The attainment of his own end does not in fact require it. For after
all, what is his end? In what hope, with what aim, did he come down
from the mountains of Sonnino?
Do you really believe he thought of becoming the benefactor of the
nation?--or the saviour of the Papacy?--or the Don Quixote of the
Church? Not such a fool! He thought, first, of himself; secondly, of
his family.
His family is flourishing. His four brothers, Filippo, Luigi,
Gregorio, and--save the mark!--Angelo, all wore the _cioccie_ in their
younger days; they now, one and all, wear the count's coronet. One is
governor of the bank, a capital post, and since poor Campana's
condemnation he has got the Monte di Pieta. Another is Conservator of
Rome, under a Senator especially selected for his incapacity. Another
follows openly the trape of a monopolist, with immense facilities for
either preventing or authorizing exportation, according as his own
warehouses happen to be full or empty. The youngest is the commercial
traveller, the diplomatist, the messenger of the family, _Angelus
Domini_. A cousin of the family, Count Dandini, reigns over the
police. This little group is perpetually at work adding to a fortune
which is invisible, impalpable, and incalculable. The house of
Antonelli is not pitied at Sonnino.
As for the Secretary of State, all who know him intimately, both men
and women, agree that he leads a pleasant life. If it were not for the
bore of making head against the diplomatists, and giving audience
every morning, he would be the happiest of mountaineers.
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