58 The Queen’s Pleasure
afford to make enemies of half the royal families of the civilised
world. You can’t imagine the unpleasantnesses, the complications,
our absence would store up for us ; the bad blood it would cause.
We’d be put in the black list of our order, and snubbed, and
embarrassed, and practically ostracised, for years to come. And
you know whether we need friends. But the case is so obvious,
it seems a waste of breath to argue it. You surely won’t let a
mere little matter of temporary personal inconvenience get us into
such an ocean of hot water. Come now—be reasonable, and sav
you will go.”
The Queen’s eyes were burning ; her under-lip had swollen
portentously ; but she did not speak.
The King waited a moment. Then, “ Come, Aneli—don’t
be angry. Answer me. Say that you will go,” he urged, taking
her hand.
She snatched her hand away. I’m afraid she stamped her foot.
“ No ! ” she cried. “ Let me alone. I tell you I won't.”
“But, my dear . . . .” the King was re-commencing ....
“ No, no, no ! And you needn’t call me your dear. If you
had the least love for me, the least common kindness, or considera-
tion for my health or comfort or happiness, you’d never dream of
proposing such a thing. To drag me half-way across the Con-
tinent of Europe, to be all but killed at the end of the journey by
a pack of horrid, coarse, beer-drinking Germans ! And tired out,
and irritated, and patronised, and humiliated by people like-
and-! It’s perfectly heartless of you. And I—when I
suggest such a simple natural pleasure as a trip to Paris, or to the
Italian lakes in autumn—you go and tell me we can’t afford it !
You’re ready to spend thousands on a stupid, utterly unnecessary
and futile absurdity, like this wedding, but you can’t afford to take
me to the Italian lakes ! And yet you pretend to love me ! Oh,