The Argonauts | Page 5

smiled, but his face clouded immediately.
"My dear sir," said he, "I would give, I think, much money if a cough
like yours were not in the world."
"Because of your daughter--" began the sculptor, but Darvid had grown
cold now, ceremonious, and he turned toward the round table.

At the same moment a servant announced from the door a new guest.
"Pan Arthur Kranitski."
The guest entered immediately after the servant, and passed the
outgoing sculptor in the door.
This guest was a man who carried his fifth decade of years with
youthful elasticity of movement, and with a pleasant, winning
expression on his still handsome face. In general he seemed to be
clothed with remnants of great manly beauty, from behind which, like
soiled lining through rents in a once splendid robe, appeared, carefully
concealed, old age, which was premature, perhaps.
A tall man with a shapely oval face, he had dark whiskers, and the
black curls of his hair did not cover successfully the bald spot
appearing on the back of his head; his mustache was curled upward, in
the fashion of young men, above ruddy lips; he passed through the
study with a youthful step, and had the express intention of greeting the
master of the house in a cordial and intimate manner. But in the cold
eyes of Darvid appeared flashes well-nigh threatening; he barely
touched with his finger-tips the hand extended by the guest-a hand
really aristocratic, white, slender, and greatly cared for.
"Pardon, pardon, dear Pan Aloysius, that I come at this hour, just the
hour of thy important, immense, colossal occupations! But on receiving
thy invitation I hastened."
"Yes," said Darvid, "I need to talk with you a little--will you wait a
while?"
He turned toward the two men standing by the table, who when he
greeted Kranitski looked at him with a curiosity impossible to conceal.
Every meeting of Darvid with that eternal guest, that offshoot of
aristocratic families, roused the curiosity of people. For a good while
Darvid did not know this, but at last he discovered it, and now his quick
glance caught on the lips of the famous jurist a barely discernible smile,

to meet which a similar smile appeared on the lips of the architect. He
discoursed a few minutes more with the two men. When they turned to
go he conducted them to the door; when that was closed he turned to
Kranitski and said:
"Now I am at your service."
No one had ever seen service so icy cold, and having in it the shade of a
restrained threat. Kranitski in view of this spent more time than was
needed in placing his hat on one of the pieces of furniture, besides an
expression of alarm covered his face, now bent forward, and, in the
twinkle of an eye, the wrinkling of his forehead and the dropping of his
cheeks, made him look ten years older. Still with grace which was
unconscious, since it had passed long before into habit, he turned to
Darvid.
"Thou hast written to me, dear Pan Aloysius--"
"I have called you," interrupted Darvid, "for the purpose of proposing a
certain condition, and a change."
From a thick, long book he cut out a page, on which, previously, he had
written a few words in haste, and giving it to Kranitski, he said:
"Here is a bank check for a considerable sum. Your affairs, as I hear,
are in a very disagreeable condition."
Kranitski's face grew radiant from delight, and became ten years
younger. Taking the check presented to him he began, with a certain
hesitation:
"Dear Pan Aloysius, this service, really friendly, which thou art
rendering me, even without request on my part, is truly magnanimous,
but be assured that the moment income from my property increases--"
Darvid interrupted him a second time.
"We know each other so long that I cannot be ignorant of what your

property is, and what income you receive from it. You have no property.
You own a little village, the income from which has never sufficed to
satisfy even one half of your needs. In that little village you would have
passed your life unknown to the great world if your mother had not
been a relative of Prince Zeno, and some other coronets of nine
quarterings. But since you had relationship so brilliant through your
mother, high society did not suffer from the loss of your presence. I
know all that relates to you, you need not try to lead me into error--I
know everything."
On the last words he put an emphasis which seemed to bring Kranitski
into a profound confusion, which he could not master.
"Parole d'honneur," began he, "I do not understand such a real friendly
service with such a tone."
"You will