CHAPTER XI
CAPTURED BY SPANIARDS
The party, after breaking their fast, packed up their rations andstarted on again. The tangled forest of low growth through which theystruggled began to thin out, and they found themselves in an almost opencountry at the foot of a range of mountains. Before they left theshelter of the bushes, Washington motioned the boys back, and droppingon his stomach, wriggled to the edge of the woods, where he made a longsurvey of the country. Seemingly satisfied, he beckoned to the others tocome on, and they all cautiously crept out into the open country.
"Must keep eyes peeled now for Spaniards," said Washington. "Plenty of'em 'tween here'n Cubitas."
"Which way now, Washington?" asked Harry.
The negro pointed straight ahead.
"Over that mountain?" queried Mason, in dismay.
"Suah--and then another--but that's Cubitas."
They toiled on while the hot sun began to mount high in the sky. Theperspiration dripped from their faces as they walked. The mountain wasthickly wooded to its very base and they made as rapid progress aspossible in the wake of the doggedly plodding negro in the effort togain the shade and the security of the trees.
"Half hour more and we find good place for siesta. Can't go on 'til sungoes down," said Washington, who had noticed the boys' fatigue.
When they reached the foot of the mountain the negro struck off into thethick woods, and after a long climb they came out into a small glade,through which trickled a tiny stream. The boys drank greedily of thecool water, and Washington gathered boughs and leaves and soon rigged upa temporary shelter under the trees. Throwing themselves down beneaththis, with their coats for pillows, all hands dropped off into a deepsleep.
When Harry awoke it was late afternoon. Bert was sitting up rubbing hiseyes. Washington and Mason still slept on.
"I'm getting very tired of this sort of thing, Hal," whispered Bert, "Iam afraid I was not cut out for a strenuous life. Do you think there areany Spaniards loafing around in this neighborhood?"
"Let's take a look while the others finish their nap," suggested Harry.
The boys picked up their rifles and cautiously entered the woods,moving from tree to tree and dodging around rocks and boulders in trueIndian fashion. The excitement of thus picking their way through thewoods caused them to forget that they were proceeding in anything but adirect line, and when they at last bethought themselves, neither couldtell in which direction the camp lay behind them.
They dared not shout, and they looked at each other in dismay.
"We are a brilliant pair," said Bert in disgust. "Now what are we to do?Have you any idea how far we have come, or in what direction?"
"I think I have a general notion. Let's work back anyway."
They faced about and began to make their way as rapidly as possible inthe direction from which they believed they had come. Both were prettywell frightened for they realized the danger of becoming separated fromtheir guide in that wild country, aside from the possibility of fallinginto the hands of Spaniards. In their nervous scare they hurriedrecklessly on, tripping now and then over trailing vines and plunginghead on into thickets. Still they did not come upon the glade from whichthey had so unwisely strayed.
At last, convinced that they were not proceeding in the right direction,they stopped and tried again to figure out the position of the camp. Itwas useless. They were now hopelessly lost. Harry looked up at the sunanxiously. It was getting low.
"It looks as if you and I were in another scrape, Bert," he said, tryingto smile.
"We might wander for days without getting out of this labyrinth."
"It's not so bad as that. We can get into the open all right by simplyfollowing the mountain down. But I do not know what good that would dous, for we could never find the pass through which we came."
"No, and then there are the Spaniards."
"Well, I suppose the Spaniards are a pretty serious proposition toWashington, who is their natural enemy, but I do not think they would dous much harm. We're American citizens, you know."
"They are not looking for American citizens out here, and we should havea hard time explaining. We couldn't say we came on the _Mariella_."
"No, that would hardly do. Still, we have not done anything to injureSpain, and we were certainly unwilling passengers on the _Mariella_. Ido not see how they can do anything very disagreeable."
"Judging from what Captain Dynamite says, they are inclined to considerevery one except a Spaniard as an enemy and a Cuban sympathizer."
"Well, we've got to take some sort of a chance, so we might as wellshout."
"All right, both together."
They sent up a "holloa" that rang through the trees.
"Mason--Washington," they shouted. "Answer. We have lost you."
Away in the distance they heard a faint answering call. In their effortsto retrace their steps they had wandered still further from theircompanions. They could not distinguish the words of the reply, but thesound gave them the direction, and with glad hearts they set off.
Suddenly they heard a crackling in the bushes behind them.
"Quien Vio?" called a voice. Their hearts sank within them. Turningquickly, they looked into the muzzles of four rifles.
"Gee, it's the Spaniards at last," whispered Bert. "Still I don't knowbut I had rather see them than no one. It was getting mighty lonesome."
"They may be more of Morgan's men," said Harry.
"By jove, that's so. Let's try the countersign on them."
"Don't," commanded Harry, quickly, catching his arm. "Suppose they werenot. The word would convict us at once."
"You're right."
Had Washington been with them he would have recognized the Spanishchallenge.
In the meantime the men had advanced, keeping the boys covered withtheir guns as if they were a pair of desperadoes who might attack themat any moment. They wore old and dirty uniforms, but it was plain thatthey had once been of regulation color and pattern.
"They are Spaniards fast enough," whispered Harry, as the menapproached. "Cubans have no regular uniform." Then to the men he said:
"Good afternoon, gentlemen. We are glad to see you. We are lost out hereon your mountain. They are your mountains, I believe. We're Americans,you know."
"Ah, Americanos," said one of the men. "Surrend."
"Yes, Americanos if you prefer it so, but what do you want us tosurrender?"
"Surrend," repeated the man, laying his hand roughly on Harry's rifle.
"O, the guns? Certainly. They are of no use to us, apparently."
Harry and Bert believing it to be the best policy to be tractable, heldout their guns with amiable smiles. They were snatched rudely from them.When the rifles were safely in the hands of the soldiers, a little fatman whom they had not seen before stepped out of the bushes, where hehad evidently intended to remain until the prisoners were disarmed. Hewas an officer, judging from his side arms, and with great pomposity henow advanced, puffing and blowing, toward the boys. He said something inSpanish to one of the men, who replied: "Americanos."
"Who you are doing here?" he demanded of Harry.
"O, sir," said Harry, "it is an agreeable surprise to find a gentlemanwho speaks our language so fluently," and he advanced with handextended. The little man jumped back as if he feared the boy was aboutto strike and dodged behind his men, jabbering rapidly in Spanish.Evidently in response to some command, the four men rushed upon the boysand pinioned their hands behind their backs, tying them with gun straps.
"Look here," said Harry, indignantly. "I don't know who you are, butthis is an outrage on two American citizens--do you understand?" Hewalked boldly up to the fat officer as he spoke and notwithstanding theboy's hands were now tied, the man backed away from him in fright.
"You will have to answer for this to the United States--do youunderstand that?" continued Harry.
"Poof to United States," said the little man, snapping his fingers. Hethen gave another ord
er in Spanish, and two of the men took up aposition in front of the boys and two behind. The men in front began tomarch and those behind prodded the prisoners in the back with theirguns, to indicate that they were to go on. There was nothing for theboys to do but submit, and slowly they began the descent of themountain, the valorous commander keeping well to the rear.
"These are your gentle Spaniards who wouldn't do a thing to you," saidBert, as they marched unwillingly along between their guards.
"O, this pompous little fat man is some subordinate officer who ispuffed up with his own importance. We will be all right when we get toheadquarters and can see the commanding officer."
"I'm not so sure of that. They do not seem to be bubbling over withkindly respect for the United States."
"Wait till we see the consul. You know O'Connor told us to call for ourconsul if we got into trouble."
"They may not let us see him."
"Then we'll--what will we do then, Bert?"
"Then it will be a case of measuring our wits against these fellows',and trying to make our escape. We may be able to get word to CaptainDynamite. Anyway Mason and Washington will probably discover that wehave been captured and will go on to the captain."
"Yes, but he has troubles of his own now to attend to."
"Still I do not think he is the man to desert us entirely. He might gethis friend Gomez to do something for us."
"Well, a great deal depends on whether we have fallen into the hands ofa small or large detachment of Spaniards. If it is only a skirmishingparty, Gomez or Morgan might rescue us."
"Let us hope it is a small outfit. I don't like the spirit these chapsshow, nor the contempt in which their fat commander seems to hold theUnited States."
They were now getting near the foot of the mountain. Suddenly Harryclutched Bert's arm.
"What is it?" asked Bert, startled by Harry's movement.
"Don't look to right or left. I just saw the Midget's white face peekingout at us as we passed that last clump of bushes. It's all right now.They know we are prisoners and you can trust Mason for getting a moveon." The boys tramped along with lighter hearts now that they wereconfident that their companion knew of their predicament.
"I hope they will not get pinched too," said Bert.
"Don't always look on the dark side of things, old chap," said Harry, alittle testily. "Cheer up."
They were now in the open country again and made more rapid progress.The Spaniards moved along without any attempt at caution now. They wellknew the Cuban methods of warfare, and did not fear an attack in theopen. Opposed always by much superior numbers, the insurgents hadlearned that the only way to successfully cope with their enemy was tokeep under cover and prosecute a guerilla warfare.
As they climbed the top of a small hill the boys were surprised to seein front of them the outlying buildings of what seemed to be a town orcity of some size and importance. When they approached nearer they foundthat these buildings were but poor huts or cabins, and formed a sort ofirregular, narrow street that led into the town, which was situatedabout a mile beyond. As they entered the street the character of theseshed-like habitations flashed upon the boys. They were the homes of the"reconcentrados" of whom O'Connor had told them. The boys shuddered asthey passed them and for a time scarcely dared to look to one side orthe other for fear that they might see some horrible sight, so forciblyhad O'Connor's description impressed them. Most of the huts were withoutdoors and the interiors were open to a passing view. So hopeless werethe miserable inmates that they did not even care to hide theirsuffering from the heartless eyes of the curious. The men laughed andjoked as they passed on and Harry could not but feel that their jestswere pointed by the misery of the reconcentrados.
Finally a horrible curiosity turned their heads and they saw in front ofone of the huts a group of four persons. They were a man, a woman, achild of perhaps fourteen, and a babe in its mother's arms. The man laystretched at full length on his back at the roadside. His eyes, whichwere open, were turned upward to the sky. The woman sat with her back tothe mud wall of the hut. Her eyes were fixed on the man at her feet. Thechild stood in the doorway looking with expressionless eyes out intospace. The few rags that covered them only served to emphasize theemaciation of their bodies and limbs. It needed no trained eye to tellthat they were starving. As the party passed, not one of the fourchanged position or once turned their eyes. In their mute suffering theyseemed unconscious of their surroundings.
One of the guards looked and laughed brutally.
Harry tugged at his bonds. In his fierce indignation he would havestruck down the man.
Finally they passed out of this street of misery and entered the town.The boys had forgotten their own troubles in the contemplation of thesuffering of the unhappy creatures behind them. The guards who had beenslouching along at a swinging gait now straightened up and assumed amore soldierly air. At a word of command from their fat commander theyhalted before a building which was more imposing in appearance than itsneighbors, and looked to be a public edifice of some sort. They marched,with their prisoners still between them, up the few steps that led to awide doorway and into a large room on the right, where an officer wasreclining in a lounging chair, lazily puffing a cigarette. It was nowgrowing dark outside and the room was dimly lighted by a lamp that stoodon the flat desk in front of the only occupant.
The man straightened himself up as the squad entered, and the littlecommander saluted with great deference.
"I told you so," said Harry, who noticed the air of deep respect thatnow marked their captor. "The little fat man is only an understrapper.Now we shall have a hearing."
While the little officer reported to his superior, the latter looked theboys over with some apparent curiosity. He asked a few questions andthen uttering something that sounded like a judicial decision, he sankback in his chair again and lighted another cigarette.
The guard faced about, prodded the boys in the back again with theirguns to indicate that they were to move on, and the procession filed outinto the street again. For a moment the boys could scarcely realize thatthey were to have no hearing, and then Harry turned to the fat manindignantly.
"Are we not to be permitted to tell our story?" he demanded. "Where areyou taking us? I demand a hearing as an American citizen in the presenceof the American consul."
The little man, who evidently understood much of what he said, chuckled,and the men, taking their cue from their commander, jabbed the boys oncemore in the back.
"It's no use, Hal," said Bert. "We might as well wait and see what theyintend to do with us."
They passed from one narrow street to another until they again haltedin front of a building whose narrow windows were closely barred.
"Looks uncomfortably like a jail," said Harry, as he surveyed the whitefront of the gloomy structure. A door on the level with the streetopened, the guns prodded the boys in the back again, and they enteredthrough the low portal into a dark corridor. The door closed behind themand they found they were alone with a black-bearded man who carried abunch of large keys that jangled unpleasantly.
He motioned silently for the boys to follow him, and as they had nochoice in the matter, they did so. At the end of the corridor the manopened a door and pointed in. The boys entered and the door swung tobehind them silently.
It was almost dark, but through the barred window of the room justenough twilight crept to show the boys that they were in a room thatcontained only a wooden table, two chairs, and two low wooden beds.