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We aren't strong enough to turn them out." O'Brien shook his head, saying, "If the provisions would last, we might stand here staring at each other till doomsday." Darkness found the position unchanged, while numerous watch-fires gleamed fitfully through the gloom. "I wonder," said the colonel thoughtfully, "if Canterac intends keeping his men there all night?
By a swift and daring march, the Spanish general, Canterac, had thrown his army against them with startling suddenness. They tried to retreat, but, being attacked in the night, were cut to pieces, and an enormous quantity of stores passed into the hands of the Royalists. The news cast a gloom over the city, and many weak-kneed Patriots lost their heads entirely.
"Faith," observed Alzura, looking up, "as far as fighting goes, he ought to be a commander-in-chief! A wounded Colombian told me the fellow sprang on them like a lion falling on a herd of deer. A lucky thing for us that the Marianos are in a minority among the Royalists." "Canterac nearly did the trick though," growled the major. "I thought he would drop on us in that defile.
As far as I could judge, the swoop was much like that of a hawk whose wings had been carefully tied to its body. However, we tramped along throughout the night, halting at daybreak without getting a glimpse of the exulting Canterac. "Never mind," exclaimed the colonel, who hated to look on the dark side of things; "we may catch them during the day."
The fellow admitted being a Royalist spy employed in carrying messages between General Canterac and Montilla. The Don, he declared, had procured him the pass signed by Riva-Aguero, and had given him the letter now in the guerilla chief's possession.
"We shall catch Canterac there," said he, "or Canterac will catch us; I hardly know which at present." Our bivouac that night was cheerless and uncomfortable. The position was a very strong one, but Bolivar was evidently determined to leave nothing to chance. The sentries were doubled and in some places trebled, so that most of us were unable to snatch more than a few hours' sleep.
I was just preparing to off-saddle when the colonel said, "Crawford, if you aren't too tired, you can come with me. I am going just a little way up the mountain." "Very good, sir," I answered, climbing into the saddle again, but wishing that he had taken it into his head to sleep instead. "I should like to find out where Canterac is. He is quite clever enough to set a very ugly trap for us."
Fancy a masked ball with Canterac in the mountains ready to swoop down on us at any moment!" "The more reason why we should enjoy ourselves while we can. Besides, you are as bad as the rest: you promised to go!" "I have forgotten it, then." "Well, you did; so make haste the carriage is waiting." "I have no dress ready," said I coldly. "That doesn't matter in the least.
Mention has been made in a previous chapter of the all but total destruction of a division of the liberating army by General Canterac, and of the bombastic proclamations issued on that occasion by San Martin, to the effect that they were "only dispersed, not beaten," &c.
However, for the time we were in comparatively good quarters, and though grumbling occasionally because Bolivar had not followed up the victory at Junin, were quite prepared to make the best of things. When General Canterac retreated from Junin, he fled from his own shadow. Instead of pursuing him closely, we advanced in a leisurely way to Guamanga, and stayed there a month doing nothing.
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