mad or pleased, whether to laugh or swear; and, after a moment's hesitation, with a vacant look, he burst forth in exclamation, "Tecolote," and moved on, The universal roar of laughter from our companions hurried him forward. "Tecolote" in native Mexican means "screech-owl," and thus poor Trimble carried the soubriquet to his grave. [262]
 

Chapter Sixteen

 
IMPRISONMENT IN THE CASTLE OF PEROTE - CONTINUED

Our fat friend. Commissariat. Statement of Rations. Jake upon Cow-ology. Snake-bitten old Cow. Guts in Caricature. Old Limpy: his Character. Lousing. Simeon Glenn. Louse-racing. What is an Old Soldier? How to select the Racers. An Argument in favour of Phrenology. General Austin in the Accordada. The Old Sailing-master's Pipe. Longing for Brandy. Sutler, Wife, and Daughter. Shifts to get Brandy. Surprise of Senorito. The Sergeant's handsome Wife. Dan: his "Soldier's Tear." A United States Midshipman. How he avoided Work. A Favourite. "Long, long Ago." His Heresy lost him Favour. His intellectual Improvement. Mr. Black, United States Consul. Billy Reese. Shooting of Captain Ewin Cameron. Reminiscence of Captain Cameron. George B. Crittenden. O. Phelps. Letter to President Tyler. Letters from United States. Letter to Mr. Calhoun. Preparation for Emigration to Texas.

Our fat old guard was so corpulent, that, when standing still, he had often to rear back to preserve his equilibrium, on which occasions his abdominal prominence formed a huge semicircle from his chin to his hip - joints. When moving forward, to preserve his balance, his epicurean preponderance impelled him along at a railroad speed - a kind of running pace; and, though he was the largest man, yet he was the fastest walker in the castle. When he would be coming round in the direction of our prisons, the word "Guts," sung out by some wary sentinel, told us that we had no time to lose in adjusting our "jewelry."[263]

If any department of the Mexican service is worse managed than the pay department, it is the commissariat; as evidence of which may be mentioned the fact, that though this castle is considered the stronghold of the powers that be, yet, with the exception of water, there is not one day's rations of provisions in it.

The government nominally allows both the soldier and the prisoner twenty-five cents per diem for rations. This amount is not paid to the prisoner, but,