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COMPLETE HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 MEXICAN WAR: 
 
 ITS CAUSES, CONDUCT. AND CONSEQUENCES : 
 
 COMPRISING AN ACCOUNT Or THE 
 
 VARIOUS MILITARY AND NAVAL OPERATIONS, 
 
 FROM ITS COMMENCEMENT TO THE 
 
 TREATY OF PEACE. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED AND EXPLAINED BY 
 
 MAPS, PLANS OF BATTLES, VIEWS, AND PORTRAITS. 
 BY N. C. BROOKS, A.M., 
 
 MEMBER OF THE MARYLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY ; 
 AUTHOR OF "SKETCHES OF THE BATTLES OF THE REVOLL'TION," ETC. ETC. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 
 GRIGG, ELLIOT & CO., 14 NORTH FOURTH STREET. 
 
 BALTIMORE: 
 
 HUTCHINSON & SEEBOLD. 
 1849. 
 
£l4i34 
 
 
 rf 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 In relation to the origin of the Mexican War, which 
 now forms an important part of the history of our coun- 
 try, public opinion has been divided, and much affected 
 by the political bias of the two leading parties ; so that 
 it is impossible for an impartial chronicler to please 
 both, and difficult even to avoid giving offence to either. 
 
 I have therefore reviewed the causes which led to the 
 war between the sister republics, unaffected by any 
 party preferences or prejudices whatever; and after a 
 careful examination of all the points at issue, and the 
 diplomatic action of the two governments, have endea- 
 voured at least to arrive at just and candid conclusions. 
 
 In the record of the events of the war — which may 
 challenge comparison with the military achievements of 
 any age or nation — I have endeavoured to award to each 
 arm of the service — cavalry, artillery, and infantry, and 
 to our navy — the meed of praise it has so nobly won ; 
 and if, in any case, the claims of particular persons may 
 have been overlooked, it is to be hoped that the circum- 
 stance will not be attributed to 8 disposition to do injus- 
 tice to any. 
 
 (5) 
 
Vi PREFACE. 
 
 For the details of the history, I am indebted mainly 
 to the perusal of the diplomatic correspondence and 
 public records — the letters and official reports of the 
 general and subordinate officers, and interviews and cor- 
 respondence with those who were active participators in 
 the scenes described. 
 
 The subscribers to The History of the Mexican 
 War, who have patiently waited some time for the 
 reception of their copies, will pardon a delay which 
 has insured the authenticity of the work and enhanced 
 its value. 
 
 Baltimore, July 4th, 1849. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Causes of the Mexican Wak — Revolution of the Hispano-American Provinces 
 — Consequent irregularities — Neutrality of the United States — Violations of it by 
 Mexico — Forbearance of the United States — Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and 
 Navigation — Revolt of Texas — Neutrality of the United States — Troops under 
 General Gaines — Conduct of M. Gorostiza, the Mexican Minister . . Page 5 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Injuries and Insults offered by Mexico — Outrages on the Persons and Property of 
 American Citizens — Insults to the American Flag — Application of Texas for the 
 recognition of her Nationality — Just and candid Policy of General Jackson — Re- 
 cognition of Texas — Refusal of Mexico to redress or even admit the Injuries 
 committed against the United States — Jackson's special Message — Action of 
 Congress — Special Messenger despatched — Promises of redress — Neglect of 
 Mexico to perform her Promises — Renewal of Negotiations — Convention for the 
 Settlement of Claims — Procrastination and Evasion of Mexico — Failure of 
 Mexico to comply with the Stipulations 13 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Early Condition of Texas — Grant to Moses Austin by the Spanish Authorities — 
 Colony led to Texas by Stephen F. Austin in 1821 — Overthrow of the Spanish 
 Power in Mexico — Confirmation of the Grant to Austin — Mexican Constitution 
 of 1824 — Coahuila and Texas provisionally united as a State — Guaranty ot 
 future State Sovereignty to Texas — Its Political Condition — Election of Pedraza 
 as President of Mexico overthrown by the Military Power of Santa Anna — 
 Guerrero declared President — Deposition and Death of Guerrero by Bustamente 
 — Tyranny of Bustamente — Troops sent to harass Texas — Expelled by the 
 Texans — Bustamente overthrown by Santa Anna and Pedraza recalled — Santa 
 Anna President — Overthrow of the Constitution and Federal System — A Central 
 CJovernment organized — Resistance of the Mexicans — Zacatecas — Butchery of 
 the People — Call of a Texan Congress of Consultation— Arrival of General Cos in 
 Texas— Resistance of the Texans— Fall of the Mexican Forts— General Cos 
 capitulates with his Troops — Declaration of the People of Texas— Provisional 
 Government 24 
 
 2 (7) 
 
Vlll CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 Rumours of Invasion— Want of Preparation by the Texans— Convention of the 
 People— Intelligence of the Advance of the Mexican Army— Declaration of In- 
 dependence — Constitution in conformity to it— General Houston's Orders- 
 Lorenzo de Zavala, the Refugee— Advance of the Mexican Army— Urea marches 
 on Goliad— Santa Anna marches on San Antonio — Colonel Travis in the Alamo 
 — Besieged by General Siesma — Arrival of Santa Anna and Fall of the Alamo — 
 Surrender of Colonel Fannin at Goliad— Massacre of the Prisoners after Capitu- 
 lation—Policy of General Houston — Battle of San Jacinto — Complete Victory- 
 Capture of Santa Anna — Texan Independence established ...... 36 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Political Existence of Texas — Proposals for Annexation to the United States- 
 Attempt to effect the Recognition of the Independence of Texas by Mexico- 
 President Tyler's Treaty of Annexation — Its Rejection by the Senate — Mr. 
 Bocanegra — Protest of Almonte — Letter of General Jackson — Joint Resolution 
 for the Annexation of Texas — Protest and Departure of the Mexican Minister — 
 Action of the Mexican Government — Measures for the Defence of Texas — Gene- 
 ral Taylor Commander of the Forces of the United States for its Defence — Letter 
 of Instructions — Acceptance of the Terms of Annexation by Texas — The Army" 
 of Occupation at Corpus Christi — Attempt to open Negotiations with Mexico- 
 Mr. Slidell's Mission — Downfall of Herrera and Accession of Paredes — Refusal 
 to receive Mr. Slidell except as a Special Envoy — Advance of the United States 
 Army to the Rio Grande — The Texan Boundary considered — Arrival of the 
 American Army at the Colorado — Crossing disputed — Point Isabel invested — 
 March resinned — Encampment on the Rio Grande — Correspondence . . 50 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Interview between General Worth and the Authorities of Matamoros — Intrench- 
 ments thrown up — Fort Brown — Murder of Colonel Cross — Arrival of General 
 Ampudia — Artful Address to the Foreigners in the American Army — Correspond- 
 ence between Ampudia and General Taylor — Blockade of the Rio Grande — First 
 Rencontre — Body of Colonel Cross found — The Burial — Arista's Arrival — Pro- 
 clamation of Paredes — Correspondence between Arista and Taylor — Recapitula- 
 tion of the Causes of the War 90 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Captm'e of Captain Thornton's Command — Exultation of the Enemy — Council-of- 
 war — Contemplated Attack of Arista — Arrival of Captain Walker — Skirmish with 
 the Mexicans — Arista crosses the Rio Grande — March of General Taylor to Point 
 Isabel — Garrison of Fort Brown — Religious Ceremonies — Bombardment of Fort 
 Brown — Death of Major Brown — Arista's Summons to Surrender — Hawkins's 
 Reply — Battle of Palo Alto heard at Fort Brown — Resaca de la Palma — Mexican 
 Fugitives 10.5 
 
 CHAPTER VIIL 
 
 Bombardment of Fort Brown heard at Point Isabel — Captain Walker sent with a 
 Communication to Major Brown — May charges the Enemy's Lancers — Return 
 of Captain Walker — March of General Taylor for Fort Brown — Published Order 
 
CONTENTS. IX 
 
 —Enemy discovered — Arista's Order of Battle — Taylor's Order of Battle — 
 Daring Service of Lieutenant Blake — Enemy's Fire opened — Duncan's Battery — 
 Ringgold's Artillery — Churchhill's 18-pounders — Charge of Cavalry — Lieutenant 
 Ridgely — Fall of Ringgold — Artillery Battalion — Lieutenant- Colonel Childs — 
 The Prairie fired — Duncan's Movement — Forces of the two Armies — The Lost 
 on each side — Taylor's Despatch — Arista's Despatch . , 123 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 A Council-of-War — Taylor's March resumed — Mexicans killed and wounded — 
 Advance-Guard under Captain McCall — Skirmish with the Enemy — His Position 
 at Resaca de la Palma — Commencement of the Battle — Ridgely's Artillery — 
 The 5th Lifantry — The 4th Infantry — Service of the Cannon — 8th Infantry 
 brought up — May ordered to take the Enemy's Battery — May's brilliant Charge 
 — Death of Lieutenant Inge — Capture of General Vega — Bravery of Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Belknap — Lieutenant-Colonel Mcintosh wounded — Capture of Arista's 
 Camp — Lieutenant Cochrane killed — The Tampico Battalion — Capture of its 
 Flag — Rout of the Enemy — General Taylor's Report — Burial of the Dead — 
 Humanity of General Taylor — Exchange of Prisoners — Congratulatory Orders — 
 Manifesto of the Mexican Commander 137 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Assistance aflbrded by Commodore Conner — Reduction of Barita — Taylor's arrival 
 at Fort Brown — Preparations for attacking Matamoros — Cause of Taylor's inac- 
 tivity after the Battles of the 8th and 9th of May — Letter to the War Department 
 — Occupation of Matamoros — Arista's Flight — He is ordered to lay down his 
 command — The War announced to Congress — President's Proclamation — Ineffi- 
 cient preparations for War — Rejoicings in the United States for the victories at 
 Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — Taylor breveted a Major- General — Act of 
 Congress promoting him to full rank — Appointment of General Officers — 
 Occupation of Reynosa — Capture of Camargo — Of Mier — Organization of the 
 Army — Departure for Seralvo — Letter to the Adjutant-General — Marcii on 
 Monterey 154 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Monterey — Defences of the City — Mexican Forces — Reconnoissances — Worth's 
 Columnof Attack — Occupation of the Pass in the west — Defences in that direction 
 — Operations of the First Division — Colonel Garland's command — Severe fire 
 from the Enemy's Batteries — Fall of Major Barbour and Colonel Watson — Cap- 
 tain Backus — 4th Infantry — General Quitman's Attack on Redoubt No. 1 — 
 Redoubt talicn and guns turned on the Enemy — General Butler's command — 
 Cavalry repulsed by Bragg's battery — Worth's Operations — Engagement with 
 the Lancers — Storming-party under Captain Smith — 7th Infantry under Captain 
 Miles — Reinforcement under General Smith — Attack on Federacion Hill and 
 Fort Soldada — Taken and occupied — Storming-party under Lieutenant Childs — 
 Independence Hill — Sortie from the Bishop's Palace — Palace taken — Operations 
 under General Taylor — .\pproach to the Grand Phza — Capitulation — Terms of 
 the Convention ... 174 
 
X CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 Evacuation of Monterey — Policy of the Capitulation — Views of the Administra- 
 tion — General Taylor's Letter — Retrospect of Mexican affairs — Elevation of 
 Paredes — Pronunciamento in favour of Santa Anna — His arrival at Vera Cruz — 
 Permission to pass through the Fleet — Termination of the Armistice — Projected 
 Expedition against Tamaulipas — Opinions of General Taylor relative to the Pro- 
 secution of the War — Saltillo occupied by the American troops — Protest of the 
 Governor of Coahuila — Advance to Agua Nueva — General Wool's Expedition 
 against Chihuahua — Arrival of Wool's column at Monclova — Marches to Parras — 
 Tampico occupied — General Taylor marches upon Victoria — Reconnoissances 
 towards Labradores and Linares — Arrival of General Scott in Mexico — With- 
 drawal of troops from General Taylor — Orders consequent thereon — Santa Anna's 
 March from San Luis Potosi against General Taylor — Ruse of General Taylor — 
 Forces of Santa Anna — Angostura — February 22d — Summons of Santa Anna to 
 General Taylor to surrender — Taylor's Reply — Battle of Buena Vista — Skir- 
 mishes — Result of the Action 190 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 Action of the 23d — Commencement on the American left — Enemy's Columns of 
 Attack — Advance of Lombardini's and Pachecho's Divisions — O'Brien, with his 
 Artillery and 2d Indiana Regiment, ordered to repulse them — Retreat of the 2d 
 Indiana Regiment — American Reserve ordered up — Second Column of Attack 
 repulsed at Angostura — Troops on the Plateau reinforced by Artillery and Infan- 
 try — Arrival of General Taylor on the Field — Confidence restored — The gallant 
 Mississippi Regiment — The Enemy driven back on the American left — The con- 
 test on the Plateau — Movement of the Cavalry on the Enemy's right checked — 
 Batteries of Sherman and Bragg — Baggage-train threatened by Cavalry — Dan- 
 gerous Position of the Enemy's Cavalry — Euse of Santa Anna — Mexican 
 Reserve ordered up — Terrible Service of O'Brien's Artillery — Slaughter of the 
 Illinois and Kentucky Regiments — Deaths of Colonels Hardin, McKee, and Clay 
 — Washington's Battery — Gallantry of Lieutenant O'Brien — Repulse of Minon's 
 Cavalry — Close of the Battle — American and Mexican Losses .... 212 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Conquest of New Mexico. — Recognition of the War, and Disposition of the 
 Forces — General Kearny — Army of the West — Instructions from the War Depart- 
 ment — March from Fort Leavenworth — Arrival at Council Grove — The Prairies 
 — Bent's Fort — Proclamation by Colonel Kearny — March resumed — Las Vegas 
 — Expected Battle — Tacolete — Pecos — The Canon — Capture of Santa Fe — 
 Appointment of Officers — Departure of General Kearny for California. — Con- 
 quest OF California. — Commodore Stockton — Colonel Fremont — Kit Carson 
 — Counter-revolution — Battle of San Pasqual — San Bernardo — Battle of the 
 San Gabriel — Reoccupation of Los Angelos — Return of General Kearny . 224 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Colonel Doniphan's Expedition against the Navajoes — Treaty with the Indians — 
 The Zumians — March upon Chihuahua — Battle of the Brazito — Town and Val- 
 ley of El Paso — March continued — Enemy's position at the Sacramento — Battle 
 of the Sacramento — Occupation of Chihuahua — March for Saltillo — Affairs in 
 
CONTENTS. XI 
 
 New Mexico — Plot discovered — Second Conspiracy— Governor Bent miirdered 
 — Pueblo de Taos — Insurrection quelled 266 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 Government determines upon making Vera Cruz the base of a new Line of Ope- 
 rations — Vera Cruz — Description of the City — San Juan d'Ulloa — By whom 
 founded — Description of the Fortress — Its Capture by Acle, Lorencillo, and 
 Bodin — Taylor notified of the intention to reduce his Force — Scott ordered to 
 Mexico— Reaches the Rio Grande — Appoints the Island of Lobos as the place 
 of Rendezvous — Description of Lobos — The Arrival of Volunteers — Reconnois- 
 sance by Scott and Conner — Preparations for Disembarking upon the Beach at 
 Vera Cruz — Disembarkation of the Troops — Investment of the City — Gallant 
 co-operation of the Navy — Skirmishes with the Enemy — Investment completed 
 — Scott's Despatch to the War Department — The Batteries opened — Skirmish at 
 Puente del Medio — Harney's brilliant affair at Medellin — Overtures for the Sur- 
 render of Vera Cruz and San Juan d'Ulloa — Commissioners appointed — Cere- 
 mony of Capitulation — Scott's Despatch to the War Department — Alvarado 
 — Effects of the bombardment of Vera Cruz 291 
 
 CHAPTER XVIL 
 
 Scott receives information of the Battle of Buena Vista — The course of Santa Anna 
 —Forced Levy attempted by Gomez Farias — Civil War in the Capital— March 
 of Santa Anna upon the Capital from San Luis Potosi — He is met by a Deputa- 
 tion from the City — Enters Mexico in triumph — Is installed President of the 
 Republic — Reconciles conflicting Parties — Collects a new Army — Fortifies the 
 Road to the Capital — Formation of Guerrilla Bands — Address of Santa Anna to 
 the Mexican People 316 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Scott commences his March for the Capital— Twiggs thrown forward in advance 
 — Reaches Plan del Rio — Is joined by the General-in-chief — Description of 
 Cerro Gordo — Scott determines upon turning the Position — A new Road cut — 
 Twiggs ordered to take up his Position — Is met by the Enemy — Gallantry of 7th 
 Infantry — Dashing Charge of Harney's Brigade — They capture a Hill in the rear 
 of Cerro'Gordo — Mount a Battery in the Night — Wonderful Exertions of the men 
 — Morning of the 18th of April — Scott's celebrated Order — Position of the Mexi- 
 cans — Battle of Cerro Gordo — Storming of the Heights — Operations of Shields's 
 Brigade — Shields dangerously wounded — Defeat of the Enemy — Fruits of Victory 
 Scott's Despatch to the War Department — Worth enters Puebla .... 321 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Astonishment of the Pueblanos — Appearance of the American Troops — Their 
 Characteristics — Embarrassing Position of the General-in-chief — Discharge of 
 the twelve months Volunteers — Prospects of Peace — Mexican Aflfairs — Defiance 
 of the Mexican Congress — Proclamation of General SaJas — Anaya declares the 
 Capital in a state of Siege — Coalition of the Mexican States — Scott's Address to 
 the Mexican People — Feeling of the United States Government — Buchanan's 
 Letters — American Commissioner appointed — Mexico refuses to Treat — Con- 
 dition of the American Army — Arrival of Reinforcements 340 
 
Xll CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 The American Army concentrated at Puebla — Scott determines to advance on the 
 Capital — Description of the Route — Twiggs reaches Ayotla^The Divisions close 
 up — Reconnoissances upon El Penon — Advance by the National Road abandoned 
 — The Army moves round Lake Chalco to the Acapulco Road — Description of 
 the March — Concentration of the Divisions upon the Acapulco Road . . 353 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 The Defences around Mexico — National Road ; El Peiion, Mexicalcingo— Aca- 
 pulco Road ; San Antonio, Churubusco, and Contreras — Toluca Road ; El 
 Molino del Rey, Chapultepec — Interior Defences — Position and Force of the 
 Mexicans — Movement of Worth's Division upon San Antonio — Reconnoissances 
 across the Pedregal — Twiggs marches upon Contreras — Valencia's Fortifications 
 — Indecisive Result of the Day — Smith bivouacs in the Village of Contreras — 
 Perilous Position of our Troops — 'Victory of Contreras 362 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Contreras — San Antonio — Worth's Operations on the 20th — Topography of the 
 Battle- Grounds of Contreras, San Antonio, and Churubusco — The Advance on 
 Churubusco — Scott's Plan of Battle — Description of the Mexican Defences at 
 Churubusco — The Battle commenced — Operations of Twiggs — -Terrible Position 
 of Taylor's Battery — Attack of Shields upon the Mexican Reserve — Bravery of 
 the Mexicans — Gallant conduct of the New York and South Carolina Regiments 
 — Mexican Defence of San Pablo — ^The Deserters — San Antonio forced and 
 turned by Worth — His advance upon Churubusco — Storm of the Tete-du-Pont — 
 Effect of Duncan's Battery — Storm and Surrender of San Pablo — The Mexicans 
 routed at all Points — Daring Charge of Harney's Dragoons — Result of the Vic- 
 tory — Mexican and American Loss 375 
 
 CHAPTER XXIIL 
 
 Scott's Note to Santa Anna — The Reply — Armistice — Its questionable Policy — 
 Peace Negotiations — Mexican Commission — Boundaries — American Project — 
 Mexican Counter- Project— Failure of Negotiations— Infringements of Armistice 
 — Warlike temper of the Mexicans— Scott's Letter to Santa Anna— His Answer 
 — Trial of the Deserters — Sentence and Execution 386 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Hostilities recommenced — Reconnoissances — Valley of Mexico — Defences around 
 the City — Description of Chapultepec — Molino del Rey — Casade Mata — Strength 
 of the Mexican Lines — Storm of Molino del Rey — Capture of the Mexican Bat- 
 tery — Repulse of the Victors— The Battery retaken — Storm of Casa de Mata— 
 Terrible Fire of the Mexicans — Mcintosh's Brigade repulsed — Duncan's Battery 
 — Surrender of Casa de Mata — Mexican Loss — American Loss ^ . . . 402 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Defences of the Southern Gates — Pronounced impracticable — Scott determines to 
 assault Chapultepec — Formidable Chai'acter of the Works^-Mask Movement 
 upon the Southern Gates — Movements of Pillow and Quitman — The Batteries 
 opened upon Chapultepec — Operations of Twiggs on the San Angel Road — As- 
 
CONTENTS. Xlll 
 
 sault of Chapultepec — Its Capture — Worth's Movement against the Garita of 
 San Cosnie — His Success — Tacubaya Causeway crossed by Quitman — Garita 
 Belen carried — The City of Mexico taken — Surrender by the Mexican Authori- 
 ties — Quitman Marches to the Grand Plaza — American Colours hoisted on the 
 National Palace 41 1 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 Isolated Condition of the American Army — Guerrilla Warfare — Attack on Mcin- 
 tosh's Train — Reinforced by Cadwalader — Skirmish at the National Bridge — 
 Arrival at Jalapa — Battle of La Hoya — Gallantry of Captain Walker — Cadwa- 
 lader's Report — Pillow's Reinforcement — General Pierce — Attack on Lally's 
 Train — Skirmish at Paso de Ovejas — At the National Bridge — At Cerro Gordo 
 —At Las Animas — Arrival at Jalapa — American Loss 443 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIL 
 
 American Army in Mexico — Quitman appointed Governor — Scott's General Orders 
 — A Contribution levied on the Capital — Arrangement of the Troops — 'Difficulties 
 of General Scott — Approach of Reinforcements — Establishment of new Posts 
 along the line — Peace Prospects — Circumstances favourable to Negotiation — 
 Mexican Prisoners — Correspondence between the Archbishop of Mexico and 
 General Scott — Arrival of Reinforcements — Assessment of the Mexican States — 
 Contemplated Operations — Condition of General Santa Anna — Increase of the 
 Peace Party — Election of Herrera — Negotiations — Recall of Scott . . . 457 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIIL 
 
 Naval Operations in the Gulf of Mexico — Capture of Tuspan — Perry determines 
 on the Capture of Tabasco — The Squadron assembled off Tabasco bar — Organi- 
 zation of a Flotilla — The ascent of the River — The Flotilla fired upon by a Party 
 of Mexicans under General Bruno — The Enemy repulsed — Perry casts anchor at 
 the Seven Palms — Divides his force — Assaulted by the Enemy— Debarkation of 
 the Naval Army — Hidalgo's breastworks forced — Capture of Fort Iturbide — The 
 City surrenders 468 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 Consequences of the Occupation of the Capital — Condition of the Mexican Govern- 
 ment — Disorganization of its Army — Santa Anna retires to Guadaloupe Hidalgo 
 — Circular of Seiior Alcorta to the Commandants-General — Resignation of the 
 Presidency by General Santa Anna — His Letter to the Mexican People — Circu- 
 lar of Senor Pacheco — Reasons for abandoning the Capital — The future intentions 
 of the Government developed — Santa Anna sets out for Puebla — Reflections 
 upon his Reverses 475 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 City of Puebla threatened by General Rea — Situation of the Garrison — Loss of an 
 American Detachment — Puebla invested — Summons of General Santa Anna to 
 Colonel Childs — His noble Reply — Operations of the Besiegers — General Santa 
 Anna leaves the city to intercept General Lane — Successful Sortie from the 
 Garrison — The Besiegers Reinforced — Severe Street-fight — Approach of General 
 Lane — The Siege raised 489 
 
XIV CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 Communication with the Coast reopened — Steady increase of Reinforcements from 
 the United States — The Guerrilleros driven from their Strongholds — Advance of 
 General Lane — Battle of Huamantla — Heroism of Captain Walker — Repels the 
 Lancers in repeated charges — Hemmed ih by the Enemy — His daring Stratagem 
 —His Death — Chivalric Character of Walker — Official Tribute to his Memory — 
 Lane marches to Puebla 498 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIL 
 
 Battle of Atlixco — Running Fight with the Guerrilleros — Atlixco taken — Expedi- 
 tion to Matamoros — Its Capture — Lane returns to Puebla — Is attacked — Daring 
 Bravery of Colonel Hays — Peace Prospects — Anaya elected President — Secret 
 Expedition to Tehuacan — Escape of General Santa Anna — Orizaba captured — 
 Garrisoned 508 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIIL 
 
 Election of General Herrera — Situation of Public Affairs — Mr. Trist — Assumption 
 of Power — Negotiations for Peace opened — Mutual Concessions — Adoption of a 
 Treaty of Peace — Sanctioned by the Mexican Congress — Treaty amended and 
 adopted by the United States Senate — Ratifications exchanged — Evacuation of the 
 Mexican Capital by the American Forces — Territory acquired by the Treaty — 
 Description of the Country — New Mexico — Resources of the Country — Upper 
 California — The Sierra Nevada — The Great Basin — ^Great Salt Lake — Produc- 
 tions of the Country — Temperature — The Gold Mines — Valley of the Sacra- 
 mento — Nueva Helvetia — Captain Sutter — Discovery of Gold by Sutter — Rich- 
 ness of the Deposit — Consequences of the War — Consequences to the United 
 States — To the Inhabitants of the Territory acquired — To Mexico — To the 
 Countries adjacent — To the Isles of the Pacific 520 
 
 Appendix. — Treaty of Peace .541 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Frontispiece — Portrait of Major- General Zachary Taylor. 
 
 Portrait of General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna Page 29 
 
 Portrait of Commodore David Conner 55 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier-General W. J. Worth 79 
 
 Portrait of Captain Samuel H. Walker lOS 
 
 Topography of Fort Brown and Matamoros 113 
 
 Plan of the Battle of Palo Alto 126 
 
 Battle of Palo Alto and Death of Major Ringgold 131 
 
 Portrait of Major Ringgold 133 
 
 Plan of the Battle of Resaca de la Palma 139 
 
 Battle of Resaca de la Palma 141 
 
 Portrait of Lieutenant- Colonel May 143 
 
 Portrait of Major- General Robert Patterson 162 
 
 Portrait of Major-General William 0. Butler 165 
 
 Plan of the City of Monterey and its Defences 174 
 
 Portrait of Lieutenant-Colonel Wm. H. Watson 178 
 
 General Ampudia signing the Capitulation of Monterey 188 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier- General John E. Wool 199 
 
 Plan of the Battle of Buena Vista 208 
 
 Battle of Buena Vista 214-- 
 
 Portrait of Lieutenant- Colonel Henry Clay, Jr. 221 
 
 Plan of the Battle of San Pasqual 253 
 
 Plan of the Battle of Los Angelos 258 
 
 Plan of the Battle of Sacramento 276 
 
 Portrait of Major-General Winfield Scott 291 
 
 Portrait of Commodore M. C. Perry 302 
 
 Surrender of the City of Vera Cruz 310 
 
 Plan of the Defences of Cerro Gordo 322 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier- General Twiggs 327 
 
 Storming of Cerro Gordo 330 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier- General Shields 332 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier- General Pillow 337 
 
 View of the City of Jalapa 339 
 
 3 (15) 
 
XVI ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier- General Pierce -, Page 352 
 
 Map of the Valley of Mexico 357 
 
 Storming of Contreras 369 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier- General Smith 374 
 
 Storming of Churubusco 3g3 
 
 Plan of the Battles around the City of Mexico 403 
 
 Storming of Molino del Rey 407 
 
 Plan of Chapultepec 4](; 
 
 Storming of Chapultepec 42o 
 
 View of the City of Mexico 424 
 
 Portrait of General Quitman 435 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier-General Cadwalader 448 
 
 Portrait of Brigadier-General Childs 494 
 
 Map of Upper and Lower California 523 
 
HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Causes of the Mexican Wak — Revolution of the Hispano-American Provinces 
 — Consequent irregularities — Neutrality of the United States — Violations of it by 
 Mexico — Forbearance of the United States — Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and 
 Navigation — Revolt of Texas — Neutrality of the United States — Troops under 
 General Gaines — Conduct of M. Gorostiza, the Mexican Minister. 
 
 While in every war the civil authority of the country in which 
 it is carried on, will be, to some extent, subordinate to the mili- 
 tary power, it is an aggravation of the unnatural character of a 
 civil war, that the disregard of law is general, and that the rights 
 of persons and property, being without any adequate security, are 
 liable to continual molestation. The overthrow of the existing 
 government of a country, or resistance to its authority, with the 
 excitement and confusion incident to the struggles of antagonistic 
 factions for ascendancy, all tend directly to produce a lawless and 
 aggressive spirit, which is hostile to personal liberty, while the 
 wasting of the public resources of the country by the double 
 exactions of intestine war, give rise to those pressing necessities 
 which are often supplied by the forcible impressment and appro- 
 priation of private property. 
 
 This was exemplied in the struggles of the different Hispano- 
 American countries for independence. The people were continu- 
 ally subjected to seizure of their property either by the republicans 
 or monarchists, just as one party or the other happened to prevail, 
 and was in want of necessary funds. 
 
6 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Nor in their efforts to raise means to support the contest in 
 which they were engaged, did they evince much more respect for 
 the law of nations than they did for the laws of their own country ; 
 the property belonging to citizens of a neutral power, was appropri- 
 ated to their own use, without scruple or reserve, whenever it was 
 necessary to their purpose. Although, during the protracted 
 struggle between Spain and her revolted colonies, the most per- 
 fect neutrality was observed by the government of the United 
 States, this impartial course did not shield her from the depreda- 
 tions of both the belligerents. An extract from the first annual 
 message of President Monroe, in 1817, will exhibit the aggressive 
 conduct of the contending parties, and the just and liberal policy 
 of the United States towards both .— 
 
 «' It was anticipated, at an early stage, that the contest between 
 Spain and the colonies would become highly interesting to the 
 United States. It was natural that our citizens should sympathize 
 in events which affected their neighbours. It seemed probable, 
 also, that the prosecution of the conflict, along our coasts and in 
 contiguous countries, would occasionally interrupt our commerce, 
 and otherwise affect the persons and property of our citizens. 
 These anticipations have been realized. Such injuries have been 
 received from persons acting under the authority of both the par- 
 ties; and, for which, redress has in most instances been withheld. 
 Through every stage of the conflict, the United States have main- 
 tained an impartial neutrality, giving aid to neither of the parties 
 in men, money, ships, or munitions of war. They have regarded 
 the contest not in the light of an ordinary insurrection or rebellion, 
 but as a civil war between parties nearly equal, having, as to neu- 
 tral powers, equal rights. Our ports have been open to both, and 
 every article, the fruit of our soil or of the industry of our citizens, 
 which either was permitted to take, has been equally free to the 
 other. Should the colonies establish their independence, it is 
 proper now to state, that this government neither seeks nor would 
 accept from them any advantage in commerce or otherwise, 
 
VIOLATIONS OF NEUTRALITY. 7 
 
 which will not be equally open to all other nations. The colonies 
 will, in that event, become independent states, free from any obli- 
 gation to, or connexion with us, which it may not then be their 
 interest to form on the basis of a fair reciprocity." 
 
 The property of American citizens, resident in the Spanish 
 colonies, was often impressed, and merchandise protected by the ' 
 American flag was confiscated under a pretended violation of 
 blockades of extensive coasts ; which, considering the small force 
 employed to sustain them, were merely declaratory, and had not 
 the slightest foundation in any acknow^ledged principle of inter- 
 national law on which to rest their pretensions. So outrageous 
 were some of these spoliations in their character, that the same 
 President in a subsequent message designated them as " piratical 
 practices," and asserted it was " incumbent on the United States 
 to claim of each, with equal rigour, the fjaithful observance of the 
 well-known law of nations." 
 
 In the case of all these injuries, much allowance was generously 
 made by the United States government, in consideration of the 
 distracted condition of the several countries during a period of 
 civil war, and the difficulties attending an enforcement of any 
 laws, either civil or international. Mexico, our immediate neigh- 
 bour, like the other Spanish- American countries, had applied the 
 appropriating code to the property of American resident citizens, 
 and had been guilty of sundry violations of the American flag. 
 Redress of grievances was not immediately demanded for these 
 repeated violations of our neutrality, in the hope that, after Mexico 
 had established her independence, a more just policy would pre- 
 vail, at least towards the United States, which had been the first 
 power to recognise her nationality. 
 
 And when, contrary to all reasonable expectation, the impress- 
 ment of the property of our citizens, and spoliations on our com- 
 merce, were continued, the United States, evincing more than the 
 courtesy which is due to nations, still exhibited a magnanimous 
 forbearance towards a sister republic, just coming into existence, 
 
8 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR, 
 
 and was unwilling to demand redress with that promptitude 
 which the inagnitude of the injuries would have justified. 
 
 This magnanimous forbearance was mistaken for weakness, 
 and Mexico therefore continued her unjust and aggressive policy. 
 In 1828 a treaty of commerce and boundaries was negotiated 
 between the two republics, but the ratification of that instrument 
 was delayed by the government of Mexico upon the most trifling 
 pretexts. In 1829, President Jackson, in his annual message, 
 complained that the Mexican government still failed to ratify this 
 "treaty negotiated and concluded in its own capital and under 
 its own eye." This delay was the more vexatious, on account of 
 the uncertainty of the boundary line, and the consequent acts of 
 certain claimants under Mexican grants of territory, which had 
 been under the jurisdiction of the United States. The same year, 
 Mexico assumed an overbearing tone towards the United States, 
 and requested the recall of our resident minister, Mr. Poinsett. 
 
 On the 5th of April, 1831, a treaty of amity, commerce, and 
 navigation was concluded between the two republics, and ratified 
 some time after. A convention was also agreed upon between 
 the two powers, for the appointment of commissioners to make 
 a demarcation of boundaries between the two countries, but 
 Mexico did not observe the stipulations. She even permitted the 
 time fixed, by the treaty of limits with the United States, for the 
 meeting of the commissioners to define the boundaries, to expire 
 without appointing any commissioners whatever, — all the de- 
 rangements incidental to an undefined boundary, in the mean 
 time, jeoparding the protection and quiet of citizens resident 
 upon the border. 
 
 After the conclusion of the treaty of amity, commerce, and 
 navigation, in 1831, it was hoped that Mexico would observe a 
 just and friendly policy towards the United States ; but, instead 
 of redressing, or even acknowledging the former injuries which 
 she had committed, in violation of the solemn obligations of the 
 late treaty, she was guilty of new outrages, not only upon indi- 
 
REVOLT OF TEXAS. 9 
 
 vidual citizens of the United States, but upon her flag, and upon 
 the persons of her consuls and other agents and officers of the 
 government, as we will more particularly show hereafter. 
 
 In the mean time new causes arose, which widened the breach 
 between the two governments. Texas, a department of Mexico, 
 settled to a considerable extent by emigrants from the United 
 States, being absolved from its allegiance to Mexico by the entire 
 overthrow of the constitution, and the tyranny of the Central 
 government, refused to acknowledge any longer the Mexican 
 rule, and raised the standard of revolt. In her heroic struggle 
 for independence, she continually received subsidies of men, 
 money, and munitions of war, from the people of the United 
 States, which gave great offence to the Mexican government. 
 
 It was perfectly natural that the citizens of the United States 
 would feel a strong sympathy with a people struggling for liberty, 
 and endeared to them by kindred ties ; and that they would give 
 them such aid as was in their power. The Mexican people, 
 however, failed to discriminate, as they should have done, be- 
 tween the people and the government of the United States, the 
 latter of which determined to preserve that exact neutrality which 
 was due to the two contending powers. If individual citizens did 
 violate the neutrality of the United States, by supplying Texas 
 with arms, ammunition, and troops, it is no reflection upon the 
 government, which took all due means to prevent it, as will ap- 
 pear from the following circular from the Department of State, 
 addressed to the United States District Attorneys, resident in the 
 principal cities of the Union : — 
 
 " Washington, Nov. 4, 1835. 
 
 " Sir : It has become necessary for me to call your attention to 
 
 the probable event of a contest between the different portions of 
 
 the Mexican empire in the vicinity of the United States. Some 
 
 of our citizens may, from their connexion with the settlers there, 
 
10 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 and from their enterprise and love of change, be induced to forget 
 their duty to their own government, and its obligations to foreign 
 powers ; but it is the fixed determination of the Executive faith- 
 fully to discharge, so far as its power extends, all the obligations 
 of the government, and more especially that which requires that 
 we shall abstain, under every temptation, from intermeddling with 
 the domestic disputes of other nations. 
 
 " You are, therefore, earnestly enjoined, should the contest 
 begin, to be attentive to all movements of a hostile character 
 which may be contemplated or attempted within your district, 
 and to prosecute, without discrimination, all violations of those 
 laws of the United States, which have been enacted for the pur- 
 pose of preserving peace, and of fulfilling the obligations of 
 treaties with foreign powers. 
 
 "I am, sir, your obedient servant, 
 
 JOHN FORSYTH. '^ 
 
 Notwithstanding the efforts of the government of the United 
 States, to prevent her citizens from taking part ifi the contest be- 
 tween Mexico and Texas, many joined the standard of the latter, 
 and furnished supplies of arms and ammunition. In addition to 
 this, a portion of the United States troops, under General Gaines, 
 advanced into the territory of Texas as far as Nacogdoches, which 
 gave great oflfence to the other contending power. The President 
 of the United States had stationed these troops upon the frontier, 
 deeming it proper, while observing a strict neutrality himself, to 
 require both the contending parties to respect his neutrality ; and 
 to prevent the employment of the Indians in the contest, which 
 might cause incursions into the territories of the United States. 
 The following extract from a letter of General Gaines, presents 
 the reasons which, in his opinion, justified his advance into the 
 Texan territory : — 
 
 "The 33d article of the treaty with Mexico requires both the 
 contracting parties to prevent ' by force, all hostilities and incur- 
 
TROOPS UNDER GENERAL GAINES. 11 
 
 sions on the part of the Indian nations living within their respec- 
 tive boundaries, so that the United States of America will not 
 suffer Indians to attack the citizens of the Mexican States,' &c. 
 
 <« The provisions of this article, I am particularly instructed to 
 cause to be enforced ; and I have, pursuant to instructions, taken 
 measures to make known to the various Indian tribes inhabiting 
 that portion of the United States bordering upon the Mexican ter- 
 ritory, on the waters of the Red and Arkansas rivers, the deter- 
 mination of the government to prevent any hostile incursions into 
 Texas, and have directed that the chiefs be called upon to incul- 
 cate upon their people the necessity of carefully abstaining from 
 any violation of the above-mentioned engagements. 
 
 " I have learned, from several of our citizens entitled to credit, 
 that one Manuel Flores, a Mexican Spaniard, but for several 
 years past a citizen of Spanish Town in this state, near the Sabine 
 Ridge, has been lately commissioned by persons professing to act 
 by the authority of the Mexican government, for the purpose of 
 enticing the Indians in the western prairies on our side of the 
 boundary line to join them in the war of extermination now waging 
 in Texas; and that with this view, the agent, Manuel Flores, 
 accompanied by a stranger, has lately passed up the valley of the 
 Red river, and has already produced considerable excitement 
 among the Caddo Indians. And I have very recently learned, 
 from several intelligent persons in Texas, and others who have 
 lately been there, that many of our Indians have gone over to the 
 Texas side of the line. 
 
 " These facts and circumstances present to me this most im- 
 portant question, whether I am to sit still and suffer these move- 
 ments to be so far matured as to place the white settlements on 
 both sides of the line wholly within the power of the savages, or 
 whether I ought not instantly to prepare the means for protecting 
 the frontier settlements ; and if necessary, compelling the Indians 
 to return to their own homes and hunting-grounds ? 
 4 
 
12 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 " I cannot but decide in favour of the last alternative which 
 this question presents ; for nothing can be more evident than that 
 an Indian war, commencing on either side of the line, will as 
 surely extend to both sides, as that a lighted quick match thrust 
 into one side of a powder magazine would extend the explosion 
 to both sides." 
 
 Mr, Gorostiza, the Mexican Minister, protested against the 
 advance of the troops under General Gaines, as a positive viola- 
 tion of the Mexican territory ; a long and somewhat angry corres- 
 pondence ensued, in which Mr. Gorostiza at length demanded 
 peremptorily the recall of the troops under General Gaines, and 
 failing to effect his desire in that particular, on the 15th of Octo- 
 ber, 1836, abruptly terminated his mission to the United States, 
 and returned home. 
 
 Before doing so, however, he adopted a course unexampled in 
 the history of diplomacy, and highly indecorous to the govern- 
 ment of the United States. On his own responsibility he issued 
 a pamphlet containing portions of his correspondence with the 
 American Secretary of State, and extracts from his letters to his 
 own government — with an introduction to the whole, containing 
 statements and comments defamatory of the people and govern- 
 m-ent of the United States. This pamphlet was sent to editors of 
 newspapers known generally to be unfavourable to the adminis- 
 tration, and to the diplomatic agents accredited to the United 
 States government. 
 
 The President felt himself greatly aggrieved by this extraordi- 
 nary and disrespectful conduct, especially after the long forbear- 
 ance that had been exercised towards the Mexican government, 
 which still refused not only to redress, but even to acknowledge 
 the many injuries and insults which had been offered to the per- 
 sons and property of our citizens, to the American flag, and to 
 the dignity of our consuls and other officers. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 Injuries and Insults offered by Mexico — Outrages on tlie Persons and Property of 
 American Citizens — Insults to the American Flag — Application of Texas for the 
 recognition of her Nationality — Just and candid Policy of General Jackson — Re- 
 cognition of Texas — Refusal of Mexico to redress or even admit the Injuries 
 committed against the United States — Jackson's special Message — Action of 
 Congress — Special Messenger despatched — Promises of redress — Neglect of 
 Mexico to perform her Promises — Renewal of Negotiations — Convention for the 
 Settlement of Claims — Procrastination and Evasion of Mexico — Failure of 
 Mexico to comply with the Stipulations. 
 
 After the treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation, con- 
 cluded in 1831, it was hoped that Mexico would observe a just 
 ind friendly policy towards our country ; but, in violation of the 
 most solemn articles, she committed outrages not only upon indi- 
 vidual citizens of the United States, but upon her flag, and the 
 persons of her consuls and other officers. The following list of 
 grievances, as enumerated in a letter of July 20th, 1836, from the 
 Department of State to Powhattan Ellis, our Charge d'Affaires in 
 Mexico, will exhibit the outrages of Mexico, and the unexampled 
 forbearance of the United States. 
 
 On the 31st of December, 1831, an alcalde of Menotillan, in 
 the colony of Guazcualco, instituted what is said to have been an 
 illegal, arbitrary, and oppressive proceeding against Doctor Bald- 
 win, a citizen of the United States, under colour of a suit at law, 
 preferred and carried on by a creature of the alcalde himself. 
 Baldwin appeared before the alcalde to answer the charge ; an 
 altercation ensued, and the alcalde ordered him to the stocks, 
 
 13 
 
14 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 which Baldwin refusing to submit to, attempted to escape, and 
 was pursued by a party of soldiers who attended the court. In 
 the race Baldwin fell, receiving an injury in one of his legs ; was 
 captured, carried back into the presence of the alcalde, placed in 
 the stocks, and afterwards imprisoned. 
 
 In February 1832, the schooner Topaz, of Bangor, Maine, was 
 employed by the Mexican government to carry troops from Mata- 
 moros to Galveston Bay. The master and mate were murdered 
 by the soldiers on the passage, the crew imprisoned, and the ves- 
 sel seized and converted to the Mexican service. 
 
 On the 21st of June, 1832, the American schooner Brazoria 
 was seized in the port of Brazoria, by John Austin, the Mexican 
 military commandant in that quarter, and employed to make an 
 attack upon Anahuac, then in possession of insurgents. During 
 the attack she was injured so as to be made unseaworthy, and 
 was abandoned as a total loss, for which the underwriters have 
 received no compensation. 
 
 In the summer of 1832, the steamboat Hidalgo, and schooner 
 Consolation, belonging to Aaron Leggett, of New York, were for- 
 cibly taken possession of by Mexican officers at Tobasco, and 
 used by them. The brig John, belonging to Leggett, was also 
 detained, and money was extorted from him. The consequences 
 resulting from these acts are represented to have been ruinous to 
 the sufferer, and the Mexican government was clearly bound by 
 the treaty to indemnify him for them. 
 
 In March 1834, Captain McCeige, of the schooner Industry, 
 of Mobile, was imprisoned at Tobasco, and an exorbitant fine 
 demanded of him without cause. The payment of the fine being 
 made, the only condition upon which he could be allowed to de- 
 part, he abandoned his vessel and her cargo to the authorities, 
 who afterwards sold them. 
 
 In the summer of 1834, the brig Paragon, of New York, was 
 causelessly fired into on her way to Vera Cruz, by the Mexican 
 
INSULTS TO THE AMERICAN FLAG. 15 
 
 public-armed schooner Tampico. In answer to an official repre- 
 sentation on the subject by Mr. Butler, that government promised 
 that the affair should be inquired into ; but the "promise was not 
 fulfilled. 
 
 In the beginning of May 1835, the answer of officers supposed 
 to belong to the custom-house, who boarded the brig Ophir, of 
 New- York, on her arrival at Campeachy, to an inquiry of the 
 captain as to which of the ship's papers it would be necessary to 
 present at the custom-house, w^as accidentally, or intentionally, 
 misrepresented. In consequence of this, notwithstanding all the 
 papers were shown to the boarding officers, the invoices only 
 being exhibited at the custom-house, the vessel was seized and 
 condemned. 
 
 In May 1835, also, the schooner Martha, from New Orleans, 
 was seized at Galveston Bay, by the Mexican armed schooner 
 Montezuma, for an alleged non-compliance with some of the for- 
 malities of their revenue laws. Four of the passengers of the 
 Martha were put in irons, under the hatches of the Montezuma, 
 and otherwise treated with great barbarity, merely for an imputed 
 intention to use their firearms against a guard that had been 
 placed on board the Martha. 
 
 In November 1835, the schooner Hannah and Elizabeth, of 
 New Orleans, was stranded in attempting to enter Matagorda 
 Bay. While in this condition, she was fired into by the Mexican 
 armed schooner Bravo, boarded by twenty armed soldiers, under 
 the command of two officers, who forcibly took the master, crew, 
 and passengers from the wreck, pillaged them of most of their 
 clothes, and chained them in the hold of the Bravo until their 
 arrival at Matamoros, w^here they were continued in confinement ; 
 but through the urgent representations of our consul there, all but 
 the captain were eventually released, who was kept a long time 
 in confinement. 
 
 On the 17th of February, 1836, William Hallett and Zalmon 
 
16 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Hull, citizens of the United States, were arrested in the streets 
 of Matamoros by a party of armed soldiers, who struck Hull in 
 the face with a sword, and forcibly took both to the principal bar- 
 rack in that city, where they were confined upon suspicion of 
 being about to proceed to Texas. Shortly afterwards, sentinels 
 were placed at the doors of the consul's residence, under false 
 pretences, and all communication with the house prohibited. 
 Armed soldiers broke open his gate during his absence, forcibly 
 took a mare and two mules belonging to him, entered his house 
 with drawn swords, and searched every room in it, for the avowed 
 object of finding the consul. 
 
 In February 1836, an attempt was made at the city of Mexico 
 to take from Mr. W. A. Slocum, protected by a courier's pass- 
 port from the United States Department of State, public despatches 
 of the United States government, addressed to Mr. Butler. The 
 attempt failed, but Mr. Slocum was fined and detained, for car- 
 rying official letters on his person, authenticated by the endorse- 
 ment of the American Department of State, and directed to the 
 Charge d' Affaires of the United States in Mexico. 
 
 In March 1836, the schooner Eclipse was detained at Tobasco, 
 and her master and crew maltreated by the authorities. 
 
 In April 1836, the brig Jane, schooner Compeer, and other 
 merchant vessels of the United States, were forcibly detained at 
 Matamoros. 
 
 The same year, the military commandant of Tampico made 
 the embargo a pretext for interrupting or obstructing the corres- 
 pondence between the commander of the United States revenue 
 cutter Jefferson and our consul there. When the Jefferson 
 anchored off the port of Tampico, direct from Pensacola, being 
 sent out by order of Commodore Dallas — Lieutenant Osborn and 
 his boats' crew upon going on shore were seized and imprisoned, 
 and the vessel prohibited from entering the river. A demand for 
 satisfaction was made by the American Consul, but was indig- 
 
CANDID POLICY OF GENERAL JACKSON. 17 
 
 nantly refused. Some time after, the commandant was displaced 
 on representation of our government, but he was speedily restored 
 to a higher office on the same coast. 
 
 In the mean time, Texas, which, since the battle of San Jacinto, 
 had not been molested by Mexico, pressed upon the American 
 government its recognition as an independent nation ; but Presi- 
 dent Jackson, although wounded by the conduct of the Mexican 
 government, with that strong sense of justice and honour for 
 which he was distinguished, in his special message to Congress 
 of December 21st, 1836, advised that the United States should 
 delay to recognise its nationality until the independence of Texas 
 was indisputably established, that the policy of his country might 
 be above all suspicion. 
 
 " The title of Texas to the territory she claims is identified 
 with her independence ; she asks us to acknowledge that title to 
 the territory, with an avowed design to treat immediately of its 
 transfer to the United States. It becomes us to beware of a too 
 early movement, as it might subject us, however unjustly, to the 
 imputation of seeking to establish the claim of our neighbours to 
 a territory, with a view to its subsequent acquisition by ourselves. 
 
 " Prudence, therefore, seems to dictate that we should still 
 stand aloof, and maintain our present attitude, if not until Mexico 
 itself, or one of the great foreign powers, shall recognise the inde- 
 pendence of the new government, at least until the lapse of time, 
 or the course of events shall have proved, beyond cavil or dis- 
 pute, the ability of the people of that country to maintain their 
 separate sovereignty, and to uphold the government constituted 
 by them. 
 
 "Neither of the contending parties can justly complain of this 
 course. By pursuing it, w^e are but carrying out the long-estab- 
 lished policy of our government — a policy which has secured to 
 us respect and influence abroad, and inspired confidence at 
 home." 
 
18 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Some time before this, to prevent any hasty action in the case 
 of Texas, the President had sent a confidential agent to ascertain 
 the civil, political, and military condition of the country. 
 
 On the acknowledgment of the independence of Texas, some 
 time after, by the United States, the Mexican Minister of Foreign 
 Affairs protested against the matter in the most solemn manner, 
 and in a way calculated to do violence to the feelings of the go- 
 vernment and people of the United States. In the interim, the 
 representations of our Charge d'Affaires in Mexico, in relation to 
 the grave complaints which the United States made against the 
 government of that country, had been entirely disregarded. 
 Wherefore, the President, in carrying out his candid policy " to 
 ask for nothing which was not clearly right, and to submit to 
 nothing that was wrong," finding he could effect nothing with the 
 Mexican government, called the attention of Congress to the diffi- 
 culty in a special message of February 6th, 1837, from which we 
 make the following extracts : — 
 
 " The length of time since some of the injuries have been com- 
 mitted, the repeated and unavailing applications for redress, the 
 wanton character of some of the outrages upon the persons and 
 property of our citizens, upon the officers and flag of the United 
 States, independent of recent insults to this government and peo- 
 ple, by the late Extraordinary Mexican Minister, would justify, in 
 the eyes of all nations, immediate war. 
 
 " That remedy, however, should not be used by just and gene- 
 rous nations, confiding in their strength for injuries committed, if 
 it can be honourably avoided ; and it has occurred to me that, con- 
 sidering the present embarrassed condition of that country, we 
 should act with both wisdom and moderation, by giving to Mexico 
 one more opportunity of atoning for the past, before we take re- 
 dress into our own hands. To avoid all misconception on the 
 part of Mexico, as well as to protect our national character from 
 reproach, this opportunity should be given with the avowed design 
 
ACTION OF CONGRESS. 19 
 
 and full preparation to take immediate satisfaction, if it should 
 not be obtained on a repetition of the demand for it. To this end, 
 I recommend that an act be passed authorizing reprisals, and the 
 use of the naval force of the United States, by the Executive, 
 against Mexico, to force them, in the event of a refusal by the 
 Mexican government, to come to an amicable adjustment of the 
 matters in controversy between us, upon another demand thereof 
 made from on board of one of our vessels of war on the coast of 
 Mexico." 
 
 The President was entirely sustained by both houses of Con- 
 gress in his views of the flagrant outrages committed by Mexico, 
 as well as in the plan of redress ; but it was recommended that 
 she should have another opportunity to atone for her past miscon- 
 duct. In this, strict adherence was had to the 34th article of the 
 treaty with Mexico, which provided that — " If any of the articles 
 contained in the present treaty shall be violated or infracted in 
 any manner whatever, it is stipulated that neither of the contract- 
 ing parties will order or authorize any acts of reprisal, nor declare 
 war against the other, on complaint of injuries or damages, until 
 the said party considering itself offended shall first have presented 
 to the other a statement of such injuries or damages, verified by 
 competent proofs, and demanded justice and satisfaction, and the 
 same shall have been either refused or unreasonably delayed." 
 
 In the House of Representatives, the report of the Committee 
 on Foreign Affairs contained the following paragraph : — 
 
 " The committee fully concur with the President that ample 
 cause exists for taking redress into our own hands, and believe 
 that we should be justified, in the opinion of other nations, for 
 taking such a step. But they are willing to try the experiment 
 of another demand, made in the most solemn form, upon the jus- 
 tice of the Mexican government, before any further proceedings 
 are adopted." 
 5 
 
20 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 The report of the similar committee in the Senate contained 
 the following : — 
 
 " After such a demand, should prompt justice be refused by 
 the Mexican government, we may appeal to all nations not only 
 for the equity and moderation with which we shall have acted 
 towards a sister republic, but for the necessity which will then 
 compel us to seek redress for our wrongs, either by actual war or 
 by reprisals. The subject will then be presented before Congress, 
 at the commencement of the next session, in a clear and distinct 
 form ; and the committee cannot doubt but that such measures 
 will be immediately adopted as may be necessary to vindicate the 
 honour of our country, and insure ample reparation to our injured 
 citizens." 
 
 Pursuant to these recommendations, the President despatched 
 a special messenger to Mexico to demand satisfaction and re- 
 dress, who made the demand accordingly on the 20th of July, 
 1837. The government of Mexico replied on the 29th, and gave 
 assurances that " nothing should be left undone which may con- 
 tribute to the most speedy and equitable determination of the 
 subjects which have so seriously engaged the attention of the 
 American government." It further promised to "adopt, as the 
 only guides of its conduct, the plainest principles of public right, 
 the sacred obligations imposed by international law, and the reli- 
 gious faith of treaties; and that whatever justice and reason may 
 dictate respecting each case will be done." 
 
 How well Mexico adhered to the above pledges, will appear 
 from the following extract from the annual message of President 
 Van Buren, of December 5th, 1837: — 
 
 " Although the large number, and many of them aggravated 
 cases of personal wrongs, have been now for years before the 
 Mexican government, and some of the causes of national com- 
 plaint, and those of the most offensive character, admitted of im- 
 mediate, simple, and satisfactory replies, it is only within a few 
 
RENEWAL OF NEGOTIATIONS. 21 
 
 days past that any specific communication in answer to your last 
 demand, made five months ago, has been received from the 
 Mexican Minister. By the report of the Secretary of State, here- 
 with presented, and the accompanying documents, it will be seen 
 that for not one of our public complaints has satisfaction been 
 given or offered ; that but one of the cases of personal wrong has 
 been favourably considered, and that but four cases of both de- 
 scriptions, out of all those formally presented and earnestly 
 pressed, have as yet been decided upon by the Mexican govern- 
 ment. * * * In accordance with the clearly-understood wishes 
 of the legislature, another and formal demand for satisfaction has 
 been made upon the Mexican government, with what success the 
 documents now communicated will show. On a careful and delibe- 
 rative examination of the contents, and considering the spirit 
 manifested by the Mexican government, it has become my pain- 
 ful duty to return the subject, as it now stands, to Congress, to 
 whom it belongs to decide upon the time, the mode, and the 
 measures of redress." 
 
 Instead, now, of war or reprisals, Congress generously forbore 
 to redress her wrongs in the case of a sister republic ; and nego- 
 tiations were renewed between the countries. After a year's 
 delay, the convention of April 11th, 1839, was agreed upon "for 
 the adjustment of claims of citizens of the United States of Ame- 
 rica upon the government of the Mexican republic." The joint 
 board of commissioners to examine and decide upon these claims 
 met in August 1840, and the four first months were spent in frivo- 
 lous points raised by the Mexican commissioners. The examina- 
 tion of claims, in consequence, did not commence till December 
 1840, though the time of session of the convention was limited to 
 but eighteen months. When the time expired, in 1842, the 
 claims allowed amounted to two million twenty-six thousand 
 one hundred and thirty-nine dollars and sixty-eight cents. Before 
 the umpire between the commissioners of the two countries, and 
 
22 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 undecided for want of time, were claims amounting to nine hun- 
 dred and twenty-eight thousand six hundred and twenty-seven 
 dollars and eighty-five cents ; while still other claims submitted 
 to the board, amounting to three million three hundred and thirty- 
 six thousand eight hundred and thirty-seven dollars and five 
 cents, were not examined at all for want of time. The two mil- 
 lion twenty-six thousand one hundred and thirty-nine dollars 
 and sixty-eight cents, were not paid by Mexico, according to 
 stipulation, and a postponement of the time of payment was 
 granted to Mexico at her request, in the spirit of forbearance that 
 had always actuated the American government, 
 
 A second convention was concluded on the 30th of January, 
 1843, which was declared to be " entered into for the accommoda- 
 tion of Mexico." This stipulated that Mexico should pay on the 
 30th of April, 1843, the interest then due on the awards of the 
 convention of the 11th of April, 1839; and that she should pay in 
 five years, in equal instalments every three months, the principal 
 of the awards, and the interest accruing thereon. Of the sum 
 thus acknowledged for acts of outrage and wrong committed 
 upon the citizens of the United States, and secured by the solemn 
 obligations of a treaty, Mexico paid only the interest due on the 
 30th of April, 1843, and three of the twenty instalments of the 
 principal. Nor was this all. To provide for a liquidation of the 
 claims not decided upon by the convention of April 1839, it was 
 stipulated by the sixth article of the convention of the 30th of 
 January, 1843, that a new convention should be entered into for 
 the settlement of these claims. A third convention was accord- 
 ingly concluded on the 20th of November, 1843, and ratified by 
 the United States Senate in January 1844, with two amendments, 
 manifestly reasonable. On referring these amendments to the 
 government of Mexico, she was guilty of delays and evasions, in 
 violation of the faith of treaties ; and, though the subject was 
 earnestly pressed upon her, she would not give an answer whether 
 
LETTER TO MR. SLIDELL. 23 
 
 she would or would not accede to the amendments, but preserved 
 a gloomy and sullen silence. 
 
 It is but just, however, to state that an effort was made to pay 
 our admitted claims, which fell through, partly in consequence 
 of the anticipated annexation of Texas. This will appear from 
 an extract from the letter of Mr. Voss to Mr. Slidell : — 
 
 "For the avowed purpose of liquidating the recognised Ame- 
 rican claims. General Santa Anna, the head of the Mexican go- 
 vernment, in May 1843, decreed the collection of a forced loan, 
 to be distributed in certain proportions through the departments 
 of this Republic, and paid at periods corresponding to those stipu- 
 lated in the convention to that effect with the government of the 
 United States. This measure, essentially unpopular, could only 
 have emanated from a government as absolute as that of Santa 
 Anna then was, and, even with the aid of his unlimited powers, 
 was very imperfectly enforced, while the temptation to a misap- 
 plication of the funds collected amidst the difficulties by which 
 Santa Anna was surrounded is sufficiently obvious. From these 
 concurring circumstances, the Mexican government was abso- 
 lutely unable to pay the instalment which became due in April 
 1844 ; and in July of the same year, when another instalment 
 should have been paid, the incapacity of the government to fulfil 
 its engagements had become still greater. 
 
 " About this time public attention was directed to the Texan 
 question wuth renewed force ; and amidst the angry excitement 
 which it occasioned, the press found a popular theme for com- 
 plaint in the payment of the American claims, and freely advo- 
 cated its discontinuance." 
 
 To show that Mexico had no just right to complain of the con- 
 duct either of Texas or of the government of the United States, we 
 \\'\\\ consider the circumstances attending the revolt of the former, 
 and its annexation to the United States. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 Early Condition of Texas — Grant to Moses Austin by the Spanish Authorities — 
 Colony led to Texas by Stephen F. Austin in 1821 — Overthrow of the Spanish 
 Power in Mexico — Confirmation of the Grant to Austin — Mexican Constitution 
 of 1824 — Coahuila and Texas provisionally united as a State — Guaranty of 
 futm-e State Sovereignty to Texas — Its Political Condition — Election of Pedraza 
 as President of Mexico overthrown by the Military Power of Santa Anna — 
 Guerrero declared President — Deposition and Death of Guerrero by Bustamente 
 — Tyranny of Bustamente — Troops sent to harass Texas — Expelled by the 
 Texans — Bustamente overthrown by Santa Anna and Pedraza recalled — Santa 
 Anna President — Overthrow of the Constitution and Federal System — A Central 
 Government organized — Resistance of the Mexicans — Zacatecas — Butchery of 
 the People — Call of a Texan Congress of Consultation — Arrival of General Cos in 
 Texas — Resistance of the Texans — Fall of the Mexican Forts — General Cos 
 capitulates with his Troops — Declaration of the People of Texas — Provisional 
 Government, 
 
 Before 1821 , if we except the tribes of savages that wandered 
 over its wastes, Texas contained few inhabitants. These gen- 
 erally were Americans, settled, for the most part, in and around 
 the towns of San Antonio and Nacogdoches — adventurous and 
 hardy pioneers, who, with restless enterprise, had pushed their 
 fortunes beyond the confines of civilization. 
 
 Bearing with them the innate spirit of freedom, they diffused 
 abroad the love of liberty among the Spaniards, and contributed 
 in no small degree to induce them to throw off their foreign yoke, 
 and establish independence. 
 
 On the 17th of January, 1821, Moses Austin, of Connecticut, 
 obtained froni the Spanish authorities permission to establish a 
 colony in Texas, with many important privileges. He was em- 
 powered to introduce into Texas three hundred families; upon a 
 
 24 
 
EARLY CONDITION OF TEXAS. 25 
 
 specified territory, one hundred miles in breadth on the coast, and 
 extending one hundred and fifty miles into the interior. The 
 grant allotted to him crossed the rivers Brazos and Colorado, 
 and included large tracts east and west of these rivers. By the 
 conditions agreed upon between Austin and the Spanish author- 
 ities, each family of the settlers was to receive a grant in fee of a 
 section of land of the extent of one Spanish league square. The 
 colonists were permitted to bring with them all necessary imple- 
 ments, and other goods not exceeding the value of two thousand 
 dollars, free from any duty, and, for a period of five or six years, 
 they were to be exempt from taxes of every kind. 
 
 Before the colony was established the grantee deceased, and 
 Stephen F. Austin, his son, who received the grant by bequest, 
 led thither a colony of settlers in December 1821. At the outset 
 of their career, the colonists endured many hardships, and suf- 
 fered many privations, while they were continually harassed by 
 the incursions and depredations of the Indians. 
 
 Notwithstanding, they bore up amid their discouragements, and, 
 favoured by a mild climate, and cheered by the hope of future 
 wealth from the richness and fertility of the soil, continued both 
 to labour and to suffer, while they redeemed a home from the 
 wilderness and the savage. 
 
 After a period of toil and dangers, during which the colony 
 had steadily progressed in importance, the Mexican Revolution 
 produced a change of government, and in consequence cast a 
 degree of doubt upon the validity of the compact made with the 
 elder Austin by the Spanish authorities. To superintend the in- 
 terests of his colony, Austin went to Mexico, and after spending 
 a year there, he obtained a confirmation of his grant from the 
 National Congress of Mexico in August 1823. This re%dved the 
 drooping spirits of the colonists, and reconciled them to their 
 new homes, of which they had begun to grow weary. Emigra- 
 tion to the country, which had been checked, was now resumed 
 
26 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 again, with alacrity and confidence, under the naturahzation laws 
 of 1823, '24, and '25. 
 
 In 1824, when the Mexican territory was organized into states 
 under the constitution which was then adopted, and which pro- 
 vided for apolitical system similar to our own, consisting of a gen- 
 eral or national government, and local or state governments, 
 Texas, on account of the smallness of its population, was united 
 with Coahuila, under the name of the state of Coahuila and 
 Texas. This union, w^hich was with her own consent, was provi- 
 sional, and to continue until she was in a condition to become a 
 state herself and assume the necessary powers of government ; in 
 the words of the organic act of the constituent congress of Mex- 
 ico, of the 7th of May, 1824, " until Texas possessed the necessary 
 elements to form a separate state of herself." Thus was guaran- 
 tied to Texas a specific political existence, with all the rights of 
 self-government, as an independent state of the Mexican confed- 
 eration, as soon as she "possessed the necessary elements." 
 
 During the presidency of Guadaloupe Victoria, the constitution 
 and the federal system adopted under it, were considered firmly 
 established. The internal government of Texas was similar to 
 that of our territories. It was divided into five municipalities, 
 each of which chose its own judges, sheriflfs, and other officers. 
 The selection thus by the people, from their own citizens, of those 
 who were to administer law and justice among them, was a secu- 
 rity against violence and oppression. Their officers were identi- 
 fied with them in views, feelings, and interests. With these 
 guaranties for the protection of person and property for the pres- 
 ent, and the provision for the future state sovereignty of Texas, 
 that country afforded strong inducements for agricultural enter- 
 prise to the citizens of the United States, who accordingly emi- 
 grated thither, in expectation of the permanent enjoyment of civil 
 institutions like those of their own country. 
 
DEPOSITION AND DEATH OF GUERRERO. 27 
 
 At the close of Victoria's term of office, in 1828, when Gomez 
 Pedraza had been elected president of the republic, Santa Anna, 
 with his troops, pronounced in favour of General Guerrero, the 
 rejected presidential candidate, and defeated the government 
 troops, and thus gave to Mexico the example of prostrating the 
 civil by the military power. Guerrero was, in consequence, 
 installed president. Bustamente, who had received the suffi-ages 
 of the friends of Pedraza, was vice-president. Santa Anna, in 
 reward of his services, was appointed secretary of war. 
 
 In 1831 Bustamente organized a conspiracy, deposed Guerrero, 
 and, under the formalities of a military tribunal, sentenced him 
 to be shot, on the 10th of February, 1831. Though Bustamente 
 pretended that this zeal was evinced in favour of " Constitutional 
 order," he did not recall Pedraza, the rightful president, but, 
 sustained by the aristocracy and clergy, who were alarmed at the 
 influence of republican institutions on their privileges, he pro- 
 ceeded, under the humble title of Vice-President, to establish 
 throughout the country a perfect military despotism, in utter dis- 
 regard of all constitutional and loyal restraints. The tyrant and 
 his military satraps exercised the most absolute sway over the 
 life, liberty, and property of his subjects. All freedom of the 
 press was destroyed. As an instance, in Guadalaxara, the pub- 
 lisher of a paper which had given offence to Inclon, the military 
 commandant, was seized, his press and types destroyed, and he 
 himself, in presence of the governor and state authorities, ordered 
 to be shot in three hours. 
 
 Among the early acts of this iniquitous administration, was the 
 repeal of the colonization laws in relation to Texas and the 
 United States. Emigrants from that republic were forbidden to 
 hold land in Mexico ; and by a new construction of law, many 
 of the settlers in Texas were to be deprived of their lands, en- 
 deared to them by their labours and their sufferings. Troops 
 soon after were sent to Texas to harass the people, under the pre- 
 6 
 
28 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 text of aiding the revenue officers. Forts erected for their 
 accommodation at Nacogdoches, Anahuac, and Velasco, soon 
 became the seats of military tribunals, for mock trials of popular 
 and influential citizens, under the vague charges of disaffection 
 to the government ; and were made prisons for their incarcera- 
 tion, after they were condemned. 
 
 Determined to resist this military despotism, the planters 
 united, and with such forces as they could raise, in one week 
 took the forts at Velasco, Nacogdoches, and Anahuac, and drove 
 the enemy from the country. About this time, but without any 
 concert of action, the garrison of Vera Cruz declared against 
 Bustamente, and invited Santa Anna to assume the command of 
 that post. He accepted the offer, and addressed a remonstrance 
 to Bustamente, after which he seduced over to his interest large 
 bodies of the government troops, and marched upon the capital, 
 when Bustamente resigned his power and fled from the country. 
 With a seeming regard for " constitutional order," which he had 
 violated in 1828, when he deposed Pedraza, Santa Anna now re- 
 called to the executive chair that chieftain, whose term of office 
 was about to expire. Aware of his popularity, and assured that 
 he would be the next president, he hazarded nothing, but gained 
 much by this show of disinterested action. 
 
 In the beginning of 1833 Santa Anna was elected to the presi- 
 dential chair without opposition ; and, from the popularity which 
 he now enjoyed, as the restorer of the constitution of his country, 
 the most sanguine expectations were entertained of a liberal 
 execution of the powers of government. The members of the Con- 
 gress were regarded as sincere friends of liberty, and the inhabi- 
 tants of Texas thought the time favourable to petition the 
 government for admission into the Mexican confederacy as a free 
 state. 
 
 Their petition set forth, that " Coahuila and Texas were totally 
 dissimilar in soil, climate, and productions : that the representa- 
 
GEN. ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA. 
 
SANTA ANNA PRESIDENT. 29 
 
 tives of the former were so much more numerous than tlie latter, 
 that all legislation for the benefit of Texas could be only the 
 effect of a generous courtesy : that laws happily adapted to the 
 one, would on account of the great dissimilarity of their interests 
 be ruinous to the other : that Texas was in continual danger from 
 the aggression of the Indian tribes, without any efficient govern- 
 ment to protect her in such cases : that the present legislation is 
 calculated to exasperate the Indian tribes by withholding their 
 rights ; whereas, by doing them justice, valuable auxiliaries might 
 be gained, instead of deadly enemies, which should be the policy 
 of Texas : that Texas ' possessed the necessary elements for a 
 state government, and that for her attachment to the federal con- 
 stitution, and to the republic, the petitioners pledged their lives 
 and honour.' " 
 
 For the above reasons and others, they prayed that Texas might 
 be erected into a separate state of the Mexican confederacy, 
 agreeably to the decree of the 7th of May, 1824, which annexed 
 it provisionally to Coahuila. 
 
 Austin as Commissioner proceeded to Mexico with this petition, 
 which he presented to Congress and had referred to a committee. 
 He urged its importance upon Congress and the executive, but 
 after waiting several months, during which he was unable to get 
 the committee to report, to obtain a hearing from Congress, or the 
 encouragement of the president, he despaired of success in the 
 existing state of affairs. He wrote therefore to the municipal 
 authorities of San Antonio, advising the call of a convention to 
 organize a state government in Texas, with the view of rendering 
 the action of Congress necessary in their behalf. In consequence 
 of this letter, while on his return to Texas, he was arrested in 
 Coahuila, and imprisoned on a charge of treason. 
 
 The circumstances of the election of Santa Anna, probably 
 led him to aspire to the supreme power. Movements of the sol- 
 diery in which he was implicated soon after his inauguration. 
 
30 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 evince this disposition on his part. But he was restrained in his 
 designs by the Congress, which was liberal in its views and 
 actions, and could not be induced to favour his ambitious incli- 
 nations. 
 
 During its session the Congress had turned its attention to 
 ecclesiastical affairs, and made innovations that alarmed the 
 clergy. It was in favour of granting toleration to the different 
 religious creeds ; and appropriated to the national treasury some 
 of the resources of the church, which it was conceived to hold 
 without law or right. This dissatisfaction of the clergy favoured 
 the sinister designs of Santa Anna, and he soon resolved to ren- 
 der himself independent of Congress through their instrumentality. 
 The clergy, wherever they had influence to dictate their views, 
 now procured pronunciamentos which denounced Congress and 
 its reforms, but expressed unbounded confidence in the president. 
 Backed thus by the priesthood and those whose action they con- 
 trolled, Santa Anna, in 1834, dissolved by force the Congress and 
 the general council of the nation, and took measures to secure 
 the return of a majority of members to the next Congress favour- 
 able to his designs. For this purpose the power of the clergy 
 was employed, and large bodies of troops were posted to overawe 
 the suffrages of the people. 
 
 When this Congress assembled in January 1835, Santa Anna 
 in his message plainly intimated that the people were not fitted 
 for a free government. He who, in 1823, on the fall of Iturbide, 
 in order to forward his selfish views, had proclaimed himself 
 " protector of the federal republic," now contrived its destruction. 
 
 Pronunciamentos in favour of a central government w^ere 
 effected among the people by the agency of the president and 
 priesthood, when Congress, upon the 3d of October, passed a 
 decree abolishing the constitution of 1824, and with it the state 
 constitutions and state authorities. The very name of State was 
 annihilated. To check the opposition that might arise, large 
 
OVERTHROW OF THE CONSTITUTION. 3X 
 
 forces were quartered in each state under the new governors or 
 military prefects who were appointed by the usurper. The cen- 
 tral government was in fact a military despotism ; and the Con- 
 gress was in the power of the creatures of the usurper, and served 
 but to register his decrees. 
 
 If this change of government had been effected by a conven- 
 tion of the people, it would have been legal and binding. But it 
 was not even the act of a constitutional congress ; for, the usurper 
 had dissolved by a military order the legitimate Congress while 
 one-half of its term remained unexpired, and by a military order, 
 under means that prevented the free action of public opinion, had 
 procured the election of members in a revolutionary and uncon- 
 stitutional manner. 
 
 Opposition to this revolutionary subversion of the government, 
 was made by the people in the states of Mexico, Oaxaca, Puebla, 
 and Jalisco. The inhabitants of the state of Zacatecas took up 
 arms against the government in support of the federal constitu- 
 tion, but by a powerful army led by Santa Anna, and the treach- 
 ery of that usurper, their efforts were crushed, and the horrid 
 butchery of the citizens which followed, cast such a terror over 
 the Mexican people, that they submitted to the military govern- 
 ment which had been imposed, without further opposition. 
 
 The people of Texas, still attached to the Mexican federal sys- 
 tem, and hoping that the Mexican people would rise and restore 
 it, determined to call a general congress of consultation for Texas, 
 and delegates elected for that purpose were directed to meet on 
 the 15th of October. 
 
 Before that period, however, the war had commenced. Gen- 
 eral Cos, the governor, or military prefect of Texas, arrived with 
 large bodies of troops, and attempted to disarm the inhabitants, 
 which disclosed to the Texans the intended re-enactment of the 
 bloody drama of Zacatecas, and animated them to a brave resist- 
 ance. The repulse of the Mexicans at Gonzales, on the last day 
 
32 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 of September, the capture of Goliad, the victory at Conception, 
 and the capture of Fort Lepanticlan, on the west bank of the 
 Nueces, followed in quick succession, and gave confidence to 
 the people ; while the storming and capture of San Antonio, the 
 last military post held by Mexico, by which General Cos and his 
 army capitulated to the commander of the Texan troops, diffused 
 the liveliest joy through the state. We copy the first article of 
 the capitulation, as it proves even at this time, the sincere desire 
 of Texas still to be a member of the Mexican confederation, 
 agreeably to the constitution of 1824. It will also prove the 
 faithlessness of Cos, in returning again to the war after being 
 paroled : — 
 
 "Article 1st. That General Cos and his officers retire with 
 their arms and private property, into the interior of the republic, 
 under parole of honour, that they will not in any way oppose the 
 re-establishment of the federal constitution o/'1824." 
 
 This capitulation took place on the 11th of December, 1835, 
 and closed the campaign of that year. 
 
 When the 15th of October came, the time appointed for the 
 delegates to assemble in consultation, many were in the ranks of 
 the army ; but there was still a quorum, which published a decla- 
 ration, in which they expressed their firm adherence to the federal 
 constitution of 1824, and the lawful government of the country, 
 and proffering their aid to restore them. It was made on the 11th 
 of November, and was as follows : — 
 
 " Whereas, General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, and other 
 military chieftains, have by force of arms overthrown the federal 
 institutions of Mexico, and dissolved the social compact which 
 existed between Texas and the other members of the Mexican 
 confederacy, now the good people of Texas, availing themselves 
 of their natural rights, solemnly declare : 
 
 " 1st. That they have taken up arms in defence of their rights 
 and liberties, which were threatened by encroachments of military 
 
DECLARATION OF THE PEOPLE OF TEXAS. 33 
 
 despots, and in defence of the republican principles of the federal 
 constitution of Mexico in 1824. 
 
 «' 2d. That Texas is no longer morally or civilly bound by the 
 compact of union ; yet, stimulated by the generosity and sympa- 
 thy common to a free people, they offer their support and assist- 
 ance to such of the members of the Mexican confederacy as will 
 take up arms against military despotism. 
 
 " 3d. That they do not acknowledge that the present authorities 
 of the nominal Mexican republic have the right to govern within 
 the limits of Texas. 
 
 " 4th. That they will not cease to carry on war against the said 
 authorities, whilst their troops are within the limits of Texas. 
 
 " 5th. That they hold it to be their right, during the disorgani- 
 zation of the federal system, and the reign of despotism, to with- 
 draw from tlie union, to establish an independent government, or 
 to adopt such measures as they may deem best calculated to pro- 
 tect their rights and liberties ; but that they will continue faith- 
 ful to the Mexican government so long as that nation is governed 
 by the constitution and laws, that were framed for the govern- 
 ment of the political association. 
 
 " 6th. That Texas is responsible for the expenses of her armies 
 now in the field. 
 
 " 7th. That the public faith of Texas is pledged for the payment 
 of any debts contracted by her agents. 
 
 " 8th. That she will reward, by donations in hand, all who vol- 
 unteer their services in her present struggle, and receive them as 
 citizens. 
 
 '< These declarations we solemnly avow to the world, and call 
 God to witness tlieir truth and sincerity, and invoke defeat and 
 disgrace upon our heads, should we prove guilty of duplicity." 
 
 It is certainly evident from the above that not Texas, but 
 Mexico herself, was the revolutionary party. This will be further 
 apparent from tlie views set forth in a report by Stephen F. Aus- 
 
34 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 tin to the provisional government, on the 30th of November, of 
 of which we submit an extract : — 
 
 " That every people have the right to change their government, 
 is unquestionable ; but it is equally certain and true, that this 
 change, to be morally or politically obligatory, must be effected 
 by the free expression of the community, and by legal and con- 
 stitutional means ; for otherwise, the stability of governments and 
 the rights of the people would be at the mercy of fortunate revo- 
 lutionists, of violence, or faction. 
 
 "Admitting, therefore, that a central and despotic, or strong 
 government, is best adapted to the education and habits of a por- 
 tion of the Mexican people, and that they wish it ; this does not, 
 and cannot, give to them the right to dictate, by unconstitutional 
 means and force, to the other portion who have equal rights, and 
 differ in opinion. 
 
 " Had the change been effected by constitutional means, or had 
 a national convention been convened, and every member of the 
 confederacy been fairly represented, and a majority agreed to the 
 change, it would have placed the matter on different ground ; 
 but, even then, it would be monstrous to admit the principle, that 
 a majority have the right to destroy the minority, for the reason, 
 that self-preservation is superior to political obligations. That 
 such a government as is contemplated by the before-mentioned 
 decree of the 3d of October, would destroy the people of Texas, 
 must be evident to all, when they consider its geographical situa- 
 tion, so remote from the contemplated centre of legislation and 
 power ; populated as it is, by a people who are so different in 
 education, habits, customs, language, and local wants, from all 
 the rest of the nation ; and especially when a portion of the cen- 
 tral party have manifested violent religious and other prejudices 
 and jealousies against them. But no national convention was 
 convened, and the constitution has been, and now is, violated and 
 disregarded. The constitutional authorities of the state of Coahuila 
 
PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT. 35 
 
 and Texas solemnly protested against the change of government, 
 for which act they were driven by military force from office, and 
 imprisoned. The people of Texas protested against it, as they 
 had a right to do, for which they have been declared rebels by the 
 government of Mexico. 
 
 " However necessary, then, the basis established by the decree 
 of the 3d of October, may be to prevent civil wars and anarchy 
 in other parts of Mexico, it is attempted to be effected by force 
 and unconstitutional means. However beneficial it may be to 
 some parts of Mexico, it would be ruinous to Texas. This view 
 presents the whole subject to the people. If they submit to a 
 forcible and unconstitutional destruction of the social compact, 
 which they have sworn to support, they violate their oaths. If 
 they submit to be tamely destroyed, they disregard their duty to 
 themselves, and violate the first law which God stamped upon 
 the heart of man, civilized or savage ; which is the law of the 
 right of self-preservation. 
 
 " The decree of the 3d of October, therefore, if carried into 
 effect, evidently leaves no remedy for Texas but resistance, seces- 
 sion from Mexico, and a direct resort to natural rights." 
 
 The members of the Consultation, after sundry acts calculated 
 to meet the exigencies of the times, organized a provisional gov- 
 ernment, which consisted of a governor, lieutenant-governor, and 
 general council. The council was composed of one member 
 from each district represented in the Consultation. The pro- 
 visional government went into operation on the 14th of Novem- 
 ber, and was to continue in force till the following March. It 
 was made thus temporary, in order to await the action and co-opera- 
 tion of the other states, should they make an effort to restore the 
 constitution of the country, and its legitimate political system. 
 
 In organization of the provisional government, Henry Smith 
 was chosen governor, James W. Robinson, lieutenant-governor, 
 and General Samuel Houston, commander-in-chief. 
 7 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Rumours of Invasion — Want of Preparation by the Texans — Convention of the 
 People — Intelligence of the Advance of the Mexican Army — Declaration of In- 
 dependence — Constitution in conformity to it — General Houston's Orders — 
 Lorenzo de Zavala, the Refugee — Advance of the Mexican Army — Urea marches 
 on Goliad — Santa Anna marches on San Antonio — Colonel Travis in the Alamo 
 — Besieged by General Siesma — Arrival of Santa Anna and Fall of the Alamo — 
 Surrender of Colonel Fannin at Goliad — Massacre of the Prisoners after Capitu- 
 lation — Policy of General Houston — Battle of San Jacinto — Complete Victory — 
 Capture of Santa Anna — Texan Independence established. 
 
 During the winter, owing to the remoteness of the capital, 
 and the variance of the two countries, the Texans had but little 
 information respecting the intentions of Mexico, Frequent ru- 
 mours, however, came, that Santa Anna contemplated an invasion. 
 It w'as even said, that he was on his march, and alarm and pre- 
 paration to meet him followed the annunciation. But, as the 
 accounts proved unfounded, a sense of security and indifference 
 lulled them to sleep, and in consequence, nearly all their forces 
 were disbanded, when the Texans w^ere startled by the intelli- 
 gence that Santa Anna, at the head of ten thousand men, the 
 choicest of his troops, had already entered the country, with the 
 declared intention, if he found resistance, to spare neither age 
 nor sex, but to make the country an utter desolation. 
 
 This intelligence, with that of the siege of San Antonio de 
 Bexar, reached Washington on the 2d of March. A convention 
 of the people was in session at that place, to provide for the exi- 
 gencies of the time, as the period of the provisional government 
 was about to expire, and decree the independence of the country 
 • 30 
 
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 37 
 
 if it were deemed expedient. Convinced now, that nothing was 
 to be expected from a change in the political system of Mexico, 
 and preferring death to a state of slavery, the delegates, in full 
 view of the terrible struggle that was before them, resolved to 
 dissolve all connexion with Mexico whatever, and published to 
 the world the following charter of freedom, upon the same day 
 on which they learned the advance of the Mexican chief, and the 
 siege of San Antonio de Bexar. 
 
 <' Unanimous Declaration of Independence, by the delegates of the 
 people of Texas, in general convention, at the town of Waslmig- 
 ton, on the 2d day of March, 1836. 
 
 " When a government has ceased to protect the lives, liberty, 
 and property of the people, from whom its legitimate powers are 
 derived, and for the advancement of whose happiness it was in- 
 stituted ; and, so far from being a guaranty for their inestimable 
 and inalienable rights, becomes an instrument in the hands of 
 e\\l rulers for their oppression : When the federal republican 
 constitution of their country, which they have sworn to support, 
 no longer has a substantial existence, and the whole nature of 
 their government has been forcibly changed, without their con- 
 sent, from a restrictive federative republic, composed of sover- 
 eign states, to a consolidated central military despotism, in 
 which every interest is disregarded but that of the army and the 
 priesthood — both the eternal enemies of civil liberty, the ever- 
 ready minions of power, and the usual instruments of tyrants : 
 When, long after the spirit of the constitution has departed, mod- 
 eration is at length so far lost by those in power, that even the 
 semblance of freedom is removed, and the forms themselves of 
 the constitution discontinued ; and so far from their petitions and 
 remonstrances being regarded, the agents who bear them are 
 thrown into dungeons, and mercenary armies sent forth to force 
 a new government upon tliera at the point of the bayonet : 
 
38 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 " When, in consequence of such acts of malfeasance and 
 abduction on the part of the government, anarchy prevails, and 
 civil society is dissolved into its original elements ; in such a 
 crisis, the first law of nature — the right of self-preservation — the 
 inherent and inalienable right of the people to appeal to first 
 principles, and take their political affairs in their own hands in 
 extreme cases, enjoins it as a right towards themselves, and a 
 sacred obligation to their posterity, to abolish such government, 
 and create another in its stead, calculated to rescue them from 
 impending dangers, and to secure their welfare and happiness. 
 
 " Nations, as well as individuals, are amenable for their acts to 
 the public opinion of mankind. A statement of a part of our 
 grievances is therefore submitted to an impartial world, in justifi- 
 cation of the hazardous but unavoidable step now taken of sever- 
 ing our political connexion with the Mexican people, and assuming 
 an independent attitude among the nations of the earth. 
 
 " The Mexican government, by its colonization laws, invited 
 and induced the Anglo-American population of Texas to colonize 
 its wilderness, under the pledged faith of a written constitution, 
 that they should continue to enjoy that constitutional liberty and 
 republican government to which they had been habituated in the 
 land of their birth, the United States of America, 
 
 "In this expectation they have been cruelly disappointed, inas- 
 much as the Mexican nation has acquiesced in the late changes 
 made in the government by General Antonio Lopez de Santa 
 Anna, who, having overturned the constitution of his country, 
 now offers us the cruel alternative, either to abandon our homes, 
 acquired by so many privations, or submit to that most intolerable 
 of all tyranny, the combined despotism of the sword and the 
 priesthood. 
 
 " It hath sacrificed our welfare to the state of Coahuila, by 
 which our interests have been continually depressed, through a 
 jealous and partial course of legislation, carried on at a far distant 
 
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 39 
 
 seat of government, by a hostile majority, in an unknown tongue ; 
 and this, too, notwithstanding we have petitioned in the humblest 
 terms for the establishment of a separate state government ; and 
 have, in accordance with the provisions of the national constitu- 
 tion, presented to the General Congress a republican constitution, 
 which was, w^ithout a just cause, contemptuously rejected. 
 
 " It incarcerated in a dungeon, for a long time, one of our citi- 
 zens, for no other cause but a zealous endeavour to procure the 
 acceptance of our constitution, and the establishment of a state 
 government. 
 
 " It has failed and refused to secure, on a firm basis, the right 
 of trial by jury — that palladium of civil liberty, and only safe .. 
 guaranty for the life, liberty, and property of the citizen. 
 
 " It has failed to establish any public system of education, 
 although possessed of almost boundless resources, (the public 
 domain ;) and although it is an axiom in political science, that 
 unless a people are educated and enlightened, it is idle to expect 
 the continuance of civil liberty, or the capacity for self-govern- 
 ment. 
 
 " It has suffered the military commandants stationed among us 
 to exercise arbitrary acts of oppression and tyranny, thus tram- 
 pling upon the most sacred rights of the citizen, and rendering the 
 military superior to the civil power. 
 
 " It has dissolved, by force of arms, the state Congress of Coa- 
 huila and Texas, and obliged our representatives to fly for their 
 lives from the seat of government, thus depriving us of the funda- 
 mental political right of representation. 
 
 " It has demanded the surrender of a number of our citizens, 
 and ordered military detachments to seize and carry them into 
 the interior for trial, in contempt of the civil authorities, and in 
 defiance of the laws and the constitution. 
 
 " It has made piratical attacks upon our commerce by commis- 
 sioning foreign desperadoes, and authorizing them to seize our 
 
40 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 vessels and convey the property of our citizens to far distant parts 
 for confiscation. 
 
 " It denies us the right of worshipping the Almighty according 
 to the dictates of our own conscience, by the support of a national 
 religion, calculated to promote the temporal interest of its human 
 functionaries, rather than the glory of the true and living God. 
 
 " It has demanded us to deliver up our arms, which are essen- 
 tial to our defence — the rightful property of freemen — and for- 
 midable only to tyrannical governments. 
 
 " It has invaded our country both by sea and by land, with the 
 intent to lay waste our territory, and drive us from our homes ; 
 and has now a large mercenary army advancing, to carry on 
 against us a war of extermination, 
 
 " It has, through its emissaries, incited the merciless savage, 
 with the tomahawk and scalping knife, to massacre the inhabi- 
 tants of our defenceless frontiers. 
 
 '< It has been, during the whole time of our connexion with it, 
 the contemptible sport and victim of successive military revolu- 
 tions, and hath continually exhibited every characteristic of a 
 weak, corrupt, and tyrannical government. 
 
 " These and other grievances, were patiently borne by the peo- 
 ple of Texas, until they reached that point at which forbearance 
 ceases to be a virtue. We then took up arms in defence of the 
 national constitution. We appealed to our Mexican brethren 
 for assistance ; our appeal has been made in vain ; though 
 months have elapsed, no sympathetic response has yet been heard 
 from the interior. We are, therefore, forced to the melancholy 
 conclusion, that the Mexican people have acquiesced in the de- 
 struction of their liberty, and the substitution therefore of a mili- 
 tary government ; that they are unfit to be free, and incapable of 
 self-government. 
 
 " The necessity of self-preservation, therefore, now decrees 
 our eternal political separation. 
 
GENERAL HOUSTON'S ORDERS. 41 
 
 " We, therefore, the delegates with plenary powers of the peo- 
 ple of Texas, in solemn convention assembled, appealing to a 
 candid world for the necessities of our condition, do hereby re- 
 solve and declare, that our political connexion with the Mexican 
 nation has for ever ended, and that the people of Texas do now 
 constitute a Free, Sovereign, and Independent Republic, and are 
 fully invested with all the rights and attributes which properly 
 belong to independent nations ; and, conscious of the rectitude 
 of our intentions, we fearlessly and confidently commit the issue 
 to the decision of the Supreme Arbiter of the destinies of nations." 
 Signed by Richard Ellis, President, 
 
 and forty-nine delegates. 
 
 On the 17th the convention agreed upon a constitution, which 
 was to be submitted to the people, and, if approved, the officers 
 of the government w'ere to be elected under it. Whatever was 
 done, was in accordance with strict democratic principles, and 
 the sovereignty of the people. 
 
 While the convention thus acted wnth decision in declaring the 
 nationality of Texas, prompt measures w^ere taken in its defence. 
 General Houston, the Commander-in-chief, by the following brief 
 but stirring appeal, announced independence and summoned the 
 country to arms : — 
 
 "ARMY ORDERS. 
 "Convention Hall, Washington, March 2d, 1836. 
 "War is raging on the frontiers. Bejar is besieged by two 
 thousand of the enemy, under the command of General Siesma. 
 Reinforcements are on their march to unite with the besieging 
 army. By the last report our force in Bejar was only one hun- 
 dred and fifty men strong. The citizens of Texas must rally to 
 the aid of our army, or it will perish. Let the citizens of the 
 East march to the combat. The enemy must be driven from our 
 soil, or desolation will accompany their march upon us. In- 
 
42 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 DEPENDENCE IS DECLARED ; it inust be maintained. Immediate 
 action united with valour alone can achieve the great work. 
 ' The services of all are forthwith required in the field.' 
 
 SAM. HOUSTON, 
 Commander-in-chief of tJie Army." 
 
 The events of the former campaign were in the last degree- 
 wounding to the pride of the Mexican chief. The Texans, op- 
 posed to the central powder, not only had refused to receive his 
 military governor and had organized a government of their own ; 
 but, after taking the several forts, had forced the governor and his 
 troops to capitulate and abandon the country. 
 
 While wounded executive and military pride thus urged him 
 to subjugate the country, religious fanaticism stimulated him to 
 vengeance against the Texans, because they refused to deliver 
 up Lorenzo de Zavala, one of the purest men in Mexico, who 
 had become a refugee in consequence of moving a law in the 
 Mexican Congress, against certain church property. To render 
 their action unpardonable, the Texans had elected Zavala vice- 
 president of the provisional government. 
 
 The invading army entered Texas in two divisions. General 
 Urea led the right and advanced upon Goliad, while Santa Anna, 
 with the left, marched upon San Antonio de Bexar, which was 
 reached by the van, consisting of a thousand men under General 
 Siesma, on the 23d of February. The Texan garrison, under 
 Colonel W. B. Travis, consisted of but one hundred and fifty 
 men. Expecting no mercy from the infuriated chief, they de- 
 termined to make a desperate resistance, and retired into the 
 Alamo with what provisions they could collect. The intrepid 
 commander then issued the following proclamation, which he 
 observed to the letter : — 
 
COLONEL TRAVIS IN THE ALAMO. 43 
 
 " CoMMANDANCY OF THE Alamo, Bejar, Feb. 24th, 183G. 
 " Fellow- Citizens and Compatriots ! 
 
 <« I am besieged by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under 
 Santa Anna, I have sustained a continual bombardment and 
 cannonade for twenty-four hours, and have not lost a man. The 
 enemy have demanded a surrender at discretion ; otherwise the 
 garrison is to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken. I have 
 answered the summons with a cannon-shot, and our flag still 
 waves proudly from the walls. I shall never surrender or retreat. 
 Then I call on you in the name of liberty, patriotism, and every- 
 thing dear to the American character, to come to our aid with all 
 despatch. The enemy are recei\dng reinforcements daily, and 
 will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five 
 days. Though this call may be neglected, I am determined to 
 sustain myself as long as possible, and die like a soldier who 
 never forgets what is due to his own honour and that of his 
 country. Victory or death ! 
 
 W. BARRETT TRAVIS, 
 
 Lieut. Col. Com>V' 
 
 From the 23d of February to the 3d of March, the Mexicans, 
 increased by the successive arrivals of troops, assailed the little 
 garrison with an incessant cannonade. Various attempts too 
 were made to carry the fortress by storm ; but the Texans, anima- 
 ted to a terrible resistance by the ominous blood-red flag which 
 floated from the enemy's camp, repelled their efforts with heavy 
 slaughter. In the mean time, the enemy encircled them with 
 entrenched encampments, while the Texans increased their de- 
 fences by entrenching on the inside. 
 
 On the 3d of March a deafening shout of acclamation announ- 
 ced the arrival of Santa Anna, attended by additional troops. 
 Closely invested now by an army of four thousand men, the 
 brave Travis and his band withstood the furious onset that con- 
 8 
 
44 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 tinued night and day. Human nature, however, could not bsar 
 up against this incessant labour and watching. On the morning 
 of the 6th, a few hours before day, oppressed they sunk down to 
 rest. Shortly after, Santa Anna, who was maddened at the re- 
 sistance he had met, made a more furious assault than usual. 
 Having drawn up his infantry, with his cavalry posted in the rear 
 to shoot down any who would turn back, he forced them on to 
 the attack. An hour before day the Mexicans advanced, slew 
 the exhausted sentinels at their posts, and gained the walls. The 
 noise roused the garrison to a desperate struggle, and on all sides 
 round were strewed tlie bodies of the assailants, till the Texans, 
 overcome with the fatigue of slaughter, and exhausted by wounds, 
 sunk overpowered by the numbers of the enemy. When the 
 Mexicans obtained full possession of the fort, they found but a 
 single man alive ; Santa Anna, infuriated at the resistance of the 
 garrison, which had caused him the loss of a thousand of his best 
 troops, immediately ordered him to be shot ; and, with a savage 
 ferocity, ordered the mangled bodies of the slain to be piled up 
 together and reduced to ashes. 
 
 That the lamented Travis acted properly in refusing to surren- 
 der to the sanguinary tyrant, is proved by what took place at 
 Goliad. Colonel Fannin, who commanded at this place, unable 
 to resist the right division of the Mexican forces under General 
 Urea, surrendered to that officer under the assurances of a treaty 
 solemnly ratified as follows : — 
 
 "Seeing the Texan army entirely overpowered by a far superior 
 force, and to avoid the effiision of blood, we surrender ourselves 
 prisoners of war, under the following terms : 
 
 "Art. 1st. That we should be received and treated as prisoners 
 of war, according to the usages of civilized nations. 
 
 " Art. 2d. That the officers should be paroled immediately upon 
 their arrival at La Bahia ; and the other prisoners should be sent 
 
MASSACRE AT GOLIAD. 45 
 
 to Copano, within eight days, there to await shipping to convey 
 them to the United States, so soon as it was practicable to pro- 
 cure it : no more to take up arms against Mexico, until exchanged. 
 
 "Art. 3d. That all private property should be respected, and 
 officers' swords should be returned on parole or release. 
 
 "Art. 4th. That our men should receive every comfort, and be 
 fed as well as their own men. Signed, 
 
 Gen. Urea, 
 
 Col. MORATEAS, 
 Col, HOBZINGER, 
 
 on the part of the enemy, and our part. Signed by 
 
 Col. Fannin, and 
 Maj. Wallace." 
 
 Notwithstanding the pledges given above, the unfortunate 
 Fannin and his men were treated with great brutality, and at 
 length by order of Santa Anna were marched out between files 
 of soldiers under circumstances of great treachery, and inhumanly 
 butchered, and their bodies afterwards burned to ashes. And as 
 if alike in disregard of God and humanity, this act of savage fe- 
 rocity was committed upon the day of the Prince of Peace : the 
 roar of musketry — the petitions and cries of the wounded — and 
 the smoke of the burning bodies desecrating and polluting 
 the still Sabbath air. The awful scene is depicted in tlie follow- 
 insT extract from the letter of a Mexican officer : — 
 
 " This day, Palm Sunday, March 27, has been to me a day of 
 heartfelt sorrow. At six in the morning, the execution of four 
 hundred and twelve American prisoners w^as commenced, and 
 continued till eight, when the last of the number was shot. At 
 eleven, commenced the operation of burning their bodies. But 
 what an awful scene did the field present, when the prisoners 
 were executed, and fell dead in heaps ! And what spectator 
 could view it without horror ! They were all young, tlie oldest 
 
46 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 not more than thirty, and of fine florid complexions. When the 
 unfortunate youths were brought to the place of death, their 
 lamentations and the appeals which they uttered to heaven in 
 their own language, w^ith extended arms, kneeling or prostrate on 
 the earth, were such as might have caused the very stones to cry 
 out in compassion." 
 
 The slaughter of Fannin and his troops, and the fall of the 
 Alamo, carried dismay into the hearts of the people. The 
 government panic-struck fled, and most of the citizens, giving 
 up all for lost, imitated the example. In this trying emergency, 
 Houston, the commander-in-chief, having drawn to his standard 
 about eight hundred men, with dauntless intrepidity resolved to 
 attack the enemy before he would concentrate his forces, and 
 thus cut up his army in detail. 
 
 By a providential circumstance, Houston, when near the di- 
 vision of the centre, which was commanded by Santa Anna, 
 obtained every desirable information. A courier was captured 
 with a despatch detailing Santa Anna's movements, his force, route, 
 and destination. By a forced march, Houston reached on the 20th 
 of April the place, near the confluence of Buffalo Bayou and San 
 Jacinto, where Santa Anna intended to cross the San Jacinto 
 river, on his way to Anahuac ; and, before his army had prepared 
 their refreshments, the troops of Santa Anna appeared. A 
 cannonade soon commenced on both sides, with skirmishes be- 
 tween the cavalry and detached bodies of infantry, shortly after 
 which Santa Anna retired to a position three-fourths of a mile 
 from the Texan camp, where he rested the right flank of his 
 infantry on a wood that skirted the San Jacinto, and secured his 
 left by a fortification of packs and baggage, with an opening in 
 the centre for his artillery. 
 
 Thus, almost in presence of each other, the hostile armies slept 
 till the bright sun of spring arose which was to light the young 
 
BATTLE OF SAN JACINTO. 47 
 
 republic to independence, and usher in the day of doom to its 
 enemies. 
 
 On the morning of the 21st, Santa Anna was reinforced by five 
 hundred and forty men under General Cos, making his force 
 nearly sixteen hundred men. These were choice troops, formed 
 under his own eye, acquainted with the manceuvres and strifes of 
 war, and equipped witih all needful appointments. To oppose 
 these, the Texan commander had under him less than eight hun- 
 dred men. These were planters and men of every profession 
 and trade, the most of whom had never seen service, who with 
 scarcely any military exercise had taken upon them the duties and 
 fatigues of a soldier. They had, however, every stimulant to 
 excite them. If vanquished, they knew^ that they would be 
 butchered in cold blood, and that the fire and sword of desolation 
 would sweep over the settlements, till it reached the Sabine. 
 Patriotism thus summoned them to every manly exertion for the 
 defenceless living, while a voice from Goliad and the Alamo, 
 called to vengeance for the butchered dead. 
 
 Under tlie cover of a wood, having completed his arrangements 
 for battle, without exposing his designs to the enemy. General 
 Houston led on his little army to the attack. The evolutions 
 were made with alacrity and precision. Debouching from an 
 island of timber, the .army advanced rapidly in line across the 
 prairie ; when the artillery took position within two hundred yards 
 of the enemy's breastwork, and poured in a destructive fire of 
 grape and canister. Colonel Sherman's regiment having com- 
 menced the action on the left, the centre and right advanced in 
 double quick time, with the terrible war-cry, " Remember the 
 Alamo !" which rose above tlie roar of battle, and carried dismay 
 into the hearts of the Mexicans. Receiving the fire of the enemy, 
 which mostly went over their heads and did little execution, they 
 advanced within point-blank shot, and then with deadly aim de- 
 livered their fire with murderous effect. Not taking time to 
 
48 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 reload the pieces, they rushed on and used their pistols, and then, 
 raising their rifles as war-clubs, sent them crashing through skull 
 and bone. Many of these were broken at the breech, when, still 
 pressing on like furious lions, and shouting that deathful cry, 
 "Remember the Alamo I" with their bowie-knives they hewed, 
 down those of the enemy that resisted, or stabbed them in retreat. 
 The breastwork and artillery were soon in possession of the Tex- 
 ans, while the wings in the mean time had been put to slaughter 
 or the rout. 
 
 The enemy's cavalry had been repulsed with great loss by 
 that of the Texans under the brave Lamar, and it was now in full 
 retreat. Hotly pursued by tlie Texans, it sought retreat by a 
 bridge which General Houston had taken the precaution to cut 
 down. On arriving here, a cry of horror announced the bridge 
 was gone. Some urged their coursers down the steep bank, and 
 horse and rider went down together. Others dismounted, and 
 were struggling to swim over the stream. Horses and men were 
 jammed and crushed together, upon the banks and in the waters, 
 while a heavy fire from their pursuers assailed them, till the waters 
 were red with blood, and the channel choked up with the dead 
 and the dying. The victory was complete. The Mexican loss 
 was six hundred and thirty killed, two hundred and eighty wound- 
 ed, and seven hundred and thirty prisoners. " Among the latter 
 were General Santa Anna, and General Cos, who had treacher- 
 ously broken his parole. Of the army scarcely a man escaped. 
 The Texans lost but two in killed, and twenty-three wounded. 
 The battle of San Jacinto sealed the independence of the country, 
 and the new star of Texas rose in beauty among the constellations 
 of republics. Santa Anna, who by his inhumanity to his prisoners 
 had forfeited his life, was generously spared by the Texan com- 
 mander. As President of Mexico he made a treaty with General 
 Houston, in which he recognised the full independence of Texas, 
 and engaged to order the withdrawal of the remaining troops, up- 
 
TEXAN INDEPENDENCE ESTABLISHED. 49 
 
 wards of four thousand in number. His generals immediately 
 evacuated the country and returned to Mexico with their troops ; 
 but the Mexican Congress refused to acknowledge the treaty which 
 he had made, and ordered a new invasion. This however was 
 not attempted, and all warfare between the two countries was 
 hereafter confined to desultory attacks and skirmishes. 
 
 Texas, which had been granted to the settlers as a part of 
 Mexico, according to laws of naturalization — which had further 
 become theirs by labours that redeemed it from the wilderness — 
 which had been pledged to them with state sovereignty by the 
 federal compact of 1824 — all rightful control of which reverted 
 from Mexico to them upon the forcible dissolution of that com- 
 pact by military despotism — had lastly become theirs by right of 
 conquest, and the inhabitants of Texas had an unquestionable 
 right to organize a government of their own, or form any alliance 
 or union with any government whatever. 
 
 Able to maintain the independence she had declared, she was 
 admitted into the family of nations. President Jackson, after 
 sending a confidential agent to examine her condition, people, 
 and resources, first recognised her political existence ; and the last 
 time he put his hand officially to paper, it was on this interesting 
 occasion. The act of recognition by the United States was soon 
 followed by that of England, France, and Belgium. 
 
 We have thus at some length shown the rise of Texas as a 
 nation, with the view of relieving her from the obloquy too often 
 thrown upon her, and of demonstrating the fact, that instead of 
 plundering the Mexican nation of a part of her territory, as her 
 people have been accused of doing, they acknowledged and upheld 
 the great principles of the Mexican constitution with truth and 
 fidelity, until there was no hope of constitutional freedom, and a 
 war of extermination denounced against them as rebels, drove 
 them into independence. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 Political Existence of Texas — Proposals for Annexation to the United States — 
 Attempt to effect the Recognition of the Independence of Texas by Mexico — 
 President Tyler's Treaty of Annexation — Its Rejection by the Senate — Mr. 
 Bocanegra — Protest of Almonte — Letter of General Jackson — Joint Resolution 
 for the Annexation of Texas — Protest and Departure of the Mexican Minister — 
 Action of the Mexican Government — Measures for the Defence of Texas — Gene- 
 ral Taylor Commander of the Forces of the United States for its Defence — Letter 
 of Instructions — Acceptance of the Terms of Annexation by Texas — The Army 
 of Occupation at Corpus Christi — Attempt to open Negotiations with Mexico — 
 Mr. Slidell's Mission — Downfall of Herrera and Accession of Paredes — Refusal 
 to receive Mr. Shdell except as a Special Envoy — Advance of the United States 
 Army to the Rio Grande — The Texan Boundary considered — Arrival of the 
 American Army at the Colorado — Crossing disputed — Point Isabel invested — 
 March resumed — Encampment on the Rio Grande — Correspondence. 
 
 Having achieved the independence of their country, the people 
 of Texas now turned their attention to the future, and considered 
 whether they would best promote their security and happiness by 
 a separate existence under the protection of some foreign state, 
 or by merging their sovereignty in the great Northern Confederacy. 
 The expenses of maintaining a government, and the distrust of 
 foreign alliances, indisposed them to the former, while the cir- 
 cumstance of the majority of the inhabitants being emigrants 
 from the United States, rendered a union with that country desir- 
 able. With this preference, and in the exercise of a legitimate 
 act of sovereignty, the Executive of Texas, on the 4th of August, 
 1837, proposed to annex that country to the United States. An 
 expression of opinion relative to this subject had been made in 
 September 1836, at the first election held for choosing officers 
 
 50 
 
RECOGNITION OF TEXAN INDEPENDENCE. 51 
 
 under the constitution, and the desire for the union was found to 
 be nearly unanimous. 
 
 The proposition of annexation was made during the presidency 
 of Mr. Van Buren ; but, as the United States and Mexico were 
 bound by a treaty of amity and commerce, he conceived that 
 annexation would be a breach of the comity existing betwaen 
 them ; and, foreseeing that it involved the probability of a war 
 with Mexico, he was unwilling to entertain the proposition with 
 favour. 
 
 Having failed to secure incorporation with the republican 
 family of the North, Texas opened negotiations with European 
 powers, with the view of obtaining the acknowledgment of her 
 independence by Mexico, through the intervention of France and 
 England. England, especially, treated the young republic with 
 great consideration, and exerted her influence to induce the re- 
 cognition of her nationality on the part of Mexico. This was 
 for no disinterested love of a republican state, but with the view 
 of securing to herself by treaty the commercial advantages to be 
 derived from the increasing importance of Texas. France, too, 
 committed now to the intrigues of the Montpensier marriage, 
 laboured to prevent the annexation of Texas to the United States, 
 probably with the view of placing over Mexico and Texas, at 
 no distant day, a French prince, through the Spanish union. 
 Mexico herself, fearing that the annexation of Texas to the 
 United States might lead to a further dismemberment of territory, 
 would have consented to the recognition of Texas, on condition 
 that she would preserve a distinct nationality ; and accordingly 
 an armistice had been concluded between them, through the in- 
 tervention of France and England. While annexation was 
 becoming thus less necessary and desirable to Texas, the impor- 
 tance of the measure claimed the attention of the politicians of 
 the United States. 
 
 Accordingly, during Mr. Tyler's administration, negotiations 
 9 
 
52 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 with a view to annexation were opened on the 6th of October, 
 1843, by Abel P. Upshur, Esq., Secretary of State. A treaty of 
 annexation was signed by the Texan Ministers Plenipotentiary 
 and by President Tyler, and on the 22d of April, 1844, submitted 
 to the United States Senate, but was rejected by that body. 
 While the subject of annexation was agitated, Mexico had 
 steadily notified the government of the United States that it would 
 consider the act a ground of war. The Mexican Minister of 
 Foreign Relations, Mr. Bocanegra, on the 23d of August, 1843, 
 in a letter to Waddy Thompson, our Minister in Mexico, had 
 used the following explicit language : — 
 
 « His Excellency, the Provisional President, resting on this 
 deep conviction, is obliged to prevent an aggression unprece- 
 dented in the annals of the world from being consummated ; and 
 if it be indispensable for the Mexican nation to seek security for 
 its rights at the expense of the disasters of war, it will call upon 
 God, and rely on its own efforts for the defence of its just cause." 
 
 In November of the same year. General Almonte, the Mexican 
 Minister at Washington, protested against the act of annexation 
 in the following solemn manner : — 
 
 " But if, contrary to the hopes and wishes entertained by the 
 government of the undersigned for the preservation of the good 
 understanding and harmony which should reign between the two 
 neighbouring and friendly republics, the United States should, in 
 defiance of good faith and the principles of justice which they 
 have constantly proclaimed, commit the unheard-of act of vio- 
 lence of appropriating to themselves an integrant part of the 
 Mexican territory, the undersigned, in the name of his nation, 
 and now for them, protests in the most solemn manner against 
 such an aggression ; and he moreover declares, by express order 
 of his government, that on sanction being given by the Executive 
 of the Union to the incorporation of Texas into the United States, 
 he will consider his mission ended, seeing that, as the Secretary 
 
MEASURES FOR THE DEFENCE OF TEXAS. 53 
 
 of State will have learned, the Mexican government is resolved 
 to declare war as soon as it receives intimation of such an act." 
 
 Though the treaty of annexation was defeated, the subject was 
 favourably entertained by the people, who feared that the fertile 
 province offered to them would, by a union with England, be- 
 come in some measure a rival. The following extract from a 
 letter of General Jackson of the date of January 1st, 1845, shows 
 the importance of the subject : — 
 
 " I have just received from Major Donelson, a letter dated at 
 Washington, in Texas, from which I would infer, that if Con- 
 gress expect to annex Texas to the United States, they must act 
 speedily, or it will be found to be beyond our grasp. The 
 rejection of the advances of Texas has given offence to some, 
 and a handle to others to press the liberal propositions of England 
 upon the Texans, together with the splendid view of Texas 
 independent, growing into a vast republic, in time to embrace 
 not only the limits of Texas, but all the domain once Monte- 
 zuma's. This \-iew, to ambitious aspirants, added to the 
 guaranties of England of her independence, and the loan of 
 large sums for ten years, based upon a treaty that English manu- 
 factures shall be free of duty, is gaining a party in Texas. 
 General Houston is still the leading star ; and his influence alone 
 can be counted upon to resist the present influence of England 
 and its increasing power. How long this influence of England 
 can be successfully withstood in Texas, is becoming a very 
 questionable matter. I have taken a view of the whole ground, 
 giving to all information its due weight, and I say to you that, 
 unless Congress acts upon this subject promptly, Texas will be 
 beyond our grasp, and lost to the United States for ever, unless 
 regained by the sword. What will be the situation of our 
 country, with British manufactures introduced duty free into 
 Texas ? Comment is unnecessary. 
 
 " I hazard nothing in saying, that, if the present Congress do 
 
54 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 not act promptly upon this subject, the next will not have the 
 power. The consent of Texas cannot then be obtained. Great 
 Britain will have laid the lion's paw upon her, and bound her 
 by treaty." 
 
 During the session of 1844-45, the subject engaged the 
 attention of Congress, and on the 1st of March, 1845, a joint 
 resolution passed the two houses of Congress annexing Texas to 
 the United States. We extract the principal part of the resolution, 
 as we shall have occasion to refer to it hereafter : — 
 
 " Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
 United States of America in Congress assembled : That Congress 
 doth consent that the territory properly included within and right- 
 fully belonging to the Republic of Texas, may be erected into a 
 new state, to be called the State of Texas, with a republican form 
 of government to be adopted by the people of said republic by 
 deputies in convention assembled, with the consent of the exist- 
 ing government, in order that the same may be admitted as one 
 of the states of this Union. 
 
 «' Section \st. And be it further resolved, That the foregoing con- 
 sent of Congress is given upon the following conditions, to wit : — 
 " First. Said state to be formed subject to the adjustment by this 
 government of all questions of boundary that may arise with 
 other governments ; and the constitution thereof, with the proper 
 evidence of its adoption by the people of the said Republic 
 of Texas, shall be transmitted to the President of the United 
 States, to be laid before Congress for its final action, on or before 
 the 1st of January, 1846." 
 
 Immediately after learning that this resolution was signed by 
 the President of the United States, General Almonte, the Mexican 
 Minister, protested against it in the name of his government, 
 demanded his passports, and left the country. 
 
 As soon as the annexation of Texas became known in Mexico, 
 Senor Cuevas,'the Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the 23d of 
 
■;C)MMniiOi; !•: DAVLD CONNER 
 
MEASURES FOR THE DEFENCE OF TEXAS. 55 
 
 March addressed a long memorial to the Chambers upon the 
 subject, in which he stated his reliance upon the interference of 
 foreign powers ; at the same time he notified the American Minis- 
 ter, Mr. Shannon, that all diplomatic intercourse between Mexico 
 and tlie United States was at an end. He addressed also a 
 circular to the ministers resident of all the foreign powers, m 
 which he protested against the injustice of the United States, 
 and announced the intention of Mexico to resist it ; and on 
 the 22d of March sent despatches to the governors of the 
 different departments throughout the republic, asking their 
 assistance to sustain the government and maintain the rights of 
 the nation. On the 7th of April, the joint committee of the 
 Mexican Congress to whom the memorial on the affairs of Texas 
 had been referred, made a report, in which they asserted their 
 right to Texas, and the duty to take up arms for its recovery ; and 
 made the most urgent appeals to the patriotism of the people to 
 prevent its usurpation. 
 
 Meanwhile the American government, satisfied that Texas 
 would accept the terms of annexation, had taken precautionary 
 measures for the protection of the country. An efficient military 
 force was concentrated on the frontier of Texas, under the com- 
 mand of Brigadier-General Zachary Taylor, who had distinguished 
 himself in the Florida war ; and a strong squadron under Captain 
 Stockton was ordered to the Gulf of Mexico, with instructions to 
 co-operate with the army. 
 
 By a despatch of the 21st of March, 1845, General Taylor, then 
 at Fort Jesup, in Louisiana, was ordered to hold his troops in 
 readiness to march into Texas upon notification by the Depart- 
 ment of War. Subsequent to this, on the 28th of May, the Secre- 
 tary of War reiterated the above instructions as follows : — 
 
 " Sir : I am directed by the President to cause the forces now 
 under your command, a'nd those which may be assigned to it, to 
 be put into a position where they may most promptly and effi- 
 
56 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ciently act in defence of Texas, in the event it shall become 
 necessary or proper to employ them for that purpose. The in- 
 formation received by the Executive of the United States warrants 
 the belief that Texas will shortly accede to the terms of annexa- 
 tion. As soon as the Texan Congress shall have given its consent 
 to annexation, and a convention shall assemble and accept the 
 terms offered in the resolutions of Congress, Texas will then be 
 regarded by the executive government here so far a part of the 
 United States as to be entitled from this government to defence 
 and protection from foreign invasion and Indian incursions. The 
 troops under your command will be placed and kept in readiness 
 to perform this duty." 
 
 On the 15th of June, in accordance with a requisition of Mr. 
 Donelson, the American C/mrge (TAff'aires in Texas, Mr. Bancroft, 
 the acting Secretary of War, addressed to Taylor the following 
 confidential letter of instructions, which we give entire on account 
 of its importance : — 
 
 "War Department, June 15, 1845. 
 
 " Sir: On the 4th day of July next, or very soon thereafter, the 
 convention of the people of Texas will probably accept the pro- 
 position of annexation, under the joint resolutions of the late Con- 
 gress of the United States. That acceptance will constitute 
 Texas an integral portion of our country. 
 
 " In anticipation of that event, you will forthwith make a forward 
 movement with the troops under your command, and advance to 
 the mouth of the Sabine, or to such other point on the Gulf of 
 Mexico, or its navigable waters, as in your judgment may be 
 most convenient for an embarkation at the proper time for the 
 western frontier of Texas. 
 
 " In leaving to your judgment to decide the route, it is intended 
 that you choose the most expeditious, having due regard to the 
 health and efficiency of the troops, on reaching the point of desti- 
 nation. 
 
LETTEB OF INSTRUCTIONS. 57 
 
 " The force under your immediate command, at and near Fort 
 Jesup, to be put in motion on the receipt of these instructions, 
 will be the 3d and 4th regiments of infantry, and seven compa- 
 nies of the 2d regiment of dragoons. The two absent companies 
 of the 4th infantry have been ordered to join their regiments. 
 Artillery will be ordered from New Orleans. 
 
 " It is understood that suitable forage for cavalry cannot be ob- 
 tained in the region which the troops are to occupy ; if this be 
 so, the dragoons must leave their horses and serve as riflemen. 
 But it is possible that horses of the country, accustomed to sub- 
 sist on meagre forage, may be procured, if it be found necessary. 
 You will therefore take the precaution to order a portion of the 
 cavalry equipments to accompany the regiment, with a view to 
 mounted service. 
 
 " The point of your ultimate destination is the western frontier 
 of Texas, where you will select and occupy, on or near the Rio 
 Grande del Norte, such a site as will consist with the health of 
 the troops, and will be best adapted to repel invasion, and to 
 protect what, in the event of annexation, will be our western 
 border. You will limit yourself to the defence of the territory 
 of Texas, unless Mexico should declare war against the United 
 States. 
 
 " Your movement to the Gulf of Mexico, and your preparations 
 to embark for the western frontier of Texas, are to be made with- 
 out any delay ; but you will not effect a landing on that frontier 
 until you have yourself ascertained the due acceptance of Texas 
 of the proffered terms of annexation, or until you receive direc- 
 tions from Mr. Donelson. 
 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 GEORGE BANCROFT. 
 
 To Brigadier-General Z. Taylok, 
 
 U. S. Army, commanding 1st deft. Fort Jesup, La.'' 
 
58 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 This letter was forwarded to General Taylor by an express, 
 and immediately upon its receipt, the army was put in motion. 
 On the 2d of July, the 4th Infantry embarked on steamers, and 
 arrived at New Orleans on the 4th. The 3d Infantry left Fort 
 Jesup on the 7th, and reached New Orleans on the 10th. Gene- 
 ral Taylor and staff remained at Fort Jesup to arrange affairs for 
 the departure of the Dragoons, and did not join the troops until 
 the 15th. On the 19th, Lieutenant Bragg, with the 3d Artillery, 
 arrived from Charleston, and joined the Army of Occupation. 
 Here the general received the following despatch, which modi- 
 fied his former instructions : — 
 
 " War Department, July 8, 1845. 
 
 " Sir : This department is informed that Mexico has some 
 military establishments on the east side of the Rio Grande, 
 which are, and for some time have been, in the actual occupancy 
 of her troops. In carrying out the instructions heretofore re- 
 ceived, you will be careful to avoid any acts of aggression, unless 
 an actual state of war should exist. The Mexican forces at the 
 posts in their possession, and which have been so, will not be 
 disturbed as long as the relations of peace between the United 
 States and Mexico continue. 
 
 WM. L. MARCY. 
 
 Brigadier-General Z. Taylor."' 
 
 The line of policy herein enjoined was much in accordance 
 with the views of General Taylor, as appears in the following 
 reply :— 
 
 " Head- Quarters First Military Department,! 
 New Orleans, La., July 20, 1845. J 
 
 "Sir: I respectfully acknowledge your communication of 
 
 July 8, covering the instructions of the Secretary of War of the 
 
 same date, relative to the Mexican settlements on this side of 
 
 the Rio Grande. Those instructions will be closely obeyed ; 
 
TERMS OF ANNEXATION ACCEPTED. 59 
 
 and the department may rest assured that I will take no step to 
 interrupt the friendly relations between the United States and 
 Mexico. I am gratified at receiving these instructions, as they 
 confirm my views, previously communicated, in regard to the 
 proper line to be occupied at present by our troops. 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. Jl., commanding. 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army,. Washington, D. C." 
 
 A despatch from Major Donelson, dated at Austin, July 7th, 
 reached New Orleans on the 21st, and informed General Taylor 
 that the Convention of Texas had unanimously accepted the 
 terras of annexation, and the following day the troops embarked 
 for Texas. On the morning of the 26th of July they reached St. 
 Joseph's Island, in Aransas Bay, where they were temporarily 
 established ; and on the 31st the Army of Occupation took posi- 
 tion at Corpus Christi. This location was at once healthy, easily 
 supplied, and well situated to hold in observation the course of 
 the Rio Grande from Matamoros to Laredo. While here the 
 troops were regularly practised in the different evolutions and 
 manoeuvres of war, and reconnoissances were made wdth reference 
 to an advance of the army towards the Rio Grande. Mean- 
 while Mexico made no declaration of war, and adopted no mea- 
 sures that looked like a determination to invade Texas. This 
 induced the United States Executive to suppose that Mexico 
 would be willing to settle the existing diflRculties by diplomacy ; 
 and accordingly, Mr. Buchanan, the Secretary of State, by 
 means of an indirect correspondence with Mr. Black, the Ameri- 
 can Consul of Mexico, attempted to renew negotiations with the 
 Mexican cabinet. The government was evidently in favour of 
 adjusting all difficulties with the United States, and agreed to re- 
 ceive an envoy for that purpose ; but, fearing the prejudices of 
 10 
 
80 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 the Mexican people, who were in favour of war, stipulated that, 
 to avoid all appearance of coercion, the person deputed should be 
 of a conciliatory disposition, and that before his arrival, the 
 naval force of the United States should be withdrawn from Vera 
 Cruz, where it lay in sight. Commodore Conner, who was now 
 in command of the squadron, promptly withdrew the naval force, 
 as requested. No doubt whatever can be entertained that Presi- 
 dent Herrera and his cabinet were desirous of peace ; but before 
 the minds of the Mexican people had been prepared for the re- 
 newal of friendly relations, the American envoy, Mr. Slidell, 
 appeared and pressed his reception with earnestness, which 
 greatly embarrassed the action of the administration. The 
 council of government was to a great extent in open opposition 
 to the Executive and his cabinet, and, instead of forwarding the 
 movement in favour of negotiation, made it the subject of intrigue 
 against the administration, with the view of overthrowing it. In 
 consequence of this the Mexican government refused to receive 
 Mr. Slidell, upon a point of etiquette, that having recalled her resi- 
 dent Minister, and dissolved the relations between the two coun- 
 tries, Mexico could not receive again a resident Minister from the 
 United States, until a special envoy had by negotiations arranged 
 the difficulties in relation to Texas. This will appear from the 
 following extract of a letter from Mr. Black to Mr. Slidell, detail- 
 ing the substance of a conversation between him and Pena y 
 Pena, the Mexican Minister of Foreign Affairs : — 
 
 " On Saturday evening, the 13th instant, at the request of 
 Mr. Slidell, I called on the Mexican Minister, Senor Pena, at 
 his house, to inquire when an answer would be given to his 
 (Mr. Slidell's) aforesaid note. He replied, that the affair had 
 been submitted to the government council, in a special session 
 of this day, and that it had been referred to a committee, and 
 that as soon as the committee made a report, and the council 
 should decide, he would then advise me, through Mr. Monas- 
 
GENERAL HOUSTON'S ORDERS. 61 
 
 terio, when he was ready for the conference to present to me 
 the answer for Mr. Slidell ; as he said when he came to ex- 
 amine the credentials of Mr. Slidell, he found them to be the same 
 as those presented by Mr. Shannon, and other former Ministers — 
 as a Minister to reside near the government of Mexico, just as if 
 there had been no suspension of the diplomatic and friendly rela- 
 tions between the two governments ; that the Mexican government 
 understood the present mission to be a special mission, and con- 
 fined to the differences in relation to the Texas question, and not 
 as a mission to reside near the Mexican government, as in ordi- 
 nary cases ; that of course would follow when the first question 
 was decided. 
 
 " I replied, that as I understood it, the Mexican government had 
 not only agreed to receive an envoy intrusted with full powers to 
 settle the question in dispute in relation to the affairs of Texas, 
 but all the questions in dispute between the two governments, 
 as proposed by the government of the United States. He replied 
 that the credentials of Mr. Slidell had not reference to any ques- 
 tions in dispute, but merely as a Minister to reside near the Mexi- 
 can government, without reference to any questions in dispute, 
 just as if tlie diplomatic and friendly relations between the two 
 governments had not been and were not interrupted ; that I knew 
 the critical situation of the Mexican government, and that it had 
 to proceed with great caution and circumspection in this affair ; 
 that the government itself was well disposed to arrange all differ- 
 ences." 
 
 The principal reason, however, that influenced the Executive in 
 coming to this decision, was the fear of an anticipated revolution, 
 which took place but nine days after, and caused the overthrow 
 of Herrera's administration in favour of General Paredes, who 
 was a military despot, and hostile to the United States. 
 
 Mr. Slidell now retired to Jalapa, and again made overtures to 
 the Mexican government to renew their friendly relations by re- 
 
e*2 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ceiving him as "Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipoten- 
 tiary to reside near the government of Mexico ;" but the admin- 
 istration of Paredes, adhering to the resolve of the former 
 administration, which had been accused of treason on account 
 of being favourably disposed to the United States, refused to 
 receive Mr. Slidell in any other character than that of a special 
 envoy to treat upon the subject of Texas alone. This will 
 appear more fully from an extract of a letter of Senor Castillo 
 y Lunas, dated March 12th, 1846 :— 
 
 " From these extracts it is manifest that it was the firm 
 intention of the Mexican government to admit only a plenipo- 
 tentiary from the United States clothed with powers ad hoc — that 
 is to say, special powers to treat upon the question of Texas, and 
 upon this alone as preliminary to the renewal of friendly relations 
 between the two countries, if the result should be such as to 
 admit of their restoration ; and then, but not before, of the 
 reception of an Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary 
 near the same government. 
 
 "Nor could the government of the republic on that occasion 
 extend its engagement beyond this ; for to admit any person sent 
 by the United States in the character simply of the ordinary 
 agents between friendly nations, whilst the grave question of 
 Texas was still pending, directly and immediately affecting, as 
 it does, the integrity of the Mexican territory, and the very 
 nationality itself, would be equivalent to an acknowledgment 
 that this question was at an end, thus prejudging it without even 
 touching it, and to a recognition that the relations of friendship 
 and harmony between the two nations were from that moment in 
 fact re-established." 
 
 Immediately on the receipt of this note, Mr. Slidell demanded 
 his passports, and returned to the United States. 
 
 Notwithstanding the hostile attitude of Mexico, war might 
 -have been avoided if time had been allowed for the prejudices 
 
LETTER FROM TAYLOR. 63 
 
 and animosity of the people against the United States to subside. 
 It is true Mexico had signified an intention to declare war and 
 invade Texas, but would never have done so if she had not been 
 provoked by the advance of the army of the United States. To 
 substantiate this opinion, we should call to mind, that immediately 
 after the battle of San Jacinto, the Mexican government had or- 
 dered an invasion of Texas, but never carried her order into exe- 
 cution. General Almonte had solemnly stated, in the event of 
 the annexation of Texas, " the Mexican government is resolved 
 to declare war as soon as it receives intimation of such an act," 
 yet Mexico made no declaration of war. 
 
 And such would have been the issue of all the threats about 
 the subjugation of Texas after its annexation to the United 
 States. Even Paredes, who was known to be hostile to the 
 United States, had declared in his manifesto to the people that 
 " until the National Congress had considered the question, no act 
 of aggression would be committed against the United States by 
 the Mexican government, but that it would repel any that might 
 be offered by them." 
 
 It is e^^dent alike from the letters of General Taylor and of the 
 War Department, that while the army remained at Corpus 
 Christi, war was not expected by either. The following letters 
 will show this to be the case : — 
 
 "Head- Quarters, Army of Occupation, % 
 Corpus Christi, Texas, Sept. 6, 1845. J 
 
 " Sir : I have the honour to report that a confidential agent, de- 
 spatched some days since to Matamoras, has returned, and 
 reports that no extraordinary preparations are going forword 
 there ; that the garrison does not seem to have been increased, 
 and that our consul is of opinion there will be no declaration of 
 war. A decree had been issued prohibiting, under penalty of 
 death, any communication, by writing, across the frontier — a 
 
64 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 precaution which has been adopted on former occasions, and 
 caused, no doubt, by our presence here. Nothing definite can 
 be learned in relation to the march of troops from the interior. 
 A body of 3,000 men was reported in march to Matamoros, but 
 the information is too vague to merit much confidence. The 
 agent, who is intelligent, and upon whose statements a good deal 
 of reliance may, I think, be safely placed, says that the mass of 
 the people, with whom he mingled, is opposed to a war with us, 
 and that if war be declared, the frontier departments of Tamau- 
 lipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo Leon, will probably declare them- 
 selves independent of the central government and establish pacific 
 relations with us. 
 
 « This is the substance of the information brought from Mata- 
 moros. Notwithstanding its character, I shall not relax my exer- 
 tions to prepare for active operations and a state of war with 
 Mexico. I must express the hope that no militia force will be or- 
 dered to join me without my requisition for it. I am entirely con- 
 fident that none will be required. 
 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. A. commcmding. 
 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Washington, D. C." 
 
 Subsequent to the reception of the above, and while admitting 
 there was no probability of war, the Executive, through his secre- 
 tary, directed an advance to the Rio Grande, into territory Avhich 
 was in dispute, and which had never been held by Texas at all : — 
 
 " War Department,; 
 Washington, Oct. 16, 1845. 
 
 } 
 
 « Sir : The information which we have here, renders it probable 
 that no serious attempts will, at present, be made by Mexico to 
 invade Texas, although she continues to threaten incursions. Pre- 
 vious instructions will have put you in possession of the views of 
 
LETTER FROM MARCV. 05 
 
 the government of the United States, not only as to the extent of 
 its territorial claims, but of its determination to assert them. In 
 carrying out these instructions, you will be left very much to your 
 own judgment, by reason of your superior knowledge of localities, 
 and the earlier notice you may receive of the probable views of 
 Mexico, and the movements of her troops. 
 
 " On the supposition that no active operations on your part will 
 be required during the approaching winter, an important question 
 to be decided is the position or positions to be occupied by your 
 forces. This must be determined mainly with reference to the 
 objects for w^hich the army under your command was sent into 
 Texas. You will approach as near the western boundary of 
 Texas (the Rio Grande) as circumstances will permit ; having 
 reference to reasonable security ; to accommodations for putting 
 your troops into winter huts, if deemed necessary ; to the facility 
 and certainty of procuring or receiving supplies ; and to checking 
 any attempted incursions by the Mexican forces or the Indian 
 
 tribes. 
 
 ******* 
 
 "You are requested to avail yourself of all proper occasions, 
 and employ the means you possess to collect information in re- 
 gard to all these matters, and forward it to this department. 
 
 ''Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 WM. L. MARCY, 
 
 Secretary of War. 
 Brigadier-General Z. Taylor, 
 
 Commanding Arviy of Occupation in Texas." 
 
 While efforts were making to restore diplomatic relations be- 
 tween the two countries, and long before the Mexican govern- 
 ment had finally refused to receive the United States' envoy, the 
 President had ordered the advance of the army to the left bank 
 of the Rio Grande, and a strong fleet into the Gulf of Mexico, 
 and thus precluded all hopes of accommodation : 
 
^ HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 " War Department, j 
 Washington, January 13, 1846.5 
 
 " Sir : I am directed by the President to instruct you to advance 
 and occupy, with the troops under your command, positions on 
 or near the east bank of the Rio del Norte, as soon as it can be 
 conveniently done with reference to the season and the routes by 
 which your movements must be made. From the views hereto- 
 fore presented to this department, it is presumed Point Isabel 
 will be considered by you an eligible position. This point, or 
 some one near it, and points opposite Matamoros and Mier, and 
 in the vicinity of Laredo, are suggested for your consideration ; 
 but you are left to your better knowledge to determine the post 
 or posts which you are to occupy, as well as the question of divi- 
 ding your forces with a view to occupying two or more positions. 
 
 " In the positions you may take in carrying out these instructions 
 and other movements that may be made, the use of the Rio del 
 Norte may be very convenient, if not necessary. Should you 
 attempt to exercise the right which the United States have in 
 common with Mexico to the free navigation of this river, it is 
 probable that Mexico would interpose resistance. You will not 
 attempt to enforce this right without further instructions. 
 
 " You are requested to report to this department, without delay, 
 what means you may require, if any, beyond those you now pos- 
 sess, to enforce and maintain our common right to navigate this 
 river, as well as your views of the importance of this right in the 
 defence and protection of the State of Texas. 
 
 " It is not designed, in our present relations with Mexico, that 
 you should treat her as an enemy ; but, should she assume that 
 character by a declaration of war, or any open act of hostility 
 towards us, you will not act merely on the defensive, if your re- 
 lative means enable you to do otherwise. 
 
 " Since instructions were given you to draw aid from Texas, in 
 case you should deem it necessary, the relations between that 
 
BOUNDARY OF TEXAS. 67 
 
 State and the United States have undergone some modification. 
 Texas is now fully incorporated into our Union of States, and you 
 are hereby authorized by the President to make a requisition 
 upon the Executive of that state for such of its militia force as 
 may be needed to repel invasion or to secure the country against 
 apprehended invasion. 
 
 " I have the honour to be, with great respect, your obedient 
 ser^•ant, 
 
 WM. L. MARCY, 
 
 Secretary of War. 
 
 Brigadier General Z. Taylor." 
 
 The President, in his annual message to Congress, assigned 
 the following reasons for ordering the advance of the American 
 troops : — 
 
 "Instructions have been issued to the general in command, to 
 occupy the left bank of the Del Norte. This river, which is the 
 south-western boundary of the state of Texas, is an exposed 
 frontier ; from this quarter invasion was threatened ; upon it and 
 in its immediate vicinity, in the judgment of high military expe- 
 rience, are the proper stations for the protecting forces of the 
 government. In addition to this important consideration, several 
 others have occurred to induce this movement. Among these 
 are the facilities afforded by the ports at Brazos Santiago and the 
 mouth of the Del Norte, for the reception of supplies by sea ; the 
 stronger and more healthful military positions ; the convenience 
 for obtaining a ready and a more abundant supply of provisions, 
 water, fuel, and forage ; and the advantages which are afforded 
 by the Del Norte, in forwarding supplies to such ports as maybe 
 established in the interior and upon the Indian frontier." 
 
 Now, were it true that the Rio Grande del Norte was the south- 
 western boundary of the republic of Texas, the advance of the 
 American army to that river for the defence of Texas, would 
 have been justifiable. But let us consider this subject, and see 
 11 
 
68 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 if it really was the boundary of the Texas annexed to the United 
 States. That the Rio Grande was the ancient boundary of Texas, 
 all must admit. While Texas belonged severally to France, to 
 the United States, and to Spain, it was the acknowledged bound- 
 ary. So Mexico received it upon the downfall of the Spanish 
 power in that country. Holding now the entire country by right 
 of revolution and by subjugation, it must be admitted that Mexico 
 could make any partitions of her own territory, and establish any 
 domestic boundaries which she deemed expedient. In doing 
 this, she was at perfect liberty to abridge the extent of Texas, or 
 amplify it by any additions from the territoiy of Mexico proper. 
 In her internal divisions, Mexico saw fit to assign a portion of 
 the territory east of the Rio Grande that had been included in the 
 ancient Texas, to the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Chihua- 
 hua, and established the original line between Texas, Tamaulipas, 
 and Coahuila, on the river Aransas, thirty miles east of the 
 Nueces. This, then, was the boundary of Texas, when jointly 
 with Coahuila it was admitted as a state into the Mexican Con- 
 federation. 
 
 This was its boundary when the unconstitutional establishment 
 of a central government and military despotism resolved the 
 Mexican Confederacy into its original elements, and thus left to 
 each integrant portion the right to organize a government of its 
 own. By right of revolution the people of Texas declared their 
 independence, and established a government. This simple act, 
 however, did not extend her boundaries. The independent re- 
 public of Texas would, of necessity, now be within the same 
 metes and bounds that the state or department of Texas had been 
 while a part of the Mexican confederacy, unless additions were 
 made to it by annexation, or by conquest. To a certain extent, 
 its boundaries were enlarged ; for the people of Tamaulipas, living 
 between the Aransas and the Nueces, and those in the valley of the 
 Nueces to the west of that river as far as the great desert, united 
 
THE TEXAN BOUNDARY CONSIDERED. 69 
 
 with the Texans in their revolt, and after the independence of 
 Texas was declared, associated themselves with them in forming 
 their government. They were thus annexed to Texas or subjuga- 
 ted by it, and became a part of Texas. The boundary of Texas, 
 then, by revolutionary right or by subjugation, now became the 
 great desert west of the valley of the Nueces. Up to this boundary 
 the people had united in the Texan revolution, acknowledged the 
 laws of Texas after the government was formed, and paid taxes 
 for its support. 
 
 From the great desert west to the valley of the Rio Grande 
 were Mexican settlements, composed of those born under Mexi- 
 can laws — citizens of the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Chi- 
 huahua, who had not revolted with the Texans, but had always 
 acknowledged the Mexican authority, and given it a ready sup- 
 port. Over these Texas had no control. She had not subjugated 
 them ; she exercised no jurisdiction over them ; she attempted 
 none, either to ser\'e process, collect taxes, or enforce laws. 
 True, the Congress of Texas, by act of December 19th, 1836, 
 declared the Rio Grande, from its mouth to its source, to be their 
 boundary ; but with what propriety, or on what grounds ? They 
 might have gone further, and with equal justness declared the 
 San Fernando to be the boundary. It is one thing to declare 
 right to territory, on paper, and another to take it by conquest, 
 and maintain it by arms. To the country lying between the 
 desert and the Rio Grande, Texas had the same right that she 
 had to the state of Zacatecas or New Leon, and no more. It was 
 a claim simply asserted on paper, but founded upon no right, 
 maintained by no force. The declaration of the Rio Grande as 
 boundary by the Congress of Texas, according to a statement of 
 Judge Ellis, who was President of the convention that formed 
 the constitution, was an act of policy with the sole view of giving 
 siifficient margin in the negotiation loith Mexico, and with no ex- 
 pectation of so retaining it. 
 
70 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 The above historical facts and inferences show that Texas had 
 no just claim to the country up to the Rio Grande ; and conse- 
 quently we could have none. What follows will make the truth 
 more apparent. In the first place, President Tyler, who concluded 
 the treaty of annexation which was rejected by the Senate, did 
 not consider the Rio Grande as the certain boundary of Texas. 
 Hence Mr. Calhoun, the Secretary of State, in his letter to Mr. 
 Green, our Charge at Mexico, says : — " You are enjoined also, by 
 the President, to assure the Mexican government, that it is his 
 desire to settle all questions between the two countries which may 
 grow out of this treaty, or any other cause, on the most liberal 
 and satisfactory terms, including that of boundary.''^ And again, 
 speaking of the government of the United States, says: — "It had 
 left the boundary of Texas without specification, so that what the 
 line of boundary should be, might be an open question to be fairly 
 and fully discussed and settled according to the rights of each — 
 the mutual interests and security of the two countries." 
 
 The Executive that ordered the advance to the Rio Grande, 
 indirectly admits that our claim was not just ; for the American 
 Minister, Mr. Shannon, acting under his instructions, when about 
 to leave Mexico, in his letter to the Minister of Foreign Aflfairs, 
 states : — " The undersigned can assure his excellency Senor 
 Cuevas that his (Mr. Shannon's) government entertains the live- 
 liest desire to cultivate amicable relations with that of Mexico ; 
 and here he will improve this opportunity to repeat that which he 
 has before communicated to the government of Mexico, to wit, 
 that the United States has not adopted the measure of annexation 
 in any spirit of hostility towards Mexico, and that the United 
 States are anxious to settle all questions which may grow out of 
 this measure, including that of boundaries, in terms the most just 
 and liberal." 
 
 The liberal terms referred to, in connexion with boundaries, could 
 have reference only to the purchase of territory. The same is 
 
THE TEXAN BOUNDARY CONSIDERED. 71 
 
 apparent from the letters of Mr. Slidell, who was sent to arrange 
 all matters in dispute between the two governments. 
 
 It is evident that the Congress of the United States did not 
 believe the claim of Texas to the Rio Grande tenable, for in the 
 joint resolution of annexation, the language is: — "The territory 
 properly included within and rightfully belonging to Texas." 
 Indeed, the very phraseology employed was in consequence of a 
 common conviction in the Senate, that Texas' claim to territory 
 up to the Rio Grande was not just. In accordance with this belief, 
 it was further resolved, that the United States should adjust all 
 questions of boundary, the only one in dispute being the boundary 
 between Texas and Mexico. The language employed was as 
 follows : — 
 
 " Section 1st. And he it further resolved, That the foregoing con- 
 sent of Congress is given upon the following conditions, to wit : — 
 
 " First, said state to be formed subject to the adjustment by this 
 government of all questions of boundary that may arise with other 
 governments." 
 
 The following!: resolution offered in the United States Senate 
 by Senator Benton, will place the matter in a stronger light : — 
 
 " Resolved, That the incorporation of the left bank of the Rio del 
 Norte into the American Union , by virtue of a treaty with Texas, 
 comprehending, as the said incorporation would do, a part of the 
 Mexican departments of New Mexico, Chihuahua, Coahuila, 
 and Tamaulipas, would be an act of direct aggression on Mexico, 
 for all the consequences of which the United States would stand 
 responsible." 
 
 I shall now show that our agent sent to Texas, Mr. Donelson, 
 did not regard the claim of Texas as just, to the country lying on 
 the Rio Grande. This is apparent in his letter to the Secretary of 
 State, under date of June 23d, 1845, in which he says: — "The 
 territory between the Nueces and the Rio Grande, you are aware, 
 has been in possession of both parties. Texas has held in peace 
 
72 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Corpus Christi. Mexico has held Santiago, Both parties have 
 had occasional possession of Laredo and other higher points. 
 Mexico, however, has threatened a renewal of war for the whole 
 of Texas, if she accepts the proposals for the annexation to the 
 Union. If she undertakes such an expedition, she of course puts 
 upon the hazard of war the whole claim, and gives us tJie right of 
 going not only to the Rio Grande, but wherever else we may please ^'' 
 In a note to the Secretary, under date of July 2d, 1845, Mr. 
 Donelson reiterates the same : — 
 
 "My position is, that we can hold Corpus Christi and all other 
 points up the Nueces. If attacked, the right of defence will au- 
 thorize us to expel the Mexicans to tJie Rio Grande. ^^ 
 
 In a letter to General Taylor, of June 28th, Mr. Donelson uses 
 language of the same import :- 
 
 " The occupation of the country between the Nueces and the 
 Rio Grande, you are aware, is a disputed question. Texas holds 
 Corpus Christi ; Mexico holds Santiago, near the mouth of the 
 
 Rio Grande. 
 
 ******* 
 
 "You can safely hold possession of Corpus Christi and all other 
 points up the Nueces, and if Mexico attempts to dislodge you, 
 drive her beyond the Rio Grande.' 
 
 The views which Mr. Donelson entertained respecting the real 
 claim of Texas, were perfectly just. She was entitled to Corpus 
 Christi and the settlements on the Nueces, east of the great desert, 
 but to no territory beyond the desert. 
 
 More than this, in the preliminary treaty between Texas and 
 Mexico, signed by the Texan Secretary of State, and approved 
 by the President of Texas, the Texans themselves admitted the 
 boundary between them and Mexico to be an unsettled question, 
 as will appear from the 3d and 4th articles : — 
 
 « 3. Limits and other conditions to be matter of arrangement 
 in the final treaty. 
 
THE TEXAN BOUNDARY CONSIDERED. 73 
 
 " 4. Texas will be willing to re7nit disputed points respecting 
 territory and other matters to the arbitration of umpires." 
 
 In a letter to Mr. Buchanan, of July 11th, 1845, Mr. Donelson 
 shows the impropriety of vindicating by arms a claim to the 
 territory on the Rio Grande, which Texas herself had agreed to 
 settle by arbitration : — 
 
 " The proclamation of a truce between the two nations (Mexico 
 and Texas), founded on propositions mutually acceptable to them, 
 leaving the question of boundary not only an open one, but 
 Mexico in possession of the east hank of the Rio Grande, seemed 
 to me inconsistent with the expectation that in defence of the 
 claim of Texas, our troops should march immediately to that 
 river. What the Executive of Texas had determined not to fight 
 for, but to settle by negotiation, to say the least of it, could be as 
 well left to the United States on the same conditions." 
 
 The above views of Mr. Donelson on the question of the bound- 
 ary of Texas, were consonant both with justice and prudence, 
 and in direct opposition to the course pursued by the Executive 
 of the United States. 
 
 But further, while the President claimed the territory as far as 
 the Rio Grande, we were accustomed to pay duties to Mexico at 
 the custom-house at Brazos Santiago or Point Isabel. We paid 
 duties also at Santa Fe, far east of the Rio Grande, and we inter- 
 ceded with Mexico for the American citizens taken prisoners in 
 the expedition against that place. 
 
 In March 3d, 1845, Congress passed an act relative to drawbacks 
 on goods sent to " Santa Fe in Mexico." The Secretary of the 
 Treasury, on referring to it in his report in the following Decem- 
 ber, recognises Santa Fe as a part of Mexico. The President 
 of the United States, himself, in the same message in which he 
 claims as the boundary of Texas, <' the Rio Grande from its 
 mouth to its source," in speaking of the victories of our troops, 
 
74 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 admits the futility of the claim in tlie following sentence : — <' By 
 rapid movements the province of JYew Mexico, with Santa Fe, its 
 capital^ has been captured without bloodshed." Moreover, after 
 taking possession of this portion of the Mexican territory, the 
 President provided for the establishment of a military govern- 
 ment, such as would temporarily follow an acquisition of territory 
 by conquest. If he had considered it really a portion of Texas, 
 it would, as a matter of course, have come under the control of 
 the state authorities of Texas, for even the President of the United 
 States could not interfere with the internal government of a 
 sovereign state. 
 
 The foregoing, in connexion with the letter of the Secretary of 
 War, under date of July 8th, 1845, which we have given, and with 
 the official despatch of General Taylor to the Department of War, 
 of the date of February 26th, 1846, conclusively prove that the 
 Rio Grande was not considered the real boundary of Texas, 
 either by Texas herself, by the Congress of the United States, or its 
 Executive, by the agent sent to Texas, by the Secretary of War, 
 or by the commander of the forces sent to occupy Texas. As a 
 military officer, however. General Taylor had no election in the 
 matter, but was bound to obey the directions of the President 
 as Commander-in-chief of the Army and Navy of the United 
 States. 
 
 The following letters from General Taylor to the War Depart- 
 ment, after he was ordered to advance to the Rio Grande, are 
 necessary to an understanding of the causes which led directly to 
 the commencement of hostilities between Mexico and the United 
 States. 
 
 "Head- Quarters, Army of Occupation, i 
 Corpus Christi, Texas, February 4, 1846.5 
 
 "Sir: I respectfully acknowledge the communication of the 
 Secretary of War, dated January 13th, and containing the in- 
 structions of the President to move forward with my force to the 
 
LETTERS FROM TAYLOR. 75 
 
 Rio Grande. I shall lose no time in making the necessary pre- 
 parations for carrying out those instructions. 
 
 <•' The occupation of Point Isabel or Brazos Santiago as a depot 
 will be indispensable. That point, and a position on or near 
 the river opposite Matamoros, will, I think, answer all present 
 purposes. At any rate, I shall not separate my force further 
 until the position of affairs shall render it entirely safe to do so. 
 
 " I propose to abandon this position entirely, as soon after our 
 march as the stores, hospital, &c., can be transferred to St. Jo- 
 seph's Island. It will be necessary to keep up an establishment 
 at that point for the present, although our supplies will come to 
 Point Isabel direct from New Orleans. 
 
 " In reply to the call of the Secretary for information as to what 
 means, if any, will be required ' to .enforce and maintain our 
 common right to navigate' the Rio Grande, I would respectfully 
 state that, until I reach the river and ascertain the condition of 
 things in the frontier states of Mexico, temper of the people, &c., 
 I cannot give any satisfactory answer to the question. I have 
 every reason to believe that the people residing on the river are 
 well disposed towards our government. Our advance to the Rio 
 Grande will itself produce a powerful effect, and it may be that 
 the common navigation of the river will not be disputed. It is 
 very important to us, and will be indispensable when posts are 
 established higher up, as must ultimately be the case. 
 
 " I shall not call for any militia force in addition to what I 
 already have, unless unforeseen circumstances shall render its em- 
 ployment necessary. 
 
 " I beg leave again to call the attention of the Department to 
 the necessity of having our movement and position at Brazos 
 Santiago covered by a small armed vessel. I deem this vitally 
 important, and hope it will meet with favourable consideration. 
 
 " We have no news from the interior of Mexico more recent 
 12 
 
76 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 than that derived from the New Orleans papers of the 26th of 
 January. 
 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. A. commanding. 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Washhigton, D. C." 
 
 " Head- Quarters, Army of Occupation, 
 
 Corpus Christi, Texas, February 26, 1846.! 
 
 .1 
 
 " Sir : I have to report that the preparations for a forward move- 
 ment of this command are now nearly completed. The exami- 
 nations spoken of in my report of the 16th instant have shown 
 the practicability of both routes — by the main land and by Padre 
 Island. The reconnoissance of Padre Island extended to its 
 southern extremity, and included the harbour of Brazos Santiago 
 and Point Isabel ; that of the main route reached to a point near 
 tlie Little Colorado. A depot, with four days' forage, and sub- 
 sistence for the army, will be thrown forward some forty miles, 
 to the Santa Gertrudes. A detachment of two companies, to 
 establish and cover this depot, will march, on the 28th, under 
 Brevet Major Graham. In about a week thereafter, say the 7th 
 of March, the cavalry will march, to be followed, at intervals of 
 one day, by the brigades of infantry. By the 25th of March, at 
 latest, I hope to be in position on the Rio Grande. 
 
 " I have taken occasion to represent to some citizens of Mata- 
 raoros, who were here with a large number of mules for sale, 
 and who are represented to have considerable influence at home, 
 that the United States government, in occupying the Rio Grande, 
 has no motive of hostility towards Mexico, and that the army 
 will, in no case, go beyond the river, unless hostilities should be 
 commenced by the Mexicans themselves; that the Mexicans 
 living on this side will not be disturbed in any way by the 
 troops ; that they will be protected in all their usages ; and that 
 everything which the army may need will be purchased from 
 
TEXAN BOUNDARY. 77 
 
 them at fair prices, I also stated that, until the matter should be 
 finally adjusted between the two governments, the harbour of 
 Brazos Santiago would be open to the free use of the Mexicans 
 as heretofore. The same views were impressed upon the Mexican 
 custom-house ofncer at Brazos Santiago by Captain Hardee, who 
 commanded the escort W'hich covered the reconnoissance of 
 Padre Island. 
 
 " We are entirely without news of interest from the frontier, or 
 the interior of Mexico, our latest date from the capital being the 
 21st of January, and the same from Vera Cruz. 
 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. A. commanding. 
 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Washington, D. C." 
 
 Now, it has been contended by some, that the advance to the 
 llio Grande was not the cause of the war,' — that Mexico would 
 have declared war anyhow, — and that, as Paredes published his 
 manifesto on the 23d of April, 1846, it is impossible that the arri- 
 val of General Taylor upon the Rio Grande, which took place on 
 the 28th of March, could have been reported in Mexico, delibe- 
 rated upon, and orders for the commencement of hostilities for- 
 warded to General Arista, by the 24th of April. But, it wull be 
 recollected, that direction to march to the Rio Grande was given 
 to General Taylor, October 16th, 1845, three months before the 
 peremptory order of the 13th of January ; and that General Tay- 
 lor, while at Corpus Christi, made no secret of the intended 
 advance to the Rio Grande, but openly conversed with influential 
 citizens of Mexico respecting it, with the view of conciliating 
 them. Hence we perceive that, long before he reached the Rio 
 Grande, and possibly before he left Corpus Christi, his intended 
 march was known to the Mexican government. The language 
 of General Taylor, in his letter of February 26th, makes this 
 clear: — " I have taken occasion to represent to some citizens of 
 
78 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Matamoros, who were here with a large number of mules for sale, 
 and who are represented to have considerable influence at home, 
 that the United States government, in occupying the Rio Grande, 
 has no motive of hostility towards Mexico, and that the army will 
 in no case go beyond the river, unless hostilities should be com- 
 menced by the Mexicans themselves." 
 
 In the final note of Sefior Lanzas to Mr. Slidell, dated March 
 12th, from the following passage, it would seem that the Mexican 
 government was already aware of the intended advance of the 
 American army, in which he impugns the sincerity of the United 
 States, which, he says, were ^<^ proposirig peace at the very moment 
 when they are causing their squadrons and their troops to advance 
 upon the ports and frontiers of Mexico, exacting a humiliation im- 
 possible to be submitted to, in order to find a pretext, if no reason 
 can be found, which may occasion the breaking out of hostili- 
 ties." 
 
 But the manifesto of Paredes, which we shall give in the due 
 course of narrative, will itself set the matter at rest, for he ex- 
 pressly states — that he does not declare war, but merely defends 
 the Mexican territory which has been invaded. His language 
 is : — " I solemnly announce that I do not declare war against the 
 United States of America, because it pertains to the august Congress 
 of the nation, andnotto the Executive, to settle definitelythe repara- 
 tion which so many aggressions demand. But the defence of the 
 Mexican territory, which the United States troops invade, is an 
 urgent necessity, and my responsibility would be immense before 
 the nation, if I did not give commands to repel those forces who 
 act like enemies, and I have so commanded. From this day com- 
 mences a defensive war, and those points of our territory which 
 are invaded or attacked, will be energetically defended." 
 
 And, that Paredes knew of the advance of the American army, 
 is beyond dispute ; for in his manifesto he enumerates among the 
 .acts of aggression, the occupation of Padre Island, Point Isabel, 
 
MAJ. GEN. WILLIAM J. WOKTH. 
 
MARCH TO THE RIO GRANDE. 79 
 
 and the right bank of the Rio Bravo : " Meanwhile the army of 
 the United States encamped at Corpus, Christi, and occupied the 
 Ma del Padre; following this, they then moved to tlie Point 
 Santa Isabel^ and their standard of the stars and stripes waved on 
 the right bank of the Rio Bravo del Norte, opposite the city of 
 Matamoros, blockading that river with their vessels of war." 
 
 Now, as the Army of Occupation remained seven months and 
 eleven days at Corpus Christi without interruption, but was im- 
 mediately opposed on passing the bounds over which Texas pos- 
 sessed jurisdiction, it is, I think, sufficiently evident that war 
 would not have ensued, had it not been for the advance of our 
 troops to the Rio Grande, into territory w^hich never belonged to 
 Texas, and which, therefore, she could not annex to us. 
 
 The reconnoissances which General Taylor had ordered being 
 completed, he determined on the route by the main land. Accord- 
 ingly, on the morning of the 8th of March, the advance of the Army 
 of Occupation, under Colonel Twiggs, marched in a southerly 
 direction for the Rio Grande. It consisted of the 2d regiment of 
 dragoons, and Major Ringgold's light artillery, and numbered 
 twenty-three officers and three hundred and seventy-eight men. 
 On the 9th it was followed by the First Brigade, under General 
 Worth, with Duncan's battery ; and on the 10th by the Second Bri- 
 gade, under Lieutenant-Colonel Mcintosh. The Third Brigade, 
 under Colonel Whistler, with Bragg's battery, struck their tents 
 on the 11th, and were followed on the same day by General Tay- 
 lor and his staff. 
 
 Major Monroe embarked for Brazos Santiago, accompanied by 
 Captain Sanders, of the Engineers, and the officers of the ordnance 
 and the pay departments. He had with him a siege-train and a 
 field-battery, which, for want of horses, was of necessity shipped. 
 The movement to Brazos Santiago was covered by the revenue 
 cutter Woodbury. 
 
 Arrangements having been made by the staff departments for 
 
80 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 supplying the army on their march, as well as for establishing a 
 depot at Point Isabel, the commanding general issued an order 
 to the troops, by which he intended to relieve the apprehensions 
 that might be felt by the Mexicans on account of his march into 
 their country. Copies of the order were sent in advance to Mata- 
 moros, Camargo, and Mier. It was as follows : — 
 
 "Order No. 30. 
 
 "Head-Quarters, Army of Occupation, ) 
 Corpus Christi, March 8, 1846. \ 
 
 " The Army of Occupation of Texas being now about to take 
 a position upon the left bank of the Rio Grande, under the orders 
 of the Executive of the United States, the General- in-chief desires 
 to express the hope that the movement will be advantageous to 
 all concerned ; and with the object of attaining this laudable end, 
 he has ordered all under his command to observe, with the most 
 scrupulous respect, the rights of all the inhabitants who may be 
 found in peaceful prosecution of their respective occupations, as 
 well on the left as on the right side of the Rio Grande. Under 
 no pretext, nor in any way, will any interference be allowed with 
 the civil- rights or religious privileges of the inhabitants ; but the 
 utmost respect for them will be maintained. 
 
 " Whatsoever may be needed for the use of the army will be 
 bought by the proper surveyor, and paid for at the highest prices. 
 The General-in-chief has the satisfaction to say that he confides 
 in the patriotism and discipline of the army under his command, 
 and that he feels sure that his orders will be obeyed with the 
 utmost exactness. 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. A. commanding.'''' 
 
 The march of the army was of the most toilsome and exhaust- 
 ing nature. The country over which they moved was sterile, and 
 destitute of vegetation, except the wiry grass of the prairie ; and 
 
MARCH TO THE RIO GRANDE. 81 
 
 its surface was varied only by slight elevations, never rising to 
 the dignity of hills, and by occasional skirtings of stunted wood, 
 in which the musquete and prickly pear were predominant. 
 
 As they proceeded further south, the country became more 
 desolate, till they entered the solitudes of a vast desert, where 
 vegetation was suspended, and the weary soldier, encumbered 
 with his burden, was ready to sink with exhaustion from the 
 heat of a tropic sun and his toilsome progress over loose and 
 burning sands like heated ashes, into which, at every step, the 
 foot descended. At times, when faint with marching and fevered 
 with thirst, the failing energies of nature were exhilarated by the 
 appearance of blue mountains in the distance, beautiful lakes 
 skirted with trees, and fields clothed with verdure — and the sol- 
 dier forgot his suffering and toil in expectation of hospitable 
 shade and refreshing streams,; but as he advanced he either dis- 
 covered that the mirage had spread a false verdure and beauty 
 over barren sands, that mocked his sight, and then faded utterly 
 away, or found the groves he had descried impenetrable thickets 
 of thorn and cactus, that refused him shelter, and the glassy 
 lakes pools of brine, which maddened the thirst they mocked. 
 
 Beyond this, and approaching the Arroya Colorado, the country 
 was much improved in appearance — the wood was increased in 
 quantity and of better gro\yth, and the soil changed from sand to 
 a dark-coloured clay, and covered with vegetation and flowers. 
 The supply of fresh water, too, was abundant, and the troops in 
 a measure forgot the hardships they had passed. 
 
 As General Taylor advanced, he formed a junction of the Dra- 
 goons and First and Second Brigades, and on the 20th he came 
 to the Arroya Colorado, a narrow inlet of the sea, where the 
 enemy made some demonstrations of an intention to resist his 
 march. After ordering a reconnoissance, he made dispositions to 
 cross the river, and effected the passage without opposition from 
 
82 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN "WAR. 
 
 the enemy. The following letter to the War Department gives a 
 detailed account of the affair : — 
 
 " Head-Quakteks, Akmy of Occupation, ) 
 Camp Three Miles south of the Arroya Colorado, March 21, 1846. ) 
 
 "Sir: — I respectfully report that my forces are now concen- 
 trated at this point, the Third Brigade having joined me to-day. 
 We are nearly north of Matamoros, and about thirty miles distant, 
 
 " The Arroya Colorado is a salt river, or rather lagoon, nearly 
 one hundred yards broad, and so deep as barely to be fordable. 
 It would have formed a serious obstruction to our march had the 
 enemy chosen to occupy its right bank, even with a small force. 
 On the 19th, the advanced corps encamped within three miles 
 of the ford, and a reconnoissance was pushed forward to the 
 river. A party of irregular cavalry (rancheros) was discovered 
 on the opposite bank, but threw no obstacle in the way of ex- 
 amining the ford. They, however, signified to the officer charged 
 with the reconnoissance that it would be considered an act of 
 hostility if we attempted to pass the river, and that we should, in 
 that case, be treated as enemies. Under these circumstances, 
 not knowing the amount of force that might be on the other bank, 
 I deemed it prudent to make dispositions to pass the river under 
 fire, for which please see my ' Orders,' No. 33. At an early 
 hour on the 20th, the Cavalry and First Brigade of Infantry were 
 in position at the ford, the batteries of field artillery being so 
 placed as to sweep the opposite bank. While these dispositions 
 were in progress, the party that had shown themselves the day 
 before again made their appearance. I sent Captain Mansfield 
 to communicate with the oflftcer in command, who said that he 
 had positive orders to fire upon us if we attempted to cross the 
 river. Another party then made its appearance, and passed the 
 river to communicate with me. One of them (who was repre- 
 sented as the adjutant-general of the Mexican troops) repeated 
 substantially what had been sent before, viz. : that they had 
 
PASSAGE OF THE ARROYA COLORADO. 83 
 
 peremptory orders to fire upon us, and that it would be consi- 
 dered a declaration of war if we passed the river. He placed in 
 my hands, at the same time, a proclamation of General Mejia, 
 issued at Matamoros, a day or two previous, which I enclose. I 
 inf"ormed the officer that I should immediately cross the river, and 
 if any of his party showed themselves on the other bank after the 
 passage commenced, they would receive the fire of our artillery. 
 In the mean time, the Second Brigade (which had encamped some 
 miles in my rear) came up and formed on the extreme right. The 
 crossing was then commenced and executed in the order pre- 
 scribed. Not a shot was fired ; and a reconnoissance of cavalry, 
 sent immediately forward, discovered the party which had occu- 
 pied the bank retreating in the direction of Matamoros. Agree- 
 ably to my orders, they were not molested. The Cavalry and 
 First and Second Brigades of Infantry, with a train of two hun- 
 dred wagons, crossed over and encamped at this point, three 
 miles distant, at an early hour in the afternoon. 
 
 " I have thought proper to make a detailed report of this opera- 
 tion, as being the first occasion on which the Mexicans have 
 shown themselves in an attitude decidedly hostile. It has also 
 furnished an excellent opportunity for the instruction of the 
 troops, and for displaying their discipline and spirit, which, I am 
 gratified to be able to say, were everything that could be desired. 
 
 " I am compelled to remain at this point until joined by the sup- 
 ply train of the Third Brigade, w^hich is unavoidably in the rear. 
 On the 23d, at latest, I expect to resume the march, but am not 
 fully decided as to the direction. While Matamoros is the point 
 to be ultimately attained, it is necessary, at the same time, to 
 cover our supplies, which will soon arrive at Point Isabel. 
 
 " From the best information I am able to obtain, the enemy is 
 
 not in force on this side of the Rio Grande. A few rancheros 
 
 are still on the route hence to Matamoros. It is believed that 
 
 there may be nearly two thousand troops in that place, but what 
 
 13 
 
84 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 proportion of regular troops I cannot state with confidence. The 
 arrival of General Ampudia is expected from the interior ; but 
 the accounts I receive of his movements are quite contradictory. 
 <'I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. A. commanding. 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Washington, D. C." 
 
 Of the proclamation to which General Taylor alludes in the 
 foregoing letter, we give as much as is necessary to show that 
 the Mexicans considered the advance of the Americans into their 
 territory as equivalent to a declaration of war. 
 
 " The general-in-chief of the forces assembled against tJie enemy, 
 to the inhabitants of this department and the troops under his 
 command. 
 
 " Fellow- CrxizENs : — The annexation of the department of 
 Texas to the United States, projected and coifsummated by the 
 tortuous policy of the cabinet of the Union, does not yet satisfy 
 the ambitious desires of the degenerate sons of Washington. 
 The civilized world has already recognised in that act all the 
 marks of injustice, iniquity, and the most scandalous violation 
 of the rights of nations. Indelible is the stain which will for 
 ever darken the character for virtue falsely attributed to the peo- 
 ple of the United States ; and posterity will regard with horror 
 their perfidious conduct, and the immorality of the means em- 
 ployed by them to carry into effect that most degrading depreda- 
 tion. The right of conquest has always been a crime against 
 liumanity ; but nations jealous of their dignity and reputation 
 have endeavoured at least to cover it by the splendour of arms 
 and the prestige of victory. To the United States it has been 
 reserved to put in practice dissimulation, fraud, and the basest 
 treachery, in order to obtain possession, in the midst of peace. 
 
MEJIA S PROCLAMATION. 85 
 
 of the territory of a friendly nation, which generously relied upon 
 the faith of promises and the solemnity of treaties. 
 
 " The cabinet of the United States does not, however, stop in 
 its career of usurpation. Not only does it aspire to the possession 
 of the department of Texas, but it covets also the regions on the 
 left bank of the Rio Bravo. Its army, hitherto for some time sta- 
 tioned at Corpus Christi, is now advancing to takie possession of 
 iv large part of Tamaulipas ; and its vanguard has arrived at the 
 Arroya Colorado, distant eighteen leagues from this place. What 
 expectations, therefore, can the Mexican government have of 
 treating with an enemy, who, whilst endeavouring to lull us into 
 security, by opening diplomatic negotiations, proceeds to occupy 
 a territory which never could have been the object of the pending 
 discussion ? The limits of Texas are certain and recognised ; 
 never have they extended beyond the river Neuces ; notwith- 
 standing which, the American army has crossed the line sepa- 
 rating Tamaulipas from that department. Even though Mexico 
 could forget that ihe United States urged and aided the rebellion 
 of the former colonists, and that the principle, giving to an inde- 
 pendent people the right to annex itself to another nation, is not 
 applicable to the case, in which the latter has been the protector 
 of the independence of the former, with the object of admitting it 
 into its own bosom ; even though it could be accepted as an 
 axiom of international law, that the violation of every rule of mo- 
 rality and justice might serve as a legitimate title for acquisition ; 
 nevertheless, the territory of Tamaulipas would still remain 
 beyond the law of annexation, sanctioned by the American Con- 
 gress ; because that law comprises independent Texas, the ground 
 occupied by the rebellious colony, and in no wise includes other 
 departments, in which the Mexican government has uninterrupt- 
 edly exercised its legitimate authority. 
 
 " Fellow-countrymen : With an enemy which respects not its 
 own laws, which shamelessly derides the very principles invoked 
 
86 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 by it previously, in order to excuse its ambitious views, we have 
 no other resource than arms. We are fortunately always pre- 
 pared to take them up with glory, in defence of our country ; 
 little do we regard the blood in our veins, when we are called on 
 to shed it in vindication of our honour, to assure our nationality 
 and independence. If to the torrent of devastation which 
 threatens us it be necessary to oppose a dike of steel, our swords 
 will form it ; and oh their sharp points will the enemy receive 
 the fruits of his anticipated conquest. If the banks of the Panuco 
 have been immortalized by the defeat of an enemy, respectable 
 and worthy of the valour of Mexico, those of the Bravo shall 
 witness the ignominy of the proud sons of the north, and its deep 
 waters shall serve as the sepulchre of those who dare to approach 
 it. The flame of patriotism which burns in our hearts will 
 receive new fuel from the odious presence of the conquerors ; and 
 the cry of Dolores and Iguala shall be re-echoed with harmony 
 to our ears, when we take up our march to oppose our naked 
 
 breasts to the rifles of the hunters of the Mississippi. 
 
 ******* 
 
 FRANCISCO MEJIA. 
 
 Matamoros, March 18, 1846." 
 
 On the evening of the 21st, the Third Brigade crossed the 
 Colorado and encamped near the other brigades, and the whole 
 rested on the 22d, to enable the ox-teams to come up, which had 
 been left behind in order to accelerate the movements of the 
 troops. 
 
 General Taylor had intended to march direct to Matamoros, 
 but hearing that the Mexicans in force occupied Point Isabel, the 
 contemplated depot for his military stores, and unwilling to leave 
 an enemy in his rear, so as to endanger his subsistence, he 
 changed his intention and marched upon Point Isabel. That he 
 might be ready in case of emergency to form the troops in line 
 of battle with great readiness, the order of march was in four 
 
CARDENAS' DESPATCH. 87 
 
 columns, the Dragoons being on the right, the Third Brigade on 
 the left, and the First and Second Brigades in the centre. 
 
 On the 24th, npon reaching a point on the route from Matamoros 
 to Point Isabel, eighteen miles from the former, and ten from the lat- 
 ter place, he learned that Point Isabel was not occupied by troops, 
 and directed General Worth to move towards Matamoros, while he 
 himself proceeded with the dragoons and the empty wagons of 
 the train to Point Isabel. On approaching the place, General 
 Taylor was met by a deputation of citizens of the state of Ta- 
 maulipas, who came to present a protest of the Prefect against 
 his advance into their country. He promised to give them an 
 audience when he halted the troops, but when near Point Isabel, 
 the rising smoke indicated that the Mexicans had fired the place ; 
 when he dismissed the deputation, informing them that he would 
 answer their protest when opposite to Matamoros. Having de- 
 tached Colonel Twiggs with the advance of the dragoons to arrest 
 the flames. General Taylor found on his arrival that the conflagra- 
 tion had done but little damage ; and had the further good fortune 
 to find that, agreeably to his well concerted arrangements, the 
 steamboats from Corpus Christi with the supplies, had just entered 
 the port. 
 
 The protest to which we have referred u^as as follows : — 
 
 "Office of the Prefect of the Northern District of the Department of Ta- 
 mauhpas. 
 
 '' God and Liberty ! 
 
 "Santa Rita, March 23, 1846. 
 
 " Sir : Although the pending question respecting the annexation 
 of the department of Texas to the United States is subject to the 
 decision of the supreme government of Mexico, the fact of the 
 advance of the army, under your excellency's orders, over the 
 line occupied by you at Corpus Christi, places me under the ne- 
 cessity, as the chief political authority of the northern district of 
 
HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Tamaulipas, to address you, as I have now the honour to do, 
 through the commissioners, who will place this in your hands, 
 and to inform you that the people under this prefecture, being 
 justly alarmed at the invasion of an army, which, without any 
 previous declaration of war, and without announcing explicitly 
 the object proposed by it, comes to occupy a territory which never 
 belonged to the insurgent province, cannot regard with indiffer- 
 ence a proceeding so contrary to the conduct observed towards 
 each other by civilized nations, and to the clearest principles of 
 the law of nations ; that, directed by honour and patriotism, and 
 certain that nothing has been said officially by the cabinet of the 
 Union to the Mexican government, respecting the extension of 
 the limits of Texas to the left bank of the Rio Bravo, trusting in 
 the well-known justice of their cause, and using their natural right 
 of defence, they (the citizens of this district^ protest, in the most 
 solemn manner, that neither now nor at any time do they, or will 
 they consent to separate themselves from the Mexican republic, 
 and to unite themselves with the United States, and that they are 
 resolved to carry this firm determination into effect, resisting, so 
 far as their strength will enable them, at all times and places, 
 until the army under your excellency's orders shall recede and 
 occupy its former positions ; because, so long as it remains within 
 the territory of Tamaulipas, the inhabitants must consider that 
 whatsoever protestations of peace may be made, hostilities have 
 been openly commenced by your excellency, the lamentable con- 
 sequences of which will rest before the world exclusively on the 
 heads of the invaders. 
 
 " I have the honour to say this to your excellency, with the 
 object indicated, and to assure you of my consideration and es- 
 teem. 
 
 JENES CARDENAS. 
 Juan Jose Pineda. 
 To General Z. Taylor, &c." 
 
ARRIVAL AT THE RIO GRANDE. 89 
 
 As Point Isabel was to be the depot of all military stores for the 
 Army of Occupation, it was accordingly surveyed with a view to 
 its defence, and Captain Sanders of the Engineers ordered to 
 construct the necessary works. In addition to the troops origi- 
 nally intended for the defence of the post, Captain Porter's com- 
 pany was ordered to the place as a reinforcement ; and the whole 
 placed under the command of Major Monroe. 
 
 Having thrown forward a sufficient amount of supplies towards 
 Matamoros, General Taylor proceeded with the dragoons and 
 staff to join General Worth, who had advanced with the brigades 
 on the 24th six miles towards Matamoros, and again three miles 
 on the 25th, encamping at Palo Alto, near tlie place w^here the 
 battle afterwards occurred, and which General Taylor then indi- 
 cated as the place which the enemy would probably select, should 
 he desire to meet them in an open field. The junction of the troops 
 was effected on the 27th, and orders issued to march on the 28th 
 for the town of Matamoros. At eight o'clock, on the morning of 
 the 28th, the troops were put in motion ; and after a march through 
 a beautiful and picturesque country, reached the Rio Grande op- 
 posite Matamoros at eleven o'clock A. M., and planted upon its 
 banks the standard of the " Stripes and Stars." The point of des- 
 tination had been gained. At their feet rolled the waters of the far- 
 famed river, and beyond rose the city of Matamoros in its beauty, 
 with the Mexican colours gaily flying from the Place d'Artillerie, 
 the quarters of the military commandant, and the prominent places 
 of the city. When the American flag was spread to the breeze, 
 its presence was greeted by the cross of St. George, and the 
 French and Spanish colours run up from the different consulates. 
 
 As the American troops advanced towards the Rio Grande, 
 large parties of irregular Mexican troops retreated before them, 
 by whom two of our dragoons, far in advance of the rest, were 
 captured, which created some excitement among our soldiers. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Interview between General Worth and the Authorities of Matamoros — Intrench- 
 ments thrown up — Fort Brown — Murder of Colonel Cross — Arrival of General 
 Ampudia — Artful Address to the Foreigners in the American Army — Correspond- 
 ence between Ampudia and General Taylor — Blockade of the Rio Grande — First 
 Rencontre — Body of Colonel Cross found — The Burial — Arista's Arrival — Pro- 
 clamation of Paredes — Correspondence between Arista and Taylor — Recapitula- 
 tion of the Causes of the War. 
 
 Directly after the planting of the American colours on the Rio 
 Grande, General Worth and staff were directed to cross the river 
 with an open communication for General Mejia, the commander 
 of the Mexican forces in Matamoros, and a sealed one for the civil 
 authorities. General Mejia, on a point of etiquette, refused to re- 
 ceive General Worth in person ; but, after some delay. General 
 Vega, representing the military authorities of Matamoros, and the 
 Licenciado Casares the civil authorities, were deputed to meet 
 General Worth and receive any communication which he had to 
 make from his commanding-general. 
 
 In the interview which took place. General Vega complained 
 of the march of the American troops into the department of Ta- 
 maulipas as an act of aggression ; to which General Worth replied 
 that the question of the right of territory was a matter to be settled 
 by the two governments. Finding that General Mejia refused to 
 receive from him the despatch with which he was charged, Gene- 
 ral Worth withdrew it, but delivered to the Licenciado Casares 
 the sealed document for the civil authorities. 
 
 During the interview, General Worth repeatedly requested per- 
 mission to see the American Consul, and, when finally refused, 
 
 (90) 
 
FORT BROWN. 91 
 
 stated that the refusal was considered a belligerent act; and, after 
 announcing that the commanding-general would regard the pas- 
 sage of any armed party of Mexicans across the Rio Grande as 
 an act of war, promptly terminated the conference. 
 
 Both parties now prepared for the contest which was inevitable. 
 General Taylor ordered Major Mansfield of the Engineers to make 
 the necessary surveys and throw up suitable works, while the Mexi- 
 cans were active in strengthening their former defences and estab- 
 lishing new ones. On the 29th the Mexicans mounted a heavy 
 gun in a battery of sand-bags, and contemplated a night attack. 
 The reported crossing of a large body of cavalry led General 
 Taylor to believe their object was to attack Point Isabel, while 
 at the same time they opened their batteries on the troops opposite 
 Matamoros. Accordingly he gave out the watchword and ordered 
 the men to sleep upon their arms, while he despatched Captain 
 May with a squadron of dragoons to reach Point Isabel, twenty- 
 seven miles distant, in the space of four hours, to put Major Mon- 
 roe on his guard and reinforce the garrison. The morning of the 
 30th dawned, however, without an attack, and the Mexicans lost 
 the golden opportunity of assailing their enemy while encamped 
 in open field. 
 
 The defences under Major Mansfield, an active and accom- 
 plished officer, were prosecuted with energy. By the 6th of April 
 a battery was completed for four 18-pounders, and the guns 
 placed in battery bearing 'f directly upon the public square of 
 Matamoros, and within good range for demolishing the town." 
 In rear of the battery they broke ground on the 8th for the prin- 
 cipal intrenchment, a strong field-fort with six bastions, capable 
 of holding two thousand men. It was afterwards named Fort 
 Brown, in honour of the brave Major Brown who was killed in its 
 defence. Along the Rio Grande on either side, fronting each 
 other for the space of two miles, thus lay the hostile armies within 
 rausket-range — their batteries shotted — the guns pointed at each 
 14 
 
92 HISTORY OF THE BIEXICAN WAR. 
 
 other — and the officers and men impatient for the order to light the 
 matches, and commence the work of destruction. 
 
 On the 10th, Colonel Trueman Cross, Deputy Quartermaster- 
 General of the army, rode out as usual for air and exercise, but 
 the day passed away without his return, and fearful apprehensions 
 began to be felt for his safety, as the country was known to be 
 full of rancheros, or irregular cavalry, who were prowling about 
 for plunder, and spared neither age nor rank. Towards evening 
 cannon were fired to direct him, if lost, and parties were subse- 
 sequently out to search for him. Letters were also sent to the 
 commandant at Matamoros to inquire for him, but no intelligence 
 could be obtained. 
 
 On the 11th, the firing of a salute, the ringing of the church- 
 bells, the music of the bands, and a parade of all the troops in 
 Matamoros, announced the arrival of General Ampudia; and all 
 expected the immediate commencement of hostilities. 
 
 His advent had been preceded by the following ingenious appeal 
 to the naturalized citizens of the United States in the army of 
 General Taylor, and had probably been suggested by the frequent 
 desertions that had taken place from that class of soldiers : — 
 
 "The Commander-in-chief of the Mexican Army, to the EngUsh and Irish 
 under the orders of the American General Taylor : 
 
 " Know ye : That the government of the United States is com- 
 mitting repeated acts of barbarous aggression against the mag- 
 nanimous Mexican Nation ; that the government which exists 
 under ' the flag of the stars,' is unworthy of the designation of 
 Christian. Recollect that you were born in Great Britain ; that 
 the American government looks with coldness upon the powerful 
 flag of St. George, and is provoking to a rupture the warlike people 
 to whom it belongs ; President Polk boldly manifesting a desire 
 to take possession of Oregon, as he has already done of Texas. 
 Now, then, come with all confidence to the Mexican ranks ; and 
 I guaranty to you, upon my honour, good treatment, and that all 
 
ampudia's letter. 93 
 
 your expenses shall be defrayed until your arrival in the beautiful 
 capital of Mexico. 
 
 " Germans, French, Poles, and individuals of other nations ! 
 Separate yourselves from the Yankees, and do not contribute to 
 defend a robbery and usurpation, which, be assured, the civilized 
 nations of Europe look upon with the utmost indignation. Come, 
 therefore, and array yourselves under the tri-coloured flag, in the 
 confidence that the God of armies protects it, and that it will pro- 
 tect you equally with the English. 
 
 Head-quarters, upon the road to Matamoros, April 2d, 1846. 
 
 PEDRO DE AMPUDIA. 
 
 Francisco R. JNIoreno, Adft of the Commander-in-chief J' 
 
 The day after the arrival of General Ampudia in Matamoros, 
 he addressed a letter to General Taylor, in which he required him 
 to withdraw from his position before Matamoros to the other side 
 of the Nueces. It is plainly to be inferred from this letter that 
 the Mexican government would have settled by diplomacy the 
 question of the annexation of Texas, if the American troops had 
 not invaded the department of Tamaulipas. The contents of 
 Ampudia's letter were as follows : — 
 
 " Head- Quarters at Matamoros, 2 o'clock P. M. \ 
 Fourth Military Division, General-in-Chief. > 
 April 12, 1846. ) 
 " God and Liberty ! 
 
 " To explain to you the many grounds for the just grievances 
 felt by the Mexican nation, caused by the United States govern- 
 ment, would be a loss of time, and an insult to your good sense ; 
 I, therefore, pass at once to such explanation as I consider of 
 absolute necessity. 
 
 " Your government, in an incredible manner — you will even 
 permit me to say an extravagant one, if the usages, or general 
 rules established and received among all civilized nations are 
 regarded — has not only insulted, but has exasperated the Mexi- 
 
94 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 can nation, bearing its conquering banner to the left bank of the 
 Rio Bravo del Norte ; and in this case, by explicit and definitive 
 orders of my government, which neither can, will, nor should re- 
 ceive new outrages, I require you in all form, and at latest in the 
 peremptory term of twenty-four hours, to break up your camp and 
 retire to the other bank of the Nueces river, while our governments 
 are regulating the pending question in relation to Texas. If you 
 insist on remaining upon the soil of the department of Tamaulipas, 
 it will clearly result that arms, and arms alone, must decide the 
 question ; and, in that case, I advise you that we accept the war 
 to which, with so much injustice on your part, you provoke us, 
 and that, on our part, this war shall be conducted conformably to 
 the principles established by the most civilized nations ; that is to 
 say, that the law of nations and of war shall be the guide of my 
 operations ; trusting that on your part the same will be observed. 
 With this view, I tender you the considerations due to your 
 
 person and respectable office. 
 
 PEDRO DE AMPUDIA. 
 
 Senor General-in-chief of the U. S. Army, 
 Don Z. Taylor." 
 
 General Taylor sent word to Ampudia that he did not require 
 twenty-four hours for deliberation, but would reply at ten o'clock 
 the following day. Shortly after, he removed the First Brigade of 
 his army to the right, out of the range of shot; and early on the 
 morning of the 13th moved the Second Brigade to the left, out 
 of range, while General Twiggs, with the dragoons and Ringgold's 
 battery, occupied the centre, and the Third Brigade, with Bragg's 
 and Duncan's batteries, took position within the interior of the 
 field-work. Having made this prudent disposition of his troops 
 in expectation of an immediate attack, General Taylor despatched 
 the following manly reply to the peremptory requisition of General 
 Ampudia: — 
 
TAYLOR S REPLY. 95 
 
 " Head- Quarters Army of Occupation. ) 
 Camp near Matamoros, Texas, April 12, 1846. J 
 
 " Senor : I have had the honour to receive your note of this 
 date, in which you summon me to withdraw the forces under my 
 command from their present position, and beyond the river Nueces, 
 until the pending question between our governments, relative to 
 the limits of Texas, shall be settled. 
 
 "I need hardly advise you that, charged as I am, in only a 
 military capacity, with the performance of specific duties, I cannot 
 enter into a discussion of the international question involved in 
 the advance of the American army. You will, however, permit 
 me to say, that the government of the United States has constantly 
 sought a settlement, by negotiation, of the question of boundary ; 
 that an envoy was despatched to Mexico for that purpose, and 
 that up to the most recent dates said envoy had not been received 
 by the actual Mexican government, if indeed he has not received 
 his passports and left the republic. In the mean time, I have 
 been ordered to occupy the country up to the left bank of the Rio 
 Grande, until the boundary shall be definitely settled. In carry- 
 ing out these instructions I have carefully abstained from all acts 
 of hostility, obeying, in this regard, not only the letter of my 
 instructions, but the plain dictates of justice and humanity. 
 
 " The instructions under which I am acting will not permit me 
 to retrograde from the position I now occupy. In view of the 
 relations between our respective governments, and the individual 
 suffering which may result, I regret the alternative which you offer ; 
 but, at the same time, wish it understood that I shall by no means 
 avoid such alternative, leaving the responsibility with those who 
 rashly commence hostilities. In conclusion, you will permit me 
 to give the assurance thai: on my part the lau^s and customs of 
 war among civilized nations shall be carefully observed. 
 
 " I have the honour to be, very respectfully, your obedient ser- 
 vant, Z. TAYLOR. 
 
 Senor General Don Pedro de Ampudia." 
 
96 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Expecting an attack, and hearing that the enemy were crossing 
 in great numbers, General Taylor despatched the 1st company 
 of dragoons, 4th infantry, and Ringgold's battery to meet the 
 train coming from Point Isabel, which arrived in safety on the 14th. 
 The following day he blockaded the mouth of the river Bravo with 
 the United States brig Lawrence, and a revenue cutter, and, on 
 the 17th, ordered to the Brazos Santiago two vessels laden with 
 stores for Ampudia's army. This elicited another menacing letter 
 from Ampudia, to which General Taylor replied in a calm and 
 dignified manner, showing that the act was the result of the belli- 
 gerent attitude which General Ampudia had assumed. 
 
 On the 19th, the first conflict took place between the Mexican 
 and American troops. Two days before, Lieutenant Dobbins of 
 the 3d infantry, and Lieutenant Porter of the 4th, each with a 
 detachment of two non-commissioned officers and ten privates, 
 left camp for the purpose of finding the body of Colonel Cross, 
 and punishing his murderers. About noon on the 19th, Lieutenant 
 Porter advanced upon a party of Mexicans, one of whom snapped 
 his piece at him, whereupon he discharged both barrels of his gun, 
 and his men rushing on, captured the camp of the Mexicans, with 
 ten horses and their equipments, and twenty blankets. Late in 
 the evening he met a second larger party, which had probably 
 been joined by those he encountered in the morning, and they 
 immediately fired upon his command. The lieutenant and one 
 of his party fell, when the rest, unable to use their fire-arms on 
 account of the rain, separated and fled. Lieutenant Porter was 
 the son of the late Commodore Porter, and was a gallant young 
 officer, and much esteemed in his regiment. 
 
 On the 21st, a Mexican straggler came into camp, and stated 
 that he knew where the body of an American officer was lying, 
 and on sending out a party, the remains of Colonel Cross were 
 found in a thicket, a short distance from the road leading to the 
 river. He was stripped of his clothing, and the flesh was torn 
 
ARISTA S ADDRESS. fff 
 
 away from liis body by the vultures. On the 23d, a board of offi- 
 cers assembled to report upon his death, and came to the conclu- 
 sion that he was attacked and stripped by the banditti of Romano 
 Falcon, and afterwards slain by that desperado by a blow upon 
 the head from the butt of his pistol. 
 
 Late in the evening of the 24th, the remains of the unfortunate 
 colonel were committed to the grave, under an escort composed 
 of a squadron of dragoons and eight companies of infantry, the 
 whole commanded by Colonel Twiggs. The infantry occupied 
 the front of the procession, the dragoons came next, and the body 
 followed, drawn by six horses on the wheels of a caisson, and 
 enveloped in the flag of his country. Next came a solitary 
 mourner, the son of the deceased ; then a war-horse in black led 
 by dragoons, followed by all the officers who were not upon duty. 
 
 From the opposite bank of the river, and from the enemy's 
 works, groups of officers and soldiers looked upon the procession, 
 as the body was borne and laid in its resting-place at the foot of 
 the flag-staff, upon which the flag w^as at half-mast. Colonel Childs 
 in an impressive manner read the burial-service for the dead,' — 
 three volleys were fired over his grave — the flag was run up to its 
 former position, and the dead was left to his repose in silence. 
 
 Like his predecessor. Arista, when about to assume the com- 
 mand in Matamoros, insidiously endeavoured to corrupt the Ame- 
 rican soldiery, by disseminating the following artful address, the 
 original draft of which was subsequently found among his baggage 
 when his camp was captured on the 9th of May: — 
 
 '•' General Arista's advice to the Soldiers of the United States Army. 
 
 Head-Quarters at Matamoros, April 20, 1846. 
 
 " Soldiers ! — You have enlisted in time of peace to serve in that 
 
 army for a specific term ; but your obligation never implied that 
 
 you were bound to violate the laws of God, and the most sacred 
 
 rights of friends ! The United States government, contrary to the 
 
98 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 wishes of a majority of all honest and honourable Americans, has 
 ordered you to i^ke. forcible possession of the territory of afiiendly 
 neighbour, who has never given her consent to such occupation. 
 In other words, while the treaty of peace and commerce between 
 Mexico and the United States is in full force, the United States, 
 presuming on her strength and prosperity, and on our supposed 
 imbecility and cowardice, attempts to make you the blind instru- 
 ments of her unholy and mad ambition, and Jbrce you to appear 
 as the hateful robbers of our dear homes, and- the unprovoked 
 violators of our dearest feelings as men and patriots. Such villany 
 and outrage, I know, is perfectly repugnant to the noble sentiments 
 of any gentleman, and it is base and foul to rush you on to certain 
 death, in order to aggrandize a few lawless individuals, in defiance 
 of the laws of God and man ! 
 
 " It is to no purpose if they tell you, that the law for the 
 annexation of Texas justifies your occupation of the Rio Bravo del 
 Norte ; for by this act they rob us of a great part of Tamaulipas, 
 Coahuila, Chihuahua, and JVew Mexico; and it is barbarous to send 
 a handful of men on such an errand against a powerful and war- 
 like nation. Besides, the most of you are Europeans, and we are 
 the declared friends of a majority of the nations of Europe. The 
 North Americans are ambitious, overbearing, and insolent as a 
 nation, and they will only make use of you as vile tools to carry 
 out their abominable plans of pillage and rapine. 
 
 " I warn you in the name of justice, honour, and your own 
 interests and self-respect, to abandon their desperate and unholy 
 cause, and become peaceful Mexican citizens, I guarantee you, 
 in such case, a half section of land, or three hundred and twenty 
 acres, to settle upon, gratis. Be wise, then, and just, and hon- 
 ourable, and take no part in murdering us who have no unkind 
 feelings for you. Lands shall be given to officers, sergeants, and 
 corporals, according to rank, privates receiving three hundred and 
 twenty acres, as stated. 
 
PAREDES' PROCLAMATION. % 
 
 " If, in time of action, you wish to espouse our cause, throw 
 away your arms and run to us, and we will embrace you as true 
 friends and Christians. It is not decent nor prudent to say more. 
 But should any of you render important service to Mexico, you 
 shall be accordingly considered and preferred. 
 
 M. ARISTA, 
 Commander-in-chief of the Mexican Army.'''' 
 
 On the 23d of April, General Paredes issued a proclamation 
 of defensive war to the people of Mexico, from which we make the 
 following extracts : — 
 
 " At the time Mr. Slidell presented himself, the troops of the 
 United States occupied our territory, their squadrons threatened 
 our ports, and they prepared to occupy the peninsula of the Cali- 
 fornias, of which the question of the Oregon with England is only 
 a preliminary. Mr. Slidell was not received, because the dignity 
 of the nation repelled this new insult. Meanwhile the army of 
 the United States encamped at Corpus Christi, and occupied the 
 Isla del Padre ; following this, they then moved to the point Santo 
 Isabel, and their standard of the stars and stripes waved on the 
 right bank of the Rio Bravo del Norte, opposite the city of Mata- 
 moros, blockading that river with their vessels of war. The vil- 
 lage of Laredo was surprised by a party of their troops, and a 
 small party of our men, reconnoitring there, were disarmed. 
 Hostilities, then, have been commenced, by the United States of 
 North America, beginning new conquests upon the frontier terri- 
 tories of the departments of Tamaulipas and New Leon, and pro- 
 gressing at such a rate, that troops of the same United States 
 threaten Monterey in Upper California. No one can doubt which 
 of the two republics is responsible for this war: a war which any 
 sense of equity and justice, and respect for the rights and laws 
 of civilized nations, might have avoided. 
 
 " I have commanded the General-in-chief of our forces on the 
 15 
 
100 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Northern frontier, to repel all hostilities offered to us, which is 
 actual war against any power making war on us, and calling upon 
 the God of battles, He will preserve the valour of our troops, the 
 unquestionable right to our territory, and the honour of those arms 
 which are used only in defence of justice. Our general will 
 govern himself by the established usages of civilized warfare. 
 With orders from me to prevent, it possible, the effusion of blood, 
 he will intimate to the General-in-chief of the American troops 
 that he shall return to the other side of the Rio de las Nueces, the 
 ancient limits of Texas. Those nations interested in preserving 
 the peace of so many years, and who may be injured in their 
 commercial relations with the Mexican republic, will perceive the 
 hard alternative to which they are reduced, by the politic invasion 
 of the United States, and they (the nations) must succumb or de- 
 fend their existence thus compromised. I solemnly announce 
 that I do not declare war against the United States of America, 
 because it pertains to the august Congress of that nation, and not 
 to the Executive, to settle definitely the reparation which so many 
 aggressions demand. 
 
 « But the defence of the Mexican territory, which the United 
 States troops invade, is an urgent necessity, and my responsibility 
 would be immense before the nation, if I did not give commands 
 to repel those forces who act like enemies, and I have so com- 
 manded. From this day commences a defensive war, and those 
 points of our territory which are invaded or attacked will be ener- 
 getically defended." 
 
 On the 24th, a grand review and great military rejoicing, 
 announced the arrival of Arista in Matamoros. In the evening a 
 parley was sounded on the Mexican side of the river, and a mes- 
 senger brought to General Taylor the following letter directed to 
 " the General-in-chief of the forces of the United States encamped 
 opposite Matamoros." 
 
arista's letter to TAYLOR. 101 
 
 •' Mexican Army. 
 
 " The course of events since the annexation of Texas to the 
 United States was declared, has been so clearly hostile to Mexico, 
 and so foreign to the dignity and principles which the Americans 
 have proclaimed to the world, that we come to the conclusion 
 that their policy has changed, and their moderation is turned into 
 a desire of aggrandizement, enriching themselves by humiliating 
 their neighbours. 
 
 " The respect and consideration that friendly nations show to 
 each other have been trampled upon, by which reason the justice 
 and excessive moderation of Mexico shine forth still more. Pressed 
 and forced into war, we enter into a struggle, that cannot be 
 avoided without failing in what is most sacred in man. 
 
 " Political discussions do not appertain to military men, but to 
 diplomatic agents; to us belongs the part to act, without it occa- 
 sioning any surprise that the troops under my command should 
 not wait for anything else to give battle. 
 
 "We Mexicans have been calumniated as barbarous, in the 
 most caustic and unjust terms ; the occasion has arrived to show 
 what we are, and I do not believe that in the troops under my 
 command there will be any cause to confirm such suppositions, 
 as they will cause to shine the feelings of humanity and generosity 
 that distinguish them. 
 
 " For the first time, I have the honour to offer your Excellency 
 my great consideration. God and liberty! 
 
 MARIANO ARISTA. 
 
 Head-Quarters, Matamoros, April 24, 1846." 
 
 This official communication was accompanied by a polite private 
 note, in which General Arista announced his intention to conduct 
 the war in which they were about to engage according to the 
 laws which courtesy and humanity impose on modern civilization. 
 
 We have now traced the progress of events from the first mis- 
 
102 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 understanding between the two countries to the commencement 
 of actual hostilities; and, notwithstanding the belligerent attitude 
 which Mexico assumed by recalling her minister immediately 
 after the annexation of Texas to the United States, it is evident, 
 from the subsequent actions and correspondence of the Mexican 
 authorities, that war would not have occurred, had it not been for 
 the advance of the American army into territory which Mexico 
 believed to be, and which was, a part, not of Texas but of Mexico. 
 But we not only invaded the territory of the Mexican republic ; 
 we first commenced hostilities, when on the 18th of April " Lieu- 
 tenant Porter, at the head of his own detachment, surprised a 
 Mexican camp, drove away the men, and took possession of their 
 horses."* Though we are obliged, in candour, to make these 
 admissions, we would not be understood as holding the opinion 
 that there were not just grounds for war against a country which 
 had outraged the American flag, imprisoned our citizens and con- 
 fiscated their property, and violated the solemn faith of treaties. 
 But, while there existed so many causes, all or any of which would 
 have justified a declaration of war on our part, it is a matter of 
 supreme regret, that, after the magnanimous forbearance which we 
 had exhibited towards Mexico, and unwillingness to appeal to the 
 last resort of nations, war was at length brought on by an act, 
 and in a manner, totally unjustifiable. 
 
 When the Mexican minister Almonte, after the annexation of 
 Texas, demanded his passports and menaced war, all usage, both 
 ancient and modern, of civilized nations, would have justified the 
 American Congress in declaring immediate war, and ordering the 
 armies of the republic into Mexico, without waiting for her to 
 strike the first blow. But, while the Congress of the United States 
 is disposed to continue the exercise of that magnanimous forbear- 
 ance which had characterized her intercourse with a sister repub- 
 lic, the Executive, by an assumption of power not warranted in 
 
 * General Taylor's Letter to the Secretary of War, April 23. 
 
CAUSES OF THE WAR. 103 
 
 the Constitution, and without the knowledge and consent of Con- 
 gress, orders the American army into the territory of Mexico and 
 precipitates the country into war. Had it not been for this, no 
 conflict in arms between the republics would have arisen, and the 
 outpouring of blood and treasure expended upon this contest would 
 have been avoided ; for it is evident, that, although Mexico felt 
 herself aggrieved by the annexation of Texas to the United States, 
 neither the people nor the government would have seriously con- 
 templated war on that account, had not the invasion of the Mexi- 
 can territory been superadded. 
 
 It is true, Mexico had no just cause of offence in the case of 
 Texas, for that republic, free and independent, had a right to 
 dispose of her own territory as she pleased ; but some degree of 
 allowance and forbearance was due even to the prejudices of a 
 country which had seen a portion of its territory dismembered by 
 those who had formerly been citizens of the United States, and 
 afterwards annexed to that country. If a little time had been 
 allowed for the wounded pride of Mexico to heal, and we had 
 abstained from aggression upon her territory, better feelings and 
 better counsels would have prevailed with her, and a treaty alike 
 honourable to both would have arranged all difficulties between 
 us. If the Rio Grande was desirable as a boundary, instead of 
 the great desert, which was the true boundary,, a very small part 
 of the money that has been expended in the war, would have se- 
 cured it to the nation by purchase. 
 
 I love my country much — I honour her brave sons — I admire 
 the gallant chiefs and their soldiery, who throughout this war have 
 wreathed their brows with the laurels of victory — I venerate the 
 mighty dead, who ' with garments dyed in blood,' have made 
 their beds of glory upon the battle-field, and have bequeathed 
 names of immortality to the republic ; but the love of truth with 
 a historian should be paramount to the love of country. The eye 
 of justice should not be blinded by the blaze of glory; and, what- ■ 
 
104 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ever splendour has crowned the achievements of our troops in 
 this war — however widely the power and majesty of our arms by 
 means of it have been spread abroad among the nations, I can but 
 feel that the manner in which it was brought on, was unjust, and 
 reprehend as dangerous to the republic the precedent that has 
 been set by the Executive, of involving the nation in war without 
 the privity and consent of Congress. 
 
 Of what avail are the guaranties of the constitution that Con- 
 gress alone shall declare war, when the American Executive can, 
 at any time, bring on a war, by ordering the troops of the republic 
 into foreign territory, or even into territory which we claim that 
 lies in dispute ? In the case of this weaker neighbour, though 
 great have been the sacrifices of life and treasure, the consequences 
 have not been serious ; but who can imagine what the end would 
 have been, if, in the dispute about Oregon, the President, without 
 consulting Congress, had ordered the American army to the 
 boundary as claimed in 54° 40' ? 
 
 Another serious evil is, that a war thus brought on without pre- 
 paration has for a time to be sustained with the inadequate men 
 and means of a peace establi.shment ; and thus, at the onset, the 
 prestige of victory may be in favour of the enemy, and to some 
 extent influence the future contest. 
 
 In 1845, with that prudent forecast for which he is remarkable, 
 General Scott had recommended an increase of the army by 
 filling up the skeleton regiments, but his prudent suggestions 
 were neglected both by Congress and the President. In every- 
 thing there was a want of due preparation. The meagre force 
 comprising the Army of Occupation, was collected by withdraw- 
 ing the troops from the forts and military posts, which in many 
 cases upon the seaboard and the frontier were thus left without 
 a garrison, while even for this small force, thrown forward into 
 an enemy's territory, like a forlorn hope, to provoke and bring on 
 a war, the provision for munitions, subsistence, and transporta- 
 tion, was totally insufficient. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Capture of Captain Thornton's Command — Exultation of the Enemy — Council-of- 
 war — Contemplated Attack of Arista — Arrival of Captain Walker — Skirmish witii 
 the Mexicans — Arista crosses the Rio Grande — Mai'ch of General Taylor to Point 
 Isabel — Garrison of Fort Brown — Religious Ceremonies — Bombardment of Fort 
 Brown — Death of Major Brown — Arista's Summons to surrender — Hawkins's 
 Reply — Battle of Palo Alto heard at Fort Brown — Resaca de la Palma — Mexican 
 Fugitives. 
 
 Reports having reached the American camp, that the Mexicans 
 were crossing the river above and below, in great force. Captain 
 Ker was despatched to the lower ford with a body of dragoons to 
 ascertain the truth of the report, and on the evening of the 25th 
 Captain Thornton was despatched to the upper ford, for the like 
 purpose, accompanied by Captain Hardee, Lieutenants Kane and 
 Mason, and sixty-one non-commissioned officers and privates. 
 Captain Ker returned with his party without discovering any of 
 the enemy. Thornton proceeded with his command up the river 
 about twenty-four miles, and as he supposed within about three 
 miles of the camp of the enemy, when his Mexican guide refused 
 to proceed further, from a belief that the whole country was 
 occupied by Mexican soldiers. Thornton with his command 
 pressed on about two miles further, when he reached a farm-house 
 enclosed by a thicket of chaparral, except on the side lying next 
 to the river. The ground in this direction was boggy and 
 impassable. Entering the enclosure through a pair of bars, 
 Thornton with his command approached the house, when by a 
 sudden firing from the surrounding chaparral, the Americans per- 
 ceived that they were encompassed by the enemy, who were 
 
 (105) 
 
106 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 afterwards found to be about twenty-five hundred in number. 
 Promptly wheeling his command, Thornton, ordered a charge, 
 and attempted to escape by the way he had entered, but the 
 dense files of the enemy prevented. Captain Hardee now rode 
 up to offer some suggestion, when a shot struck Captain Thorn- 
 ton's horse, and the beast, maddened by the wound, ran with him 
 towards the chaparral, cleared it at a bound, and plunging down 
 a precipice with his rider, fell to the earth. The captain lay 
 insensible for some hours, after which his consciousness returned, 
 when, mounting his charger, which like himself was badly 
 wounded, he endeavoured to make his way to the American camp. 
 Before he reached it, however, he was taken by a party of the 
 enemy, and carried to Matamoros. As soon as the misfortune 
 occurred to Thornton, Captain Hardee assumed command, and 
 dashing towards the river bank, with the view of swimming the 
 river, he found that the marshy ground prevented escape. 
 Determined then on a vigorous resistance, he dismounted his 
 men, and examined their pieces; but while thus engaged, a 
 Mexican officer came up and demanded a surrender. Hardee 
 agreed to surrender, provided he and his men would be treated 
 agreeably to the usages of civilized warfare. The message was 
 borne by the officer to his commanding-general, who gave assur- 
 ance that the prisoners should be treated with humanity. Captain 
 Hardee then surrendered, and he and his men were carried 
 to Matamoros, where they were kindly treated by the Mexicans. 
 General Torrejon commanded the enemy's forces in this engage- 
 ment. Their success was owing to their numbers and the com- 
 plete concealment afforded to their ambuscade by the chaparral. 
 The American loss was one lieutenant, two sergeants, and eight 
 privates killed, and fifty-three prisoners. The loss, inconsiderable 
 as it was in numbers, was notwithstanding important, depriving 
 the American commander of nearly one-third of the mounted 
 force on the Rio Grande. General Arista, on receiving the news 
 
CONTEMPLATED ATTACK OF ARISTA. 107 
 
 of this skirmish, affected to consider it a great victory, and 
 addressed the following letter of congratulation to the commander, 
 General Torrejon : — 
 
 "Matamoros, April 26. 
 " This has been a day of rejoicing to all the division of the 
 North, it having this day been known of the triumph achieved by 
 the brigade which your Excellency so worthily commands. The 
 rejoiced country will doubtless celebrate this preliminary of glori- 
 ous deeds that her happy sons will in future present to her. Your 
 Excellency will communicate to your brave soldiers that I have 
 seen with the greatest pleasure their valiant behaviour, and that I 
 await for the detailed despatch to elevate it to the knowledge of 
 the supreme government, so that the nation may learn the triumph 
 
 of your arms. 
 
 MARIANO ARISTA. 
 
 To Gen. Don Anastasio Torrejon." 
 
 On the evening of the 27th, after the news of Thornton's defeat 
 reached the American encampment. General Taylor called a 
 council- of- war of a few confidential officers, to take into conside- 
 ration the propriety of crossing the Rio Grande and attacking 
 Arista at Matamoros. The primary arrangements were all made, 
 and corps selected for the purpose, when the important question 
 presented itself. How could the troops pass the river.'' All kinds 
 of schemes and expedients were concerted, but none appeared 
 feasible, and the general reluctantly abandoned it. 
 
 Could the troops have been transported suddenly over, Arista's 
 forces w^ould have been demolished without fighting at Palo Alto 
 or Resaca de la Palma. 
 
 Here, as after the battle of the 9th of May, the improvidence 
 
 of the War Department w^as apparent in not furnishing the Army 
 
 of Occupation with a pontoon train, as had been requested by 
 
 General Taylor ; while, at the same time, he was under instruc- 
 
 16 
 
108 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 tions, if attacked, not to limit himself to defensive operations, but 
 carry the war into the enemy's country beyond the Rio Grande.* 
 
 About this time, Captain Walker, who had been identified with 
 the border struggles of Texas, and one of the Mier prisoners, 
 arrived at Point Isabel with a company of Texan Rangers, and 
 prepared to participate in the contest, in which he subsequently 
 acted so prominent a part. 
 
 The Mexicans, after the capture of Captain Thornton, had 
 boldly crossed the Rio Grande in large detachments, and spread 
 themselves between General Taylor and the depot at Point Isabel 
 under Major Munroe, with the view of threatening both stations 
 of the American army, and cutting off General Taylor from his 
 supplies. Captain Walker with his command was directed, 
 therefore, by Major Munroe to occupy a position west of the Point, 
 for the purpose of gaining intelligence of the movements of the 
 enemy, and of opening a communication with General Taylor. 
 At this time some teams despatched from Point Isabel to Fort 
 Brown were compelled to return ; and Captain Walker, who went 
 out with his company on the 28th to reconnoitre, encountered an 
 overwhelming Mexican force, and after a short contest, in which 
 his raw recruits were scattered in confusion, was obliged to 
 retreat, and was pursued to within cannon- range of Point Isabel. 
 
 Major Munroe had put the Point in the best possible state of 
 defence by strengthening the works, and adding to the regular 
 force the masters and crews of the vessels in port. Still, as he 
 was in expectation of an immediate attack, he desired to inform 
 the commanding-general of his situation ; and Captain Walker, 
 notwithstanding his late discomfiture, volunteered his services to 
 carry any message to General Taylor. 
 
 Late on the evening of the 29th, accompanied by six com- 
 panions, Captain Walker set out on his perilous expedition, and 
 
 * Letter to the Secretary of War, August 30, 1845. 
 
CAFT, SAMUEL WALKEK. 
 
MARCH OF GENERAL TAYLOR TO POINT ISABEL, 109 
 
 after encountering the most imminent risks of capture, he suc- 
 ceeded in delivering his message to General Taylor. 
 
 The situation of the American commander had now reached a 
 crisis. He must either fall back upon Point Isabel 5 or, leaving 
 the garrison there to defend itself, remain at Fort Brown and 
 brave the enemy; or, lastly, attempt with a portion of his forces 
 to open a communication with Point Isabel. To bear back the 
 flag that had been planted on the Rio Grande was out of the 
 question ; to remain stationary at Fort Brown, would soon reduce 
 the troops to starvation. Nothing remained, then, but to leave a 
 part of his force at Fort Brown, and with the residue open a com- 
 munication with Point Isabel, and thus procure for the troops 
 necessary supplies. In doing this he had to encounter the risk 
 of an attack from the enemy upon either of the three portions into 
 which his army would be divided ; but the pressing necessities 
 of his situation rendered the measure imperative, and General 
 Taylor accordingly made arrangements for marching. 
 
 At four o'clock P, M, on the 1st May, he marched from Fort 
 Brown with the main body of his army, and passed through the 
 chaparral without meeting the enemy. At midnight the troops 
 halted, fatigued and exhausted, and lay upon their arms in the 
 open prairie, without fires to take off the chillness of the cold and 
 damp night air. On the morning of the 2d the army resumed its 
 march, and after suffering much from thirst and the heat of the 
 weather, reached Point Isabel about noon. 
 
 On the evening of General Taylor's departure for Point Isabel, 
 Arista had ordered his troops to cross the Rio Grande, for the 
 purpose of attacking the Americans. After transporting his forces, 
 he found that the American commander had departed for Point 
 Isabel ; and, with the vanity peculiar to the Mexican character, he 
 supposed that General Taylor had been aware of his intention, 
 and was desirous of avoiding a meeting, and he construed the 
 march of the American army into a timorous flight from the valiant 
 
110 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 legions of Mexico. Conceiving the design of cutting off the 
 Americans on their march, the Mexican general despatched his 
 cavalry for that purpose, which accordingly made a forced march 
 by night ; but General Taylor with his troops had already passed 
 beyond the place where the enemy had intended to intercept him. 
 The disappointment which this occasioned the over-confident 
 enemy, was in some measure alleviated by the fact, that General 
 Taylor had left a small garrison in Fort Brown, which would of 
 necessity soon be compelled to surrender to Mexican valour. 
 The following document, from El Monitor Republicano of Ma- 
 tamoros, a semi-official paper, is a specimen of the arrogant 
 and vainglorious feelings of the Mexicans on the above occasion. 
 
 " On the first of this month, at eleven o'clock in the morning, 
 the general-in-chief left this place to join the army, who, several 
 hours before, had left with the intention of crossing the river at a 
 short distance from the camp of the enemy. In consequence of 
 the orders given, so that this dangerous operation might be per- 
 formed with due security, and according to the rules of military 
 art, when our troops arrived at the spot designated for the crossing 
 of the river, the left bank was already occupied by General D. 
 Anastasio Torrejon, with all the force under his command. The 
 enthusiasm of our soldiers to conquer the obstacles which separated 
 them from the enemy was so great, that they showed themselves 
 impatient of the delay occasioned by the bad condition of some 
 of the flat-boats, which had been very much injured in the trans- 
 portation by land, and could not be used, as they would fill up 
 with water as soon as they were launched. In spite of that 
 obstacle, the work went on with such activity, and so great was 
 the ardour of the most excellent general-in-chief, whose orders 
 were obeyed with the greatest promptness and precision, that a 
 few hours were suflBcient to transport, to the opposite bank of the 
 Bravo, a strong division, with all its artillery and train. 
 
 "This rapid and well-combined movement ought to have 
 
MARCH OF GENERAL TAYLOR TO POINT ISABEL. Ill 
 
 proved to the invaders not only that the Mexicans possess instruc- 
 tion and aptness for war, but that those qualities are now brought 
 forth by the purest patriotism. The Northern Division, fearless 
 of fatigue, and levelling all difficulties, ran to seek an enemy 
 who, well sheltered under parapets, and defended w4th guns of a 
 large calibre, could wait for the attack with indisputable advantage. 
 With deep trenches, with a multitude of fortifications, the defence 
 was easy against those who presented themselves with their naked 
 breasts. 
 
 "But General Taylor dared not resist the valour and enthu- 
 siasm of the sons of Mexico. Well did he foresee the intrepidity 
 with which our soldiers would rush against the usurpers of the 
 national territory. Well did he know the many injuries which 
 were to be avenged by those who had taken up arms, not to 
 aggrandize' themselves with the spoils of the property of others, 
 but to maintain the independence of their country. Well did he 
 know, we repeat it, that the Mexicans would be stopped neither 
 by trenches, or fortresses, or large artillery. Thus it was that 
 the chief of the American forces, frightened as soon as he 
 perceived from the situation and proximity of his camp, that our 
 army w^ere preparing to cross the river, left with precipitation for 
 Point Isabel, with almost all his troops, eight pieces of artillery, 
 and a few wagons. Their march was observed from our position, 
 and the most excellent General D. Francisco Mejia immediately 
 sent an express extraordinary to communicate the news to the 
 most excellent general-in-chief Here let me pay to our brave 
 men the tribute which they deserve. The express verbally 
 informed some of the troops, which had not yet arrived at the ford, 
 of the escape of the Americans; in one instant, all the soldiers 
 spontaneously crossed the river, almost racing one with another. 
 Such was the ardour with which they crossed the river to attack 
 the enemy. 
 
 " The terror and haste with which the latter fled to the fort, to 
 
112 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 shut themselves up in it and avoid a conflict, frustrated the active 
 measures of the most excellent Senor General Arista, which 
 W'ere to order the cavalry to advance in the plain and cut off the 
 flight of the fugitives. But it was not possible to do so, notwith- 
 standing their forced march during the night. General Taylor 
 left his camp at two o'clock in the afternoon, and, as fear has 
 wings, he succeeded in shutting himself up in the fort. When 
 our cavalry reached the point where they were to detain him, he 
 had already passed, and was several leagues ahead. Great was 
 the sorrow of our brave men, not to have been able to meet the 
 enemy face to face ; their defeat was certain, and the main body 
 of that invading army, who thought that they inspired the 
 Mexicans with so much respect, would have disappeared in the 
 first important battle. But there was some lighting to be done ; 
 and the Americans do not know how to use other arms but 
 those of duplicity and treachery. Why did they not remain with 
 firmness under their colours? Why did they abandon the 
 ground which they pretend to usurp with such iniquity? Thus 
 has an honourable general kept his word. Had not General 
 Taylor said, in all his communications, that he was prepared to 
 repel all hostilities ? Why, then, does he fly in so cowardly a 
 manner to shut himself up at the Point ? The commander-in- 
 chief of the American army has covered himself with opprobrium 
 and ignominy in sacrificing a part of his forces, whom he left in 
 the fortifications, to save himself; for it is certain that he will not 
 return to their assistance — not that he is ignorant of their peril, 
 but he calculates that this would be greater if he had the temerity 
 of attempting to resist the Mexican lances and bayonets in the 
 open plain." 
 
 The garrison left in Fort Brown consisted of the 7th infantry. 
 Captain Loud's company of 2d artillery, in charge of four 
 18-pounders, and Lieutenant Bragg with his light battery of four 
 pieces ; all under the command of Major Jacob Brown, a veteran 
 
 i 
 
BOMBARDMENT OF FORT BROWN. 113 
 
 officer of great braver}*. He was instructed to expend as little 
 ammunition as possible, not to attempt offensive operations, and 
 to defend the post to the last. Certain signals were arranged to 
 be given by means of the 18-pounders, which were to be fired at 
 lialf past six o'clock A. M., in case of the investment of the fort, 
 or any particular accident. 
 
 On the afternoon of May 1st, Major Brown had his tents 
 pitched, divided his forces to the several bastions, six in number, 
 and apportioned the six senior officers to the command of them, 
 viz : No. 1, Captain Hawkins ; No. 2, Captain Lee ; No. 3, Cap- 
 tain Miles; No. 4, Captain Loud; No. 5, Brevet Major Sewall, 
 and No. 6, Captain Holmes. 
 
 On the morning of the 2d of May, all hands were turned out at 
 the earliest dawn to w^ork on the east bastion, by the gate ; it had 
 not yet been touched. By dint of hard labour, the ditch was 
 dug and the parapet raised to some extent; when, just before sun- 
 set, officers' and men's attention was called to what was going 
 on at Matamoros. There seemed to be a grand parade and 
 festival ; the bells rung continually, soldiers marched and coun- 
 termarched ; and at last was perceived a train of priests, monks, 
 and friars, going round from battery to battery, consecrating and 
 blessing the guns, shot, and shell. This pious ceremony con- 
 tinued until the night had set in, and convinced all who reflected, 
 that it was a prelude to an attack. 
 
 Accordingly the guards were doubled, and orders given for 
 reveille at an earlier hour than usual. 
 
 On the morning of the 3d, reveille beat and finished, when the 
 Mexicans commenced theirs. The shrill bugles poured forth 
 their discordant music amid the continued peal of their bells, for 
 a longer period than usual, until the streaks of dawn made every- 
 thing \isible to the east, when the report of a gun was heard, and 
 turning the eye quickly towards Matamoros, the first shell was 
 seen as it was passing the bright and beautiful star Venus, whose 
 
114 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 tardiness in retiring to rest, seemed only to await this signal of 
 the bloody strife, in this first gun of the war. 
 
 In quick succession followed many discharges from a battery 
 of seven guns, upon the American works ; the garrison was 
 soon in a condition of resistance, and Loud opened with the 
 18-pounders upon the fort and town with tremendous effect, the 
 consulate flags being respected. In twenty minutes after the 
 American fire opened, an 18-pound ball struck one of the 
 Mexican twelve-pounders directly in the muzzle, and dis- 
 mounted it, wounding and maiming the officers and men that 
 manned it. This incident, and the hotness of the American fire, 
 so disconcerted the enemy, that the whole battery was silenced 
 immediately after. The enemy then commenced firing shot 
 and shell from the lower fort and mortar battery, but without 
 doing any damage, though the cannonade continued with little 
 interruption until night. 
 
 As soon as the cannonade commenced, one-third of the garrison 
 were left to man the bastions, and the rest were directed to repair 
 to the east bastion gate and drawbridge and finish it. To com- 
 plete the curtain connecting the flanks of the north and east 
 bastions, the troops worked under a continued shower of shot and 
 shell for twenty- four hours without intermission, till it was com- 
 pleted. The men became more exposed as the parapet rose, and 
 the enemy taking advantage of it, directed their guns upon the 
 labourers, but without effect. The only man killed was Sergeant 
 Weigart. 
 
 As the garrison found that their fire did but little execution 
 except to the houses of the town, it was deemed prudent to sus- 
 pend the cannonade, with the view of saving ammunition. The 
 firing accordingly ceased at ten o'clock. From this circumstance, 
 however, the enemy inferred our loss was severe, and that their 
 fire had silenced our guns. 
 
BOMBARDMENT OF FORT BROWN. 115 
 
 On the 4th of May, the firing from the enemy's batteries was 
 continued during the day. 
 
 The men in the garrison having completed the defences at and 
 around the east bastion, were now busily employed in making 
 bomb-proofs for security against the iron tempest that relentlessly 
 assailed them. They were built at points convenient for the 
 soldiers when in their stations, and were formed by layers of bar- 
 rels of pork, with poles laid across, and the whole covered with 
 embankments of earth. 
 
 At nine o'clock in the evening, an irregular firing of musketry 
 was heard in the rear of the fort, at a distance of three or four 
 hundred yards, and extending up the river about a mile. Major 
 Brown, supposing that the storming of the fort would take place 
 immediately, put the entire garrison under arms, and ordered all 
 the batteries and defences to be manned ; but the assault was 
 not attempted. During the night the enemy erected a battery in 
 the field, which was intended to assail the American works by a 
 cross-fire. 
 
 On the morning of the 5th, large parties of horse and foot were 
 discovered in the rear of the fort, supported by the above-men- 
 tioned battery, which, simultaneously with those in Matamoros, 
 opened upon the fort with a galling fire of round-shot and shells. 
 This fire was answered from the 18-pounders, and the howitzer 
 battery placed in embrazure on the south-east bastion, for the 
 space of an hour, when the firing on both sides ceased. About 
 nine o'clock some Mexican oflSicers, under an escort of cavalry, 
 with large bodies of mounted men and infantry within supporting 
 distance, commenced a reconnoissance at the distance of half a 
 mile, with the view of establishing a new battery. Lieutenant 
 Hanson with a party of dragoons, by permission of Major Brown, 
 with great gallantry sallied out to watch their movements, when 
 they precipitately retreated behind their works. 
 
 On Wednesday, the 6th, the cannonade began with the dawn 
 17 
 
116 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 of day, and round-shot and shells from the lower fort and mortar 
 battery were thrown into the fort, tearing the tents to pieces and 
 killing and wounding many of the artillery horses. Large parties 
 of mounted men and infantry were now seen hovering near ; and 
 Major Brown, finding himself surrounded by the enemy, gave to 
 General Taylor the preconcerted signal, by firing at half-past six 
 o'clock the l8-pounders. The enemy's fire was now redoubled, 
 as if in consequence of this ; and the shot and shells from the 
 several forts and batteries in front and rear, fell in an iron shower 
 throughout the fort. At about ten o'clock, while the brave Major 
 Brow^n, attended by his adjutant, was performing his usual round, 
 to see that the men were at their posts, he stopped to give some 
 directions respecting a bomb-proof upon which they were en- 
 gaged, when a descending shell struck him ; and amid the cloud 
 of dust that arose he was seen to fall mortally wounded. His 
 right leg was torn off, leaving the muscles and the bare and 
 jagged bones exposed to the view of his companions, who gathered 
 in sympathy around him. Calm in the endurance of suffering, 
 as he had before been in danger, he reminded them of their 
 duties, as he was borne to the hospital : " Men, go to your duties, 
 stand by your posts ; I am but one among you." 
 
 He was carried to a bomb-proof; where, owing to the confined 
 air, the violence of the wound, and the heat of the weather, he 
 had but little chance of recovery. He lingered until the evening 
 of the 9th ; and while the roar of the artillery, as it became more 
 distinct and nearer, proclaimed the retreat of the Mexicans before 
 his victorious general at Resaca de la Palma, yielded up his life 
 to his country, in whose honourable service he had been so long 
 employed. 
 
 In his notice of the defence of Fort Brown, General Taylor 
 pays the following handsome tribute to his memory : — 
 
 " The field-work opposite Matamoros has sustained itself hand- 
 somely, during a cannonade and bombardment of one hundred and 
 
arista's summons to surrender. 117 
 
 sixty hours. But the pleasure is alloyed with profound regret at 
 the loss of its heroic and indomitable commander, Major Brown, 
 who died to-day from the effects of a shell. His loss would be a 
 severe one to the service at any time, but to the army under my 
 orders, it is indeed irreparable." 
 
 On the fall of Major Brown, the command of the fort devolved 
 on Captain Hawkins, and his bastion on Brevet Major Rains. 
 Soon after this, large parties of infantry and cavalry were seen 
 advancing upon the fort in the rear, but they soon dispersed on 
 receiving a few rounds of canister from Lieutenant Bragg's battery. 
 From ten o'clock till half-past twelve P. M., the shot and shells 
 fell in one continual shower. After this, a dull and sullen fire was 
 kept up till between four and five o'clock, when a white flag was 
 displayed in the rear, and the Mexican bugles sounded a parley. 
 Soon after, two ofl^icers approached the fort with a flag, when they 
 were met, at the distance of three hundred yards, by Major Sewall 
 and Lieutenant Britton, who bore the following communication 
 from General Arista to Captain Hawkins, written in Spanish :— 
 
 " Mexican Army, Division of the North, ) 
 General-in-Chief. ) 
 
 " You are besieged by forces sufficient to take you ; and there 
 is, moreover, a numerous division encamped near you, which, 
 free from all other cares, will keep off any succours which you may 
 expect to receive. 
 
 " The respect for humanity, acknowledged at the present age by 
 all ci\'i]ized nations, doubtless imposes upon me the duty of miti- 
 gating the disasters of war. 
 
 ' ' This principle, which Mexicans observe above all other nations, 
 obliges me to summon you, as all your efforts will be useless, to 
 surrender, in order to avoid, by a capitulation, the entire destruc- 
 tion of all the soldiers under your command. 
 
 "You will thus afford me the pleasure of complying with the 
 mild and benevolent wishes above expressed, which distinguish 
 
118 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 the character of my countrymen, whilst I at the same time fulfil 
 the most imperious of the duties which my country requires for 
 the offences committed against it. 
 
 " God and liberty ! 
 
 Head-Quarters, at the Fanques del Raminero, May 6. 1846. 
 
 M. ARISTA." 
 
 Captain Hawkins, though resolved to defend the fort to the last, 
 thought it proper to submit the message which he had received to 
 his officers. He accordingly assembled the commanders of 
 bastions, with Captain Mansfield, principal engineer, and Lieu- 
 tenant Bragg. The vote was taken, beginning with the youngest 
 officer, and was unanimous, to defend tJie fort to the death. 
 
 The following reply was returned within the allotted hour : — 
 
 " Head Quarters U. S. Forces 
 Near Matamoros, May 6, 1846, 5 P. M. 
 
 ;es, ) 
 t- \ 
 
 " Sir : Your humane communication has just been received, 
 and, after the consideration due to its importance, I must respect- 
 fully decline to surrender my forces to you. 
 
 " The exact purport of your despatch I cannot feel confident that 
 I understood, as my interpreter is not skilled in your language ; 
 but if I have understood you correctly, you have my reply 
 above. 
 
 I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 E. S. HAWKINS, 
 Commanding U. S. Forces opposite Matamoros. 
 Gen. M. Arista, 
 
 Commanding Division of the JVorfA." 
 
 On the receipt of this reply followed the most harassing fire 
 of shot and shells that had yet been experienced ; but the American 
 troops could not answer it, as their ammunition was nearly 
 expended, and that on hand had to be kept for close quarters, as 
 the storming of the fort was momentarily expected. 
 
BOMBARDMENT OF FORT BROWN. 119 
 
 At the dawn of the 7th the enemy's batteries opened as usual 
 with great vigour, and parties seemed advancing on the fort, but 
 several rounds of canister and grape fired into their picket-guards, 
 at the houses in the rear, and at the old guard-house, caused 
 them to fall back out of cannon-range. A random fire was kept 
 up during the forenoon with musketry- ; but at half-past two 
 commenced a regular bombardment with shot and shells, from 
 howitzers and mortars, which was continued without intermission 
 till after sunset. 
 
 The Mexicans had advanced the former night, and occupied a 
 traverse left by the garrison to the north of the work near the 
 river, which was only one hundred yards from it, and as high as 
 our breast-work. At this place was a cover from which they 
 fired their escopets into the fort, and which might serve them as 
 a rallying-point, whence to rush upon it in the expected storm. 
 It was determined to level it, at whatever cost. 
 
 Accordingly, on the night of the 7th, Captain Miles, with three 
 subalterns, Lieutenants Potter, Van Dorn and Clitz, and one 
 hundred men, under direction of Captain Mansfield the chief 
 engineer, were sent, with spades only, on this dangerous enterprise. 
 The traverse lay longitudinally perpendicular to the face of one of 
 the enemy's strongest batteries, and not over five hundred yards 
 from it : had a discovery been made, a single discharge of grape 
 might have cut off the whole party. Happily, by eleven o'clock, 
 the traverse was levelled and some clumps of chaparral adjacent 
 cut away, much to the chagrin and mortification of the enemy, 
 who returned about midnight to resume their firing of the previous 
 night, but found their breast- work level with the ground. 
 
 At this time a random fire of musketry commenced, accom- 
 panied by the notes of bugles sounding the charge ; and the 
 defenders of the fort expected every moment the deadly assault. 
 Arrangements had already been made for it in Matamoros, to take 
 place this very night by a picked corps of five thousand men ; but 
 
120 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Arista had ascertained that General Taylor was advancing, and the 
 order was countermanded. The storming of the fort having been 
 abandoned, the firing was now irregular until three o'clock 
 A.M. At this time it became more severe, and was continued until 
 daylight. 
 
 At sunrise on the 8th the enemy's batteries commenced their 
 fire, and for several hours poured an incessant storm of shot and 
 shells into the fort. At noon the bombardment was resumed, and 
 an additional mortar, established in the chaparral across the river, 
 opened upon the garrison. Worn down with watching, exhausted 
 by labour, and harassed by a continual fire, the weary soldiers 
 were becoming listless, and indifferent to the shot and shells that 
 fell in dangerous proximity to their persons, when, about half-past 
 two o'clock P. M. on the 8th, they were roused from their lethargy 
 by a cannon-shot in the direction of Point Isabel. Another and 
 another followed in quick succession, and then ensued a heavy 
 cannonade like a continued volley of artillery. The countenances 
 of the soldiers brightened, as they sprang to their feet and listened 
 with intense interest to the roar of the distant battle, which was 
 then raging on the plains of Palo Alto. The sounds grew nearer 
 and more distinct, from which they inferred their general was 
 driving the enemy before him ; and, mounting upon the parapets, 
 regardless of the missiles that fell thick around them, they raised 
 a shout that rose far above the thunder of the enemy's forts, and 
 carried dismay to the hearts of the inhabitants of Matamoros. 
 Soon after this the enemy redoubled his fire, and from mortars 
 established in the north, south and west — four in number — 
 round-shot and shells in a storm of iron hail strewed the earth in 
 every direction. While the sounds of the distant battle were now 
 heard, bodies of infantry and cavalry were seen crossing the river, 
 and hurrying onward to reinforce their companions. About 
 sunset, a Mexican came running to the fort with a flag, and 
 announced to the garrison the pleasing intelligence, that General 
 
DEATH OF MAJOR BROWN, 121 
 
 Taylor had met the forces of Arista on his march, and after a 
 severe fight, had driven him back towards Matamoros. 
 
 During the night there was no more firing, and the garrison, 
 though on the alert should an assault be attempted, was enabled 
 to obtain better rest than usual to their weary, exhausted frames. 
 
 The firing was resumed on the morning of the 9th, but the 
 garrison was greatly encouraged on finding that the enemy's 
 battery to the east of the fort was withdrawn and removed to 
 Matamoros. The belief that General Taylor had been victorious 
 on the preceding day, was confirmed by seeing troops hurrying 
 in the direction of Arista's head-quarters. During the fire this 
 morning, an act of great daring was performed by Lieutenant 
 Van Dorn and Quartermaster-Sergeant Henry. The halyards of 
 the flag had become unrigged the preceding evening ; they 
 ascended to adjust these, when the enemy turned upon them the 
 fire of all their batteries ; yet, amid the storm of grape, canister, 
 and shells, they dauntlessly stood to their work until they had 
 accomplished it, and descended amid the acclamations of their 
 companions. 
 
 About midday the firing ceased for some time, and amid the 
 silence of the pause, the gallant Major Brown breathed his last. 
 
 It was now after two o'clock ; no message or tidings had been 
 received from General Taylor, and anxiety was painfully depicted 
 on the faces of many, when the booming of cannon in quick suc- 
 cession, told that their companions were again in deadly conflict 
 with the enemy. Nearer and clearer came the sound, till amid 
 the diapason of artillery was heard the sharp rattle of musketry, 
 and the garrison knew that the brave army coming to their relief, 
 were driving before them the proud legions of Mexico. 
 
 At length the sound of battle ceased, and the defenders of the 
 fort were now anxious to gain intelligence of a result in which 
 their own safety was so deeply concerned ; when, towards set of 
 sun, the Mexican troops emerged from the chaparral in the utmost 
 
122 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 confusion, and rushed in full retreat to the river, pursued by 
 May's dragoons and Duncan's artillery. Transported at the 
 sight, the garrison manned the parapets, and, lifting up the voice 
 of exultation, silenced with their cheers the batteries of the enemy, 
 for not another shot was fired afterwards. As the tide of Mexican 
 cavalry and infantry rolled by, discharges of grape from a 
 6-pounder and one of the 18's of the fort, carried increasing 
 confusion into their masses ; but as it was difficult to distinguish 
 friend from foe, the fire of the garrison was checked, lest the 
 deadly missiles might be directed against the pursuers as well as 
 the fugitives. 
 
 After a siege of one hundred and sixty hours, in which several 
 thousand shot and shells were received, and every ten feet of its 
 area ploughed up by a bomb, thus ended the defence of Fort 
 Brown. It was undoubtedly one of the most brilliant achieve- 
 ments of the war. Throughout its continuance, the courage, 
 patience, and perseverance of the American soldiery were 
 severely tested, under the most disadvantageous and harassing 
 circumstances ; and well did they abide the fiery ordeal. 
 
 Besides its gallant defender Major Brown, Sergeant Weigart 
 of the 7th infantry was the only one killed ; the wounded 
 were thirteen in number, and were all privates. The case of 
 Sergeant Weigart was a remarkable one. The second bomb 
 thrown by the Mexicans exploded near his company, and carried 
 away a part of his head, killing him instantly. While laid out 
 on a board in the hospital tent preparatory to burial, a shell 
 entered the tent, burst, and blew off his head. After his burial, 
 a bomb entered his grave, and exploding therein, partially 
 exhumed him. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Bombardment of Fort Brown heard at Point Isabel — Captain "Walker sent with a 
 Communication to Major Brown — May charges the Enemy's Lancers — Return 
 of Captain Walker — March of General Taylor for Fort Brown — Published Order 
 — Enemy discovered — Arista's Order of Battle — Taylor's Order of Battle — 
 Daring Service of Lieutenant Blake — Enemy's Fire opened — Duncan's Battery — 
 Ringgold's Artillery — Churchhill's 18-pounders — Charge of Cavalry — Lieutenant 
 Ridgely — Fall of Ringgold — Artillery Battalion — Lieutenant- Colonel Childs — 
 The Prairie fired — Duncan's Movement — Forces of the two Armies — The Loss 
 on each side — Taylor's Despatch — Arista's Despatch. 
 
 The cannonade that opened upon Fort Brown, on the 3d of 
 May, was heard by General Taylor at Point Isabel. Anxious to 
 relieve the garrison, he determined to return immediately to Fort 
 Brown, and the troops were under order to march at one, P. M. 
 Subsequently, he deemed it proper first to communicate with the 
 fort ; and Captain Walker was selected for that duty. About two 
 o'clock, on the evening of the 3d, the captain set out with ten 
 Texan Rangers, accompanied by Captain May, with a command 
 of one hundred dragoons ; and after proceeding a few miles, halted 
 until dark. 
 
 About nine o'clock they came in sight of the enemy's camp- 
 fires ; and, by proceeding cautiously, succeeded in getting 
 between their encampment and the fort. About seven miles 
 from the latter, protected from observation by the edge of the 
 chaparral. Captain May remained with his command ; while Cap- 
 tain Walker, and six of the rangers, advanced to the fort. It was 
 arranged between them, that Captain Walker should return as 
 early as possible, so that they could pass the enemy's lines before 
 daylight. 
 
 18 (123) 
 
124 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Captain May awaited the return of Captain Walker until near 
 (lawn ; when, finding that he and his party were discovered by 
 the enemy's scouts, and believing that some accident had hap- 
 pened to the captain, he returned to Point Isabel. When within 
 twelve miles of the Point, he found his way obstructed by about 
 one hundred and fifty lancers. These he charged, and drove 
 before him towards their camp for two or three miles ; when, fear- 
 ing an ambuscade, he wheeled about and proceeded on to Point 
 Isabel, which he reached at nine o'clock. 
 
 It was near three o'clock in the morning of the 4th, before 
 Captain Walker succeeded in reaching the fort, and delivering 
 his message to the commander. After some time, he received 
 Major Brown's communications for General Taylor, and being 
 furnished with fresh horses, hastened to join Captain May. On 
 arriving at the spot where he had left the captain and his party, 
 he found them gone — and the enemy prepared to cut oflT his 
 return. He then rode back to Fort Brown, where he remained 
 till night, and then set out again for Point Isabel. The enemy 
 were everywhere in his pathway, but he managed to evade them, 
 and bore to General Taylor the cheering intelligence that the fort 
 had nobly sustained itself; and was able, for the present, to repel 
 any force that could be brought against it. After the receipt of 
 this news, General Taylor resolved to remain a while longer at 
 Point Isabel, that he might place it in a better state of defence, 
 and prepare for his return to Fort Brown. 
 
 During the week which he spent at Point Isabel, General 
 Taylor had completed the defences of that post, and made 
 arrangements for the transportation of the supplies and munitions 
 of war intended for Fort Brown. Summoned thither by the 
 booming of the deep-mouthed cannon that assailed the fort, he 
 left Point Isabel on the evening of the 7th of May, and with the 
 main body of his army, and a train of three hundred wagons, his 
 
ENEMY DISCOVERED. 125 
 
 light artillery, and two 18-pounders on siege-carriages, drawn 
 by ten yoke of oxen, moved towards the Rio Grande. 
 
 In expectation of the enemy's disputing his return, and confi- 
 dent of his ability to repel their efforts, General Taylor issued the 
 following order : — 
 
 " Head-Quakteks, Army of Occupation, ) 
 May 7, 1846. j 
 
 Order No. 58. 
 "The army will march to-day at three o'clock, in the direction 
 of Matamoros. It is known the enemy has recently occupied the 
 route in force. If still in possession, the general will give him 
 battle. The commanding-general has every confidence in his 
 officers and men. If his orders and instructions are carried out, 
 he has no doubt of the result, let the enemy meet him in what 
 numbers they may. He wishes to enjoin upon the battalions of 
 infantry, that their main dependence must be in the bayonet. 
 
 W. W. S. BLISS, 
 
 Assistant Adjutant- General.^ 
 
 The weather was warm, and their march slow and toilsome, 
 encumbered as it was with the train and the heavy artillery intended 
 for Fort Brown ; so that, after making seven miles of their way, 
 they halted and bivouacked on their arms for the night. 
 
 Early on the following morning it was reported by the scouts 
 under Captain Walker, that the enemy had deserted their camp, 
 from which it was inferred, that the enemy did not contemplate 
 giving battle. The march was resumed about sunrise, and con- 
 tinued till noon. At this time, the advance of cavalry which had 
 reached the water-hole of Palo Alto, brought intelligence to the 
 general that the Mexicans were in front ; and it was soon dis- 
 covered that they occupied the road in great force. 
 
 On reaching the water, the army was halted, with the view of 
 resting and refreshing the men, and enabling the general to 
 
126 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 make a proper and deliberate disposition of his forces. The 
 enemy in battle-array was now plainly visible at a distance of 
 three-quarters of a mile, his banners gaily floating in the breeze, 
 and his tall lances flashing in the sunlight. Compact lines of 
 infantry extended from a thicket of chaparral on their right, about 
 a mile over an open prairie of three miles in extent ; while a heavy 
 force of cavalry on their left, stretched across the road and rested 
 upon a salt-marsh of difficult passage. At intervals along their 
 line, batteries were planted to sweep the advancing column of the 
 Americans. 
 
 Though he saw before him an army greatly superior in numbers, 
 inured to arms in many a fight, and enjoying the advantages of 
 a well-selected position, General Taylor, firm in his resolution to 
 advance, and confident of the bravery of his troops, calmly dis- 
 posed his forces in order of battle. 
 
 The line of battle was formed in two wings. The right wing 
 was commanded by the veteran Colonel David E. Twiggs, and 
 was composed of the following troops, commencing on the 
 extreme right : — 5th infantry, Lieutenant-Colonel Mcintosh ; 
 Ringgold's light artillery ; 3d infantry, Captain L. M. Morris ; 
 two 18-pounders, under Lieutenant Churchhill, 3d artillery ; 4th 
 infantry, Major G. W. Allen ; and two squadrons of dragoons, 
 under Captains Ker and May. The left wing, under the 
 command of Lieutenant-Colonel Belknap, consisted of a battalion 
 of artillery, serving as infantry, under Lieutenant-Colonel Childs; 
 Captain Duncan's light artillery ; and the 8th infantry, under 
 Captain Montgomery. For security the wagon train was parked 
 near the water, under the directions of Captains Grossman and 
 Myers of the Quartermaster's department, and protected by the 
 squadron of dragoons under Captain Ker. 
 
 Having refreshed themselves and filled their canteens, the 
 troops were put in motion and ordered to advance by heads of 
 columns. After the line of battle had been formed, General 
 
BATTLE 
 
 8*:Mavl84fi 
 
 ExiilanatioiL 
 
 }Ii.Tuan Cavahy 
 D" .irtilk/y 
 ll" Inl'iattxy 
 II" Simrha'os 
 
DARING SERVICE OF LIEUTENANT BLAKE. 127 
 
 Taylor rode along the line and encouraged the men, who seemed 
 eager for the contest. As yet he did not know whether the enemy 
 had artillery or not; and anxious to learn that particular, he 
 detached Captain May with his dragoons, to reconnoitre his 
 lines, and, if possible, draw the fire of his artillery ; but it was 
 completely masked by the long prairie-grass and the men in front 
 of the pieces, and the captain returned again, after an ineffectual 
 effort. 
 
 Lieutenant Blake now volunteered a daring service. He pro- 
 posed to go forward alone, and make a reconnoissance of the 
 enemy's position and forces. With great gallantry he dashed 
 forwards to within eighty yards of the enemy's line, while both 
 armies looked on with admiration ; and dismounting, took his 
 glass, and deliberately surveyed the whole of their forces. After 
 this, he mounted his horse and galloped down the line to the 
 other end, and, after a second examination with his glass, returned 
 and reported to the general the presence and position of at least 
 two batteries of artillery in the enemy's line. Scarcely had he 
 finished his report to General Taylor, when the enemy's battery 
 on the right, with ball and grape, opened upon the American 
 forces, and the work of destruction began. 
 
 As soon as the cannonade commenced. General Taylor halted 
 his columns, and ordered them to deploy into line, which was 
 performed with steadiness and precision. The light artillery on 
 the wings and the 18-pounders in the centre, were advanced about 
 one hundred yards, and the order passed to answer the enemy's 
 fire. Duncan's battery on the left got into position a little in 
 advance of the others, and first returned the challenge of the 
 enemy. Ringgold 's artillery was soon engaged in the conflict ; 
 and the terrible l8-pounders from the centre, under the direction 
 of the general, were brought to bear upon the enemy's left. 
 
 The battle now raged with fury from right to left, and the 
 cannon on both sides dealt destruction. The fire of the enemy 
 
128 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 was incessant, but inaccurate ; Ringgold's artillery on the contrary 
 mowed down whole platoons of cavalry on the Mexican left ; the 
 discharges of the 18-pounders in the same direction were 
 murderous, while the Mexican right suffered terribly from the 
 artillery of Duncan, which was served with deadly effect. 
 Captain May, who had been ordered to support this battery, while 
 contemplating a charge, received a severe fire from the Mexican 
 artillery, by which he lost four horses killed and two wounded. 
 
 At this time the Mexican cavalry, which, unable to withstand 
 the rapid discharges and precision of Ringgold's artillery, and 
 the fire of the heavy pieces under Churchhill, had faltered and given 
 way, advanced through the chaparral with two pieces of artillery, 
 for the purpose of attacking the right flank of the Americans, 
 or of making a demonstration upon the train which had been 
 parked in the rear. To check this flank movement, troops were 
 promptly detached. The 5th infantry was advanced to meet the 
 enemy in that quarter, supported by a section of Major Ringgold's 
 battery under Lieutenant Randolph Ridgely, Captain Walker's 
 company of volunteers, and, shortly after, the 3d infantry. Thrown 
 into cavalry square, the 5th sustained with great bravery the 
 charge of the lancers under General Torrejon, and galled them 
 with a severe fire, while Lieutenant Ridgely served his pieces 
 with rapidity, and poured shot and shells upon their ranks with 
 decisive effect. The lieutenant had his horse shot under him, at 
 which time the horses at one of his caissons, affrighted, sprang 
 madly forward in range of the gun. Regardless of danger, the 
 lieutenant threw himself between the contending fires, and seizing 
 the leader by the head, brought the horses to their places, and 
 saved both them and the ammunition of his battery. Though 
 severely wasted, a portion of the enemy's cavalry on the flank 
 continued to press on, until they perceived the 3d infantry 
 advancing in column by division to receive them, when they 
 
FALL OF RINGGOLD. 129 
 
 turned and retired with precipitation, lessened by the iron hail 
 that pursued them. 
 
 In the mean time Churchhill's 18-pounders and the artillery 
 under Ringgold, supported by the 4th infantry from the left, con- 
 tinued to assail the enemy with a steady fire, and with murderous 
 effect. To check this fire, the enemy poured from his batteries 
 a storm of grape and canister, which killed and wounded many 
 of the 4th, and among them Captain Page, who was shockingly 
 disfigured by a shot which tore away his lower jaw. Soon after, 
 the gallant Ringgold, while directing the fire of his pieces, was 
 mortally wounded by a 6-pound shot, which at the same time 
 mangled and dashed to the earth the charger on which he was 
 mounted.. Colonel Payne, inspector-general of the army and one 
 of General Taylor's aids, chanced to be near him at the time. 
 By permission, he had just directed with effect one of the guns, 
 and, summoned by the call of one of the men, ran with others to 
 the wounded major, to afford such aid as was in their power ; but 
 with the true gallantry of a soldier, more concerned for the cause 
 of his country than his own life, he wished to decline their ser- 
 vices, and said: " Don't stay with me; you have work to do. 
 Go ahead!" 
 
 After Major Ringgold was carried to the rear, Lieuteriant 
 Shover assumed the command of his pieces, and continued to 
 serve them with precision and good effect until the close of the 
 action. 
 
 While this flank movement was attempted by the enemy, the 
 artillery battalion, under Lieutenant- Colonel Childs, had been 
 brought up, for the purpose of supporting the batteries of Church- 
 hill and Ringgold. As the enemy's cavalry came dashing on, a 
 deadly fire from the 18-pounders gave them a severe check, w^hile 
 the artillery battalion, thrown into cavalry-square, were prepared 
 to receive them. Again pressing on, the enemy opened a fire of 
 small arms upon the square, by which Lieutenant Luther, of the 
 
130 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 2d artillery, and others were wounded ; but a volley from the front 
 of the square, delivered with good effect, stopped their advance, 
 and closed the action upon the American right. Evening was 
 now setting in ; and the enemy, foiled in all his attempts against 
 the American line, fell back from his position, and retired through 
 the chaparral Out of sight. 
 
 While these things took place, Captain May had been ordered 
 to drive in the cavalry of the enemy on the Mexican left, but 
 while advancing for that purpose, received a heavy fire from their 
 artillery, which disabled a considerable portion of his command. 
 Having gained a position with the view of charging, he was 
 restrained by the consideration of the great disparity of forces, 
 which were as one to ten, and returned to his former position. 
 
 During the engagement, the prairie-grass on the left, parched 
 by the continued blaze of the cannon, had been fired by the dis- 
 charge of Duncan's battery; and dense wreaths of smoke rolling 
 up, entirely enveloped the two armies from each other, and hung 
 like the pall of death over the battle-field. In consequence of 
 this, the fight was suspended ; but during its pause, while Dun- 
 can was advancing to gain a position somewhat to the right of the 
 one which he had occupied, the Mexicans were marching across 
 the prairie with the view of attacking the train ; which, during the 
 engagement, in consequence of the advance of our line, had also 
 been advanced and parked in the rear. 
 
 The temporary clearing away of the smoke, which the sea- 
 breeze lifted up like a curtain, and let fall again, disclosed to 
 each army the manoeuvre of the other. Penetrating the enemy's 
 intention. Colonel Belknap ordered Duncan to alter his direction, 
 and wheel his horses to the left, which was promptly obeyed. 
 Rushing in the direction of the enemy's advancing troops, Duncan 
 halted within musket-range of the lancers; and, as the clearing 
 of the air revealed his position to the astonished enemy, poured 
 a volley of shot and shells upon the lancers from one section, 
 
THE LOSS ON EACH SIDE. 131 
 
 while he directed the fire of another against some regiments of 
 infantry, that, supported by horse, were emerging from the cha- 
 parral. Bravely did the enemy sustain the fire for a time. They 
 re-formed the broken ranks, and attempted to press on, but the 
 shells and shrapnell shot soon carried confusion into their ranks ; 
 their own fire slackened, while the iron storm that assailed them 
 was resistless. Their infantry fell back, and retired within the 
 chaparral, in the rear of the position it had occupied ; in which 
 movement it was soon followed by the cavalry, while night 
 coming on put an end to the contest. 
 
 During these movements, Ker's dragoons and the 8th infantry 
 stood firm as veterans, ready to support the batteries ; but were 
 not called into action. The 8th was kept in column, instead of 
 being deployed into line, and sustained a galling fire under cir- 
 cumstances demanding the coolest endurance. 
 
 The fire from both armies ceased with the setting sun, whose 
 last rays gave a light tinge of gold to the heavy clouds of smoke 
 that draped the battle-field, like the transient fame that gilds the 
 gloom of war. Many an eye that brightened with his morning 
 radiance was dim, and would now behold his beams no more 
 for ever. 
 
 The regular force of the Mexicans in this battle was six thou- 
 sand men, with twelve pieces of artillery, besides bodies of irregu- 
 lar troops. The Americans had in all but twenty-two hundred 
 and eighty-eight men ; yet, with this inferior force, the American 
 general defeated a veteran army, with all the advantages of a 
 select position. It was the first open action between the armies 
 of the belligerents ; and its complete success was a happy omen 
 of the victories that were to follow. 
 
 The Mexicans lost two hundred killed, and four hundred 
 wounded; the Americans lost nine killed, forty- four wounded, 
 and two missing. Artillery was the main arm employed, and 
 the rapidity and precision with which the American guns were 
 served, caused the great disparity in the loss of the two armies. 
 19 
 
132 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Another cause of the disparity was, that the Mexicans directed 
 their fire with the view of silencing the batteries ; while the 
 Americans directed their shot against the masses of men. But 
 the chief cause was the difference in the abilities of the two 
 commanders, and the bravery of their subordinate officers. Their 
 men, with veteran firmness, withstood the volleys of our artillery, 
 and, had they been led by superiors of dauntless bravery, though 
 they might not have been victorious, would have rendered the 
 fortunes of the day far different. Finding the great superiority 
 of our artillery. Arista should have charged, with recklessness of 
 the partial sacrifice, and by the very force of his numbers have 
 overpowered his enemy. That General Taylor expected him to 
 do this, is evident from his order: "He wishes to enjoin upon 
 the battalions of infantry, that their chief dependence must be in 
 the bayonet." 
 
 By the light of the burning prairie, and the soft rays of the 
 moon, the Americans collected their wounded and buried the 
 dead ; and after the excitement was over, sank to repose on the 
 bare earth, in expectation of resuming the battle on the morrow. 
 The place of the battle, Palo Alto (tall timber), is so called on 
 account of the timber which skirted the further end of the prairie, 
 and which, though of stunted growth, is tall in comparison with 
 the chaparral of that region. When first passing over this ground, 
 General Taylor had predicted, that the enemy would select it for 
 their place to give battle. 
 
 At the dawn of day, on the 9th, the enemy were seen retiring 
 along the chaparral towards the road, as if to dispute the further 
 progress of our army. Determined to advance and attack the 
 enemy, General Taylor resolved to park the train, and mount 
 some of the 12-pounders, which it carried for its defence. The 
 wounded were left behind, to be sent to Point Isabel. The 
 gallant Major Ringgold, who, while standing up in his stirrups 
 watching the effect of his fire, had received a shot that passed 
 
M A J O R S A I\: IT K L RINGGOLD. 
 
TAYLOR S DESPATCH. 133 
 
 through both legs, carrying away the flesh and integuments, lin- 
 gered until the 11th; when, with great composure, he closed a 
 life which had been faithfully devoted to his country. 
 
 About sunrise General Taylor formed his troops in line of 
 battle, and marched forward to meet the enemy ; but the dragoons 
 and Captain Walker's men, who were in advance, reported the 
 chaparral free, and the enemy rapidly retiring along the road, 
 upon which the general halted his army. 
 
 The commanding-general now rode back to the train, for 
 the purpose of despatching his first bulletin, which had been 
 prepared the preceding night. While here, an unfortunate 
 occurrence took place. Lieutenant Blake, of the Topographical 
 Engineers, whom we have mentioned as making the bold recon- 
 noissance of the enemy's line, accidentally shot himself. On 
 entering the tent in which General Taylor was sitting, he threw 
 down his holsters, when the cap of one of his pistols exploded, 
 discharging the contents into his body. 
 
 The despatch of General Taylor was brief and unpretending. 
 In a subsequent communication he dwelt upon the details of the 
 fight. • 
 
 " Head- Quarters, Army of Occupation, ) 
 Camp at Palo Alto, Texas, May 9, 1846. j 
 
 "Sir: I have the honour to report that I was met near this ^ 
 place yesterday, on my march from Point Isabel, by the Mexican 
 forces, and after an action of about five hours, dislodged them 
 from their position and encamped upon the field. Our artillery, 
 consisting of two l8-pounders and two light batteries, was the 
 arm chiefly engaged, and to the excellent manner in which it 
 was manoeuvred and served is our success mainly due. 
 
 '< The strength of the enemy is believed to have been about 
 6000 men, with seven pieces of artillery, and 800 cavalry. His 
 loss is probably at least one hundred killed. Our strength did 
 not exceed, all told, twenty- three hundred, while our loss was 
 
134 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 comparatively trifling — four men killed, three officers and thirty- 
 seven men wounded, several of the latter mortally. I regret to 
 say that Major Ringgold, 2d artillery, and Captain Page, 4th 
 infantry, are severely wounded. Lieutenant Luther, 2d artillery, 
 slightly so. \ 
 
 " The enemy has fallen back, and it is believed, has repassed 
 the river. I have advanced parties now thrown forward in his 
 direction, and shall move the main body immediately. 
 ( "In the haste of this report, I can only say that the officers and 
 men behaved in the most admirable manner throughout the action. y 
 I shall have the pleasure of making a more detailed report when 
 those of the different commanders shall be received. 
 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. A., commanding. 
 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Washington, D. C." 
 
 In striking contrast with this plain statement is the account of 
 the vanquished Arista, addi'essed to the Mexican Minister of War 
 and Marine, and dated, " In sight of the enemy. May 8." 
 Though in sight of the enemy, the Mexican commander was at 
 the time in retreat. This omission, however, is of little moment, 
 when we consider the many misstatements of his despatch. 
 
 " Constant in my purpose of preventing General Taylor from 
 uniting the forces which he brought from the Fronton of Santa 
 Isabel, with those which he left opposite Matamoros, t moved 
 this day from the Fanques del Raminero, whence I despatched 
 my last extraordinary courier, and took the direction of Palo 
 Alto, as soon as my spies informed me that the enemy had left 
 Fronton, with the determination of introducing into his fort 
 wagons loaded with provisions and heavy artillery. 
 
 «< I arrived opposite Palo Alto about one o'clock, and observed 
 that the enemy was entering that position. 
 
ARISTA S DESPATCH. 135 
 
 " With all my forces, I established the line of battle in a great 
 plain, my right resting upon an elevation, and my left on a slough 
 of difficult passage. 
 
 " Scarcely was the first cannon fired, when there arrived Gene- 
 ral D. Pedro de Arapudia, second in command, whom I had 
 ordered to join me after having covered the points which might 
 serve to besiege the enemy in the forts opposite Matamoros. 
 
 " The forces under my orders amounted to three thousand men, 
 and twelve pieces of artillery ; those of the invaders were three 
 thousand, rather less than more, and were superior in artillery, 
 since they had twenty pieces of the calibre of sixteen and eighteen 
 pounds. 
 
 " The battle commenced so ardently, that the fire of cannon 
 did not cease a single moment. In the course of it, the enemy 
 wished to follow the road to Matamoros, to raise the siege of his 
 troops ; with which object he fired the grass, and formed in front 
 of his line of battle a smoke so thick, that he succeeded in cover- 
 ing himself from our view, but by means of manoeuvres this was 
 twice embarrassed. 
 
 <« General Taylor maintained his attack rather defensively than 
 offensively, employing his best arm, which is artillery, protected 
 by half of the infantry, and all of his cavalry, keeping the 
 remainder fortified in the ravine, about two thousand yards from 
 the field of battle. 
 
 <' I was anxious for the charge, because the fire of cannon did 
 much damage in our ranks; and I instructed General D. Anasta- 
 sio Torrejon to execute it with the greater part of the cavalry, by 
 our left flank, with some columns of infantry, and the remainder 
 of the cavalry. 
 
 <« I was waiting the moment when that general should execute 
 the charge, and the effect of it should begin to be seen, in order 
 to give the impulse on the right ; but he was checked by a fire of 
 the enemy, which defended a slough that embarrassed the attack. 
 
136 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 " Some battalions, becoming impatient by the loss ■which they 
 suffered, fell into disorder, demanding to advance or fall back. 
 I immediately caused them to charge with a column of cavalry, 
 under the command of Colonel D. Cayetano Montero ; the result 
 of this operation being that the dispersed corps repaired their fault 
 as far as possible, marching towards the enemy, who, in conse- 
 quence of his distance, was enabled to fall back upon his reserve ; 
 and night coming on, the battle was concluded, the field remain- 
 ing for our arms. 
 
 " Every suitable measure was then adopted, and the di\'ision 
 took up a more concentrated curve in the same scene of action. 
 
 " The combat was long and bloody, which may be estimated 
 from the calculations made by the commandant-general of artil- 
 lery, General D. Thomas Requena, who assures me that the 
 enemy threw about three thousand cannon-shots from two in the 
 afternoon, when the battle commenced, until seven at night, when 
 it terminated, — six hundred and fifty being fired on our side. 
 
 " The national arms shone forth, since they did not yield a 
 hand's-breadth of ground, notwithstanding the superiority in 
 artillery of the enemy, who suffered much damage. 
 
 " Our troops have to lament the loss of two hundred and fifty- 
 two men dispersed, wounded, and killed, — the last worthy of 
 national recollection and gratitude for the intrepidity with which 
 they died fighting for the most sacred of causes. 
 
 '< Will your Excellency please with his note to report to his 
 Excellency the President, representing to him that I will take 
 care to give a circumstantial account of this deed of arms ; and 
 recommending to him the good conduct of all the generals, chiefs, 
 officers and soldiers under my orders, for sustaining so bloody a 
 combat, which does honour to our arms, and exhibits their dis- 
 cipline." 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 A Council-of-War — Taylor's March resumed — Mexicans killed and wounded — 
 Advance-Guard under Captain McCall — Skirmish with the Enemy — His Position 
 at Resaca de la Palma — Commencement of the Battle — Ridgely's Artillery — 
 The 5th Infantry — The 4th Infantry — Service of the Cannon — 8th Infantry 
 brought up — May ordered to take the Enemy's Battery — May's brilliant Charge 
 — Death of^Lieutenant In^ — Capture of General Vega — Bravery of Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Belknap — Lieutenant-Colonel Mcintosh wounded — Capture of Arista's 
 Camp — Lieutenant Cochrane killed — The Tampico Battalion — Capture of its 
 Flag — Rout of the Enemy — General Taylor's Report — Burial of the Dead — 
 Humanity of General Taylor — Exchange of Prisoners — Congratulatory Orders — 
 Manifesto of the Mexican Commander. 
 
 At daybreak on the 9th, the rear of the enemy was seen 
 retiring through the chaparral towards Fort Brown, and the gene- 
 ral belief was, that he was disposed to try his fortunes again, and 
 would further dispute the advance of the American army. 
 
 After their morning meal, General Taylor called a council 
 composed of the heads of the commands, in which some were 
 for marching forward ; others preferred intrenching where they 
 were, until reinforced by the volunteers that were expected ; while 
 others, again, were in favour of returning to Point Isabel. The 
 commanding-general reconciled all differences by declaring, that 
 he would be in Fort Brown before night, if he lived. Thereupon 
 the council closed, and orders were given to form in line, and 
 march forward. In passing over the battle-ground of the former 
 day, the terrible effects of our artillery were visible in the heaped- 
 up masses of dead bodies disfigured with ghastly wounds and 
 distained with blood, — in the dead horses scattered along the 
 route of the retreating cavalry, — and in the fragments of arms, 
 
 (137) 
 
138 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 military accoutrements, and clothing strewed over the field in 
 admirable confusion. 
 
 On reaching the edge of the chaparral, General Taylor halted 
 the troops at a pond, and ordered forward into the chaparral an 
 advanced corps, to feel the enemy, and ascertain his position. 
 This consisted of the light companies of the First Brigade, under 
 Captain C. F. Smith, 2d artillery, and a select detachment of 
 light troops ; the whole under command of Captain A. G. McCall, 
 4th infantry, and numbering two hundred and twenty men. 
 Captain Smith's party moved along upon the right of the road, 
 the remainder of the command upon the left. In expectation of 
 an engagement. General Taylor parked his supply- train, and 
 fortified its position by intrenchments, and by a battery consist- 
 ing of the two 18-pounders and two 12's. The artillery battalion, 
 under Lieutenant-Colonel Childs (excepting the flank companies), 
 was stationed as a guard to the train, some distance in advance 
 of it. 
 
 While scouring the chaparral in search of the enemy, the 
 American advance upon the right discovered some small parties 
 of infantry, and one of cavalry, and immediately fired upon 
 them. Shortly after this the head of the command, on reaching 
 the open ground bordering upon the Resaca de la Palma, came 
 within range of a masked battery, and received three rounds of 
 canister, which killed one man, and wounded three others. Upon 
 this the men broke and took to the chaparral. Shortly after, 
 however, they rallied, and uniting with the detachment under 
 Captain Smith, prepared to move upon the flank of the enemy 
 and attack him. 
 
 While this was going on upon the right of the road, Lieutenant 
 Dobbins, with a small party, encountered upon the left a large 
 body of Mexicans. The lieutenant raised his rifle and killed 
 the Mexican leader ; almost at the same instant his soldiers fired, 
 killing and wounding a number of the enemy, while the remainder 
 
Scale of OTU ~>n£ie 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 n~:i 
 
 Gen! jT ^"iristas-^f-V „ fir ,___ 
 
 
 
 
 ^„u!^ 
 
 BATTLE 
 
 of 
 
 RESACA DE LA PALMA 
 
 
 
 ^->^^^^^ 
 
 ..-k^'"?) 
 
 
 
 
 n^ f^i ^w 
 
 t'^ 
 
 
HIS POSITION AT RESACA DE LA PALMA. 139 
 
 fell back. Soon after, a masked battery opened upon the party, 
 and Lieutenant Dobbins was struck down by a grape-shot. He 
 recovered himself soon after, and ordered his men to the dense 
 chaparral, w^hich they reached in time to escape a troop of Mexi- 
 can cavalry that came dashing up in pursuit. He now ordered 
 his men to press upon the rear of the cavalry, who, fearing they 
 had fallen into an ambuscade, hastily retreated. After this the 
 lieutenant, with his men, returned to the main body of the 
 advance-guard ; when Captain McCall despatched three dragoons 
 to inform General Taylor that the enemy occupied the ravine in 
 force, with the evident design of obstructing his march. 
 
 The position selected by the enemy was one of great natural 
 strength. Midway between Palo Alto and Fort Brown, and in 
 the centre of the forest of chaparral which extends for about seven 
 miles between these points, the road crosses a ravine which is 
 semicircular in shape, with the opening between its extremities 
 lying towards Point Isabel. The ravine is about sixty yards 
 broad, and is nearly breast-high. At different places along its 
 extent are ponds, oval or of serpentine shape, which are so 
 increased during the rainy season, as to unite and form a con- 
 tinuous stream that flows off towards the Rio Grande, and is 
 hence called the Resaca de la Palma, or Dry River of P alma. 
 The bed of this river, now dry, with the exception of ponds at 
 intervals, was occupied by the enemy in double lines ; one posted 
 under the front bank, the other intrenched behind the chaparral 
 that lined the further bank. Batteries were planted upon the 
 right and left of the road in the centre of each line, and one upon 
 the enemy's right, so that the fire of the whole might converge in 
 a terrible focus upon the American column, as it advanced between 
 the horns of the crescent which the ravine formed across the road. 
 With these advantages of position, Arista, wuth seven thousand 
 men, many of them veteran troops, awaited the approach of the 
 American army. 
 20 
 
140 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 About three o'clock in the afternoon, General Taylor received 
 the message from Captain McCall, and instantly put his army in 
 motion, which came up with the advance-guard about four 
 o'clock. Lieutenant Ridgely, with his battery, was immediately 
 thrown forward on the road. Captain Smith, with his party, was 
 now directed to take the right of the road, while Captain McCall 
 took the left, with orders to feel the enemy and bring on the 
 action, after which they were to assume a position upon the 
 enemy's flanks, and harass him. Having advanced about three 
 hundred yards to front and flank, the advance encountered the 
 right of the enemy's infantry, and with great gallantry brought 
 on the action, pouring an incessant and destructive fire upon the 
 enemy. 
 
 Ridgely's btittery, in the mean time, had advanced upon the 
 road ; while the 5th infantry and one wing of the 4th, thrown into 
 the chaparral on the left, and the 3d infantry and the other wing 
 of the 4th upon the right, moved simultaneously upon the enemy. 
 These corps were deployed as skirmishers, and intended to cover 
 the battery and engage the Mexican infantry. 
 
 Moving cautiously along, Ridgely discovered the enemy in 
 the road, about four hundred yards in advance, and almost 
 instantaneously their artillery opened upon him. Ridgely ordered 
 forward his battery at full speed, about a hundred yards, and 
 returned the fire with precision and effect. The cannonade was 
 kept up for some time on both sides with great spirit, after which, 
 as the fire of the enemy slackened, Ridgely limbered up and 
 advanced upon him, until at length he was within a hundred or 
 a hundred and fifty yards of the enemy's batteries, and at this 
 fearful proximity, galled him with rapid and terrible discharges 
 of grape and canister. 
 
 Simultaneous with the opening roar of the artillery was heard 
 the sharp rattle of musketry. On the left the 5th infantry, led by 
 the gallant Lieutenant-Colonel Mcintosh, rushed on towards the 
 
SERVICE OF THE CANNON. 141 
 
 enemy at full speed, made its way through the almost impene- 
 trable chaparral, engaged the enemy, and for some time sus- 
 tained the fire of the Mexican army, without any infantry to 
 support it, except the advance party, under Captain McCall. 
 
 The 4th infantry, while pressing on towards the enemy through 
 the chaparral, became divided. A part united with the 5th, 
 while the remaining portion, under Captain Buchanan, with 
 Lieutenants Hays and Woods, crossed the pond in the ravine, 
 which was waist-deep, and on surmounting the crest of the hill, 
 charged and took one of the enemy's pieces, though defended by 
 a hundred and fifty infantry ; and immediately after drove the 
 enemy from a breastwork behind which he was intrenched. 
 Before the cannoneers fled, they had set fire to the priming-tube, 
 and the match was about to ignite the powder ; Lieutenant 
 Woods sprang forward in time to prevent it, and with his sword 
 knocked off the priming. Soon after a body of cavalry came 
 dashing up, and made an effort to recapture the artillery ; but a 
 part of the 3d infantry, under Captain Barbour, had arrived to 
 the support of the 4th. They formed in the face of the enemy, 
 and advanced with the utmost determination, when rapid dis- 
 charges from the united force drove back the enemy in confusion. 
 
 The action now became general, and the battle raged with 
 fury. In various parts of the field was heard the roll of musketry, 
 where the infantry, divided into small parties by the intervening 
 chaparral, was contending with the enemy. At times the conflict 
 became nearer, and bayonets were crossed in the deadly 
 encounter. The artillerists, under Ridgely, meanwhile, were 
 bared like reapers to their toil, and the corses of the enemy, like 
 ripened grain, strewed the field of death beneath their incessant 
 and terrible service at the pieces. Their intrepid commander, 
 cool and determined, not only gave direction to the discharges 
 of the guns, but with his ready glass sought afterwards the evi- 
 dences of the effect with which each charge was sped. The roar 
 
142 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 of the enemy's cannon, in the mean time, was almost continuous ; 
 and had it not been that the fire was directed too high, it would 
 have swept Ridgely's batteries, and annihilated his command. 
 
 While the battle thus raged, Lieutenant-Colonel Belknap, who 
 commanded the First Brigade, ordered up the 8th infantry, 
 and Duncan's artillery, which had been posted as a reserve. On 
 arriving at the scene of action, the 8th charged the enemy on the 
 right of the road, and after a vigorous resistance drove him from 
 his position ; but Duncan's battery, on arriving at the edge of the 
 ravine, could not open fire on the enemy without galling his 
 friends at the same time. He was obliged, therefore, to let it 
 remain inactive until near the close of the action. 
 
 The battle had now continued for some time without any 
 decided advantage on our part, and General Taylor perceived 
 that the enemy could not be driven from his position until his 
 artillery was silenced. He therefore ordered Captain May, who 
 was stationed in the rear, to report himself for duty. He soon 
 appeared, with his command, and was directed to charge and 
 take the enemy's batteries, at whatever sacrifice. After exhorting 
 his men to remember their regiment, the captain pointed towards 
 the batteries and bade them follow. Striking spurs into his horse, 
 he dashed forward, followed by his command in columns of fours. 
 
 On arriving at the place occupied by Ridgely and his brave 
 cannoneers. May halted to learn the position of the enemy's bat- 
 teries. Knowing the danger attending a charge upon their pieces 
 when loaded, Ridgely desired him to wait until he drew the fire 
 of their batteries. He suddenly applied the match, and, ere the 
 reverberation of his pieces had died away, the enemy replied, and 
 their shot swept like hail through his batteries. 
 
 Instantly the squadron of dragoons sprang forward. May in the 
 advance, with his long hair streaming behind like the rays of a 
 comet. The earth shook beneath the iron hoofs of their steeds, 
 and the rays of the tropic sun flashed back in flame from their 
 
L,1EDT. OOL. CHARLES A MAY. 
 
CAPTURE OF GENERAL VEGA. 143 
 
 burnished sabres, as they swept along, cheered by a shout of 
 exultation from the artillerists and infantry. 
 
 Still foremost, May reached at length the batteries in the road, 
 and upon the right of it ; and, as his steed rose upon the enemy's 
 breastworks, he turned to wave on his men to the charge. 
 Closely pressing upon him, was Lieutenant Inge, who answered 
 to the challenge with a shout, and turned in like manner to 
 encourage his platoon, when a terrible discharge of grape and 
 canister from the upper battery swept down upon them, and 
 dashed to the earth, in mangled and bloody masses, eighteen 
 horses and seven men ; among them the gallant Inge and his 
 charger. May's steed at a bound cleared the batteries, followed 
 by Lieutenant Stevens, and the survivors of the 1st and 2d pla- 
 toons. Their impetus carried them through and beyond the bat- 
 teries, when charging back, they drove the enemy from the guns 
 and silenced their fire. Captain Graham, and Lieutentants Win- 
 ship and Pleasanton, with the 3d and 4th platoons, in the mean 
 time swept to the left of the road, and at the point of the sword 
 carried the battery situated there. 
 
 Perceiving the small force by which they were assailed, the 
 Mexicans recovered from their panic, and rushing back to the 
 batteries, prepared to fire them. Gathering around him a few 
 followers. May charged upon them with irresistible force, while 
 the terror-stricken enemy shrunk back from the blows of his 
 sword, w^hich descended with a flash and force like that of light- 
 ning. An intrepid officer, however, kept his place, and endea- 
 voured to rally his men. With his own hands he seized a match 
 and was about to apply it, when he was ordered by Captain May 
 to surrender. Finding himself without support, he acknowledged 
 himself a prisoner, and handed his sword to his gallant captor. 
 It was General Vega, a brave and accomplished officer. He was 
 placed in charge of Lieutenant Stevens, and conducted in safety 
 
144 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 to the rear, to Colonel Twiggs, though exposed to a shower of 
 musketry. 
 
 The fire of the enemy's batteries was silenced, but a terrible 
 struggle commenced for their possession. The 5th infantry, 
 under the brave Lieutenant-Colonel Mcintosh, though separated 
 into masses by the chaparral, rushed on through a sweeping fire 
 of musketry, and at length crossed bayonets with the enemy over 
 the cannon-muzzles. 
 
 The 8th infantry, having learned that May had carried the 
 main battery, but could not maintain it for want of support, was 
 formed in the road, and led on in person by Colonel Belknap. 
 While moving forward they were joined by a part of the 5th regi- 
 ment, under Captain Martin Scott. Under the heavy fire of the 
 enemy they faltered for a moment, when the gallant Belknap 
 sprang forward, and smiting down a Mexican ensign, seized his 
 standard, and with it waved on the troops to the charge. A shot 
 soon carried away the flag, but with the staff he continued to 
 cheer his men, until thrown from his horse over a pile of dead 
 and wounded artillerists. Supposing him slain, the regiment 
 fought with desperation to avenge his death, and, together with 
 the 5th, engaged in a terrible conflict, hand to hand, with the 
 Tampico battalion, composed of veterans victorious in twenty 
 fields. Some time after, the regiment was gratefully surprised 
 at seeing Colonel Belknap appear again at the head of his 
 column. 
 
 The 8th, under the immediate command of Captain Montgo- 
 mery, and the 5th, under Lieutenant-Colonel Mcintosh, had 
 charged up the ravine, under a sheeted fire from right and front 
 of the enemy, and after a vigorous resistance forced him back 
 through the dense chaparral. Lodged in different clumps of 
 these impenetrable thickets, the enemy continued the fight, and 
 poured a destructive fire upon the Americans, which caused the 
 action to be varied by numberless skirmishes, in one of which 
 
CAPTURE OF ARISTA S CAMP. 145 
 
 Lieutenant Chadbourne, who had distinguished himself by his 
 bravery, was mortally wounded at the head of his command. 
 
 While Colonel Mcintosh was forcing his way through a dense 
 thicket of chaparral, lined with infantry and cavalry, his horse 
 was struck wuth a shot and fell dead, and the colonel was pre- 
 cipitated through the chaparral into the midst of the enemy. 
 Mounting to his feet, he encountered them sword in hand, and 
 warded off, for the instant, both bayonets and lance-points ; but 
 he was soon overpowered by numbers, and disabled by wounds. 
 A bayonet entered his mouth and came out at his ear; a second, 
 aimed at his heart, pierced through his arm and terribly shattered 
 the bone ; while by a third, which passed through his hip, he 
 was borne down, and pinned to the earth. Upon his fall the 
 command of his regiment devolved upon Major Staniford, who 
 with great energy and spirit follow^ed up the advantages already 
 obtained, and drove the enemy before him. 
 
 The 4th regiment, after carrying the battery on the right, as. 
 before described, continued to press on, increased by squads of 
 men from the different regiments, and at length emerged from the 
 chaparral into the camp of General Arista, of which they imme- 
 diately took possession. Here was found his splendid marquee, 
 his private carriage, his trunks, private property, and his corres- 
 |)ondence, among which was recognised in his own handwriting 
 the original of the disgraceful proclamation which he had caused 
 to be distributed among the American troops to encourage deser- 
 tion. In addition to the above, they took five hundred mules, 
 with their pack-saddles, stands of small- arms, ammunition, am- 
 munition-boxes, and military equipage of every variety. 
 
 Soon after the capture of the Mexican camp, an officer rode 
 up, as if for the purpose of reconnoitring, and received from 
 the captors a volley of musketry, but escaped unhurt. He 
 returned again soon after, and was again fired on and escaped. 
 After receiving a third fire, he came dashing back, followed by a 
 
146 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 company of lancers, who prepared to charge with headlong 
 impetuosity. The regiment, however, steadily delivered its fire, 
 emptying a few of the Mexican saddles, and then fell back within 
 ■ the chaparral. Lieutenant Cochrane, who kept his ground fear- 
 lessly, defended himself with his sword, but was borne down by 
 the charge, and fell dead, having received seven lance-points in 
 his breast. This was the last success of the enemy. 
 
 The intrenchments, artillery, and camp of the Mexicans, were 
 now in possession of the Americans ; yet the enemy for a time 
 bore up against his losses with fortitude, and disputed the advance 
 of his victorious foe by an obstinate resistance. But American 
 valour and discipline at length were triumphant. The Tampico 
 battalion, that, with the pride of veterans victorious in many a 
 bloody fight, had struggled to roll back the tide of battle, was 
 almost annihilated. Its proud tricolour, that had been rent in the 
 iron storm of our artillery on the plains of Palo Alto, was the last 
 Mexican flag that waved upon the field ; and its stand-bearer, 
 indignantly spurning its surrender, tore it from the flagstaff, and, 
 concealing it about his person, attempted to escape in the gene- 
 ral rout that had now taken place ; but he was ridden down by 
 our dragoons, and captured with his precious burden. The flag 
 of the " Batallon Guarda Costa de Tampico" now hangs among 
 the trophies of the American Capitol. 
 
 Just before the enemy's last struggle, the two batteries, which 
 could not operate on account of the close contest that had been 
 raging, were ordered across the ravine. When the rout became 
 general, Duncan's battery, and fresh infantry, brought up for the 
 pursuit, thundered in the rear of the panic-stricken enemy as they 
 fled, increasing their confusion, and thinning their ranks with the 
 iron hail poured upon their columns in full retreat. 
 
 The overthrow and rout of the enemy were complete. In the 
 panic of uncontrollable fear, horsemen rode down the infantry 
 before them, and all, in haste to escape from the Americans in 
 
ROUT OF THE ENEMY. 147 
 
 pursuit, rushed tumultuously down to the river-side, and found, 
 amid its boiling waves, the death they were striving to avoid 
 from behind. At the crossings of the Rio Grande, infantry and 
 cavalry sprang into the flats, till they sank beneath the weight of 
 the multitude upon them. To stop this headlong rush to destruc- 
 tion, Father Leary, a venerable priest, in his sacred robes, with 
 crucifix in hand, stood before them and exhorted them to patience. 
 He succeeded for a moment in his efforts, but a troop of horse 
 came spurring down the bank, and in an instant priest and 
 soldiers were struggling with the waters, and perished in the 
 stream. Many of these bodies were thrown ashore afterwards, 
 and hung suspended among the branches of the trees by the 
 river-side, as the Rio Grande fell. That of the priest mentioned 
 above was found near the fort, his canonicals still upon him, and 
 the emblem of salvation grasped tightly in his hand. 
 
 During the night, Matamoros was a scene of confusion and 
 consternation. The inhabitants had been assured of certain 
 victory, and preparations had been made for a festival, in honour 
 of the occasion. Ball-rooms were decorated and hung with gar- 
 lands, and music and beauty waited to welcome back the con- 
 querors. But when the sad reverse was learned, — when the 
 terror-stricken troops entered the city, and the groans and shrieks 
 of the wounded were heard, as they were borne in sacks through 
 the streets, the women rushed to the rooms, tore down and 
 stamped upon the festal wreaths and decorations, and testified 
 their sorrow by cries of passionate despair. The soldiery, lawless 
 and reckless, roamed about the streets committing disorders of 
 every kind, while the inhabitants shut themselves up in their 
 homes in fearful apprehension, or, gathering up their goods, fled 
 to the country, or were engaged in lamenting friends that were 
 dead, or tending upon those that were wounded. 
 
 Ker's squadron of dragoons, the artillery battalion, under 
 Colonel Childs, and the 3d infantry, pursued the fleeing enemy 
 21 
 
148 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 to the Rio Grande, and bivouacked on its banks. May's squadron 
 having followed also to the river, returned again to the battle- 
 ground, and rested with the main army. 
 
 In the evening after the battle, the following brief despatch 
 was prepared by the commanding-general. It was followed by 
 a more detailed report on the 17th. 
 
 " Head- Quarters, Army of Occupation, \ 
 
 Camp at Resaca de la Palma, 3 miles from Matamoros, > 
 
 10 o'clock P. M., May 9, 1846. J 
 
 " Sir : I have the honour to report that I marched with the 
 main body of the army at two o'clock to-day, having previously 
 thrown forward a body of light infantry into the forest which 
 covers the Matamoros road. / When near the spot where I am 
 now encamped, my advance discovered that a ravine crossing 
 the road had been occupied by the enemy with artillery. I 
 immediately ordered a battery of field-artillery to sweep the posi- 
 tion, flanking and sustaining it by the 3d, 4th, and 5th regi- 
 ments, deployed as skirmishers to the right and left. A heavy 
 fire of artillery and of musketry was kept up for some time, until 
 finally the enemy's batteries were carried in succession by a 
 squadron of dragoons and the regiments of infantry that were on 
 the ground. He was soon driven from his position, and pursued 
 by a squadron of dragoons, battalion of artillery, 3d infantry, and 
 a light battery, to the river. Our victory has been complete^ 
 Eight pieces of artillery, with a great quantity of ammunition, 
 three standards, and some one hundred prisoners have been 
 taken ; among the latter. General La Vega, and several other 
 officers. One general is understood to have been killed. The 
 enemy has recrossed the river, and I am sure will not again 
 molest us on this bank. 
 
 / " The loss of the enemy in killed has been most severe. Our 
 own has been very heavy, and I deeply regret to report that 
 Lieutenant Inge, 2d dragoons, Lieutenant Cochrane, 4th infantry, 
 
BURIAL OF THE DEAD. X49 
 
 and Lieutenant Chadbourne, 8th infantry, were killed on the 
 field. Lieutenant-Colonel Payne, 4th artillery ; Lieutenant-Colo- 
 nel Mcintosh, Lieutenant Dobbins, 3d infantry; Captain Hooe, 
 and Lieutenant Fowler, 5th infantry ; and Captain Montgomery, 
 Lieuten-asAs Gites, Selden, McClay, Burbank, and Jordan, 8th 
 infantry, wcprewounded. ) The extent of our loss in killed and 
 wounded is not yet ascertained, and is reserved for a more detailed 
 report. 
 
 C " The affair of to-day may be regarded as a proper supplement 
 to the cannonade of yesterday ; and the two taken together, 
 e-xhibit the coolness and gallantry of our officers and men in the 
 most favourable light. All have done their duty, and done it 
 nobly. ^ It will be my pride, in a more circumstantial report of 
 both actions, to dwell upon particular instances of individual dis- 
 tinction. 
 
 / "It affords me peculiar pleasure to report that the field-work 
 opposite Matamoros has sustained itself handsomely during a 
 cannonade and bombardment of a hundred and sixty hours. But 
 the pleasure is alloyed with profound regret at the loss of its 
 heroic and indomitable commander, Major Brown, who died 
 to-day from the effect of a shell. \ His loss would be a severe one 
 to the service at any time, but to the army under my orders, it is 
 indeed irreparable. One officer and one non-commissioned 
 officer killed, and ten men wounded, comprise all the casualties 
 incident to this severe bombardment. 
 
 " I inadvertently omitted to mention the capture of a large 
 number of pack-mules left in the Mexican camp. 
 
 "I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. Ji., commanding. 
 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Washington. D. C." 
 
 The day after the battle of Resaca de la Palma, was devoted to 
 the burial of the slain ; in which sad duty the heart of many a 
 
150 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 brave soldier sank within him, that the day before had rushed 
 upon the bayonet or lance-point, or braved death at the cannon's 
 mouth. Their honoured remains were laid at length in their 
 resting-places, beneath the turf on which they fought and fell, 
 and the rolling volleys of musketry fired, that wre tibf" ^ast sad 
 tribute to the dead from those who had shared witi the^^i the trials 
 and the triumphs of a soldier's life. 
 
 Nor did friends only share in this sacred duty, at the hands 
 of the conqueror. With a generosity and manliness of soul 
 equal to the stern bravery of his spirit in battle, General Taylor 
 paid the same scrupulous regard to the dead and wounded Mexi- 
 cans. Not being able to attend properly to all, he sent over to 
 Matamoros for Mexican surgeons, to assist in taking care of their 
 wounded left on the field, and for men to assist in burying the 
 dead. 
 
 On the morning of the 11th, agreeably to the request of Gene- 
 ral Arista, an exchange of prisoners took place, and Captains 
 Thornton and Hardee, and Lieutenant Kane, with the gallant 
 little band captured by General Torrejon, were marched on foot 
 to the battle-field, and there exchanged for an equal number of 
 officers and men captured in the action of the 9th. As there was 
 an excess of Mexican prisoners, they were delivered to their 
 countrymen, a receipt being taken for their number, to be held 
 against future chances of capture. General Vega was offered 
 his parole, but declined the acceptance, as he knew his govern- 
 ment would force him to bear arms, notwithstanding his pledge 
 to the contrary. 
 
 After this General Taylor set out for Point Isabel, to confer 
 with Commodore Conner respecting the reduction of Matamoros, 
 Barita, and Camargo ; while the army, under Colonel Twiggs, 
 left the battle-ground, and took up its former position on the left 
 of the Rio Bravo. Before General Taylor departed he published 
 
CONGRATULATORY ORDERS. 151 
 
 the following order, in acknowledgment of the gallantry and 
 good conduct of the troops : — 
 
 Head- Quarters, Army of Occupation, i 
 Resaca de la Palma, May 11, 1846. ] 
 
 " The commanding-general congratulates the army under his 
 command upon the signal success which has crowned its recent 
 operations against the enemy. The coolness and steadiness of 
 the troops during the action of the 8th, and the brilliant impe- 
 tuosity with which the enemy's position and artillery were carried 
 on the 9th, have displayed the best qualities of the American 
 soldier. To every officer and soldier of his command, the gene- 
 ral returns his thanks for the noble manner in which they have 
 sustained the honour of the service and of the country. While 
 the main body of the army has been thus actively employed, the 
 garrison left opposite Matamoros has rendered no less distinguished 
 service, by sustaining a severe cannonade and bombardment for 
 many successive days. The army and the country, while justly 
 rejoicing in this triumph of our arms, will deplore the loss of 
 many brave officers and men who fell gallantly in the hour of 
 combat. 
 
 " It being necessary for the commanding-general to visit Point 
 Isabel on public business, Colonel Twiggs will assume command 
 of the corps of the army near Matamoros, including the garrison 
 of the field-work. He will occupy the former lines of the army, 
 making such dispositions for defence and for the comfort of his 
 command as he may deem advisable. He will hold himself 
 strictly on the defensive until the return of the commanding- 
 general. 
 
 " By order of Brigadier-General Taylor. 
 
 W. W. J. BLISS, Jet Adj. -General:' 
 
 General Parrode, of the department of Tamaulipas, after the 
 actions of the 8th and 9th of May, published a manifesto to the 
 
152 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 army under his command, which is in striking contrast with the 
 congratulatory orders of the American general to his victorious 
 troops. It breathes a spirit of patriotism and bravery, which is 
 honourable to a manly mind. If such sentiments had inspired 
 the Mexicans generally, they would have been invincible to 
 any foe. 
 
 Tlie Commander-in-chief of the Department of Tamaulipas to the 
 troops under his command. 
 
 "Fellow-Citizens: The afternoon of the 8th of this month 
 our brothers of Matamoros have fought with intrepidity and 
 enthusiasm in the Fanques del Raminero. On the 9th they 
 charged with the same ardour. But fate has not crowned our 
 efforts. The enemy passed from the fort, favoured by the dense 
 smoke of a wood on fire, which protected them from our shot. 
 Thus have our enemies escaped ! 
 
 " Soldiers ! another time we shall conquer. Such is the fate 
 of war, a defeat to-day and glory to-morrow ; that glory which 
 shall be ours at the end of this holy struggle. The God of battles 
 is trying our valour, but he has not abandoned us. We know 
 how to conquer, and we know how to suffer. 
 
 " Soldiers ! the lamentation of the soldier for the companion 
 who dies on the field of battle ought to be a shot well-aimed at 
 the enemy. Those are the tears which our brothers require of 
 our love. Their tomb must be raised in the American camp. 
 The corpses of the Yankees ought to form their mausoleums. 
 
 " Soldiers! if we have lost some of our brothers, the glory will 
 be greater, there will be fewer conquerors ; it is not the number 
 which gives victory. There were but three hundred Spartans, 
 and the powerful Xerxes did not cross the Thermopylae. The 
 celebrated army of the great Napoleon perished in Spain at the 
 hands of a defenceless people, but they were free and intrepid, 
 and were fighting for their liberty. 
 
MANIFESTO OF THE MEXICAN COMMANDER. 153 
 
 "Fellow-soldiers! shall we do less than they did? We are 
 fighting for our liberty, our religion, our country, our cradles, our 
 graves. Let him who does not wish to die a traitor, him who 
 wishes to deserve the tears of his children, let him take breath 
 and sustain his courage. He must not faint, he must not fear, 
 but what have we to fear ? The heart tells us that in it we shall 
 find all that is requisite ; and our hearts we will oppose to the 
 enemy. 
 
 « Soldiers ! vengeance for our brothers ! glory for our children ! 
 honour for our country ! 
 
 « We defend those cherished feelings. Do not fear. I swear 
 to you that if the day be a laborious one, our glory will be 
 sweeter ; but glory we wall have, and your general and com- 
 panion will attain it with your loyalty and valour. 
 
 ANASTASIO PARRODE. 
 
 Tampico, May 13th, 1846." 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 Assistance afforded by Commodore Conner — Reduction of Barita — Taylor's arrival 
 at Fort Brown — Preparations for attacking Matamoros — Cause of Taylor's inac- 
 tivity after the Battles of the 8th and 9th of May — Letter to the War Department 
 — Occupation of Matamoros — Arista's Flight — He is ordered to lay down his 
 command — The War announced to Congress — President's Proclamation — Ineffi- 
 cient preparations for War — Rejoicings in the United States for the victories at 
 Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — Taylor breveted a Major- General — Act of 
 Congress promoting him to full rank — Appointment of General Officers — 
 Occupation of Reynosa — Capture of Camargo — Of Mier — Organization of the 
 Army — Departure for Serai vo — Letter to the Adjutant-General — March on 
 Monterey. 
 
 While at Point Isabel, General Taylor published an order, in 
 which he suitably recognised the merit of Major Munroe, who 
 commanded at Point Isabel, and all the officers and men under his 
 command, for the energy and activity which they had displayed 
 in fortifying the place. In this praise Commodore Conner also 
 participated. While cruising off the harbour of Vera Cruz, he 
 had heard of the preparations of the Mexicans, at Matamoros, to 
 attack the American army, and with great promptitude had sailed 
 for Point Isabel, to render any assistance in his power. The five 
 hundred marines, whom he caused to land and aid the garrison, 
 contributed much towards putting it in a proper state of defence. 
 
 Having made his arrangements with Commodore Conner for 
 a combined movement up the river. General Taylor set out 
 for Point Isabel on the morning of the 13th ; but on his way 
 thither he was met by a courier, with intelligence that the enemy 
 was receiving reinforcements, and was fortifying Barita and other 
 points near the mouth of the river. In consequence of this, the 
 
 (154) 
 
MOVEMENT UPON MATAMOROS. 155 
 
 general returned to the Point, and found that a small body of 
 regulars, and some volunteer troops from Alabama and Louisiana, 
 had just arrived. The volunteers were in prompt answer to his 
 late call for additional troops. 
 
 General Taylor promptly organized a command, under Colonel 
 Wilson, for the reduction of Barita, consisting of three hundred 
 regulars, and three hundred and fifty volunteers. Of the latter, 
 two companies were from Louisiana, under Captains Stockton and 
 Tobin, and one company from Alabama, under General Desha. 
 At one o'clock in the afternoon of the 15th, the command took 
 up its line of march from the Brazos, while three steamers 
 ascended the river, to transport the troops at the proper place. 
 Commodore Conner ordered, at the same time, a part of the fleet 
 to appear off the mouth of the river, to co-operate with them. 
 Colonel Wilson proceeded up the river towards Barita, in mo- 
 mentary expectation of an attack from the cavalry, who were 
 reported to be in the vicinity, and took possession of the town 
 without any resistance. The inhabitants fled on his approach, 
 without firing a gun. He immediately issued a manifesto, in 
 which he invited them to return to their dwellings, and assured 
 them of the peaceable enjoyment of all their civil and religious 
 rights. 
 
 On the 14th of May, General Taylor left Point Isabel, with six 
 hundred men, a train of artillery, and two hundred and fifl:y 
 wagons, loaded with stores, and reached Fort Brown on the even- 
 ing of the same day. He determined to attack Matamoros the 
 next day, if possible. It required, however, considerable time 
 and effort to make preparations for transporting the troops across 
 the river, and to mount the two 16-inch mortars destined to 
 throw shell into the city, should it not be surrendered. On the 
 morning of the 17th, everything was ready ; and it was arranged 
 that, while General Taylor moved upon Matamoros, Colonel 
 W^ilson, at the same time, should advance from Barita. The 
 22 
 
156 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 delay of General Taylor in following up the advantages of the 
 battles of the 8th and 9th of May, was owing to the neglect of 
 the War Department, to furnish him a ponton train, and heavy 
 mortars, as requested in his letters of the former year. The fol- 
 lowing letter presents a detailed account of the occupation of 
 Matamoros by the American troops : — 
 
 "Head-Quarters, Army of Occupation, ) 
 City of Matamoros, May 18, 1846. | 
 
 " Sir : I have the honour to report that my very limited means 
 of crossing rivers prevented a complete prosecution of the victory 
 of the 9th instant. A ponton train, the necessity of which I 
 exhibited to the department last year, would have enabled the 
 army to have crossed on the evening of the battle, take this city, 
 with all the artillery and stores of the enemy, and a great number 
 of prisoners. In short, to destroy entirely the Mexican army. 
 But I was compelled to await the arrival of heavy mortars, with 
 which to menace the town from the left bank, and also the accu- 
 mulation of small boats. In the mean time, the enemy had 
 somewhat recovered from the confusion of his flight, and ought 
 still, with three thousand men left him, to have made a respect- 
 able defence. I made every preparation to cross the river above 
 the town, while Lieutenant-Colonel Wilson made a diversion on 
 the side of Barita, and the order of march was given out for one 
 o'clock yesterday, from the camp near Fort Brown, w^hen I was 
 waited upon by General Reguena, empowered by General Arista, 
 commanding-in-chief the Mexican forces, to treat for an armistice 
 until the government should finally settle the question. I replied 
 to this, that an armistice was out of the question ; that a month 
 since I had proposed one to General Ampudia, which was 
 declined ; that circumstances were now changed ; that I was 
 receiving large reinforcements, and could not now suspend ope- 
 rations which I had not invited or provoked ; that the possession 
 of Matamoros was a siyie qua non; that our troops would occupy 
 
Taylor's despatch. 157 
 
 the town ; but that General Arista might withdraw his forces, 
 leaving the public property of every description. 
 
 " An answer to the above was promised in the afternoon, but 
 none came ; and I repaired at sundown to join the army, already 
 in position at a crossing some two miles above the town. Very 
 early this morning the bank was occupied by two 18-pounders, 
 and three batteries of field-artillery, and the crossing commenced : 
 the light companies of all the battalions were first thrown over, 
 followed by the volunteer and regular cavalry. No resistance 
 was made, and I was soon informed from various quarters that 
 Arista had abandoned the town, with all his troops, the evening 
 before, leaving only the sick and wounded. I immediately 
 despatched a staff-officer to the prefect to demand a surrender ; 
 and, in the mean time, a commission was sent by the prefect to 
 confer with me on the same point. I gave assurance that the 
 civil rights of the citizens would be respected, and our troops at 
 once dropped down opposite the town, and crossed at the < Upper 
 Ferry,' the American flag being displayed at Fort Paredes, a 
 Mexican redoubt near the crossing. The different corps now- 
 encamped in the outskirts of the city. To-morrow I shall make 
 suitable arrangements for the occupation of the town, and for 
 taking possession of the public property. More than three hun- 
 dred of the enemy's wounded have been left in the hospitals. 
 Arista is in full retreat towards Monterey, with the fragments of 
 his army. 
 
 " I deeply regret to report that Lieutenant George Stevens, a 
 very promising young officer, of the 2d dragoons, was accidentally 
 drowned this morning while attempting to swim the river with his 
 squadron. 
 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. A.^ commanding. 
 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Wasliington, D. C." 
 
158 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 The proposition of Arista for an armistice, was a dishonourable 
 artifice to gain time, that he might be enabled to withdraw or 
 destroy the public and military stores of the city. At the very 
 moment he solicited it, his troops were busily engaged in burying 
 artillery or throwing it into wells, and in destroying or concealing 
 arms and ammunition. 
 
 After taking possession of the city. General Taylor, with great 
 humanity and courtesy, adopted efficient means for the protection 
 of the persons and property of the citizens. 
 
 A single guard was allowed in the city, the rest of the troops 
 were distributed in the suburbs and vicinity. Colonel Twiggs 
 was appointed governor of the city. 
 
 Arista left Matamoros on the evening of the 17th, with the 
 remnant of his army, and fled in the direction of Camargo. He 
 continued his retreat into the interior, and towards the close of 
 the month arrived at the hacienda of Coma, with the shattered 
 columns of his troops, many having died from the privations and 
 fatigue of forced marches, and others having deserted and formed 
 predatory bands, that plundered their defenceless countrymen. 
 From Coma he continued his march to Monterey. While here, 
 he was ordered to lay down his command and repair to Mexico, 
 to answer for the reverses of the army under his orders ; but, 
 dreading the character of Paredes, he refused to appear at the 
 seat of government. 
 
 On the 11th of May, 1846, the President of the United States 
 announced to Congress the commencement of hostilities between 
 the Mexican and American armies, and used the following lan- 
 guage : — " A war exists ; and, notwithstanding all our eflforts to 
 avoid it, exists by the act of Mexico herself We are called 
 upon by every consideration of duty and patriotism to vindicate 
 with decision, the honour, the rights, and the interests of our 
 country." Immediately after. Congress passed an act recog- 
 nising the existence of war, and appropriating ten millions of 
 
LETTER TO THE WAR DEPARTMENT. 159 
 
 dollars, and empowering the President to accept the services of 
 fifty thousand volunteers for the army. The appropriations were 
 made with great promptness and unanimity, but that part of the 
 preamble which declared the war to exist by the act of Mexico, 
 met with great opposition. 
 
 The proclamation of the President was immediately issued, 
 and, with an ardour unprecedented in military annals, volunteers 
 rushed to the call of their country. The influx of troops, how- 
 ever, was so great and so rapid, that General Taylor was com- 
 pletely embarrassed by their arrival — for they were unaccompanied 
 by proper supplies and adequate means of transportation. This 
 irregularity was, in part, owing to the indiscreet zeal of General 
 Gaines ; who, in his anxiety to reinforce the Army of Occupation, 
 had exceeded his instructions. 
 
 Owing to the perplexing circumstances in which he was 
 placed. General Taylor was unable to follow up the advantages 
 gained over the enemy in the late battles. This will appear more 
 particularly by an extract from a letter to the War Department, 
 dated June 3d : — 
 
 " I am necessarily detained at this point for want of suitable 
 transportation to carry on offensive operations. There is not a 
 steamboat at my command proper for the navigation of the Rio 
 Grande ; and without water transportation, I consider it useless 
 to attempt any extensive movement. Measures have been taken 
 to procure boats of suitable draught and description, and one or 
 two may now be expected. In the mean time, I propose to push 
 a battalion of infantry as far as Reynosa, and occupy that town. 
 For any operations in the direction of Monterey, it will be neces- 
 sary to establish a large depot at Camargo, which I shall lose no 
 time in doing as soon as proper transports arrive, unless I receive 
 counter-instructions from the Department. 
 
 " I trust the Department will see that I could not possibly have 
 anticipated the arrival of such heavy reinforcements from 
 
160 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Louisiana as are now here, and on their way hither. Without 
 large means of transportation, this force will embarrass, rather than 
 facilitate our operations. I cannot doubt that the Department 
 has already given instructions, based upon the change in our 
 position since my first call for volunteers." 
 
 Although General Taylor had asked but for eight regiments of 
 men, his army was enlarged far beyond the requisition he had 
 made, by successive arrivals of troops, while he was unable to 
 make any forward movement for want of all the materials neces- 
 sary for an invading army. With the straight- forward policy 
 which has always characterized his conduct, he addressed a letter 
 to the adjutant-general of the army on the 10th of June, in which 
 he set forth the situation in which he was placed, in plain and 
 explicit terms. 
 
 " I beg leave earnestly to invite the attention of the Department 
 to the following points : — 
 
 " First. The great influx of volunteers at Point Isabel. Five 
 regiments certainly from Louisiana, numbering, say 3600 men ; 
 two regiments or battalions from Louisville and St. Louis, num- 
 bering, say 1200 more ; several companies from Alabama, and 
 I know not how many from Texas ; the latter now beginning to 
 arrive. The volunteer troops, now under my orders, amount 
 to nearly 6000 men. How far they may be increased without 
 previous notification to me, it is impossible to tell. 
 
 " Secondly. The entire want of the proper kind of transporta- 
 tion to push my operations up the river. The boats on which I 
 depended for this service were found to be nearly destroyed by 
 worms, and entirely unfit for the navigation of the river. At my 
 instance. Major Thomas, on the 18th of May, required from Lieu- 
 tenant-Colonel Hunt a boat of the proper description, and followed 
 it up in a few days by a requisition for another. At the last dates 
 from New Orleans no boat had been procured. Captain Sanders, 
 of the engineers, was despatched by me to New Orleans, to assist 
 
LETTER TO THE WAR DEPARTMENT. 161 
 
 in procuring suitable boats, but I have yet received no report 
 from him. 
 
 " As I have previously reported, my operations are completely 
 paralyzed by the want of suitable steamboats to navigate the Rio 
 Grande. Since the I8th of May, the army has lain in camp near 
 this place, continually receiving heavy reinforcements of men, but 
 no facility for water transport, without which, additional numbers 
 are but an embarrassment. 
 
 " I desire to place myself right in this matter, and to let the 
 Department see that the inactivity of the army results from no 
 neglect of mine. I must express my astonishment that such 
 large reinforcements have been sent forward to join the army, 
 without being accompanied by the means of transportation, both 
 by land and water, to render them efficient. As matters now 
 stand, whatever may be the expectations of the Department, I 
 cannot move from this place ; and unless Captain Sanders shall 
 succeed in procuring boats of the proper kind, I can give no 
 assurance in regard to future operations." 
 
 In a letter to the same, dated a w'eek later. General Taylor, 
 with the frankness of a soldier, unwilling to have his character 
 misconceived, complained of the delay of the Department to pro- 
 vide him with the means of offensive operations, while the country 
 was expecting him to prosecute the campaign. He uses the fol- 
 lowing plain language : — 
 
 " No steamboats have been sent out from New Orleans for the 
 navigation of the Rio Grande, and in the absence of all informa- 
 tion upon that point, or respecting the views of the government, 
 I am altogether in the dark as to our future operations. I must 
 think that orders have been given, by superior authority, to sus- 
 pend the forwarding of means of transportation from New Orleans. 
 I cannot otherwise account for the extraordinary delay shown by 
 the Quartermaster's Department in that city. Even the mails, 
 
162 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 containing probably important despatches from the government, 
 are not expedited. 
 
 " Volunteer regiments have arrived from Louisville and St. 
 Louis, making, with those from Louisiana, eight strong and 
 organized battalions — mustering over 5000 men. 
 
 " In addition, we have seven companies of Alabama volun- 
 teers, and twelve or fifteen companies from Texas. Others from 
 Texas are continually arriving. A portion of these volunteers 
 has been lying in camp at this place for nearly a month, com- 
 pletely paralyzed by the want of transportation. Exposed as 
 they are in this climate to diseases of the camp, and without any 
 prospect, so far as I can see, of being usefully employed, I must 
 recommend that they be allowed to return to their homes." 
 
 Great fears had been entertained throughout the country for 
 the safety of General Taylor and his little army, when threatened 
 by the legions of Arista ; and the brilliant victories of the 8th and 
 9th of May came unexpectedly, and filled the whole country 
 with enthusiastic admiration. In almost every city, meetings 
 were called to express the general joy, and legislative and 
 municipal bodies vied with each other in awarding honour to the 
 triumphant general and his troops. 
 
 The President of the United States immediately forwarded 
 General Taylor a commission, as Major-General by brevet ; and, 
 with great cordiality, expressed the profound sense which he 
 entertained of the meritorious services of the gallant general, and 
 all the ofl[icers and men under his command. On the 18th of 
 June, Congress passed an act, promoting him to the rank of a 
 full Major-General in the army of the United States ; and shortly 
 after, the Secretary of War forwarded his commission, with 
 remarks of a complimentary character. 
 
 About this time, general officers were appointed to command 
 the volunteer troops. They were, William O. Butler of Ken- 
 tucky, and Robert Patterson of Pennsylvania, major-generals; 
 
 / 
 
MAJ. GEN. ROBERT PATTERS 
 
 JON. 
 
OCCUPATION OF REYNOSA. 163 
 
 and Gideon J. Pillow of Tennessee, Thomas L. Hamer of Ohio, 
 John A. Quitman of Mississippi, Thomas Marshall of Kentucky, 
 Joseph Lane of Indiana, and James Shields of Illinois, brigadier- 
 generals. Generals Butler and Patterson were officers in the 
 army during the last war with Great Britain, and the former was 
 distinguished for his good conduct at the battle of New Orleans, 
 where he was a member of General Jackson's staff. 
 
 While waiting for boats, and other things necessary to enable 
 him to make a forward movement with the main body of the 
 army, General Taylor had sent detachments to occupy the differ- 
 ent towns up the Rio Grande, whose occupation was necessary to 
 his advance upon Monterey. 
 
 On the 1st of June, the Alcalde of Reynosa, together with 
 many of the principal citizens of the place, tired of the depreda- 
 tions and ill treatment of the rancheros, waited on General 
 Taylor, asking the protection of the American flag, and tendering 
 the surrender of the town. Accordingly, on the 5th, General 
 Taylor despatched Lieutenant-Colonel Wilson, with the 1st 
 infantry, a section of Bragg's battery, under Lieutenant Thomas, 
 and Price's Texan rangers, to take possession of the place and 
 hold it. After a fatiguing march of four days and a half, the 
 colonel reached Reynosa with his command, and took undisputed 
 possession. He was ordered by the commanding-general to throw 
 up intrenchments, and fortify the place ; but he occupied with 
 his troops the plaza, which was sufficiently protected by the 
 heavy stone buildings that surrounded it, without additional 
 defences. 
 
 Having determined to make Camargo his principal depot and 
 the base of his future operations. General Taylor ordered Captain 
 Miles, of the 7th infantry, to capture the town from the enemy. 
 [t was held at that time by about seven hundred rancheros, under 
 General Canales. The captain's orders were, on reaching Rey- 
 nosa to take two pieces of Bragg's battery, commanded by Lieu- 
 23 
 
164 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 tenant Thomas, and Captain McCullougli's company of Texan 
 rangers. The latter, with three companies of the 7th infantry, 
 were to march by land, under Captain Holmes; Captain Miles, 
 with the other three companies, was to ascend the river in 
 steamers. This expedition was considered an honourable testi- 
 monial to the bravery of the defenders of Fort Brown. 
 
 The progress of the boats was slow, on account of the flood ; 
 and one, with Captain Ross and company, was left behind. The 
 other, with Captain Miles and the other two companies, continued 
 on. About dusk, while moving on in utter ignorance of the bear- 
 ings of the river, an American, named Davis, was discovered 
 lurking in the sw^amp to escape from Canales, from whom they 
 learned that the boat was just below the mouth of the river San 
 Juan, and within two miles of Camargo. Their informant also 
 stated, that Canales was then in town with about two hundred 
 men, and intended fighting, if the citizens would permit him. 
 
 On approaching the town, Captain Miles sent that night to the 
 Alcalde, General Taylor's proclamation, and his own summons 
 for the surrender of the town. He gave notice, that he would 
 take possession at nine o'clock the next morning. About mid- 
 night the Alcalde returned answer, that the town would be given up 
 as demanded. The entire force under Captain Miles, officers and 
 men, did not exceed eighty-five ; yet with these he boldly advanced 
 and took formal possession, at nii\e o'clock on the lltli of July. As 
 the troops entered the town, Canales with his cavalry scampered 
 out towards the west. This small force held the towTi until the 
 morning of the 12th, when Captain Holmes arrived with his com- 
 mand, and on the evening of the same day. Captain Ross with 
 his company. The whole then took possession of the grand 
 plaza, and held the place. Soon after the planting of the Ameri- 
 can standard at this place, steamboats arrived daily, freighted with 
 troops and government stores, and the river-banks were lined 
 with tiers of barrels, boxes, and bales. 
 
L 
 
MAJ. GEN WILLIAM G. I5UTLEE.. 
 
ORGANIZATION OF THE ARMY. 165 
 
 On the last day of July, Captain Vinton took undisputed pos- 
 session of Mier, with a company of the 3d artillery, and a small 
 party of Texan rangers, and stacked his arms in the plaza. 
 
 After the capture of Matamoros, the steady influx of volunteers 
 from the United States, increased the strength of the army to over 
 nine thousand men. On the 5th of August, General Taylor, 
 having completed all his arrangements for a forward movement, 
 left Matamoros for Camargo, which had been occupied as a main 
 depot for provisions. On the 18th of the same month, the army 
 was organized in two divisions. 
 
 The First Divison, under Brigadier-General Twiggs, consisted 
 of four companies of the 2d dragoons, Lieutenant-Colonel May, 
 and Captain Ridgely's battery ; Captain Bragg's battery, 3d 
 infantry. Major Lear, and 4th infantry. Major Allen, forming the 
 Third Brigade of regulars, and commanded by Lieutenant- Colonel 
 Garland ; and the 1st infantry. Major Abercrombie, and the Balti- 
 more and Washington battalion, Lieutenant-Colonel Watson, 
 forming the Fourth Brigade, commanded by Lieutenant- Colonel 
 Wilson. This division numbered two thousand and eighty men. 
 
 The Second Division, under General Worth, consisted of Lieu- 
 tenant-Colonel Duncan's battery, the artillery battalion, Lieu- 
 tenant-Colonel Childs, and 8th infantry, Captain Scrivner, 
 forming the First Brigade, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel 
 Staniford ; and Lieutenant Mackall's battery, 5th infantry. Major 
 M. Scott, 7th infantry, Captain Miles, and Captain Blanchard's 
 company of Louisiana volunteers, forming the Second Brigade, 
 commanded by Colonel P. F. Smith, of the mounted riflemen. 
 The whole column amounted to seventeen hundred and eighty 
 men. 
 
 On the arrival of the volunteers, a third division was organized, 
 under the command of Major-General Butler, consisting of the 
 1st Kentucky regiment. Colonel Ormsby, and 1st Ohio regiment, 
 Colonel Mitchell, forming the first brigade, commanded by 
 
166 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 General Hamer ; and the 1st Tennessee regiment, Colonel Camp- 
 bell, and Mississippi regiment, Colonel Davis, forming the Second 
 Brigade, commanded by General Quitman. The sum total of 
 this division was two thousand eight hundred and ten men. 
 
 The Texas Division, which arrived during the march upon 
 Monterey, consisted of the 1st and 2d regiments of mounted vol- 
 unteers, under Colonels Hays and Woods. It was commanded 
 by Governor T. Pinckney Henderson, with the rank of major- 
 general, and was detached, as occasion required, to co-operate 
 with the other divisions. 
 
 The total number of effectives destined for this particular ser- 
 vice, was, therefore, six thousand six hundred and seventy men. 
 Besides these, a garrison of two thousand men was established at 
 Camargo, for the protection of that important point, and small 
 detachments at points of less significance. Of these six thousand 
 six hundred men composing the divisions organized for marching 
 upon Monterey, nearly four thousand were raw and undisciplined 
 volunteers. 
 
 The march to Monterey was commenced on the 18th of August, 
 by the Second Division, under General Worth, moving upon 
 Seralvo, with the view of occupying that place as a depot of 
 supplies. 
 
 The First Division, under Twiggs, followed on the 31st of the 
 same month. The Volunteer Division was ordered to bring up 
 the rear, as fast as the means of transportation arrived. 
 
 On the 6th of September General Taylor started for Seralvo, 
 leaving Major-General Patterson in command at Camargo, with 
 authority over all the troops between that place and the moutli 
 of the Rio Grande, — some three thousand in number. 
 
 A considerable portion of these troops might have been added 
 to the main column, under General Taylor, if sufficient means of 
 transportation has been at his disposal. Before leaving Camargo, 
 General Taylor addressed to the Adjutant-General of the army a 
 
LETTER TO THE ADJUTANT-GENERAL. 167 
 
 letter, which, as it will relieve him from the imputation of any 
 want of promptness in the prosecution of the campaign, we give 
 entire : — 
 
 Head-Quartehs, Army of Occupation, 
 Camargo, September 1, 1846. 
 
 ! 
 
 " Sir : Before marching for the interior, I beg leave to place 
 on record some remarks touching an important branch of the 
 public service, the proper administration of which is indispen- 
 sable to the efficiency of a campaign. I refer to the Quarter- 
 master's Department. There is at this moment, when the army 
 is about to take up a long line of march, a great deficiency of 
 proper means of transport, and of many important supplies. 
 
 " On the 26th April, when first apprising you of the increased 
 force called out by me, I wrote that I trusted the War Depart- 
 ment would ' give the necessary orders to the staff department, 
 for the supply of this large additional force ;' and when first 
 advised of the heavy force of twelve-months' volunteers ordered 
 hither, I could not doubt that such masses of troops would be 
 accompanied, or, preferably, preceded by ample means of trans- 
 portation, and all other supplies necessary to render them efficient. 
 But such has not been the case. Suitable steamboats for the Rio 
 Grande were not procured without repeated efforts directed from 
 this quarter, and many w'eeks elapsed before a lodgment could 
 be made at this place, the river being perfectly navigable. 
 
 '< After infinite delays and embarrassments, I have succeeded 
 in bringing forward a portion of the army to this point, and now 
 the steamers procured in Pittsburg are just arriving. I hazard 
 notliing in saying, that if proper foresight and energy had been 
 displayed in sending out suitable steamers to navigate the Rio 
 Grande, our army would long since have been in possession of 
 Monterey. 
 
 "Again, as to land-transport. At this moment our wagon 
 train is considerably less than when we left Corpus Christi, our 
 
168 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 force being increased five-fold. Had we depended upon means 
 from without, the army would not have been able to move from 
 this place. But fortunately the means of land-transport existed 
 to some extent in the country, in the shape of pack-mules, and 
 we have formed a train which will enable a small army to 
 advance perhaps to Monterey. I wish it distinctly understood, 
 that our ability to move is due wholly to means created here, 
 and which could not have been reckoned upon with safety in 
 Washington. 
 
 " I have adverted to the grand points of water and land trans- 
 portation. Of the want of minor supplies, the army has suffered 
 more than enough. The crying deficiency of camp equipage has 
 been partially relieved by the issue of cotton tents, of indifferent 
 quality. Our cavalry has been paralyzed by the want of horse- 
 shoes, horseshoe-nails, and even common blacksmith's tools, 
 while many smaller deficiencies are daily brought to my notice. 
 
 " I respectfully request that the above statement, which I make 
 in justice to myself and the service, may be laid before the Gene- 
 ral-in-Chief and Secretary of War, 
 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Maj. Gen. U. S. Ji., commanding. 
 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Washington, D. C." 
 
 On the 9th, the First and Second Divisions, now close up with 
 each other, entered in admirable order the beautiful little town 
 of Seralvo, accompanied by the General-in-Chief. At this place, 
 a number of proclamations from General Ampudia gave the first 
 authentic information that the possession of Monterey would be 
 disputed. The information received by General Taylor respect- 
 ing the force and disposition of the enemy, had been hitherto of 
 the most meagre and contradictory character. So late as the 
 31st of August, General Taylor, writing to the War Department, 
 
MARCH ON MONTEREY. 169 
 
 stated, from what he supposed reliable information, that there 
 were " not more than two thousand or twenty- five hundred regu- 
 lar troops at Monterey, and a considerable number of the militia 
 of the country." This force he estimates in all as not over six 
 thousand, and expresses himself in a subsequent letter as doubt- 
 ful whether Ampudia would attempt to hold the city. Most of 
 the reports coincided, with regard to the number of troops at 
 Monterey ; while some Mexicans, professing to come direct from 
 the city, asserted that the American army would meet with no 
 opposition. 
 
 The tidings, however, gradually assumed a graver and less 
 dubious character. 
 
 On the 11th of September, a spy came in from Monterey with 
 far more accurate information, concerning the force of the gar- 
 rison and the strength of the works, than any previously received. 
 His relation seemed so extravagant, that many of the officers did 
 not believe it at all. A map of the batteries reported by him to 
 protect the town, was, however, made by a member of the staff 
 of General Worth. 
 
 The next day the pioneers of the army, consolidated into one 
 party, under the command of Captain Craig, were thrown for- 
 ward on the route to Marin, for the purpose of making the road 
 practicable for artilleiy and wagons. The operations of this party 
 were covered by Captain Graham's squadron of dragoons, and 
 McCullough's company of rangers. 
 
 On arriving the following day at Papagayo, the enemy appeared 
 in considerable force ; and Captain Craig, believing his party 
 inadequate to venture an attack, despatched a courier to hasten 
 on the First Division. 
 
 On the 14th, Captain McCullough, with forty rangers, set out 
 on an expedition to the town of Ramas. After skirmishes with 
 inconsiderable parties, he attacked two hundred of the enemy 
 near the town, and after a spirited firing, charged them at full 
 
170 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 speed and drove them through the town. He returned to the 
 advance after this engagement, and found that General Taylor 
 had arrived with the First Division. 
 
 The column of Major-General Butler having arrived, the First 
 Division was put in motion towards Marin on the 13th, closely 
 followed by the Second Division and that of the volunteers. 
 
 This march was excessively fatiguing both to men and horses : 
 the days w^re intensely hot, and the road both rocky and rugged. 
 But the character of the scenery along the line of route was 
 of a description well calculated to beguile even the wayworn 
 soldier of some portion of his weariness. 
 
 In front, and on either hand, magnificent mountains were piled 
 over one another in an ascending series, until the abrupt and fan- 
 tastic peaks of the highest range stood out clearly defined against 
 the deep blue of the cloudless sky. These mountains, clothed with 
 chaparral and delicate flowering shrubs, presented at every turn 
 of the road an ever- varying aspect, while valleys of extraordinary 
 beauty, broken by bold hills and precipitous chasms, lent a con- 
 stant charm to scenes which the gallant little army, with its 
 artillery and wagons and mules stretched out for miles among 
 the undulations of the hills, imbued with spirit and with life. 
 
 But the pleasant emotions elicited by the loveliness of the 
 country through which the troops were passing soon changed to 
 feelings of a more stirring character, when the enemy's cavalry 
 were seen hovering in the distance, and reports of occasional 
 skirmishes were passed from lip to lip. 
 
 Slowly receding, however, as the American troops advanced, 
 tne swarthy lancers of Torrejon seldom suffered either the dra- 
 goons or rangers to come within easy fighting distance. 
 
 Near the dilapidated village of Marin the First Division 
 encamped on the 16th, until the rear divisions came up. The 
 village was found almost entirely deserted. The cavalry of the 
 
APPROACH TO MONTEREY. 171 
 
 enemy, in passing through it, had driven the poorer people into 
 the chaparral, and carried with them the local authorities. 
 
 Here General Taylor concluded to remain two days, in order 
 to concentrate his forces. Even this brief halt was of conside- 
 rable service in resting his men from the fatigues of the march. 
 
 From the tower of the cathedral at Marin, the city of Monterey, 
 though still twenty-five miles distant, was distinctly visible. Its 
 picturesque appearance, embosomed among mountains, was the 
 source of many an animated remark between the officers and their 
 subordinates, as they surveyed, apparently so near, the point at 
 which it was now ascertained a garrison of nine thousand men 
 was assembled, protected by fortifications of the most formidable 
 character. 
 
 The troops, at length, certainly expected to meet with a stub- 
 born resistance ; and this expectation was partially confirmed on 
 the evening of the 17th, by a letter which the General-in-Chief 
 received from the Spanish consul at Monterey, inquiring whether 
 the property of foreigners in that city would be respected. The 
 reply returned by General Taylor was, that if the town should be 
 taken by assault, he could not be responsible for the consequences 
 that might ensue. 
 
 On the morning of the 18th, the First Division, followed by the 
 Second and Third, took up its line of march, and reached the 
 town of Francisco. 
 
 At Agua Frio, eleven miles from Marin, the army was joined 
 the same evening by a brigade of mounted Texans, under Gene- 
 ral Henderson. The well earned reputation for daring bravery 
 which this class of soldiers had acquired, made so strong a rein- 
 forcement, when within a few hours' march of the city of Monterey, 
 as inspiriting as it was seasonable. 
 
 At sunrise the next morning. General Taylor and his staff, 
 accompanied by McCullough's and Gillespie's rangers, pushed 
 24 
 
172 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 forward to reconnoitre the city, closely supported by Henderson's 
 noble brigade. 
 
 The columns of Twiggs, Worth, and Butler, advancing in 
 order of battle, followed. By nine o'clock A. M., the army had 
 reached within three miles of the city, when the report of a can- 
 non suddenly startled the air and echoed from mountain to 
 mountain. This was followed by others in quick succession. It 
 was the challenge of Ampudia. The men no longer felt weary. 
 Inspired with new energies, and filled with the most enthusiastic 
 ardour, they pushed rapidly forward, ready to answer at once, if 
 need be, that daring challenge to battle, the voice of whose thun- 
 der was still reverberating among the mountains. 
 
 But General Taylor was already aware, that before the com- 
 mencement of the assault a more extended knowledge of the 
 enemy's strong points would be necessary. He saw at once that 
 the contest, come when it might, would be fierce and sanguinary. 
 The brief reconnoissance he had been enabled to make, showed 
 him strong forts and batteries, surrounding a compactly built city, 
 the thick walls of whose houses might well afford protection to a 
 determined enemy, whose expulsion would require the utmost 
 exercise of coolness and daring. 
 
 Quickening their pace, and shouting as they ran, the troops of 
 the First Division soon reached the spot where the General-in- 
 Chief, surrounded by his staff, was quietly surveying with his 
 glass the defences of the city. 
 
 This being done, and reconnoissances ordered to commence 
 at once, the division was countermarched until it reached the 
 beautiful grove called Walnut Springs, where the army was 
 encamped for the night. 
 
 These lovely and secluded woods, soon to become famous in 
 history as the favourite camp of General Taylor, consist of a mag- 
 nificent collection of pecan and live-oak trees, flourishing with the 
 greatest luxuriance, in what must have formerly been the basin 
 
MONTEREY. 173 
 
 of a small oblong lake. The grounds, sloping on all sides 
 towards the centre, are naturally beautified by numberless springs, 
 fountains, and cascades. 
 
 The grove of San Domingo, or Walnut Springs, the pride and 
 constant resort of the citizens of Monterey, is preserved with the 
 most scrupulous care. It is three miles long, and about three- 
 quarters of a mile in width. Within its sylvan recesses many a 
 gay group had listened to the music of guitar and mandolin, 
 and bounded through the intricate mazes of the dance with light 
 hearts and laughing lips. Among its cool shadows, and where the 
 silence was only broken by the lulling sounds of rivulet and 
 waterfall, many a loving couple had given utterance, in the stately 
 music of the Spanish tongue, to the beautiful fancies with which 
 young passionate hearts build up the romance of the unknown 
 future. 
 
 The scene was now^ changed. Guitar and mandolin had given 
 place to the spirit-stirring sounds of trumpet-blast and drum — the 
 neighing of war-steeds, and the clash of arms. Where the light 
 feet of joyous dancers once bounded merrily, the heavy tramp of 
 martial men now fell in measured stroke upon the ear ; and where 
 delighted lovers once breathed their ardent vows, the watchful 
 sentinel now paced his solitary round. Led by a sturdy gray- 
 haired man, quiet and unostentatious in manner, but bold in 
 resolve, and energetic in action, the hardy warriors of the North 
 had pitched their tents among the cool and grateful shadows of 
 the sequestered grove, and now w^aited with high hopes and a 
 quicker pulse the fierce events of that morrow which was to bring 
 to many a hero's grave — to all, a soldier's glorj'. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 Monterey — Defences of the City — Mexican Forces — Reconnoissances — Worth's 
 Column of Attack — Occupation of the Pass in the west — Defences in that direction 
 — Operations of the First Division — Colonel Garland's command — Severe fire 
 from the Enemy's Batteries — Fall of Major Barbour and Colonel Watson — Cap- 
 tain Backus — 4th Infantry — General Quitman's Attack on Redoubt No. 1 — 
 Redoubt taken and guns turned on the Enemy — General Butler's command — 
 Cavalry repulsed by Bragg's battery — Worth's Operations — Engagement with 
 the Lancers — Storming-party under Captain Smith — 7th Infantry under Captain 
 Miles — Reinforcement under General Smith — Attack on Federacion Hill and 
 Fort Soldada — Taken and occupied — Storming-party under Lieutenant Childs — 
 Independence Hill — Sortie from the Bishop's Palace — Palace taken — Operations 
 under General Taylor — Approach to the Grand Plaza — Capitulation — Terms of 
 the Convention. 
 
 Monterey, the capital of New Leon, is situated on the north- 
 ern bank of the Arroyo Topa, in the valley of San Juan. The 
 Sierra Madre girdles, and in some places closely approaches it 
 on three sides, but receding on the North, leaves the whole extent 
 of the valley and its tributaries open in the direction of Marin. 
 
 The city is approached in front by the roads from Marin and 
 Guadalupe, and on the West through a stupendous rift of the 
 Sierra Madre, by the road from Saltillo. 
 
 Northward from Monterey run the roads to Monclova and Pres- 
 queria Grande. While on the South, across the Topa, a road 
 extends in the direction of Guaxuco. 
 
 West of the city, the approaches were defended by Fort Inde- 
 pendencia, a strong work on the crest of a steep hill, and by the 
 Bishop's Palace, a castellated structure on the slope of the same 
 hill, below. South of these, on the other side of the river, was 
 Federacion Hill and an adjoining height, both of which were 
 fortified by redoubts and batteries. In front, and to the north of 
 the city, was the citadel, also regularly fortified. 
 
 (174) 
 
3 ^ 
 
 t 5 
 
RECONNOISSANCES. 175 
 
 In advance of the city, to the east, the works consisted of a 
 succession of strong redoubts, mounting fourteen guns ; and 
 behind these, and within the city, were infantry breastworks sup- 
 porting the redoubts. In rear of these, again, w^as a line of 
 barricades, commanding all the avenues, and the terrible tete-du- 
 pont of the Purisima bridge. Nor were these all ; the houses 
 being strongly built of stone, their flat roofs and low parapets 
 afforded shelter to numbers of armed men, whose commanding 
 position enabled them to direct a plunging fire upon the assailants; 
 while the batteries, breastworks, and barricades below, were 
 raking the streets. 
 
 The correct force of the enemy, as subsequently verified, was 
 ten thousand men, of whom seven thousand were regular troops. 
 Notwithstanding this large force. General Taylor felt confident 
 of being able to carry the place by storm, by the bayonet, and 
 by artillery. 
 
 Such were the difficulties against which the American army 
 were preparing to contend. The reconnoissances, begun on the 
 afternoon of the 19th, and extending to the morning of the 20th, 
 though executed with great skill and coolness, under the repeated 
 fire of the enemy, could obtain no information beyond what could 
 be gathered of the w^orks not masked by the buildings of the city. 
 Within the city, the character of the defences remained unknown, 
 until gradually ascertained, with great loss of life, after the assault 
 had actually commenced. 
 
 On the morning of the 20th the troops were ordered under 
 arms. At ten o'clock A. M., the reconnoitring parties, one 
 of which, under Major Mansfield, had observed the western 
 approaches, the other, under Captain Williams, the eastern, 
 returned and reported to the General-in-Chief the result of their 
 observations. 
 
 The possibility of reaching the western approaches of the city 
 being ascertained by Major Mansfield, the Second Division, 
 
176 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 under Brigadier-General Worth, was directed to turn the enemy's 
 position by making a wide sweep to the right of the Marin road ; 
 and, after joining the Saltillo road, to storm, if practicable, the 
 detached works in that quarter. 
 
 Accordingly, at two o'clock P. M., the Second Division, rein- 
 forced by Hays's regiment of mounted Texans and McCullough's 
 and Gillespie's companies of rangers, took up its line of march ; 
 while, in order to divert the enemy, whose attention had been 
 already drawn to the movement, the First Division, under Briga- 
 dier-General Twiggs, and the field division of volunteers, under 
 Major-General Butler, were ordered to form in line of battle upon 
 the plain to the east of the city, and threaten the formidable 
 redoubts in front. They remained in position until dark. During 
 the afternoon, a battery was commenced for the mortar and two 
 24-pound howitzers, with the view of opening a fire upon the 
 city the following morning, during the attack by General Worth's 
 column. The infantry and the 1st Kentucky regiment covered 
 the erection of the battery during the night. The remainder of 
 the troops were withdrawn, after dark, to their camp at Walnut 
 Springs. In the mean time. General Worth had succeeded, with 
 great difficulty, in gaining the vicinity of the Saltillo road, and at 
 six o'clock P. M. the division was halted for the night, just 
 without range of the battery upon Independence Hill and that 
 of the Bishop's Palace, about midway of the same slope. 
 
 Nearly opposite, on the other side of the Arroya Topa, were 
 the forts of Federation and Soldada. These latter heights Gene- 
 ral Worth determined to carry by assault, the following morning, 
 and despatched an express to the General-in-Chief, informing 
 him of his intention, and requesting that a strong diversion might 
 be made in his favour on the eastern side of the city. This had 
 already been determined upon by General Taylor, and was 
 promptly responded to by him. 
 
 Early on the morning of the 21st, the First and Volunteer 
 
STREET-FIGHT IN MONTEREY. 177 
 
 Divisions were ordered under arms, and, supported by the light 
 artillery, marched towards the city. The 2d dragoons, under 
 Lieutenant-Colonel May, and Colonel Woods's regiment of Texan 
 cavalry, were thrown to the right, to support General Worth, and 
 make an impression upon the upper part of the town. The loud 
 reports of artillery and small arms to the west of the city, proved 
 the contest in that direction already begun. The mortar, under 
 Captain Ramsey, and the howitzers, under Captain Webster, now 
 opened from the east upon the citadel and town, and the main 
 battle commenced. 
 
 A portion of the First Division, under the command of Colonel 
 Garland, and consisting of the 1st and 3d regiments of infantry 
 and the Baltimore battalion, supported by Bragg's and Ridgely's 
 batteries, was ordered to make a strong demonstration upon the 
 lower part of the town, and carry, if possible, one of the redoubts. 
 Major Mansfield and Captain Williams, topographical engineers, 
 accompanied the column, and the most favourable points of 
 attack were to be indicated by Major Mansfield. The column 
 w^as accordingly formed, beyond reach of the guns of the enemy, 
 when it received directions to move forward and attack battery 
 No. 1, in advance of the north-east corner of the city. Major 
 Mansfield, the chief engineer oflficer, covered by skirmishers, had 
 already succeeded in reaching the suburbs. The remainder of 
 the column followed, and although subjected, for a distance of 
 five hundred yards across the plain, to the fire from battery No. 
 1, and a severe cross-fire from the citadel, it dashed impetuously 
 towards the city, passed the batteries in front, and entered the 
 streets. In an instant, without note or warning, a masked bat- 
 tery opened its deadly fire ; and from the tops of houses, from the 
 corners of streets, from windows, and barricades, poured down 
 one continuous storm of bullets. Without shelter ; in a narrow 
 street ; exposed to the enemy in every direction, without the pos- 
 sibility of effectually returning his fire — officers and men fell 
 
178 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR, 
 
 rapidly. Major Barbour, the first officer who fell, was killed 
 instantly by an escopet ball passing through his heart. The 
 assault at this point was hopeless ; so the column retired into the 
 next street, under cover of the walls and houses. Here were 
 brought the wounded, the dying, and the dead. The men still 
 pressed on, encouraged by Major Mansfield, who, though 
 wounded, with indomitable courage led them forward, and 
 pointed out places of attack. 
 
 At the head of the Baltimore battalion, here was seen the gal- 
 lant Colonel Watson, cheering on his men with the courage of a 
 veteran commander. When the stoutest hearts quailed amid the 
 iron tempest poured upon them, dismounting from his horse he 
 still pressed on, though followed by but few of his men. His 
 horse was soon struck by a shot, and fell dead, and shortly after 
 the colonel himself received a ball, which severed the jugular 
 vein and killed him instantly. 
 
 Bragg's battery now dashed up, but could make no impression 
 upon the barricades. The firing increased : artillery and small- 
 arms, hurling a storm of grape, canister, and bullets, at all 
 imaginable angles, literally swept the streets. To have remained 
 any longer, hemmed in by batteries and barricades and superior 
 numbers of the enemy, would have entailed a still more terrible 
 loss of life, without any corresponding prospect of success. The 
 command was therefore withdrawn, for the purpose of seeking 
 a more favourable point of attack.* 
 
 During this time, Captain Backus, of the 1st infantry, with a 
 mixed command, had possessed himself of a shed attached to a 
 tannery. This shed faced the gorge of battery No. 1 , at a dis- 
 tance of a hundred and twenty yards, and from behind the low 
 parapets surmounting its roof the Americans poured a deadly and 
 incessant fire into the battery. 
 
 Learning, however, that Colonel Garland's command, unable 
 
 * Captain Henry's Campaign Sketches. 
 
COL. WILLIAM H. WATSON. 
 
BUTLER AND QUITMAN. 179 
 
 any longer to maintain itself within the city, was in the act of 
 withdrawing, Captain Backus also prepared to retire. At this 
 moment the guns of all the batteries poured out a stream of fire 
 upon two companies of the 4th infantry, advancing across the 
 plain to join their comrades within the city. One-third of their 
 number fell under this galling fire, among them the gallant Lieu- 
 tenants Graham, Hoskins, and Woods. Captain Backus now 
 determined to maintain his position at all hazards, and com- 
 menced an avenging fire upon the battery No. 1, by which many 
 of its defenders were killed, and the remainder considerably 
 shaken. 
 
 As soon as the heavy firing within the city indicated that Colo- 
 nel Garland's command had met the enemy in force. General 
 Taylor despatched the Volunteer Division, under Major-General 
 Butler, to his support. The general himself, with the 1st Ohio 
 regiment, entered the town to the right, leaving Colonel Ormsby, 
 with the Kentucky regiment, to protect the batteries. 
 
 The brigade of General Quitman, consisting of the Mississippi 
 and Tennessee regiments, formed in front of redoubt No. 1, and 
 marched directly upon it, almost immediately in rear of the 
 two companies of the 4th infantry, which had been so fearfully 
 cut up. As soon as the brigade approached near enough for a 
 dash at the work, the two regiments, stimulated by a generous 
 rivalry, strove with each other which should be first within the 
 work. 
 
 The Mexicans, already staggered by the galling fire in rear, 
 and now threatened in front by the impetuous advance of the 
 determined brigade, precipitately retreated from the work, so that 
 when the stormers poured like a resistless tide through the 
 embrasures, and over the walls, but few of the enemy remained. 
 These were quickly dispersed, leaving the battery, so long a 
 source of terrible annoyance, with all its cannon and ammuni- 
 tion, in the hands of the daring victors. 
 25 
 
180 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 The Mississippians entered in front, Lieut. Colonel McClung 
 being the first to mount the parapet. He fell wounded imme- 
 diately after ; and, simultaneously with his fall, the Tennessee 
 regiment carried the left, and flung their colours to the breeze. 
 
 The cannon of battery No. 1 was instantly turned upon No. 2, 
 a redoubt which, from the constant and fearful activity of its fire, 
 had been named El Diablo, and loosely translated by the troops, 
 " The DeviVs Own.'''' Captain Ridgely, who in the commence- 
 ment of the action had annoyed the enemy with a section of his 
 battery, directed one of the 12's of the fort against the enemy 
 with great effect, until the ammunition gave out. After that he 
 advanced against the enemy's breastworks with his own battery, 
 but unable to accomplish anything, returned again to the work 
 taken from the enemy. 
 
 While this heroic achievement was in the act of accomplish- 
 ment, Butler entered the city to the right. Coming up shortly 
 after with the shattered remains of Garland's noble column. 
 General Butler was advised by Major Mansfield of the impracti- 
 cability of attempting an assault in that direction. The two 
 commands accordingly fell back, but they had scarcely reached 
 the plain when the General-in-Chief, having learned the fall of 
 the first battery, ordered the First Division immediately to return 
 and hold possession of the captured work, while General Butler, 
 with the Ohio regiment, marching to the left, should enter the 
 city in the direction of El Diablo, and attempt to carry it by 
 storm. 
 
 The regiment accordingly advanced across the plain, and soon 
 came under a galling fire from El Diablo, and from two batteries 
 on the right. On approaching nearer, a terrible fire of musketry 
 was opened upon it from troops in rear of the redoubt, and so 
 sheltered as to be perfectly secure from attack. At this juncture. 
 General Butler and Colonel Mitchell both fell severely wounded ; 
 and, as the redoubt was found to be protected in front by a deep 
 
PUENTE DC PURISIMA. 181 
 
 ditch, and in rear by masses of infantry, while its flank was 
 defended by a high stone wall, the column was reluctantly 
 ordered to fall back. No sooner was this movement observed 
 than the Mexican cavalry, hovering under the guns of the citadel, 
 made a sudden dash at the regiment. The charge was success- 
 fully repulsed. The lancers, however, soon returned, strongly 
 reinforced, when Bragg's battery hastened up to the support of 
 the regiment, and by a series of rapid discharges, which did great 
 execution, forced the enemy to retreat in disorder. 
 
 During these operations on the left. Colonel Garland, with 
 parts of the 1st, 3d, and 4th regiments, and of the Baltimore bat- 
 talion, while remaining under cover of the captured battery, was 
 ordered again into the city, for the purpose of carrying, if possi- 
 ble, a battery supposed to be but a few streets beyond. No 
 sooner had the column left its shelter, than the terrible fire of 
 artillery and small-arms recommenced. Covering themselves as 
 much as possible, the men advanced from street to street steadily 
 and in good order. 
 
 After moving cautiously along for some distance, and crossing 
 exposed points whenever the enemy had momentarily exhausted 
 his fire, the column suddenly found itself confronted by the Ute- 
 du-pont of Puente de Purisima. An awful fire now burst upon 
 them, and after attempting to turn the work by breaking through 
 the walls of houses, and crossing gardens and yards, they found 
 their progress arrested by the impassable character of the stream, 
 the opposite bank of which was lined with masses of the enemy, 
 whose force at the bridge was at least a thousand strong. The 
 attacking column, amounting to only a hundred and fifty men, 
 after forcing its way thus far, finding every street barricaded, and 
 incessant firing still kept up from every point that offered cover 
 to an enemy, abandoned all further effort to proceed, and once 
 more fell back to the captured battery, with the loss of many of 
 its bravest officers and men. 
 
182 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 This closed the engagement on the 21st. The day was now 
 fast drawing to a close ; the First Division, reinforced by one bat- 
 talion of the 1st Kentucky regiment, was ordered to hold posses- 
 sion of the battery during the night, while the remainder of the 
 troops, weary and dispirited, returned to the camp at Walnut 
 Springs. 
 
 On the western side of the city, the column under General 
 Worth had been more fortunate. Early on the morning of the 
 21st, the column recommenced its march for the Saltillo road. 
 At six o'clock A. M., the advance consisted of Hays's regiment 
 of Texans and the light companies of the First Brigade, under 
 Captain C. F. Smith. These, while sweeping round the base of 
 the mountain near the hacienda of San Jeronimo, came suddenly 
 upon a strong force of cavalry and infantry, supported by a second 
 body of cavalry in the cornfields beyond. The two foremost 
 companies of rangers, under McCuUough and Acklen, imme- 
 diately dismounted and threw themselves under cover of a fence to 
 the left of the road. The lancers now dashed forward with the 
 utmost impetuosity, the daring gallantry of their colonel rendering 
 him conspicuous above all others. As they swept past, the rifles 
 of the Texans and a fire of musketry from the skirmishers under 
 Smith and Scott, told with murderous effect upon their ranks, 
 while two companies of the 8th regiment, and a part of the 
 mounted rangers, under Captain Walker, dashed in amongst 
 them and engaged them hand to hand. Finding their com- 
 rades thus severely handled, the lancers in reserve now galloped 
 rapidly up to their support. In one minute Duncan and McCall's 
 batteries were unlimbered, and poured a destructive fire upon the 
 enemy over the heads of our own troops. Thus assailed in front 
 by infantry and cavalry, on their flank by the terrible fire of 
 skirmishers and rangers, and in rear by Duncan's and McCall's 
 artillery, the lancers faltered, and within fifteen minutes their 
 imposing array was broken into fragments, and fell back to the 
 
worth's operations. 183 
 
 Saltillo road, with the loss of one hundred men killed and 
 wounded ; among the former of whom was their brave colonel, 
 Don Juan N. Najera, whose heroic conduct throughout the whole 
 of the conflict won the unqualified admiration of all who wit- 
 nessed it. 
 
 The fugitives were promptly pursued, and the column moving 
 forward under the fire of the guns from Federacion and Soldada, 
 secured the gorge where all the debouches from Monterey unite, 
 and thus cut off not only the retreating cavalry, but all other rein- 
 forcements from entering the city in that direction.* 
 
 General Worth now turned his attention to the capture of Forts 
 Federacion and Soldada, situated on twin heights to the south 
 of the Topa. The occupation of these was necessary, ultimately, 
 as commanding the city, and immediately, as restoring the com- 
 munication with head-quarters, which had been broken by sending 
 troops to occupy the Saltillo road. By noon his plans were 
 arranged. It was decided that the battery on Federacion Hill 
 should be the first attacked. A storming-party was accordingly 
 organized, under Captain C. F. Smith. It consisted of three 
 hundred men, one half regulars, the other half Texans, and was 
 ordered to cross the Arroyo Topa at a point beyond the reach of 
 the enemy's guns, and commence the assault immediately. 
 Shortly afterwards. Captain Miles, with the 7th infantry, was 
 ordered to support the stormers. This reinforcement moved in a 
 direct line, crossed the Topa under the fire of the enemy, and 
 finding the forces of the enemy largely increasing, Brigadier- 
 General Smith, with the 5th regiment and Blanchard's Louisia- 
 nians, was also ordered to cross the river, co-operate with, and 
 assume command of the storming columns. 
 
 Discovering on his approach the practicability of carrying the 
 Soldada simultaneously with Fort Federacion, Smith moved 
 
 * Worth's Official Report. 
 
184 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 with the 5th and 7th regiments and Blanchard's company, 
 obliquely up the hill in the direction of the former work. 
 
 During this movement the stormers, under Captain C. F. 
 Smith, clambered up the height, and under a severe fire of artil- 
 lery and musketry, swarmed over the walls, drove the enemy 
 from the work with rifle and bayonet, turned the gun upon the 
 opposite fort, and then leaving a small detachment to hold pos- 
 session, dashed over the hill to the support of their comrades, now 
 nearly up with Fort Soldada. 
 
 As soon as this heroic rivalry was observed, the 5th and 7th 
 pressed on with accelerated speed, while side by side the Louisia- 
 nians and rangers also contested the honour of first entering the 
 work. 
 
 Under a fire of grape and heavy discharges of small-arms, the 
 mixed commands struggled up the ascent with unwavering gal- 
 lantry, driving in the enemy's skirmishers before them. In the 
 course of a few minutes the fort was abandoned by its dismayed 
 garrison, and the colours of the United States planted in triumph 
 upon the walls. Captain Gillespie, of the Texan mounted vol- 
 unteers, was the first to mount the parapet and enter the work. 
 The forts w^ere now garrisoned by detachments of the victors. 
 Captain Smith retaining possession of the first, Captain Miles of the 
 last fort taken ; and this being done, the gallant division on both 
 sides of the Arroyo Topa having tasted no food for thirty-six 
 hours, was rested and refreshed preparatory to assaulting the 
 opposite heights on the following morning. 
 
 The enemy, from the Bishop's Palace, commenced a fire of 
 round-shot and shell upon the 7th infantry in Fort Soldada, which 
 was returned by the captured gun, under Lieutenant Dana. 
 
 Independence Hill is seven or eight hundred feet high, and 
 almost inaccessible on account of its perpendicularity, its rocky 
 surface, and the thick and tangled bushes that cover it. With 
 the Bishop's Palace, which it commands and overlooks, distant 
 about three hundred and fifty yards to the south-east, it may be 
 
FORT INDEPENDENCIA. 185 
 
 regarded as the key to Monterey on the western side. It was de- 
 fended by artillery, and in anticipation of an attack, strengthened 
 by a heavy detachment thrown forward from the Bishop's Palace. 
 
 Early on the morning of the 22d, the column was appointed to 
 storm the Forts of Independencia and the Bishop's Palace. It 
 consisted of three companies of the 8th infantry, three companies 
 of the 3d and 4th artillery, and two hundred dismounted Texans, 
 under Hays and Walker ; all under the command of Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Childs. This column moved at three o'clock A. M., 
 recrossed the river, and, favoured by mist and darkness, clam- 
 bered up the steep ascent, unobserved by the enemy, until it 
 gained within a hundred yards of the crest. Here the advanced 
 pickets were first discovered, and a skirmishing fire commenced ; 
 but so great was the panic, that when the regulars and Texans 
 approached within a few yards of the crest of the hill, and pour- 
 ing in a heavy fire upon the startled enemy, dashed forward with 
 rifles and bayonets, the work was precipitately abandoned. 
 During the ascent of the hill, two gallant spirits fell, Captain Gil- 
 lespie and Herman S. Thomas of the rangers, the former of 
 Texas, the latter of Harford county, Maryland. The 5th regi- 
 ment, under Major Scott, and Blanchard's Louisianians now 
 crossed the river to aid the assault of Childs upon the Bishop's 
 Palace. A 12-pound howitzer was hauled bodily up the steep 
 ascent of Independencia, and being placed in battery, opened 
 upon the Palace and its outworks with decided effect. Under 
 cover of this fire, the column moved down the hill in the direction 
 of the enemy's last remaining defence. Here the Mexican general 
 had concentrated a large body of troops, and rendered desperate 
 by the loss of Independencia, he attempted a formidable sortie 
 from the Palace, for the purpose of recovering it. 
 
 This sortie was, however, so effectually repulsed, that the 
 troops soon gave way under the front and flank fires of the 
 stormers, and being closely pursued, some fled past the Palace 
 
186 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 in the direction of the city, while others, seeking the protection 
 of the works, were followed so rapidly, that fugitives and pur- 
 suers entered them together. 
 
 A brief, spirited, but unavailing resistance then ensued. In a 
 few minutes, amidst the sharp crack of the deadly Texan rifles — 
 the clash of swords, the dull heavy sound of clubbed muskets, 
 mixed up with shouts and yells and imprecations — the earnest 
 cries of supplicating men and the groans of the wounded — the 
 Mexican flag was hauled down, and the last outwork of the 
 enemy was forcibly wrested from him. The guns of the Palace, 
 together with Duncan's and McCall's batteries, which came up 
 at a gallop, were now directed upon the retreating masses of the 
 enemy with terrible effect. 
 
 This ended the labours of the 22d. 
 
 The division was now concentrated about the Palace, and upon 
 the morning of the 23d the assault upon the city commenced. 
 
 " Two columns of attack were organized, to move along the 
 two principal streets in the direction of the great Plaza, composed 
 of light troops, slightly extended, with orders to mask the men 
 whenever practicable, avoid those points swept by the enemy's 
 artillery, to press on to the first Plaza (Capella), get hold of the 
 end of the streets beyond, then enter the buildings, and, by means 
 of picks and bars, break through the longitudinal section of the 
 walls, work from house to house, and ascending to the roofs, to 
 place themselves upon the same, breast-high with the enemy." 
 
 Such were the graphic directions given by General Worth for 
 the assault of the city from the west. The plan was eminently 
 successful. By dark the men had worked their way through 
 walls and squares, until they had reached to within one square 
 of the Great Plaza, carried a large building commanding the 
 principal defences of the enemy, and during the night and suc- 
 ceeding morning, placed two howitzers and a 6-pounder in 
 battery upon its roof. A 10-inch mortar was also brought into 
 
FINAL STORM OF MONTEREY. 187 
 
 the smaller square (Capella), and at sunset opened upon the 
 main Plaza. 
 
 In the mean time, on the eastern side of the city, the severe 
 check received on the 21st had also been amply redeemed. 
 
 During the 22d but little was attempted beyond a strong 
 demonstration to favour the operations of General Worth ; but 
 when the morning of the 23d arrived, the successes of Worth's 
 column offered an opportunity of renewing the assault, under 
 advantages not heretofore enjoyed. 
 
 The enemy, too, evidently staggered by the pertinacity with 
 which the storm was carried on, had deserted the battery of El 
 Diablo, during the night of the 22d, and concentrated the main 
 body of his forces nearer the heart of the city. 
 
 Immediately this was made known to the General-in-Chief, 
 the Mississippi and Tennessee regiments were ordered to take 
 possession of the abandoned works. 
 
 The enemy, however, holding some strong buildings close by, 
 and a triangular w'ork some two hundred yards off, still kept up 
 an annoying fire through the gorge of El Diablo. 
 
 The General-in-Chief now arriving in the city, directed Quit- 
 man's brigade to move in, and force the annoying positions. It 
 w^as immediately advanced, and a sharp firing once more swept 
 the streets. Bragg's battery was also ordered up, supported 
 by the 3d infantry. When within range of the guns of the cita- 
 del, the battery crossed the field of fire at full gallop, and escaped 
 injury. The infantry and battery now engaged the enemy, and 
 drove him back with repeated discharges. 
 
 While the assault was thus warmly urged by the Mississippi 
 and Tennessee regiments, the dismounted Texans, under Hen- 
 derson, entered the city, and the united commands, by breaking 
 into houses, and crashing through walls, fought the enemy in his 
 own manner, and in the midst of his own defences, until the 
 defenders were forced resolutely back into the very heart of 
 the city. This being done, the columns of Quitman and Hen- 
 26 
 
188 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 derson were withdrawn to the captured works, until such time af 
 the General-in-Chief could concert with General Worth a com- 
 bined attack upon the last remaining defences. This attack had 
 been already anticipated by the latter officer ; so that by dusk of 
 the 23d the respective commands, moving from east and wesi 
 almost simultaneously, had each succeeded, though unknown to 
 each other, in reaching to within one square of the principal 
 Plaza. A heavy mortar had been placed in battery, and General 
 Worth was ready to open upon the enemy in the morning with shell. 
 The next morning, while preparations were being made to 
 renew the attack. General Ampudia despatched a flag of truce 
 to General Taylor, expressing a desire to negotiate for a surren- 
 der of the city. The assault was accordingly suspended on both 
 sides of the city, and commissioners having been appointed to 
 confer with each other, the following basis of capitulation was a1 
 length agreed upon : — 
 
 " Terms of the Capitulation of the city of Monterey, the capital of Nuevo 
 Leon, agreed upon by the undersigned commissioners, to wit : General 
 Worth, of the United States Army, General Henderson, of the Texan 
 volunteers, and Colonel Davis, of the Mississippi riflemen, on the part 
 of Major-General Taylor, commanding-in-chief the United States forces; 
 and General Requena and General Ortego, of the Army of Mexico, and 
 Seuor Manuel M. Llano, Governor of Nuevo Leon, on the part of Senor 
 General Don Pedro Ampudia, commanding-in-chief the Army of the 
 North of Mexico. 
 
 " Art. 1. As the legitimate result of the operations before the 
 place, and the present position of the contending armies, it is 
 agreed that the city, the fortifications, cannon, the munitions of 
 war, and all other public property, with the under-mentioned 
 exceptions, be surrendered to the commanding-general of the 
 United States forces now at Monterey. 
 
 " Art. 2. That the Mexican forces be allowed to retain the 
 following arms, to wit : The commissioned officers their side- 
 arms ; the infantry their arms and accoutrements ; the cavalry 
 their arms and accoutrements ; the artillery one field-battery, not 
 to exceed six pieces, with twenty-one rounds of ammunition. 
 
TERMS OF CAPITULATION. 189 
 
 " Art. 3. That the Mexican armed force retire within seven 
 days from this date beyond the line formed by the pass of the 
 Rinconada, the city of Linares, and San Fernando de Pusos. 
 
 " Art. 4. That the citadel of Monterey be evacuated by the 
 Mexican and occupied by the American forces to-morrow morn- 
 ing at ten o'clock. 
 
 '< Art. 5. To avoid collisions, and for mutual convenience, 
 that the troops of the United States will not occupy the city until 
 the Mexican forces have withdrawn, except for hospital and 
 storage purposes. 
 
 " Art. 6. That the forces of the United States will not advance 
 beyond the line specified in the third article before the expiration 
 of eight wrecks, or until the orders of the respective governments 
 can be received. 
 
 " Art. 7. That the public property to be delivered shall be 
 turned over and received by officers appointed by the command- 
 ing-generals of the two armies. 
 
 " Art. 8, That all doubts, as to the meaning of any of the pre- 
 ceding articles, shall be solved by an equitable construction, and 
 on principles of liberality to the retiring army. 
 
 << Art. 9. That the Mexican flag, when struck at the citadel, 
 may be saluted by its own battery. 
 
 W. J. Worth, Brig.- Gen. U. S. A. 
 J. PiNKNEY Henderson, 
 
 Major- Gen. commanding Texan volunteers. 
 Jefferson Davis, Col. Mississippi Riflemen. 
 J. M. Ortega. 
 T. Requena. 
 Manuel M. Llano. 
 Approved ; 
 
 Pedro Ampudia. 
 Z. Taylor, 
 
 Major- Gen. U. S. A. commanding. 
 Dated at Monterey, Sept. 25, 1846." 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Evacuation of Monterey — Policy of the Capitulation — Views of the Administra- 
 tion — General Taylor's letter — Retrospect of Mexican affairs — Elevation of 
 Paredes — Pronunciamento in favour of Santa Anna — His arrival at Vera Cruz — 
 Permission to pass through the Fleet — Termination of the Armistice — Projected 
 Expedition against Tamaulipas — Opinions of General Taylor relative to the Pro- 
 secution of the War — Saltillo occupied by the American troops — Protest of the 
 Governor of Coahuila — Advance to Agua Nueva — General Wool's Expedition 
 against Chihuahua — Arrival of Wool's column at Monclova — Marches to Parras — 
 Tampico occupied — General Taylor marches upon Victoria — Reconnoissances 
 towards Labradores and Linares — Arrival of General Scott in Mexico — With- 
 drawal of troops from General Taylor — Orders consequent thereon — Santa Anna's 
 March from San Luis Potosi against General Taylor — Ruse of General Taylor — 
 Forces of Santa Anna — Angostura — February 22d — Summons of Santa Anna to 
 General Taylor to surrender — Taylor's Reply — Battle of Buena Vista — Skir- 
 mishes — Result of the Action. 
 
 At ten o'clock on the 25th, pursuant to the articles of' capitu- 
 lation, the ceremony of the surrender took place. General 
 Worth, who by his labours had contributed so largely to the 
 reduction of the place, was appointed to see the execution of 
 the stipulations. Two companies of each regiment in the second 
 division, with a section of each battery, the whole under the 
 immediate command of Colonel Persifer F. Smith, were appointed 
 to take possession of the citadel. These troops were drawn up 
 on the road leading to the citadel, the Texans on one side, and 
 the regulars on the other, while the imposing display was graced 
 by the presence of General Taylor and staff, and all the principal 
 officers of the army in splendid military costume. 
 
 With a parting salute from the shrill bugle and the booming 
 cannon, the Aztec eagle fluttered down from its airy height, while 
 the " stars and stripes" floated upward on the gentle breeze, and 
 unfolded from the citadel amid the strains of martial music and the 
 
 (190) 
 
EVACUATION OF MONTEREY. 191 
 
 united cheers of the victorious troops. From the other eminences, 
 in like manner, the Mexican colours disappeared, and were 
 replaced by the national ensign of the conquerors. The Mexicans 
 then marched out from the citadel, between the two lines of 
 the Americans, and the latter moved into the place they had 
 quitted. The first division of the enemy marched out of the city 
 on the 26th, the second on the 27th, and the remainder on the 
 28th. General Ampudia accompanied the second division and 
 proceeded with his troops to Saltillo. He wished to fortify the 
 place, but since he had been unable to defend Monterey, a 
 position having much greater advantages, the inhabitants refused 
 their consent, whereupon he retired to San Luis Potosi, which 
 became, shortly after, the head-quarters of the northern army. 
 He, himself, soon became a prisoner in the castle of Perote, by 
 order of Santa Anna, who had returned from exile, as will here- 
 after be related. 
 
 The terms of the capitulation, though favourable to the Mexi- 
 cans, displayed not merely an exalted humanity on the part of 
 General Taylor, but great military prudence, and sound policy. 
 A brief consideration of the circumstances will serve to show 
 this view of the capitulation to be correct. 
 
 Without siege-artillery, or intrenching tools, General Taylor 
 could not have carried the citadel without great loss to his troops, 
 who were less than one-half the forces of the enemy. If he had 
 carried the citadel, he could not have prevented the escape of 
 the enemy, for he had not sufficient troops to invest the city ; nor 
 had he means of transportation, so that he could have pursued 
 him after he had compelled him to evacuate the city. If beaten, 
 the Mexican general could still have retired with his troops, 
 small-arms, and ammunition. 
 
 How much better and wiser was it in General Taylor, to gain, 
 without sacrificing the lives of his troops, all the advantages 
 which could have been ultimately obtained, with this additional 
 circumstance in his favour, that the moral effect upon the enemy 
 
192 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 was much greater than if he had retired, as he could otherwise 
 have done, without the consent of the Americans. 
 
 The government at Washington, however, and a small portion of 
 the administration party, did not approve of the terms of the capitu- 
 lation, and especially the armistice. Accordingly, General Tay- 
 lor was instructed by the President " to give the required notice, 
 that the armistice was to cease at once, and that each party was 
 at liberty to resume and prosecute hostilities without restriction." 
 The reply of the general to this order, addressed to the Adjutant- 
 General at Washington, is so full and satisfactory upon these 
 points, that we insert it entire : — 
 
 " Camp near Monterey, ) 
 November 8, 1846. J 
 
 " Sir : In reply to so much of the communication of the Secre- 
 tary of War, as relates to the reasons which induced the conven- 
 tion resulting in the capitulation of Monterey, I have the honour 
 to submit the following remarks. 
 
 " The convention presents two distinct points : First, the per- 
 mission granted the Mexican army to retire with their arms, &c. 
 Secondly, the temporary cessation of hostilities for the term of 
 eight weeks. I shall remark on these in order. 
 
 " The force with which I marched on Monterey was limited, by 
 causes beyond my control, to about six thousand men. With 
 this force, as every military man must admit, who has seen the 
 ground, it was entirely impossible to invest Monterey so closely 
 as to prevent the escape of the garrison. Although the main 
 communication with the interior was in our possession, yet one 
 route was open to the Mexicans throughout the operations, ami 
 could not be closed, as were also other minor tracks and passes 
 through the mountains. Had we, therefore, insisted on moiv 
 rigorous terms than those granted, the result would have been 
 the escape of the body of the Mexican force, with the destruction 
 
Taylor's letter of explanation. 193 
 
 of its artillery and magazines, our only advantage being the cap- 
 ture of a few prisoners of war, at the expense of valuable lives and 
 much damage to the city. The consideration of humanity was 
 present to my mind during the conference which led to the con- 
 vention, and outweighed, in my judgment, the doubtful advan- 
 tages to be gained by a resumption of the attack upon the town. 
 This conclusion has been fully confirmed by an inspection of the 
 enemy's position and means, since the surrender. It was disco- 
 vered that his principal magazine, containing an immense amount 
 of powder, was in the Cathedral, completely exposed to our 
 shells from two directions. The explosion of this mass of pow- 
 der, which must have ultimately resulted from a continuance of 
 the bombardment, would have been infinitely disastrous, involving 
 the destruction not only of Mexican troops, but of non-com- 
 batants, and even our own people, had we pressed the attack. 
 
 " In regard to the temporary cessation of hostilities, the fact 
 that we are not at this moment, within eleven days of the termi- 
 nation of the period fixed by the convention, prepared to move 
 forward in force, is a sufficient explanation of the military reasons 
 which dictated this suspension of arms. It paralyzed the enemy 
 during a period when, from the w^ant of necessary means, we 
 could not possibly move. I desire distinctly to state, and to call 
 the attention of the authorities to the fact, that with all diligence 
 in breaking mules and setting up wagons, the first wagons in 
 addition to our original train from Corpus Christi (and but one 
 hundred and twenty-five in number), reached ray head-quarters 
 on the same day with the secretary's communication of October 
 13th, viz : the 2d instant. At the date of the surrender of Mon- 
 terey, our force had not more than ten days' rations, and even 
 now, with all our endeavours, we have not more than twenty-five. 
 The task of fighting and beating the enemy is among the 
 LEAST difficult THAT WE ENCOUNTER — the great qucstiou of sup- 
 plies necessarily controls all the operations in a country like this. 
 
194 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 At the date of the convention, I could not of course have foreseen 
 that the Department would direct an important detachment from 
 my command without consulting me, or without waiting the result 
 of the main operation under my orders. 
 
 " I have touched the prominent military points involved in the 
 convention of Monterey. There were other considerations which 
 weighed with the commissioners in framing, and with myself in 
 approving the articles of the convention. In the conference with 
 General Ampudia, I was distinctly told by him that he had invited 
 it to spare the further efliision of blood, and because General 
 Santa Anna had declared himself favourable to peace. I knew 
 that our government had made propositions to that of Mexico to 
 negotiate, and I deemed that the change of government in that 
 country since my instructions, fully warranted me in entertaining 
 considerations of policy. My grand motive in moving forward 
 with very limited supplies had been to increase the inducements 
 of the Mexican government to negotiate for peace. Whatever 
 may be the actual views or disposition of the Mexican rulers, or 
 of General Santa Anna, it is not unknown to the government that I 
 had the very best reason for believing the statement of General 
 Ampudia to be true. It was my opinion at the time of the con- 
 vention, and it has not been changed, that the liberal treatment 
 of the Mexican army, and the suspension of arms, would exert 
 none but a favourable influence in our behalf. 
 
 " The result of the entire operation has been to throw the 
 Mexican army back more than three hundred miles, to the city 
 of San Luis Potosi, and to open the country to us, as far as we 
 choose to penetrate it, up to the same point. 
 
 " It has been my purpose in this communication, not so much 
 to defend the convention from the censure which I deeply regret 
 to find implied in the Secretary's letter, as to show that it was not 
 adopted without cogent reasons, most of which occur of them- 
 selves to the minds of all who are acquainted with the condition 
 
ACCESSION OF PAREDES. 195 
 
 of things here. To that end I beg that it may be laid before the 
 General-in-chief and Secretary of War. 
 
 " I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Maj. Gen. U. S. A.^ commanding. 
 The Adjutant-General of the Army, Washington, D. C." 
 
 An extract from a letter of General Taylor's, of the date of 
 November 5th, still further shows that the armistice was of no 
 disadvantage, because being without proper transportation he was 
 not then in a condition to move further into the enemy's country. 
 
 " In regard to the armistice, which would have expired by 
 limitation in a few days, we lost nothing by it, as we could not 
 move even now, had the enemy continued to occupy Saltillo ; for, 
 strange to say, the first wagon which has reached me since the 
 declaration of war was on the 2d instant, the same day on which 
 I received from Washington an acknowledgment of my despatch 
 announcing the taking of Monterey ; and then I received only 
 one hundred and twenty-five, so that I have been, since May last, 
 completely crippled, and am still so, for want of transportation. 
 After raking and scraping the country for miles around Camargo, 
 collecting every pack-mule and other means of transportation, I 
 could bring here only eighty thousand rations (fifteen days' sup- 
 ply), with a moderate supply of ordnance, ammunition, &c., to 
 do which, all the corps had to leave behind a portion of their 
 camp equipage necessary for their comfort, and in some instances, 
 among the volunteers, their personal baggage. I moved in such 
 a way, and with such limited means, that, had I not succeeded, 
 I "hould no doubt have been severely reprimanded, if nothing 
 worse. I did so to sustain the administration." 
 
 We will now turn our attention for a moment to the affairs of 
 Mexico. 
 
 In January, Paredes, by a revolution which had been jointly- 
 projected by the army and clergy, gained the executive chair on 
 27 
 
196 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 the downfall of Herrera. Instead of conciliating discordant par- 
 ties by moderation and gentle measures, he changed both the 
 letter and the spirit of the constitution acknowledged by his pre- 
 decessors, abridged the privileges of the people, trampled upon 
 the press, and arrogated to himself a power nearly absolute. In 
 the embarrassed state of the treasury he appealed to the priest- 
 hood for alienation of a part of the church fund, which disaffected 
 in a measure a part of that influential body from him. 
 
 The popular discontent was fomented by factious chiefs, until 
 it broke out into open rebellion. There was a defection, not only 
 of military bodies, but of cities, and provinces. Local govern- 
 ments were overthrown, and the central power assailed. Vera 
 Cruz pronounced in favour of Santa Anna on the 31st of July, and 
 the capital, three days afterwards, followed the movement. A 
 provisional government was declared, with General de Salas and 
 other military chiefs at its head, which denounced all opposition 
 to them as traitorous, and invited the return of all political exiles, 
 especially Santa Anna, desiring him to assume the command of 
 all the forces raised against the army of the United States of the 
 North. A short conflict took place between the revolutionists 
 and the troops of Paredes, when the latter abandoned his power 
 and fled from the city. 
 
 Thus recalled by his countrymen, Santa Anna sailed from 
 Cuba, and arrived at Vera Cruz on the 16th of August, passing 
 without molestation through the United States' squadron then 
 blockading the place. This was done by express permission of 
 the President of the United States, in the vain expectation that 
 Santa Anna, so coming into power, would favour negotiations for 
 peace. Instead of this, however, after a triumphal entry into the 
 city of Mexico on the 15th of September, he united opposing fac- 
 tions, and with singular energy and ability prepared to prosecute 
 the war against the invaders with the utmost vigour. So far from 
 answering the expectations of President Polk, Santa Anna 
 
PLAN OF OPERATIONS. 197 
 
 promptly replied to General Taylor, when inviting propositions for 
 peace some time after : "You ought to discard every idea of 
 peace while a single North American treads in arms the territory 
 of this republic, or while hostile squadrons remain in front of her 
 ports." With these views and feelings, Santa Anna hastened to 
 San Luis Potosi, the head-quarters of the northern army, and on 
 the 8th of October, commenced to supply and equip the new 
 levies for vigorous operations against the invaders of his country. 
 For this end he not merely exerted his talents, but contributed 
 much of his private fortune, and succeeded in raising and orga- 
 nizing a large and powerful array. 
 
 While General Taylor remained at Monterey, he received from 
 Washington a letter containing instructions to terminate the 
 armistice, and accordingly promptly notified Santa Anna that 
 it would cease on the 13th of November. By a previous letter 
 from the Secretary of War, General Taylor had been informed of 
 the plan of the government in the prosecution of the war, and 
 that it contemplated taking '< possession of the department of 
 Tamaulipas, or some of the principal places in it," by means 
 of a column advanced from the Rio Grande, which should have 
 communication with the ships then in the gulf, and derive assist- 
 ance from them. Tampico was particularly specified as a 
 prominent point to be occupied by the American troops ; and 
 Major-General Patterson was named by the Secretary as the 
 choice of the government to command the expedition, assisted 
 by Brigadier-Generals Pillow and Shields. A simultaneous 
 movement upon San Luis Potosi was also suggested. 
 
 In reply to the letter of the Secretary, General Taylor showed 
 the impracticability of moving upon San Luis Potosi with the 
 forces and means of transportation at his disposal ; but advised 
 holding Monterey, with the places already in his possession, with 
 advances pushed forward to occupy Saltillo, and detachments at 
 Monclova, Linares, Victoria, and Tampico. He pointed to Vera 
 
198 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Cruz or Alvarado as the proper base of operations against the city 
 of Mexico, and advised the landing there of twenty-five thousand 
 men, ten thousand to be regulars, if the government desired to 
 strike a decisive blow at the power of Mexico. 
 
 General Taylor considered Saltillo as a necessary outpost of 
 the main body of his army at Monterey, because it covered the 
 great defile leading from the low country to the table-land, and 
 controlled the fertile region around Parras, while, as the capital of 
 Coahuila, its occupation would be important in a political point 
 of view. Accordingly, on the 12th of November, a division of 
 the army under General Worth, consisting of two regiments of 
 infantry, one company of volunteers, a field-battery of eight 
 pieces, and eight companies of artillery, marched from Monterey 
 to Saltillo. On the next day. General Taylor followed Worth's 
 division, accompanied by two squadrons of dragoons. When he 
 passed the boundary of the state of Coahuila, on his way to 
 Saltillo, the governor of the state, Jose Marie de Aguirre, sent 
 him a written protest, in which he remonstrated against the march 
 of the Americans, and the usurpation of the territory, " with all 
 the outrages and damages likely to accrue to the defenceless 
 inhabitants." Without replying to this manifesto, General Taylor 
 proceeded on to Saltillo, which he reached on the 16th, and 
 encamped with his dragoons a little beyond the city. General 
 Worth occupied the plaza. 
 
 Reconnoissances were now ordered into the interior for about 
 twenty- five miles, and the two principal routes in this direction 
 covered by troops. The one towards San Luis Potosi was 
 covered by General Worth's command, the other, towards Parras, 
 through a fertile country, by the "Army of the Centre" under 
 General Wool, which had arrived at Monclova on the 29th of 
 October, and was now ordered by General Taylor to move upon 
 Parras. We will now bestow attention upon this division of the 
 forces invading Mexico. 
 
blUG^ Gl'N. JOHN K. WOOL 
 
GENERAL WOOL S DIVISION. 199 
 
 Immediately after the passage of the act of May 13th, 1846, 
 recognising war between the republics. General Wool was ordered 
 to muster into service the volunteers of Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, 
 Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi. After organizing , and 
 sending to the seat of war about ten thousand men to reinforce 
 General Taylor, he was ordered with the remainder to San Antonio 
 de Bexar, where Colonel Harney of the 2d dragoons was stationed 
 with a small force of regular cavalry, and some companies of 
 Texan volunteers. During the month of August all the regiments 
 and detachments arrived at the place of rendezvous, and were 
 employed some weeks in learning the different military evolutions 
 before taking the field. The Central Division, under General Wool, 
 consisted of four companies of the 2d dragoons. Colonel Harney ; 
 one company of the 4th artillery, Captain W^ashington, with eight 
 pieces, two 12-pounders, and the remainder 6-pounders ; battalion 
 of 6th infantry. Major Bonneville ; Colonel Yell's regiment, Arkan- 
 sas mounted volunteers ; 1st Illinois infantry. Colonel Hardin ; 
 2d Illinois, Colonel Bissell; and one company of Kentucky cavalry, 
 and one of Texan volunteers. Total strength, 2,829. 
 
 The advance of the army of the centre, under Colonel Harney, 
 left San Antonio on the 26th of September, and was followed by 
 the head-quarters on the 29th. Colonel Hardin, with the 1st 
 Illinois regiment, marched on the 2d of October ; and the rear, 
 under Colonel Churchill, followed some days after, comprising the 
 2d Illinois, and various other detachments. 
 
 Fron\ San Antonio, their route lay westward to Presidio, where 
 they crossed the Rio Grande, through a country diversified by 
 prairies, sandy deserts, and forests of chaparral. From Presidio, 
 General Wool led his army through Nava and San Fernando to 
 Santa Rosa, taking peaceable possession of the towns upon his 
 route. On arriving at the latter place, he found his further march 
 upon the city of Chihuahua, his ultimate destination, prevented 
 by the impassable peaks of the Sierra Gorda. He turned aside, 
 
200 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 therefore, to Monclova, the ancient capital of Chihuahua, from 
 which he reported to General Taylor at Monterey, who directed 
 him to remain where he was, until ordered otherwise. General 
 Wool, therefore, remained at Monclova until after the occupation 
 of Saltillo, when he moved forward to Parras, and occupied the 
 Alameda. At both these places he and his troops were treated 
 with great kindness by the inhabitants. Having thus disposed 
 his troops so that in case of further operations they could be 
 thrown upon Zacatecas, Durango, or San Luis, as occasion might 
 require. General Taylor returned to Monterey on the 23d of 
 November. 
 
 On the 14th of November, Tampico was taken without opposi- 
 tion, by a portion of the Gulf squadron, and was garrisoned by a 
 force under General Shields, consisting of eight companies of 
 artillery, under Lieutenant-Colonel Belton, and a regiment of 
 Alabama volunteers. Immediately after Tampico fell into the 
 hands of the Americans, General Taylor determined to occupy 
 Victoria, the capital of Tamaulipas. Situated at the debouchee 
 of a pass through the mountains, threatening the flank of the 
 Mexican army, should it advance from San Luis Potosi, and with 
 Soto la Marina convenient as a depot, its occupation was con- 
 sidered of great importance. Accordingly, General Taylor 
 ordered General Patterson to march on Victoria, with three regi- 
 ments of volunteers of his division, one of them Tennessee horse, 
 while he himself, with the regular troops under Brigadier- 
 General Twiggs, except those in garrison, and the regiments of 
 General Patterson's division under General Quitman, would 
 proceed to Montemorelos, and, after iMiiting with the column the 
 2d Tennessee regiment, under orders for that place, to effect a 
 junction with Major-General Patterson, before Victoria. 
 
 When, in prosecution of this plan, General Taylor reached 
 Montemorelos, a despatch arrived from General Worth, in com- 
 mand a1 Saltillo, with the intelligence, that Santa Anna was 
 
OCCUPATION OF VICTORIA. 201 
 
 about making a rapid movement upon Saltillo, and, after carrying 
 that position, intended to attack Wool's forces at Parras. In con- 
 sequence of this news. General Taylor ordered the volunteers, under 
 Quitman, reinforced by a field-battery, to continue their march to 
 Victoria, while he returned with Twiggs's division to Monterey, 
 and immediately set out for Saltillo. General Wool, in the mean 
 time, had moved up from Parras to reinforce General Worth ; 
 and Major-General Butler, who was in command at Monterey, 
 advised in like manner of the threatened attack, had proceeded 
 with reinforcements to Saltillo, and assumed command of the 
 forces. On his w^ay to Saltillo, General Taylor learned that 
 Wool's column had joined Worth, and that no demonstration 
 was likely to be made by the Mexican commander ; whereupon 
 he considered Twiggs's division as unnecessary, and determined 
 to proceed with it to Victoria, which place he reached on the 4th 
 of January, where he was met on the same day by Major-Gene- 
 ral Patterson, with troops from Matamoros. General Quitman 
 had reached the place six days before. Upon his approach, the 
 enemy occupying the town with a force of fifteen hundred cavalry, 
 fell back to Jaumaze, in the direction of the Tula Pass. 
 
 From Montemorelos, on his way to Victoria, General Taylor 
 despatched a party of engineers, protected by May's squadron of 
 dragoons, to reconnoitre the mountain passes from that to Labra- 
 dores and Linares, and on their return, ten men of the rear-guard 
 were cut off by the enemy. 
 
 While proceeding to Victoria, General Taylor learned the arri- 
 val of General Scott in Mexico, to assume the command of an 
 expedition against Vera Cruz, with the view of making it the 
 base of a new line of operations, having for their ultimate design 
 the reduction of the Mexican capital. 
 
 General Taylor had received intimations of this design somTe 
 time before, and now awaited, at Victoria, despatches from the 
 General-in-chief in relation to it. These arrived on the 14th 
 
202 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 of January, and contained a demand for the greater part of his 
 array, embracing nearly all his regulars, with the volunteer divi- 
 sions of Generals Worth and Patterson, and the brigade of Quit- 
 man and Twiggs. The forces of the latter generals were already 
 at Victoria ; the troops, under Worth, marched from Saltillo back 
 fo Camargo, and thence to Matamoros, and joined General Scott 
 at the Brazos. 
 
 On parting with the troops, endeared to him by long and faith- 
 ful services, the commanding-general gave expression to his 
 feelings in the followino; orders : — 
 
 " It is with deep sensibility that the commanding-general finds 
 himself separated from the troops he so long commanded. To 
 those corps, regular and volunteer, who have shared with him 
 tlie active services of the field, he feels the attachment due to 
 such associations, while to those who are making their first cam- 
 paign, he must express his regret that he cannot participate with 
 them in its eventful scenes. To all, both officers and men, he 
 extends his heartfelt wishes for their continued success and hap- 
 piness, confident that their achievements on another theatre will 
 redound to the credit of their country and its arms." 
 
 After thus withdrawing nearly all his forces, it was the wish 
 of the government, in which General Scott concurred, that General 
 Taylor should withdraw his troops from Saltillo and fall back to 
 Monterey, but as he considered the occupation of the place 
 important for the procuring of supplies, and essential to the due 
 defence of the line he held, he not only continued to hold Saltillo. 
 but advanced with his main force to Agua Nueva, eighteen miles 
 beyond. He deemed this prudent, because the place had a large 
 plain to drill his troops in, and held in observation the road from 
 San Luis, and the different passes in the vicinity ; and while there, 
 he would be in position to attack the enemy at a disadvantage 
 after advancing over a barren waste that afforded neither water 
 nor food of any kind. 
 
ENCAMPMENT AT AGUA NUEVA. 203 
 
 On the 22(1 of January, a party of Arkansas and Kentucky 
 cavalry, seventy in number, under Majors Borland and Gaines, 
 was surprised and captured at the hacienda of Encarnacion, forty- 
 eight miles from Saltillo, by the cavalry under General Minon. 
 A party of seventeen of the Kentucky volunteers under Captain 
 Heady, was also captured on the 27th of the same month, and 
 the advanced pickets were frequently driven in by the enemy. 
 These occurrences, with the frequent rumours of the march of 
 Santa Anna against the American army, disposed General Taylor 
 to believe an attack would soon be made. He therefore left 
 Monterey on the 31st of January, with a reinforcement of five 
 hundred men for General Wool's column, and proceeded to 
 Agua Nueva, on the San Luis road, where he remained encamped 
 until the 21st of February. 
 
 Lieutenant-Colonel May, with a strong reconnoitring party, 
 consisting of four companies of the 1st and 2d dragoons, a section 
 of Washington's battery under Lieutenant O'Brien, and some 
 volunteer cavalry, making an entire force of four hundred mounted 
 men, was sent on the 20th to Hedionda to ascertain the presence 
 of General Minon, who had been hovering near with his cavalry 
 for some time, and whether the enemy under Santa Anna might 
 be advancing. At the same time, Major McCullough with a 
 party of Texan spies was sent to Encarnacion for the same 
 purpose. 
 
 On reaching Hedionda in the afternoon, Colonel May sent out 
 
 pickets in every direction through the valley in which it was 
 
 situated, to gain intelligence of the enemy, and shortly after 
 
 saw at the extremity of the valley, near the hacienda of Potosi, 
 
 signal fires lighted on several peaks, and clouds of dust, indicating 
 
 the march of troops. These clouds of dust appeared to move 
 
 around the hills in the neighbourhood of Guachuchil, whence he 
 
 inferred that Minon's brigade was marching around, to gain a 
 
 position between him and the main army, and thus cut him off. 
 28 
 
204 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Having to await the return of his pickets, and expecting an 
 attack, he prepared for a defence, by placing bales of cotton at 
 each end of the street running through the rancho. 
 
 About ten o'clock, by which time the pickets had all returned 
 ^except one, a deserter from the Mexican army came to Colonel 
 May with the intelligence that General Minon was in the neigh- 
 bourhood, and that Santa Anna was at Encarnacion that morning 
 with 30,000 men, and intended attacking General Taylor the next 
 day at Agua Nueva. Colonel May, knowing the importance of 
 his detachment, which contained all the regular cavalry of the 
 army, immediately left Hedionda, and rejoined the main column 
 under General Taylor by daybreak, having made a march of sixty 
 miles in twenty hours. Contrary to expectation, he did not 
 encounter General Minon on the march. Instead of intersecting 
 the San Luis road at Encantada, as May had expected, Minon 
 continued on to San Antonio, and through the pass of Palomas, in 
 the rear of Saltillo. 
 
 Major McCullough with his party had proceeded to Encar- 
 nacion, and managed to gain a position where he could see the 
 whole force of the enemy, which he estimated at upwards of 
 twenty thousand, with a large proportion of artillery and cavalry. 
 He returned by twelve o'clock on the 21&t, and reported his 
 observations to the commanding-general. 
 
 The position of the camp at Agua Nueva, though a good one, 
 and possessing many advantages, could easily be turned on either 
 flank. Because of this, and the great disparity of the Mexican 
 and American forces, General Taylor determined to fall back 
 about twelve miles to a place of great natural strength called 
 Angostura, near the hacienda of Buena Vista, and particularly 
 suited to a small army resisting the advance of superior numbers.* 
 
 "The road [from San Luis Potosi to Saltillo] at this point 
 
 * General Taylor's Report. 
 
TAYLOR FALLS BACK TO BUENA VISTA. 205 
 
 becomes a narrow defile, the valley on its right being rendered 
 quite impracticable for artillery by a system of deep and impass- 
 able gullies, while on the left a succession of rugged ridges and 
 precipitous ravines extends far back toward the mountain which 
 bounds the valley. The features of the ground were such as 
 nearly to paralyze the artillery and cavalry of the enemy, while 
 his infantry could not derive all the advantage of its numerical 
 superiority." 
 
 This place had been selected some time before by General 
 Wool, and approved by General Taylor. Besides, the command- 
 ing-general believed that by his falling back a day's march, Santa 
 Anna would mistake the movement for a precipitate flight, and 
 urge on his forces, already exhausted by a march of thirty-five 
 miles from Encarnacion to Agua Nueva, over a barren desert that 
 afforded neither w^ater nor food of any kind ; and the Americans 
 would thus be able to engage their enemy under all the disad- 
 vantages of a forced march, want of food, and general disarray. 
 
 On the 21st, at noon, General Taylor broke up his encamp- 
 ment and fell back to Buena Vista, leaving Colonel Yell, with a 
 part of the Arkansas mounted volunteers, to superintend the 
 removal of the stores. The 1st Illinois regiment, under Colonel 
 Hardin, was halted at Angostura, where General Taylor intended 
 to give battle ; the main body, under General Wool, encamped a 
 mile and a half in the rear ; so that, instead of passively awaiting 
 the enemy, the troops might feel the moral eflfect of marching for- 
 ward to meet him. General Taylor, with May's dragoons, two 
 batteries of the 3d artillery, under Captains Sherman and Bragg, 
 and the Mississippi rifles, under Colonel Davis, proceeded to Sal- 
 tillo, to put it in a better state of defence, and prepare for the 
 expected battle. 
 
 Santa Anna left Encarnacion at noon on the 21st of February, 
 after mass had been said in front of the several divisions. General 
 Ampudia commanded the advance-guard of four battalions of 
 
206 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 licrlit infantry. A brigade of artillery of 16-pounders followed, 
 with a reofiiuent of enjrineers and their train, and after them a 
 j^ark of the regiment of hussars. Next came the first division 
 of heavy infantry, with five 12-pounders and their park, under 
 General Lombardini. The second division, with eight 8-pounders 
 and their park, followed under General Pachecho ; then the divi- 
 sions of cavalry under General Juvera. Lastly came the remain- 
 der of the cannon, the general park and baggage, with a rear- 
 guard consisting of a brigade of lancers, under General Andrade, 
 making in the aggregate a force of upwards of twenty thousand 
 men. 
 
 About midnight on the 21st, Colonel Yell was reinforced by 
 two companies of the 1st dragoons, and a part of the Kentucky 
 mounted volunteers ; and immediately after their arrival, the 
 Mexican light infantry, under Ampudia, attacked Colonel Yell's 
 advance piquet, stationed in the pass of Cornero, about five miles 
 south of Agua Nueva. The whole train of wagons was now 
 moved oflf with speed towards Buena Vista, while the troops 
 remained to destroy the stores that had not yet been removed. 
 In pursuance of an order, the buildings and some stacks of wheat 
 were fired, and the flames filled the whole valley of the Encan- 
 tada, and illumining the rugged mountain peaks, and flashing 
 back from the glittering appointments of armed men and steeds, 
 produced a picture wonderfully sublime, whose impression was 
 heightened by the rumbling of the wagons in retreat, the random 
 shots of the advanced parties, and the sounds of signal trumpets 
 startling the midnight air. 
 
 After destroying the stores that remained, the Americans 
 returned to Buena Vista, which they reached about day-break. 
 In the mean time, Santa Anna had put his heavy forces in 
 motion, and emerging at length from the mountain gorge, above 
 Agua Nueva, was surprised to find the forces gone, which he 
 had expected to surprise and cut up. Supposing the American 
 
PREPARATIONS FOR BATTLE. 207 
 
 army in full retreat, and intercepted in the rear by Minon's 
 brigade, he hurried forward his exhausted and nearly famished 
 troops, after a meagre repast, and a single draught of water, 
 cheering them with the assurance that they would soon enjoy 
 abundance from the American supplies at Saltillo. 
 
 In the morning of the 22d of February, a day hallowed to every 
 American as the birthday of Washington, General Wool, in the 
 absence of the commanding-general, who had not yet returned 
 from Saltillo, ordered the troops under arms. The banners were 
 unfurled to the breeze amid the inspiring strains of " Hail Colum- 
 bia" from the bands, and the talismanic words " The memory of 
 Washington," passed from corps to corps. 
 
 The following was the disposition of the troops. Captain 
 Washington, with his battery, was posted so as to command the 
 road at Angostura, supported by the 1st regiment of Illinois vo- 
 lunteers, under Colonel Hardin, which partly occupied a ridge of 
 land extending from Angostura to the plateau or high table-land, 
 running back to the mountains. The 2d Illinois volunteers, and 
 a company of Texans, commanded by Colonel Bissell, were on 
 its left, and the 2d regiment of Kentucky volunteers occupied the 
 crest of a ridge by the roadside. On the extreme left, and near 
 the base of the mountains, was the Arkansas regiment of mounted 
 volunteers, under Colonel Yell, and the Kentucky regiment, 
 under Colonel Marshall. The Indiana volunteer brigade, under 
 General Lane, composed of the 2d and 3d regiments, under 
 Colonels Bowles and Lane, the 1st regiment of Mississippi rifle- 
 men, under Colonel Davis, Colonel May's squadron of the 2d 
 dragoons, Captain Steen's squadron of 1st dragoons, and the bat- 
 teries of Sherman and Bragg, constituted the reserve, and were 
 stationed on the ridges in the rear of the right of the plateau. 
 Shortly after the troops were placed in position. General Taylor 
 returned from Saltillo, and riding along the lines, was received 
 with enthusiastic cheers. General Wool also rode along, and 
 
208 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 inspirited the troops, especially his own column, by brief, yet 
 stirring remarks. 
 
 In the mean time, a cloud of dust was seen rising over the dis- 
 tant hills, and soon after the enemy's cavalry advance came 
 thundering down the valley of Eucantada, and, coming in sight 
 of Washington's battery, sounded a halt with their bugles just out 
 of cannon-range. The advanced squadrons now filed off towards 
 the mountains on the American left, while others came up and 
 formed, till nearly the whole space from the road to the mountains 
 was covered by the serried legions, with all their blazonry of ban- 
 ners and panoply of armour gleaming in the sun. 
 
 While the engineers of both armies were busily employed in 
 learning the disposition of the forces of their antagonist, and pro- 
 viding for their own, a white flag advanced from the Mexican 
 front, and its bearer presented the following letter : — 
 
 " Camp at Encantada, ) 
 February 22, 1847. ) 
 '^ God and Liberty ! 
 
 <' You are surrounded by twenty thousand men, and cannot, in 
 any human probability, avoid suffering a rout, and being cut to 
 pieces with your troops ; but as you deserve consideration and 
 particular esteem, I wish to save you from a catastrophe, and for 
 that purpose give you this notice, in order that you may surrender 
 at discretion, under the assurance that you will be treated with 
 the consideration belonging to the Mexican character, to which 
 end you will be granted an hour's time to make up your mind, 
 to commence from the moment when my flag of truce arrives in 
 your camp. 
 
 " With this view, I assure you of my particular consideration. 
 ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA. 
 
 To General Z. Taylor, 
 
 Commanding the forces of the U. S." 
 
 To this summons General 'I'ayior immediately despatched the 
 following answer : — 
 
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BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 209 
 
 " Head-Quarters, Army of Occupation, i 
 Near Buena Vista, February 22, 1847. ) 
 
 "Sir: In reply to your note of this date, summoning me to 
 surrender my forces at discretion, I beg leave to say that I decline 
 acceding to your request. 
 
 " With high respect, I am, sir, your obedient servant, 
 
 Z. TAYLOR, 
 Major- Gen. U. S. A. commanding. 
 Senor Gen. D. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, 
 Commander-in-chief, La Encantada." 
 
 Soon after this the whole Mexican army had come up, and was 
 arranged as follows : — 
 
 On the second ridge, in front of the American army, the enemy 
 stationed the first and second divisions of infantry, one behind 
 the other. On the right of this, upon a higher point, was sta- 
 tioned a battery of 16-pounders, supported by the regiment of 
 engineers. Upon their left, and near the road, were two other 
 batteries of 12 and 8-pounders and a large howitzer. In rear of 
 the two wings was the cavalry ; in rear of the centre was the 
 head-quarters of Santa Anna, and the regiment of hussars, his 
 body-guard. In the rear of all was the general park, protected 
 by the brigade of General Andrade. 
 
 The first movement of the enemy was an attempt to get pos- 
 session of one or two gradual slopes of the mountain upon the 
 left of the plateau, occupied by the American reserve. To 
 check this. Colonel Marshall was sent up the other slope with a 
 l)attalion from the Indiana brigade under Major Gorman, and a 
 portion of the Arkansas and Kentucky volunteers, dismounted. 
 While these hostile bodies approached each other, both with the 
 design of outflanking. General Taylor sent Captain Bragg's 
 battery and the 2d Kentucky regiment of volunteers under Colonel 
 McKee, to occupy the slope of the eminence on the right of 
 Washington's battery at Angostura, and a little in advance of it, 
 
210 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 for the purpose of checking a demonstration made upon the 
 enemy's left. Three pieces of artillery had also been detached 
 by Captain Washington up to the left of the plateau and placed 
 under Lieutenant O'Brien, who was supported by the 2d Indiana 
 regiment. 
 
 These dispositions being made, the Americans calmly awaited 
 the attack of the enemy. 
 
 The signal for the opening strife was given at three o'clock by a 
 shell from the enemy's howitzer, and soon after the light 
 division under Ampudia was hotly engaged with the American 
 riflemen. The former fired with rapidity and in continuous 
 vollies ; the latter with cool deliberation and terrible effect, while 
 they sheltered themselves from the fire of the enemy behind the 
 crest of the ridge, which they occupied. This and an occasional 
 cannonade directed at our troops on the plateau, comprised the 
 action of the 22d, which was suspended about dark by a signal 
 shell thrown into the air by the enemy. The American loss was 
 but four men wounded, while that of the enemy in killed and 
 wounded was over three hundred ; * so deadly was the aim of 
 the American rifle ! 
 
 During the day, the 1st regiment of Illinois volunteers had 
 formed a parapet along its front, and, directed by the engineers, 
 had dug a ditch, and thrown up an epaulement with a traverse, 
 before Washington's battery at Angostura, to occupy which 
 Colonel Hardin detached a supporting force of two companies of 
 his regiment, under Lieutenant-Colonel Weatherford. 
 
 At sunset. General Taylor left General Wool in command of 
 the forces, and proceeded to Saltillo, with May's dragoons and 
 the Mississippi regiment, to complete arrangements for its defence, 
 and prepare for the reception of his wounded after the main attack 
 by Santa Anna, expected on the morrow. The defences were 
 arranged as follows : Two companies of the 1st Illinois volunteers, 
 
 * Santa Anna's account. 
 
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 211 
 
 under Captains Morgan and Prentiss, and two companies of the 
 2d Illinois volunteers, under Captains Hacker and Wheeler, the 
 whole commanded by Major Warren, occupied the town. The 
 field-work commanding its approaches was garrisoned by Captain 
 Webster's company, 1st artillery, with two 24-pound howitzers; 
 while the train and head-quarters camp was defended by a 
 6-pounder from Bragg's battery under Lieutenant Shover, sup- 
 ported by two companies of Mississippi riflemen under Captain 
 Rogers. 
 
 After the close of the battle, Santa Anna made a spirited 
 address to his troops, which was received with enthusiastic cries, 
 distinctly heard in the American lines. After this the band of 
 the Mexican chief struck up, and strains of surpassing sweetness 
 floated down the mountain sides, and died away in faint echoes 
 along the narrow gorge. Silence and darkness now succeeded, 
 and amid the gloom, the troops in general sank down to slumber 
 on their arms, without covering and without fires, exposed to the 
 chill night-winds and occasional gusts of rain ; but on the 
 mountains, where the cold was extreme, the light troops of both 
 armies gathered the trunks of dwarfish trees, and the stalks of 
 shrubs, and kindled fires, around which they gathered in shivering 
 groups during the night. 
 
 29 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Action of the 23d — Commencement on the American left — Enemy's Columns of 
 Attack — Advance of Lombardini's and Pachecho's Divisions — O'Brien, with his 
 Artillery and 2d Indiana Regiment, ordered to repulse them — Retreat of the 2d 
 Indiana Regiment — American Reserve ordered up — Second Column of Attack 
 repulsed at Angostura — Troops on the Plateau reinforced by Artillery and Infan- 
 try — Arrival of General Taylor on the Field — Confidence restored — The gallant 
 Mississippi Regiment — The Enemy driven back on the American left — The con- 
 test on the Plateau — Movement of the Cavalry on the Enemy's right checked — 
 Batteries of Sherman and Bragg — Baggage-train threatened by Cavalry — Dan- 
 gerous Position of the Enemy's Cavalry — Ruse of Santa Anna — Mexican 
 Reserve ordered up — Terrible Service of O'Brien's Artillery — Slaughter of the 
 Illinois and Kentucky Regiments — Deaths of Colonels Hardin, McKee, and Clay 
 — Washington's Battery — Gallantry of Lieutenant O'Brien — Repulse of Minon's 
 Cavalry — Close of the Battle — American and Mexican Losses. 
 
 At two o'clock on the morning of the 23d, the advanced pickets 
 of the American army were driven in by those of Ampudia, 
 whose light division was reinforced towards day-break by two 
 thousand men from the divisions of Lombardini and Pachecho, 
 with the view of gaining the American left and rear upon the 
 mountains. Here the action commenced at dawn on the 23d, 
 and was maintained with great spirit by Colonel Marshall's 
 command, holding themselves under cover, and contending 
 against nearly eight to one, until reinforced by Major Trail, 2d 
 Illinois volunteers, with three companies of riflemen, including 
 Captain Conner's Texas volunteers. About sunrise, Lieutenant 
 O'Brien, who was stationed at. the upper edge of the plateau 
 with a r2-pound howitzer, and two guns — one a 6-pounder, the 
 other a 4-pounder — came to their aid, and advancing his howitzer, 
 threw with great accuracy and terrible effect six or eight 
 shells among the troops of Ampudia, now pouring down the 
 
 (212) 
 
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 213 
 
 slope of the mountain that intervened between them and the Ame- 
 rican riflemen. The precision of the firing elicited the most 
 enthusiastic cheering from the whole American line. 
 
 By this time, the chief of Santa Anna's staff, General Michel-' 
 torena, had planted his battery of 8-pounders on the high ridge 
 lying between the contending forces, and commenced a plunging 
 fire on the plateau, which was more especially directed against 
 O'Brien's pieces, but with little success, on account of the great 
 distance intervening. For this reason O'Brien did not attempt 
 to answer the fire of the enemy, as his guns were of lighter metal 
 than the pieces of their battery. He remained silent, therefore, 
 until subsequently ordered by General Lane to meet the advance 
 of Pachecho's division. 
 
 The enemy had now arranged three columns of attack. The 
 first, to be led by General Mora y Villamil, and destined to force 
 the pass of La Angostura, was composed of the 2d regiment of 
 engineers, the 12th regiment, the figo de Mexico^ and the batta- 
 lions of Puebla and Tampico. The second column was com- 
 posed of the divisions of Lombardini and Pachecho. The former 
 division w^as to move across the ridge mentioned above, to the 
 left of their 8-pounder battery, while the division of Pachecho 
 advanced up the ravine in front of the plateau ; and thus, both 
 uniting near the mountain, together with their supporting forces 
 of cavalry, turn the left of the American troops stationed on the 
 plateau. The light troops, under Ampudia, were the third 
 column of attack, and were to turn the extreme left on the 
 mountains, and attack the American rear in conjunction with the 
 second column, under Generals Lombardini and Pachecho. Be- 
 sides these three columns, a reserve, under General Ortega, was 
 stationed on the ground occupied by the two lines of the enemy, 
 when first displayed on coming in sight of the American army. 
 
 While the third column was hotly engaged with the American 
 riflemen upon the mountains, and the rattle of musketry and the 
 rifle was intermingled with the roar of the 8-pounders directed 
 
214 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 against the left of the plateau, Lombardini's division was moving 
 alonof the ridoje to unite with Pachecho, in view of the American 
 army; his men in full uniform, his horses in gay caparison, their 
 burnished weapons and appointments flashing in the sunlight, 
 and every standard, colours, and guidon unfurled to the breeze. 
 
 While this pageant was passing in review. Major Mansfield, of 
 the engineers, about nine o'clock came with the intelligence that 
 Pachecho's division, which had moved along screened from sight, 
 was coming up the ravine with the evident design of gaining the 
 plateau by way of the ridge adjoining the third principal gorge, 
 which scalloped the plateau. At this time General Wool was 
 at Angostura, having gone thither to give some directions about 
 the defences in that quarter. General Lane, therefore, the next 
 in command, ordered Lieutenant O'Brien, with his three pieces 
 of artillery, and the 2d Indiana regiment, to take position just 
 beyond the head of the third gorge, and repel the enemy. 
 
 By the time the guns were in battery and the regiment dis- 
 played, the Mexican infantry was ascending the ridge, and, form- 
 ing in lines, opened upon it at a distance of two hundred yards. 
 Their fire was returned immediately and effectively; and, simul- 
 taneously with it, O'Brien's guns poured their deadly discharges 
 upon the columns of the enemy. Though struggling against a 
 superiority of ten to one in front, and enfiladed by a cross-fire of 
 grape and canister from the 8-pounder battery on his left, Gene- 
 ral Lane gallantly maintained the contest for twenty-five minutes ; 
 during which he swept down whole platoons at a time, and re- 
 peatedly broke the front lines of the enemy, which were as often 
 re-formed. So murderous was the fire, that the corps of Guana- 
 juato, which constituted the advance, was totally destroyed. 
 
 With the view of getting out of range of the enemy's guns, 
 and driving back Pachecho's troops into the ravine. General Lane 
 ordered O'Brien to advance about fifty yards to the front, which 
 was immediately done, and his pieces served, as before, with 
 
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 215 
 
 terrible effect. And had he been promptly sustained by his sup- 
 porting force, he would have defeated this division of the enemy, 
 and driven it back into the ravine.* But, instead of moving up 
 to his support, the 2d Indiana volunteers hesitated and staggered 
 under the severe fire of the enemy, and then, breaking off by 
 companies from the right, fled in utter confusion, leaving the 
 gallant O'Brien to bear the contest alone. Exertions were made 
 to rally them, by General Lane and his staff, but without effect ; 
 and in the effort, the brave Captain Lincoln lost his life. A few 
 of them joined the Mississippi regiment, and did good service 
 during the day; some retired to Buena Vista, and others to Sal- 
 tillo, where they assisted in defending the depot. It may at 
 least be mentioned to their credit, that before flying, they had 
 fired twenty rounds of cartridge at the enemy. In the flight, 
 four companies of the Arkansas volunteers, which had been dis- 
 mounted and ordered into action, participated, having delivered but 
 a single fire after coming into action. By the giving way of the 
 2d Indiana regiment, the riflemen, under Colonel Marshall, were 
 cut off from the centre, and, unable to withstand the overwhelming 
 force of the enemy on this flank, retreated in good order, in the 
 direction of Buena Vista. They were pursued by the Mexican 
 cavalry and a part of the light forces under Ampudia. This 
 force was held in check for a time by the spirited conduct of the 
 Arkansas and Kentucky cavalry, under Colonels Yell and Mar- 
 shall. 
 
 Left without support, and exposed to a continuous sheet of fire, 
 O'Brien and his brave artillerists struggled for a time against the 
 fearful odds; and before their pieces, charged with double canis- 
 ter, the enemy fell in scores, like grass before the scythe. But, 
 overpowered by numbers, he was compelled at length to limber 
 up and fall back, yielding the 4-pounder to the enemy, after 
 every horse and man that belonged to it had been killed or dis- 
 
 * Mexican Engineer's Report. 
 
216 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 abled. Pachecho immediately advanced, with his cavalry on the 
 right of his infantry, and, united with Lombardini's forces, now 
 emerging from the ravine. The entire column, moving across 
 the plateau, concentrated its fire upon the 2d Illinois, under 
 Colonel Bissell, the squadron of 1st dragoons, under Captain 
 Steen, and the first section of Sherman's battery, under Lieute- 
 nants Thomas and French; all of which had been ordered to ad- 
 vance just before the 2d Indiana regiment gave way. The service 
 of the artillery was terrible, and cut avenues through the dense 
 masses, while the storm of musketry strewed the ground with 
 the dead and dying of the enemy. The cavalry, unable to 
 attempt anything by charging into the overwhelming masses, fell 
 back to the ravine in the rear. The enemy continued to advance 
 in the teeth of the deadly engines, and their right to pass around 
 the American left; and shortly after, the Illinois troops and the 
 battery were assailed in front and rear, and upon each flank. 
 The iron storm was resistless ; and before its fury, the Americans 
 faltered and fell back. But the pieces were soon in battery 
 again, supported by the Illinoians, and the enemy's flank severely 
 galled as he passed to the left of the plateau to gain the rear. 
 
 At this time the heavy first column of attack, under General 
 Mora y Villamil, came within range %f the guns at xA.ngostura, 
 when Washington's pieces opened upon it with signal effect. 
 Nothing could stand up against the storm that assailed it. The 
 enemy soon wavered, and was thrown into confusion, and sought 
 shelter in the third gorge of the plateau and in the great ravine 
 beyond, nor renewed the attack in that direction. 
 
 About this time Captain Sherman gained the plateau with the 
 second section of his battery, and, on reaching the head of the 
 first gorge, opened fire upon the enemy. 
 
 The 2d Kentucky volunteers, under Colonel McKee and Cap- 
 tain Bragg, with two pieces of his battery, soon after arrived 
 from their position beyond Washington's battery, at Angostura. 
 
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 217 
 
 A line of artillery was now formed from the head of the gorge 
 to the ravine, which was soon driving its masses of iron and lead 
 into the Mexican ranks. The 1st Illinois regiment, under the 
 gallant Colonel Hardin, now came up from Angostura, after the 
 repulse of Villamil, and with the squadron of 1st dragoons, the 2d 
 Illinois and the 2d Kentucky regiment, constituted the support- 
 ing force of the artillery, and poured its leaden hail upon the 
 serried masses of the enemy. 
 
 When these reverses had taken place, and while the fate of 
 the battle seemed decided — the American left forced — the enemy 
 almost in entire possession of the plateau — and the Americans 
 despairing of the issue — General Taylor arrived upon the field 
 from Saltillo, and restored confidence. He was accompanied by 
 May's dragoons, the Mississippi riflemen, under Colonel Jeffer- 
 son Davis, Captain Pike's squadron of Arkansas horse, and a 
 piece of artillery, under Lieutenant Kilburn. After some orders 
 relative to the battle. General Taylor immediately attempted 
 restoring the American left, and bringing into action again the 
 2d Indiana fugitives. 
 
 The Mississippians under the gallant Colonel Davis were im- 
 mediately led into action, while General Wool himself started to 
 bring up to their support the third Indiana regiment stationed 
 upon the left and in the rear of Washington's battery, at Angos- 
 tura. Near the head of a small ravine which intersects the third 
 large ravine in rear of the plateau. Colonel Davis intercepted the 
 pursuing forces of Ampudia. A tremendous fire smote the head 
 of the enemy's column, yet he still passed on over dead and dy- 
 ing — successive discharges checked his advance and caused his 
 fire to slacken — when the Mississippians, w^ith a loud hurrah, 
 rushed on the enemy, passed the ravine, and clambering up 
 the bank, after a murderous fire drove back his routed ranks 
 upon the reserves. This accomplished, they made a dash at the 
 enemy's cavalry on the flank, and after a few volleys, turned it 
 
218 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 back to join the infantry. Soon after the 3d Indiana volunteers 
 and Lieutenant Kilburn's piece of artillery arrived, and the united 
 force compelled the enemy to fall back still farther. 
 
 While these things were going on upon the American left, the 
 battle was still raging upon the plateau, where the advantage was 
 rather in our favour, when Santa Anna brought upon the plateau 
 with a heavy battery the battalion of San Patricio, consisting of 
 Irish renegades who had basely deserted the American colours 
 which they had sworn to support. The fire of this battery enfi- 
 laded the plateau, and was effective, but the American batteries 
 still kept the advantage, and at length broke the attacking col- 
 umn. A part moved off in a direction to reinforce Ampudia, 
 while the other, under Santa Anna, fell back to take shelter in the 
 ravine. Perceiving this, the forces under Hardin, Bissell, and 
 McKee, pressed on and drove back the enemy precipitately. 
 After this advantage Captains Sherman and Bragg were des- 
 patched, with two pieces each, to sustain the American left, where 
 the strife was obstinate and sanguinary. The plateau was still 
 defended by four pieces — two under the intrepid O'Brien, and 
 two under Lieutenants Thomas and Garnet. 
 
 In the mean time, upon the enemy's extreme right, beyond 
 Ampudia's forces and along the base of the mountains, cavalry 
 was moving down towards Buena Vista, whose advance was im- 
 peded by the mounted volunteers, under Colonels Yell and Mar- 
 shall. To reinforce this small body of troops, General Taylor 
 despatched Colonel May with the regular cavalry, and Captains 
 Preston and Pike's mounted volunteers. The united force im- 
 mediately stopped the progress of the enemy's cavalry, and 
 caused it to return along the base of the mountain, where the fire 
 from the detachments of the batteries of Sherman and Bragg was 
 concentrated upon it with decisive effect. 
 
 Soon after, a powerful brigade of cavalry, principally lancers, 
 under General Torrejon, had crossed the ravines in the rear, and 
 
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 210 
 
 threatened a descent upon the baggage-train parked near Buena 
 Vista. They charged in columns of squadrons the Arkansas and 
 Kentucky volunteers, who gallantly received them, and maintain- 
 ing the contest with great spirit, repulsed them with the aid of par- 
 ties of troops in that vicinity, that had fled in the morning. Colonel 
 May with the dragoons and other cavalry, and Lieutenant Reynolds 
 with two pieces of artillery, had been ordered to their support. 
 'l"he former came up too late to participate in the fight ; the other 
 wheeled his section into battery, and played upon the retreating 
 columns of cavalry with precision and effect. In this charge of 
 cavalry, the gallant Colonel Yell fell at the head of his regiment, 
 and by his side the brave Captain Porter, with many of their 
 men. 
 
 After this failure, a fresh brigade of cavalry with supporting 
 infantry, the chivalry of the Mexican army, attempted to drive 
 tlie Mississippi regiment and 3d Indiana volunteers, and thus 
 force a passage to the road nearer the plateau. On they came at 
 a gallop, in close columns of squadrons, their flags and pennons 
 flying, and their lance-points flickering in the sun, while the 
 Mississippi regiment was in line to receive them, and the Indiana 
 troops in like manner, with their left resting on the right of Colonel 
 Davis's regiment, the two lines forming an obtuse re-entrant angle 
 to receive the enemy. A howitzer from Sherman's battery was 
 on the left. Arrived within eighty yards, the brigade received a 
 murderous fire from the faces of the angle, which struck down 
 the front ranks of the column. The deadly discharges of musketry 
 and the rifles rapidly delivered, increased the confusion of the 
 enemy, while the howitzer of Sherman, charged with canister 
 and grape, strewed the earth with the dead and wounded. The 
 iron tempest poured upon him was resistless, and the dismayed 
 enemy turned and fled for shelter to the mountains. 
 
 Following up this advantage. General Taylor sent Lieutenant- 
 Colonel May, with the troops lately returned from the engagement 
 30 
 
220 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 at the hacienda, to drive in the enemy's right along the base of 
 the mountains. As the cavalry under May forced the troops to 
 fall back, Lieutenant Reynolds with his two pieces kept following 
 on, and poured destruction upon their ranks. Bragg also advanced 
 upon them with his three pieces of artillery, and Sherman with 
 his howitzer, supported by the Mississippi and Indiana regiments. 
 As the enemy continued to retreat along the base of the mountains. 
 he came at length within range of the guns upon the plateau, 
 which prevented further retreat. Hemmed in now upon all sides, 
 and exposed to the fire of nine pieces of artillery, whose shot and 
 shells went crashing through their crowded masses — .Reynolds's 
 pieces on their right, Sherman's and Bragg's in front, and the 
 pieces of O'Brien and Thomas on the plateau upon their left — 
 their destruction seemed inevitable, when they were relieved from 
 their dangerous position by a dishonourable ruse of Santa Anna. 
 That treacherous chief sent a white flag to General Taylor, desir- 
 ing to know what he wanted, and during the suspension of the 
 fire ordered upon the advance of the flag, the enemy's forces 
 which were so sorely pressed, amounting to five or six thousand, 
 cavalry and infantry— escaped from their perilous situation. On 
 arriving, however, near the head of the plateau, a heavy fire 
 from O'Brien's and Thomas's pieces, which were advanced to 
 meet them, and from the Illinois and Kentucky troops, that had 
 also moved up, caused great destruction to their confused 
 ranks. 
 
 But while thus engaged, the Mexican reserve, composed of the 
 best troops, with the veteran regiments in front, was entering the 
 plateau at the head of the third gorge. The retreating party 
 joined the reserve, making the column about twelve thousand. 
 Before this irresistible force, the Kentucky and Illinois troops 
 were compelled to retire and seek cover in the second gorge. 
 O'Brien in the mean time served his pieces, charged with canister, 
 with terrible efiiict ; but the enemy still pressed on, until they 
 
LIEUT COL HENRY CLAY. JR 
 
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 221 
 
 readied the head of the second gorge. The one half continued 
 to move across the plateau, resisted only by O'Brien's guns ; 
 while the other half occupied each side of the gorge, and marclied 
 down upon the American troops there crowded together, and 
 scarcely able to stand on account of the inclined position which 
 tliey occupied. The slaughter was great, and the Americans 
 pressed down the gorge, to escape by its mouth to the road, while 
 the whole line of their retreat was strewed with the dead and 
 dying. 
 
 On reaching the opening of the gorge, they found a large body 
 of cavalry just closing up the door of escape. Some endeavoured 
 to force their way through, but sank beneath the lance-points of 
 the enemy ; while the w'ork of destruction went rapidly on among 
 the densely-crowded masses in the ravine. In this fearful 
 moment was heard the thunder of Washington's battery, and 
 spherical case-shot falling amid the enemy's cavalry, exploded 
 with signal effect, causing confusion, dismay, and rout — and 
 upon their rapid retreat, the remnants of the Illinois and Kentucky 
 regiments escaped to the road, leaving hundreds of their brave 
 companions behind them in death — among them the gallant 
 Colonels Hardin and McKee, and Lieutenant-Colonel Clay. 
 
 After the escape of the enemy's right, consequent on Santa 
 Anna's stratagem, General Taylor ordered the troops from the 
 American left to the plateau, where he expected a strong demon- 
 stration. While these were coming up, the American infantry had 
 been driven, as related, by a part of the Mexican reserve, and 
 O'Brien and Thomas, with their artillery, were endeavouring to 
 hold in check the other portion, which kept steadily advancing. 
 At every discharge avenues were made through the enemy's col- 
 umn, but the men soon closed up, and moved firmly on, while they 
 assailed the battery with a steady fire. Nearly all his horses 
 and cannoneers were killed and wounded, as O'Brien sawBragg's 
 battery coming into action, and Davis and Lane, with their brave 
 
222 HISTORY OF TlIK MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 troops, ascending the plateau. The enemy by this time was 
 quite upon him, — he gave a final and murderous fire, and, with 
 the few crippled companions that remained, fell back from the 
 contest. The guns thus obtained by the enemy for want of 
 horses to bring them away, were subsequently recaptured by 
 Captain Drum, 4th artillery, at Churubusco. 
 
 Bragg's battery now opened upon the enemy, with terrible 
 fury; Sherman's battery soon united its fire, and the Mississippi 
 riflemen and Indiana volunteers poured a severe enfilading fire 
 upon his flank. Still raged the iron tempest, and still, as the 
 front ranks of the enemy fell, others succeeded to their places, 
 who in their turn were shot down. To advance against such a 
 storm was impossible — the enemy at length began to falter — con- 
 fusion spread through their ranks, and they retreated to the great 
 ravine, leaving the ground covered with the dead and dying, in 
 fearful evidence of the severity of the contest. 
 
 It was now about five o'clock, and the batteries moved up a 
 few hundred yards, and opened a destructive fire upon the 
 battalion of San Patricio, supported by the Mississippi regiment 
 and other troops, while General Taylor despatched the cavalry 
 under Lieutenant-Colonel May to the left, to guard against any 
 attempt again to turn our flank in that direction. 
 
 General Minon with his cavalry had advanced against Saltillo 
 during the day, but was received by a heavy fire from the redoubt 
 occupied by Captain Webster's company, which caused him to 
 move off with rapidity. Towards the close of day he renewed 
 the attempt, when, galled by a severe fire from two pieces of 
 artillery, under Captain Shover and Lieutenant Donaldson, and a 
 mixed command of volunteers, he hastily fled up the base of the 
 mountains to his encampment. 
 
 As the sun set, the firing on both sides slackened, and 
 at length ceased, and darkness and comparative silence settled 
 down upon the two armies. Expecting a renewal of the attack, 
 
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 223 
 
 General Taylor made due preparations for the next day, but 
 when the morning dawned, the dense masses of the enemy 
 were nowhere to be seen, and shouts of victory went up from 
 the American host that shook the very hills around. The 
 Mexicans had fallen back upon Agua Nueva, and subsequently 
 retreated to Encarnacion, strewing the desert between with the 
 dead bodies of men and horses, who had perished for lack of 
 food. Indeed the great physical exertions, and, in a measure, the 
 success of the Americans, may be attributed to the fact that 
 during the pauses in the fight they were regularly refreshed, 
 while the enemy passed three days with no more than a single 
 meal. 
 
 The battle of Buena Vista may be considered the crowning 
 glory of the brave old chief, who had already covered himself 
 with imperishable renown upon the fields of Palo Alto and 
 Resaca de la Palma, and at the heights of Monterey. The 
 exultation of victory, however, was saddened by the loss of the 
 many valorous spirits, who had gone down amid the storm of 
 battle, in the vigour of manhood or the full honours of years. The 
 American loss in killed, wounded, and missing, was seven 
 hundred and forty-six ; that of the Mexicans upwards of two 
 thousand. 
 
 The battle of Buena Vista left General Taylor in undisputed 
 possession of the whole line of the Sierra Madre. Nothing was 
 afterwards attempted by the enemy in that quarter, beyond the 
 depredations of small parties of guerillas. For the purpose of 
 strengthening General Scott's line, further drafts were made the 
 following August upon his forces, which had been considerably 
 increased. Having made proper disposition of the remaining 
 portions for the maintenance of his own line. General 'I'aylor 
 obtained leave of absence in November, and returned home, hav- 
 ing left General Wool in command of all the forces. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Conquest of New Mexico. — Recognition of the War, and Disposition of the 
 Forces — General Kearny — Army of the West — Instructions from the War Depart- 
 ment — March from Fort Leavenworth — Arrival at Council Grove — The Prairies 
 — Bent's Fort — Proclamation by Colonel Kearny — March resumed — Las Vegas 
 — Expected Battle — Tacolete — Pecos — The Caiion — Capture of Santa Fe — 
 Appointment of Officers — Departure of General Kearny for California. — Con- 
 quest OF California. — Commodore Stockton — Colonel Fremont — Kit Carson 
 — Counter-revolution — Battle of San Pasqual — San Bernardo — Battle of the 
 San Gabriel — Reoccupation of Los Angelos — Return of General Kearny. 
 
 The story of the recent conquest of New Mexico and Cali- 
 fornia is one of rare and romantic interest. Yielding the pre- 
 eminence in brilliancy of achievement and blood-bought triumph 
 to the operations in southern and central Mexico, it takes no 
 second place in the importance of its results, while it asserts for 
 the force employed, skill, valour, devotion, and endurance, unsur- 
 passed in military annals, and has crowned our arms with the 
 truest and most abiding fame. 
 
 On recognition of war between the United States and Mexico, 
 the American land forces designed to operate against the latter 
 formed three divisions, with distinct points of attack. The 
 " Army of Occupation," under Major-General Taylor, was 
 instructed to move forward from its position on the Rio Grande, 
 and subjugate and hold Coahuila, New Leon, and Tamaulipas. 
 Brigadier-General Wool, with the "Army of the Centre," was 
 to rendezvous at San Antonio de Bexar, and move on the city 
 and state of Chihuahua ; while at Fort Leavenworth, on the 
 Missouri, w^as concentrated the " Army of the West" under 
 Colonel Kearny, of the 1st regiment United States dragoons. His 
 primary instructions were to march upon Santa Fe, the capital 
 
 (224) 
 
ARMY OF THE WEST. 225 
 
 of New Mexico, and effect the conquest and occupation of that 
 state or department, but they were subsequently enlarged so as 
 to embrace the conquest of California. 
 
 Mounted troops were considered best for the expedition ; and 
 agreeably to the requisition of Governor Edwards of Missouri, 
 companies began to arrive at Fort Leavenworth in the early part 
 of June, 1846. They were immediately mustered into service, 
 and instructed and drilled in military exercises. Horses, mules, 
 wagons, ordnance, subsistence — all the necessary materiel for an 
 invading army were collected with prudent haste, and before the 
 end of June, the expedition, fully organized, was on its route 
 for Mexico. 
 
 The little army under Colonel Kearny numbered 1658 men, 
 with sixteen pieces of ordnance, twelve 6-pounders, and four 12- 
 pound howitzers. It consisted of the following corps : — Five 
 companies 1st regiment United States dragoons, under Major 
 Sumner, three hundred men, and the only regulars in the army; 
 Captain Hudson's company of St. Louis dragoons, the " Laclede 
 Rangers," one hundred and seven men ; two companies of flying 
 artillery, under Captains Fischer and Weightman, two hundred 
 and fifty strong, with Major Clark as field-officer; a battalion of 
 infantry, numbering one hundred and forty-five men, under Cap- 
 tains Angney and Murphy ; with eight companies, composing the 
 1st regiment of Missouri mounted volunteers, eight hundred and 
 fifty-six men, with the following field-officers — William Gilpin, 
 Major; C. F. Ruff, Lieutenant-Colonel; Alexander W. Doniphan, 
 Colonel, and second in rank to the commander of the whole 
 column. A gallant band of field and topographical engineers 
 accompanied the expedition, consisting of Lieutenants Emory, 
 Warner, Abert, and Peck. They received their orders at the 
 seat of government, on the 5th of June, and within twenty-four 
 hours thereafter were on their way, and having expeditiously 
 completed their equipment at St. Louis, reported to Colonel 
 
226 HISTORY OF THK MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Kearny at Fort Leavenworth, in time to take their line of march 
 across the prairies ahead of the main column. 
 
 A short time previous to his departure, Colonel Kearny received 
 a communication from the Secretary of War, covering additional 
 instructions and extended command. After the conquest and 
 occupancy of Santa Fe, he was to press forward to California, 
 and co-operate with the fleet there in conquering and holding that 
 province. Besides one thousand men added to his column, he 
 was empowered to call for additional troops, and was directed to 
 secure the aid of a large body of Mormon emigrants, en route 
 for that distant region. His orders in relation to the route, and 
 many other things appertaining to the expedition, were discretion- 
 ary, and he was informed that the rank of Brigadier-General 
 would be conferred on him as soon as his movement to Cali- 
 fornia should be commenced. 
 
 In the last days of June, the army, broken into divisions, and 
 preceded or accompanied by long trains of baggage and provi- 
 sion M-agons, set forth on its toilsome westward march. Health, 
 hopeful impatience, confidence in their chief and in each other, 
 gave nerve to every limb, and to every bosom soldierly pride. 
 For some days their wholly pathless route lay over elevated and 
 rolling plains, covered with tall luxuriant grass and matted vines, 
 and traversed by many deep ravines and steep-banked streams, 
 the tributaries of the Kansas, or " Kaw," and its sovereign, the 
 Missouri. The country, rich in picturesque beauty and fertility, 
 presented the general appearance of " vast, rolling fields, enclosed 
 ■with colossal hedges." The army, on the 1st of July, struck 
 upon the great Santa Fd road. The earliest rays of the morrow's 
 sun glanced brightly back from the long lines of polished arms 
 and streaming banners that already moved across the broad, level 
 plain, or rose over the gently-heaving hills, which here and there 
 diversified the boundless sea of green. Out upon the silence of 
 the mighty solitudes, with nought but plain and sky pn every 
 
KEARNY S MARCH. 227 
 
 side, burst forth the mirthful shout and spirit-stirring strains of 
 martial hymns, on Independence Day. The afternoon of the 5th 
 brought the advanced battalion of the army to the well-known 
 Council Grove, the general rendezvous for union, rest, and repair, 
 of all caravans and hunting companies, and prized deservedly 
 for its hospitable pasturage and shade, its copious springs of most 
 delicious water, and its abundance of serviceable timber of 
 various kinds. Here, at a distance of about one hundred and 
 fifty miles from the western borders of Missouri, runs the line 
 that limits the eastward roamings of the savage tribes of Paw- 
 nees, Osages, and Sioux. The intermediate country is in the 
 hands of Indians who own allegiance to, and receive stipends 
 from, the United States ; and who, having abandoned nomadic 
 life, dwelling in log-houses, rearing cattle, cultivating the soil, 
 and pursuing some of the other arts of peace, " form the con- 
 necting link between the savage of the plains and the white man 
 of the States." Pawnee Fork was reached on the 14th ; and here 
 Colonel Kearny, with the rear division, overtook the advance, 
 and formed a junction of forces with Colonel Doniphan. The 
 waters of this creek, swollen by recent rains, were so high as to 
 be then impassable; "the trees along the sides of the banks 
 were half hidden ; the whirling eddies were rushing along with 
 great velocity ; the willows that grew on the bank were waving 
 under the strong pressure of the water, and brush and large logs 
 were hurriedly borne along on the turbid bosom of the stream." 
 Having encamped beside the river, whose angry condition is thus 
 described by Lieutenant Abert, the men were promptly set to 
 work on the construction of a raft. The energy of the com- 
 mander was rivalled by the cheerful labours of his soldiers, and 
 a wild excitement marked their struggles with, and triumph over, 
 the fiercely rapid current that presumed to obstruct their onward 
 way. In the forenoon of the 16th, immense toil and resolution 
 had accomplished the passage across, and on the 17th, the whole 
 31 
 
228 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 column was again in motion, the Arkansas river route having 
 been chosen as the most practicable. Here commenced that por- 
 tion of the prairies that may justly be considered as the outskirt 
 of the Great Desert. A scanty vegetation sprang from the soil of 
 these plains of granite sand, over which the eye wanders in search 
 of trees, but wanders in vain. In all directions lay the short, 
 curly buffalo-grass, with thistles and endless varieties of cactus. 
 Wild horses, large and well-proportioned, stood in groups watch- 
 ing the approach of the troops, then dashed off" into their native 
 wilds in wonder and alarm. The ground was darkened and the 
 horizon lined with herds of buffaloes ; and in close proximity to 
 these prowled gray wolves, eagerly watching the opportunity of 
 prey. Along the margin of the Arkansas, a strip of luxuriant 
 bottom-land afforded suitable places for encampment, and here 
 occasionally scattered clumps of the cotton-wood extended an 
 irresistible invitation to the wearied and sunburnt soldier, after his 
 march over the sandy plains, whose monotony was sometimes 
 relieved by the villages of prairie dogs that dotted the solitudes. 
 Bois de vache and wild sage was the only fuel to be procured. 
 Sickness assailed the troops. On the 20th, the severe illness of 
 Colonel Kearny caused general anxiety, while the doctors' lists 
 exceeded one hundred men. The anxiety respecting the leader 
 of the column was, however, quickly relieved, nor was the sick- 
 ness generally, though extremely harassing and debilitating, 
 attended with fatal results. By the 24th, many of the gallant 
 steeds that had thus far borne their owners over the wilderness of 
 the strange land, failed, and were reluctantly abandoned on the 
 prairie. Still with unabated vigour was the march continued, 
 while the sun came hotly and witheringly down upon arid plains, 
 that marked further entrance on the desert, and the buffalo 
 ceased by his presence to give somewhat of life and interest to 
 the scene. On the 28th, the troops first caught glimpses of the 
 enemy's country, and every heart beat responsive to the challenge 
 
bi:nt s FORT. 229 
 
 of the clarion, ringing out its joyous intimation that the struggle 
 was now at hand. Crossing the Arkansas on the 29th, the army 
 encamped on the Mexican territory, on a spot chosen for the con- 
 venience of grazing, about nine miles below Bent's Fort, a small 
 post on the north bank of the Arkansas, in longitude 103° 25/ 
 45'^ west, and latitude 38° 2' 53" north. Thither large stores of 
 supply had previously been forwarded ; — here was the appointed 
 general rendezvous, and here, on the appointed day, August the 
 1st, with admirable precision, was concentrated the whole force, 
 regular and volunteer, having accomplished a journey of about 
 six hundred miles. 
 
 To recruit his men, after the fatigues and distresses of their 
 long march, as well as to make necessary provision for onward 
 progress. Colonel Kearny detained the army three days in their 
 regular and strictly-guarded encampment. During these days 
 intelligence of various kinds was brought in. Three Mexicans, 
 having upon their persons blank letters addressed to the American 
 commander, for the supposed purpose of diverting suspicion of 
 their character as spies, were apprehended, and by the colonel's 
 command so conducted through the camp, as to leave upon their 
 minds the liveliest impressions of the strength of the army ; then 
 allowed to retire in peace — their known propensity to exaggerate 
 being relied on, to give a sufficiently satisfactory account of what 
 they had seen to the people and the governor of New Mexico. 
 Rumour contradicted rumour as to the resolves and proceedings 
 of the latter. By some it was announced that our forces would 
 meet with no opposition ; by others, that Governor Armijo was at 
 the head of a formidable army, that Santa Fe and Taos were 
 being strongly fortified, and that everywhere throughout New 
 Mexico there would be resistance to the death. Lieutenant De 
 Courcy was, with twenty men, ordered to proceed directly through 
 the mountain passes to the valley of the Taos, to ascertain the 
 feelings and disposition of the people ; and on the same day, 
 
230 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 July 31st, was issued the following proclamation, bearing date as 
 above, at the camp at Bent's Fort : — 
 
 " The undersigned enters New Mexico with a large military 
 force, for the purpose of seeking union with, and ameliorating 
 the condition of its inhabitants. This he does under instructions 
 from his government, and with the assurance that he will be 
 amply sustained in the accomplishment of this object. It is 
 enjoined on the citizens of New Mexico to remain quietly at 
 their homes, and to pursue their peaceful avocations. So long 
 as they continue in such pursuits, they will not be interfered with 
 by the American army, but will be respected and protected in 
 their rights, both civil and religious. All who take up arms or 
 encourage resistance against the government of the United States 
 will be regarded as enemies, and will be treated accordingly. 
 
 S. W. KEARNY, 
 Colonel \st Dragoons.'''' 
 
 From the Fort, on the 2d of August, an American flag threw 
 out its wide folds to the breeze from the desert, in salutation to 
 the Army of the West, again eii route for Santa Fe. The ordnance 
 train had not arrived, neither had the new levies ordered in 
 Missouri; but the colonel desired, by the celerity of his move- 
 ments, to embarrass and frustrate any attempts at combined 
 resistance by the enemy. For several days the road lay across 
 the Great American Desert, and men and animals suffered much, 
 the horses, especially, falling off' in an alarming manner. This 
 arid waste being left behind, they ascended the Raton or Mouse, 
 a chain of ragged mountains that separates the waters of the 
 Arkansas from those of the Canadian. The ascent of the pass was 
 arduous; but the views from the summit, seven thousand five 
 hundred feet above the level of the sea, were inexpressibly beauti- 
 ful and sublime. To the north-west rose Pike's Peak; to the 
 south and south-west, the Wattahyah, or Twin Hills, and the 
 
MARCH RESUMED. 231 
 
 spurs that run southward from the Wattahyah ; to the east towered 
 up the singularly formed summits of the Raton, presenting the 
 appearance of a succession of castles, with time-worn and storm- 
 stained battlements, now glistening in the sunshine, now seeming 
 to frown upon the small adventurous host that threaded upward 
 the defile. 
 
 The descent was found more rapid, and much more difficult 
 than the ascent, the road passing over many sharp spurs formed 
 by the channel of the mountain stream, resolutely working its 
 way to the Canadian ; on the main branch of which latter river, 
 a day's halt, with abundant supplies of water, wood, and grass, 
 was gladly enjoyed after the fatigues of crossing the mountains. 
 Here commenced a hardship incidental to such expeditions, but 
 infinitely more harassing and annoying to the volunteer just fresh 
 from the abundance and comforts of home, than any toil of the 
 road, or any effort of Mexican military skill and prowess. The 
 army was put on half rations, and so continued, until their arrival 
 in Santa F6. But after a few^ good-humoured benedictions on 
 the provoking contre-temps, the men calmly accommodated them- 
 selves to the sacrifice, and even merrily discussed the diminished 
 fare. 
 
 Spies were daily captured, but upon the information elicited 
 from them, little reliance could be placed. On the 10th, Mr, 
 Towle, an American citizen, came into camp, reporting himself 
 just escaped from Taos, and stating that on the previous day 
 had been received there the proclamation of Governor Armijo, 
 calling all the citizens to arms, and placing the whole country 
 under martial law; that Armijo had assembled the Pueblo Indians, 
 numbering about two thousand, and all the citizens capable of 
 bearing arms ; that on the day this proclamation was issued, three 
 hundred Mexican dragoons had arrived in Santa F^, and that 
 twelve hundred more were hourly expected ; that the Mexicans 
 were every man eager for a fight, but the Indians generally not 
 
232 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 SO bellicose. Each day now brought its quota of increasing inter- 
 est. On the persons of several Mexicans captured on the 11th, 
 were found copies of the proclamation of the Prefect of Taos, 
 based on that of Armijo, summoning the people to arms to repel 
 the American invaders, who were coming to "destroy their 
 property and liberties," and ordering an enrolment of all citizens 
 between the ages of fifteen and fifty. The 13th brought the 
 advance of the column to the valley of the Moro creek, and the 
 first settlements they had seen in their march of seven hundred 
 and eighty miles. Bent's spy company brought in an ensign and 
 three privates, sent forward by the enemy to reconnoitre. From 
 them it was learned that the Mexicans were assembling in force 
 to do battle at Las Vegas. And at the halting-place this evening 
 a Mr. Spry came into camp, on foot, and nearly destitute of 
 clothing, having been furtively despatched from Santa F^ on the 
 previous night, to communicate to Colonel Kearny the stirring 
 intelligence, that Armijo M'as energetically assembling his forces 
 in preparation for a vigorous resistance, and that the Cailon, a 
 well-known pass or defile, narrow, and easily defended, was now 
 being fortified, that from this vantage-ground, and with over- 
 whelming numbers, the further progress of our army might be 
 disputed and stayed. 
 
 Early in the march of the 14th a lieutenant, accompanied by 
 a sergeant and two privates, of Mexican lancers, all respectably 
 clad and accoutred, but miserably mounted, presented themselves. 
 The officer proved to be the bearer from Governor Armijo of a 
 letter, which, says Lieutenant Emory, was a sensible, straight- 
 forward missive, and if written by an American or Englishman, 
 would have meant this: — "You have notified me that you intend 
 to take possession of the country I govern. The people of the 
 country have risen en masse in my defence. If you take the 
 country, it will be because you prove the strongest in battle. I 
 suggest to you to stop at the Sapillo, and I will march to the 
 
EXPECTED BATTLE. 233 
 
 Vfpas. We will meet and negotiate on the plains between them." 
 After a delay of some hours, during which the artillery was 
 passed over the Sapillo, and the troops brought within sight of 
 Las Vegas, a village on the creek of the same name, the messen- 
 ger and his escort were dismissed with a verbal reply from Colonel 
 Kearny, " Say to General Armijo, that I shall meet him soon, and 
 I hope it will be as friends." 'I'his day the face of the country 
 had begun greatly to improve, indications of culture and comfort 
 presented themselves, herds and flocks dotted the valleys, the 
 stately pine and cedar adorned the hills, and gardens and waving 
 corn for the first time greeted the soldiers' weary eyes. The 
 village, at a short distance, looked like an extensive brick-kiln. 
 On nearer approach, its outline presented a square with some 
 arrangements for defence, within which the inhabitants are, not 
 unfrequently, compelled to retreat with all their stock, for pro- 
 tection against the attacks of the predatory Eutaws and Navajoes. 
 In sight of the little town, and away for a mile down the valley 
 of the beautiful creek, extended the American camp. On one 
 side rushed the clear mountain stream, on the other, unprotected 
 by any interposing hedge or fence, lay the broad fields of luxuriant 
 grain, irrigated from the creek by numerous artificial canals. 
 The sweet water was free, but a closely-posted chain of sentinels 
 strictly guarded those tempting fields from intrusion or injury by 
 the hungry animals, and the men with jealous honour obeyed 
 the orders given to respect the persons, properties, and feelings 
 of the inhabitants. 
 
 At midnight, news was brought that the enemy was in con- 
 siderable force in one of the formidable gorges of the mountain, 
 distant two miles from the camp, and that here battle would be 
 given. IBy seven in the morning of the 15th, the troops were 
 in motion ; and, as they neared the town, they were overtaken by 
 Major Swords, from Fort Leavenworth, with Captain Weightman 
 and Lieutenant Gilmer, who, hearing there was to be a fight, had 
 
234 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ridden sixty miles during the night to be in for the fray. Major 
 Swords was bearer to Colonel Kearny of his commission as 
 Brigadier-General of the army of the United States. 
 
 A halt was called close to the village, while the general 
 addressed, from the broad roof of one of the low adobe houses in 
 the public square, the alcalde and people. He came, he said, 
 by orders of his government, to take possession of the country, 
 and extend over it the laws of the United States. They came 
 amongst the people as friends — not as enemies ; as protectors — 
 not as conquerors; to confer benefits — not to commit injuries. 
 Henceforth they were absolved from all allegiance to the Mexican 
 government, from all obedience to General Armijo. The latter 
 was no longer their governor — he (General K.) was their governor. 
 Active partisanship on their part was not expected. Those who 
 remained peaceably at home should be amply protected in their 
 properties, persons, and religion ; and not a pepper, not an onion, 
 should be taken or disturbed by the troops, without pay and the 
 consent of the owner. Submission would insure safety — resist- 
 ance was useless. 
 
 The general then, in a solemn manner, administered the oath 
 of allegiance to the United States, to the alcalde and two captains 
 of militia ; one of the latter swallowing it with a ludicrous ill- 
 grace. He then shook hands with the alcalde, whom he con- 
 tinued in office, and through him with all the people, whom he 
 hailed as good citizens of the United States, to which a general 
 shout and grimaces of satisfaction were the ready response. 
 
 " To horse, and onward !" was now the cry ; the foe were 
 waiting in the pass. Banners and guidons were unfurled, and 
 streaming out to the dazzling sun — the officers dashed eagerly 
 along the lines — each great gun was ready, and every rifle 
 charged. Nerved to the utmost was every arm, and the flash of 
 stern joy in every eye. The gorge is neared — the walk quickens 
 to a lively trot — the trot breaks into a gallop. The pass is entered 
 
PECOS. 235 
 
 — it is cleared — no enemy is seen. Even the horses droop their 
 heads in disappointment, as sullenly, and one by one, the guidons 
 are furled, and all things assume the ordinary tameness of the 
 march. Noon brought the army to the village of Tacolet^, and to 
 the people there, the same change of government, "with the same 
 ceremonies, as had metamorphosed Las Vegas. San Miguel, 
 another of these adob^ villages, situated on the river Pecos, wit- 
 nessed a repetition of the same drama, on the 16th. And here 
 again expectation was on tiptoe, for every few minutes brought 
 in additional reports, that Armijo was collecting an overwhelming 
 force, to contest the army's further march, at the celebrated 
 Canon, the Pecos pass, fifteen miles from Santa F^. 
 
 The 17th saw the banner of the Union passing proudly by the 
 interesting ruins of the ancient, and once strongly fortified, town 
 of Pecos, standing on a rocky eminence. Built, as it is alleged, 
 before the conquest by the Spaniards, it presents the blended 
 features of Pagan and Catholic architecture. Here, until within the 
 last seven years, had burned the eternal holy fire, whose incense had 
 ceaselessly ascended for centuries before the conquest, and whose 
 sacredly fatal flame was watched and fed w^ith unwearied fidelity 
 by the Indian, even after his conversion to the faith of the Cross. 
 But gradually the devoted tribe diminished in number, until at 
 last too few were left to maintain the undying flames in the vast 
 " estuffa ;" then yielding to the sore necessity, the remnant aban- 
 doned the holy spot, and passed over the mountains to the south, 
 to mingle with a kindred tribe of their original race, and there 
 still keep up the eternal fire of Montezuma. Some few years it 
 yet may burn ; but the toil, the unceasing watchfulness, and the 
 exposure to continued heat, consequent upon their faithful adhe- 
 rence to the old delusion, is with steady progress diminishing the 
 already thin numbers of the tribe, and ere long, in all human pro- 
 bability, the holy fire, and the breath of the last of Montezuma's 
 race, will go out together. 
 32 
 
236 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Santa F^ was still distant nine-and-twenty miles, on the morn- 
 ing of August the 18th, and between it and the army lay the for- 
 midable Canon, which, fifteen miles from the town, contracts into 
 a narrow gorge, some forty feet in width, above which rise hills 
 many hundred feet on either side. " It is a gateway," says 
 Colonel Emory, " which in the hands of a skilful engineer and one 
 hundred men, would have been perfectly impregnable." Here 
 Governor Armijo had taken up his position, with four thousand men 
 and six pieces of artillery, and had thrown up an abattis. But 
 even here our troops were destined to find no foe in arms. 
 Whether owing to dissensions among his followers and officers, 
 or from some other cause, Armijo had abandoned this command- 
 ing position without firing a single gun, and with his artillery 
 and an escort of one hundred dragoons, had fled in hot haste 
 towards Chihuahua. The army passed on. Vigil, the lieu- 
 tenant-governor, with other leading citizens, received the general 
 and his companions at the palace, and tendered to them the hos- 
 pitalities of the place. With the setting of the sun, our guns, 
 from an eminence overlooking the town, saluted the flag of the 
 United States, floating over the capital of New Mexico. In fifty 
 -"^'^ays the Army of the West had marched, from Fort Leavenworth, 
 eight hundred and eighty-three miles, over solitudes and arid 
 wastes, and subjugated, without striking a blow, a province con- 
 taining a hundred thousand inhabitants, and in its commercial and 
 military aspect a possession all-important to these United States. 
 On the morning of the 19th, the general, through his inter- 
 preter Robideaux, addressed the assembled people at considerable 
 length, distinctly and firmly claiming henceforth the whole of 
 New Mexico for his country, while giving the strongest assurances 
 to all, of the peaceable and friendly intentions of his government, 
 and of his army, and })ledging the national faith to the protection 
 of person, property, and religion. He declared them absolved 
 from all allegiance to the government of Mexico, and promised 
 
KEARNY S PROCLAMATION. 237 
 
 the speedy promulgation of a civil government, similar to those 
 in his own country, and under which the people would enjoy 
 freedom and happiness hitherto unknown. The acting governor 
 and other magistrates then took the oath of allegiance to the 
 United States, and the people at large saluted the general with 
 shouts, vivas, and huzzas. 
 
 The same energy and skill that had conducted the army through 
 difficulties of no ordinary kind to bloodless victory, and the quiet 
 occupation of the capital, now marked the measures taken for the 
 permanent securing of the conquest. A fort, suited for a compe- 
 tent garrison, was immediately commenced on a site selected by 
 Lieutenants Emory and Gilmer, within six hundred yards of 
 the heart of the town, and from sixty to one hundred feet above 
 it. Under the superintendence of these officers, and by the 
 cheerful labours of men detailed from the several corps, quickly 
 arose a substantial structure, named, in compliment to the Secre- 
 tary of War, Fort Marcy. A proclamation was issued announ- 
 cing to the people of New Mexico the capture of Santa F6, and the 
 general's intention to hold the province, or department, with 
 its original boundaries on both sides the Del Norte, as a part of 
 the United States, and under the name of the territory of New 
 Mexico ; — reiterating and confirming the promises heretofore given 
 of the fullest protection in religion, property, and person ; and 
 urgently recommending peaceful submission and allegiance to 
 the United States, Interviews were had with those who had 
 held authority under the Mexican government, with the clergy, 
 and others, and the most conciliatory effiDrts used to win public 
 confidence and attachment. With the chiefs and wise men of 
 the Pueblo Indians, a large and formidable tribe, but among the 
 most peaceable and best citizens of the department, conferences 
 were had, in which their minds were fully disabused of the terrors 
 sought to be impressed by the Mexican priests, regarding the 
 barbarous treatment to be expected from the " Americanos," and 
 
238 HISTORY OF THK MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 they, and the several tribes of half-breeds, were made fast friends 
 for ever. The savage Navajoes were warned to desist henceforth 
 from tlieir predatory and murderous inroads, and menaces of 
 immediate and effective vengeance held forth in case of their 
 disobedience. From Taos and its neighbourhood, deputations 
 arrived, charged with the duty of giving in the popular allegiance 
 and adhesion, and soliciting protection from the Indians. Their 
 words and demeanour manifested the most friendly disposition ; 
 subsequent events proved them adepts in duplicity. 
 
 The last day of August brought with it reports, apparently 
 well authenticated, that Armijo, having been joined by Colonel 
 Ugarte with a force of five hundred regulars and some artillery, 
 was now rallying the people to the south, and with daily increasing 
 strength, advancing on the capital. To quiet the public apprehen- 
 sions, and promptly suppress any symptoms of an insurrectionary 
 kind, General Kearny, on September 2d, marched out of Santa F^ 
 with seven hundred men, on a reconnoissance down the valley of 
 the Rio Grande. He passed through Santo Domingo, San 
 Felipe, Albuquerque, and many other villages, to Tom^, distant 
 one hundred miles from Santa F^. Everywhere the troops were 
 received with hospitality, and manifestations of friendly welcome. 
 The last sixty miles of this route, from Algodones to Tom^, pre- 
 sented the appearance of one continued straggling village, so 
 closely clustered towns, hamlets, and farm-houses, along both 
 banks of the river ; while the inhabitants, especially the women, 
 as well as the soldiers, enjoyed what seemed rather an excursion 
 of pleasure among friends, than a military demonstration in a 
 hostile land. Returned to Santa Fe by the 13th, General Kearny 
 busied himself in making arrangements for the civil government 
 of the province, for the military occupation of the capital and out- 
 posts, and for the prosecution of the further object intrusted to 
 him, the expedition to California. A collection of laws for the 
 administration of the territory, prepared by Colonel Doniphan, 
 
PREPARATIONS FOR CALIFORNIA. 239 
 
 with the aid of Mr, Willard P. Hall, then serving as a private in 
 the Missouri dragoons, and afterwards, while still so serving, 
 elected by his district as representative in Congress, was pro- 
 mulgated on the 22d ; and simultaneously therewith the following 
 appointments were made by the general, under authority from 
 the president : — Charles Bent, to be governor ; Donaisano Vigil, 
 to be secretary ; Richard Dallam, marshal ; F. P. Blair, United 
 States district attorney ; Charles Blumner, treasurer ; Eugene 
 Leitzendorfer, auditor of public accounts; Joab Houghton, Antonio 
 Josd Otero, Charles Balibian, judges of the superior court, of the 
 newly subjugated territory. In this list of officials, it will be 
 seen, Americans and Mexicans were combined. 
 
 The conquest was complete, tranquillity was perfectly restored, 
 law and order succeeded to oppression and anarchy ; everything 
 wore the aspect of peacefulness and content. By letter to the 
 adjutant- general, the chief now communicated his resolution of 
 departing for the shores of the Pacific on the 25th of September, 
 in the hope of reaching his destination by the end of the following 
 month ; assuring the department, that no exertions would be 
 wanting on the part of any one attached to the expedition in 
 insuring to it full and entire success. 
 
 The little army, whose triumphant progress we have hitherto 
 followed from the borders of Missouri to the capital of New 
 Mexico, was now divided into three columns, destined to operate 
 in districts far apart, and never to reunite on foreign soil. Colo- 
 nel Doniphan, with his own regiment, and Captain Weightman's 
 battery of artillery, was directed to remain in New Mexico, until 
 the arrival, now daily expected, of the 2d Missouri mounted vol- 
 unteers, under Colonel Price, and, on being relieved by that 
 officer, to proceed southward and effect a junction with General 
 Wool at Chihuahua. The infantry battalion, under command 
 of Captain Angney, and Fischer's company of artillery, were to 
 remain in Santa F^. The force designated to march on Califor- 
 
240 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 nia consisted of the little corps of topographical engineers, and 
 three hundred of the 1st United States dragoons, under Major 
 Sumner, with two mountain howitzers. 
 
 Of the vast territories which lay between our western borders 
 and the broad Pacific, and the acquisition of which has added 
 more than a fourth to the national domain, little was accurately 
 known, previous to the visit of the United States expedition under 
 [lieutenant Wilkes, in 1841, and the subsequent explorations by 
 land of Colonel Fremont. At intervals of frequent recurrence in 
 the history of this continent, the name of California had attracted 
 attention, and rumour had spread abroad vague and varying ideas 
 of its extent, capabilities, and resources; but, while the coast of 
 that distant region was imperfectly and even erroneously laid 
 down, the great interior of the two provinces was an unexplored 
 land, from which only the adventurous trader or daring hunter 
 occasionally brought back scant and contradictory information. 
 The peculiarities, however, of its position, as regarded these 
 states ; its commercial and political importance, in relation to a 
 not far distant future ; had not failed to be appreciated, either by 
 our own statesmen, or by those of foreign countries : and the 
 necessary, self-protecting policy of America was plainly indicated 
 by the precautionary seizure and temporary occupation of Mon- 
 terey, in 1842, by our squadron, under Commodore Ap Catesby 
 Jones, acting upon information of a contemplated surrender of 
 California to Great Britain. 
 
 After the conquest of New Mexico, and the establishment of 
 civil government at Santa F^, General Kearny made a proper 
 disposition of his forces, and prepared for his second and more 
 arduous enterprise. Leaving orders for the officer commanding 
 the Mormon battalion, five hundred strong, upon arriving at 
 Santa Fd, to take up the line of march in his rear, General 
 Kearny, on the 25th of September, set out for California with the 
 corps of topographical engineers, and the three hundred United 
 
DKPARTURK OF KEARNY FOR CALIFORNIA. 241 
 
 States dragoons, under Major Sumner. For several days the 
 route lay over s^round previously traversed, and through villages 
 visited before, during the military reconnoissance as far as Tome. 
 The Rio Grande was crossed at Albuquerque, sixty-five miles 
 below Santa Fe, where the depth of the river was about thirty 
 inches, and its width some five-and-twenty yards. The valley 
 of the Rio Grande presents thus far down, bottom lands, about 
 a mile and a half wide, and elevated but a few feet above the 
 level of the running stream, which is rapid and regular, and 
 affords the greatest facilities for irrigation, by means of zequias, 
 or little artificial canals. These are indispensible aids to cultiva- 
 tion in a country, the lowlands of which are seldom, if ever, 
 visited by rains. West of this belt of bottom land lies a succes- 
 sion of rolling sand-hills, amid which are the hiding-places during 
 day of the Navajoes, whence, in small companies, these predatory 
 lords of New Mexico descend at night to the valley, to bear off 
 from the settlements motley plunder of fruit and cattle, as well 
 as children and women. When united in more numerous bands, 
 they boldly come down by day and levy their blackmail, then 
 quickly retire to their far distant, and apparently inaccessible, 
 retreats in the mountains, whither Mexican vengeance has never 
 yet essayed pursuit. 
 
 At Tome, reached October the 1st, the river was found to 
 measure thirty yards in width, its depth still continuing about 
 thirty inches. Below this, for a distance of some miles, the val- 
 ley widens, the soil improves, and the cultivation is of a superior 
 kind. But after passing the pretty village of Sabinal, " the set- 
 tlements became very few and far between." In their encamp- 
 ment at the bend of the river, opposite La Joya, the column 
 awaited during the 3d, the wagons which had fallen in the rear. 
 Here an express from Colonel Price announced the arrival of that 
 officer at Santa F^. And at noon a Mexican on panting steed 
 rode into camp, claiming instant aid and protection against the 
 
242 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Navajoes, on the pai; oi" the alcalde and people of Pulvidera. 
 Captain Moore's company was forthwith despatched to the 
 rescue : while orders were sent to Colonel Doniphan to march 
 his regiment into the Navajo country, for the purpose of effectu- 
 ally repressing their incursions. A march of twelve miles on the 
 4th brought the column to the appropriately named village of 
 Pulvidera, at which place the dragoons had arrived too late on 
 the preceding day to render any assistance. The Indian assail- 
 ants, in number about one hundred well mounted men, had 
 descended rapidly on the town, and driven off the horses and 
 cattle, while the terrified inhabitants took refuge in their mud 
 houses. The people of Lamitas, a village two miles below, rose 
 to the rescue of their neighbours, and seized upon the pass, or 
 gorge, by which alone retreat with all the plunder could be made 
 good. The Indians, thus in part foiled, slaughtered wantonly on 
 the spot as many as they could of the captured oxen and goats, 
 and with the larger number of the horses and mules scrambled 
 away over the hills and cliffs beyond pursuit. No wounds had 
 been given or received. A more disastrous foray had been made 
 by the same band upon the settlements higher up the river, ere 
 yet the American army had reached Santa Fd, and when Armijo 
 had called for a levy en masse. Then, in addition to other varied 
 plunder, fifteen or sixteen of the prettiest women had been borne 
 away. " "Women," says Colonel Emory in his extremely inte- 
 resting Notes, — " women, when captured, are taken as wives by 
 those who capture them, but th6y are treated by the Indian wives 
 of the capturers as slaves, and made to carry wood and water ; 
 if they chance to be pretty, or receive too much attention from 
 their lords and masters, they are, in the absence of the latter, 
 unmercifully beaten, and otherwise maltreated. The most unfor- 
 tunate thing which can befall a captive woman, is to be claimed 
 by two persons. In this case she is either shot, or delivered up 
 for indiscriminate violence." To the people of New Mexico 
 
KIT CARSON. 243 
 
 assuredly the change in government ought to be welcome, even 
 were it attended by no other benefit, than absolute security in the 
 future against outrages such as these. 
 
 Pursuing his route along the bank of the Rio Grande, on the 
 6th of October, General Kearny w^as met by the celebrated 
 adventurer, trapper and guide, Kit Carson, sent with an escort of 
 sixteen men, including six Delaware Indians, as bearer of express 
 despatches from Commodore Stockton and Lieutenant-Colonel 
 Fremont, at Monterey, to the authorities at Washington. The 
 information brought by Mr. Carson, who had left Ciudad de los 
 Angelos on the 1st of September, represented the Californias as 
 already in possession of the above-named officers; that in the 
 space of some ten days the upper country had been revolutionized, 
 and placed under the American flag, which now floated in undis- 
 puted sovereignty from every important position ; that there the 
 war was ended, and peace and harmony established among the 
 people. 
 
 If this unlooked-for intelligence shot a momentary chill through 
 the bosoms of the gallant little band, that had in loyal brother- 
 hood of hope threaded its way through toils and trials to such a 
 distance from home, and saw now even the chance of honourable 
 trophy from the battle-field denied, the patriotic and the brave 
 will know how to appreciate and to pardon the soldier's disap- 
 pointment. How much more ready to acknowledge and estimate 
 aright the purer, sterner patriotism, that quickly swallowed up 
 the lingerings of self-love and soldierly ambition in the pride of 
 American success, and with cheerfulness resumed the dull 
 routine of duty ever faithfully performed, while sighing as it 
 thought of laurels which it might have shared ! 
 
 Under these circumstances, it seemed to the general un- 
 necessary to take with him the whole of his present force, a por- 
 tion of which might be more serviceably employed in the already 
 subjugated province. Accordingly, three companies of the dra- 
 33 
 
244 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 goons and the principal part of the baggage-train, under Major Sum- 
 ner, were ordered to retrace their steps, to winter at Albuquerque, 
 or operate as might be found expedient. The reduced column 
 for advance now comprised the general and his personal staff, 
 Major Swords, Captains Johnson and Turner, Assistant-Surgeon 
 Griffin, Lieutenants Emory and Warner, with their assistants and 
 attendants, and Captain Moore, with Lieutenants Hammond and 
 Davidson, and one hundred men of the 1st dragoons. Mr. Robi- 
 deaux accompanied as interpreter; and Mr. Carson, yielding to 
 the urgent representations of General Kearny, who insured the 
 safe delivery in Washington of the despatches, by a trust- w^orthy 
 and expeditious messenger, and took on himself the whole 
 responsibility, consented to forego his cherished hopes of soon 
 rejoining his family, and undertook the piloting of the column 
 through the mountains and the deserts, the difficulties and the 
 dangers of which he had, with his faithful followers, just overcome. 
 The two mountain howitzers went with the advancing force, and 
 the returning command was put under requisition to supply the 
 best outfits for these, and the six wagons, drawn each by eight 
 stout mules, that followed the dragoons. 
 
 Soon the last settlements were past, and thenceforth a new^ 
 road was to be explored. The valley began to narrow, and the 
 table-land, over which they were compelled to make their way, 
 was rugged, and obstructed by thick bushes, rendering the toil- 
 some services of a pioneer force indispensable, and progress con- 
 sequently slow. Worse, they were informed, awaited them in 
 front. On the 9th, the teams came blown and staggering into 
 camp, after a journey of less than twelve miles, and some of the 
 wagons were broken. It was therefore determined to send back 
 the wagons and resort to mules with pack-saddles, for the trans- 
 portation of the baggage and provisions. Awaiting these new 
 modes of conveyance, for which messengers had been sent to 
 Major Sumner, the four following days were spent in camp. 
 
MARCH TO CALIFORNIA. 245 
 
 Here a cross section of the river gave a width of one hundred 
 and eighteen feet, with an average depth of fourteen inches, the 
 water flowing over large round pebbles, making it unsuitable for 
 navigation with any kind of boats ; the fall is estimated at four 
 feet and a half in the mile. 
 
 On the 13th, Lieutenant Ingalls arrived with a mail, the last 
 communication that could be expected with the United States. 
 On the evening of the same day, the pack-saddles came up, and 
 on the morrow, the w^agons having been sent back, under charge 
 of Lieutenant Ingalls, the march was resumed. Two hundred 
 and thirty miles below Santa Fe, the army took its final depar- 
 ture from the Rio Grande del Norte, on October 15th, marching 
 westward over a table-land, deeply cut by the now dry channels 
 of the mountain streams. The approach to the Sierra de los 
 Mimbres was over " a beautiful rolling country, traversed by small 
 streams of pure water, fringed with a stunted growth of walnut, 
 live oak, and ash," and through the delightful and rich, though 
 here narrow, valley of the Mimbres river. The 18th brought 
 them to the celebrated copper-mines, which are extremely rich 
 in that ore and in gold, but have been abandoned in consequence 
 of the Apache Indians cutting off all supplies from the operators, 
 destroying the mining town, and manifesting jealous and deter- 
 mined hostility. On the morning of the 20th, a party of these 
 Indians, headed by their chief. Red Sleeve, came into camp, 
 mounted on small, but fine and well-cared horses, and fantastically 
 attired, mostly in habiliments plundered from the Mexicans. 
 Beautiful helmets decked with black feathers covered the heads 
 of some, but the most were bare-headed and bare-legged, with 
 buskins, waist-belt, and cartridge-box. Variously armed as 
 attired, some bore guns, others lances and bows and arrows, in 
 the use of all of which they are exceedingly expert. A nomad 
 race, whose temporary dwellings are formed of interwoven twigs, 
 they roam the fair hills and pleasant rolling lands that over- 
 
246 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 hang the Del Norte between the 31st and 32d parallels of 
 latitude, and plunder without compunction any weaker bands 
 that fall in their way. Now they vowed before the general 
 eternal peace and friendship with the white men, and everlasting 
 hatred to the Mexicans. Carson placed little value on their 
 vows. 
 
 Resuming the march at noon, they slowly descended the 
 narrow valley of Night Creek, overhung on each side by huge 
 masses of volcanic rock, that with their ragged and precipitous 
 w^alls much impeded the road. A descent of five miles brought 
 them to the bank of the famous Gila, a bold, clear stream, fifty 
 feet wide and about two feet deep, running swiftly over a pebbly 
 bed, bordered with trees, and closed in by mountains. 
 
 Hence the route wound through the wild and bewildering fast- 
 nesses of the savage Indian tribes, who hold in terrified subjec- 
 tion the once flourishing states of Chihuahua and Sonora. Still 
 fertile and abounding in natural resources, they are rapidly 
 declining in wealth and population ; and if the incessant devasta- 
 tions and alarms of these, their uncivilized mountain lords, be 
 not stayed, the country must soon become a wide, luxuriant 
 waste. An almost impracticable labyrinth of mountain- spurs 
 and valleys ; ascents and descents narrow, tortuous, and paved 
 with sharp fragments of basalt and of trap; rocks, precipices, and 
 ravines, in which every aspect of nature and of life was strange, 
 imposed on men and beasts an incredible amount of painful 
 exertion and incessant toil. Ruins, connected by tradition with 
 the ancient race of Montezuma, and manifesting a civilization 
 now lost in its antiquity, were frequently encountered ; these 
 were generally surrounded by heaps of broken pottery, and in 
 some instances traced with hieroglyphics, no key to which has 
 yet been discovered. Interviews were repeatedly had with 
 smaller or larger groups from the Apache and kindred tribes ; 
 but treacherous and cruel themselves, they obstinately declined 
 
RIVER GILA. 247 
 
 such intercourse as could be beneficial. Vain were all efforts 
 made to procure from them a supply of mules, to replace those 
 which had in numbers foundered and died under the toils of the 
 road. Their promises were abundant, their anxiety to barter 
 manifest, and their desire of gain strong, but stronger than all 
 these were their cowardly doubts and habitual duplicity. Cen- 
 turies had formed the roots of that deep, undying hate, which 
 they bore the Mexican ; the wrongs of their forefathers were 
 vaguely remembered, but shapeless as these memories were, 
 they exercised over the now savage race a resistless sway, and 
 made them look upon all whites with that most deadly of hatreds, 
 the hatred of revenge and of fear. 
 
 The rugged mountains were left on the 9th of November, and 
 the valley of the Gila extended its width. This river had been" 
 crossed times innumerable by the army, so often frequently as 
 from ten to fifteen times in a single day's march, so jealously do 
 the craggy spurs and precipitous canons obstruct the progress of 
 an intruding force. On the 10th, a march of six miles over a 
 plain, giving, in its now unused zequias, ruins, and thickly 
 strewed fragments of pottery, evidences of having once sustained 
 an industrious and dense population, brought them to the remains 
 known as the " Casa de Montezuma." Portions of the walls of 
 four buildings exist, and piles of earth testify to the site of many 
 others. The one which was found most nearly entire, was a 
 building of some fifty or sixty feet square, of four stories in eleva- 
 tion ; the walls, built of a sort of whitish earth mixed with pebble, 
 were four feet thick, pierced for doors and windows, smoked 
 outside, and plastered, or glazed, within. No traces of steel 
 implements were left upon the timbers, which were round and 
 unhewn. Fire had evidently destroyed the whole interior, and 
 no specimens of household furniture or domestic art were to be 
 found — with the exception of marine shells cut into ornaments, 
 and the corn-grinder commonly met among all the ruins on the 
 
248 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 plains. About two hundred yards from the chief ruin, a terrace, 
 about three hundred feet in length, and five in height, was 
 surmounted by a pyramid, eight feet high, which commanded a 
 view of the vast plain, stretching to north-east and west, on the 
 left bank of the Gila ; the whole extent of which, for many miles, 
 seemed to have been at one time irrigated by water from the 
 river. 
 
 Along this plain now graze the cattle of the peaceful and 
 interesting Indian tribes, the Pimos and Maricopas ; tribes distinct, 
 but not dissimilar, living as neighbours in cordial amity. To 
 the army they accorded a frank welcome, and ready hospitality. 
 An industrious, intelligent, and virtuous people, they occupy a 
 beautiful and fertile valley, from which they procure many of the 
 comforts and even little luxuries of life, remote from the busy world, 
 and seldom visited by whites, and then only by those who in 
 distress confidently seek aid, that is ever generously bestowed. 
 Their religion consists simply in a belief in one supreme and 
 benevolent spirit. " It was a rare sight," we quote from Colonel 
 Emory, " it was a rare sight to be thrown in the midst of a large 
 nation, of what is termed wild Indians, surpassing many of the 
 Christian nations in agriculture, little behind them in the useful 
 arts, and immeasurably before them in honesty and virtue." 
 Even by the Mexican government the worth of this people, 
 numbering several thousand souls, has been uniformly apprecia- 
 ted, while the Apaches have ever found them superior in battle, 
 and have even in their own retreats suffered severe chastisement 
 for thefts and other outrages, whenever hazarded against men 
 that are as peaceful as they are brave. 
 
 A two days' rest in this pleasing neighbourhood having much 
 refreshed the men and recruited the animals, at noon of the 13th, 
 a farewell watering was given to the horses, ere they set out on 
 the Tesotal Jornada. Across a plain of granitic sand, which 
 rose almost imperceptibly to the summit of a hill range, running 
 
MARCH ACROSS THE DESERT. 249 
 
 south-east, and which was wholly destitute of vegetation, and 
 down the opposite slope of similar character, they made a two 
 days' journey, during which the mules suffered dreadfully for 
 lack of food and water. Many perished, and those which survived 
 gave little promise of future service. Rest in camp, in the Gila 
 bottom-land, was necessary during the 15th, as on the morrow^ 
 they were to set out on the most distressing part of the journey, a 
 distance of three hundred miles, reported to be without grass. 
 For many days the march was over parched valleys and table- 
 lands, dreary beyond description, where a few stunted growths of 
 the Larrea Mexicana, gave almost the only sign of vegetation. 
 This bitter and offensive shrub, even mules when most hungry 
 refuse to touch. The cane and willow found here and there in 
 the low grounds, afforded these poor animals a scanty subsistence. 
 By the 22d, most of the men were on foot, and the general's 
 horse having given out, he was obliged to have recourse to his 
 mule. This day they reached the junction of the Gila with the 
 Colorado, where the united streams force a caiion through a 
 butte of feldspathic granite, and flow due magnetic west. As 
 the column approached the end of its day's march, they encoun- 
 tered a trail, indicating the recent passage of a mounted force 
 of probably one thousand men. Reports which had reached the 
 Pimo villages strengthened the first supposition, that it was 
 General Castro on his return from Sonora, with a cavalry force, to 
 regain California. If so, he could not be far distant ; the column 
 numbered only one hundred and ten men, that was a force too 
 small to await an attack ; promptly therefore did the general 
 resolve, should the conjecture prove correct, to assail the enemy's 
 camp the moment night set in, and beat them before they could 
 have time or light to discover the disparity of numbers. Lieutenant 
 Emory was ordered to reconnoitre, and soon ascertained that their 
 neighbours were a party of Mexicans, on their way from Cali- 
 fornia to Sonora, witli five hundred horses for the use of Castro's 
 
250 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 command. On the person of one of these intercepted Mexicans 
 was found a mail; the letters, suspected of being on public 
 affairs, were of course opened, and from them it was ascertained 
 that a counter-revolution had taken place in California, that the 
 Americans were expelled from Santa Barbara, Puebla de los 
 Angelos, and other places, and that Captain Flores commanded 
 as general and governor in the country, which had thrown off" 
 " the detestable Anglo- Yankee yoke." From the horses. General 
 Kearny levied a much needed supply. 
 
 Ten miles below the mouth of the Gila they forded the Colo- 
 rado, there five hundred yards wide, and in mid-channel about 
 four feet deep. Along the river bottom they marched thirty miles 
 further, then, at dawn of day on November 25th, each man with 
 a bundle of the river-grass tied to the cantle of his saddle, turned 
 their course across the formidable desert. This dreary waste of 
 floating sand lay in their route ninety miles from water to water ; 
 in crossing it, during three days and nights, much suffering was 
 endured, and numbers of the horses and mules sunk on the 
 heavy sands, to die of hunger and thirst. 
 
 Refreshed by the waters of the Cariso creek, they slowly pur- 
 sued a scarcely less toilsome road, partly through thickets of the 
 centennial plant, the Agave Americana, the countless spears of 
 which sadly tore the dismounted and wearied men, whose feet 
 and legs were now almost bare ; partly over rugged rocks, amid 
 hills where barrenness and desolation held sovereign sway. The 
 flesh of the jaded horses, poor and tough, supplied no palatable 
 food, and the howl of the wolves no cheering lullaby, as the 
 ferocious creatures battled over the carcasses of the deserted 
 beasts. ' 
 
 December the 2d, the frontier settlement of California, War- 
 ner's Rancheria, in the beautiful valley of the Agua Caliente, burst 
 upon their delighted view. Here they rested, and made some 
 slight amends for their long-continued abstinence. This rancho, 
 
REVOLT IN CALIFORNIA. 251 
 
 or farm, was sixty miles from San Diego, now in possession of 
 Commodore Stockton, and eighty miles from Los Angelos. Des- 
 patching a letter to Commodore Stockton, requesting him to send 
 out a party to open a communication between them, the general 
 pushed cautiously forward, and on the 5th was met, about forty 
 miles from San Diego, by Captain Gillespie, with an escort of 
 thirty-five men, sent out by the commodore. This little force 
 consisted of California volunteers, with some carbineers from the 
 ship Congress, under Lieutenant Beall, and was accompanied by 
 a field-piece. 
 
 From Captain Gillespie were learned the main facts of the 
 attempted revolution and the then existing state of affairs. 
 Thinking his conquest complete, and all things- secure. Com- 
 modore Stockton, on the 2d of September, withdrew his force of 
 sailors and marines from Ciudad de los Angelos to San Fran- 
 cisco, where he designed to make arrangements for an attack on 
 Mazatlan and Acapulco, in conjunction with Lieutenant-Colonel 
 Fremont. The latter joined him on the 12th of October with the 
 main strength of his battalion, leaving Captain Gillespie, with 
 nineteen volunteers and a few pieces of ordnance, to garrison the 
 capital. The departure of the great body of the American forces 
 from the vicinity of Los Angelos, was the signal for revolt, incited 
 by the Mexican oflScers still lingering in the territory. The 
 insurgents, several hundred strong, took the field under Flores, 
 and hourly gathering force, compelled Captain Gillespie to capi- 
 tulate, on terms highly honourable to him and his little band, and 
 to retire from the presence of overwhelming numbers, on board 
 the Savannah, Captain Mervine, then lying off San Pedro. Mean- 
 time, Lieutenant Talbot, a young, but most gallant and merito- 
 rious officer, who had been left as military commandant at Santa 
 Barbara, a pretty place about one hundred miles north of Los 
 Angelos, with his little force of nine men, was hotly besieged by 
 above two hundred insurgents, under Don Manuel Caspar. 
 34 
 
252 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Having effected his escape from the town, Talbot took post in the 
 neighbouring hills, to await the return of the troops. Being dis- 
 covered in his retreat, the Californians burned him out, and, with 
 infinite peril and difficulty, he and his band escaped into the 
 mountains, and thence, after a month's travel over some five hun- 
 dred miles, enduring much hardship and suffering, they effected 
 a junction with Colonel Fremont at Monterey, where the latter 
 was recruiting for the expedition to the south. 
 
 Informed of the revolt, Commodore Stockton had sent down 
 the " Savannah" to San Pedro. He followed himself in the 
 " Congress," and took up his march for Los Angelos, dragging 
 along by hand six of the ship's guns. Now he was in possession 
 of San Diego, with his noble force of sailors and marines, doing 
 duty merrily on shore, as horse, foot, and artillery. 
 
 Having further learned from Captain Gillespie, that an armed 
 band of the enemy, with an extra supply of horses, w^as encamped 
 at the Indian village of San Pasqual, nine miles distant from his 
 present position. General Kearny sent out Lieutenant Hammond 
 with a party to reconnoitre. This party saw, and was seen by, 
 the foe. The reveille sounded at two o'clock on the morning of 
 the 6th December, and at three the march was resumed in 
 order of battle. The enemy, one hundred and eighty fresh, well- 
 armed, and well-mounted men, under Colonel Andreas Pico, 
 were already in the saddle, prepared for an attack. Here then, 
 at length, the little section of the army, weary and worn from its 
 perilous and most harassing march over the half of a mighty 
 continent, ill clad, ill mounted, and ill fed, was to grapple for the 
 first time, and at his own door, with the foe. 
 
 General Kearny, with Lieutenants Emory and Warner at his 
 side, rode immediately in rear of Captain Johnson and the ad- 
 vanced guard of twelve dragoons, mounted on the best horses 
 that remained. Then followed Captain Moore, with about fifty 
 of the dragoons, mounted, with few exceptions, on the jaded and 
 
OF THE 
 
 ACTIONS 
 
 r OUGHT AT 
 
 SAM IPA^'JQWAIC 
 
 IN 
 UPPER CALIFORNIA 
 
 Between the x'\mencaTis 
 
 and Mexicans 
 
 l'-^ 1846 
 
BATTLE OF SAN PASQUAL. 253 
 
 famished mules they had ridden, over one thousand and fifty 
 miles, from Santa F^. Next came Captains Gibson and Gilles- 
 pie, with twenty of their volunteers : Lieutenant Davidson, with 
 the two howitzers, managed by dragoons, brought up the rear. 
 The remainder of the force, dragoons, volunteers, and citizens, 
 were left to protect and bring on the baggage, under command 
 of Major Swords, the quartermaster of the expedition. 
 
 Drawn nigh to the enemy. Captain Johnson made a furious 
 charge upon them with his advanced guard, promptly supported 
 by General Kearny and Captain Moore. The Californians with- 
 stood not the shock, but pouring in a continual fire, gave way 
 and retreated to an open plain about half a mile distant. Eagerly 
 Captain Moore, with the few dragoons on horseback, pursued ; 
 the tired mules slowly seconded the ardour of their riders, and 
 soon an interval was left between the hot pursuers and these thus 
 retarded in their support. Well mounted, and among the most 
 expert horsemen in the world, the enemy rallied in full force, 
 took advantage of the interval, charged with desperation on the 
 advance, and from their overwhelming superiority in numbers, 
 made dreadful havoc with their long lances. For five minutes 
 they furiously held the ground, for five minutes the rapidly thin- 
 ning handful around the general bore up against the storm : the 
 support came up, hand to hand the fierce but unequal fight con- 
 tinued for half an hour ; then the outnumbering foe was repulsed, 
 and fled from the field, to which they returned not again. The 
 affrighted and wholly unmanageable mules had refused to bring 
 their howitzers into the fight. 
 
 With the dawning of the day, the smoke cleared off from the 
 battle-field, permitting the victors to collect their wounded and 
 their dead. Of officers and men, sixteen wounded and nineteen 
 slain, gave melancholy evidence of how hardly the victory had 
 been won. The killed were Captains Johnson and Moore, 
 Lieutenant Hammond, Sergeants Moore and Whitehurst, Cor- 
 
254 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 porals Clapin and West, and ten privates of the 1st dragoons, 
 one private of the topographical corps, and one volunteer. The 
 wounded included General Kearny, Captains Gibson and Gilles- 
 pie, Lieutenant Warner, Mr. Robideaux, .Sergeant Cox, and ten 
 privates of the dragoons. On the next day, the gallant Sergeant 
 Cox died of his wounds. Many of the survivors had from two to 
 ten lance- wounds; Captain Gillespie and Lieutenant Warner had- 
 three each ; the general two, and these so serious, that during 
 the remainder of the day, Captain Turner assumed the command. 
 The loss of the enemy was not ascertained, they having carried 
 off in their final retreat all the wounded and the dead, excepting 
 six ; but it must have been severe. 
 
 Having been assured that the dead, wherever buried, would be 
 dug up, that the bodies might be stripped of their clothing, the 
 sorrowing victors bound on mules the remains of their fallen com- 
 panions, with the intention of taking them to San Diego, there to 
 be decently interred ; but the number of mules required for con- 
 veyance of the wounded, caused this intention to be abandoned, 
 and the men were engaged in fortifying the camp for the night. 
 During the whole of the 6th, the enemy hovering around, kept 
 the camp in constant and harassing excitement. Early in the 
 day three of Captain Gillespie's volunteers were despatched to 
 San Diego, thirty-nine miles distant, to procure conveyances for 
 the wounded. As night closed in, under a willow that grew 
 beside the battle-field, were laid to rest, in all possible silence 
 and secrecy, the departed brave. Thus to lay down for ever in 
 the strange land, far away from kindred and from home, those 
 whom a march together of two thousand miles, common hopes 
 and hardships, common dangers, enjoyments and privations, had 
 familarized and endeared, was to the survivors of this little band 
 of brothers no common grief. 
 
 On the ground where they were forced to encamp, rocks and cacti 
 afforded scarcely so much of level space as to accommodate the 
 
BATTLE OF SAN BARNARDO. 255 
 
 wounded during the damp, cold night, and sleep was denied 
 even after thirty hours of ceaseless exertion and fatigue. The dawn 
 of the 7th called to new efforts and new endurance ; the column 
 was now reduced to one-third of its number, worn down with 
 toil, ragged and emaciated, with mules fast falling away, horses 
 dead, and provisions exhausted. By the skill and untiring assi- 
 duities of Dr. Griffin, the only surgeon of the party, the wounded 
 men were now capable of being removed in rudely formed ambu- 
 lances, and General Kearny was enabled to resume the command. 
 Pursuing the San Barnardo road towards San Diego, they found 
 the enemy occupying the hills in their front, but retiring as they 
 approached. At the rancheria of San Barnardo, they watered 
 their horses and procured refreshments for the sick, then moving 
 towards the bed of the river, drove before them many cattle, a 
 much needed supply. These, however, had soon to be aban- 
 doned, for the enemy debouching from the hills in the rear, sent 
 forward a party in full gallop to seize a hill commanding the 
 road, and these it became necessary to dislodge. To accomplish 
 this, was but the work of a few moments, and the task of the 
 advance. The Californians had five or six killed and wounded in 
 the skirmish, which entailed on the victors no other loss than that 
 of the cattle, one sufficiently serious under the circumstances. 
 Against a force so numerically superior and so splendidly mount- 
 ed, it was impossible to move, while the ambulances required 
 the services of half the effective men ; and even with the tender- 
 est care in transporting them, the sufferings of the sick were 
 exceedingly distressing. Here, therefore, the general encamped, 
 to wait until the wounded could be carried on horseback, resolved 
 then to cut his way to San Diego. 
 
 A flag of truce sent in by Pico on the morning of the 8th, led 
 to a conference ; he wishing to exchange four Americans, whom 
 he had captured, for an equal number of Californians. Unfor- 
 tunately there was but one Californian prisoner in camp ; but 
 
256 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 this one was well exchanged for Burgess, who was one of those 
 despatched to Commodore Stockton on the 6th. He and his 
 companions had arrived safely in San Diego, and on their return 
 had, previously to their capture, concealed their letters under a 
 tree ; but on subsequent examination, it was found that these had 
 been abstracted. That night. Lieutenant Beall of the navy, Mr. 
 Carson, and an Indian, voluntarily went forth, on the perilous 
 attempt of reaching San Diego, nine-and-twenty miles distant, 
 and every pass towards which was now occupied by the 
 enemy. 
 
 During four days' rest in this camp, as for many days before, 
 their food was the meat of the poor worn-down horses and mules ; 
 but the wounded were going on well, and on the evening of the 
 10th all save two were declared by the surgeon ready for the saddle. 
 Orders were given to resume the march next morning. Before 
 daybreak, they were joyously surprised by the arrival in camp 
 of Lieutenant Gray, of the navy, sent out from San Diego by 
 Commodore Stockton, with an escort of one hundred tars and 
 eighty marines. Beall, Carson, and the Indian, had safely 
 arrived in San Diego. The gallant new-comers found glad em- 
 ployment until day, in distributing among the naked and famished 
 soldiers their own clothing and provisions. 
 
 By ten in the forenoon of the 11th December, the united force 
 was on its route. Before them the enemy precipitately fled, 
 leaving behind most of the cattle, for which they had so eagerly 
 contested. This day first burst upon their view, from one of the 
 hills, the broad Pacific, henceforth to be their country's western 
 boundary. On the 12th they entered San Diego, having thus 
 terminated the arduous march of one thousand and ninety miles 
 from Santa Fd. 
 
 The preparations for the contemplated expedition against Ciu- 
 dad de los Angelos, distant one hundred and forty-five miles, 
 having been steadily pushed forward, at the request of Coramo- 
 
BATTLE OF THE SAN GABRIEL. 257 
 
 (lore Stockton, who had in September assumed the title of Go- 
 vernor of California, General Kearny assumed the command, and 
 went forth from San Diego, on tie 29th of December, at the head 
 of about five hundred men. The force was constituted thus : 
 sixty dismounted dragoons consolidated into one company, under 
 Captain Turner ; fifty Californian volunteers, commanded by Cap- 
 tain Gillespie ; the remainder, sailors and marines, acting as 
 infantry and artillery, with six great guns of various calibre ; Lieu- 
 tenant Emory acted as assistant adjutant-general, and Commodore 
 Stockton accompanied the army. 
 
 Progress was slow, the oxen used in the wagons being poor, 
 and the wagons themselves of' the miserable construction of the 
 country. No enemy was seen until January the 8th, when they 
 showed themselves in full force, under their acting governor and 
 captain-general, Flores, occupying with six hundred men and four 
 pieces of artillery the heights in front commanding the San 
 Gabriel, and evidently prepared to dispute the passage of that 
 river. The troops were immediately disposed in the order best 
 adapted to meet a wholly mounted force, a strong party of skir- 
 mishers being thrown forward to cover the front, the wagons 
 and baggage occupying the centre, and the remainder of the 
 command protecting the flanks. The position of the enemy was 
 highly favourable. A ridge fifty feet high ran parallel with the 
 bank on his side of the river, on which he posted his artillery, 
 and just behind this hill, on either flank, a squadron of his cavalry 
 awaited the favourable moment for a charge. As the leading 
 ))attalion, deploying as skirmishers, reached the middle of the 
 stream, the battery on the hill opened upon them, and made the 
 water fly around with grape and round-shot. The artillery tars 
 were now ordered forward, the guns were quickly unlimbered, 
 pulled over cheerily by the men, and planted in counter battery 
 on the enemy's side. And soon, and briskly, they sent forth 
 their thundering replies to the hill, making the fire from the latter 
 
258 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 wild and uncertain. Thus covered, the baggage and cattle were 
 with great toil, forced across the river, which flowed one hundred 
 yards wide and about twenty inches deep, over a bottom of quick- 
 sand. Under a natural banquette, breast-high, on the right bank, 
 the troops deployed into line, while a heavy shower of round-shot 
 and of grape passed chiefly over their heads. In an hour and 
 twenty minutes the baggage-train had all crossed, the artillery 
 of the enemy was silenced, and the troops were in full charge 
 upon the hill. Half way between the bank and the hill, the foe 
 made a furious charge on the left flank, while the right was 
 menaced at the same moment. A volley or two repulsed the hot 
 assailants, and in ten minutes more the heights were carried, and 
 our troops masters of the field. Pursuit was impossible, from the 
 wretched condition of the wagon-train, which, bearing provisions 
 for the garrison intended to be left in the city of Los Angelos, 
 could not be abandoned. On the battle-field the army encamped 
 that night. 
 
 Next morning, the cattle but little refreshed, the route was 
 leisurely pursued across the Mesa, a wide plain, lying between 
 the San Gabriel and the stream, called indifferently the Rio San 
 Fernando, and the Rio de los Angelos. The enemy hung con- 
 tinually on the front and flanks for a distance of about six miles, 
 then concentrated their force at a crest and ravine, that com- 
 manded the road on the right. Here General Flores addressed 
 his men, urging them to make one more bold and determined 
 charge, to which he promised certain success. Deviating to the 
 left of the road, to deprive him of the vantage-ground for his 
 artillery, the army steadily pursued its march, disregarding the 
 fire which the enemy opened with his artillery from a distance. 
 Flores now deployed his force, making a horse-shoe in the 
 column's front, and opening with his nine-pounders a galling 
 fire on the right flank. A halt was called to silence this annoyance, 
 which was a fifteen minutes' work, and the order was again 
 
.^/J 
 
OCCUPATION OF LOS ANGELOS. 259 
 
 given to move forward, when down came the enemy at once on 
 the left flank and the rear in menacing charge. One volley from 
 the small-arms brought them to a check ; a round of grape com- 
 pleted their repulse. The accoutrements of their fallen horses, 
 with their dead and wounded, they bore away on horseback to 
 the hills. Now, three o'clock in the afternoon, the town was 
 distant only four miles. It was known to abound in wine and 
 agua ardiente ; with wise precaution, therefore, the general led 
 his little army of conquerors across the stream, and encamped 
 some three miles below the town. 
 
 During these two days, the loss on the part of the Americans 
 was small. In the spirited battle of the 8th, one seaman, acting 
 artilleryman, was killed, one volunteer and eight seamen wounded, 
 of whom two subsequently died. In the continued skirmishing 
 and annoying affairs of the 9th, one dragoon and two seamen 
 were severely wounded ; Capt. Gillespie of the volunteers, and 
 Lieutenant Rowan of the navy, were slightly contused by spent 
 balls. Their extraordinary expertness on horseback, enabled the 
 enemy to carry off all their dead and wounded, and so conceal 
 their loss, but it must have been comparatively great ; it was 
 estimated at eighty-five. 
 
 Next morning the army entered, without encountering opposi- 
 tion, the City of the Angels, the capital of California, and hitherto 
 the centre of the wealth and population of that province, as well 
 as the focus of revolution, and the point of military power. On 
 the 14th, Colonel Fremont, with four hundred volunteers raised 
 in the neighbourhood of the Sacramento, reported himself at the 
 capital. With him a portion of the enemy had on the preceding 
 day entered into terms of capitulation, among them Andreas 
 Pico, second to Flores in command of the insurgents, who had 
 by breaking his parole forfeited his life, but by this capitulation 
 procured pardon. Don Jose Mariana Flores made good his 
 35 
 
260 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 escape to Sonera. The revolt was now effectually quelled, and 
 the country peaceably submitted to American authority. 
 
 At the meeting of these three distinguished officers, Kearny, 
 Stockton, and Fremont, each of whom had so materially contribu- 
 ted to the success and the glory of their country's arms, difficul- 
 ties unhappily arose, as to their relative powers and position in 
 the conquered territory. About the 16th of January, Commodore 
 Stockton, acting, according to his own opinion, in strict con- 
 formity with the instructions received by his predecessor in the 
 naval command, and by himself, proceeded to organize a tem- 
 porary civil government for California, and nominated Colonel 
 Fremont as governor. Against this procedure General Kearny 
 protested, and in writing assured the commodore, that to him 
 (General K.) the President had confided the sole right of erect- 
 ing a civil government in California. Commodore Stockton, 
 relying on his instructions, refused to acknowledge General 
 Kearny's authority. Colonel Fremont abided by the decision of 
 the commodore. 
 
 The instructions, under which General Kearny claimed his 
 right to sole authority in the territorial government of the conquest, 
 have been materially embodied in the preceding chapter. For 
 the more ready comprehension of the counter-claim, a brief 
 retrospect may be desirable. 
 
 By a " secret and confidential order" from the Navy Depart- 
 ment, bearing date June 24, 1845, Commodore Sloat, then com- 
 manding the United States naval forces in the Pacific, was 
 instructed, so soon as he should ascertain beyond a doubt that 
 Mexico had declared war against the United States, to " at once 
 employ the force under his command to the best advantage," " to 
 at once possess himself of the port of San Francisco, and blockade 
 or occupy such other ports as his force may permit." In subse- 
 quent orders from the same department, under date respectively, 
 May 13th, May 15th, and June 8th, 1846, those instructions 
 
Fremont's operations. 261 
 
 were confirmed, and the commodore was expressly directed to 
 exercise all the rights that belonged to him as commander-in- 
 chief of a belligerent squadron ; while in every communication 
 the importance was urged of establishing friendly relations with 
 the people of California, and making the occupation of the ports 
 a benefit to the inhabitants. 
 
 On the 7th of June, Commodore Sloat, then at Mazatlan, in 
 the Savannah, received intelligence of the actual outbreak of hos- 
 tilities, and properly considered these as justifying his commenc- 
 ing offensive operations on the west coast, under the order of 
 June, 1845. Immediately he set sail for Monterey, landed the 
 necessary force of seamen and marines, entered that town, hoisted 
 the standard of the United States, without bloodshed or strenuous 
 opposition, and issued his proclamation, declaring, among other 
 things, California henceforth to be a portion of the United States. 
 Other ports were similarly occupied, and possession of the coast, 
 with its bays and harbours, secured. 
 
 About the same time, Lieutenant-Colonel Fremont, then near 
 the settlement of Sonoma, on the bay of San Francisco, with his 
 topographical corps, had been compelled in self-defence to hoist 
 the American flag and raise a volunteer force, in consequence of 
 the extraordinary, unprovoked, and faithless conduct of De Castro, 
 governor of Upper California. The design of the latter was 
 avowed, to attack and destroy, not only Fremont's party, but all 
 the American settlers. Hemmed in by a treacherous foe, more 
 than tenfold his number, Fremont turned on his pursuers, defeated 
 them in fiercely contested engagements, and on the 4th of July, 
 at Sonoma, headed the American and foreign residents in a 
 declaration of independence, and war against De Castro and his 
 troops, as the only means of safety. A few days afterwards an 
 officer from Commodore Sloat brought intelligence of his capture 
 of Monterey. Colonel Fremont, then leaving some fifty men in 
 garrisons behind him, set forth in pursuit of De Castro with one 
 
 I 
 
262 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 hundred and sixt)' riflemen, when he received instructions from 
 Commodore Sloat to march upon Monterey. 
 
 On the 29th July Commodore Stockton succeeded to the naval 
 command, and therewith to the authority conveyed in the instruc- 
 tions from the Naval Department. He declared the whole coast 
 of California to be in a state of blockade, proclaimed himself 
 governor and commander-in-chief of all the forces by sea and 
 land, and claimed by right of conquest the whole territory of 
 Upper and Lower California as a territory of the United States, a 
 form of government for which he forthwith caused to be promul- 
 gated. He next organized the " California Mounted Riflemen," 
 of the men who had followed Fremont, received them as volun- 
 teers into the service of the United States, appointing Captain 
 Fremont their major, and Lieutenant Gillespie, of the marines, 
 their captain. Directing Major Fremont to proceed to San Diego 
 in the sloop-of-war Cyane, with his one hundred and sixty rifle- 
 men and seventy marines, for the purpose of intercepting or cap- 
 turing De Castio, the commodore himself set sail for San Pedro, 
 and uniting their forces, on the 13th of August, both these com- 
 manders marched upon, and took without opposition, Ciudad de 
 los Angelos. 
 
 Thus unvarying success had already crowned the arms of the 
 republic, and the whole country was under dominion of her flag, 
 ere yet the despatch of the 13th of May, and the President's pro- 
 clamation in reference to the war, had reached the officers 
 engaged. 
 
 Two subsequent despatches from the Secretary of the Navy, 
 bore date July 12th and August 13th. They embodied the sub- 
 stance of previous instructions, and added, that the object of the 
 United States was, under its rights as a belligerent nation, to pos- 
 sess itself entirely of Upper California. That object had refer- 
 ence to ultimate peace with Mexico ; and if, at that peace, the 
 basis of the uti possidetis should be established, the government 
 
KEARNY'S GENERAL ORDER. 263 
 
 expected, through the forces under the commodore, to be found 
 in actual possession of Upper California. This would bring with 
 it the necessity of a civil administration. Such a government 
 should be established under the commodore's protection. 
 
 Under all these instructions, directed at various times to the 
 commander of the naval forces in the Pacific, Commodore Stock- 
 ton now asserted his superior authority in California ; and, disre- 
 garding the protest and representations of General Kearny, per- 
 sisted in confirming the appointment, as governor, of Colonel 
 Fremont. 
 
 General Kearny withdrew to San Diego, where on the 29th of 
 January he was joined by the Mormon battalion, four hundred 
 strong, under Lieutenant-Colonel Cooke, of the 2d U. S. dra- 
 goons. This corps arrived in excellent condition and fine health, 
 having had no serious loss during their long march, and in their 
 appearance, conduct, and discipline, reflecting the highest honour 
 on their military' chief. 
 
 On the 23d of Januaiy, Commodore W. B. Shubrick, in the 
 razee Independence, arrived at Monterey, and assumed command 
 of all the naval forces, and on the 1st of February issued his first 
 general order. General Kearny, leaving the Mormons at San 
 Diego, went on board the Cyane, and arrived at Monterey on the 
 8th of February. The interview and arrangements between 
 these two officers proved perfectly harmonious. Commodore 
 Shubrick, and subsequently Commodore Biddle, his senior, cor- 
 dially supported the views of the general, and co-operated with 
 him in carrying out his instructions. In consequence, the follow- 
 ing general order was by them jointly promulgated : — 
 
 " To all whom it may concern, be it known — That the Presi- 
 dent of the United States, desirous to give and secure to the 
 people of California a share of the good government and happy civil 
 organization enjoyed by the people of the United States, and to 
 
264 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 protect them at the same time from the attacks of foreign foes, 
 and from internal commotions, has invested the undersigned with 
 separate and distinct powers, civil and military; a cordial co- 
 operation in the exercise of which, it is hoped and believed, will 
 have the happy results desired. To the commander-in-chief of 
 the naval forces, the President has assigned the regulation of the 
 import trade, with conditions on which vessels of all nations 
 (our own as well as foreign) may be admitted into the ports of 
 the territory, and the establishment of all port- regulations. To 
 the commanding military officer, the President has assigned the 
 direction of the operations on land, and has invested him with 
 administrative functions of government over the people and 
 territory occupied by the forces of the United States. Done at 
 Monterey, capital of California, this 1st day of March, A. D. 1847. 
 W. BRANDFORD SHUBRICK, 
 Commander-in-chief of the JYaval Forces. 
 S. W. KEARNY, 
 Brig, Gen. U. S. A. and Governor of California.'''' 
 
 On the same day the general issued his proclamation as gover- 
 nor, promising respect and protection to person, property, and 
 religion, absolving the inhabitants from all ties of allegiance to 
 Mexico, assuring the people of the early establishment of a free 
 government, and earnestly urging peace and union, and combined 
 efforts to promote the prosperity and happiness of the country. 
 
 Early in February Captain Tompkins and his company of the 
 3d United States artillery arrived in the transport Lexington, 
 with 24-pounders, mortars, ordnance stores, and intrenching 
 tools : the company was stationed in Monterey. On the 6th of 
 March, Colonel Stevenson arrived at San Francisco, in the ship 
 T. H. Perkins, with two hundred and fifty men of the New York 
 California volunteers — and a few days after, other transports 
 brought the remainder of that regiment, numbering, in full, eight 
 
Kearny's return. 265 
 
 hundred men, and including many mechanics : they brought with 
 them, in addition to six pieces of artillery and a supply of small- 
 arms, machinery for saw and grist-mills, mechanics' tools, and 
 other materiel of industry. With these forces little fears could 
 be entertained that the peace of the territory would again be 
 easily disturbed. Settlements were made and towns founded, 
 confidence was restored, and industry, released from terror and 
 doubt, was now active, under the impartial and wise protection 
 of the American flag. 
 
 The work which had been assigned to General Kearny was 
 completed — the object of his government fully achieved — the 
 honour of his country maintained and exalted — his name and the 
 fame of his little army written imperishably on the brightest 
 pages of that country's history. On the 31st of May, 1847, hav- 
 ing transferred to Colonel R. B. Mason the authority and duties 
 of governor and commander-in-chief, the general, with his staff 
 and a small party of officers, set out on his return to the United 
 States. Difficult and hazardous was his route of two thousand 
 two hundred miles across the continent. On the 22d of August 
 he arrived at Fort Leavenworth. A little more than one year had 
 sped by since last its flag saluted him — the story of those inter- 
 vening twelve months has yet in military annals to find a parallel. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Colonel Doniphan's Expedition against the Navajoes — Treaty with the Indians— 
 The Zumians — March upon Chihuahua — Battle of the Brazito — Town and Val- 
 ley of El Paso — March continued — Enemy's position at the Sacramento — Battle 
 of the Sacramento — Occupation of Chihuahua — Mai'ch for Saltillo — Affairs in 
 New Mexico — Plot discovered — Second Conspiracy — Governor Bent murdered 
 — Pueblo de Taos — Insurrection quelled. 
 
 Fulfilment of the promises of protection made to the people 
 of New Mexico by their conquerors, was neither forgotten, nor 
 delayed. From La Joya, on his route to the Pacific, General 
 Kearny addressed to Colonel Doniphan at Santa F6 an express, 
 instructing him to defer his contemplated movement on Chihua- 
 hua, and to proceed with his regiment into the hill country of the 
 Navajoes, to effect the restitution of all prisoners and property 
 taken by stealth or violence from the newly- subjugated people, 
 and to exact from that half-civilized, fierce, and powerful tribe, 
 ample security for their future good conduct. These warlike 
 Indians have, for full two centuries, been the terror and the 
 scourge of the New Mexican border. From the range of moun- 
 tains bounding the valley of the Del Norte, their country stretches 
 away down the tributaries of the Colorado, and towards the set- 
 tlements of California on the west, the Cordilleras, and the high- 
 lands beyond, affording them strongholds and almost inaccessible 
 retreats. Without towns or permanent abodes, they live chiefly 
 on horseback, and in the open air, wealthy in countless h^rds of 
 horses, cattle, and sheep ; yet, ever at the dictate of i^ild caprice, 
 or in the spirit of a long-cherished hate, descending^ on the vil- 
 lages and settlements of the valley, plundering and destroying 
 
 (266) 
 
EXPEDITION AGAINST THE NAVAJOES. 267 
 
 wherever they come. In their latest incursion they had slain 
 seven or eight men, taken off captive as many women and chil- 
 dren, and driven away into their highlands ten thousand head of 
 sheep, cattle, and mules. 
 
 Leaving the town of Santa F^, on the 26th of October, Colonel 
 Doniphan divided his command into separate detachments, and 
 invaded the Navajo country by three routes. The season was 
 far advanced, and winter had set in with more than usual 
 severity. For artillery and wagons the country was wholly im- 
 practicable ; mules with pack-saddles, therefore, alone accompa- 
 nied the force, which, without tents, almost destitute of shoes and 
 clothing, and stinted in provisions, pursued over snow-clad 
 mountains, and through precipitous ravines, barricaded by stu- 
 pendous cliffs, and paved with huge masses and sharp fragments 
 of the living rock, its strangely perilous way. Their daily march 
 was through snows gathered deeply in the gorges, up mountain 
 walls pendent with icicles, along narrow ledges overhanging 
 appalling chasms, where an error or a stumble W'ould have hurled 
 horse and man among jagged and pointed rocks, hundreds of 
 feet below. As the days passed on, the cold became intense ; 
 yet frequently at night, the adventurous soldiers laid down their 
 weary bodies, wrapped in blankets and skins, on the rugged 
 earth or the frozen snow, and rose in the morning from beneath 
 a newly-fallen coverlet of snow, with limbs benumbed, and 
 icicles pendent in clusters from beard and hair. Even when 
 they reached the diversified table-lands and the rich valleys, the 
 snow continued equally deep, and the cold no less severe. Suc- 
 cess crowned such fearless resolution. The Mexicans looked 
 with undisguised amazement on what they considered the extreme 
 of temerity ; the braver Indians, with respect upon the strangers 
 whose skill and courage they could appreciate, a respect soon 
 deepened into reverence by the generous confidence, the fairness 
 and fidelity in every instance displayed. Every portion of their 
 36 - 
 
268 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 country was visited, and with incredible toil about three-fourths 
 of the adult males of their tribe, including all the head chiefs, 
 were collected to a conference at the OJo Oso, the Bear Spring, 
 situate in the Navajo country. And here, after two days' delibe- 
 rations, was made a permanent treaty of peace and amity between 
 the American people — in which term were specially included the 
 New Mexicans and the Pueblo Indians — and this hitherto irre- 
 concileable and tameless race. To the memorandum of this 
 treaty, signed on the 22d of November, by Colonel Doniphan, 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Jackson, and Major Gilpin, fourteen Indian 
 chiefs appended their marks. 
 
 Returning through the large and singularly built town of Zuni, 
 situate about two hundred miles west of the Del Norte, and con- 
 taining an interesting, intelligent, and honest population of about 
 six thousand persons, who look upon the New Mexicans as an 
 inferior race, and are said to have preserved to this day the 
 ancient Aztec character, arts, and habits, Colonel Doniphan was 
 enabled by skilful diplomacy to effect a reconciliation and treaty 
 of peace between them and the Navajoes, hitherto mutual foes 
 Thus, in despite of physical privations, in the face of the obstacle 
 of nature, and the incessant hostility of the elements, the import- 
 ant object of the expedition was accomplished. By different 
 routes, each rivalling each in dreariness, difficulty, and danger, 
 and all by the Mexicans declared to be impracticable, the several 
 detachments of the force arrived, between the 8th and 12th of De- 
 cember, at Valverde, on the Del Norte, the appointed rendezvous. 
 
 The advance, consisting of three hundred men under command 
 of Major Gilpin, took up the line of march southward from Val- 
 verde, on the 14th of December. Lieutenant-Colonel Jackson 
 followed, with two hundred men, on the 16th. While yet 
 Colonel Doniphan was in the Navajo country, Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Mitchell, accompanied by Captain Thompson, of tlie 
 United States 1st dragoons, had been despatched by Colonel 
 
BATTLE OF THE BRAZITO. 269 
 
 Price from Santa Fe with an escort of between ninety and one 
 hundred men, volunteers from the 2d mounted regiment, and the 
 light artillery of Missouri, with the view of opening a communi- 
 cation with General Wool. This force having passed down the 
 valley of the Del Norte, joined the column of Colonel Doniphan, 
 who, thus strengthened, left Valverde, with the remainder of his 
 command, on Dec. I8th. The whole force was eight hundred 
 and fifty-six effective men, armed with rifles — no artillery. Before 
 leaving Valverde, information of the advance of the enemy to 
 the defence of El Paso, on the Chihuahua road, induced Colonel 
 Doniphan to send orders to Santa F^ for Major Clarke, of the 
 Missouri artillery, to join him at the earliest possible moment, with 
 one hundred men, and a battery of howitzers. That union could 
 not be effected until the 1st of February following. 
 
 The march lay along the Rio Grande to Fra Christobal, and 
 thence across the dreary and dreaded desert, known by the 
 appropriately ominous name El Jornada del Muerto^ " the journey 
 of the dead." On the 22d, at Doiia Anna, the whole force was 
 consolidated, and a number of traders, with over three hundred 
 wagons, fell in with the baggage and provision trains in the rear. 
 Certain intelligence now came that seven hundred men and six 
 pieces of cannon had reached the pass of the river, sixty miles 
 below. The column moved forward in gay anticipation on 
 the 23d. 
 
 About three o'clock in the afternoon of Christmas-day, after a 
 merry march of eighteen miles, the advance of five hundred men 
 was called to a halt, at the Brazito, or little arm of the river, for 
 the purpose of encamping. The horses were unsaddled and let 
 loose to graze, and the men, scattered in all directions, were busy 
 in quest of wood and water. Suddenly a thick cloud of dust 
 arose and moved towards them from the direction of El Paso, and 
 soon one of the advanced guard in full speed announced that the 
 enemy was at hand. To the call of the bugle the men hastily 
 
270. HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 collected ; time to horse there was not ; in open order, and on 
 foot, the troops formed as skirmishers, the extremes of the wings 
 thrown towards the river to protect the flanks, the baggage, and 
 the traders' wagons. The enemy, under General Ponc^ de Leon, 
 numbered twelve hundred and twenty men, of whom five hun- 
 dred and thirty-seven were well-mounted and splendidly equipped 
 lancers and dragoons, from Vera Cruz and Chihuahua ; the remain- 
 der, infantry from Chihuahua and El Paso, with one 2-pound 
 howitzer. To the east, within half a mile of the American 
 troops, they drew up their line in gallant and imposing array, the 
 Vera Cruz dragoons on the right, the Chihuahua Activo battalion 
 on the left, the infantry and militia, with the howitzer, in the 
 centre. 
 
 From their marshalled ranks rode forward briskly a lieutenant 
 bearing a hlack flag : he halted at a distance of about one hun- 
 dred paces, and through the American interpreter delivered his 
 presumptuous message, and received an approriate response. 
 He came to demand that the commander of the column should 
 go over to confer with his general, menacing, at the same time, 
 that, unless the demand was complied with, they would charge 
 and take him, adding that they gave no quarter and asked none. 
 Receiving in reply a scornful defiance, he gracefully waved his 
 black flag, and galloped back to the Mexican lines. 
 
 Instantly and boldly their charge commenced, the Vera Cruz 
 dragoons riding in firm array down on the left of the American 
 line. The charge was coolly met, and when within a few rods 
 a deadly volley, again repeated and again, rained in among them 
 dreadful execution. The remainder of their force pressed forward 
 simultaneously, and under cover of the intervening chaparral 
 three rounds were fired by their whole line, seconded by the 
 howitzer, before a single rifle was discharged in return. Colonel 
 Doniphan had directed his men to lie down on their faces, and 
 reserve their fire until the foe came within sixty paces. The 
 
BATTLE OF THE BRAZITO. 271 
 
 manoeuvre fully succeeded. The Mexicans, supposing they had 
 caused great destruction in the quickly dropping ranks, pushed 
 forward exultingly, when, suddenly rising, the whole centre and 
 right wing sent forth a volley so terribly unerring, that the foe 
 reeled, turned, and fled in irredeemable confusion, while the 
 Howard county company, dashing into the me\4e, captured and 
 bore away the cannon. Meantime, the ever vigilant and intrepid 
 Captain Reid gallantly led up; against the Vera Cruz dragoons, 
 rallying on the left, twenty of his regiment who had succeeded 
 in regaining the saddle. Furiously this little squad charged on, 
 and into the force more than threefold their number, broke their 
 ranks, and with their sabres hewed destructively around. Here, 
 for full twenty minutes, the desperate fight continued. Another 
 division of the enemy's horse, having outflanked the left of the 
 line, and attacked the commissary and baggage train, were met 
 by a well directed fire from the steady soldier-wagoners — and 
 soon over every part of the field the foe was in disorderly flight. 
 In the contiguous mountains they found refuge. 
 
 The volunteer force in this engagement was under five hun- 
 dred, the rear, under Lieutenant-Colonel Jackson, not having 
 arrived until the battle was entirely ended ; their loss, none killed 
 — seven wounded, all of whom recovered to participate in future 
 struggles and renown. The strength of the enemy has been 
 already given : their loss, so-far as could be ascertained, exceeded 
 seventy killed, and a hundred and fifty wounded, including their 
 commanding officer. General Ponce de Leon. Besides the how- 
 itzer, a number of carbines, several stands of colours, a large 
 quantity of ammunition and baggage, with ample store of provi- 
 sions and delicious wines, were among the spoils. The latter 
 supplied the victors no unwelcome feast for their merry Christmas 
 night. 
 
 Such was the battle of Brazito, the first in which the volunteers 
 of the West crossed weapons with the foe. With troops fresh 
 
2T2 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 and vigorous, and outnumbering them in the proportion of five to 
 two, their struggle was brief, their victory brilliant. Brighter 
 laurels were none, than Missouri won that day. 
 
 Proceeding with military precaution, in anticipation of another 
 attack, the army entered without opposition the populous town 
 of El Paso, on the 27th. Here it was ascertained that General 
 Wool had not as yet advanced on Chihuahua. A forward move- 
 ment under these circumstances was judged extremely hazard- 
 ous, and therefore Colonel Doniphan resolved to await at this 
 point the arrival of the artillery ordered from Santa Fe. 
 
 The beautiful and fertile valley of El Paso extends along the 
 Rio Grande about two-and-twenty miles, by an average breadth 
 often, and is occupied by a peaceable population, whose settle- 
 ments present the appearance of a continuous farm, thickly 
 -intervalled by orchards and vineyards. The fruits and wines of 
 the valley are of unsurpassed excellence, the produce in grain 
 abundant. By the capture of the town. Colonel Doniphan was 
 placed in possession of more than twenty thousand pounds of 
 powder, lead, musket and great-gun cartridge, grape and canister 
 shot, and of five hundred stands of small arms, four hundred 
 lances, four pieces of cannon, and several stands of colours. 
 
 Finding that, contrary to representations industriously circu- 
 lated among them, and unblushingly put forward even by their 
 chief officers and clergy, the Americans behaved themselves in 
 the captured city with the greatest forbearance, order, respect, 
 and humanity, the inhabitants soon abandoned their doubts and 
 hostility, and gratefully repaid such unexpected conduct by 
 friendly and generous hospitality. The men now fared sumptu- 
 ously every day, purchasing in the well supplied markets the 
 more substantial food they desired, and having kindly pressed 
 upon them the rich fruits, luscious wines, and other luxuries of 
 the place. Hours of reasonable relaxation, and the intercourse 
 of amity with the citizens, alternated with company and regi- 
 
MARCH CONTINUED. 273 
 
 mental drills and other military exercises, and the preparation 
 of supply and outfit for the march on Chihuahua. 
 
 Events in New Mexico caused the detention for several w^eeks 
 of the artillery. At length Colonel Price found himself in a position 
 to comply with Colonel Doniphan's order, and despatched Major 
 Clark with one hundred and seventeen men, and six pieces of 
 cannon, which, after extraordinary exertion and toil through the 
 deserts and deep snows, reached El Paso on the 1st of February. 
 On the 8th, the column was on march for Chihuahua. It was an 
 enterprise pre-eminently perilous ; and the national heart beat 
 more quickly in suspense for the fate of the heroic army, thus 
 thrown out upon their own unaided resources, in the very centre 
 of innuraerous foes, and encompassed by natural obstacles still 
 more to be dreaded. 
 
 We must not stay to record the hardships they endured, and 
 the dangers they encountered from the deserts, the flinty canons, 
 and fire on the prairie. The force consisted of nine hundred and 
 twenty-four effective men ; of whom one hundred and seventeen 
 officers and privates were of the artillery, ninety-three of Colonel 
 Mitchell's escort, and the remainder of the 1st mounted volun- 
 teers, all of" Missouri. The merchant-train under their escort 
 numbered three hundred and fifteen wagons ; and, at the recom- 
 mendation of Colonel Doniphan, the merchants and teamsters 
 organized themselves into a well-armed and highly efficient corps 
 of about one hundred and fifty men, in two companies, commanded 
 respectively by Captains Skillman and Glasgow, with Samuel C. 
 Owens elected their major. On the 25th, they reached the shallow, 
 brackish Laguna de Encenillas, about twenty miles long and 
 three miles wide, two hundred and seven miles below El Paso, 
 and seventy- four from Chihuahua. Previous rumours now shaped 
 themselves into intelligence, that about twenty-five miles in 
 advance, and near the margin of the lake, the enemy was 
 in force at Inseneas, the country-seat of Don Angel Trias, 
 
274 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 governor of Chihuahua. Arrived at Inseneas on the evening of 
 the 26th, they found it evacuated by the military ; and on the 
 following evening, at the Fort of Sans, they learned from their 
 spies that the enemy, in great force, had fortified the pass of the 
 Sacramento river, about fifteen miles north of the city. 
 
 By the authorities of Chihuahua the approach of the American 
 troops had been for a long time expected, and extensive prepara- 
 tions made to obstruct their advance. In full confidence of the 
 result, the legislature of the department had in session deter- 
 mined that Doniphan's men, when captured, should be stripped 
 of arms and money, and sent bound, on foot, to the city of 
 Mexico ; and that no delay might occur, a quantity of cord was 
 provided, and cut into suitable lengths, for tying the prisoners. 
 Governor Frias strenuously promoted the arrangements made 
 under direction ofDon Jos^ A. Heredia, commandant-general of 
 Durango, Chihuahua, Sonora, and New Mexico, aided by Gene- 
 rals Garcia Condd, Justiniani, and Uguart^. 
 
 The position commanding the road and pass was well chosen. 
 Two rivulets, rising in the mountains westward of the valley of 
 the Sacramento, cross the valley in an easterly direction ; then 
 the northern of these streams, the Arroyo Seco, bending to the 
 south, meets the other, the Arroyo Sacramento, and with it forms 
 the Rio Sacramento, which flows into the Conchas, a tributary 
 of the Rio Grande del Norte. Across the peninsular plateau 
 formed by these rivulets, the main road leads from north to south : 
 on its left the ground abruptly rises in a bench, sixty feet high, 
 sloping upwards from all directions to the north-east corner, where 
 it is crowned by the rocky height of the Cerro Frijoles, one hun- 
 dred and fifty feet above the plain. The sierras south of the 
 Arroyo Sacramento come at right angles in upon that stream, 
 their easternmost advance, the Cerro Sacramento, narrowing the 
 valley to a breadth of one mile. From the Cerro Frijoles along 
 the northern front of the eminences, and thence southwardly 
 
BATTLE OF THE SACRAMENTO. 275 
 
 along the whole bench overhanging the road, was erected a con- 
 tinued line of redoubts and intrenchments, under the superin- 
 tendence of General Condd, formerly Mexican Minister of War, 
 and a man of science and skill. On the Cerro Sacramento also 
 there was a strong battery, commanding the road as it approached 
 the ferry below. In this seemingly secure position, the enemy, 
 under command of the experienced officers before named, 
 awaited the approach of the American troops. Their infantry 
 was protected behind the redoubts and intrenchments ; their 
 cavalry was drawn up in front of the redoubts four deep, and in 
 rear of the redoubts two deep, so as to mask them as far as prac- 
 ticable. Their force consisted of twelve hundred cavalry from 
 Durango and Chihuahua, wuth the Vera Cruz dragoons, twelve 
 hundred infantry from Chihuahua, three hundred artillerists, and 
 fourteen hundred and twenty rancheros, badly armed with lassos, 
 lances, and machetoes, or corn-knives ; ten pieces of field-artil- 
 lery, and six culverins, or rampart-pieces. 
 
 At sunrise, on the 28th of February, Colonel Doniphan took 
 up the line of march. The traders' commissariat, and company 
 wagons, more than three hundred in number, were arranged in 
 four parallel columns, with intervals of fifty yards. In the cen- 
 tral interval marched the artillery, the first battalion in the interval 
 on the right, the second battalion in that on the left. In advance 
 of all rode two hundred cavalry proper. Thus was the force ren- 
 dered more compact, and its numbers effectually concealed, while 
 the wagons could be at a moments notice converted into a caral, 
 to encompass and bulwark the troops. When arrived within one 
 mile and a half of the formidable intrenchments, Colonel Doni- 
 phan, pushing still further forward the cavalry in advance, sud- 
 denly diverged to the right, so as to gain the easier though narrow 
 ascent to the west. This the enemy perceived, and promptly 
 endeavoured to prevent, by pushing forward in that direction one 
 thousand cavalry, masking four pieces of cannon in their rear. 
 37 
 
276 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 These were, however, anticipated, and by a rapid movement the 
 elevation was gained and the line formed before the enemy came 
 within reach of the guns. The American line was now parallel 
 with the main road, and fronting the enemy's defences on the west 
 of the heights, with a marsh protecting its rear. Embarrassed by 
 this well-conceived and quickly executed movement, the enemy 
 halted, and a brisk fire from the now unmasked American bat- 
 tery, at the distance of nine hundred and fifty yards, commenced 
 the action. The enemy unmasked his guns and replied. Then 
 rapidly deploying into line, he brought up additional artillery 
 from his trenches, and opened a heavy fire, mainly directed 
 against the battery under Major Clark, but with little effect. Not 
 so with the fire from the American line — that proved effective, 
 killing fifteen, wounding many, and dismounting one of the 
 enemy's guns. At length, thrown into confusion and driven 
 from his position, he slowly retreated behind his intrenchments, 
 while Colonel Doniphan moved forward his whole line obliquely 
 to the right, to obtain a more advantageous position. In this 
 way they reached the southern edge of the plain, and within five 
 hundred yards of the Mexican army, posted in a round battery 
 and trenches, extending along the crest of the bench to the right. 
 From this bench three trenches and a stone caral completed the 
 connexion with the ford, and with the fortified rancho on the 
 southern bank, beneath the Cerro Sacramento. Between the two 
 armies, and beneath the Mexican works on the height in front, ran 
 a deep gully, impassable for cannon, and greatly strengthening 
 their position. To the right of the advancing American line, on 
 an abrupt bench of the Sacramento Hill, a strong fort was occu- 
 pied by a bat' ry supported by cavalry, the balls and grape from 
 which raked with a plunging fire the flank of the line, the whole 
 of the passage down to the ford, and the ravine in front of the 
 trenches. 
 
 And now with greater fierceness the hot battle is renewed ; 
 
1)1' lllf 
 BATTLE OF SACRAMENTO 
 
 1\-1).28''*18 47. 
 
BATTLE OF THE SACRAMENTO. 277 
 
 security and honour, ruin and shame, are dependent on its issue. 
 On either side there is scornful resolve. With fourfold odds, 
 embattled vantage-ground, and on their country's soil, these 
 must not think of less than crushing victory. Those are American 
 volunteers ; they have no time nor will for counting odds ; that 
 victory must be theirs. There is glory to be won this day. A 
 series of rapid movements and of brilliant charges divide the 
 fight; artillery, cavalry, and dismounted men press emulously 
 forward. On the main central battery of the foe the foremost 
 onset is directed ; there Weightman with his two howitzers, and 
 Reid, Hudson, and Parsons, are ordered to charge. By some 
 mischance the order reaches not the latter two ; Reid is already, 
 where he ever is, in front, and on the foe. Weightman's guns 
 come full gallop to the gully, turn it by the left, and unlimbering 
 within fifty yards of the well-manned intrenchment, open their 
 effective salutation of canister and grape. The courtesy is 
 warmly returned. The horsemen, some leaping the gully, and 
 others riding round it, have charged up the slope. Their impulse 
 is resistless, and for a moment the battery is silenced ; but the 
 numbers of the enemy are as yet overwhelming, and Reid's 
 gallant men, met by dense masses thronging the breastworks, 
 and sending forth a ceaseless hail of bullets, are forced to oblique 
 to the left, and seek the intervals of the redoubts through which 
 to charge. Here many are wounded, Reid is unhorsed, and the 
 chivalrous Owens, who had volunteered in this charge, is slain. 
 Hudson, anticipating his commander's order, and Parsons, 
 demanding permission to charge, are now up the slope and in 
 the hottest of the fray. Gilpin, with the second battalion, has 
 deployed to the left at a gallop, his men have dismounted, and 
 are running up the hill to the support of their brethren in arms. 
 Mitchell with his mounted riflemen have advanced on the right ; 
 having reached the ravine, they too dismount, and charge as 
 skirmishers on the Mexican position, which is with much gallantly 
 
278 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 maintained, until, within five- and- twenty yards, the rifle tells on 
 every head raised above the breastworks, with fatally unerring 
 aim. Weightman presses on the intrenchments, regardless of 
 obstacles ; and within a few feet of the ditches, and in the midst 
 of a cross-fire from three directions, opens his fire to the right 
 and to the left. The work is furious now. Doniphan is there to 
 order, to encourage, and to lead. No officer, no man fails, or 
 falls short of the leader's hopes. From right to left along the 
 whole line of redoubts, the brisk and deadly fire of the American 
 rifles is poured in. Horse, howitzers, and foot, in one simultaneous 
 charge they dash upon the works of the enemy ; to the very brink 
 of the strong redoubts they advance and attack with their sabres. 
 Long and obstinately are the works defended ; now they are 
 cleared, and the foe is sent whirling in flight across the plain. 
 Meantime, under a heavy cross-fire from the battery on the Cerro 
 Sacramento, Clark is bringing up, as fast as practicable, the main 
 battery of four 6-pounders, followed by the wagon-train under 
 escort of its own staunch companies. He opens upon the enemy's 
 extreme right, from which an incessant fire had hitherto been kept 
 up ; and soon two of their guns are dismounted, the battery silenced, 
 and the enemy dislodged from the redoubt on the Cerro Frijoles. 
 A body of Mexican lancers attempt to outflank the left of the 
 American line, and attack the wagon-train ; on them, Clark again 
 opens his untired battery, and a destructive fire of grape and 
 spherical case-shot has cleared them away. Bravely the enemy 
 has fought, and gallantly have Heredia and Cond^ striven for 
 victory. Before the volunteers they are borne headlong down, 
 their intrenchments are abandoned, their guns deserted, and by 
 both wings of the conquering force, with the merciless howitzers, 
 they are hotly pursued towards the mountains beyond the Frijoles 
 height, and away down the ravine of the Arroyo Seco. Repeated 
 discharges of Clark's guns disorder, while they expedite this 
 retreat. 
 
BATTLE OF THE SACRAMENTO. 279 
 
 But all is not over yet. The main battery on the mountain 
 bench beyond the Arroyo Sacramento, consisting of six of their 
 best and heaviest guns, supported by eight hundred cavalry, con- 
 tinues, as it has done during the heat of the engagement, to pour 
 down a constant and heavy fire. Mitchell and Jackson, obeying 
 the order to remount their men, and accompanied by the howit- 
 zers, charge across the main road, and round the rancho, up the 
 ascent to the rear of this position. Gilpin, with his second bat- 
 talion, on foot, crosses the Sacramento rivulet higher up, and 
 scales the rough mountain, to come down on the enemy from 
 the other side ; while Clark, occupying that one of the enemy's 
 deserted intrenchments nearest the Cerro Sacramento, twelve 
 hundred and twenty-five yards distant, tries upon it the effect of 
 his well-used battery. His first fire has dismounted one of the 
 enemy's guns. They are of greater calibre, and their elevated 
 position gives them a plunging fire into the intrenchment, but a 
 third shot from below has cut in two one of their ammunitioii 
 wagons. Brisk and precise is the discharge of the American 
 guns, and their horsemen are now seen ascending the hill in full 
 gallop. Further struggle is vain. Their guns and ammunition 
 are abandoned, their colours flung down : as men astounded by 
 the force of an incredible calamity, they fly in wild disorder, they 
 are pursued for a short distance — they have disappeared. 
 
 Thus ended the battle of the Sacramento, which had lasted 
 above three hours, was resolutely contested, and most nobly w^on. 
 For the skill of the commanders, the discipline of the men, the 
 brilliant daring and resistless energy of all, it tells its own tale. 
 
 The Mexican force in the engagement numbered upwards of 
 four thousand two hundred men ; their loss was three hundred and 
 four killed on the field, a still larger number wounded, many mor- 
 tally, and above forty prisoners, together with a large quantity of 
 provisions, all their artillery and mules, wagons, ammunition, imple- 
 
280 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ments, small-arms, and colours. The American loss was one 
 killed, and eleven wounded — three of them mortally. 
 
 A detachment of the American army took possession of the city 
 of Chihuahua on the 1st of March, and the following day the 
 whole army entered it and took quarters. On the 25th of April 
 Colonel Doniphan resumed his march, and on the 22d of May, 
 1847, reported to General Wool at Saltillo. On the 27th they 
 reported to General Taylor at Monterey, and reached St. Louis 
 on the 2d of July following, after a march which in interest and 
 incident far transcended the famous " Retreat of the Ten Thou- 
 sand." 
 
 The route from Chihuahua to Saltillo was no less arduous, no 
 less toilsome and dangerous, than those through which we have 
 already accompanied the men of Missouri. For details of their 
 progress we have not time. The brilliant affair of El Poso must 
 alone detain us for a moment in our rapid survey. 
 
 The good people of the rich and beautiful city of Parras had 
 received with hospitality, and treated with kindness, the soldiers 
 of General Wool's command, and to his sick especially extended 
 generous attentions. Just now they were thrown into general 
 gloom by an incursion of the robbing and murderous Camanches, 
 who had descended from their mountain-holds on the fair valley, 
 cruelly slaughtered several of the people, plundered and desecra- 
 ted many abodes, driven off some five hundred head of cattle, and 
 hurried away into captivity nineteen young persons, of both sexes, 
 but mostly females. Ere yet they had made good their retreat to 
 the mountains, and while meditating new outrages to add to 
 their spoil, they found themselves face to face with a foe, other 
 than they had ever met. Thus far had reached on the advance 
 of the army, our gallant Captain Reid, ever present, whenever 
 wanted. To him the injured people related the cause of their 
 distress. The appeal was irresistible. The kindness shown to 
 
BATTLE OF EL POSO, 281 
 
 their sick and wounded compatriots, the volunteers could not 
 furget ; and among the captives not a few were of that sex that 
 always finds in the American arm a sure defence, of that sex that 
 in Parras had been, as everywhere, the tenderest, most assiduous, 
 most considerate, by the couch of pain. With fifteen of his men, 
 Reid proffered to intercept the barbarous marauders at El Poso. 
 Near this place, on the morning of the 13th of May, he met 
 Lieutenant Gordon, sent forward with fifteen men from the main 
 body, to provide water. United, they formed a band of some 
 three or four- and -thirty men. By a skilful feint they drew the 
 Indians, intent on further spoil, towards a hacienda, where Reid 
 had concealed his force. The Camanches were sixty-five, well 
 mounted and armed, elate with success, and strangers to defeat. 
 When they had come within half a mile of the friendly hacienda, 
 the order was given to Reid's band, to charge. Like the lightning 
 flash, they were in among the surprised, but nothing-daunted foe. 
 With desperate determination not to lose their rich booty, the 
 latter fiercely fought for full two hours, yielding each foot of 
 ground, only as it was made slippery in the blood of some newly 
 fallen of their number. Reid was himself severely wounded in 
 the face, and in the shoulder, in both places by steel-tipped 
 arrows. Of his gallant corps of supporters, none was materially 
 injured. The Indians lost seventeen killed on the field, including 
 their chief, and had full five-and-twenty dangerously wounded. 
 Thus severely chastised, the remnant found protection in the 
 high grounds, leaving behind all the spoil they had lately 
 acquired. The restoration of the captive youths and maidens to 
 the bosoms of their delighted families, was more than compensa- 
 tion to the generous deliverers. Through the Prefect of the 
 department of Parras, Don Jose Ignacio Arrabe, a letter of 
 graceful acknowledgment and thanks was conveyed to the 
 chivalrous leader and his corps of worthy brothers. 
 
282 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 We turn now to take a hasty glance at events occurring in 
 New Mexico, while thus the troops under Doniphan were passing 
 in triumph through the centre of the enemy's country. Mr. 
 Charles Bent, it will be remembered, had been by General 
 Kearny constituted governor of New Mexico ; on the departure 
 of Colonel Doniphan, the command of the troops remaining in 
 the subjugated province devolved on Colonel Sterling Price. 
 They consisted of his own regiment, the 2d Missouri mounted 
 volunteers ; an extra battalion, under Lieutenant-Colonel Willock ; 
 the Laclede rangers, under Lieutenant Elliott ; two hundred of the 
 U. S. 1st dragoons, commanded by Captain Burgwin ; Angney 
 and Murphy's battalion of infantry ; Fischer's company of light 
 artillery, and some additional artillery and miscellaneous troops, 
 under Lieutenants Dyer and Wilson, of the U, S. Army ; making 
 an aggregate of nearly two thousand men. Of these a consider- 
 able number was sent out, in separate detachments, to stations 
 throughout the province, for the threefold purposes of preserving 
 health and activity among the men, securing forage for their 
 beasts, and maintaining tranquillity. The large proportion of the 
 troops, however, was detained to garrison Santa F^. For such 
 service the volunteers were little fitted ; and notwithstanding the 
 strenuous efforts of the officers, deviations from good order, dis- 
 regard of discipline, and fatal excesses and indulgences, were 
 frequent. 
 
 At the time of General Kearny's departure, all things at Santa 
 Fe and throughout New Mexico wore the aspect of acquiescent 
 tranquillity. Smiles and gaiety, and professions of cordial amity, 
 were, however, but the skilfully assumed covering of deep dis- 
 content, jealousy, and hate, in the bosoms of very many. Early 
 in December, the leading malcontents, including officers who 
 had held rank under Armijo, displaced officials, and those 
 generally to whom the old and corrupt system was gain, in mid- 
 night conclaves began to plot the overthrow of the existing 
 
COUNTER-REVOLUTION. 283 
 
 government. Their plans were craftily laid, and approaching 
 towards maturity — their several departments for action assigned, 
 and consequent duties commenced — on the 19th of December, 
 the church-bells at Santa Fd were to give the signal for a simul- 
 taneous revolt. The time was subsequently postponed, to insure 
 more complete organization and more effective action, and the 
 night of Christmas-eve was finally fixed on for the rising, which 
 was to be universal and instantaneous. Counting on certain 
 success, they had already nominated from among themselves 
 Don Tomas Ortiz, as governor, and Don Diego Archuleta, as 
 commander of the forces. By a female the whole plot was dis- 
 covered, and revealed to Colonel Price. Several of those sup- 
 posed to be implicated were at once arrested, and ample evidence 
 obtained of the existence, character, and objects of the conspiracy. 
 Ortiz and Archuleta by timely flight escaped arrest, and, from 
 motives of politic clemency, the other arrested persons were dis- 
 charged. But the contemplated rebellion seemed utterly crushed. 
 This appearance was deceptive. 
 
 With embittered determination, and with closer secrecy, the 
 conspiracy was renewed. To it were committed the most in- 
 fluential men of the state ; the priests especially, bigoted in pro- 
 portion to their ignorance, using all their authority to excite the 
 people against the " heretic Americanos." Their teachings and 
 exhortations were but too successful. The suppression of the 
 embryo rebellion had been followed by a proclamation from 
 Governor Bent, in which he addressed himself to the good sense 
 as well as to the honour of the people, seeking to disabuse their 
 minds of the absurd impressions which designing factionists had 
 busied themselves to make, showing the folly and hopelessness 
 of insurrection, and urgently inviting the co-operation of the 
 people themselves in the peaceful struggle for common prosperity. 
 
 Meantime the organization of the government in its inferior 
 departments had gone on, and pari passu the enjoyment and 
 88 
 
^4 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 relaxation of the soldiery in Santa Fd. Imprudence and excess 
 counted many victims among the troops, and increasing fami- 
 liarity with the city revellers and their habits, brought with it 
 increase of sickness. To all this the conspirators were unceas- 
 ingly awake. On the 14th of January, 1847, Governor Bent, 
 accompanied by several officials, left Santa F6 for San Fernando de 
 Taos, in which place he had previously to his installation resided, 
 and where he still had a house and estate. On the 19th, the 
 refusal to release two Indians, incarcerated for some misdemean- 
 our, was followed by the murder, in the most cruel manner, of 
 the governor; the sheriff, Lee; the district-attorney, Leal; the pre- 
 fect, Vigil, a Mexican; a son of Judge Baubian ; and Harvimea, 
 also a Mexican. In these inhuman murders Mexicans and Pue- 
 blo Indians were common actors. Nor was this the result of any 
 sudden or unpremeditated outbreak. On the same day, seven 
 Americans were in cold blood butchered at the Arroya Hondo, 
 four others at the Moro town, and two at the Rio Colorado. By 
 the alcalde of Moro, and the faithful gallantry of a Frenchman 
 of Canada, letters were intercepted, in which, with revelations of 
 the plot, were contained earnest invitations to the inhabitants 
 along the Rio Abajo, and the northern portion of New Mexico, to 
 strike for revenge, in union with their brethren of the other dis- 
 tricts. From these letters it was further ascertained that the 
 enemy, bent upon the extermination of the Americans and of all 
 Mexicans in their confidence and friendship, was approaching 
 Santa Fe, gathering in his advance upon this city accessions of 
 force. In this movement the leaders were Tafoya, Pablo Chavez, 
 Pablo Montoya, Cortez, and Tomas, a Pueblo Indian. 
 
 Prudently anxious to meet the foe, ere yet increased by their 
 anticipated reinforcements along their line of march. Colonel 
 Price, leaving Lieutenant-Colonel Willock with a comparatively 
 strong force in garrison at Santa Fd, went forth to meet the insur- 
 gents, on the morning of January 23d, at the head of three hun- 
 
COUNTER-REVOLUTION. 285 
 
 dred and fifty-three men, rank and file, supported by fiaur moun- 
 tain howitzers, in charge of Lieutenant Dyer, United States 
 Army. The weather was then merciless, but action was neces- 
 sary. Captain St. Vrain's company, the only mounted men of 
 the force, formed the advance, and early in the afternoon of the 
 24th discovered the enemy in considerable strength, occupying 
 the high grounds commanding, and close to, the little town of 
 Canada, situated on a tributary of the Rio Grande. 
 
 Two thousand strong, under command of Tafoya, Chavez, and 
 Montoya, the foe had taken advantageous ground on both sides 
 of the Chicito stream, and in three houses at the base of the hills. 
 Promptly forming such line of battle as his force and circum- 
 stances directed. Colonel Price threw forward and across the 
 creek his four howitzers, from which, about two o'clock in the 
 afternoon. Lieutenant Dyer opened a brisk fire upon the houses 
 and the more distant height, occupied by the enemy. Meantime 
 the dismounted men were moved up to a position, in some degree 
 protected by the bluff bank of the stream from the Mexican fire ; 
 while Captain St. Vrain was despatched to protect and bring up 
 the wagon-train, already menaced by a large party. This service 
 satisfactorily effected, Angney and Murphy's infantry battalion 
 charged, and dislodged the enemy from the house opposite the 
 American right flank. This gallantly accomplished, a general 
 charge was ordered ; the same infantry battalion, supported by 
 two companies of the 2d Missouri, moved rapidly up one of the hills, 
 while St. Vrain by a circuit turned it, so as to cut off retreat. 
 The artillery, supported by the remaining three companies of 
 Price's regiment, drove the enemy from some houses and a 
 densely wooded coral, and from the heights beyond. Till sun- 
 set the struggle continued ; then the enemy, routed at all points, 
 was seeking safety b}^ flight. The nature of the ground rendered 
 pursuit hopeless, and the troops were for the night quartered in 
 the town. Next morning, they hesitatingly showed themselves 
 
28© HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 on the distant heights ; but on the first intimation of a disposition 
 to renew the intercourse of the preceding afternoon, they most 
 unceremoniously decamped. The American loss in this affair of 
 Canada was two killed and seven wounded. Of the latter was 
 Lieutenant Irvine. The Mexicans acknowledged a loss of thirty- 
 six killed and forty-five wounded. 
 
 On the 27th, Colonel Price resumed his march towards Taos, 
 whitherward the enemy had retreated, as to their stronghold. 
 Next morning he was joined by Captain Burgwin with his own 
 company of the 1st U. S., and Lieutenant Boone's company of the 
 2d Missouri, dragoons, all dismounted, and by Lieutenant Wil- 
 son, with a 6-pounder brought up from Canada. His whole 
 force was now four hundred and seventy-nine rank and file, with 
 whom he proceeded to La Joya, and there learned, on the 29th, 
 that the gorge leading to Embudo was held in command by the 
 enemy. The road by Embudo being impracticable for artillery 
 or wagons. Captain Burgwin pushed forward with his own 
 company, St. Vrain's, and White's, accompanied too by Adjutant 
 Walker of the 2d Missouri, and Lieutenant Wilson — their con- 
 joined force numbering one hundred and eighty men. 
 
 The enemy, some six or seven hundred strong, was discovered 
 occupying a formidable position on the mountain slopes, over- 
 hanging each side of the road, just where the gorge was so 
 narrow, as scarcely to admit of the passage of three men abreast, 
 and still further protected by dense brushwood and large fragments 
 of detached rock. From the gallant force so numerically inferior, 
 flanking parties were thrown out on either side, while St. Vrain, 
 dismounting his men, advanced up the rugged and precipitous 
 hill-face, whose trees lent aid to the climbing men. The brisk 
 contest was still going on, when Captain Slack, with twenty-five 
 mounted men, came up from La Joya, to lend aid. Another 
 half hour, and the battle was decided — the pursuit of the foe 
 occupied two hours. One killed and one severely wounded, bought 
 
PUEBLO DE TAOS. 287 
 
 this victory; defeat cost the Mexicans and their Indian allies 
 full twenty killed and sixty wounded. A white flag greeted 
 Captain Burgwin's entry into the town of Embudo. 
 
 The march resumed led over the Taos Mountain, covered to a 
 depth of two feet with snow, through which the troops, with 
 admirable constancy and patience, trampled down a road for the 
 artillery and wagons. On the 3d of February Colonel Price 
 marched, without meeting any show of resistance, through San 
 Fernando de Taos, and there ascertained that the enemy had 
 posted himself advantageously in the Indian village, Pueblo de 
 Taos, a strongly protected place a short distance in advance. 
 Walls of adob^, or sun-dried bricks, with strong pickets, and 
 flanked by projecting buildings, supplied whatever was wanting 
 to the means of defence afforded by the large church, two other 
 large structures rising in an irregular pyramid to the height of 
 seven or eight stories, and a number of smaller edifices. These 
 were now occupied by Mexicans and Indians, numbering between 
 six and seven hundred. On the evening of the 3d, a warm fire 
 was opened on the western flank of the church, from Lieutenant 
 Dyer's battery of two howitzers and one six-pounder, and kept 
 up for about two hours and a half; when, as the ammunition 
 wagons had not yet come up, and the men were suffering severely 
 from cold and fatigue, the colonel commanding withdrew them 
 for the night to San Fernando. 
 
 Early on the morning of the 4th, the troops were in station for 
 attacking the town. From the north and the west, a cross-fire 
 was briskly opened from the artillery under Lieutenants Dyer 
 and Hassendaubel, the former supported by Captain Angney's 
 battalion and two companies of the 2d Missouri ; the latter by 
 Captains Burgwin and McMillen ; while Captains St. Vrain and 
 Slack, with the mounted men, moved round to the east of the 
 town, to intercept any attempt at flight. Two hours' cannonading 
 having proved it impossible to breach the strong walls of the 
 
288 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 church with the G-pounder and howitzers, the troops were 
 ordered forward to storm. Most gallantly was the service per- 
 formed, and most manfully was the building defended by its 
 occupants, who poured out a continual and destructive fire. 
 Establishing themselves close under the western wall, the troops 
 now endeavoured to breach it with axes ; and by means of a 
 temporary ladder the roof was fired. Meanwhile Captain Burg- 
 win with a small party, leaving the cover of the wall, entered the 
 coral in front of the church, and essayed to eflfect an entrance at 
 the great door. This attempt was found fruitless, and in making 
 it, the daring Burgwin received his death- wound. About 4 P. M. 
 the 6-pounder, brought within sixty yards, enlarged into a prac- 
 ticable breach one of the holes made by the axes. The gun was 
 then run up within ten yards, a shell and three rounds of grape 
 were poured through the breach, and now the storming-party 
 burst in. On the north the charge was equally successful ; the 
 long and hotly contested fight resulted in the utter discomfiture 
 and disordered flight of the foe. It was now night, and the troops 
 were quietly quartered in the houses on the west side of the town, 
 abandoned by the enemy. Early next morning, the old men, the 
 matrons, and the priest, bringing with them the children and the 
 altar images, humbly implored mercy and peace. Their suppli- 
 cation was granted, on the condition that Tomas should be given 
 up, that chief having been an instigator and actor in the cruel 
 murder of Governor Bent and his party. In this battle the enemy's 
 ascertained loss was about one hundred and fifty killed — his 
 wounded unknown. The American loss was seven killed and 
 forty-five wounded. Of these many afterw^ards died. 
 
 In the earlier days of the revolt. Captain Hendley, than whom Mis- 
 souri counted among her bravest none more brave, fell, while en- 
 deavouring to suppress the insurrection in the valley of the Moro. 
 He was in command of the grazing detachment on the Pecos, but 
 hearing of the insurrection, on the 20th of January, promptly 
 
INSURRECTION SUPPRESSED. 280 
 
 ordered the different grazing parties to assemble, and took pos- 
 session of Las BagaSj where a concentration of the forces of the 
 insurgents had commenced. These were readily dispersed by 
 the captain and his command, which was soon increased to the 
 number of two hundred and twenty-five men, by the arrival of 
 different parties. Leaving the main body of his force to preserve 
 tranquillity at Las Bagas, he set out on the 22d to the Moro, 
 where the insurgents had embodied two hundred men. Upon 
 arriving before the place, on the 24th, he found the Mexicans 
 under arms. While preparing for an attack, he perceived a small 
 party of insurgents running from the hills. A detachment which 
 he sent out to cut them off, encountered the main body of the 
 enemy, and soon brought on a general engagement. After a 
 few volleys the enemy gave way, and sought their houses, from 
 the windows and loopholes of which they fired upon the Ameri- 
 cans. The latter hotly pursued them in their flight, rushing into 
 the houses with them, shooting, and running through many with 
 the bayonet. A part of the insurgents gained an old fort and 
 commenced a fire on the American troops. Captain Hendley, 
 with a small party, forced his way into one of the apartments, 
 and, while preparing to fire the fort, received a ball, from which 
 he died in a few minutes. Being without artillery, the Americans 
 considered the fort impregnable under present circumstances, 
 and abandoned the place, having killed twenty-five of the enemy, 
 and taken seventeen prisoners. The American loss was Captain 
 Hendley killed, and three wounded. His body was taken to 
 Santa F^, and buried with military honours. Subsequently his 
 remains were conveyed to Fort Leavenworth, and thence to Rich- 
 mond, where they were interred on the 23d of September, 1847. 
 On the 1st of February, his death, and the fall, too, of other gallant 
 men, was avenged by the complete demolition of the Moro 
 village, by the troops under Captain Morin. 
 
 By those prompt exertions the insurrection was efTectually sup- 
 
290 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 pressed. Of the leaders in tJie revolt, Tafoya fell at Canada, 
 Chavez at Pueblo ; Montoya was hanged as a traitor, at San Fer- 
 nando ; and Tomas was, in a quarrel, shot by a private, while a 
 prisoner in the guard-room of the latter town. Sanction of Gene- 
 ral Kearny's assumed power to transfer the allegiance of the New 
 Mexicans from their own government to the United States, was 
 refused by the latter. Consequently the charge of treason alleged 
 against the revolters was not to be sustained, and the military 
 executions under this supposed right were very promptly stopped. 
 
 In May, marauding bands of Mexicans and Indians made 
 desultory attacks on supply-trains and grazing-parties. On the 
 26th of this month, at the Red River Canon, after a sharp conflict, 
 Major Edmondson, with a detachment of about two hundred men, 
 severely punished the largest of these bands, killing forty-one of 
 their number, and wounding a still greater proportion. In June, 
 Lieutenant Brown, with two of his men, in an effort to recover 
 horses stolen from his command, was cruelly murdered. Major 
 Edmondson hastily marched from Las Vegas in pursuit of the 
 murderers, shot down a few, and took forty prisoners. In July, 
 rumours of an intended renewal of the insurrection were rife. But 
 the increased vigilance of the troops, and the presence of an 
 additional force from the States, checked the contemplated out- 
 break. 
 
 On the 20th of July, all now seeming more permanently tran- 
 quil, Colonel Price was raised to the rank of brigadier-general, 
 and appointed still to command at Santa F4. 
 
 Here we take leave of the Army of the West — an army whose 
 sufferings and whose deeds alike entitle it to the admiration and 
 boundless gratitude of its country. 
 
M' g(g(E)17m^ 
 
 ^C' 
 
 iyT^L 
 
 c< 
 
 (/ocy 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Government determines upon making Vera Cruz the base of a new Line of Ope- 
 rations — Vera Cruz — Description of the City — San Juan d'Ulloa — By whom 
 founded — Description of the Fortress — Its Capture by Acle, Lorencillo, and 
 Bodin — Taylor notified of the intention to reduce his Force — Scott ordered to 
 Mexico — Reaches the Rio Grande — Appoints the Island of Lobos as the place 
 of Rendezvous — Description of Lobos — The Arrival of Volunteers — Reconnois- 
 sance by Scott and Conner — Preparations for Disembarking upon the Beach at 
 Vera Cruz — Disembarkation of the Troops — Investment of the City — Gallant 
 co-operation of the Navy — Skirmishes with the Enemy — Investment completed 
 — Scott's Despatch to the War Department — The Batteries opened — Skirmish at 
 Puenta del Medio — Harney's brilliant affair at Medellin — Overtures for the Sur- 
 render of Vera Cruz and San Juan d'Ulloa — Commissioners appointed — Cere- 
 mony of Capitulation — Scott's Despatch to the War Department — Alvarado 
 — Effects of the Bombardment of Vera Cruz. 
 
 With the capture of Monterey ended the campaign of 1846. 
 
 But before this brilliant achievement took place, it became 
 evident to the government, that another and even more effective 
 column of invasion would be required to operate from a point 
 affording a nearer approach to the Mexican capital. 
 
 General Santa Anna, whose return from exile had been con- 
 nived at by our government, so far from distracting the Mexican 
 people by internal dissensions, or inclining them to more peace- 
 ful views, had succeeded in allaying the feuds of opposing parties, 
 and in rousing and uniting all classes to a more vigorous prose- 
 cution of the war. 
 
 Finding all hope of reasonable accommodation cut off' by this 
 untoward state of things, a new and shorter line was determined 
 on, striking into the heart of the enemy's possessions. While the 
 39 291 
 
292 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 line of the Sierra Madre was to be held by General Taylor with 
 diminished forces, tlie city of Vera Cruz was selected as the base 
 of a new line of operations, for the assault of which preparations 
 were made on a scale commensurate with the formidable charac- 
 ter of the undertaking. 
 
 Vera Cruz, the only commercial city of importance belonging 
 to the republic of Mexico, is situated in latitude 19 deg. 11 
 min. 52 sec. N. ; longitude 19 deg. 10 min. W. of Washington, 
 and has an average temperature of 77 degrees Fahrenheit. 
 
 Founded about the year 1560 by the Count of Monterey, and 
 upon the exact spot which witnessed the landing of Cortez, forty 
 years before, it became, in 1600, the capital of the department of 
 Vera Cruz. 
 
 It contains about one thousand and sixty-three houses, built 
 mostly of stone, two stories high, and of a square shape, with flat 
 roofs and parapets. The population, which in the year 1804 was 
 computed at 16,000, has fallen off' gradually to about 5000 souls, 
 which is believed to be about its present number. 
 
 The city is surrounded by a stone wall, 3124 varas or yards in 
 circumference, which is defended by nine bastions, capable of 
 supporting 100 guns. 
 
 Vera Cruz is small but regularly laid out, well paved, and 
 well lighted. Its police regulations are admirable. It contains 
 a Cathedral, to which are attached the two chapels of Del Pastora 
 and Del Loreto. It has also five convents and three hospitals. 
 The Cathedral occupies the south side of the principal Plaza. 
 On the east is the Government House, dignified by the title 
 of Palace, and on the west and north are ranges of porticoes. 
 The more modern erections for public offices, near the wharf, are 
 among the finest in the city. 
 
 Although Vera Cruz itself is situated upon an arid plain, sur- 
 rounded by billowy sand-hills of various heights, and intervening 
 clusters of thick chaparral, the country at a little distance inland 
 
SAN JUAN D'ULLOA. 293 
 
 is fertile and productive. Game, fish, fruit, and vegetables are 
 abundant ; and there are few cities in which the necessaries or 
 even the luxuries of life, can be obtained with greater facility. 
 
 The harbour or roadstead is a very insecure one, and, from the 
 anchorage being among shoals, affords but little protection 
 during the prevalence of "Northers." 
 
 But the pride of the republic, as it was formerly the boast of 
 Old Spain, is the famous fortress of San Juan d'Ulloa. 
 
 This almost impregnable structure was commenced in the year 
 1582, and the immense sum of forty millions of dollars was ex- 
 pended by the Spaniards upon its erection. 
 
 It is built upon an island in front of the city, and at a distance 
 from it of one thousand and sixty-two " varas," or yards. This 
 island had been visited by Don Juan di Orijalva, as early as the 
 year 1518, and from him received the name by which the fortress 
 is now known. 
 
 The foundations of this immense structure are laid in the 
 sea, and with a solidity that has defied alike the furious storms 
 of that latitude, and the encroachments of the fierce element by 
 which it is surrounded. 
 
 The length of the exterior polygon towards Vera Cruz, is three 
 hundred yards ; on the north channel two hundred yards, while 
 the fire upon both the northern and southern channels can be 
 doubled by the use of the additional batteries of Santiago and 
 San Miguel. The stone used in the construction of the fortress, 
 is the Madrepora Jlstrea, a species of soft coral, the walls and ex- 
 posed points being further defended by a facing of stone of a 
 harder quality. The complement of guns which it is capable of 
 mounting, is said to be three hundred and seventy. When the 
 Castle was taken by the French in 1838, its batteries were found 
 to contain one hundred and seventy-seven guns of various 
 calibre. 
 
 Notwithstanding the formidable character of its works, San 
 
294 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Juan d'Ulloa had been captured three times, previous to its in- 
 vestment by the American forces. It was surprised in 1668, 
 by Juan Aguinas Acle, a well known buccaneer, who was, 
 however, expelled shortly afterwards by Don Francisco di Lujan, 
 supported by a fleet of twenty-three vessels. 
 
 The second capture is a remarkable one in the annals of Vera 
 Cruz. It was made on the night of the 17th of May, 1693, by 
 the pirate Lorencillo, who, after defeating the garrison, sacked 
 the city at his leisure, retaining possession of both for two weeks ; 
 when, having secured an immense amount of plunder, he retired 
 without molestation. 
 
 The third capture, that by tire French naval forces under Ad- 
 miral Bodin, has already been alluded to. 
 
 It was upon this point, already blockaded by our squadron, that 
 the greater proportion of the military force in actual service, or in 
 the progress of enlistment, was directed by our government to be 
 concentrated. By a despatch, dated the 22d of October, 1846, 
 General Taylor was notified by the Secretary of War to hold him- 
 self in readiness to meet a requisition upon him for four thousand 
 of his best officers and men ; — while, by a subsequent letter, he was 
 informed that a still greater number, amounting to one-half of his 
 whole force, would be required. Nine new regiments of volunteers 
 were called for, and the President proposed to ask at the next 
 meeting of Congress for permission to organize ten additional regi- 
 ments of regulars. This authority he expected to receive early 
 in the session, but the bill was not passed until near its close. 
 
 On the 23d of November, General Scott, having been previ- 
 ously put in possession of the views of the Executive, received 
 the following order from the Secretary of War : — 
 
 " War Department, 
 Washington, Nov. 23, 1846. 
 
 } 
 
 " Sir : — The President, several days since, communicated in 
 person to you his orders to repair to Mexico, to take command 
 
SCOTT ORDERED TO MEXICO. 295 
 
 of the forces there assembled, and particularly to organize and 
 set on foot an expedition to operate on the Gulf coast, if, on arriv- 
 ing at the theatre of action, you shall deem it practicable. It is 
 not proposed to control your operations by definite and positive 
 instructions, but you are left to prosecute them as your judgment 
 under a full view of all the circumstances shall dictate. The 
 work is before you, and the means provided for accomplishing it, 
 are committed to you, in the full confidence that you will use them 
 to the best advantage. 
 
 "The objects which it is desirable to obtain have been indicated, 
 and it is hoped that you will have the requisite force to accom- 
 plish them. Of this you must be the judge, when preparations 
 are made, and the time for action arrived. 
 
 " Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 W. L. MARCY, 
 
 Secretary of War. 
 General Winfield Scott." 
 
 Under these instructions. General Scott left Washington the 
 next day for New York, from which place he sailed on the 30th, 
 and reached the Rio Grande on the 1st day of January, 1847. 
 Here he was met by the divisions of Generals Worth, Twiggs, 
 Quitman, and Pillow. These, after a brief delay at the mouth of 
 the river, with the forces here collected, were embarked on board 
 tlie transports waiting to receive them. Their destination was the 
 island of Lobos. 
 
 This island, as described by an eye-witness, " is a lovely little 
 spot, formed entirely of coral, about two miles in circumference, 
 twelve miles from the Mexican shore, sixty from Tampico, and 
 one hundred and thirty from Vera Cruz. 
 
 " It was covered, before the Americans made it their rendez- 
 vous, with a variety of trees and shrubs, the highest of the former 
 probably some twenty-five feet, and these so thickly covered with 
 vines that one can hardly get through them. Almost all the trees 
 
296 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 are of strange growth. Banyan-trees speading over large spaces 
 of ground, their limbs forming props as they pierce into the earth 
 and take root ; while the tops, thickly thatched with evergreen 
 vines, form most beautiful arbours. Lemon, lime, fig, palm, 
 cane, and an hundred other species of wood, are growing with 
 all the freshness and beauty of the Indies. There is plenty of 
 water to be had by digging from four to six feet. It is blackish 
 and sweet, and about the quality of ship-water. Fish and sea- 
 fowl we have in profusion. With these we have a sea air that, 
 fourteen hours out of the twenty- four, makes the place delightfully 
 pleasant." 
 
 By the 15th of February, thirty-six hundred volunteers and 
 four hundred regulars had already concentrated here, together 
 with eighteen vessels of the first class. 
 
 Shortly after, the transports arrived from the Rio Grande ; and 
 the commander-in-chief, having at length increased his forces to 
 about twelve thousand men, embarked them on board one hun- 
 dred ships and transports, and sailed for Anton Lizardo. 
 
 On the 5th of March, in the midst of the violent "norther," 
 look-outs on board the squadron lying at the latter place, descried 
 the long-expected armament bearing down upon them, and whi- 
 tening the horizon with a wall of canvass. Spurning the fierce 
 waves in triumph, ship after ship came dashing into the harbour, 
 and, casting anchor, presented at the close of the day a perfect 
 forest of masts. 
 
 On the 7th, General Scott, accompanied by Commodore Con- 
 ner, commanding the naval forces stationed in the Gulf, pro- 
 ceeded on board the steamer Petrita, for the purpose of recon- 
 noitring the city and castle, and choosing a point best calculated 
 to facilitate the landing of the troops 
 
 The beach west of the island of Sacrificios was selected ; but 
 the anchorage being very contracted, it was decided, in order to 
 avoid the confusion which would necessarily follow the crowding 
 
PREPARATIONS FOR DISEMBARKING AT VERA CRUZ. 297 
 
 of SO many vessels, to transfer most of the troops from the trans- 
 ports to the vessels of war. 
 
 And now all delays and impediments having been overcome, 
 the eventful day at length arrived which was to witness the dis- 
 embarkation of the invading force upon Mexican soil, and within 
 sight of the heroic city, and the renowned castle of San Juan 
 d'Ulloa. 
 
 It was the 9th of March. The sun rose bright and beautiful. 
 The fierce "norther," the terror of those latitudes, had given 
 place to a gentle breeze from the south-east, and a sea as smooth 
 as if it had never known a ripple, and every heart beat high with 
 eager expectation. About an hour before noon, the squadron got 
 under way, the Princeton leading, with the Raritan in tow. About 
 mid-day those on board the steamer New Orleans, just arrived 
 with six hundred and fifty additional men, while casting anchor 
 beheld the steamer Massachusetts pass, and upon her deck the 
 tall and stately form of the Commander-in-chief. He was sa- 
 luted with deafening cheers. The remainder of the transports 
 followed in their turn ; and then was exhibited a spectacle which 
 for magnificence has seldom, if ever, been equalled. The ships 
 of war moving under easy sail, were packed closely with war- 
 like men, whose bayonets, flashing in the sunlight, flickered up 
 continually like innumerable tongues of flame. Following the 
 vessels, and attached to them, were the numerous surf-boats 
 destined to convey the troops ashore. 
 
 Steamers and other vessels brought up the rear, crowded with 
 spectators, anxious to witness the landing. The ships of war 
 of three European nations looked on — their masts, rigging, and 
 every point of vantage crowded with eager faces. Inspiriting 
 strains of martial music were heard from afar, and at intervals 
 rose, subdued by distance, the shouts and joyous outbursts of the 
 soldiers, who, weary of a life of inaction, welcomed with en- 
 
298 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 thusiasm the fierce excitement of the hour. But the crowning 
 glory of the scene was yet to come. 
 
 In about three hours the frigates and transports dropped an- 
 chor opposite the island of Sacrificios. Quietly and in admirable 
 order, each ship took up its appointed station. The steamers 
 Spitfire and Vixen, and five gun-boats, were detailed to cover 
 the landing. The immense surf-boats, sixty-five in number, 
 each capable of holding one hundred men, were hauled to the 
 gangways of the various ships ; and, by four o'clock, freighted 
 with four thousand five hundred men, were seen drawn up abreast 
 of each other, in a single line extending for nearly a mile. This 
 was the first division, under General Worth. 
 
 The Massachusetts fired the signal for landing, and then, 
 simultaneously, the bristling flotilla, filled to the gunwales with 
 its human freight, was seen under way ; and, amid the hearty 
 cheers of those who were left behind, to the spirit-stirring strains 
 of martial music, and within sight of the gray old walls of Vera 
 Cruz, and the terrible armature of its almost impregnable for- 
 tress, the dauntless soldiers neared the shore. 
 
 As the boats touched ground, the foremost men of each sprang 
 into the water waist deep, and dashed up the sandy beach, fol- 
 lowed by their equally impetuous comrades ; the stars and stripes 
 were rapidly flung to the breeze, and the setting sun cast for a 
 few minutes a lingering radiance among its folds. Thus was 
 achieved the landing of the first division. 
 
 The second, under command of Major-General Patterson, 
 speedily followed. The reserve of regulars under Brigadier 
 General Twiggs succeeded, and by ten o'clock, P. M., the men- 
 of-war and transports were relieved of the remaining troops. 
 
 The facility, directness, and precision with which this im- 
 portant object was accomplished, reflect great credit upon 
 Commodore Conner and the officers of the squadron. All the 
 necessary arrangements had been made with so much skill and fore- 
 
CO-OPERATION OF THE NA\'Y. 299 
 
 thought, that nearly twelve thousand men were thus disembarked 
 without confusion, disturbance, or a solitary accident of any kind. 
 Never, perhaps, in the annals of warlike operations, was a disem- 
 barkation completed in which skill and science were more 
 successfully combined. The able and effective manner in 
 which the naval dispositions were carried out, proved how fully 
 that arm of service participated in the enthusiasm animating the 
 faces of those destined to operate on shore. 
 
 The toils and hardships performed by the squadron in the per- 
 formance of thankless and inglorious duties, have never been 
 sufficiently appreciated by the country at large. The more bril- 
 liant achievements of the army have had the effect of casting the 
 less imposing, but equally arduous services of the navy into the 
 shade. Time alone can do justice to the incessant caution, dili- 
 gence, and watchfulness required of both officers and seamen, in 
 an exceedingly unsafe position, and constantly exposed to the 
 terrible effects of the fierce winds called " northers," so prevalent 
 in the Gulf during eight months of each year. 
 
 That the navy panted to share in the successes of their com- 
 panions in arms, and that they could be equally zealous in main- 
 taining the honour of their country's flag, the best evidence was 
 given in the manner in which the marine batteries were worked 
 during the subsequent operations of the siege, and in the eager- 
 ness with which all the officers and men of the squadron availed 
 themselves of this only opportunity for distinction. 
 
 The landing of the troops, which all expected to have been met 
 by a most bloody and determined resistance, was effected, to the 
 great disappointment of the ardent spirits of our men, without any 
 demonstration being made on the part of the enemy, further than 
 the firing of roundshot and shells from the long guns of the fortress. 
 The enemy lost here, as at the passage of the Arroya Colorado, the 
 best opportunity of resistance to the army of the United States. 
 
 During the night the line of investment was partially taken up, 
 40 
 
300 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 and by the 12th, the entire army had assumed the positions pre- 
 viously assigned them in general orders, which were minute in 
 particulars, based on information carefully obtained and tho- 
 roughly studied by the Commander-in-chief, and pointed out every- 
 thing with the utmost precision. 
 
 It must not be supposed, however, that this was achieved with- 
 out difficulty, or an attempt at opposition ; on the contrary, the 
 labours of both officers and men were unusually severe. 
 
 The character of the country around Vera Cruz — loose hills of 
 light shifting sand, varying from twenty to two hundred feet in 
 height, interspersed with dense and almost impenetrable forests 
 of chaparral — and the limited means of land transportation, was 
 only to be overcome by the most excessive exertions on the part 
 of the men, upon whom the conveyance of the ordnance, muni- 
 tions of war, and the necessary provisions for subsistence, was 
 almost entirely devolved. 
 
 Their labours, sufficiently severe at any time, were rendered 
 still more so by the prevalence of violent " northers," which blew 
 away whole hills of sand, added to and created others, blinding 
 and stifling the men with the minute and penetrating particles. 
 
 On the morning of the 10th the firing of heavy ordnance com- 
 menced from the city and castle ; and, except during the fury of 
 the storm, was kept up night and day without any intermission, 
 though with but little effect upon the lines of investment. 
 
 By eleven o'clock General Worth succeeded in taking vip his po- 
 sition on the right of the line. The division of General Patterson 
 followed. Pillow's brigade being in the advance. After passing 
 Worth, Pillow was detached with the 1st and 2d Tennessee, and 
 1st and 2d Pennsylvania regiments, to dislodge the enemy, who 
 were in possession of an old building near the head of the Laguna 
 Malibran, while Lieutenant French, with one field-piece of Tay- 
 lor's battery, was ordered to open fire upon a stone magazine also 
 occupied by the enemy, and situate in the rear of the city. Both 
 
SKIRMISHES WITH THE ENEMY. 301 
 
 these orders were successfully accomplished. The Mexicans 
 evacuated the magazine, and Pillow's detachment, after driving 
 their antagonists from the field, with the loss of one officer and 
 three men on the part of the latter, cut their way through the 
 chaparral, and with the 1st Tennessee regiment took possession 
 of the magazine. Leaving Colonel Campbell with his brave 
 Tennesseans at this point, Pillow again pressed forward, en- 
 countered the enemy near the Medellin road, and drove them 
 rapidly thence to the hills south-east of the city. Here they again 
 attempted to rally, but eventually fell back within shelter of the 
 city guns. 
 
 Upon these hills Pillow rested his command for the night. In 
 the morning. General Quitman, while in the act of relieving Pil- 
 low, was fired upon simultaneously by the enemy's infantry and 
 the batteries of the city. A detachment of riflemen under Cap- 
 tain Davis was instantly thrown forward, supported by Lieutenant 
 Colonel Dickinson and Major Gladden with two companies, each 
 of the South Carolina regiment, and after a brief but spirited 
 engagement the enemy was repulsed. Two skirmishes sub- 
 sequently ensued, in which separate detachments of the New 
 York regiment distinguished themselves, and with the same suc- 
 cessful result. 
 
 The same day, Brigadier-General Twiggs commenced the 
 march of his division, the position laid down for him being the 
 village of Vergara, and the left of the line. 
 
 Nothing but the well known energy and perseverance of this 
 veteran commander, enabled him to overcome the numerous dif- 
 ficulties which beset him at every step. The ground was rugged 
 and broken — the sandhills high and loose, and utterly impassable 
 for artillery — the chaparral required to be pierced at many points 
 to allow the passage of the troops, and the guns to be hauled and 
 lifted over high ridges, the successful accomplishment of which 
 demanded the utmost exercise of physical force. 
 
302 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 The men had also to sustain the burden of carrying their pro- 
 yisions and munitions of war, and were besides annoyed oy 
 incessant attacks from skirmishing parties of the enemy, who, re- 
 peatedly driven back at one point, reappeared at another, and 
 kept the Mounted Rifles, under the command of the gallant Major 
 Sumner, 2d dragoons, continually on the alert. 
 
 The enemy lost two commissioned officers, and it was during 
 these operations that Brevet Captain Alburtis, an officer highly 
 distinguished in the Florida war, was killed by a cannon-ball 
 from the city. 
 
 On the 13th the line of investment was complete, and from 
 this time until the 18th, when the trenches were opened, the men 
 were kept constantly busy in throwing up breastworks, erecting 
 batteries, planting mortars, landing supplies, and beating off the 
 light troops of the enemy. 
 
 Commodore Perry, who on the 21st succeeded to the com- 
 mand of the Home Squadron, rendered efficient aid to General 
 Scott. On the 22d, simultaneously with the opening of the bat- 
 teries in the rear of Vera Cruz, he directed the fire of his flotilla 
 of steamers and gun-boats upon the city with good effect. By 
 permission of the General-in-chief, he also established under the 
 direction of Captain Aulick a marine battery, of three Paixhan 
 guns, and three long thirty-two pounders, which bore an im- 
 portant part in the demolition of the city. 
 
 From the 18th, until the final surrender, the progress of events 
 is best marked by the following official despatches. 
 
 " Head- Quarters of the Army, "^ 
 Camp Washington, before Vera Cruz, ^ 
 March 23, 1347. J 
 
 " Sir : — Yesterday, seven of our 10-inch mortars being in bat- 
 tery, and the labours for planting the remainder of our heavy 
 metal being in progress, I addressed, at two o'clock, P. M., a sum- 
 mons to the Gov€rnor of Vera Cruz, and within the two hours 
 
(■OM MO DO RE hi. C. FERRY. 
 
Scott's despatch. 303 
 
 limited by the bearer of the flag, received the Governor's answer. 
 Copies of the two papers (marked respectively A and B) are 
 herewith enclosed. 
 
 " It will be perceived that the Governor, who, it turns out, is the 
 commander of both places, chose, against the plain terms of the 
 summons, to suppose me to have demanded the surrender of the 
 castle and of the city ; when in fact, from the non-arrival of our 
 heavy metal — principally mortars — I was in no condition to 
 threaten the former. 
 
 " On the return of the flag with that reply, I at once ordered the 
 seven mortars, in battery, to open upon the city. In a short time 
 the smaller vessels of Commodore Perry's squadron — two steamers 
 and five schooners — according to previous arrangement with him, 
 approached the city within about a mile and an eighth, whence, 
 being partially covered from the castle — an essential condition 
 to their safety — they also opened a brisk fire upon the city. This 
 has been continued uninterruptedly by the mortars, and only with 
 a few intermissions, by the vessels, up to nine o'clock this morning, 
 when the Commodore, very properly, called them off from a 
 position too daringly assumed. 
 
 " Our three remaining mortars are now (12 o'clock, A. M.) in 
 battery, and the whole ten in activity. To-morrow, early, if the 
 city should continue obstinate, batteries Nos. 4 and 5 will be 
 ready to add their fire : No. 4, consisting of four 24-pounders, 
 and two 8-inch Paixhan guns, and No. 5 (naval battery), of 
 three 32-pounders, and three 8-inch Paixhans — the guns, offi- 
 cers, and sailors, landed from the squadron — our friends of the 
 navy being unremitting in their zealous co-operation, in every 
 mode and form. 
 
 " So far, we know that our fire upon the city has been highly 
 effective, particularly from the batteries of 10-inch mortars, 
 planted at about 800 yards from the city. Including the pre- 
 paration and defence of the batteries, from the beginning — now 
 
304 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 many days — and notwithstanding the heavy fire of the enemy, from 
 city and castle, we have only had four or five men wounded and one 
 officer and one man killed in or near the trenches. That officer was 
 Captain John R. Vinton, of the United States 3d artillery, one 
 of the most talented, accomplished, and effective members of the 
 army, and who was highly distinguished in the brilliant ope- 
 rations at Monterey. He fell last evening in the trenches, where 
 he was on duty as field and commanding officer, universally re- 
 gretted. I have just attended his honoured remains to a soldier's 
 grave — in full view of the enemy and within reach of his guns. 
 
 " Thirteen of the long-needed mortars — leaving twenty-seven, 
 besides heavy guns, behind — have arrived, and two of them 
 landed. A heavy norther then set in (at meridian), that stopped 
 that operation, and also the landing of shells. Hence the fire of our 
 mortar batteries has been slackened since two o'clock to-day, and 
 cannot be reinvigorated until we shall again have a smooth sea. 
 In the mean time I shall leave this report open for journalizing 
 events that may occur up to the departure of the steamship- of- 
 war, the Princeton, with Commodore Conner, who, I learn, ex- 
 pects to leave the anchorage of Sacrificios, for the United States, 
 the 25th inst. 
 
 ^^ March 24. — The storm having subsided in the night, we 
 commenced this forenoon, as soon as the sea became a little 
 smooth, to land shot, shells, and mortars. 
 
 <'The naval battery, No. 5, was opened with great activity, 
 under Captain Aulick, the second in rank in the squadron, about 
 ten A. M. His fire was continued to two o'clock, P. M., a little 
 before he was relieved by Captain Mayo, who landed with a fresh 
 supply of ammunition, Captain Aulick having exhausted the sup- 
 ply he had brought with him. He lost four sailors, killed, and 
 had one officer, Lieutenant Baldwin, slightly hurt. 
 
 " The mortar batteries, Nos. 1, 2, and 3, have fired but Ian- 
 
Scott's despatch. 305 
 
 guidly during the day, for want of shells, which are now going 
 out from the beach. 
 
 " The two reports of Colonel Bankhead, chief of artillery, both 
 of this date, copies of which I enclose, give the incidents of those 
 three batteries. 
 
 " Battery No. 4, which will mount four 24-pounders and two 
 8-inch Paixhan guns, has been much delayed in the hands of the 
 indefatigable engineers by the norther, that filled up the work with 
 sand nearly as fast as it could be opened by the half-blinded la- 
 bourers. It will, however, doubtless be in full activity early 
 to-morrow morning. 
 
 " March 25. — The Princeton being about to' start for Philadel- 
 phia, I have but a moment to continue this report. 
 
 " All the batteries, Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, are in awful activity 
 this morning. The effect is, no doubt, very great, and I think 
 the city cannot hold out beyond to-day. To-morrow morning, 
 many of the new mortars will be in a position to add their fire, 
 when, or after the delay of some twelve hours, if no proposition 
 to surrender should be received, I shall organize parties for car- 
 rying the city by assault. So far, the defence has been spirited 
 and obstinate. 
 
 " I enclose a copy of a memorial received last night, signed 
 by the consuls of Great Britain, France, Spain, and Prussia, 
 within Vera Cruz, asking me to grant a truce to enable the neu- 
 trals, together with Mexican women and children, to withdraw 
 from the scene of havoc about them. I shall reply, the moment 
 that an opportunity may be taken, to say — 1. That a truce can 
 only be granted on the application of Governor Morales, with a 
 ■\-iew to surrender. 2. That, in sending safeguards to the dif- 
 ferent consuls, beginning so far back as the 13th inst., I distinctly 
 admonished them — particularly the French and Spanish consuls 
 — and of course, through the two, the other consuls, of the dan- 
 gers that have followed. 3. That, although at that date I had 
 
306 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 already refused to allow any person whatever to pass the line 
 of investment either way, yet the blockade had been left open to 
 the consuls and other neutrals, to pass out to their respective 
 ships of war, up to the 22d instant; and, 4. I shall enclose to 
 the memorialists a copy of my summons to the Governor, to show 
 that I had fully considered the impending hardships and dis- 
 tresses of the place, including those of women and children, 
 before one gun had been fired in that direction. The intercourse 
 between the neutral ships of war and the city was stopped at 
 the last-mentioned date by Commodore Perry, with my con- 
 currence, which I placed on the ground that that intercourse 
 could not fail to give to the enemy moral aid and comfort. 
 
 " It will be seen from the memorial, that our batteries have 
 already had a terrible effect on the city (also known through 
 other sources), and hence the inference, that a surrender must 
 soon be proposed. In haste, 
 
 " I have the honour to remain, sir, with respect, your most 
 obedient servant, 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 Hon. Wm. L. Marcy, Secretary of War." 
 
 The naval battery which opened its fire on the 24th, under the 
 command of Captain Aulick, was erected within 700 yards of the 
 walls of the city, and such was the secrecy and celerity with 
 which the work was performed by the night labours of two 
 thousand men, that its proximity was not discovered by the be- 
 sieged until the intervening chaparral was suddenly cut away from 
 before it by some daring volunteers headed by Midshipman Allan 
 McLane, a descendant of the brave Revolutionary officer of the 
 same name, and, to the great astonishment of the enemy, it 
 stood boldly developed with its guns mounted, and the men at 
 tl^eir stations. 
 
THE BATTERIES OPENED. 307 
 
 Then commenced its destructive fire, which was vainly at- 
 tempted to be silenced by turning on it, as upon a terrible focus, 
 the fire of all the batteries in town. 
 
 The marine battery opened the succeeding morning, and it 
 was here that, within a few hours, fell Midshipman Shubrick, 
 while watching the effects of his shot. 
 
 " The effect of this battery," writes an eye-witness, " was aw- 
 ful. The walls were breached, a number of guns dismounted, 
 and the red battery completely silenced. 
 
 <' Equally brave and determined w^ere the Mexicans. Three 
 times the flag-staff was shot away, and three times a Mexican 
 leaped to the battlements and held it aloft amid the cheers of the 
 assailants. In the afternoon a flag of truce arrived, requesting 
 six hours to bury their dead. It was accorded, and the firing 
 ceased." 
 
 While the siege was thus vigorously pressed, two affairs oc- 
 cured with the enemy without the walls, which are well worthy 
 of record. 
 
 The first took place on the 23d, when tidings having been re- 
 ceived, that a number of Mexicans were in the vicinity of the 
 Puebla road, Colonel Persifor F. Smith detached from his com- 
 mand Lieutenant Roberts, with company C, of the Mounted Rifles, 
 with orders to reconnoitre and return. Near the Puente del Me- 
 dio, six men were discovered, who displayed a white flag and 
 summoned them to surrender. Then it was that he discovered 
 several hundred men on the heights, commanding the bridge, the 
 former being entrenched, and the latter barricaded with abbatis. 
 Finding his force too small to act with effect, he sent back for 
 reinforcements. Two hundred men, commanded by Colonel 
 Smith in person, soon arrived. 
 
 Lieutenant Roberts was now directed to display in the chapar- 
 ral to the right; and,crossingbelow, turn the left of the enemj; 
 while Captain Pope, with two companies, crossed above, and 
 41 
 
308 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 turned their right, the remainder advancing by the road and 
 bridge. 
 
 These orders were gallantly carried out. Roberts, from his 
 previous knowledge of the ground, was the first to reach the 
 enemy. He succeeded in facing their position, when, finding 
 themselves charged on all sides, they broke in confusion, and 
 were pursued until sunset. In this skirmish Lieutenants Roberts, 
 Maury, and Hatch, were particularly distinguished.* 
 
 The second affair was of a far more important character, and 
 may be justly regarded as one of the most brilliant actions of the 
 war. 
 
 Learning on the 25th that a considerable force of the enemy 
 were in the neighbourhood of the Medellin river. Colonel Harney 
 advanced to meet him, taking with him Thornton's dragoons 
 under Major Sumner, and some fifty dismounted men, com- 
 manded by Captain Ker. 
 
 On reaching the stone bridge of the Morena, he found it forti- 
 fied, and all further passage disputed by two thousand men and 
 two pieces of artillery. Small parties of lancers were also occa- 
 sionally seen. On approaching the bridge, a heavy fire was 
 poured upon our skirmishers, by which one man was killed and 
 two wounded. Harney then fell back, and waited for two pieces 
 of artillery, with which he determined to force the bridge. Mean- 
 while he was joined by Captain Hardee with forty men, a com- 
 pany of the 1st Tennessee regiment under Captain Cheatham, 
 and part of four companies of the 2d Tennessee regiment under 
 Colonel Haskell. As soon as the two pieces of artillery under 
 Lieutenant Judd arrived, preparations were made for the attack. 
 Captain Ker, with the dismounted dragoons, was stationed on 
 the left of the road leading to the bridge, the volunteers on the 
 right, while Captain Hardee and Lieutenant Hill supported the 
 artillery, and held themselves in readiness to charge. Major 
 
 * Smith's Report. 
 
HARNEY S BRILLIANT AFFAIR AT MEDELLIN. 309 
 
 Sumner with the mounted men were kept in reserve. Lieutenant 
 Judd was directed to approach with caution, as the road was cir- 
 cuitous, and the bridge not visible until within fifty yards of the 
 fortification. No sooner was he discovered than the whole fire 
 of the Mexicans was concentrated upon him. To divert this, the 
 detachments to the right and left of the road were ordered to fire, 
 while Lieutenant Judd, nothing daunted, opened upon the forti- 
 fication ; and, after six or eight well directed rounds, the heads 
 of the enemy were no longer to be seen above the parapet.* 
 
 At this moment Harney ordered a charge, and forward rushed 
 the volunteers under Haskell and Cheatham ; and, following with 
 a shout, came the bold dragoons, Haskell was the first man to 
 clear the parapet. The enemy fell back, and re-formed beyond 
 the bridge. Sumner's command now came galloping up, and 
 with a wild hurrah they leaped the fortification, and charged 
 across the bridge. The Mexican infantry broke and fled, some 
 towards Medellin, some into the chaparral. The lancers stood, 
 and a hand-to-hand conflict ensued. Sumner and Lieutenant 
 Sibley, in the thickest of tlie melee, several times measured 
 strength with the enemy, killing or dismounting their antagonists. 
 Harney was seen everywhere ; his tall form and gallant bearing, 
 his coolness, and his audacity, w^on the admiration of his com- 
 mand, and struck terror into the enemy. The 2d dragoons, 
 the bravest and best disciplined corps in the whole army, parried 
 the quivering lance-points with the easy grace and expert swords- 
 manship for which they are renowned. The lancers faltered, 
 gave way, fled, and were routed so utterly, that Lieutenants 
 Lowry and Oaks, with three men, pursued a party of thirty, and 
 sabred or dismounted all but five. 
 
 The pursuit was urged to the village of Medellin, where another 
 party of lancers were found; — these, too, soon partook of the 
 general panic, and were pursued by Lieutenant Neill, outstripping 
 
 * Harney's Report. 
 
310 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 his three companions ; but his daring had near cost him his life. 
 The flying foe, ashamed of being chased by one man, turned 
 suddenly, and by dint of numbers succeeded in lancing him 
 in the breast and arm. The pursuit was urged for two miles 
 beyond this, and then the victors rode back to the village. After 
 halting to refresh both men and horses, Harney returned with his 
 command to camp, which they reached on the morning of the 
 26th, after a warlike episode which, in its chivalric character, has 
 nothing to compare with it but the series of dashing heroic 
 exploits we have yet to record, and of which the action at Me- 
 dellin was a fitting forerunner. 
 
 But we have now to notice events of greater magnitude. 
 The siege of Vera Cruz was approaching its close. On the 
 same day which witnessed the return of Harney, General Scott 
 received in answer to his reply to the consuls, overtures of sur- 
 render by General Landero, upon whom, owing to the sickness 
 of General Morales, the chief command of both city and castle 
 had been devolved. 
 
 The Mexican general invited the appointment of three com- 
 missioners on each side, to meet at some intermediate point, and 
 treat upon the terms of accommodation. 
 
 Generals Worth and Pillow, and Colonel Totten, were according- 
 ly appointed on the part of the Americans ; and Colonels Vil- 
 lanueva and Herrera, and Lieutenant-Colonel Robles, on the part 
 of the Mexicans. After a considerable discussion, and a rejec- 
 tion of several of the articles first proposed, articles of capitulation 
 were agreed upon and assented to by the respective Commanders- 
 in chief. On the 27th the ratification took place. The follow- 
 ing are the articles of capitulation : — 
 
 " Generals W. J. Worth and G. J. Pillow, and Colonel J. G. 
 Totten, Chief Engineer, on the part of Major-General Scott, Gene- 
 ral-in-chief of the armies of the United States ; and Col. Jose Gu- 
 tierrez de Villanueva, Lieutenant Colonel of the Engineers, Man- 
 
ARTICLES OF CAPITULATION. 311 
 
 uel Robles, and Colonel Pedro de Herrera, commissioners appoint- 
 ed by General-of-brigade Don Jose Juan Landero, commanding 
 in chief Vera Cruz, the castle of San Juan d'Ulloa, and their 
 dependencies — for the surrender to the arms of the United States 
 of the said forts, with their armaments, munitions of war, garri- 
 sons, and arms. 
 
 « 1. The whole garrison, or garrisons, to be surrendered to the 
 arms of the United States, as prisoners of war, the 29th inst., at 
 ten o'clock, A. M. ; the garrisons to be permitted to march out with 
 all the honours of war, and to lay down their arms to such officers 
 as may be appointed by the General-in-chief of the United States, 
 and at a point to be agreed on by the commissioners. 
 
 " 2. Mexican officers shall preserve their arms and private 
 effects, including horse and horse furniture, and to be allowed, regu- 
 lar and irregular officers and also to rank and file, five days to retire 
 to their respective homes, on parole, as hereinafter prescribed. 
 
 " 3. Coincident with the surrender, as stipulated in article one, 
 the Mexican flags of the various forts and stations shall be struck, 
 saluted by their own batteries ; and, immediately thereafter, forts 
 Santiago and Conception and the castle of San Juan d'Ulloa, oc- 
 cupied by the forces of the United States. 
 
 "4. The rank and file of the regular portion of the prisoners to 
 be disposed of, after surrender and parole, as their general-in- 
 chief may desire, and the irregular to be permitted to return to 
 their homes. The officers, in respect to all arms and descriptions 
 of force, giving the usual parole, that the said rank and file, as 
 well as themselves, shall not serve again until duly exchanged. 
 
 " 5. All the materiel of war, and all public property of every 
 description found in the city, the castle of San Juan d'Ulloa, and 
 their dependencies, to belong to the United States ; but the arma- 
 ment of the same (not injured or destroyed in the further prosecu- 
 tion of the actual war) may be considered as liable to be restored 
 to Mexico by a definitive treaty of peace. 
 
312 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 " 6. The sick and wounded Mexicans to be allowed to remain 
 in the city, with such medical officers of the army as may be ne- 
 cessary to their care and treatment. 
 
 "7. Absolute protection is solemnly guarantied to persons in 
 the city, and property, and it is clearly understood that no private 
 building or property is to be taken or used by the forces of the 
 United States, without previous arrangement with the owners, and 
 for a fair equivalent. 
 
 " 8. Absolute freedom of religious worship and ceremonies is 
 solemnly guarantied." 
 
 On the 29th, the ceremony of surrender occurred. The spot 
 chosen for this purpose, was a plain in the rear of the city walls, 
 and extending back towards Malibran. The American army 
 was drawn up in two lines facing inwards, and extending nearly 
 a mile. 
 
 General Worth, who had been appointed to superintend the 
 ceremony of capitulation, appeared upon the ground in full uni- 
 form. About ten o'clock, the Mexican troops marched out to the 
 sound of music, and in their customary military costume and 
 equipments ; women and children bearing burdens followed. 
 Halted between our lines, the conquered army stacked their arms, 
 laid down their colours and equipments, and marched into the 
 interior as our troops entered the city. 
 
 Simultaneously with the act of surrender, the American flag 
 floated over the plaza, and was saluted by the guns of the city 
 and squadron. 
 
 On this memorable day, Scott dated from the Palace of Vera 
 Cruz the following despatch to the Secretary of War : 
 
 " Head-Quakters of the Army, 
 Vera Cruz, March 29, 1847. 
 
 .} 
 
 " Sir : The flag of the United States of America floats tri- 
 umphantly over the walls of this city and the castle of San Juan 
 d'Ulloa. 
 
SCOTT'S DESPATCH. 313 
 
 « Our troops have garrisoned both since ten o'clock : it is now 
 noon. Brigadier- General Worth is in command of the two 
 places. 
 
 " Articles of capitulation were signed and exchanged at a late 
 hour night before last. I enclose a copy of the document. 
 
 " I have heretofore reported the principal incidents of the siege 
 up to the 25th instant. Nothing of striking interest occurred till 
 early in the morning of the next day, when I received overtures 
 from General Landero, on whom General Morales had devolved 
 the principal command. A terrible storm of wind and sand made 
 it difficult to communicate with the city, and impossible to refer 
 to Commodore Perry. I was obliged to entertain the proposition 
 alone, or to continue the fire upon a place that had shown a dis- 
 position to surrender ; for the loss of a day, or perhaps several, 
 could not be permitted. The accompanying papers will show 
 the proceedings and results. 
 
 " Yesterday, after the norther had abated, and the commis- 
 sioners appointed by me early the morning before had again met 
 those appointed by General Landero, Commodore Perry sent 
 ashore his second in command. Captain Aulick, as a commissioner 
 on the part of the navy. Although not included in my specific 
 arrangement made with the Mexican commander, I did not 
 hesitate, with proper courtesy, to desire that Captain Aulick might 
 be duly introduced and allowed to participate in the discussions 
 and acts of the commissioners who had been reciprocally ac- 
 credited. Hence the preamble to his signature. The original 
 American commissioners were Brevet Brigadier-General Worth, 
 Brigadier- General Pillow, and Colonel Totten. Four more able 
 or judicious officers could not have been desired. 
 
 " I have to add but little more. The remaining details of the 
 siege — the able co-operation of the United States squadron, suc- 
 cessively under the command of Commodores Conner and Perry 
 — the admirable conduct of the whole army, regulars and volun- 
 
314 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR, 
 
 teers — I should be happy to dwell upon as they deserve ; but the 
 steamer Princeton, with Commodore Conner on board, is under 
 way, and I have commenced organizing an advance into the in- 
 terior. This may be delayed a few days, waiting the arrival of 
 additional means of transportation. In the mean time, a joint 
 operation, by land and water, will be made upon Alvarado, No 
 lateral expedition, however, shall interfere with the grand move- 
 ment towards the capital. 
 
 " In consideration of the great services of Colonel Totten, in the 
 siege that has just terminated most successfully, and the im- 
 portance of his presence at Washington, as the head of the engineer 
 bureau, I intrust this despatch to his personal care, and beg 
 to commend him to the very favourable consideration of the 
 department. 
 
 " I have the honour to remain, sir, with high respect, your 
 most obedient servant, 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 Hon. Wm. L. Marcy, Secretary of War." 
 
 The expedition upon Alvarado determined upon between Scott 
 and Perry, was entirely superseded by that vexatious little town 
 having surrendered in the meanwhile to Lieutenant Hunter, who, 
 in the steamer Scourge, had boldly undertaken on his own re- 
 sponsibility the capture of a place which had twice baffled the 
 efforts of our navy, owing to the difficulty of crossing the bar, and 
 the shallowness of the river upon which it is situated. 
 
 This gallant act of disobedience entailed upon Lieutenant 
 Hunter the censure of his superior officers, while it raised him in 
 the estimation of the American people. 
 
 The fruits of the capture of Vera Cruz, were five thousand 
 prisoners, as many stand of arms, four hundred pieces of ordnance, 
 and a large quantity of ordnance stores. 
 
 The prisoners were all set at liberty upon their « parole" not 
 to serve again during the war, with the exception of a few who 
 
EFFECTS OF THE BOMBARDMENT. 315 
 
 had especially distinguished themselves. These General Scott, 
 with the chivalric sympathy of a kindred mind, released, not only 
 without conditions of any kind, but with high encomiums upon 
 their valour. 
 
 When the American troops entered Vera Cruz, they became 
 for the first time eye-witnesses of the terrible effects of their shot 
 and shells. 
 
 There was scarcely a building in the whole city which had 
 escaped the unerring precision of our artillery. Many houses 
 were totally destroyed, some by fire, some by the bursting of the 
 destructive missiles that had fallen upon them. Roofs were 
 crushed in, walls rent to their foundations, and the massive stones, 
 hurled forcibly from their places, lay in confused heaps, mingled 
 with broken shells, and the dead carcasses of horses and mules. 
 
 An intolerable stench pervaded the place, which required the 
 incessant efforts of General Worth and his successor Colonel 
 Wilson to even partially subdue. 
 42 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Scott receives information of the Battle of Buena Vista — The course of Santa Anna 
 — Forced Levy attempted by Gomez Farias — Civil War in the Capital — March 
 of Santa Anna upon the Capital from San Luis Potosi — He is met by a Deputa- 
 tion from the City — Enters Mexico in triumph — Is installed President of the 
 Republic — Reconciles conflicting Parties — Collects a new Army — Fortifies the 
 Road to the Capital — Formation of Guerilla Bands — Address of Santa Anna to 
 the Mexican People. 
 
 On the loth of March, two days subsequent to the complete 
 investment of Vera Cruz, Scott received information of the won- 
 derful victory of Buena Vista, and immediately issued a general 
 order apprising his troops of the same. In this order, after con- 
 gratulating the army upon this glorious achievement, he hazards 
 the opinion, that Santa Anna having already fallen back upon 
 San Luis Potosi, would probably not stop short of the capital. 
 
 In this opinion he was correct ; but even his sagacity could 
 scarcely have imagined the fatal tenacity with which, notwith- 
 standing his late disastrous expedition, the war party in Mexico 
 still clung to the fortunes of its favourite chief. 
 
 The false bulletin issued by Santa Anna immediately after that 
 great battle, could scarcely have deceived his most credulous ad- 
 herents. All must have been aware that, while claiming a vic- 
 tory, he retreated in such confusion that his wounded were left to 
 the tender mercy of the victor, while his troops were so utterly 
 discomfited and disorganized, that thousands deserted by the way. 
 
 Meanwhile, as if under the influence of that madness which the 
 ancients imputed to those forsaken of tlie Gods, while Taylor held 
 316 
 
CIVIL WAR IN THE CAPITAL. 317 
 
 undisputed possession of the country from Matamoros to Saltillo, 
 and Scott was surrounding Vera Cruz with a belt of fire, civil war 
 broke out in the capital. 
 
 Gomez Farias, the acting President, having with the authority 
 of Congress attempted, by a proposed sale of church property, to 
 levy the sum of five millions of dollars for the purpose of carrying 
 on the war, found himself thwarted by the resistance of the priest- 
 hood, and their adherents among the masses, supported by the 
 " guarda nacional," or enrolled militia. These latter raised the 
 standard of revolt, and for three weeks the city of Mexico was 
 the theatre of one of those disgraceful scenes which have so often 
 shamed that turbulent republic. 
 
 Houses were fortified — convents and public offices seized as 
 barracks and places of defence — the stones of the streets were 
 torn up, and barricades erected ; and then both parties, as if un- 
 willing to test their strength in bold and open encounter, retired 
 behind their defences, and kept up for many days a desultory 
 firing upon each other, with unfortunately less loss to themselves 
 than to the unoffending citizens, whom duty or necessity com- 
 pelled to be abroad. 
 
 At this juncture, all eyes were again turned upon Santa Anna, 
 as to the only man who could reunite the shattered fragments of 
 the nation, and perhaps retrieve, by the prestige of a single vic- 
 tory, some portion of that glory which seemed to have departed 
 for ever. 
 
 How far that able but unscrupulous chief might himself have 
 assisted in bringing about this state of things, we have no means 
 of knowing. Well versed in all the chicanery which belongs to 
 political intrigue, the use of base means, where his own purposes 
 were to be served, was not uncommon to Santa Anna ; and to 
 act as mediator between parties in a storm of his own raising, 
 was a species of diplomacy for which he is known to be well 
 qualified. 
 
318 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 We may therefore regard it as certain that he was at least kept 
 well advised of the progress of things at the capital, and was 
 prepared, at any moment, to act as circumstances might dictate. 
 
 That moment at length arrived. Finding that both parties 
 now looked to him for the adjustment of their mutual differences, 
 he took leave of his troops, and quitting San Luis Potosi on the 
 14th of March, proceeded to the city of Mexico. His progress 
 was hailed by the people with enthusiasm. Addresses of confi- 
 dence from various states met him by the way. Deputations 
 from Congress were sent out to conciliate him. His march was 
 as the march of a conqueror, binding and forgiving, dictating and 
 dispensing. 
 
 He entered the capital on the 20th, amid the acclamations of 
 the multitude; and, on the 23d, was formally installed President 
 of the Republic, at Guadalupe Hidalgo. 
 
 In the general joy elicited by his presence, party animosities 
 were hushed, at least for a time, and all seemed disposed to unite 
 once more in a vigorous attempt to revive the drooping fortmies 
 of the republic. 
 
 Money was subscribed, arras and munitions of war collected, 
 the city and its immediate environs placed in a state of the most 
 formidable defence, and all the principal points of the route 
 between Vera Cruz and the capital — points in themselves offer- 
 ing great natural advantages — were so strongly entrenched and 
 fortified as to become almost impregnable. 
 
 In addition to this, the citizens enrolled themselves for home 
 service, and a new army was rapidly organized under approved 
 leaders, while a partisan warfare of guerilla bands was authorized, 
 in which no quarter was to be given to those who fell into their 
 hands, and the plunder of our trains was to be divided among the 
 victors. 
 
 All things being thus satisfactorily arranged, General Santa 
 
SANTA ANNA S ADDRESS. 319 
 
 Anna assumed command of the army, and previous to leaving 
 the capital issued the following address to the Mexican people : 
 
 " Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, President ad interim of the Mexi- 
 can Republic^ to his compatriots. 
 
 "Mexicans: Vera Cruz is already in the power of the enemy. 
 It has succumbed, — not under the influence of American valour, 
 nor can it ever be said that it has fallen under the impulses of 
 their own good fortune. To our shame be it said, we ourselves 
 have produced this deplorable misfortune by our own interminable 
 discords. 
 
 " The truth is due to you from the government; you are the arbi- 
 ters of the fate of our country. If our country is to be defended, 
 it will be you who will stop the triumphant march of the enemy 
 who occupies Vera Cruz. If the enemy advance one step more, 
 the national independence will be buried in the abyss of the past. 
 
 " I am resolved to go out, and encounter the enemy. What is 
 life worth ennobled by the national gratitude, if the country suf- 
 fers under a censure the stain of which will rebound upon the 
 forehead of every Mexican ! 
 
 " My duty is to sacrifice myself, and I well know how to fulfil 
 it! Perhaps the American hosts may proudly tread the Imperial 
 Capital of Azteca. I will never witness such an opprobrium, for 
 I am determined first to die fighting. 
 
 " The momentous crisis is at length arrived to the Mexican Re- 
 public. It is as glorious to die fighting, as it is infamous to 
 declare oneself conquered without a struggle, and by an enemy 
 whose rapacity is as far removed from valour, as from generosity. 
 
 " Mexicans ! you have a religion — protect it ! you have honour 
 — then free yourselves from infamy ! You love your wives, your 
 children — then liberate them from American brutality. But it 
 must be action — not vain entreaty nor barren desires — with which 
 the enemy must be opposed. 
 
320 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 "The* national cause is infinitely just, although God appears to 
 have abandoned us ; but His ire will be appeased, when we pre- 
 sent as an expiation of our errors the sentiments of a true patriot- 
 ism, and of a sincere union. 
 
 " Thus the Almighty will bless our efforts, and we will be in- 
 vincible ! for, against the decision of eight millions of Mexicans, 
 of what avail are the efforts of eight or ten millions of Americans, 
 when opposed by the fiat of Divine Justice ? 
 
 " Perhaps I speak to you for the last time ! I pray you to listen 
 to me ! Do not vacillate between death and slavery, and if the 
 enemy conquer you, at least they will respect the heroism of your 
 resistance. It is now time that the common defence should alone 
 occupy your thoughts ! The hour of sacrifice has sounded its 
 approach ! Awaken ! A tomb opens itself at your feet ! Con- 
 quer a laurel to repose on it. 
 
 " The nation has not yet lost its vitality ! I swear to you, I 
 will answer for the triumph of Mexico, if unanimous and sincere 
 efforts on your part second my desires. Happy will have been — 
 a thousand times happy — the unfortunate event at Vera Cruz, if 
 the destruction of that city may have served to infuse into the Mexi- 
 can breast the dignity and generous ardour of a true patriotism ! 
 
 '< Thus will the country have been indubitably saved ; but if 
 the country succumb, she will bequeath her opprobrium and her 
 censure to those egotists who were not ready to defend her — to 
 those who traitorously pursued their private turmoils to trample 
 upon the national banner ! 
 
 " Mexicans ! Your fate is the fate of the nation ! Not the 
 Americans, but you will decide her destiny ! Vera Cruz calls for 
 vengeance ! — follow me, and wash out the stain of her dishonour. 
 ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA. 
 
 Mexico, March 31, 1847." 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Scott commences his March for the Capital — Twiggs thrown forward in advance 
 — Reaches Plan del Rio — Is joined by the General-in-chief — Description of 
 Cerro Gordo — Scott determines upon turning the Position — A new Road cut — 
 Twiggs ordered to take up his Position — Is met by the Enemy — Gallantry of 7th 
 Infantry — Dashing Charge of Harney's Brigade — They capture a Hill in the rear 
 of Cerro Gordo — Mount a Battery in the Night — Wonderful Exertions of the Men 
 — Morning of the 18th of April — Scott's celebrated Order — Position of the Mexi- 
 cans — Battle of Cerro Gordo — Storming of the Heights — Operations of Shields's 
 Brigade — Shields dangerously wounded — Defeat of the Enemy — Fruits of Victory 
 — Scott's Despatch to the War Department — Worth enters Puebla. 
 
 In the face of the formidable obstacles arrayed against him, 
 Scott commenced his march for the interior. 
 
 On the 8th of April, Twiggs left Vera Cruz, taking up the line 
 of march by the Jalapa road, and arrived at Plan del Rio on the 
 11th, The next day he was reinforced by the brigades of Gene- 
 rals Pillow and Shields, and subsequently joined by a portion of 
 the volunteers, under Major-General Patterson. 
 
 Meanwhile, having received information that the enemy, to the 
 number of sixteen thousand men, under the immediate command 
 of Santa Anna, were in the neighbourhood of Cerro Gordo, he or- 
 dered a reconnoissance. The report of the officers showed that 
 a succession of heights, each commanding the other, had been 
 entrenched and fortified, and the road cut up and barricaded. 
 
 In the face of these formidable obstacles, Twiggs determined 
 to advance : and preparations were made to commence the at- 
 tack on the morning of the 13th, but the morning of the 14th was 
 
 321 
 
322 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 afterwards adopted at the solicitations of Generals Pillow and 
 Shields, whose commands, though desirous of engaging the ene- 
 my, were yet too weary from their march, to do it with spirit and 
 effect. 
 
 At this juncture, Major-General Patterson, who had been on 
 the sick list, reported himself for duty, and assuming the com- 
 mand, suspended all further offensive operations until the arrival 
 of the General-in-chief.* 
 
 The division of Worth had come up in the meanwhile, and 
 shortly afterwards Scott himself reached Plan del Rio, when a 
 second and more extended reconnoissance being made, it was 
 discovered that a front attack, even if successful, would occasion 
 the sacrifice of an immense number of lives, and might possibly 
 result in the almost total annihilation of our army. The position 
 occupied by the Mexicans was indeed almost impregnable. 
 
 " The road, as it passes the Plan del Rio, which is a wide, 
 rocky bed of a once large stream, is commanded by a series of 
 high cliffs, rising one above the other, and extending several 
 miles, and all well fortified. 
 
 " The road then debouches to the right, and curving round the 
 ridge passes over a high cliff, which is completely enfiladed by 
 forts and batteries. 
 
 " This ridge is the commencement of the ' Tierra Templada,' 
 the upper or mountainous country. 
 
 " The high and rocky ravine of the river protected the right 
 flank of the position, and a series of abrupt and almost impassa- 
 ble mountains and ridges crowned their left. 
 
 " Between these two points, running a distance of two or three 
 miles, a succession of strongly fortified forts bristled at every 
 turn, and seemed to defy all bravery and skill." f 
 
 ♦Twiggs's Report, April 19, 1847. 
 
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TWIGGS ORDERED TO TAKE UP HIS POSITION. 323 
 
 " On the other side, the lofty and difficult height of Cerro Gordo 
 commanded the approaches in all directions."* 
 
 Under these circumstances, Scott determined to turn the posi- 
 tion of the enemy by cutting a road which, diverging from the 
 main road, and descending abruptly a deep ravine, should skirt 
 the base of the mountains, over rough ground and chaparral, 
 " along difficult slopes and over chasms, out of the enemy's view, 
 but reached by his guns when discovered,"! until it should 
 debouch on the Jalapa road, and in the rear of the main body 
 of the Mexican army. 
 
 This road, after incredible labour, was only partially completed. 
 For three days, the working parties succeeded in pushing forward 
 unknown to the enemy ; but on the 17th, while approaching the 
 Mexican lines, they were discovered and fired upon. Their la- 
 bours, however, had been crowned with success, as the Jalapa 
 road , though not entirely reached, was known to be within easy 
 distance. 
 
 The division of Twiggs w^as accordingly ordered to advance 
 by the new route, and, supported by Shields's brigade of volun- 
 teers, turn the enemy's left, and take up the position previously 
 designated. In doing this it was necessary to occupy the heights 
 in the vicinity of Cerro Gordo. . 
 
 Lieutenant Gardner was accordingly detached with a company 
 of the 7th infantry, to a height on the left, for the purpose of re- 
 connoitring the enemy. Upon observing this movement, a strong 
 party of Mexican skirmishers were advanced towards him, sup- 
 ported by a reserve of some two thousand men. Under this 
 severe fire he gallantly maintained his position, until Harney ad- 
 vanced to his support with the Rifles under Major Sumner, and 
 the Artillery under Colonel Childs. 
 
 Moving rapidly up in line, these regiments reached the sum- 
 mit of the hill, drew the fire of the enemy, and charged. For a 
 while the ground was obstinately disputed, but nothing could 
 
 * Scott's official report, April 23, 1847. t Ibid. 
 
 43 
 
324 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 withstand the impetuosity of our troops. Animated by the 
 voice and the example of Harney, and led by Sumner and Childs, 
 they forced the Mexicans down the steep, and up and over the 
 neighbouring heights. 
 
 On the height in front of Cerro Gordo, and under cover of its 
 guns, the enemy again made a desperate stand. Here they ima- 
 gined themselves secure ; but, through a fierce storm of grape 
 and canister, and amid a heavy fire of musketry, the Artillery and 
 Rifles dashed forward, stormed the hill and carried it with severe 
 loss. 
 
 Three times the Mexicans rallied, and attempted to retake the 
 height, and each time they were successfully beaten back, until 
 at length they gave way, thoroughly disorganized, and were pur- 
 sued by Colonel Childs, wuth a portion of the 1st artillery, till 
 they sought shelter within the Tower of Cerro Gordo. 
 
 Such was the reckless enthusiasm with which this chase up 
 the steep of Cerro Gordo had been conducted, that upon halting 
 his command within one hundred and fifty yards of the Tower, 
 Colonel Childs found that he had urged tlie daring pursuit with 
 only sixty followers. 
 
 At this juncture, Major Sumner, while hastening to the support 
 of the brave little band, fell severely wounded. Captain Magru- 
 der was more fortunate ; he gallantly dashed through a shower of 
 bullets, and with nine of his men succeeded in reaching Colonel 
 Childs, when, the recall being sounded, tliey withdrew from their 
 perilous position, and retiring slowly, rejoined the remainder 
 of their command, with only men enough to carry back the 
 wounded.* 
 
 But there was yet a work to be accomplished, which was des- 
 tined to tax the physical energies of the men to the point of 
 exhaustion. Upon the height thus gallantly captured, a height 
 commanding all others with the single exception of Cerro Gordo, 
 
 * Childs's Report, April 20, 1847. 
 
SCOTT S CELEBRATED ORDER, 325 
 
 a battery consisting of one 24-pounder and two 24-pound howit- 
 zers was ordered to be planted. 
 
 For this arduous service a thousand men were detailed, and 
 although the work was commenced at dusk, it occupied the 
 greater portion of the night. 
 
 The guns were of immense weight, and had to be lifted up the 
 rugged and almost precipitous sides of the mountain by dint of 
 main force, the men being divided into two parties of five hun- 
 dred men each, and relieving each other by turns. 
 
 At length, however, the work was successfully accomplished ; 
 and pickets being placed, the w^eary soldiers threw themselves 
 down upon the rocky crest of the captured hill, and sought a 
 brief, but imperfect repose. 
 
 Thus far, then, the admirable arrangements of the General-in- 
 chief had been successfully carried out, and the division of 
 Twiggs being reported in position, Scott now issued the following 
 confident and prophetic order : 
 
 " General Orders, No. 111. 
 
 "Head-Quarters of the Army. ) 
 Plan del Rio, April 17, 1847. ) 
 
 " The enemy's whole line of entrenchments and batteries will be 
 attacked in front, and at the same time turned, early in the day, 
 to-morrow — probably before ten o'clock, A. M. 
 
 " The second (Twiggs's) division of regulars is already ad- 
 vanced within easy turning distance towards the enemy's left. That 
 division has instructions to move forw^ard before daylight to-mor- 
 row, and take up a position across the national road in the ene- 
 my's rear, so as to cut off a retreat towards Xalapa. It may be 
 reinforced to-day, if unexpectedly attacked in force, by regiments 
 — one or two taken from Shields's brigade of volunteers. If not, 
 the two volunteer regiments \v\\\ march for that purpose at day- 
 light to-morrow morning, under Brigadier-General Shields, who 
 will report to Brigadier-General Twiggs, on getting up with him, 
 or to the General-in-chief, if he be in advance. 
 
326 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 "The remaining regiment of that volunteer brigade will receive 
 instructions in the course of this day. 
 
 " The first division of regulars (Worth's) will follow the move- 
 ment against the enemy's left at sunrise to-morrow morning. 
 
 " As already arranged, Brigadier-General Pillow's brigade will 
 march at six o'clock to-morrow morning along the route he has 
 carefully reconnoitred, and stand ready as soon as he hears the 
 report of arms upon our right, or sooner if circumstances should 
 favour him, to pierce the enemy's line of batteries at such point — 
 the nearer the river the better — as he may select. Once in the 
 rear of that line, he will turn to the right or left, or both, and 
 attack the batteries in reverse ; or, if abandoned, he will pursue 
 the enemy with vigour until further orders. 
 
 " Wall's field battery and the cavalry will be held in reserve 
 on the national road, a little out of view and range of the enemy's 
 batteries. They will take up that position at nine o'clock in the 
 morning. 
 
 " The enemy's batteries being carried or abandoned, all our 
 divisions and corps will pursue with vigour. 
 
 " This pursuit may be continued many miles, until stopped by 
 darkness, or fortified positions towards Xalapa. Consequently, 
 the body of the army will not return to this encampment, but be 
 followed to-morrow afternoon, or early the next morning, by the 
 baggage-trains of the several corps. For this purpose, the feebler 
 officers and men of each corps will be left to guard its camp and 
 effects, and to load up the latter in the wagons of the corps. A 
 commander of the present encampment will be designated in the 
 course of this day. 
 
 "As soon as it shall be known that the enemy's works have 
 been carried, or that the general pursuit has been commenced, 
 one wagon for each regiment and battery, and one for the cavalry, 
 will follow the movement, to receive, under the direction of the 
 
BRIG. GKN. DAVID E. TWIGGS 
 
MORNING OF THE EIGHTEENTH OF APRIL. 327 
 
 medical officers, the wounded and disabled, who will be brought 
 back to this place for treatment in general hospital. 
 
 " The Surgeon-General will organize this important service 
 and designate that hospital, as well as the medical officers to be 
 left at it. 
 
 " Every man who marches out to attack or pursue the enemy, 
 will take the usual allowance of ammunition, and subsistence for 
 at least two days. 
 
 By command of Major-General Scott, 
 
 H. L. SCOTT, A. A. A. General 
 
 The morning of the 18th rose bright and beautiful. The sun 
 rode up the clear, deep, cloudless blue, ascending through an 
 atmosphere of such transparent purity, as rendered remote objects 
 sharply distinct, and confounded to unaccustomed eyes the idea 
 of distance. 
 
 A gentle, cooling breeze swept over the hill-tops, and fanned 
 the parched lips of the fevered watchers of both armies, whose 
 eyes were now bent eagerly upon each other, waiting the signal 
 which should impel them from the opposing heights, to meet in 
 close and deadly conflict. 
 
 The division of Twiggs, whose gallantry on the preceding 
 day had elicited that old veteran's unqualified admiration, was 
 now to go forth again into the hottest of the battle. 
 
 To the brave regulars of the First Brigade was committed the 
 perilous duty of storming the tourer of Cerro Gordo, the success 
 or failure of which enterprise would stamp the orders of the 
 General-in-chief with the spirit of prophecy, or cause them to 
 appear in the annals of history as the vainglorious production 
 of an over-confident man. 
 
 During this attack upon the key position, the Second Brigade 
 under Riley, and the volunteers under Shields, were to press for- 
 ward in the direction of the enemy's left, over rough and rugged 
 
328 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ways, and through the thorny chaparral which intervened between 
 the newly cut road, and the plain in the rear of the mountain. — 
 The object of this movement was to seize the Jalapa road, and 
 prevent the escape of the fugitives. 
 
 The division of Worth was ordered to support the storming 
 party, while that of Pillow operated upon the strong river bat- 
 teries upon the right. Upon the columns of Twiggs and Pillow, 
 therefore, the fiercest brunt of the battle would necessarily fall ; 
 but, upon the results achieved by the former mainly depended 
 the fortune of the day. Cerro Gordo was the key position, over- 
 topping and commanding all others, and, that once taken, the 
 river batteries to be assaulted by Pillow, though almost impracti- 
 cable when attacked in front, w^ere comparatively valueless as 
 means of defence, whenever the position should be effectually 
 turned, and Cerro Gordo in possession of its conquerors. 
 
 But the effect of the capture of Cerro Gordo did not end here. 
 Not only would the river batteries be rendered ineffective, but also 
 the ascending series of forts and breastworks, all of which were 
 commanded by the tower. 
 
 The movement of Pillow was more for the purpose of diverting 
 the attention of the enemy from the storm of Cerro Gordo, than 
 trom any great result which was likely to ensue otherwise ; and, 
 if this succeeded, the object of the General-in-chief would be 
 gained, even though Pillow should be beaten back with severe 
 loss, as happened to be subsequently the case. 
 
 Through the desertion of a German soldier from our ranks, on 
 the evening of the 17th, General Santa Anna obtained early in- 
 formation of the plan of attack as arranged for the morrow, and 
 strengthened his left accordingly. In order to protect his front 
 and right, General La Vega, previously known as a most gallant 
 and efficient officer, supposing Cerro Gordo secure from assault, 
 exchanged command of the latter with General Vasquez, and 
 
BATTLE OF CERRO GORDO. 329 
 
 sought, by his presence in the river batteries, to animate the 
 defenders to a successful resistance. 
 
 Throughout the night of the 17th, there were eight thousand 
 Mexicans lying upon and around the different heights, protected 
 by breastworks and fortifications, and further secured from direct 
 assault, by deep ravines, and almost precipitous rocks, up whose 
 steep sides they imagined a man would scarcely dare to climb. 
 
 In addition to the force thus formidably posted, there was a 
 reserve of six thousand men encamped upon the plain in the rear 
 of Cerro Gordo, and close to the Jalapa road. 
 
 These troops, under the immediate command of General Santa 
 Anna, were posted so as to be within supporting distance of any 
 point upon or among the heights, that might be most exposed to 
 danger from a vigorous assault. 
 
 The American force did not exceed eight thousand men. 
 
 At break of day, the second division was ordered to prepare 
 for battle, and the co^nmand was obeyed with a quiet fearlessness 
 that augured well for the success of their heroic efforts. 
 
 The battery planted with so much difficulty upon the crest of 
 the captured hill now opened its fire upon Cerro Gordo, which 
 was returned by a plunging fire of grape and canister. 
 
 Meanwhile, Harney was organizing his storming party. This 
 consisted of the 7th infantry under Lieutenant-Colonel Plympton, 
 the Rifles under Major Loring, four companies of the 1st artillery 
 under Colonel Childs, and six companies of the 3d infantry under 
 Captain Alexander. 
 
 All of these, composing the forlorn hope, were regulars ; picked 
 men, danng and resolute. Many of them were veterans who had 
 passed not unscathed through the desperate battles of Palo Alto 
 and the Palm Ravine, and the still more deadly storm of Monte- 
 rey. Now they were about to wrestle with a danger, perhaps 
 more imminent than any they had hitherto encountered. 
 
 They were to advance in the face of an enemy confident in the 
 
330 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 strength of his defences — in the face of a plunging fire from the 
 Tower of Cerro Gordo — in defiance of the enemy's reserve 
 thrown forward as a succouring force — over barricades bristling 
 with musketry, up steep rocks, several hundred feet in height, 
 and over and into the Tower of Cerro Gordo, itself filled with 
 armed men outnumbering their assailants, and protected by a 
 well directed fire from guns served by the ablest artillerists of the 
 nation, yet not a man faltered. 
 
 Forming the 7th Infantry on the right, the 3d on the left, and 
 the Artillery in the rear, Harney detached the Rifles to check a 
 large force of the enemy hastening to the support of CeiTO Gordo^ 
 and, without waiting for the fire of his skirmishers, ordered the 
 charge to sound. 
 
 And now, down rushed those daring men through a storm of 
 grape and canister, and musketry. 
 
 They descended the hill — they crossed the ravine ; and, ^vith 
 a shout, commenced clambering the terrible height. Looking 
 back from its base, they recognise on the crest of the hill they 
 have so lately quitted, the tall form of the General-in-chief. He 
 has come to witness the exploit which is to determine the fate of 
 the day, and, as he beholds the men clinging to, and surmount- 
 ing the rocks, in every direction — each eager to be first, regardless 
 of his ej^posure to the fierce fire continually poured upon them ; 
 as he sees a part of them form a little distance from the base of 
 the hill ; and, led by the intrepid Harney, carry the interposing 
 breastwork at the point of the bayonet, in defiance of its resolute 
 defenders ; and as he hears, in the ravine below, the brave Rifles, 
 already baptized in blood, sustaining, with a courage never 
 surpassed, a galling fire in front and upon both flanks from en- 
 trenchments and batteries, and yet keeping the succouring force 
 at bay, while their comrades ascend the height, he feels that the 
 agonizing suspense which intervenes between the projecting of a 
 perilous exploit and its successful execution, is gradually sub- 
 
STORMING OF THE HEIGHTS. 331 
 
 siding into a calm confidence that with such men, and led by 
 such officers, victory is as certain as that the sun shines, or the 
 water flows. 
 
 Nor was this confidence misplaced. Onward they rushed, im- 
 pelled by the double consciousness, that the eyes of the General- 
 in-chief were upon them, and of the terrible consequences that 
 would follow a disastrous issue. Harney led the way, — con- 
 spicuous above all others by his full military uniform, and his 
 commanding stature. Waving his sword, and calling on his 
 men to follow, he rapidly ascended, in full view of the enemy, 
 while his cheering voice infused into the breasts of his command 
 the same energy and dauntless enthusiasm which animated his 
 own. 
 
 It was a race for glorious renown, wherein each strove to be 
 foremost. The front ranks fell, but the survivors still pressed on ; 
 and still, above the thunder of the war, rose high, distinct, and 
 clear, the voice of their intrepid leader. 
 
 Near the crest of the hill, and encircling the Tower, another 
 breastwork was to be carried. It was done ; — and then, swarm- 
 ing up the walls of the fort, they bayoneted the artillerists at 
 their guns, and drove the desperate enemy from his central de- 
 fence down the steep sides of the hill, in utter and irremediable 
 rout. 
 
 Lieutenant Ewell, the first to mount the breastworks, here fell 
 mortally wounded. Lieutenant Van Dorn killed two Mexican 
 soldiers with his own hands. Captain Magruder promptly turned 
 the captured guns upon the flying foe. Sergeant Henry of the 
 7th infantry hauled down the Mexican standard, — while almost 
 simultaneously with the scaling of the walls, the colours of the 1st 
 artillery and the 3d and 7th infantry were planted upon them 
 amidst the deafening cheers of the conquerors. Such was the 
 famous storming of Cerro Gordo. 
 
 In a little while, having been delayed by the rugged character 
 44 
 
332 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 of the route it had to traverse, Worth's division arrived, and 
 shortly afterwards, the nearest batteries below surrendered. 
 
 The remainder of the division of Twiggs was equally suc- 
 cessful. 
 
 The Second Brigade, under Riley, after moving some distance 
 on the enemy's left, cleared the foot of the ridge, which was 
 infested with their skirmishers, and then attacked the reverse of 
 Cerro Gordo, gaining the crown of the hill at the same moment 
 that the First Brigade reached it from the front. After the capture, 
 both brigades joined in the pursuit. 
 
 The volunteers, under Shields, were moving upon the extreme 
 left of the enemy. Upon approaching the Jalapa road, a battery 
 of five pieces was discovered, in front, supported by a large force 
 of cavalry and infantry. 
 
 While forming his men for the attack. Shields fell dangerously 
 wounded, and Colonel Baker of the Illinois regiment assuming 
 the command, charged the enemy's lines, supported by the 3d 
 and part of the 4th Illinois volunteers, under Harris and Fal- 
 man, and the New York regiment, under Colonel Burnett, when 
 the enemy, already disheartened by the fall of Cerro Gordo, and 
 being threatened at the same time by a detachment of the 2d 
 infantry, upon his right, after a few random shots scattered in all 
 directions, leaving his guns, baggage, specie, provisions, and 
 camp equipage, in the hands of the victors. 
 
 On the enemy's right, Pillow was less fortunate. After encoun- 
 tering many obstacles and delays, he took up his position in front 
 of the river batteries, and attempted to carry them by assault ; but 
 a murderous enfilading fire opening upon him, he was compelled 
 to fall back with considerable loss. 
 
 A second time he attempted the assault, with a storming force 
 composed of the 2d Tennessee regiment, and a company each 
 from Pennsylvania and Kentucky, all under the command of 
 Colonel Haskell, an officer already distinguished by his gallant 
 
BRIG. GEN JAMES SHIELDS. 
 
BATTLE OF CERRO GORDO. 333 
 
 conduct in the affair at Medellin. This column, after having sus- 
 tained itself under a galling fire of grape and musketry until the 
 Tennessee regiment was nearly annihilated, and the supporting 
 companies proportionably shattered, was also withdrawn beyond 
 the range of the enemy's guns. 
 
 Pillow then organized his command for a third attack ; but in 
 the meanwhile Cerro Gordo had fallen, and General La Vega, 
 finding himself threatened from the Tower, and cut off from all 
 support, surrendered himself, with three thousand men, prisoners 
 of war. 
 
 The battle was now ended. On the other side of the mountain 
 Generals Santa Anna, Almonte, and Canalize, with eight thou- 
 sand men, were already in full retreat, and the pursuit of the 
 fugitives commenced. 
 
 Harney's dragoons, with Worth's di%asion of regulars, dashed 
 forward in advance. The brigades of Twiggs, Shields, and Riley 
 soon followed, and from mid-day until set of sun the pursuit was 
 urged with an energy that not only left the flying JVIexicans no 
 time to rally, but broke and dispersed them utterly. 
 
 At length the wearied victors halted at various distances along 
 the national road, the furthest in advance being within ten miles 
 of the beautiful city of Jalapa, and fifteen from the scene of action. 
 The fruits of this glorious victory w^ere three thousand prisoners, 
 between four and five thousand stand of arms, forty-three pieces 
 of splendid bronze artillery of large calibre, mostly manufactured 
 at the Royal Foundry of Seville, and a large quantity of fixed 
 ammunition of superior quality. 
 
 Our loss during the two days, was sixty-three killed, and three 
 hundred and ninety-eight wounded. That of the enemy was 
 supposed to be, in killed and w^ounded, nearly twelve hundred. 
 
 The appearance of the battle-field, as described by an eye- 
 witness, was appalling to the sight. 
 
 " A dragoon we encountered on the way kindly offered to be 
 
334 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 our guide, and from him we learned the positions of the different 
 armies, their divisions and subdivisions. As winding around the 
 hills by the national road, the enemy's entrenchments, their bar- 
 ricaded heights, strong forts, and well defended passes came in 
 view, we halted, and gazed for several moments in mute amaze- 
 ment. No one, from reading the newspaper accounts or the 
 reports of the generals, can form a proper idea of the advantages 
 possessed by the enemy in his chosen position. The battle, I 
 knew, had been fought and won by our troops ; yet it seemed, 
 in its bare, still reality, a dream. I could not shake off this feel- 
 ing as I rode along the enemy's lines of entrenchments, entered 
 his dismantled forts and magazines, and looked from his chosen 
 heights upon the paths up which our troops rushed into the jaws 
 of death. #***** 
 
 " Passing down the ravine where the National Guard had three 
 times attempted to dislodge the mounted riflemen, who, supported 
 by the howitzer battery, literally rained death among their ranks, 
 I was obliged to turn back and retrace my steps. The gorge was 
 choked up with the mangled bodies of the flower of the Mexican 
 army. The wolf-dog and the buzzard howled and screamed as I 
 rode by, and the stench was too sickening to be endured. Return- 
 ing to the national road, we passed a large number of cannon 
 taken by our troops, and saw piles of muskets, charred with fire, 
 in heaps, where they had been heaped and burned. * * * * 
 
 " All along the road were the bodies of Mexican lancers and 
 their horses, cut down by Colonel Harney's dragoons, when these 
 fire-eaters chased Santa Anna and his retreating troops into and 
 beyond Jalapa. Almost every man's skull was literally split open 
 with the sabres of our horsemen, and they lay stretched upon the 
 ground in ghastly groups." 
 
 From the old camp at Plan del Rio, where he had established 
 his hospital for the sick and wounded, Scott forwarded to the 
 Department of War the following despatch : — 
 
Scott's despatch. 335 
 
 •' Head-Quarters of the Army, \ 
 
 Plan del Rio, 50 miles from Vera Cruz, \ 
 
 April 19, 1847. ) 
 
 " Sir : The plan of attack, sketched in General Orders, No. 
 Ill, forwarded herewith, was finely executed by this gallant army, 
 before two o'clock, P. M., yesterday. We are quite embarrassed 
 with the results of victory — prisoners of war, heavy ordnance, 
 field batteries, small arms, and accoutrements. 
 
 " About 3,000 men laid down their arms, with the usual pro- 
 portion of field and company officers, besides five generals, seve- 
 ral of them of great distinction — Pinzon, Jarrero, La Vega, No- 
 riega, and Obando. A sixth general, Vasquez, was killed in 
 defending the battery (tower) in the rear of the whole Mexican 
 army, the capture of which gave us those glorious results. 
 
 " Our loss, though comparatively small in numbers, has been 
 serious. Brigadier- General Shields, a commander of activity, 
 zeal, and talent, is, I fear, if not dead, mortally wounded. He is 
 some five miles from me at the moment. The field of operations 
 covered many miles, broken by mountains and deep chasms, and 
 I have not a report, as yet, from any division or brigade. 
 
 " Twiggs's division, followed by Shields's (now Colonel Baker's) 
 brigade, are cow at or near Xalapa, and Worth's division is in 
 route thither, all pursuing, with good results, as I learn, that part 
 of the Mexican army — perhaps six or seven thousand men — who 
 had fled before our right had carried the tower, and gained the 
 Xalapa road. 
 
 " Pillow's brigade alone, is near me at this depot of wounded, 
 sick, and prisoners ; and I have time only to give from him the 
 names of 1st Lieutenant F. B. Nelson, and 2d C. G. Hill, both 
 of the 2d Tennessee foot (Haskell's regiment), among the killed, 
 and in the brigade 106, of all ranks, killed or wounded. 
 
 " Among the latter, the gallant brigadier-general himself has 
 a smart wound in the arm, out not disabled ; and Major R. Far- 
 queson, 2d Tennessee, Captam H. F. Murray, 2d Lieutenant G. 
 
336 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 T. Sutherland, 1st Lieutenant W. P. Hale, Adjutant, all of the 
 same regiment, severely, and 1st Lieutenant W. Yearwood, mor- 
 tally wounded. And I know, from personal observation on the 
 ground, that 1st Lieutenant Ewell, of the Rifles, if not now dead, 
 was mortally wounded in entering, sword in hand, the entrench- 
 ments around the captured tower. 
 
 " 2d Lieutenant Derby, topographical engineers, I also saw, at 
 the same place, severely wounded, and Captain Patten, 2d United 
 States infantry, lost his right hand.* Major Sumner, 2d United 
 States dragoons, was slightly wounded the day before, and Cap- 
 tain Johnston, topographical engineers (now lieutenant- colonel 
 of infantry), was very severely wounded some days earlier, while 
 reconnoitring. I must not omit to add, that Captain Mason, and 
 2d Lieutenant Davis, both of the Rifles, were among the very se- 
 verely wounded in storming the same tower. 
 
 " I estimate our total loss, in killed and wounded, may be 
 about 250, and that of the enemy at 350. f In the pursuit towards 
 Xalapa (25 miles hence), I learn we have added much to the 
 enemy's loss in prisoners, killed, and wounded. In fact, I sup- 
 pose his retreating army to be nearly disorganized, and hence my 
 haste to follow, in an hour or two, to profit by events. 
 
 " In this hurried and imperfect report I must not omit to say, 
 that Brigadier-General Twiggs, in passing the mountain-range 
 beyond Cerro Gordo, crowned with the tower, detached from his 
 division, as I suggested the day before, a strong force to carry 
 that height, which commanded the Xalapa road at the foot, and 
 could not fail, if carried, to cut off the whole, or any part of the 
 enemy's forces from a retreat in any direction. 
 
 '< A portion of the 1st artillery, under the often-distinguished 
 Brevet-Colonel Childs ; the 3d infantry, under Captain Alexander ; 
 
 * The General is in error ; it was a portion of his left hand Captain Patten lost, 
 t A very inaccurate estimate — our loss was 431, killed and wounded ; that of the 
 enemy nearly 1200. See data. 
 
MAJ GEN GIDEON J. PILLOW. 
 
Scott's despatch. 837 
 
 the 7th infantry, under Lieutenant- Colonel Plymton ; and the Rifles, 
 under Major Loring, all under the temporary command of Colonel 
 Harney, 2d dragoons, during the confinement to his bed of Brevet 
 Brigadier-General P. F. Smith, composed that detachment. The 
 style of execution, which I had the pleasure to witness, was most 
 brilliant and decisive. 
 
 " The brigade ascended the long and difficult slope of Cerro 
 Gordo, without shelter, and under the tremendous fire of artillery 
 and musketry, with the utmost steadiness, reached the breast- 
 works, drove the enemy from them, planted the colours of the 1st 
 artillery, 3d and 7th infantry — the enemy's flag still flying — and, 
 after some minutes' sharp firing, finished the conquest with the 
 bayonet. 
 
 " It is a most pleasing duty to say that the highest praise is 
 due to Harney, Childs, Plymton, Loring, Alexander, their gallant 
 officers and men, for this brilliant service, independent of the 
 great results which soon followed. 
 
 " Worth's division of regulars coming up at this time, he 
 detached Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel C. F. Smith, with his lio-ht 
 battalion, to support the assault, but not in time. The general 
 reaching the tower a few minutes before me, and observing a 
 white flag displayed from the nearest portion of the enemy towards 
 the batteries below, sent out Colonels Harney and Childs to hold 
 a parley. The surrender followed in an hour or two.* 
 
 " Major- General Patterson left a sick-bed to share in the dan- 
 gers and fatigues of the day ; and after the surrender went forward 
 to command the advanced forces towards Xalapa. 
 
 "Brigadier-General Pillow and his brigade twice assaulted with 
 great daring the enemy's line of batteries on our left, and though 
 without success, they contributed much to distract and dismay 
 their immediate opponents. 
 
 " President Santa Anna, with Generals Canalizo and Almonte, 
 
 * These were the batteries commanded by General Pinzon, a mulatto officer. 
 
338 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 and some six or eight thousand men escaped towards Xalapa just 
 before Cerro Gordo was carried, and before Twiggs's division 
 reached the national road above, 
 
 " I have determined to parole the prisoners — officers and men 
 — as I have not the means of feeding them here beyond to-day, 
 and cannot afford to detach a hea^y body of horse and foot, with 
 wagons, to accompany them to Vera Cruz. Our baggage-train, 
 though increasing, is not half large enough to give an assured 
 progress to this army. 
 
 "Besides, a greater number of prisoners would, probably, 
 escape from the escort, in the long and deep sandy road, without 
 subsistence — ten to one^ — than we shall find again, out of the same 
 body of men, in the ranks opposed to us. Not one of the Vera 
 Cruz prisoners is believed to have been in the lines of Cerro 
 Gordo. Some six of the officers, highest in rank, refuse to give 
 their paroles, except to go to Vera Cruz, and thence, perhaps, to 
 the United States. 
 
 " The small-arms and accoutrements, being of no value to our 
 army here, or at home, I have ordered them to be destroyed ; for we 
 have not the means of transporting them. I am, also, somewhat 
 
 embarrassed with the pieces of artillery,* all bronze, which 
 
 we have captured. It would take a brigade, and half the mules 
 of our army, to transport them fifty miles. 
 
 "A field-battery I shall take for service with the army; but 
 the heavy metal must be collected, and left here for the present. 
 We have our own siege-train and the proper carriages with us. 
 
 " Being much occupied with the prisoners, and all the details 
 of a forward movement, besides looking to the supplies which are 
 to follow from Vera Cruz, I have time to add no more — intending 
 to be at Xalapa early to-morrow. We shall not, probably, again 
 meet with serious opposition this side of Perote — certainly not, 
 unless delayed by tlie want of the means of transportation. 
 
 * Forty-three. 
 
WORTH ENTERS PUEBLA. 339 
 
 " I have the honour to remain, sir, with high respect, your 
 
 most obedient servant, 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 Hon. Wm. L. Marct, Secretary of War." 
 
 The complete rout at Cerro Gordo opened the way to Jalapa. 
 The partially completed defences of the La Hoya pass, offered no 
 molestation to the march of our troops. On the 19th, the day 
 succeeding the battle, the division of Twiggs was in undisputed 
 possession of Jalapa, while Worth's division pushed on to Perote, 
 and captured the town and castle without resistance ; receiving 
 at the hands of Colonel Velasquez, the commissioner appointed 
 to surrender them by the Mexican government, the following 
 arms and munitions of war: — "Fifty-four guns and mortars, 
 iron and bronze, of various calibres, in good service condition, — 
 eleven thousand and sixty-five cannon-balls, fourteen thousand 
 tliree hundred bombs and hand-grenades, and five hundred 
 muskets."* 
 
 Here Worth rested, and recruited his command. After re- 
 maining for about two weeks, he again resumed his line of march, 
 and on the 15th of May, accompanied by Quitman's brigade of 
 volunteers, entered the city of Puebla, with no more opposition 
 than a slight skirmish, near Amosoque, distant about twelve 
 miles from the city. There his progress had been threatened by 
 a force of about three thousand cavalry, under General Santa 
 Anna ; but a few discharges from the light artillery, dismounting 
 some ninety of the enemy, sufficed to clear the way, and by ten 
 o'clock the next morning, the division, numbering four thousand 
 men, stacked their arms in the Grand Plaza. 
 
 * Worth's Report, Perote, April 22, 1847. 
 
 45 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Astonishment of the Pueblanos — Appearance of the American Troops — Their 
 Characteristics — Embarrassing Position of the General-in-chief — Discharge of 
 the twelve months Volunteers — Prospects of Peace — Mexican Affairs — Defiance 
 of the Mexican Congress — Proclamation of General Salas — Anaya declares the 
 Capital in a state of Siege — Coalition of the Mexican States — Scott's Address to 
 the Mexican People — Feeling of the United States Government — Buchanan's 
 Letters — American Commissioner appointed — Mexico refuses to Treat — Con- 
 dition of the American Army — Arrival of Reinforcements. 
 
 Nothing could exceed the astonishment of the citizens of Pue- 
 bla, at witnessing the entrance of the small force of four thousand 
 American troops, one-half of whom were raw, and only partially 
 disciplined volunteers, into the midst of a hostile population of 
 eighty thousand souls. 
 
 The false and exaggerated reports which had been circulated 
 throughout the interior of Mexico, in regard to the ferocious 
 prowess of the North Americans, — their gigantic stature — their 
 cannibal propensities, and their wonderful skill in arms, had dis- 
 posed the more imaginative of the Pueblanos to expect the 
 arrival of a body of men far different in personal appearance 
 from those who marched with quiet confidence into their midst. 
 Great, indeed, was the wonder of the citizens to find, that in 
 stature and apparent physical strength, the conquerors were not 
 superior to the conquered ; that the arms of the Anglo-Americans 
 were plain and unpretending, their equipments indifferent in the 
 extreme, and themselves apparently worn down with the fatigue 
 of a long march, the sickliness of the country tlirough which they 
 
 340 
 
THE AMERICAN TROOPS. 341 
 
 had passed, and the alternations of heat and cold to which they 
 had been constantly exposed. 
 
 The undaunted courage, and indomitable resolution, which 
 had made every man a hero, could not be exaggerated. The 
 commonest soldier in our armies fought as if the fate of the battle 
 and the fortunes of his country rested upon his single arm. 
 
 The battles won by Taylor and Scott, from Palo Alto to Cerro 
 Gordo, are as much instances of individual daring, as of fine 
 military skill. 
 
 To us it appears as if they present a new and terrible feature 
 in warfare — terrible from its very effectiveness — the combination 
 of the individual heroism of the old chivalric era, with the warlike 
 science of modern times. 
 
 In European warfare, men are still considered as mere ma- 
 chines, to be impelled or withdrawn as the science of the com- 
 mander shall dictate. The sentiments of a pure patriotism, as 
 acting upon and stimulating the gallantry of the soldier, are but 
 little regarded, while thought, genius, ability, or a quick percep- 
 tion in the masses, are considered as obstacles to success rather 
 than calculated to promote it. The perfection of the art has been 
 hitherto supp(5sed to consist in a blind unreasoning obedience — 
 the accuracy of mechanism in military evolutions, and a perfect 
 knowledge of the manual. 
 
 But, unfortunate indeed would that general be, who should 
 attempt to snatch a victory from the grasp of the Anglo-American 
 by means of the present continental system of military tactics. 
 
 Enthusiastic in temperament, and elastic under reverses — ac- 
 customed to a life of hardihood and adventure — familiar from 
 childhood with the use of arms — pressing forward continually to 
 the outskirts of civilization, whence he has often to repel savage 
 incursions, and often obliged to maintain his own rights by his 
 own hand, in states and territories thinly settled, where the force 
 of law is many times administered with difficulty or inefficient in 
 
342 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 its operation, the Anglo-American has learned, in a severe school, 
 the benefits of self-reliance, and the good results which never fail 
 to follow the strong will, supported by a corresponding energy. 
 
 The system of volunteer training has also been of service ; so 
 that, while retaining much that is really useful in modern military 
 science, and acting when necessary under its strictest rules, he still 
 maintains an independence of thought and action which enables 
 him to cope successfully with dangers from which no mere skill 
 could extricate him, and to win battles after science has pro- 
 nounced them irrecoverably lost. 
 
 While Worth took possession of the hills commanding Puebla, 
 and accumulated supplies, the General-in-chief, still at Jalapa, 
 found himself placed in a situation of the utmost embarrassment. 
 
 Of the twenty-three regiments of twelve months volunteers 
 called out by the President in May and June 1846, seven regiments 
 were with Scott, and the period for which they enlisted was now 
 about to expire. 
 
 By the abstraction of these forces, honourably discharged and 
 amounting to nearly three thousand men, the army was so greatly 
 reduced that the General-in-chief found himself compelled to await 
 for reinforcements before he could resume offensive operations. 
 
 It is true, that the spirit of the Mexican army appeared to 
 have become completely paralyzed by the terrible defeat of Cerro 
 Gordo, but the main body, which escaped with Santa Anna and 
 Almonte, amounting to eight thousand men, still remained as a 
 nucleus around which many yet eager and untried spirits might 
 rally. 
 
 The prospects of peace also seemed further off than ever. In- 
 dignant under their repeated disasters, the cry of the Mexican 
 people was still for vengeance. The chief papers of the capital 
 and departments of Mexico, teemed with appeals to the honour 
 and patriotism of the nation, and every effort which a feeble 
 
DEFIANCE OF THE MEXICAN CONGRESS. 343 
 
 government could exert, was made to induce the people to rise 
 " en masse^'' and exterminate their invaders. 
 
 On the 20th of April, the Mexican Congress passed a series of 
 resolutions, the preamble to which is as follows : — 
 
 " The Sovereign Constitutional Congress of Mexico, in use of 
 the full powers with which it has been invested by the people of 
 the republic for the sacred object of preserving its nationality, and 
 faithful interpreters of the firm determination of their constituents 
 to carry on the war which the government of the United States is 
 waging against the nation, without losing courage at any kind of 
 reverses, and considering that in these circumstances, the first 
 public necessity is to preserve a centre of union, to direct the 
 national defence with all the energy which the state of things 
 demands, and to avoid even the danger of a revolutionary power 
 arising to dissolve the national union and destroy its institutions, 
 or to consent to dismember its territory, has decreed the following." 
 
 The first resolution asserts the power of the supreme govern- 
 ment " to take the necessary measures to carry on the war, defend 
 the nationality of the republic, and to save the republican form 
 of government, popular and federal, under which the nation is 
 constituted." 
 
 The second resolution, in explanation of the true intent and 
 meaning of the first, states that " the foregoing article does not 
 authorize the Executive to make a peace wath the United States, 
 conclude negotiations with foreign powers, nor alienate the whole 
 or a part of the territory of the republic." 
 
 The fourth article declares null and illegal "all treaties and 
 arrangements made between the United States and any authority 
 who should substitute itself for the supreme powers legally 
 established." 
 
 And in the fifth, every individual is denounced as a traitor, 
 " who, either in his private capacity or as a public officer, either 
 privately, or invested with any incompetent authority, or of revo- 
 
344 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 lutionary origin, shall treat with the government of the United 
 States." 
 
 It is sufficiently evident from the above action of Congress, that 
 great distrust had entered the public mind after the repeated 
 reverses which the nation had suffered. The sincerity of Santa 
 Anna was doubted, and fears w^ere entertained that he would 
 make peace with the invaders, on terms which should not only 
 yield Texas to the conquerors, but dismember a portion of the 
 republic. 
 
 Congress also entertained a suspicion that the priesthood, 
 alarmed by their attempt to appropriate to the uses of the govern- 
 ment a portion of the revenues of the church, were engaged in 
 intrigues, w^hich had for their object the overthrow of the govern- 
 ment and the establishment of royalty, either in the person of 
 Santa Anna himself, Paredes, or some continental prince. Fear- 
 ful of these attempts, they sought to intimidate them by a course 
 of action which showed they were cognizant of the designs enter- 
 tained, and which should check them if attempted. 
 
 In strict accordance with the defiant resolves of Congress, on 
 the following day General Salas issued a proclamation to the citi- 
 zens, in which he exhorts them to unite at general head-quarters, 
 and enroll themselves as guerrilleros for the purpose of attacking 
 and destroying the invaders in every manner imaginable. "War 
 without pity unto death!" he continues, " will be the motto of the 
 guerrilla warfare of vengeance."* 
 
 On the first of May, Anaya, the President ad interim, declared 
 the city of Mexico in a state of siege, assigning as his reason the 
 necessity of providing for the defence of the capital and the com- 
 mon defence of the nation against the enemy. 
 
 On the 6th, following out the above proclamation, General Bravo, 
 Commander-in-chief of the Army of the Centre, issued a decree, 
 wherein all Mexicans between the ages of sixteen and sixty are 
 
 * Extracts from El Monitor. 
 
Scott's address to the Mexicans. 345 
 
 called upon to enroll themselves for the defence of the capital, 
 under the penalty of being considered as traitors, and treated as 
 such, in the event of evasion or refusal. 
 
 Nor was this exhibition of energy confined to the capital only. 
 
 The states of San Luis, Mexico, Zacatecas, Jalisco, and Que- 
 retaro, bound themselves, by a solemn league and covenant, to 
 preserve the unity of the republic ; and in their address to the 
 Mexican people, they protest, " that never will they consent to, 
 nor be bound by any convention or treaty of peace with the North 
 American enemy, so long as he threatens or occupies the capital 
 or any part of the Mexican republic ; they also will not recognise 
 any general suspension of arms which should compromise all the 
 belligerent forces of the nation ;" and they close by asserting 
 their determination to aid with their private resources the gene- 
 ral government, independent of the assistance they are bound by 
 law to give ; so that the one cause — common to them in its dis- 
 graces and its perils — may be sustained, the national credit and 
 honour re-established, and all possible opposition and resistance 
 made to every attack upon the popular federal representative 
 system."* 
 
 Had these various resolutions been as firmly carried out as they 
 were pertinaciously insisted iipon, it is possible that victory might 
 yet have inclined to the Mexican standard ; but there is a vast 
 diflference between the energy which can be exhibited in fiery 
 denunciations, and the spirit necessary to meet in successful con- 
 flict even a mere handful of resolute men. 
 
 In an equally firm, but far more moderate tone, was the pro- 
 clamation of General Scott, addressed also to the Mexican nation, 
 and dated Jalapa, May 11th, 1847. It is a paper which proves 
 him to be as accomplished in diplomacy, as in the art of war. 
 In this admirable document, after briefly alluding to the causes 
 which precipitated the war, and the successes that had in every 
 
 * New Orleans Bulletin. 
 
346 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 battle attended the American arms — successes which he attributes 
 more to the unskilfulness of the Mexican generals than to the 
 want of valour in their troops — he concludes by saying : — 
 
 "Again, Mexicans of honourable pride — contemplate the lot 
 of peaceful and laborious citizens, in all classes of your society. 
 The possessions of the church menaced and held out as an in- 
 citement to revolution and anarchy ; the fortunes of rich proprie- 
 tors pointed out for plunder to the ill-disposed ; the merchant and 
 the artisan, the labourer and the manufacturer, burdened with 
 contributions, excises, monopolies, taxes upon consumption, 
 surrounded with restrictions and charged with odious internal 
 customs; the man of letters and tlie statesman, tlie man of 
 liberal knowledge who dares to speak, persecuted without trial 
 by some faction, or by the rulers who abuse their power ; crimi- 
 nals unpunished and set at liberty, as were those of Perote — is 
 this, then, Mexicans, the liberty which you enjoy ? 
 
 " I will not believe that the Mexicans of the present day are 
 wanting in courage to confess errors which do not dishonour 
 them, and to adopt a system of true liberty, of peace, and union 
 with tlieir brethren and neighbours of the north ; neither will I 
 believe that they are ignorant of the falsity of the calumnies of 
 the press, intended to excite hostility. No ! public sentiment is 
 not to be created or animated by falsehood. We have not pro- 
 faned your temples, nor abused your women, nor seized your 
 property, as they would have you believe. 
 
 " We say this with pride, and we confirm it by your own 
 bishops, and by the clergy of Tampico, Tuspan, Matamoros, Mon- 
 terey, Vera Cruz, and Jalapa, and by all the authorities, civil and 
 religious, and the inhabitants of every town we have occupied. 
 
 " We adore the same God : and a large proportion of our army, 
 as well as of the people of the United States, are Catholics, like 
 yourselves. We punish crime, wherever we find it, and reward 
 merit and virtue. 
 
SCOTT S ADDRESS TO THE MEXICANS. 347 
 
 " The army of the United States respects, and will always respect 
 private property, of every description, and the property of the 
 Mexican church. 
 
 " Mexicans ! the past cannot be remedied, but the future may- 
 be provided for. Repeatedly have I shown you, that the govern- 
 ment and people of the United States desire peace, desire your 
 sincere friendship. 
 
 '< Abandon, then, rancorous prejudices; cease to be the sport 
 of individual ambition, and conduct yourselves like a great 
 American nation ; leave off at once colonial habits, and learn to 
 be truly free, truly republican, and you will become prosperous 
 and happy, for you possess all the elements to be so. Remember 
 that you are Americans, and that your happiness is not to come 
 from Europe. 
 
 " I desire, in conclusion, to declare, and with equal frankness, 
 that, if necessary, an army of one hundred thousand Americans 
 could promptly be brought, and that the United States would not 
 terminate their differences with Mexico (if compelled to do so by 
 force of arms) in any manner uncertain, precarious, or dishonour- 
 ing to yourselves. I should insult the intelligent of this country 
 if I had any doubt of their acquaintance with this truth. 
 
 << The order to form guerrilla parties to attack us, I assure you 
 can procure nothing but evil to your country, and no evil to our 
 army, which ■mil know how to proceed against them ; and if, so 
 far from conciliating, you succeed in irritating, you will impose 
 upon us the hard necessity of retaliation, and then you cannot 
 blame us for the consequences which will fall upon yourselves. 
 
 « I am marching with my army upon Puebla and Mexico — I 
 do not conceal it ; from those capitals I shall again address you. 
 I desire peace, friendship, and union — it is for you to select, 
 whether you prefer war ; under any circumstances, be assured I 
 shall not fail my word. 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT." 
 46 
 
348 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 That the government of the United States was really desirous 
 of peace there cannot be the least doubt. It had originally con- 
 templated nothing more than a small border war, in which the 
 Mexican troops, being beaten, would retire from the frontier line, 
 and, by the conclusion of an armistice, leave tlie existing diffi- 
 culties to be settled by negotiation. 
 
 In this expectation, however, our government was deceived. 
 It had not sufficiently considered the pride and obstinacy which 
 have always formed the two most prominent elements of the 
 Spanish character. The revolt of Texas, and the establishment 
 of its independence, were sufficiently mortifying to Mexican 
 pride. With the mortification was coupled hatred of the United 
 States, from which the original settlers of Texas came ; that 
 increased on the incorporation of the latter with the states of the 
 Northern Confederacy, and became an implacable hostility, when 
 the Army of Occupation, not content with Texas, carried its 
 aggressive banner to the banks of the Bravo. 
 
 The hatred with which an American was regarded in all parts 
 of the Mexican republic, was by no means of recent origin. The 
 unexampled prosperity of the United States, and its consequent 
 rapid increase in power ; its energetic character, and the wonder- 
 ful vitality which able legislation had infused into every part of 
 the body politic ; had long been viewed by the Mexicans with 
 feelings of ill suppressed jealousy and distrust. 
 
 A presentiment natural to a weak nation watching the advan- 
 cing and gigantic strides of a powerful neighbour, seems to have 
 constantly stimulated this feeling of antagonism. This presenti- 
 ment was, that a collision must some day take place, and upon 
 the results which followed would depend the question of Mexican 
 nationality. Hence, in some respects, arose the early anxiety to 
 measure their strength with that of the "barbarian of the north," 
 and the disasters that followed repeated trials, wounded still 
 deeper a self-love, which attributed its defeats to every other than 
 the true cau'^e — the manifest superiority of our men in courage. 
 
Buchanan's letters. 349 
 
 tenacity, and the use of arms ; and the great military skill and 
 undaunted resolution of the officers by whom they were conducted. 
 
 Had but a single victory crowned the arms of Mexico, it is 
 possible that from the vantage ground thus obtained, and with 
 her national honour soothed by an unwonted triumph, she might 
 have consented to open negotiations ; but, defeated in every battle, 
 pride, shame, and a galling sense of the presence of a victorious 
 enemy, goaded her on to new efforts, only to end in more terrible 
 disasters. 
 
 As early as the 15th of April, Mr. Buchanan wrote to the Min- 
 ister of Foreign Affairs, in answer to a previous communication, 
 in which the latter declined, according to an earlier proposition 
 made by our government, to send commissioners to Jalapa, Ha- 
 vana, or any other point that might be agreed upon, unless the 
 blockade of the Mexican ports should be first raised, and our 
 army withdrawn beyond the limits of the Mexican territory. 
 
 In reply, Mr. Buchanan states, that the President holds such a 
 preliminary condition to be wholly inadmissible, both as calcu- 
 lated to prolong the war, and as contrary to the usages of nations ; 
 and that he will not make further overtures for the opening of 
 negotiations, at least until he shall have reason to believe that 
 such will be accepted by the Mexican government. Devoted, 
 however, to honourable peace, he is determined that tilie evils of 
 war shall not be protracted One day longer than shall be rendered 
 absolutely necessary by the Mexican republic. 
 
 Mr. Buchanan then announces, that, to carry this determination 
 into effect, the President has sent in the quality of commissioner, to 
 the head-quarters of the army in Mexico, Mr, N. P. Trist, First 
 Clerk in the State Department, with full powers to conclude a de- 
 finitive treaty of peace with the United Mexican States, and 
 recommends him as eminently worthy the confidence and consid- 
 eration of the Mexican government.* 
 
 * Washington Union. 
 
350 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 This letter, after numerous vexatious delays, was referred by- 
 General Santa Anna to the Mexican Congress, tliat body being 
 convened for the especial purpose of deliberating upon its contents. 
 On the 13th of July, a quorum of seventy- four members being 
 present, the question as to whether the commissioner should be 
 received and negotiations opened, was considered, when the com- 
 mittee on Foreign Affairs, upon whom the primary consideration 
 of the subject was devolved, offered a report and resolutions to the 
 effect, "that it belonged to the Executive under their constitution 
 to receive all ministers and public agents, and to make treaties of 
 peace, alliances, &c. ; that the functions of Congress were limited to 
 the approving or disapproving these treaties when made, and that 
 consequently, until a treaty should be submitted in form, it could 
 take no constitutional action on the subject.* 
 
 The report being submitted, it was accepted by a vote of fifty- 
 two to twenty-two ; and the letter having been ordered to be 
 returned to General Santa Anna, the Congress adjourned the same 
 day, as if desirous of avoiding any further action upon it. 
 
 The resolutions thus adopted might be considered expressive 
 of a determination to continue the war, inasmuch as it was well 
 known that the Executive was effectually prevented from taking 
 the initiative in any negotiations for peace by the fifth section of 
 the law passed on the 20th of April, 1847, in which every pub- 
 lic officer is declared a traitor who should enter into any treaty or 
 arrangement with the government of the United States. f 
 
 The numerical weakness of the American force in Mexico at 
 this time, may have had its effect in sustaining the determination 
 of the Mexican government, to prolong the war at all hazards. 
 Something, too, they doubtless hoped from the effects of climate 
 upon men unaccustomed to its changes, and unprepared by a suf- 
 ficiency of clothing to sustain the great contrast between the cool 
 
 * Synopsis of the Washington Union, August 23d, 1847. t.See ante. 
 
CONDITION OF THE AMERICAN ARMY. 351 
 
 temperature of the mountainous region in which they were then 
 garrisoned, and the excessive heat of the plains. 
 
 The Mexicans well knew that sickness and disease had hitherto 
 been infinitely more fatal to our troops, on the route betw^een 
 Vera Cruz and Puebla, than all the battles in which they had been 
 ensasfed since the commencement of the war. 
 
 Weak indeed was the condition of our gallant army at that time. 
 On the 4th of June, Scott wrote to the Secretary of War, stating 
 that the strength of the army had been surprisingly reduced. That 
 in addition to the discharge of seven regiments, and two indepen- 
 dent companies of volunteers, there was left in hospital at Vera 
 Cruz about one thousand men — a like number of sick and wounded 
 at Jalapa ; two hundred at Perote (afterwards increased to nearly 
 a thousand), and in the hospital at Puebla, one thousand and 
 seventeen. In all, three thousand two hundred, in the short 
 space of two months, or nearly one-fourth of the whole force that 
 disembarked at Vera Cruz. If we add to these the three thousand 
 discharged volunteers, and the killed at Cerro Gordo, we shall 
 not wonder that, after deducting the garrisons of Vera Cruz, 
 Jalapa, and Perote, there remained but the small force of five 
 thousand eight hundred and twenty effective non-commissioned 
 ofiScers, artificers, musicians, and privates.* 
 
 Thus situated, Scott determined to abandon Jalapa, and with- 
 draw its garrison, together with a portion of the garrison at Perote, 
 in order to place him in a more favourable condition for advanc- 
 ing upon the capital. 
 
 But the reinforcements, long looked for, and almost despaired 
 of, were at this time fairly on their way. By the 8th of July, in 
 addition to the garrison of Puebla, the brigades of Pillow and Cad- 
 walader reached the head of the army, increasing the number 
 of effectives — rank and file, to eight thousand and sixty-one men, 
 and swelling the sick list, by the addition of the hospitals from 
 
 * Scott's Official Despatch, No. 29. 
 
352 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Jalapa, to the fearful extent of two thousand two hundred and 
 fifteen men, and eighty-seven commissioned officers.* 
 
 About this time, Scott heard that Brigadier-General Pierce had 
 arrived at Vera Cruz with twenty-five hundred recruits, and the 
 General-in-chief determined to delay his march until they also 
 should join him. After various delays, arising from the want of 
 transportation. Pierce reached Puebla on the 6th of August, with 
 twenty-four hundred and twenty-nine men ; and the next day Scott 
 commenced his march for the capital, with an army composed 
 often thousand seven hundred and thirty-eight, rank and file. 
 
 * Scott's Official Papers, No. 29. 
 

 BRIG. GEN. FRANSLIN FIERCE. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 The American Army concentrated at Puebla — Scott determines to advance on the 
 Capital — Description of the Route — Twiggs reaches Ayotla — The Divisions close 
 up — Reconnoissances upon El Peiion — Advance by the National Road abandoned 
 — The Army moves round Lake Chalco to the Acapulco Road — Description of 
 the March — Concentration of the Divisions upon the Acapulco Road. 
 
 The numerous delays by which a portion of our troops was 
 detained so long at Puebla, were at least beneficial in one point 
 of view, by enabling the new levies, as they came up, to acquire 
 that perfect discipline and thorough knowledge of their officers, 
 without which it is doubtful whether they would have achieved 
 those signal victories which have since made the Anglo-Saxon 
 name a terror to the hearts of the inhabitants of the valley of 
 Mexico. 
 
 It must be remembered, that of the force which left Puebla for 
 the Mexican capital, nearly one-half was new and untried. Most 
 of them were men suddenly called from the occupations of civil 
 life, from the plough, the loom, the desk, and the anvil ; and 
 though perhaps there were none among them wholly unaccustomed 
 to the use of arms, there were, yet, very few indeed who were 
 expert in the manual, or who could have performed with precision 
 the numerous and complicated mancEuvres, the knowledge of 
 which is always requisite in the presence of an enemy, and so 
 often essential to the success of a battle. 
 
 The rigid system of military instruction instituted at Puebla, 
 made every man a soldier who arrived early enough to participate 
 
 853 
 
354 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 in it, so that, before the army left that city, it had acquired the 
 high distinction of being the best disciplined of any which had 
 yet been sent forth by the American nation on the road to con- 
 quest. Its subsequent deeds fully proved that this estimate of its 
 character was not less just than true. 
 
 One of the most remarkable features of the war, was the un- 
 bounded confidence which animated the American army on all 
 occasions. No matter by how many obstacles surrounded, or by 
 what numbers opposed, the possibility of defeat never seems to 
 have been entertained for a single moment. To anticipate a 
 battle was to anticipate a victory ; and that the city of Mexico 
 would be reached, in despite of the difficulties which were known 
 to beset the way, was entertained with so undoubting a belief, 
 that the possession of the Aztec capital was assured from the very 
 moment that Puebla was left in the rear. 
 
 Leaving the meagre force of three hundred and ninety-three 
 men under Colonel Childs to garrison the latter city, and charged 
 with the protection of eighteen hundred sick in its hospitals, the 
 army advanced towards the capital in four divisions, preceded by 
 a cavalry brigade. 
 
 These divisions had been previously arranged as follows : 
 
 CAVALRY BRIGADE. 
 
 COLONEL HARNEY. 
 
 1st Dragoons, Captain Kearney. 
 
 2d do. Major Sumner. 
 
 3d do. Captain McReynolds. 
 
 FIRST DIVISION. 
 
 GENERAL WORTH. 
 
 f 2d Artillery. 
 First Brigade, J 3d do. 
 
 Colonel Garland. i 4th Infantry. 
 
 [ Duncan's Battery. 
 
MARCH ON THE CAPITAL. 
 
 355 
 
 Second Brigade^ 
 Colonel Clarke. 
 
 5th Infantry. 
 6th do. 
 8th do. 
 
 SECOND DIVISION. 
 
 GENERAL TWIGGS. 
 
 First Brigade J 
 General Smith. 
 
 Second Brigade, 
 Colonel Riley. 
 
 Mounted Rifles. 
 1st Artillery. 
 3d Infantry. 
 Taylor's Battery. 
 4th Artillery. 
 2d Infantry. 
 7th do. 
 
 THIRD division. 
 
 GENERAL PILLOW. 
 
 9th Infantry. 
 
 First Brigade, 
 General Pierce. 
 
 Second Brigade, 
 General Cadwalader. 
 
 12th do. 
 15th do. 
 Magruder's Battery. 
 Voltigeurs. 
 14th Infantry. 
 11th do. 
 
 First Brigade, 
 General Shields. 
 
 FOURTH division. 
 
 GENERAL QUITMAN. 
 
 New York regiment. 
 South Carolina do. 
 Marines. 
 Steptoe's Battery. 
 
 Second Brigade, 
 Colonel Roberts. 
 
 2d Pennsylvania regiment. 
 
 But though the above was the arrangement of the divisions, the 
 order of march was different. Twiggs's division, preceded by 
 47 
 
356 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Harney's cavalry, was in advance; then followed Quitman's 
 division ; to this succeeded the division of Worth ; and the divi- 
 sion of Pillow brought up the rear. 
 
 These divisions left Puebla on four successive days, beginning 
 on the 7th of August, and ending on the 10th, but were at no time 
 beyond five hours' march, or supporting distance, apart. On the 
 8th, the General-in-chief overtook and continued with, the leading 
 division.* 
 
 The route by which the troops marched was over a rolling road, 
 gradually ascending towards the Sierra Nevada. During the first 
 day of their departure from Puebla, the country through which 
 they passed, was of great natural beauty and fertility. It was 
 well- watered, and bore evidences of the most careful cultivation. 
 In the midst of the magnificent estates before them, were to be 
 seen the haciendas of wealthy proprietors, embosomed in foliage, 
 each with its appropriate chapel gleaming white through the trees, 
 and surrounded by the numerous habitations of the labourers. 
 Upon the left, at the distance of many miles, though seemingly 
 close by, rose high, clear, distinct, and sharply defined in the pure 
 atmosphere of the mountains, the mighty summits of Popocata- 
 petl and Iztaccihuatl, clothed densely around their bases with 
 the dark verdure of forest trees, but crowned with everlasting 
 snows ; while nearer yet, and between the road and the moun- 
 tains, were to be seen the ruins of the pyramid of Cholula, the only 
 vestige remaining of the populous city of the Aztecs, which in the 
 days of Cortez numbered two hundred thousand souls. 
 
 During the morning of the second day, the face of the country 
 began to wear a more rugged aspect ; the signs of cultivation 
 gradually grew less, and, after passing a few miles beyond the vil- 
 lage of San Martin, terminated altogether. 
 
 The road now became wilder, winding about and over a suc- 
 
 * Scott's Official Despatches, No. 31. 
 
90ol uJiuio iri 111 imaj\^^ 
 n'-'oisBP OJIX. 
 
ARRIVAL AT THE VALLEY OF MEXICO. 357 
 
 cession of mountain ranges, each higher than the ci:ner, until it 
 reached at Rio Frio its greatest elevation. 
 
 Here the advance expected to have been met by a formidable 
 resistance, and such had evidently at one time been the intention 
 of the Mexicans ; but, from some cause or other, the design was 
 abandoned after they had thrown up a few breastworks, and felled 
 a considerable quantity of timber. 
 
 From the time of leaving Puebla until they reached Rio Frio — 
 a distance of about fifty miles — the troops had been constantly 
 gaining in ascent, so that they now stood two thousand nine hun- 
 dred and twenty-two feet above the former city, and ten thousand 
 one hundred and twenty-two feet above the level of the ocean. 
 
 But they were soon to be compensated for the toils of the march 
 by one of the loveliest sights that ever greeted the eyes of a trav- 
 eller. A few miles further was a sudden turn of the road, and 
 then first burst upon the astonished vision, with the splendour of 
 an enchantment, the glorious valley of Mexico — clothed with rich 
 verdure — traversed by silver streams — dotted with lakes, villages, 
 and haciendas, — and the whole enclosed by an amphitheatre of 
 mountains hundreds of miles in extent, many of them extinct vol- 
 canoes, green with forests or white with eternal snow, — with other 
 mountain barriers, rising beyond them and blending in the far dis- 
 tance, with the soft blue sky above. 
 
 On the 10th, the leading division encamped for the night at 
 the base of the mountain, surrounded on all sides by the enemy's 
 scouts. 
 
 The next day, Twiggs reached Ayotla, fifteen miles from the 
 capital. Here he halted until the other divisions came up.* 
 
 On the 12th, the different divisions, as they approached the base 
 of the mountains, drew more closely towards each other. Twiggs's 
 division halted at Ayotla, and Worth's at the village of Chalco, 
 five miles distant across the lake in a straight line, but double 
 
 * Letter to the New York Courier. 
 
358 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 that distance by the road ; between Twiggs and Worth were en- 
 camped the divisions of Pillow and Quitman. 
 
 The National or Vera Cruz Road, by which the troops had 
 hitherto advanced, is approached on the left at Ayotla, by the 
 margin of Lake Chalco, and at a distance of seven miles further 
 on and to the right, is bounded by Lake Tezcuco, which extends 
 to within three miles of the city. The road is a causeway running 
 for a considerable portion of the space intervening between the 
 lakes by marshy and boggy grounds. 
 
 At a distance of seven miles, or about midway between Ayotla 
 and the capital, rises the lofty mound called El Peilon. " This 
 hill or mound completely enfilades and, commands the National 
 Road, and had been fortified and repaii^d with the greatest care 
 by Santa Anna. One side was inaccessible by nature, the rest 
 had been made so by art. Batteries mounting in all fifty guns of 
 different calibres had been placed on its sides, and a deep ditch 
 twenty-four feet wide and ten deep, filled with water, had been 
 cut connecting the parts already surrounded by marshes."* 
 
 Such was the information gained by a reconnoissance of the 
 work, which was decided to be impracticable, and a second re- 
 connoissance was directed, the next day, the 13th, upon Mexical- 
 cingo, a village at a fortified bridge across the canal leading from 
 Lake Xochimilco. The reconnoitring party, consisting of the 
 regiment of Mounted Rifles and three companies of cavalry — in all 
 about four hundred men — discovered a road leading from Los Reyes 
 to the left, and followed its windings until within five miles of the 
 city, when they were halted by coming suddenly upon five strong 
 batteries on the hill which commanded the road. Rapidly coun- 
 termarching, the party quickly discovered that in avoiding one 
 danger they had laid themselves open to another still more terrible. 
 El Pefion, with its three tiers of works, and its fearful array of 
 ■ cannon, lay directly between them and their camp at Ayotla. 
 
 * Letter to the New York Courier. 
 
\ 
 
 DESCRIPTION OF THE MARCH. 359 
 
 Expecting every instant an attack, they dashed forward at their 
 utmost speed, and arrived safely at camp about midnight. This 
 brilliant reconnoissance was pronounced by the General-in-chief 
 "the boldest of the war."* 
 
 Of the route by Mexicalcingo, General Scott thus wrote to the 
 Secretary of War : — 
 
 "It might have been easy — masking the Peiion — to force the 
 passage ; but, on the other side of the bridge, we should have 
 found ourselves four miles from this road on a narrow causeway, 
 flanked to the right and left by water or boggy grounds. These 
 difficulties, closely viewed, threw me back upon the project, long 
 entertained, of turning the strong eastern defences of the city, by 
 passing around south of Lakes Chalco and Xochimilco at the foot 
 of the hills and mountains, so as to reach San Augustine, and 
 hence to manoeuvre on hard though much broken ground to the 
 south and south-west of the capital, which has been more or less 
 under our view since the 10th instant."f 
 
 The attempt, therefore, to advance by the National Road was 
 abandoned, and the strength of the defence upon and near the 
 Acapulco road was now to be tested. These consisted of San 
 Antonio, Contreras, and Churubusco. Reversing the order of 
 march. Worth's division now took the lead. Pillow and Quitman 
 followed, while the division of Twiggs brought up the rear, after 
 remaining one day longer at Ayotla, in order to mask the new 
 movement as long as possible, by threatening the Penon and 
 Mexicalcingo. 
 
 On the 16th, Twiggs commenced his march. Upon reaching 
 the village of Buena Vista, he found his train threatened by a force 
 of cavalry and infantry to the number of five thousand men, under 
 General Valencia ; the skirmish and subsequent march is thus 
 described : — 
 
 " On our left were large fields of half-grown barley, through 
 
 * Letter to the New York Courier. t Official Despatches. 
 
3fi0 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 which was seen advancing in splendid order the enemy's column. 
 It was the most splendid sight I had ever witnessed. The yellow 
 cloaks, red jackets and caps of the lancers, and the bright blue 
 and white uniforms of the infantry, were most beautifully con- 
 trasted with the green of the barley-field. Our line of battle was 
 soon formed, and we deployed through the grain to turn their 
 left, and cut them off from the mountains. A few shots, however, 
 from the battery, showed them that they were observed ; and coun- 
 termarching in haste, they left their dead on the field. Thus ended 
 our fight of Buena Vista. That night we stayed at Chalco. 
 
 " The next day we made a long and toilsome march over a 
 horrible road, through which, with the utmost diflSculty, we 
 dragged our wagons, by the assistance of both men and mules. 
 The next was nearly the same, except that the road, if possible, 
 was worse than before, as the Mexicans had blocked it up with 
 large stones, rolled down from the neighbouring hills."* 
 
 The route thus laboriously traversed, lay on the left, along the 
 base of a mountain range, whose sides, often precipitous, would 
 have afforded an enterprising enemy frequent opportunities of 
 annoyance, or the road itself might have been effectually ob- 
 structed by blocking up the way with rocks rolled from the 
 summits of the hills, a task of easy accomplishment ; for, on the 
 right of the road, the ground was frequently marshy and inse- 
 cure, and occasionally bounded by the actual waters of the lakes. 
 
 The bed of the road was covered with loose rocks and rugged 
 land, and intercepted by ravines, over which, in many places, the 
 artillery had to be dragged by hand ; and slow, and painful, and 
 fatiguing in the extreme, was the toil by which these diflSculties 
 over a circuitous route of twenty-seven miles were at length sue 
 cessfully overcome. 
 
 On the 18th, all the divisions were again concentrated in the 
 vicinity of San Augustine and the Acapulco road. 
 
 * Letter to the New York Courier. 
 
CONCENTRATION UPON THE ACAPULCO ROAD. 361 
 
 By changing the line of march from the Vera Cruz or National 
 Road to the Acapulco road, the formidable defences of the Penon 
 and Mexicalcingo were avoided altogether ; but there were yet 
 many fortifications to be turned, or taken by assault, and an army 
 of thirty thousand Mexicans to be routed before either of the ap- 
 proaches to the capital would be open to the advance of the 
 American troops. 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 The Defences around Mexico — National Road ; El Perion, Mexicalcingo — Aca- 
 pulco Road; San Antonio, Churubusco, and Contreras — Toluca Road; EI 
 Molino del Rey, Chapultepec — Interior Defences — Position and Force of the 
 Mexicans — Movement of Worth's Division upon San Antonio — Reconnoissances 
 across the Pedregal — Twiggs marches upon Contreras — Valencia's Fortifications 
 — Indecisive Result of the Day — Smith bivouacs in the Village of Contreras — 
 Perilous Position of our Troops — Victory of Contreras. 
 
 The defences of the three great roads which approach the city 
 of Mexico, were as follows : — 
 
 On the Vera Cruz or National Road, was the mound of El 
 Penon with its three tiers of works, containing twenty batteries 
 that mounted fifty-one guns, and commanding the causeway by 
 which the Americans were expected to advance, and at its base 
 were fifteen infantry breastworks. It was also, as we have seen, 
 surrounded by a deep ditch filled with water, while the causeway 
 beyond, though broad, was flanked to the right by the waters of 
 Lake Tezcuco, and to the left by marshy grounds. 
 
 As there was a road turning off to the left of the National Road 
 at Los Reyes, leading to a causeway at Mexicalcingo, five miles 
 from the city, the approach to the capital in that direction was 
 defended by eight batteries for thirty-eight guns, and one infantry 
 breastwork ; and the difficulty of an advance beyond, was still 
 great, from the causeway being narrow, and flanked to the right 
 and left by water. 
 
 The movement upon the capital by the National Road, either by 
 storming El Penon and following the direct route, or by passing to 
 the left at Los Reyes and forcing the batteries at Mexicalcingo 
 
 362 
 
DEFENCES OF MEXICO. 363 
 
 and the causeway beyond, was found too hazardous to attempt 
 with so small an army, and was therefore most wisely abandoned. 
 
 The Acapulco road was then selected, as being protected by de- 
 fences of somewhat inferior strength, and as affording a better op- 
 portunity for our troops to mancEuvre with advantage. 
 
 The defences upon this road were those of San iVntonio, Churu- 
 busco, and Contreras. San Antonio was a village approachable 
 only in front by a causeway flanked by wet ditches or by difficult 
 grounds, composing the outskirts of a field of broken lava, called 
 the Pedregal. 
 
 Its works consisted of seven batteries for twenty- four guns, and 
 two breastworks for infantry. 
 
 Churubusco was a strongly fortified hacienda, surrounded on 
 all sides by a high and thick wall, within which was also a strong 
 stone church. 
 
 In front of the hacienda, without the wall, and embracing two 
 sides of it, was a field-work mounting seven pieces of cannon, 
 which commanded the approach in all directions. Besides these, at 
 a distance of five hundred yards, and directly across the causeway 
 by which it is approached, was a tete-du-po7it, or bridge-head, at 
 the crossing of a canal : this was defended by a deep ditch, and 
 mounted three large pieces of cannon. 
 
 To the left of San Augustine, and distant from it about four 
 miles, was the hill of Contreras, a strongly fortified position com- 
 manding a difficult pass through which, by means of a cross road 
 through San Angel and Cuyoacan, the fortifications of San Anto- 
 nio might have been turned, and those of Churubusco more favour- 
 ably approached. Upon this hill were twenty-two pieces of 
 cannon, surrounded by a breastwork. 
 
 On the third approach to the capital, the Toluca road, where 
 the mountains most closely approach the city, were the works of 
 Molino del Rey, and the fortress of Chapultepec. 
 
 The first consisted of the strong stone buildings of the maga- 
 48 
 
364 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 zine, called " Casa Mata,'^'' and the foundry of Molino del Rey, 
 protected by a field-battery, the guns of Chapultepec, and infan- 
 try breastworks. 
 
 The second, of the hill of Chapultepec, crowned with the 
 military college, an immense building well fortified ; surrounded 
 at its base by a thick stone wall fifteen feet high, protected at 
 different points by' seven batteries mounting nineteen guns, and 
 seven infantry breastworks ; and further defended by mines 
 which perforated the hill in all directions, and by broad and deep 
 wet ditches. 
 
 Such, then, were the exterior defences commanding all the ap- 
 proaches to the capital. 
 
 The interior defences, or those more immediately round the 
 city, were of a slighter character, and consisted mainly of the 
 narrow causeways flanked by water, or wet ditches, and upon 
 which breastworks had been hastily thrown up. At the head of 
 these causeways were the Garitas, or small forts immediately 
 protecting the entrance to the capital. 
 
 Of the positions and force of the Mexican troops, by which 
 these various works were to be defended, we shall now take 
 occasion to speak. 
 
 General Valencia occupied the hill of Contreras with seven 
 thousand men, the best and bravest of the Mexican army. 
 
 A corps of reserve, consisting of twelve thousand men under 
 the immediate command of General Santa Anna, was stationed 
 in front of the village of Contreras, an intermediate point between 
 the hill of Contreras and Churubusco, and so situated as to be 
 able to reinforce the one or the other as circumstances might 
 require. 
 
 Three thousand troops under General Bravo garrisoned San 
 Antonio, while at the hacienda and the tete-du-pont of Churubus- 
 co were from seven to nine thousand men under General Rincon. 
 
 On the I8th, Worth's division and Harney's brigade of cavalry, 
 
SAN ANTONIO. 365 
 
 after reaching San Augustine, were thrown forward to reconnoitre 
 San Antonio, and, if possible, to carry or mask it.* 
 
 Advancing on the direct road to within a mile of that village, 
 they found its front thoroughly fortified with heavy guns, which at 
 various angles commanded the approach through the whole length 
 of the route. t 
 
 The approach was by a causeway, flanked to the right by 
 marshy grounds, while on the^ left, extending to the mountains a 
 distance of five miles, was the field of volcanic rocks called the 
 Pedregal. This singular field is in shape an irregular oval — it is 
 skirted occasionally by patches of dense chaparral, and on pass- 
 ing tliese is found cut up in all directions by deep ravines, and 
 covered with huge masses of rock and rugged lava. 
 
 The Mexicans believed it opposed an eflfectual barrier to any 
 attempt which might be made to turn their position in that direc- 
 tion ; but the skilful and daring reconnoissances of the 18th and 
 continued on the morning of the 19th, proved, that by the exer- 
 cise of great energy, perseverance, and severe toil, the Pedregal 
 might be penetrated, and, by a semicircular sweep, the main road 
 beyond San Antonio be gained. 
 
 By this means, the double purpose would be effected of turning 
 tlie enemy's position, and cutting off his retreat towards the capi- 
 tal.l 
 
 JNIeanwhile, also on the l8th, another reconnoissance was order- 
 ed from San Augustine, the head-quarters of the General-in-chief, 
 over the left of the Pedregal and at the opposite side from San 
 Antonio, with the view of avoiding, if possible, the works at the 
 latter place (the assault of which would have involved an im- 
 mense loss of life), and at the same time reaching Churubusco 
 through the villages of San Angel and Cuyoacan by a road which 
 was known to exist beyond the Pedregal. 
 
 * Worth's Official Report. tibid. 
 
 t Scott's Official Despatch, No. 31. 
 
366 HISTORV OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 In doing this, however, the entrenched camp upon the hill of 
 Contreras would have to be carried by assault ; but as it was sup- 
 posed to be less capable of sustaining a defence than San Antonio, 
 this route, if practicable at all, would be preferable to the latter. 
 
 The reconnoissance continued over the morning of the 19th, 
 when a route was discovered, through which, however, it was 
 found that a road would have to be opened for the passage of 
 artillery. Pillow's division was accordingly sent forward for that 
 purpose. 
 
 The division of Twiggs arriving at San Juan, a small village 
 within two miles of San Augustine, was ordered to the front to 
 cover the working parties. The men were directed to sling their 
 blankets across their shoulders, leave their knapsacks behind in the 
 wagons, and put bread and beef for two days in their haversacks. 
 From this order they knew that a battle was impending ; and 
 though somewhat fatigued already with a rugged march of seven 
 miles, they met the requisition with their accustomed alacrity. 
 The distance they had yet to march before reaching the San Angel 
 road, was nearly seven miles more, a considerable portion of 
 which lay through thick chaparral, and over loose rocks and lava, 
 intermingled with prickly pear and cactus, and cut up by deep 
 ditches and ravines. 
 
 About two o'clock P. M., Smith's brigade reached the summit 
 of a hill, dragging with it Magruder's battery of three pieces, and 
 two mountain howitzers, under Lieutenant Callender, when even 
 the boldest of the advance were suddenly startled at finding them- 
 selves within two hundred yards of Valencia's fortifications upon 
 the hill of Contreras. 
 
 Now it was that the great strength of the Mexican works became 
 distinctly visible. Twenty-two pieces of artillery, mostly of large 
 calibre, commanded the road, between which and the works in 
 front and to the left, was a deep and almost impassable ravine. 
 «' The camp and ravine were closely defended by masses of infan- 
 
BATTLE OF CONTRERAS. 367 
 
 try, and these again supported by clouds of cavalry at hand and 
 hovering in view,"* while between Contreras and Churubusco, 
 and within supporting distance of both, was the reserve of twelve 
 tliousand men, under General Santa Anna. 
 
 From an elevated position in San Augustine, many of the move- 
 ments of the enemy beyond the volcanic field could be plainly 
 seen, and at an earlier hour heavy reinforcements having been 
 discovered approaching Contreras from the capital, Cadwalader's 
 brigade was pushed forward to support Riley, and Pierce's bri- 
 gade was subsequently despatched to sustain Smith. f 
 
 Without pausing upon the eminence from which the fortifica- 
 tions had been discovered. Smith ordered the batteries forward, 
 and threw out the Rifles to protect them. The enemy's pickets 
 were soon driven in, and the batteries dashed past at a gallop under 
 a severe fire from the hill. Gaining a position about four hundred 
 yards from the Mexican works, Magruder and Callender opened 
 their fire ; but though the pieces were served with wonderful pre- 
 cision and rapidity, they were opposed by so great a superiority, 
 both in the number of guns and weight of metal — twenty-two 
 against five — that the contest was too unequal on our side to be 
 maintained witli any hope of success. Accordingly, after the 
 lapse of two hours, during which, at every discharge from the hill, 
 our troops threw themselves flat upon the ground, to avoid the 
 balls, and then sprang up to serve the guns, the batteries were 
 withdrawn, with the loss of fifteen artillerists and thirteen horses, 
 killed and w^ounded.| 
 
 During this time repeated charges of lancers had been re- 
 pulsed both by Smith's brigade supporting the batteries, and by 
 the Second Brigade, under Riley. 
 
 In attempting to gain the San Angel road in the rear of the 
 
 * Scott's Official Despatch, No. 31. 
 
 t Kendall's Letter to the New Orleans Picayune. 
 
 t Letter to the New York Courier. 
 
868 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 enemy, Riley became separated from support by the difficult 
 character of the ground. Taking advantage of his isolated 
 position, two or three thousand Mexicans sallied out from the 
 camp, and threw themselves between him and Smith's brigade ; 
 a large body of cavalry also bore down upon him in two successive 
 charges, while the reserve of Santa Anna was discovered closing 
 upon his rear. 
 
 Notwithstanding the perilous array thus opposed to him, Riley, 
 though hemmed in on all sides, gallantly maintained his ground, 
 beat back both the infantry and cavalry, and by a series of well 
 conducted manoeuvres, executed in the face of the enemy, suc- 
 ceeded, late in the evening, in joining Smith's brigade at the 
 village of Contreras. 
 
 In the meanwhile the General-in-chief had arrived upon the 
 ground ; and observing, from an eminence overlooking the field 
 of battle, that large reinforcements of the enemy w^ere advancing 
 from the city by the road which, passing through the villages of 
 San Angel and Contreras, led to the entrenched camp, he ordered 
 Morgan's regiment, the 15th, to push forward and occupy Contre- 
 ras, and the brigade of Pierce, just arrived from San Augustine, 
 to follow and sustain Morgan. The brigades of Smith and Riley 
 were already moving in that direction, and Cadwalader's brigade, 
 despatched at an earlier hour upon the same point, was found 
 already in position, though much in need of assistance.* 
 
 For the first time in the history of the war, no impression had 
 been made upon the enemy : and, as the day was drawing to a 
 close, the General-in-chief, accompanied by General Twiggs, who 
 was disabled from following his division, returned to San Augus- 
 tine, leaving General Smith in command. 
 
 On approaching Contreras, that active officer discovered the 
 immense reserve of Santa Anna forming on the slope on the 
 
 * Scott's Official Despatch, No. 31. 
 
BATTLE OF CONTRERAS. 369 
 
 opposite side of the village, and threatening the brigade of 
 Cadwalader, already there and in position. 
 
 " The village lay entirely on the other side of the main road, 
 and was divided from it by a small stream running through a 
 deep ravine. On the road, and between it and the stream, was 
 a garden and house surrounded by a high and tolerably strong 
 stone wall. The village was intersected by narrow lanes lying 
 between high dikes enclosing gardens full of trees and shrubbery 
 — the lanes affording cover and the trees concealment for the 
 men. In the centre stood an old stone church."* 
 
 Forming Cadwalader's brigade on the outer edge of the village, 
 flanked on the right by the 3d infantry and Rifles, Smith occupied 
 the church with the Engineer company, while the 11th regiment 
 took up its position in the garden on the road, to protect that 
 avenue and the rear. 
 
 The enemy now formed opposite in two lines, the infantry in 
 front, the cavalry in the rear and about ten thovisand strong. 
 
 Riley's brigade having arrived in the mean time. Smith deter- 
 mined upon an immediate and energetic attack ; but the troops 
 were disengaged from among the ravines and chaparral with so 
 much difficulty, that it grew dark before his order of battle was 
 perfected, and the design was abandoned. 
 
 The men now bivouacked for the night. The brigades of Smith 
 and Riley occupied a narrow road running through the centre of 
 the village, while Cadwalader resumed his former position. The 
 brigade of Shields, which came up later in the evening, lay in an 
 orchard near by. 
 
 But sleep visited not the eyelids of the weary troops on that 
 eventful night, for the indecisive result of the day was succeeded 
 by prospects gloomier still. They were surrounded by a force of 
 eighteen thousand Mexicans, within range of the batteries upon 
 the hill of Contreras, completely cut off from all reinforcements, 
 
 * Smith's Official Report. 
 
370 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 and without even the possibility of hearing from General Scott, 
 whose messengers, repeatedly despatched across the Pedregal, 
 returned, one after another, foiled by the darkness of the night 
 and the difficulties of the route. 
 
 To add to the discomfort of their situation, the rain fell in tor- 
 rents. The rush of waters choked up the bed of the road where 
 they lay. Drenched and benumbed, they sprang to their feet, and 
 huddling closely together, awaited with desperate resolution the 
 events of the morrow.* 
 
 But while the ill success of the day, the terrible storm by which 
 they were now assailed, and the threatening aspect of the enemy 
 by whom they were surrounded, all contributed to infuse a feeling 
 of despondency among the troops, an unexpected discovery stirred 
 their drooping spirits with hopeful animation. 
 
 A route, barely practicable for infantry, had been found by 
 Lieutenant Tower, of the Engineers, leading from the village 
 through a ravine to the rear of Valencia's fortifications ; and Smith 
 instantly determined upon the daring project of carrying them by 
 storm. 
 
 Dangerous as the execution of this design was, while hemmed 
 in by masses of the enemy's troops, who might at any moment 
 become the assailants, it was instantly acquiesced in by his subor- 
 dinate officers, and Smith had actually matured his plans before 
 the arrival of Shields. 
 
 That brave officer, though then the senior upon the ground, and, 
 as such, entitled to the command, not only delicately waived his 
 right to interfere, but took upon himself the perilous duty of hold- 
 ing the village against the overwhelming force of the enemy posted 
 opposite, and of cutting off the retreat of the fugitives in the event 
 of Smith proving successful. 
 
 The plan of attack having been arranged, Captain Lee, of the 
 Engineers, volunteered to cross the Pedregal, for the purpose of 
 
 * Letter to the New York Courier. 
 
BATTLE OF CONTRERAS. 371 
 
 requesting that a powerful diversion might be made from San 
 Augustine upon the front of the works, while Smith assaulted 
 them in the rear. 
 
 The hour of three A. M. had been agreed upon as the time 
 when the troops should move forward to the attack ; but, though 
 the march commenced at the hour appointed, it was near day- 
 light before the head of Cadwalader's brigade succeeded in get- 
 ting out of the village. . 
 
 Riley's brigade led, followed by that of Cadwalader, while* / 
 Smith's brigade brought up the rear. 
 
 The rain still fell, and it was so dark that the men w^re re- 
 quired to keep touch of each other, to prevent their going astray. 
 The path was narrow, and the ground a stiff muddy clay full of 
 rocks, and the difficulties of the march were greatly enhanced by 
 the necessity of advancing by a flank which extended the com- 
 mand to thrice its length.* Eventually, however, the troops suc- 
 ceeded in attaining a point of the ravine from which it was sup- 
 posed possible to reach the rear of the enemy ; the advance then 
 halted until those behind closed up. It was now about four 
 o'clock on the morning of the 20th. 
 
 Forming in line, the wet loads w^ere drawn ; and, with Riley's 
 brigade in two columns on the right, the march recommenced. 
 
 They were yet about a quarter of a mile from the enemy's 
 camp. Wending their way through a thick orchard, w'hich, to- 
 gether with the darkness, effectually concealed their approach, 
 they debouched into a deep ravine w^hich, running wdthin five 
 hundred yards of the work, led directly in rear and out of sight of 
 the batteries, being screened from them by an intervening hill.f 
 
 Up to this time it was evident that Valencia w^as utterly igno 
 
 rant of the movement which so seriously threatened his position. 
 
 Prepared for, and anticipating only an attack in front, he seems 
 
 to have relied upon the vigilance of the main army stationed in 
 
 * Smith's Official Report. t Letter to the New York Courier. 
 
 49 
 
372 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 front of the village of Contreras, for intercepting any demonstra- 
 tion which might be made upon his rear. Flushed with the 
 temporary success he had gained on the preceding evening, he 
 distributed promotions among his officers with a lavish hand, and 
 impatiently awaited the renewal of the attack, in full confidence 
 that from so small a body of assailants, operating without either ar- 
 tillery or cavalry, there was nothing to fear, and everything to hope. 
 
 But he was soon to be sternly undeceived. With celerity and 
 in profound silence, the gallant Riley drew up his noble brigade 
 just under the brow of the hill. 
 
 The entrenched camp was upon another and rather lower 
 eminence, in front of the one upon which our troops now were ; 
 from the crest of the latter a smooth slope descended directly to 
 the work. 
 
 The position of Smith's command was now as follows: — 
 Riley's brigade was under the brow of the hill facing the rear of 
 Valencia's camp, and awaiting the command to storm. Cad- 
 walader was pressing forward to support Riley. 
 
 Major Dimmick with Smith's brigade, following in the same 
 direction, changed the march of his command to meet a large 
 body of Mexican cavalry discovered on the left flank. 
 
 Ransom, with a temporary brigade sent from San Augustine 
 under the guidance of Captain Lee, crossed the ravine in front 
 of the works, to divert the attention of the enemy from the medi- 
 tated point of attack. These arrangements were completed 
 about sunrise, and then Smith, walking slowly up to Riley's bri- 
 gade and finding all was ready, gave the word of command — 
 "Men, forward!" 
 
 In an instant, with a wild fierce yell, they sprang up and dashed 
 over the brow of the hill — the Rifles, previously thrown forward to 
 the foot of the slope, protected the storm ing-p arty by throwing in 
 a deadly fire upon the startled enemy, and then gallantly rushed 
 forward to participate in the assault. 
 
BATTLE OF CONTRERAS. 373 
 
 The Mexican fire overshot the stormers, and, before the pieces 
 could be depressed, the men clambered over the earthen parapet 
 with deafening cheers, and attacked the garrison hand to hand. 
 A brief but terrific conflict ensued. Intermingled with the firing, 
 the clash of swords and the crashing blows from musket and 
 rifle stocks could be distinctly heard. Valencia himself suddenly 
 disappeared, while his officers and men, taken by surprise — com- 
 pacted together into a confused struggling mass — assaulted in 
 their midst, in front and in rear at one and the same moment — 
 were perfectly paralyzed, and suffered themselves to be cut to 
 pieces with dreadful slaughter, while the survivors, unable to 
 resist the impetuous avalanche of intrepid Americans, animated 
 as by one heart, threw down their arms in vast numbers, and took 
 to flight in all directions. Some fled to the mountains, others 
 across the Pedregal, and others again, in the direction of Contre- 
 ras and San Angel. Five hundred fugitives jammed up in a 
 narrow pass, were headed by thirty men, and surrendered them- 
 selves prisoners of war. 
 
 The road was literally strewn with the dead and dying ; nor 
 did the pursuit pause until it received a check, near the village of 
 San Angel, from the fire of the Mexican reserve. 
 
 So fierce had been the assault, that the brunt of the action 
 lasted only seventeen minutes, and in that brief space of time 
 the fort had been captured, and its defenders completely routed. 
 
 During the storm of the hill, the other portions of Smith's com- 
 mand had not been idle. Cadwalader had ably supported 
 Riley. Smith's brigade under Major Dimmick met the large 
 body of Mexican cavalry, and drove them at the point of the 
 bayonet ; then, turning back, rushed up the slope in front of the 
 work, and fell upon the enemy outside, just as he was escaping 
 from Riley's furious attack from the rear. 
 
 In the mean time, completely deceived by the masterly arrange- 
 ments of Smith and Shields, the Mexican reserve remained 
 perplexed and inactive before the village of Contreras, until the 
 
374 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 disastrous defeat of Valencia compelled it to fall back upon San 
 Angel and Churubusco, leaving Shields at leisure to cut off the 
 fugitives, numbers of whom, coming under the fire of the South 
 Carolina regiment, broke away in utter despair, and took refuge 
 among the rocks and ravines of the Pedregal. 
 
 The victory being achieved before the detachments from 
 "Worth's and Quitman's divisions arrived in sight, they were 
 ordered back to their former positions ; Worth to attack San 
 Antonio in front with his whole force, while Pillow's and Twiggs's 
 divisions — so lately led by Smith, but now each under its 
 appropriate commander — moving from Contreras through San 
 Angel and Cuyoacan, approached it in the rear. 
 
 To the skill and bravery of General Persifor F. Smith and his 
 intrepid subordinates, is the American nation indebted for the 
 great victory of Contreras. Its results were, seven hundred of 
 the enemy killed ; eight hundred and thirteen taken prisoners, 
 among whom were four generals — Salas, Mendoza, Garcia, and 
 Guadalupe — and eighty-eight inferior officers ; many colours and 
 standards, twenty-two pieces of brass ordnance, thousands of 
 small arms and accoutrements, an immense quantity of shot, 
 shells, powder, and cartridges, besides seven hundred pack-mules 
 and many horses.* 
 
 Our loss was one officer killed, and one wounded, and about 
 fifty men killed and wounded. f 
 
 Among the ordnance captured, were the two guns lost by the 
 4th artillery — but without dishonour — at the battle of Buena Vista. 
 By a singular and pleasing coincidence, these were first recog- 
 nised by Captain Drum, of the same regiment, and the tidings 
 of their recovery so exhilarated the spirits of the men under his 
 command, that they sprang rapturously forward, and, amidst 
 deafening cheers, caressed and embraced them as objects of 
 affection long mourned as lost, but now suddenly and unex- 
 pectedly restored. 
 
 * Scott's Official Report. t Letter to the New York Courier. 
 
BKIG. GKN. PERSIFEE F. HMITH. 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Contreras — San Antonio — Worth's Operations on the 20th — Topography of the 
 Battle- Grounds of Contreras, San Antonio, and Churubusco — The Advance on 
 Churubusco — Scott's Plan of Battle — Description of the Mexican Defences at 
 Churubusco — The Battle commenced — Operations of Twiggs — Terrible Position 
 of Taylor's Battery — Attack of Shields upon the Mexican Reserve — Bravery of 
 the Mexicans — Gallant conduct of the New York and South Carolina Regiments 
 — Mexican Defence of San Pablo — The Deserters — San Antonio forced and 
 turned by Worth — His advance upon Churubusco — Storm of the Tete-du-Pont — 
 Effect of Duncan's Battery — Storm and Surrender of San Pablo — The Mexicans 
 routed at all Points — Daring Charge of Harney's Dragoons — Result of the Vic- 
 tory — Mexican and American Loss. 
 
 Viewed in every aspect, the victory of Contreras was produc- 
 tive of the most important consequences to the American army. 
 
 It was the first victory gained in the valley of Mexico. 
 
 It cut the line of the enemy's defences, and rendered no longer 
 a matter of doubt the advance of our troops upon Churubusco; 
 the only remaining exterior defence, and the last obstacle pro- 
 tecting the causeway by which the Garitas, or small forts at the 
 gates of the city, could be easily approached. 
 
 It broke down the confidence of the Mexicans in the strength 
 of their fortifications, by exhibiting in the most impressive man- 
 ner their inability to successfully defend them, and it reinvigorated 
 the spirit of the Americans, to whom the change of route, from the 
 National to the Acapulco road, had been ominous of the difficul- 
 ties by which they were beset, and upon whom the check received 
 on the 19th before both San Antonio and the hill of Contreras, was 
 calculated to conjure up the most fearful presentiments of evil, 
 while it encouraged the enemy to increased exertions. 
 
 375 
 
376 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 While the operations which led to the indecisive results of the 
 afternoon of the 19th, were going on over the left of the Pedregal, 
 Worth, on the right of the same field, was pushing vigorously 
 his reconnoissances. These, as we have already related, were 
 at length crowned with success, by the discovery of a dubious 
 route, over which it was hoped that by a semicircular sweep, 
 the main road to Churubusco might be gained, and the batteries 
 of San Antonio left in the rear. 
 
 But though San Antonio might possibly be thus efTectualty 
 turned by the infantry, the advance of the heavy ordnance com- 
 posing the siege train was opposed by obstacles on both sides of 
 the Pedregal, which were almost if not entirely insuperable ; San 
 Antonio was, therefore, ordered to be forced, as, by its capture, a 
 short and excellent road would be open to the artillery. 
 
 Accordingly, on the morning of the 20th, Worth's detachment 
 was countermarched from the neighbourhood of Contreras, and 
 his two divisions being again concentrated near each other, the 
 movement upon San Antonio commenced. 
 
 In order to fully understand the operations of the American 
 troops, on the 19th and 20th of August, it must be borne in mind, 
 that from San Augustine, the head-quarters of General Scott, a 
 road swept round the skirts of the Pedregal in an almost continu- 
 ous circle, ending at Churubusco, on the main road to the capital. 
 To the right of San Augustine the road led to San Antonio, and 
 thence to Churubusco. 
 
 To the left of San Augustine the road advanced to the Pedregal, 
 ended there in a trail, or mule-path, and again becoming wide 
 after the Pedregal was passed, tapped at right angles the Magda- 
 lena road in front of the hill of Contreras, and from thence passing 
 through the villages of San Angel and Cuyoacan, also terminated 
 in the main road at Churubusco. 
 
 It will therefore be perceived, that, if the latter road could be 
 opened by taking the works at Contreras, — the object being to 
 
Scott's plan of battle. 377 
 
 reach Churubusco, — the strong position of San Antonio need not 
 be attacked at all. Or, if San Antonio could be taken or turned, 
 it would not have been so necessary to have carried Contreras. 
 But when Contreras was taken, the General-in- chief decided to 
 attack, by a combined movement, the works of San Antonio in 
 front and in rear, so as to open to his advance the road on both 
 sides of the Pedregal, and afford a good passage for his artillery. 
 By this means he w'ould be enabled to approach Churubusco in 
 the rear, through the villages of San Angel and Cuyoacan, and in 
 front by the causeway leading through San Antonio. 
 
 Churubusco thus became the final and most important point of 
 defence ; and, as a good road led from thence to the city, it was 
 heavily and continually reinforced from that quarter, besides re- 
 ceiving large accessions of fugitives from Contreras, subsequently 
 increased by the addition of fifteen hundred men from San Anto- 
 nio, until within, and in the rear of the hacienda, the field-work 
 in front, and the tete-du-pont at the crossing of the canal,' the 
 Mexican force amounted to twenty-seven thousand men, while 
 the Americans in all parts of the field numbered only nine thou- 
 sand strong. 
 
 The work at Contreras being taken, those of San Antonio and 
 Churubusco were next to be attacked. 
 
 Accordingly, at eight o'clock, A. M., the divisions of Twiggs 
 and Pillow, under the immediate command of the latter, marched 
 from Contreras to Cuyoacan, followed closely by the General-in- 
 chief in person. 
 
 At this village, one mile from Churubusco, and five from Con- 
 treras, several roads meet, one of which, stretching off to the right, 
 leads to the rear of San Antonio, two miles distant. 
 
 At Cuyoacan, Scott arranged his plan of battle, and the dispo- 
 sition of his force was briefly as follows : — 
 
 Worth, already on the San Antonio road, was to storm that work 
 in front, supported by Cadwalader's brigade (Pillow's division), 
 
378 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 which was directed to march from Cuyoacan and attack it simul- 
 taneously in the rear. 
 
 When the work was carried, the two divisions were to unite 
 and press forward upon Churubusco, the distance of the latter 
 from San Antonio by the causeway being but little more than two 
 miles. 
 
 In the mean time, Twiggs was to move upon Churubusco, and 
 attack the works nearest to Cuyoacan. These proved to be the 
 hacienda and convent of San Pablo. 
 
 (^ Shields, in command of his own brigade (Quitman's division) 
 and that of Pierce (Pillow's division), was to leave Cuyoacan by 
 a third road further to the left, cross the Churubusco river, and, 
 upon reaching the causeway between Churubusco and the city of 
 Mexico, was directed to attack the enemy's right and rear, divert 
 his attention from the movement upon the hacienda, and endea- 
 vour to intercept the retreat towards the capital of the garrison 
 from Churubusco, in the event of the attack upon that point 
 proving successful. 
 
 Quitman, with the remainder of his division, was to remain at 
 San Augustine to guard the hospital, and the siege, supply, and 
 baggage trains. 
 
 The orders rapidly given to Pillow, Twiggs, and Shields, were 
 as promptly followed up by the march of their respective com- 
 mands upon the point indicated. 
 
 Twiggs moving first, with Smith's brigade in advance supported 
 by Riley's, soon reached the vicinity of San Pablo de Churubusco. 
 
 The works at this point were of the most formidable description. 
 " They consisted of a fortified hacienda which was surrounded 
 by a high and thick wall on all sides," forming a large square. 
 " Inside the wall w^as a stone building, the roof of which was fiat 
 and higher than the walls. Above all this was a stone church, 
 still higher than the rest, and having a large steeple. The wall 
 was pierced with loopholes, and so arranged that there were two 
 
BATTLE COMMENCED. 379 
 
 tiers of men firing at the same time. They had thus four different 
 ranges of men firing at once, and four ranks were formed on each 
 range and placed at such a height that they could not only over- 
 look all the surrounding country, but at the same time they had a 
 plunging fire upon us. 
 
 "Outside the hacienda, and completely commanding the 
 avenues of approach, was a field-work extending around two 
 sides of the fort, and protected by a deep wet ditch, and armed 
 with seven large pieces of cannon. It was garrisoned by about 
 two thousand men. This hacienda is at the commencement of 
 the causeway leading to the western gate of the city, and had to 
 be passed before getting on the road. 
 
 " About three hundred yards in rear of this work, another field- 
 work had been built where a cross-road meets the causeway at a 
 point where it crosses a river, thus forming a " tete-du-pont," or 
 bridge-head. This also was very strong, and armed with three 
 large pieces of cannon. The works were surrounded on every 
 side by large corn-fields which were filled with the enemy's 
 skirmishers, so that it was difficult to make a reconnoissance. It 
 was therefore decided to make the attack immediately, as they 
 were full of men, and extended for nearly a mile on the road to 
 the city, completely covering the causeway."* 
 
 Lieutenant Stevens, of the Engineers, having reported a one- 
 gun battery across the road leading up from Cuyaocan, the 1st 
 artillery was detached to turn it by its lefl. This movement 
 being met by a vigorous fire from the work, Taylor's battery, sup- 
 ported by the 3d infantry, took up a position fronting the build- 
 ings about the church. The tremendous fire which immediately 
 opened from that quarter, indicated not only the presence of a 
 strong force of the enemy, but that the works were more conside- 
 rable than had been at first reported. 
 
 What was supposed to be a one-gun battery proved afterwards 
 
 * Letter to the New York Courier. 
 
 50' 
 
380 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 to have been the right salient angle of the field-work which flanked 
 the hacienda, and enfiladed the road to Cuyoacan, so that when 
 the 1st artillery attempted to turn it, they found themselves in 
 front of the work, and exposed to a terrible and plunging fire 
 from the musketry, poured through the embrasures of the walls 
 beyond. Gallantly standing their ground, they took such cover 
 as they could get, and picked off the Mexican infantry at the 
 loops whenever an opportunity offered, 
 
 Taylor's battery, though assailed by a most fearful fire of grape, 
 canister, musketry, round-shot, and shell, which struck down two 
 officers, twenty men, and thirteen horses, not only maintained its 
 position, but, for upwards of two hours, was served with a de- 
 structive precision and regularity which won the admiration of all 
 who witnessed it.* 
 
 While Twiggs was thus actively engaged before the convent 
 and hacienda. Shields, on the extreme left, found his command 
 confronted by the Mexican reserve, consisting of four thousand 
 infantry and three thousand cavalry, drawn up in rear of Churu- 
 busco, and on the road towards the capital. Finding it impossi- 
 ble to outflank the enemy, owing to the superior character of the 
 ground occupied by the latter, and Pierce's brigade being hard 
 pressed in consequence, Sibley's troop of 2d dragoons and the 
 Rifles, both under command of Major Sumner, were ordered to his 
 support. 
 
 Shields now withdrew his men, and under cover of the Haci- 
 enda de los Portales, determined to attack the enemy upon his 
 front, f 
 
 From this time the battle gradually deepened ; the resolution of 
 the Mexicans seemed at length to have caught something of the 
 heroic spirit of their Spanish progenitors, and, animated by the 
 knowledge of their superior numbers, and confident in the strength 
 of their position, they kept up an incessant fire of artillery and 
 
 * Smith's Ofllcial Report. t Shiclds's Official Report. 
 
 J 
 
THE DESERTERS. 381 
 
 small arms, until the shouts of their assailants and the cries of the 
 wounded were drowned in the thunder of the conflict. 
 
 Then it was that the indomitable courage of the American sol- 
 diers shone conspicuous. The South Carolina and New York 
 regiments, while forming for the charge, endured with unflinching 
 intrepidity a fire as terrible as ever man witnessed,* while 
 further to the right, from the walls of San Pablo, tier above tier,- 
 from the roof of the hacienda, and from the steeple of the con- 
 vent, the enemy's infantry poured down such rapid volleys of 
 musketry, that for three hours, the sound of their firing w^as one 
 continuous roll.f 
 
 Deadlier still was the service of the artillery from the field-work 
 in advance. Three of the pieces were manned by deserters 
 from our own army, commanded by the traitor Riley. Knowing 
 that if taken the penalty of their crime was an ignominious death, 
 and that their only safety lay in a victory over their own country- 
 men, these men fought with the courage of despair, picking oflT, 
 with the malignity of private revenge, several of the American 
 officers whom they recognised, and, at a subsequent period of 
 the battle, pulling down the white flag of surrender no less than 
 three times. | 
 
 It was about mid-day when the battle became general. An 
 hour earlier Worth commenced his movement upon San Antonio. 
 
 The Second Brigade, under Colonel Clarke, advanced up the 
 causeway to within five hundred yards of the works, and then strik- 
 ing off to the left, across the Pedregal, by the route previously re- 
 connoitred, turned the enemy's right, and regained the road, a short 
 distance in rear of the village, and between it and Churubusco. 
 
 During this time the First Brigade, under Colonel Garland, 
 remained in front of San Antonio, but masked by an angle of the 
 causeway from the direct fire of the batteries. This position was 
 
 *Shields's Official Report. t Letter to the New York Courier. t Ibid. 
 
382 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 assumed with a view to a direct assault as soon as Clarke's fire 
 was opened in rear. 
 
 But the enemy, already shaken by the fall of Contreras, and 
 fearful of being intercepted in his retreat, as soon as Clarke's bri- 
 gade threatened his rear, commenced precipitately evacuating his 
 position, for the purpose of falling back upon Churubusco. This 
 intention, however, was partially frustrated by the rapidity with 
 which Clarke dashed forward to gain possession of the road. 
 Finding the Mexican garrison in full retreat, two companies of 
 the 3d infantry, under Captains Morrill and McPhail, and com- 
 manded by Lieutenant-Colonel Scott, precipitated themselves 
 furiously upon the column and cut it nearly in the centre, the 
 advance portion of it moving upon Churubusco, and the remain- 
 der, some two thousand strong, under General Bravo, retreating 
 upon Dolores. 
 
 As soon as Clarke was known to be engaged. Garland's brigade 
 moved to the assault of the works in front, but, the enemy being 
 found to have already deserted them, it passed quickly through, 
 and the two brigades were soon united and in hot pursuit. 
 
 Approaching Churubusco, the hacienda and convent of San 
 Pablo were discovered in advance and to the left of the road, 
 crowded with Mexican troops. At a distance of three hundred 
 yards to the right, and still further in advance, was the field-work, 
 or tete-du-pont, garnished with heavy guns and filled with troops. 
 Between the two a continuous line of infantry, and on the left and 
 rear the enemy was also seen in force, as far as the eye could 
 reach.* 
 
 Twiggs had already been engaged for upwards of an hour, 
 when Worth, previously joined on the causeway by Pillow with 
 Cadwalader's brigade, arrived before Churubusco close on the 
 heels of the fugitives from San Antonio. 
 
 * Worth's Official Report. 
 
STORM AND SURRENDER OF SAN PABLO. 383 
 
 The whole of Worth's division, as soon as it came within 
 musket-shot of the works, was thrown to the right of the road, 
 with the exception of the 6th infantry. 
 
 The latter, moving to the assault in front, was exposed to a ter- 
 rible fire of grape, canister, and musketry, which raked the road 
 and momentarily checked its advance, but the 5th and 8th infan- 
 try, marching by a flank parallel to the road, drove the enemy's 
 skirmishers, and in defiance of a tremendous fire from the tete- 
 du-pont, dashed across the deep wet ditch surrounding the work, 
 carried it at the point of the bayonet, and instantly turned the 
 captured cannon upon the hacienda and convent, before which 
 Twiggs was still hotly engaged. 
 
 Duncan's battery of light artillery, no longer exposed to the 
 eflfects of the heavier metal of the tete-du-pont, now galloped up 
 the main road, and opened upon the field work surrounding San 
 Pablo. " Seizing the prolongation of a principal face, in a space 
 of five minutes, by a fire of astonishing rapidity, the enemy was 
 driven from his guns in that quarter and the infantry from their 
 intrenchments."* 
 
 The battery was now directed upon the convent. At this time 
 Duncan's battery, upon the San Antonio causeway; Taylor's bat- 
 tery, further to the left and in front of the field-work; and the cap- 
 tured guns of the tete-du-pont, were all turned upon San Pablo, 
 and within half-an-hour from the storm of the tete-du-pont, the 
 enemy's fire visibly slackened under this terrible combination. 
 As soon as this was perceived by Smith, the 3d infantry, already 
 advanced under cover of some huts near the right bastion, was 
 ordered to charge ; and, as soon as the brave fellows had partially 
 cleared the ramparts by a fire of musketry, they dashed daunt- 
 lessly over, led by Captain J, M. Smith and Lieutenant Sheppard, 
 when the garrison, throwing out several white flags, surrendered 
 themselves prisoners of war. General Rincon, its brave com- 
 
 * Worth's Official Report. 
 
384 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 mander, appearing at the balcony with Captain Alexander, just 
 as a staff" officer despatched by Worth to receive the surrender, 
 arrived within the works. 
 
 After the storm of the tete-du-pont, and the surrender of San 
 Pablo, that portion of the enemy engaged with Garland's and 
 Clarke's brigades, to the left and rear of the former work, gave 
 way precipitately. 
 
 Still further to the rear, Shields, operating against the reserve, 
 having determined upon an assault in front, formed his command 
 accordingly. Selecting the Palmetto regiment as the base of his 
 line, the New York and 12th and 15th were deployed to the 
 right, and the 9th to the left; the whole then gallantly advanced, 
 under a withering discharge of small arms, opening their fire as 
 they came up and moving steadily forward. As soon as the enemy 
 was observed to waver, the order to charge was given, and the 
 men rushed upon him with the bayonet, broke his ranks, and put 
 him to the rout, just as the fugitives from Churubusco came 
 wildly up the road, closely pursued by the head of Worth's divi- 
 sion * 
 
 All was now confusion. The Mexican cavalry, putting spurs to 
 their horses, fled panic-sti'uck ; while the infantry, throwing away 
 their arms by thousands, either knelt down by the wayside, and 
 with uplifted hands prayed for quarter, or scattered with the speed 
 of fear in every practicable direction. 
 
 Harney's bold dragoons were now let loose upon the fugitives, 
 and, galloping along the high road to the capital, sabring as 
 they went, dashed into the enemy's intrenchments at the very 
 gate of the city; but this impetuosity laid them open to a severe 
 fire of grape from one of the batteries in that quarter, whereby 
 Major Mills, of the 15th infantry, a volunteer in the charge, was 
 killed. Captain Kearney, who led the squadron, lost his left arm; 
 
 * Shields's Official Report. 
 
RESULT OF THE VICTORY. 385 
 
 Captains McReynolds and Duperu were severely wounded, and 
 several of the dragoons placed " hors du combat.''^ 
 
 Thus ended the famous 20th of August, a day upon which the 
 American troops, in three separate and distinct actions, upon the 
 same field, assaulted and signally defeated an enemy from three 
 to five times their own number ; captured no less than three 
 strong positions, protected by ten batteries, prepared for sixty-one 
 guns, and within which thirty-eight guns were taken, together 
 with an immense quantity of small arms and ammunition, suffi- 
 cient to supply a large army. 
 
 In these actions the Mexicans suffered a loss in killed and 
 wounded of three thousand two hundred and fifty ; and in prison- 
 ers two thousand six hundred and twenty-seven, among whom 
 were eight generals, and one hundred and ninety-seven subordi- 
 nate officers. 
 
 The American loss was, in killed, sixteen officers, and one hun- 
 dred and twenty-three rank and file ; and in wounded, sixty offi- 
 cers, and eight hundred and sixteen rank and file. 
 
 But, though these brilliant events occurred within a few miles 
 of each other, the storm of Contreras and the turning of San 
 Antonio were but subordinate parts of the main action at Churu- 
 busco. Here General Santa Anna concentrated all his forces for 
 a final and determined resistance ; and it is but justice to the 
 Mexicans to say, that, at this point, the severe loss on both sides 
 affords the strongest evidence that they fought with greater intre- 
 pidity than had been exhibited in any previous engagement. 
 
 The battle was indeed most obstinate and bloody, and that a 
 crowning triumph should at length have been obtained over a re- 
 solute enemy, numbering from twenty-seven to thirty thousand 
 men, by a force of nine thousand Americans, exhausted by fight- 
 ing, marching, and countermarching for thirty-six hours, is a 
 significant proof of the indomitable courage, energy, and perse- 
 verance by which the latter were animated. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Scott's Note to Santa Anna — The Reply — Armistice — Its questionable Policy — 
 Peace Negotiations — Mexican Commission — Boundaries — American Project — 
 Mexican Counter-Project— Failure of Negotiations— Infringements of Armistice 
 —Warlike temper of the Mextoans— Scott's Letter to Santa Anna— His Answer 
 —Trial of the Deserters— Sentence and Execution. 
 
 After the victory of Churubusco, and while the American 
 troops were hotly pursuing the discomfited enemy, Scott pro- 
 ceeded to Tacubaya, and established his head-quarters in the 
 bishop's palace. 
 
 The next morning, while on his return to Cuyoacan, he was 
 met by commissioners to propose a truce, the terms of which were 
 promptly rejected ; but, previous to this, an intimation having been 
 received from reliable sources, that an armistice for the purpose 
 of opening negotiations for peace would be eagerly accepted 
 Scott despatched from Cuyoacan the following note : — 
 
 " Head-Quarteks, Army U. S. America, j 
 Cuyoacan, August 21, 1847.) 
 
 "To his Excellency the President and General-in-chief of the Republic of 
 Mexico. 
 
 " Sir : Too much blood has already been shed in this unna- 
 tural war between the two great Republics of this continent. It 
 is time that the differences between them should be amicably and 
 honourably settled, and it is known to your Excellency that a 
 commissioner on the part of the United States, clothed with full 
 powders to that end, is with this army. 
 386 
 
ARMISTICE. 387 
 
 « To enable the two republics to enter on negotiations, I am 
 willing to sign, on reasonable terms, a short armistice. 
 
 <«I shall wait with impatience until to-morrow morning for a 
 direct answer to this communication, but shall, in the mean time, 
 seize and occupy such positions outside of the capital as I may 
 deem necessary to the shelter and comfort of this army. 
 
 " I have the honour to remain, with high consideration and re- 
 spect, your Excellency's most obedient servant, 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT." 
 
 This letter met with an immediate reply from the Mexican 
 Secretary of War, in which he stated that the proposition for an 
 armistice with the view of an honourable termination of the war, 
 had been received with pleasure, by his Excellency the President 
 and Commander-in-chief, and that Brigadier-Generals Villamil 
 and Quijano, were appointed commissioners to agree upon the 
 terms of the armistice. 
 
 The commissioners subsequently appointed on the part of the 
 United States, were Major-General Quitman, and Brigadier- 
 Generals Smith and Pierce. Shortly afterwards, articles of agree- 
 ment were drawn up, and, after some slight modification, received 
 the signatures of Generals Scott and Santa Anna. 
 
 The terms of the armistice were as follows : — 
 
 " The undersigned, appointed respectively, the first three by 
 Major-General Winfield Scott, commander-in-chief of the armies 
 of the United States, and the last two by his Excellency D. Anto- 
 nio Lopez de Santa Anna, President of the Mexican Republic, and 
 commander-in-chief of its armies, met with full powers, which 
 were fully verified in the village of Tacubaya, on the 23d day of 
 August, 1847, to enter into an armistice for the purpose of giving 
 the Mexican government an opportunity of receiving propositions 
 51 
 
388 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 of peace from the commissioners appointed by the President of 
 the United States, and now with the American army, when the 
 following articles were agreed upon : 
 
 "Art. 1. Hostilities shall instantly and absolutely cease be- 
 tween the armies of the United States of America and the United 
 Mexican States, within thirty leagues of the capital of the latter 
 States, to allow time to the commissioners appointed by the Uni- 
 ted States and the commissioners to be appointed by the Mexican 
 Republic, to negotiate. 
 
 " 2. The armistice shall continue as long as the commissioners 
 of the two governments may be engaged on negotiations, or until 
 the commander of either of the said armies shall give formal no- 
 tice to the other of the cessation of the armistice for forty-eight 
 hours after such notice. 
 
 " 3. In the mean time, neither army shall, within thirty leagues 
 of the city of Mexico, commence any new fortification or mili- 
 tary work of offence or defence, or do anything to enlarge or 
 strengthen any existing work or fortification of that character 
 within the said limits. 
 
 " 4. Neither army shall be reinforced within the same. Any 
 reinforcements in troops or munitions of war, other than subsist- 
 ence now approaching either army, shall be stopped at the dis- 
 tance of twenty-eight leagues from the city of Mexico. 
 
 " 5. Neither army, nor any detachment from it, shall advance 
 beyond the line it at present occupies. 
 
 " 6. Neither army, nor any detachment or individual of either, 
 shall pass the neutral limits established by the last article, except 
 under a flag of truce, bearing the correspondence between the two 
 armies, or on the business authorized by the next article ; and 
 individuals of either army, who may chance to straggle within 
 the neutral limits, shall, by the opposite party, be kindly warned 
 off, or sent back to their own armies under flags of truce. 
 
 " 7. The American army shall not, by violence, obstruct the 
 
ARMISTICE. 389 
 
 passage from the open country into the city of Mexico, of the 
 ordinary supplies of food necessary to the consumption of its in- 
 habitants, or the Mexican army within the city ; nor shall the 
 Mexican authorities, civil or military, do any act to obstruct the 
 passage of supplies from the city or country, needed by the 
 American army. 
 
 " 8. All American prisoners of war remaining in the hands of 
 the Mexican army, and not heretofore exchanged, shall immedi- 
 ately, or as soon as practicable, be restored to the American 
 army, against a like number, having regard to rank, of Mexican 
 prisoners captured by the American army. 
 
 " 9. All American citizens who were established in the city 
 of Mexico prior to the existing war, and who have since been 
 expelled from that city, shall be allowed to return to their re- 
 spective business or families therein, without delay or molesta- 
 tion. 
 
 << 10. The better to enable the belligerent armies to execute 
 these articles, and to favour the great object of peace, it is further 
 agreed between the parties, that any courier with despatches that 
 either army shall desire to send along the line from the city of 
 Mexico or its vicinity, to and from Vera Cruz, shall receive a safe 
 conduct from the commander of the opposing army. 
 
 "11. The administration of justice between Mexicans, accord- 
 ing to the general and state constitutions and laws, by the local 
 authorities of the towns and places occupied by the American 
 forces, shall not be obstructed in any manner. 
 
 " 12. Persons and property shall be respected in the towns and 
 places occupied by the American forces. No person shall be 
 molested in the exercise of his profession ; nor shall the services 
 of any one be required without his consent. In all cases where 
 services are voluntarily rendered, a just price shall be paid, and 
 trade remain unmolested. 
 
 "13. Those wounded prisoners who may desire to remove to 
 
390 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 some more convenient place, for the purpose of being cured of 
 their wounds, shall be allowed to do so without molestation, they 
 still remaining prisoners. 
 
 " 14. The Mexican medical officers who may wish to attend 
 the wounded shall have the privilege of doing so, if their services 
 be required. 
 
 "15. For the more perfect execution of this agreement, two 
 commissioners shall be appointed, one by each party, who, in 
 case of disagreement, shall appoint a third. 
 
 " 16. This convention shall have no force or effect, unless ap- 
 proved by their Excellencies, the commanders respectively of the 
 two armies, within twenty-four hours, reckoning from the sixth 
 hour of the 23d day of August, 1847. 
 
 A. Quitman, Maj. Gen. U. S. A. 
 Persifor F, Smith, Brig. Gen. 
 Franklin Pierce, Brig. Gen. U. S. A. 
 Ignacio de Mora y Villamil, 
 Benito Quijano. 
 "A true copy of the original. 
 
 G. W. Lay, U. S. A., 
 
 Military Secretary to the General-in- chief. ^^ 
 
 "Head-Quarters of the Army U. S. ( 
 Tacubaya, August 23, 1847. J 
 
 " Considered, approved, and ratified, with the express under- 
 standing that the word " supplies,''^ as used the second time, with- 
 out qualification, in the seventh article of this military convention 
 — American copy — shall be taken to mean (as in both the British 
 and American armies) arms, munitions, clothing, equipments, 
 subsistence (for men), forage, and in general, all the wants of an 
 army. That word "supplies," in the Mexican copy, is errone- 
 ously translated " viveres," instead of" recursos." 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT, 
 General-in-chief of the U.S.A.'''' 
 
ARMISTICE. S91 
 
 [Translation.] 
 " Ratified, suppressing the ninth article, and explaining the 
 fourth, to the effect that the temporary peace of this armistice 
 shall be observed in the capital and twenty-eight leagues around 
 it; and agreeing that the word supplies shall be translated recur- 
 sos ; and that it comprehends everything of which the army may 
 have need, except arms and ammunition. 
 
 ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA." 
 
 " Head-Quarteks Army U. S. of America, ) 
 Tacubaya, August 24, 1847. j 
 
 " I accept and ratify the foregoing qualification, added by the 
 
 President-general of the Mexican Republic. 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT." 
 
 " A true copy of the original. 
 
 G. W. Lay, U. S. A., 
 
 Military Secretary to the General-in-chief.^^ 
 
 " Head- Quarters Army U. S. of America, j 
 Tacubaya, August 23, 1847. J 
 
 "To his Excellency the President and General-in-chief of the Mexican 
 Republic : 
 
 " Sir : Under a flag of truce, I send Lieutenant Semmes, of 
 the United States navy, who will have the honour to exchange 
 with such officer as may be appointed for the purpose, the ratifi- 
 cation of the military convention that was signed yesterday, by 
 commissioners from the American and Mexican armies. 
 
 " I particularly invite the attention of your Excellency to the 
 terms of my ratification, and have the honour to remain, with high 
 consideration and respect, your Excellency's most obedient 
 servant, 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT, 
 General-in-chief of the U. S. army^ 
 
392 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 [Translation.] 
 
 "National Palace of Mexico, | 
 August 23, 1847. ) 
 
 " I have the note of your Excellency, of this date, in which you 
 are pleased to say that Lieutenant Semmes, of the navy of the 
 United States, will exchange, with another officer named for that 
 purpose, the ratification of the military convention which was 
 signed yesterday by commissioners of the Mexican and Ameri- 
 can armies, and calls particular attention to the terms of the rati- 
 fication. 
 
 " The most excellent President orders the undersigned to say to 
 your Excellency, as he has the honour to do, that he orders its 
 ratification within the time agreed in the armistice ; and he is also 
 charged to direct the attention of your Excellency to the terms of 
 ratification by his Excellency the President. 
 
 " I have the honour to be, &c., 
 
 LINO JOSE ALCORTA, 
 Minister of State, and of War and Marine. 
 To his Excellency, the General-in-chief of the U. S. Army." 
 
 The policy of this armistice has been doubted by many. 
 
 The disorganization of the Mexican army was so complete after 
 the battle of Churubusco, that it is well known the Americans, by 
 pushing forward the same evening, might have entered the capi- 
 tal, almost without resistance. 
 
 Whether they were in a condition to advance, after the severe 
 fatigues of the 19th and 20th, or whether they could have main- 
 tained possession of the city with so many of the surrounding de- 
 fences still held by the enemy, are questions which have acquired 
 importance from the events that subsequently transpired, and the 
 diversity of opinions hitherto prevailing. 
 
QUESTIONABLE POLICY OF THE ARMISTICE. 393 
 
 To improve a victory to its fullest extent, by grasping all the 
 advantages that victory offers, is at all times the surest way to 
 bring an antagonist to terms ; while, to stop short at the moment of 
 success, enables the enemy to recover from the paralysis of defeat, 
 and but too often jeopards results which might otherwise have 
 been considered certain. 
 
 The American army being then avowedly in the most favoura- 
 ble position at this time for entering, with comparatively small 
 loss, the city of Mexico, we incline to the belief that the wisest 
 policy would have been to have pressed on, to have taken the 
 opportunity which the panic of the enemy presented, and allowed 
 him no time to recover from his fears, and rally behind new de- 
 fences. 
 
 The adventurous Kearney, with the small but daring squadron 
 under his command, did actually penetrate to the very gates of 
 the city; and, had a sufficiently strong supporting force moved 
 rapidly upon the heels of the fugitives, the small number of de- 
 fenders behind the breastworks being operated upon by the pre- 
 sence of a victorious array, and their confidence weakened by that 
 vague but powerful sense of terror, which the experience of an 
 overwhelming disaster so certainly creates, would have soon given 
 way, and the network of obstacles, which subsequently compelled 
 the General-in-chief to advance by a different road, being thus 
 easily cut through, perhaps the serious losses which afterwards 
 befell the American troops before the Molino del Rey and Cha- 
 pultepec, might have been avoided altogether. 
 
 The reasons given by General Scott for offering an armistice 
 at this juncture were. 
 
 First: The information of intelligent and disinterested men, 
 that the Mexican Government were prepared to listen favourably 
 to the project of a treaty of peace, amity, and lasting boundaries, 
 of which Mr. Trist, as the agent of the Executive of the United 
 States, was known to be the bearer. 
 
394 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Secondly : That it was feared if the capital was entered by force 
 of arms and the government dispersed, a spirit of national despe- 
 ration would be engendered, and the hope of accommodation 
 indefinitely postponed. 
 
 Thirdly : A humane desire to shield the Mexicans from the 
 crowning dishonour of beholding a victorious enemy in possession 
 of the chief city of their republic. 
 
 The argument of others is, that the severe marches and battles 
 of the 19th and 20th left the Americans too much shaken by 
 losses and fatigue to advance in^mediately ; but, as they subse- 
 quently took possession of the city with only six thousand men, 
 after storming the formidable heights of Chapultepec, and forcing 
 the well defended Garitas of San Cosme and Belen, it cannot be 
 questioned that the same result could have been at least as readily 
 achieved at a time when the effective force of the army numbered 
 eight thousand men, and while the causeway of San Antonio lay 
 comparatively open to their advance, the few troops at that Garita 
 being already terribly shaken by the victory of Churubusco. 
 
 But, as the General-in-chief admits the ease with which the 
 capital might have been taken on the evening of the 20th, it may 
 not be amiss to examine how far his own reasons justified either 
 the proposal or the acceptance of an armistice, taking into con- 
 sideration the commanding position he occupied, with the capital 
 avowedly within his grasp. 
 
 There is no doubt that the American residents and intelligent 
 neutrals who cautioned General Scott against precipitancy, sin- 
 cerely believed the Mexicans at length desired peace ; but, as 
 the interior Jine of defences surrounding the city still afforded the 
 latter a further means of resistance, were time allowed them to 
 reunite their shattered forces, the sincerity of their seeming rea- 
 diness to treat — taking in view their characteristic pride and 
 obstinacy — might well have been doubted. 
 
 Every hour's delay was of eminent service to them, by reviving 
 
QUESTIONABLE POLICY OF THE ARMISTICE. 395 
 
 Jheir drooping courage, and by infusing, with increase of numbers, 
 new hopes of eventual success. 
 
 To the Americans the pause w-as pregnant with danger, not 
 only by closing the avenues easily accessible at present, but by 
 threatening their future safety. 
 
 A large body of the enemy was known to be in their rear, and 
 their reinforcements were too f£.r back to be available in the event 
 of an emergency ; while in their front it was soon to be shown 
 how little regard was paid by the enemy to the solemnly ratified 
 articles of the armistice, by the Mexican population being seen 
 openly engaged in the erection of breastworks, and in still further 
 obstructing, in various ways, the approaches to the city. 
 
 The forcible entrance into the capital, the effect of which it 
 was supposed would jeopard the prospects of peace, was also 
 subsequently made ; and the absolute quiet that ensued was suffi- 
 cient evidence that the possession of the city and the dispersion 
 of the government, so far from rousing the people to a more cla- 
 morous outcry in favour of the further prosecution of the war, 
 was the first event which brought home to them the reality of 
 their condition, and seriously inclined tliem to listen to terms of 
 accommodation. 
 
 But, though the armistice may have been impolitic, there is not 
 the slightest reason to suppose that General Scott, in granting it, 
 was actuated by any other feeling than that of the most exalted 
 humanity. The forlorn situation of the Mexican people, proud, 
 obstinate, and unreasoning as they had proved themselves, could 
 not have been witnessed by him without a chivalric desire to 
 spare them the last and bitterest scene of degradation — the sight 
 of a victorious enemy within the very walls of a capital which 
 the valour of their ancestors had surrounded with so many heroic 
 associations. Nor could his frank nature have easily imagined 
 them so lost to all sense of moral obligation, as to seek to take 
 advantage of the humane forbearance of the conqueror, by using 
 52 
 
396 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 the respite allowed them, not for the stipulated purpose of termi- 
 nating existing difficulties by an honourable peace, but with the 
 treacherous view of improving the interval in strengthening them- 
 selves for a continuance of the war. 
 
 A sterner soldier would have pushed on, regardless of the piti- 
 able condition of the enemy ; a humane one would have paused, 
 as Scott did, and, in trusting to the honour of such an enemy, 
 would have found himself in like manner deceived. Although, 
 perhaps, by a wiser policy, war with Mexico might have been 
 avoided, it will redound to the eternal honour of our country, that 
 we conducted it agreeably to the dictates of an exalted humanity ; 
 and that we were ready at all times to terminate a contest which 
 was prolonged by the indomitable obstinacy of the Mexican 
 people. 
 
 The armistice, however, being ratified, the American troops 
 were quartered in different villages, within supporting distance 
 of each other, leaving Mr. Trist, on the part of the United States, 
 to open negotiations for peace with the Mexican government. 
 
 Accordingly, on the 25th of August, that gentleman wrote to 
 Mr. Pacheco, the Mexican Minister for Foreign Affairs, informing 
 him of his readiness to treat, and on the succeeding day received 
 answer that the Mexican commissioners, then in the act of being 
 appointed, would meet at the village of Atzcopozalco, on the 
 morning of the 27th ; and, in accordance therewith. Generals Her- 
 rera, Conto, and Villamil, Don Miguel Atristain, and Don Jose 
 Miguel Arroyo, were accredited on the part of the Mexican go- 
 vernment, to confer with Mr. Trist, at the place designated. 
 
 Negotiation now commenced, but from the lofty attitude 
 assumed by the Mexican commissioners, under the instruction of 
 their government, it soon became apparent that the peace which 
 America so earnestly sought, could only be obtained by sacrifices 
 incompatible with her honour. 
 
 The preliminary condition insisted upon by the Mexicans, that 
 
PEACE NEGOTIATIONS. 397 
 
 tlie treaty should be made upon the basis that they had triumphed 
 and were yet in a situation to successfully prosecute the war, 
 might have been accorded by the United States with a smile of 
 contempt for the weakness that dictated an assumption so well 
 known to be utterly at variance with the facts; but when Mexico 
 refused to recognise the Rio Grande, which had been claimed by 
 the United States government as the boundary of the two repub- 
 lics, and pertinaciously insisted upon the line of the Nueces, 
 though professing herself willing to stipulate that the interval 
 between the two rivers should remain uninhabited, the impression 
 soon became general, that President Santa Anna had hailed the 
 armistice rather as a means of delaying the advance of General 
 Scott until he was again prepared to oppose him, than as affording 
 an opening for the ratification of a permanent peace. 
 
 It is true that the " project of a treaty," of which Mr. Trist was 
 the bearer from his government, was discussed by the Mexican 
 commissioners, and it is equally true that they offered in return a 
 counter-project ; but, as Mr. Trist was clothed with no powers to 
 treat for peace upon any other terms than those stipulated in the 
 instrument he had been delegated to present, it could hardly have 
 been supposed that he would assume the responsibility of altering 
 boundaries already strictly defined by his government. 
 
 The question of boundaries involved a cession of territory by 
 Mexico to the United States, for which the latter offered an equi- 
 valent in money. 
 
 These boundaries, as proposed by the fourth article of the pro- 
 ject submitted by Mr. Trist, were as follows : That the boundary 
 line of the two republics should commence at the mouth of the 
 Rio Grande ; follow the middle of that river until it reached the 
 southern boundary of New Mexico ; thence west wnth that line 
 to the western boundary; thence north with the river Gila, and 
 through the mouth of that river down the middle of the Gulf of 
 California into the Pacific. 
 
39S HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 By this article it will be seen that the United States demanded 
 the acknowledgment of the Rio Grande as her true boundary, 
 and required the cession by purchase of about ten degrees of 
 thinly inhabited territory, including within its limits the depart- 
 ment of New Mexico and Upper and Lower California. In 
 addition to this, a free right of way for ever across the isthmus of 
 Tehuantepec was demanded by a subsequent article. 
 
 In their counter-project the Mexican commissioners proposed 
 to commence the boundary line of the two republics in the bay 
 of Corpus Christi, thence to the mouth of the Nueces, thence 
 with the middle of the latter river to its source, thence west to 
 the eastern boundary of New Mexico, thence north with that 
 boundary to the 37th degree of latitude, thence west to the Pacific. 
 
 In other words, they claimed the disputed territory between the 
 Nueces and the Rio Grande, and declined ceding the greater part 
 of New Mexico, the southern portion of Upper California, or any 
 of Lower California. 
 
 The commissioners also declared their inability to grant a free 
 right of way across the isthmus of Tehuantepec, on the plea that 
 the Mexican government had, some years before, divested itself 
 of the power to do so, by granting a privilege with reference to 
 this object to a private contractor, by whom it had been transferred, 
 with the authority of the Mexican government, into tlie hands of 
 English subjects, of whose rights Mexico could not dispose. 
 
 In an effort to adjust these differences, and finding the Mexican 
 commissioners resolute in adhering to the boundary of the Nueces, 
 as the condition <■<■ sine qua non'''' of peace, Mr. Trist did eventually 
 so far depart from the letter of his instructions, as to offer to refer 
 the question of that boundary to his government, and to abandon 
 the claim to Lower California altogether; but at the same time he 
 insisted upon the cession of New Mexico, and upon this latter 
 point neither party being willing to yield to the other, the nego- 
 tiations fell through. 
 
WARLIKE TONE OF THE MEXICANS. 399 
 
 However sincere the Mexican commissioners may have been, 
 personally, in their efforts to promote a peace, the instructions by 
 which they were fettered showed that their government was far 
 from desirous of participating in such a result. Perhaps, indeed, 
 peace might 'have been obtained, had the United States been 
 willing to yield all the points of controversy, and further agreed 
 to surrender the line of the Rio Grande and fall back upon the 
 Nueces ; but such a retrogression, even had the Mexican proposi- 
 tion been referred by Mr. Trist, would never have been acceded 
 to by his government. 
 
 But, long previous to the close of the armistice, the warlike 
 temper of the Mexican people had made itself apparent. Inde- 
 pendent of their almost undisguised efforts to fortify the approaches 
 to the city, the representatives of the states of Mexico, Jalisco, 
 and Zacatecas united in a protest in which they asserted that " the 
 city of Mexico would not allow the necessary freedom in its 
 discussions and deliberations, if Congress should assemble in that 
 city." 
 
 They declared also, that any arrangement made in relation to 
 foreign affairs, unless ratified by Congress, would be unconstitu- 
 tional, and that their only motive for protesting against the nego- 
 tiation then pending, was to save the republic "from the ignominy 
 of a treaty concluded and ratified under the guns of the enemy, 
 and on the day succeeding unlooked-for reverses." 
 
 In addition to this, a circular was sent by the Secretary of State 
 to the states of Puebla and Mexico, exhorting the people to grasp 
 whatever arms they could conveniently obtain, and by fire and 
 sword, and every other practicable means, endeavour to annihilate 
 the invaders. 
 
 Matters were now drawing to a crisis. On the 6th of Septem- 
 ber, the day before the failure of the negotiations was fully 
 ascertained, Scott addressed a letter to the Mexican General-in- 
 chief, complaining of repeated violations of the armistice, and 
 
400 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 threatening a resumption of hostilities, unless full satisfaction was 
 accorded before twelve o'clock of the following day. 
 
 To this General Santa Anna replied in a letter of the same date, 
 indignantly denying the charges specified, and accusing his 
 antagonist of similar infractions of the truce. This closed the 
 correspondence ; on the 7th, the negotiations were publicly 
 declared to be abortive, and both parties entered into active pre- 
 parations for the renewal of the war. 
 
 During the pending of the armistice, an event occurred which 
 produced emotions of painful regret among many of the Mexican 
 people. This was the trial of the deserters from the American 
 army, taken in arms against their own countrymen at the battle 
 of Churubusco. 
 
 These men, after clandestinely quitting the colours of the Uni- 
 ted States, had enrolled themselves in the service of the enemy, 
 by whom they had been formed into two companies, under the 
 title of the companies of St. Patrick, commanded by the notorious 
 Riley, a man whose undaunted courage won the admiration even 
 of those who abhorred his treason. They had fought long and 
 desperately in the field-work before the convent of San Pablo, 
 and were not taken prisoners until their Mexican comrades had 
 fled, and their own ammunition was entirely exhausted. 
 
 At a general court-martial, over which Colonel Bennett Riley 
 presided, twenty-nine of these deserters were tried and found 
 guilty, sixteen of whom were hung on the 10th of September, at 
 San Angel, and four the day following, at Mixcoac. 
 
 At a subsequent general court-martial, of which Colonel Gar- 
 land was president, thirty-six more were tried and convicted, 
 thirty of whom M'ere also executed at Mixcoac, on the 13th of 
 September. 
 
 The remainder on both occasions, amounting to fifteen in num- 
 ber, owing to mitigating circumstances, had their sentences 
 commuted to lashing and branding ; among the latter was the 
 
EXECUTION OF THE DESERTERS. 401 
 
 commander, Riley, \vho escaped the extreme penalty of the law 
 by having deserted previous to the formal declaration of war by 
 the United States. 
 
 Thus ignominiously perished, by the hands of their indignant 
 comrades, fifty convicted traitors, whose weapons at Buena Vista 
 and at Churubusco had been wantonly turned against the colours 
 they had sworn to defend, and the nation to which they owed 
 allegiance. It was a terrible spectacle, and only to be justified 
 by the enormity of the crime, w'hich had, however, been provoked, 
 throughout the whole war, by the allurements with which the 
 Mexican generals basely tempted them. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Hostilities recommenced — Reconnoissances — Valley of Mexico — Defences around 
 the City — Description of Chapultepec — Molino del Rey — Casa de Mata — Strength 
 of the Mexican Lines — Storm of Molino del Rey — Capture of the Mexican Bat- 
 tery — Repulse of the Victors — The Battery retaken — Storm of Casa de Mata — 
 Terrible Fire of the Mexicans — Mcintosh's Brigade repulsed — Duncan's Battery 
 — Surrender of Casa de Mata — Mexican Loss — American Loss. 
 
 During the period of the truce, the head-quarters of General 
 Scott were established at Tacubaya, a delightful village about 
 two and a half miles distant from the city of Mexico, and within 
 point-blank range of the guns of Chapultepec. There Worth's 
 division and Harney's cavalry brigade were also quartered. The 
 remainder of the army occupied the surrounding villages ; Pil- 
 low's division head-quarters being at Mixcoac, that of Twiggs at 
 San Angel, and Quitman's at San Augustine. 
 
 On the 7th of September, hostilities were recommenced on the 
 part of the United States, by a reconnoissance of the enemy's 
 interior line of defences immediately around the capital. These 
 defences will be best elucidated by a brief description of the topo- 
 graphy of the valley. 
 
 The view of the valley of Mexico, as displayed from the emi- 
 nence on which the Archbishop's Palace at Tacubaya is situated, 
 exhibits the city of Mexico as built on a slight elevation, in the 
 centre of a level plain, hemmed in for two hundred miles around 
 by lofty mountains. 
 
 The immense expanse of this lovely valley, which the transpa- 
 rency of the atmosphere renders distinctly visible, is chequered 
 402 
 
BATT-LES OF 3IKXH'0„ 
 LINK OF OPERATIOXS OF TJIK l.SAU.MY 
 
 UD>1er tJie comiimid of \L\JOR GEXKRAL V1M'IKL1> SCOTT 
 (),< ihe 8''.' !?'^' and ].l'^ o/' Si/junibrr 18^7. 
 
 Soalf 
 
 A. E.r.JlalteneJ. ';'> '.?"■ 
 
 C ■ En^iifh Burvuuj Grintnd 
 V. Ciladtl 
 
 T Crtihedrttl 
 
 G-. ALojntdn 
 
 H. San, Cosrn^ 
 
 Acfu*du^t 
 
DESCRIPTION OF CHAPULTEPEC. 403 
 
 in the vicinity of the city by numerous lakes, the borders of which 
 are beautified by the residences of weahhy Mexicans, gleaming 
 whitelyfrom the midst of groves and gardens, while, interspersed 
 throughout its whole extent to the base of the furthest mountains, 
 are seen wide stretches of cultivated land, diversified by noble 
 orchards and evergreen forests, and intersected by the silver 
 threads of many fair rivers. The imposing haciendas of large 
 landed proprietors, and villages and hamlets innumerable, are 
 scattered all about, some boldly relieved by back-grounds of lux- 
 uriant foliage, and others partly hidden by intervening trees, or 
 the swells and undulations of the plain. The central attraction 
 of this beautiful valley, the city of Mexico, is approached from 
 the plain on various sides by five great or main roads, termina- 
 ting in eight causeways, elevated some six feet above the marshes 
 and soft grounds by which the city is partially surrounded. 
 These marshes render any approach to the city impracticable, ex- 
 cept by the causeways, each of which " presents a double road- 
 way on the sides of an aqueduct of strong masonry and great 
 height, resting on open arches and massive pillars, and flanked 
 by ditches of unusual dimensions."* At the end of these cause- 
 ways, Garitas are built over arches, through the gates of which 
 all persons are compelled to pass before they can enter the city ; 
 and at this time the gates were defended by a system of strong 
 works, and the passage of the causeways protected by numerous 
 batteries and breastworks for infantry. 
 
 But the causeways of Belen and San Cosrae — the routes 
 by which General Scott proposed to advance — had other and 
 more formidable defences still. These were the works of Molino 
 del Rey, Casa de Mata, and the castle of Chapultepec. 
 
 Chapultepec, or "the hill of the grasshopper," is famous in 
 tradition as the favourite resort of the unfortunate Montezuma, 
 and the princes of the old Aztec empire, whose wealth and semi- 
 Scott's Official Reports, Nos. 33 and 34. 
 
 53 
 
404 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 barbaric taste are strikingly attested by the gardens and cypress 
 groves, and the ruins of tanks and grottos which yet remain scat- 
 tered around. 
 
 This natural isolated mound, composed of porphyritic rock, is 
 of considerable height, and commands from its summit an exten- 
 sive prospect of the beautiful valley below and of the mountains 
 encircling it. The western side, its most accessible point, is 
 clothed for some distance upwards with a stately grove of cypress; 
 beyond this the face of the hill presents a series of abrupt ascents 
 over rocks and chasms. The summit is crowned wdth an imposing 
 and strongly fortified structure, originally erected by the Viceroy 
 Galvez as a palace. It was subsequently converted under the 
 republic into a military college, and, at the period of the resump- 
 tion of hostilities, was garrisoned in part by the cadets of that 
 institution. 
 
 At the western foot of the hill, adjoining the grove, is a group 
 of stone buildings, known as El Molino del Rey, or the King's 
 Mill ; and, as the only practicable approach to the fortress above 
 was on this side. El Molino del Rey was heavily garrisoned to 
 (defend it, and in return was itself protected by Chapultepec, 
 beijag directly under the guns of the latter. 
 
 About five hundred yards still further to the west, and at the 
 foot of the ridge that slopes gradually from the heights above 
 Tacubaya to the plain below, is an old Spanish work, called Casa 
 de Mata, consisting of a strong stone citadel, recently repaired 
 and enlarged, and surrounded with bastioned intrenchments, and 
 impassable ditches. El Molino del Rey w-as supposed to be used 
 by the enemy for the founding of cannon, and the Casa de Mata 
 as a magazine. 
 
 As Molino del Rey defended the only access to the fortress of 
 Chapultepec, and as the latter commanded the approaches to the 
 city from Tacubaya, it was necessary to take Molino del Rey, 
 before Chapultepec could be effectually assaulted, and afterwards 
 
MOLINO DEL KEY. 405 
 
 Chapiiltepec, before the south-western avenues either of Belen or 
 San Cosme could be traversed with any possible hope of success. 
 
 Another reason for the reduction of Molino del Rey, was the 
 impression entertained that certain church-bells had been sent 
 out from the city for the purpose of being cast into cannon ; and 
 this impression was the more probable, inasmuch as the immense 
 number of guns already captured from the enemy had not left 
 him W'ith sufficient remaining to arm, all at the same time, the 
 strong works at each of the eight Garitas.* The destruction of 
 the powder in the magazine of Casa de Mata was also considered 
 of primary importance. 
 
 Accordingly, on the 7th of September, after a personal recon- 
 noissance of Molino del Rey and Casa de Mata by Generals 
 Scott and Worth, the latter was ordered to attack the following 
 morning those lines and defences with his division reinforced by 
 Cadwalader's brigade of Pillow's division, three squadrons of 
 dragoons under Major Sumner, and some heavy guns of the siege- 
 train under Captain Huger of the ordnance and Captain Drum 
 of the 4th artillery. Worth's division, and the reinforcements 
 detailed for this perilous service, amounted in all to only three 
 thousand one hundred men. 
 
 The instructions given by the General-in-chief to Worth, 
 limited his operations to carrying Casa de Mata and Molino del 
 Rey, capturing the enemy's artillery, and after destroying the 
 machinery and mateiiel supposed to be in the foundry, he was 
 to immediately withdraw his command to its former position in 
 the village of Tacubaya,! until certain contemplated reconnois- 
 sances upon the southern gates should enable the former to decide 
 upon the most favourable point for his future operations. 
 
 Fully sensible of the importance of maintaining these posts, the 
 Mexican general occupied the lines with his troops in great force. 
 
 * Scoti's Official Despatch, No. 33. 
 
 t Worth's Official Report, September 10th, 1847. 
 
406 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 A daring reconnoissance, made on the morning of the 7th, by 
 Captain Mason, of the Engineers, subsequently verified by the 
 enemy's own statement, determined the Mexican left as resting 
 upon and occupying the group of stone buildings called Molino 
 del Rey. This wing, commanded by General Leon, was composed 
 of National Guards, and consisted of the battalion of Mina, those 
 of Union and La Patria or Oaxaca, with a few companies from 
 Puebla and Queretaro. 
 
 The right wing, the brigade of Perez, rested on Casa de Mata, 
 and was composed of regulars, fifteen hundred strong. 
 
 Midway between these was a field-battery, supported on each 
 side by lines of infantry, amounting to ten thousand men. These 
 were under the immediate command of General Santa Anna. 
 
 A second reconnoissance was made by Captain Mason and 
 Colonel Duncan on the afternoon of the same day, and the results 
 of both alike indicated the centre as the weak point of the enemy, 
 and that his left flank on Molino del Rey was stronger than his 
 right.* 
 
 As the orders of General Scott had reference only to the defences 
 at the foot of Chapultepec, the storm of the latter remaining yet 
 to be determined on, Worth found it necessary, in disposing his 
 foices for the attack, to isolate the works below from the fortress 
 above. 
 
 Accordingly, Garland's brigade, with two pieces of Drum's 
 battery, was ordered to take position on the enemy's left, for the 
 purpose of watching Molino del Rey and any supporting force 
 that might be sent down from Chapultepec. This position was 
 also to be within sustaining distance of the assaulting column, 
 and of Huger's battery of 24-pounders, the latter being placed on 
 the ridge sloping from Tacubaya, some five or six hundred yards 
 from El Molino. 
 
 An assaulting column of five hundred men, under Brevet Major 
 
 * Worth's Report. 
 
Iliffllll ^ ' '""' ^''^ '^"^ 
 
 \ I .\ijv 
 
 i^^imj 
 
ATTACK ON MOLINO DEL REY. 407 
 
 Wright, was posted on the same ridge, to the left of Huger's 
 battery, for the purpose of forcing the enemy's centre. 
 
 Clarke's brigade, commanded by Colonel Mcintosh, and 
 strengthened by Duncan's battery, was stationed still further up 
 the ridge, opposite the enemy's right — Casa de Mata — with 
 instructions to look to the left flank, sustain the storming party if 
 necessary, or to attack the enemy, as circumstances might dictate. 
 
 Cadwalader's brigade was held in reserve in a position yet 
 further up the ridge, between Huger's battery and Clarke's bri- 
 gade, and within easy support of either. 
 
 Sumner's cavalry enveloped the extreme left, with orders to act 
 in any manner that commander might think best.* 
 
 Accordingly, under cover of the darkness, at three o'clock on 
 the morning of the 8th the troops were put in motion, and at 
 early dawn were found as accurately posted as if for review. 
 
 The battle commenced by Huger's guns opening upon Molino 
 del Rey, which was actively continued until that part of the 
 enemy's line was sensibly shaken, when the storming column, 
 guided by Captain Mason and Lieutenant Foster of the Engineers, 
 dashed forward to the assault. Undismayed by a tremendous fire 
 of artillery and small-arms, they rushed upon the artillerymen 
 and infantry, drove them at the point of the bayonet, took the 
 battery, and turned the captured guns upon the retreating masses. 
 
 But this success was only temporary. On discovering the 
 smallness of the force by which his position had been stormed, 
 the enemy rallied and made a desperate effort to regain it. 
 Assisted by the infantry which covered the house-tops and had a 
 plunging fire upon the battery, his whole line poured a terrific fire 
 of musketry upon the stormers, which struck down eleven out of 
 the fourteen officers composing the command, among whom 
 Major Wright, Captain Mason, and Lieutenant Foster fell severely 
 wounded. Staggered by this unexpected revulsion, the stormers 
 
 * Worth's Report. 
 
 A 
 
403 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 were falling back, when the light battalion under Captain E. 
 Kirby Smith moved rapidly up to their support, and, precipitating 
 themselves upon the enemy, shattered his advancing ranks, and 
 recaptured the position, and held it. 
 
 In the mean while, Garland's brigade, supported by Drum's 
 artillery, bore down upon Molino del Rey, and although every 
 inch of the ground was obstinately disputed by the enemy, 
 succeeded in driving him from that strong hold, when Drum's 
 section and Huger's battery immediately advanced, and adding 
 the guns captured from the enemy to their own pieces, poured a 
 destructive fire upon his retreating masses until they were beyond 
 reach. 
 
 During the time these intrepid and successful assaults were 
 being made on the left and centre, Duncan's battery opened upon 
 Casa de Mata and continued its fire with terrible activity, until 
 Molino del Rey and the enemy's centre were pierced and taken ; 
 when, being masked by Mcintosh's brigade as it moved to the 
 assault, and observing a large force of cavalry and infantry rapidly 
 moving to the support of Casa de Mata, it dashed forward promptly 
 to meet them, in concert with Andrews' voltigeurs of Cadwalader's 
 brigade, and opening fire upon the cavalry as they came up, 
 shattered their ranks and drove them back in confusion; Sumner's 
 dragoons now dashed gallantly up and completed the discomfi- 
 ^.ture, while the battery returned to its former position. 
 
 During the progress of this brilliant affair, Mcintosh's brigade, 
 animated by the successes of their comrades, moved intrepidly 
 to the attack of Casa de Mata ; and now, for the first time, its 
 great strength, which had hitherto been skilfully concealed, be- 
 came fearfully apparent. The reconnoitring parties had mistaken 
 for an ordinary field-work what proved to be a regular fortification, 
 garrisoned by the choicest troops in the Mexican service. 
 
 Notwithstanding this ominous developement, the brigade reso- 
 lutely pressed forward. 
 
STORMING OF CASA DE MATA. 409 
 
 The enemy waited quietly until it approached within one 
 hundred yards of his first position, when he poured in a terrible 
 fire of musketry ; but finding the Americans, though much cut up, 
 still undauntedly advancing, he retreated to his second position 
 behind the walls of Casa de Mata and the breastworks in front. 
 From this shelter, he continued to pour volley after volley upon 
 the devoted column of assailants, who, staggering on under a 
 murderous fire, at length reached the slope of the parapet. 
 
 Their heroic bravery could carry them no further. Colonel 
 Mcintosh and Major White had already fallen severely wounded, 
 and Lieutenant-Colonel Martin Scott was killed in the act of 
 urging his men across the ditch which separated them from 
 the enemy. With their muskets foul and unserviceable, their 
 ammunition nearly expended, and with one-third of the noble 
 brigade, including one-half of the officers, killed and wounded, 
 they fell slowly and reluctantly back in rear of Duncan's battery. 
 These guns, no longer masked by the movements of the brigade, 
 now opened a retributive fire upon Casa de Mata ; and so terrible 
 was the effect of the rapidity and precision with which the pieces 
 were served, that the enemy, unable to endure the avenging 
 storm, precipitately abandoned the post he had hitherto so obsti- 
 nately defended, and sought securer refuge under the guns of 
 Chapultepec. 
 
 Thus, in the terse language of General Worth, was " fought 
 and won" the battle of Molino del Rey, in which his command 
 of three thousand one hundred men, after two hours' severe fight- 
 ing, carried the strong works at the foot of Chapultepec ; routed 
 fourteen thousand of the enemy, led by General Santa Anna in 
 person ; killed and wounded twenty-two hundred, among the 
 former of whom were Generals Valdarez and Leon, the second 
 and tliird in command ; took over eight hundred prisoners, inclu- 
 ding fifty-two commissioned officers ; and captured a battery of 
 
410 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 four pieces, together with a large quantity of ammunition and 
 small-arms. 
 
 In this terrible contest, the American loss was seven hundred 
 and eighty-seven killed and wounded, fifty-eight of whom were 
 officers. 
 
 The enemy being dispersed at all points, in obedience to the 
 instructions of the General-in-chief, Casa de Mata was blown up, 
 and the cannon-moulds and useless ammunition destroyed ; after 
 which Worth returned with his command to Tacubaya, to await 
 the result of future reconnoissances. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Defences of the Southern Gates — Pronounced impracticable — Scott determines to 
 assault Chapultepec — Formidable Character of the Works^Mask Movement 
 upon the Southern Gates — Movements of Pillow and Quitman — The Batteries 
 opened upon Chapultepec — Operations of Twiggs on the San Angel Road — As- 
 sault of Chapultepec — Its Capture — Worth's Movement against the Garita of 
 San Cosme — His Success — Tacubaya Causeway crossed by Quitman — Garita 
 Belen carried — The City of Mexico taken — Sm-render by the Mexican Authori- 
 ties — Quitman Marches to the Grand Plaza — American Colours hoisted on the 
 National Palace. 
 
 The dearly-bought victory of Molino del Rey was promptly 
 followed up by the reconnoissances already projected, w'ith the 
 view of ascertaining the most practicable route by which the city 
 could be approached. 
 
 The result of a close and daring scrutiny, principally towards 
 the gates of the Piedad, Nino Perdido, San Antonio, and Paseo de 
 la Viga, showed that a navigable canal, both wide and deep, and 
 very difficult to bridge in the presence of an enemy, stretched 
 along the southern front of the city, while the causeways, running 
 for the most part through wet meadows and boggy grounds, were 
 not only flanked by broad ditches filled with water, but were cut 
 up in numerous places, to impede the progress of the troops, who 
 would be exposed at the same time to severe cross fires from the 
 Garitas, and from batteries and infantry breastworks, thrown up 
 at every available point. 
 
 The impracticability of these approaches being determined, 
 Scott concluded to storm Chapultepec, and force an entrance into 
 the city by the causeways either of San Cosme or Tacubaya. 
 54 411 
 
412 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 The prospects of success even here were scarcely less problem- 
 atical ; for, notwithstanding the destruction of Molino del Rey 
 and Casa de Mata, the hill of Chapultepec still presented an array 
 of obstacles of the most formidable description. 
 
 The base of the hill was girdled by a stone wall some four feet 
 thick, and about twenty feet in height. Inside of this lay a con- 
 siderable body of troops, protected by breastworks and the im- 
 mense trunks of ancient cypresses. 
 
 The lower slope of the hill was mined in all directions, with 
 the trains laid ready to be fired at any moment. Beyond the 
 mines, and about midway of the ascent, was a strong redoubt, 
 clasping the entire front. This also was filled with troops. Above 
 this redoubt was an inner wall, enclosing the crest of the hill, 
 • with a wide and deep ditch and counterscarp. Inside this wall 
 was the main citadel or fortress of Chapultepec, filled with troops, 
 with eleven pieces of cannon, some of them of the largest calibre, 
 and these commanded the approaches on all sides — the cause- 
 ways leading to the city, and even the city itself. 
 
 In order to economize the lives of his troops, by deceiving the 
 enemy as to the real point of attack, Scott arranged a movement 
 upon a different point than that which he intended as the true one. 
 Following out the orders of the General-in-chief, Quitman's divi- 
 sion marched by daybreak on the 10th, to join the division of Pil- 
 low before the southern gates, and after this open exhibition of 
 strength in that quarter, the two divisions proceeded by night 
 secretly to Tacubaya, to operate upon Chapultepec, leaving only 
 Twiggs, with Riley's brigade and Steptoe's and Taylor's batte- 
 ries, in front of the southern gates, to maintain the deception by a 
 series of menacing manoeuvres and by false attacks. 
 
 This admirably executed stratagem was completely successful. 
 Fully convinced that an attack was contemplated upon the southern 
 gates, the enemy heavily reinforced his troops in that direction, 
 and increased the strength of his defences by additional breast- 
 
PREPARATIONS FOR THE ATTACK. 413 
 
 works and batteries ; nor was he undeceived until the evening of 
 the 13th, when it was too late to repair his error. 
 
 As soon as the divisions of Pillow and Quitman reached Tacu- 
 baya on the night of the 11th, they were ordered into position 
 before Chapultepec. In the course of the same night four batte- 
 ries were established within easy range of that point ; and, as it 
 was the intention of the General-in-chief to delay the assault until 
 the fortifications were well crippled by his artillery, Pillow and 
 Quitman were ordered to remain passive until that object was 
 effected. 
 
 On the morning of the 12th the batteries opened their fire upon 
 Chapultepec and its outworks, under the direction of Captain 
 Huger, and the bombardment and cannonade were continued 
 with marked effect during the whole of that day, and down 
 through the evening, until it became too dark to distinguish 
 objects. 
 
 During this time, Twiggs, on the San Angel road, was holding 
 a considerable part of the Mexican army in check, and his batte- 
 ries were heard again in full activity, w'hen Huger's guns reopened 
 upon Chapultepec on the morri^g of the 13th. 
 
 The period for closer and more determined action having at 
 length arrived, the plan of attack, which was in two columns, 
 commanded by Generals Quitman and Pillow, was ordered to be 
 simultaneously commenced on the west and south-east sides of 
 the works. 
 
 An assaulting party of two hundred and fifty picked men, com- 
 manded by Captain McKenzie of the 2d artillery, was furnished 
 by Worth's division to precede the column under Pillow, and a 
 similar one, led by Captain Casey of the 2d infantry, was supplied 
 by the division of Twiggs, to aid the column of Quitman. The 
 remainder of Worth's division was held in reserve near Molino 
 del Rey, with orders to support Pillow's attack, while that of 
 Quitman was sustained in like manner by Smith's brigade, which 
 
414 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAX WAR. 
 
 had moved up for the purpose that morning from the village of 
 Pied ad. 
 
 At eight o'clock on the morning of the 13th, the momentary 
 cessation of the heavy batteries gave the preconcerted signal for 
 the assaulting columns to advance. Pillow, who had occupied 
 the buildings of Molino del Rey ever since the night of the 11th, 
 promptly threw out his skirmishers to clear a sand-bag breast- 
 work protecting a breach in the wall, through which it was 
 necessary to pass. The enemy being driven from this position, 
 McKenzie's storming party advanced, supported by four compa- 
 nies of voltigeurs under Colonel Andrews, and preceded by four 
 other companies of the same under Colonel Johnstone. These 
 eight companies, acting as skirmishers, soon took the lead and 
 kept it ; for the assaulting column of McKenzie, being encumbered 
 with the scaling-ladders, were compelled to move less rapidly. 
 
 Protected by the cypresses, the enemy fell back slowly, dis- 
 puting the ground inch by inch. Pillow being wounded at the 
 base of the hill, the command of the column fell upon Brigadier- 
 General Cadwalader, and that gallant officer proved himself fully 
 equal to the occasion. 
 
 Terrible indeed was the struggle of these brave men, through 
 the cypress forest, where every tree hid an enemy ; amidst the 
 sheeted fire and thunder of the guns of Chapultepec, and an in- 
 cessant storm of musketry from behind trees and rocks and breast- 
 works ; and over mines, the trains of which were laid ready for 
 ignition, shooting down the soldier appointed to fire them, as he 
 stood at his post with the match lighted in his hand, ready to hurl 
 them to destruction. 
 
 Thus it was the intrepid skirmishers pressed forward, followed 
 by the stormers and the remainder of the assaulting column, and 
 by Clarke's brigade of Worth's division, which had hastened up 
 at a critical moment to their support. 
 
 From behind the redoubt, midway of the ascent, the enemy 
 
ASSAULT OF CHAPULTEPEC. 415 
 
 again made a desperate stand, and at this point, by a most fearful 
 fire of musketry, checked the impetuous advance of the voltigeurs. 
 Tlien, for the first time during that eventful day, hope animated 
 the Mexican heart. But that hope was illusive. A single act of 
 gallantry converted the momentary indecision of the assailants 
 into an irresistible enthusiasm. 
 
 At this awful crisis, when to pause was to risk annihilation, for 
 the ground was mined beneath them. Captain Chase, of the 15th 
 infantry, dashed towards the right flank of the work, and bade his 
 company follow — supported instantly by Lieutenant Beach of the 
 same regiment with his company and by the voltigeurs and the 
 9th regiment of infantry, the work was stormed at all points, and 
 the enemy, unable to withstand an onset so terrible and so deter- 
 mined, fell back to within the enclosure surrounding the fortress, 
 wath the daring stormers pressing rapidly upon his rear. Reach- 
 ing the crest of the counterscarp and enveloping it, these three 
 regiments, joined soon after by Clarke's brigade, and portions of 
 Quitman's command, aw^aited under a severe fire of artillery and 
 small-arms the arrival of McKenzie's party with the scaling- 
 ladders. These soon came up, and another brilliant display of 
 courage ensued. The ladders were quickly planted, and many 
 of those who first scaled the wall fell back either killed or wounded. 
 Nothing daunted, however, others promptly took their places, and 
 as these fell, the ladders were dironged by spirits equally daring. 
 Of McKenzie's storming party. Lieutenants Rogers of the 4th and 
 Smith of the 5th infantry were killed while gallantly leading their 
 men, — and Lieutenant Selden of the 8th infantry, one of the first 
 to mount the scaling-ladder, fell back severely wounded. But 
 in spite of this resistance by the enemy, a foothold was at length 
 obtained, and the stormers, swarming up the ladders and over the 
 wall, rushed into the fortress and carried it. Captain Barnard, 
 thougli twice wounded in the act, seized the colours of his regi- 
 ment and unfurled the first American flag upon the captured 
 
416 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 worK, while Major Seymour, of the 9th infantry, entered the for- 
 tress sword in hand, and himself struck down the Mexican flag.* 
 
 In the mean time, Quitman, marching by the Tacubaya road, 
 approached the works on the south-east, over a causeway ob- 
 structed by intersecting ditches and batteries, and further de- 
 fended by an army strongly posted outside and to the east of the 
 works. 
 
 Moving in reserve on the right flank of the assaulting column, 
 Smith's brigade took a sweep across the meadows, turned the two 
 batteries at the foot of Chapultepec, and presented a front against 
 the enemy outside. 
 
 While the column, thus ably supported, was pressing boldly 
 on towards the batteries, ready for a dash at them as soon as 
 opportunity offered, the South Carolina and New York regiments, 
 under Brigadier-General Shields, and the 2d Pennsylvania regi- 
 ment, under Lieutenant-Colonel Geary, by an oblique movement 
 to the left, crossed the low grounds at the foot of Chapultepec, 
 and in the face of a terrible fire of artillery and musketry, effected 
 a lodgment at the wall. Major Gladden, with his regiment, im- 
 mediately penetrated the enclosure, through a breach made by 
 the artillery ; and the Pennsylvania and New York regiments as 
 quickly effected a like entrance by climbing over a deserted 
 battery further to the south. 
 
 As soon as this was achieved, the storming parties precipitated 
 themselves upon the batteries and breastworks protecting the 
 causeway ; and, after a desperate conflict, in which Major Twiggs 
 was killed and Captain Casey severely wounded at the head of 
 their respective commands, captured the works and completely 
 routed the enemy. This gallant attack was nobly seconded by 
 Smith, whose daring Rifles were as usual among the foremost. 
 The batteries being taken, and within them seven pieces of cannon 
 and' a large number of prisoners, the stormers, now united with 
 
 * Pillow's Report. 
 
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worth's movement against SAN COSME. 417 
 
 Smith's brigade, pursued the fugitives to the causeway leading 
 to the Garita Belen, and then, turning to the left, clambered up the 
 steep ascent of Chapultepec, with the view of assisting in the as- 
 sault of the fortress ; but the immense crowds of the enemy, whom 
 they soon met flying down the hill in all directions, showed that 
 Pillow had already anticipated them. 
 
 Part of Quitman's command, however, shared in the honour of 
 its capture. Following rapidly upon the heels of Pillow's column, 
 the New York, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina regiments strug- 
 gled up the rugged acclivity, driving the enemy before them, and 
 two active companies, one from the New York regiment, and one of 
 marines, led by Lieutenant Reid, succeeded in reaching the crest 
 of the hill in time to take part in the final assault. Tlie daring 
 gallantry which was then displayed in scaling the walls surround- 
 ing the fortress has been already related ; but even when that gal- 
 lant feat was successfully accomplished, the fortress itself still 
 frowned defiance on its assailants. 
 
 Animated by the presence of the veteran General Bravo, the 
 National Guards and the cadets of the institution contested the 
 possession of this, their last stronghold, with the most heroic reso- 
 lution ; but their efforts to retrieve the fortunes of the day could 
 avail but little when directed against men who had fought, a for- 
 lorn hope, from tjie steeps of Cerro Gordo to the walls of Mexico. 
 The struggle, though fierce and sanguinary, was brief. The 
 fortress was carried, its artillery captured, and a large number of 
 its defenders, including fifty general officers, made prisoners of 
 war. 
 
 But another and still more imposing event was now about to 
 take place. The city of Mexico, whose almost unparalleled sys- 
 tem of defences had so long baffled the advance of the Americans, 
 at length lay open to attack. The garitas and the works protect- 
 ing the causeways were the only remaining obstacles. These 
 were now to be overcome. 
 
418 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Worth, who, during the storming of Chapultepec, had passed 
 around the base of the hill, and with Garland's brigade, Smith's 
 light battalion, and Duncan's battery, had defeated the right wing 
 of the enemy, was already moving in the direction of the San 
 Cosme Garita, while Quitman, equally energetic, had concen- 
 trated his command and was fighting his way over the causeway 
 leading to the Garita Belen. 
 
 Leaving only the 15th regiment of Pillow's division to garrison 
 Chapultepec, Scott despatched the brigades of Clarke and Cad- 
 walader to support Worth's attack, and subsequently ordered up 
 Riley's brigade from before the southern gates for the same pur- 
 pose. The latter, however, did not arrive until after the Garita 
 of San Cosme had been carried and the action was over for the 
 day. 
 
 The column of Quitman, consisting of his own division and the 
 noble brigade of Smith, received no additional assistance, with 
 the exception of Steptoe's battery, and two regiments of Pierce's 
 brigade. 
 
 The advance upon the Garita Belen being intended by the 
 General-in-chief merely as a manoeuvre to favour the main attack 
 by Worth, Quitman was ordered only to threaten the works in 
 that quarter ; but, being nobly seconded 'by his gallant subordi- 
 nates, he determined to advance, notwithstanding the severe 
 direct and enfilading fires from the enemy's batteries, which threa- 
 tened to gall and impede his progress. Smith's brave Rifles led 
 the way ; and a brilliant little episode, which occurred shortly 
 afterwards, considerably facilitated Quitman's future movements. 
 
 While struggling with masses of the enemy, and suflering 
 dreadfully under the severe cross-fires from batteries in the low 
 grounds to his left, a daring and chivalric exploit achieved by a 
 section of Duncan's battery, covered by the light battalion of 
 Lieutenant- Colonel Smith, both attached to Worth's command, 
 materially assisted in clearing his front. 
 
GARITA BELEN CARRIED. 419 
 
 Worth, while operating on the San Cosme road, observing a 
 cross route over the meadows to the right and in the direction of 
 the works which were annoying Quitman's advance, promptly 
 threw out a section of Duncan's battery to within four hundred 
 yards of the enemy's line, which opened a destructive fire, first 
 upon the battery, and then upon the troops obstructing the cause- 
 way. This unexpected support enabling Quitman to advance 
 with greater freedom, the artillery w^ith its covering force then fell 
 back to the San Cosme road, and rejoined the column of Worth. 
 
 Clarke's brigade coming up at this time from the support of 
 Pillow's attack upon Chapultepec, Worth dashed forward, in the 
 face of a terrible fire from two batteries, and carried them both. 
 He had now reached the Campo Santo, or English burying- 
 ground, a little in advance of which, the causeway and aqueduct 
 incline to tlie right. At this point the General-in-chief came up, 
 and ordered the garita carried, and that the column should en- 
 deavour to penetrate the city as far as the Alameda, a spacious 
 green park, some fifteen hundred yards within the gate. 
 
 Accordingly, after leaving Cadwalader's brigade, which had 
 just reached him in position at Campo Santo, with instructions 
 to look to the left and rear. Worth advanced in a direct line upon 
 another battery, distant about two hundred and fifty yards from 
 the San Cosme Garita, and protected by it. The firing now be- 
 came terrible in the extreme. The causeway was literally raked 
 by grape, canister, and shells, from the battery, while from the 
 tops of the neighbouring houses, from churches, and from every 
 point of vantage, the enemy poured down an incessant storm of 
 musketry. To equalize the position of the combatants, and check 
 this fearful fire, another mode of operations became necessary. 
 Garland's brigade was accordingly thrown to the right, under 
 cover of the arches of the aqueduct, with orders to dislodge the 
 enemy from the buildings in his front, and turn the left of the 
 garita; while Clarke's brigade, breaking open the building to 
 55 
 
420 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 the left of the causeway, were to work their way with bars and 
 picks from house to house, and carry the right of the garita.* 
 
 Favoured by the fire of two mountain howitzers, which had 
 been placed upon conspicuous buildings, these orders were slowly, 
 but, in the end, successfully accomplished. At five o'clock in 
 the afternoon, both columns had gained the required positions. 
 
 The enemy soon after abandoned the battery, and fell back 
 upon the garita. A most dangerous service was now required 
 to be executed. This was the advance of a piece of artillery to 
 the evacuated battery in the face of the direct fire from the garita. 
 This duty fell upon Lieutenant Hunt, and was performed wdth a 
 gallantry that extorted the admiration of all who witnessed it. 
 
 Followed by nine men, he traversed with his piece a distance 
 of one hundred and fifty yards, and, though moving at full speed, 
 he lost in killed and wounded five of his command. With the 
 remaining four he met the enemy at the breastwork, muzzle to 
 muzzle, conquered his position, and successfully opened a fire 
 upon the garita and the intermediate force of infantry. 
 
 During this time the brigades of Garland and Clarke, preceded 
 by a company of sappers and miners, under Lieutenant G. W. 
 Smith, and the storming party of Captain McKenzie, had suc- 
 ceeded in approaching undiscovered to within easy range of the 
 works at the garita, when, the signal being given for attack, they 
 sprang up suddenly to the tops of the houses on each side of the 
 causeway, and poured a destructive fire upon the astonished 
 enemy. One terrible volley sufficed. The gunners were killed 
 at their pieces ; and, before the supporting force could recover 
 from their consternation, the two brigades charged the garita with 
 a wild hurrah ! and carried it. The next instant the shouts of the 
 victors announced their entrance into the city of Mexico. 
 
 On the Tacubaya causeway, the column of Quitman had been 
 equally successful. 
 
 * Worth's Report. 
 
THE CITY OF MEXICO TAKEN. 421 
 
 Preceded by an eight-inch howitzer under the direction of Cap- 
 tain Drum, the Mounted Rifles, supported by the South Carolina 
 regiment, and followed by the remainder of Smith's brigade, ad- 
 vanced under shelter of the arches of the aqueduct towards a 
 strong battery thrown across the causeway, nearly midway be- 
 tween Chapultepec and the Garita Belen. 
 
 Sustained by flanking batteries, and a large force of the enemy 
 stationed on a cross-road to the left, the defence at this point was 
 of the most obstinate character. The interposition of a section 
 of Duncan's battery from the San Cosme road, and the effective 
 fire of Drum's howitzer, having at length partially cleared the 
 way, the Rifles dashed forward with a yell, and, by an exhibition 
 of the most daring courage, carried the work by assault. The 
 command was now halted and reorganized for an attack upon the 
 garita. 
 
 The Rifle and South Carolina regiments were still thrown in 
 advance, but intermingled — three rifles and three bayonets being 
 placed under each arch. These regiments were closely sustained 
 by the residue of their respective brigades, under Smith and 
 Shields. 
 
 Winding round the pillars of the aqueduct, and creeping from 
 arch to arch, the whole column worked its way onward, though 
 assailed incessantly by a tremendous direct fire from the garita, 
 and by cross-fires from the Paseo and from the Piedad road. 
 These terrible fires, though they cut up the column to a fearful 
 extent, did not check for a single instant its determined advance. 
 The flank fires sw^eeping through the arches being at length 
 silenced by Drum's howitzer and a sixteen-pounder which had 
 been brought up by Lieutenant Benjamin, the Rifles and the South 
 Carolinians succeeded about noon in getting close to the garita. 
 Immediately after this was accomplished, they sprang from the 
 sheltering arches, and, with their accustomed yell, charged the 
 garita — drove the enemy, and at twenty minutes past one, P. M., 
 
422 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 nearly the whole column had passed the gate and was within the 
 limits of the city. 
 
 But the victory was not yet complete. The Ciudadela, or 
 Citadel, a work of immense strength, mounting fifteen pieces of 
 cannon, now opened upon the column at only three hundred 
 yards distance. The slaughter was terrible, and, to add to the 
 peril of their position, the ammunition of the heavy pieces worked 
 by Captain Drum and Lieutenant Benjamin was soon entirely 
 expended, without the possibility of obtaining another supply 
 under the heavy jfire that raked the causeway. 
 
 The loss at the guns was also most disastrous. The brave 
 South Carolina regiment had twice supplied additional men to 
 work the pieces, when Quitman was called upon to mourn the 
 loss of two of his bravest and most efficient subordinates. Captain 
 Drum, one of the ablest artillery officers in the service, fell mor- 
 tally wounded by the side of his gun ; and within a few minutes 
 afterwards Lieutenant Benjamin shared the same fate. The com- 
 mand of the battery then devolved upon Lieutenant Porter. No 
 sooner did the enemy find the battery silenced for want of ammu- 
 nition, than he made the most desperate efforts to force back the 
 column, and recover his position. Under cover of a terrific fire 
 of artillery and small-arms, from the Citadel, from the Paseo, and 
 from the buildings in front and upon the right, he made several 
 sallies on both flanks of the column, but was each time repulsed 
 with loss. 
 
 Finding it impossible to bring forward a supply of ammunition 
 during daylight, Quitman determined to shelter his command 
 and hold his position until the darkness should afford a more fa- 
 vourable opportunity for crossing the causeway. 
 
 During the night, the firing of the enemy having ceased, two 
 batteries for heavy guns and a breastwork for infantry were 
 erected within the garita, under the superintendence of Lieutenant 
 Beauregard, the requisite supply of ammunition obtained, and the 
 guns mounted ready to open at daylight. 
 
POSSESSION TAKEN OF THE CITY. 423 
 
 When the morning of the 14th of September dawned, and while 
 the undaunted column was preparing to recommerice the attack, 
 the defenders of the Citadel, finding all further resistance useless, 
 despatched to General Quitman a white flag of surrender. 
 
 Before this, however, as early as four o'clock on the same 
 morning, General Scott had been waited upon by a deputation of 
 the city council, who, after reporting the evacuation of the capi- 
 tal by the Mexican government and army, demanded terms of 
 capitulation in favour of the church, the citizens, and the muni- 
 cipal authorities. To this Scott replied, that, as the city had been 
 virtually in his possession ever since the forcing of the garitas, 
 he intended not to accept but to impose such terms as were con- 
 sistent with the honour of the army, the dignity of the United 
 States, and the spirit of the age.* 
 
 Upon this the Ayuntamiento retired, and orders were shortly 
 afterwards given to Worth and Quitman to advance cautiously 
 and take up commanding positions within the city. 
 
 Acting under these instructions, W^orth promptly moved for- 
 ward his command, and at six o'clock, A. M., occupied two sides 
 of the Alameda, while Quitman, after leaving Smith's brigade and 
 the South Carolina regiment to garrison the Citadel, marched 
 with the remainder of his column through the principal streets, 
 and took possession of the Grand Plaza, where the colours of 
 the United States were for the first time flung abroad from the 
 National Palace. 
 
 Soon after were seen the waving plumes and commanding per- 
 son of the General-in-chief, as he rode into the Plaza, escorted by 
 the 2d dragoons ; and a deafening hurrah greeted the gallant 
 hero, who, amid so many difficulties and disappointments, and 
 with means totally inadequate, had, by prudent arrangements, and 
 that military skill in which he is unsurpassed by any commander 
 
 * Scott's Official Despatch. 
 
424 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 of modern times, triumphed over every difficulty, and established 
 his head-quarljers in the very palace of the enemy's capital. 
 
 But the daring victors were not yet to enjoy that repose which 
 their protracted and arduous services so imperiously demanded. 
 While in the act of occupying the city, a fire was opened upon 
 them from the roofs of houses, from the windows and loops, and 
 from the corners of streets. This insurrection of the leperos and 
 liberated convicts, instigated by many Mexican soldiers in the 
 dress of citizens, occasioned a desultory contest of twenty-four 
 hours' duration, when it was effectually put down, and on the 
 morning of the 16th of September, 1847, the army of the United 
 States of North America, after a series of victories untarnished by 
 a single defeat, was in complete and unmolested possession of the 
 Capital of the Republic of Mexico, from the National Palace of 
 which, General Scott addressed the following despatch to the 
 Secretary of War : — 
 
 " Head-Qua-rters of the Army, 
 National Palace of Mexico, Sept. 18, 1847. 
 
 } 
 
 " Sir : — At the end of another series of arduous and brilliant 
 operations of more than forty-eight hours' continuance, this glori- 
 ous army hoisted, on the morning of the 14th, the colours of the 
 United States on the walls of this palace. 
 
 " The victory of the 8th, at the Molino del Rey, was followed 
 by daring reconnoissances on the part of our distinguished engi- 
 neers — Captain Lee, Lieutenants Beauregard, Stevens, and Tower 
 — Major Smith, senior, being sick, and Captain Mason, third in 
 rank, wounded. Their operations were directed principally to 
 the south — towards the gates of the Piedad, San Angel (Nino 
 Perdido), San Antonio, and the Paseo de la Viga. 
 
 « This city stands on a slight swell of ground, near the centre 
 of an irregular basin, and is girdled with a ditch in its greater 
 extent — a navigable canal of great breadth and depth— very diffi- 
 
Scott's despatch. 425 
 
 cult to bridge in the presence of an enemy, and serving at once 
 for drainage, custom-house purposes, and military defence ; leaving 
 eight entrances or gates, over arches — each of which we found 
 defended by a system of strong works, that seemed to require 
 nothing but some men and guns to be impregnable. 
 
 " Outside and within the cross-fires of those gates, we found 
 to the south other obstacles but little less formidable. All the 
 approaches near the city are over elevated causeways, cut in many 
 places (to oppose us), and flanked on both sides by ditches, also 
 of unusual dimensions. The numerous cross-roads are flanked in 
 like manner, having bridges at the intersections, recently broken. 
 The meadows thus checkered are, moreover, in many spots, under 
 water or marshy ; for, it will be remeinbered, we were in the midst 
 of the wet season, though with less rain than usual, and we could 
 not wait for the fall of the neighbouring lakes and the consequent 
 drainage of the wet grounds at the edge of the city — the lowest 
 in the whole basin. 
 
 "After a close personal survey of the southern gates, covered 
 by Pillow's division and Riley's brigade of Twiggs' — with four 
 times our numbers concentrated in our immediate front — I deter- 
 mined on the 11th to avoid that net- work of obstacles, and to seek, 
 by a sudden diversion to the south-west and west, less unfavour- 
 able approaches. 
 
 " To economize the lives of our gallant officers and men, as 
 well as to insure success, it became indispensable that this reso- 
 lution should be long masked from the enemy ; and again, that 
 the new movement, when discovered, should be mistaken for a 
 feint, and the old as indicating our true and ultimate point of 
 attack. 
 
 "Accordingly, on the spot, the 11th, I ordered Quitman's di- 
 vision from Cuyoacan, to join Pillow, by daylight, before the 
 southern gates, and then that the two major-generals, with their 
 divisions, should, by night, proceed (two miles) to join me at 
 
420 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Tacubaya, where I was quartered with Worth's division. Twiggs, 
 with Riley's brigade and Captains Taylor's and Steptoe's field 
 batteries — the latter of 12-pounders — was left in front of those 
 gates, to manoeuvre, to threaten, or to make false attacks, in order 
 to occupy and deceive the enemy. Twiggs' other brigade (Smith's^ 
 was left at supporting distance, in the rear, at San Angel, till the 
 morning of the 13th, and also to support our general depot at 
 Mixcoac. The stratagem against the south was admirably exe- 
 cuted throughout the 12th and down to the afternoon of the 13th, 
 when it was too late for the enemy to recover from the effects of 
 his delusion. 
 
 " The first step in the new movement was to carry Chapultepec, 
 a natural and isolated mound, of great elevation, strongly fortified 
 at its base, on its acclivities, and heights. Besides a numerous 
 garrison, here was the military college of the republic, with a 
 large number of sub-lieutenants and other students. Those works 
 were within direct gun-shot of the village of Tacubaya, and until 
 carried, we could not approach the city on the west, without ma- 
 king a circuit too wide and too hazardous. 
 
 "In the course of the same night (that of the 11th) heavy bat- 
 teries, within easy ranges, were established. No. 1. on our right, 
 under the command of Captain Drum, 4th artillery (relieved late 
 next day, for some hours, by Lieutenant Andrews of the 3d), and 
 No. 2, commanded by Lieutenant Hagner, Ordnance — both sup- 
 ported by Quitman's division. Nos. 3 and 4 on the opposite side, 
 supported by Pillow's division, were commanded, the former by 
 Captain Brooks and Lieutenant S. S. Anderson, 2d artillery, 
 alternately, and the latter by Lieutenant Stone, Ordnance. The 
 batteries were traced by Captain Huger and Captain Lee, Engi- 
 neer, and constructed by them with the able assistance of the 
 young oificers of those corps and the artillery. 
 
 " To prepare for an assault, it was foreseen that the play of the 
 batteries might run into the second day ; but recent captures had 
 
SCOTT S DESPATCH. 427 
 
 not only trebled our siege-pieces, but also our ammunition ; and 
 we knew that we should greatly augment both by carrying the 
 place. I was, therefore, in no haste in ordering an assault before 
 the works were well crippled by our missiles. 
 
 " The bombardment and cannonade, under the direction of 
 Captain Huger, were commenced early in the morning of the 
 12th. Before nightfall, which necessarily stopped our batteries, 
 we had perceived that a good impression had been made on the 
 castle and its outworks, and that a large body of the enemy had 
 remained outside, towards the city, from an early hour to avoid 
 our fire, and to be at hand on its cessation, in order to reinforce the 
 garrison against an assault. The same outside force was disco- 
 vered the next morning, after our batteries had reopened upon the 
 castle, by which we again reduced its garrison to the minimum 
 needed for the guns. 
 
 " Pillow and Quitman had been in position since early in the 
 night of the 11th. Major-General Worth w^as now ordered to 
 hold his division in reserve, near the foundry, to support Pillow ; 
 and Brigadier-General Smith, of Twiggs's division, had just arrived 
 with his brigade from Piedad (two miles), to support Quitman. 
 Twiggs's guns, before the southern gates, again reminded us, as 
 the day before, that he, with Riley's brigade and Taylor's and 
 Steptoe's batteries, was in activity, threatening the southern gates, 
 and there holding a great part of the Mexican army on the de- 
 fensive. 
 
 " Worth's division furnished Pillow's attack with an assaulting 
 party of some tW'O hundred and fifty volunteer officers and men, 
 under Captain McKenzie, of the 2d artillery; and Twiggs's divi- 
 sion supplied a similar one, commanded by Captain Casey, 2d 
 infantry, to Quitman. Each of those little columns was furnished 
 with scaling-ladders. 
 
 " The signal I had appointed for the attack was the momentary 
 cessation of fire on the part of our heavy batteries. About eight 
 56 
 
428 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 o'clock in the morning of the ISth^ judging that the time had 
 arrived by the effect of the missiles we had thrown, I sent an aid- 
 de-camp to Pillow, and another to Quitman, with notice that the 
 concerted signal was about to be given. Both columns now 
 advanced with an alacrity that gave assurance of prompt success. 
 The batteries, seizing opportunities, threw shots and shells upon 
 the enemy over the heads of our men, with good effect, particu- 
 larly at every attempt to reinforce the works from without to meet 
 our assault. 
 
 " Major-General Pillow's approach, on the west side, lay 
 through an open grove, filled with sharp-shooters, who were 
 speedily dislodged ; when being up with the front of the attack, 
 and emerging into open space, at the foot of a rocky acclivity, 
 that gallant leader was struck down by an agonizing wound. The 
 immediate command devolved on Brigadier-General Cadwalader, 
 in the absence of the senior Brigadier (Pierce), of the same divi- 
 sion — an invalid since the events of August 19. On a previous 
 call of Pillow, Worth had just sent him a reinforcement — Colonel 
 Clarke's brigade. 
 
 " The broken acclivity was still to be ascended, and a strong 
 redoubt, midway, to be carried, before reaching the castle on the 
 heights. The advance of our brave men, led by brave officers, 
 though necessarily slow, was unwavering, over rocks, chasms, 
 and mines, and under the hottest fire of cannon and musketry. 
 The redoubt now yielded to resistless valour, and the shouts that 
 followed announced to the castle the fate that impended. The 
 enemy were steadily driven from shelter to shelter. The retreat 
 allowed not time to fire a single mine, without the certainty of 
 blowing up friend and foe. Those who at a distance attempted 
 to apply matches to the long trains, were shot down by our men. 
 There was death below, as well as above ground. At length the 
 ditch and wtiU of the main work were reached ; the scaling-lad- 
 ders were brought up and planted by the storming-parties ; some 
 
Scott's despatch. 429 
 
 of the daring spirits first in the assault were cast down — killed or 
 wounded ; but a lodgment was soon made ; streams of heroes 
 followed ; all opposition was overcome, and several of our regi- 
 mental colours flung out from the upper walls, amidst long-con- 
 tinued shouts and cheers, which sent dismay into the capital. No 
 scene could have been more animating or glorious. 
 
 " Major-General Quitman, nobly supported by Brigadier-Gene- 
 rals Shields and Smith (P. F.), his other officers and men, was 
 up with the part assigned him. Simultaneously with the move- 
 ment on the west, he had gallantly approached the south-east of 
 the same works, over a causeway with cuts and batteries, and 
 defended by an array strongly posted outside, to the east of the 
 works. Those formidable obstacles Quitman had to face, with 
 but little shelter for his troops or space for manoeuvring. Deep 
 ditches flanking the causeway, made it difficult to cross on either 
 side into the adjoining meadows, and these again were intersected 
 by other ditches. Smith and his brigade had been early thrown 
 out to make a sweep to the right, in order to present a front 
 against the enemy's line (outside), and to turn two intervening 
 batteries near the foot of Chapultepec. This movement was also 
 intended to support Quitman's storming-parties, both on the 
 causeway. The first of these, furnished by Twiggs's division, 
 was commanded in succession by Captain Casey, 2d infantry, 
 and Captain Paul, 7th infantry, after Casey had been severely 
 wounded; and the second, originally under the gallant Major 
 Twiggs, marine corps, killed, and then Captain Miller, 2d Penn- 
 sylvania volunteers. The storming-party, now commanded by 
 Captain Paul seconded by Captain Roberts, of the Rifles, Lieu- 
 tenant Stewart, and others of the same regiment. Smith's brigade, 
 carried the two batteries in the road, took some guns, with many 
 prisoners, and drove the enemy posted behind in support. The 
 New York and South Carolina volunteers (Shields's brigade) and 
 the 2d Pennsylvania volunteers, all on the left of Quitman's line, 
 
430 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 together with portions of his storming-parties, crossed the meadows 
 in front, under a heavy fire, and entered the outer enclosure of 
 Chapultepec just in time to join in the final assault from the west. 
 "Besides Major-Generals Pillow and Quitman, Brigadier- 
 Generals Shields, Smith, and Cadwalader, the following are the 
 officers and corps most distinguished in those brilliant operations: 
 The voltigeur regiment in two detachments, commanded respect- 
 ively by Colonel Andrews and Lieutenant-Colonel Johnstone — 
 the latter mostly in the lead, accompanied by Major Caldwell; 
 Captains Barnard and Biddle, of the same regiment — the former 
 the first to plant a regimental colour, and the latter among the 
 first in the assault; the storming-party of Worth's division, under 
 Captain McKenzie, 2d artillery, with Lieutenant Seldon, 8th in- 
 fantry, early on the ladder and badly wounded ; Lieutenant Arm- 
 istead, 6th infantry, the first to leap into the ditch to plant a ladder; 
 Lieutenant Rodgers of the 4th, and J. P. Smith of the 5th infantry 
 — both mortally wounded; the 9th infantry, under Colonel Ran- 
 som, who was killed while gallantly leading that gallant regiment; 
 the 15th infantry, under Lieutenant-Colonel Howard and Major 
 Woods, with Captain Chase, whose company gallantly carried 
 the redoubt, midway up the acclivity ; Colonel Clarke's brigade 
 (Worth's division), consisting of the 5th, 8th, and part of the 6th 
 regiments of infantry, commanded respectively by Captain Chap- 
 man, Major Montgomery, and Lieutenant Edward Johnson — the 
 latter specially noticed, with Lieutenants Longstreet (badly 
 wounded, advancing, colours in hand), Pickett, and Merchant, 
 the last three of the 8th infantry ; portions of the United States 
 marines. New York, South Carolina, and 2d Pennsylvania volun- 
 teers, which, delayed with their division (Quitman's), by the hot 
 engagement below, arrived just in time to participate in the assault 
 of the heights — particularly a detachment under Lieutenant Reid, 
 New York volunteers, consisting of a company of the same, with 
 one of marines ; and another detachment, a portion of the storming- 
 
SCOTT S DESPATCH. 431 
 
 party (Twiggs' division, serving with Quitman), under Lieutenant 
 Steele, 2d infantry, after the fall of Lieutenant Gantt, 7th infantry. 
 
 " In this connexion, it is but just to recall the decisive effect 
 of the heavy batteries, Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4, commanded by those 
 excellent officers. Captain Drum, 4th artillery, assisted by Lieu- 
 tenants Benjamin and Porter of his own company ; Captain Brooks 
 and Lieutenant Anderson, 2d artillery, assisted by Lieutenant 
 Russell, 4th infantry, a volunteer ; Lieutenants Hagner and Stone 
 of the Ordnance, and Lieutenant Andrews, 3d artillery; the whole 
 superintended by Captain Huger, chief of Ordnance with this 
 army — an officer distinguished by every kind of merit. The 
 mountain-howitzer battery, under Lieutenant Reno of the Ord- 
 nance, deserves, also, to be particularly mentioned. Attached 
 to the voltigeurs, it followed the movements of that regiment and 
 again won applause. 
 
 " In adding to the list of individuals of conspicuous merit, I 
 must limit myself to a few of the many names which might be 
 enumerated : Captain Hooker, Assistant Adjutant-General, who 
 won special applause, successively, in the staff of Pillow and 
 Cadwalader; Lieutenant Lovell, 4th artillery (wounded), chief 
 of Quitman's staff; Captain Page, Assistant Adjutant-General, 
 (wounded), and Lieutenant Hammond, 3d artillery, both of 
 Shields's staff, and Lieutenant Van Dorn (7th infantry), aid-de- 
 camp to Brigadier-General Smith. 
 
 " Those operations all occurred on the west, south-east, and 
 heights of Chapultepec. To the north, and at the base of the 
 mound, inaccessible on that side, the 11th infantry, under Lieu- 
 tenant-Colonel Hebert ; the 14th, under Colonel Trousdale, and 
 Captain Magruder's field-battery, 1st artillery — one section 
 advanced under Lieutenant Jackson — all of Pillow's division — 
 had, at the same time, some spirited affairs against superior num- 
 bers, driving the enemy from a battery in the road, and capturing 
 a gun. In these, the officers and corps named gained merited 
 
432 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 praise. Colonel Trousdale, the commander, though twice 
 wounded, continued on duty until the heights were carried. 
 
 " Early in the morning of the 13th, I repeated the orders of the 
 night before to Major-General Worth, to be, with his division, at 
 hand to support the movement of Major-General Pillow from our 
 left. The latter seems soon to have called for that entire division, 
 standing momentarily in reserve, and Worth sent him Colonel 
 Clarke's brigade. The call, if not unnecessary, was at least, from 
 the circumstances, unknown to me at the time ; for, soon observ- 
 ing that the very large body of the enemy, in the road in front of 
 Major-General Quitman's right, was receiving reinforcements 
 from the city — less than a mile and a half to the east — I sent 
 instructions to Worth, on our opposite flank, to turn Chapultepec 
 with his division, and to proceed cautiously, by the road at its 
 northern base, in order, if not met by very superior numbers, to 
 threaten or to attack, in rear, that body of the enemy. The move- 
 ment, it was also believed, could not fail to distract and to intimi- 
 date the enemy generally. 
 
 "Worth promptly advanced with his remaining brigade — 
 Colonel Garland's — Lieutenant-Colonel C. F. Smith's light bat- 
 talion, Lieutenant-Colonel Duncan's field-battery — all of his divi- 
 sion — and three squadrons of dragoons, under Major Sumner, 
 which I had just ordered up to join in the movement. 
 
 " Having turned the forest on the west, and arriving opposite 
 to the north centre of Chapultepec, Worth came up with the 
 troops in the road, under Colonel Trousdale, and aided, by a flank 
 movement of a part of Garland's brigade, in taking the one-gun 
 breastwork, then under the fire of Lieutenant Jackson's section 
 of Captain Magruder's field-battery. Continuing to advance, this 
 division passed Chapultepec, attacking the right of the enemy's 
 line, resting on that road, about the moment of the general retreat 
 consequent upon the capture of the formidable castle and its out- 
 works. 
 
Scott's despatch. 433 
 
 " Arriving some minutes later, and mounting to the top of the 
 castle, the whole field to the east lay plainly under my view. 
 
 '< There are two routes from Chapultepec to the capital — the 
 one on the right entering the same gate, Belen, with the road from 
 the south, via Piedad ; and the other obliquing to the left, to inter- 
 sect the great western, or San Cosme road, in a suburb outside 
 of the gate of San Cosme. 
 
 " Each of these routes (an elevated causeway) presents a dou- 
 ble roadway on the sides of an aqueduct of strong masonry and 
 great height, resting on open arches and massive pillars, which 
 together afford fine points both for attack and defence. The side- 
 ways of both aqueducts are, moreover, defended by many strong 
 breastworks at the gates, and before reaching them. As we had 
 expected, we found the four tracks unusually dry and solid for 
 the season. 
 
 f Worth and Quitman were prompt in pursuing the retreating 
 enemy — the former by the San Cosme aqueduct, and the latter 
 alone: that of Belen. Each had now advanced some hundred 
 yards. 
 
 <■<■ Deeming it all-important to profit by our successes, and the 
 consequent dismay of the enemy, which could not be otherwise 
 than general, I hastened to despatch from Chapultepec — first 
 Clarke's brigade, and then Cadwalader's, to the support of Worth, 
 and gave orders that the necessary heavy guns should follow. 
 Pierce's brigade was, at the same time, sent to Quitman, and, in 
 tlie course of the afternoon, I caused some additional siege-pieces 
 to be added to his train. Then, after designating the 15th infantry, 
 under Lieutenant-Colonel Howard — Morgan, the colonel, had 
 been disabled by a wound at Churubusco — as the garrison of 
 Chapultepec, and giving directions for the care of the prisoners 
 of war, the captured ordnance and ordnance stores, I proceeded 
 to join the advance of Worth, within the suburb, and beyond the 
 
434 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 turn at the junction of the aqueduct with the great highway from 
 the west to the gate of San Cosrae. 
 
 "At this jun/Ction of roads, we first passed one of those formi- 
 dable systems of city defences, spoken of above, and it had not a 
 gun ! — a strong proof, 1. That the enemy had expected us to fail 
 in the attack upon Chapultepec, even if we meant anything more 
 than a feint ; 2. That, in either case, we designed, in his belief, 
 to return and double our forces against the soutliern gates — a 
 delusion kept up by the active demonstrations of Twiggs and the 
 forces posted on that side ; and, 3. That advancing rapidly from 
 the reduction of Chapultepec, the enemy had not time to shift 
 guns — our previous captures had left him, comparatively, but few 
 — from the southern gates. 
 
 " Within those disgarnished works, I found our troops engaged 
 in a street-fight against the enemy posted in gardens, at windows, 
 and on house-tops — all flat, with parapets. Worth ordered for- 
 ward the mountain-howitzers of Cadwalader's brigade, preceded 
 by skirmishers and pioneers, with pickaxes and crowbars, to force 
 windows and doors, or to burrow through walls. The assailants 
 were soon in an equality of position fatal to the enemy. By eight 
 o'clock in the evening. Worth had carried two batteries in this 
 suburb. According to my instructions, he here posted guards 
 and sentinels, and placed his troops under shelter for the night. 
 There was but one more obstacle — the San Cosme gate (custom- 
 house), between him and the great square in front of the cathedral 
 and palace, the heart of the city; and that barrier it was known 
 could not, by daylight, resist our siege-guns thirty minutes. 
 
 " I had gone back to the foot of Chapultepec, the point from 
 which the two aqueducts begin to diverge, some hours earlier, in 
 order to be near that new depot, and in easy communication with 
 Quitman and Twiggs, as well as with Worth. 
 
 " J>om this point I ordered all detachments and stragglers to 
 their respective corps, tiien in advance ; sent to Quitman additional 
 
MAJ. GEN. JOHN A. QUITMAN. 
 
Scott's despatch. 435 
 
 siege-guns, ammunition, intrenching tools ; directed Twiggs's 
 remaining brigade (Riley's) from Piedad, to support Worth, and 
 Captain Steptoe's field-battery, also at Piedad, to rejoin Quitman's 
 division. 
 
 " I had been, from the first, well aware that the western, or San 
 Cosme, was the less difficult route to the centre, and conquest of 
 the capital, and therefore intended that Quitman should only 
 manoeuvre and threaten the Belen or south-western gate, in order 
 to favour the main attack by Worth, knowing that the strong 
 defences at the Belen w'ere directly under the guns of the much 
 stronger fortress, called the Citadel, just within. Both of these 
 defences of the enemy were also within easy supporting distance 
 from the San Angel (or Nino Perdido) and San Antonio gates. 
 Hence the greater support, in numbers, given to Worth's move- 
 ment as the main attack. 
 
 " These views I repeatedly, in the course of the day, commu- 
 nicated to Major-General Quitman ; but being in hot pursuit — 
 gallant himself, and ably supported by Brigadier-Generals Shields 
 and Smith, Shields badly wounded before Chapultepec, and 
 refusing to retire, as well as by all the officers and men of the col- 
 umn — Quitman continued to press forward, under flank and direct 
 fires, carried an intermediate battery of two guns, and then the 
 gate, before two o'clock in the afternoon, but not without propor- 
 tionate loss, increased by his steady maintenance of that position. 
 
 " Here, of the heavy battery (4th artillery), Captain Drum and 
 Lieutenant 'Benjamin were mortally wounded, and Lieutenant 
 Porter, its third in rank, slightly. The loss of those two most 
 distinguished officers the army will long mourn. Lieutenants J. 
 B. Morange and William Canty, of the South Carolina volunteers, 
 also of high merit, fell on the same occasion, besides many of 
 our bravest non-commissioned officers and men, particularly in 
 Captain Drum's veteran company. I cannot, in this place, give 
 07 
 
436 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 names or numbers ; but full returns of the killed and wounded 
 of all corps, in their recent operations, will accompany this report. 
 
 " Quitman within the city — adding several new defences to 
 the position he had won, and sheltering his corps as well as prac- 
 ticable — now awaited the return of daylight under the guns of the 
 formidable citadel, yet to be subdued. 
 
 " About four o'clock next morning (Sept, 14), a deputation of 
 the Ayuntamiento (city council) waited upon me to report that 
 the federal government and the army of Mexico had fled from 
 the capital some three hours before ; and to demand terms of 
 capitulation in favour of the church, the citizens, and the muni- 
 cipal authorities. I promptly replied, that I would sign no capi- 
 tulation ; that the city had been virtually in our possession from 
 the time of the lodgments effected by Worth and Quitman the 
 day before ; that I regretted the silent escape of the Mexican army; 
 that I should levy upon the city a moderate contribution, for 
 special purposes ; and that the American army should come under 
 no terms not self-imposed : such only as its own honour, the dig- 
 nity of the United States, and the spirit of the age, should, in my 
 opinion, imperiously demand and impose. 
 
 " For the terms so imposed, I refer the department to subse- 
 quent General Orders, Nos. 287 and 289 (paragraphs 7, 8, and 9 
 of the latter), copies of which are herewith enclosed. 
 
 " At the termination of the interview with the city deputation, 
 I communicated, about daylight, orders to Worth and Quitman 
 to advance slowly and cautiously (to guard against treachery) 
 towards the heart of the city, and to occupy its stronger and more 
 commanding points. Quitman proceeded to the great plaza or 
 square, planted guards, and hoisted the colours of the United 
 States on the National Palace, containing the halls of Congress 
 and executive departments of federal Mexico. In this grateful 
 service, Quitman might have been anticipated by Worth, but for 
 my express orders, halting the latter at the head of the Alameda 
 
scott's despatch. 437 
 
 (a green park), within three squares of that goal of general ambi- 
 tion. The capital, however, was not taken by any one or two- 
 corps, but by the talent, the science, the gallantry, the prowess 
 of this entire army. In the glorious conquest, all had contributed 
 early and powerfully, the killed, the wounded, and the fit for duty, 
 at Vera Cruz, Cerro Gordo, Contreras, San Antonio, Churubusco 
 (three battles), the Molino del Rey, and Chapultepec, as much as 
 those who fought at the gates of Belen and San Cosme. 
 
 " Soon after we had entered, and were in the act of occupying 
 the city, a fire was opened upon us from the flat roofs of the 
 houses, from windows and corners of streets, by some two thou- 
 sand convicts, liberated the night before by the flying government, 
 joined by, perhaps, as many Mexican soldiers, who had disbanded 
 themselves, and thrown off their uniforms. This unlawful war 
 lasted more than twenty-four hours, in spite of the exertions of the 
 municipal authorities, and was not put down till we had lost 
 many men, including several officers, killed or wounded, and had 
 pimished the miscreants. Their objects were to gratify national 
 hatred, and, in the general alarm and confusion, to plunder the 
 wealthy inhabitants, particularly the deserted houses. But fami- 
 lies are now generally returning ; business of every kind has been 
 resumed, and the city is already tranquil and cheerful, under the 
 admirable conduct (with exceptions very few and trifling) of our 
 gallant troops. 
 
 '< This array has been more disgusted than surprised, that by 
 some sinister process on the part of certain individuals at home, 
 its numbers have been, generally, almost trebled in our public 
 papers, beginning at Washington. 
 
 " Leaving, as we all feared, inadequate garrisons at Vera Cruz, 
 Perote, and Puebla, with much larger hospitals ; and being 
 obliged, most reluctantly, from the same cause (general paucity 
 of numbers) to abandon Jalapa, we marched (August?— 10) from 
 Puebla with only 10,738 rank and file. This number includes 
 
438 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 the garrison of Jalapa, and the 2,429 men brought up by Briga- 
 dier-General Pierce, August 6. 
 
 "At Contreras, Churubusco, &c. (August 20), we had but 
 8,497 men engaged — after deducting the garrison of San Augus- 
 tin (our general depot), the intermediate sick and the dead ; at 
 the Molino del Rey (September 8) but three brigades, with some 
 cavalry and artillery — making in all 3,251 men — were in the 
 battle ; in the two days — September 12th and 13th — our whole 
 operating force, after deducting, again, the recent killed, wounded, 
 and sick, together with the garrison of Mixcoac (the then general 
 depot), and that of Tacubaya, was but 7,180 ; and, finally, after 
 deducting the new garrison of Chapultepec, with the killed and 
 wounded of the two days, we took possession (September 14th) 
 of this great capital with less than six thousand men. And I 
 reassert, upon accumulated and unquestionable evidence, that, in 
 not one of those conflicts was this army opposed by fewer than 
 three-and-a-half times its numbers — in several of them, by a yet 
 greater excess. 
 
 "I recapitulate our losses since we arrived in the basin of 
 Mexico : — 
 
 " August 19, 20. — Killed, 137, including 14 officers. Wounded, 
 877, including 62 officers. Missing (probably killed), 38 rank 
 and file. Total, 1,052. 
 
 " September 8. — Killed, 116, including 9 officers. Wounded, 
 665, including 49 officers. Missing, 18 rank and file. Total, 789. 
 
 " September 12, 13, 14. — Killed, 130, including 10 officers. 
 Wounded, 703, including 68 officers. Missing, 29 rank and file. 
 Total, 862. 
 
 '< Grand total of losses, 2,703, including 383 officers. 
 
 « On the other hand, this small force has beaten on the same 
 occasions in view of their capital, the whole Mexican army, of 
 (at the beginning) thirty-odd thousand men — posted, always, in 
 chosen positions, behind intrenchments, or more formidable 
 
SCOTT'S DESPATCH. 439 
 
 defences of nature and art ; killed or wounded, of that number, 
 more than seven thousand officers and men; taken 3,730 prisoners, 
 one-seventh officers, including thirteen generals, of whom three 
 had been presidents of this republic ; captured more than twenty 
 colours and standards, seventy-five pieces of ordnance, besides 
 fifty-seven wall-pieces, twenty thousand small-arms, an immense 
 quantity of shots, shells, powder, &c. &c. 
 
 " Of that enemy, once so formidable in numbers, appointments, 
 artillery, &c., twenty-odd thousand have disbanded themselves in 
 despair, leaving, as is known, not more than three fragments — 
 the largest about 2,500 — now wandering in different directions, 
 without magazines or a military chest, and living at free quarters 
 upon their own people. 
 
 " General Santa Anna, himself a fugitive, is believed to be on 
 the point of resigning the chief-magistracy, and escaping to neu- 
 tral Guatemala. A new President, no doubt, will soon be de- 
 clared, and the federal Congress is expected to reassemble at 
 Queretaro, a hundred and twenty-five miles north of this, on the 
 Zacatecas road, some time in October. I have seen and given 
 safe-conduct through this city, to several of its members. The 
 government will find itself without resources ; no army, no arse- 
 nals, no magazines, and but little revenue, internal or external. 
 Still, such is the obstinacy, or rather infatuation, of this people, 
 that it is very doubtful whether the new authorities will dare to 
 sue for peace on the terms which, in the recent negotiations, were 
 made known by our minister. 
 
 ******* 
 
 " In conclusion, I beg to enumerate, once more, with due com- 
 mendation and thanks, the distinguished staff officers, general and 
 personal, who, in our last operations in front of the enemy, accom- 
 panied me, and communicated orders to every point and through 
 every danger. Lieutenant-Colonel Hitchcock, acting Inspector- 
 General ; Major Turnbull and Lieutenant Hardcastle, topographi- 
 
440 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 cal engineers ; Major Kirby, chief paymaster ; Captain Irwin, chief 
 quartermaster ; Captain Grayson, chief commissary ; Captain H. 
 L. Scott, chief in the Adjutant's-General's department ; Lieuten- 
 ant Williams, aid-de-camp ; Lieutenant Lay, military secretary ; 
 and Major J. P. Gaines, Kentucky cavalry, volunteer aid-de-camp ; 
 Captain Lee, engineer, so constantly distinguished, also bore im- 
 portant orders from me (September 13), until he fainted from a 
 wound and the loss of two nights' sleep at the batteries. Lieuten- 
 ants Beauregard, Stevens, and Tower, all wounded, were employed 
 with the divisions, and Lieutenants G. W. Smith and G. B. McClel- 
 lan, with the company of sappers and miners. Those five lieuten- 
 ants of engineers, like their captain, won the admiration of all 
 about them. The ordnance officers. Captain Huger, Lieutenants 
 Hagner, Stone, and Reno, were highly effective, and distinguished 
 at the several batteries ; and I must add that Captain McKinstry, 
 assistant quartermaster, at the close of the operations, executed 
 several important commissions for me as a special volunteer. 
 
 <' Surgeon-General Lawson, and the medical staff generally, 
 were skilful and untiring, in and out of fire, in ministering to 
 the numerous wounded. 
 
 " To illustrate the operations in this basin, I enclose two beau- 
 tiful drawings, prepared under the directions of Major Turnbull, 
 mostly from actual survey. 
 ^"I have the honour to be, sir, with high respect, your most 
 
 obedient servant, 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 The Hon. Wm. L. Marcy, Secretary of War." 
 
 Thus ended a campaign, perhaps the most wonderful in mo- 
 dern military annals. A mere handful of enthusiastic men, under 
 the guidance of skilful and brave officers, had dared to penetrate 
 into the heart of an enemy's country, and occupy his capital, in 
 defiance of the great natural and artificial obstacles that impeded 
 their way, and the immense superiority of hostile numbers by 
 which those obstacles were strengthened and defended. Useless 
 
POSSESSION TAKEN OF THE CITY. 441 
 
 defence ! The descendants of the heroic Cortez, though proud, 
 obstinate, and vainglorious, enervated by a luxurious climate, had 
 neither the physical strength nor mental firmness which might have 
 enabled them to successfully measure swords with those whom 
 they contemptuously designated as "the barbarians of the North." 
 
 In the short space of eighteen months, the armies of the United 
 States had penetrated various parts of the Mexican Republic from 
 the Atlantic Gulf to the Pacific Ocean; and neither castles, hitherto 
 called impregnable, nor rugged fortified passes, nor walled cities, 
 though defended by immense quantities of artillery, nor the bris- 
 tling bayonets of innumerable infantry, nor the flickering lance- 
 points of a cavalry admirably equipped and thoroughly versed in 
 the use of their particular arm, could offer more than a temporary 
 resistance to men whose fixed determination was never to yield, 
 but with life, one single foot of ground over which they had already 
 advanced, and never to turn aside from their march upon any 
 point towards which their efforts had been directed. 
 
 Nor is the glory of these achievements lessened when we reflect 
 that the brilliant victories in Mexico were not gained by regularly 
 disciplined soldiers, but by men who a few months before were 
 quietly engaged in the various avocations which distinguish the 
 busineffes of civil life, and by men in all grades of society. The 
 sons of the greatest statesmen of the republic and those of the 
 humblest tillers of the soil strode side by side into the thickest of 
 the combat, and each rivalled the other in the exhibition of cou- 
 rage and conduct. Each man fought as if the eye of his country 
 was upon him, and the victories that ensued, apart from the plans 
 of the general in command, were the result of individual heroism 
 in the aggregate, rather than of collective bravery. 
 
 The battles of Palo Alto and the Palm Ravine were fought by 
 regulars only ; and perhaps a nice analysis would find that, from 
 these initial successes by the organized troops of the republic, 
 arose subsequently that tremendous enthusiasm by which the vol- 
 unteers, emulating the renown of their better disciplined compa- 
 
442 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 nions-in-arms,more than rivalled them in acts of individual daring, 
 and stood coequal with them in the splendour of their successes. 
 
 How seemingly inadequate the force was by which these great 
 results were obtained, will be best shown by the following state- 
 ment : — 
 
 August 19th and 20th, before Contreras and Churubusco, 8497 
 September 8th, Molino del Rey, 3251 
 
 September 13th and 14th, Chapultepec and the Garitas, 7180 
 And the city of Mexico was finally entered, after deducting the 
 garrison of Chapultepec and the killed and wounded, by less than 
 6000 men. 
 
 The intermediate losses in killed, wounded, and missing, were 
 as follows : — 
 
 Killed. 
 
 Wounded. 
 
 Missing, 
 
 Contreras and Churubusco, 137 
 
 877 
 
 38 
 
 Molino del Rey, 116 
 
 665 
 
 18 
 
 Chapultepec, the Garitas, and within 
 
 
 
 the city, 130 
 
 703 
 
 29 
 
 383 2245 85 
 
 Of the number of killed, 33 were officers and 350 rank and file. 
 The Mexican losses in these engagements, were 
 
 Killed and wounded, 7000 « 
 
 Prisoners, 3730 
 
 or 10730, 
 equal to the whole number of the American troops that marched 
 from Puebla upon the capital. The trophies consisted of more 
 than 20 colours and standards, 75 pieces of ordnance, 57 wall- 
 pieces, and 20,000 stand of arms. 
 
 After the capture of the capital, the disorganization of the 
 Mexican army was so complete, that out of an array of 20,000 
 men, but three fragments remained, the largest of which did nftt 
 contain more than 2500 men.* 
 
 * Scott's Official Despatch, September 18, 1847. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 Isolated condition of the American Army — Guerrilla Warfare — Attack on Mcin- 
 tosh's Train — Reinforced by Cadwalader — Skirmish at the National Bridge — 
 Arrival at Jalapa — Battle of La Hoya — Gallantry of Captain Walker — Cadwa- 
 lader's Report — Pillow's Reinforcement — General Pierce's — Attack on Lally's 
 Train — Skirmish at Paso de Ovejas — At the National Bridge — At Cerro Gordo 
 — At Las Animas — Arrival at Jalapa — American Loss. 
 
 From the time the army of the United States left Puebla, on 
 the 7th of August, to the 14th of September, when it entered the 
 city of Mexico, Scott did not receive a single reinforcement, and 
 for the most part of that period his communication with the coast 
 was completely cut off by the activity of the guerrilleros, who had 
 thrown themselves between the inadequate garrisons established 
 along the line. 
 
 These garrisons were themselves frequently threatened, and it 
 required the most incessant vigilance on the part of the com- 
 manders both at Perote and Puebla, to avert the designs of the 
 enemy, Puebla was indeed eventually besieged, and its weak 
 but heroic garrison maintained a noble defence until it was re- 
 lieved by reinforcements under General Lane. 
 
 But it was upon the trains, which containing, besides the usual 
 army supplies, large amounts of specie for the use of the disburs- 
 ing officers, that the attacks of the guerrilleros were most frequently 
 made. The long stretch of wagons and mules of which these 
 trains were composed, and the utterly inadequate force by which 
 they were usually guarded, offered irresistible temptations to 
 roving bands of the enemy, whose knowledge of the country 
 58 443 
 
444 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 enabled them to appear suddenly at any designated point, and to 
 disappear with equal rapidity, if the chances of success promised 
 to be unfavourable. The distance between Vera Cruz and Perote 
 is so great, and the points of attack so many, that, notwithstand- 
 ing the exertions of a company of Mounted Rifles, under the 
 celebrated Captain Samuel H. Walker, which for a time kept the 
 route tolerably clear, there was scarcely a train that ventured up 
 to Perote which did not meet with interruption by the way. 
 
 Had there been at this time a subsidiary force sufficient to have 
 maintained posts, such as were subsequently established at the 
 National Bridge, Plan del Rio, and the city of Jalapa, much of 
 the annoyance and loss incident to a line of route continually 
 blocked up and reopened might have been avoided. 
 
 On the 4th of June, 1847, a train of wagons left Vera Cruz, 
 under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel J. S. Mcintosh. This 
 brave and gallant officer had already gloriously distinguished him- 
 self at the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, where he 
 fell pierced with wounds, from which he had not fully recovered 
 when he sought to rejoin his regiment at Puebla. 
 
 Subsequently, after enduring the perils of the march and dis- 
 tinguishing himself at the battle of Churubusco, he was again 
 seriously wounded while leading the brigade of Clarke to the 
 terrible assault of Molino del Rey, of which wound, aggravated 
 by those previously received, he shortly afterwards died. 
 
 The train of which he assumed the command, was in every 
 respect inefficient. The drivers were bad, the teams unbroken, 
 and the troops, new volunteers from the northern states of the 
 Union, exceedingly debilitated by the heat and unhealthiness of 
 the climate. 
 
 The train consisted of one hundred and twenty-eight wagons, 
 loaded with specie and ammunition, and its conducting force 
 amounted in all to six hundred and eighty-eight men, of whom 
 
ATTACK ON M INTOSH S TRAIN. 445 
 
 six hundred and six were reported on the 7th of June as fit for 
 duty. 
 
 By the evening of the second day, owing to accidents which 
 had befallen them, four wagons were abandoned. On the morn- 
 ing of the 6th the troops broke up their camp on the San Juan, and 
 after proceeding a few miles, were attacked for the first time by 
 the guerrilleros, while ascending a hill. The hills in the distance 
 being also seen covered with the enemy, the wagons were parked, 
 and, after a short contest, the assailants were dislodged with some 
 loss. The march was then resumed, but the train had not pro- 
 ceeded more than a mile when the firing, which was previously in 
 front, now opened in rear. As soon as the enemy was beaten 
 off, the march w^as again resumed. Half a mile further on he 
 made another and more desperate attack, but was eventually dis- 
 persed by a vigorous charge, and his force driven back into the 
 recesses of the forest. It being now dark, and the firing having 
 ceased, the train was halted at this point, and the troops rested 
 upon their arms all night. 
 
 The next day, on the route to Paso de Ovejas, the train was 
 again harassed, when finding himself scantily supplied with pro- 
 visions and forage, and learning that more serious attacks were to 
 be apprehended at the National Bridge and the passes beyond. 
 Colonel Mcintosh determined to send back his mules to Vera 
 Cruz for a supply of provisions, and at the same time despatched 
 a communication to General Cadwalader, then at that place, re- 
 questing an additional force. In the mean time he encamped at 
 Paso de Ovejas, with the loss of twenty-four wagons, and of 
 twenty-five men killed and wounded. 
 
 On the 11th, General Cadwalader joined him wdth a reinforce- 
 ment of five hundred men, and assumed command of the whole. 
 
 On the afternoon of the 12th the march was continued, and late 
 in the day the column reached the National Bridge. 
 
 Here the enemy was discovered strongly posted in occupation 
 
446 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 of the fort to the left of the road, and beyond the bridge upon the 
 heights to the right. The bridge was barricaded, and the posi- 
 tions of the enemy were such that it could only be crossed under 
 a raking fire. 
 
 A simultaneous attack upon the fort and barricade was accord- 
 ingly ordered, and as soon as the howitzers, under Lieutenant 
 Prince, had breached the barricade, one company of cavalry and 
 two of infantry dashed forward amid a plunging storm of mus- 
 ketry, and succeeded in crossing the bridge. No sooner was this 
 accomplished than Pittman's company of the 9th infantry, sup- 
 ported by a detachment from other companies, led by Brevet 
 Captain Hooker, rapidly ascended the heights beyond, and after 
 a sharp skirmish drove the enemy from his position and held it. 
 
 In this affair the loss of Cadwalader was thirty-two, killed and 
 wounded. 
 
 No further interruption of consequence occurred until after leav- 
 ing the city of Jalapa. From this place the column, being joined 
 by the garrison under Colonel Childs, continued its march on the 
 18th, and on the 20th approached the pass of La Hoya, where the 
 enemy was known to be already posted in considerable numbers. 
 
 The necessary dispositions were accordingly made to repel his 
 attack ; but, on nearing the pass, he was found to have been already 
 successfully assailed from the opposite end by Walker's Rifles, 
 supported by five companies of the Pennsylvania regiment, under 
 the command of Colonel Wynkoop, who, being aware of the ap- 
 proach of the train, and of the force by which it was threatened, 
 had marched out from Perote to meet it. 
 
 In the battle of La Hoya, great credit is due to Colonel Wyn- 
 koop for his promptitude in marching from Perote to assist in 
 disengaging the column of Cadwalader from the apprehended 
 difficulties of the pass ; but the honour of dispersing the guerril- 
 leros assembled at that point belongs almost exclusively to the 
 heroic Walker. 
 
GALLANTRY OF CAPTAIN WALKER. 447 
 
 The detail from the 1st Pennsylvania regiment reached the 
 pass before midnight of the 19th, when, finding the enemy in force, 
 Wynkoop refrained from making an attack until Walker's Rifles 
 should come up. These had been detained in an examination 
 of the village of Las Vegas, and did not arrive at the pass until 
 three o'clock on the morning of the 20th. As soon as they moved 
 to the front, they were ordered to advance and dislodge the 
 enemy. This, during the darkness, was more properly the duty 
 of infantry ; but observing by the light of his picket-fires that 
 a considerable number of the enemy were thrown across the front 
 of the pass. Walker gave the order to charge, and galloping im- 
 petuously through the midst of a random and harmless fire, drove 
 the . guerrilleros to their fastnesses among the hills. The pursuit 
 was urged with the most daring impetuosity, but was suddenly 
 arrested by the advance encountering a fence at a turn of the road, 
 over which W^alker and seven of the foremost were precipitated, 
 with the loss of their horses. 
 
 Finding it impossible to render further service against an un- 
 seen enemy, and ignorant of what obstacles might yet remain to 
 be overcome. Walker withdrew his men and rested them on their 
 arms until daylight. 
 
 The next morning, Colonel Wynkoop, finding the guerrilleros 
 occupying the heights in great numbers, and fearful of being him- 
 self surrounded, determined to fall back upon Perote. This ill- 
 timed resolution, the result of an excessive prudence rather than 
 of any lack of courage, might have been productive of the most 
 unfortunate consequences to the column of Cadwalader, had not 
 Walker, stung to the quick with the dishonour of a retrograde 
 movement, separated his command from that of the infantry, and 
 galloping back in the direction of La Hoya, commenced the 
 action with the Mounted Rifles alone. 
 
 About two miles from the pass, some fifty of the enemy being 
 discovered, Walker threw out his skirmishers on foot, with orders 
 
448 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 to bring on the engagement, and immediately afterwards dis- 
 mounting the rest of his command, he posted them under cover 
 of a low stone fence. In a few minutes the skirmishers were driven 
 in by overwhelming numbers, and the action commenced. 
 
 After a sharp and well contested firing, which lasted half an 
 hour, the enemy fell back, with the loss of forty killed and 
 wounded. The Rifles now sprung to their horses and charged. 
 
 In the mean time, Cadwalader's artillery had been heard to 
 open at the other end of the pass. Wynkoop's detachment re- 
 turned at this juncture to the support of Walker, and the guerril- 
 leros, finding themselves pressed on all sides, fled precipitately. 
 Shortly afterwards the train was brought through without loss. In 
 this brilliant affair the command of Walker consisted of only fifty- 
 one men, while the enemy had three hundred men actually en- 
 gaged, and a like number hovering in view. 
 
 The following report, by General Cadwalader, presents a con- 
 nected view of the incidents of the march after he came to the 
 relief of the train : — 
 
 " Head- Quarters, First Brigade, Third Division, ) 
 Puebla, Mexico, July 12, 1847. j 
 
 " Sir : In reply to your letter dated the 11th instant, requesting 
 to be furnished with a report of the incidents which occurred on 
 my march from Vera Cruz to this place, including combats with 
 the enemy, I respectfully submit the following for the information 
 of the General-in-chief. 
 
 " On the 7th of June, whilst awaiting at Vera Cruz the arrival 
 of a portion of the troops of my brigade, I received a letter by 
 express from Colonel Mcintosh, dated the 6th June, eleven P. M., 
 at Paso de Ovejas, stating that he had been ' constantly attacked 
 since ten A. M., to-day, and that the immense train under the 
 escort of my (his) troops is so extensive, that it is impossible 
 without a considerable additional force to guard it and proceed.' 
 A copy of the letter is herewith enclosed. 
 
BRIG. GEN. GEORGE CADWALADE 
 
cadwalader's report. 44& 
 
 "Immediately orders were communicated for so many of the 
 troops as could be provided with transportation, to be put in 
 marching order ; and early on the morning of the 8th, one com- 
 pany of the 3d dragoons, one section of the howitzer battery from 
 the regiment of voltigeurs, and a detachment of infantry, in all 
 about five hundred, were en route to reinforce the column await- 
 ing support. 
 
 " On coming up with Colonel Mcintosh, which was on the lOth 
 of June, it was found that we would be unable to proceed withoui 
 delay, in consequence of the crippled condition of his train, while, 
 at the same time, the scarcity of forage and the limited supply of 
 provisions for the troops to Jalapa, rendered it necessary for me 
 to direct that every effort should be made to put the train in 
 marching condition, and for the troops to be in readiness to leave 
 at the earliest practicable moment. 
 
 " On the following afternoon the column resumed its march 
 Before leaving Paso de Ovejas, we had reason to believe that the 
 enemy, in considerable numbers, were occupying the command- 
 ing positions in our front, at the National Bridge, and were pre- 
 pared to resist us at that point. 
 
 " On approaching the bridge, they were found to be in posses- 
 sion of the fort on the left of the road, from which they could 
 deliver their fire with effect upon the train at several points, from 
 the circuitous course of the road in its descent to the bridge 
 before reaching the foot of the ravine. The enemy were also in 
 possession of the heights on the opposite side of the bridge, from 
 which point they would have a raking fire upon o.ir columns 
 during the passage of the river. These heights I found it imprac- 
 ticable to reach, except by crossing the bridge. 
 
 " The bridge itself was barricaded. Under these circumstances 
 it appeared to be necessary to detach a sufficient infantry force to 
 drive the enemy from the fort overhanging the road, before reach- 
 ing the bridge ; and, simultaneous with that movement, to order 
 
450 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 forward the howitzers to breach the barricade, and a company of 
 cavalry and two of infantry to force the bridge as soon as a pass- 
 age was prepared for them. Lieutenant and Adjutant Henry 
 Prince, of the 4th infantry, who had been assigned to command 
 the howitzers, rendered me highly valuable service at this critical 
 moment. He advanced with the battery, and succeeded in 
 breaching the barricades, and preparing the way for our troops to 
 charge, which was made under a heavy fire from the enemy. 
 The heights upon the right, after crossing the bridge, were carried 
 by Captain Pitman's company of the 9th infantry, and a small 
 detachment from other companies, under a fire from the enemy, 
 handsomely led by Brevet Captain Hooker, the chief of my staff. 
 Having thus gained possession of the points on which it was 
 necessary for us to encamp, both on account of water and the 
 security of the train, the latter was ordered forward and parked 
 for the night, I have to regret the loss of thirty-two oflacers and 
 men, killed and wounded, belonging to the service, with others 
 employed with the train whose names are not known. We have 
 reason to believe that the enemy suffered severely, although no 
 positive information has been communicated to me with regard to 
 their loss, or the numbers engaged. In consequence of our delay 
 in marching from Paso de Ovejas, we were compelled to accom- 
 plish a part of our work under cover of the night, and to this I 
 mainly attribute the limited loss we sustained. Had those posi- 
 tions been forced by daylight, the list of killed and wounded 
 would have been, unquestionably, greatly augmented. 
 
 " On the 13th, after sending back the wounded with a suitable 
 escort, we proceeded to Plan del Rio, with no other interruption 
 or annoyance than an occasional discharge of escopets at small 
 portions of our troops and train. The discharges usually pro- 
 ceeded from behind dense thickets, almost impracticable for our 
 flankers to penetrate, and not unfrequently resulted in the loss of 
 men, horses, and mules. 
 
cadwalader's report. 451 
 
 " We passet'. Cerro Gordo the 14th, having previously taken 
 possession of the commanding positions, and on the 15th reached 
 Jalapa, where we w^ere joined by the brigade under Colonel 
 Childs. Before leaving that city on the 18th, information reached 
 us that the enemy w^ere in force at La Hoya, prepared to resist 
 our advance in so strong a position, and we encamped at the vil- 
 lage before entering the pass on the 19th. On approaching it on 
 the 20th, at an early hour, our advance found it occupied with a 
 considerable force, apparently determined to dispute the passage 
 of the train. Four companies, under Captain Winder, of the 1st 
 artillery, were sent in advance, wdth written instructions to occupy 
 the successive heights in the pass. On gaining the mountain on 
 the left with two companies, he reported the enemy to be also in 
 force upon the intermediate height that he had already gained, 
 from which only the other height, which commanded the road, 
 could be approached. Major Dimick, with two companies, was 
 sent to reinforce him. The approach of this detachment upon the 
 rear of the enemy was unexpected, and they w^ere driven precipi- 
 tately from the mountains across the road. Captain Winder suc- 
 ceeded in killing four, and taking three prisoners, and three 
 prisoners were taken by Major Dimick. The enemy falling in 
 with a portion of the first regiment Pennsylvania volunteers, and 
 Captain Walker's company of mounted riflemen, under the com- 
 mand of Colonel Wynkoop, a brisk fire was opened by both par- 
 ties. The advance of the Second Brigade, under Colonel Childs, 
 drove the enemy in confusion for more than two miles, they leav- 
 ing seven or eight dead upon the field, several who were w^ounded 
 having made their escape, the enemy admitting a loss of over 
 thirty men. The force of the enemy seen by us, was estimated 
 at about seven hundred, although it was said to have been much 
 greater. The command encamped that night at Rio Frio, and on 
 the 21st reached Perote, at twelve o'clock, M. 
 
 " I refer you to the report of Colonel Thomas Childs, in com- 
 59 
 
452 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 mand of the Second Brigade of the division under my command, 
 herewith enclosed, from whom I received valuable assistance 
 from the time he joined me. 
 
 " The miserable mustang ponies, by which our train was drawn, 
 rendered it difficult, over a mountainous country, to keep the 
 train closed up, and to afford proper protection to it in the face of 
 an enemy, without attention to the management of the train by 
 the proper officers, and the assistance of persons of experience 
 and industry. 
 
 " At Perote, it became necessary to purchase a number of 
 mules for the train, and on the 23d June, as I was about to march 
 for Puebla, I received an order from Major-General Pillow, by 
 express from Vera Cruz, directing me not to proceed beyond 
 Perote until his arrival at that place. 
 
 " On the 1st July, General Pillow arrived at Perote, and 
 assumed the command previously to our march to this place. 
 Enclosed you will find a return of the killed and wounded during 
 the march from Paso de Ovejas to Perote. 
 
 " I have the honour to be, very respectfully, your obedient 
 
 servant, 
 
 GEO. CADWALADER, 
 
 Brigadier- General U. S. Army^ commanding. 
 
 Captain H. L. Scott, 
 
 AcVg AssH Adjutant-General^ head-quarters of the army.'^ 
 
 On the 17th of June, General Pillow left Vera Cruz for Puebla, 
 with a reinforcement of one thousand men, and arrived safely at 
 the head-quarters of the army, with scarcely the loss of a single 
 man. 
 
 General Pierce, who left Vera Cruz in July, to join General 
 Scott, with twenty-five hundred men, one hundred and fifty 
 wagons, seven hundred mules, and a million of dollars in specie, 
 w'as less fortunate. When he had reached the National Bridge, 
 with his command, he was attacked by fourteen hundred Mexi- 
 
lally's march. 453 
 
 cans, when a spirited engagement took place, in which the Mexi- 
 cans were defeated with a loss of one hundred and fifty men. The 
 American loss in killed and wounded was thirty. General Pierce 
 found it necessary, after this, to return to Vera Cruz for artillery 
 and reinforcements. With these advantages he marched forward, 
 and reached Puebla the day before General Scott marched on the 
 capital. 
 
 But a train of wagons, guarded by a force of one thousand vol- 
 unteers, which started from Vera Cruz on the 6th of August, under 
 the command of Major Lally, met with serious and continual 
 interruptions. 
 
 Under the impression that this train conveyed a large amount 
 of specie, the guerrilleros assembled from all quarters, in numbers 
 varying, at different points along the line of route, from twelve 
 hundred to two thousand men. 
 
 The first attack, made on the 10th of August, at Paso de Ovejas, 
 was repulsed by Lally, after a severe skirmish which lasted an 
 hour and a half. The American loss was eleven men killed and 
 wounded. 
 
 On the 12th, a second and far more serious attempt upon the 
 train was made by the enemy at the National Bridge. The bridge 
 itself was found to be barricaded, and the hills in front and on the 
 right of the town, and the castle on the left, w^ere all occupied by 
 large numbers of guerrilleros. 
 
 By the exertions of the Artillery, under Lieutenant Sears, those 
 positions were eventually forced and the guerrilleros compelled to 
 retire. The contest at this point had been unusually obstinate 
 and protracted ; and the American loss was correspondingly 
 severe, the number of killed and wounded amounting to fifty-one, 
 of whom thirteen were killed and seven wounded mortally. 
 
 On the 15th, leaving his train behind him at Plan del Rio, Lally 
 determined to force the passes of Cerro Gordo with the main body 
 of his command, before advancing his wagons. This was sue- 
 
454 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 cessfully accomplished on the 16th, by a dashing assault upon 
 the batteries enfilading the road. The storming-party, consisting 
 of a detail of one hundred and thirty men from various compa- 
 nies, was led with great gallantry by Lieutenant Ridgely, of the 
 4th infantry, the enemy being rapidly driven from all his defen- 
 sive positions, and two guns and a large amount of ammunition 
 captured. Lally's loss at this point was two killed and eleven 
 wounded. 
 
 On the 19th, at Las Animas, within a mile and a half of Jalap a, 
 tlie enemy made a final attempt upon the train ; but after receiv- 
 ing a few rounds of canister, he was effectually dispersed by a 
 charge of infantry, and the train entered Jalapa a short time after- 
 wards, having sustained a loss, including the skirmishes already 
 mentioned, and desultory attacks along the line of route, amount- 
 ing in killed, wounded, and missing, to one hundred and five 
 men. 
 
 On the 13th, an expedition left Vera Cruz to reinforce Major 
 Lally's command. It was composed of Captain Wells's com- 
 pany of the 15th infantry. Captain Haile's company of the 14th 
 infantry, and Captain Fairchild's company of the Louisiana Ran- 
 gers, all under command of Captain Wells. They proceeded as 
 far as the National Bridge, where they expected to overtake Major 
 Lally's command, but he had proceeded on and carried his train 
 in safety beyond Jalapa. The guerrilleros occupied the heights 
 about the bridge, and opened a heavy fire upon the command of 
 Captain Wells as it came up, killing nearly all the mules, and 
 forcing the whole party to retire. The enemy captured all the 
 wagons save one, the baggage of the officers, and the knapsacks 
 of the men. Before the final affair at the bridge, Captain Wells 
 liad five successive engagements with the enemy. The repulse 
 of his command was owing to the advantage of artillery, pos- 
 sessed by the Mexicans, from which they fired grape with good 
 effect. 
 
SKIRMISH AT THE PASO DE OVEJAS. 455 
 
 To restrain the depredations of the guerrilleros, it was deemed 
 advisable to obtain possession of the National Bridge. Colonel 
 Hughes was despatched for that purpose with two pieces of artil- 
 lery, and some companies of infantry. He succeeded readily in 
 dislodging the enemy, and by his promptitude held them in 
 check in that vicinity. Soon after his occupation of the place, his 
 command was strengthened by some recruits for the 2d infantry, 
 which were brought up by Captain Heintzelman. The captain 
 left Vera Cruz on the 11th of September with a battalion of six 
 companies, and a train of wagons with provisions and money for 
 the army. On reaching the Paso de Ovejas, about nightfall, he 
 anticipated an attack from the enemy, and placed sentinels around 
 his camp, and posted a picket of forty men upon the heights to 
 prevent any sudden surprise. 
 
 During the night the enemy made a descent upon them, drove 
 in the party posted upon the heights, and poured a destructive fire 
 into the camp which disconcerted the raw troops. Captain Hays, 
 who had seen considerable service, perceived the danger of leav- 
 ing the enemy in possession of the heights, and advanced to dis- 
 lodge them from their position. He took with him about two 
 hundred men, and after a sharp conflict, in which many of the 
 enemy fell, succeeded in repelling them and regaining the lost 
 position. Checked by the loss which they met, the enemy fell back 
 and did not again attempt to molest the picket, which was now 
 reinforced to the number of a hundred. This was the first con- 
 flict in which the battalion w^as engaged, and the result in killed 
 and wounded evinced their bravery under a first fire, while it 
 afforded an opportunity to its newly-appointed surgeon, Dr. R. 
 T. Spence, for the exercise of his skill and humanity. 
 
 In the morning the army proceeded onward, and reached the 
 National Bridge ; from which place it did not move until the 
 25th, when it proceeded on with the army of General Lane, of 
 
456 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Indiana. It had arrived from Vera Cruz on the 23d, and con- 
 sisted of twenty-eight hundred infantry, horse, and artillery. 
 
 In the mean time, Lally, who had reached Jalapa, did not ven- 
 ture out upon the road, but remained at that place until the arri- 
 val of Lane with his command. 
 
 Thus, by active parties of guerrilla bands, the road between 
 Vera Cruz and Puebla was continually infested, and no one could 
 travel without a powerful escort. The most active and daring of 
 the partisan leaders of these bands was Father Jarauta, a priest, 
 who had laid aside the pastoral crook of the ministry of peace for 
 the sword of strife and the sanguinary spear. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 American Army in Mexico — Quitman appointed Governor — Scott's General Orders 
 — A Contribution levied on the Capital — Arrangement of the Troops — Difficulties 
 of General Scott — Approach of Reinforcements — EstabHshment of new Posts 
 along the line — Peace Prospects — Circumstances favourable to Negotiation — 
 Mexican Prisoners — Correspondence between the Archbishop of Mexico and 
 General Scott— Arrival of Reinforcements — Assessment of the Mexican States — 
 Contemplated Operations— Condition of General Santa Anna — Increase of the 
 Peace Party — Election of Herrera — Negotiations — Recall of Scott. 
 
 The American army having at length obtained undisputed 
 possession of the city of Mexico, General Scott established his 
 head-quarters at the National Palace. 
 
 His first act was to issue an order, dated September 14th, 
 cautioning his troops against excesses of every kind, and urging 
 the importance of the strictest military discipline. By the same 
 order Major-General Quitman was appointed civil and military 
 Governor of the city. 
 
 On September, the 16th, he promulgated a second order, in 
 which he " calls upon his brethren-in-arms to return, both in pub- 
 lic and private worship, thanks and gratitude to God for the signal 
 triumphs" which he had vouchsafed to the American arms. In 
 this order, he reiterates the necessity of the strictest discipline, 
 lest the discomfited enemy, reuniting with the populace, should 
 attempt to make himself once more master of the capital. 
 
 The following day he caused to be republished, with additions, 
 the General Orders of February 19th, 1847, declaring martial law, 
 and imposing a contribution of one hundred and fifty thousand 
 dollars upon the city of Mexico, to be paid by the corporate 
 
 (457) 
 
458 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 authority in four weekly instalments of thirty-seven thousand 
 five-hundred dollars each. 
 
 Of this levy, twenty thousand dollars were appropriated to the 
 purchase of extra comforts for the wounded and sick, ninety 
 thousand dollars to the gratuitous distribution of blankets and shoes 
 among the rank and file, and forty thousand dollars reserved for 
 other military purposes.* 
 
 On the 18th of September the army was ordered to be quartered 
 over the city as early as practicable, in the following manner : — 
 
 " The first division on or near the direct route from the gate 
 of San Cosme, towards the Catliedral, and extending a little beyond 
 the east end of the Alameda. 
 
 " The second division about the Plaza Mayor, extending 
 towards the gate ot San Lazaro, or the Penon. 
 
 " The third division on or near the direct route from the gate 
 of Peravilla, or Guadaloupe, towards the Cathedral. 
 
 " The volunteer division on or near the direct route from the 
 gate of San Antonio, towards the Cathedral." 
 
 On each of those gates a competent guard was ordered to be 
 detailed from the respective divisions, protected by two pieces of 
 artillery. 
 
 From this time, up to the second week in October, General 
 Scott was busily engaged in preparing his despatches, detailing 
 the operations around the capital. This appears to have been — 
 particularly at this time — a task of great labour. Not only were 
 discrepancies to be reconciled, and errors corrected, but the more 
 delicate office of discriminating between rival claims, and award- 
 ing to each gallant soldier his due share of honour, imposed the 
 necessity of much material investigation. These labours resulted, 
 as is generally the case, in the disappointment of many aspirants 
 for military fame. 
 
 As if to imbitter still more this unpleasant state of feeling, the 
 
 * General Orders, 287. 
 
PROSPECTS OF PEACE. 459 
 
 republication of some letters from the United States, professing 
 to give an account of the battles of the 19th and 20th of August, 
 and most unjustly claiming for Major-General Pillow the chief 
 honour of those victories, widened the breach between the Gene- 
 ral-in-chief and some of his nearest subordinates, and led to 
 charges and recriminations as dangerous to the " morale''' of the 
 army, as they were injurious to its efficiency. 
 
 By the middle of October, having learned unofficially that 
 reinforcements ranging in number between four thousand and 
 seven thousand men, were on their route from Vera Cruz towards 
 the capital, General Scott issued a circular to the commanders 
 of })osts along the line, directing three military posts to be estab- 
 lished between Vera Cruz and Jalapa, the regarrisoning of the 
 latter city with twelve hundred men, and the garrison at Puebla 
 to be strongly reinforced. The line of communication was still 
 further- strengthened by the establishment of a new post at the 
 pass of Rio Frio, about midway between Puebla and the city of 
 Mexico. 
 
 Nothing now remained to be done until the arrival of additional 
 troops at the capital. In the meantime, the duties of the military 
 and civil government of the city were ably fulfilled by Major- 
 General Quitman. 
 
 The most perfect order was rigorously maintained, and a quiet 
 courtesy and decorum strictly enforced towards the citizens 
 generally. By this generous course of conduct, the wealthy were 
 induced to return to the homes they had timidly abandoned, and 
 the customary pleasures and avocations of a luxurious city were 
 resumed, with a spirit and confidence which the presence of the 
 American flag floating from the walls of the national palace 
 seemed rather to heighten than subdue. 
 
 The prospects of peace, however, were still clouded. Some 
 faint hopes, indeed, were entertained from the Congress about to 
 assemble at Queretaro, but the elements of discord among the 
 60 
 
460 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 rival candidates for power were as yet too much disturbed to 
 allow of any calculation as to what would be the result of the 
 session. 
 
 The recall of Mr. Trist about this time, and the revocation of 
 his powers by his own government, were a source of regret to many 
 who were pacifically disposed; and, had that gentleman implicitly 
 obeyed his instructions, by returning home at once, it is doubtful 
 whether any subsequent attempt at negotiation might not have 
 been seriously embarrassed by those malcontents whose official 
 existence depended upon maintaining a belligerent attitude on the 
 part of the Mexican people. 
 
 The reinforcements gradually drawing towards the capital, and 
 the activity of General Lane in routing the guerrilla bands from 
 their fastnesses and occupying the towns which had hitherto 
 afforded them protection, by proving even that system of warfare 
 of little avail against American troops, also predisposed many 
 influential Mexicans to a favourable termination of hostilities; 
 but they were fearful of giving voice to their desires while the 
 possibility remained of the war party regaining their former 
 ascendancy. 
 
 The imposing position, however, which General Scott was 
 enabled to assume by the occupation of the Mexican capital, 
 the increase of his garrisons along the line, and the strong force 
 which it was contemplated he would soon have at his disposal 
 for operating against the states of the interior, began to make an 
 impression even upon those defiant spirits who, residing hitherto 
 remotely secure from the actual scene of warfare, were at length 
 threatened with an actual participation in its evils. This favour- 
 able state of feeling was still furtlier enhanced by a noble act of 
 clemency on the part of General Scott. 
 
 After the capture of Vera Cruz and the victory of Cerro Gordo, 
 the prisoners of war, both officers and rank and file, were released 
 on parole. Unfortunately, this generosity was in many instances 
 
LETTER FROM THE ARCHBISHOP OF MEXICO. 461 
 
 abused ; and men of all stations were known to have dishonoured 
 themselves by immediately resuming arms against their former 
 conquerors. To correct this evil, those prisoners taken in the 
 battles around Mexico were held in durance. These amounted 
 to about eight hundred men, and the deplorable condition to 
 which the families of many were reduced in consequence moved 
 the venerable Archbishop of Mexico to intercede in their behalf. 
 A correspondence alike honourable to both parties was accordingly 
 opened between that prelate and the General-in-chief, and resulted 
 favourably. 
 
 The letter of the Archbishop, and the reply of General Scott, 
 are equally worthy of preservation, as indicating the esteem in 
 which the American commander was held by the Mexican 
 Church, and the frank and generous conduct by which this good 
 opinion had been won : — 
 
 Ecclesiastical Government of the Archbishopric of Mexico, > 
 
 Mexico, November 5, 1847. J 
 
 " Most Excellent Sir : The respect which your Excellency has 
 manifested to the Mexican church (of which I am the unworthy 
 head), in calling upon me, has induced me to take advantage of 
 the favourable disposition of your Excellency to ask a favour which 
 will perpetuate your memory, and will make known to the faithful 
 members of my diocess the feeling of benevolence which you 
 entertain towards them. 
 
 " A multitude of fathers, wives, children, brothers, and other 
 relations of the prisoners who are now confined, under the order 
 of your Excellency, loudly entreat their liberty ; and the prisoners 
 themselves vehemently lament the many evils which their confine- 
 ment has brought down upon their families, who depend upon them 
 for subsistence, and who, consequently, are reduced to misery, 
 and in many cases to an absolute state of indigence. Were there 
 any important political reason why these prisoners should not be 
 liberated, I should not have been so bold as to ask it ; but their 
 
462 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 number is small, and distributed, as they will be, in different 
 parts of the republic, their importance must be insignificant. 
 
 " I ask their liberty, not only because it is a duty of my office, 
 but my heart also impels me to solicit some real consolation for 
 these unfortunate men whom the fates of war have reduced to 
 so lamentable a condition. And, as if they were sheep of the 
 flock most especially intrusted to my care, I considered myself 
 called upon to use my utmost endeavours in their favour, because 
 in that character they have a right to demand my pastoral and 
 most tender care. For the same reason, I wish to imitate the ex- 
 ample of so many illustrious prelates, who, before now, have lent 
 their good offices (not without success) in cases of the same nature. 
 Neither would I hesitate to constitute myself a prisoner in their 
 stead, and willingly I would be the ransom of their liberty, as my 
 faith obliges me even to be anathematized for the sake of my 
 brethren. In our days, the brave General Lamoriciere, by the 
 mediation of the bishop of Algiers, obtained the liberty of a con- 
 siderable number of French prisoners from the barbarous Abdel 
 Kader, and I take the liberty to recall to your Excellency this 
 notable trait of benevolence and magnanimity on the part of a man 
 who is ignorant of the duties of Christian charity. General 
 Scott, doubtless, has a heart equally noble and generous ; nor to 
 his Christian character, will be indifferent the mediation of a 
 Catholic archbishop who entreats your Excellency, in the name of 
 the church which he governs, to grant this favour. It is difficult 
 to believe that after so many proofs of philanthropy, your Excellency 
 will not lend yourself to an act of clemency and generosity which 
 the church will remember as a great favour, and the annals 
 of history as one of those noble actions peculiar to republican 
 countries. 
 
 " I entreat God Almighty to preserve your Excellency many 
 years, and to incline your heart to grant to the Mexican prisoners 
 the precious gift of liberty. 
 
scott's reply to the archbishop. 463 
 
 " I am, with respect, the servant of your Excellency, who loves 
 you in Jesus Christ. 
 
 JUAN MANUEL, 
 Archbishop of Cesar ea. 
 To the most excellent Don Winfield Scott, 
 
 Major General and Commander-in-chief of the Army 
 of the United States of the North, in Mexico.'^ 
 
 The reply of General Scott, a few days afterwards, was as 
 follows : — 
 
 " Head- Quarters of the Army of the U. S. 
 Mexico, Nov. 10, 1847 
 
 J.S.» 
 t7. S 
 
 "Sir: The request of your grace, on the part of the holy 
 church of which you are the head, that I should release, on parole, 
 the prisoners of war remaining in the hands of the American 
 army, is entitled to the highest consideration. 
 
 " I beg to state what have been, heretofore, my practice and 
 endeavours on the subject of prisoners in this unhappy war be- 
 tween the United States and Mexico. 
 
 <' At Vera Cruz, I very willingly stipulated that the Mexican 
 garrison should be permitted to return to their respective homes 
 on jjarole, although I had it in my power to reduce the garrisons 
 to unconditional submission. 
 
 " At Cerro Gordo, the Mexican prisoners who surrendered at 
 discretion to the army under my command, were voluntarily and 
 promptly paroled by me. 
 
 " I am sorry to say, that many of the officers and men released 
 on those occasions, encouraged by the late Mexican authorities, 
 are known to have violated their paroles. 
 
 " Of the prisoners captured by the army in the basin of Mexico, 
 not an officer remains in confinement, except one, who openly 
 avowed his intention to resume arms against us, if left at large. 
 Several of the general officers, who happened to be members of 
 
464 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 the Supreme Congress, I voluntarily discharged without exchange 
 and without parole. 
 
 " July 12, from Puebla, I addressed a communication to the 
 Mexican Minister of Foreign Relations, demanding the release of 
 certain American prisoners of war, taken from the army of the Rio 
 Grande, who had been exchanged by agreement between Generals 
 Taylor and Santa Anna, immediately after the battle of Buena 
 Vista, or Angostura, but who were still held in close confinement 
 contrary to that agreement; and, at the same time, I proposed that 
 commissioners should be appointed on the part of the two armies, 
 to agree upon a cartel for the general treatment and exchange of 
 all prisoners of war in future. To this communication I received 
 an evasive reply, when I addressed another to that minister, dated 
 the 29th of the same month. It is singular that the only reply 
 received to my second communication I found here, in the palace, 
 enveloped, sealed, and addressed to me, bearing date August. 
 
 " In the armistice agreed upon by the belligerents, in August, 
 there was a stipulation (article 8) for the immediate release of the 
 same American prisoners mentioned above. But this stipulation 
 was also evaded and wholly neglected by the Mexican govern- 
 ment; and I have since, on terms very disadvantageous to the 
 United States, been obliged to exchange for the ofhcers of that 
 party who were confined at Toluca. The rank and file of the 
 same party w'ere, at the time, confined at some place far in the 
 direction of Tampico. I learn, unofficially, that they have been 
 recently permitted to return home 'by the way of that port. 
 
 "But the application of your grace comes to me under sanctions 
 too high to be neglected. 
 
 " I therefore beg to say, that if your grace will have the good- 
 ness to appoint some dignitary of the church to visit the Mexican 
 prisoners of war (rank and file, or common men) now confined in 
 this capital, and explain to them the customs and usages of war 
 in such cases, viz : that prisoners, released on parole, are always 
 
ASSESSMENT ON THE MEXICAN STATES. 465 
 
 put to death, if taken in arms against the same belligerents before 
 being duly exchanged ; and add the solemn admonition of the 
 church against the violation of their paroles, I will, immediately, 
 under that holy sanction, cause the said prisoners to be released 
 on parole, so that they may return to their respective families, 
 friends, and peaceful occupations. 
 
 I have the honour, &c., 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 To the most illustrious Archbishop of Mexico." 
 
 By a second letter, dated the 16th of December, the Mexican 
 Archbishop professed himself willing to accept and fulfil all the 
 conditions stipulated by General Scott, and also volunteered per- 
 sonally to administer the oath to the prisoners. This he satis- 
 factorily performed on the 22d of the same month, and followed 
 it by a brief but dignified address, in which he pointed out the 
 heinousness of the crime of perjury, and the consequences, both 
 eternal and temporal, which were likely to ensue. Each man 
 then received a paper attesting the fact of his release on parole, and 
 his obligation not to take up arms against the United States unless 
 exchanged in the manner customary in such cases. The policy 
 of this act on the part of General Scott cannot be doubted ; and 
 the prompt manner in w'hich he responded to the appeal of the 
 Archbishop doubled the obligation, while it exhibited a grateful 
 contrast to the evasive duplicity of the Mexican government in 
 similar circumstances. 
 
 The American army was now in a condition to assume the 
 offensive. The columns of Major-General Butler and Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Johnston reached the city of Mexico about the 17th of 
 December. As soon as the General-in-chief was aware of their 
 proximity, he caused a general order to be published, in which it 
 was stated that the army was about to recommence active opera- 
 tions against the enemy, and that immediately on the occupation 
 of the principal point or points in any state, the payment of all 
 
466 
 
 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 taxes and dues usually collected by the Mexican government 
 would be absolutely prohibited. These revenues were henceforth 
 to be demanded of the proper civil authorities for the support of 
 the army of the United States. The states already occupied by 
 American troops were held as immediately liable, and the amount 
 assessed to the several states of the Mexican republic, as respect- 
 ively brought under the control of the forces of the United States, 
 was distinctly defmed in a supplemental order bearing date the 
 31st of December. 
 
 The first movement towards the collection of dues beyond the 
 limits of the city of Mexico, was made by despatching Colonel 
 Withers, with a detachment of the 9th infantry, to Pachuca, for 
 the purpose of preventing the Mexican officers from seizing the 
 assay duties constantly accruing at that place, from its being in 
 the vicinity of the silver mines of Real del Monte, 
 
 Another detachment, under the command of Brigadier-General 
 Cadwalader, was subsequently sent to Toluca, the capital of the 
 state of Mexico, while Colonel Clarke, with a small brigade, was 
 ordered to occupy Cuernavaca. All these officers were directed 
 to treat the Mexican authorities with courtesy, and to await a 
 reasonable time for the payment of the amount assessed, and if 
 gentle means failed, they were then to resort to forced levies. The 
 same instructions were forwarded to the military commanders of 
 Puebla, Perote, Jalapa, Vera Cruz, and Tampico. 
 
 Other and more extensive operations were contemplated in the 
 direction of Zacatecas and San Luis Potosi ; but, owing to vexa- 
 tious delays and disappointments, these movements were obliged 
 to be postponed. In the mean time, however, these active prepa- 
 rations were producing a corresponding effect upon the enemy. 
 The result of the elections was decidedly favourable to peace. 
 General Santa Anna, deprived of his command, and but too 
 severely visited with the scorn and contumely of those by whom 
 he was previously idolized, was now a wanderer, anxiously desiring 
 
RECALL OF SCOTT. 467 
 
 the passport that should guaranty him safe-conduct until beyond 
 the limits of the republic. The adherents of that party, so long 
 clamorous for a continuance of the war, dropped off, one by one ; 
 while those who, from fear of the consequences, had heretofore 
 remained silent, were now emboldened to deprecate any further 
 prosecution of hostilities. 
 
 The accession of General Herrera to the Presidential chair, 
 and the negotiations which followed, will be more fully developed 
 hereafter. 
 
 The brilliant career of General Scott was now drawing to a 
 close, the war was virtually ended, when he was superseded in 
 command of the army he had so gloriously led, by Major-General 
 Butler. How far party feeling entered into this act of the American 
 government, must be left for posterity to judge ; the chronicler of 
 the present day could scarcely be expected to hold an even bal- 
 ance while weighing the dry acts of the politician against the 
 splendid achievements of the soldier. One thing, however, is 
 certain : that both before assuming the command of the army, and 
 afterwards, General Scott laboured under the impression that there 
 did not exist, on the part of the War Department, a feeling of 
 kindness towards him, or even of justice. An investigation of the 
 whole matter would carry us beyond the limits prescribed for our 
 work, if it even came within the legitimate province of the histo- 
 rian rather than the biographer. 
 61 
 
CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 Naval Operations in the Gulf of Mexico — Capture of Tuspan — Perry determines 
 on the Capture of Tabasco — The Squadron assembled off Tabasco bar — Organi- 
 zation of a Flotilla — The ascent of the River — The Flotilla fired upon by a Party 
 of Mexicans under General Bruno — The Enemy repulsed — Perry casts anchor at 
 the Seven Palms — Divides his force — Assaulted by the Enemy — Debarkation of 
 the Naval Army — Hidalgo's breastworks forced — Capture of Fort Iturbide — The 
 City surrenders. 
 
 After the ca]ituie of Vera Cruz, the naval operations along the 
 Mexican coast, though marked by none of those imposing events 
 which distinguished the progress of the army, were yet of a 
 character well calculated to test the efficiency of the seamen, 
 and the ability of the officers by whom they were commanded. 
 
 The services of the squadron were both important and hazard- 
 ous. The Mexican coast was effectually blockaded ; Alvarado, 
 Tuspan, Laguna, Fronteira, and all the towns of any note were 
 taken and garrisoned, and the multifarious duties pertaining to 
 the service performed with that skilful celerity which is only to 
 be acquired by means of the most perfect discipline. 
 
 Alvarado was taken by Lieutenant Hunter, as described in a 
 former part of our narrative, and Commodore Perry resolved to 
 fit out an expedition to reduce and occupy Tuspan. The fleet 
 employed consisted of the steamer Mississippi, frigate Raritan, . 
 sloop-of-war Albany, ships John Adams, Germantown, Decatur, 
 Spitfire, Vixen, Scourge, Vesuvius, Hecla, Etna, Bonita, Reefer, 
 and Petrel. Among the vessels were distributed one hundred and 
 fifty men belonging to the Potomac, and three hundred and forty 
 men belonging to the Ohio. After some delay at the island of 
 
 (468) 
 
EXPEDITION AGAINST TABASCO, 469 
 
 Lobos, and derangement at sea in consequence of the prevalence of 
 a norther, arrangements were made for landing on the morning 
 of the 18th of April. The Mississippi was anchored off the bar of 
 the river near the town, while, to enable them to ascend, the other 
 steamers were relieved of their masts and lightened in every pos- 
 sible way. While the other vessels of the squadron remained at 
 anchor under Tuspan shoals, the steamers took in tow the gun- 
 boats and barges, which carried twelve hundred men and two 
 pieces of artillery. 
 
 The steamers, with each a gun-boat in tow, soon ploughed their 
 way across the bar, and gained the entrance of the river amid all 
 the difficulties presented by the breakers. Having gained an 
 entrance by twelve o'clock, the gallant Perry hoisted his broad 
 pennant on board the Spitfire, and led the rest of the vessels. As 
 they proceeded, two forts from the right bank opened on the 
 squadron, when all the boats were manned with storming-parties, 
 and while the gun-boats and steamers briskly returned the fire 
 of the enemy, the storming-parties rushed on and into the forts, 
 while the enemy in terror fled from before them. Continuing to 
 press on towards the town, they were assailed by a fire from 
 another fort and troops posted in the chaparral. The fort was soon 
 carried, and simultaneously a division entered the town and took 
 possession of it, while the enemy fled in every direction. After 
 holding the place for some time, Commodore Perry demolished 
 the forts, and retired, leaving the Albany and gun-boat Reefer to 
 garrison the place. 
 
 Previous to the month of June, 1847, all the Mexican ports 
 upon the gulf had now been captured, with the exception of the 
 city of Tabasco ; and, as the latter was in commercial importance 
 second only to Vera Cruz, Commodore Perry determined upon its 
 speedy reduction. 
 
 Accordingly, leaving the frigate Potomac before Vera Cruz, and 
 a small naval force at Tuspan, Alvarado, and Laguna, for the 
 
470 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 protection of those places, Perry sailed on his proposed expedition, 
 and on the 13th of June anchored off Tabasco bar with the 
 following vessels of his squadron : Flag-Steamship Mississippi, 
 Commander Adams ; Albany, Captain Breese ; Raritan, Captain 
 Forrest ; John Adams, Commander McCluney ; Decatur, Com- 
 mander Pinckney ; Germantown, Commander Buchanan ; bomb 
 brig Stromboli, Commander Archer ; bomb brig Vesuvius, Com- 
 mander Magruder ; brig Washington, Lieutenant-Commanding 
 Phillips Lee ; Steamer Scorpion, Commander Bigelow ; Steamer 
 Spitfire, Lieutenant-Commanding Smith Lee ; Steamer Vixen, 
 Lieutenant-Commanding William Smith. 
 
 By one o'clock, P. M., of the 14th, the flotilla selected for the 
 expedition was fairly under way. The steamers Scourge, Scor- 
 pion, Spitfire, and Vixen, had towed over the bar the brigs 
 Stromboli, Washington, and Vesuvius ; and the three divisions 
 of surf-boats, launches, and cutters, carrying seven field-pieces, 
 and filled with officers and men detailed for service from the ves- 
 sels of the squadron left behind. The city being situated seventy- 
 five miles up the river. Tabasco could only be approached by 
 vessels of the lightest draft. At Fronteira, the bomb brig Etna, 
 Commander Van Brunt, and the schooner Bonita, Lieutenant- 
 Commanding Berrien, joined the expedition. 
 
 Here the flotilla was reorganized, and after being formed into 
 divisions, the ascent of the river was begun in the following 
 manner : — 
 
 Perry in the Scorpion took the lead, with the brigs Vesuvius 
 and Washington in tow, and the boats containing the detach- 
 ments of officers and men from the Mississippi, Potomac, and 
 John Adams. 
 
 The Spitfire towed the Stromboli and Bonita ; and the Vixen 
 towed the Etna, and detachments from the Germantown, Raritan, 
 and Decatur. 
 
 In ascending the river, the commodore kept under way all 
 
PERRY CASTS ANCHOR AT THE SEVEN PALMS. 471 
 
 night. At a distance often leagues from its mouth, the river was 
 found to be contracted so much, that an enemy stationed in the 
 thick chaparral covering the banks, could command the opposite 
 shore with musketry alone. 
 
 It was not, however, until the evening of the 15th, that the 
 enemy made any attempt to oppose the progress of the flotilla. 
 General Bruno, who had posted himself with a strong detachment 
 behind a breastwork in the chaparral, at the bend of the river 
 where the channel ran close to the right bank, suddenly poured a 
 plunging but ineffectual fire upon the deck of the Scorpion. This 
 attack, though totally unexpected, was instantly replied to by a 
 fire of grape and canister from the Vesuvius and Washington, 
 and by rapid volleys of musketry from their tops and from the 
 Scorpion and the boats in tow. These volleys effectually silenced 
 the enemy, who shortly afterwards abandoned his breastwork with 
 some loss, and the remainder of the divisions swept past without 
 any molestation whatever. 
 
 By sunset the flotilla had arrived at the Seven Palms, a noted 
 landmark two leagues below the city ; and though it had been 
 occasionally annoyed by desultory firing from the chaparral, the 
 loss amounted to only one man wounded. 
 
 Near the landmark the enemy was found to occupy the right 
 bank of the river in considerable numbers. Night was now 
 approaching, and as the channel by nearing that side subjected 
 his men to a galling fire from the chaparral. Perry ordered the 
 rigging to be barricaded with cots, hammocks, and bags ; and 
 thus sheltered, after making his preparations for a movement 
 upon the city by land and water, the ensuing morning, he cast 
 anchor, and rested his men against the toils of the morrow. 
 
 On the morning of the 16th, the boats of the flotilla, filled with 
 their complement of men, were arranged in three divisions, under 
 the respective commands of Captains Breese, Forrest, and 
 
472 msTORY OF the Mexican war. 
 
 McCluney. The artillery formed a fourth division, under the 
 command of Captain A. Slidell Mackenzie. 
 
 The schooner Bonita was now towed into position, for the dou- 
 ble purpose of covering the landing and protecting the sounding- 
 party under Lieutenants Alden and May. 
 
 Just as the latter had discovered an insufficiency of water for 
 the brigs, the enemy opened a heavy fire of musketry from a con- 
 cealed breastwork, called by them " Calmena," by which one 
 officer and three men were wounded. 
 
 A raking fire of grape, canister, and musketry was promptly 
 thrown from the flotilla along the bank and into the chaparral, by 
 which that of the enemy was checked ; and then Commodore 
 Perry, standing erect in his barge in front of the first division, 
 gave the spirit-stirring order, " Three cheers, and land !" Then 
 burst forth the loud hurrahs ! from over a thousand manly voices, 
 and the sinewy rowers, bending simultaneously to their oars, 
 impelled the numerous boats towards the right bank. Commo- 
 dore Perry and Captain Mayo were the first to reach it, and in 
 ten minutes afterwards, clambering up the steep bank and lifting 
 the cannon rapidly to the top, the whole of the detachment, con- 
 sisting of nine hundred seamen, including officers, and two hun- 
 dred and twenty marines, were safely landed without hindrance 
 or impediment. 
 
 While the little army, thus boldly debarked in the face of the 
 enemy, were preparing to march upon the city, " the light-draft 
 steamers Spitfire, Vixen, and Scourge, picked up all the boats, 
 took them and the Bonita in tow, and stood for the city, followed 
 by the Scorpion, who forced her way over the obstruction under 
 a heavy head of steam." 
 
 These movements by land and water had the effect of discon- 
 certing the enemy, who, expecting an attack by water only, found 
 his strong works turned by a movement for which he was not 
 prepared. 
 
CAPTURE OF FORT ITURBIDE. 473. 
 
 No sooner was the landing effected, than the enemy abandoned 
 the position of" Calmena," and fell back to a breastwork nearer 
 the city, where Colonel Hidalgo had stationed himself in force. 
 
 The naval army, led by the gallant commodore in person, now 
 moved forward over a narrow trail, preceded by a pioneer party 
 under Lieutenant Maynard. The distance to be traversed was 
 about seven miles. The route lay for the most part through dense 
 chaparral, with occasional cane-brake and marshy ground. 
 
 About one o'clock, the advance came within sight of Hidalgo's 
 breastwork at Acachapan. This w^as a strong position, defended 
 by cavalry and infantry, and strengthened by a battery mounting 
 two guns. Here the enemy opened a harmless fire at long range, 
 which being returned by the field-pieces under Mackenzie, Hidalgo 
 was soon thrown into confusion; and the men, dashing forward with 
 loud shouts, possessed themselves of the work just as the last of 
 the enemy had evacuated it. The command was now halted to 
 refresh. An hour previous to this, the steamers had been seen 
 to pass up the river, and firing was afterwards heard in the direction 
 of the city. This soon ceasing, it was conjectured that the city 
 had surrendered; a supposition which was verified some three 
 hours later by discovering tlie American flag displayed from the 
 walls of Fort Iturbide, a work of considerable strength, erected 
 on the skirts of the city, and commanding a long reach of the 
 river below. 
 
 It was now ascertained that the Scorpion, having no boats in 
 tow, passed the Spitfire and was the first to come within range of 
 the guns of the fort. 
 
 The steamers soon silenced the fort, and when the Mexican 
 flag was hauled down, the Scorpion passed up and received from 
 the alcalde an offer for the surrender of the city. In the mean 
 time, as the enemy had treacherously reopened a fire from the 
 fort upon the Spitfire, Lieutenant Porter was despatched with a 
 small force to storm the work. This duty was gallantly performed, 
 
474 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 and resulted in driving the enemy, and capturing two brass field- 
 pieces and three long 28-pounders, with a considerable quantity 
 of small arms and ammunition. 
 
 No sooner had Perry entered the city with his command, than, 
 stationing the artillery and marines in the plaza, so as to command 
 the principal streets, he drew off' the rest of his men and quartered 
 them on board the steamers for the night. At eight o'clock on 
 the morning of the 17th, the colours of the United States were 
 hoisted over the city of Tabasco, and a national salute fired. 
 
 The armory and magazine were then taken possession of by 
 one detachment, while another party under Captain Mackenzie, 
 dismantled Fort Iturbide, and removed the large guns to the river 
 ready for embarkation. The arms were burnt ; and the captured 
 powder, not being of good quality, was destroyed, together with the 
 magazine. 
 
 The next day, the mud walls of Fort Iturbide were mined and 
 blown up, and then, the object of the expedition being success- 
 fully accomplished, the flotilla prepared to return, leaving Com- 
 mander Van Brunt to hold possession of the city, with the bomb 
 brig Etna, the steamers Spitfire and Scourge, and a detachment 
 of seventy marines. 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 Consequences of the Occupation of the Capital — Condition of the Mexican Govern- 
 ment — Disorganization of its Army — Santa Anna retires to Guadaloupe Hidalgo 
 — Circular of Seiior Alcorta to the Commandants- General — Resignation of the 
 Presidency by General Santa Anna — His Letter to the Mexican People — Circu- 
 lar of Seiior Pacheco — Reasons for abandoning the Capital — The future intentions 
 of the Government developed — Santa Anna sets out for Puebla — Reflections 
 upon his Reverses. 
 
 The occupation of the capital by General Scott was an event 
 from which the peace party in Mexico were soon to reap the most 
 beneficial results. 
 
 The advocates for a continuance of the war still, indeed, pre- 
 dominated, both in numbers and in authority, but day by day the 
 chiefs of this faction found their adherents grow more lukewarm, 
 as their confidence of redemption by means of the national prowess 
 gave way before the stern reality of the Anglo-Saxon conqueror 
 quietly reposing himself in their very midst, and by his lion port 
 frowning down all opposition. 
 
 It was now for the first time that the government began to feel 
 the effects of its own treachery in regard to the unfortunate armi- 
 stice. Grown bold in the strength of the defences by which the 
 capital was surrounded at all points, and fully aware that the 
 final struggle must take place long before any additional troops 
 could arrive to strengthen the meagre force of their antagonist, 
 the Mexican rulers were so inflated with the hope of a final and 
 glorious success that the possibility of so disastrous a contingency 
 as the loss of their capital seems scarcely to have been enter- 
 tained at all. 
 
 62 (475) 
 
476 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 When, therefore, it was found that the heroism of the Ameri- 
 cans, rising with the occasion, had forced all the obstacles to the 
 city, and at length penetrated the city itself, the government dis- 
 persed in dismay, and all concert of action was lost in the general 
 confusion that ensued. 
 
 Of that boasted army, which on the morning of the 12th of 
 September numbered upwards of twenty thousand men, within 
 two days afterwards a few fragments alone remained ; and though 
 the defection was glossed over in the official reports, and the dis- 
 organization systematized into imaginary divisions under different 
 military chiefs, it was well known that the orderly retirement 
 from the capital degenerated into a complete rout, long before the 
 remains of the panic-stricken troops reached the appointed place 
 of rendezvous. 
 
 At Guadaloupe Hidalgo, General Santa Anna concentrated 
 about his own person the few cavalry that yet were faithful to 
 their colours. From this place also, the government commenced 
 the first of a series of spasmodic efforts, ostensibly to sustain the 
 flagging zeal of its adherents, but in reality for the purpose of 
 retrieving its own waning popularity, and of defending the Gene- 
 ral-in-chief from the fierce denunciations by which his civil 
 policy and military skill had been relentlessly assailed. 
 
 On the 14th of September, Senor Alcorta, immediately after 
 reaching Guadaloupe Hidalgo, addressed a circular to the com- 
 mandants-general of the departments, in which he informed them 
 that, after the events which had taken place, it was found neces- 
 sary to abandon the capital in order that other means might be 
 adopted and pursued for harassing the enemy. 
 
 He further notified them that the General-in-chief was still 
 firmly resolved to prosecute the war, and, whatever might be the 
 consequences, to wage it by all possible means; expressing at 
 the same time a hope that each commandant would endeavour to 
 preserve and reanimate the public spirit in his particular depart- 
 
SANTA anna's LETTER TO THE MEXICAN PEOPLE. 477 
 
 ment, in order that the war might be carried on with that vigour 
 and energy so imperiously demanded by the national honour. 
 
 But the fatal reverses which had attended his efforts to beat 
 back the invaders, had so weakened the popularity of the Mexi- 
 can chief, that, foreseeing he should be unable to control the 
 storm of indignation now boldly launched against him, General 
 Santa Anna sought to shield himself from its fury by formally 
 resigning, on the 16th of September, the presidency of the repub- 
 lic. By the same document he transferred the executive power 
 into the hands of General Herrera and Senor Alcorta, and 
 appointed Queretaro as the seat of government, subject to the 
 decision of the National Congress, which was then about to meet. 
 
 On the same day he addressed the following letter to the Mexi- 
 can people : — 
 
 <' The President of the Integral Republic of Mexico to his fellow- 
 countrymen : 
 
 " With the most poignant and profound grief do I announce to 
 you that it was after repeated and extraordinary efforts, and after 
 fifteen hours' incessant fighting, I saw myself under the necessity 
 of abandoning the capital, with my ranks considerably thinned 
 by the projectiles of the enemy, which penetrated our nearest 
 lines, strewing the way with their bodies and with those of the 
 noble Mexicans who so gloriously defended, inch by inch, the 
 rights and honour of their country. 
 
 " You have been witnesses that I have created resources at a 
 time when there were none ; that I laboured day and night ; that 
 I erected fortifications around Mexico ; that I organized and 
 assembled a powerful army, in order that I might wrest some 
 favour from fortune, which has been so adverse to us. 
 
 « The insubordination of one general subverted my entire plan 
 of operations — a thing which you already know. In the convent 
 and bridge of Churubusco the enemy received some very severe 
 
478 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 lessons, which were thrice repeated afterwards, in the fort of 
 Chapultepec, the suburbs of Belen and San Cosme, and finally in 
 the Citadel. But the valour of many of our soldiers of the guard 
 and of the army was not always supported, yet it was only by 
 fire and sword that the enemy, in a day most fatal to the nation, 
 made himself master of the capital. I have anxiously sought 
 death in all parts, because a loss so great has occasioned me the 
 most profound despair. In Chapultepec I received a contusion, 
 in Belen my clothes were pierced by the balls of the enemy, and 
 around me disappeared the best soldiers of the republic. 
 
 " What remains to me, then, in the midst of the woe and 
 anguish which assail me ? The unprofitable consciousness that 
 I have personally sustained the combat to the very last extremity, 
 and that I have sold dearly to the enemy his astonishing victory. 
 He has seen me in the front at Angostura, Cerro Gordo, Churu- 
 busco, Chapultepec, Belen, San Cosme, and the Citadel, and he 
 shall find me, I swear to you, wherever it shall be useful and 
 glorious for me to combat. 
 
 " I ought also to announce to you that I have spontaneously 
 resigned the Presidency of the Republic, calling to assume it, 
 according to the Constitution, the President of the Supreme Court 
 of justice, with the associates, who will be the depositaries of 
 power until the National Congress can decide who is he to 
 whose guidance shall be intrusted its future destinies. 
 
 " When power was intrusted to me under the most trying cir- 
 cumstances, I accepted it in order that I might combine the 
 elements of resistance existing in the country ; and, upon the 
 enemy's advance towards the capital, I resumed military com- 
 mand, that I might oppose to him a force of considerable strength, 
 and concentrate all our resources for its defence. But after the 
 fall of the capital, circumstances have been altered, and now a 
 division of the command is requisite to promote the same object 
 — to attack the enemy in his line of communication from Vera 
 
SANTA anna's LETTER TO THE MEXICAN PEOPLE. 479 
 
 Cruz to the capital is imperiously urgent, and I alone must take 
 upon myself that responsibility, because I feel it incumbent on me 
 ever to place myself in that quarter in which there is the most 
 peril. The supreme magistracy cannot be exposed to the hazard 
 of war, and it is necessary to locate it amid population and 
 wealth, in order that it be not given over to anarchy, and in 
 order that it may again arise with power and with glory. 
 
 " For this reason have I surrendered an authority, to me so 
 laborious and so bitter, and in whose reception and laying down 
 I have aspired to nothing more than the welfare of my beloved 
 country. I may have committed some errors in the discharge of 
 my civil obligations, but be assured that my desires and my 
 hopes have known no other stimulus than the noble one of sus- 
 taining the rank of the nation in which I first saw the light, and 
 which has laden me with honours and with favours. 
 
 " I have said it before, and I here repeat it, that I never des- 
 pair of the fate of my country. If faction be silent and will listen 
 to the sovereign voice ; if we be unanimous in our desires and in 
 our yearnings, there is yet time to hurl the enemy from the soil 
 which he pollutes by his presence. 
 
 "It is known to you that I rejected a peace which would 
 reduce the republic to a nullity the most absurd and complete. 
 The nation has desired and still desires war. Let us continue it, 
 then, with the greatest intrepidity, and my example shall be a 
 most ardent one. 
 
 " Factions cannot now dispute with me concerning the power 
 which with pleasure I abandon. If they would dispute with me, 
 let them come to the field of battle. There they will find me 
 serene, and firmly consecrated as ever, to the most generous and 
 holy of causes. "What do we care for misfortunes ? Misfortune 
 is the crucible of nations, and never is tlae Mexican nation grander 
 than when she strives to force from destiny the victory which God 
 and justice promise us. 
 
4S0 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 "Mexicans! Thirty years have passed over since you pro- 
 claimed your independence amid perils and privations. Sustain 
 it for ever! 
 
 ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA. 
 
 GuADALOUPE Hidalgo, Sept. 16, 1847." 
 
 In the above well written, but occasionally overstrained appeal, 
 General Santa Anna made use of the same arguments which he 
 had so often heretofore found available in moving and moulding 
 the Mexican mind ; but the ears which had so frequently listened 
 favourably, were now deaf to the voice of the charmer. 
 
 This appeal was followed up, on the 18th, by a circular under 
 the signature of Seiior Pacheco, Secretary of State, and addressed 
 to the governors of the different states. 
 
 In this document, the secretary enters into an elaborate defence 
 of the policy by which General Santa Anna had been guided in 
 the conduct of the war. 
 
 The disasters which attended the Mexican army in the various 
 conflicts around, and immediately before, the capital, he likewise 
 attributes mainly to the insubordination of General Valencia and 
 to his subsequent loss of the important position of Contreras. In 
 regard to the evacuation of the capital, he avers that it was decided 
 at a meeting of the generals held in the Citadel on the night of 
 the 13th, that a continued resistance would only expose the city 
 to pillage and to all the acts of immorality to which a savage 
 enemy abandons himself. It was this latter misfortune, he avers, 
 which General Santa Anna sought at all hazards to avoid, by 
 causing, at the commencement, all his fortifications to be made at 
 advanced points. 
 
 The result at which the generals arrived in their midnight con- 
 ference was, that, in order to retain all their armament and the 
 means to continue the war, it was necessary to abandon the city 
 that very night ; that the whole army should retire to Guadaloupe 
 
PACHECO's CIRCULAR. 481 
 
 Hidalgo, ready to take the road to Puebla, the next day, for the 
 purpose of redeeming that city out of the hands of the Americans, 
 and cutting off all communication with the coast. 
 
 This intent being, however, frustrated by the want of means, 
 it was finally resolved to divide the army into sections, under the 
 command of tried officers who were directed to make their way 
 into the states of the interior, where each division might serve as 
 a nucleus to be increased or shaped as subsequent circumstances 
 might prove most beneficial. 
 
 The partition of the army accordingly took place. General 
 Santa Anna retaining about his own person a portion of the cavalry 
 only, proposing to unite these with the troops already before 
 Puebla under General Rea, and carry out, as far as possible, his 
 original design. 
 
 The exposition of Secretary Pacheco is valuable in two things ; 
 as explaining the reasons which led to the desertion of the capi- 
 tal, and elucidating the events which followed soon after. We 
 therefore give it entire : — 
 
 " ToLUCA, Sept. 18, 1847. 
 
 Circular by Dr. Jose Ramon Pacheco, Secretary of State, to the 
 Governors of the different States. 
 
 " Your Excellency : After having sent to your Excellency 
 from the city of Guadaloupe Hidalgo the manuscript decree issued 
 from that city under yesterday's date, by his Excellency the 
 President ad interim, I have now the honour of sending you 
 (blank) copies printed in this city, in order that your Excellency 
 may circulate them in the state which you so worthily govern, 
 and that the nation may be informed that it is not left without a 
 head, as his Excellency, General Don Antonio Lopez de Santa 
 Anna, previous to his march to commence his military movements 
 against the base of the enemy's operations, has devolved the 
 government upon the authority designed by the constitution. 
 
4S2 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 His Excellency, by virtue of the extraordinary powers conferred 
 on him, took the responsibility of ordering some details, which, 
 from the force of circumstances, could not be done in conformity 
 with the tenor of the constitution, none of the bodies in whom 
 these attributes are vested being in existence. On this account 
 he has dispensed with one of the necessary qualifications in one 
 of the colleagues of the Executive, in order to give this additional 
 guarantee to the nation. It is also desirable that the place fixed 
 upon as the residence of the Supreme Government should be 
 generally known, in order that all the functionaries and servants 
 of the General Government should regulate their actions according 
 to our political system as provided by the laws. 
 
 " Impartial history will some day record, whatever fate Provi- 
 dence may have decreed, the causes which brought about the 
 events which have just occurred in the capital, in consequence 
 of which it is now, to our astonishment, indignation, and grief, 
 in the power of the enemy. These causes are known to thousands 
 of witnesses, and well understood by those only who truly feel 
 its immense loss to their country. The fact is that one of the 
 points which defended the entries to the city having been aban- 
 doned without any orders, and another point having been taken 
 at the end of the day on the 13th, after a combat of fifteen hours, 
 it was decided by a meeting of the generals, held that night in 
 the citadel, that a continued resistance would only expose the 
 city to pillage, and to all the acts of immorality to which a savage 
 enemy abandons himself. This latter was a misfortune which his 
 Excellency wished to avoid at all hazards, and with a view to 
 which he had at the very commencement caused the fortifications 
 to be made at far advanced points. In order to retain on the 
 other hand all his armament and the necessary means to continue 
 the war, without owing them to a humiliating capitulation, it 
 was resolved to evacuate the city that very night, conducting the 
 whole army to the city of Guadaloupe de Hidalgo, in order to 
 
PACHECO'S CIRCULAR. 483 
 
 take the next clay, according to the intentions of his Excellency, 
 the road to Puebla, to redeem that city out of the power of the 
 enemy, cutting off at the same time all communication with 
 Vera Cruz. 
 
 "The troops having already commenced the march, and 
 having made some progress on the road, it became known, as 
 much to our satisfaction as surprise, that the people, who the day 
 before, although supported by the army and the valiant National 
 Guards, had taken no part in the struggle, had undertaken on 
 their own account the extermination of the invaders. Imme- 
 diately the army was countermarched, and two columns, one 
 under the command of his Excellency and the other under General 
 Don Juan Alvarez, penetrated as far as the streets of Santo 
 Domingo, and La Cerca, lancing some of the Americans. Sub- 
 sequently, after some measures and other circumstances which it 
 is unnecessary to mention, the heroic people of the capital were 
 disarmed. 
 
 "In undertaking to carry out his first intent, the most for- 
 midable obstacle to be encountered was the entire want of 
 means. The troops had been five days without any support. 
 His Excellency the President had exhausted all his personal 
 resources. From the 19th of August, the date of the misfortune 
 at Padierna, to which our present situation is to be ascribed, up to 
 that day — that is, in twenty-six days — not a man nor a dollar 
 had been sent from any part. How could it be exacted, or even 
 expected, that the city of Mexico, which had already made so 
 many sacrifices, should alone carry on the war and bear the 
 weight of the burdens which are destroying the nation ? To the 
 evils of the w'ar, caused by the invaders, it would not have 
 become the government to add those of making the army live at 
 the expense of the people ; and yet to disband the troops, in order 
 that they might devastate the roads and villages, would have 
 been a still greater evil. The difficulty was insuperable, as there 
 63 
 
484 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 was no food on that day for the soldiers, and the situation was 
 dreadful. 
 
 <' His Excellency the President, since his return to the republic, 
 has above all had to contend with difficulties of this nature, and 
 to them is to be attributed the greater part of our misfortunes ; 
 but rather than destroy a force which, after being purijfied and 
 organized in a different manner, could still be rendered service- 
 able to the nation, he embraced the middle course, of dividing 
 the army into sections, under the command of tried officers, 
 giving them instructions as to the roads they were to take, his 
 Excellency reserving for himself a part of the cavalry. In this 
 manner were obviated the great evils of a disbandment of the 
 army : the burden was distributed so as not to weigh on a single 
 district, and above all it furnished to the States of the Interior a 
 nucleus which they could increase or shape as they might like, 
 in order to carry on the war, which they have all demanded, 
 without listening to any propositions of peace from the enemy. 
 
 " As regards political organization, his Excellency saw the 
 extreme of perplexity of another kind in which he was placed 
 by his determination to continue, personally, the defence of the 
 independence of his country until one of the reverses of which so 
 many have fallen upon us, through the will of God and our own 
 dissensions, and under which we are suffering, should put an 
 end to his existence. His Excellency did not wish to be invested 
 with the character of President of the Republic, in conformity 
 with the resolution of August of last year, his desire being to 
 devote himself exclusively to carrying on the war against the 
 invaders ; and if he has since assumed that power, it was to put 
 down a civil war which was raging in the capital, and, finally, 
 to raise the necessary resources to place it in a state of defence. 
 
 « His Excellency saw that there was no one before whom he could 
 make his resignation, in order to release himself from that onerous 
 charge which prevented him from pursuing the only object of his 
 
PACHECO'S CIRCULAR. 485 
 
 ardent desires, and which had drawn upon him so many annoy- 
 ances ; that all his efforts and repeated orders had been in vain 
 to bring about a meeting of the Congress, composed of a hundred 
 and forty members, which never held its regular sessions for 
 want of numbers, and of which hardly twenty-six members could 
 be assembled on occasions when he applied to it to discharge the 
 mission which had been confided to it, and in order that the Exe- 
 cutive might do no more than to carry out the will of the repre- 
 sentatives of the nation. His Excellency saw that, for the new 
 operations which he meditated, it would be necessary that he 
 should be personally absent from the centre ; and that, moving 
 with his forces in different directions, the very uncertainty of his 
 movements would occasion great difficulties in the administration 
 of the government ; he saw, finally, the consummation of the 
 triumph of the enemy by abandoning these questions to the views 
 of designing partisans. Under these circumstances, his Excel- 
 lency determined to issue the decree which I communicated to 
 your Excellency, and of which I have the honour to annex a 
 printed copy, by which his Excellency, the President ad interim^ 
 endeavoured to consult not only the observance of the funda- 
 mental law in a great crisis, but also the spirit of the law and the 
 will of the nation, manifested on former occasions. 
 
 '< His Excellency only intends by this decree to fill a vacuum 
 ill the present circumstances, to preserve a representation of the 
 unity and nationality of the republic — the capital of which is in 
 possession of the enemy — but by no means to impose his will 
 upon his fellow-citizens. Far from this, he has on this occasion 
 only taken upon himself the solution of the difficulty, because, 
 neither at the capital, which is its legal residence, nor in any 
 other part of the republic, is there a legislative body, and he is 
 ready to abide by whatever it may decide. 
 
 " After acts so pure, originating in intentions so honourable, 
 there will not be wanting vile passions that always will accuse 
 
486 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 after a misfortune, and upon that very account they are the more 
 reprehensible. His Excellency the President carries in his gar- 
 ments, in the death of individuals allied to his person, and in his 
 own person, irrefragable testimonials of his self-denial to devote 
 himself to his country. General Santa Anna does not despair on 
 account of these misfortunes, nor on account of ingratitude, which 
 is still worse. His Excellency renounces power, and yet it is pos- 
 sible that stupidity may join with malice to add absurd calumnies 
 to his other immense disasters. He abandons power, and with 
 it consigns three facts to history for his eternal honour. 
 
 "First, that at the north, at the east, and at the capital, 
 although with various fortune, he has been found confronting the 
 enemies of his country, appearing at all points of the battle, and 
 in those most exposed to danger ; secondly, that in all the States 
 their respective authorities, as well individuals as corporations, 
 remain in the free exercise of their functions and in the enjoy- 
 ment of their respective laws; thirdly, that the nation, and the 
 government which may be called to preside over it, will have 
 absolute liberty to act as may seem proper with regard to the 
 question of war or peace with the United States, since it has been 
 proved that neither the presence of their cannon nor the approach 
 of a danger which has since become a reality, have had any 
 influence on what was due by the government of his Excellency 
 General Santa Anna to the divinity of his country nor to his own 
 honour. The government has not taken a step, nor has it had a 
 single communication with the enemy but what is within the 
 reach of all his compatriots, nor has it been bound by any com- 
 promise, past, present, or future. If in the publications which 
 have been made it may have excited surprise, and not without 
 reason, not to have found the discussions which were expected 
 from the general and the commissioner of the government of the 
 United States, it was that the contempt with which they treat us, 
 and the unblushing determination which they have taken to carry 
 
REFLECTIONS UPON SANTA ANNA's REVERSES. 487 
 
 on a war the most infamous and sanguinary, for their simple 
 diversion and pleasure, no other answer could be given, except 
 through the cannon's mouth and death. 
 
 " His Excellency the President ad intenm orders the under- 
 signed to communicate to your Excellency the preceding exposi- 
 tion, at the time transmitting to you the decree of his resignation, 
 reserving to himself to give at a proper time to his fellow-citizens 
 a circumstantial manifesto ; he has also enjoined him particularly 
 to state in his name to the new Constitutional Government, that 
 he will not lay down his arms against the enemy of his country, 
 until this government, or whatever government may be nominated 
 by the nation or Congress, shall order him to lay them down ; that 
 he will be its firmest support against any revolution, as also in 
 every matter which may be determined as to the American ques- 
 tion, be it peace or war ; that he \\'\\\ comply in his quality of 
 subject with the national will legitimately expressed, as he always 
 has done in his capacity of First Magistrate, and that his Excel- 
 lency wishes to be the first to give an example of submission to 
 the authority of the laws. God and liberty ! 
 
 " I have the honour to be, with distinguished consideration, 
 
 PACHECO. 
 
 "His Excellency the Governor of ." 
 
 There is something at this period of the war in regard to the 
 condition of General Santa Anna which commands our pity, even 
 while the knowledge of his former duplicity forbids our esteem. 
 Suddenly fallen from the topmost height of national honour ; 
 deserted by his former friends and parasites ; anathematized by 
 many of his own countrymen ; and soon to experience that even 
 remote and secluded cities oflfered no secure refuge from the 
 untiring pursuit of his warlike and energetic foes, he exhibited 
 the sad spectacle of a once goodly ship shorn of the white and 
 expansive adjuncts by which she was formerly impelled in grace- 
 
488 HISTOR-k OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ful and imposing state, and rolling helplessly, a shattered hulk, 
 upon a stormy sea, subject to the sport of every wind and the 
 treachery of every wave. 
 
 The fact that General Santa Anna had made great personal 
 sacrifices for the Mexican nation, even to the impairment of his 
 private fortune ; that he had succeeded in organizing three large 
 armies ; that he had raised unexpected, though limited supplies ; 
 that he infused an unwonted energy and uniformity of action into 
 the complex machinery of government ; that he had stilled the 
 unnatural feud existing between opposite factions in the republic ; 
 that he had blended, for a time, the heterogeneous elements of 
 which parties are composed in that unhappy land ; that he had 
 built admirable fortifications, at points judiciously selected for 
 defence, and that he had offered a steady and continuous, though 
 unavailing resistance to the American arms, wherever resistance 
 promised success, should at least have shielded him from many 
 of the calumnies to which his ill-success had exposed him, and 
 should have taught the Mexican people to look leniently even 
 upon his errors. No other man in the republic possessed either 
 the power or the ability to have achieved as much in its defence ; 
 and though his frequent manifestoes exhibit an absence of that 
 modesty so becoming in a great man, there is little doubt the 
 peculiar idiosyncrasy of the Mexican mind had often before mis- 
 taken the vapourings of Ancient Pistol for the self-sacrificing 
 spirit of Leonidas. 
 
CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 City of Puebla threatened by General Rea — Situation of the Garrison — Loss of an 
 American Detachment — Puebla invested — Summons of General Santa Anna to 
 Colonel Childs — His noble Reply — Operations of the Besiegers — General Santa 
 Anna leaves the city to intercept General Lane — Successful Sortie from the 
 Garrison — The Besiegers Reinforced — Severe Street-fight — Approach of General 
 Lane — The Siege raised. 
 
 In the mean time the city of Puebla was seriously threatened 
 by General Rea. No sooner was this active partisan chief aware 
 that the divisions under General Scott had left Puebla, and were 
 fairly on their march towards the capital, leaving behind them 
 only a weak garrison to hold the former city, than he moved down 
 from his fastnesses, and after hovering about Puebla for some time 
 in the hope of cutting off foraging-parties from the garrison, he 
 commenced its investment on the 13th of September. Left 
 entirely isolated, without communication with the coast, or the 
 possibility of aid from General Scott, the situation of Colonel 
 Childs as Governor of Puebla was in every respect a critical one. 
 . With a slender command, amounting in all to only three hun- 
 dred and ninety-three men, exclusive of convalescents from the 
 hospitals under his charge, he had to garrison the grand depot of 
 San Jos^ within the city, and the forts of Loreto and Guadalupe, 
 two tolerably strong works crowning the heights to the east of i 
 Puebla, and distant from it about a mile. 
 
 The first open act of hostility by which the presence of General 
 Rea was signalized, resulted in a loss to the Americans, which, 
 considering the weakness of the respective garrisons, may be 
 considered serious. 
 
 489 
 
490 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 On the morning of the 26th of August an express arrived at 
 San Jose, with the tidings that the guerrilleros had broken into the 
 stock-yard near Fort Loreto, and driven off in the direction of Ca- 
 margo seven hundred and fifty mules. 
 
 Five teamsters immediately started in pursuit ; but after a slight 
 skirmish, in which one Mexican was killed, this small party were 
 driven in by superior numbers. Unable to dispense with the 
 services either of the cavalry or infantry, which constituted the 
 effective force of the already too limited garrison of San Jose, 
 Colonel Childs consented to the formation of an irregular force 
 of mounted men for the purpose of pursuing the guerrilleros and 
 recovering the stolen animals. This little detachment, consisting 
 of thirty- three men under the command of Captain Blanchard,of 
 the Quartermaster's department, followed the tracks of the mules 
 for some miles, until they were lost in the bed of a ravine. 
 
 With the reckless impetuosity of the American character, the 
 advance guard clambered across the ravine closely followed by 
 their companions, and were in the act of dashing over the crest 
 of the hill beyond, when they were fired upon from a clump of 
 trees, and a few guerrilleros were seen in full flight towards an 
 old stone building at the foot of the hill. 
 
 Unconscious of the trap which had been laid for him, Blanchard 
 gave the order to charge upon the fugitives, when the chase was 
 suddenly arrested by the appearance of the main body of the 
 guerrilleros darting out from their hiding-places among the willows 
 beyond. 
 
 Findino: himself thus drawn into an ambuscade, with bodies of 
 lancers increasing on all sides, until their numbers, including the 
 infantry afterwards discovered, amounted to eight hundred men, 
 Blanchard ordered his men to retreat in the direction of the city. 
 In an instant the whole array of the enemy was let loose upon 
 them, and, like a pack of famished wolves panting for blood, they 
 sprang from all points of the compass, and with screams and 
 
CAPTAIN BLANCHARD's DEFEAT. 491 
 
 vivas darted towards the common centre formed by the devoted 
 band they had so successfully decoyed. 
 
 On approaching the ravine so lately crossed with impunity, the 
 opposite bank was found lined with the enemy, holding their 
 lances ready couched for the attack. As the ravine only admitted 
 the passage of a single man at a time, it would have been mad- 
 ness to have attempted its passage in the face of an enemy pos- 
 sessing the advantage both of position and numbers. 
 
 Hemmed in on all sides by a force continually increasing, 
 Captain Blanchard, who had hitherto kept his little command 
 well together, now gave the mournful order for every man to look 
 to himself, and sell his life as dearly as possible. 
 
 In an instant his command scattered in all directions; some 
 forced their way across the ravine, and precipitating themselves 
 upon the enemy died hardily, pierced with innumerable wounds ; 
 others dashed along the bank of the ravine in search of a more 
 favourable outlet, but the quivering lances met them at every 
 point. A few sought the tempting refuge of a neighbouring corn- 
 field, but were forced back by finding it filled with infantry. Tossed 
 to and fro, the little band of victims turned daringly upon their 
 ])ursuers, and fighting desperately, died literally hacked to pieces. 
 Of thirty-three men only eleven, more fortunate than their com- 
 rades, succeeded in cutting their way through the dense ranks 
 of the enemy, or in outstripping pursuit by the superior fleetness 
 of their horses. Among the victims was the brave Captain 
 Blanchard. 
 
 During the three following weeks, the enemy, as if satisfied 
 with his bloody achievement, remained inactive, or contented 
 himself merely with cutting off such straggling soldiers as chanced 
 to fall in his way. This interval was improved by Colonel 
 Childs, who, confining his defence to the principal squares around 
 the Plaza, threw up breastworks across the principal streets that 
 64 
 
492 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR, 
 
 led to it, and by the energy of his foraging-parties was enabled to 
 obtain a small but much needed supply of provisions. 
 
 On the night of the 13th the investment commenced in earnest. 
 Emboldened by the cautious policy to which Colonel Childs pru- 
 dently restricted his command, the guerrilleros entered the city, 
 and combining with a portion of the citizens, seized such positions 
 as could be made available, and opened a heavy fire upon San 
 Jose from the tops of houses and churches, from balconies, and 
 from the corners of the various streets leading to the Plaza. 
 
 As the safety of the posts of Loreto and Guadaloupe depended 
 upon the successful defence of San Jose, the immediate com- 
 /mand of the latter was intrusted to Lieutenant-Colonel Black, of 
 the 1st Pennsylvania regiment, with Captain Ford's company of 
 cavalry. Captain Miller's company of 4th artillery, and four com- 
 panies of the 1st Pennsylvania regiment, together with such con- 
 valescents from the hospital under his charge as were enabled 
 from time to time to do duty. 
 
 The point of attack being San Jose, the enemy, in constantly 
 increasing force, kept up an incessant firing upon that post by 
 day and night, in the vain hope of breaking down the courage of 
 its defenders through the effects of utter physical exhaustion. 
 
 On the 23d of September, a joyous ringing of bells throughout 
 the city announced the arrival of General Santa Anna ; but the 
 melodious congratulations were speedily silenced by a discharge 
 of shot and shells from Loreto into the heart of the city. 
 
 On the 25th, General Santa Anna, having united his force with 
 that of General Rea, and assumed command of the whole, des- 
 patched the following message to Colonel Childs, in which he 
 informed him he was surrounded by eight thousand men, and 
 demanded his evacuation of the city and of the posts of Loreto 
 and Guadaloupe within a certain and peremptory time. 
 
COLONEL CHILDS'S REPLY TO SANTA ANNA. 493 
 
 " Head- Quarters, Puebla, ) 
 September 25, 1847. ) 
 
 " Having taken possession of this city with the forces under 
 my command, to operate against the points occupied by you, 
 and for the purpose of restoring to full liberty the citizens who 
 have suffered so much from the troops of the United States, I 
 deem it proper, before making any movement, and for the sake 
 of humanity, to intimate to your Excellency that you shall have 
 leave, within a limited time, to abandon the places you now 
 occupy in this city, and march out with the honours of war, either 
 to join General Scott, or to proceed to Perote, as may be most 
 convenient for you. But if this moderate proposition be not 
 accepted by your Excellency, I shall, in that case, with the deep- 
 est feeling, proceed to act in a military manner, and assault all 
 of your positions, and from the consequences of which your troops 
 must suffer, inasmuch as there is in the vicinity of your Excel- 
 lency an army of eight thousand men, determined to cause the 
 rights of this nation to be respected. God and liberty ! 
 ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA, 
 
 General-in-chief, Mexican Army. 
 
 Senor Colonel CmLDS, 
 
 Commander of the United States forces in this city.'^ 
 
 To this demand Colonel Child s immediately replied by the 
 following letter, in which, after indignantly denying that any 
 outrages had been committed upon the citizens of Puebla, as was 
 insinuated in the message of the Mexican general, he proceeded 
 to contrast the conduct of the Mexican with that of the American 
 troops, and concluded with a quiet defiance worthy of all honour. 
 
 " Head-Quarters, City of Puebla, Mexico, ) 
 September 25, 1847. ) 
 
 " I had the honour to receive this day (2 o'clock, P. M.) the 
 note of your Excellency, of this date, notifying me that you had 
 
494 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 taken possession of this city, and ' for the purpose of restoring to 
 full liberty the citizens who have suffered so much from the 
 troops of the United States,' and also offering the garrison certain 
 terms in case they would, in a limited time, abandon the points 
 occupied by the same. 
 
 "In regard to the first point, I deem it necessary and just, in 
 vindication of the good name of the military forces of the United 
 States — which they have earned by the humanity, good order, 
 and discipline which have at all times distinguished their con- 
 duct, and more particularly while holding military possession of 
 the city of Puebla — to deny the imputation conveyed in your 
 Excellency's communication ; but, on the contrary, would assert 
 that the rights of persons and property have been most scrupu- 
 lously respected, and maintained to a degree unparalleled in 
 warfare ; and would willingly leave the question for the decision 
 of the intelligent and impartial portion of the population of this 
 city, by whom have they suffered most violence, from their own 
 people, or from troops of the army of the United States. 
 
 " As for the other portion of your Excellency's communication, 
 demanding a surrender, within a limited time, of the places held 
 by the troops under my command, I have but this reply to make 
 to your Excellency : that having been honoured with the custody 
 and safe-keeping of these places, it is alike my desire and my 
 duty to maintain them to the last, feeling fully confident in the 
 means at my disposal to accomplish that purpose. 
 
 " With considerations of high respect, I have the honour to be, 
 your Excellency's most obedient servant, 
 
 THOMAS CHILDS, Col. U. S. Ji., 
 
 Civil and Military Governor. 
 
 To his Kxcellency Senor Don Lopez de Santa Anna, 
 
 Commander-in-chief of the Mexican army before this city?'' 
 
 No sooner was this reply transmitted to General Santa Anna, 
 than Colonel Childs rode to the different posts and informed his 
 
L-^ENERAL TUOIvIAS CHILD; 
 
OPERATIONS OF THE BESIEGERS. 495 
 
 troops of the demand which had been made and the tenor of his 
 reply. The hearty and enthusiastic cheers with which his 
 information was greeted on all sides, showed that he had not 
 miscalculated the courage and the spirit of his men. 
 
 Few in numbers, and beset by a large army and a hostile 
 population, with but a scanty store of subsistence and a slender 
 supply of ammunition, weakened already with continuous watch- 
 ing, and without hope of any immediate relief, these heroic little 
 garrisons looked forward to renewed and painfully wearying 
 exertions with a serenity unshaken by the hazard of their position, 
 and a resolute determination to endure all things rather thLn stain 
 the American name with the ignominy of having surrendered a 
 post of such vital importance to the safety of their victorious 
 comrades in the capital, and the reinforcements which might be 
 hastening up from below. 
 
 On the 27th, the Mexicans having taken possession of the 
 strong stone monasteries and convents of San Juan de Dios, San 
 Juan, Santa Monica, and Santa Rosa, opened from these points 
 a fire of artillery and small-arms upon San Jose, which was 
 vigorously responded to by the latter, and by the guns of Fort 
 Loreto. Late in the evening the cannonading ceased, but was 
 resumed the next morning, and continued throughout the day 
 with equal spirit on both sides. 
 
 During the night of the 29th, the enemy succeeded in estab- 
 lishing two 6-pounders in position above the Tivoli, from which 
 he opened with vigour on the morning of the 30th ; but, antici- 
 pating this movement. Colonel Childs, by a wise forecast, had 
 thrown up a traverse across the Plaza, and withdrawn a 12-pounder 
 from Loreto, by which he was enabled to answer the fire. 
 
 Towards night his battery ceased ; and, failing in all his attempts 
 to force the Americans from their position. General Santa Anna 
 transferred the conduct of the siege into the hands of General 
 Rea, and set out on the 1st of October, with four thousand men, 
 
496 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 and three pieces of artillery, for the purpose of intercepting the 
 reinforcements which were understood to be approaching under 
 General Lane. 
 
 Taking advantage of this reduction in the strength of the enemy, 
 Colonel Childs directed a sortie to be made against those barri- 
 cades and buildings by which the garrison at San Jose had been 
 most annoyed. One of the expeditions was confided to Captain 
 Small, of the 1st Pennsylvania volunteers. " Passing through the 
 walls of an entire square with fifty men, he succeeded, after an 
 incessant labour of twenty-four hours, in gaining a position opposite 
 the barricade, and drove the enemy with great loss, they leaving 
 seventeen dead on the ground. The barricade, consisting of one 
 hundred and fifty bales of cotton, was consumed."* Other 
 prominent buildings were also blown up and demolished by 
 parties commanded by Lieutenant Laidley, of the Ordnance, and 
 Captain Herron, of the 1st Pennsylvania regiment. 
 
 From the 2d of September, until the 8th, the firing on the part 
 of the enemy was of a more desultory character ; but on the last- 
 mentioned day, the besiegers having been strongly reinforced, 
 attempted a closer investment, but were eventually driven back 
 with loss. 
 
 From this time their efforts began to relax, and, on the morning 
 of the 12th, they were discovered in the act of retiring from the 
 positions they had so long and so unavailingly occupied. 
 
 A severe fire being still kept up from the corner of a street upon 
 the breastwork, Colonel Black moved down with two companies 
 for the purpose of silencing it. Seeing the enemy retire at his 
 approach, he directed Captain Herron, with one company, to 
 move round the plaza, and, if possible, cut off their retreat, while 
 an attack was being made in front by the remaining company. 
 
 After a short time, firing was heard in the direction by which 
 Captain Herron had advanced, and on hastening to his support, 
 
 * Report of Colonel Childs. 
 
THE SIEGE RAISED. 497 
 
 Colonel Black found the company enveloped by clouds of lancers, 
 and fighting desperately. The timely reinforcement saved the 
 remains of the gallant little detachment from being utterly anni- 
 hilated ; the enemy was driven back and the company rescued, 
 after having experienced a loss of thirteen killed, and four severely 
 wounded. But relief was now near at hand ; for, while the firing 
 still continued, the worn-out garrisons were cheered by the wel- 
 come sight of reinforcements under General Lane. This brave 
 and energetic officer, after beating at Huamantla the strong force 
 under General Santa Anna, hastened to the relief of Puebla. 
 
 As soon as he reached the city, and found that the contest was 
 still raging, he dashed without pause upon the besiegers, and, 
 aided by the now liberated garrisons, drove them from their 
 breastworks and other positions, and effectually broke up an 
 investment which had kept the besieged almost incessantly 
 harassed for thirty days and nights. 
 
 This memorable siege is remarkable as developing a novel and 
 important phase in the character of the American soldier. 
 Hitherto the qualities of energy, spirit, determination, and 
 unexampled daring, had been most conspicuously displayed. 
 He was now to exhibit the higher faculty of passive endurance. 
 Weak in point of numbers, surrounded by watchful enemies, and 
 deprived for thirty days and nights of that necessary repose from 
 incessant toil, by which the physical powers are recruited and 
 sustained, like the ancient Roman soldier at the Pompeian gate, 
 he remained firmly at his post, choosing rather to die, if need 
 be, amidst the fiery storm than desert a trust confided to him by 
 his superiors. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 Communication with the Coast reopened — Steady increase of Reinforcements from 
 the United States — The Guerrilleros driven from their Strongholds — Advance of 
 General Lane — Battle of Huamantla — Heroism of Captain Walker — Repels the 
 Lancers in repeated charges — Hemmed in by the Enemy — His daring Stratagem 
 — His Death — Chivalric Character of Walker — Official Tribute to his Memory — 
 Lane marches to Puebla. 
 
 The communication between Vera Cruz and the capital, which 
 had so long been cut off by intervening parties of the enemy, 
 was at length effectually opened. 
 
 The steady increase of reinforcements from the United States, 
 permitted the establishment of posts at the long-neglected points 
 of the National Bridge and Plan del Rio, whilst the reoccupation 
 of Jalapa by a competent garrison, and the possession of the castle 
 of Perote, and of the forts commanding the city of Puebla, com- 
 pleted the links in the chain of communication which were never 
 afterwards severed. 
 
 Thus driven from their strongholds, and divested in a certain 
 degree of those powers of annoyance, which, arising from the 
 numerical weakness of their adversary, declined with his strength, 
 the guerrilleros congregated in various small towns, remotely 
 situated, and of difficult access to any but those who were ac- 
 quainted with the topography of the country. 
 
 Broken up into hills and ravines, intersected by water-courses, 
 the roads themselves were mule paths, winding through rugged 
 passes whose precipitous sides offered a safe protection to the 
 enemy above or beyond ; and these paths also, often obstructed 
 by loose masses of lava, or broken up by cavities and fissures, 
 498 
 
ADVANCE OF GENERAL LANE. 499 
 
 the impracticable character of the ground, was in every respect 
 suited to the nature of guerrilla warfare, and w^ell calculated to 
 set at defiance the ejOforts of any troops, less energetic and deter- 
 mined than those of the United States. 
 
 But the cities of Huamantla, Atlixco, Orizaba, and Matamoros, 
 places, which had hitherto swarmed with guerrilla bands, were 
 no longer to afford them a secure refuge. The duty which 
 Captain Walker was refused permission to undertake, was soon 
 to be effectually performed by a much stronger force, under 
 General Lane. 
 
 Leaving Vera Cruz with a considerable train, and with rein- 
 forcements to the number of two thousand men, this gallant officer 
 succeeded in reaching Perote almost entirely unmolested. Learn- 
 ing at this place of the investment of Puebla, he marched 
 promptly to the relief of that garrison, taking with him Brough's 
 regiment of Ohio volunteers, Captain Simmon's battalion of three 
 companies, and Lieutenant Pratt's battery ; these were subse- 
 quently detached, to guard the train at San Antonio Tamaris. 
 The remainder of his command consisted of Colonel Wynkoop's 
 battalion from Perote ; Colonel Gorman's battalion of Indiana 
 volunteers ; Captain Heintzelman's battalion of six companies ; 
 Major Lally's regiment of four companies of mounted men, under 
 command of Captain Samuel H. Walker, and five pieces of 
 artillery under Captain George Taylor. 
 
 At various points along the road, tidings came to General 
 Lane, that a large force of the enemy was concentrating between 
 Perote and Puebla, for the purpose of disputing his advance. 
 
 Nothing definite, however, was received until the evening of 
 the 8th of October, when the train reached San Antonio Tamaris. 
 While halting to rest at this hacienda, certain spies brought in 
 word, that General Santa Anna, with a force of four thousand 
 men and six pieces of artillery, was at the city of Huamantla, 
 but was preparing to leave it, for the purpose of occupying the 
 65 
 
500 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Black Pass, six miles distant ; and from that impregnable position 
 holding the American force at bay, until the garrison of Puebla, 
 already reduced to the last extremity, should be compelled to 
 surrender to General Rea.* 
 
 To avert the possibility of this disaster, and, by falling upon the 
 enemy unawares, to seize his artillery before it could be removed 
 to positions too difficult of access. General Lane determined to 
 commence his march at once, and endeavour to bring on an 
 engagement at Huamantla. 
 
 Parking his train at the hacienda, under guard of the troops 
 already mentioned, he pressed on with the rest of his command, 
 in the hope of coming up with the enemy before he should have 
 left the city. 
 
 On approaching within five miles of Huamantla, Captain Walker 
 was directed to push on quickly with his cavalry, and, by making 
 an intrepid dash at the enemy, keep him engaged until the infantry 
 could come up. His orders were also to secure the artillery at 
 all hazards. t 
 
 These instructions were promptly obeyed. Throwing in ad- 
 vance a couple of his own men, with orders to feel the enemy and 
 ascertain if possible the position of his artillery. Walker himself, 
 at the head of his command, kept on at an easy pace until he 
 reached the outskirts of the city. 
 
 Before entering a narrow lane thickly lined on each side with 
 overarching maguey bushes, the squadron was closed compactly 
 up, moving by twos and fours, as the nature of the ground 
 admitted. 
 
 In the mean time, this advance-guard being driven in, reported 
 
 * When General Lane entered the city of Puebla on the 13th of October, such 
 was the haggard and exhausted condition of its defenders, that it was supposed to 
 have been almost physically impossible for them to have held out two days longer. 
 
 + This differs materially from the official report ; but, as it comes from the lips of 
 one who heard distinctly the orders given, it is but just to rescue the memory of 
 the intrepid Walker from the charge of rashness implied in the report. 
 
HEROISM OF CAPTAIN WALKER. 501 
 
 the enemy still in force in the plaza and adjacent streets, but 
 evidently preparing to retire. 
 
 Throwing these men again in front, Walker rapidly seized the 
 oj)portunity which the confusion of the enemy offered, and as 
 soon as his command neared the plaza, he ordered the trumpet 
 to sound a charge. Of the four companies under his command, 
 only his own company of seventy-five men responded to the call 
 of their heroic leader.* These, spurring forward with enthusiastic 
 shouts, gallopped into the plaza, seized the cannon from the 
 affrighted artillerists, and then precipitated themselves upon the 
 supporting force of some four hundred lancers. 
 
 Foremost of all in this noble charge was the gallant Walker. 
 Firing his revolvers with a cool, steady, equable movement, his 
 unerring hand brought down an enemy with every shot. And 
 then, closing up, looking neither to the right hand nor the left, nor 
 turning once back to see by whom he was supported, he kept his 
 place in the advance, and wherever the enemy attempted to make 
 a stand, dashed upon him with a cry of triumph, and tore a 
 bloody pathway through. 
 
 The fierce impetuosity of such a charge no enemy could long 
 withstand. Closely followed by his own daring company, the 
 lancers were soon put to rout, and pursued out of the city and 
 beyond it for more than a mile. 
 
 Flushed with success, Walker returned to the plaza, and while 
 the rest of his command was coming slowdy in from the pursuit, 
 those that remained about him were engaged in securing the 
 
 * None of the other companies of cavalry were in the engagement at all ; nor did 
 they make their appearance until the infantry was near at hand and their services 
 no longer of any paramount importance. The terrific conflict at Huamantla was 
 borne by Walker's Rifles only : had these been properly supported, they would have 
 been saved from almost utter aimihilatioii, and the fate of their heroic commander 
 might have been different. 
 
 From this censure a part of the oflicers must be relieved. Captains Lewis and 
 Besancon, and Lieutenants Anderson and Waters rode ofl" from their commands, 
 and. joining the Rifles, fought most gallantly. 
 
502 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 cannon already captured. But the triumph of the daring victors 
 was destined to be of short duration. While thus busily em- 
 ployed, to the number of twenty-five men only, the look-out 
 stationed in the steeple of the church opposite, warned Captain 
 Walker that the fugitive lancers, powerfully reinforced, were 
 gallopping impetuously towards the plaza. 
 
 Sheltering his horses behind the wall of a convent-yard, 
 Walker stationed his dismounted men at the windows of the house 
 adjoining, and coolly awaited the expected charge. Riding 
 fiercely up the streets, with that triumphant confidence which the 
 knowledge of their immense superiority inspired, the lancers 
 dashed into the plaza. 
 
 In an instant the whole front rank, as if simultaneously struck 
 by the same lightning-flash, fell dead. For one moment — it was 
 only for one moment — their comrades continued to advance ; 
 but a plunging fire from the first and second stories of the house, 
 and from behind the parapet of the roof, drove them back in 
 huddled-up confusion. 
 
 Retreating out of rifle-shot, they could yet be seen hanging 
 irresolutely about the edges of the streets leading to the plaza, 
 while the movements and gesticulations of their ofiicers indicated 
 that they were endeavouring to urge the men to make another 
 attack. 
 
 But the fear of the deadly and unerring rifle made them for a 
 time hold back. At intervals, indeed, the numerous trumpets 
 would blow a charge, and then the enemy, as if lashed into 
 firmness, would move out for a short distance, but after settling 
 themselves in their saddles, their brief stimulus seemed to desert 
 them ; they would move on, then hesitate, then halt altogether, 
 and at length, overcome by their fears, wheel round and return 
 to their starting-place. 
 
 But this hesitation and timidity, though affecting in a like 
 degree some of the Mexican officers, did not extend to all. A 
 
WALKER S DARING STRATAGEM. gSB 
 
 few brave men were seen riding across the front, urging, implor- 
 ing, commanding, and even threatening, but all in vain. At 
 last, one heroic spirit, as if determined to excite the courage of 
 his command by his own brilliant example, gallopped out from 
 their midst, and dashed alone across the plaza, waving his sword 
 and calling upon his men to follow. The gallant fellow suc- 
 ceeded in reaching the gate of the convent-yard, and there fell 
 riddled with balls. 
 
 The Mexicans were now seen for some time in earnest con- 
 sultation, but after a while this ended, and then they scattered in 
 various directions, swept round interior streets, and reappeared, 
 choking up every avenue leading to the plaza. 
 
 The object of this movement was soon discovered. Two-thirds 
 of the Rifles, who had been carried away by the ardour of pursuit, 
 or were sent out in search of the missing artillery, were now seen 
 by the look-out hovering beyond the dense masses of lancers, 
 vainly endeavouring to find some break in the hostile circle by 
 which they might rejoin their companions. It was, therefore, to 
 cut off these men from all hope of succour that the lancers had 
 occupied all those streets by which they might have succeeded in 
 reaching the plaza. 
 
 No sooner, however, was Captain Walker made acquainted 
 with the situation of his men, than he adopted a daring stratagem 
 for their release. 
 
 Leaving behind him a few men under Lieutenant Claiborne to 
 garrison the house and protect the artillery from recapture, he 
 mounted the rest of his command, and sallying into the plaza, 
 commenced what seemed to be a retreat. Immediately he left 
 tlie protection of the enclosure, the lancers darted out from the 
 different streets and bore down upon him in converging line. 
 The avenues being thus partially cleared, and many of his strag- 
 glers having succeeded in passing through, Walker now suddenly 
 
504 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 wheeled his little command, and furiously charging the enemy, 
 attempted to cut his way back to the convent yard. 
 
 His whole command numbered at this time scarcely more than 
 twenty men, while the intervening space was literally crammed 
 with the dense masses of the enemy. 
 
 In front, and by successive leaps, rather than by regular pro- 
 gression, he plunged upon the nearest of the enemy, and won by 
 a length at a time the ground occupied by his foes. Standing 
 erect in his stirrups, with his clenched teeth gleaming white from 
 beneath the tightly-drawn upper lip and its long red overshadow- 
 ing moustache, those who saw the gallant soldier at this fearful 
 time, still call to mind with terrible distinctness how the blood 
 trickled down from his uplifted sword, and, falling across his 
 hand, died with crimson streaks the white mane of his horse ; 
 and they remember, too, with what surpassing coolness his com- 
 mands were uttered, even while the incessant attacks of the lancers 
 were gradually lessening the number of his devoted followers. 
 
 Swayed to and fro by the pressure of accumulating numbers, 
 now dashing onward a few paces, and now forced back to the 
 wall, the little band of twenty, finally reduced to only seven men, 
 succeeded at length in reaching to within a few yards of the con- 
 vent gate. But they could proceed no further. Their former 
 spirited attacks were now changed to incessant yet hopeless par- 
 ryings of the lance-points thrust at them from all sides. But, at 
 the moment when all seemed lost, the captured gun in front of 
 the gateway was turned upon the lancers by some of the slender 
 garrison, and Lieutenant Claiborne made the attempt to fire it 
 with his pistol. The lancers, on seeing this, gave way, and Cap- 
 tain Walker, followed by his sorely diminished troop, dashed at 
 the gate, and entered it with a loss of thirteen men. 
 
 These, with the stragglers, who had succeeded in getting 
 through, soon commenced a destructive fire from the windows 
 
DEATH OF CAPTAIN WALKER. 50S 
 
 and roof, and the baffled enemy once more fell back and occupied 
 the neighbouring streets. 
 
 It was at this time, when the enemy had entirely deserted the 
 plaza, that Captain Walker stepped out a few paces from the 
 gateway, and was in the act of directing his men to draw the 
 captured cannon nearer to the yard ; when, in the midst of the 
 most profound silence, the report of a single gun was heard, and 
 those who looked across the square, saw the smoke issue from a 
 window of the house opposite, and from which a white flag had 
 been flying during the whole engagement. In another instant a 
 sharp agonizing cry arose, and then passed from lip to lip of th-e 
 bereaved garrison the fearful words : " Captain Walker is killed !" 
 It was but too true ; the treacherous ball fired from behind, had 
 entered the shoulder, and passing obliquely downwards came out 
 on the side. He fell instantly and was carried within the yard. 
 In half an hour he was dead. 
 
 With his last breath, his heroic exhortation to his sorrowing 
 command was : " Never surrender !" 
 
 Thus fell, in the very vigour of manhood, one of the most re- 
 markable men of the age. As a partisan soldier, he had not, 
 perhaps, his equal in any service — prompt, daring, and energetic, 
 his fiery ardour was yet tempered in the midst of danger by the 
 most imperturbable coolness. 
 
 With a constitution confirmed and strengthened by a life of 
 toil and hardship — a life full of romantic incidents and terrible 
 episodes, he was able to endure the vicissitudes of climates and 
 hunger and thirst and prolonged fatigue, to an extent, and with 
 an apparent insensibility, that was a theme and a wonder to all 
 who knew him. 
 
 To a most thorough knowledge of the cunning, treacherous, 
 and cruel character of the enemy, he united an intense personal 
 latred, the result of foregone and painful experiences. But yet, 
 ferce as he at all times proved himself, both in the random fight 
 
506 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 and in the headlong charge, no man was more humane, even to 
 the enemy he despised, when the brunt of the battle was over, 
 and the wounded lay about him. 
 
 To disabled men and defenceless women, he was at all times 
 a sure friend and a protector. Even in the last fatal battle of 
 Huamantla, he was seen to alight from his horse in the midst of 
 the street, tie up with his own hands the dislocated jaw of a 
 stricken enemy, and remove him to the wall, lest he should be 
 trampled upon by advancing horsemen. 
 
 His conduct towards his own command was a happy compound 
 of decision and kindness. To all the duties of a well disciplined 
 soldier, he exacted the most implicit obedience. His discipline, 
 both as respects the cavalry exercise and rifle practice, was of 
 the most rigid character ; but at the same time, his thoughtful 
 regard for the comfort of his men was so well known, and his 
 attention to their requirements so steady and unremitting, that 
 the strict disciplinarian was soon forgotten in the kind-hearted 
 man, and a love sprang up between himself and his command, 
 that, with the few who yet survive, will remain a tender and a 
 tearful memory for ever. 
 
 Nor was his loss mourned by his own company only, it was 
 felt by the whole army. One with whom he had been at variance, 
 a gallant, generous, open-hearted man, when he heard of his 
 death, burst into tears and exclaimed : " I would have given two 
 years of my life, but for fifteen minutes' speech with Captain 
 Walker ;" and even the official report of the commanding general 
 rises into a mournful dignity, when announcing the event. With / 
 a brevity that approaches the sublime, it says : — 
 
 " This victory is saddened by the loss of one of the most 
 chivalric, noble-hearted men that graced the profession of arms — 
 Captain Samuel H. Walker, of the mounted riflemen. Foremos' 
 in the advance, he had routed the enemy when he fell mortaljl^ 
 wounded." / 
 
LANE MARCHES TO PUEBLA. Q/QfJ 
 
 How otherwise than so gloriously, should an heroic spirit like 
 his desire to die ? 
 
 After the death of Captain Walker, the command devolved 
 upon Captain Lewis. The enemy made one more attempt upon 
 the convent-yard and the house adjoining, but was again repulsed 
 with loss. 
 
 Finding all further effort useless, and the infantry under 
 General Lane coming up at this time, the guerrilleros rapidly 
 abandoned the city, leaving two pieces of artillery and a large 
 quantity of ammunition in the hands of the victors. The 
 Mexican loss in the engagement was one hundred and fifty, 
 killed and wounded. 
 
 But brilliant as the event had been to the American arms, 
 and although the victory of Huamantla prevented General Santa 
 Anna from intercepting the train at the Black Pass, according to 
 his original plan, the success was dearly won. Of all that 
 splendid company of mounted riflemen, constituting the imme- 
 diate command of Captain Walker, and which numbered seventy- 
 five men at the commencement of the engagement, only seventeen 
 were able to keep the saddle at its close. 
 
 That same evening, General Lane took up his line of march 
 for Puebla, and reached his destination about one o'clock on the 
 afternoon of the 13th. His presence having speedily relieved 
 the exhausted garrison of that city from an obstinate and long- 
 protracted investment, he rested his men for a few days, and 
 then turned his attention to those secluded towns, which were yet 
 daring enough to afford refuge and protection to the guerrilleros. 
 66 
 
CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 Battle of Atlixco — Running Fight with the Guerrilleros — Atlixco taken — Expedi- 
 tion to Matamoros — Its Capture — Lane returns to Puebla — Is attacked — Daring 
 Bravery of Colonel Hays — Peace Prospects — Anaya elected President — Secret 
 Expedition to Tehuacan — Escape of General Santa Anna — Orizaba captured — 
 Garrisoned. 
 
 Learning, on the 18th of October, that a considerable body 
 of guerrilleros was at Atlixco, a town about ten leagues from 
 Perote, General Lane marched from Puebla, on the morning of 
 the 19th, for the purpose of attacking them. 
 
 His force consisted of the 4th Ohio and the 4th Indiana regi- 
 ments, Major Lally's and Captain Heintzelman's battalions, 
 Colonel Wynkoop's battalion of four companies of the 1st Penn- 
 sylvania regiment, Taylor's and Pratt's batteries of light artillery, 
 and a squadron of dragoons under Captain Ford. 
 
 The advance-guard of the enemy was first discovered near 
 Santa Isabella about four o'clock in the afternoon. General Lane 
 then halted his force, and waited until the cavalry should come 
 up. In the mean time, the enemy came down to the foot of the 
 hill where he was posted, and invited the attack by the firing of 
 escopets, and waving of lances. As soon as the cavalry came 
 up, the column moved forward. Lally's battalion led the advance, 
 while the Ohio regiment made a wide sweep to the left of the 
 road, for the purpose of flanking a deep ravine on that side. 
 
 No sooner were these arrangements observed by the enemy 
 than he began to exhibit signs of irresolution. The cavalry was 
 508 
 
RUNNING FIGHT WITH THE GUERRILLEROS. 509 
 
 accordingly ordered to charge at once, and keep the enemy- 
 engaged until the infantry should have time to come up. 
 
 Pratt's battery was ordered to follow at a gallop, but ownng to 
 a previous change in its position was unable to do so ; and the 
 opportunity which then presented itself of taking prisoners the 
 entire force of the enemy, was consequently lost. 
 
 The cavalry, however, pursued the retreating enemy, and a 
 brisk running fight ensued. On arriving at a small hill, another 
 stand was made, but the appearance of the infantry and a few 
 shots from the artillery, soon caused the flight to be renewed. 
 The dragoons followed the fugitives closely for about four miles, 
 when the main body of the enemy was discovered strongly posted 
 on a side-hill, round which the road curved in the form of a 
 horse-shoe. It was on the opposite side of the curve that the 
 enemy had stationed himself, and the fire from his escopets com- 
 manded the entire sweep of the road; but the cavalry by a bold 
 dash gallopped round the circuit under a heavy and continuous 
 fire, and, dismounting at the base of the hill, charged the cha- 
 parral on foot, and commenced a desperate engagement which 
 lasted until the infantry made their appearance, when the enemy 
 fled to Atlixco, a distance of about a mile and a half. The 
 cavalry being too much exhausted to head the pursuit any further, 
 the infantry now took the lead ; but, before they reached the town, 
 night had already set in. As they approached the town several 
 shots were fired at them ; and General Lane, deeming it unsafe to 
 risk a street-fight by such imperfect light as the moon alone 
 afforded, halted his command and ordered the artillery to take 
 possession of a hill overlooking the town and open its fire. 
 
 This was promptly done. After pouring a rapid and well 
 directed fire into the most populous parts of the town, for three- 
 quarters of an hour, General Lane silenced his artillery, and 
 directed Major Lally and Colonel Brough to advance with their 
 
510 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 commands into the town. It was immediately surrendered by 
 the authorities. But the guerrilleros had already dispersed. 
 
 The Mexican loss on this occasion was very severe : between 
 Santa Isabella and Atlixco, no less than five hundred and nine- 
 teen of the enemy were killed and wounded, while the Americans 
 lost only two men.* 
 
 Routed from Atlixco, the remainder of the guerilleros, under 
 General Rea, retreated upon Matamoros, which became, in the 
 course of a short time, the head-quarters of all those predatory 
 bands who were yet held together by various chiefs, though 
 actuated far less by patriotic considerations than the hope of 
 occasional phmder. 
 
 Forming, however, a nucleus around which many disaffected 
 men began to rally, the Mexican government affected to recog- 
 nise these insubordinates as a part of the army which yet remained 
 available for future operations. A military depot was conse- 
 quently established at Matamoros, and the mixed force there 
 assembled well supplied with artillery and munitions of war. 
 In order to break up this organization, and seize the public stores. 
 General Lane determined to make a sudden descent upon the 
 town. 
 
 He accordingly started from Puebla, on the night of the 22d 
 of November, taking with him only one hundred and sixty men 
 and one piece of artillery. These, however, were all choice 
 troops, and well fitted to move with that celerity which the nature 
 of the service demanded. They consisted of twenty-five men 
 under the command of Lieutenant Field, 3d artillery-, and one 
 hundred and thirty-five men, part of whom were Texan rangers 
 under Colonel John C. Hays, and part Louisiana dragoons under 
 Captain Lewis i' 
 
 Notwithstanding the incessant rain, which continued from ten 
 o'clock on the evening of the 22d until five o'clock the following 
 
 * Lane's Official Report synopsized. 
 
GENERAL LANE ATTACKED. 511 
 
 morning, they reached Matamoros by seven o'clock A. M. of the 
 23d, " accomplishing a march of fifty-four miles in twelve hours." 
 
 Charging the advance-guard of the enemy as they approached 
 the town, they drove it back upon the main body within the city, 
 and by a dashing attack upon the combined force of the enemy, 
 dispersed it with scarcely a shadow of resistance. 
 
 In this short action, from sixty to eighty of the enemy were 
 killed or wounded, while the Americans did not lose a single 
 man. Among the killed was Colonel Piedras, commanding at 
 Matamoros, two artillery and several other officers. Twenty- 
 seven American soldiers, who had been captured at various places, 
 were discovered and set free. Three pieces of bronze cannon 
 were captured, together wdth a considerable supply of ammuni- 
 tion of all kinds, and large quantities of public stores. 
 
 After resting his men at Matamoros during the whole of the 
 23d, Lane set out on his return to Puebla on the morning of 
 the 24th. 
 
 While moving with difficulty through a long mountamous pass, 
 called the Pass of Galaxra, the train became considerably extended, 
 the artillery, and four wagons containing captured property, having 
 fallen far in the rear. At this time the advance-guard, consisting 
 of some thirty mounted riflemen, under Captain Roberts, were 
 driven in, pursued by two hundred lancers. Colonel Hays 
 was instantly ordered to the front, to unite with the advance- 
 guard, and engage the enemy. His movement was gallantly 
 executed. The lancers were charged with such impetuosity, that 
 they broke, and were pursued " across an extended plain, and 
 towards the mountain, from which they had made the attack." 
 
 When about midway of the hill the enemy attempted to rally, 
 but falling rapidly before the rifles of Hays, again broke and was 
 pursued across the crest of the mountain. 
 
 Here the enemy were reinforced by five hundred lancers under 
 General Rea, and the mounted men under Hays not carrying 
 
512 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 sabres, being armed only with revolvers and rifles, which had been 
 already discharged, he gave the order to fall back to their original 
 position. This was performed in fine style, and in the face of a 
 charge of five hundred lancers. Hays himself fell to the rear of 
 his command, and halting as the enemy advanced, deliberately 
 shot dead two of the foremost, and then covered his own retreat 
 until within supporting distance of the artillery and dragoons. 
 
 As soon as the former unlimbered, the enemy retired to the 
 mountains ; and, although he hovered for some hours afterwards 
 along the line of march, he did not again venture an attack. The 
 Mexican loss in this aflfair was fifty killed and wounded, that of 
 the Americans two men killed and two wounded ; one of the 
 former was Lieutenant Henderson Ridgley, a young officer of 
 much promise, who was lanced mortally while charging by the 
 side of Colonel Hays. 
 
 After visiting Atlixco and refreshing his men at that place. 
 General Lane returned to Puebla, which he reached on the after- 
 noon of the 25th, after an absence of sixty hours.* On his return, 
 he heard at Cholula that the Mexicans had just finished two 
 pieces of artillery at Guexocingo ; these he determined to destroy, 
 and, proceeding thither with a part of his forces, he found that the 
 guns had been removed, but destroyed the carriages, which had 
 been left behind. 
 
 Information having reached General Lane that a train of thirty- 
 six wagons, containing merchandise belonging to merchants in 
 Puebla and the capital, had been captured at San Martin by 
 guerrilleros under Generals Rea and Torrejon, he started in pur- 
 suit of the marauders with a party of cavalry and infantry, and 
 overtook them at Tlascala on their way to Queretaro with the 
 booty. Captain Roberts, with the Mounted Rifles, first came up 
 with them, and attacking them with headlong impetuosity, 
 
 *Official Report of General Lane. 
 
PEACE PROSPECTS. 513 
 
 scattered them in every direction. Seventeen of the enemy were 
 killed, and fourteen officers taken prisoners, without loss to the 
 Americans. The wagons and nearly their entire contents were 
 recaptured. 
 
 These repeated incursions being followed up by others of a like 
 character, the condition of the guerilleros was soon reduced to 
 the extreme of weakness. 
 
 Hunted from their hiding-places in the mountains, and timidly 
 refused admittance into those towns which had usually afforded 
 them protection, they had no alternative left but to disband as 
 quietly as possible, or to take refuge in states as yet remote from 
 the American arms. 
 
 This routing of the guerrilleros had also another and equally 
 beneficial effect. It carried the terrors of war into those small 
 but wealthy towns, to which, at the commencement of the cam- 
 paign, most of the better class of Mexicans had retired. These 
 having experienced none of the evils which accompany the 
 presence of a hostile soldiery, had been hitherto most clamorous 
 for a continuance of the war. But when they found themselves 
 unexpectedly exposed to the effects of sudden and uncertain 
 irruptions, and their quiet abiding-places in daily danger of being 
 crushed in by shot or shells, they became sudden, but very decided 
 converts to the blessings of peace, and wondered at the obstinacy 
 of the people of more distant states, who, being exempt from the 
 calamities experienced by those nearer the scene of action, still 
 cried out lustily against any negotiation with " the barbarians of 
 the North." 
 
 But the cry gradually grew fainter and fainter. The election 
 for deputies to the new Congress took place, and resulted in a 
 large majority* favourable to peace. 
 
 A considerable party yet remained, it is true, who sought, by 
 artful appeals to the passions of the people, to keep alive those 
 hostile elements by which alone they could hope to prosper. 
 
514 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Generals Santa Anna, Paredes, Gomez Farias, and their adherents, 
 still shouted war ; but the more sensible portion of the nation 
 began to see, in its further prosecution, the eventual absorption 
 of the Mexican republic, and its annexation as a conquered pro- 
 vince to the republic of the United States. Reinforcements were 
 already flocking in by thousands, and emigration might soon be 
 expected to follow. The question was reduced, therefore, to a 
 sacrifice of territory, or that of separate independence ; and, with 
 becoming patriotism, they inclined to the former. In leaning to 
 this decision, they were doubtless influenced by the fact that the 
 United States already held, by conquest, the territories for the 
 cession of which she offered to pay an equivalent in money ; and 
 that, if this offer was again refused, she might determine to keep 
 possession without any remuneration at all, and defy recapture. 
 
 Amid the anarchy and confusion that prevailed, Santa Anna 
 was intriguing for restoration to the supreme power, which he had 
 abandoned ; and Paredes, who had returned from exile, was 
 active and persevering for the establishment of a monarchy, of 
 which he expected to be constituted head. But the government 
 and the people began to see the selfish designs of these chieftains, 
 and not only discountenanced, but thwarted their designs. Pena 
 y Pena, upon whom the supreme power of the government had 
 devolved, ordered General Santa Anna to surrender his forces to 
 General Rincon, in the following letter of his Secretary of State : 
 
 " Office of Home and Foreign Relations, ) 
 S. W. Department. ) 
 
 <« Excellent Sir : His Excellency the Senor Provisional Pre- 
 sident of the republic, feeling profoundly his duties to his coun- 
 try, convinced of the necessity of establishing in the nation public 
 morality, and of giving more energy to the discipline of the army, 
 almost extinguished by civil dissensions — desiring, moreover, to 
 manifest to the people of the city of Mexico, and other points 
 now in the enemy's possession, that their lot is not indifferent to 
 
SANTA ANNA DEPRIVED OF COMMAND. 515 
 
 his Excellency — considering, in fine, that in every country, well 
 organized, the generals of an army answer before a tribunal for 
 the faults which they have committed, and even for the misfor- 
 tunes which may have befallen them in their campaigns — has 
 resolved that your Excellency deliver up the chief command of 
 the army to his Excellency the General of Division, Don Manuel 
 Rincon ; and until this chief may present himself to receive it, 
 temporarily to his Excellency Seiior General Don Juan Alvarez. 
 
 " The President orders that your Excellency establish head- 
 quarters wherever you may see fit, in agreement with the supreme 
 government, and there await, under the guarantees of its word 
 and honour, the orders you may receive regarding the formation 
 of a council-of-war, who may judge your Excellency for the loss 
 of the actions which your Excellency, as Commander-in-chief in 
 the present war, has directed, and particularly for the loss of the 
 capital of the republic. 
 
 " His Excellency the President believes that it is due to your 
 own honour that, by a coimcil-of-war, your conduct should be 
 cleared of all blame, and he entertains the hope that the result 
 will be favourable for your Excellency. I have the honour of 
 communicating to you this supreme order, and have the honour 
 of offering you my distinguished consideration. God and liberty ! 
 
 ROSAS. 
 
 To His Excellency Senor General, well deserving of 
 his country, Don Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna." 
 
 Refusing to obey this order, Santa Anna directed the chief part 
 of his troops to join General Alvarez, in Oajaca, and the remain- 
 der, with the exception of a small body-guard for himself, to 
 repair to Queretaro. The fallen general attempted to find his 
 w^ay out of the country through Oajaca ; but, changing his inten- 
 tion, he returned to Tehuacan, from which place he addressed a 
 protest to the new government, in which he asserted that he had 
 67 
 
516 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 only divested himself temporarily of executive authority, that he 
 might be able to oppose the enemy with more vigour. He pub- 
 lished, also, an appeal to the people, complaining of the treat- 
 ment he had received, and magnifying his services in the cause 
 of his country. But. he had now lost the power of moving and 
 moulding the people to his will. 
 
 On the 11th of November, General Anaya was elected Presi- 
 dent of the Mexican republic, until the 8th day of January, 1848; 
 this being the remainder of the constitutional term yet unexpired. 
 His opponent was General Almonte, who was warmly supported 
 by the adherents of Santa Anna, who sought by this means to 
 raise the fallen fortunes of their chieftains. 
 
 The choice of this distinguished man, more than any event 
 which had yet occurred, justified the opinion that the war was 
 now drawing to a close. Friendly to peace, and at the same 
 time acknowledged to be devoted to the best interests of his coun- 
 try, the inaugural address of President Anaya was looked forward 
 to with an anxiety heightened by the solemn urgency of the 
 occasion, and the importance of the subject upon which it would 
 necessarily treat. 
 
 In this address, which is remarkable for its mildness and 
 brevity. General Anaya rather hints, than openly asserts, his own 
 prepossession in favour of a peace ; but the favourable manner in 
 which even this slender intimation was received by the assem- 
 bled deputies, emboldened the new government, the leading 
 members of which, Pena y Peiia, Secretary of State, and Mora y . 
 Villamil, Minister of War, were avowed friends of peace, to im- 
 mediately organize a commission for the purpose of reopening 
 negotiations with Mr. Trist. But, as the powers with which the 
 latter gentleman had been intrusted by his government had been 
 subsequently revoked, it became doubtful whether the favourable 
 opportunity which now presented itself might not be lost alto- 
 gether. 
 
SECRET EXPEDITION TO TEHUACAN. 517 
 
 With a happy daring, which under other circumstances would 
 have been censured severely, Mr. Trist determined to assume 
 the responsibility of still acting as the agent of the United States, 
 provided the negotiation could be conducted upon the basis of 
 the project formerly refused. 
 
 One great obstacle to negotiation was felt to be the presence 
 of General Santa Anna. His adherents, though few in number, 
 were yet strong enough to disturb harmonious action ; and the 
 knowledge that the vanquished general was still in Orizaba, 
 watching an opportunity to regain his popularity, withheld many 
 from joining the advocates of peace, who would otherwise have 
 ranked themselves among its supporters. 
 
 An expedition undertaken by General Lane on the 18th of 
 January, tended materially to hasten a pacific result. His 
 command, consisting of dragoons, rifles, and Texan rangers, all 
 well mounted, and numbering three hundred and fifty men, left 
 the city of Mexico on the- day already mentioned, taking the 
 National Road in the direction of Vera Cruz. Colonel Hays 
 was in chief command of the rangers, and Colonel Polk led 
 the mounted riflemen and dragoons. The column reached Venda 
 de Chalco by four o'clock the next morning, and by nine o'clock the 
 same evening reached the Rio Frio Pass. The next day it entered 
 Puebla. On the evening of the 21st the column again started, 
 and at the village of Amazoque diverged from the National Road, 
 and pursued one to the left for a distance of ten or twelve miles, 
 w^hen the direction of the column w^as again changed. The road 
 now taken was a mere mule-path, winding among the mountains, 
 and for ten miles presented nothing but a rough bed of jagged 
 limestone rock. On gaining a hacienda near the village of 
 Santa Clara, at the foot of the mountains, the general halted 
 for the day. Then it was he first informed his command, that 
 the expedition had been organized for the purpose of attempt- 
 
518 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ing the arrest of General Santa Anna, who was known to have 
 taken refuge at Tehuacan, a town some forty miles distant. 
 
 At night the column was again put in motion, the inmates of 
 the hacienda, and all persons previously met, having been put 
 under strict surveillance, to prevent any tidings from reaching 
 Tehuacan ; but the deepest and wisest plans often prove abortive 
 when success is nearest. 
 
 Shortly after leaving the hacienda, a party of armed Mexicans 
 were encountered escorting a carriage. These were immediately 
 arrested, when the traveller stepped from the vehicle and pre- 
 sented a passport from General Smith, authorizing him to proceed 
 from Mexico to Orizaba and back, accompanied by eight armed 
 servants. The cortege was permitted to proceed. 
 
 No sooner, however, had the column passed out of sight, than 
 the traveller, surmising the object of the expedition, despatched 
 one of his servants by a shorter route across the country towards 
 Tehuacan, who apprised General Santa Anna of the approach of 
 the Americans. He immediately fled ; and when the excited 
 rangers dashed into the plaza some two hours afterwards, with 
 their revolvers cocked and their eyes roving from window to 
 parapet in the hope of resistance, the expected captive was far 
 beyond reach of pursuit. 
 
 It appears by a letter of Santa Anna's to the Minister of War, 
 dated at Cascatlan, February 1st, 1848, that while Santa Anna 
 was engaged in writing a note, requesting a passport to leave 
 the country, that he learned of Lane's advance and hastily re- 
 tired. After leaving Tehuacan, he took refuge in the town of 
 Teotitlan del Camiro, where there were troops from Oajaca. He 
 was subsequently permitted to leave the country, and embarked 
 on the 4th of April at Antigua, near Vera Cruz, in a Spanish 
 brig, destined for Kingston, Jamaica. 
 
 After resting for a day and a night at this place, General Lane 
 determined to push on to Orizaba, a beautiful town situated in 
 
ORIZABA GARRISONED. 519 
 
 the valley of that name, and containing from twenty to twenty- 
 five thousand inhabitants. Near the village of Acalcingo, the 
 column was met by the curate and ayuntamiento, by whom they 
 were furnished with good quarters for the night. The next 
 morning General Lane was waited on by the authorities of the 
 city of Orizaba, who desired to know upon what terms he would 
 accept the surrender of the city. His reply was, they should 
 know when he had possession. 
 
 When within about three miles of the city, he was approached 
 by a larger and more imposing deputation, who accompanied the 
 column to the gates, and there formally surrendered the keys 
 without making any stipulation whatsoever. 
 
 Having thus quietly obtained possession of the city. General 
 Lane appointed Major Polk its civil and military governor, and 
 intrusted to Colonel Hays the chief command of the troops. A 
 few days afterwards, Colonel Bankhead arrived with large rein- 
 forcements, and the possession of the city was thus effectually 
 secured by the presence of a competent garrison. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 Election of General Herrera — Situation of Public Affairs — Mr. Trist — Assumption 
 of Power — Negotiations for Peace opened — Mutual Concessions — Adoption of a 
 Treaty of Peace — Sanctioned by the Mexican Congress — Treaty amended and 
 adopted by the United States Senate — Ratifications exchanged — Evacuation of the 
 Mexican Capital by the American Forces — Territory acquired by the Treaty — 
 Description of the Country — New Mexico — Resources of the Country — Upper 
 California — The Sierra Nevada — The Great Basin — Great Salt Lake — Produc- 
 tions of the Country — Temperature — The Gold Mines — Valley of the Sacra- 
 mento — Nueva Helvetia — Captain Sutter — Discovery of Gold by Sutter — Rich- 
 ness of the Deposit — Consequences of the War — Consequences to the United 
 States — To the Inhabitants of the Territory acquired — To Mexico — To the 
 Countries adjacent — To the Isles of the Pacific. 
 
 On the 8th of January, 1848, General Herrera was elected con- 
 stitutional President of the Mexican republic. This was another 
 advance made by the peace party, and showed that the nation 
 had at length become thoroughly alarmed at the situation of 
 affairs. 
 
 Never, indeed, had the independence of Mexico been in so 
 great a danger as at this period. Her armies beaten and dis- 
 persed, her arsenals and forts in the possession of the enemy, her 
 stores and resources exhausted ; she lay prostrate at the feet of 
 her victorious foe. The probability of absorption into the republic 
 of the United States, became, therefore, every day less doubtful ; 
 and had the Mexican government refused much longer those 
 overtures for peace, which it had been repeatedly and so earnestly 
 urged to accept, it is certain that the course of conduct thus 
 forced upon the Executive of the United States, would have 
 ended in the annihilation of the separate independence of the 
 sister republic. 
 
 Fortunately the Mexican people, while standing upon the 
 
 (520) 
 
MR. TRIST. 521 
 
 very brink of destruction as a nation, saw, with at least partial 
 distinctness, the consequences which inevitably awaited them, 
 if they advanced but a single step further. That step was not 
 taken. The perilous position was slowly abandoned, and those 
 negotiations commenced, which, with the loss of that portion of 
 the republic which they were too weak to defend, were to insure 
 the independence of what yet remained. 
 
 It has been already stated, that shortly after the election of 
 Anaya to the temporary occupancy of the Presidency, a commis- 
 sion had been appointed to confer with the American agent, Mr. 
 Trist, and that the latter, conscious that his powers were annulled 
 by his own government, hesitated for a while as to what step he 
 should take in the emergency, but at length decided to meet the 
 commissioners, as if he was still clothed with powers to treat,from 
 the'American Executive. This was a rash assumption of authority, 
 which, under other circumstances, might have entailed serious 
 consequences upon the nation which he professed to serve. But 
 Mr. Trist knew his countrymen : he was conscious that, to the 
 majority of the American nation, peace was desirable upon any 
 terms not incompatible with its honour. Constant success had 
 cloyed the public appetite ; and the possibility of a long-continued 
 war affecting the financial condition of the country, began to be 
 weighed seriously by those upon whom the burden would fall 
 most heavily. 
 
 He knew also that an act of successful daring, even when per- 
 formed in defiance of the express commands of those whose po- 
 sition entitles them to implicit obedience, has always been 
 regarded with a lenient eye by the people of the United States. 
 With them the success cancels the obligation. How far a less 
 favourable result would have excused the temerity of the offence, 
 Mr. Trist was happily not called upon to experience. 
 
 The negotiations opened harmoniously by concessions on both 
 sides. The old issues were surrendered. Mexico abandoned 
 
522 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 her claim to the Nueces as her frontier, while Mr. Trist waived 
 the cession of Lower California, and the right of way across 
 the isthmus of Tehuantepec. The consideration in money, 
 which he had previously offered for the transfer of New Mexico^ 
 and Upper California, he professed himself still willing to allow, 
 also to pay to citizens of the United States the amounts of their 
 claims upon the Mexican republic, under the conventions of April 
 1839 and January 1843. The definition of boundaries, as origi- 
 nally drawn up by the government of the United States, subject 
 to the exceptions already mentioned, was then discussed and 
 finally accepted by the Mexican commissioners ; and on the 2d 
 of February, at the city of Guadalupe Hidalgo, a treaty of peace, 
 elaborated in due form, was unanimously adopted and signed by 
 Senors Conto, Cuevas, and Atristain, as commissioners on the part 
 of the Mexican government, and by Mr. Trist on that of the 
 United States, subject to the ratification of their respective govern- 
 ments. 
 
 Four days afterwards, Senor Rosas, the Mexican Minister of 
 Foreign Relations, notified the governors of the different states 
 that the treaty had been concluded, and urged upon them the 
 necessity of using their influence in insuring its prompt accept- 
 ance by the deputies, then about to be assembled in special 
 session. These deputies soon after met, and the treaty, having 
 received their sanction, was instantly despatched to the govern- 
 ment of the United States. Immediately on its receipt, it was 
 submitted by the Executive to the action of the Senate, then in 
 session, by whom, after a few unimportant amendments, it was 
 solemnly ratified on the 9th of March, 1848. 
 
 The Mexican Congress having ratified the treaty as amended 
 by the Senate of the United States, the ratifications thereof were 
 exchanged on the 30th of May, 1848, at Queretaro, by the 
 American commissioners, Ambrose H. Sevier and Nathan CliflTord, 
 and Senor Rosas, minister of Internal and Foreign Relations. 
 
BRITISH, PvO SSE SSIOXS 
 
 3.1 A F OF 
 ORrcON & UPPER CALIFORNIA. 
 
TERRITORY ACQUIRED BY THE TREATY. 523 
 
 Immediately thereafter, the American troops began to evacuate 
 the country. On the 12th of June the last division left the 
 capital. The American flag descended from the National Palace, 
 after a complimentary salute by the Mexican artillery, in command 
 of General La Vega, while the Mexican colours were run up 
 amid a salute from the battery of Lieutenant-Colonel Duncan. 
 
 The treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ceded to the United States 
 territories extending from the eastern base of the Rocky Moun- 
 tains to the shores of the Pacific, in breadth over ten degrees of 
 latitude, and containing an area of far more than half a million 
 of square miles. This vast region, exceedingly diversified in 
 features, in climate, and in soil, has been usually comprehended 
 under the rather vaguely applied names of Upper California and 
 New Mexico. Between these two acknowledged, though greatly 
 unequal, divisions, no boundary-line seems ever to have been 
 definitely fixed. They meet and melt into each other; and, so 
 far at least as Mexican geographers enlighten us, while Nuevo 
 Mexico implies the country extending from the easternmost 
 range of the Northern Cordilleras, towards the west, by Alta Cali- 
 fornia, on the other hand, may be understood, the region reaching 
 from the coast of the Pacific far away towards the rising sun. 
 
 This indefiniteness of boundary being premised, we shall not 
 be surprised to find the area of New Mexico estimated at one 
 time as covering two hundred thousand, and at another time as 
 embracing only forty-four thousand square miles. For any prac- 
 tical purpose, we shall not, perhaps, materially err, in considering 
 the name applicable strictly to the irregularly shaped basin of the 
 Upper Rio Grande. This extensive district is on all sides 
 hemmed in, and in all directions crossed and chequered, by bleak 
 and barren mountains, whose summits rise from ten to thirteen 
 thousand feet above the level of the sea. Its table-lands, forming 
 part of the great Mexican plateau, are everywhere strewed with 
 large angular fragments of basalt, trap, lava, and amygdaloid. 
 68 
 
534 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 The valleys alone offer inducements to cultivation. These, how- 
 ever, are numerous, of various sizes and running at various 
 angles into the main valley of the Rio Grande. The latter is 
 described as being magnificent in scenery and rich in soil, tra- 
 versed by mountain streams paying tribute to the broad bright 
 river, whose whole course is dotted by towns, villages, and farms. 
 The whole country enjoys a bland and salubrious climate. 
 
 New Mexico is divided into three departments, the Northern, 
 the Middle, and the South-eastern : these are subdivided into 
 counties or districts ; and these again into townships. Of the 
 principal divisions, that lying furthest south is incomparably the 
 richest, the valley of the Del Norte in this part containing the 
 main agricultural wealth of the state, and sustaining a population 
 of about fifty thousand, most of whom are' in easy circumstances, 
 and many possess wealth in land, stock, and gold dust. From 
 official documents found at Santa F^, Lieutenant Abert calculated 
 the population of the whole state at one hundred thousand ; others 
 raise the estimate to one hundred and sixty thousand. In either 
 number is included the Pueblo Indian population. The mountains 
 are said to contain immense mineral treasures, and when even 
 imperfectly, and under great difficulties, worked, to have bounti- 
 fully repaid the labour. Gold, silver, lead, and copper, with 
 coal and brimstone, gypsum and salt, are all said to abound. 
 Nor can there be much doubt of the correctness of these repre- 
 sentations. The products of the valleys are grain, pulse, pepper, 
 and onions, and, most valuable of all, the grape. In the latter 
 the Rio Grande possesses a source of revenue, unsurpassed by 
 any region in Europe. Even now many hundred thousand gallons 
 of excellent wine are manufactured yearly, while to American 
 energy the means are at hand for a tenfold increase. Immense 
 herds of cattle, horses, and mules find sustenance on the mountain 
 slopes ; and when, under new policy and ample protection, the 
 countless hillsides shall have been thickly dotted over with sheep. 
 
UPPER CALIFORNIA. 525 
 
 the mildness of the climate gives promise that New Mexico 
 may, in the abundance and fineness of her fleeces, outrival Old 
 Spain. Nor can we believe that the thousand unfailing moun- 
 tain streams, that leap invitingly down to the valley, will be very 
 long permitted to exhaust their unappreciated powers, strangers 
 to American enterprise and manufacturing skill. 
 
 Independent of its intrinsic value, as the future abode of a 
 numerous and happy branch of the great republican family. New 
 Mexico is, in a commercial and in a political view, an important 
 and even necessary possession to the United States. Holding it, 
 the latter will effectually suppress the ruinous incursions of the 
 savage Indian tribes, and thus protect and nurse into prosperity, 
 not only New Mexico itself, but, what true policy equally 
 dictates, the adjoining provinces of the sister republic also. 
 From Santa F^ to the city of Mexico, and to the several capitals 
 and leading towns of the central states, the common table-land 
 affords all facilities for travel. From Santa Fe to Fort Leaven- 
 worth, the authority of Colonel Emory demonstrates that there are 
 few obstacles for a railway, no obstacle insurmountable or of 
 exceeding difficulty. Pursuing the route followed by Major 
 Cooke, from the Rio Grande, across the great table-land, there 
 is the all but established certainty, that such railway may be 
 easily continued to the Pacific. Thus will be opened easy 
 routes for the introduction of immense quantities of merchandise 
 from the United States, into the then thriving and populous states 
 of Durango, Sonora, and Lower California ; while the most desir- 
 able means of connexion shall have been secured between the 
 new Great West, with its ocean tributary, and the teeming valley 
 of the Father of Waters, 
 
 The region which, under the name of Upper California, has 
 passed under dominion of the American flag, lies between the 
 32d and 42d degrees of north latitude, extending from Sonora and 
 Lower California in the south, to Oregon in the north ; and reach- 
 
526 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 ing from the Pacific, over successive mountain ranges, basins, and 
 table-lands, to the uncertain limits of New Mexico. The most 
 eastern and central portions of this vast extent have been, until 
 lately, wholly unknown, and are still unoccupied, save by a few 
 wandering tribes of Indian savages. Its average length, and 
 average breadth, are each about seven hundred miles. The 
 natural diversities of such an extent of country, it may be antici- 
 pated, must render any general description unsatisfactory and 
 fallacious. But here those differences are greater than usually 
 met with in tracts of even equal extent. 
 
 The exceedingly interesting observations of Colonel Fremont, 
 afford us the most satisfactory and reliable information in regard 
 to the whole region. From these principally we must abbreviate, 
 recommending the perusal of his memoir to those who desire fuller 
 and more detailed accounts. 
 
 The universally prevailing opinion has been, that the strip of 
 country lying along the Pacific, and between that ocean and the 
 Sierra Nevada, in length about seven hundred, and in breadth about 
 an average of one hundred and twenty-five miles, was the only por- 
 tion of Alta California capable of being cultivated and occupied 
 by a civilized population. Exploration has ascertained the ground- 
 lessness of this opinion. The Sierra Nevada — a part of that great 
 range which, under different names and with different elevations, 
 runs nearly parallel and nigh to the coast, from the Californian 
 peninsula to Russian America — divides Upper California into two 
 parts, exercising a decided influence on the climate, soil, and pro- 
 ductions of each. Its appellation, " The Snowy," as applied in 
 Spanish geography, ascertains the fact that its summits ever dwell 
 in snow. " Stretching along the coast, and at a general distance 
 of one hundred miles from it, this great mountain wall receives 
 the warm winds, charged with vapour, which sweep across the 
 Pacific Ocean, precipitates their accumulated moisture in fertilizing 
 rains and snows upon its western flank, and leaves cold and dry 
 
THE GREAT BASIN. 527 
 
 winds to pass on to the east. Hence the characteristic differences 
 of the two regions — mildness, fertility, and a superb vegetable 
 kingdom on one side ; comparative barrenness and cold on the 
 other." The state of vegetation, as well as thermometrical obser- 
 vations, have established and illustrated the fact, that the two sides 
 of the Sierra exhibit two distinct climates, varying by about 
 twenty degrees. Thus, December on one side of the mountain 
 was winter ; on the other it was spring. 
 
 East of the Sierra Nevada, and between it and the Rocky 
 Mountains, is that anomalous feature in our continent, the Great 
 Basin ; some five hundred miles in diameter every way, between 
 four and five thousand feet above the level of the sea, shut in all 
 around by mountains, with its own system of lakes and rivers, and 
 having no connexion whatever with the sea. Partly arid and 
 sparsely inhabited, the general character of the basin is that of a 
 desert, but with great exceptions, there being parts of it very fit 
 for the residence of a civilized people ; and of these parts, the 
 Mormons have lately established themselves in one of the largest 
 and best. The predominating features of the interior are moun- 
 tains rising abruptly from narrow bases to heights of from two to 
 five thousand feet above the level of the country, having their 
 summits, for the greater part of the year, capped with snow, their 
 sides wooded and grassy, and their bases, ere they meet the level, 
 girt with belts of rich alluvium, while streams, varying in breadth 
 from two to fifty feet, hurry down their slopes, and lose themselves, 
 some in lakes, some in the loose and light alluvial belts, and some 
 in the dry plains that isolate these mountains from each other. 
 
 The Great Salt Lake — a saturated solution of common salt — 
 of very irregular outline, and about seventy miles in length, and 
 the Utah, a lake of fresh water, are situated in this basin towards 
 its eastern rim. The Salt Lake is four thousand two hundred 
 feet above the level of the sea ; the Utah, about one hundred feet 
 above the level of the Salt, is connected with the latter by a strait. 
 
528 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 or river, thirty-five miles long. Both united drain an area of ten 
 or twelve thousand square miles, and have on the east, along the 
 base of the mountain, the usual bench of alluvion, which extends 
 to a distance of three hundred miles, with wood and water, and 
 abundant grass. Along the connecting strait the Mormons have 
 established themselves, where arable land for a large settlement 
 abounds.* The Utah and its numerous tributaries afford large 
 trout and other fish in abundance. In the Salt Lake no fish or 
 animal life of any kind is found ; every evaporation from it leaves 
 an incrustation of salt, and a covering like ice forms over the 
 waters which its waves throw over the rocks. 
 
 Other lakes there are within this basin, many of them deep 
 and clear, and abounding in excellent fish. There are also 
 several considerable rivers, the most important, perhaps, of which, 
 is that named by Colonel Fremont " Humboldt,^^ but sketched 
 sometimes on maps as << Mary's" or " Ogden's." Rising in two 
 streams from the mountains west of the Great Salt Lake, and 
 bearing nearly due west towards the Sierra Nevada, it presents a 
 narrow valley of rich alluvion, beautifully covered with nutritious 
 grasses, and is tracked through the plain by a line of willow and 
 cotton-wood trees. Lying on the present line of travel to Cali- 
 fornia and Oregon, furnishing a level, unobstructed way for nearly 
 three hundred miles, and terminating in a marshy lake within 
 fifty miles of the base of the Sierra Nevada, and opposite to the 
 Salmon-Trout pass, which leads over the mountain into the valley 
 of the Sacramento, some forty miles north of Nueva Helvetia, 
 this river is certainly an object of interest and importance. There 
 are very many other streams of various lengths, up to two hun- 
 
 * In the spring of 1848, these settlers had three thousand acres in wheat, seven 
 saw and grist-mills, seven hundred houses in a fortified enclosure of sixty acres, 
 with stock and other suitable accompaniments. Inlelligence from them up to May 
 of the present year, indicates continued prosperity. They have commenced the 
 erection of a city on a grand scale, to include a council-house, bridges, baths, 
 schools, colleges, and all the institutions of a great metropolis. 
 
THE GREAT BASIN. 529 
 
 dred miles, but similar in their general character, and all obeying 
 the general law of terminating their course within the' basin, in 
 some one of the modes before mentioned. 
 
 The climate of the Great Basin does not present the rigorous 
 winter that might be expected from its elevation and mountainous 
 structure. The summer appears to linger long, the winter to be 
 open, pleasant, and clear. In fact, there is nothing in the 
 climate of this great, and hitherto maligned region, to prevent 
 civilized man from making it his home, and finding in its arable 
 parts a comfortable subsistence. 
 
 The words of Colonel Fremont will best and most briefly 
 describe the second great division of this vast territory. " West 
 of the Sierra Nevada, and between that mountain and the sea, is 
 the second grand division of California (Upper), and the only 
 part to which the name applies in the current language of the 
 country. It is the occupied and inhabited part, and so different 
 in character — so divided by the mountain wall of the Sierra from 
 tlie Great Basin above — as to constitute a region to itself, with a 
 structure and configuration — a soil, climate, and productions — 
 of its own ; and as Northern Persia may be referred to as some 
 t3"pe of the former, so may Italy be referred to as some point of 
 comparison for the latter. East and west from the Sierra Nevada 
 to the sea, it will average, in the middle parts, one hundred and 
 fifty miles, in the northern parts two hundred, giving an area of 
 above one hundred thousand square miles. Lateral ranges, 
 parallel to the Sierra Nevada and the coast, make the structure 
 of the country, and break it into a surface of valleys and moun- 
 tains, the valleys a few hundred, and the mountains two to four 
 thousand feet above the sea. Stretched along the mild coast of 
 the Pacific, with a general elevation in its plains and valleys of 
 only a few hundred feet above the level of the sea — and backed 
 by the long and lofty wall of the Sierra — mildness and geniality 
 may be assumed as the characteristics of its climate. The 
 
530 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 inhabitant of corresponding latitudes on the Atlantic side of this 
 continent can with difficulty conceive of the soft air and southern 
 productions under the same latitudes in the maritime region of 
 Upper California. The singular beauty and purity of the sky in 
 the south of this region, is characterized by Humboldt as a rare 
 phenomenon, and all travellers realize the truth of his description. 
 The present condition of the country affords but slight data for 
 forming correct opinions of the agricultural capacity and fertility 
 of the soil. At present, but little remains of the high cultivation 
 which had been attained at the " Missions" (successively under 
 the control of the Jesuits, the Franciscans, and Dominicans). 
 Only in some places do we see the evidences of what the country 
 is capable of. At San Buenaventura we found the olive-trees in 
 January, bending under the weight of neglected fruit ; and the 
 mission of San Luis Obispo (latitude 35°), is still distinguished 
 for the excellence of its olives, considered finer and larger than 
 those of the Mediterranean. The productions of the south differ 
 from those of the north and the middle. Grapes, olives, Indian 
 corn, have been its staples, with many assimilated fruits and 
 grains. Tobacco has been recently introduced, and the uniform 
 summer heat which follows the wet season, and is uninterrupted 
 by rain, would make the southern country well adapted to cotton. 
 Wheat is the first product of the north, where it always consti- 
 tuted the principal cultivation of the missions. This promises 
 to be the grain-growing region of California. The moisture of 
 the coast seems particularly suited to the potato, and to the vege- 
 tables common to the United States, which here grow to an 
 extraordinary size. Perhaps few parts of the world can produce 
 in such perfection so great a variety of fruits and grains, as the 
 large and various region enclosing the bay of San Francisco, and 
 drained by its waters. The climate of maritime California is 
 greatly modified by the structure of the country, and under this 
 aspect may be considered in three divisions — the southern^ below 
 
TEMPERATURE. 531 
 
 Point Conception and the Santa Barbara Mountain, about lati- 
 tude 35° ; the northern^ from Cape Mendocino, latitude 41°, to 
 the Oregon boundary ; and the middle, including the bay and 
 basin of San Francisco, and the coast between Point Conception 
 and Cape Mendocino. Of these three divisions, the rainy season 
 is longest and heaviest in the north, and lightest in the south. 
 Vegetation is governed accordingly, coming with the rains, 
 decaying where they fail. Summer and winter, in our sense of 
 the terms, are not applicable to this part of the country. It is 
 not heat and cold, but wet and dry, which mark the seasons ; 
 and the winter months, instead of killing vegetation, revive it 
 The dry season makes a period of consecutive drought, the only 
 winter in the vegetation of this country, which can hardly be said 
 at any time to cease. In forests, where the soil is sheltered, in 
 low lands of streams, and hilly country, where the ground remains 
 moist, grass continues constantly green, and flowers bloom in all the 
 months of the year. In the southern half of the country, the long 
 summer drought has rendered' irrigation necessary, and the experi- 
 ence of the missions, in their prosperous day, has shown that in 
 California, as elsewhere, the dryest plains are made productive, and 
 the heaviest crops produced by that mode of cultivation. With 
 irrigation, a succession of crops may be produced throughout the 
 year. Salubrity and mildness characterize the climate, there 
 being no prevailing diseases, and the extremes of heat during 
 the summer being checked by sea-breezes during the day, and 
 by light airs from the Sierra Nevada during the night. The 
 nights are generally cool and refreshing, as is the shade during 
 the hottest day." 
 
 Thus largely we have borrowed, by selection and condensation, 
 from the official memoir of Colonel Fremont, whose observations 
 are, almost to the letter, confirmed and corroborated, if confirma- 
 tion and corroboration be deemed necessary, by all competent 
 and trustworthy authorities, both of earlier and later date. And 
 69 
 
532 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 such distinct and satisfactory evidence, as to the character and 
 general capabilities of that distant region, can scarcely be omitted, 
 in view of the accumulating farrago of confusion and contradic- 
 tion, that forms the burden and the refrain of the ephemeral press. 
 
 A historical and geographical memoir of the country our limits 
 forbid ; nor are the materials for the latter portion of such a work 
 as yet sufficiently comprehensive and ample. From the exceed- 
 ingly interesting, and, under the circumstances, w^onderfully 
 accurate work of M. de Mofias, giving an account of the country 
 in 1842; from Humboldt and Greenhow; from Sir George Simp- 
 son's " Overland Journey ;" and from the notes of the exploring 
 expeditions by sea and land, under Wilkes and Fremont, as well 
 as from many comparatively unpretending documents from vari- 
 ous adventurers, military and commercial, a large mass of in- 
 formation has been accumulated. To those we must refer for 
 details. 
 
 Some notice, however brief and imperfect, will be expected 
 from us, of the discovery, position, and prospects of that extra- 
 ordinary mineral wealth, which during the past twelve months 
 has caused feverish excitement, not only throughout our own 
 dominion, and the countries adjacent, but even in Europe, and 
 the islands of the Pacific, while it has roused from his torpor even 
 the sluggish Asiatic. The gold mines — rather let us call them, 
 in the homely, and certainly, so far as experience has yet taught, 
 more appropriate term of the 07ice Far West, the gold diggings — 
 independently of all that unwholesome, and not unnatural pertur- 
 bation which they have caused, are an object of very great, though 
 not, in our opinion, primary or overwhelming importance. 
 
 The belief has long prevailed, that California teemed with 
 mineral treasure ; more especially with the most insinuating and 
 beloved of metals. To the Jesuit Fathers, even in the earliest 
 period of their benevolent labours, the existence of this source of 
 wealth was not unknown ; but, either from a belief in the insuffi- 
 
NUEVA HELVETIA. 533 
 
 ciency of reward to be reaped by the time, labour, and expendi- 
 ture supposed to be required — or from the desire of directing the 
 main attention of their reclaimed children of the wilds to the 
 more unfailing mine of steady industry, they extended no coun- 
 tenance, no encouragement to the search for gold. The discovery 
 then, or re-discovery of these layers of wealth, bears date in the 
 early part of 1848. 
 
 At the western base of the Sierra Nevada, betweeen it and the 
 coast range, and stretching across the head of the spacious bay 
 of San Francisco, lies the continuous valley of the Sacramento 
 and San Joaquin rivers, which, rising at its opposite ends, and 
 receiving in their course many tributaries from the mountains, 
 liow towards each other, the Sacramento from the north, the San 
 Joaquin from the south, meet about half-way, and send their 
 united waters by a delta into the bay. This long valley, extend- 
 ing some five hundred miles, is the garden of California. On 
 the Sacramento is the settlement of Nueva Helvetia, founded by 
 Captain Sutter, a native of Switzerland, who having held a com- 
 mission in the Swiss Guards of Charles X. of France, and being 
 released from that employment by the revolution of 1830, emi- 
 grated first to Western Missouri, and thence, in 1838-9, to the 
 country in which he has so fortunately established himself, under 
 a grant from the Mexican government. By well-timed concilia- 
 tion and decision, he speedily acquired over the Indians all de- 
 sirable authority, and converted them into a peacable and indus- 
 trious people. By their labour, with the aid of American, French, 
 and German mechanics, he constructed various works. Around 
 him, others, allured and taught by his example, settled on the 
 Rio de los Americanos, or American Fork, a tributary of the 
 Sacramento, and like him prospered in their industry. For the 
 protection of his settlement, he has had a large fort, mounting 
 twelve cannon, and capable of containing one thousand men, but 
 garrisoned by forty trained and uniformed Indians. 
 
534 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 Ascending the south branch of the American Fork, the country 
 becomes broken and mountainous, the hills rise to about one 
 thousand feet above the valley, and at a distance of some fifty 
 miles from his fort, Captain Sutter resolved to locate a saw-mill 
 in the centre of a growth of pine. For the erection of such a 
 mill he contracted with a Mr. Marshall, in September 1837. In 
 the course of the winter and ensuing spring, the building was 
 completed, and a dam and race constructed ; but the tail-race 
 having been in the first instance found too narrow to permit the 
 sufficiently rapid escape of the water, the latter was, to save 
 labour, allowed to run with a strong current directly into the 
 race, so as to wash it wider and deeper. This purpose eflfected, a 
 bed of mud and gravel was carried to the foot of the race. Some 
 glittering particles lying on the upper edge of this deposit at- 
 tracted Mr. Marshall's attention. They were gathered, their 
 value ascertained, and Captain Sutter made acquainted with the 
 discovery. These gentlemen naturally wished to keep the matter 
 secret, at least for a time, but it leaked out and spread with 
 lightning velocity. 
 
 The first explorers — and daily did they increase in numbers — 
 were amply repaid for their labours. On the banks of the 
 streams, and in the dry ravines, the precious metal was found, 
 principally in particles of greater or less coarseness, mixed with 
 gravel and sand from which it was easily washed. As search 
 was extended, the adjoining and even more distant streams and 
 ravines proved equally wealthy. In three months full four 
 thousand persons were engaged in gold-hunting. In scales it 
 was usually found, but sometimes luinps of extraordinary size 
 startled with delight some toiling explorer, and even at this 
 period from thirty to forty thousand dollars' worth of gold was 
 daily obtained. 
 
 The discovery of these vast deposits of gold, says Colonel 
 Mason, in a despatch to his government, has entirely changed 
 
CALIFORNIA GOLD. 535 
 
 the character of Upper California. Its people, before engaged in 
 cultivating their small patches of ground, and guarding their 
 herds of cattle and horses, have all gone to the mines. Labourers 
 and mechanics abandoned their pursuits, traders forsook their 
 stores, and sailors their vessels. Even from the garrisons soldiers 
 deserted, unable to resist the strong temptation. In all quarters of 
 the states the news of the discovery and the success attendant 
 on adventure, summoned forth thousands, ready to forsake home 
 and all its allurements to try their fortunes in the mines. The 
 influx of new comers lessened not the wealth of any; ample room 
 for all was found, and each day but showed that almost limitless 
 along the Sierra, was the extent of the region of gold. 
 
 On the 8th of December, 1848, the first deposit of gold from 
 California w^as received at the U. S. Mint in Philadelphia. It had 
 been brought by Mr. David Garter, from San Francisco, over the 
 isthmus, and weighed 1804.59 ounces Troy. On the 9th another 
 deposit was made of 228 ounces. The gold was of two sorts in 
 external character, though apparently not differing in quality. 
 That from the dry diggings was in grains, averaging from one to 
 two penny- weights ; that from the swamps or margins of the 
 streams in spangles of much smaller bulk. Assays of this gold, 
 when melted, showed an average fineness of 894, being thus 
 slightly below the standard fineness, which is 900. The average 
 value per ounce of the bullion, before melting, is stated at $18,065; 
 in bars, after melting, $18.50. Further assays by various pro- 
 fessional persons, have ascertained that the California gold is in 
 fineness fully equal to any found on this continent, and within 
 half a carat of the quality of English and American standard coin. 
 
 The history of these mines, during the last few months, we 
 cannot venture to trace. Ship after ship from the American 
 ports has borne away expectant hundreds, and many hundreds 
 more have sought the distant treasure-ground by land. The latest 
 intelligence more than confirms early accounts. Marvellous as 
 
536 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 were deemed the stones respecting the abundance of the metal, 
 they have been found to fall far short of the reality. New dis- 
 coveries have almost daily enlarged the region in which gold is 
 found ; and the most substantial evidence of the riches of the 
 region, is supplied in the arrival at various ports in the States, of 
 vessels bearing large consignments of the metal. The " Crescent 
 City'''' steamer reached New Orleans on the 11th of June, with 
 dust on board to the amount of one million of dollars. 
 
 During the winter, gold-washing had been carried on with 
 varied success. At the dry diggings snow fell to the depth of 
 three feet, and remained on the ground several days after each 
 storm. Little gold was procured. At Culloma, however, or the 
 saw-mill, where first the gold was discovered, the season was 
 uniformly gentle, and the labours of the persevering explorer 
 attended with partial success. On the Middle Fork, the average 
 return was about two ounces per day to each man, but high water 
 retarded the work, and was likely so to do until the end of May. 
 
 Fair success, with a like average, rewarded operations on the 
 Yuba. The same may generally be said of Feather River, Bear 
 Creek, Dry Creek, Mohelumne and Cosumne rivers. But the great 
 attraction has been the Stanislaus, whose waters are said to wash 
 out the beautiful ore in size and quantity unequalled. The borders 
 of this stream form an inexhaustibly rich portion of the placer. 
 
 The abundance of the gold, and the facility with which it is 
 accumulated, very naturally have had the effect of raising the 
 price of labour enormously. One hundred dollars a month fail 
 to induce the services of ordinary seamen, and numbers of ships 
 in the bay are deserted by their crews. The town of San Fran- 
 cisco is crowded with constantly arriving immigrants, and about 
 the beginning of May, it was calculated some eight thousand per- 
 sons were at work in the various mines. In the town, accommo- 
 dations of any kind could be procured only at enormous rents. 
 Good provisions were equally scarce and dear. Other prices may 
 
CALIFORNIA GOLD. 537 
 
 be inferred from that of board, which stood, exclusive of lodging, 
 at $20 per week. Dates from San Francisco to the 18th of May, 
 in the main corroborated the previously received intelligence, and 
 represent the tide of immigration as unceasing and undiminished. 
 "In a few days," says the " Alta California," a newspaper pub- 
 lished at San Francisco, <« this place will resume its wonted busi- 
 ness bustle, when rare times are anticipated. We will have but 
 little rain from this time until the setting in of another winter. A 
 cloudless sky is above us, verdant plains and woodlands stretch 
 for leagues away in the distance ; but, in the intei-val of another 
 year, what changes shall be rung in the beautiful valley before us ! 
 The flood-gate to fortune is opened with the balmy breath of 
 spring, but in the resistless torrent pouring in, how great must 
 be the sacrifice of health ; how many shall ' by the way-side fall 
 and perish' in the struggle for wealth — many, very many who are 
 now setting out strong in hope and heart, and buoyant in youth's 
 full vigour!" 
 
 Hitherto all comers, foreigners from every clime, as well as 
 American citizens and inhabitants of the Californias, have parti- 
 cipated without hindrance in the abundant wealth of this region, 
 nor does any effort seem as yet to have been made to assert the 
 undoubted rights of the nation over the soil purchased by national 
 blood and treasure. At length the American citizens in the coun- 
 try begin to murmur, and question the right of those foreign intru- 
 ders, for such, under every aspect of international law, they must 
 be considered. It is hoped that a grievance so manifest and so 
 detrimental to the interests and just rights of our citizens, will 
 speedily be removed ; and that, as a next step, means will be 
 adopted of securing to the nation at large some benefits, at least, 
 from that which is national property alone. 
 
 A few words on the advantages of the maritime region, before 
 this chapter is brought to a close. From the time of its earliest 
 discovery until the present, the bay of San Francisco has been 
 
538 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 considered one of the finest in the world, and is fully entitled to 
 that high character, viewed even only as a harbour. To this fact 
 all visiters of all nations have borne unanimous testimony. But 
 far beyond its value as a mere harbour, is its geographical posi- 
 tion in relation to the commercial and political interests of the 
 United States, and not only of the States, but of also the opposite 
 extremes of the old world. The other harbours are, proceeding 
 southwardly, Monterey, Santa Barbara, San Pedro, and San Diego. 
 All these are of secondary importance. San Diego is, next to 
 San Francisco, the safest and best in the province, being land- 
 locked, with deep water and a good bottom. Thus, at its oppo- 
 site extremities. Upper California possesses tw^o of the best ports 
 on the Pacific, while each of them is greatly enhanced in value 
 by the distance of any other harbour worthy of the name, San 
 Francisco being nearly a thousand miles from Port Discovery, to 
 the north, and San Diego, nearly six hundred miles from the Bay 
 of Magdalena, to the south. Add to these commanding advan- 
 tages the fertility of the large district west of the Sierra Nevada, 
 the mildness and salubrity of the climate, the vast resources for 
 ship timber, grain, and cattle, and we can the better appreciate 
 the admiring language of Sir George Simpson, in his " Overland 
 Journey^'*'' "What a splendid country, whether we regard its 
 internal resources or its commercial capabilities !" 
 
 But thoughts here arise, on which we must not now permit 
 ourselves to dwell. A future of almost overwhelming interest is 
 before the nation, which now grasps the two great world oceans, 
 and invites Asia and Europe to meet and draw closer together the 
 ties of common humanity on her mediating soil. Through her 
 broad dominions the wealth of Asia and the civilization of Europe 
 })ass one another, to leave their riches deposits on the way ; and 
 to both she is called on to become the exemplar and the guide in 
 the higher civilization that awaits the species — in the moral and 
 social progress that is to bring with it the happiness of mankind. 
 
CONSEQUENCES OF THE WAR. 539 
 
 Whether the sudden and immense influx of the precious metals 
 from the new territory will enervate or strengthen the North 
 American Republic, time alone can determine. Too often is it 
 found inimical to national virtue ; and it may well be doubted, 
 whether the eager search for gold by a promiscuous crowd of 
 unsteady adventurers, will not be hostile to the industry, frugality, 
 and virtue, for which, as a nation, we are proverbial. At present 
 the fear and the hope are so intimately intermingled, that the sin- 
 cere patriot trembles while he glows. One advantage from the 
 discovery will necessarily arise — the rapid settlement of the newly- 
 acquired territory. 
 
 In another point of view the war with Mexico has been pro- 
 ductive of the most beneficial consequences. It has given our 
 country a prominent rank among the nations of the earth. It 
 has displayed to the eyes of doubting monarchists the existence 
 of a majestic power and energy, a youthful freshness of spirit 
 combined with a manly vigour, which are well calculated to insure 
 prolonged peace, by the respect which her ability has inspired, 
 and the admiration which has been elicited by the heroic conduct 
 of her sons. The United States has not merely shown her ability 
 for defensive war, but has successfully solved the problem of the 
 capacity of a republic to engage in a foreign war. She has 
 demonstrated that, without the expense of a standing army, she 
 can at any time bring into the field a force of one hundred 
 thousand men drawn from the body of the people, able to endure 
 fatigue, surmount obstacles, and achieve victories, under circum- 
 stances which would have broken the spirits, and quelled the 
 courage, even of troops inured to war. 
 
 The consequences of the Mexican war must necessarily be 
 favourable to the inhabitants of the territory ceded to the United 
 States. Under a fixed and stable form of government, relieved 
 from former exactions, with ample guaranties for the protection 
 of person and property, they will have additional inducements 
 70 
 
540 HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR. 
 
 to industry and enterprise, and by the example of their northern 
 neighbours, who may settle among them, will be stimulated to 
 generous exertions, which will raise them from their present 
 ignorance and degradation, to all the blessings of rational liberty 
 and a higher civilization. 
 
 Mexico herself, being brought into more immediate connexion 
 with the republic of the United States, and enjoying a freer inter- 
 course with its citizens, will participate in these advantages 
 Enervated by dependence on her mines, long distracted by 
 internal dissensions, and a prey to the intrigues of military des- 
 pots, she will at length rise to an appreciation of real liberty, 
 learn that her true policy is industry and peace, and, beating her 
 " swords into ploughshares, and her spears into pruning-hooks," 
 find her chief wealth and happiness in peaceful, health-inspiring 
 toil. Relieved from the exorbitant exactions of her military and 
 priesthood, her expenditures will be diminished, while increased 
 attention to agriculture and manufactures will develop and aug- 
 ment her resources ; and institutions of learning, after the manner 
 of those of her northern sister, diffuse knowedge and virtue 
 among her ignorant and half-civilized multitudes. 
 
 Nor is this all. The light of liberty and civilization, from 
 where our flag is now planted on the shores of the Pacific, will 
 illumine not only the adjacent countries, but the far-off islands 
 of the watery waste. From the bay of San Francisco, our 
 white-winged ships will visit the shores of Asia and Africa, 
 and each green isle that gems the Southern Ocean, freighted 
 for their heathen inhabitants not merely with perishable mer- 
 chandise, but the "true riches," civilization, and the know- 
 ledge of the one God, causing the "isles to be glad," and the 
 <' desert to smile and blossom as the rose." 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 TREATY 
 
 Of Peace, Friendship, Limits^ and Settlement, bettoeen the United States of 
 America, and the Mexican Republic, concluded at Guadalupe Hidalgo, on 
 the Second Day of February, -with Amendments by the American Senate, 
 March IQth, 1848, and by the Mexican Senate, May 25th, 1848. 
 
 THE TREATY. 
 
 In the name of Almighty God : 
 
 The United States of America and the United Mexican States, 
 animated by a sincere desire to put an end to the calamities of the 
 war which unhappily exists between the two republics, and to establish 
 on a solid basis relations of peace and friendship, which shall confer 
 reciprocal benefits on the citizens of both, and assure the concord, 
 harmony, and mutual confidence wherein the two people should live 
 as good neighbours, have, for that purpose, appointed their respective 
 plenipotentiaries ; that is to say, the President of the United States 
 has appointed N. P, Trist, a citizen of the United States, and the 
 President of the Mexican republic has appointed Don Luis Gonzaga 
 ^ Cuevas, Don Bernardo CoAto, and Don Miguel Atristain, citizens of 
 the said republic, who, after a reciprocal communication of their 
 respective powers, have, under the protection of Almighty God, the 
 author of peace, arranged, agreed upon, and signed the following 
 treaty of peace, friendship, limits, and settlement, between the United 
 States of America and the Mexican republic. 
 
 Art. I. — There shall be a firm and universal peace between the 
 United States of America and the Mexican republic, and between their 
 
 541 
 
542 APPENDIX. 
 
 respective countries, territories, cities, towns, and people, without 
 exception of places or persons. 
 
 Art. II. — Immediately on the signature of this treaty, a convention 
 shall be entered into between a commissioner or commissioners 
 appointed by the general-in-chief of the forces of the United States, 
 and such as may be appointed by the Mexican government, to the 
 end that a provisional suspension of hostilities shall take place ; and 
 that in the places occupied by the said forces, constitutional order 
 may be re-established, as regards the political, administrative, and 
 judicial branches, so far as this shall be permitted by the circumstances 
 of military occupation. 
 
 Art. III. — Immediately upon the ratification of the present treaty 
 by the government of the United States, orders shall be transmitted to 
 the commanders of their land and naval forces, requiring the latter 
 (provided this treaty shall then have been ratified by the government 
 of the Mexican republic) immediately to desist from blockading any 
 Mexican ports ; and requiring the foi'mer (under the same condition) 
 to commence, at the earliest moment practicable, withdrawing all 
 troops of the United States then in the interior of the Mexican republic, 
 to points that shall be selected by common agreement, at a distance 
 from the sea-ports not exceeding thirty leagues; and such evacuation 
 of the interior of the republic shall be completed with the least possible 
 delay : the Mexican government hereby binding itself to afford every 
 facility in its power for rendering the same convenient to the troops, 
 on their march, and in their new positions, and for promoting a good 
 understanding between them and the inhabitants. In like manner, 
 orders shall be despatched to the persons in charge of the custom- 
 houses at all ports occupied by the forces of the United States, requir- 
 ing them (under the same condition) immediately to deliver possession 
 of the same to the persons authorized by the Mexican government to 
 receive it, together with all bonds and evidences of debt for duties on 
 importations and on cxportations, not yet fallen due. Moreover, a 
 faithful and exact account shall be made out, showing the entire 
 amount of all duties on imports and on exports, collected at such 
 custom-houses, or elsewhere in Mexico, by authority of the United 
 States, from and after the day of the ratification of this treaty by the 
 government of the Mexican republic ; and also an account of thr 
 cost of collection ; and such entire amount, deducting only the cost 
 of collection, shall be delivered to the Mexican government, at the 
 
APPENDIX. 543 
 
 city of Mexico, within tlirce months after the exchange of ratifica- 
 tions. 
 
 The evacuation of the capital of the Mexican repubhc by the troops 
 of the United States, in virtue of the above stipulation, shall be com- 
 pleted in one month after the orders there stipulated for shall have 
 been received by the conmiander of said troops, or sooner if possible. 
 
 Art. IV. — Immediately after the exchange of ratifications of the 
 present treaty, all castles, forts, territories, places and possessions, 
 which have been taken and occupied by the forces of the United 
 States during the present war, within the limits of the Mexican 
 republic, as about to be established by the following article, shall be 
 definitely restored to the said republic, together with all the artillery, 
 arms, apparatus of war, munitions, and other public property, which 
 were in the said castles and forts when captured, and which shall 
 remain there at the time when this treaty shall be duly ratified by the 
 government of the Mexican republic. To this end, immediately upon 
 the signature of this treaty, orders shall be despatched to the American 
 officers commanding such caltles and ports, securing against the 
 removal or destruction of any such artillery, arms, apparatus of war, 
 munitions, or other public property. The city of Mexico, within the 
 inner line of intrcnchments, surrounding the said city, is comprehended 
 in the above stipulations, as regards the restoration of artillery, 
 apparatus of war, &c. 
 
 The final evacuation of the territory of the Mexican republic by the 
 forces of the United States, shall be completed in three months from 
 the said exchange of ratifications, or sooner if possible : the Mexican 
 republic hereby engaging, as in the foregoing article, to use all means 
 in its power for facilitating such evacuation, and rendering it convenient 
 to the troops, and for promoting a good understanding between them 
 and the inhabitants. 
 
 If, however, the ratification of this treaty by both parties should 
 not take place in time to allow the embarkation of the troops of the 
 United States to be completed before the commencement of the sickly 
 season, at the Mexican ports on the Gulf of Mexico, in such case a 
 friendly arrangement shall be entered into between the general-in- 
 chief of the said troops and the Mexican government, whereby healthy 
 and otherwise suitable places, at a distance from the ports not exceed- 
 ing thirty leagues, shall be designated for the residence of such troops 
 as may not yet have embarked, until the return of the healthy season. 
 
544 APPENDIX. 
 
 And the space of lime here referred to as comprehending the sickly 
 season, shall be understood to extend from the first day of May to the 
 first day of November. 
 
 All prisoners of war taken on either side, on land or on sea, shall 
 be restored as soon as practicable after the exchange of the ratifica- 
 tions of this treaty. It is also agreed that if any Mexicans should 
 now be held as captives by any savage tribe within the limits of the 
 United States, as about to be established by the following article, the 
 government of the said United States will exact the release of such 
 captives, and cause them to be restored to their country. 
 
 Art. V. — The boundary line between the two republics shall com- 
 mence in the Gulf of Mexico, three leagues from land, opposite the 
 mouth of the Rio Grande, otherwise called Rio Bravo del Norte, or 
 opposite the mouth of its deepest branch, if it should have more than 
 one branch emptying directly into the sea;* from thence up the middle 
 of that river, following the deepest channel, where it has more than 
 one, to the point where it strikes the southern boundary of New 
 Mexico ; thence, westwardly, along the whole southern boundary of 
 New Mexico (which runs north of the town called Paso) to its western 
 termination ; thence northward along the western line of New Mexico, 
 until it intersects the first branch of the river Gila ; (or if it should 
 not intersect any branch of that river, then to the point on the said 
 line nearest to such branch, and thence in a direct line to the same ;) 
 thence down the middle of the said branch and of the said river, until 
 it empties into the Rio Colorado ; thence across the Rio Colorado, 
 following the division line between Upper and Lower California, to the 
 Pacific Ocean. 
 
 The southern and western limits of New Mexico, mentioned in this 
 article, are those laid down in the map, entitled " Map of the United 
 Mexican States, as organized aJid defined by various acts of the 
 Congress of said rcinihlic, and constructed according to the best 
 anthorities. Revised edition. Published at Neto York, in IS A7, bi/ 
 J. Distur?ien" Of which map a copy is added to this treaty, bear- 
 ing the signatures and seals of the undersigned plenipotentiaries. And 
 in order to preclude all difficulty in tracing upon the ground the limit 
 separating Upper from Lower California, it is agreed that the said 
 limit shall consist of a straight line, drawn from the middle of the 
 Rio Gila, where it unites with the Colorado, to a point on the coast 
 of the Pacific Ocean — distant one marine league due south of the 
 
APPENDIX. 545 
 
 southernmost point of the port of San Diego, according to the plan of 
 said port, made in the year 1782, by Don Juan Pantojer, second 
 sailing-master of the Spanish fleet, and published at Madrid in the 
 year 1802, in the atlas to the voyage of the schooners Sutil and 
 Mexicana, of which plan a copy is hereunto added, signed and sealed 
 by the respective plenipotentiaries. 
 
 In order to designate the boundary line with due precision, upon 
 authoritative maps, and to establish on the ground landmarks which 
 shall show the limits of both republics, as described in the present 
 article, the two governments shall each appoint a commissioner and a 
 surveyor, who, before the expiration of one year from the date of the 
 exchange of ratifications of this treaty, shall meet at the port of San 
 DiegOj and proceed to run and mark the said boundary in its whole 
 course to the mouth of the Rio Bravo del Norte. They shall keep 
 journals and make out plans of their operations : and the result agreed 
 upon by them, shall be deemed a part of this treaty, and shall have 
 the same force as if it were inserted therein. The two governments 
 will amicably agree regarding what may be necessary to these 
 persons, and also as to their respective escorts, should such be 
 necessary. 
 
 The boundary line established by this article shall be religiously 
 respected by each of the two republics, and no change shall ever be 
 made therein, except by the express and free consent of both nations, 
 lawfully given by the general government of each, in conformity with 
 its own constitution. 
 
 Art. VI. — The vessels and citizens of the United States shall, in 
 all time, have a free and uninterrupted passage by the Gulf of Cali- 
 fornia, and by the river Colorado, below its confluence with the Gila, 
 to and from their possessions situated north of the boundary line 
 defined in the preceding article ; it being understood that this passage 
 is to be by navigating the Gulf of California, and the river Colorado; 
 and not by land, without the express consent of the Mexican govern- 
 ment. 
 
 If, by the examinations that may be made, it should be ascertained 
 to be practicable and advantageous to construct a road, canal, or rail- 
 way, which should, in whole or in part, run upon the river Gila, or 
 upon its right or its left bank, within the space of one marine league 
 from either margin of the river, the governments of both republics will 
 
546 APPENDIX. 
 
 form an agreement regarding its construction, in order that it may 
 serve equally for the use and advantage of both countries. 
 
 Art. VII. — The river Gila, and the part of the Del Norte lyifig 
 below the southern boundary of New^ Mexico, being, agreeably to the 
 fifth article, divided in the middle between the two republics, the navi- 
 gation of the Gila and of the Bravo, below said boundary, shall be 
 free and common to the vessels and citizens of both countries ; and 
 neither shall, without the consent of the other, construct any work 
 that may impede or interrupt, in whole or in part, the exercise of this 
 right — not even for the purpose of favouring new methods of naviga- 
 tion. Nor shall any tax or contribution, under any denomination or 
 title, be levied upon vessels, or persons navigating the same, or upon 
 merchandise, or effects, transported thereon, except in the case of 
 landing upon one of their shores. If, for the purpose of making the 
 said rivers navigable, or for maintaining them in such state, it should 
 be necessary or advantageous to establish any tax or contribution, this 
 shall not be done without the consent of both governments. 
 
 The stipulations contained in the present article shall not impair 
 the territorial rights of either republic, within its established limits. 
 
 Art. VIII. — Mexicans now established in territories previously 
 belonging to Mexico, and which remain, for the future, within the 
 limits of the United States, as defined by the present treaty, shall be 
 free to continue where they now reside, or to remove, at any time, 
 to the Mexican republic, retaining the property which they possess in 
 the said territories, or disposing thereof, and removing the proceeds 
 wherever they please, without their being subjected, on this account, 
 to any contribution, or tax, or charge, whatever. 
 
 Those who shall prefer to remain in said territories, may either 
 retain the title and rights of Mexican citizens, ,or acquire those of 
 citizens of the United States. But they shall be under the obligation 
 to make their selection within one year from the date of the exchange 
 of ratifications of this treaty; and those who shall remain in the said 
 territories, after the expiration of that year, without having declared 
 their intention to retain the character of Mexicans, shall be considered 
 to have elected to become citizens of the United States. 
 
 In the said territories, property of every kind, now belonging to 
 Mexicans not established there, shall be inviolably respected. The 
 present owners, the heirs of these, and all Mexicans who may here- 
 after acquire said property by contract, shall enjoy, with respect to 
 
APPENDIX. 547 
 
 it, guaranties equally ample as if the same belonged to citizens of the 
 United States. 
 
 Art. IX. — The Mexicans who, in the territories aforesaid, shall 
 not preserve the character of citizens of the Mexican republic, con- 
 ibrmably with what is stipulated in the preceding article, shall be incor- 
 porated into the union of the United States, and admitted as soon as 
 possible, according to the principles of the federal constitution, to the 
 enjoyment of all the rights of citizens of the United States. In the 
 mean time, they shall be maintained and protected in the enjoyment 
 of their liberty, their property, and the civil rights now vested in them 
 according to the Mexican laws. With respect to political rights, their 
 condition shall be on an equality with that of the inhabitants of the 
 other territories of the United States, and at least equally good as 
 that of the inhabitants of Louisiana and the Floridas, when these pro- 
 vinces, by transfer from the French republic and the crown of Spain, 
 became territories of the United States. 
 
 The same most ample guaranty shall be enjoyed by all ecclesiastics 
 and religious corporations or communities, as well in the discharge of 
 the offices of their ministry as in the enjoyment of their property of 
 every kind, whether individual or corporate. This guaranty shall 
 embrace all temples, houses, and edifices dedicated to the Roman 
 Catholic worship, as well as all property destined to its support, or to 
 that of schools, hospitals, and other foundations for charitable or bene- 
 ficent purposes. No property of this nature shall be considered as 
 having become the property of the American government, or as sub- 
 ject to be by it disposed of, or diverted to other uses. 
 
 Finally, the relations and communication between the Catholics 
 living in the territories aforesaid, and their respective ecclesiastical 
 authorities, shall be open, free, and exempt from all hindrance what- 
 ever, even although such authorities should reside within the limits of 
 the Mexican republic, as defined by this treaty ; and this freedom 
 shall continue, so long as a new demarkation of ecclesiastical districts 
 shall not have been made, conformably with the laws of the Roman 
 Catholic church. 
 
 [Article IX. was expunged, and in its stead the Senate adopted 
 and inserted substantially the third article of the treaty with France, 
 of 1803, for the cession of Louisiana, to the effect that inha' 
 hitants of the ceded territory shall be incorporated in the Union 
 of the IJtiited States, and admitted as sooji as Cotigress shall detev-> 
 71 
 
548 APPENDIX. 
 
 mine, according to the princijoles of the federal constitution, to the 
 enjoyment of all the rights, advantages, and immunities of citizens 
 of Hie United States ; and in tlie mean time, they shall be maintained 
 and protected in the full enjoyment of their liberty, property, and the 
 religion which they profess.'] 
 
 Art. X. — All grants of land made by the Mexican government, or 
 by the competent authorities, in territories previously appertaining to 
 Mexico, and remaining for the future within the limits of the United 
 States, shall be respected as valid, to the same extent that the same 
 grants vi^ould be valid if the said territories had remained within the 
 limits of Mexico. But the grantees of lands in Texas, put in posses- 
 sion thereof, who, by reason of the circumstances of the country, 
 since the beginning of the troubles between Texas and the Mexican 
 government, may have been prevented from fulfilling all the condi- 
 tions of their grants, shall be under the obligation to fulfil the said 
 conditions within the periods limited in the same, respectively ; such 
 periods to be now counted from the date of the exchange of ratifica- 
 tions of this treaty ; in default of which, the said grants shall not be 
 obligatory upon the State of Texas, in virtue of the stipulations con- 
 tained in this article. 
 
 The foregoing stipulation in regard to grantees of land in Texas 
 is extented to all grantees of land in the territories aforesaid, elsewhere 
 than in Texas, put in possession under such grants ; and, in default 
 of the fulfilment of the conditions of any such grant, within the new 
 period, which, as is above stipulated, begins with the day of the ex- 
 change of ratifications of this treaty, the same shall be null and void. 
 
 The Mexican government declares that no grant whatever of lands 
 in Texas has been made since the second day of March, one thousand 
 eight hundred and thirty-six ; and that no grant whatever of lands, in 
 any of the territories aforesaid, has been made since the thirteenth day 
 of May, one thousand eight hundred and forty-six. 
 
 [The above article was expunged by the Senate.] 
 
 Art. XI. — Considering that a great part of the territories which, 
 by the present treaty, are to be comprehended for the future within 
 the limits of the United States, is now occupied by savage tribes who 
 will hereafter be under the control of the government of the United 
 States, and whose incursions within the territory of Mexico would be 
 prejudicial in the extreme, it is solemnly agreed that all such incursions 
 shall be forcibly restrained by the government of the United States, 
 
APPENDIX. 549 
 
 whensoever this may be necessary ; and that when they cannot be 
 prevented, they shall be punished by the said government, and satis- 
 faction for the same shall be exacted — all in the same way, and with 
 equal diligence and energy, as if the same incursions were committed 
 within its own territory, against its own citizens. 
 
 It shall not be lawful, under any pretext whatever, for any inhabit- 
 ant of the United States to purchase or acquire any Mexican, or any 
 foreigner residing in Mexico, who may have been captured by Indians 
 inhabiting the territory of either of the two republics, nor to purchase 
 or acquire horses, mules, cattle, or property of any kind, stolen within 
 Mexican territory by such Indians : nor to provide such Indians with 
 fire-arms or ammunition, by sale or otherwise. 
 
 And in the event of any person or persons captured within Mexican 
 territory by Indians, being carried into the territory of the United 
 States, the government of the latter engages and binds itself in the 
 most solemn manner, so soon as it shall know of such captives being 
 within its territory, and shall be able to do so, through the faithful 
 exercise of its influence and power, to rescue them and return them to 
 their country, or deliver them to the agent or representative of the 
 Mexican government. The Mexican authorities will, as far as prac- 
 ticable, give to the government of the United States notice of such 
 captures ; and its agents shall pay the expenses incurred in the main- 
 tenance and transmission of the rescued captives ; who, in the mean 
 time, shall be treated with the utmost hospitality by the American 
 authorities at the place where they may be. But if the government 
 of the United States, before receiving such notice from Mexico, should 
 obtain intelligence, through any other channel, of the existence of 
 Mexican captives within its territory, it will proceed forthwith to 
 effect their release and delivery to the Mexican agent, as above 
 stipulated. 
 
 For the purpose of giving to these stipulations the fullest possible 
 efficacy, thereby aifording the security and redress demanded by 
 their true spirit and intent, the government of the United States will 
 now and hereafter pass, without unnecessary delay, and always 
 vigilantly enforce, such laws as the nature of the subject may require. 
 And finally, the sacredness of this obligation shall never be lost sight 
 of by the said government when providing for the removal of Indians 
 from any portion of said territories, or for its being settled by the 
 citizens of the United States ; but, on the contrary, special care then 
 
550 APPENDIX. 
 
 shall be taken not to place its Indian occupants under the necessity 
 of seeking new homes, by committing those invasions which the 
 United States have solemnly obliged themselves to restrain. 
 
 Art. XII. — In consideration of the extension acquired by the 
 boundaries of the United States, as defined in the fifth article of the 
 present treaty, the government of the United States engages to pay to 
 that of the Mexican republic the sum of fifteen millions of dollars, in 
 the one or the other of the two modes below specified. The Mexican 
 government shall, at the time of ratifying this treaty, declare which 
 of these two modes of payment it prefers ; and the mode so elected by 
 it shall be conformed to by that of the United States. 
 
 First mode of payment: Immediately after this treaty shall have 
 been duly ratified by the government of the Mexican republic, the 
 sum of three millions of dollars shall be paid to the said government 
 by that of the United States, at the city of Mexico, in the gold or 
 silver coin of Mexico. For the remaining twelve millions of dollars, 
 the United States shall create a stock, bearing an interest of six per 
 centum per annum, commencing on the day of the ratification of this 
 treaty by the government of the Mexican republic, and payable annually 
 at the city of Washington ; the principal of said stock to be re- 
 deemable there, at the pleasure of the government of the United 
 States, at any time after two years from the exchange of ratifications 
 of this treaty ; six months' public notice of the intention to redeem 
 the same being previously given. Certificates of such stock, in pro- 
 per form, for such sums as shall be specified by the Mexican govern- 
 ment, and transferable by the said government, shall be delivered to 
 the same by that of the United States. 
 
 Second mode of payment : Immediately after this treaty shall have 
 been duly ratified by the government of the Mexican republic, the 
 sum of three millions of dollars shall be paid to the said government by 
 that of the United States, at the city of Mexico, in the gold or silver coin 
 of Mexico. The remaining twelve millions of dollars shall be paid at the 
 same place, and in the same coin, in annual instalments of three millions 
 of dollars each, together with interest on the same at the rate of six per 
 centum per annum. This interest shall begin to run upon the whole 
 sum of twelve millions from the day of the ratification of the present 
 treaty by the Mexican government, and the first of the instalments shall 
 be paid at the expiration of one year from the same day. Together with 
 each annual instalment, as it falls due, the whole interest accruing on 
 
APPENDIX. 551 
 
 such instalment from the beginning shall also be paid. Certificates 
 in proper form, for the said instalments, respectively, in such sums as 
 shall be desired by the Mexican government, and transferable by it, 
 shall be delivered to the said government by that of the United States. 
 
 [The second mode of payment was accepted by the Mexican govern- 
 ment.] 
 
 Art. XIII. — The United States engage, moreover, to assume and 
 pay to the claimants all the amounts now due them, and those here- 
 after to become due, by reason of the claims already liquidated and 
 decided against the Mexican republic, under the conventions between 
 the two republics severally concluded on the 11th day of April, 
 eighteen hundred and thirty-nine, and on the 30th day of January, 
 eighteen hundred and forty-three ; so that the Mexican republic shall 
 be absolutely exempt for the future, from all expense whatever on 
 account of the said claims. 
 
 Art. XIV. — The United States do furthermore discharge the 
 Mexican republic from all claims of citizens of the United States, not 
 heretofore decided against the Mexican government, which may have 
 arisen previously to the date of the signature of this treaty ; which 
 discharge shall be final and perpetual, whether the said claims be 
 rejected or be allowed by the board of commissioners provided for in 
 the following article, and whatever shall be the total amount of those 
 allowed. 
 
 Art. XV. — The United States, exonerating Mexico from all demands 
 on account of the claims of their citizens mentioned in the preceding 
 article, and considering them entirely and for ever cancelled, what- 
 ever their amount may be, undertake to make satisfaction for the 
 same, to an amount not exceeding three and one quarter millions of 
 dollars. To ascertain the validity and amount of those claims, a board 
 of commissioners shall be established by the government of the 
 United States, whose awards shall be final and conclusive ; provided, 
 that in deciding upon the validity of each claim, the board shall be 
 guided and governed by the principles and rules of decision prescribed 
 by the first and fifth articles of the unratified convention, concluded at 
 the city of Mexico on the twentieth day of November, one thousand 
 eight hundred and forty-three; and in no case shall an award be 
 made in favour of any claim not embraced by these principles and 
 rules. 
 
 If, in the opinion of the said board of commissioners, or of the 
 
552 APPENDIX. 
 
 claimants, any books, records, or documents in the possession or 
 power of the government of the Mexican republic, shall be deemed 
 necessary to the just decision of any claim, the commissioners, or 
 the claimants through them, shall within such period as Congress may 
 designate, make an application in writing for the same, addressed to 
 the Mexican minister for foreign affairs, to be transmitted by the 
 secretary of state of the United States ; and the Mexican government 
 engages, at the earliest possible moment after the receipt of such 
 demand, to cause any of the books, records, or documents, so 
 specified, which shall be in their possession or power (or authenticated 
 copies or extracts of the same) to be transmitted to the said secretary 
 of state, who shall immediately deliver them over to the said board of 
 commissioners ; Provided, that no such application shall be made by, 
 or at the instance of, any claimant, until the facts which it is expected 
 to prove by such books, records, or documents, shall have been stated 
 under oath or affirmation. 
 
 Art. XVI. — Each of the contracting parties reserves to itself the 
 entire right to fortify whatever point within its territory it may judge 
 proper so to fortify, for its security. 
 
 Art. XVII. — The treaty of amity, commerce and navigation, con- 
 cluded at the city of Mexico on the 5th day of April, A. D. 1831, 
 between the United States of America and the United Mexican States, 
 except the additional article, and except so far as the stipulations of 
 the said treaty may not be incompatible with any stipulation contained 
 in the present treaty, is hereby revived for the period of eight years 
 from the day of the exchange of ratifications of this treaty, with the 
 same force and virtue as if incorporated therein ; it being understood 
 that each of the contracting parties reserves to itself the right, at any 
 time after the said period of eight years shall have expired, to terminate 
 the same by giving one year's notice of such intention to the other 
 party. 
 
 Art. XVIII. — All supplies whatever for troops of the United States 
 in Mexico, arriving at ports in the occupation of such troops previous 
 to the final evacuation thereof, although subsequently to the restora- 
 tion of the custom-houses at such ports, shall be entirely exempt from 
 duties and charges of any kind ; the government of the United States 
 hereby engaging and pledging its faith to establish, and vigilantly to 
 enforce, all possible guards for securing the revenue of Mexico, by 
 preventing the importation, under cover of this stipulation, of any 
 
APPENDIX. 553 
 
 articles other than such, both in kind and in quahty, as shall really 
 be wanted for the use and consumption of the forces of the United 
 States during the time they may remain in Mexico. To this end, it 
 shall be the duty of all officers and agents of the United States to 
 denounce to the Mexican authorities at the respective ports any 
 attempts at a fraudulent abuse of this stipulation which they may know 
 of or may have reason to suspect, and to give to such authorities all 
 the aid in their power with regard thereto ; and every such attempt, 
 when duly proved and established by sentence of a competent tribunal, 
 shall be punished by the confiscation of the property so attempted to 
 be fraudulently introduced. 
 
 Art. XIX. — With respect to all merchandise, effects, and property 
 whatsoever, imported into ports of Mexico whilst in the occupation of 
 the forces of the United States, whether by citizens of either republic, 
 or by citizens or subjects of any neutral nation, the following rules 
 shall be observed : 
 
 1 . All such merchandise, effects, and property, if imported previously 
 to the restoration of the custom-houses to the Mexican authorities, as 
 stipulated for in the third article of this treaty, shall be exempt from 
 confiscation, although the importation of the same be prohibited by 
 the Mexican tariif. 
 
 2. The same perfect exemption shall be enjoyed by all such 
 merchandise, effects, and property, imported subsequently to the resto- 
 ration of the custom-houses, and previously to the sixty days fixed in 
 the following article for the coming into force of the Mexican tariflf, 
 at such ports respectively ; the said merchandise, effects, and property 
 being, however, at the time of their importation, subject to the pay- 
 ment of duties, as provided for in the said following article. 
 
 3. All merchandise, effects, and property described in the two rules 
 foregoing shall, during their continuance at the place of importation, 
 or upon their leaving such place for the interior, be exempt from all 
 duty, tax, or impost of every kind, under whatsoever title or denomi- 
 nation. Nor shall they be there subjected to any charge whatsoever 
 upon the sale thereof. 
 
 4. All merchandise, effects, and property, described in the first and 
 second rules, which shall have been removed to any place in the 
 interior whilst such place was in the occupation of the forces of the 
 I nited States, shall, during their continuance therein, be exempt from 
 
554 APPENDIX. 
 
 all tax upon the sale or consumption thereof, and from every kind of 
 impost or contribution, under whatsoever title or denomination. 
 
 5. But if any merchandise, effects, or property, described in the 
 first and second rules, shall be removed to any place not occupied at 
 the time by the forces of the United States, they shall, upon their 
 introduction into such place, or upon their sale or consumption there, 
 be subject to the same duties which, under the Mexican laws, they 
 would be required to pay in such cases if they had been imported in 
 time of peace, through the maritime custom-houses, and hdd there paid 
 the duties conformably with the Mexican tai'iff. 
 
 6. The owners of all merchandise, effects, or property described in 
 the first and second rules, and existing in any port of Mexico, shall 
 have the right to reship the same, exempt from all tax, impost, or con- 
 tribution whatever. 
 
 With respect to the metals, or other property, exported from any 
 Mexican port whilst in the occupation of the forces of the United 
 States, and previously to the restoration of the custom-house at such 
 port, no person shall be required by the Mexican authorities, whether 
 general or state, to pay any tax, duty, or contribution upon any such 
 exportation, or in any manner to account for the same to the said 
 authorities. 
 
 Art. XX. — Through consideration for the interests of commerce 
 generally, it is agreed, that if less than sixty days should elapse 
 between the date of the signature of this treaty and the restoration of 
 the custom-houses, conformably with the stipulation in the third article, 
 in such case all merchandise, effects, and property whatsoever, arriv- 
 ing at the Mexican ports after the restoration of the said custom- 
 houses, and previously to the expiration of sixty days after the day 
 of the signature of this treaty, shall be admitted to entry ; and no 
 other duties shall be levied thereon than the duties established by the 
 tariff found in force at such custom-houses at the time of the restora- 
 tion of the same. And to all such merchandise, effects, and property, 
 the rules established by the preceding article shall apply. 
 
 Art, XXI. — If, unhappily, any disagreement should hereafter arise 
 between the governments of the two republics, whether with respect 
 to the interpretation of any stipulation in this treaty, or with respect 
 to any other particular concerning the political or commercial relations 
 of the two nations, the said governments, in the name of those nations, 
 do promise to each other that they will endeavour, in the most sincere 
 
APPENDIX. 555 
 
 ind earnest manner, to settle the differences so arising, and to 
 preserve the state of peace and friendship in which the two countries 
 are now placing Jjiemselves ; using, for this end, mutual representa- 
 tions and pacific negotiations. And if, by these means, they should 
 not be enabled to come to an agreement, a resort shall not, on this 
 account, be had to reprisals, aggression, or hostility of any kind, by 
 the one republic against the other, until the government of that which 
 deems itself aggrieved shall have maturely considered, in the spirit of 
 [jeace and good neighbourship, whether it would not be better that such 
 difference should be settled by the arbitration of commissioners 
 appointed on each side, or by that of a friendly nation. And should 
 such course be proposed by either party, it shall be acceded to by the 
 other, unless deemed by it altogether incompatible with the nature of 
 the difference, or the circumstances of the case. 
 
 Art. XXII. — If (which is not to be expected, and which God for- 
 bid !) war shall unhappily break out between the two republics, they 
 do now, with a view to such calamity, solemnly pledge themselves to 
 each other and to the world, to observe the following rules, abso- 
 lutely, where the nature of the subject permits, and as closely as 
 possible in all cases where such absolute observance shall be im- 
 possible. 
 
 1. The merchants of either republic then residing in the other shall 
 be allowed to remain twelve months, (for those dwelling in the interior,) 
 and six months (for those dwelling at the seaports,) to collect their 
 debts and settle their affairs ; during which periods, they shall enjoy 
 the same protection, and be on the same footing, in all respects, as the 
 citizens or subjects of the most friendly nations ; and, at the expira- 
 tion thereof, or at any time before, they shall have full liberty to 
 depart, carrying off all their effects without molestation or hindrance ; 
 conforming therein to the same laws which the citizens or subjects of 
 the most friendly nations are required to conform to. Upon the 
 entrance of the armies of either nation into the territories of the other, 
 women and children, ecclesiastics, scholars of every faculty, cultiva- 
 tors of the earth, merchants, artisans, manufacturers, and fishermen, 
 unarmed and inhabiting unfortified towns, villages, or places, and in 
 general all persons whose occupations are for the common subsistence 
 and benefit of mankind, shall be allowed to continue their respective 
 employments unmolested in their persons. Nor shall their houses or 
 goods be burnt or otherwise destroyed, nor their cattle taken, nnr 
 72 
 
556 APPENDIX. 
 
 their fields wasted, by the armed force into whose power, by the 
 events of war, they may happen to fall ; but if the necessity arise to 
 take any thing from them for the use of such arme^ force, the same 
 shall be paid for at an equitable price. All churches, hospitals, 
 schools, colleges, libraries, and other establishments, for charitable 
 and beneficent purposes, shall be respected, and all persons connected 
 with the same, protected in the discharge of their duties, and the pursuit 
 of their vocations. 
 
 2. In order that the fate of prisoners of war may be alleviated, all 
 such practices as those of sending them into distant, inclement, or 
 unwholesome districts, or crowding them into close and noxious 
 places, shall be studiously avoided. They shall not be confined in 
 dungeons, prison-ships, or prisons, nor be put in irons, or bound, or 
 otherwise restrained in the use of their limbs. The officers shall 
 enjoy liberty on their paroles, within convenient districts, and have 
 comfortable quarters ; and the common soldiers shall be disposed in 
 cantonments, open and extensive enough for air and exercise, and 
 lodged in barracks as roomy and good as are provided by the party 
 m whose power they are for its own troops. But if any ofiicer shall 
 break his parole by leaving the district so assigned him, or any other 
 jirisoner shall escape from the limits of his cantonment, after they 
 shall have been designated to him, such individual, ofiicer, or other 
 prisoner, shall forfeit so much of the benefit of this article as provides 
 tor his liberty on parole or in cantonment. And if an officer so 
 breaking his parole, or any common soldier so escaping from the 
 limits assigned him, shall afterwards be found in arms, previously to 
 his being regularly exchanged, the person so otfending shall be dealt 
 with according to the established laws of war. The officers shall be 
 daily furnished by the party in whose power they are, with as many 
 rations, and of the same articles, as are allowed, either in kind or 
 by commutation, to officers of equal rank in its own army ; and all 
 others shall be daily furnished with such ration as is allowed to a 
 common soldier in its own service ; the value of all which supplies 
 shall, at the close of the war, or at periods to be agreed upon between 
 the respective commanders, be paid by the other party, on a mutual 
 adjustment of accounts for the subsistence of prisoners ; and such 
 accounts shall not be mingled with or set off" against any others, nor 
 the balance due on them be withheld, as a compensation or reprisal 
 for any cause whatever, real or pretended. Each party shall be 
 
APPENDIX. 55t 
 
 allowed to keep a commissary of prisoners, appointed by itself, with 
 every cantonment of prisoners, in possession of the other ; which 
 commissary shall see the prisoners as often as he pleases ; shall be 
 allowed to receive, exempt from all duties or taxes, and to distribute, 
 whatever comforts may be sent to them by their friends ; and shall 
 be free to transmit his reports in open letters to the party by whom 
 he is employed. 
 
 And it is declared that neither the pretence that war dissolves all 
 treaties, nor any other whatever, shall be considered as annulling or 
 suspending the solemn covenant contained in this article. On the 
 contrary, the state of war is precisely that for which it is provided ; 
 and during which, its stipulations are to be as sacredly observed as 
 the most acknowledged obligations under the law of nature or nations. 
 Art. XXIII, — This treaty shall be ratified by the President of the 
 United States of America, by and with the advice and consent of the 
 Senate thereof; and by the President of the Mexican republic, with 
 the previous approbation of its General Congress ; and the ratifications 
 shall be exchanged in the city of Washington, in four months from the 
 date of the signature hereof, or sooner if practicable. 
 
 In faith whereof, we, the respective plenipotentiaries, have signed 
 this treaty of peace, friendship, limits, and settlement; and have here- 
 tmto affixed our seals respectively. Done in quintuplicate, at the city 
 of Guadalupe Hidalgo, on the second day of February, in the year of 
 our Lord one thousand eight hundred and forty-eight. 
 
 N. P. TRIST, [l. s.] 
 
 LUIS G. CUEVAS, [l. s.] 
 
 BERNARDO CO^TO, [l. s.] /A-Ay 
 MIG. ATRISTAIN, [l. s.] 
 
 Additional and secret article of the treaty of peace, friendship, limits, and 
 settlement, between the United States of America and the Mexican republic, 
 signed this day by their respective plenipotentiaries. (Expunged.) 
 
 In view of the possibility that the exchange of the ratifications of 
 this treaty may, by the circumstances in which the Mexican republic 
 is placed, be delayed longer than the term of four months fixed by its 
 twenty-third article for the exchange of ratifications of the same, it is 
 hereby agreed that such delay shall not, in any manner, affect the 
 force and validity of this treaty, unless it should exceed the term of 
 eicht months, counted from the date of the signature thereof. 
 
<, 
 
 558 APPENDIX, 
 
 This article is to have the same force and virtue as if inserted in 
 the treaty to which this is an addition. 
 
 In faith whereof, we, the respective plenipotentiaries, have signed 
 this additional and secret article, and have hereunto affixed our seals, 
 respectively. Done in quintuplicate, at the city of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 
 on the second day of February, in the year of our Lord one thousand 
 eight hundred and forty-eight. 
 
 N, P. TRIST, [l, s,] 
 
 LUIS G, CUEVAS, [l. s,] 
 BERNARDO CONTO, [l. s,] 
 MIG. ATRISTAIN, [l. s.] 
 
 6 27 ^'W 
 
 THE END. 
 
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