Page:Narrative of an Official Visit to Guatemala.djvu/264

244 of Antigua. My visit to this place was quite unexpected, but Doña Joanita, with a degree of hospitality which I could not but appreciate, and which, unfortunately, is too often found in the inverse ratio of civilization, invited me to be her guest, during my stay in the city: I accepted her obliging offer, sleeping at the chateau where my bed and baggage were deposited.—I spent the next three days in viewing the remains of this enchanting place: in my excursions, I was generally accompanied by some portion of the family, especially by the pretty children who had, at first, so greatly excited my attention: one of them, a little girl of eight years of age, although two of her sisters were perfect brunettes, like their mother, was as fair as an angel, and I might add almost as beautiful: what was extraordinary, her name was Angeles; she was a quick intelligent child, and I used to amuse her with fabricated stories of giants, whales, dwarfs and magicians,—and such other nonsense as seldom