The weekly Butte record., 1861-07-06

liable part of their goods and furniture.
The city of Panama consisted of about 20,-
900 houses, many Of them large and magnif-
cent
1t contained also eight monasteries and two
churches, all richly furnished. The conceal
ment of the church plate, drew upon the
eclesiastics the peculiar vengeance of the
Buccaneers, who, however, spared no one
The conhagration which they could not arrest,
they at last took pleasure in spreading. A
slave market belonging to the Genoese was
burned to the ground, together with many
warehouses stored with meal. Many of the
miserable Africans whom the Genoese brought
for sale to Peru, perished in the flames which
ragged or smothered for month.
For some time the Buccaneers, afraid of
being surprised and overpowered by the Span
iards, who still outnumbered them ten to one,
encamped about the town. Morgan had also
weakened his force by sending hundred and
fifty men to Chagres with news of his victory.
Yet by this handful of men, the panic stricken
Spaniards were held in check and subsection,
while the pirates ragged like demons through
the burning towns or prowled among the ruins
and ashes in search of plate and other valua-
BILE articles.
The property which had been secreted was
nearly all discovered, and the most active of
the Buccaneers went out to the woods and
heights to search for and bring back the mis-
erable inhabitants who had fled with their
effects. In two days they brought in about
two hundred of the fugitives as prisoners. OF
these unhappy persons many were females, who
found the pirates no better than their fears had
painted them. A lady, one of his prisoners,
with whom Morgan fell in love, is described as
believing, till she saw them, that the freeboot-
ers were not men, but some sort of monsters
named heretics, "who did neither invoke the
blessed Trinity, nor believe in Jesus Christ"
The civilities of Captain Morgan inclined her
to better thoughts of his faith and Christianity
especially as she had frequently heard him
swear by the sacred names.
Another lady Of Panama was very curious to
see the animals called Buccaneers, and the first
time she had that happiness, exclaimed aloud :
Jesus bless me these thieves are like unto
US Spaniards .'
In plundering the land, Morgan had not
neglected the sea. By sea, many Of the prin-
cipal inhabitants had escaped, and boat was
Immediately sent in sursuit, which brought in
three prizes though a galleon in which was
embarked all the plate and jewels belonging to
the King of Spain, and the wealth of the
principal nunnery of the town, escaped from
the pirates indulging in brutal revel in their
own bark till it was too late to follow and cap
ture the ship.
The pursuit was afterwards continued for
four days, at the end of which the Buccaneers
returned with another prize, worth 10000
pieces of length in goods from Paita.
While the Buccaneers were thus employed
at sea and at Panama and Chagres, parties
continued to scour the surrounding country,
taking in turn the congenel duty of foragug
and bringing in booty and prisoners, on which
they exercised the most atrocious cruelty, un-
employing the rack, and sparing
neither age, sex, nor condition
Nothing more was to be wrung forth from
Panama, which, after destructive sojourn of
four weeks, Morgan resolved to leave. Beasts
of burden were therefore collected from all
quarters to convey the spoils to the opposite
coast.
The cannon were spiked, and scouts sent out
to learn what measures had been taken by the
governor of Panama to intercept the return
to Chagres. The Spaniards were too much
depressed to make any preparations either to
annoy or to cut off the retreat of their inveter-
ate enemies and on the oath of February the
Buccaneers, appreheDsive of no opposition,
left the ruins Of Panama with hundred and
seventy five mules, with their spoils, and about
six hundred prisoners, including women, chill
dren and slaves. The misery of these wretched
captives, driven on in the midst of the armed
Buccaneers, exceeds description.
W., ,ro,IJ ,,ora 80. .oo lor- ,,o+ - - la