down into the obscure depths below
my feet. The air was perfectly still, and I fancied that I could hear
the roar of cannon and the rattle of musketry echoing among the
mountains.

At length I perceived a ruddy glare extending over the sky. I thought
at first that it must be a sign of the rising sun, but, as I watched, it
grew brighter and brighter, but did not increase in extent, and then by
degrees it faded away before the genial glow of the coming day appeared.
I guessed, too truly, that it arose from the burning of the village,
which the Spaniards had attacked. I did not, however, inform my
companions, for I felt that I should only add to their grief by so
doing. The Indians continued sleeping till a late hour. They seemed to
have the power of thus steeping their misery in oblivion. A night's
rest had somewhat restored Manco, but he was evidently fretting at the
thought of the inactivity to which his wound would consign him. "But
what would you do if you were able to move about," I asked. "The Inca
is a prisoner, and will, I fear, suffer death, for you cannot hope to
rescue him."

"The Inca never dies," he answered, lifting himself up on his arm, and
looking me earnestly in the face. "The young Andres is still in arms in
the south, and may yet be victorious. Should the Spaniards add a deeper
dye to the crimes they have committed, by the destruction of the Inca,
he will succeed; and should he too be cut off, I and that infant
sleeping by my side must succeed to the title. Little did the Spanish
soldiers dream whom they were yesterday pursuing, when Nita fled from
them with our babe in her arms."

Hope still I saw supported my friend, and I would not deprive him of it,
little as I entertained it myself. Don Gomez had not improved. He was
feverish and weak, and I fancied that I saw death on his countenance;
but he was happy at having his son by his side, and I was unwilling to
warn Pedro of his danger. Several days passed away without the
appearance of an enemy in the neighbourhood; and at length the Indians
began to grow uneasy at confinement. We also were anxious to obtain
information as to the state of affairs. It was just possible that, as
Manco hoped, the Spaniards might have been driven back. And that we
were shutting ourselves up for no object. The difficulty was to decide
who was the most proper person to go in search of information. An
Indian would, to a certainty, have been kept prisone