Under Drake's Flag: A Tale of the Spanish Main

by G. A. Henty

  Among the spectators on the mole were the governor and otherprincipal officers of Arica.

  "It seems almost like a miracle from heaven," the priest, who wasstanding next the governor, exclaimed.

  The governor was scowling angrily at the boat.

  "If there be a miracle," he said, "good father, it is that our eyeshave been blinded so long. Think you, for a moment, that two ladswho have been brought up among the Indians, from their childhood,could manage a boat in such a sea as this? Why, if their story weretrue they could, neither of them, ever have handled an oar; andthese are sailors, skillful and daring beyond the common, and haveventured a feat that none of our people here on shore were willingto undertake. How they got here I know not, but assuredly they areEnglish sailors. This will account for their blue eyes and lighthair, which have so puzzled us; and for that ignorance of Spanish,which they so craftily accounted for."

  Although the assembled mass of people on the beach had not arrivedat the conclusions to which the governor had jumped, they werefilled with astonishment and admiration at the daring deed whichhad been accomplished; and when the boat was safely brought roundbehind the shelter of the rock, and its occupants landed on theshore, loud cheers broke from the crowd; and the lads received aperfect ovation, their comrades of the barracks being especiallyenthusiastic. Presently the crowd were severed by two soldiers, whomade their way through it and, approaching Ned and Tom, said:

  "We have the orders of the governor to bring you to him."

  The lads supposed that the governor desired to thank them, forsaving the lives of the shipwrecked men; for in the excitement ofthe rescue, the thought that they had exposed themselves by theirknowledge of seamanship had never crossed their minds. The crowdfollowed tumultuously, expecting to hear a flattering tribute paidto the young men who had behaved so well. But the aspect of thegovernor as, surrounded by his officers, he stood in one of thebatteries on the mole, excited a vague feeling of astonishment andsurprise.

  "You are two English seamen," he said, when the lads approached."It is useless lying any longer. Your knowledge of seamanship, andyour appearance, alike convict you."

  For an instant the boys were too surprised to reply, and then Tomsaid, boldly:

  "We are, sir. We have done no wrong to any man, and we are not ashamed,now, to say we are Englishmen. Under the same circumstances, I doubtnot that any Spaniard would have similarly tried to escape recognition.But as chance has betrayed us, any further concealment were unnecessary."

  "Take them to the guard house," the governor said, "and keep aclose watch over them. Later, I will interrogate them myself, inthe palace."

  The feelings of the crowd, on hearing this unexpected colloquy,were very mixed. In many, the admiration which the boys' conducthad excited swallowed up all other feeling. But among the lessenthusiastic minds, a vague distrust and terror was at once excitedby the news that English sailors were among them. No Englishman hadever been seen on that coast, and they had inflicted such terriblelosses, on the West Indian Islands and on the neighboring coast,that it is no matter for surprise that their first appearance onthe western shores of South America was deemed an omen of terribleimport.

  The news rapidly spread from mouth to mouth, and a large crowdfollowed in the rear of the little party, and assembled around thegovernor's house. The sailors who had been rescued had many friendsin the port, and these took up the cause of the boys, and shoutedthat men who had done so gallant a deed should be pardoned,whatever their offense Perhaps, on the whole, this party were inthe majority. But the sinister whisper that circulated among thecrowd, that they were spies who had been landed from English shipson the coast, gradually cooled even the most enthusiastic of theirpartisans; and what at one time appeared likely to become aformidable popular movement, gradually calmed down, and the crowddispersed.

  When brought before the governor, the boys affected no moreconcealment; but the only point upon which they refused to giveinformation was respecting the ships on which they had sailed, andthe time at which they had been left upon the eastern coast ofAmerica. Without absolutely affirming the fact, they led to thebelief that they had passed some years since they left theirvessels.

  The governor presently gazed sharply upon them, and demanded:

  "Are you the two whites who headed the negro revolt in Porto Rico,and did so much damage to our possessions in that island?"

  Ned would have hesitated as to the answer, but Tom at once said,firmly:

  "We are not those two white men, sir, but we know them well; andthey were two gallant and loyal Englishmen who, as we know, didmuch to restrain the atrocities of the Indians. We saw them, whenthey regained their ships."

  It was lucky, indeed, that the governor did not put the questionseparately, instead of saying, "Were you two the leaders?" for inthat case Ned would have been forced to acknowledge that he was oneof them.

  The outspokenness of Tom's answer allayed the governor'ssuspicions. A great portion of his questioning was directed todiscovering whether they really had crossed the continent; for he,as well as the populace outside, had at first conceived the ideathat they might have been landed on the coast as spies. The fact,however, that they were captured far up among the Cordilleras;their dress and their appearance; and their knowledge of the nativetongues--which he tested by bringing in some natives, who enteredinto conversation with them--convinced him that all this portion oftheir story was true.

  As he had no fear of their escaping he said that, at present, heshould not treat them as prisoners; and that their gallant conduct,in rowing out to save the lives of Spaniards in danger, entitledthem to every good treatment; but that he must report their case tothe authorities at Lima, who would of course decide upon it.

  The priest, however, urged upon the governor that he shouldcontinue his instructions to them in the Catholic religion; and thegovernor then pointed out to Ned, who alone was able to conversefluently in Spanish, that they had now been so long separated fromtheir countrymen that they might, with advantage to themselves,become naturalized as Spaniards; in which case he would push theirfortunes to the utmost and, with his report in their favor, theymight rise to positions of credit and honor; whereas, if theyinsisted upon maintaining their nationality as Englishmen, it wasbut too probable that the authorities at Lima would consider itnecessary to send them, as prisoners, to Spain. He said, however,that he would not press them for an answer, at once.

  Greatly rejoiced at finding that they were not, at present, to bethrown into prison; but were to be allowed to continue theirindependent life, in the barracks; the lads took their departurefrom the governor's house, and were most cordially received bytheir comrades.

  For a short time everything went smoothly. The suspicion that theywere spies had now passed away, and the remembrance of theircourageous action made them popular among all classes in the town.A cloud, however, began to gather slowly round them. Now that theyhad declared their nationality, they felt that they could no longereven pretend that it was likely that they might be induced toforsake their religion; and they accordingly refused, positively,to submit any longer to the teaching of the priests. Arguments werespent upon them in vain and, after resorting to these, threats werenot obscurely uttered. They were told, and with truth that, onlytwo or three months before, six persons had been burned alive, atLima, for defying the authority of the church; and that, if theypersisted in their heretical opinions, a similar fate might fallupon them.

  English boys are accustomed to think with feelings of unmitigatedhorror, and indignation, of the days of the Inquisition; and intimes like these, when a general toleration of religious opinionprevails, it appears to us almost incredible that men should haveput others to death, in the name of religion. But it is only byplacing ourselves in the position of the persecutors, of the middleages, that we can see that what appears to us cruelty andbarbarity, of the worst kind, was really the result of a zeal; inits way as earnest, if not as praiseworthy, as that which nowimpels missionaries to go,
with their lives in their hands, toregions where little but a martyr's grave can be expected. Nowadayswe believe--at least all right-minded men believe--that there isgood in all creeds; and that it would be rash, indeed, to condemnmen who act up to the best of their lights, even though thoselights may not be our own.

  In the middle ages there was no idea of tolerance such as this. Menbelieved, fiercely and earnestly, that any deviation from the creedto which they, themselves, belonged meant an eternity ofunhappiness. Such being the case, the more earnestly religious aman was, the more he desired to save those around him from thisfate. The inquisitors, and those who supported them, cannot becharged with wanton cruelty. They killed partly to save those whodefied the power of the church, and partly to prevent the spread oftheir doctrines. Their belief was that it was better that one manshould die, even by the death of fire, than that hundreds shouldstray from the pale of the church, and so incur the loss of eternalhappiness. In the Indies, where the priests in many cases showed adevotion, and heroic qualities, equal to anything which has everbeen displayed by missionaries, in any part of the world,persecution was yet hotter than it ever was in civilized Europe.These men believed firmly that it was their bounden duty, at anycost, to force the natives to become Christians; and however we maythink that they were mistaken and wrong, however we may abhor theacts of cruelty which they committed, it would be a mistake,indeed, to suppose that these were perpetrated from mere lightnessof heart, and wanton bloodthirstiness.

  The laws of those days were, in all countries, brutally severe. InEngland, in the reign of Henry the Eighth, the loss of an ear wasthe punishment inflicted upon a man who begged. The second time heoffended, his other ear was cut off. A third repetition of theoffense, and he was sold into slavery; and if he ran away from hismaster, he was liable to be put to death by the first person whomet him. The theft of any article above the value of threeshillings was punishable by death, and a similar code of punishmentprevailed for all kinds of offenses Human life was then held insuch slight regard that we must remember that, terrible as thedoings of the Inquisition were, they were not so utterly foreign,to the age in which they were perpetrated, as would appear to us,living in these days of moderate punishment and general humanity.

  By the boys, however, brought up in England, which at that time wasbitterly and even fiercely anti-Catholic--a state of things whichnaturally followed the doings in the reign of Queen Mary, and thethreatening aspect maintained by Spain towards this country--poperywas held in utter abhorrence, and the Inquisition was the bugbearwith which mothers frightened their children, when disobedient.

  The thought, therefore, of falling into the hands of this dreadedtribunal was very terrible to the boys. They debated, betweenthemselves, whether it would not be better for them to leave Aricasecretly, to make for the mountains, and to take up their lot, forlife, among the natives of the plains, who had so hospitablyreceived them. They had, indeed, almost arrived at the conclusionthat this would be their best plan of procedure.

  They lingered, however, in the hope, daily becoming fainter, of thearrival of Drake's fleet; but it seemed that, by this time, it musthave failed in its object of doubling the Horn. Nearly six monthshad elapsed, since they had been left on the eastern coast; and,according to their calculation of distance, two months should haveamply sufficed to enable them to make the circuit of SouthernAmerica.

  They could not tell that the fleet had been delayed byextraordinary accidents. When off the Cape they had met withstorms, which continued from the 7th of September to the 28th ofOctober, without intermission; and which the old chronicler of theexpedition describes as being "more violent, and of longercontinuance, than anything since Noah's flood." They had to wastemuch time, owing to the fact that Captain Winter with one of theships had, missing his consorts in the storm, sailed back toEngland, that two other ships were lost, and that Captain Drakewith his flagship, which alone remained, had spent much time insearching for his consorts, in every inlet and island.

  Among those saved, in the boat from the Spanish ship, was a younggentleman of rank and fortune, and owner of large estates nearLima, who had come down upon some business. He took a greataffection for the young Englishmen, and came each day to visitthem, there being no let or hindrance on the part of the governor.This gentleman assured them that he possessed great influence atLima; and that, although he doubted not that the militaryauthorities would treat them with all courtesy, after the manner inwhich they had risked their lives to save subjects of his majesty;yet that, should it be otherwise, he would move heaven and earth intheir favor.

  "There is but one thing I dread," he said, and a cloud came overhis handsome face.

  "You need hardly say what it is," Ned said, gravely. "You mean, ofcourse, the Inquisition."

  The Spaniard signified his assent by a silent movement of the head.

  "We dare not speak, above our breath, of that dreaded tribunal," hesaid. "The very walls appear to have ears; and it is better to facea tiger, in his den, than to say ought against the Inquisition.There are many Spaniards who, like myself, loathe and abhor it; butwe are powerless. Their agents are everywhere, and one knows not inwhom he dare confide. Even in our families there are spies, andthis tyranny, which is carried on in the name of religion, is pastall supporting.

  "But, even should the 'holy office' lay its hands upon you, keep upheart. Be assured that I will risk all that I am worth, and mylife, to boot, to save you from it."

  "Would you advise us to fly?" Ned said. "We can without doubtescape from here, for we are but lightly guarded; and the governor,I am sure, is friendly towards us."

  "Whither would you fly?" asked the young Spaniard.

  "We would cross the mountains to the plains, and join the Indiansthere."

  "It would be a wretched life," the Spaniard said, "and would cutyou off from all kindred, and friends. I can give you no advice. Tome, I confess, death would be preferable, even in its worst forms.But to you, fond of exercise, and able to cause yourself to berespected, and feared, by the wild Indians of the Pampas, it mightbe different.

  "However, you need not decide, yet. I trust that, even should theworst befall you, I may be able, at the last moment, to give youthe opportunity of choosing that life, in preference to death inthe dungeons of the Inquisition."

  It was about ten days from the date of the governor's writing thata ship came in from Lima, and the same evening the governor came into them, with a grave face. He was attended by two officials,dressed in the deepest black.

  "Senors," he said, "it is my duty, in the first place, to informyou that the governor of Lima, acting upon the report, which I senthim, of the bravery which you manifested in the matter of the wreckhere, has agreed to withdraw all question against you, touchingyour past connection with the English freebooters; and to allow youfreedom, without let or hindrance, and to further your passage tosuch place as opportunity may afford, and where you may be able tomeet with a ship from your own country. That is all I have to sayto you."

  Then the men in black stepped forward and said, "We arrest you, inthe name of the holy Inquisition, on the charge of heresy."

  The young men glanced at the governor, believing that he wassufficiently their friend to give them a sign, if resistance wouldbe of any avail. He replied to the unspoken question by an almostimperceptible shake of the head; and it was well that the boysabandoned the idea, for the door opened and a guard of six men,armed to the teeth, although in plain dark clothes, entered. Thesewere the alguazils of the holy office, the birds of night, whoseappearance was dreaded even by the most bigoted Spaniards; and atwhose approach mothers clasped their children closer to theirbreast, and men crossed themselves, at the thought that theirpassage boded death to some unhappy victim. For it must beremembered that the Inquisition, framed at first only for thediscovery and punishment of heresy, later became an instrument ofprivate vengeance. Men denounced wives of whom they wished to berid, wives husbands; no relations of kin were sufficient to ensuresafety. The ev
idence, sometimes true, was more often manufacturedby malice and hate; until at last even the most earnest and sincereCatholics trembled when they thought that, at any moment, theymight be denounced and flung into the dungeons of the Inquisition.

  Brave as the lads were, they could not avoid a thrill of horror, atthe presence of the familiars of this dreaded body. They were,however, cheered by the thought of the promises of the youngSpaniard, in whose honesty and honor they had great faith; and witha few words of adieu to the governor, and thanks to him for what hehad done in their behalf, they followed the officers of theInquisition along the streets of Arica, and suffered themselves tobe placed on board the boat, which lay alongside the mole.

  Although it was late in the evening, their passage was notunobserved. Many of the soldiers recognized, in the two menmarching, surrounded by the black guard of the Inquisition, theirlate comrades; and, confident in their numbers, these did nothesitate to lift their voices, in loud protest, against thisseizure of men who had behaved so gallantly. In the darkness, too,they feared not that their faces would be recognized, and theircurses and threats rose loud in the air.

  People looking out from their doors, to hear the cause of theuproar, were variously affected. Some joined in the movement of thesoldiers; but more shrank back with dread into their houses, ratherthan be compromised with so dreaded a body.

  The threats, however, did not proceed to open violence; and as theyoung men, themselves, gave no sign of attempting an effort forfreedom, their comrades contented themselves with many shouts ofgood wishes, mingled with curses upon their captors; and the ladswere embarked, without the alguazils having to use the swords whichthey had drawn in readiness for the expected fray.

  "You are witness, senor officer," Ned said, "that we came withoutresistance; and that, had we chosen, we could, with the assistanceof the soldiers, have easily broken from the hold of your men. Weare willing, however, to proceed with you to Lima; where we doubtnot that the justice of our judges will result in our acquittal. Noone can blame us that we are of the religion of our fathers. Had webeen born Catholics, and then relapsed into heresy, it would havebeen reasonable for you to have considered our case; but as we buthold the religion which we have been taught, and know indeed of noother, we see not how, in any man's eyes, blame can rest upon us."

  "I take note," the officer said, "of the docility with which youhave remained in our hands; and will so far testify in your favorTouching the other matter, it is beyond my jurisdiction."

  The vessel in which the boys were embarked was a slow one and, twodays after leaving Arica, they saw a small sailing craft pass them,at no great distance, sailing far more rapidly than they themselveswere going. The boys gave no thought to this occurrence, until theyarrived at the harbor of Lima. A large number of ships were hereanchored and, after the solitude of the sea, which they had enduredduring their voyage from England, this collection of fine galleonsgreatly pleased the boys, who had never seen so large a number ofships collected together, there being nigh forty sail then inharbor.

  As the officers of the Inquisition scarcely ever pass through thestreets in the daytime, owing to the known hostility of the mass ofthe population, no attempt at a landing was made, until nightfall.The officer in charge was however surprised, upon reaching thelanding place, to find a large crowd assembled, who saluted hisparty with hisses and groans, and loud cries of "shame!" Thosebehind pressed forward, and those in front were forced into theranks of the alguazils; and it seemed, at one time, as if theprisoners would be separated from their guards.

  A man in a rough peasant's dress was forced in contact with Ned,and said hastily, in a low voice to him:

  "Keep up your heart. When preparations are made, I will act."

  Ned recognized the voice of the young Spanish gentleman, whom hehad left at Arica; and guessed immediately that he had takenpassage in the swift-sailing caravel, in order to be able to reachLima before the vessel containing the prisoners. Ned had, inconfidence, in his talks with him, informed him that he stillhoped, although his hopes had now fallen almost to zero from thelong tarrying of the fleet, that the English admiral would arrive;and that he should be able to go on board, and so rejoin hiscountrymen. This expectation, indeed, it was which had preventedNed and Tom making their escape, when they could have done so, andtaking to the mountains; for it was certain that some time, atleast, would elapse before stringent measures would be takenagainst them. Another effort would, without doubt, be made topersuade them to abandon their religion; and every day might bringwith it the arrival of the English vessels.

  The young men were conducted to a dark and sombre building, whichbore the appearance of a vast monastery. The interior was even moredismal in its appearance than the walls without. A solitary figuremet them at the doorway. Their guards entered, and the gates wereclosed behind.

  The officer in charge handed to the newcomer a paper; and thelatter, receiving it, said, "I accept the charge of the prisoners,and your duties are at an end, concerning them."

  Motioning them to follow, he led them through some long darkcorridors, into a room much better furnished and provided than theyhad expected. Here, placing a lamp upon the table, and pointing totwo manchets of bread and a vessel of water, which stood on thetable; and to two truckle beds, in the corner of the room, he leftthem without a word. Ned had already agreed with his companion thatthey would not, when once within the building, say a word, to eachother, which they would not have heard by their jailors; for theywere well aware that these buildings were furnished with listeningplaces, and that every word which prisoners said would beoverheard, and used against them. They comforted themselves,therefore, with general observations as to their voyage, and to theroom in which they now were; and to the hopes, which theyentertained, that their judges would take a favorable view of theirconduct.

  Then, with a sincere prayer to God, to spare them through thedangers and trials which they might have to undergo, they lay downfor the night; and, such is the elasticity and strength of youth,they were, in spite of the terrible position in which they wereplaced, in a few minutes fast asleep.

  The next day the door of the apartment opened, and two attendants,dressed in black from head to foot, and bearing white wands,entered, and motioned to them to follow them. Through more longcorridors and passages they went, until they stopped at some thickcurtains, overhanging a door. These were drawn aside, the doorbehind them was opened, other curtains hanging on the inside wereseparated, and they entered a large apartment, lighted artificiallyby lamps from above.

  At a table at the end of the room were seated three men, also inblack. They were writing, and for some time did not look up fromtheir work. The attendants stood motionless by the side of thelads; who, in spite of their courage, could not but shudder at thegrim silence of this secret tribunal.

  At last the chief inquisitor laid down his pen and, lifting hiseyes towards them, said:

  "Your names are Edward Hearne and Thomas Tressilis. You are Englishsailors who, having crossed from the other side of the continent,made your way to Arica; where you did, as I am told, a braveaction, in saving the lives of some Spanish sailors."

  Tom assented gravely to the address.

  "You are accused," the inquisitor went on, "of being steeped in theerrors of heresy; and of refusing to listen to the ministrations ofthe holy father, who tried to instruct you in the doctrines of thetrue church. What have you to say to this?"

  "It is true, sir," Ned said, "every word. We were born Protestants,and were brought up in that church. Had we been born in Spain weshould, no doubt, have been true members of your church. But it ishard that men, once ingrained in a faith, should change it foranother. It were like asking a tiger to become a leopard. We areunlearned men, and in no way skilled in the exercises of theology.We accepted what we were taught, and would fain die in the samebelief. Doubtless your priests could give us arguments which weshould be unable to refute, whatever might be done by learned menof our church; and we would pray you to
suffer us to hold to thecreed in which we have been reared."

  "It is impossible," the inquisitor said, "that we should permit youto go on, straightway, in the way of damnation. Your bodies are asnothing to the welfare of your souls; and to save the one it were,indeed, for your good that the other were tormented. We will not,however, press you now to recant your errors. You shall be attendedby a minister of the true religion, who will point out to you theerror of your courses; and in three days we shall expect an answerfrom you. If you embrace the faith of the Holy Church you may, ifyou choose to remain here, rise to posts of honor and wealth; forwe have heard good things of your courage and prudence. If,however, you remain stubborn, we shall find means to compel you todo that which we would fain that you should do of your free will;and if you still defy, at once, the kindness and the chastisementof the church, you will receive that doom which awaits all who defyits authority."

  The attendants now touched the lads on the arm, in token that theaudience was over, and led them back to the room in which they hadfirst been confined. When left alone the boys examined thisclosely, although seeming to be looking without motive at thewalls. The windows were placed high up from the ground, far beyondtheir reach, and were thickly barred.

  The door was of massive oak; and the room, although in appearancebut an ordinary apartment, was truly a dungeon as safe, and asdifficult to break out of, as if far below the surface of theearth. Later on, when an attendant came in with the bread andwater, which formed the substance of each meal, as he placed it onthe table he said, in a low muttered whisper:

  "Hope always. Friends are working."

  This intimation greatly raised the spirits of the prisoners, asthey felt that their friend the Spaniard had already succeeded incorrupting some, at least, of the familiars of the Inquisition; andthat no means would be spared to secure their escape, should theworst occur.

  For three days they were visited for many hours daily by a priest,who endeavored to explain to Ned the points of difference betweenthe two religions, and to convince him of the errors of that ofEngland. Ned, however, although but a poor theologist, gave answer,to all his arguments, that he could in no way reply to thereasonings of the priest; but that he was, nevertheless, convincedof their error, and sure that a divine of his church would havefound replies to difficulties to which he could see no outlet. Thepriest strove earnestly with him, but at the end of the third dayhe retired, exasperated, saying angrily that he now left them toother hands.

  Chapter 16: The Rescue.