RESIDENCE AT SANTAREM 127 
sallied forth into the dark streets. Arrived at the 
house, we found the Delegado and a number of 
other people collected before it, on the terrace, 
whose base is laved by the Amazon. I could get 
no certain information of what had happened from 
them, and at the Delegado's request I entered the 
house, not without considerable misgivings of 
finding my poor friend in a deplorable state. He 
was, however, sitting on a sofa, moaning very 
much, but still quite able to hold himself up ; and 
they had already stanched the bleeding and 
bandaged the wound, which was in the lower part 
of the chest. I remained until I saw a bed made 
up for him on the sola, and everything as comfort- 
able as circumstances would admit. I would have 
stayed with him all night, but there seemed no 
imminent danger, and he himself did not think it 
necessary. The weapon had been aimed at the 
heart, but the point had glanced upwards, pene- 
trating the base of the breast-bone, and making a 
wound three inches deep. 
The occurrence had quite stunned the old captain, 
although the wound itself gave him little pain ; and 
it was not until some days afterwards that he could 
so far recollect what had happened to him as to 
give a tolerably connected account of it. He had 
sat up late, reading, and after locking the outer door 
and another door leading into the kitchen — as was his 
wont — he went into a little back room to undress. 
In this room there was a large native leaf-mat set 
up leaning against the wall ; he had no occasion to 
disturb it, and there is no doubt that the assassin 
was concealed behind it — how he could get there 
unobserved we shall see presently — and that he had 
