Early in the evening, indeed as soon as it was dark, a boat put off from shore and came alongside, with five men in her, bearing a letter purporting to be from the governor of the colony, and signed Numoz Gamero, desiring me to keep the prisoners on board until the next day, when I should receive assistance from the shore, in landing them. I showed the letter to captain Avalos, who, tired of his confinement on ship board, determined to go on shore for the night, taking with him some twelve prisoners in the boat which had been sent from the land, and leaving the remainder of the prisoners and the troops under my charge.
About twelve at night, I was aroused by the firing of cannon from the shore, and I sprung upon deck, but I found all quiet in the vessel. In a few moments, however, the watch gave the alarm that a boat was coming near us, and crying for assistance. The wind blew so very fresh that it was impossible to hear what was said from the boat, (the voices being blown away from us,) but I conjectured that the prisoners who were landed the evening before, and about whose security I had some doubts, had made their escape from captain Avalos, and had probably stolen a boat and were trying to get on board, where, with the assistance of the other prisoners, they could seize the vessel and make their escape. I immediately ordered a gun to be fired in answer to those from the shore, to show that we were on the lookout, and then had the larboard quarter boat lowered away and sent her out with five men, armed with cutlasses, with orders to seize the shore boat.
After being gone for a whole hour, they returned, saying that they had not been able to find her. Soon after, the noise of firing from the shore ceased. In the boat were the governor, priest, some soldiers, and a woman, who had escaped from the barracks, and, seizing a boat, had put off, in hopes to reach me and warn me of the insurrection on shore. Having but one oar, however, and the wind blowing very fresh, they were unable to make the vessel, but drifted across the Straits and attempted to land on the Terra del Fuego side.
As soon as captain Avalos reached the barracks, he was seized, his papers taken from him, the prisoners who landed with him set at liberty, and himself put into double irons and thrust into a calaboose, as the buildings for confining the soldiers are called. During the evening, he could hear the prisoners whom he had brought on shore, in the full enjoyment of a drunken frolic. He told me afterwards that no answer was made to his inquiries as to the reason of his seizure, but that he obtained some idea of what was the real state of the colony, by overhearing the conversation of the drunken prisoners. Late in the evening, the door of the calaboose was opened, and five men, double ironed, were thrust into the room. These, he found, were the Secretary of the colony, a Brazilian by birth, the captain and first lieutenant of the troops of the colony, the apothecary, and governor’s steward.