tentively, he perceived that the ground sloped up from
the place which he occupied; and he was now enabled to distinguish the
outlines of a vast building, the windows of which were so brilliantly
illuminated from the inside, that one might have fancied the house to be
on fire. Outside, upon the _azotea_, blazing torches appeared to be
carried backward and forward. It was these that had first attracted the
eye of Don Cornelio, who, on account of the elevation at which they were
seen, fancied them to be moving among the tops of the trees!

There was something too unnatural in these blazing torches, agitated by
the night breeze--but more especially in the strange lights that shone
through the windows--now red, now blue, and then of a pale violet
colour, and in an instant changing from one hue to another--something so
fantastically singular, that Don Cornelio suddenly drew up, without
daring to advance a pace further.

The superstitious ideas with which Costal had entertained him during
their journey now came into his mind; and, despite his disbelief in
them, he could not help conjuring up fancies almost as absurd. He
remembered the bull fulminated against the insurgents by the Bishop of
Oajaca--representing them as spirits of darkness--and he began to fancy
there must be some truth in it, and that he was now within view of these
very demons. The silence that reigned around tended to strengthen this
fancy--which was now further confirmed by the sight of a phantom-like
figure clothed in white, seen for a moment gliding among the trees, and
then as suddenly vanishing out of sight. The phantom appeared to have
come from the direction of the illuminated building--as if fleeing from
some danger that there menaced it.

The Captain made the sign of the cross, and then sat motionless in his
saddle--uncertain whether to remain where he was, or to gallop back to
the ford.

While thus irresolute, and asking himself whether the phantom he had
seen might have been a stray reflection of one of the torches, the
lights all at once disappeared from the upper part of the building.

At the same moment four or five horsemen issued forth from the shadow of
the walls, and galloped towards him, uttering loud yells. Don Cornelio
perceived that his presence was discovered; but to put this beyond
doubt, a light at the moment flashed up among the horsemen, followed by
the report of a carbine, and the hissing of a bullet, which passed close