es completed
the furniture.

In this hall meetings were held, courts sat, tortures were
inflicted. At the moment the authorities of the pueblo and its vicinity
were met there. The party of the old did not mingle with the party
of the young; the two represented the Conservatives and Liberals.

"My friends," Don Filipo, the chief of the Liberals, was saying to
a little group, "we shall vanquish the old men this time; I'm going
to present their plan myself, with exaggerations, you may imagine."

"What are you saying?" demanded his surprised auditors.

"Listen," said Don Filipo. "This morning I ran across old Tasio. He
said to me: 'Your enemies are more opposed to your person than to your
ideas. Is there something you don't want to have go through? Propose it
yourself. If it's as desirable as a mitre, they will reject it. Then
let the most modest young fellow among you present what you really
want. To humiliate you, your enemies will help to carry it.' Hush! Keep
the secret."

The gobernadorcillo had come in. Conversation ceased, all took places,
and silence reigned.

The captain, as the gobernadorcillo is called, sat down in the chair
under the king's portrait. His look was harried. He coughed, passed
his hand over his cranium, coughed again, and at length began in a
failing voice:

"Senores, I've taken the risk of convening you all--hem, hem!--because
we are to celebrate, the twelfth of this month, the feast of our
patron, San Diego--hem, hem!"

At this point of his discourse a cough, dry and regular, reduced him
to silence.

Then from among the elders arose Captain Basilio:

"Will your honors permit me," said he, "to speak a word under these
interesting circumstances? I speak first, though many of those present
have more right than I, but the things I have to say are of such
importance that they should neither be left aside nor said last,
and for that reason I wish to speak first, to give them the place
they merit. Your honors will, then, permit me to speak first in this
assembly, where I see very distinguished people, like the senor, the
present gobernadorcillo; his predecessor, my distinguished friend, Don
Valentine; his other predecessor, Don Julio; our renowned captain of
the cuadrilleros, Don Melchior, and so many others, whom, for brevity,
I will not mention, and whom you see here present. I entreat your
honors to give me the floor before any one else speaks. Am I happy
enough to have the assembly acc