Caesar or Nothing Part 55

The girl took off her cap and the veil she wore in the automobile, and seated herself between Don Calixto's daughters. Alzugaray looked her over. Amparito really was attractive; she had a short nose, bright black eyes, red lips too thick, white teeth, and smooth cheeks. She wore her hair down, in ringlets; but in spite of her infantile get-up, one saw that she was already a woman.

"Caesar is right; this is quite a lively girl," murmured Alzugaray.

The mayor's son now arrived, and his sister. He was an insignificant little gentleman, mild and courteous; he had studied law at Salamanca, and it seemed that he had certain intentions about Don Calixto's second daughter.

All the guests being a.s.sembled, the master of the house said that, since n.o.body was missing and it was time, they might pa.s.s into the gallery, where the table was set.

At one end the lady of the house seated herself, having the priest on one side and the judge on the other; at the other end, Don Calixto, between the judge's wife and the mayor's daughter. Caesar had a seat a.s.signed between Don Calixto's elder daughter and Amparito, and Alzugaray one between the second daughter and the judge's girl.

A few moments before they sat down, Amparito went running out of the gallery into the garden. "Where has that child gone?" asked Don Calixto's wife.

"Something or other has occurred to her," said Amparito's father, laughing.

The girl reappeared a little later with a number of yellow and red chrysanthemums in her hand.

She gave red ones to the mayor's daughter and to her cousins, who were all three brunettes, and a yellow one to the judge's daughter, who was blond. Then she proceeded to the men.

"This one is for you," to the mayor's son; "this one for you," and she gave Alzugaray a yellow one; "this one for you," and she gave Caesar a red one; "and this one for me," and she put a similar flower in her bosom.

"And the rest of us?" asked Don Calixto.

"I don't give you chrysanthemums, because your wives would be jealous,"

replied Amparito.

"Man, man!" exclaimed the judge; "how does it strike you, Don Calixto?

That these little girls know the human heart pretty well?"

"These children do not know how to appreciate our merits," said Don Calixto.

"Oh, yes; your merits are for your wives," replied Amparito.

"I must inform you that my friend Caesar is married, too," said Alzugaray, laughing.

"Pshaw!" she exclaimed, smiling and showing her white, strong teeth. "He hasn't the face of a married man."

"Yes, he has got the face of a married man. Look at him hard."

"Very well; as his wife isn't here, she won't quarrel with me."

Alzugaray examined this girl. She had great vivacity; any idea that occurred to her was reflected in her face in a manner so lively and charming, that she was an interesting spectacle to watch.

At first the conversation was of a languid and weary character; Don Calixto, the judge, and Caesar started in to exchange political reflexions of cra.s.s vulgarity. Caesar was gallantly attentive to the wants of Don Calixto's elder daughter, and less gallantly so to his other neighbour Amparito; the mayor's son, despite the fact that his official mission was to court one of Don Calixto's girls, looked more at Amparito than at his intended, and Alzugaray listened smilingly to the young person's sallies.

Toward the middle of the meal the conversation grew brisker; the judge recounted, with much art, a mysterious crime that had occurred in a town in Andalusia among farming people, and he succeeded in keeping them all hanging to his lips.

At the end of the recital, the conversation became general; the younger element talked together, and Caesar made comments about what the judge had told them, and defended the most immoral and absurd conclusions, as though they were Conservative ideas.

Caesar's observations were discussed by the men, and the judge and Don Calixto agreed that Caesar was a man of real talent, who would play a great role in Congress.

"Please give me a little wine," said Amparito, holding her gla.s.s to Alzugaray; "your friend pays no attention to me; I have asked him for some wine twice, and nothing doing."

Caesar acted as if he hadn't heard and kept on talking.

Amparito took the gla.s.s, wet her lips in it, and looked at Alzugaray maliciously.

After eating and having coffee, as the two married ladies and the girls were inert from so long a meal, they arose, and Alzugaray, the mayor's son, and Amparito's father followed them. Don Calixto, the judge, and Caesar remained at table. The priest had gone to sleep.

A bottle of chartreuse was brought, and they started in drinking and smoking.

Caesar's throat grew dry and he became nauseated from drinking, smoking, and talking.

At five the judge took his leave, because he had to glance in at court; Don Calixto wanted to take his nap, and after he had escorted Caesar to the garden, he went away. The two married ladies were alone, because the young people had gone with Amparito's father on an excursion to the Devil's Threshold, a defile where the river flows between some red precipitous rocks full of clefts.

Caesar joined the two ladies, and kept up a monotonous, dreary conversation about the ways of the great city.

At twilight all the excursionists came back from their jaunt. One of the young ladies played something very noisy on the piano, and the judge's daughter was besought to recite one of Campoamor's poems.

"It is a very pretty thing," said the judge's wife, "a girl who laments because her lover abandons her."

"Given the customs of Spain, as they are, the girl would be in a house of prost.i.tution," said Caesar in a low tone, ironically.

"Shut up," replied Alzugaray.

The girl recited the poem, and Caesar asked Alzugaray sarcastically if those verses were by the girl's father, because they sounded to him like the verses of a notary or a judge of the Court of First Instance.

Then somebody suggested that they should have supper there.

Caesar noticed that this plan did not appeal to the mistress of the house, and he said:

"One should be moderate in all things. I am going home to bed."

After this somewhat pedantic phrase, which to Don Calixto seemed a pearl, Caesar took leave of his new acquaintances with a great deal of ceremony and coolness. Alzugaray said he would remain a while longer.

When Caesar was bowing to Amparito, she asked him jokingly:

"Is it your wife that keeps you in such good habits?"

"My wife!" exclaimed Caesar, surprised.

"Didn't your friend say..."

"Ah! Yes, it is she who makes me have such good habits."

This said, he left the drawing-room and went quickly down the stairs.

The cool night air made him s.h.i.+ver, and he went with a heavy, aching head to his hotel, and got to bed. He slept very profoundly, but not for more than an hour, and woke up sweaty and thirsty. His headache was gone. It was not yet past eleven. He lighted the light, and sitting up in bed, set to thinking over the probabilities of success in his undertaking.

Meanwhile he stared at the red chrysanthemum which was in the b.u.t.ton-hole of his coat, and remembered Amparito.

"That child is a prodigy of coquetry and bad bringing-up," he thought with vexation; "these emanc.i.p.ated small town young ladies are more unattractive than any others. I prefer Don Calixto's daughter, who at least is naively and un.o.bjectionably stupid. But this other one is unsupportable."