You seem to have forgotten the chief influence of
any that can be brought to bear upon the heart and mind of a man,--
and that is, Woman."
Gherardi laughed outright.
"Upon my word I think it would be difficult to find the woman suited
to this case!" he said. "But you who have a diplomacy deeper than
that of any Jew usurer may possibly have one already in view?"
"There is now in Rome," pursued Moretti, speaking with the same even
deliberation of accent, "a faithful daughter of the Church, whose
wealth we can to a certain extent command, and whose charm is
unquestionable,--the Comtesse Sylvie Hermenstein--"
Gherardi started. Moretti eyed him coldly.
"You are not stricken surely by the childlike fascination with which
this princess of coquettes rules her court?" he enquired
sarcastically.
"I?" echoed Gherardi, shifting his position so that Moretti's gaze
could not fall so directly upon him. "I? You jest!"
"I think not!" said Moretti, "I think I know something about women--
their capabilities, their passions, their different grades of power.
Sylvie Hermenstein possesses a potent charm which few men can
resist, and I should not wonder if you yourself had been
occasionally conscious of it.
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