"Alas!" said the boy, once more relapsing into his former mood, "that he might be saved!"
"Has our father seen the governor-general, Ruez?" asked his sister, earnestly.
"Yes."
"And to no effect?"
"None. Tacon, you know, is most strict in his administration of justice, and he says that if he were to pardon one such breach of military discipline as Captain Bezan as been guilty of, the whole army would at once be impregnated with insubordination."
"Would that I could see Captain Bezan, if only for one single moment," murmured Isabella Gonzales, half aloud, yet only to herself.
"Do you mean so, sister?" asked Ruez, catching quickly at his sister's words, and with an undisguised expression of delight written upon his handsome countenance.
"Yes, no, brother, that is to say, if I could see him with propriety, you know, Ruez; that is what I meant to say."
"Nothing easier, than for you to do so, if you desire it," said the boy.
"Do you think so, Ruez?" said his sister, somewhat eagerly.