The Bible in Spain

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I was aware that my own horses were quite incompetent to reach
Finisterra, as the roads or paths lie through stony ravines, and
over rough and shaggy hills, and therefore determined to leave them
behind with Antonio, whom I was unwilling to expose to the fatigues
of such a journey. I lost no time in sending for an alquilador, or
person who lets out horses, and informing him of my intention. He
said he had an excellent mountain pony at my disposal, and that he
himself would accompany me, but at the same time observed, that it
was a terrible journey for man and horse, and that he expected to
be paid accordingly. I consented to give him what he demanded, but
on the express condition that he would perform his promise of
attending me himself, as I was unwilling to trust myself four or
five days amongst the hills with any low fellow of the town whom he
might select, and who it was very possible might play me some evil
turn. He replied by the term invariably used by the Spaniards when
they see doubt or distrust exhibited. "No tenga usted cuidao," I
will go myself. Having thus arranged the matter perfectly
satisfactorily, as I thought, I partook of a slight supper, and
shortly afterwards retired to repose.

I had requested the alquilador to call me the next morning at three
o'clock; he however did not make his appearance till five, having,
I suppose, overslept himself, which was indeed my own case. I
arose in a hurry, dressed, put a few things in a bag, not
forgetting the Testament which I had resolved to present to the
inhabitants of Finisterra. I then sallied forth and saw my friend
the alquilador, who was holding by the bridle the pony or jaco
which was destined to carry me in my expedition. It was a
beautiful little animal, apparently strong and full of life,
without one single white hair in its whole body, which was black as
the plumage of the crow.

Behind it stood a strange-looking figure of the biped species, to
whom, however, at the moment, I paid little attention, but of whom
I shall have plenty to say in the sequel.

Having asked the horse-lender whether he was ready to proceed, and
being answered in the affirmative, I bade adieu to Antonio, and
putting the pony in motion, we hastened out of the town, taking at
first the road which leads towards Santiago. Observing that the
figure which I have previously alluded to was following close at
our heels, I asked the alquilador who it was, and the reason of its
following us; to which he replied that it was a servant of his, who
would proceed a little way with us and then return. So on we went
at a rapid rate, till we were within a quarter of a mile of the
Convent of the Esclavitud, a little beyond which he had informed me
that we should have to turn off from the high road; but here he
suddenly stopped short, and in a moment we were all at a
standstill. I questioned the guide as to the reason of this, but
received no answer. The fellow's eyes were directed to the ground,
and he seemed to be counting with the most intense solicitude the
prints of the hoofs of the oxen, mules, and horses in the dust of
the road. I repeated my demand in a louder voice; when, after a
considerable pause, he somewhat elevated his eyes, without however
looking me in the face, and said that he believed that I
entertained the idea that he himself was to guide me to Finisterra,
which if I did, he was very sorry for, the thing being quite
impossible, as he was perfectly ignorant of the way, and, moreover,
incapable of performing such a journey over rough and difficult
ground, as he was no longer the man he had been, and over and above
all that, he was engaged that day to accompany a gentleman to
Pontevedra, who was at that moment expecting him. "But," continued
he, "as I am always desirous of behaving like a caballero to
everybody, I have taken measures to prevent your being
disappointed. This person," pointing to the figure, "I have
engaged to accompany you. He is a most trustworthy person, and is
well acquainted with the route to Finisterra, having been thither
several times with this very jaco on which you are mounted. He
will, besides, be an agreeable companion to you on the way, as he
speaks French and English very well, and has been all over the
world." The fellow ceased speaking at last; and I was so struck
with his craft, impudence, and villainy, that some time elapsed
before I could find an answer. I then reproached him in the
bitterest terms for his breach of promise, and said that I was much
tempted to return to the town instantly, complain of him to the
alcalde, and have him punished at any expense. To which he
replied, "Sir Cavalier, by so doing you will be nothing nearer
Finisterra, to which you seem so eager to get. Take my advice,
spur on the jaco, for you see it is getting late, and it is twelve
long leagues from hence to Corcuvion, where you must pass the
night; and from thence to Finisterra is no trifle. As for the man,
no tenga usted cuidao, he is the best guide in all Galicia, speaks
English and French, and will bear you pleasant company."

By this time I had reflected that by returning to Padron I should
indeed be only wasting time, and that by endeavouring to have the
fellow punished, no benefit would accrue to me; moreover, as he
seemed to be a scoundrel in every sense of the word, I might as
well proceed in the company of any person as in his. I therefore
signified my intention of proceeding, and told him to go back in
the Lord's name, and repent of his sins. But having gained one
point, he thought he had best attempt another; so placing himself
about a yard before the jaco, he said that the price which I had
agreed to pay him for the loan of his horse (which by the by was
the full sum he had demanded) was by no means sufficient, and that
before I proceeded I must promise him two dollars more, adding that
he was either drunk or mad when he had made such a bargain. I was
now thoroughly incensed, and without a moment's reflection, spurred
the jaco, which flung him down in the dust, and passed over him.
Looking back at the distance of a hundred yards, I saw him standing
in the same place, his hat on the ground, gazing after us, and
crossing himself most devoutly. His servant, or whatever he was,
far from offering any assistance to his principal, no sooner saw
the jaco in motion than he ran on by its side, without word or
comment, farther than striking himself lustily on the thigh with
his right palm. We soon passed the Esclavitud, and presently
afterwards turned to the left into a stony broken path leading to
fields of maze. We passed by several farm-houses, and at last
arrived at a dingle, the sides of which were plentifully overgrown
with dwarf oaks, and which slanted down to a small dark river
shaded with trees, which we crossed by a rude bridge. By this time
I had had sufficient time to scan my odd companion from head to
foot. His utmost height, had he made the most of himself, might
perhaps have amounted to five feet one inch; but he seemed somewhat
inclined to stoop. Nature had gifted him with an immense head and
placed it clean upon his shoulders, for amongst the items of his
composition it did not appear that a neck had been included. Arms
long and brawny swung at his sides, and the whole of his frame was
as strong built and powerful as a wrestler's; his body was
supported by a pair of short but very nimble legs. His face was
very long, and would have borne some slight resemblance to a human
countenance, had the nose been more visible, for its place seemed
to have been entirely occupied by a wry mouth and large staring
eyes. His dress consisted of three articles: an old and tattered
hat of the Portuguese kind, broad at the crown and narrow at the
eaves, something which appeared to be a shirt, and dirty canvas
trousers. Willing to enter into conversation with him, and
remembering that the alquilador had informed me that he spoke
languages, I asked him, in English, if he had always acted in the
capacity of guide? Whereupon he turned his eyes with a singular
expression upon my face, gave a loud laugh, a long leap, and
clapped his hands thrice above his head. Perceiving that he did
not understand me, I repeated my demand in French, and was again
answered by the laugh, leap, and clapping. At last he said in
broken Spanish, "Master mine, speak Spanish in God's name, and I
can understand you, and still better if you speak Gallegan, but I
can promise no more. I heard what the alquilador told you, but he
is the greatest embustero in the whole land, and deceived you then
as he did when he promised to accompany you. I serve him for my
sins; but it was an evil hour when I left the deep sea and turned
guide." He then informed me that he was a native of Padron, and a
mariner by profession, having spent the greater part of his life in
the Spanish navy, in which service he had visited Cuba and many
parts of the Spanish Americas, adding, "when my master told you
that I should bear you pleasant company by the way, it was the only
word of truth that has come from his mouth for a month; and long
before you reach Finisterra you will have rejoiced that the
servant, and not the master, went with you: he is dull and heavy,
but I am what you see." He then gave two or three first-rate
summersets, again laughed loudly, and clapped his hands. "You
would scarcely think," he continued, "that I drove that little pony
yesterday heavily laden all the way from Coruna. We arrived at
Padron at two o'clock this morning; but we are nevertheless both
willing and able to undertake a fresh journey. No tenga usted
cuidao, as my master said, no one ever complains of that pony or of
me." In this kind of discourse we proceeded a considerable way
through a very picturesque country, until we reached a beautiful
village at the skirt of a mountain. "This village," said my guide,
"is called Los Angeles, because its church was built long since by
the angels; they placed a beam of gold beneath it, which they
brought down from heaven, and which was once a rafter of God's own
house. It runs all the way under the ground from hence to the
cathedral of Compostella."

Passing through the village, which he likewise informed me
possessed baths, and was much visited by the people of Santiago, we
shaped our course to the north-west, and by so doing doubled a
mountain which rose majestically over our heads, its top crowned
with bare and broken rocks, whilst on our right, on the other side
of a spacious valley, was a high range, connected with the
mountains to the northward of Saint James. On the summit of this
range rose high embattled towers, which my guide informed me were
those of Altamira, an ancient and ruined castle, formerly the
principal residence in this province of the counts of that name.
Turning now due west, we were soon at the bottom of a steep and
rugged pass, which led to more elevated regions. The ascent cost
us nearly half an hour, and the difficulties of the ground were
such, that I more than once congratulated myself on having left my
own horses behind, and being mounted on the gallant little pony
which, accustomed to such paths, scrambled bravely forward, and
eventually brought us in safety to the top of the ascent.

Here we entered a Gallegan cabin, or choza, for the purpose of
refreshing the animal and ourselves. The quadruped ate some maize,
whilst we two bipeds regaled ourselves on some broa and
aguardiente, which a woman whom we found in the hut placed before
us. I walked out for a few minutes to observe the aspect of the
country, and on my return found my guide fast asleep on the bench
where I had left him. He sat bolt upright, his back supported
against the wall, and his legs pendulous, within three inches of
the ground, being too short to reach it. I remained gazing upon
him for at least five minutes, whilst he enjoyed slumbers seemingly
as quiet and profound as those of death itself. His face brought
powerfully to my mind some of those uncouth visages of saints and
abbots which are occasionally seen in the niches of the walls of
ruined convents. There was not the slightest gleam of vitality in
his countenance, which for colour and rigidity might have been of
stone, and which was as rude and battered as one of the stone heads
at Icolmkill, which have braved the winds of twelve hundred years.
I continued gazing on his face till I became almost alarmed,
concluding that life might have departed from its harassed and
fatigued tenement. On my shaking him rather roughly by the
shoulder he slowly awoke, opening his eyes with a stare and then
closing them again. For a few moments he was evidently unconscious
of where he was. On my shouting to him, however, and inquiring
whether he intended to sleep all day instead of conducting me to
Finisterra, he dropped upon his legs, snatched up his hat, which
lay on the table, and instantly ran out of the door, exclaiming,
"Yes, yes, I remember--follow me, captain, and I will lead you to
Finisterra in no time." I looked after him, and perceived that he
was hurrying at a considerable pace in the direction in which we
had hitherto been proceeding. "Stop," said I, "stop! will you
leave me here with the pony? Stop, we have not paid the reckoning.
Stop!" He, however, never turned his head for a moment, and in
less than a minute was out of sight. The pony, which was tied to a
crib at one end of the cabin, began now to neigh terrifically, to
plunge, and to erect its tail and mane in a most singular manner.
It tore and strained at the halter till I was apprehensive that
strangulation would ensue. "Woman," I exclaimed, "where are you,
and what is the meaning of all this?" But the hostess had likewise
disappeared, and though I ran about the choza, shouting myself
hoarse, no answer was returned. The pony still continued to scream
and to strain at the halter more violently than ever. "Am I beset
with lunatics?" I cried, and flinging down a peseta on the table,
unloosed the halter, and attempted to introduce the bit into the
mouth of the animal. This, however, I found impossible to effect.
Released from the halter, the pony made at once for the door, in
spite of all the efforts which I could make to detain it. "If you
abandon me," said I, "I am in a pretty situation; but there is a
remedy for everything!" with which words I sprang into the saddle,
and in a moment more the creature was bearing me at a rapid gallop
in the direction, as I supposed, of Finisterra. My position,
however diverting to the reader, was rather critical to myself. I
was on the back of a spirited animal, over which I had no control,
dashing along a dangerous and unknown path. I could not discover
the slightest vestige of my guide, nor did I pass anyone from whom
I could derive any information. Indeed, the speed of the animal
was so great, that even in the event of my meeting or overtaking a
passenger, I could scarcely have hoped to exchange a word with him.
"Is the pony trained to this work?" said I mentally. "Is he
carrying me to some den of banditti, where my throat will be cut,
or does he follow his master by instinct?" Both of these
suspicions I however soon abandoned; the pony's speed relaxed, he
appeared to have lost the road. He looked about uneasily: at
last, coming to a sandy spot, he put his nostrils to the ground,
and then suddenly flung himself down, and wallowed in true pony
fashion. I was not hurt, and instantly made use of this
opportunity to slip the bit into his mouth, which previously had
been dangling beneath his neck; I then remounted in quest of the
road.

This I soon found, and continued my way for a considerable time.
The path lay over a moor, patched heath and furze, and here and
there strewn with large stones, or rather rocks. The sun had risen
high in the firmament, and burned fiercely. I passed several
people, men and women, who gazed at me with surprise, wondering,
probably, what a person of my appearance could be about without a
guide in so strange a place. I inquired of two females whom I met
whether they had seen my guide; but they either did not or would
not understand me, and exchanging a few words with each other, in
one of the hundred dialects of the Gallegan, passed on. Having
crossed the moor, I came rather abruptly upon a convent,
overhanging a deep ravine, at the bottom of which brawled a rapid
stream.

It was a beautiful and picturesque spot: the sides of the ravine
were thickly clothed with wood, and on the other side a tall, black
hill uplifted itself. The edifice was large, and apparently
deserted. Passing by it, I presently reached a small village, as
deserted, to all appearance, as the convent, for I saw not a single
individual, nor so much as a dog to welcome me with his bark. I
proceeded, however, until I reached a fountain, the waters of which
gushed from a stone pillar into a trough. Seated upon this last,
his arms folded, and his eyes fixed upon the neighbouring mountain,
I beheld a figure which still frequently recurs to my thoughts,
especially when asleep and oppressed by the nightmare. This figure
was my runaway guide.

Myself.--Good day to you, my gentleman. The weather is hot, and
yonder water appears delicious. I am almost tempted to dismount
and regale myself with a slight draught.

Guide.--Your worship can do no better. The day is, as you say,
hot; you can do no better than drink a little of this water. I
have myself just drunk. I would not, however, advise you to give
that pony any, it appears heated and blown.

Myself.--It may well be so. I have been galloping at least two
leagues in pursuit of a fellow who engaged to guide me to
Finisterra, but who deserted me in a most singular manner, so much
so, that I almost believe him to be a thief, and no true man. You
do not happen to have seen him?

Guide.--What kind of a man might he be?

Myself.--A short, thick fellow, very much like yourself, with a
hump upon his back, and, excuse me, of a very ill-favoured
countenance.

Guide.--Ha, ha! I know him. He ran with me to this fountain,
where he has just left me. That man, Sir Cavalier, is no thief.
If he is any thing at all, he is a Nuveiro,--a fellow who rides
upon the clouds, and is occasionally whisked away by a gust of
wind. Should you ever travel with that man again, never allow him
more than one glass of anise at a time, or he will infallibly mount
into the clouds and leave you, and then he will ride and run till
he comes to a water brook, or knocks his head against a fountain--
then one draught, and he is himself again. So you are going to
Finisterra, Sir Cavalier. Now it is singular enough, that a
cavalier much of your appearance engaged me to conduct him there
this morning. I however lost him on the way. So it appears to me
our best plan to travel together until you find your own guide and
I find my own master.

It might be about two o'clock in the afternoon, that we reached a
long and ruinous bridge, seemingly of great antiquity, and which,
as I was informed by my guide, was called the bridge of Don Alonzo.
It crossed a species of creek, or rather frith, for the sea was at
no considerable distance, and the small town of Noyo lay at our
right. "When we have crossed that bridge, captain," said my guide,
"we shall be in an unknown country, for I have never been farther
than Noyo, and as for Finisterra, so far from having been there, I
never heard of such a place; and though I have inquired of two or
three people since we have been upon this expedition, they know as
little about it as I do. Taking all things, however, into
consideration, it appears to me that the best thing we can do is to
push forward to Corcuvion, which is five mad leagues from hence,
and which we may perhaps reach ere nightfall, if we can find the
way or get any one to direct us; for, as I told you before, I know
nothing about it." "To fine hands have I confided myself," said I:
"however, we had best, as you say, push forward to Corcuvion,
where, peradventure, we may hear something of Finisterra, and find
a guide to conduct us." Whereupon, with a hop, skip, and a jump,
he again set forward at a rapid pace, stopping occasionally at a
choza, for the purpose, I suppose, of making inquiries, though I
understood scarcely anything of the jargon in which he addressed
the people, and in which they answered him.

We were soon in an extremely wild and hilly country, scrambling up
and down ravines, wading brooks, and scratching our hands and faces
with brambles, on which grew a plentiful crop of wild mulberries,
to gather some of which we occasionally made a stop. Owing to the
roughness of the way we made no great progress. The pony followed
close at the back of the guide, so near, indeed, that its nose
almost touched his shoulder. The country grew wilder and wilder,
and since we had passed a water mill, we had lost all trace of
human habitation. The mill stood at the bottom of a valley shaded
by large trees, and its wheels were turning with a dismal and
monotonous noise. "Do you think we shall reach Corcuvion to-
night?" said I to the guide, as we emerged from this valley to a
savage moor, which appeared of almost boundless extent.

Guide.--I do not, I do not. We shall in no manner reach Corcuvion
to-night, and I by no means like the appearance of this moor. The
sun is rapidly sinking, and then, if there come on a haze, we shall
meet the Estadea.

Myself.--What do you mean by the Estadea?

Guide.--What do I mean by the Estadea? My master asks me what I
mean by the Estadinha. {17} I have met the Estadinha but once, and
it was upon a moor something like this. I was in company with
several women, and a thick haze came on, and suddenly a thousand
lights shone above our heads in the haze, and there was a wild cry,
and the women fell to the ground screaming Estadea! Estadea! and I
myself fell to the ground crying out Estadinha! The Estadea are
the spirits of the dead which ride upon the haze, bearing candles
in their hands. I tell you frankly, my master, that if we meet the
assembly of the souls, I shall leave you at once, and then I shall
run and run till I drown myself in the sea, somewhere about Muros.
We shall not reach Corcuvion this night; my only hope is that we
may find some choza upon these moors, where we may hide our heads
from the Estadinha.

The night overtook us ere we had traversed the moor; there was,
however, no haze, to the great joy of my guide, and a corner of the
moon partially illumined our steps. Our situation, however, was
dreary enough: we were upon the wildest heath of the wildest
province of Spain, ignorant of our way, and directing our course we
scarcely knew whither, for my guide repeatedly declared to me, that
he did not believe that such a place as Finisterra existed, or if
it did exist, it was some bleak mountain pointed out in a map.
When I reflected on the character of this guide, I derived but
little comfort or encouragement: he was at best evidently half
witted, and was by his own confession occasionally seized with
paroxysms which differed from madness in no essential respect; his
wild escapade in the morning of nearly three leagues, without any
apparent cause, and lastly his superstitious and frantic fears of
meeting the souls of the dead upon this heath, in which event he
intended, as he himself said, to desert me and make for the sea,
operated rather powerfully upon my nerves. I likewise considered
that it was quite possible that we might be in the route neither of
Finisterra nor Corcuvion, and I therefore determined to enter the
first cabin at which we should arrive, in preference to running the
risk of breaking our necks by tumbling down some pit or precipice.
No cabin, however, appeared in sight: the moor seemed
interminable, and we wandered on until the moon disappeared, and we
were left in almost total darkness.

At length we arrived at the foot of a steep ascent, up which a
rough and broken pathway appeared to lead.

"Can this be our way?" said I to the guide.

"There appears to be no other for us, captain," replied the man;
"let us ascend it by all means, and when we are it the top, if the
sea be in the neighbourhood we shall see it."

I then dismounted, for to ride up such a pass in such darkness
would have been madness. We clambered up in a line, first the
guide, next the pony, with his nose as usual on his master's
shoulder, of whom he seemed passionately fond, and I bringing up
the rear, with my left hand grasping the animal's tail. We had
many a stumble, and more than one fall: once, indeed, we were all
rolling down the side of the hill together. In about twenty
minutes we reached the summit, and looked around us, but no sea was
visible: a black moor, indistinctly seen, seemed to spread on
every side.

"We shall have to take up our quarters here till morning," said I.

Suddenly my guide seized me by the hand: "There is lume, Senhor,"
said he, "there is lume." I looked in the direction in which he
pointed, and, after straining my eyes for some time, imagined that
I perceived, far below and at some distance, a faint glow. "That
is lume," shouted the guide, "and it proceeds from the chimney of a
choza."