"Most beautiful!"
"How you must have changed for the worse since then!" retorted the
countess, laughing.
"Not so very much, senora, not so very much; I am certain that my wife
will quite agree with me."
"Not at all," said Maximina, making a face to express her vexation.
"Maximina!"
"Then why did you call him ugly?"
"I see that this young gentleman has wholly driven me out of my place!"
Meanwhile the bundle was passing from hand to hand, not without all the
time emitting more and more energetic protests against such an unwelcome
journey. But this same helpless desperation was the very thing that gave
the most delight to those excellent women; they died with laughter to
behold that poor little mouth open even to the throat, and that
expressive and desperate waving of little hands filled with threats.
"Come, come! what lungs you have, child!"
"It is perfectly delightful! cheer up, man alive, cheer up! What a waste
of genius, little pet!"
"What a monkey-face it makes when it cries!"
To tell the truth, it _was_ horrible.
"Oh! it is stopping, senora! oh! it is stopping!" cried Placida.
All the women gathered around it, in affright.
"What do you mean, _it is stopping_?" demanded Miguel, leaping from his
chair.
"It has stopped crying, senorito!"
The baby, with its face drawn up and its mouth open, made no sound. The
countess shook it with all her might till she almost murdered it:
finally the infant emitted a scream more excruciating than ever, and all
the women breathed a sigh of relief.
"Come now; we must give this little rascal to his mamma; if he does not
get something to eat, he will be angry with us."
"How can that baby know enough to be angry?" thought Miguel.
They put it in the bed, and held its mouth to the maternal fount, but it
refused, we cannot tell under what pretext, to take the breast, and this
conduct the women found very extraordinary. Maximina looked at him with
stern eyes, mentally giving him most terrible denunciations. The
countess asked for sugar and water, and with that anointed the breast;
then the child, won by this most delicate attention, no longer hesitated
to yield to the desires of all the senoras, and began to suckle with
little haste--like an apprentice, in fact--in the operation.
"Just see what a cunning little rascal he is!"
"_Ave Maria!_ it seems incredible that it can have such a temper!"
"Such a thing as that you never saw in your life before, woman!"
"He is a perfect little villain!"
After this performance, the baby proposed to do all in his power to
confirm this favorable opinion that had been formed of his genius. In
fact he opened his right eye just the least wee bit, and immediately
shut it again, to the great astonishment and delight of all present;
then accidentally getting his own hand into his mouth, he began to suck
at it with all his might. Not satisfied with this gallant exhibition of
his talents, he proved it still more completely when Placida put her
finger into his mouth; in an instant he was furiously sucking at that
also; but quickly becoming aware of the deception practised upon him, he
became furiously angry, and gave it to be understood, with sufficient
clearness, that whenever there was any attempt to lower his dignity,
they would see him always protest in the same or similar fashion.
When he was put back into bed again, he fell asleep in a moment, and
"slept like a bishop" (that was Juana's simile), while his mother from
time to time lifted the coverlid to look at him, with not only
tenderness, but also childish curiosity. Miguel having rather carelessly
leaned on the bed, she thought that he was going to hurt the child.
"Look out! look out!" she cried in choleric tone.
And she gave him such an indignant look that the young man was amazed,
since it was beyond the power of his imagination to conceive those sweet
eyes having such an expression.
Instead of being grieved, he began to laugh like a madman. Maximina was
mortified, but smiled, and her innocent face regained the expression of
lovely calm so peculiar to it.
Unfortunately, her calm was quickly disturbed in a most unexpected way.
It happened that after the "bishop" had waked up, the feminine council
conceived certain suspicions that his illustrious highness needed some
attention, and an ocular inspection was forthwith ordered. The countess
found that it was even as they had thought. Then with admirable grace
and no little satisfaction she began to change the infant.
But at this juncture, _la brigadiera_, who had been steadily growing
jealous of the countess for some time and had solemnly, though in an
undertone, declared in the hearing of the maids that "that worthy senora
was a tiresome busybody," now declared in a rather peevish tone that the
bandage ought not to be put on as tight as the countess had put it on.
"Let me alone, Angela, let me alone! I know well enough how to do it,"
said the countess, with a certain accent of self-sufficiency, continuing
in her task.
"But if it is left that way, the little thing won't be able to breathe,
countess."
"There is no need of any one teaching me about dressing infants: I have
had six children, and, thank God, they are all alive in the world, safe
and sound."
"Well, I have never had but one daughter, but I should never have
consented for her to be swaddled in that way!"
"But I tell you that I do not need lessons from you, not in this nor in
anything else...."
The words which had passed were beginning to be very sharp, and the
angry glances which the two ladies gave each other made it apparent that
there would soon be a crisis. Those who were present at the scene grew
very grave; Maximina, startled, looked as though she were going to cry.
Then Miguel, vexed by the whole proceeding, interfered, saying, gently
but firmly:--
"Ladies, please have some consideration for this poor girl, who now
needs calm and rest."
The Countess de Losilla arose stiffly, handed the infant to a maid, and
sailed out of the room, without saying a word. Miguel followed her, but
in spite of all his entreaties, she utterly refused to return; on the
other hand, her anger grew more and more violent as she went toward the
door, and there she said "_adios_" very curtly, and went up to her room,
apparently with the intention of never coming down again.
"This mamma of mine always has to put her foot into it! What a lack of
tact she has!" he exclaimed, when he was left alone.
But all his annoyance quickly vanished from his mind, owing to the happy
and exceptional circumstances in which he found himself.
It was God's design, however, that a few drops of gall should be mingled
in the cup of his happiness. In the evening, when, wearied by the
commotion of the day, he was just preparing to go to bed, leaving
Placida to watch with his wife, he heard an importunate ring at the
door-bell.
"Senorito, there is a gentleman here who is anxious to speak with you."
"Confound the impertinent visit! Have you shown him into the study?"
"Yes, senorito."
Our new papa went there, taking his own time, and perfectly resolved
that it should not be a long call. But on entering the study, he had a
not altogether agreeable surprise in finding Eguiburu, the "white horse"
of _La Independencia_.
The relationship which he enjoyed with this gentleman was not very
intimate. Since he had given his endorsement, guaranteeing the thirty
thousand duros which had been spent on the newspaper, he had seen him
only twice, to receive from his hand two sums amounting to twelve
thousand, which had not been wholly spent on the paper, but had also
been used in assisting the _emigrados_. This unseasonable visit
therefore reminded him of these things, and made him anxious and
suspicious.
Eguiburu was a tall, lean man, with pale and wrinkled face, small blue
eyes, thinnish red hair, and very inelegant in his whole person. The
clothes that he wore--tight-fitting trousers of black serge, large vest,
and an enormous gray overcoat reaching to his very heels--did not tend
to give any additional elegance to his appearance.
Miguel greeted him courteously and gravely, and asked him to what he
owed the honor of his visit....
"Senor de Rivera," said Eguiburu, unceremoniously taking a
chair--Miguel, in his surprise, having neglected to ask him to do
so--"it happens that now for several months you have been in power...."
"Hold on, my friend; there is no one in Spain further from being in
power than I.... I am not even under-secretary."
"Well, well; when I say 'you,' I mean your friends; they all at the
present time occupy great positions: the Count de Rios, ambassador;
Senor Mendoza has just been elected deputy...."
"And do you think of comparing me, an insignificant pigmy, with the
Count de Rios and Mendoza, two stars of the first magnitude in Spanish
politics?"
"Now, see here; Senor de Rivera, to tell the truth, the other night in
the Levante Cafe, Senor de Mendoza was not spoken well of, even by his
own friends."
"What did they say?"
"They said,--begging your pardon,--that he was light as a cork."
"Those are the calumnies of the envious. Don't imagine, friend Eguiburu,
that statesmen are made of such stuff."
"I am very glad that such is the case, senor. But the truth is that, in
spite of their talents and the positions that they hold, neither the
Senor Conde de Rios nor Mendoza are remembering to make good to me the
money that I have been spending for them."
"Have you spoken to them?"
"I have written a letter to each of them. Mendoza did not reply; the
Senor Conde, after the lapse of considerable time, tells me in a letter,
which I have with me, and you can see, 'that the very serious political
duties that weigh upon him do not permit him at present to attend to
such things as these, which have for some time been intrusted to his
former private secretary, Senor Mendoza y Pimentel.' Of course, as you
very well know, I have no need of begging from door to door for what is
my own. And so, without further delay, I have come directly to you."
"Why did you not go to Mendoza first?"
Eguiburu hung his head, and began to twirl his hat; at the same time he
smiled much as a marble statue might have done if it had the power.
"Senor de Mendoza seems to me to have very little flesh for my claws!"
On hearing these words, and seeing the smile that accompanied them,
Miguel felt a chill run down his back, and he made no reply. At the end
of a few moments he looked up, and said in a firm voice:--
"In other words, you have come to dun me for those thirty thousand
duros! Is that so?"
"I feel it in my soul, Senor de Rivera ... be convinced that I really do
... for it is certainly not to be gainsaid that you have not _eaten
them_."
"Thanks! you have a sensitive spirit, and I congratulate you on it.
Unfortunately I cannot reciprocate this delicacy of feelings by handing
over the thirty thousand duros."
"Very well; but you will hand them over!"
"Have you any security for it?"
Eguiburu lifted his head, and fixed his little blue eyes on Miguel, who
looked at him in a cool and hostile manner.
"Yes, senor," he replied.
"Then I congratulate you again; I did not know that you could have it."
"Don't you remember, Senor de Rivera," said the banker, with amiability
exaggerated in order to palliate the unpleasant effect that his words
were about to produce, "I have here a paper endorsed with your name?"
And as he said this he raised his hand to his overcoat pocket.
Again Miguel kept silence. At the end of a few moments he spoke in a
voice in which could be detected anger scarcely repressed:--
"That is to say, Senor de Eguiburu, that you propose nothing else than
to ruin me on account of a debt, which, as is evident to you, I have not
contracted."
"I propose merely to make sure of my money."
"That is all right," said Miguel, in a choking voice; "to-morrow I will
write to the Count de Rios, and will also see Mendoza; I should like to
know if the count is capable of leaving me in the lurch.... If that
should be so, then we will see what is to be done."
After these words there was a period of embarrassed silence. Eguiburu
twisted his hat, looking askance at Miguel, who kept his eyes fastened
on the floor, while his lips showed an almost imperceptible tremor,
which did not escape the banker's notice.
"There is one way, Senor de Rivera," he suggested timidly, "by which you
can get out of the difficulty in which you find yourself, and still have
time to obtain from the count and the other friends the fulfilment of
their obligations.... If you will guarantee me the money which I have
since spent on the newspaper, I shall be perfectly willing to wait.... I
am sorry to put the pistol to the heart of a person for whom I have so
high a regard, but...."
Miguel remained motionless, with his eyes cast down, and thinking
deeply; then suddenly standing up, he said:--
"Well, we will see how this affair turns out. I will speak to-morrow
with Mendoza, and immediately let you know the result of my interview,
and of my letter to the count."
Eguiburu likewise arose, and with exquisite amiability offered Rivera
his hand in farewell. Miguel shook hands, and looking at him keenly,
while a derisive smile hovered over his lips, he said:--
"Are you very anxious for those thirty thousand duros?"
"Why do you ask me?"
"Because I should be grieved if you were very much set upon them, while
on the eve of losing them forever."
"Explain yourself!" said the banker, growing serious.
"Nothing, man; but if I should not get the money from the Conde de Rios,
what I have...."
"Hey! What is that you say?"
"That I should never in the world be able to pay for it, for the two
houses which constitute my fortune are mortgaged...."
Eguiburu became terribly pale.
"You could not mortgage them because I have your endorsement for an
obligation: the mortgage is null."
"They were mortgaged long before the endorsement."
The banker passed his hand over his forehead in despair; then
straightening up quickly, and giving Rivera a crushing look, he
stammered--
"Tha-that is ... a p-piece of rascality.... I will have you up in
c-court as a swindler."
Miguel burst into a laugh, and laying his hand familiarly on the man's
shoulder, he said:--
"That gave you a good scare, didn't it? Now I am somewhat repaid for the
one that you just gave me."
"But what the deuce does this mean?..."
"Calm yourself; my houses are not mortgaged. You will have the pleasure
of ruining me on the day least expected," replied the young man, with
bitter irony.
The symptom of a smile seemed to be coming into Eguiburu's face, but it
suddenly vanished again:--
"Are you in earnest?"
"Yes, man, yes; don't have any apprehension."
Then the smile that had vanished once more appeared, insinuating and
benevolent, on the money lender's lips.
"What a joker you are, Senor de Rivera! No one can ever tell whether you
are in earnest or joking."
"Then you are certainly very wrong to be so calm at this moment."