waving his broken sabre, and shouting defiance. Firm as a rock he
awaited the cavalry. Struck by his gallantry, Herrera wished to spare
his life.

"_Rinde te!_" he cried; "yield!"

"_Jode te!_" was the coarse but energetic reply of the Carlist, as he
dealt a blow which Herrera with difficulty parried. At the same moment a
lance-thrust overthrew him. There were a few shouts of rage, a few cries
for mercy; here and there a bayonet grated against a sabre, but there
was scarcely a check in the speed; such of the infantry as stood to
receive the charge were ridden over, and Herrera and his squadron swept
onwards towards the bridge of Mendigorria.

Now it was that the Carlists felt the consequences of that enormous
blunder in the choice of a position, which, either through ignorance or
over confidence, their generals had committed. With the Arga flowing
immediately in their rear, not only was there no chance of rallying
them, but their retreat was greatly embarrassed. One portion of the
broken troops made for the bridge, and thronged over it in the wildest
confusion, choking up the avenue by their numbers; others rushed to the
fords higher up the stream, and dashing into the water, some of them,
ignorant of the shallow places, were drowned in the attempt to cross.
Had the Christino cavalry been on the field when the rout began, the
loss of the vanquished would have been prodigious; as it was, it was
very severe. The Christino soldiery, burning to revenge former defeats,
and having themselves suffered considerably at the commencement of the
fight, were eager in the pursuit, and gave little quarter. In less than
two hours from the beginning of the action, the country beyond the Arga
was covered with fugitives, flying for their lives towards the mountains
of Estella. Narrow were the escapes of many upon that day. Don Carlos
had been praying during the action in the church at Mendigorria; and so
sudden was the overthrow of his army, that he himself was at one time in
danger of being taken. A Christino officer, according to a story current
at the time, had come up with him, and actually stretched out his hand
to grasp his collar, when a bullet struck him from his saddle.

Dashing over the bridge, Herrera and his squadron spurred in pursuit.
Their horses were fresh, and they soon found themselves amongst the
foremost, when suddenly a body of cavalry, which, although retiring,
kept together and exerted itself to cover the retre