The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1876-01-13

! one could look at 1t without W1nklng. III
was cold, hard, relentless, and unhinch-
ing. More than that, it seemed to be
endowed with a dreadful presence-a
faculty of seeing through and into the
! inarticulate thoughts of those it looked
upon. The soldiers of the garrison
obeyed the eye rather than the voice of
their commander, and answered his
glance rather than his lips in question
| ing. The servants could evade the not
watchful but cold attention that seemed
to pursue them The children of the
| Preside school smirched their copy
books under the awful supervision, and
poor PaQuita, the prize pupil failed en-
| tirely in that marvellous upstroke when
| her patron stood beside her. Gradually
distruct, suspicion, self-accusation and
timidity took the place of trust, conf
| dence and security throughout San Car
los. Whenever the Right Eye of the
commanded fell, shadow fell with it.
Nor was Salvatierra entirely free from
the baleful influence Of his miraculous
acquisition. Unconscious of its effect
upon others, he only saw in their action
evidence OF certain things that the crafty
Peleg had limited on that eventful New
Years eve. His most trusty retainers
stammered, blushed, and faltered before
him. Self-accusations, confessions of
minor faults and delinquences, OF extra
VACANT excuses and apologies, met his
naildest inquiries. The very children
that he loved-his pet pupil, Papuita-
seemed to be conscious of some hidden
sin. The result of this constant irrita-
ton showed itself more plainly. For
the first half year the commanders
voice and eye were at variance. He
was still kind, tender, and thoughtful in
his speech. Gradually, however, his
voice took upon itself the harshness of
its glance and its skeptical, impressive
quality, and as the year again neared its
close it was plain that the commander
had fitted himself to the eye, and not
the eye to the commander.
1t may be surmised that these changes
did not escape the watchful solicitude of
the Fathers. Indeed, the few who were
first to aseribe the right eye of the Saliva
TERRA to miraculous origin and to the
special grace of the blessed San Carlos,
now talked openly of witchcraft, and of
the agency of Luzbel, the evil one. 1t
would have Jared Ill with Hermeneglido
Salvatierra had he been aught but COM
mander or amenable to the local author
ity. But the reverend father, Frier
Manuel De Cortes, had no power over
the political executive and attempts at
spiritual advice failed signal signally.
He retired, baffled and confused, from
his first interview with the commander,
who seemed now to take grim satisfac-
ton in the fateful power of his glance.
The holy father contrldicted himself ex-
posed the fallacies of his own arguments
and even, it is asserted, committed him
self to several undoubted heresies.
When the commander stood up at mass,
if the officiating priest caught that skep-
tical and searching eye service was inc
vitably ruined. Even the pcT-e- of the
holy church seemed to be lost, and the
last hold upon affections of the people
and the good order of the settlement de-
parted from San Carlos.
As the long, dry summer passed, the
hot inI ho xrh
walls of the Preside grew more and
more to resemble in hue the leathern
Jacket of the commander and nature
himself seemed to have borrowed his
hard dry glare. The earth was cracked
and scanned with drought A blight had
fallen upon the orchards and vineyards );
and the rain, long delayed and ardently
prayed for, came not The sky was as
fearless as the right eye of the comman-
der. Murmurs of disc ontent, insubor-
dination, and plotting among the In
dians reached his ears. He only set his
teeth more firmly, frightened the knot of
his black silk handkerchief, and looked
up his Toledo.
The last day of 1897 found the COM
mander sitting, at the hour of evening
prayer, alone in the guardroom. He no
longer attended the services of the holy
church, but crept away at such time to
some solitary spot where he spent the
interval in silent meditation. The fire.
light played upon the low beams and
rafters, but left the bold figure of Saliva
terra in darkness. Sitting thus he felt
a small hand touch his arm, and looking
down, saw the figure Of Paquita, the lit
tie Indian pupil, on his knee. "Ah
littlest of ALL said the commander,
with something of the old tenderness
lingering over the endearing diminutives
of his native speech. ''iSweet one
What does thee here? Art thou not af-
raid of him whom every one shuns and
fears:''
NO, - said the little Indian, readily
-'snot in the dark. I heard your voice
the old voice; feel your touch-the
old touch but I see not your eye,
Senior Commandante. That only fear.
And that, oh, Senior oh, my father"
said the child, lifting her arms toward
his, ''that know is not thine own ~
The commander shuddered and turn
ed away. Then, recovering himself, he
kissed Paquita gravely on the forehead,
and babe her retire. 4 few hours later,
when silence had fallen upon the Prasi-
dio, he sought his couch, and slept