378 ANECDOTE OF A BRAZILIAN OFFICER. 



me, that he had some intention of taking orders 

 as a secular priest. 



Soon after the commandant left me, the fol- 

 lowing occurrence took place hard by, which is 

 characteristic of the state of the country, and 

 similar to what frequently happens ; although this 

 of which I am about to speak might have been 

 avoided, if the actors in it had been a little older, 

 and a little less hot-headed. A young man who 

 resided in this neighbourhood had been lately ap- 

 pointed to hold a military situation in the district, 

 of which he was proud, and owing to which he 

 had assumed an additional degree of personal im- 

 portance. He possessed a high-spirited horse, 

 and would sometimes turn him loose, although 

 he had no fenced field into which he could put 

 him. The animal soon found out the cane land 

 of an adjoining estate, and destroyed, consider- 

 ably, the young plants ; from hence he would 

 open the gate of the field, (which from the man- 

 ner that the gates of plantations are usually made, 

 it was very easy for him to do,) and would come 

 and offer battle to some of the hard worked 

 horses. This was often repeated, notwithstand- 

 ing that the animal had been caught each time, 

 and sent home with a request that this might 

 not again occur. However, at last one of the 

 beasts of the estate was lamed by the horse, and 

 rendered unfit for service, at least for some time. 

 The owner was much vexed, and as one of his 



