"Yes, that is true, General, and in the council which you held this night, of course you assured yourself in a definite manner of the intentions of these men to whom you have sacrificed everything."
"Yes," he said, frowning, and laying a bitter stress on his words, "to all my requests, to all my observations, they only gave one and the same answer: We cannot. They had agreed on it beforehand."
"Pardon my frankness, General, but in that case your position must be extremely critical."
"Say precarious, and you will be nearer the truth, my friend; the treasury is completely empty, and it is impossible for me to fill it again; the army, having received no pay for two months, are murmuring, and threaten to disband; my officers are going over, one after the other, to the enemy; the latter is advancing by forced marches on Mexico; such is the true situation, what do you think of it?"
"It is sad, horribly sad, General; and pardon me the question, and what do you intend doing to parry the danger?"
The general, instead of answering him, gave him a piercing glance.
"But before we go further, General," don Adolfo continued, "permit me, General, to give you an account of my own operations."
"Oh! They have been successful, I feel convinced," the general replied with a smile.
"I hope that you will find them so, Excellency; do you authorize me to make my report?"
"Do so, do so, my friend; I long to hear what you have accomplished for the defense of our noble cause."
"Oh, pardon, General," don Adolfo said quickly; "I am only an adventurer, and my devotion is entirely personal to yourself."
"Good, I understand; let me hear this report."
"In the first place, I succeeded in taking from General Degollado the remains of the conducta which he carried off at the Laguna Seca."
"Good, that is honourable warfare; for it was with the money of that conducta that he took Guadalajara from me. Oh, Castillo! Well, how much is it?"
"Two hundred and sixty thousand piastres."
"Is it not? I next surprised that bandit Cuéllar; after that his worthy partner Carvajal, and lastly their friend Felipe Irzabal had a row with me; without counting several partisans of Juárez, whom their evil star brought across my track."
"But the total from these various encounters, my friend?"