beenyet more intense.
"When are we to let this young fidalgo go?" muttered Miguel; "I cannotstay here all night watching him; and I must have some security that hedoes not betray to any one a spot where we have hid a few trifles wefound scattered about the streets."
"I will answer for his honour," returned the Friar; "but stay a little,stay a little, you are in too great a hurry, man."
Though Luis had recognised in his preserver his quondam acquaintance,Fre Lopez, by his tone of voice and his expressions, he certainly couldnot have done so by his outward appearance; for he had now laid asideall pretensions to a holy character in his costume. On his head he worea three-cornered hat, and a full wig, with side curls and pigtail; hiswaistcoat, of flowered silk, was of great length; and his coat andbreeches of large proportions, the pockets being now filled, almost tobursting, with a variety of little articles, such as trinkets and goldpieces, which he also, probably, had picked up about the streets; asword by his side, completed his very unclerical costume. He had seatedhimself near Luis and his captors, and amused himself for some time inaddressing, now one, and now the other; though, from the former, hecould seldom elicit an answer.
Volume 2, Chapter XIV.
We fear that our readers will begin to suppose that we are romancing,when we describe so many hair-breadth escapes and unexpectedinterferences, which preserved the lives of the principal charactersmentioned in this work; but we can assure them, that some equallywonderful befall us every day of our lives, though we are not aware ofthe circumstance at the time. The simple case of a man meeting a friendin the street who twitches his button off while he is inquiring afterhis wife and family, may be equally providential with our examples,though not so romantic; for, had he gone on, he would have been crushedby the falling chimney, or drowned when the bridge gave way. Of course,when we are writing the adventures of people who are continually gettinginto danger, it must be expected that they will escape somehow or other;and we suspect that most of our readers would find great fault if weallowed them to do so in a common-place, every day sort of way; we shalltherefore, as we have before declared it our intention, adhere strictlyto what we find in the documents before us.
We left the unfortunate fidalgo in front of the ruins of the Convent ofSanta Clara, lying in a swoon, caused by the supposition of hisdaughter's death, and watched by her nurse, who continued sobbing andwringing her hands in the bitterest grief.
Night came on, though it was scarcely perceptible on account of thebright fires which blazed in every part of the city, and still theycontinued in the same position; nor did Captain Pinto, according to hispromise, return.
"Oh, Santa Maria Joze! my sweet mistress!" cried poor Gertrudes; "youare torn from us for ever, in your youth and beauty! alas! alas! andhere am I, a worthless old woman, alive and well, mourning for yourloss!" and again she wrung her hands in despair.
On a sudden her master sat upright, and looked wildly around, unable, atfirst, to comprehend what had happened; but the sights which met hisview soon convinced him of the dreadful reality. His heart was indeedbowed with grief, his pride fallen--his only son was slain, his fairdaughter lost to him for ever! Yet, though convinced of her fate, hecould not tear himself from the spot--and whither could he go? It wasimpossible for him to venture through the ruined streets, amid burninghouses and falling walls. He had just arrived at a complete perceptionof his misfortunes, when a shriek struck his ear. A father's senseswere not to be deceived--it was his daughter's voice! He rose to hisfeet as a man rushed by, bearing a female form in his arms. There wasno deception--that cry for aid was Clara's--that shape was hers. He invain endeavoured to arrest the man in his flight--he attempted topursue--but his strength failed him. He called on him, in accents ofdespair, to restore his child; but the ruffian heeded him not, and thefidalgo sank exhausted on the ground. Old Gertrudes, also, had strivento follow; but, weak from fatigue and long fasting, she had not takenmany steps before her strength failed her; and, uttering cries forassistance, she fell near her master.
Though the group of homeless and helpless nuns still remained where theyhad first collected, they were in too apathetic a state to offer anyassistance. No one thought of impeding the vile ravisher in his course,for, alas! such scenes had already become but too common, and the wholecity was now filled with shrieks and piteous cries for mercy, unheededby the savage miscreants who had become the undisputed lords of all.
Captain Pinto's search for his friend proved, of course, as unsuccessfulas at first, till at length he recollected the state in which he hadleft the bereaved father of his friend's mistress, when, with greatdifficulty procuring some food, notwithstanding all the dangers to beencountered, he set forward to carry him assistance, accompanied byPedro and another man, whom he engaged for the purpose.
The ruins of the convent being on the outskirts of the conflagration, hewas able, by making a long circuit, to approach it with less risk thanhe had before encountered; but, when he arrived there, it was some timebefore he could discover the object of his search, now utterly unable toassist himself. The two servants, therefore, supporting the fidalgobetween them, and the old nurse being somewhat revived by some of thefood the Captain had brought, which she contrived to eat between hersobs and exclamations of grief, he led the way towards the palace of theMarchioness of Corcunda, which was in the uninjured part of the city.As the party were leaving the fatal spot, a man, with a drawn sword inhis hand, rushed up to them with frantic gestures, and the noblesailor's satisfaction may be conceived when he discovered his friendLuis. Pedro, in his joy and hurry to embrace his master, almost let thefidalgo fall to the ground; although Luis offered, it must be confessed,but a poor subject for congratulation. From the broken exclamations ofSenhora Gertrudes, the Captain had understood that she fancied she hadseen her young mistress, but he was unprepared for the excited vehemenceof Luis.
"Fly with me to overtake the monster!" he exclaimed, without waiting toreceive his friend's congratulations on his safety. "Which way did hebear her? Have none of you seen her? speak!"
"Of whom do you speak, my friend?" asked Captain Pinto; "for I have butjust arrived here."
"Of Clara, of my own Clara!" ejaculated the unhappy lover; "she has beentorn from me in the moment of preservation, and conveyed I know notwhither; but, as you love me, aid me to recover her. Does no one knowwhich way she was carried?"
The old nurse now recognised Luis. "Does the senhor ask for my youngmistress?" she exclaimed. "I knew it was her, I knew it was her, and asavage has carried her away."
"Speak, woman, speak!" exclaimed Luis, with agitation. "Which way didhe go?"
"Alack! senhor, I scarcely know; we have moved since then--but let mesee: yes, it was there--that was the way;" and she pointed in thedirection of a street, on each side of which the houses were burningfuriously, the walls every instant falling with loud crashes, andthrowing showers of sparks into the air.
As old Gertrudes pointed to the street, Luis, heedless of the dangers,was about to break away from his friends towards it, but the Captainheld him back. "It is impossible that she could have been carried amidthat fiery strait, or that you could enter it without instantdestruction. Hear reason, my friend; it is now some time since shecould have passed here, and since then she must have been conveyed to aconsiderable distance, where it will be utterly impossible, unaided, todiscover her. I know her danger is great, but I cannot believe therebreathes the hellish monster who would injure her. It is far moreprobable that she has been carried off by some designing ruffians, forthe sake of receiving a reward for restoring her; or, if not, be assuredthat Heaven will, by some unexpected means, protect her innocence. Icannot believe it possible that any harm can happen to her. Assist menow in conveying her father to a place of safety; you see his helplessstate, and you will be performing an act gratifying to her. To-morrowwe will collect some friends and attendants, and having procuredauthority from the Minister, we will search for her in every direction,examining every
one we meet, and I trust that success will crown ourefforts."
With such like persuasions Captain Pinto strove to calm his friend'smind, although he well knew how fallacious the hopes he endeavoured toexcite would too probably prove; but he felt that any deceit wasexcusable to prevent him risking his life in a search which he knew mustbe futile; and also, not being in love himself, his judgment was cool,and he was very unwilling to accompany him, from the conviction of theuselessness of the attempt. Pedro, also, though a very brave fellow,and very much attached to his master, was not quite a hero, and, as hehad already seen horrors enough to make him wish to avoid furtherdanger, he joined in attempting to dissuade him from pursuing his searchon that night, when, at length, the Captain cut the matter short byseizing his arm and attempting to drag him along.
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