by Mayne Reid
CHAPTER FORTY FIVE.
AN ELEVATED GRAVEYARD.
Just as the last glimmer of twilight is taking departure from the plain,the three who had sought concealment under the roosting-place of macaws,slip quietly out of the copse, and ride away from it, leaving the noisybirds, now silent, behind them.
There is yet light enough to enable them to take bearings by the hill,which, as they have rightly conjectured, rises over the Tovas town; and,heading direct towards it, after a couple of hours spent in riding at abrisk pace, they arrive at the rocky steep forming a periphery to itsbase. As there is now a clear moonlight, caution dictates their againgetting under cover; which they do by drawing their horses close in tothe adjacent cliff, whose shadow sufficiently conceals them. But it isnot intended to stay long there. At their last halting-place they hadconsidered everything, and decided upon the steps to be taken; so far asthey can, from what is known to them. If the circumstances change, orturn out different from what they are expecting, they must be guided intheir action accordingly.
Still in the belief of Naraguana being alive, Ludwig is again of theopinion that they should push on to the town without further delay. Theplace cannot now be far-off; for at the hill's base they have struck abroad and much-travelled trail denoting the proximity of a settlement.Cypriano is undecided, but Gaspar, as before, goes strongly againstproceeding directly onward.
"You speak of delay, Senor Ludwig," he says; "but in this case, the oldadage, `More haste less speed,' might be true, as it often is. Besides,what would we gain by entering their town now? It isn't likely weshould accomplish anything to-night. You forget the hour it is--nighunto midnight. And as the custom of most Chaco Indians is early to bedand early to rise, we'd no doubt find every redskin of them asleep, withonly their dogs to receive us. _Carrai_! A nice reception that wouldbe! Like as not some scores of half-famished curs to fall upon us--perhaps drag us out of our saddles. Whereas, in the morning all wouldbe different, with the people up to protect us from such an assault.But whether we enter at night, or by day, I still stick to the belief,that it will be better to do so by stealth; at least, one of us shouldfirst slip in that way, and learn how the land lies. In any case, weought to have a squint at this Sacred Town, before trusting ourselveswithin its walls--if walls it have. From the look of things here, Ifancy it lies on the other side of this hill. By climbing the hill now,and staying on its top till daybreak, we'll get a god view of the town,which will, no doubt, be right under us. We can see all through thestreets, and what's going on in them. That will give us a hint of howto act afterwards, and if things look favourable, we might then rideboldly in; which, after all, may be the best way of introducingourselves--only it should be done in the daylight."
Cypriano sees that the gaucho's reasoning is correct; and Ludwig alsoacknowledging it to be so, it is finally decided that they ascend thehill, and remain upon its summit for the rest of that night.
But now comes a question not hitherto asked, or thought of. How is theascent to be made, and where is there a path practicable for making it?Not only is it steep, but its sides are thickly overgrown with trees,and between their trunks a dense tangle of underwood.
"It must be on its summit, they have their burying-ground," observesGaspar, gazing upward. "Yes; Naraguana spoke of its being on the top ofa hill, and there's no other hill near. If that be the case, and theycarry their dead up, there'll sure be some sort of a road for theirfuneral processions. That would likely be on the other side, straightup from the town. But I warrant there's a trail starts from this sidetoo, and runs right over the hill. Let's ride along a bit, and see ifthere be."
The gaucho's conjecture is correct, as they soon discover. Before theyhave ridden three score lengths of their horses, keeping close along thebase of the hill, they perceive an opening in the timber which skirtsit, marked by certain insignia denoting the entrance to amuch-frequented path. For though narrow, it shows well trampled andtrodden. Diverging abruptly from the broad road running on round thehill, it strikes in under a tall cotton tree, a _ceiba_, thisconspicuous from being bent over, as if half-blown down. The pathenters between its trunk and a gigantic _pita_ plant (_agave_), whosestiff spinous leaves almost bar up the entrance as with an iron gate.
"That's the way we've got to go," says Gaspar, pointing to it, at thesame time setting his horse's head in the direction of the _ceiba_; thenadding, as he nods towards the _pita_ plant; "have a care of your heads,_hijos mios_! Look out for this queer customer on the left, or you mayget your soft cheeks scratched a bit."
On delivering the admonition he ducks his own head, and passing underthe thorny leaves of the _agave_, commences the ascent of the hill.
Cypriano and Ludwig do likewise; and all three are soon climbing thesteep, one behind the other, now in silence, the only sounds heard beingthe hoof-strokes of the horses, with their hard breathing as they strainup the acclivity.
A quarter of an hour's tough climbing carries them up the wooded slope,and out upon the open summit, where they have a spectacle before theireyes peculiar, as it is original. As already said, the hill istable-topped, and being also dome-shaped the level surface is circular,having a diameter of some three or four hundred yards. Nothing strangein this, however, since hills of the kind, termed _mesas_, are commonthroughout most parts of Spanish America, and not rare in the GranChaco. All three are familiar with such eminences. But what they arenot familiar with--and indeed none of them have ever seen before--aresome scores of queer-looking structures standing all over the summit,with alley-like spaces between! Scaffolds they appear, each having twostages, one above the other, such as might be used in the erection of atwo-storey house!
And scaffolds they are, though not employed in any building purposes;instead, for that of burial. They are the tombs on which are depositedthe bodies of the Tovas dead; or those of them that during life weredignitaries in the tribe.
On this elevated cemetery the moon is shining brightly, thoughobliquely, throwing the shadows of the scaffolds aslant, so that eachhas its counterpart on the smooth turf by its side, dark as itself, butmagnified in the moonlight. Gaspar and his companions can see thatthese singular mausoleums are altogether constructed of timber, thesupporting posts being trunks of the _Cocoyol_ palm, the lower stagingof strong canes, the _cana brava_, laid side by side, while the upperone, or roof, is a thatch of the leaves of another species of palm--the_cuberta_.
After contemplating them for an instant, Gaspar says: "This is theburying-ground Naraguana spoke to me about, beyond a doubt. And notsuch a bad sort of place either to take one's final rest in, afterlife's worries are over. I shouldn't much object to being laid out inthat style myself. Only I'd need friends to live after me, and keep thestructure in repair; otherwise the frail thing might some day cometumbling down, and my poor bones along with it."
At the conclusion of this quaint speech, he gives the rein to his horse,and moves on among the tombs, making for the opposite side of thecemetery, the others following in silence. For from the brow of thehill on its westward side, they expect to look down upon the Indiantown.
"It must be on t'other side," observes the gaucho, as they proceed. "Iremember the old chief saying the _tolderia_ was west of the hill."
When half-way across he again reins up, halting his horse alongside oneof the scaffolds, conspicuous among the rest by its larger size, as alsoa certain freshness about the timbers of which it is constructed; somechips scattered around the supports, where these have been chopped andbarked, telling of recent erection. It is not this, however, hasprompted Gaspar to make stop beside it; but simply that he there sees aplace suitable for the stalling of their horses. There is no need totake the animals on to the other side, but better leave them there, andthemselves go forward afoot.
Thus reflecting, all three dismount, and attach their horses to thecorner posts of the scaffold, each choosing one for his own. Then, withcautious steps, they continue to the outer edge of the circle
, andpushing through some trees that skirt it, look to the plain below. Sureenough, there is the thing they expected to see--an Indian town or_tolderia_. A large lake lies beyond, on whose tranquil surface themoon makes a mirror, as if it were glass. But their eyes rest only uponthe town, their ears bent to catch any sound that may come up from it.
It is not long till sounds do ascend, the barking of dogs, with now andthen the lowing of cattle, and neighing of horses; but no human voice,nothing to tell that the place is inhabited by man. For there is nosmoke from the houses, no lights anywhere, everybody seeming to beasleep.
Nothing strange in all this; nor do they looking down from the hillthink it so. Instead, things are just as they should be and as Casparanticipated they would. For it is now the midnight hour, and since redmen must have rest as well as white ones, the Tovas have all retired totheir beds or hammocks.
So concluding, and satisfied with what they see--reflecting further thatnothing more can be done till morning--the gaucho and his companions goback to their horses, with the intention of taking off the saddles, andotherwise disposing of them for the night.
It was at first proposed to keep them tied to the scaffold-posts, but ona second inspection of the place, Gaspar sees it is not the best oneeither for their animals or themselves to pass the night in. Shouldthey go to rest under the scaffold, while asleep, their horses turningrestive might pull down the posts, and bring rattling about their earsthe bones of some dead _cacique_! Besides, the ground underneath is notnice to repose upon; being without herbage and trampled all over, someparts seeming freshly turned up. The gaucho would prefer a patch ofsoft grass to lay his limbs along, and this very thing he has noticedwhile they were out on the brow of the eminence overlooking the town.Here a grand fig-tree had attracted his attention, under its branchesseeming the most proper place for them to encamp. Its far-spreading andumbrageous boughs drooping back to the ground and there taking root--asthe Indian _banyan_ of which it is the New World representative--enclosed a large space underneath. It would not only give them ashelter from the dews of the night, but concealment from the eyes ofanyone who might chance to be passing that way.
With these manifest advantages in favour of the ground under thefig-tree as a camping-place, and the disadvantages of that beneath thescaffold, the latter is without further ado forsaken, and the formertaken possession of.
As no camp-fire can be safely kindled, nor food cooked, they must go tosleep supperless.
Fortunately none of them is a-hungered, all having made a hearty mealwhile within the _macaw's_ grove. There they had polished off the grand"drumsticks" of the ostrich, by good luck already roasted. So caringnot for supper, after having disposed of their horses by tying them tobranches of the fig-tree, they stretch themselves along the ground, andseek repose, which on this night they all need, as much as on any othersince starting upon their long-protracted expedition.
Still, they do not intend to be all asleep at the same time. In such aplace, with the danger of being found in it, that would never do. Oneof the three must remain awake and on watch; so it is arranged that theytake the duty of sentinel in turns. As the present hour appears to bethe one calling for keenest vigilance, Caspar volunteers for the firstturn of guard; and the other two wrapping their ponchos around them, andresting their heads upon their _recados_, with a mutual _Buenas noches_!become silent, if not asleep.