Litchfield enquirer., 1873-08-07

I had never faltered for an instant in his
 belief of final success, and he now saw that he must rouse once more the old spirit of Guipuzcoa. .sHad I but fifty
 men, he wrote to his friends-s'but fifty
 resolnte fellows to follow nc, should
 not hesitate to cross the frontier, and try
 the game again." His wish was satisfied.
 He disappeared on the 1st of December,
 1872; and while the police agents of the spanish Government were confining their vigilance to Bayonne and St. Jean de Luz,
 in the neighbourhood of which he was supposed to be, the first news the public
 had of him was, that he was preaching the | Holy War Tn every village of Guipuz- coa, levying contributions, and stopping trains almost within sight of San Sebas- tlan; and the Government found to their deep modification, that Serrano's diplo-
 macy had gone for nothing, and that the civil war had broken out with more vigor than ever in the northwest. This last au- dacious act of Santa Cruz was death
 blow to the dynasty of Savoy. The ex- citement was intense on both sides; the
 Radicals were furious, the hopes of the | Carllsts stronger than ever, and their en- thusiasm more ardent. It spread from village to village, and the cry ':To arms !! to arms Y sent out by Goiriena from Bis cay, and by Ollo from Navarro, was re- sponded to from the mountains It was on thls occasion that Santa Cruz put forth all his powers of persuasion, and all his zeal. He went from town to town, from
 valley to valley, from house to house, ex-
 hortlng, encouraging, demonstrating and l threatening. He harangued congregations Tn the old Basque tongue, so full of inn agery, as they left the church after mass :: m fha r1,o
 be spared from the labours of the field, | to defend, with arms in their hands, 'sthe cause of God, religion, their king, and the
 ancient independence of their native pro- ! vlnce." He did more than preach. He laid aside the cassock, and put himself as | chef at the head of some 500 men; and | by hlm these nasty levies were soon made | soldiers well suited for the warfare in which the Spanlards of the mountain excel Not | half the number were armed or equipped when he first mustered them. Before | long all had excellent muskets, and plentiful supply of ammunition; and the l uniforms of the mobilised nationals of
 France laid aside after the peace with Ger
 many, were bought up by his agents The compact band was organized, armed and
 equipped out of resources raised by San
 ta Cruz himself in France and Spain.
 Ina partisans who acknowledged the Guipuzcoan priest as their leader go by the name of the Black Lesion-Legion
 negara. It is composed of vigorous young men, all natives of the province,
 many of whom have rarely passed the l night i'll town. Their absolute devotion to their chief is proved by the fact that not one was tempted by the reward of 1000 reals (e5OO) offered for the capture of Santa Cruz, dead or alive; and 5000 reals are fortune to [: Basque peasant. The most complete order and discipline 1 are enforced in his little army. In the evening, when the days work is over, the
 enemy distant, the hour for repose at hand, and the rations eaten, at given signal those rough men assemble round prayers raad, in which they all join. Their prayer is for "King Charles VII; for | Spain, now delivereed over to the demon uf anarchy; for those who have died in battle, and for those who may yet fall in the cause of the king" And then, wrap ped up in their na0ntas which serve as cloak or blanket, they lay themselves down to sleep, each with his loaded mus ket by his side, ready to start up at the 1 slightest notice; while men are stationed
 as sentries at regular intervals, to give warning of approaching danger. Of the
 famous Cure Merino, it used to be said that he slept as soundly on horseback as in bed of down. Santa Cruz has acquired
 the power of sleeping standing, his back
 to rock, and his head and handa resting | on thick knotted stick which which he seldom lays aside. But even this he does l not enjoy nntil he has made h1s rounds, visited his sentries, and seen that every thing is in perfect order for the night,
 and in security. After two or three hours sleep, he IS again on foot, gives the signal when every man starts up, ready to go withersoever their chief orders without
 asking questions. He is never tired, and yet no one gets over more ground than he, 1 or Ill less time. No one can say exactly where he is. He has been known to spend part of night in village on the extreme frontier; and when his pursaers reached 1t, knocked up with fatigue, they learn
 that he is twenty or thirty miles in the in terior. Every officer sent out after him comes back as he went, after wild-goose chase for many league. He seems to know by instinct when and where an am buscade is laid; and not enlg does he baf- fie his puEsuers, but often turns their own ambuscade against them.
 Before the guerilla warfare commenced. while Santa Cruz was leading quiet life in his parish of Hernialde, he was of a slight, delicate frame, and looked like an invalid. Since then he has grown stout and strong; exercise, constant living in the open ar, and ayerzEeeurring danger,
 he seems to thrive on. The abstemious- ness he had always practissd he has never departed from. In person he Is under the middle stature; his features dark and irregular, and rather commonplace; but his small black eyes, deep set, glow from out thick eyebrows, and indicate the fiery energy that burns within. When he took the field as chief of partisans, he, as has been observed, quite laid aside the cleri- cal costume; for the long black cassock, the black cloak, and the enormous hat of the Spanish priest, would be inconyenient Ill campaigning, and dangerous. He as
 sumed the dress worn by the peasants the low vest of strong brown cloth, the red sash sound the waist, the 1oose-fit-
 ting brooches of the mountaineer of Ma varre, reaching to the knee, the legs en- veloped in black gaiters, and the feet pro- tected by the sandals or alpargataa of the country. Before close shaven, like all
 Spanish priests not missionaries, or of the monastic orders, he has let his beard and uousbdcue SrOW. the reStleSS Il1e ne leads compelling him to forego the luxury of the razor. He carries in his belt a pair of loaded revolvers, and in his hand the thick stick which is as necessary part of the equipment of Basque peasant as the
 shillelah to an Irishmon His head-dress
 is the 6oina or fiat cloth cap white in col
 or, with blue tassel in the centre, which,
 according to the fancy of the wearer, may
 be of woolen, silk, or silver fringe. His body guard is composed of ten or twelve stalWart youths from his native village,
 who accompany him in all his expeditions,
 armed and equipped like himself, and
 prepared to execute any orders he may give them. They are true to him heart and soul; and it would be dangerous experiment for any one to tamper with
 their fidelity or to even remotely suggest
 the advantage of betraying him. He has
 T1r, led