“But how brave you are!” said he. “You are laughing, and I⁠—that man’s tale impressed me so much, that I dreamt of it afterwards; yes, I dreamt of those five minutes⁠ ⁠…”

He looked at his listeners again with that same serious, searching expression.

“You are not angry with me?” he asked suddenly, and with a kind of nervous hurry, although he looked them straight in the face.

“Why should we be angry?” they cried.

“Only because I seem to be giving you a lecture, all the time!”

At this they laughed heartily.

“Please don’t be angry with me,” continued the prince. “I know very well that I have seen less of life than other people, and have less knowledge of it. I must appear to speak strangely sometimes⁠ ⁠…”