"'Keep quiet!' I urged. 'There won't be any shooting.'
"And I once more eyed the President carefully and took his measure.
"He hardly looked a coward. Beneath the manners of an attorney he probably concealed the natural ferocity of the average Spanish American. Unless the captain got the draw on him, and deterred him, it was conceivable (though not very likely) that he might carry out his threat. There was also the chance that he might be just obstinate enough to refuse to give way until the shells actually began to burst about his ears—which would have been awkward, as we had neither shells nor guns on board the little San Francisco trading steamer.
"Once more, therefore, it was necessary for me to modify my plan; and I modified it on the spur of the moment on lines suggested by my recent Nicaraguan experiences.
"'Your Excellency,' I began, 'our lives are no doubt in your hands. But the whole might of the British Empire is behind us, and if you lay a finger on us, you are putting your own head into the hangman's noose.'
"He was obviously frightened. But it still was not quite certain that he would give way. He might merely escort us politely to our boat, and then withdraw out of the range of shell-fire, leaving the buildings to take care of themselves. So I played the last trump card.
"'On the other hand, if we were alone, your Excellency,' I added, with the sort of smile that the Central American understands, 'if we were alone, I might be able to suggest——'
"He motioned to the soldiers to go and smoke their cigarettes outside, and then I spoke to him quite frankly, without troubling to wrap up my meaning in nice diplomatic phrases.
"'You're not President of this Republic for the benefit of your health, I take it,' I said. 'No. You've taken the Presidency for what you can make out of it. The salary is not large, but there are perquisites.'
"He smiled, beginning to catch my meaning, which I soon made absolutely clear.