True, he saw them rarely enough; weeks often elapsed without a visit; but, on the other hand, he often came day after day to our garden, clad in plain garments, and borne in an unpretending litter, for these visits were kept secret from every one save the leech Olympus.
"I often saw the tall, strong man, with red, bloated face, playing with his children like a mechanic who had just returned from work.

But he usually remained only a short time, seeming to be satisfied with having seen them again.

Perhaps he merely wished to assure himself that they were comfortable with us.

At any rate, no one was permitted to go near the group of plane-trees where he talked with them.
"But it is easy to hide amid the dense foliage of these trees, so my knowledge that he questioned them is not solely hearsay.
"Cleopatra was happy with us from the beginning; Arsinoe needed a longer time; but the King valued only the opinion of his older child, his darling, on whom he feasted his eyes and ears like a lover.

He often shook his heavy head at the sight of her, and when she gave him one of her apt replies, he laughed so loudly that the sound of his deep, resonant voice was heard as far as the house.
"Once I saw tear after tear course down his flushed cheeks, and yet his visit was shorter than usual.