lment, except as regards your
having passed the night in my room. You must be sure not to mention that
circumstance, for the cardinal must remain in complete ignorance of my
knowing anything whatever of this intrigue. Tell him that, seeing your
lover carried off, you rushed to his palace and ran upstairs as far as
you could go, and that after a most painful night Heaven inspired you
with the idea of writing to him to entreat his pity. I feel certain that,
one way or the other, his eminence will save you from dishonour, and it
certainly is the only chance you have of being united to the man you love
so dearly."

She promised to follow 'my instructions faithfully, and, coming down, I
had my hair dressed and went to church, where the cardinal saw me. I then
went out and returned only for dinner, during which the only subject of
conversation was the adventure of the night. Gama alone said nothing, and
I followed his example, but I understood from all the talk going on round
the table that the cardinal had taken my poor Barbara under his
protection. That was all I wanted, and thinking that I had nothing more
to fear I congratulated myself, in petto, upon my stratagem, which had, I
thought, proved a master-stroke. After dinner, finding myself alone with
Gama, I asked him what was the meaning of it all, and this is what he
told me:

"A father, whose name I do not know yet, had requested the assistance of
the Vicar-General to prevent his son from carrying off a young girl, with
whom he intended to leave the States of the Church; the pair had arranged
to meet at midnight in this very square, and the Vicar, having previously
obtained the consent of our cardinal, as I told you yesterday, gave
orders to the bargello to dispose his men in such a way as to catch the
young people in the very act of running away, and to arrest them. The
orders were executed, but the 'sbirri' found out, when they returned to
the bargello, that they had met with only a half success, the woman who
got out of the carriage with the young man not belonging to that species
likely to be carried off. Soon afterwards a spy informed the bargello
that, at the very moment the arrest was executed, he had seen a young
abbe run away very rapidly and take refuge in this palace, and the
suspicion immediately arose that it might be the missing young lady in
the disguise of an ecclesiastic. The bargello reported to the
Vicar-General the failure of his men, as well as the