vessels went up the Paraná River, where all of them ran aground more than once and had to be extricated by the revenue cutter Harriet Lane, on loan from New York Harbor, and named after Buchanan's niece. Some stopped at Rosario, Argentina, while others steamed up to the town of Paraná. At that time the small town was capital of the Argentine Confederation, because the State of Buenos Aires had seceded. There they met Justo José de Urquiza, president of the Argentine Confederation. General Urquiza had major problems of his own. His cash-strapped Argentine Confederation was struggling with the State of Buenos Aires, which had successfully bribed his navy to defect. He had good relations with López of Paraguay, and wanted to keep it that way, because he hoped for an alliance against Buenos Aires. Conversely, Buenos Aires hated López, so American aggression would suit them well, wrote Bowlin. Urquiza decided to try his utmost to persuade López to come to a friendly settlement with Commissioner Bowlin, and went to Asunción himself, preceding the Americans. As Judge Bowlin got nearer to the Paraguayan capital his sense of fairness and deepening knowledge led to him to become increasingly skeptical about the Rhode Island company's claim. As planned, no American vessels went further than Corrientes, Argentina, except USS Fulton, which steamed on to Paraguay. Fulton carried Commodore Shubrick, Commissioner Bowlin, and secretary and interpreter Sam Ward. (After the parties came to terms, Water Witch was invited up to Asunción.) The Fortress of Humaitá was a few miles up the mouth of the Paraguay River, and Fulton approached it with caution. They came to the Londres battery. According to one account, Sixteen ominous apertures pointed their gloom, and whatever else they may contain, upon us; and, like the eyes of the figure in the picture, seemed to follow the vessel’s motion, with a precision that is not always agreeable under similar circumstances. These apertures are those of the casemate battery, constructed of brick, but very deep, and defended by the very formidable battery of sixteen eight-inch guns... To the left of the casemate we discovered a more substantial structure, viz.: twenty-five gun battery of thirty-two and twenty-four pounders, besides two eight-inch. Spacious barracks showed that no mean force defended the place, and though there was neither the disturbance nor the disorder of men rushing to their guns, or forming battalions, I occasionally caught