CHAPTER X.
THE PRESENTATION.
It needed the thorough knowledge the Comanches possessed of the terrorthey inspired the Mexicans with to have dared to enter in so small abody a town like Santa Fe, where they might expect to find aconsiderable garrison.
The general officer sent by General Ventura had performed his duty.Unicorn and two other chiefs dismounted, and followed him into thepalace; while the Indian warriors, in spite of the heat of the sunbeamsthat played on their heads, remained motionless on the spot where theircaciques bade them wait.
The general desired, by a certain display of strength, to impose on theredskin deputies; but unfortunately, as is always the case in Mexico,the garrison, which on paper represented eight hundred men, was inreality only composed of sixty at the most--a very small number for afrontier town, especially under the present circumstances. But ifsoldiers were lacking, to make up for it there was no paucity ofofficers; for about thirty were assembled at the palace, which allowedone officer to every two privates. This detail, which might appearexaggerated, is, however, strictly correct, and shows in what a state ofanarchy this hapless country is plunged. The thirty officers, attired intheir splendid uniforms, that glistened with gold and decorations, werearranged round the general, while three posts of ten men each held thedoors of the halls of reception.
When the preparations were completed the ambassadors were introduced.The Indian chiefs, accustomed for a long period to Spanish luxury,entered without testifying the slightest surprise. They bowed withdignity to the assembly, and, crossing their arms on their chests,waited till they were addressed. The general regarded them with anastonishment pardonable enough, for this was the first time he had foundhimself in the presence of these untamable redskins, whose terriblerenown had so often made him shudder.
"What reason can have been so powerful as to oblige my sons to come andsee me?" he asked in a gracious and conciliating tone. "Let them maketheir request, and, if I can do so, I shall be most ready to satisfyit."
This opening, which the governor fancied to be very politic, was, on thecontrary, most awkward, as it offended the pride of those he addressed,and whom he had the greatest interest in humouring. Unicorn took a stepforward. A sarcastic smile played on his lips, and he replied in a voiceslightly tinged with irony,--
"I have heard a parrot speak. Are the words addressed to me?"
The general blushed up to the eyes at this insult, which he did not dareretaliate.
"The chief has not understood my words," he said. "My intentions aregood, and I only wish to be agreeable to him."
"The Comanches do not come here to ask a favour," Unicorn answered,haughtily. "They know how to avenge themselves when insulted."
"What do my sons want then?"
"To treat with my father for the ransom of the white chiefs who are intheir power. Five palefaces inhabit the cabin of the Comanches. Theyoung men of the tribe demand their punishment, for the blood of thepalefaces is agreeable to the Master of Life. Tomorrow the prisonerswill have ceased to live if my father does not buy them off today."
After these words, uttered in a firm and peremptory tone, there was amoment of supreme silence. The Mexican officers reflected sadly on thefearful fate that threatened their friends. Unicorn continued:--
"What does my father say? Shall we fasten our prisoners to the stake ofblood, or restore them to liberty?"
"What ransom do you ask?" the general said.
"Listen, all you chiefs of the palefaces here present, and judge of theclemency and generosity of the Comanches. We only, wish, for the life ofthese five men, the life of two men."
"That is little, I allow," the general remarked; "and who are the twomen whose lives you ask?"
"The palefaces call them, the first, Don Miguel Zarate; the second,General Ibanez."
The general started.
"These two men cannot be delivered to you," he answered; "they arecondemned to death, and will die tomorrow."
"Good! My prisoners will be tortured this night," the chief repliedstoically.
"Confound it!" the general sharply exclaimed, "Is there no otherarrangement possible? Let my brothers ask me a thing I can grant them,and--"
"I want those two men," the chief quickly interrupted. "If not, mywarriors will themselves deliver them; and in that case the Comanchechiefs cannot prevent the injury their warriors may commit in the town."
One of the officers present at this interview was aroused by the toneUnicorn had affected since the beginning of the audience. He was a braveold soldier, and the cowardice of his comrades shamed him. He rose atthis point.
"Chief," he said in a firm voice, "your words are very haughty andfoolish for the mouth of an ambassador. You are here, at the head ofscarce two hundred warriors, in the heart of a town peopled by bravemen. Despite all my desire to be agreeable to you, if you do not paygreater respect to your audience, prompt and severe justice shall beinflicted on your insolence."
The Indian chief turned toward the new speaker, whose remarks hadaroused a sympathetic murmur.
"My words are those of a man who fears nothing, and holds in his handsthe life of five men."
"Well," the officer retorted sharply, "what do we care for them? If theywere such fools as to let you capture them, they must suffer theconsequences of their madness; we cannot pay for them. Besides, as youhave already been told, those you claim must die."
"Good! We will retire," Unicorn said haughtily. "Longer discourse isneedless; our deeds shall speak for us."
"A moment!" the general exclaimed. "All may yet be arranged. An affairlike the present cannot be settled all in a hurry; we must reflect onthe propositions made to us. My son is a chief, and will grant usreasonable time to offer him a reply."
Unicorn bent a suspicious glance on the governor.
"My father has spoken wisely," he presently made answer. "Tomorrow atthe twelfth hour, I will come for the final answer of the palefaces. Butmy father will promise me not to order the punishment of the prisonerstill he has told me the decision he has come to."
"Be it so," the general answered. "But what will the Comanches do till,then?"
"They will leave the town as they entered it, and bivouac on the plain."
"Agreed on."
"The Master of Life has heard my father's promise. If he break his wordand possess a forked tongue, the blood shed will fall on his head."
The Comanche uttered these words in a significant tone that made thegeneral tremble inwardly; then he bowed to the assembly, and left thehall with his companions. On reaching the square the chiefs remountedtheir horses and placed themselves at the head of their warriors. Anhour later the Comanches had left the town, and camped within twogunshots of the walls, on the banks of the river. It was after thisinterview that Unicorn had the conversation with Valentine which werecently described.
Still, when the Mexican officers were alone with the general, theircourage returned all at once, and they reproached him for the littledignity he had displayed before the Indians, and specially for thepromise he had made them. The general listened to them calmly, with asmile on his lips, and contented himself with answering them, in a tone,of indescribable meaning,--
"The promise you allude to pledges me to nothing. Between this andtomorrow certain things will happen to free us from the Comanches, andlet us dispense with surrendering the prisoners they demand soinsolently."
The Trail-Hunter: A Tale of the Far West Page 34