"
"Is she likely to--er--marry any one of them, O'Dowd?"
"Do you mean, is she betrothed to one of the royal nuts? If I were her
worst enemy I couldn't wish her anything as bad as that. The world is
full of regular men,--like meself, for example,--and 'twould be a pity
to see her wasted upon anything so cheap as a king."
"Then, she isn't?"
"Isn't what?"
"Betrothed."
"Oh!" He squinted his eyes drolly. "Bedad, if she is, she's kept it a
secret from me. Have you aspirations, me friend?"
"Certainly not," said Barnes sharply. "By the way, you have mentioned
Prince Bolaroz the Sixth, but you haven't given a name to the country
he ruled."
O'Dowd stared. "The Saints preserve us! Is the man a numbskull? Are
you saying that you don't know who and what--My God, such ignorance
bewilders me!"
"Painful as it may be to you, O'Dowd, I don't seem able to place
Bolaroz in his proper realm."
"Whist, then!" He put his hand to his mouth and whispered a name.
An incredulous expression came into Barnes's eyes. "Are you jesting
with me, O'Dowd?"
"I am not."
"But I thought it was nothing more than a make-believe, imaginary
land, cooked up by some hair-brained novelist for the purpose of--"
"Well, ye know better now," said O'Dowd crisply.
Pages:
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317