CHAPTER XII.
A STORM COMING
"A monarchy! a monarchy! nothing but the one-man power will ever doanything for this miserable multitude of Indians, negroes, andrebellion-making Spanish aristocrats. Royalty is our only resource, andI am nearly ready to strike the required blow. I think that Don MariaParedes would make as good an emperor as Augustin de Yturbide, and hewill wear the crown of Mexico somewhat longer. But I must look out forSanta Anna. If he were to return from Cuba too soon, there would benothing left for me but to have him shot as soon as he came ashore. Orelse he might have me shot not many days afterward. His emissaries andspies are all the while working against me, but I shall catch some ofthem. Oh, how I would like to get hold of that venomous conspirator,Zuroaga!"
The President and practically the dictator of the nominal republic ofMexico was standing in his own luxurious chamber of the governmentpalace in the city of Mexico. He was in the full uniform of a generalofficer, for he was preparing to ride out and attend a review of adivision of the really large army which he had gathered to move againstthe American invaders at the north. He deemed himself favored byfortune, for all things had thus far appeared to operate in thedirection of his high ambition. He was in possession of undisputedpower, and his time for making his supremacy permanent had arrived. Itwas the morning of the 4th of August, 1846, and it promised to be asplendid day for a parade. He had eloquently appealed to all thepatriotism in the land, and he had used his last dollar in raising thetroops who were to win his victories and place him firmly upon thethrone of Anahuac, the lost throne of the Montezumas. A large part ofhis forces had already marched, and he was now to follow with theremainder. It was high time that he should do so, for General Taylor'sarmy was daily drawing nearer the Mexican lines at the city of Monterey.Not many minutes later, he rode away from the palace, attended by abrilliant staff, through crowded streets, where every hat went off andall the voices shouted "Viva Paredes" with every appearance ofenthusiasm.
That morning Ned Crawford had not felt like going out of the city to seeany review. Days had passed since the departure of General Zuroaga, butNed's head was full of what his friend had said to him, and he did notcare much in what direction his feet might take him. So, having all thatresponsibility to themselves, they carried him on across the city until,when he looked around him, he saw that he had almost reached the frontgate of the out-of-date fort, which was known as "the citadel." Italways contained a large garrison, not by any means for the defence ofthe capital from external foes, but for the protection of whatever mightbe the "government" for the time being from any sudden tumult orattempted revolution. There were officers and a squad of soldiersstanding a few paces out in front of the wide-open military portal, andthey all were gazing intently in the same direction. Ned also turned tolook, but all that he could see was a solitary rider, upon what seemedto be an all but exhausted horse, urging the panting animal toward thecitadel.
"Colonel Guerra!" exclaimed Ned. "What has brought him all the way fromVera Cruz? Has our army come? Is the city taken?"
Nothing of that kind had yet occurred, but there was a reason for thearrival of the trusted commander of the important fortress on the sea.Ned was very near him when the horse fell, and his rider sprang to theearth, covered with dust and evidently in great excitement. The officersat the gate rushed forward toward him, and one of them loudly demanded:
"Colonel Guerra! What is it? Has he come? All is ready here!"
Guerra himself had not fallen with his horse. Off came his hat and hissword flashed from the sheath, while his voice rang out clearly,fiercely:
"Viva Santa Anna! The entire force at Vera Cruz and the garrison of SanJuan de Ulua have pronounced for him. He is now on his way home fromHavana. We shall soon have with us the one hero who can save us from theAmerican invaders and from the tyranny of King Paredes!"
Possibly, this had been the day calculated upon for the arrival ofprecisely such tidings. It might even have been that all these officersand soldiers were gathered there, prepared both to hear and to act,while President Paredes should be temporarily absent from the city. Atall events, they were swinging their hats, drawing their swords, andtheir enthusiastic acclamations for the returning general were at oncefollowed by a rush back into the citadel and a hasty closing of itsgates. When that was done, and when the rest of the garrison had joinedin "pronouncing" for Santa Anna, the military control of the Mexicancapital had passed out of the hands of President Paredes.
It was startling news, therefore, which was brought out to him by afriendly messenger, as he rode so proudly on in front of his shoutingsoldiery, believing that they were all his own and ready to do hisbidding. The grand review ended instantaneously, and he came gallopingback in all haste to look out for his tumbling crown. He came with hisbrilliant staff and a mixed crowd of friends and unfriends, only todiscover that crown and throne and scepter had disappeared like thechanging figures in a kaleidoscope. He could not even order anybody tobe arrested and shot, for the Vice-President, General Bravo, and all themembers of the national Congress, then in session, were thoughtfullysaying to themselves, if not to each other:
"Santa Anna is coming! The seacoast forces are already his. He will beright here in a few days. We must be careful what we say or do just now.We do not even know what these new troops will say to this thing."
They were not to remain long in ignorance upon that point. As the newswent out from regiment to regiment that afternoon, the undisciplined,ragged mobs of raw recruits began to shout for Santa Anna. Perhaps manyof them had previously served under the one-legged veteran of the oldFrench and Texan wars and at least half a dozen revolutions.
Ned Crawford turned and hurried homeward, as soon as he felt sure thathis head was still upon his shoulders and that he had heard hisremarkable news correctly. His eyes were busy, too, and he heard whatmen were saying to each other. Excited shouts were carrying the errandof Colonel Guerra swiftly over the city, and everywhere it wasdiscovering hearers as ready for it as had been the officers at thegate. He may have been looking a little pale when he entered the parlorof the Paez mansion, for Senora Paez at once arose and came to meet him,inquiring, anxiously:
"Senor Carfora, what is the matter? Has anything happened?"
"Santa Anna--" began Ned, but she stepped quickly forward and put herhand upon his mouth, whispering sharply:
"Speak lower! we do not know who may hear you. What is it?"
She took away her hand, and Ned also whispered, as he hurriedly told herwhat he had seen and heard at the citadel. As he did so, her face andthat of Senora Tassara, standing by her, grew much paler than his own.
"My dear Mercedes," said Senora Tassara to her cousin, "this is all asmy husband and General Zuroaga predicted. But the tiger is not here yet,and by the time he arrives they will be beyond his reach. It takes somedays to travel from Vera Cruz to the city of Mexico. Senor Carfora, youare in no danger. Neither are we."
"No!" angrily exclaimed Senora Paez. "Not for to-day nor to-morrow,perhaps, but down goes the Paredes monarchy! Ah, me! There is a terribletime coming for poor Mexico. Who shall tell what the end of it all willbe!"
"Nobody!" said Senora Tassara, sadly, but Felicia whispered to Ned:
"Senor Carfora, the gringos could not do us much harm if their army hada revolution springing up behind it at home. I wish they had one."
"I don't," replied Ned. "If we did have one, though, it would be biggerthan this is. I don't believe we have any Santa Annas to make one,anyhow. There isn't a man in all America that would think of being king.I guess that if we found one we'd hang him."
"Well," said Felicia, "President Paredes would like to hang a great manypeople, or shoot them, but I hope he can't. What are you going to do?"
"He does not know, dear," interposed her mother. "We must stop talkingabout this thing now. Some of our friends are coming in. It is better tolet them tell us what has happened, just as if we had not heard it atall. Be very careful what you say."
r /> Perhaps everybody in the Paez mansion was accustomed to that kind ofcaution, and when a number of excited women neighbors poured into theparlor to bring the great tidings and discuss the situation, they foundno one in it who was to be surprised into saying a word which might nothave been heard without offence by the friends of either Paredes orSanta Anna.
Great changes in public affairs may produce changes in the plans ofindividuals, and it was not remarkable if General Zuroaga's intendedweek of absence should be somewhat shortened. It may have ended at themoment when the garrison of the citadel "pronounced" in favor of thetyrant in exile and against the tyrant in nominal power. Ned, however,had a small surprise waiting for him. It actually arrived not a greatwhile after luncheon, when he was feeling as if he would like to sitdown by himself and think over this very curious piece of politicalbusiness. He went up into the library, as the safest kind ofthinking-place, and, hardly had he opened the door, before he discoveredthat it had another tenant besides the man in armor in the corner.
"General Zuroaga!" he exclaimed, in astonishment.
"Not quite so loud, please," quietly responded the general. "Yes,Carfora, here I am. Here I must hide, too, for a few hours. The camp isno longer a safe place for me, even in the disguise I was wearing. Thereis really nothing more to keep me there now. I do not need to run anyfurther risks on account of Paredes and his tin monarchy. He is alreadyutterly ruined. I must get out of the reach of Santa Anna'slieutenants, however, if I do not wish to be locked up. You and I canslip away all the more easily while this tumult is going on, and by noonto-morrow we may be well out on the road to Oaxaca. Will you be ready?"
"It's just what I was wishing for!" exclaimed Ned. "I know enough to seethat it isn't a good thing for Senora Paez to have me in the house. Shehas troubles enough of her own. So has Senora Tassara. If an enemy oftheirs found that they had a gringo here, it would make things worse forthem. They've been real good to me, but I want to go with you."
"Right!" said the general. "And there will be sharp eyes on the watchwhile Santa Anna's friends are getting ready for his arrival. He mayappear to come peaceably, but do I not know him? He never yet forgot orforgave an enemy. He will come back to settle up all old accounts."
"Well," said Ned, "we need not be here to be shot at. I packed up, allready, days ago. But, general, I guess I can ride better than I did theother time. I don't need to have so fat a pony."
"My dear fellow," replied the general, soberly, "you will be mounted ona horse that can make a swift run, if necessary. I am glad that youwill know what to do with him."
In other things than horsemanship, Ned had made wonderful advances sincehe came ashore out of the norther, in the Bay of Vera Cruz. It was as ifhe had grown a number of years older in becoming so much moreexperienced. Moreover, he knew so much already about the plots andcounterplots which were going on that it was of little use to keep somethings from him. He was, in fact, almost full-grown as a Mexicanconspirator, and he was sure to do whatever he could against either amonarchy under Paredes or a dictatorship under Santa Anna. It was a fullhour later when they were joined by Senora Paez. She came on a specialerrand, for almost her first remark was:
"General, there will be danger from robbers of all sorts. I shall notdare to keep a great deal of money in the house. I have not much,either, that I can spare for yourself, but you must take this and spendit to beat them. What's more, I want you to take my jewels with you andhide them somewhere in the mountains. Senora Tassara's are already in asafe place. I hope Senor Carfora has enough."
"Oh, yes!" exclaimed Ned. "I have hardly spent anything, and CaptainKemp gave me another hundred, from father. I almost wish it were all inbank-bills, though, for gold and silver are heavy things to carry."
"Well, as to that," laughed the general, "I do not know what kind ofpaper money we could make in Mexico, just now. That sort of thing willdo only under a pretty solid government. But then, a dollar will gofurther in this country than it will in the United States. It looks asif horses were worth only five dollars a head, and men about half asmuch. There are too many that seem ready to sell themselves fornothing."
He said that wearily and sadly, for he was at heart a true patriot andhe believed himself to be doing his best to bring a better state ofthings out of all this anarchy and confusion.
Senora Paez left the room. Ned and the general lay down on the floor tosleep for awhile, and it was just when the first dim light of dawn wasbeginning to creep in at the narrow window that Pablo came to awakenthem. He put his finger on his lip as he did so, and they understoodthat there might be danger close at hand. It was not until they wereout of the house, however, leaving it silently by way of the back door,that he ventured to whisper:
"General, there is a guard already stationed in front. President Paredesis making his last effort to stop his downfall, and he has heard thatyou are in the city. All your friends will be closely watched, to-day."
"I wanted to say good-by to them," began Ned, but here they were.
"General, this is the jewel case," said Senora Paez, as she handed him asmall rosewood box. "Here is the money. Now, Senor Carfora, be a bravefellow. Learn all you can of our poor country. I hope to see you again."
Senora Tassara was saying something in a very low voice to Zuroaga, whenFelicia turned to Ned and said to him:
"You are a wicked gringo, but I like you pretty well and I do hope youwill get away safely. Take good care of yourself."
"Well, senorita," replied Ned, "I will do that, and so must you. I'drather be out among the mountains than here in the city. You'd be saferthere, too. Anyhow, you are not a Mexican. You are a Spaniard and youwould rather be in Spain."
"Maybe I would, just now," she told him with a very melancholy look inher brilliant black eyes. "But I do love Mexico, and I do know enough towish we were not to have any more revolutions. That is, not any moreafter Paredes and Santa Anna and some other men have been killed."
"That is the way they all feel about each other," broke in the general."Come, Carfora. We have horses waiting for us on one of the backstreets."
There were a few hasty good-bys then. The three fugitives passed out ofsight among the shadows of the buildings, and the women returned to thehouse to wait for the downfall of King or Emperor Paredes.