TWO ENGLISH OFFICERS ARRESTED. 



25 



quainted with the subject foresaw the issue of an 

 appeal to that quarter, on a question of free 

 colonial trade. In the meantime, the Chilian 

 squadron put an end to the discussion by enforcing 

 the celebrated Spanish Code, the Laws of the 

 Indies, as to the Lima trade : the port was block- 

 aded, and the treasury remained empty. The 

 consequent bitter reproaches and taunts, now 

 that they were too late, took a still more virulent 

 character from the state of affairs ; so that these 

 and similar topics were discussed in a temper little 

 suited to lead, even in theory, to useful conclusions ; 

 still less to that practical cordiality so essential to 

 the welfare of the state, at such a moment. 



These ruinous dissensions were still further 

 fomented by the new spirit of independence, which, 

 early in the campaign, pervaded the country, but 

 had not heretofore attained the same height in 

 Lima as in other parts of South America ; owing, 

 perhaps, to its containing a far greater proportion 

 of Old Spaniards of wealth and consequence. Be 

 the cause what it may, the vigilance of Govern- 

 ment had hitherto succeeded in keeping down the 

 expression of such feelings ; but now this was no 

 longer possible, and every day raised the hopes, 

 and added to the numbers, of the Independent 

 party. 



CHAPTER VI. 



Two Officers of the Conway arrested as spies.— Consequent 

 Ferments at Lima and Callao. — Sanguinary Mobs.— 

 Military Commission — Sketch of Lima.— Smoking in the 

 Theatre. 



18th of February. — I learned, when at Lima 

 this morning, that two officers of my ship had been 

 arrested at Callao on the evening before, and were 

 imprisoned in the Castle, on suspicion of being 

 spies from Lord Cochrane's squadron, though 

 landed by my boat. In ordinary times, had such 

 a mistake happened, it would have been easily 

 explained ; but at a moment of such popular 

 ferment, especially when the English were held in 

 universal distrust, it was likely to prove a serious 

 affair. All Lima was thrown into commotion by 

 this circumstance ; every one implicitly believed 

 the story, and at Callao, the uproar was described 

 as infinitely worse. At the time of receiving a 

 report of this transaction from the ship, a letter 

 from the Viceroy was put into my hands, stating 

 that two persons, giving themselves out as officers 

 of the Conway, had landed in my boat ; and that, 

 as five men at Callao had recognised and sworn 

 to their having belonged to Lord Cochrane's ship, 

 they had been confined in the Castle ; and the 

 formal declarations of the witnesses were to be 

 taken preparatory to the trial of the prisoners. I 

 immediately waited on the Viceroy, and assured 

 him there must be some mistake : but in order to 

 prevent all further misunderstanding, before making 

 an official requisition to the Government for the 

 officers to be delivered up, I wished to have access 

 to them at Callao. This, however reasonable, was 

 at first objected to, on the ground of improper 

 communication ; but as I merely asked to have 

 the means of identifying their persons, an order 

 was given for that purpose, which I carried with 

 me to the Castle. 



The ferment at Callao, a place at all times liable 



to violent popular commotions, was supposed to 

 be so great on this irritating occasion, that many 

 people counselled me not to excite the mob to 

 greater fury by showing myself amongst them. 

 But it seemed very obvious that any delay in 

 visiting my officers in confinement at this par- 

 ticular moment, would tend indirectly to confirm 

 all the suspicions against them ; and possibly lead 

 to their being sacrificed to the fury of the populace. 

 The executive Government, it was to be feared, 

 possessed at this critical season no very great 

 authority ; and as the military partook deeply of 

 the wild opinions of the people, their subordination, 

 especially in a popular point like this, could not be 

 relied on. 1 saw, too, with much regret, that 

 whatever might be the issue of this affair, all 

 chance of our remaining afterwards on any good 

 understanding with the Spaniards was gone. 



On reaching Callao, I rode slowly through the 

 streets, which were filled with people, over whose 

 countenances hung a scowl that spoke anything 

 but civility or welcome ; there was also some little 

 murmuring, and an occasional appearance of sur- 

 prise at my presence : — but no violence or insult 

 of any kind was offered to me. 



The Spaniards are so devoted to form, that my 

 order for admission to the prisoners was required 

 to pass through innumerable hands before I was 

 permitted to look at them ; and then I was not 

 allowed to speak a word. This done, the prison 

 doors were again locked, and I returned to Lima 

 to make an official application to the Government 

 for the individuals who had been arrested, and 

 whom I had now identified as officers of my ship. 



There is some reason to think that the peace- 

 able reception I met with at Callao was owing to 

 a mere acccident. All commercial intercourse 

 between Chili and Peru having been cut off from 

 the moment the expedition sailed, the only mode 

 of communication between Valparaiso and Callao 

 was by means of the neutral men-of-war ; and as, 

 in former times, there had been a constant inter- 

 course between these two ports, and numerous 

 connexions had been formed between their respec- 

 tive inhabitants, the effects of the war were now 

 severely felt in the interruption of correspondence. 

 I have stated, that, at Valparaiso, I sometimes 

 amused myself by going into the cottages to observe 

 the habits of the lower classes ; and as it happened 

 that most of those people had some relative or 

 connexion settled at Callao, I was charged, on 

 sailing, with many messages and letters, all of 

 which, it may be mentioned as characteristic of 

 the times, they insisted on my first reading in their 

 presence, lest they should accidentally contain 

 political matter likely to prove prejudicial to their 

 correspondents, or to me the bearer. Shortly after 

 my arrival at Peru, I took care to deliver all these 

 letters and messages in person. The letters were 

 few, but the neighbours flocked in on hearing that 

 tidings had come from Valparaiso ; and though 

 many were disappointed, many also were made 

 happy, by hearing of their friends, from whom 

 they had received no other direct communication 

 for a long time. I had fortunately taken the pre- 

 caution to write down the very words of the dif- 

 ferent messages from the people at Valparaiso in 

 my pocket-book, so that when these little memor- 

 andums were torn out and given to the parties, 

 they became a sort of letter, and were prized as 



