"But Yoscolo and Stanislaus and their thousand renegades!" objected one. "We go to the mouth of the tiger. More than ever are these men active now."
"Our fighting peons equal in strength their recreant fellows. Nothing remains but for us to cross the passes to the soft bottom lands in the eastern valleys. Señors, shall we go?"
The Administrator's judgment was accepted, and the visitors, standing, drank another glass of brandy and departed.
Early the next day began a great exodus of cattle and horses through mountain defile, north and south, to the flat lowlands across the mountain ranges, Indian vaqueros, peons armed with bows and arrows, and here and there a Spaniard with a flint-lock musket going with the herds.
Despite the general departure of live stock the late spring saw wondrous commotion about the watering troughs of Señor Mendoza. Cattle from the hills, from the marshes of the bay, from no one knew where, scented water and rushed in thirst-madness to the Mission of San José; bellowing, leaping, rolling over and over in their frenzy to reach the water!
All day long did the vaqueros rush into the surging tumult, springing with the swiftness of the cat from back to back of cattle or horse in the plunging mass, separating the press here to save the weaker animals from suffocation, opening lanes there to allow ingress to the troughs. Bellowing of cattle mingled with neighing of horses in wildest confusion. Famine showed feverlike in their eyes and echoed madly in their cries. During the day the battle raged, but at night they drew away to the hills looking for the lower tree-foliage and the scanty leaf-forage.
Then came other animals to the water. Thirst drew them from the mountains and drove away their fear of man. The gaunt bear lapped from the trough, and though the bow of the hunter was bent and the arrow aimed to slay, pity withheld the arrow.
The timid deer stood unafraid at the side of its ancient enemies, man and bear. The scream of the mountain lion mingled with the howl of the wolf, as they ran about among men, looking for food after they had quenched their thirst at the watering place.
Some strange chivalry, deep residing in the beasts of prey, held the weaker denizens of the wildwood in safety from claw and fang. In their dire adversity came a literal fulfillment of the old prophecy that the lion and the lamb should lie down together.
Señor Mendoza and his friends faced bravely the difficult situation.