Not only this, but he was a rich man, as riches were counted forty years ago. At all events, those who were dear to him seemed to be put beyond the reach of want. His home life was, as it always had been and always was to be, serene and untroubled. At the age of thirty-four, with his energy and his faculties of enjoyment unimpaired, he found himself able to retire from business, and to lead, if his nature had permitted him to lead, a life of leisure. The first use he made of his release from the cares of business was to project a long journey with his friend, Frederick Church, the distinguished landscape-painter. He left New York in April, 1853, for Central and South America. They took passage early in the month in a sailing-vessel.
On the morning of the sailing he had said good-bye to his family, and they were imagining him as already far down the bay, when a sudden ring at the door was so like the one he was accustomed to give that one of his children exclaimed, “There is papa!” and to the surprise of all he walked into the room. The vessel had been detained in the harbor, and he could not remain contentedly on board almost in sight of his home, and so he came back to pass a few hours.
They sailed as far as Savanilla, New Granada (now Colombia), at the mouth of the Magdalena, and from there up that river for six hundred miles. Disembarking at the head of navigation, they passed four months in mountain travel on mule-back, traversing the table-lands south to Bogota, following the Andes to Quito, and crossing the equator and Chimborazo, at last reaching the Pacific at Guayaquil. From Guayaquil they were able to take steamers to Panama, but the railroad across the isthmus was but partly built; for the rest of the crossing they had again to resort to mules. This would be a difficult and toilsome journey even now, and it was far more so forty years ago. But it had memorable results, for it was at this time that Mr. Church made the sketches for some of his most famous tropical landscapes. Before Mr. Field left New York he had drawn the accompanying map and this paper, from which it will be seen that he made most careful calculations of his expenses:
| CYRUS W. FIELD’S ESTIMATE OF EXPENSES TO SOUTH AMERICA IN 1853. | |
| Outfit | $150 00 |
| New York to Savanilla, per vessel | 60 00 |
| Savanilla to Barranquilla, per horse | 10 00 |
| Barranquilla to Honda, per steamer | 90 00 |
| Honda to Bogota, per mule | 20 00 |
| Bogota to Popayan, | —mule 200 00 |
| Popayan to Pasto, | |
| Pasto to Quito, | |
| Quito to Mount Chimborazo, | |
| M. C. to Volcano of Cotopaxi, | |
| Cotopaxi to Guayaquil, | |
| Guayaquil to Lima, per steamer | 75 00 |
| Lima to Valparaiso, per steamer | 110 00 |
| Valparaiso to Santiago, per carriage | 20 00 |
| Santiago to Valparaiso, per carriage | 20 00 |
| Valparaiso to Panama, per steamer | 190 00 |
| Panama to Aspinwall, per mule, railroad, and steamer | 30 00 |
| Aspinwall to New York, per steamer | 65 00 |
| Sundries, say for 180 days @ $2 00 | 360 00 |
| Extra premium on life-insurance | 100 00 |
| Sundries | 100 00 |
| $1,600 00 | |
On another paper was written:
| PLACES OF INTEREST TO VISIT. | ||
| Emerald mines of Muzo. | ||
| Bogota | 8,700 | feet. |
| Falls of Tequendama | 574 | “ |
| Bridges of Icononzo | 320 | “ |
| Lake of Buga. | ||
| Gold mine. | ||
| Popayan. | ||
| Pasto. | ||
| Quito | 9,500 | feet. |
| Mount Chimborazo (Kun) | 21,400 | “ |
| Volcano of Cotopaxi | 18,900 | “ |
| Guayaquil. | ||
| Lima. | ||
| Potosi silver mines. | ||
| Valparaiso. | ||
| Santiago. | ||
| Panama. | ||
| Gold mines. | ||
This page of directions was given to his family:
All letters to Cyrus W. Field by first steamer via Aspinwall, care of
| 1. | Messrs. Hamburger Battis, Barranquilla, New Granada, S. A. April 6th to 13th. |
| 2. | Hon. Yelvert P. King, Chargé d’Affaires of the United States, Bogota, New Granada, S. A. April 13th to 28th. |
| 3. | Chargé d’Affaires of the United States, Quito, Ecuador, S. A. April 28th to May 20th. |
| 4. | United States Consul, Guayaquil, Ecuador, S. A. May 20th to 28th. |
| 5. | Messrs. Alsop & Co., Lima, Peru, S. A. May 28th to June 20th. |
| 6. | Messrs. Alsop & Co., Valparaiso, Chili, S. A. June 20th to July 5th. |
| 7. | Messrs. Garrison & Fritz, Panama, New Granada, S. A. July 5th to August 13th. |
| 8. | A. M. Hunkley, Esq., Agent Messrs. Adams & Co., Aspinwall, Navy Bay, New Granada, S. A. August 13th to September 5th. |
These two sketches were made by Mr. Church and sent to Mrs. Field; across the back of the larger one is written, “Mr. Field and Mr. Church in the procession.”