1830.] Republican Perfidy. 517 



to bring the cargo to head-quarters. The sergeant (an old Spaniard) 

 embraced the opportunity thus afforded him to desert, and seduced 

 three of the party to accompany him ; they would have joined the 

 enemy had not their attempt been rendered abortive by the Indians 

 (sworn foes to the Spaniards), who seized, and brought them bound to 

 Maturin. The crime demanded an example ; the four men were tried 

 by a court-martial j the evidence against them was conclusive ; they 

 were condemned to death. When the president waited upon the general 

 with the sentence of the court, I shall never forget the agitation he 

 evinced ; he repeatedly inquired if no extenuating circumstances could 

 be found ; and when informed that three had yielded to the seductive 

 influence of their superior, he instantly pardoned them. The guilt of 

 the latter was of too flagrant a nature to be overlooked, he signed the 

 order for his execution, and wept. The man was shot ; and three days 

 elapsed ere Marino recovered his wonted serenity of mind! Such 

 traits are so rarely to be met with in the sanguinary history of the 

 Colombian Republic, that I may be pardoned for dwelling upon its 

 record with satisfaction. May Bolivar, Paez, Arismendi, and others, 

 too numerous to mention, profit by the lesson of mercy so frequently 

 taught them by their youthful compatriot!* They will then gain the 

 affection of the people subjected to their sway, and merit the approba- 

 tion of other nations. I much fear, however, that the hearts of these 

 chieftains sont trop endurci (as the French term it), to either sympa- 

 thize with the one, or respect the opinion of the others ! 



It may be readily imagined that, with such a disposition to conciliate 

 affection, Marino was universally beloved ; he had imbibed a knowledge 

 of European tactics, which, combined with a strict attention to the 

 minutiae of discipline, enabled him to defeat the enemy on almost every 

 occasion that he came in contact with him. The fame which thus accrued 

 to him excited the jealousy of Bolivar, who, as I have before said, could 

 ill brook a competitor ; and, notwithstanding the fact that the youthful 

 general had in one or two instances rendered him important services, 

 and once indeed preserved his life when threatened by a disaffected sol- 

 diery, who resisted an assumption of power considered as usurped, still 

 unmindful of the obligation so strongly contracted, he suffered envy to 

 predominate over gratitude, and took every opportunity of evincing 

 the baneful feeling with which his heart rankled. Marino had to con- 

 tend with much party prejudice, his conduct was subjected to a con- 

 stant espionage, and his minutest action reported to his disadvantage ; 

 supported, however, by the " mens conscia recti," and the devoted 

 attachment of his immediate followers, he continued to perform his duty 

 as a citizen soldier of the republic, equally regardless of private malice 

 as unawed by menace. Piar, whose intrepid valour and brilliant suc- 

 cesses had liberated the province of Guyana from the tread of the 

 despot, was now associated with Marino in the task of obtaining the 

 same result in the provinces of Cumana and Barcelona ; repeated victo- 

 ries had already crowned their united efforts. Montaverde (the Spanish 

 general) retreated before them, and cooped up within the walls of the 

 capital of either province (as occasion suited) seldom dared adventure 

 a sortie, which, when attempted, invariably proved destructive to their 



*~ Marino, though holding the rank of captain-general, was then only twenty-seven 

 years of age ! 



