"
"I have never entered his doors since the day he was disrespectful
to my mother's daughter," said Maruja, in surprise.
"Disrespectful!" repeated Dona Maria, impatiently. "Thy father's
daughter ought to know that such as he may be ignorant and vulgar,
but can not be disrespectful to her. And there are offenses,
child, it is much more crushing to forget than to remember. As
long as he has not the presumption to APOLOGIZE, I see no reason
why thou mayst not go. He has not been here since that affair of
the letters. I shall not permit him to be uncivil over THAT--dost
thou understand? He is of use to me in business. Thou mayst take
Carroll with thee; he will understand that."
"But Carroll will not go," said Maruja. "He will not say what
passed between them, but I suspect they quarreled."
"All the better, then, that thou goest alone. He need not be
reminded of it. Fear not but that he will be only too proud of thy
visit to think of aught else."
Maruja, who seemed relieved at this prospect of being unaccompanied
by Captain Carroll, shrugged her shoulders and assented.
When the party that afternoon drove into the courtyard of Aladdin's
Palace, the announcement that its hospitable proprietor was absent,
and would not return until dinner, did not abate either their
pleasure or their curiosity. As already intimated to the reader,
Mr. Prince's functions as host were characteristically irregular;
and the servant's suggestion, that Mr.
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