Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1902-01-04
A s Told at
Martins :. ~
BY Beatriz BeIiido De Luna.


mouths. Walters passed noiselessly
to and fro, bearing trays laden with
tall glasses, the electric fans overhead
buzzed with giddy whirr, and there
was a dancer on the stage who was
good to look upon. Altogether, Mar
tins was a much more pleasant place
to be than in the sultry atmosphere
outside.
"That girl" said Brown, slowly, eye
ing the dancer through curling clouds
of smoke, as she snapped her cas-
tanets, and twisted her 1.-THE figure in
the rhythmic measures of a Spanish
air, reminds me of woman knew in
Cuba"
as it a story, Brown" questioned
Lester.
well, rather" our friend replied,
emphatically. Like to hear it?"
We assented eagerly, for Browns
stories were usually worth listening
to.
''As / said before" he began, sit was
in Cuba. / was there for the paper,
just before the Spanish-American war
broke out, and L saw the conflict
through. Most of the time, after hos
tilities were declared, / was all over
the island, wherever the fighting was,
but at first ] was quartered at Ha-
vana, and it was there that i knew
Antonina.
'She had come from Paris and was
dancing at the Tacon theater. The
city was mad over her, after the fash
ion of the Latin race, and, in fact, she
made even my phlegmatic Anglo
Saxon blood run quicker than was its
wont. She was hardly beautiful,
though ] have never seen such eyes-be-
fore, or since. She had a small wicked
face, was slender almost to thinness,
and not very tall. But to see her
dance! ! am sure no one has equaled
her. Every motion was daring, poet
ical, and possessed the very essence
of grace. She was absolutely mistress
of her art, and of her audiences.
81 don't know what she was, but
mostly Spanish blood, although some
said she had strain of French-some
said Arabian, and some even limited at
the African, but whatever her nation
atty, her magnetism was marvellous.
"The gallants flew wildly at her
feet. She was looked upon with hor-
ror by the church, although it was
said-but never mind that. She tan
talized her lovers, laughed at them.
Tilted them, yet chained them to her.
Among her most constant admirers
was Gen. Ruiz, of the Spanish army
He seemed to be more favored than
the others, but was insanely jealous,
in fact bereft of all reason.
Political matters were very much
strained-feeling between Spaniards
and the Cubans had reached its high
est pitch. Not day passed without
a duel, or quarrel, or an arrest. Yet
in spite of this, Antonina danced every
night to crowded house, and thu
pleasure loving city, although honey
combed by plots and intrigues, for
got, for the moment, all save the mo-
ment's enjoyment.
"The man most dreaded by the Span
ish officials was one Juan Sanchez. an
insurgent leader. He was the son of
wealthy planter who had figured
prominently in a former outbreak.
and had been exiled to Ceuta, Spain's
penal colony in Africa. The son, grow
ing to manhood and finding himself
an outcast, embraced the rebel cause
and had made himself troublesome.
He had gathered his recruits from
neighboring provinces, and lived in
the mountains, evading every effort
of the government to capture him.
Il do not know how it came about.
but Ruiz evolved the idea of affecting
his capture through Antonina. The
general possessed diamond of enor-
nous value, family jewel, and this
he promised to the woman if she would
lure the outlaw to her house. An
tonina had long coveted the stone.
and had tried every one of her wiles
to obtain it, so it can be understood
that she readily promised to attempt
the task.
cit might be thought that this was
most difficult undertaking. but Ruiz
had his spies everywhere, and An
tonina her willing slaves. One night.
when Sanchez was in the city on a
secret mission, he was taken to the
theater, by one of his own friends, to
see Antonina dance; was introduced
to her after the performance. and.