d and his own existence
too. In the course of the farewell banquet, at which she was present
reclining on her couch, he burst forth into complaints of the treatment
he had received. After General San Martin's departure he had been
beset by spies, slandered by civil officials, his services ignored, his
liberty and even his life threatened by the Chilian Government. He got
up from the table, thundered execrations pacing the room wildly, then
sat down on the couch at his wife's feet, his breast heaving, his eyes
fixed on the floor. She reclined on her back, her head on the cushions,
her eyes nearly closed.

"'And now I am an honoured Spanish officer,' he added in a calm voice.

"The captain of the English frigate then took the opportunity to inform
him gently that Lima had fallen, and that by the terms of a convention
the Spaniards were withdrawing from the whole continent.

"Gaspar Ruiz raised his head, and without hesitation, speaking with
suppressed vehemence, declared, that if not a single Spanish soldier
were left in the whole of South America he would persist in carrying on
the contest against Chile to the last drop of blood. When he finished
that mad tirade his wife's long white hand was raised, and she just
caressed his knee with the tips of her fingers for a fraction of a
second.

"For the rest of the officers' stay, which did not extend for more than
half an hour after the banquet, that ferocious chieftain of a desperate
partida overflowed with amiability and kindness. He had been hospitable
before, but now it seemed as though he could not do enough for the
comfort and safety of his visitors' journey back to their ship.

"Nothing, I have been told, could have presented a greater contrast to
his late violence or the habitual taciturn reserve of his manner. Like a
man elated beyond measure by an unexpected happiness, he overflowed with
good-will, amiability, and attentions. He embraced the officers like
brothers, almost with tears in his eyes. The released prisoners were
presented each with a piece of gold. At the last moment, suddenly, he
declared he could do no less than restore to the masters of the merchant
vessels all their private property. This unexpected generosity caused
some delay in the departure of the party, and their first march was very
short.

"Late in the evening Gaspar Ruiz rode up with an escort, to their camp
fires, bringing along with him a mule loaded with cases of wine. He had
come, he