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This accumulation of misfortunes defeat before Valencia, defeat before Saragossa, disaster and surrender at Baylen, disaster and disgrace at Vimeiro, retreat from Madrid, desertion of the Duero as a line of defense, exchange of the offensive for a weak defensive, and loss of the whole Iberian peninsula except the strip behind the Ebro all this was shameful and hard to bear.
Velasquez determined to appoint another commander, but Duero and Lares, to whom he confided his intentions, at once informed Cortez of them. As soon as the news was carried to Velasquez, he hurriedly dressed and rowed down to the shore. Cortez, when he saw him, got into a boat and rowed to within speaking distance. "This is a courteous way of taking leave, indeed!" the angry governor said.
The Marques del Duero, despatch-boat, 500 tons. Battery: one smooth bore, six 6.2-inch calibre, two 4.7-inch and one machine gun. The Isla de Cuba and the Isla de Luzon were both small gunboats, 1,030 tons. Battery: four 4.7-inch hontorias, two small guns, and two machine guns. The Isla de Mindanao, auxiliary cruiser, 4,195 tons, speed, 13.5 knots. Two torpedo-boats and two transports.
"Who is that woman?" said I to a shepherd, whom I met the moment after. "She is mad, la pobrecita," said he; "she lost her child about a month ago in that pool, and she has been mad ever since; they are going to send her to Valladolid, to the Casa de los Locos. There are many who perish every year in the eddies of the Duero; it is a bad river; vaya usted con la Virgen, Caballero."
This was an awful blow, for Madrid was thereby rendered untenable. The Emperor gave orders to retreat behind the Duero, and directed Bessières to keep open the connection with Junot by way of Valladolid.
He left in charge therefore, the care of providing many things that were necessary for the expedition, to his lady, with directions to have them forwarded; and having summoned all the captains, masters, pilots, and soldiers to embark, he went to take his leave of the governor, accompanied by his friends Duero and Lares.
Immediately engaged the enemy, and destroyed the following Spanish vessels: Isla de Cuba, Isla de Luzon, Reina Christina, Castilla, Don Antonio d’Ulloa, Don Juan d’Austria, Velasco, General Lezo, El Correo, Marques del Duero, Isla de Mindanao, and the water-battery at Cavite. The squadron is uninjured. Few men were slightly injured.
But Cortes, who was well aware of all their practices, continued carefully to make his court to the governor, appearing entirely devoted to his service. He was likewise informed by Duero that the governor began to hesitate respecting his appointment, owing to the importunate representations of his relations, and was advised to exert every possible exertion in completing his preparations.
And my thoughts go back to the day, less than two years ago, when for the first time this was clearly brought home to me by a performance like this and yet so unlike in a very different place, the simple, bare, almost sordid Teatro Gayarre. Most of the turns were of the same ordinary sort that might be seen in many another music-hall of the long Calle Marques del Duero.
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