1852.LXXII.
Bahia, Brazil,Jan. 2, 1852.
From the island of Teneriffe, on the opposite side of the Atlantic, we proceeded south to the Cape Verde islands, and stopped one day to receive coal at St. Vincent, but had difficulty in getting a supply, as fever and starvation had destroyed one hundred and fifty out of the small population of six hundred, and laborers were procured from the island of St. Antonio, and fed and kept by the English consul, who is the agent of the Cape of Good Hope Steam Company. Several coal-vessels were waiting impatiently to be discharged. A small American whaler had lost her mate, and five of her crew, and the captain was not expected to survive. We were besieged for medicines, which we gave as liberally as we could, and also landed the contributions of flour, corn, &c., from Madeira. Our passengers were much alarmed, particularly the Brazilians, who imagined that they inhaled the pestilence with every breath, and brought forth large supplies of cologne and volatile salts. The purser, doctor, and myself were the only persons who landed, and we found the people dying from sheer exhaustion; many would not take the medicines which we offered them. Such squalid wretchedness I hope never to witness again. We had constant trade-winds from the N.E. for some days, with warm, delightful weather, and when we crossed the line, the sailors, not having forgotten the former visits of Neptune, amused themselves and the passengers, by dressing in couples, one on all fours under a sack, imitating a donkey, with long ears and false tail, mounted by a third, and beaten with sticks by the whole cavalcade.
The following day these jolly fellows listened with attention to the prayers and services of the Church of England, which were read by the officers. The first land we sighted towards the American coast, was the island of Fernando Norona, some threedegrees south of the mouth of the river Amazon; we ran close under the rocky shore. It is used by the Brazilians for transportation of prisoners, and rarely visited. Whaling vessels sometimes touch, and for supplies of cattle and vegetables. The scenery of the island appeared enchanting. We arrived at Pernambuco, Lat. 8° south, sixteen hundred miles from Cape Verde, in advance of the usual time, which gave us a good opportunity of seeing the city, and riding several miles in the country. The view from the steamer, the natural reef of coral rocks, fifteen miles in length, forming the harbor; the town of Olinda on the hill to the north, with its white houses amid groves of green cocoa-nut trees, strike the beholder as exceedingly beautiful, and I found the town more cleanly than I expected, as the Brazilians, like their predecessors, the Portuguese, are renowned for filth. The city is prettily situated on three islands connected by bridges; it has some nine thousand population, one-third whites and two-thirds slaves; the buildings are high and well-constructed, but the interiors are poorly furnished; the narrow streets are offensive, but those of tolerable width are in better order. We found immense numbers of mules and horses, which come long distances from the interior, laden with cotton and sugar. The foreign population is small, some five hundred in all, French, English, and Germans; the latter predominate in the Brazils, as several colonies of them have been formed under the auspices of government. Of Americans there are only eight or ten; their numbers are usually small, but they are to be found at all commercial points of importance, and to them we are indebted for the great luxury of ice, which the people here had been deprived of for a long time; we could also obtain supplies of fruit.
We have some disaffection on board among passengers of different races and tastes, as to the supplies, and a committee was formed to wait upon the commander, who is a worthy and excellent person. But the system of the West India and South American Steam Co. which allows the captain equal to one dollar and eighty-seven and a half cents per day per head, wines, sodas, and other refreshments being ticketed, and settled for weekly, is found obnoxious by many passengers, who pay monopoly fares, and is entirely different from the liberality displayed by the Peninsula and Oriental Company, who, notwithstanding the mail contract and monopoly systems, aremuch more liberal in their provisions and accommodations. But with the increase of American steamers, their influence will be felt, not only in this respect, but more particularly in point of speed. The English mail contract throughout the East exacts only eight knots running time, and the West India and South America nine knots per hour, which is slow work for one accustomed to American steamers. Necessity is driving the English to a higher rate of speed, and the company is now constructing new and faster boats to run to Chagres, in order to prevent the tide of travel from setting to New York. We found two American whalers in quarantine at Pernambuco, which had touched at St. Vincent, and had some fever on board; we had obtained a clean bill of health, and having no sickness, we were permitted to pass. It was a great relief to get a drive of six miles, in the country where nature appears so beautiful even during the heat of this, their summer, with the thermometer at eighty-five, passing through groves of cocoas, palms, breadfruits, tamarinds, oranges, and other tropical trees, with melons and other fruits to satisfy thirst. We first learned here that war had been actually declared between Brazil and Buenos Ayres, and that the government had granted a loan and part of the fleet to blockade the port of the latter, while the Banda Oriental attack with the land forces. The son of Gen. Manzilla, and nephew of Rosas, the Dictator of the Argentine republic, is a fellow passenger; he promised to accompany me in the interior of Buenos Ayres, but the shock is rather astounding, and we can only learn the facts at Rio Janeiro.
The entrance to Bahia, or Bay of All Saints, is really beautiful; it lies four hundred miles south of Pernambuco, and the entrance is seven miles broad; its fine harbor is protected from all winds, and the rich country about it receives the waters of several small rivers. Americus Vespucius discovered it in 1503, under the patronage of the King of Portugal, and his carrying home a species of dye-wood, which, when cut, resembled coals of fire, gave Brazil its name, from Brazas, or coals. Bahia owes its foundation to the fact of the captain of a shipwrecked vessel in 1510 having his life spared by the Indians, after most of the crew were killed. The town is divided into two parts, the Praya, or Citada Baxa, under the hill, and Citada Alta, above, which appears quite antique. The descent isdifficult, but by well paved roads and cadeiras or ornamented chairs supported by two negroes, which are in general use, it is quite practicable. The streets are clean, as Yellow Jack has improved the habits of the filthy Portuguese. New Year’s day is kept here as holiday, and our passengers enjoyed themselves in visiting the public gardens and riding about the suburbs, while a party of sixteen dined together at the hotel on the summit of the hill, with a fine view of this magnificent bay, which in some respects recalls the harbor and site of Naples in miniature. The hedges are of lime trees; grapes are in season, bananas and melons abound; the seedless orange here is superior to that of any other part of the world. The public garden is situated on the boldest and most commanding height of the old town, one side looking upon the ocean, and the other upon the bay, with iron railings to prevent falling down the precipice.
The large Jaca tree which furnishes fruit larger than the cocoa, and affords fine shade, is found here. Formerly the privilege of the whale fishery was sold for a considerable sum, but at present it is reduced. The island of Itaporica, in the bay, has some oil establishments, and whales are occasionally killed; the flesh is much admired by the negroes, and is found in the market for sale. There are extensive plantations in the country, with two or three hundred slaves, and large quantities of sugar, cotton, and tobacco are produced. It is the Havana of Brazil for the manufacture of cigars. Large quantities of American flour are imported, but the food of the common people is farina made from the root of the mandioca. There is a fine race of negroes here, and they appear better dressed than I had expected to find them; but from what I can learn, their condition will not compare favorably with the negroes of our Southern States, whose enhanced value in the absence of the slave-trade induces kind treatment aside from motives of humanity.
Rio Janeiro, Brazil,Jan. 13, 1852.
From Bahia, I came down by steamer, a distance of seven hundred and twenty miles, under the most favorable circumstances, in three days, making the moderate average of ten milesper hour. The entrance or mouth of the harbor lies between two small islands, and is one mile wide and skirted on each side by immense masses of solid rock, six hundred feet high, if not higher; the hills are steep and fortified. The view of this splendid harbor is majestically grand, increasing in size to eight or ten miles, and in this gulf are many small islands distributed about and occupied by small villages: the sheet of water is fringed with green verdure, bright villas, and immense high craggy peaks of mountains, forming one of the most beautiful pictures. The city lies low in a valley, and appears from an elevated spot of a semicircular form; the streets run at right angles, with public squares without trees, but as the Brazilians and Portuguese idolize filth, don’t expect much in the way of cleanliness. The hotels are vile for a city of three hundred thousand people, even if one-half are negroes; in this warm climate, with the thermometer in the month of January at 92°, you can well imagine the annoyance from vermin in badly conducted dens. I was obliged to fight a bloody battle the first night with the bugs, who disputed possession, and the following morning I abandoned my quarters for better ones. There is a considerable French population here, and one street is supplied with every variety of Parisian fancy goods, so much so that one for the moment would almost imagine himself in Paris; but he would soon be undeceived on demanding prices, and finding them double or treble what they are in France, the Brazilian duties being from eighty to one hundred per cent. on many articles, which offers a premium for smuggling. It is said the customs are here ten million dollars, but the Emperor receives four hundred thousand per annum, and has now a war on hand with Buenos Ayres, and a force of from thirty to forty thousand men to be kept up. As some one must pay for this, it falls upon the consumers, and for the benefit of those who expect to reside here, I will state that the expenses and luxuries of life, inclusive of carriage hire, exceed those of Calcutta or London. The country is rich and fertile; sugar, coffee, and hides enter largely in the exports. Our people know how to appreciate Rio coffee, particularly along the valley of the Mississippi, and we have become for our population the largest consumers of coffee in the world.
I have escaped the odoriferous smells of the narrow streets andthe heat of the city for a few days, in visiting the new city and private summer residence of the Emperor Pedro II. called after him, Pedropolis, where he has founded a colony of Germans, in the valley of the mountains, two thousand four hundred feet above the level of the sea and about twenty-seven miles from Rio, and where the temperature of the air is from 68° to 70° Fahrenheit, while in the city the thermometer ranges from 85° to 92°. We proceeded by a small steamer across the bay, winding among many little islands in a second bay, and thence up a small meandering river to the landing-place, where we took land-carriage to the base of the mountains, where our vehicle containing four persons was drawn by four mules, over a zigzag, well constructed road, with parapet walls and stone arches for the mountain torrents, built by government at heavy cost; the entire distance was accomplished in seven hours. The panorama of the bay and city in the distance from the crowning point is superb. There were some fourteen hundred families of Germans composing this colony, and they have employment upon the roads, in the erection of houses, and improvement of the town, which is well laid out, with streams of pure water passing through it. Many fine mansions have been erected by city gentlemen; the Emperor is building a palace of solid construction, which has already occupied four years, and cost two hundred thousand dollars, and will require two years more to complete it, as the work progresses slowly, and is a fat job for the builders. Many of the Germans have sold out their grants of town lots, and bought lands in the neighborhood, which they are cultivating, and I could almost imagine myself in parts of Switzerland, for the style of the dwellings, and the costume and figure of the German peasants carried me back to Faderland. As long as the Emperor spends money freely, all will work well, but if his patronage is withdrawn the place will decline, it being too expensive for the masses and too difficult of access.
I saw here a group of German girls in Bloomer costume, with a part of the palace band, who were playing from house to house. I met with an American on his way to the diamond mines, some five hundred miles in the interior—a persevering pioneer from old Kentucky, who had not been home in twenty-four years. He had married a Portuguese who had died, andhe had his family with him, who had been educated in England, his second wife being an English lady. He had some two hundred hands engaged in his business—a profitable one, as Brazil exports some four million dollars’ worth of diamonds annually. Droves of mules were constantly passing to the different mines of gold, diamonds, and other precious stones in the interior. I was shown some handsome specimens said to be worth two thousand dollars per ounce in the rough. The Emperor and Empress are seen almost daily in their promenades about the suburbs or through the town, with a small escort, and sometimes quite alone; the people speak well of their kindness and liberality. The Emperor is only twenty-four years of age, and his consort, the sister of the King of Naples, is his senior by three years, and not at all remarkable for beauty. I saw them at the opera last evening, in full costume; they appeared to advantage, it being the close of a gala day, the Emperor having received at his palace all military officers of distinction. He was clad in full military dress; he is of good stature, with a well developed figure, a face of the Austrian or Russian type.
The frigate Congress is now in port, proceeding to Monte Video, and our Minister, Mr. Schenck, whose health is somewhat feeble, accompanies her. If the city of Rio Janeiro is remarkable for its filth, and the depravity and immorality of its inhabitants, it can boast of the beauty of its suburbs, which extend for many miles. La Gloria and Botafogo, and other villages situated upon the little indentations and bays, are very pretty, and nature is very prolific in her supply of fruits and flowers. One of the most beautiful drives is to the botanical garden, some six miles from town, the road winding along the beautiful bays, the shores lined with the villas of foreigners and wealthy residents, and the gardens filled with a great variety of fruit trees and flowers peculiar to the climate. I found in the botanical garden avenues of stately palms, not unlike the cafetals in the island of Cuba; a bamboo labyrinth, and an acre or more of the tea plant, as a reminiscence of China; a grove of cinnamon trees of large size, equal to those of the island of Ceylon; and in fact, all the productions of the tropics except the cocoa-nut, which I have lost sight of since leaving Bahia. The city is supplied with water from the mountains by aqueduct, and some three hundred tanks have lately been placed at the cornersof the streets; but I drink river water of an underground culvert in the city. The offal is carried in vessels upon the heads of the negroes at night, and thrown upon the beach and in the harbor.
It is only surprising that the yellow fever does not always exist here; it is a blessing instead of a curse, if it only improves the cleanliness of the people. The currency of the country is government paper, from one milreis upwards. Of gold there is considerable, of the value of twelve dollars each piece; there is no small silver, but the quantity of copper in circulation is enormous. It is not as bad as in China, where twelve hundred small coins go to the dollar; but here, if a milreis, valued at sixty cents, is exchanged, you obtain a thousand reis; the smallest coin is valued at ten reis, making it necessary to ballast equally well your pockets; but fortunately, however, ferry boat and omnibus tickets go well, and remind one of our own shin-plaster days.
Monte Video,Jan. 20, 1852.
The continuation of the South American line of steamers is maintained by the Prince, of only four hundred tons burden, which takes the mails and passengers from Rio Janeiro to this place and Buenos Ayres, one hundred and twenty miles further up the river. It is always agreeable to meet with old acquaintances, and in this instance I was surprised to find that our captain had formerly been in command of a mail packet from St. Thomas to La Guayra, which had carried me down to Venezuela. Our passage, of something more than one thousand miles, was made in a little over four days.
Monte Video lies at the north of the Rio de la Plata, one of the largest rivers in South America after the Amazon; it was discovered in 1515 by Juan Diaz de Soles, who proceeded as far as 34° 23´ south latitude, but was killed, as were also his crew of four men. A few years later Sebastian Cabot, who went to discover the Straits of Magellan, and penetrated as high as the conflux of the Parana and Paraguay, some two hundred leagues, had a fight with the Indians, and succeeded in takingtheir treasures of silver from Peru; and supposing the supply inexhaustible gave the stream the name which it now bears, Silver River. It is over a hundred and fifty miles wide at the mouth, but at Buenos Ayres it is reduced to forty. The influence of this formidable river is seen by the water being colored more than four hundred miles at sea. The position of this port is desirable on account of its ready access and geographical position; it has a temperate climate, and moderately dry winds from the land to counteract the humidity of the sea air. It once had a population of seventy thousand, which has been reduced to twenty-five thousand by a nine years’ siege, which was successfully resisted with the aid of the French, who have paid for some years annually forty thousand dollars per month to sustain the place against the besieging army of Oribe, at the head of the Buenos Ayrean forces of the Dictator Rosas. I found that the town had suffered severely, particularly in the deserted houses and crumbling walls; the pavements of the streets are badly broken up, and everything had the appearance of desolation; but the siege being raised last October, much life and activity have since been displayed in repairs, and the blockade has been removed from vessels proceeding to Buenos Ayres.
Oribe, the tool of Rosas, has now retired to his quinta, or farm-house, and is said to be poor. His army was headed by General Urquizas, in connexion with the allied forces of Brazil, and those of the provinces of Entre Rios and Uruguay, and they are now proceeding to “beard the lion in his den,” having crossed the river Parana, on their way to Buenos Ayres by land, while the Brazilian fleet are occupying the river. The French have eleven vessels of war now in port, and in the town are quartered fifteen hundred troops, reminding one of a garrisoned town in France. Brazil has now taken upon herself the charges of the war, and relieved the French; she has a large number of German troops employed, and the Monte Videans feel sanguine that with an army of thirty thousand men on a good war footing, they will be able to overcome any force that the tyrant Rosas can produce, although his infantry and cavalry are estimated at from twenty-five to forty thousand, by far the greatest force ever brought together in South America.
The houses here have mostly azoteas, or flat roofs, which afford a fine promenade for the ladies, who have the advantageof seeing all that passes over the parapet. Notwithstanding they have suffered so severely, and have made such sacrifices, many families having been beggared, they support an opera which is well attended, and the fair sex looks as graceful and charming as in most Spanish towns.
I am now proceeding to Buenos Ayres, where I will finish this epistle.
Buenos Ayres,Feb. 1, 1852.
My first impressions on approaching this city were highly favorable, the line of shore appearing fresh and verdant in comparison with Monte Video after its long and devastating siege. The city, built upon the banks of the river, some thirty feet high, with its forts, and public and private buildings and temples, as seen in approaching from the outer roadstead, looked quite imposing. The outer anchorage is five or six miles from the shore, and only vessels of a light draught of water can get to the inner anchorage, half a mile from town, where small boats carry you towards the shore, and you take large carts, drawn by a pair of mules, nearly up to their backs in water, from the many obstructions in the river. At the landing the son of General Mansilla and myself were met by the captain of the post and several other officers, dressed in the Rosas, or sanguinary costume, which every native is obliged to wear, viz. a red vest, a ribbon of the same color around the hat, and one at the button-hole, with the inscription, “Viva la Confederacion! Mueren los salvages unitarios!” (Long life to the Confederacion! Death to the savage Unitarians.) The offices of the Government, I noticed, were painted red, and everything indicated that I was in the country of a despot. The misnamed republic of Buenos Ayres extends along the Atlantic from the Rio Negro south to the Rio de la Plata, along the shores of its estuary to the southern bank of Parana, near to Santa Fè. Its soil is fertile, and affords the finest of pasturage for cattle. Millions of horned cattle and horses run upon the pampas, or plains, and its exports in hides, horns, jerked beef, and tallow, are immense. Its climate is most agreeable; we are now in midsummer, and thethermometer seldom goes higher than 85°; every variety of fruit found in warmer latitudes may be produced here; but the energies of the people are blunted from the excessive abuses of the tyrant Rosas, who has been for twenty years the governor, so styled, but really the modern Nero of the world. I had heard of his many acts of atrocity while at Montevideo and Rio, but was unprepared to believe the thousand charges alleged against him, until I learned from those who had passed through the reign of terror, and who are protected by their consuls, whereby they can express their minds, although not loudly, that half the wholesale butcheries which have occurred here for opinion’s sake, cannot be portrayed. I came here with the intention of crossing over the pampas and the Cordillera mountains to the west coast at Valparaiso, which is about twenty days’ travel on horseback; but I find that I cannot proceed ten leagues from the city without the strongest probability of being assassinated by stragglers or deserters from both camps; so I shall have to abandon my intention, and proceed to Rio Janeiro, retracing my steps twelve hundred miles in order to procure passage by a British steamer going through the Straits of Magellan to take her position on the west coast line from Chili to Panama. The most intense excitement prevails in the city. Levies are made of all the native forces, from boys of ten years of age up to old men of eighty, who are called out daily at three p.m. by bands of music for the purpose of drilling until sunset; all places of business are closed, and the poor people, who have no means of support, must work at night to keep from starving. Husbands and brothers are dragged off to the army, often leaving their families entirely destitute.
The residence of the dictator, called Palermos, a beautiful drive about three miles from town, where millions of dollars have been spent in reclaiming a marshy country near the river bank, is intersected by canals and lined with avenues of willows which grow in great profusion and afford a fine shade, as do also oranges and other fruit trees. The drives through the country are beautiful, and the whole arrangement is of a princely character. The review of the troops, whose barracks are within the inclosures, was an interesting spectacle; they were dressed in red cloth-caps, with coats of the same color; gaucho pantaloons of white, with heavy fringe at bottom, and as a finale the wholeregiment, say three thousand strong, responded to the cry of “Viva la confederacion!” “Death to the fool and traitor Urquizas!” “Death to the savage Unitarians!” All of which I listened to with horror and disgust, and thought, “It will not be long before your tunes are changed,” and I have just had the satisfaction of seeing them flying to the city for safety, as an engagement has taken place several leagues from the city, in which two thousand of Urquizas’ cavalry put to flight some thousands of their opponents, who made good their escape as fast as their horses would carry them, throwing away all their accoutrements of war, even to their blankets.
It is an exciting time, and the issue will soon be known. Rosas is leaving the country. To prevent the approach of the enemy, all the supplies of hay and provender are embargoed for the use of the troops, and prices have been advanced from two to three hundred per cent. The currency of the country is all paper, and the dictator has supreme control of the bank of issue. Ounces of gold command three hundred and five dollars of paper. He has gone to the camp, as he must make a stand at the head of his army to encourage his people, who secretly wish his reign of tyranny over; his daughter, Manuelita, whose political character is quite established, has left Palermos. It is surprising that the combined nations of the earth should have so long sustained such an infamous government, but the facts are that the world has not been enlightened on the subject; foreigners have been protected by the policy of this chief, and the wily arts of the second in command, his talented daughter, who has many good traits of character, have inveigled Chargés and Consuls, who have received such high favor at court, that they have been infatuated and blinded to the monstrosities of the father, while the governments that they have represented have remained in ignorance of the true state of things. Our former Minister, Mr. H——, on his departure, wrote one of the most fulsome and disgusting of letters, very flattering to the vanity of these persons; but our present Minister conducts himself as an American should, with proper sentiments for suffering humanity. The government is seizing private horses for the use of the army; the crisis is approaching, and in a few days we shall know the result.
Steamer Prince, off Montevideo,Feb. 5, 1852.
My last was written the day before the final blow was struck by Gen. Urquizas, at the head of his forces, upon the camp at Santos Lugares. The battle commenced at six in the morning and terminated at ten; the first shock was received by the cavalry of Rosas, who were put to flight and completely routed. At twelve o’clock the lancers had fled around in the city, announcing that all the cavalry had been destroyed, and it is supposed that four thousand infantry and horsemen have been slain or wounded. The ministers and consuls of the different nations, as well as the commodores and captains of the vessels of war, English, Spanish, Swedish, Sardinian, and American, conferred together and resolved to bring their marines ashore to protect the lives and property of their countrymen, and applied to Gen. Mansilla, he being in command of the city, who replied that at sixP.M.he would give an answer, but within half-an-hour he sent word by an officer that they could land and take such measures as they wished, at the same time requesting the assistance of a deputation of ministers to carry a flag of truce, and sue for terms, and cessation of hostilities. The city was filled with troops, and the greatest possible excitement and confusion reigned; but the policy of Urquizas is pacific, and we may now hope that all will be harmonious soon.
The steamer Locust has just come down and informs us that Rosas and his daughter escaped under cover of night in a small row-boat disguised as sailors, and bare-footed, their shoes having been drawn off by the mud. They were passed by the Locust on board the British steamer Certain, and it is supposed that he will go to England, where it is said he has large investments in the funds. This news of the downfall of the tyrant is received with great demonstrations of joy in Montevideo, and succeeded by the merry peals of all the church bells, and an illumination. Mr. Schenck, our minister from Rio, is with us on his return, having gone down with the frigate Congress, Commodore McKeever, whom we left at Buenos Ayres.
I could have wished to have remained a few days longer to know the final result of the affair, but as there is only a monthlysteamer of the mail line, I must avail myself of this occasion, to be able to meet an anticipated opportunity by steamer to Valparaiso. While at Buenos Ayres I visited the Salideros, which is one of the most remarkable sights. It is well known that the slaughter of cattle is unprecedented here, and the execution is remarkable; some of these establishments dispose of from five hundred to eight hundred per day. They are driven in from the estancias in herds, in inclosures made of sharpened stakes placed upright, and sufficiently high to prevent escape; this inclosure is gradually contracted and separated by means of hoisting gates, until the animals are closed compactly near the slaughtering sheds, where they are lashed by the horns and drawn to a ring in a cross piece of timber, over a truck cart upon a railway, where they are quickly despatched by a single blow of the knife in the neck, back of the horns; they are drawn up by horse power acting over pulleys; fifteen in eleven minutes were disposed of in my presence. The hides are removed, and dried or salted for exportation; the meat is jerked or cut in slices for drying, and sent to the West Indies; the horn is peeled, and the pithy particles within are used for making fences or bridging places or roads; the offal is put in immense reservoirs, containing two hundred barrels each, of which I counted ten in the establishment. Large pipes from an immense boiler convey the steam into these repositories, and the tallow runs out of tubes at the bottom like molten lead, and is put up in tierces while in a liquid state for shipping. The refuse of the vats is used for making steam, and in fact every particle of the animal is consumed, except the blood; the ashes from the bones answer the purpose of guano, and are contracted for in quantities. In consequence of the war and the uncertain tenure of this kind of property, which is liable to be taken by the army, cattle have been sold at two dollars each, our currency. It is a horrible and disgusting sight, but it forms the chief branch of commerce of this country. We will now carry the war news to Rio, which will be gratifying and relieve the treasury.
Steamship Winfield Scott, Pacific Coast,March 17, 1852.
When I last wrote you I think I was returning from Monte Video to Rio Janeiro, to obtain a passage in a new steamer which was expected out from England, designing to continue my voyage through the Straits of Magellan, and up to Chili, but I found myself disappointed. Soon after this, the arrival of the noble ship from which I now write gave me an excellent opportunity to do so, being well commanded, and having accommodations for six hundred California passengers, while we are but two in number. The detention at Rio, on my second visit, gave me the advantages, or rather the annoyances, of the Carnival season, as it is there conducted. For three days from twelve at noon until night, it was unsafe to appear in the streets, where you ran the risk of being drenched with water, the contents of colored wax balls of the appearance of lemons, thrown by ladies, gentlemen, and children; in fact, all classes entered into the sport, from the doors and balconies across the streets. The Carnival commenced on Sunday, Washington’s birthday, and for three days business was mostly suspended. I had taken a social and quiet dinner in the suburbs with our minister, under the protection of a large and magnificent star-spangled banner, recently received, and floating in remembrance of the Father of his Country, to whom we are so much indebted for gifts possessed by no other people. In returning my vehicle had to run the gauntlet amid the showers of lemon balls. Theatres were crowded with masquerades, which I did not attend; having looked in upon them, however, the evening previous, which was the commencement, I found thousands of spectators occupying the boxes, and a multitude dancing with a violence that I had scarcely ever seen in cold latitudes. Prior to the Carnival they had an annual ball for charitable purposes, to which I was invited. It was given in an immense building in the centre of a long inclosure called the Garden of Paradise, but it appeared to me more like a Purgatory. Several thousand persons were present, to whom every variety of iced refreshments were offered; the extreme heat of the saloon, which was nearly one hundred degrees, and the ridiculous costume of the gentlemen(black coats and pants) oppressed me so much that I was induced to leave at an early hour. The ladies wore more dresses of rose and pink than of white, which appeared to add to the heat, and were sparkling with diamonds more attractive than their persons, but less diversified in complexion, the Portuguese race not being remarkable for beauty, while the color here is much mixed.
Our ship, which is about twelve hundred tons burden, took in eight hundred tons of coal and put to sea, and at the expiration of four days and a half we found ourselves at the mouth of the Rio de la Plata, with muddy water and no soundings, two hundred miles from shore, which shows the force of this river. We saw nothing of interest along the coast, except immense flocks of aquatic birds, opposite the Guano Islands. At the termination of nine days and a half we were in Lat. 52° south, at the entrance of the Straits, Cape Virgin at the north, and forty miles wide. The cold having increased gradually, we had made accession of clothing, and put up a stove two days before. Our steamer hove to off the cape, and we entered by daylight, with a cold, strong head-wind; the banks were from one hundred and sixty to two hundred and fifty feet in height; large numbers of walruses or sea-cows basked in the sun, and many birds of large size flew foolishly in and through the rigging. Guanacoes and ostriches are seen on the Patagonia shores, and the country appears dreary and barren.
I became interested as the scenery improved in grandeur and majesty, and occupied a place in the pilot-house, being well muffled up in overcoat and cloak; still it was cold and cheerless, and I could not avoid reflecting upon the inconveniences of a shipwreck. The first narrows dividing the Patagonian coast from Terra del Fuego are about nine miles long, and one mile and a half wide, with strong tide ripples, and we can see distinctly the two shores; the water is of a greenish river color, but quite salt. The Indians, of whom some few are seen, trade for beads, petty trinkets, liquor, ammunition and lead, of which they make balls, and with which, attached to the ends of cords, they entangle the legs of the ostriches. In the afternoon of the day we entered we had passed the second narrows, with Elizabeth Island in view, in an open bay, when we espied the first small sail, and supposed it to be some man of war’s boat, cruizing with the French flag, bearing down for us. We were heading off and should have passed her,had we not accidentally observed the tri-colored flag half-mast, when we altered our course and came up. We discovered a French lieutenant clapping his hands with joy, and crying out in his native tongue, “We are shipwrecked!” When shall I forget the scene of excitement and ecstasy manifested by himself and his six men composing the crew, as well as ourselves, on learning their condition, and being the means of saving them? His launch was twenty-one feet in length, and six feet wide, with mainsail and jib; it contained his supplies of red wine, salt-beef, and biscuit, but was leaky, and kept two men bailing; they could not have lived twenty-four hours longer. The facts are these: The French brig of war, Entreprenant, coming from the Pacific on her way to the Falkland islands, had entered a false bay, of which there are many, and the constant westerly winds resisted every effort of her crew of one hundred and thirty-five men to get her out; they were surrounded by mountains of snow and ice, without any chance of escape. At the expiration of eleven days, the launch started in pursuit of relief to Port Famine, a penal settlement, and the only habitable neighborhood along the straits. On arriving there they found that the convicts had risen and massacred the governor and other officers, and escaped, after hanging and burning the captain and owner of an English brig and an American three-masted schooner, taking possession of the vessels and all the treasure obtainable. The only recourse for the launch was to continue with the wind towards the Atlantic, when fortunately we met and saved them from a frightful death. The lieutenant explained to me the position of his ship, which I interpreted to our commander, who readily consented to go in pursuit of her. The next day we discovered a sail, and heard the discharge of guns, and found it to be the brig of war, which had just emerged from the bay, after an imprisonment of eighteen days. A perfect calm had enabled them, a desperate effort of their oarsmen, to tow her eight miles out into the strait, when the commander, Count Pouget, espied us, and expressed his obligations, sending a letter to the French Commodore at Valparaiso, requesting me to call upon him personally with the Captain, and to receive his thanks. The two ships parted amid the general rejoicing of all parties.
We had a cold but beautiful sail through scenery of the mostmajestic and romantic character, mountains rising from two thousand five hundred to three thousand feet in height, with jagged forms and snow-clad, with the gilding of the sun’s rays upon them.
There are various kinds of scenery as you pass west. Sometimes the peaks resemble those about Rio, high and conical; I almost imagined myself among the ice-mountains of Switzerland, and then again, in the scanty undergrowth of some localities, in Norway. With the strong westerly winds in some parts, the stunted trees rise from the sheltered side of rocks to a level with the summit, and seem as if cut and trimmed off at the top, and all the branches extend towards the east. The mountains rise in succession, retreating as you approach the ocean, the influence of the salt-air melting the snow and bringing down avalanches, while those in the rear are constantly white, and those on the margin are of grey granite in layers. On the shores of South Desolation we descried the smoke and fire of the Fuegean Indians, who came off in bark canoes, making signals with seal skins; the men, women, and children, notwithstanding the severe atmosphere about us, were nearly in a state of nature. The distance through the straits from Cape Virgin to Cape Pillar is two hundred and seventy miles, the most southern point being Cape Froward, in Latitude fifty-four south; our distance from Rio Janeiro to Valparaiso will be three thousand and six hundred miles, and the views through the passage are certainly among the most rough, wild, desolate, and exciting in the world. When the California trade first opened, many small vessels passed through, but now the clippers have replaced them, and a sail is rarely seen.
We had fine weather until we approached the Pacific entrance at Cape Pillar, which is a singular rock or column, five hundred feet high, when a heavy gale of wind, with a strong current from the west, set in, bringing in tremendous seas, which nothing but the immense power of steam could resist; the smallest accident in the machinery must have dashed the vessel on the rocks. The qualities of the ship have now been fully tried, and nobly has she conducted herself for three boisterous days, with but slight damage to the wood-work about the guards. She rode the billows handsomely, through a perfect white sea of foam, and rarely have I seen or enjoyed more grand and majesticwaves. During the squalls we had some magnificent rainbows, which appeared to approach the ship in circular form, like colossal wheels, until almost within grasp. We also saw large numbers of albatross, with wings measuring from eight to ten feet from tip to tip, and with two joints, which gives them the most graceful motion as they skim over the waves.
My travelling companion from the Bay State is making his first voyage, and has suffered intense agony of mind for fear we should be lost. He says he has already seen the tusks of the “elephant” off Cape Pillar, and for two nights he did not close his eyes in sleep, as he thought every moment we should be capsized by the heavy roll of the waves; I, however, had full confidence in the ship and officers. My friend says he must try to get home by land, as the value of the ship and cargo would be no inducement to him to pass through the same scenes again. The weather is now clear, the winds are hushed, the sea is smooth, the nights are brilliant, with the white Magellan cloud in the heavens, as an index for the mariner, and the weather is becoming warm and pleasant. We have passed Ascension, and are now approaching Valparaiso, where I shall leave the steamer and proceed after a few days to Santiago, the capital of Chili, ninety miles in the interior.
Santiago, Capital of Chili,March 24, 1852.
On entering the harbor of Valparaiso, I was struck with the number of vessels anchored in its deep bay, sheltered from all but the northers, which are at times most destructive to shipping. It has great depth of water, say from sixty to eighty fathoms, near the shore; from the broken and peculiar formation of the many clay-covered hills in the background, with deep ravines, and huts, and frame dwellings clustered on the side, above the narrow city below, it appears not unlike a town of stairs, the dry and parched appearance of the summits affording no vegetation, there having been no rain for many months. Much movement and commercial life are there; the shattered buildings of last year’s earthquake are mostly repaired; the hotels are very fair; the number of foreigners large, and the populationupwards of fifty thousand. The civil war of last autumn having ceased, the newly elected president has been received by all classes on his arrival from the capital, and remains the guest of the city. He is a lawyer, and occupies a high judicial position; he is the first civil governor Chili has ever had; his opponent, General Cruz, who attempted to nullify his election, was defeated with the loss of four thousand men in one battle.
I had brought letters from Rio Janeiro for the officers of the flag ship Raritan and St. Lawrence, and had gone on board the former to pay the commodore a visit, when the latter entered the harbor, having left Rio two weeks before us, going round the Horn; but our ship had made the quickest passage on record—fifteen days and twenty-two hours, moving time, via the Straits. A salute of thirteen guns was received, and nine returned, agreeable to rank. The Portsmouth has also just arrived from Rio. Mr. Peyton, our Ambassador here, tells me that he has just received advices from Ecuador, that General Flores has been fitting out an expedition from Callao to Guayaquil, and the presence of this ship will be required there. These South American Republics, which do not merit the name, are almost always in confusion, you perceive. We found that the American vessel which had been seized by convicts at Port Famine, had arrived in the harbor of Valparaiso, having been rescued from the pirates by an English steamer; the ringleaders will soon be executed. I regretted to learn that the owner, who was barbarously hung, and whose body was burned, was an acquaintance, he having on one occasion conveyed me from New Orleans to Havana; I saw him last at San Francisco. The Captain is now here, accompanied by Mr. Duer, our consul at Valparaiso, prosecuting claims against the Chilian government; but I fear it will be very slow work. The usual mode of travel from Valparaiso, a distance of ninety miles, is in biloches, a sort of heavy gig with two and three horses, each mounted by postillions, the outside ones attached at will by heavy straps at each side of the shafts, and fastened with hooks to a heavy saddle; the riders attach or detach themselves at full speed, going with the greatest velocity up and down mountains and over a desert country, where nothing is seen but bushes and scraggy shrubs in a sandy soil. A few places are seen on the road where peach and pear trees, as well as grapes, are found, but the country isdestitute of water most of the distance. The horses are driven ahead in a drove, and changed as required.
The Bilocheros have the habit of racing; a certain rivalry exists between them, and where opportunity offers they go at full speed up and down the hills, and over the plains, regardless of horse-flesh, which is only nominal in price. We made the distance in twenty-four hours, passing part of the night at a small village, where the fleas disputed possession stoutly, and we were glad to make a start at three in the morning to escape them. We had clouds of dust from the large numbers of laden mules and ox-carts. The entire elevation is some two thousand five hundred feet to the base of the Andes, a chain of Cordilleras, which show their snow-clad summits beautifully as you approach the delightful and extended valleys of Santiago, and it is gratifying to discern the well watered plain, with its long lines of poplars and willows in the distance. Bridges are thrown across the river, or mountain torrent, which is not unlike the Po at Nice, and the rides along the banks of the stream in this genial climate, with its vineyards and fruit trees, amply compensate for the trouble of getting here. The rides up the mountains give you a fair view of the city, which is extensive, and has a population of some ninety thousand. It is the residence of all the foreign ministers, and the seat of government; it derives its revenues from silver mines, and its agricultural products; it has a good supply of red porphyry for sidewalks; its streets are wide and long, and paved with small pebbles; its houses are mostly built of adobe, or unburnt brick, which resist the shocks of earthquakes. The cathedral is rather dangerous, being somewhat shattered. There is a corps of United States astronomical engineers here, whose observatory is placed on the summit of the little hill of Santa Lucia. I find an acquaintance here, in the person of the French minister, whose family came out with us in 1849. One of the church festivals has just taken place by torchlight, in the Alameda, the pride of the city, a promenade of a mile in length, with six rows of tall Florentine poplars, and pure streams of running water the entire distance.
Large numbers of ladies are seen in church-dresses, with black mantas covering the head; the people are not of the pure Castilian type as in the south of Spain, many showing signs of descent from the Indian race. The countrymen all wear theponchos, of various colors; the poncho is a blanket with a hole in the centre, through which the head is passed, and falls over the shoulders. The women of that class wear men’s panama-hats, with long hair plaited, and falling in two parts over the back. It is curious to notice the primitive manner in which some things are done here. The watering of the streets is done by a muleteer on the back of his animal, which carries two small twenty gallon kegs, one lashed on each side; these are filled at the top from the fountain. When he arrives at the dusty spot he pulls the cork from the bottom and starts his mule on a trot until the contents are scattered, and then returns for fresh supplies. One of the curiosities shown here is the first house built by Valdivia in 1560. It is a one-story adobe dwelling, with gratings above near the roof, in order to give ventilation and light, and to prevent attacks of Indians by openings below; it has had additions since. The wheat crops are excellent, and the exportation of flour and beans from Chili to California is very heavy. We visited the chacras or farms in the valleys, where thousands of bushels of grain were exposed in heaps in the open air, without fear of rain, having been trodden out by cattle, and numbers of men, employed at fifteen cents per day, and found, were throwing up the wheat to the breeze, which carries off the chaff and winnows it perfectly. Labor is improving, however, and in the cities fifty cents per day, and one dollar twenty-five cents for mechanics, are paid, in consequence of the great emigration to California. Two vessels lately sailed thither with two hundred emigrants each, and from personal experience I know that very many Chilians are found in that country. Vast sums have been realized here from Eldorado for products, and large mills are now being erected in the south for the supplies of that market, though too late, I think, as Oregon can produce immense quantities when once the population becomes more dense. The transportation of products from this capital to Valparaiso is performed by heavy ox-carts, many with covers resembling small round-top houses with windows; these covers are a protection during the winter months, which commence in June, also against the sun’s rays in summer, which has already passed; they travel now mostly by night, with a brilliant sky, and you see families of women and children occupying their tenement by the desert road-side, or cooking the supplies broughtwith them. They train their oxen not only to pull, but to hold back the load by the horns; they have four yoke for the immense zigzag cuttings, a mile and a half in the ascent; they then reverse the order of things, and the poor beasts are seen behind, with heads bowed to the ground, holding back, and almost tripped off their legs, and not unfrequently off go the whole troop down the precipice and are dashed in pieces.
A nephew of the president joined me in coming up from Valparaiso, his family having left earlier, and we overtook them and dined on the road. They were going to his chacra, in another direction. At the little village where we stopped at night, he introduced me to the Catholic curate of this poor place, who regaled us with cakes and matte from Paraguay; matte is the leaf of a tree much in use as a substitute for tea and coffee, and sucked through a tube; we passed the evening in conversation and smoking cigarettes, until the time came to be devoured by fleas in bed.
The English steamers touch at half-a-dozen towns on the way up to Peru, giving an opportunity of passing a day at each. I shall embark from Valparaiso in a few days for Callao and Lima.
Lima,April, 1852.
My last was from Santiago, the capital of Chili. I now address you from the renowned city of Lima, the seat of government of Peru, having in the interim touched at many of the small ports along the coast from Valparaiso to Callao, spending part of a day at each. Our first landing-place was Coquimbo, where are some important copper mines and smelting furnaces. The town, which was the seat of the insurgents in the last civil war, is about two leagues from the little port. Our steamer was the Santiago, recently from England, and she proved rather a failure, making only one hundred and ninety miles in thirty hours. Her machinery became heated, the wheels dipped too much; they attempted to account for it, however, by the bad quality of the coals. We arrived the following day at Oasco, which is surrounded by a small valley, very grateful to the eye,in comparison with the volcanic and iron-bound coast. The next point was Caldeva, the port of Copiapo, fifty-two miles distant, where the first South American railway was during the past year put in operation by American mechanics. We landed there one hundred and forty passengers of mixed classes, bound for the mines. They were a noisy set, grasping at table, and continually dancing their Samba Queca on deck; there were also some amusing groups of half-Indian and Spanish races, in costume of the country.
We received there considerable quantities of silver in bars, destined for England. It was a great relief to find our passengers reduced down to twenty-five, as the living had been poor, and a change was much needed. No good excuse could be offered for neglect, as the price of passage was enormous; but nothing to warrant American competition, as the line is now firmly established, with large capital, and determined to drive off all opponents. Our next point of debarkation was Coliza, the only port of Bolivia, a miserable town of huts, with only three wells of water, which is divided out among the inhabitants in proportion, from small kegs on the backs of donkeys. The mountains about it are barren, and not the slightest sign of vegetation is seen. Silver and copper induce people to live there. We visited the guano deposits, where about one hundred state prisoners were at work putting it up in sacks for exportation. The following day we arrived at Iquique, where one of our fellow passengers is established, though he is now from Valparaiso on his way to England. He was evidently the Alcalde of his miserable town, which relies mostly upon saltpetre for its support; not a blade of grass or drop of water is to be seen, reminding one of the shores of the Red Sea; still about one thousand persons exist there. A small mill grinds the wheat brought from Chili; seventeen Chinese were employed on it. Many are brought over to the coast and sold for a limited period for their passage money. The escape steam from the machine distils the salt water, which is sold at six reals, or seventy-five cents per keg of eighteen gallons. Fruit and vegetables are brought from Arica, eighty miles further down the coast. The village looks like an Egyptian one, being composed of mud huts thatched with leaves. The mules and donkeys are the most miserable specimens, dying with thirst, and wadingin the salt water, laving their mouths and picking up sea-weed. These animals come down laden with saltpetre, one day’s journey, and the mules return immediately; the donkeys generally rest a day or two, but frequently their drivers are unwilling to pay a real, or twelve and a half cents, for a bucket of water, so the poor brutes are compelled to return without a drink. Our friend’s house and stores were large frame buildings near the beach, two stories high, with balconies, and comfortably furnished and supplied.
I was particularly struck with his despidida, or farewell departure, after a residence of nineteen years. A handsome collation of fruits and wine of various kinds was served to his friends, and among the number appeared a lady of the country with her child. She was dressed in velvet, with a rich China shawl, diamond necklace and ear-rings, and fingers loaded with precious stones. While the champagne corks were flying I had a glance from the balcony over the desert with its heavy sands and rocky mountains in the distance, and could scarcely realize my position; but the figure of Commerce presented herself among the shipping and explained the circumstance. The town of Arica appeared like an oasis in the desert, the streets being paved and well laid out; the houses were built with flat roofs, and there were two churches, badly shaken by earthquakes. Our Consul had very comfortable quarters, with a fine garden of fruit and flowers. The country in the interior in many places is productive, but the chief fertility consists of silver mines. Islay, the next town, is difficult to access, being high and rocky; it has some decent houses, and is the port of Arequipa. Water is brought in by aqueducts, and it was a refreshing sight to see the donkeys drinking at will. I called with a friend upon an old Spaniard, whose two daughters gratified us with music upon the piano, even in this almost uninhabited country, and seemed contented with their home and climate. The following day we found ourselves at Pisco, celebrated for its wine and liquors. We mounted horses and rode in the country, visited some of the vineyards, and returned to town about two miles from the beach; it happened to be Palm Sunday, and we visited the cathedral built by the old Spaniards, saw the procession and entrance into Jerusalem, by knocking at the side-door, and heard some extraordinary music. Palm branches were distributed, andthe motley group of half-castes, Indians, Negroes, and Spaniards dispersed. We had the day previous picked up a launch with six men, who had been out twenty-three days from Valparaiso, and without water and provisions for two days. We supplied them with biscuit, beans, candles, wood, and water; not forgetting cigars, which were among the first articles which they demanded.
Our final landing-place was the Chinchas Guano Islands, the present great source of wealth of the Peruvian government; a supply still exists for perhaps a century, sufficient to pay the interest on the national debt of some twenty millions of dollars, the bonds of which, from being almost valueless, have advanced to par in England. I was surprised to find ten ships and brigs waiting for loads. One can scarcely realize that the immense deposits or hills have been produced by birds, but the flocks which are seen, and which are prohibited from being destroyed, and the known voracity of the species, reconcile one’s doubts, particularly in a climate where it never rains.
The use of the guano has long been known in the interior of the country; it is transported on the backs of animals to the valleys, irrigated by the waters from the melting snows of the Andes. The people, I learn, are substituting negroes for the Chinese, as the latter, being disappointed in this kind of servitude, have frequently destroyed themselves by hanging, many in groups, joining hands and leaping over the precipice, in the belief of restoration to their happy homes. I arrived here at the commencement of the Passion Week, and found that all Lima had had the peste, or plague, a species of yellow fever; it had nearly exhausted itself for want of victims, but strangers of course were expected to take it. The Italian opera company, of seventeen persons, just arrived from the north, were all taken, save three, and out of our number of twenty-five at the hotel at table only five were left. I have been exposed, with my fellow-passengers, but in consequence of having had the original Yellow Jack, have thus far escaped. The churches of Peru are the finest in South America; there are about fifty-two in the city, with a population of ninety thousand persons. They date their riches and luxury in the time of the Spaniards. Some of the temples were decorated with a great variety of flowers, in vases furnished for the occasion, by private families, formingavenues of tropical vegetation through these deep edifices, while the light of a thousand candles illuminated the high altar, and disclosed the faces of hundreds of the beautiful Limanians of the Andalusian race, who were kneeling in their rays, in black shawls or mantillas; after a short prayer they rose and visited other churches. I visited twelve of the most important in the evening, and found, as in Havana, that at these festivals, some new attractions are held out for visitors, who continue the rounds until overcome with fatigue. In one church the last supper was represented by Christ and his twelve apostles, sitting at a well-covered table of fruits, flowers, and wine, the approach to which was difficult, on account of the rush of negroes and half-castes. In another church the figures of the soldiery and the crowning with thorns were represented; a grotesque zapatero, or shoemaker, in a crouching position, looking up with a huge pair of spectacles, seemed to excite the mirth of the common people. The balcony of my apartment faces the Plaza, or Cathedral Square; at the right is pointed out the spot where Pizarro lost his life, fighting nobly; in the crypt of the cathedral is shown what are called his remains.
On Noche Buena, the night after the Passion Week, the whole square was roasting and stewing. Negroes were there in great numbers, with fire and cooking utensils; hot fritters boiled in oil, sausages, garlic salads, andaguardiente; and there were booths, or stands, on three sides, with every variety of trinkets for sale, and an immense concert of Indians, negroes, and other races; while in front, respectable ice-cream and confectionery stands accommodated the gentlemen and ladies with seats, and cooling drinks, made from fruits and ice, brought from the mountains, seven leagues distant, on the backs of mules. The river Rimac flows through the city, and running water passes through many of the streets. The mountains around are arid and forbidding, without the least verdure; but by irrigation the gardens of the valleys are made productive. At a charge of four reals, or fifty cents, the railway, eight miles in length, brings passengers from the port of Callao. It is a new construction, and has an elevation of five hundred feet. The chief place of resort for the Limanians, are the ocean baths of Churillas, whither I propose going.
Steamer Quito,April 29, 1852.
The old Spanish custom of bull fights is still kept up with all its vigor in Lima, and the long looked-for combat came off after the church ceremonies of Passion Week had ended. Having, as a traveller, witnessed this barbarous sport in Spain, where it is countenanced by the nobility and the dignitaries of the government, I was induced to attend it here chiefly to observe the ladies in their saya mantas—a garment which entirely prevents recognition, as it leaves one eye only exposed. The sayas are falling into disuse, and not seen so often as formerly in the public streets, except on festive occasions. Any lady may be addressed, but under no circumstances can the veil be removed by force, without calling down the vengeance of bystanders. An immense building of circular form stands near the Alameda; it is a public promenade, with palcos or boxes for parties and families, and seats in the form of an amphitheatre, capable of containing some seven thousand persons. The authorities of the city occupy a prominent place, as well as the military officers and judges. A programme is sold, containing the names of the twelve bulls to be killed, and describing the characteristics of the prominent matadores, two of whom, father and son, have recently arrived from Spain.
The trumpet sounds; mounted horsemen come forth and clear the ring; others appear with lances in hand; and then appear six flag-men with red and yellow scarfs, round jackets, and short clothes of silk and velvet, embroidered with gold and silver lace, shining knee-buckles, and silk stockings. The sliding gate is opened, and in rushes the tortured bull, with his eyes glaring, and makes for the horse, but is diverted by the blazing colors of the scarfs. Sometimes a mantle is thrown over the shoulders; the animal pursues it, when the wearer dashes it aside and dodges the infuriated beast, escaping behind a side partition fence, while he takes after another, and barbed arrows with feather or paper plumes are planted in his neck, causing him to roar and paw the dust, and make another attempt at his adversary, in which he sometimes upsets horse and rider, goring the former, to the delight of the multitude, whose cries andwaving handkerchiefs attest their pleasure. After the ineffectual efforts and hair-breadth escapes of the actors, the matador, while attracting the bull with his red flag, with one thrust of his long sword gives him a mortal stab, which passes through the neck and heart, and appears between the fore-legs. The enthusiasm is then at its height. The trumpet sounds, the gates are thrown open, two pairs of heavy mules appear, bedecked with feathers, and mounted by two riders. The head of the defunct is raised upon a pair of small wheels, and attached by the horns to the traces; the band strikes up, the dead carcase is removed under the full gallop; the gates are closed, and a new victim soon appears. I felt it a relief to escape and stroll along the beautiful Alameda, upon the river bank. The ride to the baths of Churilla, a few leagues from Lima, is over a heavy, sandy road, dusty, dreary, and of no interest.
The Indian village situated on the bay is much resorted to during the summer months. The bath-houses are of cane or reed, and form a sort of labyrinth, with a few flat stones in each for seats; they are occupied by both sexes, but are rather exposed. Gambling seems to be the order of the day, or rather night, as all classes, male and female, enter into the sport, it being the ruling passion of the Peruvians as well as the Chilians. Among the passengers in the diligence or public conveyance was a grey-headed, thin-visaged, lank old man, whose whole dress, including his poncho, would not have sold fortwenty dollars; yet this confirmed old gambler had amassed two hundred thousand dollars in play, and notwithstanding that he was lame with one foot in the grave, his passion, which was the object of his visit, must still be gratified. Many persons have private residences for the enjoyment of the sea breeze and bathing, but they are of a primitive character. Ludicrous dances in grotesque costumes are performed by the negroes, which help to pass their evenings.
Lima is considered the gayest city on the South Pacific coast, and enjoys a mild, equal climate, being uninfluenced by the near approach of the mountains, and of a much more agreeable temperature than the same latitude on the opposite side in Brazil. The houses, which are two stories, have balconies of latticed work, which gives the ladies an opportunity of seeing all passers in the streets. The ladies are less celebrated forconstancy than for sprightliness, grace, and beauty, and are a far superior race to the men, who are much inferior to the Chilians. The use, or rather abuse of the saya manta was formerly a means of intrigue even in the presence of husbands and brothers, as exchanges of robes were easily effected. The adoption of European costume is fast reducing the use of this garment.
To a stranger the alarm created by a shock of an earthquake upon the natives appear ridiculous, as they rush out of their houses into the open square, and if the shock is in the night, of course in undress; all who experience these shocks, however, are soon overcome by the same kind of terror. The earthquake of the last century swept Callao and its entire population into the sea. We had a considerable shock a few days since, while I was in a heavy stone and brick building, used in part for a museum, and where some interesting specimens of antiquity of the times of the Incas are found, as also mummies from the Indian mounds, and the portraits of the former viceroys of Peru. I was examining these objects attentively, when I found myself suddenly alone, with the balance of the party making for the inner court or square, crying out “un temblor!” The dust was flying about me, and I followed hurriedly; I observed that the sky was remarkably bright, that there was a perfect stillness of the elements, and that the air was filled with birds in confusion; however, it soon passed, and without damage.
The steamer from which I write is new; she is just out from England, this being her first trip. We are fortunate in having fresh supplies and attentive servants, with few passengers, and every comfort. We have just met the Santiago, and exchanged civilities, and received English papers from Panama. I learn from her captain, who has just recovered from the pest, that all my fellow passengers from Valparaiso, who touched at Callao and Lima, with one exception, were attacked, and among the number a family of seven persons. I find I have great reason to be thankful in having escaped.
We shall make the distance of eighteen hundred miles in seven and a half days, passing nearly one day at Paita, which has a fine harbor, and was formerly resorted to by whalers for supplies; they now go to Tumbes, seven leagues above, where water is to be had, with which water Paita is supplied, not a blade of grass or a drop of the liquid element being producedat the latter place, the few plants there in boxes being looked upon with much pleasure. It is far superior to many other small towns along the coast. There are some comfortable houses built of cane, and covered with flags, which earthquakes cannot shake down easily, and several long and narrow streets which afford shade. An extraordinary event had just occurred, it having rained for a part of a day, for the first time in seven years. The natives are mostly Indians; a quiet, docile, and well-looking people. The residents seem satisfied with their position and climate; they say that they are deprived of vegetation and water, but that they can get supplies from along the coast; that they are not infested with venomous reptiles and noxious fleas, the accompaniment of rank verdure, and that the people die of old age, citing instances of ninety and one hundred years longevity. I had made a passage with the son of the English Consul, whose father had been there for nineteen years, and enjoys the climate. I breakfasted and lunched with him, with some other guests from the ship, and certainly there was no want of the good things of life, even in such a desert place. The reputed wife of General Bolivar resides here; she was with him in many of his campaigns, while Liberator of South America. A friend took me to her house, and I found a stout, fat, but well featured elderly lady, in her hammock, which I learn she rarely leaves, unless for her bed. She had her two poodle dogs nestling beside her; she received us kindly, and conversed intelligently and in a diplomatic manner upon matters of politics. She is a great friend of General Flores, whose expedition is now approaching Guayaquil with fourteen hundred men, and with the prospect of overthrowing President Urbini, of Ecuador, who, she says, was educated by General Flores while former President, to whom he proved an ungrateful wretch. I found there the daughter of Flores with her husband and aide de-camp, awaiting news from the seat of war. This lady, who once lived in Lima in almost regal style, now subsists upon the charities of her numerous friends. As I had once visited the tomb of Bolivar in Caraccas, and received the hospitalities of a cousin bearing his name, in his rancho, near Porto Cabello, the old lady seemed interested in me, and insisted on my joining her in smoking a choice Havana, an occupation which she appeared to enjoy.
To-morrow we shall arrive at Panama, which place I had not expected or hoped to see again, and I can scarcely realize the fact that since my last visit I have made the circuit of the globe, and since my departure from home have passed almost the entire length of North and South America on both sides. After fourteen winters’ travel in southern latitudes, and several years’ absence at intervals from home, I find that my table of distances amounts to six hundred thousand miles, from the snowy regions of Canada, Norway, and Finland in the north, to the barren shores of Patagonia in the south—having traversed by sea and land, at different periods, almost all the practicable portions of the earth, in making the circuit of the world. Although what has passed appears not unlike a dream, my ambition for the present is satisfied, and I have reason to thank a kind Providence, whose protecting hand has carried me through almost all the perils of life, and has been the means of preserving a constitution endangered by the severity of northern winter-climates. I shall proceed via the isthmus to Havana, and thence to New Orleans, on my way home, where I hope to arrive in the early part of June.