Dinner was soon served in a private room of the hotel; and Uros, who, to keep up the buoyancy of his spirits, and act the part he had undertaken to play brilliantly, had swallowed several glasses of _slivovitz_, and had induced Captain Panajotti to follow his example, was now indulging freely with the strong Dalmatian wine. Still, he only took enough to be talkative and merry; but, as he exaggerated the effects of the wine, everybody at table believed him to be quite tipsy.
No sooner had the dish of macaroni been taken away than he began to insist upon Captain Panajotti telling them a story.
"Oh, to-morrow you'll be master on board again; but now, you know, you must do what I like, just as if you were my wife!"
But Uros did not let Mrs. Giulianic finish her question, for he insisted upon doing all the talking himself.
"My wife," said he, sententiously, "my wife'll have to dance to the tune I play; for I intend to wear the breeches and the skirts, too, in my house; so I hope you've brought up your daughter to jump through paper hoops, like a well-trained horse--no, I mean a girl!"
"Oh, I daresay that your daughter's like you, turning up her nose; but I say, D----n it! I'll not have a wife whose nose turns up."
Giulianic looked put out; his wife's face lengthened by several inches, whilst Ivanka did her best to look scared.
"Come, captain," continued Uros, "spout us one of your stories. Now listen, for he'll make you split with laughter. Come, give us one of your spicy ones; tell us your tale about the lack of wit, but without omitting the----"
"Oh, rot the ladies! Now, all this comes from this new-fangled notion of having women at table; if they are to be squeamish and spoil all the fun, let them stop up their ears. Come, I told you I'd not brook contradiction to-day."
"Well, by-and-by; let me have my dinner now."
"What's the matter with him?" asked Mrs. Giulianic of the captain; "is he drunk?"
"Oh, worse! he's moon-struck; he's like that for a few days at every new moon."
Mrs. Giulianic made the sign of the Cross, and whispered something to her husband.
"Then, if you'll not tell us a story, our guest must sing us a song. Come, father-in-law, sing us a song, a merry, rollicking one, for when I'm on shore I like to laugh."