FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137  
138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   >>   >|  
h his eyes the people as they rushed to and fro in confusion. Their voices and cries he could vaguely hear even at that distance. One of the servants came running in breathlessly and informed him what was going on. A thought entered his mind. Amid confusion and tumult libertines take advantage of the fright and the weakness of woman. All flee to save themselves; nobody thinks of anyone else; the women faint and their cries are not heard; they fall; are trampled over; fear and fright overcome modesty, and under cover of darkness.... He fancied he could see Ibarra carrying Maria Clara fainting in his arms, and then disappearing in the darkness. With leaps and bounds, he went down the stairs without hat, or cane, and, almost like a crazy person, turned toward the plaza. There he found some Spaniards reproving the soldiers. He looked toward the seats which Maria Clara and her friends had been occupying, and saw that they were vacant. "Father curate! Father curate!" shouted the Spaniards to him, but he took no notice and ran on in the direction of the house of Captain Tiago. There he recovered his breath. He saw through the transparent shade, a shadow--that adorable shadow, so graceful and delicate in its contour--that of Maria Clara. He could also see another shadow, that of her aunt carrying cups and glasses. "Well!" he muttered to himself. "It seems that she has only fallen ill." Aunt Isabel afterward closed the shell windows and the graceful shadow could no longer be seen. The curate walked away from there without seeing the crowd. He was looking at the bust of a beautiful maiden which he had before his eyes, a maiden sleeping and breathing sweetly. Her eyelids were shaded by long lashes, which formed graceful curves like those on Rafael's virgins. Her small mouth was smiling, and her whole countenance seemed to breathe virginity, purity and innocence. That sweet face of hers on the background of the white draperies of the bed was a vision like the head of a cherubim among the clouds. His impassioned imagination went on and pictured to him.... Who can describe all that a burning brain can conceive? CHAPTER XXIII TWO VISITORS. Ibarra found his mind in such a state that it was impossible for him to sleep. So, in order to divert himself and to drive away the gloomy idea which distracted his mind, he began work in his solitary laboratory. Morning came upon him, still at work making mixture
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137  
138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
shadow
 

curate

 

graceful

 

darkness

 

Ibarra

 
carrying
 
Spaniards
 

fright

 

Father

 
maiden

confusion

 

solitary

 
laboratory
 

sleeping

 

lashes

 
beautiful
 

Morning

 
breathing
 

eyelids

 
shaded

gloomy

 

distracted

 

sweetly

 
Isabel
 
afterward
 

closed

 

fallen

 
mixture
 
windows
 

walked


making

 
longer
 

divert

 

formed

 
draperies
 

vision

 

cherubim

 

background

 

describe

 
CHAPTER

burning

 
pictured
 

clouds

 

impassioned

 

imagination

 

VISITORS

 

virgins

 

smiling

 

Rafael

 
curves