have
been, a gentleman to the last inch of him. The brow was fine and broad,
the nose sensitive and well shaped, the mouth a perfect expression of
gentle irony. The soft brown hair, abundant and unruly, lent perhaps a
certain air of untamed wildness to the face, whilst the upturned
moustache and the tiny tuft below the upper lip accentuated the look of
devil-may-care independence which was the chief characteristic of the
mouth.

But the eyes were the most remarkable feature of all. They shone with an
unconquerable merriment, they twinkled and sparkled, and smiled and
mocked, they winked and they beckoned. They were eyes to which you were
obliged to smile in response, eyes that made you laugh if you felt ever
so sad, eyes that jested even before the mouth had spoken, and the mouth
itself was permanently curved into a smile.

Unlike his two companions, Diogenes was dressed not only with scrupulous
care but with a show of elegance. His doublet though well-worn was
fashioned of fine black cloth, the slashed sleeves still showed the
remnants of gold embroidery, whilst the lace of his pleated collar was
of beautiful design.

* * * * *

Having completed their toilet the three friends sat at their table and
sipped their ale and wine in comparative silence for a time. Socrates,
weary with his wound, soon fell asleep with his arms stretched out
before him and his head resting in the bend of his elbow.

Pythagoras too nodded in his chair; but Diogenes remained wide awake,
and no doubt Mynheer Beek's wine gave him pleasing thoughts, for the
merry look never fled from his eyes.

Half an hour later you would scarce have recognised the tapperij from
its previous orderly silence, for at about one o'clock it began to fill
very fast. Mynheer Beek's guests were arriving.

It was still bitterly cold and they all came into the warm room clapping
their hands together and stamping the frozen snow off their feet, loudly
demanding hot ale or mulled wine, to be supplemented later on by more
substantial fare.

The two serving wenches were more busy, hotter and more profusely
streaming with moisture than they had ever been before. It was "Kaethi
here!" and "Luise, why don't you hurry?" all over the tapperij now; and
every moment the noise became louder and more cheery.

Every corner of the low, raftered room was filled to over-flowing with
chairs and tables. People sat everywhere where a perch was to be