rear, the rushing gamecock.
The crowd did not wait for the verdict, but slunk away, intent on disavowing any connection with the affair. Miguel saw Suzanna enter the kitchen, and with a sort of dying hope that the inevitable might still be averted, he dashed after her. His heart failed him as he gained the door and saw that the way to the dining room was unbarred.
No sound of the tumult outside had penetrated the cool, darkened room in which Don Fernandoâs family and Señor Alvarez sat. Ramonâs father sat at one end of the long board experiencing the comfortable feeling of a man whose stomach is well-filled and whose mind is at peace with the world. The house-servants had just removed the dishes, and with hand-rolled cigars and a rare vintage before him, Don Fernando surveyed his friend, Alvarez, and his son, Ramon, with keen pleasure.
Ramonâs father and the lawyer had held a consultation that afternoon, and it had been planned that at this very time the boy should hear the ultimatum in regard to Suzanna.
It was a propitious moment. The meal had passed with rare pleasure, and Don Fernando congratulated himself on choosing this time for broaching the subject. He shot a keen glance in the direction of his son, and was further pleased to note that Ramon was in excellent spirits. The aged don showed his astuteness by addressing himself to Alvarez rather than to the boy.
âHow do things fare in Monterey?â he asked quite casually.
The lawyer had awaited this question, and he promptly voiced his rehearsed answer.
âFrom bad to worse,â he replied with a show of feeling. âThe Mission property is about destroyed. Some of the small ranchers are hiring the Indians at a daily wage. If this thing is not put down, we will be hard-pressed to gather our crops. We cannot exist without peon labor. This talk of educating them is heresy. Once we start that, they will be out of hand completely.â
âWell, I wonder,â Don Fernando replied, seeming to weigh his answer.
âWhat? Have you turned Republican, too?â
âHardly! But I have begun to question some of our institutions.â
Ramon heard his fatherâs words in amazement. This was an unbending which he had never dreamed possible. Don Fernando read his sonâs thoughts, and made his cast.
âWhat I am about to say will come as a great surprise, I know,â the master of the hacienda continued. âI have gone so far as to formulate certain plans regarding the educating of one of my peons. But last evening did I receive confirmation of them.â
âRuiz?â the lawyer asked interestedly.
âNo,â Don Fernando replied deliberately, and with a shaking of his head,â âhis daughter, Suzanna.â
âWhat?â Ramon asked. âHave you spoken to her? She hasâââ
âRamon!â Doña Luz remonstrated. âAllow your father to finish.â
Señor Gutierrez bowed, and went on:
âSuzanna is an unusual girl. A beautiful woman, I might add. She seems to possess intelligence beyond the scope of the average peon. Enough so, that she manages to unload her work upon the shoulders of others. Her lack of industry is the girlâs worst fault.
âBut you know,â continuing to address himself to Alvarez, âthat my wife and I have long felt a peculiar attachment for her. Her father has been a loyal servant. That, as well as my interest in the girl herself has led me to make this move.â
âIt is a worthy effort, although it may prove a foolhardy one,â Doña Luz declared uneasily.
âSurely it is a wonderful chance for the girl,â Alvarez cried heartily. âWhy there is not one peon in ten thousand who can write his own name. The girl is beautiful; but, in all kindness, one must admit that she is without culture of any sort.â
âIf there is any possibility of her acquiring it,â Don Fernando answered, âshe
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