CHAPTER XXIII.
THE NEWS AT LA GUAYRA.
Great rejoicing reigned at the plantation of Don Isadora following thecomplete rout of the enemy, and this joy was increased by the fact thatthe don had not received a fatal wound. In fact, it was believed withcareful nursing he would soon be about again. As he deserved, Roniewas the hero of the occasion, while his friends shared with him thepraise showered upon them by one and all.
As soon as the news of the victory had been carried to the master ofthe estate he sent for our hero, and was lavish in his commendation,declaring that he had been instrumental in saving them all from thebrutal clutches of El Capitan. But, as pleasant as all this heartyapplauding was, Ronie was glad to break away from his admirers in orderto be alone with Harrie and Jack. He and the former had much to say,all of which was listened to with sincere interest by the latter.Harrie explained how he and Francisco had drifted about in their boat,looking in vain for their companions until daylight, when they hadsighted land, and gone ashore. Soon after, they were captured andthrown into prison, as Ronie knew. Then came the unexpected release,the journey to find Colonel Marchand, the capture by El Capitan'sfollowers, and the rescue by his friends, which seemed the mostmiraculous part of his adventures. Ronie, in turn, told what hadbefallen Jack and himself, saying in conclusion:
"There is only one thing more that troubles me. If I knew mother wassafe I could bear this troublesome waiting without murmuring. But I amafraid some fearful fate has overtaken her. I shall not rest until Iknow the truth."
"You know I am with you, Ronie," said Harrie.
"Ay, lad; you can count on old Jack Greenland to stand by you both,through thick and thin."
"God bless you, Jack!" exclaimed Ronie, clasping one hand, while Harrieseized the other, echoing the words of his friend:
"God bless you, Jack; a nobler soul never lived."
When the three had hastily reviewed the troubles they had passedthrough they decided unanimously to return to Colonel Marchand withsuch haste as was consistent with safety. They had importantintelligence to bear, beside the fact that El Capitan was upon histrack. Under the changed circumstances, they decided to take thecaptives with them, and of course Riva and his friend would keep along.While the don was very loath to see them depart, he knew it was theirduty to go, and so he offered to send an escort of fifty men to conductthem on their way as far as might be deemed necessary. At firstthought, Ronie felt like declining this, but he finally asked for anescort of ten men, who went with them until noon of the second day,when they turned back and the scouts kept on, reaching the encampmentof the Venezuelan regiment that night in safety.
I need not describe the reception accorded our heroes by the impetuouscolonel, any more than I need dwell upon the scenes that followed. Thecampaign had now opened in deadly earnest, and weeks of great activityand considerable fighting and skirmishing ensued. El Capitan rallyingafter a few days from his discomfiture at Isadora sought in every wayto disconcert and capture the doughty Venezuelan regiment. In hisefforts he was encouraged on every hand by the reports of the successof the insurgents in almost every section. First intelligence came ofthe capture of a town on the island of Margarita by the audaciouscruiser _Bolivar_, erstwhile the _Libertador_, and earlier the _BanRigh_. Close upon this, Castro's troops under Castillo were defeatednear San Antonio. In May, reports of insurrections came in from everyquarter. Castro suppressed two newspapers which had become pronouncedagainst him, and in his lack of sufficient funds to carry on the war,levied a million bolivars from the widow of Guzman Blanco, the formerpresident. Then the revolution broke out in the State of Bolivar, andafter five days' fighting the president of the State was driven out ofthe capital. In June General Matos, encouraged by the success of hisfollowers, announced a provincial government, with himself as president.
This bit of news reached Colonel Marchand at the close of a warm day'sfight with his old-time enemy, El Capitan. As usual, it had been adraw game, and the colonel was sitting in his hammock feeling inanything but an amiable mood.
"By the soul of Bolivar!" he exclaimed, slapping his knee by way ofemphasis, "he is like a ground mole, that runs for its hole the momentan enemy is in sight. I wish we might meet a foe worthy of our steel.Orderly, send for Sergeant Rand at once."
Ronie was with his friends, discussing the outcome of the recentmeeting with the enemy, and deliberating upon their own fortunes sincethey had become comrades under Castro, when this order was given him.
"I wonder what this means?" he exclaimed. "Say to Colonel Marchand Iwill report at once."
Upon reaching the officer, the young sergeant found that he was anxiousto send a message to President Castro, and at the same time toreconnoiter the country between them and the capital.
"Castro must take the field himself," declared our hero, in the courseof the conversation. "If this growth of the insurgents is allowed tocontinue much longer his cause will become hopeless."
"By the soul of Bolivar! you are right, Sergeant Rand, and it is justwhat I want you to say to Castro himself. You can do it and not offendhim, while I could not. You will go to him at once, taking as many menas you choose. I have only to instruct you to start as soon as may be."
"It shall be as you say, colonel. I desire to have only threecompanions, Senor Riva Baez and my countrymen, Harrie Mannering andJack Greenland."
"As you say, sergeant. Here are the dispatches I wish you to hand toPresident Castro personally."
Handing this package to our hero, the colonel offered no further delay.With feelings akin to gladness, Ronie returned to his expectantcompanions.
"I hail it as good news," he said. "We are to meet the 'LittleCaptain,' President Castro, with what haste we can. I say we, for Ihave the honor of being selected by Colonel Marchand to choose suchcompanions as I wish and hasten to the capital. You know whom Iselect."
Ronie was really pleased with this commission, as it would enable himto enter a wider range of inquiry concerning his mother than he hadbeen situated to do so far. Thoughts of her were last in his mind ashe lay down to rest after a day's campaigning and the first to arousehim in the morning.
"Poor mother! how I pity you, and wish that I knew where you are!"
Within an hour the little party was ready to start, deciding to go bythe way of La Guayra, which they reached without adventure, Thisold-fashioned Spanish town is the chief seaport of Venezuela, as wellas the entrance way to the capital, situated about five miles inlandbehind the series of mountain peaks whose chain runs down to the veryedge of the water. Our young engineers did not fail to notice, as theylooked out over the harbor, the close affinity to the same cerulean huethat touched both sea and sky, so it was difficult to tell where theymet on the horizon, and blended like a curtain of the same softtexture. Under the reflections the vessels appeared to rest flat onthe mirror-like surface, in the words of the poet:
"Like a painted ship upon a painted sea."
The most conspicuous spot about La Guayra is the little fortress madefamous by Charles Kingsley, in his "Westward Ho," as the prison houseof his heroine, the Rose of Devon. This was the residence of theSpanish governors in the days when Venezuela was a dependency of Spain.Past this ancient point of defense against attacks from the sea and thewinds lead those three ways of travel to the capital, aptlyillustrating the changes of centuries; first, but of least importancenow, the mule path worn no doubt by the natives in their passages backand forth; second, the wagon track, cut, it may be, when the continentwas young; and finally, that iron-banded course of modern construction,the railroad. Caracas is embowered among the mountains three thousandfeet above the streets of La Guayra.
Their arrival was soon after the bombardment of Macuto by Venezuelanships on account of an outbreak there. As this place was near to LaGuayra, great excitement was prevailing in the latter place. In fact,the inhabitants everywhere were in an uproar. News came that GeneralRiera, who, it will be remembered, was a passe
nger on the _Libertador_when our heroes were on that vessel, had captured La Vela de Coro,while the insurgents had also captured Barquisemoto, and Riera hadsacked Coro, the capital of the State of Falcon.
Our party did not continue their journey to the capital, on account ofthe fact that Castro was toward Barcelona, where the revolution hadbecome centered. With this bit of news came a rumor which, if it borebut a light bearing on the international contention focused onVenezuela, awakened an anxious interest on the part of Ronie Rand andhis friends. Riva Baez first learned of it from a native who had comedown from the mountainous districts. This man said an American womanwas held by the insurgents as a hostage of war. He could not give thename of the woman, but believed she had not been long in the country.
"It is mother!" exclaimed Ronie, as Riva related the story to him. "Imust see this man at once."
"I am sorry, senor, but he disappeared before I started to find you.Knowing how you would feel about it, and not being able to find you atonce, I went to speak to him again, fearing he would slip away. He wasgone, and no one could tell me where he had left for. I believe he isa spy."
"Do you not know of some one who saw him?"
"I will see what I can learn, Sergeant Rand."
"Thank you, Riva. Meanwhile, the rest of us will do a little lookingaround. Describe the fellow as minutely as possible."
This Riva did, with the graphic speech peculiar to him, and then thefour went out to look for the missing man. In the midst of thisunsuccessful search Ronie learned that Castro had returned to La Guayra.