REGENCY OF SPAI.V. 375 



a popular Junta ; but Tacon differing in opi- 

 nion with them, dissolved the meeting. Not 

 content with this, Tacon raised an army, for 

 the purpose of attacking the new govern- 

 ment at Bogota ; who, to avert the threat- 

 ened danger, sent out a body of troops, 

 under the command of Don A. Baraya. In 

 the beginning of 1811, an action was fought 

 on the banks of the River Palace, three 

 leagues from Popayan, in which Tacon was 

 defeated. 



It was shortly previous to this, that 

 the Regency of Spain adopted a measure 

 which, had it been earlier resorted to, and 

 more extensively applied, might have done 

 much towards restoring the authority of the 

 mother-country in Spanish America. They 

 appointed two native Americans, Don A. 

 Villavicencio, and Don C. Montufar, with 

 the title of Commissionados RegioSy to sup- 

 port their authority in New Grenada : that 



