spring forward from the crowd to
save life when some terrible accident has happened, as if they were
risking nothing, and who generally succeed in what they attempt; but
they are not men who learn to fight every day as carelessly and
naturally as they eat, drink or sleep. Their chance of action may come
but once or twice in a lifetime; yet when it comes it finds them far
more ready and cool than the average good soldier could ever be. Like
strength in some men, their courage seems to depend on quality and very
little on quantity, training or experience.

Zorzi knew very well that although the young gentlemen who were playing
at conspiracy in Jacopo's house did not constitute a serious danger to
the Republic, they were fully aware of their own peril, and would not
have hesitated to take his life if it had not occurred to them that he
might be useful. His intrepid manner had saved him, but now that the
night was over he felt such a weariness and lassitude as he had never
known before.

The adventure had its amusing side, of course. To Zorzi, who knew the
people well, it was very laughable to think that a score of dissolute
young patricians should first fancy themselves able to raise a
revolution against the most firmly established government in Europe, and
should then squander the privacy which they had bought at a frightful
risk in mere gambling and dice-playing. But there was nothing humorous
about the oath he had taken. In the first place, it had been sworn in
solemn earnest, and was therefore binding upon him; secondly, if he
broke it, his life would not be worth a day's purchase. He was brave
enough to have scorned the second consideration, but he was far too
honourable to try and escape the first. He had made the promises to save
his life, it was true, and under great pressure, but he would have
despised himself as a coward if he had not meant to keep them.

And he had solemnly bound himself to respect "the betrothed brides" of
all the brethren of the company. Marietta was not betrothed to Jacopo
Contarini yet, but there was no doubt that she would be before many
days; to "respect" undoubtedly meant that he must not try to win her
away from her affianced husband; if he had ever dreamt that in some
fair, fantastically improbable future, Marietta could be his wife, he
had parted with the right to dream the like again. Therefore, when he
had stood awhile looking up at her window that morning, he sighed
heavily and