fall together.'

"But she is sweet, and pure, and true, and brave, and noble-hearted,
and there is no fault in her, or she would not be the daughter of
her father, who was the noblest man I ever knew or ever expect to
know. No, the root of the separation is in myself, in myself only,
in my circumstances and the personal situation I find myself in.

"And yet it is difficult for me to state the obstacle which
divides us, or to say more about it than that it is permanent and
insurmountable. I should deceive myself if I tried to believe that
time would remove or lessen it, and I have contended in vain with
feelings which have tempted me to hold on at any price to the only
joy and happiness of my life.

"To go to her and open my heart is impossible, for personal
intercourse is precisely the peril I am trying to avoid. How weak
I am in her company! Even when her dress touches me at passing, I
am thrilled with an emotion I cannot master; and when she lifts
her large bright eyes to mine, I am the slave of a passion which
conquers all my will.

"No, it is not lightly and without cause that I have taken a step
which sacrifices love to duty. I love her, with all my heart and
soul and strength I love her, and that is why she and I, for her
sake more than mine, should never meet again.

"I note what you say about the man M----, but you must forgive me
if I cannot be much concerned about it. There is nobody in London
who knows me in the character I now bear, and can link it to the
one you are thinking of. Good-bye, again! God be with you and keep
you always! D."

Having written this letter, David Rossi sealed it carefully and posted
it with his own hand on his way to the opening of Parliament.

V

The day was fine, and the city was bright with many flags in honour of
the King. All the streets leading from the royal palace to the Hall of
the Deputies were lined with people. The square in front of the
Parliament House was kept clear by a cordon of Carabineers, but the open
windows of the hotels and houses round about were filled with faces.

David Rossi entered the house by the little private door for deputies in
the side street. The chamber was already thronged, and as full of
movement as a hive of bees. Ladies in light dresses, soldiers in
uniform, diplomatists wearing decorations, senat