Vasco, Our Little Panama Cousin

by H. Lee M. Pike

  CHAPTER IV.

  STORY OF THE BUCCANEERS

  ENRIQUE'S friend Juan was a fine specimen of the Panama Indian. Hewas straight, clean-limbed, big-boned, well-shaped. His long, coarse,straight black hair hung loosely upon his shoulders. He was not verytall, but out-door life had made him nimble and active and strong, andHarlan especially admired his athletic appearance.

  Indians of unmixed blood are a rarity in Panama now, and Juan wasexceedingly proud of the fact that no Spanish or negro blood flowedin his veins. This, too, probably accounted for his living alone. Hewas a member of the Tule or San Blas tribe of Indians, which not manyyears ago lived on the Atlantic coast of Panama, peaceably pursuing anhonest, industrious life, occupied in fishing, hunting, farming, andsometimes trading.

  Juan knew well what his ancestors had suffered from the Spaniardscenturies ago, and how much it had cost to resist successfully theirattacks. In consequence, he had no love for the white man. His hatred,however, did not include everybody, and he was on terms of closefriendship with Enrique's father, who often marketed the fish Juancaught.

  The Indian met Enrique and his companions with a smile, his even whiteteeth gleaming between his thin lips. He gave them a warm welcome, andinvited them into the shelter of his hut, and the boys were very gladto accept his hearty hospitality.

  "We have come to visit the old city," said Vasco, "and Enrique said youwould be glad to show us about and tell something of its history."

  "Yes, yes, but not now. Sun too hot. Go in and lie down. By and by wego to see the ruins."

  Within the hut swung a hammock, which was generously given up toHarlan, while Vasco and Enrique made themselves comfortable on a rudegrass couch covered with skins.

  Meanwhile Juan set about, in his deliberate way, to prepare a meal forhis visitors.

  "Doesn't it seem strange," said Harlan to his companions, "that thisplace where there were once so many people should now be deserted?"

  The American boy, though as full of fun as any lad, had a poeticnature, and in quiet moments was either building air-castles ordreaming over past events. The historic associations of this placebrought to his mind much that he had read of the early visits of theSpaniards and of the bold buccaneers who followed in their trail.

  Harlan's question had not much meaning either to Enrique or to Vasco,for in fact they knew much less about the history of the country andof their ancestors than did their American friend. But Vasco had enoughcuriosity to be interested in Harlan's question and the thought thatmight be behind it.

  "Were there, then, very many people living here?" he asked.

  "Yes, indeed, thousands and thousands. After his discovery of thePacific Ocean Balboa founded the city, and thousands of Spanishcountrymen flocked to the place in search of gold."

  Harlan came very near saying something about their treatment of thenative Indians, but he happened to think that Vasco and Enrique wereboth descendants of these same conquerors, and he was wise enough tohold his tongue.

  "Many of the Spaniards," he continued, "succeeded way beyond theirwildest dreams, and right here where you see these old ruins they wereable to pile up a big lot of gold."

  "If they became so rich," asked Vasco, "how did it happen that the citywas deserted and fell to ruin?"

  "Oh, that is a long story, and I am not sure that I could tell it verywell, either," replied Harlan.

  "There's plenty of time before Juan will have dinner ready," broke inEnrique, "and I am sure we would both like to hear how Old Panama wasdestroyed. You may be certain that not many boys in this country knowthe story, and it will give us something to brag about."

  "Well, then," began Harlan, "you must know that for many years yourancestors and mine quarrelled, particularly over the control of thesea and its commerce. It was a long fight between the English and theSpanish, and it was a bitter one, too. Millions of dollars were spent,and blood--well, that flowed in rivers.

  "In the search after wealth in the new world, the old rivalry betweenSpanish and English continued, and I guess that when it came to a fightneither side stopped to ask which was right or wrong. The men whosailed the ships on both sides were nothing but a set of pirates, andthe governments at home didn't much care what the sailors did to theirenemies.

  "Thus it came about that a fierce and strong band of buccaneers, underHenry Morgan, was allowed to attack the Spanish vessels even at timeswhen the nations were supposed to be at peace, though of course with nodirect authority. It was this Morgan and his blood-thirsty cutthroatswho destroyed the old city of Panama."

  "How did you learn all this?" interrupted Vasco. "I have lived hereall my life and never heard about this Morgan, though I have heard myfather say that some of his ancestors were among those who lost lifeand property when the city was destroyed."

  "Oh," said Harlan, "some things I learned in history at school, buta great deal I got from books of adventure that father has given me.If you only could read English I would lend you some of them, and youwould find out much more than I can possibly tell you.

  "But let me tell you about Morgan and his men. The old pirate chiefhimself was a Welshman, and if I remember correctly his father was arespectable farmer.

  "The son didn't love the quiet life of a Welsh farmer, and so he lefthome when quite young. He joined the crew of a merchant vessel, andsailed for Barbados.

  "Here he had very bad luck, which no doubt was partly the cause of hisawful cruelty to his enemies in later years. He fell into the hands ofthe Spaniards and was sold into slavery."

  "I'm mighty glad there are no slaves now," broke in Enrique. "I'veheard my father tell some things about the way they lived, and it musthave been terrible."

  "It surely was," replied Harlan, "and yet the conditions of slaverywith which your father is familiar were as nothing compared with thesufferings of slaves in Morgan's time. Probably his case was no betterthan others, but, as matters turned out, he succeeded after a time ingetting his freedom. I can't tell you just how this was brought about,though I am sure his great strength and daring must have had much to dowith it.

  "Morgan next went to Jamaica, where he joined a band of pirates--mostlyEnglish and French--who attacked the Spanish treasure-ships in thesewaters. You can easily imagine that Morgan's part in this businesswasn't small. He never thought of such a thing as mercy. The crews ofcaptured ships who weren't killed in the battles had to walk the plank.

  "Fortune favoured Morgan, and, unlike most of his companions, he savedhis booty, and in a little while was able to buy a ship. In this vesselhe had as villainous a body of men as ever walked the deck.

  "With his ship he joined other pirate captains, and it was not longbefore he was in command of a fleet of fifteen vessels, with over fivehundred men,--men who were not afraid of anything, and who did dreadfulthings wherever they went.

  "With the constant additions to their force, the buccaneers began tospread out. They were not satisfied with capturing ships and killingtheir crews, but began to go upon the land, and a good many nativeand Spanish settlements in the West Indies and on the shore of Southor Central America suffered. Wherever the pirates suspected Spanishtreasure might be stored, they were sure to make their appearance,sooner or later. Town after town was captured and destroyed, andeverything of value carried away."

  "But what has all this to do with Panama?" asked Vasco, who, thoughinterested in Morgan's history, was anxious to learn about thedestruction of the city.

  "I'm coming to that very soon," replied Harlan. "After a time Morganand his men began to wonder if they could not capture Panama, whichwas then the chief city of all this region, and was famous everywherefor its vast wealth. And, as so often happens, the stories about itswonders far exceeded the reality.

  "The inhabitants did not dream that the buccaneers would ever dare toattack Panama, fortified as it was, and defended by Spanish soldiers.But they didn't know much about the spirit which was in Morgan and hismen, and they didn't realize to what the greed for gold would lead.
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  "To make a long story short, Morgan decided to attack Panama. Bythis time he had twelve hundred followers. Landing about forty milesfrom the city, with only a small supply of provisions, they took uptheir long march through forests and over the mountains and acrossthe streams. They could not move very fast, and the men were nearlystarved. I remember reading in some book, that at nightfall oftenthe happiest man in the company was the one who had saved from hisbreakfast a small piece of rawhide on which to make his supper."

  Vasco, who could make good use of anything eatable at any time, andwho even now was wondering if Juan had dinner nearly ready, could notrestrain an exclamation at this statement. "How could they live on thatsort of stuff?" he asked.

  "I don't know, myself," replied Harlan, "but we are told that theskins were first sliced, then dipped in water, and afterward beatenbetween stones. The morsel would then be broiled, cut into bits, anddeliberately chewed, with plenty of cold water to wash it down.

  "In addition to the danger of starvation, the pirates were in constantfear of ambuscades. The Spaniards, who knew of their approach, sentout parties of soldiers to meet them and hinder their march, thoughthe defenders of Panama knew very well that they would lose a pitchedbattle. Consequently they confined themselves to attacks from the coverof the dense forests, and in this way many a buccaneer was killed."

  "Weren't the Englishmen able to find anything to eat while on the way?"asked Enrique.

  "Very little indeed," replied Harlan, "until the ninth day, when theycame to the outskirts of this city. What they saw there was verypleasing to these hungry men. On the broad, level land the other sideof that bridge we just crossed were great herds of cattle."

  "I'll wager they made a rush for them," said Vasco.

  "They did, you may be sure," continued Harlan, "and so hungry were themen that they would hardly stop even to cook the meat.

  "Their hunger satisfied, Morgan and his men moved on, and very sooncaught a glimpse of the roofs and towers of the city. Then what ashout went up! The pirates, tired as they were, tossed their caps inthe air and rushed forward with cheers. Drums were also beaten, andthe invaders acted like crazy men at the thought of securing the richtreasure that lay in the city before them.

  "Many of them wished to charge on the city and capture it at once, buttheir leader gave wiser counsel, and the pirates went into camp for thenight, intending to move forward early in the morning."

  "I should think the pirates would have been afraid to attack the city,"said Vasco, "for there must have been many Spanish soldiers on guardthere."

  Probably Vasco had a higher opinion of Spanish bravery than did Harlan,but the young American gave no hint of his real thought. He simplysaid: "The pirates were the most desperate men on earth, and in theirposition it was win or die, for they could expect no quarter, and couldnot retreat over the path by which they had come.

  "It is true," continued Harlan, "that the Spaniards greatly outnumberedthe buccaneers, and they tried all sorts of schemes to defend the city.Among other things, they collected a great herd of bulls and drovethem into the pirates' ranks with the hope that such disorder would becreated as to make easy the enemy's destruction.

  "But all that could be done in defence was useless against thevillains who were greedy for gold. No mercy was shown, and death wasthe lot of all on either side who fell into the hands of their foes.

  "After fierce fighting, which continued several days, Morgan and hismen got into the city. Immediately the search for treasure was begun.Every house and building was ransacked, and if any inhabitant daredto resist, his life was immediately taken. Even helpless women andchildren were not spared."

  "I don't see why they killed those who were unable to resist them,"said Vasco.

  "One reason why the pirates were so merciless was because of theirdisappointment. Though they did find vast stores of silver and gold,in many houses they were unable to find anything of value. This wasbecause some of the people who lived in the city had hidden theirtreasure--in many cases burying it deep in the ground."

  "That is so," interrupted Enrique, "and I have heard my father tell ofseeing people come here to dig for buried gold. I never heard, though,that any one found much."

  "Let Harlan go on with his story," said Vasco, sharply. "I want to hearhow Morgan succeeded. Besides, I'm beginning to get hungry."

  "There isn't much more to tell," said the young American. "When thepirates had finished their hunt they set fire to the city. At the sametime they went on killing the people. Special vengeance was visited onthe priests, for the robbers had been unable to find the great store ofplate which the Church was supposed to possess.

  "Morgan stayed here four weeks, taking everything of value, both onland and in the harbour. It is said that when he finally left the placeit took one hundred and seventy-five mules to carry the plunder."

  "What became of Morgan finally?" asked Vasco.

  "Soon after his capture of Panama, I believe," replied Harlan, "he wasappointed by King Charles the Second of England as deputy governor ofJamaica. Afterward King James the Second removed him and threw him intoprison for his crimes."

  "And good enough for him!" was Vasco's comment.

  Just at this time Juan appeared in the doorway of the hut. "Come, boys,let's have something to eat," he said.

  That was an invitation none of them cared to refuse, and they respondedas only three hungry boys could.

  Outside on a rude bench was spread the fresh fish that Juan knew sowell how to cook over his camp-fire, together with Vasco's boiled eggs,potatoes, plaintains, and all sorts of vegetables and fruit. The sailand the long walk had added zest to appetites always splendid, and thegood things on the bench disappeared as if by magic.

  "I must say," said Harlan, "that that's about the best tasting fish Iever ate. And I have eaten a good many kinds, too."

  Juan, silent like most of his race, said nothing in reply to thecompliment, but a significant look and a grunt of satisfaction showedthat he appreciated the American boy's remark.

  The boys finished their meal with generous mugs of hot cocoa. Juanwas an expert in its preparation, but to his own particular draughthe added a seasoning of chili pepper. This he drank boiling hot,--aprocess which would have terribly scalded the mouths and throats of hisvisitors, but the Indian swallowed the hot mixture without any troubleand with much satisfaction.

  Vasco and his friends looked on in amazement, and were all the moresurprised when Juan told them that in years gone by it was the fashionof his forefathers to sit upon the ground with open mouths while theirsquaws poured the boiling mixture down their throats.

  THE TOWER OF THE OLD CATHEDRAL]

  Their generous dinner disposed of, Vasco suggested that theyimmediately begin the exploration of the old city. This was agreed toby the others, and under Juan's guidance they at once made their wayinto the dense jungle which had grown up about the ruins.

  Neither of the Panama boys was very romantic in disposition, but Vascocould not help thinking of the pirates of whom Harlan had told,--howthey had trod this very ground, and how back and forth Spaniards andbuccaneers had swept in bloody battle. All the military ardour whichhad been born in his breast was aroused, and he even caught himselfwishing that he had been there to help defend the city. Little did herealize how much less enchanting was the experience than the story.

  It is not possible to describe all that the boys saw. As they wanderedback and forth they imagined that here was a market-place, and therewas the residence of some rich old Spanish trader. Over yonder wasall that remained of a bishop's palace, and near by may have been thegovernor's abode.

  The old cathedral was easily identified by the tower which stillstands. Within its walls the boys went and gazed with awe upon theancient altar on which Pizarro, the adventurous explorer and conqueror,had left an offering to the Holy Virgin before starting on his voyageto Peru.

  Time passed swiftly, however, and it was Enrique who discovered thatthe sun was fast setting.
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  "We must soon be starting," he said to Vasco, "if we are to get homebefore dark."

  Harlan, who overheard what Enrique said, was anxious to startimmediately, for he knew his mother would be worried if he were late.

  So bidding Juan good-bye and thanking him profusely for his kindnessto them, the boys took up their homeward march across the old bridgeand along the coast. Not so much time was spent on the way as in themorning, for now they were intent only on getting home.

  The boat was found safely fast where they had left it, and, quicklyspreading the sail, they were soon speeding across the blue waters ofthe bay. The sail was a delightful one, the cool breeze fanning theircheeks while the slanting rays of the sun cast a glory over the scenewhich subdued their boyish spirits and filled them with awe as theygazed about them.

  Before long, however, they arrived at the water-front of the city.Here was a busy, bustling scene. A great steamer from San Franciscohad arrived during the day, and a gang of negro labourers was busilytransferring the freight from its capacious hold to the cars whichstood alongside on the dock. On the other side of the Isthmus theprocess would have to be repeated in a reverse manner. The freightwould be unloaded from the cars and shipped to New York, New Orleans,Liverpool, and other ports of the United States and Europe.

  At the same time numerous small boats were drawn up near the beach,discharging fish, poultry, fruit, and various cargoes. Here the boyssaw a sight which was new even to Vasco, though he had seen abouteverything that went on in Panama. A small schooner from up the coasthad brought in a cargo of live pigs for the Panama market. The vesselwas not made fast to a wharf and the pigs taken out over a gangplank,but it was moored as near the beach as safety would allow. Then thepigs were dumped overboard and compelled to swim for land, wherethey were caught. Later they would be slaughtered and their carcassesexposed for sale in the market-place.

  The sight of the squealing, swimming pigs was very amusing to Vasco andHarlan, and they watched with glee the unloading of the whole boat-loadbefore they went ashore.

  "What queer-looking pigs those are!" said Harlan.

  "Why?" Vasco asked.

  "See how lean they are, and what long snouts they have!"

  "Well, isn't that the way all pigs look?"

  "Not up in my country," replied Harlan. "Those that I have seen were sofat that they could hardly move. These pigs are not at all like them;though I have heard that in the Southern States many of the wild hogsare thin and long-legged."

  Soon the boys bade each other good night, and Vasco went to hishome ready for the supper his mother had prepared for him. Not longafterward he went to bed, thoroughly tired, but very much pleased withhis day's outing. If he dreamed at all that night there must haveappeared a strange mixture of Spaniards and pirates and Indians andruins and--pigs!