CHAPTER XXV.
AN EXPLANATION.
Like all men the greater portion of whose life is spent in the desert,the Jaguar was gifted with excessive prudence joined to extremecircumspection.
Though still very young, his life had been composed of such strangeincidents, he had been an actor in such extraordinary scenes, that froman early age he had grown accustomed to shut up his emotions in hisheart, and preserve on his countenance, whatever he might see orexperience, that marble-like stoicism which characterizes the Indians,and which the latter have converted into such a tremendous weaponagainst their enemies.
On hearing Tranquil's voice all at once so close to him, the young mangave a start, frowned, and asked himself mentally how it was that thehunter came to find him thus in his camp, and what reason was powerfulenough to impel him to do so; the more so, because his intimacy with theCanadian, ever subject to intermittences, was at this moment on termsfar from amicable, if not completely hostile.
Still the young man, in whom the feeling of honour spoke loudly, andwhom the steps taken by Tranquil flattered more than he cared to letanyone see, concealed the apprehensions that agitated him, and walkedquickly, and with a smile on his lips, to meet the hunter.
The latter was not alone; Loyal Heart accompanied him.
The Canadian's manner was reserved, and his face was covered by a cloudof sorrow.
"You are welcome to my camp, hunter," the Jaguar said kindly, as heoffered his hand.
"Thank you," the Canadian answered laconically, not touching theproffered hand.
"I am glad to see you," the young man went on, without any display ofannoyance; "what accident has brought you in this direction?"
"My comrade and I have been hunting for a long time; fatigue is crushingus, and the smoke of your camp attracted us."
The Jaguar pretended to accept as gospel this clumsy evasion of a manwho justly prided himself as being the healthiest and strongestwood-ranger of the desert.
"Come, then, and take a seat at my camp fire, and be good enough toregard everything here as belonging to you, and act in accordance withit."
The Canadian bowed, but made no answer, and with Loyal Heart followedthe hunter who preceded them, and guided them through the mazes of thecamp.
On reaching the fire, upon which the young man threw a few handfuls ofdry wood, the hunters sat down on buffalo skulls placed there as seats,and then, without breaking the silence, filled their pipes and begansmoking.
The Jaguar imitated them.
Those white men who traverse the prairie, and whose life is spent inhunting or trapping on these vast solitudes, have unconsciously assumedmost of the habits and customs of the Redskins, with whom the exigenciesof their position bring them constantly into contact.
A thing worthy of remark, is the tendency of civilized men to return tosavage life, and the facility with which hunters, born for the mostpart in the great centres of population, forget their habits of comfort,surrender the customs of towns, and renounce the usages by which theywere governed during the earlier part of their life, in order to adoptthe manners, and even the habits, of the Redskins.
Many of these hunters carry this so far, that the greatest complimentwhich can be paid them is to pretend to take them for Indian warriors.
We must confess that, per contra, the Redskins are not at all jealous ofour civilization, in which they take but slight interest, and that thosewhom accident or commercial reasons carry to cities, and by such we meancities like New York, or New Orleans;--these Indians, we say, far frombeing astounded at what they see, look around them with glances of pity,not understanding how men can voluntarily consent to shut themselves upin the smoky cages called houses, and expend their life in ungratefultoil, instead of living in the open air among the vast solitudes,hunting the buffalo, bear, and jaguar, under the immediate eye ofHeaven.
Are the savages completely wrong in thinking so? Is their reasoningfalse? We do not believe it.
Desert life possesses, for the man whose heart is still open enough tocomprehend its moving incidents, intoxicating delights which can only beexperienced there, and which the mathematically ruled customs of townscannot at all cause to be forgotten, if they have once been tasted.
According to the principles of Indian etiquette on matters ofpoliteness, no question must be addressed to strangers who sit down atthe camp-fire, until they are pleased to begin the conversation.
In an Indian's wigwam a guest is regarded as sent by the Great Spirit;he is sacred to the man he visits as long as he thinks proper to remainwith him, even if he be his mortal enemy.
The Jaguar, thoroughly conversant with Redskin customs, remainedsilently by the side of his guests, smoking and thinking, and waitingpatiently till they decided on speaking.
At length, after a considerable lapse of time, Tranquil shook the ashesfrom his pipe on his thumbnail, and turned to the young man.
"You did not expect me, I fancy?" he said.
"I did not," the other answered; "still be assured that the visit,though unexpected, is not less agreeable to me."
The hunter curled his lip in a singular fashion.
"Who knows?" he muttered, answering his own thoughts rather than theJaguar's remark; "perhaps yes, perhaps no; man's heart is a mysteriousand undecipherable book, in which only madmen fancy they can read."
"It is not so with me, hunter, as you know from experience."
The Canadian shook his head.
"You are still young; the heart to which you refer is still unknown toyourself; in the short period your existence has passed through, thewind of passion has not yet blown over you and bowed you down before itspowerful impetus: wait, in order to reply with certainty, until you haveloved and suffered; when you have bravely sustained the shock, andresisted the hurricane of youth, it will be time for you to speak."
These words were uttered with a stern accent, but there was nobitterness about them.
"You are harsh to me, to-day, Tranquil," the young: man answeredsorrowfully; "how have I sunk in your esteem? What reprehensible acthave I done?"
"None--at any rate, it pleases me to believe so; but I fear that soon--"
He stopped and shook his head mournfully.
"Finish the sentence," the young man quickly exclaimed.
"For what end?" he answered; "Who am I that I should impose on you aline of conduct which you would probably despise, and advice which wouldprove unwelcome? It is better to be silent."
"Tranquil!" the young man said, with an emotion he could not master,"For a long time we have known each other, you are aware of the esteemand respect I hold you in, so speak; whatever you have to say, howeverrude your reproaches may be, I will listen to you, I swear it."
"Nonsense; forget what I said to you; I was wrong to think of meddlingin your affairs; on the prairie, a man should only think about himself,so let us say no more."
The Jaguar gave him a long and profound glance. "Be it so," he answered;"we will say no more about it."
He rose and walked a few yards in agitation, then he brusquely returnedto the hunter.
"Pardon me," he said, "for not having thought of offering yourefreshment, but breakfast time has now arrived. I trust that yourcomrade and yourself will do me the honour of sharing my frugal meal."
While speaking thus, the Jaguar bent on the Canadian a most meaningglance.
Tranquil hesitated for a second.
"This morning at sunrise," he then said, "my friend and myself ate, justbefore entering your camp."
"I was sure of it," the young man burst out. "Oh, oh! Now my doubts arecleared up; you refuse water and salt at my fire, hunter."
"I? But you forget that--"
"Oh!" he interrupted, passionately, "No denial, Tranquil; do not seekfor pretexts unworthy of yourself and me; you are too honest and sincerea man not to be frank, cuerpo de Cristo! Likewise, you know the law ofthe prairies; a man will not break his fast with an enemy. Now, if youstill have in your heart a single spark of th
at kindly feeling youentertained toward me at another period, explain yourself clearly, andwithout any beating round the bush--I insist on it."
The Canadian seemed to reflect for a few moments, and then suddenlyexclaimed, with great resolution--
"Indeed, you are right, Jaguar; it is better to have an explanation likehonest hunters, than try to deceive each other like Redskins; andbesides, no man is infallible. I may be mistaken as well as another, andHeaven is my witness that I should like it to be so."
"I am listening to you, and on my honour, if the reproaches you make arewell founded, I will recognize it."
"Good!" the hunter said, in a more friendly tone than he had hithertoemployed; "you speak like a man; but, perhaps," he added, pointing toLoyal Heart, who discreetly made a move to withdraw, "you would preferour interview being private?"
"On the contrary," the Jaguar answered, eagerly, "this hunter is yourfriend; I hope he will soon be mine, and I do not wish to have anysecrets from him."
"I desire ardently for my part," Loyal Heart said, with a bow, "that theslight cloud which has arisen between you and Tranquil may be dispersedlike the vapour driven away by the morning breeze, in order that I maybecome better acquainted with you; as you wish it, I will listen to yourconversation."
"Thanks, Caballero. Now speak, Tranquil, I am ready to listen to thecharges you fancy you have to bring against me."
"Unluckily," said Tranquil, "the strange life yon have led since yourarrival in these parts gives occasion for the most unfavourablesurmises; you have formed a band of adventurers and border-ruffians,outlawed by society, and living completely beyond the ordinary path ofcivilized peoples."
"Are we prairie-hunters and wood-rangers obliged to obey all the paltryexigencies of cities?"
"Yes, up to a certain point; that is to say, we are not allowed to placeourselves in open revolt against the institutions of men who, though wehave separated from them, are no less our brothers, and to whom wecontinue to belong by our colour, religion, origin, and the family tieswhich attach us to them, and which we have been unable to break.
"Be it so, I admit to a certain extent the justice of your reasoning;but even supposing that the men I command are really bandits,border-ruffians as you call them, do you know from what motives theyact? Can you bring any accusation against them?"
"Patience, I have not finished yet."
"Go on, then."
"Next, in addition to this band of which you are the ostensible Chief,you have contracted alliances with the Redskins, the Apaches amongothers, the most impudent plunderers on the prairie; is that so?"
"Yes, and no, my friend; in the sense that the alliance which you chargeme with never existed until the present hour; but this morning it wasprobably concluded by two of my friends with Blue-fox, one of the mostrenowned Apache Chiefs."
"Hum! that is an unlucky coincidence."
"Why so?"
"Are you aware what your new allies did last night?"
"How should I? Since I do not know where they are, and have not evenreceived the official report of the treaty being made."
"Well, I will tell you; they attacked the Venta del Potrero, and burnedit to the ground."
The Jaguar's savage eye emitted a flash of fury; he bounded to his feet,and convulsively seized his rifle.
"By Heaven!" he shouted, loudly, "Have they done that?"
"They did; and it is supposed at your instigation."
The Jaguar shrugged his shoulders disdainfully.
"For what object?" he said. "But Dona Carmela, what has become of her?"
"She is saved, thank Heaven!"
The young man heaved a sigh of relief.
"And you believed in such infamy on my part?" he asked, reproachfully.
"I do not believe it now," the hunter replied.
"Thanks, thanks! but by Heaven! The demons shall pay dearly, I swear,for the crime they have committed; now go on."
"Unluckily, if you have exculpated yourself from my first accusation, Idoubt whether you will be able to do so with the second."
"You can tell me it, at any rate."
"A conducta de plata, commanded by Captain Melendez, is on the road forMexico."
The young man gave a slight start.
"I know it," he said, shortly.
The hunter gave him an inquiring glance.
"They say--" he went on, with considerable hesitation.
"They say," the Jaguar interrupted him, "that I am following theconducta, and when the propitious moment arrives, I mean to attack it atthe head of my bandits, and carry off the money; that is the story?"
"Yes."
"They are right," the young man answered, coldly; "that is really myintention; what next?"
Tranquil started in surprise and indignation at this cynical answer.
"Oh!" he exclaimed, in great grief, "What is said of you is true, then?You are really a bandit?"
The young man smiled bitterly.
"Perhaps I am," he said, in a hollow voice; "Tranquil, your age isdouble mine; your experience is great; why do you judge rashly onappearances?"
"What! Appearances! Have you not confessed it yourself?"
"Yes, I have."
"Then you meditate a robbery?"
"A robbery!" he exclaimed, blushing with indignation, but at oncerecovering himself, he added, "It is true, you are bound to supposethat."
"What other name can be given to so infamous a deed?" the hunterexclaimed, violently.
The Jaguar raised his head quickly, as if he intended to answer, but hislips remained dumb.
Tranquil looked at him for a moment with mingled pity and tenderness,and then turned to Loyal Heart.
"Come, my friend," he said, "we have remained here only too long."
"Stay!" the young man exclaimed, "Do not condemn me thus; I repeat toyou that you are ignorant of the motives through which I act."
"Whatever these motives may be, they cannot be honourable; I see noother than pillage and murder."
"Oh!" the young man exclaimed, as he buried his face sorrowfully in hishands.
"Let us go," Tranquil repeated.
Loyal Heart had watched this strange scene attentively and coldly.
"A moment," he said; then, slipping forward, he laid his hand on theJaguar's shoulder.
The latter raised his head.
"What do you want of me?" he asked.
"Listen to me, Caballero," Loyal Heart answered in a deep voice; "I knownot why, but a secret foreboding tells me that your conduct is not soinfamous as everything leads us to suppose, and that some day you willbe permitted to explain it, and exculpate yourself in the sight of all."
"Oh! were it but possible for me to speak!"
"How long do you believe that you will be compelled to remain silent?"
"How do I know? That depends on circumstances independent of my will."
"Then, you cannot fix a period?"
"It is impossible; I have taken an oath, and am bound to keep it."
"Good: then promise me only one thing."
"What is it?"
"To make no attempt on the life of Captain Melendez."
The Jaguar hesitated.
"Well?" Loyal Heart went on.
"I will do everything to save it."
"Thanks!" then, turning to Tranquil, who stood motionless by his side,he said--
"Take your place again, brother, and breakfast with this caballero, Ianswer for him body for body; if in two months from this day he does notgive you a satisfactory explanation of his conduct, I, who am bound byno oath, will reveal to you this mystery, which appears, and really is,inexplicable for you."
The Jaguar started, and gave Loyal Heart a searching glance, whichproduced no effect, however, on the hunter's indifferently placid face.
The Canadian hesitated for a few moments, but at length took his placeagain by the fire, muttering--.
"In two months, be it so;" and he added in an aside, "but till then Iwill watch him."
The Border Rifles: A Tale of the Texan War Page 25