CHAPTER XXVII.
THE AUCA-COYOG.
The tragical death of the senator was only the consequence of hiswell-known pusillanimity. If the general had believed it possibleto place any reliance upon his word, he would have released himimmediately.
Immediately after the execution of the senator, the heralds convenedthe chiefs to a grand Auca-coyog. Thirty Ulmens and Apo-Ulmens werequickly assembled at the place appointed. Antinahuel soon appeared,followed by General Bustamente. Antinahuel held in his hand the lettertaken from Don Ramon, and he spoke as follows:--
"Ulmens, Apo-Ulmens, and chiefs of the four Uthal-mapus of theAraucanian confederacy, I have convoked you by the heralds tocommunicate to you a necklace taken from the spy who by my order hasjust been put to death. This necklace will cause us to alter ourarrangements, I think, for the malocca, on account of which we haveassembled. Our ally, the Great Eagle of the Whites, will explain it toyou. Let my brother read," he added, turning towards the general.
The latter read with a loud voice:--
"'MY DEAR GENERAL,--I have submitted to the council assembled atValdivia the objections you have thought it your duty to make on thesubject of the plan of the campaign. These objections have been foundjust; consequently the following plan has been modified according toyour observations. You will continue, then, to cover the province ofConcepcion, by holding the line of the Bio Bio, which you will notcross without fresh orders. On my side, with seven thousand men, I willmarch upon Arauca, of which I will take possession and destroy. Thisplan offers us the more chances of success, from the enemy being, aswe learn from trustworthy spies, in a deceitful security with regardto our movements. The bearer of this order is a person you know, whosenullity itself will facilitate the means of passing through the enemy'slines. You will get rid of this individual by sending him to his home,with an injunction not to leave it.'"
"'Signed, DON TADEO DE LEON,'" "'Dictator and General-in-Chief of'" "'the Army of Liberation."
The reading of this despatch was listened to by the chiefs with thedeepest attention.
"This necklace," said Antinahuel, "was traced in private characters,which our brother the paleface has succeeded in deciphering. What dothe Ulmens think?"
One of the ancient Toquis arose.
"The palefaces are very cunning," he said; "they are foxes in maliceand jaguars in ferocity. This order is a snare for the good faithof the Aucas. But Aucas warriors are wise; they will laugh at themachinations of the Huincas, and will continue to guard the ford of theBio Bio. The communications of the whites are cut off, like a serpentwhose body has been divided by a stroke of the hatchet: they in vainseek to unite the various trunks of their army, but they will notsucceed. I have spoken."
This speech, pronounced in a firm, clear voice, by one of the mostjustly respected chiefs of the nation, produced a certain effect.
"The chief has spoken well," said the general; "I coincide entirelywith his opinion."
Another chief then arose and spoke in his turn.
"The whites are very cunning, as my father has said; they are foxeswithout courage--they can only massacre women and children, and runaway at the sight of an Aucas warrior. But this necklace tells thetruth, and translates their thoughts literally. Chiefs, we all havewives and children, and we ought in the first place to think of theirsafety. Let us be prudent, chiefs; let us not throw ourselves into asnare while we think we are laying one for our enemies."
The Araucanos have a deep affection for their families; and the idea ofleaving them behind, exposed to the disasters of war, gave them greatuneasiness. General Bustamente anxiously followed the fluctuations ofthe council.
"What my brother has remarked is just, but his opinions only rest uponan hypothesis; the whites do not employ forces in such numbers toattempt an invasion of the Araucano territory. Let my brothers leavein the camp a thousand resolute warriors to defend the passage, andat nightfall cross the Bio Bio boldly, and I will answer for theirsuccess."
"My brother is a skilful warrior," said Antinahuel; "the plan heproposes shows his experience. As he says, until I have proof to thecontrary, I shall believe the necklace to be a deceit; and that weought, this very night, to invade the territories of the whites."
The general breathed freely; his cause, he thought, was gained.Suddenly Black Stag entered, and took his place in the assembly.
"What is going on?" the Toqui asked.
"Listen!" said Black Stag, in a solemn tone; "Illecura, Borea, andNagotten have been given up to the flames, and the inhabitants put tothe sword; another body of troops, still more considerable than thefirst, is acting in the flat country in the same manner as the other inthe maritime country."
The most violent agitation seized on the Ulmens; nothing was heard butcries of rage and despair.
"What do we wait for, chiefs of the Aucas?" cried the chief who hadadvised retreat, in a shrill, excited tone; "Do you not hear the criesof your wives and children calling upon you for succour? Do you notsee the flames which are consuming your dwellings and devouring yourharvests? To arms! warriors, to arms!"
"To arms!" the warriors yelled, rising as one man.
Indescribable confusion followed. General Bustamente retired with deathin his heart.
"Well!" the Linda asked, on seeing him enter, "what is going on? Whatmean these cries and this frightful tumult? Have the Indians revolted?"
"No," the general explained, "Don Tadeo, that demon, bent upon mydestruction, has disconcerted all my plans. The Indian army is about toretreat."
"To retreat!" the Linda cried furiously, and rushing towardsAntinahuel--
"What! you! you fly! you confess yourself conquered! Don Tadeo de Leon,the executioner of your family, is marching against you, and you arefrightened! Coward! coward! put on petticoats; you are not a warrior!you are not a man; you are an old woman."
The Toqui put her back with disdain.
"Woman, you are mad!" he said. "What can one man do against fate? I donot fly from my enemy, I go to meet him."
"My sister cannot remain here," he said, in a softened tone; "the campis about to be broken up."
The poor girl followed mechanically, without reply.
A few minutes later the camp was struck, and the Araucanos abandonedthe impregnable position. At the reiterated entreaties of Bustamente,Antinahuel consented to leave a chosen band of eight hundred warriorsto defend the passage.
Black Stag was a prudent warrior. As soon as the night came on, hedispersed scouts in all directions upon the banks of the river.Yielding, in spite of himself, to the influence produced by the reportof the spies, he had, in the first moment, advised retreat; but, uponreflection, it was not long before he suspected a _ruse de guerre_.
His suspicions had not deceived him. Between eleven and twelve o'clockat night, his scouts came hastily in to warn him that a long line ofhorsemen had lately left the Chilian bank, and were gliding along likean immense serpent near the ford. Black Stag had but two hundred andfifty warriors armed with guns, so he placed them in the first lineupon the bank, supported by his lancers. When they deemed them withinrange the Araucano warriors made a discharge upon the horsemen whowere crossing the river. Several fell. At the same instant four piecesof cannon were unmasked on the opposite bank, which spread death andterror among the Indians.
A strong detachment had, in the meantime, cleared the ford, and fellupon them with the utmost fury. From that time the struggle had noequality. The Aucas, notwithstanding their courage, were obliged togive ground, leaving nearly two hundred dead on the banks of the river.
The plan conceived by Don Tadeo de Leon had completely succeeded. Thearmy of General Fuentes had forced the passage of the Bio Bio. Thus,thanks to the ruse employed by the dictator, the ground upon which thequarrel was to be decided was changed, and the Aucas were forced todefend themselves at home. Instead of invaders, as they wished to be,they found
themselves, on the contrary, the invaded; the campaign mightnow be terminated by the gaining of a single battle.