as though Nina
was looking at him exactly as he, in his day dreams, had seen her. But
his prudence steadied his first impulse, and he put down her gladness as
merely the joy of a person who, far from home, sees suddenly a familiar
face in the midst of strangers; and they sat on the sofa just as they
had sat on the railing of the veranda in the country, ever since they
were children.

In Derby's account of himself, Nina could easily read the confidence
that had led her father to send him to Italy. But their talk had gone
little further than the barest outline of his mission when the prince
and princess returned. At the sight of Nina sitting alone with a man,
the princess came forward quickly with the question, "My child, what
does this mean?" as plainly asked in her eyes as it could have been by
spoken words. But at Nina's "John Derby, Aunt Eleanor!" the princess put
out her hand with all the grace in the world, and as she returned the
straight, frank look of his blue eyes, her whole expression became
youthful, as if reflecting some pleasant memory of her girlhood.

"I knew your uncle very, very well!" She smiled entrancingly. It was a
smile that irresistibly attracted to her all who ever saw it. "You are
like him." Then she added softly, dreamingly, as though half speaking to
herself, "You remind me of so many things--at home!"

The next minute she had turned to present Derby to her husband, and the
conversation became general. But, finally, in a pause, Nina said, "Jack,
tell Uncle Sandro what father sent you over to do. Or is it a secret?"

Derby looked toward Sansevero as though measuring the man. "It is no
great secret--but I would rather it was not spoken of yet."

"My ears are deaf, and my tongue is dumb." Sansevero put his hand over
his ear, his mouth, and finally his heart.

"I have come over to buy, or to lease--at all events, to work--sulphur
mines."

As though an electric current had been turned on, Sansevero sat up
straight, and his levity vanished. "To work sulphur mines! Will you tell
me more? I have a particular reason for wanting to know."

Derby answered willingly. "I can give you a general idea. I was forced
into inventing a new method of mining on account of the quicksands,
which are found all through our mines at home. Taking a suggestion from
the oil wells, I bored just such a well down into the sulphur beds.
Ordinarily the sulphur is brought up in powder or rock form, and refined
in vats on