Sir Clements R. Markham

“ We were all mustered and ready to start on the verge of Gironda's clearing, which is surrounded by tall forest trees, with the river rushing noisily past, and the opposite mountains covered to their summits with fine timber, when half a dozen pale-faced men emerged from the tangled thicket in our front. They looked wan and cadaverous like men risen from the dead, and worn out by long watching and fatigue. They turned out to be Collahuayas, collectors of drugs and incense, who penetrate far into the forests to obtain their wares, and come forth, as we then saw them, looking pale and haggard. ”

“ O Urco, the Inca has made
A great and a powerful chief,
And grants thee with marvellous grace
The arrow and also the plume.
RUMI-ÑAUI.
Illustrious King, I venture to ask,
Will Anti-suyu have two chiefs.
TUPAC YUPANQUI.
There will not be two, O Rumi-ñaui
The Mountain Chief will rule the Antis;
In Cuzco Ollantay will reign—
As Viceroy deputed by me
His duties will call him to act
As ruler throughout the whole realm.
OLLANTAY.
O King! thou dost raise me too high,
A man without service or claim;
I am thy obedient slave—
Mayst thou live for a thousand years. ”

“ There is a fine passage in Captain Scott’s Voyage of the Discovery on this subject:—
“To pretend that dogs can be made greatly to increase the radius of action without pain, suffering, and death, is futile, and this sordid necessity robs sledge-travelling of much of its glory. In my mind no journey ever made with dogs can approach the height of that fine conception which is realised when a party of men go forth to face hardships, dangers, and difficulties by their own unaided efforts, and by days and weeks of hard physical labour succeed in solving some problem of the great journey.” ”

“ Is it a priest sacrificing a bullock to Woden?" said Oswith. "That cannot be," objected Coelred, "for the images were not made by our people, nor do we make images of the sacrificers but of the gods, and those only at Godmundham." Porlor sat long gazing at the fine bas–relief, on which a few rays from the sun cast a dim light. "The being with a high cap," he said, "is a god, not a man. I see by his face that he is a good god." His companions looked again more closely. "The god is plunging a knife into the bull, but it is not to do harm but good, for he is a good god." ”

“ The scenery is here remarkably beautiful. Lofty mountains, with their bright cascades, are clothed to their summits with rich grass, while their gullies are filled with flowering trees and shrubs. Half-way up, in many directions, the stone terraces of coca rise tier above tier, fringed with ferns and begonias, and filled with the delicate coloured green coca-branches, diversified occasionally by the darker hues of the coffee. The ravine is filled with masses of purple Melastomaceæ, and the river is fringed with tree-ferns, plantains, and bamboos. ”

“ THE ARCTIC REGIONS
The history of the Polar Regions, of those vast areas, difficult of access, which include millions of square miles of land and ocean at either extreme of our planet, is of surpassing interest and importance. It is not only that we here meet with examples of heroism and devotion which must entrance mankind for all time. It is not only that there are dangers to be encountered and difficulties to be overcome which call forth the best qualities of our race. These, no doubt, are the main reasons for the deep interest which polar exploration has always excited. ”

“ That dogged courage facing overwhelming odds rather than wait for help or give ground is the secret of England's success. Often leading to decisive victory it has sometimes resulted in disaster. Never more conspicuous than in the audacious campaigns of Crecy and Agincourt, when fortune was on the side of reckless valour, it was equally present on the fatal field of Beaugé, when Thomas Duke of Clarence lost his life. We find it again at Wakefield, a battle which resembles Bosworth in several respects. ”

“ Young Jayme burst into tears at the loss of so many dear friends and comrades. The whole army mourned with their King. But they were now in sight of the beautiful city, the capture of which would be the crown of their enterprise. The King was dead tired and nearly famished, for he had eaten nothing all day. Going down a mountain spur, in company with En Nuño, they came upon a tent pitched under the pine-trees, amidst brushwood consisting of tree heaths, lentisco, and wild lavender. ”

“ TUPAC YUPANQUI.
It must be so without any doubt,
That the orphans may not be alone,
Let all perish, not sparing one,
Thus Cuzco recovers her peace,
Let the traitors be brought before me.
In my presence the sentence they’ll hear.
(Exit Rumi-ñaui, and re-enter followed by guards in charge of OLLANTAY, URCO HUARANCA, and HANCO HAUYLLU, bound and blindfold, followed by guards with PIQUI CHAQUI bound.)
TUPAC YUPANQUI.
Take the bands off the eyes of those men.
And now, Ollantay, where art thou?
And where art thou, O Mountain Chief?
Soon thou wilt roll down from the heights. ”

“ The occasional openings in the forests, at turns in the road, afforded us views of the mountains below us covered with the richest vegetation, and of the rice-fields of Malabar stretching away to the faintly indicated blending of sea and haze on the horizon; which almost equalled in beauty the finest parts of the eastern Andes. From about 1000 to 5000 feet above the sea the jungle is covered with innumerable leeches, which eagerly fasten on their prey, whether men, horses, or dogs, and make a journey through this region, in the wet season, exceedingly disagreeable. ”

“ Bitter rage was mingled with the intense grief of the Deirans, from the King downwards. Lost in their prime, and in an instant! Such sorrow as is felt by men who have shared every hope and every joy, almost every thought, with the lost ones cannot be described. After the first agony was passed, Coelred and Porlor saw most vividly the stalwart little Oswith ready to wrestle with them on the green at Hemingborough, and the brave boy Forthere sinking exhausted from running and swimming, in the court at Stillingfleet. ”

“ In the whole range of polar history there is no greater name than that of Robert Falcon Scott. A life of devotion to duty, latterly of devotion to scientific discovery, was closed by a heroic and glorious death. A man with rare gifts both of head and heart, those gifts were nobly used through life, and were never more prominent than in his last fatal march and in the hour of death. ”

“ Even in his wild gallop into imminent peril at Bordeaux he thought out every part of the enterprise down to the minutest detail. He was invariably well served, and invariably successful. This cannot be ascribed to luck. A king who succeeds in all he undertakes must have rare gifts of head and heart to plan out the details of his undertakings and to secure the sympathy and devotion of those who serve him. Pedro was thus gifted, while his administrative ability ensured the prosperity of his country. Under him Aragon became a great naval Power, and Sicily was freed from a foreign yoke. ”

“ Their first words, as they sat among the bales, were words of grief at the sorrow and anxiety of their relations, who would search high and low through the woods, until at last they gave them up as dead. "Alca will give them hope and courage," said Coelred. "She will know that we are together, and she knows that we shall return. For we are to die in battle fighting for a righteous cause, and that cannot be anywhere but in England. She is praying now that the gods will watch over us, and her prayers are ever answered." ”

“ At sunset the view of Waee from the opposite side of the river, with the temples reflected in the water, the thickets of trees behind, and the crowds of people in snow-white cotton dresses and red turbans, was enchanting. Waee derives its great sanctity partly from being on the banks of the sacred Krishna, and partly from the tradition that it was the residence of the five Pandus, the favourite mythical heroes of the Hindus, during part of the time of their exile. The people still have many tales respecting their deeds, especially those of Bhima, who was the biggest and strongest of the five. ”

“ RUMI-ÑAUI.
If you continue to vex me
I will take your life.
PIQUI CHAQUI.
Ollantay, is it? He is at work.
Ollantay! He is building a wall,
With very small stones indeed;
They are brought by little dwarfs—
So small that to be a man’s size
They have to climb on each other’s backs.
But tell me, O friend of the King, [56]
Why art thou in such long clothes,
Trailing like the wings of a sick bird [57] —
As they are black it is better.
RUMI-ÑAUI.
Hast thou not seen already
That Cuzco is plunged in grief? ”

“ The Son of God will rise again in triumph. I sometimes think that he has risen, though as yet we know it not." Then the far–off look came again into Alca's blue eyes, and during the rest of her speech she gazed into the heavens. The boys listened almost breathless.
"I think that God has risen to redeem the world," she resumed. "I am impelled to this belief, though I know not why, or by what guiding power. But misfortune and sorrow will not end—not yet. Coelred, Hereric, Oswith, Forthere, Porlor, I love you as very dear brothers. ”