Observing all this, the Franciscan mashed up some pieces of squash, barely tasted the soup, dropped his spoon noisily, and roughly pushed his plate away.

The Dominican was very busy talking to the rubicund youth.
"How long have you been away from the country ?" Laruja asked Ibarra.
"Almost seven years." "Then you have probably forgotten all about it." "Quite the contrary.

Even if my country does seem to have forgotten me, I have always thought about it." "How do you mean that it has forgotten you ?" inquired the rubicund youth.
"I mean that it has been a year since I have received any news from here, so that I find myself a stranger who does not yet know how and when his father died." This statement drew a sudden exclamation from the lieutenant.
"And where were you that you didn't telegraph ?" asked Dona Victorina.

"When we were married we telegraphed to the Peninsula." [29] "Senora, for the past two years I have been in the northern part of Europe, in Germany and Russian Poland." Doctor De Espadana, who until now had not ventured upon any conversation, thought this a good opportunity to say something.

"I--I knew in S-spain a P-pole from W-warsaw, c-called S-stadtnitzki, if I r-remember c-correctly.