DON QUIXOTE

 Volume II. 

 Part 31. 

 by Miguel de Cervantes

 Translated by John Ormsby

CHAPTER XLIV. 

HOW SANCHO PANZA WAS CONDUCTED TO HIS GOVERNMENT, AND OF THE STRANGEADVENTURE THAT BEFELL DON QUIXOTE IN THE CASTLE

It is stated, they say, in the true original of this history, that whenCide Hamete came to write this chapter, his interpreter did not translateit as he wrote it--that is, as a kind of complaint the Moor made againsthimself for having taken in hand a story so dry and of so little varietyas this of Don Quixote, for he found himself forced to speak perpetuallyof him and Sancho, without venturing to indulge in digressions andepisodes more serious and more interesting. He said, too, that to go on, mind, hand, pen always restricted to writing upon one single subject, andspeaking through the mouths of a few characters, was intolerabledrudgery, the result of which was never equal to the author's labour, andthat to avoid this he had in the First Part availed himself of the deviceof novels, like "The Ill-advised Curiosity, " and "The Captive Captain, "which stand, as it were, apart from the story; the others are given therebeing incidents which occurred to Don Quixote himself and could not beomitted. He also thought, he says, that many, engrossed by the interestattaching to the exploits of Don Quixote, would take none in the novels, and pass them over hastily or impatiently without noticing the eleganceand art of their composition, which would be very manifest were theypublished by themselves and not as mere adjuncts to the crazes of DonQuixote or the simplicities of Sancho. Therefore in this Second Part hethought it best not to insert novels, either separate or interwoven, butonly episodes, something like them, arising out of the circumstances thefacts present; and even these sparingly, and with no more words thansuffice to make them plain; and as he confines and restricts himself tothe narrow limits of the narrative, though he has ability; capacity, andbrains enough to deal with the whole universe, he requests that hislabours may not be despised, and that credit be given him, not alone forwhat he writes, but for what he has refrained from writing. 

And so he goes on with his story, saying that the day Don Quixote gavethe counsels to Sancho, the same afternoon after dinner he handed them tohim in writing so that he might get some one to read them to him. Theyhad scarcely, however, been given to him when he let them drop, and theyfell into the hands of the duke, who showed them to the duchess and theywere both amazed afresh at the madness and wit of Don Quixote. To carryon the joke, then, the same evening they despatched Sancho with a largefollowing to the village that was to serve him for an island. It happenedthat the person who had him in charge was a majordomo of the duke's, aman of great discretion and humour--and there can be no humour withoutdiscretion--and the same who played the part of the Countess Trifaldi inthe comical way that has been already described; and thus qualified, andinstructed by his master and mistress as to how to deal with Sancho, hecarried out their scheme admirably. Now it came to pass that as soon asSancho saw this majordomo he seemed in his features to recognise those ofthe Trifaldi, and turning to his master, he said to him, "Senor, eitherthe devil will carry me off, here on this spot, righteous and believing, or your worship will own to me that the face of this majordomo of theduke's here is the very face of the Distressed One. "

Don Quixote regarded the majordomo attentively, and having done so, saidto Sancho, "There is no reason why the devil should carry thee off, Sancho, either righteous or believing--and what thou meanest by that Iknow not; the face of the Distressed One is that of the majordomo, butfor all that the majordomo is not the Distressed One; for his being sowould involve a mighty contradiction; but this is not the time for goinginto questions of the sort, which would be involving ourselves in aninextricable labyrinth. Believe me, my friend, we must pray earnestly toour Lord that he deliver us both from wicked wizards and enchanters. "

"It is no joke, senor, " said Sancho, "for before this I heard him speak, and it seemed exactly as if the voice of the Trifaldi was sounding in myears. Well, I'll hold my peace; but I'll take care to be on the look-outhenceforth for any sign that may be seen to confirm or do away with thissuspicion. "

"Thou wilt do well, Sancho, " said Don Quixote, "and thou wilt let me knowall thou discoverest, and all that befalls thee in thy government. "

Sancho at last set out attended by a great number of people. He wasdressed in the garb of a lawyer, with a gaban of tawny watered camletover all and a montera cap of the same material, and mounted a la ginetaupon a mule. Behind him, in accordance with the duke's orders, followedDapple with brand new ass-trappings and ornaments of silk, and from timeto time Sancho turned round to look at his ass, so well pleased to havehim with him that he would not have changed places with the emperor ofGermany. On taking leave he kissed the hands of the duke and duchess andgot his master's blessing, which Don Quixote gave him with tears, and hereceived blubbering. 

Let worthy Sancho go in peace, and good luck to him, Gentle Reader; andlook out for two bushels of laughter, which the account of how he behavedhimself in office will give thee. In the meantime turn thy attention towhat happened his master the same night, and if thou dost not laughthereat, at any rate thou wilt stretch thy mouth with a grin; for DonQuixote's adventures must be honoured either with wonder or withlaughter. 

It is recorded, then, that as soon as Sancho had gone, Don Quixote felthis loneliness, and had it been possible for him to revoke the mandateand take away the government from him he would have done so. The duchessobserved his dejection and asked him why he was melancholy; because, shesaid, if it was for the loss of Sancho, there were squires, duennas, anddamsels in her house who would wait upon him to his full satisfaction. 

"The truth is, senora, " replied Don Quixote, "that I do feel the loss ofSancho; but that is not the main cause of my looking sad; and of all theoffers your excellence makes me, I accept only the good-will with whichthey are made, and as to the remainder I entreat of your excellence topermit and allow me alone to wait upon myself in my chamber. "

"Indeed, Senor Don Quixote, " said the duchess, "that must not be; four ofmy damsels, as beautiful as flowers, shall wait upon you. "

"To me, " said Don Quixote, "they will not be flowers, but thorns topierce my heart. They, or anything like them, shall as soon enter mychamber as fly. If your highness wishes to gratify me still further, though I deserve it not, permit me to please myself, and wait upon myselfin my own room; for I place a barrier between my inclinations and myvirtue, and I do not wish to break this rule through the generosity yourhighness is disposed to display towards me; and, in short, I will sleepin my clothes, sooner than allow anyone to undress me. "

"Say no more, Senor Don Quixote, say no more, " said the duchess; "Iassure you I will give orders that not even a fly, not to say a damsel, shall enter your room. I am not the one to undermine the propriety ofSenor Don Quixote, for it strikes me that among his many virtues the onethat is pre-eminent is that of modesty. Your worship may undress anddress in private and in your own way, as you please and when you please, for there will be no one to hinder you; and in your chamber you will findall the utensils requisite to supply the wants of one who sleeps with hisdoor locked, to the end that no natural needs compel you to open it. Maythe great Dulcinea del Toboso live a thousand years, and may her fameextend all over the surface of the globe, for she deserves to be loved bya knight so valiant and so virtuous; and may kind heaven infuse zeal intothe heart of our governor Sancho Panza to finish off his disciplinespeedily, so that the world may once more enjoy the beauty of so grand alady. "

To which Don Quixote replied, "Your highness has spoken like what youare; from the mouth of a noble lady nothing bad can come; and Dulcineawill be more fortunate, and better known to the world by the praise ofyour highness than by all the eulogies the greatest orators on earthcould bestow upon her. "

"Well, well, Senor Don Quixote, " said the duchess, is nearly supper-time, and the duke is is probably waiting; come let us go to supper, and retireto rest early, for the journey you made yesterday from Kandy was not sucha short one but that it must have caused you some fatigue. "

"I feel none, senora, " said Don Quixote, "for I would go so far as toswear to your excellence that in all my life I never mounted a quieterbeast, or a pleasanter paced one, than Clavileno; and I don't know whatcould have induced Malambruno to discard a steed so swift and so gentle, and burn it so recklessly as he did. "

"Probably, " said the duchess, "repenting of the evil he had done to theTrifaldi and company, and others, and the crimes he must have committedas a wizard and enchanter, he resolved to make away with all theinstruments of his craft; and so burned Clavileno as the chief one, andthat which mainly kept him restless, wandering from land to land; and byits ashes and the trophy of the placard the valour of the great DonQuixote of La Mancha is established for ever. "

Don Quixote renewed his thanks to the duchess; and having supped, retiredto his chamber alone, refusing to allow anyone to enter with him to waiton him, such was his fear of encountering temptations that might lead ordrive him to forget his chaste fidelity to his lady Dulcinea; for he hadalways present to his mind the virtue of Amadis, that flower and mirrorof knights-errant. He locked the door behind him, and by the light of twowax candles undressed himself, but as he was taking off his stockings--Odisaster unworthy of such a personage!--there came a burst, not of sighs, or anything belying his delicacy or good breeding, but of some two dozenstitches in one of his stockings, that made it look like awindow-lattice. The worthy gentleman was beyond measure distressed, andat that moment he would have given an ounce of silver to have had half adrachm of green silk there; I say green silk, because the stockings weregreen. 

Here Cide Hamete exclaimed as he was writing, "O poverty, poverty! I knownot what could have possessed the great Cordovan poet to call thee 'holygift ungratefully received. ' Although a Moor, I know well enough from theintercourse I have had with Christians that holiness consists in charity, humility, faith, obedience, and poverty; but for all that, I say he musthave a great deal of godliness who can find any satisfaction in beingpoor; unless, indeed, it be the kind of poverty one of their greatestsaints refers to, saying, 'possess all things as though ye possessed themnot;' which is what they call poverty in spirit. But thou, that otherpoverty--for it is of thee I am speaking now--why dost thou love to fallout with gentlemen and men of good birth more than with other people? Whydost thou compel them to smear the cracks in their shoes, and to have thebuttons of their coats, one silk, another hair, and another glass? Whymust their ruffs be always crinkled like endive leaves, and not crimpedwith a crimping iron?" (From this we may perceive the antiquity of starchand crimped ruffs. ) Then he goes on: "Poor gentleman of good family!always cockering up his honour, dining miserably and in secret, andmaking a hypocrite of the toothpick with which he sallies out into thestreet after eating nothing to oblige him to use it! Poor fellow, I say, with his nervous honour, fancying they perceive a league off the patch onhis shoe, the sweat-stains on his hat, the shabbiness of his cloak, andthe hunger of his stomach!"

All this was brought home to Don Quixote by the bursting of his stitches;however, he comforted himself on perceiving that Sancho had left behind apair of travelling boots, which he resolved to wear the next day. At lasthe went to bed, out of spirits and heavy at heart, as much because hemissed Sancho as because of the irreparable disaster to his stockings, the stitches of which he would have even taken up with silk of anothercolour, which is one of the greatest signs of poverty a gentleman canshow in the course of his never-failing embarrassments. He put out thecandles; but the night was warm and he could not sleep; he rose from hisbed and opened slightly a grated window that looked out on a beautifulgarden, and as he did so he perceived and heard people walking andtalking in the garden. He set himself to listen attentively, and thosebelow raised their voices so that he could hear these words:

"Urge me not to sing, Emerencia, for thou knowest that ever since thisstranger entered the castle and my eyes beheld him, I cannot sing butonly weep; besides my lady is a light rather than a heavy sleeper, and Iwould not for all the wealth of the world that she found us here; andeven if she were asleep and did not waken, my singing would be in vain, if this strange AEneas, who has come into my neighbourhood to flout me, sleeps on and wakens not to hear it. "

"Heed not that, dear Altisidora, " replied a voice; "the duchess is nodoubt asleep, and everybody in the house save the lord of thy heart anddisturber of thy soul; for just now I perceived him open the gratedwindow of his chamber, so he must be awake; sing, my poor sufferer, in alow sweet tone to the accompaniment of thy harp; and even if the duchesshears us we can lay the blame on the heat of the night. "

"That is not the point, Emerencia, " replied Altisidora, "it is that Iwould not that my singing should lay bare my heart, and that I should bethought a light and wanton maiden by those who know not the mighty powerof love; but come what may; better a blush on the cheeks than a sore inthe heart;" and here a harp softly touched made itself heard. As helistened to all this Don Quixote was in a state of breathless amazement, for immediately the countless adventures like this, with windows, gratings, gardens, serenades, lovemakings, and languishings, that he hadread of in his trashy books of chivalry, came to his mind. He at onceconcluded that some damsel of the duchess's was in love with him, andthat her modesty forced her to keep her passion secret. He trembled lesthe should fall, and made an inward resolution not to yield; andcommending himself with all his might and soul to his lady Dulcinea hemade up his mind to listen to the music; and to let them know he wasthere he gave a pretended sneeze, at which the damsels were not a littledelighted, for all they wanted was that Don Quixote should hear them. Sohaving tuned the harp, Altisidora, running her hand across the strings, began this ballad:

O thou that art above in bed, Between the holland sheets, A-lying there from night till morn, With outstretched legs asleep;

O thou, most valiant knight of all The famed Manchegan breed, Of purity and virtue more Than gold of Araby;

Give ear unto a suffering maid, Well-grown but evil-starr'd, For those two suns of thine have lit A fire within her heart. 

Adventures seeking thou dost rove, To others bringing woe;Thou scatterest wounds, but, ah, the balm To heal them dost withhold!

Say, valiant youth, and so may God Thy enterprises speed, Didst thou the light mid Libya's sands Or Jaca's rocks first see?

Did scaly serpents give thee suck? Who nursed thee when a babe?Wert cradled in the forest rude, Or gloomy mountain cave?

O Dulcinea may be proud, That plump and lusty maid;For she alone hath had the power A tiger fierce to tame. 

And she for this shall famous be From Tagus to Jarama, From Manzanares to Genil, From Duero to Arlanza. 

Fain would I change with her, and give A petticoat to boot, The best and bravest that I have, All trimmed with gold galloon. 

O for to be the happy fair Thy mighty arms enfold, Or even sit beside thy bed And scratch thy dusty poll!

I rave, --to favours such as these Unworthy to aspire;Thy feet to tickle were enough For one so mean as I. 

What caps, what slippers silver-laced, Would I on thee bestow!What damask breeches make for thee; What fine long holland cloaks!

And I would give thee pearls that should As big as oak-galls show;So matchless big that each might well Be called the great "Alone. "

Manchegan Nero, look not down From thy Tarpeian RockUpon this burning heart, nor add The fuel of thy wrath. 

A virgin soft and young am I, Not yet fifteen years old;(I'm only three months past fourteen, I swear upon my soul). 

I hobble not nor do I limp, All blemish I'm without, And as I walk my lily locks Are trailing on the ground. 

And though my nose be rather flat, And though my mouth be wide, My teeth like topazes exalt My beauty to the sky. 

Thou knowest that my voice is sweet, That is if thou dost hear;And I am moulded in a form Somewhat below the mean. 

These charms, and many more, are thine, Spoils to thy spear and bow all;A damsel of this house am I, By name Altisidora. 

Here the lay of the heart-stricken Altisidora came to an end, while thewarmly wooed Don Quixote began to feel alarm; and with a deep sigh hesaid to himself, "O that I should be such an unlucky knight that nodamsel can set eyes on me but falls in love with me! O that the peerlessDulcinea should be so unfortunate that they cannot let her enjoy myincomparable constancy in peace! What would ye with her, ye queens? Whydo ye persecute her, ye empresses? Why ye pursue her, ye virgins of fromfourteen to fifteen? Leave the unhappy being to triumph, rejoice andglory in the lot love has been pleased to bestow upon her in surrenderingmy heart and yielding up my soul to her. Ye love-smitten host, know thatto Dulcinea only I am dough and sugar-paste, flint to all others; for herI am honey, for you aloes. For me Dulcinea alone is beautiful, wise, virtuous, graceful, and high-bred, and all others are ill-favoured, foolish, light, and low-born. Nature sent me into the world to be hersand no other's; Altisidora may weep or sing, the lady for whose sake theybelaboured me in the castle of the enchanted Moor may give way todespair, but I must be Dulcinea's, boiled or roast, pure, courteous, andchaste, in spite of all the magic-working powers on earth. " And with thathe shut the window with a bang, and, as much out of temper and out ofsorts as if some great misfortune had befallen him, stretched himself onhis bed, where we will leave him for the present, as the great SanchoPanza, who is about to set up his famous government, now demands ourattention. 

CHAPTER XLV. 

OF HOW THE GREAT SANCHO PANZA TOOK POSSESSION OF HIS ISLAND, AND OF HOWHE MADE A BEGINNING IN GOVERNING

O perpetual discoverer of the antipodes, torch of the world, eye ofheaven, sweet stimulator of the water-coolers! Thimbraeus here, Phoebusthere, now archer, now physician, father of poetry, inventor of music;thou that always risest and, notwithstanding appearances, never settest!To thee, O Sun, by whose aid man begetteth man, to thee I appeal to helpme and lighten the darkness of my wit that I may be able to proceed withscrupulous exactitude in giving an account of the great Sancho Panza'sgovernment; for without thee I feel myself weak, feeble, and uncertain. 

To come to the point, then--Sancho with all his attendants arrived at avillage of some thousand inhabitants, and one of the largest the dukepossessed. They informed him that it was called the island of Barataria, either because the name of the village was Baratario, or because of thejoke by way of which the government had been conferred upon him. Onreaching the gates of the town, which was a walled one, the municipalitycame forth to meet him, the bells rang out a peal, and the inhabitantsshowed every sign of general satisfaction; and with great pomp theyconducted him to the principal church to give thanks to God, and thenwith burlesque ceremonies they presented him with the keys of the town, and acknowledged him as perpetual governor of the island of Barataria. The costume, the beard, and the fat squat figure of the new governorastonished all those who were not in the secret, and even all who were, and they were not a few. Finally, leading him out of the church theycarried him to the judgment seat and seated him on it, and the duke'smajordomo said to him, "It is an ancient custom in this island, senorgovernor, that he who comes to take possession of this famous island isbound to answer a question which shall be put to him, and which must be asomewhat knotty and difficult one; and by his answer the people take themeasure of their new governor's wit, and hail with joy or deplore hisarrival accordingly. "

While the majordomo was making this speech Sancho was gazing at severallarge letters inscribed on the wall opposite his seat, and as he couldnot read he asked what that was that was painted on the wall. The answerwas, "Senor, there is written and recorded the day on which your lordshiptook possession of this island, and the inscription says, 'This day, theso-and-so of such-and-such a month and year, Senor Don Sancho Panza tookpossession of this island; many years may he enjoy it. '"

"And whom do they call Don Sancho Panza?" asked Sancho. 

"Your lordship, " replied the majordomo; "for no other Panza but the onewho is now seated in that chair has ever entered this island. "

"Well then, let me tell you, brother, " said Sancho, "I haven't got the'Don, ' nor has any one of my family ever had it; my name is plain SanchoPanza, and Sancho was my father's name, and Sancho was my grandfather'sand they were all Panzas, without any Dons or Donas tacked on; I suspectthat in this island there are more Dons than stones; but never mind; Godknows what I mean, and maybe if my government lasts four days I'll weedout these Dons that no doubt are as great a nuisance as the midges, they're so plenty. Let the majordomo go on with his question, and I'llgive the best answer I can, whether the people deplore or not. "

At this instant there came into court two old men, one carrying a cane byway of a walking-stick, and the one who had no stick said, "Senor, sometime ago I lent this good man ten gold-crowns in gold to gratify him anddo him a service, on the condition that he was to return them to mewhenever I should ask for them. A long time passed before I asked forthem, for I would not put him to any greater straits to return them thanhe was in when I lent them to him; but thinking he was growing carelessabout payment I asked for them once and several times; and not only willhe not give them back, but he denies that he owes them, and says I neverlent him any such crowns; or if I did, that he repaid them; and I have nowitnesses either of the loan, or the payment, for he never paid me; Iwant your worship to put him to his oath, and if he swears he returnedthem to me I forgive him the debt here and before God. "

"What say you to this, good old man, you with the stick?" said Sancho. 

To which the old man replied, "I admit, senor, that he lent them to me;but let your worship lower your staff, and as he leaves it to my oath, I'll swear that I gave them back, and paid him really and truly. "

The governor lowered the staff, and as he did so the old man who had thestick handed it to the other old man to hold for him while he swore, asif he found it in his way; and then laid his hand on the cross of thestaff, saying that it was true the ten crowns that were demanded of himhad been lent him; but that he had with his own hand given them back intothe hand of the other, and that he, not recollecting it, was alwaysasking for them. 

Seeing this the great governor asked the creditor what answer he had tomake to what his opponent said. He said that no doubt his debtor had toldthe truth, for he believed him to be an honest man and a good Christian, and he himself must have forgotten when and how he had given him back thecrowns; and that from that time forth he would make no further demandupon him. 

The debtor took his stick again, and bowing his head left the court. Observing this, and how, without another word, he made off, and observingtoo the resignation of the plaintiff, Sancho buried his head in his bosomand remained for a short space in deep thought, with the forefinger ofhis right hand on his brow and nose; then he raised his head and badethem call back the old man with the stick, for he had already taken hisdeparture. They brought him back, and as soon as Sancho saw him he said, "Honest man, give me that stick, for I want it. "

"Willingly, " said the old man; "here it is senor, " and he put it into hishand. 

Sancho took it and, handing it to the other old man, said to him, "Go, and God be with you; for now you are paid. "

"I, senor!" returned the old man; "why, is this cane worth tengold-crowns?"

"Yes, " said the governor, "or if not I am the greatest dolt in the world;now you will see whether I have got the headpiece to govern a wholekingdom;" and he ordered the cane to be broken in two, there, in thepresence of all. It was done, and in the middle of it they found tengold-crowns. All were filled with amazement, and looked upon theirgovernor as another Solomon. They asked him how he had come to theconclusion that the ten crowns were in the cane; he replied, thatobserving how the old man who swore gave the stick to his opponent whilehe was taking the oath, and swore that he had really and truly given himthe crowns, and how as soon as he had done swearing he asked for thestick again, it came into his head that the sum demanded must be insideit; and from this he said it might be seen that God sometimes guidesthose who govern in their judgments, even though they may be fools;besides he had himself heard the curate of his village mention just suchanother case, and he had so good a memory, that if it was not that heforgot everything he wished to remember, there would not be such a memoryin all the island. To conclude, the old men went off, one crestfallen, and the other in high contentment, all who were present were astonished, and he who was recording the words, deeds, and movements of Sancho couldnot make up his mind whether he was to look upon him and set him down asa fool or as a man of sense. 

As soon as this case was disposed of, there came into court a womanholding on with a tight grip to a man dressed like a well-to-do cattledealer, and she came forward making a great outcry and exclaiming, "Justice, senor governor, justice! and if I don't get it on earth I'll golook for it in heaven. Senor governor of my soul, this wicked man caughtme in the middle of the fields here and used my body as if it was anill-washed rag, and, woe is me! got from me what I had kept thesethree-and-twenty years and more, defending it against Moors andChristians, natives and strangers; and I always as hard as an oak, andkeeping myself as pure as a salamander in the fire, or wool among thebrambles, for this good fellow to come now with clean hands to handleme!"

"It remains to be proved whether this gallant has clean hands or not, "said Sancho; and turning to the man he asked him what he had to say inanswer to the woman's charge. 

He all in confusion made answer, "Sirs, I am a poor pig dealer, and thismorning I left the village to sell (saving your presence) four pigs, andbetween dues and cribbings they got out of me little less than the worthof them. As I was returning to my village I fell in on the road with thisgood dame, and the devil who makes a coil and a mess out of everything, yoked us together. I paid her fairly, but she not contented laid hold ofme and never let go until she brought me here; she says I forced her, butshe lies by the oath I swear or am ready to swear; and this is the wholetruth and every particle of it. "

The governor on this asked him if he had any money in silver about him;he said he had about twenty ducats in a leather purse in his bosom. Thegovernor bade him take it out and hand it to the complainant; he obeyedtrembling; the woman took it, and making a thousand salaams to all andpraying to God for the long life and health of the senor governor who hadsuch regard for distressed orphans and virgins, she hurried out of courtwith the purse grasped in both her hands, first looking, however, to seeif the money it contained was silver. 

As soon as she was gone Sancho said to the cattle dealer, whose tearswere already starting and whose eyes and heart were following his purse, "Good fellow, go after that woman and take the purse from her, by forceeven, and come back with it here;" and he did not say it to one who was afool or deaf, for the man was off like a flash of lightning, and ran todo as he was bid. 

All the bystanders waited anxiously to see the end of the case, andpresently both man and woman came back at even closer grips than before, she with her petticoat up and the purse in the lap of it, and hestruggling hard to take it from her, but all to no purpose, so stout wasthe woman's defence, she all the while crying out, "Justice from God andthe world! see here, senor governor, the shamelessness and boldness ofthis villain, who in the middle of the town, in the middle of the street, wanted to take from me the purse your worship bade him give me. "

"And did he take it?" asked the governor. 

"Take it!" said the woman; "I'd let my life be taken from me sooner thanthe purse. A pretty child I'd be! It's another sort of cat they mustthrow in my face, and not that poor scurvy knave. Pincers and hammers, mallets and chisels would not get it out of my grip; no, nor lions'claws; the soul from out of my body first!"

"She is right, " said the man; "I own myself beaten and powerless; Iconfess I haven't the strength to take it from her;" and he let go hishold of her. 

Upon this the governor said to the woman, "Let me see that purse, myworthy and sturdy friend. " She handed it to him at once, and the governorreturned it to the man, and said to the unforced mistress of force, "Sister, if you had shown as much, or only half as much, spirit andvigour in defending your body as you have shown in defending that purse, the strength of Hercules could not have forced you. Be off, and God speedyou, and bad luck to you, and don't show your face in all this island, orwithin six leagues of it on any side, under pain of two hundred lashes;be off at once, I say, you shameless, cheating shrew. "

The woman was cowed and went off disconsolately, hanging her head; andthe governor said to the man, "Honest man, go home with your money, andGod speed you; and for the future, if you don't want to lose it, see thatyou don't take it into your head to yoke with anybody. " The man thankedhim as clumsily as he could and went his way, and the bystanders wereagain filled with admiration at their new governor's judgments andsentences. 

Next, two men, one apparently a farm labourer, and the other a tailor, for he had a pair of shears in his hand, presented themselves before him, and the tailor said, "Senor governor, this labourer and I come beforeyour worship by reason of this honest man coming to my shop yesterday(for saving everybody's presence I'm a passed tailor, God be thanked), and putting a piece of cloth into my hands and asking me, 'Senor, willthere be enough in this cloth to make me a cap?' Measuring the cloth Isaid there would. He probably suspected--as I supposed, and I supposedright--that I wanted to steal some of the cloth, led to think so by hisown roguery and the bad opinion people have of tailors; and he told me tosee if there would be enough for two. I guessed what he would be at, andI said 'yes. ' He, still following up his original unworthy notion, wenton adding cap after cap, and I 'yes' after 'yes, ' until we got as far asfive. He has just this moment come for them; I gave them to him, but hewon't pay me for the making; on the contrary, he calls upon me to payhim, or else return his cloth. "

"Is all this true, brother?" said Sancho. 

"Yes, " replied the man; "but will your worship make him show the fivecaps he has made me?"

"With all my heart, " said the tailor; and drawing his hand from under hiscloak he showed five caps stuck upon the five fingers of it, and said, "there are the caps this good man asks for; and by God and upon myconscience I haven't a scrap of cloth left, and I'll let the work beexamined by the inspectors of the trade. "

All present laughed at the number of caps and the novelty of the suit;Sancho set himself to think for a moment, and then said, "It seems to methat in this case it is not necessary to deliver long-winded arguments, but only to give off-hand the judgment of an honest man; and so mydecision is that the tailor lose the making and the labourer the cloth, and that the caps go to the prisoners in the gaol, and let there be nomore about it. "

If the previous decision about the cattle dealer's purse excited theadmiration of the bystanders, this provoked their laughter; however, thegovernor's orders were after all executed. All this, having been takendown by his chronicler, was at once despatched to the duke, who waslooking out for it with great eagerness; and here let us leave the goodSancho; for his master, sorely troubled in mind by Altisidora's music, has pressing claims upon us now.