her house. Which conduct on his part,
for all that it was intended for the best, did not, as so often happens
with the devices of human cunning, have the best result. For of course,
in a city like Florence, where gossip is blown abroad like thistle-seed,
it came soon enough to the ears of Madonna Beatrice that young Messer
Dante of the Alighieri was believed by many to be a lover of Madonna
Vittoria. Now, Madonna Beatrice knew nothing of Dante's wonder-verses in
her honor, nor of Dante's way of life since the day of their meeting in
Santa Felicita, for Dante was resolved not to bring himself again to her
notice until he considered himself in some degree more worthy to do so.
Therefore, Madonna Beatrice was little pleased by the talk that coupled
the name of Vittoria with his name to whom she had given the rose. So it
chanced that one day when she with her companions met Dante in the
street, she refused him her salutation, whereat my poor Dante was
plunged in a very purgatory of woe.

Of course, he had no knowledge of how he had offended his sweet lady,
for it was no great wonder if a youth of his age were to be friends with
Madonna Vittoria, as many of the youths of the city were friends.
Besides, his own consciousness that his friendship with the woman was no
more than friendship--and indeed would have been no more for him, in
those ecstatic hours, had she been the goddess Venus herself--caused him
to look at the matter very indifferently, regarding it as no more than a
convenient cloak to screen from the prying curiosity of the world his
high passion for Madonna Beatrice. But I, that was more in the way of
girl-gossips than Dante, got in time to know the truth of the reason why
the lady Beatrice had refused her salutation to my friend, and I began
to see that Madonna Vittoria's counsel might well prove more mischievous
than serviceable in the end.

However, I had no more to do than to communicate to Dante the reason
that I had discovered for his dear idol's lack of greeting, and at the
news of it he was cast into a great gloom and remained disconsolate for
a long while. And I urged him that he should let Madonna Beatrice know
what he had done and why, but he would not hear of this, saying that he
would never seek to win either her favor or her pity so, by trading on
any service he might seem to do her. He added that he hoped in God's
good time to set himself right with her again, when he was more worthy
to approach