Diego Garcia

“ As the soldiers in Cuzco had now received news of the entry of Vaca de Castro into the Realm, they felt the necessity for peace among themselves in order to be in a position to resist attack, come whence it might; and they therefore approached their captains, with a view to mediation between Don Diego and García de Alvarado. But as the latter knew he was to blame in reference to past transactions, he asked that Don Diego would make him his Captain-General and give him sufficient power to govern the camp in Don Diego's name. ”

“ In El lindo Don Diego he has fixed the type of the fop convinced that he is irresistible, and the presentation of fatuity which leads Don Diego into marriage with a [335] serving-wench (whom he mistakes for a countess) is among the few masterpieces of high comedy. Moreto's historical plays are of less universal interest; in this kind, El Rico Hombre de Alcalá is a powerful and sympathetic picture of Pedro the Cruel—the strong man doing justice on the noble, Tello García—from the standpoint of the Spanish populace, which has ever respected el Rey justiciero. ”

“ Some soldiers insisted to García de Alvarado that he should kill Don Diego, and march with the remains of his army against Vaca de Castro, wherever he might appear, for they did not deem it safe to trust Don Diego any longer, nor others who had shown themselves to be their enemies. ”

“ Garcia Fernandez motioned [80] him to hush, pointing to the gathering wrath on Martin Alonzo’s face; but Diego was in the full tide of his wrongs and was not to be hushed. “You have forced me to come, when I prayed you not; you have likened me publicly to a thief and a convict; you have struck me unreasonably; and you have been willing to put a felon’s shame on me. If your ship had gone to the bottom it would have been your own fault in putting such a fear on me that I could not tell my plain duty. So I say to you plainly, I know who cut the gear, and I will not tell you!” ”

“ He inherited the piercing blue eyes of the Genoese navigator—those commanding eyes, once seen, were unforgettable. His fair skin was freckled by living much in the open, and his wide, frank mouth expressed resolution as well as a charming gaiety of heart. Diego, however, could be serious enough when occasion required. He had known more in his short life of the rubs of fortune, of hope deferred, of splendid dreams and heartbreaking disappointments, of courts, of camps, of penury, of luxury, than many men know in the course of a long span of years. ”

“ Have done then with your hints that Diego is not worthy of my tenderness; that he has it is enough to invest him with a thousand perfections too ætherial for your gross sight, and perhaps too unsubstantial for any but a lover's perception. In vain you disparage his features or his stature; in my eyes he was created to undo, and encircled by the hand of Nature with the glories of the opening day. Nay, more, there is a thrilling sweetness in his voice; his touch on the guitar has the taste of an amateur, and the execution of a professor. ”

“ DUKE
Methinks it may be Diego now, tormenting his Master with needless questions. Loved her, boy! I love her.
A long pause. Diego has covered his face, with a gesture as if about to speak. But the moon has suddenly risen from behind the poplars, and put scales of silver light upon the ripples of the lake, and a pale luminous mist around the palace. As the light invades the terrace, a sort of chill has come upon both speakers; they walk up and down further from one another. ”

“ Apart from the deep and penetrating joy of seeing his father and the splendid glow of pride which naturally filled Diego’s heart, he, like Don Felipe, was consumed with curiosity concerning the strange new lands to the west, the men of a race never before seen in Europe, whom the Admiral had brought back, the specimens of birds, plants, minerals, and animals hitherto unknown. ”

“ Diego was a fine-looking man, over six feet high, and with limbs as hard as a stone, though they were so slender; and he had no hesitation in pitting his own strength against the horse’s. With infinite patience he stood, the centre of a circle, while the frightened creature ran off his first fit of energy, round and round his captor; then, having spied a clump of trees not far away, the Quiteño let himself be dragged towards these; and, before the horse had realised that he was running to his doom, the lasso had taken a turn round the nearest trunk and was soon hitched there immovable. ”

“ On every count I deem their cause to be the holier, And I will make thee own it when we meet in battle here. Traitor thou shalt confess thyself, so help me God on high, And all that I have said to-day my sword shall verify." Thus far these two. Diego rose, and spoke as ye shall hear: "Counts by our birth are we, of stain our lineage is clear. In this alliance with my Cid there was no parity. If we his daughters cast aside, no cause for shame we see. And little need we care if they in mourning pass their lives, Enduring the reproach that clings to scorned rejected wives. ”

“ He was, in fact, a general utility man, on whom, on account of his reliability and versatile qualities, the Father depended greatly. Father Zalvidea, the senior priest at San Gabriel, had reason to congratulate himself on having Diego at his command, for not often is such an one found among the poorer and laboring class of Mexicans, combining the power and ability to serve in manifold ways, with a love of work for its own sake as well as for the reward it brings—very different from the general slowness and laziness of this class. ”

“ It was the most natural thing to occur in the little world at San Gabriel, that Diego and Juana should be drawn to each other, for neither had any relatives at the mission, and it happened that there were no other Mexicans of their own age here at this time. It was with much hesitation that Diego had told the Father of his love, for the priest, although one of the kindest of men, disliked change of any sort, were it the most trivial, a condition due as much to temperament as to age, although the Father was now past the meridian of life. ”

“ He stopped to listen to the sounds of the guitar, to smell the odor of the bread. Someone passed in the shadow on the other side of the street, and he thought he recognized Diego. Meeting him caused him agitation; but he felt that all his rancor was gone, that no violence remained at the bottom of his sorrow. Certain of his brother's words came back to his memory. He thought: "Who knows if he did not speak the truth? I have never done anything for anybody; I have always lived for myself alone. ”

“ Let them start again; but I am afraid that my twenty crowns are yours, Grand Master; your man is in fine play."
I looked into the court. Diego, lithe and sinewy, with his cropped black hair, high colour, and quick shallow eyes, bounded here and there, swift and active as a panther. Seeing him thus, with his heart in his returns, I could not but doubt; more, as the game proceeded, amid the laughter and jests and witty sallies of the courtiers, I felt the doubt grow; the riddle became each minute more abstruse, the man more mysterious. ”

“ It is on this island, according to more than one, that gold is found, and that powerful and warlike people live.”
“Do you trust this report, Diego?” demanded Martin Alonzo, eagerly.
“I do, because I have questioned the men carefully. I have more faith in it than in the admiral’s Babeque, anyhow.”
“And it is to the southeast?”
“To the southeast,” answered Diego.
“Diego,” whispered Martin Alonzo, “I will trust you. Keep your counsel still. I think the time has come when I can show that proud upstart that he is not supreme. Diego, I shall leave him to find his own gold, and I will go find mine. ”

“ Don Diego was of medium height, twenty-four years of age, [143] or a little more, very just-minded and intelligent, brave and a good horseman, liberal and a friend to good works. His mother was an Indian woman, a native of Tierra Firme. There was great hope for his career if he had lived. He was not altogether free from vices: on the contrary, he had those which men of the Indies usually display. Captain Pedro Anzures went about enquiring of those who were present whether they had heard Don Diego say that he deserved his death, because the Marquis had been assassinated by his order. ”

“ His rapid, abrupt manner of speaking gave little opportunity for an answer; and the friar saw that it was a poor time to be there on such an errand; but he was so convinced that Diego would be unmanageable without a chastisement and warning from his cousin that he spoke out clearly and to the point:
“The humanities come on well enough, and no one can do better than he when he will; but I have come to tell thee, Martin Alonzo, that he needs a strong hand to correct him, or he will never arrive at grace.”
“My time is short,” said Martin Alonzo, gruffly. ”

“ The men laughed heartily, and Miguel muttered under his breath; while Juan, leaning over to Diego, whispered uneasily:
“I pray you, Diego! You promised you would not torment him.”
“Then let him stop his croaking. If there be mischief, he is in it. If there be doubts, he has bred them. Always scowling at me, and always ready with his eternal croaking.”
“It is true, Diego; but he is almost alone on the ship now, and you have all the friends. ”

“ The little town of San Diego has undergone no change whatever that I can see. It certainly has not grown. It is still, like Santa Barbara, a Mexican town. The four principal houses of the gente de razon—of the Bandinis, Estudillos, Argüellos, and Picos—are the chief houses now; but all the gentlemen—and their families, too, I believe—are gone. The big vulgar shop-keeper and trader, Fitch, is long since dead; Tom Wrightington, who kept the rival pulpería, fell from his horse when drunk, and was found nearly eaten up by coyotes ”

“ On one side rode a dark young man, not handsome, but with a soldier’s eye. This was Gonzalez de Cordova, afterward the celebrated general who won deathless glory in Italy. On the other side rode the most beautiful knight Diego had ever seen. He looked the embodiment of beauty, such as the Greek sculptors gave to their young gods. It was Ponce de Leon, later on to discover Porto Rico and Florida in his search for the fabled Bimini—the fountain of perpetual youth. It was Don Felipe who gave Diego the names of these and many others in the gorgeous cavalcade. ”

“ The proofs of gratitude of this gallant were not like those of Don Diego; but purses of a hundred doubloons each, valuable diamonds, superb tapestry, and{333} rich plate. As soon as we found that this young nobleman was so prodigal of his riches towards us, we attached ourselves to him, and began to neglect our citizen of Alicant most outrageously. Donna Maria even favoured his rival in his presence.
Signor Diego was not deficient in pride. He was one of those rich merchants who look upon themselves as persons of quality. ”

“ I said pleasantly, not believing a word of it. "And who is to hang?"
"The Spaniard," he answered in a low voice.
That sobered me, by putting the matter in a new light; and I sat a moment looking at him and reviewing Diego's story, which assumed on the instant an aspect so uncommon and almost incredible that I wondered how I had ever allowed it to pass. But when I proceeded from this to the substance of Maignan's charge I found an IMPASSE in this direction also, and I smiled. "So it is Diego, is it?" I said. "You think that he is a spy?" ”

“ Martin Alonzo bent a singular look upon him and turned to the friar.
“He hath a quick wit and a turn for languages, you say?”
“Both.”
“But to-day he hath purloined a melon, flouted one of the brothers, broken the bounds, seduced his comrades into evil, and perhaps hath done other things not yet known.”
“Oh,” whined Diego, immediately cast down, “if you cannot be satisfied with what is known!”
“And,” went on Martin Alonzo, “you say he hath been a sore trouble in the past and that [26] you have felt yourself unequal to the task of fittingly punishing him.” ”

“ Shouting was now most plainly to be heard in the direction from which we had come. I heard Job Goddard’s whistle and a cheery cry.
“Keep him at work, sir! we are with you in a minute!” Diego’s eyes looked over my shoulder.
“Unless you hurry, Don Diego,” I said, coolly [357] bantering him, “there will be little time for this exhibition of sword-play you have promised me.”
I knew could I get him angry that I might have the better advantage.
“Bah!” he cried, furious. “Coward! you cannot fight your battles for yourself!” ”

“ He was, indeed, a Zambo, or a half-breed between the negro and the Indian; and I had never seen one before. I suppose the host saw that his servant’s aspect had not produced a very favourable impression, for he instantly launched out into praises of Diego, speaking partly in Spanish and partly in broken French. Diego was an honest creature, the pearl of grooms, the gem of ostlers, the best soul in the world, a lamb, a real lamb. Well, the landlord ought to have known his own domestic’s character best ”

“ His merry humor and constant flow of spirits had long ago made him a prime favorite with the men, while his knowledge of the Indian language made him of importance. It was to him that all questions relative to the nature of Bohio were always addressed, and now that the Pinta had broken loose from the fleet, Martin Alonzo had given him permission to answer all questions freely.
It may not be amiss to say that Miguel was the only one of the crew who had not taken kindly to Diego; and his aloofness was due as much to his jealousy of Juan’s liking of Diego as to his own sullen temper. ”