PART II - CHAPTER LXIII.

by Miguel de Cervantes

　　OF THE MISHAP THAT BEFELL SANCHO PANZA THROUGH THE VISIT TO THE GALLEYS,AND THE STRANGE ADVENTURE OF THE FAIR MORISCOProfound were Don Quixote's reflections on the reply of the enchantedhead, not one of them, however, hitting on the secret of the trick, butall concentrated on the promise, which he regarded as a certainty, ofDulcinea's disenchantment. This he turned over in his mind again andagain with great satisfaction, fully persuaded that he would shortly seeits fulfillment; and as for Sancho, though, as has been said, he hatedbeing a governor, still he had a longing to be giving orders and findinghimself obeyed once more; this is the misfortune that being in authority,even in jest, brings with it.To resume; that afternoon their host Don Antonio Moreno and his twofriends, with Don Quixote and Sancho, went to the galleys. The commandanthad been already made aware of his good fortune in seeing two such famouspersons as Don Quixote and Sancho, and the instant they came to the shoreall the galleys struck their awnings and the clarions rang out. A skiffcovered with rich carpets and cushions of crimson velvet was immediatelylowered into the water, and as Don Quixote stepped on board of it, theleading galley fired her gangway gun, and the other galleys did the same;and as he mounted the starboard ladder the whole crew saluted him (as isthe custom when a personage of distinction comes on board a galley) byexclaiming "Hu, hu, hu," three times. The general, for so we shall callhim, a Valencian gentleman of rank, gave him his hand and embraced him,saying, "I shall mark this day with a white stone as one of the happiestI can expect to enjoy in my lifetime, since I have seen Senor Don Quixoteof La Mancha, pattern and image wherein we see contained and condensedall that is worthy in knight-errantry."Don Quixote delighted beyond measure with such a lordly reception,replied to him in words no less courteous. All then proceeded to thepoop, which was very handsomely decorated, and seated themselves on thebulwark benches; the boatswain passed along the gangway and piped allhands to strip, which they did in an instant. Sancho, seeing such anumber of men stripped to the skin, was taken aback, and still more whenhe saw them spread the awning so briskly that it seemed to him as if allthe devils were at work at it; but all this was cakes and fancy bread towhat I am going to tell now. Sancho was seated on the captain's stage,close to the aftermost rower on the right-hand side. He, previouslyinstructed in what he was to do, laid hold of Sancho, hoisting him up inhis arms, and the whole crew, who were standing ready, beginning on theright, proceeded to pass him on, whirling him along from hand to hand andfrom bench to bench with such rapidity that it took the sight out of poorSancho's eyes, and he made quite sure that the devils themselves wereflying away with him; nor did they leave off with him until they had senthim back along the left side and deposited him on the poop; and the poorfellow was left bruised and breathless and all in a sweat, and unable tocomprehend what it was that had happened to him.Don Quixote when he saw Sancho's flight without wings asked the generalif this was a usual ceremony with those who came on board the galleys forthe first time; for, if so, as he had no intention of adopting them as aprofession, he had no mind to perform such feats of agility, and ifanyone offered to lay hold of him to whirl him about, he vowed to God hewould kick his soul out; and as he said this he stood up and clapped hishand upon his sword. At this instant they struck the awning and loweredthe yard with a prodigious rattle. Sancho thought heaven was coming offits hinges and going to fall on his head, and full of terror he ducked itand buried it between his knees; nor were Don Quixote's knees altogetherunder control, for he too shook a little, squeezed his shoulders togetherand lost colour. The crew then hoisted the yard with the same rapidityand clatter as when they lowered it, all the while keeping silence asthough they had neither voice nor breath. The boatswain gave the signalto weigh anchor, and leaping upon the middle of the gangway began to layon to the shoulders of the crew with his courbash or whip, and to haulout gradually to sea.When Sancho saw so many red feet (for such he took the oars to be) movingall together, he said to himself, "It's these that are the real chantedthings, and not the ones my master talks of. What can those wretches havedone to be so whipped; and how does that one man who goes along therewhistling dare to whip so many? I declare this is hell, or at leastpurgatory!"Don Quixote, observing how attentively Sancho regarded what was going on,said to him, "Ah, Sancho my friend, how quickly and cheaply might youfinish off the disenchantment of Dulcinea, if you would strip to thewaist and take your place among those gentlemen! Amid the pain andsufferings of so many you would not feel your own much; and moreoverperhaps the sage Merlin would allow each of these lashes, being laid onwith a good hand, to count for ten of those which you must give yourselfat last."The general was about to ask what these lashes were, and what wasDulcinea's disenchantment, when a sailor exclaimed, "Monjui signals thatthere is an oared vessel off the coast to the west."On hearing this the general sprang upon the gangway crying, "Now then, mysons, don't let her give us the slip! It must be some Algerine corsairbrigantine that the watchtower signals to us." The three othersimmediately came alongside the chief galley to receive their orders. Thegeneral ordered two to put out to sea while he with the other kept inshore, so that in this way the vessel could not escape them. The crewsplied the oars driving the galleys so furiously that they seemed to fly.The two that had put out to sea, after a couple of miles sighted a vesselwhich, so far as they could make out, they judged to be one of fourteenor fifteen banks, and so she proved. As soon as the vessel discovered thegalleys she went about with the object and in the hope of making herescape by her speed; but the attempt failed, for the chief galley was oneof the fastest vessels afloat, and overhauled her so rapidly that they onboard the brigantine saw clearly there was no possibility of escaping,and the rais therefore would have had them drop their oars and givethemselves up so as not to provoke the captain in command of our galleysto anger. But chance, directing things otherwise, so ordered it that justas the chief galley came close enough for those on board the vessel tohear the shouts from her calling on them to surrender, two Toraquis, thatis to say two Turks, both drunken, that with a dozen more were on boardthe brigantine, discharged their muskets, killing two of the soldiersthat lined the sides of our vessel. Seeing this the general swore hewould not leave one of those he found on board the vessel alive, but ashe bore down furiously upon her she slipped away from him underneath theoars. The galley shot a good way ahead; those on board the vessel sawtheir case was desperate, and while the galley was coming about they madesail, and by sailing and rowing once more tried to sheer off; but theiractivity did not do them as much good as their rashness did them harm,for the galley coming up with them in a little more than half a milethrew her oars over them and took the whole of them alive. The other twogalleys now joined company and all four returned with the prize to thebeach, where a vast multitude stood waiting for them, eager to see whatthey brought back. The general anchored close in, and perceived that theviceroy of the city was on the shore. He ordered the skiff to push off tofetch him, and the yard to be lowered for the purpose of hangingforthwith the rais and the rest of the men taken on board the vessel,about six-and-thirty in number, all smart fellows and most of themTurkish musketeers. He asked which was the rais of the brigantine, andwas answered in Spanish by one of the prisoners (who afterwards proved tobe a Spanish renegade), "This young man, senor that you see here is ourrais," and he pointed to one of the handsomest and most gallant-lookingyouths that could be imagined. He did not seem to be twenty years of age."Tell me, dog," said the general, "what led thee to kill my soldiers,when thou sawest it was impossible for thee to escape? Is that the way tobehave to chief galleys? Knowest thou not that rashness is not valour?Faint prospects of success should make men bold, but not rash."The rais was about to reply, but the general could not at that momentlisten to him, as he had to hasten to receive the viceroy, who was nowcoming on board the galley, and with him certain of his attendants andsome of the people."You have had a good chase, senor general," said the viceroy."Your excellency shall soon see how good, by the game strung up to thisyard," replied the general."How so?" returned the viceroy."Because," said the general, "against all law, reason, and usages of warthey have killed on my hands two of the best soldiers on board thesegalleys, and I have sworn to hang every man that I have taken, but aboveall this youth who is the rais of the brigantine," and he pointed to himas he stood with his hands already bound and the rope round his neck,ready for death.The viceroy looked at him, and seeing him so well-favoured, so graceful,and so submissive, he felt a desire to spare his life, the comeliness ofthe youth furnishing him at once with a letter of recommendation. Hetherefore questioned him, saying, "Tell me, rais, art thou Turk, Moor, orrenegade?"To which the youth replied, also in Spanish, "I am neither Turk, norMoor, nor renegade.""What art thou, then?" said the viceroy."A Christian woman," replied the youth."A woman and a Christian, in such a dress and in such circumstances! Itis more marvellous than credible," said the viceroy."Suspend the execution of the sentence," said the youth; "your vengeancewill not lose much by waiting while I tell you the story of my life."What heart could be so hard as not to be softened by these words, at anyrate so far as to listen to what the unhappy youth had to say? Thegeneral bade him say what he pleased, but not to expect pardon for hisflagrant offence. With this permission the youth began in these words."Born of Morisco parents, I am of that nation, more unhappy than wise,upon which of late a sea of woes has poured down. In the course of ourmisfortune I was carried to Barbary by two uncles of mine, for it was invain that I declared I was a Christian, as in fact I am, and not a merepretended one, or outwardly, but a true Catholic Christian. It availed menothing with those charged with our sad expatriation to protest this, norwould my uncles believe it; on the contrary, they treated it as anuntruth and a subterfuge set up to enable me to remain behind in the landof my birth; and so, more by force than of my own will, they took me withthem. I had a Christian mother, and a father who was a man of sound senseand a Christian too; I imbibed the Catholic faith with my mother's milk,I was well brought up, and neither in word nor in deed did I, I think,show any sign of being a Morisco. To accompany these virtues, for such Ihold them, my beauty, if I possess any, grew with my growth; and great aswas the seclusion in which I lived it was not so great but that a younggentleman, Don Gaspar Gregorio by name, eldest son of a gentleman who islord of a village near ours, contrived to find opportunities of seeingme. How he saw me, how we met, how his heart was lost to me, and mine notkept from him, would take too long to tell, especially at a moment when Iam in dread of the cruel cord that threatens me interposing betweentongue and throat; I will only say, therefore, that Don Gregorio chose toaccompany me in our banishment. He joined company with the Moriscoes whowere going forth from other villages, for he knew their language verywell, and on the voyage he struck up a friendship with my two uncles whowere carrying me with them; for my father, like a wise and far-sightedman, as soon as he heard the first edict for our expulsion, quitted thevillage and departed in quest of some refuge for us abroad. He lefthidden and buried, at a spot of which I alone have knowledge, a largequantity of pearls and precious stones of great value, together with asum of money in gold cruzadoes and doubloons. He charged me on no accountto touch the treasure, if by any chance they expelled us before hisreturn. I obeyed him, and with my uncles, as I have said, and others ofour kindred and neighbours, passed over to Barbary, and the place wherewe took up our abode was Algiers, much the same as if we had taken it upin hell itself. The king heard of my beauty, and report told him of mywealth, which was in some degree fortunate for me. He summoned me beforehim, and asked me what part of Spain I came from, and what money andjewels I had. I mentioned the place, and told him the jewels and moneywere buried there; but that they might easily be recovered if I myselfwent back for them. All this I told him, in dread lest my beauty and nothis own covetousness should influence him. While he was engaged inconversation with me, they brought him word that in company with me wasone of the handsomest and most graceful youths that could be imagined. Iknew at once that they were speaking of Don Gaspar Gregorio, whosecomeliness surpasses the most highly vaunted beauty. I was troubled whenI thought of the danger he was in, for among those barbarous Turks a fairyouth is more esteemed than a woman, be she ever so beautiful. The kingimmediately ordered him to be brought before him that he might see him,and asked me if what they said about the youth was true. I then, almostas if inspired by heaven, told him it was, but that I would have him toknow it was not a man, but a woman like myself, and I entreated him toallow me to go and dress her in the attire proper to her, so that herbeauty might be seen to perfection, and that she might present herselfbefore him with less embarrassment. He bade me go by all means, and saidthat the next day we should discuss the plan to be adopted for my returnto Spain to carry away the hidden treasure. I saw Don Gaspar, I told himthe danger he was in if he let it be seen he was a man, I dressed him asa Moorish woman, and that same afternoon I brought him before the king,who was charmed when he saw him, and resolved to keep the damsel and makea present of her to the Grand Signor; and to avoid the risk she might runamong the women of his seraglio, and distrustful of himself, he commandedher to be placed in the house of some Moorish ladies of rank who wouldprotect and attend to her; and thither he was taken at once. What we bothsuffered (for I cannot deny that I love him) may be left to theimagination of those who are separated if they love one another dearly.The king then arranged that I should return to Spain in this brigantine,and that two Turks, those who killed your soldiers, should accompany me.There also came with me this Spanish renegade"--and here she pointed tohim who had first spoken--"whom I know to be secretly a Christian, and tobe more desirous of being left in Spain than of returning to Barbary. Therest of the crew of the brigantine are Moors and Turks, who merely serveas rowers. The two Turks, greedy and insolent, instead of obeying theorders we had to land me and this renegade in Christian dress (with whichwe came provided) on the first Spanish ground we came to, chose to runalong the coast and make some prize if they could, fearing that if theyput us ashore first, we might, in case of some accident befalling us,make it known that the brigantine was at sea, and thus, if there happenedto be any galleys on the coast, they might be taken. We sighted thisshore last night, and knowing nothing of these galleys, we werediscovered, and the result was what you have seen. To sum up, there isDon Gregorio in woman's dress, among women, in imminent danger of hislife; and here am I, with hands bound, in expectation, or rather indread, of losing my life, of which I am already weary. Here, sirs, endsmy sad story, as true as it is unhappy; all I ask of you is to allow meto die like a Christian, for, as I have already said, I am not to becharged with the offence of which those of my nation are guilty;" and shestood silent, her eyes filled with moving tears, accompanied by plentyfrom the bystanders. The viceroy, touched with compassion, went up to herwithout speaking and untied the cord that bound the hands of the Moorishgirl.But all the while the Morisco Christian was telling her strange story, anelderly pilgrim, who had come on board of the galley at the same time asthe viceroy, kept his eyes fixed upon her; and the instant she ceasedspeaking he threw himself at her feet, and embracing them said in a voicebroken by sobs and sighs, "O Ana Felix, my unhappy daughter, I am thyfather Ricote, come back to look for thee, unable to live without thee,my soul that thou art!"At these words of his, Sancho opened his eyes and raised his head, whichhe had been holding down, brooding over his unlucky excursion; andlooking at the pilgrim he recognised in him that same Ricote he met theday he quitted his government, and felt satisfied that this was hisdaughter. She being now unbound embraced her father, mingling her tearswith his, while he addressing the general and the viceroy said, "This,sirs, is my daughter, more unhappy in her adventures than in her name.She is Ana Felix, surnamed Ricote, celebrated as much for her own beautyas for my wealth. I quitted my native land in search of some shelter orrefuge for us abroad, and having found one in Germany I returned in thispilgrim's dress, in the company of some other German pilgrims, to seek mydaughter and take up a large quantity of treasure I had left buried. Mydaughter I did not find, the treasure I found and have with me; and now,in this strange roundabout way you have seen, I find the treasure thatmore than all makes me rich, my beloved daughter. If our innocence andher tears and mine can with strict justice open the door to clemency,extend it to us, for we never had any intention of injuring you, nor dowe sympathise with the aims of our people, who have been justlybanished.""I know Ricote well," said Sancho at this, "and I know too that what hesays about Ana Felix being his daughter is true; but as to those otherparticulars about going and coming, and having good or bad intentions, Isay nothing."While all present stood amazed at this strange occurrence the generalsaid, "At any rate your tears will not allow me to keep my oath; live,fair Ana Felix, all the years that heaven has allotted you; but theserash insolent fellows must pay the penalty of the crime they havecommitted;" and with that he gave orders to have the two Turks who hadkilled his two soldiers hanged at once at the yard-arm. The viceroy,however, begged him earnestly not to hang them, as their behavioursavoured rather of madness than of bravado. The general yielded to theviceroy's request, for revenge is not easily taken in cold blood. Theythen tried to devise some scheme for rescuing Don Gaspar Gregorio fromthe danger in which he had been left. Ricote offered for that object morethan two thousand ducats that he had in pearls and gems; they proposedseveral plans, but none so good as that suggested by the renegade alreadymentioned, who offered to return to Algiers in a small vessel of aboutsix banks, manned by Christian rowers, as he knew where, how, and when hecould and should land, nor was he ignorant of the house in which DonGaspar was staying. The general and the viceroy had some hesitation aboutplacing confidence in the renegade and entrusting him with the Christianswho were to row, but Ana Felix said she could answer for him, and herfather offered to go and pay the ransom of the Christians if by anychance they should not be forthcoming. This, then, being agreed upon, theviceroy landed, and Don Antonio Moreno took the fair Morisco and herfather home with him, the viceroy charging him to give them the bestreception and welcome in his power, while on his own part he offered allthat house contained for their entertainment; so great was the good-willand kindliness the beauty of Ana Felix had infused into his heart.