she exclaimed in simulated surprise, taking her hand away and indicating the wealth around the walls. “Man, thy eyes are idle; look at those gems, those paintings; hast ever seen the like of those ‘Three Graces,’ then, that they have no interest for thee?”

“Yes, I have seen the like, wonderful, wonderful being,” he returned hoarsely. “You I have seen; you, you, I see nothing else but you, Dolores!”

She dazzled him with a seductive smile, full of fire-specked softnesses, and offered him her flagon.

“Drink, comrade. Drink here, and we shall talk of thee and me, and what concerns us both nearly. Art sure thy eyes are not blinded by the nearer beauty?”

“I am not blind! I never saw with clearer vision!”