CHAPTER XVIII.
“The demons of the Andes!” exclaimed Harry and Topsie in one breath; and then the girl added, “the same as killed poor Miriam Vane and James Outram in the great gold mine of Or. When our Uncle Harry told us of them we used to call them Traucos, which now, to all appearance, they are not, but far more appropriately termed ‘demons of the Andes.’”
She made this remark to Sir Francis and Lady Vane and the others, addressing them in English. Then turning to Piñone she inquired:
“These were surely not Traucos?”
“No,” answered Piñone decidedly, “for the Traucos are human. These were fiends, raging monsters, with all the thirst of wild beasts for blood. But the river was broad, and they had no other weapons than their clubs, so as long as we kept in mid-stream they could not reach us. At length, however, the Traucos appeared to get impatient, for their men and women all arose, unslung their bows, and fitted a golden-tipped arrow in each string. The big woman, to whom I have already alluded, now appeared to assume command, for she marshalled them into line, and signed to the men withthe poles to keep the rafts stationary. Then she raised her bow, and aiming at one of the yelling monsters on the bank sent the shaft winging at him. Next moment a wild shriek rent the air, as the black fiend relaxed his grasp of the branch to which he had been clinging, and crashing through the leafy boughs, came with a dull thud to the ground, the gold-headed arrow having penetrated the centre of his forehead.
“As he fell, twenty arrows winged their deadly flight, and five fiends bit the dust. Two, after struggling for a moment or two, stretched their limbs out with a shudder, and lay still, but the other three sprang up and darted away into the forest, shrieking hideously, and grasping with both hands the arrows which stuck into their bodies. This attack seemed to discourage and overawe the others, for they all took to the trees, and amidst a chorus of weird cries and general hubbub, sprang from branch to branch and disappeared. Then several Traucos landed to recover their arrows from the bodies of the slain, which they lifted up and hurled into the water. The dead fiends sank almost immediately after immersion in a flood of bubbles and eddying whirlpools.
“All that day, and for several days after it, we worked up the great river on these rafts with little or nothing occurring to break the dull monotony of the journey. And ever as we went my heart and that of my father beat heavy with a great load as we thought of the beloved country daily getting further away, and of all that it contained for which our spirits yearned.
“One evening, as the red sun pierced the trees andbathed the sluggish river in its rosy light, we rounded a wide bend thereof, and came suddenly in view of a great Trauco village. We could see hundreds of hairy forms moving to and fro, and children running races along the banks.
“At once the little ones on the rafts sprang up and began to clap their furry hands, while their large soft eyes were suffused with happiness, and they showed their white teeth in broad grins. The racing children on the river’s bank at once came to a standstill, and then rushed crowding down to the water’s edge. At the same time a large number of Traucos hurried forward apparently to welcome the new-comers, judging by the smiles and loud cooings that took place. As their eyes fell upon myself and my father, they dilated with wonder and curiosity, and when the rafts touched the shore and we landed, the crowd which collected around us became quite dense.
“They smoothed us, and patted us, and offered us fruit, the like of which we had never seen before. These fruits were like a lot of round balls of a rich, dark purple colour, luscious, sweet, and refreshing. They had no stones or pips in them, and clustered together in great bunches on the same stalk. I afterwards saw a similar kind of fruit growing in profusion in a big open plain, only this latter was of a pale, transparent green.”
“Monster grapes!” ejaculated Harry. “Wouldn’t you like to be amongst them, Mary?”
“Of course I should, and so would you, you greedy boy,” laughed the girl archly.
“Come now, don’t interrupt Piñone,” said Lady Vane reprovingly. “This account is really most strange and wonderful.”
“At length,” continued the Cacique, “the crowd separated, and made way apparently for some one. It was the big woman whom I have spoken of. She was a very fine specimen, tall as the tallest of the men, with graceful, well-formed limbs, splendidly proportioned, and evidently possessed of immense strength. Her eyes were magnificent, and she had the most perfect row of teeth which I ever beheld. Her word appeared to be implicitly obeyed, or, I should rather say, her gestures; for, as I have already remarked, these people do not talk.
“She advanced towards us, and coming between us, gave each of us a hand, and in this manner led us up towards the village which stood not far away. Then more Traucos trooped up to stare, but she waved them off, and motioned to us to enter a large roomy hut, capable of holding some twenty people with ease. It was like a tolderia, only entirely covered in with boughs and leaves instead of skins. On the ground was stretched some splendid jaguar and puma furs fastened by gold pegs into the earth, and in the corner lay heaps of the soft, furry vicuña skins, to be used as we surmised, for couches. As we entered, the Trauco queen gave a sharp, shrill whistle, and immediately a number of Traucos came running up to the hut. Moving her hands in quick gestures she cooed loudly, whereupon they hastened away, returning shortly afterwards with a bundle of dry moss, some sticks, several logs of wood, and some meat. We watched them curiously, and weresurprised to see them set the moss, sticks, and wood as if for lighting, and cluster round the whole erection in a circle. Suddenly we heard two or three sharp clicks, then smoke began to arise. In a few minutes the moss flared up, ignited the sticks, and soon a cheery blaze burst forth. The Trauco retired, and the furry queen looked at us triumphantly from out her large dark eyes.
“We took advantage of this fire to cook the meat which the fire lighters had left lying beside it, and when it was sufficiently roasted, drew forth our knives and began to cut it up. At the sight of these knives the queen cooed loudly, and came close up to examine them, her eyes dilating with wonder and astonishment. Feeling in a slit or pocket in the fur chiripa which surrounded her loins, she drew forth a gold-bladed knife, set strongly in a piece of very black wood, and held it up for us to look at. I reached forward and laid my own against hers, an act which pleased her greatly, for she laughed pleasantly, and showed her beautiful teeth. After this she watched us eat our meat, and then sent for fruit, which was piled up outside our hut.
“As the sun went down every Trauco made for the huts, dived into them, and for the night were seen no more. Our furry queen motioned to us to enter the one assigned for our use, while she disappeared into an adjoining one of her own. It was clear that after sunset we were not to be permitted liberty outside these huts, for on I and Cuastral going out to look around, several Traucos thrust their heads out of some small huts which surrounded the queen’s residence, andmade vigorous signs to us to re-enter our own at once, an order which we reluctantly obeyed.
“Every morning these Traucos assembled together, and stood in long straight rows awaiting the queen’s approach. Then she would issue from her hut, make signs to some of them, who at once formed into a party and disappeared into the forest, others would go forth to the open plain with strange tools made out of pure gold, others would start away with their bows and arrows, while some would take to the rafts and propel them up stream. A few would remain in camp, and busy themselves with skin sewing, skin curing, arrow and bow fashioning, and other occupations. But I noticed that in all things the men and women shared alike, fought side by side, enjoyed their simple pleasures in each other’s company, as well as their daily toil. Then I thought of thee, Aniwee, and all that thou hadst striven to teach thy Piñone, as to the rights of the Indian women to share alike in all things with the men, and I saw how wisely thou hadst spoken; for the Traucos are a happy people, and I rarely saw disagreement amongst them.
“When the sun had made many strides through the heavens the Traucos would return, some carrying large bundles and blocks of wood, others green branches, those with the strange implements brought them back covered with earth, and washed them in the river, and I afterwards learnt that they used them for turning over the soil of the plain, in which they planted the shrub that produced the great bunches of ball-like fruit. Then the Traucos who had gone forth with thebows and arrows would return, bringing dead birds, sometimes foxes and a puma, at other times vicuña or deer, and also, but this rarely, a jaguar. As for the rafts, they always remained away a day or two, but when they returned they brought large stores of gold-quartz, sometimes lumps of pure gold. These the children unloaded from the rafts, washed in the river, and carried to a big heap piled up upon the bank, beside which a large fire was often lit, and around which men and women busied themselves in heating the gold, and beating it, when red hot, into various shapes, such as knives, arrow and spear heads, implements to till the ground with, and other strange devices.
“On several occasions the queen accompanied the rafts up stream, and took us with her. On the first occasion, after a journey of two days, we emerged from the thick forest, and came suddenly in view of several caves running earthwards from some high cliffs. Up these the rafts were guided, until we could go no further, and then the Traucos landed, and soon began hammering away at the rocks inside, detaching large masses, and breaking them up into smaller lumps, which they piled upon the rafts. Thus we learnt how these people came by their gold, and no longer wondered why they used it for everything. There seemed to be no end to the rich store which they possessed.
“It was when returning from our first expedition to these caves, that I and Cuastral first learned and witnessed the manner in which the Traucos attacked and slew the jaguar. We were floating lazily downstream with our cargo of gold, and lying at ease in thesun, when the queen Trauco suddenly clapped her hands, and pointed towards the forest. Looking in that direction, neither I nor Cuastral could make out anything, but we noticed that the Traucos were visibly excited. In a moment the queen had possessed herself of her bow and arrows, and had signed to the raftsmen to push the raft inland. They obeyed, and she at once sprang on shore, the Traucos again pushing out into mid-stream. Then the queen bent herself double, and began moaning in a strange way, as if she were wounded and suffered pain, all the time keeping her head turned towards the forest. Suddenly she reared herself from her stooping attitude, and fixing an arrow in her bow shot into the thickest portion thereof. A roar followed her act, and a great crashing sounded loudly amongst the undergrowth. But quick as lightning another arrow winged its fatal shaft, and the next moment a splendid jaguar sprung into the open, with both arrows sticking in his eyes. He staggered about, gnashing his teeth and lashing his tail, but while doing so, his assailant, protected by his lost vision, stole up to his side, and aiming an arrow at the region of the heart, drew the bow. Bearing straight up on end, in the same manner as did the one I lately killed, the great beast fell back with a crash, and stretched out his limbs with a quiver, to stir no more. It was a black-ringed jaguar.
“Thus our life sped on amidst these strange people. The queen took us on hunting expeditions, and was our constant companion. But Cuastral and I yearned for our beautiful land, and we had made up our mindsto try and escape. With the account of how we sought to regain our liberty, of our flight, the chase, recapture, and subsequent sufferings, I will close this tale of mine, for the night is drawing on. See how the ghostly Andes gleam in the moonlight, inviting man to rest.”