"Mon
maitre," said Antonio, "this new scoundrel is asking the old one
what he thinks we have got in our portmanteaus." Then, without
awaiting my answer, he shouted, "Pistols, ye barbarians! Pistols,
as ye shall learn to your cost, if you do not cease speaking in
that gibberish and converse in Castilian." The Gallegans were
silent, and presently the first guide dropped behind, whilst the
other with the lantern moved before. "Keep in the rear," said
Antonio to the former, "and at a distance: know one thing
moreover, that I can see behind as well as before. Mon maitre,"
said he to me, "I don't suppose these fellows will attempt to do us
any harm, more especially as they do not know each other; it is
well, however, to separate them, for this is a time and place which
might tempt any one to commit robbery and murder too."
The rain still continued to fall uninterruptedly, the path was
rugged and precipitous, and the night was so dark that we could
only see indistinctly the hills which surrounded us. Once or twice
our guide seemed to have lost his way: he stopped, muttered to
himself, raised his lantern on high, and would then walk slowly and
hesitatingly forward. In this manner we proceeded for three or
four hours, when I asked the guide how far we were from Viveiro.
"I do not know exactly where we are, your worship," he replied,
"though I believe we are in the route. We can scarcely, however,
be less than two mad leagues from Viveiro." "Then we shall not
arrive there before morning," interrupted Antonio, "for a mad
league of Galicia means at least two of Castile; and perhaps we are
doomed never to arrive there, if the way thither leads down this
precipice." As he spoke, the guide seemed to descend into the
bowels of the earth. "Stop," said I, "where are you going?" "To
Viveiro, Senhor," replied the fellow; "this is the way to Viveiro,
there is no other; I now know where we are." The light of the
lantern shone upon the dark red features of the guide, who had
turned round to reply, as he stood some yards down the side of a
dingle or ravine overgrown with thick trees, beneath whose leafy
branches a frightfully steep path descended. I dismounted from the
pony, and delivering the bridle to the other guide, said, "Here is
your master's horse, if you please you may load him down that
abyss, but as for myself I wash my hands of the matter." The
fellow, without a word of reply, vaulted into the saddle, and with
a vamos, Perico! to the pony, impelled the creature to the descent.
"Come, Senhor," said he with the lantern, "there is no time to be
lost, my light will be presently extinguished, and this is the
worst bit in the whole road." I thought it very probable that he
was about to lead us to some den of cut-throats, where we might be
sacrificed; but taking courage, I seized our own horse by the
bridle, and followed the fellow down the ravine amidst rocks and
brambles. The descent lasted nearly ten minutes, and ere we had
entirely accomplished it, the light in the lantern went out, and we
remained in nearly total darkness.
Encouraged, however, by the guide, who assured us there was no
danger, we at length reached the bottom of the ravine; here we
encountered a rill of water, through which we were compelled to
wade as high as the knee. In the midst of the water I looked up
and caught a glimpse of the heavens through the branches of the
trees, which all around clothed the shelving sides of the ravine
and completely embowered the channel of the stream: to a place
more strange and replete with gloom and horror no benighted
traveller ever found his way. After a short pause we commenced
scaling the opposite bank, which we did not find so steep as the
other, and a few minutes' exertion brought us to the top.
Shortly afterwards the rain abated, and the moon arising cast a dim
light through the watery mists; the way had become less
precipitous, and in about two hours we descended to the shore of an
extensive creek, along which we proceeded till we reached a spot
where many boats and barges lay with their keels upward upon the
sand. Presently we beheld before us the walls of Viveiro, upon
which the moon was shedding its sickly lustre. We entered by a
lofty and seemingly ruinous archway, and the guide conducted us at
once to the posada.
Every person in Viveiro appeared to be buried in profound slumber;
not so much as a dog saluted us with his bark. After much knocking
we were admitted into the posada, a large and dilapidated edifice.
We had scarcely housed ourselves and horses when the rain began to
fall with yet more violence than before, attended with much thunder
and lightning. Antonio and I, exhausted with fatigue, betook
ourselves to flock beds in a ruinous chamber, into which the rain
penetrated through many a cranny, whilst the guides ate bread and
drank wine till the morning.
When I arose I was gladdened by the sight of a fine day. Antonio
forthwith prepared a savoury breakfast of stewed fowl, of which we
stood in much need after the ten league journey of the preceding
day over the ways which I have attempted to describe. I then
walked out to view the town, which consists of little more than one
long street, on the side of a steep mountain thickly clad with
forests and fruit trees. At about ten we continued our journey,
accompanied by our first guide, the other having returned to Coisa
doiro some hours previously.
Our route throughout this day was almost constantly within sight of
the shores of the Cantabrian sea, whose windings we followed.
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