he discovers who the captain of the ship is. taurisa relates to him the story of how auristella was carried off: he offers to go in search of her, and to be sold to the barbarians.
the boy was left by the seamen to repose, as their commander had desired; but as thoughts, sad and various, crossed his mind, sleep refused to come near him. another cause, however, helped to banish it. this was, certain grievous sighs and bitter lamentations, that proceeded, as it appeared to him, from an apartment near that where he was, and applying himself to listen, he heard that some one said, "sad and luckless was the hour in which i was begotten, and under an evil star did my mother cast me forth into the world, and well may i say cast me forth, for a birth like mine may be more fitly termed to be cast out than born; at least i thought myself free to enjoy the light of heaven in this life, but thought deceived me, since i am about to be sold as a slave, and what misfortune can compare to this."
"o thou, whoever thou art," said the boy, "if it is true, as people say, that sorrows and troubles when communicated to others are alleviated, come hither, and through the open chinks of these boards relate thine to me; and if thou dost not find relief, thou shalt at least meet with sympathy."
"listen then," was the reply, "and in a few words i will relate the injustice that fortune has done to me, but first i would fain know to whom i am speaking. tell me if thou art by chance a boy who has a short time since been found, tied upon some planks, which they say served for boats to the savages that dwell in the island near which we have anchored, sheltering from the storm that has arisen?"
"that same am i," answered the boy.
"then who art thou?" again asked the invisible speaker.
"i would tell thee," he replied, "if it were not that i first wish thee to oblige me by relating thy history, which, from the words thou hast uttered, i imagine is not as happy as thou could'st desire it to be."
"then listen," was the reply, "and i will briefly relate the history of my misfortunes. the commander of this ship is called arnoldo, and he is the son and heir of the king of denmark, into whose power there fell (owing to many extraordinary accidents) an illustrious lady, who was my mistress, and according to my idea, she is of such exceeding beauty that, from all who now live upon the earth, and all which the most lively imagination or the sharpest wits can conceive, she would bear away the prize. her prudence equals her beauty, and her misfortunes surpass both. her name is auristella; she is of kingly race, and is born of rich parents. she then, whom to describe all praise must fall short, was sold as a slave, and bought by arnoldo; and with so much earnestness and devotion he did, and does still, love her, that a thousand times he wished, instead of making her a slave, to be himself her's, and to acknowledge her as his lawful wife, and this too with the full consent of the king, his father, who thought the rare beauty and merits of auristella deserved even more than to become a queen; but she refused, saying, 'i cannot possibly break a vow that i have made to continue a virgin all my life, nor can i be made to violate this vow either by entreaties or by threats.'
"but nevertheless arnoldo did not cease to hope, trusting much to the effect of time, and the variable nature of woman; until it happened that my mistress, the lady auristella, going to the sea-shore as she was accustomed for her amusement, (she being treated more as a queen than a slave,) some corsairs came in a vessel, and seized and carried her off, we know not where. the prince arnoldo imagines that these corsairs are the same who sold her the first time, which same corsairs infest all these seas, islands, and shores, stealing or buying the most beautiful maidens that they can find in order to make a profit by selling them to this island where it is said we now are, and which is inhabited by some barbarians, a savage and cruel race, who hold among themselves as a thing certain and inviolable (persuaded it may be by a demon, or as some say by an ancient sorcerer whom they consider the wisest of men), that there shall spring from among them a king, who will conquer and gain a great part of the world. they know not who this hoped-for king will be, and in order to know it, the sorcerer commands them to sacrifice all the men who come to the island, and to make their hearts into powder, which is then given in some drink to all the principal savages in the island, with an express order, that he who should take it without a wry face or appearing to dislike it, should be elected king, but it is not he who is to conquer the world, but his son. also, he commands them to bring into the island all the maidens they can procure, either by theft or purchase, and that the most beautiful shall be delivered immediately to the barbarian, whose succession has been determined by the drinking of the powder. these maidens purchased, or stolen, are well treated by them; in this alone they are not barbarous; and they buy them at the highest prices, which they pay in pieces of uncoined gold and in precious pearls, with which the sea around these islands, abounds. for this cause, and impelled by this interest and desire of gain, many have become pirates and merchants. arnoldo then, as i have before said, fancies that auristella may be in this island;—she, who is the other half of his soul, and without whom he cannot live: and in order to ascertain this fact, he has determined to sell me to the barbarians, so that i, remaining among them, may serve as a spy to discover what he wishes to know, and he is now hoping for nothing more than that the sea should be calm enough for him to land and conclude the sale. see then whether i have not reason to complain, since the lot that remains for me is to go and live among savages, where i shall not be beautiful enough to hope to become their queen, especially if her cruel fate should have brought to this land the peerless auristella. this, then, is the cause of the sighs thou hast heard, and from this fear arise the lamentations i have uttered."
she ceased speaking, and the boy felt a something rise in his throat, and pressed his mouth to the boards, which he watered with copious tears; and after a short space, he asked if by chance she had any conjecture whether arnoldo had obtained the love of auristella, or whether it was possible that she, having elsewhere pledged her faith, had disdained his offers, and refused the splendid gift of a throne; for it seemed to him, he said, that sometimes the laws of human affection were even stronger than those of religion. she answered, that though she had fancied there was a time, when auristella seemed to like one periander, who had taken her from her own country, a noble gentleman endowed with all the qualities that could make him beloved, yet she never heard her mention his name in the continual complaints that she made to heaven of her misfortunes, nor in any other way whatsoever.
he asked if she knew this periander, of whom she spoke. she said she did not, but that by what she had heard, she knew it was he who had carried off her lady, into whose service she had entered after periander left her, owing to a very extraordinary incident.
they were discoursing thus, when taurisa was called from above (this was the name of her who had related the story of her misfortunes). hearing herself called, she said, "without a doubt the sea is now calm and the tempest is over, and this is the summons for me, and i must be delivered up to my hard fate. may heaven protect thee, who ever thou art, and mayest thou be preserved from having thy heart burnt to ashes in order to accomplish this vain and foolish prophecy, for the inhabitants of this island seek hearts to burn as well as maidens to keep, in hopes of its fulfilment."
they parted here; taurisa went on deck; the boy remained in deep meditation for a while, and presently he asked for some clothes, that he might rise and dress himself. they brought him a vestment of green damask cut in the same fashion as the linen one he had on. he then went on deck, where he was received by arnoldo with kind courtesy, who seated him by his side. taurisa was there, dressed in rich and graceful attire, after the fashion of a water nymph, or a hamadryad of the woods. so much was arnoldo filled with admiration for the youth, that he told him the whole history of his love for auristella and his intentions, and even asked his advice as to what he should do; and inquired if he thought the plan he had devised to gain intelligence of auristella, appeared to him well conceived.
the youth, whose mind was full of fancies and suspicions, in consequence of the conversation he had held with taurisa, and also from what arnoldo had told him, now rapidly revolving in his imagination all that might possibly happen if by chance auristella should have fallen into the hands of the barbarians, answered thus:
"my lord, i am not of an age to give you advice, but i feel a wish to be of use to you, and to employ in your service the life you have preserved and for which i have to thank you. my name is periander, i am of noble birth, from whence springs my misfortunes and calamities, which it would take too much time to relate to you at present. this auristella, whom you seek, is my sister, and i also am in search of her. it is more than a year since i lost her. by the name, and by the beauty, which you describe her as possessing in such a high degree, i know without a doubt, that this must be my lost sister, whom to find i would give not only my life but the happiness i hope to enjoy in finding her, and that is the very greatest degree imaginable. thus, i, being so deeply interested in this search, am devising certain other means in my mind, which, though it would be more dangerous as far as my safety is concerned, would be more sure and speedy. you, my lord arnoldo, have determined to sell this damsel to the barbarians, in order that she, being in their power, may discover whether auristella is there likewise, of which she is to inform you, returning again to sell another damsel to these same barbarians, and if means do not fail her, taurisa is to find out whether or no auristella is among the number of those who are kept by the barbarians for the purpose you are acquainted with, and who are purchased by them with so much eagerness."
"it is even so," replied arnoldo, "and i have chosen taurisa rather than any other of the four maidens who are in the ship for the same purpose, because taurisa knows her, having been her waiting-woman."
"all this is well imagined," said periander, "but i am of opinion that no one will do this business so well as i myself will do it, since my age, my appearance, the interest i take in it, joined to the knowledge i have of auristella, are all inciting me to advise that i should undertake this enterprise. now see whether you agree with me in this and delay not a moment, for in cases of danger or difficulty, the advice and the undertaking should be settled together at once."
the advice of periander pleased arnoldo, and without weighing the difficulties that might arise, put it into operation at once. and from many rich dresses which he had provided in the hope of finding auristella, they attired periander, who, in this disguise, came forth the most graceful and beautiful creature that mortal eyes had ever seen; since, unless we except auristella, no other could possibly equal the beauty of the boy. the mariners stood in silent admiration; taurisa, astonished; the prince confused, with a notion that he might possibly not be the brother of auristella, the consideration that he was a man, troubled his soul with the sharp pang of jealousy which can pierce even through adamant; that is to say, jealousy breaks through all security and prudence, although the enamoured heart be armed with both.
finally, the metamorphosis of periander being completed, they put out a little to sea in order to be seen by the barbarians. the hurry arnoldo was in to hear something of auristella had prevented him from first ascertaining from periander who he and his sister were, and by what accidents he had been brought into the miserable condition in which he was found. all this, according to the natural order of things should have preceded the confidence reposed in him; but, as is common with lovers (occupied solely by the thought of seeking means to arrive at the desired end of their wishes, rather than in curiosity concerning other people's affairs), he never found time to enquire concerning that, which it would have been well for him to have known, and which he came to know afterwards when the knowledge did him no good.
they sailed off a little way from the island as i said before; the ship decked out with flags and streamers, which floated in the air, making a gay and beautiful spectacle. the calm sea, the clear sky, the sound of the clarions and other instruments of music, both warlike and joyous, filled all hearts with admiration, and the barbarians who looked on at no great distance, remained, as it seemed, doubtful what part to take, and then all at once they crowded to the shore, armed with the enormous bows and arrows i have already described. a little less than a mile brought the ship to the island, when after a discharge of artillery, which she had both heavy and numerous, the boat was lowered, and arnoldo, taurisa and periander, with six sailors, got into it, putting a piece of white linen at the point of a lance as a signal of peace, this being customary among all nations. what befell them, is related in the following chapter.
