Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1899-04-06

less to act, for inasmuch as the women
were living at the best hotel in the
town, and had every appearance of
being perfectly respectable. he could
not turn them out of the country
without involving Spain IN a quarrel
with the United States, and bringing
certain ruin and disgrace upon him
self. had to admit that, although
tho 81 women were worse than the
plaques of Egypt, l could not con-
scientiously certify that they were
rogues and vagabonds, and thereupon
the chief assured me that he was
desolate, but that he really could not
sec his way TO help me. l had per-
mitted myself TO count ON his SER
vices in the matter, and when | found
that he could give me no assistance,
went home feeling as man does who
is condemned to death and was refused
pardon. The next night as l was
passing the hotel l heard singing.
ought to say that by this time | had
pretty well given up going out of the
house in the daytime, for fear of meet
ing either the 80 women or some one
of their creditors, and only ventured
into the street at night. l stopped
to listen to the singing, and then a
brilliant idea struck me. The women
were singing the most violent sort of
revival hymns, and when the singing
stopped for bit l could hear one of
them reading aloud. 1t was clear that
they were having some sort of Pro-
testant religious service, which, as /
knew, was contrary to law, and ever
lastingly contrary to the preiudices of
the inhabitants of Aragua. | lost no
time in going to Don Diego, the good
old priest | have mentioned, and in
telling him that 32 American female
herctics of the deepest dye were hold
ing Protestant service at the hotel,
and unless they were arrested would
probably attempt to convert every man,
woman and child in the town. But
there wasn't grain of comfort to be
got out of Don Diego. His good old
face frightened up the moment he
heard about the heretics, and he said
that this was the opportunity he had
dreamed of for years. He had always
longed to convert some English or
American women to the true faith, and
now this glorious opportunity had been
sent TO him. He would not hear for
moment of the suggestion that the
women ought to be arrested and sent
out of Spain, but he insisted ON going
instantly to the hotel and converting
the entire gang. And he did make
the attempt. For the next week he
was with those women about half the
time, and they all said that he was
an old dear. Naturally, he didn t make
the least progress in converting them,
but they were so friendly with him
that he felt sure he would gather them
in before very long. The next time
| saw him he was full of gratitude to
me for having given him the oppor-
tunity to do such glorious work for
his church, and he expressed the hope
that l would not let the women leave
town until he had baptized every one
of them.
Meanwhile the landlord had begun
to send me polite notes asking for
small payment on account. [ answered
the first one by reiterating my as
surance that would never pay
single peseta, but the succeeding notes
were Just as polite and cool as ever.
The chief of police was of the opinion
that inasmuch as / had not given the
landlord on the day when he received
the women formal notice in writing
that | would not be responsible for
them, might be held legally liable.
At any rate he declared that the land
lord would swear that l had verbally
promised to pay him, and that the
court would probably give him YER
dict for the full amount, besides dam
ages and costs. When l complained to
the chief that the women were openly
violating the law by holding Protestant
meetings at the hotel, and that the
chances were that they would convert
Don Diego, which would be terrible
scandal, he agreed with me that this
constituted state of things which
ought to Justify the expulsion of the
women from the country, but he said
that he could take no action in such
a matter except at the request of the
church, and that inasmuch as Don
Diego was the particular pet of the
archbishop, the latter would of course
look at the affair through Don Diego's
spectacles. tell you just longed for
the good old days of the Spanish In
QUESTION.
Towards the end of a fortnight there
was a fresh complication. One of the
women began to make love to me. |
think-she was little weak minded,
for she wrote poetry and believed that
Shakspeare's plays were written by
his wife. She made point of coming
alone to my Office every afternoon and
sympathizing with me. She said that
the other women were treating me
shamefully, though she did not dare to
tell them so. 1t appeared that they
had all signed what they called a
solemn league and covenant, binding
themselves not to send to their friends
in America for single dollar, in order
to force me either to pay their hotel
bill and send them to Paris or to see
them starve in the street. This woman,
who for purposes of identification /
will call Miss Brown, said that il |
would escort her to Paris she would
cable for enough money to pay both
our fares and to secure me against any
loss that the rest of the women might
put me to. 1t was tempting offer,
but of course, | couldn't take the
woman's money without marrying her,
and that was something that | couldn't
sec my way to do. However, Miss
Brown never lost courage. l don't
mean to intimate that she ever said or
did anything that was unladylike, but
she had made up her mind to marry
me, and she followed me up with an
unfaltering determination to win. Her
calculation was that by the time the
rest of the women had ruined me with
hotel bills, would be willing TO ac-
cept her terms. A last / had to pre-
tend to have fever and to take to my
bed, but this didn't pan out quite as
had expected. The woman insisted on
coming to nurse me, and after / tried
the experiment of pretending to be de-
lirious, which didn't brighten her a
particle, | had to pretend that / was
quite we'll again. As for the other