Yet God thought otherwise, for Adam was as fully
punished as was Eve." She smiled wistfully into my eyes, and my senses
reeled again. And then old Busio, the servant, came suddenly forth from
the house upon some domestic errand to Giuliana, and thus was that
situation mercifully brought to an end.
For the rest of the day I lived upon the memory of that morning, reciting
to myself each word that she had uttered, conjuring up in memory the vision
of her every look. And my absent-mindedness was visible to Fifanti when I
came to my studies with him later. He grew more peevish with me than was
habitual, dubbed me dunce and wooden-head, and commended the wisdom of
those who had determined upon a claustral life for me, admitting that I
knew enough Latin to enable me to celebrate as well as another without too
clear a knowledge of the meaning of what I pattered. All of which was
grossly untrue, for, as none knew better than himself, the fluency of my
Latin was above the common wont of students. When I told him so, he
delivered himself of his opinion upon the common wont of students with all
the sourness of his crabbed nature.
"I'll write an ode for you upon any subject that you may set me," I
challenged him.
"Then write one upon impudence," said he. "It is a subject you should
understand.
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