404 



THREE YEARS IN THE PACIFIC. 



soap sent on board of some merchant vessel. A custom house 

 officer once observing a great number of apparent bales of soap, 

 that were being embarked on board of an American man-of- 

 war, remarked very archly, the Americans must be a dirty 

 people, to require so much soap to keep one ship's company 

 clean!" 



English and American naval commanders receive one and a 

 half per cent, freight for carrying specie or bullion, and one 

 per cent, deposite. The French government does not allow 

 their officers any privilege of the kind. This freight money, 

 with the English, is divided between the captain, admiral of 

 the station, and the Greenwich hospital ; with Americans, it 

 <^ is to be equally divided between the captain of the vessel 

 and the Navy Pension Fund." By this business, in the time 

 of the revolution, some commanders gained eighty and even a 

 hundred thousand dollars, in the course of a three years' cruise. 

 In those days, it was not uncommon for a million in plate and 

 bullion to be shipped at one time, to save it from the hands of 

 patriot or royalist, as the fortune of either happened to be as- 

 cendant. 



The Indians manufacture a variety of cotton fabrics, which 

 are consumed in the country ; such as cotton counterpanes with 

 raised figures, straw hats of a variety of colors, petdtes or mats, 

 and segarreros. 



Some years ago, a holy friar and his nephew, who was anx- 

 ious for promotion in the Spanish army, left Truxillo for Spain, 

 the latter carrying with him one of the finest segarr6ros made 

 in the country. The friar contrived in a short time to ingratiate 

 himself with the king, and get appointed one of his Christian 

 Majesty's confessors ; and the nephew, who was blessed with 

 winning manners, soon became in such high favor as to visit 

 his king dn his chamber before he arose from bed, " for you 

 know," said the old gentleman who told me the story, " that 

 kings never get up before twelve o'clock.^' One morning, the 

 king told the nephew to take a cigar from the royal segarr^ro, 

 " which was a great honor," and observing that it was a very 

 -coarse one, not worth more than two reales in Lambayeque, 

 the young man very humbly proposed to exchange it for the 



