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diff --git a/43838.txt b/43838.txt deleted file mode 100644 index aeb242b..0000000 --- a/43838.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8899 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Pearl of the Andes, by Gustave Aimard - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: The Pearl of the Andes - A Tale of Love and Adventure - -Author: Gustave Aimard - -Editor: Percy B. St. John - -Translator: Lascelles Wraxall - -Release Date: September 28, 2013 [EBook #43838] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE PEARL OF THE ANDES *** - - - - -Produced by Camille Bernard and Marc D'Hooghe at -http://www.freeliterature.org (Scans generously made -available by the Hathi Trust) - - - - - -THE PEARL OF THE ANDES - -A TALE OF LOVE AND ADVENTURE - -BY - -GUSTAVE AIMARD - - -AUTHOR OF "THE ADVENTURERS," "TRAIL-HUNTER," "PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES," - -"TRAPPER'S DAUGHTER," "TIGER SLAYER," ETC. - - -REVISED AND EDITED BY PERCY B. ST. JOHN - - -NEW YORK - -JOHN W. LOVELL COMPANY - -14 AND 16 VESEY STREET - -1884 - - - - - -CONTENTS - - I. IN THE CABILDO XXIII. PLAN OF CAMPAIGN - II. JOAN XXIV. A DISAGREEABLE MISSION - III. THE PURSUIT XXV. THE KITE AND THE DOVE - IV. SERPENT AND VIPER XXVI. THE END OF DON RAMON'S JOURNEY - V. AN INDIAN'S LOVE XXVII. THE AUCA-COYOG - VI. PREPARATIONS FOR DELIVERANCE XXVIII. THE HUMAN SACRIFICE - VII. A COUNTERMINE XXIX. THE KING OF DARKNESS - VIII. EL CANYON DEL RIO SECO XXX. THE BATTLE OF CONDERKANKI - IX. BEFORE THE FIGHT XXXI. CONQUEROR AND PRISONER - X. THE PASSAGE OF THE DEFILE XXXII. AFTER THE BATTLE - XI. THE JOURNEY XXXIII. FIRST HOURS OF CAPTIVITY - XII. INFORMATION XXXIV. THE ULTIMATUM - XIII. THE AMBUSCADE XXXV. A FURY - XIV. THE FORTRESS XXXVI. A THUNDERCLAP - XV. PROPOSALS XXXVII. UPON THE TRACK - XVI. THE MESSENGER XXXVIII. THE LYNX - XVII. IN THE WOLF'S MOUTH XXXIX. THE BLACK SERPENTS - XVIII. THE CAPITULATION XL. THE HURRICANE - XIX. THE APPEAL XLI. LA BARRANCA - XX. THE COUNCIL XLII. THE QUIPU - XXI. DIAMOND CUT DIAMOND XLIII. THE ROCK - XXII. DELIRIUM XLIV. CAESAR - - - - -THE PEARL OF THE ANDES - - - -CHAPTER I. - -IN THE CABILDO - - -While Dona Rosario effected her escape by the assistance of Curumilla, -as recorded in the "Adventurers," Don Tadeo was not long in regaining -his senses. On opening his eyes he cast a bewildered look around him, -but as soon as memory threw light into his brain, he let his head sink -into his hands, and gave a free vent to his grief. - -Don Tadeo wept! Don Tadeo, the King of Darkness, who a hundred times -had smilingly looked death in the face--who had had such a miraculous -escape--the man whose iron will had so rapidly crushed everything that -opposed the execution of his projects; who by a word, a gesture, a -frown, governed thousands of men submissive to his caprices, wept. - -But Don Tadeo was not a man whom grief, however intense, could depress -for a length of time. - -"Oh, all is not ended yet," he cried. "But courage! I have a people to -save before I avenge my daughter." - -He clapped his hands, and Don Gregorio appeared. He saw at a glance the -ravages which grief had made in the mind of his friend, but he saw that -the King of Darkness had subdued the father. It was about seven o'clock -in the morning. - -"What are your intentions with regard to General Bustamente?" Gregorio -asked. - -Don Tadeo was calm, cold, and impassive; all traces of emotion had -disappeared from his face, which had the whiteness and rigidity of -marble. - -"My friend," he replied, "we yesterday saved the liberty of our -country, which was on the verge of ruin; but if, thanks to you and -to all the devoted patriots who fought on our side, I have for ever -overthrown Don Bustamente, and annihilated his ambitious projects, I -have not on that account taken his place." - -"But you are the only man--" - -"Do not say that," Don Tadeo interrupted, "I do not recognise in myself -the right of imposing upon my fellow citizens ideas and views which may -be very good, or which I believe to be so, but which, perhaps, are not -theirs. The right of freely choosing the man who is henceforward to -govern them." - -"And who tells you, my friend, that that man is not yourself?" - -"I do!" Don Tadeo observed in a firm voice. - -Don Gregorio gave a start of surprise. - -"That astonishes you, does it not, my friend? But what is to be said? -So it is. I am only anxious to lay down power, which is a burden too -heavy for my worn-out strength, and to return again to private life." - -"Oh! do not say that," Don Gregorio replied warmly; "the gratitude of -the people is eternal." - -"All smoke, my friend," Don Tadeo observed, ironically. "Are you sure -the people are pleased with what I have done? But let us end this; my -resolution is taken, and nothing can change it." - -"But--" Don Gregorio wished to add. - -"One word more," said Don Tadeo. "To be a statesman, my friend, a man -must march alone in the way he has marked out for himself; he must have -neither children, relations, nor friends. The man who is in power ought -to be only human in appearance." - -"What do you mean to do, then?" - -"In the first place to send General Bustamente to Santiago: although -the man merits death, I will not take upon myself the responsibility -of his condemnation; enough blood has been shed by my orders. He -shall depart tomorrow with General Cornejo and the senator Sandias, -sufficiently escorted to secure him from a _coup de main_." - -"Your orders shall be punctually obeyed." - -"They are the last you will receive from me." - -"But why?" - -"Because this very day I will transfer my power to your hands." - -"But, my friend--" - -"Not a word more, I beg of you. Now come with me to this poor young -Frenchman, who has so nobly defended my unfortunate daughter." - -Don Gregorio followed him without reply. - -The count had been placed in a chamber where he had received the -greatest attention. His situation was satisfactory, and excepting great -weakness, he felt himself much better. Loss of blood alone caused the -weakness. Don Tadeo went towards him, and said warmly-- - -"My friend, it is God who has thrown you and your companion upon -my passage. I have only known you a few months, and I have already -contracted towards you a debt which it is impossible I can ever -discharge." - -"Why attach so high a value to the little I have been able to do, Don -Tadeo." said Louis. "Alas! I would have given my life to preserve Dona -Rosario." - -"We shall find her again!" Don Tadeo observed, energetically. - -"Oh! If I were able to get on horseback," the young man cried. - -At this moment the door opened, and a peon who entered said a few words -in a low voice to Don Tadeo. - -"Let him come in! let him come in!" the latter cried, and turning -towards Louis added, "We are about to hear some news." - -An Indian entered; it was Joan, the man Curumilla had been unwilling to -kill. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -JOAN. - - -The sordid clothes which covered the person of the Indian were stained -with mud, and torn by thorns and briers. It was evident that he had -made a hasty journey through woods and along bad roads. He bowed with -modest grace to the three gentlemen, and waited. - -"Does not my brother belong to the valiant tribe of the Black -Serpents?" Don Tadeo asked. - -The Indian made a sign in the affirmative. Don Tadeo was well -acquainted with the Indians, and knew that they only spoke when -necessity required. - -"What is my brother's name?" he resumed. - -"Joan," the Indian said; "in remembrance of a warrior of the palefaces -whom I killed." - -"Good," Don Tadeo replied, with a melancholy smile; "my brother is a -chief renowned in his tribe." - -Joan smiled haughtily. - -"My brother has arrived from his village; he has, no doubt, business to -transact with the palefaces." - -"My father is mistaken," the Indian replied sharply; "Joan asks the -help of no one; when he is insulted, his own lance avenges him." - -"My brother will excuse me," Don Tadeo said; "he must have some reason -for coming to me." - -"I have one," said the Indian. - -"Let my brother explain himself then." - -"I will answer my father's questions." said Joan, bowing. - -Don Tadeo knew what sort of man he had to do with. A secret -presentiment told him that he was the bearer of important news: he, -therefore, followed up his questions. - -"Whence does my brother come?" - -"From the tolderia of San Miguel." - -"That is some distance from the city; is it long since my brother left -it?" - -"The moon was about to disappear and the Southern Cross alone shed its -splendid light upon the earth, when Joan commenced his journey." - -It was nearly eighteen leagues from the village of San Miguel to the -city of Valdivia. Don Tadeo was astonished. He took from the table a -glass, which he filled to the brim with aguardiente, and presented it -to the messenger, saying-- - -"My brother will drink this coui of firewater; probably, the dust of -the road sticking to his palate prevents him from speaking as easily as -he could wish." - -The Indian smiled; his eyes sparkled greedily; he took the glass and -emptied it at a draught. - -"Good," he said, smacking his lips. "My father is hospitable; he is -truly the Great Eagle of the Whites." - -"Does my brother come from the chief of his tribe?" Don Tadeo continued. - -"No." Joan replied; "it was Curumilla that sent me." - -"Curumilla!" the three men cried. - -Don Tadeo breathed more freely. - -"Curumilla is my friend," he said; "no harm has happened to him, I -hope?" - -"Here are his poncho and his hat," Joan replied. - -"Heavens!" Louis exclaimed--"he is dead!" - -"No," said the Indian, "Curumilla is brave and wise. Joan had carried -off the young, pale, blue-eyed maiden; Curumilla might have killed -Joan; he was not willing to do so; he preferred making a friend of him." - -"Curumilla is good," Don Tadeo replied; "his heart is large and his -soul is not cruel." - -"Joan was the chief of those who carried off the young white -girl. Curumilla changed clothes with him," the Indian continued, -sententiously; "and said 'Go and seek the Great Eagle of the Whites, -and tell him that Curumilla will save the young maiden, or perish!' -Joan has come." - -"My brother has acted well," said Don Tadeo. - -"My father is satisfied," he said--"that is enough." - -"And my brother carried off the pale girl? Was he well paid for that?" - -"The great _cavale_ with the black eyes is generous," the Indian said, -smiling. - -"Ah! I knew it!" cried Don Tadeo, "still that woman!--still that demon!" - -Louis rose and said, in a voice trembling with emotion, "My friend, -Dona Rosario must be saved!" - -"Thanks, boundless thanks, for your devotion, my friend!" said Don -Tadeo; "but, you are very weak." - -"Of what consequence is that!" the young man exclaimed eagerly. "Were I -to perish in the task, I swear to you, Don Tadeo de Leon, by the honour -of my name, that I will not rest till Dona Rosario is free." - -"My friend," Don Tadeo said, "three men--three devoted men, are already -on the trail of my daughter." - -"Your daughter?" Louis said with astonishment. - -"Alas! yes, my friend, my daughter! Why should I have any secrets from -you? That blue-eyed angel is my daughter! the only joy left to me in -this world." - -"Oh! we will recover her! We must!" Louis cried with great emotion. - -"My friend," Don Tadeo continued, "the three men of whom I spoke to -you are at this moment endeavouring to deliver the poor child. However -dearly it costs me, I think it is best to wait." - -Louis moved uneasily. - -"Yes, I comprehend that this inaction is painful to you. Alas! do you -think it is less so to a father's heart? Don Louis, I endure frightful -torments. But I resign myself, while shedding tears of blood at not -being able to do anything." - -"That is true," the wounded man admitted; "we must wait, Poor Father! -Poor daughter!" - -"Yes," said Don Tadeo, faintly, "pity me, my friend, pity me!" - -"But," the Frenchman continued, "this inactivity cannot last. You see I -am strong, I can walk." - -"You are a hero as to heart and devotion," Don Tadeo said with a smile; -"and I know not how to thank you." - -"Oh! how much the better if you regain hope," cried Louis, who had -blushed at his friend's words. - -Don Tadeo turned towards Joan. - -"Does my brother remain here?" he asked. - -"I am at my father's orders," the Indian replied. - -"May I trust my brother?" - -"Joan has but one heart and one life." - -"My brother has spoken well; I will be grateful to him." - -The Indian bowed. - -"Let my brother return here on the third sun; he shall place us upon -the track of Curumilla." - -"On the third sun Joan will be ready." - -And saluting the three gentlemen gracefully, the Indian retired to -take a few hours of a repose which his great exertions had rendered -necessary. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -THE PURSUIT. - - -We will return to Curumilla. The night was gloomy--the darkness -profound. Urging their horses on with voice and gesture, the fugitives -made the best of their way towards a forest which, if they could but -reach, they would be safe. - -A leaden silence brooded over the desert. They galloped on without -uttering a word--without looking behind them. All at once the neighing -of a horse fell upon their ears like the gloomy alarm call of a clarion. - -"We are lost!" Curumilla exclaimed. - -"What is to be done?" Rosario asked anxiously. - -"Stop," he at length cried. - -The young girl left everything to her guide. The Indian requested her -to dismount. - -"Have confidence in me," he said; "whatever a man can do I will -undertake, to save you." - -"I know you will!" she replied gratefully. - -Curumilla lifted her up in his arms, and carried her with as much -facility as if she had been a child. - -"Why do you carry me thus?" she asked. - -"We must leave no sign," he replied shortly. - -He placed her on the ground with great precaution at the foot of a tree. - -"This tree is hollow, my sister will conceal herself in it; she will -not stir till I return." - -"Oh! you will not abandon me," she said. - -"I am going to make a false track, I shall soon return." - -The poor girl hesitated, she was frightened. Curumilla divined what she -felt. "It is our only chance of safety," he said, mournfully, "if my -sister is not willing, I can remain." - -Rosario was not one of the weak, puling daughters of our great European -cities, who wither before they bloom. Her resolution was formed with -the rapidity of lightning; she bore up against the fear which had taken -possession of her mind, and replied in a firm voice-- - -"I will do what my brother desires." - -"Good!" the Indian said. "Let my sister conceal herself, then." - -He cautiously removed the cactus and creepers which surrounded the -lower part of the tree, and exposed a cavity, into which the young girl -crept, all trembling, like a poor sparrow in the eyrie of an eagle. As -soon as Rosario was comfortably placed in the hollow of the tree, the -Indian restored the plants to their primitive state, and completely -concealed her hiding place with this transparent curtain. Then he -regained the horses, mounted his own, led the other, and galloped off. - -He galloped thus for many minutes without relaxing his speed, and when -he thought himself sufficiently far from the place where Dona Rosario -was concealed, he dismounted, listened for an instant, untied the -sheep skins from the horses' feet and set off again with the speed of -an arrow. He soon heard the galloping of horses behind him; at first -distant, but rapidly drawing near and at last becoming distinct. -Curumilla had a ray of hope, for his manoeuvre had succeeded. He still -pressed on his horse, and leaving his heavy wooden stirrups, with their -sharp angles, to beat against the sides of the still galloping animal, -he stuck his long lance into the ground, threw his weight upon it, and -raising himself by the strength of his wrists, sprang lightly to the -ground, whilst the two abandoned horses held on their furious course. -Curumilla glided in among the bushes, and made the best of his way back -towards Rosario, persuaded that the horsemen would be misled by the -false track. - -Antinahuel had sent out his mosotones in all directions, in order to -discover the traces of the fugitives, but himself had remained in the -village. Antinahuel was too experienced a warrior to allow himself -to be misled. His scouts returned, one after another, without having -discovered anything. The last two that returned brought with them two -stray horses bathed in steam. These were the two horses abandoned by -Curumilla. - -"Will she escape us then?" the Linda asked. - -"My sister," the Toqui replied, coolly, with a sinister smile, "when -Antinahuel pursues an enemy, he does not escape." - -"And yet----" she said. - -"Patience," he replied; "they had a chance; their horses gave them a -great advantage over me; but, thanks to my precautions, I have forced -them to abandon their horses, which alone could have saved them. Within -an hour they will be in our hands." - -"To horse, then; and let us delay no longer," Dona Maria exclaimed -impatiently. - -"To horse, then, be it!" replied the chief. - -This time no false route was pursued; they followed in a straight line -the track by which the prisoners had escaped. - -In the meantime Curumilla had rejoined Rosario. - -"Well?" she asked, in a voice half choked by fear. - -"In a few moments we shall be taken," the chief replied mournfully. - -"What! have we no hope left?" - -"None! We are surrounded on all sides." - -"Oh, my Maker! What have I done?" the poor girl sobbed. - -Curumilla reclined upon the ground; he had taken his weapons from his -belt, and placed them beside him; and with the stoical fatalism of the -Indian when he knows that he cannot escape a destiny that threatens -him, he waited impassively, his arms crossed upon his breast, the -arrival of the enemy. They heard the tramp of the horses drawing nearer -and nearer. In a quarter of an hour all would be over. - -"Let my sister prepare," Curumilla said coolly: "Antinahuel approaches." - -"Poor man," said Rosario; "why did you endeavour to save me?" - -"The young blue-eyed maiden is the friend of my pale brothers; I would -lay down my life for her." - -"You must not die, chief," she said, in her soft clear tones; "you -shall not!" - -"Why not? I do not dread torture; my sister shall see how a chief can -die." - -"Listen to me. You have heard the threats of that woman; my life is in -no danger." - -He replied by a gesture of assent. - -"But," she continued, "if you remain with me, if you are taken, they -will kill you." - -"Yes," he remarked, coolly. - -"Then who will inform my friends of my fate? If you die, chief, what -can they do to deliver me?" - -"That is true; they can do nothing." - -"You must live, then, chief, for my sake." - -"Does my sister wish it?" - -"I insist upon it." - -"Good!" said the Indian. "I will go, then; but let not my sister be -cast down." - -At this moment the noise of the approaching cavalcade resounded with -a loudness that announced they were close at hand. The chief gathered -up his arms, replaced them in his belt, and, after bestowing a last -sign of encouragement upon Rosario, he glided among the high grass and -disappeared. Antinahuel and the Linda were within ten paces of her. - -"Here I am," she said, in a firm voice; "do with me what you please." - -Her persecutors, struck with such an exhibition of courage, pulled up -their horses in astonishment. The courageous girl had saved Curumilla. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -SERPENT AND VIPER. - - -Dona Rosario stood motionless, her arms crossed, her head haughtily -raised, and her look disdainful. The Linda leaped from her horse, and -seizing her by the arm, shook her violently. - -"Oh, oh!" she said, in a bitterly mocking tone, "my pretty dear! This -is the way you oblige people to come after you: is it?" - -Dona Rosario only replied to this flood of words by a look of cold -contempt. - -"Ah!" the exasperated courtesan exclaimed, clutching her arm, "I will -bring down that proud spirit!" - -"Madam," Rosario replied, mildly, "you hurt me very much." - -"Serpent!" the Linda shrieked, "why can I not crush you beneath my -heel?" - -Rosario staggered a few paces; her foot struck against a root, and she -fell. In her fall her forehead came in contact with a sharp stone; she -uttered a feeble cry of pain, and fainted. The Indian chief, at the -sight of the large gash in the young girl's forehead, uttered a roar -like that of a wild beast. He leant over her raised her tenderly, and -endeavoured to stop the bleeding. - -"Fie!" said the Linda, with a jeering laugh; "are you going to play the -old woman--you, the first chief of your nation?" - -Antinahuel remained silent; for an instant he felt an inclination to -stab the fury: he darted a glance at her so loaded with anger and -hatred, that she was terrified, and instinctively made a movement as if -to put herself on the defensive. As yet the attentions of Antinahuel -had no effect; Rosario remained still senseless. In a few minutes -the Linda was reassured by observing that love occupied more of the -thoughts of the chief than hatred. - -"Come, tie the creature upon a horse," she said. - -"This woman belongs to me," Antinahuel replied, "and I alone have the -right of disposing of her." - -"Not yet, chief; a fair exchange: when you have delivered the general, -I will give her up to you." - -"My sister forgets," said Antinahuel, "that I have fifty mosotones with -me." - -"What does that signify?" she replied. - -"It signifies," he replied, "that I am the stronger." - -"Indeed!" she said, sneeringly, "is that the way you keep your -promises?" - -"I love this woman," he said, in a deep voice. - -"_Caray!_ I know that well enough," she replied. - -"I will not have her suffer." - -"See there, now," she cried, still jeering; "I give her up to you -expressly that she may suffer." - -"If such is my sisters thought, she is mistaken." - -"Chief, my friend, you do not know what you are talking about; you are -ignorant of the hearts of white women." - -"I do not understand my sister." - -"No; you do not comprehend that this woman will never love you--that -she will never entertain for you anything but contempt and disdain." - -"Oh!" Antinahuel replied, "I am too great a chief to be thus despised -by a woman." - -"You will see you are, though; in the meantime I demand my prisoner." - -"My sister shall not have her." - -"Then try to take her from me!" she shrieked; and springing like a -tiger cat, she pushed away the chief, and seized the young girl, to -whose throat she applied her dagger so closely that blood stained the -point. - -Antinahuel uttered a terrible cry. - -"Stop!" he shouted in consternation; "I consent to everything." - -"Ah!" cried the Linda, with a smile of triumph, "I knew I should have -the last word." - -The chief bit his fingers with powerless rage but he was too well -acquainted with this woman to continue a struggle which he knew must -infallibly terminate in the maiden's death. By a prodigy of self -command he forced his face to assume a smile, and said in a mild voice-- - -"Wah! my sister is excited! Of what consequence is it to me whether -this woman is mine now or in a few hours hence?" - -"Yes, but only when General Bustamente is no longer in the hands of his -enemies, Chief." - -"Be it so!" he said, "since my sister requires it; let her act as she -thinks fit." - -"Very well; but my brother must prove his faith to me." - -"What security can I give my sister, that will thoroughly satisfy her?" -he said with a bitter smile. - -"This," she replied, with a sneer; "let my brother swear by the bones -of his ancestors that he will not oppose anything it shall please me to -do, till the general is free." - -The chief hesitated; the oath the Linda requested him to take was one -held sacred by the Indians, and they dreaded breaking it in the highest -degree; such is their respect for the ashes of their fathers. But -Antinahuel had fallen into a snare, from which it was impossible for -him to extricate himself. - -"Good!" he said, smiling; "let my sister be satisfied. I swear upon -the bones of my father that I will not oppose her in anything she may -please to do." - -"Thank you," the Linda answered; "my brother is a great warrior." - -Antinahuel had no other plausible pretext for remaining: he slowly, -and, as if regretfully, rejoined his mosotones, got into his saddle, -and set off, darting at the Linda a last glance, that would have -congealed her with fear if she had seen it. - -"Poor puling creature!" she said. "Don Tadeo, it is you I wound in -torturing your leman! Shall I at length force you to restore to me my -daughter?" - -The Indian peons attached to her service had remained with her. In the -heat of the pursuit the horses, abandoned by Curumilla and brought back -by the scouts, had remained with the troop. - -"Bring hither one of those horses!" she commanded. - -The courtesan had the poor girl placed across one of the horses, with -her face towards the sky; then she ordered that the feet and hands of -her victim should be brought under the belly of the animal and solidly -fastened with cords by the ankles and wrists. - -"The woman is not firm upon her legs," she said, with a dry, nervous -laugh. - -The poor girl gave scarcely any signs of life; her countenance had -an earthy, cadaverous hue, and the blood flowed copiously. Her body, -horribly cramped by the frightful posture in which she was tied, had -nervous starts, and dreadfully hurt her wrists and ankles, into which -the cords began to enter. A hollow rattle escaped from her oppressed -chest. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -AN INDIAN'S LOVE. - - -The Linda rejoined Antinahuel, who, knowing what torture she was -preparing to inflict on the young girl, had stopped at a short distance -from the spot where he had left her. - -When they reached the tolderia, the horsemen dismounted and the maiden -was untied and transported, half dead, into the same cuarto where, an -hour before, she had, for the first time, found herself in the presence -of the courtesan. - -The appearance of Rosario was really frightful, and would have excited -pity in anybody but the tigress whose delight it was to treat her so -cruelly. Her long hair hung in loose disorder upon her half-naked -shoulders, and at various spots adhered to her face through the blood -which had flowed from her wound; her face, soiled with blood and dirt, -wore a greenish cast, and her half-closed lips showed that her teeth -were tightly clenched. Her wrists and ankles, to which still hung -strips of the thick cord by which she had been fastened to the horse, -were frightfully bruised and discoloured. Her delicate frame was -convulsed with nervous quiverings, and her faint breathing painfully -issued from her heaving chest. - -"Poor girl!" the chief murmured. - -"Why, chief!" said the Linda, with a sardonic smile. "I scarcely know -you! Good Heavens! how love can change a man! What, you, intrepid -warrior, pity the fate of this poor maudlin chit! I really believe you -will weep over her like a woman, next!" - -"Yes," the chief said; "my sister speaks truly, I scarcely know myself! -Oh!" he added, bitterly, "is it possible that I, Antinahuel, to whom -the Huincas have done so much wrong, can be so? This woman is of an -accursed race; she is in my power, I could avenge myself upon her, -satisfy the hatred that devours me, make her endure the must atrocious -injuries!--and, I dare not!--no, I dare not!" - -"Does my brother, then, love this woman so much?" the Linda asked, in a -soft, insinuating tone. - -Antinahuel looked at her as if she had awakened him suddenly from his -sleep; he fixed his dull eyes upon her, and exclaimed-- - -"Do I love her?--love her!--let my sister listen. Before dying, and -going to hunt in the blessed prairies with the just warriors, my father -called me to him, and placing his mouth to my ear--'My son, he said, -thou art the last of our race; Don Tadeo de Leon is also the last of -his; since the coming of the palefaces, the family of that man has been -always fatally opposed to ours, everywhere and under all circumstances. -Swear to kill that man whom it has never been in my power to reach!' -I swore to do it. Good!' he said, Pillian loves children who obey -their father; let my son mount his best horse, and go in search of his -enemy. Then, with a sigh, my father bade me depart. Without replying, -I saddled, as he had commanded me, my best horse, and went to the city -called Santiago, resolved to kill my enemy." - -"Well?" the Linda asked, seeing him stop short. - -"Well!" he resumed, "I saw this woman, and my enemy still lives." The -Linda cast upon him a look of disdain; but Antinahuel did not remark -it--he continued-- - -"One day this woman found me dying, pierced with wounds; she made her -peons bear me to a stone toldo, where for three months she watched over -me, driving back the death which had hung over me." - -"And when my brother was cured?" the Linda asked eagerly. - -"When I was cured," he resumed, passionately, "I fled away like a -wounded tiger, bearing in my heart an incurable wound! Two suns ago, -when I was quitting my tolderia, my mother, whom I loved and venerated, -wished to oppose my departure; she knew that it was love that attracted -me from her, that it was to see this woman I left her. Well, my -mother----" - -"Your mother?" the courtesan said, breathlessly. - -"As she persisted in not allowing me to depart, I trampled her, without -pity, beneath the hoofs of my horse!" he cried, in almost a shriek. - -"Oh!" exclaimed the Linda, recoiling. - -"Yes! it is horrible, is it not, to kill one's mother? Now!" he added, -with a frightful mocking laugh, "will my sister ask again if I love -this woman? For her sake, to see her, to hear her address to me one of -those sweet words which she used to speak near me, or only to see her -smile, I would joyfully sacrifice the most sacred interests. I would -wade through the blood of my dearest friends--nothing should stop me!" - -The Linda, as she listened to him and observed him, reflected deeply, -and as soon as he ceased she said-- - -"I see that my brother really loves this woman. I was deceived, I must -repair my fault." - -"What does my sister mean?" - -"I mean, that if I had known, I should not have inflicted so severe a -chastisement." - -"Poor girl!" he sighed. - -The Linda smiled ironically to herself. "But my brother does not know -what palefaced women are," she continued; "they are vipers, which you -endeavour in vain to crush, and which always rise up again to sting the -heel of him who places his foot upon them. It is of no use to argue -with passion, were it not so I would say to my brother, 'Be thankful to -me, for in killing this woman I preserve you from atrocious sorrow.'" - -Antinahuel moved uneasily. - -"But," she continued, "my brother loves, and I will restore this woman -to him; within an hour I will give her up to him." - -"Oh! if my sister does that," Antinahuel exclaimed, intoxicated with -joy, "I will be her slave!" - -Dona Maria smiled with an undefinable expression. - -"I will do it," she said, "but time presses, we cannot stay here any -longer--my brother doubtless forgets." - -Antinahuel darted a suspicious glance at her. - -"I forget nothing," he replied; "the friend of my sister shall be -released." - -"Good! my brother will succeed." - -"Still, I will not depart till the blue-eyed maiden has recovered her -senses." - -"Let my brother hasten to give orders for our departure in ten minutes." - -"It is good!" said Antinahuel; "in ten minutes I shall be here." - -He left the cuarto with a hasty step. As soon as he was gone, the -Linda knelt down by the young girl, removed the cords that still cut -her flesh, washed her face with cold water, fastened up her hair, and -carefully bandaged the wound on her forehead. - -"Oh!" she thought, "through this woman I hold you, demon!" - -She softly raised the maiden, placed her in a high-backed chair, -remedied, as well as she was able, the disorder in her dress, and then -applied a phial of powerful salts to her nostrils. - -These salts were not long in producing their effect; she breathed a -deep sigh, and opened her eyes, casting round vague and languid looks. -But suddenly her eye fell upon the woman who was lavishing her cares -upon her; a fresh pallor covered the features, which had begun to be -slightly tinged with red, she closed her eyes, and was on the point of -fainting again. The Linda shrugged her shoulders, took a second phial -from her bosom, and opening the poor girls mouth introduced a few drops -of cordial between her livid lips. At that moment Antinahuel returned. - -"Everything is ready," he said; "we can depart immediately." - -"When you please," Dona Maria replied. - -"What is to be done with this girl?" - -"She will remain here: I have arranged everything." - -"Let us be gone, then!" and turning towards Rosario, she said, with a -malignant smile. "Farewell, till we meet again, senorita!" - -Dona Rosario rose, and said in an earnest tone, "I do not curse you; -but God grant, if you ever have children, that they may never be -exposed to the tortures you have condemned me to endure." - -On hearing this speech, which seared her heart like a red-hot iron, the -Linda uttered a cry of terror; a cold perspiration beaded on her pale -forehead, and she staggered out of the apartment. - -"My mother! my mother!" cried Rosario; "if you still live, where are -you? Why do you not come to the help of your daughter?" - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -PREPARATIONS FOR DELIVERANCE - - -The little troop of cavalry, at the head of which Antinahuel and the -Linda rode, advanced rapidly and silently along the road from San -Miguel towards the valley in which, the day before, the renewal of the -treaties had been accomplished. At sunrise they debouched into the -plain. They had scarcely advanced fifty paces when they saw a horseman -coming at full speed towards them. This horseman was Black Stag: -Antinahuel halted his escort. - -"What is the use of this halt?" Dona Maria observed. - -"Is my sister a soldier?" Antinahuel asked. - -Dona Maria, mortified at this rude speech, reined in her horse and -remained a few paces in the rear, so that Antinahuel was left alone at -the head of his troop. At the expiration of five minutes Black Stag -pulled up his horse. - -"Has my father returned among his children?" he said, bowing his head -as a salutation to the chief. - -"Yes!" Antinahuel replied. "What has my son done during my absence?" - -"I have executed the orders of my father." - -"All of them?" - -"All!" - -"Good! Has my son received any news of the palefaces?" - -"A strong body of the Chiaplos is preparing to quit Valdivia to repair -to Santiago." - -"Good! With what purpose?" - -"They are taking to Santiago the prisoner named General Bustamente." - -Antinahuel turned towards the Linda, and exchanged a glance of -intelligence with her. - -"For what day have the Huincas fixed their departure?" - -"They are to set out the day after tomorrow." - -Antinahuel reflected for a few minutes. - -"This is what my son will do," he said. "In two hours he will strike -his camp, and direct his course toward the Canyon del Rio Seco, where I -will go and wait for him." - -"I will obey!" said the Black Stag, bowing his head affirmatively. - -"Good! My son is an experienced warrior; he will execute my orders with -intelligence." - -The man smiled with pleasure at receiving this praise from his chief; -after bowing respectfully before him, he made his horse curvet -gracefully, and set off with his followers. - -Antinahuel took the road towards the mountains at a sharp trot. After -riding silently for some time by the side of Dona Maria, he turned -towards her graciously, and said-- - -"Does my sister understand the tenor of the order I have just given?" - -"No!" she replied, with a slight tinge of irony; "as my brother has -well remarked, I am not a soldier." - -"My intentions are very simple," he replied; "the Canyon del Rio Seco -is in a narrow defile which the palefaces are obliged to cross. Fifty -chosen warriors can here contend with advantage against twenty times -their number. It is in that place I am determined to wait for the -Huincas. The Moluchos will take possession of the heights; and when the -palefaces have entered that passage without suspicion, I will attack -them on all sides." - -"Does there, then, exist no other road to Santiago?" - -"None; they must go that way." - -"Then they are doomed!" she joyfully exclaimed. - -"Without doubt!" he said proudly; "the Canyon del Rio Seco is -celebrated in our history." - -"Then my brother can answer for saving Don Pancho Bustamente?" - -"Yes, unless the sky falls!" he said, with a smile. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -A COUNTERMINE. - - -As Trangoil-Lanec had predicted, Louis recovered from the effects of -his wounds with surprising rapidity. Whether it was owing to his ardent -desire to commence his researches, or to the goodness of his condition, -we will not say; but on the eve of the day fixed for the departure -he was quite on the alert, and told Don Tadeo he was ready to start -whenever he pleased. - -He was the more anxious to depart in that Valentine, his dog Caesar, -and Trangoil-Lanec had been absent three days, and no tidings had -been received. Curumilla had not come back. All these circumstances -augmented in an enormous degree the impatience of the count; whilst, on -his part, Don Tadeo was not much more easy. The poor father shuddered -at the idea of the suffering to which his child was exposed. - -And yet there was mingled an undefinable joy at thinking of the -tortures he should inflict, in his turn, upon Dona Maria, when -revealing to her that the person she had taken so much delight in -martyrizing was her own daughter. Don Tadeo, a man of elevated mind, -endeavoured to shake off this unworthy thought, but it persisted in -recurring with tenacity. - -Don Gregorio, in whose hands Don Tadeo had placed his power and -authority, urged on by Louis, hastened the preparations for the -departure on the morrow. At about eight o'clock in the evening. Don -Gregorio, after giving certain instructions in one of the private -apartments of the cabildo to General Cornejo and the senator Sandias, -who were to conduct Don Pancho to Santiago, had dismissed them, and -was conversing with Don Tadeo, when the door was thrown open, and a -man entered. On seeing him, they uttered a general cry of joy and -astonishment. It was Curumilla! - -"At last!" Louis and Don Tadeo exclaimed. - -"I am here!" the Ulmen replied, sorrowfully. - -As the poor Indian seemed quite exhausted with fatigue and want of -food, they made him sit down. In spite of all his Indian stoicism, -Curumilla literally seized the food as soon as it appeared, and -devoured it greedily. - -As soon as the keenness of his appetite was a little abated, Curumilla -related the full details of all that had happened since his departure -from the camp, the manner in which he had delivered the young lady, -and how, an hour after, she had been recaptured by her enemies. When -he quitted Dona Rosario the brave Indian had only kept at a sufficient -distance from her to avoid being himself taken by her ravishers. - -Don Tadeo and the count warmly thanked him. - -"I have done nothing yet," he said, "since all must be begun again; and -now," he added, "it will be more difficult, for they will be on their -guard." - -"Tomorrow," Don Tadeo replied, warmly, "we will set out all together on -the track." - -"Yes," the chief said, "I am aware you are to depart tomorrow." - -The three men looked at each other with astonishment; they could not -understand how the news of their movements should be known. - -"There are no secrets for Aucas, when they wish to know them," the -chief said with a smile. - -"It is impossible!" Don Gregorio exclaimed angrily. - -"Let my brother listen," the chief replied quietly. "Tomorrow, at -sunrise, a detachment of a thousand white soldiers will leave Valdivia -to conduct the prisoner Bustamente to Santiago. Is it not so?" - -"Yes," Don Gregorio replied, "I must admit that what you say is -correct." - -"Well," said the Ulmen smiling, "I cannot deny that the man who gave me -these details had no suspicion that I overheard him." - -"Explain yourself, chief, I implore you!" Don Tadeo cried; "we are upon -burning coals." - -"I have told you that I followed Antinahuel's party; I must add that -occasionally I got before them. The day before yesterday, at sunrise, -the Black Stag, who was left with Antinahuel's warriors during his -absence, was on the prairie of the treaties, and as soon as he saw his -chief, galloped to meet him. As I had no doubt that these two men, -during their conference, would allow some words to escape that might -afterwards be of service to me, I drew as close to them as possible, -and that is the way they placed me in possession of their projects." - -"Of their projects?" Don Gregorio asked, "are they mad enough, then, to -think of attacking us?" - -"The pale woman has made Antinahuel swear to deliver her friend, who is -a prisoner." - -"Well! and what then?" - -"Antinahuel will deliver him." - -"Ay, ay!" said Don Gregorio, "but that project is more easily formed -than executed, chief." - -"The soldiers are obliged to traverse the Canyon del Rio Seco." - -"No doubt they are." - -"It is there that Antinahuel will attack the palefaces with his -mosotones." - -"Sangre de Cristo!" Don Gregorio exclaimed, "What is to be done?" - -"The escort will be defeated," Don Tadeo observed. - -Curumilla remained silent. - -"Perhaps not!" said the count: "I know the chief; he is not the man to -cause his friends embarrassment without having the means of showing -them how to avoid the peril he reveals to them." - -"Unfortunately," Don Tadeo replied, "there exists no other passage but -that cursed defile; it must absolutely be cleared, and five hundred -resolute men might not there only hold a whole army in check, but cut -it to pieces." - -"That may be all very true," the young man replied persistently; "but -I repeat what I have said--the chief is a skilful warrior, his mind is -fertile in resources." - -Curumilla smiled and nodded. - -"I was sure of it!" Louis cried. "Now then, chief, speak out! Do you -not know a means of enabling us to avoid this dangerous passage?" - -"I will not certify that," the Ulmen replied; "but if my brothers the -palefaces will consent to allow me to act, I will undertake to foil the -plans of Antinahuel and his companions." - -"Speak! speak, chief!" the count exclaimed, vehemently; "explain to us -the plan you have formed; these caballeros rely entirely upon you." - -"Yes," Don Tadeo replied, "we are listening to you anxiously, chief." - -"But," Curumilla resumed, "my brothers must act with caution. I require -to be left absolute master." - -"You have my word, Ulmen," said Don Gregorio; "we will only act as you -command us." - -"Good!" said the chief; "let my brothers listen." - -And without more delay he detailed to them the plan he had formed, and -which, as might be expected, obtained the general assent. Don Tadeo and -the count entered enthusiastically into it, promising themselves the -happiest results. By the time the last measures were agreed to and all -was arranged the night was far advanced, and the four speakers stood in -need of some repose. Curumilla in particular, having slept but little -for several days, was literally sinking with fatigue. Louis alone -appeared to require no repair for his strength. But prudence demanded -that a few hours should be given to sleep, and, in spite of the counts -remonstrances, they separated. - -The young man, forced to submit to the reasons of the experienced men -who surrounded him, retired with a very bad grace, promising himself -_in petto_ not to let his friends forget the hour fixed upon for their -departure. - -Louis felt it was impossible to follow their example, and impatience -and love--those two tyrants of youth--heated his brain, he ascended -to the roof of the palace, and with his eyes fixed upon the lofty -mountains, whose dark shadows were thrown across the horizon, he gave -all his thoughts to the fair Rosario. - -Louis, abandoning himself to delightful thoughts, thus dreamed through -the night, and did not think of descending till the stars successively -disappeared in the depths of the heavens, and a pale whiteness began to -tinge the horizon. In that climate this announced the speedy approach -of day. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -EL CANYON DEL RIO SECO. - - -At about ten leagues from San Miguel de la Frontera, a miserable town -peopled by some twenty or thirty Huiliche shepherds, on the road to -Arauca, the land rises rapidly, and suddenly forms an imposing wall -of granite, the summit of which is covered with virgin forests of -firs and oaks, impenetrable to the sun. A passage of twenty yards at -most, is opened by nature through this wall. Its length is more than -a mile, forming a crowd of capricious, inextricable windings, which -appear constantly to turn back upon themselves. On each side of this -formidable defile, the ground, covered with trees and underwood, stage -above stage, is capable, in case of need, of offering impregnable -intrenchments to those who defend the passage. - -This place is named El Canyon del Rio Seco, a name common in America, -because not only has vegetation long since covered the face of this -wall with an emerald carpet, but it is evident that in remote periods -a channel by which the waters of the upper plateaus of the Andes, -overflowing, either in consequence of an earthquake or some natural -inundation, pour down to the plain--had violently and naturally cut -itself a passage to the sea. - -Antinahuel, followed closely by the Linda, who wished to see everything -for herself, visited the posts, gave short and precise instructions -to the Ulmens, and then regained the bivouac he had chosen, and which -formed the advanced guard of the ambuscade. - -"Now, what are we going to do?" Dona Maria asked. - -"Wait," he replied. - -And folding himself in his poncho, he laid down on the ground and -closed his eyes. - -On their side, the Spaniards had set out a little before daybreak. They -formed a compact troop of five hundred horsemen, in the centre of whom -rode without arms, and between two lancers, charged to blow out his -brains at the least suspicious action, General Bustamente. - -In advance of this troop, there was another of an almost equal force; -this was, in appearance, composed of Indians. We say in appearance, -because the men were in reality Chilians, but their Araucano costume, -their arms, even to the caparison of their horses, in short, everything -in their disguise, was so exact, that at a short distance it was -impossible for even the experienced eyes of the Indians themselves to -detect them. These apparent Indians were commanded by Joan. - -When arrived at mid-distance between Valdivia and the Canyon, the -hindermost troop halted, whilst that commanded by Joan continued its -march, but slowly, and with increased precaution. Four horsemen closed -the rear; Don Tadeo, Don Gregorio, the count, and Curumilla, who were -engaged in earnest conversation. - -"Then you persist in having nobody with you?" said Don Gregorio. - -"Nobody; we two will be quite sufficient," Curumilla replied, pointing -to the young Frenchman. - -"Why will you not take me with you?" Don Tadeo asked. - -"I thought you would prefer remaining with your soldiers." - -"I am anxious to join my daughter as soon as possible." - -"Come, then, by all means. You," turning to Don Gregorio, "will -remember that nothing must induce you to enter the defile before you -see a fire blazing on the summit of the Corcovado." - -"That is perfectly understood, so now farewell." - -After exchanging hearty shakes of the hand, the four men separated. Don -Gregorio galloped after his troops, whilst Don Tadeo and the count, -guided by Curumilla, began to climb the mountain. They continued -to ascend for more than an hour, and at last reached a platform of -considerable extent. - -"Dismount," he said; Curumilla setting the example, which his -companions followed. - -"Let us unsaddle our horses," the chief continued. "We shall not want -the poor beasts for some time. I know a place, not far off, where they -will be comfortably sheltered, and where we can find them when we come -back--if we do come back," he added. - -"Holloa, chief!" Louis exclaimed, "Are you beginning to be -apprehensive?" - -"Och!" the Ulmen replied, "my brother is young, his blood is very warm; -Curumilla is older, he is wise." - -"Thanks," the young man said, "it is impossible to tell a friend that -he is a fool more politely." - -The three men continued to ascend, dragging their horses after them -by their bridles, which was no easy matter in a narrow path where -the animals stumbled at every step. At length, however, they gained -the entrance of a natural grotto, into which they coaxed the noble -creatures. They supplied them with food, and then closed up the -entrance of the grotto with large stones, leaving only a narrow passage -of air. - -"Now let us begone," said Curumilla. - -They threw their guns upon their shoulders, and set forward with a -resolute step. After three quarters of an hour of this painful ascent -the Ulmen stopped. - -"This is the place," he said. - -The three men had attained the summit of an elevated peak, from the top -of which an immense and splendid panorama lay unrolled before their -eyes. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -BEFORE THE FIGHT. - - -As soon as they had set foot on the platform, Don Tadeo and the count -sank exhausted. Curumilla left them undisturbed for a few minutes to -recover their breath, then requested them to look around them. Beneath -their feet was the Canyon del Rio Seco, with its imposing granite -masses and its thick clumps of verdure. - -"Oh!" Louis exclaimed, enthusiastically, "how splendid this is!" - -Don Tadeo, accustomed from his infancy to such sublime panoramas, -only cast an absent glance over the magnificent prospect. His mind -was intent upon his daughter, the beloved child whom he hoped soon to -deliver. - -"Are we going to remain here long?" he asked. - -"For a few minutes," Curumilla replied. - -"What is the name of this place?" the count said. - -"It is the peak which the palefaces call the Corcovado." said the Ulmen. - -"The one upon which you appointed to light the signal fire?" - -"Yes; let us hasten to prepare it." - -The three men constructed an immense pile of wood. - -"Now," said Curumilla, "rest, and do not stir till my return." - -And without entering into further detail, Curumilla sprang down the -steep declivity of the mountain, and disappeared among the trees. The -two friends sat down near the pile, and waited pensively the return -of the Ulmen. The troop commanded by Joan approached the defile, -simulating all the movements of Indians, and were soon within gunshot -of the Canyon. Antinahuel had perceived them, and had for some time -been watching their movements. Notwithstanding all his cunning, the -Toqui did not for an instant suspect a stratagem. The presence of Joan -at the head of the troop, whom at the first glance he had recognised, -completed his conviction. - -Joan plunged into the defile without evincing the least hesitation; but -scarcely had he proceeded a dozen yards when an Indian sprang out of a -thicket, and stood in front of him. This Indian was Antinahuel himself. - -"My son comes late," said the Toqui, casting a suspicious glance at him. - -"My father will pardon me," Joan replied, respectfully; "I had notice -only last night." - -"Good," continued the chief; "I know my son is prudent. How many lances -does he bring with him?" - -"A thousand." - -As may be perceived, Joan bravely doubled the number of his soldiers. - -"Oh! oh!" said the Toqui, joyfully, "a man may be pardoned for coming -late when he brings so numerous a troop with him." - -"My father knows I am devoted," the Indian replied. - -"I know you are; my son is a brave warrior. Has he seen the Huincas?" - -"I have seen them." - -"Are they far distant?" - -"No; they are coming--in less than three-quarters of an hour they will -be here." - -"We have not an instant to lose. My son will place his warriors in -ambush." - -"Good! It shall be done; my father may leave it to me." - -At this moment the troop of false Indians appeared at the entrance of -the defile, into which they boldly entered, after the example of their -leader. - -"My son will use all possible diligence," said Antinahuel, and hastened -back to his post. - -Joan and his men went forward at full gallop; they were watched by from -a thousand to fifteen hundred invisible spies, who, at the smallest -suspicion, created by a doubtful gesture even, would have massacred -them without mercy. - -Joan, after having made his men dismount and conceal their horses in -the rear, distributed them with a calmness and collectedness that must -have banished the suspicions of the chief. Ten minutes later the defile -appeared as solitary as before. Joan had scarcely gone six paces into -the thicket when a hand was laid upon his shoulder. He turned sharply -round; Curumilla was before him. - -"Good!" the latter murmured, in a voice low as a breath; "let my son -follow me with his men." - -Joan nodded assent, and with extreme precaution and in perfect silence -three hundred soldiers began to escalade the rocks in imitation of the -Ulmen. The three hundred men led by Joan, who had escaladed the wall -of the defile on the opposite side of the canyon, were divided into -two troops. The first had taken up a position above Black Stag, and -the second, a hundred strong, were massed as a rear post. As soon as -Curumilla had prepared the manoeuvre we have just described, he quitted -Joan and rejoined his companions. - -"At last!" they cried, both in a breath. - -"I began to be afraid something had happened to you, chief," said the -count. - -Upon which Curumilla only smiled. "Everything is ready," he said; "and -when the palefaces please, they can penetrate into the defile." - -"Do you think your plan will succeed?" Don Tadeo asked anxiously. - -"I hope it will," the Indian replied. - -"What are we to do now?" - -"Light the fire, and depart." - -"How depart? Our friends?" - -"They stand in no need of us; as soon as the fire is alight we will set -out in search of the young maiden." - -"God grant that we may save her!" - -Curumilla, after lighting a bit of tinder which he had in a horn box, -collected with his feet a heap of dried leaves, placed the tinder -beneath them, and began to blow with all his might. The fire, acted -upon by the breeze, which at that height blew strongly, was rapidly -communicated, and shortly a thick column of flame mounted roaring to -the sky. - -"Good!" said Curumilla to his companions; "they see the signal." - -"Let us begone, then, without delay," cried the count, impatiently. - -"Come on, then," said Don Tadeo. - -The three men plunged into the immense virgin forest which covered the -summit of the mountain, leaving behind them that sinister beacon--a -signal for murder and destruction. On the plain, Don Gregorio, fearing -to advance before he knew what he had positively to trust to, had given -orders to his troops to halt. He did not conceal from himself the -dangers of his position, so that if he fell in the battle he was about -to fight, his honour would be safe and his memory without reproach. - -"General," he said, addressing Cornejo, who as well as the senator was -close to him, "you are accustomed to war, are an intrepid soldier, and -I will not conceal from you that we are in a position of peril. - -"Oh! oh!" said the general; "explain, Don Gregorio, explain!" - -"The Indians are in ambush in great numbers, to dispute the passage of -the defile with us." - -"The rascals! Only see now! Why, they will knock us all on the head," -the general, still calm, said. - -"Oh! it is a horrible trap!" the senator cried. - -"Caspita! a trap, I believe it is, indeed!" the general continued. "But -you will be able to give us your opinion presently; if, as is not very -probable, you come safely through, my friend." - -"But I will not go and run my head into that frightful fox's hole!" -cried Don Ramon, beside himself. - -"Bah! you will fight as an amateur, which will be very handsome on your -part." - -"Sir," said Don Gregorio, coldly, "so much the worse for you; if you -had remained quietly at Santiago, you would not be in this position." - -"That is true, my friend," the general followed up, with a hearty laugh. - -"How did it happen that you, who are as great a coward as a hare, -troubled yourself with military politics?" - -The senator made no reply to this cruel apostrophe. - -"Whatever may happen, can I reckon upon you, general?" Don Gregorio -asked. - -"I can only promise you one thing," the old soldier answered, nobly; -"that I will not shrink, and if it should come to that, will sell -my life dearly. As to this cowardly fellow, I undertake to make him -perform prodigies of valour." - -At this threat the unhappy senator felt a cold sweat inundate his whole -body. A long column of flame burst from the top of the mountain. - -Don Gregorio cried, "Caballeros! Forward! and God protect Chili!" - -"Forward!" the general repeated, unsheathing his sword. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -THE PASSAGE OF THE DEFILE. - - -While these things were going on in the defile, a few words exchanged -between Antinahuel and the Linda filled the Toqui with uneasiness, by -making him vaguely suspicious of some treachery. - -"What is the matter?" Dona Maria asked. - -"Nothing very extraordinary," he replied, carelessly; "some -reinforcements have arrived rather late, upon which I did not reckon." - -"Good Heavens!" said Dona Maria, "I have been perhaps deceived by -an extraordinary resemblance; but, if the man I mean were not forty -leagues off, I should declare it is he who commands that troop." - -"Let my sister explain herself," said Antinahuel. - -"Tell me, in the first place, chief," the Linda continued, "the name of -the warrior to whom you spoke?" - -"His name is Joan." - -"That is impossible! Joan is at this moment more than forty leagues -from this place, detained by his love for a white woman," the Linda -cried. - -"My sister must be mistaken, because I have just been conversing with -him." - -"Then he is a traitor!" she said passionately. - -The chief's brow became thoughtful. - -"This has an awkward appearance," he said. "Can I have been betrayed?" -he added in a deep tone. - -"What are you going to do?" the Linda asked, stopping him. - -"To demand of Joan an account of his ambiguous conduct." - -"It is too late," the Linda continued, pointing with her finger to the -Chilians. - -"Oh!" Antinahuel cried, with rage, "woe be to him if he prove a -traitor." - -"It is no longer time for recrimination and threats; you must fight." - -"Yes," he replied, fervently; "we will fight now. After the victory it -will be time enough to chastise traitors." - -The plan of the Araucanos was of the most simple kind: to allow the -Spaniards to enter the defile, then to attack them at once in front and -in rear, whilst the warriors in ambush on the flanks poured down upon -them enormous stones and fragments of rock. A party of the Indians had -bravely thrown themselves both in front and rear of the Spaniards to -bar their passage. Antinahuel sprang up, and encouraging his warriors -with voice and gesture, he rolled down an immense stone amongst his -enemies. All at once a shower of bullets came pattering down upon his -troops. The false Indians, led by Joan, showed themselves, and charged -him resolutely to the cry of "Chili! Chili!" - -"We are betrayed!" Antinahuel shouted, "Kill, kill!" - -Some horsemen charged in troops at speed, whilst others galloped at -random among the terrified infantry. - -The Araucanos did not yield an inch--the Chilians did not advance a -step. The melee undulated like the waves of the sea in a tempest; the -earth was red with blood. - -The combat had assumed heroic proportions. - -At length, by a desperate effort Antinahuel succeeded in breaking -through the close ranks of the enemies who enveloped him, and rushed -into the defile, followed by his warriors, and waving his heavy hatchet -over his head. Black Stag contrived to effect the same movement; but -Joan's Chilian horse advanced from behind the rising ground which had -concealed them, with loud cries, and came on sabring all before them. - -The Linda followed closely the steps of Antinahuel, her eyes flashing, -her lips compressed. - -"Forward!--forward!" Don Gregorio cried in a voice of thunder. - -"Chili! Chili!" the general repeated, cutting down a man at every blow. - -More dead than alive, Don Ramon fought like a demon; he waved his -sword, rode down all in his way with the weight of his horse, and -uttered inarticulate cries with the gestures of one possessed. - -In the meantime, Don Bustamente snatched a sword from one of the -soldiers, made his horse plunge violently, and dashed forward, crying -with a loud voice-- - -"To the rescue!--to the rescue!" - -To this appeal the Araucanos replied by shouts of joy, and flew towards -him. - -"Ay, ay," a scoffing voice cried; "but you are not free yet, Don -Pancho." - -General Bustamente turned sharply round, and found himself face to face -with General Cornejo, who had leaped his horse over a heap of dead -bodies. The two men, after exchanging a look of hatred, rushed against -each other with raised swords. The shock was terrible; the two horses -fell with it. Don Pancho received a slight wound in the head; the arm -of General Cornejo was cut through by the weapon of his adversary. -With a bound Don Pancho was again on his feet; General Cornejo would -willingly have been so, likewise, but suddenly a knee pressed heavily -upon his chest, and obliged him to sink upon the ground. - -"Pancho! Pancho!" Dona Maria cried, with the laugh of a demon, for it -was she, "see how I kill your enemies!" - -Don Pancho had not even heard the exclamation of the courtesan, so -fully was he engaged in defending himself. At the sight of the odious -murder committed by the Linda, Don Ramon shouted-- - -"Viper! I will not kill you, because you are a woman; but I will mar -your future means of doing evil." - -The Linda sank beneath his blow with a shriek of pain; he had slashed -her down the cheek from top to bottom! Her hyena-like cry was so -frightful that it even brought to a pause the combatants engaged around -her. Bustamente heard her, and with one bound of his horse was by the -side of his ancient mistress, whom the wound on her face rendered -hideous. He stooped slightly down, and seizing her by her long hair, -threw her across the neck of his horse; then plunging his spurs into -the animals flanks, he dashed, headforemost, into the thickest of the -_melee_. In spite of the efforts of the Chilians to recapture the -fugitive, he succeeded in escaping. - -At a signal from Antinahuel, the Indians threw themselves on each side -of the defile, and scaled the rocks with incredible velocity under a -shower of bullets. - -The combat was over. The Araucanos had disappeared. The Chilians -counted their losses, and found them great; seventy men had been -killed, and a hundred and forty-three were wounded. Several officers, -among whom was General Cornejo, had fallen. It was in vain they -searched for Joan. The intrepid Indian had become invisible. - -Don Gregorio was in despair at the escape of General Bustamente. It was -now useless for Don Gregorio to return to Santiago; on the contrary, it -was urgent that he should return to Valdivia, in order to secure the -tranquillity of that province which would, no doubt, be disturbed by -the news of the generals escape; but, on the other hand, it was quite -as important that the authorities of the capital should be placed upon -their guard. Don Gregorio was in great trouble about choosing a person -whom he could trust with this commission, when the senator came to his -relief. The worthy Don Ramon had finished by taking courage in reality; -he actually, and in good faith, believed himself the most valiant man -in Chili, and, unconsciously, assumed the most ridiculously extravagant -airs. Above all, he burned with the desire of returning to Santiago. - -Don Gregorio asked the senator to be the bearer of the double news of -the battle gained over the Indians--a battle in which he, Don Ramon, -had taken so large a share of the glory--and the unexpected escape of -General Bustamente. - -Don Ramon accepted with a proud smile of satisfaction a mission in -every way so honourable to him. As soon as the despatches, which Don -Gregorio wrote at once, were ready, he mounted his horse, and, escorted -by fifty lancers, set out for Santiago. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -THE JOURNEY. - - -After his interview with Don Tadeo, Valentine had scarcely taken time -to bid the young count farewell, but had instantly departed, followed -by Trangoil-Lanec and his inseparable Newfoundland dog. - -The morning on which the sanguinary battle we have described was fought -in the Canyon del Rio Seco, Valentine and Trangoil-Lanec were marching -side by side, followed closely by Caesar. The two men were talking -while they cracked a biscuit, which they washed down from time to time -with a little smilax water, contained in a gourd, which hung at the -girdle of Trangoil-Lanec. - -"Why chief," said Valentine, laughing, "you drive me to despair with -your indifference." - -"What does my brother mean?" the astonished Indian said. - -"Caramba! We are traversing the most ravishing landscape in the world, -and you pay no more attention to all these beauties than to the granite -masses yonder in the horizon." - -"My brother is young." Trangoil-Lanec observed: "he is an enthusiast." - -"I do not know whether I am an enthusiast or not," replied the young -man, warmly; "I only know this--that nature is magnificent." - -"Yes," said the chief, solemnly, "Pillian is great; it is he who made -all things." - -"God, you mean, chief; but that is all one; our thought is the same, -and we won't quarrel about a name." - -"In my brother's island," the Indian asked curiously, "are there no -mountains and trees?" - -"I have already told you, chief, more than once that my country is not -an island, but a land as large as this; there is no want of trees, -thank God! There are even a great many, and as to mountains, we have -some lofty ones, Montmartre among the rest." - -"Hum," said the Indian, not understanding. - -"Yes!" Valentine resumed, "we have mountains, but compared to these -they are but little hills." - -"My land is the most beautiful in the world," the Indian replied -proudly. "Why do the palefaces wish to dispossess us of it." - -"There is a great deal of truth in what you say, chief." - -"Good!" said the chief; "all men cannot be born in my country." - -"That is true, and that is why I was born somewhere else." - -Caesar at this moment growled surlily. - -"What is the matter, old fellow?" said Valentine. - -Trangoil-Lanec remarked quietly-- - -"The dog has scented an Aucas." - -So it was, for scarcely had he spoken, when an Indian horseman appeared -at the turning of the road. He advanced at full gallop towards the two -men, whom he saluted, and went on his way. - -Shortly afterwards the travellers arrived, almost without being aware -of it, at the entrance of the village. - -"So now, I suppose, we are at San Miguel?" remarked Valentine. - -"Yes," the other replied. - -"And is it your opinion that Dona Rosario is no longer here?" - -"No," said the Indian, shaking his head. "Let my brother look around -him." - -"Well," said the young man, turning his eyes in all directions, "I see -nothing." - -"If the prisoner were here, my brother would see warriors and horses; -the village would be alive." - -"Corbleu!" thought Valentine; "these savages are wonderful men; they -see everything, they divine everything. Chief," he added, "you are -wise; tell me, I beg of you, who taught you all these things." - -The Indian stopped; with a majestic gesture he indicated the horizon to -the young man, and said, in a voice the solemn accent of which made him -start-- - -"Brother, it was the desert. - -"Yes," the Frenchman replied, convinced by these few words; "for it is -there alone that man sees God face to face." - -They now entered the village, and, as Trangoil-Lanec had said, it -seemed deserted. They saw a few sick persons, who, reclining upon -sheepskins, were complaining lamemtably. - -"Caramba!" said Valentine, much disappointed, "you have guessed so -truly, Chief, that there are even no dogs to bite our heels." - -All at once Caesar sprang forward barking, and, stopping in front of -an isolated hut, began to munch the ground with his claws, uttering -furious cries. - -The two men ran hastily towards the hut, and Caesar continued his -howlings. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -INFORMATION. - - -When Valentine and Trangoil-Lanec gained the front of the hut, the door -was opened, and a woman presented herself. - -This woman had in her countenance a marked expression of mildness, -mixed with a melancholy cast; she appeared to be suffering pain. Her -dress, entirely composed of blue cloth, consisted of a tunic which -fell to her feet, but was very narrow, which makes the women of that -country take short steps; a short mantle, called an ichcha, covered her -shoulders and was crossed upon her breast, where it was drawn together -by means of a silver buckle. - -As soon as this woman opened the door, Caesar rushed so violently into -the interior of the hut that he almost knocked her down in his passage. -She staggered, and was obliged to hold herself up by the wall. - -"I know what troubles the animal thus," the woman said mildly; "my -brothers are travellers; let them enter this poor hut, which belongs to -them; their slave will serve them." - -So saying, the mistress of the hut stood on one side to allow the -strangers to enter. They found Caesar crouching in the middle of the -cuarto, with his nose close to the ground, sniffing, snatching, and -growling. - -"Good God!" Valentine muttered anxiously, "what has been done here?" - -Without saying a word Trangoil-Lanec placed himself close to the dog; -stretched along upon the ground, with his eyes intently fixed upon it, -he examined it as closely as if he thought his glance could penetrate -it. At the end of a minute he arose, and seated himself by Valentine, -who seeing his companion had got a fit of Indian silence, found it -necessary to speak first. - -"Well, chief," he asked, "what is there fresh?" - -"Nothing," the Ulmen replied; "these traces are at least four days old." - -"What traces are you speaking of, chief?" - -"Traces of blood." - -"Of blood!" the young man cried. "Can Dona Rosario have been -assassinated?" - -"No," the chief replied, "if this blood belonged to her, she has only -been wounded; her wound has been dressed." - -"Dressed! come, that is too strong, chief!" - -"My brother is quick--he does not reflect. Let him look here." - -And he opened his right hand, and displayed an object enclosed in it. - -"Caramba!" Valentine replied, quite out of humour, "an old dried leaf! -What on earth can that teach?" - -"Everything," said the Indian. - -"Pardieu? If you can prove that, chief, I shall consider you the -greatest machi in all Araucania." - -"It is very simple. This leaf is the oregano leaf; the oregano so -valuable for stopping the effusion of blood." - -"Here are traces of blood; a person has been wounded; and on the same -spot I find an oregano leaf: that leaf did not come there of itself, -consequently that person's wounds have been dressed." - -The woman now entered, bearing two ox horns full of harina tostada; -they ate their horn of meal heartily, and drank more than one cup of -chicha each. As soon as they had ended this light repast, the Indian -presented the mate to them, which they tossed off with great pleasure, -and then they lit their cigars. - -"My sister is kind," Trangoil-Lanec said; "will she talk a minute with -us!" - -"I will do as my brothers please." - -Valentine took two piastres from his pocket, and presented them to the -woman, saying, "Will my sister permit me to offer her this trifle to -make earrings?" - -"I thank my brother," said the poor woman; "my brother is a muruche; -perhaps he is the relation of the young paleface girl who was here?" - -"I am not her relation," he said, "I am her friend. I confess that -if my sister can give me any intelligence of her, she will render me -happy." - -"Some days ago," said the woman, "a great woman of the palefaces -arrived here towards evening, followed by half a score of mosotones; I -am not well, and that is why, for a month past, I have remained in the -village. This woman asked me to allow her to pass the night in my hut. -Towards the middle of the night there was a great noise of horses in -the village, and several horsemen arrived, bringing with them a young -palefaced maiden of a mild and sad countenance; she was a prisoner to -the other, as I afterwards learnt. I do not know how the young girl -managed it, but she succeeded in escaping. This woman and the Toqui -went in search of the young girl, whom they soon brought back across a -horse, with her head cut. The poor child had fainted; her blood flowed -in abundance; she was in a pitiable state. I do not know what passed, -but the woman suddenly changed her manner of acting towards the young -girl; she dressed her wound, and took the most affectionate care at -her. After that, Antinahuel and the woman departed, leaving the young -girl in my hut, with ten mosotones to guard her. One of these mosotones -told me that the girl belonged to the Toqui, who intended to make her -his wife." - -"Yesterday the paleface squaw was much better, and the mosotones set -off with her, about three o'clock." - -"And the young girl," Trangoil-Lanec asked, "did she say nothing to my -sister before she departed?" - -"Nothing," the woman answered; "the poor child wept; she was unwilling -to go, but they made her get on horseback by threatening to tie her on." - -"Which way did they go?" said Trangoil-Lanec. - -"The mosotones talked among themselves of the tribe of the Red Vulture." - -"Thanks to my sister," the Ulmen replied; "she may retire, the men are -going to hold a council." - -The woman arose and left the cuarto. - -"Now," the chief asked, "what is my brother's intention?" - -"Pardieu! we must follow the track of the ravishers." - -"Good! that is also my advice; only, two men are not enough to -accomplish such a project." - -"True; but what else are we to do?" - -"Not to set out till this evening." - -"Why so?" - -"Because Curumilla will have rejoined us by that time." - -Valentine, knowing that he had several hours to pass in this place, -resolved to take advantage of the opportunity; he stretched himself -upon the ground, placed a stone under his head, closed his eyes, -and fell asleep. Trangoil-Lanec did not sleep, but, with a piece of -cord which he picked up in a corner of the hut, he measured all the -footprints left upon the ground of the hut. - -After carefully tying the end of the cord to his belt, he, in his turn, -lay down upon the ground close to Valentine. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -THE AMBUSCADE - - -Curumilla and his two companions descended the steep sides of the -Corcovado; if the ascent had been difficult, the descent was not -less so. Everywhere escaped thousands of hideous creatures; and -not unfrequently they caught glimpses of snakes, unfolding their -threatening rings under the dead leaves which on all sides covered the -ground. Sometimes they were obliged to crawl on their knees, at others -to jump from branch to branch. - -This painful and fatiguing march lasted nearly three hours. At the end -of that time they found themselves again at the entrance of the grotto -where they had left their horses. The two white men were literally -knocked up, particularly the count. As for Curumilla, he was as fresh -and active as if he had not gone a step. Physical fatigue seems to have -no hold on the iron organisation of the Indians. - -"My brothers require test," he said; "we will remain here for them to -recover their strength." - -A half hour passed away without a word being exchanged. Curumilla had -disappeared for a time. - -When he returned he drew from his belt a small box which he presented -to the count, saying, "Take this." - -"Oh!" cried Don Tadeo, joyfully, "coca!" - -"Yes," said the Indian, "my father can take some." - -"What is all that to do?" said the count. - -"My friend," said Don Tadeo, "America is the promised land; its -privileged soil produces everything: as we have the herb of Paraguay, -which is so good a substitute for tea, we have coca, which, I assure -you, advantageously supplies the place of the betel, and has the -faculty of restoring the strength and reviving the courage." - -"The deuce!" said the young man. "You are too serious, Don Tadeo, -to leave me for an instant to suppose you wish to impose upon my -credulity; give me quickly, I beg, some of this precious drug." - -Don Tadeo held out to the count the coca he had prepared. The latter -put it into his mouth without hesitation. Curumilla, after having -carefully reclosed the box and returned it to his belt, saddled the -horses. All at once a sharp firing was heard. - -"What is all that?" Louis cried, springing up. - -"The fight beginning," Curumilla replied coolly. - -At that moment the cries became redoubled. - -"Come!" said Don Tadeo; "one hour's delay cannot cause any great harm -to my daughter." - -"To horse, then," said the chief. - -As they drew nearer, the noise of the fierce fight that was raging in -the defile became more distinct; they recognised perfectly the war cry -of the Chilians mixed with the howlings of the Araucanos; now and then -bullets were flattened against the trees, or whizzed around them. - -"Halt!" cried the Ulmen suddenly. - -The horsemen checked their horses, which were bathed in sweat. -Curumilla had conducted his friends to a place which entirely commanded -the outlet of the defile on the side of Santiago. It was a species of -natural fortress, composed of blocks of granite, strangely heaped upon -one another by some convulsion of nature, perhaps an earthquake. These -rocks, at a distance, bore a striking resemblance to a tower; and their -total height was about thirty feet. In a word, it was a real fortress, -from which a siege might be sustained. - -"What a fine position," Don Tadeo observed. - -They dismounted: Curumilla relieved the horses of their equipments, and -let them loose in the woods. A slight movement was heard from among the -leaves, the boughs of the underwood parted, and a man appeared. The -Ulmen cocked his gun. The man who had so unexpectedly arrived had a -gun thrown on his back, and he had in his hand a sword, crimson to the -hilt. He ran on, looking around him on all sides, not like a man who -is flying, but, on the contrary, as if seeking for somebody. Curumilla -uttered an exclamation of surprise, quitted his hiding place, and -advanced towards the newcomer. - -"I was seeking my father," he said earnestly. - -"Good!" Curumilla replied; "here I am." - -"Let my son follow me," said Curumilla, "we cannot stay here." - -The two Indians climbed the rocks, at the summit of which Don Tadeo and -the young count had already arrived. - -The two whites were surprised at the presence of the newcomer, who -was no other than Joan; but the moment was not propitious for asking -explanations; the four men hastened to erect a parapet. This labour -completed, they rested for a while. - -"When I saw," he said, "that the prisoner had succeeded in escaping, in -spite of the valiant efforts of the men who escorted him. I thought it -would be best you should be acquainted with this news, and I plunged -into the forest, and came in search of you." - -"Oh!" said Don Tadeo, "if that man is free, all is lost." - -The four men placed themselves, gun in hand, on the edge of the -platform. The number of the fugitives increased every instant. The -whole plain, just before so calm and solitary, presented one of the -most animated spectacles. From time to time men were to be seen -falling, many of them never to rise again; others, more fortunate, -who were only wounded, made incredible efforts to rise. A squadron -of Chilian horsemen came out at a gallop, driving before them the -Araucanos, who still resisted. In advance of this troop a man mounted -on a black horse, across the neck of which a fainting woman was -reclining, was riding with the rapidity of an arrow. He gained ground -constantly upon the soldiers. - -"It is he," cried the Don, "it is the general." - -At the same time the count and Curumilla fired. The horse stopped -short, reared perfectly upright, fought the air with its forefeet, -appeared to stagger for an instant, and then fell like lead, dragging -its rider down with it. - -The Indians, struck with terror at this unexpected attack, redoubled -their speed, and fled across the plain. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -THE FORTRESS. - - -"Quick, quick!" the count cried, springing up, "let us secure the -general." - -"One instant!" said Curumilla, phlegmatically; "the odds are not equal, -let my brother look." - -At the moment a crowd of Indians debouched from the defile. But these -wore a good countenance. Marching in close older, they withdrew step by -step, not like cowards who fled, but like warriors proudly abandoning -a field of battle which they contested no longer, but retreated from -in good order. As a rearguard a platoon of a hundred men sustained -this brave retreat. All at once a fusillade broke out with a sinister -hissing, and some Chilian horsemen appeared, charging at speed. - -The Indians, without giving way an inch, received them on the points -of their long lances. Most of the fugitives scattered over the plain -had rallied to their companions and faced the enemy. There was during -a few minutes a hand-to-hand fight, in which our adventurers wished -to take a part. Four shots were suddenly fired from the temporary -fortress, the summit of which was covered with a wreath of smoke. The -two Indian chiefs rolled upon the ground. The Araucanos uttered a loud -cry of terror and rage, and rushed forward to prevent the carrying off -of their fallen chiefs. But with the quickness of lightning Antinahuel -and Black Stag abandoned their horses and sprang up, brandishing their -weapons, and shouting their war cry. - -The Chilians, whose intention was only to drive back their enemies -out of the defile, retired in good older, and soon disappeared. The -Araucanos continued their retreat. - -General Bustamente had disappeared some time before. - -"We can continue our route," said Don Tadeo rising. "You see the plain -is clear; the Araucanos and the Chilians have retired each their own -way. - -"There are too many eyes concealed there," said Curumilla, pointing to -the forest. - -"You are mistaken, chief," Don Tadeo objected; "the Araucanos have been -beaten. Why should they persist in remaining here, where they have no -longer anything to do?" - -"My father is not acquainted with the warriors of my nation," Curumilla -replied; "they never leave enemies behind them, when they have any hope -of destroying them." - -"Which means?" Don Tadeo interrupted. - -"That Antinahuel has been wounded, and will not depart without -vengeance." - -Don Tadeo was struck with the just reasoning of the Indian. - -"For all that, we cannot remain here," said the young man. "It is -incontestable that in a few days we shall fall into the hands of these -demons." - -"Yes," said Curumilla. - -"Well, I confess," the count continued, "that this prospect is not -flattering. But I think there exists no position so bad that men cannot -be extricated from." - -"Does my brother know any means?" the Ulmen asked. - -"In two hours night will be here. Then, when the Indians have fallen -asleep, we will depart silently." - -"Indians do not sleep," said Curumilla, coolly. - -"The devil!" the young man exclaimed; "if it must be so, we will pass -over their dead bodies." - -"I allow," said Don Tadeo, "that this plan does not appear to me -absolutely hopeless, I think, towards the middle of the night we might -try to put it into execution." - -"Good!" replied Curumilla, "I will act as my brothers please." - -Since the departure of Valentine in the morning, the four men had not -had time to eat, and hunger began to assert its claims, therefore they -took advantage of the repose the enemy allowed them to satisfy it. The -repast consisted of nothing but harina tostada soaked in water--rather -poor food, but which want of better made our adventurers think -excellent. - -They were abundantly furnished with provisions--in fact, by economizing -them, they had enough for a fortnight; but all the water they possessed -did not exceed six leather bottles full, therefore it was thirst which -they had most to dread. - -The sun declined rapidly towards the horizon; the sky, by degrees, -assumed the darkest line; the tops of the distant mountains became lost -in thick clouds of mist--in short, everything announced that night -would shortly cover the earth. - -A troop composed of fifty Chilian lancers issued from the defile; on -gaining the plain they diverged slightly to the left, and took the -route that led to Santiago. - -"They are palefaces," said Curumilla, coolly. - -These horsemen formed the escort which Don Gregorio had assigned to Don -Ramon, to accompany him to Santiago. All at once a horrible war cry, -repeated by the echoes of the Quebradas, resounded close to them, and a -cloud of Araucanos assailed them on all sides at once. - -The Spaniards, taken by surprise, and terrified by the suddenness -of the attack, offered but a feeble resistance. The Indians pursued -them inveterately, and soon all were killed or taken. Then, as if by -enchantment. Indians and Chilians all disappeared, and the plain once -more became calm and solitary. - -"Well," said Curumilla to Don Tadeo, "what does my father think now. -Have the Indians gone?" - -"You are right, chief, I cannot but allow. Alas!" he added, "who will -save my daughter?" - -"I will, please Heaven!" cried the count. "Listen to me. We have -committed the incredible folly of thrusting ourselves into this -rathole; we must get out, cost what it may; if Valentine were here his -inventive genius would find us means, I am convinced. I will bring him -back with me." - -"Yes," said Curumilla, "my paleface brothers are right; our friend is -indispensable to us: a man shall go, but that man shall he Joan." - -With his knife Curumilla cut off a piece of his poncho, about four -fingers in width, and gave it to Joan, saying--"My son will give this -to Trangoil-Lanec, that he may know from whom he comes." - -"Good!" said Joan; "where shall I find the chief?" - -"In the tolderia of San Miguel." - -The three men shook hands with him warmly. The Indian bowed, and began -to descend. By the last glimpses of daylight they saw him creep along -to the first trees of the mountain of Corcovado; when there, he turned -round, waved his hand to them, and disappeared in the high grass. A -gunshot, then, almost immediately followed by a second, resounded in -the direction taken by their emissary. - -"He is dead!" the count cried in despair. - -"Perhaps he is!" replied Curumilla, after some hesitation; "but my -brother may now perceive that we are really surrounded." - -"That is true!" Don Tadeo murmured. And he let his head sink down into -his hands. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -PROPOSALS. - - -Don Tadeo and his companions set to work to fortify themselves. They -raised a sort of wall, by piling stones upon one another to the height -of eight feet; and as in that country the dews are very heavy, by means -of Curumilla's lance, and that of Joan, which he had left behind him, -they established something like a tent, by stretching upon them two -ponchos. - -These labours occupied the greater part of the night. Towards three -o'clock in the morning Curumilla approached his two companions, who -were struggling in vain against the sleep and fatigue that oppressed -them. - -"My brothers can sleep for a few hours," he said. - -The two men threw themselves down on the horsecloths and very soon were -fast asleep. Curumilla now glided down the declivity of the rocks, and -arrived at the base of the fortress. - -The chief took off his poncho, stretched himself on the ground, and -covered himself with it. This precaution being taken, he took his -mechero from his belt, and struck the flint without fearing, thanks to -the means of concealment he had adopted, that the sparks should be seen -in the darkness. As soon as he had procured a light, he collected some -dry leaves at the foot of a bush, blew patiently to kindle the fire -till the smoke had assumed a certain consistency, then crept away as he -had come, and regained the summit of the rocks. His companions still -slept. - -"Hugh!" he said to himself, with satisfaction, "we need not now be -afraid that the marksmen will hide in the bushes beneath us." - -Shortly a red light gleamed through the darkness, which increased by -degrees. The flames gained so rapidly that the summit of the mountain -appeared almost immediately to be on fire. - -The object Curumilla had proposed to himself was attained; places which -an hour before had offered excellent shelter had become completely -exposed. Don Tadeo and the count, awakened by the cries of the Indians, -naturally thought an attack was being made, and hastily joined the -Ulmen. - -"Eh!" said Don Tadeo, "who lighted this bonfire?" - -"I!" Curumilla replied; "see how the half-roasted bandits are scuttling -away!" - -His two companions took part in his glee. - -From want of aliment, the fire was extinguished as rapidly as it had -been lighted, and the adventurers turned their eyes towards the plain. -They uttered a simultaneous cry of surprise and alarm. By the first -rays of the rising sun, and the dying flames of the conflagration, they -perceived an Indian camp surrounded by a wide ditch. - -"Hum!" said the count, "I do not see how we shall extricate ourselves." - -"Look there!" Don Tadeo exclaimed, "it seems as if they wanted to -demand a parley. Let us hear what they have to say." - -Several men had left the camp, and these men were unarmed. One of them, -with his right hand, waved over his head one of those starred flags -which serve the Araucanos as standards. - -"Let one of you come down," a voice shouted, which Don Tadeo recognised -as that of General Bustamente, "in order that we may lay before you our -conditions." - -"If one of us descends," said the count, "will he be at liberty to -rejoin his companions if your proposals are not accepted?" - -"Yes," the general replied, "on the honour of a soldier." - -"I will come," the young man cried. - -He then laid down his arms, and with the activity of a chamois, leaped -from rock to rock and at the end of five minutes found himself face to -face with the leaders of the enemy. They were four: Antinahuel, Black -Stag, Bustamente and another. The general and Antinahuel had wounds in -the head and the breast, while Black Stag wore his arm in a sling. - -"Caballero," said Don Pancho, with a half smile, "the sun is very hot -here; are you willing to follow us to the camp? You have nothing to -fear." - -"Senor," the young man replied, haughtily, "I fear nothing--my actions -might satisfy you of that. I will follow." - -"If you are afraid, senor," said the general, "you can return." - -"General," retorted the young man, haughtily. "I have your word of -honour, besides which there is one thing you are ignorant of." - -"What is that, senor?" - -"That I am a Frenchman, general." - -"Your hand, senor," he said; "you are a brave young man, and it will -not be my fault, I swear to you, if you do not go back satisfied." - -The five personages now proceeded silently for several minutes through -the camp, till they came to a tent much larger than the rest, where -a number of long lances tied together, with scarlet pennons at their -points, stuck in the ground, denoted that it was the hut of a chief. -Buffalo skulls, lying here and there, served as seats. In one corner, -upon a heap of dry leaves, reclined a woman, with her head enveloped -in bandages. This was the Linda. She appeared to be sleeping. On the -entrance of the party, however, a flash of her wild-looking eye gleamed -through the darkness of the hut. - -Everyone seated himself, as well as he could, upon a skull. When all -were placed, the general said, in a short, clear manner-- - -"Now, then, senor, let us know upon what conditions you will agree to -surrender?" - -"Your pardon, senor," the young man answered; "we do not agree to -surrender on any conditions whatever. It is you who have proposals to -make." - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -THE MESSENGER. - - -Joan remained a short time, crouched in the high grass, reflecting. -Presently he began to run. Satisfied that he was alone, he unrolled -his lasso, pulled out the running noose, and fastened it to the end of -a bush. Upon this bush he tied his hat so that it could not fall; he -then retreated with great caution, unrolling his lasso as he went. When -he had gained the extremity of the lasso, he drew it gently, by little -pulls, towards him, giving a slight oscillating movement to the bush. - -This movement was perceived by the sentinels; they sprang towards the -bush, saw the hat, and fired. In the meantime, Joan scampered away, -with the swiftness of a guanaco. - -He arrived within sight of San Miguel at three o'clock in the morning. -When he entered the tolderia, shadow and silence prevailed on all -sides; the inhabitants were asleep, a few dogs were baying the moon; he -did not know how to find the men he was in search of, when the door of -a hut opened, and two men, followed by an enormous Newfoundland dog, -appeared upon the road. - -Joan remembered having seen at Valdivia, with the Frenchmen, a dog like -the one that had given him so formidable a welcome; and, being a man of -prompt resolution, he formed his without hesitation, and cried with a -loud voice-- - -"Are you the Muruche, the friend of Curumilla?" - -"Curumilla!" Trangoil-Lanec exclaimed, as he drew nearer; "if he sends -you to us, you must have something to report to us?" - -"Are you the persons I seek?" Joan asked. - -"Yes, but in the hut, and by the light of a candle, we shall recognise -each other better than here." - -The three men entered the hut, followed by the dog. Without losing -time, Trangoil-Lanec took out his mechero, struck a light, and lit a -candle. - -"Good!" he said, "it is he whom Curumilla once sent to Valdivia." - -"Yes," Joan replied. - -Joan pressed that loyal hand, Trangoil-Lanec turned towards Joan, -saying-- - -"I expected last night, at sunset, the arrival of Curumilla and two -friends." - -Joan bowed respectfully, and drew from his belt the piece of stuff -which Curumilla had sent. - -"A piece of Curumilla's poncho!" Trangoil-Lanec exclaimed violently. -"Of what terrible news are you the bearer?" - -"The news I bring is bad; nevertheless, at the time I left them, -Curumilla and his companions were in safety, and unwounded." - -"Curumilla cut this piece off his poncho, saying, as he gave it to me, -'Go and find my brothers, show them this stuff, then they will believe -you.' I set out, I have travelled twelve leagues since sunset, and here -I am." - -Joan then made the recital they required of him, to which Valentine and -the Ulmen listened with the greatest attention. - -What was to be done? These three indomitable men found themselves -opposed by an impossibility, which rose implacable and terrible before -them. Valentine was the first to decide. - -"Good Heavens!" he exclaimed, "since we have nothing left but to die -with our friends, let us hasten to join them." - -"Come, then," the two Indians replied. They left the hut just as the -sun was rising. - -The two men leaned into their saddles. Then commenced a desperate -journey. It lasted six hours, then in sight of Corcovado. - -"Here we must dismount," said Joan. - -The horses were abandoned, and the three companions began to climb the -mountain. - -"Wait here for me," said Joan; "I will see how the land lies after a -while." - -His companions threw themselves on the ground, and he crept away. -Instead of ascending higher, the Indian soon disappeared behind one -of the numerous masses of granite. His absence was so long, that his -friends were preparing to resume their march, at whatever risk, when -they saw him come running quickly. - -"Well, what is going on?" Valentine asked. "What makes you have such a -joyful countenance?" - -"Curumilla," Joan replied, "has burnt the forest behind the rocks." - -"What good advantage can that conflagration procure us?" - -"An immense one. The warriors of Antinahuel were concealed among the -bushes and beneath the trees; they have been forced to retire." - -"Come on, then," cried Valentine. - -"Let us be gone," said Valentine, "it will be hard if, with the -assistance of these three resolute men, I cannot save my poor Louis." - -Followed by his dog Caesar, who looked at him, wagging his tail, he -followed Trangoil-Lanec, who trod in the steps of Joan. In twenty -minutes they found themselves at the foot of the rocks, from which Don -Tadeo and Curumilla made them joyous signals of welcome. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -IN THE WOLF'S MOUTH. - - -We are compelled to interrupt our recital here to relate the various -incidents that took place in the camp of the Aucas, after the battle -with the Spaniards. - -The men placed in ambush at the top of the rocks had made them suffer -serious losses. The principal leader, who had escaped safe and sound -from the desperate fight of the morning, had been grievously wounded, -struck by invisible hands. General Bustamente, thrown from his horse, -had received a bullet, which, fortunately for him, had inflicted only a -flesh wound. Don Pancho was carried fainting off the field of battle, -and concealed in the woods, as was the Linda. - -"What line of conduct will my brother pursue?" the general asked. - -"The Great Eagle has my word," the chief replied, with an ambiguous -look; "let him keep his word." - -"I have no double tongue," the general said; "let me regain my power, -and I will restore to the people the territory which once belonged to -them." - -"In that case, let my father command," replied Antinahuel. - -A proud smile curled the lips of the general; he perceived all was not -lost. - -"Where are we?" he asked. - -"In ambush In front of the palefaces who so roughly saluted us an hour -ago." - -"And what is my brother's intention?" - -"To capture them somehow," Antinahuel replied. - -After speaking these words, he bowed to the general and retired. Don -Pancho remained plunged in serious reflection. - -He turned round with surprise, and with difficulty repressed a cry of -horror--it was Dona Maria, her clothes torn and stained with blood and -dirt, and her face enveloped in bandages and bloody linen. - -"I appear horrible to you, Don Pancho," she said, in a low voice. - -"Senora;" the general began, warmly; but she interrupted him. - -"Do not debase yourself by a lie unworthy of you and of me." - -"Senora, I beg you to believe----" - -"You no longer love me, I tell you, Don Pancho," she replied, bitterly; -"besides, have I not sacrificed everything to you? I had nothing left -but my beauty--I gave you that, joyfully." - -"I will not reply to the disguised recriminations you address to me." - -"Oh, a truce with these trivialities," she interrupted violently. "If -love can no longer unite us, hatred can, we have the same enemy." - -"Don Tadeo de Leon," he said angrily. - -"Yes--Don Tadeo de Leon." - -"Ah! I am free now!" he shouted in a furious tone. - -"Thanks to me," she said pointedly. - -"Yes," he replied, "that is true." - -"Such are women. You are aware of the ability and cool bravery of your -enemy; if you give him time, in a few days he will become a colossus." - -"Yes," he murmured, as if speaking to himself, "I know it, I feel it." - -"Hark!" she said, leaning her head forward, "do you hear that noise?" - -There was a great commotion in the wood; it was the escort of Don Ramon -being surrounded. - -Antinahuel shortly appeared, leading in Don Ramon Sandias. On -perceiving the Linda he gave a start of terror. - -"Miserable scoundrel!" cried the general. - -"Hold!" said the Linda. - -"What! do _you_ defend this man?" the astonished general exclaimed. -"The accomplice of Cornejo, it was he who inflicted upon you that -frightful wound." - -"Oh! I know all that," the Linda replied with a smile; "but I forget -and forgive Don Ramon Sandias." - -"Very well," he said, "since you desire it, Dona Maria; I pardon as you -do." - -The senator could not believe his ears; but, at all hazards, he seized -the extended hand, and shook it with all his might, Antinahuel smiled -contemptuously. - -"If this is the case," he said, "I will leave you together; it is -useless to bind the prisoner." - - -"Oh! my dear benefactors!" exclaimed Don Ramon, rushing towards them. - -"Stop a bit, caballero!" cried Don Pancho; "we must now have a little -talk together." - -At which words the senator stopped in confusion. - -"You are aware, are you not, that you are perfectly in our power!" said -the Linda. - -"Now," the general added, "answer categorically the questions which -will be put to you." - -"How came you here?" - -"I have just been surprised by the Indians." - -"Where were you going?" - -"To Santiago." - -"Alone?" - -"Oh, Lord! no; I had an escort of fifty horsemen." - -"What were you going to do at Santiago?" - -"Alas! I am tired of politics: my intention was to retire to my quinta -in the bosom of my family." - -"Had you no other object?" the general asked. - -"I was only charged with a despatch; here it is." - -The general seized it, broke the seal, and rapidly read its contents. - -"Bah!" he said, crushing the paper, "there is not even common sense in -this despatch." - -Dona Maria put an end to this by saying-- - -"Go to Antinahuel, Don Pancho; he must demand an interview with the -adventurers who are perched like owls at the summit of the rocks." - -"I will, as you desire it so earnestly." - -The general succeeded; when he rejoined the Linda, she was terminating -her conversation with the senator, by saying to him in a sardonic -voice-- - -"Manage it as well as you are able, my dear senor; if you fail, I will -give you up to the Indians." - -"Hum!" said the terrified senator; "and if they learn it is I who have -done that, what will happen?" - -"You will be burnt." - -"Demonios! the prospect is not an agreeable one." - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -THE CAPITULATION. - - -Let us return to the hut of council, into which the count had been -introduced by the general. Don Bustamente had too much personal courage -not to like and appreciate that quality in another. Bowing he said, -"Your observation is perfectly just, senor----" - -"Count de Prebois-Crance;" the Frenchman finished the sentence with a -bow. - -"Before any other question," said Don Pancho, "permit me, count, to -ask you how you have become personally mixed up with the men we are -besieging?" - -"In the simplest way possible, senor," Louis replied, with an arch -smile, "I am travelling with some friends and servants; yesterday the -noise of a battle reached our ears; I naturally inquired what was going -on; after this, several Spanish soldiers, running away along the crest -or the mountains, intrenched themselves on the rock where I had myself -sought refuge. The battle begun in the defile was continued on the -plain; the soldiers, listening to nothing but their courage, fired upon -their enemy." - -The general and the senator knew perfectly what degree of faith to -place in the veracity of this narration, in which, nevertheless, as men -of the world, they had the appearance of placing the utmost alliance. - -"So then, count," the general replied, "you are head of the garrison?" - -"Yes, senor--" - -"General Don Pancho Bustamente." - -"And is this garrison numerous?" he resumed. - -"Hum! tolerably so." - -"Some thirty men, perhaps?" said the general, with an insinuating smile. - -"Thereabouts," the count replied, without hesitation. - -The general rose. - -"What, count," he exclaimed, with feigned anger, "do you pretend, with -thirty men, to resist the five hundred Araucano warriors who surround -you?" - -"Any why not?" the young man replied coolly. - -"Why, it is madness!" the general replied. - -"Not at all, senor, it is courage." - -The general knitted his brow, for the interview was taking a direction -not at all agreeable to him: he resumed, "these are my conditions; you, -count, and all the Frenchmen that accompany you, shall free to retire; -but Chilians and Aucas, whoever may be found among your troop, shall be -immediately given up." - -The count's brow became clouded; he, however, bowed to all present with -great courtesy, but then walked resolutely straight out of the hut. - -"Where are you going, senor?" the general said, "and why do you leave -us thus suddenly?" - -"Senor," the count remarked, "after such a proposal reply is useless." - -Whilst speaking thus the count kept walking on, and the five persons -had left the camp, in some sort without perceiving it, and found -themselves at a very short distance from the improvised citadel. - -"Stay, senor," the general observed; "before refusing, you ought, at -least, to warn your companions." - -"You are right, general," said the count. - -He took out his pocketbook, wrote a few words on one of the leaves, -tore it out, and folded it. - -"You shall be satisfied on the spot," he added. "Throw down a lasso!" -he cried, with a loud voice. - -Almost immediately a long leathern cord passed through one of the -crevices, and came floating to within a foot of the ground. The count -took a stone, enveloped it in the sheet of paper, and tied the whole to -the end of the lasso, which was quickly drawn up. - -"You will soon have an answer," he said. - -All at once the moveable fortifications heaped upon the rock -disappeared at if by enchantment, and the platform appeared covered -with Chilian soldiers armed with muskets; a little in advance of them -stood Valentine and his dog Caesar. - -"Count!" Valentine cried, in a voice that sounded like a trumpet, -"in the name of your companions, you have very properly rejected -the shameful proposals made to you; we are here a hundred and fifty -resolute men, resolved to perish rather than accept them." - -"That is understood," he cried to Valentine; then addressing the -chief--"You see," he said, "my companions are of my opinion." - -"What does my brother wish then?" Antinahuel demanded. - -"Pardieu! simply to go away," the young man replied. - -Antinahuel, Black Stag, and the general consulted for a moment; then -Antinahuel said--"We agree to your terms; my young paleface brother is -a great heart." - -"That is well," the count replied; "you are a brave warrior, chief, and -I thank you; but I have still one favour to ask you." - -"Let my brother explain; if I can grant it I will," Antinahuel observed. - -"Well!" the young man replied; "you yesterday took many prisoners--give -them up to me." - -"Those prisoners are free," the Toqui said with a forced smile; "they -have already rejoined their brothers." - -Louis now understood whence the unexpected increase of the garrison had -come. - -"I have nothing more to do, then, but to retire," he continued. - -"Oh! your pardon! your pardon!" the senator exclaimed, "I was one of -the prisoners!" - -"That is true," Don Pancho observed; "what does my brother say?" - -"Oh! let the man go," Antinahuel replied. - -Don Ramon did not require this to be repeated; he followed the count -closely. Louis bowed courteously to the chiefs, and regained the summit -of the rock, where his companions awaited him with great anxiety. - -A few hours later the gorge had fallen back again into its customary -solitude, which was alone troubled at intervals by the flight of -condors, or the terrified course of guanacos. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -THE APPEAL. - - -The Araucanos had faithfully observed the conditions of the treaty; -and the Chilians quietly retired, without perceiving a single enemy's -scout. They took the road to Valdivia. But it was night; the darkness -which enveloped the earth confounded all objects, and rendered the -march exceedingly painful. The tired horses advanced with difficulty, -stumbling at every step. Valentine dreaded with reason, losing his way -in the darkness; when they arrived, therefore, on the bank of a river, -which he recognised as that which, a few days before, had been the spot -where the treaties had been renewed, he halted and encamped for the -night. Everyone rummaging in his alforjas, a species of large pockets, -drew forth the charqui and harina tostada which were to comprise his -supper. The repasts of men fatigued with a long journey are short, for -sleep is their principal want. An hour later, with the exception of the -sentinels, who watched over the common safety, all the soldiers were -sleeping soundly. Seven men alone, seated round an immense fire, in the -centre of the camp, were talking and smoking. - -"My friends," said Valentine, taking his cigar from his mouth, "we are -not far, I think, from Valdivia." - -"Scarcely ten leagues," Joan replied. - -"I believe, with deference to better advice," Valentine continued, -"that we shall do best before we take that rest of which we stand so -much in need, to examine our position." - -All bowed in sign of assent. - -"What occasion is there for discussion, my friend?" said Don Tadeo -warmly; "tomorrow, at daybreak, we will proceed toward the mountains, -leaving the soldiers to continue their march to Valdivia, under the -conduct of Don Ramon." - -"That is the best plan," said the senator: "we are all well armed; -the few leagues before us present no appearance of serious danger: -tomorrow, at daybreak, we will separate." - -"Now then, I will ask our Araucano friends," Valentine went on, "if -they still intend to follow us?" - -"It is now a long time since my brothers quitted their village; they -may have a desire to see their wives and children again." - -"My brother has spoken well," said Trangoil-Lanec: "his is a loyal -heart; when he speaks his heart is always on his lips, so that his -voice comes to my ear like the melodious song of the maukawis. I am -happy when I listen to him. Trangoil-Lanec is one of the chiefs of his -nation. Antinahuel is not his friend! Trangoil-Lanec will follow his -paleface friend wherever he may go." - -"Thanks, chief; I was sure of your answer." - -"Good!" said Curumilla, "my brother will say no more upon the subject." - -"Faith, not I!" Valentine answered gaily; "I am but too happy to have -terminated the affair." - -Here Caesar, who had been crouching comfortably near the fire, began to -bark furiously. - -"Hello!" said Valentine, "what is going to happen now?" - -Everyone listened anxiously, whilst seeking his arms instinctively. - -"To arms!" Valentine commanded in a low voice; "We know not with whom -we may have to do, it is as well to be on our guard." - -In a few minutes all the camp was roused. The noise drew nearer and -nearer. - -"Quien vive?" the sentinel cried. - -"Chile!" replied a powerful voice. - -"Que gente?" went on the soldier. - -"Gente de paz," said the voice, and immediately added, "Don Gregorio -Peralta." - -"Come on! come on!" cried Valentine. - -"Caspita! caballeros," Don Gregorio replied warmly, shaking the hands -that were on all sides held out to him--"what a fortunate chance." - -With Don Gregorio thirty horsemen entered the camp. - -"What do you mean by 'quickly?'" Don Tadeo asked. "Were you in search -of us, my friend?" - -"Caray! It was expressly to find you that I left Valdivia a few hours -ago." - -"I do not understand you," said Don Tadeo. - -Don Gregorio did not appear to notice him, but, making a sign to the -two Frenchmen and Don Tadeo to follow him, he retired a few paces. - -"You have asked me why I sought you, Don Tadeo;" he continued, -"Yesterday I set out, sent to you by our brothers, the patriots, and by -all the Dark Hearts of Chili, of whom you are the leader and the king, -with the mission to repeat this to you when I met with you: 'King of -Darkness, our country is in danger! One man alone can save it; that man -is yourself." - -Don Tadeo made no reply; he seemed a prey to a poignant grief. - -"Listen to the news I bring you," Don Gregorio continued. "General -Bustamente has escaped!" - -"I knew he had," he murmured faintly. - -"Yes; but what you do not know is, that the scoundrel has succeeded in -winning the Araucanos to his interests." - -"This news----" objected Don Tadeo. - -"Is certain," Don Gregorio interrupted warmly; "a faithful spy has -brought it to us." - -"You know, my friend, I resigned all power into your hands." - -"When you resigned the power into my hands, Don Tadeo, the enemy -was conquered and a prisoner--the liberty was victorious: but now -everything is changed. The peril is greater than ever." - -"My friend," Don Tadeo replied, with an accent of profound sadness, -"another voice calls me likewise." - -"Public safety is superior to family affections! Remember your oath!" -said Don Gregorio sternly. - -"But my daughter!--my poor child!--the only comfort I possess!" he -exclaimed. - -"Remember your oath, King of Darkness!" Don Gregorio repeated with the -same solemnity of voice. - -"Oh!" the unhappy father exclaimed, "will you not have pity on a -parent?" - -"It is well," Don Gregorio replied with asperity. "I will go back, Don -Tadeo. For ten years we have sacrificed everything for the cause you -now betray; we know how to die for that liberty which you abandon! -Farewell, Don Tadeo! The Chilian people will succumb, but you will -recover your daughter. Farewell! I know you no longer!" - -"Oh, stop! stop!" Don Tadeo cried, "Retract those frightful words! I -will die with you! Let us be gone!--Let us be gone! My daughter!" he -added--"pardon me!" - -"Oh! I have found my brother again!" Don Gregorio exclaimed. "No! with -such a champion liberty can never perish!" - -"Don Tadeo," Valentine cried, "go where duty calls you; I swear to you -by my God that we will restore your daughter to you! - -"Yes." said the count, pressing his hand, "if we perish in the attempt!" - -Don Gregorio was not willing to pass the night in the camp. Every -horseman took a foot soldier behind him, and set off, as fast as their -horses could bear their double load, on their way to Valdivia. - -The troop of Chilians soon disappeared, and there remained in the camp -only Valentine, the count, Curumilla, Joan, and Trangoil-Lanec. - -The five adventurers wrapped themselves in their ponchos, lay down with -their feet to the fire, and went to sleep under the guardianship of -Caesar. - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - -THE COUNCIL. - - -About midnight the storm broke out, but towards morning the hurricane -became a little calmer, and the sun on rising, quite dispersed it. It -was then that the five adventurers were able to discover the disasters -produced by the tempest; some trees were broken and twisted like -straws, while others, uprooted by the blast, lay with their roots -in the air. The prairie was one vast marsh. The river, generally so -calm, so limpid, so inoffensive, had invaded everything, rolling -muddy waters, laying flat grass and plants, and digging deep ravines. -Valentine congratulated himself on having in the evening established -his camp upon the declivity of the mountain instead of descending into -the plain, swallowed up by the furious waters. - -The first care of the travellers was to rekindle their fire. -Trangoil-Lanec looked about for a large flat stone. Upon this stone -he laid a bed of leaves, with which the fire was at length lighted. -Upon the damp earth it would have been impossible to obtain any. Soon -a column of clear flame ascended towards the heavens, and revived the -courage of the travellers. When breakfast was ended, gaiety returned, -the sufferings or the night were forgotten, and the five men only -thought of past miseries as an encouragement to support patiently those -which still awaited them. Valentine began-- - -"We were wrong last night," he said, "to let Don Tadeo leave us." - -"Why so?" Louis asked. - -"Good Heavens! we were at that moment under the effects of a terrible -impression, and did not reflect on one thing which has just occurred to -me." - -"And what is that?" - -"This: as soon as Don Tadeo has accomplished the duties of a good -citizen, it is evident to all of us that he will resign immediately a -power he has accepted quite against his will." - -"That is evident enough." - -"What, then, will be his most anxious desire?" - -"To set off in search of his daughter," said Louis. - -"Or to join us." - -"That is all the same thing." - -"Granted; but there an impassable obstacle will rise." - -"And what can that be?" - -"The want of a guide to conduct him to us." - -"That is true," the four men exclaimed. - -"What is to be done?" Louis asked. - -"Fortunately," Valentine continued, "it is not yet too late. Don Tadeo -requires to have with him a man entirely devoted to him, perfectly -acquainted with the country we propose to search, who could follow us -on our track." - -"Yes," said Trangoil-Lanec. - -"Well," Valentine resumed, "that man is Joan." - -"That is true," the Indian observed, "I will be his guide." - -"Joan will leave us, I will give him a letter which Louis will write, -and in which I will inform Don Tadeo of the mission with which our -friend is charged." - -"Good," said Curumilla, "our friend thinks of everything; let Louis -write the letter." - -"Well," cried Valentine, "now I think of it, it is all the better that -this idea did not occur to me before." - -"Why so?" said Louis in astonishment. - -"Because poor Don Tadeo will be so happy to hear from us." - -"That is true," said the count. - -"Is it not? Well then, write the note, brother." - -The count did not require to be told twice, but set to work -immediately, Joan on his side. - -"Brother," Valentine said to him on giving him the note, which the -Indian concealed under the ribbon which bound his hair, "I have no -instructions to give you; you are an experienced warrior." - -"Has my brother nothing to say to me?" Joan replied, with a smile. "I -leave my heart with you; I shall know where to find it again." - -He bowed to his friends; then the brave Indian departed rapidly, -bounding like a guanaco through the high grass. - -"Brave fellow!" Valentine exclaimed, as he re-seated himself before the -fire. - -"He is a warrior," Trangoil-Lanec said proudly. - -"Now, chief," continued the spahi, "suppose we have a little chat." - -"I listen to my brother." - -"Well, I will explain myself; the task we have undertaken is a -difficult one! I would even add, it is impossible, if we had not you -with us; Louis and I, notwithstanding our courage, would be obliged to -renounce it; for in this country, the eyes of the white man, however -good they may be, are powerless to direct him." - -Trangoil-Lanec reflected for a few minutes, and then replied-- - -"My brother has spoken well; yes, the route is long and bristling with -perils, but let my pale brothers leave it to us; brought up in the -desert, it has no mysteries for us." - -"That is exactly what I mean, chief," said Valentine; "as to us, we -have only to obey." - -"This point agreed upon," the count observed, "there is another not -less important." - -"What is that point, brother?" Valentine asked. - -"That of knowing which way we are to direct our course, and when we -shall set off." - -"Immediately," Trangoil-Lanec replied; "only we ought to adopt a line -from which we will not deviate." - -"That is reasoning like a prudent man, chief; submit your observations -to us." - -"I think," said Trangoil-Lanec, "that to recover the track of the pale -blue-eyed maiden, we must return to San Miguel." - -"That is my opinion," said Valentine; "I cannot, indeed, see how we can -do otherwise." - -Curumilla shook his head dissentingly. - -"No," he said, "that track would mislead us." - -The two Frenchmen looked at him with astonishment, whilst -Trangoil-Lanec continued smoking. - -"I do not comprehend you, chief," said Valentine. - -"Let my brothers listen," exclaimed Curumilla. "Antinahuel is a -powerful and formidable chief; he is the greatest of the Araucano -warriors. He has declared war against the palefaces; this war he will -carry on cruelly, because he has with him a Huincas man and woman, -who, for their own purposes, will urge him to invade their country. -Antinahuel will assemble his warriors, but he will not return to his -village. The blue-eyed maiden was carried off by the woman with a -viper's heart, in order to induce the chief to enter upon this war. In -order to discover the track of the female puma, the hunters follow that -of the male; to find the track of the maiden, we must follow that of -Antinahuel." - -He ceased, reclined his head upon his breast, and waited. - -"In good truth," said the count, "the reasons the chief has given seem -good." - -"Yes," Valentine added, "I believe that my brother Curumilla has hit -the mark. It is evident that Antinahuel loves Dona Rosario, and that it -was for the purpose of giving her up to him that that hideous creature -had the poor girl carried off. What do you think, Trangoil-Lanec?" - -"Curumilla is one of the most prudent Ulmens of his nation; he has the -courage of the jaguar and the cunning of the fox. He alone has judged -properly." - -"Let us then follow the track of Antinahuel," said Valentine gaily. -"That will not be difficult." - -Trangoil-Lanec shook his head. - -"My brother is mistaken; we will follow the track of Antinahuel, but we -will do so after the Indian fashion." - -"That is to say?" - -"In the air." - -"Pardieu!" Valentine said, stupefied. - -The chief could not help smiling. - -"If we were to blindly follow the track of the Toqui," he said, "as he -has two days in advance of us, and he is on horseback, and we on foot." - -"Caramba!" said the young man, "that is true. I did not think of that. -How can we procure horses?" - -"We do not require any in the mountains; we travel more quickly on -foot. We will cut the track in a straight line; every time we fall in -with it we will carefully note its direction, and we will continue -acting thus till we feel certain of finding that of the pale maiden." - -"Yes," Valentine replied; "your plan is ingenious; you are certain not -to lose your way or your time." - -"Let my brother be satisfied on those points." - -"Tell me, travelling thus, as the bird flies, when do you think we are -likely to overtake the man?" - -"By the evening of the day after tomorrow." - -"What! so quickly as that? It is incredible!" - -"My brother will reflect; whilst our enemy will travel four leagues -across the plain, by following the road we are about to take, we shall -travel eight on the mountains." - -"Pardieu! we must apply to you to know how to overcome distance. Act -exactly as you think best, chief." - -"Shall we start at once, then?" Valentine asked. - -"Not yet," replied the Ulmen; "everything is a guide in the desert; if -it should happen that we who pursue, should, in our turn, be pursued, -your boots would betray us. Take them off, and the Araucano warriors -will be blind." - -Without making a reply, Valentine took off his boots, and took -moccasins. - -"Now," said the Parisian, laughing, "I suppose I may as well throw the -boots into the river." - -"By no means, my brother!" Trangoil-Lanec replied seriously; "the boots -must be taken care of." - -The two young men had each a leathern knapsack, which they carried on -their shoulders, and containing their absolute necessaries. Without a -word, they fastened the boots to the knapsack, and buckled it on their -shoulders. Curumilla had soon finished his job, and he gave each of -them a pair of moccasins, exactly like his own, which he tied on for -them. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - -DIAMOND CUT DIAMOND. - - -As soon as the Chilians had evacuated the rock, Antinahuel turned with -an air of ill-humour towards General Bustamente. - -"I have done as my brother desired," he said; "what more does he wish?" - -"Nothing at present, chief, unless you, on your part, consent also to -depart." - -"My brother is right; we are no longer of any use." - -"Absolutely none; but since, henceforward, we are free to act as we -please, if agreeable to my brother we will go to the council lodge." - -"Good!" the Toqui replied, following with a malevolent glance the last -ranks of the Chilian soldiers. - -The general placed his hand resolutely on his shoulder, at which the -Toqui turned sharply round. - -"What does the white chief want?" he asked. - -"To tell you this, chief," the general replied, coolly; "of what -consequence are thirty men, when you can immolate thousands? What -you have done today is the height of policy. By sending away these -soldiers, you appear to accept your defeat, and renounce, as feeling -yourself too weak, all hopes of vengeance." - -The brow of the chief expanded, and his look became less savage. - -"Yes," he murmured, as if speaking to himself, "there is truth in what -my brother says; in war we must often abandon a hen to obtain a horse -afterwards. Let us go to the council lodge." - -Antinahuel and the general, followed by Black Stag, returned to the -toldo. - -"That young man who presented himself here possesses a great heart," -Antinahuel said, looking at Don Pancho; "my brother, doubtless knows -him?" - -"On my word no," the general remarked; "I saw him this morning for the -first time; he is one of those vagabonds from Europe who come to rob us -of our wealth." - -"No; that young man is a chief." - -"Hum I you seem interested about him." - -"Yes; as we are naturally interested in a brave man. I should be happy -to meet him again." - -"Unfortunately," the general said, "that is not very probable." - -"Who knows?" the chief observed in a pensive tone, "but let my brother -listen; a Toqui is going to speak." - -"I listen," the general replied. - -"Whilst that young man was here," Antinahuel resumed impassively, "I -examined him attentively; when he did not think my brother was looking -at him, he cast strange glances at him." - -"I do not know him, I tell you, chief," the general replied; "and -suppose he should be my enemy?" - -"An enemy should never be despised," said Antinahuel; "the meanest -are often the most dangerous. But let us return to the subject of our -meeting: what are my brother's present intentions?" - -"Listen to me in your turn, chief; we are henceforward bound to each -other by our common interests. I am convinced that if we mutually aid -each other, and support each other frankly and loyally, we shall obtain -magnificent results." - -"Good! my brother will explain his views." - -"I will not beat about the bush; this is the treaty I propose to you: -help me frankly in recovering the power I have lost--give me the means -of avenging myself on my enemies, and I will abandon to you for ever, -in full proprietorship, not only the entire province of Valdivia, but, -still further, that of Concepcion as far as Talca." - -At this magnificent offer the countenance of Antinahuel did not betray -the least trace of emotion. - -"My brother," said he; "gives what is not his." - -"That is true," the general replied, curtly; "but I shall have it if -you assist me, and without me you will never have it." - -The chief slightly knitted his brow; the general feigned not to -perceive it, but continued-- - -"It is for you to take it or leave it, chief; time passes." - -The matter being put to him so shortly, the Toqui reflected a minute, -then turned towards the general. - -"Who will guarantee the execution of my brother's promise?" he said, -looking him full in the face. - -"Let my brother name what guarantee he demands," said the general. - -"A smile of undefinable expression curled Antinahuels lips. He made a -sign to Black Stag, who rose and left the tent." - -"Let my brother wait a moment," said the Toqui. - -The general bowed without replying. At the end of a few minutes Black -Stag returned, followed by an Araucano warrior bearing a kind of -rickety table, hastily knocked together, of badly-jointed pieces of -wood. Upon this table the Toqui silently placed paper, pens, and ink. - -"The palefaces," he said, "possess much learning; they know more than -we poor ignorant Indians do; my brother knows that. I have been among -the whites, and have seen many of their customs; let my brother take -this pen, and let him repeat to me there," he added, "what he has just -said to me; then, as I shall keep his words, the wind will not be able -to carry them away." - -The general seized the pen, and dipped it in the ink. - -"Since my brother mistrusts my words," he said, in a tone of pique, "I -am ready to do what he desires." - -"My brother has ill-understood my words," Antinahuel replied, "I have -the greatest confidence in him, I in no way mean to offend him; only I -represent my nation." - -Don Pancho saw there remained no subterfuge by which he could escape. -Turning towards Antinahuel, therefore, he said with a smile-- - -"So be it! My brother is right; I will do what he desires." - -The Toqui bowed gravely, the general placed the paper before him, wrote -a few lines rapidly, and signed them. - -"There, chief," he said, presenting the paper to Antinahuel; "that is -what you require." - -"Good!" the latter replied, taking it. - -He turned it this way and he turned it that, as if to make out what the -general had written; but as may be supposed, all his efforts produced -no results. Don Pancho and Dona Maria watched him closely. At the -expiration of a minute, the chief made another sign to Black Stag, who -went out, but in a very short time returned, followed by two Indians -leading a Chilian soldier between them. - -"Moro Huinca," he said, in a rough voice, "can you explain what is set -down on this paper?" - -"What?" the soldier replied. - -The general then added:-- - -"The chief asks you if you can read." - -"Yes, senor," the wounded man stammered. - -"Good!" said Antinahuel; "then explain it." - -And he gave him the paper. - -The soldier took it mechanically. It was evident that the poor wretch, -stupefied by terror, did not understand what was required of him. - -"My friend," said the general, "as you know how to read, have the -goodness to explain to us what is written on this paper. Is not that -what you desire, chief?" he said, addressing the Toqui. - -The soldier, whose terror was a little calmed by the friendly tone of -the general, at last comprehended what was expected of him; he cast his -eyes over the paper, and read as follows:-- - -"I, the undersigned, Don Pancho Bustamente, general of division, -ex-minister at war of the Chilian republic, engage, in favour -of Antinahuel, grand Toqui of the Araucanos, to abandon, in all -proprietorship, to him and to his people, to enjoy and dispose of at -their pleasure now and for ever, without anyone being able to contest -with them the legitimate proprietorship: first, the province of -Valdivia; second, the province of Concepcion, to within twenty miles of -the city of Talca. This territory shall belong, in all its breadth and -in all its length, to the Araucano people, if the Toqui Antinahuel, by -the help of an army, reinstates me in the power I have lost, and gives -me the means to retain it in my hands." - -"In faith of which I have signed with my name, prenames, and qualities." - - "Don Pancho Bustamente," - "General of Division, ex Minister of - War of the Chilian Republic." - - -Whilst the soldier was reading, Antinahuel leaning over his shoulder, -appeared endeavouring to read also; when he had ended, with one hand he -snatched the paper roughly from him, and with the other he plunged his -poniard into his heart. - -"What have you done?" the general said. - -"Wah!" the chief replied; "this fellow might have talked hereafter, -perhaps." - -"That is true." said Don Pancho. - -An Araucano warrior took up the body, placed it upon his shoulders, and -carried it out of the toldo. - -"Well?" the general resumed. - -"My brother may depend upon me," said Antinahuel; "I must now return to -my village." - -"Stay, chief," the general objected; "that is losing time." - -"Interests of the highest importance oblige me." - -"That is useless," said Dona Maria, coolly. - -"What does my sister mean?" Antinahuel asked. - -"I have comprehended the impatience which devours the heart of my -brother; this morning I myself despatched a _chasqui_ after the -mosotones who were conducting the pale maiden to the tolderia of the -Puelches, with an order to retrace their steps." - -The countenance of the chief cleared up. - -"My sister is good!" he said; "Antinahuel, he will remember." - -"Let my brother consent, then, to do what the great warrior of the -palefaces desires." - -"Let my brother speak," the chief continued gravely. - -"We must, if we wish to succeed, act with the rapidity of lightning," -said Don Pancho; "collect all your warriors, and let their rendezvous -be upon the Bio Bio. We will gain possession of Concepcion by a -_coup-de-main;_ and if our movements are prompt, we shall be masters -of Santiago, the capital, before they have time to raise the necessary -troops to oppose their passage." - -"Good!" Antinahuel replied. "My brother is a skilful chief; he will -succeed." - -"Yes, but we must use despatch above everything." - -"My brother will see," the Toqui said, laconically. - -"My brother," he added to Black Stag, "will send off the quipu and the -lance of fire; in ten suns, thirty thousand warriors will be assembled -on the plain of Conderkanki. I have spoken--begone." - -The Black Stag bowed, and left the cuarto without reply. - -"Is my brother content?" asked Antinahuel. - -"Yes," the general replied; "and I will soon prove to my brother that I -also can keep my promises." - -The Toqui gave orders for striking the camp. An hour later, a long file -of horsemen disappeared in the depths of the virgin forest which formed -the limits of the plain. - -Dona Maria and Bustamente were in high spirits; they both thought their -object nearly obtained; they imagined they were on the point of seeing -realised the hope they had so long nourished. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - -DELIRIUM. - - -It had been very unwillingly that Don Tadeo de Leon consented to resume -that power which he had so gladly once laid down when he thought -tranquillity was re-established. Dull and silent he followed the troop, -who appeared rather to escort a state prisoner than the man they judged -to be alone able to save his country. - -For some time the storm had been expending its fury, and Don Tadeo -seemed to be revived by the fiery breath of the tempest; he cast away -his hat, that the rain might bathe his burning brow; with his hair -flowing in the wind and his eyes flashing wildly, he dug his spurs into -his horse's sides, and rushed forward shouting-- - -"Hurrah! hurrah! my faithful fellows! hurrah for our country! forward! -forward!" - -His companions, in the sinister flashes of the lightning, caught -occasional glimpses of the imposing shadow galloping before them, his -horse bounding over every obstacle that came in his way. Suddenly -electrified by this strange vision, they rushed wildly forward in -pursuit of him, uttering cries resembling his own, across the inundated -plain, through trees twisted and tortured by the powerful hand of the -hurricane, which roared furiously. A mad ride, beyond the power of -language to describe, then ensued. Don Tadeo, with his eyes flashing -fire, felt himself fatally carried away by the furious delirium which -compressed his temples like a vice. At intervals he turned sharply -round, uttering inarticulate cries, and then, as suddenly, he lifted -his horse with his spurs and his knees, and galloped forward in pursuit -of some imaginary enemy. - -The soldiers, terrified at this terrible crisis, of which they could -not divine the cause, and filled with grief at seeing him in this -unhappy state, rode after him without knowing in what way to restore -him the reason which seemed to be abandoning him. - -On approaching Valdivia, although still at some distance from it, they -were surprised to see, at this advanced hour of the night, innumerable -lights shining in the direction of the city. Don Gregorio, Don Tadeos -most faithful friend, was overpowered with grief at beholding him in -such a dreadful state, and tried every means to restore to him that -reason which appeared every moment to be about to leave him perhaps for -ever. - -All at once an idea struck him, and Don Gregorio urged his horse -forward, pricking it with point of his dagger to increase its speed. -The noble animal lowered its head, snorted loudly, and darted off like -an arrow. After a few minutes of this wild course, Don Gregorio turned -his horse short round upon its hind quarters, and without relaxing his -speed, retraced his steps like a whirlwind. He and Don Tadeo were now -galloping in a contrary direction, and must inevitably cross or clash. -As they met, Don Gregorio seized the curb rein of his friend's horse -with a grasp of iron, and giving it a sudden check, stopped it short. - -"Don Tadeo de Leon!" Don Gregorio cried; "have you forgotten Dona -Rosario, your daughter?" - -At the name of his daughter, a convulsive trembling ran over Don Tadeos -limbs. - -"My daughter!" he cried in a piercing tone, "oh I restore me my -daughter!" - -Suddenly a cadaverous paleness covered his countenance, his eyes -closed, the reins dropped from his hands, and he sank backwards. But, -quick as thought, his friend had sprung to the earth, and caught him in -his arms; Don Tadeo had fainted. - -"He is saved!" said Don Gregorio. - -All these rough soldiers, whom no danger had the power to astonish or -move, breathed a sigh of relief at hearing this word of hope. Several -blankets and cloaks were quickly suspended to the branches of the -tree under which the chief was placed for shelter. And all, mute and -motionless, with their bridles passed under their arms, stood awaiting -with anxiety the restoration to life of the man whom they loved as a -father. - -Nearly an hour passed away. Don Gregorio, bending over his friend, -watched with an anxious eye the progress of the crisis. By degrees, the -convulsive trembling which shook the body grew calmer, and he sank into -complete immobility. Then Don Gregorio tore open Don Tadeo's sleeve, -stripped his right arm, drew his dagger and opened a vein. No blood -issued at first; but, at length, after a few seconds, a black drop, -of the size of a pins head, appeared at the mouth of the wound; it -increased progressively, and, at length, then followed by a second, and -at the expiration of two minutes, a long stream of foaming black blood -sprang from the orifice. - -At length his teeth, which had remained clenched moved, and he heaved -a sigh. The blood had lost the bituminous colour it at first wore, and -had become red. He opened his eyes, and cast around an astonished look. - -"Where am I?" he murmured faintly. - -"Thank God! you are safe, dear friend!" Don Gregorio answered, he -placed his thumb upon the wound; "what a fright you have given us!" - -"What does all this mean?" said Don Tadeo, in a firmer voice; "tell me, -Don Gregorio, what has happened?" - -"Faith! it is all my fault," the latter replied. "This will teach me to -choose my horses myself another time, and not leave it to a peon." - -"Pray explain yourself, my friend; I do not understand you; I am so -weak." - -"Well you may be; you have had a terrible fall." - -"Ah!" said Don Tadeo, "do you think so?" - -"Caspita! Do I think so? Ask these caballeros. A miracle has saved you!" - -"It is very singular! I cannot recollect anything of what you speak. -When we left our friends all at once, the storm broke out." - -"That was it! and your recollection is correct. Your horse took fright -at a flash of lightning and ran away. When we came up with you, you -were lying senseless in a ravine." - -"What you say must be true, for I feel bruised, and my whole frame -seems weak and exhausted." - -"That is it! But, I repeat, fortunately you are not wounded; only I -thought it best to bleed you." - -"I thank you; the bleeding has done me good, my head is not so hot, my -ideas are more calm! Thank you, my friend," he added, taking his hand. - -"Perhaps you are not strong enough yet to sit on horseback," he said. - -"Yes, I assure you, my strength is completely restored; besides, time -presses." - -Saying these words, Don Tadeo rose, and asked for his horse. A soldier -was holding it by the bridle. Don Tadeo examined it attentively. The -poor animal was filthy; it looked as if it had literally been rolled -in the mud. Don Tadeo knitted his brow; he could not make it out. Don -Gregorio laughed in his sleeve; it was by his orders that, to mislead -his friend, the horse had been put in this condition. - -"I can but wonder," said Don Tadeo, "when looking at this poor beast, -how we both escaped!" - -"Is it not incomprehensible?" Don Gregorio replied; "we can none of us -account for it." - -"Are we far from the city?" - -"A league at most." - -"Let us hasten on, then;" and the troop set off at a gallop. - -This time Don Tadeo and his friend rode side by side, talking as they -went, in a low voice of the means to be taken to thwart the attempts -of General Bustamente. Don Tadeo had recovered all his coolness. His -ideas had again become clear. One man alone was a stranger to all we -have related. This was Don Ramon Sandias. The poor senator, soaked with -rain, terrified at the storm, and muffled in his cloak up to the eyes, -seemed to live quite mechanically. He only wished for one thing, and -that was to gain some place of shelter; so he kept on and on, without -knowing what he did, or whether the others followed him or not. He -arrived in this manner at Valdivia, and was about to pass on when he -was stopped by a man who seized his bridle. - -"Hola? eh, caballero, are you asleep?" a rough voice cried. - -He started with fear, and ventured to uncover one eye. - -"No," he said, in a hoarse voice; "on the contrary, I am but too wide -awake." - -"Where do you come from, alone, so late?" the man who had before spoken -continued. - -"What do you mean by 'alone'?" said Don Ramon, recovering his spirits a -little--"do you take my companions for nothing?" - -"Your companions! What companions are you talking about?" cried several -voices. - -Don Ramon looked round with a terrified air. - -"Well, that's true!" he said. "I am alone. What on earth has become of -the others?" - -"What others?" the first speaker rejoined; "we see nobody." - -"Caramba!" the senator impatiently replied, "I mean Don Gregorio and -his soldiers." - -"What! are you part of Don Gregorios troop?" the people cried from all -sides. - -"To be sure I am," said the senator; "but pray let me get under -shelter, for the rain pours terribly." - -"You need not mind that," said a joker; "you can't be wetter than you -are!" - -"That's true," he replied. - -"Do you know whether Don Gregorio has met with Don Tadeo de Leon?" -Several voices asked simultaneously. - -"Yes, they are coming together." - -"Are they far off?" - -"How the devil can I tell?" - -At hearing this, the people who had stopped him dispersed in all -directions, crying. "Don Tadeo is coming!" without taking any further -notice of the half-drowned senator, who implored them in vain to -direct him to a place of shelter. No one replied to him; all were busy -lighting torches, or rousing the inhabitants of the houses, either by -knocking at their doors, or calling them by their names. - -"Valgame Dios!" the senator murmured in despair; "these people are all -mad to run about the streets in such weather as this! Am I going to be -present at another revolution?" - -And spurring his horse, which was almost knocked up, he moved on with -much ado, shaking his head dismally, to seek some hospitable roof where -he might dry his clothes and get a few hours of repose. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - -PLAN OF CAMPAIGN. - - -Don Tadeo's entrance into Valdivia was truly a triumphant one. -Notwithstanding the rain, which fell in torrents, the whole population -was drawn up in the streets as he passed through, holding in their -hands torches, whose flames, agitated by the wind, shed a pale, broken -light, which was mingled with that of the constant electric flashes. -The cries of joy of the inhabitants, the rolling of drums, were mingled -with the peals of thunder and the furious hissing of the tempest. - -Don Tadeo was much moved by this proof of love which the population -offered him. He felt that, however great private interests may be, they -are small in comparison with those of a people; that it is great and -noble to sacrifice them to it, and that he who knows how to die bravely -for the welfare of his fellow citizens fulfils a holy and a grand -mission. His determination was formed at once. He drew his head proudly -up, and saluted with a smile the joyous groups which pressed around him -on his passage, clapping their hands and shouting "Viva Chile!" He -arrived at the cabildo thus escorted. - -He dismounted, ascended the steps of the palace, and turned towards -the crowd. The immense square was paved with heads. The windows of -the houses were thronged with people; and all the crowd were uttering -deafening cries of joy. Don Tadeo saw that a few words were expected -from him. He made a gesture, and a profound silence immediately -prevailed. - -"Dear fellow citizens!" said the King of Darkness, "my heart is touched -more than I can express with the extraordinary mark of sympathy you -have given me. You shall always see me in the front rank of those who -fight for liberty. Be always united for the public welfare, and tyranny -will never succeed in conquering you." - -This little warm address was hailed with reiterated "Bravos!" and -prolonged cries of "Viva Chile!" - -Don Tadeo entered the palace. He there found assembled the superior -officers, the alcaldes, and the principal leader of the Dark Hearts. -All rose at his entrance. Since the King of Darkness had regained his -popular enthusiasm he had recovered all his faculties. - -"Caballeros," he said, "I am happy to find you assembled at the -cabildo. Moments are precious. General Bustamente has allied himself -with Antinahuel, the Grand Toqui of the Araucanos, in order the -more easily to regain his power. This is the reason why he made his -pronunciamiento in this remote province. Delivered by the Araucanos, he -has taken refuge among them. We shall soon see him at the head of those -ferocious warriors, invading our frontiers and desolating our richest -provinces. I repeat to you our moments are precious! A bold initiative -alone can save us. But, to take the initiative, I must have on my part, -I whom you have made your leader, regular powers granted by the senate." - -These words, whose justice every one acknowledged, created a profound -sensation. To the serious objection raised by Don Tadeo, it was -difficult to make a reply. Don Gregorio approached him, holding a -folded paper in his hand. - -"Take this," he said, presenting the open paper to Don Tadeo: "this is -the reply of the senate of Santiago to the manifesto you addressed to -them after the fall of the tyrant; it is an order which invests you -with supreme power. As, after the victory, you resigned the power into -my hands, I had kept this order secret. The moment is come to render it -public. Don Tadeo de Leon! you are our leader." - -At this intelligence all present arose with delight, crying with -enthusiasm, "Viva Don Tadeo de Leon!" - -He took the paper and ran his eyes over the contents. - -"That is well," he said, returning it to Don Gregorio, with a smile, -"now I am free to act." - -The members of the assembly resumed their seats. - -"Caballeros," Don Tadeo continued, "as I told you, a bold initiative -alone can save us. We must defeat our adversary by promptness. You know -the man, you know he possesses all the necessary qualities for a good -general; he will not therefore fall asleep in a false security; while -his ally, Antinahuel, is an intrepid chief, endowed with boundless -ambition. These two men, united by the same interests, may, if we do -not take care, give us a great deal to do; we must therefore attack -them both at once. This is what I propose: if the plan I am about to -submit to you appears vicious, as we are assembled in council, you will -discuss it." - -He continued-- - -"We will divide our forces into two parts; the first shall go by -forced marches, and attack Arauca. This expedition, the sole object -of which is to divide the forces of our adversaries, ought to be made -in a manner which will oblige them to send important reinforcements. -A second division, composed of all the men in the province capable of -bearing arms, will march upon the Bio Bio, in order to lend a hand to -the troops of the province of Concepcion. - -"But," a superior officer objected, "permit me, Don Tadeo, to say that -in your plan you forget one thing." - -"What is that, senor?" - -"Is not this province more exposed than any other?" - -"You connect the events which are about to take place there with those -that have preceded them." - -"Doubtless I do." - -"And that is where your error lies. When Don Pancho Bustamente caused -himself to be proclaimed in Valdivia, he had good reasons. This -province is remote--isolated; the general hoped to make a war depot -of it, and to establish himself solidly there, thanks to his allies. -That plan was well conceived, it offered great chances of success. But -at the present moment the question is completely changed: the general -has no longer anything to rely on in this province. In my opinion we -must bar his road to the capital, and force him to accept battle. As to -the province of Valdivia, it is not threatened in any way; only, as in -such circumstances we cannot employ too much prudence, a civil militia -must be instituted in order to defend its hearths. Don Gregorio, you -will take the command of the troops destined to act against Arauca. -I reserve for myself the command of the army of the Bio Bio. This -morning, at daybreak, Senor the Alcalde Mayor, you will cause a -bando to be published in all the provinces announcing that voluntary -enrolments, at a demi-piastre per day, are opened. You, Colonel -Gutierrez, I name governor of the province; your first care must be to -organise the civic guard." - -"Your Excellency may depend upon me," the colonel replied. - -"I have known you for a length of time, colonel, and I know I can leave -you to act with full confidence," said Tadeo, with a smile. - -The members of the assembly retired, after having again proclaimed -their devotion to the good cause. Don Tadeo and Don Gregorio were left -alone. Don Tadeo was quite another man. Don Gregorio looked at him with -astonishment. - -"Brother," said Don Tadeo, "this time we must conquer or die. You will -be near me in the hour of battle; you will leave your command when at a -few leagues from the city, for it is at my side you must fight." - -"Thanks!" said Don Gregorio, "thanks." - -"This tyrant, against whom we are going once more to measure ourselves -must die." - -"He shall die." - -"From among the Dark Hearts select ten men, who must be employed -specially in pursuit of Bustamente." - -"Depend upon me." - -"Send directly Don Ramon Sandias to the governor of Concepcion, to warn -him to be upon his guard." - -Don Gregorio bowed, and retired laughing. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - -A DISAGREEABLE MISSION. - - -Instead of taking a few hours of repose, Don Tadeo, as soon as he was -alone, seated himself at a table, and began to send off orders. - -Several hours had passed away thus; the morning was advanced, and Don -Tadeo had despatched all his couriers. At this moment Don Ramon Sandias -appeared. - -"Well, Don Ramon," Don Tadeo said in a friendly accent, "you are still -among us." - -"Yes, Excellency," the senator replied. - -"Have you cause to complain, Don Ramon?" asked Don Tadeo. - -"Oh, no!" said the senator, "quite the contrary." - -"I am ready to weep tears of blood when I reflect that I have allowed -myself to be seduced by a silly ambition, which--" - -"Well, what you have lost, if you like, I will restore to you," said -Don Tadeo. - -"Oh! speak! speak! what would I not do for that?" - -"Even return among the Aucas?" said Don Tadeo. - -"Why, no--" - -"Stop a moment!" Don Tadeo interrupted; "this is what I expect of you: -listen attentively." - -"I listen, your Excellency," the senator replied, bowing humbly. - -Don Gregorio entered. - -"What is the matter?" asked Don Tadeo. - -"The Indian named Joan, who once served you as a guide, has just -arrived." - -"Let him come in! let him come in!" cried Don Tadeo, rising. - -Joan now entered. - -"What brings you here?" asked Don Tadeo. "Speak! my friend!" - -"The white chiefs are preparing to set out upon the track of -Antinahuel." - -"God bless them! they are noble hearts!" Don Tadeo exclaimed. - -"My father was sad last night when he parted from us." - -"Yes, yes," the poor father murmured. - -"Before taking the track, Don Valentine felt his heart softened at the -thoughts of the uneasiness you would doubtless experience; he therefore -made his brother with the dove's eyes trace this necklace." - -Saying these words, he drew out the letter which was carefully -concealed under the ribbon that confined his hair, and presented it to -Don Tadeo. - -"Thanks!" cried the father as he placed the letter in his bosom and -held out his hand graciously to the warrior; "thanks to those who sent -you, and thanks to you, my brother: you shall remain with me, and when -the moment arrives you shall conduct me to my daughter." - -"I will do so; my father may depend upon me." - -"I do depend upon you, Joan." - -"I am at the service of my father, as is the horse which the warrior -mounts," Joan replied, respectfully. - -"One instant," said Don Tadeo, clapping his hands, to which a servant -responded. - -"I desire," he said, in an emphatic manner, "that every respect he paid -to this warrior: he is my friend, and is at liberty to do just as he -likes; let everything be given to him that he asks for." - -The Indian warrior left the apartment. - -"A noble nature!" cried Don Tadeo. - -"Yes." said Don Ramon, "for a savage." - -The King of Darkness was recalled to himself by the voice which thus -mingled its harsh notes with his thoughts; his eyes fell upon the -senator, whom he no longer thought of. - -"Ah!" said he, "I had forgotten you, Don Ramon." - -The latter bit his tongue and repented too late. - -"Did you not tell me," Don Tadeo resumed, "that you would give a great -deal to be at your hacienda?" - -The senator shook his head affirmatively. - -"I will offer you," Don Tadeo continued, "a chance of regaining the -happiness you sigh for. You will set out immediately for Concepcion. -One would think you did not like the mission." - -"I will go." - -"That is well; a pleasant journey to you." - -The senator asked-- - -"If the Araucanians surprise me, and get possession of this paper?" - -"You will be shot--that's all," said Don Tadeo. - -"Why, this is a trap!" the terrified senator exclaimed. - -"You have but twenty minutes to make the preparations for your -departure." - -The senator seized the letter eagerly, and, without replying, rushed -out of the room like a madman. Don Tadeo could not repress a smile at -his extreme terror, and said to himself-- - -"Poor devil! he little suspects that I should be highly pleased if the -Araucanians obtained the paper." - -"Everything is ready," said Don Gregorio, entering. - -"That is well. Let the troops be drawn up in two bodies just outside -the city. Where is Joan?" - -"I am here," the latter replied, coming forward. - -"I wish to confide to my brother a mission of life and death." - -"I will accomplish it, or die in the attempt." - -"Deliver this necklace to the Spanish general, Fuentes, who commands -in Concepcion." Don Tadeo drew from his breast a dagger of a curious -shape, the bronze knob of which served as a seal. "My brother will also -take this dagger; on seeing it the general will know that Joan comes -from me." - -"Good," the warrior replied, taking the weapon. - -"That weapon is poisoned--: the slightest scratch will inflict certain -death." - -"Oh--oh!" said the Indian, "that is indeed a good weapon! When shall I -set out?" - -"A horse shall be given to my brother, to whom I have only one more -word to say: let him take care not to get killed; I would have him -return to me." - -"I shall come back again," said the Indian, confidently. "Farewell." - -Don Tadeo and Don Gregorio left the cabildo. The orders of the King -of Darkness had been executed with the greatest punctuality and -promptitude. Two bodies of troops were drawn up; one, of nine hundred -men, was charged with the attack on Arauca, the other, of nearly two -thousand, under the immediate orders of Don Tadeo himself. - -In addition to a numerous troop of cavalry, the Chilians took with them -ten pieces of mountain artillery. The troops filed off at a quick step -before the inhabitants, who saluted them with hearty shouts. - -When they were about to separate, Don Tadeo took his friend aside. - -"This evening, when you have established your camp for the night, Don -Gregorio," he said, "you will give up the command to your lieutenant -and rejoin me." - -"That is understood; I thank you for the favour you confer upon me." - -After a last shake of the hands the two leaders separated, to place -themselves at the head of their respective troops, which were advancing -rapidly into the plain. - - - - -CHAPTER XXV. - -THE KITE AND THE DOVE. - - -General Bustamente had taken advantage of the sudden good-will that -Antinahuel had shown towards him; so that two days after the events we -have related the Araucanian army was strongly entrenched upon the Bio -Bio. Antinahuel, like an experienced chief, had established his camp at -the summit of a wooded hill. A screen of trees had been left to conceal -the presence of the army. The various contingents had arrived in great -haste at the rendezvous, and more came in every minute. The total force -of the army was, at that moment, about nine thousand men. Black Stag, -with a troop of chosen warriors, beat the country in all directions, in -order to surprise the enemy's scouts. - -Antinahuel had retired under his toldo with the Linda and Dona Rosario. -She bore upon her pale countenance traces of the fatigues she had -undergone. She stood, with downcast eyes, before the Toqui. - -"My brother sees that I have kept my promise," said the Linda. - -"Yes," the Toqui replied; "I thank my sister." - -"My brother is a great warrior, he has but one word; before entering -the territories of the Huincas, it will be as well to determine the -fate of his prisoner." - -"This young maiden is not my prisoner," Antinahuel remarked; "she shall -be my wife." - -"So be it," said the Linda, shrugging her shoulders. - -"My sister is fatigued," said the chief. "A toldo is prepared for my -sister; she shall repose a few hours." - -"Chief," she replied, "my body feels no fatigue; I am strong. Your -mosotones were very kind to me." - -"Their chief had ordered them to do so," Antinahuel said, gallantly. - -"I thank you for having given these orders." - -"I love my sister," said the Toqui. - -The young lady did not at all understand this blunt declaration of love. - -"Oh, yes!" she exclaimed, innocently, "you love me--you have pity on -me." - -"I will make every effort to make my sister happy." - -"Oh! it would be so easy to do that, if you really wished it!" she -cried. - -"What must I do for that? I am ready to obey my sister." - -"Is that really true?" - -"Let my sister speak," said the chief. - -"The tears of a poor girl can only render a great warrior like you sad!" - -"That is truth," he remarked, mildly. - -"Restore me to my friends!" she cried, in an excited manner. - -Antinahuel drew back quite astounded, biting his lips with anger. The -Linda burst into a loud laugh. - -"You see," she said, "it is very easy for you to render her happy." - -The chief knitted his brow still more ferociously. - -"Come, brother," the Linda continued, "do not be angry; leave me to -have a moment's chat with her." - -"What to do?" the Toqui asked, impatiently. - -"Caramba! why, to explain your intentions clearly to her." - -"Well, then----" - -"Only be so kind as to observe that in nowise will I answer for -disposing her in your favour." - -"Ah! To what purpose, then, will you talk?" - -"I will undertake that, after our conversation, she shall know -perfectly what she has to expect from you with regard to herself." - -"My sister has a golden tongue--she will prevail." - -"Hum! I do not think so; nevertheless I will try, in order to make -myself agreeable," she added. - -"Very well; and during that conversation I will visit the camp." - -"Do so," said the Linda. - -Antinahuel went out, after darting at the young girl a look which made -her cast down her eyes. Left alone with Rosario, the Linda examined her -for an instant with such an expression of malignant hatred, that the -poor girl felt herself tremble. The sight of this woman produced upon -her the strange effect attributed to the look of the serpent; she felt -herself fascinated by the cold glance of the green eyes that were fixed -upon her in a manner which she could not endure. After a few minutes -the Linda said, in a cutting voice-- - -"Poor girl! Although you have been nearly a month a prisoner, can you -at all divine what induced me to have carried you off?" - -"I do not comprehend you, senora," the young lady replied, mildly; -"your words are enigmas to me; I in vain endeavour to discover their -meaning." - -"Oh! poor, innocent thing!" the courtesan replied, with a mocking -laugh; "and yet I fancy that on the night we were face to face at the -village of San Miguel, I spoke to you pretty plainly." - -"All it was possible for me to understand, senora, was, that you hate -me." - -"As the fact exists, of what importance is the reason? Yes, I hate -you, insignificant thing! But I do not even know you! While avenging -myself upon you, it is not you I hate; but the man who loves you; whose -heart is broken at your tears! But the torments I reserve for you are -nothing, if he is ignorant of them." - -"God is just, senora," the maiden replied, firmly. "I do not know what -crimes you meditate, but He will watch over me." - -"God! miserable, puny creature!" cried the Linda. "God is but a word; -He does not exist." - -"He will not fail me, senora," Dona Rosario replied. "Beware! lest soon -bowed by His powerful hand, you, in your turn, may implore His mercy in -vain." - -"Begone, miserable child; your threats only inspire me with contempt." - -"I do not threaten, senora; I am an unfortunate young girl. I only -endeavour to soften you." - -"Vain are your prayers," she added; "when my hour comes I will ask for -no more mercy than I have had for you." - -"God pardon you the evil you wish to do." - -For the second time the Linda experienced an indefinable emotion, -of which she in vain sought to explain the cause; but she fortified -herself against this secret presentiment which appeared to warn her -that her vengeance would mislead herself. - -"Listen!" she said, in a short, sharp tone; "it was I who had you -carried off, as you are aware; but you know not for what purpose, -do you? The man who has just left us, Antinahuel, the chief of the -Araucanos, is a vile wretch! He has conceived a passion for you, an -impure, monstrous passion. His mother wished to divert his mind from -this passion, and he killed his mother." - -"Oh!" the young girl exclaimed, penetrated with horror. - -"You tremble, do you not?" the Linda continued; "that man is an abject -being! He has no heart but for crime! He knows no laws but those which -his passions and vices impose upon him! Well, this hideous being--this -odious villain loves you; I tell you he is in love with you--do you -understand me?" - -"Oh, you cannot have sold me to this man!" the maiden shrieked in a -state of stupefaction. - -"I have," she replied, grinding her teeth; "and were it to be begun -again, I would do it again! Oh, you do not know what happiness I -experience in seeing you, a white dove, rolled in the mud." - -"But have you no heart, senora?" - -"No, I no longer have; it is long since it was tortured and broken by -despair." - -For a moment the maiden was overcome. - -"Pity, senora!" she cried, in a piercing tone; "oh, you have said you -had a heart once! You have loved! In the name of him you loved, have -pity--pity for me." - -"No, no pity, none was felt for me!" and she pushed her away. - -"Senora! in the name of one you have loved, pity." - -"I love nothing now but vengeance!" she cried; "it is good to hate; a -woman forgets her insults through it." - -Dona Rosario did not hear these frightful words; a prey to despair, she -continued to weep and supplicate; but the word child struck her ear; a -light flashed across her brain. - -"Oh, senora!" she cried, "I knew you were good, and that I should -succeed in softening you!" - -"What does this folly mean?" said the Linda. - -"Senora!" Rosario implored, "you have had children! you have loved -them! oh, loved them dearly!" - -"Silence, unhappy wretch!" cried the Linda; "silence; speak not to me -of my daughter!" - -"Yes," Rosario continued, "that is it; it was a daughter. Oh, you -adored her, senora!" - -"Adored my daughter!" cried the Linda, with the roar of a hyena. - -"In the name of that beloved daughter, pity!" - -The Linda broke suddenly into a frantic laugh. "Miserable fool! what a -remembrance have you evoked!--It is to avenge my daughter! my daughter! -who was stolen from me, that I wish to make of you the most unhappy of -creatures." - -Dona Rosario remained for an instant as if struck by a thunderbolt, but -looking the courtesan full in the face, said-- - -"Senora, you have no heart--be then accursed. As to me, I shall be -taught how to extricate myself from the outrages you vainly threaten me -with." - -And, with a movement as quick as thought, she snatched from the girdle -of the Linda a narrow, sharp-pointed dagger. - -The Linda sprang towards her. - -"Stop, senora," the maiden said to her, resolutely; "one step farther, -and I stab myself! Oh, I no longer fear you!" - -Dona Rosarios look was so firm, her countenance so determined, that the -Linda stopped. - -"Well," Rosario resumed, with a smile of contempt, "you no longer -triumph now; you are no longer certain of your vengeance; let the man -you threaten me with dare to approach me, and I will plunge this dagger -into my heart." - -The Linda looked at her, but made no reply; she was conquered. - -At that moment a great tumult was heard in the camp; hurried steps -approached the toldo in which the two women were. The Linda resumed her -seat, and composed her features. Dona Rosario, with a joyful smile, -concealed the dagger. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI. - -THE END OF DON RAMON'S JOURNEY. - - -In the meantime Don Ramon had left Valdivia. This time the senator -was alone--alone with his horse, a poor, lean, half-foundered beast, -which hobbled along with its head and ears down, and appeared in all -points to harmonise with the sad thoughts which doubtless occupied its -master's mind. - -The future by no means appeared to him pleasant. He had left Valdivia -under a threat of death; at every step he expected to be aimed at by -some invisible gun. Being conscious that he could not impose upon the -enemies, doubtless disseminated over his route, by any appearance -of strength or power, he determined to impose upon them by his -weakness--that is to say, he got rid of all his arms. At a few leagues -distance from Valdivia he had been passed by Joan. Don Ramon watched -him for a long time with a look of envy. - -"What happy fellows these Indians are!" he grumbled; "the desert -belongs to them. Ah!" he added, with a sigh; "if I were but at Casa -Azul." - -Casa Azul was the senator's quinta--that quinta with white walls, green -blinds, and leafy bowers, which he so much regretted having left in a -moment of silly ambition, and which he never hoped to see again. When -he passed by a wood, or along a narrow way between two mountains, he -cast terrified glances around him, and entered the suspicious passage, -murmuring-- - -"This is where they are waiting for me!" - -And when the wood was passed, and the dangerous lane cleared, instead -of felicitating himself upon being still safe and sound, he said, with -a shake of the head-- - -"Hum! the Picaros! they know very well I cannot escape them, and they -are playing with me as a cat does with a mouse." - -And yet two days had passed away without a mishap, nothing had occurred -to corroborate the senator's suspicions and uneasiness. He had that -morning crossed the ford of the Carampangne, and was drawing near to -the Bio Bio which he hoped to reach by sunset. - -But the Bio Bio had to be crossed, and there lay the difficulty. The -river has but one ford, a little above Concepcion. The senator knew it -perfectly well but a secret presentiment told him not to approach it. -Unfortunately Don Ramon had no choice, he could take no other road. - -The senator hesitated as long as Caesar did at the famous passage of -the Rubicon; at length, as there were no means of doing otherwise, Don -Ramon very unwillingly spurred on his horse, and advanced towards the -ford, recommending himself to the protection of all the saints of the -Spanish golden legend. - -The horse was tired, but the smell of the water renovated its strength, -and it cantered gaily on with the infallible instinct of these noble -beasts, without pausing in the inextricable windings which crossed -each other in the high grass. Although the river was not yet visible, -Don Ramon could hear the roaring of the waters. He was passing by, -at the moment, a dark hill, from the thickly-wooded sides of which -proceeded, at intervals, sounds which he could not make out. The animal -too, as much alarmed as its master, pricked up its ears and redoubled -its speed. Don Ramon scarcely ventured to breathe, and looked in all -directions with the greatest terror. He was close to the ford, when -suddenly a rough voice smote his ear and rendered him as motionless -as if he had been changed into a block of marble. Half a score Indian -warriors surrounded him on all sides; these warriors were commanded by -Black Stag. - -It was a strange circumstance, but when the first moment of terror -was past, the senator completely recovered himself--now that he knew -what he had to trust to, the danger which he had so long dreaded was -before him, but less terrific than he had supposed it to be. Black -Stag examined him carefully, and at length placed his hand upon the -bridle of his horse, saying, as he endeavoured to recall a half-effaced -remembrance-- - -"It seems to me that I have seen the paleface somewhere?" - -"To be sure," the senator replied; "we are old friends." - -"I am not the friend of the Huincas," the Indian said, sternly. - -"I mean," Don Ramon corrected himself, "we are old acquaintances." - -"Good! what is the Chiapla doing here?" - -"Hum!" the senator said; "I am doing nothing." - -"Let the paleface reply clearly; a chief is questioning him," Black -Stag said, frowning. - -"I ask no better," Don Ramon replied, in a conciliating tone. "Question -me." - -"Where is the paleface going?" - -"Where am I going? When you stopped me I was preparing to cross the Bio -Bio." - -"Good! And when you had crossed the Bio Bio?" - -"Oh, then I should have hastened to gain my quinta, which I am very -sorry I ever quitted." - -"Doubtless the paleface is charged with some mission?" - -"Who, I?" said the senator, in the most careless way possible; "Who do -you think would charge me with a mission?" - -"Good! Where is the necklace?" - -"What necklace do you mean?" - -"The one which you have to deliver to the chief of Concepcion." - -"Who! I?" - -"Yes, you." - -"I have none." - -"My brother speaks well: Aucas warriors are not women, they know how to -discover what is hidden." - -Any resistance was impossible, and if it had not been, Don Ramon was -not the man to have attempted it; hence he obeyed, and his horse was -led away. - -"The paleface will follow me," Black Stag commanded. - -"Hum!" said Don Ramon, "where are you going?" - -"To the Toqui and the Great Eagle of the Whites." - -"Oh, dear! oh, dear!" said Don Ramon to himself. - -The warriors led their prisoner among the coppice. After a short ascent -they arrived at the camp. General Bustamente and Antinahuel were -conversing as they walked about. - -"What have you there?" asked the general. - -"A prisoner," Black Stag replied. - -"Eh, what!" said the general, "it is my honourable friend, Don Ramon!" - -"Yes--worse luck--" - -"How can that be? Were you not seeking me?" - -"God forbid!" the senator cried. - -"Look there, now; why, then, where were you going alone thus?" - -"I was going to my own home." - -The general and Antinahuel exchanged a few words. - -"Come with us, Don Ramon," the general rejoined, "the Toqui wishes to -have some conversation." - -"With pleasure," said Don Ramon; and cursing his evil star he followed -the two men into the toldo. - -The warriors who had brought the senator remained without, to execute -the orders they might receive. - -"You said," the general continued, as soon as they were in the toldo, -"that you were going home at Casa Azul." - -"Yes, general." - -"Why that sigh? nothing that I am aware of will be opposed to the -continuation of your journey." - -"Do you mean that?" the senator exclaimed. - -"Hum! that depends entirely upon yourself." - -"How so?" - -"Deliver up to the Toqui the order which Don Tadeo de Leon has charged -you." - -"What order do you mean, general?" - -"Why, the one you probably have." - -"You are mistaken, general; I am not charged with any mission to -General Fuentes, I am sure." - -"And yet the Toqui asserts the contrary." - -"This man lies; he must have a necklace," said Antinahuel. - -"It is very easy to ascertain that." said the general, coolly. "Black -Stag, my friend, please to have this caballero suspended by the thumbs -to the next tree." - -The senator shuddered. - -"I beg you to observe," the general continued, "that we do not commit -the rudeness of searching you." - -"But I assure you I have no order." - -"Bah! and I am certain you will find one--there is nothing like being -suspended by the thumbs." - -"Come," said Black Stag. - -The senator bounded away from him with fear. - -"Well, I think I recollect----" he stammered. - -"There, you see." - -"That I am the bearer of a letter." - -"Just as I said you were." - -"But I am ignorant of its contents." - -"Caramba! that is very likely." - -"Well, to General Fuentes, I suppose. But if I give you up the paper -shall I be free?" he asked. - -"Hum! the position is changed. If you had given it up with a good grace -I could have guaranteed your freedom." - -"Still!" - -"Come, give it to me." - -"Here it is," said the senator, drawing it from his bosom. - -The general took the paper, ran his eye rapidly over it, then drawing -Antinahuel to the other extremity of the toldo, they talked together -for some minutes in a low voice. At length the general turned towards -the senator. - -"Unhappy fool!" he said, sternly; "Is it thus you betray me, after the -proofs of friendship I have given you?" - -"I assure you, general--" the other began. - -"Silence, you miserable spy!" the general replied; "You wished to sell -me to my enemies, but God has not permitted the execution of so black a -project." - -The senator was annihilated. - -"Take away this man," said Antinahuel. - -The poor wretch struggled in vain in the hands of the Indian warriors, -who seized him roughly, and dragged him out of the toldo, in spite of -his cries and tears. Black Stag led them to the foot of an enormous -espino, whose thick branches formed a wide shadow on the hill. When -they arrived there, Don Ramon made a last and powerful effort, escaped -from the hands of his surprised guards, and darted away like a madman -up the steep acclivity of the mountain. - -But this wild race lasted only a few minutes, and quite exhausted his -strength. When the Indian warriors overtook him, which they easily did, -terror had already nearly killed him. The warriors placed the noose -of a lasso round his neck, and then threw it up over the principal -branch of the espino. But he was dead when they hanged him--fright had -killed him. It was written that poor Don Ramon Sandias, the victim of a -foolish ambition, should never see Casa Azul again. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVII. - -THE AUCA-COYOG. - - -The tragical death of the senator was only the consequence of his -well-known pusillanimity. If the general had believed it possible -to place any reliance upon his word, he would have released him -immediately. - -Immediately after the execution of the senator, the heralds convened -the chiefs to a grand Auca-coyog. Thirty Ulmens and Apo-Ulmens were -quickly assembled at the place appointed. Antinahuel soon appeared, -followed by General Bustamente. Antinahuel held in his hand the letter -taken from Don Ramon, and he spoke as follows:-- - -"Ulmens, Apo-Ulmens, and chiefs of the four Uthal-mapus of the -Araucanian confederacy, I have convoked you by the heralds to -communicate to you a necklace taken from the spy who by my order has -just been put to death. This necklace will cause us to alter our -arrangements, I think, for the malocca, on account of which we have -assembled. Our ally, the Great Eagle of the Whites, will explain it to -you. Let my brother read," he added, turning towards the general. - -The latter read with a loud voice:-- - -"'MY DEAR GENERAL,--I have submitted to the council assembled at -Valdivia the objections you have thought it your duty to make on the -subject of the plan of the campaign. These objections have been found -just; consequently the following plan has been modified according to -your observations. You will continue, then, to cover the province of -Concepcion, by holding the line of the Bio Bio, which you will not -cross without fresh orders. On my side, with seven thousand men, I will -march upon Arauca, of which I will take possession and destroy. This -plan offers us the more chances of success, from the enemy being, as -we learn from trustworthy spies, in a deceitful security with regard -to our movements. The bearer of this order is a person you know, whose -nullity itself will facilitate the means of passing through the enemy's -lines. You will get rid of this individual by sending him to his home, -with an injunction not to leave it.'" - - "'Signed, - DON TADEO DE LEON,'" - "'Dictator and General-in-Chief of'" - "'the Army of Liberation." - -The reading of this despatch was listened to by the chiefs with the -deepest attention. - -"This necklace," said Antinahuel, "was traced in private characters, -which our brother the paleface has succeeded in deciphering. What do -the Ulmens think?" - -One of the ancient Toquis arose. - -"The palefaces are very cunning," he said; "they are foxes in malice -and jaguars in ferocity. This order is a snare for the good faith -of the Aucas. But Aucas warriors are wise; they will laugh at the -machinations of the Huincas, and will continue to guard the ford of the -Bio Bio. The communications of the whites are cut off, like a serpent -whose body has been divided by a stroke of the hatchet: they in vain -seek to unite the various trunks of their army, but they will not -succeed. I have spoken." - -This speech, pronounced in a firm, clear voice, by one of the most -justly respected chiefs of the nation, produced a certain effect. - -"The chief has spoken well," said the general; "I coincide entirely -with his opinion." - -Another chief then arose and spoke in his turn. - -"The whites are very cunning, as my father has said; they are foxes -without courage--they can only massacre women and children, and run -away at the sight of an Aucas warrior. But this necklace tells the -truth, and translates their thoughts literally. Chiefs, we all have -wives and children, and we ought in the first place to think of their -safety. Let us be prudent, chiefs; let us not throw ourselves into a -snare while we think we are laying one for our enemies." - -The Araucanos have a deep affection for their families; and the idea of -leaving them behind, exposed to the disasters of war, gave them great -uneasiness. General Bustamente anxiously followed the fluctuations of -the council. - -"What my brother has remarked is just, but his opinions only rest upon -an hypothesis; the whites do not employ forces in such numbers to -attempt an invasion of the Araucano territory. Let my brothers leave -in the camp a thousand resolute warriors to defend the passage, and -at nightfall cross the Bio Bio boldly, and I will answer for their -success." - -"My brother is a skilful warrior," said Antinahuel; "the plan he -proposes shows his experience. As he says, until I have proof to the -contrary, I shall believe the necklace to be a deceit; and that we -ought, this very night, to invade the territories of the whites." - -The general breathed freely; his cause, he thought, was gained. -Suddenly Black Stag entered, and took his place in the assembly. - -"What is going on?" the Toqui asked. - -"Listen!" said Black Stag, in a solemn tone; "Illecura, Borea, and -Nagotten have been given up to the flames, and the inhabitants put to -the sword; another body of troops, still more considerable than the -first, is acting in the flat country in the same manner as the other in -the maritime country." - -The most violent agitation seized on the Ulmens; nothing was heard but -cries of rage and despair. - -"What do we wait for, chiefs of the Aucas?" cried the chief who had -advised retreat, in a shrill, excited tone; "Do you not hear the cries -of your wives and children calling upon you for succour? Do you not -see the flames which are consuming your dwellings and devouring your -harvests? To arms! warriors, to arms!" - -"To arms!" the warriors yelled, rising as one man. - -Indescribable confusion followed. General Bustamente retired with death -in his heart. - -"Well!" the Linda asked, on seeing him enter, "what is going on? What -mean these cries and this frightful tumult? Have the Indians revolted?" - -"No," the general explained, "Don Tadeo, that demon, bent upon my -destruction, has disconcerted all my plans. The Indian army is about to -retreat." - -"To retreat!" the Linda cried furiously, and rushing towards -Antinahuel-- - -"What! you! you fly! you confess yourself conquered! Don Tadeo de Leon, -the executioner of your family, is marching against you, and you are -frightened! Coward! coward! put on petticoats; you are not a warrior! -you are not a man; you are an old woman." - -The Toqui put her back with disdain. - -"Woman, you are mad!" he said. "What can one man do against fate? I do -not fly from my enemy, I go to meet him." - -"My sister cannot remain here," he said, in a softened tone; "the camp -is about to be broken up." - -The poor girl followed mechanically, without reply. - -A few minutes later the camp was struck, and the Araucanos abandoned -the impregnable position. At the reiterated entreaties of Bustamente, -Antinahuel consented to leave a chosen band of eight hundred warriors -to defend the passage. - -Black Stag was a prudent warrior. As soon as the night came on, he -dispersed scouts in all directions upon the banks of the river. -Yielding, in spite of himself, to the influence produced by the report -of the spies, he had, in the first moment, advised retreat; but, upon -reflection, it was not long before he suspected a _ruse de guerre_. - -His suspicions had not deceived him. Between eleven and twelve o'clock -at night, his scouts came hastily in to warn him that a long line of -horsemen had lately left the Chilian bank, and were gliding along like -an immense serpent near the ford. Black Stag had but two hundred and -fifty warriors armed with guns, so he placed them in the first line -upon the bank, supported by his lancers. When they deemed them within -range the Araucano warriors made a discharge upon the horsemen who -were crossing the river. Several fell. At the same instant four pieces -of cannon were unmasked on the opposite bank, which spread death and -terror among the Indians. - -A strong detachment had, in the meantime, cleared the ford, and fell -upon them with the utmost fury. From that time the struggle had no -equality. The Aucas, notwithstanding their courage, were obliged to -give ground, leaving nearly two hundred dead on the banks of the river. - -The plan conceived by Don Tadeo de Leon had completely succeeded. The -army of General Fuentes had forced the passage of the Bio Bio. Thus, -thanks to the ruse employed by the dictator, the ground upon which the -quarrel was to be decided was changed, and the Aucas were forced to -defend themselves at home. Instead of invaders, as they wished to be, -they found themselves, on the contrary, the invaded; the campaign might -now be terminated by the gaining of a single battle. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVIII. - -THE HUMAN SACRIFICE. - - -The army commanded by General Fuentes was composed of two thousand -foot, eight hundred horse, and six pieces of cannon. It was an imposing -force for these countries, where the population is very small, and -where infinite pains are often required to raise an army half as -numerous. As soon as the passage was effected, and the banks cleared of -the fugitives, the general encamped his troops, resolved to give them -a few hours' repose before resuming his march to form a junction with -Don Tadeo de Leon. After giving these orders, as he was entering his -marquee, an Indian came towards him. - -"What do you want, Joan?" asked he. - -"The great chief no longer needs me; Joan wishes to return to him who -sent him." - -"You are at liberty to do as you please, my friend; but I think you had -better accompany the army." - -The Indian shook his head. - -"I promised my father to return immediately," he said. - -"Go, then; I neither can nor wish to detain you; you can report what -you have seen; a letter might compromise you in case of a surprise." - -"I will do as the great chief commands." - -"Well, good fortune attend you; but be particularly careful not to be -taken in passing the enemy's lines." - -"Joan will not be taken." - -"Farewell! then, my friend," said the general, waving his hand as he -entered his tent. - -Joan took advantage of the permission granted and left the camp without -delay. The night was dark; the moon was concealed behind thick clouds. -The Indian directed his course with difficulty in the obscurity. -He was more than once forced to retrace his steps, and to go wide -about to avoid places which he thought dangerous. He proceeded thus, -feeling his way as it were, till daybreak. At the first glimmering -of dawn he glided like a serpent through the high grass, raising his -head occasionally, and trembling in spite of himself, for he found -he had, in the darkness, stumbled upon an Indian encampment. He had, -inadvertently, got into the midst of the detachment commanded by Black -Stag, who had succeeded in collecting the remains of his troops, and -who, at that moment, formed the rearguard of the Araucanian army, whose -bivouac fires smoked on the horizon, within distance of two leagues at -the most. - -But Joan was not a man to be easily disconcerted; he noticed that -the sentinels had not yet perceived him, and he did not despair of -getting out of the scrape he had blundered into. He did not, however -deceive himself or attempt to fancy his position not critical; but as -he confronted it coolly, he resolved to do all he could to extricate -himself, and took his measures accordingly. After reflecting for a -few seconds, he crept in a direction opposite to that he had before -followed, stopping at intervals to listen. Everything went on well for -a few minutes; nothing stirred. A profound silence seemed to hover over -the country; Joan was beginning to breathe freely; in a few minutes he -should be safe. Unfortunately, at that moment chance brought Black Stag -directly before him; the vigilant chief had been making the round of -his posts. The vice-Toqui turned his horse towards him. - -"My brother must be tired; he has crept through the grass like a viper -so long," he said, with an ironical smile; "he had better change his -position." - -"That is just what I am going to do," said Joan, without displaying the -least astonishment. - -And bounding up like a panther, he leaped upon the horse behind the -chief, and seized him round the body. - -"Help!" Black Stag cried, in a loud voice. - -"One word more and you are a dead man!" Joan whispered in a threatening -tone. - -But it was too late; the chief's cry of alarm had been heard, and a -crowd of warriors hastened to his succour. - -"Cowardly dog!" said Joan, who saw his chance was gone, but who did not -yet despair; "die then!" He plunged his poisoned dagger between his -shoulders and cast him onto the ground, where the chief writhed in the -agonies of death, and expired as if struck by thunderbolt. Joan lifted -his horse with his knees and dashed full speed against the Indians who -barred his passage. This attempt was a wild one. A warrior armed with a -gun took a steady aim, the horse rolled upon the ground, with its skull -crushed, and dragging its rider with it in the fall. Twenty warriors -rushed upon Joan, and bound him before he could make a movement to -defend himself. But he had time to conceal the dagger, which the -Indians did not even think of looking for, as they did not know what -weapon he had employed. - -The death of Black Stag, one of the most respected warriors of the -nation, threw the Araucanos into a state of consternation. An Ulmen -immediately took the command in his place, and Joan and a Chilian -soldier captured in the preceding combat, were sent together to the -camp of Antinahuel. The latter felt great regret at receiving the news -of the death of Black Stag; it was more than a friend he had lost, it -was a right arm! - -Antinahuel, in order to reanimate the courage of his people, resolved -to make an example, and sacrifice the prisoners to Guecubu, the genius -of evil--a sacrifice which we must admit is becoming more and more rare -among the Aucas, but to which they have recourse sometimes when they -wish to strike their enemies with terror, and to prove that they mean -to carry on a war without mercy. Time pressed, the army must continue -its march, therefore Antinahuel determined that the sacrifice should -take place at once. - -At some distance beyond the camp the principal Ulmens and warriors -formed a circle, in the centre of which was planted the Toqui's -hatchet. The prisoners were brought thither. They were not bound, but -in derision were mounted upon a horse without ears and without a tail. -Joan, as the more culpable, was to be sacrificed last, and witness the -death of his companion as a foretaste. But if at that fatal moment -everything seemed to have abandoned the valiant Indian, he had not -abandoned himself. - -The Chilian prisoner was a rough soldier, well acquainted with -Araucanian manners, who knew perfectly what fate awaited him. He was -placed near the hatchet, with his face turned toward the Chilian -frontiers. They made him dismount from his horse, placed in his hands -a bundle of small rods and a pointed stick, with which they obliged -him to dig a trench, in which to plant one after the other the little -wands, while pronouncing the names of the Araucano warriors he had -killed in the course of his long career. To every name the soldier -pronounced, he added some cutting speech addressed to his enemies who -replied to him by horrible execrations. When all the wands were planted -Antinahuel approached. - -"The Huinca is a brave warrior," said Antinahuel; "he will fill up this -trench with earth in order that the glory and valour of which he has -given proofs during his life may remain buried in this place." - -"So be it!" said the soldier; "but you will soon see that the Chilians -possess more valiant soldiers." - -And he carelessly threw the earth into the trench. This terminated, -the Toqui made him a sign to place himself close to the hatchet; the -soldier obeyed. Antinahuel raised his club and crushed his skull. -The poor wretch fell, but was not quite dead, and he struggled -convulsively. Two machis immediately sprang upon him, opened his breast -and tore out his heart, which they presented, palpitating as it was, to -the Toqui. The latter sucked the blood, and then passed the heart to -the Ulmens, who followed his example. - -In the meantime, the crowd of warriors seized upon the carcass, which -they cut to pieces in a few minutes, reserving the bones to make war -whistles of. They then placed the head of the prisoner on a pike, and -danced round it to the sound of a frightful song, accompanied by the -pipes made from the bones. - -Joan's eye and ear were on the watch at the moment when this frightful -saturnalia were at their apogee, he judged the time propitious, turned -his horse, and fled as fast as he could. A few minutes confusion -ensued, of which Joan took full advantage; but the Araucanos hastened -to pursue him. He soon perceived that the distance between him and his -enemies rapidly diminished. He was passing by the side of a hill, whose -steep ascent could not be climbed by horses, and with the quickness of -conception peculiar to brave men he divined that this would be his only -chance of safety. He guided his horse so as, in a manner, to brush the -hill, and get upright in his saddle. The Araucanos came up, uttering -loud cries. All at once, seizing a strong branch of a tree, he sprang -from his saddle, and climbed up the branch with the velocity of a tiger -cat. The warriors shouted with rage and astonishment at beholding this -extraordinary feat. - -Nevertheless, the Araucanos had by no means given up all hopes of -retaking their prisoner. They left their horses at the foot of the -mountain, and half a score of the most zealous and active set off -upon Joan's track. But the latter had now some space in advance. He -continued to mount, clinging by feet and hands, and only stopping when -nature commanded to take breath. - -But he found that a longer struggle would be useless; that at length he -was really lost. - -The Araucanos came up panting from their long run, brandishing their -lances and clubs with cries of triumph. They were not more than fifty -paces from him at the most. At this awful moment Joan heard a voice -whisper-- - -"Lower your head!" - -He obeyed, without thinking of what was going on around him, or of -whence this recommendation could come. The sound of four shots rattled -sharply in his ears, and four Indian warriors rolled lifeless on the -ground before him. Restored to himself by this unhoped-for succour, -Joan bounded forward and stabbed one of his adversaries, whilst four -fresh shots stretched four more upon the earth. - -Joan was saved! He looked around him to ascertain to whom he owed his -life. Valentine, Louis, and the two Indian chiefs stood beside him. -These were the four friends who, watching from a distance the camp of -the Araucanos, had witnessed the desperate flight of Joan, and had come -bravely to his aid. - -"Well, Joan, old fellow!" said Valentine, laughing, "you have had a -narrow escape!" - -"Thanks!" said Joan, warmly; "I shall not forget." - -"I think we should act wisely if we now placed ourselves in safety," -Louis observed. - -"Don Louis is right." said Trangoil-Lanec. - -The five men plunged into the woods of the mountain; but they had no -occasion to dread an attack. Antinahuel, upon hearing the reports which -the warriors who had escaped the Frenchmen's rifles gave of the number -of enemies they had to combat, was persuaded that the position was -occupied by a strong detachment of the Chilian army: consequently, he -struck his camp, and went away in one direction, whilst the adventurers -escaped in another. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIX. - -THE KING OF DARKNESS. - - -Don Tadeo de Leon had manoeuvred with the greatest skill and -promptitude: supporting his left upon the sea, and pivoting upon -Arauca, the capital of the confederation, he had extended his right -along the mountains, so as to cut off the communications of the enemy, -who, by his junction with General Fuentes, found themselves placed -between two fires. - -Antinahuel, deceived by the false message found on Don Ramon, had -committed the unpardonable fault of raising his camp of the Bio Bio, -and thus leaving a free passage for General Fuentes. General Bustamente -had viewed with despair the faults his ally had committed, faults which -the latter would not allow till it was too late to remedy. - -Dona Maria, the woman who had been his evil genius, abandoned him now. -The Linda, faithful to her hatred, only thought of one thing--to make -Dona Rosario suffer as much as she could. - -Antinahuel had endeavoured to throw himself into the mountains, but all -his efforts had been in vain, and he had only obtained the result he -wished to avoid--that is to say, he had placed himself between three -_corps d'armee_, which, by degrees, closed round him, and had ended by -placing him in the annoying obligation of fighting upon ground which it -pleased the enemy to choose instead of in his own country, Don Gregorio -Peralta closed up his passage towards the sea; Don Tadeo de Leon on the -side of the Arauca; whilst General Fuentes defended the approach to the -mountains. - -All the marches and counter-marches which led to this result had -lasted a fortnight. Don Tadeo was anxious to strike a great blow, and -terminate the war in a single battle. On the day with which we resume -the course of our narrative, the Araucanos and Chilians were at length -in presence: Don Tadeo de Leon, shut up in his tent with Don Gregorio, -General Fuentes, and several other superior officers of his staff, was -giving them his last orders, when a summons of trumpets was heard from -without. The Chilians immediately replied; an aide-de-camp entered the -tent, and announced that the Grand Toqui of the Araucanos demanded an -interview. - -"Do not go, Don Tadeo," said General Fuentes; "it is nothing but some -villainy these demons have planned." - -"I am not of your opinion, general," the dictator replied. "I ought, as -leader, to seek every means of preventing the effusion of blood; that -is my duty, and nothing will make me fail in it." - -"Caspita!" said Don Gregorio, "you wish to prevent our taking them in -spite of you." - -The place chosen for the conference was a small eminence, situated -between the two camps. A Chilian flag and an Araucanian flag were -planted at twenty paces from each other; at the foot of these flags -forty Aucas lancers on the one side, and a similar number of Chilian -soldiers placed themselves. When these diverse precautions were taken, -Don Tadeo, followed by two aides-de-camp advanced toward Antinahuel, -who came to meet him with two Ulmens. When they arrived near their -respective soldiers, the two leaders ordered their officers to wait for -them, and met in the space left free for them. Antinahuel was the first -to break the silence. - -"The Aucas know and venerate my father," he said, bowing courteously; -"they know that he is good, and loves his Indian children. A cloud has -arisen between him and his sons; is it impossible to dissipate it?" - -"Chief," said Don Tadeo, "the whites have always protected the Indians. -Often have they given them arms to defend themselves with, corn to feed -them, and warm clothing to cover them in winter. But the Araucanos are -ungrateful--when the evil is past they forget the service rendered. -Why have they today taken up arms against the whites? Let the chief -reply in his turn; I am ready to hear all he can advance in his -defence." - -"The chief will not defend himself," Antinahuel said, deferentially; -"he acknowledges his errors; he is convinced of them; he is ready to -accept the conditions it shall please his white father to impose." - -"Tell me, in the first place, what conditions you offer, chief; I shall -see if they are just." - -Antinahuel hesitated, and then said-- - -"My father knows that his Indian sons are ignorant. A great chief -of the whites presented himself to them; he offered them immense -territories, much pillage, and fair women if the Araucanos would -consent to defend his interests. The Indians are children; they allowed -themselves to be seduced by this man who deceived them." - -"Very well," said Don Tadeo. - -"The Indians," Antinahuel continued, "are ready, if my father desires -it, to give up to him this man." - -"Chief," replied Don Tadeo, with indignation, "are these the proposals -you have to make me? What! Do you pretend to expiate one treachery by -committing one still greater and more odious? The Araucanian people -are a chivalrous people, unacquainted with treachery: not one of your -companions can have possibly suggested anything so infamous; you alone, -chief, you alone must have conceived it!" - -Antinahuel knitted his brows; but quickly resuming his Indian -impassiveness, he said-- - -"I have been wrong; my father will pardon me: I wait to hear the -condition he will impose." - -"The conditions are these: the Araucanian army will lay down their -arms, the two women who are in their camp will be placed this very day -in my hands, the Grand Toqui, and twelve of the principal Apo-Ulmens, -shall remain as hostages at Santiago, until I think proper to send them -back." - -A smile, of disdain curled the thin lips of Antinahuel. - -"Will my father not impose less harsh conditions?" - -"No," Don Tadeo answered, firmly. - -The Toqui drew himself up proudly. - -"We are ten thousand warriors resolved to die; my father must not drive -us to despair," he said. - -"Tomorrow that army will have fallen under the blows of my soldiers, -like corn beneath the sickle of the reaper." - -"Listen, you who impose such arrogant conditions upon me," the chief -replied; "do you know who I am--I who have humbled myself before you?" - -"Of what consequence is it to me? I will retire." - -"One instant more! I am the great-grandson of the Toqui Cadegual; a -hereditary hatred divides us; I have sworn to kill you, dog! rabbit! -thief!" - -And, with a movement as quick as thought, he drew out his hand, and -struck Don Tadeo with a dagger full in the breast. But the arm of the -assassin was seized and dislocated by the iron-muscled hand of the King -of Darkness, and the weapon was broken like glass against the cuirass -which he had put on under his clothes, to guard against treachery. - -"Do not fire!" he said to the soldiers; "the wretch is sufficiently -punished, since his execrable project has failed. Go back, assassin!" -he added, contemptuously; "return and hide your shame among your -warriors. Begone, unclean dog!" - -Without saying a word more, Don Tadeo turned his back and regained his -camp. - -"Oh!" Antinahuel said, stamping with rage, "all is not ended yet! -Tomorrow I shall have my turn." - -"Well," Don Pancho asked, as soon as he saw him, "what have you -obtained?" - -Antinahuel gave him an ironical glance. - -"What have I obtained?" he replied; "that man has baffled me." - -"Tomorrow we will fight," said the general. "Who knows? All is not lost -yet." - -"Who knows?" the chief exclaimed, violently; "Tomorrow, if it costs me -all my warriors, that man shall be in my power!" - -Without condescending to give any further explanation, the Toqui shut -himself up in his toldo with some of his chiefs. - -Don Tadeo returned to his tent. - -"Well!" cried General Fuentes, "I told you to beware of treachery!" - -"You are right, general," the dictator replied, with a smile. "But the -wretch is punished." - -"No," the old soldier retorted, somewhat angrily; "when we meet with a -viper in our path, we crush it without mercy beneath the heel of our -boot; if we did not, it would rise and bite the imprudent man who had -spared it or disdained it." - -"Come, come, general!" Don Tadeo said, gaily; "you are a bird of -ill-omen. Think no more about the wretch, other cares call upon us." - -The general shook his head with an air of doubt, and went to visit the -outposts. - - - - -CHAPTER XXX. - -THE BATTLE OF CONDERKANKI. - - -It was the fourth of October. - -The Araucano warriors came out proudly from their entrenchments, and -drew up in order of battle to the sound of their warlike instruments. -The Araucanos have a system of battle from which they never deviate: -this unchangeable order is as follows: the cavalry form the two wings, -and the infantry is in the centre, divided by battalions. The ranks of -these battalions are by turns composed of men armed with pikes and men -armed with clubs, so that between two pikes there is always one club. -The vice-Toqui commands the right wing, an Apo-Ulmen the left wing. As -to the Toqui, he flies to all points, exhorting the troops to fight -courageously for liberty. - -The Araucanian army, drawn up as we have described, had an imposing and -martial appearance. All these warriors knew they were supporting a lost -cause, that they were marching to an almost certain death, and yet they -waited impassively, their eyes burning with ardour for the signal for -battle. Antinahuel, with his right arm tied down to his body by leather -strap, brandishing a heavy club in his left hand, mounted a magnificent -courser, as black as jet, which he governed with his knees, and rode -through the ranks of his warriors. - -Before leaving the camp, General Bustamente exchanged a few words with -the Linda. Their short conversation ended with these words, which did -not fail to make an impression upon the woman's heart-- - -"Farewell, senora!" he said, in a melancholy voice; "I am going to -die--thanks to the bad influence you have exercised over me--in the -ranks of those to whom my duty orders me to be opposed! I am going to -die the death of a traitor, hated and despised by all! I pardon you the -evil you have done me. Repent!--there is still time! Farewell!" - -He coldly bowed to the dejected Dona Maria, and rejoined the troop. - -The Chilian army was formed in squares of echelons. - -At the instant Don Tadeo was leaving his tent he uttered an exclamation -of joy at beholding two men. - -"Don Louis! Don Valentine!" he exclaimed; "you here?" - -"Faith! yes, here we are," Valentine replied, laughing; "Caesar and -all, who has a great inclination to taste an Araucano; haven't you, old -dog?" he said. - -"We thought," said the count, "that on a day like this you could not -have too many of your friends round you; we have left the two chiefs -concealed in the woods a short distance off, and have come to you." - -"I thank you. You will not leave me, I hope." - -"Pardieu! we came on purpose to stick to you." - -Don Tadeo ordered each to be furnished with a superb charger, and all -three set off at a gallop to place themselves in the centre square. - -The plain of Conderkanki, into which Don Tadeo had at length succeeded -in driving the Indians, has the form of an immense triangle. The -Araucanos occupied the summit of the triangle, and found themselves -hemmed in between the sea and the mountains. - -"Well," Valentine asked Don Tadeo, "is not the battle going to begin?" - -"Directly," the latter replied, "and be assured you will find it sharp -enough." - -The dictator then raised his sword. The drums beat, the bugles sounded -the charge, and the Chilian army advanced at quick step. The signal -being given, the Araucanos advanced in their turn resolutely, uttering -frightful yells. As soon as their enemies were within a proper distance -the Chilian lines opened--a discharge of artillery roared forth its -thunders, and swept the front ranks of the Araucanos; then the squares -as suddenly closed, and the soldiers waited in their ranks, with -bayonets at charge. - -The shock was terrible. The Aucas, decimated by the artillery which -ploughed their ranks, front, flank, and rear, faced about on all -sides at once, and rushed with fury upon the Chilian bayonets. As -soon as the first rank succumbed beneath the bullets, the second and -third resolutely replaced it. And yet the savage warriors retained -self-command in all their eagerness; they followed with exactness and -rapidity the orders of their Ulmens, and executed with the greatest -regularity the various evolutions which were commanded. - -In spite of the close discharges of the musketry which cut them to -pieces, they rushed headlong upon the front ranks of the Chilians, and -at length attacked them hand to hand. The Chilian cavalry then dashed -in, and charged them to the very centre. - -But General Bustamente had foreseen this movement. On his side he -executed the same manoeuvre, so that the two bodies of cavalry came in -contact with a noise like thunder. Calm and cool at the head of his -squadron, the general charged. - -As Don Tadeo had predicted to Valentine, the battle was rudely -contested along the whole line; the Araucanos, with their tenacity -which nothing can repel, and their contempt of death, allowed -themselves to be slaughtered by the Chilian bayonets without yielding. -Antinahuel was in the van of his warriors, animating them with his -gestures and his voice. - -"What men!" the count could not refrain from exclaiming; "what mad -rashness!" - -"Is it not?" Don Tadeo replied; "They are demons." - -"Pardieu!" Valentine cried. "What brave soldiers! Why, they will all be -killed if they go on so." - -"All!" Don Tadeo replied. - -The principal efforts of the Araucanians were directed against the -square where the general-in-chief was, surrounded by his staff. There -the fight was changed into a butchery; firearms had become useless, -bayonets, hatchets, sabres, and clubs furrowed breasts and crushed -skulls. Antinahuel looked around him. His followers were falling like -ears of ripe corn; the forest of bayonets which barred their passage -must be broken through at all hazards. - -"Aucas!" he cried, in a voice of thunder "forward!" - -With a movement rapid as thought, he lifted his horse, made it plunge, -and hurled it upon the front ranks of the enemy. The breach was opened -by this stroke of extraordinary audacity; the warriors rushed in after -him. A frightful carnage ensued--a tumult impossible to be described! -With every blow a man fell. The Aucas had plunged like a wedge into the -square, and had broken it. - -"Well," Don Tadeo asked of Valentine, "what do you think of these -adversaries?" - -"They are more than men!" he answered. - -"Forward, forward! Chili! Chili!" Don Tadeo shouted, urging on his -horse. - -Followed by about fifty men, among whom were the two Frenchmen, he -plunged into the thickest of the enemy's ranks. Don Gregorio and -General Fuentes had divined from the persistency with which the -Araucanos attacked the great square that their object was to take -the general-in-chief prisoner. Therefore, they had hastened their -movements, effected their junction, and enclosed the Aucas within a -circle of steel. - -At a glance Antinahuel perceived the critical position in which he was -placed. He shouted to Bustamente a cry of anxious appeal. He also was -aware of the dangerous position of the Indian army. - -"Let us save our warriors," he shouted. - -"We will save them," the Indians howled. - -All at once the general found himself immediately opposed to the -squadron commanded by Don Tadeo. - -"Oh!" he cried, "I shall die at last." - -From the commencement of the action Joan had fought by the side of Don -Tadeo, who, intent upon his duties as leader, often neglected to parry -the blows aimed at him; but the brave Indian parried them for him, and -seemed to multiply himself for the sake of protecting the man he had -sworn to defend. Joan instinctively divined the intention of General -Bustamente. - -"Oh!" the general shouted; "my God, I thank thee. I shall not die by -the hand of a brother." - -Joan's horse came full in contact with that of the general. - -"Ah! ah!" the latter murmured, "you also are a traitor to your country; -you also are fighting against your brothers. Die, wretch!" - -And he aimed a heavy sabre stroke at the Indian. But Joan avoided it, -and seized the general round the body. The two horses, abandoned to -themselves, and rendered furious by the noise of the battle, dragged -along the two men, who clung to each other like serpents. This furious -struggle could not last long, and both men rolled on the ground. They -disengaged themselves from their stirrups, and instantly stood face to -face. After a contest of skill for a few minutes, the general, who was -an expert swordsman, succeeded in planting a sabre cut which cleft the -skull of the Indian; but before falling Joan collected his strength, -and threw himself headlong upon his antagonist, who was surprised -by this unexpected attack, and plunged his poisoned dagger into his -breast. The two enemies staggered for a moment, and then fell, side by -side--dead! - - - - -CHAPTER XXXI. - -CONQUEROR AND PRISONER. - - -On seeing General Bustamente fall, the Chilians uttered a loud cry of -triumph. - -"Poor Joan!" Valentine murmured, as he cleft the skull of an Indian; -"poor Joan! he was a brave, faithful fellow." - -"His death was a glorious one," Louis replied. - -"By dying thus bravely," Don Tadeo observed, "Joan has rendered us a -last service. - -"Bah!" Valentine philosophically rejoined, "he is happy. Must we not -all die, one day or another?" - -Valentine was in his element; he had never been present at such a -festival, he absolutely fought with pleasure. - -"Pardieu! we did wisely in quitting France," he said, "there is nothing -like travelling." - -Louis laughed heartily at hearing him moralize. - -"You seem to be enjoying yourself, brother," he said. - -"Prodigiously." Valentine replied. - -His courage was so great, so audacious, so spontaneous, that the -Chilians looked at him with admiration, and felt themselves electrified -by his example. Caesar, covered by his master with a kind of cuirass -of leather and armed with an enormous collar edged with steel points, -inspired the Indians with the greatest terror--they knew not what to -make of such a creature. - -The battle raged as fiercely as ever; both Chilians and Araucanos -fought upon heaps of carcases. The Indians gave up all hopes of -conquering, but they did not even think of flying; resolved all to die, -they determined to sell their lives as dearly as possible, and fought -with the terrible despair of brave men who neither expect nor ask for -quarter. The Chilian army drew nearer and nearer around them. A few -minutes more and the Araucano army would have ceased to exist. - -Antinahuel shed tears of rage; he felt his heart bursting in his breast -at seeing his dearest companions thus fall around him. All these men, -the victims of the ambition of their chief, died without a complaint, -without a reproach. Suddenly a smile of strange character curled his -thin lips; he beckoned to the Ulmens, who were fighting near him, and -exchanged a few words. - -After making a sign of acquiescence in reply to the orders they had -received, the Ulmens immediately regained their respective posts, and -during some minutes the battle continued to rage with the same fury. -But all at once a mass of fifteen hundred Indians simultaneously rushed -with inexpressible force against the centre squadron, in which Don -Tadeo fought, and enveloped it on all sides. - -"Caramba!" shouted Valentine, "we are surrounded! Mon Dieu! we must -disengage ourselves, or these demons will cut us up." - -And he dashed headlong into the thickest of the combatants, followed by -the rest of his party. After a hot struggle of three or four minutes, -they were safe and sound outside of the fatal circle. - -"Hum!" said Valentine, "rather sharp work. But, thank God, here we are." - -"Yes," the count replied, "we have had a narrow escape! But where is -Don Tadeo?" - -"That is true," Valentine observed. "Oh," he added, striking his brow -with anger, "I see it all now. Quick, to the rescue!" - -The two young men placed themselves at the head of the horsemen who -accompanied them, and rode back furiously into the _melee_. They soon -perceived the person they were in search of; Don Tadeo, supported by -only four or five men, was fighting desperately. - -"Hold out! hold out!" Valentine shouted. - -"We are here! Courage, we are here!" the count cried. - -Their voices reached Don Tadeo, and he smiled. - -"Thanks," he replied despondingly; "but all is useless. I am lost." - -"Caramba!" said Valentine, biting his moustache with rage; "I will save -him, or perish with him." - -And he redoubled his efforts. In vain the Aucas warriors opposed his -passage, every stroke of his sabre cut down a man. At length the -impetuosity of the two Frenchmen prevailed over the courage of the -Indians, and they penetrated into the circle--Don Tadeo had disappeared. - -All at once, the Indian army, feeling, no doubt, the impossibility of -maintaining a longer contest with superior forces which threatened to -annihilate them, dispersed. - -The victory of the Chilians was brilliant, and, probably, for a long -time the Araucanos would have no inclination to recommence a war. -Of ten thousand warriors who had formed their line of battle, the -Indians had left seven thousand on the field. General Bustamente, the -instigator of this war, was killed; his body was found with the dagger -still sticking in his breast; and, strange coincidence! The pommel of -the dagger bore the distinctive sign of the Dark Hearts. - -The results obtained by the winning of this battle were immense. -Unfortunately, these results were lessened, if not compromised, by a -public disaster of immense consequence, which was the disappearance, -and perhaps the death, of Don Tadeo de Leon, the only man whose energy -and severity of principles could save the country. The Chilian army in -the midst of its triumph was plunged in grief. - -The army encamped upon the field of battle; Valentine, the count, and -Don Gregorio, passed the whole night in searching amongst this immense -charnel house, upon which the vultures had already fallen with hideous -cries of joy. The three men had the courage to lift and examine heaps -of carcases; but all without success, they could not find the body of -their friend. - -The next morning at daybreak the army set forward on its march towards -the Bio Bio, to re-enter Chili. It took with it, as hostages, thirty -Ulmens. - -"Come with us," said Don Gregorio; "now our friend is dead, you can -have nothing more to do." - -"I am not of your opinion," Valentine replied; "I do not think Don -Tadeo is dead." - -"What makes you suppose that?" Don Gregorio asked; "have you any -proofs?" - -"Unfortunately, none." - -"And yet you must have some reason?" - -"Why, yes, I have one." - -"Then tell it me." - -"I am afraid it will appear futile to you." - -"Well, but tell it me, nevertheless." - -"Well, since you insist upon it, I must confess that I feel a secret -presentiment." - -"Upon what do you ground that supposition? You are too intelligent to -jest." - -"You only do me justice. I perceived the absence of Don Tadeo. I went -back again, in quick time. Don Tadeo, though closely pressed, was -fighting vigorously, and I shouted out to him to stand his ground." - -"And did he hear you?" - -"Certainly he did, for he answered me. I redoubled my efforts--he had -disappeared, and left no traces behind." - -"And you thence conclude--" - -"That his numerous enemies seized him and carried him off." - -"But who can tell whether, after having killed him, they have not -carried away the body?" - -"Why should they do that? Don Tadeo dead, could only inconvenience -them, whereas, as prisoner, they probably hope that by restoring him to -liberty. Or perhaps, by threatening to kill him, they will have their -hostages given up." - -Don Gregorio was struck with the justness of this reasoning. - -"It is possible," he replied; "there is a great deal of truth in what -you say--what do you mean to do?" - -"A very simple thing, my friend. In the environs are concealed two -Indian chiefs." - -"Well?" - -"These men are devoted to Louis and me, and they will serve us as -guides." - -Don Gregorio looked at him for an instant in deep emotion, and tears -glistened in his eyes; he took the young man's hand pressed it warmly, -and said, in a voice tremulous with tenderness-- - -"Don Valentine, pardon me I did not know you; I have not appreciated -your heart at its just value. Don Valentine, will you permit me to -embrace you?" - -"With all my heart, my brave friend," the young man replied. - -"Then you are going?" Don Gregorio resumed. - -"Immediately." - -"Come on," said Valentine to his foster brother, as he whistled to -Caesar and clapped spurs to his horse. - -"I am with you," Louis replied, promptly. - -And they set off. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXII. - -AFTER THE BATTLE. - - -For some time the young men followed at a distance the march of the -Chilian army, which advanced slowly, though in good order, towards the -Bio Bio. They crossed, at a foot's pace, the plain where the day before -the sanguinary battle had been fought between the Indians and the -Chilians. - -"Why do we not hasten to quit this accursed place?" Valentine asked. - -"We have a duty to fulfil," Louis replied solemnly. - -"A duty to fulfil?" said Valentine. - -"Yes," the young me continued, "would you leave our poor Joan without -sepulture?" - -"Thank you for having reminded me of it; oh, you are better than I am, -you forget nothing." - -"Do not calumniate yourself." - -In a short time they arrived at the spot where Joan and General -Bustamente had fallen. The foster brothers remained for a few instants, -drew their sabres and dug a deep hole, in which they buried the two -enemies. - -"Farewell!" said Valentine. "Farewell, Joan! Sleep in peace, at the -spot where you valiantly fought; the remembrance of you will not be -easily effaced." - -"Farewell, Joan!" said the count, in his turn. "Sleep in peace, good -friend." - -Caesar had watched with intelligent attention the movements of his -masters; at this moment he placed his forepaws upon the grave, smelt -the earth, and then gave two lugubrious howls. - -The young men felt their spirits very much depressed; they remounted -their horses silently, and after having taken one last farewell look at -the spot where the brave Araucano lay, they departed. - -They had by degrees diverged a little towards the right to get nearer -to the mountains and were following a narrow path traced along the -rather sharp descent of a wooded hill. Caesar suddenly pricked up his -ears, and sprang forward, wagging his tail. - -"We are getting near," said Louis. - -"Yes," Valentine replied, laconically. - -They soon reached a place where the path formed a bend, round which -the Newfoundland disappeared. After passing this elbow, the Frenchmen -suddenly found themselves in front of a fire, before which a quarter -of a guanaco was roasting; two men, reclined upon the grass at a short -distance, were smoking comfortably, whilst Caesar, gravely seated on -his tail, followed with a jealous eye the progress of the cooking of -the guanaco. These two men were Curumilla and Trangoil-Lanec. At the -sight of their friends, the Frenchmen dismounted. Valentine led the -horses up to those of the Indians, hobbled them, unsaddled them, and -gave them some provender; then he took his place by the fire. Not a -word had been exchanged between the four men. - -"Well?" Trangoil-Lanec asked, at length. - -"The battle has been a fierce one," Valentine replied. - -"I know it has," said the Indian, shaking his head; "the Araucanos are -conquered; I saw them flying." - -"They supported a bad cause," observed Curumilla. - -"They are our brothers," Trangoil-Lanec said. - -Curumilla bowed his head at this reproach. - -"He who placed arms in their hands is dead," said Valentine. - -"Good! And does my brother know the name of the warrior who killed him?" - -"Yes, I know it," Valentine said mournfully. - -"Let my brother tell me that name that I may keep it in my memory." - -"Joan, our friend, killed that man." - -"That is true," said Curumilla; "but why is not Joan here?" - -"My brothers will never see Joan again," said Valentine. - -The two chiefs exchanged a look of sorrow. - -"He had a noble heart," they murmured. - -"Yes," added Valentine; "and he was a friend." - -A short silence ensued; then the two chiefs suddenly rose and went -towards their horses, without speaking a word. - -"Where are our brothers going?" the count asked. - -"To give sepulture to a warrior; the body of Joan must not become the -prey of urubus," Trangoil-Lanec replied, gravely. - -"My brothers can take their places again," Louis said. - -The chiefs re-seated themselves silently. - -"Do Trangoil-Lanec and Curumilla know their brothers so ill," Louis -continued, "as to suppose they would leave the body of a friend without -sepulture? Joan was buried by us before we rejoined our brothers." - -"Good!" said Trangoil-Lanec. - -"The Muruches are not Huincas," Curumilla said. - -"But a great misfortune has happened to us," Louis continued -sorrowfully; "Don Tadeo, our dearest friend--" - -"Well?" Curumilla interrupted. - -"He is dead," said Valentine; "he was killed in the battle yesterday." - -"Is my brother certain of what he states?" - -"At least I suppose so, as his body has not been found." - -"Let my brothers be consoled," said the Ulmen; "the Great Eagle of the -Whites is not dead." - -"Does the chief know that?" the two young men exclaimed in a breath. - -"I do know it," replied Trangoil-Lanec. "Let my brothers listen. -Curumilla and I are chiefs in our tribe; if our opinions prevented us -from fighting for Antinahuel, they prevented us also from bearing arms -against our nation. Our friends wished to go and join the Great Eagle; -we left them to act as they pleased. They wished to protect a friend; -they were right. We allowed them to go; but after their departure we -thought of the young maiden of the palefaces, and we reflected that if -the Aucas lost the battle, the maiden, according to the orders of the -Toqui, would be the first placed in safety; in consequence we squatted -among the bushes by the side of the road which, according to all -probability, the mosotones would take when flying with their charge. -The battle lasted long; as they always do, the Aucas died bravely." - -"You may justly be proud of them, chief," Valentine exclaimed warmly. - -"For that reason they are called Aucas--free men," replied -Trangoil-Lanec. - -"Suddenly a noise like thunder struck our ears, and between twenty and -thirty mosotones passed by us like the wind. They took with them two -women; one was the viper face, and the other the blue-eyed maiden." - -"Oh!" the count exclaimed. - -"A few minutes later," Trangoil-Lanec continued, "another troop, much -more numerous than the first, arrived with equal swiftness; this was -led by Antinahuel in person." - -"He is wounded," Valentine observed. - -"By his side galloped the Great Eagle of the Whites." - -"Was he wounded?" Louis asked, anxiously. - -"No, he carried himself upright." - -"Oh! if he is not dead, we will save him." - -"Save him? Yes, Don Valentine." - -"When shall we take the track?" - -"At daybreak. We will save the daughter, and we will deliver the -father," said Trangoil-Lanec. - -"Good, chief," Valentine replied with delight; "I am happy to hear you -speak so; all is not lost yet." - -"Far from it," said the Ulmen. - -"Now, my brothers, that we feel reassured," Louis observed, "if you -will take my advice, we will enjoy a few hours of repose." - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIII. - -FIRST HOURS OF CAPTIVITY. - - -Trangoil-Lanec had not been deceived, it was really Don Tadeo whom -he had seen galloping by the side of the Toqui. The King of Darkness -was not dead, he was not even wounded, but he was the prisoner of -Antinahuel. - -After Don Tadeo saw his faithful followers fall one after the other -by his side, and he was left alone, he still continued fighting. It -was then that he heard the cries of encouragement from Valentine and -the count. Antinahuel had also heard the shouts of the Frenchmen, and -on seeing the incredible efforts they made to succour their friend, -he perceived that if he delayed the capture, his prey would escape -him; hence he tore off his poncho and threw it skilfully over the head -of Don Tadeo, who, blinded and embarrassed in the folds of the ample -woollen vestment, was disarmed. - -Antinahuel, whilst flying with the swiftness of an arrow, contrived to -rally around him a good number of horsemen, so that at the end of about -twenty minutes, he found himself at the head of five hundred warriors. -The Toqui formed of these warriors a compact squadron, and turning -round several times, like a tiger pursued by the hunters, he charged -the Chilian horse vigorously. When arrived at a certain distance, and -the conquerors had renounced the pursuit, he stopped to look after his -prisoner, and allow his troop to take breath. - -Since his capture Don Tadeo had given no signs of life, and Antinahuel -feared with reason that, deprived of air, and shaken by the rapidity -and roughness of the course, he should find him in a dangerous state. -He hastened to untie the lasso, the numerous twists of which cut the -prisoner in all parts of his body, and then took off the poncho which -covered him--Don Tadeo had fainted. Want of air alone caused this -result, so that as soon as he breathed freely he opened his eyes. At -this happy result a smile of indefinable meaning lighted the features -of the Toqui for a second. - -Don Tadeo cast around a look of astonishment, and appeared to sink into -deep reflection; memory, however, returned by degrees, he recollected -what had taken place, and how he came into the hands of the chief. He -rose crossed his arms upon his breast, and looking steadfastly at the -great chief--waited. - -"Does my father feel himself better?" - -"Yes," Don Tadeo replied laconically. - -"Can we then set on again?" - -"Is it for me to give you orders?" - -"If my father were not sufficiently recovered to sit on horseback we -would wait a little." - -"Oh, oh!" said Don Tadeo. - -"I should be very sorry if any inconvenience befell my father." - -Don Tadeo shrugged his shoulders disdainfully, and Antinahuel resumed-- - -"We are about to depart; will my father give me his word of honour not -to attempt to escape? If he do so, I will allow him to be free amongst -us." - -"Will you have faith in my word?" - -"I am but a poor Indian, my father is a caballero." - -"Before I reply, tell me whither you are taking me." - -"I am taking my father to the country of the Puelches, my brothers." - -A feeling of joy rushed into the prisoner's heart, he should see his -daughter. - -"How long is this journey likely to last?" - -"Only three days." - -"I give you my word of honour not to attempt to escape for three days." - -"Good," the chief replied, in a solemn voice. - -"When my father is ready, we will depart," Antinahuel said. - -Don Tadeo mounted, the Toqui followed his example, and the troop set -off at a smart pace. - - -The sun had sunk low in the horizon when the chief commanded a halt. -The spot was admirably chosen; it was a narrow valley, situated on -the not very high summit of a hill, the position of which rendered a -surprise almost impossible. - -Antinahuel seemed to have forgotten his hatred for Don Tadeo; he spoke -to him with the greatest deference. Confiding in his word of honour, -he left him entirely free. As soon as the repast was terminated, -sentinels were placed, and everyone sought repose. Don Tadeo in vain -courted sleep, for a too powerful anxiety devoured him to allow him to -close his eyes. Seated at the foot of a tree, his head reclining on his -breast, he passed the whole night in reflecting upon the strange events -which for some months passed had assailed him. - -The rising sun found him plunged in these sad thoughts, and sleep had -not for an instant closed his weary eyelids. But everybody was in -motion in the camp; the horses were saddled, and after a hasty repast -the march was continued. The day passed away without any incident -worthy of being recorded. In the evening they encamped, as they had -done the night before, on the summit of a hill; the sole difference was -that, as the Araucanos now knew themselves to be beyond the danger of a -surprise, they did not take such great precautions as on the preceding -occasion; but still they raised entrenchments. - -Don Tadeo, overcome by fatigue, sank into a leaden sleep, from which he -was not roused till the moment for departure. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIV. - -THE ULTIMATUM. - - -Antinahuel had rejoined the mosotones to whom he had confided Dona -Rosario two days previously. The two troops now formed but one. The -Toqui had at first entertained the intention of crossing the first -plateau of the Andes. But the battle they had lost had produced -terrible consequences; their principal tolderias had been burned by the -Spaniards, their towns sacked, and the inhabitants either killed or -carried away. Such as had been able to fly had at first wandered about -the woods without an object; but as soon as they learned that the Toqui -had succeeded in escaping, they re-assembled, and sent envoys to him to -demand assistance. - -Antinahuel rejoiced at the movement of reaction which was going on -among his countrymen. He changed his itinerary, and had, at the head -of a hundred men only, returned back in the direction of the Bio Bio; -whilst by his order his other warriors dispersed throughout the Aucas -territory for the purpose of rousing the people to arms. The Toqui -had no intention now of extending the Araucanian dominions; his only -desire now was to obtain, arms in hand, a peace which might not be too -disadvantageous for his country. - -For a reason only known to Antinahuel, Don Tadeo and Rosario were -completely ignorant that they were so near to each other. - -Antinahuel had pitched his camp at the summit of the mountain, where -some days before he had been with the whole Indian army, in the strong -position which commanded the ford of the Bio Bio. - -It was about two o'clock in the afternoon. With the exception of a few -Araucanian sentinels, leaning motionless upon their long lances, the -camp appeared a desert; silence reigned everywhere. Suddenly a trumpet -call was sounded from the opposite side of the river. The Ulmen charged -with the care of the advanced posts ordered a reply to be sounded, -and went out to inquire the cause. Three horsemen, clothed in rich -uniforms, stood upon the bank; close to them was a trumpeter, waving a -flag of truce. The Ulmen hoisted a similar flag, and advanced into the -water to meet the horsemen. - -"What do the chiefs of the white faces want?" the Ulmen asked, -haughtily. - -One of the horsemen immediately replied-- - -"Go and tell the Toqui that a general officer has an important -communication to make to him." - -The wild eye of the Indian flashed at this insult; but he said, -disdainfully-- - -"I will go and inquire whether our great Toqui is disposed to receive -you; but I much doubt whether he will condescend to listen to -Cheapolo-Huincas." - -"Fool!" the other replied angrily; "make haste." - -"Be patient, Don Gregorio, in Heaven's name!" one of the two officers -exclaimed. - -At the expiration of a few minutes a sign was made from the bank that -the Chilians might advance. Antinahuel, seated under the shade of a -magnificent espino, awaited the officers. They stopped before him, and -remained motionless. - -"What is your will?" he asked, in a stern voice. - -"Listen to my words, and mark them carefully," Don Gregorio replied. - -"Speak, and be brief," said Antinahuel. - -Don Gregorio shrugged his shoulders disdainfully, - -"Don Tadeo de Leon is in your hands," he said. - -"Yes; the man is my prisoner." - -"Very well. If tomorrow, by the third hour of the day, he is not given -up to us safe and sound, the hostages we have taken, and more than -eighty others, will be shot within sight of the two camps." - -"You will do as you please, but this man shall die!" the chief replied, -coldly. - -"Oh! that is the case, is it? Very well! I, Don Gregorio Peralta, swear -to you, on my part, that I will strictly keep the promise I have made -you." - - -And turning his horse sharply round he departed. - -And yet there was more bravado than anything else in the threat made by -Antinahuel. If pride had not prevented him, he would have renewed the -parley. He returned to his camp buried in thought, and went straight -to his toldo. The Linda, who was seated in a corner upon sheepskins, -was as much absorbed in thought as the chief; Dona Rosario had fallen -asleep. At the sight of the young girl the chief experienced a peculiar -emotion, the blood flowed back forcibly to his heart, and springing -towards her, he imprinted a burning kiss upon her half-open lips, Dona -Rosario, suddenly awakened, bounded to the extremity of the toldo, -uttering a cry of terror. - -"What is the meaning of all this?" the chief exclaimed angrily; "Whence -comes this terror?" - -And he took several steps towards her. - -"Advance no further! advance no further! in Heavens name!" she shrieked. - -"What is the use of all this folly? You are mine." - -"Never!" she said, in an agony of grief. - -"Nonsense!" he said; "I am not a paleface, the tears of women have no -effect upon me." - -And he advanced again towards her. The Linda, still apparently buried -in her reflections, seemed not to be aware of what was going on. - -"Senora, senora!" the maiden cried; "in the name of all that is sacred -defend me, I implore you!" - -The Linda raised her head, looked at her coldly, and, with a dry -nervous laugh, said-- - -"Have I not told you what you had to expect?" - -Then she thrust her roughly from her. - -"Oh!" cried Dona Rosario, in a piercing voice, "maldicion on you, -heartless woman!" - -Again the chief approached, and again his victim darted to the other -side of the apartment, but unfortunately as she passed he caught her -dress in his iron grasp. And now the noble energy that never deserts -virtue in distress returned to her. She drew herself up proudly, and -fixed her eyes steadfastly on her pursuer. "Stand back!" she cried, -brandishing her dagger. "Stand back! or I will kill myself!" - -In spite of himself the demon stood motionless. He was convinced that -it was not a vain threat the girl uttered. At that moment the hideous, -scarred, grinning face of the Linda was bent towards his ear. - -"Appear to yield," she whispered; "I will tame her, leave her to me!" - -Antinahuel looked at her with a suspicious eye. The Linda smiled. - -"Do you promise me?" he said, in a hoarse voice. - -"On my soul I do," she replied. - -In the meantime Dona Rosario--her arm elevated and her body bent -forward--awaited the denouement of this frightful scene. With a -facility which the Indians alone possess, Antinahuel composed his -countenance so as entirely to change its expression. - -"My sister will pardon me," he said, in a soft voice; "I was mad, -reason is restored to my mind." - -After again bowing to the young lady, who did not know to what to -attribute this sudden change, he left the toldo. - -Upon reflection, Antinahuel resolved to strike his camp and depart. - -The Linda and Dona Rosario were sent in advance, under the guard of -some mosotones. The young girl, weakened by the terrible emotions she -had undergone, could scarcely sit her horse; a burning fever had seized -her. "I am thirsty--so thirsty!" she murmured. - -At a sign from the Linda one of the mosotones approached her, and -unfastened a gourd. - -"Let my sister drink," he said. - -The maiden seized the gourd eagerly, applied it to her lips, and drank -a large draught. - -"Good!" said the Linda to herself. - -"Thank you," Dona Rosario murmured, restoring the gourd almost empty. -But ere long her eyes gradually grew heavy, and she sank back, -murmuring in a faint voice-- - -"Good Heaven! what can be the matter with me? I am dying." - -One of the mosotones caught her in his arms, and placed her before him -on his saddle. All at once she for a moment recovered herself as if by -an electric shock, opened her eyes, and cried with a piercing voice, -"Help, help!" and relapsed into insensibility. - -On hearing this agonised cry, the Linda, in spite of herself, felt her -heart fail her, but quickly recovering, she said, with a bitter smile-- - -"Am I growing foolish?" - -She made a sign to the mosotone who carried Dona Rosario to draw -nearer, and examined her attentively. - -"She is asleep," she muttered, with an expression of satisfied hatred; -"when she awakes I shall be avenged." - -At this moment Antinahuels position was very critical. Too weak to -attempt anything serious against the Chilians, whom he wished to -induce to make a peace advantageous for his country, he endeavoured to -gain time by moving about on the frontier, so that his enemies, not -knowing where to find him, could not force conditions upon him which -he ought not to accept. Although the Aucas responded to the appeal of -his emissaries, and rose eagerly to come and join his ranks, it was -necessary to give the tribes, most of them remote, time to concentrate -upon the point he had named. - -On their side the Spaniards, whose internal tranquillity was for the -future secured by the death of General Bustamente, had very little -desire to carry on a war which had no longer any interest for them. -They stood in need of peace to repair the evils created by the civil -war, they therefore confined themselves to arming their frontiers, and -endeavoured by every means to bring about serious conferences with -the principal Araucan chiefs. Don Gregorio Peralta had been blamed -for the threat he had so hastily made to Antinahuel, and he himself -acknowledged the folly of his conduct when he heard of the Toquis -departure with his prisoner. Another system had in consequence been -adopted. Only ten of the principal chiefs were detained as hostages. -The others, well instructed and loaded with presents, were set at -liberty. Everything rendered it probable that these chiefs on their -return to their respective tribes would employ their influence to -conclude a peace, and unmask before the council the proceedings of -Antinahuel, proceedings which had brought the nation to the verge of -ruin. - -The Araucanos are passionate in their love of liberty; for them every -consideration gives way to that of being free. Hence it was easy to -foresee that the Aucas, in spite of their veneration for their Toqui, -would not hesitate to depose him when their chiefs on the one part and -the friendly captains on the other, made it clear to them that that -liberty was compromised, and that they exposed themselves to being -deprived of it forever, and falling under the Spanish yoke if they -continued their aggressive policy. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXV. - -A FURY. - - -After a march of five or six leagues at most, Antinahuel ordered his -troop to bivouac. The warriors who accompanied him were almost all of -his own tribe. As soon as the fires were lighted the Linda approached -him. - -"I have kept my promise," she said. - -"Then, the young girl----?" he asked. - -"Is asleep!" she replied, with a hideous smile. - -"Good," he murmured, joyfully, and bent his steps towards the toldo, -erected in haste, beneath which his victim had been transported. "No," -he said, "presently!" and then turning to his accomplice added, "For -how long a time has my sister sent the young girl to sleep?" - -"She will not awake before daybreak." - -A smile of satisfaction lit up the chief's features. - -"That is well--my sister is skilful, and I should like to show my -sister," he continued, "that I am not ungrateful, and that I also keep -my word faithfully." - -The Linda fixed a searching look upon him. - -"Of what word is my brother speaking?" - -"My sister has an enemy whom she has pursued for a long time, without -being able to destroy him," Antinahuel said, with a smile. - -"Don Tadeo?" - -"Yes, and that enemy is also mine." - -"Well?" - -"He is in my power." - -"Don Tadeo is my brother's prisoner?" - -"He is here." - -"At last," she cried, triumphantly. "Then I will repay him all the -tortures he has inflicted upon me." - -"Yes; she is at liberty to make him undergo all the insults her -inventive spirit can furnish her with." - -"Oh!" she cried, in a voice that almost made the hardened chief -shudder, "I will only inflict one punishment upon him, but it shall be -terrible." - -"But be careful, woman." Antinahuel replied; "be careful not to let -your hatred carry you too far; this man's life is mine, and I will -deprive him of it with my own hands." - -"Oh!" she said, with a hideous, mocking laugh, "do not be afraid; I -will return your victim to you safe and sound. I am not a man--my -weapon is my tongue." - -"Yes; but that weapon is double-edged," - -"I will restore him to you, I tell you." - -"There," the chief replied, pointing to a hut made of branches; "but -beware forget not what I said." - -"I will not forget," she retorted, with a savage leer. - -And she sprang towards the hut. - -"It is only women that know how to hate," Antinahuel murmured, looking -after her. - -A score of warriors waited for their chief at the entrance of the camp. -He sprang into his saddle and departed with them. - -Although through pride he had allowed nothing to appear, the threats of -Don Gregorio had produced a strong impression upon Antinahuel. He had -reason to fear that the Chilian officer would massacre his prisoners -and hostages. The consequences of this action would be terrible to him, -and would make him lose beyond recovery the prestige he still enjoyed -among his compatriots; therefore, forced for the first time in his life -to bend, he had resolved to retrace his steps, and confer with this man. - -Endowed with great finesse, Antinahuel flattered himself he could -obtain from Don Gregorio a delay which would enable him to sacrifice -his prisoner without being called to an account for it. But time -pressed. - -It was scarcely eight o'clock in the evening, and Antinahuel had but -six leagues to ride; he flattered himself, therefore, that if nothing -thwarted his plans, he should arrive long before the time, and even -return to his camp ere sunrise. - -We have said that the Linda entered the hut which sheltered Don Tadeo. -She found him seated upon a heap of dry leaves in a corner of the hut, -his back leaning against a tree, his arms crossed upon his breast, and -his head drooping on his chest. Absorbed by the bitter thoughts which -weighed upon his heart, he did not perceive the entrance of the Linda, -who, standing motionless within two paces of him, contemplated him with -an expression of rage and satisfied hatred. - -"Well?" said a shrill, incisive voice, "What are you thinking of, Don -Tadeo?" - -He started at the too well-known sound, and raised his head. - -"Ah!" he replied, bitterly, "is that you? I wondered I had not seen you -before." - -"It is strange, is it not?" she replied. "Well, we are once more face -to face." - -"Like a hyena, the odour of blood attracts you." - -"Who--I, Don Tadeo? You mistake my character strangely. No, no; am I -not your wife--the woman whom you loved so much?" - -Don Tadeo shrugged his shoulders with an expression of disgust. - -"You ought to be grateful for what I do," she replied. - -"Listen to me," said Don Tadeo, "your insults can never rise to the -height of my contempt. Do, act, speak, insult me, invent the most -atrocious calumnies your infernal genius can inspire, I will not answer -you! Concentrated in myself, your insults, like a vain sound, will -strike my ear without my mind making the least effort to understand -them." - -"Oh!" she cried, "I know well how to compel you to listen to me, my -beloved husband. You men are all alike! You arrogate to yourselves -all the rights, as you have done all the virtues! We are contemptible -beings, creatures without heart; condemned to be your very humble -servants, and to endure, with a smile upon our lips, all the insults -you please to heap upon us! It was I who was always wrong; you are -right; it was I who stole your child from you, was it not?" - -At the end of a minute she resumed-- - -"Come, let there be no feigning between us; let us speak for the last -time openly. You are the prisoner of your most implacable enemy; the -most frightful tortures await you. In a few instants, perhaps, the -punishment which threatens you will fall like a thunderbolt upon your -proud head. Well, I can enable you to escape this punishment; that -life, which you now reckon only by seconds, I can restore to you, -happy, long, and glorious! In a word, I can with one sentence, one -gesture, one sign, restore you to liberty immediately! I only ask one -thing of you--I mistake, not a thing, a word--utter that word, Don -Tadeo, where is my daughter?" - -Don Tadeo shrugged his shoulders, but made no reply. - -"Oh!" she exclaimed, with a gesture of fury, "this man is a bar of -iron; nothing can touch him--no words are sufficiently strong to move -him! Demon! demon! oh, with what joy I could tear you to pieces! But -no," she added, after a moment's pause, "I am wrong, Don Tadeo; pardon -me, I know not what I say; grief makes me mad! Have pity on me! I am -a woman--I am a mother. I adore my child, my poor little girl whom I -have not seen so long, who has lived deprived of my kisses and my love! -Restore her to me, Don Tadeo. See, I am on my knees at your feet! I -supplicate you, I weep! Don Tadeo, restore me my child!" - -She cast herself at the feet of Don Tadeo, and seized his poncho. - -"Begone, senora, begone!" - -"And is that all?" she cried, in a choked, husky voice; "Is that all? I -implore you, I drag myself panting with grief through the dust at your -feet, and you laugh at me. Prayers and threats are equally powerless -with you. Beware, Don Tadeo, beware!" - -Don Tadeo smiled disdainfully. - -"What punishment can you impose upon me more terrible than your -presence?" he said. - -"Senseless man!" she resumed; "Fool! Do you imagine, then, that you -alone are in my power?" - -"What do you mean by that?" Don Tadeo cried, starting up. - -"Ah, ah!" she exclaimed, with an expression of ferocious joy, "I have -hit the mark this time, have I?" - -"Speak, speak!" he exclaimed, in great agitation. - -"And suppose I should not please to do so?" she replied ironically. And -she laughed like a demon. - -"But no," she continued, in a bitterly sarcastic tone, "I cannot bear -malice: come along with me, Don Tadeo; I will lead you to her whom you -have so long sought for in vain, and whom but for me you would never -see again. And see how generous I am," she added, jeeringly. "Come -along with me, Don Tadeo." - -She hastily left the hut, and Don Tadeo followed her, struck by a -horrible presentiment. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVI. - -A THUNDERCLAP. - - -The Araucanos, spread about the camp, saw with surprise these two -persons, both in apparent agitation, pass them. Dona Maria rushed into -the toldo, followed by Don Tadeo. Dona Rosario was fast asleep upon -a bed of dry leaves, covered with sheepskins. She had the appearance -of a dead person. Don Tadeo, deceived by this, sprang towards her, -exclaiming in a tone of despair-- - -"She is dead! oh, heavens, she is dead!" - -"No, no," said the Linda, "she is asleep." - -"Still," he exclaimed, "this sleep cannot be natural, for our coming in -should have awakened her." - -"Well! perhaps it is not natural." - -Don Tadeo cast an inquiring glance at her. - -"Oh," she said, ironically, "she is alive; only it was necessary to -send her to sleep for awhile." - -Don Tadeo was mute with confused astonishment. - -"You do not understand me," she resumed. "Well, I will explain; this -girl whom you love so much--" - -"Oh, yes, I love her!" he interrupted. - -"It was I who took her from you," said the Linda, with a bitter smile. - -"Wretch, miserable wretch!" - -"Why, I hated you, and I avenged myself; I knew the deep love you bear -this creature. To take her from you was aiming a blow at your heart." - -"Miserable!" Don Tadeo cried. - -"Ah, yes," the Linda replied, smiling, "that revenge was miserable; it -did not at all amount to what I intended; but chance offered me what -could alone satisfy me, by breaking your very heart." - -"What frightful infamy can this monster have imagined?" Don Tadeo -murmured. - -"Antinahuel, the enemy of your race, your enemy, became enamoured of -this woman." - -"What!" he exclaimed, in a tone of horror. - -"Yes, after his fashion, he loved her," she continued, coolly; "so I -resolved to sell her to him, and I did so; but when the chief wished to -avail himself of the rights I had given him, she resisted, and arming -herself suddenly with a dagger, threatened to plunge it into her own -heart." - -"Noble girl!" he exclaimed, deeply affected. - -"Is she not?" said the Linda, with her malign vacant smile; "so I -took pity on her, and as I had no particular wish for her death, but -a very anxious one for her dishonour, I this evening gave her some -opium, which will place her, without means of defence, in the power of -Antinahuel. Have I attained my object this time?" - -Don Tadeo made no reply, this utter depravity in a woman absolutely -terrified him. - -"Well," she continued, in a mocking tone, "have you nothing to say?" - -"Mad woman, mad woman!" he cried, in a loud voice, "you have avenged -yourself, you say? Mad woman! Could you a mother, pretending to adore -your daughter, coolly, unhesitatingly, conceive such crimes? I say, do -you know what you have done?" - -"My daughter, you named my daughter! Restore her to me! Tell me where -she is, and I will save this woman. Oh! if I could but see her!" - -"Your daughter, wretch? You serpent bursting with venom! Is it possible -you think of her?" - -"Oh, if I found her again, I would love her so." - -"Do you fancy that possible?" said Don Tadeo. - -"Oh, yes, a daughter cannot hate her mother." - -"Ask herself, then!" he cried, in a voice of thunder. - -"What! what! what!" she shrieked. In a tone of thrilling agony, and -springing up as if electrified; "What did you say? What did you say, -Don Tadeo?" - -"I say, miserable wretch! that the innocent creature whom you have -pursued with the inveteracy of a hungry hyena, is your daughter!--do -you hear me? your daughter! She whom you pretend to love so dearly, and -whom, a few minutes ago, you demanded of me so earnestly." - -The Linda remained for an instant motionless, as if thunderstruck; and -then exclaimed, with a loud, demoniac laugh-- - -"Well played, Don Tadeo! well played, by Heaven! For a moment I -believed you were telling the truth." - -"Oh!" Don Tadeo murmured, "this wretched being cannot recognise her own -child." - -"No, I do not believe it! It is not possible! Nature would have warned -me that it was my child!" - -"God renders those blind whom He would destroy, miserable woman! An -exemplary punishment was due to His insulted justice!" - -The Linda turned about in the toldo like a wild beast in a cage, -uttering inarticulate cries, incessantly repeating in a broken voice-- - -"No, no! she cannot be my daughter!" - -Don Tadeo experienced a feeling of deadly hatred, in spite of his -better nature, at beholding this profound grief; he also wished to -avenge himself. - -"Senseless woman," he said, "had the child I stole from you no sign, no -mark whatever, by which it would be possible for you to recognise her?" - -"Yes, yes," she cried, roused from her stupor; "wait! wait!" - -And she threw herself down upon her knees, leant over the sleeping -Rosario, and tore the covering from her neck and shoulder. - -"My child!" she exclaimed; "it is she! it is my child!" - -She had perceived three small moles upon the young girl's right -shoulder. Suddenly her body became agitated by convulsive movements, -her face was horribly distorted, her glaring eyes seemed staring from -their sockets; she, clasped her hands tightly to her breast, uttered -a deep rattle, more like a roar than a sound from a human mouth, and -rolled upon the ground, crying with an accent impossible to describe-- - -"My daughter! my daughter! Oh, I will save her!" - -She crawled, with the action of a wild beast, to the feet of the poor -girl. - -"Rosario, my daughter!" she cried, in a voice broken by sobs; "it is I, -it is your mother! Know me, dear!" - -"It is you who have killed her," Don Tadeo said, implacably; "unnatural -mother, who coolly planned the dishonour of your own child." - -"Oh, do not speak so!" she cried, clasping her hands; "She shall not -die! I will not let her die! She must live! I will save her, I tell -you!" - -"It is too late." - -"I tell you I will save her," she repeated, in a deep tone. - -At this moment the steps of horses resounded. - -"Here is Antinahuel!" said Don Tadeo. - -"Yes," she replied, with a short, determined accent, "of what -consequence is his arrival? Woe be to him if he touch my child!" - -The curtain of the toldo was lifted by a firm hand, and an Indian -appeared: it was Antinahuel. A warrior followed with a torch. - -"Eh, eh!" said the chief, with an ironical smile. - -"Yes," Linda replied smiling; "my brother arrives opportunely." - -"Has my sister had a satisfactory conversation with her husband?" - -"Yes," she replied. - -"Good! the Great Eagle of the Whites is an intrepid warrior; the Aucas -warriors will soon put his courage to the test." - -This brutal allusion to the fate that was reserved for him was -perfectly understood by Don Tadeo. - -"Men of my temperament do not allow themselves to be frightened by vain -threats," he retorted. - -The Linda drew the chief aside. - -"Antinahuel is my brother," she said, in a low voice; "we were brought -up together." - -"Has my sister anything to ask for?" - -"Yes, and for his own sake my brother would do well to grant it me." - -Antinahuel looked at her earnestly. - -"Speak," he said, coolly. - -"Everything my brother has desired I have done." - -The chief bowed his head affirmatively. - -"This woman, who resisted him," she continued, "I have given up to him -without defence." - -"Good!" - -"My brother knows that the palefaces have secrets which they alone -possess?" - -"I know they have." - -"If my brother pleases it shall not be a woman cold, motionless, and -buried in sleep, that I surrender to him." - -The eye of the Indian kindled with a strange light. - -"I do not understand my sister," he said. - -"I am able," the Linda replied, earnestly, "in three days so completely -to change this woman's feelings for my brother, that she will be -towards him loving and devoted." - -"Can my sister do that?" he asked, doubtingly. - -"I can do it," she replied, resolutely. - -Antinahuel reflected for a few minutes. - -"Why did my sister wait so long to do this?" - -"Because I did not think it would be necessary." - -"Ooch!" said the Indian, thoughtfully. - -"Besides," she added, carelessly, "if I say anything about it now, it -is only from friendship for my brother." - -Whilst pronouncing these words, an internal shudder agitated her whole -frame. - -"And will it require three days to effect this change?" - -"Three days." - -"Antinahuel is a wise chief--he will wait." - -The Linda experienced great inward joy; if the chief had refused, her -resolution was formed--she would have stabbed him to the heart. - -"Good!" she said; "my brother may depend upon my promise." - -"Yes," the Toqui replied; "the girl is sick; it would be better she -should be cured." - -The Linda smiled with an undefinable expression. - -"The Eagle will follow me," said Antinahuel; "unless he prefers giving -me his word." - -"No!" Don Tadeo answered. - -The two men left the toldo together. Antinahuel commanded his warriors -to guard the prisoner strictly. - -At sunrise the camp was struck, and the Aucas marched during the whole -day into the mountains without any determinate object. - -"Has my sister commenced?" asked the chief of Linda. - -"I have commenced," she replied. - -The truth was she had passed the whole day in vainly endeavouring to -induce the maiden to speak to her; the latter had constantly refused, -but the Linda was not a woman to be easily repulsed. As soon as the -chief had left her, she went to Dona Rosario, and stooping to her ear, -said in a low, melancholy voice-- - -"Pardon me all the ill I have done you--I did not know who you were; in -the name of Heaven, have pity on me--I am your mother!" - -At this avowal, the young girl staggered as if she were thunderstruck. -The Linda sprang towards her, but Dona Rosario repulsed her with a cry -of horror, and fled into her toldo. - -"Oh!" the Linda cried, with tears in her eyes, "I will love her so that -she must pardon me." - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVII. - -UPON THE TRACK. - - -It was the evening of the eighth day, after twenty leagues from Arauca. -In a virgin forest of myrtles, cypresses, and espinos, which cover with -their green shade the lower parts of the Cordilleras--four men were -seated round a fire. Of these four men, two wore the Indian costume, -and were no other than Trangoil-Lanec and Curumilla; the others were -the count and Valentine. - -The spot on which our travellers had halted was one of those glades so -common in American forests. It was a vast space covered with the trunks -of trees that have died from age, or been struck by lightning, deeply -inclosed between two hills. - -The Indians were too experienced to commit the fault of stopping of -their own accord in this place; and it was only from the impossibility -of going further that they had consented to pass the night there. - -The day had been a rough one, but the night promised to be mild and -tranquil. The travellers attacked their supper bravely, in order to be -the sooner able to enjoy the repose they stood so much in need of. They -did not exchange a word during the repast; the last morsel swallowed, -the Indians threw upon the fire a few armfuls of dry wood, of which -they had an ample provision at hand, then folded themselves in their -ponchos, and fell asleep. Valentine and Caesar alone were left to keep -guard. - -It was almost an hour since he had taken Valentine's place, when -Caesar, who had till that time lain carelessly stretched before the -fire, sharply raised his head, sniffed the air in all directions, and -gave a surly growl. - -"Well, Caesar," said the young man whilst patting the animal, "what's -the matter, my good dog?" - -The Newfoundland fixed his large intelligent eyes upon the count, -wagged his tail, and uttered a growl much stronger than the first. - -"Very well," said Louis; "we will go on the lookout. Come along, -Caesar." - -The count examined his rifle and his pistols, and made a sign to the -dog, who watched all his motions. - -"Now, Cesar," he said, "look out, my fine fellow!" - -The animal, as if he had only waited for this order, sprang forward, -followed step by step by his master, who examined the bushes, and -stopped at intervals to cast an inquiring glance around him. - -At length, after numberless windings, the dog crouched, turned its -head towards the young man, and uttered one of those plaintive howls, -so like a human complaint, which are peculiar to the race. The count -started; putting the bushes and leaves apart with precaution, he -looked, and with difficulty repressed a cry of painful astonishment at -the strange spectacle which presented itself to his eyes. Within twenty -paces from him, in the centre of a vast glade, fifty Indians were lying -round a fire, buried in the sleep of intoxication, as could be divined -from the leather bottles scattered without order upon the sand, some -full of aguardiente, others empty. - -But what attracted the particular attention of the young man was the -sigh of two persons, a man and a woman, firmly bound to two trees. The -head of the man reclined upon his breast, his large eyes were flooded -with tears; deep sighs seemed to rise from his very heart, as he looked -towards a young girl standing bound before him. - -"Oh!" the count murmured, "Don Tadeo de Leon! My God! Grant that that -woman be not his daughter!" - -Alas! it was she. At their feet lay the Linda, bound to an enormous -post. - -The young man felt the blood flow back to his heart; forgetful of his -own preservation, he seized a pistol in each hand, and was about to -spring forward, when a heavy hand was laid upon his shoulder, and a -voice whispered in his ear-- - -"Prudence!" - -"Prudence!" the young man repeated, in a tone of painful reproach; -"look there!" - -"I have seen," replied Trangoil-Lanec, "but my brother will look in his -turn," he added. - -And he pointed to a dozen Indians, who, awakened by the cold of the -night, or perhaps by the involuntary noise made by the two men, in -spite of their precaution, rose and looked suspiciously around. - -"That is true!" Louis murmured, quite overcome. "Oh, my God! Will you -not come to our aid?" - -The chief took advantage of the momentary prostration into which his -friend had fallen, to lead him back a little, so as to avoid increasing -the aroused suspicions of the Indians. - -"Still," the young man exclaimed, "we shall save them, shall we not, -chief?" - -The Araucano shook his head. - -"At this moment it is impossible," he replied. - -"Brother, now that we have recovered their track, which we had lost, -they must be saved." - -A smile passed over the lips of the Indian warrior. - -"We will try," he said. - -"Thanks! thanks, chief," the young man cried. - -"Let us return to the camp," said Trangoil-Lanec. "Patience, my -brother," the Indian added in a solemn voice; "nothing is urgent--in an -hour we shall be on their track again." - -"That is true," the young man said, hanging down his head with forced -resignation. - -The two men regained their encampment, where they found Curumilla and -Valentine still asleep. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVIII. - -THE LYNX. - - -In the course of the past few days certain events had taken place -in Araucania which we must explain. The policy adopted by General -Fuentes had produced the best results. The chiefs restored to liberty -had returned to their tribes, where they had warmly persuaded their -mosotones to conclude a definite peace. These persuasions had been -eagerly listened to. - -The Huiliches, who asked no better than to resume the course of -their peaceful labours in safety, warmly gave their adhesion to the -conditions their Ulmens submitted to them. - -A grand council was solemnly convoked on the banks of the Carampangne, -at the closing of which six deputies, chosen from among the wisest -and most respected chiefs, having at their head an Apo-Ulmen named -the Lynx, and followed by a thousand well-armed horsemen, were sent -to Antinahuel, in order to communicate to him the resolutions of the -council, and demand his assent. - -When he perceived at a distance this numerous troop advancing amidst -clouds of dust, Antinahuel breathed a sigh of satisfaction, thinking -what a noble reinforcement was coming: for the malocca which he was so -anxious to attempt upon the Chilian frontier. - -The troop which Antinahuel had perceived continued to approach, and -soon came within speaking distance. The Toqui then observed with secret -dissatisfaction that it was commanded by the Lynx, who had always -been tacitly opposed to him. When the horsemen had arrived within ten -paces of the camp the Lynx made a sign, and the troop halted; a herald -stopped in front of the chiefs, and saluted them respectfully. - -"Toqui of the four Uthal-mapus," he said, in a loud voice, "and you -Ulmens who hear me--the Lynx, the venerated Apo-Ulmen of Arauca, -followed by six Ulmens no less celebrated than himself, is sent to -you to enjoin obedience to the orders emanating from the supreme -Auca-coyog." - -After speaking thus the herald bowed respectfully and retired. -Antinahuel and his Ulmens looked at each other in astonishment, for -they could not comprehend what it all meant. The Toqui alone suspected -some treachery planned against himself; but his countenance remained -impassive, and he asked his Ulmens to accompany him to the council -fire. At the expiration of a minute the Lynx arose, made two steps -forward, and spoke as follows:-- - -"The grand Auca-coyog of Arauca, in the name of the people, to all -persons who are at the head of warriors, salutation! Certain that all -our compatriots keep their faith, we wish them peace in that genius -of goodness, in which alone reside true health and holy obedience. -This is what we have resolved: war has fallen unexpectedly upon our -rich plains, and has changed them into deserts; our harvests have been -trampled under the feet of horses, our cattle have been killed or -driven away by the enemy, our crops are lost, our toldos are burnt, our -wives and children have disappeared in the tempest. We will have no -more war, and peace must be immediately concluded with the palefaces. I -have spoken." - -A profound silence followed this speech. Antinahuel's Ulmens were -struck with stupor, and looked towards their chief with great anxiety. - -"And upon what conditions has this peace been concluded?" asked the -Toqui. - -"The conditions are these," the Lynx replied; "Antinahuel will -immediately release the white prisoners; he will dismiss the army; -the Araucanos will pay the palefaces two thousand sheep, five hundred -vicunas, and eight hundred head of cattle; and the war hatchet is to be -buried." - -"Hum!" said the Toqui with a bitter smile; "these are hard conditions. -If I should on my part refuse to ratify this shameful peace?" - -"But my father will not refuse," the Lynx suggested. - -"But I do refuse!" he replied, loudly. - -"Good! my father will reflect; it is impossible that can be his last -word." - -Antinahuel, cunning as he was, had no suspicion of the snare that was -laid for him. - -"I repeat to you. Lynx," he said, in a loud voice, "and to all the -chiefs who surround me, that I refuse to ratify these dishonourable -conditions. So, now you can return whence you came." - -"Not yet!" said the Lynx, in his turn, as sharply as the Toqui. "I have -not finished yet!" - -"What else have you to tell me?" - -"The council, which is composed of the wise men of all the tribes, has -foreseen the refusal of my father." - -"Ah!" Antinahuel cried. "What have they decreed in consequence?" - -"This: the hatchet of Toqui is withdrawn from my father; all the -Araucanian warriors are released from their oath of fidelity to him; -fire and water are refused to my father; he is declared a traitor to -his country, as are all those who do not obey, and remain with him. -The Araucanian nation will no longer serve as a plaything, and be the -victim of the wild ambition of a man unworthy of commanding it." - -During this terrific peroration Antinahuel had remained motionless, his -arms crossed upon his breast. - -"Have you finished?" he asked. - -"I have finished," the Lynx replied; "now the herald will go and -proclaim in your camp what I have told you at the council fire." - -"Well, let him go!" Antinahuel replied. "You are welcome to withdraw -from me the hatchet of Toqui. Of what importance is that vain dignity -to me? You may declare me a traitor to my country; I have on my side my -own conscience, which absolves me; but what you wish above all else to -have you shall not have and that is my prisoners. Farewell!" - -And with a step as firm as if nothing had happened to him, he returned -to his camp. But there a great mortification awaited him. At the -summons of the herald all his warriors abandoned him. One after the -other, some with joy, others with sorrow. He who five minutes before -counted more than eight hundred warriors under his orders, saw their -numbers diminish so rapidly that soon only thirty-eight were left. - -The Lynx called out an ironical farewell to him from a distance, and -departed at a gallop with all his troop. When Antinahuel counted the -small number of friends left to him, an immense grief weighed upon his -heart; he sank down at the foot of a tree, covered his face with his -poncho, and wept. - -In the meantime, thanks to the facilities which the Linda had -procured Don Tadeo, the latter had been able for some days past to -approach Rosario. The presence of the man who had brought her up was -a great consolation to the young lady; but when Don Tadeo, who had -thenceforward no reasons for secrecy, confessed to her that he was her -father, an inexpressible joy took possession of the poor child. It -appeared to her that she now had no longer anything to dread, and that -since her father was with her she should easily escape the horrible -love of Antinahuel. The Linda, whom Don Tadeo allowed from pity to be -near her, beheld with childish joy the father and daughter talking -together. - -This woman was really a mother, with all the devotedness and all the -abnegation which the title implies. She no longer lived for anything -but her daughter. - -Whilst the events we have described were taking place, the three -Chilians, crouched in a corner of the camp, absorbed by their own -feelings, had attended to nothing--seen or heard nothing. Don Tadeo and -Rosario were seated at the foot of a tree, and at some distance the -Linda, without daring to mingle in their conversation, contemplated -them with delight. His first grief calmed, Antinahuel recovered -himself, and was as haughty and as implacable as ever. On raising his -eyes his looks fell mechanically upon his prisoners. - -Antinahuel, whose attention was roused, had watched Maria carefully, -and was not long in acquiring the moral proof of a plot being laid -against him by his ancient accomplice. The Indian was too cunning to -let them be aware of his suspicions; still he held himself on his -guard, waiting for the first opportunity to change them into certainty. -He ordered his mosotones to tie each of his prisoners to a tree, which -order was immediately executed. - -At sight of this, the Linda forgot her prudence; she rushed, dagger -in hand, towards the chief, and reproached him with his baseness. -Antinahuel disdained to reply to her reproaches; he merely snatched the -dagger from her hand, threw her down upon the ground, and ordered her -to be tied to a large post with her face turned towards the ground. - -"Since my sister is so fond of the prisoners," he said "it is but just -that she should share their fate." - -"Cowardly wretch!" she replied, vainly endeavouring to release herself. -The chief turned from her in apparent contempt; then, as he fancied -that he must reward the fidelity of the warriors who followed his -fortunes, he gave them several bottles of aguardiente. It was at the -end of these orgies that they were discovered by the count, thanks to -the sagacity of the Newfoundland dog. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIX. - -THE BLACK SERPENTS. - - -As soon as Curumilla and Valentine had been awakened, they saddled -the horses, then the Indians sat down by the fire, making a sign to -the Frenchmen to imitate them. The count was driven to despair by the -slowness of his friends; if he had only listened to his own feelings, -he would have instantly set out in pursuit of the ravishers; but he -could not help seeing how necessary the support of the Ulmens must be -to him in the decisive struggle he was about to undertake, whether for -attack, defence, or following the track of the Aucas. - -After a tolerably long interval, employed by our four personages in -conscientiously burning their tobacco leaf, the last, Trangoil-Lanec -spoke-- - -"The warriors are numerous," he said, "therefore we cannot hope to -conquer by force. Since we have been upon their track many events must -have occurred; we ought to ascertain what Antinahuel means to do with -his prisoners, and whether they are really in danger. Antinahuel is -ignorant of the ties which connect me with those who are in his power, -he will not suspect me." - -"Very well!" said Curumilla, "my brother is prudent, he will succeed. -But let him carefully calculate his actions and his words whilst he is -amongst them." - -Valentine looked at his foster brother with astonishment. - -"What does all this mean?" he asked. "Is Antinahuels track found again?" - -"Yes, brother," Louis replied, in a melancholy tone, "Dona Rosario and -her father are within half a league of us, and in danger of death!" - -"Vive Dieu!" the young man cried, "and we are here prating." - -"Alas!" Louis murmured, "what can four men do against fifty?" - -"That is too true," he replied, returning dejectedly to his place. "As -Trangoil-Lanec says, fighting will not avail us, we must manoeuvre." - -"Chief," Louis observed, "your plan is good, but I think of two -material ameliorations." - -"My brother can speak, he is wise," Trangoil-Lanec replied, bowing -courteously. - -"We must provide against all that may happen. Go to the camp, we will -follow your steps; but if you cannot rejoin us as quickly as we may -wish, agree upon a signal which may inform us why, and agree also upon -another signal in case your life may be in danger." - -"Very well," said Curumilla; "if the chief requires our presence, he -will imitate the cry of the water-hawk; if he is obliged to remain with -the Aucas the song of the goldfinch will warn us of it." - -"That is settled," Trangoil-Lanec answered; "but what is my brother's -second observation?" - -The count rummaged in his haversack, took out some paper, wrote a few -words upon a sheet, which he folded and handed to the chief, saying-- - -"It is particularly important that those whom we wish to deliver should -not thwart our plans; perhaps Don Tadeo may not recognise my brother. -The chief will slip this necklace into the hands of the young pale -woman." - -"That shall be done; the young blue-eyed maiden shall have the -necklace, the chief replied with a smile. - -"Well, now," said Curumilla, "let us take the track." - -"Yes, time presses," said Valentine. - -Towards the evening of the second day, Trangoil-Lanec, leaving his -companions to establish their encampment upon the declivity of a little -hill, at the entrance of a natural grotto, clapped spurs to his horse, -and was soon out of sight. He directed his course towards the spot -where the Black Serpents had stopped for the night--a spot announced -to the clear-sighted Indian by a thin thread of white smoke. When he -arrived at a certain distance from the camp, the chief saw two Indian -Black Serpents suddenly spring up before him, clothed in their war -costume. - -"Where is my brother going?" one of the Black Serpents asked, advancing -towards him. - -"Good!" the chief replied, throwing his gun, which he held in his left -hand, on his shoulder. "Trangoil-Lanec has recognised the trail of his -brothers the Black Serpents, and he wishes to smoke at their fire." - -"My brother will follow me," the Indian remarked. - -He made an imperceptible sign to his companion, who quitted his hiding -place. Trangoil-Lanec followed them, casting around an apparently -careless glance. In a few minutes they reached the camp, whose -situation was admirably chosen. - -The arrival of the warrior created a stir in the camp, which was, -however, quickly repressed. Trangoil-Lanec was conducted into the -presence of the chief, and as his reputation was high among his -compatriots, Antinahuel, to do him honour, received him in the most -elevated part or the camp. The two chiefs saluted each other. - -"Is my brother Antinahuel hunting with his young men?" asked -Trangoil-Lanec. - -"Yes," the Toqui replied, laconically. - -"Has my brother been fortunate in his hunting?" - -"Very fortunate," said Antinahuel, with a sinister smile; "let my -brother open his eyes." - -"Wah!" said Trangoil-Lanec, "palefaces! My brother has had good sport -indeed; he will get a heavy ransom for his prisoners." - -"The toldo of Antinahuel is solitary--he wants a squaw to inhabit it." - -"Good! I understand; my brother will take one of the pale women." - -"The blue-eyed maiden will be the wife of a chief." - -"Wah! but why does my brother detain the Great Eagle?" - -Antinahuel only replied by a smile, the expression of which the chief -could not mistake. - -"Oh, good!" he rejoined; "my brother is a great chief--who is able to -fathom his thoughts?" - -The Araucano warrior rose, quitted Antinahuel, and walked about the -camp, the order and position of which he feigned to admire, but in -reality he drew nearer and nearer, in an almost imperceptible manner, -to that part at which the prisoners were seated. - -"Let my brother look," Antinahuel said, pointing to Dona Rosario; "does -not that woman deserve to espouse a chief?" - -"She is pretty!" Trangoil-Lanec replied, coldly; "But I would give all -the palefaces in the world for one bottle of such firewater as I have -here." - -"Has my brother some firewater?" Antinahuel asked, whose eyes sparkled -at the thought. - -"Yes," the chief replied; "look!" - -The Toqui turned round, and the Aucas profited by the movement to -cleverly let fall upon Rosario's lap the paper committed to his charge -by Louis. - -"Look!" he said "the sun is sinking, the maukawis is singing his first -evening song; my brother will follow me, he and his warriors will empty -these bottles." - -The two chiefs walked away, and a few minutes after all the Indians -were satisfactorily employed in emptying the bottles brought by the -Ulmen. - -Dona Rosario could not at first imagine what a message sent to her in -such a curious manner could mean, and she looked at her father. - -"Read, my Rosario!" Don Tadeo said, softly. - -The young girl tremblingly took the note, opened it, and read it with -a secret joy. It contained only these few laconic words, but they were -sufficient to cause a smile. - -"Take courage, senorita, we are preparing everything for saving you at -last." - -After having read, or rather devoured these words, she gave the note to -her father. - -"Who can this friend be who is watching over us? What can he do?" - -"Why should we doubt the infinite goodness of God, my child?" said Don -Tadeo. "Ungrateful girl! Have you forgotten the two brave Frenchmen?" - -The young girl smiled through her tears, leaning fondly upon her father. - -The Linda could not suppress a feeling of jealousy at this caress of -which she had no share; but the hope that her daughter would soon be -liberated, rendered her quite happy. - -In the meantime the Indians continued drinking. Many of the Aucas were -in a helpless state of intoxication. Trangoil-Lanec and Antinahuel were -at length the only drinkers. But even the strength of the renowned -Toqui was not of avail against the insidious poison he quaffed so -greedily; his eyes closed, and he fell backwards--fast asleep. - -Trangoil-Lanec waited for a few moments, carefully surveying the camp -in which he and the prisoners were the only persons awake; then, when -he had ascertained to a certainty that the Black Serpents had really -allowed themselves to be caught in the snare he had laid for them, he -rose cautiously, made a sign of encouragement to the prisoners, and -disappeared into the forest. - -"Is that an enemy or a friend?" murmured the Linda anxiously. - -"Oh, I have long known that man!" replied Don Tadeo; "his is a noble -heart! He is devoted body and soul to our friends." - - - - -CHAPTER XL. - -THE HURRICANE. - - -Louis had not been able to restrain himself; instead of waiting, he -had persuaded Valentine and Curumilla to follow him, and all three had -advanced, gliding through bushes and underwood, to within twenty paces -of the Indian camp, so that Trangoil-Lanec met them almost immediately. - -"Well?" the count asked anxiously. - -"All is right! Come on!" - -The chief quickly retraced his steps, and led his friends towards the -prisoners. At the sight of the four men a smile of ineffable sweetness -lit up the beautiful countenance of Rosario; even her prudence could -not repress a half-uttered cry of joy, Don Tadeo arose, and was -beginning to thank them. - -"Caballero," cried the count, who was upon hot coals, "let us be quick. -These men will soon be awake again." - -"Yes," Valentine added; "because if they were to surprise us we should -be compelled to have a brush." - -All were aware of the justness of this observation and Trangoil-Lanec -having unfastened the horses of the prisoners, which were grazing -quietly among those of the Aucas, Don Tadeo and his daughter mounted. -The Linda, of whom nobody seemed to take any notice, sprang upon a -horse. If Valentine had not been afraid of her giving the alarm, he -would have compelled her to remain behind. The little troop set off -without impediment, and directed their course towards the natural -grotto where the horses had been left. As soon as they arrived, -Valentine made a sign. - -"You had better rest here for a short time," he said; "the night is -very dark; in a few hours we will set off again; you will find in this -grotto two beds of leaves." - -These words, pronounced in the usual blunt, offhand style of the -Parisian, brought a cheerful smile to the lips of the Chilians. When -they had lain down upon the leaves heaped up in the grotto, the count -called his sagacious dog to him, and said-- - -"Pay attention to what I order you, Caesar: you see this young lady, do -you not, my good dog? You must be answerable for her to me." - -Caesar listened to his master, staring at him with his large -intelligent eyes and gently wagging his tail; he then laid himself -quietly down at the feet of Rosario, licking her hand. The young girl -seized his great head in her arms, and hugged him several times, -smiling at the count. Poor Louis blushed to the eyes, and left the -grotto, staggering like a drunken man--happiness almost deprived him of -his senses. He went and threw himself on the ground at a short distance -to think over, at leisure the joy which inundated his heart. He did -not observe Valentine, who leaning against a tree, followed him with a -melancholy look, for Valentine also loved Dona Rosario. - -Yes, the sight of Dona Rosario had revealed to him a thing which he had -hardly thought possible, and that was, that besides this so warm and -so strong feeling, there was in his heart room for another at least as -warm and as strong. - -Leaning against a tree, with his eye fixed upon the entrance to the -grotto, and his chest heaving, he recalled the smallest incidents of -his meeting with the young lady, their journey through the forest, the -words she addressed to him and smiled delightedly at the remembrance -of those delicious moments, without suspecting the danger of these -remembrances of the new feeling which had been just born in his soul. - -Two hours had thus glided away, and Valentine had taken no heed of -their passage, so absorbed was he in his fantastic contemplation, when -the two Indians came up to him-- - -"Is our brother asleep that he does not see us?" - -"No," Valentine replied, passing his hand over his burning brow, "I was -thinking." - -"My brother was with the genius of dreams; he was happy," -Trangoil-Lanec remarked, with a smile. - -"Do you want me?" - -"Whilst my brother has been reflecting, we have returned to the camp of -the Black Serpents. We have taken their horses, and after leading them -to a considerable distance have let them loose on the plain." - -"If that is the case we may be at our ease for a few hours?" Valentine -suggested. - -"I hope so," said Trangoil-Lanec, "but we must not be too confident, -the Black Serpents are cunning fellows." - -"What had we better do, then?" - -"Mislead our enemies by putting them upon a false track. I will set off -with the three horses of the palefaces, whilst my brother, his friend, -and Curumilla descend the rivulet, walking in its bed." - -Trangoil-Lanec cut a reed a foot and a half long, and fastened each -extremity of it to the bits of the horses, in order that they might not -be able to approach each other too near, and then set off. Valentine -entered the grotto, where he found the Linda seated near her husband -and daughter, guarding their slumbers. - -Louis had prepared everything; he placed Don Tadeo upon Valentine's -horse, and the Linda and Rosario upon his own, and led them into the -rivulet, after having carefully effaced their footsteps in the sand. - -The little caravan advanced silently, listening to the noises of the -forest, watching the movements of the bushes, fearing at every instant -to see the ferocious eye of a Black Serpent gleam through the shade. - -Towards four o'clock in the morning the Islet of the Guanaco appeared -to the delighted eyes of our travellers like a port of safety, after -the fatigues of a journey made entirely in the water. On the most -advanced point of the islet a horseman stood motionless--it was -Trangoil-Lanec; and near him the horses of the Spaniards were peaceably -grazing upon the high grass of the banks. The travellers found a fire -ready lighted, upon which was cooking the quarter of a doe, camotes and -maize tortillas. - -"Eat," said Trangoil-Lanec, laconically; "but, above all, eat quickly!" -Without asking the chief for any explanation, the hungry travellers sat -down in a circle, and vigorously attacked the provisions. - -"Bah!" said Valentine, gaily; "after us the end of the world--let -us eat while we can! Here is a roast joint that appears to me to be -tolerably well cooked!" - -At these words of the spahi Dona Rosario looked a little surprised; the -young man was struck dumb, blushing at his rudeness, and began to eat -without venturing another word. - -As soon as breakfast was over; Trangoil-Lanec, assisted by Curumilla, -employed himself in preparing one of those canoes, made of buffalo -hides sewn together, which are employed by the Indians to cross -the rivers in the desert. After placing it in the water, the chief -requested the three Spaniards to take their seats in it. The Indians -afterwards entered it for the purpose of steering it; whilst the two -Frenchmen, still in the water, led the horses by their bridles. The -passage was not long; at the end of an hour they landed, and they -continued their journey by land. - -For some hours past, as it often happens in that country, the weather -had completely changed. The sun had assumed a red tint, and appeared to -swim in an ocean of vapour, which intercepted its warm rays. - -"What do you think of this weather, chief?" the count asked anxiously -to Trangoil-Lanec. - -"Bad--very bad," the latter replied, "unless we could possibly pass the -Sorcerer's Leap." - -"Are we in danger, then?" - -"We are lost," the Indian replied. - -"Hum! that is not very comforting," said Valentine. "Do you think, -then, that the peril is so great?" - -"Much greater than I can tell my brother. Do you think it possible to -resist the hurricane, here?" - -"That is true," Valentine muttered, hanging his head. "May Heaven -preserve us!" - -In fact the situation of the travellers appeared desperate. They were -following one of those roads cut in the living rock which wind round -the Andes, a road of scarcely four feet in its greatest width, which on -one side was bordered by a wall of granite more than a thousand feet -high, and on the other by precipices of incalculable depth, at the -bottom of which invisible waters coursed with dull, mysterious murmurs. -In such a spot all hope of safety seemed little short of madness. And -yet the travellers proceeded, advancing in Indian file--that is, one -after the other, silent and gloomy. - -"Are we still far from the Sorcerer's Leap?" Valentine asked, after a -long silence. - -"We are approaching it," Trangoil-Lanec replied. - -Suddenly the brown veil which concealed the horizon was rent violently -asunder, a pale flash of lightning illuminated the heavens. - -"Dismount!" Trangoil-Lanec shouted, "dismount, for your lives! Lie down -on the ground, and cling to the points of the rocks!" - -Everyone followed the advice of the chief. The animals, left to -themselves, understood the danger instinctively, folded their legs -under them, and laid themselves down also upon the ground. - -All at once the thunder burst forth in frightful peals, and the rain -fell like a deluge. It is not given to human pen to describe the awful -hurricane which vented its fury upon those mountains. Enormous blocks -of rock, yielding to the force of the wind and undermined by the -waters, were precipitated from the top to the bottom of the ravines -with a horrible crash; trees, hundreds of years Old, were twisted and -torn up by the roots by the blast. - -Suddenly a piercing cry of agony filled the air. - -"My daughter!--save my daughter!" - -Heedless of the danger to which he exposed himself, Don Tadeo stood -upright in the road, his arms extended towards heaven, his hair -floating in the wind, and the lightning playing around his brow. Dona -Rosario, too weak and too delicate to cling to the sharp points of -the rocks by which her fingers were torn had been seized and carried -away, and dashed down the precipice by the tempest. The Linda, without -pronouncing a word, turned and plunged into the gulf. - -"Oh!" the count cried frantically, "I will bring her back or----" - -And he sprang forward; but a powerful hand withheld him. - -"Stay, brother," said Valentine, in a melancholy but firm tone--"let me -encounter this peril." - -"But, Valentine!" - -"I insist upon it!--of what consequence is it if I die?" he added, with -an expression of bitterness. "I am not beloved!" and turning towards -Don Tadeo he said, "Courage my friend. I will restore your daughter or -perish with her!" and whistling his dog--"Find her, Caesar--find her." -he said. - -The noble animal uttered a plaintive howl, sniffed the air for an -instant in all directions, then, after a minute's hesitation wagged his -tail, turned towards his master, and dashed down the steep precipice. - - - - -CHAPTER XLI. - -LA BARRANCA. - - -As soon as Valentine was suspended from the abrupt edge of the -precipice, and obliged to ascertain carefully where to place his foot, -his excitement was dispersed to give place to the cool and lucid -determination of the brave man. The task he had undertaken was not an -easy one. In his perilous descent his eyes became useless to him; his -hands and feet were his only guides. Often did he feel the stone upon -which he thought he had placed his foot firmly crumble as he began to -trust his weight to it, and the branch he had seized break in his grasp. - -But firm in his resolution, he kept descending, following as far as -was possible the track of his dog, who at a short distance beneath him -stopped, from time to time, to guide him by his yelpings. - -Presently he stopped to take breath, still continuing to repeat to his -dog the words he had never ceased to cry from the commencement of his -descent-- - -"Find her, Caesar, find her!" - -Suddenly the dog was mute. Much alarmed, Valentine renewed his call. It -then appeared to him that, at about twenty feet below the spot where -he then was, he could perceive a white form; but its outlines were -so vague and indistinct that he thought he must be the sport of an -illusion, and he ventured to lean still further over, to assure himself -that he was not deceived. - -At this moment, he felt himself strongly pulled back. Like a man -delivered from a frightful nightmare, he took a confused glance around -him. Caesar with his forepaws firmly fixed upon the rock, was holding -the end of his poncho in his clenched teeth. - -"Can you reply to me now?" the Linda said. - -"Perfectly, senorita," he replied. - -"You will help me to save my daughter?" - -"It was in search of her that I descended." - -"Thanks, caballero!" she said, fervently; "she is close by." - -Dona Rosario was lying insensible caught in some thick bushes hanging -over an abyss of more than a thousand feet in depth! On perceiving -her, Valentine's first impression was a feeling of wild terror. But as -soon as the first moment was past, and he could look at her coolly, he -became satisfied that she was in perfect safety. - -All this had required much time, and the storm had subsided by degrees; -the mist was clearing off and the sun had reappeared. Valentine then -became aware of all the horror of the situation which the darkness had -till then concealed from him. - -To reascend was impossible; to descend was still worse. From the clump -of myrtles near which they were, the walls of the precipice descended -in a plumb line, without any salient point upon which a foot could be -placed. One step forward was death. - -The Linda saw nothing, thought of nothing, for she had her daughter to -look at. In vain Valentine racked his brains to discover some means of -overcoming this apparently insuperable difficulty. A bark from Caesar -made him raise his head. Louis had found the means which Valentine had -despaired of finding. Collecting the lassos which Chilian horsemen -always have suspended from their saddles, he had fastened them tightly -together and had formed two ropes, which he let down the precipice. - -Valentine uttered a cry of joy. Rosario was saved! As soon as the -lassos were within his reach he seized them and quickly constructed a -chair; but here a new difficulty presented itself; how was it possible -to get the insensible girl from amidst the tangled growth? - -"Wait a minute!" exclaimed Linda, and bounding like a panther, she -sprang into the centre of the tangled mass, which bent under her feet, -took her daughter in her arms, and with a spring as sure and as rapid -as the first, regained the edge of the precipice. - -The young man then tied Dona Rosario in the chair, and then made a -signal for hoisting it. The Aucas warriors, directed by Louis, drew -the lassos gently and firmly upwards, whilst Valentine and the Linda, -clinging as well as they could to points of rocks and bushes, kept the -young lady steady, and secured her from collision with the sharp stones -that might have wounded her. - -As soon as Don Tadeo perceived his daughter, he rushed towards her with -a hoarse articulate cry, and pressing her to his panting breast he -sobbed aloud, shedding a flood of tears. - -"Oh!" cried the girl, clinging with childish terror to her father, and -clasping her arms round his neck, "father! father! I thought I must -have died!" - -"My child," said Don Tadeo, "your mother was the first to fly to your -assistance." - -The Linda's face glowed with happiness, and she held out her arms to -her daughter, with a supplicating look. Rosario looked at her with -a mixture of fear and tenderness, and made a motion as if to throw -herself into the arms that were open to her; but she suddenly checked -herself. - -"Oh I cannot! I cannot!" - -The Linda heaved a heavy sigh, wiped the tears which inundated her -cheeks, and retired on one side. - -The two Frenchmen inwardly enjoyed the sight of the happiness of Don -Tadeo, happiness which in part he owed to them. The Chilian approached -them, pressed their hands warmly, and then turning to Rosario, said-- - -"My child, love these two gentlemen, you never can discharge your debt -to them." - -Both the young men blushed. - -"Come, come, Don Tadeo," cried Valentine, "we have lost too much time -already. To horse, and let us be gone!" - -In spite of the roughness of this reply, Dona Rosario, who comprehended -the delicacy that had dictated it, gave the young man a look of -ineffable sweetness. - -The party resumed their march. The Linda was henceforward treated with -respect by all. The pardon of Don Tadeo, a pardon so nobly granted, -had reinstated her in their eyes. Dona Rosario herself sometimes -unconsciously smiled upon her, although she could not yet feel courage -enough to respond to her caresses. - -At the expiration of an hour they reached the "Sorcerer's Leap." -At this place the mountain was divided in two by a fissure of -inconceivable depth, and about twenty-five feet wide. - -This difficult passage has been thus named by the Aucas because, -according to the legend, at the period when the conquest of Araucania -was attempted, a Huiliche sorcerer, being closely pursued by Castilian -soldiers, leaped without hesitation over the chasm, sustained in his -perilous passage by the genii of the air. Whatever be the truth of this -legend, a bridge exists now, and our travellers passed over it without -accident. - -"Ah!" Trangoil-Lanec exclaimed, "now we have room before us, we are -safe!" - -"Not yet," Curumilla replied, pointing with his finger to a thin column -of blue smoke, which curled up towards the heavens. - -"Ooch!" replied the chief, "Can that be the Black Serpents again? Can -they have preceded instead of pursuing us? How does it happen that they -venture in this manner upon the Chilian territory? We had better retire -for the night." - - - - -CHAPTER XLII. - -THE QUIPU. - - -After a frugal repast, the travellers were preparing to take a little -repose, when Caesar barked furiously. Everyone flew to his arms. At -length the noise of steps was heard, the bushes were thrust apart, -and an Indian appeared. It was Antinahuel. At the sight of this man, -Rosario could not repress a cry of terror. Her mother threw herself -before her. - -Antinahuel did not appear to perceive the presence of the young lady or -of the Linda; he advanced slowly, without moving a muscle of his face. -When within a few paces of Trangoil-Lanec, he stopped and saluted him. - -"I come to sit at the fireside of my brother," he said. - -"My brother is welcome," the chief replied. - -"No, I only wish to smoke with my brother, for the sake of -communicating to him some important news." - -"It shall be as my brother desires," Trangoil-Lanec replied. - -The three Indians sat down with the ceremony usual upon such occasions. -They lit their pipes, and smoked silently. At length, after a -considerable time, Antinahuel began-- - -"Here," said he, "is the quipu, which the herald who came from -Paki-Pulli handed at about the seventh hour to me, Antinahuel, the son -of the Black Jackal." - -He drew from under his poncho a light piece of wood, about ten inches -long, very thick split, and holding a human finger. - -"My brother sees," Antinahuel continued, "that upon the black wool there -are four knots, to indicate that the herald left Paki-Pulli four days -after the moon; upon the white there are ten knots, which signify that -ten days after that period, that is to say, in three days, the four -confederated Uthal-mapus will take up arms, as has been agreed in a -grand auca-coyog convoked by the Toquis; upon the red I have made a -knot, which means that the warriors placed under my orders will join -the expedition, and that the chiefs may depend upon my concurrence. -Will my brothers follow my example?" - -"My brother has forgotten to tell me one thing," Trangoil-Lanec replied. - -"Let my brother explain himself," said Antinahuel. - -"Against whom is this expedition?" - -"Against the palefaces," he said, with a tone of mortal hatred. - -"Very well," said Trangoil-Lanec, "my brother is a powerful chief, he -will give me the quipu." - -Antinahuel handed it to him. The Araucano warrior received the quipu, -examined it, seized the red fringe and the blue fringe, he joined them, -made a knot over them, and passed the piece of wood to Curumilla, who -followed his example. - -"My brothers, then," he said, "refuse their aid?" - -"The chiefs of the four nations can do without us. The war is ended, -and this quipu is false. Why, when we came here, instead of presenting -us this false quipu, did not Antinahuel tell us frankly that he came in -search of his white prisoners, who have escaped? We would have replied -to him that these prisoners are henceforward under our protection." - -"Is that your resolution," said Antinahuel. - -"Yes; and my brother may be assured that we are not men to be easily -deceived." - -The Toqui rose with rage in his heart. - -"You are dogs and old women!" he said; "tomorrow I will come to retake -my prisoners." - -The two Indians smiled contemptuously, and bowed gravely as a parting -salute to their enemy. The Toqui disdained to reply to this ironical -courtesy; he turned his back, and re-entered the wood with the same -slow, solemn step with which he had arrived, appearing to set his -adversaries at defiance. He had scarcely quitted the little camp, when -Trangoil-Lanec set off in his track. - -Trangoil-Lanec was not long absent; he returned in less than an hour. -His companions saw him return with the greatest joy. - -"Let my brothers open their ears," he said. - -"We are listening, depend upon it," Valentine remarked. - -"Antinahuel is encamped within a short distance; he knows now that we -are not strong enough to contend with him. What will my brothers do? -Our position is a serious one." - -"Why did we not kill him?" Linda cried. - -"No," he replied; "the Indian law prevented me; he presented himself as -a friend at my fireside; a guest is sacred." - -"What is done cannot be undone," said Valentine; "so it is of no use -talking about it. We are in a scrape." - -"We will die sooner than allow the wretch to take his prisoners again," -said the count. - -"That of course; but before we have recourse to that extreme measure, -we might find another." - -"But, perhaps, we ought not to abandon ourselves to despondendency," -Valentine rejoined, energetically; "we are four men of courage; we -ought not to despair." - -Since Don Tadeo had recovered his daughter, he was no longer the same -man; he seemed only to live for her and through her. At that moment, -seated at the foot of a tree, he held Rosario on his knees, and was -rocking her like an infant. But, at Valentine's question, he raised his -head quickly. - -"I will not have my daughter fall again into the hands of Antinahuel," -he said, loudly; "happen what may, I will save her." - -"We are all willing to do that, only the Indian chiefs are not -acquainted with the country; you, who are a Chilian, perhaps can give -us some useful information." - -Don Tadeo reflected for an instant; he cast an inquiring glance round -upon the mountains, and then said: - -"Those means I can furnish you with; we cannot be more than ten leagues -from one of my haciendas." - -"Are you certain of that?" - -"Yes, thank Heaven!" - -"To be sure we are not!" the Linda cried, joyfully. - -"And you believe that if we could reach that hacienda----" - -"We shall be safe," Don Tadeo interrupted; "for I have there five -hundred devoted peons." - -"Oh!" said the Linda, "do not lose an instant. Don Tadeo; write a word -to your major-domo; tell him what a desperate situation you are in, and -order him to hasten to your assistance." - -"It is Heaven that inspires you, senora!" Don Tadeo cried. - -"Oh!" the Linda replied, "it is because I would save my daughter!" - -Dona Rosario fixed upon her eyes moist with tears, and said, in a voice -tremulous with tenderness: - -"Thank you, my mother!" - -Her daughter had pardoned her! The poor woman fell upon her knees on -the ground and clasped her hands. - -In the meantime, Don Tadeo had written a few words in haste. - -"We have no time to read the note now; someone must go at once," said -the count; "I undertake to convey it, only point me out the road." - -"I know it," said Curumilla phlegmatically. - -"Very well, in that case you shall accompany me." - -"Ooch! I know a road by which we can be there in less than two hours." - -"Let us begone, then." - -"Watch over her!" said Louis. - -"Bring back assistance quickly," Valentine replied. - -"I will, or die in the attempt," replied the other. - -And, clapping spurs to their horses, the two men were soon lost in a -cloud of dust. Valentine looked after his foster brother as long as he -was to be seen, then turning toward Trangoil-Lanec, said; - -"And we must start directly?" - -"Everything is ready," the chief replied. - -"Now," Valentine said to Don Tadeo, "our fate is in the hands of God: -we have done everything it was humanly possible to do to escape capture -or death; upon His will now depends our safety." - -"Valentine! Valentine!" Don Tadeo cried, warmly, "you are as devout as -you are intelligent. God will not abandon us." - -"I trust He will hear you!" the young man said, in a melancholy tone. - -"Courage, my daughter!" said the Linda, with an expression of infinite -tenderness. - -"Oh! I fear nothing now," Rosario replied, with a cheerful smile; "have -I not my father near me, and--my mother, too," she added, kindly. - -The Linda raised her eyes, humid with gratitude, towards Heaven. - -Within ten minutes they were all mounted, and quitting the wood, they -followed at a sharp trot the road which the count and Curumilla had -taken at full speed. - - - - -CHAPTER XLIII. - -THE ROCK. - - -But when setting forward so hastily, Valentine had considered the peril -of the situation more than the possibility of travelling far at a -quick pace. At the end of a very few miles the horses, overridden for -two days together, and exceedingly weakened by the hurricane, could -scarcely be kept going; whip and spur were obliged to be constantly -applied to keep them on their legs. At length, after an hour spent in -fruitless efforts. Don Tadeo, whose horse, a noble, well-bred animal -had just stumbled twice from sheer weakness, was the first to call -Valentines attention to the impossibility of going farther at present. - -"I know it--I feel it!" the young man replied; "the poor animals are -foundered; but what can we do? We must kill them, if it be necessary!" - -"Let us proceed, then, whatever may happen!" said Don Tadeo. - -"Besides," the young man continued, "a minute gained is an age for us; -by break of day Louis may be back. If our horses had been rested, we -might have reached the hacienda tonight; only the farther we get the -better the chance of escaping those who are pursuing us. But, your -pardon, Don Tadeo, the Indian chief is making me a sign." - -After leaving Don Tadeo, he drew nearer to the Ulmen. - -"Well, chief?" he asked. - -"Does my brother reckon upon being able to go much farther?" said the -Indian. - -"Pardieu! chief, you have put exactly the same question to me that Don -Tadeo has." - -"What does the great chief say?" - -"Why, he says that our horses are completely knocked up." - -"Ooch! and what does my brother with the golden hair mean to do?" - -"How can I tell? Let Trangoil-Lanec advise me; he is a warrior, -renowned in his tribe." - -"I think I have a good idea." - -"Pray let us have it, chief; your ideas are always excellent." - -The Indian bowed modestly. - -"Let my brother listen to me," he said. "Perhaps Antinahuel is already -on our track; if he is not, it will not be long before he is. If he -comes up with us we shall be killed. What can three men do against -sixty? But not far distant from hence I know a place where we can -easily defend ourselves. Many moons ago, ten warriors of my tribe and -myself stood our ground at that place for fourteen whole days against -two hundred palefaces. Does my brother understand?" - -"Perfectly, perfectly, chief! Guide us to this place; and if it please -God that we reach it, I swear that Antinahuel and his mosotones shall -find somebody to answer them." - -Trangoil-Lanec then took the guidance of the little troop, and led them -slightly aside from the road. In the interior of South America what -we in Europe agree to call roads do not exist; but there are instead -an infinite number of paths traced by wild animals, which all finish, -after numberless meanderings, by leading to rivulets or rivers, which -for ages have served as drinking places to the beasts of the desert. - -The Indians alone possess the secret of directing their course with -certainty in these apparently inextricable labyrinths; so after a march -of twenty minutes our travellers found themselves, without knowing -how, on the banks of a charming river. In the centre of which arose an -enormous block of granite. - -Valentine uttered a cry of joy at sight of this natural fortress. The -horses, as if they understood that they had at length arrived at a -place of safety, entered the water willingly. This block of granite -was hollow. By a gentle ascent it was easy to mount to the summit, -which formed a platform of more than forty square feet. The horses were -concealed in a corner of the grotto, where they seemed glad to lie -down. Valentine did his best to barricade the entrance to the fortress. -This being done, a fire was lighted. - -Caesar had of his own accord posted himself on the platform--a vigilant -sentinel. The Frenchman kept awake, whilst his companions, yielding to -fatigue, slept soundly. - -"I will go and take a little rest," Valentine said to Trangoil-Lanec, -who awoke, casting an anxious look around him; "the night is over." - -"Silence!" the chief murmured. - -The two men listened: a stifled growl fell upon their ears. - -"That is my dog!--it is Caesar warning us!" the young man cried. - -He and the chief sprang simultaneously to the platform. In vain he -looked around on all sides, nothing appeared, the same tranquillity -seemed to reign around them. Nothing denoted movement but the high -grass on the banks of the river, which waved gently, as if bent by the -breeze. Valentine, for a minute, thought his dog was deceived, and -was preparing to descend, when he suddenly seized him by the middle -and forced him to lie flat upon the platform, while several shots -resounded, half a score balls came hissing to be flattened against the -rock, and a number of arrows flew over the platform--a second more, and -Valentine would have been killed. - -This attack was succeeded by a horrible yelling which was repeated by -the echoes of the two banks. This was the war cry of the Aucas, who, to -the number of more than forty, appeared upon the shore. Valentine and -the chief discharged their guns almost at hazard among the crowd. Two -men fell, and the Indians suddenly disappeared among the thick bushes -and high grass. The silence, for an instance disturbed, was restored -so promptly, that if the bodies of the two Indians had not remained -stretched upon the sand, the scene might have passed for a dream. The -young man took advantage of the minutes respite afforded by the enemy -to descend into the grotto. At the noise of the fusillade and of the -cry of the Indians, Dona Rosario had started from her sleep in great -terror. Seeing her father seize his gun to mount to the platform, she -threw herself into his arms, imploring him not to leave her. - -"Father! father!" she cried, "pray do not leave me alone, or let me -follow you! Here I should become mad with terror!" - -"My daughter," Don Tadeo replied, "your mother will remain with you, I -must join your friends; would you wish that I should abandon them in -such circumstances? It is my cause they are defending; my place is with -them! Come! Courage, my darling Rosario, time is precious!" - -The young girl sank helplessly on the ground. - -"That is true!" she said; "Pardon me, my father." - -For her part, without speaking a word, the Linda had drawn her dagger, -and placed herself at the entrance of the grotto. At this moment -Valentine appeared. - -"Thanks, Don Tadeo," he said, "but we can dispense with your presence -above. The Black Serpents will, no doubt, attempt to cross the river -and gain entrance to the grotto, of which they certainly know the -existence. Remain here, then, if you please, and watch their movements -carefully." - -Valentine had calculated rightly. The Indians perceiving the inutility -of firing at a block of granite against which their balls were -flattened, changed their tactics. They divided themselves into two -bands, one of which kept firing; whilst the other, led by Antinahuel, -ascended the course of the river. When they arrived at a certain -distance, the Indians hastily constructed rafts, upon which they -allowed themselves to float upon the stream straight toward the rock. -Valentine and his companions, knowing that they had nothing to fear -from those who kept firing at the rock from the bank, descended to the -grotto. - -The young man's first care was to place Dona Rosario in safety. This -duty performed, he took his post with his companions. A raft, mounted -by seven Indians, tossed about violently by the current, all at once -was dashed against the rock, and the Indians, howling their war cry, -sprang off, brandishing their arms; but the three men, with the Linda, -who insisted upon joining them, threw themselves upon them, and, before -they had secured their footing, beat them down with the stocks of their -guns, and cast back their bodies into the river. - -But scarcely had they got rid of these when two other rafts came down, -followed almost immediately by a third and a fourth, carrying at least -thirty men in the whole. For an instant the _melee_ was terrible in -that confined spot, where they fought man to man, foot to foot. The -Linda, trembling for her daughter, with her hair streaming and her eyes -flashing, defended herself like a lioness, powerfully seconded by her -three companions, who performed prodigies of valour. But, overpowered -by numbers, the besieged men were at length obliged to give ground. - -A minutes truce ensued, during which the Auras counted their numbers. -Six of them were stretched dead. On the side of the besieged, Valentine -had received a cut from a hatchet on the head; but as he had seen it -coming, and had moved promptly on one side, it was not a deep wound. -Trangoil-Lanec's left arm was severely wounded. Don Tadeo and the Linda -were unhurt. - -Valentine cast a painful glance towards the spot which served as a -shelter for Rosario, and then thought of nothing but nobly sacrificing -his life. He was the first to recommence the fight. Suddenly a violent -fusillade was heard. - -"Courage," Valentine shouted--"courage!--here are our friends!" - -Followed by his companions, a second time he scaled the barricade, and -threw himself into the _melee_. All at once a cry for help of the most -heart-rending agony resounded from the grotto. The Linda turned round, -and uttering a shriek more like the roar of a wild beast than the cry -of a woman, threw herself upon Antinahuel, in whose arms Rosario was -struggling. Antinahuel, surprised by this unexpected attack, left his -hold of the young girl, and recognised the Linda. - -"Stand back!" he said, in a deep guttural voice. - -But the Linda, without replying, sprang headlong upon him, and plunged -her dagger into his chest. - -"Die, she wolf!" he howled. - -The Linda fell. - -"My mother--oh, my mother!" Rosario cried, in agony, kneeling down -close to her, and covering her with kisses. The chief stooped to seize -the young girl again, but then a new adversary stood firmly before him; -it was Valentine. The Toqui rushed upon the Frenchman. - -Valentine was brave, active, and vigorous, but he had to contend with -a man whom he would never have been able to resist if he had not been -weakened by his wounds. The oily body of the Indian presented no hold -for the Frenchman, whilst his enemy, on the contrary, had seized him -by the cravat. Neither Trangoil-Lanec nor Don Tadeo could render their -companion any assistance, occupied as they were in defending themselves -against the Aucas. - -It was all over with Valentine. Already his ideas began to lose their -lucidity, he only resisted mechanically, when he felt the fingers which -grasped his neck gradually relax; with a last concentration of rage, he -collected all his strength, and succeeded in disengaging himself. But -his enemy, far from attacking him, fell backwards--he was dead! - -"Ah!" the Linda cried, with an expression impossible to be conveyed, -"she is saved!" - -And she sank back fainting in the arms of her daughter, clasping -tightly in her hand the dagger with which she had pierced Antinahuel to -the heart. All eagerly assembled round the unfortunate woman, who, by -killing the inveterate enemy of her daughter, had so nobly retrieved -her faults. - -At length she sighed faintly, opened her eyes, and fixing a dim look -upon those who surrounded her, she convulsively seized her daughter and -Don Tadeo, drew them towards her, and contemplated them. - -"Oh! I was too happy! Both of you had pardoned me; but God decreed -that it should not be! Will this terrible death disarm His justice? -Pray--pray for me!--that--that--hereafter--we may meet again in heaven!" - -She was dead! - -"My God!" said Don Tadeo, "have pity on her!" - -And he knelt down by the body. His companions piously imitated him. - - - - -CHAPTER XLIV. - -CAESAR. - - -A month after the events we have related, two men, seated side by -side in a clump of nopals, were conversing earnestly whilst admiring -a magnificent sunrise. These two men were Valentine Guillois and the -Count de Prebois-Crance. The Frenchmen were watching this reawakening -of nature. - -The count, rendered uneasy by the obstinate silence which Valentine -preserved, at length spoke. - -"When you awoke me an hour ago," he said, "you brought me hither, in -order, as you said, that we might talk at our ease, and I followed -you without an observation. Well, we have been seated in this grove -for twenty minutes, and you have not even begun to explain yourself; -your silence makes me very uneasy, brother, and I do not know what to -attribute it to. Have you any ill news to announce to me?" - -Valentine raised his head quickly. - -"Pardon me, Louis," he replied, "I have no ill news to announce to you, -but the hour for a thorough explanation between us has arrived." - -"What do you mean by that?" - -"You will soon understand me. When, about a year ago, reduced to -despair, and resolved to take refuge in death, you summoned me to -your apartments in the Champs-Elysees, I pledged myself, if you would -consent to live, to restore you that which you had lost, not by your -own fault, but through your inexperience; you placed faith in me; you -unhesitatingly abandoned France, you bade farewell for ever to the life -of a gentleman, and you resolutely accompanied me to America. Now it is -for me to perform, in my turn, the promise made you--" - -"Valentine!" - -"Listen to me; you love Dona Rosario, and I am certain that on her part -she feels for you a true and profound affection; the services we have -rendered her father, authorise us to have an explanation with him, -which I am convinced he expects, and the result of which must render -you happy for ever. This explanation, which I would not risk without -speaking to you first, I will have this morning, and speak frankly to -Don Tadeo." - -A melancholy smile flitted across the young man's lips, and he let his -head sink on his breast without replying. - -"What is the matter with you?" Valentine cried anxiously; "Why is it -that this determination, which is to fulfil all your wishes, plunges -you into such grief? Explain yourself, Louis!" - -"What good will it do to explain myself? Why should we speak today to -Don Tadeo? What hurry is there?" the young man remarked evasively. - -Valentine shook his head, looking at him with astonishment; he could -not comprehend his friend's conduct at all; he, however, determined to -drive him into his last entrenchments. - -"Well, this is the reason why: I wish to assure your happiness as soon -as possible," he said. "The life I have been leading for a month past -in this hacienda is oppressive to me. Since my arrival in America my -character has changed: the sight of great forests, lofty mountains, -in short, of all the sublime magnificence which God has spread with -a bountiful hand in the desert, has developed the instincts of a -traveller, the germ of which I carried at the bottom of my heart; the -constantly recurring changes of the adventurous life which I have led -for some time, cause me to experience pleasures without bounds: in a -word, I have become a passionate wood ranger, and I pant for the moment -when I shall be permitted to resume my aimless rambles in the desert." - -A silence of some minutes ensued. - -"Yes," the count murmured at length, "that life is indeed full of -charms----" - -"That is why I am so eager to launch again into these scenes of -excitement." - -"What prevents our resuming them?" - -"What! why you, pardieu!" - -"You are mistaken, brother. I am weary as you can be of the life we are -leading; we will depart as soon as you please." - -"That is not my meaning; be frank with me: it is impossible that the -ardent love you felt for Dona Rosario could have evaporated thus all at -once." - -"What makes you think I do not love her?" - -"Come!--come!" Valentine replied, "let us have an end of all this; if -you love Dona Rosario, why do you want to leave this place, and why do -you refuse to marry her?" - -"It is not I who refuse," the young man murmured with a sigh, "it is -she!" - -"She! no--no! come! that is not possible!" - -"Brother, a long time ago, the very next day after the night when -at Santiago we delivered her from the hands of the bandits who were -carrying her off, she herself told me that we never could be united. -She ordered me to avoid her presence, and demanded my word of honour -that I would never seek to see her again. Why, then, should I lull -myself with a wild chimera! You see, brother, I have no hope left." - -"Perhaps!--but so many things have taken place since that period that -the intentions of Dona Rosario may have changed." - -"No," the count replied, despondingly. - -"What makes you suppose so?" - -"Her coolness--her indifference to me; the care she takes to avoid me; -everything, in short, proves that I have remained here too long, and -that I ought to leave her dangerous society." - -"Why do not you have an explanation with her?" - -"I have sworn, and whatever it costs I will accomplish my vow." - -Valentine hung his head, but made no reply. - -"I implore you!" the count resumed, "let us remain no longer here; the -sight of her I love increases my anguish." - -"Have you reflected seriously upon this?" - -"Oh, yes!" the young man replied, with an air of real or forced -resolution. - -"Well," said Valentine, shaking his head, "if such is your will, so it -must be; we will begone, then!" - -"Yes, and as soon as possible; do not you think so?" the young man -said, with an involuntary sigh. - -"Oh! this very day; I am only waiting for Curumilla, whom I have -requested to go and procure horses. As soon as he returns we will start. - -"And we will return to the tolderia of the tribe of the Great Hare, -where we can live happily." - -"That is a good idea; in that way our existence will not be a useless -one, since we can contribute to the happiness of those around us. And -who knows?" Valentine added, smiling--"we may perhaps, become great -warriors in Araucania." - -Louis's only reply to this pleasantry was a sigh, which did not escape -the notice of his friend. - -"Oh!" Valentine murmured, "he must and shall be happy in spite of -himself." - -Curumilla and Trangoil-Lanec appeared in the distance amidst a cloud of -dust, galloping towards the hacienda with several horses. The two young -men rose to go and meet them. - -Scarcely had they left the little grove when Dona Rosario put aside -some low branches and came out. She paused thoughtfully for a minute, -looking after the two Frenchmen, who were walking away sad and -gloomy; then suddenly raising her head with a saucy air, her blue eye -brightened, a smile stole over her lips, and she murmured with a pretty -nod of her head-- - -"Hum! ah!--we shall see!" - -Then she returned to the hacienda, bounding along like a frightened -antelope. - -Every morning at eight o'clock, in Spanish-American countries, the -bells ring, to assemble at the same table the inhabitants of the -hacienda--rom the owner who sits in the centre to the humblest peon who -places himself modestly at the lower end. The breakfast is the hour -chosen to meet each other and to pay the compliments of the morning, -previous to commencing the rough labours of the day. - -At the first stroke of eight Don Tadeo descended to the hall and stood -before the table, his daughter being on his right hand. He saluted with -a smile or a friendly word every one of the persons employed on the -farm as they entered. - -The two Frenchmen came in last. After cordially shaking hands with -them, Don Tadeo assured himself by a glance that no one was wanting at -the meeting, took off his hat, in which he was imitated by all present, -and slowly and solemnly pronounced the blessing. At a wave of his hand -all took their places. - -The repast was short; it lasted little more than a quarter of an -hour. The peons then returned to their labours under the order of the -major-domo, and Don Tadeo desired the mate to be served. - -No one remained in the hall but Don Tadeo, his daughter, the foster -brothers, the two Indian chiefs, and Caesar--if it be permissible to -reckon a dog as company; the noble animal was crouched at the feet of -Dona Rosario. - -In a few minutes the mate had made its round on the company, and, yet -without any apparent cause, a painful silence prevailed. - -Don Tadeo was thoughtful; Dona Rosario was twisting her taper, -rose-tipped fingers in the long silky ears of the dog, who had placed -his great head upon her knees, with his large, intelligent eyes fixed -upon her face. - -The count and his foster brother were anxious, and yet afraid to -open the subject that weighed upon their hearts; at length, however, -Valentine became tired of this false position, and resolutely began. - -"Well," he said, "what reply do you mean to make to Don Gregorio -Peralta, Don Tadeo?" - -"What I told you, my friend," said Don Tadeo, turning towards him. -"Chili, henceforward liberated from the man who was dragging the -country to destruction, no longer stands in need of me. I am determined -to trouble myself no longer with politics. I have long enough devoted -my life to the ungrateful labours I imposed upon myself to secure the -independence of my country, and deliver it from the ambitious man who -wished to enslave it. I have accomplished my task; the hour of repose -has struck for me. I peremptorily refuse the presidency which Don -Gregorio offers me in the name of the people, and will devote myself -entirely to the happiness of my daughter." - -"I cannot blame your resolution; it is noble and beautiful, Don Tadeo; -it is Worthy of you," the count replied. - -"And do you mean to send off this answer soon?" said Valentine. - -"In a few minutes; but why do you ask me that question, pray?" - -"Because," Valentine replied, "my friend and I will undertake, if you -please, to convey it." - -Don Tadeo opened his eyes with astonishment. - -"How so?" he cried, "What do you mean by that? Can you think of leaving -us?" - -A melancholy smile played for a moment round the young man's lips; the -ice was broken; the sacrifice must be bravely made, and he did not -hesitate. - -"Heaven is my witness," he said, shaking his head, "that it would be my -most ardent wish to remain here." - -"Yes," the count interrupted, taking, in spite of himself, a furtive -glance at Rosario, who appeared to have no interest in what was -passing; "yes, we have too long forgotten ourselves in your charming -retreat. This delightful life enervates us; if we do not hasten to tear -ourselves from it, we shall soon find it impossible to do so." - -"You must leave us!" Don Tadeo repeated, whose countenance became -cloudy, and his eyebrows contracted; "and what for?" - -"Do you not know?" Louis replied, who took courage from the apparent -carelessness of Rosario, "that when for the first time we had the good -fortune to meet with you----" - -"Good fortune for me!" Don Tadeo interrupted, warmly. - -"Be it so!" said Valentine, striking in to assist his friend; "we were -then in search of fortune. Well, and now," he continued, gaily, "thanks -to Heaven that our assistance is no longer necessary to you, we are not -willing to abuse your kind hospitality any longer." - -"What does this mean?" Don Tadeo exclaimed, rising. "What do you call -abusing my hospitality? Why do you employ such futile pretexts with me?" - -"We must go!" the young man repeated, coldly. - -"Oh! I cannot believe it is the thirst for gold which urges you to -leave me. Your heart is too noble for that odious passion to gain -possession of it." - -"Don Tadeo, you do us but justice," the count replied; "it is not the -thirst for gold which actuates us, for our intention on leaving you is -to retire among the Aucas Indians." - -Don Tadeo looked perfectly astonished. - -"Do not form a bad opinion of us," the young man continued; "be assured -that if a powerful motive did not oblige us to depart, I, at least, -should be most happy to remain with you." - -Don Tadeo walked up and down the hall in great agitation. - -"Can you not tell me the motive you speak of," he said in an -affectionate tone. - -The young lady turned her head imperceptibly. - -"I cannot!" Louis murmured, bowing his head. - -Rosario shrugged her shoulders with an air of disappointment. - -"Very well, caballero," Don Tadeo replied, with cold dignity; "you -and your friend are free to act as to you seems best. Pardon me the -questions I have put to you, but your resolution, which I in vain -endeavour to account for, has destroyed past recovery a cherished hope, -which I should have been most happy to have seen realised. Here is my -letter to Don Gregorio Peralta; when do you wish to set out?" - -"This very instant!" the count replied; "my friend and I intended to -bid you farewell immediately after breakfast." - -"Yes," Valentine continued, who perceived that his foster brother, -overcome by his feelings, could not say any more; "we beg you to accept -our thanks for the friendship you have deigned to display towards us, -and to assure you that the remembrance of you will live in the bottom -of our hearts." - -"Farewell, then!" Don Tadeo said, with great emotion. "God grant that -you may find elsewhere the happiness that awaited you here." - -Valentine bowed without replying; his tears choked his utterance. - -"Adieu, senorita!" murmured the count, in a tremulous low voice; "may -you be happy?" - -She made no reply: deeply wounded, he turned away quickly, and strode -towards the door. In spite of all their resolution, when on the point -of going out, the young men cast one look behind them, to salute for -the last time persons who were so dear to them, and whom they were -abandoning for ever. Don Tadeo stood motionless in the same place, -apparently still as much surprised as hurt. Dona Rosario continued -playing mechanically with the ears of the dog. - -"Caesar!" shouted Valentine. - -At the voice of his master, the Newfoundland dog disengaged himself -quickly from the arms of the young girl, and bounded to his side. - -"Caesar!" Rosario murmured faintly. - -And then, in spite of the signs and orders of his master, the animal -laid itself down at her feet. - -With a bursting heart, the count made a violent effort, and sprang -towards the door. - -"Louis!" Rosario cried. "Louis, you have sworn never to be separated -from Caesar." - -Louis staggered, as if struck by lightning; a glow of inexpressible joy -lit up his face; he let the letter fall, and gently thrust forward by -Valentine, fell at the feet of the lovely and now smiling girl. - -"My father!" Rosario implored, throwing her arm round his neck, "I well -knew that he loved me." - -Valentine felt an acute pang mixed with an immense joy at this -denouement. - -"It is I," he said, picking up the letter with a smile, of which none -but such a man is capable, "who must carry the answer." - -"Oh, no!" Dona Rosario said, with a playful pout, "You will not leave -us, my friend; are you not the dearly beloved brother of my Louis? Oh, -we will not let you go!" - -Valentine kissed the hand extended to him, and secretly wiped away a -tear, but he made no reply. - -The day passed away rapidly and happily for all; when night was come-- - -"Farewell, brother!" said Valentine, with deep emotion. "Thank Heaven, -you are henceforth sheltered from all misfortune." - - -The count looked at him anxiously. - -"Brother," he said, "are you unhappy?" - -"Who, I?" said Valentine, endeavouring to smile, "I never was so happy -in my life!" - -After embracing the count, who gave way to him, though astonished at -the sudden appearance of grief in such a man, he strode away. Louis -watched him depart, saying to himself-- - -"What can be the matter with him? Oh, tomorrow he shall explain -himself!" - -But on the morrow Valentine had disappeared. - -He also loved Dona Rosario. - -The young people waited for him a long time. At length, three months -after his departure, when all hopes of his return had completely -vanished, the Count de Prebois-Crance married Dona Rosario. But -Valentine was wanting. - - * * * * * - -Those of our readers who have taken an interest in Valentine, and we -hope that they are numerous, will find his further adventures recorded -in the "TIGER-SLAYER." - - - - - -THE END. - - - - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Pearl of the Andes, by Gustave Aimard - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE PEARL OF THE ANDES *** - -***** This file should be named 43838-8.txt or 43838-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/3/8/3/43838/ - -Produced by Camille Bernard and Marc D'Hooghe at -http://www.freeliterature.org (Scans generously made -available by the Hathi Trust) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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