And," he added eagerly, as the others with reverential bows were retiring, "and don't forget, I do not command--I entreat her." When he was alone, Charles drew a long breath, and, resting his head on his hand, his thoughts returned to the past.

Half-vanished pictures unconsciously blended with the present, which had so unexpectedly assumed a bright colouring.
"Barbara," he murmured, almost inaudibly.

Then he continued in soliloquy: "The beautiful Jungfrau Groen in Brussels was also called Barbara, and she was the first.

Another of this name, and perhaps the last.

How can this ardent yearning take root in my seared soul and grow so vigorously ?" Meanwhile he fancied that the "Quia amore langueo" again greeted him yearningly in the sweet melody of her voice.
"How powerfully the ear affects the heart!" he continued, pursuing the same train of thought.