submission, and himself marched against Boves.  Bolivar was overwhelmed by numbers at La Puerta.  His division dispersed, and fled to Cundinamarca.  He was then obliged to abandon Caracas.  The same day witnessed the affecting spectacle of several thousand inhabitants leaving their homes and property at the mercy of the ruthless spoiler, while they themselves set out to face want, disease, and death, in distant provinces.

On the 17th of August, Bolivar lost the battle of Aragua.  The subsequent affairs of Maturin, Cumana, Carupano, Guiria, Urica, and El Caris, were fought, with varying success.  All being lost in the east, Bolivar next proceeded to Carthagena, and offered his services to New Granada, then agitated by discordant parties of provincialists, centralists, metropolists, federalists, royalists, and independents.  A congress assembled at Tunja conferred upon Bolivar the command of the forces of New Granada.  Santa Fe de Bogota submitted, the provinces acknowledged the congress, and an effort was made to establish a constitutional form of government.

Bolivar having proposed to take the town of Santa Marta, still held by the Spaniards, he was authorized by the government of Santa Fe to procure guns, &c., from the arsenals of Carthagena.  The governor of that fortress refused to furnish the necessary supplies.  In order to enforce compliance, Bolivar invested Carthagena, before which he remained a considerable time, when he heard of the arrival at Margarita of General Morillo, with ten thousand Spanish troops.  Upon this, Bolivar placed his own investing force at the disposal of his rival, the governor of Carthagena; and, unwilling that the cause of his country should continue to suffer from the dissention which had arisen between himself and the governor, withdrew to Jamaica.  Morillo, soon afterwards, laid siege to Carthagena, which, unfortunately, in consequence of the long investment it had already sustained, was nearly destitute of provisions, Bolivar sent from Jamaica some supplies for the besieged garrison; but before they could arrive, that important fortress was in possession of the Spaniards.  This enabled them to reconquer New Granada, and the blood of its citizens was made to stream from the scaffold.

At Kingston, Bolivar narrowly escaped assassination.  The casual circumstance of exchanging apartments with another person, caused the murderer’s dagger to be planted in the heart of a faithful follower, instead of in that of Bolivar.  The author of these memoirs happened to live, for a few days, in the same boarding-house.  Some officers of a British line-of-battle ship, not speaking Spanish, requested him to invite Bolivar, in their name, to dine with them.  This was only a few weeks previous to the intended assassination of Bolivar.

From Jamaica, Bolivar went to Hayti, and was received at Port-au-Prince by Petion with kind hospitality, and was assisted by him as far as his means would allow.