After the Duchess’s return into her own body, she entertained her lord (when he was pleased to hear such kind of discourses) with foreign relations; but he was never displeased to hear of the Empress’s kind commendations, and of the characters she was pleased to give of him to the Emperor. Amongst other relations, she told him all what had passed between the Empress, and the several monarchs of that world whither she went with the Empress; and how she had subdued them to pay tribute and homage to the monarch of that nation or kingdom to which she owed both her birth and education. She also related to her lord what magnificent stables and riding-houses the Emperor had built, and what fine horses were in the Blazing-World, of several shapes and sizes, and how exact their shapes were in each sort, and of many various colours, and fine marks, as if they had been painted by art, with such coats or skins, that they had a far greater gloss and smoothness than satin; and were there but a passage out of the Blazing-World into this, said she, you should not only have some of those horses, but such materials as the Emperor has, to build your stables and riding-houses withal; and so much gold, that I should never repine at your noble and generous gifts. The Duke smilingly answered her, that he was sorry there was no passage between those two worlds; but, said he, I have always found an obstruction to my good fortunes.

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