The general came a few paces nearer, so that those he addressed could not miss one of his words.
"I offer you life and liberty if you consent to surrender your leader," he said.
"Never!" the conspirators shouted in one voice.
"It is my place to answer," Don Miguel said; and then turning to the general, "What assurance do you give me that these conditions will be honourably carried out?"
"My word of honor as a soldier," the general answered.
"Very good," Don Miguel went on; "I accept. All the men who accompany me will leave the town one after the other."
"No, we will not!" the conspirators shouted as they brandished their weapons; "we would sooner die."
"Silence!" the hacendero said in a loud voice. "I alone have the right to speak here, for I am your chief. The life of brave men like you must not be needlessly sacrificed. Go, I say; I order you—I implore it of you," he added with tears in his voice. "Perhaps you will soon take your revenge."
The conspirators hung their heads mournfully.
"Well?" the general asked.