On that same evening, and about an hour before sunset, two men made
their appearance on the banks of a small river that traversed the
country not far from the group of huts where the traveller had halted--
at a point about halfway between them and the hacienda Las Palmas.
At the place where the two men appeared upon its banks, the river in
question ran through the middle of a narrow valley; flowing so gently
along, that its unrippled surface mirrored the blue sky. At this place
the water filled its channel up to the level of the banks, that were
treeless, and covered with a sward of grass. Farther down trees grew
along the edge of the stream--tall oaks and cotton woods, whose branches
were interlaced by flowering llianas. Still farther down, the river
entered between high banks of wilder appearance, and covered with yet
more luxuriant vegetation. From the grassy meadow, in which the two men
were standing, the noise of a cataract, like the breaking of the sea
upon a rocky beach, was distinctly audible.
The complexion and costume of one of the men pronounced him an Indian.
The former was a copper-brown, the well-known colour of the American
aboriginal. His dress consisted of a coarse shirt of greyish woollen
stuff, rayed with black stripes. Its short sleeves, scarce reaching to
the elbows, permitted to be seen a pair of strong, sinewy arms of
deepest bronze. It was confined round the waist with a thick leathern
belt, while its skirt hung down to mid-thigh. Below this appeared the
legs of a pair of trowsers, wide, but reaching only to the knee. These
were of tanned sheep-skin, and of a reddish brown hue. From the bottoms
of the trowsers, the legs and ankles of the Indian were naked; while the
_chaussure_ consisted of leathern buskins, also of a brownish red
colour. A hat of rush plaiting covered his head, from under which hung
two long tresses of black hair--one over each cheek--and reaching down
to his elbows.
He was a man of tall stature, and with a physiognomy remarkable for one
of his race. Instead of the servile aspect so characteristic of the
_Indios mangos_ (subdued Indians) of Mexico, he had more the air of the
true savage, or _Indio bravo_. This appearance was strengthened by the
fact of his having a slight moustache and beard--a rare distinction
among the aborigines of Mexico.
Over his shoulder he carried a short, thick carbine, somewhat rusty;
while a long _machete_ (half sword, half knife), was stuck behind his
belt.
His companion was a negro, whose clothing consisted of little else than
rags. Otherwise there was nothing remarkable about him--if we except
the air of stupified credulity with which he appeared to be listening to
the discourse of the Indian. From time to time his features assumed an
expression of ill-concealed fear.
The red man, closely followed by the black, was advancing along the bank
at a place destitute of timber and where the ground was smooth and soft.
He was going slowly, his body bent slightly forwards, and his eyes
turned upon the earth as if in search of some object, or tracking an
animal. Suddenly he came to a top--
"Now!" he exclaimed, turning to the negro, and pointing to the ground,
"I told you I should find their traces in less than half an hour. Look
there!"
The Indian spoke in a tone of triumph; but the feeling was far from
being shared by his companion, who bent his eyes upon the earth rather
with a look of dismay. The sight was sufficient to have caused
uneasiness to any one other than a hunter of wild beasts. In the soft
mud was exhibited a number of tracks--twenty of them in all. They were
of different sizes, too; and appeared to have been recently made. The
marks of sharp claws, distinctly outlined in the clayey soil, told what
kind of animal had made the tracks. It was the fierce jaguar--the tiger
(_tigre_) of the Spanish-Americans.
"It's not half an hour since they have been here," continued the Indian.
"_Mira_!" exclaimed he, pointing to a little eddy on the edge of the
stream, "they have been drinking there not ten minutes ago: the water is
yet muddy!"
"Let us get away," suggested the negro, whose black face was now pale
with fear. "I see no use in our remaining here. See! there are many
tracks, and of different sizes, too. Lord bless me! a whole procession
of tigers must have passed here."
"Oh! you are exaggerating," rejoined the Indian, with a sneering laugh.
"Let us count them," he continued, bending down over the foot-prints,
"one--two--three--four: a male, a female, and her two _cachorros_
(cubs). That is all. _Carrambo_! what a sight for a _tigrero_
(tiger-hunter)."
"Ah! indeed!" assented the negro, in a hesitating way.
"Yes," rejoined the other; "but we shan't go after them to-day. We have
more important business on our hands."
"Would it not be better to defer the business you were speaking of till
to-morrow, and now return to the hacienda? However curious I am to see
the wonderful things you promised, still--"
"What!" exclaimed the Indian, interrupting his companion's speech,
"defer that business till another day? Impossible. The opportunity
would not come round for another month, and then we shall be far from
this place. No, no, Clara," continued he, addressing the black by this
_very_ odd cognomen, "no, no; we must about it to-day and at this very
moment. Sit down, then."
Suiting the action to the word, the Indian squatted himself on the
grass; and the negro, willing or unwilling, was forced to follow his
example.