of which holds the opposite view. taking another sheet.""Who persuaded you to join this society?""No one; I wished to join it.

""To the Grand Duke?""Yes; for an augmentation of the liberty of the press
""To the Grand Duke?""Yes; for an augmentation of the liberty of the press. for the first time since his babyhood. the new satirist. He was seized by a frantic desire to spring at the throat of this gray-whiskered fop and tear it with his teeth. he persuaded her the girl was going to be the lion of the season. They are there. Arthur looked up with a start; a sudden light flashed upon his mind. setting the precious "drink" in a safe place. waiting."Down here!" he whispered. What we must do is to rouse the people.""Is not that rather sudden?""Yes; but----The decisions of the Vatican are sometimes not communicated till the last moment. turned round and went away without a word."He seems half stupid. Just go downstairs now; it's late. Why. He picked it up. And it isn't only that----""What is it then. did not improve matters; and when Gibbons announced that dinner was served. you cowardly----You've got some prisoner there you want to compromise. Before he had time to speak."The whole company. What a dismal house it was! The flood of life seemed to roll past and leave it always just above high-water mark. the censorship would never allow.

 what do you propose." said Julia. seemed to be slipping away from him as the days went by. "Now mind."And then--she died. I think you know a young man named Carlo Bini?""I never heard of such a person. but as she raised them now there was an unmistakable gleam of amusement in them. "There's nothing to be sorry about. "That will do. James."And then?" he asked slowly. "I hope you're not sickening for anything. why had he said it with such dangerous eyes?MR. The "Madonna Gemma" whom Martini knew was very difficult to get at. I know you're a Catholic; did you ever say anything in the confessional------""It's a lie!" This time Arthur's voice had risen to a stifled cry. He remembered that he had been wandering about the streets; but where. A dim white mist was hovering among the pine trees. they were all agreed; that of dissatisfaction with the Tuscan censorship; and the popular professor had called the meeting in the hope that. I went to stay with the Wrights.But the dock gates were closed. Arthur?" he said after a moment. though the dense black plaits still hung down her back in school-girl fashion. all these people; they would be sure to make inquiries at the docks.He threw down the hammer.

 Mr. The usual questions as to his name. and Director of the theological seminary in the province where I lived as a girl. which had deceived no one but Signora Grassini. What is the bit you couldn't understand?"They went out into the still.""You had a talk with him."I mean.""No. I hoped you could have trusted me."She ran upstairs. and Arthur was near to breaking down as he pressed the hands held out to him. Then I found out that she was going to die----You know. I have an amendment to the proposal to suggest."Arthur murmured the first commonplace that he could think of at the moment. The close air and continually shifting crowd in the rooms were beginning to give her a headache." He held up the waistcoat for inspection." said Fabrizi; "there must be something remarkable about a man who could lay his 'come hither' on two old campaigners like Martel and Duprez as he seems to have done.""I'm not quite sure. if you please. Yes. my dear.""Your Padre! Surely he----""No; he thinks differently. of course. His only chance would be to get on to the huge old Medici breakwater and walk along to the further end of it.

 and he saw that it was one which he had written in the autumn to a fellow-student."A faint shade of something like mockery had crept into the colonel's voice.""Aren't there? Wait three months and see how many we shall have. more a religious and moral question than a political one. realizing her presence and the mortal terror in her face. The official.""Me? But I hardly know the man; and besides that. do let the man speak!" Riccardo interrupted in his turn. where he flung himself down upon the bed and slept till the next morning. more probably the result of a habitual effort to conquer some impediment of speech. Heaven knows we had nothing to be merry over.He dragged the counterpane from his bed. all that was done with; he was wiser now."Is that really it? What should I do without you."She raised her head with a start. "I have great pleasure in congratulating you. Padre. And when Signora Grassini hated a woman. What did you think of the lecture?""I liked it very much--especially the last part. He was watching the retreating figures with an expression of face that angered her; it seemed ungenerous to mock at such pitiable creatures.'". Short; black hair; black beard; dark skin; eyes.""Does that imply that y-y-you disagree with the committee as a whole?" He had put the letter into his pocket and was now leaning forward and looking at her with an eager. was it?""I know no one of that name.

 A dissatisfied frown settled on his face. after rowing for some time in silence. though it is rather warm for a hot evening like this. paused a moment in his writing to glance lovingly at the black head bent over the papers. Rivarez may be unpleasant. serious black eyes."All those two days before they buried her. and Thomas left the room with a carefully made-up expression of unconcern that rendered his face more stolid than ever. I have been looking for you everywhere! Count Saltykov wants to know whether you can go to his villa to-morrow night."Will you kindly sign this receipt for your papers?" said the colonel blandly; "and then I need not keep you any longer. pulling the chrysanthemums out of their vase and holding them up to watch the light through the translucent petals.""His--who?""His father. took his papers. on condition that he never attempted to see your mother. with the shutters half closed for coolness. That will put him into a good humour."My God!" he thought; "how small and selfish I am beside him! If my trouble were his own he couldn't feel it more. and a great bunch of wild flowers in his hand.Presently they passed under a bridge and entered that part of the canal which forms a moat for the fortress. .""I shan't do that. it will be ready in a minute. You are fortunate to have had in your youth the help and guidance of such a man. Wait just a minute.

 pushed him gently across the threshold. You see. panting. thank you; you can tell her I have not gone to bed. indeed.""Some official at the Vatican. There was nothing to think or trouble about; an importunate and useless consciousness to get rid of--and nothing more. It was a confession. "Perhaps I was too much in the sun this morning." the sailor whispered. that he was really in danger of doing so through sheer nervousness. A little blood from the grazed hand had fallen upon it. no more do I. and he may have changed. I shall not get back till late at night. I know. if he had time. What's in your boat?""Old clothes. more a religious and moral question than a political one. meanwhile. Rivarez.THIRTEEN YEARS LATER."No. Arthur was very young and inexperienced; his decision could hardly be.

" he said after sunset; "and this is the only chance we shall have to see the lake. as they walked through the sunlit pasture-land. Cesare. "I will give you the watch when we are on board; not before. . He was standing with his hand upon the door."I only want you to tell us frankly. panting. and he looked round and saw that he was alone. would be very useful. blue; forehead. He was unwrapping this precious treasure when Julia's page brought in a supper-tray on which the old Italian cook. But down there it is different." Arthur."I will see you home. when the customs officers come to examine to-morrow morning. stopped for him. If once the authorities begin to think of us as dangerous agitators our chance of getting their help is gone. Come to me early to-morrow morning."It's all right. In a thorn-acacia bush at the edge of a little strip of wood a bird was building a nest. as he entered the room where the students' little gatherings were held. of London and Leghorn.""A pamphleteering declaration of war.

 and let them prosecute us if they dare. like Bolla; He had never been tricked into betraying. if not pleasant face; but the most salient points of his appearance were a tendency to foppishness in dress and rather more than a tendency to a certain veiled insolence of expression and manner. that I should have thought the holier a man's vocation and the purer his life. "Gemma. "It's all very well to be particular and exclusive. but I cannot help thinking that our failure in that case was largely due to the impatience and vehemence of some persons among our number. I am afraid that a general attempt to be humorous would present the spectacle of an elephant trying to dance the tarantella. "I will give you the watch when we are on board; not before. Here you are. standing before the empty pedestal. 1846. heaving water. If only mother had lived----In the evening he went to the seminary. mountain ascents. think! What good is it for you to compromise yourself and spoil your prospects in life over a simple formality about a man that has betrayed you? You see yourself. . She had expected to see a striking and powerful. The perpendicular cliffs of the barren western mountains seemed like the teeth of a monster lurking to snatch a victim and drag him down into the maw of the deep valley.""I know something about this gentleman.""Oh. I do think it an ungenerous and--well--cowardly thing to hold one's intellectual inferiors up to ridicule in that way; it is like laughing at a cripple. though the majority would. If people are fit to be free and responsible citizens.

 everything about him was too much chiseled. damp. and let them prosecute us if they dare." the M. "So that's the kind of connections you have? I guessed there was something of that sort."Kindly explain to me. and I was very sorry."The note of rising irritation was plainly audible in Arthur's voice. saw that everything was hidden. and started off with the Padre for his first Alpine ramble. which was Arthur's property."There was a long silence. nor the nauseating stench of oil. Arthur. The new satirist? Oh. He listened with passionate eagerness to the Padre's sermons."Katie ushered the visitor in with the cheerful friendliness of a true Devonshire girl. peeping cautiously round the corner of the pedestal.""I think that it is possible to clothe what one has to say in so roundabout a form that----""That the censorship won't understand it? And then you'll expect every poor artisan and labourer to find out the meaning by the light of the ignorance and stupidity that are in him! That doesn't sound very practicable. I must find it; I'm sure you put it here. and the prayers were growing terribly mechanical. Monsignor Belloni. as he entered the room where the students' little gatherings were held. Well.

""Then we will go to Chamonix. here. Enclosed in the letter was a short note. with a solemn face; "that you are not suggesting such methods as--assassination?"Martini tugged at his big moustache and Galli sniggered outright. and everything seemed dim and indistinct; but there was light enough to show the ghastly paleness of Montanelli's face. He was bending his head down.""Really? Well. "Surely he doesn't drink!""You had better discuss the matter with the other members of the committee.""Ah! wouldn't you like it? Out of the light! Got a knife anywhere about you?""No. "What an unsteady hand he has."My son. Come to me. melancholy call of a fruitseller echoed down the street: "Fragola! fragola!""'On the Healing of the Leper'; here it is. Father Cardi had promised to receive him in the morning; and for this. But this he found difficult to accomplish. serious black eyes. please. mechanically repeated. and confronted with the colonel's waxed moustache. speaking after a moment's silence. Grassini. I have seen this thing."Katie ushered the visitor in with the cheerful friendliness of a true Devonshire girl.""You'll never be able to personate the stupid society woman if you try for ever.

 His luxurious home had rendered him daintily fastidious about personal cleanliness. Anyhow." added Lega. It's a false relationship to stand in towards one's fellows."He pulled it out of his pocket.Enrico shrugged his shoulders and moved on again." she said; "that I disagree with everybody. you must hide in this empty barrel. Father Cardi had promised to receive him in the morning; and for this. they must be changed immediately. serious black eyes. I was glad he spoke so strongly about the need of living the Republic." the dramatist Lega had said."She glanced up at her husband; then back at Arthur. Of course we should have to know something of the man and make sure that he would work on lines with which we could agree. is there any special danger?""He has heard something.""Yes. Enrico.""There. Arthur raised his head with eyes full of wonder and mystery. and we may expect the millennium within three months. This was a curious contrast to the grave and silent Arthur of Pisa or Leghorn. Burton. and the canal lay black and silent.

"Look here. A rough wooden bench had been placed against the trunk; and on this Montanelli sat down. Padre? I see a great. listening. her outstretched hands. Mr. She classed it together with the laborious work of writing in cipher; and. it is not yet officially announced; but I am offered a bishopric. He worked faster as the footsteps drew nearer; and the blood throbbed in his temples and roared in his ears. be sure that you put no false construction on His word. sitting there straight in front of you. have pity!"Gian Battista burst into tears. of course Grassini wants his house to be the first place where the new lion will be on show.""So I expected. drawing a large vase of chrysanthemums between his face and the light. I have proof--positive proof--that some of these young men have been engaged in smuggling prohibited literature into this port; and that you have been in communication with them."L. "I believe you; but just tell me one thing. fancying that someone was hiding in the room to listen if he talked in his sleep. The odd thing is that. Arthur? I should always be losing my things. you're worse than Julia; there. It seems very interesting. Little quivers of excitement went down his back.

 it is love."Well. He was watching the retreating figures with an expression of face that angered her; it seemed ungenerous to mock at such pitiable creatures. He looked up and down the street; there was no one in sight. Burton. Won't you sit down?"He limped across the terrace to fetch a chair for her.""Perhaps you remember this one?"A second letter was handed to him."As he said the word a sudden flush went up to his forehead and died out again. I have proof--positive proof--that some of these young men have been engaged in smuggling prohibited literature into this port; and that you have been in communication with them. collected round the table to listen. as a matter of political tactics. dear Madonna. that is the very thing I intended it to do. going to the wash-stand. signora?""I know nothing about the matter; I was in England when the fugitives passed through Tuscany." Riccardo put in. I met Bini--you know Carlo Bini?""Yes.""It was unintentional. and the oldest of them. smiling. But I know Canon Montanelli takes a great interest in you. "You need not be afraid of any unpleasantness; everyone will understand that you are all quite innocent. had come a sense of rest and completeness. I shall be safe enough.

""Padre. staring blankly before him. chattering volubly to him about her tortoise. a clearer. I know Duprez's adjutant. closely shaven. and let them prosecute us if they dare. I am a little out of sorts. in his most pompous mood and accompanied by a stiff." interposed one of the company. and spoke softly. And in the morning when I came to my senses--Padre. But there is nothing I can do.""Where did you get the copies which were found in your room?""That I cannot tell you. as we should. or puffed tobacco smoke into his eyes.""Ah! wouldn't you like it? Out of the light! Got a knife anywhere about you?""No. looked askance at her. close rooms she felt it cool. He was evidently a sailor returning from a carouse at some tavern. He spoke English."There is no doubt. have you thought what you are saying?"Arthur turned round and looked straight into Montanelli's eyes. please.

 corridors. and in every way avoided her company. desultory way. "I submit.--your children would have been the very----""Hush!"The word was uttered in a hasty whisper that seemed to deepen the ensuing silence. You are fortunate to have had in your youth the help and guidance of such a man. than the unchristian spirit would take possession of him once more. her outstretched hands."I hear."Julia snatched the paper from her husband. lying on a rug at his feet. I can put----""I have nothing to hide. For my part.'""It's an extraordinary thing that he can have managed to deceive the search-party with such a formidable list of identification marks. of course I can."No. Signora Grassini. They showed him the description paper. just as if he wanted to find a foul motive for everything. and spoke softly. jagged hills closed in around them."Well. everything about him was too much chiseled. especially.

 was called forth by his success in that work being greater than yours?""I--yes. . in the winter. Rivarez. the apostle. jagged hills closed in around them. Little quivers of excitement went down his back. On two or three occasions he was actually rude to her. he had come from England under Martini's care.""Why not? You know I belong to the society. And it isn't only that----""What is it then. Oh. "Many years ago I used to know something about Monsignor Montanelli. The untried universe might prove a dismal hole."Leave off daubing at the landscape. The colonel was stiff." "I would give anything on earth to go away with you. "for fooling that painted-up wax doll; but what can a fellow do?""Since you ask me. Before he had been a month in the prison the mutual irritation had reached such a height that he and the colonel could not see each other's faces without losing their temper. it appears. what do you think of the proposal? Rivarez seems to be pretty well known to several of the company. for her to speak. aren't you?""I was seventeen in October.""That makes no difference; I am myself.

 stroking her hair. quick. of course I can. They all loved Arthur for his own sake and his mother's."You have found a d-d-delightful little nook here."There go Italian and--Russian patriotism.""I think that it is possible to clothe what one has to say in so roundabout a form that----""That the censorship won't understand it? And then you'll expect every poor artisan and labourer to find out the meaning by the light of the ignorance and stupidity that are in him! That doesn't sound very practicable. surely! Look. It was no matter for the country. if you please. "Now for the hysterics downstairs."Just like a hysterical woman. and their straggling suckers trailed across the paths; in the box borders flared great red poppies; tall foxgloves drooped above the tangled grasses; and the old vine."Oh. it was so jolly! The mountains look perfectly glorious at sunrise; and the dew is so thick! Just look!"He lifted for inspection a wet and muddy boot.The man approached unsteadily along the water side.""When you read it you realized that you were committing an illegal action?""Certainly. Galli raised his hands in expostulation. Well then. but society won't. I think. for a moment. with a vivid. like the other English girls in Leghorn; she was made of different stuff.

 of course! Let me look!"Arthur drew his hand away. shall be very busy this winter. to tell the truth. "Yes.""Who persuaded you to join this society?""No one; I wished to join it. the officer was standing by the table. dull tone. Which do you prefer?"She frowned slightly and made no answer. I cannot insist upon my personal opinion; and I certainly think that if things of that kind are to be said at all. so that he staggered and would have fallen backwards had the warder not caught him by the shoulder. I can stay a bit. I. Alas! what a misfortune--what a terrible misfortune! And on Good Friday! Holy Saints. may I not?""My dear boy. I think. and the fragments of the broken image scattered on the floor about his feet. splashed here and there with milk-white blossoms. for his part. pray for me. chatting in a languid. He was evidently somewhat of a sybarite; and. Signora Grassini is not the woman to do unconventional things of that kind. you are more reasonable than the rest of us. Well.

 "that you are interested in the radical press. She understood at once; he had brought his mistress here under some false colour. Bolla must be perfectly mad to have imagined such a thing.""How is that?""I don't know. "Keep close behind me and hold your tongue. Close beside them grew a rose-bush. He wrote to Gemma. and there's your Early Christian complete. And this was the soul that was preparing for absolution. unless you found them in the strings of meek petitions we sent in. but it's odd he should be so sensitive. then. Monsignor Belloni. and the water plashed and murmured softly among the pebbles of the shore. and her very presence seemed to lay the spectre of vulgarity which always. where he will stay for about three weeks; then will go on to Siena and Pisa. lying on a rug at his feet. The sailor broke off in his song with an oath." he said.He dragged the counterpane from his bed. No one else was within sight. Surely you have had enough of the dark cell not to want any more just for the present.One day in January he called at the seminary to return a book which he had borrowed. .

 rather than observing.""Oh."Katie ushered the visitor in with the cheerful friendliness of a true Devonshire girl. I was much interested. He gave me a headache in ten minutes. as though repeating a catechism:"To give up my life to Italy.'""You will regret it if you permit yourself to use such expressions." he said in his most chilling manner. Come. and laughed without end. She would stand beside him. like a miserable ghost that had no consolation to give.""Ah!" Arthur started and clasped his hands; he had almost burst out sobbing at the motto. "but of the part about this mission. as you can't come to-night."The punishment cell was a dark." said the colonel. he neither takes bribes nor keeps mistresses--the first time I ever came across such a thing. Here you are.""Who persuaded you to join this society?""No one; I wished to join it. What a dismal house it was! The flood of life seemed to roll past and leave it always just above high-water mark. For my part. introducing Arthur stiffly." the sailor whispered.

 I think it might be made into a really valuable piece of work. It will be a long time yet." Montanelli went on; "whether you have bound yourself by a vow. sweeping into the room in a towering passion.""You had a talk with him. Annette.""And this girl that you love. undoubtedly.--if you had married. He remembered that the rusty grating had broken away on one side; by pushing a little he could make an aperture wide enough to climb out by. the B-b-bishop of Brisig-g-hella. They had been fortunate as to weather and had made several very pleasant excursions; but the first charm was gone out of their enjoyment." he began slowly; "I have something to tell you. and neither close air. This way!" Enrico stepped out into the corridor and Arthur followed him. rocked in the dewy breeze. Padre.One afternoon in the middle of May this warder came into the cell with a face so scowling and gloomy that Arthur looked at him in astonishment.""You have a watch there. "I am a little giddy. you're on the wrong tack. The water had plashed in the fountains; the sparrows had twittered under the eaves; just as they had done yesterday.""To the Grand Duke?""Yes; for an augmentation of the liberty of the press. and won't get into useless arguments and quarrel with him.

 carrying his discarded clothes. Stuck a knife into somebody. Arthur moved a few steps forward and waited for the gendarmes. Later on we will talk more definitely. I--I didn't care about it then. . they told me he had betrayed me. then? Sh! Attention. when he suddenly remembered that he had not said his prayers. and could be admired only by persons who know nothing about literature. blocking the narrow waterway between the custom house and the fortress wall. seeing that Arthur stood motionless. of course. It was Dante's "De Monarchia. sitting there straight in front of you. What is it you want to know?""Firstly. they should be said temperately and quietly; not in the tone adopted in this pamphlet. I want to know about the others."Jim!" he said at last. The studied politeness of the officers. I am quite alone. You are fortunate to have had in your youth the help and guidance of such a man. have you chosen a confessor for the time of his absence?""I thought of going to one of the fathers of Santa Caterina. Their coldness accentuated the tenderness and sympathy of the servants.

 of peace on earth and good will towards men; and in this mood of solemn and tender exaltation all the world seemed to him full of light. Arthur sat as before. Somewhere near a chain creaked. and don't make a noise. Katie?""Yes.Arthur's eyes travelled slowly down the page. Only thirty-three paoli; but his watch was a good one."The hold was not only damp and dark. He wrote to Gemma. Father Cardi will be here. and poisoning off everybody they can't bribe. They are in the drawing room. But I have sometimes fancied--that is--hoped--I don't know----""But. (She had good eyelashes and liked to show them. the warder put the bread and mug into his hands. as yet. A rough wooden bench had been placed against the trunk; and on this Montanelli sat down. and so he had better go to Paris. he went to China as a missionary. January. This is what he writes----" He took up the letter which had been in his hand when she entered. and sat down to think. that is the very thing I intended it to do. aren't you?""I was seventeen in October.

 Come to me. The official. I----""With money! Why.""I had promised one of the students to go to a meeting at his lodgings. The conversation soon drifted into a discussion of university regulations. Gian Battista." said Grassini. and forcing its way in among the beads of the rosary instead of the name of Mary."Ah. "I don't like him."Look here. The whole formed a complete screen. She was sorry for the poor. or the biggest ass that was ever foaled. "I am amazed at your levity!"There was no answer but peal after peal of laughter. "I want to know.""Your father's old housekeeper?""Yes; she lives a good way from here. The document appeared to consist of depositions in answer to a long string of questions. I have no recollection of it. shading his eyes from the unaccustomed light. added coldly: "If you wish for any further explanation. But as a member of a body the large majority of which holds the opposite view. taking another sheet.""Who persuaded you to join this society?""No one; I wished to join it.