THE SURPRISE.
The Jaguar spoke truly when he said that the task the conspirators were
about to undertake was rude. Swimming side by side, the Texans advanced
in a straight line in the direction of the fort, which the obscurity
prevented them seeing. The sea was rough and lumpy; heavy waves poured
in, and rolled at every moment on their heads; the wind redoubled its
violence; the terrible coromuel, the scourge of these coasts, where it
causes so many shipwrecks, had risen; there was not a star in the sky to
guide these determined men.
They swam on--not a cry, moan, or sigh revealing any fatigue or
discouragement on their part. At the head of the gloomy line formed by
the energetic heads of the conspirators, the Jaguar progressed alone.
Three-quarters of an hour passed, during which all the strength and
courage the human will possesses were expended in this struggle of
giants by these men, whom nothing could quell. Not one had broken down;
the line was still compact, and they advanced with the same vigour.
Before them, at about a musket shot distance, a denser shadow was
visible in the gloom, thrown out by the enormous mass of the fortress
they were approaching!
Since the departure, the conspirators, with their eyes ardently fixed
ahead, had not exchanged a syllable. What could they have said? They
were perfectly aware of the probable consequences of their mad
enterprise, and fully conscious of the danger they incurred. Besides,
what was the good of speaking, when they could act? Hence they were
silent, but they acted vigorously. Still, as all the men swam like
otters, and were accustomed to the perfidious element in which they now
were, they only expended the necessary amount of strength, and were very
careful to keep the line regular.
At length, after superhuman efforts, they succeeded in cutting through
the current that dashed with extreme rapidity and strength into the
straits. The hardest work was over; from this moment they needed only to
let themselves drift gently ashore, while careful to keep the right
direction.
"Courage!" the Jaguar said.
This word, the first the young man had uttered since the start, restored
the strength of his comrades and aroused their ardour again. The
fortress stood out gloomy and imposing a short distance ahead, and the
conspirators were already swimming in the shadow it cast. All at once a
cry disturbed the silence.
"_Tintorera!_"
A brilliant mass came to meet the conspirators, leave a long
phosphorescent trail behind it.
"Tintorera!" a second voice shouted.
In fact, another shark was advancing from the open sea and swimming
straight towards the conspirators, leaving a line of fire.
"Tintorera!" a third voice said, with an indescribable accent of agony.
Three tintoreras beset the swimmers and momentarily contracted the
circle in which they held them. The danger was serious.
"Forward, comrades," the Jaguar said, in his calm and sympathetic voice,
"swim gently and noiselessly; you know that these monsters are almost
blind, and more than half deaf, they have not seen us. John Davis?" he
added.
"Here!" the American answered.
"Where are you?"
"I am the last but one on the right."
"Good! you will take the second tintorera and I the first. Lanzi!"
"Lanzi has just disappeared," a voice answered.
"Malediction!" said the Jaguar, "Can he be dead? who shall attack the
third tintorera?"
"Do not trouble yourself, Jaguar," the well-known voice of the
half-breed answered, "I am after it."
"Good! swim on, comrades, and leave us to cope with these monsters."
The conspirators continued to advance silently, although they redoubled
their efforts. The Jaguar dived immediately and dashed toward the shark,
which was swimming at a moderate depth. The Chief and the monster were
soon so near that the brown fins of the tintorera grazed the shoulder of
the daring Texan, who saw the glassy eye of the shark, half covered by a
membrane, fixed upon him with an expression of cold malignity.
The Jaguar remounted to the surface of the water and clutched his
dagger, at the same instant the monster's silvery belly was visible, as
it opened its enormous mouth, armed with terrible teeth, close set as
those of a harrow. The Jaguar drove in his dagger with all his strength,
and ripped the belly for about one-third its length. The hideous
tintorera, wounded to death, gave an enormous bound, while wildly
beating the water, and then fell back stark dead.
The Jaguar, half blinded by the blood-stained water, and tossed about in
the whirlpool it had caused in its flurry, did not regain his senses for
more than a minute. At length, by a supreme effort, he returned to the
surface, inhaled the fresh air, and stifled a cry of triumph on seeing
near him the inanimate body of his foe the sport of the waves. Without
stopping, he took an anxious glance around.
"It's all over," a voice said near him.
"Is that you, Lanzi?"
"It is," the half-bred answered, in a voice as tranquil as if he were on
terra firma.
"Well?"
"The shark is dead."
"Now for the third, then. Where is John Davis? I do not see him."
"Let us go and see."
Not troubling themselves about their comrades, who were swimming towards
land, the two lion-hearted men dashed to the American's help. But all
was gloomy and silent around them; in vain did they cross-question the
darkness, nothing appeared, neither man nor tintorera.
"Can he be dead?" the Jaguar muttered, in a hollow voice.
"Oh, I cannot think so," Lanzi answered, "he is so brave and clever."
"Suppose we hail him? He may be wounded."
"But we shall be heard from the fort."
"No, the wind is off shore."
"Help, help!" a voice shouted at the moment close by.
"That is he," said the Jaguar; "here we are, John, so have courage."
And redoubling their efforts they proceeded in the direction whence the
cry for help had come.
"Help, help!" the voice repeated with such an expression of agony, that
the two men felt themselves shudder, although they were so inaccessible
to fears. There is in the parting cry of agony of a strong man conquered
by necessity, so poignant and crushing an expression, that it stirs the
hearer to the depths of the soul.
"Courage, courage!" the two men repeated, redoubling their already
prodigious efforts.
All at once they saw a black mass swirling at about a yard from them and
then sink. The Jaguar immediately plunged and brought it to the surface;
this mass, which they had been unable to discover in the darkness, was
the body of John Davis. It was high time for them to arrive; the
American, finding himself conquered in the obstinate struggle he had so
long sustained against death, was sinking. Still, he had not entirely
lost his senses; being held above water, he inhaled the fresh air, and
was soon in a condition to answer the questions his comrades asked him.
"Are you wounded?" said the Jaguar.
"Yes."
"What's the matter?"
"I fancy my shoulder bone is put out; the monster, in dying, dealt me a
blow with his tail which all but made me faint. Had it not been for you,
I was lost. But good bye, and thanks; lose no further time with a man
who is half dead."
"We shall not abandon you if you do not abandon yourself, John. Lanzi
and I, two powerful men, are ready to do everything to save you."
"We are too far from land."
"You are mistaken, we are almost touching it; a few more strokes and we
shall find ground; let us act."
"Be it so, as you insist on it."
"Can you support yourself in the water by putting one hand on Lanzi's
shoulder and the other on mine?"
"I will try, brother."
"Come on then."
John Davis, stifling the horrible sufferings he underwent, succeeded in
doing what the Jaguar asked him, and all three then advanced towards the
shore, which was, in truth, no great distance off, and, in spite of the
darkness, its outline could be distinctly marked. But, in spite of all
his courage, Davis's sufferings were so atrocious, that he felt his eyes
grow dim and his strength all at once fail him.
"No," he said, "it is impossible and letting loose the support that had
hitherto kept him up, he sunk.
"Cuerpo de Cristo!" the Jaguar exclaimed, with a sublime outburst of
grief, "I will save him or perish with him."
He plunged boldly seized his friend by his black hair, and mounting
again with him, held his head above water, while he swam gently with his
right hand. Lanzi had in no way attempted to oppose the heroic action of
the Chief of the Freebooters, but at the same time had not deserted him;
he swam close to him, ready to come to his aid if needed.
Fortunately for the Jaguar, the enormous mass of rock on which the fort
was built neutralized the effects of the wind, and produced a factitious
calm which allowed the young man to reach with his precious burden the
narrow tongue of land, where his comrades were already awaiting him; but
on landing he fainted. Human strength has limits which it cannot
surpass; so long as the danger endured, the Jaguar had struggled
energetically, but, once it was over, and his friend saved, he had been,
compelled to confess himself conquered, and rolled on the sand with
terror.
The conspirators were terrified at the condition in which they saw their
Chief, for what could they do without him--what would become of them?
Lanzi reassured them by stating what had happened, and then all crowded
round the young man and the American, whose condition was far more
serious, since he had received an injury.
As we have said, only fatigue and moral over-excitement had caused the
Jaguar's fainting fit. Thanks to the eager and intelligent attention of
his comrades, he speedily regained his senses, and returned to full
possession of his faculties. Time pressed, and they must act without
delay, if they did not wish to be surprised by the return of the tide.
So soon as the Jaguar had recovered, his first care was to count his
comrades; nine were missing. These nine men had died without venting a
cry or uttering a complaint; when fatigue crushed them, they had sunk
sooner than claim assistance, which would probably have occasioned the
loss of their comrades by compelling them to offer assistance, which
would have exhausted their strength in a few moments. Great causes alone
produce such acts of devotion.
The conspirators were at the very foot of the rock, at the top of which
the fort was built. It was a great step made, but it was as nothing so
long as the rock was not escaladed. But how to attempt that feat on a
dark night and with a coromuel, which every moment blew with greater
force, and threatened to hurl to destruction the man who was so rash as
to venture to attempt such an ascent!
Still, they must act, and the Jaguar did not hesitate. He had not risked
his own life and that of his comrades to be arrested by any obstacle,
whatever its nature might be; impossibilities themselves must not stay
him, for, although he might be killed, he would not recoil an inch.
Still the means he had at his disposal were extremely limited; he had
but a silken cord about a hundred fathoms in length rolled round his
body, and his comrades had no other weapons than their daggers.
The persons who have read the early scenes of this story will doubtless
remember the portrait we drew of the Jaguar. Although still very young,
or at least appearing so, he joined exceptional strength to marvellous
agility and skill; his adventurous character found delight in
extraordinary things, and impossibilities alone offered any attraction
to him. After reflecting for a few moments, he advised his comrades to
lie down at the foot of the rock, lest they should be blown away by the
coromuel, which was raging at the moment, passed two daggers through his
belt, and began examining with the most scrupulous attention the rock he
wished to attack.
This granitic mass, whose base was bathed in the sea and beaten by the
waves, had never been seriously investigated by anyone, for who had any
interest in such a thing? The Jaguar alone, since the thought had
occurred to him of carrying the fort by surprise, had, on several
occasions and for hours together, examined it with a telescope.
Unluckily, through fear of exciting suspicions, he could only inspect it
from a long distance, and hence many details escaped his notice, as he
perceived at once when he began a serious investigation.
In fact, this rock, which at a distance seemed to form an almost
perpendicular wall, was hollowed out at several points, and fissures had
been opened by time--that great demolisher, which wears away the hardest
granite. Though the ascent was still extremely difficult, it was not
impossible; the Jaguar welcomed this certainty with a quick start of
delight.
"It is all right, brothers," he said to his comrades, "so take courage;
now, I entertain firm hopes of success."
And he prepared to mount. Lanzi followed him.
"Where are you going?" the Jaguar asked him.
"With you," the half-breed answered, laconically.
"For what good? One man is sufficient for what I am going to do."
"Yes," he answered; "but two are better."
"Well, come on, then." And then, turning to his attentive comrades, he
added, "so soon as the rope falls, cling on to it without fear."
"Yes," the conspirators said.
The Jaguar then planted his dagger in a crevice above his head, and with
the help of his hands and feet, raised himself sufficiently to thrust in
a second dagger above the first. The first step was taken; from dagger
to dagger the Jaguar reached, in a few minutes, a species of platform
about two square yards in width, where it was possible to draw breath.
Lanzi arrived almost with him.
"Well," said the latter, "this trip is rather amusing; it is only a pity
that it is so dark."
"All the better; on the contrary," the Jaguar replied, "we need not fear
a dizziness."
"By my faith, that is true," said the half-breed, who cared as little
for a dizziness as he did for a grain of sand.
They examined the spot where they were. It was a species of hollow,
probably excavated by time in the sides of the rock. Unfortunately, over
this hollow the rock formed a projection, rendering any further ascent
impossible. While the Jaguar was seeking on either side the means to
continue his climb, the half-breed, thinking it useless to fatigue
himself, sat down quietly in the crevice to shelter himself from the
wind.
The end of the hollow was covered by a thick curtain of shrubs, against
which Lanzi leaned with the confiding delight of a man who is glad to
rest himself, if only for a moment, after his fatigue; but the shrubs
gave way under his weight, and the half-breed fell down at his full
length.
"Hilloa!" he said, with that magnificent coolness which never deserted
him, "What's this?"
"Will you be quiet?" the Jaguar exclaimed, as he hurried up, "or we
shall be found out. What has happened to you?"
"I do not know. Look for yourself."
The two men then advanced with outstretched arms, owing to the darkness.
"Why, it is a grotto. Viva Dios!" the Jaguar exclaimed a moment later.
"It looks to me very like one," said the half-breed, with his old
coolness.
In fact, this excavation, which at a distance appeared a narrow fissure,
concealed the entrance to a natural grotto, completely masked by the
shrubs which accident had planted there, and which an equally great
accident had enabled the half-breed to discover. What was this passage
through? Did it go up and down? And was it known to the garrison? Such
were the questions which the adventurers asked themselves, and they
naturally could not answer them.
"What shall we do?" Lanzi asked.
"Por Dios! That is not difficult to guess," the Jaguar replied; "we will
explore this cave."
"That is my opinion too; but I think there is a matter of inquiry to do
before that."
"What is it?"
"Whatever this cave may be, and no matter where it ends, it is certain
that it will, at any rate, offer us an excellent shelter. Supposing, at
any rate, as is possible, that we cannot succeed in effecting the ascent
of the rock this night, we will hide ourselves here during tomorrow, and
be ready to finish on the following night what we shall not have time
to effect during the present one."
"That is an excellent idea," the Jaguar remarked, "and we will
immediately carry it into effect."
The young man unfastened the rope round his hips, and after securely
attaching one end round a point of rock, and a stone to the other end,
that the wind might not blow it about, he let it fall. In a few minutes
the rope stiffened--the conspirators watching on the beach had seized
it. Ere long a man made his appearance, then a second, and so on till
all reached the platform. As they arrived, Lanzi sent them into the
grotto.
"And John Davis?" the Jaguar asked reproachfully; "have you abandoned
him?"
"Certainly not," the conspirator who mounted last answered. "Upon
leaving I was careful to put the rope several times round his body, in
spite of his objections. We only succeeded in overcoming his obstinacy
by persuading him that the weight of his body would keep the rope taut,
and facilitate my ascent."
"Thank you," said the Jaguar. "Now, lads, to work; we must not abandon
our brother."
At the Chiefs order, or rather entreaty, eight or ten men seized the
rope, and the American was soon hoisted on to the platform.
"What is the use of taking so much trouble about me?" he said. "I can be
of no service to you: on the contrary, I shall only be in the way, and
impede your operations. It would have been better to leave me to die;
the rising tide would have formed my winding sheet."
The Jaguar made no answer, but had him conveyed into the grotto, where
he was laid down on the ground. The young Chief then collected his
comrades, and explained to them how, by a providential accident, Lanzi
had discovered the entrance of the grotto. Still, it had not yet been
explored, and it was of urgency to find out in what direction it ran.
"Unfortunately," the young man added, "the darkness is dense, and we
have no means of procuring fire."
"Listen, Jaguar," John Davis said, who had attentively followed the
Chiefs remarks; "I will give you fire."
"You!" the young man said with a start of delight; "but no, that is
impossible."
In spite of his sufferings the American attempted to smile.
"What! You a wood ranger," he said, "did not think of that! And yet it
is very simple. Just feel in the right-hand pocket of my calzoneras, and
take out a packet."
The Jaguar hastily obeyed; he drew out a small parcel about seven inches
in length, carefully wrapped up in shagreen and tied with thread.
"What does this parcel contain?" he asked in some curiosity.
"A dozen _cabos_, which I brought with me on the chance," the American
calmly replied.
"Candles! _Viva Dios!_" the young man exclaimed with delight; "that is a
brilliant idea. You are an invaluable man, John. But," he added sadly a
moment later, "of what use will they be?"
"To light us, of course."
"Unfortunately, all our matches are damped by the sea."
"Not mine. Do you imagine, Jaguar, that I am the man to neglect any
precautions, and do things by halves? Feel in the left-hand pocket of my
calzoneras, friend."
The Jaguar did not allow the intimation to be repeated. He found a
second parcel smaller than the first, equally preserved from the wet,
containing a gold mechero with its flint and steel.
"Oh," the young Chief said, "now we are saved!"
"I hope so," the American said, as he fell back on the ground, where he
remained motionless, conquered by pain.
A few minutes later, four candles were lighted, and illumined the
interior of the grotto. The conspirators restrained with difficulty a
cry of terror, for, thanks to the precautions taken by John Davis, they
were saved, but not in the sense meant by the Jaguar. This grotto
extended a long distance; its walls were lofty, and it seemed to ascend;
but in the centre was an opening, stretching across about two-thirds of
its width, and whose depth appeared enormous: one step further into the
interior of the cavern, and the conspirators would have disappeared in
the abyss.
There are some dangers which go beyond the range of all human foresight,
and which, through that very reason, render the most intrepid man frozen
with terror. These men, who for some hours past had risked their lives
twenty times in a mad struggle, and who only lived yet through a
miracle, shuddered on thinking of the horrible danger they had escaped
by a providential accident.
"Oh!" the Jaguar exclaimed with an expression impossible to render, "It
is evident that Heaven is on our side, and we shall succeed. Follow me,
brothers, for you must be as anxious as myself to hold the clue of this
enigma."
All rushed after him. The cave took several windings, but, contrary to
what is generally found in most natural grottos, it did not appear to
have any other arteries save the one in which the conspirators found
themselves.
The latter went on, following their leader step by step. The deeper they
got into the cavern, the ruder became the ascent. The Jaguar advanced
with extreme caution and doubt, for it seemed to him impossible that
this passage should be unknown to the Commandant of the garrison. On
reflection he supposed--and with some semblance of truth--that this cave
had been excavated, in earlier times, by human hands, and that the abyss
into which he and his comrades had all but fallen, was nought else than
a well, intended to supply the garrison in the event of a siege.
He soon obtained a proof that his surmises were correct, for after
marching for a few minutes longer, the conspirators were arrested by an
iron-bound door, which barred their way. At a sign from the Jaguar, they
remained motionless, with their hands on their dagger hilts. The moment
for action had arrived: this door evidently opened into the fort.
The Jaguar examined the lock for an instant, and then ordered the lights
to be put out, which was immediately obeyed, and the conspirators were
again in darkness. This door, which was very old, and probably had not
been opened for a long series of years, could not offer any serious
resistance. The young Chieftain thrust the point of his dagger between
the bolt and the staple, and pressed on it. The staple fell to the
ground, but the door still resisted; it was fastened on the other side
by strong bolts.
There was a moment of extreme anxiety and discouragement for the
conspirators. How was the door to be opened? Must they turn back, and
lose all the profit of such perils overcome, and difficulties incurred?
The position was serious; but, as we have said, the Jaguar was a man who
only took a delight in impossibilities. He lit a candle again, and
examined the door with the most minute attention. The wood, acted upon
by age and damp, fell off in scales, and melted into dust at the
slightest effort.
When the candle had been again extinguished, the young man knelt down
before the door, and began cutting it with his dagger, taking the
greatest care to make no noise for fear of alarming the garrison; for
though he was convinced that this door opened into the fort, he could
not know to what point it led. After ten minutes of slow and continued
toil, the whole lower part of the door was removed. The Jaguar crawled
through the orifice, and, not trying to discover where he was, he got
up, felt for the bolts, drew them one after the other, and quietly
opened the door, through which his comrades silently slipped.
The conspirators then groped their way along the walls, not wishing to
light a candle, for fear of giving an alarm, and trusting to chance to
lead them in the right road. They were justified in doing so, for Lanzi
reached a door, which he mechanically pushed, and which was ajar. This
door opened into a long corridor lighted by a lamp, and the insurgents
boldly entered the passage, after taking the precaution to take down the
lamp and put it out.
It was now about half-past four in the morning, and day was beginning to
break. At the end of the passage, the Jaguar perceived a motionless
shadow leaning against the wall. At an order from his Chief, the
half-breed glided like a serpent up to this shadow, which was nothing
less than a sentry, who was quietly asleep, with his musket by his side,
and on coming within reach, the half-breed bounded like a tiger at the
throat of the sleeper, whom he threw down without giving him time to
utter a cry. The poor fellow was bound and gagged, ere he was
sufficiently awake to understand what was happening to him.
This sentry was stationed at the entrance of a guard-room, in which some
fifteen soldiers were sleeping. The post was carried, without a blow, by
the insurgents, who bound the soldiers, and took possession of their
arms. The expedition was going on famously; but unluckily, while the
scene we have referred to was taking place in the guard-room, the sentry
in the passage, who had been neglected, succeeded in loosing his bonds
and giving the alarm. The position had become serious.
"Come," the Jaguar said quickly, "it seems as if we shall have a fight
of it. Well, several of you are now armed: comrades, remember my
orders--no quarter!"
The insurgents, not at all anxious to be besieged in the guard-room,
where it would have been easy to overpower them, then went out. At the
moment when they appeared in the passage, they perceived some thirty
soldiers, at the head of whom three officers in uniform marched, coming
boldly to meet them.
"Fire!" the Jaguar thundered, "and then forward!"
Ten muskets were discharged, the three officers fell, and the Texans
rushed ferociously on the soldiers. The latter, terrified by this
furious attack, and seeing their leaders dead, offered but a weak
resistance; after a few minutes of hand-to-hand fighting, sustained
rather to save the military honour than in the hope of conquering the
assailants, they asked leave to capitulate.
The Jaguar ordered a suspension of fighting, and ordered the garrison to
lay down their arms, which they readily did. During the short fight, the
Texans had lost eight men killed at the bayonet point. The fort of the
Point, which was supposed to be impregnable, had been surprised by
twenty-five men only armed with daggers. But these twenty-five fought
for a holy and great idea--they were resolved to conquer or perish. The
Jaguar had accomplished the task which had been allotted to him in the
vast plan conceived by the Texan insurgents, and the capture of the fort
must inevitably lead to the surrender of the town, if El Alferez
succeeded in making himself master of the _Libertad_ corvette.
We have seen how, on his side, that Chief had behaved, and what result
he had achieved.