"Well, I will do better, Mercedes. I will be a sailor; instead of th...

    "You could do no such thing, Fernand; you are a soldier, and if you ...

    "Fernand," answered Mercedes, shaking her head," a woman becomes a b...

    "And if it were, Mercedes, poor and lone as you are, you suit me as ...

    "Sometimes you pretend I am useful to you, and that is an excuse to ...

    "You mistake, Fernand; it is not a law, but merely a custom, and, I ...

    "Yes, that is very true, Mercedes," replied the young man," Yes, you...

    "At least it was not I who ever encouraged you in that hope, Fernand...

    "You see, Mercedes," said the young man," here is Easter come round ...