been abfent upwards of forty years, that at an early period of his life-
he had entered into the Englifh army ; but not obtaining in that fer-
vice the promotion he had expefted, he had embraced more advantageous
offers on the continent. His firft commiffion in the fervice of His
Catholic Majefty was in the corps o f engineers, from whence he exchanged
into the dragoons, and was foon raifed to the rank of lieutenant-colonel;
in this flotation he ferved for fome time in Old Spain, and afterwards in
this country, until he obtained the diftinguifhed poll of military commander
on the frontiers of Chili, and governor of Conception. In this,
fervice he was employed twelve years, and had the good fortune, by the
conftant exercife of his humanity, and an uniform attention to the comforts
of the native inhabitants of the country, fo to fubdue the natural,
fiercenefs of their difpofitions, as to induce them to fubmit to the government
of Spain. For this effential fervice he was promoted about
the year 1783 to the exalted ftation he now fills; fince which time he has
been honored with repeated marks of approbation and diftinftion by
His Catholic Majefty, who has been pleafed to confer upon him the orders
of Charles the Third, and St. James, with the rank of lieutenant-
general in the Spanifh army.
A room of confiderable dimenfions was allotted to me in the palace,
and a large apartment adjoining to-it was appropriated to the ufe of Mr.
Puget and the reft of the officers, in which were a fufficient number of
fmall beds for the party, covered with thin gauze, as a proteftion againft
the mufquitos. The two dragoons who had attended us from Valpa-
raifo were now appointed to be ufeful to us in the capacity of.fervants ;
and every other matter was attended to, ordered, and fettled, that evening,
which could in any way contribute to render our ftay at St. Jago, and
our refidence in the palace, as pleafant as poflible. Nor did the polite-
nefs of the Prefident end here, for, previoufly to the fupper being announced,
he introduced to our acquaintance Don Ramon de Rofas, the
eorrigidor, and Don Francis Caflada, a captain of dragoons, who received
the Prefident’s directions to ufe his utmoft endeavours in {hewing us
every thing in St. Jago worthy the attention of ftrangers, and to makeus
known to the principal families refiding in the city.
The
The fupper, confifting of a great variety of hot difties, was ferved up *Wj|
on filver, at which no perfon was prefent but Don Ambrofio the Prefi- 1---- -----1
dent, Don Ramon de Rofas and ourfelves; all fort of ceremony was
now laid afide, and, agreeably to the repeated intreaties of His Excellency,
we confidered and felt ourfelves as much at home as if we had
been partaking a repaft in'England with our molt intimate acquaintances.
The firft part of our converfation was chiefly engroffed by inquiries re-
fpefling our late difcoveries on the north-weft coaft of America. In
this I was very happy to learn, that no part of our conduft, or tranf-
affions with any of the fubjefts of His Catholic Majefty, appeared to have
given the lea ft eaufe for jeakmfy, or complaint againft our little community
; and I was alfo much gratified by the very handfome compliments
that were paid to myfelf and officers, on the fuccefsful labours of our
voyage. .After the curiofity of the Prefident and Don Ramon was fome-
what fatisfied on this fubjefit, the former, with great indignation, recounted
a circumftance which I cannot forbear to mention, although, being
a matter only of converfation, it may poflibly appear too extraneous.-
A t the time when His Excellency was the governor at Conception,
and during the late American, French, and Spanifh war with England,
an enterprize was meditated and planned by the Court of Great-Britain
againft that place, which was then the feat of government in the kingdom
of Chili. When Sir Edward Hughes failed with his fleet from England
to the-Eaft-Indies, it was generally believed that he was to have
afled only in defence of our eftablifhments in that quarter, but before
that admiral had reached the firft place o f his deftination in the Eaft-
Indies, the Prefident ftated to us, that he was in pofleffion of a copy of
Sir Edward Hughes’s orders, which had been tranfmitted to him at Conception
from Old Spain, by which documents he became informed, that-
an attack was purpofed to be made by that fleet from the Eaft-Indies on
the Spanifh fettlements in South America, and that Conception was the
placeagainft which theenterprize would firft be attempted. In confequence
of this intelligence a general alarm took place throughout all the efta-
blifhments on the coaft; the fortifications, which had been much neglefi-
ed, were repaired and ftrengthened; the number o f troops attached to each
3 I 2 wcrjs