The Law Inevitable

house had formed part of a villino of the old Ludovisi Gardens, those beautiful old gardens regretted by everybody who knew them before the new

situation: it stood at a few minutes' walk from the Pincio, on high ground, and there was no need to fear malaria; and the price charged for a long stay, amounting to hardly more than eight lire a day, was exceptionally low for Rome, which was known to be more expensive than any other town in Italy

rst visit to Italy; it was the first time that she had alighted at the great cavernous station near the Baths of Diocletian; and, standing in the square, in the golden Roman sunlight, while the great fountain of the

siness, of being well cared for by the little old lame man; and she gave him a friendly nod as the coachman drove away. She felt happy and careless, though she had just the faintest foreboding of something unhappy and unknown that was going to come to her; and she looked to right and left to take in the streets of Rome. But she saw only houses upon houses, like so many barracks; then a great white palace, the new Palazzo Piombino, which she knew to contain the Juno Ludovisi; and then the vettura stopped and a boy in buttons came out to meet her. He showed her into the drawing-room,

s asked her, from the corn

ould you please not take

vaguely above their grimy heads, said nothing and glanced down at the Herald again; and she thought herself

blue eyes, with bistre shadows beneath them, wore a strained expression, the pupils unnaturally dilated by belladonna; a pair of immense crystals sparkled in her ears; and her fat, greasy fingers were covered with nameless jewels. She talked very fast; and Cornélie thought her sentences as pleasant

ied the marchesa

back, meaning thereby to convey that-as seemed n

on to the cable of the lift, together with the ostensibly zealous boy in buttons; and by fits

her!" ordered

d their muscles in vain:

said the marche

ckinged calf of her leg, she stepped on to the floor, smiled

rchesa, with a smile of sati

. Though the sun was shining brightly out of do

hout hesitation, "I wrote to y

eally didn't remember. Yes, that is one of those foreigners' i

can't accept thi

ent down the corridor and op

ignora?... How d

it s

mos

it ful

ee the most splendid su

st have a south

e apartments looking east: you get t

march

eciate the beau

, but I put my

a north ro

n, marchesa, and y

but I have no roo

archesa, but I must lo

away. The choice of a room somet

and smiled. She had abandoned her c

rs' ideas: rooms facing south! But I h

through the open casements a lofty and spacious view of the sky, out-spread abo

have left facing south," sai

ad to have the

re," smiled

as you

t two perso

l the winter, if

hall have the rooms for twelve lire. Don't let us discuss it any more. The rooms are yours. You are Dutch, are you not?

here else; I don't care for my f

saw that it was eleven o'clock and began to unpack. One of her rooms was a small sitting-room, like a bird-cage in the air, looking out over Rome. She altered the position of the furniture, draped the faded sofa with a shawl from the Abruzzi and fixed

lonely. She began to think of the Hague and of what she had left behind her. But she did not want to think and picked up her Baedeker and read about the Vatican. She was unable to concentrate her thoughts and turned to Hare's Walks in Rome. A bell sounded. She was tired and her nerves

erved. She resolved not to come down so very punctually in future. A few boarders looked in through t

ked around h

over the table, to see if everything was in order. He grew impatient when nobody came and told them to serve the macaroni to Cornélie. It struck Cornélie that he

shaven, in a shabby black coat which showed but little linen,

y and began to e

elves to the macaroni, which was handed round by the youthful waiters under the watchful eye of the grey-haired major-domo. Cornélie smiled at t

with his bread, bent a little way across

using, i

raised he

do you

itan compan

, y

are D

o you

he visitors' book, wi

Dutch,

ladies here, sitting over

e major-domo for

ivaciously. "This is Genzano," pointing to his fia

front of Cornélie: it was included

u the address where I get my

-marked gentleman's uncommon e

at the major-d

observer," she

He did I don't know what. Stole something, perhaps. Or was impertinent. Or dropped a spoon on the floo

ant f

l the servants here are either

a mother and daughter, who had

o see the Palazzo Rospigliosi and Guido Re

prince b

The palace is not open to v

id with a g

nything, to find a way out of every difficulty. They had taken endle

hwoman had taken her

have a card for a low mass in

was radiant

ing again?" the pock-mar

d Miss Taylor. "But I am tire

or, is that you stay at hom

ement to go to t

ry day and you're losing flesh. You must rest,

light, gave her promise. She looked at the pock-marked gentleman as th

steak, the pudding, the d

gentleman. "Do taste my wine and tell me if you like it.

re. She reflected that it would be a good thing to drink a pure wine in Rom

rink a strengthening wine while you

lie a

the fiasco. It will last you a long time: t

ladies around an

adies bowed

ble man, that

ie wondered. "French, Ge