Lisbon Octr. 4 1834
My dear Mother & Sister,
In spite of the dangers real & imaginary which have beset us on our journey from Seville we have at last reached Lisbon in safety and in perfect health. I wrote to you last when in Quarantine outside the walls of Badajoz and the following morning we left our miserable habitation in a cart for Elvas in Portugal without having received permission to enter Badajoz we left by moonlight about 3 o'clock in the morning and at 8 arrived at Elvas on entering the town we were surprised to observe at the gate several English faces and much more so when taken to the Guard Room I found an English officer on duty.
I learnt that there were about 800 English in the service of Dom Pedro garrisoned in Elvas for which I was entirely unprepared—Having presented ourselves to the Governor of the town arranged our passports for Lisbon and satisfied the cravings of an appetite caused by the morning air and the jolting of the cart we began to make arrangements for the continuing of our journey towards Lisbon.
We had been told when far distant that vehicles of all descriptions were constantly leaving Elvas for Lisbon but as usual in these cases we found the number gradually diminish and that of all the fine carriages of which we had heard mention we found nothing but a rude Cabriolet and a covered cart drawn by two mules. The latter being the least expensive we enjoyed the honor to carry us to Lisbon in 4 days at the risk of having every bone broken by the...
...movement of the cart and being stripped to the skin by the roaming parties of disbanded soldiers of the miguelist party who a few days before had stopped a large sum of money arriving from Lisbon for the payment of the troops at Elvas escorted by 10 soldiers trusting to our practical good fortune in these matters we determined to pursue our journey notwithstanding the doleful countenances of all not excepting our driver who vainly endeavored to persuade us to remain a day longer in Elvas to have the company of several muleteers going to Lisbon loaded with wool.
Our first days journey was to Estremoz through a very pretty country strongly contrasting with the dreadful barren country which I had passed all the way from Granada in Spain we had frequently traveled 10 or 20 miles over a rude country without meeting either habitations or human being. The villages we passed through were escaping description and their inhabitants miserable. In Portugal on the contrary the lands were well cultivated the heights rich & woody the road studded with pretty white cottages the inhabitants of which appeared much more at their ease than the Spanish peasants. At the inn in Estremoz we were indulged with the luxury of sheets to our beds which we had not seen since we left Seville.
We passed the following night at Arrayolos a very pretty town situated on a commanding height. Here to our great horror we learnt that the day before near a fountain which we had passed to water our mules a muleteer had not only been robbed but left severely wounded by the robbers. The anxious looks of our driver each person line behind him during the day had prepared us with the presentiment of danger yet we had been fortunate enough to pass unmolested.
The following day we proceeded to Vendas Novas without accident and as there was here a regiment of cavalry for the express purpose of keeping the road clear of robbers between this & Lisbon we waited on the officer in command and requested an escort for the morrow to Aldea Gallega the fourth and last day being the most dangerous from the...
...peculiar nature of the country escapingly favorable for robbers. He readily complied with our request and ordered 4 horse soldiers to accompany us—having 32 miles to travel during the day we left Vendas Novas at 3 in the morning to reach Aldea Gallega by sunset. Our conveyance as you may observe being none of the quickest. We were fortunate enough not to meet with the enemies which we so much feared more particularly as the last 12 miles of our days journey was through a forest of pine trees so thickly wooded that had the robbers made their appearance our cavalry would have been perfectly useless.
On leaving the wood we found ourselves on a height with the Tagus and Lisbon on the opposite shore at our feet. The setting sun throwing a charm around and entirely our spirits depressed by the constant expectation of approaching danger. Arrived at Aldea Gallega we learnt that the passage boats for Lisbon would leave at midnight with the tide and having supped we laid ourselves down in our cloaks at a miserable inn to wait the hour which was to transport us to the long wished for port.
About half past eleven the gruff voice of the sailors aroused us from our slumbers and rubbing our drowsy eyes we groped our way out of the inn in danger of tumbling over a heap of human beings among whom we had been sleeping in one common room more asleep than awake we embarked on board the passage boat and hastily descended to the cabins where we soon threw ourselves on the floor with our carpet bags for pillows and cloaks for covering to finish the nap which had been so disagreeably interrupted.
After a few hours (the distance only being 12 miles) the cries of the boatmen warned us of our arrival in the port of Lisbon but it being still dark we merely took a peep on deck and quietly descended to our snails hole to await the approach of day which was to unfold the city to our astonished view. I cannot say the first aspect pleased me. The view from the water is magnificent but the interior of the city as far as I have yet seen it offers little worthy of attention. The squares and streets are upon a grand scale but deprived of architectural beauty and when the first impression is worn off there rests little to please.
I have also arrived here at a most unfortunate moment on account of the illness and subsequent death of Dom Pedro which news was confirmed on our arrival here, which event has thrown a look of sadness over the city where he appears to be universally regretted—