(twelve and one-half cents), it is the same at twenty-five cents a dozen." The words had hardly passed my lips, when he turned and looked me directly in the eye, with an expression which meant. "Well, now, look here, madame, you'll not take advantage of me in that way; I know the customary manner of doing business in this country, and there will be no change in selling eggs." Pancho put in a plea for him, adding: "Es costumbre del pais" ("It is the custom of the country"), which reconciled me.
The vender began counting slowly the fingers of his right hand with his left—"uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco,"—then holding up the index finger of the left hand —seis—and extending the six fingers, palms to the front, waved them back and forth before his determined face, as in low guttural tones that made me shiver, he said: ''No, señ-o-ri-ta,
so-la-men-te á se-is por un re-al!" ("I will only sell them at six for a real"), by dozens—never! Lifting his hat politely, he took his departure saying, "Hasta luego!" ("I'll come again "). But I thought he need not trouble himself.
Seeing everything and everybody so conservative, running in the groove of centuries, reminded me that I was losing sight of my own "costumbres." The little fire-place in which the cooking had been done became distasteful, and I longed for a cooking-stove. A Mexican gentleman whom I did not know, on hearing of my desire, kindly offered to lend us one that he had bought about twenty years before, but had been unable to have it used to any extent, owing to the prejudices of the servants.
With the utmost delight, I saw the cargador (porter) enter the big door with this time-worn rickety desire of my heart. But when he slipped it from his head, the rattle of its dilapidated parts made me quake with anxiety.
Both Pancho and the cargador exclaimed in one voice, "Caramba!" ("Goodness gracious alive!"), gazing with puzzled expressions on the wreck.
