elf. The guilds
of mestizos and natives were continually watching one another,
venting their bellicose spirits and their activities in jealousy
and distrust. At mass one day the gobernadorcillo of the natives was
seated on a bench to the right, and, being extremely thin, happened
to cross one of his legs over the other, thus adopting a nonchalant
attitude, in order to expose his thighs more and display his pretty
shoes. The gobernadorcillo of the guild of mestizos, who was seated on
the opposite bench, as he had bunions, and could not cross his legs on
account of his obesity, spread his legs wide apart to expose a plain
waistcoat adorned with a beautiful gold chain set with diamonds. The
two cliques comprehended these maneuvers and joined battle. On the
following Sunday all the mestizos, even the thinnest, had large
paunches and spread their legs wide apart as though on horseback,
while the natives placed one leg over the other, even the fattest,
there being one cabeza de barangay who turned a somersault. Seeing
these movements, the Chinese all adopted their own peculiar attitude,
that of sitting as they do in their shops, with one leg drawn back
and upward, the other swinging loose. There resulted protests and
petitions, the police rushed to arms ready to start a civil war,
the curates rejoiced, the Spaniards were amused and made money out
of everybody, until the General settled the quarrel by ordering that
every one should sit as the Chinese did, since they were the heaviest
contributors, even though they were not the best Catholics. The
difficulty for the mestizos and natives then was that their trousers
were too tight to permit of their imitating the Chinese. But to make
the intention of humiliating them the more evident, the measure was
carried out with great pomp and ceremony, the church being surrounded
by a troop of cavalry, while all those within were sweating. The matter
was carried to the Cortes, but it was repeated that the Chinese, as
the ones who paid, should have their way in the religious ceremonies,
even though they apostatized and laughed at Christianity immediately
after. The natives and the mestizos had to be content, learning thus
not to waste time over such fatuity. [36]

Quiroga, with his smooth tongue and humble smile, was lavishly and
flatteringly attentive to Simoun. His voice was caressing and his
bows numerous, but the jeweler cut his blandishments short by asking
brusquely:

"Did the brac