"
This admiration was grateful to one constituted like Judith, and
contributed to aid her self-possession, quite as much as it fed
her vanity. Smiling involuntarily, or in spite of her wish to seem
reserved, she proceeded in her plot.
"Now, Huron," she continued, "listen to my words. Your eyes tell
you that I am no common woman. I will not say I am queen of this
country; she is afar off, in a distant land; but under our gracious
monarchs, there are many degrees of rank; one of these I fill. What
that rank is precisely, it is unnecessary for me to say, since you
would not understand it. For that information you must trust your
eyes. You see what I am; you must feel that in listening to my
words, you listen to one who can be your friend, or your enemy, as
you treat her."
This was well uttered, with a due attention to manner and a
steadiness of tone that was really surprising, considering all the
circumstances of the case. It was well, though simply rendered
into the Indian dialect too, and it was received with a respect
and gravity that augured favourably for the girl's success. But
Indian thought is not easily traced to its sources. Judith waited
with anxiety to hear the answer, filled with hope even while she
doubted.
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