He rose; and went straight into the bedroom. Here He stripped, and stood erect, knees and feet close: gripped a pair of ten-pound dumb-bells; and swung them with the alternating gesture of a right and left overhand bowler, rhythmically swaying from the hips. He counted up to a hundred; and went to another movement: a full round over-head sweep of both arms together, expanding the long-breathing lungs, quickening the pulses, brightening the eyes. His skin became moist and warm. He washed His face and hands in oatmeal-water with no soap; and went into the bath-room, turning on the high tap and letting the cold soft water rain-down upon Him until He was numbed. He quickly dried Himself; and put on completely clean clothes, rolling up those which He had discarded and thrusting them into a linen bag. Then, He emerged all flushed and white and fresh; and summoned Sir Iulo to the secret chamber. "And so you are thinking of marriage, carino;" Hadrian said, putting the young man into a chair and bestowing fumificables. Sir Iulo went almost as scarlet as his uniform: his eyes and teeth gleamed. Hadrian handed to him a sheet of paper containing six stanzas of passionate expression in rhyme, under the heading "Vorrei che tu ascoltassi la mia voce." "Don't leave your sonnets about. And don't be so terrified, you silly boy. Well: is it true?" The lover's face twitched rather. "I l-o-v-e her," he said with an enormous vocal expansion of the middle word. "But I will not to abandon You, Santità:" he added with fixed eyes. "Who is she? Is she good? Has she any money?" "She is the little daughter of the dentist. But good? But, yes. But no money:" was the categorical reply. "Does she love you?" "Oh, but how she loves me!" "How long have you known her?" "Since Christmas, Santità, when the father of that has scaled the my tooths." "Have you spoken to 'the father of that' about 'that'?" "Oh, but not yet, Santità. Nothing of less, he knows. I gave him to know without the word." "And he didn't drive you out of the house?" "But no: for behold me not the assassin of that dentist." Hadrian laughed. "Can you describe her?" "Oh that I might to describe her to one who is so dear, so wise----" "Describe her." "Is named Evnica. Is example of goodness, of intellectuality. For example: yesterday with the favour of the Most Holy I make a visit. I am entering the saloon in the manner of cat, softly, softly. Behold in a book reads the Signorina Evnica--not book of novels, not journal of _Don Chisciotte_. No. I look over her shoulder, reading titles. Behold, book of piety entitled _Office to the Proximate_----" "_Office to the Proximate_? What book of piety is that?" Sir Iulo repeated the title in Italian. "Ah yes, _The Duty towards our Neighbour_. Yes: a very good sign in a girl. Go on."