I resolved accordingly to keep my counsel, and wait upon events. I felt too confident of regulating them in my own interests to be afraid of the consequences. However, I was surprised by an incident which at first seemed insignificant. Having been informed of my aunt's projected visit to Kondje's mother, I went to her the same evening, thinking that she would at once tell me about it, but she said nothing. I thought, of course, that some obstacle had occurred which had deferred my aunt's negotiations. The next day, without seeming to attach any importance to the matter, I questioned my aunt about it. She informed me that she had been to Madame Murrah's the day before. "Did you commence your overtures on behalf of Kiusko's grand scheme?" I asked her. "Yes," she answered. "And--were they entertained?" "Oh, you are going too fast! According to Mussulman usage, matters don't proceed at that rate. We did not get any further than the preliminaries. I explained our amorous friend's eager anxiety, and the next step is to consult Kondje-Gul." "Meanwhile, does the mother appear favourable to your request?" "It was not her duty to declare herself at the first interview," said my aunt. "She has, as you know, all the fatalistic composure of her race; still, when I described Daniel's fortune, I fancied she listened to me with some approval." "Did she tell you what dowry she could give her daughter?" "Dowry! are you mad? We talked in Turkish and discussed the matter in the Turkish way. I think I should have surprised her exceedingly if I had given her the idea that I was asking, not only for Kondje-Gul herself, but for some pecuniary remuneration to the noble Kiusko for taking her. That would have been sufficient to upset all her ideas, for don't you know that in the East it is the husband, on the contrary, who always makes a present to the parents of the girl he wants to have? This arrangement, by the way, seems to me more chivalrous and more manly. Kiusko, for that matter, cares about as much for money as for a straw: he loves her, and that is enough for him." I took good care not to disturb the illusive hopes which my aunt had already conceived. Being reassured by the manner in which Madame Murrah had played her part, it only remained for me to determine the time and the form of refusal best adapted to the circumstances. While I was in the midst of these reflections, Count Kiusko came in, like any familiar friend, without being announced. He held out his hand to me with more than his usual cordiality. By his happy looks I judged that he had already had a word of encouragement from my aunt, and that he had come to learn in detail the result of her first attempt. Not wishing to disturb their interview, I pretended after a minute or two that I had some letters to write, and left them.