The Cruise of the Thetis: A Tale of the Cuban Insurrection Page 7

  CHAPTER SEVEN.

  DON SEBASTIAN ALVAROS THREATENS TROUBLE.

  "Second breakfast" in the West Indies is the equivalent of luncheon inEngland, except that the former is perhaps the more elaborate meal ofthe two; when therefore Jack, escorted by Carlos, entered the fine, airydining-room, it at once became evident that he was about to sit down toa very substantial repast, for which he was not at all sorry, as thelong journey had given him a most excellent appetite. Moreover, he hadby this time recovered the equilibrium which had been so seriouslydisturbed by his first sight of Senorita Isolda, and had again found theuse of his tongue; it was therefore a very gay and happy quintette thatarranged itself around the well-furnished table. Jack was of course bythis time on almost as intimate terms with Don Hermoso as he was withCarlos, and he presently discovered that the ladies were disposed totreat him rather as an old friend than as a new acquaintance; and hetold himself that his visit to Cuba promised to be one of the mostpleasant experiences of his life.

  The meal over, Don Hermoso excused himself, as there were naturally manymatters demanding his earliest attention after his long absence fromhome; while the Senora had her household affairs to attend to. Carlostherefore took the task of entertaining Jack upon himself, with hissister as chief assistant, and proposed a ride, as there were manycharming spots in the neighbourhood that he wished his friend to see.The horses were accordingly ordered, and the three young people,despising the usual afternoon siesta, set off, taking a path which ledupward through a wild and most picturesque ravine, down which a mountainstream brawled and foamed, the murmurous tumult of its waters minglingmusically with the sough of the wind in the multitudinous trees thatclothed the hillsides, and imparting a most welcome sensation ofcoolness to the atmosphere. They rode at a foot pace, first becausethey were in no hurry, and secondly because the path was narrow andrough, there being room only for two riders abreast; Carlos thereforeled the way, with Jack and Dona Isolda following close at his horse'stail. They had not been ten minutes under way when they arrived at aspot the marvellous natural beauty of which caused Jack to exclaim aloudin his astonishment: for upon rounding a bend in the path they foundthemselves in a little amphitheatre, about five hundred yards across,the tree-clad sides of which rose precipitously to a great height oneither hand, and were gorgeous with great clustering blooms of everyimaginable hue, from purest white through every shade of colour to adeep rich purple that looked almost black where seen in shadow; whilethe air, almost motionless down in the hollow, was heavy with themingling of a thousand exquisite perfumes. The floor of thisamphitheatre consisted of a great basin of rock, partly filled with finewhite sand brought down from the uplands during countless generations bythe flow of the stream, the basin being brimful of crystal-clear waterwhich came pouring and plashing into it from above over a series ofminiature cataracts, the lowest of which, about twelve feet high,impinged upon a small ledge of rock which projected into the basin forthe space of about a yard.

  "This," said Carlos, "is our swimming bath, to which we often come for adip in the early morning; it is absolutely private, all this being ourown property, and nobody but ourselves ever passes here. What think youof it, Jack; is it not perfect?"

  Jack pronounced it magnificent, and there and then undertook to joinCarlos in a dip on the following and every other morning during hisstay. The water was about twenty feet deep, and the place wasconsequently perfect for swimming in. By the side of the road, at aspot where there happened to be a few square yards of level ground, thesurface had been cleared of the luxuriant undergrowth, and a smallbathing house, containing two dressing-rooms--one for either sex--hadbeen erected; and here the bathing dresses were kept and the necessarychanges of costume made.

  Having spent a little time in admiring this glorious bathing pool, theparty moved onward again, and, following the ever-rising path, atlength, after a most delightful ride of about five miles through acontinuous succession of scenes of surpassing beauty, emerged upon anopen tableland, from which a most extensive and glorious view of mileupon mile of the southern slope of the island was to be obtained, withthe sea shining in soft, opalescent tints beyond, and the Isla de Pinos,with its three curiously shaped mountains, lying on the horizon. Thewhite sails of a few coasting craft gleamed pearl-like here and there,just discernible at that distance, and Jack searched the watery expansefor some sign of the _Thetis_; but she had vanished. Doubtless she wason the other side of Cape San Antonio by this time, and therefore wellon her way round to Havana. Being thus reminded of the existence of theyacht, Jack was suddenly inspired with a brilliant idea, which hepromptly communicated to Carlos.

  "Look here, Carlos, old chap," he exclaimed, "if the yacht is not likelyto be required for other service just at present, why should not we alltake a cruise in her round the island and over to Jamaica, from whencewe might even go on to some of the other islands? I am sure that thetrip would do your mother and sister a vast amount of good. Have youever been out of Cuba, Senorita?"

  "Never," answered Dona Isolda. "I was born here, and, less lucky thanCarlos, was also educated here; so that I know nothing whatever aboutthe great outside world, save what I have read of it in books. Havanais my conception of a great and handsome city, so you may guess howignorant I am, and how intensely I should enjoy seeing other places. Doyou think, Carlos mio, that Senor Singleton's suggestion is possible ofrealisation?"

  "It may be," answered Carlos, a little doubtfully. "Everything will, ofcourse, depend upon what news may come from the Junta. I know that thePadre has placed the vessel unreservedly at their disposal--ratherunwisely, I think--and I shall be very much surprised if they do notmake the fullest possible use of her. But, of course, if she is notlikely to be required for a month or two, I think it would be anadmirable plan for us all to go for a cruise in her. It would tend toavert suspicion from her, too, for I am pretty certain that it will notbe wise to leave her lying idle in Havana or in any other of ourharbours. I will mention the matter to the Padre at the firstfavourable opportunity."

  "I am sure it would do Mamma a vast amount of good," remarked SenoritaIsolda; "and it might also have the effect of putting a stop to thevisits of Senor Alvaros, who is fast becoming an unendurable nuisance."

  "Indeed! In what way?" demanded Carlos sharply.

  "Why," answered Senorita Isolda, "we are never free from him. He ridesover here three or four times a week, and makes himself as much at homeas though the place belonged to him, although he has never received theslightest encouragement either from Mamma or from me. And then he boresme with his unwelcome attentions."

  "Ah!" ejaculated Carlos through his clenched teeth; "somehow I feared asmuch. The fellow must be choked off by some means. The question is,how to do it without giving offence. You see," he continued, turning toJack, "we Cubans are in an exceedingly awkward position, and are obligedto walk most circumspectly. We are compelled to submit to many thingsthat are utterly distasteful to us, for if we did not we should at oncebe suspected of harbouring designs inimical to the Government; and, onceregarded with suspicion, our liberty, our property, ay, even our lives,would be imperilled."

  "A confoundedly unpleasant state of things, in truth," said Jack; "butsurely it does not extend so far that you dare not give a man a hintthat his visits to your house are distasteful?"

  "Indeed it does, though," answered Carlos. "Suppose, for example, thatmy father were to hint to this fellow Alvaros that he is not wantedhere, and that his visits must cease, the probability is that the man--who, I may mention, is captain of a regiment of infantry--would at onceproceed to hint to his superiors that all is not right with us, whenthere is no knowing what dreadful thing might happen. The fact is, thatthe pride of these fellows is so intense and so sensitive, and they arewithal so destitute of principle, that if a man dares to offend one ofthem he at once makes every Spaniard in the island his enemy."

  "How would it be if I were to pick a quarrel with him?" suggested Jack."They would not d
are to interfere with me."

  "I am by no means so sure of that," answered Carlos. "They could donothing to you openly, of course; but open, honest, daylight methods arenot regarded here with very much respect just at present, and you mightperhaps mysteriously disappear. Oh, no, it would never do for you toattempt to interfere, Jack! On the contrary, you must most studiouslyrefrain from anything and everything that would be in the least likelyto breed ill blood between you and the Spaniards, because--who knows?--we may need your help ere long. And that you could only effectivelygive by maintaining good relations with the Government and itsrepresentatives."

  Conversing thus, they at length turned their horses' heads and slowlytook their way back toward the house; and by the time that they reachedit Jack found himself upon terms of almost as complete intimacy withSenorita Isolda as those he was on with her brother. For, despite theintense pride which seems to be so strongly marked a characteristic ofall who have Spanish blood in their veins, Senorita Isolda was a mostcharmingly ingenuous, unsophisticated girl, frank and open as the day;furthermore, she had been so long accustomed to hear Jack spoken ofadmiringly by Carlos that she had insensibly acquired a strongpredisposition in his favour; and, finally, and quite contrary to rule,when at length she met him in the flesh she instantly decided that thisstalwart, handsome young Englishman was all that Carlos had representedhim to be--and very much more.

  Upon reaching the house they found, to their disgust, that CaptainAlvaros had again turned up, ostensibly for the purpose of bidding DonHermoso and Carlos welcome back to Cuba and hearing from them an accountof their holiday wanderings in Europe. Jack found the Spanish soldierto be a man of about thirty-two years of age, tall, swarthy, and by nomeans ill-looking: but such physical advantages as he possessed wereheavily discounted by a pair of piercing, black, sinister-looking eyes,and a distinctly arrogant, overbearing manner; the man evidently thoughtwell of himself, and took no trouble to conceal the fact. He greetedJack's appearance in Senorita Isolda's company with something verynearly approaching a scowl, and coldly acknowledged Senora Montijo'sformal introduction of the young man with an air of careless hauteurthat was eloquent of his disapproval of the young man's presence in thehouse, which he further emphasised by thereafter contemptuously ignoringJack--for a time. Carlos flushed with angry annoyance as he beheld thistreatment of his friend, for which he apologised as soon as the pairwere alone together; but Jack's sunny temperament was not so easilyruffled, and he simply laughed, saying:

  "Don't you let that worry you, old chap; it doesn't hurt me in theleast. I don't care a brass button whether the man likes or dislikesme; I care neither for his friendship nor his enmity. I am not of aquarrelsome disposition, as you know, but should he attempt to beactively disagreeable, or to force a quarrel upon me, I have no doubtthat I shall know how to take care of myself."

  When the party again met at the dinner-table there were indications thatSenor Alvaros had made up his mind to treat Jack as a person much tooinsignificant to be worthy of the least notice: but he soon found thathe must either abandon this line of policy or himself be left out in thecold, for the Montijos, one and all, persisted in including Jack in theconversation; and very quietly and unobtrusively, but none the lessfirmly, contrived to make Senor Alvaros understand that the youngEnglishman was already regarded as one of themselves. Seeing this, hechanged his tactics and artfully endeavoured to entrap Jack into anexpression of opinion upon the politics of the island: but the young manwas not to be so easily caught; he laughingly disclaimed any knowledgeof or interest in political questions of any kind, and pointed out thatin any case his acquaintance with Cuba was altogether too recent to haveenabled him to form even the most elementary opinion on the question, atthe same time mentioning as a general axiom that Englishmen were usuallyregarded as cherishing a weakness in favour of good government and themaintenance of law and order.

  And later on in the evening, when the party adjourned to the drawing-room, the soldier again found his endeavours to pose as a _personagrata_ quietly ignored. He would fain have monopolised the society ofDona Isolda for the remainder of the evening, and attempted to carry heroff with him to a remote corner of the room, but Carlos would have noneof it. His sister had a good voice, and had been taught to use it tothe best advantage, and he wanted his friend Jack to hear her sing someof the old-fashioned Andalusian folksongs, which she did withcheerfulness and alacrity, promptly recognising Carlos' intention andeagerly seconding it. Then Carlos proclaimed that Jack was a singer andan accomplished pianist, and insisted that his friend should sing andplay to them; and when Senor Alvaros privately confided to SenoritaIsolda his opinion that English music was simply barbarous, andEnglishmen utterly unendurable, the young lady unhesitatingly declaredthat she entirely disagreed with him. Altogether, Senor Alvaros spent adistinctly unpleasant evening, for which circumstance he blamed theyoung Englishman; and as he rode back to his quarters that night hecursed the English nation freely, and Jack in particular, for whom, hedecided, there was no room in Cuba. And the worst of it all was thatnot a word had been said, not a thing had been done, to which he couldopenly take the slightest exception.

  But how was this pestilent young cub of an Englishman to be got rid of?That was the question that worried Alvaros during the greater part ofthat night and the whole of the next day. The first impulse of theSpaniard was to deprive the Montijo family of his (Alvaros') countenanceand society until, alarmed at the loss, they should dismiss the cause ofit: but upon further reflection he came to the conclusion that it mightbe unwise to adopt so very drastic a step, for two very good andsufficient reasons, the first of which was that, being impecunioushimself, he had fully made up his mind to marry Dona Isolda and thusacquire a substantial interest in the Montijo property and estates, andwas therefore unwilling to do anything which might possibly jeopardisethe position which he had worked so hard to gain as a friend of thefamily; while the second reason was that he was by no means sure thathis abstention would be regarded by the Montijos as a matter of verygreat moment. Then it was most unfortunate that Jack was not only anEnglishman, but a young man doubtless of position and substance, or hewould not be the owner of so costly a plaything as a steam-yacht. Hadhe been anything but an Englishman, or an American, it would have beencomparatively easy to have had him arrested upon a charge of complicitywith the insurgents; but these nations had a most awkward andinconvenient habit of looking after their people, and whenever one ofthem chanced to get into trouble their Governments always insisted uponinstituting the most exhaustive enquiries into the matter, and were wontto make it understood, with almost brutal distinctness of manner, thatthey would not tolerate anything that bore the slightest suspicion ofirregularity. He had heard it whispered that the authorities hadreceived a hint from their spies on the other side to look out for ayacht which was suspected of having on board contraband for the use ofthe insurgents; but he argued that the vessel in question could scarcelybe the craft owned by this young man, for the simple reason that thereappeared to be nothing of a surreptitious or secret nature in hismovements, or in those of his yacht, which, as he understood, was, orwould very shortly be, in Havana harbour. No, the more he thought aboutit, the more profoundly was he convinced that it would be impossible tobring about Jack's removal by an attempt to involve him in the politicalunrest of the islanders. Some other means must be tried. He wonderedwhether, perchance, it might be possible to frighten the young man intoan early departure from the casa Montijo and the island. It was not avery easy matter to frighten an Englishman, he knew, and this particularone impressed Alvaros as being especially unpromising in that respect;still, there was no harm in trying. Accordingly when, upon the next daybut one, the Spaniard again rode over to call upon the Montijos, he madean opportunity to take Jack on one side for a moment and ask him whetherhe had yet fixed a date for his departure from the island.

  "A date for my departure?" echoed Jack. "Certainly not, Senor. On thecontrary, it is my intention to mak
e quite a long stay here, and seeCuba from end to end. It is even possible that I may decide to purchasea property on the island, and try my luck as a tobacco planter."

  "I fervently trust not, Senor, for your own sake," said Alvaros."Permit me to offer you a little friendly advice. Cut short your visit,and leave Cuba at once. I advise you, as a friend, to do so."

  "Indeed!" said Jack. "And why, pray? Of course you have some goodreason for offering me this advice, Senor Alvaros?"

  "Yes," answered Alvaros, "I have; and it is this. Cuba is in a mostunsettled state at present. She is seething with rebellion, and allstrangers are regarded with the utmost suspicion by the Government.Nothing would be easier than for you to find yourself involved in one ofthe numerous conspiracies which we know to be brewing; and, onceinvolved, you would find it exceedingly difficult, if not absolutelyimpossible, to extricate yourself. Therefore take my advice, and goforthwith. It is good advice; for I tell you plainly that you are notwanted here!"

  "Thanks!" answered Jack coolly. "I am very much obliged to you, SenorAlvaros, for the friendly feeling which has prompted you to give me whatI suppose you wish me to understand as a `warning'. But I must tell youcandidly that I believe you are taking a very exaggerated view of thedanger--if danger there be, which I greatly doubt. But, danger or nodanger, I shall still carry out my original plans; and if danger shouldcome--well, I daresay I shall be quite able to take care of myself."

  So that was no good! The Spaniard had feared that it would not be ofmuch use to attempt to frighten an Englishman; and so it had proved.Well, there were other ways, and those must be tried.

  After Alvaros had left, that night, and the family had separated, Jackaccompanied Carlos into the room of the latter, and related what hadpassed between the Spanish officer and himself, asking Carlos for hisopinion upon the subject.

  "I will tell you, Jack, just exactly what I think," answered Carlos,after considering the matter for some few minutes. "You must know thatCaptain Alvaros made our acquaintance about a year ago, at a ball givenin Havana by the Capitan-General of the island. After that he contrivedto meet one or more of us on frequent occasions; and finally herequested the Padre's permission to visit us. We none of usparticularly liked him; but it is not altogether wise policy to offend aSpaniard, especially if he happens to be an official, in these times,and so the Padre rather reluctantly gave his consent, and Alvarosaccordingly called here occasionally. While we have been away, however,it appears that the man has somehow contrived to get himself posted atPinar del Rio, which, as you are aware, is not very far from here; and Ilearn that since then his calls have been so frequent as to have becomea thorough nuisance. Now, from what my sister tells me, I have asuspicion that Alvaros is anxious to contract a matrimonial alliancewith our family--which, I may tell you at once, Jack, he will not bepermitted to do; and my belief is that the fellow simply cannot endureto see another man in Isolda's society, and that is why he wants you togo. But of course you won't; and I am very glad indeed that you madethat quite clear to him. He was evidently trying to scare you off whathe apparently chooses to consider his preserves; but if he knew you aswell as I do, Jack, he would understand that it needs a good deal morethan the vague hints of a captain of Spanish infantry to frighten you.Now, my advice to you is to take no notice whatever of the beggar, andif he tries it on again--well, just repeat what you said to-night.And--perhaps it will be better not to mention the matter, at all eventsjust yet, to the Padre, or in fact anyone else."

  "All right, old chap," answered Jack; "you may trust me. But, lookhere, Carlos, I hope that my presence in this house is not going toinvolve any of you in trouble or difficulty of any sort with theGovernment. If I thought that there was the least likelihood of that--"

  "My dear chap, there isn't," interrupted Carlos. "We are one of theoldest and most influential families in Cuba; and the Spaniards knowperfectly well that to meddle with us would be to make a very seriousmistake. So do not allow any idea of that kind to worry you in theleast. You will stay on here just as long as you like; and the longeryou stay the better we shall all be pleased. Besides, there is going tobe a rising here before long, and then you will have an opportunity towitness several very interesting things."

  Two days later Captain Alvaros again presented himself; but this time,instead of entering the house in his usual free and easy manner, heenquired for Don Hermoso and, upon learning that that gentleman was inhis office, sent in a formal request for a private interview. He was atonce admitted, and found Don Hermoso seated at a large writing table,which was strewed with account books and papers. The Don accorded hisvisitor a courteous if somewhat stiff welcome, and, having requested himto be seated, enquired in what way he could be of service--for thisformal visit had somehow suggested to Don Hermoso the idea that CaptainAlvaros desired to borrow money from him.

  "Such a visit as this from me, Don Hermoso, can have but one object, andI think you will have no difficulty in guessing what that object is,"replied Alvaros, with a somewhat embarrassed laugh.

  "Pardon me, Senor," answered Don Hermoso; "you credit me with a muchlarger measure of perspicacity than I can lay claim to. To be perfectlyfrank with you, I cannot conceive why you should desire a privateinterview with me, unless--how shall I put it?--unless--you findyourself in a position of temporary pecuniary embarrassment; and in thatcase I should have thought that--"

  "Senor Montijo," exclaimed Alvaros, starting to his feet indignantly,"do you wish to insult me?"

  "Certainly not, Senor," answered Don Hermoso blandly. "Pray be seated,and dismiss from your mind at once any such unworthy suspicion. Whyshould I desire to insult you? But if I am mistaken in my guess as tothe object of your visit, would it not be best for you to state yourbusiness with me explicitly?"

  "I will, Senor," answered Alvaros. "To be both explicit and brief,then, I have called upon you this morning for the purpose of demandingthe hand of your daughter, Senorita Isolda, in marriage."

  "To demand--the hand of--my daughter--in marriage?" gasped Don Hermosoin amazement.

  "Certainly, Senor Montijo," retorted Alvaros haughtily. "Surely thereis nothing so very extraordinary in making such a demand, is there?"

  "Nothing very extraordinary, certainly," returned Don Hermoso, who hadquickly recovered a grip upon himself; "but something most entirelyunexpected, I assure you. You do me and my family too much honour,Senor Alvaros. I presume you have some reason for supposing that yoursuit will be acceptable to my daughter?"

  "I have never had any reason to suppose otherwise, Senor," answeredAlvaros. "But even were the Senorita to entertain any foolishobjections--or imagine that she entertained them--I presume it wouldmake no difference in your decision. If she does not actually entertainany sentiment of love for me at this moment I have not a shadow of doubtas to my ability to inspire that sentiment as soon as we are married.The young lady will raise no objection, I presume, if she is given tounderstand that the marriage would be in conformity with your wishes;and I imagine it is quite unnecessary for me to point out to you howvery greatly to your advantage and that of your whole family such amarriage would be."

  "Advantage, did you say, Senor?" retorted Don Hermoso. "Pardon me, I amafraid that I am unusually dull to-day, but I am compelled to confessthat for the moment I scarcely see in what respect such an alliancewould be an advantage to us. If it would not be troubling you too much,would you kindly explain?"

  "Surely, Senor Montijo, it ought not to be very difficult for you to seehow highly advantageous it would be for you and yours to be allied inmarriage to an officer of some distinction--if I may be permitted to sayso--in the Spanish Army!" exclaimed Alvaros, in tones of haughtysurprise. "I am a scion of one of the best families of Spain, whileyou, if you will pardon me for reminding you of the fact, are merely aCuban; and in these troublous days no Cuban is entirely free fromsuspicion--"

  "Enough, Senor!" interrupted Don Hermoso indignantly. "You appear todespise me as `merely a Cuban'
; but you either forget, or are ignorantof, the fact that my father was born in Spain, and there are few Spanishnames that stand higher than that of Montijo. You have made a mistake,Senor, in presuming to claim superiority for yourself over my family. Idecline the honour of the alliance which you have proposed; and I trustthat, under these circumstances, you will see the propriety ofdiscontinuing your visits to my house."

  For nearly a full minute Alvaros glared at Don Hermoso, as though hecould scarcely believe that he had heard aright, could scarcely creditthe fact that a "rascally Cuban", as he mentally termed Montijo, had hadthe unparalleled, the unspeakable audacity to spurn--ay, spurn was thecorrect word--an alliance with him, Don Sebastian Alvaros, Captain inthe army of His Majesty the King of Spain! It was unthinkable! It wasan insult that could only be wiped out by blood! And yet it would beexceedingly awkward to quarrel with these people; for if he did it wouldput an end at once and for ever to any possibility of marriage with thedaughter. And he simply must marry her, by hook or by crook: his honourdemanded it, for he had already boasted freely among his fellow-officersof his conquest of the fairest maid in Cuba; and his credit alsodemanded it, for he had made the same boast to the money-lenders inHavana, and had raised considerable sums of money on the strength of it.Swallowing his rage, therefore, he made an attempt to retrace thatfalse step by exclaiming:

  "Pardon me, Don Hermoso, but I have been most unfortunate in my choiceof words, and, believe me, you have entirely mistaken my meaning. WhatI really intended to convey was--"

  But in that brief minute of silence Don Hermoso had read the man's realcharacter in his face, and had instantly come to the conclusion that hewould rather see his daughter lying dead than in the power of such aruffian; he therefore cut short the officer's protestations by assuringhim that his words admitted of no misinterpretation, and that thereforehe must persist in his refusal.

  "Very well, then," exclaimed Alvaros, "if you prefer to have me for anenemy, instead of a friend and ally, be it so, Senor Montijo; I will notdisappoint you. But beware! You have insulted me, and I am a man whonever forgets or forgives an insult!"

  And, springing to his feet, he dashed his braided cap on to his head,strode clanking and jingling to the door, and so took his departurewithout further word of farewell.