"And there you have the cause of trouble between Spain and America. My adopted brethren have warm hearts beneath a calm exterior, and their sympathy for the poor Cubans is deep. They resent this perpetual bloodshed occurring so close to their coast as a slur upon their humanity; and they demand, for the sake of all, that it be put a stop to. Correspondence has pa.s.sed between the governments, and seeing that America means business, Spain has promised to amend, and do her utmost to end the sad condition of affairs. As an a.s.surance of the truth of her words and the honesty of her intentions, she has dispatched a warship to New York, and the unfortunate _Maine_ was here on a similar friendly errand.

"And she was blown up by a mine. There were two definite and distinct explosions: the first produced beneath the keel of the ship, and the second in her forward magazine. That is my opinion, and others share it.

I am sorry even to think it possible, and I say now, that it is my firm belief that Spaniards in general are too honorable, too chivalrous to attempt such a dastardly deed. But there are black sheep in every flock, and some inhuman scoundrel has this night sent numbers of his fellow-men to an untimely end, and at the same time has, in all probability, plunged two countries into war, the ultimate consequences of which one cannot even dream of."

"But why should you think so, Mr. Brindle?" Hal asked eagerly. "I know that the blowing up of a steamer is an unusual occurrence, but still it has happened before to-night, and why not again? Accidents come when least expected."

"True, Hal; but in the chapter of mishaps likely to befall a war-vessel, explosion of the magazine is almost unknown, save in battle-time. What are the conditions now? We are at peace, and I who know the spirit of discipline in the American Navy can tell you that the same careful look-out and the same precautions are taken in everyday life as during a war scare. It is a strict rule of the service that the officer on watch shall inspect the ship at a certain hour at night, and report all lights dowsed, and magazines in a safe condition. It was done this very night, you may be sure; and see what follows! The men we have rescued say that they were awakened by a violent shock, and that a second and more powerful one threw them from their hammocks. We, too, noticed the same, and I can swear to it that the first sent a column of water into the air, while the second shattered the forward portion of the _Maine_ to fragments.

"I fear it must be the case," said Hal, after a few thoughtful minutes; "and I suppose that the next item of news will be that war is declared."

"Yes, almost without doubt; and it should be so, then all my plans will be altered. I must get through to Eldorado, to see that the plantation and hacienda are safe, and then I shall probably send Dora and Gerald back to Tampa. No, don't try to dissuade me," he cried, lifting a warning finger as they both began to expostulate. "I shall take time to come to a decision, and it must be considered as final.

"And now let me tell you of another matter which concerns you, Hal, more than the others. You bear the mark of a bullet on your shoulder, and shall learn what I have hitherto kept from you. The scoundrel whom you heard addressed as Senor Capitan is no less a person than Captain Jose d'Arousta, a gentleman of very evil reputation. I may inform you that he came to the island many years ago--quite twenty, I should imagine--when only a lad; that his father had a position under the government; and that the man of whom we are speaking first disgraced him by his riotous living, and then broke his heart by marrying a half-breed girl. Poor thing! she was too good by far for such a reckless fellow. She owned a plantation, and I need scarcely tell you that he quickly ran through her ready money, and then all that could be possibly raised upon the estate.

What happened to her later I do not know, but he became captain of an irregular Spanish band near Santiago, and rumor reports that his cruelties made him hated by insurgents and friends alike. I know that he burnt down plantations wholesale, and that if one wished to escape, it was necessary to bribe him with large sums of money. I paid heavily at first for my immunity, and then, tired of his constant threats, I one day horsewhipped him before all the hands, and afterwards defied him; but I was careful at once to organize a band of armed men, to keep a watch over the plantation and house.

"Money seems to Jose d'Arousta a dire necessity, for that is the cla.s.s of man he is. He even thought it worth his while to come to Tampa, knowing well that he would not easily relieve me of my valuables in the island. You foiled him, and I warn you solemnly, Hal, beware of the fellow. He possesses that love of vengeance and ferocity common to his race, and he will surely repay you when he has an opportunity. Therefore take care, and as the times are unsettled I advise you to arm yourself at once with a revolver. Carry it in a hip pocket, and use it if your life is threatened."

"I will," Hal answered quietly. "I am not afraid of the fellow, but he looked a nasty customer, and it is always best to be on the safe side.

If he happens to knock up against me, he will be less inclined to quarrel when he sees that I am armed."

"Quite so, and I am glad you fall in with my views," said Mr. Brindle.

"Gerald, too, while at the hacienda, had better carry a weapon, while I am sure that the three of us will be easily able to defend Dora from all harm."

"That we will!" Hal blurted out enthusiastically; and then, seeing Mr.

Brindle smother a knowing smile, he became suddenly silent.

But Dora heard, and presently, when her father's head was turned, she flashed our hero a grateful glance from her eyes, which seemed to say, "Yes, I am sure you would do all that was possible"; a message which Hal must have appreciated, for he tingled strangely from head to foot.

"By George!" he murmured, as he lay back in his chair and conjured up the dark, forbidding features of Jose d'Arousta, "I would smash the beggar into little pieces if he even attempted to harm one of my friends." Then his lips tightened, and his fingers gripped the arm of the chair.

"Thinking of our acquaintance, the railway thief, I'll be bound," said Mr. Brindle suddenly, looking critically at Hal. "All the better, my boy. Take my warning to heart, and beware of the Spaniard as you would of the plague. He is a rogue, and is not to be trusted. If you should chance to meet him, and see him put his hand in his pocket, cover him with your revolver. And if Pedro, his accomplice, is with him, be doubly cautious; for here, in Cuba, they are capable of any atrocity, knowing well that, owing to the unsettled condition of the island, they can defy the law. Indeed, I more than suspect that they are the head of a gang of desperadoes who rob both insurgents and Spaniards, and care for one side as little as they do for the other. But, dear me! this has been a very long yarn, and I am tired. What do you all say to a short rest in our bunks? Dawn will break in a couple of hours."

He yawned loudly and rubbed his eyes, as if to drive the sleep out of them.

"Come," he continued, "we have done all that is possible for these poor fellows from the man-o'-war. Let us sleep and prepare for to-morrow."

Hal, Dora, and Gerald also were feeling tired and sleepy; therefore, rising from their seats, they took another look at the wrecked and half-submerged _Maine_, which was now burned at the for'ard part to the water's edge, while sheets of flame still belched upwards from the after-decks, and sent columns of dark smoke into the air. Then, with a sigh for the poor lads who had met their fate that night, they shook hands silently and descended to their cabins, where all four were soon wrapped in sleep.

CHAPTER X

A SUDDEN ATTACK

When Hal and his friends appeared on deck on the morning following the disaster to the _Maine_, the city of Havana was in mourning. Shops, exchanges, and public offices were closed, while flags hung half-mast from the poles on all big buildings, and from the tops of the shipping in the harbor. Projecting from the water a hundred yards away was the half-submerged wreck, now blackened and unsightly, and covered with a pall of dense smoke.

Ash.o.r.e the hospitals were crowded to overflowing, and surgeons were still busily at work, amputating mangled limbs, and doing their utmost for the sufferers; for more than half the ship's company had been either killed or sadly injured. Even then the news had reached America, and peaceful cities, opening their morning papers, read with a shock of the terrible calamity. Away in the country districts, farmers and cowboys learned the tidings some hours later. It was flashed east and west across the wires. The dire event was discussed in every drawing room, in hotels, restaurants, and cars. Men whispered the news to comrades as they descended in the cages to the deep levels of coal-mines, while others shouted it from the foot-plates of outgoing trains, as they steamed through the stations. And everywhere there was but one thought.

Punishment must be meted out to the nation which had caused the disaster. Oh, yes, it was a crime. Not a man but knew it, though the bare facts had hardly reached him. There had been foul play, and the villains who had been guilty of it must pay.

On the part of the government, arrangements were at once made for a Board of Inquiry to sit at Havana, and for the wreck to be examined by divers. The report, which could not possibly be issued for many a day to come, was awaited with feverish impatience, many of the hotter-blooded people of the States demanding instant war with Spain, and an examination and explanation afterwards.

In Havana, nothing could have been more marked than the sorrow of the Spanish. They grieved for the unfortunate seamen, but there was no treachery, they vowed; and those who saw them on that day were confident that if the explosion had been previously arranged, it was by some miscreant who acted for himself, and against the wishes of the people.

And in this position the two nations must be left while we follow our friends to the hacienda.

"The train departs at midday," said Mr. Brindle, when they were collected at breakfast. "We will disembark in an hour's time, and make a few purchases in the town. Then we will get on board the cars, and, with luck, shall be at the hacienda in three days' time."

Accordingly, they packed their baggage and embarked in the boat which Hal and Mr. Brindle had helped to man on the previous night. By noon they were comfortably in the train, the intervening hours having been employed in buying provisions, and in obtaining revolvers and ammunition for the three men of the party.

"We shall want them more than ever now," said Mr. Brindle, slipping his weapon into a hip pocket which had been specially contrived for the purpose. "As soon as we reach Eldorado, I will get one of the negro women to make similar receptacles for you two lads, for it is as well to keep these toys out of sight till the critical moment arrives."

Three days later they descended from the cars at a wayside station some miles from Santiago, and in a beautiful part of the island. Mounting mules, they left their baggage in charge of two of the plantation hands, and before long reached the hacienda, of which Mr. Brindle had not boasted when he declared that it was the most lovely in all Cuba. And now Hal's duties commenced in earnest.

"You are to be my right-hand man, remember that," exclaimed his kindly employer a day or so later. "You will live with us, of course, and will be considered as one of the family. Early in the morning I ride round the place, which is some miles in extent; and I shall expect you to accompany me. Then, during the day, you will be about the place, and will look in here and there. The cane is now ripe for cutting, and we shall have our hands full with it in a matter of two weeks. Then the tobacco crop is unusually promising, and we shall have to harvest it immediately after the cane. Now, as to workmen. The majority of my hands are negroes, whom I imported from the estate in Florida. They are reliable, honest men, who look to me as to a father. I treat them well, and they reward me by being obedient and working hard. They are re-enforced by a few local natives; but I have purposely employed very few of the latter, for they are discontented, idle fellows, and since the insurrection started, there is never any knowing when they may be off with their brethren. Ah, here is Black Peter, my foreman, a faithful fellow, who has spent many years in my service. Pete, this is my overseer, and from to-day you will treat him as myself, and will take your orders from him."

The negro thus introduced was a white-haired man of over fifty. He looked Hal critically up and down, and then doffed his ragged cap.

"Sar, you my master from right away," he said simply. "What you say I do, and de oders follow Pete."

"That's good," Hal replied, smiling and stretching out his hand, an offer which the negro at once responded to by shaking it heartily.

"Now that you know each other, we will make a round," exclaimed Mr.

Brindle. "How has everything gone on in my absence, Pete?"

"Velly fine, ma.s.sa. Crops him big and plenty, and boys working, oh, so hard! Dey say de weather fine, so do all we can. Come winter and de rain and we take him easy, and sleep and smoke till de heart am full."

"That's your way, is it?" answered Mr. Brindle, with a laugh. "Well, work now is the motto, for when the winter comes there is little to be done. One thing, though, tell all the men to keep their eyes open.

You'll remember the Spaniard? He may come our way again, and if he does, it would be bad for us. Do you follow me, Pete?"

The negro nodded his head vigorously, and went off promising to warn the other hands. Mr. Brindle then took his overseer on a tour of the plantations, returning by way of the machinery sheds, which occupied a central position, and which were to be Hal's special care.

Each one of the laborers as they came up to him dropped the implement he was using, and, unslinging a rifle carried across his back, raised it to his shoulder in salute.

"That is a sign of the times," said Mr. Brindle. "I have been so often threatened, particularly by that amiable fellow Jose d'Arousta, that I have found it advisable to arm my negroes. They are all drilled and instructed in the use of their weapons, and I fancy would fight staunchly if it came to a struggle. Fortunately, however, we have been left severely alone, though we must never relax our vigilance, particularly now that war is imminent. But come along and see the sheds in which we dry the tobacco leaf. If all goes well I shall make a fortune this summer, for the ground has been fertile, and the crops are of excellent quality."

As the days pa.s.sed, Hal found little cause to grumble at the position he had taken. In the house he was at once at home, and, indeed, was just like one of the family. In the plantations he found that the negroes respected him, and did what he told them willingly. Over the mulattoes, too, he seemed to have perfect command, and seldom had cause to find fault with them. Once, however, he discovered a burly, impudent fellow ill-treating a mule, and promptly dismissed him, Mr. Brindle heartily approving of the course he had taken. The man left uttering threats, saying that before long he would return with some of his comrades, and burn the hacienda down.

Meanwhile, little of the squabble between America and Spain was heard of.

Two months later, as Hal and Gerald were returning from a distant part of the plantation, they were startled by a figure suddenly emerging on to the track in front of them. The man darted from the trees which grew thickly on either side, and waved his arms wildly. It was evening, and the darkness was so great beneath the leaves that it was not easy to see him; but Gerald called Hal's attention to him.

"Hist, ma.s.sa! Am dat Ma.s.sa Hal?" a voice called softly through the darkness.

"Yes. What is it? What is the matter?" Hal asked eagerly.

"Gently, boss; not speak so high. Me take Johnson, and come along to tell you dat ma.s.sa and de missie am troubled."