Evening star., 1921-05-15

how he was proud to offer the future
to Miss Diego-he had an idea that
| she might love him just for that.
$50 4
|CoNELL1 had planned well. His
lollipop offering to Magellan
opinion was meant to dazzle. and it
did. An hour before the imported
toreadors entered the sanded ring
the Arena Goldoni was packed with
a gaudy, perspiring mob OF Magella's
forty-seyen varieties. Their wide
brimmed. high-crowned hats. like
forest of grotesque mushrooms, were
all the shelter they had from the sun.
settled itself. with a good many af-
fectations, in the ring boxes flush
with the arena and protected from it
by wooden fence. The consuls box,
thanks to old and forgotten courte-
sies adjoined Diego's own conspicu
Gus palco, and Pug and the consul
entered it just before the presidents
party put in an appearance. There
was a movement of surprise and Curl
osity when the two Americans ar
rived. A murmur of voices swept
around the arena like a sudden wind,
necks and tlptoeing In the boxes. 1t
was we'll understood that war of some
sort was imminent. and there were
good many conservative Magellans
who feared Gonellis ambition. Very
few of the intelligenzia doubted that
the affair of the mines would lead
the country, already impoverished
and misgoverned. into a quarrel with
the United States. But the mob of
joyous poems. Indians and half-castes
packed into the steep stand were OF
q different temper. Gonelli had prom
ised them loot.
Presently he came. and a great. in
articulate shout rose above the arena
like the murmur Of the sea. Diego.
who entered the presidential box at
tho Same time, was given a faint,
shadowy imitation Of that shout by
the loyal aristocrats in the boxes.
Diego. knowing how to feel the pop
ular pulse. drew himself up angriiy
and stared down into the arena with
. d1ed. preoccupied and brooding
look. And Miss Diego, turning her
eyes briefly toward Pug, let him see
in them her fear and her hope. .Pug's
face was expressionless. but his an
swering look was explicit as an ora
tion. Behind her papa's pompous
back she used q Morse code all OF
her own Pug discovered that she
had been soundly scolded, that she
had cried all night. and that she
ovation by the presidents side, was
too busy to know or to care: The
bullhght was an atrocious. brutal,
beautiful battle between Gonelli's
hired matadors and picadors and
three young bulls who had decided
A dozen spindle shanked. blindfold-
ed horses, tottering with weakness
and terror, were tossed on the bulls
horns and left to die grotesquely in
everything except the death agonies
Of those pathetic cab horses. He
liked the blazing sun, the shifting
blue Of the sky. the rows and rows
Of laughing faces. the color. the
beautiful agility OF the M fighters, a,ett.uhs the
Of thousand fans. the hoarse. STAG
cato, gaspiny cheers. wrung from the
very depths Of all those frantic Ma
gellans. 1t was mad, it was electric,
1t was foot ball a la Spain; foot ball
with a touch of cruelty, paprika,
dash of blood and danger; foot ball
in a comic opera setting of dark
eyed women, diplomats in fancy
dress costume. and revolutionists In
sombreros. Pug divided his aEen-
Diegos profile. He felt wave Of
exuItation every time her eyes met
his: she may have cried all night:
but there was a dancing devil OF
mischief in her smile now.
What on earth has she got up
her sleeve?" Pug wondered.
He soon found out One Of the bull
fighters rode into the ring mounted
on a horse that by its clean lines
and spirited bearing proved itself to
be an old cavalry horse. Pug's heart
contracted when he caught sight of
the new victim. Cab horses were
bad enough. but to sacrifice a fine
old horse like that
IT'S rotten" he said to the con-
sui That horse isn't even blind
folded. Look at him-he thinks he's
on parade. And the crowd is laugh
ing. Good Lord"
Keep still" the consul answered
with an amiable smile, 'if you don't
want to get in wrong. This is
Roman holiday"
Behind him Pug heard Miss Dieso's
clear voice. She said something in
Italian to Gonelli. The nationalist
leader flushed and shook his head.
and old Diego, turning around with a
terrific frown, said distinctly: Taci,
carina-sport is sport"
TT isn't sport to kill a cavalry
horse" she said in English. "Signor
GonelH. will you save him."
Signorina. I cannot. The people
are excited. II Will be good sport
while 1t lastA Besides. the horse II
iold He belonged to Cen Marttno.