Page:The History of San Martin (1893).djvu/150

120 of the Royalist forces, and in stirring up the Chilian people to co-operate with the invading army. Thus the whole country was soon on the watch for the moment when their liberators would pass the Andes. The name of San Martin became so popular, that his agents had no difficulty in obtaining all the help they needed; horses were always to be had when they wanted them, and they were warned in time of any danger which threatened them.

Chilian patriots, among whom the most active was Manuel Rodriguez, also secretly organised bands of volunteers, who waited but the signal to rise in arms. Some of them gave their lives for the cause on the gallows. Marcó del Pont adopted the most severe measures of repression, which only served to fan the flame of discontent.

In September, 1816, Rodriguez imprudently raised the flag of insurrection in the south of Chile. His raw troops were speedily dispersed, but San Martin made good use of his mistake by writing him an angry despatch, telling him that he had ruined his plans by drawing the Royalist forces to the south and causing them to occupy the passes by which he had hoped to cross the Cordillera. This despatch he caused to fall into the hands of Marcó del Pont, whose attention was thus again diverted from the real point of danger.

At this time Brown, the gallant Irishman who had driven the Spanish naval forces from the River Plate, and had been rewarded by the gift of his flagship, the Hercules, again offered his ship and his services to the Argentine Government. He was well supplied with guns, small arms, and ammunition, and was granted letters of marque as a privateer. On the 15th October, 181 5, he sailed from Buenos Ayres for the Pacific with Captain Buchardo, a Frenchman, as his second in command. His squadron consisted of four vessels — the Hercules of 20 guns, commanded by Michael Brown; the Trinidad of 16 guns, commanded by Walter Chitty; the Halcon, commanded