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NARRATIVE OP A 



In the course of the night, at a late hour, we were 

 alarmed in no slight degree by the arrival at Petapa of a 

 detachment of soldiers, of whose character and designs we 

 were utterly ignorant. The officer of the escort, suspect- 

 ing they might be a party of the enemy, immediately 

 roused his men, and put them under arms. Happily this 

 alarm, like the one previous, was attended by no disagree- 

 able results ; the detachment consisting of soldiers of the 

 Federal Government who were exploring the country. 



The next morning, after travelling a few miles over a 

 mountainous tract, we entered upon the vast plains sur- 

 rounding the city of Guatemala, from which we were now 

 distant only twelve miles. We had another and a nearer 

 view of the volcano of Amatitan, but it was not in a state 

 of eruption. Wide meadows, enlivened by numerous 

 herds of cattle and horses, were spread before us, extend- 

 ing in some directions as far as the eye could reach. 

 Several pretty hamlets also occurred at intervals, with lit- 

 tle plantations round them of maize, plantain, and sugar- 

 cane. The road, too, was enlivened by a number of pas- 

 sengers going and coming, on horseback and on foot ; a 

 circumstance which in itself indicated our approach to a 

 populous city. At length we came in full view of the 

 city of Guatemala. The domes and spires of its lofty 

 churches and public buildings glittered in the sun, while 

 the white walls of the houses gleamed through the trees 

 and foliage of its numerous gardens. The environs of the 

 city were verdant with shady groves and cultured slopes. 

 The surrounding country was a succession of wide undu- 

 lating plains, terminating, on one side, with two volcanic 

 mountains, and, on the other, with a rocky ridge, beyond 

 which could be seen, dimly defined in the horizon, the 

 lofty peaks of the Andes. 



Just before coming to the city, I took leave of my escort, 

 and went forward with Tito and the arriero who was 

 charged with my baggage. The poor soldiers, who had 

 brought me in safety to my journey's end, were not forgot- 



