what passed between arnoldo and periander, and between the duke de nemours and croriano.
on the following day the news of the arrival of the french ladies, and the little band of pilgrims, had spread throughout the town.
chiefly did the general voice extol auristella's superhuman beauty, exaggerating it even to the utmost. the house was encompassed by persons, brought by curiosity, and the desire of gazing upon so much beauty assembled in one place, as people talked of. it rose to such a height at last that they even called out from the street to summon the ladies to appear at the windows, but they were reposing, and would not let themselves be seen. especially they called out for auristella, but they did not succeed in catching a sight of any one of the party.
among the rest who appeared at the door were arnoldo and the duke, still in their pilgrim's dresses, and scarcely did they set eyes upon each other than they felt their jealous hatred revive, and their hearts beat wildly in their breasts.
from the windows they were seen by periander, who told croriano, and they instantly descended together, to prevent, as much as possible, the chance of an encounter between the two jealous lovers.
periander went to meet arnoldo, and croriano, the duke. arnoldo said, "one of the heaviest weights upon my mind, on the subject of auristella, is to think how this french gentleman, who is said to be the duke de nemours, can have obtained possession of her picture, since she is under your care; it appears to have been given by her willingly, yet i possess none. look you now, friend periander; in this infirmity, by lovers called jealousy, but which is rather desperate rage, envy and scorn enter in, and when once they gain possession of an enamoured heart, no consideration can soothe, no remedy avail, and however small may be the causes which first engendered it, its effects are so great that at the least they can overthrow reason, and often can destroy the very life. better is it for a jealous lover to die of despair than to live in jealousy. if he be a true lover, he is not bold enough to show his suspicions to the beloved one, and should he be perfect enough not to show it, he cannot help feeling it, he cannot feel secure, for things that are of great value keep their possessor in continual fear lest he should lose them. thus the passion of jealousy, is one, inseparable from a heart that truly loves. i advise thee, o my friend periander, (if i may give advice who cannot give it to myself,) to reflect that i am a king, and that i am very deeply in love; and thou must be aware from a thousand proofs, that i shall accomplish in my deeds, that which i promise in words, to receive thy peerless sister with no other portion than that she brings so largely in her virtue and her beauty, and that i care not to investigate what her origin may be, since it is clear nature cannot deny the gifts of fortune to one on whom she has conferred so many. never, or very rarely, are the highest virtues found in base-born subjects, and beauty of person is oftentimes indicative of beauty of soul, and to sum up all, i once again repeat what i have said so often; i adore auristella, whether she spring from heavenly birth or from the lowest of the low; and since we are now at rome, where she has always promised to decide my fate, be my advocate with her, and henceforth i divide my crown and kingdom with thee, and do not let me be mocked by this duke, nor scorned by her whom i adore."
to all these speeches, offers, and promises, periander thus replied: "if my sister had been to blame with respect to the offence you have to complain about from the duke, if i did not punish her i should at least renounce her, and that would be to her the greatest possible punishment; but as i know she is perfectly innocent, i cannot tell what answer to make you, and as to the hopes which she permitted you to form when she should have reached this city, as i cannot tell what they were, i do not know how to answer that either. for the offers you now make, and have already made, i am as grateful as i ought to be, considering who you are, and to whom they are made; for with all humility be it said, o noble arnoldo, perhaps this poor pilgrim's frock may serve as a cloud, such as we sometimes see the sun hidden behind. be still for the present and compose yourself, we only arrived yesterday, and it is not possible that, in so short a space of time, consequences should have been deduced, traces given, and chimeras removed, so as to bring everything right as we could wish. avoid, as much as possible, all encounters with the duke, for a lover who is not encouraged, and whose hopes are weak, tries to invent and imagine what does not exist, even though it be against the beloved object herself."
arnoldo promised to do as he advised, and offered him money and all that could be required to furnish magnificent entertainment both for himself and all the party.
the conversation between the duke and croriano was different, since it all ran upon the determination of the duke to recover his portrait, and to make arnoldo confess he had no right to it. he also begged croriano would intercede in his favour with auristella to accept him as her husband, since, said he, his station was no ways inferior to that of arnoldo, and his family was one of the most illustrious in europe; in fine, he displayed great arrogance and no small jealousy, like a man very much in love.
croriano offered to do all he could, and to let him know what answer auristella gave to the offer he made her.
