TWO ENEMIES.
In the great work of creation, God indubitably most profoundly set the
seal of his omnipotence in the heart of forests. The ocean, despite its
immense extent, offers sailors only a despairing monotony, or sudden
upheavals, which fill the mind with a secret and invincible terror. The
mountains which stud the globe, and elevate to immense heights their
serrated peaks, covered with eternal snow, only inspire terror, and
represent to the astonished eyes of the tourist a terrific maze of chaos
and travailing nature.
But when you reach the verge of one of those splendid oases of verdure
which are called virgin forests, you undergo involuntarily an impression
of religious contemplation and gentle melancholy at the sight of these
thousand arches of foliage, intertwined like the ceiling of an old
Gothic church, in which the moss-clad trunks of centennial oaks
represent the clustered columns, rising at one spot only a few feet from
the ground, at others soaring to the skies.
Then, animated by the purer air, breathing with the full power of the
lungs, attracted and fascinated by the mobile and infinite perspectives
that open out on all sides--feeling the movement easier on the soft
carpet of soil and dust accumulated by departed ages, the traveller's
step grows freer, his glance more piercing, and his hand more firm, and
he begins sighing for the hazardous and masculine life of the desert.
The further he proceeds beneath these shifting shadows, while life is
as noisy all around as a rising tide, the more does the freshness which
circulates through the foliage purify the blood, and strengthen the
limbs; and he comprehends more and more the irresistible attractions of
the forest, and the religious love the wood rangers have for it.
Men habituated to a desert life are never willing to quit it again; for
they understand all its voices, have sounded all its mysteries, and to
them the forest is a world which they love much as the sailor does the
sea. When a glowing sun enlivens the wild and picturesque landscape,
when the glistening snow on the far-off peaks stands out like a silver
ribbon above the masses of verdure, when the birds twitter among the
leaves, the insects buzz on the grass, and the wild beasts in their
unknown lairs, add their solemn sounds to the concert;--at such a moment
all invites reverie and contemplation, and the wood rangers feel
themselves the nearer to God, because they are the further from man.
These bold explorers of the desert are picked men, and powerfully built,
kept constantly in movement, and forced each second into a contest with
the obstacles that incessantly arise before them. No danger terrifies
them, no difficulty arrests them; perils they brave, difficulties they
surmount as if in sport; for, hurled by the divine will beyond the pale
of common law, their existence is only a succession of strange incidents
and feverish adventures, which cause them to live a century in a few
moments.
The hesitation of the Border Rifles was short; for these half-savage
men, an obstacle to be overcome could only prove a stimulus for their
minds, so fertile in resources.
The two wounded men, securely fastened on cross pieces of wood by
reatas, were let down in turn to the bottom of the precipice, and laid
on the bank of a small stream, which ran noiselessly through this plain,
forming the most capricious windings. John Davis, fearing some outbreak
on the part of his angry comrades, himself undertook to let the Captain
down, in order to be certain that no accident would happen to him.
When the wounded men had been removed from the eagle's nest, which had
so miraculously saved them, the adventurers glided along the cliff with
singular address and rapidity, and the whole band was soon collected on
the bank of the stream. As is frequently the case in a mountainous
country, the bottom of the barranca was a rather wide prairie, sheltered
between two lofty hills, which enclosed it on the right and left, thus
forming a species of gorge, which, at the spot where the fight took
place, was really a gulf of great depth.
John Davis, without losing a moment, lavished on the Jaguar all the
attention his state demanded; while Ruperto, though much against the
grain, did the same for the Mexican Captain, by the American's
peremptory orders.
During the various events we have described, the whole night had slipped
away, and the sun rose at the moment the adventurers completed their
perilous descent. The country then resumed its real aspect, and what had
appeared by the flickering light of the torches a desolate and arid
desert, became a charming and smiling landscape.
The sun has enormous power over the human organisation: it not only
dispels those sombre phantoms which are produced by the darkness, but
also revives the mind and restores to the body its elasticity and
vigour, which have been neutralised by the piercing cold of night. With
day, hope and joy returned to the heart of the adventurers; a joy
rendered more lively still by the sight of the cases hurled over the
previous night by the Mexicans, and which, though crushed by their fall,
had lost none of their precious contents. Hence, the heroic courage and
devotion of the Mexicans had no other result than allowing them to die
bravely at their posts, for their sacrifice had not obtained the
anticipated result.
The prairie soon assumed a lively aspect, to which it certainly was not
accustomed; the adventurers lit fires, erected jacals, and the camp was
formed in a few minutes. For a very lengthened period Davis' efforts to
bring his friend to life remained sterile; still, the Jaguar had
received no wound; he did not seem to have a limb broken; his syncope
resulted solely from the moral effect of his horrible fall.
For all that, the American, far from giving in, redoubled his care and
attention, and at length, saw his efforts crowned with success. The
Jaguar made a weak movement, his lips parted as if he were about to
speak, he raised his hand to his brow, gave a deep sigh, and partly
opened his eyes, but closed them instantly, probably dazzled by the
brilliant sunlight.
"At length he is saved!" the American exclaimed, joyously.
The adventurers surrounded their Chief, anxiously watching his every
movement. The young man soon opened his eyes again, and, helped by
Davis, managed to sit up. A slight patch of red was visible on his
cheekbones, but the rest of his face retained an ashen and cadaverous
hue. He looked slowly round him, and the absent expression of his glance
gradually changed into a gleam of intelligence. "Drink!" he muttered in
a hollow and inarticulate voice.
John Davis uncorked his flask, bent over the wounded man, and placed it
to his lips. The latter drank eagerly for two or three minutes, and then
stopped with a sigh of relief.
"I fancied I was dead," he said.
"By Heaven!" John Davis remarked, "It was a close shave."
"Is Captain Melendez still alive?"
"Yes."
"What state is he in?"
"No worse than your own."
"All the better."
"Shall we hang him?" Ruperto remarked, still adhering to his notion.
The Jaguar started, frowned, and then shouted with greater strength than
he might be supposed to possess--
"On your life, not a hair of his head must fall; you answer for him to
me body for body."
And he added in a low voice, unintelligible by the hearers, "I swore
it--"
"'Tis a pity," Ruperto went on. "I am certain that hanging a Mexican
Captain would have produced an excellent effect through the country."
The Jaguar made a sign.
"All right, all right," the adventurer continued; "if it is not pleasant
to you, we will say no more about it. No matter, that is a funny notion
of yours."
"Enough," the young man said; "I have given my orders."
So soon as he was alone. Captain Melendez let his head fall on his
hands, and tried to re-establish the balance in his mind and arrange his
ideas, which the shock he had received had utterly disordered. Still he
gradually yielded to a species of lethargy, the natural result of his
fall, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
He slept peacefully for several hours, nothing happening to disturb his
repose; and when he awoke he found himself quite a new man; the
restorative sleep he had enjoyed had completely rested his nervous
system, his strength had returned, and it was with an indescribable
feeling of joy that he rose and walked a few steps on the prairie. With
calmness of mind courage returned, and he was ready to recommence the
contest. He noticed, too, with a certain degree of pleasure, that the
adventurers left him at perfect liberty, and did not appear to pay any
attention to him.
Ruperto returned, but this time he had put off his mocking air, and
carried some provisions in a basket. The adventurer offered them to the
Captain with rough politeness, in which, however, the desire to be
agreeable was perceptible. The Captain readily accepted the food, and
ate with an appetite that surprised himself after so serious a fall.
"Well," Ruperto remarked, "did I not tell you that you would be soon
cured? It is just the same with the Captain--he is as fresh as a
floripondio, and was never better in his life."
"Tell me, my friend," Don Juan answered, "may I be allowed to speak with
the Chief?"
"Very easily--the more so, as it seems that he has something to say to
you."
"Indeed."
"Yes, and he even ordered me to ask you if you would allow him an
interview after dinner."
"Most heartily; I am entirely at his orders; especially," the Captain
added, with a smile, "since I am his prisoner."
"That is true; well, eat quietly, and while you are doing so I will
convey your message."
Hereupon Ruperto left the Captain, who did not require the invitation to
be repeated, but vigorously attacked the provisions placed before him.
His meal was soon over, and he had been walking up and down for some
time, when he saw the Jaguar approach. The two men bowed ceremoniously,
and examined each other for some moments with the greatest attention.
Up to this moment they had hardly seen one another; their interview of
the previous evening had taken place in the darkness, and then fought
obstinately; but they had found no time to form mutual opinions as they
now did with the infallible glance of men who are accustomed to judge in
a second, persons with whom they have dealings. The Jaguar was the first
to break the silence.
"You will excuse, Caballero," he said, "the rusticity of my reception:
banished men have no other palace save the dome of the forests that
shelter them."
The Captain bowed.
"I was far from expecting," he said, "so much courtesy from--"
He stopped, not daring to utter the word that rose to his lips, through
fear of offending the other.
"From bandits, I suppose, Captain?" the Jaguar replied, with a smile.
"Oh, no denial, I know what we are called at Mexico. Yes, Caballero, at
the present day we are outlaws, border ruffians, freebooters; tomorrow,
perhaps, we shall be heroes and saviours of a people; but so the world
goes; but let us leave that. You wished to speak to me, I heard."
"Did you not also evince a desire, Caballero, to have an interview with
me?"
"I did, Captain; I have only one question to ask you, though--will you
promise me to answer it?"
"On my honour, if it be possible."
The Jaguar reflected for a moment, and then continued--
"You hate me, I suppose?"
"What makes you imagine that?"
"How do I know?" the Jaguar replied, with embarrassment; "a thousand
reasons, as, for instance, the obstinacy with which you sought to take
my life a few hours agone."
The Captain drew himself up, and his face assumed a stern expression
which it had not worn hitherto.
"I pledge you my word to be frank with you, Caballero," he said.
"I thank you beforehand."
"Between yourself and me, personally, no hatred can exist--at any rate,
not on my side; I do not know you, I only saw you yesterday for the
first time; never, to my cognizance, have you come across my path
before, hence I have no reason to hate you. But beside the man there is
the soldier; as an officer in the Mexican army--"
"Enough, Captain," the young man sharply interrupted him; "you have told
me all I desired to know; political hatreds, however terrible they may
be, are not eternal. You do your duty as I believe I do mine--that is
to say, as well as you possibly can, and to that I have no objection.
Unfortunately, instead of fighting side by side, we are in opposite
camps; fatality decrees it so; perhaps, some day these unhappy
dissensions will cease, and then, who knows whether we may not be
friends?"
"We are so already, Caballero," the Captain said, warmly, as he held out
his hand to the Jaguar.
The latter pressed it vigorously.
"Let us each follow the road traced for us," he said; "but if we defend
a different cause, let us maintain, when the contest is raging, that
esteem and friendship which two loyal enemies ought to feel, who have
measured their swords and found them of equal length."
"Agreed," said the Captain.
"One word more," the Jaguar continued. "I must respond to your frankness
by equal frankness."
"Speak."
"I presume that the question I asked surprised you?"
"I confess it."
"Well, I will tell you why I asked it."
"What good will that do?"
"I must; between us two henceforth there must be nothing hidden. In
spite of the hatred I ought to feel for you, I feel myself attracted to
you by a secret sympathy, which I cannot explain, but which urges me to
reveal to you a secret on which the happiness of my life depends."
"I do not understand you, Caballero; the language seems strange to me.
Explain yourself, in Heaven's name."
A feverish flush suddenly covered the Jaguar's face.
"Listen, Captain, if you only know me today for the first time, your
name has been ringing in my ears for many months past."
The officer fixed an inquiring glance on the young man.
"Yes, yes," the latter continued, with increasing animation, "she ever
has your name on her lips--she only speaks of you. Only a few days
back--but why recall that? Suffice it for you to know that I love her to
distraction."
"Carmela?" the Captain muttered.
"Yes," the Jaguar exclaimed, "you love her too!"
"I do," the Captain replied, simply, as he looked on the ground with an
air of embarrassment.
There was a lengthened silence between the two men. It was easy to
discover that each of them was having an internal fight; at length the
Jaguar managed to quell the storm that growled in his heart, and went
on, in a firm voice--
"Thanks for your loyal answer, Captain; in loving Carmela you take
advantage of your good right, just as I do; let this love, instead of
separating, form a stronger link between us. Carmela is worthy of the
love of an honourable man; let us each love her, and carry on an open
warfare, without treachery or trickery; all the better for the man she
may prefer. She alone must be judge between us; let her follow her
heart, for she is too pure and good to deceive herself and make a bad
choice."
"Good!" the Captain exclaimed, enthusiastically; "You are a man after my
own heart, Jaguar, and whatever may happen, I shall always think with
gladness that I have pressed your honest hand, and am worthy of being
counted among your friends. Yes, I have a deep and sincere love for
Carmela; for a smile from her rosy lips I would joyfully lay down my
life; but I swear that I will follow the noble example you give me, and
the struggle shall be as honourable on my side as on yours."
"Viva Cristo!" the young man said with frank and simple delight, "I was
sure we should end by coming to an understanding."
"To produce that," the Captain remarked, with a smile, "we only needed
the opportunity for an explanation."
"Canarios, I trust that it will not be repeated under similar
conditions, for it is a perfect miracle that we are still alive."
"I am not at all anxious to repeat the experiment."
"Nor I either, I swear to you. But the sun is rapidly declining on the
horizon: I need not tell you that you are free, and at liberty to go
wherever you please, if it is not your intention to remain any length of
time with us: I have had a horse got ready which you will permit me to
offer you."
"I gladly accept it: I do not wish to have any false pride with you, and
afoot in these regions, which are quite strange to me, I should feel
greatly embarrassed."
"That need not trouble you, for I will give you a guide to accompany
you, till you get in the right road."
"A thousand thanks."
"Where do you propose going? Of course, if my question be indiscreet, I
do not expect you to answer it."
"I have nothing to hide from you; I intend joining General Rubio as
quickly as possible, to whom I must report the accident that has
happened to the conducta de plata, and the terrible catastrophe of which
I have been the victim."
"It is the fortune of war, Captain."
"I do not reproach you; I merely say it was an unfortunate affair."
"Had it been possible to save the conducta by courage and devotion, you
would have doubtless done it, for you performed your duty worthily."
"I thank you for this praise."
"It will be easy for you to reach General Rubio's camp before sunset."
"Do you think so?"
"I am sure of it, for you are only three leagues at the most from it."
"So near as that? Had I but known it," the Captain said in a tone of
regret.
"Yes, but you were ignorant of the fact. But, nonsense, what good is it
returning to that, you will take your revenge some day or the other."
"You are right; what is done cannot be undone, so I will be off."
"Already?"
"I must."
"That is true."
The Jaguar made a signal to a borderer standing a short distance off.
"The Captain's horse," he said.
Five minutes later, this borderer, who was no other than Ruperto,
reappeared, leading two horses, one of which was a magnificent mustang,
with delicate limbs, and flashing eye. The Captain reached the saddle at
one leap, and Ruperto was already mounted. The two enemies, henceforth
friends, shook hands for the last time, and after an affectionate
parting, the Captain let his horse go.
"Mind, no tricks, Ruperto!" the Jaguar said in a peremptory voice to the
adventurer.
"All right, all right!" the latter growled in reply.
The horsemen left the prairie. The Jaguar looked after them as long as
he could see them, and then returned thoughtfully to the jacal, which
served as his tent.