no one had dreamt of
this sudden irruption of the Moors. The alcayde beheld his bravest
men dead or wounded around him, while the remainder were sinking with
watchfulness and fatigue. In defiance of all opposition, the Moors had
accomplished their mine; the fire was brought before the walls that
was to be applied to the stanchions in case the garrison persisted in
defence. In a little while the tower would crumble beneath him, and be
rent and hurled a ruin to the plain. At the very last moment the brave
alcayde made the signal of surrender. He marched forth with the
remnant of his veteran garrison, who were all made prisoners. Boabdil
immediately ordered the walls of the fortress to be razed and fire to
be applied to the stanchions, that the place might never again become a
stronghold to the Christians and a scourge to Granada. The alcayde and
his fellow-captives were led in dejected convoy across the Vega, when
they heard a tremendous crash behind them. They turned to look upon
their late fortress, but beheld nothing but a heap of tumbling ruins and
a vast column of smoke and dust where once had stood the lofty tower of
Alhendin.

CHAPTER LXXXVII.

EXPLOIT OF THE COUNT DE TENDILLA.

Boabdil el Chico followed up his success by capturing the two fortresses
of Marchena and Albolodny, belonging to Cid Hiaya; he also sent his
alfaquis in every direction to proclaim a holy war and to summon all
true Moslems of town or castle, mountain or valley, to saddle steed and
buckle on armor and hasten to the standard of the faith. The tidings
spread far and wide that Boabdil el Chico was once more in the field and
was victorious. The Moors of various places, dazzled by this gleam of
success, hastened to throw off their sworn allegiance to the Castilian
Crown and to elevate the standard of Boabdil, and the youthful monarch
flattered himself that the whole kingdom was on the point of returning
to its allegiance.

The fiery cavaliers of Granada, eager to renew those forays into the
Christian lands in which they had formerly delighted, concerted an
irruption to the north, into the territory of Jaen, to harass the
country about Quezada. They had heard of a rich convoy of merchants and
wealthy travellers on the way to the city of Baza, and anticipated a
glorious conclusion to their foray in capturing this convoy.

Assembling a number of horsemen, lightly armed and fleetly mounted, and
one hundred foot-soldiers, they issued forth