He was a Jew by birth, but had lived all his life in the Hague, and besides having bought and sold some of the finest stones, was said to ask few questions, and to trouble little whence stones came, so they were but good.

Thus, after much thought and many changes of purpose, we chose this Aldobrand, and settled we would put the matter to the touch with him.
We took an evening in late summer for our venture, and came to Aldobrand's house about an hour before sundown.

I remember the place well, though I have not seen it for so long, and am certainly never like to see it again.

It was a low house of two stories standing back a little from the street, with some wooden palings and a grass plot before it, and a stone-flagged path leading up to the door.

The front of it was whitewashed, with green shutters, and had a shiny-leaved magnolia trained round about the windows.