I can still see in memory the signorina at sixteen; a sweeter creature, Herr Wilhelm, my eyes have never beheld before or since, and yet she never remained the same.

I have seen her as soft as Flemish velvet, but at other times she could rage like a November storm in your country.

She was always beautiful as a rose and, as her mother's old cameriera--she was a native of Lugano--had brought her up, and the priest who taught her came from Pisa and was acknowledged to be an excellent musician, she spoke my language like a child of Tuscany and was perfectly familiar with music.

You have doubtless heard her singing, her harp and lute-playing, but you should know that all the ladies of the Hoogstraten family, with the exception of my mistress, possess a special talent for your art.

In summer we lived in the beautiful country-house, that was torn down before the siege by your friends--with little justice I think.