Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-04-16
d he only its knife? 1 ask the Senior Ca

and he only its knife? 1 ask the Senior Ca
| balIero'
| 1 didn't in the least know what to answer
His great eyes wistfulIy explored my face.
| expect looked bewildered.
| Il lay my case at your feet" he contin-
| ued. You ares TO be- our chief leader, and,
| on account of your Mustrious birth and re-
nowned intelligence, will occupy a superior
position in the couhcil of the notables. Is it
| not so? Has not the Senior Juez O'Brien so
ordained? You will give ear to me, you
| will alleviate my indignant sufferings?'
| He implored me with his eyes for long
| time.
Manuel-del-Popolo pushed the hair back
| from his forehead. / had noticed that the
| love locks were plated with black braid
| and that he wore large. dirty silk ruffles.
| 1.-The caballero,'' he continued marking
| his words with long white finger atap
| on the table, will represent my views to
| the notables. My position at present, as l
! have had the honor to observe, is become
| unbearable. Consider, too, how your wor-
ship and 1 would look together. What
| lightness for you and me. You will find
| this Castro unbearably gross. But II
| assure you / am man of taste-an i'm
provsador-an artist. My songs are cele-
| brated. And yet = 80
| He folded his arms again, and waited;
| then he said, employing his most impress
| sive voice:
| Il have influence with the men of Rio.
| l could raise a riot. We Cubans are a
| jealous people; We do not love that for
| dc not love it: we will not suffer it, Let
| this Castro bethink himself and go in peace,
| leaving US and our ladies. AS the proverb
says, 1T is well to build bridge for a de-
parting enemy.
| He began to peer at me more wistfuiIy,
and his eyes grew more luminous than ever.
| This man, in spite of his grotesqueness,
| was quite in earnest, there was no doubt
ing that.
| Il have a gentle spirit he began again,
| "a gentle spirit. 1 am submissive to the
| legitimate authorities. What the Senior
| Juez OBrien asks me to do do. 1 would
put a knife into any one who inconveni-
enced the Senior JueZ O. Brien; we would all
| do that, as is right and fitting. But this
| Castro-this Andalou, who is nearly as bad
! as hereto! When my day comes 1 will
| have his arms f1ayed and the soles of his
| feet and 1 will rub red pepper into them;
| and all the men of Rio who do not love for
] eigners will applaud. And 1 will stick little
| thorns under his tongue and I will cut off
his eyelids with little scissors, and set him
| facing the sun. Caballero you would love
| NE; have gentle spirit. l am a pleasant
| companion He rose and squeezed round
| the table. 'Listen'-his eyes lit up with
| rapture-"you shall hear me- 1t is divine
| ah, 1t is very pleasant you will say
! He seized his mandolin, slung 1t round his
! neck, and leant against the bulkhead. The
bright light from the portfolio gilded the
| outlines of his body, as he swayed about
! and moved his long fingers across the
strings; they tnkled metallicly. He sang
| a nasal voice:
Listen" the young girls say as they hasten to
| Listen! All surely that is the guitar of
| Man ell dell opolo,
As he glkes along the wall in the twilight,
| 1t was Very long song. He gesticulat-
| ed freely with his hand In between the
| scratching of the strings, which seemed
to be a matter of luck. His eyes gazed
distantly at the wall above my head. The
performance bewildered and impressed me:
| 1 wondered if this was what they had car
ried me off for. 1t was like being mad. He
| made derescendo tinkling, and his lofty
| features lapsed into their normal mourn
fulness. u
| AT that moment Castro put his face
| round the door.n then entered altogether.
| He sighed in satisfied manner and had
| an air of having finished a laborious under
| taking. 81
| 1--WE have arranged the confusion up
above he said to Manuel del-Popolo; you
may go and see to the sailing. Hurry it
| is growing late.''
| Manuel blazedz silently, and stalked out
of the door as il he had an electric cloud
round his head Tomas Castro turned to-
| wards me. i&1-a
you are better?" he asked benevolently.
| You exerted yourself too much but
| still, If you liked He picked up the
mandolin, and began negigently scratching
| the strings. 1 noticed an alteration In him:
| he had grown softer In the flesh in the
past years; there were little threads of
gray in the knotted curls of his beard 1t
was as if he had lived well. on the whole.
| He bent his head over the strings, plucked
one. frightened a peg, plucked it again, then
set the instrument on the table, and drop
| ped on to the mattress. xviii you have
some rum?' he said. You have grown
broad and strong, like a buIl.. You made
1 those men fly, saere nom dune pipe $50.
/ One would have thought you were in ear
nest......,Ab, well!'' He stretched himself,
at length on the mattress, and closed his
| eyes.
Il looked at him to discover traces of
irony. There weren't any, He was talking
quietly; he even reproved me for having