"Vamos Inglesito," shouted Sevilla in a voice of thunder; "answer
the monro in the crabbed Gitano."
I answered the robber, for such he was, and one, too, whose name
will live for many a year in the ruffian histories of Madrid; I
answered him in a speech of some length, in the dialect of the
Estremenian Gypsies.
"I believe it is the crabbed Gitano," muttered Balseiro. "It is
either that or English, for I understand not a word of it."
"Did I not say to you," cried the bull-fighter, "that you knew
nothing of the crabbed Gitano? But this Inglesito does. I
understood all he said. Vaya, there is none like him for the
crabbed Gitano. He is a good ginete, too; next to myself, there is
none like him, only he rides with stirrup leathers too short.
Inglesito, if you have need of money, I will lend you my purse.
All I have is at your service, and that is not a little; I have
just gained four thousand chules by the lottery. Courage,
Englishman! Another cup. I will pay all. I, Sevilla!"
And he clapped his hand repeatedly on his breast, reiterating "I,
Sevilla! I - "
CHAPTER XIII
Intrigues at Court - Quesada and Galiano - Dissolution of the Cortes-
-The Secretary - Aragonese Pertinacity - The Council of Trent - The
Asturian - The Three Thieves - Benedict Mol - The Men of Lucerne - The
Treasure
Mendizabal had told me to call upon him again at the end of three
months, giving me hopes that he would not then oppose himself to
the publication of the New Testament; before, however, the three
months had elapsed, he had fallen into disgrace, and had ceased to
be prime minister.
An intrigue had been formed against him, at the head of which were
two quondam friends of his, and fellow-townsmen, Gaditanians,
Isturitz and Alcala Galiano; both of them had been egregious
liberals in their day, and indeed principal members of those cortes
which, on the Angouleme invasion, had hurried Ferdinand from Madrid
to Cadiz, and kept him prisoner there until that impregnable town
thought proper to surrender, and both of them had been subsequently
refugees in England, where they had spent a considerable number of
years.
These gentlemen, however, finding themselves about this time
exceedingly poor, and not seeing any immediate prospect of
advantage from supporting Mendizabal; considering themselves,
moreover, quite as good men as he, and as capable of governing
Spain in the present emergency; determined to secede from the party
of their friend, whom they had hitherto supported, and to set up
for themselves.
They therefore formed an opposition to Mendizabal in the cortes;
the members of this opposition assumed the name of moderados, in
contradistinction to Mendizabal and his followers, who were ultra
liberals.
