"I am glad there is a 'but.'"
"It isn't settled, by any means. The successful candidate will need the support of our government."
"I suppose the Alfarez family is one of the first settlers—Mayflower stock?"
"Oh, worse than that. The name runs back to Balboa's time. General Alfarez is very rich, and very proud of his ancestry. That is one thing that makes him so strong with the people."
"What are some of the other leading families?" Kirk artfully inquired.
"There are a number. The Martinezes, the Moras, the Garavels—I couldn't name them all. They are very fine people, too."
"Do you know the Chiquitas?"
Cortlandt's face relaxed in an involuntary smile.
"There is no such family. Who has been teaching you Spanish?"
"Really, isn't there?"