The Project Gutenberg eBook ofThe Insurgent ChiefThis ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online atwww.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.Title: The Insurgent ChiefAuthor: Gustave AimardRelease date: April 15, 2014 [eBook #45402]Most recently updated: October 24, 2024Language: EnglishCredits: E-text prepared by Camille Bernard and Marc D'Hooghe (http://freeliterature.org) from page images generously made available by HathiTrust Digital Library (http://www.hathitrust.org/digital_library)*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE INSURGENT CHIEF ***
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online atwww.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.
Title: The Insurgent ChiefAuthor: Gustave AimardRelease date: April 15, 2014 [eBook #45402]Most recently updated: October 24, 2024Language: EnglishCredits: E-text prepared by Camille Bernard and Marc D'Hooghe (http://freeliterature.org) from page images generously made available by HathiTrust Digital Library (http://www.hathitrust.org/digital_library)
Title: The Insurgent Chief
Author: Gustave Aimard
Author: Gustave Aimard
Release date: April 15, 2014 [eBook #45402]Most recently updated: October 24, 2024
Language: English
Credits: E-text prepared by Camille Bernard and Marc D'Hooghe (http://freeliterature.org) from page images generously made available by HathiTrust Digital Library (http://www.hathitrust.org/digital_library)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE INSURGENT CHIEF ***
The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Insurgent Chief, by Gustave Aimard, Translated by Lascelles Wraxall
Book I—THE PINCHEYRAS
I.THE CALLEJÓN DE LAS CRUCES.II.THE LETTER.III.THE RECLUSES.IV.THE INTERVIEW.V.THE PREPARATIONS OF TYRO.VI.COMPLICATIONS.VII.THE PANIC.VIII.THE SOLITARY.IX.THE INDIAN.X.ACROSS COUNTRY.
Book II—THE MONTONERO
I.EL RINCÓN DEL BOSQUECILLO.II.THE TREATY.III.THE COUGAR.IV.THE TWO CHIEFS.V.THE ROYAL ARMY.VI.AT CASA-FRAMA.VII.THE INTERVIEW.VIII.THE TOLDO.IX.IN THE MOUNTAIN.X.THE PARTISAN.XI.THE CAPTIVES.
Although the town of San Miguel de Tucuman is not very ancient, and its construction dates scarcely two centuries back, nevertheless—thanks, perhaps, to the calm and studious population which inhabit it—it has a certain middle age odour which is profusely exhaled from the old cloisters of its convents, and from the thick and gloomy walls of its churches. The grass in the low quarters of the town freely grows in the nearly always deserted streets; and here and there some wretched old house crumbling with age, leaning over the river which washes its foundations, incomprehensible miracle of equilibrium—presents to the curious look of the artistic traveller the most picturesque effects.
The Callejón de las Cruces, especially—a narrow and tortuous street, lined with low and sombre houses—which at one end abuts on the river, and at the other on the street de las Mercaderes, is, without doubt, one of the most singularly picturesque in the town.
At the period of our history, and perhaps at the present time, the greater part of the right side of the Callejón de las Cruces was occupied by a high and large house, of a cold and sombre aspect, whose thick walls, and the iron bars with which its windows wore furnished, made it resemble a prison.
However, it was nothing of the sort. This house was a kind of nunnery, such as are often met with even, now in Belgian and Dutch Flanders, so long possessed by the Spaniards, and which served for a retreat for women of all classes of society, who, without having positively taken vows, wished to live sheltered from the storms of the world, and to devote the remainder of their lives to exercises of piety, and works of benevolence.
As the reader has seen, by the description which we gave of the place when it came under notice, this house was thoroughly appropriated to its uses, and there continually reigned around it a peacefulness and a calm which made it rather resemble a vast necropolis than a partially religious community of women.
Every sound died without an echo on the threshold of the door of this gloomy house; sounds of joy, as well as cries of anger—the uproars offêtes, as well as the rumblings on insurrection—nothing could galvanise it, or rouse it from its majestic and sombre indifference.
However, one evening—the very night when the governor of San Miguel had given, at the Cabildo, a ball to celebrate the victory gained by Zeno Cabral over the Spaniards[1]—towards midnight, a troop of armed men, whose measured tread sounded heavily in the darkness, had left the street de las Mercaderes, turned into the Callejón de las Cruces, and, having reached the massive and solidly bolted door of the house of which we have spoken, they stopped.
He who appeared to be the chief of these men had knocked three times with the pommel of his sword on the door, which was immediately opened.
This man had, in a low voice, exchanged a few words with an invisible person; then, on a sign from himself, the ranks of his troop opened, and four women—four spectres, perhaps—draped in long veils, which did not allow any part of their person to be perceived, entered the house silently, and in a line. Some few words further had been exchanged between the chief of the troop and the invisible doorkeeper of this mysterious house; then the door had been again noiselessly closed, as it had been opened; the soldiers returned by the way they had come, and all was over.
This singular circumstance had transpired without awakening in any way the attention of the poor people who lived in the vicinity. The greater part were assisting at thefêtein the streets or in the squares of the high quarters of the town; the remainder were sleeping, or Were too indifferent to trouble themselves about any noise whatever at so advanced an hour of the night.
So that, on the morrow, the inhabitants of the Callejón de las Cruces would have been quite unable to give the slightest account of what had passed at midnight in their street, at the gate of the Black House as among themselves they called this gloomy habitation, for which they had a strong dislike, and which was far from enjoying a good reputation among them.
Several days had passed since thefête, the town had resumed its calm and peaceful appearance, only the troops had not raised their camp—on the contrary, theMontoneraof Don Zeno Cabral had installed itself at a short distance from them.
Vague rumours, which circulated in the town, gave rise to the belief that the revolutionists were preparing a great expedition against the Spaniards.
Emile Gagnepain—much annoyed at first at being continually the sport of events, and at seeing his free will completely annihilated for the benefit of others, and especially at being obliged, in spite of himself, to be mixed up with politics, when he would have been so happy to pass his days in wandering about the country, and particularly in dreamily stretching himself on the grass—had finished by making up his mind to these continual quarrels in which he could do nothing. He had, till better times arrived, resigned himself to his fate with that philosophic carelessness which formed the foundation of his character; and this the more readily, as he was not long in perceiving that his position as secretary to the Duc de Mantone was rather nominal than actual, and that, in fact, it was a magnificent sinecure, inasmuch as during the fortnight he had been supposed to fulfil its duties, the diplomatist had not given him a syllable to write.
Although both lived in the same house, the patron and the nominal secretary only saw one another rarely, and, ordinarily, did not meet but at meals, when the same table served them. Two or three days sometimes passed without their seeing each other.
M. Dubois, completely absorbed in the intricate combinations of politics, often passed the day in long and serious conferences with the chiefs of the executive power. He had been charged with a very difficult work on the election of the deputies to the general congress, which was about to be held at San Miguel de Tucuman, and in which the independence of the provinces of the ancient vice-royalty of Buenos Aires was about to be proclaimed.
So that, spite of the lively interest which he had in his young countryman, the diplomatist was obliged to neglect him—of which the latter by no means complained; on the contrary, profiting conscientiously by the agreeable leisure which politics gave to him, he gave himself up with delight to the contemplative life so dear to artists, and lounged whole days about the town and country, in quest of picturesque points of view, and of fine landscapes.
This search was by no means unprofitable in a country such as that in which he was accidently living, where nature, yet but little spoiled or marred by the unintelligent hand of man, possessed that seal of majesty and of grandeur which God alone knows how to impress so royally alike upon the most vast and the meanest works which spring from His all-powerful hands.
The inhabitants, accustomed to see the young man among them, attracted by his handsome and frank countenance, by his gentle manners and his careless air, were, by degrees, familiarised with him; and, notwithstanding that he was a European, and especially a Frenchman—that is to say, agringoor heretic—had at last come to be very friendly to him, and allowed him to go wherever fancy led him, without following him with an uneasy curiosity, or worrying him with indiscreet questions.
Moreover, in the state of political excitement in which the country was at this time, when every passion was in ebullition, and revolutionary ideas turned every head, it appeared so strange to see a man walking about continually with an unconcerned air, carelessly looking about him with a smile on his lips, and his hands in his pockets, without regret for yesterday or care for tomorrow, that this man justly passed for a kind of phenomenon. Everyone envied him, and felt constrained to love him, by reason even of his placid indifference. He alone, perhaps, did not perceive the effect produced by his presence, when he rambled about the square or the most populous streets of the town; and he continued his promenade without even considering that he was for those whose path he crossed a walking enigma, of which they vainly sought the key. Some even, quite astounded by this magnificent indifference, which they could not comprehend, went so far as to believe that if he were not completely mad, at least he had some tendencies that way.
Emile occupied himself neither with one nor the other. He continued his careless open air life, following with his eyes the birds in their flight, listening for hours together to the mysterious murmur of a cascade, or in rapture with a splendid sunset in the Cordillera. Then, in the evening, he philosophically re-entered his lodging, murmuring between his teeth:
"Is not all this admirable! How much better this than politics!Parbleu!He must be an idiot who does not see it. Positively, people are absurd, they are asses! They would be so happy if they would only consent to live carelessly, without seeking to free themselves from their masters. As if, when some masters are gone, others will not immediately come! Positively they are animals fit to eat hay!"
The next day he resumed his walks, and so day after day, without worrying himself about a mode of life so agreeable and happy; and in this he was perfectly right.
The young painter, as we have already said, lived in a house placed at the disposal of M. Dubois by the Buenos Airean Government, and situated on the Plaza Mayor, under the gates. The young man, on stepping out of his house, found himself in face of a wide street, furnished with shops, which led out of the square. This street was the Calle de las Mercaderes. Now, the painter had been in the habit of going straight on, of following the Calle Mercaderes, at the end of which was the Callejón de las Cruces; he then entered the Callejón, and arrived, without any turning, at the river. Thus, twice a day—in the morning in going out, and in the evening in returning from his promenade—Emile Gagnepain passed the entire length of the Callejón de las Cruces.
He stopped sometimes for a considerable time to admire the graceful outline of some gable ends, dating from the earlier years of the conquest, and preferred to traverse this silent and solitary street, where he could freely give himself up to his thoughts without fear of being interrupted, rather than to take the streets of the higher quarters, where it was impossible to take a step without meeting some acquaintance whom he could not have passed without exchanging a few words, or at least without a bow—things which annoyed him much, as they broke the thread of his thoughts.
One morning when, according to custom, Emile Gagnepain had begun his walk, and was pensively traversing the Callejón de las Cruces, at the moment when he was passing the house of which we have spoken, he felt a slight tap on the crown of his hat, as if some light object had struck it, and a flower immediately fell at his feet.
The young man stopped with astonishment. His first movement was to raise his head, but he saw nothing; the old house had still its accustomed mournful and sombre aspect.
"Hum!" murmured he; "What does that mean? This flower, at all events, has not fallen from the sky."
He stooped down, picked it up delicately, and examined it with care.
It was a white rose, scarcely half opened, and still fresh and damp with dew.
Emile remained an instant wrapped in thought.
"Well, that is odd," said he; "this flower has only been gathered a few minutes; is it not to me that it has been thrown? Nay," added he, looking around him, "it would be very difficult to have thrown it to another, for I am alone. This deserves reflection. I must not be carried away by vanity. I'll wait till the evening."
And he continued his walk, after having vainly explored, with an anxious look, all the windows of this solitary house.
This incident, slight as it was, was sufficient to trouble the artist during the remainder of his promenade.
He was young, he believed himself good-looking; and, moreover, he had more than a reasonable share of vanity. His imagination soon carried him away. He called to mind all the love stories he had heard related in relation to Spain; and, putting this and that together, he soon arrived at this conclusion, excessively flattering to his self-love—that a beautifulSeñora, held prisoner by some jealous husband, had seen him pass under her windows, had felt herself drawn towards him by an irresistible passion, and had thrown him this flower to attract his attention.
This conclusion was absurd, it was true but it immensely pleased the painter, whose self-love, as we have said, it flattered.
During the whole day the young man was burning with anxiety; twenty times he thought of returning, but, happily, reflection came to his aid, and he came to the conclusion that too much haste would compromise the success of his adventure, and that it would be better not again to pass the house till the hour when he was in the habit of returning home.
"In this way," said he, with a knowing air—questioning himself to avoid a disillusion, if, which was possible, he was deceived—"if she expects me, she will throw me another flower; then I will buy a guitar, a mantle the colour of the wall, and I will come like a lover of the time of the Cid Campeador, by starlight, to tell her my love."
But, notwithstanding this mockery, which he addressed to himself as he wandered about, he was much more concerned in the matter than he was ready to confess, and every moment he was consulting his watch to see if the hour for his return was near.
Although we may not be in love—and certainly the painter only felt at this moment a curiosity which he could not explain; for it was impossible for him to entertain any other feeling for a person whom he did not know: nevertheless the unknown—the unforeseen, if you will—has an indefinable charm, and exerts a powerful attraction on certain excitable organisations, which induces them in a moment to build up suppositions which they are not slow to consider as realities, until the truth suddenly comes, as a drop of cold water thrown into a boiling fluid will in a moment stop the evaporation of steam.
When the painter thought the hour had arrived, he turned back towards home. Affecting, perhaps, a little too visibly—if anyone had had an interest in watching his movements and gestures—the manners of a man completely indifferent, he reached the Callejón de las Cruces, and soon arrived near the house.
Spite of himself, the young man felt that he was flushed; his heart beat rapidly, and he had a buzzing in his ears, as when the blood, suddenly excited, rushes to the head.
All of a sudden, he felt a pretty smart shock to his hat.
He briskly raised his head.
Sudden as had been his movement, he could see nothing; only he heard a slight noise as if a window had been cautiously closed.
Disappointed at this second and unsuccessful attempt to perceive the person who was thus interested in him, he remained for a moment motionless; then, recollecting the ridiculousness of his position in the middle of a street, and under the eyes of people who were, perhaps, watching him from behind a window blind, he resumed his apparent coolness and indifference, and looked on the ground about him for the object which had so suddenly struck him.
He soon perceived it two or three paces from him.
This time it was not a flower. The object, whatever it was—for at first he could not be certain of it—was enveloped in paper, and tied carefully with a purple silk thread several times round the paper.
"Oh, oh!" thought the painter, picking up the little roll of paper, and rapidly hiding it in the pocket of the waistcoat which he wore under his poncho; "This complicates the matter. Are we already to write to one another? The devil! This is making rapid progress, indeed!"
He began to walk rapidly to reach his lodgings; but soon reflecting that this unaccustomed proceeding would astonish people who were in the habit of seeing him, lounging and looking about him, he checked himself, and resumed his ordinary pace.
But his hand was incessantly going to his pocket, to feel the object which he had so carefully deposited there.
"God pardon me," said he, after a time! "I believe it is a ring. Oh, oh! That would be charming! Upon, my word, I return to my first idea—I will buy a guitar, and a mantle the colour of the wall, and in making love to my beautiful unknown—for she is beautiful, I doubt not—I will forget the torments of exile. But," said he, suddenly stopping right in the middle of the square, and throwing up his arms with a desperate air, "if she is ugly! Ugly women have often extraordinary ideas which seize them, they know not why. Ah! That would be frightful! Come! What am I talking about? The devil take me, if I am not becoming stupid! She cannot be ugly, for the very simple, reason that all the Spaniards are pretty."
And reassured by this reasoning, the deduction from which was so pleasant, the young man pursued his journey.
As the reader has been in a position to perceive, Emile Gagnepain loved talking to himself—sometimes even he went to extravagant lengths—but the fault was not his. Thrown by chance in a foreign land, only speaking with difficulty the language of the people among whom he found himself, and not having near him any friend to whom he could confide his joys and his troubles, he was to some extent obliged to make a confidant of himself; so true is it that man is an eminently social animal, and that life in common is indispensable to him, through the incessant want which he experiences in each circumstance of his life, of unburdening his heart, and of sharing with some one of his own species the sweet or painful sentiments which it feels.
While he was still reflecting, the young man arrived at the house which, he occupied in common with M. Dubois.
An attendant seemed to be waiting for his arrival. As soon as he perceived the painter, he quickly approached him, and after having respectfully saluted him—
"I beg your pardon, your lordship," said he to him, "my lord duke has several times asked for you today. He has left orders that as soon as you arrive we should ask you to go to his apartment."
"Very well," he answered, "I will go there immediately."
So saying, instead of turning to the right to enter the part of the house which he occupied, he went towards the great staircase situated at the bottom of the court, and which led to the apartment of M. Dubois.
"Is it not strange," murmured he, mounting the staircase, "that this nuisance of a man, of whom I never know how to speak, should just want me at the very moment when I desire to be alone?"
M. Dubois waited for him in a large room rather richly furnished, in which he was pacing up and down, his head lowered and his arms crossed behind his back, like a man occupied with serious reflections.
As soon as he perceived the young man, he advanced rapidly towards him.
"Oh, you have come!" cried he. "For two hours I have been waiting for you. What has become of you?"
"I! Why, I have been walking. What would you have me do? Life is so short!"
"Always the same!" pursued the duke, laughing.
"I shall take good care not to change; I am too happy as I am."
"Sit down, we have to talk seriously."
"The devil!" said the young man, seating himself on a butaca.
"Why this exclamation?"
"Because your exordium appears to me to be of bad omen."
"Come, you who are so brave!"
"That's possible, but, you know, I have an unconquerable fear of politics, and it is probably of politics that you wish to talk to me."
"You have guessed it at the first trial."
"Then, I was sure of it," said he, with a despairing air.
"This is the matter on hand—"
"Pardon, could you not put off this grave conversation to a later period?"
"Why should I do so?"
"Why, because that would be so much gained for me."
"Impossible!" pursued M. Dubois, laughing; "You must take your part in it."
"Then, since it must be so," said he, with a sigh, "what is the question?"
"Here are the facts in a few words. You know that affairs are becoming more and more serious, and that the Spaniards, who, it was hoped, were conquered, have resumed a vigorous offensive, and have gained some important successes for some time past."
"I! I know nothing at all, I assure you."
"But how do you pass your time, then?"
"I have told you—I walk; I admire the works of God—which, between ourselves, I find much superior to those of men—and I am happy."
"You are a philosopher."
"I do not know."
"In a word, here is the matter in question. The Government, frightened, with reason, at the progress of the Spaniards, wish to put an end to it by uniting against them all the forces of which they can dispose."
"Very sensibly reasoned; but what can I do in all this?"
"You shall see."
"I ask nothing better."
"The Government wishes, then, to concentrate all its forces to strike a great blow. Emissaries have already been dispatched in all directions to inform the generals; but while we attack the enemy in front, it is important, in order to assure their defeat, to place them between two fires."
"That is to reason strategically, like Napoleon."
"Now, our general only is in a position to operate on the rear of the enemy, and to cut off his retreat This general is San Martin, who is now in Chili, at the head of an army of 10,000 men. Unhappily, it is excessively difficult to traverse the Spanish lines; but I have suggested to the council an infallible means of doing so."
"You are full of schemes."
"This means consists in dispatching you to St. Martin. You are a foreigner; they will not distrust you; you will pass in safety, and you will remit to the general the orders of which you will be the bearer—"
"Or I shall be arrested and hanged."
"Oh! That is not probable."
"But it is possible. Well, my dear sir, your project is charming."
"Is it not?"
"Yes, but on thorough reflection it does not please me at all, and I absolutely refuse it. The devil! I do not care to be hanged as a spy for a cause which is foreign to me, and of which I know nothing at all."
"What you say to me annoys me to the last degree, for I interest myself very much in you."
"I thank you for it, but I prefer that you should leave me in my obscurity. I am unambitiously retiring."
"I know it. Unhappily it is absolutely necessary that you charge yourself with this mission."
"Oh, indeed! It will be difficult for you to convince me of that."
"You are in error, my young friend; on the contrary, it will be very easy to me."
"I do not believe it."
"In this way: it appears that two Spanish prisoners, arrested some days ago at the Cabildo, and whose trial is proceeding at this moment, have charged you in their depositions, asserting that you are perfectly acquainted with their plans—in a word, that you were one of their accomplices."
"I!" cried the young man, starting with rage.
"You!" coolly answered the diplomatist "It was then a question of arresting you; the order was already signed when, not wishing you to be shot, I intervened in the discussion."
"I thank you for it."
"You know how much I love you. I warmly took up your defence, until—forced into my last retrenchments, and seeing that your destruction was resolved upon—I found no other expedient to make your innocence apparent to all, than to propose you as an emissary to General San Martin, asserting that you would be happy to give this pledge of your devotion to the revolution."
"But it is a horrible murder!" cried the young man, with despair; "I am in a fix!"
"Alas; yes, you see me afflicted at it—hanged by the Spaniards, if they take you—but they will not take you—or shot by the Buenos Aireans, if you refuse to serve them as an emissary."
"It is frightful," said the young man, utterly cast down; "never did an honest man find himself in so cruel an alternative."
"On which do you decide?"
"Have I the choice?"
"Why, look—reflect."
"I accept," said he, expressing a strong wish as to the fate of those who had thus entrapped him.
"Come, come, calm yourself. The danger is not so great as you suppose. Your mission, I hope, will terminate well."
"When I dreamed that I had come to America to study art, and to escape politics, what a fine idea I had then!"
M. Dubois could not help laughing.
"Grumble now; later you will relate your adventures."
"The fact is, that if I go on as now, they will be considerably varied. It is necessary that I set out immediately, no doubt?"
"No, we are not going on so rapidly as that. You have all the time necessary to make your preparations. Your journey will be long and difficult."
"How much time can I have to get ready to leave?"
"I have obtained eight days—ten at most. Will that suffice you?"
"Amply. Once more I thank you."
The countenance of the young man suddenly brightened, and it was with a smile on his lips that he added—
"And during this time I shall be free to dispose of myself as I like."
"Absolutely."
"Well," pursued he, grasping heartily the hand of M. Dubois, "I do not know why, but I begin to be of your opinion."
"In what way?" said the diplomatist, surprised at the sudden change manifested by the young man.
"I believe that all will finish better than I at first thought."
And after having ceremoniously saluted the old man, he left the saloon and went to his apartments.
M. Dubois followed him a moment with his eyes.
"He meditates some folly," murmured he, shaking his head several times. "In his own interest I will watch him."
[1]See "The Guide of the Desert."
[1]See "The Guide of the Desert."
The painter had taken refuge in his apartments, a prey to extreme agitation.
Having reached his bedroom, he doubly locked the door; then, certain that for a time no one would come to thrust him out of this last asylum, he allowed himself to fall heavily on abutaca, threw his body backward, leaned his head forward, crossed his arms over his chest, and—an extraordinary thing for an organisation like his—he gave himself up to sad and profound reflections.
At first he called to mind—tormented as he was by the saddest presentiments—all the events which had happened to him since his arrival in America.
The list was long, and by no means pleasant.
At the end of half an hour, the artist arrived at this miserable conclusion—that, from the first moment that he had placed his foot on the New World, Fate had taken a malicious pleasure in falling furiously upon him, and in making him the sport of the most disastrous combinations, spite of the efforts that he had made to remain constantly free from politics, and to live as a true artist, without occupying himself with what was passing around him.
"Pardieu!" he cried, angrily striking with his hand the arm of his chair, "it must be confessed that I have no chance! In conditions like these, life becomes literally impossible. Better a hundred times would it have been for me to remain in France, where at least I should have been allowed to live quietly, and in my own fashion! A pretty situation is this of mine—placed here, without knowing why, between the gun and the gallows! Why, it is absurd, it is unheard-of! The devil take these Americans and Spaniards! As if they could not quarrel with one another without bringing into the dispute a poor painter, who has nothing to do with it, and who is travelling as an amateur in their country! They have, indeed, a singular manner of rendering hospitality, these pretty fellows! I compliment them sincerely upon it. And I, who was persuaded, on the faith of travellers, that America was,par excellence, the land of hospitality—the country of simple and patriarchal manners. Trust to narratives of travel—those who take such pleasure in leading the public into error, ought to be burnt alive! What is to be done? What is to become of me? I have eight days before me, says that old lynx of a diplomatist, to whom, however, I shall preserve eternal gratitude for his proceedings in my behalf. What a charming compatriot I have met there. How fortunate I have been with him. Well, no matter, I must make up my mind what to do. But what? I see nothing but flight! Hum! flight—that's not easy; I shall be closely watched. Unhappily, I have no choice; come, let me study a plan of escape. Away with the wretched fate which obstinately makes of my life a melodrama, when I employ all my powers to make it a vaudeville!"
Upon this the young man, whose gaiety of disposition gained the victory over the anxiety which agitated him, set himself—half laughing, half seriously—to reflect anew.
He remained thus for more than an hour, without stirring from hisbutaca, and without making the least movement.
It cannot be denied that at the end of that time he was as far advanced as before; that is to say, that he had hit upon nothing.
"Well, I give it up for the present," he cried, rising suddenly; "my imagination absolutely refuses me its aid! It is always so. Well, I, who wanted sensation, cannot complain; it is to be hoped that for some time past I have had enough of it, and of the most poignant sensation too!"
Then he began to stride about his room, to stretch his legs, mechanically rolled up a cigarette, and felt in his pocket for hismecheroto light it.
In the movement which he made in searching for it, he felt in his waistcoat pocket something which he did not remember to have placed there; he looked at it.
"Pardieu!" said he, striking his forehead, "I had completely forgotten my mysterious unknown; but that's accounted for by my vexation! If this lasts only for eight days, I am convinced I shall completely go out of my mind. Let me see what it is that she has so adroitly dropped on my hat."
While he soliloquised, the painter had drawn from his pocket the little roll of paper, and attentively considered it.
"It is extraordinary," continued he, "the influence which women exert, perhaps unknown to ourselves, on the organisation of us men, and how the most trivial thing which comes to us from one of them, who is utterly unknown, immediately interests us."
He remained several moments turning about the paper in his hand, without coming to the resolution to break the silk, which alone prevented him from satisfying his curiosity, all the while continuing inpettohis speculations on the probable contents of the packet.
At last, with a sudden resolution, he put an end to his hesitation, and broke with his teeth the delicate silk thread, and then unrolled the paper carefully. This paper, which—as the young man had conjectured —served for an envelope, contained another, folded carefully, and covered on every page with fine close writing.
Spite of himself, the young man felt a nervous trembling as he unfolded this paper, in which a ring was enclosed.
This ring was but a simple gold ring, in which was set a Balas ruby, of great value.
"What does this mean?" murmured the young man, admiring the ring, and trying it mechanically on all his fingers.
But although the artist had a very beautiful hand—thing of which, in parenthesis, he was very proud—this ring was so small, that it was only on the little finger that he could succeed in putting it on, and this with some difficulty.
"This person is evidently deceived," pursued the painter; "I cannot keep this ring; I will return it, come what may. But to do that I must know the individual, and I have no other means of obtaining this information except by reading her letter. I'll read it, then."
The artist was at this moment in the singular position of a man who feels himself gliding down a rapid decline, at the foot of which is a precipice, and who, perceiving that he has not the power successfully to resist the impulse which controls him, endeavours to prove to himself that he does right to abandon himself to it.
But before opening the paper, which he apparently held with such a careless hand, and on which he looked so disdainfully—so much, say what we may, is man (that being said to be made in the image of his Maker) always a comedian, even to himself, when no one can see him, because even then he tries to impose upon his self-love—the artist went to try the lock, to see if the door was firmly fastened, and that no one could surprise him; then he slowly returned, sat himself on thebutaca, and unfolded the paper.
It was, indeed, a letter, written in a fine close hand, but nervous and agitated, which convinced him in a moment that it was a woman's writing.
The young man at first cursorily read it, and feigning to take but moderate interest in it; but soon, spite of himself, he felt himself influenced by what he learned. As he proceeded in his reading, he found his interest increase; and when he had reached the last word, he remained with his eyes fixed on the thin paper which was being crushed in his convulsive fingers; and a considerable time elapsed before he could succeed in conquering the strong emotion that this strange letter had excited.
The following are the contents of this letter, the original of which has for a long time remained in our hands, and which we translate without comment:—
"As an important preliminary, let me, Señor, claim, from your courtesy a formal promise—a promise in which you will not fail, I am convinced, if, as I have the presentiment, you are a truecaballero. I demand that you read this letter without interruption from beginning to end, before passing any judgment whatever on her who addresses it to you.""You have sworn, have you not? Well, I thank you for the proof of confidence, and I begin without further preamble.""You are, Señor—if, as I believe, I am not deceived in my observation—a Frenchman from Europe: that is to say, the son of a country where gallantry and devotion to women reign supreme, and are so far traditional, that these characteristics form the most salient feature in the men.""I also am—not a French woman, but born in Europe; that is to say, although unknown to you, your friend, almost your sister on that far-off land; and as such, I have a right to your protection, and I now boldly claim it from your honour.""As I do not wish that you should at once take me for an adventuress, from the mode, somewhat beyond the rules of society, in which I enter on relations with you, I must first tell you, in a few words, not my history—that would cause you unreasonably to lose precious time—but who I am, and by what motives I am compelled for a time to put aside that timid modesty which never abandons women worthy of the name; and then I will tell you what is the service I ask of you.""My husband, the Marquis de Castelmelhor, commands a division of the Brazilian army, which, they say, has some days since entered Buenos Airean territory.""Coming from Peru with my daughter and some servants, with the intention of joining my husband in Brazil—for I knew nothing of the events which had just previously occurred—I have been surprised, carried away, and declared a prisoner of war, by a Buenos AireanMontonero;and I and my daughter are now imprisoned in the house which you pass twice a day.""If it were but a question of a detention more or less protracted, I would resign myself to submit to it, confiding myself to the power and goodness of God.""But, unhappily, a terrible fate threatens me—a frightful danger hangs not only over my own head, but over that of my daughter—my innocent and pure Eva.""An implacable enemy has sworn our ruin; he has boldly accused us of being spies, and in a few days—perhaps tomorrow, for this man is thought very highly of by the members of his Government—we shall be brought before a tribunal assembled to judge us, and the verdict of which cannot be doubtful—the death of traitors, dishonour! The Marchioness of Castelmelhor cannot submit to such infamy.""God, who never abandons the innocent who trust in Him in their distress, has inspired me with the thought of addressing you, Señor, for you alone can save me.""Will you do it? I believe you will.""A stranger in this country—sharing neither the prejudices, the narrow ideas, nor the hatred of its inhabitants against Europeans—you ought to make common cause with us, and try to save us, even if it be at the peril of your life.""I have long hesitated before writing this letter. Although your manners were those of a respectable man—although the frank expression of your countenance, and even your youth, prepossessed me in your favour—I feared to trust myself to you; but when I learned that you were a Frenchman, my fears vanished, to give place to entire confidence.""Tomorrow, between ten and eleven o'clock in the morning, present yourself boldly at the door of the Black House, and knock. When the door is opened, say that you have heard that a professor of the piano is wanted in the convent, and that you have come to offer your services.""But be very careful. We are watched with the greatest care. Perhaps it would be better if you were to disguise yourself, to avoid being recognised, in case your proceedings are watched.""Remember that you are the only hope of two innocent women, who, if you refuse them your help, will die cursing you; for their safety depends on you.""Tomorrow, between ten and eleven in the morning.""The most unfortunate of women,""MarquiseLEONA DE CASTELMELHOR."
"As an important preliminary, let me, Señor, claim, from your courtesy a formal promise—a promise in which you will not fail, I am convinced, if, as I have the presentiment, you are a truecaballero. I demand that you read this letter without interruption from beginning to end, before passing any judgment whatever on her who addresses it to you."
"You have sworn, have you not? Well, I thank you for the proof of confidence, and I begin without further preamble."
"You are, Señor—if, as I believe, I am not deceived in my observation—a Frenchman from Europe: that is to say, the son of a country where gallantry and devotion to women reign supreme, and are so far traditional, that these characteristics form the most salient feature in the men."
"I also am—not a French woman, but born in Europe; that is to say, although unknown to you, your friend, almost your sister on that far-off land; and as such, I have a right to your protection, and I now boldly claim it from your honour."
"As I do not wish that you should at once take me for an adventuress, from the mode, somewhat beyond the rules of society, in which I enter on relations with you, I must first tell you, in a few words, not my history—that would cause you unreasonably to lose precious time—but who I am, and by what motives I am compelled for a time to put aside that timid modesty which never abandons women worthy of the name; and then I will tell you what is the service I ask of you."
"My husband, the Marquis de Castelmelhor, commands a division of the Brazilian army, which, they say, has some days since entered Buenos Airean territory."
"Coming from Peru with my daughter and some servants, with the intention of joining my husband in Brazil—for I knew nothing of the events which had just previously occurred—I have been surprised, carried away, and declared a prisoner of war, by a Buenos AireanMontonero;and I and my daughter are now imprisoned in the house which you pass twice a day."
"If it were but a question of a detention more or less protracted, I would resign myself to submit to it, confiding myself to the power and goodness of God."
"But, unhappily, a terrible fate threatens me—a frightful danger hangs not only over my own head, but over that of my daughter—my innocent and pure Eva."
"An implacable enemy has sworn our ruin; he has boldly accused us of being spies, and in a few days—perhaps tomorrow, for this man is thought very highly of by the members of his Government—we shall be brought before a tribunal assembled to judge us, and the verdict of which cannot be doubtful—the death of traitors, dishonour! The Marchioness of Castelmelhor cannot submit to such infamy."
"God, who never abandons the innocent who trust in Him in their distress, has inspired me with the thought of addressing you, Señor, for you alone can save me."
"Will you do it? I believe you will."
"A stranger in this country—sharing neither the prejudices, the narrow ideas, nor the hatred of its inhabitants against Europeans—you ought to make common cause with us, and try to save us, even if it be at the peril of your life."
"I have long hesitated before writing this letter. Although your manners were those of a respectable man—although the frank expression of your countenance, and even your youth, prepossessed me in your favour—I feared to trust myself to you; but when I learned that you were a Frenchman, my fears vanished, to give place to entire confidence."
"Tomorrow, between ten and eleven o'clock in the morning, present yourself boldly at the door of the Black House, and knock. When the door is opened, say that you have heard that a professor of the piano is wanted in the convent, and that you have come to offer your services."
"But be very careful. We are watched with the greatest care. Perhaps it would be better if you were to disguise yourself, to avoid being recognised, in case your proceedings are watched."
"Remember that you are the only hope of two innocent women, who, if you refuse them your help, will die cursing you; for their safety depends on you."
"Tomorrow, between ten and eleven in the morning.""The most unfortunate of women,""MarquiseLEONA DE CASTELMELHOR."
No pen could describe the expression of astonishment, mingled with fright, which was painted on the countenance of the young man, when he had finished the reading of this singular letter, which had reached him in so extraordinary a way.
As we have said, he remained a long time with his eyes fixed on the paper, probably without seeing the characters which were written there, his body leaning forward, his hands clenched, a prey to reflections which could not be at all pleasant.
To say nothing of the check to his self-love—a check always disagreeable to a man who for several hours had given his imagination free play in the pleasant land of chimeras, and who had thought himself the object of a sudden and irresistible passion, caused by his good looks and his Don Juan-like appearance—the service which the unknown lady demanded of him could not but considerably embarrass him, especially in the exceptional position in which he found himself at the time.
"Decidedly," murmured he, in a low voice, dashing his hand on the chair with rage, "Fate too furiously pursues me. This is absurd! Here am I asked to be a protector—I, who so much want protection myself! Heaven is not just to permit, without rhyme or reason, a good fellow, who only sighs for quiet, to be thus tormented in every possible circumstance."
He rose, and began to stride about his room.
"However," added he, after a pause, "these ladies are in a frightful position; I cannot abandon them thus, without trying to come to their aid; my honour is engaged in it; a Frenchman, spite of himself, represents France in a foreign country. But what is to be done?"
He sat down again, and appeared to be lost in a deep reverie. At last, in about a quarter of an hour, he again rose.
"That is it," said he; "I see no other means that. If I do not succeed, I shall have nothing to reproach myself with, for I shall have done even more than my actual position, and especially prudence, should permit me to attempt."
Emile had evidently made a resolve.
He opened the door, and went down into thepatio.
It was almost night; the attendants, freed from their labours, more or less properly accomplished, were resting themselves, reclining on palm-mats, smoking, laughing, and chatting together.
The painter had not long to search for his domestics in the midst of the twenty or five-and-twenty individuals grouped pell-mell on the ground.
He made a sign to one of them to come to him, and he immediately went up again into his room.
The Indian, at the call of his master, immediately rose, in order to obey him.
He Was an Indian Guaraní, still very young; he appeared to be at the most twenty-four or twenty-five, With fine, bold, and intelligent features, a tall figure, of a robust appearance, and with free and unconstrained manners.
He wore the costume of the gauchos of the Pampa, and was named Tyro.
At the call of his master he had thrown away his cigarette, picked up his hat, gathered his poncho round him, and had darted towards the staircase with an alacrity which spoke well for him.
The painter much liked this young man, who, although of rather a taciturn disposition, like all his people, appeared, nevertheless, to entertain some affection for him.
Having reached the sleeping room, he did not pass the door, but, stopping on the threshold, he respectfully bowed, and waited till his master might be pleased to address him.
"Enter, and close the door behind you," said the painter to him, in a friendly tone; "we have some important things to talk about."
"Secrets, master?" asked the Indian.
"Yes."
"Then, with your permission, master, I will leave the door open."
"What is that caprice for?"
"It is not a caprice, master; all these places are rendered noiseless by the mats which cover the ground; a spy can, without being heard, come and put his ear to the door and hear all that we may say, so much the more easily as we, absorbed in our own conversation, should not be aware of his presence; whereas, if all the doors remain open, no one will enter without our seeing him, and we shall not risk being watched."
"What you remark is very sensible, my good Tyro; leave the doors open, then. The precaution cannot do any harm, although I do not believe in spies."
"Does not the master believe in the night?" answered the Indian, with an emphatic gesture. "The spy is like the night; he likes to glide about in the darkness."
"Be it so; I will not discuss the matter with you. Let us come to the reason for which I have called you."
"I am listening, master."
"Tyro, first answer me, frankly, the question which I am about to ask you."
"Let the master speak."
"Bear in mind, that I wish you to speak candidly; but pay particular attention to the form of my question, so as to answer, fully understanding it. Are you towards me only a good domestic, strictly performing your duties; or a devoted servant, on whom I have the right to reckon at all times."
"A devoted servant, master—a brother, a son, a friend. You cured my mother of a disease which appeared incurable. When you bought the rancho, instead of sending her and me away, you preserved to the old woman hercuarto, her garden, and her flock. As to me, you have treated me as a man, never commanding me with rudeness, and never obliging me to do shameful or dishonourable things, though I am an Indian. You have always considered me an intelligent being, and not an animal possessed of instinct merely. I repeat, master, I am devoted to you in everything, and forever."
"Thank you, Tyro," answered the painter, with slight emotion; "I half thought what you have just told me, but I was resolved to make you confirm it; for I have need of your services."
"I am ready; but what is to be done?"
Notwithstanding the candour of this avowal, the French painter—little acquainted yet with the character of these primitive races—by no means intended to put the Indian completely in the confidence of his secrets.
Too much civilisation renders us mistrustful.
The Guaraní readily perceived the hesitation of the artist, who, unaccustomed to dissimulation, allowed his countenance to reflect his emotions, as in a mirror.
"The master has nothing to teach Tyro," said he, with a smile; "the Indian knows all."
"What!" cried the young man, with a start of surprise; "You know all!"
"Yes," he merely said.
"Pardieu!" pursued the artist; "For the curiosity of the thing, I would not be sorry if you were to inform me how far extends that 'all' of which you so confidently speak."
"That is easy; let the master listen."
Then, to the extreme astonishment of the young man, Tyro related to him, without omitting the least detail, all that he had done since his arrival at San Miguel de Tucuman.
However, by degrees Emile, by a great effort, succeeded in regaining his coolness, reflecting with inward satisfaction that this recital, so complete in other respects, had one omission—an important omission for him; it stopped at that very morning. Tyro knew nothing of the adventure of the Callejón de las Cruces.
But fearing that this omission merely arose from forgetfulness, he resolved to assure himself of it.
"Well," said he, "all that you relate is correct, but you forget to speak about my walks through the town."
"Oh, as to that," answered the Indian, with a smile, "it is useless to occupy myself with that. The master passes all his time in a reverie, looking up at the sky and gesticulating as he walks. At the end of two days it was found that it was not worthwhile to follow him."
"The devil! I have been followed then! I did not know I had friends who took such an interest in me."
An equivocal smile played on the expressive lips of the Indian, but he did not answer.
"You, no doubt, know the person who has thus played the spy?"
"Yes, I know him, master."
"You will tell me his name, then?"
"I will tell you, when the time arrives to do so; but he is but an instrument; besides, if this person spies you at the command of another, I watch him, master, for your sake; and what he has been able to discover is of little importance. I alone possess your secrets, so you may be easy."
"What! You know my secrets!" cried the painter, again provoked at the moment when he least expected it; "What secrets?"
"The white rose and the letter of the Callejón de las Cruces; but I repeat that I alone know it."
"This is too much!" murmured the young man.
"A devoted servant," seriously remarked the Indian, who had heard the "aside" of the painter, "ought to know all, so that when the time comes that his assistance may be necessary, he may be in a position to come to his master's aid."
The artist then decided on doing what most men would have decided on doing, under similar circumstances. Seeing that there was no means of doing otherwise, he determined on giving his entire confidence to the Indian, and he avowed all with the greatest candour—a candour which the Guaraní would have little valued had he known the true reason for it. Though he did not fully admit it to himself, the painter only acted under the pressure of necessity, and, feeling the uselessness of concealing the least thing from so far-seeing a servant, he preferred freely placing himself entirely in the Indian's hands, hoping that this mode of acting would engage him not to betray him. For a moment, the thought crossed his mind to blow the man's brains out; but, reflecting what a ticklish thing this would be, especially in his position, he preferred trying a milder course and a feigned open-heartedness.
Happily for him, the painter had to do with an honest and really devoted man, who with any other person would probably have ruined him, rather than have saved him.
Tyro had for a long time led the life of the gauchos, hunted the Pampa, and explored the desert in all directions. He was thoroughly acquainted with all the Indian schemes. Nothing would have been easier for him than to have acted as a guide to his master, and have conducted him either to Peru, Buenos Aires, Chili, or even to Brazil.
When confidence was thoroughly established between the two men, though the Frenchman had at first acted with but feigned candour, he was not long in displaying all the artless honesty of his character, happy in meeting in a country, where everybody was hostile to him, a man who manifested sympathy with him, even if this sympathy were more apparent than real. He at once seriously asked the advice of his servant.
"This is what must be done," said the latter. "In this house everything is suspicious; it is filled with spies. Pretend to put yourself in a rage with me, and dismiss me. Tomorrow, at the time of your usual walk, I will meet you, and we will settle everything. Our conversation has lasted too long already, master. Suspicions are awakened. I will go down as if I had been scolded by you. Follow me to the door of the room, speaking in a loud tone, and finding fault with me; then, in a little while, you will come down and dismiss me before everybody. Above all, master," added he, laying stress on these last words, "say nothing till tomorrow to the occupants of the house; do not let them suspect our arrangement: if you do, believe me, you are lost."
Having so said, the Indian withdrew, his finger on his lips.
All was done as had been arranged between master and servant.
Tyro was immediately sent from the house, which he left grumbling, and Emile again went up to his apartment, leaving all the attendants astounded at a scene which they never expected from a man whom they were accustomed to see ordinarily so gentle and tolerant.
The next day, at the same hour as usual, the painter went out for his accustomed walk, taking care, while he feigned the utmost indifference, to return every now and then, to assure himself that he was not followed. But this precaution was needless; no one cared to watch his promenade, so inoffensive was it known to be.
Arrived on the bank of the river, at about a hundred paces from the town, a man, concealed behind a rock, suddenly presented himself to him.
The young man smothered a cry of surprise. He recognised Tyro, the Guaraní servant dismissed by him the previous evening, according to mutual arrangement.
Almost at the moment when the half hour after ten in the morning had sounded from the clock of the Cabildo of San Miguel de Tucuman, a man knocked at the door of the mysterious house of the Callejón de las Cruces.
This individual, dressed somewhat like the well to-do artisans of the town, was a man of middle height, slightly bent by age; some few grey hairs escaped from under his straw hat, he wore large spectacles with iron frame, and supported himself on a stick. His appearance, on the whole, was very respectable; his well-made olive-green cloth trousers, and his poncho of Chilian make, left nothing to desire.
In a minute or two, a little slide moved in a groove, and the head of an old woman appeared behind.
"Who are you? And what do you want here, Señor?" said a voice.
"Señora," answered the old man, slightly coughing, "excuse my boldness; but I have heard that a professor of music is required in this establishment. If I am deceived, it only remains for me to withdraw, begging you once more to accept my apologies."
While the old man said these few words in the most natural tone, and with the most careless manner, the woman behind the grating examined him with earnestness.
"Wait," answered she, after a slight pause.
The slide was again put back.
"Hum!" murmured the professor, in a low voice, "The place is well guarded."
A noise of drawing bolts and of detaching chains was heard, and the gate was half-opened—just enough to admit one person.
"Enter, then," said, in a surly tone, the woman who had at first shown herself at the grating, and who appeared to be the portress of this convent-like house.
The old man entered slowly, his hat in his hand, and bowing low.
The sight of his bald head, with but here and there a few hairs of reddish grey, appeared to give confidence to the old woman.
"Follow me," said she to him, in a peevish tone, "and replace your hat, these corridors are cold and damp."
The old man bowed, replaced his hat on his head, and, leaning on his stick, he followed the nun with that somewhat trembling step which is characteristic of persons who have considerably passed middle age.
The nun led him through long corridors, which appeared to turn back upon themselves, and which at last opened into a rather spacious cloister, the centre of which was occupied by a mass of rose bushes and orange trees, in the middle of which burst forth a stream of water, which fell with a loud sound into a white marble basin.
The walls of this cloister, towards which opened the doors of some thirty little chambers, were garnished with a number of pictures of a mediocre character, representing various episodes in the life of Our Lady of Solitude, or of Tucuman.
The old man merely threw a disdainful look upon these paintings, half effaced by time and weather, and continued to follow the nun, who trotted on before him, causing at every step a jingling of the heavy bunch of keys suspended to her girdle.
At the end of this cloister there was another, on the whole like the first, only the pictures represented different subjects—the life, I believe, of St. Rosa of Lima.
Arrived nearly halfway through this cloister, the nun stopped, and after having fetched her breath for a minute or two, she cautiously gave too slight taps at a black oak door, curiously sculptured.
Almost immediately a gentle and musical voice pronounced from the interior of the little chamber this single word:
"Adelante."
The nun opened the outer door and disappeared, after having with a sign requested the old man to wait for her.
Some minutes passed, and then the inner door opened, and the nun reappeared.
"Come in," said she, making a sign for him to approach.
"Come, she is not very loquacious, at least," grumbled the old man to himself, as he obeyed; "she is accommodating."
The nun stood on one side to give him passage, and he entered the little room, whither she followed him, closing the door after her.
This little room, with very comfortable furniture in old black carved oak, and the walls of which were covered, in the Spanish fashion, with thin Cordova leather, was divided into two, which was indicated by a door placed in a corner.
Three persons were, at the time, in the room, sitting on high-backed carved chairs.
These three persons were women.
The first, still young and very beautiful, wore the complete costume of a nun; the diamond cross, suspended by a large silk ribbon from her neck, and falling on her breast, at once pointed her out as the superior of the house, which, notwithstanding the simple and sombre appearance of its exterior, was, in reality, occupied by Carmelite nuns.
The two other ladies, seated pretty close to the abbess, wore ordinary costume.
The one was the Marchioness de Castelmelhor, and the other Doña Eva, her daughter.
On the entrance of the old man, who bowed respectfully to them, the abbess made a slight sign of welcome with her head, while the two other ladies, as they bowed to him ceremoniously, furtively cast curious looks at the visitor.
"My dear sister," said the abbess, addressing the old woman, in that harmonious voice which had already agreeably struck the ear of the old man, "bring, I beg you, a chair for this gentleman."
The nun obeyed, and the stranger seated himself with an apology.
"So," continued the abbess, this time addressing herself to the old man, "you are a professor of music?"
"Yes, Señora," answered he, bowing.
"Are you of our country?"
"No, Señora, I am a foreigner."
"Ah!" said she, "You are not a heretic—an Englishman."
"No, Señora; I am an Italian professor."
"Very good. Have you lived long in our dear country?"
"Two years, Señora."
"And before that you were in Europe?"
"Pardon me, Señora; I lived in Chili, where I have for a long time resided at Valparaíso, Santiago, and subsequently at Aconchagua."
"Do you intend to remain among us?"
"I, at least, wish to do so, Señora; unhappily, the times are not favourable for a poor artist like me."
"That is true," pursued she, with interest. "Well, we will try to procure you some pupils."
"A thousand thanks for so much goodness, Señora," he humbly answered.
"You really interest me, and to prove how much I desire to assist you, this young lady will be pleased, for my sake, to take this very day her lesson with you," said she, pointing towards Doña Eva.
"I am at the orders of the young lady, as I am at yours, Señora," answered the old man, with a respectful bow.
"Well, that is agreed," said the abbess; and turning towards the portress, still motionless in the middle of the room, "My dear sister," added she, with a gracious smile, "be so good, I beg you, as to bring in some refreshments. You will return in an hour to accompany this gentleman to the door of the convent."
The portress bowed with a crabbed air, suddenly turned round, and left the room, casting a sour look around her.
There was a silence of two or three minutes, at the expiration of which the abbess gently rose, advanced on tiptoe towards the door, and opened it so suddenly, that the portress, whose eye was placed at the keyhole, stood confused and blushing at being thus surprised in the very act of a spy.
"Ah! You are still there, my dear sister!" said the abbess, without appearing to remark the confusion of the old portress; "I am glad of it. I had forgotten to beg you to bring me, when you return to reconduct this gentleman, my Book of Hours, that I left through forgetfulness this morning in the choir in my stall."
The portress bowed, grumbling between her teeth some incomprehensible excuses, and she went away almost with a run.
The abbess followed her a moment with her eyes, and then she returned, re-closed the door, over which she had let fall a heavy curtain in tapestry, and turning towards the old professor, who scarcely knew what countenance to assume:
"Respectable old man," said she to him, laughing, "cover up the locks of your fair hair, which are indiscreetly escaping from under your grey peruke."
"The devil!" cried the professor, quite taken aback, suddenly putting his two hands to his head, and at the same time letting his cane and his hat fall, the latter rolling several paces from him.
At this unorthodox exclamation, uttered in good French, the three ladies laughed afresh, whilst the disconcerted professor looked at them with fright, not understanding anything which had passed, and arguing nothing favourable to him from this railing and unexpected gaiety.
"Hush!" said the abbess, placing a delicate finger on her rosy lips. "Someone is coming."
They were silent.
She withdrew the curtain. Almost immediately the door opened, after a slight tap had been given to ask permission to enter.