* rri 
 
 S t 
 
 
 I 

 
 * & H 
 
 -"
 
 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 {FEOM THE FRENCH OF LUIS DE BELLEMARE. ) 
 
 CAPTAIN MAYNE REID, 
 
 AUTHOR OP "THE SCALP HUNTERS," 
 &c., &c. 
 
 IN THREE VOLUMES. 
 VOL. I. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 HURST AND BLACKETT, PUBLISHERS, 
 SUCCESSORS TO HENRY COLBURN, 
 
 13, GKKAT MARLBOROUGH STREET. 
 
 1860.
 
 LONDON ! 
 PRINTED BT R. BORN, GLOUCESTER STREET, 
 
 REGENT'S PARK.
 
 a/93 
 
 3 
 
 V. / 
 
 THE WOOD-RANGEKS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PEPE, THE SLEEPER. 
 
 No landscape on the Biscayan coast presents 
 a more imposing and picturesque aspect than 
 the little village of Elanchovi. Lying within 
 an amphitheatre of cliffs, whose crests rise 
 above the roofs of the houses, the port is pro- 
 tected from the surge of the sea by a hand- 
 some little jetty of chiselled stone ; while the 
 single street of which the village is composed, 
 commencing at the inner end of the mole, 
 sweeps boldly up against the face of the preci- 
 
 VOL. I. B 
 
 688275
 
 2 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 pice. On both sides, the houses, disposed in 
 a sort of echelon, rise, terrace-like, one above 
 the other ; so that, viewed from a distance, 
 the street presents the appearance of a gigan- 
 tic stairway. 
 
 In these, the common dwellings, there is 
 not much variety of architecture ; since the 
 village is almost exclusively inhabited by poor 
 fishermen. There is one building, however, 
 that is conspicuous so much so as to form 
 the principal feature of the landscape. It is 
 an old chateau perhaps the only building of 
 this character in Spain whose slate roofs and 
 gothic turrets and vanes, rising above the 
 highest point of the cliffs, overlook the houses 
 of the village. 
 
 This mansion belonged to the noble family 
 of Mediana, and formed part of the grand 
 estates of this ancient house. For a long 
 period, the Counts of Mediana had not inha- 
 bited the chateau of Elanchovi, and it had 
 fallen into a state of neglect and partial decay, 
 presenting a somewhat wild and desolate as-
 
 PEPE, THE SLEEPER. , 3 
 
 pect. However, at the beginning of the year 
 1808, during the troubles of the French 
 invasion, the Count Don Juan, then head of 
 the family, had chosen it as a safe residence 
 for his young wife, Dona Luisa, whom he 
 passionately loved. 
 
 Here Don Juan passed the first months of 
 his married life a marriage celebrated under 
 circumstances of sad augury. The younger 
 brother of Don Juan, Don Antonio de Mediana, 
 had also fervently loved the Dona Luisa ; un- 
 til, finding her preference for his brother, he 
 had given up his suit in anger, and quitted 
 the country. He had gone, no one knew 
 whither ; and though, after a time, there came 
 back a rumour of his death, it was neither 
 confirmed nor contradicted. 
 
 The principal reason why the count had 
 chosen this wild spot as a residence for his 
 lady was this : He held a high command in 
 the Spanish army, and he knew that duty 
 would soon call him into the field. The 
 alcalde of Elanchovi had been an old servant 
 
 B2
 
 4 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 of tiie Mediana family, and had been raised 
 to his present rank by their influence. Don 
 Juan, therefore, believed he could rely upon 
 the devotion of this functionary to the inter- 
 ests of his house, and that during his absence 
 Dona Luisa would find security under the 
 magisterial protection. Don Ramon Cohecho 
 was the name of the chief magistrate of 
 Elanchovi. 
 
 The count was not permitted long to enjoy 
 the happiness of his married life. Just as he 
 had anticipated, he soon received orders to 
 join his regiment; and parted from the 
 chateau, leaving his young wife under the 
 special care of an old and respectable domes- 
 tic the steward, Juan de Dios Canelo. He 
 parted from his home, never more to return to 
 it ; for in the battle of Burgos, a French 
 bullet suddenly terminated his existence. 
 
 It was sad tidings for the Doiia Luisa ; 
 and thus, to the joys of the first days of her 
 married life, succeeded the sorrows of a pre- 
 mature widowhood.
 
 PEPE, THE SLEEPER. 5 
 
 It was near the close of the year 1808, 
 when the chateau was the sombre witness of 
 Dona Luisa's grief, that our story commences ; 
 and though its scene lies in another land 
 thousands of leagues from the Biscayan coast 
 its history is intimately woven with that of 
 the chateau of Elanchovi. 
 
 Under ordinary circumstances, the village 
 of Elanchovi presents a severe and dreary as- 
 pect. The silence and solitude that reign 
 along the summit of the cliffs, contrasted with 
 the continuous roaring of the breakers against 
 their base, inspires the beholder with a senti- 
 ment of melancholy. Moreover, the villagers, 
 as already said, being almost exclusively 
 fishermen, and absent during the whole of the 
 day, the place at first sight would appear as if 
 uninhabited. Occasionally, when some cloud 
 is to be observed in the sky, the wives of the 
 fishermen may be seen at the door, in their 
 skirts of bright colours, and their hair in long 
 double plaits hanging below their waists. 
 These, after remaining a while to cast anxious
 
 6 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 glances upon the far horizon, again recross the 
 thresholds of their cottages, leaving the street 
 deserted as before. 
 
 At the time of which we are writing the 
 month of November, 1808 Elanchovi pre- 
 sented a still more desolate aspect than was its 
 wont. The proximity of the French army 
 had produced a panic among its inhabitants ; 
 and many of these poor people forgetting in 
 their terror that they had nothing to lose 
 had taken to their boats, and sought safety in 
 places more distant from the invaders of whom 
 they were in dread. 
 
 Isolated as this little village was on the 
 Biscayan coasts, there was all the more reason 
 why it should have its garrison of coast-guards ; 
 and such in reality it had. These, at the time, 
 consisted of a company of soldiers carabiniers, 
 under the command of a captain, Don Lucas 
 Despierto but the condition of these warriors 
 was not one to be envied, for the Spanish 
 government, although nominally keeping them 
 in its pay, had for a long time neglected to
 
 PEPE, THE SLEEPER. 7 
 
 pay them. The consequence was, that these 
 poor fellows had absolutely nothing upon 
 which to live. The seizure of smuggled goods 
 with which they might have contrived to 
 indemnify themselves was no longer possible. 
 The contraband trade, under this system, was 
 completely annihilated. The smugglers knew 
 better than to come in contact with coast- 
 guards whose performance of their duty was 
 stimulated by such a keen necessity ! From 
 the captain himself, down to the lowest official, 
 an incessant vigilance was kept up the result 
 of which was that the fiscal department of the 
 Spanish government was, perhaps, never so 
 faithfully or economically served. 
 
 There was one of these coast-guards who 
 affected a complete scepticism in regard to 
 smuggling he even went so far as to deny 
 that it had ever existed ! He was distin- 
 guished among his companions by a singular 
 habit that of always going to sleep upon his 
 post ; and this habit, whether feigned or real, 
 had won for him the name of TJie Sleeper. On
 
 8 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 this account, it may be supposed that he was 
 never placed upon guard where the post was 
 one of importance. 
 
 Jose, or, as he was more familiarly styled, 
 Pepe, was a young fellow of some twenty-five 
 years tall, thin, and muscular. His black e"yes, 
 deeply set under bushy eyebrows, had all the 
 appearance of eyes that could sparkle ; besides, 
 his whole countenance possessed the configura- 
 tion of one who had been born for a life of 
 activity. On the contrary, however whether 
 from a malady or some other cause the man 
 appeared as somnolent and immobile as if both 
 his visage and body were carved out of marble. 
 In a word, with all the exterior marks that 
 denote the possession of an active and ardent 
 soul, Pepe the Sleeper appeared the most inac- 
 tive and apathetic of men. 
 
 His chagrin was great or appeared to be 
 so when, upon the evening of the day in 
 which this narrative commences, the captain 
 of the coast-guard sent a messenger to summon 
 him to head- quarters.
 
 PEPE, THE SLEEPER. 9 
 
 On receiving the unexpected order, Pepe 
 rose from his habitual attitude of recumbence, 
 stretched himself at his leisure, yawned several 
 times, and then obeyed the summons, saying, 
 as he went out : " What the devil fancy has 
 the captain got into his head to send for me ? " 
 
 Once, however, on the way and alone, it 
 might have been observed that the somnolent 
 coast-guard walked with an energetic and ac- 
 tive step, very unlike his usual gait ! 
 
 On entering the apartment where the cap- 
 tain awaited him, his apathetic habit returned, 
 and, while rolling a cigarette between his 
 fingers, he appeared to be half asleep. The 
 captain was buried in a profound meditation, 
 and did not at first perceive him. 
 
 " Bueno ! my captain," said the coast-guard, 
 respectfully saluting his superior, and calling 
 attention to his presence. " I am here." 
 
 " Ah ! good ! my fine fellow," began the 
 captain, in a winning voice. " Well, Pepe ! " 
 added he, more slowly and significantly, " the 
 times are pretty hard with us are they not?"
 
 10 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " Rather hard, captain." 
 
 " But you, hombre! " rejoined Don Lucas, 
 with a laugh, " you don't appear to suffer 
 much of the misery you are always asleep, I 
 understand ? " 
 
 " When I sleep, captain, I am not hungry," 
 replied the coast-guard, endeavouring to stifle 
 a yawn ; " then I dream that the government 
 has paid me." 
 
 " Well at all events you are not its credi- 
 tor for many hours of the day, since you sleep 
 most of them. But, my fine fellow, it is not 
 about this I desire to talk to you. I wish to 
 give you a proof of my confidence." 
 
 " Ah ! " muttered Pepe. 
 
 "And a proof of my regard for you," con- 
 tinued the officer. "The government has its eye 
 open upon all of us; your reputation for apathy 
 begins to be talked about, and you might be 
 discharged one of these days as a useless offi- 
 cial. It would be a sad affair if you were to 
 lose your place ? " 
 
 11 Frightful ! captain," replied Pepe, with
 
 PEPE, THE SLEEPER. 11 
 
 perfect simplicity of manner; " for if I can 
 scarce keep from dying of hunger in my place, 
 what would be the result were I deprived of 
 it? Frightful!" 
 
 " To prevent this misfortune, then," con- 
 tinued the captain, " I have resolved to furnish 
 to those who calumniate you, a proof of the 
 confidence which may be placed in you, by 
 giving you the post of Ensenada and this 
 very night." 
 
 Pepe involuntarily opened his eyes to their 
 fullest extent. 
 
 " That surprises you ? " said Don Lucas. 
 
 u No," laconically replied the coast-guard. 
 
 The captain was unable to conceal from his 
 inferior -a slight confusion, and his voice trem- 
 bled as he pronounced the interrogation : 
 
 " What ! It does not surprise you ? " 
 
 " No," repeated Pepe, and then added in a 
 tone of flattery, " The captain Despierto is 
 so well known for his vigilance and energy, 
 that he may confide the most important post 
 to the very poorest of his sentinels. That is
 
 12 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 why I am not astonished at the confidence he 
 is good enough to place in me ; and now I 
 await the instructions your Honour may be 
 pleased to give." 
 
 Don Lucas, without further parley, pro- 
 ceeded to instruct his sentinel in his duty for 
 the night. The orders were somewhat diffuse 
 so much so that Pepe had a difficulty in 
 comprehending them but they were wound 
 up by the captain saying to the coast-guard, 
 as he dismissed him from his presence 
 
 t( And above all, my fine fellow, don't go to 
 sleep upon your post ! " 
 
 "I shall try not to do so, captain," replied 
 Pepe, at the same time saluting his superior, 
 and taking his leave. 
 
 " This fellow is worth his weight in gold," 
 muttered Don Lucas, rubbing his hands to- 
 gether with an air of satisfaction ; " he could 
 not have suited my purpose better, if he had 
 been expressly made for it ! "
 
 13 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 
 
 THE little bay of Ensenada, thus confided to 
 the vigilance of Pepe the Sleeper, was mys- 
 teriously shut in among the cliffs, as if nature 
 had designed it expressly for smugglers es- 
 pecially those Spanish contrabandistas who 
 carry on the trade with a cutlass in one hand 
 and a carbine in the other. 
 
 On account of its isolation, the post was 
 not without danger, especially on a foggy 
 November night, when the thick vapour sus- 
 pended in the air not only rendered the sight 
 useless, but hindered the voice that might
 
 14 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 call for assistance from being heard to any 
 distance. 
 
 In the soldier who arrived upon this post, 
 advancing with head erect and light, elastic 
 tread, no one could have recognized Pepe the 
 Sleeper Pepe, habitually plunged in a pro- 
 found state of somnolence Pepe, of downcast 
 mien and slow dragging gait and yet it was 
 he. His eyes, habitually half shut, were now 
 sparkling in their sockets, as if even the 
 slightest object could not escape him even in 
 the darkness. 
 
 After having carefully examined the ground 
 around his post, and convinced himself that he 
 was entirely alone, he placed his lantern in 
 such a position that its light was thrown 
 along the road leading to the village. Then 
 advancing some ten or twelve paces in the 
 direction of the water, he spread his cloak 
 upon the ground, and lay down upon it in 
 such an attitude that he could command a 
 view both of the road and the bay. 
 
 " Ah, my captain ! " soliloquized the coast-
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 15 
 
 guard, as he arranged his cloak around him 
 to the best advantage, " you are a very cun- 
 ning man, but you have too much faith in 
 people who are always asleep ; and devil take 
 me ! if I don't believe that you are interested 
 in my sleeping most soundly on this particular 
 night. Well, quien sabe f we shall see." 
 
 For about the period of half an hour Pepe 
 remained alone delivering himself up to his 
 reflections, and in turns interrogating with his 
 glance the road and the bay. At the end of that 
 time, a footstep was heard in the loose sand ; 
 and looking along the pathway, the sentinel 
 perceived a dark form approaching the spot. 
 In another moment the form came under the 
 light of the lantern, and was easily recognized 
 as that of Don Lucas, the captain of the coast- 
 guard. 
 
 The officer appeared to be searching for 
 something, but presently perceiving the recum- 
 bent sentinel, he paused in his steps. 
 
 " Pepe ! " cried he, in a low, mincing voice. 
 
 No reply came from Pepe.
 
 16 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " Pepe ! " repeated the captain, in a tone a 
 little more elevated. 
 
 Still no reply from the sentinel, who remained 
 obstinately silent. 
 
 The captain, appearing to be satisfied, 
 ceased calling the name, and shortly after re- 
 traced his steps towards the village. In a few 
 seconds his form was lost in the distance. 
 
 " Good ! " said Pepe, as his superior officer 
 passed out of his sight ; "just as I expected. 
 A moment ago, I was fool enough to doubt it. 
 Now I am sure of it. Some smuggler is going 
 to risk it to-night. Well, I shall manage 
 badly if I don'tcome in for a windfall though 
 it be at the expense of my captain." 
 
 Saying this, the sentinel, with one bound, 
 rose erect upon his feet. 
 
 " Here I am, no more Pepe the Sleeper," 
 continued he, stretching himself to his full 
 height. 
 
 From this time his eyes were bent con- 
 tinually upon the ocean ; but another half 
 hour passed without anything strange showing
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 17 
 
 itself upon the bosom of the water nothing 
 to break the white line of the horizon where 
 sea and sky appeared to be almost confounded 
 together. Some dark clouds were floating in 
 the heavens, noAv veiling and now suddenly 
 uncovering the moon, that had just risen. 
 The effect was fine ; the horizon was one 
 moment shining like silver, and the next dark 
 as funeral crape ; but through all these 
 changes no object appeared upon the water 
 to denote the presence of a human being. 
 
 For a long while the coast-guard looked so 
 intensely through the darkness, that he began 
 to see the sparks flying before his eyes. 
 Fatigued with this sustained attention, he at 
 length shut his eyes altogether, and concen- 
 trated all his powers upon the organs of hear- 
 ing. Just then a sound came sweeping over 
 the water so slight that it scarce reached 
 him but the next moment the land-breeze 
 carried it away, and it was heard no more. 
 
 Fancying it had only been an illusion, he 
 once more opened his eyes, but in the obscu- 
 
 VOL. i. c
 
 18 THE WOOD -RANGERS. 
 
 rity he could see nothing. Again he shut 
 them closely, and listened as before. This 
 time he listened with more success. A sound, 
 regularly cadenced, was heard. It was such 
 as would be made by a pair of oars cautiously 
 dipped, and was accompanied by a dull knock- 
 ing, as of the oars working in their thole-pins. 
 
 " At last we shall see ! " muttered Pepe, 
 with a gasp of satisfaction. 
 
 A small black point, almost imperceptible, 
 appeared upon the horizon. Rapidly it in- 
 creased in size, until it assumed the form 
 and dimensions of a boat with rowers in it, 
 followed by a bright strip of foam. 
 
 Pepe threw himself suddenly a plat ventre, 
 in fear that he might be seen by those on the 
 water ; but from the elevated position which 
 he occupied, he was able to keep his eye 
 upon the boat without losing sight of it for a 
 single instant. 
 
 Just then the noises ceased, and the oars 
 were held out of water, motionless, like some 
 sea-bird, with wings extended, choosing a spot
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 1 9 
 
 upon which to alight. In the next instant 
 the rowing was resumed, and the boat headed 
 directly for the shore of the bay. 
 
 "Don't be afraid," muttered the coast-guard, 
 affecting to apostrophize the rowers. " Don't 
 be afraid, my good fellows come along at 
 your pleasure ! " 
 
 The rowers, in truth, did not appear to be 
 at all apprehensive of danger ; and the next 
 moment the keel of the boat was heard grind- 
 ing upon the sand of the beach. 
 
 " Por Dios ! " muttered the sentinel, in a 
 low voice ; " not a bale of goods ! Is it pos- 
 sible, after all, they are not smugglers ? " 
 
 Three men were in the boat, who did not 
 appear to take those precautions which smug- 
 glers would have done. They made no parti- 
 cular noise, but, on the other hand, they did 
 not observe any exact silence. Moreover, 
 their costume was not that ordinarily worn by 
 the regular contrabandista. 
 
 " Who the devil can they be ? " asked Pepe 
 of himself. 
 
 c2
 
 20 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 The coast-guard lay concealed behind some 
 tufts of withered grass that formed a border 
 along the crest of the slope. Through these 
 he could observe the movements of the three 
 men in the boat. 
 
 At an order from the one who sat in the 
 stern sheets, the other two leaped ashore, as 
 if with the design of reconnoitering the 
 ground. He who issued the order, and who 
 appeared to be the chief of the party, re- 
 mained seated in the boat. 
 
 Pepe was for a moment undecided whether 
 he should permit the two men to pass him on 
 the road ; but the view of the boat, left in 
 charge of a single man, soon fixed his resolution. 
 
 He kept his place, therefore, motionless as 
 ever, scarce allowing himself to breathe, until 
 the two men arrived below him, and only a 
 few feet from the spot where he was lying. 
 
 Each was armed with a long Catalonian 
 knife, and Pepe could see that the costume 
 which both wore was that of the Spanish pri- 
 vateers of the time a sort of mixture of the
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 21 
 
 uniform of the royal navy of Spain, and that 
 of the merchant service ; but he could not see 
 their faces, hid as they were under the slouched 
 Basque bonnet. 
 
 All at once the two men halted. A piece 
 of rock, detached by the knees of the coast- 
 guard, had glided down the slope and fallen 
 near their feet. 
 
 "Did you hear anything?" hastily asked one. 
 
 "No; did you?" 
 
 " I thought I heard something falling from 
 above there," replied the first speaker, pointing 
 upwards to the spot where Pepe was concealed. 
 
 11 Bah ! it was some mouse running into its 
 hole." 
 
 " If this slope wasn't so infernally steep, 
 I'd climb up and see," said the first. 
 
 " I tell you we have nothing to fear," re- 
 joined the second ; " the night is as black as a 
 pot of pitch, and besides the other hasn't he- 
 assured us that he will answer for the man on 
 guard, who sleeps all day long" 
 
 " Just for that reason, he may not sleep at
 
 22 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 night. Remain here, I'll go round and climb 
 up. Carramba ! if I find this sleepy head," 
 he added, holding out his long knife, the blade 
 of which glittered through the darkness, " so 
 much the worse or, perhaps, so much the 
 better for him for I shall send him where he 
 may sleep for ever." 
 
 " Mil didblos I " thought Pepe, " this fellow 
 is a philosopher ! By the holy virgin ! I am 
 long enough here." 
 
 And at this thought, he crept out of the 
 folds of his cloak, like a snake out of its skin, 
 and leaving his garment where it lay, crawled 
 rapidly away from the spot. 
 
 Until he had got to a considerable distance, 
 he was so cautious not to make any noise, that, 
 to use a Spanish expression, the very ground 
 itself did not know he was passing over it. 
 
 In this way he advanced, carbine in hand, 
 until he was opposite the point where the boat 
 rested against the beach. There he stopped 
 to recover his breath at the same time fixing 
 his eye upon the individual that was alone.
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 23 
 
 The latter appeared to be buried in a sombre 
 reverie, motionless as a statue, and wrapped 
 in an ample cloak, which served both to con- 
 ceal his persoa and protect him from the 
 humidity of the atmosphere. His eyes were 
 turned toward the sea; and for this reason 
 he did not perceive the dark form of the cara- 
 binier approaching in the opposite direction. 
 
 The latter advanced with a stealthy tread 
 measuring the distance with his eye 
 until at length he stood within a few paces of 
 the boat. 
 
 Just then the stranger made a movement 
 as if to turn his face towards the shore, when 
 Pepe, like a tiger bounding upon its prey, 
 launched himself forward to the side of the 
 boat. 
 
 "It is II" he exclaimed, bringing the 
 muzzle of his carbine on a level with the 
 man's breast. "Don't move, or you are a 
 dead man ! " 
 
 " You, who ? " asked the astonished stran- 
 ger, his eyes sparkling with rage, and not even
 
 24 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 lowering their glance before the threatening 
 attitude of his enemy. 
 
 " Why, me ! Pepe you know well enough ? 
 Pepe the Sleeper ! " 
 
 " Curses upon him, if he/has betrayed me !" 
 muttered the stranger, as if speaking to him- 
 self. 
 
 " If you are speaking of Don Lucas Des- 
 pierto," interrupted the carabinier, " I can 
 assure you he is incapable of such a thing ; 
 and if I am here it is because that he has been 
 only too discreet, senor smuggler." 
 
 " Smuggler ! " exclaimed the unknown, in 
 a tone of proud disdain. 
 
 "When I say smuggler," replied Pepe, 
 chuckling at his own perspicuity, " it is only 
 meant as a compliment, for you haven't an 
 ounce of merchandize in your boat, unless in- 
 deed," continued he, pointing with his foot to 
 a rope ladder, rolled up, and lying in the 
 bottom, " unless that may be a sample ! Santa 
 Virgen ! a strange sample that ! " 
 
 Face to face with the unknown, the coast-
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 25 
 
 guard could now examine him at his 
 leisure. 
 
 He was a young man of about Pepe's own 
 age, twenty-five. His complexion had the hale 
 tint of one who followed the sea for a profession. 
 Thick dark eyebrows were strongly delineated 
 against a forehead bony and broad, and from a 
 pair of large black eyes shone a sombre fire, 
 that denoted a man of implacable passions. 
 His arched mouth was expressive of high dis- 
 dain ; and the wrinkles upon his cheeks, 
 strongly marked, notwithstanding his youth, 
 at the slightest movement, gave to his coun- 
 tenance an expression of arrogance and scorn. 
 In his eyes in his whole bearing you could 
 read that ambition or vengeance was the 
 ruling passion of his soul. His fine black 
 curling hair alone tempered the expression of 
 severity that distinguished his physiognomy. 
 With regard to his costume, it was simply that 
 of an officer of the Spanish navy. 
 
 A look that would have frightened most 
 men, told the impatience with which he
 
 26 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 endured the examination of the coast- 
 guard. 
 
 " An end to this pleasantry ! " he cried 
 out, at length. " What do you want, fellow? 
 Speak ! " 
 
 "Ah! talk of our affairs," answered 
 Pepe, " that is just what I desire. Well, in 
 the first place, when those two fellows of 
 yours return with my cloak and lantern 
 which they are cunning enough to make a 
 seizure of you will give them your commands 
 to keep at a distance. In this way we can talk 
 without being interrupted. Otherwise, with a 
 single shot of this carabine, which will stretch 
 you out dead, I shall also give the alarm. 
 What say you ? Nothing ? Be it so. That 
 answer will do, for want of a better. I go on. 
 You have given to my captain forty onzas ? '' 
 continued the carabinier, with a bold guess, 
 making sure that he had named enough. 
 
 " Twenty," replied the stranger, without re- 
 flecting. 
 
 "I would rather.it had been forty," said
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 27 
 
 Pepe. " Well, one does not pay so high for 
 the mere pleasure of a sentimental promenade 
 along the shore of the Ensenada. My interven- 
 tion need be no obstruction to it provided you 
 pay for my neutrality." 
 
 " How ? " asked the unknown, evidently de- 
 sirous of putting an end to the scene. 
 
 " Oh, a mere bagatelle you have given 
 the captain forty onzas." 
 
 " Twenty, I tell you." 
 
 " I would rather it had been forty," coolly 
 repeated the carabinier; " but say twenty, 
 then. Now, I don't wish to be indiscreet he 
 is a captain, I am nothing more than a poor 
 private. I think it reasonable, therefore, that 
 I should have double what he has received." 
 
 At this extortionate demand the stranger 
 allowed a bitter oath to escape him, but made 
 no answer. 
 
 " I know well," continued Pepe, " that I 
 am asking too little. If my captain has three 
 times my pay, of course he has three times less 
 need of money than I, and therefore I have
 
 28 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the right to triple the sum he has received ; 
 but as the times are hard, I hold to my origi- 
 nal demand forty onzas." 
 
 A terrible struggle betwixt pride and appre- 
 hension appeared to be going on in the bosom 
 of the stranger. Despite the coldness of the 
 night, the perspiration streamed over his brow 
 and down his cheeks. Some imperious neces- 
 sity it was that had led him into this place 
 some strange mystery there must be since 
 the necessity he was now under tamed down a 
 spirit that appeared untamable. The tone of 
 jeering intrepidity which Pepe held toward him 
 caused him to feel the urgency of a compromise ; 
 and at length, plunging his hand into his 
 pocket, he drew forth a purse, and presented 
 it to the carabinier. 
 
 " Take it and go ! " he cried, with im- 
 patience. 
 
 Pepe took the purse, and for a moment held 
 it in his hand, as if he would first count its 
 contents. 
 
 " Bah ! " he exclaimed, after a pause, " I'll
 
 THE SENTINEL OF LA ENSENADA. 29 
 
 risk it. I accept it for forty onzas. And 
 now, seiior stranger, I am deaf, dumb, and 
 blind." 
 
 " I count upon it," coldly rejoined the un- 
 known. 
 
 " By the life of my mother ! " replied Pepe, 
 "since it's not an affair of smuggling, I don't 
 mind to lend you a hand for as a coast-guard, 
 you see, I could not take part in anything con- 
 traband no, never ! " 
 
 "Very well, then," rejoined the stranger, 
 with a bitter smile, "you may set your con- 
 science at rest on that score. Guard this boat 
 till my return. I go to join my men. Only, 
 whatever happens whatever you may see 
 whatever you may hear be, as you have pro- 
 mised, deaf, dumb, and blind." 
 
 As he uttered these words the stranger 
 sprang out of the boat, and took the road lead- 
 ing to the village. A turning in the path soon 
 hid him from the sight of the coast-guard. 
 
 Once left to himself, Pepe, under the light 
 of the moon, counted out the glittering con-
 
 30 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 tents of the purse which he had extorted from 
 the stranger. 
 
 " If this jewel is not false," muttered he to 
 himself, " then I don't care if the government 
 never pays me. Meanwhile, I must begin to- 
 morrow to cry like a poor devil about the back 
 pay. That will have a good effect."
 
 31 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 
 
 IT is not known how long Pepe remained at 
 his post to await the return of the stranger ; 
 when the cock was heard to crow, and the 
 aurora appeared in the eastern horizon, the 
 little bay, Ensenada, was completely deserted. 
 Then life began to appear in the village. 
 The dark shadows of the fishermen were seen 
 upon the stair-like street, descending to the 
 mole ; and the first beams of the morning lit 
 up their departure. In a few minutes the 
 little flotilla was out of sight ; and at the 
 doors of the cottages the women and children
 
 32 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 only could be seen, appearing and disappear- 
 ing at intervals. 
 
 Among these wretched hovels of the village, 
 there was one dwelling of greater pretensions 
 than the rest. It was that of the alcalde, 
 Don Ramon Cohecho, of whom we have 
 already spoken. It alone still kept its doors 
 and windows closed against the morning 
 light. 
 
 It was full day, when a young man, wear- 
 ing a high-crowned beaver hat old, greasy, 
 and shining like leather walked up to the 
 door of the alcalde's mansion. The limbs of 
 this individual were scantily covered with a 
 pair of pantaloons, so tightly fitting as to 
 appear like a second skin to his legs, so short 
 as scarce to touch his ankles, and of such thin 
 stuff as to ill protect the wearer from the 
 sharp air of a November morning. The upper 
 half of this individual was not visible. A 
 little cloak, of coarse shaggy cloth, known as 
 an esclavina, covered him up to the very eyes. 
 From the manner in which he so carefully
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 33 
 
 guarded the upper part of his person with 
 this pinched mantle, at the expense of his 
 thighs and legs, an observer might have sup- 
 posed that he was perfectly content with his 
 pantaloons. Appearances, however, are often 
 deceptive ; for in truth, the ambition of this 
 youth, whose unsteady glance, miserable 
 aspect, and a certain smell of old papers 
 about him, proclaimed him to be un escribano 
 his every-clay dream was, to have a pair of 
 pantaloons entirely different from his own in 
 other words, a pair with long ample legs, of 
 good wide waist, and made out of fine broad- 
 cloth. Such a pair would render him the 
 most satisfied man in the world. 
 
 This young man was the right hand of the 
 alcalde his name Gregorio Cagatinta. 
 
 On reaching the door, he gave a modest 
 knock with his horn ink-bottle, which he 
 carried hanging to his button. The door was 
 opened by an old housekeeper. 
 
 " Ah ! it is you, Don Gregorio ? " cried 
 the housekeeper, with that superb courtesy so 
 
 VOL. i. D
 
 34 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 peculiar to the Spaniards, that even two 
 shoeblacks, on meeting, lavish upon each other 
 the epithet Don, as if each were a grand 
 noble. 
 
 " Yes, it is I, Dona Nicolasa," replied Gre- 
 gorio. 
 
 " Santissima Virgen ! since it is you, then 
 I must be late, and my master will be waiting 
 for his pantaloons that are not yet aired. 
 Take a seat, Don Gregorio ; he will soon be 
 down." 
 
 The chamber into which the notary's clerk 
 had been introduced would have been a large 
 one, had it not been for the singular conglom- 
 eration of objects with which it was more 
 than half filled. Nets of all sizes, masts, 
 yards, and rudders of boats, oars, sails of 
 every kind both square and lateen woollen 
 shirts worn by sailors or fishermen, and a 
 variety of other marine objects, were placed 
 pell-mell in every corner of the room. Not- 
 withstanding, there was space enough left to 
 hold three or four chairs around a large
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 35 
 
 oaken table, upon which last stood a large 
 cork inkstand, with several goose-quill pens ; 
 with some sheets of half dirty paper placed 
 ostentatiously around it to awe the visitors, 
 who might have business with the alcalde. 
 
 The presence of this odd assortment of 
 objects, it would have been difficult for a 
 stranger to explain though there was no 
 mystery about it. The fact is, that besides 
 his official character as first magistrate, the 
 alcalde had another role which he played, ot 
 rather an unofficial character. He was the 
 pawnbroker of the place that is, he lent out 
 money in small sums, charging a real for every 
 dollar by the week in other words, a simple 
 interest of twenty per cent, by the month, or 
 two hundred and fifty per cent, per annum ! 
 His clients being all fishermen, will account 
 for the nautical character of the " pledges" 
 that filled the chamber of audience. 
 
 Cagatinta scarce deigned to cast a look at 
 this miscellaneous collection of objects. Had 
 there been a pair of pantaloons among them, 
 
 D2
 
 36 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 it might have been different ; for, to say the 
 truth, the probity of Don Gregorio was scarce 
 firm enough to resist so strong a tempta- 
 tion as this would have been. The notary's 
 clerk was not exactly of that stuff of which 
 honest men are composed. Nature, even in 
 its crimes, does not leap to grand villainies at 
 once ; it proceeds from less to greater ; and 
 Cagatinta, though still but young, was yet 
 capable of a little bit of "cribbing." 
 
 Don Ramon was not long in coming out of 
 his sleeping-room. In a little while he showed 
 his jovial face at the door of the audience- 
 chamber. 
 
 He was a person of portly and robust 
 figure ; and it was easily seen that one leg of 
 his ample pantaloons would have been suf- 
 ficient to make a pair for the thin limbs 
 and meagre body of the escribano. 
 
 " For Dios ! Sen or alcalde," said the clerk, 
 after having exchanged with his superior a 
 profusion of matutinal salutations, " what a 
 splendid pair of pantaloons you have on ! "
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 37 
 
 From the alcalde's answer, it was evident 
 that this was not the first time that Caga- 
 tinta had made the remark. 
 
 " Ah ! Gregorio, amigo I " replied he, in a 
 tone of good humour, "you are growing 
 tiresome with your repetitions. Patience, 
 patience, senor escribano ! you know that for 
 the services you are to render me I say 
 nothing of those already rendered I have 
 promised you my liver-coloured breeches, 
 which have been only a very little used ; you 
 have only to gain them." 
 
 " But what services are to gain them, senor 
 alcalde ? " inquired the clerk, in a despairing 
 tone. 
 
 " Eh Dios ! who knows what patience, 
 amigo ! Something may turn up all at once, 
 that will give you that advantage over me. 
 But come ! let us to business make out the 
 deed of appropriation of the boat of that bad 
 pay, Vicente Perez, who, under pretence 
 that he has six brats to feed, can't reimburse 
 me the twenty dollars I have advanced him."
 
 38 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 Cagatinta drew out from his little portfolio 
 a sheet of stamped paper, and, sitting down by 
 the table, proceeded to execute the order of 
 the magistrate. He was interrupted by a 
 hurried knocking at the outer door, which 
 had been closed to prevent intrusion. 
 
 " Who dare knock in that fashion ? " 
 sharply inquired the alcalde. 
 
 " Ave Maria purissima ! " cried a voice 
 from without. 
 
 "Sin pecado concebida!" replied at the 
 same time the two acolytes within. 
 
 And after this formula, Gregorio hastened 
 to the door and opened it. 
 
 " What on earth can have brought you 
 here at this hour, Don Juan de Dios Canelo?" 
 inquired the alcalde, in a tone of surprise, as 
 the old steward of the Countess de Mediana 
 appeared in the doorway, his bald forehead 
 clouded with some profound chagrin. 
 
 " Ah, senor alcalde," replied the old man, 
 " a terrible misfortune has happened last 
 night a great crime has been committed
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 39 
 
 the countess has disappeared, and the young 
 count along with her." 
 
 " Are you sure of this ? " shouted the al- 
 calde. 
 
 " Alas you will only have to go up into 
 the balcony that overlooks the sea, and there 
 you will see in what state the assassins have 
 left the countess's chamber." 
 
 " Justice ! justice ! Senor alcalde ! Send 
 out your alguazils over the whole country; 
 find the villains hang them ! " 
 
 This voice came from a woman still out- 
 side in the street. It was the femme de 
 chambre of the countess, who, to show a 
 devotion which she very little felt, judged it 
 apropos to make a great outcry as she pre- 
 cipitated herself into the chamber of audi- 
 ence. 
 
 " Ta-ta-ta, woman ! how you go on ! " 
 interrupted the alcalde. "Do you think I 
 have a crowd of alguazils? You know very 
 well that in this virtuous village there are 
 only two ; and as these would starve if they
 
 40 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 didn't follow some trade besides their official 
 one, they are both gone fishing hours ago." 
 
 " Ah, me ! " cried the femme de chambre, 
 with a hypocritical whine, " my poor mistress ! 
 who then is to help her ? " 
 
 " Patience, woman, patience ! " said the 
 alcalde. " Don't fear but that justice will be 
 done." 
 
 The chamber-maid did not appear to draw 
 much hope from the assurance, but only re- 
 doubled her cries, her excited behaviour 
 strongly contrasting with the quiet manner in 
 which the faithful old steward exhibited the 
 sincerity of his grief. 
 
 Meanwhile a crowd of women, old men, and 
 children had gathered around the alcalde's 
 door, and by little and little, were invading 
 the sanctuary of the audience-chamber itself. 
 
 Don Ramon advanced towards Cagatinta, 
 who was rubbing his hands under his esclavina 
 charmed at the idea of the quantity of stamped 
 paper he would now have an opportunity to 
 blacken.
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 41 
 
 "Now, friend Gregorio," said the alcalde, 
 in a low voice, " the time has come, when, if 
 you are sharp, you may gain the liver-coloured 
 breeches." 
 
 He said no more ; but it was evident that 
 the escribano understood him, at least to a 
 certain extent. The latter turned pale with 
 joy, and kept his eye fixed upon every move- 
 ment of his patron, determined to seize the 
 first opportunity that presented itself of win- 
 ning the breeches. 
 
 The alcalde reseated himself in his great 
 leathern chair ; and commanding silence with 
 a wave of his hand, addressed his auditory in 
 a long and pompous speech, with that profuse 
 grandiloquence of which the Spanish language 
 is so capable. 
 
 The substance of his speech was as fol- 
 lows : 
 
 " My children ! We have just heard from 
 this respectable individual, Don Juan de Dios 
 Canelo, that a great crime has last night been 
 committed ; the full knowledge of this villainy
 
 42 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 cannot fail to arrive at the ears of justice, from 
 which nothing can be kept hid. Not the less 
 are we to thank Don Juan for his official com- 
 munication ; it only remains for him to com- 
 plete the accusation by giving the names of 
 the guilty persons." 
 
 " But, senor alcalde," interrupted the 
 steward, " I do not know them, although, as 
 you say, my communication may be official 
 I can only say, that I will do all in my power 
 to assist in finding them." 
 
 " You understand, my children," continued 
 the alcalde, without taking notice of what the 
 steward had said, the worthy Canelo, by this 
 official communication, asks for the punish- 
 ment of the guilty persons. Justice will not 
 be deaf to his appeal. I may now be per- 
 mitted, however, to speak to you of my own 
 little affairs, before abandoning myself to the 
 great grief which the disappearance of the 
 countess and the young count have caused 
 me." 
 
 Here the alcalde made a sign to Cagatinta,
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 43 
 
 whose whole faculties were keenly bent to dis- 
 cover what service was expected from him, by 
 which he was to gain the object of his ambi- 
 tion the liver-coloured breeches. 
 
 The alcalde continued : 
 
 " You all know, my children, of my attach- 
 ment to the family of Median a. You can 
 judge, then, of the grief which this news has 
 given me news the more incomprehensible, 
 since one knows neither by whom, nor for what 
 reason, such a crime should be committed. 
 Alas, my children ! I lose a powerful protector 
 in the Countess de Mediana ; and in me the 
 heart of the old and faithful servant is pierced 
 with anguish, while as a man of business I am 
 equally a sufferer. Yes, my children ! In 
 the deceitful security which I felt no later 
 than yesterday, I was up at the chateau, and 
 had an important interview with the countess 
 in regard to my rents." 
 
 " To ask time for their payment," Cagatinta 
 would have added, for the clerk was perfectly 
 acquainted with the alcalde's affairs. But Don
 
 44 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 Ramon did not allow him an opportunity of 
 committing this enormous indiscretion, which 
 would for ever have deprived him of the pro- 
 mised breeches. 
 
 " Patience, worthy Cagatinta ! " he ex- 
 claimed hastily, so as to prevent the other 
 from speaking, " constrain this thirst for jus- 
 tice that consumes you ! Yes, my children ! " 
 he continued, turning to his auditory, " in 
 consequence of this feeling of security, which 
 I have now cause to regret, I placed in the 
 hands of the unfortunate countess" here the 
 voice of Don Ramon quivered " a sum equi- 
 valent to ten years of my rents in advance." 
 
 At this unexpected declaration, Cagatinta 
 bounded from his chair as if stung by a wasp ; 
 and the blood ran cold in his veins, when he 
 perceived the grand blunder he had been so 
 near committing. 
 
 " You will understand, then, my children, 
 the terrible situation in which this disappear- 
 ance of the countess has placed me, when I 
 tell you that / took no receipt from the lady,
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 45 
 
 but this very morning was to have gone up 
 for it." 
 
 This revelation produced a profound sensa- 
 tion among the auditory ; and though, per- 
 haps, not one of them really believed the story, 
 no one dared to give utterance to his incre- 
 dulity. 
 
 " Fortunately," continued the alcalde, " the 
 word of persons worthy of credit may yet 
 repair this mistake I have committed fortun- 
 ately there were witnesses of the payment." 
 
 Here Cagatinta who, like water that had 
 been a long time dammed up and had now 
 found vent stretched out both his arms, and 
 in a loud voice cried out : 
 
 " I can swear to it ! " 
 
 " He can swear to it," said the alcalde. 
 
 " He can swear to it," mechanically re- 
 peated one or two of the bystanders. 
 
 " Yes, my friends ! " solemnly added Caga- 
 tinta. I swear to it now, and should have 
 mentioned the matter sooner, but I was pre- 
 vented by a little uncertainty. I had an idea
 
 46 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 that it was fifteen years of rent, instead often, 
 that I saw the alcalde hand over to the unfor- 
 tunate Dona Luisa." 
 
 "No, my worthy -friend," interrupted the 
 alcalde, in a tone of moderation likely to pro- 
 duce an effect upon his auditory, "it was 
 only ten years of rent, which your valuable 
 testimony will hinder me from losing." 
 
 " Yes, senor alcalde," replied the wily 
 scribe, determined at all hazard to deserve 
 the liver-coloured breeches, " I know it was 
 ten years in advance, but there was also the 
 two years of back rent which you paid two 
 years of arrears and ten in advance twelve 
 years in all. Por Dios ! a large sum it would 
 have been to have lost ! " 
 
 "And with this reflection Cagatinta sat 
 down again, fancying, no doubt, that he had 
 fairly won the breeches. 
 
 We shall not detail what further passed 
 during this scene in the alcalde's chamber of 
 audience where justice was practised as in 
 the times of Gil Bias long before and long
 
 THE ALCALDE AND HIS CLERK. 47 
 
 after Gil Bias for it is not very different in 
 a Spanish law court at the hour in which we 
 are writing. 
 
 Enough to say that, the scene concluded, 
 most of the dramatis personce, with the alcalde 
 at their head, proceeded to the chateau, to 
 inspect the chamber, and if possible find out 
 some clue to the mysterious disappearance of 
 the countess.
 
 48 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE FORSAKEN CHAMBER. 
 
 ON arriving at the chateau, the alcalde 
 ordered the door of the countess's chamber to 
 be burst in for it was still bolted inside. 
 On entering the apartment, a picture of con- 
 fusion was presented. Drawers empty, 
 others drawn out, but only half sacked of 
 their contents. 
 
 All this did not indicate precisely that there 
 had been any violence. A voluntary but 
 hurried departure on the part of the countess 
 might have left just such traces as were 
 discovered. The bed was still undisturbed, 
 as if she had not lain down upon it. This
 
 THE FORSAKEN CHAMBER. 49 
 
 fact appeared to indicate a foreknowledge, 
 on the part of the lady, of what was to 
 happen as if she had had the intention of 
 going off, but had made no preparation until 
 the moment of departure. The furniture 
 was all in its place the window curtains, and 
 those of the alcove, had not been disarranged, 
 and no traces of a struggle were to be dis- 
 cerned within the chamber, which contained 
 many light fragile objects of furniture that 
 could not fail to have been destroyed by the 
 slightest violence. 
 
 The fetid odour of an oil-lamp filled the 
 apartment, despite the cold air that came in 
 through the open window. It was evident, 
 therefore, that this lamp had been left alight, 
 and had continued to burn until the oil had 
 become exhausted. 
 
 It could not be a robbery neither? A 
 thousand articles of value, likely enough to 
 have tempted the cupidity of robbers, were 
 left behind, both on the tables and in the 
 drawers. 
 
 VOL. I. E
 
 50 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 The conclusion then was that neither as- 
 sassination nor burglary had taken place. 
 
 Notwithstanding all these deceptive ap- 
 pearances, the old steward shook his head 
 doubtfully. The signs were sufficient to 
 baffle his reason, which was none of the 
 strongest, but the faithful servant could not 
 bring himself to believe that his noble 
 mistress would take flight in a manner so 
 extraordinary, his good sense revolted at 
 the thought. In his belief, some crime had 
 been committed, but how was it to be ex- 
 plained since the assassin had left no traces 
 of his guilt ? The devoted Don Juan looked 
 with a sad eye upon that desolate chamber 
 upon the dresses of his beloved mistress 
 scattered over the floor upon the cradle of 
 the young count, where he had so lately 
 slept, rosy and smiling, under the vigil of his 
 mother. 
 
 Suddenly struck with an idea, the steward 
 advanced towards the iron balcony that 
 fronted upon the sea that where the window
 
 THE FORSAKEN CHAMBER. 51 
 
 had been found open. With inquiring eye 
 he looked to the ground below, which was 
 neither more nor less than the beach of the 
 sea itself. It was at no great depth below ; 
 and he could easily have seen from the 
 balcony any traces that might have been 
 there. But there were none. The tide had 
 been in and out again. No trace was left on 
 the sand or pebbles that had the slightest 
 signification in regard to the mysterious 
 event. The wind sighed, the waves mur- 
 mured, as always ; but amid the voices of 
 nature none raised itself to proclaim the 
 guilty. 
 
 On the far horizon only were des- 
 cried the white sails of a ship, gradually 
 passing outwards and fading away into the 
 azure of the sea. 
 
 While the old steward watched the disap- 
 pearance of the ship with a sort of dreamy 
 regard, he sent up a silent prayer that his 
 mistress might still be safe. The others, 
 with the exception of the alcalde and his 
 
 E 2
 
 52 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 clerk, stood listening to the mournful howl- 
 ing of the wind against the cliffs, which 
 seemed alternately to weep and sigh, as if 
 lamenting the sad event that had just tran- 
 spired. 
 
 As regards the alcalde and his assistant, 
 they were under the same conviction as Don 
 Juan both believing that a crime had been 
 committed though they did not care to avow 
 their belief, for reasons known to themselves. 
 The absence of any striking evidence that 
 might lead to the discovery of the delinquents, 
 but more especially the difficulty of finding 
 some interested individual able to pay the ex- 
 penses of justice (the principal object of crimi- 
 nal prosecutions in Spain), damped the zeal of 
 Don Ramon and the scribe. Both were satis- 
 fied to leave things as they stood the one 
 contented with having gained the recompense 
 so much coveted the other with the twelve 
 years of rents which he felt sure of gaining. 
 
 " Volga me Diosf my children," said the 
 alcalde, turning towards the witnesses, " I
 
 THE FORSAKEN CHAMBER. 53 
 
 cannot explain what fancy the countess may 
 have had in going out by the window for 
 the door of the chamber, bolted inside, leaves 
 no room to doubt that she went that way. 
 Some woman's caprice, perhaps, which justice 
 has no business to meddle with." 
 
 " Perhaps it was to escape from giving the 
 alcalde his receipt," suggested one of the by- 
 standers to another, in an under-tone of voice. 
 
 " But how, Don Juan," continued the ma- 
 gistrate, addressing himself to the old stew- 
 ard " how did you know of the countess's 
 disappearance, since you could not get into 
 the room ? " 
 
 " That is simple enough," replied the old 
 man. " At the hour in which the chamber- 
 maid is accustomed to present herself before 
 the senora, she knocked as usual at the door. 
 No answer was given. She knocked louder, 
 and still received no answer. Growing anx- 
 ious, she came to me to tell me. I went to 
 the door myself, first knocked, and then called; 
 and receiving no reply, I ran round to the
 
 54 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 garden and got the ladder. This I placed 
 against the balcony, and mounted up in order 
 to see through the window. On reaching the 
 window I found it open, and the chamber in 
 the condition you now see it." 
 
 When the steward had finished this declar- 
 ation, Cagatinta whispered some words in the 
 ear of the alcalde ; but the latter only replied 
 by a shake of the shoulders, and an expression 
 of disdainful incredulity. 
 
 " Who knows ? " answered the scribe, in 
 reply to this dumb show. 
 
 " It might be," muttered Don Ramon, " we 
 shall see presently." 
 
 " I persist, gentlemen," continued the al- 
 calde, " in my belief that the countess has 
 gone out by the window ; arid however sin- 
 gular it may appear, I believe the lady is free 
 to her fancy to go out as she pleases even 
 though it be by a window." 
 
 Cagatinta, and some others, complimented 
 with a laugh this little bit of magisterial 
 facetiousness.
 
 THE FORSAKEN CHAMBER. 55 
 
 " But, senor alcalde," spoke out Don Juan, 
 disgusted with this ill-timed pleasantry, " a 
 proof that there has been a forced entry into 
 the chamber is this broken glass of the win- 
 dow, of which you see some pieces still lying 
 on the balcony. " 
 
 "This old fool," muttered the alcalde to 
 himself, " is not going to let me have any 
 breakfast. By this time everything will be 
 
 cold, and Nicolasa What do these bits 
 
 of glass prove ? " he continued, raising his 
 voice; " don't you think that the breeze, 
 which was blowing roughly last night, might 
 have caused this ? The window was hanging 
 open, and the wind clashing it violently against 
 the frame, would readily cause the breaking 
 of a pane ? " 
 
 " But why is it," answered Don Juan, 
 "that the broken pane is precisely the one 
 adjacent to the fastening? It must have 
 been knocked out to get the window open." 
 
 " Corramba ! Senor Don Juan de Dios ! " 
 cried the alcalde, in a peevish tone at the
 
 56 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 same time biting his gold-headed cane, the 
 emblem of his office " is it you or I who 
 have here the right to ask questions ? Carrai! 
 it appears to me that you make me cut a 
 strange figure ! " 
 
 Here Cagatinta interposed with a modest 
 air: 
 
 " I shall answer our friend Canelo, if you 
 permit me. If the window was opened with 
 the design he has stated, it must of course 
 have been done from the outside. The pieces 
 of glass then would have fallen into the cham- 
 ber ; but such is not the case there they lie 
 on the balcony ! It has been the wind, there- 
 fore, as his honour the alcalde has reasonably 
 stated, that has done this business. Unless, 
 indeed," added he with a feigned smile, " some 
 trunk carried incautiously past the window 
 might have struck one of the squares. This 
 may have been since it appears the countess 
 intends a prolonged absence, judging from the 
 effects taken with her, as testified by the 
 empty drawers."
 
 THE FORSAKEN CHAMBER. 57 
 
 The old steward lowered his head at this 
 proof, which seemed completely to falsify his 
 assertion. He did not hear the last observa- 
 tion of Cagatinta, who was cogitating whether 
 he ought not to exact from the alcalde some- 
 thing more than the liver-coloured breeches, 
 as a recompense of this new service he had 
 done him. 
 
 While the faithful Don Juan was busy with 
 painful reflections that threw their shadows 
 upon his bald forehead, the alcalde approached 
 and addressed him in a voice so low as not to 
 be heard by the others : 
 
 " I have been a little sharp with you, Don 
 Juan I have not sufficiently taken into ac- 
 count the grief which you, as a loyal servant, 
 must feel under such an unexpected stroke. 
 But tell me independent of the chagrin 
 which this affair has caused you, are you 
 not also affected by some fears about your 
 own future ? You are old weak in conse- 
 quence and without resources ? " 
 
 "It is just because I am old, and know
 
 58 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 that I have not long to live, that I am so 
 little affected. My grief, however," added he, 
 with an air of pride, " is pure and free from 
 all selfishness. The generosity of Count de 
 Mediana has left me enough to pass the re- 
 mainder of my days in tranquillity. But I 
 should pass them all the more happily if I 
 could only see avenged the lady of my old 
 master." 
 
 " I approve of your sentiments, Senor Don 
 Juan ; you are doubly estimable on account 
 
 of your sorrow, and as to your savings 
 
 Notary ! Senor Cagatinta !" cried the alcalde, 
 suddenly raising his voice so as to be heard 
 by all present. " Make out a proces verbal 
 that the Senor Don Juan Dios Canelo, here 
 present, will become prosecutor in this case. 
 It cannot be doubted that a crime has been 
 committed ; and it is a duty we owe to our- 
 selves, as well as to this respectable man, to 
 seek out and punish the authors of it." 
 
 " But, senor alcalde ! " interposed the 
 steward, perfectly stupefied with this unex-
 
 THE FORSAKEN CHAMBER. 59 
 
 pected declaration, " I did not say I have 
 no intention of becoming prosecutor." 
 
 " Take care, old man ! " cried Don Ramon, 
 in a solemn tone ; " if you deny what you 
 have already confided to me, grievous charges 
 may be brought against you, As friend 
 Cagatinta has just this minute observed to 
 me, the ladder by which you scaled the 
 balcony might prove sinister designs. But 
 I know you are incapable of such. Rest 
 contented, then, at being the accuser in place 
 of the accused. Come, gentlemen, our duty 
 calls us outside. Perhaps underneath the 
 balcony we may find some traces of this most 
 mysterious matter." 
 
 So saying, the alcalde left the chamber, 
 followed by the crowd. 
 
 Poor Don Juan found himself thus unex- 
 pectedly between two horns of a dilemma, 
 the result in either case being the same that 
 is, the spoliation of the little pecadillo he had 
 put away against old age. He shook his 
 head, and, with a sublime resignation, accepted
 
 60 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the voice of iniquity for that of God consol- 
 ing himself with the reflection that this last 
 sacrifice might be of some service to the family 
 whose bread he had so long eaten. 
 
 No trace was found under the balcony. 
 As already stated, the waves must have 
 obliterated any footmarks or other vestiges 
 that might have been left. 
 
 It was believed for awhile that an impor- 
 tant capture had been made, in the person of 
 a man found lying in a crevice among the 
 rocks. This proved to be Pepe the Sleeper. 
 Suddenly aroused, the coast-guard was asked 
 if he had seen or heard anything? "No," was 
 the reply, "nothing." But Pepe remembered 
 his full pockets ; and fearing that the alcalde 
 might take a fancy to search him, saw that 
 some ruse was necessary to put an end to the 
 scene. This he succeeded in doing by 
 begging the alcalde for a real to buy bread 
 with! 
 
 What was to be done with this droll fellow ? 
 The alcalde felt no inclination to question him
 
 THE FORSAKEN CHAMBER. 61 
 
 further, but left him to go to sleep again, and 
 sleep as long as he pleased. 
 
 Any further investigation appeared to Don 
 Ramon to be useless at least until some 
 order might be received from higher quarters 
 besides, it would be necessary to graduate 
 the expenses of justice to the means of the 
 prosecutor; and with this reflection the 
 alcalde went home to his breakfast. 
 
 In the evening of this eventful day for the 
 village of Elanchovi when the twilight had 
 fallen upon the water two persons might have 
 been seen wandering along the beach, but evi- 
 dently desirous of shunning one another. Both 
 appeared in grief, though their sorrows sprang 
 from a very different cause. 
 
 One was the poor old steward, who, while 
 heaving a sigh at the thought that his worldly 
 store was about to be absorbed in the inex- 
 orable gulf of justice, at the same time 
 searched for some trace of his lost mistress, 
 praying for her and her child, and calling 
 upon God to take them under his protection.
 
 62 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 The other pensive wanderer was Cagatinta, 
 of whom the alcalde had again taken the ad- 
 vantage. Profiting by the confidence of the 
 scribe, Don Eamon had induced the latter to 
 commit his oath to stamped paper ; and then, 
 instead of the liver-coloured breeches, had 
 offered him an old hat in remuneration. This 
 Cagatinta had indignantly refused. 
 
 He was now lamenting his vanished dreams 
 of ambition, his silly confidence, and the im- 
 morality of false oaths not paid for. Never- 
 theless, he was meditating whether it would 
 not be more prudent to accept the old hat in 
 lieu of the liver-coloured breeches, alas ! so 
 well earned.
 
 63 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PEP^'S REVANCHE. 
 
 WHEN Pepe the Sleeper had made himself 
 master of the secret of Captain Despierto 
 which he had found of such profitable service 
 he was not aware that the captain had held 
 back another. Nevertheless, the coast-guard 
 felt some kind of remorse of conscience 
 though he had as yet no idea of the terrible 
 consequences that had resulted. His remorse 
 was simply that he had betrayed his post of 
 sentinel ; and he determined that he would 
 make up for it by a more zealous performance 
 of duty whenever an opportunity should offer. 
 To bring about this contingency, he went on
 
 64 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the very next night, and requested to be once 
 more placed on the post of Ensenada. 
 
 His wish was gratified ; and while Don 
 Lucas believed him asleep, as usual, Pepe 
 kept wide awake, as on the preceding night. 
 
 We shall leave him at his post, while we 
 recount what was taking place off the coast 
 not far from Ensenada. 
 
 The night was as foggy as that which pre- 
 ceded it, when, about the hour of ten o'clock, a 
 coaster was observed gliding in towards the 
 cliffs, and entering among a labyrinth of rocks 
 that lay near the mouth of the bay. 
 
 This vessel appeared well guided and well 
 sailed. The shape of her hull, her rigging, 
 her sails, denoted her to be a ship of war, or 
 at least a privateer. 
 
 The boldness with which she manceuvred, in 
 the middle of the darkness, told that her pilot 
 must be some one well acquainted with this 
 dangerous coast ; and also that her commander 
 had an understanding with some people on 
 the shore.
 
 PEPE'S REVANCHE. 65 
 
 The sea dashed with fury against both sides 
 of the rocky strait, through which the coaster 
 was making her way, but still she glided safely 
 on. This strait once cleared, a large bay 
 opened before her, in which the sea was more 
 calm, and rippled gently up against a beach 
 of sand and pebble. 
 
 The coaster at length succeeded in gaming 
 this bay ; and then, by a manoeuvre directed 
 by the officer of the watch, she hove to with a 
 celerity that denoted a numerous crew. 
 
 Two boats were let down upon the water, 
 and, being instantly filled with men, were 
 rowed off in the direction of the upper end of 
 the bay, where some houses, which could be 
 distinguished by their whiteness, stood scat- 
 tered along the beach. 
 
 To end the mystery, let us say that the 
 little coaster was a French vessel half pri- 
 vateer, half smuggler and had entered the 
 bay with a double design the disposing of 
 merchandize and the procuring of provisions, 
 of which the crew began to stand in need. 
 
 VOL. I. F
 
 66 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 Further, we shall add, that the pilot was a 
 skilful fisherman of Elanchovi, furnished by 
 Don Lucas Despierto, captain of the coast- 
 guard! 
 
 The officer of the watch silently walked the 
 deck now listening to the waves surging 
 against the sides of the little vessel now 
 stooping a moment over the light of the bin- 
 nacle anon watching the sails that flapped 
 loosely upon the yards, now turned contrary 
 to the direction of the wind. 
 
 An hour had been passed in this manner, 
 when a brisk fusillade was heard from several 
 points on the shore. Other reports of mus- 
 ketry appeared to respond ; and shortly after 
 the two boats came hastening back to the 
 coaster. 
 
 It was Pepe who had caused all this ; Pepe, 
 who, to the great chagrin of his captain, had 
 given warning to the coast-guards. He had 
 been too late, notwithstanding his zeal, for 
 the boats came back laden with sheep and 
 other provisions of every sort.
 
 PEP^'S REVANCHE. 67 
 
 The last of the men who climbed over the 
 gangway, just as the boats were being hoisted 
 up, was a sailor of gigantic height, of colos- 
 sal proportions, and Herculean vigour. He was 
 a Canadian by birth. He carried in his arms a 
 young child that was cold and motionless, as if 
 dead. A slight trembling in its limbs, how- 
 ever, proclaimed that there was still life in it. 
 
 " What the deuce have you got there, 
 Bois Rose ? " demanded the officer of the 
 watch. 
 
 " With your leave, lieutenant, it's a young 
 child that I found in a boat adrift, half dead 
 with hunger and cold. A woman, quite dead, 
 and bathed in her own blood, still held it in 
 her arms. I had all the trouble in the world 
 to get the boat away from the place where I 
 found it, for those dogs of Spaniards espied 
 it, and took it for one of ours. There was a 
 terrible devil of a coast-guard kept firing at 
 me with as much obstinacy as awkwardness. 
 I should have silenced him with a single shot, 
 had I not been hindered in looking after this 
 
 F2
 
 68 THE WOOD-HANGERS. 
 
 poor little creature. But if ever I return 
 ah!" 
 
 " And what do you intend to do with the 
 child?" 
 
 " Take care of it, lieutenant, until peace be 
 proclaimed; then return here, and find out 
 whom it belongs to." 
 
 Unfortunately, the only knowledge he was 
 able to obtain about the infant was its name, 
 Fabian, and that the woman who had been 
 assassinated was its mother. 
 
 Two years passed, during which the French 
 privateer did not return to the coast of Spain. 
 The tenderness of the sailor towards the child 
 he had picked up which was no other than 
 the young Count Fabian de Mediana did not 
 cease for an instant, but seemed rather to in- 
 crease with time. It was a singular and touch- 
 ing spectacle to witness the care, almost 
 motherly, which this rude nurse lavished upon 
 the child, and the constant ruses to which he 
 had recourse to procure a supplement to his 
 rations for its nourishment. The sailor had
 
 PEPE'S REVANCHE. 69 
 
 to fight for his own living ; but he often in- 
 dulged in dreams that some day a rich prize 
 would be captured, his share of which would 
 enable him to take better care of his adopted 
 son. Unfortunately, he did not take into his 
 calculations the perilous hazards of the life he 
 was leading. 
 
 One morning the privateer was compelled 
 to run from an English brig of war, of nearly 
 twice her force ; and, although a swift sailer, 
 the French vessel soon found that she could 
 not escape from her pursuer. She disdained 
 to refuse the combat, and the two vessels 
 commenced cannonading each other. 
 
 For several hours a sanguinary conflict was 
 kept up, when the Canadian sailor, dashed 
 with blood, and blackened with powder, ran 
 towards the child, and lifting it in his arms, 
 carried it to the gangway. There, in the 
 midst of the tumult, with blood running over 
 the decks, amidst the confusion of cries, and 
 the crash of falling masts, he wished to en- 
 grave on the child's memory the circumstances
 
 70 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 of a separation, of which he had a strong 
 presentiment. In this moment, which should 
 leave even upon the memory of an infant a 
 souvenir that would never be effaced, he 
 called out to the child, while shielding it with 
 his huge body : 
 
 " Kneel, my son ! " 
 
 The child knelt, trembling with affright. 
 
 " You see what is going on? " 
 
 " I am afraid," murmured Fabian ; " the 
 blood the noise " and saying this, he hid 
 himself in the arms of his protector. 
 
 " It is well," replied the Canadian, in a 
 solemn tone. " Never forget, then, that in 
 this moment a sailor, a man who loved you as 
 his own life, said to you kneel and pray for 
 your mother " 
 
 He was not permitted to finish the speech. 
 At that moment a bullet struck him, and his 
 blood spouting over the child, caused it to 
 utter a lamentable cry. The Canadian had 
 just strength left to press the boy to his breast, 
 and to add some words, but in so low a tone
 
 REVANCHE. 71 
 
 that Fabian could only comprehend a single 
 phrase. It was the continuation of what he 
 had been saying " Your mother whom I 
 found dead beside you " 
 
 With this speech ended the consciousness of 
 the sailor. He was not dead, however ; his 
 wound did not prove fatal. 
 
 When he came to his senses again, he 
 found himself in the fetid hold of a ship. A 
 terrible thirst devoured him. He called out 
 in a feeble voice, but no one answered him. 
 He perceived that he was a prisoner, and he 
 wept for the loss of his liberty, but still more 
 for that of the adopted son that Providence 
 had given him. 
 
 What became of Fabian ? That the history 
 of the " Wood-Rangers " will tell us ; but 
 before passing from the prologue of our drama 
 before crossing from Europe to America 
 a few events connected with the tragedy of 
 Elanchovi remain to be told. 
 
 It was several days after the disappearance 
 of the countess before anything was known
 
 72 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 of her fate. Then some fishermen found the 
 abandoned boat driven up among the rocks, 
 and still containing the body of the unfortun- 
 ate lady. This was some light thrown upon 
 the horrid mystery ; but the cause of the 
 assassination long remained unknown, and the 
 author of it long unpunished. 
 
 The old steward tied black crape upon the 
 vanes of the chateau, and erected a wooden 
 cross on the spot where the body of his be- 
 loved mistress had been found ; but, as every- 
 thing in this human world soon wears out, the 
 sea-breeze had not browned the black crape, 
 nor the waves turned green the wood of the 
 cross, before the tragic event ceased to cause 
 the slightest emotion in the village ay, even 
 ceased to be talked of.
 
 73 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 SONORA. 
 
 SONORA, naturally one of the richest pro- 
 vinces of Mexico, is also one of the least 
 known. Vast tracts in this state have never 
 been explored, and others have been seen 
 only by the passing traveller. Nevertheless, 
 nature has been especially bountiful to this 
 remote territory. In some parts of it the 
 soil, scarce scratched by the plough, will 
 yield two crops in the year ; while in other 
 places gold is scattered over the surface, or 
 mixed with the sands, in such quantity as to 
 rival the placers of California. 
 
 It is true that these advantages are, to
 
 74 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 some extent, neutralized by certain incon- 
 veniences. Vast deserts extend between the 
 tracts of fertile soil, which render travelling 
 from one to the other both difficult and dan- 
 gerous ; and, in many parts of the province, 
 the savage aborigines of the country are still 
 masters of the ground. This is especially the 
 case in those districts where the gold is found 
 in placers. 
 
 These placers are not to be approached by 
 white men, unless when in strong force. The 
 Indians repel all such advances with warlike 
 fury. Not that they care to protect the gold 
 of whose value they have been hitherto 
 ignorant but simply from their hereditary 
 hatred of the white race. Nevertheless, 
 attempts are frequently made to reach the 
 desired gold-fields some that result in com- 
 plete failure, and some that are more or less 
 successful. 
 
 The natural riches of Sonora have given 
 rise to very considerable fortunes, and not a 
 few very large ones, of which the origin was
 
 SONORA. 75 
 
 the finding a " nugget " of virgin gold ; 
 while others again had for their basis the 
 cultivation of the rich crops which the fertile 
 soil of Sonora can produce. 
 
 There is a class of persons in Sonora, who 
 follow no other business than searching for 
 gold placers or silver mines, and whose only 
 knowledge consists of a little practical ac- 
 quaintance with metallurgy. These men are 
 called gambusinos. From time to time they 
 make long excursions into the uninhabited 
 portions of the state, where, under great 
 privations, and exposed to a thousand dan- 
 gers, they hastily and very superficially work 
 some vein of silver, or wash the auriferous 
 sands of some desert-stream, until, tracked 
 and pursued by the Indians, they are com- 
 pelled to return to their villages. Here they 
 find an audience delighted to listen to their 
 adventures, and to believe the exaggerated 
 accounts which they are certain to give of 
 marvellous treasures lying upon the surface of 
 the ground, but not to be approached on
 
 76 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 account of some great danger, Indian or 
 otherwise, by which they are guarded. 
 
 These gambusinos are to mining industry 
 what the backwoodsmen are to agriculture 
 and commerce. They are its pioneers. 
 Avarice stimulated by their wonderful 
 stories, and often, too, by the sight of real 
 treasure brought in from the desert for the 
 expeditions of the gambusinos do not always 
 prove failures avarice, thus tempted, is 
 ready to listen to the voice of some adven- 
 turous leader, who preaches a crusade of 
 conquest and exploration. In Sonora, as 
 elsewhere, there is always an abundance of 
 idle men to form the material of an expedition 
 the sons of ruined families men who 
 dislike hard w.ork, or indeed any work and 
 others who have somehow got outside the 
 pale of justice. These join the leader, and 
 an expedition is organized. 
 
 In general, however, enterprises of this 
 kind are too lightly entered upon, as well as 
 too loosely conducted ; and the usual conse-
 
 SONORA. 77 
 
 quence is, that before accomplishing its 
 object, the band falls to pieces ; many 
 become victims to hunger, thirst, or Indian 
 hostility ; and of those who went forth, only 
 a few individuals return to tell the tale of 
 suffering and disaster. 
 
 This example will, for a while, damp the 
 ardour for such pursuits. But the disaster is 
 soon forgotten ; fresh stories of the gam- 
 businos produce new dreams of wealth, and 
 another band of adventurers is easily col- 
 lected. 
 
 At the time of which I am writing that 
 is, in 1830 just twenty-two years after 
 the tragedy of Elanchovi, one of these expe- 
 ditions was being organized at Arispe then 
 the capital of the state of Sonora. The man 
 who was to be the leader of the expedition 
 was not a native of Mexico, but a stranger. 
 He was a Spaniard, who had arrived in 
 Sonora but two months before, and who was 
 known by the name, Don Estevan de 
 Arechiza.
 
 78 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 No one in Arispe remembered ever to have 
 seen him, and yet he appeared to have been 
 in the country before this time. His know- 
 ledge of its topography, as well as its affairs 
 and political personages, was so positive and 
 complete, as to make it evident that Sonora 
 was no stranger to him ; and the plan of his 
 expedition appeared to have been conceived 
 and arranged beforehand even previous to 
 his arrival from Europe. 
 
 Beyond doubt, Don Estevan was master of 
 considerable resources. He had his train of 
 paid followers, kept open house, made large 
 bets at the monte table, lent money to friends, 
 without appearing to care whether it should 
 ever be returned, and played "grand seigneur" 
 to perfection. No one knew from what source 
 he drew the means to carry on such a " war." 
 
 Now and then he was known to absent him- 
 self from Arispe for a week or ten days at a 
 time. He was absent on some journey ; but 
 no one could tell to what part of the country 
 these journeys were made for his well-trained
 
 SONORA. 79 
 
 servants never said a word about the move- 
 ments of their master. 
 
 Whoever he might be, his courteous man- 
 ner, a la Espanola, his generosity, and his fine 
 free table, soon gave him a powerful influence 
 in the social world of Arispe ; and by this in- 
 fluence he was now organizing an expedition, 
 to penetrate to a part of the country, which it 
 was supposed no white man had ever yet 
 visited. 
 
 As Don Estevan almost always lost at play, 
 and as he also neglected to reclaim the sums 
 of money which he so liberally lent to his 
 acquaintances, it began to be conjectured that 
 he possessed, not far from Arispe, some rich 
 placer of gold from which he drew his resources. 
 The periodical journeys which he made gave 
 colour to this conjecture. 
 
 It was also suspected that he knew of some 
 placer, still more rich, in the country into 
 which he was about to lead his expedition. 
 What truth there was in the suspicion we shall 
 presently see.
 
 80 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 It will easily be understood that, with such 
 a reputation, Don Estevan would have very 
 little difficulty in collecting his band of adven- 
 turers. Indeed, it was said that already more 
 than fifty determined men, from all parts of 
 Sonora, had assembled at the Presidio of 
 Tulac on the Indian frontier the place ap- 
 pointed for the rendezvous of the expedition. 
 It was further affirmed that in a few days 
 Don Estevau himself would leave Arispe to 
 place himself at their head. 
 
 This rumour, hitherto only conjecture, 
 proved to be correct ; for, at one of the din- 
 ners given by the hospitable Spaniard, he 
 announced to his guests that in three days he 
 intended to start for Tubac. 
 
 During the progress of this same dinner, a 
 messenger was introduced into the dining- 
 room, who handed to Don Estevan a letter, 
 an answer to which he awaited. 
 
 The Spaniard, begging of his guests to ex- 
 cuse him for a moment, broke the seal and 
 read the letter.
 
 SONORA. 81 
 
 As there was a certain mystery about the 
 habits of their convivial host, the guests were 
 silent for awhile all watching his movements 
 and the play of his features ; but the impassible 
 countenance of Don Estevan did not betray a 
 single emotion that was passing in his mind, 
 even to the most acute observer around the 
 table. In truth, he was a man who well 
 knew how to dissemble his thoughts, and per- 
 haps on that very occasion, more than any 
 other, he required all his self-command. 
 
 " It is well," he said, calmly addressing 
 himself to the messenger. " Take my answer 
 to him who sent you, that I will be punctual 
 to the rendezvous in three days from the 
 present." 
 
 With this answer the messenger took his 
 departure. Don Estevan, turning to his guests, 
 again apologized for his impoliteness ; and 
 the dinner, for an instant suspended, once 
 more progressed with renewed activity. 
 
 Nevertheless, the Spaniard appeared more 
 thoughtful than before ; and his guests did not 
 
 VOL. L G
 
 82 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 doubt but that he had received some news of 
 more than ordinary interest. 
 
 We shall leave them to their conjectures, 
 and precede Don Estevan to the mysterious 
 rendezvous which had been given him, and 
 the scene of which was to be a small village 
 lying upon the route to the Presidio of Tubac. 
 
 The whole country between Arispe and the 
 Presidio in question may be said to be almost 
 uninhabited. Along the route only mean 
 hovels are encountered, with here and there a 
 hacienda of greater pretensions. These houses 
 are rarely solitary, but collected in groups at 
 long distances apart. Usually a day's journey 
 lies between them, and, consequently, they 
 are the stopping places for travellers who may 
 be on their way towards the frontier. But 
 the travellers are few, and the inhabitants of 
 these miserable hovels pass the greater part of 
 their lives in the midst of a profound solitude. 
 A little patch of Indian corn which they culti- 
 vate a few head of cattle, which, fed upon 
 the perfumed pastures of the plains, produce
 
 SONORA. 83 
 
 beef of an exquisite flavour a sky always 
 clear and, above all, a wonderful sobriety of 
 living enable these dwellers of the desert 
 steppes of Sonora to live, if not in a state of 
 luxury, at least free from all fear of want. 
 What desires need trouble a man who sees a 
 blue sky always over his head, and who finds 
 in the smoke of a cigarette of his own mak- 
 ing a resource against all the cravings of 
 hunger ? 
 
 At one part of the year, however, these vil- 
 lages of hovels are uninhabited altogether 
 abandoned by their occupants. This is the 
 dry season, during the greater portion of which 
 the cisterns that supply the villages with 
 water become dried up. The cisterns are fed 
 by the rains of heaven, and no other water 
 than this can be found throughout most tracts 
 of the country. When these give out, the 
 settlements have to be abandoned, and remain 
 until the return of the periodical rains. 
 
 In a morning of the year 1830, at the dis- 
 tance of about three days' journey from Arispe,
 
 84 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 a man was seated, or rather half reclining, 
 upon his scrape in front of a rude hovel. A 
 few other huts, of a similar character, were near, 
 scattered here and there over the ground. It 
 was evident, from the profound silence that 
 reigned among these dwellings, and the 
 absence of human forms, or implements of 
 household use, that the ranclieria was aban- 
 doned by its half nomad population. Such 
 in reality was the fact, for it was now the very 
 height of the dry season. Two or three roads 
 branched out from this miserable group of huts, 
 leading off into a thick forest which surrounded 
 it on all sides. They were rather paths than 
 roads, for the tracks which they followed were 
 scarce cleared of the timber that once grew 
 upon them. At the point of junction of these 
 roads, the individual alluded to had placed him- 
 self; and his attitude of perfect ease told that 
 he was under no apprehension from the pro- 
 found and awe-inspiring loneliness of the place. 
 The croak of the ravens, flitting from tree to 
 tree, hoarsely uttered in their flight, the cry
 
 SONORA. 85 
 
 of the chaculucas, as they welcomed the rising 
 sun, were the only sounds that broke the still- 
 ness of the scene. 
 
 Presently the white fog of the night began to 
 rise upward and disappear under the strength 
 of the sunbeams. Only a few flakes of it still 
 hung over the tops of the mezquite and iron- 
 wood trees that grew thickly around the huts. 
 
 Near where the man lay, there might be 
 seen the remains of a large fire. It had been 
 kindled no doubt to protect him from the chill 
 dews of the night ; and it now served him to 
 prepare his breakfast. Some small cakes of 
 wheaten meal, with a few pieces of tasajo, 
 were already placed upon the red embers of 
 the fire ; but notwithstanding that these would 
 make but a meagre repast, the man appeared 
 eagerly to await the enjoyment of it. 
 
 Near at hand, with a frugality equal to that 
 of his master, a horse was browsing upon the 
 tufts of dry yellow grass that grew thinly over 
 the ground. This horse, with a saddle and 
 bridle lying near, proved the solitary indivi-
 
 86 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 dual to be a traveller. Contrary to the usual 
 custom of the country, the horse had no lazo, 
 or fastening of any kind, upon him ; but was 
 free to wander where he pleased. 
 
 The costume of the traveller consisted of a 
 sort of jacket or vest of brick-coloured leather, 
 without buttons or any opening in front, but 
 drawn over the head after the manner of a 
 shirt. Wide pantaloons of the same material, 
 open from the knee downwards, and fastened 
 at the waist by a scarf of red China crape. 
 Under the pantaloons, and covering the calf of 
 the leg nearly up to the knee, could be seen 
 the botas of strong stamped leather ; in one of 
 which was stuck a long knife with a horn hilt 
 thus ready to the hand whether the owner 
 was seated, standing, or on horseback. A large 
 felt hat, banded with a toquilla of Venetian 
 pearls, completed a costume sufficiently pictur- 
 esque, the vivid colours of which were in har- 
 mony with that of a serapt on which the 
 traveller was reclining. This costume denoted 
 one of those men accustomed to gallop among
 
 SONORA. 87 
 
 the thorny jungles that cover the desert 
 steppes of North Mexico ; and who in their 
 expeditions, whether against Indian enemies, or 
 for whatever purpose, sleep with indifference 
 under the shadow of a tree, or the open heaven 
 itself in the forest, or upon the naked plain. 
 There was in the features of this traveller a 
 singular mixture of brutal ferocity and careless 
 good humour. A crooked nose, with thick 
 bushy eyebrows, and black eyes that sparkled 
 from time to time with a malicious fire, gave 
 to his countenance a sinister aspect, and belied 
 the expression of his mouth and lips, that pre- 
 sented rather a pleasant and smiling contour. 
 But the man's features, when viewed as a whole, 
 could not fail to inspire a certain feeling of re- 
 pulsiveness mingled with fear. A short carbine 
 that lay by his side, together with the long 
 knife, whose haft protruded above the top of 
 his boots, did not in any way tame down the 
 ferocious aspect of his face. On the contrary, 
 they proclaimed him one whom it would not be 
 desirable to have for a companion in the desert.
 
 88 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 Despite the nonchalance of his attitude, it 
 was evident that he awaited some one; but 
 as everything in these countries is on a large 
 scale, so also is the virtue of patience. This 
 outlaw for everything about him signified 
 that he was one of some sort this outlaw, we 
 say, having made three days' journey before 
 arriving upon the ground where he now was, 
 thought nothing of a few hours, less or more, 
 spent in expectation. In the desert, he who 
 has travelled a hundred leagues will consider 
 it a mere bagatelle to wait for a hundred 
 hours : unlike to him who keeps an appoint- 
 ment in the midst of a great city, where a 
 delay of a quarter of an hour will be endured 
 with feverish impatience. 
 
 So it was with our solitary traveller ; and 
 when the hoof-strokes of a horse were heard 
 at some distance off in the forest, he did 
 nothing more than make a slight change in 
 the attitude in which he had been reclining ; 
 while his steed, also hearing the same sounds, 
 tossed up his head and neighed joyously.
 
 SONORA. 89 
 
 The hoof-strokes each moment were heard 
 more distinctly ; and it was evident that a 
 horseman was galloping rapidly in the direction 
 of the huts. After a little the strokes became 
 more gentle, and the gallop appeared to he 
 changed to a walk. The rider was approach- 
 ing with caution. 
 
 A few seconds intervened, and then, upon 
 one of the roads that leading to Arispe the 
 horseman was perceived coming on at a slow 
 and cautious pace. 
 
 On perceiving the traveller, still half reclining 
 upon his serape, the horseman drew his rein 
 still tighter and halted, and the two men re- 
 mained for some seconds regarding each other 
 with a fixed and interrogative glance.
 
 90 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 TWO HONEST GENTLEMEN. 
 
 THE new comer was a tall man, with dark 
 complexion and thick black beard, costumed 
 very similarly to the other in vest and pan- 
 taloons of brick-red leather, felt sombrero, 
 sash, and boots. He was mounted upon a strong 
 active horse. 
 
 It may appear strange that, during the 
 period of mutual examination, each of these 
 two men made a very similar reflection about 
 the other ; but it was scarcely strange either, 
 considering that both presented an equally 
 suspicious aspect. 
 
 " Carramba!" muttered the horseman as
 
 TWO HONEST GENTLEMEN. 91 
 
 he eyed the man on the serape, " if I wasn't 
 sure that he is the gentleman I have been 
 sent to meet, I should believe that I had 
 chanced upon a very unlucky acquaintance." 
 
 At the same instant he upon the ground 
 said to himself 
 
 " For Dios ! if that infernal Seven of 
 Spades had left any dollars in my purse, I 
 should have considered them in danger of 
 being taken out of it just now/' 
 
 Despite the nature of his reflection, the 
 horseman did not hesitate any longer, but, 
 spurring his horse forward to the edge of the 
 fire, lifted his hat courteously from his head, 
 and saluted him on the ground, at the same 
 time saying interrogatively : 
 
 "No doubt it is the Senor Don Pedro 
 Cuchillo I have the honour to address ? " 
 
 The same, cavallero ! " replied the other 
 rising to his feet, and returning the salute 
 with no less politeness than it had been given. 
 
 " Cavallero, I have been sent forward to 
 meet you, and announce to you the approach
 
 92 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 of the Senor Arechiza, who at this time can- 
 not be many leagues distant. My name is 
 Manuel Baraja, your very humble servant." 
 
 " Your honour will dismount ? " 
 
 The horseman did not wait for the invita- 
 tion to be repeated, but at once flung himself 
 from the saddle. After unbuckling his enor- 
 mous spurs, he speedily unsaddled his horse, 
 fastened a long lazo round his*neck, and then 
 giving him a smart cut with the short whip 
 which he carried, despatched the animal with- 
 out further ceremony to share the meagre 
 provender of his companion. 
 
 At this moment, the tasajo, beginning to 
 sputter over the coals, gave out an odour 
 that resembled the smell of a dying lamp. 
 Notwithstanding this, Baraja cast towards it 
 a look of longing. 
 
 "It appears to me, Senor Cuchillo," said 
 he, " that you are well provided here. Car- 
 ramba ! tortillas, of wheajen meal ! tasajo ! 
 it's a repast for a prince ! 
 
 " Oh. yes," replied Cuchillo, with a certain
 
 TWO HONEST GENTLEMEN. 93 
 
 air of foppishness, " I treat myself well. 
 It makes me happy to know that the dish is 
 to your liking ; I beg to assure you it is 
 quite at your service." 
 
 "You are very good, and I accept your 
 offer without ceremony. The morning air has 
 sharpened my appetite." 
 
 And saying this, Baraja proceeded to the 
 mastication of the tasajo and tortillas. After 
 being thus engaged for some time, he once 
 more addressed himself to his host. 
 
 "Dare I tell you, Senor Cuchillo, the 
 favourable impression I had of you at first 
 sight?" 
 
 " Oh ! you shock my modesty, senor. I 
 would rather state the good opinion your 
 first appearance gave me of you ! " 
 
 The two new friends here exchanged a 
 salute, full of affability, and then continued 
 to eat, Baraja harpooning upon the point of 
 his long knife another piece of meat out of 
 the ashes. 
 
 "If it please you, Senor Baraja," said
 
 94 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 Cuchillo, "we may talk over our business 
 while we are eating. You will find me a host 
 sans ceremonie" 
 
 " Just what pleases me." 
 
 "Don Estevan, then, has received the 
 message which I sent him ? " 
 
 " He has ; but what that message was is 
 only known to you and him." 
 
 "No doubt of that," muttered Cuchillo to 
 himself. 
 
 " The Senor Arechiza," continued the envoy, 
 " started for Tubac shortly after receiving 
 your letter. It was my duty to accompany 
 him, but he ordered me to proceed in advance 
 of him with these commands : ' In the little 
 village of Huerfano you will find a man, by 
 name Cuchillo ; you shall say to him that the 
 proposal he makes to me deserves serious 
 attention; and that since the place he has 
 designated as a rendezvous is on the way to 
 Tubac, I will see him on my journey.' This 
 instruction was given by Don Estevan an 
 hour or so before his departure, but although
 
 TWO HONEST GENTLEMEN. 95 
 
 I have ridden a little faster to execute his 
 orders, he cannot be far behind me." 
 
 " Good ! Senor Baraja, good ! " exclaimed 
 Cuchillo, evidently pleased with the commu- 
 nication just made ; " and if the business 
 which I have with Don Estevan be satisfacto- 
 rily concluded which I am in hopes it will 
 be you are likely to have me for a comrade 
 in this distant expedition. "But," continued 
 he, suddenly changing the subject, " you will, 
 no doubt, be astonished that I have given 
 Don Estevan a rendezvous in such a singular 
 place as this ? " 
 
 " No," coolly replied Baraja, " you may 
 have reasons for being partial to solitude. 
 Who does not love it at times ? " 
 
 A most gracious smile, playing upon the 
 countenance of Cuchillo, denoted that his 
 new acquaintance had correctly divined the 
 truth. 
 
 " Precisely, V he replied ; " the ill-behaviour 
 of a friend towards me, and the malevolent 
 hostility of the alcalde of Arispe, have caused
 
 96 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 me to seek this tranquil retreat. That is just 
 why I have established my head-quarters in 
 an abandoned village, where there is not a 
 soul to keep company with." 
 
 "Senor Don Pedro," replied Baraja, "I 
 have already formed too good an opinion of 
 you not to believe that the fault is entirely 
 upon the side of the alcalde, and especially on 
 the part of your friend." 
 
 " I thank you, Senor Baraja, for your good 
 opinion," returned Cuchillo, at the same time 
 taking from the cinders a piece of the meat, 
 half burnt, half raw, and munching it down 
 with the most perfect indifference, " I thank 
 you sincerely, and when I tell you the cir- 
 cumstances you may judge for yourself." 
 
 " I shall be glad to hear them," said the 
 other, easing himself down into a horizontal 
 position ; " after a good repast, there is no- 
 thing I so much enjoy as a good story." 
 
 After saying this, and lighting his cigar- 
 ette, Baraja turned upon the broad of his 
 back, and with his eyes fixed upon the
 
 TWO HONEST GENTLEMEN. 97 
 
 blue sky, appeared to enjoy a perfect 
 beatitude. 
 
 " The story is neither long nor interest- 
 ing," responded Cuchillo ; " what happened 
 to me might happen to all the world. I was 
 engaged with this friend in a quiet game of 
 cards, when he pretended that I had tricked 
 him. The affair came to words " 
 
 Here the narrator paused for an instant, to 
 take a drink from his leathern bottle, and 
 then continued 
 
 "My friend had the indelicacy to permit 
 himself to drop down dead in my presence." 
 
 "What! at your words?" 
 
 " No, with the stab of a knife which I gave 
 him," coolly replied the outlaw. 
 
 " Ah ! no doubt your friend was in the 
 wrong, and you received great provocation ? " 
 
 " The alcalde did not think so. He pes- 
 tered me in the most absurd manner. I could 
 have forgiven the bitterness of his persecu- 
 tion of me, had it not been that I was myself 
 bitterly roused at the ill-behaviour of my 
 
 VOL. I H
 
 98 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 friend, whom up to that time I had highly 
 esteemed." 
 
 " Ah ! one has always to suffer from one's 
 friends," rejoined Baraja, sending up a puff of 
 smoke from his corn-husk cigarette. 
 
 "Well one thing," said Cuchillo, "the 
 result of it all is that I have made a vow 
 never to play another card ; for the cards, as 
 you see, were the original cause of this ugly 
 affair." 
 
 "A good resolution," said Baraja, "and 
 just such as I have come to, myself. I have 
 promised never to touch another card ; they 
 have cost me a fortune in fact, altogether 
 ruined me." 
 
 " Ruined you ? you have been rich, 
 then?" 
 
 "Alas ! I had a splendid estate a hacienda 
 de ganados (cattle farm) with a numerous 
 flock upon it. I had a lawyer for my intendant, 
 who took care of the estate while 1 spent my 
 time in town. But when I came to settle 
 accounts with this fellow, I found I had let
 
 TWO HONEST GENTLEMEN. 99 
 
 them run too long. I discovered that half my 
 estate belonged to him ! " 
 
 "What did you do then?" 
 
 " The only thing I could do," answered 
 Baraja, with the air of a cavalier, "was to 
 stake my remaining half against his on a game, 
 and let the winner take the whole." 
 
 " Did he accept this proposal ? " 
 
 " After a fashion." 
 
 "What fashion?" 
 
 " Why, you see I am too timid when I play 
 in presence of company, and certain to lose. 
 I prefer, therefore, to play in the open air. 
 and in some quiet corner of the woods. There 
 I feel more at my ease ; and if I should lose 
 considering that it was my whole fortune 
 that was at stake I should not expose my 
 chagrin to the whole world. These were the 
 considerations that prompted me to propose 
 the conditions of our playing alone." 
 
 " And did the lawyer agree to your condi- 
 tions?" 
 
 "Not a bit of it." 
 
 H2
 
 100 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " What a droll fellow he must have been ! " 
 
 "He would only play in the presence of 
 witnesses." 
 
 " And you were forced to his terms ? " 
 
 " To my great regret I was." 
 
 "And of course you lost being so nervous 
 in presence of company ? " 
 
 " I lost the second half of my fortune as I 
 had done my first. The only thing I kept 
 back was the horse you see, and even him my 
 ex-intendant insisted upon having as part of 
 the bet. To-day I have no other hope than to 
 make my fortune in this Tubac expedition, 
 and if I should do so, I may get back and 
 settle accounts with the knave. After that 
 game, however, I swore I should never play 
 another card ; and, carramba ! I have kept 
 my oath." 
 
 "How long since this happened? " 
 
 " Five days." 
 
 " The devil ! You deserve credit for keep- 
 ing your word." 
 
 "The two adventurers, after having ex-
 
 TWO HONEST GENTLEMEN. 1 01 
 
 changed these confidences, began to talk over 
 their hopes founded on the approaching expe- 
 dition of the marvellous sights that they 
 would be likely to see but more especially of 
 the dangers that might have to be encountered. 
 
 " Bah ! " said Baraja, speaking of these ; 
 " better to die than live wearing a coat out 
 at elbows." 
 
 Cuchillo was of the same opinion. 
 
 Meanwhile the sun was growing hotter and 
 hotter. A burning wind began to blow through 
 the trees, and the horses of the two travellers, 
 suffering from thirst, uttered their plaintive 
 neighings. The men themselves sought out 
 the thickest shade to protect them from the 
 fervid rays of the sun, and for awhile both 
 observed a complete silence. 
 
 Baraja was the first to resume the conver- 
 sation. 
 
 " You may laugh at me, Senor Cuchillo," 
 said he, fanning himself with his felt hat; 
 "but, to say the truth, the time appears very 
 long to me when I am not playing.
 
 102 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " The same with myself," hastily responded 
 Cuchillo. 
 
 " What do you say to our staking, on word 
 of honour, a little of that gold we are going 
 to find ? " 
 
 " Just what I was thinking myself, but I 
 daren't propose it to you I'm quite agree- 
 able." 
 
 Without further parley, each of the two 
 thrust a hand into his pocket, and drew forth 
 a pack of cards with which, notwithstand- 
 ing the oath they had taken, both were pro- 
 Tided. 
 
 The play was about to commence, when the 
 sound of a bell, and the clattering of hoofs at 
 a distance, announced the approach, most pro- 
 bably, of the important personage whom 
 Cuchillo awaited.
 
 103 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE SENATOR TRAGADUROS. 
 
 THE two players suspended operations, and 
 turned their faces in the direction whence 
 came the sounds. 
 
 At some distance along the road, a cloud 
 of dust suddenly rising, indicated the ap- 
 proach of a troop of horses. 
 
 They were without riders. One only was 
 mounted ; and that was ridden by the driver 
 of the troop. In short, it was a remuda 
 such as rich travellers in the north of Mexico 
 usually take along with them for a remount. 
 These horses, on account of the half-wild life 
 they lead upon the vast plains where they
 
 104 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 are pastured, after a gallop of twenty leagues 
 without carrying a rider, are almost as fresh 
 as if just taken out of the stable. On long 
 routes, each is saddled and mounted at 
 regular intervals ; and in this way a journey 
 is performed almost as rapidly as by a mail 
 express, with relays already established. 
 
 According to usual custom, a bell-mare 
 preceded this drove, which appeared to con- 
 sist of about thirty horses. It was this bell 
 that had first attracted the attention of the 
 players. 
 
 When within a hundred yards or so of the 
 huts, the driver of the remuda galloped to the 
 front, and catching the bell-mare, brought her 
 to a stop. The other horses halted on the 
 instant. 
 
 Shortly after, five cavaliers appeared 
 through the dust, riding in the direction of 
 the huts. Two were in advance of the other 
 three, who, following at a little distance, 
 were acting as attendants or servants. 
 
 The most distinguished looking of the two
 
 THE SENATOR TRAGADUROS. 105 
 
 who rode in advance, was a man of somewhat 
 over medium height. He appeared to have 
 passed the age of forty. A greyish-coloured 
 sombrero, with broad brim, screened his face 
 from the fervent sun-beams. He was habited 
 in a pelisse, or dolman, of dark blue, richly 
 laced with gold, and almost concealed under 
 a large white kerchief, embroidered with sky- 
 blue silk, and known in Mexico as pano de sol. 
 Under the fiery atmosphere, the white colour 
 of this species of scarf, like the burnous of 
 the Arabs, serves to moderate the rays of 
 the sun, and for this purpose was it worn by 
 the cavalier in question. Upon his feet were 
 boots of yellow Cordovan leather, and over 
 these large spurs, the straps of which were 
 stitched with gold and silver wire. These 
 spurs, with their huge five-pointed rowels, 
 and little bells, gave out a silvery clinking 
 that kept time to the march of the horse 
 sounds most agreeable to the ear of the 
 Mexican cavallero. 
 
 A mango, richly slashed with gold lace,
 
 106 THE WOOD-BANGERS. 
 
 hung over the pommel of the saddle, in front 
 of the horseman, half covering with its folds 
 a pair of white pantaloons, garnished through- 
 out their whole length with buttons of 
 filigree gold. In fine, the saddle, embroi- 
 dered like the straps of the spurs, completed 
 a costume that, in the eyes of a European, 
 would recall the souvenirs of the middle ages. 
 For all that, the horseman in question did 
 not require a rich dress to give him an air of 
 distinction. There was that in his bearing 
 and physiognomy that denoted a man accus- 
 tomed to command, and perfectly au fait to 
 the world. 
 
 His companion, much younger, was 
 dressed with far more pretension ; but his in- 
 significant figure, although not wanting in a 
 certain degree of elegance, was far from 
 having the aristocratic appearance of him 
 with the embroidered kerchief. 
 
 The three servants that followed with 
 faces blackened by dust and sun, and half 
 savage figures carried long lances, adorned
 
 THE SENATOR TRAGADUROS. 107 
 
 with scarlet pennons, and lazos hung coiled 
 from the pommels of their saddles. These 
 strange attendants gave to the group that 
 singular appearance peculiar to a cavalcade 
 of Mexican travellers. Several mules, pack 
 laden, and carrying enormous valises, fol- 
 lowed in the rear. These valises contained 
 provisions and the menage necessary for a 
 halt. 
 
 On seeing Cuchillo and Baraja, the fore- 
 most of the two cavaliers halted, and the 
 troop followed his example. 
 
 "'Tis the Senor Don Estevan," said 
 Baraja, in a subdued voice. "This is the 
 man, Senor," he continued, presenting 
 Cuchillo to the cavalier with the pano de 
 sol 
 
 Don Estevan for it was he fixed upon 
 Ouchillo a piercing glance, that appeared to 
 penetrate to the bottom of his soul ; at the 
 same time the look denoted a slight ex- 
 pression of surprise. 
 
 " I have the honour to kiss the hands of
 
 108 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 your excellency," said Cuchillo. "As you 
 see, it is I who " 
 
 But in spite of his habitual assurance, the 
 outlaw paused, trembling as vague souvenirs 
 began to shape themselves in his memory ; 
 for these two men had met before, though 
 not for a very long time. 
 
 "Eh! if I don't deceive myself," inter- 
 rupted the Spaniard, in an ironical tone, 
 " the Seiior Cuchillo and I are old acquaint- 
 ances though formerly I knew him by a 
 different name ? " 
 
 " So too your excellency, who was then 
 called" 
 
 Arechiza frowned till the hairs of his 
 black moustache seemed to stand on end. 
 The outlaw did not finish his speech. He 
 saw that it was not the time to tell what he 
 knew ; but this species of complicity ap- 
 peared to restore him to his wonted 
 assurance. 
 
 Cuchillo was, in truth, one of those 
 gentlemen who have the ill luck to give to
 
 THE SENATOR TRAGADUROS. 109 
 
 whatever name they bear a prompt celebrity ; 
 and for this reason he had changed his more 
 than once. 
 
 " Senor Senator," said Arechiza, turning to- 
 wards his compagnon de voyage, "this place 
 does not appear very suitable for our noon 
 siesta ? " 
 
 " The Senor Tragaduros y Despilfarro will 
 find the shade of one of these cottages more 
 agreeable," interposed Cuchillo, who knew the 
 senator of Arispe. He knew, moreover, that 
 the latter had attached himself to the fortunes 
 of Don Estevan, in default of better cause ; and 
 in hopes of repairing his own fortune, long 
 since dissipated. 
 
 Despite the low state of his finances, how- 
 ever, the senator had not the less a real 
 influence in the congress of Sonora ; and it 
 was this influence which Don Estevan intended 
 using to his own advantage. Hence the com- 
 panionship that now existed between them. 
 
 " I agree with all my heart to your propo- 
 sal," answered Tragaduros, "the more so that
 
 110 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 we have now been nearly five hours in the 
 saddle." 
 
 Two of the servants, dismounting, took their 
 masters' horses by the bridle, while the other 
 two looked after the cargas of the mules. The 
 camp-beds were taken from the pack-saddles, 
 and carried into two of the houses that ap- 
 peared the most spacious and proper. 
 
 We shall leave the senator reclining upon 
 his mattress, to enjoy that profound slumber 
 which is the portion of just men and travellers, 
 while we accompany Don Estevan into the hut 
 which he had chosen for himself, and which 
 stood at some distance from that occupied by 
 the legislator.
 
 Ill 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE COMPACT. 
 
 AFTER having followed Don Estevan, at the in- 
 vitation of the latter, inside the hovel, Cuchillo 
 closed behind him the wattle of bamboos that 
 served as a door. He did this with great care 
 as if he feared that the least noise should 
 be heard without and then he stood waiting 
 for the Spaniard to initiate the conversation. 
 
 The latter had seated himself on the side of 
 his camp-bedstead, and Cuchillo also sat down, 
 using for his seat the skull of a bullock, 
 which chanced to be in the house. It is the 
 ordinary stool of this part of the country,
 
 112 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 where the luxury of chairs is still unknown 
 at least in the houses of the poor. 
 
 " I suppose," said Arechiza, breaking silence, 
 " that you have a thousand reasons why I 
 should know you by no other than your pres- 
 ent name. I, with motives very different 
 from yours, no doubt, desire to be here nothing 
 more than Don Estevan Arechiza. Now! Seiior 
 Cuchillo," continued the speaker with a certain 
 affectation of mockery, " let us have this grand 
 secret that is to make your fortune and 
 mine ! " 
 
 "A word first, Seiior Don Estevan de 
 Arechiza," replied Cuchillo, in the same tone ; 
 " one word, and then you shall have it." 
 
 " I listen to you ; but observe, sir, say 
 nothing of the past no more perfidy. We 
 are here in a country where there are trees, 
 and you know how I punish traitors." 
 
 At this allusion to some past event no 
 doubt some mysterious souvenir the face of 
 the outlaw became livid. 
 
 "Yes," replied he, "I remember that it is
 
 THE COMPACT. 113 
 
 not your fault that I was not hung to a tree. It 
 may be more prudent not to recall old wrongs 
 especially as you are no longer in a con- 
 quered country, but in one of forests forests 
 both sombre and dumb." 
 
 There was in this response of the outlaw 
 such an evident air of menace, that, joined 
 with his character and sinister antecedents, it 
 required a firm heart, on the part of Don 
 Estevan, not to regret having recalled the 
 souvenir. With a cold smile he replied : 
 
 " Ha ! another time I shall entrust the 
 execution of a traitor to the hands of no hu- 
 man being I shall perform that office myself," 
 continued he, fixing upon Cuchillo a glance 
 which caused the latter to lower his head. 
 "As to your threats, reserve them for people 
 of your own kind ; and never forget that be- 
 tween my breast and your dagger there is an 
 insurmountable barrier." 
 
 " Who knows ? " muttered Cuchillo, dissem- 
 bling the anger which was devouring him. 
 Then, in a different tone, he continued: "But 
 
 VOL. I. I
 
 1 14 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 I am no traitor, Senor Don Esteven ; and the 
 proposal I am now about to make to you is 
 frank and loyal." 
 
 " We shall see then." 
 
 " Know, then, Senor Arechiza, that for 
 several years past I have followed the profes- 
 sion of a Gambusino, and have rambled over 
 most of this country in the exercise of my call- 
 ing. I have seen a deposit of gold such as 
 mortal eye perhaps never looked upon ! " 
 
 " You have seen it, and not possessed your- 
 self of it?" 
 
 " Do not mock me, Don Estevan ; I am in 
 earnest. I have seen a placer so rich, that 
 the man who gets it might for a whole year 
 play the game of hell, with luck all the while 
 against him, and not be impoverished ! So 
 rich as to satisfy the most insatiable avarice ; 
 so rich, in fact, as to buy a kingdom ! " 
 
 At these words, which responded to some 
 hopes and desires already conceived, Don 
 Estevan could not hinder himself from the 
 manifestation of a certain emotion.
 
 THE COMPACT. 115 
 
 " So rich," continued the outlaw, in an ex- 
 alted tone, " that I would not hesitate for 
 one instant to give my soul to the devil in 
 exchange for it." 
 
 " The devil is not such a fool as to value 
 so highly a soul which he knows he will 
 get gratis. But how did you discover this 
 placer ? " 
 
 " Thus, senor. There was a gambusino, 
 called Marcos Arellanos, who was celebrated 
 throughout the whole province. It was he 
 who discovered this bonanza, in company with 
 another of the same calling as himself; but 
 just as they were about to gather some of the 
 gold, they were attacked by the Apache In- 
 dians. The associate of Marcos Arellanos 
 was killed, and he himself had to run a 
 thousand risks before he succeeded in making 
 his escape. 
 
 " It was after he came home again, that, by 
 chance, I met him at Tubac. There he pro- 
 posed to me to join him, and go back to the 
 placer. I accepted his offer, and we started. 
 
 i2
 
 116 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 We arrived safely at the Golden Valley, for 
 by that name he called the place. Powers 
 of heaven ! " exclaimed Cuchillo, " it only 
 needed to see those blocks of gold shining in 
 the sun, to bring before one's eyes a thousand 
 dazzling visions ! 
 
 " Alas ! we were only permitted to feast 
 our eyes. The savages were upon us. We 
 were compelled to fly in our turn, and I alone 
 escaped. Poor Marcos ! he fell under the 
 horrible war clubs ; and I I have sorely 
 grieved for him ! Now, senor, this is the 
 secret of the Golden Valley which I desire to 
 sell to you." 
 
 " To sell to me ! and who is to answer for 
 your fidelity ? " 
 
 " My own interest. I sell you the secret, 
 but I do not intend to alienate my rights to 
 the placer. I have vainly endeavoured to 
 get up an expedition such as yours, for with- 
 out a strong force it would be of no use going 
 there. It would be certain death to a party 
 of only two or three. With your band, how-
 
 THE COMPACT. 117 
 
 ever, it will be easy, and success would be 
 certain. I only ask the tenth part of all the 
 gold that may be gathered, which I would 
 deserve as guide of the expedition ; and going 
 as guide, I will be, at the same time, a hostage 
 for my good faith." 
 
 " Is this what I am to understand you 
 estimate the price of your secret and services 
 a tenth part of the whole ? " 
 
 " That, and two hundred dollars paid down, 
 to enable me to equip myself for the expe- 
 dition." 
 
 " You are more reasonable than I expected, 
 Cuchillo. Very well, then let it be so ; the 
 two hundred dollars you shall have, and I 
 promise you the tenth part." 
 
 " Agreed." 
 
 " Agreed ; and you have my word upon it. 
 Now, answer me some questions which I wish 
 to put. Is this Golden Yalley in that part of 
 the country where I intended to have taken 
 my expedition ? " 
 
 " It is beyond the Presidio of Tubac; and,
 
 118 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 since your men are to meet there, you will 
 not need to make any change in the dispo- 
 sitions you have already taken." 
 
 " Good. And you have seen this Golden 
 Valley, you say, with your own eyes ? " 
 
 " I have seen it, without the power of 
 touching it. I have seen it, grinding my 
 teeth as I looked upon it, like the damned in 
 hell who get a glimpse of Paradise." 
 
 As Cuchillo spoke, his countenance betrayed 
 beyond doubt the anguish he felt at his cupi- 
 dity having been balked. 
 
 Arechiza knew too well how to read the 
 human physiognomy, to doubt the truth of 
 Cuchillo's report. Two hundred dollars were 
 to him a mere bagatelle; and taking an ebony 
 case from his bed, small but heavy, he drew 
 from it a rouleau of gold pieces, and handed 
 them to the gambusino, who immediately put 
 them into his pocket. 
 
 There was a little more in the rouleau than 
 bad been bargained for. The Spaniard took 
 no notice of this, but forming a cross with his
 
 THE COMPACT. 119 
 
 thumb and the index finger of his right hand, 
 a la mode Espagnole, he held it before Cuchillo, 
 directing him to make oath upon it. 
 
 " I swear by the cross," said the latter, " to 
 speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing 
 but the truth. At the end of ten days' jour- 
 ney beyond Tubac, going in a north-western 
 direction, we shall arrive at the foot of a range 
 of mountains. They are easy to recognize 
 for a thick vapour hangs over them both night 
 and day. A little river traverses this range 
 of hills. It is necessary to ascend it to a 
 point where another stream runs into it. 
 There, in the angle where the two meet, is a 
 steep hill, the summit of which is crowned by 
 the tomb of an Indian chief. I was not near 
 enough to distinguish the strange ornaments 
 that surround this tomb ; but at the foot of 
 the hill there is a small lake by the side of a 
 narrow valley, in which the water from rain 
 torrents has thrown to the surface immense 
 treasures of gold. This is the Golden 
 Valley."
 
 120 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " The way will be easily found ? " inquired 
 Don Estevan. 
 
 " But difficult to travel," replied Cuchillo. 
 " The arid deserts will be no obstacle com- 
 pared with the danger from the hostility of 
 Indians. This tomb of one of their most cele- 
 brated chiefs they hold in superstitious venera- 
 tion. It is the constant object of their pilgri- 
 mages, and it was during one of these visits 
 that we were surprised, Arellanos and myself." 
 
 " And this Arellanos do you think he has 
 not revealed this secret to any one besides 
 yourself?" 
 
 " You must know," replied Cuchillo, " that 
 it is a custom of the gambusinos, before start- 
 ing upon any expedition, to swear before the 
 Holy Evangelists not to reveal the bonanzas 
 they may find without the consent of their as- 
 sociates. This oath Arellanos took, and his 
 death of course prevented him from betraying 
 it." 
 
 " You have said that after his return from 
 his first expedition, you met him at Tubac.
 
 THE COMPACT. 121 
 
 Was there no woman whom he may perchance 
 have had in his confidence ? " 
 
 " His wife only he may have told it to her. 
 But yesterday a vaquero gave me the news 
 that she has lately died. For all that, she 
 may have revealed the secret to her son." 
 
 " Arellanos had a son then ? " 
 
 "An adopted son a young man whose 
 father or mother no one knows anything 
 about." 
 
 Don Estevan could not repress an involun- 
 tary movement. 
 
 " This young fellow is, no doubt, the son of 
 some poor devil of this province ? " said the 
 Spaniard, in a careless way. 
 
 " No," replied Cuchillo, " he was born in 
 Europe, and very likely in Spain." 
 
 Arechiza appeared to fall into a reverie, his 
 head bending towards his breast. Some 
 souvenirs were disturbing his spirit. 
 
 "This much at least is known," continued 
 Cuchillo. "The commander of an English 
 brig-of-war brought him to Guaymas. He
 
 122 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 stated that the child, who spoke both French 
 and Spanish, had been captured in an affair 
 between the brig and a French privateer. A 
 sailor, who was either killed in the fight or 
 taken prisoner, was beyond doubt his father. 
 The captain of the English brig, not knowing 
 what to do with him, gave him to Arellanos 
 who chanced to be in Guaymas at the time 
 and Arellanos brought him up, and has made a 
 man of him my faith ! that he has. Young 
 as the fellow is, there is not such a rastreador 
 or horse-tamer in the province." 
 
 The Spaniard, while apparently not listening 
 to Cuchillo, did not lose a word of what he 
 was saying ; but whether he had heard enough, 
 or that the subject was a painful one, he sud- 
 denly interrupted the gambusino : 
 
 "And don't you think, if this wonderful 
 tracker and horse-breaker has been told the 
 secret of his adopted father, he may be a 
 dangerous rival to us ? " 
 
 Cuchillo drew himself up proudly, and re- 
 plied :
 
 THE COMPACT. 123 
 
 "I know a man who will yield in nothing 
 neither at following a trail, nor taming a wild 
 horse to Tiburcio Arellanos; and yet this 
 secret has been almost worthless in his keeping, 
 since he has sold it for the tenth part of its 
 value ! " 
 
 This last argument of Cuchillo's was suffi- 
 ciently strong to convince Don Estevan that 
 the Golden Valley was so guarded by these 
 fierce Indians that nothing but a strong party 
 could reach it in short, that he himself was 
 the only man who could set this force afoot. 
 For awhile he remained in his silent reverie. 
 The revelations of Cuchillo in regard to the 
 adopted son of Marcos Arellanos had opened 
 his mind to a new set of ideas, which absorbed 
 all others. For certain motives, which we 
 cannot here explain, he was seeking to divine 
 whether this Tiburcio Arellanos was not the 
 young Fabian de Mediana ! 
 
 Cuchillo on his part was reflecting on certain 
 antecedents relative to the gambusino Arellanos 
 and his adopted son ; but for powerful reasons
 
 124 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 he did not mention his reflections to Don 
 Estevan. There are reasons, however, why the 
 reader should now be informed of their nature. 
 The outlaw, as we have said, frequently 
 changed his name. It was by one of these 
 aliases, used up so quickly, that he had been 
 passing, when at the Presidio Tubac he made 
 the acquaintance of the unfortunate Arellanos. 
 When the latter was about starting on his 
 second and fatal journey before parting with 
 his wife and the young man whom he loved as 
 well as if he had been his own son he confided 
 to his wife the object of his new expedition ; 
 and also the full particulars of the route he in- 
 tended to take. Cuchillo was nevertheless 
 ignorant of this revelation. But the know- 
 ledge which the outlaw carefully concealed 
 was that he himself, after having reached the 
 Golden Valley, guided by Arellanos, murdered 
 his companion, in hope of having all the trea- 
 sure to himself. It was true enough that the 
 Indians appeared afterwards, and it was with 
 difficulty that the assassin could save his own
 
 THE COMPACT. 125 
 
 scalp. We shall now leave him to tell his own 
 story as to how he made the acquaintance of 
 young Arellanos, and it will be seen that this 
 story is a mere deception practised upon Don 
 Estevan. 
 
 " Nevertheless," resumed Cuchillo, in break- 
 ing the silence, " I was determined to free 
 my mind from all doubt upon the subject. 
 On my return to Arispe, I repaired to the 
 dwelling of the widow of Arellanos, to inform 
 her of the death of poor Marcos. But with 
 the exception of the great grief which the 
 news caused her, I observed nothing particular 
 nothing that could give me the least sus- 
 picion that I am not the sole possessor of the 
 secret of the Golden Valley." 
 
 " One easily believes what he wishes to 
 believe," remarked Arechiza. 
 
 " Hear me, Senor Don Estevan ! There 
 are two things on which I pride myself. One 
 is, that I have a conscience easily alarmed ; 
 the other, that I am gifted with a perspicuity 
 not easily deluded."
 
 126 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 The Spaniard made no further objections. 
 He was satisfied, not with the outlaw's con- 
 science, but his perspicuity. 
 
 With regard to Tiburcio Arellanos, we need 
 hardly state what the reader has no doubt 
 already divined that this young man was in 
 reality no other than Fabian, the last descend- 
 ant of the Counts of Mediana. Cuchillo has 
 already related how the English brig brought 
 him to Guaymas. Left without a guide to 
 enable him to discover his family disinherited 
 of his rich patrimonial estates an orphan 
 knowing nothing of his parents here he was 
 in a strange land, the possessor of nothing 
 more than a horse and a hut of bamboos.
 
 127 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE AFTERNOON RIDE. 
 
 WHEN Cuchillo, after the interview just de- 
 scribed, came forth from the hovel, the sun 
 was no longer in the vertex of the heavens, 
 but had commenced his downward course to 
 the western horizon. The earth, burnt up 
 and dry as tinder, gave forth a thin vapoury 
 mist, that here and there hung over the sur- 
 face in condensed masses, giving that appear- 
 ance known as the mirage. Limpid lakes pre- 
 sented themselves to the eye, where not a 
 drop of water was known to exist as if na- 
 ture, to preserve a perfect harmony, offered 
 these to the imagination in compensation for
 
 128 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the absence of the precious fluid itself. Far 
 off in the forest, could be heard at intervals 
 the crackling of branches under the burning 
 rays of the sun just as if the woods were on 
 fire. But the trees were beginning to open 
 their leaves to the southern breeze that fresh- 
 ened as the hours passed on, and they appeared 
 impatiently to await the twilight, when the 
 night-dews would once more freshen their 
 foliage. 
 
 Cuchillo gave a whistle, at which well-known 
 signal his horse came galloping up to him. 
 The poor beast appeared to suffer terribly 
 from thirst. His master, moved with pity, 
 poured into a bowl a few drops of water from 
 his skin bottle ; and although it was scarce 
 enough to moisten the animal's lips, it seemed 
 to bring back the vigour of his spirit. 
 
 Cuchillo, having saddled and bridled his 
 horse, and buckled on a pair of huge spurs, 
 called one of the attendants of Don Estevan. 
 To this man he gave orders to have the pack 
 mules harnessed, as well as to collect the
 
 THE AFTERNOON RIDE. 129 
 
 remuda to be sent on in advance in order 
 that the sleeping quarters for the night should 
 be ready upon their arrival. The place where 
 the travellers were to rest that night as 
 Cuchillo informed the domestic was to be at 
 the cistern known as La Poza. 
 
 " But La Poza is not on the route to 
 Tubac ! " objected the servant ; " it lies out 
 of the way, and on the road leading to the 
 Hacienda del Venado." 
 
 " You have nothing to do with the route," 
 peremptorily answered Cuchillo; " your master 
 intends spending some days at the Hacienda 
 del Venado. Therefore do as I have ordered 
 you." 
 
 The Hacienda del Venado was the most im- 
 portant estate between Arispe and the Indian 
 frontier, and its proprietor had the reputation 
 of being the most hospitable man in the whole 
 province. It was, therefore, without repug- 
 nance that the attendants of Don Estevan 
 heard this news from Cuchillo since, although 
 their route of march would be extended in 
 
 VOL. I. K
 
 130 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 making the detour by the Hacienda del Venado, 
 they knew they would enjoy several days of 
 pleasant repose at this hospitable mansion. 
 
 The man to whom Cuchillo had given his 
 orders immediately saddled his horse, and set 
 off to collect the remuda. He soon discovered 
 the horses browsing in the woods near at 
 hand, and collected, as usual, around the bell- 
 mare. 
 
 As he approached, the troop bounded off in 
 affright -just as wild horses would have done; 
 but the active horseman was too quick for 
 them, for already the running noose of his 
 lazo was around the neck of one of them. 
 The horse perceiving that he was caught, and 
 knowing well the lazo whose power he had 
 often felt yielded without resistance, and 
 permitted himself to be led quietly away. The 
 capitana (bell-mare) knew the signal, and fol- 
 lowed the horse of the servant, with all the 
 others trooping at her heels. 
 
 Two of the freshest of the drove were left 
 behind, for Don Estevan and the Senator.
 
 THE AFTERNOON KIDE. 131 
 
 These would be enough to serve them as far 
 as La Poza the place of their intended night 
 halt which was only a few hours distant. 
 The other horses, guided by the bell-mare, 
 were taken on in advance, and the drove soon 
 disappeared behind the cloud of dust thrown 
 up by their hoofs. 
 
 Shortly after, the Senator made his appear- 
 ance at the door of the hut where he had taken 
 his siesta a necessity almost imperious in 
 these hot climates. At the same time, Don 
 Estevan presented himself in the open air. 
 The atmosphere, though a little fresher than 
 when they had gone inside, was still sufficiently 
 stifling to be disagreeable. 
 
 " Carramba !" cried the Senator, after inhal- 
 ing a few mouthfuls of it, "it is fire, not air, 
 one has to breathe here. If these hovels were 
 not a complete nest of snakes and scorpions, 
 I should prefer staying in them until night, 
 rather than launch myself into this dreadful 
 furnace. 
 
 After this doleful speech the Senator climbed 
 
 K2
 
 132 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 reluctantly into his saddle, and he and Don 
 Estevan took the route, riding side by side, as 
 in the morning. Behind, at a few paces dis- 
 tance, followed Cuchillo and Baraja, and after 
 these the little recua of mules with the other 
 domestics. 
 
 For the first hour of their march the shade 
 of the trees rendered the heat supportable, 
 but soon the forest ended, and the road de- 
 bouched upon open plains that appeared inter- 
 minable. 
 
 It is hardly possible to conceive a more 
 dreary prospect than that presented by those 
 arid plains of Northern Mexico naked, white, 
 and almost destitute of vegetation. Here and 
 there, at long distances on the route, may be 
 seen a tall pole, which denotes the presence of 
 some artificial well a cistern but as you 
 draw near, the leathern buckets by which the 
 water is to be raised, show by their stiff and 
 contracted outlines that for a long time they 
 have held no water, and that the well is dried 
 up a sad fortune for the traveller whose evil
 
 THE AFTERNOON RIDE. 133 
 
 star has guided him into these deserts during 
 the dry season, especially if, at the end of his 
 day's journey, he reckons on a supply from 
 these treacherous depositaries. If his canteen 
 is not well filled, or if he is by any chance de- 
 tained upon his route, his story is likely to be 
 that of hundreds who have perished of thirst 
 upon these plains, between a heaven and an 
 earth that are equally unpitying. 
 
 " Is it true, then, Don Estevan," inquired 
 the Senator, as he wiped the perspiration from 
 his brow, " that you have been through this 
 country before ? " 
 
 " Certainly," replied Don Estevan ; " and 
 it is just because I have been here before that 
 I am here now. But what brought me here 
 formerly, and why I now return, is a secret I 
 shall tell you presently. Let me say that it 
 is a secret sufficient to turn a man's brain, 
 provided he is not one with a bold, firm heart. 
 Are you that man, Senor Senator ? " added 
 the Spaniard, fixing his eyes upon his com- 
 panion with a calm regard.
 
 134 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 The Senator made no reply, further than 
 by giving a slight shiver that was perceptible 
 through his frame, and which denoted that he 
 felt some apprehension as to the role he might 
 be called upon to play. 
 
 The Spaniard did not fail to observe his 
 uneasiness, as he resumed : 
 
 " Meanwhile, seiior ; let me ask you, are 
 you decided to follow my advice, and restore 
 your fortunes by some rich matrimonial alli- 
 ance which I shall arrange for you ? " 
 
 " Without doubt I am," replied the Senator, 
 " though I can't see what interest that can be 
 to you, Sefior Don Estevan." 
 
 "That is my affair and my secret. I am 
 not one of those who sell the skin of the bear 
 before the animal is caught. It is enough for 
 you to know, Don Vicente Tragaduros y Des- 
 pilfarro, that I have a hundred thousand 
 dollars at your disposal the moment you say 
 the word it only remains for you to hear my 
 conditions, and subscribe to them." 
 
 " I don't say No," replied the Senator, "but
 
 THE AFTERNOON RIDE. 135 
 
 I candidly avow that for the life of me I can- 
 not think of anyone possessing such an inheri- 
 tance as you mention not one in the whole 
 province." 
 
 "Do you know the daughter of the rich 
 landowner, Augusta Pena at whose hacienda, 
 please God, we shall sleep to-morrow 
 night ? " 
 
 " Oh ! " exclaimed the Senator, " the pro- 
 prietor of the Hacienda del Venado ? I have 
 heard of her her dowry should be a million, if 
 report speaks true ; but what folly it would be 
 for me to pretend " 
 
 " Bah ! " interrupted the Spaniard. " It is 
 a fortress that, well besieged, may capitulate 
 like any other." 
 
 " It is said that the daughter of Pena is 
 pretty." 
 
 " Beautiful." 
 
 " You know her then ? " said the Senator, 
 regarding his companion with an astonished 
 look. " Perhaps," he added, " it is to the Haci- 
 enda of Venado that you make those periodical
 
 136 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 and mysterious journeys so much talked about 
 at Arispe ? " 
 
 " Precisely so." 
 
 " Ah ! I understand you," said the Senator, 
 turning a sly look upon his companion ; "it 
 was the beautiful eyes of the daughter that at- 
 tracted you, the ? " 
 
 "You are mistaken. It was the father, 
 who was simply the banker from whom, from 
 time to time, I drew the funds necessary for 
 my expenses at Arispe." 
 
 " Is that also the object of our present 
 journey ? " 
 
 " Partly," replied the Spaniard, " but not 
 altogether there is another object, which I 
 will communicate to you hereafter." 
 
 " Well, senor," answered the Senator, "you 
 are a mystery to me from head to foot ; but I 
 abandon myself blindly to your guidance." 
 
 "You do well," said Don Estevan, "and in 
 all likelihood your sun, for awhile eclipsed, 
 will shine out again with more than its former 
 splendour."
 
 137 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 AN UNFORTUNATE TRAVELLER. 
 
 IT was now near sunset; the travellers were still 
 about two leagues from La Poza, and the des- 
 ert plains were nearly passed. Some mezquite 
 trees appeared in front, thinly covering the cal- 
 careous soil, but the twilight sun began to 
 render less visible the objects here and there 
 scattered over the plain. 
 
 All at once the horse of Don Estevan came 
 to a stand, and showed signs of affright. The 
 steed of the Senator acted in a similar fashion,
 
 138 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 though neither of the two horseman could per- 
 ceive the cause of this strange behaviour. 
 
 " It is the body of some dead mule ? " sug- 
 gested the Mexican. 
 
 Don Estevan spurred his horse forward, de- 
 spite the repugnance of the animal to advance; 
 and a few paces further on, behind a clump of 
 wild aloe plants, he perceived the body of a horse 
 stretched out upon the sand. Such a sight in 
 these dry plains is by no means uncommon; 
 and the travellers would not have given a mo- 
 ment's thought to it, but for the fact that the 
 horse in question appeared to be saddled and 
 bridled. This circumstance indicated some ex- 
 traordinary occurrence. 
 
 Cuchillo had meanwhile ridden forward to 
 the spot. 
 
 " Ah ! " said he, after glancing a moment at 
 the dead horse, " the poor devil who has 
 ridden him has met with a double accident ; 
 he has not only lost his horse, but also his 
 water-bottle. See ! " 
 
 The guide pointed to an object lying upon
 
 AN UNFORTUNATE TRAVELLER. 139 
 
 the ground by the shoulder of the fallen horse, 
 and still attached by a strap to the saddle. 
 It was a leathern water-bottle, apparently 
 broken and empty. In fact, its position proved 
 that the horse, enfeebled by the heat and thirst, 
 had fallen suddenly to the earth, and the bottle, 
 hardened by the sun, and coming in contact 
 with the animal's shoulder, had got crushed 
 either by the fall, or in the struggle that suc- 
 ceeded it. A large fracture was visible in the 
 side of the vessel, through which the water had 
 escaped to the very last drop. 
 
 " We are likely enough by and by to stumble 
 upon his owner," suggested Cuchillo, while 
 he examined the trappings of the dead horse, 
 to see if there might be anything worth pick- 
 ing up. " For Dios!" he continued, "this 
 reminds me that I have the very devil's thirst 
 myself," and as he said this, he raised his own 
 bottle to his head, and swallowed some gulps 
 from it. 
 
 The tracks of a man upon a sandy surface 
 indicated that the traveller had continued his
 
 140 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 route on foot ; but the footmarks showed also 
 that he must have tottered rather than walked. 
 They were unequally distant from each other, 
 and wanted that distinctness of shape that 
 would have been exhibited by the footsteps of 
 a man standing properly on his legs. 
 
 These points did not escape the keen eyes 
 of Cuchillo, who was one of those individuals 
 who could read such dumb signs with an un- 
 failing certainty. 
 
 " Beyond a doubt," said he, taking another 
 gulp from his bottle, " the traveller cannot be 
 far off." 
 
 His conjecture proved correct. A few mo- 
 ments after, the body of a man was seen by 
 the side of the path, lying upon the ground, 
 and perfectly motionless. As if this individual 
 had intended that his countenance should be 
 hidden from the eyes of any one passing, a 
 broad palm-leaf hat covered the whole of his 
 face. 
 
 The costume of this traveller in distress 
 betrayed a certain degree of poverty. Besides
 
 AN UNFORTUNATE TRAVELLER. 141 
 
 the hat already mentioned, which appeared old 
 and battered, a rusty-coloured Indian shirt, 
 somewhat torn, and a pair of pantaloons of 
 nankeen, with common filigree buttons, ap- 
 peared to be his only garments. At least, 
 they were all that could be noticed in the 
 obscure twilight. 
 
 " Benito," said Don Estevan, calling to one 
 of his servants, " knock off with the butt of 
 your lance the hat that covers this man's face 
 perhaps he is only asleep." 
 
 Benito obeyed the order, and tossed aside 
 the hat without dismounting; but the man 
 stretched on the ground did not appear to 
 know what had been done at least he made 
 not the slightest movement. 
 
 When the hat was removed, however, the 
 darkness, which had suddenly increased, ren- 
 dered it impossible to distinguish his fea- 
 tures. 
 
 " Although it is not exactly your speciality, 
 Senor Cuchillo," said Don Estevan, addressing 
 himself to the outlaw, " if you will do an act
 
 142 THE WOOD-KANGERS. 
 
 of humanity, in trying to save the life of this 
 poor devil, you shall have a half ounce of gold 
 if you succeed." 
 
 " Caspita ! Senor Don Estevan," cried 
 Cuchillo, "you surely mistake my character. 
 I am the most humane of mortals that is," 
 continued he in an under tone, "when it is 
 my interest to be so. You may ride forward 
 then ; and it will not be my fault if I don't 
 bring this poor fellow safe to our halting place 
 at La Poza." 
 
 In saying these words Cuchillo dismounted, 
 and laying his hands upon the neck of his 
 horse, cried out 
 
 "Now good Tordillo, don't budge an inch 
 from this spot till I call for you." 
 
 The animal, pawing the sand, and champing 
 his bit, appeared to comprehend the words of 
 his master, and remained in the place where 
 he had been left. 
 
 " Shall we leave one of the servants to assist 
 you?" inquired the Senator, as they were 
 riding off.
 
 AN UNFORTUNATE TRAVELLER. 143 
 
 "No, thank you, Senor Don Vicente," re- 
 sponded Cuchillo, fearing that if any one was 
 left he might expect some share in the promised 
 demi-onza ; " it will not be necessary." 
 
 And the cavalcade, riding off, left the outlaw 
 alone with the recumbent body.
 
 144 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 TIBURCIO ARELLANOS. 
 
 CUCHILLO, approaching the body, bent down to 
 examine the features, and see if there were 
 any signs of life. At the first glance of that 
 face the outlaw trembled. 
 
 "Tiburcio Arellanos, as I live!" he invol- 
 untarily muttered. 
 
 It was, in truth, the adopted son of his 
 victim whom he saw before him. 
 
 " Yes there is no mistake it is he ! Santa 
 Virgen! if not dead, he's not far off it," con- 
 tinued he, observing the mortal paleness of the 
 young man's countenance. 
 
 A hellish thought at this moment arose in
 
 TIBURCIO ARELLANOS. 145 
 
 the mind of the outlaw. Perhaps the only 
 man in all the world who shared with him that 
 secret, which he himself had purchased by the 
 crime of murder, was there before him com- 
 pletely in his power. It only needed to finish 
 him, if not already dead, and to report that 
 he could not be saved. He was in the middle 
 of the desert, under the shadow of night, 
 where no eye could see, and no hand could 
 hinder; why then should he not make his 
 secret secure against every contingency of the 
 future ? 
 
 All the ferocious instincts of the villain 
 were reawakened ; mechanically, he drew the 
 long knife from his boot, and held its point 
 over the heart of the unconscious Tiburcio. 
 
 At that moment, a slight quivering of the 
 limbs told that the latter still lived. The 
 outlaw raised his arm, but still hesitated to 
 strike the blow. 
 
 "It was just thus," reflected he, "that I 
 stabbed the man he called his father -just in 
 the same way, as he slept beside me, in full 
 
 VOL. I. L
 
 146 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 confidence of security. I see him now, con- 
 testing with me for the life of this young 
 fellow more than half gone. I feel at this 
 moment the weight of his hody upon my 
 shoulders, just as I felt it when I carried him 
 down to the river." 
 
 And the murderer, at these thoughts, in 
 the middle of the darkness and solitude, cast 
 around him a look that betrayed the terror 
 with which the souvenir still inspired him. 
 
 That terror saved the life of Tiburcio ; for 
 the knife was thrust back into its singular 
 scabbard, and the villain, seating himself 
 beside the recumbent form, thrust his hand 
 under the vest of the young man, and held it 
 over his heart to try whether it was still 
 beating. 
 
 In this attitude he remained for a short 
 while until satisfied that Tiburcio was yet 
 alive. Then a bright thought seemed to 
 startle him ; for a voice had spoken to him 
 from within, stronger than the voice of con- 
 science. It was that of personal interest.
 
 TIBURCIO ARELLANOS. 147 
 
 Cuchillo knew the rare qualities of Tiburcio 
 his talents as a rastreador, or tracker his 
 daring prowess in Indian warfare ; and after 
 some consideration, he resolved to enrol him 
 in the expedition of Don Estevan, to which he 
 would no doubt prove of great value. 
 
 "That will be the best plan," said the 
 outlaw, speaking in soliloquy. " What would 
 his life be worth to me now ? Nothing. And 
 if I wish to have it hereafter why, then 
 there will be no lack of opportunities. He 
 cannot be otherwise than grateful for what I 
 am going to do for him. But let me see how 
 matters stand of course it is thirst that is 
 killing him how lucky I have kept a little 
 water in my canteen ! " 
 
 He now opened the mouth of the dying 
 man, and holding the neck of the leathern 
 bottle to his lips, poured some drops down 
 his throat. The water produced an almost 
 instantaneous re-animation, and the young 
 man opened his eyes, but soon closed them 
 again. 
 
 L2
 
 148 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " That shows he is coming round," mut- 
 tered Cuchillo. 
 
 Twice or thrice he repeated the operation, 
 each time doubling the dose of water. 
 Finally, at the end of half an hour or so, 
 Tiburcio was sufficiently recovered to be able 
 to raise himself up, and to answer the ques- 
 tions put to him by the man who was, in* 
 reality, the preserver of his life. 
 
 Tiburcio Arellanos was still but a young 
 man ; but the sort of life he had led 
 solitary, and dependent on his own resources 
 had given to his judgment a precocious 
 maturity. He therefore observed a degree of 
 prudence in recounting to Cuchillo the death 
 of his adopted mother, to which subject the 
 outlaw had guided the conversation. 
 
 " During the twenty-four hours that I 
 passed by the death-bed of my mother," said 
 Tiburcio, " I quite forgot to attend to my 
 horse ; and after all was over I closed the 
 door of the cottage, where I never wished to 
 return, and I set out upon this journey.
 
 TIBURCIO ARELLANOS. 149 
 
 The poor animal, so long neglected, became 
 feeble on the second day, and fell dead under 
 me ; and, to my misfortune, my water-bottle 
 was broken in the fall, and the water spilled 
 upon the sand. I remained on the spot till 
 thirst brought on fever, and then I strayed 
 away ; and after wandering about, I know 
 not how long, I fell, as my horse had 
 done, expecting never more to rise." 
 
 " I comprehend all that," responded 
 Cuchillo. " Well ! it is astonishing how 
 people will regret the death of parents who 
 do not leave them the slightest inheritance ! " 
 
 Tiburcio could have told him that, on her 
 death-bed, his adopted mother had left him a 
 royal as well as a terrible legacy the secret 
 of the Golden Valley, and the vengeance of 
 the murder of Marcos Arellanos. Both had 
 been confided to him the golden secret upon 
 the especial condition that Tiburcio would, if 
 necessary, spend the whole of his life in 
 searching for the assassin. 
 
 Tiburcio appeared to take no notice of
 
 150 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 Cuchillo's last reflection, and perhaps his dis- 
 cretion proved the saving of his life ; for had 
 the outlaw been made sure that he was in 
 possession of the secret of the Golden Valley, 
 it is not likely he would have made any 
 further efforts to save him, but the reverse. 
 
 " And is it a fact," continued Cuchillo, in- 
 terrogatively, "that with the exception of a 
 hut which you have abandoned, a horse which 
 has dropped dead between your legs, and the 
 garments you carry on your back, Arellanos 
 and his widow have left you nothing?" 
 
 " Nothing but the memory of their goodness 
 to me, and a reverence for their name," 
 
 " Poor Arellanos ! I was very sorry for 
 him," said Cuchillo, whose hypocrisy had here 
 committed him to an unguarded act of im- 
 prudence. 
 
 "You know him then?" hastily inquired 
 Tiburcio, with some show of surprise. " He 
 never spoke to me of you ! " 
 
 Cuchillo saw that he had made a mistake, 
 and hastened to reply.
 
 TIBURCIO ARELLANOS. 151 
 
 " No, I didn't know him personally. I have 
 only heard him much spoken of as a most 
 worthy man, and a famous gambusino. That 
 is why I was sorry on hearing of his death. 
 Was it not I who first apprised his widow of 
 the unfortunate occurrence, having myself 
 heard of it by chance ? " 
 
 Notwithstanding the natural tone in which 
 Cuchillo delivered this speech, he was one of 
 those persons of such a sinister countenance 
 that Tiburcio could not help a certain feeling 
 of suspicion while regarding it. But by little 
 and little the feeling gave way, and the young 
 man's thoughts taking another turn, he re- 
 mained for some moments buried in a silent 
 reverie. It was merely the result of his feeble- 
 ness, though Cuchillo, ever ready to suspect 
 evil, interpreted his silence as arising from a 
 different cause. 
 
 Just then the horse of Cuchillo began to 
 show evident signs of terror, and the instant 
 after, with his hair standing on end, he came 
 galloping up to his master as if to seek pro-
 
 152 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 tection. It was the hour when the desert 
 appears in all its nocturnal majesty. The 
 howling of the jackals could be heard in the 
 distance ; but all at once, a voice rising far 
 above all the rest appeared to give them a 
 signal to be silent. It was the voice of the 
 American lion. 
 
 "Do you hear it?" inquired Cuchillo of his 
 companion. 
 
 A howl equally loud, but of a different tone, 
 was heard on the opposite side. " It is the 
 puma and jaguar about to battle for the body 
 of your horse, friend Tiburcio ; and whichever 
 one is conquered may take a fancy to revenge 
 himself on us. Suppose you mount behind 
 me, and let us be off?" 
 
 Tiburcio followed the advice ; and notwith- 
 standing the double load, the horse of Cuchillo 
 galloped off like an arrow, impelled to such 
 swift course by the growling of the fierce 
 animals, that for a long time could be heard, 
 as if they were following in the rear.
 
 153 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 A STUMBLING HORSE. 
 
 FAR along the route these sounds accompanied 
 the two riders that is, the wailing of the 
 jackals, mingled with the more fearful utter- 
 ance of the great feline denizens of the desert. 
 All at once, however, these noises became 
 stilled, as a sound of a far different nature 
 indicated the presence of some human being 
 interfering in this scene of the desert. It was 
 the crack of a gun, but with that quick, sharp 
 report that distinguishes the detonation of the 
 rifle. 
 
 " A shot ! " exclaimed Tiburcio. " But who 
 can be amusing himself by hunting at this
 
 154 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 time of night, and in the middle of such a 
 desert?" 
 
 "Very likely one of those American trap- 
 pers we see now and them at Arispe, where 
 they come to sell their beaver skins. These 
 fellows think as little of a puma or a jaguar as 
 they do of a jackal." 
 
 No other noise was afterwards heard to 
 break the imposing silence of the night. The 
 stars were shining brightly in the blue heaven, 
 and the breeze, that had now become much 
 cooler, scarce made the slightest rustling as it 
 passed through the branches of the iron-wood 
 trees. 
 
 " Where are you taking me ?" asked Tibur- 
 cio, after an interval of silence. 
 
 " To La Poza, where I have some com- 
 panions who are to pass the night there. To- 
 morrow, if you like, on to the hacienda of 
 Venado." 
 
 " To the hacienda of Venado ! that is just 
 where I was going." 
 
 Had it been daylight, Cuchillo might have
 
 A STUMBLING HORSE. 155 
 
 seen a blush suddenly redden the cheeks of 
 the young man as he pronounced these words ; 
 for it was an affair of the heart that, in spite 
 of all the efforts he had made to resist it, was 
 attracting him to the hacienda de Venado. 
 The object of his interest was no other than 
 the daughter of the haciendado himself the 
 young heiress already spoken of. 
 
 " For what purpose were you going there? " 
 inquired Cuchillo, in a careless tone. 
 
 This simple question was nevertheless diffi- 
 cult to be answered. His companion was not 
 the man to whom the young gambusino could 
 give his confidence. He hesitated before mak- 
 ing reply. 
 
 " I am without resources," said he at length, 
 u and I go to ask Don Augustin Pena if he 
 will accept me in the capacity of one of his 
 vaguer os." 
 
 " 'Tis a poor business you wish to undertake, 
 amigo. To expose your life for ever for such 
 paltry pay as you will get to keep watch at 
 night and run about all the day ; exposed to
 
 156 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the burning heat of the sun, and by night to 
 the cold for this is the lot of a vaquero." 
 
 " What can I do ? " replied Tiburcio. " Be- 
 sides, it is just the sort of life I have been ac- 
 customed to. Have I not always been exposed to 
 privations and the solitude of the desert plains ? 
 These torn calzoneras and this well-worn jacket 
 are all that are left me since I have now no 
 longer my poor horse. Better turn vaquero 
 than be a beggar ! " 
 
 " He knows nothing of the secret then," re- 
 flected Cuchillo, "since he is meditating an 
 employment of this nature." Then raising his 
 voice : " You are in truth, then, a complete 
 orphan, amigo ; and have no one to mourn 
 for you if you were to die except myself? 
 Have you by chance heard anything of this 
 grand expedition that is being organized at 
 Tubac? " 
 
 " No." 
 
 " Become one of it then. To an expedition 
 of this kind a resolute young fellow like you 
 would be a valuable acquisition ; and upon
 
 A STUMBLING HORSE. 157 
 
 your part, an expert gambusino, such as I 
 fancy you must be from the school in which 
 you have been taught might make his for- 
 tune at a single stroke." 
 
 If he parry this thrust, muttered the out- 
 law to himself, it will be proof positive that he 
 knows nothing about it. 
 
 Cuchillo was thus pursuing his investigation 
 with a twofold object, sounding Tiburcio about 
 the secret, while at the same time trying to 
 attach him to the expedition by the hope of 
 gain. But cunning as was the outlaw, he 
 had to do with one that was no simpleton. 
 Tiburcio prudently remained silent. 
 
 " Although, between ourselves," continued 
 Cuchillo, " I can tell you that I have never 
 been beyond Tubac, yet I am to be one of the 
 guides of this expedition. Now what say you? " 
 
 " I have my reasons," replied Tiburcio, "not 
 to engage in it without reflection. I therefore 
 demand of you twenty-four hours to think it 
 over, and then you shall have my answer." 
 
 The expedition, of which this was the first
 
 158 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 news Tiburcio had heard, might, in fact, ruin 
 or favour his own projects hence the uncer- 
 tainty he felt, which he contrived so cleverly 
 to conceal by his discreet reserve. 
 
 " Very well," rejoined Cuchillo, " the thing 
 will keep that long." 
 
 And with this the conversation was discon- 
 tinued. 
 
 Cuchillo, joyed at being disembarrassed of his 
 apprehension about the secret, began carelessly 
 whistling while he spurred forward his horse. 
 The greatest harmony continued between these 
 two men, who, though they knew it not, had 
 each a motive of the deadliest hatred one 
 against the other. Suddenly, as they were 
 thus riding along, the horse that carried them 
 stumbled upon the left foreleg, and almost 
 came to the ground. On the instant Tiburcio 
 leaped down, and with eyes flashing fire, cried 
 out in a threatening tone to his astonished 
 companion : 
 
 "You say you have never been beyond Tubac 
 where did you get this horse, Cuchillo ?"
 
 A STUMBLING HORSE. 159 
 
 "What business of yours is it where I got 
 him?" answered the outlaw, surprised by a 
 question to which his conscience gave an alarm- 
 ing significance; " and what has my horse to 
 do with the interrogatory you have so dis- 
 courteously put to me ? " 
 
 " By the soul of Arellanos ! I will know; or, 
 if not " 
 
 Cuchillo gave the spur to his horse, causing 
 him to bound to one side while at the same 
 time he attempted to unbuckle the straps that 
 fastened his carbine to the saddle ; but Tiburcio 
 sprang after him, seized his hand, and held it 
 while he repeated the question : 
 
 " How long have you owned this horse ? " 
 
 " There, now ! what curiosity ! " answered 
 Cuchillo, with a forced smile; "still, since you 
 are so eager to know it is it is about six 
 weeks since I became his master ; you may 
 have seen me with him, perhaps ? " 
 
 In truth, it was the first time Tiburcio had 
 seen Cuchillo with this horse that, notwith- 
 standing his bad habit of stumbling, was
 
 160 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 otherwise an excellent animal, and was only 
 used by his master on grand occasions. 
 For this very reason Tiburcio had not seen 
 him before. 
 
 The ready lie of the outlaw dissipated, no 
 doubt, certain suspicions that had arisen in 
 the mind of the young man, for the latter let 
 go the horseman's wrist, which up to this 
 time he had held in his firm grasp. 
 
 " Pardon me," said he, " for this rudeness ; 
 but allow me to ask you another question ? " 
 
 "Ask it!" said Cuchillo, "since we are 
 friends ; in fact, among friends, one question 
 less or more can make no difference." 
 
 " Who sold you this horse six weeks ago ? " 
 
 "Por Dios, his owner, of course a 
 stranger, whom I did not know, but who had 
 just arrived from a long journey." 
 
 Cuchillo repeated these words in a slow and 
 drawling manner, as if to gain time for some 
 hidden purpose. 
 
 " A stranger? " repeated Tiburcio ; " par- 
 don me one more question ? "
 
 A STUMBLING HORSE. 161 
 
 " Has the horse been stolen from you f " 
 asked the outlaw in an ironical tone. 
 
 " No but let us think no more of my 
 folly pardon me, sefior ! " 
 
 " I pardon you," answered Cuchillo, in a 
 tone of magnanimity, " the more so," added 
 he mentally, "that you will not go much 
 farther, you son of a hound ! " 
 
 Tiburcio, unsuspecting, was no longer on 
 his guard, and the outlaw, profiting by the 
 darkness, had already detached his carbine 
 from the saddle. In another moment, 
 beyond doubt, he would have carried into 
 execution his demoniac purpose, had it not 
 been for the appearance of a horseman who 
 was coming at full gallop along the road. 
 Besides the horse which he rode, the horseman 
 led behind him another, saddled and bridled. 
 He was evidently a messenger from Don 
 Estevan. 
 
 "Ah I Is it you, Senor Cuchillo?" he 
 cried out, as he rode up. 
 
 " The devil ! " grumbled the outlaw, at 
 VOL. i. M
 
 162 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 this ill-timed interruption. " Ah ! is it you, 
 Senor Benito ? " he inquired, suddenly chang- 
 ing his tone. 
 
 "Yes. Well, have you saved the man? 
 Don Estevan has sent me back to you with a 
 gourd of fresh water, and a horse to bring 
 him on." 
 
 "He is there," replied Cuchillo, pointing 
 to Tiburcio, who stood at a little distance ; 
 " thanks to me he is sound and safe until I 
 have a chance of being once more alone with 
 him," he muttered, in a tone not intended to 
 be heard. 
 
 " Well, gentlemen," remarked the servant, 
 " we had better go on the camping place is 
 not far from here we can soon reach it." 
 
 Tiburcio leaped into the empty saddle, and 
 the three galloped silently towards the place 
 where the travellers had halted the servant 
 thinking only of reaching it as soon as possible 
 and going to rest Cuchillo mentally cursing 
 the interruption that had forced him to 
 adjourn his project of vengeance and
 
 A STUMBLING HORSE. 163 
 
 Tiburcio vainly endeavouring to drive out of 
 his mind the suspicion which this curious 
 incident had aroused. 
 
 In this occupation the three rode on for 
 about a quarter of an hour, until the gleam 
 of fires a-head discovered the halting-place of 
 the travellers at La Poza. Soon afterwards 
 their camp itself was reached. 
 
 M2
 
 164 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 LA POZA. 
 
 THE place known by the name " La Poza " 
 was the only one, within a circle of many 
 leagues, where at this time of the year water 
 could be found. There was here a natural 
 cistern or well partly nourished by a spring, 
 and partly by rain from the skies. It was 
 hollowed at the bottom of a little crater- 
 shaped valley, only a few paces in circum- 
 ference, the sloping sides of which served to 
 conduct to the well the rain-water that fell 
 around. 
 
 The ridges enclosing the little valley were 
 crowned with trees of thick frondage, which,
 
 LA POZA. ] 65 
 
 nourished by the evaporation of the water, 
 appeared green and vigorous, and protected 
 the cistern from the burning rays of the sun. 
 The green grass that grew around, the cool 
 shadow of the trees, and the freshness of the 
 air rendered the well of La Poza, in the 
 middle of the desert, a delicious little oasis. 
 Besides serving as an excellent resting-place 
 for travellers, it was a favourite resort of 
 hunters, who used it as a stalking-ground for 
 animals elks and deer as well as jaguars 
 and other fierce beasts that in great numbers 
 came to the well to drink. 
 
 At a short distance from the cistern of La 
 Poza commenced a tract of thick forest, through 
 which ran the path leading to the Hacienda 
 del Yenado. Nearer to the edge of the little 
 valley, upon the side of this path, the travel- 
 lers had kindled an enormous fire, partly to 
 defend themselves from the cold night air, and 
 partly to frighten off any jaguars or pumas 
 that might be in the neighbourhood of the water. 
 
 Not far from this fire the servants had
 
 166 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 placed the camp-beds of the Senator arid Don 
 Estevan ; and while a large saddle of mutton 
 was being roasted for supper, a skin bottle of 
 wine was cooling in the fresh water with which 
 the trough had been filled. 
 
 After a painful day's march, it was an at- 
 tractive spectacle which this scene presented 
 to the eyes of the travellers. 
 
 " Mira! your halting-place, Tiburcio," said 
 Cuchillo, as they rode into the camp, and 
 speaking in a tone of pretended friendliness, 
 in order to conceal the real rancour which he 
 felt. " Dismount here, while I go and report 
 your arrival to our chief. It is Don Estevan 
 de Arechiza himself under whose orders we 
 are enrolled ; so, too, may you be, if you 
 desire it ; and between ourselves, amigo, it is 
 the best thing you can do." 
 
 Cuchillo, fearing that his victim might 
 escape him, now wished more than ever that 
 he should join the expedition. He pointed 
 out Don Estevan and the Senator seated on 
 their camp-beds, and visible in the light of
 
 LA POZA. 167 
 
 the great fire, while Tiburcio was not yet seen 
 by them. Cuchillo himself advanced towards 
 Don Estevan. 
 
 " I am desirous, Senor Don Estevan," said 
 he, addressing himself to the Spaniard, "to 
 say two words to your honour, with the per- 
 mission of his excellency the Senator. 
 
 Don Estevan rose from his seat, and made 
 a sign to Cuchillo to accompany him into one 
 of the dark alleys of the forest, the same by 
 which the path entered that led to the hacienda. 
 
 " You will hardly guess, Senor Don Estevan, 
 who is the man your generosity has saved 
 for I have brought him with me safe and sound, 
 as you see?" 
 
 Without making answer, Don Estevan took 
 from his purse the piece of gold he had pro- 
 mised, and handed it to Cuchillo. 
 
 "It is the young Tiburcio Arellanos to 
 whom you have given life," continued the out- 
 law. " As for me, I only followed the dictates 
 of my heart ; but it may be that we have both 
 done a very foolish action,"
 
 168 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " Why that ? " asked the Spaniard. " This 
 young man will be easily watched so long as 
 he is near us ; and I presume he is decided to 
 be one of our expedition?" 
 
 " He has asked twenty-four hours to reflect 
 upon it." 
 
 " Do you think he knows anything of " 
 
 " I have my fears," replied Cuchillo, in a 
 melancholy tone, little regarding the lie he 
 was telling, the purpose of which was to 
 render the Spaniard suspicious of the man he 
 had himself vowed to kill. " In any case," 
 continued he, with a significant smile, " we 
 have saved his life, and that will serve as tit 
 for tat. 
 
 " What do you mean to say?" 
 
 " Only that my conscience assures me it 
 will be perfectly tranquil if if Carramba!" 
 added he, brusquely " if I should send this 
 young fellow to be broiled with his mother in 
 the other world." 
 
 " God forbid that ! " exclaimed the Spaniard, 
 in a lively tone. " What need? Admit that
 
 LA POZA. 169 
 
 he knows all I shall be in command of a 
 hundred men, and he altogether alone. What 
 harm can the fellow do us ? I have no un- 
 easiness about him. I am satisfied, and so 
 must you be." 
 
 " Oh ! I am satisfied if you are," growled 
 Cuchillo, like a dog whom his master had hin- 
 dered from biting some one ''quite satisfied," 
 he continued, " but perhaps hereafter " 
 
 " I shall see this young man," said the 
 Spaniard, interrupting him, and advancing in 
 the direction where Tiburcio stood, while 
 Cuchillo followed, talking to himself: 
 
 "What the devil possessed him to ask how 
 long I had owned my horse ? Let me see ! 
 The animal stumbled, I remember, and it was 
 just then he dismounted and threatened me. 
 I can't understand it ; but I suspect what I do 
 not understand." 
 
 When Arechiza and Cuchillo reached the 
 camp, an excitement was observed among the 
 horses that gathered around the capitana, at 
 a short distance from the fire, which, to all ap-
 
 170 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 pearance in a state of extreme terror, were 
 uttering a wild and continuous neighing. 
 Some danger yet nfar, but which the animals' 
 instincts enabled them to perceive, was the 
 cause of this sudden stampedo. 
 
 " It is some jaguar they have scented," 
 suggested one of the domestics. 
 
 " Bah ! " replied another, " the jaguars 
 attack only young foals they wouldn't dare 
 to assault a strong, vigorous horse." 
 
 "Do you think so?" demanded the first 
 speaker. " Ask Benito here, who himself 
 lost a valuable animal taken by the jaguars." 
 
 Benito, hearing this reference to himself, 
 advanced towards the two speakers. 
 
 " One day," he began, " or rather one 
 night just like this, I chanced to be at a dis- 
 tance from the Hacienda del Yenado, where I 
 was a vaquero at the time. I was in search 
 of a strayed horse, and not finding him, had 
 made up my mind to pass the night at the 
 spring of Ojo de Agua. I tied my horse at a 
 good distance off where there was better
 
 LA POZA. 171 
 
 grass and I was sleeping, as a man sleeps 
 after riding twenty leagues, when I was sud- 
 denly awakened by all the howlings and growl- 
 ings of the devils. The moon shone so clear 
 you might have fancied it daylight. All at 
 once my horse came galloping toward me with 
 the lazo hanging round his neck, which he 
 had broken at the risk of hanging himself. 
 
 " * Here, then/ said I, ' I shall now have 
 two horses to go in search of instead of 
 one.' 
 
 " I had scarce made this reflection, when I 
 observed, under the light of the moon, a 
 superb jaguar bounding after my horse. He 
 scarce appeared to touch the ground, and 
 each leap carried him forward twenty feet or 
 more. 
 
 " I saw that my poor steed was lost. 1 
 listened with anxiety, but for awhile heard 
 nothing. At the end of a quarter of an hour, 
 however, a terrible roar " 
 
 The speaker paused, and stood trembling. 
 
 " Virgen Santa!" cried he, "that's it!"
 
 172 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 as the fearful cry of a jaguar at that moment 
 echoed through the camp, succeeded by a 
 deathlike stillness, as if both men and animals 
 had been alike terrified into silence.
 
 173 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 NOCTURNAL VISITORS. 
 
 THE sudden shock occasioned by the percep- 
 tion of a peril so proximate and imminent 
 paralyzed every tongue. Even the ex-herds- 
 man himself was silent, and appeared to 
 reflect what had best be done to avoid the 
 danger. 
 
 At this instant, the voice of Don Estevan 
 broke the temporary silence that reigned within 
 the camp. 
 
 " Get your weapons ready ! " shouted he. 
 
 " It is useless, master," rejoined the old 
 vaquero, whose experience among jaguars gave 
 a certain authority to his words; "the best 
 thing to be done is to keep the fire a-blaze."
 
 174 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 And saying this, he flung an armful of fagots 
 upon it, which, being dry as tinder, at once 
 caught flame so as to illumine a large circle 
 around the camp. 
 
 " If they are not choking with thirst," said 
 Benito, "these demons of darkness will not dare 
 to come within the circle of the fire. But, in- 
 deed, they are often choking with thirst, and 
 then " 
 
 " Then ! " interrupted one of the domestics, 
 in a tone of anxiety. 
 
 " Then," continued the herdsman, " then 
 they don't regard either light or fire ; and if 
 we are not determined to defend the water 
 against their approach, we had better get out 
 of their way altogether. These animals are 
 always more thirsty than hungry." 
 
 " How when they have drunk ? " asked 
 Baraja, whose countenance, under the light of 
 the fire, betrayed considerable uneasiness. 
 
 "Why, then they seek to appease their 
 hunger. 
 
 At this moment, a second cry from the
 
 NOCTURNAL VISITORS. 175 
 
 jaguar was heard, but farther off than the 
 first. This was some relief to the auditory of 
 Benito, who, relying upon his theory, were 
 satisfied that the animal was not yet at the 
 extreme point of suffering from thirst. All 
 of them preserved silence the only sounds 
 heard being the crackling of the dry sticks 
 with which Baraja kept the fire profusely 
 supplied. 
 
 " Gently there, Baraja, gently ! " called 
 out the vaquero. " If you consume our stock 
 of fire-wood in that fashion, you will soon 
 make an end of it, and por Dios ! amigo, you 
 will have to go to the woods for a fresh 
 supply." 
 
 " There ! hold your hand," continued he, 
 after a pause, " and try to make the fagots 
 last as long as possible, else we may get into 
 darkness, and be at the mercy of the tiger. He 
 is sure to come back again in an hour or two, 
 and far thirstier than before." 
 
 If Benito had desired to frighten his com- 
 panions, he could not liave succeeded better.
 
 176 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 The eyes of one and all of them were anxiously 
 bent upon the heap of dried sticks that still 
 remained by the fire, and which appeared 
 scarcely sufficient to last for another hour. 
 But there was something so earnest in the 
 tone of the ex-herdsman, despite the jesting 
 way in which he spoke, that told he was 
 serious in what he had said. 
 
 Of course, Don Estevan had postponed the 
 interview with Tiburcio ; and the young man, 
 still ignorant that it was to Don Estevan he 
 really owed his life, did not think of approach- 
 ing to offer him thanks. Moreover, he saw 
 that the moment would be ill-timed to ex- 
 change compliments of courtesy with the chief 
 of the expedition, and for this reason he re- 
 mained standing where Cuchillo had left him. 
 
 Nevertheless, Don Estevan could not hinder 
 himself from casting an occasional glance in 
 the direction where the young man stood 
 though, through the obscurity, he could make 
 no exact observation of his features. 
 
 The silence continued. Don Estevan and
 
 NOCTURNAL VISITORS. 177 
 
 the Senator remained seated on their camp- 
 beds, carbine in hand, while Benito, surround- 
 ed by the other domestics, formed a group by 
 the side of the fire. The horses had all ap- 
 proached within a few feet of their masters, 
 where they stood trembling and breathing 
 loudly from their spread nostrils. Their beha- 
 viour indicated an instinct on their part that 
 the danger was not yet over. 
 
 Several minutes passed, in which no human 
 voice broke the silence. In the midst of the 
 greatest perils, there is something consolatory 
 in the sound of a man's voice something 
 which makes the danger appear less ; and, as 
 if struck by this idea, some one asked Benito 
 to continue the narrative of his adventures. 
 
 "I have told youthen," resumed the ex- 
 herdsman, " that I saw the tiger springing 
 after my horse, and that in the chase both 
 disappeared from my sight. The moment 
 after the horse came galloping back; but I 
 knew that it was his last gallop, as soon as by 
 the light of the moon I saw the terrible rider 
 
 VOL. I. N
 
 178 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 that he carried. The jaguar was upon his 
 back, flattened over his shoulders, with the 
 neck of the poor horse fast between his 
 jaws. 
 
 " They had not gone a dozen paces before 
 I heard a crackling sound as if some bone 
 had been crushed and on the instant I saw 
 the horse stumble and fall. Both tiger and 
 horse rolled over and over, in a short but ter- 
 rible struggle, and then my poor steed lay 
 motionless. 
 
 " For safety I stole away from the danger- 
 ous proximity; but returning after daylight, 
 I found only the half-stripped skeleton of a 
 horse that had carried me for many a long 
 year. 
 
 " And now, amigo," continued the ex-herds- 
 man, turning to the man who had first spoken, 
 " do you still think that the jaguar attacks 
 only foals ? " 
 
 No one made reply, but Benito's audience 
 turned their glances outward from the fire, 
 fearing that in the circle around they might
 
 NOCTURNAL VISITORS. 1 79 
 
 see shining the eyes of one of these formidable 
 animals. 
 
 Another interval of silence succeeded to the 
 narrative of the vaquero. This was broken 
 by the young man, Tiburcio, who, used to the 
 wild life of the plains and forests, was very 
 little frightened by the presence of the 
 jaguars. 
 
 " If you have a horse," said he, " you need 
 not much fear the jaguar ; he is sure to take 
 your horse first. Here we have twenty horses, 
 and only one tiger." 
 
 " The young man reasons well," rejoined 
 Baraja, re-assured by the observation of 
 Tiburcio. 
 
 " Twenty horses for one tiger yes," replied 
 Benito ; " but suppose the horses don't choose 
 to remain here. Supposing, what is likely 
 enough to happen, we have an estampeda 
 the horses will be off. Now the jaguar knows 
 very well he cannot overtake a horse, unless 
 he does so in the first bound or two. He will 
 not follow the horses then, but will stay by 
 
 N2
 
 180 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the water, and of course by us as well. Be- 
 sides, the jaguars that hunt by these springs 
 are likely enough to have tasted human flesh 
 beiore now ; and if so, they will not, as the 
 young man affirms, prefer the flesh of a 
 horse." 
 
 " Very consoling, that," interrupted Cu- 
 chillo. 
 
 Benito appeared to be a man fond of the 
 most frightful suggestions, for, not contented 
 with what he had already said, he con- 
 tinued : 
 
 " If there be but one jaguar, then he will 
 be satisfied with one of us ; but in case he 
 should chance to be accompanied by his female, 
 then" 
 
 "Then what, by all the devils?" demanded 
 Cuchillo. 
 
 " Why then but I don't wish to frighten 
 you." 
 
 " May thunder strike you ! Speak out," 
 cried Baraja, suffering at the suspense. 
 
 " Why, in that case," coolly added Benito,
 
 NOCTURNAL VISITORS. 181 
 
 " the tiger would, undoubtedly, show his gal- 
 lantry to his female by killing a pair of us." 
 
 " Carramba ! " fervently exclaimed Baraja. 
 " I pray the Lord that this tiger may be a 
 bachelor," and as he said this, he flung a fresh 
 armful of fagots on the fire. 
 
 " Gently, amigo ! gently," interrupted the 
 ex-herdsman, lifting off some of the sticks 
 again. " We have yet at least six hours of 
 night, and these fagots will scarce serve to 
 keep up the light for one. Gently, I say ! 
 We have still three chances of safety : the 
 first, that the jaguar may not be thirsty ; the 
 second, that he may content himself with one 
 of our horses ; and the third, that he may, as 
 you have wished it, be a bachelor tiger." 
 
 There was no response, and another interval 
 of silence succeeded. During this it was 
 some consolation to the travellers to see the 
 moon, which now, rising above the horizon, 
 lit up the plain with her white beams, and 
 flung her silvery effulgence over the trees. 
 From the direction of the woods came the
 
 182 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 mournful notes of the great horned owl, and 
 the sound of flapping wings, caused by the 
 vampire bat as it glided through the aisles of the 
 forest. No other sounds appeared to indicate 
 the presence of living thing except those 
 made by the horses, or thetravellers themselves. 
 
 " Do you think," said Tiburcio, addressing 
 himself to Benito, " that the jaguar is likely 
 to return again ? I have known these animals 
 howl at night around my hut, and then go off 
 altogether." 
 
 " Yes," replied Benito, " that may be when 
 their drinking place is left free to them. 
 Here we have intercepted their approach to 
 the water. Besides, here are both men and 
 horses both food and drink in one place ; it 
 is not likely they have gone away from a spot 
 that promises to furnish them with both. No, 
 I warrant you, they are still in the neighbour- 
 hood." 
 
 At this moment the cry of the jaguar was 
 heard once more, proving the correctness of 
 Benito's judgment.
 
 NOCTURNAL VISITORS. 183 
 
 " There !" cried he, "just as I said; the 
 beast is nearer too no doubt his thirst is 
 increasing the more so that he is hindered 
 from approaching the spring. Ha ! do you 
 hear that ? " 
 
 This exclamation was caused by another 
 roar of the jaguar, but evidently not the one 
 that had been already frightening the travel- 
 lersfor this cry came from the opposite side 
 of the camp." 
 
 " Ave Maria!" screamed Baraja, in anguish, 
 " the tiger has a wife ! " 
 
 " You speak true," said Benito, " there are 
 two of them, and they must be a male and 
 female, since two male jaguars never hunt in 
 company." 
 
 " Carrai!" exclaimed Cuchillo, "may the 
 devil take me if ever I passed a night in the 
 company of such a man as this old herdsman. 
 He would frighten the hair off one's head if he 
 could." 
 
 " After all," said Baraja, " I think there 
 can't be much danger, so long as we have got
 
 184 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the horses between us and these terrible 
 brutes." 
 
 " Unhappily, this chance of safety was not 
 to exist much longer, for just then the jaguars 
 recommenced their growling, both of them 
 nearer than ever. The effect upon the horses 
 was now exhibited in a complete estampeda 
 for these animals, seeing they could no longer 
 rely upon their masters for protection, pre- 
 ferred trusting to their heels and one and all 
 of them broke away in a wild gallop. 
 
 As this last chance of security was gone, 
 the old vaquero, leaving the fire, approached 
 the spot where Don Estevan and the Senator 
 were seated, and thus addressed them : 
 
 " Gentlemen," said he, " prudence requires 
 that you will not remain so far from the rest 
 of us. As you perceive there is danger on 
 both sides, it will be best that we should all 
 keep close together, and as near the fire as 
 possible." 
 
 The affrighted look of the Senator offered a 
 striking contrast to the countenance of Don
 
 NOCTURNAL VISITORS. 185 
 
 Estevan, which still preserved its calm 
 rigidity. 
 
 "It is good advice this faithful servant 
 gives us," said Tragaduros, rising to do as 
 Benito had suggested. 
 
 "Come, Benito," said Don Estevan, "these 
 are nothing but hunter's stories you have 
 been telling, and you wish to frighten these 
 novices is it not so ? " 
 
 "As I live, Seiior Don Estevan, 'tis the 
 truth ! " 
 
 " There is a real danger, then ? " 
 
 " Certain there is, my master ! " 
 
 "Very well, in that case I shall remain 
 where I am." 
 
 " Are you in earnest ? " asked the frightened 
 Tragaduros. 
 
 " Quite so the duty of a leader is to pro- 
 tect his followers," said the Spaniard, proudly, 
 " and that is what I mean to do. If the dan- 
 ger is only from the right and left as it ap- 
 pears to be I shall guard the right here. 
 There are two bullets in my gun, and with
 
 186 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 these and a sure eye, what care I for a jaguar ? 
 You, Senor Don Vicente, can take your stand 
 on the left of the fire, and watch that side. 
 If it appears prudent to you to keep near the 
 men, do so." 
 
 This compromise appeared to the taste of 
 Tragaduros, who had no idea of exposing the 
 person of a man who was to be the future 
 proprietor of a million dollars dowry. He 
 lost no time, therefore, in crossing over to the 
 fire, and although he made a feint to keep 
 watch on the opposite side from that guarded by 
 Don Estevan, he took care to remain within a 
 few feet of the group of attendants. 
 
 These dispositions had scarce been com- 
 pleted, when a formidable dialogue was struck 
 up between the two fierce beasts that were 
 approaching on opposite sides of the camp. 
 Now they would utter a hoarse roaring, then 
 a series of screams and yells, succeeded by a 
 shrill mewing that resembled the caterwauling 
 of cats only louder and more terrific in its 
 effect; Though Benito and Tiburcio knew
 
 NOCTURNAL VISITORS. 187 
 
 that all these noises were caused by a single 
 pair of tigers, the others imagined that not 
 less than a dozen must be engaged in the 
 frightful chorus. 
 
 The gun of the Senator shook in his hand 
 Baraja commended his soul to all the saints 
 in the Spanish calendar Cuchillo clutched 
 his carbine, as if he would crush it between 
 his fingers while the chief himself coolly 
 awaited the deno&ment of the drama.
 
 188 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE TIGER HUNTERS. 
 
 BY the light of the fire, Don Estevan could be 
 seen walking in the direction whence pro- 
 ceeded the cries of the jaguar that was ap- 
 proaching on the right. He appeared calm, 
 as if going out in search of a deer. Tiburcio, 
 at the aspect of the Spanish chief, felt within 
 him that exultation of spirit which danger 
 produces in certain energetic natures ; but his 
 dagger was the only weapon he possessed. 
 
 He cast a glance at the double-barrelled 
 gun which the Senator held in his hand, and 
 of which the latter was likely to make a use 
 more fatal to his companions than to the jaguar.
 
 THE TIGER HUNTERS. 189 
 
 On his part the Senator cast an envious look 
 upon the safe position which Tiburcio occu- 
 pied in the centre of the group formed by 
 Benito and his companions. Tiburcio read 
 the meaning of this look. 
 
 " Seilor Senator," said he, " it is not 
 proper that you should expose your life thus 
 a life valuable to the state. You have 
 relatives a noble family ; as for me, if I 
 should be killed, there is no one to care for me." 
 
 " The fact is," said the Senator, " if others 
 set upon my life half the value I put upon it 
 myself, my death would cause a great deal of 
 unhappiness." 
 
 "Well, senor, suppose we change places? 
 You give me your gun, and permit me to 
 place my body before you as a rampart 
 against the claws of the jaguars." 
 
 This proposal was made at the moment 
 when the two cavernous voices of the fero- 
 cious beasts were heard loudly answering to 
 one another. Under the impression produced 
 by the terrible dialogue, Tiburcio's offer was
 
 190 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 hastily accepted. The Senator took his place, 
 while the young man, with sparkling eyes and 
 firm step, advanced several paces in the direc- 
 tion of the forest whence came the cries of the 
 jaguar. There he halted to receive the attack 
 that appeared inevitable. 
 
 Don Estevan and he appeared motionless 
 as a pair of statues. The unequal reflections 
 of the fire gleamed upon these two men 
 whom chance had thus strangely united 
 neither of whom might yield to the other in 
 pride or courage. 
 
 The moment was becoming critical. The 
 two jaguars were about to find enemies worthy 
 of them. 
 
 The fire, now burnt down, threw out only a 
 pale light, scarce strong enough to illumine 
 the group that stood near its edge. 
 
 At this moment an incident occurred which 
 was likely to cause a change in the situation 
 of affairs. In the midst of an interval of 
 silence in which the very stillness itself in- 
 creased the apprehension of the travellers
 
 THE TIGER HUNTERS. 191 
 
 was heard the long, lugubrious whine of a 
 prairie wolf. Melancholy as was this sound, 
 it was sweet in comparison with the cries of 
 the more formidable animals, the jaguars. 
 
 " The prairie wolf to howl so in the presence 
 of the tiger ! " muttered the ex-herdsman. 
 " Carramba ! there's something strange about 
 that." 
 
 " But I have heard it said," rejoined Tibur- 
 cio, " that it is the habit of the prairie wolf 
 to follow the jaguar when the latter is in 
 search of prey." 
 
 " That is true enough," replied Benito, 
 " but the wolf never howls so near the tiger, 
 till after the tiger has taken his prey, and is 
 busy devouring it. Then his howl is a humble 
 prayer for the other to leave him something. 
 
 " This is strange," continued the vaquero, 
 as the prairie wolf was heard to utter another 
 long whine. "Hark! another! yes an- 
 other prairie wolf, and on the opposite side, 
 too ! " 
 
 In fact, another plaintive whine, exactly re-
 
 192 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 sembling the first, both in strength and cadence, 
 was heard from a point directly opposite. 
 
 " I repeat it," said Benito, " prairie wolves 
 would never dare to betray themselves thus. 
 I am greatly mistaken if it be not creatures of 
 a different species that make this howling, 
 and who don't care a straw for the jaguars." 
 
 " What creatures ? " demanded Tiburcio. 
 
 "Human creatures!" answered the ex-herds- 
 man. " American hunters from the north." 
 
 " Trappers do you mean? " 
 
 " Precisely. There are no people in these 
 parts likely to be so fearless of the jaguar, 
 and I am pretty sure that what appears to be 
 the call of the prairie wolf is nothing else 
 than a signal uttered by a brace of trappers. 
 They are in pursuit of the jaguars ; they have 
 separated, and by these signals they acquaint 
 one another of their whereabouts." 
 
 Meanwhile the trappers, if such they were, 
 appeared to advance with considerable pre- 
 caution; for although the party by the fire 
 listened attentively, not the slightest noise
 
 THE TIGER HUNTERS. 193 
 
 could be heard neither the cracking of a 
 branch, nor the rustling of a leaf. 
 
 " Hilloa ! you by the fire there ! " all at 
 once broke out from the midst of the dark- 
 ness a loud rough voice, " we are approach- 
 ing you. Don't be afraid ; and don't fire 
 your guns ! " 
 
 The voice had a foreign accent, which 
 partly confirmed the truth of the vaquero's 
 conjecture, and the appearance of the speaker 
 himself proved it to a certainty. 
 
 We shall not stay to describe the singular 
 aspect of the new arrival further than to say 
 that he was a man of herculean stature, and 
 accoutred in the most bizarre fashion. He 
 appeared a sort of giant, armed with a rifle 
 proportioned to his size that is, having a 
 barrel of thick heavy metal nearly six feet in 
 length. 
 
 As he approached the group, his sharp eye 
 soon took in the different individuals that com- 
 posed it ; and rested with a satisfied look on 
 the form of Tiburcio. 
 
 VOL. i. o
 
 194 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " The devil take that fire of yours ! " he 
 said, abruptly, but in a tone of good-humour. 
 " It has frightened away from us two of the 
 most beautiful jaguars that ever roamed 
 about these deserts." 
 
 " Frightened them away !' ' exclaimed 
 Baraja. " Carramba ! I hope that may be 
 true!" 
 
 " Will you allow me to put the fire out? " 
 inquired the new comer. 
 
 "Put out the fire our only safeguard ! " 
 cried the astonished Senator. 
 
 " Your only safeguard ! " repeated the 
 trapper, equally astonished, as he pointed 
 with his finger around him. " What ! eight 
 men wanting a fire for a safeguard against 
 two poor tigers ! You are surely making game 
 of me!" 
 
 " Who are you, sir ? " demanded Don 
 Estevan, in a haughty tone. . 
 
 " A hunter as you see." 
 
 "Hunter of what?" 
 
 " My comrade and I trap the beaver, hunt
 
 THE TIGER HUNTERS. 195 
 
 the wolf, the tiger or an Indian, if need 
 be." 
 
 " Heaven has sent you then to deliver us 
 from these fierce animals," said Cuchillo, 
 showing himself in front. 
 
 "Not very likely," replied the trapper, 
 whose first impression of the outlaw was evi- 
 dently an unfavourable one. "Heaven, I 
 fancy, had nothing to do with it. My com- 
 rade and I, at about two leagues from here, 
 chanced upon a panther and two jaguars 
 quarrelling over the body of a dead horse." 
 
 " He was mine," interrupted Tiburcio. 
 
 " Yours, young man ! " continued the 
 trapper, in a tone of rude cordiality. " Well, 
 I am glad to see you here, for we thought 
 that the owner of the horse might be no 
 longer among the living. The panther we 
 killed, but the two jaguars made off, and we 
 tracked them hither to the spring, which your 
 fire now hinders them from approaching. 
 Therefore, if you wish to be rid of these 
 beasts, the sooner you put out the fire the 
 
 2
 
 196 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 better ; and you will see how soon we shall 
 disembarrass you of their presence." 
 
 " And your comrade ? " asked Don Este- 
 van, struck with the idea of making a brace 
 of valuable recruits. " Where is he ? " 
 
 " He'll be here presently ; but to the work, 
 else we must leave you to get out of your 
 scrape as you best can." 
 
 There was a certain authority in the tone 
 and words of the trapper a cool assurance 
 that produced conviction, and upon his draw- 
 ing near to put out the fire, Don Estevan did 
 not offer to hinder him, but tacitly permitted 
 him to have his way. 
 
 In a few seconds the burnt fagots were 
 scattered about over the grass, and the 
 cinders quenched by a few buckets of water 
 drawn from the trough. This done, the 
 trapper uttered an imitation of the voice of 
 the coyote ; and before its echoes had died 
 away, his companion stepped forward upon 
 the ground. 
 
 Although the second trapper was by no
 
 THE TIGER HUNTERS. 197 
 
 means a man of low stature, alongside his 
 companion he appeared only a pigmy. He 
 was not less strangely accoutred, but in the 
 absence of the fire-light his costume was not 
 sufficiently visible for its style to be dis- 
 tinguished. Of him and his dress we shall 
 hereafter speak more particularly. 
 
 " At last your devilish fire is out," said he, 
 as he came up ; "for the want of wood, no 
 doubt, which none of you dared to go fetch?" 
 
 " No, that is not the reason," hastily replied 
 the first trapper ; "I got leave from these 
 gentlemen to put it out so that we may have 
 an opportunity to rid them of the presence of 
 the tigers." 
 
 "Hum!" murmured the Senator; "I fear 
 we have done wrong in letting the fire be put 
 out. Suppose you miss them?" 
 
 " Miss them ! For Dios ! how?" cried the 
 second trapper. Caspita ! If I had not been 
 afraid to frighten off one of the beasts, I could 
 have killed the other long ago. Several times 
 I had him at the muzzle of my carbine, when
 
 198 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the signal of my comrade hindered me from 
 firing. Miss them indeed ! " 
 
 " Never mind ! " interrupted the great trap- 
 per; "we shall end the matter, I have no 
 doubt, by convincing this gentleman." 
 
 "You already knew, then, that we were 
 here?" said Baraja. 
 
 " Of course. We have been two hours in- 
 voluntarily playing the spy upon you. Ah ! 
 I know a part of the country where travellers 
 that take no more precautions than you, would 
 soon find their heads stripped of the skin. But 
 come, Dormilon to our work ! " 
 
 "What if the jaguars come our way?" 
 suggested the Senator, apprehensively. 
 
 " No fear of that," replied the trapper. 
 " Their first care will be to satisfy their thirst, 
 which your fire has hindered them from doing. 
 You will hear them howling with joy, as soon 
 as they perceive that the fire is gone out. It 
 was the light shining upon the water that 
 frightened them more than the presence of 
 men. All they want now is to get a drink."
 
 THE TIGER HUNTERS. 199 
 
 " But how do you intend to act?" inquired 
 Don Estevan. 
 
 "How do we intend to act?" repeated the 
 second trapper. " That is simple enough. 
 We shall place ourselves in the cistern the 
 jaguars will come forward to its brink; and 
 then, if we are only favoured by a blink of 
 the moon, I'll answer for it that in the twink- 
 ling of an eye the brutes will neither feel 
 hunger nor thirst." 
 
 "Ah, this appears very simple!" cried 
 Cuchillo, who was in reality astonished at the 
 simplicity of the plan. 
 
 " Simple as bidding ' good bye' to you," 
 humorously responded one of the trappers. 
 "Listen there ! what did I tell you?" 
 
 Two loud roars, as if from a brazen trumpet, 
 were heard at the moment. They appeared 
 to proceed from the same point, proving that 
 the jaguars had joined company ; and, more- 
 over, proclaimed the joy which the fierce 
 creatures felt at the darkness being restored. 
 This was further evident from their repeated
 
 200 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 sniffing of the air, like horses who afar off 
 scent with delight the fresh emanations of the 
 water. 
 
 At this the two trappers, leaving the party 
 by the fire, betook themselves to the cistern. 
 The moon, for a moment shining out, glanced 
 upon the barrels of their long rifles ; but the 
 next moment they had disappeared behind the 
 ridge that surrounded the spring. 
 
 No doubt it is a grand pleasure to witness 
 the spectacle of a bull-fight, as the huge bull 
 dashes into the ring, and, pierced by the tor- 
 menting bandrilleros, with crest erect, and 
 eye flashing fire, bounds over the arena. But 
 if the spectators were not separated from the 
 actors by an impassable barrier, the sight 
 would have in it less of enjoyment than of 
 terror. The combats between men and tigers 
 which the Romans used to enjoy must 
 have been a still more exciting spectacle ; but 
 who can doubt that, if the iron railing which 
 separated the audience from the combatants 
 had been removed, scarce one of the former
 
 THE TIGER HUNTERS. 201 
 
 would have remained in the circus to witness 
 the sanguinary struggle ? 
 
 Only a short space not wider than a jaguar 
 could have passed over in a single leap here 
 separated the spectators from the actors in 
 the drama about to been acted. Supposing, 
 then, that one of the actors should fail in per- 
 forming his part, and the spectators have to 
 take his place ? Here was a situation, excep- 
 tional, and fertile in emotions, which most of 
 the travellers felt keenly at the moment. 
 
 Meanwhile the trappers had descended into 
 the little crater-like valley of the spring, and 
 there placed themselves in readiness, rifle in 
 hand, to wait the approach of their terrible 
 adversaries. They were both upon their knees, 
 back to back, in order that they might keep at 
 the same time under view the whole circum- 
 ference of the circle. Both had placed their 
 knives in readiness, in case that, by any chance, 
 they should either miss their aim, or what 
 would be almost as unlucky only wound the 
 enemy; for they well knew that a wounded
 
 202 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 jaguar is a more dangerous adversary than one 
 that escapes altogether from the touch of the 
 bullet. 
 
 Fortunately the moon had again appeared ; 
 but being yet low down in the sky, her beams 
 were not thrown into the bottom of the valley, 
 and therefore the trappers themselves were 
 still under the shadow. This circumstance was 
 in their favour. 
 
 Notwithstanding the perilous position in 
 which they had thus voluntarily placed them- 
 selves, neither made the slightest movement ; 
 and the long barrels of their rifles stood forth 
 in front of them, as motionless as bronze cannon 
 set in battery. 
 
 They well knew, in case either should miss 
 with their firearms, that a hand-to-hand strug- 
 gle with the ferocious tigers would be the re- 
 sult ; a combat of knives and claws a combat 
 to the death. Yes; at the bottom of that 
 little valley it would be necessary for them to 
 conquer or die. They knew this, without ex- 
 hibiting the slightest show of fear.
 
 203 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 UNEXPECTED KECOGNITIONS. 
 
 IT was not long before the spectators, who 
 awaited this terrible conflict, perceived the 
 jaguars advancing toward the crest of the 
 ridge. All at once, however, the two made 
 an abrupt pause, uttering a loud roar that 
 seemed to express disappointment. They had 
 just scented the presence of the two men with- 
 in the cistern from which the animals were 
 now only a few paces distant. 
 
 For a moment both male and female stood 
 together, stretching their bodies out to their 
 full length, and lashing their flanks with their 
 long sinewy tails. Then, uttering another 
 prolonged roar, they bounded simultaneously
 
 204 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 forward, passing, in a single lenp, over a space 
 of full twenty feet. A second spring brought 
 them upon the crest of the ridge, upon which 
 they had scarce rested an instant, before the 
 quick sharp crack of a rifle, followed by a yell 
 of agony, told that one of them had fallen to 
 the hunter's bullet. 
 
 The second jaguar appeared for the moment 
 to have escaped, but not to have retreated. 
 He was seen to launch himself into the bot- 
 tom of the little valley ; and then was heard a 
 confusion of noises human voices mingling 
 with the howls of the fierce brute ; and the 
 sound of a struggle, as if jaguar and hunters 
 were rolling over one another. A second re- 
 port now struck upon the ear, followed as be- 
 fore by the expiring'yell of the tiger, and then 
 succeeded a profound silence, which told that 
 the wild scene was at an end. 
 
 The great trapper was now perceived 
 scrambling up to the ridge towards which 
 the whole of the travellers had advanced to 
 meet him.
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 205 
 
 " See ! " he said, addressing himself to his 
 admiring auditory, " see what a brace of Ken- 
 tucky rifles and a good knife can do in the 
 hands of those who know how to manage 
 them ! " 
 
 The darkness, however, hindered the spec- 
 tators from making out the tableau which was 
 exhibited at the bottom of the little valley. 
 
 A few minutes afterwards the moon lighted 
 up the scene, and then could be observed the 
 dead bodies of the two tigers, stretched along 
 the ground by the water's edge, while the 
 other trapper, upon his knees, was engaged in 
 bathing with cold water a long scar which he 
 had received from the claws of the last killed 
 jaguar, and which extended from behind his 
 ear nearly down to his waist. Fortunately 
 this ugly-looking wound was no more than 
 skin deep, and therefore not very dangerous. 
 
 " What signify the sharpest claws compared 
 with the scratch of a knife ! " cried he, point- 
 ing to the nearest of the jaguars, whose up- 
 turned belly exhibited a huge cut of more than
 
 206 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 a foot in length, through which the entrails 
 of the animal protruded. 
 
 " Can any of you tell us ? " continued he, 
 without thinking further about his wound, " if 
 there is a hacienda in the neighbourhood 
 where one might sell these two beautiful 
 jaguar skins, as well as the hide of a panther 
 we've got ? " 
 
 " Certainly," replied Benito, " there is the 
 Hacienda del Venado, where we are going. 
 There you may get not only five dollars a-piece 
 for the skins, but also the bounty often dollars 
 more." 
 
 " What say you, Canadian ? " inquired the 
 trapper of his great comrade. "Will that do?" 
 
 " Certainly," replied the Canadian, " forty- 
 five dollars is not to be sneezed at ; and when 
 we have had a short nap, we shall make tracks 
 for the hacienda. We shall be likely to get 
 there before these gentlemen whose horses 
 have taken a fancy to have a bit of a gallop, 
 and I guess it will be some time before they 
 lay hands on them again."
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 207 
 
 " Don't be uneasy about us ! " rejoined the 
 ex-herdsman. " It's not the first time I've seen 
 horses drove stampedoed, nor the first time 
 I've collected them again. I've not quite 
 forgotten my old business, and as soon as it is 
 daylight, with the permission of the Senor 
 Don Estevan, I shall go in search of them." 
 
 No one made any opposition to the rekindling 
 of the fire ; for the night had grown cooler, 
 and it was not yet midnight. The domestics, 
 no longer afraid of going out into the woods, 
 collected fresh fagots enough to last till 
 morning and the preparations for supper, 
 which had been interrupted by the approach 
 of the jaguars, were now continued with re- 
 newed zeal. 
 
 The blaze soon flared up, bright and joyous 
 as ever the boiling mutton sent forth its 
 delicious odour, sharpening to a keen edge 
 the appetites of the travellers as they stood 
 around the fire. 
 
 Don Estevan and the Senator now called 
 before them the two intrepid hunters, who
 
 208 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 had rendered them a service that fully de- 
 served their thanks. 
 
 " Come hither, brave hunters ! " said the 
 Senator, "you whose daring behaviour has 
 been of such service to us. A slice of roast 
 mutton and a cup of Catalonian wine will not 
 be out of place, after the rude struggle you 
 have sustained." 
 
 " Ugh ! " said the eldest of the trappers, 
 in presenting his athletic form in front of the 
 fire, "throwing a couple of poor tigers is no 
 great feat. If it had been an affair of a 
 dozen Comanches, or Pawnees, that would 
 have been different. Howsomever, a chunk of 
 roast mutton is welcome after a fight, as well 
 as before one, and we're ready for it with 
 your permission. Come along, comrade ! 
 Here's some chawing for you ! " 
 
 "And you, young man," continued Don 
 Estevan, addressing himself to Tiburcio, who 
 stood at some distance apart, " you will also 
 partake of our hospitality ? " 
 
 Tiburcio, by a sign, accepted the invita-
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 209 
 
 tion, and approached the fire. For the first 
 time his countenance came fairly under the 
 light ; and as it did so, the eyes of the 
 Spaniard seemed to devour him with their 
 regard. In truth, the physiognomy of 
 Tiburcio Arellanos was of no ordinary cha- 
 racter, and would have merited observation 
 from one less interested in examining it than 
 was Don Estevan Arechiza. 
 
 An aquiline nose, black eyes, with thick 
 dark eyebrows and long lashes, an olive com- 
 plexion that appeared almost white in con- 
 trast with the jetty blackness of his beard 
 but above all, the extreme contraction of a 
 thin upper lip, indicated the countenance of a 
 man of quick resolves and fiery passions. A 
 shade of tranquil melancholy over these 
 features, to some extent, tempered their half- 
 fierce expression. 
 
 The hair was of a chestnut brown colour, 
 and hung in luxuriant curls over a forehead 
 large and of noble outline. Broad shoulders 
 and well-developed limbs denoted a man 
 
 VOL. i. P
 
 210 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 of European vigour, whose personal strength 
 would be equal, if occasion required it, to the 
 execution of those passionate designs nour- 
 ished under the tropical skies of Spanish 
 America. 
 
 Tiburcio Arellanos was, in truth, the type 
 of a noble and ancient race, transplanted into 
 a country still less than half civilized. 
 
 " The very form and bearing of Don Juan 
 de Mediana ! " muttered Don Estevan to 
 himself; more than half convinced that the 
 young man before his eyes was the son of him 
 whose name he had pronounced. No one 
 could have read his suspicions, hidden under 
 the mask of a perfect calmness. 
 
 There was one other man in that group 
 who was struck by the aspect of Tiburcio. 
 This was the big trapper, who, on the first 
 sight of the young man's face under the light 
 of the fire, started and closed his eyes, as if 
 lightning had flashed before them. He was 
 about to rush forward, when a second look 
 seemed to convince him he had made a mis-
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 211 
 
 take ; and smiling at his having done so, he 
 kept his place. His eyes then wandered 
 around the group of faces that encircled the 
 fire, with that scrutinizing glance that 
 showed a capacity for reading the characters 
 of men in their looks. 
 
 Having finished this scrutiny, he called out 
 to his companion, who had not yet got 
 forward : 
 
 " Come along, partner ; or people will say 
 you are ashamed to show yourself. Prove to 
 these gentlemen that you know how to enjoy 
 life like other folk." 
 
 " Oh, certainly I am coming all right, 
 comrade." 
 
 And the next moment the younger trapper 
 made his appearance within the circle of 
 light. 
 
 An odd-looking object he appeared, with 
 his huge fur cap upon his head, drawn down 
 in front so as to cover his eyes, and an old 
 striped cotton handkerchief fastened over his 
 face and throat in such a manner as to 
 
 P2
 
 212 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 conceal the scar made by the claws of the 
 tiger. With the cap and 'kerchief, the 
 greater portion of his countenance was 
 masked, leaving visible only his mouth, with 
 a double row of grand teeth, that promised to 
 perform their part upon the roast mutton. 
 
 Having reached the fire, he sat down with 
 his back to it so that his half-masked face 
 was still further concealed in shadow and 
 being supplied, as well as his comrade, with a 
 large cut from the joint, he at once set about 
 satisfying the appetite of hunger. 
 
 "Are there many men of your size and 
 strength where you come from?" inquired 
 the Senator, addressing himself to the largest 
 of the two hunters. 
 
 " In Canada," answered the latter, " I 
 should not be remarked among others ; ask 
 my comrade there ! " 
 
 " He speaks true," grumbled the other. 
 
 " But you are not both from the same 
 country?" said Tragaduros. 
 
 "No my comrade is a native of "
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 213 
 
 " Of New York State," hastily interposed 
 the younger of the two trappers a reply 
 which astonished the Canadian, but which he 
 refrained from contradicting. 
 
 "And what is your calling?" continued 
 the Senator, interrogatively. 
 
 " Coureurs des bois" (wood-rangers), ans- 
 wered the Canadian ; " that is to say, we 
 pass our time in ranging the woods, with no 
 other object than to avoid being shut up in 
 towns. Alas ! it is a profession likely soon to 
 come to an end ; and when we two are gone, 
 the race of wood-rangers will run out in 
 America, since neither of us has any sons to 
 carry on the business of his father." 
 
 There was a tone of melancholy in the last 
 words of the trapper's speech that contrasted 
 strangely with his rude manner something 
 that seemed to evince a certain degree of 
 regret. Don Estevan, noticing this, now 
 entered into the conversation. 
 
 " I fear it is a poor business you follow, my 
 brave fellows ! But if you feel inclined to
 
 214 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 leave it off for a while, and take part in an 
 expedition that we are about to set on foot, I 
 can promise to fill your caps with gold dust. 
 What say you?" 
 
 "No!" brusquely responded the younger 
 of the trappers. 
 
 "Each to his own business," added the 
 Canadian. "We are not gold-seekers. We 
 love to range freely where we please, without 
 leader, and without being controlled by any 
 one in a word, free as the sun or the prairie 
 breeze." 
 
 These answers were given in a tone so firm 
 and peremptory that the Spaniard saw it 
 would be of no use combating a resolution 
 which was evidently not to be shaken ; and 
 therefore he declined to make any further 
 offers. 
 
 Supper was soon over, and each of the 
 travellers set about making himself as com- 
 fortable as possible for the remainder of the 
 night. 
 
 In a short time, all, with the exception of
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 215 
 
 Tiburcio, were asleep. But Tiburcio was yet 
 a mere youth, an orphan, who had lately lost 
 a mother for whom he had a profound affec- 
 tion and above all, Tiburcio was in love 
 three reasons why he could not sleep. A 
 deep sadness had possession of his spirits. He 
 
 felt himself in an exceptional situation his 
 
 past was equally mysterious with his future. 
 
 " Oh my mother ! my mother !" murmured 
 he, despairingly, to himself, "why did you 
 not tell me who I am ! " 
 
 And as he said this, he appeared to listen 
 as if the breeze, sighing through the leaves, 
 would give a response to his interrogation. 
 Little thought he at the moment that one of 
 those men lying near him, under the light of 
 the moon, could have given the desired answer 
 could have told him the name which he 
 ought to bear. 
 
 Nevertheless, on her death-bed, the widow 
 of Marcos Arellanos had revealed to him a 
 secret perhaps almost as interesting as that 
 of his birth and parentage.
 
 216 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 The secret of the Golden Valley, which had 
 been made known to Tiburcio, had opened his 
 eyes to a world of pleasant dreams. A pro- 
 spect which hitherto had appeared to him only 
 as a chimerical vision was now viewed by him 
 in the light of a reality. A gulf that before 
 seemed impassable was now bridged over as 
 if by the hand of some powerful fairy. 
 
 Gold can work such miracles. Had he not 
 in prospect the possession of a rich placer? 
 Would not that enable him to overcome all 
 obstacles both of the past and the future ? 
 Might he not, by the puissance of gold, dis- 
 cover who were his real parents ? And by the 
 same means, might he not realize that sweeter 
 dream that had now for two years held pos- 
 session of his heart ? 
 
 As he lay upon the ground, kept awake by 
 these hopeful reflections, a vision was passing 
 before his mind's eye. It was a scene in 
 which were many figures a gentleman of 
 rich apparel a young girl, his daughter a 
 train of servants, all affrighted and in con-
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 217 
 
 fusion. They have lost their way in the 
 middle of the forest, and are unable to extri- 
 cate themselves from the labyrinth of llianas 
 and thickets that surround them. A guide 
 appears in the presence of a young hunter, 
 who engages to conduct them to the place 
 whither they wish to go. That guide is 
 Tiburcio himself, who in his reverie as in 
 the real scene that occurred just two years 
 before scarce observes either the gentleman 
 in rich apparel or the attendants that sur- 
 round him ; but only remembers the beautiful 
 dark eyes and raven hair of the young girl. 
 Tiburcio reassures them of safety, guides them 
 during a journey of two days two days that 
 appeared to him to pass only too rapidly. 
 
 In his waking dream one scene is forcibly 
 recalled. He remembers a night halt in the 
 woods. All were asleep around him the 
 attendants upon the grass the rich gentle- 
 man upon his cloak and the young girl upon 
 the skin of a jaguar, which the guide himself 
 had supplied. He alone remained awake. The
 
 218 THE WOOD-RANGEBS. 
 
 moon was shining upon all; and a delicious 
 perfume, from the blossoms of the sweet sassa- 
 fras trees that grew near, was wafted towards 
 them upon the gentle breeze. The blue hea- 
 ven above appeared in perfect harmony with 
 the tranquil scene below. The guide, with 
 admiring eyes, looked upon that lovely virgin 
 form, and listened to the soft breathing of that 
 innocent bosom. To him it was a moment of 
 delicious anguish. 
 
 Then the vision changed the young girl 
 at length reached her home, and entered the 
 grand dwelling of her father. There the guide 
 remained for a whole week a welcome guest 
 drunk with love, yet not daring to raise 
 his eyes to the object of his passion. 
 
 Afterwards, too, at the festivals of the 
 neighbouring villages, a hundred times had 
 he gazed upon her ; but what of that ? He was 
 only a poor gambusino ; and she the daughter 
 of the richest proprietor in the province ! 
 
 But now with the secret of the Golden 
 Valley Tiburcio suddenly saw himself power-
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 219 
 
 ful and rich ; hope had sprung up within his 
 bosom ; and amidst the reverie occasioned 
 by these delightful thoughts, he at last fell 
 asleep. 
 
 It is scarce necessary to add that the young 
 girl who recalled these sweet souvenirs, and 
 who was now mingling in his dreams, was the 
 daughter of Don Augustin Pena, the pro- 
 prietor of the Hacienda del Venado. 
 
 At daybreak, the sleepers were awakened 
 by the ringing of a bell, and the clatter of 
 hoofs. It was the cavallada returning to 
 camp, under the charge of Benito, who had 
 thus kept his promise. The travellers were 
 soon upon their feet, but it was soon perceived 
 that the two trappers were not amongst them. 
 These had gone away without any one having 
 observed their departure. 
 
 The horses being saddled and bridled, and 
 the mules packed, the cavalcade continued its 
 journey towards the hacienda Don Estevan 
 and the Senator, as before, riding in the 
 front.
 
 220 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 It was after sunset before the walls of the 
 hacienda were descried in the distance, already 
 assuming a sombre hue under the fast increas- 
 ing obscurity of the twilight. But through 
 the wide forest tract which surrounded the 
 hacienda, a well-defined road led in the direc- 
 tion of the dwelling, which the travellers could 
 follow even in the darkest night; and upon 
 this road the cavalcade was now seen to 
 enter. 
 
 A few minutes before they had passed into 
 the forest from the open plain, two men were 
 seen standing near the edge of a thicket, by 
 which they were hidden from the view of the 
 travellers. These men might have been easily 
 recognized by their long rifles, as strangers to 
 that part of the country ; they were, in fact, 
 the two trappers, the Canadian and his com- 
 rade, who had that morning so abruptly taken 
 leave of the camp. 
 
 " You must have been deceived by some 
 accidental resemblance," said the Canadian to 
 his companion.
 
 UNEXPECTED RECOGNITIONS. 221 
 
 " No," replied the latter ; "I am sure it 
 is he. Twenty years have not made much 
 change, either in his face or figure. His voice 
 is just the same as it was when I was the 
 coast-guard, Pepe the Sleeper. My eyes 
 and ars are as good as they were then, and 
 I assure you, Bois-Rose, that he's the very 
 man." 
 
 " Strange enough," answered Bois-Rose (for 
 the great Canadian trapper was no other than 
 Bois-Rose himself). " After all, one is more 
 likely to meet an enemy he is in search of 
 than a friend. It may be the same." 
 
 As he finished this speech, the Canadian, 
 leaning upon his long rifle, stood looking after 
 the cavalcade, which was just disappearing 
 into the forest-road that led to the hacienda. 
 
 After remaining a few minutes in this posi- 
 tion, the two trappers turned back again into 
 the forest, and soon disappeared under the 
 shadows of the trees.
 
 222 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 
 
 THE Hacienda del Venado like all buildings 
 of this kind situated upon the Indian frontier, 
 and of course exposed to the attacks of the 
 savages was a species of citadel, as well as a 
 country dwelling-house. Built with sun-dried 
 bricks and hewn stone, crowned by a crenelled 
 parapet, and defended by huge massive doors, 
 it could have sustained a siege from an enemy 
 more expert in strategy than the tribe of 
 Apaches who were its neighbours. 
 
 At one corner stood a tower of moderate 
 height, which crowned the chapel belonging 
 to the hacienda, serving for the great clock as
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 223 
 
 well as for a belfry. In case the principal 
 part of the building should be forced, this 
 tower would answer for an asylum almost 
 impregnable. 
 
 Finally, a strong stockade, composed of 
 trunks of the palmetto, completely encircled 
 the building ; within which enclosure were 
 the quarters destined for the domestics of the 
 hacienda as also for the herdsmen, and such 
 ordinary guests as from time to time came 
 to seek a passing hospitality. Outside this 
 privileged enclosure was a group of from 
 twenty to thirty huts, composing a species of 
 little village. These were inhabited by the 
 day-labourers (peons) and their families at- 
 tached to the hacienda who, in case of dan- 
 ger, would escape within the enclosure for 
 safety and protection. 
 
 Such was the Hacienda del Venado. The 
 proprietor, Don Augustin Pena, was a man of 
 great opulence. In addition to a rich gold 
 mine which he worked, at no great distance 
 off, he was the owner of countless herds of
 
 224 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 horses, mules, and cattle, that in a half-wild 
 state roamed over the vast savannas and 
 forests that constituted the twenty leagues of 
 land belonging to the hacienda. Such a vast 
 tract of territory belonging to one man is by 
 no means a rare thing in Northern Mexico. 
 
 At this time Don Augustin was a widower, 
 and his family consisted of only one daughter 
 the young girl already introduced to the 
 reader. Considering the immense heritage 
 that the Dona Rosario or, as she was more 
 gracefully called, Kosarita was likely to 
 bring to whoever should become her husband, 
 it was natural that an alliance with Don 
 Augustin should be the object of many an 
 ambition; in fact, her beauty without the 
 grand fortune which, at her father's death, 
 she was to become mistress of would of itself 
 have been enough to challenge a crowd 
 of pretenders to her hand. 
 
 The Andalusian type has lost nothing in the 
 northern provinces of Mexico. Its purity of 
 outline is there associated with freshness of
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 225 
 
 colour, and this happy mixture of graces was 
 exhibited in the beautiful countenance of Ro- 
 sarita. We have described her with black eyes 
 and hair of raven hue ; but hers was a beauty 
 that words can but faintly portray, and about 
 which all description would be superfluous. 
 
 And this lovely creature bloomed in the 
 very midst of the desert, like the flower of the 
 cactus, which blossoms and fades under the 
 eye of God alone. 
 
 The immense plain, in the midst of which 
 stood the Hacienda del Venado, presented a 
 double aspect. In front of the house only 
 did the ground show any traces of cultivation. 
 On that side, fields of Indian corn and vast 
 olive plantations denoted the presence and 
 skilful labour of man. 
 
 Behind the hacienda at some hundred 
 paces distance from the stockade the clear- 
 ing ended, and thence extended the virgin 
 forest in all its sombre and primitive majesty. 
 
 The cultivated ground was intersected by a 
 considerable stream of water. During the 
 
 VOL. I. Q
 
 226 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 dry season it ran gently and silently along, 
 but in the season of rain it would suddenly 
 change into an impetuous torrent that inun- 
 dated the whole plain, bearing huge rocks 
 along in its current, and every year widening 
 its channel. 
 
 Perhaps the most powerful of Arab chiefs, 
 the richest patriarch of ancient times, never 
 counted such superb and numerous herds as 
 roamed over the pasturage of the Hacienda 
 del Venado. 
 
 About an hour before sunset on that same 
 day on which the travellers departed from La 
 Poza two men, one on horseback, the other 
 mounted on a mule, were seen traversing the 
 plain in the direction of the hacienda. Both 
 horse and mule were splendid specimens of 
 their kind the horse with fiery eye, broad 
 chest, and curving, swan-like neck, was scarce 
 more to be admired than the mule, that with 
 fine delicate limbs, rounded flanks, and shining 
 coat, walked side by side with him. 
 
 This horseman was the master of the
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 227 
 
 hacienda, Don Augustin Pefia. His costume 
 consisted of a hat of Guayaquil grass, a shirt 
 of the finest cambric, an embroidered vest, 
 and silk velvet pantaloons fastened down the 
 sides with large buttons of gold. 
 
 His companion, the rider of the mule, was 
 the chaplain of the hacienda, a reverend Fran- 
 ciscan monk, in a sort of half-convent costume. 
 This consisted of an ample blue frock, confined 
 around the waist with a thick cord of silk, the 
 tassels of which hung down below his knees. 
 Beneath this appeared a pair of large riding- 
 boots heavily spurred. Upon his head a grey 
 beaver, somewhat jauntily set, gave to the 
 Franciscan an appearance rather soldier-like 
 than monastic. 
 
 The haciendado appeared to be regarding 
 with a look of pride his rich possessions ex- 
 tending beyond view on every side of him 
 as if he was reflecting how much this kind of 
 wealth was superior to golden ingots shut idly 
 in a chest ; while the monk seemed to be ab- 
 sorbed in some profound reverie. 
 
 Q2
 
 228 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " By St. Julian ! the patron saint of tra- 
 vellers," said Don Augustin, breaking silence, 
 " you have been more than twenty-four hours 
 absent ! I was afraid, reverend father, that 
 some jaguar had swallowed both you and your 
 mule." 
 
 " Man proposes, and God disposes, " replied 
 the monk. " When I took my departure from 
 the hacienda, I did not expect to be gone 
 more than a few hours giving Christian burial 
 to poor Joaquin, that had been killed by one 
 of the bulls but just as I had blessed the 
 earth where they had buried him, a young 
 man came galloping up like a thunderbolt, 
 both himself and horse all of a sweat, to beg 
 that I would go along with him and confess 
 his mother, who was upon her death-bed. Only 
 ten leagues he said it was, and I should have 
 been glad of a pretext to get off from such a 
 difficult turn of duty ; but at the earnest en- 
 treaty of the young fellow, and knowing who 
 he was, I could not refuse him. Who do you 
 think he was ? "
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 229 
 
 " How should I know?" replied the haci- 
 endado. 
 
 " Tiburcio, the adopted son of the famous 
 gambusino, Marcos Arellanos." 
 
 " How ! his mother dead ! I am sorry. 
 He is a brave youth, and I have not forgotten 
 the service he once did me. But for him we 
 should all have been dead of thirst, my daugh- 
 ter, my people, and myself. If he is left 
 without resources, I hope you have said 
 to him that he will find a welcome at the 
 Hacienda del Venado." 
 
 " No I have not," replied the monk. 
 
 "And why?" 
 
 " Because this young fellow is desperately 
 in love with your daughter ; it is my duty 
 to tell you so." 
 
 " What signifies that, so long as my daugh- 
 ter does not love him? " replied Don Augustin. 
 " And if she did, where would she find a man 
 possessing higher physical or moral qualities 
 than this same Tiburcio ? I never dreamt of 
 having for my son-in-law any other than an in-
 
 230 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 telligent man, brave enough to defend the 
 frontier against these hordes of savage Indians, 
 and just such a man is young Arellanos. But 
 in truth I forget myself; I have this day de- 
 signed for Kosarita a husband of a more ex- 
 alted station." 
 
 " And it may be that you have done 
 wrong," rejoined the monk, in a serious tone ; 
 " from what I suspect in fact, what I may 
 say I know this Tiburcio might make a more 
 valuable son-in-law than you imagine." 
 
 " It's too late then," said Don Augustin. "I 
 have given my word, and I cannot retract it." 
 
 It is just about this matter I wish to speak 
 to you, if you have time to hear me." 
 
 At this moment the two horsemen, having 
 passed the stockade, had arrived at the foot of 
 the stone stairway which led up to the por- 
 tico, and thence into the grand sala of the 
 hacienda and while dismounting, their dia- 
 logue was interrupted. 
 
 This sala was a large room, which, according 
 to the practice in hot countries, was so arrang-
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 231 
 
 ed as to be continually kept cool by a current 
 of air passing lengthwise through its whole ex- 
 tent. Fine Chinese mats covered the floor, 
 while richly painted window blinds prevented 
 the rays of the sun from entering the apart- 
 ment. The walls, whitened with stucco, were 
 adorned with rare illuminated paintings, set in 
 gold frames; some leathern chairs, called 
 butacas, several side-tables, upon one of which 
 stood a silver brazero, filled with red cinders of 
 charcoal these, with afauteuil or two, and a 
 mahogany couch of Anglo-American manufac- 
 ture, completed the furniture of the apartment. 
 
 Upon a table of polished balsam-wood stood 
 several porous jars containing water ; beside 
 them, on a large silver waiter, were confections 
 of several kinds; while heaped upon other 
 dishes, also of solid silver, were fruits both of 
 the tropic and temperate climes oranges, gra- 
 nadillas, limes, and pitayas, here brought toge- 
 ther to tempt the appetite or assuage the thirst. 
 
 The appearance of these preparations deno- 
 ted that Don Augustin expected company. As
 
 232 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 soon as they had entered within the sala, the 
 monk, observing the well garnished tables, in- 
 quired if such was the case. 
 
 " Yes," answered the haciendado, " Don 
 Estevan de Arechiza has sent me word that 
 he will arrive this evening with a somewhat 
 numerous train, and I have taken measures to 
 entertain a guest of such importance. But 
 you say you wish to speak to me about some 
 business what is it, Friar Jose Maria ? " 
 
 The two now sat down, each choosing an 
 easy chair, and while Don Augustin was light- 
 ing a cigar the monk commenced speaking as 
 follows : 
 
 " I found the old woman seated upon a bank 
 outside the door of her hut, whither she had 
 dragged herself to look out for my arrival. 
 ' Bless you, good father ! ' said she, ' you have 
 arrived in time to receive my last confession. 
 But while you rest a little, I wish you to listen 
 to what I am going to say to him whom I have 
 always treated as my own child, and to whom 
 I intend to leave a legacy of vengeance.' "
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 233 
 
 " What ! holy father ! " interrupted Don 
 Augustln, " surely you did not permit this in- 
 fraction of God's law, who says 'vengeance 
 belongs only to Him ? ' ' 
 
 " Why not ? " replied the monk. " In these 
 deserts, where neither laws nor tribunals 
 exist, every man must be his own avenger." 
 
 With this strange apology for his conduct, 
 the monk continued : 
 
 "I sat down and listened to what she had 
 to say to this adopted son. It was this : 
 * Your father was not killed by the Indians, as 
 we were led to believe. It was his companion 
 who murdered him for the purpose of being 
 the sole possessor of a secret which I shall 
 presently disclose but to you only, Marcos/ 
 
 " ' God alone knows who this man was/ 
 said Tiburcio, ' He alone knows him/ 
 
 " ' He only ! ' cried the dying woman, with 
 an air of disdain. ' Is this the language of a 
 man ? When the Indians come to steal his 
 cattle from the vaquero, does he sit still and 
 say, ' God only can prevent them ? No !
 
 234 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 with his eye bent, and his hand ready, he fol- 
 lows upon their traces, till he has recovered 
 his herds or perished in the attempt. Go you 
 and do as the vaquero ! Track out the as- 
 sassin of your father. That is the last wish of 
 her who nourished you, and has never failed 
 in her affection.' 
 
 " 1 1 shall obey you, my mother,' answered 
 the young man, in a firm voice. 
 
 " ' Listen, then, what I have got to say ! ' 
 continued the widow. ' The murder of Arel- 
 lanos is no longer a supposition, but a reality. 
 I have it from a herdsman who came from the 
 country beyond Tubac. Some days before, he 
 had met two travellers. One was your father 
 Marcos ; the other was a stranger to him. 
 The herdsman was travelling on the same 
 route, and followed them at some distance be- 
 hind. At a place where certain signs showed 
 that the two travellers had made their bivouac, 
 the herdsman found the traces of a terrible 
 struggle. The grass was bent down, and 
 saturated with blood. There were tracks of
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL YEN ADO. 235 
 
 blood leading to a precipice that hung over a 
 stream of water ; and most likely over this 
 the victim was precipitated. This victim 
 must have been Marcos ; for the herdsman 
 was able to follow the trail of the murderer by 
 the tracks of his horse ; and a little further on 
 he noticed where the horse had stumbled on 
 the left fore leg. The assassin himself must 
 have been wounded in the struggle, for the 
 herdsman could tell, by his tracks leading to 
 the precipice, that he had limped on one leg.' " 
 
 Don Augustin listened with attention to this 
 account proving the wonderful sagacity of 
 his countrymen, of which he had almost every 
 day some new proof. The monk went on with 
 his narration : 
 
 " ' Swear then, Tiburcio, to avenge your 
 father ! ' continued the dying woman. 
 ' Swear it, and I promise to make you as rich 
 as the proudest in the land ; rich enough to 
 bend to your wishes the most powerful even 
 the daughter of Augustin Pena, for whom your 
 passion has not escaped me. This day you
 
 236 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 may aspire to her hand without being deemed 
 foolish ; for, I tell you, you are as rich as her 
 own father. Swear, then, to pursue to the 
 death the murderer of Arellanos ? ' 
 
 " ' I swear it,' rejoined Tiburcio, with a 
 solemn gesture. 
 
 " Upon this, the dying woman placed in the 
 hands of the young man a piece of paper 
 upon which Arellanos, before leaving his 
 home for the last time, had traced the route 
 of his intended journey. 
 
 " ' With the treasure which that paper will 
 enable you to find/ continued the dying woman, 
 * you will have gold enough to corrupt the 
 daughter of a viceroy, if you wish it. Mean- 
 while, my child, leave me for a while to confess 
 to this holy man ; a son should not always 
 hear the confession of his mother/ ' : 
 
 The monk, in a few more words, related the 
 closing scene of the widow's death, and then 
 finished by saying : 
 
 " Now, Don Augustin, you perceive my 
 reason for saying that this young fellow,
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 237 
 
 whatever may be his family, is not the less 
 likely to make a good match for the Dona 
 Rosarita." 
 
 " I agree with you," responded the hacien- 
 dado ; " but, as I have said to you, my word 
 is given to Don Estevan de Arechiza." 
 
 " What ! " exclaimed the monk, " this 
 Spaniard to be your son-in-law ! " 
 
 Don Augustin smiled mysteriously, as he 
 replied : 
 
 " He ! no, good Fray Jose, not he, but 
 another. Don Estevan does not wish this 
 alliance." 
 
 " Caspita ! " exclaimed the monk. " Does 
 he think it beneath him ? " 
 
 " It may be he has the right to think so," 
 added Don Augustin, again smiling myste- 
 riously. 
 
 " But who is this man ? " inquired the 
 monk, with an air of surprise. 
 
 Just as Don Augustin was about to reply, 
 a servant entered the sala. 
 
 " Senor Don Augustin," said the servant,
 
 238 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " there are two travellers at the gate, who 
 beg of you |to give them a night's lodging. 
 One of them says that he is known to you." 
 
 " Bid them welcome ! " replied the hacien- 
 dado, " and let them enter. Whether they 
 are known to me or not, two guests more or 
 less will be nothing here." 
 
 A few seconds after, the two travellers had 
 advanced to the foot of the stone stairway, 
 where they stood, awaiting the presence of 
 the master of the house. 
 
 One of them was a man of about thirty 
 years of age whose open countenance and 
 high forehead denoted courage combined with 
 intelligence. His figure presented an appear- 
 ance of strength and vigorous activity, and 
 he was somewhat elegantly dressed though 
 without any signs of foppery. 
 
 " Ah ! is it you, Pedro Diaz ? " cried Don 
 Augustin, recognizing him. " Are there any 
 Indians to be exterminated, since I find you 
 coming into these solitudes of ours ? " 
 
 Pedro Diaz was, in truth, known as the
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 239 
 
 most celebrated hater and hunter of Indians 
 in the whole province hence the strange salu- 
 tation with which Don Augustin received him. 
 
 " Before answering you, Sefior Don Augus- 
 tin, permit me to introduce to you the king 
 of gambusinos and prince of musicians, the 
 Senor Don Diego Oroche, who scents a placer 
 of gold as a hound would a deer, and who 
 plays upon the mandolin, as only he can play." 
 
 The individual presented under the name of 
 Oroche solemnly saluted the haciendado. 
 
 It must have been a long time since the 
 prince of gambusinos had found an oppor- 
 tunity to exercise the subtle talent of which 
 his companion spoke or else the cards had 
 been of late unlucky for his outward man 
 presented an appearance that was scarcely 
 more than comfortable. 
 
 In reaching his hand to his hat, it was not 
 necessary for him to disarrange the folds of 
 his cloak. It only required that he should 
 choose one of the numerous rents that ap- 
 peared in this garment, to pass through it his
 
 240 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 long-clawed fingers whose length and thin- 
 ness denoted him a player on the mandolin. 
 In reality, he carried one of these instruments 
 slung over his shoulders. 
 
 Don Augustin invited both Diaz and his 
 singular companion to enter. When they were 
 seated in the saloon, Diaz began the conver- 
 sation. 
 
 " We have heard," said he, " of an expe- 
 dition being got up at Arispe to proceed to 
 Apacheria ; and this gentleman and I are on 
 our way to take part in it. Your hacienda, 
 Sefior Don Augustin, chanced to lie in our 
 way, and we have entered to ask your per- 
 mission to lodge here for the night. By 
 daybreak we shall continue our route for 
 Arispe." 
 
 " You will not have to go so far," replied 
 Don Augustin, with a smile. " The expe- 
 dition is already on foot, and I expect the 
 leader of it here this very night. He will be 
 glad of your services, I guarantee you, and it 
 will save you several days' journey."
 
 THE HACIENDA DEL VENADO. 241 
 
 "A miracle in our favour! " exclaimed Diaz ; 
 " and I thank God for the lucky coincidence." 
 
 " The thirst of gold has caught you also, 
 Pedro Diaz ? " asked Don Augustin, smiling 
 significantly. 
 
 " No, thank God !" replied Diaz, " nothing 
 of the sort. I leave the searching for gold to 
 experienced gambusinos, such as the Senor 
 Oroche here. No, you know well that I have 
 no other passion than hatred for the ferocious 
 savages who haved one so much ill towards 
 me and mine. It is only because I hope, 
 through this expedition, once more to carry 
 steel and fire into their midst, that I take any 
 part in it." 
 
 "It is right," said the haciendado, who, 
 like all dwellers upon the frontiers exposed to 
 Indian excursions, nourished in his heart a 
 hatred for the savages almost equal to that of 
 Diaz himself. " I approve of your sentiments, 
 Don Pedro Diaz ; and if you will permit me 
 to offer you a gage of mine, I beg you will ac- 
 cept from me the present of a horse I have 
 
 VOL. I. B
 
 242 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 one that will carry you to your satisfaction. 
 I promise you that the Indian you pursue, 
 while on his back, will require to go as fast as 
 the wind itself if you do not overtake him." 
 
 " He shall be my war horse," exclaimed 
 Diaz, his eyes sparkling with pleasure at the 
 gift. " I shall ornament his crest with Indian 
 scalps, in honour of him who gave him to me." 
 
 " I cannot divine what has delayed Don Este- 
 van," said the haciendado, changing the subject 
 of conversation. " He should have been here 
 three hours before this that is, if he passed 
 the night at La Poza. 
 
 Don Augustin had scarce finished his speech 
 when a sudden and graceful apparition glided 
 into the saloon. It was his daughter, the 
 beautiful Rosarita. 
 
 As if the expected cavalcade only awaited her 
 presence, the chattering of hoofs at the same 
 instant was heard outside ; and, by the light of 
 the torches which the domestics had carried 
 out, Don Estevan and his suite could be seen 
 riding up to the entrance gate of the hacienda.
 
 243 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 ROSARITA. 
 
 ON the route from La Poza it had fallen to 
 the lot of Cuchillo and Tiburcio to ride side 
 by side, but for all this few words had passed 
 between them. Although Cuchillo had not 
 the slightest idea of renouncing his dire design, 
 he continued to hide his thoughts under an air 
 of good-humour which, when need be, he 
 knew how to assume. He had made several 
 attempts to read the thoughts of the young 
 gambusino, but the latter was on his guard, 
 seeking in his turn to identify Cuchillo with 
 the assassin of his father. No opportu- 
 nity offered, however; and in this game of 
 
 R2
 
 244 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 mutual espionage, neither had the advantage. 
 Nevertheless, an instinctive and mutual hatred 
 became established between the two, and before 
 the day's journey was over, each regarded the 
 other as a mortal foe. Cuchillo was more 
 than ever determined to execute his hellish 
 purpose since a crime less or more would be 
 nothing to him while Tiburcio, keenly re- 
 membering the oath which he had made to his 
 adopted mother, was resolved on keeping it ; 
 and only awaited the time when he should be 
 sure of the assassin. We need scarcely add 
 that Tiburcio, in the accomplishment of his 
 vow, had no thoughts of playing the assassin. 
 No. Whenever and wherever the murderer 
 should be found, he was to die by Tiburcio's 
 hand ; but only in fair and open fight. 
 
 But there were other painful reflections 
 that occupied Tiburcio's mind during the 
 journey. The nearer he approached the object 
 of his love, the greater seemed to be the dis- 
 tance between them. Though a man may 
 hope to obtain what he only wishes for in a
 
 ROSARITA. 245 
 
 moderate way, yet, when anything is ardently 
 yearned after, the obstacles appear insur- 
 mountable. Hence the secret of many a 
 heroic resolution. When Tiburcio was re- 
 clining by the well of La Poza, his sweet 
 dream hindered him from thinking of his ob- 
 stacles ; but now that the journey was nearly 
 ended, and he drew near to the grand hacienda, 
 his spirits fell, and a feeling of hopelessness 
 took possession of his soul. Hence it was that 
 he formed the resolution to put an end to the 
 painful suspense which he had now a long 
 time endured ; and that very night, if possible, 
 he intended to ascertain his position in the 
 eyes of Dona Rosarita. Come what might, he 
 resolved to ask that question, whose answer 
 might render him at once the happiest or the 
 most miserable of men. 
 
 When Tiburcio had first met Dofia Rosarita 
 with her father and his servants, in the depth 
 of the forest, he knew nothing of the rank of 
 the party thus wandering astray. Even 
 during the two happy days in which he acted as
 
 246 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 their guide, he was ignorant of the name of the 
 beautiful young girl to whom his eyes and 
 his heart rendered a continual homage. He 
 therefore permitted himself to indulge in 
 those pleasant dreams which have their origin 
 in a hopeful love. It was only after he had 
 learned the quality of his fellow travellers 
 that the young lady was the daughter of the 
 opulent proprietor, Don Augustin Pena it was 
 only on ascertaining this, that Tiburcio per- 
 ceived the folly of his aspirations, and the dis- 
 tance that lay between him and the object of his 
 love. If then the secret so unexpectedly revealed 
 to him had given him a desire for the possession 
 of riches, it was not for the sake of being rich. 
 No ; a nobler object inspired him one more in 
 keeping with his poetic character. He desired 
 riches only that with them he might bridge over 
 the chasm that separated him from Kosarita. 
 
 Unhappily he could not hide from himself, 
 the too evident fact that he was not the sole 
 possessor of the secret. 
 
 All at once it occurred to him that the ex-
 
 KOSARITA. 247 
 
 pedition to which he found himself thus acci- 
 dentally attached could have no other object 
 than this very placer of the Golden Valley. 
 Most likely the very man who shared the 
 secret with him the murderer of Marcos 
 Arellanos was among the men enrolled under 
 the orders of the chief Don Estevan. The 
 ambiguous questioning of Cuchillo, his compre- 
 hension of events, the stumbling of his horse, 
 with other slighter indications, appeared to 
 throw some light upon the obscurity of Ti- 
 burcio's conjectures, but not enough. How 
 was he (Tiburcio) to arrive at a complete un- 
 derstanding ? 
 
 A still more painful uncertainty pressed upon 
 his spirit, as they approached the dwel- 
 ling of Don Augustin. What reception would 
 he meet with from Dona Rosarita ? he, a poor 
 gambusino without resources, without family 
 poorly dressed even a mere follower, con- 
 founded with the common mob of adventurers 
 who composed the expedition ? Sad presenti- 
 ments were passing in his mind as the caval-
 
 248 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 cade, of which he formed so humble an appen- 
 dage, arrived at the palisade enclosure of the 
 hacienda. 
 
 The gates were soon open to receive them, 
 and the moment after Don Augustin himself 
 welcomed the travellers at the front entrance of 
 the mansion. With that ease and elegance almost 
 peculiar to Spanish manners, he received Don 
 Estevan and the Senator, while the cordiality 
 with which he welcomed Tiburcio appeared to 
 the young man a happy omen. 
 
 The travellers all dismounted. Cuchillo 
 remained outside partly out of respect 
 to his chief, and partly to look after his horse. 
 As to Tiburcio, he had not the same motives 
 for acting thus, and therefore entered along 
 with Don Estevan and Tragaduros, his face 
 pale and his heart beating audibly. 
 
 The room into which they had been shown 
 was the grand sala already described, in 
 which certain preparations had been made for 
 a magnificent banquet. But Tiburcio saw 
 nothing of all this. His eyes beheld only one
 
 ROSARITA. 249 
 
 object, for there stood a beautiful girl, whose 
 lips rendered paler the carnation red of the 
 grenadillas, and the hue of whose cheeks 
 eclipsed the rosy tint of the sandias, scattered 
 profusely over the tables. It was Rosarita 
 herself. A silken scarf covered her head, per- 
 mitting the thick plaits of her dark hair to 
 shine through its translucent texture, and just 
 encircling the outline of her oval face. This 
 scarf, hanging down below the waist, but half- 
 concealed her white rounded arms, and only 
 partially hindered the view of a figure of the 
 most elegantly voluptuous tournure. Around 
 her waist another scarf of bright scarlet formed 
 a sort of cincture or -belt, leaving its long 
 fringed ends to hang over the skirt of her 
 silken robe, and blending its colours with those 
 of the light veil that fell down from her 
 shoulders. It was a costume that seemed well 
 suited to her striking beauty, and the effect of 
 the coup dceil upon the heart of poor Tiburcio 
 was at once pleasant and embarrassing. 
 Notwithstanding the gracious smile with
 
 250 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 which she acknowledged his presence, there 
 was a certain hauteur about the proffered wel- 
 come, as if it was a mere expression of grati- 
 tude for the service he had formerly rendered. 
 
 Tiburcio observed this with a feeling of 
 chagrin, and sighed as he contrasted her cold 
 formality of speech with the abandon and free- 
 dom of their former relations ; but he could 
 not help noticing a still greater contrast 
 when he looked at his own poor garments, and 
 compared them with the elegant costumes of 
 his two travelling companions. 
 
 While Don Estevan was entertaining his 
 host with some account of what had happened 
 on their journey, the Senator appeared to 
 have eyes only for the beautiful Rosarita ; 
 upon whom he was not slow in lavishing a 
 string of empty compliments. 
 
 The young girl appeared to Tiburcio to 
 receive these compliments with a smile very 
 different from that she had accorded to himself; 
 he also observed, with a feeling of bitterness, 
 the superior easiness of manner in which those
 
 EOSARITA. 251 
 
 whom he regarded as his rivals addressed 
 themselves to her. With anguish he noticed 
 the colour become vivid upon her cheeks, while 
 the heaving of her bosom, as the scarf rose 
 and fell in irregular vibrations, did not escape 
 the keen glance of jealousy. In fact, the 
 young girl appeared to feel pleasure from these 
 gallantries, like a village belle who listens to 
 the flatteries of some grand lord, at the same 
 time that a voice from within whispers her 
 that the sweet compliments she is receiving 
 are also merited. 
 
 Don Estevan was not unobservant of this 
 by-play that was passing around him. He 
 easily read in the expressive looks of Tiburcio 
 the secret of his heart, and involuntarily 
 contrasted the manly beauty of the young 
 man with the ordinary face and figure of 
 the Senator. As if from this he appre- 
 hended some obstacle to his secret projects, 
 more than once his dark eyebrows became con- 
 tracted, and his eyes shone with a sombre fire. 
 
 By little and little he ceased to take part in
 
 252 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the conversation, and at length appeared 
 wrapped in profound meditation. Insensibly 
 also an air of melancholy stole over the 
 features of Rosarita. As for Don Augustin 
 and the Senator, they appeared at once to be 
 on good terms with each other, and carried 
 on the conversation without permitting it to 
 flag for a moment. 
 
 Just then Cuchillo, accompanied by Baraja, 
 entered to pay their respects to the master of 
 the hacienda. Their entrance within the sala 
 of course created some slight disarrangement 
 in the tableaux of the dramatis personce already 
 there. This confusion gave Tiburcio an oppor- 
 tunity to carry out the desperate resolution he 
 had formed, and profiting by it he advanced 
 nearer to Rosarita. 
 
 " I will give my life," said he to her in a 
 side whisper, " for one moment alone with you. 
 I wish to speak of an affair of the highest im- 
 portance." 
 
 The young girl regarded him for a moment 
 with an air of astonishment, further expressed
 
 ROSARITA. 253 
 
 by a disdainful movement of the lip ; although, 
 considering their former relations, and also 
 the free familiarity of Mexican manners, she 
 might have been expected to excuse his free- 
 dom. Tiburcio stood waiting her reply in a 
 supplicating attitude, and as everything 
 seemed spontaneous with her, he had not long 
 to wait. She answered in a few words : 
 
 "To-night, then at ten o'clock I shall 
 be at my window." 
 
 Scarcely had the thrilling tones of her voice 
 ceased to vibrate on the ear of Tiburcio, when 
 supper was announced, and the guests were 
 shown into another room. Here a table, 
 splendidly set out, occupied the middle of the 
 apartment ; above which hung a great chan- 
 delier, fitted with numerous waxen candles ; 
 these gave out a brilliant and cheerful light, 
 that was reflected from hundreds of shining 
 vessels of massive silver, of antique forms, 
 arranged upon the table below. 
 
 The upper end of the table was occupied 
 by the host himself and his principal guests.
 
 254 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 His daughter sat on his left hand, while Don 
 Estevan was placed upon the right. After 
 them, the Senator and the chaplain, and 
 Pedro Diaz. At the lower end were seated 
 Tiburcio, Cuchillo, Baraja, and Oroche. 
 
 The chaplain pronounced the benedidte. 
 Although it was no longer the same jumbling 
 formula, sans faqon, which he had used at the 
 death-bed of the widow of Arellanos, yet the 
 air of mock solemnity and unction with which 
 the grace was uttered, recalled to the heart of 
 Tiburcio that sad souvenir, which recent events 
 had for a time caused him to forget. 
 
 Cheerfulness soon reigned around the table. 
 The expedition was talked of, and toasts 
 drunk to its success. Vast silver goblets, of 
 antique shape, were used for wine glasses, and 
 these, passing rapidly from hand to mouth, 
 soon produced an abundance of good humour 
 among all the guests. 
 
 " Gentlemen," said Don Augustin, when 
 the festive scene was near its end, "before 
 retiring, I have the honour to invite you all to
 
 ROSARITA. 255 
 
 a hunt of the wild horse on my estate, which 
 is to come off early in the morning." 
 
 Each of the guests accepted the invitation 
 with that abandon natural to people who have 
 made a good supper. 
 
 With regard to Tiburcio, jealousy was 
 devouring him. He scarce ate of the 
 rich viands placed before him. He kept 
 his eyes constantly fixed upon Don Este- 
 van, who, during the supper, appeared to 
 show marked attentions to Eosarita, for 
 every one of which Tiburcio thanked him with 
 a look of hatred. As soon as the supper was 
 ended, the young man silently left the room 
 and repaired to the chamber that had been 
 assigned to him for the night. 
 
 At an early hour, for such was the custom 
 of the hacienda, all the guests had retired to 
 their sleeping apartments even the domestics 
 were no longer to be seen in the great hall ; 
 and a profound silence reigned throughout the 
 vast building, as if all the world had gone to 
 rest. But all the world was not yet asleep.
 
 256 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 THE ASSIGNATION. 
 
 ALONE in his chamber, Tiburcio awaited im- 
 patiently the hour named by Rosarita. From 
 his window he cast a distracted glance over 
 the plain that stretched away from the walls 
 of the hacienda. The moon was up in the 
 heavens, and the road leading to Tubac 
 appeared under her light shining like a vast 
 ribbon extended through the middle 
 of the forest. The forest itself appeared 
 asleep ; not even a breath stirred the leaves 
 of the trees, and the only sounds he heard 
 were those caused by the half wild herds that 
 wandered through its glades. Now and then
 
 THE ASSIGNATION. 257 
 
 the bellowing of a bull denoted the uneasiness 
 of the animal, perhaps from the presence of 
 those terrible night robbers, the puma and 
 jaguar. There was another sound that 
 reached the ear of Tiburcio, but this appeared 
 to proceed from some part of the hacienda 
 itself. It was the tinkling of a mandolin. 
 The hour was appropriate to amorous reflec- 
 tions, as well as to thoughts of a graver cha- 
 racter, and both presented themselves at that 
 moment to the spirit of Tiburcio. Like all 
 those whose life is passed amid the depths of 
 the desert, there was at the bottom of his 
 heart a certain poetic temperament, at the 
 same time that his soul exhibited that ener- 
 getic vigour required by the dangers which 
 surround such a life of solitude. His pres- 
 ent position then was perfectly appropriate 
 to this double character. His love was unre- 
 ciprocated; the coolness of Eosarita almost 
 assured him of the painful fact, and some 
 secret presentiment told him that he was 
 encompassed by enemies. 
 
 VOL. I. 8
 
 258 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 While thus sadly reflecting on his situation, 
 an object came under his eyes that attracted 
 his attention. It was the gleam of a fire, 
 which appeared to be kindled, under cover of 
 the forest, at no great distance from the 
 hacienda. The light was partly eclipsed by 
 that of the moon, but still it could be traced 
 by the greater redness of its rays, as they 
 trembled mysteriously on the silver foliage of 
 the trees. It denoted the halting-place of 
 some travellers. 
 
 tf So near the hacienda ! " muttered Tibur- 
 cio, in entering upon a new series of reflec- 
 tions. " What can it mean ? Why have 
 these travellers not come here to demand 
 hospitality? They have certainly some 
 reason for keeping themselves at a distance. 
 They may be unknown friends to me, for 
 heaven often sends such to those who stand 
 in need of them. Cuchillo, Don Estevan, and 
 this pompous Senator, all appear to be my 
 enemies, and all are secure under this roof; 
 why might not these travellers, who appear to
 
 THE ASSIGNATION. 259 
 
 shun it, for that very reason prove friends to 
 me?" 
 
 The hour of rendezvous had at length 
 arrived. Tiburcio took up his serape and his 
 knife the last, the only weapon he had 
 and prepared to go out from his chamber 
 without making any noise. A fearful con- 
 flict of emotions was passing in his bosom; 
 for he knew that in a few minutes would be 
 decided the question of his happiness or 
 misery. Before leaving his chamber, he 
 looked once more through the window in the 
 direction of the forest fire. It was still 
 gleaming in the same place. 
 
 While the lover, with cautious tread, and 
 wildly beating heart, was silently traversing 
 the long gallery, and passing round to that 
 side upon which opened the window of Rosa- 
 rita, other scenes were passing elsewhere that 
 must now be detailed. 
 
 Since his arrival at the hacienda, Don 
 Estevan, in presence of the other guests, had 
 scarce found an opportunity to speak with 
 
 s2
 
 260 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 the haciendado on business that concerned 
 both of them. Only for one moment had 
 they been alone, and then the Spaniard 
 had briefly related to Don Augustin the con- 
 tract he had entered into with Cuchillo. 
 When Don Estevan mentioned the secret 
 of the Golden Valley, the haciendado ap- 
 peared to make a slight gesture, as of disap- 
 pointment, but their short dialogue ended 
 abruptly by a promise to return to the subject 
 at a later hour of the night. 
 
 Don Estevan had awaited until all the 
 other guests had retired to their chambers ; 
 then, drawing the Senator into the bay of one 
 of the large windows of the sala, he re- 
 quested him to look up at the stars that were 
 shining in all their brilliance in the blue sky 
 above. 
 
 " See," said he, pointing to a particular 
 constellation, " that is the Chariot that has 
 risen above the eastern horizon. Do you per- 
 ceive a single star farther down, which scarce 
 shines through the vapour? That is the
 
 THE ASSIGNATION. 261 
 
 emblem of your star, which, at present pale, 
 to-morrow may be in the ascendant, and 
 gleam more brightly than any of those that 
 compose the brilliant cortege of the Chariot. 
 
 " What mean you, Senor Arechiza ? " 
 
 " I shall tell you presently. Perhaps 
 the hour is nearer than you think, when you 
 may be the future master of the hacienda, by 
 a marriage with the charming daughter of its 
 present owner, who is to be its heiress. Come 
 presently to my apartment. The conversation 
 which I am about to have with Don Augustin 
 must be decisive, and I shall let you know the 
 result." 
 
 With these words, the Spaniard and the 
 Senator parted the heart of the latter 
 beating at the same time with hope and 
 fear. 
 
 Don Estevan now awaited the haciendado, 
 who the moment after came up to him. 
 
 The proprietor of the Hacienda del Venado, 
 as will already be seen, had given to the 
 Spaniard more than an ordinary welcome. His
 
 262 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 politeness to him, when in presence of witnesses, 
 was even less respectful than when the two 
 were alone. On his side, Don Estevan ap- 
 peared to accept the homage of the other as 
 if it were due to him. There was in his 
 polite condescension towards the rich proprie- 
 tor, and in the deference of the latter towards 
 him, something resembling the relation that 
 might be supposed to exist between a 
 powerful sovereign and one of his noble 
 vassals. 
 
 It was not until after reiterated requests 
 orders they might almost be called that Don 
 Augustin consented to be seated in the pres- 
 ence of the other ; whereas the Spaniard had 
 flung himself into a fauteuil on the moment of 
 entering the chamber, and with the most 
 perfect abandon. 
 
 The haciendado waited silently for Don 
 Estevan to speak. 
 
 " Well, what do you think of your future 
 son-in-law ? " inquired the Spaniard. " I 
 presume you never saw him before."
 
 THE ASSIGNATION. 263 
 
 " Never," answered Don Augustin. " But 
 if he was even less favoured by nature than 
 he is, that would make no obstacle to our 
 projects." 
 
 " I know him ; he only needs to be known, 
 to prove that he has in him the stuff of a gen- 
 tleman, besides being a senator of the illus- 
 trious congress of Arispe." The Spaniard 
 pronounced these words with a slight smile of 
 contempt. "But, senor," continued he, "that 
 is not the difficulty, the important matter is, 
 whether your daughter will find him to her 
 liking." 
 
 " My daughter will act according to my 
 wish," said the haciendado. 
 
 " But supposing her heart is not free ? " 
 
 " The heart of Rosarita is free, Senor Don 
 Estevan; how could it be otherwise she 
 whose life has been spent in the midst of these 
 deserts ? " 
 
 " And what about this ragged young fellow, 
 this Tiburcio Arellanos, whom you appear to 
 know ? He is in love with your daughter."
 
 264 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " I have been made aware of it this very 
 morning." 
 
 " If it is only a few hours, then, since you 
 have been apprised of the secret of his passion, 
 surely that of your daughter cannot have to 
 this time escaped you ? " 
 
 " The truth is," answered Don Augustin, 
 smiling, " that I understand better how to 
 follow the traces of an Indian, and read in 
 the countenance of a savage his most secret 
 thoughts, than to look into the heart of a 
 young girl. But I repeat it I have reason 
 to believe that my daughter's heart is free 
 of any such an affection. I do not apprehend 
 any difficulty in this regard. I dread an obsta- 
 cle of a more important character I mean an 
 obstacle to the expedition you are about to 
 conduct into the desert." 
 
 Here the haciendado communicated to Don 
 Estevan the particulars which the monk had 
 gathered at the death-bed of the widow of 
 Arellanos, and which seemed to produce a 
 strong impression on the Spaniard; but al-
 
 THE ASSIGNATION. 265 
 
 though the conversation continued for some 
 time longer, I shall not here detail what was 
 said, but return to the Senator, who with 
 anxious heart was now awaiting Don Estevan 
 in the apartment which had been assigned to 
 the latter.
 
 266 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 
 
 THE chamber set apart for the Senor Don 
 Estevan de Arechiza was undoubtedly the best 
 in the house, and notwithstanding the little 
 progress that luxury has made in the state 
 of Sonora, was furnished with considerable 
 elegance. 
 
 In this chamber Don Estevan found the 
 Senator pacing to and fro, with an air that be- 
 spoke him a prey to the most vivid emotions. 
 
 " Well, Senor Don Vicente," began Arechiza, 
 who appeared to make light of the impatience 
 of his protege, " what do you think of the 
 daughter of our host? Have I exaggerated her 
 beauty?"
 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 267 
 
 " Oh, my friend ! " exclaimed the Senator, 
 with all that vivacity of pantomimic gesture 
 so characteristic of the South, "the reality far 
 exceeds the imagination. She is an angel ! 
 Even in our country, famous for its beautiful 
 women, Dona Rosarita is certainly loveliest 
 of all." 
 
 " And the richest too," added the Spaniard 
 with a smile. 
 
 " Who would have expected to find, in the 
 middle of the desert, such an accomplished 
 beauty? such youthful freshness? Such 
 charms were created to shine in a far higher 
 sphere." 
 
 "At the court of a king, for instance," 
 carelessly rejoined Arechiza. 
 
 " Oh ! Senor Don Estevan ! " again exclaimed 
 the Senator, in an earnest voice, "do not keep 
 me in suspense ; the divine, the rich Doiia 
 Rosarita is it possible I am to have her for 
 my wife ? " 
 
 " One word from me, one promise from 
 you, and the thing is done. I have her
 
 268 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 father's word. Within fifteen days you may be 
 the husband of his daughter." 
 
 "Agreeable as easy." 
 
 " A little later you will be rich." 
 
 " No harm in that." 
 
 " Later still you will a be grand proprietor." 
 
 "Oh! it is magnificent. Carramba! Senor 
 de Arechiza, it is a perfect cataract of felicities 
 to be lavished upon my head it is a dream ! 
 it is a dream ! " shouted the Senator, as he 
 strode to and fro across the floor. 
 
 " Lose no time then in making it a reality," 
 replied Don Estevan. 
 
 " But is the time so pressing ?" inquired 
 the Senator, suddenly pausing in his steps. 
 
 " Why this question ? Is it possible to be 
 too quick in obtaining happiness ? " 
 
 The Senator appeared thoughtful, and for a 
 moment presented an aspect of embarrass- 
 ment in strange contrast to his previous looks. 
 He replied, after a pause 
 
 " The fact is, Don Estevan, I am willing to 
 marry an heiress whose wealth, as is usually
 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 269 
 
 the case, would compensate for her ugliness. 
 In this case, it is the very beauty of the lady 
 that confuses me." 
 
 " Perhaps she does not please you ? " 
 
 " On the contrary, so much happiness awes 
 me. It appears to me, for a reason which 
 I cannot divine, that some sad disappoint- 
 ment lurks under this seductive prospect." 
 
 " Ah, just as I expected," answered Don 
 Estevan ; " it is the human heart. I knew 
 you would make some objection of this kind, 
 but I thought you were more of a man of the 
 world than to trouble yourself about the past, 
 with such a splendid future before you. Ah! 
 my poor Despilfarro," added the Spaniard, 
 with a laugh, " I thought you were more ad- 
 vanced." 
 
 "But why, Don Estevan?" inquired the 
 Senator, intending to give a proof of his high 
 diplomatic capacity, "Why is it, entre nous, 
 that you desire to lavish this treasure of beauty 
 to say nothing of her grand wealth upon 
 another, while you yourself "
 
 270 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " While I myself might marry her," inter- 
 rupted the Spaniard. " Is that what you 
 mean to say ? Suppose I have no wish to 
 get married. I had that desire long ago, like 
 the rest of the world. My history has been 
 like a great many others; that is, my 
 sweetheart married another. It is true I 
 adopted the means to re to console myself, 
 and quickly too," added Arechiza, with a dark 
 scowl. " But who do you think I am, Don 
 Vicente Tragaduros ? " 
 
 " Who are you ! Why, Don Estevan de 
 Arechiza, of course ! " 
 
 " That does honour to your penetration," 
 said the Spaniard, with a disdainful smile. 
 " Well, then, since I have already demanded 
 the hand of Dona Rosarita for the illustrious 
 Senator Tragaduros y Despilfarro, of course I 
 cannot now take his place." 
 
 " But why, senor, did you not make the de- 
 mand on your own account ? " 
 
 " Why, because, my dear friend, were this 
 young lady three times as beautiful, and three
 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 271 
 
 times as rich as she is, she would neither be 
 beautiful enough nor rich enough for me." 
 
 Despilfarro started with astonishment. 
 
 " Eh ! and who are you then, senor, may I 
 ask in my turn ? " 
 
 "Only, as you have said, Don Estevau 
 Arechiza," coolly replied the Spaniard. 
 
 The Senator made three or four turns across 
 the room before he could collect his thoughts ; 
 but in obedience to the distrust that had sud- 
 denly sprung up within him, he resumed : 
 
 "There is something in all this I cannot 
 explain, and when I cannot explain a thing I 
 can't understand it." 
 
 " Good logic," exclaimed Don Estevan, in a 
 tone of raillery ; " but am I really mistaken 
 about you, my dear Senator ? I did you the 
 honour to believe you above certain prejudices 
 and even if there was anything in the past life 
 of the beautiful Rosarita for instance, any pre- 
 judice to be trampled under foot is a million 
 of dowry, besides three millions of expecta- 
 tion, nothing in your eyes ? "
 
 272 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 Don Estevan put this question for the pur- 
 pose of sounding the morality of the man, or 
 rather to try the strength of a tool which he 
 meant to make us of. 
 
 Despilfarro returned no reply. 
 
 "Now, then, I await your answer," said 
 Don Estevan, after a pause, appearing to 
 take pleasure in the Senator's embarrassment. 
 
 " Upon my word, Don Estevan," replied 
 Despilfarro, " you are cruel to mystify one in 
 this manner. I I Carramba ! it is very 
 embarrassing." 
 
 Don Estevau interrupted him. This hesi- 
 tation on the part of Despilfarro told the 
 Spaniard what he wished to know. An ironi- 
 cal smile played upon his lips, and laying 
 aside his pleasantry, he resumed in a serious 
 tone : 
 
 " Listen to me, Tragaduros. It would be 
 unworthy of a gentleman to continue longer 
 this badinage where a lady's reputation is con- 
 cerned. I can assure you, then, that the past 
 life of Dona Rosarita is without a stain."
 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 273 
 
 The Senator breathed freely. 
 
 " And now," continued Don Estevan, " it is 
 necessary that you give me your full confi- 
 dence, and I will set you an example by giving 
 mine with a perfect frankness ; the success of 
 the noble cause I have embraced depends upon 
 it. First, then, hear who I am Arechiza is 
 only a borrowed appellation. As to my real 
 name, which you shall soon know, I made oath 
 in my youth that no woman, however rich or 
 beautiful, should share it with me ; therefore, 
 now that my hair is grey, do you think that I 
 should be likely to break the oath I have so long 
 kept ? Although a wife, such as I propose for 
 you, may ofttimes be a stepping-stone to ambi- 
 tion, she is oftener an obstacle." 
 
 As he said this, Don Estevan rose, and in 
 his turn paced the floor with an agitated air. 
 Some traces of distrust were still perceptible 
 upon the countenence of the Senator they 
 were noticed by him. 
 
 " You wish for a more precise explana- 
 tion ? " said he ; " you shall have it." 
 
 VOL. I. T
 
 274 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 The Spaniard approached the window and 
 closed the shutters, as if fearful that their 
 conversation might be heard outside. He 
 then sat down again, and requested the 
 Senator to be seated near him. 
 
 Tragaduros watched him with a lively 
 curiosity, at the same time lowering his eyes 
 whenever they met the fiery glances of the 
 Spaniard. 
 
 The latter appeared suddenly to become 
 transformed, as if looking grander and nobler. 
 
 "Now, Senor Senator," began he, "I am go- 
 ing to make known to you some secrets suffi- 
 cient to turn your head." 
 
 The Senator trembled. 
 
 " When the tempter carried the Son of Man 
 to the top of a mountain, and promised him 
 all the kingdoms of the earth if he would fall 
 down and worship him he scarce offered him 
 more than I am offering to the Senator of 
 Arispe. As the tempter, then, I lay at your 
 feet honours, power, and riches, if you will 
 subscribe to my conditions."
 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 275 
 
 The solemnity of this exordium, and the im- 
 posing manner of Don Estevan, following so 
 closely upon the jocular mien he had hitherto 
 exhibited, made a painful impression upon the 
 mind of the Senator. There was a short mo- 
 ment in which he regretted being so advanced 
 in his opinions, and during this time the 
 great dowry of Rosarita and her rosy lips had 
 but slight prestige for him. 
 
 " It is now twenty years," continued the 
 Spaniard, " since I took up my real vocation 
 in the world. Previous to that time, I believed 
 myself made for domestic life and indulged 
 in those absurd dreams of love natural to 
 young hearts. An illusion soon destroyed ! 
 An evil hour an accident showed me the de- 
 ception ; and I found out that I was made for 
 ambition nothing more. I have therefore 
 sought for glory and honour to satisfy my de- 
 sires, and I have won them. I have conquered 
 the right to stand uncovered in the presence 
 of the King of Spain. Chevalier of the Order 
 of St James of the Sword, I have taken part 
 
 T 2
 
 276 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 in the royal ceremonies of the white cloak and 
 red sword; and I may say that for me fame 
 has been no idle illusion. Chevalier also of 
 Carlos III., I have shared with the royal 
 princes the title of the Grand Cross. I have 
 won successively the Order of St. Ferdinand, 
 of St. Hermengildo, and the Golden Fleece of 
 Calatrava. These honours, although coveted 
 by all, were for me but sterile consolations." 
 
 This enumeration, made without the slight- 
 est show of ostentation, caused the Senator 
 to regard the speaker with an air of respect- 
 ful astonishment. Don Estevan continued : 
 
 " Wealth followed close upon these honours. 
 Eich appanages, added to the fortune I 
 derived from my ancestors, soon left far be- 
 hind me the time when, as a simple cadet of 
 my family, I was worth nothing but my 
 sword. Now I was rich, opulent, and will 
 I tell you? I was still far from being con- 
 tent. My efforts continued ; and I was 
 made Comte de Villamares, and afterwards 
 Duke de Armada "
 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 277 
 
 " Oh ! Senor Duke," interrupted Despil- 
 farro, in an humble voice, "permit me but 
 I" 
 
 " I have not yet finished," calmly continued 
 the Spaniard ; "when you have heard all, you 
 will no longer doubt my words. Notwith- 
 standing your mistrust, sefior, I am still 
 nothing more than the secret agent of a 
 prince, arid I desire to remain in your eyes, as 
 ever, the simple gentleman, Don Estevan de 
 Arechiza nothing more. It is necessary, 
 however, that this distrust of me should not 
 manifest itself again ; for since you are pres- 
 ently to know the object which I am pur- 
 suing, you will be privy to my most secret 
 thoughts." 
 
 The Senator continued to listen in the most 
 respectful silence. 
 
 " As I have said, then, I followed ambition 
 for twenty years for its own sake; or, to speak 
 more truly, I passed twenty years of my life 
 to destroy a painful souvenir, at the same 
 time that I was pursuing the path to fame.
 
 278 THE WOOD-BANGERS. 
 
 I fancied that in the middle of a turbulent 
 life, this souvenir would in time be effaced 
 from my memory. The favourite of a prince, 
 the expectant heir to one of the first thrones 
 in Christendom, elevated to the highest 
 places of power wealth prodigally lavished 
 upon me I hoped to be able to forget that 
 terrible souvenir. Yain hope ! " added the 
 speaker in a solemn voice. " Alas ! nothing 
 can banish remorse. The bloody sword of St. 
 James was no idle symbol in my hands ; for 
 remorse lends to ambition a fearful activity 
 like a voice continually crying, ' On ! on for 
 
 ever ! 
 
 Don Estevan paused, and for a time re- 
 mained silent, during which the Senator 
 regarded him with a timid look, at the same 
 time admiring the imposing and solemn dignity 
 of his countenance. 
 
 " But where to go on ? " continued the 
 speaker ; " what object to follow next? Into 
 what new course might I precipitate this 
 torrent of ambition that was boiling within
 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 279 
 
 me ? At length a new incident offered itself, 
 and gave me a fresh opportunity for action 
 an opportunity to strive and combat for in 
 my case to struggle and fight is to forget. 
 
 " In all likelihood you have scarce heard of 
 our political troubles, Don Vicente ? I am 
 aware that all the kingdoms of Europe might 
 be shaken to their bases, without your knowing 
 anything of the matter, in this out of the way 
 corner of the world. Well, then, I shall 
 make known to y<4u what occurred. 
 
 "It is now about two years since the King 
 of Spain, by a total violation of the Salic law, 
 hitherto observed by all his ancestors, 
 violently cut off the succession to the throne 
 in the person of his brother Don Carlos ; 
 and by this act kindled the fires of civil war 
 throughout the kingdom. The Infanta Isa- 
 bella was declared heiress to the throne, to the 
 exclusion of her uncle, the legal heir. This 
 prince it was of whom I spoke, and who is 
 my august patron and protector. I did 
 everything in my power to assuage the mortal
 
 280 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 grief that this unexpected event naturally 
 caused to the man whom I above all others 
 have reason to esteem. 
 
 " Amidst the consolations which I offered 
 him, and the plans which I proposed, one 
 design of a gigantic nature offered itself to 
 my imagination. True, it presented the pros- 
 pect of countless dangers, and obstacles 
 almost insurmountable ; but for this very 
 reason I adopted it. 
 
 " My dream, then, is to conquer for my 
 master a kingdom as vast as the one of which 
 he has been wrongfully deprived ; to restore 
 to him one of the brightest jewels of that 
 Transatlantic crown which his ancestors once 
 so gloriously wore. I dream of conquering a 
 kingdom and that kingdom once conquered, 
 I, a simple gentleman, intend to present it to 
 the true heir of the Spanish monarchy Don 
 Carlos de Bourbon ! 
 
 " Now, do you believe, Senor Senator, that 
 Don Estevan de Arechiza has the power to 
 bestow upon others, and without regretting
 
 THE DUKE D'ARMADA. 281 
 
 it, the beauty and wealth of the daughter of a 
 Mexican haciendado ? " 
 
 The Spaniard pronounced these last words 
 with an air of proud tranquillity, and then 
 remained silent, awaiting their effects upon his 
 listener.
 
 282 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THE NEW KINGDOM. 
 
 THE Mexican senator, with his contracted, 
 or rather egotistic views, was struck dumb by 
 the gigantic and daring design of his com- 
 panion. He could only exclaim as he respect- 
 fully pressed the hand which the Spaniard 
 held out to him : 
 
 " Oh, Don Estevan, if you permit me still 
 to give you this modest title, I regret my 
 suspicions ; and for the happiness which you 
 offer me, for the grand perspective which you 
 open before me, I promise you my life, my 
 heart, but " 
 
 "But! another suspicion?" asked Don 
 Estevan, with a smile.
 
 THE NEW KINGDOM. 283 
 
 "No, not a suspicion of you, but a fear of 
 some one else. Have you noticed the young 
 man whom chance brought into our company ? 
 I have a secret presentiment that there is 
 something between him and Doila Rosarita. 
 He is young, he is good-looking, and they 
 appear to have known each other a long 
 while." 
 
 " What ! " exclaimed Don Estevan, "jealous 
 of this ragged rustic ? " 
 
 " I avow," replied the Senator, " that I 
 cannot help it. I noticed two or three times 
 their eyes fixed upon each other with a 
 strange expression." 
 
 " Make yourself easy about that. I know 
 for certain, and from Don Augustin himself 
 I have had my information, that the heart of 
 his daughter is free. Besides, her vanity 
 alone would hinder her from any fancy for 
 this droll fellow, who appears to have all the 
 pride of a Spanish beggar. He shall be 
 watched ; and should he have the impudence 
 to carry his pretensions so high, it will be
 
 284 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 an easy matter to send him about his busi- 
 ness ? " 
 
 In pronouncing the last words, the coun- 
 tenance of Don Estevan appeared for a 
 moment to wear a troubled expression, and 
 he could not hinder himself from adding : 
 
 " I have myself remarked what you say ; 
 but let us not dwell upon chimerical fears. 
 Listen to me, Don Vicente, while I explain 
 more categorically the object of which I have 
 been speaking, in order that you may under- 
 stand fully why I wish to reckon upon your 
 assistance. I have not yet told you either 
 what resources I have, or the kingdom it 
 is my design to conquer." 
 
 " True enough," assented Tragaduros, "you 
 have not." 
 
 "The province then which I intend to 
 transform into a kingdom is neither more nor 
 less than this of Sonora." 
 
 " What ! our republican state to be changed 
 into a monarchy ! " exclaimed the Senator. 
 " Senor Don Estevan, to attempt this will be 
 to play with your life."
 
 THE NEW KINGDOM. 285 
 
 " I know it." 
 
 " But what resources do you count upon?" 
 " Listen : Ten years ago I was in the 
 Spanish army, and fought against the inde- 
 pendence of your country in this very pro- 
 vince. I then became acquainted with its 
 resources its incalculable richness; and when 
 I quitted it, to go home to Europe, I had a 
 presentiment that some day I should again 
 return to it as I have done. Chance at that 
 time made me acquainted with Don Augustin, 
 then occupied in amassing the vast wealth 
 which to-day he so freely spends. I had the 
 fortune to render him a service to save his 
 life, in fact, and prevent his house from being 
 pillaged by the insurgents, for he did not 
 conceal his sympathy for the Spanish cause. 
 I afterwards kept up with him a correspond- 
 ence, and learned that Sonora became every 
 day more discontented with the federal govern- 
 ment. I then designed my great plan, which 
 was approved of by the prince, and at his desire 
 I came over here. Don Augustin was among 
 the first to whom I opened my purpose. He
 
 286 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 was flattered by the promises I was able to 
 make in the name of my royal master, and at 
 once placed his fortune at my disposal. 
 
 "Notwithstanding the large pecuniary re- 
 sources I have been able to dispose of, I am 
 seeking to augment them still further, and 
 chance has favoured me. While here, in my 
 former campaign, I made the acquaintance of 
 an odd character a young fellow who in 
 turns betrayed both royalists and republicans. 
 My relations with him recall a somewhat droll 
 occurrence. I found that he was guiding the 
 regiment I commanded into an ambuscade of 
 the insurgents, and I ordered him to be hung 
 to the first tree we should meet with. For- 
 tunately for him, my men translated the order 
 in its most literal sense ; and being at the time 
 in the middle of vast savannas, entirely desti- 
 tute of trees, the execution was held over, as 
 it was an impossibility to perform it. The 
 result was that in the middle of our marchings 
 and countermarchings the fellow escaped ; and 
 it appears did not afterwards hold any ran-
 
 THE NEW KINGDOM. 287 
 
 cour towards me, since he has again offered 
 his services to me. This fellow to-day goes 
 by the name of Cuchillo. It was he whom I 
 met at the village of Huerfano, where you 
 saw us renew our acquaintance ; and at that 
 interview he made known to me the secret 
 of an immense placer of gold, whither I intend 
 to conduct my expedition. Besides ourselves, 
 Cuchillo alone knows the object of this enter- 
 prise" (the Spaniard did not mention the name 
 of Tiburcio), " which is generally supposed to 
 be merely a new expedition like many others 
 that have been got up to go gold-seeking by 
 chance. 
 
 " And now, Sefior Senator," continued Don 
 Estevan, " you need not proceed further with 
 us. You may remain here, where you will have 
 an easy part to play in making yourself agree- 
 able to the fair Rosarita, while I am braving 
 the perils of this unknown frontier. As for 
 Cuchillo, if he attempt to play the traitor 
 with me a second time, I shall take care to be 
 a little more prompt in punishing him.
 
 288 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " The product of this expedition," pursued 
 the Spaniard, " of which, as leader, I shall be 
 entitled to a fifth part, will be added to the 
 resources I have already. The men who com- 
 pose it will be easily converted into devoted 
 partisans for our design ; and should it happen 
 that the forces I expect from Europe should 
 fail to come to hand in due time, these adven- 
 turers will serve a good purpose. But I have 
 no fear for the want of followers. Europe is, 
 at the present moment, overcrowded with 
 people who want employment; any enterprize 
 will be welcome to them, and a leader in any 
 part of the world needs only to speak the 
 word for crowds to enrol themselves under his 
 banner." 
 
 As he said this, Don Estevan paced the 
 room, agitated by the grandeur of his 
 thoughts. His dark eyes flashed with excite- 
 ment, and his soul seemed inspired with a war- 
 like ardour, that "caused him for awhile to 
 forget the presence of the Senator. It was 
 only after some minutes spent in this wild
 
 THE NEW KINGDOM. 289 
 
 enthusiasm that he remembered an important 
 fact that in all projects such as he was en- 
 gaged in, intrigue should be the precursor of 
 open action ; and as this was to be the peculiar 
 role which the Senator was expected to play, 
 he again turned to address himself to this 
 individual. 
 
 " Meanwhile," said he, " your tactics will 
 be of a more pacific character. I take charge 
 of the open fighting while you manage the 
 secret diplomacy of the affair. Your fortune, 
 restored to you by this opulent alliance, will 
 enable you to get back the influence you have 
 lost. You will receive, with the daughter of 
 Don Augustin, at least 200,000 dollars of 
 dowry. Half of this you are to employ in 
 making partisans in the senate, and in what 
 you are pleased to call your army. This sum 
 you will not lose ; it will be repaid to you, 
 and with usurious interest ; or, if it never 
 should, you still make a good thing of it. 
 The end you will keep in view is to detach 
 the Senate of Sonora from the federal alliance. 
 VOL. I. U
 
 290 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 You will find no lack of reasons for this 
 policy. For instance, your state has now 
 scarcely the privileges of a simple territory ; 
 your interests differ entirely from those of the 
 central states of the republic. Every day 
 your laws are becoming more centralized. 
 The President, who deals with your finances, 
 resides at the distance of seven hundred leagues 
 from your capital it is ridiculous ! Besides, 
 the funds of the treasury are misappropriated 
 the army badly paid, although you have to 
 do your duty in raising the tax that is to pay 
 it a thousand grievances can be cited. Well, 
 this will enable you to get up apronunciamento, 
 and before the news of your grito can reach 
 the city of Mexico, and the executive power 
 there can send a force against you ay, be- 
 fore the government troops could get half way 
 to Sonora, more than two-thirds of them would 
 desert. The others would come upon the 
 ground, only to find the insurrectionary party 
 too strong for them, and they themselves 
 would be certain to join us.
 
 THE NEW KINGDOM. 291 
 
 " Laws emanating from your own senate 
 of which you yourself would have the control 
 and guidance laws suited to the manners 
 and usages of your state would soon become 
 firmly established and respected, and Sonora 
 would then be an independent government. 
 This would be the first step, and the most 
 difficult. After that the rest would be easy 
 enough ; and the gold which I should furnish 
 will bring it about. The senate and the army 
 would call for a European prince to place him- 
 self at their head one who speaks the same 
 language and professes the same religion as 
 themselves. This prince I have already pro- 
 vided. Now hear me, Don Vicente, as to 
 your own share in this business. The Senator 
 Despilfarro is already a rich man, with a lady 
 for his wife, of whom a prince might be proud. 
 He will be made noble a count a grandee 
 of Spain. A lucrative post will attach him 
 to the person of the new king, and nothing 
 is to hinder him to rise to the very sum- 
 mit of his ambition. All this I promise 
 
 U2
 
 292 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 on the part of your future sovereign, King 
 Charles the First" 
 
 With these words the Spaniard finished his 
 harangue. The Mexican Senator, fascinated 
 by the riches and honours thus promised him, 
 grasped the hand of the bold conspirator, at 
 the same time crying out with enthusiasm, 
 " Viva! Viva Carlos el Primero!" 
 
 " Good ! " rejoined Don Estevan, with a 
 smile. "Don Carlos can count upon one power- 
 ful partisan already in Sonora, and there will 
 soon be many. But it is getting late, Don 
 Vicente, and I have yet much business to do 
 before I can sleep. You will excuse me, then, 
 if I say good night to you." 
 
 After exchanging the usual buenas noches, 
 the Senator returned to his own chamber and 
 couch, to dream of his future riches and gran- 
 deur.
 
 293 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 QUARRELSOME GAMESTERS. 
 
 IN a remote chamber of the hacienda were 
 lodged the four adventurers, Pedro Diaz, 
 Oroche, Cuchillo, and Baraja. These gentle- 
 men were not slow in becoming acquainted 
 with one another, and this acquaintance was 
 soon of the most familiar character. In the 
 middle of the room in which all four were to 
 pass the night, stood a strong oaken table, 
 upon which, in an iron candlestick, was burning 
 a long, thin tallow-candle, that gave forth a 
 somewhat dim and doubtful light. By this 
 light Cuchillo and Baraja, forgetful of all their 
 promises and vows, were going on with the
 
 294 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 game which had been so suddenly interrupted 
 that morning at the village of Huerfano. 
 
 Pedro Diaz appeared to be merely an invo- 
 luntary looker-on ; while Oroche, seated at one 
 corner of the table, his right leg across his 
 left, his elbow resting on his knee the fa- 
 vourite attitude of mandolin players accom- 
 panied his own voice as he sang the boleros 
 and fandangos then most in vogue among the 
 inhabitants of the coast region. 
 
 "Wrapped as usual in his ragged cloak, 
 Oroche appeared to have the true inspiration 
 of an artist, since he could thus elevate him- 
 self, upon the wings of music, above the vulgar 
 considerations of the toilet, or the cleanliness 
 and comfort of the person. A bottle of mezcal, 
 already half-empty, stood upon the table. 
 From this the players occasionally helped 
 themselves, as a finale to the elegant supper 
 they had eaten, and to which Cuchillo, Baraja, 
 and Oroche had done ample honour. Not- 
 withstanding the frequent bumpers which Cu- 
 chillo had quaffed, he appeared to be in the
 
 QUARRELSOME GAMESTERS. 295 
 
 worst of humours, and a prey to the most 
 violent passions. His shaggy eyebrows, con- 
 tracted by the play of these passions, added 
 to the evil aspect of his physiognomy, rendering 
 it even more sinister than common. Just then 
 he was observed to cut the cards with parti- 
 cular care. He was not playing with his 
 friend Baraja for the mere sport of the thing, 
 far a moiety of the half-ounce he had received 
 from Don Estevan had already gone into Ba- 
 raja's pockets, and Cuchillo was in hopes that 
 the attention which he had given to the cut- 
 ting of the cards might change the luck that 
 had hitherto been running against him. The 
 careful cutting, however, went for nothing ; 
 and once more the sum he had staked was 
 swept into the pocket of his adversary. 
 All at once Cuchillo flew off into a passion, 
 scattering his hand of cards all over the 
 table. 
 
 " Who the devil wants your music?" cried 
 he to Oroche in a furious tone ; " and I myself 
 fool that I am to play in this fashion only
 
 296 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 credit when I win, and cash whenever I 
 lose." 
 
 " You offend me, Senor Cuchillo," said Ba- 
 raja ; " my word has always passed for its value 
 in cash." 
 
 " Especially when you don't happen to 
 lose," sneeringly added Cuchillo. 
 
 " That is not a very delicate insinuation," 
 said Baraja, gathering up the cards. "Fie, 
 fie ! Senor Cuchillo to get angry about such 
 a trifle ! I myself have lost half a hacienda 
 at play after being robbed of the other half 
 and I never said a word about it." 
 
 " Didn't you, indeed ? what's that to me ? 
 I shall speak as I please, Senor Baraja and 
 as loudly as I please, too," added he, placing 
 his hand upon the hilt of his knife. 
 
 " Yes," coolly answered Baraja, " I know 
 you use words that cause your friends to drop 
 dead ; but these words are harmless at a dis- 
 tance besides I have got a tongue as sharp 
 as yours, Senor Cuchillo." 
 
 As Baraja said this, he drew his knife from
 
 QUARRELSOME GAMESTERS. 297 
 
 its sheath, in which action he was imitated by 
 his antagonist, and both placed themselves 
 simultaneously in an attitude for fight. 
 
 Oroche coolly took up his mandolin which, 
 at the interference of Cuchillo, he had laid 
 aside and, like a bard of ancient times, he 
 was preparing to accompany the combat with 
 a chaunt, when Diaz suddenly interposed 
 between the two champions. 
 
 " For shame, gentlemen ! " cried he ; 
 " what ! two men made to be mutual friends, 
 thus to cut each other's throats for a few 
 paltry dollars ! on the eve, too, of becoming 
 the owners of a hundred times as much ! 
 Have I not understood you to say, Senor 
 Cuchillo, that you were to be the guide of 
 our expedition ? Your life is no more your 
 own, then; it belongs to us all, and you 
 have no right to risk it. And you, Senor 
 Baraja, you have not the right to attempt the 
 life of our guide. Come, put up your knives, 
 and let there be no more of this matter/' 
 
 This speech recalled the two combatants
 
 298 THE WOOD-HANGERS. 
 
 to their senses. Cuchillo, remembering the 
 grand interest he had in the success of the 
 expedition, and perceiving that the risk of life 
 was playing a little too high for a combat of 
 this sort usually ends in the death of one or 
 the other gave ready ear to the counsel of 
 Diaz. Baraja, on his side, reflected that the 
 dollars he had already pocketed might be bet- 
 ter employed than in defraying the expenses 
 of his own funeral ; and on this reflection was 
 equally ready to desist from his intention. 
 
 "Be it so, then ! " cried Cuchillo, speak- 
 ing first ; "I sacrifice my feelings to the 
 common good." 
 
 "And I," said Baraja, "I am willing to 
 follow so noble an example. I disarm but 
 I shall play no more." 
 
 The knives were again stuck into their 
 scabbards, and the two adversaries mutually 
 extended their hands to one another. 
 
 At this moment, Diaz, by way of prevent- 
 ing any allusion to the recent quarrel, sud- 
 denly turning to Cuchillo, demanded :
 
 QUARRELSOME GAMESTERS. 299 
 
 "Who, Senor Cuchillo, is this young man 
 whom I saw riding by your side as you came 
 up to the hacienda? Notwithstanding the 
 friendship that appeared to exist between 
 you and him, if I mistake not, I observed 
 you regarding one another with an occasional 
 glance of mistrust not to say hostility. 
 Was it not so ? " 
 
 Cuchillo recounted how they had found 
 Tiburcio half dead upon the road, and also 
 the other circumstances already known to the 
 reader ; but the question put by Diaz had 
 brought the red colour into the face of the 
 outlaw, for it recalled to him how his cunning 
 had been outwitted by the young man, and 
 also how he had been made to tremble a 
 moment under Tiburcio's menace. Writhing 
 under these remembrances, he was now deter- 
 mined to make his vengeance more secure, 
 by enlisting his associates as accomplices of 
 his design. 
 
 " It often happens," said he, in a significant 
 tone, " that one man's interest must be sacri-
 
 300 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 ficed to the common welfare -just as I have 
 now done does it not ? " 
 
 " Without doubt," replied several. 
 
 " Well, then," continued Cuchillo, " when 
 one has given himself, body and soul, to any 
 cause, whatever it may be, it becomes his 
 duty, as in my case, to put a full and complete 
 constraint upon his affections, his passions, 
 even his dearest interests, ay, even upon any 
 scruples of conscience that might arise in an 
 over-delicate mind." 
 
 " All the world knows that," said Baraja. 
 
 " Just so, gentlemen. Well, I feel myself 
 in that difficulty ; I have a too timid con- 
 science, I fear, and I want your opinions to 
 guide me." 
 
 His audience maintained an imperturbable 
 silence. 
 
 "Suppose, then," continued the outlaw, 
 " there was a man whom you all held in the 
 highest esteem, but whose life compromised 
 the success of our expedition, what should 
 be done with him ? "
 
 QUARRELSOME GAMESTERS. 301 
 
 " As God lives," cried Oroche, " I should 
 be happy to find some occasion of sacrificing 
 private interests to the common good." 
 
 " But is there such a man ?" inquired Diaz ; 
 " and who may he be ? " 
 
 " It's a long story," replied Cuchillo, " and 
 its details concern only myself but there is 
 such a man." 
 
 " Carajo ! " exclaimed Oroche, " that is 
 enough ; he should be got rid of as speedily 
 as possible." 
 
 " Is that the advice of all of you ? " asked 
 Cuchillo. 
 
 " Of course," answered simultaneously 
 Oroche and Baraja. 
 
 Diaz remained silent, keeping himsellj as 
 it were, out of this mysterious compromise. 
 After a little, he rose from his seat, and under 
 some pretext left the chamber. 
 
 " Well, then, gentlemen," said Cuchillo, 
 addressing himself to his two more facile 
 comrades, " you are fully of the opinion that 
 the man should be got rid of. Let me tell
 
 302 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 you, then, that this man is no other than 
 Tiburcio Arellanos." 
 
 " Tiburcio ! " exclaimed the two acolytes. 
 " Himself and although, since he is one of 
 my dearest friends, it goes sadly against my 
 heart, I declare to you that his life may 
 render abortive all the plan of our expedi- 
 tion." 
 
 "But," interposed Baraja, "why may he 
 not lose it? to-morrow, in this hunt of wild 
 horses, there will be a thousand opportunities 
 of his losing it." 
 
 " True enough," said Cuchillo, in a solemn 
 voice. " It is of great importance he should 
 not return from this hunt. Can I rely upon 
 you, gentlemen ?" 
 
 " Blindly," replied the two adventurers. 
 The storm was gathering over the head of 
 poor Tiburcio ; but danger threatened him 
 from still another quarter ; and long before 
 the expected hunt that danger would be at 
 its height. 
 
 The three adventurers continued their con-
 
 QUARRELSOME GAMESTERS. 303 
 
 versation, and were entering more particularly 
 into the details of their design, when a knock- 
 ing at the outer door interrupted their sinister 
 councils.
 
 304 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 TIBURCIO IN DANGER. 
 
 CUCHILLO opened the door, outside of which 
 appeared one of the attendants of Don Este- 
 van. Without entering, the man communi- 
 cated his message which was to Cuchillo 
 himself to the effect that Don Estevan 
 awaited him in the garden. The outlaw, 
 without reply, followed the servant, who con- 
 ducted him to an alley between two rows of 
 granadines, where a man wrapped in his cloak 
 was pacing to and fro, apparently buried in 
 deep meditation. It was Don Estevan him- 
 self. 
 
 The approach of Cuchillo interrupted his
 
 TIBURCIO IN DANGER. 305 
 
 reverie, and a change passed over his counte- 
 nance. Had Cuchillo not been preoccupied 
 with his own thoughts and purposes of ven- 
 geance, he might have observed on the features 
 of the Spaniard an expression of disdainful 
 raillery that evidently concerned himself. 
 
 " You have sent for me ?" said he to Don 
 Estevan. 
 
 "You cannot otherwise than approve of 
 my discretion," began the Spaniard, without 
 making answer. "I have allowed you time 
 enough to sound this young fellow you know 
 whom I mean. Well ! no doubt you have 
 penetrated to the bottom and know all you, 
 whose perspicuity is only equalled by the ten- 
 derness of your conscience?" 
 
 There was an acerbity in this speech which 
 caused the outlaw to feel ill at ease, for it re- 
 opened the wounds of his self-esteem. 
 
 " Well," continued Don Estevan, " what 
 have you learnt ?" 
 
 " Nothing," replied Cuchillo. 
 
 "Nothing!" 
 
 VOL.1 X
 
 306 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " No ; the young man could tell me no- 
 thing, since he knew nothing himself. He 
 has no secrets for me." 
 
 " What ! does he not suspect the existence 
 of the Golden Valley ?" 
 
 " He knows no more of it than of the Gar- 
 den of Eden," replied Cuchillo, with a confi- 
 dent swagger. 
 
 " What was bringing him to the hacienda, 
 then ? for that is upon the route. He must 
 have some object in coming this way." 
 
 " Oh, yes ! he came to ask Don Augustin 
 to take him into his service as a vaquero." 
 
 " It is evident," said the Spaniard, in a tone 
 of mockery "that you have gained his full 
 confidence, and know all about him." 
 
 " I flatter myself, my perspicuity " 
 
 " Is only equalled by the tenderness of your 
 conscience," interrupted Don Estevan, still 
 keeping up his tone of raillery. " Well, but 
 has this young man not confided to you any 
 other secret? You have had a long ride 
 together, and an opportunity to talk of many
 
 TIBURCIO IN DANGER. 307 
 
 things. For instance, has he said nothing to 
 you about an affair of the heart ? has he not 
 told you he was in love ?" 
 
 " For Dios ! Who could Tiburcio be in 
 love with in these deserts ? The poor devil is 
 likely to think more of a good horse than a 
 pretty girl." 
 
 " Indeed !" exclaimed the Spaniard, with 
 a mocking laugh that sent a shivering through 
 the frame of Cuchillo. " Well ! well ! friend 
 Cuchillo, your youth promised better than 
 this. If your conscience is as callous as your 
 perspicacity is obtuse which God forbid it 
 is not likely to interfere with your sleep." 
 
 "What do you mean, senor?" demanded 
 Cuchillo, evidently confounded by the re- 
 proach. 
 
 " I fear, my friend, that in the only good 
 action you have ever done, you have made 
 a bad hand of it." 
 
 " Good action !" repeated Cuchillo, embar- 
 rassed to know at what epoch of his life he 
 had done such a thing. 
 
 x 2
 
 308 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 " Yes in saving this young man's life." 
 
 " But it was you who did that good action ; 
 as for me, it was only a lucrative one." 
 
 " Be it so. I will lend it to you, notwith- 
 standing the proverb which says we should 
 only lend to the rich. But now hear what I 
 have ascertained T, who do not boast either of 
 my scruples of conscience or of my perspicacity. 
 This young man has in his pocket, at this mo- 
 ment, a written direction of the route to the 
 Golden Valley ; moreover, he is passionately 
 in love with Dona Rosarita, for whom he 
 would give all the gold in this valley, or all 
 the gold in the world, and all the horses in 
 Sonora, if he had them. Moreover, his object 
 in coming to the Hacienda del Venado was 
 to make himself its future proprietor." 
 
 " Blood and thunder ! " cried Cuchillo, 
 starting as if bitten by a snake, " that can- 
 not be it is not possible I could be fooled 
 in that manner by a child ! " 
 
 " That child is a giant beside you, Master 
 Cuchillo," coldly replied Arechiza.
 
 TIBURCIO IN DANGER. 309 
 
 " It is impossible ! " exclaimed the exas- 
 perated Cuchillo. 
 
 " Do you wish the proofs ? if you do, you 
 shall have them but I may tell you they are 
 of a nature to make you shudder from the 
 crown of your head to the soles of your feet." 
 
 " No matter ; I should like to hear them," 
 said Cuchillo in a suppressed voice. 
 
 " I will not speak of your conscience mark 
 that well, Cuchillo, for I know that it never 
 shudders nor yet shall I speak of your 
 timidity, which I observed last night while you 
 were in presence of the jaguars " 
 
 Don Estevan paused, to let his words have 
 their full effect. It was his design to crush by 
 his superiority the man whose fidelity he had 
 a thousand reasons to suspect. 
 
 "Tiburcio," continued he, "is of a race or 
 appears to be of a race that unites intelligence 
 with courage ; and you are his mortal enemy. 
 Do you begin to understand me ? " 
 
 " No," said Cuchillo. 
 
 " Well, you will presently, after a few sim-
 
 310 THE WOOD-BANGERS. 
 
 pie questions which I intend to ask you. The 
 first is, In your expedition with Arellanos, 
 had you not a horse that stumbled in the left 
 leg?" 
 
 " Eh ! " ejaculated Cuchillo, turning pale. 
 
 " A second question, Were they really 
 Indians who murdered your companion ? " 
 
 " Perhaps it was me," replied the outlaw, 
 with a hideous smile. 
 
 " Third question, Did you not receive, in 
 a deadly struggle, a wound in the leg ? And 
 fourth, Did you not carry upon your shoul- 
 ders the dead body of Arellanos ? " 
 
 " I did to preserve it from being mutilated 
 by the Indians." 
 
 " One more question, Was it for this you 
 flung the dead body into the neighbouring 
 river not quite dead, it may be ? " 
 
 The beams of the moon, slanting through 
 the leaves of the granadines, shone with a livid 
 reflection on the face of the outlaw, who, with 
 haggard eyes, listened, without comprehending 
 whence they came, to the proofs of a murder
 
 TIBURCIO IN DANGER. 311 
 
 which he believed for ever buried in the 
 desert. 
 
 Cuchillo, when imparting to Don Estevan the 
 knowledge of his marvellous secret, had of course 
 taken care not to give in detail the exact man- 
 ner by which he had himself become master of 
 it ; he had merely stated such circumstances 
 as were necessary to convince the Spaniard 
 of the importance of the discovery. It would 
 be impossible to paint the stupefied expression of 
 his countenance as he listened to these interro- 
 gatories. The very desert itself had spoken ! 
 
 " Does Tiburcio know all this ? " he asked, 
 with an ill- dissembled anxiety. 
 
 " No ; but he knows that the assassin of 
 his father had a horse like yours ; that he was 
 wounded in the leg ; that he flung the dead 
 body into the water. Of one thing only is he 
 still ignorant the name of the murderer. But 
 now let me say to you, if you give me the 
 slightest cause to suspect your fidelity, I shall 
 deliver the secret to this young man, who will 
 crush you like a scorpion. Good blood never
 
 312 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 lies ; so I repeat it, Cuchillo no deception 
 no treason, or your life will answer for 
 it!" 
 
 "Well, as regards Tiburcio," muttered 
 Cuchillo to himself, "if you only keep the 
 secret till this time to-morrow night, you may 
 then shout it in his ears ; I shall have no fear 
 of his hearing you." 
 
 The outlaw was one of those characters who 
 soon recover from a shock similar to that he 
 had just received. Almost on the instant he 
 inquired, with impudent assurance : 
 
 " But your excellency has not proved to me 
 that this young fellow is in love with Dona 
 Rosarita ; and until I have proof of this I shall 
 not doubt my penetration " 
 
 "Hush!" interrupted the Spaniard; "I 
 fancy I hear voices." 
 
 Both remained silent. In advancing across 
 the garden, the two men had approached 
 nearer to the walls of the building, and on 
 that side of it which fronted the window be- 
 longing to the chamber of Rosarita. They
 
 TIBURCIO IN DANGER. 313 
 
 were still a considerable distance from the 
 window itself; but so tranquil was the night, 
 that sounds could be heard a long way off. 
 As they stood to listen, a confused murmur of 
 voices reached their ears as of two persons 
 engaged in conversation but the words could 
 not be distinguished. 
 
 "It is the voice of Tiburcio and Rosarita," 
 muttered the outlaw. 
 
 " Did I not tell you ? You may take that, 
 I think, as an instalment of the proof you are 
 desirous of having." 
 
 A reflection, at this moment, came into the 
 mind of the Spaniard, that struck upon his 
 spirit like a thunderbolt. It was this "If 
 the young girl, after all, is really in love with 
 this fellow, what a dilemma ! I may have to 
 renounce all idea of the marriage which I 
 had designed as the corner-stone of my vast 
 edifice!" 
 
 Don Estevan was the only one who was aware 
 of the real name and family of Tiburcio, and of 
 course knew that he was not unworthy of the
 
 314 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 daughter of a Mexican haciendado. But it 
 had never entered his mind that this young 
 girl, who only regarded Tiburcio in the light 
 of a poor gambusino, would think for a 
 moment of reciprocating his passion. His 
 ideas were suddenly altered, however, on 
 hearing the voices of Tiburcio and Rosarita 
 alternating with each other, with no other 
 witness to their conversation than the stars 
 in the sky. It was evident, therefore, that 
 Rosarita did not regard the young rustic with 
 an unfavouring eye. An interview, such as 
 this, could not be otherwise than a thing pre- 
 meditated and pre-arranged. 
 
 The heart of the Spaniard filled with rage 
 at the thought. His ambition was suddenly 
 alarmed ; for this was an obstacle that had 
 never occurred to him. His countenance 
 exhibited a thoughtful and troubled expres- 
 sion. He found himself unexpectedly in the 
 presence of one of those exigencies which 
 render diplomacy powerless, and absolve all 
 reasons of state. He had behind him a man
 
 TIBURCIO IN DANGER. 315 
 
 ready to destroy whatever victims he might 
 point out; but he remembered that twenty 
 years of expiation had failed to wash from his 
 memory a murder of which he had been himself 
 accused. Should he then, after having passed 
 the middle of his career, again embitter the 
 remainder of his days by another deed of 
 blood? On the other hand, so near the 
 object of his ambition, was he to permit this 
 barrier to stand in his way ? or with a bold 
 effort to rid himself of the obstacle ? 
 
 Thus it is that the ambitious continually 
 roll before them the rock of Sisyphus ! 
 
 "Providence," said he to himself and as 
 he pronounced the word, a bitter smile played 
 upon his lips "providence offers me an 
 opportunity to restore to this young man his 
 name and his fortune, and the honours which 
 he has lost. Such a good action in my ripe 
 age would perhaps compensate for the crime 
 of my youth. But, no no I spurn the 
 occasion it is but a slight sacrifice to the 
 cause which I serve."
 
 316 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 As he spoke, his face was turned towards 
 Cuchillo, who was observing him attentively ; 
 but the shadow of the trees hindered the out- 
 law from noting the sombre expression of his 
 countenance. 
 
 " The hour is come," said he, speaking to 
 Cuchillo in a low voice, "when our doubts 
 are to be solved. But remember ! your pro- 
 jects of vengeance must remain subordinate to 
 my wishes now follow me." 
 
 Saying this, he walked silently towards the 
 hacienda, followed by the assassin. 
 
 The storm which threatened Tiburcio pro- 
 mised soon to break over his head. Two 
 dangerous enemies were approaching him ; 
 Cuchillo, with wounded self-esteem, and pur- 
 poses of vengeance that caused him to grind 
 his teeth as he thought of them ; and Don 
 Estevan, smarting at the discovery of such an 
 obstacle to his ambition. 
 
 Tiburcio, in going forth from his chamber, 
 and traversing the path that conducted him 
 to the appointed rendezvous, was under the
 
 TIBURCIO IN DANGER. 317 
 
 belief he had not been observed neither was 
 he ; but, unfortunately, chance had now be- 
 trayed him. 
 
 The night was not so dark as Don Estevan 
 and Cuchillo would have wished ; neverthe- 
 less, by crouching low, and keeping well in to 
 the wall that enclosed the garden, they suc- 
 ceeded in reaching a little grove of orange 
 and citron trees, the foliage of which was thick 
 enough to shelter them from view. From this 
 grove, thanks to the calmness of the night, 
 they could catch every word that was said, for 
 under the shadow of the trees they were able 
 to approach very near to the speakers. 
 
 " Whatever you may hear," whispered Don 
 Estevan in the ear of the other, " remain mo- 
 tionless as I do." 
 
 " I will," simply answered Cuchillo. 
 
 The two now placed themselves in an atti- 
 tude to see and hear. They were separated 
 from the speakers by a slight barrier of leaves 
 and branches, and by a distance not greater 
 than an active man could pass over in two
 
 318 THE WOOD-RANGERS. 
 
 bounds. Little did the victims of their 
 espionage suspect their proximity little 
 dreamed Tiburcio of the danger that was so 
 near him. 
 
 END OF VOL. I. 
 
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