e marvelous way, righted
herself, and my neighbor departed hurriedly with a brimless hat and an
unfinished sentence.

My next intermediary was Enriquez Saltello--a youth of my own age,
and the brother of Consuelo Saltello, whom I adored. As a Spanish
Californian he was presumed, on account of Chu Chu's half-Spanish
origin, to have superior knowledge of her character, and I even vaguely
believed that his language and accent would fall familiarly on her ear.
There was the drawback, however, that he always preferred to talk in
a marvelous English, combining Castilian precision with what he fondly
believed to be Californian slang.

"To confer then as to thees horse, which is not--observe me--a Mexican
plug! Ah, no! you can your boots bet on that. She is of Castilian
stock--believe me and strike me dead! I will myself at different times
overlook and affront her in the stable, examine her as to the assault,
and why she should do thees thing. When she is of the exercise I will
also accost and restrain her. Remain tranquil, my friend! When a few
days shall pass much shall be changed, and she will be as another. Trust
your oncle to do thees thing! Comprehend me? Everything shall be lovely,
and the goose hang high!"

Conformably with this he "overlooked" her the next day, with a cigarette
between his yellow-stained finger-tips, which made her sneeze in a
silent pantomimic way, and certain Spanish blandishments of speech which
she received with more complacency. But I don't think she ever even
looked at him. In vain he protested that she was the "dearest" and
"littlest" of his "little loves"--in vain he asserted that she was his
patron saint, and that it was his soul's delight to pray to her; she
accepted the compliment with her eyes fixed upon the manger. When he had
exhausted his whole stock of endearing diminutives, adding a few playful
and more audacious sallies, she remained with her head down, as if
inclined to meditate upon them. This he declared was at least an
improvement on her former performances. It may have been my own
jealousy, but I fancied she was only saying to herself, "Gracious! can
there be TWO of them?"

"Courage and patience, my friend," he said, as we were slowly quitting
the stable. "Thees horse is yonge, and has not yet the habitude of the
person. To-morrow, at another season, I shall give to her a foundling"
("fondling," I have reason to believe, was the word intended by
Enriquez)--"and we shall see.