Like many others in the world, there was a gentleman and lady who
had a son. When he was grown up his father found that (his intellect)
was not awakened, although he had finished his education. What does
he do? He buys a ship for him, and takes a captain and a crew, and
loads the ship with sand, and sends his son in it as master. [141]
They all set off, and go very, very far away, and they come to a
country where there was no sand. They sell theirs very dear, and our
Juan Dekos went to take a walk in that place.
One day, passing before the door of the church, he sees that all
passers-by used to spit on something; he goes up and asks why they
do that. They say to him:
"It is a dead man who is there, and if no one pays his debts, he will
remain there until he rots away." [142]
What does Juan Dekos do? With all the money that he had he pays this
man's debts. The whole crew and the officers were in a red-hot rage,
because they had all their money there. He goes back again with his
ship, and they arrived in their own city. The father from a distance
had recognised his son's ship, and comes to meet him. The sailors
from a long way off shout out to him what he had done with the
money. The father was not pleased, but he sends the ship off again
loaded with iron. They go on, and at length arrive at a place where
he sells his iron for a great deal of money. When they were walking
about in this city, he sees Christians being sold by the savages in
the market-place. There were eight of them for sale; and he buys
all the eight, and employs all the money which he had made with
his iron in buying them. He sends seven of them to their own homes,
and keeps with him a young girl whose name was Marie Louise. She was
very beautiful. He returns home with his ship, and his crew, and Marie
Louise. The father comes to meet him, and the sailors tell him before
Juan Dekos what he had done with the money. His father was very angry,
and will not give anything more to his son; he may do what he likes.
Juan Dekos had a portrait of Marie Louise made for the figure-head of
his ship; and the men agree to go to the country of Marie Louise. They
set out then. The second in command of the ship was lame, and he was
very jealous of Juan Dekos and of Marie Louise. He did not know what
to do.
One day he sent for Juan Dekos on deck, saying that he wished to show
him a strange fish that was in the water. When he had got him quite
close to him, he throws him into the sea. Nobody was there when he did
that. When the meal-time comes they all asked where Juan Dekos was,
and nobody knew what was become of him. The lame man was delighted,
thinking that Marie Louise would be his. He pays her all sorts of
attention.
Juan Dekos was taken by an angel and placed upon a rock, and he brought
him there every day what was necessary for his maintenance. The
ship at length arrived in the country of Marie Louise. As she was
the king's daughter everybody recognised her, and that easily,
from a distance by her portrait. The king was quickly told of it,
and goes to meet his daughter, and you may imagine what rejoicings
he made. He has all the men conducted to his house and treats them
all well. Marie Louise tells how she had been bought by Juan Dekos,
and how good he had been to her, and that she does not know what
had become of him. She said also that the second officer had taken
very great care of her. This second officer wished beyond all things
to marry her, and the father wished it too, to show his gratitude,
because it was he who had brought his daughter back to him, and because
he had not known Juan Dekos. They tormented Marie Louise so much that
she promised that, at the end of a year and a day, if Juan Dekos did
not make his appearance, she would marry him.
A year and a day passed, and there was no news of Juan Dekos. They
were to be married then, and Juan Dekos was still upon his rock. The
sea-weed was growing upon his clothes, and he had a monstrous
beard. And the angel [143] said to him:
"Marie Louise is married to-day. Would you like to be there?"