t."

"But I have heard nothing about it yet," Giulia said; "and everyone
else seems to know how it was done."

"Matteo, do you tell Giulia," Maria ordered. "I have lots of questions
to ask Francis."

"By the way, Francis," Messer Polani said, "you will be glad to hear
that I have succeeded in getting home your man Giuseppi. He returned
two days ago, and I have no doubt is somewhere below waiting to see
you."

"I will go and see him at once," Francis said, hurrying away. "I am
indeed glad to know that you have rescued him."

Maria laughed, as the door closed behind Francis.

"There, Rufino," she said, turning to him, "you pretend sometimes to be
jealous of Francisco Hammond; and there, you see, just when I have said
I have lots of questions to ask him, and five minutes after my arrival
here to greet him, he races away without a word, directly he hears that
his man Giuseppi has returned."

"And he is quite right, Maria," Matteo said indignantly. "Giuseppi
would give his life for Francisco, and the two have been together every
day for the last six or seven years. I don't doubt the faithful fellow
is crying with joy now. Francisco is quite right, not to keep him
waiting for a minute."

"Perhaps I cried for joy, too, Master Matteo," Maria said.

"I believe I did see tears in your eyes, Maria; but I put them down to
my own account. You would naturally be delighted to know that your
brother-in-law was safe and sound, to say nothing of the fact that the
family would be spared the expense of sending a thousand ducats or so
to ransom him."

"A thousand ducats, Matteo! A thousand soldi would more nearly
represent your value, if the Genoese did but know it. But why don't you
tell Giulia your adventures, as I ordered you?"

"Because Giulia would very much rather hear them from Francisco's lips,
and I have no doubt he will be equally glad to tell her himself, though
certainly he is a bad hand at recounting his own doings. However, he
shall have the pleasure of telling her of it, and I can fill up the
details for her, afterwards."

Two days later, a decree was published by the council stating that, in
consideration of the very great service rendered to the state by
Francisco Hammond, a citizen of Venice, in recapturing four galleys
from the Genoese, the council decreed the settlement upon him, for
life, of a pension of three hundred ducats a year.

"You will not want it, Francisco," Messer Polani said, as he brought i