Victor Serenus Author:Henry Wood Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III IN THE TOILS "Bv Pallas! A bird hath flown into our net. The tempest hath driven her to shelter." "A riddle for my interpretation, Marcius?"... more » "Thou judgest rightly." "Methinks I am already on the trail, my gallant; or art thou an impostor ? Come, I am impatient! Doth the bird sing?" | "Thou wilt find out the particulars for thyself." "A truce. Solve thine own riddle, I say." "Well, my gay Leander, the slaves down-stairs say that we are honored by a call — rather unceremonious, I must admit — from a beautiful young Jewess." "Ha! A bird of that feather will stir the pulses." "Thou sayest well. The sun warms and the breeze refreshes." The Roman smiled, and his dark eyes sparkled from beneath their heavy brows. " A much-needed addition to our coterie, Marcius. The gods are propitious to-night." " Thy discrimination is fine, my genial Greek. Variety is fitting." " Fortune commands us to be hospitable." " We will obey with alacrity, and make the young Jewess quite at home." " Even the elements bespeak a welcome with their noisy commotion." " A truce to thy poetic fancies, my gallant. They say the bird hath an incumbrance." " A lover in her train, sayest thou ? " "Nay; a small brother." " Did the skies drop them down with the hail-stones in the storm that just passed over, Marcius? " " I cannot swear to it, my Leander; but it seemeth likely, for the slaves say that they appeared just afterwards at the gate which opens toward the Cydnus." " O thou prosaic Roman! It is the gods who are prodigal with their favors." " Be it so. Who recks the wind, where it blows, so that it ministers to our fancies. Thou art an ardent votary of thy favorite divinities; but miracles like this are not common." " Ah! the Muses wh...« less