THE FLORIDA POCAHONTAS CONTINUED. 165 



rior came rushing into town with a tale, whose horror 

 exceeded even the crime of murder. 



"It appeared that the relief-guard that went out 

 early in the morning to take the place of Ortez, at the 

 tomb of the dead chieftain, found the Spaniard absent 

 from his post. On coming to the scaffolding they dis- 

 covered the canoe overturned, and the body of Wealuste 

 dragged out and mutilated by some wild beast. Depth 

 of all disgrace ! the face that had fronted a hundred 

 battles had been mutilated by a carrion wolf. Where 

 was now the soul of the chieftain in the shadowy land ? 

 What great doom was hovering over his people for 

 this neglect ? 



*' As the warriors wondered and mourned, and hastily 

 gathered up the body of their dead, Ortez was seen 

 coming back from woods, dragging the body of a huge 

 grey wolf. The animal, while making off with its prey, 

 had been pursued by the soldier, wounded with an arrow, 

 and killed with a dagger, after severely tearing the arm 

 of his antagonist. Ortez could give no explanation of 

 how the animal had succeeded in mounting the scaffold, 

 unobserved, or what he was doing during the scene of 

 sacrilege. The fault was fearful, and the Spaniard was 

 bound and dragged back to the village. Again he was 

 the outcast criminal, chained and reviled. Now, all the 

 suspicious spirits that mistrusted his prosperity gloated 

 over his fall, and reviled his situation. They caUed up 

 every misdeed that had come to their knowledge. They 

 cited his Spanish origin ; and reasoned, that because he 



