lar disturbed him. Who was that lady, the only one that did not dance, the only one in the noisy hall who sought solitude, and while others were gliding about, laughing and trying to bring their beauty into the most favorable light for the conquest of men’s hearts, turned aside from the noisy whirl, quietly observing and thinking? This question gravely spoken within, caused the Emperor to forget his former one, spoken out loud to the councilman. He felt again the inquisitive eyes resting on his face as though they would penetrate to the core of his soul and without hesitation tell him if they found anything there that displeased them. He was not able to catch the thread of his important discussion; it had gotten away and become tangled.
The Emperor, though renowned for his liberal principles, was after all strangely moved because some one had dared coolly to watch him without the reverential homage due to a sovereign. He continually looked about him to see if the brave lady would emerge from the moving wave of dancers, and thus became
