young
rakes, and yawned in good company. He was a sworn foe to study, and spent
his money in a lavish manner, less from generosity than from a desire to
be revenged on his uncle's economies. He complained of being still kept
in tutelage; he had calculated that he could spend eight hundred sequins
a month, and thought his allowance of two hundred sequins a month an
insult. With this notion, he set himself to sow debts broadcast, and only
laughed at his tutor when he mildly reproached him for his extravagance,
and pointed out that if he were saving for the present, he would be able
to be all the more magnificent on his return to Venice. His uncle had
made an excellent match for him; he was to marry a girl who was extremely
pretty, and also the heiress of the house of Grimani de Servi.

The only redeeming feature in the young man's character was that he had a
mortal hatred of all kinds of play.

Since my bank had been broken I had been at Goudar's, but I would not
listen to his proposal that I should join them again. Medini had become a
sworn foe of mine. As soon as I came, he would go away, but I pretended
not to notice him. He was at Goudar's when I introduced Morosini and his
mentor, and thinking the young man good game he became very intimate with
him. When he found out that Morosini would not hear of gaming, his hatred
of me increased, for he was certain that I had warned the rich Venetian
against him.

Morosini was much taken with Sara's charms, and only thought of how he
could possess her. He was still a young man, full of romantic notions,
and she would have become odious in his eyes if he could have guessed
that she would have to be bought with a heavy price.

He told me several times that if a woman proposed payment for her
favours, his disgust would expel his love in a moment. As he said, and
rightly, he was as good a man as Madame Goudar was a woman.

This was distinctly a good point in his character; no woman who gave her
favours in exchange for presents received could hope to dupe him. Sara's
maxims were diametrically opposed to his; she looked on her love as a
bill of exchange.

Stratico was delighted to see him engaged in this intrigue, for the chief
point in dealing with him was to keep him occupied. If he had no
distractions he took refuge in bad company or furious riding. He would
sometimes ride ten or twelve stages at full gallop, utterly ruining the
horses. He was only too glad to make his uncle