Volume VI Part 30 (2/2)
The Co man with a pleasant face but with an ill-proportioned body He was a great debauchee and lover of bad coion, morality, and law He was directly descended from the Co declared hiinal patent of nobility was the first thing I saw in his antechaht see it in the quarter of an hour they were kept waiting
The count received me with an easy and cordiale nities of his rank He thanked Don Diego for introducing ood deal about Colonel Royas He asked ossa, and onin the affirmative, he told me in a whisper that he had slept with her
He took me to his stables, where he had some splendid horses, and then asked me to dine with him the next day
The viceroy received ht not have to offer e I knew hi me 'ussia' (a contraction of 'vuestra senoria', your lordshi+p, and used by everyone in Spain), while I gave hiood deal about Madrid, and coone to Paris by Bayonne instead of Barcelona, as he had pro that by taking the other route he had saved fifty leagues of his journey, but the viceroy replied that 'tenir la palabra' (keeping to one's words) co long at Barcelona, and seemed surprised when I told hi stay
”I hope you will enjoy yourself,” he said, ”but I e in the pleasures which my nephew Peralada will doubtless offer you, you will not enjoy a very good reputation at Barcelona”
As the Cohtit to Peralada hihted, and told one to Madrid three times, and had been ordered to return to Catalonia on each occasion
I thought my best plan would be to follow the viceroy's indirect advice, so I refused to join in any of the little parties of pleasure which Peralada proposed
On the fifth day after my arrival, an officer came to ask me to dinner at the viceroy's I accepted the invitation withheard of ht have taken a dislike tohis observations to ravity
I had been in Barcelona for a week, and was beginning to wonder why I had not heard fro me to coht
If I had been wise I should not have gone, for I was not in love with the woman, and should have remembered the respect due to the viceroy; but I was devoid of all wisdom and prudence All the ht me those two most necessary virtues
At the hour she had nareat coat, and with a sword for my only weapon I found Nina with her sister, a woman of thirty-six or thereabouts, as married to an Italian dancer, nicknamed Schizza, because he had a flatter nose than any Tartar
Nina had just been supping with her lover, who had left her at ten o'clock, according to his invariable custohted to hear I had been to dinner with hi how adlad to hear it, but I do not think you are wise in inviting me to your house at such late hours”
”I only do so to avoid scandal a so late is only likely to increase the probability of scandal, and to make your viceroy jealous”
”He will never hear of your co”
”I think you are ht, after a conversation of the most decent character Her sister did not leave us for a ave her no cause to suspect the inti, without encroaching on the count's preserves I thoughtshould have made me desist if I had not been carried away by the forces of destiny and obstinacy in combination
An officer in the Walloon Guards accostedby ed me in the most polite manner to excuse him if he spoke on a reat consequence to me
”Speak, sir,” I replied, ”I will take whatever you say in good part”