speed, that I felt a dizziness in the head; at every stump of a tree, at every plant of anything like fantastic shape, he started aside so suddenly, that I was many times in great danger of being flung from the saddle and rolled in the dust. Thanks to God, I held fast. After an hour's furious speed, the mustang became knocked up a little, and I was then able to direct his pace. Arrived at Vandenberg, I made no stay, notwithstanding my fatigue and hunger, and having hastily drunk off a bowl of milk, I resumed my journey. Some panther skins which had been spread out to dry frightened my horse, and he dashed through an opening into an inclosure where a few bulls were peacefully chewing the cud. Instantly, as we appeared, up started the bulls and commenced bellowing most terrifically. The horse, terror-stricken, cleared at one prodigious bound the wall of the inclosure. I remained in the saddle, I know not how; and now we sped through the air more furiously than ever. At length, near Quihi, the horse dashed aside at the sight of a rattlesnake, and in his fright struck against the trunk of a tree and so hurt himself that he was thenceforward obliged to hobble along at a very moderate pace. Although nearly worn out by fatigue and exhaustion, I dismounted, to give some ease to the poor animal, and leading him by the bridle I made the twelve miles which still lay between me and Castroville on foot. Notwithstanding the delay, I arrived before the night set in, and having handed over the poor disabled animal to the sheriff to be sent back to the camp of the Leona, I went to bed. On that day, having made sixty-eight miles on horseback and twelve on foot, under a burning sun, without food or repose, and at the horse's utmost speed, I was so knocked up and exhausted that I could not eat any supper, so threw myself into my hammock with my clothes on, and was soon asleep, and dreaming of solitude, Indians, balls, and mustangs.

EXTREME UNCTION WITH GREASE-
CAMP MEETINGS.

A friend of mine, a missionary priest, administered extreme unction to a dying man in the presence of a

Methodist minister, who was either a relative or friend of the sick person. After the ceremony, the minister approached the priest, and inquired of him why he had anointed with oil certain parts of the body of the dying man. The priest replied that it was a precept of the Church, founded on the 14th and 15th verses of the 5th chapter of St. James, who says, 'Is any man sick among you? let him bring in the priests of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the prayer of faith shall save the sick : and the Lord shall raise him up and if he be in sins, they shall be forgiven him.' The minister confessed that he had never read that passage, and promised that he would avail himself of it at the first opportunity. And the fact is, that ever afterwards he imitated the Catholic unction of the dying; but as oil was very dear, he usually employed melted grease, and with this he rubbed the sick person from head to foot. The Episcopalians and Quakers are better informed, and consequently more tolerant, and less violent against the Catholics.

Of all the Methodist eccentricities which I witnessed, the most curious unquestionably was a camp meeting. This ludicrous custom leads to very great excesses. The sectaries assemble in a plain or in a wood, and generally remain there for three days. Here they form an encampment, and subsist on the provisions which they have brought with them from home. Their time is spent in listening to the sermons of their ministers, in singing psalms, and reciting prayers. Women of a certain age get into melting moods, weep, and utter cries of anguish and repentance at the sight of their sins; sometimes they imagine that the Holy Ghost descends upon them; then, in their own words, they are happy, and impelled by a desire of making their brethren sharers in their happiness, they mount the platform and preach in their turn. Their words are intermingled with sobs and cries, and the assembly, already disposed to excitement by fasting and watching, thereby receive most profound impressions. Among the rigid Methodists, who are styled saints, it is not unusual to see young girls preach, and with an air

of inspiration and an extraordinary volubility of utterance, deliver the most impassioned discourses, until at length they fall into paroxysms of nervous excitement, and into the most frightful convulsions. Among these fanatical apostles and penitents of the desert are to be found many young men, who go to the assemblies for the sake of amusement, and also young females, who follow their parents there much against their will. Amidst the ceremonies, and during the night, certain liaisons are formed, in which morality suffers.

It sometimes happens that comic scenes slightly modify the gravity of these meetings. One day, a preacher in petticoats, of a very attractive appearance, caught the attention of an Irishman, who had been drawn thither by mere curiosity. He interrupted the fair preacher by asking her whether she was married. In an instant her cheeks were suffused with blushes, and she made no answer. The question, however, being repeated, she replied angrily, but with an inspired air: Yes, I am married to our Lord Jesus Christ.' The Irishman retired, with an air of vexation, saying: 'I am greatly afraid, madam, that you'll never be admitted into the house of your father-in-law, for you have been married without his consent.' The whole assembly broke out into a roar of laughter.

Still, in such an assembly it is not prudent to interrupt the preachers by absurd or ridiculous questions. By so doing you expose yourself to the risk of being torn to pieces; and hence these interruptions are very rare. The American press attempted to brand these disorders with infamy, and to hold up the Camp Meetings to public ridicule. But it would be a difficult task to convince these enthusiasts that their assemblies are more destructive of public morality than useful to religion.

THE SHERIFF OF LYNCHDOM AND

HIS BLOOD-HOUNDS.

On the frontiers of Texas, where human life is little valued, the inhabitants have little personal protection except in their arms. Hence they always go armed. To put down those evil-doers who would not submit to

the regular organization of justice, the inhabitants did not hesitate to intrust the execution of this expeditious code to officers of the halter, whose antecedents were of a nature to strike terror into the most intractable. But were those that deserved it most brought to the gibbet, the very functionaries would be the first, and they would be followed by a goodly number of judges, barristers, and doctors, headed by the sheriff himself.

This was a man of immense stature and of Herculean proportions. His expressionless features bore the impress of cruelty. He carried at his waist a six-barrel revolver, and in his hand a cow-hide lash, making frequent use of both. Whenever he went in pursuit of any malefactor it was not certain that he would bring back his prey; but it was improbable that the prey would ever return out of his company. One day that he gave chase to a robber, the plundered dealer inquired on his return if he had found his man.

'Yes,' the sheriff coolly answered; I could not fetch him back, but it is all the same-he'll steal no more.'

Soon afterwards the robber's body was discovered in a chaparal with a ball in his heart, and half covered with shrubs and moss. Honest folks could not find a more energetic officer of justice. As we have seen, the sheriff made no secret of his exploits, which were notorious, and every succeeding week revealed new feats of this kind, which, true or false, served to increase his reputation, and render him more terrible to the evil-doers.

The prison of Brownsville was a small plank cabin, erected opposite the church, and surrounded by a hedge of briars. Though all the prisoners were chained down, many broke their bonds, and escapes were of no rare occurrence. To diminish their frequency the sheriff intrusted the prison-gate to the keeping of two blood-hounds of the bull-dog breed, of proverbial ferocity, such as chase the negroes, and were employed by the Americans against the Indians and in the war of Florida.

Several times as I was returning from attendance on the sick, and passing in front of the prison, these dogs would bound over the hedge in pursuit

EASTER SUNDAY AND CAPTAIN

MOSES.

Easter Sunday was one of the happiest days of my life. A crowd of Catholics approached the sacred table (how many among them had kept away from it for years!) and received the Holy Communion with meditation and fervour. God abundantly recompensed me for my labours; and with profound emotion, I gave vent to tears, while preaching on the benefits of the religion of the Son of God. My parishioners, affected, for the most part, by my emotion, also wept. We felt the full force of the words of our Lord,- My yoke is pleasant and my burthen is light.'

A Jew, a retired captain of a steamboat, who used to attend regularly at our offices, and was greatly attached to me, shed abundant tears. His name was Moses-one of the ugliest men breathing, but not the less kindhearted for that. His face was red, wrinkled, and frightfully pitted with small-pox. His enlarged features had neither regularity nor symmetry. My dear friend, the captain, was a phenomenon of ugliness in his normal state; but his grimace while weeping made him something frightful. I confess this grimace made a certain impression on me and rendered my discourse less impressive. Meanwhile a ranchero, who felt it no doubt rather warm, coolly took off his shirt in the church; but in an instant the sun darted his burning rays on his naked shoulders and the ranchero threw his shirt over them and tied the sleeves across his breast. Doubtless this toilette produced on my auditory an impression analogous to that which the grimace of Captain Moses had produced on my self. It was that of cold water thrown on fire; for at the end of my sermon the tears were all dried.

After the Easter holydays, I went to visit the portion of my mission which I had hitherto but imperfectly known. As it was but thinly inhabited, this visit was to be only a kind of

vacation. Captain Moses offered me hospitality in a house which he had at the mouth of the Rio Grande, and I accepted the offer. We set off together in the steamboat that plied between Brownsville and Brazos.

The distance, by water, from Brownsville to the mouth of the river is about eighty miles, but as the crow flies, only thirty. You would imagine that the Rio Grande, no less than the savage, regrets leaving this valley, at once so wild and beautiful. It hesitates, and makes a thousand windings before losing its identity in the depths of the sea. The banks are less picturesque than to the north of Brownsville, being flatter and more wooded, indicating the proximity of the sea. According as the gulf is neared, the land becomes arid, sandy, or marshy, trees more rare. The Spaniards of the sixteenth century well designated this coast by calling it Costa Deserta. It is a veritable desert. Some tufted sand-banks meet midway, and two or three ranchos are the only things that break the monotony of the road. A little before sunset, we arrived at a village at the mouth of the river. The dying fire of the day-star flung into space rays of reddish hue which were reflected by the sea, which seemed like a lake of blood.

The Captain's house was an old entrepôt of munitions of war, abandoned since the time of the American invasion. The building, which was large, and of wood, was then occupied by a quantity of rusty old iron, the remnants of wrecked vessels, either sold or abandoned. A bed, capable of accommodating four or five, was in the midst of broken anchors, severed chains, gaping lanterns, and other instruments of like nature. The Captain, with wonderful sang froid, honoured me with his apartment. The bed being between five doors and two windows, I could not want air; but, for sleeping, I had calculated without the mosquitoes, which are more numerous here than in Galveston.