334 TRAVEL, ADVENTUEE, AND SPOET. 



berths ; the decks were wet and uncomfortable ; and 

 it was not until we had crossed the bar, and left the 

 river and its fogs behind us, that we began to feel at 

 home, when it was time to establish regular discipline 

 among the men. Various contretemps before starting 

 had reduced our force from 500, the number at which 

 it was originally estimated, to 250. It was only neces- 

 sary, however, to see these men mustered, to perceive 

 their value as irregular troops, peculiarly fitted for the 

 style of warfare in which they were about to be en- 

 gaged, and in which, to a certain extent, every man 

 would be called upon to rely upon himself. They 

 were divided into five companies, each having a cap- 

 tain and two subalterns ; these had all been raised in 

 different States by enterprising young men, who re- 

 ceived, as a reward for their exertions, rank propor- 

 tionate to the number of men whom they enlisted. 

 The inducement held out to them was a grant of land 

 as soon as the country should be settled, and, in the 

 meantime, twenty-five dollars a-month, to be paid in 

 scrip. There was nothing, however, in the aspect 

 of these men to lead one to suppose that they had 

 embarked in the enterprise from mercenary motives 

 alone. The spirit of adventure was the moving cause 

 with nearly all ; some were well off in their own 

 country, others had left from personal motives which 

 had in many cases rendered them reckless ; while some 

 were soldiers of fortune men who were unable to live 

 except under the exciting influence of gunpowder. 



