said, to drink a stirrup cup with his English friends, whom he
would never see again. He was mellow and joyous in his temper. He told
stories of his own exploits, laughed like a boy, borrowed a guitar
from the Englishmen's chief muleteer, and sitting cross-legged on his
superfine poncho spread before the glow of the embers, sang a guasso
love-song in a tender voice. Then his head dropped on his breast, his
hands fell to the ground; the guitar rolled off his knees--and a great
hush fell over the camp after the love-song of the implacable partisan
who had made so many of our people weep for destroyed homes and for
loves cut short.

"Before anybody could make a sound he sprang up from the ground and
called for his horse. 'Adios, my friends!' he cried, 'Go with God.
I love you. And tell them well in Santiago that between Gaspar Ruiz,
colonel of the King of Spain, and the republican carrion-crows of Chile
there is war to the last breath--war! war! war!'

"With a great yell of 'War! war! war!' which his escort took up, they
rode away, and the sound of hoofs and of voices died out in the distance
between the slopes of the hills.

"The two young English officers were convinced that Ruiz was mad. How
do you say that?--tile loose--eh? But the doctor, an observant Scotsman
with much shrewdness and philosophy in his character, told me that it
was a very curious case of possession. I met him many years afterwards,
but he remembered the experience very well. He told me too that in
his opinion that woman did not lead Gaspar Ruiz into the practice of
sanguinary treachery by direct persuasion, but by the subtle way of
awakening and keeping alive in his simple mind a burning sense of an
irreparable wrong. Maybe, maybe. But I would say that she poured half
of her vengeful soul into the strong clay of that man, as you may pour
intoxication, madness, poison into an empty cup.

"If he wanted war he got it in earnest when our victorious army began to
return from Peru. Systematic operations were planned against this blot
on the honour and prosperity of our hardly-won independence. General
Robles commanded, with his well-known ruthless severity. Savage
reprisals were exercised on both sides, and no quarter was given in the
field. Having won my promotion in the Peru campaign, I was a captain on
the staff.

"Gaspar Ruiz found himself hard pressed; at the same time we heard by
means of a fugitive priest who had been carried off from his vill