were worth little, if I haggled with its saviour over its
price. And Tarawali is thine, to do with as thou wilt. For I have only
one life, whereas queens can be found in all directions, and I can
very easily replace her, whenever I choose. Only she must not leave
the palace, for after all, she is my Queen, and so she must remain,
for everyone but me and thee. And so he gave me clean away to
Narasinha, in secret, but it is a secret that everybody knows, and
tells in secret to everybody else. And I have gained by the exchange.
For Narasinha risked his life, twice, to win me, and the King would
never have risked so much as his little finger to save the life of a
hundred queens, and gave me away, like a straw, for the mere asking,
not even stopping to consider, that in the straw he gave away his own
honour lay hidden, which he gave away with me. And I could have
forgiven him for giving me away, but who could forgive the King who
valued his own honour less than his own life? And to the King I was
never more than a necessary ornament, a thing like a sceptre and a
throne, and a mere piece of royal furniture: whereas I am more than
the life of Narasinha, and the apple of his eye.

IX

And as she spoke, I listened, not believing my own ears, and saying to
myself: Is it all real, or can it be that I am only dreaming after
all? And which is the greater wonder, this miserable King, who,
leaving honour out of the account, is so utterly besotted as to give
away a thing like her to the first man who asks for her, or Tarawali
herself, telling the whole story of her own depreciation with such
contemptuous and yet delicious candour to such a one as me? Aye! well
indeed she might despise a husband so unutterably despicable; and yet
his oblivion of his own honour is easier by far to understand than his
blindness to the value of the thing he gave away. And would she tell
me anything at all, unless she had come to the conclusion that I was
worthy of her confidence? And who knows? For why should she consent to
be given like a horse to Narasinha? Why might she not prefer to give
herself, and choose for herself the man who was to be her owner? And
what if I could persuade her to let me be the man? And at the very
thought, my head began to swim in the delirium of hope and almost
unimaginable anticipation. And I said: Dear Tarawali, is it the fault
of the ocean gem, if its boorish owner flings it away, taking it for a
bit of common glass, an