From that day, as memorable in the second siege as Eras in the first
siege, began the great work in whose frenzy and exaltation both
besiegers and besieged lived for the next month and a half. The sorties
made during the first days of January were not of much importance. The
French, having finished their first parallel, advanced in a zig-zag
towards opening their second, and worked on it with so much activity
that very soon we saw our two best positions in the Mediodia, San José
and the redoubt del Pilar, threatened by siege batteries, every one
with a dozen cannon. I must be excused for saying that we did not cease
to make trouble for them, keeping up an incessant fire, and surprising
them with sudden skirmishes, but this was all. Junot, who now took the
place of Moncey, carried forward the work with great diligence.
Our battalion remained in the redoubt raised at the outer end of the
Huerva bridge. The radius of our fire was considerable, crossing that
of San José. The batteries of Los Martires, of the Botanical Garden,
and of the Torre del Pino further within the city were less important
than the two bodies holding the advanced positions, and served as
auxiliaries.
Numbers of Saragossan volunteers were with us in the garrison, some
of the soldiers of the guard, and various armed peasants who rather
elected themselves to our corps than came into it by our choice.
Eight cannons held the redoubt. Don Domingo Larripa was our leader.
The artillery was commanded by Don Francisco Betbezé. As chief of
engineers, we had the great Simono, high official of that distinguished
service, and a man of such quality that he was able to quote himself as
a model of all good military men, both in valor and in knowledge.
The redoubt was a work sufficiently strong for the purpose, and not
lacking in any material requisite for defending itself. Over the
entrance gate at the extremity of the bridge its constructors had
placed a tablet with this inscription,--
_The indestructible redoubt of our Lady of the Pillar. Saragossans! Die
for the Virgin del Pilar or conquer!_
We had our lodging within the redoubt, and though the place was not
altogether bad, we went on poorly enough. The rations were provided
by a committee recommended by the military administration; but this
committee, to our sorrow, was not able to attend to us properly. By
good fortune, and to the honor of that generous people, food was sent
to us from the neighboring houses, the best of their provisions; and we
were frequently visited by the charitable women, who since the battle
of the thirty-first had taken it upon themselves to nurse and care for
our poor wounded heroes.
I have not spoken of Pirli. Pirli was a boy from outside the city, a
rustic about twenty years of age, and in such jolly condition that the
most dangerous situations only moved him to a nervous and feverish joy.
I never saw him sad. He met the French singing; and when the bullets
whistled past his head, he capered about, making a thousand grotesque
gestures, throwing up his hands and fairly dancing. When the fire
was thick as hail, he called the bullets "hailstones." He called the
cannon-balls "hot cakes;" he called the hand-grenades, "señoras;" and
the powder he called "black flour," using other queer terms which I do
not now remember. Pirli, although not at all a serious person, was a
charming companion.
I do not know whether I have spoken of Tio Garces. He was a man of
forty-five years, a native of Garrapinillos, very brave, bronzed,
sawed-off looking, with limbs of steel; there was no one so active
or so imperturbable under fire. He was somewhat talkative, and was a
little inclined to be imprudent in his conversation, but with a certain
wit in his garrulity. He had a small estate in the environs, and a
very modest house; but he had levelled it with his own hands, and cut
down his pear-trees, so that the enemy could not use them. I heard of
a thousand of his valorous deeds in the first siege, and he wore a
decoration on his right sleeve, the embroidered shield of distinction
of the sixteenth of August. He dressed badly, and went almost
half-naked, not because he lacked clothing, but because he had not
time to put it on. He and others like him were without doubt those who
inspired the celebrated phrase of which I have already made mention:
"Their bodies were clothed only in glory." He slept without shelter,
and ate less than an anchorite; indeed with two pieces of bread and a
couple of bites of dried beef hard as hide, he had rations for the day.
He was a man somewhat given to meditation. When he saw the works of the
second parallel, he said, looking at the French: "Thanks be to God,
they are drawing near. Cuerno! Cuerno! these people are a trial to
one's patience!"
"What a hurry you are in, uncle Garces," we said to him.
"I should say so. I want to plant my trees again before winter is over.
And next month I want to build my little house again."
Truly Tio Garces should have worn a tablet on his brow like that on the
bridge, reading, "An unconquerable man."
But who comes there, advancing slowly along the valley of the Huerva,
leaning upon a thick stick and followed by a lively little dog which
barked at all the passers-by, merely for mischief, without any
intention of biting? It is the friar, Father Mateo del Busto, reader
and qualifier of the order of Saint Francis de Paula, chaplain of the
second company of Saragossa volunteers, an important man, who, in spite
of his age, was seen during the first siege in all places of danger,
succoring the wounded, helping the dying, carrying ammunition to the
well, and cheering all by his gentle accents. Entering the redoubt, he
showed us a large and heavy basket which he had toiled to bring here,
and in which was food better than that of our ordinary table.
"These cakes," said he, placing it on the ground, and taking out one by
one things which he named as he produced them, "have been given me in
the house of that most excellent lady, the Countess de Bureta, and this
in the house of Don Pedro Ric. Here you have a couple of slices of ham
from my convent, which was for Father Loshollos, whose stomach is not
strong, but he renounced this luxury and gave it to me to take to you.
See, how does this bottle of wine look to you? How much would those
foreign fellows yonder give for it?"
We all looked towards the plain. The little dog, leaping impudently
upon the wall, began to bark at the French lines.
"I have also brought you a couple of pounds of dried fruit which has
been kept in the dispensary at our house. We were going to preserve
them in liquor, but you taste them first of any one, my brave boys.
I have not forgotten thee at all, my beloved Pirli," he continued,
turning to the boy of that name; "and as you are half naked, and
without a cloak, I have brought you a magnificent covering. Do you see
this bundle? Well, here is an old gown that I have kept to give to a
poor man. Now, I present it to you as a covering for your body. It is
unsuitable clothing for a soldier; but if the gown does not make the
monk, neither does the uniform make the soldier. Put it on, and you
will be very comfortable in it."
The friar gave our friend his parcel, and Pirli put on the garment,
laughing and dancing about; and as he was still carrying on his head
the engineer's helmet which he had taken in the enemy's camp on the
thirty-first, he presented a figure stranger than can readily be
imagined.
A little later, several women also arrived with baskets of provisions.
The arrival of femininity swiftly transformed the aspect of the
redoubt. I do not know from where they produced a guitar; it is certain
that they produced one from somewhere. One of those present graciously
began to play the measures of that incomparable, divine, immortal
dance, the _jota_, and in a moment a great revelry of dancing was going
on.
Pirli, whose grotesque figure began in a French engineer and ended in
a Spanish friar, was the most carried away of any of the dancers, and
could not keep tune with his partner, a most graceful girl in Spanish
highland dress, who was called Manuela, whom I noticed the first moment
that I saw her. She was about twenty-two years of age, and was slender,
of a pure pale complexion. The excitement of the dance quickly flushed
her cheeks, and by degrees her movements grew more lively, unmindful of
fatigue. With her eyes half shut, her cheeks rosy, her arms moving to
the music of the sweet strains, she shook her skirts with lively grace;
taking her steps lightly, and presenting to us now her brow, and now
her shoulders, Manuela held us enchanted.
The ardor of the dancing crowd, the lively music, and the enthusiasm of
the rest of the dancers augmented her own, until at last, breathless
with fatigue, she dropped her arms and fell to earth like a stone or a
pomegranate.
Pirli stood over her, and surrounded her by a sort of corral formed of
himself and the basket of provisions.
"Let us see what you have brought us, Manuelilla," said Pirli. "If
'twere not for thee and Father Busto, we should die of hunger. And if
it were not for this little dance with which we get rid of the bad
taste of the 'hot cakes' and the 'señoras,' what would become of us
poor soldiers?"
"I bring you whatever there is," replied Manuela, opening the basket
of provisions. "Wait a little. If the siege lasts, you will be eating
bricks."
"We shall have bullets mixed with black flour," said Pirli.
"Manuelilla, have you got over being afraid of the bullets yet?" Saying
this, he seized his gun, and shot it off into the air. The girl gave a
sharp scream, and, startled, sprang up as if to escape.
"It is nothing, daughter," said the friar; "brave women are not afraid
of powder. On the contrary, they should take as much pleasure in it as
in the sound of castanets and mandolins."
"When I hear a ball," said Manuela, coming slowly and timidly back,
"there is not a drop of blood left in my veins."
At this moment the French, wishing to try the artillery of their
second parallel, shot off a cannon, and the ball came against the wall
of the redoubt, shattering the loose bricks into a thousand pieces.
Everybody rose to look at the enemy. The highland girl cried out in
terror; and Tio Garces was moved to scream through a loop-hole at the
French, heaping upon them the most insolent words, accompanied by many
exclamations. The little dog, running from one end of the place to the
other, barked furiously.
"Manuela, let us dance another jota to the sound of this music, and
viva the Virgin del Pilar," cried Pirli, jumping about like one out of
his senses.
Manuela rose on tiptoe, impelled by curiosity, and slowly stretched up
her head to look at the camp from the wall. Then, casting her glance
over the level plain, she seemed to dissipate, little by little, the
terrors of her fainting spirit; and at last we saw her surveying
the enemy's lines with a certain serenity, and even with a little
complacency.
"One, two, three cannon!" she said, counting the fiery mouths which
were discernible at that distance. "Come, little boys, don't be afraid.
This is nothing to you!"
Over near San José was heard the booming of guns, and on our redoubt
sounded the drum calling to arms. From the neighboring stronghold had
sallied forth a little column that exchanged distant shots with the
French workmen. Some of these, running to their left, placed themselves
within arm's length of our fire. We all ran to the walls, disposed
to send them a few hailstones, and without waiting orders, some of us
discharged our guns with loud huzzas.
All the women fled by the bridge towards the city except Manuela. Did
fear prevent her from moving? No. Her fear was great; she trembled, and
her teeth chattered; her face grew pale; but an irresistible curiosity
kept her in the redoubt. She fastened her gaze on the sharp-shooters,
and on the cannon that was about to be discharged.
"Manuela, are you not going?" said Augustine. "Doesn't it frighten you
to look at all that?"
The girl, with her attention fixed on the spectacle, terrified,
trembling, with white lips and palpitating bosom, neither moved nor
spoke.
"Manuelilla," said Pirli, running up to her, "take my gun and shoot it
off."
Contrary to what we expected, Manuelilla did not show any sign of
terror.
"Take it, please," cried Pirli, making her take the gun. "Put your
thumb here. Aim over yonder. Fire! Viva the second artillery woman!
Viva Manuela Sancho and the Virgin del Pilar!"
The girl took the gun, and, to judge by her actions, and the stupor of
her looks, it seemed as if she did not know what she was doing. But,
raising the gun with a trembling hand, she aimed at the field, pulled
the trigger, and fired.
A thousand fiery shouts of applause greeted the discharge, and the
girl left the gun. She was radiant with satisfaction, and her delight
deepened the roses in her cheeks.
"Do you see? You have already lost your fear?" said the priest. "There
is nothing more in these things than taking hold of them. All the
Saragossan women ought to do the same, and then Augustina Casta Alvarez
would not be the one glorious exception to her sex."
"Bring another gun," exclaimed the girl; "I wish to fire again."
"They have already marched off, if you please! Aren't you a good one!"
said Pirli, preparing to make an onslaught on the provision basket.
"To-morrow, if you like, you shall be invited for a few 'hot cakes.'
Well, let us make ourselves comfortable and eat."
The friar, calling his little dog, said to him: "That is enough, my
son; don't bark so, nor take it so much to heart that you make yourself
hoarse. Keep your boldness until to-morrow. To-day, we have no wish
to employ it, for if I am not mistaken they are hurrying away to get
behind their works."
In fact the skirmish at San José had concluded, and for the moment the
French were not in sight. A short time afterwards the sound of the
guitar was renewed, and the women returning, the sweet undulations of
the jota began again with Manuela Sancho and the great Pirli in the
first line.