de la puente de
las tablas_, or the pass of the bridge of planks, which wound through a
black and frightful mountain, on the further side of which was the town
of Onas, where we meant to tarry for the night. The sun had set about a
quarter of an hour. Suddenly a man with his face covered with blood
rushed out of the pass. Turn back, sir,' he said, 'in the name of God;
there are murderers in that pass; they have just robbed me of my mule and
all I possess, and I have hardly escaped with life from their hands.' I
scarcely can say why, but I made him no answer, and proceeded; indeed I
was so weary and unwell that I cared not what became of me. We
entered--the rocks rose perpendicularly right and left, entirely
intercepting the scanty twilight, so that the darkness of the grave, or
rather the blackness of the valley of the shadow of death, reigned around
us, and we knew not where we went, but trusted solely to the instinct of
the horses, who moved on with their heads close to the ground. The only
sound which we heard was the splash of a stream which tumbled down the
pass. I expected every moment to feel a knife at my throat, but--_it was
not so written_. We threaded the pass without meeting a human being, and
within three quarters of an hour after the time we entered it, we found
ourselves within the _posada_ of the town of Onas, which was filled with
troops and armed peasants expecting an attack from the grand Carlist
army, which was near at hand.

Well! we reached Burgos in safety, we reached Valladolid in safety, we
passed the Guadarama in safety, and now we are safely housed in Madrid.
People say we have been very lucky; Antonio says, 'It was so written';
but I say, 'Glory be to the Lord for His mercies vouchsafed.'

I did not find matters in a very prosperous state in Madrid. Few copies
of the New Testament have been sold; yet what else could be rationally
expected in these latter times? Don Carlos with a large army has been at
the gates; plunder and massacre were expected, and people have been too
much occupied in planning to secure their lives and property to have much
time to devote to reading of any description. I have had an interview
with Dr. Usoz, and have just received a most interesting letter from him,
replete with patriotism and piety; amongst other things he says, 'only
circumstances and the public poverty are the cause of the works not
having met with sale at Madrid.' Of this letter I shall sen