CHAPTER XI

THE PLANS WORK

Dinner was over, the night was hot, and Mrs. Austin had taken her party to the veranda. Wolf had gone; he declared he could not put off another engagement, but Mrs. Austin wondered. The fellow was clever and knew when to stop. A man like that did not go farther than was necessary and risk losing ground he had won. All the same, Mrs. Austin was satisfied. She had paid her debt, and although she had hesitated about asking Wolf, she now felt her doing so was justified. He had interested her famous guests; the dinner party had gone well.

Senor Ramirez occupied a chair by a table that carried some fine glass _copitas_ from which one drinks the scented liquors used in Spain. His family was old and distinguished, and his post important. He was thin, dark-skinned and marked by an urbane dignity. As a rule, he looked languid, but sometimes his glance was keen.

Don Arturo sat opposite. He was strongly built and getting fat. Although his hair and eyes were very black, he was essentially British. He had known poverty, but now controlled large commercial undertakings and steamship lines. Don Arturo was loved and hated. Some found him strangely generous, and some thought him hard and careless about the tools he used and broke. He made bold plans, and had opened wide belts in Africa to British trade.

Mrs. Jefferson, Austin, and two or three others occupied the background. They were, so to speak, the chorus, and in the meantime not important. Austin knew when to let his wife play the leading part.

1. Who was sitting in a chair near the table?
2. Who was hosting the dinner?
3. Were there well-known guests at this gathering?
4. Was Ramirez's kin sophisticated?
5. Was he a fat man?
6. How was his weight described?
7. What shade was his complexion?
8. What the weather like on the night of the dinner?
9. Where did Mrs. Austin lead her guests at the conclusion of dinner?
10. Had Wolf left at this time?
11. Was Wolf smart?
12. From what does a person drink scented alcohol?
13. And what country are the glasses associated with?
14. Was Austin married?
15. Did he sometimes defer to his wife?
16. What was Mr. Arturo's first name?
17. Had he been poor in his life?
18. Was he becoming overweight?
19. Were there more than ten persons in the background?
20. What kind of lines was Arturo involved with?

Provide a numbered list of answers.
1. Senor Ramirez
2. Mrs. Austin
3. yes
4. yes
5. no
6. thin
7. dark-skinned
8. hot
9. to the veranda
10. yes
11. yes
12. fine glass _copitas_
13. Spain.
14. yes
15. yes
16. Don
17. yes
18. yes
19. no
20. steamship