Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-10-19

And in this manner the little cavalcade
began it's momentous march.
The sergeant stood gazing at MunoZ, who
rubbed the backs of his hands alternately
as If there had been a chill in the night air.
Munoz on his part turned to Rollo.
Let me have the use of that gentlemans
piece he said. Il do not like this silence.
1 think We shall have hot time of it
within the next five minutes"
AT that moment the escaped charger
came cantering back neighing and alarm
ing all the picketed horses for miles, which
snorted back an answer.~-------,-
The ex-guardsman was right. Within
less than five minutes the entire camp
was awake. The escape of the prison.
ers had been discovered. The recovered
sentry pointed out the direction of the
barranco as that in which the fugitives
had taken their departure.
Whereupon there ensued hurried rush
thither. Indeed, scarcely had the dark
forms of the two horses with their riders
ceased to break the skyline upon one verge
OF the ravine before Cabrera'S men were
clambering and shouting the other.
Luckily the precipice sheer imme-
diately opposite and the pursuers had to
try a furlong or two further down at a
place where a landslide had enabled them
on the previous evening to lead their horses
to and from the few stagnant pools which
now represented the fulfilled torrent that
the spring rains send down from the Sierra
de Munco.
Let them have it,' whispered Rollo,
as the first struggling groups stood up
Ozark between them and the stars.
Accordingly out of the darkness of the
enough, the rattle of musketry running
down the whole front of the line Six
pieces in all spoke out their message to
Cabrera's men to halt. For La Giralda
having taken possession of Concha's arm
ament, drew bead upon her man with
probably as much success as any of the
others. 1t was still too dark for accurate
| shooting and the worst shot was not much
| inferior to the best.
But these six bullets sent across the val
| ley from unseen foes and scattering the
stones about their feet checked the first
| nerce rush of these angry men. Some
| enemy was in force on their front-so much
was evident. 1t would be We'll to discover
| of what sort.
| I'VE are holding Them, said Rollo tri-
| umphantly; that is all we can hope for
Pass down the word to fire only when they
| advance. Time is what Ell Sarria and his
party need. And so far as 1 can see, I'M
| less Concha hurries, dead Carlist or So
| more or less, will not make much differ
ence to uS,''
But Rollo soon found that the men who
were opposed to him knew all there was to
| know about guerrilla warfare. They push
| ed forward steadily from rock to rock and
as they came on in overwhelming numbers
the dauntless six were compelled to retire
upward till they had gained the rugged
brink of the barranco, from which the up
lands swell away in broad unclothed downs
in the direction of the gorge of Vera
Already the morning was growing mani
testify lighter. The red peaks of Moncayo
above their heads began to emerge out of
the gray uncolored night. They could see
each other now and Rollo looked down his
line with some pride
There they were each behind his shelter,
loading and firing according to his liking
and the bowels that were in him the SER
geant sternly winging each shot with in
tent to Stay, Munoz firing as If he had been
practicing at a target for sport and were
feeling bored for the want of a cigarette;
Etienne with swift and contagious gayety
of mood, while John Mortimer did his work
with a plain and business like devotion to
the matter in hand that argued well for his
fathers spinning mills at Chorley if he ever
should return there-a chance which at
present seemed somewhat slim.
La Giralda, like the sergeant fired to kill
her man. and as for Rollo himself he did
not fire at all unless he could plant bullet
where it would induce Carlist to alter his
mind about advancing further.
The end, however, was clearly a matter
of time. The light came faster and faster
up out of the east. Rello stood on his feet,
and needless of the bullets that buzzed like
| bees about him looked eagerly toward the
| gorge of Vera. He could see nothing of
| Ramon Garcia or of the queen, and his
| heart gave bound of thankful joy.
But there were ups and downs on the
| rolling moorland country that stretches
| away TO the right. Ell Sarra and his COM
panions might be temporarily hidden in the
trough of one of these waves.
| I'VE can hold on while yet, lads" he
cried, and clapped down behind his rock
| shaking his rifle into its nook beside his
ear, to be ready for the next spot of red or
white crawling toward them through the
| dusty arroyo.
| But at that moment there came from far
| away the sound of cheering. A mounted
| man dashed at full gallop up to the edge
Of the ravine opposite to them.
| DO not fire. said the sergeant that
| Is Cabrera-he Is brave man."
| But John Mortimer, not caring or not I'M
Outstanding the language, fired promptly,
| and the rifle bullet threw up a cloud of
1 dust between the horses feet. The animal
| reared and almost threw the rider. But in
| a moment he was erect as ever in the sad
| die, and Rollo could see him shouting fu-
| rious commands to his men-apparently or
| dering them to bear round to the left, SO as
| to take the defending party on their least
/ defended side.
had foretold, Ii was hot work enough and
Rollo had no time to look behind him or
| he might have seen a sight that would have
| astonished him--a single horseWoman rid
| ing swiftly toward the barranco, followed
! at the distance of half mile by a cloud
of mounted men,
| Suddenly the general on the opposite
bank, who all the while had been darting
about hither and thither like a gadfly. held
| up his arm, and with astonishing pride of
| horsemanship land faith in the soundness
| OF his girths, rode his charger Straight
| down the shelving sides of the ravine the
| slaty fragments crumbling and Slipping I'M
| der the iron-shod hoofs
| With cheer the red boinas of the EsteIIa
regiment followed, and then straight I'M
the opposite slopes of shale they dashed
| toward Rollo and his poor defenses
| Hold your fire." he cried first in Eng.
| hsh and then In Spanish. wait till Won
! are sure of them. We are only half a
dozen all told and We must wing a man
| apiece Aii"i
| 1t CHANGED that just as the horseman
I SWno as the sergeant had supposed was
| cabrera himself, almost out of his mind
with disappointed fury surmounted the
| ridge little to the right of RolIo's nosi
| tion, put close to where the sergeant law
| penlnd his rock, that Concha threw her
| SER on her charger Tor rather one of Cen
Espartero's) ard with a joyous shout In
! formed them that the queen was safe and
| that twelve hundred Cristino regulars were
| following close behind her
| Thus these two. the disappointed MIR.
| derer and the triumphant deIfyerer. met
| almost face to face Cabrera heard Con-
| cha's glad proclamation. He saw the
| plumes OF Esparteros troopers already top
| ping the rise, strong. well-knit men of the
| best farming stock in Old CASTLE, mounts
| ed on Gallegan horses.
Quite breathless with her headlone haste
| COncha stood painting her hand praS,a5