Another division entered the town the same day. The army was composed of eight divisions of infantry, besides cavalry and artillery; the former force was known throughout the army by the following familiar appellations: "the gentlemen's sons," "the surprisers," "the fighting division," "the supporters," "the invisibles," "the never heard of," "the all-sorts," and "the division:" but, before the end of this most sanguinary war, they all fought again and again, covering themselves with fame and lasting glory. The following day we proceeded to Castello de Vida, an ancient fortified place within a league of Marvao. The first brigade entered the town, and the second bivouacked in a grove without its walls. The adjacent country presented a wild appearance; but more particularly the latter town, which was perched on a rugged and stupendous mountain, inaccessible on every side, save only one approach, and even that impracticable for carriages, the road winding under the overhanging shelving of rocks, others of which reared their rugged points in the very middle of this (hardly to be so termed) pathway. A party of us with difficulty ascended to this strange place, at a season of the year when every particle of vegetation is parched and dried up. The adjacent grey precipices presented a frightful wilderness,—the hiding-place of innumerable wolves. The mind of the beholder on surveying such a prospect became perplexed how so barren a spot, even at the remotest period of antiquity, should have been fixed on for any human habitation, far more for a fortification. Some cannon of ancient construction were still on the ramparts, but few mounted, and even the carriages of those mouldering to decay. Here and there a few miserable Portuguese were observed basking in a sunny corner, grouped and huddled together, and consisting of young and old women with dark countenances, and still darker tresses, enveloped in shabby blue cloth cloaks, and extracting _piochos_ from each other's heads; that occupation being the greatest source of delight and amusement amongst them. Their general food consisted of roasted chesnuts, washed down with cold spring water—which caused their teeth to decay at a very early age; and when they could procure a little dried fish, or _sardines_, with black sour bread, they would consider it a point of luxury. The extreme heat of the weather, and the exertions that we had used to reach this spot, created excessive thirst; looking round, therefore, in search of a house of entertainment, we espied a leafless branch of a tree suspended over a doorway, which bespoke the object of our search. On our entering and demanding wine, the corner of a pig-skin was untied, out of which spouted the wine into a filthy measure. It was strongly impregnated with the taste of the skin, about milk warm, and exceedingly thick, owing to its having been recently removed from a mule's back. These animals are usually loaded with