"I want to make friends with everybody; in the long run it will be of advantage to my house."
"Your house?" from Esteban.
"I mean the commercial firm I work for."
The two peons nodded thoughtfully. Esteban observed:
"A lottery-ticket vender, who cannot afford clothes for his nakedness, will hardly buy guns and hardware...."
The salesman was growing weary of these innuendoes.
"Look here," he said in the perfectly friendly voice with a disagreeable content that is sometimes used by Americans in these circumstances, "I don't give a damn what you fellows think. I can't explain every look and word by my business. I'm friendly because I ... I'm just naturally friendly. I call a man who isn't friendly a damn fool. Here I am walking with you two guys. I don't expect to sell you guns and hardware, either, but I'm walking with you, just the same."
He looked at both of them after this little speech. Both were obviously and entirely unconvinced. They shrugged slightly.
"Pues, pues! Bien! Cá! Seguramente!" They walked slowly on, evidently in deep thought. Presently Lubito broke the silence: