1830.] The Eve of Saint Simon, in Colombia. 165 



weltering in their gore only fifty yards distant from the scene of his fes- 

 tivity ! ! I hear a toast proposed : 'it is the health of Bolivar. The deafen- 

 ing " Vivas" that accompany the libation recall to my mind that it is 

 the Eve of Saint Simon ! ! I 



******* 



The last scene of this eventful drama had still to be represented, and 

 the patron saint of the republican leader yet to be propitiated, by a fur- 

 ther offering of human sacrifice ! 



The morn dawned again upon the town of Achaquas, but the sun de- 

 nied to its inhabitants the cheering influence of his rays. The mutilated 

 bodies of the six unfortunate wretches had (by the friendly aid of some 

 of their comrades) being consigned to the peaceful grave. The heavy rain 

 which fell during the night had washed away the purple evidence that 

 so lately marked the scene of slaughter. The gloom of the atmosphere 

 imparted its sombre tint to the features of the British as they mustered 

 for the parade, to which the shrill note of the bugle had just summoned 

 them. It was known that two privates of the legion, who had been 

 recognized as having wounded Lieut.-Colonel Davy, were to make expi- 

 ation for their crime ; but the fate of these men created little or no sym- 

 pathy : the justice of their doom was universally acknowledged. The 

 hollow square was quickly formed; its fourth face supplied by the wall 

 before described : in it stood Paez : the same look of remorseless severity 

 sate upon his brow, but he appeared (unusual with him) to be absorbed 

 in thought ; he noticed not the objects that surrounded him ; nor did he 

 condescend to return (or perhaps heeded not) the salutation which the 

 superior officers paid him on his arrival. 



On Blosset's face (who stood at a little distance from the general) 

 might be discerned an unde t finable something that told the beholder all 

 was not right within, an outward restlessness that bespoke the heart ill 

 at ease with itself: this sensation was contagious ; and as the officers of 

 the " legion" watched the vacillating motion of his body, and the unset- 

 tled glance of his eye, they felt a "presentiment" of evil irresistibly steal 

 upon their minds. In this mood, the deep and almost appalling silence 

 that had hitherto reigned was broken by a lengthened roll of muffled 

 drums, and immediately succeeded by a full-toned peal of martial music. 

 It was the dead march in Saul ! Every heart vibrated to the sound, every 

 eye was strained to catch a glimpse of the procession, which was now 

 seen slowly advancing by the principal street leading to the <e Grande 

 Plaza." Twelve men (with their arms reversed) headed the line of 

 march ; next came six drummers with muffled drums ; these were followed 

 by the band of the " legion ;" then came the unfortunate criminals, by 

 whose side marched Trayiier ; twelve more men brought up the rear. 

 This military pomp (an unusual display at the execution of private sol- 

 diers) appeared singular. At length the horrid truth flashed upon the 

 mind ! An officer was to die ! and that officer could be only Hodgkinson* 

 or Risdale, perhaps both ! As the procession drew nigh, the doubt was 

 solved. The two mutineers were tied together by the arms. Immediately 

 after them came Risdale, closely escorted by Trayner. They entered the 



* Hodgkinson certainly owed the preservation of his life to Blosset's intercession. He 

 was by Paez sent down to Angostura, a town on the banks of the Orinoco, and at that 

 time the seat of Government. Reinstated in his rank by the authorities there, at the 

 conclusion of the truce he joined the army at Barinas, Bolivar's head-quarters, just prior 

 to the opening of the campaign that terminated so gloriously on the field of Caraboba. 



