PHEPACE. 



XV 



" They (the people of St. Catherine's,) have now 

 the honour to be governed by Don Jose Silva do 

 Paz, a brigadier of the armies of Portugal. This 

 gentleman has with him a garrison of soldiers, and 

 has consequently a more extensive and beiter sup- 

 ported power than any of his predecessors ; and as 

 he wears better clothes, and Hves more splendidly, 

 and has besides a much better knowledge of the 

 importance of money than they could ever pretend 

 to, so he puts in practice certain methods of procu- 

 ring it, with which they were utterly unacquainted." 



On the 27th of December, Commodore Anson 

 discovered a sail, which on her entering the har- 

 bour he sent his boat on board. " She proved," 

 says Mr. Walter, "to be a Portuguese Brigantinc, 

 from Rio Grande : and though our officer, as it 

 appeared on inquiry, had behaved with the greatest 

 civility to the master, and had refused to accept a 

 calf, which the master would have forced upon him 

 as a present ; yet the governor took great offence 

 at our sending our boat, and talked of it in a high 

 strain, as a violation of the peace between the two 

 crowns of Great Britain and Portugal. He at first 

 imputed this ridiculous blustering to no deeper cause 

 than Don Jose's insolence ; but we found he pro- 

 ceeded so far as to charge our officer with beha- 

 ving rudely, and opening letters," &c. But Mr. 

 "Walter goes on to state, that the governor was 

 afraid this visit might be the means of finding 

 proofs of his perfidious behaviour, and disclosing 

 the secret of his smuggling correspondence with the 

 neighbouring Governors, and the Spaniards at 

 Buenos Ayres,"^ 



The author will pass by the remarks of the 



* Anson's Voyage, Meiitz and Frankfort, English Edit. pp. 56. 



