“Was it large?”

“Indeed it was. And as I say, it was really very kind of her, because the mirror had previously been in the parlor, and was the best piece in the house. But there was no dissuading my aunt; she replied that it would not be missed, that it was only for a couple of weeks, and, after all, it was the least the ‘Senhor Lieutenant’ deserved. The fact is that all these little attentions, shows of affection, and kindnesses brought about a transformation in me, aided and abetted by the natural vanity of youth, as I’m sure you can imagine.”

“Well, no, actually.”

“The officer eliminated the man. For several days, the two hung in the balance, but it wasn’t long before my original nature gave way to the other; only a tiny part of my humanity remained. What had happened was that my external soul, which, up until then, had been the sun, the air, the rolling countryside, and the eyes of young women, changed entirely and became the bowing and scraping that went on around the house, everything that spoke to me of my rank, and nothing about me, the man. Only the officer remained; the private citizen had vanished into thin air, and into the past. Hard to believe, isn’t it?”

“I find it hard even to understand,” replied one of his listeners.