The Prince of the Hundred Soups Author:Vernon Lee 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 IV. ;HE Magnificent Pantalone Busdrago entered upon his ducal functions. He left his own mansion, and was installed in the Doge's apartments of t... more »he public palace. It was a gloomy suite of rooms, furnished in the hardest dignified style, with oaken ceilings, oaken chairs, oaken tables, everything solemn, sombre, and rusty. Compared with the luxurious rooms of the Busdrago palace, with their brand-new silk furniture and profuse gild- ing and bright frescoes, it was in the highest degree dismal and uncomfortable. In these rooms the Dux Bobbulorum was confined by etiquette and by force ; two pages sate in the ante-chamber; four Swiss held watch in the guard-room ; there was no possibility of the Doge going out, or of any one coming in, without the express order of the Senator Major- domo. For the republic of Bobbio was the most jealous and suspicious state existing; a Doge it must have, but it arranged matters in such a way that he should be wholly unable to stir a finger. The Doge could receive visits only in the presence of a senator, and he could go out only in state, in one of the wondrous gilt coaches of the republic. No one was permitted to share the ducal meal, but some dignitary was occasionally present while he partook of it. The life of the Dux Bobbulorum was, therefore, the most uncomfortable and dreary that could possibly be conceived ; but such was the ambition of men, that every one of the forty senators was mad to become Doge, and ready to squander his fortune and massacre his neighbours in order to obtain this honour. To be Doge was the crowning success, the only missing happiness of Pantalone Busdrago's ever successful and ever happy life. He had the largest fortune, the most magnificent estates, the most splendid villa, the most superb palace, l...« less