In the evening Senor Sagasta visited the lads, and had long
conversations with them. He promised them that, upon the very first
opportunity which should occur, he would aid them to escape; but
pointed out that, at present, there was no possibility of their
getting away.
"Captain Drake," he said, "has left the seas and, until he comes
back again, or some other of your English filibusters, I see no
chance of your escape. As soon as I hear of an English ship in
these waters I will have a small boat, well fitted up with sails
and all necessaries, conveyed to a creek on the coast. To this you
shall be taken down, and make your way to the point where we hear
that the vessel is accustomed to rendezvous."
This appeared to the boys to be the only possible plan, and they
warmly expressed their gratitude to their host for his thoughtful
kindness.
Another month passed; and then, one evening, Don Sagasta came to
the hut with a certain anxiety in his face.
"Is there anything the matter?" Ned, who now began to speak Spanish
with some fluency, asked.
"I am much disturbed. Since you have been here, I am sure that no
one has got a sight of you; and I can rely so implicitly upon
David, and Flora, that I am sure the secret has not leaked out
there. But from what I hear, it seems that you must have been seen,
during the time that you were wrecked, and before you came here. I
hear in the town today that a rumor is current, among the people,
that two white men were seen, near the sea, upon the day after the
great storm. Someone else, too, seems to have said that he caught
sight of two white men, not far from this house, just before
daybreak, two days afterwards. This report has, it seems, been
going from mouth to mouth; and has at last reached the ears of the
governor. The portions of a wreck, which were driven ashore, seem
to confirm the story; and unfortunately, the board with the name of
the ship was washed ashore, and it is known to be that of one of
those captured by Captain Drake. Putting the two things together,
it is supposed that misfortune overtook a portion of his fleet, and
that two of his men managed to save their lives, and are now
lurking somewhere about the neighborhood I hear that the governor
has ordered a strict search to be set on foot, and that a large
reward is to be offered for the discovery of any signs of the
fugitives."
The next day, the boys heard that the persons to whom the story had
been traced had been taken before the governor, and strictly
examined, and that he was fully convinced of the truth of the
story. Three days afterwards, Don Sagasta brought them a copy of a
notice which had been placed in the marketplace, offering a reward
of 1000 dollars for any news which would lead to the capture of the
English pirates, and announcing the severest punishment upon any
who should dare to conceal, or to assist them.
Gerald at once said that, rather than be a cause of anxiety to
their kind host and his daughter, they would give themselves up.
This offer was, however, indignantly refused by Don Sagasta.
"No, no," he said; "this must not be. I might take you into the
house, but I fear that with so many servants, some of whom are as
bigoted as any of us whites, you would be sure to be discovered;
and they would either reveal in confession, or disclose to the
authorities, the fact of your concealment. The only plan which
promises to offer safety, that I can suggest, is that you shall
take to the mountains. There are many runaways there, and although
sometimes they are hunted down and slain; yet they have caverns,
and other places of concealment, where you might remain for years.
I will speak to David about it, at once."
David, on being questioned, said that there was an old native
woman, living at a hut a little way off, who had the reputation of
having the evil eye, and who was certainly acquainted with the
doings of the runaways. If any slave wished to send a message, to
one of his friends who had taken to the hills, the old woman would,
for a present, always convey, or get it conveyed, to the man for
whom it was intended. He thought that it would be absolutely
necessary that some such means should be taken of introducing the
boys to the runaways; otherwise, hunted as these were, they would
either fly when they saw two whites approaching, or would surround
and destroy them.
Don Sagasta at once accepted the suggestion, and David was
dispatched to the old woman, with offers of a handsome present, if
she would give a guide to the boys, to the mountains. David was
instructed, especially, to tell her that they were English, and the
natural enemies of the Spaniards; that they had done them much harm
at sea; and that, if caught by the Spaniards, they would be killed.
He returned an hour later, with news that the old Indian woman had,
at once upon hearing these facts, promised to get them passed up to
the hiding places of the natives.
"You think," Don Sagasta said, "that there is no fear of her
mentioning the fact that she has seen my friends, to any of the
searchers?"
"Oh, no," David said. "She is as close as wax. Over and over again,
when she has been suspected of assisting in the evasion of a slave,
she has been beaten and put to torture; but nothing was ever
extracted from her lips, and it is certain that she would die,
rather than reveal a secret."
Donna Anna was much moved, when she said adieu to the lads. She
regarded Ned as the preserver of her life; and both had, during the
two months of daily intercourse, much endeared themselves to her.
Don Sagasta brought to them a handsome pair of pistols, each, and a
sword; and then, giving them a basket of provisions and a purse
containing money, which he thought might be useful even among
runaway slaves, he and his daughter bade adieu to them, with many
expressions of kindness and gratitude, on both sides.
"Do not hesitate," Don Sagasta said, "to let me know if I can, at
any time, do or send anything for you. Should it be possible, I
will send a message to you, by the old woman, if any expedition on
a grand scale is being got up against the runaways; and this may
make your position more comfortable among them."
Under the guidance of David, they then started for the Indian
woman's hut; while Flora set to work to carry away and obliterate
all signs, from the hut, of its late residents. After a few
minutes' walking, the boys arrived at the Indian hut. It was
constructed simply, of boughs of trees thickly worked together.
On hearing their footsteps an old woman--the boys thought they had
never seen anyone so old--with long white hair, and a face wrinkled
till it hardly seemed like the face of a human being, came to the
door, with a torch made of resinous wood held aloft. She peered
under her hand at the boys, and said a few words to David, which he
translated to the boys to be:
"And these are English, the people of whom the Spaniards are as
afraid as my people are of them? Two Spaniards can drive fifty
Indians before them, but I hear that a dozen of these Englishmen
can take a ship with a hundred Spaniards on board. It is wonderful.
They look something like our oppressors, but they are fairer, and
their eyes are blue; and they look honest, and have not that air of
pride, and arrogance, which the Spaniard never lays aside.
"I have a boy here."
And as she spoke an Indian boy, of some thirteen years of age,
slipped out from behind her.
"He will show them to the refuge places of the last of my race.
There they will be well received, for I have sent by him a message
to their chiefs; and it may be that these lads, knowing the ways of
white warfare, will be able to assist my countrymen, and to enable
them to resist these dogs of Spaniards.
"The blessing of an old woman be upon you. I have seen many
changes. I have seen my people possessors of this island, save a
small settlement which they had, even then, the folly to allow the
Spaniards to possess. I have seen them swept away by the oppressor,
my husband tortured and killed, my brothers burned alive, all that
I loved slain by the Spaniards. Now, it does my old eyes good to
see two of the race who will, in the future, drive those dogs from
these fair lands, as they have driven my people."
So saying, she returned into the hut.
The boy prepared at once to start, and the lads, wringing the hand
of the black who had been so kind to them, at once followed their
guide into the darkness. For some hours they walked without
intermission, sometimes going at a sling trot, and then easing down
again. Dark as was the night, their guide trod the paths without
hesitation or pause. The boys could scarce see the ground upon
which they trod, but the eyes of the native were keener than
theirs, and to him the way seemed as clear as in broad daylight.
After traversing for some miles a flat, level country, they began
to mount; and for about two hours ascended a mountain, thickly
covered with forest. Then the guide stopped, and motioned to them
that he could now go no further, and must rest for the present.
The boys were surprised at this sudden stop, for their guide had
gone along so quickly and easily that he taxed, to the utmost,
their powers of progression; while he, himself, never breathed any
harder than when walking upon the level ground. They had, however,
no means of interrogating him, for he spoke no language which they
understood.
Without a word, the lad threw himself down at full length, an
example which they followed without hesitation.
"I wonder," Ned said, "why he stopped."
"Because he is tired, I expect," Gerald replied; "or that he does
not know the exact spot upon which he is likely to meet the band;
and that he has taken us, so far, along the one path which was
certain to lead in the right direction, but for the precise spot he
must wait, till morning."
It was not many minutes before the three lads were fast asleep, but
with the first gleam of daylight the Indian boy awoke. Touching his
companions, he sprang to his feet, and without hesitation turned
off to the right, and climbed an even steeper path than any which
they had followed in the darkness. The trees grew thinner as they
advanced, and they were soon climbing over bare rock.
They saw now that they were near the extreme summit of one of the
hills. The boy, as they passed through the trees, had gathered some
dry sticks, and a handful or two of green leaves. Upon reaching the
top he placed these down upon the ground, and looked towards the
east.
The sun would not be up for another half hour, yet. The boy at once
began, with steady earnestness, to rub two pieces of stick
together, according to their way of kindling a fire. It was a
quarter of an hour before the sparks began to drop from the wood.
These, with some very dry leaves and tiny chips of wood, the Indian
boy rapidly blew into life; and then, with a very small fire of dry
wood, he sat patiently watching the east.
At the moment that the sun showed above the sea, he placed the
little fire in the heart of the pile of wood which he had
collected, threw the green leaves upon it, and blew vigorously
until the whole caught fire, and a wreath of smoke ascended above
them. For five minutes only he allowed the fire to burn, and then
at once extinguished it carefully, knocking the fire from each
individual brand. When the last curl of white smoke had ceased to
ascend, he stood up and eagerly looked round the country.
It was a glorious view. On the one hand, the wood-clad hills sloped
to the foot of the plain, covered with plantations, dotted here and
there with the villages of the slaves, and the white houses of the
overseers. At a distance could be faintly seen the towers of a
city; while beyond, the sea stretched like a blue wall, far as the
eye could see.
Inland the country was broken and mountainous; the hills being, in
all cases, thickly covered with trees. From two points, in the
heart of these hills, white smoke curled up, as soon as the smoke
of their fire died away. These, too, in a short time also ceased to
rise; and the boys knew that they were signal fires, in response to
that which their guide had made. The boy hesitated, for a minute or
two, as to the direction which he should take.
As, however, one of the fires appeared a good deal nearer than the
other, this probably decided him in its favor; and he started, in a
straight line, towards the spot where the smoke had curled up.
Another two hours' walking, and they entered an open glade; where
ten or twelve natives, and two or three negroes were gathered. They
were greatly surprised at seeing two white men, but the presence of
the native guide apparently vouched for these visitors; and
although one or two of the men sprang up and, at a rapid pace,
proceeded in the direction from which the newcomers had arrived,
the rest simply rose to their feet and, grasping the spears, bows
and arrows, and clubs which they carried, waited silently to hear
what the Indian boy had to tell them.
He poured forth an animated strain of words, for a few minutes, and
the faces of the Indians lit up with pleasure. The one among them
who appeared to be the chief of the party advanced at once to the
boys, and made every sign of welcome. One of the negroes also
approached, and in broken Spanish asked them if they could speak in
that language.
The boys were able, now, to reply in the affirmative; and quickly
supplemented the account of them, which had been given by their
guide, by their own description of the manner of their coming
there. The negro, after explaining to the rest what the boys had
said, then assured them, in the name of the chief, that every
welcome was theirs; and that they hailed among them, as a happy
incident, the arrival of two of the famous race who were the deadly
enemies of the Spaniards.
The boys, on their part, assured them that they would endeavor to
repay the hospitality with which they were received by their
assistance, should the Spaniards make any attacks upon the tribe
during the time they were there; that the English, everywhere, were
the friends of those who were oppressed by the Spaniards; and that
their countrymen were moved, with horror and indignation, at the
accounts which had reached them of the diabolical treatment to
which the Indians were exposed.
The party now pressed still further into the forest and, turning up
a ravine, followed its windings for some distance; and then,
passing through an exceedingly narrow gorge, reached a charming
little valley; in which were some rough huts, showing that the
residence of at least a portion of the runaways had been reached.
Here, for some time, life passed uneventfully with the boys. Their
first care was to study sufficient of the language of the natives
to enable them to hold converse with them, for it was clear to them
that they might have to stop there for some considerable time.
Their food consisted of roots, of wild fruit, and of yams; which
the natives cultivated in small, scattered plots of ground. Many
birds, too, were brought in, the natives bringing them down with
small darts. They were able to throw their light spears with
extreme precision, and often pierced the larger kinds of birds, as
they sat upon the boughs of trees, with these weapons, before they
could open their wings for flight. With bows and arrows, too, they
were able to shoot with great accuracy; and the boys felt sure
that, if properly led, they would be able to make a stout
resistance to the Spaniards.
They heard, several times during the first three weeks of their
sojourn there, of raids made by small parties of the Spaniards; but
in none of these cases were the searchers successful in finding
traces of the fugitive slaves, nor did they come into the part of
the wood in which was the village which served as headquarters of
the negroes.
At the end of three weeks, the boys accompanied a party of their
friends to other points at which the fugitives were gathered.
Altogether they found that, in that part of the island, there were
some hundreds of natives, with about forty or fifty runaway
negroes. Through the latter, the boys explained to the natives that
they ought to build strong places to which, in case of necessity,
they could retreat, and where they could offer a desperate
resistance to the enemy. The extreme roughness of the ground, the
deep ravines and precipices, were all favorable for defense; and
although they could not hope to make a permanent resistance to a
large armed force, yet they might easily resist small parties, and
then make good their retreat before large reinforcements could
arrive.
The negroes expressed their approval of the plans, but the Indians
shook their heads over the proposition.
"These men have no courage," the blacks said to the boys. "Their
heart is broken. They fly at the sound of a Spaniard's voice. What
good do you expect from them? But if the Spaniards come, we fight.
Our people are brave, and we do not fear death. If the Spaniards
come we fight with you, and die rather than be taken back as
slaves."
One morning, on rising, the boys heard some exclamations among
their allies.
"What is it?" they asked.
The negroes pointed to films of smoke, rising from the summits of
two hills, at a short distance from each other.
"What is that a sign of?" they asked.
"It is a sign that the Spaniards are coming. No doubt in pursuit of
a runaway; perhaps with those terrible dogs. The Spaniards could do
nothing among these mountains without them. They follow their game
through the thickest woods."
"But," said Ned, "why on earth do not the negroes take to the
trees? Surely there could be no difficulty in getting from tree to
tree by the branches, for a certain distance, so as to throw the
hounds off the scent."
"Many do escape in that way," the negro said; "but the pursuit is
often so hot, and the dogs so close upon the trail, that there is
little time for maneuvers of this sort; beside which, many of the
fugitives are half mad with fear. I know, myself, that the baying
of those horrible dogs seems to freeze the blood; and in my case, I
only escaped by luckily striking a rivulet. Then my hopes rose
again; and after following it, for a time, I had the happy thought
of climbing into a tree which overhung it, and then dropping down
at some little distance off, and so completely throwing the dogs
off the trail."
"Why do they not shoot the dogs?" Ned asked. "I do not mean the men
whom they are scenting, but their friends."
"We might shoot them," the negro said, "if they were allowed to run
free; but here in the woods they are usually kept on the chain, so
that their masters are close to them.
"Listen," he said, "do you not hear the distant baying?"
Listening attentively, however, the boys could hear nothing. Their
ears were not trained so well as that of the negro, and it was some
minutes before they heard a distant, faint sound of the deep bark
of a dog. A few minutes later a negro, panting for breath, bathed
in perspiration, and completely exhausted, staggered into the glade
where they were standing. The other negroes gave a slight cry of
alarm, at the proximity of so dangerous a comrade.
"Save me," the man cried. "I am pursued."
"How many men are after you?" Ned asked.
The negro started in astonishment, at seeing a white face and being
questioned in Spanish. Seeing, however, that his comrades were on
good terms with his questioner, he answered at once:
"There are some twenty of them, with two dogs."
"Let us give them a sharp lesson," Ned said to the negroes standing
round. "We have made preparations, and it is time that we began to
show our teeth. If they find that they cannot come with impunity
into our woods, they will not be so anxious to pursue single men;
and will leave us alone, except they bring all the force of the
island against us."
The negroes looked doubtful as to the wisdom of taking the
initiative, so great was their fear of the Spaniards. However, the
cheerfulness with which the two English boys proposed resistance
animated them; and, with sharp whistles, they called the whole of
their comrades to the place.
Ned briefly explained their intentions.
"There is no time to be lost. We must take our places on the upper
ground of that narrow valley, and tell the man to run straight
through. We have plenty of stones piled there, and may give the
Spaniards a warmer reception than they expect. We could not have a
better opportunity; for, with such small numbers as they have, they
certainly would not be able to attack us, with any hope of success,
up so steep a hillside."
The valley which Ned indicated was not one of those which led in
the direction of their stronghold; but it was a very steep gorge,
which they had remarked as being particularly well fitted for
checking a pursuing party; and for that end had prepared piles of
stones on the upper heights. The negroes, taking with them the
sharpened poles which they used as spears, and their bows and
arrows, started, under Ned and Gerald, to the indicated spot.
Gerald had arranged to go with a party to one side of the gorge,
Ned to the other; but they decided that it was better that they
should keep together, the more to encourage the natives; and while
a few negroes were sent to one side of the gorge, the main body,
under the two English lads, kept together on the other. The
fugitive had already gone ahead, with one of the negroes to show
him the way.
Scarcely had they taken their places, at the top of the gorge; when
the baying of the hounds, which had been increasing every minute in
volume, became so loud that the Spaniards were clearly close at
hand. In another three or four minutes there issued from the wood a
party of some twenty men, leading two dogs by chains. The creatures
struggled to get forward, and their eyes seemed almost starting out
of their heads with their eagerness to reach the object of their
pursuit. Their speed was, however, moderated by the fact that the
band, who were all on horseback, had to pick their way through the
great boulders. The wood itself was difficult for horsemen, but
here and there were spaces, and they had been able to ride at a
fair pace.
On entering the mouth of the gorge, however, they were obliged to
fall into an order of two abreast, and sometimes even to go in
Indian file. Huge boulders strewed the bottom of the chasm; where
indeed a stream, in winter, poured through. The sides were by no
means perpendicular, but were exceedingly precipitous.
When the Spaniards had fairly got into the gorge Ned gave the
signal, and a shower of great stones came leaping down the sides of
the rocks upon the astonished foes. Several were struck from their
horses; many of the horses, themselves, were knocked down; and a
scene of confusion at once took place. The Spaniards, however, were
accustomed to fighting; and the person in command, giving a few
orders, led ten of his men up the rocks upon the side where the
assailants were in strongest force; while the rest of the party,
seizing the horses' heads, drove the frightened animals back
through the ravine to the mouth.
The instant that the Spaniards commenced their ascent, long habits
of fear told upon some of the slaves, and these took to their heels
at once. Many others stood more firmly, but were evidently
wavering. Ned and Gerald, however, kept them at work hurling stones
down, and more than one of the Spaniards was carried off his feet
by these missiles.
Still they bravely ascended. Then Ned, taking a deliberate aim with
his pistol, brought down one of the leaders; and this greatly
surprised and checked the advance. The pistol shot was followed by
that of Gerald, and the Spaniards wavered at this unexpected
addition to the forces of the natives. Then Ned in English shouted:
"Now, my brave Britons, show these Spaniards you can fight as well,
on land, as at sea."
The words were probably not understood by any of the Spaniards, but
they knew that the language was not Spanish or Indian; and the
thought that a number of English were there completely paralyzed
them. They hesitated, and then began slowly to fall back.
This was all that was needed to encourage the negroes. With a
shout, these now advanced to the attack, shooting their arrows and
hurling stones, and the retreat of the enemy was rapidly converted
into a flight.
Their blood once thoroughly up, the negroes were ready for
anything. Throwing aside their bows and arrows, they charged upon
the Spaniards; and in spite of the superior arms and gallant
defense of the latter, many of them were beaten down, and killed,
by the heavy clubs and pointed starves of the negroes.
More, indeed, would have perished; and indeed, all might have
fallen had not, at this moment, a formidable reinforcement of
strength reached them. The men from below, having got the horses
fairly out of the gorge, left but two of their number with them,
and advanced to the assistance of their friends, bringing with them
the two bloodhounds.
"Never fear the hounds," Ned shouted. "We can beat them to death,
as easily as if they were pigs. Keep a bold front and attack them,
and I warrant you they are no more formidable than their masters."
Had these reinforcements arrived earlier, they might have changed
the fight; but the Spaniards who survived were anxious only to be
off, and the negroes' blood was so thoroughly up that, under the
leadership of the boys, they were prepared to face even these
terrible dogs.
These threw themselves into the fray, with all the ferocity of
their savage nature. Springing at the throats of two of the
negroes, they brought them to the ground. One of the dogs was
instantly disposed of by Gerald; who, placing his pistol to its
ear, blew out its brains. Ned fell upon the other with his sword
and, the negroes joining him, speedily beat it down and slew it.
The diversion, however, had enabled the Spaniards to get upon their
horses; and they now galloped off, at full speed, among the trees.