The Bell-Ringer of Angel's, and Other StoriesHarte, Bret
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The Bell-Ringer of Angel's, and Other Stories
Harte, Bret
American fiction -- 19th century; Short stories; Western stories
An expression of superstitious gravity, half real, half simulated, came
over Dona Felipa's face, although her vivacity of gesticulation and
emphasis did not relax. She cast a hurried glance around her, and leaned
a little forward towards the cousins.
“When there are no more young people in the casa because they are dead,”
she continued, in a lower voice, “Don Gregorio he is very melank-oaly,
and he have no more company for many years. Then there was a rodeo near
the hacienda, and there came five or six caballeros to stay with him
for the feast. Notabilimente comes then Don Jorge Martinez. He is a bad
man--so weeked--a Don Juan for making lofe to the ladies. He lounge in
the garden, he smoke his cigarette, he twist the moustache--so! One day
he came in, and he laugh and wink so and say, 'Oh, the weeked, sly Don
Gregorio! He have hid away in the casa a beautiful, pret-ty girl, and
he will nossing say.' And the other caballeros say, 'Mira! what is this?
there is not so mooch as one young lady in the casa.' And Don Jorge he
wink, and he say, 'Imbeciles! pigs!' And he walk in the garden and twist
his moustache more than ever. And one day, behold! he walk into the
casa, very white and angry, and he swear mooch to himself; and he orders
his horse, and he ride away, and never come back no more, never-r-r!
And one day another caballero, Don Esteban Briones, he came in, and say,
'Hola! Don Jorge has forgotten his pret-ty girl: he have left her over
on the garden bench. Truly I have seen.' And they say, 'We will too.'
And they go, and there is nossing. And they say, 'Imbecile and pig!' But
he is not imbecile and pig; for he has seen, and Don Jorge has seen; and
why? For it is not a girl, but what you call her--a ghost! And they will
that Don Esteban should make a picture of her--a design; and he make
one. And old Don Gregorio he say, 'madre de Dios! it is Rosita'--the
same that hung under the crucifix in the big room.”
“And is that all?” asked Dick, with a somewhat pronounced laugh, but a
face that looked quite white in the moonlight.
“No, it ees NOT all. For when Don Gregorio got himself more company
another time--it ees all yonge ladies, and my aunt she is invite too;
for she was yonge then, and she herself have tell to me this:--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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