Apafi turned to them and said:--"Do you see how serious he is? he does
not cry, because he is a man."

Anna beckoned Stephen Apafi to her and whispered to him:--"I trust the
gentlemen will not be annoyed if family joys and cares withdraw the
Prince from public affairs for a few minutes."

"Your ladyship has taken the words out of my mouth," replied Stephen.
"I was just on the point of speaking to them."

With that he turned to those present and begged them to leave the
Prince to himself for the few moments claimed by family ties, and to
withdraw to the adjoining tent. The gentlemen considered the request
natural and left the tent, Kutschuk Pasha leading.

Anna took the child from her husband's hands, gave it over to Sarah
and sent them away.

When they were alone Apafi approached his wife with new expressions of
tenderness. She took her husband by the hand, looked him earnestly in
the eye, and said:

"It is to the Prince that I have come."

This earnest look cooled Apafi a little, which did not escape Anna's
notice, and she drew toward him again affectionately.

"It seemed to me probable that the Prince might need me more than the
husband," and then she added with her irresistible smile, "I hope you
will not misunderstand my intentions in this."

Apafi put his arm around his wife and drew her to him. The throne was
quite wide enough for both.

"You are right. It is well you have come. There is always something
lacking when I cannot see you. You certainly deserve to come nearest
my heart; I am not in the least afraid to lay your mind in the balance
with any man in the circle."

"Who are all these men?" asked Anna.

"You shall know them by their names. The tall, slender man is
Ladislaus Csaki who has just offered me his son for a page."

"No time lost there. It is only a short time since the boy was serving
Kemeny."

Apafi's face darkened a little.

"The man with the heavy moustache is Gabriel Haller."

Anna clapped her hands with surprise.

"Is that he?"

"What fault have you to find with him?"

"That he has always served your enemies as a spy. He brought Kemeny
the first news of your coronation, and he was the one who announced
the approach of Kutschuk Pasha."

Apafi's face grew darker still.

"And I have invited the man to dine," he muttered between his teeth.

"What do Nalaczy and Daczo wish, that they are here on so friendly a
footing?"

"They are my faithful partisans who have been on