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 T 
 
 HE SENORA'S 
 GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 A X 
 
 
 A TALE OF MODERN ME 
 
 
 JANIE PRICHARS DUG<SAN 
 
 For a' that, and a? that : 
 
 It 's coming yet, for a' that, 
 
 That man to man, the wide world o'er, 
 
 Shall brothers be for a' that. 
 
 —•Robert 'Burns 
 
 a* 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 
 AMERICAN BAPTIST PUBLICATION SOCIETY 
 1420 Chestnut Street 
 
Copyright 1898 by the 
 American Baptist Publication Society 
 
 ftom tbc Society's own f>ress 
 
A la amiga de mi alma 
 
 Sara J3. MowlanO 
 
 que tendre por mia 
 
 no * ■ hasta la muerte ' ' 
 
 szwo /z^sfo ^//« <fe los siglos 
 
 606736 
 
PREFACE 
 
 There is an Italian proverb which says, " Tutto il 
 mondo e paese" which being translated into Eng- 
 lish, means ''All the world's one country," in 
 other words, "All the world's akin." 
 
 In telling you, who are to read this tale, about 
 the sefiora and her granddaughters and their 
 friends, I have been reminded of this Italian 
 proverb. 
 
 In one sense, all the world is one country, and 
 these new Mexican acquaintances of yours think 
 and speak and act very much as Americans or 
 English or Italians would under the same circum- 
 stances. I would have you understand, therefore, 
 that Mexicans love and hate, live and die, as other 
 human beings do. In a word, there is "a great 
 deal of human nature " in Mexico. 
 
 On the other hand, begging the Italian proverb's 
 pardon, each country is a world in itself, in a sense, 
 and it is interesting to study the differences in lan- 
 guage, habits, and personal traits, peculiar to the 
 inhabitants of all these worlds contained in the one 
 big world we call the earth. 
 
 Now it must be understood that most of the 
 
 5 
 
6 PREFACE 
 
 characters figuring in this little world of which I 
 write, speak the Spanish language. This I shall 
 translate into English for the benefit of your world, 
 with the exception of a few words and phrases 
 here and there, which will be found starred and 
 interpreted in footnotes. 
 
 As you are not expected to acquire the Spanish 
 language by reading this book, I will not call at- 
 tention to any peculiarity of idiom which may ap- 
 pear, and even the delicate use of the pronoun 
 thou, with its varied forms, betokening familiarity 
 or affection, has been superseded in the following 
 pages by the stolid and inexpressive you. 
 
 J. P. D. 
 
 Scranton, Pa., August 21, 1896 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PART PAGE 
 
 I. Casa Barreda 9 
 
 II. Americanos of Saltillo 101 
 
 III. Homing Treasures 197 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Court of Madero Institute Frontispiece 
 
 Corridor of Belen Cemetery in Guadalajara 
 " The open car bound for the Baths 
 
 ara -j 
 
 9 
 
 " In any other garb than that of priest" 43 
 
 '"''Little donkeys bearing bundles of corn" -1 
 "At this hour the streets were crowded'''' J 
 
 " ' The gem of a church" 1 " 148 
 
 The cathedral of Saltillo -\ 
 
 A street of balconies in Guadalajara \ I 97 
 
 The water-carrier ) 
 
 A plantation of maguey plants 257 
 
 " The flower-filled court" 313 
 
PART I 
 
 CASA BARREDA 
 
 Had I but plenty of money, money enough and to spare, 
 The house for me, no doubt, were a house in the city 
 
 square ; 
 Ah, such a life, such a life, as one leads at the window 
 
 there ! 
 
 — Robert ^Browning 
 
THE early morning freshness had left the city 
 streets and gardens by eleven o'clock of St. 
 Joseph's Day in the year 18 — . An intense white 
 heat glowed over pavements and flower beds, and 
 the air was strangely still for a March day. The 
 bells in the church towers were holding their 
 tongues at last, after hours of jangling between 
 earth and sky, and the throngs of men, women, 
 and children were lessening in the streets. Most 
 of the religious devotees of Guadalajara had at- 
 tended the earlier services of the day, and many 
 had returned to their homes on housekeeping cares 
 intent. One church, however, still retained its con- 
 gregation, for after high mass had been observed, 
 the worshipers had waited for the sermon. 
 
 Father Justo Prieto, a young priest lately re- 
 turned to Mexico from a Spanish college, slipped 
 quietly from the vestry behind the altar and 
 mounted the steps of the pulpit. As he did so, 
 the palace clock struck eleven. The pulpit was an 
 elaborately carved and gilded box, canopied above 
 by a shell-shaped sounding-board, and suspended 
 at the southeastern corner of the open nave above 
 the space where the audience sat and kneeled. 
 
 9 
 
IO THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 There was no sound in all the great church 
 except the shuffling of coming and departing feet 
 over the paved floor and a faint murmur of praying 
 voices before the shrines. Candles burned on the 
 high altar and on all of the side altars, where life- 
 sized figures of pink and white wax gazed down. 
 
 None of the brightness of the outside world 
 penetrated the church, except where the sun, 
 piercing the high, narrow windows, touched the 
 wreaths of incense smoke floating here and there 
 about the altar rail, or threw patches of sickly light 
 upon the stones underfoot. It was cool here, if 
 somewhat close from the odor of incense and of 
 musk, and tired market women rested on the pave- 
 ment with their baskets at their sides, and way- 
 worn peons kneeled fervently before crucifix and 
 altar. Most of the women present wore black, 
 from the top of their shawled heads to the tips of 
 their little high-heeled, pointed shoes. Those of 
 the better class wore black lace scarfs or mantillas 
 over their head and shoulders and black gloves on 
 their small hands. 
 
 The priest glanced nervously over the somber 
 scene a few feet below him, and then abruptly 
 began a eulogy of the patron saint of the day, 
 Joseph, the husband of Mary, the " Mother of 
 God." Fifteen minutes were occupied with the 
 delivery of the sermon, which was evidently re- 
 peated from memory and with rapid utterance. 
 
CASA BARREDA I I 
 
 In closing, Father Prieto lowered his voice and 
 spoke more evenly, and as if more sure of himself, 
 to this effect : 
 
 " Therefore, beloved, you need have no doubts 
 in your minds about the power of our blessed St. 
 Joseph nor of his sentiments toward yourselves. 
 The Fathers of the church do not hesitate to ' de- 
 clare, following the sacred text, that our salvation 
 is in his hands, because he, by his intercession, can 
 accomplish what Mary can by privilege and Jesus 
 by his own will.' Therefore, ' Go to Joseph.' " l 
 
 The priest fell upon his knees as he concluded, 
 resting his forehead upon his folded arms, while 
 the flowing sleeves of his black gown swept the 
 railing of the pulpit. The murmuring crowd passed 
 out into the sunshine and the church grew empty 
 and still. 
 
 The plaza in front of the church was ablaze with 
 light and color. The crimson, the purple, the 
 scarlet, and the green of the flower beds, bordered 
 by the silvery foliage of the "dusty miller" plants, 
 dazzled the eye seeking the ground for relief from 
 the sunlight, while the golden gleam of oranges in 
 the midst of dusty leaves overhead, the bright blue 
 sky above, and over all the glare of noonday, had 
 an intolerable effect upon eyes adjusted to the 
 
 1 Gen. 41 : 55. This application of Pharaoh's words to the 
 starving Egyptians in search of corn was actually made, not long 
 since, by a Roman Catholic writer in Spanish. (See Appendix I.) 
 
12 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 dusky shadows of the interior of the church. The 
 streams of men and women pouring through the 
 iron gates were not long in dispersing themselves 
 along the various narrow streets diverging from the 
 plaza. North, east, south, and west they tripped 
 or shuffled, in high-heeled shoes or flapping sandals, 
 hugging the walls on the shady side of the street, 
 and having very little to say to one another. 
 
 Two ladies sauntered more leisurely than the 
 rest along the outer sidewalk bounding the plaza. 
 Both wore scarfs of the finest black lace, draped 
 gracefully over their heads and falling in soft folds 
 about their shoulders. The elder's dress was of 
 black silk, and in her black-gloved hands she car- 
 ried an ivory-bound missal, while a costly rosary 
 wrapped her wrist around and around. Her figure 
 was tall and spare, and the dark eyes that gleamed 
 from beneath the thick, black eyebrows had almost 
 the fire of youth in them. Her hair, however, 
 barely concealed by the mantilla, was iron-gray in 
 hue, and was worn brushed back from her high 
 forehead in crisp, wiry waves. The Senora Ale- 
 jandra Barreda was a wealthy lady of Guadalajara, 
 and to-day being the "saint's day" of her deceased 
 husband, Don Jose, she had accompanied her 
 granddaughter to mass. 
 
 During the sermon following, her eagle glance 
 had fallen more than once upon the upraised 
 features of the young girl seated in the chair at her 
 
CASA BARREDA 13 
 
 side. Now, as they strolled homeward together, 
 the grandmother remarked in her full, deep tones : 
 
 " You heard more of the sermon of young Prieto 
 than I did, Ninfa, if one might judge by your 
 apparent interest in it." 
 
 Now Ninfa was as the apple of this stern lady's 
 eye, and well she knew it. A saucy toss of her 
 small, veiled head and a quick shrug of her shoul- 
 ders was her sole reply to this remark. 
 
 The sefiora smiled grimly. 
 
 " Of what were you thinking while Justo deliv- 
 ered his sermon ? A beautiful one, I am sure. 
 Speak, Ninfa." 
 
 "Of how the birds used to sing in the beech 
 tree above us, when Justo and I played at pottery- 
 making," Ninfa replied promptly. "The old house 
 at El Dorado was nicer than our big house here, 
 mama, and Justo was a good little playfellow, if he 
 did call me 'woman' and 'stupid,' sometimes. 
 Suppose he was the son of an Indian " 
 
 "And you a daughter of the best blood of 
 Spain," her grandmother interrupted harshly. 
 "You are a wicked girl, Ninfa, and should know 
 better than to let your mind wander back to for- 
 gotten and impossible days, while a good young 
 man is striving to feed your soul. After that 
 speech of yours I must again warn you to forget 
 that Justo ever entered for one hour into our life 
 at the hacienda. Priest though he is, he will always 
 
14 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 be the son of your grandfather's servant. I do not 
 think he will ever presume upon the acquaintance 
 of former years. He has been out into the world, 
 and will have learned that the Sefiorita Barreda and 
 he can have nothing in common." 
 
 " Impossible days ! " the girl had murmured to 
 herself, during the first part of the lady's speech. 
 At the end she retorted bravely : " Not even the 
 memory of ' former years,' mama f Ah," with a 
 mischievous gleam in her brown eyes, "what a dear 
 little brown face he had, and how he could sing ! 
 Not even the birds " 
 
 "Silence," the senora commanded, in a low 
 voice not to be disobeyed. They had reached the 
 other end of the plaza now, and slipping her arm 
 through Ninfa's, the grandmother stepped more 
 briskly along first one narrow way, then another, 
 toward Casa Barreda in the rear of the cathedral. 
 
 The city home of the Barredas was a gloomy 
 stone building occupying a corner of the Calle del 
 Seminario and the Calle de la Merced. Other 
 houses joined their walls with those of Casa Bar- 
 reda in the rear and on the left hand, while its 
 front and right-hand side overlooked the above- 
 named streets. Iron-barred windows lighted the 
 ground floor, which was used for servants' offices, 
 stables, and carriage house, while balconies jutted 
 from the windows of the upper story. 
 
 When the owner of the house, with Ninfa, left 
 
CASA BARREDA I 5 
 
 the street, they passed through a lofty pillared 
 doorway, protruding presumptuously over the whole 
 breadth of the sidewalk, and entered the grand 
 square court beyond. This court was bounded on 
 its four sides by the house itself, was paved with 
 huge blocks of stone, and roofed by the blue canopy 
 of the sky. A broad stone staircase led up from 
 the court to the arched corridor above, from which 
 all the upper rooms of the house were entered. 
 
 The sun stood above the court at this hour, and 
 the stones of the pavement were flooded with a 
 white light which made the shade of the lower cor- 
 ridor an agreeable exchange for thin shoe soles and 
 aching eyes. 
 
 Ninfa did not take the trouble to skirt the court 
 in search of shade, as her grandmother was doing, 
 but, skimming across the sunlit space and running 
 lightly up the stairs, was soon hidden behind the 
 portiere of her little white room. 
 
 The Senora Barreda paused in the lower corri- 
 dor to speak with Pedro, the porter, about some 
 household matter, and then passed majestically up 
 the staircase. She likewise retired at once to her 
 own room, instead of lingering in the pleasant 
 corridor where easy-chairs and cushions invited 
 repose. 
 
 Closing behind her the glass d6ors opening upon 
 the corridor, the senora crossed the red-tiled floor 
 and prostrated herself before a painting hung upon 
 
1 6 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 the wall opposite the canopied bedstead. The 
 picture represented Joseph, the husband of Mary, 
 as an old man, gray of hair and beard, and wrinkled 
 of feature. A blue blanket wrapped his shoulders, 
 and he was girded at the waist by a leather strap. 
 One hand grasped a staff, and the other held the 
 end of a bit of cord, presumably the halter of the 
 ass, bearing Mary and the young child out of 
 harm's way into Egypt. But for the halo around 
 the head, and the suggestive bit of rope, the half- 
 length painting of St. Joseph might have been only 
 the portrait of some old man. In the Sefiora Bar- 
 reda's saint, indeed, the two ideas had been blended. 
 St. Joseph's head and hands were from life, the 
 head and hands of her husband, Don Jose, late 
 owner of the hacienda of El Dorado, and of the 
 house in Guadalajara. 
 
 Don Jose had been many years older than his 
 stately Spanish wife, and more than once in the last 
 years of his life, he had been taken for the senora's 
 father. Alejandra had loved and revered him with 
 her whole heart, in whose depths Jose was canon- 
 ized with all the honors due the patron saint of the 
 household. 
 
 As she knelt now before the picture, her eyes 
 were raised adoringly toward the rugged face above 
 her own. The lace scarf still hid the gray waves 
 of her hair, and in the faint glow cast by the little 
 lamp swinging below the picture her face seemed 
 
CASA BARREDA I 7 
 
 to have gained something of its youthful beauty of 
 tint and outline. 
 
 Her hands trembled as she mechanically passed 
 her rosary beads through her nervous fingers. 
 While her lips murmured a word of prayer to the 
 saint, the thoughts of her heart were only of him 
 who had been the real and tangible saint of her 
 life, her husband Jose. 
 
II 
 
 MEANWHILE Ninfa had prostrated herself 
 before a very different image, in the large 
 oval mirror over her dressing table. The table 
 was low and, with arms crossed upon its white 
 cover and head thrown backward, the girl could 
 see the pretty reflection of herself to her waist. 
 
 "Now I look just as I did in the church," she 
 said to herself, with a little vain toss of her head 
 and a twinkle in her brown eyes neutralizing the 
 solemnity that strove to reign there. " I wonder 
 if he recognized me in the midst of all the women 
 and girls. I sat very stiff and straight and never 
 for an instant took my eyes from him, but I wanted 
 to laugh when I remembered the time I threw the 
 lump of wet clay into his face. He called me 
 worse names than ever after that, but I cared 
 nothing for them then, because I had had my 
 revenge, and I laughed at the mud on his nose." 
 
 One reminiscence easily led to another, and as 
 long-continued kneeling always made Ninfa's limbs 
 ache, whether she were occupied in the adoration 
 of herself or of some other virgin saint, she soon 
 slipped to a sitting posture on the floor. 
 
 A sad and puzzled expression succeeded the 
 18 
 
CASA BARREDA I 9 
 
 merry one on her pretty, dimpled face. Memories 
 of the old, young life at the hacienda of El Dorado, 
 where they had lived until Don Jose's death two 
 years before, always brought to her bitter thoughts 
 mixed with the sweet. Justo, the peasant play- 
 mate of the broad brow and the cold heart, was 
 forgotten more quickly than the grandmother could 
 have believed possible, and the straight black eye- 
 brows were knit and the corners of the childish 
 mouth drooped over the never-ending wonder in 
 the girl's mind. 
 
 She had thrown off her mantilla on forsaking the 
 mirror, and the low coil of smooth black hair had 
 become loosened and drooped about her ears. 
 
 Ninfa was seventeen years old and beautiful, 
 small though she was, and dark. The merry light 
 of her eyes, the warm color in her cheeks, and the 
 regular delicacy of her features compensated for 
 her lack of fairness. The sefiora, her grandmother, 
 often sighed, even when her heart was overflowing 
 with unuttered tenderness for her granddaughter, 
 lamenting the fact that Ninfa was the very image of 
 her mother, with not a hint of her noble father in 
 form or face. The lady comforted herself, however, 
 with the conviction that as the years passed swiftly 
 onward, Ninfa was developing more and more of 
 her father's easy lightness of disposition, with no 
 taint of her mother's obstinate and serious nature. 
 
 In as few words as possible, the following shows 
 
20 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 the reason why, in the sefiora's estimation, Ninfa 
 was as blessed in her father as cursed in her 
 mother ; and all the while the daughter of the 
 dead Vicente and Manuela sits disconsolate on the 
 red-tiled floor of her room and tries to solve her 
 puzzle. 
 
 Without troubling with the how and the why, 
 the proud Spanish beauty, the Sefiorita Alejandra 
 de la Palma, married the middle-aged hacendado, 
 Don Jose Barreda of the Mexican State of Jalisco. 
 
 The rich farms, or hacienda, of El Dorado seemed 
 to prosper as never before after the master's return 
 from Mexico City with his young bride. The an- 
 cient mansion in the city was rejuvenated within 
 and without, but while the husband lived, Alejan- 
 dra's favorite place of residence had been the great 
 adobe house at El Dorado. Here the only child 
 and heir was born, Vicente, tall, straight, gray-eyed, 
 fair, with hair of a chestnut brown. 
 
 The boy had been his mother's idol, as are many 
 only sons, even in non-idolatrous countries. As he 
 outgrew boyhood and became a man, he was sent 
 on his travels through the Mexican cities, and once 
 even as far as Cordova in Spain, the home of his 
 mother's people. Vicente's own traveling coach 
 rumbled in and out of the huge corral at El Do- 
 rado, according to the young master's will, while 
 the parents waited patiently at home. 
 
 For shorter journeys to neighboring haciendas, 
 
CASA BARREDA 2 1 
 
 there was a horse always ready in the stables, 
 awaiting Vicente's need. The cumbrous Spanish 
 saddle, the brightly colored blanket-roll, the silver 
 spurs and silver-mounted whip, the handsome 
 riding costume of a Spanish cavalier, an adoring 
 groom, and all the rest of the equipments of the 
 young knight were at hand at a moment's notice. 
 
 One day when Vicente had been over the moun- 
 tains, toward the coast, on a visit to the hacienda of 
 Las Rosas, he returned with a strange mixture of 
 love and dread in his heart. He was but twenty 
 years old, yet he brought with him a wife, a black- 
 eyed and determined-looking little woman of six- 
 teen years. Manuelita rode her pony at her young 
 husband's side in happy unconsciousness of the 
 darkness she was to bring to the household at El 
 Dorado. Never once during the rest of her short 
 life did she pass from under that shadow cloud. 
 
 The senora, her mother-in-law, received her son's 
 wife with gloomy brow and set lips. That her boy, 
 the last of a long line of noble ancestors, should 
 have expected her to receive into her heart a peas- 
 ant girl of Mexico as his wife and her daughter, 
 nearly divided her heart in two. But the marriage 
 was already an accomplished fact. The ardent 
 courtship of a few weeks, the willing consent of 
 Manuelita's aging parents, the prompt offices of a 
 bribed priest, had done what the senora of El Do- 
 rado could not undo. 
 
22 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Don Jose had not been so relentless as Dona 
 Alejandra, when once the bitter pill had been swal- 
 lowed, but he could do little to soften his wife's 
 angry disappointment. 
 
 Perhaps all might yet have been well, if Vicente 
 had lived to enjoy the twin daughters born in the 
 old home a little more than a year after the mar- 
 riage. The coming of the children would surely 
 have lifted some of the trouble from Vicente's 
 affectionate heart — for the mother had grown stern 
 and forbidding even toward her beloved son — but 
 the young father, barely a man in years, was sud- 
 denly killed on the day after the birth of the babies 
 by a kick from a wild horse in the corral. It 
 seemed for a time as if the young mother would 
 not survive the terrible blow. With a little one on 
 each side of her, jealously guarding them from the 
 sefiora even in the midst of her delirium, she 
 fought her way back to life and lived for the little 
 Ninfa and Luz. 1 
 
 By this time the household had grown accus- 
 tomed to the " interloper," who had lost from her 
 cheeks the roses brought from her father's ranch 
 to El Dorado, though the fire still burned in her 
 eyes. For her own sake she longed to return to 
 the bare little home at Las Rosas, carrying nothing 
 from the home of her husband's parents but dear 
 memories of her Vicente and the two plump in- 
 
 1 Luz, pronounced always Luce, and meaning light. 
 
CASA BARREDA 23 
 
 fants. For the latters' sake, however, she kept her 
 longings to herself and forced herself to remain at 
 El Dorado. The grandmother was beginning to 
 bear with her daughter-in-law's presence in the 
 home for the sake of these same precious babies, 
 and surely it would be for the good of the twins, 
 as they should grow toward maidenhood, to be 
 identified with their wealthy grandparents. So 
 Manuela repressed her longings and her helpless 
 rebellion and nursed her children till they grew to 
 be lively, chubby little dears of one and a half 
 years old. 
 
 If the Sefiora Barreda's daughter-in-law had 
 been the aristocratic, languid lady of the city whom 
 the sefiora might have chosen for their son's wife, 
 she would not have been allowed to take the entire 
 charge of the two restless children. As it was, no 
 peasant nurse could have been more able to pro- 
 vide all needful care for them than was the little 
 mother herself, and it is useless to say that Manuela 
 would have resented another's usurping her moth- 
 erly place. 
 
 When Luz and Ninfa were about eighteen 
 months old, news reached Manuela from Las Rosas 
 that her mother was dying and her father in sore 
 need of his daughter's help and comfort. There 
 was great indignation, however, at El Dorado when 
 Manuela, in some trepidation, yet with a firm set 
 of her square little chin, announced to her mother- 
 
24 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 in-law that she with the babies would set out for 
 Las Rosas on the very next day. 
 
 " Impossible ! " said Alejandra decidedly. " Go 
 yourself, of course, but the children will stay with 
 me." 
 
 "I cannot leave my babies behind," Manuela 
 returned, bracing herself for a struggle with her 
 mother-in-law's will. " Little Luz is not well and 
 cannot get the rest of her teeth without me." 
 
 " My son's children are my children as well as 
 yours, Manuela," the other retorted, " and I have 
 the right to forbid your taking the babies on so 
 long a ride across the mountains. How will you 
 manage them on horseback, and how," growing 
 excited as the thought occurred to her mind, " do 
 I know that you will ever bring them back to 
 me?" 
 
 " Now, wife, do not be angry with Manuela," 
 Don Jose had interposed in his kind way. "She 
 has a right to wish to go to her mother, who is 
 dying, and naturally she wishes to carry the ninas. 1 
 Perhaps, however, she will agree to leave one with 
 us. Little Ninfa is strong and hearty and already 
 drinks her jar of goat's milk like a woman. She 
 might stay with you while the other goes with the 
 mother." 
 
 The kindly old man was not without his cunning 
 intention in this proposal as Manuela easily divined. 
 
CASA BARREDA 25 
 
 Yet she was grateful to him for the interposition, 
 realizing the bitterness of the conflict which would 
 have continued between the elder lady and herself 
 if she had insisted upon carrying off both little 
 ones. 
 
 So it was arranged that Luz should go and Ninfa 
 remain behind, and the compromise was not effected 
 without some secret satisfaction on both sides. 
 Each disputant attempted self-consolation in her 
 own way. 
 
 " Ninfa will be a little hostage for the return of 
 her sister," Dona Alejandra thought to herself when 
 all was settled. " Manuela will never return with- 
 out Luz, and she will just as certainly not remain 
 away from Ninfa longer than necessary. So I shall 
 have both my children again." 
 
 " If I cannot have both, I shall at least carry my 
 husband's face with me," Manuela cried softly at 
 bedtime, bending over the little fair head of Luz. 
 " I could never have left my Luz, and yet I love 
 Ninfa just as well. May the Holy Mother watch 
 over my little innocent," she prayed, kissing the 
 curls on the dark head lying close beside the other. 
 
 Across the plains and over the mountains, down 
 toward the sea in the west, the mother and child 
 traveled, escorted by the faithful peasant who had 
 brought the news of her mother's illness. 
 
 They never returned to El Dorado, for in one 
 week from the arrival at Las Rosas, Luz and Ninfa 
 
26 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 were motherless. The fever was waiting for Manu- 
 ela at Las Rosas, and she succumbed after a few 
 days' struggle. This was before the thought of a 
 railroad from the east to the west, and many weeks 
 passed before news of the little mother's death 
 reached El Dorado. 
 
 Later inquiries brought to light the fact that 
 Manuela's mother had died before her daughter 
 reached home, not of the fever, but of heart-rheu- 
 matism. The father had fallen a victim to the fever 
 which carried off his daughter, and the baby also 
 had sickened. Such had been the horror of the 
 scourge in the ranch village that the fate of one 
 baby more or less had not seemed to make the 
 impression upon the poverty-stricken villagers that 
 the Senora Barreda thought it ought to have made, 
 when that one was the baby about which she cared, 
 the daughter of her only son. 
 
 The senora herself had gone to inquire into the 
 reality of the facts that had been reported to her 
 concerning Manuela's end, and she would not be 
 satisfied with the old padre s first communication. 
 He it was who had been bribed to marry this lady's 
 son to the humble Manuelita, and he was afraid to 
 speak all the truth for fear of incurring further 
 angry flashes from those haughty, black eyes. 
 
 At last he was forced to admit that the little 
 grave to which he had led Dona Alejandra might 
 not contain the body of Luz Barreda, after all. A 
 
CASA BARREDA 2*] 
 
 little later, disarmed by the great lady's real dis- 
 tress, he confided to her that Manuela's baby, more 
 dead than alive, had been taken possession of by a 
 party of fugitives who were about to depart for the 
 north of Mexico. One woman, whose own child 
 had died of the fever, had wrapped little Luz in 
 her rebozo and had hurried off on foot to join the 
 rest, who were literally shaking off the dust of the 
 village from their sandaled feet and speeding away. 
 
 The woman's name was Teresa Flores and a 
 good woman she was, if desperately poor, and the 
 padre had been glad to see the poor little creature 
 in motherly arms once more. He had not opposed 
 the "abduction" ; no, no, why should he have done 
 so ? The child would have been dead before an- 
 other night had fallen, was most likely dead now, 
 but at least it had died in a woman's arms and not 
 upon the damp earth floor of a fever hut. 
 
 Since that day nothing more had been heard of 
 the woman who had carried off one of the little 
 heiresses of the Barreda estate, though every effort 
 possible at that time was made. With no railroads, 
 no telegraph, no detective system, there was little 
 hope of accomplishing anything in the way of a 
 search. Many parties had left the village during 
 the fever scourge. Many women had lost children, 
 and many had taken their neighbors' little ones, left 
 orphans and alone. 
 
 Manuela's name was never spoken in the El 
 
28 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Dorado home, after the first few weeks of suspense 
 regarding the fate of Luz, and Ninfa knew little of 
 her mother and sister beyond the fact that they had 
 perished in a scourge of fever while visiting the 
 mother's friends in a distant region " beyond the 
 mountains." 
 
 The puzzle of the girl's maturer years had re- 
 solved itself into this question : "Why do I hear so 
 much of the beauty and accomplishments of my 
 father and never a word of my mother, my own 
 mother, who was different from my grandmother, 
 whom I call mama ? Why did my mother leave 
 me and take Luz on that dreadful visit? And 
 why will mama never answer my questions about 
 them?" 
 
Ill 
 
 THE rest of that nineteenth day of March passed 
 slowly in the quiet home of the Barredas. In 
 former times, on this her husband's birthday as well 
 as "saint's day," the sefiora would have had the 
 house filled with guests and music and all good 
 Mexican cheer in honor of its master. Since his 
 death two quiet anniversaries of the feast day of 
 San Jose had passed, varying from other days only 
 in the longer staying at church in the forenoon, 
 and in the private devotions of the afternoon. 
 
 Of course the SeMora Barreda was a Romanist. 
 There was every reason why she should be such, 
 and no reason why she should have been anything 
 else. She was hardly aware of the existence of the 
 two or three small Protestant gatherings held in 
 obscure rooms in the city. That one of these 
 rather mysterious bodies had a temporary abiding- 
 place in the very street in which she lived was 
 known to her, it is true, yet it was a matter of such 
 small concern that it never for a moment occupied 
 her thoughts. Her confidence in the Holy Virgin, 
 the saints, and in Mary's Son, was fixed and con- 
 soling. Most of the afternoon of this day of St. 
 Joseph was spent in her own room, in a low chair 
 
 29 
 
30 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 drawn close before her saint's picture. Through 
 the long, bright hours she sat, holding in her hand 
 a very small parchment-covered book, yellowed 
 with age and worn with use. 
 
 Poor Ninfa always dreaded these afternoons, 
 which fortunately for her came but once a year. 
 They were even worse than the anniversaries of her 
 grandfather's death, for on those occasions, besides 
 the attendance upon special mass for the departed 
 soul, there was always the afternoon drive to Belen, 
 the city cemetery, where Don Jose was interred. 
 There were wreaths of fresh flowers to be added to 
 those of black and white beads, perpetually adorn- 
 ing the cherished tomb. Moreover, the dust was 
 to be carefully brushed, with tear-wetted handker- 
 chief, from the little crucifix of wood, suspended 
 upon the marble tablet marking Don Jose's resting- 
 place. Naturally, these expeditions afforded more 
 of subdued enjoyment to the granddaughter than 
 to the widow, for variety of any kind was welcomed 
 by Ninfa, in her quiet life. 
 
 Now while the senora sat reading and musing 
 over her little yellowed volume, Ninfa was lolling 
 in a bored fashion on the lounge in the corridor, 
 talking idly to the great, green parrot in his cage, 
 close at hand, or gazing vacantly past the scalloped 
 edges of the awning into the square of blue sky 
 roofing the court. The servants were out for their 
 holiday-making, all except Pedro, who was drowsing 
 
CASA BARREDA 31 
 
 on the stone bench in the hallway below, and all 
 the house was quiet 
 
 On other afternoons there was her lovely drawn- 
 work on linen to occupy and amuse her, but on 
 this day there must be no work, only tiresome idle- 
 ness, and the work frame stood in its corner of the 
 corridor, covered with a clean cloth to keep the 
 dust from the linen. On looking beneath that 
 cloth, one would have seen stretched upon the 
 light frame, on its four slender legs, a filmy, cob- 
 webby design in the drawn and worked threads of 
 a bit of linen, that would have made one's eyes 
 ache, not to speak of the envious heart, fain to 
 possess the dainty square. 
 
 Ninfa's young eyes were not conscious of need- 
 ingNhe rest accorded by St. Joseph, and she re- 
 belled at the delay in completing her task. The 
 linen square was intended to be an offering for the 
 high altar of the church of San Jose, a very un- 
 worthy bit of handiwork, from her unworthy little 
 hands, upon which the holy pyx 1 was to rest. 
 
 Thinking of her work, which should have been fin- 
 ished long ago, to grace the altar on this, her grand- 
 father's feast day, she was reminded of the wondrous 
 body of the Lord, so miraculously enclosed in the 
 golden pyx, and so jealously guarded from insult 
 and from waste. Her eyes grew large and won- 
 
 1 A costly box, usually made cross-shaped, containing the wafer 
 or "host" of the Roman Catholic Church. 
 
32 
 
 dering, as she lay looking up into the empty space 
 beyond the roof, remembering a tale once told to 
 her by the woman who had nursed her day and 
 night after her mother had gone away to Las Rosas. 
 
 The tale of old Guadalupe ran thus : A great 
 sinner died, steeped in guilt. He had received the 
 sacraments, yet unworthily, and for this his soul had 
 gone down to hell to keep company with many 
 others who had confessed and communed, receiv- 
 ing holy unction, yet all unworthily, and who for 
 this were still in that abode of misery. The holy 
 angels came and took from the sinner the sacred 
 host which he still retained in his mouth, and bore 
 it away to the cell of a saintly recluse, who was in 
 her accustomed attitude of prayer. By and by a 
 nun entered the cell and found the servant of God 
 unconscious, in a profound trance, and before her a 
 beautiful little ark containing the small bit of the 
 host. When the virtuous recluse came to herself, 
 the nun asked her why she had brought the most 
 holy sacrament to her cell. "The angels took it," 
 she replied, " from the mouth of a bad man, who 
 had received it with an evil heart, whose soul yet 
 remains in hell. His Divine Majesty wishes me to 
 receive this host and so rescue a soul from purga- 
 tory." * 
 
 In her darkened chamber meanwhile the sefiora 
 meditated upon such consoling exercises and pray- 
 ers as the following, from the little book : 
 
CASA BARREDA 33 
 
 To those who are careful about being diligent to 
 gain indulgences I recommend two things. One, 
 that from now on they be more careful. The other, 
 that they try to dedicate themselves to the holy 
 souls in purgatory. Pity their necessity, which is 
 extreme, for they can do nothing to help them- 
 selves. Give alms for them, which is most accept- 
 able to God. Thou wilt say : "I have no money." 
 I say to thee : " Hast thou a rosary? " Thou wilt 
 reply: "Yes." Then take it in thy hands, and if 
 thou dost use it entire, thou wilt minister to all the 
 necessities of one of those souls. If thou prayest 
 only a part, thou canst thereby relieve one or many 
 needs, and perhaps release them from purgatory. . . 
 Perhaps the husband, the wife, the father, the 
 mother, the friend is in purgatory, and from their 
 torments beseech spiritual alms. . . The least pain 
 of purgatory is more frightful than the greatest tor- 
 ments of this world, if we may believe St. Augus- 
 tine and St. Thomas. Pity, therefore, those who 
 are there. Take thy rosary and pray often. . . Do 
 not be so sure that thou wilt go from thy bed 
 straight to heaven ; because I can tell thee that of 
 the many souls St. Theresa saw leave this world in 
 grace, but three went to glory without going first 
 to purgatory. Know, then, what will happen to 
 thee if thou goest to purgatory. What ? Listen : 
 "With the measure with which thou metest to 
 others, it shall be measured to thee," says Christ, 
 our Lord. And it is as if he had said, As thou 
 doest for thy neighbors, so will others do for thee. 
 Forget them, do not aid them ; those who remain 
 here will so do with thee. Commend them to God, 
 
 c 
 
34 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 pray with the rosary, using mercy for those in pur- 
 gatory ; those who survive thee will do the same 
 for thee. . . It is well so to act, because the most 
 holy Virgin is of assistance in the terrible hour and 
 last struggle of death. . . The venerable Sor Maria 
 de Jesus . . . was most devoted to the holy rosary. 
 She found herself in the agonies of death, and with 
 tears, cried : " Where art thou, Lady, my mother? 
 Where art thou? Seven times each day have I 
 told my rosary, and now thou leavest me, having 
 promised me thy assistance in my death. Sefiora, 
 I can do no more." She crossed her hands upon 
 her breast, and fell. The nuns around her thought 
 that she had fainted from her importunities, but it 
 was not so. She had entered into a trance. 
 
 In it she saw the heavenly Queen with her divine 
 Son in her arms. The boy had a golden rosary in 
 one hand, and in the other a lily. The most holy 
 Virgin said : " My Son, this soul has been so de- 
 voted to my rosary, have some pity upon her." He 
 replied : " Keep the lily for me, my mother, while 
 I put this rosary around my spouse's neck." 
 
 Then the boy said to the sick woman : "Thou art 
 called Maria de Jesus ; I am called Jesus de Maria. 
 Take this rosary, but it must encircle thy throat as 
 well as mine." 
 
 They embraced, and the divine mother hung the 
 rosary about their necks, causing in the soul of the 
 Sor Maria the joy that may be well understood. 
 
 She came to herself, and with great joy said : 
 "My sisters, God be with you ; I have obtained my 
 desire. Devote yourselves to the holy rosary and 
 in heaven we shall see each other again." 
 
CASA BARREDA 35 
 
 Then she died, and in the embrace of her loved 
 One ascended to heaven. 
 
 From time to time the afflicted lady dropped 
 upon her knees, and " telling her beads," earnestly 
 offered prayer, as set down in the little book de- 
 voted to the Madonna of the Rosary. Toward the 
 last came this prayer : 
 
 Mother of God, and most disconsolate Virgin, 
 humbly I offer this part of the rosary of mysterious 
 grief; I beseech thee to gain from the Son, through 
 his passion and death, the exaltation of the Catholic 
 faith, the conversion of the unbelieving and of sin- 
 ners, peace among Christians, aid for the souls in 
 purgatory, sorrow for sin, and confession, in order 
 that the fruit of the passion and death of thy Son 
 may avail. Amen. 
 
 When the sefiora and Ninfa met at dinner at 
 eight o'clock that evening, there was a shade of 
 exhaustion over the grandmother's high-bred face, 
 but she was carefully and elegantly dressed, as was 
 her invariable habit for dinner. The substantial 
 meal over, they left the dining room and went to- 
 gether along the dimly-lighted corridor to the sa/a, 
 or drawing room. 
 
 This room was long and lofty, having great win- 
 dows opening from ceiling to floor and leading out 
 upon iron balconies. The floor was paved with 
 large, shining tiles, square in shape, and colored a 
 deep red. There were costly rugs laid over the 
 
36 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 tiles, and rich curtains of lace and damask draped 
 the windows. Rows of chairs were ranged against 
 the walls up and down the room ; at one end a 
 sofa, the seat of honor, covered with crimson velvet, 
 was flanked by two large armchairs to match. 
 These chairs faced each other, and little velvet foot- 
 stools rested invitingly in front of each, on the soft 
 rug. At the other end of the room an inlaid table 
 of fine woods, with slender, bulging legs, supported 
 a statuette of alabaster, representing " Our Lady 
 of the Rosary" bearing the child Jesus in her 
 arms. The table, chair backs, and sofa cushions 
 were covered with linen squares and oblongs, orna- 
 mented with intricate drawn-work and embroidery. 
 The walls, frescoed in cream color and chocolate 
 tints, were hung with quaint old paintings, with 
 here and there an odd little discolored engraving 
 of some Spanish town or Moorish castle. 
 
 It was a cool and pleasant room on a warm and 
 windy night in March. A few candles burned on 
 their brackets above the sofa at one end of the 
 room, while a tall lamp with its ground-glass shade 
 stood beside the image on the table at the other 
 end and threw a soft, white light over the marble 
 faces. From the streets below the busy evening 
 bustle seemed only a pleasing murmur as it pene- 
 trated the partly opened casements of the windows. 
 An occasional rattle of wheels was the loudest of 
 the sounds that entered the sa/a, but there was a 
 
CASA BARREDA 37 
 
 continual soft shuffle of sandals over the cobble- 
 stones, for the whole sandaled world seemed to be 
 abroad. Now and then the piercing voice of a 
 woman shouted her wares in the prolonged, tune 
 ful cry : 
 
 " Helotes calientes ! " 1 
 
 Or, the dulce man extolled the toothsomeness of 
 his dainties, sugared and crisp with nuts. The 
 moon sailed quietly overhead, and the tiled dome 
 of the cathedral raised itself whitely from the dark 
 mass of the rest of the building. 
 
 Ninfa dropped upon a footstool at her grand- 
 mother's feet and rested her head against her knee. 
 The girl's spirits, usually gay and irrepressible, had 
 been more than usually depressed by the long and 
 lonely afternoon hours, following upon the unusual 
 excitement of the morning. She heaved a great 
 sigh, and then, raising her head, looked into her 
 grandmother's face and laughed. 
 
 " I feel like a little, little girl to-night, mama 
 mia ; please tell me a story." 
 
 The sefiora smoothed the pretty, dark hair from 
 Ninfa' s forehead and gently touched her rounded 
 cheeks and small ears, smiling faintly as she did so. 
 
 "What shall I tell you, little -one?" was the 
 reply. 
 
 A bold thought struck Ninfa. The grandmoth- 
 er's mood was tender to-night. She had just dined 
 1 Hot corn ! 
 
38 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 particularly well, after the fasting and the medita- 
 tions of the day. The whole world, besides them- 
 selves, was abroad in the gay plazas, so that there 
 would be no interruptions possible. She would 
 ask for the story of — well, at least of her hermanita, 
 the little sister, Luz, whom she had - been missing 
 all the afternoon in her heart. 
 
 " Mama, tell me about my hermanita. There is 
 no story I would so much like to hear." 
 
 Before she spoke, Ninfa knew just how the cloud 
 would come and darken her grandmother's face at 
 the mention of the little sister's name. But she 
 had been very careful not to speak of her mother, 
 having learned that the sefiora would never open 
 her lips when questioned upon this subject. Long 
 ago and many times Ninfa had heard how the baby 
 Luz had been the exact image of her tall, beautiful 
 papa, who was little more than a boy when he was 
 killed ; how prettily the little one and she herself 
 had played together for eighteen short months ; and 
 how all had ended so suddenly. To-night she 
 hoped to hear more than this. Her hope was not 
 fulfilled. 
 
 The cloud came, the eyes looking into her own 
 narrowed and darkened, the hands caressing her 
 head were withdrawn, and the Sefiora Barreda sat 
 stiffly upright in the arm-chair with her face set 
 toward the statue standing in the white light across 
 the room. After a moment's silence, the lady 
 
CASA BARREDA 39 
 
 cleared her throat and again bent over Ninfa, who 
 had slightly drawn away from the maternal knee 
 and now sat listless and silent. 
 
 "Certainly I will tell you a story, my soul," the 
 grandmother said cheerily, dismissing the cloud by 
 an effort. " I will tell you how the Christ blessed 
 the olive tree." 
 
 There was no allusion made to Ninfa's particular 
 request and the young girl did not dare to press 
 her point. With another sigh she yielded, as all 
 past time had taught her to yield, to her grand- 
 mother's will, and restoring her elbow to its for- 
 mer place, she listened for the first words to fall 
 from the lips which for sixteen long years had 
 readily shaped themselves to story-telling for 
 Ninfa's sake. 
 
 But Ninfa was not to learn on this evening how 
 the olive tree was blessed. A brisk knock on the 
 street door below roused old Pedro from his early 
 slumbers on the bench and arrested the words on 
 the sefiora's lips. Nothing more was heard for a 
 few seconds, while those in the drawing room lis- 
 tened for what was to follow. Evening visitors 
 were no rarity, except on this evening of the year 
 when Pedro for two years past, according to orders, 
 had denied his mistress to all callers. Something 
 told the elder lady that this visitor would not be 
 denied, even by Pedro, and the tinkle of the bell at 
 the iron gate of the upper corridor soon confirmed 
 
4-0 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 her suspicion. A servant hurried to the gate, un- 
 locked it, and admitted a man wearing the broad 
 hat and black gown of a priest. 
 
 "The senora is in the sala, senor," Guadalupe 
 said respectfully. 
 
IV 
 
 THE cook had retired on admitting the priest, 
 considering her duty done, and Don Justo 
 was left to find the way for himself under the arches 
 of the corridor to the door of the drawing room. 
 But he seemed to have no difficulty in doing so, 
 and his quick steps echoed firmly over the tiles, 
 pausing for an instant as he hung his hat upon one 
 of the branching stag antlers suspended beneath 
 the corridor lamp. When he presented himself at 
 the open door he was met by the Sefiora Barreda's 
 commanding figure, drawn to its full height, and 
 extending a gracious hand of welcome. 
 
 "I knew your step, you see, Justo," she said 
 pleasantly. " Come in, and tell me about your 
 travels. Yes, this is the little Ninfa ; you remem- 
 ber my baby granddaughter ? Ninfa, can you have 
 forgotten the corral overseer of your grandfather ? 
 This is his son, whom I have educated in Madrid. 
 He is a full-ordered priest now. Is it not so, Justo 
 mio ? " 
 
 The priest bowed gravely as he touched for a 
 moment the small brown hand extended to him 
 from behind the grandmother. He had kissed the 
 strong hand of his patroness. This other little hand 
 
 4 1 
 
42 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 was not to be kissed, of course. A merry twinkle 
 shone in Ninfa's eyes as she raised them for a 
 moment to sweep her old playmate's countenance. 
 Gleam answered gleam, and Ninfa turned away to 
 hide her smiling lips as the sefiora motioned Justo 
 to a seat in the velvet chair opposite her own. 
 
 His face had not departed from its pale gravity 
 and the gleam of his eye had been but as a light- 
 ning flash, unseen by the sefiora as she had turned 
 to reseat herself. Instead of accepting the lady's 
 invitation, Justo crossed to the side of the room 
 and lifting one of the cane-seated chairs standing 
 primly against the walls, returned with it to the 
 sefiora's neighborhood, and placing it just beyond 
 the edge of the flowered rug, sat down upon it and 
 waited for her to speak again. In the moment of 
 silence that followed this action of the priest, the 
 three persons present were thinking very busily. 
 
 "Proud !" thought the lady of the house. "A 
 good sign. My training is working well. As a 
 priest and preacher he w r ould always have been 
 welcomed at my house. As such he might have 
 occupied the sofa or reception chair. He chooses 
 to come in the shape of an acquaintance of the old 
 days, and he does well to act in accordance with 
 his true position as pensioner of mine. Let him 
 abide by his choice." 
 
 " As cold and proud as ever," was another 
 thought flashed across the moment of stillness. 
 
'• In any other garb than that of priest 
 Page 43. 
 
CASA BARREDA 43 
 
 " I will not offend her who has made me what I 
 am. But why should she fear for Ninfa ? A baby 
 indeed ! I can forget, if the sefiora wishes me to 
 do so. Yet, what is there to be forgotten ? I am 
 not a man to remember girls' eyes. I should like 
 to tell the sefiora that she need not fear to speak 
 of me to Ninfa as the old playmate of the little 
 one's childhood. I am a priest and besides " 
 
 "It has not changed at all, the funny, ugly face !" 
 thought Ninfa, as she slipped past the red window 
 hangings and stepped out upon the balcony behind 
 her grandmother's chair. " But why is he losing 
 all his front hair? and what a great square chin he 
 has ! If he had not been a priest he would have 
 been married long ago, I suppose. Poor fellow, I 
 am sorry he cannot marry, because he might have 
 found somebody to love his long, pale face, who 
 would never have thrown mud at his eyes." 
 
 Now, Justo Prieto was not an ugly man, though 
 Ninfa in her heart-wholeness and girlish fanciful- 
 ness could see nothing to admire in her old friend. 
 Perhaps in any other garb than that of a priest, 
 Justo would have been "ugly," but the long, severe 
 gown, with its broad sash and short shoulder cape, 
 was well suited to his erect figure, and the severe 
 simplicity of the white collar below the square chin 
 gave just the relief needed by his face. 
 
 He sat with his full brow and earnest eyes turned 
 toward the sefiora, and he listened to her remarks 
 
44 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 and answered her questions with respectful atten- 
 tion. Scarcely a thought of his followed the exit 
 of the little lady who had disappeared behind the 
 window curtain, for the priest had been honest in 
 his reflections on meeting his hostess, and was in 
 no danger of considering Ninfa in any more inter- 
 esting light than that shed by the memory of boy- 
 hood's days. 
 
 Meanwhile, Ninfa soon forgot Don Justo in her 
 absorption in the scene in the street below. She 
 had worn a long scarf of pink and white gauze 
 around her shoulders while sitting inside, and now, 
 with the night air about her, she wrapped it around 
 her head and neck. Her evening dress of thin 
 black lawn was close about her throat, but the 
 puffed sleeves left her arms bare from the elbows. 
 Soft and dimpled arms they were, although not so 
 white as the little sister's would have been, for Luz 
 was a huerita, a little blonde girl, with fair skin and 
 gray-blue eyes. But the rich, warm blood in 
 Ninfa's veins glowed through the tinted skin of 
 arm and cheek, until there was not the slightest 
 tinge of sallowness in their clear olive. Her French- 
 heeled slipper of bronze kid tapped rhythmically 
 upon the stone slab of the balcony floor, and she 
 hummed the air played at that moment by the band 
 in the Plaza de Armas, one block away. 
 
 Throngs of passers-by still filled the street, elec- 
 tric lights blazed here and there, and the night 
 
CASA BARREDA 45 
 
 seemed very gay to the secluded little girl high up 
 above it all. The sidewalks on both sides of the 
 way were almost deserted for the middle of the 
 street, because of the encroachments of the tower- 
 ing cathedral walls on one hand, and the jutting 
 portico of the Barreda residence on the other. 
 There lay a deep shadow in the angle formed by 
 the portico and the- house wall, below Ninfa's bal- 
 cony, and as the girl paused in her low, sweet hum- 
 ming of the music, she heard a slight stir there 
 below, as of a foot softly scraped over the stones, 
 followed by a smothered cough. She glanced 
 downward in the direction from which the sounds 
 seemed to come, and her eyes became aware of 
 the dim outline of a man's figure, with face upturned 
 toward the balcony. A little startled, Ninfa laid 
 her hand over her quickened heart and stepped 
 back from the railing. An instant afterward, how- 
 ever, she resumed her former attitude of leaning 
 over the railing and, as if carelessly, glanced again 
 into the street. 
 
 The dark corner was no longer occupied, but 
 across the street she saw a stationary figure, which 
 had certainly not been there a moment before, 
 leaning carelessly against the blank church wall. 
 The young man had quickly crossed the narrow 
 street as she had disappeared for that shrinking 
 instant, and now as she again leaned out into the 
 night, he recrossed and stood directly beneath the 
 
46 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 balcony, with his head thrown back against the 
 stone pillar of the portico. Passers-by might have 
 thought him a student of the stars, showing faintly 
 under the light of the moon, but the stars studied 
 by young Anselmo Cardenas were those shining 
 from Ninfa' s eyes, and such coquettish and elusive 
 stars were these that, after sweeping down upon 
 him one more bright ray, they speedily retired 
 from view and left him in a starless night alone. 
 
 For Ninfa, though young, was a discreet damsel, 
 and knew that little Mexican girls must be careful 
 of their bright eyes when grandmothers are not at 
 hand to spread grandmotherly wings and cluck 
 alarm. 
 
 She returned to the drawing room from the 
 balcony, leaving Anselmo Cardenas searching in 
 vain for one more glimpse of the eyes that had 
 already dazzled his own more than once in plaza 
 and church, although to-night was the first occasion 
 upon which he had been so bold as to attract them 
 to himself 
 
 The priest had already risen to depart when the 
 window curtains parted, admitting Ninfa. Though 
 his visit had been short, it had been long enough 
 to convince his hostess of two things : first, that 
 the young Justo of to-day fully justified the esti- 
 jnate she had made of him six years before, and 
 that the cool, keen intellect of the man was only 
 the natural development of the boy's quiet intel- 
 
CASA BARREDA 47 
 
 ligence, which had attracted her from his earliest 
 years ; second, that she need have no apprehensions 
 concerning a renewal of intimacy between Ninfa 
 and himself. 
 
 The man before her seemed wholly devoted to 
 his calling, and if his morning's sermon might have 
 shown to more learned critics than the sefiora his 
 almost pitiful ignorance of the chronology of bibli- 
 cal history, his talk to-night upon other literary 
 subjects, of Spanish literature, of the Latin classics, 
 and of modern French, quite satisfied his hearer 
 and would have done credit to many an older man. 
 He had evidently made the most of his time while 
 a student, and he meant to continue his studies, 
 even after becoming pastor of the parish church at 
 El Dorado. As he rose to leave, he was telling 
 Alejandra of the bishop's desire that he should 
 remain for some weeks in Guadalajara before bury- 
 ing himself in the small parish of his choice, and 
 the sefiora was surprised to feel that this intelli- 
 gence was unexpectedly welcome to her. It would 
 be a comfort, after all, to have this self-contained 
 young fellow to rely upon,, for there were many 
 points about the hacienda just now concerning 
 which she needed the wide-awake advice of some 
 one devoted to her interests, as this young man 
 undoubtedly ought to be. 
 
 Therefore, mutual satisfaction was impressed 
 upon both faces as Ninfa stepped toward them. 
 
48 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 The introduction of her fervid beauty put to rout 
 all sober calculations at once. The encounter of 
 bright eyes outside had acted upon her brain as a 
 sip of strong wine would have done, and she did 
 not now hide behind her grandmother when for the 
 second time her hand was outstretched to meet 
 Justo's in farewell. 
 
 "Are you going away so soon, Don Justo? " she 
 asked, her pleased excitement vibrating in her 
 voice. " We have not had a moment to talk of 
 the good old days when we worked at the clay 
 figures ; do you remember ? Mama says that 
 those were ' impossible days ' and not to be re- 
 membered," she went on recklessly; " but how 
 can one forget them on seeing you again?" 
 
 The senora stood speechless at this daring diso- 
 bedience of her granddaughter; but Justo regarded 
 Ninfa's vehemence in something of its true light, 
 that of a spoiled child, having, in even his shrewd 
 brain, no idea of the occasion of the " child's" 
 sudden cordiality. He looked kindly and gravely 
 into her flushed face and dropped the little hand 
 which she had offered him. 
 
 " Good-night, Senorita Ninfa," he said. "As 
 your grandmother has said, those days are past for 
 you and for me. For me, because I am a man 
 and must think only of my work. For you, be- 
 cause you are no longer a little girl with idle fingers 
 good only for daubing in the mud." 
 
CASA BARREDA 49 
 
 "And as you are a priest, you think you must 
 preach me a sermon," Ninfa retorted with a saucy 
 laugh. " I see you have not yet forgiven me, sefior 
 priest ; but you know I never would have thrown 
 the clay into your face if you had not called me 
 'stupid.' " 
 
 Justo flushed and turned impatiently from Ninfa 
 to bid the sefiora good-night. He was to go on 
 the next day to El Dorado for a week's visit only, 
 and the seiiora had several messages for him to 
 deliver aft the hacienda. No more notice was taken 
 of Ninfa, who speedily subsided from her high 
 spirits in some dread of the consequences of her 
 bold speeches. 
 
 " Adios, Justo. Que vaya con Dios," l had scarcely 
 left her grandmother's lips before that lady turned 
 wearily to Ninfa and bade her go instantly to bed. 
 
 The front door below slammed behind the de- 
 parting priest as the sefiora herself put out the 
 candles, after closing the open windows of the sala. 
 
 "The child is naughty and willful beyond belief," 
 she said to herself, as she paced the corridor out- 
 side, before entering her own bedroom next to 
 Ninfa's. "She needs the companionship of other 
 girls older and steadier than herself. But whom 
 shall I seek as intimates for my darling? If Luz 
 had lived ! Already as a baby she was different 
 from my little rattlebrain here, and her eyes were 
 
 1 "Farewell, Justo. Go with God." 
 D 
 
50 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 her father's eyes, although she was such a steady 
 little creature, never in mischief, never in a tantrum, 
 never disobedient. Well, well, the will of God be 
 done. I can say nothing. Long ago I exhausted 
 all words. She is with God now and the saints, 
 bless her ! For how could such a child have lived 
 to grow up with an unknown peasant woman for a 
 mother and a hovel for a home? " 
 
 Yet had Ninfa's mother, as well as her little 
 sister's, been other than "an unknown peasant 
 woman " ? and had not the babies been as sweet 
 and wholesome little ones as one could desire or 
 imagine ? 
 
 The senora did not stop to ask herself this ques- 
 tion, much less to answer it, for such thoughts as 
 the above usually drove her to her saint ; and fol- 
 lowing the priest's advice of the morning, she again 
 went to Joseph to seek much-needed but oft-denied 
 consolation. 
 
DURING the days that followed St. Joseph's 
 feast day, Ninfa's fingers were busy with her 
 drawn-work, and her thoughts were occupied by 
 many new and tender imaginings. For hours she 
 sat in the corridor, weaving the fine thread in and 
 out of the open spaces in the delicate linen, while 
 in her brain was woven a maidenly romance of 
 many a witching tint. At last the work was done 
 and dispatched by Maria, the housemaid, to Padre 
 Manuel, who should see that it found its rightful 
 place upon the high altar of San Jose. 
 
 On the Sunday following the completion of the 
 work, Ninfa begged that she might attend mass at 
 San Jose, with Guadalupe, instead of accompanying 
 her grandmother to the cathedral service, as was 
 her custom. 
 
 That the girl should wish to see the dainty cor- 
 ners of her linen square spread upon the velvet- 
 covered support of the pyx on the altar was a reason 
 good enough to win the good lady's willing consent 
 to Ninfa's request. Guadalupe was a staid and 
 most respectable woman, and would take good care 
 of the pretty creature entrusted to her. 
 
 Now "playing the bear" was a game well enough 
 
 5i 
 
52 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 known to the Sefiora Barreda, but she had little 
 idea that her granddaughter, at the tender age of 
 seventeen, was already beginning to take part in 
 such a game. Anselmo Cardenas, having been 
 encouraged by Ninfa' s second look over the bal- 
 cony railing, had not hesitated to "play the bear" 
 in true Mexican fashion, on each succeeding even- 
 ing thereafter. Not one word had passed between 
 the two young things, however, and the playing at 
 love, if love it could be called, had been confined 
 to an interchange between balcony and street of 
 soft glances and demure smiles, under the shadow 
 of the night's friendly wing. It had been easy for 
 Ninfa to find an excuse to step outside of the sala 
 for a few moments, just after the palace and cathe- 
 dral bells had chimed nine o'clock each night, and 
 as yet Anselmo had never failed to perform his 
 part of standing in the shadow below at the same 
 hour. 
 
 On the Saturday evening before this Sunday, 
 Ninfa had returned to her grandmother's side from 
 the balcony with the color a little paled in her 
 cheeks and with many an extra heart beat. The 
 first words had passed an instant before, between 
 her lover and herself. 
 
 ' "To-morrow morning, at San Jose?" had risen 
 softly to her ear, bent low over the railing. 
 
 "Yes," had fluttered downward from her own 
 trembling lips in reply. 
 
CASA BARREDA 53 
 
 Guadalupe chatted sociably as they hurried along 
 the streets, in the bright morning sunshine. March 
 was going out like a veritable lion of tawny hue 
 and vehement strength. At certain street cross- 
 ings it was next to impossible to continue one's 
 steps until some huge, stalking whirlwind had hur- 
 ried by. Opaque clouds of sand rushed up one 
 street and down another, pelting faces and blinding 
 eyes with the stinging particles of grit. The blue 
 sky was overcast, and the streets were filled with a 
 sickly, yellow light as one of these storm-gusts 
 passed over the plaza of San Jose. 
 
 Guadalupe and Ninfa were glad to take refuge 
 inside of the church at last, and both were soon on 
 their knees near the altar rail. Ninfa was not too 
 busy with her rosary of pearls to keep a corner of 
 one eye wide open to all new-comers in her neigh- 
 borhood. And she was quite satisfied, by and by, 
 with the sight of Anselmo, kneeling upon his white 
 handkerchief, spread on the floor, a few feet re- 
 moved from her. Mass proceeded and ended, and 
 Guadalupe led her charge away, without a sus- 
 picion that Ninfa had seen an acquaintance among 
 the worshipers. Perhaps Ninfa herself would have 
 been uncertain of the identity of this devout young 
 man in plain black clothes with the shadowy 
 presence that had haunted the portico, if Anselmo, 
 by an infinitesimal lifting of the eyebrows, had not 
 apprised her of his recognition of herself. 
 
54 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 Some friend claimed the young man upon the 
 church steps, so he was not allowed to follow Ninfa 
 and her companion homeward, as had been his in- 
 tention. Ni,nfa walked at Guadalupe's side as on 
 wings. Her innocent heart was all aglow with 
 pride and flattered vanity. Guadalupe was perhaps 
 intent upon kitchen affairs, for she spoke not a 
 word, and gave Ninfa time for collecting her wits 
 before reaching home. When they had arrived 
 within two squares of the house, Ninfa stopped 
 suddenly. " Ah, Lupe mia, only see the dust com- 
 ing toward us. Already my black scarf is turned 
 an ugly gray with the miserable sand, and my 
 mouth and eyes are full. You may go on, but I 
 shall stop here and wait for the storm to pass." 
 
 Guadalupe shook her head ; the vegetables would 
 be spoiled, the broth for lunch would all boil away, 
 already she was late. The senorita might stop for 
 a moment, as there was a convenient doorway at 
 hand, and they were so near home, but she herself 
 must hasten, if the dust buried her a foot deep. 
 Ninfa laughed and pushed the woman onward by 
 the shoulders, as she herself stepped aside and into 
 a friendly open doorway. 
 
 On came the whirlwind. The sunlight disap- 
 peared ; the dust-cloud filled all the street, mount- 
 ing high above the housetops. Stray hats flew 
 along at its feet, and hoarse cries sounded in the 
 yellow gloom. 
 
CASA BARREDA 55 
 
 Ninfa gave another little laugh of pleasure at her 
 escape, then stopped short in open-eyed surprise. 
 What had seemed an empty hallway from the side- 
 walk, now resolved itself into a dimly-lighted room, 
 containing benches and a chair. Shawled women 
 of the poorest class filled the benches and were 
 faced by a fair-haired little woman in the chair 
 whom Ninfa recognized instantly as a foreigner. 
 
 The girl shuddered. Could it be that she had 
 entered the preaching place of the Americans who, 
 mingling with the lowest and poorest of the inhab- 
 itants, abuse the Holy Catholic Church, and who 
 teach that the blessed Virgin Mary was not the 
 mother of the Lord Christ ? Perhaps these people 
 would seize her and force her to listen to their 
 "doctrine" ! She was timid ; what might she not 
 be induced to promise them in order to escape 
 from this danger? 
 
 The murmur of voices in the room ceased for a 
 moment, as Ninfa stared wildly around, too startled 
 to think of running out into the street and so saving 
 herself. The lady in the chair turned her head 
 toward the little black-robed figure near the door- 
 way and smiled. 
 
 " Come in out of the dust, senorita," she said 
 pleasantly. "We shall be glad for you to wait here 
 until it passes." 
 
 Ninfa yielded to the influence of the quiet voice 
 and no longer trembled. All of the women but 
 
56 the seno-ra's granddaughters 
 
 one or two were clean and neatly dressed, and all 
 looked friendly enough. From behind a canvas- 
 covered door came the sound of men's voices, as if 
 in earnest conversation. 
 
 "Will you not sit down for a moment?" the 
 strange lady continued. " You seem quite out of 
 breath, and no wonder, on such a day as this. We 
 have been talking about an interesting subject, my 
 scholars and I, and had almost forgotten the dust 
 and heat outside." 
 
 "Are you a teacher?" Ninfa asked shyly, still 
 standing, yet taking a step nearer the empty bench 
 in front of the teacher's chair. 
 
 The lady laughed softly, and the women all 
 smiled. "You think me very small for a teacher, 
 no doubt," the former answered ; "and it is true 
 that I am learning as much from my class as they 
 are learning from me." 
 
 "No, no, senora!" came from several of the 
 women, while all shook their heads at such heresy. 
 
 "We have just come to a difficult point in our 
 reading," the teacher continued, "and we had 
 stopped to talk about it when you came in, se- 
 norita. Will you stay and listen?" 
 
 "Oh no, I cannot, I dare not!" Ninfa whispered, 
 looking fearfully over her shoulder. 
 
 How should she ever dare to leave that doonvay 
 in the broad light of the sun? and yet she must 
 not linger. 
 
CASA BARREDA 57 
 
 If only another sand storm would approach, so 
 that she might slip out with no sharp eyes outside 
 to detect her exit ! 
 
 11 Oh, I am sorry," the lady said, rising from her 
 chair. " Perhaps, though, you will come again, 
 when there is no hurry about getting away. Be- 
 sides, dear child," she added in a whisper, going 
 very near to Ninfa's side, "there can no harm come 
 to you here. I love girls, and wish to help them 
 always. Do not forget that, and that I am always 
 here on Sunday mornings, just as you see me now." 
 
 Ninfa could not resist the sweetness of the little 
 teacher's voice, nor her gentle dignity of manner. 
 
 " Perhaps some day I will come again," she re- 
 plied in hesitating, yet almost wistful, tones. 
 
 "Now take this little card away with you," the 
 teacher said, offering one from her book as she 
 spoke. " It has the words of this morning's text 
 on it, and I would like you to read them many 
 times. Will you, for my sake? " she urged. 
 
 As it would have been the extreme of discourtesy 
 to refuse, Ninfa readily gave the desired promise. 
 
 "Besides," the lady continued, "these words are 
 true words. Many sayings of this world are not 
 true sayings ; but this is the truth, because it is not 
 a saying of the world, but of one of God's chosen 
 apostles." Then with a friendly nod and a tender 
 actios, Ninfa was allowed to go with the white card 
 tucked away in the bosom of her lawn frock. 
 
58 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 It did not take long to reach her grandmother's 
 house, but this Sunday morning's outing was not to 
 close without one more adventure for Ninfa. A 
 walk of two squares unaccompanied by a chap- 
 eron was an unusual occurrence in her life, and she 
 was about to enter the portico in great haste, when 
 she was startled by the sudden gleam of something 
 white, deftly tossed upon a ledge of one of the outer 
 pillars. At the same moment a young man stepped 
 past her, as if from the further side of the pillar, 
 and lifting his high silk hat passed on up the street 
 With an instinct born of quickened heartbeats and 
 low-drawn sighs, Ninfa laid her hand upon the bit 
 of white paper, within easy reach, and then ran 
 quickly past Pedro, sound asleep at this hour, and 
 up the stairs to her room. 
 
 Here her grandmother found her, ten minutes 
 later, when the call to lunch had sounded in vain 
 through the house. The sefiora had chosen to seek 
 her granddaughter for herself and had refused 
 Maria's aid. She had entered noiselessly, and stood 
 behind Ninfa's chair before the child realized her 
 presence. 
 
 "And who is he who dares tell my granddaughter 
 that he loves her, and to ask if his love is returned ? " 
 were the stern words that first startled Ninfa from 
 her reverie. 
 
 There lay the small sheet of white, perfumed 
 paper on the table, in full sight, not only of Ninfa's 
 
CASA BARREDA 59 
 
 adoring eyes, but also of the grandmother's, which 
 could not have been thought to seem adoring of 
 anybody or anything at that moment. The words 
 written in a round, school-boyish hand were plain 
 enough to read : 
 
 To Ninfa : I love you. Is my love returned ? 
 
 A. C. 
 
 Poor little words to cause in Ninfa's heart such 
 a tumult of joy, in the senora's such a pang of 
 anxious solicitude. 
 
 " And who is ' A. C pray ? " the lady continued, 
 with a hand laid heavily on Ninfa's shoulder. 
 
 " I do not know," the poor child confessed truly 
 enough, and with burning cheeks. 
 
 "Ah!" was the grandmother's gratified excla- 
 mation. Then she quietly took possession of the 
 note, and bidding Ninfa lay aside her mantilla and 
 come to the dining room, she sailed out of the 
 room without more ado. Afterward, when they 
 were again alone, before retiring for the afternoon 
 siesta, the Senora Barreda easily learned from Ninfa 
 all that had passed between Anselmo Cardenas and 
 herself. 
 
 "Are you sure that you have spoken but one 
 word to the young man, my daughter ? " the grand- 
 mother asked, with her hand upon the girl's head 
 as it rested against her knee. 
 
 "Quite sure," Ninfa murmured. 
 
60 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " And this is his first note ? " 
 
 "Yes, yes, mama." 
 
 " That is well. Now let me tell you, my child, 
 that this is all at an end for the present. For the 
 present, I say, because one does not know what 
 may happen when — well, when you shall have be- 
 come a woman." 
 
 "A woman I am now, mama" said Ninfa de- 
 terminedly, u but you and Justo Prieto are alike 
 and wish to keep me always a baby. I will show 
 
 him " she added passionately, but was not 
 
 allowed to finish her words. 
 
 " You will show him nothing, my little treasure," 
 her grandmother said soothingly. " Justo is a good 
 preacher and will be of service to me in many ways, 
 but to you he will be nothing. What matters it 
 what he may think you, whether woman or babe ? 
 Come, your eyes are tired, let me put you to bed 
 for a little sleep. I will sit beside you and stroke 
 your head until you fall asleep, as I used to do 
 when you were small and had waked with a bad 
 dream. Now you may dream that you are already 
 a grown woman with all the world at your feet. 
 You will wake and be glad to find yourself still at 
 the old house at home, the little granddaughter of 
 Alejandra." 
 
 Dona Alejandra had evidently talked herself into 
 good humor, for by the time Ninfa had obediently 
 laid her head upon the pillow, with her luxuriant 
 
CASA BARREDA 6 I 
 
 black hair streaming across her grandmother's lap, 
 the latter was smiling contentedly. 
 
 "So far, so good," her thoughts ran, as she sat 
 threading her fingers lightly through the glossy 
 waves of the hair she loved. " Of course 'A. C is 
 the advocate's son, Anselmo. He is a fine youth 
 and will be a noble man one of these days. Who 
 would have thought that the only family in the 
 city with whom I would have wished to ally myself, 
 had already established a sort of claim upon my 
 little Ninfa ? Pedro was right. Anselmo has had 
 a reason for haunting our side of the street, though 
 always thinking of my Ninfa as a child I had not 
 dreamed that he could be seeking her." 
 
 Of course, however, this was not at all the way 
 in which such an affair should be managed, and the 
 Sefiora Barreda was delighted with the easy acqui- 
 escence of her granddaughter to her will. Thus 
 had Vicente, her beloved son, always yielded to 
 his parents. Never had there been a conflict be- 
 tween them — save one, and then it had been too 
 late. The lady's brows contracted as she thought 
 of the bride forced by this same son upon the proud 
 house of the Barredas. But Ninfa was actually 
 asleep by this time, and did not miss the hands that 
 slipped from her head and folded themselves tightly 
 together. 
 
 " I must send the girl away for a time," was the 
 grandmother's conclusion, after some moments of 
 
62 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 painful thinking. " Not to El Dorado, however, 
 but farther away, even if it breaks my heart When 
 Justo comes I will consult with him. He knows 
 Mexico better than I do, and I could never think 
 of far-away Spain for her, my little Ninfa." 
 
VI 
 
 JUSTO came on the next day, much to the 
 sefiora's relief. Ninfa was away at the time of 
 
 his visit, attending the class of embroidery held 
 at four o'clock in the afternoon at the girls' school 
 of San Diego. Her absence was an added relief, 
 for the grandmother had not been able to entirely 
 overlook Ninfa' s listlessness, interrupted by fits of 
 genuine ill-temper, which had succeeded the expres- 
 sion of her will on the day before. 
 
 Justo was greeted, therefore, with more cordiality 
 than on his previous visit. However, he persisted 
 in ignoring, as before, the seat which would have 
 placed him upon an equality with the lady of the 
 house. After giving an account of many things as 
 he had found them at the hacienda, with messages 
 of greeting from the superintendent, Don Juan 
 Tejada, and from many of the tenants, who were 
 henceforth to be Justo's parishioners, the priest 
 rose to go, saying with polite interest : 
 
 "I hope the Sefiorita Ninfa is well." 
 
 "Do not go just yet, Justo," the sefiora said, 
 almost in tones of entreaty. "I need your help." 
 
 The priest resumed his seat and held his tongue 
 until the lady should explain herself. 
 
 63 
 
64 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " Ninfa is quite well," she went on. "She is at 
 school at this hour. It is of her I wish to speak to 
 you." 
 
 "Of the senorita — to me?" Justo asked with 
 surprise. " I cannot imagine how I can help you, 
 Dona Alexandra. Yet I promise to do all in my 
 power for the sake of " 
 
 "Yes, yes, I know," the other interrupted him ; 
 " but there will be nothing for you to do. I wish 
 your advice about a school for the girl. She must 
 go to some good school where there will be other 
 girls of her own station, where she will be taught 
 music on the piano and many other things of which 
 her grandmother is ignorant. Justo, I have a high 
 ambition for Ninfa. She sings well, and it is a pity 
 that her voice has never been trained. Do you 
 know of such a school as I desire in the republic ? " 
 
 Justo concealed his amazement at what seemed 
 a caprice of the sefiora and bestirred himself to 
 think of all the schools of Mexico of which he had 
 any knowledge. At length he started perceptibly, 
 but instead of speaking at once, he lifted his eyes 
 from the floor and looked searchingly into the lady's 
 anxious face. 
 
 "Well, what is it?" she asked impatiently. 
 
 " I wish I knew your real reason for selecting a 
 new school for the senorita," was the unexpected 
 reply, in the priest's slow tones, while his eyes still 
 examined the senora's face. 
 
CASA BARREDA 65 
 
 "What can that have to do with it?" was the 
 second impatient question. " It is my place to 
 know the motive, yours to give the information I 
 need, if indeed you have any to give." 
 
 It was hard for the senora to realize that Justo 
 Prieto was no longer the unattractive little boy who 
 had been in her way at El Dorado, and who had 
 been so hard to suppress and so clever and keen 
 of tongue. 
 
 " If you desire a cool and bracing climate for the 
 young lady's health," Justo proceeded quietly, " I 
 would recommend that of Saltillo, in Coahuila. It 
 is a long way from here, perhaps three hundred 
 leagues, but it has a glorious climate. I spent 
 several weeks there with a priest, my friend, before 
 coming south to Guadalajara." 
 
 " I was asking of schools, not of climates, if you 
 will remember. Are there boarding schools in 
 Saltillo?" the senora asked. 
 
 "Yes, there are two large schools for girls in 
 Saltillo. I have my information from my friend, 
 Arango. One is a nun's school. The monjas are 
 kind and gentle, I believe, and I saw the long line 
 of their girls walking in the Alamada each week. 
 The sefiorita would learn to sing the hymns of the 
 church, without doubt, in the school of the monjas, 
 and it is said that the embroidery and other needle- 
 work taught is very beautiful." 
 
 " My Ninfa could teach the needle to any one," 
 
 E 
 
66 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 the grandmother said proudly. "I should never 
 send her away to learn embroidery, nor even to 
 sing the hymns and prayers of the church. Be- 
 sides, in the present state of things the foolish child 
 might even wish to become a nun if thrown without 
 restraint among them ; who knows ? Yet one must 
 risk something. You spoke of two schools," she 
 continued, not noticing, in her interest in the sub- 
 ject, that her last words had suggested more than 
 had been allowed to reach the surface in her pre- 
 vious conversation. 
 
 "Yes, there is another," was the reply; "but I 
 do not think that you will care to hear about it, as 
 it is Protestant and conducted by Americans from 
 the United States of the North." x 
 
 " I know little about these protestantes" said 
 Alejandra. " If in all respects, save that they are 
 protestantes, their school seems a fit one for Ninfa, 
 there is no reason why you should not tell me all 
 you know of it." 
 
 " No one could remain in Saltillo for many days 
 without learning much of the school, both good 
 and evil," the priest went on. "But I should hesi- 
 tate long before recommending the place to you 
 for Ninfa Barreda. You are a good Romanist, and 
 so doubtless is the girl. From what I hear, many 
 
 1 The Mexican Republic consists of the United States of Mexico, 
 and the United States of America are called those of the North, 
 in distinction. 
 
CASA BARREDA 6j 
 
 Romanist girls enter and afterward depart con- 
 verted to Protestantism. Would it do to subject 
 your granddaughter to such influence ? " 
 
 "You are advising me as a priest, not as a 
 worldly friend, Justo," the sefiora said with a return 
 of impatience. "Tell me all you know of the 
 school. My curiosity is aroused by your hesita- 
 tion." 
 
 " It is a long story, and in some respects a won- 
 derful story," Justo began. "I doubt whether you 
 will be able to give the time necessary for hearing 
 it all." 
 
 "My time is my own," was the easy reply, "and 
 I have all there is." The lady settled herself com- 
 fortably in her corner of the sofa, with slippered 
 feet propped upon a stool, and signed to the priest 
 to begin. 
 
 He seemed to be reluctant to undertake the re- 
 cital, but the sefiora was inexorable. 
 
 " I have most of what I know from Arango," he 
 said at length. "Arango has been in Saltillo for 
 the purpose of studying English. He has had pri- 
 vate lessons with one of the teachers of Madero 
 Institute, the school of which we are speaking. He 
 has asked many questions and has learned much 
 about the school. Besides, he was at the Jesuit 
 college in Saltillo at the time the school was opened 
 and the church was built." 
 
 "A church!" the lady interrupted. "You do 
 
68 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 not mean to tell me there is actually a church of 
 the gringos* in Mexico." 
 
 The priest smiled. 
 
 " There are several, and that of the bautistas in 
 Saltillo is a beautiful little building, with a history 
 even more strange than that of the school. But I 
 was to tell about the school. When the Americans 
 came to Saltillo looking for a place in which to 
 open a mission school, they found the Montez 
 property for sale. It is a huge building, occupying 
 a whole block to itself, with four streets surrounding 
 it and the garden belonging to it. Of course, all 
 was done that could be done to prevent the sale. 
 The Montez mother and seven daughters were 
 threatened with excommunication to the fifth gen- 
 eration and the final loss of their own souls, but the 
 americano was indefatigable, and actually effected 
 the purchase at something like ten thousand dol- 
 lars. You see there was a heavy debt on the estate, 
 and the Marqueta, as the building was called, had 
 to be sold to the highest bidder. I could not learn 
 what really followed in the case of the Montez 
 family, because soon after the purchase by the 
 American syndicate things advanced with such 
 surprising rapidity that the priests and citizens 
 could do little but stand aside and gape with 
 astonishment. In some mysterious way, General 
 Madero, of Parras, the governor of the State, was 
 
 1 Foreigners. 
 
CASA BARREDA 69 
 
 interested, probably by the wiles of the americano 
 chiefly engaged in furthering the work, and was 
 induced to endow several scholarships in the name 
 of the State, for the benefit of poor girls desiring an 
 education. 
 
 11 The school was named for Madero and was put 
 on a substantial footing, all papers being legally 
 drawn up and properly recorded. The building 
 was thoroughly improved and in 1884, I believe, it 
 was opened with over fifty pupils. Why, it was 
 unheard of! Absurd ! A great Protestant board- 
 ing school opened in the very face of the clergy, 
 and made attractive enough to invite the attention 
 of rich parents as well as those of the lower class, 
 who usually attend the gringos' service. One witty 
 Jesuit called it the ' Protestant mushroom,' and 
 wagered that it would wither and collapse as quickly 
 as it had grown to maturity. He was wrong, how- 
 ever, for there it stands to-day, in a fresh coat of 
 color, and filled with schoolgirls from many States. 
 The director of the school is a man from the United 
 States of the North, and most of the teachers are 
 from the same country. The pupils are taught 
 French and Latin, music on the piano, and singing, 
 besides all the usual branches of school knowledge. 
 And all is done in the most improved way, for the 
 books used are of the newest, brought from New 
 York, and the teachers are all highly educated. 
 Exercises in walking, in marching, in standing, are 
 
JO THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 given at regular times, and once every week the 
 whole school is taken out to walk, with the teachers 
 to keep order." 
 
 " In imitation of the nuns' school, I suppose," 
 the sefiora remarked composedly. 
 
 "To the contrary, I believe," the priest replied, 
 with his slow smile. "The nuns' school has been 
 established only since the Protestants began to take 
 hold." 
 
 "But how can the Americans teach our children, 
 when their language is English ? I cannot under- 
 stand," was the lady's next remark. 
 
 " Oh, they all speak Spanish. It is wonderful 
 how soon they learn to do so. It is not like our 
 Spanish, of course, as their tongues are hung differ- 
 ently and their throats are stiff. But they are easily 
 understood after one gets accustomed to their way 
 of calling words. And if one is going to learn 
 English, there is no better way to do so than to 
 take lessons of these teachers. Ah, the way they 
 can talk English is beautiful." 
 
 " Could my Ninfa learn English, do you think, 
 Justo?" Alejandra asked eagerly. 
 
 "Why not?" the priest replied, with a shrug of 
 his shoulders. "Those Americans can do anything, 
 I believe. They can certainly teach their own lan- 
 guage to even the most stupid " 
 
 "Ninfa is not stupid!" the grandmother inter- 
 rupted him to say, in her quick way. 
 
CASA BARREDA 7 I 
 
 "To the most stupid pupils," the priest continued 
 gravely ; " therefore, as I was going to say, there 
 can be no doubt that the sefiorita, being unusually 
 clever, would learn English perfectly, and very 
 quickly, if placed under their care." 
 
 "Then you advise it? you think it would be well 
 for me to send my child to Saltillo, to the protes- 
 tantes?" the lady leaned forward eagerly in her 
 chair as she spoke, with her eyes fixed on Justo's 
 lips. She had almost forgotten the reason of her 
 desire for banishing Ninfa from home for a time, 
 in her interest in these wonderful gringos who had 
 dared the church and the priests and had estab- 
 lished themselves so securely on foreign soil. Why 
 had they come ? What was it all for ? For mon- 
 ey's sake of course. But there was no time now to 
 enter on that question. 
 
 "Do you wish me to reply as priest or as worldly 
 friend?" Justo asked. 
 
 " First, as priest," the lady answered, after a 
 thoughtful pause. 
 
 "Send the sefiorita to the nuns at Saltillo," was 
 the advice she received. 
 
 "Is no religion taught at the gringos' school?" 
 she asked. 
 
 " Certainly. The Bible is read freely, and I be- 
 lieve that every pupil may own a copy if she wishes 
 to do so. There are religious services in the school- 
 room every morning, and on Sundays all who wish 
 
72 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 to do so may attend preaching and school in the 
 church." 
 
 " Then there is no compulsion used ? I would 
 not have Ninfa's pure faith harmed by their blas- 
 phemous teaching of religion, for all the English 
 she might learn in a dozen years." 
 
 " I have heard that no compulsion is used, and 
 that usually none is needed for inducing the pupils 
 to attend their services. I suppose the day pupils 
 go to their homes on Sundays. The internets 1 
 usually prefer the going out for a walk to church, 
 through the streets and plaza, to being shut up in- 
 side of the building until the rest return. Mind, 
 my dear lady, I am only telling you what I have 
 heard of this school. Of myself, I know nothing — 
 or very little." 
 
 "Then, as a 'worldly friend,' what would you 
 advise for Ninfa?" 
 
 "That, if you are careless as to her religious sen- 
 timents, you will send her to the Madero Institute. 
 A year there will make a thoughtful woman of the 
 thoughtless child. Understand, however, that I 
 think it would be a very dangerous experiment, 
 and that the result may be the ruin of your peace 
 of mind forever. And again I say, if you are 
 merely thinking of an asylum for Ninfa for a short 
 time, send her to the nuns. She will be safe with 
 them and well cared for." 
 
 1 Boarding pupils, 
 
CASA BARREDA 73 
 
 The senora sat for a moment after the priest's 
 last words in perplexed silence. Once she roused 
 herself to ask : 
 
 "This Aran go, of whom you have spoken, is he 
 not in danger from the protestantes f '" 
 
 "Arango is a man, and well fortified by the 
 teachings of the true church. He can take care of 
 himself," was the reply. 
 
 "So is Ninfa well grounded in the catechism, 
 and in all that pertains to a young girl's knowledge 
 of religion," the senora said thoughtfully. "She is 
 faithful too, and I can trust her. Therefore," with 
 a smile, " as my priest and my worldly friend can- 
 not agree upon this matter, I will take the only 
 sure way of solving the difficulty." As she spoke 
 she rose and, lifting a pack of cards from a little 
 table, handed it to the priest, begging him to select 
 from the cards the ace of diamonds and the ace of 
 spades. This he did, laying the rest aside. 
 
 Alejandra crossed the room and knelt before the 
 marble image of Mary, explaining to Justo as she 
 did so that he must shuffle the two cards from one 
 hand to the other and that after commending the 
 issue to the Holy Virgin she would choose one of the 
 cards, the ace of diamonds representing the nuns' 
 school, the other the school of the protestantes. 
 
 Perfect stillness filled the room while the lady 
 prayed before the image and the man nervously 
 fingered the scented cards. 
 
74 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 At first Justo had taken but a languid interest in 
 Ninfa's destination. Being of an analytical turn of 
 mind, it had pleased him, for the moment, to an- 
 alyze the details of the two opposing plans and to 
 present them to his patroness in their respective 
 lights and shades. During his visit to Saltillo, on 
 the way home from New York, he had become as 
 thoroughly acquainted with the management and 
 scope of the Protestant college as it was possible 
 for an outsider to become, having had, as he had 
 explained to the sefiora, exceptional advantages to 
 this end. He had been honest, therefore, in his 
 special recommendations regarding this as well as 
 the other school. 
 
 As the recollection of this school of the gringos 
 had suggested itself to his mind, he had been 
 startled, as was natural, and his surprise had grown 
 as he had detected the sefiora's growing disposition 
 in favor of the Madero Institute. As a priest he 
 could but discountenance this favor. As a personal 
 matter, he did not care one whit whether Ninfa 
 should go to the nuns or to the protestantes. It 
 seemed to him that this child was of undue impor- 
 tance in this small world to which he was again 
 being introduced after six years of banishment, the 
 world of the Sefiora Barreda and himself. 
 
 Yet while that lady kneeled before the image of 
 Mary, and the silence became so deep that he could 
 hear the watch ticking in his breast pocket, a new 
 
CASA BARREDA 75 
 
 thought occurred to the priest. By degrees a 
 bright spot began to glow upon each dark cheek 
 and his hands trembled. 
 
 Justo Prieto was ambitious. His admiration for 
 Dofia Alexandra's strength of will was great, and he 
 recognized in her firmness of character something 
 so like the best in himself, that he was assured of 
 the true kinship of their spirits, whatever the differ- 
 ence in their social positions. 
 
 The weak spot in the sefiora' s heart was un- 
 doubtedly her adoring fondness for Ninfa. The 
 presence of this foolish girl must always raise a 
 barrier between the sefiora and himself, serving to 
 recall the years when the Indian lad had been 
 nothing more than a servant's son. He would 
 never be able to rise to the position of eminence 
 which his ambition craved, and to which the sefi- 
 ora's partiality and influence could certainly aid 
 him, if this giddy girl was to be ever at hand to 
 remind her grandmother and himself of the days 
 of mud throwing and other youthful follies. Who 
 was to hinder the other lady from viewing him 
 through the younger's eyes? He had seen that 
 Ninfa had not been in the least impressed by his 
 years of travel abroad and his dignity of priest. 
 
 Now that there was a prospect of her absence 
 for a year from Guadalajara, to what pitch of favor 
 with the Sefiora Barreda might he not raise him- 
 self? Already he had been keen enough to see 
 
j6 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 that she might easily become dependent upon him 
 in many things. In fancy he almost saw himself 
 taking the place, not of the beloved Vicente of 
 course, but of valued confessor and friend. Visions 
 of preferment in the church, of the canon's robes, 
 and even of the bishop's mitre dazzled his imagina- 
 tion. Yet Ninfa would return, after months of 
 absence, perhaps before he had established the 
 coveted ascendency over the senora. Suppose she 
 should not return ; suppose that she should be 
 induced at the nuns' school to take the veil, and 
 perhaps be removed to Paris or to Spain ; or, 
 
 better still, suppose, among the protestantes 
 
 Horrible heresy ! He would not consider such an 
 idea for a second. Ninfa's soul would be forever 
 lost under the realization of such a supposition. 
 Surely the devil must have suggested such a possi- 
 bility to his mind. He sighed deeply, wearied with 
 the tangle of motives and desires possessing him. 
 Then deliberately, as he thought, Justo resigned 
 himself to the will of the "Queen of Heaven." His 
 own will was to prove stronger than his renun- 
 ciation. 
 
 A solemn voice broke the stillness of the room. 
 
 " I choose the card in your right hand, Justo 
 Prieto." 
 
 The ace of diamonds showed for a brief second in 
 the right hand of the padre. He caught his breath 
 quickly, slightly shivered, then glanced over his 
 
CASA BARREDA J*] 
 
 shoulder. The senora was still upon her knees, 
 with her brow touching the table's edge. Like a 
 flash the cards were exchanged, the ace of spades 
 now lying upturned in Justo's right hand, while the 
 left, clutching the ace of diamonds, fell limply at 
 his side. 
 
 " Which is it?" Alexandra asked with forced 
 calmness. 
 
 "Look," was the reply. 
 
 "The protestantes ! '" Alejandra cried, with a 
 queer mixture of pleasure and affright. " It is 
 Mary's will. So be it." 
 
 "Amen !" ejaculated the priest firmly, with up- 
 lifted eyes. 
 
 Yet when a few moments later on the stairs he 
 passed Ninfa with the maid, Maria, returning from 
 her embroidery lesson, his eyes were cast down 
 before her bright and searching glance, and he 
 merely lifted his hat to her in salutation. 
 
 " Poor Justo," Ninfa whispered in confidence to 
 her maid, " mama has been scolding him. Did you 
 notice the red spots on his cheeks? I saw him 
 look so one day long ago ! " 
 
VII 
 
 SAD as it is to relate, it must here be confessed 
 that the seventeen-year-old Ninfa Barreda 
 could barely read a page of any book without 
 making the most absurd blunders in the effort. 
 There had been little in her rearing to stimulate 
 a love for reading, as books were rare in the house, 
 and for entertaining stories she had but to turn to 
 her grandmother, who was well versed in the leg- 
 endary lore of Spain and Mexico. Her education 
 at the hacie?ida had been confined to a mastery of 
 the silabario, or syllable book of spelling, and oft- 
 repeated perusals of a small book on etiquette. In 
 the latter she was instructed not to rinse out her 
 mouth and spit the water upon the floor at meal 
 times, not to suck the bones upon her plate, and 
 to be always good-tempered and kind. From the 
 time when her small, brown fingers first learned to 
 hold a needle she had been taught to sew — not to 
 mend the rents in her own little frocks, nor to darn 
 her white socks, but to embroider letters on bits of 
 cloth, and later to work in silks, and to draw the 
 threads from linen for refilling with her own deli- 
 cate stitches. 
 
 When she had removed to Guadalajara with her 
 78 
 
CASA BARREDA 79 
 
 grandmother and old Pedro, the porter, the lady 
 had been so lonely in the great house that she had 
 not spared Ninfa to attend a nuns' day school, in 
 order to complete what is necessary to a Mexican 
 girl's education. It had been only at the girl's 
 urgent coaxing that consent had been given for 
 her to attend the sewing class in the large school 
 of San Diego. 
 
 Now the grandmother's eyes had been opened 
 to two important facts by the reading over Ninfa' s 
 shoulder of the little love note of Anselmo Car- 
 denas. For one thing, she must manage to divert 
 Ninfa's thoughts from Anselmo's suit, as yet un- 
 warranted, without too much discouraging the little 
 one. In the second place, something must be done 
 to fit her granddaughter to be, some day, if all 
 should go well, the daughter of the advocate, Car- 
 denas, who was a learned man himself. Anselmo, 
 senior, would think twice before marrying his son, 
 whom he had educated in Paris and in New York, 
 to a girl with the brains of a peasant, even though 
 the little " peasant" might bring as her dowry lands 
 worth thousands of silver dollars. 
 
 While Ninfa, therefore, should be at a finishing 
 school somewhere, she, the grandmother, would 
 have the leisure and opportunity, unvexed by the 
 child's altered looks, to arrange the marriage in the 
 only approved fashion with the relatives of the 
 lover. 
 
80 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 She knew that the advocate was a man of ad- 
 vanced and liberal opinions concerning religious 
 matters, and that his daughter-in-law would be 
 none the less acceptable to him for having been 
 " finished " at a Protestant college, if that college 
 were the best in the republic, as Justo had repre- 
 sented it to be. That Anselmo's mother was dead, 
 and the youth himself most likely of no religious 
 opinions at all, made future operations all the sim- 
 pler in prospect. 
 
 Therefore after the interview with Justo on Thurs- 
 day afternoon, there was left only to inform Ninfa 
 of the plan before making arrangements by post 
 for her reception at the Madero Institute in Saltillo. 
 Justo had told her that the new session of the school 
 had begun in February, and as it would continue 
 during the summer months, and even into Novem- 
 ber, there were no reasons why Ninfa should not 
 leave home and enter the school without delay. 
 
 Ninfa received the news of the change to be 
 made in her uneventful life as gracefully as her 
 grandmother could have wished. It was evident 
 that her heart was not inextricably entangled with 
 the affections of the writer of her first love letter, 
 for she clapped her hands softly as her grandmother 
 unfolded her plan, and even had the naughtiness 
 to think to herself at the end : 
 
 " So the senorito will wait beneath the balcony 
 many a night in vain for Ninfa ! " 
 
CASA BARREDA 8 I 
 
 Still she did not mean to be so cruel as to leave 
 the city without a word of warning for Anselmo of 
 the change to come over the course of their "true 
 love," and she immediately began to set her wits 
 at work to invent a way of communicating the 
 news to him. Her grandmother, however, saved 
 her the trouble of much thinking by telling her 
 that as she was well acquainted with Anselmo Car- 
 denas' father, she would, if she should think best, 
 inform the son through the father of Ninfa's re- 
 moval for a year from her own home to the clois- 
 ters of the institute in Saltillo. Meanwhile, there 
 must be no haunting of balconies, and Ninfa 
 must never again walk in the street alone, though 
 mountains of sand be sifted over the city and the 
 dinners of all Guadalajara be burned to a crisp. 
 
 While a long and elaborate letter from the 
 sefiora found its way to the director of the Madero 
 Institute, and a speedy and satisfactory reply as to 
 terms and accommodations traveled back to Gua- 
 dalajara, Ninfa spent a rather harassing time. It 
 was impossible to begin upon the new linen square 
 recently set in her embroidery frame, so frame and 
 all was folded up to be packed into the new trunk, 
 already filling with necessary articles of bed linen 
 and of clothing. 
 
 After the director's letter had been received and 
 an answer had been sent, signifying a certain day 
 in April as the time of Ninfa's departure for Sal- 
 
 F 
 
82 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 tillo, an afternoon came when there was absolutely 
 nothing to be done. The hired seamstress, work- 
 ing at her sewing machine in the corridor, would 
 not allow Ninfa to help her for fear of being de- 
 layed by the little fingers, fit only for the intricacies 
 of fancy w r ork. The parrot was unusually noisy 
 and made her head ache with his scolding shrieks. 
 The grandmother had gone out with Maria to visit 
 the shops in the colonnade surrounding the. plaza, 
 and had declined Ninfa's attendance because of the 
 oppressive heat of the afternoon. 
 
 Ninfa walked disconsolately through the empty 
 rooms, pausing at each of the drawing-room win- 
 dows, not for an instant, however, dreaming of 
 entering a balcony against the sefiora's commands. 
 Besides, who would pace the white glare of that 
 street at such an hour? Surely no one who car- 
 ried an ounce of brains under the peak of his som- 
 brero of dove-colored felt entwined with silver cord. 
 
 Sauntering into her own room, Ninfa suddenly 
 decided to clear out the little wardrobe, built into 
 the wall, where the dresses, now folded in the trunk, 
 had hung. On the floor of the wardrobe and 
 tucked away upon the shelves were many relics of 
 her childhood ; queer dolls of cloth stuffed with 
 cotton, little jars and plates and cups of fancy pot- 
 tery, and boxes filled with scraps of silks and 
 velvets and ribbons. With a strange mixture of 
 pain and pleasure, Ninfa arranged all these treas- 
 
CASA BARREDA 83 
 
 ures in compact shape and covered the boxes 
 securely that nothing might be lost during the long 
 months of absence from the dear white room. 
 
 As she gathered up the remnants of doll finery 
 strewn about the floor, Ninfa spied a white card 
 half hidden under one of the shelves. She took it 
 carelessly into her hands, and then, struck by the 
 beauty of a wreath of forget-me-nots painted on its 
 white surface, tried to recall where she had seen 
 such a card before. 
 
 " I will copy the little blue flowers on a hand- 
 kerchief for my mama's birthday," she exclaimed 
 aloud. "They are prettier than anything I have, 
 and I have just the shade of silk to do them with. 
 Of course, there will be time to embroider a great 
 deal at school, and there will be many holidays 
 when there will be no books to study. Ay de mi" 
 she continued, a little drearily, " I know I shall die 
 if I have to study many books ; and the English — 
 oh, it will be impossible to learn it ! " 
 
 She stood balancing the card upon her fingers 
 before slipping it into one of the pockets of her 
 trunk. 
 
 " I remember ! " she thought suddenly, clapping 
 her free hand to her forehead. "The gringa gave 
 me the card on the day Guadalupe left me behind, 
 when I went into the little dark room. I have 
 never once thought of it since, and I suppose it fell 
 from the waist of my dress when Maria hung it in 
 
84 the senora's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 the wardrobe. Dear me, there is a great deal 
 written on the card, but I think the sefiora asked 
 me to read it. I know she said something about 
 its being all true what was written here." 
 
 Within the forget-me-not wreath there were 
 printed the following words : 
 
 Esto es bueno y agradable delante de Dios Sal- 
 vador nuestro : 
 
 El cual quiere que todos los hombres sean salvos, 
 y que vengan al conocimiento de la verdad. 
 
 Porque hay un Dios, y asimismo un solo mediador 
 entre Dios y los hombres, el hombre Cristo Jesus ; 
 
 El cual se did a si mismo en precio del rescate por 
 todos (i Tim. 2 : 3-6). l 
 
 Slowly and painfully Ninfa spelled out the words. 
 The type was fine, and the fanciful quirks and 
 quirls of the letters puzzled her. It had not been 
 so difficult to read Anselmo's note, though that was 
 written and these words were printed. Still, after 
 some difficulty, she had read it all, and more than 
 once, but she could not understand it. Having 
 nothing better to do, she learned the whole by 
 heart, as memorizing was an easy task for her. By 
 and by certain of the words began to separate 
 
 1 " This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour ; 
 who willeth that all men should be saved, and come to the knowl- 
 edge of the truth. For there is one God, one mediator also be- 
 tween God and men, himself man, Christ Jesus, who gave himself 
 a ransom for all " (1 Tim. 2 : 3-6). 
 
CASA BARREDA 85 
 
 themselves from the whole and arrested her atten- 
 tion. 
 
 The sun sank slowly toward the mountains in 
 the west and little airs began to stir the awnings in 
 the corridor. The click of the sewing-machine 
 sounded steadily, and the parrot having sobered 
 down for a time, the pet canaries sang shrilly in 
 their cages hung over the seamstress' head. Ninfa 
 was now sitting at her ease upon a yellow goatskin 
 spread before a low white chair, with her arms flung 
 across the cushion of the chair. Though the siesta 
 hour was long past, she had not yet troubled her- 
 self to dress for the evening, and was cool and 
 comfortable in an airy costume of white muslin, 
 flowing from the shoulders to the feet, and having 
 wide, loose sleeves drawn up and tied at the elbows 
 with pink ribbons. Her stockingless feet were 
 thrust into little slippers of pink morocco, fancifully 
 embroidered. Her loosened hair fell in heavy 
 black waves far below her waist ; yet, easy as were 
 her attitude and attire, the black eyebrows that 
 matched the hair were puckered and the red lips 
 screwed up into a tight little knot. 
 
 The words said that according to God's will " all 
 men should be saved." And why not the women 
 and the girls? Did not she know that the mother 
 of God, the blessed Mary, was ready to help every- 
 body, and especially to save women ? What was 
 this doctrine that the gringa had given to her as 
 
86 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 the "truth"? She knew that the firotestantes did 
 not like Mary, the holy Virgin ; was it because she 
 was willing to save young girls and women as well 
 as los hombreSy the men? And was not Mary the 
 " Refuge of Sinners," the " Queen of the Angels, 
 of the Patriarchs, of the Prophets, of the Apostles, 
 of the Martyrs," and "the blessed Intercessor" be- 
 tween sinners and her divine Son? How was it 
 possible then that there could be but "one Media- 
 tor," which meant the same as " Intercessor." 
 There, it could not be the truth, and she would 
 forget the words. Yet she must keep the card for 
 the sake of the forget-me-nots, and perhaps some 
 day she would become very wise, and if she should 
 ever again see the senora gringa, she might have 
 the courage to tell her of her mistake. So the card 
 was dropped into its place in the trunk, and suc- 
 ceeding events banished for a time from Ninfa's 
 mind all recollection of the words it bore within 
 the wreath. 
 
 "Come, sefiorita," said the voice of Maria out- 
 side the door, "the senora says that I am to ac- 
 company you on a paseo 1 to Agua Azul. The 
 afternoon is fine and you have been in the house 
 all day." 
 
 As she spoke, the maid pushed aside the portiere 
 draping Ninfa's door, and the next quarter of an 
 hour was occupied in the arrayal of her young 
 
 1 Outing. 
 
CASA BARREDA 87 
 
 mistress for the street-car ride out of the city. 
 Maria sat on the floor and put on Ninfa's stockings 
 and bronze boots as if the girl were still an infant, 
 chattering all the while of the lovely French goods 
 to be seen in the shops. Then, with wonderful 
 quickness and skill, the black hair was brushed 
 and plaited in two long braids, tied at the ends 
 with purple ribbons. 
 
 When Maria had fastened the last hook of the 
 new muslin frock of black, strewn with purple 
 pansies, Ninfa's toilette was complete. No ; one 
 thing was lacking, and just then the grandmother 
 entered the room to supply the want. In one 
 hand she carried a large hat of white straw, cov- 
 ered with masses of nodding pink flowers and rib- 
 bon bows ; in the other a new rebozo of silk gauze 
 colored in delicate purple and lilac tints mixed 
 with white. 
 
 " Madre de Dios ! " Ninfa exclaimed in ecstatic 
 surprise. " Ah, mama, dearest, the hat cannot be 
 for me!" 
 
 " For whom else ? " the sefiora replied proudly. 
 "Do you like it, Ninfa?" 
 
 The elaborate head-dress quickly passed from 
 the grandmother's hands to Ninfa's and thence to 
 Ninfa's head, and for reply the girl made a low 
 courtesy to the sefiora and then to the smiling re- 
 flection of herself in the glass. 
 
 " Now try the rebosito, my dear," the grand- 
 
88 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 mother said, offering the pretty scarf in exchange 
 for the hat 
 
 In a trice the long, gauzy rebozo was wound 
 loosely about the smooth, black head and plump 
 shoulders, as only a Mexican girl can manipulate 
 such an article. One long, fringed end was tossed 
 back over the left shoulder, and the harmony of 
 the tints of scarf and dress seemed so perfect that 
 the sefiora turned away with the hat in her hand. 
 
 "The rebozo must always be worn with that 
 dress, Ninfa," she said with decision ; " the hat 
 will do well for the other muslin dress, but pink 
 roses and purple pansies are a horror. Now go 
 and have a pleasant ride with Maria. Perhaps it 
 will be the last time you will go to Agua Azul, 
 who knows?" 
 
 Maria was several years older than Ninfa, whom, 
 in fact, she considered quite a child, and was even 
 more trustworthy than Guadalupe, the cook, as a 
 chaperon for the young mistress. 
 
 The little clouds, floating above the plaza, were 
 already growing pink with the sunset as Ninfa and 
 her companion reached the street of San Francisco 
 and stepped into the open car bound for the baths 
 on the outskirts of the city. The trip to Agua 
 Azul was a favorite one for all classes, and the car 
 was quite filled with passengers from the plaza 
 when the two brave little mules, tandem style, 
 trotted off with their burden, The air was fresh 
 
CASA BARREDA 89 
 
 now, and Maria drew her black shawl more closely 
 about her shoulders, though her head was bare. 
 
 Crack ! went the long, keen whip, ; faster and 
 faster trotted the mules between long rows of 
 many-colored houses toward the green fields and 
 hills outside the city. At this hour the streets 
 were crowded with people and donkeys, noisy with 
 multitudinous cries, and odorous with the outdoor 
 cooking of savory messes for those who should 
 fancy an al fresco supper. 
 
 The great fountain, where man and beast were 
 watering, was left behind, the cobblestones ended 
 in deep, country dust, and the car sped onward be- 
 tween hedgerows and garden walls. It finally came 
 to a sudden stop beside brilliant flower beds skirting 
 the cool corridors of the bathing establishment. 
 
 It had been a reckless enough sort of ride, full of 
 hairbreadth escapes for little children playing on the 
 track and for the laughing, breathless passengers 
 reeling in the outer corners of the seats at startling 
 curves and sudden jerks. All left the car at the 
 terminus, though most returned to their seats when 
 the backs of the benches had been reversed for 
 the homeward trip. 
 
 Ninfa pleaded that they might remain over un- 
 til the next car should arrive and return, and 
 Maria was as ready to do so after receiving the 
 conductor's assurance that there would be several 
 more cars arriving. 
 
90 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 The car hastened away cityward, and soon the 
 jingle of bells and clatter of hoofs were out of 
 hearing. A damp, sweet odor of the country rose 
 from the marshes behind the baths ; the frogs were 
 already beginning their evening concert ; and the 
 mountains in the distant east took on their sunset 
 hues of purple and rose. For a while Ninfa and 
 Maria paced the walks winding about the flower 
 beds, thrusting their noses into the great bunches 
 of heliotropes and gathering from the ground at 
 their feet handfuls of rose petals, pink, crimson, 
 and white, shed from the rose trees. A gardener 
 gathered a nosegay of sweet violets and green 
 leaves and offered them to the bright-eyed girl who 
 seemed to love his flowers so well. 
 
 They had the little garden almost to themselves, 
 for with the exception of one or two women left 
 gossiping with the keeper of the baths, a black- 
 gowned priest quietly reading at the far end of the 
 colonnade, and the gardener, they were the only 
 occupants of the place. The car delayed in com- 
 ing, the wind blew with a touch of keenness now 
 that the sun had slipped behind the peak, and 
 Ninfa and her companion strolled inside of the 
 sheltered walk and sat down on one of the stone 
 seats near the priest. 
 
 As they did so, the reader lifted his eyes from 
 his book and seemed for the first time to notice 
 their presence in the garden, After a second's 
 
CASA BARREDA 9 I 
 
 hesitation, he slipped his book into the pocket of 
 his gown, rose to his feet, and yawning once or 
 twice as if bored or tired from his long reading, 
 walked slowly toward the bench where Ninfa sat 
 counting her violets. 
 
VIII 
 
 "TT is Don Justo," Maria whispered in. Ninfa' s 
 A ear, at the same time giving the girl a gentle 
 nudge with her elbow. 
 
 Ninfa looked up brightly into the face of the 
 priest, who seemed about to pass her without re- 
 cognition. 
 
 "Buenos tardes, 1 seiiorita" he said, catching her 
 look and pausing a little uncertainly as she returned 
 his greeting. Then he seemed to take a sudden 
 resolution and, turning to Maria with some au- 
 thority in his manner, requested her to leave the 
 senorita with him for a few moments, as he had 
 something of importance to say to her alone. 
 
 Maria hesitated and without rising from her seat 
 looked at Ninfa for instructions. 
 
 "Go and see if the car is coming, Maria," Ninfa 
 said laughingly. " You need not mind Don Justo, 
 I am sure, for mama would be quite willing for an 
 old friend, such as he is, to speak to me. Hurry, 
 Maria, for I am cold and in great haste to return 
 home." 
 
 Then this mendacious young person turned her 
 back upon Maria, reluctantly obeying her com- 
 
 1 Good-afternoon. 
 92 
 
Casa barreda 93 
 
 mand, and raised her large eyes, laughing no 
 longer, to the priest, who had bided his time. 
 
 " I am surprised at you, Don Justo," Ninfa said ; 
 "but if you have anything to say to me, now is the 
 time to say it. My grandmother will never allow 
 you to speak with me alone in her house." 
 
 The priest bit his lips, but kept down his pride 
 and answered calmly : 
 
 " For that reason I am here. I overheard the 
 Sefiora Barreda say to the servant in the plaza this 
 afternoon that she should send you out for a paseo 
 to Agua Azul, as you were growing pale from con- 
 finement in the house. I took the first car out 
 after that and have waited for an opportunity to 
 speak with you. Not to waste words : tell me, on 
 what day do you leave for Saltillo ? " 
 
 "On next Saturday," Ninfa replied promptly. 
 
 "And to-day is Wednesday," the priest mused. 
 "When I last saw your grandmother she had not 
 decided upon the day. Is all finally arranged 
 then?" 
 
 " Yes, all except the question as to whether I 
 shall wear my new tapalo^ or an American hat on 
 the train," Ninfa replied mischievously. 
 
 The priest frowned. 
 
 "As vain and frivolous as ever," he muttered 
 impatiently. "Ninfa Barreda," he said sternly, 
 " I am no longer the boy whom you delighted to 
 
 1 Black shawl, worn over head or shoulders. 
 
94 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 despise and trample under your feet ; neither are 
 you the child who would never study nor learn the 
 least useful thing from her elders. Listen ! Do 
 you know that I remember your father very well, 
 and even your beautiful mother ? Did you know 
 that it was I who heard your father's last words as 
 the horse trampled him to death in the corral?" 
 
 Ninfa grew very pale as he spoke and stamped 
 her foot on the stones. "Then why did you not 
 save my poor papa?" she cried passionately. "I 
 am sure the horrible horse would have preferred 
 killing you." 
 
 11 Perhaps," the priest replied drily. " Yet, as I 
 was only a child of six, and had been ordered not 
 to get down from the fence while my father branded 
 the new horses, I was safe. Your father looked up 
 at me from the ground just below where I sat half 
 dead with fright, and I can never forget his look. 
 1 May the blessed Virgin open heaven to my soul !' 
 was what he said, and no one heard but me." 
 
 Ninfa was trembling like a leaf. Now, with all 
 coquetry put to flight by the priest's cruel memo- 
 ries, she longed for escape from his presence. There 
 was as yet no sign of the returning car, and quite 
 out of hearing of the padre 's words, Maria stood 
 talking with the gardener. The old powerful in- 
 influence of Ninfa's former playmate was closing 
 about her. Little could she imagine that the 
 priest's next words were spoken as a salve to his 
 
CASA BARREDA 95 
 
 own conscience, offended by his act of interference 
 with the will of the Virgin Mary. 
 
 " Child," Justo began more quietly, satisfied that 
 he had exorcised for the time the spirit of mischiev- 
 ous vanity possessing Ninfa, "for the sake of the 
 last look from your father's eyes, and those last 
 words from his lips, which I shall carry with me to 
 my dying day, I am forcing myself to offer you a 
 word of counsel." 
 
 At this Ninfa lifted her drooping head and looked 
 full into the priest's colorless face with a sparkle of 
 warning in her eyes. 
 
 " You are going to the Saltillo school as a little 
 lamb astray in the dark woods, where there are 
 fierce wolves wandering in sheep's clothing ready 
 to snatch you from the path " 
 
 "Are there any paths in those woods ? " Ninfa 
 asked, with a twitching at the corners of her mouth. 
 
 " Certainly, there is one path. The one trodden 
 by your grandmother and your mother before you, 
 the only right path." 
 
 "Are you sure that I am treading it now?" 
 was her next question. 
 
 " If you are faithful to your religious vows, yes." 
 
 "And are all the other paths in the woods dan- 
 gerous ? " 
 
 "There are wolves wandering everywhere there, 
 offering to lead you to what they will call ' better ' 
 and 'easier' paths." 
 
g6 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 "I should like to tiy something new," Ninfa 
 said perversely. " I am tired of the old paths. 
 That is why I am glad to leave my grandmother 
 and go to the large school." 
 
 " But you will have to be careful, senorita. It 
 will be hard to be faithful in your prayers. And 
 you must never attend the Protestants' church serv- 
 ice." 
 
 " Does my mama say that I must obey you ? " 
 Ninfa asked. " She has not told me any ' must 
 nots.' But Padre Justo, you really need not ex- 
 pect me to listen to your warnings. How do I 
 know that you yourself are not a wolf in sheep's 
 clothing trying to mislead a little innocent lamb 
 like me ? Who told my grandmother to send me 
 to the institute if not the Mother Mary herself? 
 She would naturally be more careful of me than 
 you would, and we have been perfectly satisfied 
 since she took the matter into her hands. Even 
 Padre Manuel, my confessor, says that it must be 
 all right, since mama has offered fifty dollars to the 
 shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary to bespeak a safe 
 journey for me." 
 
 Justo had been seized with a qualm of discomfort 
 at Ninfa's first words, but had experienced instant 
 relief, as she had glided off from the subject of his 
 responsibility. 
 
 "You are right, senorita," he replied courteously. 
 "And the Lady Mother will hold you in her own 
 
CASA BARREDA 97 
 
 especial keeping. You will not remember my 
 words of warning counsel against me, I trust. For 
 the sake of our old friendship I ventured to speak. 
 And now here comes Maria to tell you that the 
 car is approaching. Adios, senorita, and may you 
 have a prosperous journey." 
 
 He took her hand for a moment, and as she 
 turned to leave the corridor, he offered his own to 
 Maria to be kissed, as became his priestly char- 
 acter. He had taken something from his pocket 
 before doing so, however, and before Maria fol- 
 lowed Ninfa to the car, what he had held had been 
 transferred to the servant's hand. The piece of 
 silver had bought the maid's silence concerning the 
 interview with Ninfa. Dusk was settling over the 
 houses as the car unburdened itself of its passengers 
 in the plaza, and already the lamp had been lighted 
 in the court when Ninfa and Maria reached home. 
 
 The priest had remained at the Baths until the 
 last car of all should return to the city, and having 
 eased his conscience of its slight ache, he found 
 himself ready to face the future that should succeed 
 the departure of Ninfa on the following Saturday. 
 
 Sefiora Barreda, always attentive to the conven- 
 tionalities of life, had been rejoiced to hear of the 
 very seasonable journey from the city of Mexico to 
 New York of a gentleman whom she had long 
 known and with whose family she had been inti- 
 
98 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 mate when a girl in the city. Business was calling 
 him to the "States," and it was arranged by tele- 
 gram that Ninfa should meet him at Celaya, whence 
 they should travel together to Saltillo in the north. 
 The grandmother herself chose to accompany Ninfa 
 to Celaya, and the long ride on the train was 
 undertaken with every preparation for comfort. 
 
 Ninfa had never traveled farther than the small 
 station for the falls of Juanacatlan, a short distance 
 from the city, and a whole day on the train, to be 
 followed by a few hours in a hotel, and then by 
 many more hours on the train again, offered un- 
 limited scope to her imagination of the romantic 
 and charming. 
 
 In the early morning of the day of her departure, 
 she stood with her grandmother on a balcony over- 
 looking the street, watching a peon below, who had 
 shouldered her trunk and was trotting off with it 
 toward the railway station. The horses were being 
 harnessed to the family carriage in the court, and 
 the stamping of their feet upon the stones resounded 
 through the house. 
 
 Both travelers were ready for the journey, the 
 sefiora in her usual black attire, wearing upon her 
 head a mantilla of fine crocheted wool, and Ninfa 
 in a sober suit of brown, with a beribboned hat of 
 brown straw set above the coil of black hair. 
 
 Suddenly an apparition of shining silver spurs 
 and buttons, of tan-colored buckskin, of searching, 
 
CASA BARREDA 99 
 
 honest eyes, flashed in the sunlight flooding the 
 street corner just beyond the balcony. The satiny 
 coat of a fine bay horse shone redly ; a manly figure 
 sat erect upon the Spanish saddle ; a gauntleted 
 hand was raised to lift the peaked sombrero from 
 a head covered with crisp brown curls ; and the 
 Senorito Anselmo Cardenas rode slowly past the 
 balcony where Ninfa stood with her grandmother. 
 
 If Ninfa's head had not drooped just then, in 
 unconscious acknowledgment of the greeting of the 
 young man's uplifted eyes, she would have seen 
 the senora's frank return of Anselmo' s salute by a 
 friendly bow and a slight wave of the hand. When 
 she raised her head once more, the cavalier was 
 already far up the street, and the carriage was 
 rumbling up to the foot of the steps in the court. 
 
 An hour later the long train was rushing toward 
 the east, leaving behind the domes and spires of 
 the numerous churches of Guadalajara, and passing 
 through the dry country which had long been pant- 
 ing and thirsting for the rainy season of June to 
 begin. 
 
 Before the light of the Sunday morning broke 
 over the hills, Ninfa had been delivered into the 
 fatherly care of Don Santiago del Valle, the gray- 
 haired compatriot of her grandmother, and the 
 Sefiora Barreda had entered the return train for 
 the west. 
 
PART II 
 
 AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 
 
 Howe'er it be, it seems to me, 
 
 Tis only noble to be good. 
 Kind hearts are more than coronets, 
 
 And simple Faith than Norman blood. 
 
 — ^Alfred Tennyson 
 
I 
 
 SALTILLO, the capital city of the Mexican 
 State of Coahuila, in the north of the repub- 
 lic, stands six thousand feet above the sea level. 
 Viewed from the summit of the hill crowned by the 
 ruins of the American fort, it seems little more than 
 a huddle of flat, dirt-covered roofs, broken here and 
 there by bunches of greenery representing orchards 
 or small public gardens. Toward the west one sees 
 the leafy growth of the Alameda, or public park, on 
 the edge of the city. In the eastern limit, lies the 
 Campo Santo, the holy ground, consecrated to the 
 burial of the dead. 
 
 The towers and yellow-washed walls of the cathe- 
 dral rise from near the heart of the city, facing the 
 Plaza de Independencia. About the plaza, the main 
 business portion of the city, is situated the munici- 
 pal palace, the Tomasichi Hotel, and the portal, a 
 lofty colonnade containing the chief drugstore and 
 other shops. 
 
 Long, narrow streets lead in every direction from 
 this central plaza, bordered by shops and residences 
 of one story, colored pink, blue, green, or yellow, 
 according to the taste of the owner. All windows 
 are guarded by iron or wooden bars, as they look 
 
 IOI 
 
102 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 directly upon sidewalk or court, and as a rule are 
 closed by unglazed, heavy wooden shutters opening 
 inside on hinges. 
 
 Yet this dry and dusty little city of nineteen 
 thousand inhabitants has a peculiar charm of its 
 own. The quaint by-streets, the long, blank or- 
 chard walls, the throngs of sandaled pedestrians 
 wearing shawls and blankets of vivid hues, the 
 bronzed faces, the overloaded little donkeys, bear- 
 ing faggots or bundles of corn, the warm sunlight 
 bathing the many-colored houses, and the brilliant 
 sky over all, make ever-changing scenes, truly Ori- 
 ental in character. It has been said by travelers 
 that the city of Saltillo resembles the towns of Pal- 
 estine as does no other in the New World. 
 
 In the hottest season of the year there is always 
 shade and coolness in the plazas. The Plaza de 
 Independencia is especially delightful, for under the 
 dense foliage of the trees, called fres?ws de Japon, or 
 Japanese ash, there reigns a twilight of green shade, 
 with the sunlight flickering here and there through 
 the tangle of leaves overhead. A huge fountain 
 plays in the center, where plump-cheeked cherubs 
 lave their dimpled limbs of bronze in the clear 
 water which the thirsty wayfarer may drink cold 
 from the hilltop springs. 
 
 All around the city rise the rocky cliffs and sum- 
 mits of the mountains, separated from the street- 
 endings by wide, dusty plains. These plains are 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO IO3 
 
 dotted with hamlets and small ranches, and the 
 level roads traversing them are always clouded 
 with the dust raised by the little scurrying hoofs of 
 sheep or goats, by droves of charcoal-laden don- 
 keys, or by the unwieldy cart of the country bring- 
 ing vegetables and fruit to the market. 
 
 High and dry stands the city on the grand Mex- 
 ican plateau, with an atmosphere as " exhilarating 
 as a draught of wine." Clouds rarely dim the 
 brightness of the sky by day, while at night the 
 moon in her seasons shines with a soft radiance 
 never realized north of the Rio Grande. 
 
 During the past three or four years something 
 of modern haste and energy has been introduced 
 into this old-world city, lying just two hundred 
 miles below the Texan frontier. Street cars are 
 taking the place of the lumbering coaches, swung 
 high on their clumsy springs, and electric lights are 
 taking the place of the oily lanterns suspended in 
 the middle of the street by wires stretched from 
 opposite houses. 
 
 In the days of this story, and they are not very 
 long past either, the "curfew" rang at ten o'clock 
 each night from the cathedral tower, warning all 
 loiterers to their homes and beds. A little later 
 the policeman in charge extinguished the lanterns 
 swung across the streets, and the city was left in 
 the darkness which was its safety. 
 
 One pleasant evening about the middle of April, 
 
104 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 the back door of a certain house near the suburbs 
 of the city stood wide open, admitting the last 
 gleams of the sun, setting behind the hill of the 
 French fort The door opened from a hallway 
 having a corresponding door at the other end lead- 
 ing directly upon the sidewalk. 
 
 A man wrapped in a coarse red blanket, and 
 wearing the white cotton trousers and leathern san- 
 dals of the common workman, crouched on a stool, 
 a little removed from the open doorway. His frow- 
 zled black head was tied up in a dingy handker- 
 chief, which was in turn surmounted by a straw hat. 
 The marks of long-continued suffering were plainly 
 drawn upon his sunburned face, which was thin 
 and covered by a sparse beard, and his hands were 
 swollen and discolored. 
 
 A woman sat on the doorstep near by nursing an 
 infant at the breast 
 
 "Teresa, is not this Friday? " the man asked sud- 
 denly of the mother of the babe. 
 
 "Yes, and she will be here very soon now. Were 
 you thinking it was only Thursday, Luis? " 
 
 " I wish she could come every eight days, instead 
 of every fifteen," the man continued. "It is hard 
 to give up one's only daughter for ten months in 
 the year, with only a few hours of her company 
 every fifteen days." 
 
 "Only a few hours ! " Teresa repeated reproach- 
 fully. " Why, Luis, it is two whole days and three 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO IO5 
 
 nights. You forget that the director makes an ex- 
 ception in Lucita's case, in allowing her to stay 
 from Friday afternoon till Monday morning. Most 
 of the pupils must remain at school a part of Sat- 
 urday for the sewing class, and all but our own 
 daughter return on Sunday afternoons." 
 
 "Well, you need her, I am sure," the husband 
 went on, wincing with pain as he attempted to 
 draw his blanket more closely across his breast. 
 " Since the rheumatism has clutched me so that I 
 cannot work, and with the baby on your hands, 
 I have been thinking of taking Lucita from the 
 school " 
 
 "Never !" the woman exclaimed, turning as she 
 spoke to lay the now sleeping baby on a sheepskin 
 spread on the earth floor just inside of the door. 
 She threw a cloth over the little brown face and 
 then rose to her feet and faced her husband, saying 
 steadily : 
 
 " Lucita is going to school as long as the director 
 and the other teachers will let her stay, which will 
 be until she finishes the course. Then she will 
 receive her ' papers,' and will be prepared to teach 
 any public school in the State. Think of our 
 daughter teaching a room full of ninas. Oh, it will 
 be a beautiful sight ! " 
 
 Luis nodded slowly in approbation of his wife's 
 ambitious plans. He was as proud of his daugh- 
 ter's attainments as the mother could be. 
 
106 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Teresa picked up the stump of a broom and 
 began vigorously brushing up the floor of the hall 
 while she continued talking. 
 
 "As to your rheumatism," she said, " Lucita 
 could not do your adobe making if she were at 
 home, and Pepito, little as he is, needs nothing that 
 I cannot do for him. When he is older and heavier 
 I may need a child to carry him about for me, but 
 by that time vacation will be here and Lucita will 
 help. She is always willing to work when she is 
 at home, and you know yourself that on the Satur- 
 days she spends here she does all the mending and 
 any other sewing there may be to be done. Her 
 class in costura, she calls it, and she is also learning 
 the beautiful stitches the teacher of costura shows 
 the class at school on Saturday mornings. Oyez/" 
 
 The stream of words was interrupted by the 
 sound of quick steps upon the stone outside of the 
 street door, and the next instant the latchstring was 
 pulled, the latch lifted, and a lady entered, followed 
 by a tall slender girl. 
 
 " I suppose we may come in Dona Teresa," the 
 lady said, speaking in Spanish, yet with a foreign 
 accent. 
 
 " Pase, senorita. Pasa } Lucita'' was the joyous 
 response. " You are both welcome. Lucita, bring 
 the chair from the room for the senorita. Take 
 care, child, do not step on Pepito." 
 
 Luis raised himself to his feet after more than 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 107 
 
 one painful effort, and his greeting to the new- 
 comers was as warm as his wife's. The daughter 
 of the house seemed particularly glad to be near 
 her father again, and after seating her companion 
 lost no time in seating herself at his feet. 
 
 " I have but a moment to stay," the senorita 
 said, "but as I am quite out of breath from climb- 
 ing your long hill I will sit down, just to hear how 
 you are, Don Luis. This fine breeze is not good 
 for your pains I fear." 
 
 "But you are better, papa, I can see in your 
 face," Lucita said. 
 
 Don Luis held up his knotted hand and then 
 slowly outstretched one stiffened leg, as if to con- 
 sult with his afflicted members before replying to 
 the inquiries respecting his health. 
 
 "The dolores are very bad still, senorita," he 
 said at length ; " but they will be better now that 
 my daughter has come home. That last liniment 
 you sent by her did me much good ; but Teresa 
 rubs too hard." 
 
 " His flesh is as tender as Pepito's," Teresa in- 
 terrupted compassionately. " But Lucita is better 
 at taking care of the sick than I am. She is learn- 
 ing many things at school with you and the rest, 
 besides the books." 
 
 " Yet it is your good hands that are supporting 
 the family while Don Luis is laid up," the senorita 
 reminded her. 
 
108 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Then, as the baby stirred on his sheepskin, and 
 feebly clutched at the cloth over his face, Lucita 
 reached over and gathered the little bundle to her 
 breast, covering the face of her baby brother with 
 soft kisses, and exclaiming between the caresses : 
 "Oh, how sweet ! What a darling ! Look, Sefiorita 
 Julia, are not his little hands and feet beautiful?" 
 
 The baby would have been beautiful, perhaps, 
 if he had not been so very thin and feeble. The 
 pinched features of the small face, and the white 
 cloth tied closely over his head and ears gave Pepito 
 the look of a dwindling, little old man. This like- 
 ness to a man was increased by the little one's dress. 
 A short sack of flimsy pink calico covered the 
 upper part of the body, while funny little pants 
 of white cotton, drawn about the waist by a string, 
 reached quite to the baby feet — a most handy, if 
 grotesque, fashion of dressing a four-months-old 
 baby. 
 
 The Senorita Julia duly admired the child, whose 
 dark eyes and lashes were really pretty, and then 
 turned to the scene beyond the open door. 
 
 " I always like the view from this door, Dona 
 Teresa," she said. " I wonder if you know how 
 beautiful it is ! Those ruined mud walls of the 
 fort up there, with the great gaps where the blue 
 sky shines through, are like a beautiful picture, or 
 rather a beautiful picture could be made from them. 
 Then this tall palm tree half-way down the hill 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO IO9 
 
 toward us, with a little gray donkey usually grazing 
 at its foot, and the stone wall at the back of your 
 corral there. I always think how pleasant it all looks 
 from this door when I get back to my room at the 
 institute. Lucita is glad to be here again, I know, 
 for it seems almost like being in the country when 
 the front door is closed." 
 
 " I sometimes think about what you have been 
 saying, sefiorita," the sick man said, with a smile 
 wrinkling his worn cheeks, " only I cannot put what 
 I think into such words as you use." 
 
 " My papa and I like best of all the colors in the 
 sky," Lucita said quietly, letting her eyes rest on 
 the soft pink glow spreading over the west. "The 
 blue is beautiful, but we have that all day long and 
 get accustomed to it, I suppose. When the sun 
 goes down it is all changed, and different every 
 day." 
 
 Even the plain features of Don Luis and his wife 
 received a touch of the glory of the sky as their 
 eyes followed Lucita' s. 
 
 "But it will be quite dark before I get home," 
 the sefiorita exclaimed, rising hastily to her feet. 
 " I had not meant to stop, but you looked so peace- 
 ful and happy in here that I thought I might stay 
 and enjoy my picture for a moment. All of the 
 homes I visit are not like yours, Don Luis, and I 
 think you and I know one of the reasons why it is 
 so. What did you say ? Sing ? Yes, indeed, we 
 
110 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 will. Come, Lucita, stand here in this lovely light 
 and let us sing our evening hymn." 
 
 Lucita rose, and still holding the little brother 
 clasped to her heart, joined in singing her father's 
 favorite hymn : 
 
 Sol de mi ser, mi Salvador, 
 Contigo vivo sin te7nor ; 
 No quieras esco7ider jamas 
 De mi la gloria de tufaz. 1 
 
 With a hearty handshake all around after the 
 hymn, and. a reminder of the coming Sunday's 
 services at the church, the sefiorita took her de- 
 parture. She was followed to the door by Teresa 
 and her daughter, who watched her until she turned 
 a corner and was out of sight. 
 
 "Now, mamacita" Lucita said, "take the baby, 
 and I will step to the shop at the corner and buy 
 two cents' worth of cheese for papa 's supper." 
 
 1 A translation of 
 
 Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear, 
 It is not night if thou be near ; 
 Oh, let no earth-born cloud arise 
 To hide thee from thy servant's eyes. 
 
II 
 
 LUCITA found enough to do in the poor place 
 which she loved to call home to keep her 
 busy during most of the next day. The sun had 
 not yet risen when she slipped quietly out of the 
 street door with a large water-jar of red earthen- 
 ware in her hands. More than one trip was made 
 between the house and the nearest fountain, and 
 the broken sidewalk and half-way across the street 
 in front of the house had been sprinkled before 
 the summits of the western hills received their first 
 touch of gold from the east. 
 
 In watering the street, Lucita had received morn- 
 ing greetings from her neighbors engaged in a 
 similar office before their own doors. This water- 
 ing, be it understood, was not a stingy sprinkling 
 here and there, just enough to curl up little lumps 
 of dust and then dry away under the first sunbeams, 
 for the large jars of water were emptied with a 
 wide-sweeping movement again and again until 
 every inch of space, already swept clean by early 
 brooms, was thoroughly wetted. 
 
 This early morning wetting of the streets, re- 
 quired by law of every house-owner or renter in 
 most Mexican towns, makes the early hours of the 
 
 in 
 
II 2 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 day peculiarly invigorating during the hot and 
 dusty season of the year. Some of the women 
 going to and from the fountain with jars upon their 
 bare shoulders scarcely noticed Lucita, though only 
 one or two absolutely refused to return her "Buenos 
 dios" The general sentiment of the neighborhood 
 concerning Don Luis Rubio and his family was 
 that they were quiet and good-natured neighbors, 
 even though they were protestantes, and this tall 
 daughter of theirs, with the dignified carriage and 
 the fair face, was not to be ignored except by the 
 most fanatical. 
 
 When the street was done to Lucita's satisfac- 
 tion, she swept and watered the hall inside the 
 house, throwing open the doors at each end to 
 admit the sweet air into the windowless apartment. 
 A stir and a series of fretful cries from the baby 
 inside the one room of the house arrested Lucita 
 before she could transfer her labors to the corral 
 behind the house. 
 
 Catching up her rebozo, which she had laid aside 
 during the watering of the hallway, she wound it 
 around her shoulders, and groping her way in the 
 darkness to the mat where Pepito lay, lifted him 
 tenderly in her strong arms. Her mother stirred 
 and half arose as she missed the baby from her 
 side ; then, slipping from her hard bed, she fol- 
 lowed Lucita. The girl had already tucked the 
 little brother into a loop of her scarf, and the wee 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I I 3 
 
 black head had nestled against her shoulder in 
 perfect content. 
 
 "He needs the fresh air, mamacita" Lucita said, 
 as her mother stood at her side in the outer door- 
 way, stretching her arms above her head and yawn- 
 ing over and over again. "And so do we all," she 
 went on. "We learned last week in our physiology 
 that it is almost a crime against ourselves to sleep 
 in close, shut-up rooms like ours in there, mama." 
 
 "But your papa could not have the night air 
 with his rheumatism," the mother returned; "and 
 besides, it is our custom to sleep thus, Lucita." 
 
 "We are not allowed to do so at school," Lucita 
 replied. "The sefiorita makes us leave the shutters 
 open in the upper half of the doors so that fresh 
 air can come in all night, and there are only the 
 bars between us and the corridor." 
 
 "That is all very well for the school," Teresa 
 retorted a little sharply ; " but you cannot expect to 
 have everything to suit you in your poor father's 
 house. You know that there are no bars to the 
 window in the room, and as it opens on the street, 
 it would be impossible to leave the shutters open 
 while we sleep, though the window is so small and 
 high above the floor. The sereno 1 would come 
 along and wake us all up to close the shutters if he 
 should ever find them open." 
 
 "We might have a hole cut in one of the shut- 
 
 1 Policeman. 
 H 
 
114 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 ters," Lucita argued pleasantly, cuddling the baby 
 against her neck as she spoke. "A hole so small 
 that even my hermanito could not enter would do 
 no harm and would make all of us sleep better." 
 
 "Did you not sleep last night?" Teresa asked 
 quickly, looking suddenly into her daughter's freshly 
 colored face. "You look well, but I suppose that 
 is because of the good food and bed they give you 
 at the school." 
 
 Stanch as was Teresa's faith in the Madero In- 
 stitute, there were moments when a keen jealousy 
 would prick her motherly heart at the thought that 
 the home life of Lucita would more and more, as 
 time advanced, present a strong contrast to the 
 comfort and orderliness of the school. 
 
 "Mama, do not speak so; you know that I love 
 this house and my papa and the baby and you 
 better than anything the school can give me." 
 Lucita spoke earnestly and laid her hand on her 
 mother's shoulder as she "did so. She was already 
 a head taller than Teresa, though her slim figure 
 and youthful face made it clear that she could not 
 yet have reached more than eighteen years of age. 
 "It is you who are pale and unrested, mamacita" 
 she went on. "The little man's crying could not 
 keep me awake as it did you, and I heard even 
 papa s groans, as in a dream. I am going to take 
 care of Pepito all day, and he is always good with 
 me, you know." 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 I 5 
 
 The mother smiled gratefully and went out into 
 the corral to pour water over her face and hands 
 from the jar left on the ground by Lucita. 
 
 While Teresa, wrapped in her faded blue rebozo, 
 went out then to buy a few cents' worth of charcoal 
 from the carbonero at the corner, Lucita sat down 
 upon the doorstep and proceeded to take off the 
 baby's clothes, which were the same as those worn 
 on the day before. 
 
 "Poor little brother!" she crooned. "I wish 
 thou hadst more little clothes to wear. Never 
 mind ; sister will make thee a new pair of panties 
 to-day out of her old skirt, and to-morrow thou 
 shalt go to church and hear the pretty music." 
 
 She poured some of the water from the jar into 
 a small earthen dish and with a bit of cloth bathed 
 Pepito's puny little body from head to foot. The 
 baby stretched its limbs on Lucita's lap in great 
 comfort under the cooling ministrations of the 
 wash-cloth, and it took several washings to satisfy 
 Lucita that her brother was quite clean. She 
 longed for the generous tub, painted white inside, 
 in which the little missionary baby at the school 
 was bathed every morning and night. What fresh, 
 white, cool skin was the result of those frequent 
 baths ! And then the soft towels and the fragrant 
 soap and powder, and the charming white robes to 
 follow the baths of that fortunate infant ! 
 
 " But my herrnanito is cooler in his jacket and 
 
n6 
 
 panties than the little gringo is in all his fine long 
 clothes," she mused. " If I only had a bit of nice 
 soap, Pepito would be as sweet as he is clean 
 now." 
 
 Then she laid the child on the sheepskin, cover- 
 ing him with her rebozo, while she searched in tne 
 other room for another pair of small trousers. She 
 found them at last, ragged but clean, and after 
 dressing the baby proceeded to wash the other 
 pair and hang them out to dry on a thorn bush in 
 the corral. 
 
 Pepito was induced to go to sleep again after his 
 bath, in time for his sister to help her father out of 
 bed and to his stool in the warm sunshine, now 
 flooding the corral. 
 
 Teresa returned with the charcoal, and a fire was 
 soon glowing in the earthen brazier and water boil- 
 ing for the coffee. Teresa had brought also a little 
 paper of coffee, a loaf of coarse bread, and a cone 
 of brown sugar with her from the store, and Lucita 
 helped about making the coffee. 
 
 The ground grains were thrown into the boiling 
 water, together with a generous supply of the brown 
 sugar, and after a good deal of stirring of the black 
 liquid so that the hard sugar might dissolve, break- 
 fast was ready. 
 
 Three brown mugs were set on a cloth spread 
 over a small bench outside the door, the loaf was 
 broken into three parts, and the coffee was poured 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I I 7 
 
 smoking into the cups. Teresa and Lucita sat on 
 the dry ground at the feet of Don Luis. Before a 
 mouthful was eaten, the daughter asked for the 
 blessing of the Lord on the simple meal and on 
 the day before them. She had learned to do this 
 at the school, and her words were in part those the 
 Sefiorita Julia often used on like occasions. 
 
 " ' We pray thee, O Father, to bless this food to 
 the nourishment of our bodies ; for it is from thy 
 hand and to thy service is due the strength we 
 shall receive from it.' And bless each one of us, 
 dear Lord, papa, mama, little brother and me, and 
 make us good and happy all day." 
 
 Both Luis and his wife joined in a hearty 
 "Amen," at the close, and then the coffee and 
 bread were eaten. 
 
 No finer, sweeter air ever blew through kings' 
 palaces than stirred the dusty leaves in the corral 
 of this poor little home, and no bluer sky ever 
 smiled above banquet hall more fitted for the en- 
 joyment of man's daily bread. 
 
 After the meal was eaten, Don Luis was left to 
 watch the still sleeping baby, while wife and 
 daughter went about their further household du- 
 ties. He sat motionless in the sunshine for hours, 
 reading from the large-print Testament opened 
 upon his knees. 
 
 The light was, after a while, admitted to the dark 
 bedroom, and a thorough cleaning accomplished 
 
Il8 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 by Lucita, while Teresa made the tortillas 1 to be 
 sold before noon to the market women. The 
 promised " panties" were made also, and there 
 had been enough left of the whole portions of the 
 old white skirt with which to fashion a short slip for 
 Pepito, to complete his costume for the morrow. 
 The midday tortillas and onion stew were eaten, 
 between the jobs of work, and in the afternoon 
 Teresa found that Lucita's attention to the baby 
 gave her time to wash and iron a skirt for herself 
 and a shirt for Don Luis. 
 
 The full and happy day ended in another rosy 
 sunset, and again Lucita found no trouble in sleep- 
 ing soundly in the closed room on her mat in one 
 corner. Her best rebozo of dark blue and white 
 cotton and the freshly ironed skirt and waist of 
 blue lawn, were ready for the next day, having 
 been laid aside during Saturday while so much 
 rough work was to be done. An old skirt and 
 scarf we're used at home on these fortnightly occa- 
 sions of housecleaning and baby tending. 
 
 Ten o'clock of the next day found Lucita and her 
 mother with Pepito in the church, where Sunday- 
 school lessons were going on briskly. The baby 
 was bright-eyed and happy, nestling within his 
 mother's rebozo, and very wide awake for a time to 
 all that was going on around him. He was so 
 clean and shining of face, his long black hair was 
 
 1 Thin cakes made from crushed corn. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO II9 
 
 parted so evenly and brushed so smoothly, his eyes 
 were so bright, and his new clothes so white and 
 cunning, that the schoolgirls made much of him 
 when the lesson was over. All the pet names pos- 
 sible were showered upon the unconscious "ckulito" 
 " little man," and " small scrap of heaven." 
 
 Before the sermon began, one of the older girls 
 found an opportunity for giving Lucita a bit of 
 news. She was a handsome girl with flashing eyes 
 and the reddest of lips, and her name was Arcadia. 
 
 "You would better go back to school with us, 
 after church," she said to Lucita in an undertone 
 as she sat at her side. " The empty bed in our 
 dormitory is to be prepared for the new girl who 
 will arrive this afternoon. All the rest of us have 
 gathered up our things from the bed and put them 
 away the best we could, but we are going to be 
 dreadfully crowded. Your books and your sewing 
 are still on the bed, if the matron has not already 
 moved them." 
 
 "The Sefiorita Berta will take care of my books, 
 if she has had to move them," Lucita said with 
 confidence. "And I cannot go back to school this 
 afternoon, because I have promised to read to papa. 
 I thought the new scholar was to have one of the 
 little rooms to herself, Arcadia ; and why does she 
 come to upset things on Sunday? " 
 
 "Who knows?" was Arcadia's reply, with a 
 shrug of the shoulders. "Our room is the best 
 
120 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 and dryest, you know, and the nearest to the Sen- 
 orita Julia's. Perhaps that is the reason. I'll see 
 to your things, Lucita," she whispered, as the pas- 
 tor, who was also director of the mission school 
 rose from his seat in the pulpit. 
 
 After a short sermon and song service, there was 
 a cordial hand-shaking at the door as the congrega- 
 tion dispersed. Pepito, now softly sleeping, a warm 
 little bunch in his shawl sling, was noticed and 
 duly admired by the mother of the other baby 
 who had been left at home at the mission school. 
 Pepito's mother and sister, however, were in a 
 hurry to get home where Luis had been left alone, 
 so they did not wait to see the marshaling of the 
 long line of schoolgirls, giggling, whispering, and 
 nudging each other in the aisles, as is the way of 
 schoolgirls sometimes in the house of God, whether 
 in Protestant or Roman Catholic countries. 
 
 A blaze of sunlight greeted Teresa and her 
 daughter as they left the vestibule in the church 
 tower, and the way home was long and steep. At 
 the top of the long street, however, they found rest 
 and coolness within the thick adobe walls of their 
 home, and Don Luis in his clean shirt and head- 
 kerchief waiting to welcome them. 
 
 The rest day ended cheerfully, and even music- 
 ally, in the sunset-lighted hallway, for Lucita led 
 her father and mother in many a sacred song, dear 
 to these three hearts because of the intelligible 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 121 
 
 Spanish phrasing, and because of the meaning 
 given to the words by long acquaintance with them, 
 through dark days as well as bright. 
 
 Dona Teresa and her husband had not been 
 among the first in the city to embrace the new 
 "doctrine" of the gringos, yet for several years 
 they had been members of the church in the San 
 Francisco plaza. The cheap prints of the Virgin 
 and the saints had disappeared from the house 
 walls, and Don Luis might have been often seen 
 spelling out the verses from his New Testament, 
 and reading them aloud to the wife as she knelt 
 before her kneading-stones in the corral. 
 
 Naturally, Lucita had followed in her parents' 
 steps, and with opportunities which had not been 
 theirs, the girl gave promise of becoming a useful 
 Christian woman of more than common intelligence. 
 
 Pepito, having as yet no further responsibility 
 than that of imbibing his proper nourishment in 
 the shape of milk, air, and loving tones and smiles, 
 had not chosen his religious creed. He was only a 
 plain, brown, long-haired little Mexican baby, like 
 thousands of others around him. 
 
Ill 
 
 WHEN Lucita entered the corridor of the in- 
 stitute at half-past eight the next morning, 
 her thoughts were still busied with the family she 
 had just left behind ; with her father, who had been 
 diverted from his pain by her reading and other 
 daughterly attentions, with her mother, whose tired 
 arms and hands she had relieved in more ways than 
 in taking charge of the baby, and with Pepito him- 
 self, who had actually cried for her when she had 
 left him in the mother's arms just twenty minutes 
 before. These thoughts were not long allowed 
 indulgence, for her friend Arcadia and one of the 
 younger girls, named Luz, came running to welcome 
 her, with the news of the latest arrival tumbling 
 helter-skelter from their tongues. 
 
 " Do not go into the dormitory yet, Lucita," 
 Arcadia counseled her. " The senorita will not let 
 us in, because the new pupil does nothing but cry, 
 cry, cry. She cried all night, Luz says " 
 
 "Yes, she did," the little girl chimed in eagerly. 
 " My bed is next to hers and I heard her. Once I 
 asked her what was the matter, and she said the 
 bed was so hard she could not go to sleep. What 
 a goose to cry about that ! " 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 23 
 
 " It was not the bed, Luz, as I have told you 
 over and over again," Arcadia answered. " She is 
 homesick, the Senorita Berta says, and not used to 
 having so many noisy girls around her. She looks 
 really ill, and her eyes are all swollen and red. 
 Where are you going, Lucita?" she asked. The 
 three girls had been slowly walking, arm-in-arm, 
 along the corridor upon which the dormitories 
 opened. 
 
 "To our room," Lucita replied. "I must change 
 my dress right away, because the first bell will ring 
 in a few minutes. Besides, my books are all in 
 there. Who is with the new girl, Arcadia? " 
 
 " Nobody but the matron. She went in after 
 she had sent Macedonio off to market, and she 
 told the girls to be quiet on this side of the court, 
 because Ninfa has a headache. That is her name, 
 Ninfa Barreda." 
 
 Notwithstanding Arcadia's advice, Lucita quietly 
 pushed open the door of a long room before which 
 they had paused as Arcadia spoke the last words. 
 In obedience to the matron's wishes the other girls 
 remained outside, much as they would have liked 
 to enter and see what Lucita would do- when the 
 senorita should order her out again. But the se- 
 norita did nothing of the kind. Lucita walked 
 noiselessly toward her own bed at the farther end 
 of the room, and with only a whispered "Buenos 
 dios/" to the lady as she passed her. 
 
124 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 The new scholar, Ninfa, lay asleep at last in an- 
 other little bed, exactly like the seven others ranged 
 along the wall of the dormitory. This bed was 
 about half-way down the room and therefore at 
 some distance from Lucita's. The matron of the 
 school sat on a chair at Ninfa's side, looking with 
 pity down upon the pale and swollen face upon the 
 hard, round pillow. 
 
 While Lucita was exchanging her lawn dress for 
 one of plain brown calico, the first school bell 
 clanged through the court, and for a moment or 
 two changed the usual quiet of the hour into a 
 brazen uproar. This was followed by a skurrying 
 of little high-heeled shoes from all sides into dor- 
 mitories for books and slates, to the fountain's side 
 for last sips of water, and in and out of the school- 
 room doors. Quiet reigned again before Lucita 
 was quite ready to leave the dormitory, and as she 
 gathered up her last book and was tiptoeing toward 
 another door nearer her corner, a burst of singing 
 sounded from across the court. 
 
 " Lucita, wait a minute, my dear," the Senorita 
 Berta said in an undertone. " I want to speak to 
 you." 
 
 The lady had approached and now laid her hand 
 on the girl's arm to arrest her as she was hurrying 
 out. 
 
 " If you will stay here in the dormitory with this 
 poor child, Lucita, I will ask the teachers to excuse 
 
Americanos of saltillo 12$ 
 
 you from recitations for an hour or two,'' she said. 
 " Poor girl, she is really ill this morning, and I 
 should be sorry for her to wake suddenly and find 
 herself alone in here, where all is so different from 
 what she has been accustomed to." 
 
 " Has she been used to anything better than 
 this?" Lucita asked wonderingly, glancing over 
 her shoulder down the neatly arranged room with 
 its clean little beds, its chair for each bed, and its 
 candlestand at each end of the room. 
 
 "Well, yes," was the reply, while the lady looked 
 affectionately into Lucita's grave eyes. "You think 
 this room is good enough for anybody, do you not? 
 and so do I. But I may tell you, Lucita, for you 
 are kind and thoughtful, that this girl has probably 
 never before been in so poor a place, and though 
 she is genuinely homesick for her grandmother, she 
 really suffers in part because she is not so comfort- 
 able here as she would be at home. I think you 
 can help me about her if you will try, because you 
 will know better than I what to say to her when 
 she wakes. I will go now and speak to the Se- 
 fiorita Dora and ask her permission for you to study 
 here. You may take your books to Ninfa's bed if 
 you like. At recess, if she is awake, the girls may 
 of course come in and out as usual. I only wanted 
 quiet this morning so that she might sleep a little. 
 It will do her good to mix with the girls as soon as 
 possible after she is rested." 
 
126 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Somewhat loth to accept the charge given her, 
 Lucita watched the senorita cross the sunny court 
 to the opposite side of the corridor and disappear 
 within the schoolroom door. Then she turned 
 away and walked slowly with her books still in her 
 arms toward the chair the matron had left, at 
 Ninfa's bedside. She laid all but one of her books 
 behind her, on Luz Coiro's bed, and then tried to 
 interest herself in the lesson for the day from the 
 " Historia Patria" in her hand. 
 
 Lucita was a little indignant at this commotion 
 caused by the new arrival. She was a girl who 
 liked doing things by rule and as they were done 
 every day. As she sat now, holding the fat little 
 history before her eyes, she knew exactly what was 
 being done, minute by minute, in the different 
 schoolrooms over the way. She herself should 
 have been sitting on one of the high benches at 
 the far end of the large room whose doors opened 
 on the corridor, preparing her lesson for a recita- 
 tion in one of the back rooms looking out on the 
 corral, with its high adobe walls. 
 
 All around the room little girls were seated, 
 elbow to elbow, and perhaps studying, until their 
 turn should come to form a half-moon about the 
 Senorita Dora, whose trim little figure occupied the 
 teacher's chair at the other end of the room. In 
 one of the back rooms the Senorita Julia would go 
 on, hour after hour, during the morning session, 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 127 
 
 hearing the classes of older girls as they would go 
 to her at the striking of the Sefiorita Dora's bell. 
 Here the great wooden shutters of the corral win- 
 dows would be thrown wide open to let the warm 
 outer air enter and take the chill from the damp 
 and shady room. The blackboard would fill with 
 figures, the globes would spin round and round, 
 and the chalk dust settle whitely over heads of 
 glossy black hair and varnished desk lids. In an- 
 other back room the Mexican teacher would in- 
 struct his classes with all the fervor of purest 
 Spanish and in his good-natured way allow the 
 girls to chat amicably among themselves. 
 
 The blue sky, striped by the black window bars, 
 would grow pale in the light of the mounting sun, 
 until the strokes of the noon hour should crash 
 from the cathedral towers and the court again fill 
 with laughing girls and their chatter. 
 
 In the afternoon the sefioritas would exchange 
 places, Julia remaining with the younger children, 
 and those older ones who were preparing lessons, 
 while Dora would occupy a third back room, to 
 teach the beauties of the English language. 
 
 Lucita let her book fall into her lap. Would she 
 be expected to spend the whole day sitting beside 
 this hysterical girl ? Was she to miss the delight- 
 ful map-drawing of Monday mornings, and her 
 favorite English study in the afternoon ? She gave 
 a searching glance at the sleeping face and then 
 
I2& THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 softly laid her hand upon the cover tightly tucked 
 about Ninfa's shoulders. There was no response 
 to the touch, for though Ninfa had started and 
 moaned slightly as the loud-voiced bell had sounded 
 for prayers, Lucita's touch did not disturb her at 
 all. 
 
 Now and then a sobbing catch in her breathing 
 reminded Lucita of her little brother's disturbed 
 sleep after a severe attack of some infantile ail- 
 ment. 
 
 An hour passed. A recess of five minutes filled 
 the corridor on the other side with the murmur of 
 voices, then quiet reigned as before. 
 
 Lucita, by degrees, almost forgot her surround- 
 ings in studying the day's English lesson. It 
 seemed to her very wonderful that, by pronouncing 
 the strange words, " Education is a great benefit to 
 the human race," she should be only stating so 
 simple a truth as that "La education es de gran 
 prov echo para la raza humana." 
 
 How fascinating it was to be learning to speak 
 sentences of real sense and meaning in the English 
 language ! Even the talk of the sefioritas among 
 themselves, which months ago had seemed like silly 
 jargon in her ears, was now beginning to be here 
 and there intelligible, because of the new words 
 she was learning each day in the English class. 
 
 While she was still practising the pronunciation 
 of the hard word, " education," which was spelled 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 120, 
 
 so nearly like " education" yet pronounced so dif- 
 ferently, a deep sigh rose from the pillow at her 
 side, and Ninfa opened her eyes. For a second or 
 two each girl looked at the other without speech. 
 Then Ninfa buried her face in the bedclothes with 
 a woful cry. Lucita tossed her English grammar 
 on the bed and threw her arms about the sobbing 
 girl 
 
 " What is it, pobrecita f l Does your head ache? 
 Can I do anything for you, Ninfa Barreda?" she 
 asked, at intervals. " Have you had any break- 
 fast?" she added, suddenly guessing rightly, that 
 the sefiorita had been unable to induce Ninfa to 
 eat a mouthful. 
 
 " I want nothing," Ninfa answered chokingly, 
 though she turned her face toward Lucita now, 
 and pushed her tumbled hair from her face with a 
 weary gesture. 
 
 " Promise me not to cry while I am gone, and I 
 will go and get you a cup of coffee," Lucita said, 
 patting her on the shoulder. "The Sefiorita Berta 
 will let me have it for you, nice and hot, and then 
 you will feel better. Promise me," she added with 
 playful firmness. " I shall not leave you unless 
 you do." 
 
 "But I do not wish coffee, nor anything else," 
 Ninfa persisted, the corners of her mouth curving 
 into a smile however. 
 
 1 Poor little thing. 
 
I3O THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 "Promise," Lucita insisted quietly. 
 
 Ninfa hereupon rebelled at this strange girl's 
 obstinacy, as she considered it, and withdrew her- 
 self petulantly to the outer edge of the bed where 
 she lay watching her companion with dry eyes 
 a little dulled from want of sleep and many tears. 
 
 Lucita opened her grammar and began to study 
 as if nothing had happened. She was not accus- 
 tomed to being withstood in this manner, for in the 
 school her word was as law among all the younger 
 girls, who were seldom slow to learn that Lucita's 
 commands always worked out their own pleasure 
 and success far better than plans for themselves 
 could do. This girl must surely be much younger 
 than herself, for she looked very small as she lay 
 curled up under the bedclothes, yet her wide eyes 
 were already looking defiance into her face. 
 
 Something in the intensity of Ninfa' s regard drew 
 Lucita's attention from her book. She turned again 
 to Ninfa, exclaiming cheerfully : 
 
 "Come dear, why do you not get up? I think 
 you will feel better if you do. Of course I cannot 
 force you to drink coffee, if you do not wish it, but 
 I can help you to dress yourself." 
 
 " I cannot dress without Maria," Ninfa pouted. 
 " I wanted mama to send her with me, but she said 
 I must learn to take care of myself. Oh dear ! I 
 wish I was at home. Every thing is poor and mean 
 here and I do not like it." 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 3 I 
 
 Lucita's uplifted head, and the sudden grave 
 look that came into her face arrested Ninfa as she 
 was about to enter upon another sobbing fit. 
 
 44 Was I impolite?" she asked softly, sitting up 
 in bed the better to peer into Lucita's face, which 
 in despair was bent over her book again. " I did 
 not mean to be impolite, but it is so different 
 here." 
 
 "It is cool and clean, I am sure," Lucita said 
 loyally; "and schoolgirls do not need fine things in 
 their rooms if they come to school to study, the 
 Sefiorita Julia says." 
 
 " But the comida" l Ninfa continued discontent- 
 edly. " You were not here last night, were you ? 
 I know I did not see you in here at bedtime. The 
 supper was nothing in the world but tortillas 1 and 
 frijoles? with coffee, and at the end one little ba- 
 nana apiece. I shall starve, I know. But I sup- 
 pose you are accustomed to it. Where were you 
 last night?" 
 
 "At my home," Lucita replied briefly. 
 
 "Oh! you have a home in Saltillo then, and can 
 get away from school whenever you like. But isn't 
 it very hard to leave your home and come back here 
 again?" Ninfa asked confidentially. 
 
 " It is hard to leave my family, but I am glad to 
 be again in the institute," was the reply. "But, 
 Ninfa, if you are not going to get up and dress, 
 
 1 Food. 2 Corn cakes. 3 Beans. 
 
132- THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 you must not keep talking to me, because I must 
 study my lessons. Lie down and go to sleep 
 again." 
 
 ''What is your name, girl?" Ninfa asked ab- 
 ruptly, paying no heed to Lucita's words. 
 
 "Luz Rubio; but every one calls me Lucita." 
 
 " I shall call you Luz, not Lucita," Ninfa an- 
 nounced. 
 
 "Why?" Lucita asked, with a wondering look at 
 this impetuous little creature. 
 
 " Because Luz is the prettiest name in the world 
 for a girl," Ninfa replied. 
 
 " I like Ninfa better," Lucita said, closing her 
 book with a sigh. She saw that there would be 
 no more studying for her until her post should be 
 relieved. 
 
 "I had a little sister named Luz," Ninfa went on. 
 "She died when she was eighteen months old. 
 We were twins, and she would be my best friend if 
 she had lived. I have so many things to tell a 
 sister, if I had one, but there is nobody at all now 
 but mama and the servants, and — Justo," she 
 added with a smile and a blush. 
 
 Perhaps in her own mind another name took the 
 place of the priest's. But then, she had no sister 
 to whom she might tell "the truth, the whole truth, 
 and nothing but the truth," and it would not have 
 done to be hinting at secrets so soon to this 
 strange girl who, in Ninfa's opinion, was inclined 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 33 
 
 to be severe, and who had possibly never had a 
 lover. 
 
 "Was your little sister like you?" Lucita asked. 
 
 "Not a bit," Ninfa replied readily. "Mama has 
 often told me about her. Her eyes were gray and 
 her hair was light, and her skin was not brown like 
 mine. You too are fair, Luz ; and do they call you 
 huerita, as mama did my little sister? " 
 
 "Sometimes," Lucita admitted ; "but I like black 
 eyes and hair best. We have another Luz in our 
 dormitory," she continued. " Her father was an 
 Italian, but her mother is a Mexican. I think you 
 will like little Luz. She is very pretty, and her 
 mother dresses her beautifully and gives her a great 
 deal of money to spend." 
 
 " I like you best," Ninfa admitted, to Lucita's 
 great surprise. "And you need not think that I 
 am going to keep with the little girls if I am small. 
 I am seventeen years old and will be eighteen next 
 January. How old are you, Luz? " 
 
 "I also will be eighteen next year," Luz replied. 
 " I thought you were about fourteen, Ninfa. Per- 
 haps then you will be in my classes. Do you know 
 any English yet ? ' ' 
 
 " Not one word," said Ninfa apprehensively. 
 "And I suppose such a great, tali girl as you, is 
 a long way ahead of me in everything. You ought 
 to be, I am sure. Now I am going to dress, be- 
 cause if I stay in bed you will study some more 
 
134 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 and try to keep me from talking. Will you please 
 put on my shoes and stockings for me? " 
 
 Lucita stared in amazement at this unexpected 
 request and was no less surprised, a few moments 
 afterward, to find herself on her knees beside the 
 bed, executing the demand put upon her. It 
 seemed very easy for this small person to com- 
 mand, and, strange to say, an easy thing also to 
 obey, when there was nothing more required than 
 the clothing of the two pretty little feet swinging 
 over the edge of the bed. 
 
 Ninfa's whole toilette had been completed with 
 Lucita's active assistance, when the matron entered 
 the dormitory a while later, to relieve Lucita. She 
 had brought a baker's roll and a cup of coffee on a 
 tray for Ninfa's breakfast, and this time the refresh- 
 ments were not refused. Lucita's willing ministra- 
 tions had restored much of Ninfa's usual good 
 spirits, and the matron smiled to herself at the sight 
 of the girl's innocent assumption of the right to com- 
 mand over Lucita, who was usually slow to yield a 
 certain innocent self-importance to any one. 
 
 When Lucita was fully released from her novel 
 duties as maid, Ninfa begged that she might ac- 
 company her wherever she should go. So to the 
 schoolroom she went, at Lucita's side, and there she 
 remained, contented and open-eyed, during the 
 rest of the morning session. 
 
IV 
 
 THERE was too much of novelty and interest 
 in the new life to allow the indulgence of 
 continued homesickness on Ninfa's part, and the 
 Senora Barreda, her grandmother, would have been 
 astonished at the ease with which her pet adapted 
 herself to her changed circumstances. It is true 
 that Ninfa at first rebelled audibly against taking 
 her turn at washing face, neck, and hands in one 
 of the three tin basins with which the dormitory 
 was provided. She did not enjoy spattering her 
 shoes at the hydrant beside the fountain while 
 drawing her own water for this morning bath, nor 
 would she trot across the court to the fountain 
 with bare feet, to save her shoes and stockings 
 from the wetting. 
 
 On the second morning the breakfast bell had 
 rung before the helpless child had half combed 
 her long hair, and she had hastily wound her 
 rebozo about her head, hoping the senoritas would 
 not detect this evasion of one of the strict rules of 
 the school. 
 
 When the Senorita Dora, to whose table both 
 Lucita and Ninfa belonged, saw this closely 
 shrouded head in the midst of the dozen others 
 
 i35 
 
I36 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 bare and glossy, a sharp reprimand rose to her 
 lips. Then she remembered that Ninfa was as yet 
 strange to the ways of the place, and contented 
 herself with gently laying her hand on the girl's 
 head for a moment, saying kindly, though firmly : 
 
 " To-morrow, Ninfa, you must rise earlier, so 
 that you may be ready for breakfast. I cannot 
 excuse you a second time if you come to breakfast 
 uncombed. We do not allow coffee to those who 
 come to the table with imperfect toilettes." 
 
 Something of injured helplessness in Ninfa's face 
 touched Lucita, who sat on the opposite side of 
 the table. She herself was so particular to keep 
 all the rules, and she had been for so long a pupil 
 of the school, that she was little disposed to sym- 
 pathize with slackness in others. Therefore, she 
 was surprised at herself when she felt a wave of 
 pity sweep away her disapproval of Ninfa's slow- 
 ness and fine-ladyism. Though she knew now, 
 as well as she had known it before the sefiorita's 
 warning, that Ninfa had been up a long hour 
 before breakfast and had taken no part in the 
 cleaning of the dormitory, save the careless spread- 
 ing up' of her own bed, Lucita found herself, after 
 that look across. the table, more than willing to 
 make excuses for her companion. 
 
 " I'll help her do her hair every morning," she 
 thought. "The poor child eats so little of our 
 comida that she cannot do without her coffee." 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 37 
 
 From that time on Lucita, the dignified and de- 
 pendable, became the slave and familiar friend of 
 Ninfa, the wayward and spoiled. 
 
 The teachers approved of the intimacy, for it 
 would do sober Lucita good, they affirmed, to be 
 shaken up now and then by the caprices of the 
 lively southern girl, and it was truly wonderful to 
 see how soon Lucita's rare laugh became more 
 and more frequent, and how it began to share in 
 the melody peculiar to Ninfa's. 
 
 On the other hand, the larger girl's influence 
 over the smaller was all that could be desired. 
 Ninfa had ere long bewitched Arcadia into ex- 
 changing beds with her, so that she might sleep 
 beside Lucita, and though the allotted feet of space 
 might intervene between the two beds during the 
 daytime, it was otherwise at night. After the 
 monitor of the dormitory had extinguished the 
 two candles allowed for the going to bed, Lucita, 
 each night, would push the two beds close together, 
 and the two girls would sleep side by side, often 
 with hands clasped and both heads, the black and 
 the brown, lying upon one pillow. 
 
 With this care surrounding her, Ninfa was stim- 
 ulated, during that first week, to do her best in 
 studying the simple branches belonging to her class 
 in school. She was in reality much chagrined at 
 finding herself so far behind Lucita and most of 
 the other girls of her own age. For two or three 
 
I38 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 days she was inclined to sulk at the idea of being 
 classed with ten-year-old Luz Coiro and others of 
 the younger children. Her naturally easy disposi- 
 tion, assisted by Lucita's sympathetic encourage- 
 ment, prevailed here, however, and the week had 
 not passed before she was interested in the new 
 method of study observed in the school, and com- 
 pletely enthralled by the fascinations of the piano. 
 Housework was the sorest of all trials to the 
 luxuriously reared Ninfa. Though Macedonio, 
 the porter and man-of-all-work, when not too lazy, 
 drenched the court and corridors with water from 
 the fountain in the early morning of each day, the 
 girls sprinkled their own dormitories, and little of 
 the dust of the unpaved street outside found its 
 way into this inner row of rooms. 1 Ninfa had to 
 yield to public sentiment in the matter of taking 
 her share in the daily sweeping and sprinkling of 
 the dormitory, and the queer, little hard places, 
 which had followed the blisters made upon the 
 palms of her hand by her first day's use of the 
 broom, were sources of great affliction to her. 
 She was glad that they were not visible while she 
 stretched her small hands over the piano keys. 
 These hands were shapely and smooth enough, 
 barring the tiny callouses, which Lucita assured 
 her would disappear after a time, but they were 
 
 1 For interior arrangement of Madero Institute, see Appendix 
 II., at close of book. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 39 
 
 undeniably brown, no matter how clean she kept 
 them. Lucita's were much fairer, as fair as the 
 Senorita Julia's, Ninfa thought, and yet Lucita 
 had no desire to learn to play the piano. 
 
 Notwithstanding the corns and the despised tint 
 of Ninfa's hands, they became more useful and 
 busy little members than they had ever been in 
 the grandmother's house, and Ninfa herself grew 
 as contented as were all the other girls in that hive 
 of busy, happy bees. 
 
 Don Justo, the priest, had been right in his con- 
 clusion that no compulsion was needed to induce 
 most of the boarders to attend Sunday services in 
 the Protestant mission church on the plaza of San 
 Francisco. It is true that there were a few among 
 the older girls who occasionally chose to remain at 
 home rather than accompany the others. These 
 were always Roman Catholics, who may have been 
 visited now and then by qualms of conscience as 
 to the propriety of conforming to the Protestant 
 forms of worship. Yet this staying at home was 
 found to be a poor exchange for the brisk walk, in 
 line, through the fresh mountain air sweeping the 
 streets at the hour for Sunday-school, and the 
 pleasing excitement of the passage of the plaza 
 whose benches were filled with staring citizens or 
 students from the State College opposite the church. 
 No fancy-work was allowed on Sunday, nor the 
 
I40 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 study of any school-book, and one could not sleep 
 all the morning, after baths and breakfast had dis- 
 persed any lingering desire for such indulgence. 
 
 Ninfa was not a little troubled when her first 
 Sunday arrived at finding that there would be no 
 one to accompany her to mass in the cathedral. 
 
 " I cannot possibly go alone," she said to Lucita, 
 who was brushing her hair before breakfast. 
 
 "Of course not," Lucita answered. 
 
 " Then what shall I do, Luz ? Padre Manuel 
 said that I must never fail to go to mass at least 
 once a week. He will be very much displeased if 
 I write to mama that I cannot go; yet even he 
 would not expect me to go into the streets alone." 
 
 " I do not suppose your grandmother thought 
 that you would go to mass from this school when 
 she sent you here, Ninfa," Lucita replied. "No 
 one goes, you know." 
 
 " Yet many of the boarders are Roman Catholics, 
 Luz. They have told me so, and how they hate 
 to have to go always to the church of the protes- 
 tantes if they go anywhere. Valgame Dios, 1 how 
 you are pulling my hair ! You need not get angry 
 even if you are a Protestant, Luz Rubio." 
 
 Lucita continued a vigorous use of the brush 
 without reply, while Ninfa went on with her mur- 
 murings. They were seated on the stone step 
 
 1 An oath universally employed to express sudden surprise or 
 chagrin. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I4I 
 
 surrounding the fountain basin, and there was no 
 one near them at the moment, as it was still early 
 and not all the girls were out of their beds. The 
 rising bell was a little more indulgent on Sunday 
 mornings, for the busy services of the day to 
 follow did not give the perfect rest of an idle day. 
 
 "I wish I were like you, Luz," said Ninfa, after 
 a little, submitting with unusual patience to Lucita's 
 ardor with the brush. "You have a home here in 
 Saltillo and can go there every fifteen days. Next 
 Sunday you will be at home and I shall be alone. 
 
 "You will have Arcadia and Angela and the 
 others, your Roman Catholic friends," Lucita re- 
 plied, a little ungraciously. 
 
 Yet she was not pleased with herself for the 
 sudden flare of anger she had felt at Ninfa's al- 
 lusion to her being a Protestant. It had seemed 
 to come from Ninfa as an intimation of inferiority, 
 and rich as she knew Ninfa to be, and pampered 
 as to this world's goods, she had hitherto taken 
 comfort to herself in the knowledge that her own 
 mental capacity and attainments more than equal- 
 ized matters between them. Besides, she had been 
 for so long connected with the Americans of the 
 school, and so large a majority of the pupils were 
 those favoring, if not adopting, the Protestant doc- 
 trine, that she had hardly realized that her faith 
 might belittle her in the eyes of the world. It 
 was a delightful world to which Ninfa's artless con- 
 
142 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 fidence had been introducing her during the past 
 week. Ninfa's people knew nothing of her re- 
 ligious faith and blindly considered all that her 
 dear sefioritas could teach her i as perversions of 
 the truth, if not downright lies. While "the 
 world's" mistake could not alter her belief in 
 what she knew to be the truth of God, she was 
 conscious of a new feeling in her heart that had 
 never been there before Ninfa's prattle had em- 
 phasized the difference between them, and had 
 proved the fact that no one with her strange ideas 
 could have a place in Ninfa Barreda's world. 
 
 Yet she was ashamed and grieved that she 
 should have been even the least bit angry with 
 Ninfa over such a subject, and her ungracious reply 
 was followed by a complete change of manner. 
 
 "You darling child," she cried, dropping the 
 brush and clasping Ninfa in her arms. "You do 
 love me best, don't you ? And I shall not give 
 you to any of them, Catholic or Protestant. For- 
 give me, little one, for being angry with you." 
 
 "Why, you only pulled my hair," Ninfa replied 
 wonderingly. 
 
 " My fingers only pulled your hair," Lucita said 
 quaintly ; " but a great black cloud came into my 
 heart for a minute, and Somebody was sorry. He 
 saw it, if you did not." 
 
 "Who? " Ninfa asked, staring at Lucita with her 
 great eyes shining through her waving hair. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 43 
 
 "Never mind," Lucita replied shyly. "It is all 
 gone now and he knows. It is all right." 
 
 "Was it a man — your lover? Oh, Luz mia, 
 have you a lover too, and have never told me about 
 him?" Ninfa asked reproachfully. 
 
 " Hush ! " Lucita commanded. " Oh, Ninfa, 
 Ninfa, how much you have to learn!" she con- 
 tinued in a softened tone. " If you were my 
 little sister, how gladly I would teach you about 
 our Father, and about Jesus." 
 
 "You are a strange girl, Luz," Ninfa said, part- 
 ing the hair from her eyes and catching up the 
 brush which Lucita had let fall on the stones. 
 " Why do you say ' our father ' ? You know that 
 my father is dead, and yours cannot be mine. 
 Besides, your hermanilo is named Pepito, not Jesus. 1 
 But if you do wish to tell me about your father, 
 take me home with you next time you go, dear 
 Luz. Then I shall know more than you can tell 
 me. 
 
 Again a shadow fell over Lucita's spirits. What 
 would Ninfa think of such a home as hers ? But 
 she must hasten and explain to this ardent child 
 what she had really meant, lest more mistakes 
 should follow. 
 
 " Listen, Ninfa," she said solemnly. "You have 
 not understood me. God is the Father of whom I 
 was speaking, and Jesus is the Christ, his Son. 
 
 1 Jesus is a very common name in Mexico. 
 
144 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 You know that he knows all things, and it was he 
 who was sorry when I was cross with you when you 
 spoke of Protestants. I am glad that I am a 
 Protestant, there ! and I hope you will be one some 
 day." 
 
 " Never in this world," Ninfa cried, horror- 
 stricken. "And do you know, Luz, that is the 
 only thing I do not like* about you." 
 
 "Yes, I know you do not like it," Lucita said 
 humbly ; she had been made humble for that time. 
 " But that does not make it wrong to be a Protes- 
 tant, you know, Ninfa, and perhaps you will think 
 differently about it some day. I am going to pray 
 to God every day and night to teach you the 
 truth." 
 
 "The truth ! " Ninfa repeated musingly, thinking 
 of the words of the missionary teacher in Guada- 
 lajara, who had also spoken gravely of " the truth." 
 What was the truth ? 
 
 "Luz, I used to be afraid of the protestantes," 
 Ninfa said earnestly. "One of them spoke to me 
 once at home, and gave me a card with words 
 printed on it which she said were 'the truth.' But 
 it was not what grandmother and I believe. I am 
 not so much afraid of them as I used to be, now 
 that I know you so well, but there are many things 
 I do not understand. Now why do they teach that 
 the Holy Virgin is not the mother of God ? " 
 
 " Do you mean to ask if the Protestants teach 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 45 
 
 that Mary was not Jesus Christ's mother, Ninfa ? 
 But they do teach that she was his mother. How 
 could you have heard anything else ? Of course 
 God has no mother, because he has always lived, 
 before men and women were created, but Mary 
 was the mother of his Son, when he came into 
 this world as a man, as a little baby." 
 
 "Maria told me a lie then," Ninfa said with 
 flashing eyes. " Perhaps some of the other things 
 she said were lies too." Suddenly her mood 
 changed, and her earnestness gave way to playful- 
 ness and mock fear. " Oh ! oh!" she cried, "I 
 have just thought about it ! Justo told me to 
 beware of wolves, for I was just a little innocent 
 lamb. I am afraid you are a wolf, Lucita, and I 
 must run away, or you will eat me up. Catch me 
 if you can !" 
 
 The laughing girl sprang to her feet as she 
 spoke, and ran toward the dormitory, leaving 
 Lucita to gather up the comb and brush and 
 follow or not, as she pleased. 
 
 Her heart was heavy as she slowly crossed the 
 court, bent upon completing her task of hair-dress- 
 ing. Why could she not let this foolish girl go her 
 own way without such an ache coming into her 
 own heart? What was the meaning of her strange 
 yearning over the child and the unselfish love 
 inspired by Ninfa since the first day of their ac- 
 quaintance ? 
 
MORE than three quarters of a century before 
 the time of this story, the foundations of 
 the " Old Temple " were just being laid opposite 
 the plaza of San Francisco. Slowly its walls rose 
 above the solid foundation stones, the country 
 people for leagues around Saltillo being required 
 by the priests to bring with them material for 
 building every time they entered the city. After 
 five years of work, more or less spasmodic, those 
 who had the matter in hand grew tired of building, 
 and the unfinished church was left to the mercy of 
 the sun, rain, and wind for many years. Some who 
 saw it at this stage, even after fifty years of neglect, 
 tell in glowing terms of the beauty of its classic 
 style, and of the marvelous carving of the fagade. 
 
 Though simply in a state of " arrested develop- 
 ment," the "Old Temple" ere long acquired the 
 appearance of a roofless ruin, and came to be con- 
 sidered as such by the town. About the time of 
 the purchase of the Montez property for the estab- 
 lishment of the girls' boarding school, the unfin- 
 ished "Old Temple " also attracted the eye of those 
 interested in the school. 
 
 By this time all the church property of Mexico 
 146 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 47 
 
 belonged to the government, in accordance with 
 the edict of confiscation of 1857, introduced by 
 President Juarez, and under the Mexican law which 
 forbids the city or State to hold property unim- 
 proved for public use, they were able to effect the 
 purchase of the "Old Temple." It was the inten- 
 tion of the purchasers to rejuvenate and complete 
 the substantial old building and convert it into a 
 Protestant temple for the worship of God. The 
 beauty and solidity of its walls were beyond criti- 
 cism, and its situation was all that could be desired. 
 It fronted the leafy plaza of San Francisco on its 
 eastern side, with the Catholic Church of San Fran- 
 cisco as its only neighbor. The southern side of 
 the plaza was occupied by the long, low walls of 
 the State College, while on the west and north 
 residences of the middle class were its boundaries. 
 The satisfaction of the agents of the mission 
 who had accomplished the purchase, was not al- 
 lowed to continue uninterrupted. After the pur- 
 chase money had been paid, and work was about 
 to begin on the building, " a corrupt judge put an 
 1 injunction ' on the disturbance of the old walls. . . 
 Month after month, and year after year, obstacles 
 were put in the way of a settlement and the in- 
 junction was unremoved." Finally the agent em- 
 ployed by the Board of Missions "resolved, as the 
 injunction was against 'demolishing the walls,' to 
 build his church inside of the walls, the area being 
 
I48 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 capacious enough for two such edifices, and a 
 beautiful building was erected, only the spire ap- 
 pearing above the lofty walls of the 'old temple.' 
 This was a queer sight, and turned a popular laugh 
 against the unjust and foolish judge. . . The 
 governor was disgusted with the court and finally 
 became indignant. He also devised in favor of 
 the truth and right. He proclaimed the old walls 
 a 'nuisance,' and 'condemned' them as such. 
 The next day by sunrise, sixty men were on the 
 walls with picks and shovels, by order of the 
 government. That was a happy day for the little 
 church of Saltillo." x 
 
 The fine old walls were soon leveled, leaving 
 "the gem of a church, free from its bondage, 
 glittering in the sunlight and adorning the San 
 Francisco plaza." Thereupon the public state- 
 ment was made that " the case was dismissed from 
 court because of lack of subject." 
 
 The little Protestant congregation had already 
 been worshiping for four or five years in their 
 comfortable church home, when Lucita Rubio first 
 led Ninfa, the Roman Catholic girl, to a seat within 
 its walls. 
 
 Several rooms in the rear of the church were 
 now used as a mission school for boys, in charge 
 of the pastor of the church, assisted by a Mexican 
 
 1 See "A Decade of Foreign Missions," by H. A. Tupper, 
 
 D. D., for history of this building. 
 

 The gem of a church 
 Page IAS. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 49 
 
 preacher. Here three or four young men were in 
 active preparation for the ministry. These youths 
 occupied seats together on the "men's side" of 
 the church, and on this particular Sunday morning 
 their spines straightened, rounded shoulders were 
 lowered, heads slightly turned toward the aisle, 
 and eyes perceptibly brightened, as a measured 
 tramp of feet nearing the vestibule in the tower 
 announced the advent of the institute girls. 
 
 The little girls led the way, two by two, ac- 
 companied by the Sefiorita Julia, and these pro- 
 ceeded in good order toward the front benches 
 and took their allotted seats. Next came the 
 middle-sized girls with Sefiorita Dora, and after 
 small flutters and nudgings, as became middle- 
 sized girls, they disposed themselves in seats back 
 of the younger ones. The large girls came last, 
 attended by the director's wife and a Mexican 
 woman employed as supervisor at the school. 
 Lucita and Ninfa were among these last, and 
 found places on one side near the organ, over 
 which one of the ladies presided during the song 
 service. 
 
 On entering the seat Lucita turned her head 
 just in time to see Ninfa deliberately kneel in the 
 aisle and cross herself devoutly before following 
 her into the pew. A ripple of amusement passed 
 from one girl to another, in the immediate neigh- 
 borhood, but Ninfa had no idea that the smiles she 
 
150 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 saw as she took her seat were caused by her inno- 
 cent act of devotion. Lucita's face burned with 
 annoyance, but she said nothing to Ninfa, who was 
 gazing, wide-eyed, at the empty walls and altarless 
 platform. Where the altar should have been was 
 only a plain table, covered with a red cloth, and a 
 stout, splint-bottomed chair occupied by the pastor. 
 
 The burst of music from all these young throats, 
 led by the organ, was presently almost drowned by 
 the crashing of the bells in the church towers of 
 San Francisco, next door. But the singing was 
 repeated again and again, at intervals, long after 
 the bells had ceased their clamor. The seats in 
 the plaza, opposite the church, were often filled at 
 this hour by those who seemed to delight in the 
 melodies borne to them from behind the great, 
 stained-glass window in the fagade of the church, 
 but who would not dare to cross the threshold of 
 the tower entrance. 
 
 Ninfa was too much interested in all she heard 
 and saw to grow tired of the double service of 
 Sunday-school and sermon, and on the way home 
 she was full of questions for the patient Lucita. 
 
 Teresa and the baby had not appeared at church 
 that morning, and Lucita was conscious of the 
 slightest feeling of relief, mingled with her dis- 
 appointment, on this account. She felt somehow 
 that she must prepare Ninfa for her mother, and 
 for the poor little brother. She was not ashamed 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 5 I 
 
 of them — no, indeed, she loved them too well for 
 that — but she was not yet sure that Ninfa would 
 think so much of her if she should be brought to 
 really comprehend her friend's true station. Lucita 
 had more than once told Ninfa that she was a poor 
 girl, and not born to associate with one of her rank, 
 and had been laughed at for her pains, yet her 
 communication had been received in too light a 
 manner to assure her of Ninfa' s perfect compre- 
 hension of the case. 
 
 When the Sunday dinner was over, there was an 
 hour or so allowed the girls for lounging in un- 
 dress inside the dormitories if they wished to rest. 
 Several, meanwhile, received their relatives in the 
 parlor, and others promenaded the corridor chat- 
 ting or singing. 
 
 Lucita lay down to rest her back, which was not 
 strong, now that she was growing so tall and slim, 
 and Ninfa lolled in the doorway nearest their end 
 of the room. The other occupants of the dormi- 
 tory were asleep or away. Lucita was on the 
 brink of a doze when she heard Ninfa speaking 
 in a hushed voice to some one outside the door. 
 
 "Yes, Lucita is in here," Ninfa was saying, "but 
 can you not leave your message with me ? She is 
 tired and asleep." 
 
 "Thank you, sefiorita," the other replied in a 
 voice well known to Lucita. " I will just sit down 
 here and wait till she wakes. Do not fear ; the 
 
152 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 baby will make no noise. My Lucita will be glad 
 to find us here when she wakes." 
 
 Lucita lay like a stone, devoid of sense and 
 motion, yet her eyes were open when Ninfa bent 
 over her bed. 
 
 " Have you waked ? " Ninfa whispered. "There 
 is a poor woman out on the corridor who wants to 
 see you. I think she may be a beggar, Luz, but 
 she calls you her Lucita. Shall I tell her to go 
 away and not bother you ? I have some centavos 
 in my pocket and I will give them to the little 
 baby in her arms. That will satisfy her, and you 
 can go to sleep again." 
 
 " No, do not send her away, Ninfa," Lucita said, 
 with a strange tightening of her throat. " I will 
 see her, of course." She rose to her feet and 
 stood looking at Ninfa with all the color gone from 
 her face. 
 
 "You are sick, Luz, lie down again," Ninfa 
 urged. "The woman can wait. She has a good 
 face and is as clean as possible ; why should she 
 not come in here to you, if you insist upon seeing 
 her?" 
 
 "It is against the rules for us to see visitors in 
 our rooms, Ninfa." Then, with a change in her 
 voice, Lucita exclaimed : " I am not sick, but I 
 am a coward, Ninfa Barreda. Come out with me 
 to see my mother. It is she who is out there with 
 my hermanito, Come, Ninfa," 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 53 
 
 The two girls soon stood before the tired woman 
 who had seated herself on the stones of the cor- 
 ridor, with Pepito wrapped in her faded rebozo. 
 
 "Mama, I am so glad!" Lucita exclaimed, 
 honestly enough now, and slipped down to a seat 
 beside Teresa. " I missed you at church this 
 morning." 
 
 Then she learned that Don Luis had been in 
 too much pain for Teresa to leave him in the 
 morning, but that he had dispatched her for news 
 of their daughter as soon as the pains had les- 
 sened. Teresa had been too timid to knock at the 
 iron gates and dreaded to enter the great parlor 
 where visitors were already gathered, so she had 
 slipped in through the half-opened gates and, find- 
 ing the inner doors unlocked, had inquired her 
 way to Lucita's dormitory. This was her first 
 formal visit to her daughter, as the helplessness of 
 her husband rarely allowed her to leave home for 
 so long a trip. 
 
 Ninfa had taken in the situation with much more 
 ease than might have been expected. Up to the 
 time of her arrival at the school she had been ac- 
 customed to the lower classes of society in the 
 capacity of peons, or as servants on her grand- 
 mother's estate, but even among these she had 
 had companions at play during the years spent at 
 the hacienda. Her week's acquaintance with the 
 democratic spirit of this school had still further 
 
I 54 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 broadened her sympathies in this direction, and 
 after the first slight shock of realizing that the 
 aristocratic-looking Luz was in truth the daughter 
 of a poor woman, she wondered no more over the 
 discovery. 
 
 "Let me hold the little bit of a baby," she 
 pleaded, as Lucita took Pepito from her mother's 
 arms. " I have never had a real baby in my arms. 
 Thank you, senora, and is he not sweet? Look, 
 Luz, he is smiling at me and trying to talk." The 
 girl was as delighted as a child over a new doll, 
 and had such a motherly little way about her that 
 Teresa was charmed. 
 
 Luz stepped inside to find a mat for her mother 
 to sit upon, and Teresa seized the opportunity to 
 ask for the name of her daughter's " pretty little 
 friend." 
 
 "Oh, I am not pretty," Ninfa laughed ; "at least 
 not half so pretty as Luz. My name is Ninfa 
 Barreda." 
 
 " What ! " Teresa exclaimed. " What is your 
 apellido?" l 
 
 " Barreda," Ninfa repeated. " I do not think it 
 is a common name here. I come from the south, 
 from Guadalajara." 
 
 "Ah, from Guadalajara? I have known Bar- 
 redas myself, owners of haciendas in the country; 
 but you cannot be one of them, sefiorita?" 
 
 1 Family name. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 5 5 
 
 "Why not?" Ninfa asked. " My grandfather 
 was a ranch owner, and sometimes even now we go 
 to El Dorado for a visit, though my grandmother 
 likes Guadalajara best, now that I am growing up. 
 There now, baby, do not fret. See, I shall walk 
 about with you and let you smell the white roses 
 and see the pretty doves drinking at the fountain, 
 and listen to the tinkle of the water. No, no, 
 Luz, let me keep him a little while, and you and 
 your mother can have a quiet talk together." 
 
 She kissed the tips of her fingers to Lucita and 
 hurried off with the baby proudly clasped in her 
 arms, toward a knot of girls about the fountain. 
 
 "What is the matter, mama?" Lucita asked, 
 seating herself on the reed mat, to which she had 
 induced her mother to move. " Why do you look 
 so strangely after Ninfa ? You may trust the baby 
 with her, I am sure." 
 
 " Is she a good girl, Lucita? " Teresa asked in a 
 strained voice. 
 
 "Yes, good and sweet." 
 
 " Yet she must be rich ; all the Barredas are, 
 and proud also. Is she proud, Lucita?" 
 
 " Perhaps," Lucita answered a little unwillingly. 
 
 "That does not look like it," the woman went 
 on, her eyes still following Ninfa, who was exhibit- 
 ing the baby's charms of finger and toe to the 
 circle about her. " She says that she is a Barreda. 
 How old is she, Lucita? " 
 
156 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 "Just about my age, mama" Lucita answered, 
 surprised at this catechism from her mother. " But 
 tell me more about papa now. You know it has 
 been a week since I have seen him. If he does 
 not get better I shall ask permission to go home 
 this week and pay you a visit some afternoon." 
 
 " Bring the Sefiorita Ninfa with you, if you 
 come," was the mother's strange request. " Has 
 she been here long, Lucita? You have never 
 mentioned her name to me." 
 
 " She is a new girl, mama, and I do not under- 
 stand why she should interest you so much." 
 
 " Has she father and mother, Lucita?" the ques- 
 tions continued, as if urged from Teresa's lips by 
 some power beyond herself. 
 
 By degrees, therefore, Teresa learned ail of 
 Ninfa's history which was known to the young girl 
 herself. 
 
 "The little sister who died while her mother was 
 away from home, was named Luz," Lucita ex- 
 claimed at the end with a shy smile of pleasure ; 
 "so that is one reason why Ninfa loves me. There 
 is another Luz here, but she is so little that Ninfa 
 says she cannot even imagine that she is her sister. 
 Sometimes, mama, we pretend that we are sisters, 
 twin-sisters — only think of it ! — and Ninfa says she 
 wishes it were really true." 
 
 "She has been here only one week, and you 
 have grown so intimate as that?" Teresa asked in 
 
Americanos of saltillo 15? 
 
 a hard, unnatural voice. "Take care, Lucita, some 
 day one of her proud relatives will come who may 
 not be so easy and good-tempered as her father 
 was ; then all your friendship will be broken up and 
 the girl will forget that she has ever known you." 
 
 " Her father, mama ? What can you know of 
 her father, who died when she was a baby, and in 
 the south too? " 
 
 " I knew him," the mother faltered, with a flush 
 on her thin cheeks. " We lived in the south when 
 you were born, you know," she added, rising hastily 
 as she spoke and going to meet Ninfa who ap- 
 proached with the baby. 
 
 She did not linger long after this and Lucita was 
 troubled at her mother's unusual discomposure of 
 manner. It seemed as if Ninfa's face and figure 
 had a fascination for Teresa, for her eyes continu- 
 ally fastened themselves upon her as the young girl 
 accompanied Lucita and the visitors to the gates. 
 
 "I wish I had a little brother like that," Ninfa 
 said, leaning upon Lucita' s arm as they watched 
 the woman leave the garden. 
 
 "I think mama is not well this afternoon," Lucita 
 confided to Ninfa, as they returned to the dormi- 
 tory. " She is generally very cheerful and happy. 
 I fear my papa is growing worse, and mama has 
 much work to do." 
 
 "You are richer than I am, Luz," Ninfa whis- 
 pered. " You have a papa and a mama and a 
 
I58 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 brother, while I have nobody but my grandmother. 
 But I do not know how it would be to be poor as 
 you say you are," she added candidly. " I do not 
 think I should like it very well, even with a mother 
 and little brother." 
 
 Meanwhile Teresa was torturing herself with the 
 question : 
 
 " Ought Lucita to be told ? After all our care, 
 do we not deserve to enjoy what God has given us 
 for the rest of our lives ? Yet perhaps she ought 
 to be told. I will ask Luis." 
 
VI 
 
 " \ T 7 HAT ails you, woman?" Luis Rubio asked 
 
 V V sharply, as Teresa sat moodily in the door- 
 way after her return from the institute. "You 
 said the walk down to the school would do you 
 good. Instead, it seems to have made you deaf 
 and dumb. Don't you hear the baby crying? He 
 waked as soon as you laid him on the bed." 
 
 Teresa rose and brought the fretting child out 
 into the air, and spent several moments in soothing 
 him. Then, while Pepito lay on her lap sucking 
 his thumb and gazing vacantly at the bright colors 
 of the sky, the wife spoke, as if with difficulty. 
 
 " Ah, Luis, you will be sorry to hear what I have 
 to say when once I open my mouth," she said, 
 looking away from her husband's perplexed face. 
 
 "You said that Lucita was well," Luis replied. 
 "What bad news can you have possibly brought 
 from the school, then, if naught ails the girl? Were 
 any stones thrown at the church to-day? I am 
 always fearing for the beautiful window in front, 
 notwithstanding the wire netting. Did anything 
 happen this morning?" 
 
 "A new scholar has come to the school, Luis," 
 
 Teresa said ; " and she " 
 
 i59 
 
l60 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " More good news," Luis interrupted. "The more 
 the better, I say, and if they grow too crowded, we 
 
 will have Lucita at home to sleep " His wife's 
 
 discomposed face interrupted him in his turn. "Go 
 on, woman," he said impatiently. "What of the 
 new scholar? " 
 
 "She comes from the south, from the hacienda 
 of El Dorado, near Guadalajara, and her name is 
 Ninfa Barreda," was the impressive reply. 
 
 For a brief second Luis stared the woman in the 
 face, then his head drooped upon his breast. 
 
 "Will you tell the girl — our Lucita?" he asked 
 presently, in feeble tones. 
 
 " I do not know ; you must decide, Luis. Why 
 should we alter things ? Lucita is happy, and as 
 you know the Barredas are proud and overbearing. 
 At least," Teresa added, after a moment's reflec- 
 tion, " Dona Alejandra was said to be so, and it is 
 she alone who lives now, and Don Vicente's 
 daughter, the child whom I saw this afternoon, is 
 in her sole charge." 
 
 Silence fell between the husband and wife after 
 this. Pepito's thumb gradually slipped from his 
 wee mouth, as he slept, and darkness settled around 
 them. A struggle was going on in the hearts of 
 Luis and Teresa as the moments passed. 
 
 For several years, ever since their feet had begun 
 to follow the true Way, their consciences had suf- 
 fered more or less on Lucita's account. Now a 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO l6l 
 
 crucial point seemed to be reached. A mere 
 silence on their part would allow their simple lives 
 to proceed without distressing change and renun- 
 ciation. A few spoken words might rend asunder 
 the happy family life growing more and more cen- 
 tered in Lucita's cleverness and her loving cheer. 
 
 A motto was pinned on the dingy wall opposite 
 the stool where Luis sat, a home-made affair, 
 brought from school one day by Lucita. The 
 white card had letters cut from gilt paper pasted 
 upon it, and the letters formed the question, in 
 Spanish, "What would Jesus do? " 
 
 It was too dark now for even the card to be 
 seen, in the shadow of the hall, but Don Luis 
 presently raised his eyes toward its place, from a 
 kind of habit he had of consulting the words 
 upon it. 
 
 "What do you think he would do about it, 
 Teresita?" he asked. 
 
 " Of course the Christ would always do the right 
 thing," Teresa replied impatiently. "I am tired of 
 having that card on the wall, Luis, and I wish Lu- 
 cita had not brought it here." 
 
 "You thought it beautiful, at first, Teresa." 
 
 " So I did, but it is fly-specked now. How can 
 I keep any white thing clean in this house ? I 
 noticed yesterday that the letters were peeling off 
 too. I'll take it down to-morrow and put it in the 
 box to keep for Lucita." 
 
1 62 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 "What would be 'the right thing,' Teresa?" Luis 
 asked, taking no notice of his wife's petulance. He 
 was sorry for Teresa and sorry for himself. There 
 was no reply. "Suppose you tell the sefioritas 
 about it," he added. "They are wise, and love 
 Lucita." 
 
 Teresa nodded her head as if in consent, and 
 then rose abruptly, declaring that it was high time 
 to close the doors, as the night air was too cool for 
 her husband's bones. 
 
 In her heart she realized that the advice of Luis 
 was good. It. seemed really too great a question 
 to be answered by themselves alone. If the Se- 
 norita Julia agreed with her, Lucita need not be 
 told, and she was rather sure of making a strong 
 story in her own behalf. Of course both she and 
 Luis wished to do "the right thing," always, now 
 that they loved Jesus and had promised to obey 
 him as well as they could. Yet days, and then 
 weeks, and even months passed, and the Sefiorita 
 Julia heard nothing of the perplexity and unrest of 
 the Rubios. 
 
 " Manana 1 I will go," Teresa would say to her- 
 self and to Luis. 
 
 But there was always something else to do 
 manana, and Luis had not the heart to insist upon 
 her going. Surely there could be no hurry, while 
 as yet the school term was not half gone. 
 
 1 To-morrow. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 63 
 
 School work went steadily on, during the sum- 
 mer months. The sun was hot and the days were 
 long, but the thick stone walls of the institute ex- 
 cluded all heat, while the wide corridor encircling 
 the building on the inner court was always airy 
 with vagrant breezes and puffs of wind. 
 
 Ninfa was not long in recommending herself to 
 her teachers, for, though she was not particularly 
 clever, her rearing had been that of a lady, and she 
 was obedient to them and thoughtful of their 
 wishes. Each day the little "blue geography" 
 told her something that she had never known be- 
 fore. From her foreign teachers she learned to 
 understand the map of Mexico, and it was not long 
 before she knew the names and capitals of its 
 twenty-seven states, and their boundaries. She 
 had found that she must wait a year before begin- 
 ning the study of Mexican history, but from the 
 senoritas she heard much about President Diaz, his 
 wisdom in government, and his good intentions 
 toward the Mexican people. 
 
 Of course there were classes for spelling and 
 reading also, and Ninfa could not help being inter- 
 ested in the little tales given in " Appleton's Second 
 Reader," in Spanish, though she was a great girl of 
 seventeen. Arithmetic proved a bugbear, and the 
 Sefiorita Julia had sad times over the private lessons 
 necessary for Ninfa's instruction in the mysteries of 
 long division. Ninfa was disposed, at times, to be 
 
164 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 indignant at what proved to be expected of her in 
 arithmetic. Was she, a girl who already had a 
 lover, to be forever reviewing the multiplication 
 table ? Could it possibly make so very much dif- 
 ference whether siete por sies were cuarenta y dos, 
 or cuarenta y nueve f 1 It was very tiresome. Lu- 
 cita secretly, yet thoroughly, sympathized with 
 Ninfa upon this subject. In this one study alone 
 she was behind all her class, and had not yet been 
 promoted to the director's class in algebra. Yet 
 she was able to untangle many a knot for Ninfa 
 during the afternoons out of school, and her own 
 knowledge of arithmetic was not lessened by this 
 exercise. 
 
 Simple lessons in English were given Ninfa by 
 the Senorita Dora, at odd moments during the 
 morning, as it was not possible to introduce the 
 new pupil into a class which had been at work on 
 the language for almost three months. This study 
 became, next to her music, Ninfa' s joy and pride. 
 Columbus discovering the new worlds could not 
 have experienced livelier sensations of delight and 
 awe, than did Ninfa upon being assured that the 
 senorita actually understood her meaning, when, 
 after careful preparation, she had timidly pro- 
 pounded the question :" Where is the cat?" in 
 English. The teacher's reply had been : " I am 
 sure I have no idea, Ninfa," and the girl had been 
 
 1 Whether seven times six were forty-two or forty-nine. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 65 
 
 deeply chagrined at not understanding what had 
 seemed so simple a reply ! Even her own name 
 had sounded unfamiliar when spoken in the Eng- 
 lish tongue. 
 
 Besides her music lesson three times a week, 
 there were long hours of practising in one of the 
 music rooms, yet they never seemed long to Ninfa. 
 
 Life within the institute walls was busy indeed 
 for the seventy-five girls gathered there, not to 
 speak of the teachers, who did their part. But 
 there were hours of play as well as hours of work, 
 when the corridors echoed with laughter and 
 snatches of song, when racing feet and shrill voices 
 told of games of " hide-and-seek," or "drop the 
 handkerchief," and others whose names are un- 
 known in the language in which this tale is written. 
 
 May, June, July, and August passed away, and 
 September came with cold nights and mornings, 
 though the heat of the sun at midday was still sick- 
 ening to those who exposed themselves to it. 
 
 On a Sunday afternoon in September, Lucita 
 and Ninfa, with other girls of the same age, gath- 
 ered for a Sunday talk with the Sefiorita Julia in 
 her pleasant room opening upon the street. 
 
 Opportunities to visit the teachers' rooms were 
 highly appreciated by the pupils, for these apart- 
 ments represented a different world and civilization 
 from their own. There were certain loyal ones 
 among the girls who were stanch in their prefer- 
 
1 66 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 ence for the Sefiorita Dora's room, with its cool, 
 green light from the tinted walls, and its dark fur- 
 niture of walnut, its books and its pictures. Others 
 declared warmly for the sunnier room of the Se- 
 fiorita Julia, with its wide, glass doors closing the 
 window, instead of the heavy, solid shutters of the 
 other windows of the building. Here there were 
 gay walls, blue striped, with pink roses between, 
 and the furniture was of polished oak. The large 
 mirror, the wide, soft bed, the books and pictures 
 here also, and the wicker rocking-chair, were all 
 novelties, even to the well-bred Ninfa, accustomed 
 to metal bedsteads without springs, and rockerless 
 chairs. 
 
 When the girls had bestowed themselves on 
 chairs, trunk, and matting, the sefiorita was about 
 to close the glass doors and so partially shut out 
 the sights and sounds of the street, directly outside, 
 when a dark-eyed boy addressed her from the side- 
 walk. He stood for several moments before speak- 
 ing, grasping the window bars with his hands, and 
 gazing boldly at each object that met his glance 
 inside. He was a ragged little fellow, dressed in 
 soiled shirt and trousers of white cotton, and wear- 
 ing a broken straw hat on his rough black head, 
 and sandals on his feet. 
 
 "Buy my chocolate, sefiora?" he asked, taking 
 up a small covered tray from the ground at his 
 feet. " My mother made it, and it is good." 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 67 
 
 " No, child, I cannot buy your chocolate to- 
 day," the senorita answered, pausing, however, with 
 a smile in the act of closing the window. " Bring 
 me some to-morrow and I will take it." 
 
 The boy shrugged his shoulders. Ninfa jingled 
 some cents in her pocket and looked lovingly at 
 the crisp, brown squares offered by the boy, but 
 Lucita shook her head at her. 
 
 "It will be all sold by to-morrow," he said. 
 " Why not take it to-day ? It will save me more 
 walking and the sefioritas wish some. It is very 
 pure, sefiora." 
 
 " To-day is Sunday, my dear. I never buy any- 
 thing on Sunday," the teacher said, still lingering 
 at the window. 
 
 " One must eat on Sundays as well as on other 
 days," the child replied quickly. " Why not choc- 
 olate as well as anything else ? Well, actios, sefiora, 
 you will be sorry when I am gone." Showing his 
 teeth in a brilliant smile, the boy shuffled farther 
 along the street, not failing to tap at each of the 
 other windows of the institute as he passed. 
 
 "Will he sell it, senorita?" Ninfa asked, with 
 interest, as the teacher closed the window and 
 stepped down from the low window seat into the 
 room. 
 
 " Oh, yes, to some one, of course, for it is very 
 good chocolate," was the reply. "I have fre- 
 quently bought it from his little sister. I know his 
 
1 68 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 mother, and it is, as he says, made by her, and 
 good and pure. Did you want some, Ninfa? " 
 
 " Ninfa likes our chocolate very much," Arcadia 
 replied for Ninfa. " She says she never sees any 
 just like it at her home." 
 
 Thereupon the sefiorita took down a blue china 
 plate from a shelf, and opening a drawer in the 
 bureau, produced a paper bag filled with squares 
 of the delicious sweet. She filled the plate, and 
 then offered it to the half-dozen girls who had 
 watched her movements with interest. 
 
 " I saw the woman grind the cacao beans to 
 make this very chocolate," she said, "and as I 
 selected the beans myself at the store, I think you 
 will find it very nice." 
 
 After some polite demurring the plate was ere 
 long nearly emptied, and all the girls sat nibbling. • 
 
 " I too like to have something good to eat on 
 Sunday afternoons," the sefiorita said, smiling into 
 the almost empty plate as it reached her hands 
 again. "When I was a little girl, my mother 
 always had some kind of 'Sunday treat' for me. 
 Now that I am grown up and need the money for 
 so many other things, I do not often spend it on 
 sweets like this. How fortunate that you girls 
 should have happened in this afternoon, when there 
 really was a ' Sunday treat ' on hand ! " 
 
 " But you know we did not know it, sefiorita," 
 Lucita said deprecatingly. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 69 
 
 "We wanted to talk to you about something," 
 another girl added. 
 
 "That is, we wanted her to talk to us, Angela," 
 Arcadia corrected her. 
 
 " Ninfa asked us a question this morning, after 
 we came from church," Lucita explained, "and we 
 could not answer her very well. So we thought we 
 would come to you." 
 
 "Did you bring your Bibles then?" the sefiorita 
 asked quickly. 
 
 "Why, no," Angela Vera replied. " I do not be- 
 lieve there is anything about this in the Bible." 
 
 "No, sefiorita," Lucita said gravely, "I think 
 questions like this were not troubling people in 
 those days." 
 
 "In what days?" Sefiorita Julia asked. 
 
 " In those old days, when Jesus was a man, and 
 Peter and Paul preached to the people," Lucita 
 replied for the rest. "There were not any Roman 
 Catholic priests then, sefiorita?" 
 
 " There were priests certainly, though they were 
 not Roman Catholics. Let me hear Ninfa' s ques- 
 tion — no, first all go and get your Bibles, and then 
 Ninfa herself shall ask her question over again." 
 
VII 
 
 " ' I "'HERE ! You are back again, every one. 
 
 -L That is good," the sefiorita exclaimed, as 
 the girls bustled in again. " I thought I would 
 give any one of you the opportunity to stay away 
 if she liked. What, Ninfa ! You have no Bible ? 
 Could you not borrow one? " 
 
 Ninfa hung her head for a second, then looked 
 up brightly into the teacher's face. 
 
 " I would like to use the little brown book you 
 have, sefiorita, if you will lend it to me ; the one 
 having a crucifix on the cover." 
 
 "My little Roman Catholic Testament?" the 
 sefiorita asked in some surprise. " Certainly, you 
 may have that one if you prefer it. I was going 
 to use it myself but shall be glad to see it in your 
 hands instead. It is much like the other editions, 
 Ninfa, and I am particularly glad for you girls to 
 learn just what it teaches on the question you have 
 in mind. Understand that I have as yet no idea 
 as to what that question is. What have you been 
 puzzling my girls about, Ninfa Barreda?" The 
 question was asked playfully, but there was earnest 
 interest in the sefiorita' s heart. 
 
 " Sefiorita, it is such a very little thing that I do 
 170 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I7I 
 
 not understand why a fuss should be made about 
 it by the girls," Ninfa answered. " I wanted to 
 know why the Protestants do not have priests like 
 ours, that is all." 
 
 " You know, senorita, we have been reviewing 
 our Jiistoria patria this week, and you have told us 
 a great deal about the old Aztec religion and the 
 priests and the sacrifices," Lucita interposed. 
 
 "And in our missionary society we learn about 
 the priests in China and Japan," Arcadia added 
 eagerly, "and it does seem as if everybody but 
 the Protestants have priests." 
 
 A sweet-faced girl named Angela Vera spoke 
 next, yet more shyly than the rest. "The lesson 
 at Sunday-school to-day was about the chief priests 
 in Jerusalem,'' she said. "You know they were 
 enemies of Jesus." 
 
 "Why were they his enemies, Angela?" the 
 senorita asked softly. 
 
 " Because he did not teach the people as they 
 did?" Angela replied tentatively. 
 
 " I believe," the senorita said slowly and thought- 
 fully, "that you will find on examination that all 
 priests who claim to be more than human guides 
 of their people and who trust in any other author- 
 ity than God for the spiritual aid they are able to 
 give, are false teachers, and as such are enemies of 
 Christ, who is God." 
 
 Ninfa looked perplexed, and idly turned the 
 
1/2 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 leaves of the little book she held in her hand. It 
 was a copy of the New Testament with notes, 
 published in London in 1847. The frontispiece 
 was a representation of the Saviour standing with 
 uplifted finger pointing to the sky. In the back- 
 ground were the walls and towers of a city. Three 
 crosses were pictured on a hill near by, and under- 
 neath the whole was printed : 
 
 "Truly this is the Saviour of the world." 
 
 The last leaves of the book were given up to a 
 subject index, by means of which the student 
 might find references, giving authority for, "bap- 
 tism," "spiritual joy," "adoration of images," "tran- 
 substantiation," and other religious exercises. 
 
 This book had accompanied the sefiorita on 
 many a visit from house to house in the city. The 
 actual sacred text was almost identical with that of 
 the other versions, and ignoring the human com- 
 ments and interpretations subjoined, the sefiorita 
 had often found that there were those who would 
 listen to this version, authorized by Pope Pius VI., 
 through his " Latin secretary," ' who would not 
 dare to allow the Protestants' Bible an entrance to 
 their homes. 
 
 After turning the leaves of her own Bible for a 
 moment or two, the sefiorita asked the girls to find 
 certain verses in the seventh, eighth, and ninth 
 chapters of the letter to the Hebrews. She herself 
 
 1 See Appendix III., for translation of the Pope's letter. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1^3 
 
 found the places for Ninfa, and the girl was sur- 
 prised to notice whole paragraphs in these chapters 
 heavily marked by pen and ink. 
 
 " You see, Ninfa, yours is a question that has 
 been asked before," the sefiorita said. " Now listen 
 while Lucita reads the verses as I shall call for 
 them." 
 
 For a whole hour there was quiet in the room, 
 broken only by the murmur of low voices, in read- 
 ing or in explanation and argument. Ninfa listened 
 to every word with an interest which deepened as 
 the discussion proceeded. She wished her grand- 
 mother could have heard what the sefiorita was 
 saying, and she wondered why there was no New 
 Testament like this at home. Justo must certainly 
 own a Bible, if he were a priest ; and yet this Bible 
 seemed to be teaching that a new order of things 
 had come about since Christ's life on earth and his 
 death, and it really appeared that there was no 
 further need of priests to offer masses for the 
 living and dead. As to the money offerings ex- 
 acted of penitents, not to speak of the actual 
 shedding of blood in some of the acts of penance, 
 according to the sefiorita these things were all out 
 of date, as well as wrong. 
 
 She wondered if there were Roman Catholics 
 where the Americans came from, and if they had 
 priests and believed in purgatory. 
 
 Poor Justo, a priest for nothing ! How badly 
 
174 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 he would feel to know his mistake ! Yet why 
 should he be mistaken, with the Bible as free to 
 every one as the senorita said it really was ? 
 
 For the first time the thought came this after- 
 noon to Ninfa, that Padre Manuel and her grand- 
 mother might be wrong in their idea that the Bible 
 was a book hard to be understood and not fit for 
 the young and ignorant to read. It seemed to her 
 to be written in very plain language, and she had 
 no difficulty in understanding the words after once 
 spelling them out. It was true that the little book 
 in which she was reading was printed in very small 
 type, but Lucita's was different, and Ninfa was sure 
 that with such a book she would be able to under- 
 stand much more of it than just the pretty stories 
 and simple verses she was growing accustomed to 
 hear read each day at morning prayers. The 
 senorita too talked very plainly, and it was easy for 
 Ninfa and the other girls, some of whom were also 
 Roman Catholics, to understand about the old idea 
 of satisfying the wrath of a just God by sacrifices 
 in his name. They pitied the innocent lambs 
 offered so frequently for the sins of the Hebrew 
 nation, and shuddered at the hints of human sacri- 
 fices, presided over, even now, by priests of heathen 
 nations, who have never heard of a loving God. 
 
 While the senorita talked about the priests of 
 old times, and their position as mediators between 
 some offended god and his sinning people, and 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 75 
 
 then spoke earnestly of the one great sacrifice of 
 God's Son for the sin of the whole world, it 
 seemed to Ninfa that the book in her hand told 
 the simple truth, that there was no more need for 
 sacrifice for sin, by priest or people. Did not the 
 words say: "Wherefore he is able also to save 
 them to the uttermost that come unto God by 
 him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for 
 them"? 
 
 Then the next verses were plainer still : " For 
 such a high priest became us, who is holy, harm- 
 less, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made 
 higher than the heavens : who needeth not daily, 
 as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for 
 his own sins, and then for the people's, for this he 
 did once when he offered up himself." 
 
 The sefiorita had said that the high priests 
 mentioned here were Jewish priests, of course, 
 who did not believe in Jesus Christ as God's Son 
 and the world's Saviour, as Roman Catholic priests 
 believe. 
 
 " Yet what need have we now of such priests as 
 these we see on the streets every day?" she asked. 
 "Our 'high priest' has not withdrawn his inter- 
 cession from us, but 'ever liveth' to fulfill his office 
 of mediator. We have him still, the ' mediator of 
 the new covenant.' " 
 
 Then the Christ and his offering of himself, ac- 
 cording to the sefiorita's doctrine, had taken the 
 
I76 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 place of the priests and their sacrifices of bulls and 
 of lambs and goats. 
 
 Ninfa felt Lucita's wistful eyes upon her as she 
 was called on to read a few verses farther on. She 
 stumbled in the reading, but the senorita waited in 
 patience till the end was reached. Angela Vera 
 had read of the tabernacle, and of the holy of holies 
 into which the high priest alone might enter, and 
 that but once a year, after sacrifices of animals for 
 his own and the people's sins, and the senorita had 
 said that this was very simply explained as being 
 only a shadow, or a type, of some better way to be 
 shown later. Ninfa therefore read what followed, 
 how Christ through his own blood, had now once 
 for all obtained eternal redemption : 
 
 " For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the 
 ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctifieth 
 unto the purifying of the flesh ; how much more 
 shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal 
 Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge 
 your conscience from dead works to serve the liv- 
 ing God?" 
 
 " But you have preachers to teach the people, 
 as our priests do," Carmen Diaz objected. " How 
 are people to know all this about Jesus Christ if 
 there is no one to tell them ? " 
 
 "The monjas taught me before I came here," 
 little Luz exclaimed ; " but it was almost all about 
 the Virgin and the saints." 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 77 
 
 " Our catechism does teach that Jesus Christ is 
 God's Son, senorita," Carmen continued; ''and I 
 want to know what we would do without the 
 priests, because after all, Christ has gone to heaven, 
 as this book says. He may be interceding for us, 
 but we cannot see him and cannot be sure that he 
 hears us." 
 
 "And this Bible says that it was right at one 
 time -to have priests and altars and candlesticks in 
 the churches, senorita," Angela Vera suggested. 
 
 Lucita was silent, but watchful, and Ninfa was 
 anxious to hear the sefiorita's reply to all these 
 objections. 
 
 Then she heard how the Saviour himself had 
 commanded those who had learned of him to go and 
 tell the whole world about his teachings and to try 
 to bring every one to a true knowledge of himself, 
 and if priests would confine themselves to teaching 
 the simple truth of the Bible about the Master and 
 his salvation, they would be doing God's work in- 
 deed. If, however, any priest or preacher in the 
 world should dare to teach that repentance for sins, 
 and confession, should be offered to God by the 
 sinner through himself as intercessor between the 
 sinning one and the Saviour, such a man would be 
 taking to himself rights belonging to Christ alone. 
 
 "And is it not thus with your priests, Carmen?'' 
 the senorita asked. " Do they not often put them- 
 selves, the saints, Mary, good works, penance, 
 
178 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 almsgiving, between a poor sin-stricken soul and 
 the loving Saviour? Has not a repentant man, 
 under such circumstances, a long and difficult way 
 to tread before he may be assured of forgiveness 
 and reinstatement from Jesus? Hear what my 
 Bible, and yours also, says : ' Now, once in the end 
 of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by 
 the sacrifice of himself.' 
 
 "Why is there need for any more sacrifice, for 
 the scourging with the disciplina, for the wearing 
 one's self out with long kneeling on damp floors of 
 churches, of hurting one's self in any way, when 
 the Lord himself is so near to each repentant heart 
 that a simple longing for his presence is all that is 
 needed to bring him closer, and confession to him 
 alone what he requires ? No priest is needed be- 
 tween any man's soul and the Saviour, and I think 
 what we have been reading very clearly proves 
 this." 
 
 " Did Christ say all this? " Ninfa asked, laying her 
 hand over the page of the letter to the Hebrews 
 lying open upon her lap. 
 
 " No. One of the Christians who worked after 
 Jesus ascended to heaven, wrote this letter to the 
 Christian Jews, when some were falling away from 
 faith in Christ, troubled by men who taught false 
 doctrines, contrary to the Master's." 
 
 " I suppose this is the truth," the girl said wist- 
 fully. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 79 
 
 "Yes, indeed," the sefiorita replied smiling. 
 " Ninfa, do you feel as if your question had been 
 answered ? There is a great deal more that we 
 might read about this, but I see that it is almost 
 time for the supper bell to ring." 
 
 " I cannot understand how so many people can 
 be wrong," Ninfa answered; "but I do think it 
 must be as you say, sefiorita, and perhaps some 
 day there will be no more priests in Mexico. I 
 would like to talk with my grandmother about it." 
 
 " Poor child, I am afraid your grandmother 
 would not agree with what this Bible teaches us, 
 Ninfa." 
 
 " Oh, but that is because she has never read it. 
 May I buy a Bible, sefiorita ? " 
 
 "To-morrow I will let you see the different kinds 
 we have, dear child, and you shall choose one for 
 yourself, with large print and strong covers." 
 
 As the girls went out through the anteroom 
 separating the sefiorita' s room from the corridor, 
 Lucita lingered behind a moment. 
 
 "Sefiorita Julia," she said, laying her hand for a 
 moment against the teacher's shoulder, " I do not 
 know why it makes me both glad and sorry to have 
 Ninfa ask for a Bible. But, oh, is it not good that 
 you and I do not need a priest to bring us near to 
 Jesus ? My papa often talks about it, and how the 
 priest used to seem like a great black mantle hid- 
 ing the Christ from him. That was after he had 
 
i8o the senora's granddaughters 
 
 begun to go to hear the protestantes talk and sing, a 
 long while ago." 
 
 " Lucita must be careful that she does not hide 
 the Christ from any one," was the tender reply. 
 " Lead the little questioning soul of Ninfa as near 
 him as you can, my child, but do not get in between 
 and shut out the light. Remember your name, 
 ' Light,' and let it shine very clearly in his name, 
 and then you will be truly serving him." 
 
 Lucita walked soberly away to join Ninfa, who 
 was waiting for her at the outer door. The supper 
 bell was ringing noisily, and all the corridor was 
 alive with footsteps and voices. 
 
 Ninfa clung to Lucita's arm as they walked 
 toward the dining room. Her thoughts were filled 
 with her grandmother and Justo. Within herself, 
 she decided that she would buy the Bible first and 
 then write home about it. Perhaps it would so 
 please her mama to hear of her improvement in 
 reading that she would not object to the new 
 book's being a Bible. And Padre Justo? Well, 
 he had warned her, and thus done his duty. He 
 had nothing to do with her, after all, as her grand- 
 mother had very truly said. 
 
 "Lucita," she whispered, "do you think the 
 Virgin Mother will be very angry if I believe what 
 the man wrote about Jesus Christ in the Bible? 
 She is his mother, and would like me to know the 
 truth about him, I should think." 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I 8 I 
 
 "She will be glad, Ninfa," was the whispered re- 
 sponse. 
 
 They were late and took their seats after the 
 blessing had been asked, but no notice was taken 
 of their tardiness by the busy teachers presiding 
 over the tables. 
 
 Buns and thick sticks of sugar candy were served 
 at the end of the Sunday evening meal, and even 
 Ninfa could find no fault with such toothsome fare. 
 
VIII 
 
 CARMEN DIAZ had not been so easily con- 
 vinced of the truth of the senorita's reason- 
 ing concerning the priestly office as the more 
 childlike and trusting Ninfa had been. Car- 
 men was older, her wits had been sharpened by 
 several terms at the Madero Institute, and she 
 belonged to a family priding itself upon at least 
 one priest for each generation. She enjoyed the 
 discussion of religious matters with the teachers, 
 and often waylaid one of them in the corridor to 
 propound some knotty question for debate. Like 
 Ninfa, she was of a wealthy family who paid her 
 expenses in full, while many of the poorer girls 
 were supported by missionary societies in the 
 United States. Her friends, Arcadia and Angela, 
 were not such ardent Romanists as herself, yet her 
 influence over them was very manifest to those in- 
 terested in watching their development. 
 
 As several girls sat around the fountain that 
 same Sunday evening, Carmen found an audience 
 entirely suited to her tastes. The bell for retiring 
 to the dormitories had not yet rung, and the girls 
 were enjoying the brilliant moonlight, after return- 
 ing from church service. Ninfa was there and 
 182 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 83 
 
 little Luz also, but Lucita had gone to bed with a 
 headache. 
 
 " Did you notice, Angelita, that the senorita 
 spoke about men teaching false doctrines to the 
 Christians?" Carmen asked in a low but trium- 
 phant tone. "Now, girls," she added, turning to 
 one or two who had not been present at the dis- 
 cussion in the sefiorita's room, " I have told you 
 what we read about priests and what the senorita 
 said ; how do we know that these gringos them- 
 selves are not teaching ' false doctrines ' ? In fact, 
 my grand-uncle, the bishop, says that their teaching 
 is false, and he is angry with my father for sending 
 me here to school. He says that it is like throw- 
 ing a poor sheep into a wolf's den." 
 
 Ninfa started slightly, remembering Justo's words 
 to herself. 
 
 " Somebody must know the truth," Angela said 
 thoughtfully. 
 
 " Yet our believing one way or the other does 
 not seem to make the truth," Arcadia added. 
 " Now there is Lucita Rubio ; she is a Protestant, 
 and some of the girls say it is because she is poor 
 and her parents are ignorant. Yet the senoritas 
 are not poor, and they are certainly very wise and 
 clever." 
 
 " Lucita is not ignorant, if her parents are," 
 Angela said quickly. " If I could study as she 
 does, I would be willing to be poor." 
 
I84 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Ninfa laid her head affectionately against An- 
 gela's shoulder at these words, and their hands 
 clasped under Angela's black shawl. 
 
 Carmen's black eyes flashed, and she tossed her 
 head defiantly. 
 
 " I do not think Lucita knows any more about 
 religion than the rest of us," she snapped. " Clever 
 as she may be with her books, she is only what 
 her father and mother are in religion. And that 
 is what the rest of us are, I am sure. Unless," 
 she added, with a sly look at Angela, " unless some 
 of us change and think our own better than our 
 parents' brains." 
 
 " The sefiorita told us in our class this morning 
 that our heads have not so much to do with religion 
 as our hearts," Luz spoke up bravely. "She said 
 that a little girl could be a good Christian just as 
 well as the most learned man or woman." 
 
 "What is being 'a good Christian,' chiqiiita?" 
 Carmen asked, giving the shawled shoulders of the 
 little girl a playful shake. 
 
 " 'Loving and obeying Christ,' the sefiorita said." 
 
 Ninfa sighed and wondered if that was what her 
 grandmother understood by the word. She was 
 greatly puzzled at finding good people so divided 
 upon the subject of religion, for she had come to 
 believe that there were good people even among 
 the protestantes. Carmen was only adding to her 
 perplexity. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 85 
 
 "Well, I shall certainly never be anything but a 
 Roman Catholic," Carmen said, "and that is no 
 reason why I should not be as good a Christian as 
 anybody. Ask your mothers, my dears, and I 
 think they will tell you that there were Christians 
 in Mexico before the americano§ came to teach 
 their betters. Besides, who wants to give up bull 
 fights and lovely balls ? Not I." 
 
 The bell for retiring ringing at the moment pre- 
 vented any reply to Carmen's last words. 
 
 " Have you known all about this new religion 
 for a long time, Angelita?" Ninfa asked, as the two 
 girls lingered for a drink of water. 
 
 "Oh, yes, for two or three years," Angela re- 
 plied. " I like it, Ninfa, and some day I mean to 
 join the protestantes. I have a beautiful friend who 
 is a gringa. She taught me not to pray to Mary 
 and the saints, so I pray only to Christ now 
 instead." 
 
 " Nobody taught me that," Ninfa said sorrow- 
 fully. "Then are you a Protestant, Angelita?" 
 she asked. 
 
 " Not yet," the girl answered slowly. "At least, 
 perhaps in my heart I am, but I cannot declare 
 myself before everybody." 
 
 "Are you ashamed?" Ninfa asked in wonder. 
 " I might be afraid if I had to tell my grandmother 
 such a thing of myself, but I do not think I would 
 be ashamed." 
 
1 86 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 *' It is the same thing, ' ' Angela replied. ' ' Ashamed 
 or afraid, you would find it hard to talk about. My 
 mother would be glad, I believe, but I am thinking 
 of the schoolgirls. I could not bear what Carmen 
 would say." 
 
 " Why did not the americanos come to Mexico 
 and teach our grandmothers?" Ninfa sighed. "I 
 like their religion best, because I can understand 
 everything they say better than the Latin prayers 
 and hymns the priests use, but I do not see how I 
 can be the only Protestant in the family." 
 
 "Girls! girls! did you not hear the bell?" a 
 voice called from a dim corner of the corridor. 
 " Five demerits apiece if you are not in your dor- 
 mitories in one minute more." 
 
 Before school time, the next morning, the Se- 
 fiorita Julia took a few moments for going to the 
 library in search of several Bibles to present for 
 Ninfa's choice later in the day. Not finding the 
 key to the library door in its place in the office, she 
 hurried on to the room, hoping to find it already 
 opened. Such was the case, but she was unpre- 
 pared for its occupants. She found two gentlemen 
 standing before a large packing case partly filled 
 with Bibles. One of the gentlemen was a mission- 
 ary, lately returned to the institute from a tour 
 through the State, the other, a Mexican, in the 
 gown and hat of a priest. 
 
 As the lady entered, the priest turned toward 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 87 
 
 her and acknowledged her entrance with a polite 
 salutation. Returning his greeting, she explained 
 in Spanish to the American that she had come for 
 a Bible or two, but would return later, as he was 
 occupied with a visitor. 
 
 " I beg that the sefiorita will not incommode 
 herself," the priest said courteously, standing aside 
 from the box and waving his hand deprecatingly. 
 " It is I who would await the senorita's conveni- 
 ence." 
 
 The missionary then assisted the young lady in 
 selecting several Bibles from the box, asking her in 
 English for whom the books were intended. 
 
 "For Ninfa Barreda," was the reply. "Of her 
 own accord she has asked to buy one." 
 
 Neither saw the start given by the priest, nor the 
 strange expression that flashed across his face, at 
 the distinct mention of Ninfa's name. His smile 
 was there, however, when the others turned from 
 the box, and his manner was as courteous as ever. 
 
 "To serve you !" he ejaculated, bowing low in 
 response to the sefiorita's word of leave-taking, as 
 she went out of the library with the Bibles under 
 her arm. Then he returned to his business with 
 the missionary. 
 
 " You have, then, no other books for sale, except 
 the little tracts and the Bibles?" he asked, con- 
 tinuing the conversation begun before the senorita's 
 entrance. 
 
1 88 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 "No others," was the reply. 
 
 " I should like a box of the Bibles, if we can 
 agree upon the price," the priest went on, glancing 
 carefully around the room. "I suppose you have 
 many more besides these." 
 
 "None at present," the American answered, 
 "except those large ones on the shelves, which we 
 call family Bibles. Of these smaller ones we would 
 not care to sell all to one person, I think." 
 
 " Not even if that person should wish to buy 
 them to distribute gratis among his parishioners?" 
 the priest asked, with a shadowy smile. 
 
 "No, senor," was the brief reply. 
 
 The priest sighed, glancing up and down the 
 half-filled shelves around him. 
 
 "You have many books," he remarked. "Your 
 young ladies are allowed to read them, I suppose." 
 
 "Certainly. They are gifts from persons inter- 
 ested in our school, and have been sent for the 
 benefit of the pupils." 
 
 "That is well," the priest commented, nodding 
 his head approvingly. "And may I ask, do you 
 also allow the sefioritas to read the Bible?" 
 
 "Assuredly," the missionary replied. "We are 
 very glad for our pupils to become acquainted with 
 the Bible. We find it a wholesome book to put 
 into young girls' hands." This last was said in 
 so confident a tone as to attract the notice of the 
 priest. 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO I S9 
 
 " I suppose you make presents of them to the 
 ninas," he remarked, stooping over the box of 
 books, and taking one of the Bibles in his hand. 
 
 " Oh yes, they are given as prizes in Sunday- 
 school, sometimes. Often, however, the girls like 
 to buy their own, selecting the binding and the 
 type." 
 
 " As the girl, the Senorita Barreda, will do," the 
 visitor said, turning the leaves of the book with 
 nervous fingers. " Excuse me," he added, with 
 careful politeness ; "I merely heard the name 
 mentioned by the senorita who was in here a 
 moment ago." 
 
 "Then you know English, sefior?" 
 
 " Oh, a very little, so little indeed that even the 
 pronunciation of our Mexican names in the Eng- 
 lish tongue is barely intelligible to me. To prove 
 this to you, I may say that I failed to understand 
 distinctly the given name of the young lady men- 
 tioned by the senorita. Was it Luz Barreda, 
 senor? " 
 
 " No, we have no pupil of that name. There is 
 more than one young lady named Luz, but they are 
 not Barredas." 
 
 " Ah, then, I was mistaken. This young lady is 
 perhaps Maria then. They also were mistaken who 
 informed me of the presence here of a Senorita 
 Luz Barreda. She is perhaps in attendance at the 
 school of the monjas across the street. Pardon my 
 
I9O THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 questions, senor, for I would like to ask one more. 
 This young lady, Maria Barreda, has she no sister 
 here, or cousin perhaps, of the name Barreda? " 
 
 "None at all," was the reply. " The Barreda 
 girl is from the far south and has no relatives in the 
 school, nor is her name Maria." 
 
 "Ah, then, my questions have troubled you for 
 nothing," the priest replied with a cheerful shrug of 
 the shoulders. " But, senor, is it possible that you 
 will sell me none of your Bibles?" he asked, re- 
 turning to business for the second time. The mis- 
 sionary gave a searching look into the man's clean- 
 shaven face, and before that look the priest's eyes 
 fell uneasily and he bent lower over the leaves of 
 the Bible open upon his palm. The answer was 
 spoken in a voice as courteous as that of the ques- 
 tioner. 
 
 " These Bibles are already appropriated for spe- 
 cial uses of our own, senor. In a few weeks, we 
 may expect a new supply ; then, if you still desire 
 to secure copies for free distribution among your 
 parishioners, I hope you will call again and allow 
 us to serve you. Meanwhile, will you do me the 
 honor of accepting the volume in your hand as a 
 gift from myself? " 
 
 " You are too kind," the priest murmured in 
 some confusion. " I will willingly pay for the 
 book, senor." 
 
 "Then you would destroy my pleasure in mak- 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTlLLO I9I 
 
 ing a gift," the American replied with a smile. 
 " Besides, you might feel that you had the right to 
 ' give away ' to some parishioner a purchased 
 Bible, while I trust that you will retain this as a 
 gift and perhaps even read it for the sake of — shall 
 I say, an acquaintance who wishes you well? " 
 
 The priest's shoulders were again shrugged ex- 
 pressively, but he hastened to slip the book into 
 some pocket under his gown, and then bowed low 
 over the missionary's offered hand. 
 
 " I thank you for the gift," he said with his faint 
 smile wrinkling his face, " but it is I who am hon- 
 ored in receiving so valuable a present. The 
 clergy, to which both you and I belong, whatever 
 the difference in our creeds, are surely one in ven- 
 eration of the Holy Bible, and I promise you to 
 read it. Your servant, Juan Zarco. Adios, senor.'* 
 
 " Adios, Senor Zarco," the missionary replied, in 
 his turn assuring the priest of his entire submission 
 to his service, and after the interchange of a few 
 more formal compliments, the iron gates closed 
 between them. While the missionary turned away 
 to close the library, the priest stood for a moment 
 on the garden walk beyond the iron gates, and 
 made a leisurely survey of the garden and of the 
 windows opening upon it. Drooping umbrella 
 trees made dark patches of shade upon the grass, 
 and here and there roses bloomed on the sturdy 
 rose trees. Though the grass was luxuriant in 
 
192 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 growth and the trees in full leaf, from the constant 
 wetting of little streams of water trickling from an 
 invisible pipe, leaves and grass-blades wore a dingy 
 coat of dust from the unpaved street. The sun 
 was high above the mountains by this time, and 
 its heat was oppressive. 
 
 After a glance over the garden and then at the 
 heavily barred and shuttered windows, the priest 
 looked backward into the cool depths of the hall 
 which he had just left. Instead of penetrating the 
 court, with its honeysuckle arch and rose trellis 
 framing a view of the fountain in the midst, his 
 gaze was intercepted by a high and solid partition 
 of wood, built across the farther end of the hall 
 and having a narrow door in the center. He 
 frowned, then turned and walked slowly along the 
 front of the building, and passed out into the 
 street. 
 
 A narrow sidewalk bordered the garden and in- 
 stitute on that side, and turning his face toward the 
 rusty dome of the cathedral, lifted against the blue 
 sky, Senor "Juan Zarco " paced meditatively past 
 the windows of the outer tier of rooms, which were 
 so close upon the sidewalk that the priestly gown 
 swept the dust from their iron bars and stone 
 ledges. 
 
 Most of the shutters were closed. Behind those 
 of one window he heard the babble of a baby's 
 voice and the splashing of water in a bath. The 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 93 
 
 sound of a piano came from windows farther on 
 and as the man reached the first of these, opening 
 into one of the music rooms, he found one leaf of 
 the shutters slightly ajar. 
 
 An open window in a Mexican street is con- 
 sidered by some persons as an invitation for a pass- 
 ing glance inside. The priest gave more than that 
 as he paused outside of those projecting bars. Not 
 a passer-by was in sight The windows across the 
 street were closed against the dust. From inside 
 the music room came the clear notes of a piano 
 finger exercise, accompanied by the droning sound 
 of a girl's voice counting, "one, two, three, four," 
 over and over again. No teacher was present, so 
 far as the priest could see within his limited angle 
 of vision. 
 
 The light from broad panes of glass set in the 
 upper panels of the shutters fell brightly over the 
 music book on the piano rack and over the girl's 
 head bent slightly over the book. 
 
 " It is she, of all others ! " the priest muttered to 
 himself. " And if at this hour to-day, why not at 
 the same time to-morrow ? I must go to my room 
 and think it out." 
 
 With something headlong in his speed, "Senor 
 Zarco" walked rapidly away. He hurried through 
 the narrow lane, frowned down upon by the gloomy 
 wall of the cathedral, bared his head mechanically 
 as he passed the open gates, stumbling blindly over 
 
194 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 the outstretched leg of a crippled beggar sunning 
 himself against the wall, and then more slowly 
 mounted a street on the left of the cathedral. 
 
 " I have not managed well," he meditated as he 
 ascended the street. " The sefiora herself would 
 have used more finesse. Here am I, branded with 
 a false name at my first encounter with that man 
 of wits, whom of all others I should have preferred 
 to avoid just now. That name was given from a 
 sudden instinct for concealment on my part, yet it 
 was hardly necessary, considering the part I have 
 to play. Under that name I shall not be able to 
 ask for an interview with the nina, valgame Dios ! 
 She is buying a Bible and passing from under any 
 influence I might have over her. She is young 
 and therefore trustful of those whom she loves, 
 and distrustful of whom she dislikes. The truth 
 about the other nifia cannot fail to be discovered 
 ere long ; she will act hastily in the matter, and 
 what might have been accomplished by my careful 
 management will be frustrated by the headstrong 
 eagerness of a girl, assisted by the partisanship of 
 the protestantes. Of course, they would conde- 
 scend to any measures rather than yield one of 
 their number to the embraces of her own family, 
 if that family were faithful to the Holy Mother 
 Church. 
 
 " Caramba ! the sefiora will think me a fool, and 
 with all these letters of proof in my pocket too ! 
 
AMERICANOS OF SALTILLO 1 95 
 
 Not one word shall I write to her until there be 
 certain tidings of some sort. Bah ! what is to 
 hinder the Protestant rogues from escaping a 
 second time, and once over the Rio Grande, 
 Saint Justus himself would not be able to find 
 them." 
 
 Sefior "Juan Zarco " entered the door of his 
 lodging with a dull pain in his head, a burden 
 upon his spirits, and an unaccustomed weight in 
 the pocket of his gown. 
 
PART III 
 
 HOMING TREASURES 
 
 God 's in his heaven, 
 All 's right with the world 
 
 — Robert 'Browning 
 
I 
 
 INDEPENDENCE DAY, the sixteenth of Sep- 
 tember, passed joyfully over the republic. 
 Shouts of " Viva la Independencia de Mexico" 
 were not confined to the corridors of the Instituto 
 Madero. From the Rio Grande on the north to 
 the borders of Central America on the south, there 
 were ready responses to the loyal cry, echoing from 
 every city and village, in honor of the old-time 
 patriot, Hidalgo. 
 
 Everywhere in Mexico, save in the hearts of cer- 
 tain opposers of their country's true freedom, there 
 have been rejoicings on this day since the forever- 
 to-be-remembered September sixteenth, eighteen 
 hundred and ten, when the Grito de Dolores 1 
 issued from a patriot priest's lips and rang freedom 
 from ocean to ocean. Perfect freedom, in the full- 
 est sense, is not yet ; but steadily the light advances, 
 the fetters yield, and some day Mexico will be 
 "free indeed." 
 
 Of course the Madero Institute celebrated the 
 sixteenth of September as a holiday, and in the 
 afternoon the girls were escorted on the usual ex- 
 
 1 Hidalgo's cry : " Long live the independence of Mexico," in 
 the town of Dolores. 
 
 197 
 
I98 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 pedition to the Alameda. There they heard as 
 little as possible of the open-air speeches, and pat- 
 ronized to the best of their ability the sweetmeat 
 men and the venders of cooling drinks. There 
 was the beautiful music of the Mexican bands and 
 the endless parade of Mexican troops to vary the 
 hours of the afternoon, and at six o'clock a long 
 line of tired girls tramped back to the institute, 
 with little appetite for supper, yet indefatigable of 
 tongue and gesture. 
 
 A promenade in the illuminated Plaza de Inde- 
 pendencia, followed in the evening. Each teacher 
 had in charge a squad of girls, clad, some in 
 freshly ironed cotton, "and some in velvet gowns." 
 
 Round and round the plaza, tripped sefioras and 
 sefioritas ; round and round, though in the opposite 
 direction, marched the sefiors and sefioritos. No 
 doubt it seemed to half-exhausted chaperons as if 
 their young charges would never weary, so tireless 
 was the tread of little high-heeled boots, so bright 
 the eyes sparkling beneath hat-brim, or fringe of 
 uncovered hair. 
 
 By ten o'clock, however, every institute girl was 
 safely housed within the school walls and lights were 
 out at eleven, though the merrymaking in plaza 
 and street did not come to an end with the with- 
 drawal of even so many bright eyes from the festive 
 scene. 
 
 Late into the night there was one girl awake, 
 
HOMING TREASURES 199 
 
 who could not forget in sleep the rhythm of the 
 band music, nor the flutter of ribbons and of hearts. 
 Ninfa envied Lucita her power of instantly falling 
 asleep after the last interchange of "good-night 
 love-words." The tired girl had not waited for the 
 candles to be extinguished before closing her eyes 
 and sinking into an exhausted sleep. 
 
 " Now I am just as tired as you are, Luz Rubio," 
 Ninfa confided into her companion's sleep-deafened 
 ear ; " but we are so different in some things. 
 When you are tired, your face grows white and 
 dark circles come under your eyes. You flop 
 down and go to sleep right away. But I get wider 
 and wider awake every moment, while my feet 
 ache and my head feels like a merry-go-round. 
 Caramba ! those new shoes have very high heels. 
 The sefiorita said I ought not to wear them to- 
 night because no one in the crowd would really see 
 them, and she knew just how my poor feet would 
 hurt afterward. Oh, how my face burns, and I 
 know I shall never close my eyes again ! " 
 
 She tossed restlessly, long after the dormitory 
 had grown hushed and dark. There was another 
 cause for Ninfa' s uneasiness besides that given by 
 her poor little pinched toes, which will ere long 
 appear. She would have been glad to wake L,uz 
 and share her perplexity with her, if she had dared. 
 But she did not dare, and meanwhile the stillness 
 of Lucita's figure close beside her made her really 
 
200 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 nervous. At length in desperation she slipped 
 from the bed and stood with her bare feet on 
 the floor. No one else in the room was awake. 
 Through the bars of the doors she could catch a 
 glimpse of the court, dimly lighted by the stars, 
 and the tinkle of the fountain broke the stillness. 
 Far away there were sounds of fireworks and of 
 band music, but the noise of occasional passers-by 
 in the street scarcely penetrated this inside tier of 
 rooms. Ninfa caught up a thick shawl lying across 
 the foot of her bed, and wrapping it around her 
 white gown, stole noiselessly to one of the doors. 
 This she found unbolted as usual, for within the 
 court and corridors of the building, after the outer 
 gates were closed, the occupants were as safe as if 
 protected by castle wall and tower, or so considered 
 themselves. 
 
 The stones outside were pleasant to Ninfa's 
 burning feet as she crossed the corridor and court 
 to the fountain. She sat down on the step run- 
 ning around its base and let the night wind cool 
 her feet, while she dipped her hand into the water 
 again and again and bathed her flushed cheeks and 
 beating temples. 
 
 Now and then the sky would light up with the 
 flare of rockets, or the burning of calcium lights. 
 The stars would seem to "go out," and yet when 
 the flash was gone there they were, peacefully 
 bright as ever. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 201 
 
 Ninfa grew refreshed and then sleepy, and was 
 even nodding as she sat, when the street seemed 
 suddenly filled with a rush of footsteps and a babel 
 of voices. She roused herself and sat listening 
 fearfully to the uproar. It was only the home- 
 going of hundreds of pleasure seekers at the gen- 
 eral breaking up of the concourse in the plaza and 
 adjoining streets, but Ninfa did not know this. 
 
 In the midst of cries of " Viva la Independencia 
 de Mexico" " Viva la Virgen de Guadalupe," and 
 others, one different from all the rest swelled high 
 above them. 
 
 "Que mueran los protestantes" x was shouted 
 hoarsely again and again, perhaps by some party 
 of students in the throng roused to a pitch of re- 
 ligious fervor while passing the institute. 
 
 With a frightened cry Ninfa stopped her ears 
 and sped across the court to the shelter of the dor- 
 mitory. Once inside, she heard the uproar with 
 less distinctness and by the time she had drawn 
 the bed-covering closely about her ears the voices 
 came as from a distance, and there was no more 
 such disturbance that night. 
 
 Ninfa cuddled close to Lucita, like a little lost 
 chick restored to its mother-wing. In her sleep 
 Lucita wrapped the small, shivering body in her 
 arms and Ninfa sighed contentedly. Her last 
 thought before falling asleep was this : 
 
 1 "Death to the Protestants," 
 
202 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " I should be afraid — oh, I know I should — to 
 be a Protestant ! How those men howled, like 
 hounds at the hunt ! Perhaps, though, with Luz 
 close by, I might be brave, because I do believe 
 she is right and the senoritas too, about the good 
 God and Mary's Son." 
 
 After "the sixteenth " school work was wont to 
 be undertaken with renewed diligence in prepara- 
 tion for the public examinations to take place be- 
 fore the closing of the school in mid-November. 
 Circumstances had already combined, however, to 
 interfere seriously with the thorough work promised 
 themselves by two of the girls. 
 
 Hitherto Lucita Rubio had followed a very even 
 course in school. Her home life had been un- 
 eventful and her school life successful. It had not 
 been difficult for her, at any time, to lead her 
 classes, as she had a natural inclination toward the 
 attainment of perfection in anything undertaken by 
 her. Her disposition was sunny and patient, and 
 the care and cleanliness to which she had grown 
 accustomed during her life at the mission school 
 had fostered the native nicety of her manners 
 and person. The schoolgirls declared that Lucita 
 looked like a princess in her everyday clothes, for 
 her manner of stepping through corridor or street 
 and the carriage of her well-shaped head were full 
 of grace, while no faded rebozo nor cotton gown 
 
HOMING TREASURES 203 
 
 could deaden the clearness of her complexion or 
 dim the soft lustre of her gray eyes. Her voice 
 was low and musical in speech — a full alto in song. 
 Her heart was filled to overflowing with love for 
 those who gave her love, and though she was already 
 more womanly than Ninfa in her sympathies, there 
 was much of the same artlessness and simplicity in 
 each of the girls. Where Ninfa was petulant with 
 fortune's slights, Lucita was only patient, yet both 
 were ready to enjoy to the utmost the good things 
 of this world. 
 
 The Sefiorita Julia met Lucita in the corridor 
 one Saturday morning in the following October, as 
 she was about to enter the sewing class with her 
 embroidery frame in her hands. The sefiorita was 
 a little pale, but her hand was cool and firm as she 
 laid it on Lucita' s to arrest her progress. 
 
 " I have asked the Sefiorita Concha to excuse 
 you this morning," she said. "Come to my room, 
 Luz ; I have something to tell you." 
 
 Lucita obeyed immediately, following the lady's 
 hasty steps with wonder in her face. A slight 
 droop of the corners of her mouth was the only 
 manifestation of her disappointment at the inter- 
 ruption of her work. 
 
 This weekly sewing class was attended by all the 
 girls, with mending of all kinds to be done, while 
 fancy work of embroidery, crocheting, or drawn- 
 work was taught by a Mexican lady. 
 
204 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 As Lucita was accustomed to spend each second 
 Saturday at home, she had but half the opportunity 
 enjoyed by the other girls for completing work on 
 hand. Just now she and Ninfa were engaged on 
 similar bits of work, the embroidering of wreaths of 
 forget-me-nots in blue silk in the corners of hand- 
 kerchiefs, Ninfa's to be presented to her grand- 
 mother, and Lucita's an order from one of the 
 teachers. Lucita's commencement dress of white 
 cambric was to be bought with the proceeds of this 
 piece of embroidery, and she was anxious to com- 
 plete her task and begin the stitching of the long 
 seams for the skirt of her new dress. 
 
 " Your mama came to see me last night after study 
 hour, Lucita," were the sefiorita's first words, when 
 both had seated themselves in the teacher's room. 
 " I found her at my door when I returned to my 
 room. The corridor was dark and you did not see 
 her sitting on my doorstep. She came while we 
 were in the schoolroom and waited to speak with 
 me. You remember that you went directly to 
 your bed after studying, and when I looked into 
 the dormitory after your — after Dona Teresa had 
 left, you were already asleep." 
 
 •" Then mama did not wish to see me ? " Lucita 
 said, with a hurt quiver in her voice. " I should 
 think she might have at least saluted me. But 
 perhaps something is wrong. Tell me quick, se- 
 fiorita, is my papa ill, or my little brother? " 
 
HOMING TREASURES 205 
 
 " Don Luis is not quite so well as usual, Lucita," 
 was the reply. "He has not been able to be out 
 of bed for some days. If he does not get better 
 soon, I think we shall have to let you go home to 
 see him during next week. But it was he who 
 sent Dona Teresa here to tell me something which 
 is very surprising to me, and which will be even 
 more so to you." 
 
 "Does my papa wish me to know if?" Lucita 
 asked. " Why did not mama come to me, then, 
 if I was to be told also ? " 
 
 "They wished me to tell you, my dear. It was 
 very hard for your mama to tell me. She could 
 not have told you, she said. Don Luis will not be 
 happy now until you know a secret which has been 
 kept from you for long, long years." 
 
 Lucita left her seat and came nearer to the se- 
 fiorita, kneeling at her feet and looking steadily into 
 the anxious face studying her own. 
 
 " Now tell me everything, sefiorita, without any 
 more explanations," she pleaded. "Papa has some 
 dreadful disease that is going to kill him ; is not 
 that it ? And you are trying to prepare me for it. 
 I am ready to hear about it and I wish you would 
 make haste and tell me." 
 
 " It is only rheumatism from which he is suffer- 
 ing, my child," the sefiorita hastened to reply; "but 
 the doctor says there is some danger of its reaching 
 his heart. Luz, he has suffered a long time," she 
 
206 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 continued, her voice breaking a little, as the girl 
 leaned her elbows upon her knee for support in 
 her kneeling and clasped her hands together, while 
 her eyes were still fixed upon the speaker's face. 
 " Dona Teresa tells me that he has had rheuma- 
 tism, now and then, since he was a young man. 
 The dampness of their house in the south of 
 Mexico made him very ill once soon after their 
 marriage, and he never fully recovered, as you 
 know. Did you not know that your parents were 
 from the south, Lucita? " 
 
 "Si, senorita, for I was born there. Is papa, 
 then, going to die very soon? " she asked steadily. 
 
 " No, not yet, Luz. And it was not of that 
 that he wished me to speak to you." 
 
 "Then Pepito is sick. Ah, I have been fearing 
 for Pepito. He is very little and weak, and so 
 many of my little brothers have died." 
 
 " No, no ; he is well, and he smiled happily at 
 me as I tickled his cheek last night. I think he is 
 growing nicely now, and some day — who knows ? — 
 he may be your mother's comfort and support 
 Now remember, Lucita," the teacher went on in an 
 altered voice, " that what I am about to say is said 
 at the special request of Don Luis, and you must 
 think of this fact afterward as a proof of how much 
 
 he loves you, as if you were his own daughter 
 
 Wait and hear me before you speak, my child." 
 
 Then the Senorita Julia related to Lucita all that 
 
HOMING TREASURES 207 
 
 Dona Teresa knew and had told her of the connec- 
 tion of her fosterdaughter, Luz, with the Barreda 
 family. Lucita learned, that Teresa's pretty little 
 friend, Manuela Valdivia, had been captivated by 
 the charms and courtship of Don Vicente, the 
 handsome blonde youth of El Dorado, and that 
 she had ridden away with him as his bride from 
 the humble village of Las Rosas, blessed by the 
 priest of the parish church, all ignorant of the cold 
 welcome to be hers in the home of her husband ; 
 that she had returned, less than three years later, 
 to find a fever-stricken village and a father dying 
 of the fever, while her old mother lay already dead 
 of another disease, similar to that now destroying 
 Don Luis ; that Manuela had brought but one of 
 her twin babies with her, the little, delicate, fair- 
 haired Luz ; that the young mother had died a 
 week later, in an agony of distress concerning both 
 her babies ; and that Dona Teresa's own little Luz 
 having perished during the first days of the fever, 
 the bereaved mother had taken into her empty 
 arms the motherless infant as it lay gasping in the 
 fever. 
 
 There had been no time to secure directions 
 from Manuela as to the baby's return to its father's 
 people, for the dying woman's thoughts, at the last, 
 had run only upon the sickness seizing her child. 
 Therefore, having received the priest's sanction to 
 her adoption of the sick baby, Teresa with her 
 
208 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 husband and several neighbors had fled from the 
 village. The priest had been convinced of the 
 certain death to follow his last glimpse of the little 
 one, and he had only hastened the party in its 
 flight to higher ground among the hills. After a 
 year of intermittent journeying northward, Don 
 Luis and his little family had finally reached Sal- 
 tillo, where they decided to remain and work for 
 the little girl who had taken the place of their own 
 Luz. 
 
 "For you did not die, Lucita," the sefiorita con- 
 cluded, pausing to see the effect of her story upon 
 the listening girl. 
 
 No answer followed, and on examining the face 
 which had drooped upon her knee, the sefiorita dis- 
 covered that Lucita had fainted. 
 
II 
 
 THE swoon lasted but a few seconds, for instead 
 of losing time by calling for assistance, the 
 sefiorita quickly laid Luz at full length on the floor 
 and bathed her face with cold water. Presently 
 the gray eyes opened and looked into the anxious 
 face above them. 
 
 "Now you are better," the teacher said softly; 
 " but you must not get up just yet. I will slip this 
 little cushion under your head and you may lie 
 still on the cool matting." 
 
 " Did I go to sleep?" Luz asked weakly. "It 
 seems to me that you were telling me something 
 that made my head feel a little sick. Ah, I am re- 
 membering now." She lay with her eyes closed, 
 her features working piteously, and the tears rolling 
 down her cheeks from beneath the long, dark eye- 
 lashes. . 
 
 "Are you not glad to find such a sister as 
 Ninfa?" the sefiorita asked. 
 
 "Is she my sister, really and truly? How does 
 mama know that the other woman, Manuela, you 
 called her, had a child named Ninfa? And if she 
 had, how do you and she know that it is this 
 Ninfa?" Luz asked, her voice still trembling. 
 
 o 209 
 
2IO THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " Do you not remember that Ninfa herself loves 
 to tell the story of her little twin-sister, who she 
 thinks died of the same fever which killed her 
 mother — your mother also, Luz? Besides, Dona 
 Teresa and Don Luis knew Ninfa' s father, Vicente 
 Barreda, very well, and they know it was his child 
 they had taken. They did it to save your life, you 
 know, my dear, and they have been as devoted as 
 your own parents could have been." 
 
 " Do you think I need to have you tell me that, 
 sefiorita?" Lucita exclaimed, sitting up suddenly, 
 with blood enough in her cheeks now, and her 
 eyes shining. " For my part, I shall never think 
 of them as any other than my own dear parents. 
 Mama can never be only Dona Teresa to me, and 
 as for papa — but is it all quite certain, sefiorita, 
 certain enough for me to tell Ninfa? " 
 
 " Quite certain enough, Lucita. But I think 
 you must wait before telling Ninfa, perhaps, until 
 we hear from the Senora Barreda, your grand- 
 mother, to whom I wrote last night, at Dona 
 Teresa's request. She will probably have instruc- 
 tions for us in the matter. Do you think you can 
 keep the secret a little while, Lucita, even from 
 your own sister? " 
 
 Lucita smiled and nodded, then her face clouded 
 over again. "Did mama not seem a little sorry 
 about it all, sefiorita ? " she asked in a troubled 
 voice. " I cannot understand what any of it means, 
 
HOMING TREASURES 211 
 
 except that I am not mama ' s daughter any longer, 
 and am Ninfa's sister instead, but papa and mama 
 must have had some reason for telling their secret 
 now. Did she look a little sad, sefiorita, or cry? " 
 
 " You can never know, Luz, what this acknowl- 
 edgment has cost them," the sefiorita replied 
 gravely. "Your mama was heartbroken as she 
 confided all to me, and said that if it had been left 
 to her she did not think she would ever have 
 given you back to your real relatives, to whom, of 
 course, you belong." 
 
 Luz started at the last words but passed them 
 by as she replied : " I shall be their daughter as 
 long as I live, and Pepito shall be my brother. 
 Nothing can ever change it, not even — no, not 
 even Ninfa's being my sister." 
 
 One more question was asked and answered, for 
 Luz could not understand why her parents should 
 be making their confession at this late day, when 
 nothing had happened to any one to require it, 
 and when she herself was happier as Ninfa's friend 
 than she could possibly be as her sister, consider- 
 ing all the separations and complications suggested 
 by this strange revelation. 
 
 "Your father has not for a long time been 
 happy about the secret they were carrying," the 
 sefiorita said solemnly, in answer to the question, 
 " and now that he is ill, he wishes any settlement 
 that ought to be made, made at once. I think you 
 
212 
 
 can appreciate his wishing to do what is right, 
 Lucita, even if that should threaten the perfect 
 happiness of his home. You have been a good 
 daughter to them, my dear child." 
 
 Luz rose to her feet, pale yet strong again. 
 "Thank you for telling me all about it, sefiorita," 
 she said. " May I go to my room now and think 
 awhile about what it all means? I do not believe 
 that I can sew this morning, with my head so con- 
 fused." 
 
 She had not long remained in the quiet of the 
 deserted dormitory, when she felt a soft touch 
 upon her cheek as she lay on her bed with closed 
 eyes. She opened her eyes to see Ninfa's con- 
 cerned face close to hers. 
 
 " I thought you might be having one of your 
 headaches again," the girl said, "and the Sefiorita 
 Concha said I might come and see if you wanted 
 anything. It does ache ? Yes, I thought so. 
 Let me lay this wet handkerchief on your fore- 
 head, and then I will let you go to sleep. I am 
 going to take your frame with me and go on with 
 your embroidery, because I am not in a bit of a 
 hurry about mine." 
 
 Ninfa tripped out into the sunlight again, bear- 
 ing her sister's embroidery frame with her and 
 wondering why her heart seemed to swell with a 
 certain new happiness, strange in her experience. 
 Was it because she had denied Ninfa, for once, 
 
HOMING TREASURES 213 
 
 and was learning to think of another before her- 
 self ? A novel sensation, truly, for the spoiled 
 girl, yet only one among the many already ex- 
 perienced by her in the little community of protes- 
 tantes. 
 
 Thus it is explained how interruption threatened 
 the hearty studying of one schoolgirl. As for 
 Ninfa, for three weeks and more, she had had 
 something to think about besides books, and of a 
 much more absorbing nature to a romantic girl 
 than the multiplication table or the conjugation of 
 English verbs. Even before the holiday of " the 
 sixteenth," it had begun. 
 
 Ninfa had been sitting at the piano one morning 
 at her usual practice hour, and hearing a slight 
 sound at the window behind her had turned in 
 time to see a wisp of white paper flutter through 
 the half-open shutter and fall at her feet. 
 
 Her first impulse had been to fly to the window 
 and close the shutter, before even touching the 
 note on the floor. After the window had been se- 
 cured and she had hesitated for a moment or two 
 over the scrap of paper, she was seized with a vain 
 regret that she had not peeped through the bars in 
 time to catch a glimpse of the author, or at least 
 of the bearer of the note. It was too late now, 
 for no one bringing a surreptitious note to one of 
 the boarders would dare linger outside after accom- 
 plishing his mission. Ninfa consoled herself, there- 
 
214 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 fore, with a speedy perusal of the note. There 
 was no signature to the few lines, not even the 
 initials "A. C." They read as follows: 
 
 Be careful. The wolves are hungry. Do not 
 read the Bible until you reach home, as an inno- 
 cent lamb needs a shepherd's guidance in new 
 pastures. You shall hear again from the writer of 
 this. Be prudent and do nothing hastily. 
 
 Ninfa was disappointed in this billet donx. Why 
 should she need a warning to " do nothing hastily" ? 
 Bah ! the words, with their underscorings, smacked 
 of Padre Justo Prieto. She had been forgetting 
 his existence until reminded by Carmen's words 
 at the fountain, and here it was again, " innocent 
 lamb," "wolves." This anonymous warning about 
 the reading of the Bible had come too late, for she 
 had immediately fixed upon a dark green volume 
 with large print, as soon as the sefiorita had offered 
 several for her choice, and had already read several 
 whole chapters in it, besides committing to mem- 
 ory many verses. She would always close the 
 shutters of the music room firmly after this, and 
 the writer of the note might find other means of 
 making his uninteresting communications. Per- 
 haps, after all, the message had been meant for 
 some one else. 
 
 For a week Ninfa held to her resolve to keep 
 the shutters closed behind her during her morning 
 
HOMING TREASURES 215 
 
 practice hour, but she kept the note hidden away 
 and did not even mention the matter to Lucita. 
 
 Greatly to her surprise her hour for practice was 
 suddenly changed just before Independence Day, 
 and she was directed to use henceforth the other 
 piano, occupying an inside room opening only 
 upon the court. 
 
 In the crowd at the Alameda, on the afternoon of 
 the holiday, she had been rudely jostled by a poorly 
 clad woman, who had at the same time thrust a 
 bit of paper into her hand. Ninfa's surprised 
 fingers had closed nervously upon this paper, and 
 there it had remained in a close grip until the 
 girls had returned to the institute for supper. 
 
 Ninfa had managed to separate herself from the 
 other girls after supper, long enough to spell out 
 the penciled lines, now scarcely legible on the 
 soiled sheet. 
 
 " I have been noticed at the window," the words 
 ran, " and must have other means of communi- 
 cating with you. Can you not manage to speak 
 with me at night perhaps, at a window or door? 
 The bearer of this will be at the front door to- 
 morrow, at eight o'clock, with chocolate to sell. 
 Buy of her, and give the money wrapped in the 
 paper containing your answer. A matter concern- 
 ing the happiness of your whole future life is at 
 stake, and much time has already been wasted 
 since you have stayed behind closed shutters. If 
 
2l6 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 you are not prompt now, a great wrong may be 
 done to one who will one day be as dear to you as 
 your own self." 
 
 Ninfa gasped with dismay on reading these 
 words. Then, tearing the paper into shreds, she 
 cast the pieces from her. 
 
 " I will not do such a thing," she thought to 
 herself trembling. " I wish I dared tell Lucita ; 
 but she thought it very wrong of me to have taken 
 'A. C.'s' note, and I do not believe she would love 
 me any more if I should let her know that this is 
 the second note already from another person, 
 whose name I do not know." 
 
 So she kept the secret to herself, strong enough 
 to resist the temptation of buying chocolate on 
 the next day, when the girls were allowed to crowd 
 around the woman who came promptly at eight 
 o'clock, yet she was too timid to speak to Lucita 
 or to any of the teachers about the matter. 
 
 Many times during the days following, while 
 seemingly intent upon her books, she was wonder- 
 ing whether the "great wrong" had already be- 
 fallen the mysterious person who was one day to 
 be as dear to her as her own self. All were well at 
 home, her grandmother, Maria, Guadalupe, Pedro, 
 the parrot, the canary. Certainly the warning 
 could not have come from them, nor could it have 
 come from the bonny cavalier of the red, red 
 horse, and whose initials were "A. C." Even if 
 
HOMING TREASURES 217 
 
 the words had referred to him as "the one who," 
 etc., surely he was a valiant enough knight not to 
 need the good offices of a schoolgirl. 
 
 So the weeks passed and October arrived. 
 
 Each girl's secret weighed upon her mind and 
 distracted her thoughts from the coming examina- 
 tions, and still no letter was received from the 
 Senora Barreda in the far south. 
 
 The next two days following the Saturday on 
 which Lucita had learned the secret of her birth 
 passed as usual in the school. 
 
 Ninfa had heard no more from her mysterious 
 correspondent, and had concluded that she was 
 judged no longer worthy of attention. Luz, in her 
 new thoughts, tried in vain to fix her mind upon 
 her studies during the following week, and she felt 
 that she could not long bear the strain imposed 
 upon her by the senorita's counsel. There seemed 
 something almost dishonest in withholding from 
 Ninfa the truth so lately revealed to herself, and 
 in the midst of this feeling there was a sharp re- 
 gret, and almost a morbid self-reproaching, in her 
 thoughts of her foster-parents. She grew fever- 
 ishly anxious for the next Friday to arrive, when 
 she should go home for her fortnightly visit. The 
 face of the world was changed for Luz, yet, 
 though its present aspect seemed to promise 
 strange happiness and ease, she was all the while 
 true enough to herself to feel honest sorrow at the 
 
2l8 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 change. Her thoughts flew, more often than ever, 
 to the poor house on the hill, where Don Luis sat 
 crippled and helpless and counting the days until 
 the time for her next visit, where Dona Teresa in- 
 dustriously rolled the corn between two stones, 
 glad to be able to support the family until the 
 daughter should be free to teach the ninas, and 
 where Pepito lay in his scanty clothing sucking his 
 brown thumb, and content with the world as he 
 found it. Could she ever give them up? Her 
 one consolation in all the tumult of her mind, was 
 the realization that whatever must come it had 
 been the will of her papa, Don Luis, that the 
 truth should be known, and that she had nothing 
 to do but to be guided by those who were wiser 
 than she. 
 
 But Don Luis in his pain, and Luz in hers, were 
 not required to wait until Friday for relief. 
 
 With Wednesday afternoon came a summons for 
 Luz to hasten to the dying man's bedside. 
 
 Dona Teresa herself came with the message, 
 leaving a friend to watch with her husband during 
 her absence. She whispered into the Sefiorita 
 Julia's ear, on hurrying away from the school, that 
 her husband had " many desires to see the girl 
 Ninfa Barreda, if only for a moment," and that he 
 would esteem it a great favor if she might be 
 allowed to accompany Lucita, as soon as both girls 
 could be made ready for the street. The good 
 
HOMING TREASURES 219 
 
 woman was sent away with the promise that her 
 husband's request should be granted, and she had 
 resumed her place at the bedside of Don Luis but 
 a very few moments before the teacher and the two 
 girls arrived. 
 
 Now at last Lucita found that she had no room 
 in her thoughts for anything but grief over her 
 father's suffering and approaching death. She fell 
 upon her knees at his side, while the visitors stood 
 by in pitiful silence after receiving his first greeting. 
 
 Don Luis looked from Ninfa's troubled face to 
 Lucita's and shook his head slowly. 
 
 " There is naught alike in your faces," he whis- 
 pered to Luz. " Does she know?" he added, with 
 another look into Ninfa's face. 
 
 " Nothing, papa" was the reply. "The sefiorita 
 said that we must wait to hear from " 
 
 "Yes, I know," Don Luis interposed. Then he 
 spoke to Ninfa. " Come nearer, Sefiorita Ninfa. 
 My eyes are perhaps a little dimmed and I wish to 
 see your face. Ah, I was right. There is no like- 
 ness to our daughter — to Luz. Wife, it is as if 
 Manuela stood before us. Have you not noticed 
 it?" Teresa nodded dumbly. "Wonderful !" the 
 sick man exclaimed weakly. "It might be she, 
 herself, come here to claim her child. I am glad it 
 will be so well with Luz. Will you be good to this 
 girl, Sefiorita Ninfa, when I am dead?" 
 
 Ninfa's eyes filled with tears as she answered 
 
220 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 him : " Do not doubt it, Don Luis, for I love her 
 with all my heart." 
 
 Don Luis smiled and then sighed, but so wearily 
 that the Sefiorita Julia made a sign of farewell to 
 Teresa and quickly led Ninfa out of the house. 
 
 "Why did Lucita's father wish to see me?" was 
 Ninfa's question as they entered the street. "And 
 he spoke my mother's name ; did he know my 
 mother once, sefiorita?" 
 
 Then for the first time the astonished girl learned 
 that Lucita's parents had known her own, when all 
 four were young and brave and happy in the south ; 
 and Ninfa walked homeward at the teacher's side, 
 her mind filled with the purpose to ask Teresa the 
 questions so long unanswered by her grandmother. 
 
 The Sefiorita Julia seemed able to tell her little 
 beyond the fact that Ninfa's mother and Teresa 
 had been friends in their girlhood, having grown to 
 womanhood in the same ranch village of Las Rosas, 
 in the southwest. What joy to think that ere long 
 she would have some certain knowledge of the 
 young mother, to whom, as she had for the first 
 time learned that day, she herself bore so strange a 
 resemblance that a dying man had said : " It is as 
 if Manuela stood before us." 
 
 Why had her grandmother never told her this 
 when, over and over again Ninfa had heard of the 
 wonderful likeness there had been between her 
 twin sister and their papa f 
 
Ill 
 
 DON LUIS lay on the rough trestle bed, with 
 only a thin mattress of shavings between his 
 suffering body and the hard boards. He had never 
 been accustomed to softness in any shape, poor 
 man, except that shining from Love's eyes, and on 
 this last night of his life there were other things for 
 him to think about than his aching bones. His 
 thick shock of black hair had been shorn close to 
 the skin, which made him look very unlike himself 
 to Lucita, as she sat at his side. There was more 
 than the shaven head, however, to give a strange- 
 ness to the familiar face. There was a new light 
 in his eyes and an expression of peace about his 
 mouth not often seen there during the past months 
 of his suffering. It was thus with him between the 
 attacks of awful pain and gaspings for breath. 
 When the paroxysms came on his eyes would stare 
 as if with affright, his hollow cheeks would seem to 
 sink still closer inward, while the breath came and 
 went between his bluish lips in labored pants. 
 
 "Try to sleep, papa" Lucita said, during one of 
 the quiet intervals when the troubled heart was 
 relieved of its pain. "You have not slept all day, 
 mama says, and the baby is quiet now, so there 
 
 221 
 
222 
 
 will be nothing to disturb you. Mama is resting 
 also," she added, with a look over her shoulder into 
 the dark corner where two figures lay curled up on 
 a mat on the floor. 
 
 "What time is it, Lucita?" Don Luis asked in 
 his faint voice. 
 
 "The bells have just struck nine, papa." 
 
 " Then lay your head on the pillow beside mine, 
 hijita? and go to sleep yourself. As for me, I do 
 not wish to sleep to-night." 
 
 "Papa!" Lucita exclaimed in great distress. 
 
 "Since we have talked it all over together, Lu- 
 cita, and now that you are sure that you love us 
 well, even though not a drop of our blood runs in 
 your veins, I am filled with peace and quietness. 
 Between the attacks of pain I am at ease, and 
 would rather lie here thinking of my to-morrow 
 than wear myself out trying to sleep. But it is not 
 thus with you, Luz. You look pale and weary. 
 Close your eyes, girl, and I will watch for us 
 both." 
 
 Lucita laid her head upon the pillow, as Don 
 Luis had bidden her, and before many seconds had 
 passed fell into a troubled sleep. The minutes 
 grew into an hour. A longer interval than usual 
 elapsed between the spasms of suffering, and all 
 was still in the little room. 
 
 A small lamp burned on a table, and the win- 
 
 1 Little daughter. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 223 
 
 dow, high up above the floor, had been left open 
 to give the dying man much-needed air. The 
 door into the hallway was also open, and a stream 
 of cool air entered from the back door upon the 
 hillside. No chill breath of night would ever again 
 harm Don Luis, and the freshness was eagerly in- 
 haled by his oppressed lungs. 
 
 The streets were silent now, and the chattering 
 voices of neighbors sitting in their respective corrals 
 under the starlight, were growing less noisy, when 
 a sudden and loud scream of agony startled the 
 sleepers in the sick-room, and caused many who 
 heard it outside to cross themselves fervently and 
 invoke the Virgin in prayer. 
 
 "Holy Mother of God! who can it be?" a 
 woman exclaimed, flinging open her back door 
 and gazing out into the darkness. 
 
 "It must be Luis Rubio," her husband whispered 
 at her side. " It is the death cry, Antonia. May 
 heaven rest his soul ! " 
 
 By this time several persons had opened their 
 doors and were standing on the rough ground be- 
 hind the row of houses, all with startled faces turned 
 toward the open door leading into Rubio's house. 
 No other sound had followed the scream and, as if 
 fascinated beyond their powers of resistance by the 
 deathlike quiet succeeding it, the men and women 
 crept softly toward the hallway and inside, with 
 staring eyes and bated breath. The fact that a 
 
224 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 protestante had been dying near by all day, far 
 from robbing death of its terrors rather added to 
 them, and the neighbors had kept themselves aloof 
 during the preceding hours. 
 
 It seemed too bad, they whispered now among 
 themselves, that two lone women must battle with 
 the destroyer, and they might at least look on and 
 be ready if help should be asked. Perhaps at the 
 last Don Luis would repent and agree to have a 
 priest come to receive his confession and admin- 
 ister the sacrament. 
 
 Fearfully clutching at each other's garments 
 these spectators stood in the dusk of the hall and 
 whispered into each other's ears how awful a thing 
 it was to die outside of the Holy Church. 
 
 " Straight to hell he will be going, if he does not 
 repent and confess," one woman said to another. 
 
 "And the baby to limbo, if it should die, poor, 
 puny thing. For they will not have it baptized 
 into the most Holy Church, and who will have pity 
 on a poor Protestant baby in limbo ? " 
 
 Meanwhile all was quiet again inside the sick- 
 room. The last struggle had been sharp, wrench- 
 ing from the man's lips that one cry of pain, but it 
 had been mercifully short this time. Now he could 
 smile faintly in response to his wife's agonized 
 questions, and his cold hand feebly pressed Lucita's 
 warm one. He. spoke with difficulty, but his eyes 
 were as clear as ever, and seeing the eager faces 
 
HOMING TREASURES 22 5 
 
 pressing forward in the doorway he made Luz un- 
 derstand that he wished the neighbors to enter. 
 
 Lucita left his side to repeat the invitation, and 
 though one or two crept away at her words and 
 returned to their homes, three or four women and 
 one or two men silently followed her when she 
 returned to the bedside. 
 
 Don Luis smiled upon them all, and in his husky 
 voice told them that they need not be sorry for 
 him, as he was ready to leave the world and go to 
 a better. 
 
 " May the Holy Virgin see you safely there ! " a 
 woman cried fervently, dropping upon her knees. 
 
 " No, the Lord, my Master, is with me and will 
 give me a welcome," Don Luis replied, pronouncing 
 his words with short pauses for breath between each 
 one. "I hope I shall see Mary too," he continued; 
 " but I shall find her like myself, only a redeemed 
 sinner, saved by the blood of Jesus." 
 
 The women shook their heads in pity at such 
 blindness, but the sick man's smile was so peaceful 
 and his manner so convinced that no verbal reply 
 was offered to his words. 
 
 After sipping with great difficulty a draught of 
 medicine offered him by Lucita, he spoke again 
 with more strength in his voice. 
 
 " Do not think that I am dying in error, amigos 
 mios y " he said. "If you will listen to God alone, he 
 will tell you that the protestantes came here to teach 
 
226 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 us the truth. God is a kind father and loves us 
 better than I love Teresa or Lucita or the boy, 
 and he wishes us to take our prayers and our con- 
 fessions straight to him, not to a priest or the 
 saints." 
 
 One of the women had stepped to the foot of 
 the bed and, extracting a colored picture of a saint 
 from the bosom of her sack, proceeded to un- 
 cover the dying man's feet and to slip the little 
 battered saint beneath them. At the same time 
 another woman held up before his eyes a small 
 wooden crucifix she had brought with her. 
 
 Don Luis smiled as he felt the movement near 
 his feet. " What you are putting there, Dona Rosa, 
 can help no more than it can hurt me. Ah, yes," 
 he continued, turning to the woman with the cru- 
 cifix, "the cross of the Saviour ! But it was a larger, 
 more cruel cross than that, amiga mia, upon which 
 he suffered. I wear graven on my heart the only 
 image of that cross needed to direct my thoughts 
 to him. You need not trouble to hold it, Dona 
 Antonia, for my eyes are fast losing sight of things 
 made by man's hands." 
 
 "A priest ! Don Luis, let us send for a priest. 
 David, my husband, will go for Padre Ocampo, and 
 be back before you can groan seven times." 
 
 "Papa, I will send them away," Lucita whispered ; 
 "why do you let them distress you ? We want to 
 have you all to ourselves." 
 
HOMING TREASURES 227 
 
 "I have spoken with them too little in my life," 
 he replied solemnly. " In the hour of death I still 
 have a duty to perform. Give me another sip of 
 the medicine, Lucita." 
 
 Teresa herself offered the draught, not suffering 
 Lucita to rise from her seat at her father's side, lest 
 one of the visitors should usurp her place. 
 
 " My friends," Don Luis began, and his voice was 
 perceptibly weaker, " though I will not confess my 
 sins to a priest to-night, I have a confession to 
 make to you." 
 
 He paused while they all dropped upon their 
 knees, and listened with bated breath for what was 
 to come. 
 
 " I have been a prote stance for six years," he 
 continued, " and most of the time I have lived in 
 this neighborhood. Perhaps if I had been brave 
 and clever, each one of you who kneels here now, 
 and many more besides, might have been like us, 
 believing in Jesus Christ as our Saviour and only 
 mediator. I am only a poor, humble man, and I 
 have not always spoken for the gospel when I 
 might have done so. Perhaps I have been even 
 ashamed of my religion sometimes, God forgive 
 me ! I do not expect to wear a golden crown in 
 heaven, for I deserve no reward, no reward but 
 just getting there, and that will be for Jesus' sake, 
 not for mine. 
 
 " Friends, think about what I am telling you. I 
 
228 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 am no preacher or learned man to say beautiful 
 words, but I can tell you that Jesus died for sin- 
 ners and that the angels are glad when poor men 
 and women find their way straight to him, without 
 virgins or saints or priests coming in between." 
 
 Another short spasm contracted his face for a 
 few seconds and then he spoke once more. 
 
 " Go hear the evangelicals preach and tell about 
 God's love. It is God's love that helps a man to 
 die." 
 
 The men in the little group about the bed had 
 listened as intently as had the women. One of 
 them spoke in a deep, hoarse voice, strongly in 
 contrast to the feeble tones of Don Luis. 
 
 "Are you then not afraid to die, Don Luis?" he 
 asked. 
 
 But the sick man was past answering in words. 
 He smiled, shook his head, and whispered to Luz 
 to sing. 
 
 Lucita nerved herself to the effort and after the 
 first words succeeded in steadying her voice enough 
 to sing the whole of the hymn beginning, 
 
 Cere a de ti, Senor, 1 
 Quiero llegar. 
 
 Don Luis nodded his head slightly irom time to 
 time, as if to say: " Amigo, that is my answer. 
 What more would you ask ? " 
 
 1 "Nearer, my God, to thee." 
 
HOMING TREASURES 229 
 
 There was quiet again after Lucita's voice died 
 away with the last words. Some of the women 
 murmured prayers where they sat crouched on the 
 floor, while Don Luis appeared to sleep. The 
 cathedral bells struck the hour of midnight before 
 the dying man again opened his eyes. 
 
 " Lucita ! " he called loudly. 
 
 "Yes, papa, here I am, close beside you," was 
 the soft reply 
 
 "You have been a good daughter to us. Do 
 not forget your — I mean my wife and the baby 
 when you go away from them. You have promised 
 me to do what is right and to go to your grand- 
 mother whenever the right time comes? " 
 
 "Yes, papa; but only because you have said 
 that I should. I do not wish to leave mama and 
 my hermanito" 
 
 "I know," he replied; " but Teresa also wishes 
 to do the right thing, when she knows what it is. 
 God will take care of Teresa and the little one. 
 Now go to sleep, my child, for you look very 
 tired. The Lord watches with me ! " 
 
 Don Luis never spoke again, and when, half an 
 hour later, the witnesses of the death scene stole 
 quietly away, leaving one kind neighbor to assist 
 Teresa in her last duties to the dead, more than 
 one thought to himself : 
 
 "It is a beautiful way to die." 
 
 Don David muttered to himself as he stumbled 
 
23O THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 in the dark toward his own door, " It seemed as if 
 he were starting on a fine journey to the United 
 States of the North, and as if he were expecting 
 great happiness ahead. It must be a good thing 
 not to fear death." 
 
 A week later found Lucita again at school. 
 She quietly settled back into the old routine of 
 study, and by degrees her face lost the anxious ex- 
 pression it had worn for many days. 
 
IV 
 
 OCTOBER was drawing to an end before the 
 long-expected letter arrived from the Sefiora 
 Barreda. The Senorita Julia read it over carefully 
 to herself, and more than once, before communi- 
 cating its contents to Luz. 
 
 From the letter she learned that the sefiora had 
 been away from home when the senorita's "most 
 esteemed favor" had reached Guadalajara, and 
 that it had not followed her, as she had been off 
 the regular path of the mails. Ninfa's letters to 
 her had already kindled in her mind a strange 
 interest in the child's schoolmate, Luz Rubio, and 
 her granddaughter's playful manner of alluding to 
 this girl as "my sister Luz" had deepened this 
 interest. The girl's age, her countenance and dis- 
 position, as described by Ninfa, and the fact that 
 Ninfa had recently written of her new friend's 
 southern birth, had aroused torturing suggestions 
 in the sefiora's mind. Before leaving the city, 
 therefore, she had dispatched a devoted friend to 
 Saltillo to make suitable inquiries in her own name 
 concerning the birthplace and parentage of this 
 Luz Rubio. Yet so slight had been her hope of 
 discovering any traces of her son's lost child, that 
 
 231 
 
232 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 she had strongly insisted upon a judicious reticence 
 on the part of her messenger concerning the mis- 
 sion in any interview he might have with Ninfa or 
 the Americans. It would have been cruel to put 
 false hopes into the poor child's mind. 
 
 Wearying at last of the messenger's utter silence, 
 having heard not a word since his departure in 
 September, the sefiora had set out on a visit to her 
 hacienda, and thence had continued her journey to 
 Las Rosas itself, whence her son's child had been 
 removed by the peasant folks. There she had 
 learned that the woman, Teresa Flores, was indeed 
 the wife of one Luis Rubio, her maiden name hav- 
 ing clung to her even after her marriage. Don 
 Luis had been a stranger in the village until a short 
 while before his marriage with Teresa, and even 
 now there were no others dwelling there by the 
 name of Rubio. Teresa's relatives were many, 
 however, though none had had tidings of her 
 since her flight from the city. The old priest was 
 dead, but there was more than one Flores left who 
 remembered that Teresa had carried away Man- 
 uela's dying infant rolled in an end of her rebozo. 
 
 The sefiora had retraced the weary miles over 
 mountain and plain and canon with a consuming 
 desire to enter the first train for the north and 
 hasten to embrace both her children. All lingering 
 doubt as to the identity of Ninfa's schoolmate, 
 Luz, with her own grandchild was dissipated by 
 
HOMING TREASURES 233 
 
 the reading of the senorita's letter, found on her 
 return home, and containing Teresa's confession 
 that Luz Rubio was in truth a Barreda, daughter 
 of Vicente and Manuela. 
 
 The children must be told of their relationship, 
 by all means, and she herself would have great 
 difficulty in resisting her impulse to fly at once to 
 them. She was getting older now, however, as the 
 effects of these long journeyings were proving to 
 herself, and she must wait until the "day of pre- 
 miums," 1 before giving herself this great happiness. 
 The letter closed with profuse thanks to the 
 americana who had so kindly written, and who 
 had been so good a friend to her "little ones," 
 and with a devout recommendation of them all to 
 the kind mercies of God and " the most Holy Vir- 
 gin." 
 
 A postscript explained that other letters had 
 been found awaiting the sefiora, which told of her 
 messenger's extreme illness in Saltillo. This illness 
 accounted for the silence and apparent unconcern 
 of the friend to whom she had entrusted her inter- 
 ests. Ninfa would be sorry to learn that her old 
 playmate, Justo Prieto, was probably at death's 
 door at that moment, at his lodging in Saltillo. 
 
 Luz was sitting at the foot of one of the pillars 
 outside of her dormitory, at work with slate and 
 pencil, when she heard her name called by the 
 1 Closing exercises of the school. 
 
234 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Sefiorita Julia on the day of the letter's arrival. 
 The young lady stood at the outer door, holding an 
 open letter in her hand. Luz laid her hand upon 
 her heart as if to steady its sudden startling throbs, 
 and then hurriedly responded to her teacher's 
 beckoning finger* 
 
 "You may bring Ninfa, if you like," the sefiorita 
 said, smiling. " I think she will be interested in this 
 letter as well as yourself." 
 
 "Is it from Guadalajara?" Luz asked, trembling. 
 "Then may I tell Ninfa everything? I should 
 like to tell her first." 
 
 Receiving permission to do so, Luz skimmed 
 away like a swallow. Down the corridor she flew, 
 past groups of girls playing at "checks" on the 
 pavement, with not a word for anybody on the 
 way. 
 
 She stopped in the doorway of the small music- 
 room, where Ninfa was practising, and stood there 
 for a few seconds behind the pretty figure on the 
 piano stool. Ninfa went steadily on with her work, 
 unconscious of her auditor, until Luz began to hum 
 an alto accompaniment to the simple theme the 
 former was studying. 
 
 The brown hands fell with a crash upon the 
 piano keys, and Ninfa wheeled around upon the 
 stool with quick words of rebuke upon her lips. 
 Luz went toward her with flushed cheeks and 
 shining eyes. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 235 
 
 "What is it, Luz?" Ninfa asked, surprised at 
 this interruption from Lucita, of all others. " You 
 startled me with your deep voice behind me and I 
 do not like to be startled. My heart beats as if it 
 would burst through my ribs." 
 
 "So does mine," Luz replied, standing by in 
 some embarrassment now, and fingering the music 
 on the rack. 
 
 "Let me hear it," Ninfa exclaimed laughingly, 
 laying her head on Lucita' s breast and throwing 
 her arms around her waist. "Yes, it really does 
 thump," she said, lifting her face to Luz. "What 
 is the matter, and why have you come to steal 
 away my practice hour ? The senorita will give us 
 ten demerits apiece, and besides, I do not half know 
 my piece. Go away now, Luz, and let me study. 
 I have been thinking of my grandmother all this 
 time, and of how proud she will be to hear me 
 play." 
 
 " Ninfa," Luz faltered, " I too have been think- 
 ing about your grandmother. Suppose she were 
 my grandmother too ; do you think she would like 
 me?" 
 
 "She would like all but your being a Protestant," 
 was the frank reply. 
 
 " Do you think that would keep her from loving 
 me, Ninfa, if I were her real granddaughter?" 
 
 Ninfa-s face grew wistful. " I have wondered 
 about that very thing sometimes, Luz," she said. 
 
2$6 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " Not about you, but about myself. Would mama 
 love me just as well if I were a Protestant, or would 
 she be proud and cold and not call me her little 
 Ninfa any more ? But what makes you speak so, 
 Luz ? I do not wish to be sad now and thinking 
 of such things makes me sad." 
 
 "Listen to me, Ninfa," the other said solemnly. 
 " We have to think of such things, because — oh ! 
 how can I tell you? Chulita, 1 you are my own little 
 sister, and your grandmother is really mine. Our 
 father was Vicente Barreda, Ninfa, and mama — 
 Dona Teresa — took me from our dead mother's 
 arms and brought me away to Saltillo." 
 
 Ninfa' s eyes grew wild and frightened, and she 
 clung to Luz without a word. 
 
 "Are you sorry to be my sister?" Luz asked, 
 with trouble in her eyes. 
 
 But Ninfa burst into a fit of weeping so sudden 
 and so violent that Luz could do nothing with her, 
 and finally had to lead her, sobbing, to the Senorita 
 Julia's room. 
 
 The girls stared in amazement at the sight of the 
 merry Ninfa in such distress, and many hurried 
 forward to offer consolation and assistance. 
 
 "What is it?" they asked. "Is it a dolor f 2 
 The sefioritas will give her medicine if you take 
 her to them, Luz. Pobrecita, how she cries ! Is 
 any one dead, perhaps?" 
 
 1 Darling. 2 Pain. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 237 
 
 For once Luz grew impatient with her school- 
 mates, and brushing past the condoling crowd 
 continued her way in silence toward the senorita's 
 door. 
 
 Her heart was as heavy as lead, and all the ex- 
 hilaration of the past moments had vanished. If 
 Ninfa was going to receive the news like this, it 
 would have been better to keep it a secret forever 
 in her own beating heart. 
 
 The teacher was ready for them, and quickly 
 closed the door upon any intruding gaze from the 
 outside. Once inside, Ninfa threw back her rebozo, 
 with which she had shrouded her head on passing 
 through the corridor, and again threw her arms 
 around Luz, mingling hysterical laughter now with 
 her sobs. 
 
 "There, there, Ninfa, be quiet," the teacher said, 
 with a sympathetic break in her own voice. " If 
 you cry and laugh at the same time, I am sure Luz 
 and I will not know whether you are most sorry or 
 glad to hear our news. Sit down, both of you, and 
 let me read aloud your grandmother's letter." 
 
 Without a word the girls listened to the letter 
 from beginning to end. When the signature, 
 "Alejandra de la Palma de Barreda," was reached, 
 Ninfa sighed deeply. 
 
 "Senorita, I cannot understand it, at all," she 
 said in distress. " You teach that the Virgin Mary 
 has no power to make us either happy or unhappy, 
 
238 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 yet it was she who sent me here to find my sister. 
 Mama asked her to decide whether I should come 
 to this school or go to that of the monjas across 
 the street A priest held the cards for her, and the 
 ace of spades, for this school, turned up in his right 
 hand, while the ace of diamonds would have meant 
 the other school. It seems as though the Virgin 
 would have wished me to go to the Catholic school ; 
 yet here, you see, I have found our Luz. Do you 
 suppose she had nothing to do with it, senorita?" 
 
 "What do you think about it, Luz?" the teacher 
 asked, wishing to know the thought shining in the 
 girl's gray eyes, as Ninfa spoke. 
 
 " I do not think that Mary had anything to do 
 with it, senorita," Luz answered. "And I am sure 
 that if she is what the Roman Catholics think, she 
 would never have let Ninfa come here, even to 
 find a sister." 
 
 "But the ace of spades turned up, Luz, and 
 mama had asked her to decide," Ninfa objected. 
 
 "Who held the cards, Ninfa?" the senorita 
 asked. 
 
 " Don Justo Prieto, a priest. He is mama s friend 
 too, and a very learned young man, just from col- 
 lege. I cannot believe that he is dying, and in 
 Saltillo too," Ninfa added softly. 
 
 The senorita was silent for a moment. 
 
 " I like to think that God's hand is in every- 
 thing," she said presently. "Of course no discus- 
 
HOMING TREASURES 239 
 
 sion of ours is needed to prove whether or not 
 Mary had a part in the decision, for the truth is 
 beyond any mere discussion, my dear child. You 
 must remember your verse, Ninfa, learned long 
 ago. There is truly but 'one God,' you know, 
 and it is he who rules the world. It was not by 
 chance that the ace of spades turned up in the 
 priest's hands. Whatever human hands had to do 
 with the decision, God's was the guiding hand after 
 all. There is but 'one mediator,' also, as your 
 verse teaches us, and that one is not Mary, you 
 know." 
 
 "Then does God hear the prayers people pray 
 to Mary and the saints, senorita, and does he really 
 answer them? " Luz asked quickly. 
 
 " Certainly he hears them. We are told that 
 ' the eyes of the Lord are in every place beholding 
 the evil and the good ' ; do you suppose that his 
 ears are deafened to any cry that his creatures 
 make ? But he is not pleased when any other is 
 put into his place as God and Father, and if prayer 
 to any saint seems to be answered by God, it is be- 
 cause this answer is to fall in with his own plans. 
 He uses strange instruments for working out his 
 plans for his people. 
 
 " Is all this beyond your comprehension, Ninfa ? " 
 she added, smiling at the girl, who had apparently 
 ceased to listen and sat gazing in a kind of rapture 
 into her sister's interested face. " All I mean to 
 
24O THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 say is, that I think the Lord, not Mary, sent you 
 here to find your sister. Are you very glad, and 
 do you not feel like thanking him in your heart? " 
 
 " Oh, Luz, how happy we shall be !" Ninfa cried 
 ecstatically. " I am thanking God in my heart, 
 right now, sefiorita, and it means more than just 
 gracias a Dios} Everybody says that a dozen 
 times a day, but I feel it inside too." 
 
 "Sefiorita, it takes God a long time to answer 
 prayers, sometimes," Luz said timidly, with her 
 hand clasping Ninfa' s. "We might have found 
 each other as soon as Ninfa came, instead of wait- 
 ing all this time." 
 
 " And why did he ever separate us ? " Ninfa 
 asked. "We might have grown up together, in- 
 stead, and not have wasted all these years." 
 
 " Do you think the years have been wasted, 
 Luz? " the sefiorita asked gravely. 
 
 " Ninfa ! I would have been a Roman Catholic 
 like you," Luz cried, startled at the thought. 
 
 "Then why was it not I, instead of Luz, who was 
 stolen from Las Rosas, if it is such a grand thing 
 to be a Protestant? " Ninfa asked, pouting. 
 "Mama will think that it is Luz, not I, who has 
 been unfortunate." 
 
 "Our Father is still leading us, Ninfa," the 
 sefiorita said quietly. "We cannot know why he 
 chooses certain paths for us, but we know that he 
 
 1 Thank God. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 24 1 
 
 never makes mistakes. Sometimes we ourselves 
 seem to interfere with his plans and hinder him. 
 Perhaps some day you will all thank him for the 
 years that have separated you and Luz. They 
 have taught both of you many things that might 
 never have been learned if you had lived together." 
 
 " At any rate, we are together now," Luz said 
 contentedly; "only I never shall be able to think 
 of Ninfa as my twin sister. She seems only a little 
 girl, while I am like " 
 
 "A great-grandmother," Ninfa added merrily. 
 " Never mind ; perhaps I shall catch up with you, 
 or you will grow silly and young with me. Senorita, 
 you do not know how delightful it will be not to 
 have to play at being sisters any more. 
 
 "You know how to pray better than I do," she 
 said shyly to her sister as they left the room to- 
 gether a little later ; " will you not help me to 
 thank the Lord ? 
 
 "Poor Justo," Ninfa whispered as they came 
 out into the corridor again ; " he would like you, 
 Luz, better than he does me, because you are 
 clever. He is very clever, indeed, and he thinks I 
 am as stupid as an old sheep." Then she stopped 
 suddenly, catching her breath at a thought that 
 struck her for the first time. Luz looked on in 
 wondering surprise. Was she ever to become 
 accustomed to this sister of the quicksilver-like 
 moods ? 
 
 Q 
 
242 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " Perhaps it was Justo who wrote the notes," 
 Ninfa continued eagerly. "He was always like 
 that. Instead of coming to see me he would have 
 had me write secretly. Oh, Luz, think of it ! He 
 came here to find you, mama says, and now he is 
 ill and perhaps dead !" 
 
 Thereupon Ninfa had many things to explain to 
 her bewildered sister. Luz had often heard of Justo 
 Prieto, the playmate and priest, but this was the 
 first of her knowledge of Ninfa's mysterious corres- 
 pondent. Now, after reading the first note, which 
 Ninfa had never destroyed, and then hearing the 
 contents of the second, Luz could not help agree- 
 ing with Ninfa that no other person than the priest 
 could have sent them. Luz was sure that the 
 Sefiorita Julia would commend Ninfa's discretion 
 and womanliness in the matter, as she herself did, 
 but she could not help reproaching Ninfa for keep- 
 ing the secret of the notes to herself. 
 
 "You did not know you had a real sister, did 
 you, dear?" she said; "yet I think you might 
 have told me." 
 
 They were inside of the dormitory by this time, 
 and sitting together on the edge of Ninfa's bed. 
 Ninfa laid her cheek against her sister's shoulder 
 and laughed softly. 
 
 "You see, Luz Barreda, you had scolded me 
 dreadfully when I told you about one little note re- 
 ceived long ago, so I did not dare whisper even a 
 
HOMING TREASURES 243 
 
 word of these others. It is true that I knew no 
 one in Saltillo who could have written me love- 
 letters," she added artlessly; "but I was afraid to 
 tell you, all the same, for you might have thought 
 that they were love-letters, you know, never having 
 received one yourself." 
 
 At this Luz sniffed audibly with her pretty little 
 nose, but Ninfa would not let her draw herself 
 away, holding her tightly with both arms. 
 
 "Never mind," she whispered shyly now; "you 
 shall see 'A. C for yourself some day. Is it not 
 almost too good to be true ? And Luz, I know his 
 name now, for mama has written it to me. He is 
 Anselmo Cardenas. Do you not think Anselmo a 
 beautiful name? " 
 
 The news of Ninfa' s finding a genuine twin in 
 her "make-believe sister Luz" was hailed by their 
 schoolmates as a charming bit of romance come 
 true in every-day life. 
 
 " Luz Rubio will hold her head higher than ever 
 now," was Carmen's ill-natured remark on hearing 
 the news, but she was quickly quenched by little 
 Luz Coiro, who was always ready of speech. 
 
 "There isn't any Luz Rubio, now," she retorted, 
 unless you mean Dona Teresa's little baby that 
 died all those years ago. And you may be thank- 
 ful if Luz Barreda ever speaks to you, Carmen 
 Diaz, after your treatment of her sometimes." 
 
244 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " Besides, Luz has known about it for a long 
 time already," quiet Raquel Uribe added ; "and I 
 am sure no one has seen any difference in her." 
 
 " I wonder if she will be ashamed of being a 
 Protestant when she goes to live with the rich old 
 lady and Ninfa," Angela Vera mused, looking 
 across the supper table that night at the happy 
 faces of the twins. 
 
V 
 
 IN a large room on the ground floor of a certain 
 house in Saltillo a priest lay dying. The front 
 of the house opened upon the Calle Real, as the 
 street leading past the cathedral was called, but 
 the sick-room was in the rear, and its wide-open 
 door and windows received the light and fresh air 
 from the inner court of the house. The clatter of 
 hoofs and wheels on the cobblestones of the street, 
 and the noisy droning of the public-school boys 
 studying their lessons aloud in a house near by, 
 were hushed to the sick man's deafened ears. 
 
 The Senora Barreda herself would scarcely have 
 recognized Justo Prieto in the lank figure stretched 
 upon the narrow iron bedstead. The hollow 
 cheeks, the lips, and nostrils drawn by pain, the 
 full brow bulging abnormally above the deeply 
 sunken eyes, seemed but a painful caricature of 
 the strong and intelligent features of the young 
 priest in health. 
 
 The fever of weeks had at last burned itself out, 
 and for twenty-four hours Justo had been kept 
 alive only by the use of stimulants. The hot blood 
 no longer throbbed at his heart and surged tumul- 
 tously through his veins. The heat in his brain 
 
 245 
 
246 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 was gone, and a sickly pallor had taken the place 
 of the crimson flush overspreading his face and 
 neck. Since midnight he had been in a state of 
 collapse, and now at noon of this first day of No- 
 vember, the sun's breath upon the cool air of the 
 bedchamber had no power to remove the chill 
 from his brow and limbs. 
 
 Justo was no longer delirious, although the mists 
 of approaching death befogged his brain and pre- 
 vented him from dwelling acutely upon the serious- 
 ness of his situation. He felt himself very weak, 
 and he knew that this weakness was caused by 
 extreme illness. He had had a long, bad dream, 
 as it seemed to him, lasting through many hours 
 of torture. He remembered vaguely having given 
 a note to a seller of chocolate, who had promised 
 to bring him an answer. He had gone to bed with 
 a terrific pain in his head and must have fallen into 
 a deep sleep, for no chocolate woman had ever 
 returned to him with the coveted answer j only 
 frightful dreams had haunted him, and visions of 
 changing faces had hovered about his bed. 
 
 Once the idea had possessed him that rogues 
 were tampering with a certain packet of letters, 
 valuable to him for some mysterious reason, which 
 in his dream he could not comprehend. He had 
 fought hard for these letters, he remembered, and 
 now they were safe, resting heavily upon his breast. 
 At another time he had caught a glimpse of a lovely 
 
HOMING TREASURES 2^J 
 
 angel, who had looked as the "blessed mother of 
 God" might look, though her features reminded 
 him of some one — who could it be? — of some one 
 who had smiled upon him divinely in the golden 
 light of an orange grove in Spain. But this fair 
 angel had not tarried beside his bed. In her hands 
 she had carried an open book, and on one page of 
 the book there were pictures of playing cards, with 
 their dazzling spots of black and red. The angel 
 had vanished in a rosy cloud, after hovering for a 
 brief moment in his sight, but the book had re- 
 mained, as if suspended in the air, until a tall man, 
 wearing the beard of an americano, had grasped it 
 in his hands, and with a mighty effort had hurled 
 the heavy volume upon the bed, with the words, 
 "Take it, it is thy life!" Now as Justo lay with 
 his brain cleared of visions, he believed that he had 
 just awakened from a night of feverish dreams, and 
 noticing a Mexican woman squatting in the door- 
 way, he made a feeble noise in his throat to attract 
 her attention. 
 
 She rose hastily and went to the bedside, offering 
 Justo a drink of a mixture already prepared in a 
 tumbler upon the table. Too weak to resist, the 
 sick man gulped down a swallow of the draught, 
 and then, in a thread of a whisper, asked the hour. 
 
 "Just past midday," the old woman answered. 
 "And how do you feel, sir?" 
 
 "I feel I am going to be ill," Justo answered, as 
 
248 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 before, "and I have no time for illness. There are 
 many things to think about and I cannot remember 
 them. Why have they let me sleep so long?" 
 
 " Pst I Pst ! You must sleep," the woman an- 
 swered, hushing him, though not unkindly. "You 
 will be better soon." 
 
 Justo closed his eyes obediently and waited to 
 feel better. When next he opened his eyes, the 
 sunlight had faded from the room ; lighted candles 
 gleamed like magnified sparks through the blue 
 mists of incense smoke. The air of the room was 
 so heavy with the fumes and odor of burning in- 
 cense that Justo gasped, then half rose in bed in a 
 violent struggle for breath. Strong hands received 
 him as he fell over fainting from the effort and laid 
 him back upon the pillow. A spoonful of some 
 burning mixture was forced down his throat, and 
 his heart began to beat with a sudden flare of 
 energy. He opened his eyes to find a smoothly 
 shaven face bent close to his, and to hear a per- 
 suasive voice in his ear, saying : 
 
 "In thy extremity, my son, art thou ready to 
 cast thyself upon the all-sufficient mercy of God, in 
 confession of thy sins, and to receive final absolu- 
 tion at my hands?" 
 
 "What, am I dying?" the younger priest de- 
 manded hoarsely. 
 
 "Even so ? hijo mio. There is no time to be 
 lost" 
 
HOMING TREASURES 249 
 
 A look of horror convulsed Justo's features for # a 
 second. Then it passed and he announced quietly 
 that he was ready. 
 
 The little boy bearing the censer and several 
 other attendants were bidden to leave the room at 
 this moment, and the elder priest addressed himself 
 to receiving the last confession of Justo Prieto. 
 This priest's head was covered with a square black 
 cap, a fringe of white hair showing below its edge. 
 He hid his face in his hands and, kneeling, leaned 
 his ear toward Justo's moving lips. 
 
 The confession was short and business-like. At 
 one moment Justo made a slight movement of his 
 hand toward the packet of letters upon his breast, 
 but the confession was uninterrupted. 
 
 When the last words had died away upon the 
 dying man's lips, the confessor uncovered his head 
 in order to absolve the penitent. Recommending 
 him to divine mercy, the padre stretched out his 
 right hand over Justo and prayed God to remit his 
 sins. Replacing his square cap, he then gave him 
 absolution in the name of Christ Jesus, and still 
 holding his right hand uplifted above the patient, 
 he added that he absolved him by Christ's au- 
 thority, in the name of the Father, the Son, and 
 the Holy Spirit. Then, uncovering his head the 
 second time, he knelt and prayed that our Saviour's 
 passion, the merits of the holy Virgin and of all the 
 saints, might conspire to remit the penitent's sins. 
 
25O THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Justo lay more dead than alive as the priest 
 arrived at this stage of the preparation for his 
 fellow-priest's entrance into another world, and it 
 became necessary to hasten with the administration 
 of the sacrament and extreme unction. The 
 room again filled with those who had remained in 
 the court outside during the moments of confes- 
 sion, and all fell upon their knees as the priest ap- 
 proached a table containing a basin of water and 
 towels. 
 
 The attendants, meanwhile, roused the fainting 
 sick man to slip a surplice over his shoulders, and 
 over that a white stole, arranged crosswise over his 
 breast His anxious eyes pleaded for rest, and the 
 little remaining breath came in feeble gasps at long 
 intervals. It seemed indeed a cruel thing to rout 
 the dying head from the pillow, and to turn and 
 twist the exhausted frame into a fit attitude for the 
 reception of the viaticum} But the last and most 
 mysterious journey of Justo Prieto's life was about 
 to begin, and no precautions must be omitted to 
 insure him a safe entrance into the new life await- 
 ing him at its end. 
 
 A few seconds of rest were allowed him while 
 the priest carefully washed his hands, and then, 
 fully attired in surplice, stole, and chasuble, ap- 
 proached the temporary altar at one side of the 
 room. This altar was a table covered with a clean, 
 
 1 The wafer administered at death. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 25 I 
 
 white cloth, and bore two lighted tapers, besides 
 the box containing the consecrated wafer, which 
 was covered by a veil. Then all in the room knelt 
 and worshiped the "host," joining the priest in a 
 chanted Latin prayer. During the prayer the 
 priest sprinkled the sick man and the rest with 
 holy water. Lastly, he carefully took the conse- 
 crated wafer from the pyx, and holding it reverently 
 between the thumb and forefinger of his right hand, 
 with the little box held just beneath so that not a 
 crumb should fall to the floor, he returned to the 
 bedside. 
 
 Justo was barely able to open his mouth in obe- 
 dience to his command, and even then he allowed 
 the wafer to remain upon his trembling tongue, 
 with no attempt at swallowing it. 
 
 The spectators held their breath in horror. 
 
 " Quick ! a glass of water ! " the priest exclaimed 
 in terrified tones. " The body of our Lord will be 
 desecrated ! He must be forced to swallow it." 
 
 The dying priest still retained enough conscious- 
 ness to swallow the spoonful of water poured into 
 his mouth, and the persons around the bed gave 
 a simultaneous sigh of relief as the short spasm in 
 the laboring throat testified to the safety of the 
 wafer. 
 
 The act of communion being at an end, the 
 priest, with many genuflexions, returned the pyx 
 to the table, brushing his finger and thumb against 
 
252 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 its inside edge so that any crumb of wafer left 
 sticking to them might fall into the box. Then 
 closing the box, he replaced the veil, and leaving 
 it upon the table, washed his ringer and thumb in 
 a tumbler of wine and water offered him by one of 
 the attendants. More Latin prayers and anthems 
 followed, making a harsh and mournful accompani- 
 ment to the dying gasps of the young priest. 
 
 The physician's entrance at the end of the serv- 
 ice again emptied the room of all save the nurse 
 and the officiating priest. 
 
 " How much longer will he last? " was the lat- 
 ter' s question, as the doctor lifted his head from 
 the patient's breast. 
 
 " Perhaps ten minutes, perhaps an hour, senor 
 padre" was the brief reply. " If there is anything 
 else to be done while life remains it should be done 
 now. What are you up to, woman? Leave the 
 man's feet alone !" 
 
 The physician strode to the foot of the bed and 
 flung up the nurse's arm as she was in the act of 
 replacing the bedclothes. Giving a glance of dis- 
 gust at the varied contents of the foot of the bed, 
 the physician turned on his heel and abruptly 
 left the room. He was a Mexican and his family 
 was Roman Catholic, but he had seen too much of 
 life and of death to enjoy the scenes now and then 
 witnessed by him at the end of some patient's life. 
 
 " Let a man die in peace, I say, with none of 
 
HOMING TREASURES 253 
 
 this mummery and play-acting," he muttered 
 angrily to himself now, as he left the room and 
 house. "They have no pity upon a poor soul in 
 the last struggle. Perhaps they would say it is I 
 who have no pity." And he laughed harshly as 
 he descended the street. 
 
 The administering of "extreme unction" was 
 the last rite performed in the sick-room. The 
 priest made some alteration in his outer garments, 
 while an attendant prepared the holy oil in a con- 
 venient vessel. Beginning at the eyes, each feature 
 of the face was anointed in turn by the priest's fore- 
 finger dipped in the oil, and lastly, the hands, feet, 
 and limbs. Small wads of cotton were at hand for 
 removing the oil after each application, and at the 
 end these were all collected with care for burning. 
 Each sinning member of the dying body being 
 thus absolved and consecrated, more prayers fol- 
 lowed. At length the priest and his following went 
 away, leaving a crucifix laid on Justo's breast and 
 outward peace in the darkening chamber. 
 
 The old woman was left alone to watch as long 
 as it should be necessary. The images and the 
 vials of holy water pressed closely against Justo's 
 cold feet were not more lifeless than he seemed as 
 he lay with half-open eyes turned toward the table 
 upon which the candles still burned. A rudely-col- 
 ored painting of the Virgin hung above this table, 
 wreathed with green boughs and paper roses. 
 
254 THE senora's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 The watcher dozed on the doorstep and did not 
 notice the stir upon the bed, as Justo feebly lifted 
 his hand and pushed the weight of the crucifix from 
 his chest. Then his hand fumbled restlessly at the 
 fastening of his shirt. 
 
 " Clara ! " he whispered ; " hasta la muerte" 
 
 A few moments later the bells struck six o'clock 
 and the nurse roused and crept toward the bed. 
 Justo Prieto was dead, with a smile upon his lips, 
 and his right hand firmly grasping the packet of 
 letters lying upon his heart. The crucifix had 
 slipped beneath the sheet. 
 
 With many crossings of herself and muttered 
 calls upon Mary, "the refuge of dying sinners," the 
 old woman replaced the crucifix and went out to 
 send word to the priest that all was over. 
 
 The death chamber was then arranged with little 
 delay, and the body of Justo Prieto, while awaiting 
 removal to the church, lay clothed in his priestly 
 robes, with his head freshly tonsured, and his little 
 square cap, with a crucifix beneath, laid upon his 
 breast. 
 
 The packet of letters was removed from the 
 death grip with much difficulty and confided to the 
 male attendant of the late priest, who had written 
 more than once during Justo's illness to the Sefiora 
 Barreda of Guadalajara. This attendant, before 
 leaving the room, stopped for a moment to assort 
 the letters and to put them into better shape, find- 
 
HOMING TREASURES 2$ 5 
 
 ing them loosened and disarranged from their long 
 contact with the sick man. He felt no disposition 
 to read them. The sefiora had confided to him 
 that the letters so jealously guarded by the patient 
 were on business of no importance to any one save 
 herself and Justo, and she had added that the sick 
 man must not be again disturbed concerning them 
 until he should be better. 
 
 As the man shuffled them into place and was 
 about to tie the string more tightly about them, a 
 photograph, wrapped carefully in white tissue paper, 
 slipped from between the envelopes. Examination 
 of the picture revealed a beautiful young face with 
 melting eyes, whose tender mouth seemed about 
 to pronounce the words, written in a fine Spanish 
 hand on the lower margin of the card, "A mi Justo 
 de su Clara. Hasta la muerte. Guadalajara — Se- 
 ville." 1 
 
 The man cast a guilty look over his shoulder 
 upon the dead priest, as he hurriedly replaced the 
 photograph between the letters. He felt as if that 
 grimly peaceful face were reproaching him for the 
 glance at the picture. He himself hoped some day 
 to take orders, and when he should be a priest he 
 knew very well that he would not be expected to 
 carry beautiful faces and touching legends upon his 
 heart, whether living or dying. 
 
 Yet the criticism that arose in his mind toward 
 
 1 "To my Justo from his Clara. Until death." 
 
256 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 this " brother" was chastened by the fact that 
 Prieto was now infinitely beyond him in all expe- 
 rience, in all knowledge, in more even than what 
 seminaries and travel could impart. He shrugged 
 his shoulders and left the room with the packet in 
 his pocket. 
 
 "I would leave the poor fellow his picture if I 
 dared," he thought; ''but it might be found and 
 subjected to rougher treatment than the sefiora will 
 give it. Perhaps, after all, it is the picture of a 
 sister." 
 
 Earthly ambitions and intrigues at an end ! 
 Love only till death ! What remained for poor Don 
 Justo? Did his soul go out into the dark, groping 
 among the shadows of purgatory for a vision of the 
 woman, Mary, who was to intercede for him be- 
 yond the grave at the door of heaven, while heaven 
 itself lay just beyond the last beat of the laboring 
 heart, and God and his rejoicing angels would so 
 gladly have taken him to themselves into the blessed 
 light? 
 
 They never come back to tell us about their 
 faring on the road beween death and life, so how 
 can we know of "the passing" of the dead? But 
 one thing we do know, that there are those who 
 fall asleep in Jesus, and these will God, one day, 
 bring with him. Was Justo Prieto one of these? 
 
VI 
 
 ON the afternoon of All Saints' Day, the first 
 of November, several of the older school- 
 girls had been taken by the Sefiorita Dora for a 
 walk to the hill of the American fort. Most of the 
 group of eight or ten belonged to this teacher's Eng- 
 lish class, and the expedition had been planned as a 
 farewell jaunt before the final breaking-up of school. 
 There had been merienda l of buns and fruit on the 
 crest of the hill, a game of hide-and-seek among 
 the crumbling mud walls of the old fort, and lastly 
 a quiet talk together, as they rested for a while on 
 the rocks before descending into the city. 
 
 The descent was an easy accomplishment, for the 
 slope of the hill was very steep, and there was no 
 question of walking down for these nimble maidens. 
 Brown-cheeked women looked up with sympathetic 
 interest from washing their clothes in the running 
 streams near the foot of the hill, as the girls and 
 their bright-eyed teacher ran merrily past in a 
 heedless scramble down hill. Here and there, on 
 the slope of the hill, men were at work in the late 
 hours of the afternoon setting out a small plantation 
 of maguey plants, and at still another point, nearer 
 
 1 Afternoon lunch. 
 
 R 257 
 
258 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 the foot of the slope, a mud-streaked peon was 
 intent upon his task of molding adobes, huge bricks 
 of whitish mud, mixed with chopped straw, to be 
 afterward dried in the sun. 
 
 Lucita's face became rather grave as she lingered 
 for just a moment at the senorita's side, to watch 
 the man deftly overturning the soft bricks upon the 
 ground from the rough wooden mold in his hands. 
 
 "It reminded me of papa" she said softly, as 
 they hurried on behind the girls. 
 
 When the little party at length entered the city 
 streets, their ranks came to order again, and they 
 continued the descent along the Calle Real, walk- 
 ing two by two, the Senorita Dora closing in the 
 rear with Angela Vera at her side. 
 
 Ninfa with Lucita walked in front, and the former 
 could not understand the gravity that had fallen 
 upon her sister's face since they had left the crest 
 of the hill behind them. She herself was as light- 
 hearted as a bluebird in the spring, and the crisp- 
 ness of the afternoon air seemed to make her feel 
 as if all the world should be as care-free as herself. 
 
 "Oh, look, Luz," she cried, when more than 
 half-way down the street toward the plaza, "there 
 has been a ceremony of some kind in the house 
 across the street. Perhaps it was a baptism of 
 some little baby, for there is the priest coming out 
 and the attendants. Are not the little boys cun- 
 ning in their white camisas and purple gowns?" 
 
HOMING TREASURES 259 
 
 "Be quiet, Ninfa," Luz said quickly. "Do you 
 not see that everybody along the street is kneeling? 
 Some one is dying or dead in that house and the 
 priest has just come away. No, do not kneel, 
 Ninfa," Luz added, in an authoritative whisper. 
 "What would the senorita say? Besides, there is 
 no reason why you should, unless you are afraid." 
 
 "I am not afraid," Ninfa returned; but her lips 
 were trembling and her cheeks had lost their color, 
 as she clung closely to her sister's arm. 
 
 Their words had not been heeded by the others 
 of the party who were too much interested in the 
 scene on the other side of the street to have eyes 
 for Ninfa. She happened to be the only one of 
 them all who might have been expected to have 
 more than a curious interest in the behavior of 
 their fellow-pedestrians, having been accustomed 
 from childhood to bow the knee at the passing of 
 the "host." 
 
 The priest slowly crossed the sidewalk from the 
 doorway of the house where Justo Prieto lay in the 
 stupor of exhaustion, and carrying the pyx rev- 
 erently in his hands entered the carriage in waiting. 
 He was followed by two attendants, the pretty boys 
 in their ceremonial dress, and then the coachman 
 with bared head drove slowly away down the street 
 toward the cathedral, one or two blocks away. Up 
 and down the street, as far as one could see, every 
 person except the schoolgirls and their teacher, 
 
260 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 dropped upon reverent knees and watched the 
 passing of the honored coach. Men took off their 
 hats as they knelt on the stones, and women crossed 
 themselves and ejaculated prayer sentences as their 
 eyes followed the vehicle bearing "the veritable 
 body of our Lord." A number of little children 
 playing outside a door promptly plumped them- 
 selves down upon the cobble stones, in imitation of 
 their elders, and raised laughing faces toward Ninfa 
 and Luz as the girls walked quietly past. 
 
 The older faces, whose glances met those of this 
 little group of "unbelievers" who refused to salute 
 the "host," were neither laughing nor agreeable in 
 expression. Yet nothing worse than black looks 
 was hurled at the trespassers, and an occasional 
 mutter of "condemned Protestants." 
 
 Ninfa, and indeed all the rest, breathed sighs of 
 relief when the coach at length passed out of sight 
 in turning a corner toward a side entrance of the 
 church, and the spell was removed from the street. 
 
 " I was afraid not to kneel this afternoon, Luz 
 mia" Ninfa confided to her sister that night at bed- 
 time. "Mama and I always kneel when w T e see 
 the coachman driving in the street without a hat on 
 his head. Oh, it is a wonderful sight, when one is 
 in the plaza in Guadalajara, to see hundreds of 
 people drop on their knees as if struck by light- 
 ning ; and I have never before to-day seen any one 
 standing as the ' host ' passes by. The gentlemen 
 
HOMING TREASURES 26 I 
 
 spread their handkerchiefs on the ground to kneel 
 upon, but mama does not mind soiling her silk 
 dress when she sees our Lord passing by. Why 
 would you not let me kneel, Luz, and why did not 
 the sefiorita kneel ? Did you see the ugly looks 
 those women gave us as we passed, and one girl 
 twitched the skirt of my dress and called me a 
 gringa. Is it that the foreigners do not worship the 
 'host'?" 
 
 " How many questions you ask, Ninfa," Luz re- 
 plied, half laughing, half serious. " I wish you 
 would ask the senoritas half the questions you put 
 to me. They could answer them better than I can." 
 
 " But you can tell me why you did not kneel, 
 Luz," the other persisted. 
 
 The lights were out in the dormitory, and this 
 conversation was carried on in the low tones suited 
 to the hour. As usual, the two beds stood closely 
 side by side, and what passed between the two sis- 
 ters could reach other wakeful ears only as mean- 
 ingless murmurs. 
 
 " Because I am a Protestant, Ninfa," was the 
 direct reply. " We do not believe that the wafer 
 is the real body of Jesus Christ." 
 
 " But all of you eat it, or rather, you eat broken 
 bits of bread in the place of it," Ninfa objected. 
 " I have been to the Santa Cena, at your church, 
 you know, and have seen you eat the bread. Why 
 do you do it, if it is not the Lord's body? " 
 
262 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " We do it for a remembrance of him, as he told 
 his disciples to do, Ninfa. That is all I know 
 about it, except that it cannot be his real body. It 
 is only plain bread, such as we eat every day in the 
 dining room, or if it is a wafer it is a paste of flour 
 and water. Do you think the disciples of Jesus ate 
 his real body, Ninfa, when they ate that last supper 
 together? " 
 
 "Why not?" Ninfa asked innocently. 
 
 "Because he was not yet dead, child ; and was 
 sitting at the table with them eating supper. How 
 could they have eaten bits of his body when he 
 was still alive, foolish girl ? And how can a priest, 
 or any man, change a piece of wafer into the body 
 of Christ by saying a few Latin words ? " 
 
 " I do not know," was Ninfa' s perplexed answer. 
 " I know that mama thinks they can, and we have 
 never heard anything else. Oh, dear, it seems as 
 if you and I have such different thoughts, Luz, 
 about religion ! I wonder if we shall ever think 
 alike. Perhaps some day we shall quarrel and be 
 sorry that we have ever found each other. Are 
 sisters always like this? " 
 
 Luz clasped Ninfa in her arms and consoled her 
 with silent caresses. 
 
 Ninfa was like a kitten in the enjoyment of loving 
 pats and strokings, and I am not sure that she did 
 not sometimes purposely work upon Lucita's tender 
 feelings in order to win the petting she desired. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 263 
 
 This was not such a time, however, for there had 
 been a real struggle going on in Ninfa's mind for 
 many days. Mingled with the exultant joy of these 
 happy days there had been a sense of pain from the 
 first at the thought that though sisters, she and Luz 
 could never be entirely one while so divided upon 
 one great subject. 
 
 She had no thought of trying to win Luz back to 
 the church into which as infants they had been ad- 
 mitted almost eighteen years before, nor could she 
 know that the patient sweetness of her sister's 
 manner toward herself was due to a certain hope 
 tapping gently at the Protestant girl's heart of what 
 might happen some day. Yet Luz was surprised 
 at the unexpectedly speedy answer to her prayers. 
 The "day" was not long in coming. 
 
 "We are alike in so many other ways," Ninfa 
 whispered a little later. " Or at least we shall be 
 after living together for a while in our own home. 
 We both like pretty things, and we love each other 
 dearly, even if you are fair and I as dark as an 
 Indian." 
 
 "As if that could make any difference!" Luz 
 answered softly. " Go to sleep now, Ninfa, or you 
 will be sleepy to-morrow, and stupid for the exami- 
 nations." 
 
 "You are such a cat for going to sleep, Lucita," 
 Ninfa retorted petulantly. "Just when we get to 
 an interesting part of our talking at night, you 
 
264 THE SENOKA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 always turn over and say, 'Go to sleep, Ninfa, or 
 you will be stupid.' I am 'stupid' whether asleep 
 or not; Justo always called me so." 
 
 "Well, you are cross now," Luz replied drowsily, 
 "so I shall go to sleep and leave you." 
 
 She turned her head on the pillow as she spoke 
 and composed herself for sleep, with her arms 
 crossed above her head. 
 
 Released from her sister's embrace, Ninfa also 
 pretended to sleep, and Luz was falling into her 
 first doze when she heard a heartbroken sob, and 
 in another moment was making distressed efforts to 
 discover what ailed the excitable child at her side. 
 
 "If the color of my skin does not make any dif- 
 ference, something else does," Ninfa said brokenly 
 at last. "You never will love me enough while 
 you are a Protestant and I a Catholic." 
 
 "Would you like me to be a Catholic, little 
 sister?" Luz asked in troubled tones. 
 
 "No! no!" was the smothered reply; "but I 
 could be a Protestant, could I not, Luz?" 
 
 "Darling, what would your grandmother say and 
 do to you if you should become a Protestant?" 
 Luz asked fearfully, with hope thumping wildly at 
 her heart's doors now. 
 
 "Angela says that she would be ashamed to be 
 a Protestant," Ninfa continued in a more composed 
 voice ; "but I should be only a little afraid, I think, 
 not ashamed. Mama would be angry, perhaps, but 
 
HOMING TREASURES 265 
 
 she loves me too well to hurt me, and then you and 
 I would be alike, Lucita ; don't you see? We 
 cannot be real twins unless I am a Protestant too, 
 and mama will rejoice so much over having us 
 together that she will forgive us both." 
 
 Luz was a little chjlled by Ninfa's words and 
 hardly knew how to reply. She was quite sure 
 that no one would be admitted into a Protestant 
 church for such a reason as Ninfa had suggested, 
 the making "real twins" of two sisters divided by 
 their religious creeds. 
 
 "You are not sleepy now, are you?" Ninfa con- 
 tinued. "Listen, how quiet everything is. Luz 
 Coiro is snoring, but that is all the noise there is, 
 and you and I are like two owls chatting together 
 in the dark. Your eyes look like owls' eyes, to- 
 night, Luz; does your head ache?" 
 
 "No, but I wish you would be quiet, Ninfa, if 
 you have said all you have to say and are not going 
 to cry any more." 
 
 "Now it is you who are cross," Ninfa exclaimed, 
 "and I thought you would be glad to hear about 
 my being a Protestant." 
 
 "You cannot be a Protestant just because you 
 want to be like me, Ninfa," Luz said solemnly, 
 resigning herself to another discussion with her 
 sister. 
 
 "But that is only one reason, Luz. I will tell 
 you the others. For one thing, I love to read the 
 
266 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 Bible as you and the sefioritas do, and I like the 
 Protestant worship better than the Catholic because 
 I understand every word of it. Then I have not 
 prayed to the Virgin Mary for six weeks, and I do 
 not believe that priests ought to make people con- 
 fess their sins to them when they are like other 
 men and often sin themselves. And I believe what 
 you told me to-night about the sacrament, that it 
 is not the Lord's real body. Now," she ended, 
 "is not that something like being a Protestant?" 
 
 Luz was puzzled to know what to reply. 
 
 "That is the way we believe about those things, 
 Ninfa," she answered after a moment; "but there 
 is something more, I am sure. I do not believe 
 that the pastor would be satisfied with just that 
 much and no more." 
 
 " Lean your ear close to my mouth, Lucita dear," 
 Ninfa whispered ; "there is something more to tell 
 you." 
 
 Then she repeated, word for word, the verses 
 written upon the forget-me-not card given her long 
 ago by the missionary teacher in Guadalajara. 
 
 "I know now," she went on, "that God wants 
 everybody to be saved, and that Christ is the only 
 intercessor. Last Sunday, in the class, I was won- 
 dering in my mind how people are saved, and the 
 Sefiorita Dora began right away to teach us a verse. 
 This was it, ' Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and 
 thou shalt be saved.' I do believe on the Lord 
 
HOMING TREASURES 267 
 
 Jesus Christ, Luz, and so I shall be saved. Now 
 am I not a Protestant?" she ended, with a half- 
 frightened catch in her voice and covering her head 
 with the bedclothes. 
 
 " O Ninfa, you are if you believe!" Luz ex- 
 claimed joyfully; "and now we shall be 'real 
 twins,' as you say. To-morrow we will go to the 
 sefiorita and tell her all about it." 
 
 "Is it not a good thing to be sisters?" Ninfa 
 asked, after a moment or two of awed silence be- 
 tween them. " I am so glad you did not die when 
 you were a little baby lying on the floor of that 
 dreadful house. Dona Teresa was a good woman 
 to take care of you and nurse you. I wish our 
 mother had not died ; poor little mother ! Do you 
 believe that her ghost is walking about to-night, 
 Luz, and papas? Mama says that dead people's 
 ghosts walk about the earth on the night of All 
 Saints. I should think our mother and father 
 would be glad to come here now and find us to- 
 gether." 
 
 " Perhaps they know about it without coming 
 here," Luz answered ; " and I think that it is only a 
 superstition that makes people believe that ghosts 
 walk about on this night. The Sefiorita Julia says 
 that the spirits of the dead may be with us all the 
 time, as God is, but she is not sure about it." 
 
 "I like to think about good spirits, but not about 
 the bad ones, Luz." And Ninfa shuddered, cud- 
 
268 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 dling close at her sister's side. " It looks cold and 
 dark out of doors, and I am glad we have locks on 
 our doors now, though I do not suppose locks 
 could keep spirits out." 
 
 After a little more talk together, the girls finally 
 dropped off to sleep, a little while before the bells 
 tolled midnight. 
 
 If any spirit walked that night in the silence of 
 that sleeping chamber, it was the great spirit of 
 Love, I think, and his soft footfalls must have lin- 
 gered beside the two little beds drawn close to- 
 gether in the corner. Whether the Vicente and 
 the Manuela of long ago really overlooked their 
 twin children as they slept, is not for me to say. 
 
 Ninfa and Luz were united at last, as no elabo- 
 rate intrigue of any priest's designing could have 
 effected. The hand of God, with finger pointed 
 straight ahead, ever leads his children on to their 
 inheritance of his joy and peace. 
 
 The next morning, before the sun looked over 
 the walls of the institute building into the cleanly 
 swept court, the Sefiorita Julia left her room and 
 walked slowly toward the hydrant with her empty 
 water-pitcher in her hand. Suddenly, as she stood 
 upon the wet stones by the water pipe, she felt a 
 touch upon her arm and, starting nervously, found 
 Luz and Ninfa standing at her side. Their faces 
 were turned to the eastern sky, but they shone with 
 something more than a reflection of its brightness. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 269 
 
 "Twin morning stars, good-day to you," the 
 teacher cried in quick response to their soft-voiced 
 salutations. " What early birds you are ! " 
 
 " We have been waiting for you for a long time, 
 senorita," Luz explained while the water splashed 
 unnoticed from the overflowing pitcher at the spout. 
 11 We have something to tell you, and we wished 
 to see you before the rest of the girls came about." 
 
 Ninfa deftly turned off the water, and taking 
 the pitcher from the sefiorita's hand, ran nimbly 
 off with it to set it down at the chamber door. 
 She looked pleadingly at Luz as she tripped away, 
 and the sister understood. 
 
 " It is about Ninfa," she said to the senorita, 
 who had waited to hear what was to follow Lucita's 
 first words. " Senorita mia, she is a Protestant in 
 her heart, and we wish to know if she may not 
 join with us before we go away from Saltillo." 
 
 The senorita sat quickly down upon the step of 
 the fountain and motioned the girls to a seat, one 
 on each side of her, for Ninfa had shyly returned, 
 and was watching her face in silent expectancy. 
 
 "What are you saying, senorita?" Luz asked 
 presently, as the teacher's lips moved voicelessly, 
 while her eyes were fixed upon the floating cloud- 
 lets above the court. 
 
 " I was thanking the Lord for his goodness, and 
 asking his forgiveness for my unbelief," was the 
 reply. " Ah, girls, never distrust him for one mo- 
 
27O THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 ment, when you have asked his help. Last night 
 I scarcely slept at all, and this morning I left my 
 room with my heart as heavy as lead. I thought 
 of the end of the session, and of the girls who 
 might never return to our care, and it seemed to 
 me that I had been a very unfaithful child of my 
 Father, while all the Latin and history and arith- 
 metic that I had been able to teach you, seemed 
 of no value in comparison with what might have 
 been learned of the Saviour's life and death, and 
 his love for sinners. Now God himself has been 
 opening the eyes of one at least of our dear girls, 
 and I need not have worried all last night over 
 Ninfa and Angela and the rest." She put her 
 arm around Ninfa as she spoke and pressed her to 
 her side. "Tell me, dear child, all about it," she 
 urged. 
 
 When the simple story had been told, much as 
 it had been heard by Luz during the previous night, 
 the senorita asked Ninfa a few tender but searching 
 questions as to her convictions and her intentions 
 for the future. These were answered so readily, 
 and with such childlike trust in the Saviour's power 
 to forgive and save, that the senorita was satisfied 
 of Ninfa's earnestness and courage. 
 
 " I do not believe that I shall be afraid of mama 
 now," she ended, "because even telling you and 
 Luz about it has made it seem more real and 
 true." 
 
HOMING TREASURES 2J \ 
 
 " What will you say to her, Ninfa?" Luz asked, 
 with sober lips. 
 
 " I shall write and tell her that I find we have 
 been mistaken about the Protestants, and that they 
 teach the truth of the Bible. I shall ask her if I 
 may join the church of the americanos here, and 
 then when she comes I shall tell her more about 
 what it means." 
 
 "And if the Senora Barreda forbids your joining 
 with us and leaving the Roman Catholic Church, 
 Ninfa?" the teacher asked. 
 
 "I shall do it all the same," was the quiet reply, 
 "and mama will not think me disobedient when 
 once she hears all about it. I shall read my Bible 
 to her, you see, and as mama is very clever indeed, 
 she will see the mistakes that are made by those 
 who do not read it." A week passed, however, 
 and Ninfa' s letter, bearing to the grandmother the 
 news of her momentous decision, was still unan- 
 swered. The truth was that the senora had been 
 seriously affected by the priest's death, the tidings 
 of which had been received at about the same time 
 as Ninfa's news. Mingled superstition and remorse 
 at the thought of the part she had unwittingly 
 played in bringing about poor Justo's end, some- 
 what weakened the impression made upon her 
 mind by her granddaughter's letter. Perhaps she 
 did not altogether realize what the words "joining 
 the Protestants" might mean when penned by the 
 
2J2 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 hand of her little one. How improved was her 
 handwriting, and how well turned were the sen- 
 tences of the earnest little letter ! 
 
 "After all I did well in sending the girl to the 
 Americans," the senora mused, in the midst of her 
 self-reproachings concerning Justo's fate. "The 
 school is all that Justo declared it, and surely I 
 shall be able to command or coax all nonsense 
 about the new religion out of Ninfa's head when 
 once I have her, with her sister, in my own house 
 again, and out of the way of the protestantes." 
 
 The session being so nearly at an end, and the 
 grandmother's silence continuing, it was judged by 
 Ninfa's advisers unnecessary to longer await the 
 sefiora's expressed opinion concerning the matter. 
 
 A few days before the closing exercises of the 
 institute, therefore, Ninfa Barreda confessed in 
 public her faith in Christ as the Saviour of her 
 soul, and the only mediator between God and man, 
 renouncing forever the church in which she had 
 been reared. She was not alone that bright Sun- 
 day morning in choosing whom she would serve, 
 for Angela Vera joined with her in her vows of 
 obedience and faithfulness to the Lord. 
 
 "I am not ashamed now," Angela whispered, 
 as she walked homeward from the morning service 
 at Ninfa's side. 
 
 " Nor am I so much afraid of mama" Ninfa re- 
 plied, with unusual gentleness. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 273 
 
 Carmen Diaz, walking just in front of the two 
 girls, carried her glossy black head a trifle higher 
 than usual, and pretended to be very much inter- 
 ested in all that was going on in the plaza, as the 
 long line of girls, two by two, strolled quietly 
 under the trees, but who shall say that her girlish 
 heart was untouched by the scene just witnessed 
 in the little church behind them ? Many a grave 
 thought is belied by laughing lips and sparkling 
 eyes, but the Searcher of hearts is never deceived, 
 and his guiding hand often lies heavy upon the 
 merry of mien. 
 
VII 
 
 ON the twenty-fifth day of November, the blue 
 mountain peak in the east peered over the 
 low roof the Madero Institute into an empty court 
 and silent corridors. The busy hum of voices in 
 the long schoolrooms was hushed for the vacation 
 season, and the brewery doves had the fountain to 
 themselves at last. Fearlessly they plumed them- 
 selves and strutted with swelling breasts, lifting 
 their pink feet gingerly from the hot curbing, or 
 balanced their plump bodies on the brink to lave 
 their small heads in the flashing water. Their jew- 
 eled necks gleamed in the morning sunlight and 
 their cooing notes made harmonious accord with 
 the musical tinkle of the falling drops. 
 
 The last crash of the piano keys had sounded 
 there two nights before, when all the town had 
 assembled in the wide court under the temporary 
 roof of canvas, to hear the concert and the recita- 
 tions given by the girls, and to witness the delivery 
 of the diplomas by the governor of the State. 
 The last notes of the beautiful air, "La Golondrina" 
 played by a Mexican band, had swept through the 
 emptying corridors at a little before midnight, and 
 the last day of the session had ended. 
 274 
 
HOMING TREASURES 275 
 
 Carriages had rolled away from the institute 
 doors at all hours of the following day, filled with 
 girls and boxes, and although sighs and lamenta- 
 tions had accompanied each departure, their ghosts 
 no longer lingered in the echoing corners of the 
 corridors. 
 
 In the spacious parlor of the institute, several 
 persons were gathered for a farewell talk on this 
 quiet morning. The Senorita Julia was there, 
 shivering a little in the cold room, having just left 
 a merry blaze on her chamber hearth ; the Senorita 
 Dora's slender figure was almost lost in the wide 
 embrace of one of the great Austrian rocking- 
 chairs. Near by sat the Sefiora Barreda, with a 
 granddaughter on each side of her. The sefiora 
 had enjoyed the hospitality of the institute for a 
 day and a night after the final exercises, and the 
 three were now waiting for the carriage which was 
 to carry them to the railroad station. Breakfast 
 was just over, and the train for the south would 
 leave at half-past nine o'clock. 
 
 Teresa, with Pepito in her arms as usual, sat 
 crouching on the stones outside of the open parlor 
 door. Her eyes were red with weeping, and her 
 head hung upon her breast. 
 
 "She is going away, Pepito," the woman whis- 
 pered once into the boy's ear ; " Lucita will never 
 come back again. Thou hast lost thy papa, thou 
 hast lost thy sister, and we are all alone, Pepito. 
 
276 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 And Lucita will never, never, teach a roomful of 
 ninas." 
 
 " A-goo ! A-goo ! " Pepito remarked gayly, giv- 
 ing an encouraging poke at his mother's eyes with 
 his little brown fist. His remark being freely inter- 
 preted may have meant : 
 
 "But the senora will send for thee and me, 
 mamacita, and we shall live happily together ever 
 after." 
 
 At any rate, Teresa thanked the little one with 
 smothering kisses, imprisoning his tiny fists in one 
 motherly palm, so his words must have been of a 
 consoling nature. 
 
 In the meantime, the Sefiorita Dora, from the 
 depths of her rocking-chair, was telling the Senora 
 Barreda that she could not bear the thought that 
 Luz and Ninfa might never again return to the 
 institute, and Lucita's eyes had filled with ready 
 tears at her words. The senora again explained 
 her reasons for her decision not to send her grand- 
 daughters from home for another year at school. 
 Although her reasoning seemed simple enough, 
 even Ninfa guessed at something hidden behind 
 the mere desire of keeping her sister and herself 
 under the grandmotherly eye. 
 
 " I think you know that Luz has been for some 
 years a member of the Protestant church, senora," 
 the Sefiorita Julia remarked, with some diffidence, 
 after a pause. It seemed best that there should be 
 
HOMING TREASURES 277 
 
 a clear understanding with this stately lady con- 
 cerning the girls' position, before they should leave 
 the school, and the sefiorita, after some uncertainty 
 of mind, had resolved to probe the senora's senti- 
 ments upon the matter. 
 
 " That is only natural, I am sure," was the cour- 
 teous reply. " If she had been reared with Ninfa, 
 she would have been as we are. As those who 
 took her from us became Protestants while Luz was 
 still a child, it is natural that she should be what 
 she is." 
 
 This remark was made in so composed a tone, 
 and was accompanied by a smiling glance at Luz 
 of such certainty of possession that the sefiorita' s 
 heart sank. 
 
 "Luz will always be what she is now, I think," 
 she said with a friendly nod in the direction of the 
 chair, where Luz sat pale and nervous. 
 
 "We shall see," the sefiora replied easily. 
 "There will be no quarrel between us, I think, if 
 Luz does her duty and remembers that her grand- 
 mother has already suffered many sorrows on her 
 account. Once at home in her own rightful place, 
 the blood of her fathers will assert itself, and she 
 will become what we are, in many things besides 
 religious belief. I do not mean to disparage your 
 religion, my dear sefiorita," she added politely. 
 "We have been reared differently, you see, that is 
 all, and we have different customs. Religion is 
 
2?8 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 little more than a custom, if you will think of it in 
 that way, and it is not so difficult to change our 
 customs of life and belief when we are young, as it 
 is when we grow old. You who are teachers of 
 the young will comprehend my meaning, I am 
 quite sure. Indeed, one of Ninfa's last letters has 
 prepared me for some fancied change in herself, 
 innocent little one !" 
 
 " But, sefiora — mama, you do not understand, I 
 think," Luz remonstrated, roused at last to speak 
 for herself. " I can never change my belief. I 
 shall die a Protestant. Oh, please do not be angry 
 with me !" she added, for the sefiora's smile faded, 
 and a frown puckered her brow, at her grand- 
 daughter's very plain speech. " I have not said it 
 well, but I cannot bear to have you think that I 
 can ever be different." 
 
 The sefiora again forced a smile, and managed 
 to be gracious in her reply toward this surprising 
 granddaughter. 
 
 "We need not consume these last precious 
 moments with your kind teachers with needless 
 discussion, Luz," she said. "When we arrive at 
 home, Ninfa and I will show you some matters in 
 a different light. Then there will be opportunity 
 for your assertions of independence of belief." 
 
 Her look was indulgent again now, but the 
 sefioritas understood very well the policy of the 
 sefiora's present moderation. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 279 
 
 All this time Ninfa had been uneasy enough, 
 changing color more than once, while wrapping and 
 unwrapping the long fringe of the rebozo about her 
 nervous fingers. 
 
 " Ninfa understands me," the grandmother con- 
 tinued, with a loving pat upon the girl's shoulder. 
 " We have lived together for almost eighteen years 
 now, and she will teach her sister that there is a 
 higher will than hers in the home." 
 
 "There is a higher will than that of any man or 
 woman, and it rules the world," the Sefiorita Julia 
 said solemnly. " We who acknowledge that will 
 must obey it." 
 
 " I know," was the even reply ; " but with my 
 children there is none higher than my own. I, as 
 older and wiser than they, represent the will of 
 God for them. It is for them to obey me." 
 
 "But, mama" Ninfa began, with tear-filled eyes 
 and quivering chin, " I wrote you that I also be- 
 lieve " 
 
 " What your grandmother believes ; of course 
 you do, child ! " The sefiora's chin was firmly set 
 as she spoke, yet her eyes rested tenderly upon 
 her darling. 
 
 The tears were rolling down Ninfa's cheeks and 
 she trembled in every limb. She looked helplessly 
 at Luz, and then buried her face in her hands. 
 Luz was sorely distressed and looked to the Sefio- 
 rita Julia for assistance for both Ninfa and herself. 
 
280 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " I think Ninfa wished to tell you that she has 
 learned some things since she has been with us, 
 which— " 
 
 " Of course she has," the grandmother inter- 
 rupted her, with suspicious promptness very un- 
 like her usual courtesy. " Have I not expressed 
 my gratification at her progress in music, and was 
 she not the nightingale of the concert, night before 
 last ? In English too, she has progressed well, the 
 Senorita Dora assures me. What more can I say 
 of my satisfaction than I have already said? " 
 
 " Mama" Ninfa began again in a distressed tone, 
 lifting her wet face from her hands, " I do not wish 
 to offend you. Some other time I will tell you 
 what I mean ; perhaps when we are at home again. 
 
 I wrote, you know " Her head dropped and 
 
 she did not again look at Luz or her teachers. 
 
 Teresa appeared in the doorway at that instant, 
 announcing the carriage, and the last farewells had 
 to be said. 
 
 "Be good to our sweet girl, senora," the Seno- 
 rita Julia pleaded, as the senora settled her skirts 
 on the back seat of the carriage opposite the twins. 
 " Ninfa is timid, but she always wishes to do what 
 is right. Will you not help her, even if her way 
 be not yours ? And Luz will need your love and 
 sympathy, more even than Ninfa, perhaps. Por el 
 amor de Dios, sefwra, be careful how you oppose 
 their consciences.' $ 
 
HOMING TREASURES 28 I 
 
 The sefiora grew restless under these parting 
 words, and at the end replied with forced gayety : 
 
 "It is easy to see that you know nothing of a 
 grandmother's heart, Sefiorita Julia. It is my de- 
 sire to do my whole duty by my daughters. As to 
 consciences, I have my own. Adios, senoritas, may 
 God stay with you ! " 
 
 "And may he go with you, dear children," the 
 teachers sighed, as they re-entered the iron gates, 
 and arm in arm paced the lonely corridors to their 
 own doors. 
 
 Surely Guadalajara had never been so fragrant 
 and so fair as on the afternoon which returned 
 Ninfa and Luz to their southern home. The 
 warm sunlight still bathed the broad banana leaves 
 in the plaza, and gilded the peaked roof of the 
 little music-pavilion in the center, as the family car- 
 riage rolled past. 
 
 Opposite the plaza rose the cool, gray walls of 
 the city palace, flanked by towers at both street 
 corners. If Luz had understood Latin, her fast- 
 beating heart might have been stilled by the read- 
 ing of the motto traced in stone about these towers : 
 "Nisi Dominies custodier et civitatem, frustra vigilat 
 qui custodit earn" "Except the Lord keep the city, 
 the watchman waketh but in vain." 
 
 The letters were large and plain, but the car- 
 riage rolled rapidly, and, moreover, Luz did not 
 
282 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 know Latin. Both girls grew silent as they neared 
 the end of the short drive from the station, and the 
 clear color had left Lucita's cheeks, as the carriage 
 at length rumbled under the portico of the Casa 
 Barreda and entered the courtyard within. 
 
 The Sefiora Barreda alighted first, while Pedro 
 and the other servants hovered around the carriage, 
 voluble in their exclamations ol delight and admi- 
 ration over the travelers. 
 
 Something in the half-frightened, half-imploring 
 expression upon Lucita's face, as she stepped from 
 the carriage and into her arms, reminded the senora 
 of the look with which Vicente had once met her 
 on the threshold of El Dorado, almost twenty years 
 before. Hand in hand with his bride he had come 
 toward his mother, and she remembered how her 
 heart had frozen against them both, and with pain 
 recalled the hurt quiver of her boy's lips as he had 
 led his wife past her and into the house. 
 
 She felt that she must, for her son's sake, bring 
 a smile to the fair, awestruck face. 
 
 " Luz, darling," she whispered, "only love me, 
 as your papa loved his mother, and I promise that 
 you shall be happy in my home, which is yours 
 also." 
 
 There was not much left of the day when the 
 travelers had refreshed themselves after the long 
 journey, and Ninfa and Luz were far too weary to 
 lie awake after going to bed that night. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 283 
 
 On the homeward way Ninfa had pleaded with 
 her grandmother to be allowed to share her room 
 with Luz, but had been firmly refused. With all 
 the unused rooms in the great house, the sefiora 
 was determined that each girl should have a room 
 especially adapted to her complexion and tastes. 
 
 During the weeks of waiting for the home- 
 coming, the grandmother had entertained herself 
 in the lonely hours with planning these apartments 
 for the reception of the twins. Therefore Ninfa's 
 bedroom had been renovated from ceiling to floor. 
 There was now a pink bloom upon the walls, and 
 pink rosebuds blushed on drapery and ribbons, 
 while new white rugs replaced the old ones. 
 
 Though on being introduced into this dainty 
 bower Ninfa stoutly declared that the pink and 
 white room suited the gray-eyed Luz even better 
 than it did herself, she had to agree with the grand- 
 mother that the blue room next was an even fairer 
 setting for her sister. 
 
 Luz was awakened the next morning by Maria's 
 hand laid gently upon her arm. The muslin 
 curtains of her little brass bedstead had been put 
 back, and Maria's smiling face appeared between. 
 
 "It is nine o'clock, Sefiorita Luz," was the 
 woman's greeting, " and here is your coffee. I 
 have just carried the Sefiorita Ninfa hers, and she 
 wishes to know if you are awake." 
 
 A small china tray containing a smoking cup of 
 
284 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 black coffee and a roll stood on a table at the bed- 
 side, and Luz was roused to open-eyed wonder at 
 these luxurious proceedings. She found a pretty 
 dressing-sacque of Ninfa's thrown across the foot 
 of the bed, and with Maria's assistance she was 
 soon enjoying its warmth about her shivering 
 shoulders, while the steaming coffee finished the 
 task of thoroughly awakening her. Presently Ninfa 
 came running in with her high-heeled slippers 
 clacking noisily on the tiled floor. They dressed 
 at leisure, and it was not until breakfast, at twelve 
 o'clock, that they met their grandmother. 
 
 The rest of the day was filled with busy talk, in 
 the corridor, of the many dresses to be made for 
 Luz, of the new piano to be bought for Ninfa, of 
 the books that the more learned little granddaughter 
 might need, of poor Justo's death, of plans for 
 bringing Teresa and Pepito to the South, where the 
 mother might end her days and the little son grow 
 to manhood among their own people. 
 
 Chocolate and small cakes were served beside 
 the couch where the senora rested during the after- 
 noon, and when the glowing sunshine had departed, 
 leaving the corridors dim and chill, the dinner hour 
 arrived. The evening was passed quietly, with no 
 callers from the outside world. 
 
 In this same serene fashion several days were 
 spent in the Casa Barreda. By and by, perhaps, 
 there would be invitations issued to a few select 
 
HOMING TREASURES 28$ 
 
 friends, who would gladly come to be introduced 
 to the new granddaughter, for Ninfa and Luz were 
 now of an age to see something of the world. 
 
 Yet in planning for the coming winter, in the 
 days before her visit to Saltillo, the senora had 
 found herself shrinking more and more from the 
 idea of an active society life. The temperate years 
 of the past had preserved the robustness of her 
 constitution, so that now, at the age of sixty, she 
 had much of the strength and fire of forty, yet she 
 shrank, not unnaturally, from re-entering the world 
 with the responsibility upon her of two young 
 women who could not fail to be attractive. 
 
 Of all the household Maria, the maid, was the 
 first to deplore the sober state of things promised 
 by the sefiora's delay in inviting the first guests of 
 the season. It was a great pity, she grumbled to 
 herself, that her young ladies should have to be 
 caged during the whole season of balls and of 
 theatre-going, and then perhaps be whisked off 
 to be buried in the dust of the hacienda. 
 
 How would the sefiora ever find husbands for 
 the sefioritas, or rather, how would the sefiors of 
 Guadalajara ever hear of the merry Ninfa and the 
 gentle Luz, who neither rode nor walked abroad, 
 and who went to mass no more, being always 
 chained to an old lady's arm-chair? Maria, being 
 a young Mexican woman herself, might have 
 known better. 
 
VIII 
 
 THE first Sunday at home came and passed 
 with no mention of church-going by any 
 one. Since that moment of repression in the parlor 
 of Madero Institute, Ninfa had not seemed to find 
 a suitable occasion for the promised explanation to 
 her grandmother, and her red lips had been sealed 
 upon the subject, even with Luz. It had usually 
 been Ninfa who had introduced their little argu- 
 ments and discussions, and now that they slept 
 apart, there was not given them the same oppor- 
 tunity for heart confidences. Luz had always 
 been somewhat in subjection to Ninfa's swiftly 
 varying moods, and was unwilling now to force 
 her sister's confidence, though she was ready 
 to receive it whenever Ninfa should offer it. 
 
 On her own part a small ache in her heart was 
 fast growing into a pain. She had no desire to 
 discuss questions of conscience or religion with her 
 grandmother, for at the best of times she shrank 
 from speaking of her most sacred thoughts, yet she 
 found herself missing something now in the life of 
 ease opening before her. Perhaps this lack came 
 in part from the actual emptiness of what had been 
 busy and studious hours for her. It had been im- 
 286 
 
HOMING TREASURES 287 
 
 possible to study during the first week at home. 
 Yet the real ache came from the knowledge of the 
 entire misunderstanding of herself by those asso- 
 ciated with her in this new home. 
 
 She knew that there must come a time of reck- 
 oning when the sefiora would learn that no measures, 
 gentle or otherwise, could bring her granddaughters 
 to think as she did about certain matters. Luz 
 began to long feverishly for this time to come, and 
 she had hoped much from this first Sunday. It 
 would be easy to say : 
 
 " No, mama, you must not ask us to go to mass 
 with you. You know I told you that I could not 
 believe as you do about some things. I am a 
 Protestant, and I would like to go to the Protestant 
 cidto L to-day." 
 
 She was sure that Ninfa would have the courage 
 to join in then and add her pleadings to her own, 
 for Ninfa knew the house where one of the cultos 
 was held each Sunday, and they had long ago 
 talked together of asking the little fair sefiora to 
 take them into her class some day. But no occa- 
 sion was given Luz to make her speech to her 
 grandmother. 
 
 The morning passed as every other had passed, 
 except that Luz rose an hour earlier than usual, 
 and was already dressed when Ninfa ran in, accord- 
 ing to custom, to chat over their coffee cups. Luz 
 
 1 Service. 
 
288 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 had remarked that it was Sunday, and Ninfa had 
 replied with a flush upon her cheeks that she knew 
 it, and that she was not altogether a coward, for 
 she would be brave very soon, if only Luz would 
 not speak a word to her about it. 
 
 The sefiora was as affectionate as usual at the 
 breakfast hour when it was much too late to speak 
 with her about the Protestant service. Luz wished 
 now that she had done so the night before, when 
 her grandmother had been in a particularly happy 
 frame of mind over the completion of a blue silk 
 frock for Luz; but Sunday had come, after all, 
 before she was well aware of its approach, and 
 nothing had been said. 
 
 "Why should I send them away from me, when 
 I have been so long without them? " the sefiora had 
 asked herself, as she lay in bed, late into the fore- 
 noon, with a dull and aching head. " No, no ! 
 mass can wait till they have become accustomed to 
 being at home again. I will not force Luz to any- 
 thing. Years have taught me that letting-alone is 
 a very powerful instrument in the right hands." 
 
 The girls were not long in learning that a severe 
 headache had kept their grandmother from attend- 
 ing early or later mass, that morning, while she in 
 her turn expressed great gratification on hearing 
 that they had spent the morning hours in reading. 
 
 During the afternoon that followed, callers 
 dropped in to congratulate the sefiora on her re- 
 
HOMING TREASURES 289 
 
 turn from Saltillo and to be introduced to the new 
 granddaughter. 
 
 A bright-eyed old lady, the maiden sister of the 
 lawyer Cardenas, especially interested Luz. She 
 had full opportunity for studying the comfortable 
 looking figure and smiling face, whose gaze was 
 constantly fixed upon Ninfa, sitting demurely at her 
 grandmother's side. 
 
 "She does not even see me," thought Luz, "for 
 she has eyes only for Ninfa. If Anselmo be only 
 as good-tempered as his aunt seems to be I am 
 sure I shall like him. How sweet Ninfa looks in 
 her red velvet jacket ! If Anselmo could see her 
 now !" 
 
 When all the visitors were gone and dinner was 
 over, the sefiora again led the way to the sala. 
 
 "Come, girls," she said pleasantly. "You have 
 had a long idle day together, except for your read- 
 ing of the early morning. Sit one on each side of 
 me, here on the sofa, and let me hear what you 
 read. Afterward Luz will read aloud to us and 
 Ninfa will sing before we retire. My headache 
 still lingers, my children, and you must soothe and 
 amuse me." The senora's face was indeed pale, 
 and she pressed her forehead with her open palm. 
 
 "No, first you shall read to me, Lucita," she 
 added changing her mind as her eye fell upon a 
 large pamphlet on a table. " I have something 
 here that will interest you both. Bring me the 
 
29O THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 paper-covered book from the table, Ninfa. Yes, 
 that is it, ' La Madre de Dios en Mejico.' l 
 
 " You see the illustrations, children. They are 
 very good, done in bright colors, and representing 
 many of the phases of the blessed Mary. I am 
 sorry I have not all of the book. This much was 
 lent me by Dona Marguerita Cardenas. Read, Luz, 
 beginning at the introduction. That seems to be 
 particularly appropriate." 
 
 Luz took the pamphlet into her hands and 
 glanced down the first page. Then she looked up 
 to find her grandmother leaning her head against 
 the back of the sofa with her eyes closed. Ninfa 
 gave Luz an encouraging nod and formed the word 
 "read," with her lips, while her eyes sparkled in 
 the candle-light. 
 
 "I am waiting, Luz," the senora exclaimed. "Is 
 there not enough light to read by ? " 
 
 " Certainly, mama, and I am ready to begin now." 
 
 Then she read : 
 
 " Much more than a century ago, one of the 
 most enthusiastic panegyrists of the marvelous im- 
 age of the most Holy Virgin of Guadalupe, referring 
 to the numberless demonstrations of especial predi- 
 lection which Divine Providence has made toward 
 Mexico, said the following : ' These are so many 
 and so great that it would be necessary to number 
 them by the dozens, because the Holy, Miraculous 
 
 1 "The Mother of God in Mexico," by Antonio Maria de Padua. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 29 1 
 
 images with which God in his inexhaustible good- 
 ness has seen fit to favor us, are in such multitudes 
 that even those who possess them are prone to 
 ignore them : and I believe that it would not be 
 possible to make a more acceptable offering to our 
 country than to write the history of the Images 
 which Mexico owes to God, and of the benefits 
 which she has received from them ; material, in my 
 judgment, so copious that bulky volumes would not 
 suffice to contain them, so great has been the mercy 
 with which his Divine Majesty has been willing to 
 look upon us, giving us in them [the Images] a 
 shield against all classes of evils and pestilence, and 
 remedy and relief for all our necessities and miseries 
 and afflictions.' 
 
 " From the remote epoch in which the above 
 was uttered, no one, so far as we know, has under- 
 taken the formation of the history which to-day we 
 pretend to sketch with as great piety and good 
 faith as want of merits and qualities for so colossal 
 an enterprise : but not for this shall we abandon 
 our purpose ; we do not write for the wise, nor for 
 the philosophic, whose most sacred sentiments of 
 the soul are asleep or dead ; we write for those who, 
 firm in the religion of our ancestors, live in the 
 boundless world of faith, and who pure of soul and 
 simple of heart, seek in virtue the path which is to 
 lead us to eternal salvation, and who see in the 
 powerful inroads of modern ideals, a manifest ten- 
 dency to make humanity more sordid, depriving it 
 of the only real consolation in adversity, faith in the 
 majestic religion of the Divine Martyr of GolgotJia. 
 
 "In Mexico more than in any other " 
 
292 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 " There ! " the senora exclaimed restlessly, " that 
 is enough for now. The reading makes me nerv- 
 ous. How do you like it, Luz?" 
 
 " What he says about images is all false, I am sure, 
 mama" was the brave reply ; " and it is belief in 
 them that deprives men of ' the only real consola- 
 tion in adversity, faith in the majestic religion of the 
 Divine Martyr of Golgotha,' who was Jesus Christ." 
 
 " Those last words are like my verse, ' Believe on 
 the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved,'" 
 Ninfa added with a beating heart. "The words 
 are different, but they mean the same thing, don't 
 you think so, mama?" 
 
 Thereupon, the senora opened her eyes and 
 desired to know what Ninfa meant by her " verse," 
 and on learning that the Bible had supplied the 
 text, she sat up again, straight enough now, and 
 seemed to forget all about her headache. 
 
 "Was it the Santa Biblia, then, that you were 
 reading this morning? " she asked, turning flashing 
 eyes upon Luz, and extending her arm, as if to 
 push the girl from her. " Have you dared to read 
 that book, when we are solemnly warned against 
 looking within its covers? Go," she commanded, 
 without allowing Luz to reply, "bring me the book 
 instantly." Luz rose to obey, but the senora 
 grasped her blue silk skirt and forced her to pause. 
 
 "I remember that you are my granddaughter," 
 she said with stern calmness, "and I knew that you 
 
HOMING TREASURES 293 
 
 were a Protestant. I did not believe, however, that 
 you would dare to read the Bible in my house, and 
 I assure you that you have read it now for the last 
 time. The time has come to pull out this poison- 
 ous fang by the roots. I will have none of it in 
 my house. Go, bring the book." 
 
 "Mama, shall I bring mine too? I have one, 
 and I shall not let Luz be scolded when I have 
 done all that she has done," Ninfa exclaimed, with 
 some indignation. "Yes, I bought one at the 
 institute with my own money, and if I bring it to 
 you, you must promise not to harm it." 
 
 "Who gave you the money, wretched child?" 
 the sefiora demanded. "Was it not my money, 
 and am I not forever disgraced by such trickery ? 
 Go after your sister and bring me all the Bibles in 
 your possession." 
 
 When the twins returned they found their grand- 
 mother erect and alert, and with the stern eyes of 
 a relentless judge. " Lay the books on the table 
 there," she said impressively. "Are you sure that 
 you have brought them all ? " 
 
 "We have but one Bible apiece, mama" Luz 
 answered sadly. 
 
 "That is well. Now kneel, both of you, here 
 on the rug and ask my pardon for committing this 
 error. Perhaps when you have humbled yourselves 
 before me, the blessed Virgin will hear your prayers 
 and grant you absolution after penance." 
 
294 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 To the horror of Luz, Ninfa fell upon her knees 
 as commanded. Her whispered words to her sister 
 as they had hurriedly caught up their Bibles had 
 been so like the old, daring Ninfa, that Luz had 
 hoped better things of her than this quick yielding 
 to the grandmother's unreasonable demand. 
 
 "It is all right, Luz," Ninfa had whispered. "It 
 had to come, you know, and it will soon be over. 
 I am not afraid now, are you ? " 
 
 Yet now Ninfa was on her knees to ask pardon 
 for having done no wrong thing at all. Would she 
 be kneeling before the marble image of Mary next? 
 
 The sefiora's eyes were fixed on Ninfa, and she 
 did not notice that Luz remained standing. The 
 pain seemed to have returned to her head, and 
 there was a confused expression upon her face. 
 Perhaps she was willing to have to do first with the 
 girl whose yielding nature was better known to her. 
 
 "Mama, I have often gotten down on my knees 
 before you, when I have been naughty, haven't I?" 
 Ninfa said coaxingly, clasping her hands on the 
 lady's lap. " Don't you remember how you used 
 to make me do it, when I had been saucy or cross, 
 when I was a little bit of a girl at El Dorado ? Luz 
 never learned to do so, you know, because we lost 
 her. That is why she does not kneel down now. 
 Come, Luz, get down here by me, and I will tell 
 mama all about it." 
 
 The sefiora laid her right hand upon the dark 
 
HOMING TREASURES 295 
 
 head of her most dearly loved granddaughter and 
 idly wondered to feel it tremble constantly as she 
 held it there. 
 
 Luz kneeled by Ninfa, having no idea of what 
 was to follow. She had never understood this little 
 sister, she thought. 
 
 " We have not been really naughty this time, 
 mama" Ninfa went on. "At least, Luz has not. 
 I have been a little cowardly, afraid to tell you 
 about my Bible, but I know Luz was not afraid. 
 No, mama, let me talk first ; but may we sit on the 
 little footstools now? It always makes me giddy 
 to kneel on the floor, you know, even at mass." 
 
 As the grandmother made no objection to this 
 change of position, the girls drew the footstools 
 close to the senora's knees and sat down. 
 
 "Now we are more comfortable," Ninfa said 
 softly, grasping one of her grandmother's hands. 
 " How cold your hand is, mama, and how it trem- 
 bles ! Are you ill?" 
 
 " No, no, child, go on with what you were say- 
 ing. I do not think you have asked my pardon 
 yet," and the sefiora tried in vain to make her 
 voice stern, yet there was no smile upon her lips. 
 She extended her other hand to Luz, saying with a 
 troubled break in her voice : " I love you both, 
 my children, but I do not wish to make a mistake. 
 You must submit to my will where you are too 
 inexperienced to choose for yourselves." 
 
296 THE SENORA'S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 "But we have already chosen, mama" Ninfa 
 replied, pressing her warm lips upon the chill old 
 hand in hers. " Luz and I read the Bible because 
 it is God's book, and it tells us that he loves us and 
 will save us for Jesus' sake." 
 
 " What do you say?" the senora stammered. 
 "You still speak of reading the Bible? Ninfa, my 
 child, get up — go away — do anything but tell me 
 that you are really like Luz and the gringas with 
 whom I talked in Saltillo. I could not bear that, 
 Ninfa." 
 
 " But I must tell you, mama. I am like them, 
 because I do believe what they believe. It is not 
 so very different from what you think, dearest 
 mama, if you will only listen. Oh, do not look at 
 me like that! " 
 
 " Protestantc /" the senora hissed between her 
 teeth, dropping the hands of her granddaughters 
 and flinging her own above her head. " Justo was 
 right. I sent my child into danger and I have lost 
 her more certainly than I lost her sister seventeen 
 years ago. 
 
 " No years will ever give my daughters back to 
 me now," she wailed hysterically, while the girls 
 kept a startled silence. "Ah, if Justo were here, 
 he would know how to comfort me. I have no 
 longer a desire to live, for I am alone in the world 
 — the world that was to grow young and beautiful 
 for me with my children." Her eyelids drooped, 
 
HOMING TREASURES 297 
 
 her gray head fell over upon her shoulder, and her 
 lips ceased their lament 
 
 "Luz, we have killed our grandmother," Ninfa 
 cried passionately, clinging to her sister and shak- 
 ing from head to foot. 
 
 " Perhaps she has only fainted, Ninfa ; call Pedro 
 and the others and we will lay her down. Quick, 
 Ninfa!" 
 
 "The good God would not let us kill her, would 
 he, Luz?" Ninfa asked a little later, when the 
 servants had exhausted all their resources and the 
 sefiora was still unconscious. 
 
 "I do not know, Ninfa," was the troubled reply; 
 "when the doctor comes he maybe able to do 
 something more. I do not believe that she is dead 
 though, because every now and then I can feel 
 something like a little heart-beat." 
 
 " Do you think the Lord's hand is in this, Luz?" 
 Ninfa whispered, a moment or two afterward. 
 " The sefiorita said that his hand rules the world. 
 If I thought that he has made mama like this I 
 could bear it, but I never could live a minute if I 
 thought I had killed mama." 
 
 " I believe like the sefiorita, Ninfa," Luz an- 
 swered softly, through her tears. " I think God 
 has done it, for we were only trying to do what was 
 right, and he could never punish us so dreadfully." 
 
IX 
 
 WHEN the Sefiora Barreda recovered con- 
 sciousness, after long hours of apparently 
 deathlike sleep, she opened her eyes upon the 
 anxious faces of her granddaughters. The physician 
 was standing by the lamp examining the tiny ther- 
 mometer in his hand, and did not see the slow smile 
 relaxing the rigid features of the gray old face. 
 
 "Ah, cJiulitas, what has happened?" the grand- 
 mother asked feebly. "Is it already morning, and 
 have I overslept myself? Surely something was 
 wrong. I cannot remember clearly what it was, 
 for my head is heavy. Ah, yes, I know," and she 
 closed her eyes, while her lips trembled piteously. 
 
 The doctor had stepped quickly to the bedside 
 on hearing the sick woman's voice, and remained 
 watching her face, just out of her sight. 
 
 " Speak to her," he whispered to Luz. 
 
 " Mama, are you better?" the girl asked, stoop- 
 ing to smooth away a tumbled wave of the gray 
 hair from her grandmother's forehead. 
 
 " I am well, of course, little one, but I feel 
 strangely tired. Call Maria, Lucita, that I may 
 rise and dress. Hey ! what is the matter with my 
 leg and arm? Help me up, Ninfa." 
 298 
 
HOMING TREASURES 299 
 
 "Oh, what is it, Dr. Benitez?" Ninfa cried, 
 terror-stricken, turning to the doctor as her grand- 
 mother, after making ineffectual efforts to rise from 
 her pillow, sank back motionless upon the bed. 
 
 "Paralysis, my child," the physician replied. 
 "Your grandmother has received a stroke, and 
 has no use of her right limbs. I feared it as soon 
 as I saw her. You may thank God and the saints 
 that she has retained her speech and reason." 
 
 " Why are you here, sefior ; and who are you to 
 be putting yourself thus into a lady's room? " the 
 senora asked suddenly, catching sight of the doctor, 
 who was a stranger, and speaking with something 
 of her old energy of tone. 
 
 "You have been ill for a few hours, madame," 
 Doctor Benitez replied courteously, coming for- 
 ward. " Pedro thought a doctor might help you, 
 so he sent for me to come. Now that you are 
 yourself again you will permit me to take my 
 leave." 
 
 "Certainly, doctor; I would not think of de- 
 taining you from your duties. But it is strange 
 that I should be ill, for I suffer no pain." 
 
 With some difficulty the physician succeeded in 
 persuading her that she must resign herself to 
 several days of rest in bed ; then he left Ninfa to 
 watch over the sick bed, and beckoned Luz to ac- 
 company him out of the room. They stood in the 
 corridor, which was dark, except for the faint illu- 
 
300 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 mination cast upward by the lighted lamp swung 
 in the court below. The stars were brilliant over- 
 head in the square of dark sky above, and the 
 night air was cold and penetrating. 
 
 " I will send a nurse to care for the sefiora," the 
 doctor said to Luz in business-like tones. "Yes, 
 of course, it is natural that you should wish to do 
 all that she will need, but it will be quite impossible, 
 Senorita Barreda. You see for yourself that she is 
 helpless now, and she will require the constant at- 
 tention of a strong woman. Do not doubt, how- 
 ever, that you and your sister will be indispensable 
 to her as long as she lives." 
 
 "Will she live and be like this?" Luz asked 
 tremulously. 
 
 "She may live ten years, or she may quickly 
 pass away under a second stroke," was the sor- 
 rowful reply ; then, as Luz clasping her hands ut- 
 tered a gasp of distress, he hastily changed his tone. 
 '■ I am glad that she has grandchildren who owe 
 her much. Your grandmother must be well 
 nourished, senorita," he continued briskly. "Have 
 the cook prepare beef broth, the first thing in the 
 morning. I will come again by eight o'clock. 
 Meantime, watch the lady carefully for the rest of the 
 night, and be as soothing as possible. I think she 
 will sleep. Send that excitable midget to bed right 
 away, and take her place at the bedside. You are 
 cool and quiet, but to-morrow you also must rest." 
 
HOMING TREASURES 301 
 
 The physician's orders were faithfully carried 
 out. With the daylight a pleasant-looking Mexican 
 woman arrived to relieve the inexperienced girls of 
 their responsibility, and little by little the wonted 
 order returned to the house. 
 
 Day after day the sefiora lay almost motionless 
 upon her bed, much of the time drowsing or asleep. 
 When awake she was always restless unless one or 
 both of the girls were within sight. Juana, the 
 nurse, relieved them of the responsibility of nurs- 
 ing* yet the sick lady's happiest moments were 
 passed with a granddaughter on each side of her 
 couch. She relished their girlish chatter, and was 
 always ready to hear Ninfa sing. Sometimes the 
 girls sang together the hymns that had been favor- 
 ites at the school, and the sefiora was often soothed 
 to sleep by the sweetness of their blended voices. 
 
 At first Guadalupe and Maria and Pedro man- 
 aged the household affairs between them, referring 
 instinctively to Luz rather than to Ninfa for direc- 
 tions concerning such important questions as the 
 kind of soup to be served for dinner, and whether 
 the rice was to be cooked with tomatoes or with 
 cinnamon and milk. When the cake woman rattled 
 the chain at the corridor door, it was Luz who was 
 summoned to select the delicate sweets from the 
 huge shallow basket borne on the woman's head. 
 And so it was with the various points of the house- 
 hold economy. Little by little it came to be un- 
 
302 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 derstood that the tall, fair sister who seemed two 
 years older than little Ninfa, was to step about the 
 house in her grandmother's shoes, so to speak. 
 Luz carried the purse for the daily expenses of the 
 family, and every morning it became her custom 
 to give Guadalupe the order for the day's purchases 
 of meat, vegetables, and fruit In the evening she 
 was ready " to make the account" * with the servant 
 of money expended during the day, and to men- 
 tion any change desired in the quantity of bread 
 bought of the baker when he should come around 
 with his basket at an early hour the next day. The 
 mysterious way in which money vanished in order- 
 ing such a household was a cause of much discom- 
 fort to Luz, who had long considered the expend- 
 iture of even so much as two reales 2 a day, a 
 luxury indulged in only by the wealthy. Guada- 
 lupe seemed very unreasonable in her demands for 
 one real for fruit "for the Senorita Ninfa, who 
 could not live without her oranges and guavas," 
 another for "rosbif"* perhaps, or fish, a handful of 
 centavos for vegetables, another handful for charcoal, 
 a few cents for sugar, and salt, and coffee or choco- 
 late, while besides these daily expenses there were 
 the baker, the aguador* who brought his great red 
 jars dripping from the fountain in the plaza several 
 times a day, the cake woman, and a dozen others 
 
 1 Hacer la cuenta. 2 Twenty-five cents. 3 Roast beef. 
 4 Water-carrier. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 3O3 
 
 who had claims upon the Barreda purse. The 
 beggars too, were a trial to the young house- 
 keeper. 
 
 " For the love of God, sefiorita," they would 
 plead, arriving at the corridor gates in companies 
 of twos and threes. "The dear lady, your mama, 
 never refused us. Give us an alms for the sake of 
 the most holy Virgin. She will bless you and save 
 you." 
 
 It was hard to turn them away empty-handed, 
 since, as was very true, the lady of the house had 
 never refused at least a centavo to the least deserv- 
 ing of them all. Luz felt herself to be weak in 
 giving to some who were far more able-bodied 
 than Don Luis or his wife had ever been, but she 
 did not dare to raise the storm of reproaches at her 
 own door which would have followed such a disre- 
 gard of the customs of the house. She knew bet- 
 ter than the sefiora could ever have known, that 
 the "silent poor" are those oftenest needing aid, 
 and she had not yet forgotten the many times 
 when there had been no money in her home in 
 Saltillo for buying even a bit of cheese to be eaten 
 with the corn cakes, while the bitter, black coffee 
 was often swallowed without a drop of milk or 
 sweetening. Must one give to these critical, carp- 
 ing idlers, centavos " to shorten her days in purga- 
 tory" and "to save her soul"? Was this the 
 meaning of charity? 
 
304 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 For the hungry and sick there was always food 
 in the Barreda kitchen, and Luz often gave it with 
 her own hands, receiving blessings and adoration 
 in return. Sometimes a poor feeble-minded crea- 
 ture, " amado de Dios" x as such a one is called, 
 would snatch her hand and cover it with kisses 
 as she bent to fill the ragged hat or apron with 
 bread, while inarticulate recommendations to the 
 mercy of " Nuestra Senora" 2 issued from stammer- 
 ing lips. 
 
 The servants, in truth, stood somewhat in awe of 
 the girl who, though a Protestant, proved herself 
 quite capable of filling the sefiora's place, and 
 though there were murmurings in private against 
 the plague spot introduced into the family, which 
 was worse by far than the blemish upon the name 
 caused by Vicente's marriage with a ra?icherita } 
 they did not dare to show to Luz or Ninfa any 
 signs of their disapproval. 
 
 An event during the second week succeeding 
 the sefiora's attack, was a visit from the advocate, 
 Anselmo Cardenas, Senior. In the capacity of 
 family lawyer he called to put himself, his house, 
 and all his possessions at the disposal of the family 
 of his old friend. Luz learned from him something 
 definite concerning her grandmother's resources 
 and plans of expenditure, and the brown eyes of 
 the lawyer sobered with feeling for this girl, who was 
 
 1 ' ' Loved of God. ' ' 2 Our Lady. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 305 
 
 gradually assuming a position difficult enough as 
 head of the house and informal guardian of her sister. 
 
 "It is not possible !" he said to himself, as he 
 sat watching her, as she pored over a string of fig- 
 ures he had set down as a kind of guide for her 
 future plans. " It is not only impossible, but it is 
 against our custom, for two girls to live alone with 
 an invalid old lady who will never be able to care 
 for their worldly prospects. She is too pretty — 
 both are too pretty to take the reins into their own 
 hands. As to the little one the sefiora and I un- 
 derstand each other, I think, and she is safe, but 
 this fair one — no," no, it must not be." 
 
 "You have some relative, I suppose, who will 
 come to live with you now," the lawyer said aloud, 
 as Luz folded up the paper with a sigh, yet with 
 the pucker smoothed out of her forehead. ""It is 
 all very well for you, senorita, to hold the purse 
 strings for the Sefiora Barreda, but there are other 
 things to be considered." 
 
 " I know," Luz replied quietly. " My sister and 
 I have been talking it over with our grandmother. 
 We need no one, however, to take our grand- 
 mother's place while she is still with us. Indeed, 
 we have no relations who could do so. We shall 
 be very quiet, and Ninfa likes best to live at the 
 hacienda — is it not so, chiquita?" she asked, turn- 
 ing to Ninfa who sat in embarrassed silence, and now 
 blushed under the double gaze directed toward her. 
 
306 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 "Mama grows more restless every day, and 
 wishes to go to the country away from the noise of 
 the streets," Luz explained; "so we shall have to 
 take her to El Dorado as soon as she is strong 
 enough to bear the drive. I have never been 
 there since I was a baby," she added brightly, 
 "but I think I know the house and the beech trees 
 and the kitchen court where the fennel grows, as 
 well as if I had lived there always. Ninfa has de- 
 scribed it all to me a hundred times." 
 
 "You do not know how mama has changed, 
 Sefior Cardenas," Ninfa exclaimed piteously. "She 
 cannot do the least thing for herself. You cannot 
 think how sad it is !" 
 
 "Then you will need some one to take her 
 place, senorita," he said, returning to the subject 
 from which he had been diverted. 
 
 " Juana will go with us to help us take care of 
 mama" Luz replied in her firm, soft voice, "and 
 my mama — Dona Teresa, who took care of me in 
 Saltillo," she explained with some hesitation, "is 
 to live with us also. Oh, we shall do very well." 
 
 "But you will marry, senorita," Don Anselmo 
 said quickly, with the twinkle again in his eye, 
 "and there will be your younger — I mean your 
 twin sister to be thought of then." 
 
 "I shall not marry, sefior," Luz said simply, as 
 if to close the discussion and with a nervous flush 
 upon her cheek, "and I shall take care of Ninfa." 
 
HOMING TREASURES 307 
 
 Senor Anselmo Cardenas then rose from his seat 
 and took leave. 
 
 "Farewell, senoritas," he said. "Please remem- 
 ber that your grandmother's friend is ready to 
 serve you at any time. If, for instance, anything 
 more serious should happen to the Senora Barreda, 
 I, as her lawyer, have her last will and testament 
 in my keeping. It was made after she learned of 
 your existence, Sefiorita Luz, and will be produced 
 when required. Ah," he added, with a quick 
 change of manner, and playfully tapping Ninfa's 
 cheek with a slender forefinger, "this little girl will 
 never choose a single life, eh, sefiorita ? Some of 
 us older people have secrets too, little one." 
 
 Then with profound bows and a fatherly smile 
 for Ninfa, he left the sala, and old Pedro was soon 
 heard ushering him through the portico below. 
 
 "Luz, what did he mean?" Ninfa asked, with 
 the warm color still in her cheeks. 
 
 " That our grandmother and some of his family, 
 perhaps Dona Marguerita, have been planning to 
 marry you to his son, Anselmo Cardenas," Luz 
 answered bluntly. " I should think you would 
 have understood that. As for me, I had begun to 
 think that there was no Anselmo after all." 
 
 "Ay de mi, Lucita ! That is the first unkind 
 word you have ever spoken to me," Ninfa ex- 
 claimed, walking away from her sister with head 
 erect and sparkling eyes. 
 
308 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 Of course there had to be a swift making-up 
 after this outburst and Ninfa was assured, over and 
 over, that in her sister's eyes she was much too 
 good for any Anselmito, howsoever honest his 
 brown eyes. Yet Luz did not hesitate to say that 
 she would like to see, for once, her sister's cavalier 
 of the red steed and the glittering spurs, and she 
 persisted in seeming unconvinced of his reality, 
 even though Ninfa pleaded the closed drawing- 
 room windows and the retirement of their life, as a 
 reason for his invisibility. 
 
 " How do you know, liermana mia, that Anselmo 
 does not ride past our house a dozen times a day ? " 
 Ninfa whispered that same night, mischief dimpling 
 her face as they stopped to count the stars above 
 the court They had just left their grandmother's 
 room and were on their way to bed. 
 
 ' 'Perhaps he does, quien sadef" Luz returned 
 with a laugh. "But at the hacienda more than 
 stone walls will separate you from the sight of him 
 prancing by. How will you like that, Ninfa?" 
 
 " Have you forgotten that his aunt, Dona Mar- 
 guerita, has promised to come and make mama a 
 long visit there during next year?" was the quick 
 retort. " She says that she will have Anselmo 
 come to escort her home again. How does that 
 seem to you ?" 
 
X 
 
 IF Ninfa had been less of a child, and if both 
 sisters had known more of the gay world into 
 which their grandmother's name might have intro- 
 duced them, it would have been no more than nat- 
 ural that they should feel some pangs of disap- 
 pointment at giving up their city home to be 
 "buried in the dust of the hacienda." 
 
 It is true that as the traveling carriage bearing 
 away the sehora, Juana, and the twins, rolled slowly 
 down the Calle del Seminario, Ninfa cast more 
 than one backward glance at the stone balconies 
 on the second floor of the Casa Barreda. From 
 the last of these glances she drew in her head sud- 
 denly from the window of the carriage, with a 
 vivid color bathing her cheeks and brow. In reply 
 to Lucita's concerned question as to whether she 
 had bumped her head violently, Ninfa only smiled 
 in blushing confusion and pointed to the small 
 square of glass set in the rear curtain of the carriage. 
 Luz half arose from her seat beside her sister, op- 
 posite the senora and Juana, and peered out of the 
 tiny window above her grandmother's pillow. 
 
 Then for the first time she saw young Cardenas 
 in all the brave attire of a Mexican gallant, seated 
 
 309 
 
3IO THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 upon his red horse and following the carriage at a 
 distance of a few yards. He seemed to restrain 
 his horse with a good deal of difficulty, for the 
 spirited Rosina was not accustomed to be held in 
 check behind slow-going traveling carriages. Her 
 innocent mind was not set upon escorting a sick 
 old lady and two bright-eyed girls. She curvetted 
 and pranced and gave her rider as much trouble 
 as she could in his efforts to keep from riding down 
 the people along the way. Toddling children, 
 almost under the feet of the nervous horse gesticu- 
 lated violently, exclaiming : 
 
 " Mir a ! mira ! el caballero bonito I" 1 
 
 The carriage rattled through the streets, the 
 horseman keeping 'in the rear until the last paving 
 stone was left behind, and the road lay half-a-foot 
 deep in dust for many leagues ahead. 
 
 Half an hour afterward a wayside wine shop ap- 
 peared in a group of adobe hovels, and the leg- 
 end it bore across its glaring yellow front was, "The 
 Tail of the Devil." 
 
 As the carriage rolled slowly past this aptly 
 named resort, Anselmo, having doubtless had his 
 fill of the white dust and blazing sunlight, urged 
 Rosina to make a sudden plunge forward, and for 
 an instant the handsome pair appeared alongside 
 of the carriage, just opposite Ninfa's open window. 
 
 In a flash the dove-colored sombrero was raised, 
 
 1 "Look ! look ! the beautiful horseman ! " 
 
HOMING TREASURES 3 I I 
 
 and the curly head underneath bowed low over the 
 pommel of the saddle, and in the next instant An- 
 selmo Cardenas' brown eyes swept the interior of 
 the carriage, and a smile gave an additional curl to 
 the ends of his mustache. 
 
 "Adios, senoritas," he cried softly, "and may 
 your journey come to a happy end !" 
 
 Then he whirled Rosina around and they set off 
 at a sweeping gallop in the direction of the city. 
 
 "What is it? " the sefiora asked in alarm, rous- 
 ing from a doze. 
 
 "Only a friend of the senoritas to say 'Adios,' 
 sefiora," Juana answered soothingly. "Now we 
 are really off, you see, and you will soon find your- 
 self at the hacienda. Look at -the flocks of sheep 
 going by. Valgame ! what a dust they make ! 
 And to think that we are to have no more rain till 
 June!" 
 
 " Now, Luz, was that the spirit of a man, or a 
 real Anselmo ? " Ninfa whispered to her sister. 
 " Did you not see him, my soul, and hear him 
 speak?" 
 
 " It must be a great deal of trouble to have a 
 novio," Luz said loftily. " One is always uncertain 
 as to when he is to appear. I am sure that if he 
 is not a spirit, he is as startling as if he were. He 
 made my heart jump with fright when he plunged 
 up to the window." 
 
 "Ah, but that is just what is so delightful, Lucita 
 
312 THE SENORA S GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 mia" Ninfa exclaimed delightedly. " It would be 
 stupid to have a novio around all the time, with 
 Pedro to let him in and out, just like other people. 
 It is the surprises and the nice little frights that 
 make it so interesting. Anselmo is a splendid 
 novio ; one could never grow tired of the sight of 
 him, when one never knows when he is to appear." 
 
 Whether Luz was prevailed upon by this argu- 
 ment to take Ninfa's point of view does not con- 
 cern us now. Both girls were silent after this tilt 
 of words between them, and the coach lumbered 
 on until an hour past noon, when the low walls of 
 the hacienda of El Dorado came into view. 
 
 Every inhabitant of the village had turned out 
 into the crooked street to welcome home the 
 sefiora and her family. Dogs barked, babies 
 crowed, women waved their rebozos, and men 
 stood with bare heads as the carriage rolled by. 
 There was no vociferous demonstration of welcome 
 from the grown people, on account of the sad fate 
 which had returned the Sefiora Barreda to them. 
 
 "Ay de mi! There she lies, poor soul, not able 
 to lift hand or foot," they whispered among them- 
 selves. " Old Prieto, the viejeto, 1 says that she has 
 only the strength of a babe, and that the young 
 ladies nurse her all day long, bless them !" 
 
 "There she is, the Sefiorita Ninfa! See her 
 bright eyes and the roses in her cheeks. But look I 
 1 Aged iuan. 
 
& 3 
 
HOMING TREASURES 3 I 3 
 
 look ! the other is on the other side. Mother of 
 God ! she is like our Lady herself. What a smile ! 
 what eyes ! what features of an angel ! " 
 
 Amid these wondering comments along the way, 
 the great gates of the courtyard were reached, and 
 the carriage was driven through and up to the very 
 door of one of the rooms. Four stout peons lifted 
 the stricken lady from the improvised couch of 
 carriage cushions and bore her to her own bed. 
 
 Long hours of exhaustion followed the first ex- 
 citement caused by this return, and it seemed at one 
 time as if the sefiora would never again leave her bed. 
 
 After a time, however, she rallied, and by the 
 time the wheeled chair, long ago ordered from 
 Texas, reached the hacienda, the sefiora was able 
 to be placed in it and rolled out into the court. 
 
 The long, low house of adobes, plastered over 
 with mortar and colored a light green, was very 
 different in style and furnishings from the noble 
 house left behind in the city, fifteen leagues away. 
 
 No one, however, seemed to regret the change, 
 Luz, least of all, for the pleasant one-storied house, 
 opening out upon the flower-filled court, did not 
 present such intricacies of internal management as 
 had the Casa Barreda. 
 
 So the town house was in the end let to strangers 
 upon the advice of the lawyer, Anselmo Cardenas, 
 and life at the hacienda settled into a smooth rou- 
 tine of uneventful days. 
 
3 14 THE SENORAS GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 The senora would recline in her chair for hours 
 in the sunshine, with her lap filled with flowers, 
 smiling contentedly at her granddaughters reading 
 or sewing near by in the shade of the house wall. 
 Though she was as helpless as an infant, her placid 
 content exacted from all around her the loving care 
 that Mexicans are wont to expend upon the afflicted 
 ones of their families. 
 
 One strange fancy the senora had which endeared 
 her much to the swarthy families of peons who 
 worked on the banana plantation. A brown-skinned 
 little fellow of nine or ten years of age had been 
 left an orphan and dependent upon an aged uncle 
 for a home and food. This boy, who chanced to 
 enter the sefiora's courtyard one day on an errand 
 with the cook, passed near the wheeled chair and 
 was immediately accosted by the occupant 
 
 "Ah, there is another Justo!" the lady cried 
 in her high thin voice, and with a pleased smile. 
 "Come here, child, and speak to me. Ninfa, he 
 is like our Justo, with his bold brow and solemn 
 eyes. Give the boy a large piece of Teresa's pan 
 dulce, 1 and see that he comes to us again to-morrow." 
 
 After that day the child was virtually adopted 
 into the household, as his presence seemed in some 
 mysterious way to give pleasure to the senora. 
 Her eyes would follow him about the court in his 
 barefooted gambols with dog or goat, and it was 
 
 « Cake. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 3 I 5 
 
 not long before the boy himself forgot that he had 
 ever had another name than that of Justo. 
 
 After as little delay as possible, Teresa with the 
 baby had arrived at the ranch, having been gladly 
 summoned from Saltillo by the sefiora, and was in- 
 stalled as assistant housekeeper, much to Lucita's 
 satisfaction. Pepito grew plump and merry, and 
 browner than ever, tumbling in the sand of the 
 kitchen court with Justo as his devoted guardian. 
 
 By degrees the Sefiora Barreda recovered suffi- 
 cient of her own strength to assist Teresa by her 
 counsel and so relieve Luz of the administration of 
 household affairs, although no longer able to pre- 
 side in person over every detail, as had hitherto 
 been the custom of the indefatigable hacendada} 
 One granddaughter or the other was rarely absent 
 from the invalid's side. When the sun stood high 
 over the court of the flowers, the great chair was 
 carefully wheeled into the shaded sala, where the 
 sefiora might take her siesta, reclining upon the 
 rubber cushions, undisturbed by the shouts of the 
 children at play over the wall in the outer court. 
 The early and late hours of the day were spent in 
 one or the other of the courts, with Luz and Ninfa 
 at their sewing beside her chair, or reading aloud 
 in turn from the books brought home from school. 
 
 The useless limbs gave the grandmother no pain, 
 and though the helplessness of the white hand rest- 
 
 1 Lady owner ot the ranch. 
 
3 16 the senora's granddaughters 
 
 ing upon her lap in pathetic idleness sent many a 
 pang to the hearts of the twins, the lady herself 
 showed unexpected resignation to the loss of the 
 vigor of her old age. Troubled by few things, she 
 enjoyed the world directly within her ken, doting 
 upon her granddaughters and finding in their caress- 
 ing love a balm for all that she had lost. Their 
 simple talk about the Protestant school, which could 
 not well be kept out of their conversation altogether, 
 began erelong to interest her in spite of herself and 
 her prejudices. The old, proud fire of her eyes 
 was more and more replaced, as she gazed upon 
 her children, by the gentle eagerness of one who 
 thought much and who was slowly finding some- 
 thing new and sweet in her contemplations. 
 
 The Bibles were no longer forbidden books, and 
 more than once during the first weeks following the 
 removal to the hacienda, the sefiora asked that cer- 
 tain portions referred to by Luz or Ninfa in their 
 talk might be read aloud to her. 
 
 As she watched the girls at work among the 
 flowers, or bending over their embroidery frames, 
 in rare moments of silence the senora's medita- 
 tions sometimes took such shape as this : 
 
 "The children are teaching me many things. 
 At last I begin to see that the Bible is a book to 
 be read and to be understood, even by the un- 
 learned, whatever the priests may say. Surely if 
 such a child as my Ninfa may read it and obey its 
 
MOMING TREASURES $1? 
 
 teachings in her innocent youth, an old woman 
 such as I am need fear no evil from the same teach- 
 ings. Every day they shall read it to me, and if 
 obeying its commands means Protestantism, then — 
 who knows? — even I may not want to disobey. 
 How well it was that I had not really burned the 
 books when the stroke of God fell upon me." 
 
 With all the help afforded by Dona Teresa and 
 the nurse, Juana, there were many light duties to 
 occupy the sisters during the long, bright days 
 before the sudden twilights fell and the stars rose 
 over the hilltops. There were the flowers to be 
 tended, in their great earthen jars, and the vigorous 
 smilax vines to be trained carefully over the face 
 of the whitewashed wall of the corridor. On most 
 days there was a little studying to be done, when 
 Luz smoothed Ninfa's road to learning. 
 
 What if the English learned at school languished 
 by degrees from disuse, and the quaint old piano 
 in the sala gave forth an uncertain sound in re- 
 sponse to the touch of warm, brown fingers? The 
 best lessons learned during Ninfa's short school 
 term still held fast in her memory and bore fruit in 
 her life. The green-covered Bible revealed, day 
 by day, many truths to the simple hearts seeking 
 them, which have been hidded from "the wise and 
 prudent " through all the ages. 
 
 On some evenings, when work was laid aside 
 and a sudden shower of the rainy season had 
 
3 1 8 THE senora's granddaughters 
 
 driven them from the dampness of the court to the 
 candle-lighted sala inside, Teresa was to be coaxed 
 into telling of the peasant mama who rode away 
 from Las Rosas one fine day at the side of the 
 handsome Vicente, and even the sefiora learned, 
 for the children's sake, to listen calmly to the sim- 
 ple recital of Manuela's goodness and cleverness 
 in the poor little home beyond the mountains. 
 On one occasion Teresa gave the reins to her fancy, 
 and from telling of the peasant bride, began to 
 picture the day to come when, instead of a rough 
 mountain pony, a shining coach would enter the 
 gates of El Dorado only to turn again and bear 
 
 Ninfa away toward the city But here the 
 
 sefiora was quick to cry "Enough ! " The simple- 
 hearted Teresa must not pry too curiously into what 
 the future must bring. Not yet would the grand- 
 mother allow herself to be reminded of the inevitable 
 day to arrive when Ninfa should transfer her sweet 
 despotism from herself to Rosina's young master. 
 One day during the following summer, Luz re- 
 ceived a letter from a missionary worker in a 
 neighboring State, offering her a position as teacher 
 in the school connected with one of the mission- 
 stations there. This letter was immediately shared 
 with the grandmother and Ninfa, while Teresa 
 stood by to hear the reading. The foster mother's 
 heart swelled with proud satisfaction. She wished 
 that Luis might have been alive to hear it with her. 
 
HOMING TREASURES 3 19 
 
 Quite different from Teresa's sensations were those 
 of Ninfa on hearing the proposition which would 
 again deprive her of her sister who had indeed be- 
 come as dear to her as her own self, according to 
 the prediction of Prieto. With characteristic aban- 
 don she therefore set herself in opposition to the 
 plan. 
 
 " She shall not go from us, mama" she exclaimed 
 indignantly, falling upon her knees and resting her 
 head in the old, coaxing manner against the grand- 
 mother's shoulder. "We cannot spare our Luz 
 now, can we, dearest ? Speak, mama, and say that 
 she shall never leave us." 
 
 The sefiora's eyes searched Lucita's face before 
 her lips opened for a reply to Ninfa. Luz met the 
 glance and smiled, Vicente's own smile, and the 
 senora, suppressing a sigh, turned her gaze to the 
 eager, dark face against her shoulder. 
 
 "The letter speaks of the late autumn as the 
 time for the school to open, Ninfa," she said at last. 
 "So, even if we agree to send Luz from us, there 
 will be many weeks before the time comes for the 
 separation. Luz, herself, shall decide, for she is 
 now a woman and wise for her age. If she goes 
 she will return after a while, and it will not be as 
 though we had lost her again. Luz, do you wish 
 to teach this school ? The work will be hard and 
 you have no need to work, as you well know." 
 
 44 It is to teach the Bible, mama" Luz answered, 
 
320 THE SENORA's GRANDDAUGHTERS 
 
 softly, with an arm thrown across the back of her 
 grandmother's chair. " I could not leave you and 
 Ninfa and our Teresa and Pepito for anything 
 else." 
 
 "What was it you read this morning, Lucita, 
 while Ninfa brushed my hair?" the sefiora asked 
 thoughtfully, stroking Ninfa's bowed head. " It 
 was something about leaving home and mothers 
 and sisters, was it not? I do not remember the 
 words very well, but you who carry in your 
 memory so many wise sayings from the book will 
 recall them to my mind. Hush, Ninfa," she added, 
 "why should you weep so bitterly? Luz is not 
 yet gone. Listen, little star of my soul, she will 
 tell us something from the book you cherish." 
 
 " Was it this, mama ? ' Every one that hath 
 forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, 
 or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my 
 name's sake, shall receive a hundred-fold, and shall 
 inherit everlasting life.' " 
 
 "Yes, yes," the sefiora murmured musingly. 
 "Strange words and bold. Yet, if the Lord said 
 them, they must be true." 
 
 "And Luz will go? " Ninfa asked, in smothered 
 accents from her grandmother's shoulder. 
 
 The reply came from Luz herself, whose sweet 
 lips quivered, though a steadfast light shone in her 
 gray eyes. "Yes, Ninfa, I shall go." 
 
 And Teresa, standing by, rejoiced, forgetting all 
 
HOMING TREASURES 321 
 
 else in the thought that now truly Luz was to be- 
 come the teacher of " a roomful of uifias." 
 
 Such would surely be no uncomely sight, and if 
 it should mean hard work and a lonely life, are not 
 hard work and lonely hours for thought and aspira- 
 tion sure stepping-stones in the midst of the flood 
 of life's hurry and turmoil? 
 
APPENDIX I 
 
 Translated paragraph from "El Testigo" pub- 
 lished in Guadalajara, Mexico (Congregational Mis- 
 sion), March 15, 1896. 
 
 "GO TO JOSEPH." 
 
 Such is the title of a newspaper paragraph in 
 the so-called "Friend of the Truth." 
 
 After mentioning some expressions of adulation 
 of St. Joseph, which it is said the Virgin used in 
 speaking with St. Bridget, the writer remarks : 
 "For this, the Fathers and Doctors of the Church 
 . . . do not hesitate to declare, following the 
 sacred text, that our salvation is in his hands, be- 
 cause he is able, by his intercession, to accomplish 
 what Mary can by privilege and Jesus by his own 
 will. Ite ad Joseph, Gen. 41 : 55." 
 
 We cannot believe that the author of these lines 
 is ignorant of the fact that the words which he 
 quotes from the book of Genesis were uttered, not 
 by divine inspiration, but by a heathen king, who 
 sent the people, not to gain the salvation of their 
 souls, but to buy food for themselves and their cat- 
 tle, to Joseph, the son of Jacob, who died about 
 seventeen hundred years before the birth of 
 Joseph, "the husband of Mary, and reputed father 
 of Jesus." Therefore, the effrontery with which 
 
 3 2 3 
 
324 APPENDIX I 
 
 the Romanists declare that they "follow the sacred 
 text " when they counsel the people to have re- 
 course to Joseph, is inexpressible and almost in- 
 comprehensible. And to write above this the 
 name of " Friend of the Truth" ! 
 
APPENDIX II 
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 L.UBRARY 
 
 P. PARLOR. 
 APARTMEHTS OFCH/EF 
 
 
 
 
 
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 325 
 
APPENDIX III 
 
 Extract from the introduction to "El Nuevo Tes- 
 tamento de Nuestro Seizor Jesucristo : con notas ; y 
 ademds con indices historico, cronologico, de sen- 
 tences sagradas, y de las epistolas y evangelios para 
 todos los domingos del ano. Londres, 1874" 
 
 The reading of the Holy Bible has received 
 the express sanction of his holiness the pope, Pius 
 VI., according to this letter, addressed to the arch- 
 bishop of Florence, the most illustrious and rev- 
 erend Antonio Martini : 
 
 "Very dear Son : 
 
 " Health and blessing in our Lord. 
 
 "When a deluge of evil books which so grossly 
 attack the Catholic religion, circulates even among 
 the unlearned, thou art very seasonable in judging 
 that the faithful should with great ardor be incited 
 to a reading of the sacred Scriptures. They are 
 truly most abundant fountains, which ought to be 
 open to all, in order that they may imbibe from 
 them purity of habits and of doctrine, and that the 
 errors so extensively disseminated in these corrupt 
 times may be dissipated. This thou hast done op- 
 portunely, as thou dost aver, publishing these same 
 Holy Scriptures in the language of thy country, 
 within reach of every one. . . We commend, 
 
 327 
 
328 APPENDIX III 
 
 therefore, thy undoubted learning, united with thy 
 great piety; and we give thee due thanks for the 
 books which thou hast had the care to submit to 
 us, which we shall read, even though it be but 
 lightly, as soon as possible. Meanwhile, as a 
 pledge of our pontifical benevolence, receive our 
 apostolic benediction, which we send most lovingly 
 to thee, dear son. 
 
 " Given in Rome on the Kalends of April, 1778, 
 in the fourth year of our Pontificate. 
 
 Felippe Buonamicci, Pius P. P. VI. 
 
 Latin Secretary." 
 
 n