very few seconds he must be prepared to act, and to act quickly too.
They evidently had no idea that a second prisoner was so close to them,
for, to the young man's great relief, they were aiming to pass the rock
at a distance of quite eighty yards. Closer and closer they came, and
as they did so Jim gradually edged his way round the rock in such a
manner as to keep out of their sight as far as was possible. Another
moment's suspense and the leading soldier had passed the rock without
giving it so much as a glance. Then another and another man panted
past, until presently the rearmost Peruvian went grunting and gasping
by.
In a second Jim had sprung to his feet and was scudding along in the
wake of the rearmost soldier, at the same time edging away to the right
of the rock in such a manner as to bring him directly behind the group
of Peruvians. Then he put on the pace a little, and found that he could
easily outrun any of the soldiers, since he himself was quite fresh
while they were already somewhat winded. He soon overtook the last
soldier, and began to pass him, his heart in his throat with
apprehension lest the fellow should recognise him as one of the Chilian
officers, and shout his discovery to the rest. But the fellow, although
somewhat astonished to find that there had been a comrade behind while
he thought that he himself was the rearmost man, paid little attention
to his supposed comrade, being too much out of breath to do much
thinking. Douglas passed him, unsuspected, and meanwhile kept his eye
on the Chilian, who, although obviously failing in speed, was rapidly
nearing the belt of forest.
Jim then put on another spurt, and passed a second soldier, then
another, and still another, without attracting any particular attention
to himself; and a few minutes later he found that he was leading the
entire party of pursuers. So far so good; his back was now presented to
them all, and they had therefore no opportunity to recognise his
features; yet while he ran he had a very unpleasant feeling that he
might expect a bullet to strike him between his shoulder-blades at any
moment. But the bullet did not come; and he could tell, by the
diminishing sounds of trampling feet that he was still steadily drawing
ahead of the rest of the soldiers. At this moment the Chilian plunged
into the thick brushwood, and was, in a few seconds, lost to sight,
while a yell of angry disappointment and execration went up from the
pursuing soldiery.
"Now," muttered Douglas to himself, "if that fellow only knows what he
is about, and keeps cool, he should be able to make his escape without
much difficulty." And he too plunged forward at top speed, in order
that he also might get into the wood well in advance of the soldiers;
for his own chance of escape depended upon his being able to give his
"comrades" the slip. A few seconds more, and Jim saw a small opening
among the brushwood disclosing an Indian "bush-path"; it was along this
that the Chilian had gone, and Douglas now himself dashed into the wood,
tearing his hands, face, and clothes on the sharp thorns with which the
path was bordered.
Once inside the wood he was out of sight of the Peruvians; and hope lent
wings to his feet. He fairly flew along the narrow pathway until he
felt he must soon catch up the Chilian, if the fellow were still ahead;
but, even when Jim came to a comparatively long length of straight path,
he was unable to see any one, and he soon came to the conclusion that
the man had, very wisely, slipped away into the thick undergrowth to
wait until the pursuit had gone past and darkness should come on.
Douglas resolved that he would do likewise, and increased his pace still
more, so that he might be out of sight before the soldiers should enter
the straight length of path, where, of course, they would be able to see
some distance ahead. The Englishman was lucky in finding an opening in
the thick wall of brushwood, and he plunged into the brake just a second
before the pursuing soldiery came in sight, making a tremendous noise as
he broke a way for himself, which he fervently trusted would not be
heard amid the uproar that the Peruvians themselves were creating.
As soon as he had got about ten yards from the path he flung himself
down at full length upon the ground, in a little open space which was
clear of thorns, to recover his breath and listen to the sounds of the
pursuit. At the same time he examined the breach of his carbine and,
finding it empty, loaded it, wondering at the carelessness of the guard
from whom he had so recently taken it. For a second or two the noise of
the runners came nearer and nearer; and then, suddenly, there was a loud
cry of "Halt!" followed by a terrific shouting and hubbub, the snapping
of small branches, the crackling of undergrowth trodden down, and then--
the report of a carbine.
"_Carrajo_!" muttered Jim, "they have sighted that unfortunate Chilian,
then! I wonder how it was that I passed without seeing him? Poor
beggar! I am afraid that they won't show him much mercy--nor me,
either--if they catch me," he added.
But there was no more shooting, and from various parts of the wood men
were heard calling to each other; so Jim surmised that it must have been
a false alarm, and that the Chilian was still undiscovered. The
soldiers were yet rather too far distant for Jim to hear what they were
shouting to one another, but presently they approached near enough for
him to catch the words, and he found that they were inquiring of one
another whether there were any signs of the fugitive, and whether "any
one had seen that swift-running man who entered the wood first." The
replies were to the effect that the _Chileno_ had not yet been sighted,
and that the "runner"--that was, of course, Jim himself--had also
mysteriously vanished, but that the latter must be somewhere about, and
that they would soon come across him.
Douglas was beginning to fear that the last part of the remark might
very soon prove only too true, for it was evident that the Peruvians
were slowly but surely working their way through the wood toward the
place where he was concealed. Observing, therefore, that the
undergrowth was fairly thin ahead of him, he started to crawl along so
as, if possible, to get out of the course of the beaters before they
should arrive on the spot. Grasping his carbine so that his hand
covered the trigger-guard--in order to avoid any accidental discharge in
consequence of the trigger becoming caught in some trailing twig--he
began to creep forward, making as little noise as possible, and being
particularly careful to avoid disturbing the bushes any more than he
could help. The soldiers, luckily for him, kept up an incessant
shouting, so that he was able to guess pretty well their relative
positions; and, after about five minutes' slow progress through the
brushwood, he came to the conclusion that he had at last got out of
their way. There was, too, a nice little open space wherein he could
lie hidden without being in momentary fear of being bitten by a snake, a
particularly deadly species of which was known to swarm in that
locality.
By this time Jim had recovered his breath, and was eagerly awaiting the
moment when it would be safe to move, wondering whether or not he had
better remain where he was until darkness set in, when he was
dumbfounded to hear some one come crashing through the brake, apparently
quite close by, and making straight toward him. It could not be the
Chilian, for he would never be making all that disturbance--unless
indeed he had gone mad under the stress of being hunted--so it must
necessarily be a stray Peruvian soldier. Jim at once sprang to his feet
and began to poke about among the bushes with the muzzle of his carbine,
as though searching for somebody who might possibly be hidden among
them, at the same time turning his back on the approaching man, who was
still pushing his way through the bush and singing softly to himself as
he came.
Presently the noise sounded very close indeed, then still closer, when
suddenly it stopped altogether. Jim knew that the other had seen him,
and was doubtless wondering what he was doing there; but he dared not
turn round for fear of being recognised; so he continued to poke about
among the bushes, as though unaware that any one was present. Then a
rough voice, which Jim at once recognised as that of his old enemy,
Captain Garcia-y-Garcia, broke the silence with an explosion of Spanish
profanity and a desire to be informed why this particular unit of the
forces should be thus wasting his time instead of joining in the pursuit
of the fugitive.
Douglas at once realised that the captain must have come along some time
after his men, and that he had probably only just entered the wood. He
also realised that, directly he turned round, Garcia-y-Garcia would
infallibly recognise him, in spite of the Peruvian private's uniform
which he was wearing. He could also see, out of the tail of his eye,
the glitter of a drawn sword which the man carried in his hand. But it
was necessary to act at once, for at any moment the fellow's suspicions
might be aroused, or the soldiers might come back, or--
Like a flash Douglas wheeled round, bringing the carbine up to his hip
as he did so, and looked the officer full in the face; while his
forefinger curled caressingly round the trigger. The captain's life
hung by a thread, and he knew it, for he had recognised Jim as an
escaped prisoner the moment that the latter showed his face.
"Ah!" gasped Garcia, his face turning ghastly white, "it is that
scoundrel of an Englishman! From whom have you stolen these clothes,
senor?" he went on, at the same time taking a fresh grip of his sword-
hilt and moving slightly nearer to Douglas.
It was a lucky thing for Jim that he had never removed his eyes from
those of Garcia, for he saw the murder that was lurking in them. Garcia
was but trying to put him off his guard by asking that question, and Jim
saw it. He had barely time to raise his carbine when the officer's
sword flashed in the air and the next second would have smote full upon
Douglas's head. But the young man caught the blow on the barrel of his
weapon, turning the blade aside, and at the same instant he pushed the
muzzle of the carbine into Garcia's face and pulled the trigger!
There was a sharp, ringing report, and the Peruvian fell backward among
the bushes, with his head blown to pieces. Jim hastily pushed the
corpse out of sight, reloaded his rifle, and then started to run as hard
as he could; for he knew that the explosion could not possibly pass
unnoticed in that echoing wood; and, indeed, he immediately heard a
chorus of excited shouting coming from somewhere away on his left. He
therefore picked up his heels and ran for his life. Luckily he came
upon another path, running at right angles to the main path, and into
this he plunged, stripping off his long military overcoat as he ran.
After running for about ten minutes, and getting thoroughly out of
breath, he stopped to listen; and, to his great relief, found that all
sounds had died away, and that the part of the wood where he found
himself was as still as the grave.
He therefore pressed on again, but not so fast as before, and in half an
hour's time he fancied that the wood was beginning to grow less dense,
and that he was therefore coming to its boundary; but it proved to be
only a large wind-gap in the forest, across which he made his way as
quickly as possible, striking into a still denser part of the wood on
the other side. It was by this time beginning to grow dark, and Jim was
considering ruefully the prospect of having to spend the night in the
forest when he thought he heard a slight noise somewhere among the trees
near him. He at once brought his rifle to the "ready," and glared about
him, searching the wood with his glances to see who or what the intruder
might be. The next moment he sprang behind a tree; for it was certain
that there was somebody close at hand. It could hardly be a Peruvian
soldier so far away from his friends, thought Jim; moreover, the
individual was treading stealthily, as though in fear of being heard.
The next moment the fugitive Chilian pushed his way cautiously into the
path, looking warily to right and left as he did so. Douglas
immediately sprang out from his hiding-place, nearly scaring the man to
death for a moment. The Chilian proved to be an officer who had
formerly been on board the _O'Higgins_, and he and Douglas recognised
each other instantly.
They at once sat down to talk matters over, and Jim soon found that his
friend knew this part of the country very well, having been there
before; and that he had decided to make for Arica, which was at this
time in Chilian hands. Jim readily fell in with the plan, and after a
good long rest the two men started away upon their arduous journey.
They camped for the night on the outskirts of the wood, which they
reached about midnight, and there made a meal off the provisions which
each had been thoughtful enough to bring. These provisions lasted them
a week, by which time they were approaching the region where they might
hope to find the Chilian outposts. But they had either miscalculated
the distance, or the Chilians had retreated, for it was another week
before they finally came into contact with a Chilian force at Tacna;
and, meanwhile, they had had to procure food at the muzzle of Jim's
carbine, for the country-folk soon perceived that the two fugitives were
escaped Chilian prisoners.
As soon, however, as they fell in with Colonel Barros, in command of the
first company of the Taltal regiment, stationed at Tacna, their troubles
were over. He at once provided them with mules and a small escort, at
the same time lending them as much money as he could spare. And after a
stay of three days with this hospitable and kindly man they took their
departure, arriving at Arica two days later; and there, before their
eyes as they came in sight of the harbour, lay the _Blanco Encalada_,
the Chilian flagship, a sight which Jim thought the finest that he had
ever seen. The _O'Higgins_ was there also, together with three other
ships; and the two scarecrows lost no time in repairing on board their
respective vessels.
Jim Douglas's reception on board was one which he will remember all his
life. He was instantly shouldered by his brother officers and carried
off to the ward-room, where he was made to detail all his adventures,
the captain and admiral being at the moment ashore. It was nearly
midnight before Jim had finished; and, the admiral being still ashore,
he retired to his bunk and slept the sleep of the utterly weary.
The next thing he knew was that he was being violently shaken, while a
voice cried, "Rouse up, _amigo_; rouse up! The admiral has just come on
board; and, having been informed of your return, desires to see you
immediately. Hurry up! for I believe, from the look of the old
gentleman, that he has something good in store for you. It's just nine
o'clock, and he breakfasts in ten minutes; so look sharp."
Jim did "look sharp." He dragged a uniform out of his chest, slipped it
on, and in less than ten minutes was standing shaking hands with Admiral
Riveros.
CHAPTER NINETEEN.
A GUERILLA STRONGHOLD.
"_Buenas dias_, Senor Douglas," said the old gentleman heartily; "sit
down and tell me all about yourself and your doings since the memorable
night when you left the _Blanco Encalada_. I feared that you, with all
the rest of the crew of the _Janequeo_, had perished in Callao harbour,
or fallen into the hands of the Peruvians--which is even worse, so they
tell me. I am indeed glad to see you back again, my young friend. Now
proceed with your report, senor, if you please."
Thus commanded, Jim plunged into a fairly full and detailed recital of
all that had befallen him since he had left the flagship, only pausing
in his narrative when Riveros wished to be enlightened upon some point
or other. The admiral continually nodded approbation of what Douglas
had done; and the lad noticed that he paid particular attention to the
account of the silver mine at Sorata, and Jim's description of the
country thereabout. When the young Englishman had finished his report,
which he did in the course of about an hour, Riveros suddenly said:
"Then I may take it, _Senor el Teniente_, that you are pretty well
acquainted with the country about Sorata? Did you, by any chance, see
or hear anything of a village called Coroico during your captivity, or
while you were escaping?"
"Coroico?" mused Jim; "let me see--yes, sir; I seem to remember hearing
the place spoken of by a warder with whom I contrived to become
friendly--the man whose uniform I took the small liberty of
appropriating, you will remember. He said that a Bolivian force was
collecting near there, for the purpose, I believe, of making raids into
the newly acquired Chilian territory."
"Exactly! Just so," replied Riveros; "that is the matter in a nutshell.
Now listen to me for a few moments, please. As you are aware, we have
practically destroyed the naval power of Peru; and we have also made
short work of her armies wherever we have come into contact with them.
In a word, Peru is almost at the end of her resources; and the
Government is ready to come to terms, allowing us to keep the territory
we have newly acquired along the sea-coast, namely, that strip of land
reaching, roughly, from Papos to Arica. So far, so good. A small
portion of that territory, however, belonged to Bolivia, which is, as
you know, the ally of Peru. Now, the Bolivian Government is also ready
to surrender that land; but a large portion of the population will not
hear of it being given up, since their only port, Antofagasta, is
situated upon it. These--rebels, I suppose I may call them, are trying
to displace the president of Bolivia in order to put in power a man who
will not accede to the Chilian demands; but Dr Ladislao Cabrera is too
strong for the rebels, and still retains his office.
"Having therefore been foiled in that direction, a force of Bolivians
has been collected by a noted guerilla leader named Bajos; and this
force, amounting to about a couple of thousand men, has entrenched
itself in a strong position near Coroico, whence frequent destructive
raids are being made into our newly won territory. They burn and slay
wherever they go; in fact they leave a trail of blood and ashes behind
them plain enough for anybody to follow. Mercy seems a thing absolutely
unknown among these desperadoes; and instead of carrying on their
warfare in a civilised manner, they are committing the most dreadful
atrocities on all Chilians, both civil and military, who fall into their
hands. Now, these men are a menace which we cannot tolerate; for,
unless the band is rooted out and utterly destroyed, there will never be
peace or safety in the northern part of Chili. This has been a somewhat
long introduction to what I have to say, _teniente_, but it was
necessary, in view of the remarks which I am about to make.
"As I say, the work of the navy is practically finished; but we are very
short of men in the army; for the army has to cover a large extent of
country. I have therefore decided to transfer you from the navy to the
army, and to send you, at the head of five hundred men, against these
outlaws. You are acquainted with the country; and you have always
carried out most satisfactorily such work as I have given you to do.
More than that number of men cannot, as I understand, be spared. Five
hundred against two thousand is heavy odds, I admit; but much will
depend upon the man who is in charge of the smaller force; and I have no
hesitation in saying that I do not think I could have chosen a better
man for the purpose than yourself."
Jim bowed and murmured his thanks. "Now," resumed Riveros, "the force
is actually ready, and is waiting to start on its march. If you had not
turned up in the nick of time I should have been obliged to send another
man; for this is a matter that cannot wait. Since you are here,
however, I shall be glad if you will start for Coroico at once. I am
sorry to be obliged to send you away so soon, for you deserve a long
rest after all that you have gone through; but perhaps this commission
as captain in the army which I have procured for you may be some slight
recompense for what you have been obliged to endure. Should you bring
this expedition to a satisfactory issue, I think I can promise that you
will be raised to the rank of major. That is all, I think. And now,
Senor Douglas, the sooner you get away the better. _Dios guarde al
Usted_! Any further particulars which you may desire to know will be
given you by Captain Simpson; you will find him in his cabin. _A Dios,
senor, a mas ver_!"
The kindly but extremely busy old gentleman pushed Jim out of the cabin
without giving him an opportunity to express the gratitude he felt for
the promotion and the trust reposed in him, and he made his way at once
to Simpson's cabin, in order to get all the information possible
relative to the forthcoming expedition. When he emerged, an hour or so
later, he was beaming with joy and pleasureable anticipation; for he
found that the task was likely to be a very difficult one; in
consequence of which he had been provided with a squadron of the Guias
cavalry, together with a couple of field-pieces, which Simpson had told
him he would find very necessary. He quickly packed up his slender
baggage, and, after saying good-bye to his comrades, had himself rowed
ashore. There his first move was made to the establishment of a
military tailor, where he procured his new uniform and weapons; then he
paid a visit to the cavalry barracks, selected a charger for himself,
inspected his troop, and gave orders for them to be ready for an early
start on the morrow. They were a fine-looking lot of men, and Jim felt
that they were just the sort of fellows for an expedition of this kind.
The following morning at seven o'clock Douglas rode into the parade
ground, and found his men already drawn up, together with the two field-
pieces; and half an hour later the little army clattered out of the
barrack-yard into the streets, past the _plaza_, out of the north gate,
and swung into the road which led north-eastward toward Lake Titicaca,
reaching La Paz four days after leaving Arica. They stayed here one
day, leaving on the following morning, and by nightfall the force was at
the foot of the mountains which they would have to traverse before
reaching Sorata. Here they camped for the night, pushing forward the
next day right into the heart of the mountains, which, at this altitude,
were clothed with thick pine forests, and cut up by mountain torrents
spanned by narrow and frail bridges, across which it was a very
difficult and supremely dangerous task to transport the horses and the
guns.
They had been among the mountains a week, and were approaching fairly
close to Coroico; Jim therefore took the precaution to throw out scouts
in all directions round his little force, in order to prevent surprise;
and one evening, just before darkness began to settle down, one of the
men came riding in to say that he had caught sight of a small body of
Bolivians hovering among the hills about a mile to the right of the main
body. "Evidently," thought the young commander, "the guerillas are
expecting some such expedition as this, and have thrown out their
outposts; there will therefore be little hope of taking them by
surprise." However, as there was no further alarm, and as darkness was
fast closing down, orders were given for the camp to be pitched for the
night; and very soon the horses were picketed and the men were under
canvas, sentries were posted, and everything was made snug and
comfortable for the night.