Volume I Part 44 (1/2)
”Should you wish to see the person hoarden beyond the fountain, and contrive to beco her for soe to see your partner in the forlana without running any risk, even if you should happen to meet Ismail; she is a native of Venice Be careful not to ”
”I am not such a fool, my lovely countrywoman,” I exclaimed, as if she had been present, and put the letter inelderly woman came out of a thicket, pronounced my name, and enquired what I wanted and how I had seen her I answered that I had been speaking to the wind, not supposing that anyone could hear me, and without any lad of the opportunity of speaking with ht up Zel and to play the harp She then praised highly the beauty and the excellent qualities of her pupil, saying that, if I saw her, I would certainly fall in love with her, and expressing how retted that the law should not allow it
”She sees us at this very reen -blind, and we love you ever since Yusuf has informed us that you may, perhaps, become Zelmi's husband”
”May I mention our conversation to Yusuf?” I enquired
”No”
Her answering in the negative made me understand that, if I had pressed her a little, she would have allowed me to see her lovely pupil, and perhaps it ith that intention that she had contrived to speak toto displease reater i an intricateoverangry when he saith the woman, he re with a native of Roht Iwith one of the beauties from the harem of the voluptuous Ismail
”Then it must be a pleasure seldom enjoyed, if it is so st us an invincible prejudice against exposing our lovely women to the eyes of other men; but everyone may do as he pleases in his own house: Isent man”
”Is the lady hom I danced known?”
”I believe not She wore a mask, and everybody knows that Is beauty”
I spent a pleasant day with Yusuf, and when I left him, I ordered my janissary to take me to Iso in, and I proceeded to the spot described in the letter The eunuch came to me, inforhted to hear of arden I told hilass of lenized the old woman who had sold lass of soive her any ether towards the fountain, but he told o back, as he saw three ladies to who that, for the sake of decency, it was necessary to avoid them I thanked him for his attentions, left my compliments for Ismail, and went away not dissatisfied withI received a letter fro with hi that he intended to enjoy the sport by ave way to ht be capable of arranging an intervieeenpresent I begged permission of Chevalier Venier to stop out of the palace for one night, but he granted it with the greatest difficulty, because he was afraid of soht have I took care to cal hiht I ise in being discreet
I was exact to the appointed time, and Ismail received me with the utmost cordiality, but I was surprised when I found myself alone with him in the boat We had ters and a man to steer; we took some fish, fried in oil, and ate it in the suhtful Alone with Is his unnatural tastes, I did not feel very comfortable for, in spite of what M de Bonneval had told ive reat a proof of his friendshi+p, and I did not relish our tete-a-tete But roundless
”Let us leave this place quietly,” said Isht noise which heralds so that will amuse us”
He dis,
”Let us go to a small room, the key of which I luckily have with me, but let us be careful not tothe fountain where I think that two or three of one to bathe We will see theine that anyone is looking at them They know that the place is forbidden to everybody except me”
We entered the rooht over the basin of the fountain,three ny on the marble steps, offered themselves to our eyes in every possible position, and in all the attitudes of graceful voluptuousness Dear reader, I must not paint in too vivid colours the details of that beautiful picture, but if nature has endowed you with an ardent iination and with equally ardent senses, you will easily iine the fearful havoc which that unique, wonderful, and enchanting sight must have htful fishi+ng and bathing party by ; as it was raining, I could not go to the garden, and I went into the dining-room, in which I had never seen anyone Thefe her features with a thick veil which fell to the feet A slave was sitting near the , doing soized, and turned to leave the roo, with a sweet voice, that Yusuf had co out She invitedto a rich cushi+on placed upon two larger ones, and I obeyed, while, crossing her legs, she sat down upon another cushi+on opposite toupon Zelmi, and fancied that Yusuf had eous than Is, he strongly contradicted histhe unbiased purity oflove in the balance But I had no fear of that, because, to become enamoured, I should have required to see her face
”I suppose,” said the veiled beauty, ”that you do not knoho I auess, if I tried”
”I have been for the last five years the wife of your friend, and I ae when I becareatly astonished to find that one so far as to allow me to converse with his wife, but I felt more at ease after I had received that inforht carry the adventure further, but it would be necessary to see the lady's face, for a finely-dressed body, the head of which is not seen, excites but feeble desires The fire lighted by amorous desires is like a fire of straw; the nificent appearance, but I could not see the soul of the iaze I could see arms as white as alabaster, and hands like those of Alcina, 'dove ne nodo appasisce ne vena accede', and ination fancied that all the rest was in harraceful folds of thethe outline all its perfection, hid fro satin of the surface; there was no doubt that everything was lovely, but I wanted to see, in the expression of her eyes, that all thatThe Oriental costume is a beautiful varnish placed upon a porcelain vase to protect fron, without lessening the pleasure of the eyes Yusuf's as not dressed like a sultana; she wore the costume of Scio, with a short skirt which concealed neither the perfection of the leg nor the round forh, nor the voluptuous plump fall of the hips, nor the slender, well-made waist encompassed in a splendid band embroidered in silver and covered with arabesques Above all those beauties, I could see the shape of two globes which Apelles would have taken for the model of those of his lovely Venus, and the rapid, inequalhillocks were anireedily feasted upon, seeed to quench their thirst with more ardour than they would have drunk from the cup of the Gods
Enraptured, unable to control myself, I thrust my arm forward by a movement almost independent of my will, andthe hateful veil, but she preventedme at the sa as her attitude
”Dost thou deserve,” she said, ”Yusuf's friendshi+p, when thou abusest the sacred laws of hospitality by insulting his wife?”
”Madaive me, for I never had any intention to insult you In my country the lowest of men may fix his eyes upon the face of a queen”