"Perhaps you are thirsty, Fray Antonio; if so, here is a bota of refino," said Lanzi, as he offered him a skin more than half full of the comforting liquid. The monk permitted himself to be persuaded sufficiently to prove that he was no lover of ardent spirits; then he allowed himself to be convinced, and seizing the bota, drank a hearty draught of the generous fluid. This libation restored him all his coolness and presence of mind. "Then," he said, as he turned the bota to the half-breed, and gave vent to a sigh of relief, "Heaven preserve me; were the Evil One to come now in person, I feel capable of holding my own against him." "Ah, ah!" said Tranquil, "It seems, my good father, as if you were now completely restored to the possession of your intellectual faculties." "Yes, and I will give you the proof whenever you like." "Hang it! You challenge me. I did not dare cross-question you before; but, as it is so, I will no longer hesitate." "What do you wish to know?" "A very simple matter: how it is that a monk finds himself at such an hour alone in the heart of the desert?" "Nonsense," Fray Antonio said, gaily. "Who told you that I was alone?" "Nobody; but I suppose so." "Do not make any suppositions, brother, for you would be mistaken." "Indeed!" "Yes, as I have the honour of telling you." "Still, when I met you, you were alone." "Granted." "Well?" "The others were further off, that's all." "What others?" "The persons who accompanied me." "Ah! And who are they?" "That is the question----Nonsense," he said, a minute after, as if holding a conversation with himself, "the most disadvantageous reports are current about me. I am accused of a number of bad actions; suppose I were to try and do a good one, that might change my luck. Who knows whether I may not be rewarded at a later date? At any rate, here goes." Tranquil and his comrades listened in extreme surprise to the monologue of the monk, not knowing exactly what to think of this man, and half inclined to deem him mad. The latter perceived the impression he produced on his hearers. "Listen," he said, in a stern voice, and with a slight frown, "form what opinion of me you like, that is a matter of indifference to me; still I do not wish it to be said, that I requited your cordial hospitality by odious treachery." "What do you mean?" Tranquil exclaimed. "Listen to me. I uttered the word treachery, and perhaps I was wrong, for nothing proves to me that it is so; still, all sorts of reasons lead me to suppose that it is nothing else persons tried to force me into committing for your injury." "Explain yourself, in Heaven's name; you speak in enigmas, and it is impossible to understand you." "You are right, so I will be clear: which of you gentlemen bears the name of Tranquil?" "It is I." "Very good. Owing to certain circumstances, the recital of which would not at all interest you, I unluckily fell into the hands of the Apaches."