Mr. Fortescue by William Westall

W >> William Westall >> Mr. Fortescue

Pages:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20

"With all my heart, if you can suggest anything feasible. I like a fight
immensely--when the odds are not too great--and I hope to die fighting.
All the same, I have no very strong desire to die at this particular
moment."

"Neither have I. So let us go on like peaceable travellers, and the
chances are that these men, taking for granted that the others have let us
pass, will not meddle with us. If they do, we must make the best fight we
can."

"A happy thought! Let us act on it. If they ask any questions I will
answer. Your English accent might excite suspicion."

The party before us consisted of nine horsemen, several of whom appeared
to be officers.

"_Buene noche, senores_," said Carmen, so soon as we were within speaking
distance.

"_Buene noche, senores_. You have met the troops, of course. How far are
they ahead?" asked one of the officers.

"The main body are quite a league ahead by this time. The pack-mules and
_arrieros_ passed us about fifteen minutes ago."

"_Gracias!_ Who are you, and whither may you be wending, senores?"

"I am Sancho Mencar, at your service, _senor coronel_, a Government
messenger, carrying despatches to General Salazar, at La Victoria. My
companion is Senor Tesco, a merchant, who is journeying to the same place
on business."

"Good! you can go on. You will meet two troopers who are bringing on a
prisoner. Do me the favor to tell them to make haste."

"Certainly, _senor coronel. Adios, senores_."

"_Adio senores._"

And with that we rode on our respective ways.

"Two troopers and prisoner," said Carmen, thoughtfully.

"So there are more of them, after all! How many, I wonder? If this
prisoner be a patriot we must rescue him, senor Fortescue."

"With all my heart--if we can."

"Only two troopers! You and I are a match for six."

"Possibly. But we don't know that the two are not followed by a score!
There seems to be no end of them."

"I don't think so. If there were the colonel would have asked us to tell
them also to hurry up. But we shall soon find out. When we meet the
fellows we will speak them fair and ask a few questions."

Ten minutes later we met them.

"_Buene noche, senores!_" said Carmen, riding forward. "We bring a message
from the colonel. He bids you make haste."

"All very fine. But how can we make haste when we are hampered by this
rascal? I should like to blow his brains out."

"This rascal" was the prisoner, a big powerful fellow who seemed to be
either a zambo or a negro. His arms were bound to his side, and he walked
between the troopers, to whose saddles he was fastened by two stout cords.

"Why don't you blow his brains out?"

"Because we should get into trouble. He is the colonel's slave, and
therefore valuable property. We have tried dragging him along; but the
villain throws himself down, and might get a limb broken, so all we can do
is prod him occasionally with the points of our sabres; but he does not
seem to mind us in the least. We have tried swearing; we might as well
whistle. Make haste, indeed!"

"A very hard case, I am sure. I sympathize with you, senores. Is the man a
runaway that you have to take such care of him?"

"That is just it. He ran away and rambled for months in the forest; and if
he had not stolen back to La Victoria and been betrayed by a woman, he
would never have been caught. After that, the colonel would not trust him
at large; but he thinks that at Caracas he will have him safe. And now,
senores, with your leave we must go on."

"Ah! You are the last, I suppose?"

"We are; curse it! The main body must be a league ahead by this time, and
we shall not reach Caracas for hours. _Adios!_"

"Let us rescue the poor devil!" I whispered to Carmen.

"By all means. One moment, senores; I beg your pardon--now, Fortescue!"

And with that we placed our horses across the road, whipped out our
pistols and pointed them at the troopers' heads, to their owners'
unutterable surprise.

"We are sorry to inconvenience you, senores," said my companion, politely;
"but we are going to release this slave, and we have need of your horses.
Unbuckle your swords, throw them on the ground, and dismount. No
hesitation, or you are dead men! Shall we treat them as they proposed to
treat the slave, Senor Fortescue? Blow out their brains? It will be safer,
and save us a deal of trouble."

"No! That would be murder. Let them go. They can do no harm. It is
impossible for them to overtake the, others on foot."

Meanwhile the soldiers, having the fear of being shot before them, had
dismounted and laid down their weapons.

"Go!" said Carmen, pointing northward, and they went.

"Your name?" (to the prisoner whose bonds I was cutting with my sword).

"Here they call me Jose. In my own country I was called Gahra--"

"Let it be Gahra, then. It is less common than Jose. Every other peon in
the country is called Jose. You are a native of Africa?"

"_Si, senor._"

"How came you hither?"

"I was taken to Cuba in a slave-ship, brought to this country by General
Salazar, and sold by him to Colonel Canimo."

"You have no great love for the Spaniards, I suppose?"

Gahra pointed to his arms which had been chafed by the rope till they were
raw, and showed us his back which bore the marks of recent stripes.

"Can you fight?"

"Against the Spaniards? Only give me the chance, and you shall see,"
answered the negro in a voice of intense hate.

"Come with us, and you shall have many chances. Mount one of those horses
and lead the other."

Gahra mounted, and we moved on.

We were now at the beginning of a stiff ascent. The road, which though
undulating had risen almost continuously since we left Caracas, was
bordered with richly colored flowers and shrubs, and bounded on either
side by deep forests. Night was made glorious by the great tropical moon,
which shone resplendent under a purple sky gilding the tree-tops and
lighting us on our way. Owing to the nature of the ground we could not see
far before us, but the backward view, with its wood-crowned heights, deep
ravines, and sombre mountains looming in the distance, was fairy-like and
fantastic, and the higher we rose the more extensive it became.

"Is this a long hill?" I asked Carmen.

"Very. An affair of half an hour, at least, at this speed; and we cannot
go faster," he answered, as he turned half round in his saddle.

"Why are you looking backward?"

"To see whether we are followed. We lost much time in the _quebrado_, and
we have lost more since. Have you good eyes, Gahara? Born Africans
generally have."

"Yes, sir. My name, Gahra Dahra, signifies Dahra, the keen sighted!"

"I am glad to hear it. Be good enough to look round occasionally, and if
you see anything let us know."

We had nearly reached the summit of the rise when the negro uttered an
exclamation and turned his horse completely round.

"What is it?" asked Carmen and myself, following his example.

"I see figures on the brow of yonder hill."

"You see more than I can, and I have not bad eyes," said Carmen, looking
intently. "What are they like, those figures?"

"That I cannot make out yet. They are many; they move; and every minute
they grow bigger! That is all I can tell."

"It is quite enough. The bodies of the two troopers have been found, the
alarm has been given, and we are pursued. But they won't overtake us. They
have that hill to descend, this to mount; and our horses are better than
theirs."

"Are you going far, senor?" inquired Gahra.

"To the llanos."

"By Los Teycos?"

"Yes. We shall easily steal through Los Teycos, and I know of a place in
the forest beyond, where we can hide during the day."

"Pardon me for venturing to contradict you, senor; but I fear you will not
find it very easy to steal through Los Teycos. For three days it has been
held by a company of infantry and all the outlets are strictly guarded. No
civilian unfurnished with a safe conduct from the captain-general is
allowed to pass."

"_Caramba!_ We are between two fires, it seems. Well, we must make a dash
for it. The sentries cannot stop us, and we can gallop through before they
turn out the guard."

"The horses will be very tired by that time, senor, and the troopers can
get fresh mounts at Los Teycos. But I know a way--"

"The Indian trail! Do you know the Indian trail?"

"Yes, sir. I know the Indian trail, and I can take you to a place in the
forest where there is grass and water and game, and we shall be safe from
pursuit as long as we like to stay."

"How far off?"

"About two leagues."

"Good. Lead on in heaven's name. You are a treasure, Gahra Dahra. In
rescuing you from those ruffianly Spaniards we did ourselves, as well as
you, a good turn."

Our pursuers, who numbered a full score, could now be distinctly seen, but
in a few minutes we lost sight of them. After a sharp ride of half an
hour, the negro called a halt.

"This is the place. Here we turn off," he said.

"Here! I see nothing but the almost dry bed of a torrent."

"So much the better. We shall make no footmarks," said Carmen. "Go on,
Gahra. But first of all turn that led horse adrift. Are you sure this
place you speak of is unknown to the Spaniards?"

"Quite. It is known only to a few wandering Indians and fugitive slaves.
We can stay here till sunrise. It is impossible to follow the Indian trail
by night, even with such a moon as this."

After we had partly ridden, partly walked (for we were several times
compelled to dismount) about a mile along the bed of the stream, which was
hemmed in between impenetrable walls of tall trees and dense undergrowth,
Gahra, who was leading, called out: "This way!" and vanished into what
looked like a hole, but proved to be a cleft in the bank so overhung by
vegetation as to be well-nigh invisible.

It was the entrance to a passage barely wide enough to admit a horse and
his rider, yet as light as a star-gemmed mid-night, for the leafy vault
above us was radiant with fireflies, gleaming like diamonds in the dark
hair of a fair woman.

But even with this help it was extremely difficult to force our way
through the tangled undergrowth, which we had several times to attack,
sword in hand, and none of us were sorry when Gahra announced that we had
reached the end.

"_Por todos los santos!_ But this is fairyland!" exclaimed Carmen, who was
just before me. "I never saw anything so beautiful."

He might well say so. We were on the shore of a mountain-tarn, into whose
clear depths the crescent moon, looking calmly down, saw its image
reflected as in a silver mirror. Lilies floated on its waters, ferns and
flowering shrubs bent over them, the air was fragrant with sweet smells,
and all around uprose giant trees with stems as round and smooth as the
granite columns of a great cathedral; and, as it seemed in that dim
religious light, high enough to support the dome of heaven.

I was so lost in admiration of this marvellous scene that my companions
had unsaddled and were leading their horses down to the water before I
thought of dismounting from mine.

Apart from the beauty of the spot, we could have found none more suitable
for a bivouac! We were in safety and our horses in clover, and, tethering
them with the lariats, we left them to graze. Gahra gathered leaves and
twigs and kindled a fire, for the air at that height was fresh, and we
were lightly clad. We cooked our _tasajo_ on the embers, and after smoking
the calumet of peace, rolled ourselves in our _cobijas_, laid our heads on
our saddles, and slept the sleep of the just.

CHAPTER XIII.

ON THE LLANOS.

Only a moment ago the land had been folded in the mantle of darkness. Now,
a flaming eye rises from the ground at some immeasurable distance, like an
outburst of volcanic fire. It grows apace, chasing away the night and
casting a ruddy glow on, as it seems, a vast and waveless sea, as still as
the painted ocean of the poem, as silent as death, a sea without ships and
without life, mournful and illimitable, and as awe-inspiring and
impressive as the Andes or the Alps.

So complete is the illusion that did I not know we were on the verge of
the llanos I should be tempted to believe that supernatural agency had
transported us while we slept to the coasts of the Caribbean Sea or the
yet more distant shores of the Pacific Ocean.

Six days are gone by since we left our bivouac by the mountain-tarn: three
we have wandered in the woods under the guidance of Gahra, three sought
Mejia and his guerillas, who, being always on the move, are hard to find.
Last night we reached the range of hills which form, as it were, the
northern coast-line of the vast series of savannas which stretch from the
tropics to the Straits of Magellan; and it is now a question whether we
shall descend to the llanos or continue our search in the sierra.

"It was there I left him," said Carmen, pointing to a _quebrada_ some ten
miles away.

"Where we were yesterday?"

"Yes; and he said he would be either there or hereabout when I returned,
and I am quite up to time. But Mejia takes sudden resolves sometimes. He
may have gone to beat up Griselli's quarters at San Felipe, or be making a
dash across the llanos in the hope of surprising the fortified post of
Tres Cruces."

"What shall we do then; wait here until he comes back?"

"Or ride out on the llanos in the direction of Tres Cruces. If we don't
meet Mejia and his people we may hear something of them."

"I am for the llanos."

"Very well. We will go thither. But we shall have to be very circumspect.
There are loyalist as well as patriot guerillas roaming about. They say
that Morales has collected a force of three or four thousand, mostly
Indios, and they are all so much alike that unless you get pretty close it
is impossible to distinguish patriots from loyalists."

"Well, there is room to run if we cannot fight."

"Oh, plenty of room," laughed Carmen. "But as for fighting--loyalist
guerillas are not quite the bravest of the brave, yet I don't think we
three are quite a match for fifty of them, and we are not likely to meet
fewer, if we meet any. But let us adventure by all means. Our horses are
fresh, and we can either return to the sierra or spend the night on the
llanos, as may be most expedient."

Ten minutes later we were mounted, and an hour's easy riding brought us to
the plain. It was as pathless as the ocean, yet Carmen, guided by the sun,
went on as confidently as if he had been following a beaten track. The
grass was brown and the soil yellow; particles of yellow dust floated in
the air; the few trees we passed were covered with it, and we and our
horses were soon in a like condition. Nothing altered as we advanced; sky
and earth were ever the same; the only thing that moved was a cloud,
sailing slowly between us and the sun, and when Carmen called a halt on
the bank of a nearly dried-up stream, it required an effort to realize
that since we left our bivouac in the hills we had ridden twenty miles in
a direct line. Hard by was a deserted _hatto_, or cattle-keeper's hut,
where we rested while our horses grazed.

"No sign of Mejia yet," observed Carmen, as he lighted his cigar with a
burning-glass. "Shall we go on toward Tres Cruces, or return to our old
camping-ground in the hills?"

"I am for going on."

"So am I. But we must keep a sharp lookout. We shall be on dangerous
ground after we have crossed the Tio."

"Where is the Tio?"

"There!" (pointing to the attenuated stream near us).

"That! I thought the Tio was a river."

"So it is, and a big one in the rainy season, as you may have an
opportunity of seeing. I wish we could hear something of Mejia. But there
is nobody of whom we can inquire. The country is deserted; the herdsmen
have all gone south, to keep out of the way of guerillas and brigands, all
of whom look on cattle as common property."

"Somebody comes!" said Gahra, who was always on the lookout.

"How many?" exclaimed Carmen, springing to his feet.

"Only one."

"Keep out of sight till he draws near, else he may sheer off; and I should
like to have a speech of him. He may be able to tell us something."

The stranger came unconcernedly on, and as he stopped in the middle of the
river to let his horse drink, we had a good look at him. He was well
mounted, carried a long spear and a _macheto_ (a broad, sword-like knife,
equally useful for slitting windpipes and felling trees), and wore a
broad-brimmed hat, shirt, trousers, and a pair of spurs (strapped to his
naked feet).

As he resumed his journey across the river, we all stepped out of the
_hatto_ and gave him the traditional greeting, "_Buenas dias, senor._"

The man, looking up in alarm, showed a decided disposition to make off,
but Carmen spoke him kindly, offered him a cigar, and said that all we
wanted was a little information. We were peaceful travellers, and would
much like to know whether the country beyond the Tio was free from
guerillas.

The stranger eyed us suspiciously, and then, after a moment's hesitation,
said that he had heard that Mejia was "on the war-path."

"Where?" asked Carmen.

"They say he was at Tres Cruces three days ago; and there has been
fighting."

"And are any of Morale's people also on the war-path?"

"That is more than I can tell you, senores. It is very likely; but as you
are peaceful travellers, I am sure no one will molest you. _Adoiso,
senores._"

And with that the man gave his horse a sudden dig with his spurs, and went
off at a gallop.

"What a discourteous beggar he is!" exclaimed Carmen, angrily. "If it
would not take too much out of my mare I would ride after him and give him
a lesson in politeness."

"I don't think he was intentionally uncivil. He seemed afraid."

"Evidently. He did not know what we were, and feared to commit himself.
However, we have learned something. We are on Mejia's track. He was at
Tres Cruces three days since, and if we push on we may fall in with him
before sunset, or, at any rate, to-morrow morning."

"Is it not possible that this man may have been purposely deceiving us, or
be himself misinformed?" I asked.

"Quite. But as we had already decided to go on it does not matter a great
deal whether he is right or wrong. I I think, though, he knew more about
the others than he cared to tell. All the more reason for keeping a sharp
lookout and riding slowly."

"So as to save our horses?"

"Exactly. We may have to ride for our lives before the sun goes down. And
now let us mount and march."

Our course was almost due west, and the sun being now a little past the
zenith, its ardent rays--which shone right in our faces--together with the
reverberations from the ground, made the heat almost insupportable. The
stirrup-irons burned our feet; speech became an effort; we sat in our
saddles, perspiring and silent; our horses, drooping their heads, settled
into a listless and languid walk. The glare was so trying that I closed my
eyes and let Pizarro go as he would. Open them when I might, the outlook
was always the same, the same yellow earth and blue sky, the same
lifeless, interminable plain, the same solitary sombrero palms dotting the
distant horizon.

This went on for an hour or two, and I think I must have fallen into a
doze, for when, roused by a shout from Gahra, I once more opened my eyes
the sun was lower and the heat less intense.

"What is it," asked Carmen, who, like myself, had been half asleep. "I see
nothing."

"A cloud of dust that moves--there!" (pointing).

"So it is," shading his eyes and looking again. "Coming this way, too.
Behind that cloud is a body of horsemen. Be they friends or enemies--Mejia
and his people or loyalist guerillas?"

"That is more than I can say, senor. Mejia, I hope."

"I also. But hope is not certainty, and until we can make sure we had
better hedge away toward the north, so as to be nearer the hills in case
we have to run for it."

"You think we had better make for the hills in that case?" I asked.

"Decidedly. Mejia is sure to return thither, and Morale's men are much
less likely to follow us far in that direction than south or east."

So, still riding leisurely, we diverged a little to the right, keeping the
cloud-veiled horsemen to our left. By this measure we should (if they
proved to be enemies) prevent them from getting between us and the hills,
and thereby cutting off our best line of retreat.

Meanwhile the cloud grew bigger. Before long we could distinguish those
whom it had hidden, without, however, being able to decide whether they
were friends or foes.

Carmen thought they numbered at least two hundred, and there might be more
behind. But who they were he could, as yet, form no idea.

The nearer we approached them the greater became our excitement and
surprise. A few minutes and we should either be riding for our lives or
surrounded by friends. We looked to the priming of our pistols, tightened
our belts and our horses' girths, wiped the sweat and dust from our faces,
and, while hoping for the best, prepared for the worst.

"They see us!" exclaimed Carmen. "I cannot quite make them out, though. I
fear.... But let us ride quietly on. The secret will soon be revealed."

A dozen horsemen had detached themselves from the main body with the
intention, as might appear, of intercepting our retreat in every
direction. Four went south, four north, and four moved slowly round to our
rear.

"Had we not better push on?" I asked. "This looks very like a hostile
demonstration."

"So it does. But we must find out--And there is no hurry. We shall only
have the four who are coming this way to deal with, the others are out of
the running. All the same, we may as well draw a little farther to the
right, so as to give them a longer gallop and get them as far from the
main body as may be."

The four were presently near enough to be distinctly seen.

"Enemies! _Vamonos!_" cried Carmen, after he had scanned their faces. "But
not too fast. If they think we are afraid and our horses tired they will
follow us without waiting for the others, and perhaps give us an
opportunity of teaching them better manners. Your horse is the fleetest,
senor Fortescue. You had better, perhaps, ride last."

On this hint I acted; and when the four guerillas saw that I was lagging
behind they redoubled their efforts to overtake me, but whenever they drew
nearer than I liked, I let Pizarro out, thereby keeping their horses,
which were none too fresh, continually on the stretch. The others were too
far in the rear to cause us concern. We had tested the speed of their
horses and knew that we could leave them whenever we liked.

After we had gone thus about a couple of miles Carmen slackened speed so
as to let me come up with him and Gahra.

"We have five minutes to spare," he said. "Shall we stop them?"

I nodded assent, whereupon we checked our horses, and wheeling around,
looked our pursuers in the face. This brought them up short, and I thought
they were going to turn tail, but after a moment's hesitation they lowered
their lances and came on albeit at no great speed, receiving as they did
so a point-blank volley from our pistols, which emptied one of their
saddles. Then we drew our swords and charged, but before we could get to
close quarters the three men sheered off to the right and left, leaving
their wounded comrade to his fate. It did not suit our purpose to follow
them, and we were about to go on, when we noticed that the other
guerillas, who a few minutes previously were riding hotly after us, had
ceased their pursuit, and were looking round in seeming perplexity. The
main body had, moreover, come to a halt, and were closing up and facing
the other way. Something had happened. What could it be?

"Another cloud of dust," said Gahra, pointing to the north-west.

So there was, and moving rapidly. Had our attention been less taken up
with the guerillas this new portent would not so long have escaped us.

"Mejia! I'll wager ten thousand piasters that behind that cloud are Mejia
and his braves," exclaimed Carmen, excitedly. _Hijo de Dios!_ Won't they
make mince-meat of the Spaniard? How I wish I were with them! Shall we go
back Senor Fortescue?"

"If you think--"

"Think! I am sure. I can see the gleam of their spears through the dust.
By all means, let us join them. The Spaniards have too much on their hands
just now to heed us. But I must have a spear."

And with that Carmen slipped from his horse and picked up the lance of the
fallen guerilla.

"Do you prefer a spear to a sword?" I asked, as we rode on.

"I like both, but in a charge on the llanos I prefer a spear decidedly.
Yet I dare say you will do better with the weapon to which you have been
most accustomed. If you ward off or evade the first thrust and get to your
opponent's left rear you will have him at your mercy. Our _llaneros_ are
indifferent swordsmen; but once turn your back and you are doomed. Hurrah!
There is Mejia, leading his fellows on. Don't you see him? The tall man on
the big horse. Forward, senors! We may be in time for the encounter even
yet."

CHAPTER XIV.

CAUGHT.

A smart gallop of a few minutes brought us near enough to see what was
going on, though as we had to make a considerable _detour_ in order to
avoid the Spaniards, we were just too late for the charge, greatly to
Carmen's disappointment.

Pages:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20