For God and Gold

by Julian Stafford Corbett

'Where are the Cimaroons?' said I, as I ran by Frank's side.

'I know not,' he said; 'God grant they have not deserted us.'

The words were hardly out of his mouth when an unearthly yell arose behind us, and Pedro bounded past towards the town. In a moment the air was rent with the horrible screams of his people. Encouraged, as I think, by hearing us advance, they had issued from the cover, where their horror of gunpowder had driven them. Howsoever they had feared before, they were now most terrible to behold.

Like incarnate fiends they bounded on before us, leaping, dancing, casting up their arms, and all the while yelling, 'Yó pehó! Yó pehó!' in most evil sort, and singing unearthly spells, after the fashion of their own savage warfare. Their frenzy seemed to give them more than human power; and even as they ran they leaped so high as I never saw before, nor all the while did they cease to discharge their deadly arrows and awful war-cries.

Whether it were witchcraft or not I cannot tell, but very soon we were all as mad as they, and ran so fast that before the Spaniards reached the town gate we overtook many of them. They tried to make a stand, but it was to no purpose. The Cimaroons burrowed into the thickets like snakes, and drew them forth by the heels, never ceasing to yell their rhythmic 'Yó pehó! Yó pehó!' Half of the enemy we now saw were monks, who kicked and screamed most lustily till they were speared by the maddened Cimaroons.

Still a few pikemen boldly held their ground with the captain; and in this struggle a few more of us were wounded. The Cimaroons fought like demons. One close by me was run through with a pike, whereupon, so mad was he, that he drew himself along the shaft till he could reach the Spaniard who held it, and then stabbed his enemy to the death.

Such a sight of frantic, wanton daring I never saw. It seemed to strike terror into our enemy; for incontinently with a cry of horror they fled, and we leaped after them so fast that all entered the town together—sailors, Spaniards, friars, and Cimaroons, in one confused throng.

We gave them no time to recover their senses, but hustled them clean into the monastery, where we locked them up. In a very short space the town was fairly in our hands, and all quiet. Guards were set at the gate where we had entered, and also at the bridge at the other end of the town, whereby we should have to pass out over the river to continue our way. Then we had leisure to look to our wounds, which, though many, were slight, seeing that the enemy had but powdered us with hail-shot. The man who first fell by me was the only one of the company sorely hurt, and he died very soon after.

Our business in the town occupied us about an hour and a half. Amongst other merchandise we dealt in were above a thousand bulls and pardons which had newly come out of Rome. With these the mariners made more sport than was needful, yet the church and all other things ecclesiastic were respected.

We found some women there, moreover, with new-born infants, who had come thither because no Spanish child may safely be born in Nombre de Dios by reason of its pestilent airs. These were terribly affrighted by our presence, and would not be content till the general went to them himself as soon as he had leisure, to show it was indeed Francis Drake who had taken the town, whereby they were forthwith comforted, knowing that in his hands they were safe, as indeed they were, even from the fury of the Cimaroons, who very faithfully kept their word to the general, and hurt no one after the fight was done.