| Show Th VALE of o oA A A By FRED MCLAUGHLIN Author of The liThe Blade of COP Uy by Bobba Cd d. d A P A P a Service CHAPTER X Continued X-Continued Continued X-Continued 10 10 1 Imagined the wily colonel assumed as ns sume that I would never mention the thc Senorita which Indeed I had no Intention of doing I nm mn waiting said Bolivar Colonel Pini shot me rue m my lily genera genera gen gen- era eral I. I Francisco seated next to me rasped a 3 hitter bitter curse and a sigh went round the table The Tho Lib Liberator Liberator Lib Lib- leaped to his feet Colonel Pint Pin I shot you ou You Jest Senor Not at nil all Was ras this nt at Maracay I Yes my general Pin would doubtless have good g reason for doln doing such a n thing He t turned a n Judicial eye ec upon the colo cob nel nd May I expect an explanation tion Pin smiled Major Gar Garde e Im I'm s sure ure will make explanation I attacked him my general Mother lother of or G G-d G dl I 1 Bolivar gasped That l Is I dissembled my lay attack at at- t tack ack upon him him and his shooting of me came so near the same Instant Instent t that hat It would be Impossible to tell which wn was cause and which effect Was this this er er unfortunate affair atair af nf- f fair air In an any wa way related rebated to the loss of Mara Maracay l cay Xo No Xu general Colonel Pin PinI lied It was purely personal We could not have held Maracay with the force at ray rn command Now Bolivar's e eyes es questioned me It was not In me to explain e. t to o the Liberator how Colonel Pint PinI had wasted n a precious hour In drunkenness and In nn an unsuccessful ful fill attempt to win the thc favor or of the Senorita nn an hour In which he might have havo made the necessary necessary necessary essary preparations for successful defense of Maracay l Colonel PinI Is entirely right general genera that unfortunate affair was purely personal I confess to having been Insubordinate I confess confess conless con con- fess less to having attacked etl the colonel colo coIn nel nel my superior officer and I do donot donot donot not care to offer any defense Bolivar's face was n a study TIe fie must have known that In service to him and to Venezuela I had given ien i en m my best he hp knew that the Apure battalion of three hundred Indians whom I had commanded was the best of his native fighting force for I had hod trained them with the greatest care Why Vh then Garde he lie questioned did not Colonel Pini ma make e report of this on his return to Tinaquillo That my general nl genera is a n question I for Colonel Pint PinI in Pin must have realized d that his hits burst of anger had opened up a adan dan dangerous erous nb abyss ss for himself for he smiled and assuming a pose of charlt charity said One must tank make al allowance allowance ni- ni lowance for a gallant soldier General Gen eral our American has been a bit Impetuous and I 1 did not report that hapless circumstance because I had no wish to Injure him In your eyes Our per personal onal differences will doubtless be settled as ns time offers n is us Drunk even the sophist was al- al wars n a good liar General Bolivar lau laughed hed relievIng lug Ing ug thereby an awkward tension I I cannot expect all nil my officers to love ove one another It Is not riot the way of soldiers for most of them ar are 1 sudden and quick In quarrel neither can cnn I afford to lose iose one of them hem thus on the thc eve of our greatest great grent- est struggle You will have to postpone postpone post post- pone pane the pleasure of this contest between yourself and Colonel PinI until after we have won the battle of ot Carabobo A Aye e my general So we drank again and Monahan Monahan Monahan Mona- Mona han pinching my arm whispered Any soldier who wIn fin cnn lash dash n a glass gins of ot wine Into the face of ot his superior superIor superior su su- su- su officer and get away with It must surely have the fairies workIng work- work lag Ing ug for him l I lC C 0 a a Dawn came carne slowly as we rested on our arms In the early morning of the tile fourth twenty of oJ June Tune a n day duy which ml might ht be termed the birth day of Venezuela We occupied I Ithe the timbered heights southwest of ot the field of Carabobo and waited to ring down n the thc curtain on the tho last net act of the great Colombian tragedy We Wc had Imd waited thus six years before I 1 remembered at Chalmette Chalmette Chal Chal- I mette inette waited united In Just such a silent gloom Brilliant victory Ictor had been ours and I f offered alTered up ui-i n a fervent hope that I might find finel myself again In Inn a victorious array army I knew that upon the thc success or failure of republican re re- re- re publican arms rested my success successor or failure In winning the Senorita If we won von this Impending Im tin- pending battle then Venezuela was open to me and I 1 could seek her herout herout out If we lost I knew lenew that I would go down fi fighting among those bravos of ot mine for I had taught them to s stand and fight light until the thc man could stand no longer Of my little command and of the British I 1 lint had no doubts but we were only n a thousand the tile bulk of Bolivar's ars forces was was' wascom was composed composed com corn posed of and of ot other native troops Some were good and some I knew from sad experience were poor Ioor The sun glinted on the thc equipment equipment equip equip- ment meat of the tho Spaniards who were spread out In lii battle array They were possibly eight thousand I strong which gave ga them theIl nn nr advantage tage roge over oyer us of two thousand men yet et they were hireling fighters lighters and L our men were n l for their thick homes for their families for th the i right to rule themselves General Paez with wIlh fifteen hundred hundred hundred hun hun- dred men had been sent around to tc the right on a u movement Generals Bolivar Cedeno an and I Plaza with a regiment of ot English I rifles under uner Colonel Mackintosh occupied the tile center while my command com com- mand and n a battalion of were expected to hold the right wing of the tile Spanish army urmy which looked to me to be composed of over oyer n u thousand men a men n task beyond be be- yond ond us us LIS I knew for Cor we wc had scarce six hundred soldiers The Tue approach to the field was a narrow way hardly wide enough to admit a n file of men The Spaniards opened the battle The rile approach of the main body of our forces was In full view of the enemy and nud we wa lost many men inca to tt their artillery fire before we wc reached the plain where the various units spread each eachl to Its task Under de desultory fire of ot the tho right wing of La Torres Torre's forces we advanced advanced ad slowly ly and took tool our station upon a n low luW ridge that commanded the tho plain where according to m my orders I placed my three e hundred men In a position which seemed tome to me best to hold the ridge when a general advance of th e Spanish army might be made The Tim Tira- d dores dres res and Vargas battalions and anda a brigade of Ln La Guardia GuardIn had gone through th the center to attack with the British legion under Colonel Mackintosh following up The crash of contact filled time the surrounding surrounding- hills with thunder for Paez arId Cedeno struck struck right right and center center center-at at once My men la lay Iny their slim brown bodies close n against the ground and waited I heard murmured prayers and oaths and saw nervous movements so while the air was full of the potent whine of bullets I got to my feet and walked slowly back and forth In front of ot the men Venezuela Il my ray bravos I said will be watching you today a when the tue men of Spain shall charge upon upon upon up up- on us we us-we we will hold held I saw unit teach each the tile plain und and close In behind the tIme British Brit lImit ish legion which had already made formation In the famous hollow square As our center under Cedeno Cedeno Ced Ced- eno broke before the superior marksmanship and t the le greater grenter nur numbers bers of the time Spanish soldiers as Paez faltered and failed I talked to my men urging coaxing coaxing coax coax- ing It Is Is' only the thc beginning my bravos of Apure we wc fight light toda today for liberty To run Is defeat and slavery to stand Is victory and freedom They will he lie coming now do not shoot wildly Walt Wait i hold ibid your fire until you you can can pick picka a silver el button on a Spanish Jacket and do not miss For ever every silver silver sil sil- ver button you jOll mal make e your our target n a Spanish soldier will offer up his life With the aid of n a glass I saw our right wing with reinforcements from tile the rear rear forming to offer battle to regain the time ground the they had lost 1 I saw fearful nat native e soldiers sol sob diers of the tile center retreating through the tile ranks of the time British legion which I knew would stand ns as Britons have ha always stood I recalled that half of the time eight hundred hundred hundred hun hun- dred men risen In the legion were veterans veterans vet vet- erans emans of Waterloo and I was sure the time center of the time approaching Spanish line would be strong Indeed indeed In In- deed if It broke Again the tile enemy m met t Paez while Cedeno reformed In the tile rear and the main body of the time Spanish forces fell upon the tue British legion brol broke e like waves against a n reef and came caine on again while the right wing en engaged ased us I It was b beautiful to watch the tile grim silent Indians from froni the Apure river They rhey held their fire until the attackers were less than a hundred feet awa away 1 I recognized Adolfo and wined waved L my sword and anti called to him to te come on and my voice was I drowned droned In a roar of musketry Then the time bravos leaped to their feet yelling wildly charged with L time the ba bayonet onet They fought like fiends thrusting fiends thrusting driving hacking shrilling weird and moving moving ing lag ever forward until the enemy P broke and tied Oed before us We Wc took an nn advanced position I upon another lateral ridge and pre prepared pared for tIme the next attack Behind Behind Behind Be Be- hind us the field hell was covered with witt I dead but for every prostrate bravo there were two of the uniformed I Imen men of Spain Scarce two hundred I of our men survived sur yet ct resting on their arms they laughed ant and jested among themselves an and told 1 one another how many Spaniards Spaniard they had killed Then rhen in one concerted movement t the Spaniards attacked all along ulong the line but Paez held ane and the tho British legion though called upon to withstand the time shock of the time bullof bull bulk of Spain's sOldier soldiery gave n no ground and the tile center of the tile enemy enemy ene ene- my line rolled back bick even cven as the tin right wing struck us again The Apure bravos fired almost amos t tinto Into the tIme faces of the soldiers after I which they leaped to their feet t to meet the Spaniards In hand to I fighting There was n a frantic frantl j heroism about their ardor a wild wik I enthusiasm a maniacal lust for foi r killing that must have terrified I 1 the time uniformed soldiers who outI outnumbered out out- I numbered us two or three to one for they broke In dismay leaving lea us again In possession of the tile tin tn tiny sector that we had been directed ti to m hold ut lit any cost And tile the cost Indeed had tee teea been a n grievous thing for Ies less than lain half idil f of my bravos remained I knew kne that the time next charge chargo of our epe epe- mies would find us u's too w weak ri Ie t to a hold I looked back bacle to where Colonel Colonel Col Col- onel Pini with more than six hun dred red mounted men Inca waited for tor us u S Sto to full Vind hatred for the man mm a filled my soul A bo y yot of ot soldiers rs disengaged it It It- sc Self Belt t from IronI the tho British legion and 1 under unde r command of ot a fl captain whose e head hend was swathed In a crimson Li bandage came toward us on a run I. I i Monahan I cried all ho honor nor to tho tile British legion I 1 IlIe lie grinned the lie way we did the time French nt at Waterloo son They charged and broke against our squares and nud charged and broke broken n again aln and old Eony's Bony's heart broke with them Its It's easy when you know now how He ne considered Pini's t force n ft scant mile half behind us and swore softly the time colonel waiting for Garde For lor the break urcal my ray friend then he ile will gall gallop 01 forward and win a n glorious vIcto victory These rhese hundred men are sent to me meT Sure If you ou hadn't held heid their right we co could not have held the center Those bravos brnos of ot yours have ha stood like hike a n rock an un unusual thing tIming for native troops And AntI have died led I said sadly holding So Colonel Mackintosh offers his compliments and this hundred men men and and he lie directs me me meto to tell you that you ou have put the tile white whIto mans man's dogged heroism Into the tile red mans man's Il heart ea rt This Tills from Mackintosh 1 grizzled warrior of many battles was sweet music to my ears The veterans of the time British legion le le- legion gion gina had hind already been distributed among my ray bravos so renewed In strength and spirit we waited for forthe forthe the lie next attack It came too slowly slow show ly Iy to suit us so we went out oot to meet it went it-went went blithely wildly white man and brown wIth with eager cries upon our lips and the thc conscIousness consciousness con con- con con- of Imminent victory In our hearts After the first volley voiley we wc met them standing up arm to arm eye to eye and aud the clatter of conflict filled Oiled our little world with noise That mixed command of mine fought Its Us way through the first Spanish line JIne then we wc drove ahead to meet the time next one paying no noI noThey noThey l They Fought Fought I Like Fiends heed to an anything behind us On our right the time British legion barlag having bar hav ing lag abandoned Its defensive tactics tactics tac tile tics moved mo I slowly against the time cen cell ter Evidently It too had oad brol broken en through hrop- hrop h the tile first line From the tile cast east came wild cheering from time the soldiers of Paez We Yc win I think said Mona Mona- han ban EWe We could not lose my ray friend yet et they move back bad slowly In good order What we should have is a arout I rout rout rout-an an overwhelming victory I In that case said the time Irish soldier we need time the mounted llaneros 0 p. p That must also have hare been Bolivar's Boli Boli- var's vars thought for fOl a Ii bod body of horsemen horsemen horse horse- aId men moving mo swiftly through the thic center passed the tile British legion and hurled Itself upon the enemy throwing the tile line lino Into confusion Th The six hundred mounted llaneros I of Colonel Phils Phil's command roared by byus byus us anti and nd we waved our arms ms and I cheered them on There he ime goes cried Monahan with a short Ia laugh gh on to victory Ictor vie vic tor tory 1 I IThe The right wing of the time Spanish arm army crumpled under the charge of PIni's horsemen crumpled am I fled In wild confusion The desperate desperate des des- desI I tattle of Carabobo which I removed remo for ever er the rule of ot Spain 1 I from Venezuela had bad become r a a arout I rout The Time wings of ot Bolivar's army ra racing ing across time the plain closed In It Into Into to complete the time work worl of destruction tion for nothing less than complete complete com corn destruction for the time Spanish would appease the Liberator He th must have hare seen nt at last the golden gol gel I I den opportunity for a n free Venezuela Venezuela Vene Vene- zuela and he lIe took no chance on or |
