phantom, and dealing blow after blow with wild ferocity. This was the chaplain of the division, who, carried away by excitement, had obeyed the order to charge, which, when given to the conquerors of San Lorenzo, was sure to be followed by a battle in which no quarter was given.
When the victorious vanguard returned to the fortified encampment occupied by Las Heras and the rest of the division, the commander saw by the blood-stains on the scapulary of the chaplain, that he had been increasing the number of the dead instead of comforting the dying, and signified to him that he would do better to keep to his breviary and leave the sword to warriors. The hot-tempered chaplain could ill-brook this reproof, and turned hastily away with flashing eyes and compressed lips. On dismounting at his lodgings, he grasped the sword still hanging at his side, saying to himself, "We shall see." Thus was formed an irrevocable resolution. That evening's combat had revealed his natural instincts in all their strength, proving how little fitted he was for a profession requiring mildness and brotherly love; he had felt the pleasure in shedding blood which is natural to those who have the organ of destructiveness strongly developed; war attracted him irresistibly; he wished to rid himself of the troublesome gown he wore, and to win the laurels of the soldier in place of the symbol of humiliation and penitence; he therefore determined that he would be no longer a priest, but a soldier, as were José and Francisco, his brothers. The fear of scandal would not deter him, for he could cite many examples in his favor; the celebrated engineer Beltran, who had lighted
