“I went out, not knowing what I should do; I hardly slept, and next morning I was so enraged with the treacherous creature that I made up my mind to leave Gibraltar without seeing her again.  But the moment the drums began to roll, my courage failed me.  I took up my net full of oranges, and hurried off to Carmen’s house.  Her window-shutters had been pulled apart a little, and I saw her great dark eyes watching for me.  The powdered servant showed me in at once.  Carmen sent him out with a message, and as soon as we were alone she burst into one of her fits of crocodile laughter and threw her arms around my neck.  Never had I seen her look so beautiful.  She was dressed out like a queen, and scented; she had silken furniture, embroidered curtains—­and I togged out like the thief I was!

“‘Minchorro,’ said Carmen, ’I’ve a good mind to smash up everything here, set fire to the house, and take myself off to the mountains.’  And then she would fondle me, and then she would laugh, and she danced about and tore up her fripperies.  Never did monkey gambol nor make such faces, nor play such wild tricks, as she did that day.  When she had recovered her gravity—­

“‘Hark!’ she said, ’this is gipsy business.  I mean him to take me to Ronda, where I have a sister who is a nun’ (here she shrieked with laughter again).  ’We shall pass by a particular spot which I shall make known to you.  Then you must fall upon him and strip him to the skin.  Your best plan would be to do for him, but,’ she added, with a certain fiendish smile of hers, which no one who saw it ever had any desire to imitate, ’do you know what you had better do?  Let El Tuerto come up in front of you.  You keep a little behind.  The crayfish is brave, and skilful too, and he has good pistols.  Do you understand?’

“And she broke off with another fit of laughter that made me shiver.

“‘No,’ said I, ’I hate Garcia, but he’s my comrade.  Some day, maybe, I’ll rid you of him, but we’ll settle our account after the fashion of my country.  It’s only chance that has made me a gipsy, and in certain things I shall always be a thorough Navarrese,* as the proverb says.

     * Navarro fino.

“‘You’re a fool,’ she rejoined, ’a simpleton, a regular payllo.  You’re just like the dwarf who thinks himself tall because he can spit a long way.* You don’t love me!  Be off with you!’

     * Or esorjle de or marsichisle, sin chisnar lachinguel. 
     “The promise of a dwarf is that he will spit a long way.”—­A
     gipsy proverb.

“Whenever she said to me ’Be off with you,” I couldn’t go away.  I promised I would start back to my comrades and wait the arrival of the Englishman.  She, on her side, promised she would be ill until she left Gibraltar for Ronda.