to share his glorious flight. This
Barbara is certainly a rare bird. But in the chase, and as regent of a
restless nation, one's sight becomes keen--"

"And now," cried Quijada, "comes the 'but.'"

"It does come," replied the regent firmly, "and I will point it out to
you. I only found the trail; but you, Luis, as a good sportsman and a
loyal friend of his Majesty, will keep a sharp watch upon it. This girl
is obstinate to the verge of defiance, vain, and unusually ambitious."

"She has already shown us the obstinacy," observed the Castilian.

"When she wheeled her horse to escape you?" asked the Queen.

"But there she was perfectly right. What a heedless, inconsiderate
masculine idea, to usher a woman directly from a horseback ride into a
company of gentlemen to sing before the Emperor! As to the vanity, I do
not find much fault with that. It would be far worse if she lacked it.
One can not imagine a genuine woman without it. It has been called pride
in charms which we do not possess, but it also serves to place actual
charms in a brighter light, and that I expect from this fair one. If she
knows how to avoid extravagance, it will willingly be indulged. But her
ambition, Luis; perils may arise from that. If it begins to stir too
covetously, remember your duty as watcher--sound the horn and set the
packs upon her."

"For the sake of our sovereign lord, I will not fail," replied Quijada.
"So far as she herself is concerned, she is one of those women whose
beauty I acknowledge, but to whom I am indifferent. More modest manners
please me better."

"You are thinking of Dona Magdalena de Ulloa," observed the Queen, "you
poor loyal widower, while the loveliest of wives still lives. Certainly
this German bears so little resemblance to her----"

"That I most humbly entreat your Majesty," interposed Quijada with
haughty decision, "not to compare these two women, even by way of
contrast."

"B-r-r!" said the regent, extending her hands toward him as if to repel
an assault. "Yet I like you in this mood, Luis. You are a true Castilian!
So we will leave Dona Magdalena in her Villagarcia, and only permit
myself to admire the self-sacrifice of a woman who grants a husband like
you so long a leave of absence. As to the Ratisbon maiden----"

"I should be very glad to know," Quijada began, this time in a submissive
tone, "by what sign your Majesty's penetration discovered this young
creature's ambition."

"That is soon told,"