He made another effort and then helplessly said--"Who can make anything of such a letter?
It is in their _idioma_." Sternly pointing to the signature I said--"The letter is from your _prefecto_ and written in his _idioma_; you see the _firma_." Helplessly shaking his head, he said, "Oh, yes, the _firma_ is that of Silvano Martinez, but the letter is in your _idioma_." Seeing that he was of no earthly use, I took the letter from him, and, turning to the crowd which had gathered, rebuked them for their drunkenness, asserting that it was disgraceful for a whole town government to be intoxicated at the same time; that some one ought always to be sober enough to attend to business; that we had been insulted by being called _gringos_, and that our order had not been read to them because the _secretario_ was too drunk to do his business; that there were two ways of dealing with such town governments, and that, unless something was done promptly, we would see how they would like to go back with us to Uruapan, whence we had come.

The _jefe_, who was really not drunk, thereupon begged to know what we desired, and the drunken _secretario_ was somewhat frightened; the remainder of the official body expressed a wish to do only what we wanted.

I then read the _prefecto's_ letter in my best manner and added that we had come to Capacuaro only at the desire of the governor himself, to visit their _mogote_, and that we ought to wait no longer for guidance.

At once all was commotion and bustle.

Bidding the disgraced _secretario_ go to his house and stay there, the _jefe de policia_ summoned the rest of his company about him, seized his staff of office, buckled on his great _machete_, and took the lead; three policemen, with their _machetes_, followed; two others, unarmed, followed, and, with this escort, we started to hunt our ruins on the mountain.