“It is a case of unhappy love, Donna Felicidade,” said Julião. “It is the sorrowful history of Paolo and Francesca da Rimini. The lady sitting there is Francesca; and this young man with the flowing locks, kneeling at her feet and embracing her, is her brother-in-law, and—I regret to say it—her lover. And the man with the beard, who is lifting up the tapestry in the background with the one hand, while with the other he draws his dagger, is the husband, who surprises them, and—zas!” he ended, making a gesture as if giving a dagger-thrust.
“Ugh!” cried Donna Felicidade, horrified. “And what is that book lying on the floor? Were they reading?”
Julião replied discreetly,—
“Yes, they were reading, but presently,—
‘Quel giorno più non vi leggiemi avante;’
or, which is the same thing: ‘We read no more during all that day.’”
“Perhaps they were tired,” said Donna Felicidade, smiling.
“Worse than that, Senhora; for, according to the confession of Francesca, this youth with the flowing locks, and her own brother-in-law,—
‘La bocca me bacciò tutto tremante;’
which signifies: ‘He kissed me, tremulous, upon the lips.’”