"who are those ladies, matteo?" francis asked his friend one evening, as the latter, who was sitting with him in his gondola, while giuseppi rowed them along the grand canal, half rose and saluted two girls in a passing gondola.

"they are distant cousins of mine, maria and giulia polani. they only returned a short time since from corfu. their father is one of the richest merchants of our city. he has for the last three years been living in corfu, which is the headquarters of his trade. the family is an old one, and has given doges to venice. they are two of our richest heiresses, for they have no brothers. their mother died soon after the birth of giulia."

"they both look very young," francis said.

"maria is about sixteen, her sister two years younger. there will be no lack of suitors for their hands, for although the family is not politically powerful, as it used to be, their wealth would cause them to be gladly received in our very first families."

"who was the middle-aged lady sitting between them?"

"she is only their duenna," matteo said carelessly. "she has been with them since they were children, and their father places great confidence in her. and he had need to, for maria will ere long be receiving bouquets and perfumed notes from many a young gallant."

"i can quite fancy that," francis said, "for she is very pretty as well as very rich, and, as far as i have observed, the two things do not go very often together. however, no doubt by this time her father has pretty well arranged in his mind whom she is to marry."

"i expect so," agreed matteo.

"that is the worst of being born of good family. you have got to marry some one of your father's choice, not your own, and that choice is determined simply by the desire to add to the political influence of the family, to strengthen distant ties, or to obtain powerful connections. i suppose it is the same everywhere, matteo, but i do think that a man or woman ought to have some voice in a matter of such importance to them."

"i think so, too, at the present time," matteo laughed; "but i don't suppose that i shall be of that opinion when i have a family of sons and daughters to marry.

"this gondola of yours must be a fast one indeed, francisco, for with only one rower she keeps up with almost all the pair oared boats, and your boy is not exerting himself to the utmost, either."

"she can fly along, i can tell you, matteo. you shall come out in her some evening when giuseppi and i both take oars. i have had her ten days now, and we have not come across anything that can hold her for a moment."

"it is always useful," matteo said, "to have a fast boat. it is invaluable in case you have been getting into a scrape, and have one of the boats of the city watch in chase of you."

"i hope i sha'n't want it for any purpose of that sort," francis answered, laughing. "i do not think i am likely to give cause to the city watch to chase me."

"i don't think you are, francisco, but there is never any saying."

"at any rate it is always useful to be able to go fast if necessary, and if we did want to get away, i do not think there are many pair-oared gondolas afloat that would overtake us, though a good four oar might do so. giuseppi and i are so accustomed to each other's stroke now, that though in a heavy boat we might not be a match for two men, in a light craft like this, where weight does not count for so much, we would not mind entering her for a race against the two best gondoliers on the canals, in an ordinary boat."

a few evenings later, francis was returning homewards at about half past ten, when, in passing along a quiet canal, the boat was hailed from the shore.

"shall we take him, messer francisco?" giuseppi asked in a low voice; for more than once they had late in the evening taken a fare.

francis rowed, like giuseppi, in his shirt, and in the darkness they were often taken for a pair-oared gondola on the lookout for a fare. francis had sometimes accepted the offer, because it was an amusement to see where the passenger wished to go--to guess whether he was a lover hastening to keep an appointment, a gambler on a visit to some quiet locality, where high play went on unknown to the authorities, or simply one who had by some error missed his own gondola, and was anxious to return home. it made no difference to him which way he rowed. it was always possible that some adventure was to be met with, and the fare paid was a not unwelcome addition to giuseppi's funds.

"yes, we may as well take him," he replied to giuseppi's question.

"you are in no hurry to get to bed, i suppose?" the man who had hailed them said as the boat drew up against the wall of the canal.

"it does not make much difference to us, if we are well paid, to keep awake," giuseppi said.

upon such occasions he was always the spokesman.

"you know san nicolo?"

"yes, i know it," giuseppi said; "but it is a long row--six miles, if it's a foot."

"you will have to wait there for an hour or two, but i will give you half a ducat for your night's work."

"what do you say, partner?" giuseppi asked francis.

"we may as well go," the lad replied after a moment's pause.

the row was certainly a long one, but the night was delightful, and the half ducat was a prize for giuseppi; but what influenced francis principally in accepting was curiosity. san nicolo was a little sandy islet lying quite on the outside of the group of islands. it was inhabited only by a few fishermen; and francis wondered that a man, evidently by his voice and manner of address belonging to the upper class, should want to go to such a place as this at this hour of the night. certainly no ordinary motives could actuate him.

as the stranger took his place in the boat, francis saw by the light of the stars that he was masked; but there was nothing very unusual in this, as masks were not unfrequently worn at night by young gallants, when engaged on any frolic in which they wished their identity to be unrecognized. still it added to the interest of the trip; and dipping his oar in the water he set out at a slow, steady stroke well within his power. he adopted this partly in view of the length of the row before them, partly because the idea struck him that it might be as well that their passenger should not suspect that the boat was other than an ordinary gondola. the passenger, however, was well satisfied with the speed, for they passed two or three other gondolas before issuing from the narrow canals, and starting across the broad stretch of the lagoon.

not a word was spoken until the gondola neared its destination. then the passenger said:

"you row well. if you like the job i may employ you again."

"we are always ready to earn money," francis said, speaking in a gruff voice quite unlike his own.

"very well. i will let you know, as we return, what night i shall want you again. i suppose you can keep your mouths shut on occasion, and can go without gossiping to your fellows as to any job on which you are employed?"

"we can do that," francis said. "it's no matter to us where our customers want to go, if they are willing to pay for it; and as to gossiping, there is a saying, 'a silver gag is the best for keeping the mouth closed.'"

a few minutes later the bow of the gondola ran up on the sandy shore of san nicolo. the stranger made his way forward and leapt out, and with the words, "it may be two hours before i am back," walked rapidly away.

"why, messer francisco," giuseppi said when their passenger was well out of hearing, "what on earth possessed you to accept a fare to such a place as this? of course, for myself, i am glad enough to earn half a ducat, which will buy me a new jacket with silver buttons for the next festa; but to make such a journey as this was too much, and it will be very late before we are back. if the padrone knew it he would be very angry."

"i didn't do it to enable you to earn half a ducat, giuseppi, although i am glad enough you should do so; but i did it because it seemed to promise the chance of an adventure. there must be something in this. a noble--for i have no doubt he is one--would never be coming out to san nicolo, at this time of night, without some very strong motive. there can be no rich heiress whom he might want to carry off living here, so that can't be what he has come for. i think there must be some secret meeting, for as we came across the lagoon i saw one or two beats in the distance heading in this direction. anyhow, i mean to try and find out what it all means."

"you had better not, sir," giuseppi said earnestly. "if there is any plot on foot we had best not get mixed up in it. no one is too high or too low to escape the vengeance of the council, if found plotting against the state; and before now gondolas, staved in and empty, have been found drifting on the lagoons, and the men who rowed them have never been heard of again. once in the dungeons of saint mark it would be of no use to plead that you had entered into the affair simply for the amusement. the fact that you were not a regular boatman would make the matter all the worse, and the maxim that 'dead men tell no tales' is largely acted upon in venice.

"i think, sir, the best plan will be to row straight back, and leave our fare to find his way home as best he may."

"i mean to find something out about it if i can, giuseppi. a state secret may be dangerous, but it may be valuable. anyhow, there can be no great risk in it. on the water i think we can show our heels to anyone who chases us; and once in venice, we are absolutely safe, for no one would suspect a gondola of mr. hammond, the english merchant, of having any connection with a hired craft with its two gondoliers."

"that is true enough, sir; but i don't like it for all that. however, if you have made up your mind to it, there is nothing more to be said."

"very well. you stay here, and i will go and look round. you had better get the gondola afloat, and be ready to start at the instant, so that, if i should have to run for it, i can jump on board and be off in a moment."

francis made his way quietly up to the little group of huts inhabited by the fishermen, but in none of them could he see any signs of life--no lights were visible, nor could he hear the murmur of voices. there were, he knew, other buildings scattered about on the island; but he had only the light of the stars to guide him, and, not knowing anything of the exact position of the houses, he thought it better to return to the boat.

"i can find no signs of them, giuseppi."

"all the better, messer francisco. there are some sorts of game, which it is well for the safety of the hunter not to discover. i was very glad, i can tell you, when i heard your whistle, and made out your figure returning at a walk. now you are back i will take an hour's nap, and i should advise you to do the same."

but francis had no thought of sleep, and sat down at his end of the gondola, wondering over the adventure, and considering whether or not it would be worth while to follow it up another night. that it was a plot of some sort he had little doubt. there were always in venice two parties, equally anxious perhaps for the prosperity of the republic, but differing widely as to the means by which that prosperity would be best achieved, and as to the alliances which would, in the long run, prove most beneficial to her. there were also needy and desperate men ready enough to take bribes from any who might offer them, and to intrigue in the interest of padua or ferrara, verona, milan, or genoa--whichever might for the time be their paymasters.

francis was english, but he had been long enough in venice to feel a pride in the island city, and to be almost as keenly interested in her fortunes as were his companions and friends; and a certain sense of duty, mingled with his natural love of adventure, decided him to follow up the chance which had befallen him, and to endeavour to ascertain the nature of the plot which was, he had little doubt, being hatched at san nicolo.

in a very few minutes the regular breathing of giuseppi, who had curled himself up in the bottom of the boat, showed that he had gone to sleep; and he did not stir until, an hour and a half after the return of francis, the latter heard the fall of footsteps approaching the gondola.

"wake up, giuseppi, here comes our fare!"

francis stood up and stretched himself as the stranger came alongside, as if he too had been fast asleep.

"take me back to the spot where i hailed you," the fare said briefly, as he stepped into the boat and threw himself back on the cushions, and without a word the lads dipped their oars in the water and the gondola glided away towards venice.

just as they reached the mouth of the grand canal, and were about to turn into it, a six-oared gondola shot out from under the point, and a voice called out:

"stop, in the name of the republic, and give an account of yourselves!"

"row on," the passenger exclaimed, starting up. "ten ducats if you can set me safely on shore."

had the lads been real gondoliers, it is probable that even this tempting offer would not have induced them to disregard the order from the galley, for they would have run no slight risk in so doing. but francis had no desire to be caught, and perhaps imprisoned for a considerable time, until he was able to convince the council that his share of the night's work had been merely the result of a boyish freak. with two strokes of his oar, therefore, he swept the boat's head round, thereby throwing their pursuers directly astern of them; then he and giuseppi threw their whole weight into the stroke, and the boat danced over the water at a pace very different to that at which it had hitherto proceeded.

but, fast as they went, the galley travelled somewhat faster, the rowers doing their utmost in obedience to the angry orders of their officer; and had the race been continued on a broad stretch of water, it would sooner or later have overhauled the gondola. but francis was perfectly aware of this, and edged the boat away towards the end of the piazzetta, and then, shooting her head round, dashed at full speed along the canal by the side of the ducal palace, the galley being at the time some forty yards behind.

"the first to the right," francis said, and with scarce a pause in their speed, they turned off at right angles up the first canal they came to. again and again they turned and twisted, regardless of the direction in which the canals took them, their only object being to gain on their pursuers, who lost considerably at each turn, being obliged always to check their speed, before arriving at each angle, to allow the boat to go round.

in ten minutes she was far behind, and they then abated their speed, and turned the boat's head in the direction in which they wished to go.

"by san paolo," the stranger said, "that was well done! you are masters of your craft, and sent your boat along at a pace which must have astonished those fellows in that lumbering galley. i had no reason to fear them, but i do not care to be interfered with and questioned by these jacks-in-office of the republic."

a few minutes later they reached the place where he embarked, and as he got out he handed the money he had promised to giuseppi.

"next thursday night," he said, "at half past ten."

"it seems a dangerous sort of service, signor," giuseppi said hesitatingly. "it is no joke to disobey the officers of the republic, and next time we may not be so fortunate."

"it's worth taking a little risk when you are well paid," the other said, turning away, "and it is not likely we shall run against one of the state galleys another night."

"home, now, giuseppi," francis said, "we can talk about it tomorrow. it's the best night's work you ever did in your life, and as i have had a grand excitement we are both contented."

during the next few days francis debated seriously with himself whether to follow up the adventure; but he finally decided on doing so, feeling convinced that there could be no real danger, even were the boat seized by one of the state galleys; as his story, that he had gone into the matter simply to discover whether any plot was intended against the republic, would finally be believed, as it would be beyond the bounds of probability that a lad of his age could himself have been concerned in such a conspiracy. as to giuseppi, he offered no remonstrance when francis told him that he intended to go out to san nicolo on the following thursday, for the ten ducats he had received were a sum larger than he could have saved in a couple of years' steady work, and were indeed quite a fortune in his eyes. another such a sum, and he would be able, when the time came, to buy a gondola of his own, to marry, and set up housekeeping in grand style. as for the danger, if francis was willing to run it he could do the same; for after all, a few months' imprisonment was the worst that could befall him for his share in the business.

before the day came matteo giustiniani told francis a piece of news which interested him.

"you remember my cousin maria polani, whom we met the other evening on the grand canal?"

"of course i do, matteo. what of her?"

"well, what do you think? ruggiero mocenigo, whom i pointed out to you on the piazza--the man who had been banished for two years--has asked for her hand in marriage."

"he is not going to have it, i hope," francis said indignantly. "it would be a shame, indeed, to give her to such a man as that."

"that is just what her father thought, francisco, and he refused ruggiero pretty curtly, and told him, i believe, he would rather see her in her grave than married to him; and i hear there was a regular scene, and ruggiero went away swearing polani should regret his refusal."

"i suppose your cousin does not care much about his threats," francis said.

"i don't suppose he cares much about them," matteo replied; "but ruggiero is very powerfully connected, and may do him damage, not to speak of the chance of his hiring a bravo to stab him on the first opportunity. i know my father advised polani to be very cautious where he went at night for a time. this fellow, ruggiero, is a dangerous enemy. if he were to get polani stabbed, it would be next to impossible to prove that it was his doing, however strong the suspicion might be; for mere suspicion goes for nothing against a man with his influence and connections. he has two near relations on the council, and if he were to burn down polani's mansion, and to carry off maria, the chances are against his being punished, if he did but keep out of the way for a few months."

as in england powerful barons were in the habit of waging private wars with each other, and the carrying off a bride by force was no very rare event, this state of things did not appear, to francis, as outrageous as it would do to an english lad of the present day, but he shook his head.

"of course one understands, matteo, that everywhere powerful nobles do things which would be regarded as crimes if done by others; but, elsewhere, people can fortify their houses, and call out and arm their retainers, and stand on their guard. but that here, in a city like this, private feuds should be carried on, and men stabbed when unconscious of danger, seems to me detestable."

"of course it isn't right," matteo said carelessly, "but i don't know how you are going to put a stop to it; and after all, our quarrels here only involve a life or two, while in other countries nobles go to war with each other, and hundreds of lives, of people who have nothing to do with the quarrel, may be sacrificed."

this was a light in which francis had hardly looked upon the matter before, and he was obliged to own that even private assassination, detestable as it was, yet caused much less suffering than feudal war. still, he was not disposed entirely to give in to his friend's opinion.

"that is true, matteo; but at the same time, in a war it is fair fighting, while a stab in the back is a cowardly business."

"it is not always fair fighting," matteo replied. "you hear of castles being surprised, and the people massacred without a chance of resistance; of villages being burned, and the people butchered unresistingly. i don't think there is so much more fairness one way than the other. polani knows he will have to be careful, and if he likes he can hire bravos to put ruggiero out of the way, just as ruggiero can do to remove him. there's a good deal to be said for both sides of the question."

francis felt this was so, and that although he had an abhorrence of the venetian method of settling quarrels, he saw that as far as the public were concerned, it was really preferable to the feudal method, of both parties calling out their retainers and going to war with each other, especially as assassinations played no inconsiderable part in the feudal struggles of the time.

on the thursday night the gondola was in waiting at the agreed spot. francis had thought it probable that the stranger might this time ask some questions as to where they lived and their usual place of plying for hire, and would endeavour to find out as much as he could about them, as they could not but suspect that he was engaged in some very unusual enterprise. he had therefore warned giuseppi to be very careful in his replies. he knew that it was not necessary to say more, for giuseppi had plenty of shrewdness, and would, he was sure, invent some plausible story without the least difficulty, possessing, as he did, plenty of the easy mendacity so general among the lower classes of the races inhabiting countries bordering on the mediterranean. their fare came down to the gondola a few minutes after the clock had tolled the half hour.

"i see you are punctual," he said, "which is more than most of you men are."

francis was rowing the bow oar, and therefore stood with his back to the passenger, and was not likely to be addressed by him, as he would naturally turn to giuseppi, who stood close behind him. as francis had expected, as soon as they were out on the lagoon the passenger turned to his companion and began to question him.

"i cannot see your faces," he said; "but by your figures you are both young, are you not?"

"i am but twenty-two," giuseppi said, "and my brother is a year younger."

"and what are your names?"

"giovanni and beppo morani."

"and is this boat your own?"

"it is, signor. our father died three years ago, leaving us his boat."

"and where do you usually ply?"

"anywhere, signor, just as the fancy seizes us. sometimes one place is good, sometimes another."

"and where do you live?"

"we don't live anywhere, signor. when night comes, and business is over, we tie up the boat to a post, wrap ourselves up, and go to sleep at the bottom. it costs nothing, and we are just as comfortable there as we should be on straw in a room."

"then you must be saving money."

"yes; we are laying money by. some day, i suppose, we shall marry, and our wives must have homes. besides, sometimes we are lazy and don't work. one must have some pleasure, you know."

"would you like to enter service?"

"no, signor. we prefer being our own masters; to take a fare or leave it as we please."

"your boat is a very fast one. you went at a tremendous rate when the galley was after us the other night."

"the boat is like others," giuseppi said carelessly; "but most men can row fast when the alternative is ten ducats one way or a prison the other."

"then there would be no place where i could always find you in the daytime if i wanted you?"

"no, signor; there would be no saying where we might be. we have sometimes regular customers, and it would not pay us to disappoint them, even if you paid us five times the ordinary fare. but we could always meet you at night anywhere, when you choose to appoint."

"but how can i appoint," the passenger said irritably, "if i don't know where to find you?"

giuseppi was silent for a stroke or two.

"if your excellency would write in figures, half past ten or eleven, or whatever time we should meet you, just at the base of the column of the palace--the corner one on the piazzetta--we should be sure to be there sometime or other during the day, and would look for it."

"you can read and write, then?" the passenger asked.

"i cannot do that, signor," giuseppi said, "but i can make out figures. that is necessary to us, as how else could we keep time with our customers? we can read the sundials, as everyone else can; but as to reading and writing, that is not for poor lads like us."

the stranger was satisfied. certainly every one could read the sundials; and the gondoliers would, as they said, understand his figures if he wrote them.

"very well," he said. "it is probable i shall generally know, each time i discharge you, when i shall want you again; but should there be any change, i will make the figures on the base of the column at the corner of the piazzetta, and that will mean the hour at which you are to meet me that night at the usual place."

nothing more was said, until the gondola arrived at the same spot at which it had landed the passenger on the previous occasion.

"i shall be back in about the same time as before," the fare said when he alighted.

as he strode away into the darkness, francis followed him. he was shoeless, for at that time the lower class seldom wore any protection to the feet, unless when going a journey over rough ground. among the gondoliers shoes were unknown; and francis himself generally took his off, for coolness and comfort, when out for the evening in his boat.

he kept some distance behind the man he was following, for as there were no hedges or inclosures, he could make out his figure against the sky at a considerable distance. as francis had expected, he did not make towards the village, but kept along the island at a short distance from the edge of the water.

presently francis heard the dip of oars, and a gondola ran up on the sands halfway between himself and the man he was following. he threw himself down on the ground. two men alighted, and went in the same direction as the one who had gone ahead.

francis made a detour, so as to avoid being noticed by the gondoliers, and then again followed. after keeping more than a quarter of a mile near the water, the two figures ahead struck inshore. francis followed them, and in a few minutes they stopped at a black mass, rising above the sand. he heard them knock, and then a low murmur, as if they were answering some question from within. then they entered, and a door closed.

he moved up to the building. it was a hut of some size, but had a deserted appearance. it stood between two ridges of low sand hills, and the sand had drifted till it was halfway up the walls. there was no garden or inclosure round it, and any passerby would have concluded that it was uninhabited. the shutters were closed, and no gleam of light showed from within.

after stepping carefully round it, francis took his post round the angle close to the door, and waited. presently he heard footsteps approaching--three knocks were given on the door, and a voice within asked, "who is there?"

the reply was, "one who is in distress."

the question came, "what ails you?"

and the answer, "all is wrong within."

then there was a sound of bars being withdrawn, and the door opened and closed again.

there were four other arrivals. the same questions were asked and answered each time. then some minutes elapsed without any fresh comers, and francis thought that the number was probably complete. he lay down on the sand, and with his dagger began to make a hole through the wood, which was old and rotten, and gave him no difficulty in piercing it.

he applied his eye to the orifice, and saw that there were some twelve men seated round a table. of those facing him he knew three or four by sight; all were men of good family. two of them belonged to the council, but not to the inner council of ten. one, sitting at the top of the table, was speaking; but although francis applied his ear to the hole he had made, he could hear but a confused murmur, and could not catch the words. he now rose cautiously, scooped up the sand so as to cover the hole in the wall, and swept a little down over the spot where he had been lying, although he had no doubt that the breeze, which would spring up before morning, would soon drift the light shifting sand over it, and obliterate the mark of his recumbent figure. then he went round to the other side of the hut and bored another hole, so as to obtain a view of the faces of those whose backs had before been towards him.

one of these was ruggiero mocenigo. another was a stranger to francis, and some difference in the fashion of his garments indicated that he was not a venetian, but, francis thought, a hungarian. the other three were not nobles. one of them francis recognized, as being a man of much influence among the fishermen and sailors. the other two were unknown to him.

as upwards of an hour had been spent in making the two holes and taking observations, francis thought it better now to make his way back to his boat, especially as it was evident that he would gain nothing by remaining longer. therefore, after taking the same precautions as before, to conceal all signs of his presence, he made his way across the sands back to his gondola.

"heaven be praised, you are back again!" giuseppi said, when he heard his low whistle, as he came down to the boat. "i have been in a fever ever since i lost sight of you. have you succeeded?"

"i have found out that there is certainly a plot of some sort being got up, and i know some of those concerned in it, but i could hear nothing that went on. still, i have succeeded better than i expected, and i am well satisfied with the night's work."

"i hope you won't come again, messer francisco. in the first place, you may not always have the fortune to get away unseen. in the next place, it is a dangerous matter to have to do with conspiracies, whichever side you are on. the way to live long in venice is to make no enemies."

"yes, i know that, giuseppi, and i haven't decided yet what to do in the matter."

a quarter of an hour later, their fare returned to the boat. this time they took a long detour, and, entering venice by one of the many canals, reached the landing place without adventure. the stranger handed giuseppi a ducat.

"i do not know when i shall want you again; but i will mark the hour, as agreed, on the pillar. do not fail to go there every afternoon; and even if you don't see it, you might as well come round here at half past ten of a night. i may want you suddenly."

before going to sleep that night, francis thought the matter over seriously, and finally concluded that he would have no more to do with it. no doubt, by crossing over to san nicolo in the daytime, he might be able to loosen a plank at the back of the hut, or to cut so large an opening that he could hear, as well as see, what was going on within; but supposing he discovered that a plot was on hand in favour of the enemies of venice, such as padua or hungary, what was he to do next? at the best, if he denounced it, and the officers of the republic surrounded the hut when the conspirators were gathered there, arrested them, and found upon them, or in their houses, proofs sufficient to condemn them, his own position would not be enviable. he would gain, indeed, the gratitude of the republic; but as for rewards, he had no need of them. on the other hand, he would draw upon himself the enmity of some eight or ten important families, and all their connections and followers, and his life would be placed in imminent danger. they would be all the more bitter against him, inasmuch as the discovery would not have been made by accident, but by an act of deliberate prying into matters which concerned him in no way, he not being a citizen of the republic.

so far his action in the matter had been a mere boyish freak; and now that he saw it was likely to become an affair of grave importance, involving the lives of many persons, he determined to have nothing further to do with it.