“‘Do ye see?’ says O’Connor.  ’She intends to encourage me sword to save her country.’

“‘It looks to me like an invitation to supper,’ says I.

“So every day this senorita sits behind the barred windows and exhausts a conservatory or two, one posy at a time.  And O’Connor walks like a Dominecker rooster and swells his chest and swears to me he will win her by feats of arms and big deeds on the gory field of battle.

“By and by the revolution began to get ripe.  One day O’Connor takes me into the back room and tells me all.

“‘Bowers,’ says he, ’at twelve o’clock one week from to-day the struggle will take place.  It has pleased ye to find amusement and diversion in this project because ye have not sense enough to perceive that it is easily accomplished by a man of courage, intelligence, and historical superiority, such as meself.  The whole world over,’ says he, ’the O’Connors have ruled men, women, and nations.  To subdue a small and indifferent country like this is a trifle.  Ye see what little, barefooted manikins the men of it are.  I could lick four of ’em single-handed.’

“‘No doubt,’ says I.  ’But could you lick six?  And suppose they hurled an army of seventeen against you?’

“‘Listen,’ says O’Connor, ’to what will occur.  At noon next Tuesday 25,000 patriots will rise up in the towns of the republic.  The government will be absolutely unprepared.  The public buildings will be taken, the regular army made prisoners, and the new administration set up.  In the capital it will not be so easy on account of most of the army being stationed there.  They will occupy the president’s palace and the strongly fortified government buildings and stand a siege.  But on the very day of the outbreak a body of our troops will begin a march to the capital from every town as soon as the local victory has been won.  The thing is so well planned that it is an impossibility for us to fail.  I meself will lead the troops from here.  The new president will be Senor Espadas, now Minister of Finance in the present cabinet.’

“‘What do you get?’ I asked.

“‘’Twill be strange,’ said O’Connor smiling, ’if I don’t have all the jobs handed to me on a silver salver to pick what I choose.  I’ve been the brains of the scheme, and when the fighting opens I guess I won’t be in the rear rank.  Who managed it so our troops could get arms smuggled into this country?  Didn’t I arrange it with a New York firm before I left there?  Our financial agents inform me that 20,000 stands of Winchester rifles have been delivered a month ago at a secret place up coast and distributed among the towns.  I tell you, Bowers, the game is already won.’

“Well, that kind of talk kind of shook my disbelief in the infallibility of the serious Irish gentleman soldier of fortune.  It certainly seemed that the patriotic grafters had gone about the thing in a business way.  I looked upon O’Connor with more respect, and began to figure on what kind of uniform I might wear as Secretary of War.