To-day the young patrician almost resented this persistent marshaling of
the shades of his ancestors, though at heart he was proud of them, and
the prestige and luxury of his surroundings suited him well; but he
chafed under his father's scrutiny, which, it seemed to him, unveiled
the differences of their temperaments to an almost indecorous degree.
The thought of Marina was tingling in his pulses, but he would not yield
it up until the propitious moment came; and the strong consciousness of
this sweet new queenship made the constant assertion of the sovereignty
of Venice not easy to endure. But the remembrance of his vow of
allegiance, just rendered before the Senate, returned to him rather as
the public investiture of his rights as a man than as a claim of
self-surrender; and he vowed to himself to use that right, in all
possible conflict between himself and the Republic, in questions
personal and dear; for the pleasant freedom of his life thus far had
left him less in awe of the senatorial majesty than Giustinian
Giustiniani would have deemed possible.
Pages:
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145