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Page 45
Reappearing on the surface, the mare struck out for shore, with Ridge
swimming beside her, and the young Spaniard, who was a poor swimmer,
clinging desperately to her tail. Fortunately the channel into which
they had plunged was so narrow that within two minutes they had reached
its farther side in safety, and could once more touch bottom. Wading
up-stream to a point where the road left the river, they emerged from
the water, soaked and dripping, but thankful to have met with no worse
harm than a ducking.
As Ridge turned to laugh at the forlorn appearance presented by his
companion, the latter uttered an exclamation of dismay, and at the same
moment they were surrounded by half a dozen as villainous-looking
ruffians as our troopers had yet seen in Cuba. His heart sank within
him. Again was he a prisoner with the prospect at least of having his
journey seriously delayed. In the confusion of the moment he did not
note that those into whose hands he had fallen wore blouses and
trousers of blue drilling traversed by narrow, vertical stripes of
white, the campaign uniform of the Spanish army in Cuba; but his
companion instantly recognized it, and demanded, with a tone of
authority, "Who commands here?"
"I do," replied the most ill-favored of the crew, stepping forward.
"You are a guerilla, are you not?"
"A captain of irregular cavalry, se�or. And you?"
"I," replied the lieutenant, "am a major of regulars, attached to the
staff of General Luis Pando, and on an urgent mission to Jiguani. My
horse was killed by insurgents this morning, and I had a narrow escape,
leaving one of them dead."
"Which is the reason that two of you rode one horse in crossing the
river, and so led me to mistake you for 'mamby?'" [1] said the guerilla
captain.
"Very likely, sir, though I can't be accountable for your mistakes.
Now you may let your men make a fire by which we can dry ourselves, and
you may also have food prepared, for we are hungry."
"But your friend, Major, who is he?" asked the other, scanning Ridge's
brown canvas uniform doubtfully.
"None of your business, sir. Let it be sufficient that he is my
friend, and do as I bid you without further words."
At this Discipline, even though suspicious, yielded to the voice of
Authority, and the guerilla made surly announcement that both fire and
food were close at hand.
This proved true; for, on gaining the face of the bluff, our friends
found themselves in the presence of some twenty more guerillas, who
were gathered about fires, cooking and eating strips of meat from a
recently butchered steer. Their horses were picketed close at hand,
and beyond them grazed a herd of small wild-looking Cuban cattle. For
these this detachment of "beef-riders" had scoured the country-side,
and they were now returning with them to Jiguani. A scout from this
party, patrolling the river-bank, had notified the captain that
strangers were about to cross from the other side, and he had thus been
enabled to prepare for their reception.
He was evidently disappointed that they and their belongings could not
be seized as prizes of war, and manifested this by the envious glances
that he cast at Se�orita as well as upon the weapons that Ridge was
drying and cleaning. Especially was the young trooper's rifle an
object of longing admiration, and, after a critical examination, the
captain even went so far as to offer to buy it; but Ridge refused to
part with the gun, whereupon the man turned sulky, and declined to hold
further intercourse with him.
After a while the whole party again took the road, Lieutenant Navarro
riding a spare horse that he had "requisitioned" from the guerilla
leader. The latter rode with his guests at the head of the
advance-guard, and Ridge noticed that, as two scouts were still in
front of them, while others of the guerillas rode on either side, they
were completely surrounded, and practically prisoners. He suggested as
much to his companion, but the latter only smiled, and said:
"What matters it, so long as we are safely escorted to Jiguani?"
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