ge, my young friend; and I notice
you have obtained military rank," said he, with a covert sneer.

"I have the honour to be a lieutenant in the army to which we both
belong, senor," I replied.

He winced at that, and his eyes glowed angrily.

"If you have brought me a message from your general," said he, "will
you at once deliver it? I am very busy just now."

"I will not take up more than five minutes of your valuable time,
senor. My errand is an important one, though _at present_ it has
nothing to do with General San Martin."

Again he glanced at me sharply, and I thought he seemed slightly
nervous.

"I must ask you to be quick with it," he said coldly.

"I only desire to ask you about the death of my father. I am sure you
will give me all the information in your power, as he died for the
independence of Peru, which to-day both you and I are trying to secure."

At that he started up, his eyes blazing, his hand on his sword.

"Do you think I killed your father?" he roared furiously. "He died
through his own fault. I warned him again and again that the time was
not ripe, but he paid no heed to me."

"Are you not mistaken?" I asked. "According to the Indians' account,
he was slain while trying to prevent them from rising."

"Then the government was deceived. No good can be done by digging up
the dead past, but you shall hear all that I know of the story. At
that time there were three parties in the country. One section, led by
your father, resolved upon armed insurrection; another, composed of
Royalists, determined that nothing should be changed; the third, to
which I belonged, endeavoured to obtain reform by moderate means. I
need not say that your father was a marked man. One day the viceroy
received word that he had started for the mountains in order to rouse
the Indians to revolt, and, to prevent mischief, it was arranged that
he should be placed in prison. As you may know, he refused to submit
quietly, and, unfortunately, was shot in the fight which ensued."

"Was his body brought back to Lima?"

"I never heard so. Most probably it was left on the mountains. I was
sorry for him; but he was a headstrong man, and would not listen to
reason."

"That was foolish of him," I remarked quietly. "Had he waited till the
proper time to declare his real opinions, he would not have lost his
life, nor my mother her property. It is possible, indeed, that our
estates would have been largely added to