The Mambi-land

Chapter I. The Mambi-land

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On board the " City of Havana" — New York Bay by Moonlight — The Coast of Cuba in Sight — The Morro — The Harbor of Ha- Yana — Boats and Boatmen — The Custom-House — Life in Havana — The Ayuntamiento — The Tacon Theatre — Interior of the House — Painted Ladies — In Cages — Permission to pass the Spanish Lines refused . . . . . . . .II

Chapter II. Cuban Travel

My Prospects — I set out " at my own Risk" — Cuban Ferry-boat — Strange Traveling Companions — Aspect of the Country — Surveillance over Passengers — The Guardia Civil, and Colored Persons — Troubles of the Celestials — On the Outerskirt of the Insurrection — Apparition of an old Ironsides — Villa Clara — Cuban Hotel 37

Chapter III. Slavery

Visit to a Slave Plantation — Herald Commissioner as a Prospective Slave-driver — Castilian Hospitality — The Overseer's Courtesy — A Ride through the Cane-fields — The Slaves' Quarters — The Slave Children — Lunch — Assembling the Human Chattels 53

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6 CONTENTS.

Chapter IV. On The Confines Of Cuba Libre

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Failure to penetrate into Camarguey — No Guides procurable — Cienfuegos — Voyage along the South Coast — Las Tunas — Night at a Cuban Fonda — Suspicious Companions — Pleasure of Cuban Travel — Waiting to be potted — Spanish Soldiers' Views of the Insurgents — Santo Espiritu — Alarmist Warnings — Man-hunting — Poverty — Voyage to Santiago de Cuba . . -74

Chapter V. Campaigning With The Dons

Santiago de Cuba — Introduction to Brigadier Morales de los Rios — Invitation to accompany a Spanish Expedition against the Insurgents — Colonel Sostrada's Courtesy — The Troops in Marching Order — Introduction to the Officers of the San Quintin Battalion— On the War-path — The Halt — Spanish Commissariat — Sick Soldiers — The Spanish Troops on the March — Night Encampment — Dining on Campaign — Generous Hospitality of the Spanish Officers — The Reveille — Counter Orders — Ride with Lieutenant-Colonel Lopez — Slave-owners and Soldiers — The Cubans and the Peninsulars . . . .81

Chapter VI. Preparing To Run The Gauntlet

Return to Santiago de Cuba — Stabs in the Dark — The Debatable Land — An Invitation withdrawn — Curious Conduct of a Cuban Planter — The Reign of Terror — Refugees in the Wood . . 103

Chapter VII. In Search Of The Mambi-land

My First Expedition — Cuban Town in the Interior — Lonely Ride through the Country — Pursued by Auras — Ti-Arriba — My Quarter — Los Voluntarios — Esperanza — Herald Ball — Visit to a Fortified Ingenio . . . . . . . . .111

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Chapter VIII. Captured By The Spaniards

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In Search of Guillermon — The Black Blue-Beard — My Arrest in Ramon Las Yeguas — A Spanish Dogberry — My Portrait taken — Sent to the Tower— Rumors from Cuba Libre — Set at Liberty — Proffered Hospitality rejected — Night Visit to a Cafitale — On the Right Track at last . . . . . . .124

Chapter IX. On The Trail Of Cespedes

Return to Santiago de Cuba — Expedition to Cambute — Interview with English Mine-director — The Road to Cambute — The Two Roads — A Plunge into the Woods — Flanking a Spanish Garrison — French Hospitality — On the Wrong Road — Arrest in Palma Sorianna — Scare among the Officers — " It is Disgraceful" — O'Ryan's Instructions — "To be shot as a Spy" — The False Alarm — The Mambi are coming — To Arms . . .132 •

Chapter X. Menacing Attitude Of The Authorities

Return to Santiago de Cuba — Interview with Morales de los Rios — Conditional Promise — Threat to shoot me as a Spy — The Cuban Laborantes ........ 153

Chapter XI. News From The Mambis

A Mysterious Letter — Rendezvous in the Woods — Is it a Trap? — Phantoms of Treachery — The Risk accepted — The Ride out — Thoughts on the Way — The Mysterious Ceiha — Footsteps in the Dark — QuienVa? — Cuba Libre — My Escort . . . 160

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Chapter XII. In Cuba Libre At Last

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Mambi Hospitality —Los Insurrectos as they are and as they are painted — Cuban Warfare — The Young Mambis— Burning Cuban Encampments — My First Ball in Mambi- Land — Touching Incident — Blessing the Children . . . . • .181

Chapter XIII. Life In Cuba Libre

A Horse Adventure — Dining on Horse-flesh — Arrival of Escort — Rights of Property in Mambi-Land — March to Tempii — Morning in the Forest — Reception by Colonel Matias Vega — Cuban Encampment — Mambi Industries .. . . .192

Chapter XIV. In Search Of Cespedes

Skirting Palma Sorianna — Witness First Military Operation — Cutting the Telegraph-Wires — Over old Battle-Grounds — Bivouac in the Woods — Graves in the Forest — Unburied Skulls — Camping-Ground of the Cubans — The Lost Child — Fowling under Difficulties ......... 202

Chapter XV. On The War Path

Calisto Garcia's Camp — Meeting with Generals Gomez and Calisto Garcia — The Arrival of Troops in Camp — Colonel Peralta wounded — Cuban Congressmen— The Baile in Cuba Libre — The Voudou Dance — March to Cafiadon — Provoking the Spaniards — Fatal Reconnoissance — Destruction of Potreros — Battle of Jiguani — After the Battle — Borne back on his Shield — Visit to the Field-Hospital — Carrying off the Wounded — El Silencioso — The Spanish Wounded . . . . . .214

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Chapter XVI. With Ces Pedes

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Message from Cespedes — March through the Mountains of Jiguani — The Camp at Rio Azul — Interview with Cespedes — His Views on the Revolution — Opinion of Castelar and of the Spanish Republic — Breakfast with Cespedes — Life at the White House in Cuba Libre — Sufferings of Cespedes and his Staff — I alarm the Cuban Camp — Offer to send me to Jamaica . . 239

Chapter XVII. How The Insurgents Live

Fortitude of the Mambis — Wonders of the Forest — Nature aiding the Mambis — Jutia Hunt — Digging for Boniatos — The Cuban Kitchen — A Forest De : eunei - — The Thug of the Forest — My Life in Cuba Libre — March to Bayamo — Mambi Theatricals — A Patriot's Gift — Perilous Adventure ..... 263

Chapter XVIII. In The Camp Of Modesto Diaz

The Dominican Guerrillero — Arrival of Presidential Party — Tomas Estrada — A Sad History — Raids on Spanish Settlements — Good News — Desertion of Garrisons of Punta Piedra and Congo — Camp of El Macho — Spanish Prisoner of War — Cuban Court-martial — A Memorable Bath — Spanish Officer shot — Oratory in Presence of the Dead . . . . . . . .281

Chapter XIX. Return To The Spanish Lines

Adieu to the Mambi-Land — Capturing Wild Cattle — Night March in the Woods — Levying Contributions — Camped near the Spanish Outposts — An Unpleasant Rencontre — Arrival in Manzanillo — Presentation to Consul — Scene in Caballo Blanco — Visit the Governor of the Town — My Arrest — Sent to Fort Gerona — My fo CONTENTS.

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Quarters — The Military Inquisition — Brought before Court-martial at Night — Alarmed — Four Hundred Thousand Dollars for Cespedes, Dead or Alive — Guarded at Sight — The Reign of Terror in Prison — Sentinel placed in my Cell — Government offers to bribe me— Arrival of British Gunboat — Spanish Authorities change Tactics — Bound with Ropes and shipped to Manzanillo . " . . ... . . . . 294

Chapter XX. Prison Experience

The Influence of the Plover — Bound with Ropes, and conveyed under Guard to Santiago de Cuba — The Morro Castle — In the Hands of Burriel — Orders for my Removal to Havana — Sent to the Cabanas — Immured in a Pestilential Dungeon — Change of Quarters — Two imprisoned Herald Correspondents — Castelar orders me to be sent to Spain — The Voyage — The Carcel Nacional of Santander — Madrid — Released — Conclusion . . 342

OR,

ADVENTURES OF A HERALD CORRESPONDENT IN CUBA.

Chapter I. The Mambi-land

On board the " City of Havana" — New York Bay by Moonlight — The Coast of Cuba in Sight — The Morro — The Harbor of Havana — Boats and Boatmen — The Custom-House — Life in Havana — The Ayuntamiento — The Tacon Theatre — Interior of the House — Painted Ladies — In Cages — Permission to pass the Spanish Lines refused.

Dim, mystic, and clothed in awful shadows, there floats on the edge of the American continent an unknown country. Mirage-like, it looms up at intervals on the horizon in gloomy grandeur ; and, when its form and general features seem about to reveal themselves, it fades away from the vision and leaves only indistinct impressions behind. But it fades not forever : again it appears, and the evidences of its existence are perceptible to the senses. This mysterious country is the Mambi-Land. It is hid from our view by the war-clouds which obscure its frontiers and veil its

ii j 2 THE MAMBI-LAND.

territory from the gaze of the outer world. The clash of arms and the thunder-roar of guns that come borne on the winds, mingled with shrieks of battle and anguished cries for help, assure us that the dim and indistinct country is no dream-land, but the abidingplace of men with the same instincts, hopes, and passions as ourselves. The land of the Mambi is to the world a shadow-land, full of doubts and unrealities. It is a legend, and yet a fact. It is called by many names, yet few know where begins or ends its frontier. Spaniards call it the Manigua, or Los Montes, Americans talk of it as Free Cuba, and those who dwell within its confines, Cuba Libre, or the Mambi-Land. It possesses no cities, no pomps, no splendors ; it is bathed in sunshine, and yet bedewed with tears, — often tears of blood. Indistinct it rises on the horizon, phantom-like it fades at the approach of the traveler, who yet feels and knows that its territory surrounds him on every side. Only in the depths of the silent forest does this mysterious land take tangible form and express itself in organized communities. Its limits may be vaguely marked by the shores of Cuba; for even in the Spanish strongholds the dominion of the Mambi is spread over Cuban hearts. There are two Cubas, Spanish and free Cuba, or Mambi-Land. The slave-holding, sugar-producing Queen of the Antilles, with her legions of fierce voluntarios, has become commonplace, while the vague, unvisited territory of Cuba Libre is full of romantic interest. Few from the outer world have crossed its shifting frontier, so full of unknown perils and awe-inspiring mystery. Like the fabled garden of the Hesperides, the frontiers of the Mambi-Land are guarded by mon-

THE MAMBT-LAND. j*

sters ready to devour the rash intruder. The dragon of the fable has been replaced by the voluntario, the soldier, and the executioner; but the crime of passing beyond the forbidden confines is not the less rigorously and savagely punished. Death is the doom decreed by Spanish law against whoever dares to cross the borders of the mystic Mambi-Land. Some have doubted its very existence, and declared it to be a creation evoked from the rank imagination of an evil-working race called Laborantes. Before me no impartial witness from the outside world had ever crossed the mysterious frontier to lift up the cloud that hid from view the strange land. Alone, among the bookmakers, have I visited the forbidden region ; moved and dwelt among the inhabitants of the silent forests, the new nation growing into life ; partaken of their cheer, joined in their revels, assisted at their deaths, accompanied them to battle, and witnessed their constancy in defeat, their exaltation in the moment of victory.

In the following pages I shall present to the reader an account of the difficulties and dangers encountered and overcome on my way to the Mambi-Land, and faithful pictures of the habits and modes of life of the dwellers in the woods. They will be seen in their leaf-covered huts and in their camps, employed in the labors of peace and war. They will tell to the reader, in their own words, their hopes, aims, and resolution. What I saw and heard will be passed in panorama before the reader, until he shall see the unknown land grow up in form and color to his mind's eye ; and he shall behold, through the leaves of this book, as through the foliage of the forest, glimpses of life in

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THE MA MB I- LAND.

the Mambi-Land. Why I went on the perilous expedition to discover the semi-fabulous Cespedes and his Mambi legions ; how I lived among them ; and how, a prisoner in the hands of the Spaniards, I was snatched by a saving Providence from the edge of the grave, will be told simply and without exaggeration.

Towards the close of the year 1872, the New York Herald, wishing to throw light on the Cuban insurrection, sent a correspondent to Cuba, with orders to see Cespedes, the President of the Cuban Republic. The correspondent found the mission so hazardous and full of danger that he abandoned it. Mr. James Gordon Bennett then intrusted the mission to me, with the following characteristic instructions : " Go into the Cuban lines, see Cespedes and other important leaders, give a fair account of their position, and bring back reliable information of the prospects of the insurrection ; draw upon the office for whatever funds you may need."

My course of action was left free. It was understood that I was to succeed. It mattered little what the cost should be so that I saw Cespedes or his successor, and furnished the Herald with the required information about the Cuban insurrection. My first care was to visit Madame Cespedes, and endeavor to glean from her some information as to the whereabouts of her husband. But, though willing to give me every assistance, she could only furnish the vaguest hints as to the regions in which he was likely to be found. Other Cubans were applied to, with no better success ; and, except good wishes and some letters of introduction to the generals commanding in the field, the Cubans in New York could g;ive me no aid. Intro-

THE MA MB I- LA XD.

ductions to sympathizers in Cuba were not to be thought of; and so it would be necessary to grope my way into the insurgent camps, which existed somewhere, but no one knew exactly where. My preparations were soon completed, and on the 14th of December, 1872, I embarked on the "City of Havana" for Cuba.

The mail steamer swung out into the river about four o'clock p.m., amid the waving of handkerchiefs and kissing of hands that usually accompany temporary separations. There were some tears shed by a few extremely sensitive or lachrymose people, who either could not help it, or thought it was the proper thing to do ; but, for the most part, the scene was gay and lively. There were touching scenes also ; for, among the passengers, were invalids going south, as a last resort ; and, as their anxious friends bade them good-by, with words of encouragement and cheer, it was only too evident that there existed an underlying sentiment that the parting would be an eternal adieu. It was curious to notice the fleeting expression of pain and sorrow passing over the faces of the assistants in these scenes, and the brave endeavors made to conceal the truth from the sufferers. But the greater number of the passengers were of a different type, — people who looked forward to the trip as a means of pleasure or profit. These chatted gayly, and seemed rather to enjoy the fuss their friends were making about them, and some were even so ungrateful as to look upon their friends as bores.

The evening was calm and the harbor was bathed in moonlight, and consequently most of the passengers were on deck to watch the receding shores of native land. The shore looked misty and indistinct in the cold, clear moonlight. Here and there the twinkling light from the distant windows called up pictures of the happy home-life we were leaving behind. It is impossible to find anything more delightful than New York Bay on such a night. We had left Sandy Hook behind us, when steam was let off, and the speed of the vessel began to slacken. We knew that the pilot was about to leave us. We crowded the side of the vessel to see him descend into his mysterious little boat, and charge him with our final adieus to native land. It is the work of a moment : he drops over the vessel's side, sliding down into the frail-looking boat that is waiting to receive him, and is rowed away into the ever-deepening shadows, until he becomes a speck, and finally is lost to our sight. Just at this moment we pass pilot-boat No. 7, looking like a fairy craft in the moonlight. Her lines are sweeping and graceful, and the cordage and rigging are so clearly defined in the silver light of the cold moon that they seem like a delicate web. It was just one of those pictures that nature makes, full of admirably-combined effects, — broad, yet delicate and suggestive.

One by one the passengers retired, and I was left alone to contemplate the beauties of the night ; above, the clear sky with its millions of twinkling stars ; below, the phosphorescent sea, bathed in moonlight, and flecked with the foam of our gallant sea-horse, that plowed onward, panting and straining every nerve, overcoming every obstacle and carrying us gallantly on our moonlit way. At last I was forced to turn into the little state-room, and coiled myself up on a narrow shelf that appeared to me to be not more

THE MAMBI-LAND.

than five feet long. It was covered with a faultlesslywhite counterpane, on which stood out in bold relief, in red letters, the words, " City of Havana." The horribly monotonous motion of the screw prevented my going to sleep for some time, but tired nature gave way and I dozed off. At length morning dawned, but let me draw a veil over the occurrences of this day. Suffice it to say that Scotch ale, brandy-and-water, and other resources were called upon in vain. The decks were deserted except by a few of those men who seem to have been intended by nature for seagulls or porpoises. They look into your state-room with provoking coolness to assure you that it is splendid weather, only a little fresh, and advise you to get up and walk about a little.

The third day out sees most of us on deck ; no one inclined to admit he has been sick, but only a little squeamish, you know.

We had already left behind the bleak northern clime, and the day was warm as in our summer-time.- We seemed to glide through a palpitating sea of molten glass, the balmy air producing that exquisite, sensuous feeling which is only felt in the neighborhood of the tropics, and enabling us to bear the monotony of the sea-voyage with equanimity, for here the sense of life is pleasure enough. On Thursday morning the coast of Cuba looms up in the distance, seen vaguely through the morning mist. Over the dark, shadowy, purpletinted outline of the coast rise immense piles of cumulus clouds grand and impressive, that threaten to pass over us in storm before we reach the port ; but, as the sun shines out, dissipating the mists and bathing the aerial regions in vaporous hues, the cloud-masses sail along the sky and reveal the deep, clear azure of the firmament. My confidence returns, and I go into my state-room to make final preparations for disembarking. We were nearer to Havana than I imagined; and, long before the last strap of my trunk had been buckled, the grim mass of the Morro Castle had come clearly into view. It is an imposing-looking structure, and evidently very strong. It is mounted with heavy Dahlgren guns, and is, from situation and solidity of construction, a very formidable work. It is situated on the left of the harbor as we enter. On the right the Batteria de la Reina, a semi-circular fort on the opposite side of the harbor's mouth, affords it efficient support. Both works are -dominated by an important fort behind the Batteria de la Reina. The light-house is on the left of the port, and bears on it in large letters the inscription, " O'Donnell, 1844." As we pass it the harbor opens to our view. It is narrow at the entrance, but, as we proceed, it widens into a sheet of water, irregular in form, of considerable extent. On all sides low ranges of hills protect it from the violence of the winds, so as to render it a remarkably safe anchorage.

The narrow passage is defended at intervals by old batteries, that recall the time when the Spanish flag swept the southern seas in all the haughty pride of unchecked conquest. To-day these batteries but too truly reflect the changed fortunes of the Iberian nation. The old stones remain, but grown gray under the influence of time. The ravages of age are only made the more noticeable by the efforts of the moderns to conceal them. New cement has been placed in the interstices, and the old brass guns that were young in

THE MAMBI-LAND. IQ

the days of King Philip peep out from the crenelated batteries with a senile curiosity and impotence. They, however, give to the place an air of antiquity that more than compensates the traveler for their want of efficiency.

The city lies to the right as we enter, on a flat tongue of land, between the harbor and the open sea. Above the mass of houses rise towers and lofty steeples, the whole jumbled together, presenting a scene unrivaled in picturesque effect. The square, solid houses, painted yellow, and green, and blue, rise up in exquisite confusion, in which ever-varying gradations of light and shade, commingling with brilliantly contrasting color- effects, give to the scene a brightness and joyousness we never find in northern climes. In the view of Havana there is much of the East. The monotony of the architecture is somewhat relieved by the varying height of the houses, which are painted to suit the fancy of their owners. For this purpose a kind of distemper is used. The prevailing color is dirty yellow, relieved by green, brown, blue, or red. White, with appropriate relief, is not uncommon. Brilliant colored awnings also shade the streets, and give them a bright and gay appearance. The shops, too, are open, no doors or glass being used, and the rich merchandise piled up within catches the eye of the passer-by. The sight is not dazzled by an eternal blistering white. So well is the sunlight absorbed by those colors that one can look about, even when the sun is at its height, without the sensation of being blinded.

The interior slopes of the lower hills, on whose summits the lines of fortification are continued, are clothed with verdure ; here and there little clusters of white houses with red tile roofs, and some sparsely planted trees in their vicinity, present a picturesque effect that is perfectly delightful. But what adds more than perhaps anything else to the charm of the harbor, are the lumbering passenger-boats, that seem to belong to another age. These boats resemble somewhat a rude kind of gondola, but are propelled by sails : they have only one mast, which supports a square sail, by which the boat is principally managed. The velocity with which these craft dash about is absolutely marvelous.

As soon as we had cast anchor a cloud of these boats came scudding round us, and it was a beautiful sight to see them moving about in ever-changing groups, offering every instant new combinations of color. They are of all sizes, forms, and colors, according - to the owner's sense of the aesthetic ; but the most lumbering and weather-beaten are unquestionably the most picturesque.

The port officers were at breakfast when we arrived, so there was plenty of time to enjoy all the beauties of the harbor, as it was nearly two o'clock in the afternoon when the permit to land arrived. In the mean time a Spanish mail steamer entered, having on board a number of soldiers and civilians. The expedition with which these were attended to and landed contrasted strangely with the cavalier manner in which mere Americans were treated. Those of our passengers who had influence on shore were allowed to land by special permit ; but those who were not so fortunate were obliged to remain until the official stomach had been satisfied.

THE MAMBI-LAND.

Even a Spanish official cannot well remain at breakfast all day, so the looked-for permit arrived in its own good time. Then the group of little boats that had been moving round us suddenly swarmed toward the ship's gangway, and their occupants, who were strong and rather " hard" looking Spaniards, set up a babel of appeals for employment.

As we shoved off from the vessel's side, Ave were enjoying, by anticipation, the novel sights upon which our eyes were soon to dwell, while the black prophet of the party shook his head with evil forebodings of what was to happen to us in the custom-house. While all were in this happy frame of mind, an incident occurred which was nigh having a fatal termination. Our boat was heavily laden with baggage, and carried six passengers, one being a lady, in addition to the two Spanish boatmen. We were scudding before the wind at a fair rate, when a man-of-war's boat, propelled by a dozen lusty arms, appeared rowing directly across our course. It was impossible for us to stop or to change our direction with sufficient rapidity to avoid a collision ; so we held on, the sailors shouting to the man-of-war's crew to change their course. The latter, however, paid not the slightest heed, but rowed down with a sweeping stroke. The position became critical, as it was evident that a collision was imminent. Our sailors shouted and gesticulated with increased energy, and, at the last moment, the Spaniards backed water not an instant too soon ; for, in spite of the frantic efforts of our boatmen, the prow of the man-of-war's boat struck ours on the quarter heavily and made her reel. The lady of the party only escaped injury by jumping up from her seat just in time to escape being struck by the colliding prow. In the stern of the Spanish boat a nabob of an officer was seated, whose white hair ought to have been a guarantee against such an outrage ; but the hidalgo sat quietly and unconcernedly by, as if it were a matter of sublime indifference to his decorated soul whether or not some half-dozen mere civilians were sent to the bottom. Before we landed we were treated to another sample of official insolence by having our boat thrust back to allow some uniformed swell to pass before us, — -an incident that cost us half an hour of struggle before we could regain our lost place.

My first care, after depositing my luggage at the San Carlos Hotel, was to seek Mr. Price, the resident correspondent of the Herald, who introduced me to General A. T. A. Torbert, the American consul-general, who received me kindly, but seemed to think that, in view of the state of public feeling, there was very little chance of obtaining permission to visit the insurgent camp, without which, he expressed the opinion, it would be a very hazardous and very foolhardy undertaking to attempt to pass the Spanish outposts. General Torbert was reserved and cautious in the expression of his views, and evidently wanted to keep out of any unnecessary complications with the authorities. He excused himself from accompanying me to the Captain-General, but gave me a letter of introduction and recommendation, saying that it would be well to see his Excellency at once, and return to inform him what answer had been given to me.

The distance from the consulate to the palace of the Captain-General was traversed in a few minutes, and I found myself in one of the spacious apartments

THE MAMBI-LAND.

of the Palacio de Gobernacion. An officer in full dress, decorated and aigniletted, was in waiting. He had laid aside his sword, and was engaged in conversation with a gentleman who, I afterwards learned, was an aide-de-camp in mufti. His Excellency was \/ engaged on important business ; but, as soon as he was disengaged, my letters were presented. There was time to look around and examine the portraits of former Captains-General. But the study lacked interest, from the fact that the names were not given, though the dates of their holding office were marked on each frame. The most striking, and, to me, interesting, were the portraits of O'Donnell, de Rodas, and Valmaseda, the latter a fierce and by no means very intelligent-looking man. O'Donnell occupies the place of honor over the door of the antechamber; and, unless the painter flattered him very much, he was one of those men who, once seen, leave their image impressed on the mind forever. The portraits are, however, execrably painted, evidently by some local genius. The examination of this interesting collection of historical portraits was soon interrupted by the officer with the golden aigitillcttcs informing me that his Excellency the Captain-General would receive me. On entering the grand sallc de reception, I saw, coming towards me, a distinguished-looking man of some fifty summers, dressed in military uniform. Mr. Price, who accompanied me, introduced me to General Ccballos \ as the correspondent of the New York Herald. He bowed politely, but coldly. After the exchange of the usual civilities, the object of my visit was explained, and a shade of displeasure and annoyance passed over his face. It was, however, transient, as