Every one expected, therefore, that he would secure for
the entertainment of his guests, if he really gave the ball, the
most whimsical novelties in the way of masks, dances, and
amusements generally, that had ever been seen.
The second report was, that the rich widower, Fabio d'Ascoli, was
on the point of returning to Pisa, after having improved his
health and spirits by traveling in foreign countries; and that he
might be expected to appear again in society, for the first time
since the death of his wife, at the masked ball which was to be
given in the Melani Palace. This announcement excited special
interest among the young ladies of Pisa. Fabio had only reached
his thirtieth year; and it was universally agreed that his return
to society in his native city could indicate nothing more
certainly than his desire to find a second mother for his infant
child. All the single ladies would now have been ready to bet, as
confidently as Brigida had offered to bet eight months before,
that Fabio d'Ascoli would marry again.
For once in a way, report turned out to be true, in both the
cases just mentioned. Invitations were actually issued from the
Melani Palace, and Fabio returned from abroad to his home on the
Arno.
In settling all the arrangements connected with his masked ball,
the Marquis Melani showed that he was determined not only to
deserve, but to increase, his reputation for oddity.
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