CHAPTER V
SANTA ANNA'S ADVANCE
The three rode abreast, Ned in the center. The boy was on terms ofperfect equality with Obed and the Panther. They treated him as a manamong men, and respected his character, rather grave for one so young,and always keen to learn.
The land rolled away in swells as usual throughout a great part ofTexas, but they were not of much elevation and the red glow in the southwas always in sight, deepening fast as they advanced. They stopped atlast on a little elevation within the shadow of some myrtle oaks, andsaw the fires spread before them only four or five hundred yards away,and along a line of at least two miles. They heard the confused murmurof many men. The dark outlines of cannon were seen against thefirelight, and now and then the musical note of a mandolin or guitarcame to them.
"We was right in our guess," said the Panther. "It's a lot bigger forcethan the one that Cos led away from San Antonio, an' it will take a heapof rippin' an' t'arin' an' roarin' to turn it back. Our people don'tknow how much is comin' ag'in 'em."
The Panther spoke in a solemn tone. Ned saw that he was deeply impressedand that he feared for the future. Good cause had he. Squabbles amongthe Texan leaders had reduced their army to five or six hundred men.
"Don't you think," said Ned, "that we ought to find out just exactlywhat is here, and what this army intends?"
"Not a doubt of it," said Obed. "Those who have eyes to see should notgo away without seeing."
The Panther nodded violently in assent.
"We must scout about the camp," he said. "Mebbe we'd better divide an'then we can all gather before day-break at the clump of trees backthere."
He pointed to a little cluster of trees several hundred yards back ofthem, and Ned and Obed agreed. The Panther turned away to the right,Obed to the left and Ned took the center. Their plan of dividing theirforce had a great advantage. One man was much less likely than three toattract undue attention.
Ned went straight ahead a hundred yards or more, when he was stopped byan arroyo five or six feet wide and with very deep banks. He lookedabout, uncertain at first what to do. Obed and the Panther had alreadydisappeared in the dusk. Before him glowed the red light, and he heardthe distant sound of many voices.
Ned quickly decided. He remembered how they had escaped up the bed ofthe creek when they were besieged by Urrea, and if one could leave by anarroyo, one could also approach by it. He rode to the group of treesthat had been designated as the place of meeting, and left his horsethere. He noticed considerable grass within the ring of trunks, and hewas quite confident that Old Jack would remain there until his return.But he addressed to him words of admonition:
"Be sure that you stay among these trees, old friend," he said, "becauseit's likely that when I want you I'll want you bad. Remain and attend tothis grass."
Old Jack whinnied softly and, after his fashion, rubbed his nose gentlyagainst his master's arm. It was sufficient for Ned. He was sure thatthe horse understood, and leaving him he went back to the arroyo, whichhe entered without hesitation.
Ned was well armed, as every one then had full need to be. He wore asombrero in the Mexican fashion, and flung over his shoulders was agreat serape which he had found most useful in the winter. With hisperfect knowledge of Spanish and its Mexican variants he believed thatif surprised he could pass as a Mexican, particularly in the night andamong so many.
The arroyo led straight down toward the plain upon which the Mexicanswere encamped, and when he emerged from it he saw that the fires whichat a distance looked like one continuous blaze were scores in number.Many of them were built of buffalo chips and others of light wood thatburned fast. Sentinels were posted here and there, but they kept littlewatch. Why should they? Here was a great Mexican army, and there wascertainly no foe amounting to more than a few men within a hundredmiles.
Ned's heart sank as he beheld the evident extent of the Mexican array.The little Texan force left in the field could be no match for such anarmy as this.
Nevertheless, his resolution to go through the Mexican camp hardened. Ifhe came back with a true and detailed tale of their numbers the Texansmust believe and prepare. He drew the brim of his sombrero down a littlefurther, and pulled his serape up to meet it. The habit the Mexicans hadof wrapping their serapes so high that they were covered to the nose wasfortunate at this time. He was now completely disguised, without theappearance of having taken any unusual precaution.
He walked forward boldly and sat down with a group beside a fire. Hejudged by the fact that they were awake so late that they had but littleto do, and he saw at once also that they were Mexicans from the farsouth. They were small, dark men, rather amiable in appearance. Twobegan to play guitars and they sang a plaintive song to the music. Theothers, smoking cigarritos, listened attentively and luxuriously. Nedimitated them perfectly. He, too, lying upon his elbow before thepleasant fire, felt the influence of the music, so sweet, so murmurous,speaking so little of war. One of the men handed him a cigarrito, and,lighting it, he made pretense of smoking--he would not have seemed aMexican had he not smoked the cigarrito.
Lying there, Ned saw many tents, evidence of a camp that was not for theday only, and he beheld officers in bright uniforms passing among them.His heart gave a great jump when he noticed among them a heavy-set, darkman. It was Cos, Cos the breaker of oaths. With him was another officerwhose uniform indicated the general. Ned learned later that this wasSesma, who had been dispatched with a brigade by Santa Anna to meet Coson the Rio Grande, where they were to remain until the dictator himselfcame with more troops.
The music ceased presently and one of the men said to Ned:
"What company?"
Ned had prepared himself for such questions, and he moved his handvaguely toward the left.
"Over there," he said.
They were fully satisfied, and continued to puff their cigarritos,resting their heads with great content upon pillows made of theirsaddles and blankets. For a while they said nothing more, happilywatching the rings of smoke from their cigarritos rise and melt into theair. Although small and short, they looked hardy and strong. Nednoticed the signs of bustle and expectancy about the camp. UsuallyMexicans were asleep at this hour, and he wondered why they lingered.But he did not approach the subject directly.
"A hard march," he said, knowing that these men about him had come avast distance.
"Aye, it was," said the man next on his right. "Santiago, but was itnot, Jose?"
Jose, the second man on the right, replied in the affirmative and withemphasis:
"You speak the great truth, Carlos. Such another march I never wish tomake. Think of the hundreds and hundreds of miles we have tramped fromour warm lands far in the south across mountains, across bare and windydeserts, with the ice and the snow beating in our faces. How I shivered,Carlos, and how long I shivered! I thought I should continue shiveringall my life even if I lived to be a hundred, no matter how warmly thesun might shine."
The others laughed, and seemed to Ned to snuggle a little closer to thefire, driven by the memory of the icy plains.
"But it was the will of the great Santa Anna, surely the mightiest manof our age," said Carlos. "They say that his wrath was terrible when heheard how the Texan bandits had taken San Antonio de Bexar. Truly, I amglad that I was not one of his officers, and that I was not in hispresence at the time. After all, it is sometimes better to be a commonsoldier than to have command."
"Aye, truly," said Ned, and the others nodded in affirmation.
"But the great Santa Anna will finish it," continued Carlos, who seemedto have the sin of garrulity. "He has defeated all his enemies inMexico, he has consolidated his power and now he advances with a mightyforce to crush these insolent and miserable Texans. As I have said, hewill finish it. The rope and the bullet will be busy. In six monthsthere will be no Texans."
Ned shivered, and when he looked at the camp fires of the great army hesaw that this peon was not talking foolishness. Nevertheless his mindreturned to
its original point of interest. Why did the Mexican armyremain awake so late?
"Have you seen the President?" he asked of Carlos.
"Often," replied Carlos, with pride. "I fought under him in the greatbattle on the plain of Guadalupe less than two years ago, when wedefeated Don Francisco Garcia, the governor of Zacatecas. Ah, it was aterrible battle, my friends! Thousands and thousands were killed and allMexicans. Mexicans killing Mexicans. But who can prevail against thegreat Santa Anna? He routed the forces of Garcia, and the City ofZacatecas was given up to us to pillage. Many fine things I took thatday from the houses of those who presumed to help the enemy of ourleader. But now we care not to kill Mexicans, our own people. It is onlythe miserable Texans who are really Gringos."
Carlos, who had been the most amiable of men, basking in the firelight,now rose up a little and his eyes flashed. He had excited himself by hisown tale of the battle and loot of Zacatecas and the coming slaughter ofthe Texans. That strain of cruelty, which in Ned's opinion always layembedded in the Spanish character, was coming to the surface.
Ned made no comment. His serape, drawn up to his nose, almost met thebrim of his sombrero and nobody suspected that the comrade who sat andchatted with them was a Gringo, but he shivered again, nevertheless.
"We shall have a great force when it is all gathered," he said atlength.
"Seven thousand men or more," said Jose proudly, "and nearly all of themare veterans of the wars. We shall have ten times the numbers of theTexans, who are only hunters and rancheros."
"Have you heard when we march?" asked Ned, in a careless tone.
"As soon as the great Santa Anna arrives it will be decided, I doubtnot," said Jose. "The general and his escort should be here bymidnight."
Ned's heart gave a leap. So it was that for which they were waiting.Santa Anna himself would come in an hour or two. He was very glad thathe had entered the Mexican camp. Bidding a courteous good night to themen about the fire, he rose and sauntered on. It was easy enough for himto do so without attracting attention, as many others were doing thesame thing. Discipline seldom amounted to much in a Mexican army, and soconfident were both officers and soldiers of an overwhelming victorythat they preserved scarcely any at all. Yet the expectant feelingpervaded the whole camp, and now that he knew that Santa Anna was cominghe understood.
Santa Anna was the greatest man in the world to these soldiers. He hadtriumphed over everything in their own country. He had exhibitedqualities of daring and energy that seemed to them supreme, and hisimpression upon them was overwhelming. Ned felt once more that littleshiver. They might be right in their view of the Texan war.
He strolled on from fire to fire, until his attention was arrestedsuddenly by one at which only officers sat. It was not so much the groupas it was one among them who drew his notice so strongly. Urrea wassitting on the far side of the fire, every feature thrown into clearrelief by the bright flames. The other officers were young men of abouthis own age and they were playing dice. They were evidently in high goodhumor, as they laughed frequently.
Ned lay down just within the shadow of a tent wall, drew his serapehigher about his face, and rested his head upon his arm. He would haveseemed sound asleep to an ordinary observer, but he was never more wideawake in his life. He was near enough to hear what Urrea and his friendswere saying, and he intended to hear it. It was for such that he hadcome.
"You lose, Francisco," said one of the men as he made a throw of thedice and looked eagerly at the result. "What was it that you were sayingabout the general?"
"That I expect an early advance, Ramon," replied Urrea, "a briefcampaign, and a complete victory. I hate these Texans. I shall be gladto see them annihilated."
The young officer whom he called Ramon laughed.
"If what I hear be true, Francisco," he said, "you have cause to hatethem. There was a boy, Fulton, that wild buffalo of a man, whom theycall the Panther, and another who defeated some of your finest plans."
Urrea flushed, but controlled his temper.
"It is true, Ramon," he replied. "The third man I can tell you is calledObed White, and they are a clever three. I hate them, but it hurts mypride less to be defeated by them than by any others whom I know."
"Well spoken, Urrea," said a third man, "but since these three arefighters and will stay to meet us, it is a certainty that our generalwill scoop them into his net. Then you can have all the revenge youwish."
"I count upon it, Ambrosio," said Urrea, smiling. "I also hope that weshall recapture the man Roylston. He has great sums of money in theforeign banks in our country, and we need them, but our illustriouspresident cannot get them without an order from Roylston. The generalwould rather have Roylston than a thousand Texan prisoners."
All of them laughed, and the laugh made Ned, lying in the shadow, shiveronce more. Urrea glanced his way presently, but the recumbent figure didnot claim his notice. The attention of his comrades and himself becameabsorbed in the dice again. They were throwing the little ivory cubesupon a blanket, and Ned could hear them click as they struck together.The sharp little sound began to flick his nerves. Not one to cherishresentment, he nevertheless began to hate Urrea, and he included in thathatred the young men with him. The Texans were so few and poor. TheMexicans were so many, and they had the resources of a nation more thantwo centuries old.
Ned rose by and by and walked on. He could imitate the Mexican gaitperfectly, and no one paid any attention to him. They were absorbed,moreover, in something else, because now the light of torches could beseen dimly in the south. Officers threw down cards and dice. Menstraightened their uniforms and Cos and Sesma began to form companies inline. More fuel was thrown on the fires, which sprang up, suffusing allthe night with color and brightness. Ned with his rifle at salute fellinto place at the end of one of the companies, and no one knew that hedid not belong there. In the excitement of the moment he forgot allabout the Panther and Obed.
A thrill seemed to run through the whole Mexican force. It was the mostimpressive scene that Ned had ever beheld. A leader, omnipotent intheir eyes, was coming to these men, and he came at midnight out of thedark into the light.
The torches grew brighter. A trumpet pealed and a trumpet in the campreplied. The Mexican lines became silent save for a deep murmur. In thesouth they heard the rapid beat of hoofs, and then Santa Anna came,galloping at the head of fifty horsemen. Many of the younger officersran forward, holding up torches, and the dictator rode in a blaze oflight.
Ned looked once more upon that dark and singular face, a face daring andcruel, that might have belonged to one of the old conquistadores. In thesaddle his lack of height was concealed, but on the great white horsethat he rode Ned felt that he was an imposing, even a terrible, figure.His eyes were blazing with triumph as his army united with torches to dohim honor. It was like Napoleon on the night before Austerlitz, and whatwas he but the Napoleon of the New World? His figure swelled and thegold braid on his cocked hat and gorgeous uniform reflected the beams ofthe firelight.
A mighty cheer from thousands of throats ran along the Mexican line, andthe torches were waved until they looked like vast circles of fire.Santa Anna lifted his hat and bowed three times in salute. Again theMexican cheer rolled to right and to left. Santa Anna, still sitting onhis horse, spread out his hands. There was instant silence save for thedeep breathing of the men.
"My children," he said, "I have come to sweep away these miserableTexans who have dared to raise the rebel flag against us. We will punishthem all. Houston, Austin, Bowie and the rest of their leaders shallfeel our justice. When we finish our march over their prairies it shallbe as if a great fire had passed. I have said it. I am Santa Anna."
The thunderous cheer broke forth again. Ned had never before heard wordsso full of conceit and vainglory, yet the strength and menace werethere. He felt it instinctively. Santa Anna believed himself to be thegreatest man in the world, and he was certainly the greatest in Mexico.His belief in himself was based upon a deep well of ene
rgy and daring.Once more Ned felt a great and terrible fear for Texas, and the thinline of skin-clad hunters and ranchmen who were its sole defence. Butthe feeling passed as he watched Santa Anna. A young officer rushedforward and held his stirrup as the dictator dismounted. Then thegenerals, including those who had come with him, crowded around him. Itwas a brilliant company, including Sesma, Cos, Duque, Castrillon, Tolsa,Gaona and others, among whom Ned noted a man of decidedly Italianappearance. This was General Vincente Filisola, an Italian officer whohad received a huge grant of land in Texas, and who was now second incommand to Santa Anna.
Ned watched them as they talked together and occasionally the crowdparted enough for him to see Santa Anna, who spoke and gesticulated withgreat energy. The soldiers had been drawn away by the minor officers,and were now dispersing to their places by the fires where they wouldseek sleep.
Ned noticed a trim, slender figure on the outer edge of the group aroundSanta Anna. It seemed familiar, and when the man turned he recognizedthe face of Almonte, the gallant young Mexican colonel who had been kindto him. He was sorry to see him there. He was sorry that he should haveto fight against him.
Santa Anna went presently to a great marquee that had been prepared forhim, and the other generals retired also to the tents that had been setabout it. The dictator was tired from his long ride and must not bedisturbed. Strict orders were given that there should be no noise in thecamp, and it quickly sank into silence.
Ned lay down before one of the fires at the western end of the campwrapped as before in his serape. He counterfeited sleep, but nothing wasfurther from his mind. It seemed to him that he had done all he could doin the Mexican camp. He had seen the arrival of Santa Anna, but therewas no way to learn when the general would order an advance. But hecould infer from Santa Anna's well-known energy and ability that itwould come quickly.
Between the slit left by the brim of his sombrero and his serape hewatched the great fires die slowly. Most of the Mexicans were asleepnow, and their figures were growing indistinct in the shadows. But Ned,rising, slouched forward, imitating the gait of the laziest of theMexicans. Yet his eyes were always watching shrewdly through the slit.Very little escaped his notice. He went along the entire Mexican lineand then back again. He had a good mathematical mind, and he saw thatthe estimate of 7,000 for the Mexican army was not too few. He also sawmany cannon and the horses for a great cavalry force. He knew, too, thatSanta Anna had with him the best regiments in the Mexican service.
On his last trip along the line Ned began to look for the Panther andObed, but he saw no figures resembling theirs, although he was quitesure that he would know the Panther in any disguise owing to his greatsize. This circumstance would make it more dangerous for the Pantherthan for either Obed or himself, as Urrea, if he should see so large aman, would suspect that it was none other than the redoubtablefrontiersman.
Ned was thinking of this danger to the Panther when he came face to facewith Urrea himself. The young Mexican captain was not lacking invigilance and energy, and even at that late hour he was seeing that allwas well in the camp of Santa Anna. Ned was truly thankful now thatMexican custom and the coldness of the night permitted him to cover hisface with his serape and the brim of his sombrero.
"Why are you walking here?" demanded Urrea.
"I've just taken a message to General Castrillon," replied Ned.
He had learned already that Castrillon commanded the artillery, and ashe was at least a mile away he thought this the safest reply.
"From whom?" asked Urrea shortly.
"Pardon, sir," replied Ned, in his best Spanish, disguising his voice asmuch as possible, "but I am not allowed to tell."
Ned's tone was courteous and apologetic, and in ninety-nine cases out ofa hundred Urrea would have contented himself with an impatient word ortwo. But he was in a most vicious temper. Perhaps he had been rebuked bySanta Anna for allowing the rescue of Roylston.
"Why don't you speak up?" he exclaimed. "Why do you mumble your words,and why do you stand in such a slouching manner. Remember that a soldiershould stand up straight."
"Yes, my captain," said Ned, but he did not change his attitude. Thetone and manner of Urrea angered him. He forgot where he was and hisdanger.
Urrea's swarthy face flushed. He carried in his hand a small ridingwhip, which he switched occasionally across the tops of his tall,military boots.
"Lout!" he cried. "You hear me! Why do you not obey!"
Ned stood impassive. Certainly Urrea had had a bad half hour somewhere.His temper leaped beyond control.
"Idiot!" he exclaimed.
Then he suddenly lashed Ned across the face with the little riding whip.The blow fell on serape and sombrero and the flesh was not touched, butfor a few moments Ned went mad. He dropped his rifle, leaped upon theastonished officer, wrenched the whip from his hands, slashed him acrossthe cheeks with it until the blood ran in streams, then broke it in twoand threw the pieces in his face. Ned's serape fell away. Urrea hadclasped his hands to his cheeks that stung like fire, but now herecognized the boy.
"Fulton!" he cried.
The sharp exclamation brought Ned to a realization of his danger. Heseized his rifle, pulled up the serape and sprang back. Already Mexicansoldiers were gathering. It was truly fortunate for Ned that he wasquick of thought, and that his thoughts came quickest when the dangerwas greatest. He knew that the cry of "Fulton!" was unintelligible tothem, and he exclaimed:
"Save me, comrades! He tried to beat me without cause, and now he wouldkill me, as you see!"
Urrea had drawn a pistol and was shouting fiery Mexican oaths. Thesoldiers, some of them just awakened from sleep, and all of them dazed,had gathered in a huddle, but they opened to let Ned pass. Excessive andcruel punishment was common among them. A man might be flogged half todeath at the whim of an officer, and instinctively they protected theircomrade.
As the Mexican group closed up behind him, and between him and Urrea,Ned ran at top speed toward the west where the arroyo cut across theplain. More Mexicans were gathering, and there was great confusion.Everybody was asking what was the matter. The boy's quick wit did notdesert him. There was safety in ignorance and the multitude.
He quickly dropped to a walk and he, too, began to ask of others whathad caused the trouble. All the while he worked steadily toward thearroyo, and soon he left behind him the lights and the shouting. He nowcame into the dark, passed beyond the Mexican lines, and entered the cutin the earth down which he had come.
He was compelled to sit down on the sand and relax. He was exhausted bythe great effort of both mind and body which had carried him through somuch danger. His heart was beating heavily and he felt dizzy. But hiseyes cleared presently and his strength came back. He considered himselfsafe. In the darkness it was not likely that any of the Mexicans wouldstumble upon him.
He thought of the Panther and Obed, but he could do nothing for them. Hemust trust to meeting them again at the place appointed. He looked atthe Mexican camp. The fires had burned up again there for a minute ortwo, but as he looked they sank once more. The noise also decreased.Evidently they were giving up the pursuit.
Ned rose and walked slowly up the arroyo. He became aware that the nightwas very cold and it told on his relaxed frame. He pulled up the serapeagain, and now it was for warmth and not for disguise. He stopped atintervals to search the darkness with his eyes and to listen for noises.He might meet with an enemy or he might meet with one of his friends. Hewas prepared for either. He had regained control of himself both bodyand mind, and his ready rifle rested in the hollow of his arm.
He met neither. He heard nothing but the usual sighing of the prairiewind that ceased rarely, and he saw nothing but the faint glow on thesouthern horizon that marked the Mexican camp where he had met hisenemy.
He left the arroyo, and saw a dark shadow on the plain, the figure of aman, rifle in hand, Ned instantly sprang back into the arroyo and thestranger did the same. A curve in the line of this cut in the earth nowhi
d them from each other, and Ned, his body pressed against the bank,waited with beating heart. He had no doubt that it was a Mexicansentinel or scout more vigilant than the others, and he felt his danger.
Ned in this crisis used the utmost caution. He did not believe that anyother would come, and it must be a test of patience between him and hisenemy. Whoever showed his head first would be likely to lose in the duelfor life. He pressed himself closer and closer against the bank, andsought to detect some movement of the stranger. He saw nothing and hedid not hear a sound. It seemed that the man had absolutely vanishedinto space. It occurred to Ned that it might have been a mere figment ofthe dusk and his excited brain, but he quickly dismissed the idea. Hehad seen the man and he had seen him leap into the arroyo. There couldbe no doubt of it.
There was another long wait, and the suspense became acute. The man wassurely on the other side of that curve waiting for him. He was heldfast. He was almost as much a prisoner as if he lay bound in the Mexicancamp. It seemed to him, too, that the darkness was thinning a little. Itwould soon be day and then he could not escape the notice of horsemenfrom Santa Anna's army. He decided that he must risk an advance and hebegan creeping forward cautiously. He remembered now what he hadforgotten in the first moments of the meeting. He might yet, evenbefore this sentinel or scout, pass as a Mexican.
He stopped suddenly when he heard a low whistle in front of him. Whileit could be heard but a short distance, it was singularly sweet. Itformed the first bars of an old tune, "The World Turned Upside Down,"and Ned promptly recognized it. The whistle stopped in a moment or two,but Ned took up the air and continued it for a few bars more. Then, allapprehension gone, he sprang out of the arroyo and stood upon the bank.Another figure was projected from the arroyo and stood upon the bankfacing him, not more than twenty feet away.
Simultaneously Obed White and Edward Fulton advanced, shook hands andlaughed.
"You kept me here waiting in this gully at least half an hour," saidObed. "Time and I waited long on you."
"But no longer than I waited on you," said Ned. "Why didn't you think ofwhistling the tune sooner?"
"Why didn't you?"
They laughed and shook hands again.
"At any rate, we're here together again, safe and unharmed," said Ned."And now to see what has become of the Panther."
"You'd better be lookin' out for yourselves instead of the Panther,"growled a voice, as a gigantic figure upheaved itself from the arroyoeight or ten yards behind them. "I could have picked you both off whileyou were standin' there shakin' hands, an' neither of you would neverhave knowed what struck him."
"The Panther!" they exclaimed joyously, and they shook hands with himalso.
"An' now," said the Panther, "it will soon be day. We'd better make furour horses an' then clear out. We kin tell 'bout what we've seen an'done when we're two or three miles away."
They found the horses safe in the brushwood, Old Jack welcoming Ned witha soft whinny. They were in the saddle at once, rode swiftly northward,and none of them spoke for a half hour. When a faint tinge of grayappeared on the eastern rim of the world the Panther said:
"My tale's short. I couldn't get into the camp, 'cause I'm too big. Thevery first fellow I saw looked at me with s'picion painted all over him.So I had to keep back in the darkness. But I saw it was a mighty bigarmy. It can do a lot of rippin', an' t'arin', an' chawin'."
"I got into the camp," said Obed, after a minute of silence, "but as I'mnot built much like a Mexican, being eight or ten inches too tall, menwere looking at me as if I were a strange specimen. One touch ofdifference and all the world's staring at you. So I concluded that I'dbetter stay on the outside of the lines. I hung around, and I saw justwhat Panther saw, no more and no less. Then I started back and I struckthe arroyo, which seemed to me a good way for leaving. But before I hadgone far I concluded I was followed. So I watched the fellow who wasfollowing, and the fellow who was following watched me for about a year.The watch was just over when you came up, Panther. It was long, but it'sa long watch that has no ending."
"And I," said Ned, after another wait of a minute, "being neither sotall as Obed nor so big around as the Panther, was able to go about inthe Mexican camp without any notice being taken of me. I saw Santa Annaarrive to take the chief command."
"Santa Anna himself?" exclaimed the Panther.
"Yes, Santa Anna himself. They gave him a great reception. After a whileI started to come away. I met Urrea. He took me for a peon, gave me anorder, and when I didn't obey it tried to strike me across the face witha whip."
"And what did you do?" exclaimed the two men together.
"I took the whip away from him and lashed his cheeks with it. I wasrecognized, but in the turmoil and confusion I escaped. Then I had theencounter with Obed White, of which he has told already."
"Since Santa Anna has come," said the Panther, "they're likely to moveat any moment. We'll ride straight for the cabin an' the boys."