Volume VI Part 47 (2/2)
”How can you know all this?”
”Experience--experience isfeather-brain, a ht possibly marry you, but it would be only to support himself by the sale of your charms”
”He loves me; I am sure of it”
”Yes, he loves you, but not with the love of aabout me, he delivered you over to my tender mercies A man of any delicacy would never abandon his loved one thus”
”He is not jealous You know Frenchmen are not”
”A land, and Italy, and all the world over If he loved you, would he have left you penniless in this fashi+on? What would you do, if I were inclined to play the brutal lover? You may speak freely”
”I should defend ood; then I should abandon you here, and ould you do then?
You are pretty, you are a woman of sensibility, but many men would take but little account of your virtue Your lover has left you to ht be the vilest wretch; but as it is, cheer up, you have nothing to fear
”How can you think that adventurer loves you? He is a mere monster I am sorry that what I say makes you weep, but it reat liking to you; but you ive me so et to Rome I shall convince you that the count, as he calls himself, not only does not love you, but is a common swindler as well as a deceiver”
”You will convince me of that?”
”Yes, on my word of honour! Dry your eyes, and let us try to make this day pass as pleasantly as yesterday You cannot ilad I feel that chance has constituted me your protector I want you to feel assured of ive me a little love in return, I will try and bear it patiently”
The landlord caht the bill for the count and his mistress as well as for myself I had expected this, and paid it without a word, and without looking at the poor wandering sheep besidemedicines kill, and do not cure, and I was afraid I had said aled to know her history, and felt sure I should hear it before we reached Rome We took some coffee and departed, and not a word passed between us till we got to the inn at La Scala, where we got down
The road from La Scala to Radicofani is steep and troublesome The vetturino would require an extra horse, and even then would have taken four hours I decided, therefore, to take two post horses, and not to begin the journey till ten o'clock
”Would it not be better to go on now?” said the English girl; ”it will be very hot from ten till noon”
”Yes, but the Comte de l'Ltoile, e should be sure to meet at Radicofani, would not like to see me”
”Why not? I am sure he would”
If I had told her my reason she would have wept anew, so in pity I spared her I saw that she was blinded by love, and could not see the true character of her lover It would be iument; I must speak sharply, the wound must be subjected to the actual cautery But was virtue the cause of all this interest? Was it devotion to a young and innocent girl thatto undertake so difficult and so delicate a task? Doubtless these , but I will not attempt to strut in borrowed pluly and stupid I should probably have left her to her fate In short, selfishness was at the bottom of it all, so let us say no more about virtue
My true aim was to snatch this delicate ht enjoy it myself I did not confess as much to s, but afterwards I cahout Is selfishness, then, the universal motor of our actions? I am afraid it is
I made Betty (such was her name) take a country ith me, and the scenery there is so beautiful that no poet nor painter could ilish idiolish accent, but her voice was so silvery and clear that her Italian was delightful to listen to I longed to kiss her lips as they spoke so sweetly, but I respected her and restrained myself