he doomed man, and left it within reach, either to solace his
departure from the world, or to render him insensible. But his end was
speedy. Next morning the guard found him dead, with six empty bottles
out of the case. His body was denied the rites of sepulture. It was
left lying in chains as he perished, to rot in the sun and be devoured
by the insects generated from his decay.

CHAPTER VI.

When these dreadful scenes were over, Don Rafael took me aside with
the pleasant news that the time for my liberation was indeed arrived.
He handed me one hundred and twenty-five dollars, which wore my share
of the proceeds of our lawful fishing. "Take the money," said Rafael,
with a good deal of feeling; "take it, young man, with _perfect_
confidence;--_there is no blood on it!_"

My preparations for departure were quickly made, as Bachicha was in
the cove with his craft ready to take me to the mainland. I bade a
hasty adieu to the gang; and perhaps it is rare that any one ever
abandoned the companions of several months' intimacy with so little
pain. Rafael's solicitude for my character touched me. He had done all
in his power to preserve my self-respect, and I was, therefore, well
disposed to regard the good counsel he gave me at parting, and to
believe in his sincerity when he pictured a bright future, and
contrasted it with his own desolation and remorse.

"I have recommended you, _hijo mio_, to a friend in Regla, on the
opposite side of the harbor at Havana, who will take care of you. He
is a _paisano_ of ours. Take these additional ten ounces, which are
the fruit of honest labor. They will help you to appear properly in
Havana; so that, with the care of Bachicha and our Regla countryman, I
don't despair of your welfare. ADIOS! _para siempre!_"

And so we parted;--and it was, indeed, an adieu for ever. We never
met again, but I heard of Don Rafael and his fortunes. The new
enterprise with the pilot-boat turned out successfully, and the band
acquired considerable property on the island before the piratical
nests along the coast of Cuba were broken up by cruisers. Rafael had
some narrow escapes from the noose and the yard arm; but he eluded the
grasp of his pursuers, and died a respectable _ranchero_ on a
comfortable farm in the interior of the Queen of the Antilles.

* * * * *

The light winds of summer soon brought us inside the Moro Castle, past
the frowning batteries of the Cab