llect my thoughts. Before departing, I of course entered into
conference with the booksellers as to what they should do in the event of
my finding an opportunity of sending them a stock of Testaments from
Madrid, and having arranged things to my satisfaction I committed myself
to Providence. I will not dwell long on this journey of three hundred
miles. We were in the midst of the fire, yet, strange to say, escaped
without a hair being singed; robberies, murders, and all kinds of
atrocity were perpetrated before, behind, and on both sides of us, but
not so much as a dog barked at _us_, though in one instance a plan had
been laid to intercept us. About four leagues from Santander, whilst we
were baiting our horses at a village hostelry, I saw a fellow run off
after having held a whispering conversation with a boy who was dealing
out barley to us. I instantly enquired of the latter what the man had
said to him, but only obtained an evasive answer. It appeared afterwards
that the conversation was about ourselves. Two or three leagues further
on there was an inn and village, where we had proposed staying, and
indeed had expressed our intention of doing so; but on arriving there,
finding that the sun was still far from its bourn, I determined to
proceed further, expecting to find a resting-place at the distance of a
league; though I was mistaken, finding none until we reached Montaneda,
nine leagues and a half from Santander, where was stationed a small
detachment of soldiers. At the dead of night we were aroused from our
sleep by a cry that the 'factious' were not far off. A messenger had
arrived from the _Alcalde_ of the village where we had previously
intended staying, who stated that a party of Carlists had just surprised
that place, and were searching for an English spy whom they supposed to
be at the inn. The officer commanding the soldiers, upon hearing this,
not deeming his own situation a safe one, instantly drew off his men,
falling back on a stronger party stationed in a fortified village near at
hand; as for ourselves we saddled our horses and continued our way in the
dark. Had the Carlists succeeded in apprehending me, I should instantly
have been shot, and my body cast on the rocks to feed the vultures and
wolves. But 'it was not so written'--said my man, who is a Greek and a
fatalist. The next night we had another singular escape; we had arrived
near the entrance of a horrible pass, called _El puerto