' I did not hear whom the gentleman married, madame; but the
others, Prince Hamlet, the Duke of Buckingham, and Louis the Fourteenth,
all agreed that Mrs. Bassanio was too beautiful a person to be separated
from, and that it was better, therefore, to keep Bassanio in the dark as
to their little enterprise until it was too late for him to interfere."
A pink glow of pleasure suffused the lovely countenance of the
cross-examiner, and it did not require a very sharp eye to see that the
wily Kidd had completely won her over to his side. On the other hand,
Elizabeth's brow became as corrugated as her ruff, and the spirit of the
pirate shivered to the core as he turned and gazed upon that glowering
face.
"Sir Walter agreed to that, did he?" snapped Elizabeth. "And yet he was
willing to part with--ah--his sister."
"Well, your Majesty," began Kidd, hesitatingly, "you see it was this way:
Sir Walter--er--did say that, but--ah--he--ah--but he added that he of
course merely judged--er--this man Bassanio's feelings by his own in
parting from his sister--"
"Did he say sister?" cried Elizabeth.
"Well--no--not in those words," shuffled Kidd, perceiving quickly wherein
his error lay, "but--ah--I jumped at the conclusion, seeing his intense
enthusiasm for the lady's beauty and--er--intellectual qualities, that he
referred to you, and it is from yourself that I have gained my knowledge
as to the fraternal, not to say sororal, relationship that exists between
you.
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