"I know."
"Wait and hear me out."
"Well?"
"The weather is delightful, there was a light breeze from the north during the night, so it may happen that the ship from Messina will arrive before noon."
"Then let me go down."
"Go and watch for the sails. If you see ours, hurry back and tell Chloris to call me, for I must go to the temple of Cypris."
"You?" asked Xanthe, laughing.
"I, and you are the last person who should sneer at the errand; nay, you can accompany me."
"No! I will cut the roses."
These words were uttered in a tone the house-keeper knew well. Whenever Xanthe used it, she insisted upon having her own way, and did what she pleased, while Semestre, who usually never admitted that her hearing was no longer so keen as in former clays, in such cases willingly pleaded her deafness, in order to avoid a retreat.