THE NEWS AT LA GUAYRA.
Great rejoicing reigned at the plantation of Don Isadora following the
complete rout of the enemy, and this joy was increased by the fact that
the don had not received a fatal wound. In fact, it was believed with
careful nursing he would soon be about again. As he deserved, Ronie
was the hero of the occasion, while his friends shared with him the
praise showered upon them by one and all.
As soon as the news of the victory had been carried to the master of
the estate he sent for our hero, and was lavish in his commendation,
declaring that he had been instrumental in saving them all from the
brutal clutches of El Capitan. But, as pleasant as all this hearty
applauding was, Ronie was glad to break away from his admirers in order
to be alone with Harrie and Jack. He and the former had much to say,
all of which was listened to with sincere interest by the latter.
Harrie explained how he and Francisco had drifted about in their boat,
looking in vain for their companions until daylight, when they had
sighted land, and gone ashore. Soon after, they were captured and
thrown into prison, as Ronie knew. Then came the unexpected release,
the journey to find Colonel Marchand, the capture by El Capitan's
followers, and the rescue by his friends, which seemed the most
miraculous part of his adventures. Ronie, in turn, told what had
befallen Jack and himself, saying in conclusion:
"There is only one thing more that troubles me. If I knew mother was
safe I could bear this troublesome waiting without murmuring. But I am
afraid some fearful fate has overtaken her. I shall not rest until I
know the truth."
"You know I am with you, Ronie," said Harrie.
"Ay, lad; you can count on old Jack Greenland to stand by you both,
through thick and thin."
"God bless you, Jack!" exclaimed Ronie, clasping one hand, while Harrie
seized the other, echoing the words of his friend:
"God bless you, Jack; a nobler soul never lived."
When the three had hastily reviewed the troubles they had passed
through they decided unanimously to return to Colonel Marchand with
such haste as was consistent with safety. They had important
intelligence to bear, beside the fact that El Capitan was upon his
track. Under the changed circumstances, they decided to take the
captives with them, and of course Riva and his friend would keep along.
While the don was very loath to see them depart, he knew it was their
duty to go, and so he offered to send an escort of fifty men to conduct
them on their way as far as might be deemed necessary. At first
thought, Ronie felt like declining this, but he finally asked for an
escort of ten men, who went with them until noon of the second day,
when they turned back and the scouts kept on, reaching the encampment
of the Venezuelan regiment that night in safety.
I need not describe the reception accorded our heroes by the impetuous
colonel, any more than I need dwell upon the scenes that followed. The
campaign had now opened in deadly earnest, and weeks of great activity
and considerable fighting and skirmishing ensued. El Capitan rallying
after a few days from his discomfiture at Isadora sought in every way
to disconcert and capture the doughty Venezuelan regiment. In his
efforts he was encouraged on every hand by the reports of the success
of the insurgents in almost every section. First intelligence came of
the capture of a town on the island of Margarita by the audacious
cruiser _Bolivar_, erstwhile the _Libertador_, and earlier the _Ban
Righ_. Close upon this, Castro's troops under Castillo were defeated
near San Antonio. In May, reports of insurrections came in from every
quarter. Castro suppressed two newspapers which had become pronounced
against him, and in his lack of sufficient funds to carry on the war,
levied a million bolivars from the widow of Guzman Blanco, the former
president. Then the revolution broke out in the State of Bolivar, and
after five days' fighting the president of the State was driven out of
the capital. In June General Matos, encouraged by the success of his
followers, announced a provincial government, with himself as president.
This bit of news reached Colonel Marchand at the close of a warm day's
fight with his old-time enemy, El Capitan. As usual, it had been a
draw game, and the colonel was sitting in his hammock feeling in
anything but an amiable mood.
"By the soul of Bolivar!" he exclaimed, slapping his knee by way of
emphasis, "he is like a ground mole, that runs for its hole the moment
an enemy is in sight. I wish we might meet a foe worthy of our steel.
Orderly, send for Sergeant Rand at once."
Ronie was with his friends, discussing the outcome of the recent
meeting with the enemy, and deliberating upon their own fortunes since
they had become comrades under Castro, when this order was given him.
"I wonder what this means?" he exclaimed. "Say to Colonel Marchand I
will report at once."
Upon reaching the officer, the young sergeant found that he was anxious
to send a message to President Castro, and at the same time to
reconnoiter the country between them and the capital.
"Castro must take the field himself," declared our hero, in the course
of the conversation. "If this growth of the insurgents is allowed to
continue much longer his cause will become hopeless."
"By the soul of Bolivar! you are right, Sergeant Rand, and it is just
what I want you to say to Castro himself. You can do it and not offend
him, while I could not. You will go to him at once, taking as many men
as you choose. I have only to instruct you to start as soon as may be."
"It shall be as you say, colonel. I desire to have only three
companions, Senor Riva Baez and my countrymen, Harrie Mannering and
Jack Greenland."
"As you say, sergeant. Here are the dispatches I wish you to hand to
President Castro personally."
Handing this package to our hero, the colonel offered no further delay.
With feelings akin to gladness, Ronie returned to his expectant
companions.
"I hail it as good news," he said. "We are to meet the 'Little
Captain,' President Castro, with what haste we can. I say we, for I
have the honor of being selected by Colonel Marchand to choose such
companions as I wish and hasten to the capital. You know whom I
select."
Ronie was really pleased with this commission, as it would enable him
to enter a wider range of inquiry concerning his mother than he had
been situated to do so far. Thoughts of her were last in his mind as
he lay down to rest after a day's campaigning and the first to arouse
him in the morning.
"Poor mother! how I pity you, and wish that I knew where you are!"
Within an hour the little party was ready to start, deciding to go by
the way of La Guayra, which they reached without adventure, This
old-fashioned Spanish town is the chief seaport of Venezuela, as well
as the entrance way to the capital, situated about five miles inland
behind the series of mountain peaks whose chain runs down to the very
edge of the water. Our young engineers did not fail to notice, as they
looked out over the harbor, the close affinity to the same cerulean hue
that touched both sea and sky, so it was difficult to tell where they
met on the horizon, and blended like a curtain of the same soft
texture. Under the reflections the vessels appeared to rest flat on
the mirror-like surface, in the words of the poet:
"Like a painted ship upon a painted sea."
The most conspicuous spot about La Guayra is the little fortress made
famous by Charles Kingsley, in his "Westward Ho," as the prison house
of his heroine, the Rose of Devon. This was the residence of the
Spanish governors in the days when Venezuela was a dependency of Spain.
Past this ancient point of defense against attacks from the sea and the
winds lead those three ways of travel to the capital, aptly
illustrating the changes of centuries; first, but of least importance
now, the mule path worn no doubt by the natives in their passages back
and forth; second, the wagon track, cut, it may be, when the continent
was young; and finally, that iron-banded course of modern construction,
the railroad. Caracas is embowered among the mountains three thousand
feet above the streets of La Guayra.
Their arrival was soon after the bombardment of Macuto by Venezuelan
ships on account of an outbreak there. As this place was near to La
Guayra, great excitement was prevailing in the latter place. In fact,
the inhabitants everywhere were in an uproar. News came that General
Riera, who, it will be remembered, was a passenger on the _Libertador_
when our heroes were on that vessel, had captured La Vela de Coro,
while the insurgents had also captured Barquisemoto, and Riera had
sacked Coro, the capital of the State of Falcon.
Our party did not continue their journey to the capital, on account of
the fact that Castro was toward Barcelona, where the revolution had
become centered. With this bit of news came a rumor which, if it bore
but a light bearing on the international contention focused on
Venezuela, awakened an anxious interest on the part of Ronie Rand and
his friends. Riva Baez first learned of it from a native who had come
down from the mountainous districts. This man said an American woman
was held by the insurgents as a hostage of war. He could not give the
name of the woman, but believed she had not been long in the country.
"It is mother!" exclaimed Ronie, as Riva related the story to him. "I
must see this man at once."
"I am sorry, senor, but he disappeared before I started to find you.
Knowing how you would feel about it, and not being able to find you at
once, I went to speak to him again, fearing he would slip away. He was
gone, and no one could tell me where he had left for. I believe he is
a spy."
"Do you not know of some one who saw him?"
"I will see what I can learn, Sergeant Rand."
"Thank you, Riva. Meanwhile, the rest of us will do a little looking
around. Describe the fellow as minutely as possible."
This Riva did, with the graphic speech peculiar to him, and then the
four went out to look for the missing man. In the midst of this
unsuccessful search Ronie learned that Castro had returned to La Guayra.