deposited a tray full of bottles and glasses on a table near
them, and had departed. ``The talk is,'' he said, ``that Alvarez
means to proclaim a dictatorship in his own favor before the
spring elections. You've heard of that, haven't you?'' King
shook his head.

``Oh, tell us about it,'' said Miss Langham; ``I should so like
to be in plots and conspiracies.''

``Well, they're rather common down here,'' continued the Consul,
``but this one ought to interest you especially, Miss Langham,
because it is a woman who is at the head of it. Madame
Alvarez, you know, was the Countess Manueleta Hernandez before
her marriage. She belongs to one of the oldest families in
Spain. Alvarez married her in Madrid, when he was Minister
there, and when he returned to run for President, she came with
him. She's a tremendously ambitious woman, and they do say she
wants to convert the republic into a monarchy, and make her
husband King, or, more properly speaking, make herself Queen. Of
course that's absurd, but she is supposed to be plotting to turn
Olancho into a sort of dependency of Spain, as it was long ago,
and that's why she is so unpopular.''

``Indeed?'' interrupted Miss Langham, ``I did not know that she
was unpopular.''

``Oh, rather. Why, her party is called the Royalist Party
already, and only a week before you came the Liberals plastered
the city with denunciatory placards against her, calling on the
people to drive her out of the country.''