CHAPTER II
THE CAPTIVES
Ned had not noticed at first, but, since his eyes were growing used tothe dim light, and since the Panther had pointed the way, he saw a dozenmen, arms bound tightly behind them, leaning against the trees. Theywere prisoners and he knew instinctively that they were Texans. Hisblood, hot at first, now chilled in his veins. They had been captured byUrrea in a raid, and as Santa Anna had decreed that all Texans wererebels who should be executed when taken, they would surely die, unlessrescue came.
"What shall we do?" he whispered.
"Nothing now," replied the Panther, in the same soft tone, "but if youan' Obed are with me we'll follow this crowd, an' maybe we can get theTexans away from 'em. It's likely that Urrea will cross the Rio Grandean' go down into Mexico to meet Cos or Santa Anna. Are you game enoughto go, Ned? I'm a Ring Tailed Panther an' a roarin' grizzly bear, but Idon't like to follow all by myself."
"I'm with you," said Ned, "if I have to go all the way back to the Cityof Mexico, an' I know that I can speak for Obed, too."
"I jest asked as a matter of form," said the Panther. "I knowed beforeaskin' that you an' Obed would stick to me."
There was a sudden gust of wind at that moment and the light of the firesprang higher. The flames threw a glow across the faces of theprisoners. Most of them were asleep, but Ned saw them very distinctlynow. One was a boy but little older than himself, his face pale andworn. Near him was an old man, with a face very uncommon on the border.His features were those of a scholar and ascetic. His cheeks were thin,and thick white hair crowned a broad white brow. Ned felt instinctivelythat he was a man of importance.
Both the boy and the man slept the sleep of utter exhaustion.
Urrea rose presently and looked at his prisoners. The moonlight wasshining on his face, and it seemed to Ned to be that of some masterdemon. The boy was far from denying many good qualities to the Mexicans,but the countenance of Urrea certainly did not express any of them thatnight. It showed only savage exultation as he looked at the bound men,and Ned knew that this was a formidable enemy of the Texans, one whowould bring infinite resources of cunning and enterprise to crush them.
Urrea said a few words to his officers and then withdrew into a smalltent which Ned had not noticed hitherto. The officers lay down in theirblankets, but a dozen sentinels watched about the open space. Ned andthe Panther crept slowly back toward the plain.
"What is our best plan, Panther?" whispered the hoy.
"We can't do anything yet but haul off, watch an' then follow. Thechaparral runs along for a mile or two an' we can hide in the north endof it until they march south an' are out of sight. Then we'll hang on."
They found Obed standing exactly where they had left him, the reins ofthe three horses in his hands.
"Back at last," he said. "All things come to him who waits long enough,if he doesn't die first. Did you see anything besides a lot of Mexicanvaqueros, fuddled with liquor and sound asleep?"
"We did not see any vaqueros," replied the Panther, "but we saw Urreaan' his band, an' they had among them a dozen good Texans bound fast,men who will be shot if we three don't stand in the way. You have tofollow with us, Obed, because Ned has already promised for you."
The Maine man looked at them and smiled.
"A terribly good mind reader, that boy, Ned," he said. "He knew exactlywhat I wanted. There's a lot of things in the world that I'd like to do,but the one that I want to do most just now is to follow Urrea and thatcrowd of his and take away those Texans. You two couldn't keep me fromgoing."
The Panther smiled back.
"You are shorely the right stuff, Obed White," he said. "We're onlythree in this bunch, but two of 'em besides me are ring-tailed panthers.Now we'll just draw off, before it's day, an' hide in the chaparral upthere."
They rode a mile to the north and remained among dense bushes untildaylight. At dawn they saw a column of smoke rise from Urrea's camp.
"They are cookin' breakfast now," said the Panther. "It's my guess thatin an hour they'll be ridin' south with their prisoners."
The column of smoke sank after a while, and a couple of hours later thethree left the chaparral. From one of the summits they dimly saw a massof horsemen riding toward Mexico.
"There's our men," said the Panther, "an' now we'll follow all day atthis good, safe distance. At night we can draw up closer if we want todo it."
The Mexicans maintained a steady pace, and the three pursuers followedat a distance of perhaps two miles. Now and then the swells completelyshut Urrea's band from sight, but Ned, Obed and the Panther followed thebroad trail without the slightest difficulty.
"They'll reach the river before noon," said the Panther. "There ain'tany doubt now that they're bound for Mexico. It's jest as well for whatwe want to do, 'cause they're likely to be less watchful there than theyare in Texas."
The band of Urrea, as nearly as they could judge, numbered about fifty,all mounted and armed well. The Mexicans were fine horsemen, and withgood training and leadership they were dangerous foes. The three knewthem well, and they kept so far behind that they were not likely to beobserved.
It was only a half hour past noon when Urrea's men reached the RioGrande, and without stopping made the crossing. They avoided thequicksands with experienced eyes, and swam their horses through the deepwater, the prisoners always kept in the center of the troop. Ned, Obedand the Panther watched them until they passed out of sight. Then they,too, rode forward, although slowly, toward the stream.
"We can't lose 'em," said the Panther, "so I think we'd better stay outof sight now that they're on real Mexican soil. Maybe our chance willcome to-night, an' ag'in maybe it won't."
"Patience will have its perfect rescue, if we only do the right things,"said Obed.
"An' if we think hard enough an' long enough we're bound to do 'em, orI'm a Ring Tailed Panther an' a Cheerful Talker fur nothin'," said thePanther.
Waiting until they were certain that the Mexicans were five or six milesahead, the three forded the Rio Grande, and stood once more on Mexicansoil. It gave Ned a curious thrill. He had passed through so much inMexico that he had not believed he would ever again enter that country.The land on the Mexican side was about the same as that on the Texan,but it seemed different to him. He beheld again that aspect of infiniteage, of the long weariness of time, and of physical decay.
They rode more briskly through the afternoon and at darkness saw thecamp fires of Urrea glimmering ahead of them. But the night was notfavorable to their plans. The sky was the usual cloudless blue of theMexican plateau, the moon was at the full and all the stars were out.What they wanted was bad weather, hoping meanwhile the execution of theprisoners would not be begun until the Mexicans reached higher authoritythan Urrea, perhaps Santa Anna himself.
They made their own camp a full two miles from Urrea's, and Obed and thePanther divided the watch.
Urrea started early the next morning, and so did the pursuing three. Thedawn was gray, and the breeze was chill. As they rode on, the wind roseand its edge became so sharp that there was a prospect of anotherNorther. The Panther unrolled from his pack the most gorgeous serapethat Ned had ever seen. It was of the finest material, colored a deepscarlet and it had a gold fringe.
"Fine feathers are seen afar," said Obed.
"That's so," said the Panther, "but we're not coming near enough to theMexicans for them to catch a glimpse of this, an' such bein' the caseI'm goin' to put it between me an' the cold. I'm proud of it, an' when Iwrap it aroun' me I feel bigger an' stronger. Its red color helps me. Ithink I draw strength from red, just as I do from a fine, tender buffalosteak."
He spoke with much earnestness, and the other two did not contradicthim. Meanwhile he gracefully folded the great serape about hisshoulders, letting it fall to the saddle. No Mexican could have worn itmore rakishly.
"That's my shield and protector," he said. "Now blow wind, blow snow,I'll keep warm."
It blew wind, but it did not blow sn
ow. The day remained cold, but theair undoubtedly had a touch of damp.
"It may rain, and I'm sure the night will be dark," said Obed. "We mayhave our chance. Fortune favors those who help themselves."
The country became more broken, and the patches of scrub forestincreased in number. Often the three rode quite near to Urrea's men andobserved them closely. The Mexicans were moving slowly, and, as theAmericans had foreseen, discipline was relaxed greatly.
Near night drops of rain began to fall in their faces, and the sun setamong clouds. The three rejoiced. A night, dark and wet, had come soonerthan they had hoped. Obed and Ned also took out serapes, and wrappedthem around their shoulders. They served now not only to protect theirbodies, but to keep their firearms dry as well. Then they tethered theirhorses among thorn bushes about a mile from Urrea's camp, and advancedon foot.
They saw the camp fire glimmering feebly through the night, and theyadvanced boldly. It was so dark now that a human figure fifty feet awayblended with the dusk, and the ground, softened by the rain, gave backno sound of footsteps. Nevertheless they saw on their right a fieldwhich showed a few signs of cultivation, and they surmised that Urreahad made his camp at the lone hut of some peon.
They reckoned right. They came to clumps of trees, and in an openinginclosed by them was a low adobe hut, from the open door of which alight shone. They knew that Urrea and his officers had taken refugethere from the rain and cold and, under the boughs of the trees orbeside the fire, they saw the rest of the band sheltering themselves asbest they could. The prisoners, their hands bound, were in a group inthe open, where the slow, cold rain fell steadily upon them. Ned's heartswelled with rage at the sight.
Order and discipline seemed to be lacking. Men came and went as theypleased. Fully twenty of them were making a shelter of canvas and thatchbeside the hut. Others began to build the fire higher in order to fendoff the wet and cold. Ned did not see that the chance of a rescue wasimproved, but the Panther felt a sudden glow when his eyes alighted uponsomething dark at the edge of the woods. A tiny shed stood there and hiskeen eyes marked what was beneath it.
"What do you think we'd better do, Panther?" asked Obed.
"No roarin' jest now. We mustn't raise our voices above whispers, butwe'll go back in the brush and wait. In an hour or two all theseMexicans will be asleep. Like as not the sentinels, if they post any,will be asleep first."
They withdrew deeper into the thickets, where they remained closetogether. They saw the fire die in the Mexican camp. After a while allsounds there ceased, and again they crept near. The Panther was agenuine prophet, known and recognized by his comrades. Urrea's men,having finished their shelters, were now asleep, including all thesentinels except two. There was some excuse for them. They were in theirown country, far from any Texan force of importance, and the night couldscarcely have been worse. It was very dark, and the cold rain fell witha steadiness and insistence that sought and finally found every openingin one's clothing. Even the stalking three drew their serapes closer,and shivered a little.
The two sentinels who did not sleep were together on the south side ofthe glade. Evidently they wished the company of each other. They werenow some distance from the dark little shed toward which the Panther wasleading his comrades, and their whole energies were absorbed in anattempt to light two cigarritos, which would soothe and strengthen themas they kept their rainy and useless watch.
The three completed the segment of the circle and reached the littleshed which had become such an object of importance to the Panther.
"Don't you see?" said the Panther, his grim joy showing in his tone.
They saw, and they shared his satisfaction. The Mexicans had stackedtheir rifles and muskets under the shed, where they would be protectedfrom the rain.
"It's queer what foolish things men do in war," said Obed. "Whom thegods would destroy they first deprive of the sense of danger. They donot dream that Richard, meaning the Panther, is in the chaparral."
"If we approach this shed from the rear the sentinels, even if theylook, will not be able to see us," said the Panther. "By the great hornspoon, what an opportunity! I can hardly keep from roarin' an' ravin'about it. Now, boys, we'll take away their guns, swift an' quiet."
A few trips apiece and all the rifles and muskets with their ammunitionwere carried deep into the chaparral, where Obed, gladly sacrificing hisown comfort, covered them against the rain with his serape. Not a signhad come meanwhile from the two sentinels on the far side of the camp.Ned once or twice saw the lighted ends of their cigarritos glowing likesparks in the darkness, but the outlines of the men's figures were verydusky.
"An' now for the riskiest part of our job, the one that counts themost," said the Panther, "the one that will make everything else afailure if it falls through. We've got to secure the prisoners."
The captives were lying under the boughs of some trees about twentyyards from the spot where the fire had been built. The pitiless rain hadbeaten upon them, but as far as Ned could judge they had gone to sleep,doubtless through sheer exhaustion. The Panther's plan of action wasswift and comprehensive.
"Boys," he said, "I'm the best shot of us three. I don't say it in anyspirit of boastin', 'cause I've pulled trigger about every day forthirty years, an' more'n once a hundred times in one day. Now you twogive me your rifles and I'll set here in the edge of the bushes, thenyou go ahead as silent as you can an' cut the prisoners loose. Ifthere's an alarm I'll open fire with the three rifles and cover theescape."
Handing the rifles to the Panther, the two slipped forward. It was agrateful task to Ned. Again his heart swelled with wrath as he saw thedark figures of the bound men lying on the ground in the rain. Heremembered the one who was youthful of face like himself and he soughthim. As he approached he made out a figure lying in a strainedposition, and he was sure that it was the captive lad. A yard or twomore and he knew absolutely. He touched the boy on the shoulder,whispered in his ear that it was a friend, and, with one sweep of hisknife, released his arms.
"Crawl to the chaparral there," said Ned, in swift sharp tones, pointingthe way. "Another friend is waiting at that point."
The boy, without a word, began to creep forward in a stiff and awkwardfashion. Ned turned to the next prisoner. It was the elderly man whom hehad seen from the chaparral, and he was wide awake, staring intently atNed.
"Is it rescue?" he whispered. "Is it possible?"
"It is rescue. It is possible," replied Ned, in a similar whisper. "Turna little to one side and I will cut the cords that bind you."
The man turned, but when Ned freed him he whispered:
"You will have to help me. I cannot yet walk alone. Urrea has alreadygiven me a taste of what I was to expect."
Ned shuddered. There was a terrible significance in the prisoner's tone.He assisted him to rise partly, but the man staggered. It was evidentthat he could not walk. He must help this man, but the others werewaiting to be released also. Then the good thought came.
"Wait a moment," he said, and he cut the bonds of another man.
"Now you help your friend there," he said.
He saw the two going away together, and he turned to the others. He andObed worked fast, and within five minutes the last man was released. Butas they crept back toward the chaparral the slack sentinels caughtsight of the dusky figures retreating. Two musket shots were fired andthere were rapid shouts in Mexican jargon. Ned and Obed rose to theirfeet and, keeping the escaped prisoners before them, ran for thethickets.
A terrific reply to the Mexican alarm came from the forest. A volley ofrifle and pistol shots was fired among the soldiers as they sprang totheir feet and a tremendous voice roared:
"At 'em, boys! At 'em! Charge 'em! Now is your time! Rip an' t'ar an'roar an' chaw! Don't let a single one escape! Sweep the scum off theface of the earth!"
The Ring Tailed Panther had a mighty voice, issuing from a mightythroat. Never had he used it in greater volume or to better purpose thanon that night. The forest fairly
thundered with the echoes of the battlecry, and as the dazed Mexicans rushed for their guns only to find themgone, they thought that the whole Texan army was upon them. In anotherinstant a new terror struck at their hearts. Their horses and mules,driven in a frightful stampede, suddenly rushed into the glade and theywere now busy keeping themselves from being trampled to death.
Truly the Panther had spent well the few minutes allotted to him. Hefired new shots, some into the frightened herd. His tremendous voicenever ceased for an instant to encourage his charging troops, and toroar out threats against the enemy. Urrea, to his credit, made anattempt to organize his men, to stop the panic, and to see the nature ofthe enemy, but he was borne away in the frantic mob of men and horseswhich was now rushing for the open plain.
Ned and Obed led the fugitives to the place where the rifles and musketswere stacked. Here they rapidly distributed the weapons and then brokeacross the tree trunks all they could not use or carry. Another minuteand they reached their horses, where the Panther, panting from his hugeexertions, joined them. Ned helped the lame man upon one of the horses,the weakest two who remained, including the boy, were put upon theothers, and led by the Panther they started northward, leaving thechaparral.
It was a singular march, but for a long time nothing was said. The soundof the Mexican stampede could yet be heard, moving to the south, butthey, rescuers and rescued, walked in silence save for the sound oftheir feet in the mud of the wind-swept plain. Ned looked curiously atthe faces of those whom they had saved, but the night had not lightened,and he could discern nothing. They went thus a full quarter of an hour.The noise of the stampede sank away in the south, and then the Pantherlaughed.
It was a deep, hearty, unctuous laugh that came from the very depths ofthe man's chest. It was a laugh with no trace of merely superficial joy.He who uttered it laughed because his heart and soul were in it. It wasa laugh of mirth, relief and triumph, all carried to the highest degree.It was a long laugh, rising and falling, but when it ceased and thePanther had drawn a deep breath he opened his mouth again and spoke thewords that were in his mind.
"I shorely did some rippin' an' roarin' then," he said. "It was the bestchance I ever had, an' I guess I used it. How things did work for us!Them sleepy sentinels, an' then the stampede of the animals, carryin'Urrea an' the rest right away with it."
"Fortune certainly worked for us," said Ned.
"And we can find no words in which to describe to you our gratitude,"said the crippled man on the horse. "We were informed very clearly byUrrea that we were rebels and, under the decree of Santa Anna, would beexecuted. Even our young friend here, this boy, William Allen, would nothave been spared."
"We ain't all the way out of the woods yet," said the Panther, notwishing to have their hopes rise too high and then fall. "Of courseUrrea an' his men have some arms left. They wouldn't stack 'em all underthe shed, an' they can get more from other Mexicans in these parts. Whenthey learn from their trailers how few we are they'll follow."
The rescued were silent, save one, evidently a veteran frontiersman, whosaid:
"Let 'em come. I was took by surprise, not thinkin' any Mexicans wasnorth of the Rio Grande. But now that I've got a rifle on one shoulderan' a musket on the other I think I could thrash an acre-lot full of'em."
"That's the talk," said Obed White. "We'll say to 'em: 'Come one, comeall, this rock from its firm base may fly, but we're the boys who'llnever say die.'"
They relapsed once more into silence. The rain had lightened a little,but the night was as dark as ever. The boy whom the man had calledWilliam Allen drew up by the side of Ned. They were of about the sameheight, and each was as tall and strong as a man.
"Have you any friends here with you?" asked Ned.
"All of them are my friends, but I made them in captivity. I came toTexas to find my fortune, and I found this."
The boy laughed, half in pity of himself, and half with genuine humor.
"But I ought not to complain," he added, "when we've been saved in themost wonderful way. How did you ever happen to do it?"
"We've been following you all the way from the other side of the RioGrande, waiting a good chance. It came to-night with the darkness, therain, and the carelessness of the Mexicans. I heard the man call youWilliam Allen. My name is Fulton, Edward Fulton, Ned to my friends."
"And mine's Will to my friends."
"And you and I are going to be friends, that's sure."
"Nothing can be surer."
The hands of the two boys met in a strong grasp, signifying a friendshipthat was destined to endure.
The Panther and Obed now began to seek a place for a camp. They knewthat too much haste would mean a breakdown, and they meant that thepeople whom they had rescued should have a rest. But it took a long timeto find the trees which would furnish wood and partial shelter. It wasObed who made the happy discovery some time after midnight. Turning totheir left, they entered a grove of dwarf oaks, covering a half acre orso, and with much labor and striving built a fire. They made it a bigfire, too, and fed it until the flames roared and danced. Ned noticedthat all the rescued prisoners crouched close to it, as if it were agiver of strength and courage as well as warmth, and now the lightrevealed their faces. He looked first at the crippled man, and thesurprise that he had felt at his first glimpse of him increased.
The stranger was of a type uncommon on the border. His large featuresshowed cultivation and the signs of habitual and deep thought. His thickwhite hair surmounted a broad brow. His clothing, although torn bythorns and briars, was of fine quality. Ned knew instinctively that itwas a powerful face, one that seldom showed the emotions behind it. Therest, except the boy, were of the border, lean, sun-browned men,dressed in tanned deerskin.
The Panther and Obed also gazed at the crippled man with greatcuriosity. They knew the difference, and they were surprised to findsuch a man in such a situation. He did not seem to notice them at first,but from his seat on a log leaned over the fire warming his hands, whichNed saw were large, white and smooth. His legs lay loosely against thelog, as if he were suffering from a species of paralysis. The others,soaked by the rain, which, however, now ceased, were also hovering overthe fire which was giving new life to the blood in their veins. The manwith the white hands turned presently and, speaking to Ned, Obed and thePanther, said:
"My name is Roylston, John Roylston."
Ned started.
"I see that you have heard of it," continued the stranger, but withoutvanity. "Yes, I am the merchant of New Orleans. I have lands and otherproperty in this region for which I have paid fairly. I hold the deedsand they are also guaranteed to me by Santa Anna and the MexicanCongress. I was seized by this guerilla leader, Urrea. He knew who Iwas, and he sought to extract from me an order for a large sum of moneylying in a European bank in the City of Mexico. There are various waysof procuring such orders, and he tried one of the most primitivemethods. That is why I cannot walk without help. No, I will not tellwhat was done. It is not pleasant to hear. Let it pass. I shall walkagain as well as ever in a month."
"Did he get the order?" asked Obed curiously.
Roylston laughed deep in his throat.
"He did not," he said. "It was not because I valued it so much, but mypride would not permit me to give way to such crude methods. I mustsay, however, that you three came just in time, and you have done a mostmarvelous piece of work."
Ned shuddered and walked a little space out on the plain to steady hisnerves. He had never deceived himself about the dangers that the Texanswere facing, but it seemed that they would have to fight every kind offerocity. When he returned, Obed and the Panther were building the firehigher.
"We must get everybody good and dry," said the Panther. "Pursuit willcome, but not to-night, an' we needn't worry about the blaze. We've foodenough for all of you for a day, but we haven't the horses, an' for thatI'm sorry. If we had them we could git away without a doubt to the Texanarmy."
"But not having them," said Obed, "we'
ll even do the best we can, if theMexicans, having run away, come back to fight another day."
"So we will," said a stalwart Texan named Fields. "That Urrea don't getme again, and if I ain't mistook your friend here is Mr. Palmer, betterknown in our parts as the Ring Tailed Panther, ain't he?"
Ned saw the Panther's huge form swell. He still wore the great serape,which shone in the firelight with a deep blood-red tinge.
"I am the Ring Tailed Panther," he said proudly.
"Then lemme shake your hand. You an' your pards have done a job to-nightthat ain't had its like often, and me bein' one of them that's profitedby it makes it look all the bigger to me."
The Panther graciously extended an enormous palm, and the great palm ofFields met it in a giant clasp. A smile lighted up the somber face ofMr. Roylston as he looked at them.
"Often we find powerful friends when we least expect them," he said.
"As you are the worst hurt of the lot," said the Panther, "we're goingto make you a bed right here by the fire. No, it ain't any use sayin'you won't lay down on it. If you won't we'll jest have to put you down."
They spread a blanket, upon which the exhausted merchant lay, and theycovered him with a serape. Soon he fell asleep, and then Fields said toNed and his comrades:
"You fellows have done all the work, an' you've piled up such a mountainof debt against us that we can never wipe it out. Now you go to sleepand four of us will watch. And, knowin' what would happen to us if wewere caught, we'll watch well. But nothing is to be expected to-night."
"Suits us," said Obed. "Some must watch while others sleep, so runs theworld away. Bet you a dollar, Ned, that I'm off to Slumberland beforeyou are."
"I don't take the bet," said Ned, "but I'll run you an even race."
In exactly five minutes the two, rolled in their own blankets, sleptsoundly. All the others soon followed, except four, who, unlike theMexicans, kept a watch that missed nothing.
The Texan Scouts: A Story of the Alamo and Goliad Page 2