rt of the bank
where the sewers of the town are discharged into the Tiber, the horseman
turned his horse, backing on the river; then the two who were at either
side taking the corpse, one by the hands, the other by the feet, swung
it three times, and the third time threw it out into the river with all
their strength; then at the noise made when the body splashed into the
water, the horseman asked, 'Is it done?' and the others answered, 'Yes,
sir,' and he at once turned right about face; but seeing the dead man's
cloak floating, he asked what was that black thing swimming about.
'Sir,' said one of the men, 'it is his cloak'; and then another man
picked up some stones, and running to the place where it was still
floating, threw them so as to make it sink under; as soon, as it had
quite disappeared, they went off, and after walking a little way along
the main road, they went into the lane that leads to San Giacomo. That
was all I saw, gentlemen, and so it is all I can answer to the questions
you have asked me."

At these words, which robbed of all hope any who might yet entertain it,
one of the pope's servants asked the Slav why, when he was witness of
such a deed, he had not gone to denounce it to the governor. But the
Slav replied that, since he had exercised his present trade on the
riverside, he had seen dead men thrown into the Tiber in the same way a
hundred times, and had never heard that anybody had been troubled
about them; so he supposed it would be the same with this corpse as
the others, and had never imagined it was his duty to speak of it, not
thinking it would be any more important than it had been before.

Acting on this intelligence, the servants of His Holiness summoned at
once all the boatmen and fishermen who were accustomed to go up and down
the river, and as a large reward was promised to anyone who should find
the duke's body, there were soon mare than a hundred ready for the job;
so that before the evening of the same day, which was Friday, two men
were drawn out of the water, of whom one was instantly recognised as
the hapless duke. At the very first glance at the body there could be
no doubt as to the cause of death. It was pierced with nine wounds, the
chief one in the throat, whose artery was cut. The clothing had not been
touched: his doublet and cloak were there, his gloves in his waistband,
gold in his purse; the duke then must have been assassinated not for
gain but for revenge.

The ship