The dragoon was the first to resume the conversation.
"You, Senor Don Cornelio," said he, "you who have come from Valladolid,
perhaps you can give me some later news, than I have received about the
march of Hidalgo and his army?"
"Not any, I fear," replied the student; "you forget, Senor, that, thanks
to the slow pace of my old horse, I have been two months on the route?
When I left Valladolid, nobody had any more thought of an insurrection
than of a new deluge. All I know of it is what I have heard from public
rumour--that is, so much as could be divulged without fear of the Holy
Inquisition. If, moreover, we are to believe the mandate of the Lord
Bishop of Oajaca, the insurrection will not find many supporters in his
diocese."
"And for what reason?" asked the captain of dragoons, with a certain
hauteur, which proved, without committing himself to any disclosure of
his political opinions, that the insurgent cause would not find an enemy
in him. "What reason does the bishop assign?"
"What reason?" replied the student. "Simply because my Lord Bishop
Bergosa y Jordan will excommunicate them. He affirms, moreover, that
every insurgent will be recognisable by his horns and cloven hoofs,
which before long they will all have from the hands of the devil!"
Instead of smiling at the childish credulity of the young student, the
dragoon shook his head with an air of discontent, while the hairs of his
black moustachios curled with indignation.
"Yes," said he, as if speaking to himself, "thus is it that our priests
fight with the weapons of calumny and falsehood, perverting the minds of
the Creoles with fanatical superstition! So, Senor Lantejas," he
continued in a louder tone, addressing himself to the student, "you are
afraid to enrol yourself in the ranks of the insurgents, lest you might
obtain these diabolical ornaments promised by the bishop?"
"Heaven preserve me from doing such a thing!" replied the student. "Is
it not an article of faith? And who should know better than the
respectable Lord Bishop of Oajaca? Besides," continued he, hastening
his explanation, as he saw the angry flash of his companion's eye, "I am
altogether of a peaceable disposition, and about to enter into holy
orders. Whatever party I might take, it would be with prayer alone I
should seek to make it triumph. The Church has a horror of blood."
While the student was thus delivering himself, the dragoon regarded him
with a side glance; which seemed to say: that it mattered little which
side he might take, as neither would be much benefited by such a sorry
champion.
"Is it for the purpose of passing your thesis that you have come to
Oajaca?"
"No," replied Lantejas, "my errand into this country is altogether
different. I am here in obedience to the commands of my father, whose
brother is the proprietor of the rich estate of San Salvador. I am to
remind my uncle that he is a widower--rich--and without children; and
that he has half-a-dozen nephews to provide for. That is my business at
San Salvador. What can I do? My honoured father is more attached to
the good things of this life than is perhaps right; and I have been
obliged to make this journey of two hundred leagues, for the purpose of
sounding our relative's disposition in regard to us."
"And ascertaining the value of his property as well?"
"Oh! as to that, we know exactly how much it is worth; though none of us
has ever been on the estate."
This answer of the young student did more honour to his heart than to
his discretion.
"Well," continued he, after a pause, "I may safely say, that never did
nephew present himself before an uncle in a more famished condition than
I shall do. Thanks to the inexplicable desertion of all the houses and
villages through which I have passed--and the care which their owners
have taken to carry with them even the leanest chicken--there is not a
jackal in the country hungrier than I at this minute."
The dragoon was in pretty much the same case. For two days he had been
travelling without seeing a soul, and though his horse had picked up a
little forage along the road, he had been unable to obtain food for
himself--other than such wild fruits and berries as he could gather by
the way.
The sympathy for a like suffering at once dissipated any ill-blood which
the difference in their political sentiments might have stirred up; and
harmony was restored between them.
The captain in his turn informed his new _compagnon du voyage_, that,
since the imprisonment of the Viceroy, Iturrigaray, his own father, a
Spanish gentleman, had retired to his estate of Del Valle, where he was
now proceeding to join him. He was not acquainted with this estate,
having never been upon it since he was a mere child; but he knew that it
was not far from the hacienda of Las Palmas, already mentioned. Less
communicative than Don Cornelio, he did not inform the student of
another motive for his journey, though there was one that interested him
far more than revisiting the scenes of his childhood.
As the travellers rode on, the evanescent ardour of Don Cornelio's
roadster insensibly cooled down; while the student himself, fatigued by
the incessant application of whip and spur, gradually allowed to
languish a conversation, that had enabled them to kill a long hour of
their monotonous journey.
The sun was now declining towards the western horizon, and the shadows
of the two horsemen were beaming elongated upon the dusty road, while
from the tops of the palm-trees the red cardinals and parroquets had
commenced to chaunt their evening song.
Thirst--from which both the travellers suffered even more than from
hunger--was still increasing upon them; and at intervals the dragoon
captain cast a look of impatience toward the horse of his companion. He
could not help observing that the poor brute, for the want of water, was
every moment slackening his pace.
On his side, Don Cornelio perceived, that, from a generous motive, his
travelling companion was resisting the temptation to ride forward. By
putting his fine horse into a gallop, the latter could in a short time
reach the hacienda--now less than three leagues distant. Under the
apprehension of losing his company, therefore, the student redoubled his
efforts to keep his old circus hack abreast with the bay-brown of the
dragoon.
The journey thus continued for half an hour longer; when it became
evident to both travellers that the _escapado_ of the bull-ring was
every moment growing more unable to proceed.
"Senor student," said the dragoon, after a long spell of silence, "have
you ever read of those shipwrecks, where the poor devils, to avoid
starvation, cast lots to see which shall be eaten by the others?"
"Alas! yes, I have," answered Lantejas, with a slight trembling in his
speech; "but I hope with us it will not come to that deplorable
extremity."
"_Carrambo_!" rejoined the dragoon with a grave air, "I feel at this
moment hungry enough to eat a relative--even if he were rich and I his
heir, as you of your uncle, the _haciendado_ of San Salvador!"
"But we are not at sea, Senor captain, and in a boat from which there is
no chance of escape?"
The dragoon fancied that he might amuse himself a little at the expense
of the young student of divinity--of whose excessive credulity he had
already had proofs. Perhaps he meant also to revenge himself on this
foolish credulity, upon which the fulmination of the Bishop Bergosa--
already celebrated throughout Mexico--had made such an impression. His
chief motive, however, was to demonstrate to his travelling companion
the necessity for their parting company; in order, that, by riding
forward himself, he might be able to send back succour to his
fellow-traveller. He was no little surprised, therefore, to perceive
that his pleasantry was taken in actually a serious light; and therefore
had determined to desist from making any further innuendos.
"I hope, Senor captain," said Don Cornelio, "I hope neither of us will
ever be in such extremities."
Then casting a glance over the arid waste that stretched before them, a
new idea seemed to strike the student; and with a haste that bespoke his
agitation he continued--
"As for me, if I were mounted on a horse equal in strength and vigour to
yours, I should gallop either to the hacienda of Las Palmas or San
Salvador, without drawing bridle; and from there send assistance to the
fellow-traveller I had left behind."
"Ah! is that your advice?"
"I could not think of giving any other."
"Good, then!" cried the dragoon; "I shall follow it; for to be candid, I
felt a delicacy in parting company with you."
As Don Rafael spoke, he held out his hand to the student.
"Senor Lantejas," said he, "we part friends. Let us hope we may never
meet as enemies! Who can foresee the future? You appear disposed to
look with an evil eye on those attempts at emancipation of a country,
that has been enslaved for three hundred years. As for myself, it is
possible I may offer my arm--and, if need be, my life--to aid her in
conquering her liberty. _Hasta luego_! I shall not forget to send you
assistance."
Saying this, the officer clasped warmly the chill attenuated fingers of
the student of theology, gave the reign to his horse, that needed no
spur, and disappeared the moment after amidst a cloud of dust.
"God be praised!" said Lantejas, breathing freely; "I do believe the
famished Lestrygon would have been quite capable of devouring me! As
for my being found on a field of battle in front of this Goliath, or any
other, there's not much danger. I defy the devil with all his horns to
make a soldier of me, either _for_ the insurrection or _against_ it."
The student proceeded on his solitary route--congratulating himself on
having escaped, from what his credulous fancy had believed to be a
danger.
Some time had passed, and the red clouds of sunset were tinting the
horizon, when he saw before him the form of a man, whose gait and
complexion proved him to be an Indian. In hopes of obtaining some
provisions from this man, or, at all events, an explanation of the
singular circumstances already mentioned, the student urged his horse
into a more rapid pace, heading him towards the Indian.
He saw that the latter was driving two cows before him, whose distended
udders proved them to be milch cattle. This increased the desire of the
horseman, hungry and thirsty as he was, to join company with the
cowherd.
"_Hola_! Jose!" cried he, at the top of his voice.
An Indian will always respond to the name _Jose_, as an Irishman to that
of _Pat_ or _Paddy_. On hearing it, the cow-driver looked round in
alarm. At that moment the _escapado_ of the bull-ring caught sight of
the two cows, and suddenly broke off into a gallop--unfortunately,
however, in a direction the very opposite to that which his rider
desired him to take!
Notwithstanding this, the student still continued to shout to the
cowherd, in hopes of bringing him to comprehend his dilemma. But the
odd spectacle of a horseman calling to him to approach, while he himself
kept riding off in the opposite direction, so astounded the Indian that,
uttering a cry of affright, he also took to his heels, followed in a
long shambling trot by the two cows!
It was not until all three were out of sight, that the student could
prevail on his affrighted steed to return into the proper path.
"In the name of the Holy Virgin!" soliloquised he, "what has got into
the people of this country? Every one of them appears to have gone
mad!"
And once more setting his horse to the road, he proceeded onward--now,
however, hungrier and more disconsolate than ever.
Just as night was coming down, he arrived at a place where two or three
small huts stood by the side of the road. These, like all the others,
he found deserted. At sight of them, however, the old horse came to a
dead stop, and refused to proceed. His rider, equally fatigued,
resolved upon remaining by the huts, until the assistance promised by
the dragoon captain should arrive.
In front of one of the huts stood two tall tamarind trees--between which
a hammock was suspended, at the height of seven or eight feet from the
ground. It was a capacious one, made of the strong plaited thread of
the _maguey_. It seemed to invite the wearied traveller to repose--as
if placed there on purpose for him.
As the heat was still suffocating, instead of entering one of the huts,
he unsaddled his horse, permitted the animal to go at will, and by the
trunk of one of the tamarinds climbed up into the hammock. There,
stretching himself, he lay a good while listening attentively, in hopes
of hearing some sound that might announce the approach of the promised
succour.
It was now dark night. All nature had gone to sleep; and the profound
silence was unbroken by any sound that resembled the tramp of a horse.
Nothing was heard to indicate the approach of the expected relief.
As the student continued to listen, however, he became sensible of
sounds, of a singular and mysterious character. There was a continuous
noise, like the rumbling of distant thunder, or the roaring of the ocean
during a storm. Although the air was calm around him, he fancied he
could hear a strong wind blowing at a distance, mingled with hoarse
bellowings of unearthly voices!
Affrighted by these inexplicable noises--which seemed the warning voices
of an approaching tempest--he lay for a while awake; but fatigue
overcoming him, he sunk at length into a profound sleep.