d
her white rounded arms, and only partially hindered the view of a figure
of the most elegantly voluptuous tournure. Around her waist another
scarf of bright scarlet formed a sort of cincture or belt, leaving its
long fringed ends to hang over the skirt of her silken robe, and
blending its colours with those of the light veil that fell down from
her shoulders. It was a costume that seemed well-suited to her striking
beauty, and the effect of the _coup d'oeil_ upon the heart of poor
Tiburcio was at once pleasant and embarrassing.

Notwithstanding the gracious smile with which she acknowledged his
presence, there was a certain hauteur about the proffered welcome--as if
it was a mere expression of gratitude for the service he had formerly
rendered.

Tiburcio observed this with a feeling of chagrin, and sighed as he
contrasted her cold formality of speech with the abandon and freedom of
their former relations. But he could not help noticing a still greater
contrast when he looked at his own poor garments and compared them with
the elegant costumes of his two travelling companions.

While Don Estevan was entertaining his host with some account of what
had happened on their journey, the Senator appeared to have eyes only
for the beautiful Rosarita--upon whom he was not slow in lavishing a
string of empty compliments.

The young girl appeared to Tiburcio to receive these compliments with a
smile very different from that she had accorded to himself; he also
observed, with a feeling of bitterness, the superior easiness of manner
in which those whom he regarded as his rivals addressed themselves to
her. With anguish he noticed the colour become more vivid upon her
cheeks; while the heaving of her bosom, as the scarf rose and fell in
regular vibrations, did not escape the keen glance of jealousy. In fact
the young girl appeared to receive pleasure from these gallantries, like
a village belle who listens to the flatteries of some grand lord, at the
same time that a voice from within whispers her that the sweet
compliments she is receiving are also merited.

Don Estevan was not unobservant of this by-play that was passing around
him. He easily read in the expressive looks of Tiburcio the secret of
his heart, and involuntarily contrasted the manly beauty of the young
man with the ordinary face and figure of the Senator. As if from this
he apprehended some obstacles to his secret projects, more than once his
dark eyebrow