San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-03-22


puma?" he asked. ''If Tikal is to be
driven from his place, 1t is because OF
his crimes"
"And if you and yours are to be set
in It, white man, without doubt It is
because of your virtues; and yet, black.
hearted knave that you are, tell you
that l know all the truth. 1 know
how you forged the prophecy setting
the false for the true within the holy
symbol of the heart. know also that
my father helped you to the deed, for,
although he is dead, he wrote down
that tale before he died and gave it to
me, together with the true prophecy
that you dared to steal from the holy
sanctuary.
Eyes, / have the proofs, and when
needful / will show them. / did not
come here to do murder, at least upon
the infant, but the sight of it sleeping
in its cradle overcame me, and of a
sudden determined TO wreak my VEN
geance upon it and upon its mother.
In this / have failed, but when ! de-
nounce you to the council, then | shall
not fail; then you will be known for
what you are, and die the death that
you deserve"
1T comes into my mind, husband, "
said Maya, coldly, that If we would
save our own lives we must rob this
woman of hers. Such doom she has
richly earned, nor will any blame US
when they learn what was her errand
here"
ut seems that it is So" answered,
sadly, land yet the thing is awful"
at Is awful, but it must be done"
said the senior, land it falls on me to do
It for the sake of my wife and child"
Now he stepped to where Nahua lay
and knelt beside her, and we two drew
aside, sick at heart, and hid our faces
in our hands. Presently he was with
US again.
SIS it done?" asked Maya, hoarsely.
mo, nor will it be by me-" he an
swered, in fierce voice; 'sooner would
1 choke the breath out Of my own body
than strangle this defenseless woman,
cruel-hearted murderess though she is.
II she is to be killed, some other man
must do the deed"
Then it will remain undone," said
Maya. "And now, since we have thus
determined, let us think of flight, for
the night draws on, and in fight is our
only hope"
'What, then, is to be done with this
woman?" 1 asked. "We cannot take
her with u.s."
"No, but we can leave her here,
gagged and bound, till they chance to
find her," answered the senior.
"Hearken, Nahua, we spare you, and
to do it go forth to our own deaths.
May your fierce heart learn a lesson OF
mercy from the deed. Farewell"
Two hours had gone by and three fig
ures wrapped in rough serapes, such
as the common people wore, one OF
whom, a woman, carried an infant in
her arms, might have been seen eau
tiously descending the city wall by
means of a wooden ladder that ran from
its summit to the jetty built upon piers
at the foot of it, which was used as a
mooring place for boats during the
months of inundation.
As was common at this season of the
year, the lake was already rising, and
floating in the shallow water at the
end of the jetty lay a pleasure skiff
which the senior and were accustomed
to use for the purpose of fishing when
ever we could escape for a few hours
from our wearisome life in the city.
Into this skiff we entered, and, having
hoisted the sail, set our course by the
stars, steering for that village whence
a year before we had embarked for the
City of the Heart.
The wind being favorable to us our
progress was rapid, and by the first
gray light of dawn we caught sight of
the village not a mile away. Here,
however, we did not dare to land, for
we should be seen and recognized;
therefore we beached our boat behind
hn eh - - 20. Inns
.nree furlongs or more below the viii
lage, and, having hidden her as well as
we were able, set out at once toward
the mountains.
At length the evening fell, and we
camped for the night, if camping it can
be called to sleep beneath the ShadOw
of a cedar tree without fire and with
little, food having no covering except
our serapes.
Toward morning the air grew cold,
for already we were at some height
above the lake. and the tender infant
began to wall piteously, a wall that
wrung our hearts. Still we rose with
the sun and went on our way, for IT
seemed that there was nothing else to
do. Throughout that day, with ever
wearying footsteps, we journeyed, till
at sunset we reached the snow line,
and saw before us that hunters rest
house where we had slept when first
we entered the Country of the Heart.
Let us go in" said Maya, land find
food and shelter for the night"
Now, our plan had been to avoid this
house and gain the pass, where we pro-
posed to stay till daybreak and then
travel down the mountain slopes into
the wilderness.
IF we enter there, Maya, we shall be
trapped" said the senior. Our only
safety lies in travelling through the
pass before we are overtaken, for it is
against the law that any of your people
should follow us into the wilderness"
IF we do not enter my child will die
in the cold" she answered.
"You were too tender to secure our
safety by putting that would-be MUIR
derers to death. Have you, then, the
heart, husband, to kill your own child2"
Now, at these words, l saw the Sc
nor's eyes fill with tears, but he said
only:
BE 1t as you will"
By now, indeed, we understood, all
three of us, that if we would save our
selves we must suffer the child to die,
and, however great our necessity, this
we could not do. So we went up to the