EXTRACTS.
CHARACTER OF PAEZ, THE COLOMBIAN CHIEFTAIN.
* Uncle. A name by which the Llaneros frequently address Paez, particularly the guards of honour, who are more privileged than the others.
t A slip knot or noose, which is thrown with greet preciseness over the head of' the animal intended to be caught. This operation has been so well described by other travellers, that any account 0 it here is unnecessary. "Tins heroic and noble-minded man has derived all his ideas and virtues from nature. Nurtured in a country perfectly uncivilised, without the advantages of either birth or fortune, he has, by his own personal merit, his prowess and undaunted courage, raised himself through the incidents whicn have from time to time occurred to him during the revolutionary contest, to the command of by far the most effective and useful native force of any in the country. He is a native of the plains of Capac, anti descended from the horde of Llaneros, who have ever lived there in the most barbarous and savage manner. When the revolution was first agitated, he was then a young man, and a private in one of the bands of Lancers which are raised on the plains. In this humble situation he soon found means to distinguish himself. His extraordinary courage and strength enabled him to heat all competitors in the gymnastic exercises, to which the Llaneros daily accustom themselves ; and by the adroitness which, from continued practice, he had acquired in the use of their favourite weapon, the lance, he could with ease beat them into submis- sion when any disputes arose. These, together with the numbers he al- ways placed hors de combat in their numerous skirmishes, procured him. the respect of all his companions, while his mild and unassuming dispo- sition ensured him their respect and friendship. He does not appear to have entertained any wish to aggrandise himself at this period, nor indeed at any subsequent one, as his conduct has ever been marked with a most perfect disinterestedness and indifference, as to his own advantage. in every action of his life. The usual fate, however, of the chiefs of these bands, and the general esteem iu which he was held, soon placed him in command. The leader of the party he belonged to having been killed in an action, the whole of the troop instantly and unanimously elected him their chief, and in this station he enacted so many deeds of bravery, and with such universal success, that his band was hourly receiving volun- teers, and in a short time became augmented from about 300 to above 2000. With these he commenced operations on a larger scale, and soon. became the most formidable foe the Spaniards ever had in Venezuela, and to him may certainly, with the strictest justice, be attributed in a great. degree the independence of that part of Colombia, while his exertions in the cause of New Grenada have been also great and extremely bene- ficial to it. He could not, at the time I served with him, either read or write, and, until the English arrived on the plains, he was totally unac- quainted with the use of knives and forks, so rude and uncivilised had been his previous life. As soon however as he began to mingle with the officers of the British legion, he copied their manners, customs, and dress, and invagiably acted as they did, as far as his previous habits would admit, on all occasions. He is about live feet nine inches in height; his. frame is very muscular and finely formed, and he possesses wonderful strength and agility. His countenance is handsome and manly ; his hair. thick, black, and curling; his temperament sanguine, disposition warms generous, and kind, and his mind, though quite uncultivated, enriched: with all the virtues which most adorn human nature. Open, frank, and unsuspecting, he is the best of friends, and being perfectly free from the baser passions, the most generous of enemies. He is particularly fond of' the English, calling them his brothers, and ever advocating their claims to the gratitude of their country with the greatest enthusiasm. His in- trepidity rendered him equelly beloved by them, and, excepting General, Marino, he was the most popular chief with them in Colombia. .Fre- quently, when the jealousy of the native officers has led them to make. harsh and unmerited obfervations respecting the services of the British, legion, has he, by a well-timed reproof, checked them; and he was, witlt but two or three exceptions, the only one who ever candidly acknow- ledged the benefit which the cause of liberty derived from their services ; and he alone ever proposed a public testimonial of it on the part of the Congress.
"To enumerate all the anecdotes of this extraordinary man would more. than fill a volume, so numerous and romantic are the actions of his life.. One of them, which is truly characteristic of his bravery and resolution ini cases of emergency, and which illustrates his military character, I will se- late. Bolivar was on the plains of the Apure, with his troops in a starving condition, and without the means of procuring food for his army, un- less he took a circuitous march of many leagues, to which the strength: of the Then was incompetent, or found means to arrive at the point. he wished to gain, by crossing the river Apure, on whose banks, on the opposite side, were plenty of cattle, grazing within sight of the: nearly famished troops. The latter could not be accomplished, as he had no. boats of any description, or timber to construct rafts ; but about midway' across the river was a fleet of sixty fiecheras which belonged to the enemy,. and were well armed and manned. Bolivar stood on the shore gazing at these in despair, and continued disconsolately parading in front of them,. when Paez, who had been on the look out, rode up and enquired the• cause of his disquietude. His Excellency observed, "I would give the world to have possession of the Spanish flotilla, for without it I can never cross the river, and the troops are unable to march." " It shall be yours, in an hour," replied Paez. "It is impossible," said Bolivar. "and the men must all perish." "Leave that to me," rejoined Paez, and galloped: off. In a few minutes he returned, bringing up his guard of honour, con- sisting of 300 lancers selected from the main body of the Llaneros, for' their proved bravery and strength, and leading them to the bank, thus briefly addressed them : " We must have these flecheras, or die. Let. those follow Tie who please." And at the same moment, spurring his. horse, dashed into the river and swam towards the flotilla. The guard. followed him with their lances in their mouths, now encouraging their horses to hear up against the current by swimming by their sides and patting their necks, and then shouting to scare away the alligators, of' which there were hundreds in the river, till they reached the boats, when,.
mounting their horses, they sprang from their backs on board them,, headed by their leader, and, to the astonishment of those who beheld them from the shore, captured every one of them. To English officers;
it may appear inconceivable that a body of cavalry, with no other arms than their lances, and no other mode a conveyance across a rapid river-
than their horses, should attack and take a fleet of gun-boats amidst. shoals of alligators ; but, strange as it may seem, it was actually accom- plished, and there are many officers now in England who can testify to the truth of it.
"The strength with which nature has endowed General Paez, is surpri- sing. He will at any time, for mere sport, when his troops are catching wild cattle by means of the lazof, single out a bull from the herd, arid following him on horseback seize him while at full speed, by the tail, by a sudden twist of which he will throw the animal over on his side. If
upon any excursion he meets with a tiger or wild boar, he instantly transfixes him with his lance. From thirty to forty men have been known to fall by his single arm in one engagement, and he is unques- tionably the first lancer in the world. He has, since he has risen into notice, generally had from 3,000 to 4,000 men under his command, all of the Llanero tribes, and these form by far the most formidable native force in the Republic; with their aid and by his own indefatigable assi- duity he was always able to hold Morillo in check. Paez has ever proved himself a most inveterate enemy to the tyrannical dominion of Spain, and a terrible avenger of his country's injuries. For weeks and months he has followed the steps of Morino, unceasingly clinging to him like his shadow, and upon every opportunity dashing into his camp at night with frequently not more than from 150 to 200 men, slaughtering all whom he encountered, and on every occasion cutting his way back with very trifling loss. At other times, when the Royalist army was passing through the country, he would seize a favourahle moment, when they were fa- tigued by a harassing day's march, to drive off all their cattle and bag- gage mules, leaving them without provisions. It was acknowledged by Morino, that, upon one occasion, when marching from Carracas to San- ta fe-de Bogota, he was deprived of upwards of 3,000 men, and the whole of his military stores, by the unceasing attacks made upon him by Paez, and that he was in consequence obliged to abandon the object of his expedition until he was reinforced."—Recollectiona of the War of Exter- mination in Venezuela and Colombia, vol. ii. pp. 173-180.
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