“Jumbo! Jumbo!” I shouted out; “don’t you remember your friends?”
Jumbo knew my voice instantly: he ceased barking, and came fawning up to me. I was sure that his master could not be far off; and hurrying out from my concealment, I saw before me Dr Stutterheim,—who, supposing that his dog had discovered a jaguar, had unslung his gun, ready to do battle with the wild beast.
Great was the pleasure he exhibited at seeing me.
“Why, Barry! my dear Barry!” he exclaimed, “what wonderful chance has enabled us thus to meet? I thought that you were long ago safe among the mountains; and despairing of finding you, I was on my way down to any port I could reach on the coast, from whence I could escape from this unhappy country, regretting that I should probably see you no more; and almost as much grieved—I must confess the fact—to leave all my treasures behind me, to rot, or be eaten by the ants, as I had no means of transporting them.”
“I thought, doctor, that you were determined to remain with your patients till they recovered,” I remarked.
“Alack, alack! my friend, they have gone where they require no surgeon’s aid,” replied the doctor. “Those bloodthirsty Spaniards last night burst into the village, and murdered every wounded man; together with several other people—men, women, and children—whom they caught. I myself narrowly escaped with my life by remaining concealed in the garden of the house, under a bed of pumpkins, where it did not occur to them to look for me. Finding that they had beaten a retreat (being alarmed by a report that a large body of patriots was near at hand), I crept out of my place of concealment, and fortunately stumbled upon this mule, saddled and bridled, on which I rode away as fast as I could make the brute move over the rough paths.”
The Indian, who had witnessed my meeting with the doctor, and saw that he was a friend, had gone off to report the same to my father; who now appeared, with the rest of our party.
“The cruel monsters!” exclaimed the padre, when he heard the account given by the doctor; “surely such barbarities must call down the vengeance of Heaven on the heads of those bloodthirsty tyrants and their supporters. Even had I not ample reason for siding with the patriots, the account you have given us would make me desirous of exerting all my energies to promote the overthrow of those monsters. They must be driven from the land before we can hope for peace and prosperity; and I, for one, will not don cassock again till I have aided in accomplishing the work.”
“Bravo, Señor Padre!—for padre I suppose you are,” said the doctor. “I highly approve of your patriotic principles and resolutions; and should a sacrilegious bullet enter your body, I promise you that I will do my best to extract it and set you on your legs again, should I happily be near you.”
The padre thanked the doctor, but quickly changed the subject; his feelings had run away with him, and perhaps he did not quite like to contemplate the contingency to which the doctor alluded.