"I shan't," growled the doctor, ruffled. "Why can't they talk English?"
"Doña Dolores can talk a little," said Jack, proudly "Señorita talk to my friend in his own tongue."
"It is a nice day," repeated Doña Dolores, slowly; "'ow do you do?"
"Quite well, thank you," replied Peter, politely; whereat his friends laughed again in the most unfeeling manner.
"Oh, you can laugh," said Peter, indignantly; "but if I was in love with a girl, I would teach her some better words than about the weather, and how do you do!"
"I have done so," replied Jack, quietly; "but those words are for private use."
At this moment Dolores, laughing behind her fan, was speaking to Doña Serafina, who thereupon advanced towards Peter.
"I can speak to the Americano," she announced to the company; then, fixing Peter with her eye, said, with a tremendous effort, "Darling!"
"Oh!" said the modest Peter, taken aback, "she said, 'darling'!"
"Darling!" repeated Serafina, who was evidently quite ignorant of the meaning.