"I mark them for mine on the spot," said Sancho; "let nobody touchthem; I'll pay better for them than anyone else, for I could notwish for anything more to my taste; and I don't care a pin whetherthey are feet or heels."
"Nobody shall touch them," said the landlord; "for the otherguests I have, being persons of high quality, bring their own cook andcaterer and larder with them."
"If you come to people of quality," said Sancho, "there's nobodymore so than my master; but the calling he follows does not allow oflarders or store-rooms; we lay ourselves down in the middle of ameadow, and fill ourselves with acorns or medlars."
Here ended Sancho's conversation with the landlord, Sancho notcaring to carry it any farther by answering him; for he had alreadyasked him what calling or what profession it was his master was of.
Supper-time having come, then, Don Quixote betook himself to hisroom, the landlord brought in the stew-pan just as it was, and hesat himself down to sup very resolutely. It seems that in anotherroom, which was next to Don Quixote's, with nothing but a thinpartition to separate it, he overheard these words, "As you live,Senor Don Jeronimo, while they are bringing supper, let us readanother chapter of the Second Part of 'Don Quixote of La Mancha.'"
The instant Don Quixote heard his own name be started to his feetand listened with open ears to catch what they said about him, andheard the Don Jeronimo who had been addressed say in reply, "Why wouldyou have us read that absurd stuff, Don Juan, when it is impossiblefor anyone who has read the First Part of the history of 'DonQuixote of La Mancha' to take any pleasure in reading this SecondPart?"
"For all that," said he who was addressed as Don Juan, "we shalldo well to read it, for there is no book so bad but it has somethinggood in it. What displeases me most in it is that it represents DonQuixote as now cured of his love for Dulcinea del Toboso."
On hearing this Don Quixote, full of wrath and indignation, liftedup his voice and said, "Whoever he may be who says that Don Quixote ofLa Mancha has forgotten or can forget Dulcinea del Toboso, I willteach him with equal arms that what he says is very far from thetruth; for neither can the peerless Dulcinea del Toboso beforgotten, nor can forgetfulness have a place in Don Quixote; hismotto is constancy, and his profession to maintain the same with hislife and never wrong it."
"Who is this that answers us?" said they in the next room.
"Who should it be," said Sancho, "but Don Quixote of La Manchahimself, who will make good all he has said and all he will say; forpledges don't trouble a good payer."
Sancho had hardly uttered these words when two gentlemen, for suchthey seemed to be, entered the room, and one of them, throwing hisarms round Don Quixote's neck, said to him, "Your appearance cannotleave any question as to your name, nor can your name fail to identifyyour appearance; unquestionably, senor, you are the real Don Quixoteof La Mancha, cynosure and morning star of knight-errantry, despiteand in defiance of him who has sought to usurp your name and bringto naught your achievements, as the author of this book which I herepresent to you has done;" and with this he put a book which hiscompanion carried into the hands of Don Quixote, who took it, andwithout replying began to run his eye over it; but he presentlyreturned it saying, "In the little I have seen I have discovered threethings in this author that deserve to be censured. The first is somewords that I have read in the preface; the next that the language isAragonese, for sometimes he writes without articles; and the third,which above all stamps him as ignorant, is that he goes wrong anddeparts from the truth in the most important part of the history,for here he says that my squire Sancho Panza's wife is called MariGutierrez, when she is called nothing of the sort, but Teresa Panza;and when a man errs on such an important point as this there is goodreason to fear that he is in error on every other point in thehistory."
"A nice sort of historian, indeed!" exclaimed Sancho at this; "hemust know a deal about our affairs when he calls my wife Teresa Panza,Mari Gutierrez; take the book again, senor, and see if I am in itand if he has changed my name."
"From your talk, friend," said Don Jeronimo, "no doubt you areSancho Panza, Senor Don Quixote's squire."
"Yes, I am," said Sancho; "and I'm proud of it."
"Faith, then," said the gentleman, "this new author does nothandle you with the decency that displays itself in your person; hemakes you out a heavy feeder and a fool, and not in the least droll,and a very different being from the Sancho described in the First Partof your master's history."
"God forgive him," said Sancho; "he might have left me in mycorner without troubling his head about me; 'let him who knows howring the bells; 'Saint Peter is very well in Rome.'"
The two gentlemen pressed Don Quixote to come into their room andhave supper with them, as they knew very well there was nothing inthat inn fit for one of his sort. Don Quixote, who was alwayspolite, yielded to their request and supped with them. Sancho stayedbehind with the stew. and invested with plenary delegated authorityseated himself at the head of the table, and the landlord sat downwith him, for he was no less fond of cow-heel and calves' feet thanSancho was.
While at supper Don Juan asked Don Quixote what news he had of thelady Dulcinea del Toboso, was she married, had she been brought tobed, or was she with child, or did she in maidenhood, still preservingher modesty and delicacy, cherish the remembrance of the tenderpassion of Senor Don Quixote?
To this he replied, "Dulcinea is a maiden still, and my passion morefirmly rooted than ever, our intercourse unsatisfactory as before, andher beauty transformed into that of a foul country wench;" and then heproceeded to give them a full and particular account of theenchantment of Dulcinea, and of what had happened him in the cave ofMontesinos, together with what the sage Merlin had prescribed forher disenchantment, namely the scourging of Sancho.
Exceedingly great was the amusement the two gentlemen derived fromhearing Don Quixote recount the strange incidents of his history;and if they were amazed by his absurdities they were equally amazed bythe elegant style in which he delivered them. On the one hand theyregarded him as a man of wit and sense, and on the other he seemedto them a maundering blockhead, and they could not make up their mindswhereabouts between wisdom and folly they ought to place him.
Sancho having finished his supper, and left the landlord in the Xcondition, repaired to the room where his master was, and as he camein said, "May I die, sirs, if the author of this book your worshipshave got has any mind that we should agree; as he calls me glutton（according to what your worships say） I wish he may not call medrunkard too."
"But he does," said Don Jeronimo; "I cannot remember, however, inwhat way, though I know his words are offensive, and what is more,lying, as I can see plainly by the physiognomy of the worthy Sanchobefore me."
"Believe me," said Sancho, "the Sancho and the Don Quixote of thishistory must be different persons from those that appear in the oneCide Hamete Benengeli wrote, who are ourselves; my master valiant,wise, and true in love, and I simple, droll, and neither glutton nordrunkard."
"I believe it," said Don Juan; "and were it possible, an ordershould be issued that no one should have the presumption to dealwith anything relating to Don Quixote, save his original author CideHamete; just as Alexander commanded that no one should presume topaint his portrait save Apelles."
"Let him who will paint me," said Don Quixote; "but let him notabuse me; for patience will often break down when they heap insultsupon it."
"None can be offered to Senor Don Quixote," said Don Juan, "thathe himself will not be able to avenge, if he does not ward it off withthe shield of his patience, which, I take it, is great and strong."
A considerable portion of the night passed in conversation of thissort, and though Don Juan wished Don Quixote to read more of thebook to see what it was all about, he was not to be prevailed upon,saying that he treated it as read and pronounced it utterly silly;and, if by any chance it should come to its author's ears that hehad it in his hand, he did not want him to flatter himself with theidea that he had read it; for our thoughts, and still more our eyes,should keep themselves aloof from what is obscene and filthy.
They asked him whither he meant to direct his steps. He replied,to Saragossa, to take part in the harness jousts which were held inthat city every year. Don Juan told him that the new history describedhow Don Quixote, let him be who he might, took part there in a tiltingat the ring, utterly devoid of invention, poor in mottoes, very poorin costume, though rich in sillinesses.
"For that very reason," said Don Quixote, "I will not set foot inSaragossa; and by that means I shall expose to the world the lie ofthis new history writer, and people will see that I am not the DonQuixote he speaks of."