;
otherwise she would have had me assassinated.

As soon as I got in, I chose the better of the two cloaks I had, and
presented her with it. She accepted the gift with exquisite grace, and
asked me why I gave it her.

"I dreamt," said I, "that you were so angry with me that you were going
to have me assassinated."

She blushed, and answered that she had not gone mad. I left her absorbed
in a sombre reverie. Nevertheless, whether she forgot and forgave, or
whether she could hit upon no other way of taking vengeance, she was
perfectly agreeable to me during the rest of my stay in Milan.

The count came back from his estate, and said that we must really go and
see the place at the beginning of Lent. I promised I would come, but the
countess said she could not be of the party. I pretended to be mortified,
but in reality her determination was an extremely pleasant one to me.

CHAPTER XX

The Masquerade--My Amour with the Fair Marchioness--The
Deserted Girl; I Become Her Deliverer--My Departure for St.
Angelo

As I had engaged myself to provide an absolutely impenetrable disguise, I
wanted to invent a costume remarkable at once for its originality and its
richness. I tortured my brains so to speak, and my readers shall see if
they think my invention was a good one.

I wanted someone on whom I could rely, and above all, a tailor. It may be
imagined that my worthy gossip was the tailor I immediately thought of.
Zenobia would be as serviceable as her husband; she could do some of the
work, and wait on the young ladies whom I was going to dress up.

I talked to my gossip, and told him to take me to the best second-hand
clothes dealer in Milan.

When we got to the shop I said to the man--

"I want to look at your very finest costumes, both for ladies and
gentlemen."

"Would you like something that has never been worn?"

"Certainly, if you have got such a thing."

"I have a very rich assortment of new clothes."

"Get me, then, in the first place, a handsome velvet suit, all in one
piece, which nobody in Milan will be able to recognize."

Instead of one he shewed me a dozen such suits, all in excellent
condition. I chose a blue velvet lined with white satin. The tailor
conducted the bargaining, and it was laid on one side; this was for the
pretty cousin's lover. Another suit, in smooth sulphur-coloured velvet
throughout, I put aside for the young officer. I also took two handsome
pairs of tr