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On first landing at Pisco he had issued an order to his army in which he said, "Remember that you are come not to conquer, but to liberate a people; the Peruvians are our brothers." And in spite of the impatience and restlessness of his officers, he steadily adhered to his plan, to the no small loss of his military prestige and ultimately to his retirement from the scene of activity.
Charles into a tolerably soldier-like condition were distributed on board the Lautaro, Galvarino, and the remaining fire-ship, and were despatched to Pisco, under the command of Captain Guise, for supplies to be taken from the Spaniards, the troops being under the orders of Lieut.-Col. Charles, and the marines under the direction of Major Miller.
That same evening, Cornelius Jacobson returned with his detachment, having made an ineffectual attempt on Pisco, which he found strongly fortified, and defended by 2000 men, besides a body of 200 horse which scoured the country. In this attempt he had five men killed and sixteen wounded, and thirteen deserted to the enemy.
"Do you know why I came to Pisco? to buy brandy at eight dollars a jar, which just now I could sell in Lima at eighty! What do you think of that, young man? Why, I should have cleared a handsome fortune by this trip!" "It is very sad, madam; but soldiers, you know " "Soldiers? Bah! Look at them riding on my mules! My mules, mark you!
No one ever saw them take anything, except when the regular allowance was served out by the steward; and to make them quite sober and sensible, you had only to ask them how they contrived to keep otherwise. Some time after, however, their secret leaked out. The casks of Pisco were kept down the after-hatchway, which, for this reason, was secured with bar and padlock.
On the 18th I shifted my flag into the San Martin, and leaving the O'Higgins and Valdivia at Pisco to protect the troops, sailed for Callao, where we arrived on the 2nd of April. On the 6th, we again attacked the enemy's shipping under the batteries, and did them considerable damage, but made no further attempt to gain possession of them, as I had other aims in view.
Again he was thwarted by San Martin, who requested to be landed at Ancon, considerably to the north of Callao, and as unsuitable a halting-place as was the southerly town of Pisco. Lord Cochrane had to comply; but he bethought him of a plan for achieving a great work, in spite of San Martin.
"We shall be coming off duty in ten minutes." "Well, we have got a little of everything," she said. "As pretty sashes as there are in the country, beautiful silk neckerchiefs, silver brooches for your sweethearts, and for those who purchase freely a glass of the best pisco spirit." "Well, wait, and I dare say we shall lay out a dollar or two."
While going out, we met our own boat with the two men who had deserted us, and who now edged down upon us, imagining we had been Spaniards. The two fellows were almost dead, having neither eat nor drank for three days, and had just been ashore on a small island near the harbour of Pisco, to kill some seals that they might drink their blood.
About half of the people work together in companies the other half shift each for himself. There are hundreds of Indians, many of them fantastically dressed, for they can purchase fine clothing now, even at the extravagant rates at which all articles are charged at Weber's store. They labour one day, and get drunk on pisco or the "strong water" on another.
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