"We believe exactly the reverse; we think that young people destroy
their constitutions, and shorten their lives through self-abuse. In
several communities they are closely watched, and are as much as
possible deprived of every opportunity of indulging in that crime."
"Those who watch them are ignorant fools, and those who pay the watchers
for such a service are even more stupid, because prohibition must excite
the wish to break through such a tyrannical law, to set at nought an
interdiction so contrary to nature."
"Yet it seems to me that self-abuse in excess must be injurious to
health, for it must weaken and enervate."
"Certainly, because excess in everything is prejudicial and pernicious;
but all such excess is the result of our severe prohibition. If girls
are not interfered with in the matter of self-abuse, I do not see why
boys should be."
"Because girls are very far from running the same risk; they do not lose
a great deal in the action of self-abuse, and what they lose does not
come from the same source whence flows the germinal liquid in men."
"I do not know, but we have some physicians who say that chlorosis in
girls is the result of that pleasure indulged in to excess."
After many such conversations, in which he seemed to consider me as
endowed with reason and talent, even when I was not of his opinion,
Yusuf Ali surprised me greatly one day by the following proposition:
"I have two sons and a daughter. I no longer think of my sons, because
they have received their share of my fortune. As far as my daughter is
concerned she will, after my death, inherit all my possessions, and I
am, besides, in a position while I am alive to promote the fortune of
the man who may marry her. Five years ago I took a young wife, but she
has not given me any progeny, and I know to a certainty that no
offspring will bless our union. My daughter, whose name is Zelmi, is now
fifteen; she is handsome, her eyes are black and lovely like her
mother's, her hair is of the colour of the raven's wing, her complexion
is animated alabaster; she is tall, well made, and of a sweet
disposition; I have given her an education which would make her worthy
of our master, the Sultan. She speaks Greek and Italian fluently, she
sings delightfully, and accompanies herself on the harp; she can draw
and embroider, and is always contented and cheerful. No living man can
boast of having seen her features, and she loves me so dearly that my
will is hers. My daughter is a treasure, and I offer her to you if you
will consent to go for one year to Adrianople to reside with a relative
of mine, who will teach you our religion, our language, and our manners.
You will return at the end of one year, and as soon as you have become a
Mussulman my daughter shall be your wife. You will find a house ready
furnished, slaves of your own, and an income which will enable you to
live in comfort. I have no more to say at present. I do not wish you to
answer me either to-day, or to-morrow, or on any fixed day. You will
give me your decision whenever you feel yourself called upon by your
genius to give it, and you need not give me any answer unless you accept
my offer, for, should you refuse it, it is not necessary that the
subject should be again mentioned. I do not ask you to give full
consideration to my proposal, for now that I have thrown the seed in
your soul it must fructify. Without hurry, without delay, without
anxiety, you can but obey the decrees of God and follow the immutable
decision of fate. Such as I know you, I believe that you only require
the possession of Zelmi to be completely happy, and that you will become
one of the pillars of the Ottoman Empire."
Saying those words, Yusuf pressed me affectionately in his arms, and
left me by myself to avoid any answer I might be inclined to make. I
went away in such wonder at all I had just heard, that I found myself at
the Venetian Embassy without knowing how I had reached it. The baili
thought me very pensive, and asked whether anything was the matter with
me, but I did not feel disposed to gratify their curiosity. I found that
Yusuf had indeed spoken truly: his proposal was of such importance that
it was my duty, not only not to mention it to anyone, but even to
abstain from thinking it over, until my mind had recovered its calm
sufficiently to give me the assurance that no external consideration
would weigh in the balance and influence my decision. I had to silence
all my passions; prejudices, principles already formed, love, and even
self-interest were to remain in a state of complete inaction.
When I awoke the next morning I began to think the matter over, and I
soon discovered that, if I wanted to come to a decision, I ought not to
ponder over it, as the more I considered the less likely I should be to
decide. This was truly a case for the 'sequere Deum' of the Stoics.
I did not visit Yusuf for four days, and when I called on him on the
fifth day, we talked cheerfully without once mentioning his proposal,
although it was very evident that we were both thinking of it. We
remained thus for a fortnight, without ever alluding to the matter which
engrossed all our thoughts, but our silence was not caused by
dissimulation, or by any feeling contrary to our mutual esteem and
friendship; and one day Yusuf suggested that very likely I had
communicated his proposal to some wise friend, in order to obtain good
advice. I immediately assured him it was not so, and that in a matter of
so delicate a nature I thought I ought not to ask anybody's advice.
"I have abandoned myself to God, dear Yusuf, and, full of confidence in
Him, I feel certain that I shall decide for the best, whether I make up
my mind to become your son, or believe that I ought to remain what I am
now. In the mean time, my mind ponders over it day and night, whenever I
am quiet and feel myself composed and collected. When I come to a
decision, I will impart it to you alone, and from that moment you shall
have over me the authority of a father."
At these words the worthy Yusuf, his eyes wet with tears, placed his
left hand over my head, and the first two fingers of the right hand on
my forehead, saying:
"Continue to act in that way, my dear son, and be certain that you can
never act wrongly."
"But," I said to him, "one thing might happen, Zelmi might not accept
me."
"Have no anxiety about that. My daughter loves you; she, as well as my
wife and her nurse, sees you every time that we dine together, and she
listens to you with pleasure."
"Does she know that you are thinking of giving her to me as my wife?"
"She knows that I ardently wish you to become a true believer, so as to
enable me to link her destiny to yours."
"I am glad that your habits do not permit you to let me see her, because
she might dazzle me with her beauty, and then passion would soon have
too much weight in the scale; I could no longer flatter myself that my
decision had been taken in all the unbiased, purity of my soul."
Yusuf was highly delighted at hearing me speak in that manner, and I
spoke in perfect good faith. The mere idea of seeing Zelmi caused me to
shudder. I felt that, if I had fallen in love with her, I would have
become a Mussulman in order to possess her, and that I might soon have
repented such a step, for the religion of Mahomet presented to my eyes
and to my mind nothing but a disagreeable picture, as well for this life
as for a future one. As for wealth, I did not think it deserved the
immense sacrifice demanded from me. I could find equal wealth in Europe,
without stamping my forehead with the shameful brand of apostasy. I
cared deeply for the esteem of the persons of distinction who knew me,
and did not want to render myself unworthy of it. Besides, I felt an
immense desire to obtain fame amongst civilized and polite nations,
either in the fine arts or in literature, or in any other honourable
profession, and I could not reconcile myself to the idea of abandoning
to my equals the triumph which I might win if I lived amongst them. It
seemed to me, and I am still of the same opinion, that the decision of
wearing the turban befits only a Christian despairing of himself and at
the end of his wits, and fortunately I was lost not in that predicament.
My greatest objection was to spend a year in Adrianople to learn a
language for which I did not feel any liking, and which I should
therefore have learned but imperfectly. How could I, at my age, renounce
the prerogative, so pleasant to my vanity, of being reputed a fine
talker? and I had secured that reputation wherever I was known. Then I
would often think that Zelmi, the eighth wonder of creation in the eyes
of her father might not appear such in my eyes, and it would have been
enough to make me miserable, for Yusuf was likely to live twenty years
longer, and I felt that gratitude, as well as respect, would never have
permitted me to give that excellent man any cause for unhappiness by
ceasing to shew myself a devoted and faithful husband to his daughter.
Such were my thoughts, and, as Yusuf could not guess them, it was
useless to make a confidant of him.
A few days afterwards, I dined with the Pacha Osman and met my Effendi
Ismail. He was very friendly to me, and I reciprocated his attentions,
though I paid no attention to the reproaches he addressed to me for not
having come to breakfast with him for such a long time. I could not
refuse to dine at his house with Bonneval, and he treated me to a very
pleasing sight; Neapolitan slaves, men and women, performed a pantomime
and some Calabrian dances. M. de Bonneval happened to mention the dance
called forlana, and Ismail expressing a great wish to know it, I told
him that I could give him that pleasure if I had a Venetian woman to
dance with and a fiddler who knew the time. I took a violin, and played
the forlana, but, even if the partner had been found, I could not play
and dance at the same time.
Ismail whispered a few words to one of his eunuchs, who went out of the
room and returned soon with some message that he delivered to him. The
effendi told me that he had found the partner I wanted, and I answered
that the musician could be had easily, if he would send a note to the
Venetian Embassy, which was done at once. The Bailo Dona sent one of his
men who played the violin well enough for dancing purposes. As soon as
the musician was ready, a door was thrown open, and a fine looking woman
came in, her face covered with a black velvet mask, such as we call
moretta in Venice. The appearance of that beautiful masked woman
surprised and delighted every one of the guests, for it was impossible
to imagine a more interesting object, not only on account of the beauty
of that part of the face which the mask left exposed, but also for the
elegance of her shape, the perfection of her figure, and the exquisite
taste displayed in her costume. The nymph took her place, I did the
same, and we danced the forlana six times without stopping.
I was in perspiration and out of breath, for the forlana is the most
violent of our national dances; but my beautiful partner stood near me
without betraying the slightest fatigue, and seemed to challenge me to a
new performance. At the round of the dance, which is the most difficult
step, she seemed to have wings. I was astounded, for I had never seen
anyone, even in Venice, dance the forlana so splendidly. After a few
minutes rest, rather ashamed of my feeling tired, I went up to her, and
said, 'Ancora sei, a poi basta, se non volete vedermi a morire.' She
would have answered me if she had been able, but she wore one of those
cruel masks which forbid speech. But a pressure of her hand which nobody
could see made me guess all I wanted to know. The moment we finished
dancing the eunuch opened the door, and my lovely partner disappeared.
Ismail could not thank me enough, but it was I who owed him my thanks,
for it was the only real pleasure which I enjoyed in Constantinople. I
asked him whether the lady was from Venice, but he only answered by a
significant smile.
"The worthy Ismail," said M. de Bonneval to me, as we were leaving the
house late in the evening, "has been to-day the dupe of his vanity, and
I have no doubt that he is sorry already for what he has done. To bring
out his beautiful slave to dance with you! According to the prejudices
of this country it is injurious to his dignity, for you are sure to have
kindled an amorous flame in the poor girl's breast. I would advise you
to be careful and to keep on your guard, because she will try to get up
some intrigue with you; but be prudent, for intrigues are always
dangerous in Turkey."
I promised to be prudent, but I did not keep my promise; for, three or
four days afterwards, an old slave woman met me in the street, and
offered to sell me for one piaster a tobacco-bag embroidered in gold;
and as she put it in my hand she contrived to make me feel that there
was a letter in the bag.
I observed that she tried to avoid the eyes of the janissary who was
walking behind me; I gave her one piaster, she left me, and I proceeded
toward Yusuf's house. He was not at home, and I went to his garden to
read the letter with perfect freedom. It was sealed and without any
address, and the slave might have made a mistake; but my curiosity was
excited to the highest pitch; I broke the seal, and found the following
note written in good enough Italian:
"Should you wish to see the person with whom you danced the forlana,
take a walk towards evening in the garden beyond the fountain, and
contrive to become acquainted with the old servant of the gardener by
asking her for some lemonade. You may perchance manage to see your
partner in the forlana without running any risk, even if you should
happen to meet Ismail; she is a native of Venice. Be careful not to
mention this invitation to any human being."
"I am not such a fool, my lovely countrywoman," I exclaimed, as if she
had been present, and put the letter in my pocket. But at that very
moment, a fine-looking elderly woman came out of a thicket, pronounced
my name, and enquired what I wanted and how I had seen her. I answered
that I had been speaking to the wind, not supposing that anyone could
hear me, and without any more preparation, she abruptly told me that she
was very glad of the opportunity of speaking with me, that she was from
Rome, that she had brought up Zelmi, and had taught her to sing and to
play the harp. She then praised highly the beauty and the excellent
qualities of her pupil, saying that, if I saw her, I would certainly
fall in love with her, and expressing how much she regretted that the
law should not allow it.
"She sees us at this very moment," she added, "from behind that green
window-blind, and we love you ever since Yusuf has informed us that you
may, perhaps, become Zelmi's husband."
"May I mention our conversation to Yusuf?" I enquired.
"No."
Her answering in the negative made me understand that, if I had pressed
her a little, she would have allowed me to see her lovely pupil, and
perhaps it was with that intention that she had contrived to speak to
me, but I felt great reluctance to do anything to displease my worthy
host. I had another reason of even greater importance: I was afraid of
entering an intricate maze in which the sight of a turban hovering over
me made me shudder.
Yusuf came home, and far from being angry when he saw me with the woman,
he remarked that I must have found much pleasure in conversing with a
native of Rome, and he congratulated me upon the delight I must have
felt in dancing with one of the beauties from the harem of the
voluptuous Ismail.
"Then it must be a pleasure seldom enjoyed, if it is so much talked of?"
"Very seldom indeed, for there is amongst us an invincible prejudice
against exposing our lovely women to the eyes of other men; but everyone
may do as he pleases in his own house: Ismail is a very worthy and a
very intelligent man."
"Is the lady with whom I danced known?"
"I believe not. She wore a mask, and everybody knows that Ismail
possesses half a dozen slaves of surpassing beauty."
I spent a pleasant day with Yusuf, and when I left him, I ordered my
janissary to take me to Ismail's. As I was known by his servants, they
allowed me to go in, and I proceeded to the spot described in the
letter. The eunuch came to me, informed me that his master was out, but
that he would be delighted to hear of my having taken a walk in the
garden. I told him that I would like a glass of lemonade, and he took me
to the summerhouse, where I recognized the old woman who had sold me the
tobacco-pouch. The eunuch told her to give me a glass of some liquid
which I found delicious, and would not allow me to give her any money.
We then walked together towards the fountain, but he told me abruptly
that we were to go back, as he saw three ladies to whom he pointed,
adding that, for the sake of decency, it was necessary to avoid them. I
thanked him for his attentions, left my compliments for Ismail, and went
away not dissatisfied with my first attempt, and with the hope of being
more fortunate another time.
The next morning I received a letter from Ismail inviting me to go
fishing with him on the following day, and stating that he intended to
enjoy the sport by moonlight. I immediately gave way to my suppositions,
and I went so far as to fancy that Ismail might be capable of arranging
an interview between me and the lovely Venetian. I did not mind his
being present. I begged permission of Chevalier Venier to stop out of
the palace for one night, but he granted it with the greatest
difficulty, because he was afraid of some love affair and of the results
it might have. I took care to calm his anxiety as much as I could, but
without acquainting him with all the circumstances of the case, for I
thought I was wise in being discreet.
I was exact to the appointed time, and Ismail received me with the
utmost cordiality, but I was surprised when I found myself alone with
him in the boat. We had two rowers and a man to steer; we took some
fish, fried in oil, and ate it in the summer-house. The moon shone
brightly, and the night was delightful. Alone with Ismail, and knowing
his unnatural tastes, I did not feel very comfortable for, in spite of
what M. de Bonneval had told me, I was afraid lest the Turk should take
a fancy to give me too great a proof of his friendship, and I did not
relish our tete-a-tete. But my fears were groundless.
"Let us leave this place quietly," said Ismail, "I have just heard a
slight noise which heralds something that will amuse us."
He dismissed his attendants, and took my hand, saying,
"Let us go to a small room, the key of which I luckily have with me, but
let us be careful not to make any noise. That room has a window
overlooking the fountain where I think that two or three of my beauties
have just gone to bathe. We will see them and enjoy a very pleasing
sight, for they do not imagine that anyone is looking at them. They know
that the place is forbidden to everybody except me."
We entered the room, we went to the window, and, the moon shining right
over the basin of the fountain, we saw three nymphs who, now swimming,
now standing or sitting on the marble steps, offered themselves to our
eyes in every possible position, and in all the attitudes of graceful
voluptuousness. Dear reader, I must not paint in too vivid colours the
details of that beautiful picture, but if nature has endowed you with an
ardent imagination and with equally ardent senses, you will easily
imagine the fearful havoc which that unique, wonderful, and enchanting
sight must have made upon my poor body.
A few days after that delightful fishing and bathing party by moonlight,
I called upon Yusuf early in the morning; as it was raining, I could not
go to the garden, and I went into the dining-room, in which I had never
seen anyone. The moment I entered the room, a charming female form rose,
covering her features with a thick veil which fell to the feet. A slave
was sitting near the window, doing some tambour-work, but she did not
move. I apologized, and turned to leave the room, but the lady stopped
me, observing, with a sweet voice, that Yusuf had commanded her to
entertain me before going out. She invited me to be seated, pointing to
a rich cushion placed upon two larger ones, and I obeyed, while,
crossing her legs, she sat down upon another cushion opposite to me. I
thought I was looking upon Zelmi, and fancied that Yusuf had made up his
mind to shew me that he was not less courageous than Ismail. Yet I was
surprised, for, by such a proceeding, he strongly contradicted his
maxims, and ran the risk of impairing the unbiased purity of my consent
by throwing love in the balance. But I had no fear of that, because, to
become enamoured, I should have required to see her face.
"I suppose," said the veiled beauty, "that you do not know who I am?"
"I could not guess, if I tried."
"I have been for the last five years the wife of your friend, and I am a
native of Scio. I was thirteen years of age when I became his wife."
I was greatly astonished to find that my Mussulman philosopher had gone
so far as to allow me to converse with his wife, but I felt more at ease
after I had received that information, and fancied that I might carry
the adventure further, but it would be necessary to see the lady's face,
for a finely-dressed body, the head of which is not seen, excites but
feeble desires. The fire lighted by amorous desires is like a fire of
straw; the moment it burns up it is near its end. I had before me a
magnificent appearance, but I could not see the soul of the image, for a
thick gauze concealed it from my hungry gaze. I could see arms as white
as alabaster, and hands like those of Alcina, 'dove ne nodo appasisce ne
vena accede', and my active imagination fancied that all the rest was in
harmony with those beautiful specimens, for the graceful folds of the
muslin, leaving the outline all its perfection, hid from me only the
living satin of the surface; there was no doubt that everything was
lovely, but I wanted to see, in the expression of her eyes, that all
that my imagination created had life and was endowed with feeling. The
Oriental costume is a beautiful varnish placed upon a porcelain vase to
protect from the touch the colours of the flowers and of the design,
without lessening the pleasure of the eyes. Yusuf's wife was not dressed
like a sultana; she wore the costume of Scio, with a short skirt which
concealed neither the perfection of the leg nor the round form of the
thigh, nor the voluptuous plump fall of the hips, nor the slender, well-
made waist encompassed in a splendid band embroidered in silver and
covered with arabesques. Above all those beauties, I could see the shape
of two globes which Apelles would have taken for the model of those of
his lovely Venus, and the rapid, inequal movement of which proved to me
that those ravishing hillocks were animated. The small valley left
between them, and which my eyes greedily feasted upon, seemed to me a
lake of nectar, in which my burning lips longed to quench their thirst
with more ardour than they would have drunk from the cup of the gods.
Enraptured, unable to control myself, I thrust my arm forward by a
movement almost independent of my will, and my hand, too audacious, was
on the point of lifting the hateful veil, but she prevented me by
raising herself quickly on tiptoe, upbraiding me at the same time for my
perfidious boldness, with a voice as commanding as her attitude.
"Dost thou deserve," she said, "Yusuf's friendship, when thou abusest
the sacred laws of hospitality by insulting his wife?"
"Madam, you must kindly forgive me, for I never had any intention to
insult you. In my country the lowest of men may fix his eyes upon the
face of a queen."
"Yes, but he cannot tear off her veil, if she chooses to wear it. Yusuf
shall avenge me."
The threat, and the tone in which it was pronounced, frightened me. I
threw myself at her feet, and succeeded in calming her anger.
"Take a seat," she said.
And she sat down herself, crossing her legs with so much freedom that I
caught a glimpse of charms which would have caused me to lose all
control over myself if the delightful sight had remained one moment
longer exposed to my eyes. I then saw that I had gone the wrong way to
work, and I felt vexed with myself; but it was too late.
"Art thou excited?" she said.
"How could I be otherwise," I answered, "when thou art scorching me with
an ardent fire?"
I had become more prudent, and I seized her hand without thinking any
more of her face.
"Here is my husband," she said, and Yusuf came into the room. We rose,
Yusuf embraced me, I complimented him, the slave left the room. Yusuf
thanked his wife for having entertained me, and offered her his arm to
take her to her own apartment. She took it, but when she reached the
door, she raised her veil, and kissing her husband she allowed me to see
her lovely face as if it had been done unwittingly. I followed her with
my eyes as long as I could, and Yusuf, coming back to me, said with a
laugh that his wife had offered to dine with us.
"I thought," I said to him, "that I had Zelmi before me."
"That would have been too much against our established rules. What I
have done is not much, but I do not know an honest man who would be bold
enough to bring his daughter into the presence of a stranger."
"I think your wife must be handsome; is she more beautiful than Zelmi?"
"My daughter's beauty is cheerful, sweet, and gentle; that of Sophia is
proud and haughty. She will be happy after my death. The man who will
marry her will find her a virgin."
I gave an account of my adventure to M. de Bonneval, somewhat
exaggerating the danger I had run in trying to raise the veil of the
handsome daughter of Scio.
"She was laughing at you," said the count, "and you ran no danger. She
felt very sorry, believe me, to have to deal with a novice like you. You
have been playing the comedy in the French fashion, when you ought to
have gone straight to the point. What on earth did you want to see her
nose for? She knew very well that she would have gained nothing by
allowing you to see her. You ought to have secured the essential point.
If I were young I would perhaps manage to give her a revenge, and to
punish my friend Yusuf. You have given that lovely woman a poor opinion
of Italian valour. The most reserved of Turkish women has no modesty
except on her face, and, with her veil over it, she knows to a certainty
that she will not blush at anything. I am certain that your beauty keeps
her face covered whenever our friend Yusuf wishes to joke with her."
"She is yet a virgin."
"Rather a difficult thing to admit, my good friend; but I know the
daughters of Scio; they have a talent for counterfeiting virginity."
Yusuf never paid me a similar compliment again, and he was quite right.
A few days after, I happened to be in the shop of an Armenian merchant,
looking at some beautiful goods, when Yusuf entered the shop and praised
my taste; but, although I had admired a great many things, I did not
buy, because I thought they were too dear. I said so to Yusuf, but he
remarked that they were, on the contrary, very cheap, and he purchased
them all. We parted company at the door, and the next morning I received
all the beautiful things he had bought; it was a delicate attention of
my friend, and to prevent my refusal of such a splendid present, he had
enclosed a note stating that, on my arrival in Corfu, he would let me
know to whom the goods were to be delivered. He had thus sent me gold
and silver filigrees from Damascus, portfolios, scarfs, belts,
handkerchiefs and pipes, the whole worth four or five hundred piasters.
When I called to thank him, I compelled him to confess that it was a
present offered by his friendship.
The day before my departure from Constantinople, the excellent man burst
into tears as I bade him adieu, and my grief was as great as his own. He
told me that, by not accepting the offer of his daughter's hand, I had
so strongly captivated his esteem that his feelings for me could not
have been warmer if I had become his son. When I went on board ship with
the Bailo Jean Dona, I found another case given to me by him, containing
two quintals of the best Mocha coffee, one hundred pounds of tobacco
leaves, two large flagons filled, one with Zabandi tobacco, the other
with camussa, and a magnificent pipe tube of jessamine wood, covered
with gold filigrane, which I sold in Corfu for one hundred sequins. I
had not it in my power to give my generous Turk any mark of my gratitude
until I reached Corfu, but there I did not fail to do so. I sold all his
beautiful presents, which made me the possessor of a small fortune.
Ismail gave me a letter for the Chevalier de Lezze, but I could not
forward it to him because I unfortunately lost it; he presented me with
a barrel of hydromel, which I turned likewise into money. M. de Bonneval
gave me a letter for Cardinal Acquaviva, which I sent to Rome with an
account of my journey, but his eminence did not think fit to acknowledge
the receipt of either. Bonneval made me a present of twelve bottles of
malmsey from Ragusa, and of twelve bottles of genuine scopolo--a great
rarity, with which I made a present in Corfu which proved very useful to
me, as the reader will discover.
The only foreign minister I saw much in Constantinople was the lord
marshal of Scotland, the celebrated Keith, who represented the King of
Prussia, and who, six years later was of great service to me in Paris.
We sailed from Constantinople in the beginning of September in the same
man-of-war which had brought us, and we reached Corfu in fourteen days.
The Bailo Dona did not land. He had with him eight splendid Turkish
horses; I saw two of them still alive in Gorizia in the year 1773.
As soon as I had landed with my luggage, and had engaged a rather mean
lodging, I presented myself to M. Andre Dolfin, the proveditore-
generale, who promised me again that I should soon be promoted to a
lieutenancy. After my visit to him, I called upon M. Camporese, my
captain, and was well received by him. My third visit was to the
commander of galleases, M. D---- R-----, to whom M. Antonio Dolfin, with
whom I had travelled from Venice to Corfu, had kindly recommended me.
After a short conversation, he asked me if I would remain with him with
the title of adjutant. I did not hesitate one instant, but accepted,
saying how deeply honoured I felt by his offer, and assuring him that he
would always find me ready to carry out his orders. He immediately had
me taken to my room, and, the next day, I found myself established in
his house. I obtained from my captain a French soldier to serve me, and
I was well pleased when I found that the man was a hairdresser by trade,
and a great talker by nature, for he could take care of my beautiful
head of hair, and I wanted to practise French conversation. He was a
good-for-nothing fellow, a drunkard and a debauchee, a peasant from
Picardy, and he could hardly read or write, but I did not mind all that;
all I wanted from him was to serve me, and to talk to me, and his French
was pretty good. He was an amusing rogue, knowing by heart a quantity of
erotic songs and of smutty stories which he could tell in the most
laughable manner.
When I had sold my stock of goods from Constantinople (except the
wines), I found myself the owner of nearly five hundred sequins. I
redeemed all the articles which I had pledged in the hands of Jews, and
turned into money everything of which I had no need. I was determined
not to play any longer as a dupe, but to secure in gambling all the
advantages which a prudent young man could obtain without sullying his
honour.
I must now make my readers acquainted with the sort of life we were at
that time leading in Corfu. As to the city itself, I will not describe
it, because there are already many descriptions better than the one I
could offer in these pages.
We had then in Corfu the 'proveditore-generale' who had sovereign
authority, and lived in a style of great magnificence. That post was
then filled by M. Andre Dolfin, a man sixty years of age, strict,
headstrong, and ignorant. He no longer cared for women, but liked to be
courted by them. He received every evening, and the supper-table was
always laid for twenty-four persons.
We had three field-officers of the marines who did duty on the galleys,
and three field-officers for the troops of the line on board the men-of-
war. Each galeass had a captain called 'sopracomito', and we had ten of
those captains; we had likewise ten commanders, one for each man-of-war,
including three 'capi di mare', or admirals. They all belonged to the
nobility of Venice. Ten young Venetian noblemen, from twenty to twenty-
two years of age, were at Corfu as midshipmen in the navy. We had,
besides, about a dozen civil clerks in the police of the island, or in
the administration of justice, entitled 'grandi offciali di terra'.
Those who were blessed with handsome wives had the pleasure of seeing
their houses very much frequented by admirers who aspired to win the
favours of the ladies, but there was not much heroic love-making,
perhaps for the reason that there were then in Corfu many Aspasias whose
favours could be had for money. Gambling was allowed everywhere, and
that all absorbing passion was very prejudicial to the emotions of the
heart.
The lady who was then most eminent for beauty and gallantry was Madame
F----. Her husband, captain of a galley, had come to Corfu with her the
year before, and madam had greatly astonished all the naval officers.
Thinking that she had the privilege of the choice, she had given the
preference to M. D---- R-----, and had dismissed all the suitors who
presented themselves. M. F---- had married her on the very day she had
left the convent; she was only seventeen years of age then, and he had
brought her on board his galley immediately after the marriage ceremony.
I saw her for the first time at the dinner-table on the very day of my
installation at M. D---- R-----'s, and she made a great impression upon
me. I thought I was gazing at a supernatural being, so infinitely above
all the women I had ever seen, that it seemed impossible to fall in love
with her She appeared to me of a nature different and so greatly
superior to mine that I did not see the possibility of rising up to her.
I even went so far as to persuade myself that nothing but a Platonic
friendship could exist between her and M. D---- R-----, and that M. F---
- was quite right now not to shew any jealousy. Yet, that M. F---- was a
perfect fool, and certainly not worthy of such a woman. The impression
made upon me by Madame F---- was too ridiculous to last long, and the
nature of it soon changed, but in a novel manner, at least as far as I
was concerned.
My position as adjutant procured me the honour of dining at M. D---- R--
---'s table, but nothing more. The other adjutant, like me, an ensign in
the army, but the greatest fool I had ever seen, shared that honour with
me. We were not, however, considered as guests, for nobody ever spoke to
us, and, what is more, no one ever honoured us with a look. It used to
put me in a rage. I knew very well that people acted in that manner
through no real contempt for us, but it went very hard with me. I could
very well understand that my colleague, Sanzonio, should not complain of
such treatment, because he was a blockhead, but I did not feel disposed
to allow myself to be put on a par with him. At the end of eight or ten
days, Madame F----, not having condescended to cast one glance upon my
person, began to appear disagreeable to me. I felt piqued, vexed,
provoked, and the more so because I could not suppose that the lady
acted in that manner wilfully and purposely; I would have been highly
pleased if there had been premeditation on her part. I felt satisfied
that I was a nobody in her estimation, and as I was conscious of being
somebody, I wanted her to know it. At last a circumstance offered itself
in which, thinking that she could address me, she was compelled to look
at me.
M. D---- R---- having observed that a very, very fine turkey had been
placed before me, told me to carve it, and I immediately went to work. I
was not a skilful carver, and Madame F----, laughing at my want of
dexterity, told me that, if I had not been certain of performing my task
with credit to myself, I ought not to have undertaken it. Full of
confusion, and unable to answer her as my anger prompted, I sat down,
with my heart overflowing with spite and hatred against her. To crown my
rage, having one day to address me, she asked me what was my name. She
had seen me every day for a fortnight, ever since I had been the
adjutant of M. D---- R----; therefore she ought to have known my name.
Besides, I had been very lucky at the gaming-table, and I had become
rather famous in Corfu. My anger against Madame F was at its height.
I had placed my money in the hands of a certain Maroli, a major in the
army and a gamester by profession, who held the faro bank at the coffee-
house. We were partners; I helped him when he dealt, and he rendered me
the same office when I held the cards, which was often the case, because
he was not generally liked. He used to hold the cards in a way which
frightened the punters; my manners were very different, and I was very
lucky. Besides I was easy and smiling when my bank was losing, and I won
without shewing any avidity, and that is a manner which always pleases
the punters.
This Maroli was the man who had won all my money during my first stay in
Corfu, and finding, when I returned, that I was resolved not to be duped
any more, he judged me worthy of sharing the wise maxims without which
gambling must necessarily ruin all those who meddle with it. But as
Maroli had won my confidence only to a very slight extent, I was very
careful. We made up our accounts every night, as soon as playing was
over; the cashier kept the capital of the bank, the winnings were
divided, and each took his share away. Lucky at play, enjoying good
health and the friendship of my comrades, who, whenever the opportunity
offered, always found me generous and ready to serve them, I would have
been well pleased with my position if I had been a little more
considered at the table of M. D---- R-----, and treated with less
haughtiness by his lady who, without any reason, seemed disposed to
humiliate me. My self-love was deeply hurt, I hated her, and, with such
a disposition of mind, the more I admired the perfection of her charms,
the more I found her deficient in wit and intelligence. She might have
made the conquest of my heart without bestowing hers upon me, for all I
wanted was not to be compelled to hate her, and I could not understand
what pleasure it could be for her to be detested, while with only a
little kindness she could have been adored. I could not ascribe her
manner to a spirit of coquetry, for I had never given her the slightest
proof of the opinion I entertained of her beauty, and I could not
therefore attribute her behaviour to a passion which might have rendered
me disagreeable in her eyes; M. D---- R---- seemed to interest her only
in a very slight manner, and as to her husband, she cared nothing for
him. In short, that charming woman made me very unhappy, and I was angry
with myself because I felt that, if it had not been for the manner in
which she treated me, I would not have thought of her, and my vexation
was increased by the feeling of hatred entertained by my heart against
her, a feeling which until then I had never known to exist in me, and
the discovery of which overwhelmed me with confusion.
One day a gentleman handed me, as we were leaving the dinner-table, a
roll of gold that he had lost upon trust; Madame F---- saw it, and she
said to me very abruptly,--
"What do you do with your money?"
"I keep it, madam, as a provision against possible losses."
"But as you do not indulge in any expense it would be better for you not
to play; it is time wasted."
"Time given to pleasure is never time lost, madam; the only time which a
young man wastes is that which is consumed in weariness, because when he
is a prey to ennui he is likely to fall a prey to love, and to be
despised by the object of his affection."
"Very likely; but you amuse yourself with hoarding up your money, and
shew yourself to be a miser, and a miser is not less contemptible than a
man in love. Why do you not buy yourself a pair of gloves?"
You may be sure that at these words the laughter was all on her side,
and my vexation was all the greater because I could not deny that she
was quite right. It was the adjutant's business to give the ladies an
arm to their carriages, and it was not proper to fulfil that duty
without gloves. I felt mortified, and the reproach of avarice hurt me
deeply. I would a thousand times rather that she had laid my error to a
want of education; and yet, so full of contradictions is the human
heart, instead of making amends by adopting an appearance of elegance
which the state of my finances enabled me to keep up, I did not purchase
any gloves, and I resolved to avoid her and to abandon her to the
insipid and dull gallantry of Sanzonio, who sported gloves, but whose
teeth were rotten, whose breath was putrid, who wore a wig, and whose
face seemed to be covered with shrivelled yellow parchment.
I spent my days in a continual state of rage and spite, and the most
absurd part of it all was that I felt unhappy because I could not
control my hatred for that woman whom, in good conscience, I could not
find guilty of anything. She had for me neither love nor dislike, which
was quite natural; but being young and disposed to enjoy myself I had
become, without any wilful malice on her part, an eye-sore to her and
the butt of her bantering jokes, which my sensitiveness exaggerated
greatly. For all that I had an ardent wish to punish her and to make her
repent. I thought of nothing else. At one time I would think of devoting
all my intelligence and all my money to kindling an amorous passion in
her heart, and then to revenge myself by treating her with contempt. But
I soon realized the impracticability of such a plan, for even supposing
that I should succeed in finding my way to her heart, was I the man to
resist my own success with such a woman? I certainly could not flatter
myself that I was so strong-minded. But I was the pet child of fortune,
and my position was suddenly altered.
M. D---- R---- having sent me with dispatches to M. de Condulmer,
captain of a 'galeazza', I had to wait until midnight to deliver them,
and when I returned I found that M. D---- R---- had retired to his
apartment for the night. As soon as he was visible in the morning I went
to him to render an account of my mission. I had been with him only a
few minutes when his valet brought a letter saying that Madame F----'s
adjutant was waiting for an answer. M. D---- R---- read the note, tore
it to pieces, and in his excitement stamped with his foot upon the
fragments. He walked up and down the room for a little time, then wrote
an answer and rang for the adjutant, to whom he delivered it. He then
recovered his usual composure, concluded the perusal of the dispatch
sent by M. de Condulmer, and told me to write a letter. He was looking
it over when the valet came in, telling me that Madame F---- desired to
see me. M. D---- R---- told me that he did not require my services any
more for the present, and that I might go. I left the room, but I had
not gone ten yards when he called me back to remind me that my duty was
to know nothing; I begged to assure him that I was well aware of that. I
ran to Madame F-----'s house, very eager to know what she wanted with
me. I was introduced immediately, and I was greatly surprised to find
her sitting up in bed, her countenance flushed and excited, and her eyes
red from the tears she had evidently just been shedding. My heart was
beating quickly, yet I did not know why.
"Pray be seated," she said, "I wish to speak with you."
"Madam," I answered, "I am not worthy of so great a favour, and I have
not yet done anything to deserve it; allow me to remain standing."
She very likely recollected that she had never been so polite before,
and dared not press me any further. She collected her thoughts for an
instant or two, and said to me:
"Last evening my husband lost two hundred sequins upon trust at your
faro bank; he believed that amount to be in my hands, and I must
therefore give it to him immediately, as he is bound in honour to pay
his losses to-day. Unfortunately I have disposed of the money, and I am
in great trouble. I thought you might tell Maroli that I have paid you
the amount lost by my husband. Here is a ring of some value; keep it
until the 1st of January, when I will return the two hundred sequins for
which I am ready to give you my note of hand."
"I accept the note of hand, madam, but I cannot consent to deprive you
of your ring. I must also tell you that M. F---- must go himself to the
bank, or send some one there, to redeem his debt. Within ten minutes you
shall have the amount you require."
I left her without waiting for an answer, and I returned within a few
minutes with the two hundred ducats, which I handed to her, and putting
in my pocket her note of hand which she had just written, I bowed to
take my leave, but she addressed to me these precious words:
"I believe, sir, that if I had known that you were so well disposed to
oblige me, I could not have made up my mind to beg that service from
you."
"Well, madam, for the future be quite certain that there is not a man in
the world capable of refusing you such an insignificant service whenever
you will condescend to ask for it in person."
"What you say is very complimentary, but I trust never to find myself
again under the necessity of making such a cruel experiment."
I left Madame F-----, thinking of the shrewdness of her answer. She had
not told me that I was mistaken, as I had expected she would, for that
would have caused her some humiliation: she knew that I was with M. D---
- R---- when the adjutant had brought her letter, and she could not
doubt that I was aware of the refusal she had met with. The fact of her
not mentioning it proved to me that she was jealous of her own dignity;
it afforded me great gratification, and I thought her worthy of
adoration. I saw clearly that she could have no love for M. D---- R-----
, and that she was not loved by him, and the discovery made me leap for
joy. From that moment I felt I was in love with her, and I conceived the
hope that she might return my ardent affection.
The first thing I did, when I returned to my room, was to cross out with
ink every word of her note of hand, except her name, in such a manner
that it was impossible to guess at the contents, and putting it in an
envelope carefully sealed, I deposited it in the hands of a public
notary who stated, in the receipt he gave me of the envelope, that he
would deliver it only to Madame F-----, whenever she should request its
delivery.
The same evening M. F---- came to the bank, paid me, played with cash in
hand, and won some fifty ducats. What caused me the greatest surprise
was that M. D---- R---- continued to be very gracious to Madame F----,
and that she remained exactly the same towards him as she used to be
before. He did not even enquire what she wanted when she had sent for
me. But if she did not seem to change her manner towards my master, it
was a very different case with me, for whenever she was opposite to me
at dinner, she often addressed herself to me, and she thus gave me many
opportunities of shewing my education and my wit in amusing stories or
in remarks, in which I took care to blend instruction with witty jests.
At that time F---- had the great talent of making others laugh while I
kept a serious countenance myself. I had learnt that accomplishment from
M. de Malipiero, my first master in the art of good breeding, who used
to say to me,--
"If you wish your audience to cry, you must shed tears yourself, but if
you wish to make them laugh you must contrive to look as serious as a
judge."
In everything I did, in every word I uttered, in the presence of Madame
F----, the only aim I had was to please her, but I did not wish her to
suppose so, and I never looked at her unless she spoke to me. I wanted
to force her curiosity, to compel her to suspect nay, to guess my
secret, but without giving her any advantage over me: it was necessary
for me to proceed by slow degrees. In the mean time, and until I should
have a greater happiness, I was glad to see that my money, that magic
talisman, and my good conduct, obtained me a consideration much greater
than I could have hoped to obtain either through my position, or from my
age, or in consequence of any talent I might have shewn in the
profession I had adopted.
Towards the middle of November, the soldier who acted as my servant was
attacked with inflammation of the chest; I gave notice of it to the
captain of his company, and he was carried to the hospital. On the
fourth day I was told that he would not recover, and that he had
received the last sacraments; in the evening I happened to be at his
captain's when the priest who had attended him came to announce his
death, and to deliver a small parcel which the dying man had entrusted
to him to be given up to his captain only after his death. The parcel
contained a brass seal engraved with ducal arms, a certificate of
baptism, and a sheet of paper covered with writing in French. Captain
Camporese, who only spoke Italian, begged me to translate the paper, the
contents of which were as follows:
"My will is that this paper, which I have written and signed with my own
hand, shall be delivered to my captain only after I have breathed my
last: until then, my confessor shall not make any use of it, for I
entrust it to his hands only under the seal of confession. I entreat my
captain to have me buried in a vault from which my body can be exhumed
in case the duke, my father, should request its exhumation. I entreat
him likewise to forward my certificate of baptism, the seal with the
armorial bearings of my family, and a legal certificate of my birth to
the French ambassador in Venice, who will send the whole to the duke, my
father, my rights of primogeniture belonging, after my demise, to the
prince, my brother. In faith of which I have signed and sealed these
presents: Francois VI. Charles Philippe Louis Foucaud, Prince de la
Rochefoucault."
The certificate of baptism, delivered at St. Sulpice gave the same
names, and the title of the father was Francois V. The name of the
mother was Gabrielle du Plessis.
As I was concluding my translation I could not help bursting into loud
laughter; but the foolish captain, who thought my mirth out of place,
hurried out to render an account of the affair to the proveditore-
generale, and I went to the coffee-house, not doubting for one moment
that his excellency would laugh at the captain, and that the post-mortem
buffoonery would greatly amuse the whole of Corfu.
I had known in Rome, at Cardinal Acquaviva's, the Abbe de Liancourt,
great-grandson of Charles, whose sister, Gabrielle du Plessis, had been
the wife of Francois V., but that dated from the beginning of the last
century. I had made a copy from the records of the cardinal of the
account of certain circumstances which the Abbe de Liancourt wanted to
communicate to the court of Spain, and in which there were a great many
particulars respecting the house of Du Plessis. I thought at the same
time that the singular imposture of La Valeur (such was the name by
which my soldier generally went) was absurd and without a motive, since
it was to be known only after his death, and could not therefore prove
of any advantage to him.
Half an hour afterwards, as I was opening a fresh pack of cards, the
Adjutant Sanzonio came in, and told the important news in the most
serious manner. He had just come from the office of the proveditore,
where Captain Camporese had run in the utmost hurry to deposit in the
hands of his excellency the seal and the papers of the deceased prince.
His excellency had immediately issued his orders for the burial of the
prince in a vault with all the honours due to his exalted rank. Another
half hour passed, and M. Minolto, adjutant of the proveditore-generale,
came to inform me that his excellency wanted to see me. I passed the
cards to Major Maroli, and went to his excellency's house. I found him
at supper with several ladies, three or four naval commanders, Madame F-
---, and M. D---- R-----.
"So, your servant was a prince!" said the old general to me.
"Your excellency, I never would have suspected it, and even now that he
is dead I do not believe it."
"Why? He is dead, but he was not insane. You have seen his armorial
bearings, his certificate of baptism, as well as what he wrote with his
own hand. When a man is so near death, he does not fancy practical
jokes."
"If your excellency is satisfied of the truth of the story, my duty is
to remain silent."
"The story cannot be anything but true, and your doubts surprise me."
"I doubt, monsignor, because I happen to have positive information
respecting the families of La Rochefoucault and Du Plessis. Besides, I
have seen too much of the man. He was not a madman, but he certainly was
an extravagant jester. I have never seen him write, and he has told me
himself a score of times that he had never learned."
"The paper he has written proves the contrary. His arms have the ducal bearings; but perhaps you are not aware that M. de la Rochefoucault is a duke and peer of the French realm?" |
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