extreme; but he had occasionally seen in them, as he felt within himself, a capacity for high and noble deeds.
When a beggar is offered silver, he is not likely to be very fastidious about the stamp of the coin; and thus it was with the Portuguese commander. He readily accepted the proposal of Diaz; but with an incredulous smile, that plainly implied he considered it no harm for the blackies to try; just as a father looks and speaks to
little boys, when they ask to hold the plough.
Henry Diaz returned triumphantly to his companions, to communicate the success of his mission. He exhibited the parchment he had received; and though few could read the words, all were able to appreciate the
magnitude of the seals, and the magnificence of the flourishes.
The blacks have always shown a readiness to exchange domestic slavery for the milder servitude, and more exciting scenes of the army. They fear bullets less than stripes. The history of revolutions in North and South America, but especially in the latter, furnishes sufficient
proofs of the truth of this remark.
The regiment was soon full, and organized into regular battalions and companies. Such was the talent and energy of Diaz, and such effective use had he made of the hours he was enabled to steal from labor and from sleep, that in less than two months his troops were completely equipped, and in as perfect a state of discipline as the oldest corps of the army. From miserable, ragged, servile creatures, they had suddenly started up into brave and stout men, their faces animated with intelligence and hope, and their eyes glistening like the flashing of the sun upon their bright muskets.
By the fierce and unyielding courage of this regiment, and the genius and skill of its commander, the Dutch were repeatedly defeated, after the most severe contests. The soldiers were never, but once, known to waver from the rock-like firmness said to distinguish colored troops.
Once, when struggling against a vast superiority of numbers, there was a momentary relaxation of their efforts, and some symptoms of dismay. Their Colonel rushed into the midst of the breaking ranks, and exclaiming, "Are these the brave companions of Henry Diaz!" he
