mentioned, assumed the responsibility of issuing a most
energetic order of the day, and Don Tomas was commissioned by the
general to draw up the document. In relating the anecdote to me, Don
Tomas avers that the order had to be drawn upon the back of a letter
which he discovered in his pocket, and that great delay was caused by
its being an impossibility to procure ink. A poor black woman, however,
hearing of his perplexity, announced that her son had been learning to
write, and that as her _rancho_ or hut was still standing, the bottle
of ink would probably be found tied to a nail in the wall, as well as
the pen; that is, provided the thieves had not made away with it, of
which she appeared to be somewhat suspicious. She consented to go for
the articles herself, stipulating, however, that Don Tomas and one or
two others should accompany her, believing, apparently, that numbers
would guarantee her against injury from the earthquake. The ink was
found where she had described it, but, unfortunately, no pen. Here was
another dilemma! She bethought herself at last that a neighbor of hers
possessed a pen; so the party was obliged to retrace its steps to the
encampment for further information. The neighbor was sufficiently
generous to lend the pen, but stoutly refused to re-enter the stricken
city. She described its _locale_, however, as being between a rafter and
a _cana_ in the roof at the entrance of her hut. The thieves, it proved
upon investigation, had spared the precious implement, although,
probably, if they had surmised the use to which it was to be put, that
of fulminating destruction to their machinations, they might not have
been so honest. All difficulties having been at length overcome, the
important document was drawn up, and duly published the following
morning by _bando_--that is, by sound of the trumpet, drum and fife--a
body of citizens doing duty in lieu of troops, and the individual with
the most stentorian lungs thundering forth the edict from where the
corner of the streets might have been supposed to be. The proclamation
was to the effect that any person or persons discovered robbing houses
or insulting females should be shot on the spot, without trial or
benefit of clergy. This measure of lynch law had the desired effect, and
proved sufficient to maintain order until the arrival of a corps of
three hundred soldiers sent by the government for that purpose.

As soon as the disaster was made known, Gener