The next day they were again brought before the tribunal, and the
grand inquisitor, without this time entering into any length of
speech, informed them briefly that he gave them another three days;
and that if, at the end of the third day, their obstinacy did not
yield, he would use the means at his disposal--and he pointed to
various instruments, hanging on the walls or ranged on the table.
Of these, although the lads were ignorant of their uses, they
entertained no doubt, whatever, that they were the instruments of
torture of which they had heard--thumb screws, iron gags, the boot,
the rack, and other devilish inventions. They made no reply to the
address, and were taken away, this time, down several winding
stairs to a black and noxious dungeon, far below the general level
of the earth.
No ray of light entered this cell. The walls were damp with
moisture. In the corner the boys discovered, by the sense of
feeling, a small pile of rotten straw; which had, without doubt,
formed the bed of some other unfortunate, who had before tenanted
the prison. Here, at least, they had no fear of being overheard;
but as the ingenuity of the inquisitors was well known, they agreed
to say no word of the hopes they still cherished; but to talk of
other matters, purely personal to themselves. Here, as hour after
hour passed, they strengthened each other in their resolutions, by
an agreement that no torture should wring from them a recantation
of their faith, and by many prayers for strength and support from
above.
Once a day the door opened, and an attendant brought in bread and
water, which he placed in silence on the ground. The second day, as
he did so, he placed a bundle by the side of the bread, and
whispering, "Be prudent. Use these only as the last resource.
Friends are preparing to help you," retired as noiselessly as
usual.
When left in darkness again, the lads seized upon the parcel. It
was large and heavy and, to their great delight, they found that it
contained two daggers and two brace of heavy pistols.
"I wonder," Ned said, in a whisper to Tom, "that our friend does
not contrive to get us passed through the prison. But I suppose
that he finds that only one or two, perhaps, of the attendants are
corruptible; and that our jailor, although he might free us from
this cell, could not pass us through the corridors and out of the
building."
"Let us see," Tom said, "if we can make our way into any cell which
may adjoin this. If it is empty we might, perchance, make our
escape."
All night the boys labored with their daggers, having first tapped
the wall all round, to hear if any difference of sound gave an
intimation that a hollow space was behind. They could not perceive
this; but fancying that, upon the one side, there was some very
slight difference, they attempted to remove the stones there.
All through the night and next day they continued their labor; and
succeeded, with great difficulty, in removing two of the stones of
the wall. Behind these, however, was a mass of rubble, formed of
cement so hard that the daggers failed to make any impression,
whatever, upon it; and after laboring through the whole day, they
were forced to abandon the design, and replace the stones as they
had before been; filling up the interstices with the mortar which
they had dug out, so that no trace of the task upon which they were
employed should remain.
That night, when the door opened, two figures, as before, presented
themselves; and they knew that their summons before the dreaded
court was at hand. With their daggers and pistols concealed within
their vests, they followed their guides; each, with a grasp of his
hand, assuring the other of his steadfastness and faith. They had
resolved that, sooner than submit to torture, which would cripple
them for life, they would fight to the last, and die resisting.
This time they found in the audience hall, in addition to the three
judges, four men; clothed also in black, but evidently of an
inferior order. These were standing, ranged along by the wall, in
readiness to obey the orders of the judges. Their attendants fell
back to the door, and the prisoners remained, standing alone, in
the center of the room.
"Acting in all kindness," the judge said, "we have given you ample
time to retract, and to consider your position; and we now call
upon you to consent, formally, to abandon your accursed heresies,
and to embrace the offer which the holy church kindly makes to you;
or to endure the pains which it will be necessary that we should
inflict, in order to soften your hardness of heart."
"We are perfectly resolved," Ned said, "to maintain the religion of
our fathers. As Englishmen, we protest against this outrage. When
your countrymen fall into our hands, no man dreams of endeavoring
to compel them to abandon their faith. They are treated as
honorable prisoners; and if any outrage be attempted upon our
bodies, sooner or later, be assured, the news of it will come to
the ears of our English captains; and for every drop of blood of
ours shed, a Spanish life will answer."
"You are insolent," the inquisitor said, coldly. "It is rash to
threaten men in whose power you are. These walls reveal no secrets,
and though the town were full of your English pirates, yet would
your doom be accomplished; without a possibility of rescue, and
without your fate ever becoming known, beyond these four walls.
"Bethink you," he said, "before you compel me to use the means at
my disposal; for men have spoken as bravely and as obstinately as
you, but they have changed their minds, when they felt their bones
cracking under the torture. We would fain abstain from injuring
figures as manly as yours; but, if needs be, we will so reduce them
to wrecks that you will envy the veriest cripple who crawls for
alms, on the steps of the cathedral here."
The boys remained silent, and the inquisitor, with an air of angry
impatience, motioned to the men ranged along by the wall to seize
their prisoners.
The lads saw that the time for action was come. Each produced his
pistol from his breast, the one leveling his at the head of the
grand inquisitor, while the other faced the foremost of those
advancing towards them.
"One step nearer," Ned said, "and the two of you are dead men."
A silence as of death fell in the chamber. The judges were too
astonished even to rise from their seats, and the familiars paused
in their advance.
"You see," Ned said to the grand inquisitor, "that you are not
masters of the situation. One touch upon my trigger, and the death
with which you threaten me is yours. Now write, as I order you, a
pass by which we may be allowed to quit these accursed walls,
without molestation."
Without hesitation, the judge wrote on a piece of paper the
required order.
"Now," Ned said, "you must come with us; for I put no faith,
whatever, in your promises; for I know the ways of your kind, that
promises made to heretics are not considered sacred. You are,
yourself, my best safeguard; for be assured that the slightest
interruption to us, upon our way, and I draw my trigger, and send
you to that eternity to which you have dispatched so many victims."
The judge rose to his feet, and Ned could see that, quiet as he
appeared, he was trembling with passion. Tom had, at the first
alarm, retreated to the door; so as to prevent the escape of the
attendants stationed there, or of any of the others, to give the
alarm. He now opened it, and Ned was about to pass out with the
inquisitor when, glancing round, he saw that one of the other
judges had disappeared, doubtless by some door placed behind the
arras, at the end of the room.
"Treachery is intended," he muttered to the inquisitor; "but
remember that you will be the first victim."
Slowly Ned passed along the corridors, the inquisitor between the
two Englishmen, the attendants following in a group behind,
uncertain what course to pursue, and without orders from their
superior, when at last they came to a door. This was locked, and
Ned ordered the inquisitor to have it opened.
"I have not the keys," he said. "They are in the hands of the
attendant whose duty it is to attend to this portion of the
building."
"Call them," Ned said impatiently.
The inquisitor struck on the closed door with his hands, and called
aloud, but no answer was returned.
"Bid these men behind you force it in," Ned said.
The men advanced, but as they did so a small side door in the
passage, behind Ned, opened noiselessly, and suddenly a thick
blanket was thrown over his head, while an arm struck up the hand
which had the pistol. He drew the trigger, however; and the grand
inquisitor, with a groan, sank to the ground. At the same instant a
number of men rushed through the door, and threw themselves upon
the lads, and were joined by the attendants standing behind.
A desperate struggle ensued. Tom shot the two first men who sprang
upon him, and for some minutes the lads maintained a desperate
struggle. Again and again, the crowd of their assailants pulled one
or other of them to the ground; but it was not until their strength
was utterly exhausted, by their struggles, that both were secured,
and bound hand and foot. Then, at the order of one of the other
judges; who, now that all danger was over, appeared upon the scene,
they were lifted bodily, carried back to their dungeon, and cast
upon the ground.
Panting and breathless, the lads lay for some time, too exhausted
to speak.
"I am afraid that I missed that rascally chief inquisitor," Ned
said. "Did you notice, Tom?"
"I scarcely saw, for at the same moment I was struck from behind;
but I fancy that he fell, when your pistol exploded."
"In that case," Ned said, "we may have a respite, for a day or two.
He will feel inclined to be present at the ceremony of torturing,
himself.
"On one thing I am determined. We will not be taken by the men in
black, and submit to having our limbs wrenched, without an effort.
I should think that, if we snatch up some of the iron instruments
lying about, we can manage to make such a resistance that they will
have to kill us, before we are overcome. If I could kill myself, I
certainly would do so. I do not think I am a coward, Tom, but I
confess that the sight of those horrible instruments makes my blood
run cold."
"I feel with you, Ned. Death itself were nothing; but to be torn,
limb from limb, is something horrible."
The day passed, without any visit being paid to them. No food was
brought in, and they were left, as if forgotten, by their jailors.
Thus they were unable to tell the hour and, as it was perfectly
dark, it was by guesswork that they at last lay down to sleep on
the damp stones.
Presently they were awoke by the tramp of numerous footsteps. Then
there was a tremendous battering at the door.
"What on earth are they doing?" Ned exclaimed. "Have they lost the
key, and are they going to break open the door, and finish with us,
now? Get ready. We will make a fight at once, and try and end it."
Presently the door gave way before the heavy blows which were
struck upon it; and, to the astonishment of the lads, a band of
Indians, naked to the waist and holding torches, burst into the
cell.
"Here they are!" exclaimed one of them, in Spanish.
"Quick, there is not a moment to be lost. Follow us;" and, stooping
down, he cut the cords which bound them.
Bewildered and confused with the sudden light, and by the
unexpected irruption, the boys followed the speaker; and, closely
surrounded by the Indians, made their way down the passages and out
into the courtyard. There was no resistance, or interference. The
familiars had, apparently, fled at the sudden attack upon the jail,
and no one appeared to bar their exit.
The great gates of the courtyard stood uninjured, but the postern
door had been battered in. Another body of natives, armed with
spears and bows and arrows, were standing round the entrance; and a
good many of the people of the neighborhood, roused by the sudden
tumult, were standing at the doors. These looked on, apparently,
with mere curiosity, and with no desire to interfere with what was
going on.
Indeed, the Inquisition was never popular with the great body of
the Spaniards; over whom its secret proceedings, and terrible
cruelties, hung like a dark cloud, as none could ever say that they
might not be the objects of denunciation.
It was clear that the Indians were acting upon a fixed plan; for,
the moment that those from within the prison sallied out, all
formed in a compact body, and at a brisk slinging trot started down
the street; the lads being kept well in the center, so as to
conceal them from the gaze of the public. Not a word was spoken,
till they had issued from the town. For another quarter of a mile
their hurried march continued; and then, without a word, the whole
of the escort, with the exception of one man, turned up a crossroad
and vanished into the darkness.
"Heaven be praised that I have saved you, senors!" said the Indian
who remained. "Do you not recognize me? I am Don Estevan, whose
life you saved at Arica. I feared that I might be too late to find
you unharmed; but it required time to get the necessary force
together.
"You recognized me, of course, on the pier when you landed. The
instant I heard of your arrest, I chartered a swift-sailing country
craft, and arrived here the day before you. I was the bearer of a
letter, signed by many of the soldiers in garrison at Arica, to
their comrades here; saying how bravely you had behaved, and that
you had become good comrades in the regiment, and urging them to do
anything in their power to save you from the Inquisition. This I
thought might be useful, as they would be sure to be called out, in
case of an attack upon the Inquisition; and I prayed them to be as
slow as possible in their movements, in case of any sudden alarm.
This will account for the fact that none of them arrived upon the
spot before we had finished our business, just now.
"But there is not a moment to delay. I have horses two miles away
in readiness, and we must make for there. They will be sure to put
on bloodhounds in pursuit, and we may have to ride for it."
The boys briefly expressed their intense gratitude to their
preserver, for his efforts in their behalf, Ned adding, "I fear,
Don Estevan, that your generous deed of tonight will involve you in
fearful danger."
"I have taken every precaution," the young Spaniard said. "I did
not charter the vessel in my own name, and came up in disguise. All
my friends believe me to be still at Arica, and no one, so far as I
know, has recognized me here. I was obliged to go to my estate,
which lies a hundred miles up the country. There I armed my peons
and vaqueros, and a number of Indians who were living near, to whom
I have always shown kindness. None of them knew that it was the
dungeon of the Inquisition which they were to attack, but believed
that it was merely a prison they were about to force; for the power
of superstition is very great in this country, and although a great
many of the men may lead wild and godless lives, they tremble at
the thought of lifting their hands against that mysterious and
awful body, the Inquisition.
"News travels slowly, indeed, in this country; and it is not likely
that the fact that the prison of the Inquisition has been broken
open will ever reach the men on my estate. The priest of the
village is a worthy man; and he has, I know, no sympathy with
bigotry and cruelty. Consequently, if any of them should, in their
confession, tell him that they have been engaged in breaking a
prison, he will perchance guess what prison it was, and may imagine
that I had a hand in it. But I feel sure that the knowledge so
gained would go no further.
"I might, had I chosen, have had the horses brought to the point
where we separated from my men. But in that case the hounds might
have followed upon the main body, and so some clue would have been
gained as to the direction from which they came. As it is, they
will follow us up, at any rate until we take horses. We will make
our track visible, for some distance, so that the pursuit may be
carried on. Before it is over, they will have lost all track of the
rest of their assailants; and will not, indeed, be able to trace
the direction in which they went. They, too, have horses at a short
distance, and will speedily regain the estate."
"How did you know in which cell we were confined?"
"Through the jailor. The man who attended you was once employed by
my father. I met him, the day I arrived from Arica, and bribed him
to convey the arms to you; with which I thought that, should they
bring you to trial and torture before I could collect my force, you
might make a resistance; for I judged that you would rather die
than suffer mutilation and agony. When you disclosed your arms,
today, he slipped at once from the building, as he knew that he
would be suspected. Changing his clothes in a house near, he
mounted his horse and rode to meet us, conveying the news that the
crisis had arrived. How it ended he could not tell; but he hoped
that some delay might occur, in resuming proceedings against you."
By this time they had reached their horses, which were tied in a
clump of trees, at a short distance from the road.
"They are fine animals," Don Estevan said, "and we may reckon upon
showing our heels to any of those who pursue us; for I can assure
you that the chase is likely to be a hot one."
"Whither do you intend to go?"
"I am thinking of making for Arica. Before we reach that town you
can, if you choose, strike to the hills and join the natives
beyond, as you proposed when at Arica; or, should you prefer it,
you can, in disguises, enter Arica and remain there, for a time,
until all possibility of your friends appearing before that place
be at an end.
"My absence will not have been noticed, for I mentioned to friends
there that I was going into the interior, to investigate a mine, of
whose existence I had heard from some Indians. When I return,
therefore, I shall say that the mine was not sufficiently
promising, in appearance, for me to care about asking for a
concession from the government. I shall, of course, pretend to be
extremely vexed at the time that has been wasted; and I do not see
that any suspicion can fall upon me, as having been concerned in
the affair at Lima.
"We will walk our horses at a slow pace, in order to save them, as
far as possible; and to ascertain whether our pursuers have
correctly followed our steps. When we once hear them, we can then
put on our best speed; and as they will not know that we are but a
short distance ahead, they will go at a moderate pace. Besides, the
speed of bloodhounds, when tracking, is by no means great."
An hour later, they heard a faint sound in the distance.
Instinctively they checked their horses, and again, in the darkness
of the night, the deep distant bay of a hound was heard.
"Just as I thought!" Don Estevan exclaimed. "They have got the
bloodhounds, and I should think, by the sound, that they must have
just reached the spot where we mounted. The hounds will be puzzled
now; but the sagacity of these creatures is so great that I am by
no means sure that they will be unable to follow us by the track of
the horses. Now let us set spur."
For the next four or five hours they proceeded, at a steady gallop,
towards the south. The country was flat; the road sandy, but even;
and the cool night air was exhilarating, indeed, after the
confinement in the dark and noisome dungeon at Lima. So rejoiced
were the boys, with their newly-recovered freedom, that it was with
difficulty they restrained themselves from bursting into shouts of
joy. But they were anxious that no sounds should be heard, by the
villagers of the little hamlets lying along the road. The sound of
the horses' hoofs on the sandy track would scarcely arouse a
sleeping man; and the fact that their tracks would be plainly
visible in the sand, when daylight came, caused them no concern;
as, so far, they had made no effort to deceive their pursuers.
Soon after daylight arrived they found themselves upon a stream,
which ran down from the mountains and crossed the road.
"Now," Don Estevan said, "it is time to begin to throw them off our
track. They will believe that the party consist solely of Indians,
and our turning east will seem as if we intended to take refuge in
the mountains. Let us then strike up the river for awhile, land at
a spot where the horses' hoofs will be clearly visible, and then
pursue a course to the southeast, taking us nearer and nearer to
the hills.
"Three leagues hence is another stream. This we will enter, and
they will make sure that we have pursued our former tactics--that
we have followed it up, and again struck for the hills. Instead of
doing this, we will follow it down for a mile or two; and quit it
at some spot where the bank is firm, and will leave no marks of our
footsteps. Then we will strike across the country, and regain the
road some seven or eight leagues further south."
The plan appeared a capital one, and was followed out as arranged.
Late in the evening, they were again in the vicinity of the
southern road. In their wallets was a plentiful supply of
provisions, and they had filled their water bottles at the last
stream which they had crossed. Entering a grove of trees, they
unsaddled their horses and allowed them to crop the foliage and
shrubs; while they threw themselves down upon the soft earth, stiff
and wearied with their long journey.
"We will travel by night, always," Don Estevan said. "I do not
think that any suspicion, whatever, will arise that we have again
struck south; but should any inquiry be made, it is as well that no
one along the road shall have seen three mounted men."
For another two days they journeyed, as proposed, by night; resting
by day in quiet places and, so far as they knew, without having
been seen by any of the scattered population. It was in the middle
of the third night, as they were cantering slowly along, that they
heard the tread of a horse, at full gallop, approaching from the
south.
"You had better withdraw from the road," Don Estevan said, "so that
but one horseman will be met. I will stop the rider, and hear why
he gallops so fast. It may be that news has preceded us, and it is
as well to gather what intelligence we can."
The boys withdrew from the road, Don Estevan proceeding ahead. They
heard the sound of the galloping hoofs pause, as their rider met
the Spaniard. There was a talk for a few minutes, and then the
horseman again rode forward at full speed. Don Estevan paused for a
little while, to allow him to get beyond earshot, and then rejoined
his companions.
"I have great news," he said, "and it is for you to decide whether
it will alter your plan of proceeding. The man whom I have just met
is a messenger, dispatched by the governor of Arica to Lima, to
warn the governor there that an English ship, under the noted
freebooter Francis Drake, has put into that harbor; and has started
again, sailing for the north, after exacting certain contributions,
but otherwise refraining from injuring the town."
The boys gave a shout of joy, for they had begun to fear that the
expedition must have met with some disaster, in doubling Cape Horn,
and been compelled to return.
"What will you do?" the Spaniard asked.
"Return to Lima!" the boys exclaimed, simultaneously. "We shall be
there before the admiral can arrive, and can then rejoin our
comrades."
"That will indeed be your best plan," Don Estevan said; "but you
must be disguised thoroughly. However, you are not likely to be so
closely investigated as you otherwise would be, at Lima; for you
may be sure that, when the messenger arrives there, the town will
be in such a ferment of excitement, at the approach of your
countrymen, that our little affair will, for the time, be entirely
forgotten."
"I trust," Ned said, "that we shall be able to do something to
render your security more perfect; for, if I mistake not, when the
admiral hears of the doings of the officials of the Inquisition,
how many people they have burned to death lately at Lima, and what
frightful cruelties they have perpetrated in that ghastly prison,
he will burn the place to the ground and hang up the judges; in
which case we may be sure that no further inquiry will ever be
thought of, concerning the attack on the prison. What do you advise
us to do, senor? For it is clear that your best course is to return
to Arica, direct."
"I cannot think of doing that," the generous young Spaniard
replied. "A few days' longer absence will pass unnoticed,
especially as people will have plenty of other matters to think,
and talk, about. I do not see how you can possibly obtain disguises
without my assistance; and as our pursuers will long since have
been thrown off our track, and will probably have given up the
search and have returned to Lima, convinced that we already have
crossed the mountains and are beyond their reach. I think that
there is little danger in my nearing the city.
"Come, let us turn our horses' heads, at once."
In a few minutes, they were returning by the route they had
hitherto traveled They were already dressed as young Spaniards. The
disguises had been brought by their rescuer, and assumed at the
first halt. He himself had also washed the paint from his face and
hands, and had assumed European garb, in order that any inquiry
about three mounted Indians might be baffled.
"There is now," he said, "no longer any occasion for us to ride by
night. We are journeying north, and any inquiries which may ever be
set on foot will certainly point only to men going south; and
whereas our Indian disguises might have been suspected, I am now in
my proper character, and my passing through can excite no rumor or
comment."
Don Estevan had, indeed, assumed the garb of a Spanish proprietor
of rank, while the boys were dressed as vaqueros; and as they
passed through villages, in the daytime, kept their horses half a
length behind that of their leader. They avoided, on their ride
back, putting up at any of the posadas, or village inns, on their
road; sleeping, as before, in the woods. Their marches were long,
but were performed at a much slower rate of speed, as they were
certain that they would reach Lima long before the admiral's ship,
even should he not pause at any place on the way.
It was upon the sixth day after their rescue from prison that they
again approached Lima. After much consultation, they had agreed to
continue in their Spanish dresses, taking only the precaution of
somewhat staining their faces and hands, to give them the color
natural to men who spend their lives on the plains. Don Estevan,
himself, determined to enter the city with them after nightfall;
and to take them to the house of a trusty friend, where they should
lie, concealed, until the news arrived that the English ship was
off the port. He himself would at once mount his horse, and retrace
his steps to Arica.
The programme was carried out successfully. No one glanced at the
hidalgo as, with his vaqueros, he rode through the streets of Lima.
There were no lights, in those days, save those which hung before
shrines by the roadside; or occasionally a dim oil lamp, suspended
before the portico of some mansion of importance.
The friend to whom Don Estevan assigned them was a young man, of
his own age; a cousin, and one, like himself, liberal in his
opinions, free from bigotry, and hating the cruelties perpetrated
in the name of religion by the Inquisition. He heard with surprise
the narrative which Don Estevan related; for the latter had not
visited him during his short stay in the city, and was supposed
still to be at Arica. Great was his astonishment, indeed, when he
found that the attack upon the prison of the Inquisition, which had
caused such intense excitement in the city, had been planned and
executed by his cousin; and his expressions of approval of the deed
were warm and frequent. He assured the boys that he would do
everything in his power to make them comfortable until the arrival
of the English ship.
A discussion took place as to whether it was better that they
should appear as friends of his, who had come in from their country
estate; or whether they should continue their disguise as vaqueros.
There were objections to either plan. In the first place, the
attendants in waiting would detect the shortcomings in Ned's
Spanish, and would be astonished at the silence of his companion.
Upon the other hand, it would seem strange that they should be kept
apart from the servitors of the house. Finally, it was agreed that
they should appear as men of rank, but that Tom should feign
sickness, and therefore keep his room; Ned for the most part
remaining shut up with him, and taking his meals there.
This course was followed out, and when the arrangement was complete
they took a hearty leave of the noble young Spaniard, who at once
remounted his horse and started on his weary ride back again to
Arica.