, but I declared
at once that you would not go, if your elder sister were not better. I
could not give any positive consent--you know why."

"Oh, blessings on Antony and his noble spit!" cried Arsinoe. "Now
everything is settled, and you can tell the ship-builder we shall go.
Our white dresses are still quite good, but a few ells of new light blue
ribbon for my hair, and of red for Selene's, you must buy on the way, at
Abibaal, the Phoenician's."

"Very good."

"I will see at once to both the dresses--but, to be sure, when are we to
be ready?"

"In two hours."

"Then, do you know what, dear old father?"

"Well?"

"Our old woman is half blind, and does everything wrong. Do let me go
down to dame Doris at the gate-house, and ask her to help me. She is so
clever and kind, and no one irons so well as she does."

"Silence!" cried the steward, angrily, interrupting his daughter. "Those
people shall never again cross my threshold."

"But look at my hair; only look at the state it is in," cried Arsinoe,
excitedly, and thrusting her fingers into her thick tresses which she
pulled into disorder. "To do that up again, plait it with new ribbons,
iron our dresses, and sew on the brooches--why the Empress' ladies-maid
could not do all that in two hours."

"Doris shall never cross this threshold," repeated Keraunus, for all his
answer.

"Then tell the tailor Hippias to send me an assistant; but that will
cost money."

"We have it, and can pay," replied Keraunus, proudly, and in order not
to forget his commissions he muttered to himself while he went to get a
litter:

"Hippias the tailor, blue ribbon, red ribbon, and Tryphon the
ship-builder."

The tailor's nimble apprentice helped Arsinoe to arrange her dress and
Selene's, and was never weary of praising the sheen and silkiness of
Arsinoe's hair, while she twisted it with ribbons, built it up and
twisted it at the back so gracefully with a comb, that it fell in
a thick mass of artfully-curled locks down her neck and back. When
Keraunus came back, he gazed with justifiable pride at his beautiful
child; he was immensely pleased, and even chuckled softly to himself
as he laid out the gold pieces which were brought to him by the
curiosity-dealer's servant, and set them in a row and counted them.
While he was thus occupied, Arsinoe went up to him and asked laughing:
"Hiram has not cheated me then?" Keraunus desired her not to disturb
him, and added:

"Think of that s