise was universal.
+
+'Our good friend, Niccolo,' he said, 'has called upon us to decide what
+shall be done with the town.
+
+'Your thoughts seem to be inclining to one foreign master or another.
+But my thoughts are inclining to the Liberty, in whose name the town has
+been won.
+
+'Let us maintain the Liberty which these men have conquered at the risk
+of their lives....
+
+'Why should we doubt our ability to preserve the Liberty of our
+ancestors? Why should we think that we, who are descended from such
+fathers, born from their blood, bred in their houses, should have
+degenerated so far as to be incapable of seizing the opportunity which
+is presented to us?
+
+'Let us not fear that the Mighty Monarch, who defends and protects him
+who walks the path of the Just, will fail to give us spirit and strength
+to introduce and firmly to implant in this city the blessed state of
+Liberty.'
+
+At the end of the sentence Antonio Sassi paused to see the effect on his
+auditors.
+
+He went on,--
+
+'But as the example of Our Master has shown us that the shepherd is
+necessary for the preservation of the flock; and as He seems to point
+out our guardian by the success which He has granted to his arms in the
+extermination of the Wolf, I propose that we surrender our Liberty to
+the hands of him who is best able to preserve it--Checco d'Orsi.'
+
+A cry of astonishment burst from the Councillors. Was this Antonio
+Sassi? They looked at Checco, but he was impassive; not even the shadow
+of a thought could be read on his face. They asked themselves whether
+this was pre-arranged, whether Checco had bought his enemy, or whether
+it was a sudden device of Antonio to make his peace with the victor. One
+could see the agitation of their minds. They were tortured: they did not
+know what Checco thought. Should they speak or be silent? There was a
+look of supplication in their faces which was quite pitiful. Finally,
+one of them made up his mind, and rose to second Antonio Sassi's motion.
+Then others took their courage in both hands and made speeches full of
+praise for Checco, begging him to accept the sovereignty.
+
+A grave smile appeared on Checco's face, but it disappeared at once.
+When he thought there had been sufficient talking he rose to his feet,
+and, after thanking his predecessors for their eulogies, said,--
+
+'It is true that we have conquered the city at the risk of our lives;
+but it was for the city, not for ourselves.... No thought of our own
+profit entered our minds, but we were possessed by a grave sense of our
+duty towards our fellowmen. Our watch-words were Liberty and the
+Commonweal! From the bottom of my heart I thank Antonio Sassi and all of
+you who have such confidence in me that you are willing to surrender the
+town to my keeping. In their good opinion I find a sufficient reward for
+all I have done. But, God knows, I have no desire to rule. I want the
+love of my fellow-citizens, not the fear of subjects; I look with dismay
+upon the toils of a ruler. And who would believe in my disinterestedness
+when he saw me take up the sceptre which the lifeless hand has dropped?
+
+'Forgive me; I cannot accept your gift.
+
+'But there is one who can and will. The Church is not wont to close her
+breast to him who seeks refuge beneath her sacred cloak, and she will
+pardon us for having shaken from our necks the hard yoke of Tyranny. Let
+us give ourselves to the Holy Father--'
+
+He was interrupted by the applause of the councillors: they did not want
+to hear further, but agreed unanimously; and it was forthwith arranged
+that an embassy should be sent to the Governor of Cesena to make the
+offer. The meeting was broken up amidst shouts of praise for Checco. If
+he had been strong before, he was ten times stronger now, for the better
+classes had been afraid of the mob and angry that he should depend on
+them; now they were won too.
+
+The people knew that the Council was assembled to consult on the
+destinies of the town, and they had come together in thousands outside
+the Council House. The news was made known to them at once, and when
+Checco appeared at the top of the stairs a mighty shout burst from them,
+and they closed round him with cries and cheers.
+
+'Bravo! Bravo!'
+
+He began to walk homewards, and the crowd followed, making the old grey
+streets ring with their shouts. On each side people were thronging and
+stood on tiptoe to see him, the men waving their caps and throwing them
+in the air, the women madly flourishing handkerchiefs; children were
+hoisted up that they might see the great man pass, and joined their
+shrill cries to the tumult. Then it occurred to someone to spread his
+cloak for Checco to walk on, and at once everyone followed his example,
+and the people pressed and struggled to lay their garments before his
+feet. And baskets of flowers were obtained and scattered before him, and
+the heavy scent of the narcissi filled the air. The shouts were of all
+kinds; but at last one arose, and gathered strength, and replaced the
+others, till ten thousand throats were shouting,--
+
+_'Pater Patriae! Pater Patriae!'_
+
+Checco walked along with bare head, his eyes cast down, his face quite
+white. His triumph was so great--that he was afraid!
+
+The great procession entered the street in which stood the Palazzo Orsi,
+and at the same moment, from the gates of the palace issued Checco's
+wife and his children. They came towards us, followed by a troop of
+noble ladies. They met and Checco, opening his arms, clasped his wife to
+his breast and kissed her tenderly; then, with his arm round her waist,
+the children on each side, he proceeded towards his house. If the
+enthusiasm had been great before, now it was ten times greater. The
+people did not know what to do to show their joy; no words could express
+their emotion; they could only give a huge deafening shout,--
+
+_'Pater Patriae! Pater Patriae!'_
+
+
+
+
+XXVI
+
+
+After a while the formal embassy sent to Cesena came back with the
+message that the Protonotary Savello had been filled with doubts as to
+whether he should accept the town or no; but seeing the Forlivesi firm
+in their desire to come under the papal rule, and being convinced that
+their pious wish had been inspired by the most High Ruler of Kings, he
+had not ventured to contradict the manifest will of Heaven, and
+therefore would come and take possession of the city in person.
+
+Checco smiled a little as he heard of the worthy man's doubts and the
+arguments used by the ambassadors to persuade him; but he fully agreed
+with Monsignor Savello's decision, thinking the reasons very cogent....
+
+The protonotary was received with all due honour. Savello was a
+middle-sized, stout man, with a great round belly and a fat red face,
+double-chinned and bull-necked. He had huge ears and tiny eyes, like
+pig's eyes, but they were very sharp and shrewd. His eyebrows were pale
+and thin, so that with the enormous expanse of shaven cheek his face
+had a look of almost indecent nakedness. His hair was scanty and his
+crown quite bald and shiny. He was gorgeously dressed in violet. After
+the greetings and necessary courtesies, he was informed of the state of
+things in Forli. He was vexed to find the citadel still in the hands of
+the Castellan, who had been summoned with great courtesy to surrender to
+the papal envoy, but without any courtesy at all had very stoutly
+declined. Savello said he would speak to the Countess and make her order
+the Castellan to open his gates. I was sent forward to inform Caterina
+of the last occurrences and of the protonotary's desire for an
+interview.
+
+The Countess had received apartments in the Orsi Palace, and it was in
+one of these rooms that the good Savello was ushered.
+
+He stopped on the threshold, and lifting up his arm stretched out two
+fingers, and in his thick, fat voice, said,--
+
+'The peace of God be upon you!'
+
+Caterina bowed and crossed herself. He went up to her and took her hand
+in his.
+
+'Madam, it has always been my hope that I should some day meet the lady
+whose fame has reached me as the most talented, most beautiful, and most
+virtuous of her time. But I did not think that the day of our meeting
+would be one of such bitterness and woe!'
+
+He expressed himself in measured tones, grave and slow, and very fit to
+the occasion.
+
+'Ah, lady, you do not know the grief I felt when I was made acquainted
+with your terrible loss. I knew your dear husband in Rome, and I always
+felt for him a most profound affection and esteem.'
+
+'You are very kind!' she said.
+
+'I can understand that you should be overwhelmed with grief, and I trust
+you do not think my visit importunate. I have come to offer you such
+consolation as is in my power; for is it not the most blessed work that
+our Divine Master has imposed upon us, to comfort the afflicted?'
+
+'I was under the impression that you had come to take over the city on
+behalf of the Pope.'
+
+'Ah, lady, I see that you are angry with me for taking the city from
+you; but do not think I do it of myself. Ah, no; I am a slave, I am but
+a servant of his Holiness. For my part, I would have acted far
+otherwise, not only for your own merits, great as they are, but also for
+the merits of the Duke, your brother.'
+
+His unction was most devout. He clasped his hand to his heart and looked
+up to Heaven so earnestly that the pupils of his eyes disappeared
+beneath the lids, and one could only see the whites. In this attitude he
+was an impressive picture of morality.
+
+'I beseech you, madam, bravely to bear your evil fortunes. Do we not
+know that fortune is uncertain? If the city has been taken from you it
+is the will of God, and as a Christian you must, with resignation,
+submit yourself to His decrees. Remember that the ways of the Almighty
+are inscrutable. The soul of the sinner is purified by suffering. We
+must all pass through the fire. Perhaps these misfortunes will be the
+means of saving your soul alive. And now that this city has returned to
+the fold of the Master--for is not the Holy Father the Vicar of
+Christ--be assured that the loss you have suffered will be made good to
+you in the love of his Holiness, and that eventually you will receive
+the reward of the sinner who has repented, and sit amongst the elect
+singing hymns of praise to the glory of the Master of all things.'
+
+He paused to take breath. I saw Caterina's fingers convulsively close
+round the arm of her chair; she was restraining herself with difficulty.
+
+'But the greatest grief of all is the loss of your husband, Girolamo.
+Ah, how beautiful is the grief of a widow! But it was the will of God.
+And what has he to complain of now? Let us think of him clad in robes of
+light, with a golden harp in his hands. Ah, lady, he is an angel in
+heaven, and we are miserable sinners upon earth. How greatly to be
+envied is his lot! He was a humble, pious man, and he has his reward.
+Ah--'
+
+But she could hold back no longer. She burst forth like a fury.
+
+'Oh, how can you stand before me, uttering these hypocrisies? How dare
+you say these things to me, when you are enjoying the fruits of his
+death and my misfortune? Hypocrite! You are the vulture feeding with the
+crows, and you come and whine and pray and talk to me of the will of
+God!'
+
+She clasped her hands and lifted them passionately towards heaven.
+
+'Oh, I hope that my turn will come, and then I will show you what is the
+will of God. Let them take care!'
+
+'You are incensed, dear lady, and you know not what you say. You will
+regret that you have accepted my consolations with disdain. But I
+forgive you with a Christian spirit.'
+
+'I do not want your forgiveness. I despise you.'
+
+She uttered the words like the hiss of a serpent. Savello's eyes
+sparkled a little, and his thin lips were drawn rather thinner than
+before, but he only sighed, and said gently,--
+
+'You are beside yourself. You should turn to the Consoler of Sorrow.
+Watch and pray!'
+
+'What is it you want with me?' she said, taking no notice of his remark.
+
+Savello hesitated, looking at her. She beat her foot impatiently.
+
+'Quick!' she said. 'Tell me, and let me remain in peace. I am sick of
+you.'
+
+'I came to offer you consolation, and to bid you be of good faith.'
+
+'Do you think I am a fool? If you have no further business with me--go!'
+
+The priest now had some difficulty in containing himself; his eyes
+betrayed him.
+
+'I am a man of peace, and I desire to spill no blood. Therefore I wished
+to propose that you should come with me and summon the Castellan to give
+up the citadel, which may be the means of avoiding much bloodshed, and
+also of gaining the thanks of the Holy Father.'
+
+'I will not help you. Shall I aid you to conquer my own town?'
+
+'You must remember that you are in our hands, fair lady,' he answered
+meekly.
+
+'Well?'
+
+'I am a man of peace, but I might not be able to prevent the people from
+revenging themselves on you for your refusal. It will be impossible to
+hide from them that you are the cause of the holding back of the
+citadel.'
+
+'I can well understand that you would hesitate at nothing.'
+
+'It is not I, dear lady--'
+
+'Ah, no; you are the servant of the Pope! It is the will of God!'
+
+'You would be wise to do as we request.'
+
+There was a look of such ferocity in his face that one saw he would
+indeed hesitate at nothing. Caterina thought a little....
+
+'Very well,' she said, to my intense surprise, 'I will do my best.'
+
+'You will gain the gratitude of the Holy Father and my own thanks.'
+
+'I put an equal value upon both.'
+
+'And now, madam, I will leave you. Take comfort, and apply yourself to
+pious exercises. In prayer you will find a consolation for all your
+woes.'
+
+He raised his hand as before, and, with the outstretched fingers,
+repeated the blessing.
+
+
+
+
+XXVII
+
+
+We went to the fortress in solemn procession, the people, as we passed,
+mingling shouts of praise for Checco with yells of derision for
+Caterina. She walked on with her stately indifference, and when the
+protonotary addressed her, repelled him with disdain.
+
+The Castellan was summoned, and the Countess addressed him in the words
+which Savello had suggested,--
+
+'As Heaven has taken the Count from me, and also the city, I beg you, by
+the confidence I showed in choosing you as Castellan, to surrender this
+fortress to the ministers of His Holiness the Pope.'
+
+There was a light tinge of irony in her voice, and her lips showed the
+shadow of a smile.
+
+The Castellan replied gravely,--
+
+'By the confidence you showed in choosing me as Castellan, I refuse to
+surrender this fortress to the ministers of his Holiness the Pope. And
+as Heaven has taken the Count from you, and also the city, it may take
+the citadel too, but, by God! madam, no power on earth shall.'
+
+Caterina turned to Savello,--
+
+'What shall I do?'
+
+'Insist.'
+
+She solemnly repeated her request, and he solemnly made his reply.
+
+'It is no good,' she said, 'I know him too well. He thinks I am speaking
+under compulsion. He does not know that I am acting of my own will, for
+the great love I bear the Pope and the Church.'
+
+'We must have the citadel,' said Savello, emphatically. 'If we do not
+get it, I cannot answer for your safety.'
+
+She looked at him; then an idea seemed to occur to her.
+
+'Perhaps if I went in and spoke to him he would consent to surrender.'
+
+'We cannot allow you out of our power,' said Checco.
+
+'You would have my children as hostages.'
+
+'That is true,' mused Savello; 'I think we can let her go.'
+
+Checco disapproved, but the priest overruled him, and the Castellan was
+summoned again, and ordered to admit the Countess. Savello warned her,--
+
+'Remember that we hold your children, and shall not hesitate to hang
+them before your eyes if--'
+
+'I know your Christian spirit, Monsignor,' she interrupted.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+But when she was inside she turned to us, and from the ramparts
+addressed us with mocking laughter. The fury which had been boiling
+within her burst out. She hurled at us words of foul abuse, so that one
+might have thought her a fishwife; she threatened us with death, and
+every kind of torture, in revenge for the murder of her husband....
+
+We stood looking up at her with open mouths, dumbfounded. A cry of rage
+broke from the people; Matteo uttered an oath. Checco looked angrily at
+Savello, but said nothing. The priest was furious; his big red face grew
+purple, and his eyes glistened like a serpent's.
+
+'Bastard!' he hissed. 'Bastard!'
+
+Trembling with anger, he ordered the children to be sent for, and he
+cried out to the Countess,--
+
+'Do not think that we shall hesitate. Your sons shall be hanged before
+your very eyes.'
+
+'I have the means of making more,' she replied scornfully.
+
+She was lion-hearted. I could not help feeling admiration for the
+extraordinary woman. Surely she could not sacrifice her children! And I
+wondered if a man would have had the courage to give that bold answer to
+Savello's threats.
+
+Savello's expression had become fiendish. He turned to his assistants.
+
+'Let a double scaffold be erected here, at once and quickly.'
+
+The chiefs of the conspiracy retired to a sheltered place, while the mob
+gathered in the piazza; and soon the buzz of many voices mingled with
+hammering and the cries of workmen. The Countess stood above looking at
+the people, watching the gradual erection of the scaffold.
+
+In a little while its completion was announced. Savello and the others
+came forward, and the priest once more asked her whether she would
+surrender. She did not deign to answer. The two boys were brought
+forward--one was nine, the other seven. As the people looked upon their
+youth a murmur of pity passed through them. My own heart began to beat a
+little. They looked at the scaffold and could not understand; but
+Cesare, the younger, seeing the strange folk round him and the angry
+faces, began to cry. Ottaviano was feeling rather tearful too; but his
+superior age made him ashamed, and he was making mighty efforts to
+restrain himself. All at once Cesare caught sight of his mother, and he
+called to her. Ottaviano joined him, and they both cried out,--
+
+'Mother! Mother!'
+
+She looked at them, but made not the slightest motion, she might have
+been of stone.... Oh, it was horrible; she was too hard!
+
+'Once more, I ask you,' said Savello, 'will you surrender the castle?'
+
+'No--no!'
+
+Her voice was quite steady, ringing clear as a silver bell.
+
+Savello made a sign, and two men approached the boys. Then suddenly they
+seemed to understand; with a shriek they ran to Checco, and, falling at
+his feet, clasped his knees. Ottaviano could hold out no longer; he
+burst into tears, and his brother, at the elder's weakness, redoubled
+his own cries.
+
+'Oh, Checco, don't let them touch us!'
+
+Checco took no notice of them; he looked straight in front of him. And
+even when the Count had just fallen under his dagger he had not been so
+ghastly pale.... The children were sobbing desperately at his knees. The
+men hesitated; but there was no pity in the man of God; he repeated his
+sign more decisively than before, and the men advanced. The children
+clung to Checco's legs, crying,--
+
+'Checco, don't let them touch us!'
+
+He made no sign. He held his eyes straight in front of him, as if he saw
+nothing, heard nothing. But his face! Never have I seen such agony....
+
+The children were torn from him, their hands bound behind their backs.
+How could they! My heart was bursting within me, but I dared say
+nothing. They were led to the scaffold. A sobbing cry came from the
+people and wailed through the heavy air.
+
+The Countess stood still, looking at her children. She made not the
+slightest motion; she might have been of stone.
+
+The children cried out,--
+
+'Checco! Checco!'
+
+It was heartbreaking.
+
+'Go on!' said Savello.
+
+A groan burst from Checco, and he swayed to and fro, as if he were going
+to fall.
+
+'Go on!' said Savello.
+
+But Checco could not bear it.
+
+'Oh, God! Stop!--stop!'
+
+'What do you mean?' said Savello, angrily. 'Go on!'
+
+'I cannot! Untie them!'
+
+'You fool! I threatened to hang them, and I will. Go on!'
+
+'You shall not! Untie them, I tell you!'
+
+'I am master here. Go on!'
+
+Checco strode towards him with clenched fists.
+
+'By God, Master Priest, you shall go the way you came, if you thwart me.
+Untie them!'
+
+In a moment Matteo and I had pushed aside the men who held them, and cut
+their cords. Checco staggered towards the children, and they with a
+bound threw themselves into his arms. He clasped them to him
+passionately, and covered them with kisses. A shout of joy broke from
+the people, and many burst into tears.
+
+Suddenly we saw a commotion on the castle walls. The Countess had fallen
+back, and men were pressing round her.
+
+She had fainted.
+
+
+
+
+XXVIII
+
+
+We went home rather troubled. Savello was walking alone, very angry,
+with a heavy frown between his eyes, refusing to speak.... Checco was
+silent and angry too, half blaming himself for what he had done, half
+glad, and Bartolomeo Moratini was by his side, talking to him. Matteo
+and I were behind with the children. Bartolomeo fell back and joined us.
+
+'I have been trying to persuade Checco to apologise to Savello, but he
+will not.'
+
+'Neither would I,' said Matteo.
+
+'If they quarrel, it will be the worse for the town.'
+
+'If I were Checco, I would say that the town might go to the devil, but
+I would not apologise to that damned priest.'
+
+When we reached the Palazzo Orsi a servant came out to meet us, and told
+Checco that a messenger was waiting with important news. Checco turned
+to Savello, and said gloomily,--
+
+'Will you come? It may need some consultation.'
+
+The protonotary did not answer, but walked sulkily into the house.
+After a few minutes, Checco came to us, and said,--
+
+'The Duke of Milan is marching against Forli with five thousand men.'
+
+No one spoke, but the expression on the protonotary's face grew darker.
+
+'It is fortunate we have preserved the children,' said Bartolomeo. 'They
+will be more useful to us alive than dead.'
+
+Savello looked at him; and then, as if trying to mend the breach, but
+rather against his will, said ungraciously,--
+
+'Perhaps you were right, Checco, in what you did. I did not see at the
+moment the political wisdom of your act.'
+
+He could not help the sneer. Checco flushed a little, but on a look from
+Bartolomeo answered,--
+
+'I am sorry if I was too quick of tongue. The excitement of the moment
+and my temper made me scarcely responsible.'
+
+Checco looked as if it were a very bitter pill he had been forced to
+swallow; but the words had a reasonable effect, and the clouds began to
+clear away. An earnest discussion was commenced on the future movements.
+The first thing was to send for help against the Duke Lodovico. Savello
+said he would apply to Rome. Checco counted on Lorenzo de' Medici, and
+messengers were forthwith despatched to both. Then it was decided to
+gather as much victuals as possible into the town, and fortify the
+walls, so that they might be prepared for a siege. As to the citadel, we
+knew it was impossible to take it by storm; but it would not be
+difficult to starve it into surrender, for on the news of the Count's
+death the gates had been shut with such precipitation that the garrison
+could not have food for more than two or three days.
+
+Then Checco sent away his wife and children; he tried to persuade his
+father to go too, but the Orso said he was too old and would rather die
+in his own town and palace than rush about the country in search of
+safety. In the troubled days of his youth he had been exiled many times,
+and now his only desire was to remain at home in his beloved Forli.
+
+The news of Lodovico's advance threw consternation into the town, and
+when cartloads of provisions were brought in, and the fortifications
+worked at day and night, the brave citizens began to quake and tremble.
+They were going to have a siege and would have to fight, and it was
+possible that if they did not sufficiently hide themselves behind the
+walls, they might be killed. As I walked through the streets, I noticed
+that the whole populace was distinctly paler.... It was as if a cold
+wind had blown between their shoulders, and bleached and pinched their
+faces. I smiled, and said to them, in myself,--
+
+'You have had the plunder of the Palace and the custom-houses, my
+friends, and you liked that very well; now you will have to pay for your
+pleasure.'
+
+I admired Checco's wisdom in giving them good reasons for being faithful
+to him. I imagined that, if the beneficent rule of the Countess
+returned, it would fare ill with those who had taken part in the
+looting....
+
+Checco had caused his family to leave the town as secretly as possible;
+the preparations had been made with the greatest care, and the departure
+effected under cover of night. But it leaked out, and then the care he
+had taken in concealing the affair made it more talked of. They asked
+why Checco had sent away his wife and children. Was he afraid of the
+siege? Did he intend to leave them himself? At the idea of a betrayal,
+anger mixed itself with their fear, and they cried out against him! And
+why did he want to do it so secretly? Why should he try to conceal it? A
+thousand answers were given, and all more or less discreditable to
+Checco. His wonderful popularity had taken long enough to reach the
+point when he had walked through the streets amidst showers of narcissi;
+but it looked as if less days would destroy it than years had built it
+up. Already he could walk out without being surrounded by the mob and
+carried about in triumph. The shouts of joy had ceased to be a burden to
+him; and no one cried 'Pater Patriae' as he passed. Checco pretended to
+notice no change, but in his heart it tormented him terribly. The change
+had begun on the day of the fiasco at the fortress; people blamed the
+leaders for letting the Countess out of their hands, and it was a
+perpetual terror to them to have the enemy in their very midst. It would
+have been bearable to stand an ordinary siege, but when they had their
+own citadel against them, what could they do?
+
+The townspeople knew that help was coming from Rome and Florence, and
+the general hope was that the friendly armies would arrive before the
+terrible Duke. Strange stories were circulated about Lodovico. People
+who had seen him at Milan described his sallow face with the large,
+hooked nose and the broad, heavy chin. Others told of his cruelty. It
+was notorious that he had murdered his nephew after keeping him a
+prisoner for years. They remembered how he had crushed the revolt of a
+subject town, hanging in the market-place the whole council, young and
+old, and afterwards hunting up everyone suspected of complicity, and
+ruthlessly putting them to death, so that a third of the population had
+perished. The Forlivesi shuddered, and looked anxiously along the roads
+by which the friendly armies were expected.
+
+Lorenzo de' Medici refused to help.
+
+There was almost a tumult in the town when the news was told. He said
+that the position of Florence made it impossible for him to send troops
+at the present moment, but later he would be able to do whatever we
+wished. It meant that he intended to wait and see how things turned out,
+without coming to open war with the Duke unless it was certain that
+victory would be on our side. Checco was furious, and the people were
+furious with Checco. He had depended entirely on the help from Florence,
+and when it failed the citizens murmured openly against him, saying that
+he had entered into this thing without preparation, without thought of
+the future. We begged Checco not to show himself in the town that day,
+but he insisted. The people looked at him as he passed, keeping perfect
+silence. As yet they neither praised nor blamed, but how long would it
+be before they refrained from cursing him they had blessed? Checco
+walked through with set face, very pale. We asked him to turn back, but
+he refused, slackening his pace to prolong the walk, as if it gave him a
+certain painful pleasure to drain the cup of bitterness to the dregs. In
+the piazza we saw two councillors talking together; they crossed over to
+the other side, pretending not to see us.
+
+Now our only hope was in Rome. The Pope had sent a messenger to say that
+he was preparing an army, and bidding us keep steadfast and firm.
+Savello posted the notice up in the market-place, and the crowd that
+read broke out into praises of the Pope and Savello. And as Checco's
+influence diminished Savello's increased; the protonotary began to take
+greater authority in the councils, and often he seemed to contradict
+Checco for the mere pleasure of overbearing and humiliating him. Checco
+became more taciturn and gloomy every day.
+
+But the high spirits of the townsmen sank when it was announced that
+Lodovico's army was within a day's march, and nothing had been heard
+from Rome. Messengers were sent urging the Pope to hasten his army, or
+at least to send a few troops to divert the enemy and encourage the
+people. The citizens mounted the ramparts and watched the two roads--the
+road that led from Milan and the road that led to Rome. The Duke was
+coming nearer and nearer; the peasants began to flock into the town,
+with their families, their cattle, and such property as they had been
+able to carry with them. They said the Duke was approaching with a
+mighty army, and that he had vowed to put all the inhabitants to the
+sword to revenge the death of his brother. The fear of the fugitives
+spread to the citizens, and there was a general panic. The gates were
+closed, and all grown men summoned to arms. Then they began to lament,
+asking what inexperienced townsmen could do against the trained army of
+the Duke, and the women wept and implored their husbands not to risk
+their precious lives; and above all rose the murmur against Checco.
+
+When would the army come from Rome? They asked the country folk, but
+they had heard of nothing; they looked and looked, but the road was
+empty.
+
+And suddenly over the hills was seen appearing the vanguard of the
+Duke's army. The troops wound down into the plain, and others appeared
+on the brow of the hills; slowly they marched down and others again
+appeared, and others and others, and still they appeared on the summit
+and wound down into the plain. They wondered, horror-stricken, how large
+the army was--five, ten, twenty thousand men! Would it never end? They
+were panic-stricken. At last the whole army descended and halted; there
+was a confusion of commands, a rushing hither and thither, a bustling, a
+troubling; it looked like a colony of ants furnishing their winter home.
+The camp was marked out, entrenchments were made, tents erected, and
+Forli was in a state of siege.
+
+
+
+
+XXIX
+
+
+The night fell and was passed without sleep or rest. The citizens were
+gathered together on the walls, talking anxiously, trying to pierce the
+darkness to see the rescuing army from Rome. Now and then someone
+thought he heard the tramp of cavalry or saw a gleam of armour, and then
+they stood still, holding their breaths, listening. But they heard
+nothing, saw nothing.... Others were assembled in the piazza, and with
+them a crowd of women and children; the churches were full of women
+praying and weeping. The night seemed endless. At last a greater
+chilliness of the air told them that the dawn was at hand; gradually the
+darkness seemed to thin away into a cold pallor, and above a bank of
+cloud in the east appeared a sickly light. More anxiously than ever our
+eyes turned towards Rome; the mist hid the country from us, but some of
+the watchers thought they saw a black mass, far away. They pointed it
+out to the others, and all watched eagerly; but the black mass grew
+neither larger nor clearer nor nearer; and as great yellow rays shot up
+above the clouds, and the sun rose slowly, we saw the road stretched out
+before us, and it was empty, empty, empty.
+
+It was almost a sob that burst from them, and moaningly they asked when
+help was coming. At that moment a man ascended the ramparts and told us
+that the protonotary had received a letter from the Pope, in which he
+informed him that relief was on the way. A cheer broke from us. At last!
+
+The siege began in earnest with a simultaneous attack on the four gates
+of the town, but they were well defended, and the enemy easily beaten
+off. But all at once we heard a great sound of firing, and shouts, and
+shrieks, and we saw flames burst from the roof of a house. In our
+thought of Lodovico we had forgotten the enemy in our midst, and a
+terrible panic broke out when it was found that the citadel had opened
+fire. The Castellan had turned his cannon on the houses surrounding the
+fortress, and the damage was terrible. The inhabitants hurried out for
+their lives, taking with them their chattels and fled to safer parts of
+the town. One house had been set on fire and for a while we feared that
+others would catch and a general conflagration be added to our woes.
+People said it was a visitation of God; they talked of Divine vengeance
+for the murder of the Count, and when Checco hurried to the scene of the
+fire they did not care to restrain themselves any longer, but broke out
+into yells and hisses. Afterwards, when the flames had been extinguished
+and Checco was passing through the piazza, they surrounded him, hooting,
+and would not let him pass.
+
+'Curs!' he hissed, looking at them furiously, with clenched fists. Then,
+as if unable to contain himself he drew his sword, shouting,--
+
+'Let me pass!'
+
+They shrank back and he went his way. But immediately he had gone the
+storm redoubled, and the place rang with their cries.
+
+'By God,' said Checco, 'how willingly I would turn the cannon on them
+and mow them down like grass!'
+
+They were the first words he had said of the change of feeling....
+
+It was the same with us, when we walked through the streets--Matteo and
+I and the Moratini--they hissed and groaned at us. And a week before
+they would have licked our boots and kissed the ground we trod on!
+
+The bombardment continued, outside and in, and it was reported through
+the town that Lodovico had vowed to sack the place and hang every third
+citizen. They knew he was the man to keep his word. The murmurs began to
+grow even louder, and voices were heard suggesting a surrender.... It
+had occurred to all of them, and when the most timid, driven to boldness
+by their fear, spoke the word, they looked at one another guiltily. They
+gathered together in little knots, talking in undertones, suspicious,
+stopping suddenly if they saw near anyone who was known to be in favour
+of the party of Liberty. They discussed how to make terms for
+themselves; some suggested giving up the town unconditionally, others
+proposed an agreement. At last they spoke of appeasing the Duke by
+handing over to him the seventeen conspirators who had planned the
+murder of Girolamo. The thought frightened them at first, but they soon
+became used to it. They said the Orsi had really had no thought of the
+common good, but it was for their private ends that they had killed the
+Count and brought this evil on the town. They railed against Checco for
+making them suffer for his own ambition; they had lauded him to the
+skies for refusing the sovereignty, but now they said he had only
+feigned, and that he intended to seize the city at the first good
+opportunity. And as to the others, they had helped for greed and petty
+malice. As they talked they grew more excited, and soon they said it
+would only be justice to hand over to the Duke the authors of their
+troubles.
+
+The day passed, and the second night, but there were no signs of the
+help from Rome.
+
+Another night passed by and still nothing came; the dawn, and the road
+was as empty as before.
+
+And the fourth night came and went and still there was nothing. Then a
+great discouragement fell upon the people; the army was on the way, but
+why did it not arrive? Suddenly here and there people were heard asking
+about the letter from the Pope. No one had seen the messenger. How had
+it come? And a horrible suspicion seized the people, so that they rushed
+to the Palazzo Orsi, asking for Savello. As soon as he appeared they
+broke out clamorously.
+
+'Show us the letter!'
+
+Savello refused! They insisted; they asked for the messenger who had
+brought it. Savello said he had been sent back. None of us had seen
+letter or messenger; the suspicion seized us too, and Checco asked,--
+
+'Is there a letter?'
+
+Savello looked at him for a moment, and answered,--
+
+'No!'
+
+'Oh God, why did you say there was?'
+
+'I felt sure the army was on the way. I wanted to give them confidence.'
+
+'You fool! Now they will believe nothing. You fool, you have muddled
+everything!'
+
+'It is you! You told me that the city was firm for the Pope.'
+
+'So it was till you came with your lies and your treacheries.'
+
+Savello closed his fist, and I thought he was going to strike Checco. A
+yell burst from the people.
+
+'The letter! the messenger!'
+
+Checco sprang to the window.
+
+'There is no letter! The protonotary has lied to you. No help is coming
+from Rome nor from Florence!'
+
+The people yelled again, and another cry arose,--
+
+'Surrender! Surrender!'
+
+'Surrender at your pleasure,' shouted Checco, 'but do not think that the
+Duke will forgive you for stripping the Count and insulting his body and
+sacking his Palace.'
+
+Savello was standing alone, struck dumb in his rage. Checco turned to
+him and smiled mockingly.
+
+
+
+
+XXX
+
+
+Next day there was a secret meeting of the council, of which neither
+Checco nor his friends knew anything. But it leaked out that they had
+been discussing terms which Lodovico had offered. And the Duke's
+proposal was that Riario's children should be surrendered to him and the
+town ruled by a commission, appointed partly by him, partly by the
+Forlivesi. About mid-day a servant came and told us that Niccolo
+Tornielli and the other members of the council were below, seeking
+admission. Checco went down, and as soon as he saw him Niccolo said,--
+
+'Checco, we have decided that it will be better for us to have charge of
+the children of Count Girolamo; and therefore we have come to summon you
+to give them into our hands.'
+
+Checco's answer was short and pointed.
+
+'If that is all you came for, Niccolo, you can go.' ...
+
+At this Antonio Sassi broke in,--
+
+'We shall not go without the children.'
+
+'I imagine that depends on me; and I intend to keep the children.'
+
+'Take care, Checco; remember that you are not our master.'
+
+'And who are you, Antonio, I should like to know?'
+
+'I am a member of the council of Forli, just as you are; no more, no
+less.'
+
+'No,' said Checco, furiously; 'I will tell you whom you are. You are the
+miserable cur who pandered to the tyrant and helped him to oppress the
+people which I liberated; and the people spat upon you! You are the
+miserable cur who fawned upon me when I had killed the tyrant, and in
+your slavish adulation you proposed to make me ruler in his stead; and I
+spat upon you! And now you are afraid again and you are trying to make
+peace with the Duke by betraying me, and it is from you that come the
+propositions to give me up to Lodovico. That is what you are! Look at
+yourself and be proud!'
+
+Antonio was about to give a heated answer, but Niccolo interrupted him.
+
+'Be quiet, Antonio! Now, Checco, let us have the children.'
+
+'I will not, I tell you! I saved their lives, and they are mine by
+right. They are mine because I killed the Count; because I took them
+prisoners; because I hold them; and because they are necessary for my
+safety.'
+
+'They are necessary for our safety, too, and we, the council of Forli,
+summon you, Checco d'Orsi, to surrender them.'
+
+'And I, Checco d'Orsi, refuse!'
+
+'Then we shall take them by force.'
+
+Niccolo and Antonio stepped forward. Checco whipped out his sword.
+
+'By God, I swear I will kill the first man who crosses this threshold!'
+
+Gradually the people had collected, till behind the councillors there
+was a formidable crowd. They watched with eagerness the dispute, hailing
+with joy the opportunity of humiliating their old hero. They had broken
+out in mocking laughter while Checco was railing at Antonio, now they
+shouted,--
+
+'The children! Surrender the children!'
+
+'I will not, I tell you!'
+
+They began to hoot and hiss, calling Checco foul names, accusing him of
+causing all their troubles, naming him tyrant and usurper. Checco stood
+looking at them, trembling with rage. Niccolo stepped forward once more.
+
+'Give them up, Checco, or it will be the worse for you.'
+
+'Advance one step further and I will kill you!'
+
+The people grew suddenly exasperated; a shower of stones fell on us, and
+one, striking Checco, caused a long streak of blood to flow down his
+forehead.
+
+'Give us the children! Give us the children!'
+
+'We will call the guard,' said Antonio.
+
+'The children!' shouted the mob. 'He will kill them. Take them from
+him.'
+
+There was a rush from behind; the councillors and their supporters were
+driven forward; they were met by our drawn swords; in another moment it
+would have been too late, and against two hundred we should have been
+helpless. Suddenly Bartolomeo appeared at the head of the great
+staircase with the boys.
+
+'Stop!' he cried. 'Here are the children. Stop!'
+
+Checco turned round to him.
+
+'I will not have them given up. Take them away!'
+
+'I have never asked you anything before, Checco,' said Bartolomeo; 'I
+have always done as you commanded; but this time I implore you to give
+way.'
+
+I joined my words to his.
+
+'You must give way. We shall all be massacred.'
+
+Checco stood for a moment undecided, then, without speaking, he turned
+into a room looking on the court. We took it for consent, and Bartolomeo
+handed the frightened children to the councillors. A shout of joy broke
+from the people and they marched off with their prize in triumph....
+
+I sought Checco and found him alone. As he heard the shouts of the
+people, a sob came from him in the misery of his humiliation.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+But Jacopo Ronchi and the two sons of Bartolomeo were sent out to
+discover what was going on. We could not think what had driven the
+council to their step; but we felt sure they must have good reasons for
+acting so courageously. We felt also that we had lost all power, all
+hope. The wheel had turned, and now we were at the bottom. After several
+hours, Alessandro Moratini came back and said,--
+
+'The council has been meeting again, and it has been receiving
+messengers; but that is all I know. Everyone looks upon me with an evil
+eye and becomes silent at my approach. I ask questions and they say
+they know nothing, have seen nothing, heard nothing.'
+
+'Brutes!' said Matteo.
+
+'And for these people we risked our lives and fortunes!' said
+Bartolomeo.
+
+Checco looked at him curiously; and, like him, I thought of our
+disinterestedness! Alessandro, having given his news, filled a glass
+with wine and sat down. We all kept silence. The time went on, and the
+afternoon began to close; the hours seemed interminable. At last Jacopo
+Ronchi came panting.
+
+'I have discovered everything,' he said. 'The council has resolved to
+surrender the town to the Duke, who promises, in return for the
+children, to forgive everything and allow them to rule themselves, with
+half the council appointed by him.'
+
+We sprang up with a cry.
+
+'I will not allow it,' said Checco.
+
+'If the conspirators make any disturbance, they are to be outlawed and a
+price set upon their heads.'
+
+'How far have the negotiations gone?' I asked.
+
+'The messengers have been sent to the Duke now.'
+
+'In that case there is no time to lose,' I said.
+
+'What do you mean?' said Checco.
+
+'We must escape.'
+
+'Escape!'
+
+'Or we shall be taken alive; and you know what to expect from Caterina
+and Lodovico. Do not think of their promises of pardon.'
+
+'I put no trust in their promises,' said Checco, bitterly.
+
+'Filippo is right,' said Bartolomeo. 'We must escape.'
+
+'And quickly!' I said.
+
+'I cannot throw up the game,' said Checco. 'And without me, what will
+happen to my supporters?'
+
+'They may find forgiveness in submission. But you can do no good here.
+If you are in safety, you may be of some assistance. Anyhow, you will
+have life.'
+
+Checco buried his face in his hands.
+
+'I cannot, I cannot.'
+
+The Moratini and I insisted. We adduced every argument. Finally he
+consented.
+
+'We must go together,' I said; 'we may have to fight our way through.'
+
+'Yes,' said Scipione. 'Let us meet at the gate by the river--at two.'
+
+'But go there separately. If the people find we are attempting to
+escape, they will set upon us.'
+
+'I wish they would,' said Matteo. 'It would give me such satisfaction to
+put my sword into half a score of their fat bellies!'
+
+'There is no moon.'
+
+'Very well; at two!'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The night was cloudy, and if there had been a moon, it would have been
+covered. A thin, cold rain was falling, and it was pitch dark. When I
+got to the river gate, four or five of them were already there. We felt
+too cold and miserable to speak; we sat on our horses, waiting. As new
+arrivals came, we peered into their faces, and then, on recognising
+them, bent back and sat on silently. We were all there but Checco. We
+waited for a time. At last Bartolomeo Moratini whispered to Matteo,--
+
+'Where did you leave Checco?'
+
+'In the house. He told me to go on, saying he would follow shortly. Two
+horses were saddled besides mine.'
+
+'Whom was the second for?'
+
+'I don't know!'
+
+We waited on. The rain fell thin and cold. It struck half-past two.
+Immediately afterwards, we heard the sound of hoofs, and through the
+mist saw a black form coming towards us.
+
+'Is it you, Checco?' we whispered, for the guard of the gate might have
+heard us. We were standing in a little plot of waste ground, ten yards
+from the walls.
+
+'I cannot go with you,' said Checco.
+
+'Why?' we cried.
+
+'Ssh!' said Checco. 'I intended to bring my father, but he will not
+come.'
+
+None of us had thought of old Orso Orsi.
+
+'He says he is too old, and will not leave his native town. I did all I
+could to persuade him, but he bade me go, and said they would not dare
+to touch him. I cannot leave him; therefore go, all of you, and I will
+remain.'
+
+'You must come, Checco; without you we are helpless.'
+
+'And what of your wife and children?'
+
+'Your presence will exasperate the tyrants. You can do no good, only
+harm.'
+
+'I cannot leave my father unprotected.'
+
+'I will stay, Checco,' I said. 'I am not well known as you are. I will
+take care of your father, and you can watch over your family and your
+interests in safety.'
+
+'No, you must go. It is too dangerous for you.'
+
+'Not half so dangerous as for you. I will do my best to preserve him.
+Let me stay.'
+
+'Yes,' said the others, 'let Filippo stay. He may escape detection, but
+you would have no chance.'
+
+The clock struck three.
+
+'Come, come; it is getting late. We must be thirty miles away before
+daybreak.'
+
+We had already arranged to go to Citta di Castello, which was my native
+place, and in case of accident I had given them letters, so that they
+might be housed and protected for the present.
+
+'We must have you, Checco, or we will all stay.'
+
+'You will take care of him?' said Checco to me at last.
+
+'I swear it!'
+
+'Very well! Good-bye, Filippo, and God bless you!'
+
+They advanced to the gate, and Checco summoned the captain.
+
+'Open the gate,' he said shortly.
+
+The captain looked at them undecisively. I stood behind in the shade, so
+that I could not be seen.
+
+'If you make a sound, we will kill you,' said Checco.
+
+They drew their swords. He hesitated, and Checco repeated,--
+
+'Open the gate!'
+
+Then he brought out the heavy keys; the locks were turned, the gate
+growled on its hinges, and one by one they filed out. Then the gate
+swung back behind them. I heard a short word of command, and the
+clatter of horses' hoofs. I put the spurs to my own, and galloped back
+into the town.
+
+In half an hour the bells were ringing furiously; and it was announced
+from house to house that the conspirators had fled and the town was
+free.
+
+
+
+
+XXXI
+
+
+In the morning the council met again and resolved that the town should
+return to its old obedience, and by surrendering without conditions
+hoped to receive pardon for its offences. Lodovico Moro entered in
+triumph, and going to the fortress was received by Caterina, who came
+forth from the citadel and with him proceeded to the cathedral to hear
+mass. The good Forlivesi were getting used to ovations; as the Countess
+passed through the streets they received her with acclamation, thronging
+the road on each side, blessing her, and her mother, and all her
+ancestors. She went her way as indifferent as when she had crossed the
+same streets a few days back amid the execrations of her faithful
+subjects. The keen observers noticed the firm closing of her mouth,
+which boded no particular good to the Forlivesi, and consequently
+redoubled their shouts of joy.
+
+The protonotary Savello had mysteriously disappeared when the news of
+Checco's flight had been brought him; but Caterina was soon informed
+that he had taken refuge in a Dominican monastery. A light smile broke
+over her lips as she remarked,--
+
+'One would rather have expected him to take refuge in a convent.'
+
+Then she sent people to him to assure him of her good will and beg him
+to join her. The good man turned pale at the invitation, but he dared
+not refuse it. So, comforting himself with the thought that she dared
+not harm the legate of the Pope, he clothed himself in all his courage
+and his most gorgeous robes, and proceeded to the cathedral.
+
+When she saw him she lifted up two fingers and said solemnly,--
+
+'The peace of God be upon you!'
+
+Then, before he could recover himself, she went on,--
+
+'Sir, it has always been my hope that I should some day meet the
+gentleman whose fame has reached me as the most talented, most beautiful
+and most virtuous of his day.'
+
+'Madam--' he interrupted.
+
+'Sir, I beseech you bravely to bear your evil fortunes. Do you not know
+that fortune is uncertain? If the city has been taken from you, it is
+the will of God, and as a Christian you must with resignation submit
+yourself to His decrees.'
+
+It was the beginning of her revenge, and one could see how sweet it was.
+The courtiers were sniggering at Caterina's speech, and Savello was the
+picture of discomfort.
+
+'Messer Savello,' she proceeded, 'on a previous meeting you made me some
+very excellent admonitions on the will of God; now, notwithstanding
+your order, I am going to be so bold as to give you some equally
+excellent lessons on the same subject. If you will take your place by my
+side, you will have every opportunity of examining the ways of the
+Almighty, which, as you may remember you remarked, are inscrutable.'
+
+Savello bowed and advanced to the place pointed out to him.
+
+
+
+
+XXXII
+
+
+The first thing I had done on returning to the Palazzo Orsi was to strip
+myself of my purple and fine linen, shave my beard and moustache, cut my
+hair short, put on the clothes of a serving-man, and look at myself in a
+mirror. If I had met in the street the image I saw I should have passed
+on without recognising it. Still I was not dissatisfied with myself, and
+I smiled as I thought that it would not be too extraordinary if a lady's
+wench lost her heart to such a serving-man.
+
+I went to the old Orso's apartments, and found everything quiet; I lay
+down on a couch outside the doors and tried to sleep; but my thoughts
+troubled me. My mind was with the sad horsemen galloping through the
+night, and I wondered what the morrow had in store for them and me. I
+knew a price would be set upon my head, and I had to remain here in the
+midst of my enemies as the only protection of an old man of eighty-five.
+
+In a little while I heard the bells which told the town that the
+conspirators had fled, and at last I fell into a restless sleep. At six
+I was awakened by a hurry and bustle in the house.... The servants told
+one another that Checco had gone, and the Countess would come out of the
+fortress in a little while; and then God only knew what would happen.
+They cowered about, whispering, taking no notice of the new serving-man
+who had appeared in the night. They said that the Palace would be given
+over to the vengeance of the people, that the servants would suffer
+instead of the master; and soon one of them gave the signal; he said he
+would not stay, and since his wages had not been paid he would take them
+with him. He filled his pockets with such valuables as he could find,
+and going down a back staircase slid out of a little side door and was
+lost in the labyrinth of streets. The others were quick to follow his
+example, and the Palace was subjected to a looting in miniature; the old
+steward stood by, wringing his hands, but they paid no attention to him,
+thinking only of their safety and their pockets. Before the sun had had
+time to clear away the early mists, they had all fled; and besides the
+old man, the house contained only the white-haired steward, a boy of
+twenty, his nephew, and myself; and Checco had been such a sweet and
+gentle master!
+
+We went in to the old Orso. He was seated in a large arm-chair by the
+fireside, huddled up in a heavy dressing-gown. He had sunk his head down
+in his collar to keep warm, so that one could only see the dead eyes,
+the nose, and the sunken, wrinkled cheeks; a velvet cap covered his hair
+and forehead. He was holding his long, shrivelled hands to the fire, and
+the flames almost shone through them; they trembled incessantly. He
+looked up at the sound of our entrance.
+
+'Ah, Pietro!' he said to the steward. Then, after a pause, 'Where is
+Fabrizio?'
+
+Fabrizio was the servant in whose particular charge the Orso had been
+put, and the old man had become so fond of him that he would take food
+only from his hand, and insisted on having him near at every moment of
+the day. He had been among the first to fill his pockets and decamp.
+
+'Why does not Fabrizio come?' he asked querulously. 'Tell him I want
+him. I will not be neglected in this way.'
+
+Pietro did not know what to answer. He looked about him in
+embarrassment.
+
+'Why does not Fabrizio come? Now that Checco is master here, they
+neglect me. It is scandalous. I shall talk to Checco about it. Where is
+Fabrizio? Tell him to come immediately on pain of my displeasure.'
+
+His voice was so thin and weak and trembling it was like that of a
+little child ill with some fever. I saw that Pietro had nothing to say,
+and Orso was beginning to moan feebly.
+
+'Fabrizio has been sent away,' I said, 'and I have been put in his
+place.'
+
+Pietro and his nephew looked at me. They noticed for the first time that
+my face was new, and they glanced at one another with upraised brows.
+
+'Fabrizio sent away! Who sent him away? I won't have him sent away.'
+
+'Checco sent him away.'
+
+'Checco had no right to send him away. I am master here. They treat me
+as if I were a child. It is shameful! Where is Fabrizio? I will not have
+it, I tell you. It is shameful! I shall speak to Checco about it. Where
+is Checco?'
+
+None of us answered.
+
+'Why don't you answer when I speak to you? Where is Checco?'
+
+He raised himself in his chair and bent forward to look at us, then he
+fell back.
+
+'Ah, I remember now,' he murmured. 'Checco has gone. He wanted me to go
+too. But I am too old, too old, too old. I told Checco what it would be.
+I know the Forlivesi; I have known them for eighty years. They are more
+fickle and cowardly than any other people in this cesspool which they
+call God's earth. I have been an exile fourteen times. Fourteen times I
+have fled from the city, and fourteen times I have returned. Ah yes, I
+have lived the life in my time, but I am tired now. I don't want to go
+out again; and besides, I am so old. I might die before I returned, and
+I want to die in my own house.'
+
+He looked at the fire, murmuring his confidences to the smouldering
+ashes. Then he seemed to repeat his talk with Checco.
+
+'No, Checco, I will not come. Go alone. They will not touch me. I am
+Orso Orsi. They will not touch me; they dare not. Go alone, and give my
+love to Clarice.'
+
+Clarice was Checco's wife. He kept silence for a while, then he broke
+out again,--
+
+'I want Fabrizio.'
+
+'Will I not do instead?' I asked.
+
+'Who are you?'
+
+I repeated patiently,--
+
+'I am the servant placed here to serve you instead of Fabrizio. My name
+is Fabio.'
+
+'Your name is Fabio?' he asked, looking at me.
+
+'Yes.'
+
+'No, it is not! Why do you tell me your name is Fabio? I know your face.
+You are not a serving-man.'
+
+'You are mistaken,' I said.
+
+'No, no. You are not Fabio. I know your face. Who are you?'
+
+'I am Fabio.'
+
+'Who are you?' he asked again querulously. 'I cannot remember whom you
+are. Why don't you tell me? Can't you see that I am an old man? Why
+don't you tell me?'
+
+His voice broke into the moan, and I thought he would cry. He had only
+seen me twice, but among his few visitors the faces of those he saw
+remained with him, and he recognised me partly.
+
+'I am Filippo Brandolini,' I said. 'I have remained here to look after
+you and see that no harm happens. Checco wished to stay himself, but we
+insisted on his going.'
+
+'Oh, you are a gentleman,' he answered. 'I am glad of that.'
+
+Then, as if the talk had tired him, he sank deeper down in his chair and
+fell into a dose.
+
+I sent Andrea, the steward's nephew, to see what was happening in the
+town, and Pietro and I sat in the large window talking in undertones.
+Suddenly Pietro stopped and said,--
+
+'What is that?'
+
+We both listened. A confused roar in the distance; it resembled the
+raging of the sea very far away. I opened the window and looked out. The
+roar became louder, louder, and at last we discovered that it was the
+sound of many voices.
+
+'What is it?' asked Pietro again.
+
+There was a scrambling up the stairs, the noise of running feet. The
+door was burst violently open, and Andrea rushed in.
+
+'Save yourselves!' he cried. 'Save yourselves!'
+
+'What is it?'
+
+'They are coming to sack the Palace. The Countess has given them leave,
+and the whole populace is up.'
+
+The roar increased, and we could distinctly hear the shouting.
+
+'Be quick!' cried Andrea. 'For God's sake be quick! They will be here in
+a moment!'
+
+I looked to the door, and Pietro, seeing my thoughts, said,--
+
+'Not that way! Here is another door which leads along a passage into a
+side street.'
+
+He lifted the tapestry and showed a tiny door, which he opened. I ran to
+old Orso and shook him.
+
+'Wake up!' I said; 'wake up and come with me!'
+
+'What is it?' he asked.
+
+'Never mind; come with me!'
+
+I took his arm and tried to lift him out of his chair, but he caught
+hold of the handles and would not stir.
+
+'I will not move,' he said. 'What is it?'
+
+'The mob is coming to sack the Palace, and if they find you here they
+will kill you.'
+
+'I will not move. I am Orso Orsi. They dare not touch me.'
+
+'Be quick! be quick!' screamed Andrea from the window. 'The first of
+them have appeared in the street. In a moment they will be here.'
+
+'Quick! quick!' cried Pietro.
+
+Now the roar had got so loud that it buzzed in one's ears, and every
+instant it grew louder.
+
+'Be quick! be quick!'
+
+'You must come,' I said, and Pietro joined his prayers to my commands,
+but nothing would move the old man.
+
+'I tell you I will not fly. I am the head of my house. I am Orso Orsi. I
+will not fly like a dog before the rabble.'
+
+'For your son's sake--for our sake,' I implored. 'We shall be killed
+with you.'
+
+'You may go. The door is open for you. I will stay alone.'
+
+He seemed to have regained his old spirit. It was as if a last flame
+were flickering up.
+
+'We will not leave you,' I said. 'I have been put by Checco to protect
+you, and if you are killed I must be killed too. Our only chance is to
+fly.'
+
+'Quick! quick!' cried Andrea. 'They are nearly here!'
+
+'Oh, master, master,' cried Pietro, 'accept the means he offers you!'
+
+'Be quick! be quick!'
+
+'Would you have me slink down a back passage, like a thief, in my own
+house? Never!'
+
+'They have reached the doors,' cried Andrea.
+
+The noise was deafening below. The gates had been closed, and we heard a
+thunder of blows; stones were thrown, sticks beaten against the iron;
+then they seemed to take some great instrument and pound against the
+locks. Again and again the blows were repeated, but at last there was a
+crash. A mighty shout broke from the people, and we heard a rush. I
+sprang to the door of the Orso's room and locked and bolted it, then,
+calling the others to help me, I dragged a heavy chest against it. We
+placed another chest on the first, and dragged the bedstead up, pushing
+it against the chests.
+
+We were only just in time, for, like water rushing at once through every
+crevice, the mob surged up and filled every corner of the house. They
+came to our door and pushed it. To their surprise it did not open.
+Outside someone cried,--
+
+'It's locked!'
+
+The hindrance excited them, and the crowd gathered greater outside.
+
+'Break it open,' they cried.
+
+Immediately heavy blows thundered down on the lock and handle.
+
+'For God's sake, come,' I said, turning to Orso. He did not answer.
+There was no time to lose, and I could not conquer his obstinacy.
+
+'Then I shall force you,' I cried, catching hold of both his arms and
+dragging him from the chair. He held on as tight as he could, but his
+strength was nothing against mine. I caught hold of him, and was lifting
+him in my arms when the door was burst open. The rush of people threw
+down the barricade, and the crowd surged into the room. It was too late.
+I made a rush for the little door with Orso, but I could not get to it.
+They crowded round me with a shout.
+
+'Take him,' I cried to Pietro, 'while I defend you.'
+
+I drew my sword, but immediately a bludgeon fell on it and it smashed in
+two. I gave a shout and rushed at my assailants, but it was hopeless. I
+felt a crushing blow on my head. I sank down insensible.
+
+
+
+
+XXXIII
+
+
+When I opened my eyes I found myself on a bed in a darkened room. By my
+side was sitting a woman. I looked at her, and wondered who she was.
+
+'Who the devil are you?' I asked, somewhat impolitely.
+
+At the words someone else stepped forward and bent over me. I recognised
+Andrea; then I recollected what had occurred.
+
+'Where is the Orso?' I asked. 'Is he safe?'
+
+'Do you feel better?' he said.
+
+'I am all right. Where is the Orso?' I tried to sit up, but my head
+swam. I felt horribly sick and sank back.
+
+'What is the matter?' I moaned.
+
+'Only a broken head,' said Andrea, with a little smile. 'If you had been
+a real serving-man, instead of a fine gentleman masquerading, you
+wouldn't think twice about it.'
+
+'Have pity on my infirmities, dear boy,' I murmured faintly. 'I don't
+pretend that my head is as wooden as yours.'
+
+Then he explained.
+
+'When you were beaten down they made a rush for the old master and bore
+him off.'
+
+'Oh!' I cried. 'I promised Checco to look after him. What will he
+think!'
+
+'It was not your fault.' At the same time he renewed the bandages round
+my head and put cooling lotions on.
+
+'Good boy!' I said, as I enjoyed the cold water on my throbbing head.
+
+'When I saw the blows come down on your head, and you fall like a stone,
+I thought you were killed. With you soft-headed people one never knows!'
+
+'It appears to amuse you,' I said. 'But what happened afterwards?'
+
+'In the excitement of their capture they paid no attention to us, and my
+uncle and I dragged you through the little door, and eventually carried
+you here. You are a weight!'
+
+'And where am I?'
+
+'In my mother's house, where you are requested to stay as long as it
+suits your convenience.'
+
+'And Orso?'
+
+'My uncle went out to see, and reports that they have put him in prison.
+As yet no harm has been done him. The palace has been sacked; nothing
+but the bare walls remain.'
+
+At that moment Pietro came in panting.
+
+'Two of the conspirators have been taken.'
+
+'My God, not Checco or Matteo!'
+
+'No; Pietro Albanese and Marco Scorsacana.'
+
+'How did the others escape?'
+
+'I don't know. All I heard was that the horse of Marco broke down, and
+Pietro refused to leave him. At a village close to the frontier Pietro
+was recognised, and they were both arrested and sent here for the sake
+of the reward.'
+
+'My God!'
+
+'They were brought into the town on asses, with their hands tied behind
+their backs, and the mob yelled with derision, and threw stones and
+refuse at them.'
+
+'And now?'
+
+'They have been taken to the prison, and--'
+
+'Well?'
+
+'The execution is to take place to-morrow.'
+
+I groaned. Pietro Albanese and Marco had been like Damon and Pythias. I
+shuddered as I thought of the fate in store for them. They had been
+conspicuous in their hatred of the Count, and it was they who had helped
+to throw the body into the piazza. I knew there would be no forgiveness
+in Caterina's heart, and all the night I wondered what vengeance she was
+meditating.
+
+
+
+
+XXXIV
+
+
+Next day I insisted on getting up. Andrea helped me to dress, and we
+went out together.
+
+'No one would mistake you for a gentleman to-day,' he laughed.
+
+My clothes were shabby enough in the first instance, and in the scuffle
+of the previous day they had received usage which did not improve them;
+moreover, I had a two days' beard, and my head muffled up in bandages,
+so that I could well imagine that my appearance was not attractive. But
+I was too sore at heart to smile at his remark, or make retort. I could
+not help thinking of the terrible scene which awaited us.
+
+We found the piazza crowded. Opposite the Riario Palace was erected a
+stage on which were seats, but these were empty. The sky was blue, the
+sun shone merrily on the people, and the air was soft and warm. Nature
+was full of peace and goodwill; but in men's hearts was lust of
+blood.... A flourish of trumpets announced the approach of Caterina and
+her suite. Amid ringing cheers she entered the square, accompanied by
+her half-brother, the Duke of Milan, and by the Protonotary Savello.
+They took their seats on the platform, the Duke on her right, Savello on
+her left. She turned to the priest and talked most amiably to him; he
+smiled and bowed, but his agitation was shown by the twitching of his
+hands fidgeting with the lappet of his cloak.
+
+A beating of drums was heard, followed by a sudden silence. A guard of
+soldiers entered the piazza, tramping steadily with heavy footsteps;
+then two steps behind them a single figure, without a doublet, hatless,
+his shirt all torn, his hands tied behind his back. It was Marco
+Scorsacana. The foul mob broke out into a yell at the sight of him; he
+walked slowly, but with his head proudly erect, paying no heed to the
+hooting and hissing which rang in his ears. On each side walked a
+barefooted monk, bearing a crucifix.... He was followed by another troop
+of soldiers, and after them came another bare-headed figure, his hands
+also tied behind his back; but he kept his head bent over his chest and
+his eyes fixed on the ground, shrinking at the yells of derision. Poor
+Pietro! He, too, was accompanied by the solemn monks; the procession was
+finished by the drummers, beating their drums incessantly, maddeningly.
+
+They advanced to the platform, and there, the soldiers falling back, the
+prisoners were left standing before their judges.
+
+'Marco Scorsacana and Pietro Albanese,' said the Countess, in a clear,
+calm voice, 'you have been found guilty of murder and treason; and as it
+was you who cast the body of my dear husband out of the Palace window
+on to the hard stones of the piazza, so you are sentenced to be hanged
+from that same window, and your bodies cast down on to the hard stones
+of the piazza.'
+
+A murmur of approval came from the populace. Pietro winced, but Marco
+turned to him and said something which I could not hear; but I saw the
+glance of deep affection, and the answering smile of Pietro as he seemed
+to take courage.
+
+The Countess turned to Savello.
+
+'Do you not agree that the judgment is just?'
+
+'Most just!' he whispered.
+
+'The protonotary says, "Most just!"' she called aloud, so that all
+should hear. The man winced.
+
+Marco looked at him scornfully, and said, 'I would ten times rather be
+in my place than in yours.'
+
+The Countess smiled at the priest and said, 'You see, I carry out the
+will of God in doing unto others as they themselves have done.'
+
+She made a sign, and the two men were led to the Palace and up the
+stairs. The window of the Hall of Nymphs was thrown open, and a beam
+thrust out, to which was attached a rope. Pietro appeared at the window,
+with one end of the rope round his neck.
+
+'Good-bye, sweet friend,' he said to Marco.
+
+'Good-bye, Pietrino,' and Marco kissed him.
+
+Then two men hurled him from the sill, and he swung in mid-air; a
+horrible movement passed through his body, and it swayed from side to
+side. There was a pause; a man stretched out with a sword and cut the
+rope. From the people came a huge shout, and they caught the body as it
+fell and tore it to pieces. In a few minutes Marco appeared at the
+window, but he boldly sprang out into space, needing no help. In a
+little while he was a hanging corpse, and in a little while more the mob
+had fallen on him like wolves. I hid my face in my hands. It was awful!
+Oh, God! Oh, God!
+
+Then another beating of drums broke through the tumult. I looked up,
+wondering what was coming. A troop of soldiers entered the square, and
+after them an ass led by a fool with bells and bauble; on the ass was a
+miserable old man, Orso Orsi.
+
+'Oh,' I groaned. 'What are they going to do to him?'
+
+A shout of laughter burst from the mob, and the clown flourished his
+bauble and bowed acknowledgments from side to side. A halt was made
+before the stage, and Caterina spoke again.
+
+'Orso Orsi. You have been sentenced to see your palace destroyed before
+your eyes--stone by stone.'
+
+The people shouted, and a rush was made for the Orsi Palace. The old man
+said nothing and showed no sign of hearing or feeling. I hoped that all
+sensation had left him. The procession moved on until it came to the old
+house, which stood already like a wreck, for the pillagers had left
+nothing which could be moved. Then the work began, and stone by stone
+the mighty building was torn to pieces. Orso looked on indifferently at
+the terrible work, for no greater humiliation can be offered to the
+Italian nobleman than this. The Orso Palace had stood three hundred
+years, and the most famous architects, craftsmen and artists had worked
+on it. And now it was gone.
+
+The old man was brought back into the piazza, and once more the cruel
+woman spoke.
+
+'You have received punishment for yourself, Orso, and now you are to
+receive punishment for your son. Make room!'
+
+And the soldiers, repeating her words, cried,--
+
+'Make room!'
+
+The people were pushed and hustled back till they were crammed against
+the house walls, leaving in the centre an enormous empty space. Then a
+flourish of trumpets, and the people made an opening at the end of the
+square to allow the passage of a horse and man, the horse--a huge black
+stallion--prancing and plunging, and on each side a man was holding the
+bridle. On his back sat a big man, dressed all in flaming red, and a red
+hood covered his head and face, leaving two apertures for the eyes. A
+horrified whisper ran round the square.
+
+'The hangman!'
+
+In the centre of the piazza he stopped. Caterina addressed the Orso.
+
+'Have you anything to say, Orso Orsi?'
+
+At last he seemed to hear, he looked at her and then, with all the
+strength he had, hurled the word at her,--
+
+'Bastard!'
+
+She flushed angrily and made a sign. Two men seized the old man and
+dragged him off the mule; they caught hold of his legs, throwing him to
+the ground, and with a thick rope tied his ankles together.
+
+At this I understood. I was seized with sudden horror, and I cried out.
+Obeying a sudden impulse, I started forward; I don't know what I was
+going to do; I felt I must protect him or die with him. I started
+forward, but Andrea threw his arms round me and held me back.
+
+'Let me go,' I said, struggling.
+
+'Don't be a fool!' he whispered. 'What can you do against all these?'
+
+It was no use; I gave way. Oh, God! that I should stand by and see this
+awful thing and be utterly powerless. I wondered the people could suffer
+this last atrocity; I thought they must scream and rush to save the
+wretched man. But they watched--they watched eagerly....
+
+By his feet they dragged him to the horse, and the end of the rope round
+his ankles they tied to the horse's tail and about the rider's waist.
+
+'Ready?' cried the hangman.
+
+'Yes!' answered the soldiers.
+
+They all sprang back; the hangman dug the spurs into his horse. The
+people gave a huge shout, and the fiery beast went careering round the
+square at full tilt. The awful burden dragging behind terrified him, and
+with head strained forward and starting eyes he galloped madly. The mob
+urged him on with cries, and his rider dug the spurs in deeply; the
+pavement was scattered with blood.
+
+God knows how long the wretched man lived. I hope he died at once. At
+last the brute's furious career was stopped, the ropes were cut, the
+corpse fell back, and, the people again making passage, horse and rider
+disappeared. In the middle of the piazza, in a pool of blood, lay a
+shapeless mass. It was ordered that it should be left there till
+nightfall as an example to evildoers.
+
+Andrea wanted to come away, but I insisted on staying to see what
+happened more. But it was the end, for Caterina turned to Savello and
+said,--
+
+'I do not forget that all power comes from God, Monsignor, and I wish
+solemnly to render thanks to the Divine Majesty, who has saved me, my
+children and the State. Therefore, I shall order a grand procession
+which shall march round the town and afterwards hear mass at the
+cathedral.'
+
+'It shows, madam,' replied Savello, 'that you are a pious and truly
+Christian woman.'
+
+
+
+
+XXXV
+
+
+When it was night and the piazza deserted, Andrea and I and the old
+steward went out and made our way to the place where the horrible corpse
+was lying. We wrapped it in a long black cloth and took it up silently,
+bearing it to the church where for generations the Orsi had been buried.
+A dark-robed monk met us in the nave and led the way to a door, which he
+opened; then, as if frightened, left us. We found ourselves in the
+cloisters. We laid the body down under an arch and advanced into the
+centre, where was a plot of green scattered over with little crosses. We
+took spades and began to dig; a thin rain drizzled down and the ground
+was stiff and clayey. It was hard work and I sweated; I took off my coat
+and allowed the rain to fall on me unprotected; I was soon wet to the
+skin. Silently Andrea and I turned up the soil, while Pietro, beneath
+the cloisters, watched by the body and prayed. We were knee deep now,
+and still we threw up heavy spadefuls of clay. At last I said,--
+
+'It is enough.'
+
+We climbed out and went to the body. We took it up and bore it to the
+grave, and reverently we laid it in. Pietro placed a crucifix on the old
+master's breast, and then we began to pile in the earth.
+
+And so without priests, without mourning, in the dead of night, and by
+the drizzling rain, was buried Orso Orsi, the great head of the family.
+In his time he had been excellent in war and in all the arts of peace.
+He had been noted for his skill in commerce; in politics he had been the
+first of his city, and, besides, he had been a great and generous patron
+of the arts. But he lived too long, and died thus miserably.
+
+Next day I set about thinking what I should do. I could be of no more
+use to anyone in Forli; indeed, I had never been of use, for I had only
+stood by and watched while those I loved and honoured were being put to
+cruel deaths. And now I must see that my presence did not harm my kind
+hosts. Caterina had thrown into prison some fifty of those who had taken
+part in the rebellion, notwithstanding her solemn promise of amnesty,
+and I knew well enough that if I were discovered Pietro and Andrea would
+suffer as severe a punishment as myself. They gave no sign that my
+presence was a menace to them, but in the woman's eyes, Andrea's mother,
+I saw an anxious look, and at any unexpected sound she would start and
+look fearfully at me. I made up my mind to go immediately. When I told
+Andrea, he insisted on coming with me, and although I painted the danger
+in lively colours he would not be dissuaded. The next day was
+market-day, and we resolved to slip out in a cart as soon as the gates
+were opened. We would be taken for tradesmen, and no one would pay
+attention to us.
+
+I was anxious to see what was happening in the town and what people were
+talking of; but I thought it prudent not to venture out, for my disguise
+might be seen through, and if I were discovered I knew well what to
+expect. So I sat at home twiddling my thumbs and chattering with Andrea.
+At last, getting tired of doing nothing, and seeing the good woman about
+to scrub out her courtyard, I volunteered to do it for her. I got a
+broom and a pail of water and began sweeping away vigorously, while
+Andrea stood in the doorway scoffing. For a little while I forgot the
+terrible scene in the piazza.
+
+There was a knock at the door. We stopped and listened; the knock was
+repeated, and as no answer was given, the latch was raised and the door
+opened. A servant-maid walked in and carefully closed it behind her. I
+recognised her at once; it was Giulia's maid. I shrank back, and Andrea
+stood in front of me. His mother went forward.
+
+'And pray, madam, what can I do for you?'
+
+The maid did not answer, but stepped past her.
+
+'There is a serving-man here for whom I have a message.'
+
+She came straight towards me, and handed me a piece of paper; then,
+without another word, slid back to the door and slipped out.
+
+The note contained four words, 'Come to me to-night,' and the
+handwriting was Giulia's. A strange feeling came over me as I looked at
+it, and my hand trembled a little.... Then I began pondering. Why did
+she want me? I could not think, and it occurred to me that perhaps she
+wished to give me up to the Countess. I knew she hated me, but I could
+not think her as vile as that; after all, she was her father's daughter,
+and Bartolomeo was a gentleman. Andrea looked at me questioningly.
+
+'It is an invitation from my greatest enemy to put myself in her hands.'
+
+'But you will not?'
+
+'Yes,' I said, 'I will.'
+
+'Why?'
+
+'Because it is a woman.'
+
+'But do you think she would betray you?'
+
+'She might.'
+
+'And you are going to take the risk?'
+
+'I think I should be glad to prove her so utterly worthless.'
+
+Andrea looked at me open-mouthed; he could not understand. An idea
+struck him.
+
+'Are you in love with her?'
+
+'No; I was.'
+
+'And now?'
+
+'Now, I do not even hate her.'
+
+
+
+
+XXXVI
+
+
+The night came, and when everyone had gone to bed and the town was
+quiet, I said to Andrea, 'Wait for me here, and if I do not come back in
+two hours you will know--'
+
+He interrupted me.
+
+'I am coming with you.'
+
+'Nonsense!' I said. 'I don't know what danger there may be, and there is
+no object in your exposing yourself to it.'
+
+'Where you go I will go too.'
+
+I argued with him, but he was an obstinate youth.
+
+We walked along the dark streets, running like thieves round corners
+when we heard the heavy footsteps of the watch. The Palazzo Aste was all
+dark; we waited outside a little while, but no one came, and I dared not
+knock. Then I remembered the side door. I still had the key, and I took
+it from my pocket.
+
+'Wait outside,' I said to Andrea.
+
+'No, I am coming with you.'
+
+'Perhaps there is an ambush.'
+
+'Two are more likely to escape than one.'
+
+I put the key in the lock, and as I did so my heart beat and my hand
+trembled, but not with fear. The key turned, and I pushed the door open.
+We entered and walked up the stairs. Sensations which I had forgotten
+crowded upon me, and my heart turned sick.... We came to an ante-room
+dimly lit. I signed Andrea to wait, and myself passed into the room I
+knew too well. It was that in which I had last seen Giulia--the Giulia I
+had loved--and nothing was altered in it. The same couch stood in the
+centre, and on it lay Giulia, sleeping. She started up.
+
+'Filippo!'
+
+'At your service, madam.'
+
+'Lucia recognised you in the street yesterday, and she followed you to
+the house in which you are staying.'
+
+'Yes.'
+
+'My father sent me a message that you were still here, and if I wanted
+help would give it me.'
+
+'I will do whatever I can for you.'
+
+What a fool I was to come. My head was in a whirl, my heart was
+bursting. My God! she was beautiful! I looked at her, and suddenly I
+knew that all the dreary indifference I had built up had melted away at
+the first look into her eyes. And I was terrified.... My love was not
+dead; it was alive, alive! Oh, how I adored that woman! I burned to take
+her in my arms and cover her soft mouth with kisses.
+
+Oh, why had I come? I was mad. I cursed my weakness.... And, when I saw
+her standing there, cold and indifferent as ever, I felt so furious a
+rage within me that I could have killed her. And I felt sick with
+love....
+
+'Messer Filippo,' she said, 'will you help me now? I have been warned by
+one of the Countess's women that the guard have orders to arrest me
+to-morrow; and I know what the daughter of Bartolomeo Moratini may
+expect. I must fly to-night--at once.'
+
+'I will help you,' I answered.
+
+'What shall I do?'
+
+'I can disguise you as a common woman. The mother of my friend Andrea
+will lend you clothes; and Andrea and I will accompany you. Or, if you
+prefer, after we have safely passed the gates, he shall accompany you
+alone wherever you wish to go.'
+
+'Why will you not come?'
+
+'I feared my presence would make the journey more tedious to you.'
+
+'And to you?'
+
+'To me it would be a matter of complete indifference.'
+
+She looked at me a moment, then she cried,--
+
+'No, I will not come!'
+
+'Why not?'
+
+'Because you hate me.'
+
+I shrugged my shoulders.
+
+'I should have thought my sentiments were of no consequence.'
+
+'I will not be helped by you. You hate me too much. I will stay in
+Forli.'
+
+'You are your own mistress.... Why do you mind?'
+
+'Why do I mind? Shall I tell you?' She came close up to me.
+'Because--because I love you.'
+
+My head swam, and I felt myself stagger.... I did not know what was
+happening.
+
+'Filippo!'
+
+'Giulia!'
+
+I opened my arms, and she fell into them, and I held her close to my
+heart, and I covered her with kisses.... I covered her mouth and eyes
+and neck with kisses.
+
+'Giulia! Giulia!'
+
+But I wrenched myself away, and taking hold of her shoulders, said
+almost savagely.
+
+'But this time I must have you altogether. Swear that you will--'
+
+She lifted her sweet face and smiled, and nestling close up to me,
+whispered,--
+
+'Will you marry me?'
+
+I kissed her.
+
+'I loved you always,' I said. 'I tried to hate you, but I could not.'
+
+'Do you remember that night at the Palace? You said you had never cared
+for me.'
+
+'Ah, yes! but you did not believe me.'
+
+'I felt it was not true, but I did not know; and it pained me. And then
+Claudia--'
+
+'I was so angry with you, I would have done anything to revenge myself;
+but still I loved you.'
+
+'But, Claudia--you loved her too?'
+
+'No,' I protested, 'I hated her and despised her; but I tried to forget
+you; and I wanted you to feel certain that I no longer cared for you.'
+
+'I hate her.'
+
+'Forgive me,' I said.
+
+'I forgive you everything,' she answered.
+
+I kissed her passionately; and I did not remember that I too had
+something to forgive.
+
+The time flew on, and when a ray of light pierced through the windows I
+started up in surprise.
+
+'We must make haste,' I said. I went into the ante-room and found Andrea
+fast asleep. I shook him.
+
+'At what time do the gates open?' I asked.
+
+He rubbed his eyes, and, on a repetition of the question, answered,
+'Five!'
+
+It was half-past four; we had no time to lose. I thought for a minute.
+Andrea would have to go to his mother's and find the needful clothes,
+then come back; it would all take time, and time meant life and death.
+Then, the sight of a young and beautiful woman might arouse the guard's
+attention, and Giulia might be recognised.
+
+An idea struck me.
+
+'Undress!' I said to Andrea.
+
+'What?'
+
+'Undress! Quickly.'
+
+He looked at me blankly, I signed to him, and as he was not rapid enough
+I tore off his coat; then he understood and in a minute he was standing
+in his shirt while I had walked off with his clothes. I handed them to
+Giulia and came back. Andrea was standing in the middle of the room, the
+very picture of misery. He looked very ridiculous.
+
+'Look here, Andrea,' I said. 'I have given your clothes to a lady, who
+is going to accompany me instead of you. Do you see?'
+
+'Yes, and what am I to do?'
+
+'You can stay with your mother for the present, and then, if you like,
+you can join me at my house in Citta di Castello.'
+
+'And now?'
+
+'Oh, now you can go home.'
+
+He did not answer, but looked at me dubiously, then at his bare legs and
+his shirt, then again at me. I pretended not to understand.
+
+'You seem troubled, my dear Andrea. What is the matter?'
+
+He pointed to his shirt.
+
+'Well?' I said.
+
+'It is usual to go about in clothes.'
+
+'A broad-minded youth like you should be free from such prejudice,' I
+answered gravely. 'On such a morning you will find life much pleasanter
+without hose and doublet.'
+
+'Common decency--'
+
+'My dear boy, are you not aware that our first parents were content with
+fig-leaves, and are you not satisfied with a whole shirt? Besides, have
+you not a fine pair of legs and a handsome body; what are you ashamed
+of?'
+
+'Everyone will follow me.'
+
+'All the more reason to have something to show them.'
+
+'The guard will lock me up.'
+
+'How will the jailor's daughter be able to resist you in that costume!'
+
+Then another idea struck me, and I said,--
+
+'Well, Andrea, I am grieved to find you of so unpoetical a turn of mind;
+but I will deny you nothing.' I went to Giulia, and taking the clothes
+she had just cast off brought them to Andrea.
+
+'There!'
+
+He gave a cry of delight, but on seizing them, and discovering
+petticoats and flounces, his face fell. I leant against the wall and
+laughed till my sides ached.
+
+Then Giulia appeared, a most fascinating serving-boy....
+
+'Good-bye,' I cried, and hurried down the stairs. We marched boldly to
+the city gate, and with beating hearts and innocent countenances, passed
+through and found ourselves in the open country.
+
+
+
+
+XXXVII
+
+
+The Orsi and the Moratini had taken my advice and gone to Citta di
+Castello; so it was to that city we directed our way, and eventually
+reached it in safety. I did not know where Bartolomeo Moratini was, and
+I did not wish to take Giulia to my own house, so I placed her in a
+Benedictine convent, the superior of which, on hearing my name, promised
+to give her guest every care.
+
+Then I went to the old palace which I had not seen for so many years. I
+had been too excited to get really home to notice anything of the
+streets as I passed through them; but as I came in view of the
+well-remembered walls, I stopped, overcome with strange emotions.... I
+remembered the day when news had been brought me that the old Vitelli,
+who was then ruler of Castello, had murmured certain things about me
+which caused my neck to itch uncomfortably--and upon this I had
+entrusted my little brother to a relative, who was one of the canons of
+the cathedral, and the palace to my steward, and mounting my horse,
+ridden off with all possible haste. I had supposed that a few months
+would calm the angry Vitelli, but the months had lengthened out into
+years, and his death had come before his forgiveness. But now I really
+was back, and I did not mean to go away; my travels had taught me
+caution, and my intrigues at Forli given me enough excitement for some
+time. Besides, I was going to marry and rear a family; for, as if
+Fortune could not give scantily, I had gained a love as well as a home,
+and everything I wished was granted.
+
+My meditations were interrupted.
+
+'_Corpo di Bacco!_'
+
+It was Matteo, and in a moment I was in his arms.
+
+'I was just asking myself what that fool was staring at this house for,
+and thinking of telling him it was impolite to stare, when I recognised
+the house's owner.'
+
+I laughed, and shook his hand again.
+
+'Well Filippo, I am sure we shall be very pleased to offer you
+hospitality.'
+
+'You are most kind.'
+
+'We have annexed the whole place, but I daresay you will be able to find
+room somewhere. But come in.'
+
+'Thanks,' I said, 'if you do not mind.'
+
+I found Checco, Bartolomeo and his two sons sitting together. They
+jumped up when they saw me.
+
+'What news? What news?' they asked.
+
+Then suddenly I remembered the terrible story I had to tell, for in my
+own happiness I had forgotten everything that went before. I suddenly
+became grave.
+
+'Bad news,' I said. 'Bad news.'
+
+'Oh, God! I have been foreboding it. Every night I have dreamed awful
+things.'
+
+'Checco,' I answered. 'I have done all I could; but, alas! it has been
+of no avail. You left me as a protector and I have been able to protect
+no one.'
+
+'Go on!'
+
+Then I began my story. I told them how the Council had opened the gates,
+surrendering unconditionally, and how the Countess had sallied forth in
+triumph. That was nothing. If there had been no worse news for them than
+that! But Checco clenched his hands as I related the sacking of his
+palace. And I told him how old Orso had refused to fly and had been
+seized, while I had lain senseless on the floor.
+
+'You did your best, Filippo,' said Checco. 'You could do nothing more.
+But afterwards?'
+
+I told them how Marco Scorsacana and Pietro had been taken prisoners,
+and led into the town like thieves caught in the act; how the crowd had
+gathered together, and how they had been brought to the square and
+hanged from the Palace window, and their bodies torn to pieces by the
+people.
+
+'Oh, God!' uttered Checco. 'And all this is my fault.'
+
+I told them that the old Orso was brought forward and taken to his
+palace, and before his eyes it was torn down, stone after stone, till
+only a heap of ruins marked the site.
+
+Checco gave a sob.
+
+'My palace, my home!'
+
+And then, as if the blow was too great, he bent his head and burst into
+tears.
+
+'Do not weep yet, Checco,' I said. 'You will have cause for tears
+presently.'
+
+He looked up.
+
+'What more?'
+
+'Your father.'
+
+'Filippo!'
+
+He started up, and stepping back, stood against the wall, his arms
+against it, outstretched, with white and haggard face and staring eyes,
+like a hunted beast at bay.
+
+I told him how they had taken his father and bound him, and thrown him
+down, and tied him to the savage beast, and how he had been dragged
+along till his blood spattered on the pavement and his soul left him.
+
+Checco uttered a most awful groan, and, looking up to heaven, as if to
+call it in witness, cried,--
+
+'Oh, God!'
+
+Then, sinking into a chair, he buried his face in his hands, and in his
+agony swayed from side to side. Matteo went up to him and put his hand
+on his shoulder, trying to comfort him; but he motioned him aside.
+
+'Let me be.'
+
+He rose from his seat, and we saw that his eyes were tearless, for his
+grief was too great for weeping. Then, with his hands before him like a
+blind man, he staggered to the door and left us.
+
+Scipione, the weak man, was crying.
+
+
+
+
+XXXVIII
+
+
+One does not really feel much grief at other people's sorrows; one
+tries, and puts on a melancholy face--thinking oneself brutal for not
+caring more, but one cannot; and it is better, for if one grieved too
+deeply at other people's tears life would be unendurable; and every man
+has sufficient sorrows of his own without taking to heart his
+neighbour's. The explanation of all this is that three days after my
+return to Citta di Castello I was married to Giulia.
+
+Now I remember nothing more. I have a confused idea of great happiness;
+I lived in an intoxication, half fearing it was all a dream, enchanted
+when anything occurred to assure me it was true. But the details of our
+life I have forgotten; I remember I was happy. Is it not a curious irony
+that we should recall our miseries with such plainness, and that our
+happiness should pass over us so indistinctly, that when it has gone we
+can scarcely realise that it ever existed? It is as though Fortune were
+jealous of the little happiness she has given us, and to revenge herself
+blots it out of the memory, filling the mind with miseries past.
+
+But some things I recollect about others. I came across Ercole
+Piacentini and his wife Claudia. Castello being his native place, he had
+gone there on the death of the Count; and now, although the Riarii were
+restored to power, he remained, presumably to watch our movements and
+report them at Forli. I inquired whom he was, and after some difficulty
+discovered that he was the bastard of a Castello nobleman and the
+daughter of a tradesman. I saw that he did not lie when he said he had
+in his veins as good blood as I. Still I did not think him a very
+desirable acquisition to the town, and as I was in some favour with the
+new Lord I determined to procure his expulsion. Matteo proposed picking
+a quarrel with him and killing him, but that was difficult, because the
+bold man had become singularly retiring, and it was almost impossible to
+meet him. The change was so noticeable that we could not help thinking
+he had received special instructions from Forli; and we determined to
+take care.
+
+I invited the Moratini to live with me; but they preferred to take a
+house of their own. The old man, when I asked him for his daughter's
+hand, told me he wished no better son-in-law, and was very contented to
+see his daughter again settled under a man's protection. Scipione and
+Alessandro were both most pleased, and they redoubled the affection they
+had felt for me before. It all made me extremely happy; for after my
+long years of wandering I yearned very much for the love of others, and
+the various affections that surrounded me soothed and comforted me. From
+Giulia I could ask for nothing more, and I thought she really loved
+me--of course, not as I loved her, for that would have been impossible;
+but I was happy. Sometimes I wondered perplexedly at the incident which
+had separated us, for I could understand nothing of it; but I put it
+away from me, I did not want to understand, I wanted only to forget.
+
+Then there were Checco and Matteo. The Orsi family had bought a palace
+in Castello, and there they could have settled themselves happily enough
+had they not been driven on by an unextinguishable desire to regain what
+they had lost. Checco was rich even now, able to live as luxuriously as
+before, and in a little while he might have gained in Castello as much
+power as he had lost in Forli, for the young Vitelli had been singularly
+attracted by him, and was already inclined to give trust to his
+counsels; but the wretched man was filled with sadness. All day his
+thoughts were in the town he loved so well, and now his love was
+increased tenfold.... Sometimes he would think of Forli before the
+troubles, when he was living a peaceful life surrounded by his friends;
+and in mind, he wandered through the quiet streets, every house of which
+he knew. He would go from room to room in his palace, looking at the
+pictures, the statues, the armour; from the window at night he gazed
+upon the dark, silent town, with the houses rising like tall phantoms;
+in the morning a silver mist covered the earth, and as it rose left the
+air cool and fresh. But when his house appeared before him, a bare heap
+of ruins, with the rain beating down on the roofless stones, he would
+bury his face in his hands, and so remain during long hours of misery.
+Sometimes he would review the stirring events, which began with the
+attempted assassination of himself and ended with the ride out of the
+gate by the river in the cold open country beyond; and as they passed
+before him, he would wonder what he had done wrong, what he might have
+done differently. But he could alter nothing; he saw no mistake other
+than of trusting the populace who vowed to follow him to death, and of
+trusting the friends who promised to send him help. He had done his
+part, and what had followed was impossible to foresee. Fortune was
+against him and that was all....
+
+But he did not entirely give himself over to vain regrets; he had opened
+up communication with Forli, and through his spies had learnt that the
+Countess had imprisoned and put to death all those who had been in any
+way connected with the rebellion, and that the town lay cowed,
+submissive as a whipped dog. And there was no hope for Checco from
+within, for his open partisans had suffered terrible punishments, and
+the others were few and timid. Then Checco turned his attention to the
+rival states; but everywhere he received rebuffs, for the power of Milan
+overshadowed them all, and they dared nothing while the Duke Lodovico
+was almighty. 'Wait,' they said, 'till he has roused the jealousy of the
+greater states of Florence and Venice, then will be your opportunity,
+and then will we willingly give you our help.' But Checco could not
+wait, every lost day seemed to him a year. He grew thin and haggard.
+Matteo tried to comfort him, but gradually Checco's troubles weighed on
+him too; he lost his mirth and became as moody and silent as his
+cousin. So passed a year, full of anxiety and heartburning for them,
+full of the sweetest happiness for me.
+
+One day Checco came to me and said,--
+
+'Filippo, you have been very good to me; now I want you to do me one
+more favour, and that shall be the last I will ask you.'
+
+'What is it?'
+
+Then he expounded to me a scheme for interesting the Pope in his
+affairs. He knew how angry his Holiness had been, not only at the loss
+of the town, but also at the humiliation he had received through his
+lieutenant. There was a difficulty at the time between the Duke of Milan
+and Rome respecting certain rights of the former, and he did not think
+it unlikely that the Pope would be willing to break off negotiations and
+recover his advantage by making a sudden attack on Forli. Caterina's
+tyranny had become insupportable, and there was no doubt that at the
+sight of Checco leading the papal army they would open their gates and
+welcome him as the Pope's representative.
+
+I did not see of what use I could be, and I was very unwilling to leave
+my young wife. But Checco was so anxious that I should come, seeming to
+think I should be of such assistance, that I felt it would be cruel to
+refuse. Moreover, I reckoned a month would bring me back to Castello,
+and if the parting was bitter, how sweet would be the return! And I had
+certain business of my own in Rome, which I had delayed for months
+because I could not bear the thought of separation from Giulia. So I
+decided to go.
+
+A few days later we were riding towards Rome. I was sad, for it was the
+first time I had left my wife since our marriage, and the parting had
+been even more painful than I expected. A thousand times I had been on
+the verge of changing my mind and saying I would not go; but I could
+not, for Checco's sake. I was also a little sad because I thought Giulia
+was not so pained as I was, but then I chid myself for my folly. I
+expected too much. After all, it was only four short weeks, and she was
+still too great a child to feel very deeply. It is only when one is old
+or has greatly suffered that one's emotions are really powerful.
+
+We reached Rome and set about soliciting an audience from the Pope. I
+cannot remember the countless interviews we had with minor officials,
+how we were driven from cardinal to cardinal, the hours we spent in
+ante-rooms waiting for a few words from some great man. I used to get so
+tired that I could have dropped off to sleep standing, but Checco was so
+full of eagerness that I had to accompany him from place to place. The
+month passed, and we had done nothing. I suggested going home, but
+Checco implored me to stay, assuring me that the business would be
+finished in a fortnight. I remained, and the negotiations dragged their
+weary length through weeks and weeks. Now a ray of hope lightened our
+struggles, and Checco would become excited and cheerful; now the hope
+would be dashed to the ground, and Checco begin to despair. The month
+had drawn itself out into three, and I saw clearly enough that nothing
+would come of our endeavours. The conferences with the Duke were still
+going on, each party watching the other, trying by means of untruth and
+deceit and bribery to gain the advantage. The King of Naples was brought
+in; Florence and Venice began to send ambassadors to and fro, and no one
+knew what would be the result of it all.
+
+At last one day Checco came to me and threw himself on my bed.
+
+'It's no good,' he said, in a tone of despair. 'It is all up.'
+
+'I'm very sorry, Checco.'
+
+'You had better go home now. You can do nothing here. Why should I drag
+you after me in my unhappiness?'
+
+'But you, Checco, if you can do no good, why will not you come too?'
+
+'I am better here than at Castello. Here I am at the centre of things,
+and I will take heart. War may break out any day, and then the Pope will
+be more ready to listen to me.'
+
+I saw it was no use that I should stay, and I saw I could not persuade
+him to come with me, so I packed up my things, and bidding him good-bye,
+started on the homeward journey.
+
+
+
+
+XXXIX
+
+
+What shall I say of the eagerness with which I looked forward to seeing
+my dear wife, the rapture with which, at last, I clasped her in my arms?
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+A little later I walked out to find Matteo. He was quite astonished to
+see me.
+
+'We did not expect you so soon.'
+
+'No,' I answered; 'I thought I should not arrive till after to-morrow,
+but I was so impatient to get home that I hurried on without stopping,
+and here I am.'
+
+I shook his hand heartily, I was so pleased and happy.
+
+'Er--have you been home?'
+
+'Of course,' I answered, smiling; 'it was the first thing I thought of.'
+
+I was not sure; I thought a look of relief came over Matteo's face. But
+why? I could not understand, but I thought it of no consequence, and it
+passed from my memory. I told Matteo the news I had, and left him. I
+wished to get back to my wife.
+
+On my way I happened to see Claudia Piacentini coming out of a house. I
+was very surprised, for I knew that my efforts had succeeded, and
+Ercole's banishment decreed. I supposed the order had not yet been
+issued. I was going to pass the lady without acknowledgment, for since
+my marriage she had never spoken to me, and I could well understand why
+she did not want to. To my astonishment she stopped me.
+
+'Ah, Messer Filippo!'
+
+I bowed profoundly.
+
+'How is it that now you never speak to me? Are you so angry with me?'
+
+'No one can be angry with so beautiful a woman.'
+
+She flushed, and I felt I had said a stupid thing, for I had made
+remarks too similar on another occasion. I added, 'But I have been
+away.'
+
+'I know. Will you not come in?' She pointed to the house from which she
+had just issued.
+
+'But I shall be disturbing you, for you were going out.'
+
+She smiled as she replied. 'I saw you pass my house a little while ago;
+I guessed you were going to Matteo d'Orsi, and I waited for you on your
+return.'
+
+'You are most kind.'
+
+I wondered why she was so anxious to see me. Perhaps she knew of her
+husband's approaching banishment, and the cause of it.
+
+We went in and sat down.
+
+'Have you been home?' she asked.
+
+It was the same question as Matteo had asked. I gave the same answer.
+
+'It was the first thing I thought of.'
+
+'Your wife must have been--surprised to see you.'
+
+'And delighted.'
+
+'Ah!' She crossed her hands and smiled.
+
+I wondered what she meant.
+
+'You were not expected for two days, I think.'
+
+'You know my movements very well. I am pleased to find you take such
+interest in me.'
+
+'Oh, it is not I alone. The whole town takes interest in you. You have
+been a most pleasant topic of conversation.'
+
+'Really!' I was getting a little angry. 'And what has the town to say of
+me?'
+
+'Oh, I do not want to trouble your peace of mind.'
+
+'Will you have the goodness to tell me what you mean?'
+
+She shrugged her shoulders and smiled enigmatically.
+
+'Well?' I said.
+
+'If you insist, I will tell you. They say that you are a complaisant
+husband.'
+
+'That is a lie!'
+
+'You are not polite,' she answered calmly.
+
+'How dare you say such things, you impudent woman!'
+
+'My good sir, it is true, perfectly true. Ask Matteo.'
+
+Suddenly I remembered Matteo's question, and his look of relief. A
+sudden fear ran through me. I took hold of Claudia's wrists and said,--
+
+'What do you mean? What do you mean?'
+
+'Leave go; you hurt me!'
+
+'Answer, I tell you. I know you are dying to tell me. Is this why you
+lay in wait for me, and brought me here? Tell me.'
+
+A sudden transformation took place in Claudia; rage and hate broke out
+and contorted her face, so that one would not have recognised it.
+
+'Do you suppose you can escape the ordinary fate of husbands?' She broke
+into a savage laugh.
+
+'It is a lie. You slander Giulia because you are yourself impure.'
+
+'You were willing enough to take advantage of that impurity. Do you
+suppose Giulia's character has altered because you have married her? She
+made her first husband a cuckold, and do you suppose that she has
+suddenly turned virtuous? You fool!'
+
+'It is a lie. I will not believe a word of it.'
+
+'The whole town has been ringing with her love for Giorgio dall' Aste.'
+
+I gave a cry; it was for him that she abandoned me before....
+
+'Ah, you believe me now!'
+
+'Listen!' I said. 'If this is not true, I swear by all the saints that I
+will kill you.'
+
+'Good; if it is not true, kill me. But, by all the saints, I swear it is
+true, true, true!' She repeated the words in triumph, and each one fell
+like the stab of a dagger in my heart.
+
+I left her. As I walked home, I fancied the people were looking at me,
+and smiling. Once I was on the verge of going up to a man, and asking
+him why he laughed, but I contained myself. How I was suffering! I
+remembered that Giulia had not seemed so pleased to see me; at the time
+I chid myself, and called myself exacting, but was it true? I fancied
+she turned away her lips when I was imprinting my passionate kisses on
+them. I told myself I was a fool, but was it true? I remembered a slight
+movement of withdrawal when I clasped her in my arms. Was it true? Oh
+God! was it true?
+
+I thought of going to Matteo, but I could not. He knew her before her
+marriage; he would be willing to accept the worst that was said of her.
+How could I be so disturbed at the slanders of a wicked, jealous woman?
+I wished I had never known Claudia, never given her reason to take this
+revenge on me. Oh, it was cruel! But I would not believe it; I had such
+trust in Giulia, such love. She could not betray me, when she knew what
+passionate love was poured down upon her. It would be too ungrateful.
+And I had done so much for her, but I did not wish to think of that....
+All that I had done had been for pure love and pleasure, and I required
+no thanks. But surely if she had no love, she had at least some tender
+feeling for me; she would not give her honour to another. Ah no, I would
+not believe it. But was it true, oh God! was it true?
+
+I found myself at home, and suddenly I remembered the old steward, whom
+I had left in charge of my house. His name was Fabio; it was from him
+that I got the name when I presented myself as a serving-man to old
+Orso. If anything had taken place in the house he must know it; and she,
+Claudia, said the whole town knew it.
+
+'Fabio!'
+
+'My master!'
+
+He came into my room, and I looked at him steadily.
+
+'Fabio, have you well looked after all I left in your hands when I went
+to Rome?'
+
+'Your rents are paid, your harvests taken in, the olives all gathered.'
+
+'I left in your charge something more precious than cornfields and
+vineyards.'
+
+'My lord!'
+
+'I made you guardian of my honour. What of that?'
+
+He hesitated, and his voice as he answered trembled.
+
+'Your honour is--intact.'
+
+I took him by the shoulders.
+
+'Fabio, what is it? I beseech you by your master, my father, to tell
+me.'
+
+I knew he loved my father's memory with more than human love. He looked
+up to heaven and clasped his hands; he could hardly speak.
+
+'By my dear master, your father, nothing--nothing!'
+
+'Fabio, you are lying.' I pressed his wrists which I was holding
+clenched in my hands.
+
+He sank down on his knees.
+
+'Oh, master, have mercy on me!' He buried his face in his hands. 'I
+cannot tell you.'
+
+'Speak, man, speak!'
+
+At last, with laments and groans, he uttered the words,--
+
+'She has--oh God, she has betrayed you!'
+
+'Oh!' I staggered back.
+
+'Forgive me!'
+
+'Why did you not tell me before?'
+
+'Ah, how could I? You loved her as I have never seen man love woman.'
+
+'Did you not think of my honour?'
+
+'I thought of your happiness. It is better to have happiness without
+honour, than honour without happiness.'
+
+'For you,' I groaned, 'but not for me.'
+
+'You are of the same flesh and blood, and you suffer as we do. I could
+not destroy your happiness.'
+
+'Oh, Giulia! Giulia!' Then, after a while, I asked again, 'But are you
+sure?'
+
+'Alas, there is no doubt!'
+
+'I cannot believe it! Oh God, help me! You don't know how I loved her!
+She could not! Let me see it with my own eyes, Fabio.'
+
+We both stood silent; then a horrible thought struck me.
+
+'Do you know--when they meet?' I whispered.
+
+He groaned. I asked again.
+
+'God help me!'
+
+'You know? I command you to tell me.'
+
+'They did not know you were coming back till after to-morrow.'
+
+'He is coming?'
+
+'To-day.'
+
+'Oh!' I seized him by the hand. 'Take me, and let me see them.'
+
+'What will you do?' he asked, horror-stricken.
+
+'Never mind, take me!'
+
+Trembling, he led me through ante-rooms and passages, till he brought me
+to a staircase. We mounted the steps and came to a little door. He
+opened it very quietly, and we found ourselves behind the arras of
+Giulia's chamber. I had forgotten the existence of door and steps, and
+she knew nothing of them. There was an opening in the tapestry to give
+exit.
+
+No one was in the room. We waited, holding our breath. At last Giulia
+entered. She walked to the window and looked out, and went back to the
+door. She sat down, but sprang up restlessly, and again looked out of
+window. Whom was she expecting?
+
+She walked up and down the room, and her face was full of anxiety. I
+watched intently. At last a light knock was heard; she opened the door
+and a man came in. A small, slight, thin man, with a quantity of
+corn-coloured hair falling over his shoulders, and a pale, fair skin. He
+had blue eyes, and a little golden moustache. He looked hardly twenty,
+but I knew he was older.
+
+He sprang forward, seizing her in his arms, and he pressed her to his
+heart, but she pushed him back.
+
+'Oh, Giorgio, you must go,' she cried. 'He has come back.'
+
+'Your husband?'
+
+'I hoped you would not come. Go quickly. If he found you he would kill
+us both.'
+
+'Tell me you love me, Giulia.'
+
+'Oh yes, I love you with all my heart and soul.'
+
+For a moment they stood still in one another's arms, then she tore
+herself away.
+
+'But go, for God's sake!'
+
+'I go, my love. Good-bye!'
+
+'Good-bye, beloved!'
+
+He took her in his arms again, and she placed hers around his neck. They
+kissed one another passionately on the lips; she kissed him as she had
+never kissed me.
+
+'Oh!' I gave a cry of rage, and leaped out of my concealment. In a bound
+I had reached him. They hardly knew I was there; and I had plunged my
+dagger in his neck. Giulia gave a piercing shriek as he fell with a
+groan. The blood spattered over my hand. Then I looked at her. She ran
+from me with terror-stricken face, her eyes starting from her head. I
+rushed to her and she shrieked again, but Fabio caught hold of my arm.
+
+'Not her, not her too!'
+
+I wrenched my hand away from him, and then--then as I saw her pallid
+face and the look of deathly terror--I stopped. I could not kill her.
+
+'Lock that door,' I said to Fabio, pointing to the one from which we had
+come. Then, looking at her, I screamed,--
+
+'Harlot!'
+
+I called to Fabio, and we left the room. I locked the door, and she
+remained shut in with her lover....
+
+I called my servants and bade them follow me, and went out. I walked
+proudly, surrounded by my retainers, and I came to the house of
+Bartolomeo Moratini. He had just finished dinner, and was sitting with
+his sons. They rose as they saw me.
+
+'Ah, Filippo, you have returned.' Then, seeing my pale face, they cried,
+'But what is it? What has happened?'
+
+And Bartolomeo broke in.
+
+'What is that on your hand, Filippo?'
+
+I stretched it out, so that he might see.
+
+'That--that is the blood of your daughter's lover.'
+
+'Oh!'
+
+'I found them together, and I killed the adulterer.'
+
+Bartolomeo kept silence a moment, then he said,--
+
+'You have done well, Filippo.' He turned to his sons. 'Scipione, give me
+my sword.'
+
+He girded it on, and then he spoke to me.
+
+'Sir,' he said, 'I beg you to wait here till I come.'
+
+I bowed.
+
+'Sir, I am your servant.'
+
+'Scipione, Alessandro, follow me!'
+
+And accompanied by his sons, he left the room, and I remained alone.
+
+The servants peeped in at the door, looking at me as if I were some
+strange beast, and fled when I turned round. I walked up and down, up
+and down; I looked out of window. In the street the people were going to
+and fro, singing, and talking as if nothing had happened. They did not
+know that death was flying through the air; they did not know that the
+happiness of living men had gone for ever.
+
+At last I heard the steps again, and Bartolomeo Moratini entered the
+room, followed by his sons; and all three were very grave.
+
+'Sir,' he said, 'the stain on your honour and mine has been effaced.'
+
+I bowed more deeply than before.
+
+'Sir, I am your very humble servant.'
+
+'I thank you that you allowed me to do my duty as a father; and I
+regret that a member of my family should have shown herself unworthy of
+my name and yours. I will detain you no longer.'
+
+I bowed again, and left them.
+
+
+
+
+XL
+
+
+I walked back to my house. It was very silent, and as I passed up the
+stairs the servants shrunk back with averted faces, as if they were
+afraid to look at me.
+
+'Where is Fabio?' I asked.
+
+A page whispered timidly,--
+
+'In the chapel.'
+
+I turned on my heel, and passed through the rooms, one after another,
+till I came to the chapel door. I pushed it open and entered. A dim
+light came through the painted windows, and I could hardly see. In the
+centre were two bodies covered with a cloth, and their heads were
+lighted by the yellow gleam of candles. At their feet knelt an old man,
+praying. It was Fabio.
+
+I advanced and drew back the cloth; and I fell on my knees. Giulia
+looked as if she were sleeping. I had so often leant over her, watching
+the regular heaving of the breast, and sometimes I had thought her
+features as calm and relaxed as if she were dead. But now the breast
+would no more rise and fall, and its wonderful soft whiteness was
+disfigured by a gaping wound. Her eyes were closed and her lips half
+parted, and the only difference from life was the fallen jaw. Her face
+was very pale; the rich waving hair encircled it as with an aureole.
+
+I looked at him, and he, too, was pale, and his fair hair contrasted
+wonderfully with hers. He looked so young!
+
+Then, as I knelt there, and the hours passed slowly, I thought of all
+that had happened, and I tried to understand. The dim light from the
+window gradually failed, and the candles in the darkness burnt out more
+brightly; each was surrounded by a halo of light, and lit up the dead
+faces, throwing into deeper night the rest of the chapel.
+
+Little by little I seemed to see into the love of these two which had
+been so strong, that no ties of honour, faith, or truth had been able to
+influence it. And this is what I imagined, trying to console myself.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+When she was sixteen, I thought, they married her to an old man she had
+never seen, and she met her husband's cousin, a boy no older than
+herself. And the love started and worked its way. But the boy lived on
+his rich cousin's charity; from him he had received a home and
+protection and a thousand kindnesses; he loved against his will, but he
+loved all the same. And she, I thought, had loved like a woman,
+passionately, thoughtless of honour and truth. In the sensual violence
+of her love she had carried him away, and he had yielded. Then with
+enjoyment had come remorse, and he had torn himself away from the
+temptress and fled.
+
+I hardly knew what had happened when she was left alone, pining for her
+lover. Scandal said evil things.... Had she, too, felt remorse and tried
+to kill her love, and had the attempt failed? And was it then she flung
+herself into dissipation to drown her trouble? Perhaps he told her he
+did not love her, and she in despair may have thrown herself in the arms
+of other lovers. But he loved her too strongly to forget her; at last he
+could not bear the absence and came back. And again with enjoyment came
+remorse, and, ashamed, he fled, hating himself, despising her.
+
+The years passed by, and her husband died. Why did he not come back to
+her? Had he lost his love and was he afraid? I could not understand....
+
+Then she met me. Ah, I wondered what she felt. Did she love me? Perhaps
+his long absence had made her partly forget him, and she thought he had
+forgotten her. She fell in love with me, and I--I loved her with all my
+heart. I knew she loved me then; she must have loved me! But he came
+back. He may have thought himself cured, he may have said that he could
+meet her coldly and indifferently. Had I not said the same? But as they
+saw one another the old love burst out, again it burnt them with
+consuming fire, and Giulia hated me because I had made her faithless to
+the lover of her heart.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The candles were burning low, throwing strange lights and shadows on the
+faces of the dead.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Poor fool! His love was as powerful as ever, but he fought against it
+with all the strength of his weak will. She was the Evil One to him;
+she took his youth from him, his manhood, his honour, his strength; he
+felt that her kisses degraded him, and as he rose from her embrace he
+felt vile and mean. He vowed never to touch her again, and every time he
+broke the vow. But her love was the same as ever--passionate, even
+heartless. She cared not if she consumed him as long as she loved him.
+For her he might ruin his life, he might lose his soul. She cared for
+nothing; it was all and all for love.
+
+He fled again, and she turned her eyes on me once more. Perhaps she felt
+sorry for my pain, perhaps she fancied my love would efface the
+remembrance of him. And we were married. Ah! now that she was dead I
+could allow her good intentions. She may have intended to be faithful to
+me; she may have thought she could truly love and honour me. Perhaps she
+tried; who knows? But love--love cares not for vows. It was too strong
+for her, too strong for him. I do not know whether she sent for him, or
+whether he, in the extremity of his passion, came to her; but what had
+happened so often happened again. They threw everything to the winds,
+and gave themselves over to the love that kills....
+
+The long hours passed as I thought of these things, and the candles were
+burnt to their sockets.
+
+At last I felt a touch on my shoulder, and heard Fabio's voice.
+
+'Master, it is nearly morning.'
+
+I stood up, and he added,--
+
+'They put him in the chapel without asking me. You are not angry?'
+
+'They did well!'
+
+He hesitated a moment and then asked,--
+
+'What shall I do?'
+
+I looked at him, not understanding.
+
+'He cannot remain here, and she--she must be buried.'
+
+'Take them to the church, and lay them in the tomb my father
+built--together.'
+
+'The man too?' he asked. 'In your own tomb?'
+
+I sighed and answered sadly,--
+
+'Perhaps he loved her better than I.'
+
+As I spoke I heard a sob at my feet. A man I had not seen took hold of
+my hand and kissed it, and I felt it wet with tears.
+
+'Who are you?' I asked.
+
+'He has been here all the night,' said Fabio.
+
+'He was my master and I loved him,' replied the kneeling figure in a
+broken voice. 'I thank you that you do not cast him out like a dog.'
+
+I looked at him and felt deep pity for his grief.
+
+'What will you do now?' I asked.
+
+'Alas! now I am a wreck that tosses on the billows without a guide.'
+
+I did not know what to say to him.
+
+'Will you take me as your servant? I will be very faithful.'
+
+'Do you ask me that?' I said. 'Do you not know--'
+
+'Ah, yes! you took the life that he was glad to lose. It was almost a
+kindness; and now you bury him peacefully, and for that I love you. You
+owe it to me; you have robbed me of a master, give me another.'
+
+'No, poor friend! I want no servants now. I too am like a wreck that
+drifts aimlessly across the seas. With me, too, it is finished.'
+
+I looked once more at Giulia, and then I replaced the white cloth, and
+the faces were covered.
+
+'Bring me my horse, Fabio.'
+
+In a few minutes it was waiting for me.
+
+'Will you have no one to accompany you?' he asked.
+
+'No one!'
+
+Then, as I mounted and arranged the reins in my hand, he said,--
+
+'Where are you going?'
+
+And I despairingly answered,--
+
+'God knows!'
+
+
+
+
+XLI
+
+
+And I rode away out of the town into the open country. The day was
+breaking, and everything was cold and grey. I paid no heed to my course;
+I rode along, taking the roads as they came, through broad plains,
+eastwards towards the mountains. In the increasing day I saw the little
+river wind sinuously through the fields, and the country stretched flat
+before me, with slender trees marked out against the sky. Now and then a
+tiny hill was surmounted by a village, and once, as I passed, I heard
+the tinkling of a bell. I stopped at an inn to water the horse, and
+then, hating the sight of men, I hurried on. The hours of coolness had
+passed, and as we tramped along the shapeless roads the horse began to
+sweat, and the thick white dust rose in clouds behind us.
+
+At last I came to a roadside inn, and it was nearly mid-day. I
+dismounted, and giving the horse to the ostler's care, I went inside and
+sat at a table. The landlord came to me and offered food. I could not
+eat, I felt it would make me sick; I ordered wine. It was brought; I
+poured some out and tasted it. Then I put my elbows on the table and
+held my head with both hands, for it was aching so as almost to drive me
+mad.
+
+'Sir!'
+
+I looked up and saw a Franciscan friar standing by my side. On his back
+he bore a sack; I supposed he was collecting food.
+
+'Sir, I pray you for alms for the sick and needy.'
+
+I drew out a piece of gold and threw it to him.
+
+'The roads are hard to-day,' he said.
+
+I made no answer.
+
+'You are going far, sir?'
+
+'When one gives alms to a beggar, it is so that he may not importune
+one,' I said.
+
+'Ah, no; it is for the love of God and charity. But I do not wish to
+importune you, I thought I might help you.'
+
+'I want no help.'
+
+'You look unhappy.'
+
+'I beg you to leave me in peace.'
+
+'As you will, my son.'
+
+He left me, and I returned to my old position. I felt as if a sheet of
+lead were pressing upon my head. A moment later a gruff voice broke in
+upon me.
+
+'Ah, Messer Filippo Brandolini!'
+
+I looked up. At the first glance I did not recognise the speaker; but
+then as I cleared my mind I saw it was Ercole Piacentini. What was he
+doing here? Then I remembered that it was on the road to Forli. I
+supposed he had received orders to leave Castello and was on his way to
+his old haunts. However, I did not want to speak to him; I bent down,
+and again clasped my head in my hands.
+
+'That is a civil way of answering,' he said. 'Messer Filippo!'
+
+I looked up, rather bored.
+
+'If I do not answer, it is evidently because I do not wish to speak to
+you.'
+
+'And if I wish to speak to you?'
+
+'Then I must take the liberty of begging you to hold your tongue.'
+
+'You insolent fellow!'
+
+I felt too miserable to be angry.
+
+'Have the goodness to leave me,' I said. 'You bore me intensely.'
+
+'I tell you that you are an insolent fellow, and I shall do as I
+please.'
+
+'Are you a beggar, that you are so importunate? What do you want?'
+
+'Do you remember saying in Forli that you would fight me when the
+opportunity presented itself. It has! And I am ready, for I have to
+thank you for my banishment from Castello.'
+
+'When I offered to fight you, sir, I thought you were a gentleman. Now
+that I know your condition, I must decline.'
+
+'You coward!'
+
+'Surely it is not cowardice to refuse a duel with a person like
+yourself?'
+
+By this time he was wild with rage; but I was cool and collected.
+
+'Have you so much to boast?' he asked furiously.
+
+'Happily I am not a bastard!'
+
+'Cuckold!'
+
+'Oh!'
+
+I sprang up and looked at him with a look of horror. He laughed
+scornfully and repeated,--
+
+'Cuckold!'
+
+Now it was my turn. The blood rushed to my head and a terrible rage
+seized me. I picked up the tankard of wine which was on the table and
+flung it at him with all my might. The wine splashed over his face, and
+the cup hit him on the forehead and cut him so that the blood trickled
+down. In a moment he had drawn his sword, and at the same time I
+wrenched mine from its sheath.
+
+He could fight well.
+
+He could fight well, but against me he was lost. All the rage and agony
+of the last day gathered themselves together. I was lifted up and cried
+aloud in the joy of having someone on whom to wreak my vengeance. I felt
+as if I had against me the whole world and were pouring out my hate at
+the end of my sword. My fury lent me the strength of a devil. I drove
+him back, I drove him back, and I fought as I had never fought before.
+In a minute I had beaten the sword from his hand, and it fell to the
+floor as if his wrist were broken, clattering down among the cups. He
+staggered back against the wall, and stood there with his head thrown
+back and his arms helplessly outspread.
+
+'Ah, God, I thank thee!' I cried exultingly. 'Now I am happy.'
+
+I lifted my sword above my head to cleave his skull, my arm was in the
+swing--when I stopped. I saw the staring eyes, the white face blanched
+with terror; he was standing against the wall as he had fallen,
+shrinking away in his mortal anxiety. I stopped; I could not kill him.
+
+I sheathed my sword and said,--
+
+'Go! I will not kill you. I despise you too much.'
+
+He did not move, but stood as if he were turned to stone, still
+terror-stricken and afraid. Then, in my contempt, I took a horn of water
+and flung it over him.
+
+'You look pale, my friend,' I said. 'Here is water to mix with your
+wine.'
+
+Then I leant back and burst into a shout of laughter, and I laughed till
+my sides ached, and I laughed again.
+
+I threw down money to pay for my entertainment, and went out. But as I
+bestrode my horse and we recommenced our journey along the silent roads
+I felt my head ache worse than ever. All enjoyment was gone; I could
+take no pleasure in life. How long would it last? How long? I rode along
+under the mid-day sun, and it fell scorching on my head; the wretched
+beast trotted with hanging head, his tongue lolling out of his mouth,
+parched and dry. The sun beat down with all the power of August, and
+everything seemed livid with the awful heat. Man and beast had shrunk
+away from the fiery rays, the country folk were taking the noonday rest,
+the cattle and the horses sheltered by barns and sheds, the birds were
+silent, and even the lizards had crept into their holes. Only the horse
+and I tramped along, miserably--only the horse and I. There was no
+shade; the walls on either side were too low to give shelter, the road
+glaring and white and dusty. I might have been riding through a furnace.
+
+Everything was against me. Everything! Even the sun seemed to beat down
+his hottest rays to increase my misery. What had I done that all this
+should come to me? I clenched my fist, and in impotent rage cursed
+God....
+
+At last I saw close to me a little hill covered with dark fir trees; I
+came nearer, and the sight of the sombre green was like a draught of
+cool water. I could no longer bear the horror of the heat. From the main
+road another smaller one led winding up the hill. I turned my horse, and
+soon we were among the trees, and I took a long breath of delight in the
+coolness. I dismounted and led him by the bridle; it was enchanting to
+walk along the path, soft with the fallen needles, and a delicious green
+smell hovered in the air. We came to a clearing, where was a little
+pond; I watered the poor beast, and, throwing myself down, drank deeply.
+Then I tied him to a tree and advanced a few steps alone. I came to a
+sort of terrace, and going forward found myself at the edge of the hill,
+looking over the plain. Behind, the tall fir trees gave me shade and
+coolness; I sat down, looking at the country before me. In the cloudless
+sky it seemed now singularly beautiful. Far away on one side I could see
+the walls and towers of some city, and to it in broad curves wound a
+river; the maze and corn, vines and olive trees, covered the land, and
+in the distance I saw the soft blue mountains. Why should the world be
+so beautiful, and I so miserable?
+
+'It is, indeed, a wonderful scene.'
+
+I looked up and saw the monk whom I had spoken with at the inn. He put
+down his sack and sat by my side.
+
+'You do not think me importunate?' he asked.
+
+'I beg your pardon,' I replied, 'I was not civil to you; you must
+forgive me. I was not myself.'
+
+'Do not talk of it. I saw you here, and I came down to you to offer you
+our hospitality.'
+
+I looked at him questioningly; he pointed over his shoulder, and
+looking, I saw, perched on the top of the hill, piercing through the
+trees, a little monastery.
+
+'How peaceful it looks!' I said.
+
+'It is, indeed. St Francis himself used sometimes to come to enjoy the
+quiet.'
+
+I sighed. Oh, why could not I have done with the life I hated, and also
+enjoy the quiet? I felt the monk was watching me, and, looking up, I met
+his glance. He was a tall, thin man, with deeply-sunken eyes and hollow
+cheeks. And he was pale and worn from prayer and fasting. But his voice
+was sweet and very gentle.
+
+'Why do you look at me?' I said.
+
+'I was in the tavern when you disarmed the man and gave him his life.'
+
+'It was not for charity and mercy,' I said bitterly.
+
+'I know,' he answered, 'it was from despair.'
+
+'How do you know?'
+
+'I watched you; and at the end I said, '"God pity his unhappiness."'
+
+I looked with astonishment at the strange man; and then, with a groan, I
+said,--
+
+'Oh, you are right. I am so unhappy.'
+
+He took my hands in his, and with the gentleness of the mother of God
+herself replied,--
+
+'"Come unto Me all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give
+you rest."'
+
+Then I could suffer my woe no longer. I buried my face in his bosom, and
+burst into tears.
+
+
+
+
+EPILOGUE
+
+
+And now many years have passed, and the noble gentleman, Filippo
+Brandolini is the poor monk Giuliano; the gorgeous clothes, velvets and
+satins, have given way to the brown sackcloth of the Seraphic Father;
+and instead of golden belts my waist is girt with a hempen cord. And in
+me, what changes have taken place! The brown hair, which women kissed,
+is a little circlet in sign of the Redeemer's crown, and it is as white
+as snow. My eyes are dim and sunken, my cheeks are hollow, and the skin
+of my youth is ashy and wrinkled; the white teeth of my mouth have gone,
+but my toothless gums suffice for the monkish fare; and I am old and
+bent and weak.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+One day in the spring I came to the terrace which overlooks the plain,
+and as I sat down to warm myself in the sunshine, gazing at the broad
+country which now I knew so well, and the distant hills, the wish came
+to me to write the history of my life.
+
+And now that, too, is done. I have nothing more to tell except that
+from the day when I arrived, weary of soul, to the cool shade of the fir
+trees, I have never gone into the world again. I gave my lands and
+palaces to my brother in the hope that he would make better use of his
+life than I, and to him I gave the charge of seeing that heirs were
+given to the ancient name. I knew I had failed in everything. My life
+had gone wrong, I know not why; and I had not the courage to adventure
+further. I withdrew from the battle in my unfitness, and let the world
+pass on and forget my poor existence.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Checco lived on, scheming and intriguing, wearing away his life in
+attempts to regain his fatherland, and always he was disappointed,
+always his hopes frustrated, till at last he despaired. And after six
+years, worn out with his fruitless efforts, mourning the greatness he
+had lost, and pining for the country he loved so well, he died of a
+broken heart, an exile.
+
+Matteo went back to his arms and the reckless life of the soldier of
+fortune, and was killed bravely fighting against the foreign invader,
+and died, knowing that his efforts, too, had been in vain, and that the
+sweet land of Italy lay fallen and enslaved.
+
+And I do not know whether they had not the better lot; for they are at
+peace, while I--I pursue my lonely pilgrimage through life, and the goal
+is ever far off. Now it cannot be much longer, my strength is failing,
+and soon I shall have the peace I wished for. Oh God, I do not ask You
+for crowns of gold and heavenly raiment, I do not aspire to the bliss
+which is the portion of the saint, but give me rest. When the great
+Release comes, give me rest; let me sleep the long sleep without
+awakening, so that at last I may forget and be at peace. O God, give me
+rest!
+
+Often, as I trudged along the roads barefooted to gather food and alms,
+have I wished to lay myself in the ditch by the wayside and die.
+Sometimes I have heard the beating of the wings of the Angel of Death;
+but he has taken the strong and the happy, and left me to wander on.
+
+The good man told me I should receive happiness; I have not even
+received forgetfulness. I go along the roads thinking of my life and the
+love that ruined me. Ah! how weak I am; but, forgive me, I cannot help
+myself! Sometimes when I have been able to do good I have felt a strange
+delight, I have felt the blessed joy of charity. And I love my people,
+the poor folk of the country round. They come to me in their troubles,
+and when I can help them I share their pleasure. But that is all I have.
+Ah! mine has been a useless life, I have wasted it; and if of late I
+have done a little good to my fellowmen, alas! how little!
+
+I bear my soul in patience, but sometimes I cannot help rising up
+against fate, and crying out that it is hard that all this should happen
+to me. Why? What had I done that I should be denied the little happiness
+of this world? Why should I be more unhappy than others? But then I
+chide myself, and ask whether I have indeed been less happy. Are they
+any of them happy? Or are those right who say that the world is misery,
+and that the only happiness is to die? Who knows?
+
+Ah, Giulia, how I loved thee!
+
+    O Ciechi, il tanto affaticar che giova?
+    Tutti tornate alla gran madre antica,
+    E'l nome vostro appena si ritrova.
+
+         . . . . . . . .
+
+    Blind that ye are! How doth this struggle profit you?
+    Return ye must to the great Antique Mother,
+    And even your name scarcely remains.
+
+
+THE END
+
+Colsson & Coy., Limited, Printers, Edinburgh.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+T. FISHER UNWIN, Publisher,
+
+SIX-SHILLING NOVELS
+
+_In uniform green cloth, large crown 8vo., gilt tops, 6s._
+
+=Effie Hetherington.= By ROBERT BUCHANAN. Second Edition.
+
+=An Outcast of the Islands.= By JOSEPH CONRAD. Second Edition.
+
+=Almayer's Folly.= By JOSEPH CONRAD. Second Edition.
+
+=The Ebbing of the Tide.= By LOUIS BECKE. Second Edition.
+
+=A First Fleet Family.= By LOUIS BECKE and WALTER JEFFERY.
+
+=Paddy's Woman=, and Other Stories. By HUMPHREY JAMES.
+
+=Clara Hopgood.= By MARK RUTHERFORD. Second Edition.
+
+=The Tales of John Oliver Hobbes.= Portrait of the Author. Second Edition.
+
+=The Stickit Minister.= By S. R. CROCKETT. Eleventh Edition.
+
+=The Lilac Sunbonnet.= By S. R. CROCKETT. Sixth Edition.
+
+=The Raiders.= By S. R. CROCKETT. Eighth Edition.
+
+=The Grey Man.= By S. R. CROCKETT.
+
+=In a Man's Mind.= By J. R. WATSON.
+
+=A Daughter of the Fen.= By J. T. BEALBY. Second Edition.
+
+=The Herb-Moon.= By JOHN OLIVER HOBBES. Third Edition.
+
+=Nancy Noon.= By BENJAMIN SWIFT. Second Edition. With New Preface.
+
+=Mr. Magnus.= By F. REGINALD STATHAM. Second Edition.
+
+=Trooper Peter Halket of Mashonaland.= By OLIVE SCHREINER. Frontispiece.
+
+=Pacific Tales.= By LOUIS BECKE. With Frontispiece Portrait of the Author.
+Second Edition.
+
+=Mrs. Keith's Crime.= By Mrs. W. K. CLIFFORD. Sixth Edition. With Portrait
+of Mrs. Keith by the Hon. JOHN COLLIER, and a New Preface by the Author.
+
+=Hugh Wynne.= By Dr. S. WEIR MITCHELL. With Frontispiece Illustration.
+
+=The Tormentor.= By BENJAMIN SWIFT, Author of "Nancy Noon."
+
+=Prisoners of Conscience.= By AMELIA E. BARR, Author of "Jan Vedder's
+Wife." With 12 Illustrations.
+
+=The Gods, some Mortals and Lord Wickenham.= New Edition. By JOHN OLIVER
+HOBBES.
+
+=The Outlaws of the Marches.= By Lord ERNEST HAMILTON. Fully illustrated.
+
+=The School for Saints:= Part of the History of the Right Honourable
+Robert Orange, M.P. By JOHN OLIVER HOBBES, Author of "Sinner's Comedy,"
+"Some Emotions and a Moral," "The Herb Moon," &c.
+
+=The People of Clopton.= By GEORGE BARTRAM.
+
+11, Paternoster Buildings, London, E.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+T. FISHER UNWIN, Publisher,
+
+WORKS BY JOSEPH CONRAD
+
+I.
+
+AN OUTCAST OF THE ISLANDS
+
+_Crown 8vo., cloth_, =6s.=
+
+"Subject to the qualifications thus disposed of (_vide_ first part of
+notice), 'An Outcast of the Islands' is perhaps the finest piece of
+fiction that has been published this year, as 'Almayer's Folly' was one
+of the finest that was published in 1895.... Surely this is real
+romance--the romance that is real. Space forbids anything but the merest
+recapitulation of the other living realities of Mr. Conrad's
+invention--of Lingard, of the inimitable Almayer, the one-eyed
+Babalatchi, the Naturalist, of the pious Abdulla--all novel, all
+authentic. Enough has been written to show Mr. Conrad's quality. He
+imagines his scenes and their sequence like a master; he knows his
+individualities and their hearts; he has a new and wonderful field in
+this East Indian Novel of his.... Greatness is deliberately written; the
+present writer has read and re-read his two books, and after putting
+this review aside for some days to consider the discretion of it, the
+word still stands."--_Saturday Review_.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+II.
+
+ALMAYER'S FOLLY
+
+_Second Edition. Crown 8vo., cloth_, =6s=.
+
+="This startling, unique, splendid book."= MR. T. P. O'CONNOR, M.P.
+
+"This is a decidedly powerful story of an uncommon type, and breaks
+fresh ground in fiction.... All the leading characters in the
+book--Almayer, his wife, his daughter, and Dain, the daughter's native
+lover--are well drawn, and the parting between father and daughter has a
+pathetic naturalness about it, unspoiled by straining after effect.
+There are, too, some admirably graphic passages in the book. The
+approach of a monsoon is most effectively described.... The name of Mr.
+Joseph Conrad is new to us, but it appears to us as if he might become
+the Kipling of the Malay Archipelago."--_Spectator_.
+
+11, Paternoster Buildings, London, E.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+T. FISHER UNWIN, Publisher.
+
+PADDY'S WOMAN
+
+BY
+
+HUMPHREY JAMES
+
+Crown 8vo., 6s.
+
+"Traits of the Celt of humble circumstances are copied with keen
+appreciation and unsparing accuracy." Scotsman.
+
+" ... They are full of indescribable charm and pathos."--_Bradford
+Observer._
+
+"The outstanding merit of this series of stories is that they are
+absolutely true to life ... the photographic accuracy and minuteness
+displayed are really marvellous."
+
+_Aberdeen Free Press._
+
+"'Paddy's Woman and Other Stories' by Humphrey James; a volume written
+in the familiar diction of the Ulster people themselves, with =perfect
+realism and very remarkable ability.... For genuine human nature and
+human relations, and humour of an indescribable kind, we are unable to
+cite a rival to this volume=."
+
+_The World._
+
+"For a fine subtle piece of humour we are inclined to think that ='A
+Glass of Whisky'= takes a lot of beating.... In short Mr. Humphrey James
+has given us a delightful book, and one which does as much credit to his
+heart as to his head. We shall look forward with a keen anticipation to
+the next 'writings' by this shrewd, 'cliver,' and compassionate young
+author."--_Bookselling._
+
+11, Paternoster Buildings, London, E.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+T. FISHER UNWIN, Publisher,
+
+THE GREY MAN
+
+BY
+
+S. R. CROCKETT
+
+=Crown 8vo., cloth 6s.=
+
+_Also, an Edition de Luxe, with 26 Drawings by_ SEYMOUR LUCAS, R.A.,
+_limited to 250 copies, signed by Author. Crown 4to., cloth gilt, 21s.
+net._
+
+"It has nearly all the qualities which go to make a book of the
+first-class. Before you have read twenty pages you know that you are
+reading a classic."--_Literary World_.
+
+"All of that vast and increasing host of readers who prefer the novel of
+action to any other form of fiction should, nay, indeed, must, make a
+point of reading this exceedingly fine example of its class."--_Daily
+Chronicle_.
+
+"With such passages as these [referring to quotations], glowing with
+tender passion, or murky with horror, even the most insatiate lover of
+romance may feel that Mr. Crockett has given him good measure, well
+pressed down and running over."--_Daily Telegraph_.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+T. FISHER UNWIN, Publisher,
+
+A DAUGHTER OF THE FEN
+
+BY
+
+J. T. BEALBY
+
+_Second Edition. Crown 8vo., cloth, 6s._
+
+"It will deserve notice at the hands of such as are interested in the
+ways and manner of living of a curious race that has ceased to be."
+
+_Daily Chronicle._
+
+"For a first book 'A Daughter of the Fen' is full of
+promise."--_Academy._
+
+"This book deserves to be read for its extremely interesting account of
+life in the Fens and for its splendid character study of Mme.
+Dykereave."
+
+"Deserves high praise."--_Scotsman._   [_Star._
+
+"It is an able, interesting ... an exciting book, and is well worth
+reading. And when once taken up it will be difficult to lay it down."
+
+_Westminster Gazette._
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+IN A MAN'S MIND
+
+BY
+
+JOHN REAY WATSON
+
+_Crown 8vo., cloth, =6s=_.
+
+"We regard the book as well worth the effort of reading."--_British
+Review._
+
+"The book is clever, very clever."--_Dundee Advertiser._
+
+"The power and pathos of the book are undeniable."--_Liverpool Post._
+
+"It is a book of some promise."--_Newsagent._
+
+"Mr. Watson has hardly a rival among Australian writers, past or
+present. There is real power in the book--power of insight, power of
+reflection, power of analysis, power of presentation.... 'Tis a very
+well made book--not a set of independent episodes strung on the thread
+of a name or two, but closely interwoven to the climax."
+
+_Sydney Bulletin._
+
+"There is behind it all a power of drawing human nature that in time
+arrests the attention."--_Athenaeum._
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+11, Paternoster Buildings, London, E.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+NANCY NOON
+
+BY
+
+BENJAMIN SWIFT
+
+_Second Edition._ _Cloth_, =6s.=
+
+Some Reviews on the First Edition.
+
+"'Nancy Noon' is perhaps the strongest book of the year, certainly by
+far the strongest book which has been published by any new writer....
+Mr. Swift contrives to keep his book from end to end real, passionate,
+even intense.... If Mr. Meredith had never written, one would have
+predicted, with the utmost confidence, a great future for Mr. Benjamin
+Swift, and even as it is I have hopes."--_Sketch._
+
+"Certainly a promising first effort."--_Whitehall Review._
+
+"If 'Nancy Noon' be Mr. Swift's first book, it is a success of an
+uncommon kind."--_Dundee Advertiser._
+
+"'Nancy Noon' is one of the most remarkable novels of the year, and the
+author, avowedly a beginner, has succeeded in gaining a high position in
+the ranks of contemporary writers.... All his characters are delightful.
+In the heat of sensational incidents or droll scenes we stumble on
+observations that set us reflecting, and but for an occasional roughness
+of style--elliptical, Carlyle mannerisms--the whole is admirably
+written."--_Westminster Gazette._
+
+"Mr. Swift has the creative touch and a spark of genius."--_Manchester
+Guardian._
+
+"Mr. Swift has held us interested from the first to the last page of his
+novel."--_World._
+
+"The writer of 'Nancy Noon' has succeeded in presenting a powerfully
+written and thoroughly interesting story."--_Scotsman._
+
+"We are bound to admit that the story interested us all through, that it
+absorbed us towards the end, and that not until the last page had been
+read did we find it possible to lay the book down."--_Daily Chronicle._
+
+"It is a very strong book, very vividly coloured, very fascinating in
+its style, very compelling in its claim on the attention, and not at all
+likely to be soon forgotten."--_British Weekly._
+
+"A clever book.... The situations and ensuing complications are
+dramatic, and are handled with originality and daring throughout."--_Daily
+News._
+
+"Mr. Benjamin Swift has written a vastly entertaining
+book."--_Academy._
+
+T. FISHER UNWIN, Publisher, THE HALF-CROWN SERIES
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+_Each Demy 12mo., cloth._
+
+    1. =A Gender in Satan.= By RITA.
+
+    2. =The Making of Mary.= By JEAN
+    M. MCILWRAITH.
+
+    3. =Diana's Hunting.= By ROBERT
+    BUCHANAN.
+
+    4. =Sir Quixote of the Moors.= By
+    JOHN BUCHAN.
+
+    5. =Dreams.= By OLIVE SCHREINER.
+
+    6. =The Honour of the Flag.= By
+         CLARK RUSSELL.
+
+    7. =Le Selve.= By OUIDA. 2nd
+            Edition.
+
+    8. =An Altruist.= By OUIDA. 2nd
+            Edition.
+
+THE CAMEO SERIES
+
+_Demy 12mo., half-bound, paper boards, price_ =3s. 6d.=
+
+_Vols._ 14-17, =3s. 6d.= _net._
+
+_Also, an Edition de Luxe, limited to 30 copies, printed on Japan
+paper._ _Prices on application._
+
+    1. =The Lady from the Sea.= By
+        HENRIK IBSEN. Translated by ELEANOR
+        MARX AVELING. Second Edition.
+        Portrait.
+
+    4. =Iphigenia in Delphi,= with some
+        Translations from the Greek. By
+        RICHARD GARNETT, LL.D. Frontispiece.
+
+    5. =Mirelo:= A Provencal Poem.
+        By FREDERIC MISTRAL. Translated
+        by H. W. PRESTON. Frontispiece by
+        JOSEPH PENNELL.
+
+    6. =Lyrics.= Selected from the
+        Works of A. MARY F. ROBINSON
+        (Mme. JAMES DARMESTETER). Frontispiece.
+
+    7. =A Minor Poet.= By AMY LEVY.
+        With Portrait. Second Edition.
+
+    8. =Concerning Cats:= A Book of
+        Verses by many Authors. Edited by
+        GRAHAM R. THOMPSON. Illustrated.
+
+    9. =A Chaplet from the Greek Anthology.=
+        By RICHARD GARNETT, LL.D.
+
+    11. =The Love Songs of Robert Burns.=
+         Selected and Edited, with Introduction,
+         by Sir GEORGE DOUGLAS, Bart.
+         With Front. Portrait.
+
+    12. =Love Songs of Ireland.= Collected
+        and Edited by KATHERINE TYNAN.
+
+    13. =Retrospect,= and other Poems.
+         By A. MARY F. ROBINSON (Mme.
+         DARMESTETER), Author of "An Italian
+         Garden," &c.
+    14. =Brand:= A Dramatic Poem.
+         By HENRIK IBSEN. Translated by F.
+         EDMUND GARRETT.
+
+    15. =The Son of Don Juan.= By
+         Don JOSE ECHEGARAY. Translated
+         into English, with biographical Introduction,
+         by JAMES GRAHAM. With
+         Etched Portrait of the Author by Don
+         B. MAURA.
+
+    16. =Mariana.= By Don JOSE
+         ECHEGARAY. Translated into English
+         by JAMES GRAHAM. With a Photogravure
+         of a recent Portrait of the Author.
+
+    17. =Flamma Vestalis=, and other
+         Poems. By EUGENE MASON. Frontispiece
+         after Sir EDWARD BURNE-JONES.
+
+    11, Paternoster Buildings, London, E.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+THE MERMAID SERIES
+
+The Best Plays of the Old Dramatists.
+
+Literal Reproductions of the Old Text.
+
+_Post 8vo., each Volume containing about 500 pages, and an etched
+Frontispiece, cloth_, =3s. 6d.= _each._
+
+    1. =The Best Plays of Christopher=
+       =Marlowe.= Edited by HAVELOCK
+       ELLIS, and containing a General
+       Introduction to the Series by JOHN
+       ADDINGTON SYMONDS.
+
+    2. =The Best Plays of Thomas Otway.=
+       Introduction by the Hon.
+       RODEN NOEL.
+
+    3. =The Best Plays of John Ford.=--
+       Edited by HAVELOCK ELLIS.
+
+    4 and 5. =The Best Plays of Thomas=
+       =Massinger.= Essay and Notes by
+       ARTHUR SYMONS.
+
+    6. =The Best Plays of Thomas Heywood.=
+       Edited by A. W. VERITY.
+       Introduction by J. A. SYMONDS.
+
+    7. =The Complete Plays of William=
+       =Wycherley.= Edited by W. C.
+       WARD.
+
+    8. =Nero,= and other Plays. Edited
+       by H. P. HORNE, ARTHUR SYMONS,
+       A. W. VERITY, and H. ELLIS.
+
+    9 and 10. =The Best Plays of Beaumont=
+       =and Fletcher.= Introduction
+       by J. ST. LOE STRACHEY.
+
+    11. =The Complete Plays of William=
+        CONGREVE. Edited by ALEX. C.
+        EWALD.
+
+    12. =The Best Plays of Webster and=
+        =Tourneur.= Introduction by JOHN
+         ADDINGTON SYMONDS.
+
+    13 and 14. =The Best Plays of=
+       =Thomas Middleton=. Introduction
+       by ALGERNON CHARLES SWINBURNE.
+
+    15. =The Best Plays of James Shirley.=
+         Introduction by EDMUND.
+         GOSSE.
+
+    16. =The Best Plays of Thomas=
+        =Dekker.= Notes by ERNEST RHYS.
+
+    17, 19, and 20. =The Best Plays of=
+        =Ben Jonson.= Vol. I. edited, with
+         Introduction and Notes, by BRINSLEY
+         NICHOLSON and C. H. HERFORD.
+
+    18. =The Complete Plays of Richard=
+        =Steele.= Edited, with Introduction
+         and Notes, by G. A. AITKEN.
+
+    21. =The Best Plays of George Chapman.=
+         Edited by WILLIAM LYON
+         PHELPS, Instructor of English Literature
+         at Yale College.
+
+    22. =The Select Plays of Sir John=
+        =Vanbrugh.= Edited, with an Introduction
+         and Notes, by A. E. H.
+         SWAEN.
+
+_PRESS OPINIONS._
+
+"Even the professed scholar with a good library at his command will find
+some texts here not otherwise easily accessible; while the humbler
+student of slender resources, who knows the bitterness of not being able
+to possess himself of the treasure stored in expensive folios or quartos
+long out of print, will assuredly rise up and thank Mr. Unwin."--_St.
+James's Gazette._
+
+"Resumed under good auspices."--_Saturday Review._
+
+"The issue is as good as it could be."--_British Weekly._
+
+"At once scholarly and interesting."--_Leeds Mercury._
+
+11, Paternoster Buildings, London, E. C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The following typographical errors were corrected by the etext
+transcriber:
+
+somone=>someone
+
+get's over those things so=>get's over those things so
+
+off on the proferred arm=>off on the proffered arm
+
+the inns and outs of the Palace=>the ins and outs of the Palace
+
+The door off the Countess's apartments was opened=>The door of the
+Countess's apartments was opened
+
+where was the enthuiasm we had expected=>where was the enthusiasm we had
+expected
+
+We stood looking up at her with open mouths, dumbfoundered>=We stood
+looking up at her with open mouths, dumbfounded
+
+The castellan had turned his=>The Castellan had turned his
+
+They shank back and he went his way.=>They shrank back and he went his
+way.
+
+fidgetting with the lappet of his cloak.=>fidgeting with the lappet of
+his cloak.
+
+might have done differenly.=>might have done differently.
+
+leave me me in peace.=>leave me in peace.
+
+He vowed never to touch her again, and every time be broke the vow.=>He
+vowed never to touch her again, and every time he broke the vow.
+
+the horse's owner.=>the house's owner.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's The Making of a Saint, by William Somerset Maugham
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MAKING OF A SAINT ***
+
+***** This file should be named 39143.txt or 39143.zip *****
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