CHAPTER IV.

What passed between Arnoldo and Periander, and between the Duke de Nemours and Croriano.

On the following day the news of the arrival of the French ladies, and the little band of pilgrims, had spread throughout the town.

Chiefly did the general voice extol¹ Auristella's superhuman beauty, exaggerating it even to the utmost. The house was encompassed² by persons, brought by curiosity, and the desire of gazing upon so much beauty assembled in one place, as people talked of. It rose to such a height at last that they even called out from the street to summon the ladies to appear at the windows, but they were reposing³, and would not let themselves be seen. Especially they called out for Auristella, but they did not succeed in catching⁴ a sight of any one of the party.

Among the rest who appeared at the door were Arnoldo and the duke, still in their pilgrim's dresses, and scarcely did they set eyes upon each other than they felt their jealous hatred⁵ revive, and their hearts beat wildly in their breasts.

From the windows they were seen by Periander, who told Croriano, and they instantly descended⁶ together, to prevent, as much as possible, the chance of an encounter between the two jealous lovers.

Periander went to meet Arnoldo, and Croriano, the duke. Arnoldo said, "One of the heaviest weights upon my mind, on the subject of Auristella, is to think how this French gentleman, who is said to be the Duke de Nemours, can have obtained possession of her picture, since she is under your care; it appears to have been given by her willingly, yet I possess none. Look you now, friend Periander; in this infirmity, by lovers called jealousy⁷, but which is rather desperate rage, envy and scorn enter in, and when once they gain possession of an enamoured heart, no consideration can soothe⁸, no remedy avail, and however small may be the causes which first engendered⁹ it, its effects are so great that at the least they can overthrow¹⁰ reason, and often can destroy the very life. Better is it for a jealous lover to die of despair than to live in jealousy. If he be a true lover, he is not bold enough to show his suspicions to the beloved one, and should he be perfect enough not to show it, he cannot help feeling it, he cannot feel secure, for things that are of great value keep their possessor in continual fear lest he should lose them. Thus the passion of jealousy, is one, inseparable from a heart that truly loves. I advise thee, O my friend Periander, (if I may give advice who cannot give it to myself,) to reflect that I am a king, and that I am very deeply in love; and thou must be aware from a thousand proofs, that I shall accomplish in my deeds, that which I promise in words, to receive thy peerless sister with no other portion than that she brings so largely in her virtue¹¹ and her beauty, and that I care not to investigate what her origin may be, since it is clear Nature cannot deny the gifts of fortune to one on whom she has conferred so many. Never, or very rarely, are the highest virtues¹² found in base-born subjects, and beauty of person is oftentimes indicative of beauty of soul, and to sum up all, I once again repeat what I have said so often; I adore Auristella, whether she spring from heavenly birth or from the lowest of the low; and since we are now at Rome, where she has always promised to decide my fate, be my advocate with her, and henceforth I divide my crown and kingdom with thee, and do not let me be mocked by this duke, nor scorned by her whom I adore."

To all these speeches, offers, and promises, Periander thus replied: "If my sister had been to blame with respect to the offence you have to complain about from the duke, if I did not punish her I should at least renounce¹³ her, and that would be to her the greatest possible punishment; but as I know she is perfectly¹⁴ innocent, I cannot tell what answer to make you, and as to the hopes which she permitted you to form when she should have reached this city, as I cannot tell what they were, I do not know how to answer that either. For the offers you now make, and have already made, I am as grateful as I ought to be, considering who you are, and to whom they are made; for with all humility¹⁵ be it said, O noble Arnoldo, perhaps this poor pilgrim's frock may serve as a cloud, such as we sometimes see the sun hidden behind. Be still for the present and compose yourself, we only arrived yesterday, and it is not possible that, in so short a space of time, consequences should have been deduced, traces given, and chimeras¹⁶ removed, so as to bring everything right as we could wish. Avoid, as much as possible, all encounters with the duke, for a lover who is not encouraged, and whose hopes are weak, tries to invent and imagine what does not exist, even though it be against the beloved object herself."

Arnoldo promised to do as he advised, and offered him money and all that could be required to furnish magnificent entertainment both for himself and all the party.

The conversation between the duke and Croriano was different, since it all ran upon the determination of the duke to recover his portrait, and to make Arnoldo confess he had no right to it. He also begged Croriano would intercede¹⁷ in his favour with Auristella to accept him as her husband, since, said he, his station was no ways inferior to that of Arnoldo, and his family was one of the most illustrious in Europe; in fine, he displayed great arrogance¹⁸ and no small jealousy, like a man very much in love.

Croriano offered to do all he could, and to let him know what answer Auristella gave to the offer he made her.

1 extol   

v.赞美，颂扬

参考例句：

• We of the younger generation extol the wisdom of the great leader and educator.我们年轻一代崇拜那位伟大的引路人和教育家的智慧。
• Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever. 我要天天称颂你，也要永永远远赞美你的名。

2 encompassed   

v.围绕( encompass的过去式和过去分词 )；包围；包含；包括

参考例句：

• The enemy encompassed the city. 敌人包围了城市。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I have encompassed him with every protection. 我已经把他保护得严严实实。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

3 reposing   

v.将（手臂等）靠在某人（某物）上( repose的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• His parents were now reposing in the local churchyard. 他的双亲现在长眠于本地教堂墓地。 来自辞典例句
• The picture shows a nude reposing on a couch. 这幅画表现的是一个人赤身体躺在长沙发上。 来自辞典例句

4 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

5 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

6 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

7 jealousy   

n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌

参考例句：

• Some women have a disposition to jealousy.有些女人生性爱妒忌。
• I can't support your jealousy any longer.我再也无法忍受你的嫉妒了。

8 soothe   

v.安慰；使平静；使减轻；缓和；奉承

参考例句：

• I've managed to soothe him down a bit.我想方设法使他平静了一点。
• This medicine should soothe your sore throat.这种药会减轻你的喉痛。

9 engendered   

v.产生（某形势或状况），造成，引起( engender的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The issue engendered controversy. 这个问题引起了争论。
• The meeting engendered several quarrels. 这次会议发生了几次争吵。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

11 virtue   

n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力

参考例句：

• He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
• You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

12 virtues   

美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处

参考例句：

• Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处。
• She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。

13 renounce   

v.放弃；拒绝承认，宣布与…断绝关系

参考例句：

• She decided to renounce the world and enter a convent.她决定弃绝尘世去当修女。
• It was painful for him to renounce his son.宣布与儿子脱离关系对他来说是很痛苦的。

14 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

15 humility   

n.谦逊，谦恭

参考例句：

• Humility often gains more than pride.谦逊往往比骄傲收益更多。
• His voice was still soft and filled with specious humility.他的声音还是那么温和，甚至有点谦卑。

16 chimeras   

n.（由几种动物的各部分构成的）假想的怪兽( chimera的名词复数 )；不可能实现的想法；幻想；妄想

参考例句：

• He was more interested in states of mind than in "puerile superstitions, Gothic castles, and chimeras." 他乐于描写心情，而不愿意描写“无聊的迷信，尖拱式的堡垒和妖魔鬼怪。” 来自辞典例句
• Dong Zhong's series, in its embryonic stage, had no blossoms, birds or surreal chimeras. 董重的这个系列的早年雏形并没有梅花、鸟和超现实的连体。 来自互联网

17 intercede   

vi.仲裁，说情

参考例句：

• He was quickly snubbed when he tried to intercede.当他试着说情时很快被制止了。
• At a time like that there has to be a third party to intercede.这时候要有个第三者出来斡旋。

18 arrogance   

n.傲慢，自大

参考例句：

• His arrogance comes out in every speech he makes.他每次讲话都表现得骄傲自大。
• Arrogance arrested his progress.骄傲阻碍了他的进步。