LOS MONTONEROS. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 



San Martin's Head-quarters.— The Conway proceeds to 

 AnconHarbonr. — Journey to Lima across a sandy Desert. 

 — The Valley of Lima — Outpost occupied by Montoneros 

 or Guerilla Troops. — Embarrassment of the Royalists. — 

 Proclamation of Independence.— Tapadas at the Ball in 

 the Palace. 



Next morning I rode with two gentlemen to 

 San Martin's head-quarters, a little beyond the city 

 walls, on the Callao road. He had come to this 

 place, on the evening before, from the marquis of 

 Montemira's instead of going to the palace, where 

 he dreaded a repetition of the same bustle. He 

 was completely surrounded by business, but 

 attended to it all himself. It was curious to ob- 

 serve every one coming out of his presence pleased 

 with the reception he had met with, whether he 

 had succeeded or not. 



We no sooner entered than he recognised one 

 of my companions, who was an excellent draughts- 

 j man, and whom he had seen on board the schooner 

 i a fortnight before. He had heard how much the 

 jealousy of the Spaniards had interfered with my 

 friend's amusements, and told him he might now 

 sketch away as much as he pleased, and might 

 have an escort if he had any wish to extend his 

 researches into the country. 



An old man came in at this moment with a little 

 girl in his arms, his only object being that the 

 General should kiss the child, which he good- 

 naturedly did, and the poor father marched off 

 perfectly happy. The next person who entered 

 delivered a letter to the General, in a manner 

 somewhat mysterious, and we found, on inquiry, 

 that he was a spy who had been sent to the enemy's 

 camp. A deputation from the city followed, to 

 speak about removing the situation of a military 

 hospital from the village of Bellavista, which was 

 within range of cannon-shot from the Castle of 

 Callao. In this way he passed on from one thing 

 to another with wonderful rapidity ; but not 

 without method, and all with great patience and 

 courtesy to every one. This minute attention 

 to business might be useful at first ; but if a com- 

 mander-in-chief were to undertake to manage so 

 many details in person, he would waste his time 

 to very little purpose : so perhaps the General 

 thought, for, in the course of the day, he shifted 

 his head-quarters to the palace, and in the evening 

 held his first levee in this ancient abode of the 

 Spanish viceroys. 



The great audience gallery was lighted by win- 

 dows opening into a long passage, or verandah, 

 overlooking the garden, in the centre of the quad- 

 rangle of the palace. During the levee, these 

 windows were filled with anxious crowds of women 

 straining their eyes to catch a glimpse of San 

 Martin. On my passing one of these groups, they 

 petitioned me to bring the General, if possible, 

 towards their window. Accordingly, having con- 

 sulted with one of the aides-de-camp, we contrived 

 between us to get him into conversation about some 

 despatches I was about to send off ; and we drew 

 him, in the mean time, towards our fair friends at 

 the window. When we had nearly reached the 

 spot, he was about to turn round, which obliged 

 us to tell him our plan ; he laughed, and imme- 

 diately went up to the ladies, and having chatted 



with them for some minutes, left them enchanted 

 with his affability. 



Having at this time no business of any conse- 

 quence to transact in Lima, I went on board, and 

 removed the Conway from Callao roads to the har- 

 bour of Ancon, lying about twenty miles to the 

 northward of Lima ; in order to be near the English 

 merchant-ships, all of which had recently gone to 

 that port. The Spaniards on abandoning Lima 

 retained possession of Callao, which, being an im- 

 pregnable fortress, was for the present merely 

 blockaded by sea and land, and all its supplies 

 being cut off, there was an expectation that the 

 garrison would eventually be .starved into sub- 

 mission. While things were in this situation, no 

 intercourse could be allowed with Callao, and the 

 merchant-vessels accordingly went to Ancon to 

 land their cargoes. I anchored there also on the 

 17th of July, and having remained two days, was 

 obliged to return by land to Lima, to arrange some 

 business relating to the detention of two English 

 ships by the Chilian squadron. 



I rode to the capital in company with several 

 gentlemen, and do not remember anywhere to have 

 made a more fatiguing journey, although the dis- 

 tance was little more than eight leagues. At 

 first, the whole country was a sandy desert, like 

 that described at Arica ; and as nothing can be 

 conceived more irksome than travelling over such 

 ground, the relief was very great when we reached 

 the hard road, after riding eight or ten miles 

 through deep sand. As we approached the great 

 valley of Lima, the country gradually improved : 

 at first we could discover at long intervals a few 

 blades of grass ; then a little tuft of herbage here 

 and there ; then a shrub ; next a tree ; and by- 

 and-by a hedge of aloes ; but the most pleasing 

 object of all was a sparkling stream, winding and 

 hissing along the sandy plain, accompanied in its 

 course by a slender belt of bright green. But 

 when we entered the valley of Lima, the whole 

 scene was changed ; fields of sugar-cane, maize, 

 rice, and various grains, appeared on every side ; 

 and we rode through lanes of thick-set trees, over 

 substantial roads, that eventually led us to the 

 sharp crest of a range of hills deeply indented by 

 the road. From this gorge we had a view of the 

 immense valley, with the river Rimac, which di- 

 vides Lima into two parts, running through it, 

 and lending its copious waters to fertilize the sur- 

 rounding plain. 



About a league and a half from the city, we 

 passed one of the Patriot outposts, consisting of 

 Montoneros, or irregulars, guarding a dep&t of 

 horses and mules. 



Montonero is a provincial word adopted from 

 the Spanish, Monton, which signifies a heap or 

 pile : thus, monton de gente, a crowd or multitude 

 of people. It is used in Chili and in Buenos Ayres, 

 to designate bodies of men who make war in an 

 irregular manner, with little or no discipline. 



These wild, bold-looking men, who were rather 

 short in stature, but well-set and athletic, were 

 scattered about in groups on the grass, in the fields, 

 along with the horses. The sentinels, pacing along 

 the walls by the road-side, formed on the sky-line 

 the most picturesque figures imaginable. One of 

 them, in particular, attracted our notice ; he wore 

 on his head a high conical cap, made of a whole 

 undressed sheep's skin; and over his shoulders 



