Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-03-17
to the log gang in the stone quarries. That

to the log gang in the stone quarries. That
Great God, most mercifull' cried /. IN
voluntarily, lis there yet worse torture than
this?'
Yes, truly" he said This Is but a
preparation for the auto-dafe. the burning
alive by fire. We are all only waiting our
turn. But the most unhappy men are those
who have to drag a great log after them
wherever they are called upon to go and
whatever duty they PERFORM
You are all under sentence Of death by
fire.! 1 gasped.
He nodded, smiling at my ignorance.
Each day of high festival there Is a
burning in the great square," he explained,
dams from the interior or maroon negroes
recaptured by the commentaries forces,
some are chosen from among us to AFFORD
sport to the faithful of Porto Rico!'
He shrugged his shoulders.
After all, 1t Is best so,' he said. "'Tis a
fiery gate to fair heaven. But at least
those that enter in are not long in passing
through. They generally pour oil upon us!'
Then was my heart sick and sore indeed
not, think, SO much on account of myself
as because thought Of my mother and
Anna.
I asked the French Huguenot If they
head
''The grand inquisitor would burn them
all and rub his hands to see the youngest
and fairest of them writhe-if SO be they
is better than that they should find favor
IN the eyes of the commandante and his
officers!"
Then he told me that the chief of the
Spanish troops on the island, Don Nicholas
Silveda, was under the sole government of
his wife, a foreigner C'I think of your ma
tion," said my Frenchman). whom he had
carried off from one of the English planta-
lions, or. as some said, captured on an
English ship. This woman, the Signora
Juanita, was so jealous of every woman
who came near the commandante that she
would inevitably compass her destruction.
eff the ladies' Che gave his national bow,
courteous even in his fetters) ''in whom
you are interested are beautiful-well there
is the worst to fear" All the world knew
what the Signora Juanita Silveda was.
There was story that she was of very
low origin, and even But need not re-
peat what Jean Carrel told me. which. after
all, was probably no more than the gossip
of the chain gang or some rtbaldry over
heard from the black overseers.
All this time we had no news of Eborra.
I feared that they had put him to death or
done him some injury for his defense of US.
Judge of my surprise then. when. upon
marching out to work in the patio, found
him busiiy employed experimenting the
digging operations, clad in q white suit like
the other negro OVerSeerS, and like them
welding a whip.
Immediately upon seeing me, he came
along and began to revtle me, calling me
pirate and assassin. Then he changed his
speech and shouted opprobrious words in
Spanish, so that I was dumfounded, and.
indeed, knew not what to say or do. Then
all at once he laid his whip with apparent
force across my back Again and again he
his head with fury. Yet for all the energy
of his anger, strangely enough, the blows
did me no hurt.
At sight Of his fury all the blacks gath
cred together AMI encouraged him with
shouts and laughter. At which he waxed
very furious. and, coming closer to me he