Truyn, as became his age, had a weakness for whist, quite as pronounced as for politics, and therefore accepted the proposal. The ladies were politely invited to play, but no one accepted save Fraeulein Klette, and since Pistasch refused point-blank to have her for a partner, the four gentlemen sat down to the game by themselves. The sunbeams slant more and more, one long, level ray is now shining directly through the bouquet of crimson roses in the ugly Sevres vase, the flowers glow like strange, weird jewels. A carriage stopped before the castle. "Who can it be?" said Countess Lodrin. It was the Baroness Melkweyser. The customary greetings over, she begged the gentlemen not to let her interrupt their game, and sank into an arm-chair beside the Countess Lodrin. "I hope I do not disturb you!" she exclaimed. "I really could not stand it another hour over there. I was perfectly wild!" "Aha!" Mimi Dey smiled provokingly. "I cannot pity you as much as you seem to expect, Zoe; I thought you would repent it, when I heard you were staying with those queer people." "What would you have?" said the Baroness meekly enough, "I have known those Caprianis ever so long, they live magnificently in Paris." "Indeed?" asked Mimi, "does any one visit them?" "Oh yes, crowned heads even," said Zinka, "and especially Princes of the blood travelling incog." "Oh, they--why, they go even to the _Mabille_," said Mimi, "and--well--perhaps there is a certain similarity between ....!" "Oh, no, no," interrupted Zoe, "they have very decent manners; Capriani even turned out of his house lately a person who came without an invitation." "Really?" said Zinka, "that, certainly, shows great progress; but is it true that at the Conte's last ball neither the eldest daughter, nor her husband was present?" "Yes," Zoe admitted. "Those are some of the insolent airs with which Larothiere contrives to awe his father-in-law." "Go on," said Mimi. "I do not say that only the _elite_ appear at these balls. _C'est toujours le monde a cote_, as they say in Paris, but,--good Heavens! these Caprianis have been of service to me, and they always heaped me with attentions, but here they are beginning to behave positively disagreeably to me." "Perhaps your services in your native country have not answered their expectations," said Mimi, "Pistasch told me that you had been invited to Schneeburg on purpose to introduce the Caprianis into Austrian society. Was that only one of his poor jokes, or ...." "I really did promise to do my best ...." "My dear Zoe'," exclaimed Mimi Dey horrified, "had you clean forgotten your Austria?" "No, I had not forgotten it, only I fancied that in the last twenty-five years you might have conformed somewhat to the spirit of the age; but no, you are precisely the same as ever. When will you cease to entrench yourselves behind triple barriers?"