"You could drive a man fairly insane." "As long as the men will torment us, we must be able to pay them back." She took Blanka's arm and returned with her to the other room.

"Woe to him who invades my kingdom!" she continued.

"He is bound to lose his reason.

Do you wish to wager that I can't drive all Rome crazy over me?
If I took a notion to dance the 'Gitana' on the opera-house stage for the benefit of the wounded soldiers, all Rome would go wild with enthusiasm, and the people would half smother me with flowers." "I will make no such wager with you," returned Blanka, "because I know I should lose." The beautiful Cyrene changed the subject and invited the princess to attend one of her masked balls,--"a masquerade party," she explained, "of only forty guests at the most, and those the chief personages of Roman society.

I ferret out all their secrets and can see through their masks; but I use no witchery about it.