IMl>RISONMEN'r. 



83 



soldiers who arrested us my special passport from my 

 own government, with the endorsements of Command- 

 ant Penol and himself, certifying my official character, 

 which were not deemed sufficient ; demanding to be set 

 at liberty immediately, and allowed to proceed on our 

 journey without farther molestation ; and adding that 

 we should, of course, represent to the government at 

 Guatimala, and also to my own, the manner in which 

 we had been treated. Not to mince matters, Mr. Cath- 

 erwood signed the note as Secretary ; and, having no 

 official seal with me, we sealed it, unobserved by any- 

 body, with a new American half dollar, and gave it to 

 the alcalde. The eagle spread his wings, and the stars 

 ^ glittered in the torchlight. All gathered round to ex- 

 amine it, and retired, locking us up in the cabildo, sta- 

 tioning twelve men at the door with swords, muskets, 

 and machetes ; and, at parting, the officer told the al- 

 calde that, if we escaped during the night, his head 

 should answer for it. 



The excitement over, Mr. C. and I were exhausted. 

 We had made a beautiful beginning of our travels ; but 

 a month from home, and in the hands of men who would 

 have been turned out of any decent state prison lest 

 they should contaminate the boarders. A peep at our 

 beautiful keepers did not reassure us. They were sit- 

 ting under the shed, directly before the door, around a 

 fire, their arms in reach, and smoking cigars. Their 

 whole stock of wearing apparel was not worth a pair of 

 old boots ; and with their rags, their arms, their dark 

 faces reddened by the firelight, their appearance was 

 ferocious; and, doubtless, if we had attempted to escape, 

 they would have been glad of the excuse for murder. 

 "We opened a basket of wine with which Col. McDon- 

 ald had provided us, and drank his health. We were 



