After the old gentleman had quitted the shop to go on board the
newly arrived vessel, I went to the door to watch him safely down to
the quay. I then took my hat and arming myself with a dirk and pistol
to protect myself against dogs and bipeds both, I left the shop and
took my way down a street that led to the walls. Fairfax was well
aware of my object, it having been previously arranged, and promised
to tend both fountains till I returned. My motive in thus stealing
away was to take a survey of the walls and gates and see what chance
offered for our escaping on the country-side. My intention was to go
quite around the walls on the inner side, there being a wide, open
space or street next to them extending their whole circuit. In some
places this space widened into broad, open ground like a square, covered
with piles of offal and swarming with dogs. One of these squares
was called Congo Square, and was the favorite resort of the negroes
on holidays for dancing the fandango.

The street which I took to go to the walls was narrow and filthy
and inhabited by the lowest canaille of the city. I passed numerous
pulperias thronged with drunken soldiery and villainous looking-ruffians.
No one, however, molested me, as I sauntered carelessly along;

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and being dark complexioned and having black eyes and hair, I was
the more readily suffered to proceed as I looked like a young Spaniard
or Brazilian, having, indeed, been more than once taken to be one.—
So I attracted no particular attention and went on in security where
blue eyes and fair hair might possibly have been in peril.

Two-thirds of the way down the street I was met by a party of soldiers
with a barrow. Upon it was stretched a soldier writhing with
pain. His shirt was stripped off and his naked, braway chest and
shoulders were crimson with blood flowing from a gun-shot wound in
his neck. I heard one of the soldiers answer in reply to a question of
one standing by that the man had been a sentinel upon the walls and
was just shot by a Quacho rider—that is, a patriot horseman. They
were bearing him to the hospital. This sight had called to my mind
what Saul had told me, viz: that the Quacho cavalry will often ride
up within carbine shot of the walls and pick off the sentinels. They
approach in this way:—Wild horses, be it understood, are always roving
and browsing about in the vicinity, and can be seen in large troops
from the walls. Some of them sometimes gallop up close to the walls
neigh a sort of defiance and then scour away over the low hillocks that
break the barren surface of the region within a mile of the walls.—
The sentinels accustomed to see them come near, pay no attention to
them. The Quachos, who are the best horsemen in the world, taking
advantage of this, strip themselves of all superfluous clothing and armed
only with a carbine advance within a mile of the walls mounted as
usual. They then worm their way nigher and nigher behind the hillocks
driving a score of wild horses before them; until they get as near
the walls as they can. They then throw themselves partly off their
horses, sticking to his side by one hand upon the mane, and the feet
twisted under the hams. In this manner they gallop forward keeping
the other side of the horse next to the walls. The sentry, seeing no
rider, for the Quacho is hidden on the other side of the horse, to which
he clings like a leech, takes no beed of him, regarding him as one of
the wild steeds of the pampas. As soon as the Quacho finds himself
within shot of his man he throws himself across his courser's back,
discharging his carbine with unerring aim; the sentinel tumbles into
the moat or falls wounded upon the battlements, while the horseman
retires with the speed of the wind waving his carbine above his head,
and shouting defiance.

In this manner had this man been shot, who, from the examples he
had before his eyes of the fate of many of his comrades, ought to have
been better on his guard.

Near the foot of the street I passed a door of a house before which I
saw a small gilt cross in the hand of a little child dressed in white with
flowers in her hand she held a plate on which were a few pieces of
money She offered it to me, and upon my asking her (in my best
Spanish, in which I was daily improving so as to talk pretty well) what
it was for, she said it was to pay for masses for the soul of a little infant,
her sister! As she spoke she directed my attention through an open
door into a room where upon a table and covered with a white fringed

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cloth, stood a small coffin ornamented with gold paper, and wreathed
with flowers.

`Entre usted, senor?' said the little girl as I placed a medio (a sixteenth
of a dollar) in the plate, a sum, which I thought more than adequate
to pay for all the sins the little babe had committed in this wicked
world.

I entered and gazed upon the wax-like features of one of the loveliest
infants I ever beheld. Its little fingers were clasped upon its breast
and held a small silver gilt cross and a rosebud. A coronet of fresh
flowers bound its temples. It was arrayed in a snowy white embroidered
robe and looked like a sculptured cherub. There was no one in
the room but an old negro woman in a white scarlet gown and scarlet
turban, who was incessantly making the sign of the cross in the air,
and muttering `aves,' while I gazed down upon the child.

Leaving this house I continued my walk to the foot of the street,
where the caliboose was situated. This was a huge, gloomy structure
of stone, with a window full thirty feet high, something like a gothic
church window, looking upon the street. It was strongly grated with
a lattice of iron bars like a gigantic cage. Around this window was
collected a motley group of both sexes and all colors and costumes,
who were gazing in upon the prisoners or talking with them through
the bars. I stopped to view the scene. The window was literally
covered to its top with prisoners who had climbed up the bars on the
inside over one another's head to look out, and hear, and see and talk
with their acquaintances in the street. Such a noise I never heard.—
It was a jargon of voices that gave one a good idea of Bedlam. Some
were talking from street to grate at the top of their voices, some swearing,
some calling out, some laughing, jeering, mocking and shouting.
I stood for a few moments appalled. I then crossed the street and
drew nearer to get a better view and look into the prison. Two or
three of the prisoners, many of whom were nearly as naked as they
were born, spying me out, thrust out their murderous looking hands or
their old caps and called vociferously for `dinero, dinero, senor!' `money,
money!' One fierce, bearded, piratical villain, who was twenty
feet above me, in particular, made his loud demands. I chanced to
have in my pocket about ten or twelve coppers which I threw against
the window. Such a scramble, such oaths, such superhuman exertions
to get possession of those that fell inside, it is impossible for words to
do justice to. The piratical villain from the top, let himself down over
the backs of his fellows beneath him, like a panther descending a tree.
The window was deserted, and fifty miserable wretches were scrambling
upon the floor of the prison under it for the coin. In the midst
of the uproar and quite satisfied with what I had witnessed, I withdrew
from a scene which could hardly be paralleled in hell.

Such visages as some of those fellows exhibited as they peered
through the grating, would degrade the devil. Ferocity, brutality; lust,
fury, hatred, malice, all were stamped there with the seal of unmixed
depravity. Many of them had not been shaven for weeks. Many of
them wore chains upon their wrists, which clanked harshly upon the
ear at every movement they made. Many of them were without other

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clothing than the upper portion of ragged trowsers bound about their
waists with a bit of rope. Some of them were native Africans who had
been but a few weeks in the land and had been put in for murdering
their masters. Some of them were domestic slaves. Some were mutinous
seamen of the fleet. Some were soldiers, either deserters or
assassins. Not a few were professional pirates and midnight assassins.

The room in which this miscellaneous band of wretches were confined,
was about sixty feet in length, thirty high, and twenty-five wide.
Here about one hundred prisoners were herded together, day and night,
without distinction of crime. It was the only prison in the city, and
into it were thrown all persons, indiscriminately, who came under the
censure of the Government, or who incurred the displeasure of the Captain-general.
I shuddered at the thought that circumstances, which
were yet unforeseen, might make me an inmate of that Infernal Saloon.

After leaving this place I passed on a little farther and reached the
open space that separates the streets from the walls. I walked along
with my eyes closely surveying their height and scanning their situation.
All that met my eyes was a lofty mass of stone crowned by battlements
with sentries pacing along the sky-line with their muskets at
their shoulders, At the base were heaps of rubbish and offal, and digging
into them for food, were the usual hordes of hungry dogs,
howling and snarling like a pack of famished wolves.

At length I came to the first gate, from which a fine street extended
into the very heart of the city, losing itself in the Grand Square.—
Here were groups of soldiers lounging about, and four sentinels on duty,
two on each side of the entrance. Guard houses also flanked the
entrance, in which I saw soldiers playing at dominoes, smoking and
sleeping. Over the gate also stood a sentry with his face to the country
a sort of stationery vidette. The gates were closed; but a small
wicket in it was partly open that was just large enough to admit a man
at the time. While I was standing looking, I saw a peasant admitted
with a bag of vegetables upon his back. He seemed well known to
the guard, and many questions were put to him. An officer came out
of the guard-house and questioned him, and he was then strictly searched
to see if he bore any letters from the patriots; for no man was trusted,
however well known. Even his bag of vegetables was poured out
and overhauled; and then only he was suffered to proceed up the
street into the city. After he moved away, I lounged up to the gate,
and as the wicket was still open I stooped down to take a peep through
into the country. But my curiosity was rewarded by a friendly musket
which was pressed side-ways so forcibly against my breast that I
had nearly tumbled over backwards. The hint was accompanied with
a friendly admonition to keep out of the way and mind my own business.
I was minding my business to the letter; for I had come there
for the very purpose of seeing the chances that might offer for escape.
I did not, however, tell the sentry so, but walked away well satisfied
that there was no hope of reaching the patriot army by the gates.