34. CHAPTER XXXIV.
Encounters between the Christians and Moors, before
Baza; and the devotion of the inhabitants to the defence
of their city.
When King Ferdinand beheld the ravage and confusion
produced by a single autumnal storm, and bethought
him of all the maladies to which a besieging
camp is exposed in inclement seasons, he began to
feel his compassion kindling for the suffering people
of Baza, and an inclination to grant them more favorable
terms. He sent, therefore, several messages to
the alcayde Mohammed ben Hassan, offering liberty
of person and security of property for the inhabitants,
and large rewards for himself, if he would surrender
the city.
The veteran Mohammed was not to be dazzled
by the splendid offers of the monarch; he had received
exaggerated accounts of the damage done to
the christian camp by the late storm, and of the sufferings
and discontents of the army in consequence
of the transient interruption of supplies: he considered
the overtures of Ferdinand as proofs of the desperate
state of his affairs. “A little more patience,
a little more patience,” said the shrewd old warrior,
“and we shall see this cloud of christian locusts
driven away before the winter storms. When they
once turn their backs, it will be our turn to strike;
and, with the help of Allah, the blow shall be decisive.”
He sent a firm though courteous refusal to
the Castilian monarch, and in the mean time animated
his companions to sally forth with more spirit
than ever, to attack the Spanish outposts and those
laboring in the trenches. The consequence was, a
daily occurrence of the most daring and bloody skirmishes,
that cost the lives of many of the bravest and
most adventurous cavaliers of either army.
In one of these sallies, nearly three hundred horse
and two thousand foot mounted the heights behind
the city, to capture the christians who were employed
upon the works. They came by surprise upon a
body of guards, esquires of the count de Urena, killed
some, put the rest to flight, and pursued them
down the mountain, until they came in sight of a
small force under the count de Tendilla and Gonsalvo
of Cordova. The Moors came rushing down
with such fury, that many of the men of the count
de Tendilla betook themselves to flight. The brave
count considered it less dangerous to fight than to fly.
Bracing his buckler, therefore, and grasping his trusty
weapon, he stood his ground with his accustomed
prowess. Gonsalvo of Cordova ranged himself by
his side, and, marshalling the troops which remained
with them, they made a valiant front to the Moors.
The infidels pressed them hard, and were gaining
the advantage, when Alonzo de Aguilar, hearing of
the danger of his brother Gonsalvo, flew to his assistance,
accompanied by the count of Ureña and a
body of their troops. A hot fight ensued, from cliff
to cliff, and glen to glen. The Moors were fewer in
number, but they excelled in the dexterity and lightness
requisite for their scrambling skirmishes. They
were at length driven from their vantage-ground, and
pursued by Alonzo de Aguilar and his brother Gonsalvo
to the very suburbs of the city, leaving many
of the bravest of their men upon the field.
Such was one of innumerable rough encounters
which were daily taking place, in which many brave
cavaliers were slain, without any apparent benefit to
either party. The Moors, notwithstanding repeated
defeats and losses, continued to sally forth daily, with
astonishing spirit and vigor, and the obstinacy of their
defence seemed to increase with their sufferings.
The prince Cidi Yahye was ever foremost in these
sallies, but he grew daily more despairing of success.
All the money in the military chest was expended,
and there was no longer wherewithal to pay the
hired troops. Still the veteran Mohammed ben Hassan
undertook to provide for this emergency. Summoning
the principal inhabitants, he represented the
necessity of some exertion and sacrifice on their part,
to maintain the defence of the city. “The enemy,”
said he, “dreads the approach of winter, and our
perseverance drives him to despair. A little longer,
and he will leave you in quiet enjoyment of your
homes and families. But our troops must be paid, to
keep them in good heart. Our money is exhausted,
and all our supplies are cut off. It is impossible to
continue our defence, without your aid.”
Upon this the citizens consulted together, and they
collected all their vessels of gold and silver, and
brought them to Mohammed ben Hassan: “Take
these,” said they, “and coin them, or sell them, or
pledge them, for money wherewith to pay the troops.”
The women of Baza also were seized with generous
emulation: “Shall we deck ourselves with gorgeous
apparel,” said they, “when our country is desolate,
and its defenders in want of bread?” So they took
their collars, and bracelets and anklets, and other
ornaments of gold, and all their jewels, and put them
in the hands of the veteran alcayde: “Take these
spoils of our vanity,” said they, “and let them contribute
to the defence of our homes and families. If
Baza be delivered, we need no jewels to grace our
rejoicing; and if Baza fall, of what avail are ornaments
to the captive?”
By these contributions was Mohammed enabled to
pay the soldiery, and to carry on the defence of the
city with unabated spirit.
Tidings were speedily conveyed to king Ferdinand,
of this generous devotion on the part of the
people of Baza, and the hopes which the Moorish
commanders gave them that the christian army would
soon abandon the siege in despair. “They shall have
a convincing proof of the fallacy of such hopes,” said
the politic monarch: so he wrote forthwith to queen
Isabella, praying her to come to the camp in state,
with all her train and retinue, and publicly to take
up her residence there for the winter. By this
means, the Moors would be convinced of the settled
determination of the sovereigns to persist in the
siege until the city should surrender, and he trusted
they would be brought to speedy capitulation.
