"
"By denying that thou hadst the money, as thou hast so often done of
late!"
"Nay, nay, I am not a swallower of my own words, young Signore; but my
duty to Levi must not be forgotten. The careful Hebrew made me take a
vow, by the name of our tribe, that I would not part with his gold to
any that had not the means of placing its return beyond all chances."
"This assurance is not wanting, since thou art the borrower, thyself, to
lend to me."
"Signore, you place my conscience in an awkward position. You are now my
debtor some six thousand sequins, and were I to make this loan of money
in trust, and were you to return it--two propositions I make on
supposition--a natural love for my own might cause me to pass the
payment to account, whereby I should put the assets of Levi in
jeopardy."
"Settle that as thou wilt with thy conscience, Hosea--thou hast
confessed to the money, and here are jewels for the pledge--I ask only
the sequins."
It is probable that the appeal of Giacomo Gradenigo would not have
produced much effect on the flinty nature of the Hebrew, who had all the
failings of a man proscribed by opinion; but having recovered from his
surprise, he began to explain to his companion his apprehensions on
account of Donna Violetta, whose marriage, it will be remembered, was a
secret to all but the witnesses and the Council of Three, when to his
great joy he found that the gold was wanting to advance his own design
of removing her to some secret place.
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