Tondo house, Capitan Tinong was
seated in a wide armchair, rubbing his hands in a gesture of despair
over his face and the nape of his neck, while his wife, Capitana
Tinchang, was weeping and preaching to him. From the corner their
two daughters listened silently and stupidly, yet greatly affected.

"Ay, Virgin of Antipolo!" cried the woman. "Ay, Virgin of the Rosary
and of the Girdle! [148] Ay, ay! Our Lady of Novaliches!"

"Mother!" responded the elder of the daughters.

"I told you so!" continued the wife in an accusing tone. "I told you
so! Ay, Virgin of Carmen, [149] ay!"

"But you didn't tell me anything," Capitan Tinong dared to answer
tearfully. "On the contrary, you told me that I was doing well to
frequent Capitan Tiago's house and cultivate friendship with him,
because he's rich--and you told me--"

"What! What did I tell you? I didn't tell you that, I didn't tell
you anything! Ay, if you had only listened to me!"

"Now you're throwing the blame on _me_," he replied bitterly, slapping
the arm of his chair. "Didn't you tell me that I had done well to
invite him to dine with us, because he was wealthy? Didn't you say
that we ought to have friends only among the wealthy? _Aba!_"

"It's true that I told you so, because--because there wasn't anything
else for me to do. You did nothing but sing his praises: _Don Ibarra_
here, _Don Ibarra_ there, _Don Ibarra_ everywhere. _Abaa!_ But I
didn't advise you to hunt him up and talk to him at that reception! You
can't deny that!"

"Did I know that he was to be there, perhaps?"

"But you ought to have known it!"

"How so, if I didn't even know him?"

"But you ought to have known him!"

"But, Tinchang, it was the first time that I ever saw him, that I
ever heard him spoken of!"

"Well then, you ought to have known him before and heard him spoken
of. That's what you're a man for and wear trousers and read _El Diario
de Manila_," [150] answered his unterrified spouse, casting on him
a terrible look.

To this Capitan Tinong did not know what to reply. Capitana Tinchang,
however, was not satisfied with this victory, but wished to silence him
completely. So she approached him with clenched fists. "Is this what
I've worked for, year after year, toiling and saving, that you by your
stupidity may throw away the fruits of my labor?" she scolded. "Now
they'll come to deport you, they'll take away all our property, just
as they did from the wife of--Oh, if I were a ma