He bent over the tray, and she drew back her head, which was defended only by the steam which rose from the pot. “Traitor! desist, or I will drop the drink.”
But he feared not the threat; afterward he cried, “As God is in heaven, from such delight a man might lose his wits!”
“Then you lost your wit long ago. Sit down.”
He sat down obediently; she poured the drink into the goblet.
“Tell me how you sentenced the guilty in Upita.”
“In Upita? Like Solomon!”
“Praise to God for that! It is on my heart that all in this region should esteem you as a steady and just man. How was it then?”
Kmita took a good draught of the drink, drew breath, and began,—
“I must tell from the beginning. It was thus: The townspeople with the mayor spoke of an order for provisions from the grand hetman or the under-treasurer. ‘You gentlemen,’ said they to the soldiers, ‘are volunteers, and you cannot levy contributions. We will give you quarters for nothing, and provisions we will give when it is shown that we shall be paid.’”
“Were they right, or were they not?”