DOL. (_walking about impatiently_). Still, it is getting late--very late.
CAR. Well, to watch and see if Lazarus is coming.
DOL. (_drawing her away from the balcony_). No, child; you don’t think of your poor chest, nor of that most obstinate cough of yours. Moreover, the night is very dark, and you could see nothing. Come away, Carmen, come away; I’ll watch.
CAR. If I can’t see, neither will you see----
CAR. Wait; I think he is coming, and with Javier.
DOL. No; they have gone straight to the room of Lazarus. But don’t be uneasy; as soon as he knows that you are here, he will come to see you.
CAR. Without doubt he comes back thinking of some great scene for his drama, or of some chapter of that book which he is writing and which they say is going to be a miracle of genius, or of some very intricate problem. Ah! my God, whatever you may say, a man such as he cannot concern himself very much about an insignificant girl like myself.
CAR. I know nothing, I am worth nothing, I am nothing. I? What am I fit for? Tell me. To stare at him like a blockhead while he is considering these great matters; to watch at the balcony and see if he is coming, although it may be cold, and Carmen coughs incessantly; to weep if he takes no notice of me, or if they tell me that he is ill. There is no doubt that little Carmen is capable of doing wonders. To look at him, to wait for him, to weep for him.
DOL. And what more can a woman do for a man? To look at him always, to wait for him always, to weep for him always.
DOL. So much the worse for Lazarus if that should not be enough for him. But wait; he’s here now; did I not tell you? as soon as he knew you were here.
CAR. (_joyfully_). It’s true. How good he is.
JAV. A pleasant evening, Doña Dolores; pleasant evening, Carmen.
CAR. And a very pleasant--but--Lazarus----
DOL. Ah! if he is ill, I must go there----
JAV. (_stopping her_). No, for God’s sake! What should make him ill? Listen to me. We and several friends have been dining with two writers from Madrid--people of our profession. We spoke of arts, of sciences, of politics, of philosophy, and of everything divine and human. We drank, we gave toasts, we made speeches, we read verses. You understand? And these things excite in an extraordinary way the nervous system of Lazarus.
