“It would have been hard to drive up, your honor,” he added. “I heard, your honor, that a minister is coming to visit your honor.”

The prince turned round to the overseer and fixed his eyes on him, frowning.

“What? A minister? What minister? Who gave orders?” he said in his shrill, harsh voice. “The road is not swept for the princess my daughter, but for a minister! For me, there are no ministers!”

“Your honor, I thought⁠ ⁠…”

“You thought!” shouted the prince, his words coming more and more rapidly and indistinctly. “You thought!⁠ ⁠… Rascals! Blackguards!⁠ ⁠… I’ll teach you to think!” and lifting his stick he swung it and would have hit Alpátych, the overseer, had not the latter instinctively avoided the blow. “Thought⁠ ⁠… Blackguards⁠ ⁠…” shouted the prince rapidly.