the state of
the roads within the precincts of the commune and the neighbouring
lands. Men, grown up, and without employment, form a civic guard, who
watch over the safety of the village. This guard indicates the hours
of the night, by blows struck upon a large piece of hollow wood. There
is in each town a parochial house, which is called Casa Real, where
the deputy-governor resides. He is bound to afford hospitality to all
travellers who pass through the town, which hospitality is like that
of the Scotch mountaineers--it is given, but never sold. During two
or three days, the traveller has a right to lodging, in which he is
supplied with a mat, a pillow, salt, vinegar, wood, cooking vessels,
and--paying for the same--all descriptions of food necessary for
his subsistence. If, on his departure, he should even require horses
and guides to continue his journey, they are procured for him. With
respect to the prices of provisions, in order to prevent the abuses
so frequent amongst us, a large placard is fixed up in every Casa
Real, containing a tariff of the market prices of meat, poultry,
fish, fruit, &c. In no case whatever can the deputy-governor exact
any remuneration for the trouble he is at.

Such were the measures that I wished to adopt, and which, it is true,
possessed advantages and disadvantages. The greatest inconvenience
attending them was undoubtedly that of placing myself in a state
of dependence upon the deputy-governor, whose functions gave him a
certain right, for I was his administrator. It is true that my rank,
as commandant of all the gendarmerie of the province, shielded me from
any injustice that might be contemplated against me. I knew very well
that, beyond military service, I could inflict no punishment on my men
without the intervention of the deputy-governor; but I had sufficiently
studied the Indian character to know that I could only rule it by the
most perfect justice and a well-understood severity. But whatever were
the difficulties I foresaw, without any apprehension of the troubles
and dangers of every description that I should have to surmount,
I proceeded straightforward towards the object I had traced out for
myself. The road was sterile and encumbered with rocks; but I entered
upon it with courage, and I succeeded in obtaining over the Indians
such an influence, that they ultimately obeyed my voice as they would
that of a parent. The character of the Tagaloc is extremely difficult
to de