204 



INCIDENTS OP TRAVEL. 



housekeeping for perhaps but a few weeks, I dined and 

 supped at the house of the senora, an interesting young 

 widow who owned mine (her husband had been shot in 

 a private revolution of his own getting up), and lived 

 nearly opposite. The first evening I remained there till 

 nine o'clock ; but as I was crossing on my return home a 

 fierce Quien vive ?" who goes ?" came booming up 

 the street. In the dark I could not see the sentinel, and 

 did not know the password. Fortunately, and what 

 was very unusual, he repeated the challenge two or 

 three times, but so fiercely that the tones of his voice 

 went through me like a musket-ball, and probably in a 

 moment more the ball itself would have followed, but 

 an old lady rushed out of the house I had left, and, 

 with a lantern in her hand, screamed " Patria Libra." 



Though silent, I was not idle ; and when in a safe 

 place thanked her from across the street, hugging close 

 the inside of my doorway. Since Carrera's entry, he 

 had placed sentinels to preserve the peace of the city, 

 which was very quiet before he came, and his peace- 

 officers kept it in a constant state of alarm. These sen- 

 tinels were Indians, ignorant, undisciplined, and inso- 

 lent, and fond of firing their muskets. They were or- 

 dered to challenge " Quien Vive ?" " Who goes ?" 

 " Que gente ?" " What people ?" " Quel Regimento ?" 

 " What regiment ?" and then fire. One fellow had al- 

 ready obeyed his orders literally, and, hurrying through 

 the three questions, without waiting for answers, fired, 

 and shot a woman. The answers were, Patria Li- 

 bra," " Country free ;" " Paisano," " Countryman ;" 

 and " Paz," " Peace." 



This was a subject of annoyance all the time I was 

 in Guatimala. The streets were not lighted ; and hear- 

 ing the challenge, sometimes at the distance of a square, 



