intellectual patriot leaders in Buenos Aires. The rival
parties were headed respectively by Saavedra and Mariano Moreno. Moreno
eventually retired from the _junta_, and was offered the post of
Minister Plenipotentiary to Great Britain. This he accepted, but died on
his voyage to Europe. The party he had formed, however, continued in
being after his death under the name of Morenistas. The period, of
course, was one of experiment, and just at this moment numerous forms of
government were essayed, and the pattern of the constitution frequently
changed.

On March 9, 1812, occurred an important event in the history of
Argentina. On that date Jose de San Martin arrived in Buenos Aires in
the British frigate _George Canning_. With him came Carlos Alvear and
Matias Zapiola, whose names were likewise destined to become famous in
the annals of the Republic. On their arrival there was established in
Buenos Aires a branch of the now important secret society originally
founded in London, the "Gran Reunion Americana." This branch was
christened the "Logia de Lautaro," and exercised much influence on the
affairs of the revolution.

San Martin was empowered by the Government to raise a force of
horse-grenadiers, which subsequently became famous. In this regiment was
Alvear in the capacity of Sargento Mayor, and Zapiola as Captain. There
was plenty of work for the newly-constituted forces. San Martin's
regiment was employed, in the first place, in the endeavour to restrain
the river-raiding expeditions which the Royalist fleet was undertaking
from its base at Montevideo. The mischief effected by these incursions
to the patriot forces was very great. On February 3, 1813, however, San
Martin dealt the Spaniards a severe blow in the neighbourhood of
Rosario. Here he surprised a landing-party and defeated it utterly. This
was San Martin's first victory, and it very nearly proved his last, for
he had his horse shot under him and all but lost his life.

While this was going on in Argentina, the fortunes of war in Peru had
again veered from a favourable to a perilous condition. On October 1,
1813, the Argentine army was badly defeated at Vilcapuyo, and in the
same year it was again defeated at Ayouma. On this the Spaniards, seeing
that their star was again in the ascendant, resumed possession of
Chuquisaca and Potosi.

San Martin was now sent to take charge of operations in Peru. On the
Argentine side the campaign had in one sense degenera