Never was he more gentle. The attentive Lector, in this warm, fruitful seed-time, threw in some good seed. He said, as they looked out together into the moonlit night, Albano had this evening hardly brought forward anything but thorny and exaggerated truths, which only imbitter, but do not enlighten. At another time the Count would have asked him whether he should have carried himself like Froulay and Bouverot, who, with all possible tolerance, presented theses and antitheses to each other, like an academical respondent and opponent, who previously prepare in concert logical wounds and plasters of equal length;--but to-day he was very kindly disposed towards him. Augusti had so delicately and affectionately cared for mother and daughter,--he had, without blackening or whitewashing, said much good, but nothing hastily, and his expositions had been calmly listened to: he had neither flattered nor offended. Albano, therefore, replied, softly: "But it is surely better to imbitter, dear Augusti, than to put to sleep. And to whom shall I then say the truth but to those who have it not nor any faith in it? Surely not to others." "One can speak any truth," said he, "but one cannot reckon as truth every mode and mood in which he speaks it." "Ah!" said Albano, and looked up; beneath the starry heaven stood the marble Madonna of the palace, like a patron saint, softly illuminated,--and he thought of her sister,[81]--and of Lilar,--and of spring,--and of many dreams,--and how full his heart was of eternal love, and that he had as yet no friend and no loved one. FOOTNOTES: [70] Lit. "Let themselves be struck dead thereupon," i. e. lay their life that it was so. We have a vulgarism: "I'll be shot if it's not so."--TR. [71] _Blase-löcher_, mouth-pieces.--TR. [72] _Honnêteté_ entirely excludes, in the higher classes, murder; _dés honnêteté_, lying, &c., except in a _certain_ degree. [73] This court is Catholic, but the country Lutheran; and to this latter confession that of Hohenfliess also subscribes. [74] Or convocations every fifteen years.--TR. [75] A departing graduate.--TR. [76] See Count Lamberg's Day-book of a Man of the World. [77] Whoever goes to the Academy of the Arcadians, takes an Arcadian name. [78] One who watches the card and takes up the money at the bank.--TR. [79] Give us our daily bread, and forgive us our debts.--[? TR.] [80] Lanzknecht.--TR. [81] Liana.--TR. EIGHTH JUBILEE. LE PETIT LEVER OF DR. SPHEX.--PATH TO LILAR.--WOODLAND-BRIDGE.--THE MORNING IN ARCADIA.--CHARITON.--LIANA'S LETTER AND PSALM OF GRATITUDE.--SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY THROUGH A GARDEN.--THE FLUTE-DELL.--CONCERNING THE REALITY OF THE IDEAL. 41. CYCLE.