“It hath been much admired,” said the nobleman addressed.

“I am strangely suited, my lord,” I went on, still dreamily enjoying the beauty of the green gem within my clasp. “I am a soldier with an imagination. Sometimes, to give the rein to my fancy pleases me more than wine. Now, this strange chalice, — might it not breed dreams as strange?”

“When I had drunken, I think,” replied my lord. “The wine would be a potent spur to my fancy.”

“What saith honest Jack Falstaff?” broke in the maudlin Secretary. “Doth he not bear testimony that good sherris maketh the brain apprehensive and quick; filleth it with nimble, fiery, and delectable shapes, which being delivered by the