themselves; at this day, they generally ape the Frenchman.  Now, I can tolerate a genuine Frenchman, without having any great liking for him; but if there is any one whom I feel at liberty to despise and distrust, it is a German, Spaniard or Englishman, who is trying to Frenchify himself.  Such people are much akin to the self-styled citizen of the world, who professes to have rid himself of all local and national prejudice.  I have usually met no-prejudice and no-principle walking hand in hand together.  The French,” he continued, “have the impudence to call theirs the universal language; and in diplomacy and war, they have been long too much encouraged in this.  My Lord Wellington here is much to blame in giving way to their pretensions on this point.  Whenever I have an independent command,” said L’Isle laughing, “I will not let a Frenchman capitulate but in good English, or for want of it, in some other language than his own.  I have already put that in practice in a small way,” said he, as he handed Mrs. Shortridge down to dinner.  “I once waylaid a foraging, anglice, a plundering party, returning laden to Merida.  They showed fight, but we soon tumbled them into a barranca, where we had them quite in our power.  But I would not listen to a word of their French, or let them surrender, until they found a renegade Spaniard to act as interpreter.  When I want anything of them, I may speak French; but when they want anything of me, they must ask it in another tongue.”

The dinner went off as large dinners usually do.  The wrong parties got seated together, and suitable companions were separated by half the length of the board.  Lady Mabel had Colonel Bradshawe, whom she did not want, close at hand; and her dragoman was out of hearing, which she felt to be not only inconvenient, but a grievance; for without entertaining any definite designs upon him, habit had already given her a sort of property in him, and a right to his services.  But the Elvas ladies had no such ground of complaint.  Each had her favorite by her side, and Dona Carlotta one on either hand.

It was a relief to Lady Mabel when the time came to lead the ladies back to her drawing-room.  There she labored to entertain them until some of the gentlemen found leisure to come to her aid.  She expected to see L’Isle among the first; but one after another came in without him; the Portuguese ladies were taken off her hands by their more intimate male friends, and she had leisure to wonder what could keep L’Isle down stairs so long, and to get out of humor at his sticking to the bottle, and neglecting better company for it.

Meanwhile, a great controversy was waging below.  The more the disputants drank, the more strenuously they discussed the point at issue; and the more they exhausted themselves in argument, the oftener they refreshed themselves by drinking; swallowing many a glass unconsciously in the heat of the debate.