to the cool and fragrant security of the
general's ranch.

At right angles to the main body of the
house extend two wings, thus forming three
sides of a square, the interior of which is
the court-yard. Here the business of the
establishment is conducted. It is the liveliest
spot on the premises; though it is liveliness
of a very indolent sort. The veranda
built around these sides is twenty feet in
breadth, paved with tiles that have been
worn into hollows by innumerable lazy footsteps,
mostly shoeless, for this side of the
house is frequented chiefly by the servants
of the place, who are Mexican Indians.
Ancient wooden settles are bolted to the
walls; from hooks hang Indian baskets of
bright colors; in one corner are stretched
raw hides, which serve as beds. Small
brown children, half naked, trot, clamber,
and crawl about. Black-haired, swarthy
women squat on the tiled floor, pursuing
their vocations, or, often, doing nothing at
all beyond continuing a placid organic
existence. Boys and men saunter in and out
of the court-yard, chatting or calling in
their musical patois; once in a while there
is a thud and clatter of hoofs, a rider arriving
or departing. It is an entertaining scene,