“My men must do something to pass the time, and they may as well search the house. You have nothing you wish… — Johnston McCulley

“Shall it be that I never hear of anything except deeds of bloodshed and violence? Would it be possible in these turbulent times for a man to listen to words of wisdom regarding music or the poets?”

“As a matter of fact, I am up early because I must make a confounded trip to my hacienda, a journey of some ten miles, to inspect the flocks and herds. Never become a wealthy man, Sergeant Gonzales, for wealth asks too much of a man.”

“Something tells me that never shall I suffer on that account,” said the sergeant, laughing.

Don Carlos and his wife hurried across the room and sat down beside Don Diego.

“I fear you do not understand women, my friend,” Don Carlos said. “Never must you take a woman’s answer for the last. She always may change her mind. A woman likes to keep a man dangling, likes to make him blow cold with fear and hot with anticipation. Let her have her moods, my friend. In the end, I am sure, you shall have your way.”