day came, and with it the thanks of hospitality received, and once more the pilgrims were on their way. as they were leaving the town, they fell in with the false captives, who told them that they had been instructed by the alcalde in such a way that they could never again be caught in a falsehood as to algerine matters:[q] "so that sometimes," said one, (he who was the chief spokesman) "sometimes one may rob by authority of the magistrate,—i mean that sometimes a bad minister of justice connives at delinquency for the sake of interest."
they travelled on together till they came to where the road branched off in two separate directions. the captives took that which led to carthagena, and the pilgrims that to valencia.
now had aurora come forth from her eastern balconies, blotting out the stars, and adorning the path whereon the sun was to take his accustomed course. bartholomew, for so i think the lad who had the baggage mule in charge was named, seeing so bright and beautiful a sunrise tinging the clouds in the sky with such a variety of hues, so that nothing ever was seen more lovely and pleasing, exclaimed, "that man who used to preach in our town said what was very true, when he told us that heaven and earth declared the glory and greatness of god; and if i did not know god as i have been taught to do, by my parents and by the priests at home, i think i should trace and know him now, by seeing the glory of that sky which seems to tell how great he is; and by yonder sun that lights us, which although it looks no bigger than a shield, is many times larger than the whole earth; and as they tell me also, even more than that, he is so active, that in twenty-four hours he can travel more than three hundred thousand leagues; whether this be true or no, i know not, but many wise men say so, and therefore i believe it, although it is rather hard to understand; but the thing that makes me wonder most is, that underneath us there are other people whom they call antipodes, so that we above have our feet upon their heads,—a thing that seems to me quite impossible,—for to support so great a load their heads must need be made of iron."
periander smiled at the rustic learning of the boy, and said to him, "i would fain seek for such words, o bartholomew, as should show you the error you are labouring under, and the true form of the earth, to understand which it is necessary to go back to the beginning; but to assist your comprehension, i must limit my explanation, and tell you only one thing, which is that you must understand that the earth is the centre of the heavens; i call the centre an indivisible point, to which all the lines of its circumference go: you can but little comprehend this, and so you must be satisfied to know that the earth has everywhere the sky above it; and in whatever part of it a man may be, he will always have the sky over his head; and so as that sky you see above covers you, does it also cover the antipodes, without hindrance, and as it is ordained by nature, who is the head servant or steward to god, the creator of heaven and earth."
the boy was well pleased to listen to periander's words, which also gave pleasure to auristella, to the countess, and her brother.
with these and other things, as they travelled, periander instructed and entertained them, when they heard behind them, a cart accompanied by seven archers on foot and one on horseback, with a musket hanging to his saddle-bow. he came up to periander and said, "if you should have any cordial or restorative among you, sir pilgrims, as i think you possibly may, since, from your appearance, i should judge you rather to be rich gentlefolk than poor pilgrims; i entreat you to give me some for a poor fellow who is lying in a swoon in yonder cart, condemned to the galleys for two years with twelve more soldiers, who, for having been present at the death of a nobleman, some days ago, and found guilty thereof, are condemned to the oar, and their commander, as more guilty, i believe, has been beheaded."
the fair constance, on hearing this, could not restrain her tears, for she recognised in this story the death of her short-lived husband; but, listening rather to the dictates of humanity than to thoughts of revenge, she ran to the baggage mule, and took out a case of cordials, and going to the cart, she asked, "where is the fainting person?" one of the soldiers answered, "he is there, lying in that corner, his face anointed by the grease that is used for the wheels, because he does not wish to be a pretty corpse when he dies, and that will be soon, if he continues obstinate in refusing to eat anything."
the youth raised his head on hearing these words, and removing from his face an old hat which covered it entirely, showed it to constance, all begrimed with dirt and grease, and, stretching out his hand to receive the cordial she held, he took it, saying, "heaven reward you, lady." he then pulled his hat again over his eyes, and returned to his melancholy and to the corner where he wished to die. there was some further talk between the pilgrims and the guards of the cart, which ended by their taking different roads.
in a few days our pilgrims reached a place which was inhabited by the moors. it was about a league from the sea, in the kingdom of valencia. they found here no inn where they could lodge; but at all the houses they were hospitably invited to come in, which antonio seeing, said, "i do not know what they mean by speaking ill of these people, they all seem to me saints."
"our saviour," said periander, "was received at jerusalem with palms, by the very same people, who, in a short time after, crucified him. now 'tis well, we will trust to god and take our chance, as they say. let us accept the invitation of this good old gentleman who has offered us hospitality."
so it was, an old moor almost forcibly drew the pilgrims by their long garments into his house, and seemed anxious to treat them not as moors, but truly in a christian manner. his daughter came forward to offer her services, dressed in the moorish fashion, and so lovely she looked in it, that the most graceful christian would have been happy to look like her, for nature in bestowing charms is as prodigal to the barbarian of scythia as to the citizen of toledo.
this beautiful moorish damsel then, taking auristella and constance by the hands, led them into a room on the ground-floor, looked cautiously all round her as if fearful of being overheard; and when she had assured herself that she was quite safe, she said, "alas! dear ladies, why is it that you have come here like simple lambs to the slaughter-house? do you see that old man, whom i with shame and sorrow call my father? do you note the extraordinary kindness of his reception? know that he means nothing else than to be your executioner. it is intended that this night seventeen barbary pirate vessels are to carry off all the people of this place with all their property, not leaving a thing behind that shall make any one desire to return in search of it. these unfortunate creatures imagine that in barbary they shall find both pleasure for their bodies and salvation for their souls, without recollecting that of many towns, the inhabitants of which have gone over almost entirely, no news have been received but that they have repented. the barbary moors cry up the glories of their land, and those of this country run thither to see them, and are caught in the nets of their misfortune. if you would escape from this, and would preserve the liberty you were born to, leave this house at once, and hasten to the church; there you will find a friend to give you shelter. he is the priest of the place; he and the notary are the only christians here; you will also find there iarife, the (jadraque),[r] who is my uncle, a moor only in name, but christian in everything else. tell him what is doing, and say that rafaella told you so; you will then be believed and protected; and do not treat it as a jest, unless you wish to find at your cost there is no greater deception than a too late discovery of one."
the earnestness with which rafaella spoke went to the hearts of auristella and constance, and they believed her words, and only replied by thanks. they immediately called periander and antonio, and told them what had passed. then, without seeming to do anything particular, they all went out. bartholomew objected much to the move, for he felt more in need of rest than a change of abode; but he obeyed his masters, and they reached the church, where they were well received by the priest and the jadraque, to whom they related all rafaella had told them. the priest said, "it is some days, gentlemen, since the arrival of these vessels has disturbed us, and although it is customary for them to come, yet i have felt uneasy. come in hither, my children, the church is a good castle, and has strong and good doors, not easily burnt or destroyed." "ah," said the jadraque, "if that my eyes may but see, before they close for ever, this land freed from the thorns and the briers that oppress it. ah! when will the time come, foretold by my grandfather, who was a learned astrologer, when spain shall see herself entire and firm in the christian religion, for she alone is the corner of the earth where the true faith is most acknowledged and revered. i am a moor, sirs, and you hear that i deny it not, but not for this am i the less a christian, for god gives his grace to all who serve him, and as you know, he makes his sun shine alike upon the good and the bad, and bestows his rain equally on the just and the unjust. i say, then, that this grandfather of mine used to fore-tell that, about this time, there would reign in spain a king of the house of austria (note 7), who would conceive in his soul the difficult resolution of expelling the moors from the country, as one flings from one's bosom a serpent that is devouring one's entrails, or rather, as one who separates the wild flowers from the wheat, and pulls out the weeds from the growing grain. come, then, brave youth, and prudent king, and execute this decree of expulsion; let not the fear of rendering this country desert and depopulated, deter thee, nor even the consideration that there are many who have been baptized whom it would not be well to expel; for, although these are fears that deserve to be considered, yet the carrying so great a work into effect would make them not worth thinking of. soon the land would be re-peopled by christians, it would again be fertile, and more so than it is now: it would have its lords, and, if not so many or such humble vassals as now, yet they would be good catholics, under whose protection their roads would be secure, and peace would reign, and riches increase without fear of robbers and highwaymen."
after having thus spoken, he made the doors fast, and fortified them by putting all the seats and benches against them. they then mounted to the top of the tower, taking up a portable ladder, or steps. the priest carried up with him the holy vessels belonging to the sacrament, provided a store of stones, and armed himself with two loaded guns. they left the baggage mule at the door relieved of its burden, and bartholomew shut himself in with his masters.
with watchful eyes, ready hands, and resolute hearts, the little party awaited the hour of assault, of which the moorish maiden had given them warning.
midnight passed, the priest knew it by the stars; they looked out upon the sea which lay before them, and not a cloud passed over in the moonlight, but they fancied it a moorish bark, and, applying themselves to the bells, they began to raise a peal so loud and vigorous that every valley and all the shores resounded again; at which sound the officials in the harbour assembled together, and ran here and there, but their haste was of no use in preventing the vessels approaching the shore and taking away the people from land; those in the place who were expecting them, went out laden with their most valuable property, and were received by the turks with loud cries and shouts, and the sound of musical instruments.
they set fire to the place, and also to the church doors, not meaning to enter in, but simply to do all the harm they could. bartholomew was left to go afoot, for they carried off his mule, demolished a stone cross that stood at the entrance of the town, called aloud upon mahomet, and gave themselves up to the turks, a dishonest and thievish nation. several times, and perhaps not always in vain, did periander and antonio fire their guns; many a stone did bartholomew throw, always to that quarter whence the mule was stolen, and many an arrow was shot by the jadraque; but more than all were the tears that were shed by auristella and constance, praying to god to deliver them from the danger they were in, and that his temple might not be injured by the fire, which it was not: it did not escape, however, by a miracle, but because the doors were of iron, and the fire not very strong.
it was nearly day when the ships laden with their prizes went to sea with shouts of triumph and raising the moorish war cry, and the joyful sounds of atabals and trumpets.
two persons were now seen running towards the church, one from the shore, the other from the land side; on their nearer approach, the jadraque knew one to be his niece rafaella, who, with a cane cross in her hand, came, crying out, "christian, christian, and free, free by the grace and mercy of god!"
they recognized in the other the notary, who had by chance been out of the town that night, and at the sound of the alarm bell came to see the disastrous events, which he deplored, not for the loss of wife or child, since he had none, but for that of his house, which was plundered and burned.
they waited till the day was far advanced, and the ships began to disappear in the distance, and the coast guardians had taken measures to protect the coast, then they descended from the tower, and opened the church, which rafaella entered with her face bathed in joyful tears, and her beauty heightened by her emotion. she knelt and offered her prayers to the images, and then embraced her uncle, first having kissed the hands of the good priest. the notary neither said a prayer nor kissed the hand of anybody, for his whole soul was occupied with the thoughts of his lost property.
the first alarm having subsided, the fugitives recovered their spirits, and the jadraque recovering breath, began afresh to think about his grandfather's prophecy as being undoubtedly inspired from above.—"ah! noble youth! ah! invincible king, trample down and destroy all impediments, and make spain clear and free from my bad race, which now infests and injures her. ah! prince, as wise as thou art illustrious, thou new atlantis, who supportest the weight of this kingdom, aid, and make easy with thy wisdom this necessary expulsion; fill the seas with thy galleys laden with the useless crowd of the hagarene generation; cast upon the opposite shores the brambles, weeds, and thorns that hinder the growth and abundance of a christian population; for, if the few hebrews who went over into egypt multiplied so exceedingly, that, when they went away, they were in number more than seven hundred families, what is not to be feared from those who are more numerous and live more idly? religion does not gather any under her wing, none are cut down by the indies; war does not diminish their numbers; all marry, all, or most, have children; hence it is to be inferred that they must increase and multiply innumerably. again, i say, arise, o king! arise, and set to work, and leave the history of thy reign bright as the sun, and clear as the blue sky above us."
two days more the pilgrims stayed in this place. they provided themselves with all they wanted; bartholomew got a new baggage mule; they thanked the priest for his kindness, and praised the jadraque for his right way of thinking, and, embracing rafaella, took their leave of all, and went on their way.
