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MEMOIRS 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER. 


MEMOIRS 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER. 


WAE  WITH  MEXICO, 


IN"       THE       YK^ES       1846-7-8. 


BY 

JOHN  E.  KENLY. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

J.    B.    LIPPINOOTT    &    CO. 
18  7  3. 


A,S'{:i.o7 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1872,  by 

JOHN  K.  KENLY,  of  Baltimore,  Mel., 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  Washington. 

[Right  of  Translation  reserved.'] 


Lippikcott's  Press, 
Philadelphia. 


TO  THE  MEMORY 

or 

MAJOR-GENERAL  ZACHAftY  TAYLOR, 

WHO,    WHILE    LIVING,    WAS    A    TRUE    TYPE    OF    THE    AMERICAN 

SOLDIER, 

IS   AFFECTIONATELY    DEDICATED. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PAoa 
Preliminary j^g 

CHAPTER  II. 

Arrival  at  the  Brazos  Santiago 36 

CHAPTER   III. 
The  Eio  Grande 59 

CHAPTER   IV. 
Camargo 71 

CHAPTER  V. 
Campaign  of  the  Rio  Grande 80 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Monterey     ............   101 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Storming  of  Monterey         .........   105 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Third  Day  of  the  Battle 123 

CHAPTER   IX. 
Capitulation  of  Monterey 132 

CHAPTER  X. 
Capitulation  of  Monterey    . 142 

CHAPTER   XI. 
In  Camp  at  Walnut  Springs        ........   15 

(ix) 


X     .  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   XII. 
Sight-seeing  in  Monterey 156 


CHAPTER   XIII. 
Death  of  Captain  Eidgely 160 

CHAPTER   XIV. 

End  of  the  Armistice:  General  Santa  Anna  for  War         .         .         .   164 

CHAPTER   XV. 

Appointment  of  Major  E.  C.  Buchanan,  U.S.  Army,  to  the  Com- 
mand of  the  Baltimore  Battalion     .......  169 

CHAPTER   XVI. 

March  to  Victoria 174 

CHAPTER   XVII. 
Victoria 191 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

The  Army  of  Occupation  at  Victoria,  and  the  Arrival  of  General 
Taylor 195 

CHAPTER   XIX. 

General  Scott  placed  in  Command — His  Arrival  in  the  Country        .   199 

CHAPTER   XX. 
Departure  from  Victoria,  and  March  to  Tampico       ....   210 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

Tampico — General  Scott  marshaling  his  Forces  for  the  Capture  of 
Vera  Cruz        ...........  229 

CHAPTER   XXII. 
Tampico 241 

CHAPTER   XXIII. 
Tampico — Visit  to  Vera  Cruz 265 


CONTENTS.  xi 

CHAPTER   XXIV. 

PAGE 

Tampico — Discharged  from  the  Service,  etc 272 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

The  District  of  Columbia  and  Maryland  Regiment;  its  Organization, 
Departure  for  the  Seat  of  "War,  and  Arrival  at  Vera  Cruz      .         .   277 

CHAPTER   XXVI. 
March  into  the  Interior 293 

CHAPTER   XXVII. 
Capture  and  Occupation  of  the  National  Bridge        ....  300 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 
Guerilleros 308 

CHAPTER   XXIX. 

Views  of  our  Government  as  to  the  Conduct  of  the  War  .         .         .  313 

CHAPTER   XXX. 
Operations  at  and  about  the  National  Bridge 318 

CHAPTER  XXXI.       * 
Negotiations  with  El  Padre  Jarauta  .......  328 

CHAPTER   XXXII. 
Negotiations  for  Peace         .........  833 

CHAPTER   XXXIII. 

Scott's  Advance.on  the  City  of  Mexico 344 

CHAPTER   XXXIV. 
Conquering  a  Peace     ..........  856 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 
March  from  the  National  Bridge 362 

CHAPTER  XXXVI. 
The  City  of  Jalapa 367 


xii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   XXXVII. 

FAOE 

In  Garrison 372 

CHAPTER   XXXVIII. 

General  Santa  Anna,  and  his  Reception,  by  tiie  District  of  Columbia 
and  Maryland  Regiment,  at  Jalapa 389 

CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

Visit  to  the  City  of  Mexico 399 

CHAPTER  XL. 
The  City  of  Mexico 406 

CHAPTER  XLI. 
The  Court  of  Inquiry 431 

CHAPTER  XLII. 
Negotiations  for  Peace 4.59 

CHAPTER  XLIII. 

End  of  the  War — We  leave  Mexico 468 

CHAPTER  XLIV. 
Conclusion 474 

Appendix 479 


MEMOIRS 

OF 

A  MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER. 


CHAPTER    I. 


PRELIM  INART. 


The  recognition  of  the  independence  of  Texas,  and 
its  subsequent  annexation,  may  have  been  the  proxi- 
mate cause  of  the  war  with  Mexico ;  but  for  years 
there  had  been  smouldering  embers,  which  the  evolu- 
tion of  time  alone  would  have  fanned  into  active  war- 
fare against  the  Mexican  people.  It  was  not  alone 
because  the  sympathies  of  the  Americans  were  with 
the  Texans  in  their  brave  and  heroic  struggle  for 
liberty  from  Mexican  military  domination,  that  the 
military  chieftains  of  the  pseudo-republic  were  so 
bitter  in  their  hostility  to  the  United  States ;  and  it 
was  not  alone  because  the  early  settlers  of  Texas  were 
our  own  race  and  blood  that  we  felt  so  keenly  their 
massacre  at  Mier,  and  their  triumph  at  San  Jacinto. 
No  !  there  were  deep-seated  causes  of  hostility  between 
the  two  peoples.  The  one,  an  antagonism  of  race 
upon  the  borders  of  the  two  countries,  which  was  in- 
stinctive and  involuntary,  as  much  so  as  between  the 
Red  Man  and  the  Western  Pioneer ;  another,  a  long 

2  (13) 


14  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

continuance  of  outrages  upon  the  persons  and  property 
of  American  citizens  by  Mexican  officials,  and  redress 
either  positively  refused  or  vexatiously  and  willfully 
postponed  ;  another,  the  watchful  jealousy  with  which 
the  officials  of  Mexico  had  been  regarding  the  expan- 
sive growth  of  the  United  States, — a  jealousy  from 
which  sprang  at  first  distrust,  then  hatred.  These 
were  continuously  exhibited. 

General  Jackson,  the  then  President  of  the  United 
States,  in  a  Message  to  Congress  on  the  8th  of  Febru- 
ary, 1837,  said,  "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  Govern- 
ment by  the  late  E.xtraordinary  Mexican  minister, 
would  justify,  in  the  eyes  of  all  nations,  immediate 
war."     Still  no  war. 

I  was  cognizant  of  some  of  these  outrages.  Mr. 
Edward  Hoffman,  a  merchant  of  Baltimore,  after 
having  paid  duties  on  his  merchandise  at  Santa  Fe, 
to  the  custom-house  officei's  there  stationed,  and  ob- 
tained regular  permits  for  the  importation  of  his 
goods  into  Mexico,  was  deliberately  robbed  of  the 
same  permits  by  the  custom-house  officials  at  Chihua- 
hua, deprived  of  his  goods,  and  imprisoned  in  a  loath- 
some dungeon,  until  he  bought  himself  out  of  their 
hands  by  money  obtained  from  his  friends.* 

The  simple  narration  of  the  outrages  done  to  other 
Americans  by  Mexican  officials,  which  he  witnessed. 


*  His  claim  for  losses  was  allowed  after  the  war,  by  the  Com- 
mission provided  for  by  the  Treaty  of  Peace. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  15 

filled  one  with  indignation;  and  well-authenticated 
accounts  of  the  continuous  wrongs  done  our  citizens 
were  published  throughout  the  country. 

Notwithstanding  the  independence  of  Texas  had 
been  recognized  by  most  of  the  European  powers,  and 
the  utter  inability  of  Mexico  to  re-establish  her  au- 
thority over  it,*  yet  the  Mexican  Government  and 
people,  including  Antonio  Lopez  de  Santa  Anna,  in- 
sisted upon  their  right  of  sovereignty  over  Texas, 
and  declared  that  no  quarter  would  be  given  to  any 
foreigner  iak.Qn  fighting  against  the  troops  of  Mexico. 
This  was  from  1841  to  1844. 

On  the  3d  of  March,  1845,  the  joint  resolution  for 
the  admission  of  Texas  into  the  American  Union 
passed  both  Houses  of  Congress,  and,  being  signed  by 
the  President  on  the  same  day,  became  a  law.  This, 
however,  did  not  consummate  the  measure  ;  the  con- 
sent of  the  people  of  Texas  was  required,  and  it  was 
supposed  by  some  that  the  President  of  the  Lone  Star 
State  might  listen  to  propositions  from  the  represent^ 
atives  of  England  and  France,  who  endeavored  to 
defeat  the  measure. 

All  these  attempts  signally  failed.  On  the  2od  of 
June,  1845,  the  Government  of  Texas,  by  the  unani- 
mous vote  of  both  Houses,  and  the  approval  of  the 
Executive,  gave  its  consent ;  and  the  convention  to 
which  the  matter  had  been  finally  referred,  by  its 
ordinance  of  July  4,  1845,  assented  to  it,  and  annex- 
ation was  consummated.     From  this  time  the  senti- 

*  See  a  letter  from  Hon.  Daniel  Webster  to  Nicholas  Biddle, 
dated  September  10,  1838,  published  in  the  Life  of  Webster,  by 
George  Ticknor  Curtis,  1870,  vol.  i.  p.  579. 


IQ  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

ment  of  the  people  of  Mexico  was  nearly  national,* 
that  the  "  Barbarians  of  the  North"  should  be  chastised 
for  their  presumption ;  and  the  movement  of  Tay- 
lor's troops  to  the  west  of  the  Nueces  culminated  in 
the  murder  of  Colonel  Cross,  the  defeat  of  a  party 
under  Lieutenant  Porter,  the  capture  of  Captain 
Thornton's  squadron  of  dragoons  by  the  Mexicans  on 
this  side  of  the  Rio  Grande,  and  the  Act  of  our  Con- 
gress of  the  13th  of  May,  1846,  recognizing  the  exist- 
ence of  a  state  of  war. 

In  the  President's  Message  to  Congress,  which  pre- 
ceded by  two  days  the  passage  of  the  above  Act,  he 
told  the  people  of  the  United  States  "  that  American 
blood  had  been  shed  upon  American  soil,  and  that,  by 
the  acts  of  her  generals,  Mexico  had  proclaimed  that 
hostilities  had  commenced." 

Was  the  country  between  the  Nueces  and  the  Eio 
Grande  American  soil  ?  The  whole  casus  belli  turns 
on  this.  I  say  it  was  :  and  this  assertion  is  made 
after  much  reading  on  the  subject.  If  the  province 
of,  or  republic  of,  Texas  ever  owned  to  the  left  bank 
of  the  Rio  Grande,  we  were  in,  under  the  terms 
of  annexation ;  and  that  she  did  so  claim,  after  the 
treaty  with   the   Mexican   generals  in  1836,  is  not 


*  There  were  some  exceptions.  The  President,  Herrera,  was 
opposed  to  war;  and  I  was  told  in  tbe  city  of  Mexico  in  1848, 
by  an  eye-witness  of  thi^  affair,  that  in  January,  1846,  on 
the  day  that  Herrera  was  compelled  to  resign  by  Paredes  and 
his  adherents,  when  Herrera  left  the  palace  the  people  in  tbe 
plaza  made  way  for  him  as  he  passed  alone  through  the  crowd, 
and  with  tears  in  their  eyes  prayed  God  to  protect  and  bless  him, 
so  highly  was  he  esteemed  by  all  classes. 


MARYLAND    VOLVNTEER.  17 

disputed.  Besides  this,  I  think  the  probabilities  are 
that  as  a  province  or  state  of  tlie  Mexican  confedera- 
tion, the  Rio  Grande,  or  Bravo  del  Norte  as  they  also 
termed  it,  was  its  natural  western  boundary,*  as  no 
other  State  of  the  Mexican  republic  was  lying  east  of 
this  river  but  Texas. 

After  the  victories  of  the  Texans,  they  drove  the 
Mexicans  across  the  Rio  Grande,  and  on  the  banks  of 
this  river  the  Texan  leaders  deliberated  upon  the 
boundaries  of  their  future  republic.  Many  of  them 
were  well  acquainted  with  the  rich  valley  of  the  Rio 
Grande  west  of  that  river,  and  urged  that  the  moun- 
tains of  the  Sierra  Madre,  lying  about  a  hundred 
miles  back,  should  be  the  western  limits  of  their  State. 
This  would  have  given  to  the  Texans  the  Mexican 
State  of  Taraaulipas,  rich  in  cotton-  and  sugar-lands, 
and  a  natural  boundary  line  much  preferable  to  the 
Rio  Grande. 

It  is  related  as  a  factthatevery  officer  of  the  Texan 
army  present  at  this  conference  was  in  favor  of  this 
boundary,  witli   the   single  exception  of   their  com- 

*  I  admit  there  is  Mexican  authority  for  the  claim  made  by 
some  geographers  that  the  Nueces  was  the  eastern  boundary  of 
the  State  of  Coahuila  ;  but  General  Almonte,  high  Mexican 
authority,  said  that  this  was  an  error.  France  claimed  by  the 
discovery  of  the  Mississippi  all  the  country  to  the  Rio  Grande.  , 
This  is  a  natural  geographical  division.  When  we  bought 
Louisiana  from  Napoleon  in  1803,  we  claimed  under  its  grant  to 
the  Rio  Grande.  By  our  treaty  with  Spain  in  1819  we  aban- 
doned our  claim  to  all  the  territory  west  of  the  Sabine  River. 
Texas  now  took  up  what  our  statesmen  had  abandoned,  and  the 
victory  of  San  Jacinto,  with  its  sequences,  removed  all  doubt  as 
to  whom  the  territory  belonged  on  the  4th  day  of  April,  1846. 

2 


18  .  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

manding  officer,  General  Sam  Houston.  He  over- 
ruled the  decision  of  the  officers,  and  insisted  that  the 
Rio  Grande  River  should  be  the  line  from  its  mouth 
to  the  39th  parallel  of  north  latitude,*  and  thus  it  was 
established  by  Act  of  the  Congress  of  the  republic  of 
Texas  in  1836  ;  so  that,  when  Texas  came  into  the 
Union,  she  brought  with  her  the  boundary  on  the  west 
gained  by  her  people  in  their  war  of  independence. 

On  the  4th  of  April,  1846,  the  Mexican  General 
Arista  was  ordered  by  his  Government  to  cross  the 
Rio  Grande,  and  attack  and  destroy  the  American 
army  by  every  means  in  his  power-  and  he  immedi- 
ately announced  to  General  Taylor,  on  this  side  the 
river,  that  he  considered  hostilities  as  having  com- 
menced. On  the  25th  of  April  General  Torrejon  did 
cross  the  river,  and  killed  Lieutenant  Mason,  with  a 
large  proportion  of  Thornton's  squadron  United  States 
Dragoons,  and  captured  the  balance. 

The  war  had  commenced ;  Arista  followed  Torrejon, 
and,  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Rio  Grande,  in  the  State 
of  Texas,  fought  and  was  defeated  by  General  Taylor 
on  the  8th  and  9th  days  of  May,  1846. 

The  news  of  the  battles  of  the  8th  and  9th  of 
May — Palo  Alto  and  Resaca  de  la  Palma — caused 
the  liveliest  rejoicing  throughout  the  United  States, 
and  the  victories  of  our  gallant  little  army  of  regulars 
raised  the  military  enthusiasm  of  the  nation  to  the 
highest  pitch. 

By  the  Act  of  May  13,  1846,  the  President  was 
authorized  to  call  forth  volunteers  in  any  number  not 


*  Doniphaa's  Campaign. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  19 

exceeding  50,000,  to  serve  for  the  period  of  one  year 
or  during  the  war.  Prior  to  the  passage  of  this  Act, 
a  considerable  number  of  volunteers  from  Louisiana 
had  been  called  for  by  Generals  Gaines  and  Taylor  for 
three  months'  service,  and  had  marched  with  alacrity 
to  the  support  of  the  army  in  the  field. 

Soon  after  the  news  of  the  battles  on  the  Rio 
Grande  had  been  received  in  Baltimore,  I  went  to  the 
city  of  Washington,  provided  with  a  letter  of  intro- 
duction to  the  President  of  the  United  States  from 
an  influential  citizen  of  Baltimore, — Mr.  Francis 
Gallagher, — and  had  an  interview  with  Mr.  Polk. 
I  solicited  from  him  an  appointment  to  the  regular 
army ;  he  told  me  that  he  purposed  calling  for  volun- 
teers— would  take  some  from  Maryland,  and  that  then 
I  would  have  an  opportunity  to  i-espond  to  the  call  of 
my  country  with  higher  rank  than  he  could  give  me. 

Continued  my  efforts  to  enter  the  regular  army 
until  the  1st  day  of  June,  when  after  a  conversa- 
tion with  Lieutenant-Colonel  Wm.  H.  Watson,  I  deter- 
mined to  raise  a  company  of  volunteers  for  a  battalion 
which  he  was  organizing  for  twelve  months'  service. 

On  the  next  day,  the  2d  of  June,  opened  a  ren- 
dezvous in  the  armory  of  the  Eagle  Artillery  Com- 
pany (of  which  company  I  was  the  First  Lieutenant), 
and  another  at  Trades'  Union  Hall,  corner  of  Balti- 
more Street  and  Tripolett's  Alley.  Volunteers  came 
in  with  extraordinary  rapidity,  and  on  the  morning  of 
the  4th  day  of  June  I  carried  to  the  city  of  Washing- 
ton, by  railroad,  two  officers  and  fifty-eight  men, 
the  whole  having  been  recruited  by  me  in  less  than 
thirty-six  hours.     Prior  to  leaving  my  rendezvous  in 


20  2IEM0IRS  OF  A 

Baltimore  Street,  I  was  honored  and  gratified  by  being 
presented  with  a  sword  and  sash  by  Captain  George 
P.  Kane,  the  commanding  officer,  on  behalf  of  the 
Eagle  Artillery  Company,  with  which  I  had  been  con- 
nected as  private  and  officer  for  several  years. 

On  reaching  Washington  we  were  met  by  the  vol- 
unteers from  Baltimore  who  had  preceded  me,  and 
escorted  to  the  War  Department,  from  whence  we 
marched  to  the  Marine  Barracks,  where  quarters  had 
been  assigned  my  recruits. 

On  the  next  day  sent  Lieutenants  Francis  B. 
Schaeffer  and  Oden  Bowie  back  to  Baltimore  to  bring 
more  men,  who,  I  had  been  informed,  were  anxious 
to  join  the  company.  They  returned  on  the  7th, 
and  on  the  next  day,  the  8th  day  of  June,  1846,  we 
marched  to  the  War  Department,  and  were  mustered 
into  the  service  of  the  United  States  by  Lorenzo 
Thomas,  Major  and  Assistant- Adjutant-General  United 
States  Army,  for  twelve  months,  my  company  consist- 
ing of  three  officers  and  eighty-four  non-commissioned 
officers  and  privates. 

The  following  is  the  roll  of  the  company,  which 
was  known  as  "  Baltimore's  Own  "  : 

Captain,  John  E.  Keuly. 

First  Lieutenant,  Francis  B.  Schaeffer. 

Second  Lieutenant,  Oden  Bowie. 

Sergeants:  William  E.  Aisquith,  William  Hickman, 
George  0.  Lansdale,  Thomas  Tyser. 

Corporals :  Benjamin  F.  Brand,  James  H.  Mans- 
field, James  A.  Beacham,  James  Tibbies. 

Privates  :  John  Andrews,  John  F.  Alexander,  John 
Allen,    Wm.  Allen,   Lemuel   Atkinson,    George   W. 


i)/.l/i'l7,.l.\7)    y(UJ^\'TKF,n.  21 

Bowie,  Jolm  A.  liillington,  VVm.  A.  Biillcr,  Win. 
BiinnisttT,  Siuniiol  Ik'iiston,  Jolm  Boyd,  Kdwai'd 
Bouliuin'cr,  JmcoI)  lliikor,  llilwiud  I.  Bynun,  l{icliii,r(l 
Jl.  Holl,  .liuiu's  B.  Cimniii,:;-,  (a>orov  N.  ('ollitis,  Do 
Azro  A.  1{.  ('Mtlini;',  Jiuutl)  Dc-goinp,  Francis  M.  Dub- 
bin, .losopl.  11.  Dick,  llcni-y  1.  Eldin-,  ChiU'lw  Fis- 
cluT,  lionis  Fuller,  IKmu'v  b'orlm.sli,  Fnuicis  Fisbcr, 
(ii'ori;(>  Gordon,  Stunuol  (iclston,  \'iMi'i'nt  ll(>nxlc>r, 
John  11.  !li|ikins,  Jann's  llcMiry,  Burnoy  lluwkinw, 
(^•or-v  'r.  Hugo,  (lliarios  Hill,  ("jeoror  iinilry,  Wm. 
S,  lliilcli,  Cliivrlcs  Johnson,  Jolm  S.  Jolmsou,  David 
Jolmwon,  [jiM-oy  Kniglil,  Thomas  Iioybiirn,  Tlioniaw 
liOvtMiton,  Francis  A.  Lalicdic,  Jolm  Lougbry,  Sam- 
uel Lockbart,  William  Macroady,  (!eorp;(>  iMacnclly, 
Jos(>|ih  15.  JNliUard,  James  II.  IMtM'ton,  Jacob  Morris, 
John  Magncss,  ('harlcs  W.  l\la(cbctt,  John  IMcGun- 
n(>ll,  Edward  Myers,  Henry  1*.  NoVris,  Kranois  Louis 
Nettan,  Franklin  B.  Nimocks,  Josiah  Bregg,  Charles 
Pratt,  James  Pcrcgtiy,  Sctli  S.  Ivogcrs,  Jolm  Kcese, 
Jose|iii  B.  Richardson,  Wu».  INI.  S.  Hiley,  .\ndre\v  1. 
Bitter.  Wui.  iva.plcy,  Jolm  K.  Ivohinsoii,  James  ^V. 
Sullivan,  Jolm  Smith,  Thomas  T.  Stansbury,  Win.  11. 
Sililey,  John  W.  Turner.  Joseph  Wharry,  Daniel 
Williams,  Wm.  Wilson,  and  Fiaiest  Tressel." 

The  (bllowing  were  subseipiently  mustered  into  the 
company,  \i/. : 

Pri\'a.tes :  John  (^reaTuer,  Armistead  Henderson, 
Alexander  Ivamsay.  Henry  ilel't.aiid  ("has.  lleidelhach. 

Under  tiie  Act  ol'  (\)ngress  before  referred  to,  the 
field  and  company  ollicers  of  the  volunteers  accepted 
under  the  call  were  tt>  be  appointed  and  coHimissit)netl 
ncconling  to  the  laws  of  the  State  from  whence  they 


22  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

came;  and  I,  with  my  two  lieutenants,  were  commis- 
sioned by  his  Excellency,  Thomas  G.  Pratt,  Governor 
of  the  State  of  Maryland. 

The  organization  to  which  I  was  attached  was  des- 
ignated "  The  Battalion  of  Baltimoee  and  Wash- 
ington VoLUNTEEKS,"  and  which  became  subsequently 
widely  and  well  known  as  "  The  Old  Baltimore  Bat- 
talion." It  was  composed  of  six  companies  of  in- 
fantry ;  four  of  them  having  been  recruited  in  Balti- 
more, and  two  of  them  in  the  city  of  Washington, 
District  of  Columbia.     They  were  officered  as  follows  : 

Company  A,  from  Baltimore :  Captain,  James  E. 
Steu'art;  Lieutenants,  Benjamin  Ferguson  Owens  and 
Samuel  Wilt ;  add'l.  Second  Lieutenant,  David  P. 
Chapman. 

Company  B, from  Baltimore:  Captain,  James  Piper; 
Lieutenants,  Lawrence,  Dolan,  and  Marcellus  K.  Tay- 
lor; add'l.  Second  Lieutenant,  Isaac  H.  Marrow. 

Company  C,  from  Washington :  Captain,  Robert  Bro- 
naugh;  Lieutenants,  Phineas  B.  Bell,  William  O'Brien, 
Thomas  M.  Gleason. 

Company  D,  from  Washington :  Captain,  John  Waters; 
Lieutenants,  Wm.  I.  Parham,  Eugene  Boyle,  Edward 
Murphy. 

Company  E,  from  Baltimore :  Captain,  John  R.  Kenly ; 
Lieutenants,  Francis  B.  Schaeffer  and  Oden  Bowie  ; 
add'l.  Second  Lieutenant,  WilUam  E.  Aisquith. 

Company  F,*  from  Baltimore:  Captain,  James  Boyd; 
Lieutenants,  Joseph  H.  Ruddach  and  Robert  E.  Has- 
lett ;    add'l.  Second  Lieutenant,  James  Taneyhill. 


*  Chesapeake  Rifles. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  23 

The  whole  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  William  H.  Watson,  its  only  field  officer. 

My  commission  bore  date  the  4th  day  of  June,  1846  ; ' 
and  on  the  13th  of  the  same  month  I  was  oh  board 
the  transport  steamer  Massachusetts,  bound  for  the 
seat  of  war  in  Mexico,  with  as  brave  a  set  of  men  as 
ever  wore  the  uniform  of  the  United  States  army. 
The  battalion  was  of  the  best  material  for  the  service 
and  the  country  in  which  it  was  to  be  engaged,  but 
lacked  trained  officers  to  set  it  up  and  make  soldiers 
of  its  rank  and  file.  This,  time  and  the  effect  of 
war  brought  about,  and  I  lived  to  see  the  battalion 
second  to  none  in  the  volunteer  arm  of  the  service  in 
appearance  and  efficiency. 

The  thread  of  my  memoirs  is  now  taken  up  from 
notes,  letters,  and  diary,  mostly  made  and  written  as 
the  events  occurred. 

June  10,  1846.  The  battalion  was  ordered  by  the 
Secretary  of  War  to  leave  the  Marine  Barracks,  where 
it  had  been  quartered,  for  Fort  Washington,  on  the 
banks  of  the  Potomac  River,  seven  miles  below  the 
town  of  Alexandria.  The  cause  of  this  unexpected 
order  was  an  application  from  the  mayor  of  the  city 
of  Washington,  who  had  been  incensed  at  the  bad 
behavior  of  some  of  the  men,  and  Avho,  as  it  was 
alleged,  had  entered  into  a  personal  quarrel  with 
them,  in  which,  as  may  well  be  supposed,  he  was  not 
much  the  gainer. 

June  13.  Left  the  fort,  and  embarked  on  board  the 
steamer  Powhattan,  and  at  8  o'clock  p.m.  arrived 
alongside  the  steamer  Massachusetts,  lying  in  the 
river,  which  had  been  chartered  by  the  Government 


24  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

to  convey  our  battalion  and  a  large  amount  of  stores 
to  Point  Isabel,  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  It  had  been 
raining  hard  all  day,  and  suddenly  five  hundred  men 
were  throAvn  upon  a  steamer  of  seven  hundred  tons' 
burden,  whose  hold  and  deck  were  filled  and  covered 
with  forage  and  other  military  stores.  A  scene  of 
indescribal^le  confusion  ensued,  which  the  darkness 
seemed  to  swell  and  magnify;  and  no  repose  was  had 
on  that  night  of  chaos,  except  that  which  was  obtained 
through  pure  exhaustion. 

June  14.  We  were  in  such  a  condition  to-day  that, 
although  it  was  Sunday,  we  were  forced  to  drop 
down  the  river  about  two  miles  below  Alexandria,  in 
order  to  make  an  effort  to  clear  the  decks  of  the  ship, 
and  keep  the  men  on  board  from  the  allurements  of 
their  friends,  male  and  female,  who  had  followed 
them  from  Wasliington  and  Baltimore.  Berths  had 
been  prepared  for  two  hundred  men  ;  these  were  in 
the  main  hold,  over  the  bulk  of  the  Government 
freight;  no  accommodations  whatever  were  provided 
for  the  balance  of  the  troops.  Carpenters  were  now 
put  to  work,  and  a  series  of  bunks  were  constructed 
on  the  main  deck,  running  from  the  quarter  deck,  on 
either  side  of  the  ship,  forward  to  the  forecastle,  which 
were  constructed  so  as  to  contain  the  largest  number 
of  soldiers,  and  yet  permit  the  seamen  to  work  ship. 
These  bunks  were  a  frightful  source  of  disorder,  and 
were  the  cause  of  much  trouble  on  the  voyage,  be- 
t^^'een  the  soldiers  and  the  sailors.  We  had  a  very 
riotous  night;  but,  all  the  officers  being  put  upon 
guard  duty,  we  managed  to  hold  our  own,  although 
it  was  rough  work. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  25 

June  lo.  Every  preparation  being  made  to  weigh 
anchor ;  all  hurry,  bustle  and  confusion.  An  eiFort  was 
made  to  clear  the  ship  by  mustering  all  that  were  to 
satl  on  the  upper  deck — my  men  behaving  (as  I  after- 
wards learned  soldiers  become)  more  like  children 
than  grown  men ;  one  Avanted  a  pen,  another  a  sheet 
of  paper,  one  wanted  me  to  read  a  letter  just  received, 
another  wanted  me  to  write  one  for  him,  another 
wanted  me  to  send  his  money  home,  another  wanted 
me  to  keep  it  for  him,  one  wanted  a  wafer,  another 
ink,  one  complained  that  his  uniform  was  too  large, 
another  that  Ms  was  too  small,  one  said  that  he  was 
sick  and  wanted  me  to  give  him  medicine,  another 
that  he  couldn't  find  the  surgeon — not  to  be  wondered 
at,  for  in  the  mob  that  was  at  that  time  on  board  that 
ship  one's  own  identity  was  almost  lost. 

June  16.  Our  ship  got  under  weigh  at  8  o'clock 
this  morning,  and  immediately  a  change  lor  the  better 
came  over  every  man  on  boai'd  the  Massachusetts. 
Hurra  !  we  are  fairly  started  for  the  seat  of  war  !  such 
was  the  joyous  greeting  which  fell  from  the  bright 
faces  and  smiling  lips  of  all  those  who  now  crowded 
the  decks  of  the  transport.  At  9  a.m.,  abreast  of 
Mount  Vernon.  Hats  off,  boys  !  Silence,  fore  and  aft! 
and  thus  we  floated  past  the  grave  of  Washington. 

At  6  P.M.  we  were  off  Piney  Point,  and  fired  a 
salute  as  we  entered  the  Chesapeake.  Our  officers 
still  keeping  guard,  we  had  a  more  quiet  night. 

June  17.  At  9  A.M.,  off  the  capes,  the  pilot  left  us, 
carrying  a  large  bag  of  letters.  A  delightful  morning, 
but  a  long  swell  rolling  in  is  making  the  landsmen 
among  our  soldiers  (there  were  many  seamen  among 


26  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

them ;  in  my  own  company  there  were  five  men  who 
had  been  several  years  in  the  United  States  naval 
service  before  volunteering  with  me)  feel  the  jaremo- 
nitions  of  sea-sickness.  To-day  our  decks  w«e 
scoured,  well  washed,  and  some  degree  of  military 
discipline  attempted. 

June  18.  At  10  o'clock  last  night  we  were  off 
Cape  Hatteras — that  dread  of  all  mariners ;  we  gave 
it  a  wide  berth,  though  we  could  distinctly  see  its 
lighthouse.  At  4  a.m.  the  moon  rose,  and  the  sea 
looked  like  a  mass  of  molten  gold  ;  nothing  disturbed 
its  repose  in  my  morning  watch  but  the  play  of  dol- 
phins and  the  dance  of  Mother  Carey's  chickens,  the 
petrel  of  the  wide  Atlantic.  A  fine  run  to-day,  using 
both  wind  and  steam  to  urge  us  forward. 

June  19.  Delightful  breezes,  and  making  rapid 
progress.  At  9  a.m.  saw  a  large  vessel,  which  made 
signals  to  close ;  bore  away  for  her,  and  all  was  ex- 
citement, an  opinion  being  prevalent  that  -she  was  a 
letter  of  marque,  with  a  Mexican  commission.  No 
one  could  doubt  the  earnest  wish  of  our  men  that  she 
might  prove  to  be  an  enemy,  but,  on  speaking,  she 
turned  out  to  be  an  American  ship.  At  3  P.M;  a 
beautiful  pilot  boat,  No.  2,  came  gracefully  alongside, 
and  asked  if  we  wished  a  pilot  for  Charleston  ;  large 
shoals  of  porpoises  around  us  this  afternoon.  At  6 
P.M.,  wind  increasing,  all  sail  was  set  and  steam  dis- 
pensed with  ;  during  the  night  the  wind  increased  to 
a  hurricane,  and  the  rain  descended  in  torrents; 
passed  several  vessels  flying  before  the  wind ;  during 
the  blow,  I  was  called  upon  to  quell  a  serious  fight 
among  my  own  men.     Knives  were  used,  blood  spilt. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  27 

and  we  arrested  the  offenders.  Rum  was  the  cause 
of  all  the  trouble. 

June  20.  Calm  this  morning,  and  the  decks  covered 
with  sea-sick  soldiers,  that  last  night's  pitching  had 
placed  hors  du  comhat ;  dolphins  playing  around  the 
ship,  as  if  to  charm  vis  with  their  freedom  and  grace. 
At  4  P.M.  the  wind  suddenly  commenced  blowing 
violently,  causing  the  ship  again  to  pitch  frightfully. 
During  the  night,  despite  the  rolling  of  the  ship,  a 
pretty  general  free  fight  occurred  in  the  hold  among 
the  men,  which  was  difficult  to  quell ;  but  the  officers 
uniting  and  mutually  assisting  each  other,  were, 
backed  by  their  authority,  too  strong  for  the  rioters. 
We  now  saw  the  impolicy  of  having  had  the  men 
paid  their  advance-money  (some  twenty  dollars  to 
each  volunteer)  before  we  sailed  from  Alexandria. 
There  was  a  large  quantity  of  liquor  somewhere  on 
board,  and  the  subaltern  officers  of  the  steamer, 
either  directly,  or  indirectly  through  the  sailors,  sold 
quantities  to  our  men,  which  made  them  mutinous 
and  disorderly ;  it  would  not  have  been  the  case 
had  there  been  no  money  to  buy  whisky  with. 

June2\ — Sunday.  Progressing  finely.  At  12  o'clock, 
noon,  latitude  30°  9'  north,  and  laying  our  course 
for  Abaco,  one  of  the  Bahama  Islands ;  ship  rolling, 
and  decks  literally  jammed  full  of  sea-sick  soldiers; 
saw  that  misery  did  not  like  company. 

June  22.  A  heavy  squall  this  morning,  which 
laid  the  ship  over  and  wet  everything ;  got  sick  to-day, 
but  ascribed  it  to  sympathy  for  others;  the  wind 
being  adverse,  had  to  resort  to  our  propeller,  which 
screwed   us  along   nobly.      At   6.30   p.m.  a   topsail 


28  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

schooner  came  bearing  down  upon  us,  and  the  fever- 
ish excitement  incident  to  the  beginning  or  first 
stages  of  a  war,  which  had  made  our  newspapers 
filled  with  rumors  of  pnunteers  swarming  in  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico,  was  now  very  apparent  among  our  raw 
soldiers.  Of  course  she  was  a  privateer,  but  this  was 
a  very  cowardly  one;  for  as  soon  as  those  who  had 
charge  of  her  made  out  the  number  of  men  about  our 
decks,  a  change  was  made  in  her  course  as  swiftly 
as  possible;  she  went  about,  and  ran  with  all  the 
speed  that  was  in  her.  We  pursued  with  steam, 
and  overhauled  her,  when,  with  a  backed  topsail,  she 
threw  out  the  Cross  of  St.  George,  and  the  meteor  flag 
of  Old  England  was  floating  over  the  schooner 
Evander,  from  Nassau  for  New  York.  She  was  a 
beautiful  craft,  and  I  never  saw  anything  on  the  sea 
more  attractive  than  the  picture  presented  as  she 
rolled  gracefully  on  the  long  swell  of  the  ocean — the 
setting  sun  mellowing  everything,  and  sea  and  sky 
in  harmony  with  their  glowing,  yet  dissolving  and 
varied,  colors,  chasing  each  other  into  the  shadows  of 
night.  She  was  loaded  with  fruit,  and  the  captain 
of  the  steamer  permitted  his  mate  to  visit  her  to 
make  purchases.  Nearly  every  man  had  a  commis- 
sion for  him  to  execute,  and  the  mate  returned  with 
his  boat  filled  with  pineapples  and  bananas,  for 
which  he  had  to  give,  as  he  said,  a  sea-i^rice :  four 
dollars  a  bunch  for  bananas,  twenty-five  cents  apiece 
for  pineapples.  I  gave  a  lot  of  the  bananas  to  such 
of  the  men  as  had  no  money,  and  to  those  who  were 
sick. 

June  23.     Our  captain  this  morning  said  that  we 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  29 

had  lost  sixty  miles  easting,  and  that  we  would  reach 
Abaco  to-night;  cahn  all  day,  and  delightful  weather; 
the  sick  getting  well,  and  all  in  good  spirits. 

June  24.  At  4  a.m.,  off  the  revolving  light  on 
Abaco.  "We  had  passed  the  "  Hole  in  the  Wall,"  a  rock 
at  one  of  the  points  of  the  island,  before  it  was  day 
enough  to  make  out,  but  I  saw  where  it  ought  to  be. 
The  sea  was  as  smooth  and  polished  as  a  mirror  this 
morning,  and  the  island  lay  in  all  the  beauty  of  the 
tropics,  its  undulating  shores,  wooded  to  the  beach, 
reflected  and  reproduced  upon  its  bosom,  while  heavy 
clouds,  piled  like  mountains  in  the  background,  were 
being  gilded,  burnished,  and  made  gorgeous,  with  the 
rays  of  the  rising  sun.  At  6  a.m.  we  were  in  sight 
of  Berry  Island,  another  of  the  Bahama  group ;  beau- 
tiful water-fowl  were  floating  about  us  on  the  smooth 
surface  of  the  sea  and  shoals,  or  rather  flocks  of  flying- 
fish  were  leaping  and  sporting  in  the  two  elements  of 
air  and  water.  At  9  A.M.  we  were  east  of  the  Berry 
Islands,  and  a  negro  man  came  off  in  a  boat  to  us, 
bringing  fresh  fish,  milk,  eggs,  sponge,  and  shells  for 
sale,  which  were  soon  all  disposed  of.  The  fish  were 
curious  to  us  in  shape  and  color,  and  made  excellent 
pan-fish,  as  we  all  agreed,  in  tliis  matter  at  least,  at 
dinner  time. 

So  far  all  had  gone  well,  but  a  fearful  danger  was 
in  close  proximity.  At  2  o'clock  p.m.  we  were  going 
along  with  a  nine-knot  breeze,  when  two  large  rocks 
hove  in  sight,  which  proved  to  be  a  couple  of  A'e^/s, 
known  by  the  name  of  "  Little  Isaacs,  "  the  breakers 
tossing  madly  over  them.  The  men  commenced 
looking  over  the  sides  of  the  ship  in  excited  nervous 


30  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

manner,  talking  loudly,  and  it  was  soon  generally 
known  that  we  were  running  with  our  keel  pretty 
close  to  the  bottom  of  the  sea;  large  rocks  were 
plainly  discernible  beneath  the  water,  and  an  uneasy 
feeling  spread  through  the  ship.  Still  we  flew  along, 
little  dreaming  that  our  captain  was  utterly  lost,  as 
he  subsequently  admitted  that  he  was,  when,  being 
just  abreast  of  the  Little  Isaacs,  our  ship  struck. 
Again  she  struck,  still  harder,  bringing  every  man  to 
his  knees  who  had  been  standing  upon  his  feet,  and 
producing  a  panic  terror  such  as  I  hope  never  again  to 
see.  Again  she  struck,  and  this  time  remained  hard 
and  fast  upon  the  rocks  beneath  us,  except,  being 
lifted  by  the  swell  of  the  ocean,  she  would  settle 
again,  with  a  thump  which  strained  every  timber  in 
her,  and  every  human  being  on  board,  to  their  utmost 
tension.  The  captain  screamed  and  shouted,  the  men 
cried,  prayed,  and  ran  wildly  about  the  decks ;  some 
jumped  into  the  quarter-boats  which  hung  upon  the 
davits,  others  stripped  themselves  of  clothing,  no  one 
doubted  but  that  she  would  go  to  pieces.  The  cap- 
tain threw  himself  upon  his  knees  in  the  most  abject 
terror.  I  both  saw  and  heard  him  crying  that  all 
was  lost. 

No  one  assumed  command,  no  one  issued  an  order; 
every  instant  we  expected  the  masts  to  go  over  the 
sides,  and  our  bottom  to  be  crushed  in;  when,  no 
one  can  tell  how  it  was  done,  but  the  men,  that  is,  our 
soldiers  who  had  been  raen-of-warsmen,  lowered  a 
sail  on  the  mizen  mast,  called  a  spanker,  which  being 
immediately  filled  by  the  wind,  the  ship  rolled  off— I 
can  describe  the  sensation  I  felt  in  no  other  way — the 


MARYLANJD    VOLUNTEER.  31 

rocks  upon  which  we  had  been  imbedded,  and  glided 
into  deeper  water.  We  were  still  in  great  danger  from 
these  hidden  perils,  and  all  confidence  Avas  lost  in  the 
navigation  of  the  ship.  The  wind  increased  in  vio- 
lence, yet  we  had  to  carry  every  rag  of  canvas  in 
order  to  weather  the  "Great  Isaacs,"  another  group  of 
keys  some  thirteen  miles  from  where  we  had  struck ; 
it  commenced  raining  very  hard,  and  by  6  p.m.  it  was 
perfectly  dark,  the  ship  rushing  like  a  race-horse 
through  the  water,  with  her  bulwarks  careened  to  its 
surface,  under  the  force  of  the  gale  which  was  blow- 
ing. It  Avas  an  awful  night,  and  I  realized  for  the 
first  time  the  indescribable  sensation  and  effect  caused 
by  darkness  and  the  vicinity  of  danger,  when  men 
are  massed  together.  About  midnight  the  captain, 
who  had  somewhat  recovered  his  lost  manhood,  said 
that  he  thought  Ave  Avere  now  safe  and  clear  of  the 
keys.  Under  the  mercy  of  the  Almighty,  we  owed 
our  safety  to  those  who  had  built  the  Massachusetts ; 
it  was  her  strong  timbers  and  sound  hull  that  had 
saved  us  from  a  frightful  end.  We  all  felt,  and  all 
said,  that  we  owed  our  lives  to  the  steamer  Massa- 
chusetts, and  our  imminent  peril  to  those  who  navi- 
gated her. 

June  25.  At  4  a.m.  I  went  on  deck,  the  ship  still 
reeling  on  the  heavy  sea,  though  the  wind  had  abated 
its  violence.  The  sun  rose  like  a  globe  of  fire,  casting 
an  angry  glance  on  the  turbulent  Avaves,  and  a  large 
ship  down  to  the  leeward  added  to  the  grandeur  of 
the  scene.  It  soon  began  to  rain,  and  the  wind  rose 
again  :  we  progressed  rapidly,  and  about  12  o'clock, 
noon,  we  saw  land  on  our  lee-bow ;  it  was  the  "Carys- 


32  MEMO  IBS  OF  A 

ford  Reef,"  upon  which  a  light-boat  was  riding  at 
anchor;  at  4  p.m.  we  were  sailing  slowly  along  the 
shores  of  Florida,  still  anxious  about  weathering  these 
well-known  and  dangerous  reefs,  the  current  drifting 
us  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  shore  as  the  wind  died 
away. 

June  26.  On  coming  to  the  deck  this  morning  I 
found  it  raining,  and  the  vessel  moving  quite  rapidly 
under  steam-power,  which  had  been  resorted  to  during 
the  night  by  reason  of  the  calm  and  our  proximity  to 
the  shore;  at  noon  we  were  off  Key  West,  whose 
houses  and  shipping  were  visible  as  we  lay  off  and  on 
waiting  for  a  pilot.  The  sea  was  now  as  smooth  as 
glass,  and  the  heat  of  the  sun  oppressive ;  Key  West 
and  its  island  home,  floating  upon  the  bosom  of  the 
Gulf  as  Venice  amid  its  lagoons ;  and  three  or  four 
lai-ge  cotton-ships  were  in  our  vicinitj',  lazily  yielding 
to  the  gentle  motion  of  the  tide. 

While  we  were  at  dinner  one  of  the  soldiers  caught 
a  dolphin,  and  I, gazed  with  pain  at  its  unrivaled 
colors.  It  was  four  feet  in  length,  and  looked  as  if  it 
had  been  gilded,  then  spotted  with  blue  globes  of  glass; 
as  it  flapped  out  its  existence  on  the  deck  of  our  dirty 
transport,  the  gold  and  blue  would  fade,  and  then  re- 
appear with  almost  their  original  lustre  and  beauty, 
until  the  discoloration  of  death  closed  my  first  (as  it 
will  certainly  he  my  last)  view  of  the  dying  dolphin. 
It  was  a  painful  sight  to  me. 

The  pilot  who  came  on  board  told  us  that  the  port 
of  Tampico  had  been  blockaded  by  our  fleet,  and  we 
sent  by  him  a  package  of  letters  for  home. 

At  4  P.M.  we  were  once  more  out  of  sight  of  land, — 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  33 

the  sea  still  smooth,  no  wind, — and  making  good  pro- 
gress, under  steam,  across  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

June  28 — Sunday.  We  have  been  making  good 
headway  for  the  past  twenty-four  hours,  the  sea  still 
smooth ;  and  we  have  thus  been  able  to  use  our  pro- 
peller, which,  it  seems,  as  we  have  been  suspecting, 
don't  work  when  the  sea  is  rough.  The  heat  is  very 
great,  the  thermometer  (Fahrenheit)  ranging  from 
ninety  to  ninety-one  degrees  in  the  coolest  place  on  the 
ship,  while  it  stands  several  degrees  higher  in  the 
cabin  :  we,  the  officers,  all  sleep  on  deck  without  any 
covering.  We  have  had  a  good  deal  of  trouble  about 
the  allowance  of  water  to  the  men  ;  the  whole  arrange- 
ment was  very  bad,  and  constant  quarrels,  with  hard 
fighting,  have  been  going  on  for  the  past  forty-eight 
hours.  We  are  all  now  just  as  anxious  to  get  out  of 
the  ship  as  we  were  to  get  on  board. 

June  29 — six  o'clock  p.m.  Since  yesterday  there 
has  not  been  much  change  in  the  atmosphere,  ocean, 
or  anything  else,  except  perhaps  a  greater  desire  to 
get  on  shore.  It  is  exceedingly  hot,  and  the  crowded 
state  of  our  decks  (there  are  upwards  of  six  hundred 
men  on  board  this  ship  of  seven  hundred  tons),  with 
a  tropical  sun  blazing  upon  us,  and  the  heat  engendered 
by  the  fiery  furnaces  in  the  ship,  with  the  fear  that 
our  water  will  give  out, — the  men  already  fighting  for 
their  turns  to  obtain  their  rations, — and  the  sick  list 
swelling  at  a  fearful  rate,  make  us  anxious  and  appre- 
hensive ;  for  if  our  steam-power  were  to  fail  us  the 
thing  would  be  up,  as  there  is  no  doubt  but  that  our 
water  is  being  rapidly  exhausted.  Our  ship  has  been 
twice  on  fire  from  the  cooking  arrangements  of  the 


34  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

men  on  dech,  there  having  been  no  places  provided  for 
fires  to  cook  with  prior  to  leaving  on  our  voyage,  and 
those  improvised  being  very  insecure  and  a  constant ' 
source  of  apprehension,  and  justly  as  it  turned  out  to 
my  mind. 

I  believe  that  I  have  heretofore  said  our  men  were 
paid  an  advance  of  some  twenty  dollars  each  before 
leaving  Alexandria.  I  estimate  that  about  one-half 
of  the  sum  paid  them,  say  five  thousand  dollars,  was 
brought  on  board  the  Massachusetts.  From  the  first 
hour  they  came  on  board  until  the  present  time,  by 
day  and  by  night,  except  when  we  were  in  such  peril 
on  the  reefs,  gambling  has  been  going  on  under  every 
shape  and  device  that  skill  can  suggest;  and  it  has  been 
a  curious  subject  of  study  and  interest  with  me  to 
watch  how  rapidly  the  gold  and  silver  was  passing 
from  the  many  to  the  few.  In  less  than  a  week  nearly 
all  the  money  was  in  the  hands  of  about  fifty  men  ; 
now  I  am  sure  that  the  bulk  of  the  five  thousand 
dollars  is  in  the  pockets,  or  belonging  to,  not  more 
than  twenty  of  our  battalion,  if  so  many.  So  that 
in  two  weeks  the  money  belonging  to  say  three  hun- 
dred and  fifty  men  (some  one  hundred  of  our  men  did 
not  gamble),  confined  upon  one  ship,  had  been  Avon 
or  got  from  them  by  not  more  than  a  dozen  of  their 
comrades,  and  from  my  observation  I  am  sure  that, 
had  the  voyage  lasted  another  week,  all  the  money  of 
those  who  gambled  would  have  been  possessed  by  two 
or  three.  Surely  there  is  an  affinity  more  or  less 
strong  between  certain  men  and  money. 

It  may  be  asked,  why  was  this  gambling  suffered, 
as  it  was  the  fruitful  cause  of  the  almost  continuous 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  35 

fighting  in  the  hold  of  the  ship?  The  answer  is  plain : 
what  else  were  they  to  do  in  the  crowded  pen  they 
were  shut  up  in?  Positively  there  was  barely  space 
or  room  to  lie  down  anywhere,  and  those  who  kept 
awake  playing  cards  gave  room  to  the  others,  and 
opportunity  to  get  a  little  sleep.  Taking  into  considera- 
tion all  the  discomforts  which  the  men  suffered,  and  the 
unwarrantable  scantiness  of  the  supplies,  they  behaved 
well,  and  generally  speaking  were  respectful  to  their 
officers.  If  they  had  been  forbidden  to  play,  the  order 
could  not  have  been  enforced  in  the  hive  which 
swarmed  on  board  our  ship. 

June  30.  Hot,  hotter,  hottest !  Not  a  breath  of 
wind,  but  steaming  ahead  rapidly ;  all  day  long  we 
have  been  panting  under  the  burning  rays  of  the  sun, 
but  indulging  in  hopes  that  land  would  soon  be  in 
sight,  so  that  at  least  we  might  not  famish  for  want  of 
water.  We  are  told  that  we  will  make  the  mouth  of 
the  Rio  Grande  some  time  to-morrow,  should  no  acci- 
dent happen  to  our  machinery  or  ship.  The  little 
remaining  water  in  our  tanks  smells  worse  than  it  is 
possible  to  imagine  any  fluid  could  smell,  yet  we  wish 
there  was  more  of  it.  My  goodness !  it  seems  so 
strange  to  me  now  that  any  one  should  ever  waste 
water. 


gg  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

CHAPTER    II. 

ARRIVAL  AT  THE  BRAZOS  SANTIAGO. 

July  1.  After  seventeen  days'  confinement,  there 
is  now  a  prospect  of  a  happy  release  from  this  ship. 
The  island  of  Brazos  is  now  in  sight.  At  3  p.m.  we 
anchored  outside  of  the  breakers,  which  were  wildly 
dashing  on  the  sandy  beach.  A  Government  steamer 
came  out  an  hour  after  our  arrival,  and  took  three  com- 
panies of  our  troops  on  shore.  This  was  my  last  night 
on  board  the  steamer,  and  a  magnificent  one  it  was  in 
the  heavens  above  and  the  earth  and  the  sea  around 
and  about  us,  and  I  was  about  being  gratified  in  the 
earnest  longing  of  my  heart — to  be  a  soldier. 

July  2.  At  this  6  A.M.  a  steamer  came  alongside, 
under  the  management  of  Major  Lyons,  of  the  Loui- 
siana Brigade,  and  my  company  was  transported  to  the 
island,  upon  which  I  landed,  and,  forming  on  the  beach 
under  a  burning  sun,  which  peeled  me  as  soon,  and  as  if 
done  with,  scalding  water,  marched  under  orders  a  short 
distance  up  the  beach,  and  halted  on  some  sand-hills, 
where,  having  as  yet  no  shelter,  we  passed  the  night 
upon  the  sand,  supperless,  bedless,  with  a  foretaste  of 
what  was  in  store  for  us. 

I  had  worked  very  hard  this  day,  though  but  par- 
tially successful,  trying  to  get  my  stores,  tents,  and 
company  property  ashore,  and  the  heat  of  the  sun  had 
nearly  prostrated  me ;  but  I  was  full  of  life  and  of 
health,  and  my  whole  heart  was  in  the  business  I  had 


3IARyLAND  VOLUNTEER.  37 

undertaken.  Fortunately  we  had  found  water,  al- 
though brackish,  by  digging  into  the  sand  and  sinking 
wells  not  far  from  the  edge  of  the  Gulf,  and  the  men 
generally  were  as  full  of  life  and  spirits  as  I  was;  so 
my  first  day  in  the  field  was  one  of  good  hope,  despite 
the  grumbling  and  discontent  of  some. 

Ju/y  3.  I  had  time  to  look  round  me  this  morning, 
and  found  the  island  a  small  sand  spit,  lying  a  few 
miles  north  of  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Grande,  and  at 
the  outlet  of  the  Laguna — or  bay  as  we  would  call  it 
— del  Madre,  and  distant  a  mile  or  so  from  the  main- 
land. Immediately  north  is  another  but  larger  island, 
named  Padre  Island,  between  which  and  the  main- 
land the  waters  of  this  Laguna  or  Bay  del  Madre 
make  in  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  pass  out  by 
the  Brazos  Santiago,  lying  as  before  said  at  its  mouth. 
Point  Isabel  is  in  sight,  distant  three  miles  up  the 
lagoon.  Upon  this  point  is  the  Government  depot  of 
supplies  for  the  army  of  General  Taylor.  Upon  the 
island  not  a  blade  of  grass  or  vegetation  is  growing — 
nothing  but  sand,  and  seaward  the  wrecks  of  five 
vessels  add  to  the  general  misery  of  the  landscape. 
Small  as  is  the  area,  several  thousand  volunteers  from 
Missouri,  Tennessee,  Alabama,  Mississippi,  and  Loui- 
siana are  lying  with  us,  waiting  for  orders.  Though 
the  sun  was  gathering  strength  hourly,  from  the 
heated  rays  reflected  from  the  burning  sands  there  was 
no  shelter  whatever  for  my  men,  and  most  of  them 
threw  themselves  into  the  breakers,  which  tumbled 
with  unceasing  roar  upon  the  beach,  for  the  grateful 
luxury  of  a  bath.  Here  I  had  the  misfortune  to  lose 
one  of  my  men,  drowned  in  the  breakers  despite  the 


38  3IEM0IES  OF  A 

desperate  efforts  made  by  his  comrades  to  save  him. 
His  name  was  Richard  H.  Belt,  from  Carroll  County, 
Maryland;  and  his  body  neatly  sewed  up  in  a  blanket 
we  buried,  after  the  burial  service  of  the  Episcopal 
Church  had  been  read  by  me,  in  a  grave  scooped  out 
of  the  sand-hill  on  the  edge  of  the  Gulf.  Three  volleys 
fired  by  a  platoon  of  soldiers  closed  the  funeral  cere- 
monies, and  next  morning  not  a  sign  could  we  perceive 
of  the  grave  or  of  the  hill  in  which  it  had  been  dug, 
— all  blown  away  by  the  wind,  which  shifts  these  hills 
as  it  does  the  snow-drifts  of  northern  climes. 

July  4.  This  day  one  year  ago  I  was  playing 
soldier  at  Westminster,  Maryland,  with  the  Eagle 
Artillery  Company  of  Baltimore  ;  now,  to  say  the  least 
of  it,  things  are  very  different ;  busy,  very  busy,  issu- 
ing arms  and  accoutrements,  ammunition,  mess-pans, 
and  the  other  etcetera  known  to  captains  of  companies. 
The  heat  of  the  sun  almost  unsupportable,  but  not  as 
much  shelter  from  its  rays  as  a  blade  of  grass  would 
afford, — no  tents  yet.  We  buried  one  of  Captain 
Piper's  men  to-day  in  the  sand. 

July  5.  Slept  on  an  arms-chest  last  night,  and  arose 
this  morning  feeling  very  unwell ;  but  I  kept  at  work 
during  the  day,  and  shoved  oflf  a  spell  of  sickness. 
After  nightfall  we  buried  in  the  sand  one  of  Captain 
Steuart's  men ;  this  time  the  grave  was  hollowed  at 
the  top  of  the  hill,  around  whose  sides  clustered  the 
members  of  his  company.  A  fire  had  been  built  in 
the  vicinity,  to  give  light.  The  sea  was  tumbling  in  on 
the  beach  with  deafening  roar,  whilst  the  moon  would 
now  and  then  burst  from  behind  a  bank  of  clouds, 
lighting  up,  with  the  rays  from  the  fire,  the  men  who 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  39 

with  uncovered  heads  were  trying  to  catch  the  words 
of  the  burial  service,  which  it  was  impossible  to  hear 
for  the  noise  of  the  surf.  It  was  a  solemn  and  im- 
pressive scene,  producing  a  marked  effect  upon  the 
rough  men  gathered  around  the  grave  of  a  comrade, 
thus  cut  off  away  from  home  and  kindred,  and  thus 
buried  where  to-morrow  no  one  might  find  his  final 
resting-place. 

July  6.  I  paid  a  visit,  by  boat,  to  Point  Isabel,  on 
the  other  side  of  the  lagoon.  I  found  the  troops  here  in 
excellent  order,  very  different  from  our  state  on  the 
Brazos.  Things  looked  tidy  and  military.  Visited  the 
hospital,  and  was  much  affected  by  the  appearance  of 
the  wounded  Mexicans,  they  looked  so  sad  and  piti- 
able, and  will  not  soon  forget  the  look  of  gratitude 
which  one  gave  me  when  I  brushed  off  from  his 
wounded  stump,  to  which  the  sheet  was  fastened  with 
clotted  gore,  the  flies  which  had  settled  upon  it.  I 
also  whilst  here  got  copies  of  the  following 

PROCLAMATIONS   ISSUED   BY   THE   MEXICANS. 

Shortly  after  arriving  opposite  Matamoras,  the  fol- 
lowing proclamation  was  circulated  through  the  Ameri- 
can camp. 

"  The  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Mexican  Army  to  the  English 
and  Irish  under  the  American  General  Taylor. 
"  Know  Ye  :  That  the  Government  of  the  United  States  iS  00m- 
mitting  repeated  acts  of  barbarous  aggression  against  the  magnan- 
imous Mexican  nation  ;  that  the  Government  which  exists 'under 
the  flag  of  the  stars'  is  unworthy  the  designation  of  Christian. 
Recollect  that  you  were  born  in  Great  Britain,  that  the  American 
Government  looks  with  coldness  upon  the  powerful  flag  of  Eng- 
land, and  is  provoking  to  a  rupture  the  warlike  people  to  whom 


40  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

it  belongs,  President  Polk  boldly  manifesting  a  desire  to  take 
possession  of  Oregon  as  he  bas  already  done  of  Texas.  Now 
then  come  with  all  confidence  to  the  Mexican  ranks,  and  I  guar- 
antee to  you,  upon  my  honor,  good  treatment,  and  that  all  your 
expenses  shall  be  defrayed  until  your  arrival  in  the  beautiful  capi- 
tal 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-colored 
flag,*  in  the  confidence  that  the  God  of  Armies  protects  it,  and 
that  it  will  protect  you,  equally  with  the  English. 

"  Pedro  dk  Amfudia. 

"FRA.NCISCO  K.  MoRKXo,  Adjutant  of  the  Commander-in-Chief. 
"  Head-Quarters  upon  the  road  to  Matamoras,  April  2,  1846." 

On  the  twenty-first  of  the  same  month,  April,  the 
following  proclamation  was  also  circulated  among  the 
American  soldiers,  intended,  like  the  former,  to  make 
them  betray  their  country. 

"  Head-quarters  at  Matamoras, 
"  April  20,  1846. 
"Soldiers!  You  have  enlisted  in  a  time  of  peace  to  serve  in 
that  army  for  a  specific  time  ;  but  your  obligations  never  implied 
that  you  were  bound  to  violate  the  laws  of  God,  and  the  most 
sacred  right  of  friends.  The  United  States  Government,  contrary 
to  the  wishes  of  a  majority  of  all  honest  and  honorable  Ameri- 
cans, has  ordered  you  to  %&ke  forcible  possession  of  the  territory 
of  a.  friendly  neighbor,  who  has  never  given  her  consent  to  such 
occupation.  In  other  words,  while  the  treaty  of  peace  and  com- 
merce 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  instruments  of  her  unholy  and  mad  ambition,  and/orce 
you  to  appear  as  the  hateful  robbers  of  our  dear  homes,  and  the 


The  Mexican  flag  was  red,  white,  and  greeu. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  41 

unprovoked  violators  of  our  clearest  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  aggrandise  a  few  law- 
less individuals  in  defiance  of  the  laws  of  God  and  man. 

"  It  is  to  no  purpose  if  they  tell  you  that  the  law  for  the  an- 
nexation 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,  Chihuaha,  and  New  Mexico;  and  it  is  barbarous  to 
send  a  handful  of  men  on  such  an  errand  against  a  powerful  and 
warlike  nation.  Besides,  most  of  you  are  Europeans,  and  we 
are  the  declared  friends  of  most  of  the  nations  oi  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,  honor,  and  your  own  in- 
terests and  self-respect,  to  abandon  their  desperate  and  unholy 
cause,  and  become  peaceful  Mexican  citizens.  I  guarantee  you 
in  such  a  case  a  half-section  of  land,  or  three  hundred  and  twenty 
acres,  to  settle  upon  gratis.  Be  wise  then,  and  just,  and  honor- 
able, and  take  no  part  in  murdering  us  who  have  no  unkind  feel- 
ings for  you.  Lands  shall  be  given  to  officers,  sergeants,  and 
corporals,  according  to  rank,  privates  receiving  three  hundred 
and  twenty  acres  as  stated. 

"  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  or  prudent  to  say 
more.  But  should  any  of  you  render  important  service  to 
Mexico,  you  shall  be  accordingly  considered  and  preferred. 

"  (Signed)  "  M.  Akista, 

"  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Mexican  Army." 

July  9.  Took  up  our  line  of  march  for  the  invasion 
of  Mexico,  and  reached  the  Rio  Grande,  or  Rio  Bravo 
del  Norte,  distant  eight  miles  from  where  we  had 
landed  on  the  Brazos.  We  crossed  the  Boca  Chica,  an 
arm  of  the  sea,  about  500  yards  wide,  which  separates 


42  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

the  island  of  Brazos  Santiago  from  the  mainland,  and 
which  makes  in  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  to  the  Laguna 
del  Madre,  and  through  which  also  the  waters  of  the 
latter  communicate  with  the  Gulf 

Our  road  lay  for  two  miles  through  a  desert  of  sand, 
the  sun  blazing  down  upon  us  with  an  intensity  of 
heat  never  before  experienced ;  we  then  struck  the 
beach,  upon  which,  the  sand  being  harder,  the  men 
marched  with  more  ease ;  we  forded  the  Boca  Chica, 
the  water  averaging  about  three  feet  in  depth.  The 
sea  was  very  grateful  to  our  parched  skin,  but  it  was 
very  difficult  to  advance  through,  and  the  line  of  troops 
became  straggling  and  disordered.  Another  hour's 
marching  brought  us  to  the  river,  within  fifty  yards 
of  which  we  bivouacked,  in  rear  of  a  Tennessee  regi- 
ment. This  was  our  first  march,  and  no  one  who 
made  it  will  ever  forget  it.  I  felt  as  if  I  were  on  fire, 
my  nose  being  one  blister,  and  my  hands  apparently 
scorched,  and  feeling  just  that  way. 

July  10.  Face  much  swollen  this  morning;  so  much 
so  that  my  eyes  are  nearly  closed,  and  face  feels  as  if 
it  were  burning;  a  good  deal  alarmed,  until  our  sur- 
geon told  me  it  was  only  an  effect  of  the  fatigue  and 
exposure  of  yesterday.  The  mosquitoes  troubled  us 
all  a  good  deal  last  night,  and  the  men,  generally,  out 
of  sorts  to-day. 

July  12 — Sunday.  Still  at  the  mouth  of  the  Rio 
Grande,  or  Boca  del  Rio,  as  the  Mexicans  call  it,  which 
means  mouth  of  the  river;  and  a  very  picturesque  place 
it  is.  But  this  cannot  account  for  the  halt  in  our  ad- 
vance. Last  night  I  went  wolf-hunting,  but  saw  none, 
though  we  heard  plenty.     Shot  a  couple  of  plover  by 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  43 

moonlight,  and  ate  them  this  morning  for  breakfast. 
There  appears  to  be  a  great  deal  of  game  in  this  coun- 
try, and  various  kinds  of  fish  are  found  in  the  lagoons, 
some  large  enough  to  be  bayoneted  by  the  men,  and 
some  are  knocked  in  the  head  with  clubs* — all  good 
eating;  at  any  rate  the  soldiers  prefer  them  to  salt 
beef  and  pork. 

July  16.  Still  at  the  mouth  of  the  Kio  Grande; 
and  we  are  well  enough  satisfied,  but  can't  account 
for  the  unexpected  delay  to  our  advance.  There  is 
one  serious  trouble  here,  and  that  is  the  mosquitoes. 
We  really  get  but  little  sleep,  and  our  camp  at  night 
is  filled  with  men  wandering  about  for  shelter  from 
these  intolerable  pests,  and  filling  the  air  with  impre- 
cations upon  their  ruthless  assailants.  No  kind  of 
clothing  is  proof  or  protection  against  their  bites; 
they  pierce  through,  with  their  stings,  pantaloons, 
drawers,  stockings,  and  (some  deliberately  assert) 
boots.  All  night  long,  without  the  slightest  intermis- 
sion, they  continue  their  attacks,  and  the  assertion  of 
many  that  they  are  nearly  driven  crazy  is  not  much 
exaggerated. 

This  morning  three  companies  of  the  Tennessee 
volunteers,  encamped  with  us,  left  for  up  the  river,  and 
we  are  in  hopes  that  our  turn  will  soon  come.  Already 
this  place  shows  the  advance  of  the  Anglo-Saxon 
race  :  steamboats  and  schooners  arriving  and  departing 
daily,  discharging  provisions,  stores,  and  troops  for  the 
"army  of  occupation,"  as  some  have  been  pleased  to 
call  Taylor's  troops.     To-day  a  company  of  strolling 

*  This  is  a  camp  fish  story. 


44  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

players,  bound  for  Matamoras,  and  hailing  from  New 
Orleans,  stopped  at  the  landing.  I  must  confess  to 
looking  upon  them  with  much  interest,  and — must  I 
say  it  ? — with  pity.  The  ladies  of  the  troupe  grati- 
fied the  men  of  our  troop  by  casting  bottles  of  wine 
from  the  steamer's  deck  into  their  midst,  whilst  to  add 
to  the  liilarity  of  tJie  occasion,  they  graciously  sang  for 
them  a  few  of  their  favorite  airs.  Ah,  me !  poor 
women  !  Though  full  of  apparent  gayety,  my  heart 
bled  for  them. 

July  18.  I  crossed  the  river  this  morning  in  a  ship's 
quarter-boat,  and  stepped  upon  undisputed  Mexican 
soil.  There  was  quite  a  little  town  here  once,  called 
Bagdad  (I  wonder  if  the  Tigris  were  ever  such  a  river 
as  this  angry,  muddy,  crooked  Rio  Grande!)  but  some 
seventeen  years  ago  a  hurricane  destroyed  it,  with  two 
thousand  of  its  inhabitants.  It  is  still  called  after  its 
name,  but  instead  of  houses  there  are  but  wretched 
cabins,  in  which  dwell  fifty  or  sixty  natives,  called  in 
the  language  of  the  country  rancheros,  whose  busi- 
ness, from  all  I  could  learn,  was  herding  or  having  in 
charge  herds  of  cattle,  which  grazed  in  the  neighbor- 
hood. When  we  got  back  we  learned  that  a  corporal 
of  a  company  of  regulars  stationed  at  the  landing 
had  been  murdered  during  our  absence,  by  a  prisoner 
of  his  own  company  whom  he  had  under  guard ;  his 
burial  took  place  this  evening — this  is  the  fourth  since 
we  landed. 

July  19.  This  morning  it  commenced  raining,  ac- 
companied with  a  violent  wind,  and  in  a  short  time 
our  low  land  was  completely  flooded  ;  directly  in  front 
and  rear  of  my  company  the  water  collected  in  pools  of 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  45 

from  one  to  two  feet  deep,  whilst  everything  in  my  tent 
was  rendered  damp  and  disagreeable  by  the  incessant 
rain.  The  wind  howled  around  us,  and  the  surf 
thundered  on  the  shore;  la,rge  flocks  of  sea-birds  flew 
overhead,  and  the  ponds  of  water  within  a  few  yards 
of  our  camp  were  covered  with  plover,  snipe,  and  cur- 
lews. In  the  course  of  the  day  we  had  to  change  the 
location  of  some  of  the  tents,  as  they  were  flooded 
with  water. 

July  20.-  Still  raining ;  but  before  noon  the  sun 
came  out,  and  we  dried  our  clothing  and  blankets.  A 
regiment  of  Alabama  volunteers  arrived  to-day,  and 
encamped  upon  our  left ;  they  are  a  fine-looking  set 
of  men. 

July  22.  A  regiment  of  Louisiana  volunteers  ar- 
rived to-day,  from  Matamoras,  en  route  for  home ;  it 
is  a  portion  of  the  volunteers  called  forth  by  General 
Taylor,  whose  term  of  three  months'  service  is  about 
expiring;  the  officers  were  very  indignant  that  the 
General  would  not  accept  their  offer  to  continue  in  the 
service  and  re-volunteer  for  twelve  months. 

July  23.  Left  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and,  ascend- 
ing the  left  bank,  after  a  distressing  march  of  fourteen 
or  fifteen  miles  over  a  country  flooded  by  the  recent 
rains  and  a  rise  of  the  Kio  Grande,  reached  our  camp- 
ing ground  opposite  to  the  Mexican  town  of  Burita. 

July  24.  Our  camp  was  pitched  upon  a  ridge  well 
covered  with  chaparral  and  well  filled  with  rattle- 
snakes ;  we  cleared  out  both,  and  our  men,  having  got 
up  their  tents  and  killed,  some  wild  cattle,  were  soon 
comfortable  with  fresh  beef  and  rest. 

July  25.     The   delay  in  obtaining  transportation 


46  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

for  army  purposes  has  compelled  General  Taylor  to 
postpone  his  advance ;  and,  to  preserve  the  health  of 
his  troops,  whose  numbers  are  daily  increasing  from  the 
continuous  arrival  of  twelve  months'  men,  he  has  or- 
dered their  encampment  upon  the  highlands  skirting 
the  river  between  this  and  Matamoras.  It  is  a  wilder- 
ness upon  which  the  foot  of  man  has  rarely  trod  ; 
wild  cattle  and  horses  are  running  over  the  prairie 
lands  which  skirt  this  ridge  on  either  side  to  the 
river,  and  the  lagoons  which  chequer  the  flats  are 
filled  with  red- winged  flamingo, — the  ibis  of  the  Egyp- 
tians,— wild  geese,  duck,  and  other  aquatic  fowl ;  on 
the  long  branches  of  the  willow-like  trees  were  birds 
swarming,  and  warbling  their  peaceful  melodies,  and 
the  open  grounds  were  flowered  with  all  variety  of 
cacti  and  the  Spanish  bayonet-plant.  The  back- 
ground of  the  open  vista  wore  the  ever-varying  colors 
of  the  dense  chaparral,  while  the  broad  and  swollen 
torrent  of  the  Rio  Grande  flowed  between  us  and  the 
town  of  Burita,  around  whose  adobe  houses  the  white 
tents  of  our  volunteers  were  pitched,  adding  interest 
by  their  contrast  to  the  novel  country  in  which  we 
were  now  sojourning. 

July  26 — Sunday.  Having  received  an  invitation 
from  Captain  Arnold,  Second  United  States  Dragoons, 
I  crossed  the  river  to  Burita,  and  dined  with  him. 
Here  I  met  my  old  friend  Randolph  Ridgely,  of  Balti- 
more, now  a  lieutenant  in  the  late  Captain  Ringgold's 
Battery  of  Light  Artillery,  and  who  had  particularly 
distinguished  himself  in  the  battles  of  the  8th  and  9th 
of  May— Palo  Alto,  and  Resaca  de  la  Palma.  After 
dinner  we  had  a  horse-race  between  Colonel  Bailie 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  47 

Peyton,  of  the  Louisiana  Volunteers,  and  Randolph 
Eidgely,  in  which  Peyton's  horse  won :  which  he 
would  not  have  done,  as  Ridgely  laughingly  said,  if 
the  race-course  had  been  the  road  towards  the 
enemy. 

July  28.  Our  camp  was  the  scene  of  a  fearful  riot 
to-day.  and  one  which  came  near  being  a  bloody 
battle  between  our  battalion  and  the  First  Ohio  regi- 
ment of  volunteers.  The  difSculty  commenced  on 
the  banks  of  the  river,  about  a  catfish  which  had 
just  been  caught,  and  was  claimed  by  men  of  both 
regiments.  A  fight  ensued,  when  Colonel  Mitchell, 
the  commanding  officer  of  the  Ohio  regiment,  inter- 
fered, and,  drawing  his  sword,  cut  one  of  our  men  in 
several  places.  His  sword  was  soon  taken  from  him, 
broken  in  pieces,  and  he  came  to  camp.  I  saw  him 
approaching,  heard  him  order  his  men  to  parade  with 
ball-cartridges,  and  they  were  soon  hurrying  in  large 
numbers,  without  any  semblance  of  formation,  to  the 
river  bank,  loading  their  muskets  as  they  ran.  At 
the  same  time  the  cry  was  raised,  "  Turn  out,  Balti- 
moreans !"  in  our  camp ;  the  men  seized  their  guns, 
loaded  them,  and  singly  and  in  squads  hastened 
down  to  the  river  after  the  Ohio  men,  to  help  our  men 
there  who  were  armed.  Some  of  our  officers,  seized 
with  the  same  frenzy  as  the  men,  behaved  in  the 
most  outrageous  manner,  issuing  cartridges  in  person, 
and  inciting  their  companies  to  hurry  into  the  ap- 
proaching battle.  Colonel  Watson  was  absent,  and 
somehow  or  other  I  took  the  whole  responsibility  on 
myself;  keeping  my  own  company  in  their  company 
street,  with  the  assurance  that  if  the  fight  commenced 


48  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

they  should  go  to  help  their  comrades.  I  ran  among 
the  most  violent,  and  between  those  who  were  about 
to  fire  into  each  other,  and,  by  commands  and  entrear 
ties,  kept  them  from  firing.  I  knew  that  one  shot 
would  be  the  signal  of  a  bloody  struggle,  and  for- 
tunately at  this  moment  Lieutenant-Colonel  John  B. 
Weller,  of  the  Ohio  regiment,  came  upon  the  ground. 
I  shall  never  forget  how  his  behavior  relieved  me  ;  I 
saw  him  coming,  and  feared  that  he  was  as  crazy  as 
the  others;  and  if  he  had  been,  there's  no  telling 
where  would  have  been  the  end  of  that  day's  work. 
His  first  order  was  for  the  men  to  go  back  to  camp, 
and  that  the  officers  of  the  two  regiments  would 
settle  the  difficulty;  this  brought  our  ranking  officer, 
Captain  James  E.  Steuart,  and  Colonel  Mitchell,  to 
the  front,  and  they  were  personally  friendly.  Soon 
other  officers  joined  the  group,  and,  forming  a  line 
between  the  two  bodies  of  men  (who  by  this  time 
had  arranged  themselves  in  order  of  battle),  we  got 
them  away  from  their  lines,  and  finally  back  to  camp. 

On  the  same  night  Colonel  Mitchell  proceeded  to 
Matamoras,  to  lay  a  complaint  before  General  Taylor 
against  the  Baltimore  Battalion  ;  thereupon  Colonel 
Watson  ordered  Captain  Steuart  and  me  to  go  there 
also,  to  rebut  any  charges  which  Mitchell  might  make. 

Jidy  29.  Crossed  over  to  Burita,  and  bought  a 
mustang  pony  for  six  dollars,  to  ride  to  Matamoras ; 
but,  a  steamer  coming  along,  preferred  that  way  of 
travelling  as  not  being  quite  so  dangerous,  apart  from 
all  other  reasons.  Went  on  board  the  steamer  Vir- 
ginia, and  ascended  the  Rio  Grande  to  Matamoras. 
I  had  seen  and  heard  tell  of  the  crookedness  of  this 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  49 

grand  river,  but  there  is  no  way  of  showing  how 
tortuous  is  its  course  except  by  the  illustration  given 
by  an  Alabama  volunteer;  he  said  "he  had  seen  a 
croM^  fly  from  the  top  of  a  tree,  follow  up  the  course 
of  the  river  for  fifteen  minutes,  then  light;  and  it  lit 
on  the  same  tree  it  had  started  from."* 

For  several  miles  above  Burita  both  banks  were 
lined  with  the  white  tents  of  the  volunteers  scattered 
along  at  intervals,  where  good  camping-ground  was  to 
be  found ;  soon,  however,  these  disappeared,  and  were 
succeeded  by  groves  of  plantain,  willow-cotton,  and 
other  southern  trees.  We  "  pulled  up  "  for  the  night 
at  a  rancho  on  the  river  bank,  at  about  thirty  miles 
by  the  river  below  the  city.  It  was  at  this  point  the 
Mexicans,  four  thousand  strong,  had  crossed  the  river 
to  intercept  and  cut  General  Taylor's  communications 
with  Point  Isabel. 

July  30.  Arrived  at  the  city  of  Matamoras,  and, 
accompanied  by  Lieutenant  Randolph  Ridgeiy,  who 
had  kindly  volunteered  to  introduce  us,  proceeded  at 
once  to  General  Taylor's  quarters.     We  found  the  old 

*  The  windings  of  the  Rio  Grande  are  remarljable.  There  is 
one  hacienda  on  its  banks  which  a  boat  passes  in  front  of  seven 
times  after  coming  in  sight  of,  and  before  actually  reaching  it, 
— the  river  making  seven  close  convolutions  east  and  west  in 
perhaps  twelve  miles  of  country  ;  and  there  is  one  of  the  turns 
where  you  pass  a  long  low  bank  for  five  miles,  and  can  look 
over  and  see  the  river  again  not  one  hundred  feet  from  you  on 
the  other  edge.  Thus,  after  sailing  in  reality  ten  miles  along 
the  voyager  has  actually  only  advanced  two  hundred  yards. 
The  same  writer  says  that  tiie  river  at  Oamargo  presented  the 
same  appearance  as  it  did  a  thousand  miles  above. — A  Cam- 
paign in  New  Mexico,  by  Frank  S.  Edwards. 

4 


50 


MEMOIRS  OF  A 


general  writing  in  a  tent,  around  which  was  strewed 
large  numbers  of  newspapers,  and  before  which— I  was 
struck  with  the  fact— no  guard  was  stationed.  He 
came  out  to  receive  us,  when  Ridgely,  after  intro- 
ducing us,  left  the  place.  I  opened  the  business,  and 
gave  our  version  of  the  difficulty  with  the  Ohio 
volunteers.  As  I  progressed,  the  general  looked  very 
black,  and  I  argued  very  unfavorably  for  the  success 
of  our  mission ;  but  when  I  told  him  that  my  company 
had  been  kept  in  camp,  and  had  not  participated  in 
the  riot  (although,  in  point  of  fact,  it  was  commenced 
by  one  of  my  own  soldiers;  of  this,  however,  I  was 
ignorant  at  the  time),  his  countenance  lightened  up  a 
little.  When  I  had  got  through  with  my  statement, 
the  general  said  "it  was  an  unfortunate  occurrence, 
but  inasmuch  as  the  whole  matter  would  be  referred  to 
a  court  of  inquiry.  Colonel  Mitchell  having  preferred 
charges  against  some  of  our  officers  and  men,  he  would 
wait  until  their  finding  was  made  known  before  he 
would  take  any  further  notice  of  it — and  to  hold 
ourselves  in  readiness  to  march  to  Camargo  in  eight 
or  ten  days."* 

The  conclusion  of  his  reply — "  to  hold  ourselves  in 
readiness  to  march" — so  warmed  my  heart  to  the 
general,  that  he  made  me  his  friend  at  that  instant; 
for  it  should  be  remarked  that  rumor  had  it  we  were 
to  be  disbanded.  I  was  much  taken  also  with  his 
simplicity  of  manner,  the  total  absence  of  all  preten- 

*  No  court  was  ever  ordered,  as  far  as  I  know,  and  the  whole 
matter  was  dropped  officially ;  but  the  embers  of  discontent  re- 
mained smouldering,  and  at  times  manifesting  theraselFes,  be- 
tween the  two  regiments,  as  long  as  we  were  in  the  service. 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  51 

sion  in  dress  and  address,  and  the  unmistakable  regret 
which  he  showed  that  he  felt,  at  this  serious  difficulty 
between  the  volunteers  of  his  army. 

We  returned  to  Ridgely's  tent,  where  we  dined,  and 
then  walked  from  camp  into  the  city.  Matamoras  is 
an  old  Spanish  town  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Rio 
Grande,  about  forty  miles  from  its  mouth,  and,  though 
bearing  marks  of  decay,  is  still  the  second  town  in 
importance  in  Northern  Mexico.  It  covers  about  two 
miles  square,  but  is  not  compactly  built  as  are  Ameri- 
can cities,  every  house,  except  in  the  main  plaza  or 
public  square,  having  a  large  garden  surrounding  it. 
All  the  windows  of  the  houses  in  the  business  part  of 
the  town  are  grated  from  top  to  bottom  with  iron 
bars,  which  gives  them  the  appearance  of  prisons. 

The  plaza,  in  the  centre  of  the  city,  has  on  three 
of  its  sides  very  respectable  blocks  of  houses,  occu- 
pied by  the  merchants,  and  on  its  other  side  a  cathe- 
dral, which,  though  unfinished,  presents  a  venerable, 
church-like  look.  After  leaving  the  plaza  the  houses 
decrease  in  size  for  some  distance,  until  the  small  reed 
and  thatched  huts  terminate  in  the  suburbs.  All  of 
the  more  wealthy  inhabitants  had  fled  the  city  after 
the  defeat  of  their  army  at  Resaca,  for  it  swarmed 
with  the  robbers  and  desperadoes  cut  loose  from  the 
military  bands,  and  now  organized  for  plunder.  All 
military  and  civil  law  ended  with  the  defeat  of  Arista, 
and  the  inhabitants  of  Matamoras  suffered  more 
horrors  from  these  outlaws  than  they  would  have 
done  from  a  long  siege. 

The  stores  on  the  plaza  were  now  occupied  by 
American  merchants,  sutlers,  tavern-keepers,  billiard- 


52  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

rooms,  etc.,  which  were  crowded  with  soldiers;  and 
the  indescribable  bedlam  which  the  picture  presented 
will  not  soon  be  forgotten.  Many  of  the  houses  show 
the  effect  of  our  cannonading  from  Fort  Brown  on  the 
other  side  of  the  river,  and  I  saw  two  thirty-two- 
pound  balls  lying  in  a  yard,  where,  after  passing  en- 
tirely through  several  houses,  they  were  now  lying 
quietly  side  by  side,  as  harmless  as  the  dead. 

I  went  into  the  market,  and  here  the  scene  was 
entirely  native.  A  row  of  women  were  sitting  on 
their  haunches,  with  crocks  of  milk  before  them,  from 
which  they  sold  the  milk  by  the  cupful!  to  their  pur- 
chasers ;  others  in  the  same  position,  selling  little  par- 
cels of  eggs, — three  in  a  pile, — red  peppers,  peaches, 
melons  of  several  varieties,  and  many  kinds  of  vege- 
tables unknown  by  name  or  sight.  Game  of  various 
kinds  was  being  carried  about  for  sale  and  the  prices 
cried  out  with  melodious  voices.  Others  were  engaged 
cooking  for  the  hungry,  while  the  men  were  busy  buy- 
ing and  selling  horses  (all  in  the  same  market),  cows, 
sombreros,  corn,  hay,  bread,  and  meat,  which  latter 
looked  as  well  butchered  as  any  in  our  markets.  The 
place  was  crowded  with  our  volunteers,  and  groups 
of  Mexicans,  clustered  together,  were  eyeing  them 
with  no  friendly  gaze,  while  the  demeanor  of  their 
women  was  gentle,  peaceful,  and  apparently  confiding; 
there  was  no  look  or  appearance  of  alann  in  any  of 
the  women.  After  leaving  the  market,  I  went  into 
several  stores  still  kept  by  their  Mexican  shopkeepers, 
and  finally  got  into  one  which  bothered  me  :  persons 
seemed  not  only  to  be  buying,  but  also  selling,  with 
scarcely  a  word  uttered  by  buyer  or  seller.    I  inquired 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  53 

the  price  of  an  article,  and  after  a  good  deal  of  diffi- 
culty of  interchanging  my  good  (as  I  thought)  for 
their  bad  Spanish,  I  found  out  that  I  was  in  a  paion- 
broJcers  shop.  We  went  into  General  Ampudia's 
house  and  got  some  refreshonents  from  its  American 
occupant,  then  into  the  house  of  the  late  prefect  of 
the  city,  to  play  billiards,  and  finally  into  the  "  Fonda 
del  Commercio"  to  supper,  on  rabbits,  eggs,  kidneys, 
and  coffee.  After  supper  we  went  to  the  theatre,  and 
recognized  our  quondam  friends  whom  we  had  met  at 
the  mouth  of  the  river.  Such  an  audience !  The 
Texan  Rangers  were  there,  pistols  and  knives  in  their 
belts,  many  with  swords  at  their'  sides,  others  with 
long  rifles,  while  drunken  volunteers  from  nearly 
eveiy  southern  State  of  the  Union  were  mingled  witii 
regulars  of  the  horse,  foot,  and  artillery  arms  of  the 
service,  in  a  medley  of  wild,  riotous  dissipation  and 
confusion.  I  do  not  believe  that  anybody  ever  did 
know  what  was  being  played  that  night  in  that  thea- 
tre. On  leaving  the  house,  Steuart  and  I  tried  to  find 
a  lodging-place,  and  succeeded,  Calle  Giuinaxuato,  in 
finding  room  on  a  floor  to  lie  down,  as  we  had  stood, 
with  fifty  or  sixty  snoring  men  around,  some  with, 
others,  like  ourselves,  without,  blankets. 

August  1.  We  left  Matamoras  by  a  steamer  which 
was  going  down  the  river,  and  had  a  disagreeable 
time,  as  we  ran  aground  on  a  sand-bar,  where  we  laid 
thirty-six  hours,  exposed  to  the  merciless  attacks  of 
mosquitoes  more  virulent  in  their  venom  than  those 
at  the  mouth  of  the  river.  We  arrived  at  camp  on 
the  fourth,  and  I  brought  the  glad  tidings  that  we 
were  to  march. 


54  MEMOIBS  OF  A 

August  5.  It  is  high  time  that  we  should  leave  this 
camp  ;  it  has  been  raining  hard  here  for  the  past  three 
days,  and  it  is  nothing  but  muck  and  mire ;  besides, 
drinking  the  muddy  water  (yes,  it  is  as  muddy  as 
that  in  any  mud-puddle)  of  the  Rio  Grande  is  be- 
ginning to  tell  on  the  men.  We  have  too  many 
sick,  mostly  with  the  diarrhoea,  for  our  numbers,  and 
it  is  thought  a  considerable  number  will  have  to  be 
discharged. 

August  6.  We  received  orders  to  march  ;  two  com- 
panies, with  all  the  heavy  baggage  and  stores,  were  to 
ascend  the  river  in  a  steamer  to  Camargo,  the  other 
four  companies  to  go  by  land ;  and  it  was  to  be  deter- 
mined by  lot  which  companies  were  to  ride.  Chance 
decided  in  favor  of  Captains  Steuart  and  Waters,  and 
the  footmen  commenced  getting  ready  to  tramp. 

August  7.  The  whole  camp  alive  to-day.  Com- 
panies A  and  D,  Steuart's  and  Waters's,  left  by  steamer 
for  Camargo,  distant  by  the  river  about  two  hundred 
and  fifty  miles,  some  say  not  more  than  one  hundred 
and  eighty  miles.  I  sent  my  servant  Ned  by  the 
steamer  under  care  of  Captain  Steuart,  and  discharged 
four  of  my  men,  Boulanger,  Cutting,  Pratt  and  Tur- 
ner, on  account  of  inability  to  march,  by  reason  of 
sickness.  | 

August  11 — Sunday.  All  the  sick  of  the  battalion( 
that  were  discharged,  numbering  thirty-three,  left  for 
the  United  States,  and  were  accompanied  by  Doctor 
Dove,  of  Washington,  our  surgeon,  who  also  desired 
to  return  ;  their  departure  cast  a  good  deal  of  gloom 
over  those  who  remained,  but  as  I  had  sent  all  my 
men  who  were  unable  to  march  up  the  river  by  the 


JUAB  TLA  AW  VOLUNTEER.  55 

steamer,  and  had  got  relieved  from  the  care  of  the 
sick,  I  Avas  in  good  spirits  and  anxious  to  start. 

August  13.  On  the  evening  of  the  Hth  we  crossed 
the  Rio  Grande  in  a  steamer  to  Burita,  and  took  up 
our  line  of  inarch  for  Matamoras,  which  we  reached 
this  day  about  noon ;  distance  variously  estimated  at 
from  twenty-six  to  thirty  miles.  1  lost  a  man  from 
my  company,  named  McGunnell,  on  the  march,  and 
was  unable  to  account  for  his  absence.  Our  road  from 
Burita  was  mostly  through  the  water,  and  we  waded 
one  lagoon  of  three  miles  wide,  with  an  average  of 
three  feet  of  water  in  depth,  and  in  some  places  four 
feet,  without  a  halt ;  many  of  the  men  caught  hold 
of  each  other  for  support,  as  the  fatigue  of  this  wading 
through  such  a  depth  of  water  for  such  a  distance 
is  inconceivable.  For  a  distance  of  eighteen  miles 
the  road  was  a  muck;  and  happy  those  who  marched 
at  the  head  of  the  column,  for  those  at  the  rear  had 
to  go  through  a  heavier  mire  on  account  of  the  foot- 
steps of  those  in  front.  The  recent  overflow  of  the 
Rio  Grande  had  made  the  roads  impassable  except  for 
American  volunteers. 

August  14.  We  are  now  at  Matamoras,  and  on 
the  eve  of  important  operations  ;  let  us  take  a  retro- 
spect, and  also  a  glance  at  the  present  status  and  con- 
dition of  affairs.  After  the  battles  of  the  8th  and  9th 
of  May,  General  Arista  recrossed  the  river  and  occu- 
pied this  town  with  his  shattered  forces.  Our  troops 
commenced  crossing  the  river  on  the  13th,  prepara- 
tory to  an  assault.  Arista  asked  for  an  armistice, 
which  Taylor  refused  to  grant,  but  said  that  he  might 
withdraw  his  forces  on  condition  of  leaving  the  property 


56  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

of  the  city  uninjured.  When  our  troops  had  effected 
a  crossing  (their  landing  on  the  Mexican  soil  being 
undisputed),  preparations  were  made  for  an  assault; 
a  parley,  however,  was  sounded,  when  the  authorities 
of  the  city  answered  that  General  Arista  had  aban- 
doned the  place  with  all  his  troops,  and  that  the  city 
of  Matamoras  was  at  the  disposal  of  General  Taylor. 
Our  troops  took  possession,  the  American  flag  was 
hoisted,  and  the  march  to  the  "halls  of  the  Monte- 
zumas  "  about  to  be  undertaken. 

Large  numbers  of  volunteers  were  arriving  to  swell 
the  little  army  of  regulars  into  an  army  in  fact,  but 
supplies  were  not  coming  commensurate  with  the 
number  of  men,  and  the  means  of  transportation 
were  totally  inadequate  to  move  the  large  force 
now  constituting  General  Taylor's  "army  of  occu- 
pation." 

Hence  the  delay  on  the  Rio  Grande,  and  the  loss  of 
precious  time  on  its  banks.  In  the  meantime  impor- 
tant movements  and  changes  were  taking  place  among 
the  Mexican  people  and  rulers.  The  defeat  of  Arista 
had  rendered  him  unpopular,  and  a  great  deal  of  dis- 
satisfaction and  confusion  of  opinions  prevailed  among 
all  classes.  Toward  the  end  of  June  an  election  was 
held  throughout  the  States  of  Mexico,  and  General 
Paredes  was  declared  elected  President,  over  Herrera, 
and  General  Bravo  Vice-President,  of  Mexico.  The 
ultra  war  party  had  triumphed,  and  Arista  and  other 
revolutionists  defied  the  authority  of  the  new  Presi- 
dent, yet  united  with  him  in  the  grito  (cry),  Giierra  cd 
cKcJdUo,  "war  to  the  knife,"  against  the  Yankees. 
There  is  no  doubt  whatever   in  my  mind  that  the 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  57 

sentiment  of  the  Mexicans  was  unanimous  for  war.* 
They  knew  no  more  of  what  had  brought  an  army 
of  foreigners  upon  their  territory,  than  did  the  natives 
of  New  Zealand.  No  press,  no  public  opinion,  con- 
stant revolutions  and  internecine  strife,  hoto  were  they 
to  kiTow  what  their  rulers  had  been  doing,  or  luhat  the 
foreign  relations  of  their  Government  ? 

General  Taylor  very  wisely,  I  think,  undertook  to 
enlighten  them,  and  before  we  left  Matamoras  issued 
the  following  proclamation  to  the  inhabitants  of 
Mexico,  which  had,  however,  about  as  much  effect  as 
the  incendiary  manifests  of  Ampudia  and  Arista.  Still 
I  thought  it  was  right,  and  cordially  approved  its  pur- 
pose ;  for  that  General  Taylor  was  sincerely  desirous 
of  protecting  all  inhabitants  of  the  country  that  would 
remain  neutral  during  the  impending  conflict,  I  am 
abundantly  satisfied. 

"A    PKOCLAMATIOISr. 

"  By  the  General  Commanding  the  Army  of  the  United  States  of 
America,  to  the  People  of  Mexico. 

"After  many  years  of  patient  endurance,  the  United  States  are 
at  length  constrained  to  acknowledge  that  a  war  exists  between 
our  Government  and  the  Government  of  Mexico.  For  many  years 
our  citizens  have  been  subjected  to  repeated  insults  and  injuries; 
our  vessels  and  cargoes  have  been  seized  and  confiscated,  our 
merchants  have  been  plundered,  maimed,  imprisoned,  without 
cause  and  without  reparation.  At  length  your  Government  ac- 
knowledged the  justice  of  our  claims,  and  agreed  by  treaty  to 
make  satisfaction  by  payment  of  several  millions  of  dollars ;  but 
this  treaty  has  been  violated  by  your  rulers,  and  the  stipulated 

*  After  a  long  sojourn  in  this  country,  I  have  seen  nothing, 
heard  nothing,  to  make  me  change  the  above  opinion. 


58  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

payment  has  been  withheld.  Our  late  effort  to  terminate  all  the 
difiSculties  by  peaceful  negotiation  has  been  rejected  by  the  Dic- 
tator Paredes;  and  our  minister  of  peace,  whom  your  rulers  had 
agreed  to  receive,  has  been  refused  a  hearing.  He  has  been 
treated  with  indignity  and  insult,  and  Paredes  has  announced 
that  war  exists  between  us.  This  war,  thus  first  proclaimed  by 
him,  has  been  acknowledged  as  an  existing  fact  by  our  own- Presi- 
dent and  Congress  with  perfect  unanimity,  and  will  be  prosecuted 
with  vigor  and  energy  against  your  array  and  rulers;  but  those 
of  the  Mexican  people  who  remain  neutral  will  not  be  molested. 

"  Your  Government  is  in  the  hands  of  tyrants  and  usurpers. 
They  have  abolished  your  State  Governments,  they  have  over- 
thrown your  federal  constitution,  they  have  deprived  you  of  the 
right  of  suffrage,  destroyed  the  liberty  of  the  press,  despoiled 
you  of  your  arms,  and  reduced  you  to  a  state  of  absolute  de- 
pendence upon  the  power  of  a  military  dictator.  Your  armies 
and  rulers  e.xtort  from  the  people  by  grievous  taxation,  by  forced 
loans,  and  military  seizures,  the  very  money  which  sustains  the 
usurpers  in  their  power.  Being  disarmed,  you  were  left  defence- 
less and  as  an  easy  prey  to  the  savage  Comanches,  who  not  only 
destroy  your  lives  and  property,  but  drive  into  captivity  more 
horrible  than  death  itself  your  wives  and  children.  It  is  your 
military  rulers  who  have  reduced  you  to  this  deplorable  condi- 
tion. It  is  these  tyrants  and  their  corrupt  and  cruel  satellites, 
gorged  with  the  people's  treasure,  by  whom  you  are  thus  op- 
pressed and  impoverished, — some  of  whom  have  boldly  advocated 
a  monarchical  government,  and  would  place  a  European  prince 
upon  the  throne  of  Mexico.  AVe  come  to  obtain  reparation  for 
repeated  wrongs  and  injuries;  we  come  to  obtain  indemnity  for 
the  past,  and  secui-ity  for  the  future  ;  we  come  to  overthrow  the 
tyrants  who  have  destroyed  your  liberties  ;  but  we  come  to  make 
no  war  upon  the  people  of  Mexico,  nor  upon  any  form  of  free 
government  they  may  choose  to  select  for  themselves. 
*  *  *  *  *  *_*  * 

"  We  come  among  the  people  of  Mexico  as  friends  and  republi- 
can brethren  ;  and  all  who  receive  us  as  such  shall  be  protected, 
whilst  all  who  are  seduced  into  the  army  of  your  Dictator  shall 
be  treated  as  enemies.  We  shall  want  from  you  nothing  but  food 


ItARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  59 

for  our  army,  and  for  this  you  shall  always  be  paid  in  cash  the 
full  value.  It  is  the  settled  policy  of  your  tyrants  to  deceive 
you  in  regard  to  the  character  and  policy  of  our  Government  and 
people.  These  tyrants  fear  the  example  of  our  free  institutions, 
and  constantly  endeavor  to  misrepresent  our  purposes,  and  in- 
spire you  with  hatred  for  your  republican  brethren  of  the  Ameri- 
can Union.  Give  us  but  the  opportunity  to  undeceive  you,  and 
you  will  soon  learn  that  all  the  representations  of  Paredes  were 
false,  and  were  onlj'  made  to  induce  you  to  consent  to  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  despotic  government.  In  your  struggle  for  liberty 
with  the  Spanish  monarchy  thousands  of  our  countrymen  risked 
their  lives  and  shed  their  blood  in  your  defence.  Our  own  com- 
modore, the  gallant  Porter,  maintained  your  flag  upon  the  ocean ; 
and  our  Government  was  the  first  to  acknowledge  your  indepen- 
dence. With  pride  and  pleasure  we  enrolled  your  name  on  the 
list  of  independent  republics,  and  sincerely  desired  that  you 
might  in  peace  and  prosperity  enjoy  all  the  blessings  of  free  gov- 
ernment. 

"Mexicans!  we  must  treat  as  enemies,  and  overthrow,  the 
tyrants  who,  whilst  they  have  wronged  and  insulted  us,  have  de- 
prived you  of  your  liberty;  but  the  Mexican  people  who  remain 
neutral  during  the  contest  shall  be  protected  against  their  mili- 
tary despots  by  the  republican  army  of  the  Union. 

"  (Signed)  "  Z.  Taylor, 

"  Brevet  Major-General  U.  S.  A.  Commanding." 


CHAPTER    III. 

THE     RIO     GRANDE. 


The  river  Eio  Grande,  or  Bravo  del  Norte,  finds  its 
sources  in  the  sierras  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  in  about 
40^°  north  latitude,  and,  running  a  southeasterly 
course  of  nearly  two  thousand  miles,  flows  a  mighty 


60  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

torrent  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  This  tiood  of  waters, 
meeting  the  swell  and  tides  of  the  Gulf,  causes  a  bar, 
shifting  and  dangerous,  at  the  mouth  of  the  river. 
With  our  command  of  the  sea,  the  river  necessarily 
became  the  base  of  General  Taylor's  objective  move- 
ments, and,  despite  the  bar  at  its  mouth,  steamers  draw- 
ing not  less  than  six  to  eight  feet  were  carrying  by  its 
means  his  supplies  some  two  hundred  to  three  hun- 
dred miles  into  the  interior. 

To  cut  loose  from  this  base,  and  advance  through  a 
hostile  country  comparatively  unknown,  in  pursuit  of 
an  enemy  whose  power  of  endurance  was  undisputed, 
and  whose  numbers  were  known  to  be  large,  required 
courage  of  a  high  order  and  self-reliance  in  an  equal 
degree. 

General  Zachary  Taylor  possessed  both,  and  he  had 
now  mapped  out  in  his  own  mind  a  campaign  which, 
in  the  end,  gave  great  lustre  to  the  American  arms. 
His  first  move  now  was  to  concentrate  all  the  troops, 
regular  and  volunteer,  that  he  proposed  to  use  for  his 
advance,  at  Camargo,  a  town  on  the  banks  of  the  San 
Juan  River,  a  few  miles  above  where  it  empties  into 
the  Rio  Grande.  It  is  worthy  of  remark,  in  demon- 
strating that  a  soldier's  value  is  in  proportion  to  his 
experience,  that  the  steamers  first  purchased  by  the 
Government  in  New  Orleans  were  of  too  heavy  draught 
of  water  to  cross  the  bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  river, 
and  those  that  could  be  procured  of  sufficiently  light 
draught  it  was  deemed  unsafe  to  trust  to  cross  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico ;  so  that  the  delay  which  had  occurred  was 
owing  in  fact  to  an  ignorance  of  detail,  the  responsi- 
bility for  which  rested  nowhere.    Finally  light-draught 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEEli.  61 

steamers  ventured  across  the  Gulf,  and,  with  the 
wrecks  of  some  half-dozen  of  their  number  lying  on 
the  bar,  they  found  their  way  into  and  up  the  river 
to  Camargo,  distant  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from 
its  mouth,  and  our  future  depot  of  supplies.  Strange, 
that  an  army  operating  in  this  valley  of  the  Eio 
Grande  should  have  to  look  for  its  subsistence  to  the 
great  valley  of  the  Mississippi,  which  had  been,  as  this 
now  was,  the  extreme  western  limit  of  hardy  enter- 
prise and  daring. 

In  the  meantime  the  Texan  Rangers  had  cleared 
the  small  posts  held  by  the  Mexicans  between  Mata- 
moras  and  Camargo  of  all  their  armed  defenders,  and, 
with  a  regiment  of  our  volunteers  at  Rej-nosa,  the 
enemy  had  gradually  been  driven  back  from  the  river, 
and  was  somewhere  concentrating  at  the  base  of  the 
Sierra  Madre  mountains. 

On  the  14th  day  of  August  our  battalion  was  bri- 
gaded with  six  companies  of  Kentucky  volunteers, 
called  the  Louisville  Legion,  and  twelve  companies  of 
Ohio  volunteers,  making  a  brigade  of  about  two 
thousand  men. 

August  15.  Left  Matamoras,  to  march  with  the 
brigade  to  Camargo,  distant  from  130  to  150  miles, 
by  what  was  called  the  mountain  road. 

Our  march  was  over  a  desert  rather  than  a  moun- 
tainous country ;  from  the  time  we  left  the  Rio 
Grande  at  Matamoras,  until  we  struck  the  San  Juan 
River  on  the  23d  of  August,  not  a  stream,  rivulet, 
brook,  or  spring,  did  we  see  or  hear  of,  the  only  water 
to  be  had  being  found  in  ponds  or  tanks,  as  they  were 
called,  in  which  rain-water  had  been  collected  for  the 


g2  UEUOIBS   OF  A 

use  of  the  cattle.  We  suffered  very  much,  and  our 
march  was  more  that  of  a  routed  army  of  stragglers 
than  the  advance  of  a  well-organized  brigade. 

The  distance  from  Matamoras  to  Camargo,  by  my 
calculation,  was  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles,  and  of 
this  we  marched  seventy-eight  miles  in  four  days' 
continuous  marching.  On  the  first  day  of  the  march 
we  made  ten  miles,  on  the  second  day  eleven  miles, 
on  the  third  day  twenty-six  miles,  on  the  fourth  day 
but  five  miles,  the  men  being  completely  exhausted 
from  the  preceding  days'  fatigue  and  suffering  ;  on  the 
fifth  day  twenty  miles,  on  the  sixth  day  eighteen 
miles,  on  the  seventh  day  seventeen  miles,  and  on  the 
eighth  day  twenty-three  miles ;  total,  one  hundred  and 
thirty  miles  in  eight  days.  This  would  have  been 
excellent  marching  over  good  roads,  but  through  the 
country  of  our  route  it  was  a  shameful  mismanage- 
ment, and  reflected  but  little  credit  upon  all  concerned 
in  the  movement.  The  excuse  was  that  our  guides 
had  misled  the  commanding  officer,  being  themselves 
ignorant  of  the  scarcity  of  water,  and  of  the  very  road 
which  we  traveled.  We  marched  in  the  middle  of 
the  day,  with  a  burning  sun  overhead,  and  burning 
sand  beneath  our  feet ;  not  a  drop  of  rain  had  fallen 
in  this  section  of  the  country  for  months,  and  the 
dust  raised  by  the  tramp  of  so  many  men  hung  over 
our  heads  with  a  smothering  denseness  from  which 
there  was  no  escape.  When  we  reached  a  pond,  which 
was  nothing  but  a  hog-wallow,  men  and  horses  rushed 
pell-mell  frantically  into  it,  all  semblance  of  rank  and 
organization  forgotten  and  disregarded. 

At  noon  of  the  third  di,iy   we  reached  a  pond,  in 


MARFLAND   VOLUNTEER.  63 

the  water  of  which  large  numbers  of  cattle  were 
standing  to  escape  the  heat  of  the  noon-day,  and  the 
swarm  of  flies  which  annoyed  them.  For  how  many 
days  these  cattle  had  stood  in  this  water  we  know 
not;  but  very  few  of  us  who  drank  it  kept  it  down 
after  it  was  swallowed,  and  the  taste  of  that  water 
was  remembered  for  a  long  time  with  nausea  and  dis- 
gust. On  this  day's  march  I  fell  in  the  road  utterly 
broken  down,  and  I  saw  men  toward  night  frantically 
digging  with  their  bayonets  in  the  dry  bed  of  a  water- 
course, in  the  vain  hope  of  finding  water  beneath  the 
surface,  but  all  was  as  dry  as  the  arid  country  around. 
For  miles  our  command  was  straggling  along,  day 
after  day,  some  reaching  camp  long  after  nightfall, 
inviting  attack  by  their  looseness  of  array,  and  scorn- 
ing the  commands  of  superior  officers,  through  the 
utter  demoralization  which  prevailed.  Curses  and 
imprecations  loud  and  deep  were  heard,  and  a  vindic- 
tiveness  was  manifested,  rarely  I  expect  ever  shown 
by  American  troops.  I  saw  men  fall  down  in  convul- 
sions on  this  march,  frothing  at  their  mouths,  clutch- 
ing the  sand  with  their  hands,  and  left  to  lie  until 
nature  and  the  shadows  of  night  restored  them  to 
consciousness  and  strength.  Kentuckians,  Ohio  men, 
and  Baltimoreans,  were  all  mixed  together;  the 
strongest  and  best  walkers  pressing  to  the  front,  the 
weak  and  the  weary  lagging  behind.  No  word  of 
encouragement,  none  of  command,  was  heard,  perhaps 
none  was  needed,  for  all  who  were  able  to  march 
could  be  found  at  the  tanks,  and  to  reach  the  river  was 
the  leading,  the  only,  object  of  that  brigade  on  its 
memorable  march  to  Camargo. 


64  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

August  24.  We  found  here,  upon  our  arrival  yes- 
terday, the  two  companies  of  our  battalion  which  had 
escaped  the  march  by  coming  up  the  river  on  a  steam- 
boat. Our  sick,  camp  and  garrison  equipage,  and  my 
servant,  were  awaiting  us,  and  after  getting  my  com- 
pany into  some  sort  of  comfort,  I  -walked  into 
Camargo  to  take  a  look  around  me.  I  found  it  a 
much  more  Spanish-looking  town  than  Matamoras, 
judging  from  pictures  I  had  seen  of  Spanish  towns. 
It  was,  to  use  the  expression  of  one  of  my  men  I 
found  wandering  through  the  streets,  a  roclcy-loohing 
place.  It  has  of  course  a  plaza,  and  a  rather  dilapi- 
dated cathedral  church.  It  boasted  once  of  having 
two  thousand  inhabitants;  now  I  am  sure  there  are 
not  more  than  one  thousand,  with  nearly  an  equal 
number  of  dogs  and  chicken-cocks.  The  houses  are 
low  heavy  stone  buildings,  with  flat  roofs,  and,  having 
been  completely  inundated  last  June  by  an  overflow 
of  the  San  Juan,  the  appearance  of  the  town  was  not 
clean  or  attractive.  It  is  the  residence  of  General 
Can  ales,  a  lawyer  by  profession,  and  somewhat  noted 
as  a  partisan  leader.  I  found  that  he  was  very  popu- 
lar here,  and  when  he  left,  which  he  did  on  the  ap- 
proach of  our  troops,  he  carried  with  him  a  consider- 
able number  of  its  fighting  population.* 

I  found  General  Taylor  here  with  his  head- 
quarters, and  an  army  of  regulars  and  volunteers,  in- 
cluding several  regiments  of  Texans.  The  main 
plaza  is  the  camp  of  a  regiment,  and  all  the  larger 


*  I  have  read  in  a  book,  since  the  war,  that  the  arrival  of  our 
troops  was  welcomed  by  the  inhabitants  of  Camargo,  as  a  relief 
from  the  tyranny  of  Canales  ;  this  is  not  the  fact. 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  65 

houses  are  filled  with  quartermaster  and  commissary 
stores.  Everything  and  everybody  is  busy  and  bust- 
ling, and  the  excitement  of  an  advance  and  an 
approaching  battle  is  increasing  hourly.  General 
Worth,  with  a  couple  of  regiments,  has  gone  to  Mier, 
forty  miles  off;  General  Smith  left  this  morning,  and 
Randolph  Ridgely  told  me  that  he  expects  to  march 
with  his  battery  this  week.  Having  seen  and  heard 
enough  for  one  day,  I  returned  to  camp,  the  fatigues 
of  the  past  week  already  forgotten  in  the  enthusiasm 
engendered  by  the  martial  scenes  I  had  witnessed. 

August  26.*  I  suppose  it  always  has  been  so  in  all 
armies,  ancient  and  modern,  it  certainly  is  so  in  the 
"  army  of  occupation,"  that  a  vast  quantity  of 
rumors  are  flying  around.  In  the  absence  of  news- 
papers, soldiers  in  the  field  are  very  fond  of  gossip, 
and  that  gossip  is  confined  to  the  narrow  limits  of  the 
next  march,  or  the  plan  of  campaign.  From  morning 
till  night,  this  is  the  talk. 

The  weather  ceased  to  be  a  topic  of  conversation 
from  the  hour  of  our  arrival  on  the  Brazos,  and  now, 
from  the  next  to  the  highest  in  rank  down  to  the' 
enlisted  man,  at  all  hours  of  the  day  and  night  you 
may  hear  a  thousand  rumors,  but  all  tending  to  the 
same  point,  or  in  the  same  direction.  No  one  can  tell 
from  whence  they  come;  the  hardiest  has  not  dared  to 
say  General  Taylor  said  so  and  so,  but  rumor  says 
we  are  going  to  Monterey.  And  where  that  is,  and 
how  we  are  going  to  get  there,  rumor,  as  yet,  knoweth 
not.  The  Mexicans  with  whom  I  have  talked  say 
the  same  thing ;  they  have  their  rumors,  which 
point  in  the  same  direction  ;  they  say  that  their  army 

5 


66  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

has  retired  to  Monterey,  and  that  it  will  fight  us 
there,  muclw  fandango,  at  Monterey.  So  I  have  con- 
cluded that  we  are  going  to  Monterey,  wherever  that 
may  be,  and  that  we  will  fight  a  battle  there;  feel- 
ing ashamed,  however,  that  I  didn't  know  where  it 
was, — for  I  used  to  be  a  little  vain  of  my  knowledge  of 
geography, — but  of  a  town  called  Monterey,  this  side 
of  the  one  thus  n'amed  on  the  California  coast  of  the 
Pacific  Ocean,  I  was  as  ignorant  as  a  heathen.  Not 
having  seen  an  American  newspaper  for  more  than 
a  month,  and  not  having  the  acquaintance  of  an  army 
correspondent,  I  fed  upon  rumors,  satisfied  with  that 
pabulum,  and  an  innate  soldierly  contentment  in  the 
discharge  of  my  own  duties. 

August  30.  I  have  learned  by  experience  the  truth 
of  a  famous  saying  which  Shakspeare  makes  one  of 
his  characters  use,  "  Uneasy  lies  the  head  that  wears 
a  crown."  I  have  never  been  a  king,  but  the  symbol 
of  authority,  whether  it  be  a  crown  or  the  shoulder- 
straps  of  a  Captain  of  volunteers,  carries  with  it  so 
much  unrest  and  anxiety  that  it  is  strange  men  will 
seek  such  trappings.  It  has  been  a  very  trying  time 
the  past  few  days.  Orders  were  received  that  our 
battalion  would  be  mustered  to-morrow  for  payment, 
and  that  each  Captain  should  have  prepared  and  ready 
for  that  day  four  full  rolls  containing  the  names  of  all 
the  members  of  his  company,  present  and  absent, 
where  mustered,  when  mustered,  when  last  paid,  the 
amount  of  clothing  each  man  had  received,  the  value 
of  the  equipments,  arms,  and  accoutrements  received 
by  each,  the  amount  due  the  sutler,  and  a  recapitula- 
tion showing  the  number  present  for  duty,  those  that 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  Q~ 

were  present  sick,  those  that  were  absent  sick,  those  on 
extra  duty,  those  iu  arrest  or  confinement,  those  on 
detached  service,  those  absent  without  leave,  the  num- 
ber joined  by  transfer,  the  number  joined  from  deser- 
tion, the  number  discharged  by  expiration  of  service, 
or  for  disability,  the  number  that  had  deserted,  the 
number  that  liad  died,  etc.,  etc.  I  looked  at  the  blank 
forms,  and  my  military  enthusiasm  was  oozing  per- 
ceptibly through  m}'  pores.  No  help  for  it;  the  work 
had  to  be  done.  So,  selecting  some  half-dozen  of  the 
best  clerks  in  my  company,  I  went  at  it.  We  labored 
hard,  for  no  one  officer  or  soldier  in  the  command  had 
ever  had  anj'thing  of  the  kind  to  do  before.  Labor 
as  we  did,  however,  I  could  not  make  my  account  bal- 
ance,— that  is  the  only  way  to  express  it;  in  other  words, 
1  could  not  make  this  roll  correspond  with  the  original 
one  made  at  Washington  on  the  8th  of  June,  when 
we  were  mustered  into  the  army,  by  reason  of  the 
numerous  changes  which  had  taken  place  since  that 
time.  Finally  the  mustering-officer  came  along,  and 
I  told  him  my  difficulties.  Though  an  entire  stranger, 
he  sat  down  alongside  of  us  and  kindly  assisted  and 
explained,  until  I  grasped  what  was  before  me,  and 
was  enabled  to  complete  satisfactorily  my  rolls.  To 
First  Lieutenant  William  A.  Nichols,  of  the  Second 
Regiment  of  Artillery,  United  States  Army,  I  owe 
my  thanks  for  his  courtesy,  and  gratitude  for  his 
instruction. 

August  3L  This  day,  looked  forward  to  by  me 
with  as  much  apprehension,  if  not  more,  than  if  we 
were  going  to  fight  a  battle,  was  the  day  of  muster, 
and  all  the  troops  here  were  mustered  for  payment. 


68  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

Thanks  to  Lieutenant  Nichols  my  rolls  were  nearly 
correct,  and  I  had  but  little  trouble  in  getting  thfem 
accepted  after  the  parade.  As  before  said,  each  com- 
manding officer  of  a  company  had  to  prepare  four  rolls. 
Of  these  four,  one  is  sent  direct  to  the  Adjutant-Gen- 
eral of  the  United  States  Army  at  "Washington,  by 
which  means  the  Government  is  informed  of  the  num- 
bers present  and  absent  of  its  armies  in  the  field  ;  two 
are  given  to  the  paymaster,  who  calculates  the  pay 
due  each  soldier,  and  the  amount  is  placed  against  the 
name  of  the  soldier  upon  each  roll,  and  signed  by  the 
soldier  at  the  time  of  payment.  One  copy  of  the  rolls 
is  retained  by  the  company  commander,  as  a  basis  for 
his  roll  at  the  next  muster.  By  these  means  the  con- 
dition of  an  army  is  verified,  and  all  changes  occurring 
are  noted  upon  each  successive  muster,  until  the  final 
one  at  the  end  of  the  term  of  service,  when  every 
man  borne  upon  the  original  muster-in  roll  must  be 
accounted  for.  If  a  Captain  can  only  prepare  his  first 
rolls  correctly,  he  will  have  but  little  thereafter  to 
trouble  him.  A  mistake  in  this,  however,  leads  to 
successive  and  increasing  blunders.  It  does  not  follow 
that  troops  are  immediately  paid  after  these  musters 
for  payment,  and  we  were  not;  but,  our  company  rolls 
being  in,  the  Captains  were  free  from  the  responsi- 
bility of  delay. 

None  other  than  a  man  who  has  been  the  Captain 
of  a  volunteer  company  can  appreciate  this  feeling  of 
responsibility.  In  the  regular  army,  there  is  not  the 
same  closeness  of  relation  between  the  enlisted  man 
and  his  Captain,  for  he  has  been  assigned  to  the  com- 
mand and  may  be  transferred  at  any  time;  but  in  the 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEEB.  69 

volunteer  service,  the  men  have  been,  generally  speak- 
ing, enlisted  by  the  Captain,  and  to  him  alone  they 
look  for  their  pay.  Without  pay,  a  soldier  is  one  of 
the  most  disagreeable  beings  on  earth,  and  without  pay, 
soldiers  are  not  easily  commanded.  As  a  general  rule, 
no  amount  of  pay  will  make  men  take  up  arms  in  a 
cause  for  which  they  have  no  sympathy;  at  the  same 
time  experience  has  demonstrated  that,  without  pay, 
soldiers  won't  fight — saints  would  not  do  it,  if  they 
were  soldiers. 

My  troubles  for  the  day  were  not  yet  over,  for,  being 
in  hourly  expectation  of  orders  to  march,  the  sick  of 
my  company  gave  me  great  concern.  Two  months  in 
this  climate,  and  two  such  marches  as  those  from 
Burita*  to  Matamoras,  and  from  thence  to  Camargo, 
had  frightfully  depleted  the  strength  of  the  volunteer 
regiments.  In  my  own  company  eighteen  men  were 
on  their  backs,  unmistakably  not  fit  for  the  field,  and 
what  to  do  with  them  was  the  question  now  uppermost 
in  my  mind.  I'went  to  see  Colonel  Watson,  and  gave 
him  a  faithful  account  of  the  condition  of  our  sick. 
The  matter  was  so  grave  that  he  went  at  once  to 
head-quarters  and  had  an  interview  with  General 
Taylor,  which  resulted  in  an  order  being  issued  that 
such  of  the  sick  as  were  thought  unfit  by  the  surgeon 
to  march  should  be  left  in  the  general  hospital  at 
Camargo.  I  left  eighteen,  of  whom  the  following 
were  discharged  on  surgeon's  certificate  of  disability 

*  The  Countess  de  Burita  was  the  heroine  of  the  first  defence 
of  Sarag-ossa,  when  besieged,  in  1808,  by  the  French,  under 
General  Lefebvre  Desnouettes.  I  presume  this  town  was  named 
in  her  honor. 


70  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

as  soon  as  they  were  examined :  Corporal  James  Tib- 
bies ;  Privates  John  F.  Alexander,  James  B.  Canning, 
Jacob  Degomp,  Francis  Fisher,  George  Gordon,  Barney 
Hawkins,  Charles  Johnson,  David  Johnson,  Samuel 
Lockhart,  William  Macready,  Josiah  Pregg,  James 
Peregoy,  Ernest  Tressel,  arid  William  C.  Wilson ; 
the  proportion  of  sick  in  the  other  companies  of  the 
battalion  being  about  the  same,  while  in  some  other 
regiments  it  was  much  larger.  In  the  First  Tennessee 
a  large  number  died,  and  the  general  opinion  was  that 
we  were  in  a  very  unhealthy  camp.  No  one  can  tell 
whence  the  name  came,  but  already  in  speaking  of 
Camargo  the  men  would  invariably  call  it  the  grave- 
yard. Captain  W.  S.  Henry,  of  the  United  States 
Army,  in  writing  from  here  at  this  time,  says:  "  The 
volunteers  continue  to  arrive.  They  have  suffered  a 
great  deal  at  their  encampment  at  the  mouth  of  the 
river,  and  at  the  Brazos  Santiago,  that  barren  and 
sandy  island  where  the  sand  drifts  in  clouds.  Diar- 
rhoea, dysentery,  and  fevers,  have  been  very  fatal. 
Discharges  are  numerous,  and  the  great  majority  are 
pretty  well  disgusted  with  the  service.  My  only  sur- 
prise is  that  people  so  suddenly  transported  from  a 
high  to  a  low  latitude  in  the  midst  of  summer  should 
have  so  few  cases  of  disease.  They  may  consider 
themselves  very  fortunate." 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  71 


CHAPTER    IV. 


C  A  M  A  R  G  0. 


Septemher  1,  184(5.     At  Camartyo. 

To  comprehend  this  campaign  of  the  Rio  Grande  it 
will  be  necessary  to  go  back  a  few  weeks,  in  order  to 
learn  what  were  the  plans,  if  any,  which  the  Govern- 
ment had  formed  for  the  prosecution  of  the  war. 
Major-General  Winfield  Scott,  the  eminent  soldier, 
was  the  commanding  general  of  the  army  of  the 
United  States,  but  he  had  written  himself  into  dis- 
favor with  both  the  President  and  the  Secretary  of 
War,  the  Hon.  William  L.  Marcy.  General  Scott's 
views  had  no  controlling  influence  upon  the  campaign, 
and  for  the  present  we  must  leave  him  where  I  am 
inclined  to  think  he  preferred  being  left,  a  watchful 
observer  of  the  course  of  events  and  the  conduct  of 
the  war.  His  reputation  as  a  general  officer  was 
well  established,  that  of  Taylor's  comparatively  un- 
known,— certainly  far  below  that  of  Scott's;  for  as  yet 
the  laurels  gathered  at  Palo  Alto  and  Resacahad  been 
ascribed  more  to  the  steady  gallantry  of  the  "regu- 
lars" than  to  the  military  capacity  of  Taylor. 

The  Government  propounded  this  question  to  Gen- 
eral Taylor,  "  Shall  the  campaign  be  conducted  with 
the  view  of  striking  at  the  city  of  Mexico,  or  confined, 
so  far  as  regards  the  forces   under  your   immediate 


72  MEMOmS  OF  A 

command,  to  the  northern  provinces  of  Mexico  ?"*  On 
the  2d  of  July  the  general  answered  "  That  it  was  his 
intention  of  moving  with  a  column  of  six  thousand 
men  upon  an  experimental  expedition  as  far  as  Mont- 
erey. He  (fonsidered  that  six  thousand  men  was  the 
maximum  force  which  could  be  employed  on  the  ex- 
pedition, having  regard  to  their  subsistence  and  the 
resources  of  the  country  in  pack-mules  and  transpor- 
tation generally.  That  from  Caraargo  to  the  city  of 
Mexico  was  a  line  little  short  of  one  thousand  miles 
in  length ;  the  resources  of  the  country,  to  say  the 
best,  not  superabundant,  and  over  long  spaces  of  the 
route  were  known  to  be  deficient.  That  the  road  as 
we  advanced  south  approached  both  seas,  yet  the  topo- 
graphy of  the  country  and  the  consequent  character  of 
the  communications  forbid  the  taking  up  a  new  line 
of  supply  from  Tampico  or  the  Pacific  coast;"  and  con- 
cluded by  saying,  "  Except  in  the  case,  deemed  improb- 
able, of  the  entire  acquiescence,  if  not  support,  on  the 
part  of  the  Mexican  people,  I  consider  it  impracti- 
cable to  keep  open  so  long  a  line  of  communication.  It 
is  therefore  my  opinion  that  our  operations  from  this 
frontier  should  not  look  to  the  city  of  Mexico,  but 
should  be  confined  to  cutting  off  the  northern  prov- 
inces,— an  undertaking  of  comparative  facility  and 
assurance  of  success." 

On  the  9  th  of  July  Mr.  Marcy  wrote  to  General 
Taylor  as  follows  :  "  If,  from  all  the  information  which 
you  may  communicate  to  the  Department,  as  well  as 


*  Letter  from  Hon.  W.  L.  Marcy,  Secretary  of  War,  to  Gen- 
eral Taylor,  dated  War  Department,  Washington,  June  8,  1846. 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  73 

that  derived  from  other  sources,  it  should  appear  that 
the  difficulties  and  obstacles  to  the  conducting  of  a 
campaign  from  the  Rio  Grande,  the  present  base  of 
your  operations,  for  any  considerable  distance  into 
the  interior  of  Mexico,  will  be  very  great*  the  Depart- 
ment will  consider  whether  the  main  invasion  should 
not  ultimately  take  place  from  some  other  point  on 
the  coast,  say  Tampico  or  some  other  point  in  the 
vicinity  of  Vera  Cruz.  This  suggestion  is  made  with 
a  view  to  call  your  attention  to  it,  and  to  obtain  from 
you  such  information  as  you  may  be  able  to  impart. 
Should  it  be  determined  that  the  main  army  should 
invade  Mexico  at  some  other  point  than  the  Rio 
Grande, — say  in  the  vicinity  of  Vera  Cruz, — a  large 
and  sufficient  number  of  transport  vessels  could  be 
placed  at  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Grande  by  the  time 
the  healthy  season  sets  in, — say  early  in  November. 
The  main  army,  with  all  its  munitions,  could  be  trans- 
ported, leaving  a  sufficient  force  behind  to  hold  and 
occupy  the  Rio  Grande  and  all  the  towns  and  provin- 
ces which  you  may  have  conquered  before  that  time. 
In  the  event  of  such  being  the  plan  of  operations, 
your  opinion  is  desired  what  increased  force,  if  any, 
will  be  required  to  carry  it  out  with  success.  We  learn 
that  the  army  could  be  disembarked  a  few  miles  dis- 
tant from  Vera  Cruz,  and  readily  invest  the  town  in  its 
rear,  without  coming  within  range  of  the  guns  of  the 
fortress  of  San  Juan  d'Ulloa.  The  town  could  be 
readily  taken  by  land,  while  the  fortress,  being  in- 
vested by  land  and  sea,  and  all  communication  cut 
off,  must  soon  fall.  From  Vera  Cruz  to  the  city  of 
Mexico  there  is  a  fine  road,  upon  which  the  diligences 


74  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

or  stage-coaches  run  daily.  The  distance  from  Vera 
Cruz  to  the  city  of  Mexico  is  not  more  than  one-third 
of  that  from  the  Rio  (Irande  to  the  city  of  Mexico. 
Upon  these  important  points,  in  addition  to  those 
mentioned  in  my  letter  of  the  8th  of  June,  your  opin- 
ions and  views  are  desired  at  the  earliest  period  your 
duties  will  permit  you  to  give  them.  In  the  mean  time, 
the  Department  confidently  relies  on  you  to  j^ress  for- 
ward your  operations  vigorously,  to  the  extent  of  your 
means,  so  as  to  occupy  the  important  points  within 
your  reach  on  the  Rio  Grande  and  in  the  interior." 

To  this,  General  Taylor  replied  on  the  1st  of 
August,  from  Matamoras  :  "As  to  the  military  opera- 
tions best  calculated  to  secure  an  early  and  honor- 
able peace,  my  report  of  the  2nd  of  July  will  have 
put  the  Department  in  possession  of  my  views  touch- 
ing operations  in  this  quarter,  and  I  have  now  little 
to  add  to  that  report.  Whether  a  large  force  can  be 
subsisted  beyond  Monterey  must  be  determined  by 
actual  experiment,  and  will  depend  much  upon  the 
disposition  of  the  enemy  toward  us.  If  a  column 
(say  ten  thousand  men)  can  be  sustained  in  provi- 
sions at  Saltillo,  it  may  advance  thence  upon  San 
Luis  Potosi,  and,  I  doubt  not,  would  speedily  bring 
proposals  for  peace.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  a  column 
cannot,  be  sustained  beyond  Monterey,  it  will  be  for 
the  Government  to  determine,  from  considerations  of 
state,  whether  a  simple  occupation  of  the  frontier 
departments  (including  Chihuahua  and  New  Mexico), 
or,  in  addition  to  such  occupation,  an  expedition 
against  the  capital  by  way  of  Vera  Cruz,  would  be 
most  expedient.     I  cannot  give  a  positive  opinion  as 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  75 

to  the  practicability  of  an  expedition  against  Vera 
Cruz,  or  the  amount  of  force  that  would  probably  be 
required  for  it.  The  Department  of  War  must  be 
much  better  informed  than  I  am  on  that  point.  From 
the  impracticable  character  of  the  routes  from  Tam- 
pico,  particularly  that  leading  to  Mexico,  I  should 
judge  an  expedition  against  the  capital  from  that 
point  to  be  out  of  the  question.  The  simultaneous 
embarkation  of  a  large  body  of  troops  at  Brazos  San- 
tiago, as  proposed  in  the  Secretary's  communication, 
would  be  attended  with  great  difficulty,  if  we  may 
judge  from  the  delays  and  danger  which  accompany 
the  unloading  of  single  transports,  owing  to  the  almost 
perpetual  roughness  of  the  bar  and  boisterous  charac- 
ter of  the  anchorage.  It  may  also  well  be  questioned 
whether  a  force  of  volunteers,  without  much  instruc- 
tion (more  than  those  now  here  can  receive  in  season 
for  such  an  expedition) ,  can  prudently  be  allowed  to 
form  the  bulk  of  an  army  for  so  delicate  an  operation 
as  a  descent  upon  a  foreign  coast,  Avhere  it  can  have 
no  proper  base  of  operations  or  supplies." 

From  the  above  correspondence  it  will  be  perceived 
that  the  War  Department,  whilst  making  inquiries 
of  General  Taylor,  gave  him  no  positive  instructions, 
except  that  he  should  press  forward  his  operations 
vigorously,  so  as  to  occupy  the  important  points  within 
his  reach  on  the  Rio  Grande  and  in  the  interior,  given 
to  him  by  Secretary  Marcy  in  his  letter  of  the  9th 
of  July;  while  as  early  as  the  2nd  of  the  same 
month  General  Taylor  had  informed  the  War  Depart- 
ment that  it  was  his  intention  of  moving  with  a 
column  of  six  thousand  men  upon  Monterey. 


76  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

We  "were  now,  at  the  1st  day  of  September,  1846, 
at  Camargo,  and  General  Taylor  was  ready  to  move 
forward.  These  were  his  arrangements :  the  regular 
troops  of  the  army  were  organized  into  two  divisions; 
the  first,  under  the  command  of  General  Twiggs,  con- 
sisted of  the  Second  Dragoons,  the  First,  Second, 
Third,  and  Fourth  Regiments  of  Infantry,  and  Bragg's 
and  Ridgely's  Batteries ;  the  Second,  under  General 
Worth,  of  the  Artillery  Battalion,  the  Fifth,  Seventh, 
and  Eighth  Regiments  of  Infantry,  Duncannon's  Bat- 
tery, and  Captain  Blanchard's  company  of  Louisiana 
volunteers.  Of  the  twelve  months'  volunteers  that 
were  to  form  part  of  the  column,  they  were  organized 
into  a  field  division  under  the  command  of  Major- 
General  Butler,  of  Kentucky,  with  Brigadiers-General 
Hamer,  of  Ohio,  and  Quitman,  of  Mississippi  (the  latter 
was  born  in  the  State  of  New  York) .  A  large  number 
— about  six  thousand — twelve  months'  men  were  to  be 
distributed  at  Camargo  and  the  several  posts  on  the 
river  which  it  was  deemed  necessary  to  hold.  The  fol- 
lowing paragraph  of"  Orders  No.  108"  expresses  a  great 
deal :  "  The  limited  means  of  transportation,  and  the 
uncertainty  in  regard  to  the  supplies  that  may  be 
drawn  from  the  theatre  of  operations,  imposes  upon 
the  commanding  general  the  necessity  of  taking  into 
the  field,  in  the  first  instance,  only  a  moderate  portion 
of  the  volunteer  force  now  under  his  orders." 

Of  the  force  thus  to  be  left,  the  whole  was  to  be 
under  the  command  of  Major-General  Robert  Patter- 
son, of  Pennsylvania. 

In  the  course  of  the  preceding  week  and  since  our 
arrival  here,  the  Baltimore  Battalion  had  been  bri- 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  'J'J 

gaded  in  three  several  commands',  but  on  this  day  we 
had  the  honor,  owing  to  the  personal  efforts  of  Colonel 
Watson,  of  being  attached  to  General  Twiggs'  (First) 
Division  of  Regulars,  and  brigaded  in  the  Fourth 
Brigade  with  the  First  Regiment  of  Infantry,  under 
the  command  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Henry  Wilson,  of 
the  United  States  Army.     I  was  delighted. 

The  Baltimore  Battalion,  as  it  was  generally  called 
(without  any  disrespect  to  our  friends  and  comrades 
of  the  two  Washington  companies),  was  dressed  in  the 
regular  blue  uniform  and  equipments  of  the  regular 
troops  of  the  line  of  the  army,  and  was  the  only 
command  of  volunteers  thus  equipped  that  I  am  aware 
of,  at  this  time.  Its  character  was  that  of  being  dis- 
orderly and  riotous,  which  reputation  it  had  brought 
from  Washington,  and  had  been  added  to  on  the  Brazos, 
at  Camp  Belknap,  and  at  Matamoras;  but  I  say  as  a 
soldier  that  its  behavior  was  as  orderly,  and  that  it 
was  more  obedient  and  its  appearance  more  soldier- 
like, than  that  of  any  volunteers  I  have  seen  in  the 
country.  The  reason  why,  frequently,  its  conduct  was 
considered  disorderly,  was  owing  to  the  facts  that 
nearly  every  man  in  it  was  from  the  cities  of  Wash- 
ington and  Baltimore,  many  of  whom  had  been  sailors, 
others  members  of  fire-companies,  fishing-clubs,  etc., 
and  they  were  a  wild,  frolicksome,  reckless  set,  full  of 
fun  and  hard  to  keep  in  camp.  They  were  forever 
wandering  about,  and  frequently  came  into  collision 
with  volunteers  from  other  States,  who,  being  mostly 
from  the  rural  districts,  had  some  curious-looking 
uniforms  and  hats,  and  would  not  understand  the 
character  or  take  the  fun  of  these  city  fellows,  particu- 


i-g  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

larlj  as  they  were  dressed  in  army  uniforms.  This 
assignment  of  the  battalion  to  a  brigade  of  regulars 
was  regarded  as  a  great  feather  in  our  caps. 

The  field  division  of  volunteers  under  the  command 
of  General  Butler  consisted  of  the  First  Mississippi, 
Colonel  Jefferson  Davis ;  the  First  Tennessee,  Colonel 
William  B.  Campbell ;  the  First  Ohio,  Colonel  Alex- 
ander M.  Mitchell ;  and  the  First  Kentucky,  Colonel 
Stephen  Ormsby  :  regiments  of  volunteers.  Two  regi- 
ments of  Texan  cavalry  under  Colonel  James  Pink- 
ney  Henderson  completed  the  force  of  the  column. 
Before  we  left  Camargo,  and  on  this  1st  day  of  Sep- 
tember, under  the  authority  of  the  Act  of  Congress 
and  instructions  from  the  headquarters  of  the  army, 
an  election  was  held  in  the  several  companies  of  our 
battalion  for  an  additional  second  lieutenant.  In 
my  company  it  resulted  in  the  choice  of  Orderly 
Sergeant  William  E  Aisquith,*  of  the  city  of  Balti- 
more, and  he  was  subsequently  duly  commissioned. 
He  was  my  choice,  and  the  whole  subject  is  worthy 
of  a  few  reflections.     Perhaps  in  the  history  of  the 

*  On  the  afternoon  before  1  left  Baltimore  with  my  company, 
Mr.  Robert  M.  McLane  came  to  the  rendezvous  and  asked  me  to 
do  him  a  favor  by  accepting  Aisquith  as  a  volunteer,  and  giving 
him  a  place  as  one  of  my  officers  ;  which  I  declined  to  do,  as  I 
had  already  determined  who  were  to  be  my  Lieutenants  ;  but 
after  he  told  me  that  Aisquith  was  the  son  of  Captain  Aisquith, 
who  at  the  battle  of  North  Point,  in  command  of  a  company  of 
sharpshooters,  had  rendered  efficient  service  and  behaved  with 
much  gallantry,  and  that  he  was  a  graduate  of  the  United  States 
Military  Academy  at  West  Point,  I  replied,  that  I  would  give 
him  the  place  of  Orderly  Sergeant  of  my  company,  and  give 
him  a  chance  for  promotion  ;  and  this  I  did. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  79 

whole  world,  and  of  its  armies,  no  such  spectacle  had 
ever  been  seen  before  as  the  right  of  suffrage  or  vote 
by  ballot  being  given  to  the  soldiers  of  an  organized 
army  in  the  field,  for  the  selection  of  their  officers. 
It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that,  by  the  militia  laws  of 
several  States  of  the  Union,  the  company  officers  were 
selected  by  the  men,  and  in  some  of  the  States  the 
field  officers  were  likewise  thus  elected.  It  was  so  I 
am  sure  in  Maryland,  that  company  officers  were 
thus  elected  ;  and  inasmuch  as  the  Act  of  Congress 
which  authorized  the  Government  to  accept  twelve 
months'  volunteers,  provided  that  the  company  offi- 
cers should  be  commissioned  by  the  Governors  of  the 
respective  States  from  which  they  were  accepted,  it 
followed  that  the  additional  lieutenant  allowed  to 
each  company  should  be  elected  and  commissioned 
as  had  been  the  others  from  the  same  State.  If  I  had 
been  asked  at  the  time  I  raised  my  company  whether 
I  would  have  permitted  the  men  to  select  their  offi- 
cers, I  should  have  given  up  its  command  before  I 
would  have  consented  to  it ;  but  now,  after  two 
months'  arduous  and  active  field  service,  I  believed 
the  men  would  select  the  most  competent  and  trusty 
of  their  number;  and,  as  far  as  our  battalion  was  con- 
cerned, they  generally  did  so.  In  my  own  company 
it  was  emphatically  so ;  for  although  the  ojjponent  of 
Sergeant  Aisquith  was  a  well-drilled  soldier,  of  very 
pleasing  address,  generous  and  popular, .he  received 
but  six  out  of  the  sixtj'-seven  votes  cast.  True  it  is 
that  my  influence  aided  Mr.  Aisquith,  but  the  large 
vote  he  received  was  due  to  the  consciousness  which 
the  men  now  had  that  playing  soldiers  at  home  and 


30  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

practicing  it  here  were  two  very  different  things,  and 
that  their  lives  and  their  comforts  would  mainly  de- 
pend upon  the  skill  and  discretion  of  their  officers. 


CHAPTER    V. 

CAMPAIGN    OF    THE     RIO    GRANDE. 

On  the  afternoon  of  September  the  1st  we  bade 
farewell  to  the  sickly  environs  of  Camargo,  crossed 
the  San  Juan  River,  and  encamped  with  the  First 
Regiment  of  Infantry,  under  orders  to  march  to 
Seralvo,  some  seventy  miles  distant.  In  lieu  of 
wagons  for  the  transportation  of  our  baggage,  eight 
mules  on  an  average  were  given  to  each  company; 
the  orders  being,  to  every  eight  men  a  mule,  and  one 
to  the  company  officers.  All  the  wheel-transportar 
tion  which  General  Taylor  had  at  his  disposal  was 
being  used  to  carry  supplies  of  all  kinds  forward  to 
Seralvo,  which  was  established  as  an  entrepot,  and  at 
which  a  portion  of  General  Worth's  division  was  al- 
ready posted  for  its  protection.  No  doubt  was  now 
entertained  by  any  one  that  heavy  work  was  before 
us ;  and  the  tread  of  the  courageous,  and  the  step  of 
the  faint-hearted,  were  as  marked  and  as  different  as 
day  from  night. 

September  2.  The  larger  portion  of  this  day  was 
spent  in  getting  our  baggage  packed  upon  the  backs 


MARYLAND    VOLVNTEER.  81 

of  the  mules  that  were  driven  into  our  camp  for  this 
purpose.  Their  appearance  created  a  profound  sensa- 
tion, and  the  laughter  with  which  they  were  received 
and  appropriated  by  the  various  squads  rang  loud 
and  joyously  through  the  valley  of  the  San  Juan. 

If  there  be  any  one  thing  which  requires  patience, 
good  humor,  and  skill,  it  is  to  properly  load  a  mule 
so  as  not  to  put  too  much  weight  upon  him,  and  that 
that  which  is  put  shall  be  equally  balanced  on  either 
side,  and  carefully  fastened  to  the  pack-saddle.  It 
amounts  to  an  art. 

I  watched  the  process  daily  with  great  interest,  and 
each  day  admired  more  and  more  the  good  qualities 
of  the  Mexican  arrieros  or  muleteers.  You  have  but 
to  know  that  tents,  tent-poles,  kettles,  mess-pans, 
axes,  picks,  coffee-mills,  boxes  of  ammunition,  etc., 
were  to  be  daily  put  on  and  off  a  mule's  back,  to  be 
carried  safely  over  hill  and  dale,  through  thicket  and 
through  flowing  water  for  miles  and  miles  of  toilsome 
march,  to  appreciate  the  knowledge  requisite  to  do 
the  work  well.  It  toas  well  done,  and  I  learned  to 
have  affection  for  the  mule  and  its  keeper,  despite  the 
many  annoyances  incidental  to  this  species  of  array 
transportation.  From  the  very  first,  our  men  took 
kindly  to  the  muleteers,  and  to  the  end  of  the  march 
the  utmost  harmony  and  good  will  existed  between 
them.  It  may  seem  strange  to  say  that,  notwith- 
standing they  knew  not  a  word  of  each  other's  lan- 
guage, they  understood  each  other ;  but  I  have  seen 
them  talking  together  and  laughing  heartily  over  the 
subject  of  conversation.  Owing  to  the  delay  in  get- 
ting   ready,  it  was   nearly  nightfall   when   we   had 

6 


82 


MEMOIRS   OF  A 


marched  three  or  four  miles,  so  we  halted  and  biv- 
ouacked for  the  night. 

On  the  3d,  we  marched  fourteen  miles,  crossing  the 
Arroyo  Salado ;  on  the  4th  passed  the  picturesque- 
looking  town  of  Mier,  rendered  famous  by  the  des- 
perate battle  fought  here  four  years  ago  between  the 
Texans  and  Mexicans.  On  the  5th  reached  the 
Alamo*  River,  a  swift  running  stream,  whose  name 
was  fresh  in  the  memory  of  the  Texans,  and  gave 
fierceness  to  their  well-known  battle  cry,  "  Remember 
the  Alamo!"  and  on  the  6th  reached  Puntiaguda,  dis- 
tant fifty-five  miles  from  Camargo.  Here  we  halted 
for  the  main  body  of  the  troops  to  join  us. 

We  had  left  the  State  of  Tamaulipas,  whose  eastern 
boundary  is  the  Rio  Grande  and  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and 
had  entered  the  State  of  Nuevo  Leon.  The  appear- 
ance of  the  country  was  very  different  from  what  we 
had  in  a  measure  become  familiar  with ;  instead  of 
the  sands,  the  cactus,  the  unwholesome  water  and 
enfeebling  atmosphere,  we  were  in  a  well  cultivated 
country,  with  clear  running  streams,  and  gardens 
and  fields  blooming  with  the  fig  and  the  pomegranate. 
The  air  was  delightful,  and  the  sweet  water  of  running 
mountain  brooks  was  delicious  to  the  palate,  which 
for  two  months  had  been  nauseated  with  the  muddy 
fluid  of  the  Rio  Grande.  The  roads  over  which  we 
had  marched  were  good,  and  the  manner  and  order  of 
the  march  were  grateful  to  men  who  had  been  driven 
in  confusion  through  the  lagoons  and  the  mire,  over 
sandy  deserts  and  burning  plains,  from  the  Gulf  to 

*  The  town  of  Mier  is  on  the  banks  of  this  river. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  83 

the  bfiiiks  of  the  San  Juan.  I  was  beginning  to  learn 
my  profession,  not  the  least  of  whose  requirements  is 
the  knowledge  of  the  proper  way  to  inarch  troops,  and 
was  learning  in  the  only  mode  by  which  it  could  be 
acquired.  A  very  marked  change  was  perceptible  in 
our  ranks ;  we  were  being  instructed  in  guard-mount- 
ing, picket-  and  outpost-duty,  by  those  who  were 
competent  to  teach,  and  as  we  approached  the  vicinity 
of  the  enemy  the  martial  spirit  of  the  men  revived. 
Our  health  and  strength  were  being  regained  in  this 
salubrious  climate,  and  the  novelty  of  the  ever-vary- 
ing scenery  through  which  we  passed  cheered  and 
brightened  the  countenances  of  all. 

I  was  much  pleased  with  this  little  village  of  four 
hundred  inhabitants,  through  whose  streets  the  head- 
waters of  the  Alamo  were  rushing  over  their  rocky 
bed  to  join  and  mingle  with  the  torrent  of  the  Bravo 
del  Norte. 

On  the  7th,  General  Taylor  came  up  with  the  main 
body,  and  after  resting  for  two  days,  we  all  marched 
on  the  9th  to  Seralvo,  distant  fifteen  miles,  which  we 
reached  the  same  night.  Here  we  found  General 
Worth's  division ;  and  the  army  of  occupation  was 
concentrated  to  take  breath,  fill  cartridge-boxes  and 
haversacks,  and  then  to  march  to  Monterey. 

During  our  halt  at  Puntiaguda,  word  was  brought 
from  General  Worth  that  a  large  force  of  cavalry 
was  in  his  vicinity ;  and  while  1  was  gazing  in  awe 
and  in  silence  at  the  wonderful  phenomenon  of  a 
lunar  rainbow  I  was  startled  with  the  drums  beating 
an  alarm.  We  were  held  in  readiness  to  move  to  the 
support  of  Worth,  but  the  affair  which  caused  this 


84  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

first  stampede*  proved  to  be  but  a  fight  on  that  day 
between  Captain  McCullough's  company  of  Texan 
Rangers  and  a  portion  of  General  Canales's  cavalry. 
It  was  deemed  advisable,  however,  to  proceed  with 
caution,  and  we  awaited  the  arrival  of  General  Tay- 
lor, when  we  moved  forward  with  his  troops.  Camp 
rumor,  after  vacillating  and  fluctuating  between  the 
thousand-and-one  stories  heard  daily  and  hourly  since 
we  had  left  the  San  Juan,  was  now  settled  and 
unanimous  that  fight  we  must  at  Monterey.  I  had 
become  satisfied  of  this  from  the  information  given 
to  me  by  the  muleteers,  one  of  whom  told  me  he 
l-neio  that  they  were  fortifying  the  town,  and  General 
Ampudia  had  marched  into  it  with  a  large  army.  I 
could  not  disbelieve  the  positive  statements  of  this 
man  ;  his  truthfulness  was  stamped  on  every  linea- 
ment of  his  honest  countenance. 

This  town  of  Seralvo  is  one  of  considerable  size  and 
importance,  beautifully  situated  in  a  valley  sur- 
rounded by  mountains,  and  in  the  centre  of  a  highly 
cultivated  rich  and  jsroductive  country.  A  tributary 
to  the  Alamo  flows  through  it,  which  supplies  water 
to  the  inhabitants,  and,  by  means  of  ditches,  to  the 
gardens  which  surround  every  house  in  the  town,  and 
which  are  by  it  kept  in  perennial  verdure  and  bloom. 
Several  handsome  bridges  cross  this  clear  bold  stream 
in  different  parts  of  the  town,  and  on  its  banks  the 
lemon,  the  orange,  and  the  grand  pecan,  invite,  by 
their  beauty  and  foliage,  the  ladies  of  Seralvo  to  the 


*  This  word  means  everytbing  from   a  downright   running 
away  to  a  merely  being  hurried  or  startled  without  flight. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  §5 

luxury  of  their  shade.  "We  found  plenty  of  fruit 
here,  and  enjoyed  the  fig,  the  peach,  and  the  pome- 
granate, fresh  plucked  from  the  tree,  and  that  deli- 
cious drink,  limonada,  made  from  limes  taken  by 
mj'self  from  the  branches  upon  which  they  had  grown. 
It  is  not  only  by  far  the  n)ost  attractive,  clean,  and 
picturesque  town  I  have  yet  seen  in  Mexico,  but  tlie 
refreshing  coolness  of  its  thick-walled  dwellings  was 
the  constant  theme  of  those  who  had  been  so  long  ex- 
posed to  the  heat  of  the  sun.  They  not  only  afforded 
shade,  but  there  was  an  indescribable  atmosphere 
within  their  walls  which  gave  a  sense  of  pleasure  and 
repose  to  the  weary  and  foot-sore  officer  fortunate 
enough  to  find  this  rest.  In  the  far  distance  the 
lofty  Sierras,  overlooking  the  valley  of  Monterey, 
loom  up  grandly  on  the  western  horizon,  and  the  bare 
cliffs  to  the  north  indicate  where  the  once  celebrated 
silver  mines  of  Seralvo  were  worked  for  the  conquer- 
ing Spaniard,  by  the  helpless  natives.  It  is  with  its 
surroundings  a  beautiful  country,  and  for  the  few 
days  that  we  were  here  nothing  whatever  occurred 
to  disturb  the  friendly  relations  which  existed  or 
seemed  to  exist  between  the  people  and  our  army. 
Fandangos,  monte,  limonada,  with  a  dash  now  and 
then  of  vino  de  Parras,  made  our  halt  pass  swiftly 
and  pleasantly,  so  that  when  the  bugles  sang  truce, 
and  the  reveille  was  followed  by  the  generale  on  the 
morning  of  the  13th  of  September,  we  marched  from 
Seralvo  with  regret,  and  the  first  pleasant  memory  of 
Mexico  had  effected  a  lodgment  in  our  breasts.  The 
following  were  our  orders  : 


86  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

"  Headquarters,  Army  of  Occupation", 
"Seralvo,  September  11,  1846. 
"  Orders  No.  115.] 

"  I.  As  the  army  may  expect  to  meet  resistance  in  tbe  further 
ad  stance  towards  Monterey,  it  is  necessary  that  tbe  march  should 
be  conducted  with  all  proper  precaution  to  meet  attack  and  to 
secure  tbe  baggage  and  supplies.  From  this  point  the  following 
will  be  the  order  of  the  march  until  otherwise  directed. 

"  II.  All  the  pioneers  of  tbe  army,  consolidated  into  one  pnrty, 
will  march  early  to-morrow  on  tbe  route  to  Marin,  for  tbe  pur- 
pose of  repairing  the  road  and  rendering  it  practicable  for  artil- 
lery and  wagons.  The  pioneers  of  each  division  will  be  under  a 
subaltern,  to  be  especiallj'  detailed  for  the  duty  ;  and  the  whole 
will  be  under  the  command  of  Captain  Craig,  Third  Infantry,  who 
will  report  at  headquarters  for  instructions.  This  pioneer  party 
will  be  covered  by  a  squadron  of  dragoons  and  Captain  McCul- 
loch's  company  of  rangers.  Two  officers  of  topographical  engi- 
neers, to  be  detailed  by  Captain  Williams,  will  accompany  the 
party  for  the  purpose  of  examining  the  route.  Two  wagons  will 
be  provided  by  the  quartermaster's  department  for  the  transpor- 
tation of  the  tools,  provisions,  and  knapsacks  of  the  pioneer  party. 

"III.  The  First  Division  will  march  on  tbe  13th  inst.,  to  be  fol- 
lowed on  successive  days  by  the  Second  Division  and  the  Field 
Division  of  Volunteers.  The  headquarters  will  march  with  tbe 
First  Division.  Captain  Gillespie  with  half  of  his  company  will 
report  to  Major-General  Butler ;  the  other  half,  under  the  First 
Lieutenant,  to  Brigadier-General  Worth.  These  detachments 
will  be  employed  for  outposts  and  videttes,  and  as  expresses  be- 
tween the  columns  and  headquarters. 

"IV.  The  subsistence  supplies  will  be  divided  among  the  three 
columns,  the  senior  commissary  of  each  division  receipting  for  the 
stores  and  being  charged  with  their  care  and  management.  Tbe 
senior  commissaries  of  divisions  will  report  to  Captain  Waggoner 
for  this  duty. 

"  V.  Each  division  will  be  followed  immediately  by  its  baggage 
train  and  supply  train,  with  a  strong  rear-guard.  The  ordnance 
train,  under  Captain  Ramsay,  will  march  with  the  Second  Divi- 
sion, between  its  baggage  and  supply  trains,  and  will  come  under 


MARTLAND    VOLUNTEER.  gj 

the  protection  of  the  guards  of  their  division.     The  medical  sup- 
plies will  in  like  manner  march  with  the  first  division. 

"  VI.  The  troops  will  take  eight  days'  rations  and  forty  rounds 
of  ammunition.  All  surplus  arms  and  accoutrements  resulting 
from  casualties  on  the  road  will  be  deposited  with  Lieutenant 
Stewart,  left  in  charge  of  the  depot  at  this  place,  who  will  give 
certificates  of  deposit  to  company  commanders. 

"YII.  The  wagons  appropriated  for  the  transportation  of 
water  will  not  be  required,  and  will  be  turned  over  to  the  quart«r- 
master's  department  for  general  purposes. 

"VIII.    Two  companies  of  the  Mississippi  regiment  will  be 

designated  for  the  garrison  of  this  depot.     All  sick  and  disabled 

men  unfit  for  the  march  will  be  left  behind,  under  the  charge  of  a 

medical  officer,  to  be  selected  for  this  duty  by  the  medical  directors. 

"  'S>j  order  of  Major-General  Taylor, 

"W.  W.  S.  Bliss, 
"A.  A.  G." 

"  Headquarteks,  Army  of  OocffPATios, 
"Seralvo,  September  12,  1846. 
"Orders  No.  108.] 

"I.  Pursuant  to  orders  of  yesterday  from  headquarters,  the 
First  Division  will  be  read}'  to  move  at  dajiight  to-morrow  in 
the  following  order: 

"  1st.  Dragoons. 

"  2d.    Ridgely's  Battery. 

'■3d.    Third  isrigade. 

"4th.  Fourth  Brigade. 

''5th.  The  baggage  trains,  in  the  order  designated  for  the 
corps  to  which  they  belong. 

"  6th.  The  medical  supplies. 

"  7th.  Supply  trains. 

"  8th.  Rear  guard  of  two  companies  of  infantry,  to  be  furnished 
by  the  brigades  alternately,  commencing  with  the  Third. 

"  II.  The  dragoons  and  the  artillery  will  be  foraged,  to  include 
the  Fourteenth. 

"III.  The  guards  for  the  night  will  mount  an  hour  before  sun- 
set, and  will  consist  of  four  companies  of  infantry,  two  from  each 
brigade,  to  be  turned  off  by  the  brigade  officer.      Each  brigade 


gg  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

will,  with  its  two  companies  for  guard,  furnish  a  captain  of  the 
day  detailed  from  this  ofBce,  who  will  have  the  superintendence 
of  the  whole  and  will  report  at  these  headquarters  for  orders 
immediately  before  guard-mounting. 

"  By  order  of  Brigadier-General  Twiggs, 

"  D.  C.  BUELL, 

"A.  A.  A.  G." 

Information  has  been  received  which  places  it  be- 
yond a  doubt  that  General  Ampudia  marched  into 
Monterey  on  the  31st  of  August,  and  that  a  large 
force  is  actively  engaged  fortifying  the  town.  I  took 
a  look  at  General  Taylor  as  he  passed  us  on  horse- 
back while  we  were  marching  to-day,  and  I  was  satis- 
fied that,  whatever  might  be  ahead  of  us,  we  would 
go  on  until  he  gave  the  order  to  halt.  Ampudia  cer-. 
tainly  will  have  to  make  battle  if  he  expects  to  hold 
Monterey,  for  go  there  General  Taylor  will.  This  is 
what  I  thought. 

We  marched  along  steadily  and  compactly  all  day 
a  west-south-westerly  course,  keeping  the  mountains 
on  our  right  and  making  apparently  for  a  gorge  in 
the  sierra.  Our  division  was  in  the  advance,  pre- 
ceded by  the  Texan  cavalry  and  followed  by  "Worth's 
division  and  Butler's  volunteer  division.  I  was  struck 
with  the  elasticity  of  the  spirits  of  the  men,  which, 
notwithstanding  the  withering  heat  of  the  sun,  found 
vent  in  song  and  laughter  as  they  stepped  solidly  on 
to  the  front.  The  victories  at  Palo  Alto  and  Eesaca 
had  given  a  confidence  to  these  men  which  was  com- 
municated to  the  volunteers,  and  I  could  not  but 
reflect  on  the  value  that  the  prestige  of  success  gave 
to  our  raw  troops,  and  the  good  policy  which  guided 
our  being  brigaded  with  the  regulars. 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  89 

We  saw  but  few  people  to-day,  though  the  country 
was  filled  with  fields  of  cane  and  corn,  inviting  the 
labor  of  the  husbandman.  We  saw  no  cattle  ;  a  few 
frightened  long-legged  hogs  scampered  away  at  our 
approach,  and  everything  indicated,  as  forcibly  as  do 
certain  signs  on  the  ocean,  that  a  storm  was  brewing 
ahead  of  us. 

We  marched  to-day  about  fourteen  miles,  and  biv- 
ouacked on  a  deep  and  rapid  stream  whose  name  we 
could  not  learn.  To-night  rumor  was  rampant, 
through  our  camps ;  a  courier  had  come  in  from  our 
cavalry  advance,  from  Colonel  Henderson  to  General 
Taylor,  that  four  thousand  of  the  enemy's  cavalry 
were  in  front  of  him,  and  that  he  wanted  assistance. 
We  had  something  to  sleep  on,  and  those  who  didn't 
sleep,  to  talk  about,  until  the  reveille  was  beaten  on 
the  morning  of 

September  14.  We  were  up  before  light,  and  on 
the  march  by  daybreak.  It  was  cold,  and  we  moved 
briskly ;  soon  the  sun  lighted  up  the  conical  moun- 
tain peaks  on  our  right,  and  the  tops  of  the  ridges, 
with  his  glorious  coloring,  and  the  freshness  of  a  new 
day  gave  additional  interest  to  the  beautiful  coun- 
try we  were  traversing.  All  was  excitement,  for 
McCuUough  had  had  a  fight  with  the  enemy  this 
morning,  and  a  wounded  prisoner  was  sent  to  General 
Taylor's  headquarters  for  examination  ;  this  was  fact, 
and  not  rumor,  so  we  hurried  forward.  We  were 
going  too  fast,  for  our  mules  could  not  keep  pace  with 
the  hasty  tramp  of  the  men,  and  it  wasn't  good 
management  to  let  there  be  a  gap  between  us  and  our 
supplies,  with  cavalry  in  our  front,  and  why  not  on 


90  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

our  flanks  or  rear  ?  We  halted  now  every  few  miles, 
and  leisurely  forded  two  streams  which  crossed  our 
line  of  march.  This  was  the  first  day  since  my  land- 
ins:  on  the  Brazos  in  which  I  had  not  suffered  from 
the  heat  of  the  sun  ;  for  two  months  and  a  half  I  had 
been  constantly  exposed  to  its  burning  rays,  and  the 
sense  of  cold  experienced  last  night  sent  a  chill  through 
my  blood  which  was  exceedingly  disagreeable.  The 
cool  air  from  the  slopes  of  the  adjacent  mountains, 
and  the  elevation  we  are  attaining,  have  rendered  the 
temperature  so  pleasant  that  we  feel  as  if  we  could 
march  thirty  miles  a  day  with  more  ease  than  twenty 
lower  down  the  country.  We  have  now  approached 
so  close  to  the  mountains  on  either  side,  as  we  near 
the  gorge  at  the  head  of  the  valley,  that  we  can  see 
the  foliage  upon  the  trees  which  cover  them ;  and  I 
regret  to  say  that  our  road  is  becoming  so  rough  and 
stony  that  my  feet  are  getting  tender.  So  we  go, 
complaining  of  the  sand  because  it  was  hot,  and  now 
of  the  mountain-side  because  it  is  rocky  !  We  halted 
after  having  marched  fourteen  miles,  and  bivouacked 
with  our  lines  drawn,  to  stand  to  our  arms  in  military 
array,  whether  it  were  necessary  by  night  or  by  day- 
light. 

September  15.  I  was  in  charge  of  our  advance 
guard  to-day,  and,  marching  at  the  head  of  the  column, 
perfectly  reveled  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  magnificent 
scenery  of  the  mountains  and  the  valleys,  and  the 
military  enthusiasm  with  which  I  was  in  a  blaze. 
All  was  beautiful  that  was  in  sight,  the  air  sweet  and 
bracing,  the  sun  comfortably  warm,  and  the  enemy 
known  to  be  but  a  few  miles  distant.     I  knew  not 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  91 

where  our  caValry  was,  but  I  knew  that  our  army 
was  behind  me,  and  the  enemy  in  front.  I  pushed 
on,  and,  ascending  a  mountain  over  which  our  road 
lay,  we  hastened  to  reach  its  crest,  for  we  thought 
that  perhaps  we  might  see  the  long-talked-of  Lancers. 
What  a  prospect  burst  upon  our  view !  a  valley  lay 
below  us  completely  surrounded  by  mountains : 
through  this  valley  ran  a  river,  making  in  its  course 
the  graceful  curve  of  Hogarth's  line  of  beauty,  and 
nestling  on  its  banks  a  town  was  lying,  just  being 
lighted  up  by  the  sun's  rays  from  over  the  eastern 
sierra.  No  famed  valley  of  the  Tyrol  could  be  more 
beautiful,  no  valley  hamlet  on  the  banks  of  the  Sus- 
quehanna more  at  repose;  it  was  the  repose  of  death. 
Gazing  long  upon  this  panorama,  which  nature  and 
man  had  made  so  interesting,  I  was  roused  from  my 
reverie  by  hearing  the  sound  of  horses'  feet  rapidly 
approaching  from  the  rear.  One  glance  was  suffi- 
cient,— it  was  General  Taylor,  his  staff,  and  a  small 
escort  of  cavalry :  dismounting,  he  approached  and 
did  me  the  honor  to  recognize  me  by  a  pleasant 
smile  and  an  extended  hand.  He  said  that  he  re- 
membered our  interview  at  Matamoras,  and  then 
asked  if  I  had  anything  to  report :  I  replied  that  we 
had  not  met,  nor  had  we  seen,  a  living  being  since  we 
had  left  camp  at  daybreak,  and  that  not  a  creature 
could  be  seen  moving  in  the  valley  below,  nor  in  the 
town  at  our  feet,  from  which  I  inferred  that  the 
enemy  could  not  be  far  off.  He  said  nothing  for  per- 
haps a  minute  or  two,  looking  steadily  toward  the 
valley  while  thus  silent,  then  suddenly  said  :  "Captain, 
move  forward  cautiously,  and  if  you  can,  continue 


92  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

your  march  through  that  town"  (pointing  to  it  as  he 
spoke)  "  and  halt  on  the  other  side  until  the  column 
gets  up."  My  command  was  on  the  march  imme- 
diately, silently  descending  the  mountain-road,  which 
we  could  soon  discover  led  right  through  the  town  of 
Marin.  I  was  the  first,  of  course,  to  enter  its  main 
street,  and  no  man  that  ever  entered  a  recently 
deserted  town  will  ever  forget  the  effect  it  produced 
upon  him.  We  saw  almost  instantaneously — I  might 
say  we  felt — that  the  town  was  abandoned ;  the  men 
huddled  together,  and  pressed  on  me  from  the  rear 
as  if  hurrying  forward.  Not  a  word  was  uttered.  Our 
tramp  resounded  from  the  house  walls  on  either  side, 
amid  the  quiet,  the  unnatural  stillness,  the  sense  of 
danger.  What  is  that?  a  dead  man  was  lying  in  our 
track,  his  feet  in  a  doorway,  his  body  stretched 
toward  the  middle  of  the  street,  and  a  pool  of  blood 
about  where  his  head  lay.  I  saw  as  we  passed  that 
he  was  dead  and  had  been  recently  slain,  but  when 
or  by  whom,  or  for  what,  who  could  tell  ?  So  we 
passed  on  through  the  town,  and — I  can  speak  for 
myself — drew  a  long  breath  of  relief  wdien  we  got 
into  the  open  country;  but  there,  sure  enough,  was 
the  enemy. 

At  the  distance  of  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile,  a 
body  of  cavalry,  with  pennons  fluttering  on  their 
lances,  were  at  halt,  seemingly  (at  least  I  thought 
so)  uncertain  what  to  do.  They  had  evidently  passed 
through  the  town  ahead  of  me,  and  irresolution  was 
apparent  in  their  actions.  Suddenly  they  resumed 
their  march  slowly,  having  seen,  as  I  judged,  the 
head  of  our  column  making  its  appearance  over  the 


^tABl'LAXD    VOLUNTEKR.  93 

monntiiin  ;  and  it  wns  so,  for  1  soon  heard  the  ooining 
up  of  our  leading  battalions. 

Rc(H>iving  no  fnrtiior  orders,  I  remained  whore  I 
was  for  several  hours,  the  army  gradually  getting  up 
to  tlie  town  :  it  was  evident  that  something  more  than 
ordinary  kept  us  in  eheek  ;  finally  General  Twiggs, 
the  eonnnanding  general  of  our  division,  with  his 
stnfl',  rode  through  the  town,  and  presently  a  stafl- 
ollicer  eame  from  hint  with  orders  for  me  to  follow 
him,  that  the  division  Avas  going  into  eamp.  This 
was  very  unusual,  as  it  was  not  yet  noon,  and  we  had 
marehed  but  a  few  miles.  The  meadow  selected  for 
our  camp  was  a  charming  one  on  the  banks  of  the 
San  Juan  River  (there  are  three  or  four  rivers  of  this 
name  in  Northern  Mexico — it  is  a  sort  of  fancy  name 
with  the  jMexicans.  this  of  Saini  Jtilni),  and  liere  we 
remained  until  the  ISth.  the  army  again  being  con- 
centrated, its  different  divisions  refitted,  and  its 
material  of  war  replenished  and  carefully  inspected. 

We  are  now  within  twenty-five  miles  of  Montere}'. 
and  the  rumors  which  are  npon  the  lips  of  the  entire 
camp  are  not  based  as  usual  upon  y^twr.'j  nmde  by 
the  army  gossips,  but  npon  reports  received  directly 
from  the  enemy's  camp,  and  more  or  less  reliable. 
A  large  force  is  at  Monterey  pivparing  to  hold  it,  and 
dispute  by  battle  our  further  advance  into  their  coun- 
try. Nine  thousand  men,  it  is  said,  are  in  the  city, 
about  one-third  of  whom  are  regular  troops,  the 
other  two-thirds  militia  of  the  conntry. — perhaps — 
why  not? — volunteers.  The  regulars  are  the  renmins 
of  the  army  that  fought  on  the  Rio  Grande,  and  my 
opinion  is.  that  men  who  fought  as  bravely  as  they 


94  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

did  in  a  fair  stand-up  fight,  without  breastworks,  ex- 
posed to  the  destructive  fire  of  our  light  artillery,  will 
make  a  stubborn  fight  behind  works  which  they  have 
had  ample  time  to  construct,  mxicho  fandango,  at 
Monterey !  I  confess  that  these  words  were  con- 
tinually ringing  in  my  ears,  and  likewise  confess  that 
I  hoped  we  would  not  be  disappointed.  We  were 
two  thousand  miles  away  from  home,  but  not  a 
thought  or  a  wish  was  backward  ;  en  avant !  was  the 
individual  and  united  sentiment  of  General  Taylor's 
entire  army.     There  is  no  mistake  about  this. 

We  remained  here  all  of  the  16th  and  17th  days 
of  September.  They  were  busy  days ;  yet,  even  amid 
the  bustle  and  excitement,  the  beauty  and  grandeur 
of  the  scenery  was  the  theme  of  general  and  wide- 
spread admiration. 

September  18.  The  army  moved  this  morning,  the 
three  divisions  following  each  other  at  intervals  of  an 
hour's  march,  the  First  Division  still  in  the  advance. 
We  passed  through  the  village  of  Agua  Frio,  and  just 
beyond  it  saw  the  enemy's  cavalry ;  it  was  doubtless 
the  same  force  which  had  preceded  us  all  the  way 
from  Seralvo,  and  was  said  to  be  the  cavalry  of 
General  Torrejon.  I  had  noticed  that  our  arrieros 
had  changed  their  appearance  and  demeanor  very 
materially  within  the  past  two  or  three  days.  From 
some  knowledge  of  their  language,  I  was  enabled  to 
make  myself  understood  by  them  and  could  gather 
the  purport  of  what  they  said,  and  was  on  pleasant 
terms  with  the  chief  of  those  attached  to  our  battal- 
ion. At  first  he  was  cheerful  and  communicative,  but 
since  our  halt  at  Marin  was   taciturn  and  gloomy. 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  95 

I  was  near  him  when  he  caught  a  glimpse  of  his 
countrymen,  the  cavalry  of  Torrejon,  and  upon  my 
soul  I  pitied  him.  He  was  very  much  alarmed ;  and 
what  could  I  say  to  him  by  way  of  encouragement? 
I  was  not  surprised  to  hear  during  the  day  that  a 
number  of  these  muleteers  had  made  an  effort  to 
escape,  by  leaving  their  mules  and  their  cargoes  to 
shift  for  themselves,  and  taking  to  the  chaparral ;  but 
Colonel  Kinney,  of  Corpus  Christi,  who  was  the  con- 
tractor, and  chief  of  the  mule  corps,  headed  them  off 
and  brought  them  back  to  the  care  of  their  compan- 
ions in  trouble,  the  patient,  oppressed,  but  ever-faith- 
ful mules.  We  made  eighteen  miles  to-day,  and  went 
into  camp  upon  the  hacienda  or  farm  of  ISan  Fran- 
cisco, seven  miles  from  Monterey. 

September  19.  We  resumed  our  march  this  morn- 
ing at  8  o'clock,  and  were  near  the  head  of  the 
column  when,  at  about  10  o'clock,  while  we  were 
marching  very  rapidly,  the  heavy  boom  of  a  cannon 
was  heard  reverberating  with  a  thousand  echoes 
among  the  mountains  ;  presently  another  sullen  roar 
was  heard,  and  then  another.  Every  pulse  fluttered, 
and  many  a  long  breath  drawn ;  we  still  hurried  on  : 
a  halt  was  ordered,  and  our  astonishment  was  great 
when  we  saw  General  Taylor  and  staff  slowly  coun- 
termarching, and  Paymaster  Major  Kirby,  of  Taylor's 
staff,  carrying  in  his  hands  a  twelve-pound  ball  which 
had  been  fired  at  the  party  and  fallen  near  the  feet 
of  the  general.  We  also  countermarched  and  en- 
camped in  a  wood  about  three  miles  from  Monterey, 
and  made  preparations  for  the  battle,  which,  no  one 
now  questioned,  was  to  be  a  deadly  struggle. 


96  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

The  Baltimore  Battalion,  after  a  long,  weary,  and 
fatiguing  march  of  a  little  upwards  of  three  hundred 
miles  from  the  Brazos  Santiago,  was  now  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  enemy. 

All  day  long  the  firing  from  heavy  guns  continued, 
with  an  occasional  rattle  of  musketry.  The  Texan 
Rangers  were  skirting  the  environs  of  the  town,  and 
engineer  oflficei's  were  already  making  reconnaissances; 
against  these  the  fire  of  the  Mexicans  was  directed, 
and  as  I  watched  their  fire,  and  the  movements  of  our 
cavalry  from  the  edge  of  the  wood  in  which  our 
troops  lay,  I  thought  that  I  had  never  before  beheld 
anything  as  interesting  or  attractive.  We  were  just 
out  of  the  range  of  their  guns,  and  large  numbers  of 
the  men  gathered  to  witness  the  spectacle  which  was 
being  exhibited  upon  the  plain  that  extended  from 
our  camp  to  the  town.  On  our  right  was  a  large 
stone  citadel,  upon  the  ramparts  of  which  guns  were 
mounted  in  barbette,  and  from  which  jets  of  flame 
and  smoke  issued,  soon  followed  by  the  heavy  boom 
of  explosion.  Immediately  in  front  was  the  city,  upon 
a  lofty  tower  in  which  the  flag  of  Mexico  was  flying, 
but  its  colors  were  undistinguishable  at  this  distance. 
On  our  left  a  large  number  of  mounted  men  were  either 
idly  clustered  in  squads,  or  else  galloping  to  and  fro 
in  reckless  disregard  of  the  cannon  balls  ricochetting 
over  and  among  them.  Not  a  sound  could  be  heard 
from  the  town,  not  a  creature  could  be  seen,  not  a 
single  drift  of  smoke  to  indicate  that  it  was  inhabited. 
There  it  lay,  its  outline  clearly  marked  by  lines  of 
earthworks,  curtains  and  bastions—  against  the  hazy 
blue  of  the  mountain  side  in  its  rear.      Volumes  of 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  97 

smoke  were  being  carried  from  above  the  citadel,  and 
shaped  by  a  light  wind  into  fantastic  figures  which 
were  repeated  upon  the  earth's  surface  by  tlie  sun, 
which  shone  with  resplendent  power  through  all  these 
clouds  of  men  and  things,  as  if  in  mockery  of  their 
littleness.     Now  a  cheer  would  ring  from  the  citadel 
as  a  well  aimed  shot  would  produce  some  confusion 
among  the  Texans ;  then  a  yell  from  their  side,  in 
defiance,  would  roll  down  -to  our  hearing.     The  dis- 
charge of  loaded  fire-arms  in  our  own  camp,  prepai-a- 
tory  to  inspection  of  arms,  was  mingled  with  the  beat 
of  drums  and  bugle-callsof  a  well  ordered  force.  Guards 
were  being  marched  to  their  posts,  artillery  horses 
being  led  to  water,  staff-officers  were  galloping  to  and 
fro,  cook-fires  being  lighted,  wagons  corralled,  mules 
unharnessed,  and  all  the  indesciibable  machinery  of 
an  army  on  the  eve  of  battle  was  in  the  hands  of — mil- 
itary discipline.      During  the   afternoon   we  pitched 
our  tents  as  leisurely,  and  went  through  the  ordinary 
routine  of  camp  duty  as  quietly,  as  we  did  at  Mata- 
moras,  but  at  tattoo  roll-call  I  thought  that  I  noticed 
an  unusual  degree  of  quiet  and  a  clearer  response  as 
each  name  was  called  by  the  orderly  sergeant  upon 
my  company  parade.    It  was  a  clear,  cold  night ;  that 
is,  it  was   cool   enough    for    the    men    to  desire   to 
approach  the  fire,  which  they  did,  and  I  noticed  also 
that  they  remained  up  later,  and  there  were  more  of 
them  in  a  body,  than  usual.    Otherwise  nothing  indi- 
cated that  before  morning  we  might  be  on  our  way 
to  storm  the  town,  as  was  pretty  generally  thought 
would  be  the  case. 

September  20— Sunday.     It  was  late  this  morning 

7 


98  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

before  the  sunlight  made  its  way  into  our  camp  where 
we  had  passed  the  night.  I  arose  refreshed  by  a  good 
night's  sleep,  and  ready  for  the  duties  of  the  day. 
All  was  quiet  until  after  breakfast,  when  rumors 
announced  important  movements  at  hand,  and  orders 
were  received  to  hold  ourselves  in  readiness  to  march. 
During  the  morning,  I  heard  that  General  Worth's 
Division  would  be  ordered  to  turn  the  works  on  the 
west  of  the  town,  and  was  about  marching.  I 
stepped  over  to  its  camp  and  saw  it  leave ;  the  men 
were  in  excellent  spirits,  and  that  division  of  regular 
troops  presented  an  appearance  which  will  never  be 
effaced  from  my  mind.  It  was  thoroughly  military 
and  soldierlike  ;  they  looked  so  clean,  their  arms  and 
accoutrements  in  such  beautiful  order,  that  all  my 
enthusiasm  for  soldiers  was  greatly  gratified.  The 
artillery  battalion  especially  attracted  my  attention ; 
the  red-legged  infantry  (as  they  were  called  from  the 
broad  red  stripe  running  down  the  seams  of  their 
blue  pantaloons)  never  on  dress  parade  appeared  to 
better  advantage.  Duncan's  battery  of  flying  artil- 
lery looked  superb;  the  guns  were  as  polished  as 
those  I  had  seen  on  Sunday's  inspection  at  Fort 
McHenry,  when  Ringgold  had  brought  this  arm  to  the 
value  now  accorded  it;  and  General  Worth,  the  beau 
ideal  of  a  gallant  soldier,  rode  at  the  head  of  the 
column,  as  if  conscious  of  the  pride  he  had  reason  to 
feel  in  commanding  such  a  body  of  troops.  Colonel 
Jack  Hayes's  regiment  of  Texans,  and  McCullough's 
and  Gillespie's  companies  of  Rangers,  accompanied  the 
Division. 

Returning  to  my  own  camp,  I  ascended  a  tree  which 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEKB.  99 

commanded  a  view  of  the  city,  and  here  I  remained 
for  some  hours,  watching  the  movements  of  the 
Texans,  who,  apparently  without  any  orders,  and 
certainly  without  an}^  semblance  of  organization,  were 
scouring  over  the  plain,  inviting  the  fire  of  the  citadel, 
which  answered  at  intervals  by  throwing  a  shot  at 
these  daring  men  without  doing  them  any  damage. 
The  town  still  lay  in  its  death-like  repose;  as  yet  not 
a  sound  could  be  heard  from  it.  The  only  show  of 
resistance  or  of  activity  was  at  the  fort,  which  was 
called  by  us  either  the  hlaclc  fort,  from  the  dark-look- 
ing stone  of  which  it  was  constructed,  or  the  citadel, 
from  its  size  and  strength.  At  four  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  the  long  roll  of  the  drums  called  the  First 
Division  to  arms,  and  we  fell  into  ranks  fully  believ- 
ing that  the  hour  had  come  for  battle.  We  marched 
out  from  camp  into  the  plain,  and  found  Butler's  vol- 
unteer division,  Ridgely's  and  Bragg's  batteries  of 
flying  artillery,  and  Webster's  regular  battery  of 
twenty-four-pound  howitzers,  ready  to  move  with  us. 
General  Taylor  and  staff  were  also  there.  We  marched 
toward  the  city,  halted  within  a  mile  of  its  works,  and 
formed  line  of  battle ;  not  a  shot  fired,  not  a  sound 
heard  save  the  word  of  command.  Even  the  black 
fort  was  hushed,  and  the  sun  went  down  behind  the 
lofty  mountain  ridge  on  our  right,  leaving  us  in  an 
amphitheatre  of  loveliness,  and  the  peaks  of  the 
Comanche  Saddle  Mountain  on  our  left,  tinged  with 
the  gorgeous  coloring  of  our  own  autumn  evenings. 

The  town  was  directly  in  front  of  our  line ;  its 
houses,  its  churches,  its  defenses, — all  lying  in  the 
stillness  and  beauty  of  that  Sabbath  evening;  nothing 


100  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

between  us  and  its  people  but  a  few  hundred  yards 
of  open  plain. 

It  was  evident  to  all  that  this  movement  of  ours 
was  in  connection  with  Worth's;  but  what  that  was, 
or  ours,  a  Captain  of  Infantry  knew  no  more  on  this 
field  than  if  he  were  at  home.  Still  standing  to  our 
arms,  night  fell  upon  us,  and  with  it  a  deluge  of  rain; 
now  commenced  the  ringing  of  church  bells  in  the 
town,  the  barking  of  dogs,  and  the  flashings  to  and 
fro  of  lights,  rockets,  and  alarms.  Orders  were  passed 
down  our  ranks  to  maintain  complete  silence,  with 
permission  for  the  men  to  sit  down  in  their  places. 
Suddenly  the  clangor  of  bugles  and  brass  bands  was 
heard  in  the  city,  or  emerging  from  it,  and  we  were 
on  our  feet  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye.  It  was  pro- 
foundly dark,  and  the  rain  still  fell  in  torrents;  no 
enemy  came,  but  we  heard  in  the  stillness  of  the 
night  the  hurried  movements  and  activity  in  the 
town, — they  had  taken  the  alarm  caused  by  the  ap- 
proach of  Worth  from  an  unexpected  quarter. 

We  remained  here  until  between  ten  and  eleven 
o'clock,  when  we  marched  back  to  camp,  learning  on 
our  way  that  a  mortar  battery  had  been  constructed 
by  our  troops  while  we  were  lying  in  the  plain ;  and 
that  the  howitzer  battery  had  likewise  been  put  in 
position. 

Before  the  assault,  let  us  take  a  look  at  the  town, 
its  garrison,  and  its  defenses. 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  IQl 


CHAPTEE   VI. 

MONTEREY. 

Monterey,  the  capital  of  New  Leon,  a  city  of  eight 
to  ten  thousand  inhabitants,  would  be  considered  a 
handsome  town  in  any  part  of  the  world.  The  city 
itself  is  built  upon  a  plain  on  the  northern  side  of  a 
small  river  called  the  San  Juan,  with  a  rivulet  run- 
ning through  it  which  empties  into  the  San  Juan  to 
the  east  of  the  town.  The  main  road  from  the  Rio 
Grande  to  the  city  of  Mexico  passes  through  Monterey, 
then  on  by  way  of  Saltillo  and  San  Luis  Potosi  to  the 
capital.  East,  west,  and  south  of  the  town,  in  close 
proximity,  spurs  and  ridges  of  the  Sierra  Madre  moun- 
tains limit  the  area  of  the  plain,  which  opens  to  the 
north,  and  was  the  road  by  which  we  approached  it. 
Just  outside  of  the  town,  on  its  north-west  front  or 
angle,  was  what  we  called  the  black  fort, — a  square 
work  with  dry  ditches  and  embrasures  for  thirty-four 
guns;  there  were  but  ten  or  twelve  mounted,  of  various 
sizes  from  fours  to  eighteens,  but  chiefly  twelves. 
Within  the  area  of  the  walls  was  an  unfinished  cath- 
edral, which  rose  to  a  considerable  elevation  above 
the  parapets,  and  was  occupied  by  infantry  as  a  strong 
redoubt  in  support  of  the  batteries  en  harhette. 

General  Ampudia  had  thrown  himself  into  the 
town  about  the  14th  of  August,  with  about  three 
thousand  troops  of  the  line,  and  the  number  of  the 


102  MEMIOIRS  OF  A 

troops  had  been  daily  increased  by  additions  of  regular 
and  irregular  forces  until  he  had  ten  thousand  fiohtinsr 
men  of  all  arms  under  his  command.  With  these  men, 
and  reliefs  of  citizens,  an  elaborate  system  of  works 
had  been  constructed  for  the  defense  of  the  town. 
From  the  citadel  a  stream  of  water  ran  in  an  easterly 
course  through  the  suburbs  into  the  city,  and  which 
then  emptied  into  the  San  Juan  beyond  the  town  on 
the  east,  as  I  have  before  stated.  Its  banks  were  in 
some  places  steep  and  deep ;  irrigating  ditches  ex- 
tended from  it  to  the  north.  This  branch  was  crossed 
near  the  middle  of  its  course  by  a  pretty  stone  bridge, 
called  La  Purisima.  There  was  a  strong  work,  or 
We  du  pont,  on  the  south  side  of  the  bridge,  and  two 
long  earth  breastworks  were  on  the  southern  bank 
of  this  &irQSiVL\  within  the  city  ;  on  the  east  corner  of 
the  town  a  redoubt  named  Fort  Teneria,  mounting 
five  guns — two  sixes,  one  nine-,  one  tAvelve-pounder, 
and  one  howitzer, — connected  by  any  number  of 
ditches,  hedges  and  barricades  with  the  line  of  defense 
of  the  stream;  while  immediately  in  its  rear,  perhaps 
a  little  south-west  of  it,  was  another  fort,  called  El 
Diablo,  with  three  guns,  and  still  another  with  four 
guns  a  little  to  its  west,  all  of  which  were  connected 
with  and  supported  each  other  by  curtains,  ditches, 
and  breastworks.  Every  street  was  barricaded, — many 
with  embrasures  for  guns, — and  every  house  and  house- 
top was  an  arsenal  of  arms  and  missiles.  All  along 
the  streets  leading  into  the  town  from  the  north,  in 
nddition  to  the  barricades,  there  were  sand-bag  pnra- 
pets  on  the  house-tops,  behind  which  a  large  number 
of  infantry  were  posted.     No   network    of   defense 


MARYLAXD  VOLUNTEER.  IQS 

could  have  been  much  better  prepared ;  and  into  it 
we  got  precit^elv  by  the  way  they  who  constructed  it 
would  have  wished  us  to  come. 

I  am  not  so  familiar  with  the  defenses  on  the  west- 
ern side,  although  I  have  visited  and  examined  them. 
On  the  hill  Independeiicia,  overlooking  the  Saltillo 
road,  was  a  large,  venerable-looking  building,  called 
by  us  the  bishop's  palace  (it  was  formerly  the  seat 
of  the  bishop  of  this  diocese),  which  was  strongly 
fortified  and  lined  with  troops  and  artillery.  This 
hill  fell  off  precipitously-  to  the  plain  on  its  eastern 
side,  and  the  citadel  before  spoken  of  commanded  all 
the  approaches  from  this  direction :  the  Saltillo  road, 
which  was  a  prolongation  of  the  main  street  of  the 
city,  running  west,  was  defended  by  lines  of  barri- 
cades and  the  grenelled  walls  of  a  cemeterj'  until  they 
connected  with  the  works  that  I  have  referred  to — of 
the  eastern  defenses.  In  the  centre  of  the  city  was 
the  cathedral,  with  a  large  square  or  plaza  in  front ; 
all  the  streets  leading  into  it  were  strongly  barricaded, 
and  all  the  houses  in  its  vicinity  strengthened  with 
ever}-  appliance  of  military  engineering  within  the 
means  of  the  garrison.  la  front  of  the  town  the  plain 
was  cut  up  by  numerous  quarry-pits  from  which  stone 
had  been  taken  i\iv  building  purposes,  and  these  pits 
were  fringed  with  low  chaparral  bushes.  With  these 
details,  and  the  knowledge  that  the  road  by  wdiich  we 
had  marched  from  Marin  entered  the  city  from  the 
north  through  our  present  camp,  a  pretty  fiiir  idea 
may  be  obtained  of  our  field  of  battle. 

General  Pedro  de  Ampudia  was  in  chief  coumiiind, 
having  among  his  subordinates  Brigadiers  Torrejon, 


104  ME3WIRS  OP  A 

Ortega,  Requena,  Mejia,  Conde,  and  the  Governor  of 
the  State  of  New  Leon,  Don  Manuel  M.  LUino. 

On  the  14th  day  of  September,  while  our  army  was 
at  Seralvo,  General  Ampudia  issued  the  following 
proclamation,  of  which  I  have  a  copy,  and  think  it 
worthy  of  preservation,  as  its  style  is  eminently 
Mexican  : 

"The  General-in-Chief  of  the  Army  of  the  North,  to  his  com 
panions-in-arms. 

"  Soldiers  I  The  enemy,  numbering  only  two  thousand  five 
hundred  regular  troops,  the  remainder  being  only  a  band  of  ad- 
venturers without  valor  or  discipline,  are,  according  to  reliable 
iufomiation,  about  advancing  upon  Seralvo  to  commit  the  bar- 
barity of  attacking  this  most  important  place  ;  we  count  nearly 
three  thousand  regulars  and  auxiliary  cavalry,  and  these  will 
defeat  them  again  and  again  before  they  can  reach  this  city. 
Soldiers,  we  are  constructing  fortifications  to  make  the  base  of 
our  operations  secure,  and  hence  we  will  sally  forth  at  a  conve- 
nient time,  and  drive  back  this  enemy  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet. 

"  Soldiers  !  Three  great  virtues  make  the  soldier  worthy  of 
his  profession:  discipline,  constancy  under  fatigue,  and  valor. 
He  who  would  at  this  moment  desert  his  colors  is  a  coward  and  a 
traitor  to  his  country.  Our  own  nation,  and  even  foreign  countries, 
are  the  witnesses  of  your  conduct.  The  question  now  is,  whether 
our  independence  shall  be  preserved,  or  forever  lost ;  and  its  so- 
lution is  in  your  hands.  ' 

"  I  have  assured  the  supreme  Governm^t  of  the  triumph  of 
our  arms,  confiding  in  your  loyalty  and  enthusiasm  ;  and  we 
will  prove  to  the  whole  world  that  we  are  worthy  sons  of  the 
immortal  Hidalgo,  Morelos,  Allende,  Iturbide,  and  so  many  other 
heroes  who  knew  bow  to  die  combating  for  the  independence  of 
our  cherished  country. 

"  Soldiers  !     Victory  or  death  must  be  our  only  device. 

"  Pedko  de  Ampudia. 

"Headquarters,  Mosteuey,  September  14,  1846." 


[  MABYLAND  VOLVNTEER.  105 

CHAPTER   VII. 

STORMING     OF     MONTEREY. 

September  21,  1846.  I  was  awakened  this  morn- 
ing before  daylight,  by  an  orderly  who  brought  a  mes- 
sage that  Colonel  Watson  desired  to  see  me.  I  dressed 
hurriedly  and  went  to  his  tent.  He  was  dressing  by 
candle-light,  and,  as  soon  as  I  entered,  told  me  that  he 
had  received  orders  to  march  with  the  First  Division 
to  storm  Monterey ;  that  he  was  troubled  with  one 
paragraph  of  the  order  which  directed  him  to  leave 
one  company  of  his  battalion  as  a  camp-guard,  and 
he  wished  to  consult  with  me  as  to  the  company  that 
he  should  detail.  We  talked  the  matter  over  whilst 
he  was  dressing,  and  he  determined  that  Captain 
Robert  Bronaugh's  company  should  remain  in  camp. 
I  should  further  say  that  one  company  of  each  regi- 
ment in  the  division  was  likewise  detailed  under  the 
same  orders  as  Colonel  Watson  had  received  ;  the  large 
force  of  the  enemy's  cavalry  making  it  dangerous  to 
leave  our  camp  without  a  strong  guard.  Before  he 
had  finished  dressing,  the  Colonel,  holding  in  his 
hands  a  pair  of  heavy  new  boots  with  cork  soles,  sent 
to  him  as  a  present  from  some  of  his  friends  of  the 
Baltimore  Bar,  asked  me  whether  he  should  wear 
those  or  a  lighter  pair,  then  lying  on  the  floor  of  his 
tent.  I  replied,  jestingly,  that  the  lighter  pair  would 
be  more  suitable,  as  I  thought  there  would  be  some 
running  done  to-day  :  he  laughed  heartily,  and  saying 


106  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

that  he  had  the  advantage  of  me,  as  he  was  mounted, 
put  on  the  heavy  boots.  It  was  by  these  boots  as 
much  as  by  anything  else  that  I  identified  his  remains 
when  they  were  disinterred  to  send  to  Baltimore  for 
burial.  The  reveille  soon  sounded  throughout  our 
camp,  the  slumbering  fires  of  the  past  night  were  re- 
plenished with  wood,  coffee  was  cooked,  and  by  sun- 
rise our  men  had  breakfasted.  Before  eight  o'clock  we 
were  in  line,  and  the  orders  detailing  Captain  Bro- 
naugh's  company  published  on  the  parade.  He  be- 
haved as  I  would  have  done,  I  expect,  under  the  same 
circumstances — badly ;  and  sharp  and  angry  words 
passed  between  him  and  our  Colonel.  We  moved  out 
of  the  woods,  fell  in  with  the  rest  of  the  division,  halted, 
a  (letail  of  Lieutenant  Owen  of  Steuart's  company 
with  two  enlisted  men  from  each  company  was  made 
to  report  for  picket  duty,  resumed  our  march  toward 
the  city,  and  halted  again  where  we  had  been  in  line 
of  battle  the  preceding  evening.  The  mortar,  which 
had  been  then  placed,  was  now  discharged,  and  we 
witnessed  the  flight  of  the  shell  and  its  explosion  in 
the  air  over  the  town ;  several  others  succeeded  with 
very  uncertain  flight,  when,  from  the  citadel,  two 
twelve-pound  balls  were  sent  in  our  direction,  but 
they  fell  short.  After  half  an  hour's  halt,  the  Fourth 
Brigade,  consisting  of  our  battalion,  four  companies  of 
the  First  Infantry,  with  six  companies  of  the  Third 
Infantry,  marched  by  file  to  the  left,  and  a;fter 
thirty  minutes'  hard  nuxrching,  emerged  from  a  corn- 
field at  the  distance  of  five  hundred  yards  from  and 
directly  in  front  of  a  fort  (Teneria),  which  opened 
upon  us  immediately. 


MAR FL AND   VOLUNTEER.  107 

We  had  been  marching  by  a  flank  through  the 
cornfield,  but  now  moved  forward  into  line,  which 
threw  the  Third  Infantry  on  the  right,  the  First  In- 
fantry in  the  centre,  and  the  Baltimore  Battalion  on 
the  left.  "We  advanced  toward  the  fort  with  steadiness 
and  rapidity,  receiving  its  fire  of  round  and  grape 
shot,  and  the  musketry  of  its  infantry  supports,  when 
there  came  across  our  line  of  g-dvance,  and  apparently 
in  close  proximity,  the  sound  of  an  eighteen-pound 
ball  sent  from  the  citadel.  We  were  being  enfiladed. 
Still  we  advanced  ;  another  shot  from  the  citadel,  and 
the  leg  of  Lieutenant  Dilworth,  of  the  First  Infantry, 
was  taken  off  as  he  stepped.  If  the  gun  which  had  fired 
that  shot  had  been  aimed  the  eighth  of  an  inch  more 
to  the  left,  there  is  no  telling  how  many  would  have 
been  crippled.  Still  we  advanced,  notwithstanding 
this  additional  fire  on  our  exposed  flaidc,  until  we 
were  within  a  little  less  than  one  hundred  yards  of 
the  fort,  until  two  of  the  guns  were  abandoned  by 
their  gunners,  when,  just  at  the  moment  the  fruits  of 
our  gallant  charge  were  within  our  grasp,  our  brigade 
commander  committed  the  unpardonable  blunder  of 
changing  the  point  of  attack,  and  attempting  to  move 
by  the  right  flank  by  file  left,  into  a  street  of  the  town 
which  debouched  into  the  plain,  about  opposite  the 
right  of  our  line — our  battalion  being  directly  in  front 
of  the  fort  on  its  left.  I  was  looking  at  the  embrasure 
of  the  now  silent  gun,  through  which  I  purposed  to 
go  into  the  redoubt,  when  I  observed  a  great  deal  of 
confusion  on  our  right,  which  in  a  second  was  com- 
municated to  the  whole  line,  and  the  impetus  of  our 
charge  was  gone.     No  orders  could  be  heard  ;  the  din 


IQQ  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

was  deafening,  shot  crashing  through  our  ranks;  but 
it  was  evident  what  was  contemplated,  by  the  direc- 
tion which  our  right  was  taking,  and  our  battalion 
followed  the  Third  and  First  Infantry  into  the  street. 

Our  brigade  commander  was  a  very  brave  man, — 1 
saw  this  now,  and  repeatedly  afterwards  during  the 
day, — but  he  was  no  soldier,  for  he  lacked  the  natural 
instinct  of  a  soldier. 

If  there  had  been  any  faltering  in  his  troops,  if 
there  were  any  impassable  obstacle  in  our  front,  then 
there  might  have  been  some  excuse  for  changing  the 
direction  of  the  brigade ;  but,  going  with  the  speed 
that  we  were,  the  hesitation  caused  by  all  not  com- 
prehending the  movement  was  of  itself  sufficient  to 
break  the  elan  of  the  charge,  without  any  regard  to 
the  severity  of  the  fire  to  which  the  men  were  ex- 
posed at  the  moment.  The  dumbest  soldier  in  that 
brigade  felt  that  we  had  made  a  false  and  fatal  step. 

General  Garland  told  me  that  his  purpose  was,  in 
entering  the  town,  "to  take  the  fort  in  reverse."  He 
did  not  seem  to  think  that  those  who  had  put  the  fort 
where  it  was  would  be  likely  to  put  a  line  of  defenses 
to  its  reverse  as  well  as  to  its  front ;  he  found  it  out 
before  the  day  was  over,  and  my  own  opinion  is  he 
got  this  idea  from  what  it  was  said  Captain  Bacchus, 
of  the  First  Infantry,  subsequently  did. 

Let  us  see  what  is  said  about  this  matter  by  others. 

I  cite  from  Major  R.  S.  Ripley's  History  of  the  War 
with  Mexico,  vol.  i.  page  206,  etc. 

"  When  Garland's  Division  moved  from  off  the  batteries  (the 
mortars),  Major  Mansfield,  with  other  reconnoitering  officers, 
having  two  companies  of  infantry  as  the  immediate  escort,  ad- 


31ARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  109 

vanced  into  the  suburbs  of  the  town  in  search  of  a  point  of 
attack,  and,  after  a  short  reconnaissance,  sent  a  request  to  Gar- 
laud  to  come  forward.  Whether  he  intended  that  he  should 
come  forward  in  person  to  examine  the  position,  or  that  he 
should  move  up  his  troops  to  eng-age  them,  Garland  understood 
him  in  the  latter  sense.  While  Mansfield  had  been  employed  in 
reconnaissance.  Garland  bad  halted  the  main  body  of  his  com- 
mand out  of  range.  Upon  receiving  the  message,  he  moved 
forward  in  line,  keeping  to  the  left  of  the  main  road.  By  follow- 
ing the  route  which  Mansfield  had  pursued,  he  gave  his  right 
flank  to  the  citadel,  while  Fort  Teneria  was  upon  his  left  and 
front.  The  latter  of  these  works  soon  opened  heavily  upon  the 
command,  and  the  citadel  followed  its  e.xample  with  a  destruc- 
tive enfilading  fire.  Still  the  Americans  moved  steadily  forward 
until  reaching  the  scattered  buildings  and  inclosures  of  the 
suburb,  which  broke  their  formation  ;  but,  although  in  confusion, 
the  advance  was  rapidly  continued,  for  it  was  thought  that  Fort 
Teneria  might  be  turned  and  taken  in  reverse.  The  Mexi- 
can fire  from  both  citadel  and  Fort  Teneria  was  kept  up  with 
vigor;  and  as  the  command  approached  the  rivulet  through  the 
suburb,  the  masked  breastworks  on  its  southern  bank  received 
it  with  another  destructive  fire,  which  increased  the  confusion. 
Keither  officers  nor  men  knew  anything  of  their  position.  Mans- 
field, who  had  led  the  assault  when  the  troops  had  reached  him, 
although  wounded,  pressed  on,  pointing  out  positions  for  attack, 
and  there  was  no  lack  of  brave  officers  to  lead  and  brave  men  to 
follow ;  but  from  the  gardens,  from  the  neighboring  house-tops, 
as  well  as  from  the  masked  breastworks,  an  unseen  foe  pelted 
the  troops  with  musketry,  while  the  heavy  fire  from  Fort  Teneria 
and  the  citadel  kept  rolling  in  on  their  flanks.  Movements 
against  a  seemingly  practicable  point  only  brought  a  greater 
slaughter;  and  after  many  officers  and  men  had  fallen,  still 
ignorant  of  their  locality,  the  troops  paused,  and  finally  took 
shelter  in  a  neighboring  street." 

It  will  be  observed  that  Major  Ripley  ascribes  our 
formation  being  broken  to  our  reaching  the  scattered 
buildings  and  inclosures  of  the  suburb.     This  is  an 


110  MEMO  IBS  OF  A 

error,  as  is  also  another  statement  made  by  him,  that 
but  three  officers  and  some  seventy  men  of  our  bat- 
talion kept  to  its  work  during  the  assault.  Major 
Ripley  was  not  with  us,  but  was  engaged  gallantly 
fighting  in  Worth's  Division  on  the  other  side  of  the 
town;  and  I  will  show  farther  on  how  this  misstate- 
ment originated,  for,  up  to  the  period  of  entering  the 
town,  not  a  man  had  shrunk  from  the  assault. 

To  resume  the  thread  of  my  narration:  I  have  said 
the  Third  and  First  Infantry  were  on  our  right,  and 
necessarily  by  the  flank  movement  preceded  us  into 
the  street  leading  into  the  heart  of  the  town,  and  they 
caught  the  severity  of  the  fire  of  the  Mexicans  lying  in 
wait  for  our  advance.  It  was  a  terrific  fire  from  all 
sides,  and  as  we  hurried  up  the  street  we  passed  the 
dead,  the  dying,  and  those  who  were  seeking  shelter  of 
the  two  leading  battalions.  I  was  well  up  with  the  head 
of  our  battalion,  and  did  not  look  behind,  but  I  have 
no  doubt  that  men  of  ours  sought  shelter  as  had  those 
who  preceded  them.  I  say,  however,  that  the  mass  of 
our  men  followed  as  far  as  the  mass  of  the  brigade,  and 
that  wag  as  far  as  brave  men  could  go.  There  was 
no  going  any  farther;  the  brigade  was  gone  as  an 
organization,  and  the  last  order  given  in  that  town 
by  Colonel  Garland,  prior  to  the  order  to  retreat,  was 
obeyed  by  some  twenty  or  thirty  officers  and  men ; 
the  rest  were  unable  to  fight  or  do  more  than  they 
had  done,  and  were  lying  in  the  streets  by  which  we 
had  reached  the  shambles  in  which  we  were  now 
cooped.  I  am  wrong  in  saying  this  was  all  that 
remained  of  the  brigade ;  I  did  not  know  at  the  time, 
and  I  believe  it  was  not  known  to  the  commanding 


MABYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  \\l 

officers,  that  Captain  Bacchus  of  the  First  Infantry 
had  crossed  the  rivulet,  and,  with  men  of  his  own 
company  and  others,  was  in  possession  of  a  building 
which  looked  into  Fort  Teneria,  and  was  firing  upon 
its  garrison.  I  have  been  told  this  by  those  who 
were  present,  and  believe  it  to  be  true,  because  I  had 
got  some  men  in  a  house  and  was  firing  from  its  rear 
windows  upon  the  Mexicans  at  the  bridge  head,  when 
I  was  ordered  out,  and  felt  for  the  instant,  by  the  tone 
of  the  order,  as  if  I  had  been  caught  skulking;  and  I 
have  a  right  to  say  that  it  was  not  known  Bacchus  was 
in  a  building,  or  he  would  have  been  ordered  out  of  it. 

Garland  was  on  foot,  Watson  was  on  foot,  Major 
Bainbridge  was  on  foot;*  Lieutenant-Colonel  Henry 
Wilson,  commanding  the  First  Infantry,  cool  and  col- 
lected, was  on  horseback ;  the  dead  and  the  dying 
were  lying  very  thick,  when  there  came  tearing  up 
to  this  point,  designated  the  shambles,  a  section  of 
Bragg's  Battery,  under  Lieutenant  John  F.  Reynolds; 
it  had  come  in  by  the  way  we  came,  and  met  with  a 
rough  reception ;  it  looked  as  if  it  bad,  and  where  it 
now  was  not  much  would  have  been  left  of  it  in  a 
few  minutes  if  not  ordered  out,  which  was  done.  To 
turn  the  leading  piece  was  difficult  in  the  narrow 
street ;  this  was  effected  by  lifting  the  gun-carriage 
jam  up  to  the  wall  of  the  house,  in  front  of  which  it 
had  halted,  by  officers  and  men  of  the  Baltimore  Bat- 
tahon.  This  gun  disengaged,  the  other  followed  it  out 
into  the  plain. 

The  Fourth  Brigade  was  gone,  but  its  commanding 

*  They  had  been  dismounted  by  the  enemy's  fire. 


112  3IEM0IRS  OF  A 

officer  was  at  his  post.  As  angry  as  I  was,  I  could 
not  but  admire  the  courage  of  Colonel  Garland,  for 
even  in  that  storm  of  missiles  he  seemed  unwilling 
to  withdraw.  Finally  he  said  to  the  few  about  him, 
"  We  must  retreat."  "Watson,  turning  to  me,  asked 
which  way  I  was  going,  I  replied,  "  With  the  men." 
He  said,  "  I  am  going  this  way,"  and  crossed  to  an 
open  gateway  on  the  north  side  of  the  street,  entered 
it,  and  this  was  the  last  I  saw  of  him.  My  second 
lieutenant,  Oden  Bowie,  followed  him;  and  I,  with 
my  lieutenants  SchaefFer  and  Aisquith,  took  the 
streets  by  which  we  had  entered — there  was  no  diffi- 
culty in  finding  our  route,  it  was  painfully  marked — 
to  the  plain  outside  the  town.  We  were  followed  by 
our  men,  of  both  regular  and  volunteer  battalions,  who 
joined  us  in  the  retreat  at  every  step,  from  the  shel- 
ters' they  had  sought.  They  were  strung  along  from 
the  suburbs  up  to  the  sjsot  where  Garland  gave  the 
order  to  retreat.  As  we  emerged  from  the  town,  the 
citadel  opened  upon  us  with  redoubled  fury,  and  a 
portion  of  the  inen,  both  regulars  and  volunteers, 
continued  their  retreat  until  they  got  out  of  the  line 
of  fire ;  and  this  is  the  foundation  of  Major  Ripley's 
statement. 

The  Baltimore  Battalion  went  into  action  with 
about  two  hundred  and  thirty  men,  there  being  but 
five  companies  of  us,  and  heavy  details  (among 
others,  one  of  twelve  men  for  Ridgely's  battery)  had 
reduced  our  present  for  duty  to  about  this  number. 
I  carried  forty-two  muskets  into  action,  and  my  com- 
pany was  one  of  the  strongest  in  the  battalion ;  so 
that  if  there  were  but  seventy  men,  as  Ripley  says,  it 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  \12, 

was  a  pretty  fair  proportion,  after  what  had  been 
done.  But  there  were  more ;  I  rallied  about  one  hun- 
dred and  eighty  officers  and  men,  and  made  so  respect- 
able a  front  that  Garland  ordered  me  to  unite  with 
the  .fragments  of  the  First  and  Tliird,  which  were 
being  formed  under  Captain  Miller,  of  the  First  Infan- 
try, to  support  Bragg's  Battery  against  a  body  of  Lan- 
cers which  had  shown  itself  in  the  field,  and  whom 
we  drove  off  with  loss.  I  had  with  me  Second 
Lieutenant  Samuel  Wilt,  of  Company  A  ;  First  Lieu- 
tenant Laurence  Dolan  and  Second  Lieutenant  M.  K. 
Taylor,  of  Company  B;  First  Lieutenant  Eugene 
Boyle  and  acting  Lieutenant  John  Truscott,  of  Com- 
pany D;  Lieutenants  Schaeffer  and  Aisquith  of  my  own 
Company  E;  and  Captain  James  Boyd,  with  Second 
Lieutenant  Robert  E.  Haslett  and  acting  Lieutenant 
James  Taneyhill,  of  Company  F.  (I  am  quite  posi- 
tive that  I  saw  Captain  James  Piper  in  the  town,  and 
was  told  by  those  who  had  a  right  to  know,  that 
Captain  James  E.  Steuart  was  also  there.  First  Lieu- 
tenant Joseph  H.  Ruddach,  a  brave  and  efficient  officer, 
was  not  with  his  Company  F,  being  absent,  sick  at 
Seralvo.)  With  the  Baltimore  Battalion  as  thus 
organized  I  shared  the  fortunes  of  the  First  Division, 
under  very  trying  circumstances,  until  night  put  an 
end  to  the  conflict  for  the  day. 
Again  let  us  hear  from  Ripley;  he  says,  pages  208-9  : 

"In  tbe  meantime,  Bragg's  Battery  had  been  advanced  into 
the  suburb,  and  had  opened  ;  but  a  few  discharges  proved  the  in- 
efficiency of  his  guns  in  llie  position.  His  men  and  horses  fell 
rapidly  under  the  fire  of  the  unseen  enemy,  and  against  the 
heavier  metal  of  Fort  Teneria  in  embrasure   he  was  powerless ; 


214  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

and,  finally,  this  first  attempt  at  a  demonstration  was  consum- 
mated by  the  whole  command  being  ordered  to  fall  back  out  of 
range." 

There  are  two  grave  errors  here.  The  first,  inti- 
mating that  the  section  of  Bragg's  Battery  to  which  I 
have  referred  halted  in  the  suburbs;  it  did  not,  it 
was  brought  far  up  into  the  town.  The  second  error 
is  in  alleging  that  it  opened  fire ;  it  did  not ;  and  the 
reason  given  by  Ripley  is  why  it  was  not  unlimbered 
and  put  into  action, — "  his  men  and  horses  were  falling 
rapidly."  Garland  did  right  in  ordering  it  out  of 
town  ;  it  was  powerless  there  at  that  time. 

1  thank  Major  Ripley  for  saying  that  "  the  whole 
command  was  ordered  to  fall  back  out  of  range,"  for 
it  was  this  very  order,  which  I  did  not  hear,  that 
justified  those  officers  and  men  of  the  Baltimore  Bat- 
talion, and  abundantly  refutes  the  charge  of  their 
"  having  tied  beyond  the  range  of  fire."  They  always 
told  me  that  they  were  not  only  ordered  to  retire 
beyond  the  range  of  fire,  but  that  they  were,  led  in 
doing  so  by  officers  other  than  their  own. 

After  having  repulsed  the  Lancers,  we  were  ordered 
to  shelter  ourselves  under  the  earthworks  of  Fort 
Teneria,  which  'had  been  carried  while  we  were  in  the 
town  by  a  battalion  of  the  Fourth  Regular  Infantry  and 
Quitman's  Brigade  of  the  First  Mississippi  and  First 
Tennessee  regiments  of  volunteers.  It  must  be  borne 
in  mind  that  the  guns  of  the  citadel  were  still  sweep- 
ing the  plain,  and  the  capture  of  Fort  Teneria  enabled 
us,  for  the  first  time  on  that  day,  to  find  any  shelter 
from  its  fire. 

Here   Brigadier- General   Hamer   came   with  the 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  \\^ 

shattered  fragments  of  his  brigade,  and  here  Randolph 
Ridgely's  Battery  was  somewhat  protected,  the  riders 
and  gunners  being  dismounted. 

Now  I  can  expLain  the  death  of  Watson.  When 
General  Taylor  heard  the  heavy  volleys  with  which 
the  appearance  of  our  brigade  in  town  was  greeted, 
He  sent  forward  a  part  of  Butler's  Volunteer  Division 
to  our  support.  These  entered  the  city  by  several 
streets  to  the  right  (west)  of  the  one  by  which  we 
entered.  Its  leading  regiment  was  Colonel  Mitchell's, 
the  First  Ohio  Volunteers, — our  old  friends  of  the  Rio 
Grande, — and  being  met  with  the  same  reception  as 
had  been  given  to  us,  it  was  forced  to  retreat,  and 
came  out  of  town  a  good  deal  broken  up.  If  Garland 
could  have  held  on  longer,  as  he  wanted  to  do,  or 
Hamer  had  arrived  sooner,  it  is  more  than  probable 
we  could  have  held  our  own;  but  we  just  passed  each 
other,  Hamer  coming  in  as  Garland  was  going  out. 
When  Watson  left  me,  inclining  to  the  left,  he  met 
these  troops  coming  in,  and,  joining  them,  fell  dead  in 
the  charge.  None  of  us  had  seen  or  heard  anything 
of  Earner's  Brigade  until  we  saw  them  retreating  from 
the  town,  and  it  was  from  them  that  the  distressing 
fact  was  made  known  to  me.  Up  to  this  time  T  was 
in  momentary  expectation  of  seeing  him,  and  was 
imagining  the  pride  he  would  feel  when  I  turned  over 
to  him  the  command  of  his  battalion,  whose  gallant 
conduct  at  that  time  was  on  the  lips  of  every  soldier 
of  the  First  Division  who  had  been  in  the  town.  "  We 
will  fight  with  the  brave  Baltimoreans,"  was  heard  on 
every  side  on  that  morning  of  the  21st  of  September, 
after  the  repulse  of  the  first  assault. 


IIQ  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

There  was  a  dry  ditch  about  Fort  Teneria ;  and  in 
this  ditch  and  around  and  in  the  redoubt  a  large 
number  of  troops  were  collected  of  the  First,  and 
Butler's  Volunteer  Division.  Brigadier-General  Hamer 
ordered  the  men  to  form,  but  upon  its  being  attempted, 
the  fire  from  the  citadel  was  directed  against  the 
mass,  and,  at  the  same  time,  the  guns  of  Fort  Diablb 
opened  upon  us.  General  Taylor  now  arrived,  and 
going  into  the  redoubt  in  company  with  him  and 
Captain  Eandolph  Ridgely,  I  saw  the  latter,  aided 
by  those  who  were  around,  train  the  guns  of  this  fort, 
which  had  been  captured,  upon  Fort  Diablo,  and  its 
fire  materially  diminished  by  the  fire  from  our  guns 
in  this  fort.  Our  men  were  now  enabled  to  form 
without  being  so  much  exposed,  and  another  assault 
was  made  into  the  town  with  the  same  result  as  the 
former. 

Again  I  cite  from  Ripley;  he  says,  pages  211,  212, 
213  : 

"  So  soon  as  the  event  was  known,  fragments  of  the  different 
regiments,  and  Bragg's  and  Ridgely's  field  batteries  [I  did  not 
see  Bra,gg's  Battery  here ;  1  am  sure  it  was  not  whilst  I  wasj 
were  collected  about  the  captured  work  [Fort Teneria].  General 
Taylor  determined  to  hold  his  position  in  the  town,  and  attempts 
were  made  to  advance.  General  Butler  first  led  the  Ohio  regi- 
ment to  the  left  of  the  former  attack,  with  the  intention  of  as- 
saulting Fort  Diablo  ;  but  that  work  was  stoutly  defended,  and 
could  not  immediately  be  taken.  Butler,  accordingly,  fell  back, 
but  not  until  he  had  been  wounded  and  lost  many  men.  Mean- 
while Taylor  had  ordered  the  main  force  of  the  First  Division 
(still  under  Garland,  although  General  Twiggs  had  come  up 
from  the  camp  to  the  captured  work*)  to  extend  to  the  right  and 


*  I  will  explain  this  matter  after  I  shall  have  got  through  with 
the  extract. 


MAE  FLA  ND  VOLUNTEER.  W] 

endeavor  to  penetrate  the  town,  with  the  idea  of  maljing  way 
by  an  extendied  circuit  to  the  rear  of  Fort  Diablo.  This  was 
attempted,  and  although  severely  cut  up  by  the  fire  of  the  Mexi- 
cans as  they  crossed  the  streets,  especially  from  the  tete  de  pont 
of  La  Purisima,  the  troops  passed  beyond  the  bridge-head,  and, 
although  in  confusion,  entered  the  yards  of  the  street  next  the 
rivulet,  driving  the  Mexicans  from  the  adjacent  houses;  but 
further  advance  was  impracticable.  Directly  in  front  lay  a  street 
swept  by  the  fire  of  the  tete  de  pont,  and  beyond,  the  deep 
ditches  and  high  banks  of  the  rivulet :  while  the  Mexicans  oc- 
cupied the  parapet  of  the  bridge  and  a  low  wall  which  extended 
on  the  southern  bank,  whence  they  plied  their  musketry  with 
unceasing  vigor.  But  still  the  officers,  though  falling  with  the 
men  at  every  moment,  called  on  them  to  maintain  their  ground, 
while  they  searched  in  vain  for  a  practicable  point  to  pass  the 
stream.  Captain  Ridgelj'  brought  up  a  section  of  his  battery,  but 
his  fire  was  ineffectual  against  that  of  the  heavy  metal  of  the 
enemy  from  behind  his  parapets,  and  the  battle  in  this  quarter 
continued  without  any  advantage  to  the  Americans.  The  Mexi- 
cans were  nevertheless  pressed  closely,  and  a  heavy  battalion  of 
infantry  from  the  interior  of  the  town  was  sent  to  support  the 
garrison  of  the  ttte  de  pont.  It  came  down  the  street  leading 
to  the  bridge,  but  before  it  could  gain  shelter  it  had  to  pass 
under  the  American  fire  from  the  houses  and  yards  on  the  north- 
ern bank  of  the  stream,  which  was  delivered  with  so  much  effect 
that  the  column  was  driven  back  into  the  town.  The  Mexican 
artillery  was  then  placed  in  position  to  bear  upon  the  Americans, 
and,  opening  from  the  distance,  beat  through  the  walls  of  the 
houses  and  yards,  whence  they  delivered  their  fire  and  rendered 
the  position  untenable.  After  a  continued  occupation  of  the 
exposed  point,  the  attempt  to  pass  the  rivulet  was  given  up  as 
impracticable,  and  the  troops  were  withdrawn  to  Fort  Teneria. 
"While  the  various  operations  had  taken  place  in  the  suburbs, 
the  Mexican  Lancers  had  made  many  demonstrations  of  attack- 
ing the  American  troops  in  rear  and  cutting  up  the  camp-guard 
at  the  wood  of  San  Domingo,*  though   none  of  the  demonstra- 

*  Our  camp. 


118  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

tions  had  been  serious  except  that  upon  the  detached  companies 
of  Garland's  retreating  command.  The  main  body  of  the  Lancers 
had  come  down  at  one  time  upon  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  regi- 
ments [I  was  in  the  town  when  this  attack  was  made],  which 
had  been  withdrawn  from  Fort  Teneria ;  but  these  regiments  had 
fallen  back  against  a  chaparral  fence,  whence  they  delivered  a  fire, 
and  the  Lancers  had  retreated.  Bragg's  Battery  was  sent  in  that 
direction  from  the  captured  work,  and  a  few  discharges  effectually 
dispersed  them.  The  captured  guns  of  Fort  Teneria  were  served 
from  time  to  time  upon  Fort  Diablo,  until  one  of  the  howitzers 
was  brought  forward  from  the  first  position  of  the  batteries.  But 
the  principal  operations  of  the  day  upon  the  eastern  front  of 
Monterey  were  finished.  During  the  afternoon  the  main  body 
of  the  troops  remained  in  and  about  the  captured  work,  collect- 
ing the  dead  and  wounded,  and  strengthening  the  position.  The 
enemy  made  no  direct  attempt  to  dislodge  them,  but  kept  up  a 
cannonade  from  Fort  Diablo  whenever  any  were  exposed,  which 
was  replied  to  from  a  howitzer  and  with  musketry.  A  move- 
ment of  Lancers  on  the  southern  bank  of  the  San  Juan  beyond 
the  town  was  opposed  by  Ridgely's  Battery,  and  a  few  shots 
drove  them  back.  When  night  fell,  the  First,  Third,  and  Fourth 
Infantry  and  Ridgely's  guns  were  detailed  to  guard  the  captured 
work,  and  the  remaining  troops  were  ordered  to  the  camp  at  the 
wood  of  San  Domingo." 

It  would  be  very  difficult  for  any  one  writer  to 
have  detailed  more  faithfully  than  Major  Ripley  has 
done  the  events  embraced  in  the  above  extract  from 
his  history ;  the  only  material  error  is  in  including  in 
the  second  assault  some  matter  of  description  which 
belongs  to  the  first  assault,  and  connected  therewith. 
I  doubt  much  whether  a  more  correct  description  was 
ever  given  of  the  incidents  of  a  day's  battle. 

I  said  that  I  would  explain  the  matter  about 
General  Twiggs's  arrival  at  the  captured  work,  and 
why  it  was  that  Garland  still  commanded  the  First 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  HQ 

Division.  I  should,  before  this,  have  said  that  Colonel 
Garland  was  the  next  senior  to  General  Twiggs,  and 
took  command  of  the  division  in  his  absence  I  saw 
General  Twiggs  when  he  came  upon  the  field  riding 
from  the  direction  of  the  camp,  but  well  out  of  the 
range  of  the  guns  of  the  citadel.  This  was,  I  think, 
about  noon ;  it  might  have  been  a  little  earUer,  but  it 
was  after  the  repulse  of  our  first  assault.  I  was  so 
struck  with  his  coming  almost  alone  and  in  such  very 
unmilitary  garb,  that  he  noticed  me,  and,  approach- 
ing, said,  "  I  expected  a  battle  to-day,  but  didn't  think 
it  would  come  off  so  soon,  and  took  a  dose  of  medicine 
last  night,  as  I  always  do  before  a  battle  so  as  to 
loosen  my  bowels ;  for  a  bullet  striking  the  belly  when 
the  bowels  were  loose  might  pass  through  the  in- 
testines without  cutting  them."  I  was  very  much 
interested  at  hearing  all  this  from  so  old  a  soldier, 
but  still  it  didn't  satisfy  me ;  and  I  wasn't  astonished 
when  I  heard  subsequently  that  General  Taylor  had 
quietly  ignored  his  being  present,  and  suffered  the 
command  of  his  division  to  remain  with  Garland. 
He,  however,  remained  in  and  about  the  field,  although 
I  did  not  see  him  again  until  late  in  the  evening,  when 
he  appeared  to  have  assumed  command,  and  ordered 
the  division,  with  the  exception  of  the  regiments 
before  mentioned,  to  return  to  camp. 

Among  the  many  officers  who  had  strenuously 
exerted  themselves  during  the  day,  after  the  first 
assault,  to  reorganize  the  broken  troops  of  both  divi- 
sions, my  attention  was  particularly  attracted  to  one 
by  reason  of  his  voice  ;  it  was  so  clear,  so  distinct,  so 
encouraging,    and   commanding,    that   when    I  first 


120  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

heard  it  I  looked  toward  him  and  inquired  who  he 
was,  and  was  told  that  he  was  Colonel  Albert  Sydney 
Johnston,  of  Texas,  serving  on  the  staff  of  Major- 
General  Butler.  I  was  sorry  when  my  command  was 
taken  from  him,  as  he  was  the  first  officer  that  had 
succeeded  in  bringing  some  degree  of  order  out  of  the 
confusion  which  prevailed. 

In  recalling  the  effect  produced  upon  me  by  the 
voice  of  Colonel  Johnston,  I  cannot  refrain  from  giving 
expression  to  the  cheering  influence  of  the  manner 
and  words  of  Captain  Randolph  Ridgely.  When  we 
were  entering  the  town  at  the  second  assault,  Ridgely 
came  tearing  along  with  his  section,  his  head  slightly 
bent  forward,  with  his  face  to  the  right,  as  if  meeting 
a  storm  of  sleet,  instead  of  iron,  rain,  and  leaden  hail, 
as  it  was ;  while  in  this  position,  passing  me,  march- 
ing forward  with  the  Baltimore  Battalion,  his  whole 
face  lighted  up  with  a  smile,  and  he  cried  out, 
"  Kenly,  what  do  you  think  of  this  ?"  it  seeming  to 
do  him  good  to  know  that  I  was  in  the  same  predica- 
ment with  him. 

Of  this  day's  fighting,  Major  Ripley  says  truly, 
there  were  not  wanting  "  brave  officers  to  lead,  or 
brave  men  to  follow  ;"  and  we  had  lost  three  hundred 
and  ninety-four  men  killed  or  wounded,  including  one 
general  officer,  eight  field  officers,  seven  captains,  and 
eighteen  lieutenants. 

We  dragged  our  weary  limbs  back  to  camp,  and 
then  I  realized  most  painfully  the  irreparable  loss  we 
had  sustained  in  the  death  of  Colonel  Watson,  and  I 
almost  reproached  myself  at  not  having  grieved  more 
during  the  day ;  he  was  not  only  my  commander,  he 
was  my  friend,  and  I  mourned  his  death. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  \2\ 

September  22.  A  heavy  cannonading  was  kept  up 
all  last  night,  and  the  rockets  from  the  town  illumi- 
nated the  mountains  in  the  rear  to  such  an  extent 
that  the  scenery  was  grand,  almost  sublime.  At 
reveille  we  were  ordered  to  be  ready  to  leave  at  a 
moment's  warning,  and  the  stiffened  limbs  of  the 
men  yielded  unwilling  obedience  to  orders  to  fall  in. 
During  the  morning  it  was  reported  that  the  Mexi- 
cans were  assembling  on  the  plain,  and  the  divi- 
sion was  formed,  when  my  company  was  detailed 
to  move  to  the  front  to  support  Bragg's  Battery, 
near  the  city.  I  left  the  camp  with  my  men,  and 
once  more  took  the  road  to  the  town.  We  soon  per- 
ceived that  there  was  heavy  firing  on  the  hill  next 
the  Loma  Independencia,  upon  which  was  the  bishop's 
palace,  and  we  saw  the  soldiers  fighting ;  it  was  the 
most  exciting  scene  I  had  ever  beheld,  for  now  they 
were  advancing  to  the  assault  on  the  palace.  How 
my  heart  beat !  for  I  felt  that  if  they  could  carry  the 
palace,  the  town  was  ours.  On  rushed  the  Ameri- 
cans, in  full  view  as  we  marched,  met  with  the  fire 
from  the  Mexicans;  but  still  they  pressed  on,  and 
now  they  were  getting  in  the  works.  Almost  simul- 
taneously with  the  entry  of  the  Americans,  we  saw 
the  Mexicans  leaping  from  the  windows,  and  running 
from  the  rear  of  the  palace  down  the  hill  toward  the 
city.  We  saw  the  Mexican  flag  lowered,  and  such  a 
cheer  as  we  sent  up  was  never  heard  before  on  that 
plain ;  it  was  taken  up  by  other  troops,  and  the  first 
flash  of  victory  filled  our  breasts  with  inexpressible 
exultation. 

The  bishop's  palace  carried,  it  was  clear  that  the 


122  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

town  was  gone,  for  this  hill  entirely  commanded 
Monterey  and  its  environs,  and  it  was  only  a  question 
of  time  as  to  when  it  would  surrender.  All  the  dan- 
gers and  fatigues  of  the  preceding  day  were  forgotten, 
and  we  moved  forward  almost  forgetting  the  black 
fort,  until  a  well-known  sound  reminded  us  that  its 
heavy  metal  was  paying  its  respects  to  us.  I  took 
my  position  on  the  left  of  the  battery,  which  was  in 
a  slight  hollow  under  the  brow  of  a  hill,  and  there  we 
lay  for  two  long  hours  exposed  to  an  uninterrupted 
firing  from  the  citadel,  its  twelve-  and  eighteen-pound 
balls  flying  over  us  in  direct  flight,  or  else  made  to 
ricochet  so  as  to  plunge  in  our  midst.  We  lay  with 
our  heads  toward  the  fort,  with  intervals  of  several 
feet  between  each  man,  and  the  horses  and  the  guns 
were  likewise  separated  by  intervals,  so  that  the  rise 
of  the  hill  protected  us  from  the  fire  ;  but  many  of  the 
ricochet  shot  plunged  through,  tearing  up  the  earth 
in  furrows,  and  scattering  sand  and  gravel  over  us ; 
but  not  one  man  was  struck.  Only  the  arm-chest  of 
one  of  the  limbers  was  shattered,  the  chips  from 
which,  flying  in  the  air,  were  greeted  by  a  loud  cheer 
from  the  fort ;  and  they  never  ceased  firing  as  long  as 
we  remained  there.  Finally  one  by  one  the  guns 
were  withdrawn,  and  then  in  single  file  we  ran  as 
fast  as  we  could  until  we  got  under  shelter  from  the 
never-to-be-forgotten  sound  of  those  cannon-balls.  I 
made  the  experience  that  nothing  is  so  demoralizing 
to  troops  as  exposure  to  an  artillery  fire  of  solid  shot. 
I  saw  our  very  best  troops  on  the  preceding  day  quail 
under  this  fire,  and  to-day  I  noticed  the  dread  with 
which  our  artillerymen  regarded  it  as  they  made 
ready  to  withdraw  from  our  position. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  123 

We  had  been  thrown  out  to  check  any  demonstra- 
tion from  the  city,  but  the  capture  of  the  bishop's 
palace  and  the  advance  of  Worth's  troops  gave  the 
Mexicans  enough  to  attend  to  in  town. 

Our  division  was  now  allowed  to  take  some  much- 
needed  rest,  and  we  lay  listening  to  the  sounds  of  the 
battle  raging  in  Monterey,  with  that  interest  which 
it  is  impossible  to  portray,  and  which  will  be  forever 
unknown,  except  to  those  who  had  gone  through  the 
fiery  baptism  of  the  preceding  day.  With  us,  every 
volume  of  sound  was  scrutinized,  whether  it  were  ours 
or  theirs,  every  phase  of  the  roar  of  musketry  or  boom- 
ing of  guns  was  discussed  as  to  its  locality  and  proba- 
ble effect,  the  numbers  engaged  were  counted  over  and 
over  again,  and  the  movements  of  the  morrow  deter- 
mined, with  an  assurance  of  success  that  the  fall  of 
the  bishop's  palace  had  now  given  to  every  man  in 
our  army. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

THIRD    DAT    OF    THE    BATTLE. 

At  reveille  on  the  morning  of  Wednesday,  Septem- 
ber 23d,  we  were  again  ordered  to  hold  ourselves 
in  readiness  to  leave,  as  a  final  attack  was  to  be 
made  on  the  town  by  the  whole  of  the  two  divisions. 
At  8.30  the  long  roll  sounded  and  the  troops  sprang 
to  their  arms ;  at  9  o'clock  A.M.  we  marched  from 
our  camp,  still  in  the  wood  of  San  Domingo,  but 


124  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

called  by  us  Walnut  Springs,  and  followed  our  well- 
known  road  to  the  city ;  we  halted  within  half  a 
mile  from  the  town,  when  the  First  Division  moved  for- 
ward into  line  of  battle,  and  the  command  was  given. 
"In place,  rest."  This  looked  like  work,  and  we  had 
reason  to  believe  that  it  was  before  us,  for  the  town 
was  shrouded  in  a  canopy  of  smoke,  within  whose  folds 
a  sanguinary  combat  was  raging.  We  were  compara- 
tively safe  from  fire,  and  our  interest  and  excitement 
increased  every  hour ;  bombs  were  flying  continually 
from  either  side ;  volleys  of  musketry,  lighting  up  the 
smoke  with  a  lurid  glare,  were  mingled  with  the  dull 
heavy  roar  of  cannon  flashing  their  jets  of  flame 
through  the  dark  cloud  enveloping  friend  and  foe, 
and  rolling  down  upon  us,  reeking  with  the  smell  of 
battle.  I  would  have  given  an  arm  to  have  been 
ordered  to  the  attack,  and  all  were  alike  excited. 
As  the  fighting  continued,  I  never  beheld  men  in 
such  a  condition  as  ours ;  it  was  impossible  to  keep 
them  in  the  ranks.  They  would  jump  up  and  sit  down, 
fix  and  unfix  bayonets,  open  their  cartridge-boxes,  un- 
button their  coats,  stamp  with  their  feet,  swear  the 
most  horrid  oaths,  and  it  needed  but  one  single  cry  of 
"  Forward !"  to  have  thrown  that  division  like  a  torrent 
into  the  city,  to  aid  their  hard-pressed  comrades. 
Still  we  waited  for  the  order,  still  the  fight  raged  in 
the  town  ;  hour  after  hour  passed,  hearing  a  battle  and 
we  doing  nothing.  We  had  been  kept  so  long  momen- 
tarily expecting  the  order  to  advance,  that  we  had 
got  worked  up  in  the  excitement  to  almost  imagining 
that  we  were  in  position  to  participate,  expecting  to 
see  the  Mexicans  making  a  sortie ;  and  this  was  pre- 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  125 

cisely  what  we  were  doing,  and  what  we  were  placed 
here  to  do,  although  we  were  not  aware  of  it  at  the 
time. 

We  must  now  take  a  glance  at  what  Worth  has 
been  doing  in  this  great  drama,  still  continuing,  and 
see  where  his  troops  are  on  this  third  day. 

As  we  have  seen,  he  left  our  camp  at  Walnut 
Springs  on  the  afternoon  of  Sunday,  the  20th,  and 
after  a  sharp  skirmish  on  the  Saltillo  road  with  a 
large  force  of  Mexican  cavalry  and  infantry,  suc- 
ceeded in  turning  the  left  or  western  defenses  of  Am- 
pudia,  and  was  on  the  night  of  that  day  in  rear  of  the 
town.  On  the  21st,  by  a  series  of  brilliant  movements, 
he  had  effected  such  results  that  the  capture  by 
assault  of  the  bishop's  palace  on  the  22d,  and  the  pur- 
suit of  its  fleeing  garrison  into  the  western  part  of  the 
town,  followed  as  necessary  consequences  from  these 
initial  steps.  His  troops,  advancing  from  the  west, 
were  now  on  this  third  day  pressing  the  Mexicans 
toward  the  fire  of  the  Americans,  working  their  way 
from  the  east. 

That  General  Worth  handled  his  troops  with  con- 
summate skill,  and  that  his  division  behaved  with 
great  gallantry,  no  one  has  ever  questioned.  They 
gained  great  credit,  and  deservedly  won  the  praise 
and  the  confidence  of  our  country ;  but  it  would  be  to 
ignore  facts  if  it  were  not  admitted  that  General  Tay- 
lor's operations  on  the  eastern  and  northern  fronts 
had  contributed  most  materially  to  Worth's  successes. 
In  fact,  Taylor  did  the  work,  and  our  losses  had  been 
Worth's  gain,  our  little  brigade  losing  more  men  on 
the  21st  than  Worth's  whole  division  in  the  three 


126  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

days'  fighting;  and  this  is  the  way  it  happened.  The 
Mexican  General  was  outgeneraled,  outwitted,  and 
outmanoeuvred  from  first  to  last.  He  had  failed  in 
every  single  instance  to  divine  the  object  contem- 
plated by  us,  and  in  no  single  instance  did  he  display 
sufficient  military  judgment  to  take  advantage  of  our 
mistakes.  With  a  superior  force  of  infantry,  he  failed 
to  make  a  single  sortie  after  our  repulses ;  and  with 
a  superior  force  of  cavalry,  he  failed  to  make  a  single 
successful  demonstration  upon  our  broken  troops. 

When,  on  the  night  of  Sunday,  Taylor  lay  in  front 
of  Monterey  to  cover  Worth's  flank  movement,  Ampu- 
dia  was  taken  by  surprise,  and,  without  sufficient 
reflection,  believed  that  ours  was  the  real  column  of 
attack,  and  Worth's  but  a  feint.  When  on  the  next 
morning  he  found  Taylor  had  gone  and  Worth  ad- 
vancing, he  threw  his  heavy  masses  of  infantry  to  the 
line  of  his  western  defenses,  but  to  be  hurried  back  as 
soon  as  he  saw  Taylor's  column  advancing  to  his 
eastern  works.  He  was  now  sure  that  Worth  meant 
only  a  diversion  in  favor  of  Taylor,  and  that  his  origi- 
nal opinion  was  correct  and  had  been  well  founded. 
This  mistake,  while  it  operated  to  his  destruction, 
was  near  proving  ours,  for  he  threw  at  least  six 
thousand  infantry  against  us  and  kept  them  pelting 
away  with  but  little  regard  to  Worth's  action.  The 
consequences  were  that  though  he  drove  us  out  of 
town,  he  failed  to  sujjport  Fort  Teneria,  which  was 
carried,  while  the  Fourth  Brigade  was  fighting  the  un- 
equal contest  and  keeping  his  troops  engaged  as 
already  narrated;  and,  having  effected  a  lodgment, 
Taylor's  position  was  so  threatening  on  his  right  flank 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  127 

that  he  kept  under  the  delusion  that  his  danger  was 
most  imminent  here,  and  kept  the  masses  of  his 
troops  of  the  line  confronting  us.  The  bishop's  palace 
was  thus  shamefully  neglected  by  him,  and  when  it 
fell,  as  I  have  already  described,  on  the  22d,  he  awoke 
to  the  startling  realities  of  his  false  calculations. 

But  one  step  remained  for  him  to  take,  and  that 
was  to  recapture  the  palace  if  it  cost  him  his  last 
man ;  he  had  plenty  of  troops  and  to  spare  to  do  it 
with,  and  he  only  made  an  abortive  demonstration  on 
the  night  of  the  22d. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen,  as  is  unmistakably  the  fact,  that 
Taylor  had  been  fighting,  up  to  this  time,  the  bulk  of 
the  Mexican  army ;  and  the  losses  of  the  respective 
Divisions  demonstrate  it. 

Now,  on  this  third  day,  the  advance  of  Worth's 
Division  from  the  west  relieved  considerably  the  press- 
ure on  Taylor,  and  the  whole  army  was  concentra- 
ting its  cordon  around  the  garrison  of  Monterey.  On 
the  west,  the  guns  from  the  bishop's  palace  were 
throwing  shot  and  shell ;  on  the  south,  a  single  gun 
was  plunging  solid  shot  into  the  main  plaza ;  on  the 
east.  Fort  Teneria  was  hurling  its  missiles  toward  the 
cathedral;  and  on  the  north  lay  our  Division,  an 
unbroken  line  of  tried  troops, — a  dangerous  neighbor 
in  this  hour  of  battle. 

All  this  grand  panorama  was  passing  before  our  eyes, 
and  until  dark,  without  hunger,  and  without  thirst, 
we  waited.  The  curtain  was  up,  and  we  were  ready 
dressed  to  play  our  part.  The  call  was  not  sounded, 
for  we  had  been  performing  all  that  our  commanding 
general  had  wanted  us  to  do ;  for  he  knew  where  the 


128  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

First  Division  of  his  army  was,  and  he  knew  what  he 
was  doing  when  he  put  it  there. 

As  night  approached,  the  firing  gradually  dropped 
off,  save  that  now  and  then  a  whizzing,  which  seemed 
more  spiteful  because  less  in  quantity,  might  be  heard 
cutting  the  air  as  the  missile  sped  on  its  flight;  now 
and  then  the  explosion  of  a  single  bomb  lit  up  the 
darkness  of  cloud  and  smoke  with  a  thousand  pictures 
of  light  and  shadow  ;  but  as  the  cold  shades  of  evening 
fell  upon  us,  a  silence,  heavy  and  profound,  was  over 
camp  and  field,  town  and  mountains,  the  living  and 
the  dead. 

We  returned  noiselessly  to  the  wood  of  San 
Domingo  for  rest,  in  order  to  gather  strength  for 
anotlier  day  of  unrest. 

September  24 — Thursday.  The  first  information  I 
received  this  morning  was,  that  an  armistice  had  been 
agreed  upon  for  the  twenty-four  hours  from  the  past 
midnight  until  the  next ;  all  was  excitement  and 
speculation  as  to  the  probabilities  of  an  evacuation  of 
the  city  by  the  Mexicans.  During  the  day  several 
heavy  guns  were  heard,  and  we  thought  that  hostili- 
ties had  recommenced.  At  5  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon the  long  roll  beat,  and  we  fell  in  hurriedly,  not 
knowing  what  was  to  be  done  next;  our  whole  brig- 
ade marched  out  of  camp  under  command  of  Colonel 
Garland,  and  took  the  road  to  the  fort  which  he  had 
attacked  on  Monday  morning  the  21st.  As  we  marched 
along,  every  eye  was  turned  toward  the  old  gray 
citadel;  there  was  the  same  grim  artillery  looking 
from  over  the  parapets,  and  each  instant  we  expected 
to  see  the  fire  belch  forth  from  its  open  mouths.     No 


MARYLA.VD   VOLUNTEER.  ]29 

man  would  dare  to  deny  the  relief  he  felt  when,  filing 
from  the  main  road,  we  obliqued  to  the  left  and  were 
under  cover  from  its  range.  We  reached  the  well- 
remembered  locality,  and  learned  that  we  were  to  re- 
lieve General  Hamer's  brigade  in  holding  Fort  Teneria 
and  adjacent  works. 

As  we  neared  the  redoubt,  the  stench  from  the 
buried  and  unburied  dead  was  so  offensive,  that  many 
of  the  men  were  made  sick  to  vomithig.  The  four 
companies  of  the  First  Infantry  under  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Wilson  were  stationed  in  the  main  fort,  and 
he  did  my  company  the  honor  to  request  that  it  might 
be  detailed  to  strengthen  his  battalion.  Not  knowing 
what  work  was  before  us,  we  bad  left  camp  to  go  into 
battle  without  overcoats,  and  bringing  with  us  neither 
rations  nor  blankets ;  it  grew  very  cold,  and  there 
was  nothing  but  the  bare  ground  to  lie  upon.  Just 
as  they  were  dressed  at  midday,  the  men  now  lay 
huddled  together,  with  their  loaded  mnslcets  (which 
they  were  ordered  to  keep  in  their  hands)  sadly  inter- 
fering with  efforts  to  afford  each  other  a  little  warmth. 
We  knew  not  at  what  moment  we  would  be  attacked, 
and  the  entire  absence  of  rumor  kept  us  in  such  sus- 
pense, that,  with  the  dreadful  steoch,  increasing  every 
hour,  I  think  that  no  one  fell  asleep.  Not  less  than 
thirty  Mexicans  had  been  covered  up  in  a  breastwork 
or  curtain  which  extended  and  ran  from  the  fort  in 
which  we  were,  to  a  distillery  near  by  that  had  been 
converted  into  a  redoubt ;  upon  some  of  these  bodies 
the  earth  was  very  thin,  while  our  own  dead  were 
adding  to  the  lesson  of  the  day,  and  preaching  to  the 
living,   as  never  priest   taught  in  meeting-house  or 


130  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

minster,  that  "this  corruptible  must  put  on  incorrup- 
tion." 

I  was  on  guard,  and,  as  I  could  not  have  slept,  was 
rather  glad  of  it;  there  was  no  necessity  to  visit  my 
sentries  on  post — they  were  wide  awake.  About  mid- 
night I  heard  the  sharp  challenge  of  the  most  distant 
sentinel,  and  the  next  moment  the  rattling  of  sabres 
and  the  noise  as  if  of  a  body  of  horse  moving  rapidly 
toward  us.  Not  a  doubt  was  in  my  mind  but  that  it 
was  a  body  of  Lancers  at  the  head  of  a  sally  from  the 
town.  I  gave  the  alarm  instantly,  and  every  man 
was  on  his  feet.  Captain  Webster,  who  with  his  two 
twenty-four- pound  howitzers  was  within  the  fort, 
pointed  his  guns,  matches  were  lighted,  and  every- 
thing was  made  ready  to  meet  the  coming  shock.  No 
one  smelt  the  dead,  but  the  chill  of  the  night  air 
caused  many  a  brave  man  to  shiver  with  the  cold  as 
we  stood  in  the  darkness,  hours  of  time  concentrated 
in  the  running  of  a  few  minutes.  Colonel  Garland 
came  into  the  fort,  told  Lieutenant^Colonel  Wilson 
that  the  noise  which  had  alarmed  us  was  "  General 
Taylor  and  staff  leaving  the  city,  escorted  by  a  regi- 
ment of  Mexican  cavalry;  tJiat  all  was  settlsd,  and 
that  a  capitulation  had  been  agreed  upon." 

So  sudden  was  the  transition  in  our  feelings,  so 
sudden  the  unexpected  intelligence  of  a  cessation  of 
hostilities,  that  the  exultation,  which  otherwise  would 
have  been  natural,  was  smothered  by  a  dumb  sense 
of  wonder  and  astonishment. 

In  the  startling  alarm  of  approaching  Mexicans  in 
the  dead  of  night,  we  had  lost  smell  of  the  stench ;  ■ 
we   now  lost  all  feeling  of  cold   in  the  variety  of 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  131 

emotions  caused  by  the  knowledge  lighting  up  our 
minds  that  a  great  victory  had  crowned  our  arms  with 
the  success  we  had  fought  so  continuously  to  win. 

September  25 — Friday.  As  daylight  approached, 
the  ramparts  were  crowded  with  the  soldiers,  anxious 
to  see  the  evidence  of  the  town  being  in  our  hands. 
Never  did  the  glorious  sun  shine  on  a  more  beautiful 
prospect  than  was  lying  stretched  around  and  about 
us.  Nature  was  in  unison  with  our  feelings,  and  the 
happy  termination  of  days  and  weeks  of  toil  and 
danger  added  to  the  delight  which  a  smiling  landscape 
awakens  in  the  dullest  of  human  beings. 

Within  an  hour,  hundreds  of  women  came  to  the 
fort,  some  sobbing,  some  smiling,  to  see  the  prisoners 
who  were  confined  in  the  distillery  building :  they 
were  admitted,  and  it  was  so  affecting  an  interview 
that  I  had  to  go  away. 

We  still  waited  to  see  our  flag  thrown  to  the  breeze, 
but  we  waited  in  vain ;  the  whole  town  seemed  as  if 
dead,  so  quiet  was  everything,  and  rumors  started  as 
if  by  magic  from  all  quarters  (in  the  fort  and  works 
we  were  holding)  that  the  capitulation  was  a  mere 
ruse,  and  done  to  gain  time  ;  that  if  thei/  had  been  old 
Taylor,  tJieij  wouldn't  have  granted  an  armistice — not 
a  minute;  they  knew  how  it  would  be  all  along,  etc. 
etc.  etc. 

We  had  got  some  ship-biscuits  and  salt  beef,  and 
the  most  of  us  were  champing  away  at  our  hard  tack, 
when,  at  1  o'clock  p.m.,  there  came  a  flash  of  fire 
so  suddenly,  followed  by  such  a  density  of  volume  of 
sound  like  the  crash  of  thunder,  that  we  sprang  to  our 
feet  simultaneously.    "  They  have  begun  again,"  was 


132  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

the  general  exclamation  of  officer  and  man ;  and  all 
eyes  were  directed  to  the  old  gray  castle.  Behold ! 
the  American  flag  was  being  hoisted  on  that  staff, 
from  which  the  Mexican  ensign  had  so  proudly — yes, 
and  gallantly — waved.  One  deafening  shout  followed, 
as  sudden  and  as  overpowering  in  volume  as  had  been 
the  salute  which  the  Mexicans  had  paid  to  their  flag 
when  lowered  at  the  citadel ;  three  times  three  was 
huzzaed  by  every  company  and  regiment  of  Taylor's 
army ;  and  the  flag  of  the  Baltimore  Battalion  was 
hoisted  on  Fort  Teneria  as  Captain  Webster's  guns, 
under  commnnd  of  Lieutenant  James  L.  Donaldson, 
of  Baltimore,  fired  a  national  salute  in  honor  of  the 
storming  and  capture  of  Monterey. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

CAPITULATION     OF     MONTEREY. 
"  General  Orders. 

"  Terms  of  the  capitulation  of  the  city  of  Monterey,  the  capi- 
tal of  Nueva  Leon,  agreed  upon  by  the  undersig-ued  commission- 
ers, 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,  com- 
manding in  chief  the  United  States  forces  ;  and  General  Requena 
and  General  Ortega,  of  the  Army  of  Mexico,  and  Senor  Manuel 
M.  Llano,  Governor  of  Nueva  Leon,  on  the  part  of  Senor  Gen- 
eral Don  Pedro  Ampudia,  commanding  in  chief  the  Army  of  the 
North  of  Mexico. 

"  Article  L  As  the  legitimate  result  of  the  operations  before 
this  place,  and  the  present  position  of  the  contending  armies,  it 
is  agreed  that  the  city,  the  forliBcations,  cannon,  the  munitions 
of  war,  and  all  other  public  property,  with  the  under-raeutioued 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  J  33 

exceptions,  be  surrendered  to  the  commanding  general  of  the 
United  States  forces  now  at  Monterey. 

"  Article  2.  That  the  Mexican  forces  be  allowed  to  retain  the 
following  arms,  to  wit :  The  commissioned  officers,  their  side 
arms  ;  the  cavalry,  their  arms  and  accoutrements  ;  the  artillery, 
one  field  battery,  not  to  exceed  six  pieces,  with  twenty-one  rounds 
of  ammunition. 

"  Article  3.  That  the  Mexican  armed  forces  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. 
"Article  4.  That  the  citadel  of  Monterey  be  evacuated  by 
the  Mexican  and  occupied  by  the  American  forces  to-morrow 
morning  at  10  o'clock. 

"Article  5.  To  avoid  collisions,  and  for  mutual  convenience, 
that  the  troops  of  the  United  Stales  will  not  occupy  the  city 
until  the  Mexican  forces  have  withdrawn,  except  for  hospital 
and  storage  purposes. 

"Article  6.  That  the  forces  of  the  United  States  will  not 
advance  beyond  the  line  specified  in  the  third  article  before  the 
expiration  of  eight  weeks,  or  until  the  orders  of  the  respective 
governments  can  be  received. 

"Article  7.  That  the  public  property  to  be  delivered  shall 
be  turned  over  and  received  by  officers  appointed  by  the  com- 
manding generals  of  the  two  armies. 

"Article  8.  That  all  doubts  as  to  the  meaning  of  any  of  the 
preceding  articles  shall  be  solved  by  an  equitable  construction, 
and  on  principles  of  liberality  to  the  retiring  army. 

"Article  9.  That  the  Mexican  flag,  when  struck  at  the  cita- 
del, may  be  saluted  by  its  own  battery. 

"  (Signed)  "  W.  J.  Worth, 

"  Brigadier-General  United  States  Army. 

"J.  PiNKNEY  Henderson, 
"  Mujor-General  commanding  Texan  Volunteers. 
"Jefferson  Datis, 
"  Colonel  Mississippi  Eiflcmen. 
"J.  M.  Ortega, 
"  T.  Requena, 
"Manuel  M.  Llano. 
,  ]      f  "  Pedro  Ampudia, 

Approved,   j,,^.  Taylor,  Maj.-Gen.  US. A.  Commanding. 
"Dated  at  Monterey,  September  24,  1846." 


134  31EM0IBS   OF  A 

Prior  to  this  capitulation,  a  fiag  of  truce  had  arrived 
at  our  camp  without  my  knowledge  early  on  the 
morning  of  the  24th,  although  I  was  early  informed 
that  an  armistice  for  twenty-four  hours  had  been 
arranged.  The  flag  bore  the  following  letter  from 
General  Ampudia  to  General  Taylor : 

"  D.  Pedro  Amjyudia,  Qeneral-in- Chief ,  to  Major-General  Taylor. 

"  Headquaetees  at  Monteket, 
September  23,  1846,  9  o'clock  p.m. 

"  Senor  General, — Haying  made  the  defense  of  which  I  be- 
lieve this  city  is  susceptible,  I  have  fulfilled  my  duty,  and  have 
satisfied  the  military  honor  which,  in  a  certain  manner,  is  com- 
mon to  all  armies  of  the  civilized  world. 

"  To  prosecute  the  defense,  therefore,  would  only  result  in 
distress  to  the  population,  who  have  already  suffered  enough 
from  the  misfortunes  consequent  on  war;  and  taking  it  for 
granted  that  the  Americau  government  has  manifested  a  dis- 
position to  negotiate,  I  propose  to  you  to  evacuate  the  city  and 
its  fort,  taking  with  me  the  personnel  and  materiel  which 
have  remained,  and  under  the  assurance  that  no  harm  shall 
ensue  to  the  inhabitants  who  have  taken  a  part  in  the  defense. 

"  Be  pleased  to  accept  the  assurance  of  my  distinguished  con- 
sideration. 

"  Pedro  de  Ampudia. 
"To  Senor  Don  Z.  Taylop., 

"Commander-in-chief  of  the  American  Army." 

To  this,  General  Taylor  sent  the  following  answer : 

"Headquarters  Army  of  Occupation, 
Camp  bekore  Monteeky, 
September  24,  1846,  7  o'clock  A.M. 
"Sir, — Your  communication  bearing  date  at  9  o'clock' p.m. 
on  the  23d  instant  has  just  been  received  by  the  hands  of  Colo- 
nel Morena. 

"  In  answer  to  your  proposition  to  evacuate  the  city  and  fort, 
with  all  the  personnel  and  materiel  of  war,  I  have  to  state  that 
my  duty  compels  me  to  decline  acceding  to  it.    A  complete  sur- 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEEB.  135 

render  of  the  town  and  garrison,  the  latter  as  prisoners  of  war, 
is  now  demanded.  But  such  surrender  will  he  upon  terms;  and 
the  gallant  defense  of  the  place,  creditable  alike  to  the  Mexican 
troops  and  nation,  will  prompt  me  to  make  those  terms  as  liberal 
as  possible.  The  garrison  will  be  allowed  at  your  option,  after 
laying  down  its  arms,  to  retire  to  the  interior,  on  condition  of 
not  serving  again  during  the  war  or  until  regularly  exchanged. 
I  need  hardly  say  that  the  rights  of  non-combatants  will  be  re- 
spected. 

"An  answer  to  this  communication  is  required  by  12  o'clock. 
If  you  assent  to  an  accommodation,  an  officer  will  be  dispatched 
at  once,  under  instructions  to  arrange  the  conditions. 
"  I  am  sir,  very  respectfully, 

"  Your  obedient  servnnt,  ' 

"Z.  Taylor, 
"  Major-General  U.S.A.  Comniunding. 
"  Seflor  D.  Pedro  dh  Ampiidia, 
"  General-in-chief,  llonterey." 

Daring  the  day  a  cessation  of  hostilities  took  place, 
and,  at  the  request  of  Ampudia,  an  interview  took 
place  between  the  two  commanding  generals,  which 
resulted  in  the  capitulation,  and  to  which  I  have 
heretofore  referred. 

Before  I  refer  to  the  terms  granted  to  the  Mexicans, 
and  which  occasioned  wide-spread  comment  and  dis- 
satisfaction both  at  Washington  and  in  the  army, — in 
the  latter,  a  reflex  of  the  former, — I  shall  give  ex- 
tracts from  the  official  report  of  General  Taylor: 

"  Upon  occupying  the  city  it  was  discovered  to  be  of  great 
strength  in  itself,  and  to  have  its  approaches  carefully  and 
strongly  fortified.  The  town  and  works  were  armed  witli  forty- 
two  pieces  of  cannon,  well  supplied  with  ammunition,  and  manned 
with  a  force  of  at  least  seven  thousand  troops  of  the  line  and 
from  two  thousand  to  three  thousand  irregulars.  The  force 
under  my  orders  before  Monterey  was  four  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  officers  and   six  thousand  two  hundred  and  twenty  men. 


236  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

Our  artillery  consisted  of  one  ten-inch  mortar,  two  twenty-four- 
pound  howitzers,  and  four  light  field  batteries  of  four  guns— the 
mortar  being  the  only  piece  suitable  to  the  operations  of  the 
siege. 

"  Our  loss  is  twelve  officers  and  one  hundred  and  eight  men 
killed;  thirty-one  officers  and  three  hundred  and  thirty-seven 
men  wounded.*  That  of  the  enemy  is  not  known,  but  is  be- 
lieved to  considerably  exceed  our  own." 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  officers  killed  or  those 
Mdio  died  from  their  wounds,  and  the  list  of  the 
wounded,  in  the  operations  about  Monterey : 

Captain  Williams,  Topographical  Engineers. 
Major  W.  W.  Lear,  Third  Infantry. 
Lieutenant  J.  C.  Terrett,  First  Infantry. 
Lieutenant  R.  Dilworth,  First  Infantry. 
Captain  L.  N.  Morris,  Third  Infantry. 
Captain  G.  P.  Field,  Third  Infantry. 
Captain  and  Brevet-Major  P.  N.  Barbour,  Third  Infantry. 
Lieutenant  D.  S.  Irwin,  Third  Infantry. 
Lieutenant  R.  Hazlitt,  Third  Infantry. 
Lieutenant  C.  Hoskins,  Fourth  Infantry. 
Brevet-Lieutenant  J.  S.  Wood,  of  the  Second  Infantry  ;  serv- 
ing with  the  Fourth  Infantry. 

Captain  H.  McKavett,  Eighth  Infantry. 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Wm.  H.  Watson,  Baltimore  Battalion. 
Lieutenant  Hett,  First  Ohio  Volunteers. 
Captain  Allen,  First  Tennessee  Volunteers. 
Lieutenant  Putnam,  First  Tennessee  Volunteers. 
Captain  Gillespie,  Texas  Rangers. 

Among  the  wounded  officers  were 

Major-General  Butler,  slightly  ;  Lieutenant- Colonel  McCliing, 
of  the  First  Mississippi  Rifles,  severely;  Colonel  Mitchell,  of  the 

*  The  total  loss  in  Worth's  Division,  killed  and  wounded,  in 
the  operations  about  Monterey,  was  fifty-five,  which  of  course  is 
included  in  the  above  aggregate  of  four  hundred  and  eighty-eight. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  I37 

First  Ohio  Volunteers,  slightly  ;  Major  Mansfield,  of  the  Engineer 
Corps;  Major  J.  S.  Abercronibie,  of  the  First  Infantry;  Captain 
J.  H.  Lamotte,  of  the  First  Infantry ;  Major  H.  Bainbridge,  of  the 
Third  Infantry  ;  Lieutenant  R.  H.  Graham,  of  the  Fourth  In- 
fantry;  Lieutenant  N.  B.  Rossell,  of  the  Fifth  Infantry;  Captain 
R.  C.  Gatlin  and  Lieutenant  I.  H.  Pollet,  of  the  Seventh  Infantry ; 
and  Lieutenant  C.  Wainwright,  of  the  Eighth  Infantry. 

The  following  is  the  list  of  the  killed  or  who  died 
from  their  wounds,  and  the  wounded,  of  the  battalion 
of  Baltimore  and  Washington  Volunteers,  in  the  opera- 
tions about  Monterey,  Mexico,  September  21st,  22d, 
and  23d,  1846  : 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Wm.  H.  Watson,  Commanding  Battalion, 
killed. 

Orderly   Sergeant   and   Acting    Lieutenant   John    Truscott, 
Company  D,  killed. 
Sergeant  George  A.  Herring,  Company  F,  killed. 
Private  Wm.  J.  Alexander,  Company  A,  killed. 

"         Robert  Caples,  Company  A,  killed. 

"         Patrick  O'Brien,  Company  B,  killed. 

"         Alexander  Ramsay,  Company  E,  killed. 

"         Joseph  Wharry,  Company  E,  killed. 

"        William  Kelly,  Company  F,  killed. 

WOUNDED. 

Private  Joseph  Files,  Company  A,  lost  an  arm. 

"        William  Lee,  Company  A,  shot  through  the  body. 

"         Robert  Donnelly,  Company  A,  slightly. 
Orderly  Sergeant  Wm.  F.  Powelson,  Company  B,  slightly. 
Private  George  Harrold,  Company  B,  slightly. 

"         Charles  Yeck,  Company  D,  slightly. 

"        Andrew  J.  Morris,  Company  D,  slightly. 
Color  Sergeant  Albert  Hart,  lost  an  arm. 
Color-Guard  Corporal  Jacob  C.  Hemmick,  slightly. 
Orderly  Sergeant  G.  Oliver  Lansdale,  Company  E,  slightly. 
Private  John  Allen,  Company  E,  slightly. 


138 


MEMOIRS  OF  A 


Private  James  Henry,  Company  E,  severely. 

Harry  I.  Elting,  Company  E,  slightly. 
Henry  Gilford,  Company  F,  slightly. 
Melvin  S.  Stone,  Company  P,  slightly. 
Edward  Stephenson,  Company  F,  slightly. 
Total :     Killed,  nine  ;  wounded,  sixteen  ;  aggregate,  twenty- 
five. 

"  The  battle  is  over  :  the  army,  both  regulars  and  volunteers,— 
or  more  properly  speaking,  Americans, — have  proved  themselves 
invincible.  Both  officers  and  men,  with  death  staring  them  in 
the  face,  did  their  duty  without  flinching,  and  with  a  bravery 
worthy  of  all  pr&ise."— From  "  Campaign  Sketches,"  by  Cap- 
tain W.  8.  Henry,  Third  Infantry. 

A  meeting  of  the  officers  of  the  battalion  was  held 
in  camp,  on  September  27th,  for  the  purpose  of 
expressing  the  regret  felt  by  the  battalion,  and  the 
loss  it  had  met  with,  in  the  death  of  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  William  H.  Watson,  of  Baltimore,  its  late 
commanding  officer.  Resolutions  were  passed,  eulo- 
gizing the  character  of  the  deceased,  and  manifesting 
deep  sympathy  for  his  bereaved  family ;  a  committee 
was  also  appointed  to  prepare  suitable  resolutions  for 
transmission  to  the  newspapers  of  Baltimore  City,  for 
publication,  so  that  the  sense  of  the  meeting  might  be 
made  known  to  the  people  of  Maryland. 

Before  1  give  place  to  the  report  of  Captain  James 
E.  Steuart,  the  senior  captain  of  the  battalion,  I  tran- 
scribe the  following  congratulatory  order  of  General 
Taylor : 

"Headquarters  Army  of  Occupation, 
"Camp  hear  JIonterey,  September  27,  1846. 
"Orders  No.  123. 

"  The  commanding  general  has  the  satisfaction  to  congratulate 
the  army  under  his  command  upon  another  signal  triumph  over 
the  Mexican  forces,  superior  to  us  in  numbers,  strongly  fortified, 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  I39 

and  with  an  immense  preponderance  of  artillery.  They  have 
yet  been  driven  from  point  to  point,  until  forced  to  sue  for  terms 
of  capitulation.  Such  terms  have  been  granted  as  were  con- 
sidered due  to  the  gallant  defense  of  the  town,  and  to  the  liberal 
policy  of  our  own  government. 

"The  general  begs  to  return  his  thanks  to  his  commanders, 
and  to  all  his  officers  and  men,  both  of  the  regular  and  volunteer 
forces,  for  the  skill,  the  courage,  and  the  perseverance  with  which 
they  have  overcome  manifold  difficulties,  and  finally  achieved  a 
victory,  shedding  lustre  upon  the  American  arms. 

"A  great  result  has  been  obtained,  but  not  without  the  loss  of 
many  gallant  and  accomplished  officers  and  brave  men.  The 
array  and  country  will  deeply  sympathize  with  the  families  and 
friends  of  those  who  have  thus  sealed  their  devotion  with  their 
lives. 

"  By  order  of  Major-General  Taylor. 

"  W.  W.  S.  Bliss, 

"A.  A.  G." 

Official  Report  of  Captain  James  E.  Steuari,  commanding 
officer  of  the  Battalion  of  Baltimore  and  Waahington  Volunteers. 

"  Camp  near  Monterey,  Mexico, 
September  26,  1846. 

"The  battalion  of  Maryland  and  D.  C.  Volunteers,  under  the 
command  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Watson,  connected  with  the  First 
Regiment  of  Infantry,  the  whole  under  the  command  of  Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Wilson,  were  ordered  to  march  at  about  8  o'clock 
on  the  morning  of  the  21st  inst,  for  the  attack  on  Monterey. 
The  battalion  were  out  in  their  full  strength,  save  Company  C, 
Captain  Bi'onaugh,  which  was  ordered  to  remain  on  guard-duty 
at  camp,  and  Lieutenant  Owen,  of  Company  A,  with  a  detach- 
ment of  twelve  men,  were  ordered  on  picket-guard  by  General 
Twiggs.  The  battalion  marched  towards  the  city,  and  charged 
in  the  most  gallant  manner  on  a  battery,  under  a  galling  fire  in 
which  it  sustained  some  loss.  The  point  of  attack  was  then 
changed  by  order  of  Colonel  Garland,  and  we  entered  the  city 
exposed  to  a  destructive  fire  from  several  batteries,  supported  by 
a  large  number  of  infantry,  which  raked  the  streets. 

"We  remained  in  the  city  for  nearly  half  an  hour,  when  we 


140  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

were  ordered  to  retire  ;  in  doing  so,  the  battalion  became  sepa- 
rated. Colonel  Watson  fell  by  a  musket-shot,  whilst  gallantly- 
leading  on  to  a  second  assault  on  the  city. 

"A  portion  of  the  battalion  was  then  formed  under  Captain 
Kenly,  and  remained  on  the  field  of  battle  until  it  was  ordered 
back  to  camp  by  General  Twiggs,  having  been  under  a  heavy 
fire  nearly  nine  hours,  losing  in  action:  killed,  six;  wounded, 
eighteen.* 

"I  take  pleasure  in  noticing  the  gallant  conduct  of  the  battalion 
throughout. 

"(Signed)  "  James  E.  Steuart, 

"  Captain  Commanding." 

It  will  be  observed  that  this  report  bears  date  the 
26th  day  of  September.  On  the  preceding  day  I  had 
handed  to  Captain  Steuart  my  report  of  the  opera- 
tions on  the  21st  inst.,  in  which  I  reported  that  I  had 
rallied  the  battalion  after  we  had  come  out  of  the 
town,  and,  finding  myself  the  senior  officer  present, 
had  assumed  command,  had  kept  it  in  action,  and 
fought  with  it,  until  ordered  at  nightfall  to  return  to 
camp.  I  also  reported  the  names  of  the  officers 
who  were  present  with  their  companies,  and  their 
gallant  conduct  during  the  day. 

I  was  on  friendly  terras  with  Captain  Steuart,  had 
seen  him  behave  with  as  much  bravery  as  any  man 
in  the  brigade  in  the  assault  on  the  fort,  and  never 
dreamed  that  he  would  do  me  the  wrong  to  withhold 
from  the  commanding  general  the  official  knowledge 
of  my  conduct  on  the  21st. 

He  did  withhold  it,  and  also  his  own  official  report, 
until  it  was  too  late  for  me  to  remedy  the  wrong;  and 


*  Three  of  these   were  mortally  wounded,  and  two  of  them 
were  dead  at  the  date  of  this  report. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  I4I 

the  consequence  was,  my  name  was  not  mentioned  in 
general  orders  from  the  headquarters  of  the  army. 

The  bare  mention  of  this  behavior  will  convey  to 
a  soldier,  after  reading  Captain  Steuart's  own  report, 
a  proper  sense  of  the  grievous  and  irreparable  wrong 
done  me. 

A  few  days  after  the  capitulation,  an  officer  came 
to  me,  direct  from  General  Taylor's  tent,  and  in  a 
surprised  manner  asked  me  why  no  report  had  been 
received  from  the  Baltimore  Battalion.  I  was  con- 
founded. He  said,  moreover,  that  General  Twiggs 
and  General  Taylor  had  both  sent  to  Captain  Steuart, 
saying  that  they  were  waiting  for  his  report. 

I  hurried  to  the  tent  of  Steuart,  and,  in  as  quiet  a 
manner  as  I  could,  inquired  if  he  had  not  sent  in  his 
official  report  to  headquarters.  He  hesitated,  and 
then  answered  that  he  had  done  so.  I  then  asked  if 
he  had  mentioned  my  name.  He  replied  that  he  had 
done  so. 

I  told  him  that  I  had  heard  differently,  but  must 
content  myself  with  his  assurance.  Still  not  satisfied, 
I  called  upon  him  again  in  the  course  of  the  day,  when 
he  ngain  assured  me  that  he  had  sent  in  his  report  and 
had  mentioned  my  conduct. 

It  never  occurred  to  me  at  the  time  to  inquire  by 
whom  he  had  sent  it,  but  subsequent  events  gave  me 
good  reason  to  believe  that,  even  if  sent,  it  had  been 
destroyed  by  the  messenger,  as  it  never  reached  Gen- 
eral Twiggs's  headquarters. 

There  was  one  very  bad  man  and  bad  counselor 
about  Captain  Steuart's  headquarters. 

If  I  had  only  had  the  presence  of  mind  to  have 


142  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

gone  further,  and  traced  the  report, — for  it  was  un- 
doubtedly written,  as  Steuart  said, — I  would  yet  have 
been  in  time  for  General  Taylor's  report ;  but  unfor- 
tunately it  never  entered  my  thoughts. 

The  foregoing  report,  from  the  copy  in  the  Adju- 
tant's office,  was  subsequently  published  in  the  Bal- 
timore newspapers,  and  to  some  extent  satisfied  my 
friends. 

The  report-is  strictly  and  literally  true,  as  far  as  it 
goes,  except  that  we  remained  in  the  city  longer  than 
Captain  Steuart  reports ;  but  nothing  whatever  is 
said  of  the  movements  of  the  battalion  on  the  second 
and  third  days,  although  he  led  the  battalion  on  the 
third  day  and  was  present  for  duty  on  the  second 
day  of  the  battle ;  and  everything  done  by  the  bat- 
talion on  the  first  day  after  the  fall  of  Watson,  except 
that  I  formed  the  battalion  and  remained  on  the  field, 
is  quietly  ignored. 


CHAPTER   X. 

CAPITULATION     OF     MONTEREY. 

In  his  dispatches  to  the  government.  General 
Taylor  wrote  concerning  the  terms  granted  the  garri- 
son by  the  capitulation : 

"  It  will  be  seen  that  the  terms  granted  the  Mexican  garrison 
are  less  rigorous  than  those  first  imposed.  The  gallant  defense 
of  the  town,  and  the  fact  of  a  recent  change  of  government  in 
Mexico  believed  to  be  favorable  to  the  interests  of  peace,  induced 
me  to  concur  with  the  commission  in  these  terms,  which  will,  I 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  I43 

trust,  receive  the  approval  of  the  government.  The  latter  con- 
sideration also  prompted  the  convention  for  a  temporary  suspen- 
sion of  hostilities.  Though  scarcely  warranted  by  my  instructions, 
yet  the  change  of  affairs  since  those  instructions  were  issued 
seemed  to  warrant  this  course.  I  beg  to  be  advised  as  early  as 
practicable  whether  I  have  met  the  views  of  the  government  in 
these  particulars." 

The  Honorable  William  L.  Marcy,  Secretary  of 
War,  replied  in  a  letter  dated  "  War  Department, 
Washington,  October  13th,  1846"  (see  Ex.  Doc.  No. 
60,  page  355,  etc.)  : 

"Tour  communications  of  the  22d,  23d,  and  25th  ult.,  detail- 
ing the  operations  of  the  army  under  your  immediate  command 
at  Monterey,  have  been  received.  The  skill,  courage,  and  gal- 
lant conduct  displayed  on  that  occasion  by  the  troops  underyour 
command,  both  regulars  and  volunteers,  have  added  glory  to  our 
arms,  and  merit  from  the  government  and  people  of  the  United 
States  the  warmest  expressions  of  gratitude  and  praise. 

"In  relation  to  the  terms  of  the  capitulation  of  Monterey,  the 
President  instructs  me  to  say  that  he  regrets  it  was  not  deemed 
advisable  to  insist  upon  the  terms  which  you  had  first  proposed. 
The  circumstances  which  dictated  doubtless  justified  the  change. 
The  President,  uninformed  of  these  circumstances,  does  not  know 
ia  what  degree  the  recent  change  in  the  government  of  Me:!^iuo 
may  have  contributed  to  this  result.  Certain  it  is,  however,  that 
the  present  rulers  of  that  republic  have  not  yet  given  any  evidence 
that  they  are  '  favorable  to  the  interests  of  peace.'  Of  this  you 
will  have  already  been  informed  by  my  dispatch  of  the  22d  ult. 

"The  government  did  not  contemplate,  as  you  will  perceive 
by  the  tenor  of  the  dispatches  from  this  department,  that  there 
would  probably  happen  any  contingency  in  the  prosecution  of 
the  war  in  which  it  would  be  expedient  to  suspend  hostilities 
before  the  offer  of  acceptable  terms  of  peace." 

As  this  subject  of  the  capitulation  was  the  general 
topic  of  conversation  after  the  fall  of  Monterey,  I 


144  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

have  chosen  to  present  the  views  of  the  government 
before  making  any  reflections  of  my  own. 

The  army  was  very  much  divided  in  opinion  ;  those 
opposed  to  its  terms  as  being  too  lenient  increased  in 
numbers  with  the  number  of  days  elapsing  from  the 
surrender  of  the  town.  At  that  time,  and  when  the 
terms  granted  the  garrison  were  first  made  known,  I 
hazard  the  assertion  that  not  one  hundred  men 
thought  them  too  liberal,  although  a  very  large  num- 
ber became  dissatisfied  when  they  saw  the  Mexicans 
marching  out,  carrying  with  them  the  very  battery 
of  twelve-pounders  from  the  citadel  which  had  caused 
us  so  much  loss.  I  confess  that  I  did  not  like  this, 
and  felt  uncomfortable  at  the  sight;  but  I  had  been, 
was,  and  am  now  unequivocally  of  the  opinion  that 
General  Taylor's  wisdom  in  securing  the  surrender  of 
the  town  and  fortifications  of  Monterey  was  as  great 
as  his  courage  and  boldness  in  the  attack  upon  it. 
Aside  from  the  claims  of  humanity,  the  helpless  con- 
dition of  the  women  and  children,  our  own  disparity 
of  force  and  distance  from  base  of  supplies,  I  saw 
enough  of  the  Mexican  troops  when  they  marched 
out,  to  satisfy  me  that  they  only  lacked  one  daring 
leader  to  have  made  their  escape  or  a  successful  de- 
fense. They  went  out  sullenly,  defiantly,  and  their 
attitude  was  such  as  to  create  a  well-foimded  appre- 
hension that  a  collision  would  occur  between  them 
and  our  troops  who  lined  the  roadside.  This  behavior 
increased  the  feeling  against  the  capitulation;  and 
when  it  became  known  that  the  administration  had 
manifested  its  disapproval,  its  opponents  largely  out- 
numbered its  defenders.     Another  cause,  to  which  I 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  ^45 

shall  hereafter  refer,  added  to  the  clamors  against 
General  Taylor  and  fault-finding  with  his  conduct 
toward  the  Mexicans ;  but  it  came  from  those  who 
would  not  have  followed  him  when  he  bared  his  breast 
in  the  shock  of  battle,  and  who  were  too  heartless 
to  appreciate  the  nobility  of  character  possessed  by 
their  chief.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  I  met  with  no 
one  who  had  been  in  the  assaults  of  the  first  day  on 
the  eastern  defenses  that  found  fault  with  the  terms, 
and  I  could  tell,  as  soon  as  I  heard  an  opinion  ex- 
pressed, what  part  the  speaker  had  taken,  and  to  what 
corps  he  belonged,  in  the  battles  which  resulted  in  the 
surrender  of  Monterey. 

It  was  a  long  time  after  this  before  I  became  ac- 
quainted with  the  views  of  the  general ;  and,  as  I 
have  never  seen  them  in  print  except  in  a  public 
document,  it  is  due  to  his  memory  to  aid  in  their 
preservation. 

I  give  the  letter  entire,  as  it  can  be  found  in  the 
Executive  Document  before  referred  to,  pages  359,  360. 

"  Headquarteks  Armt  of  Occupation, 
"  Camp  neak  Monterey,  November  8,  1846. 

"  Sir, — In  reply  to  so  much  of  the  communication  of  the  Secre- 
tary of  War,  dated  October  13ih,  as  relates  to  the  reasons  which 
induced  the  convention  resulting  in  the  capitulation  of  Monterey, 
I  have  the  honor  to  submit  the  following  remarks  : 

"The  convention  presents  two  distinct  points  : 

"  Firat. — The  permission  granted  the  Mexican  army  to  retire 
with  their  arms,  etc. 

"  Secondly. — The  temporary  cessation  of  hostilities  for  the  term 
of  eight  weeks.     I  shall  remark  on  these  in  order. 

"  The  force  with  which  I  advanced  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 

10 


146  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

grouQd,  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,  and 
could  not  be  closed,  as  were  also  other  minor  tracks  and  passes 
through  the  mountains.  Had  we  therefore  insisted  on  more 
rigorous  terms  than  those  granted,  the  result  would  have  been 
the  escape  of  the  body  of  the  Mexican  force,  with  the  destruc- 
tion of  its  artillery  and  magazines;  our  only  advantage  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 
convention,  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  dis- 
covered 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 
powder,  which  must  have  ultimately  resulted  from  a  continuance 
of  the  bombardment,  would  have  been  infinitely  disastrous,  in- 
volving the  destruction  not  only  of  the  Mexican  troops,  but  of 
non-combatants,  and  even  our  own  people,  bad  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  arras.  It  paralyzed  the  enemy 
during  a  period  when,  from  the  want  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  dili- 
gence 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  my  headquarters 
on  the  same  day  with  the  Secretary's  communication  of  October 
13tb,  viz.,  the  2d  instant.  At  the  date  of  the  surrender  of  Mon- 
terey, our  force  had  not  more  than  ten  days'  rations;  and  even 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  I47 

now,  with  all  oui' endeavors,  we  have  not  more  than  twentj'-five. 
The  task  of  fightinj^  and  beating  the  enemy  is  among  the  least 
difficult  that  we  encounter  ;  the  great  question  of  supplies  neces- 
sarily controls  all  the  operations  in  a  country  like  this.  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  nie,  or  without  waiting  the  result 
of  the  main  operations  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  con- 
ference with  General  Ampudia,  I  wasdistincth'  told  by  him  that 
he  had  invited  it  to  spare  the  effusion  of  blood,  and  because 
General  Santa  Anna  had  declared  himself  favorable  to  peace. 
I  knew  that  our  government  had  made  propositions  to  that  of 
Mexico  to  negotiate,  and  I  deemed  that  the  change  of  govern- 
ment in  that  country  since  my  last  instructions  fully  warranted 
me  in  entertaining  considerations  of  policy.  My  grand  motive 
in  moving  forward  with  very  limited  supplies  had  been  to  in- 
crease 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  bad  the  very  best  reason  for  believing 
the  statement  of  General  Ampudia  to  be  true.  It  was  my 
opiaion  at  the  time  of  tlie  convention,  and  it  has  not  been 
changed,  that  the  liberal  treatment  of  the  Mexican  army,  and 
the  suspension  of  arras,  would  exert  none  but  a  favorable  influ- 
ence 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 
themselves  to  the  minds  of  all  who  are  acquainted  with  the  con- 


148  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

dition  of  things  here.     To  that  end  I  beg  that  it  may  be  laid 
before  the  General-in-Chief  and  the  Secretary  of  War. 
"  I  am,  sir,  very  respectfully, 

"Your  obedient  servant, 
"  (Signed)  "  Z.  Taylor, 

"  Major-General  U.  S.  A.  Commanding. 

"To  the  Adjutant-General  of  the  Arnij',  Washington,  D.  0." 

Whilst  I  fully  agree  with  the  plain  but  cogent  reasons 
so  simply  stated  by  General  Taylor  to  be  laid  before 
the  Secretary  of  War,  I  cannot  and  did  not  coincide 
with  the  view  entertained  by  him,  "  that  the  liberal 
treatment  of  the  Mexican  army,  and  the  suspension 
of  arms,  would  exert  none  but  a  favorable  influence  in 
our  behalf"  I  think  that  the  general  was  clearly  in 
error  in  this  idea,  and  that  his  mistake  arose  from  the 
impression  which  prevailed  at  liis  headquarters  that 
the  Mexicans  were  desirous  of  making  peace,  I  have 
heretofore  said,  and  now  repeat  it,  that  up  to  this  time 
I  had  found  none  in  favor  of  yielding  one  iota  of  the 
demand  for  the  evacuation  of  their  territory  by  our 
troops;  but  that  Taylor  gained  more  than  did  the 
Mexicans  by  the  suspension  of  arms,  is  too  clear  for 
controversy,  and  the  Mexicans,  being  deceived  as  to 
our  supplies  and  means  of  transportation,  were  the 
losers  by  their  own  proposition,  upon  which  Ampudia 
prided  himself  very  much  for  his  diplomacy. 

But  motives  of  state  policy,  though  in  the  mind  of 
General  Taylor  and  duly  considered,  were  not  the 
main  reasons  for  granting  the  terms  he  did  ;  these 
were  purely  military,  conjoined  with  a  strong  feeling 
of  humanity.  His  sentiment  of  pity  for  the  helpless 
inhabitants  of  Monterey  coincided  with  his  opinion. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  149 

as  a  military  chief,  that  the  actual  status  of  things 
justified  letting  go  the  garrison  for  the  sake  of  the 
other  and  manifest  advantages  resulting  to  his  arms 
from  the  acquisition  of  the  city,  its  munitions,  and  its 
fortifications.  Whatever  might  be  the  future  policy 
of  his  own  or  the  Mexican  government,  he  had  cap- 
tured the  capital  of  an  important  State  of  the  Mexican 
Eepublic,  had  strengthened  his  base  for  further  offen- 
sive movements,  and  had  added  very  greatly  to  the 
prestige  of  American  valor  by  inspiring  confidence  in 
the  steadiness  of  his  volunteer  forces.  How  fully  the 
latter  view  was  sustained  by  the  result  of  further 
operations,  history  is  familiar  with,  and  Buena  Vista 
strengthened  the  confidence  which  those  who  knew 
him  entertained  for  the  judgment  as  well  as  the  mili- 
tary capacity  of  General  Taylor. 

In  this  connection  1  beg  attention  to  the  official 
dispatch  of  General  Ampudia,  which  must  be  read  with 
the  previous  proclamations  issued  by  him,  to  be  prop- 
erly appreciated. 

"Official  dispatch  of  General  Ampudia  to  the  Mexican  Secretarii 
of  War,  announcing  the  surrender  of  Monterey. 

"Most  Excellent  Sir, — After  a  brilliant  defense,  in  the 
course  of  which  the  enemy  was  repulsed  with  the  loss  of  fifteen 
hundred  men  from  various  posts,  he  succeeded  in  possessing  him- 
self of  the  heights  eomniandiag  the  bishop's  palace,  and  another 
to  the  south  of  it,  and  likewise  a  detached  breastwork  called  the 
Teneria,  and  continuing  his  attacks  through  the  houses,  which 
he  pierced  in  a  direction  toward  the  centre  of  the  city,  he 
succeeded  in  posting  himself  within  half-gunshot  of  the  principal 
square,  where  the  troops  were  posted,  who  suffered  much  from 
the  hollow  shot.  Under  these  circumstances  I  was  requested  hj 
various  principal  officers  to  come  to  such  terms  as  would  dimin- 


]^50  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

ish  our  losses;  for  to  open  our  way  with  the  bayonet,  surrounded 
as  we  were  by  intrenched  enemies,  would  have  resulted  in  the 
dispersal  of  the  troops,  and  nothing  of  the  materiel  would  have 
been  saved.  These  considerations  having  been  weighed  by  me, 
I  also  took  into  view  what  the  city  suffered,  and  would  suffer 
from  the  attacks  by  the  piercing  of  the  houses  as  well  as  the 
destruction  by  the  bombs,  the  scarcity  of  ammunition  which  was 
beginning  to  be  felt,  the  provisions  which  we  were  losing  as  the 
enemy's  lines  approached  the  centre,  the  distance  from  our  sup- 
plies, and,  finally,  that  to  protract  this  state  of  things  for  two  or 
three  days,  even  if  it  were  possible  to  do  so,  could  not  end  in  a 
triumph;  and  I  consented  to  open  propositions  which  resulted  in 
the  annexed  terms  of  capitulation.* 

"Your  excellency  will  perceive  that  they  preserve  the  honor 
of  the  nation  and  that  of  the  army,  and  it  is  to  be  observed  that 
if  they  do  not  grant  us  as  much  as  was  perhaps  expected,  that 
of  itself  proves  the  superiority  of  the  enemy,. — not  in  valor,  which 
he  displayed  in  most  of  the  combats,  but  in  his  position  within 
the  squares  of  pierced  masonry,  which  surrounded  the  square 
and  cut  off  any  supplies  of  provisions,  wood,  or  other  articles 
necessary  to  subsistence. 

"  With  the  greatest  regret  the  army  withdraws  from  their 
capital  abundantly  watered  with  its  blood,  leaving  under  the 
guaranties  of  the  promises  of  the  American  generals  the  severely 
wounded  and  the  neighboring  population  of  the  State,  whose 
civil  authorities  will  continue  in  the  exercise  of  their  functions. 
To-morrow  I  shall  continue  my  march  to  Saltillo,  where  I  will 
await  the  orders  of  the  Supreme  Government ;  and  in  commu- 
nicating this  to  you  I  have  the  honor  to  reiterate  the  assurances 
of  ray  highest  respect. 

"  God  and  liberty. 

"(Signed)  "Pedro  de  Amptjdia. 

"  Headquarteks  in  Monterey,  September  25,  184G." 

My  desire  has  been  to  place  this  matter  of  the  cap- 
ture of  Monterey  and  the  incidents  connected  there- 

*  These  have  already  been  given. 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  I5I 

with  fairly  on  record ;  I  have  endeavored  to  do  so, 
and  upon  review  am  willing  to  let  it  stand  as  true. 
Much  of  what  I  have  written  passed  under  my  own 
knowledge,  and  when  I  consulted  contemporaneous 
authority  I  sought  that  whose  authenticity  could  not 
be  questioned. 


CHAPTER    XI. 

IN    CAMP    AT   WALNUT    SPRINGS. 

General  Taylor  established  his  headquarters  at 
Monterey  in  the  woods  at  "Walnut  Springs,  and  the 
troops  were  camped  pretty  much  as  they  halted  for  the 
bivouac  of  the  19th  of  September,  in,  around,  and 
about  this  wood  of  San  Domingo.  The  Baltimore 
Battalion  selected  a  new  camp  a  little  distance  from 
their  bivouac,  and  not  far  from  the  modest  tent  of 
the  general  commanding  the  army  of  occupation. 
Immediately  in  front  of  the  general's  tent, — there  be- 
ing an  open  space  of  some  extent, — the  Mexicans  from 
the  surrounding  country,  who,  with  that  instinct  char- 
acteristic of  all  peoples,  knew  that  Old  Zack  was  their 
friend,  had  quietly  established  a  market  for  the  sale 
of  their  products  directly  under  his  eyes,  and  which 
he  permitted  to  continue  as  long  as  we  were  in  camp 
near  Monterey.  They  felt  that  they  were  safe  there ; 
and  I  am  sorry  to  say  it  was  about  the  only  safe 
place  for  them  within  a  circuit  of  twenty  miles. 
Already,  within  a  few  days  after  the  surrender,  a 
series  of  wanton  outrages  had  been  perpetrated  upon 


152  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

the  inoflfensive  inhabitants,  which  caused  the  liveliest 
sense  of  indignation  among  our  best  troops,  and  pro- 
voked bloody  retaliation  from  the  Mexicans.  The 
matter  was  growing  serious;  it  was  no  uncommon 
thing  for  several  dead  Mexicans  to  be  found  lying  in 
the  road,  daily,  between  camp  and  town,  and  our 
men  would  be  assailed  on  their  way  to  camp  from 
town,  and  several  had  been  seriously  wounded.  My 
Second  Sex'geant,  Benjamin  F.  Brand,  was  dreadfully 
woilnded  between  town  and  camp  by  a  gang  of  Mexi- 
can desperadoes ;  this  was  followed  in  a  few  days  by 
a  wholesale  slaughter  of  Mexicans,  but  not  by  our 
men.  The  general  sentiment  of  the  army  was  one  of 
horror,  and  a  resolute  determination  to  put  an  end  to 
this  state  of  things.  In  the  mean  time.  Governor 
Morales,  of  Monterey,  addressed  a  note  to  General 
Taylor,  saying  "  that  multitudes  of  complaint  have 
been  made  to  this  government  against  excesses  com- 
mitted upon  the  persons  and  property  of  Mexicans, 
and  that  he  had  just  been  informed  that  three  of  their 
citizens  had  been  killed,"  etc. 

To  this  the  general  replied  that  it  was  with  regret 
that  he  learned  there  was  just  cause  of  complaint, 
founded  upon  the  grounds  stated  by  his  excellency ; 
but  that  General  Worth  had  been  invested  with 
authority  to  adopt  measures  to  maintain  order  in  the 
city,  and  he  hoped  all  cause  of  further  complaints 
would  cease.  I  was  an  eyewitness  to  some  of  these 
transactions,  and  more  than  ever  admired  the  char- 
acter of  Taylor  for  the  active  steps  he  took  to  prevent 
a  continuance  of  these  brutalities,  both  by  friend  and 
foe ;  and  though  not  altogether  successful,  they  became 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  I53 

of  .less  frequent  occurrence,  and  a  better  feeling  grew 
up  between  our  people  and  the  Mexicans. 

It  was  the  strong  action  taken  by  Taylor  in  this 
relation  that,  as  I  have  before  alluded  to,  added  to 
the  clamors  on  the  part  of  some  against  the  policy 
which  dictated  the  terms  of  capitulation ;  but  the  old 
general  was  as  firm  in  the  camp  as  in  the  field,  and 
he  did  what  was  right. 

We  soon  commenced  drilling,  and,  jointly  with  the 
regulars  with  whom  we  were  brigaded,  advanced  in 
our  military  knowledge.  Our  camps  were  gradually 
brought  into  good  condition,  our  guards  well  instructed, 
and  picket  duty  carefully  attended  to.  Each  day 
added  to  the  conviction  that  the  war  had  but  begun, 
and  our  duty  as  soldiers  was  now  the  business  of  the 
day.  Our  table  was  scantily  supplied  with  govern- 
ment rations  :  this,  however,  made  the  delicious  fruit 
which  we  got  in  abundance  more  prized.  Bread,  eggs, 
oranges,  lemons,  pomegranates,  grapes,  and  bananas 
were  brought  daily  into  camp,  and  now  and  then  a 
cow,  and  then  a  goat,  were  brought  to  be  milked  at 
the  tent-door,  to  the  great  gratification  of  our  men.  It 
was  growing  cold,  fires  being  very  desirable  at  night, 
and,  as  we  had  no  candles  or  oil,  we  passed  our  even- 
ings around  the  camp-fires,  talking  and  gossiping  as 
only  soldiers  talk,  and  weaving  that  chain  of  camara- 
derie known  only  to  soldiers  and  sailors. 

We  have  just  learned  that  Ampudia  has  halted  at 
Saltillo,  of  course  issued  a  proclamation,  and,  after 
calling  on  the  people  to  take  up  arms,  says  that  Santa 
Anna  in  person  is  coming  to  direct  military  opera- 
tions against  the  invaders.    So  be  it. 


154  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

Our  men  begin  to  need  clothing,  particularly  shoes ; 
the  long  marches  have  been  very  destructive  to  the 
latter,  and  many  of  the  men  have  made  sandals  from 
raw  hide,  which  look  right  well ;  on  parade,  there  are 
a  good  many  without  jackets,  yet  they  look  soldier- 
like and  trim  with  their  cross-  and  waist-belts. 

We  have  just  learned  that  a  mail  for  our  army  has 
been  captured  by  the  Mexicans  and  sent  to  the  city 
of  Mexico.  Eumor  says,  moreover,  that  General 
Taylor  received  a  polite  note  from  Ampudia,  inform- 
ing him  of  the  fact.  We  have  been  for  several  days 
thinking  of  nothing  but  the  arrival  of  this  mail,  as 
none  of  us  had  heard  from  home  since  our  leaving 
there  :  our  letters,  we  were  constantly  told,  were  lying 
at  Point  Isabel  awaiting  an  escort ;  and  now  they 
were  under  the  escort  of  the  enemy.  I  think  this 
day  was  a  bad  day  for  Mexicans ;  the  general  feeling 
being,  what  I  heard  a  soldier  say,  "  He  would  just 
like  to  have  the  eating  of  a  Mexican."  Don't  take  a 
soldier's  letters  if  you  want  to  keep  on  his  best  side. 

It  is  getting  very  cold  at  night ;  still  not  a  candle  to 
be  had  for  love  or  mone}^,  though  there  is  very  little 
of  the  latter.  We  are  beginning  to  grumble,  which 
is  a  good  sign  of  health  and  progress  in  army  life. 
We  have  no  battalion  drills,  which  is  bad ;  company 
drills  twice  a  day;  squad  drills  at  all  hours;  guard- 
monnt,  dress-parade,  five  daily  roll-calls,  then  tattoo 
and  taps ;  this  is  our  routine. 

Hurrah !  I  have  received  some  prize-money,  or 
rather  loot,  in  the  shape  of  cigars.  I  received  two 
hundred  cigars,— my  share,  as  captain,  of  those  taken 
at  the  capture  of  Monterey,  and  condemned  as  public 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  155 

property.  I  really  think  that  at  the  time  I  would 
have  preferred  them  to  as  many  hard  dollars ;  now  I 
think  differently. 

Nothing  can  exceed  the  beauty  of  the  surrounding 
scenery.  The  mountains  are  grand,  especially  at  sun- 
rise and  sunset.  1  have  seen  the  two  peaks  of  the 
spur  called  from  its  shape  the  "  Comanche  Saddle," 
connected  with  a  light  strip  of  white  cloud,  and  as 
the  rising  sun  would  strilce  it  fleeces  were  thrown 
upward  like  the  railing  on  a  bridge,  presenting  the 
appearance  of  a  hand-railing  up  a  stairway,  and 
making  the  whole  look  as  if  a  bridge  had  been  built 
up  there  for  pedestrians  to  walk  with  safety  across 
the  chasm  between  the  peaks. 

May's  Second  Dragoons  are  now  passing  my  tent ; 
Bragg's  Artillery  are  drilling  on  my  left ;  the  band  of 
the  First  Infantry  is  practicing  its  usual  morning  ex- 
ercises, while  its  drums  and  fifes  are  off  in  the  chap- 
arral at  their  lesson ;  the  dead  march  is  being  played 
by  the  superior  band  of  the  Fourth  Infantry  at  the 
head  of  one  of  the  companies  following  a  comrade  to 
the  grave ;  crowds  of  soldiers  are  passing  and  repass- 
ing with  the  listlessness  of  men  off  duty,  and  with  the 
constant  interchange  of  rumors  remind  me  of  the 
scenes  I  have  witnessed  in  and  around  the  old 
Chronicle  office  at  Baltimore  when  we  were  waiting 
to  hear  from  beyond  the  Cayuga  bridge,  in  the  old  days 
of  waiting  to  hear  good  news  from  New  York,  and 
which,  by  the  by,  rarely  ever  came  to  our  wing  of  the 
political  army. 

On  yesterday  we  buried  Kelly,  of  Company  F, 
who  had  died  from  the  wounds  received  on  the  21st 


156  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

ultimo.  I  bad  many  reasons  to  feel  very  sad,  and 
followed  his  remains,  which  were  wrajDjaed  in  a 
blanket,  to  their  place  of  burial  with  more  than  usual 
mourning.  Our  single  fife  and  drum  were  playing 
the  dead  march  when  we  passed  in  front  of  the  First 
Infantry  Band  practicing ;  it  was  playing  "  Dance, 
Boatmen,  Dance,"  and  involuntarily  the  escort  and 
procession  stepped  off  to  the  music  of  its  quickstep, 
destroying  the  cadence  if  not  the  entire  solemnity 
of  the  parade.  How  forcibly  this  incident  struck  us, 
and  how  painfully  and  rapidly  the  smile  which  it 
occasioned  was  changed  to  sternness  of  step  and  de- 
meanor, will  not  soon  be  forgotten  by  those  who  were 
at  that  soldier's  funeral.  What  a  mockery  to  sing  "A 
Soldier's  Life  is  always  Gay"  ! 


CHAPTER   XII. 

SIGHT-SEEING     IN     MONTEREY. 

I  HAVE  been  into  town,  sight-seeing.  As  may  be 
well  supposed,  my  steps  were  first  directed  to  the 
corner  where  I  had  seen  so  many  officers  and  men 
fall.  It  looked  very  natural ;  the  houses  tenantless, 
doors  open,  walls  torn  and  tattered,  and  all,  save  the 
dead  and  dying,  the  din  and  uproar  of  battle,  very 
much  as  it  appeared  to  me  on  the  morning  of  the  21st. 
I  found  here  some  half-dozen  American  soldiers,  who 
like  myself  had  come  to  visit  a  well-remembered 
locality.      They  belonged    to   our    brigade,   and  we 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEEB.  I57 

spoke  quietly  together  of  incidents  of  battle  which 
had  been  shai^ed  in  common,  and  which  had  made  us 
friends  without  knowing  a  difference  of  rank.  From 
here  I  went  up  the  street  toward  the  bridge-head,  and 
examined  carefully  the  line  of  defenses,  and  more 
particularly  the  barricades.  I  learned  a  lesson  in 
constructing  them  from  these  erected  in  the  streets  of 
Monterey.  I  do  not  think  they  could  be  improved  or 
made  more  practically  useful.  I  found  the  streets 
paved  with  square  basaltic  rocks,  the  sidewalks  with 
large  even  flagstones.  In  many  of  the  streets  the 
pavement  was  torn  up  for  defensive  purposes,  sand- 
bag parapets  on  every  house,  walls  grenelled,  breast- 
works and  bastions  at  every  corner.  All  who  beheld 
these  defenses  were  amazed  that  they  were  abandoned ; 
it  appeared  to  me,  however,  that  they  were  crowded 
too  much — too  close  together,  and  I  was  not  surprised 
to  learn,  as  I  did  to-day  from  a  Mexican,  that  a  large 
number  of  their  infantry  had  not  fired  a  shot.  This 
is  not  improbable,  looking  to  the  number  so  impru- 
dently massed  about  the  centre  of  the  city,  and  who 
were  kept  doing  nothing  for  want  of  a  general. 

I  visited  the  cathedral,  and  was  surprised  to  find 
so  large  and  imposing  a  church.  Its  exterior  and 
interior  are  worthy  of  an  extended  visit.  Some  of 
the  paintings  appeared  to  me  handsome,  while  others 
were  ugly;  the  main  altar  was  really  grand,  and 
that  peculiar  religious  tout  ensemble  characteristic 
of  Catholic  worship  was  very  perceptible  in  this 
venerable  building.  I  also  visited  the  pride  of  the 
town,  the  palace  of  General  Arista,  a  very  wealthy 
citizen  of  Monterey.     Our  wounded  filled  its  corri- 


158  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

dors  and  marble-paved  halls,  around  whose  cots  heavy 
curtains,  mirrors,  vases,  paintings,  etc.  were  hanging 
and  arranged  in  careless  profusion.  The  gardens  and 
baths  were  fitted  up  in  luxurious  style,  and  the 
orange  and  the  pomegranate  mingled  their  perfume 
with  the  sweet  rose  of  our  own  dear  land.  All  was 
attractive,  nay,  enchanting. 

I  clambered  up  the  hill  on  the  west  of  the  town  to 
the  building  called  the  Obispada,  or  Bi.shop's  Palace. 
I  went  to  the  window  from  which  I  had  seen  the  first 
of  the  enemy  leap  when  Worth's  troops  carried  it  by 
assault.  The  view  from  this  windoAv  was  charming, 
— the  whole  plain  and  the  town  nestling  in  its  lap 
spread  out  before  me ;  our  camp  and  the  road  by 
which  we  had  approached  the  city  were  also  visible, 
and  at  my  feet  I  could  look  into  the  old  gray  fort, 
whose  guns  had  been  carried  off,  but  whose  unmis- 
takable visage  was  that  of  a  veteran  proud  of  his 
prowess. 

It  had  a  right  to  be,  as  all  will  bear  witness  who 
were  within  its  range  on  the  three  days  of  last  month. 

The  main  plaza  is,  however,  the  great  place  of 
attraction.  Here  are  already  located  billiard-saloons, 
restaurants,  and  drinking-saloons ;  in  the  centre  a 
market  is  held  daily,  around  which  our  soldiers  are 
thronging,  or  else  inspecting  the  cannon  surrendered 
by  the  enemy,  which  are  ranged  on  one  of  the  sides 
of  the  square.  Some  of  these  pieces  are  of  recent 
English  manufacture  and  in  excellent  condition,  as 
are  also  their  carriages ;  others  are  old  Spanish  bronze 
or  copper  guns  capable  of  good  service  ;  some  are  very 
old,  and  look  as  if  they  had  been  used  by  Cortez; 
altogether  there  are  forty-two  guns. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  159 

Having  a  twenty-four-hour  leave  of  absence,  I  went 
to  see  an  American  circus  to-night,  the  performance 
at  which  took  place  in  the  Mexican  cockpit.  There 
■were  a  great  many  of  our  officers  and  soldiers  present, 
— some  few  Mexicans ;  we  had  a  grand  entree  by  the 
whole  troupe,  and  then  the  usual  ring  ceremonies  ;  but 
the  feature  of  the  evening  was  the  riding  by  Dandy 
Jack  upon  the  celebrated  pony  Comanche.  The 
monkey's  face  was  as  familiar  as  if  he  were,  or  had 
been,  in  the  ring  at  Front  Street,  and  the  shouts 
with  which  our  men  greeted  his  horsemanship  must 
have  been  heard  at  camp.  I  noticed  that  the  Mexi- 
cans were  more  interested  in  the  contortions  of  the 
india-rubber  man  than  in  anything  else  exhibited. 
During  the  evening  quite  an  uproar  was  occasioned 
by  a  heavy  fall  of  rain  ;  the  galleries  of  the  circus 
were  uncovered, — open  to  the  heavens ;  up  here  the 
rank  and  file  were  accommodated,  and,  as  the  rain 
began  to  wet  them,  they  clamored  for  shelter.  The 
manager  agreed  that  they  might  find  places  beneath 
the  boxes  in  which  the  officers  were  standing;  they 
descended  the  ladder  by  which  they  had  reached  their 
elevation,  and  got  under  the  plank  flooring  upon 
which  we  stood.  Here  they  still  complained  of  being 
uncomfortable,  and  a  laughable  scene  of  confusion 
ensued,  the  pit — in  fact,  the  whole  circus — becoming 
so  tangled  up  that  the  clown  announced  from  the 
now  deserted  gallery  that,  owing  to  the  inclemency  of 
the  weather,  the  evening's  performances  were  ended. 
They  were  for  this  place,  but  not — in  town. 

It  is  astonishing  the  number  of  men,  non-com- 
batants, that  sprang  up,  as  if  by  magic,  around  this 


150  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

army  of  occupation.  Where  they  came  from  so 
suddenly  after  the  surrender,  nobody  could  tell,  but 
really  the  place  was  filled  with  them.  American 
stores,  American  goods,  American  drinks,  and  Ameri- 
can faro  had  driven  out  Mexican  shopkeepers  and 
gamblers,  and  where,  but  a  few  days  ago,  none  could 
be  seen  exdfept  in  uniform,  are  now  crowded  civilians 
of  every  tongue  and  people.  They  follow  the  array, 
never  precede  it ;  they  belong  nowhere, — no,  I  am 
wrong :  if  asked  where  they  are  from,  when  soliciting 
permission  "  to  open,"  they  invariably  answer.  New 
Orleans,  further  than  which  no  man  knoweth  to  the 
contrary,  and  don't  want  to  know,  for  you  had  better 
not  press  your  question. 


CHAPTEE    XIII. 

DEATH    OF     CAPTAIN    RIDGELY. 

October  20,  1846.  We  have  not  heard  from  the 
United  States  since  the  news  of  the  surrender  must 
have  reached  there,  and  we  are  all  anxiety  to  know 
Avhat  the  government  will  do  next.  Rumors  are  very 
abundant,  not  of  what  we  are  going  to  do,  but  what 
the  Mexicans  are  doing,  and  old  stories  revamped 
daily  are  flooding  the  camps.  One  day  we  hear  that 
Santa  Anna  is  within  ten  miles  of  Monterey  with 
fifteen  thousand  men ;  on  the  next  we  hear  that  the 
Mexican  Congress  has  made  peace  with  the  United 
States.     Every  shade  and  degree  between  these  two 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  Igl 

extremes  are  hourly  gossiped  and  discussed  with  an 
earnestness  that  would  be  laughable,  were  it  not  real. 
On  this  day  I  wrote  to  my  parents  a  letter,  from 
which  I  make  an  extract  verbatim,  as  it  proved  to  be 
a  prophecy: 

"  My  own  opinion  is  that  the  best  plan  (for  conducting  the 
war)  will  be  to  march  to  Tampico  and  operate  in  that  quarter ; 
for  it  would  be  suicidal  to  advance  to  San  Luis  Potosi  with  the 
army  which  we  have  ;  for  there  is  no  doubt  but  that  a  large  force 
is  there  to  oppose  us,  and,  even  if  we  should  drive  it  before  us, 
we  would  still  be  a  long  distance  from  the  capital,  where  alone 
the  terms  of  a  peace  can  be  dictated.  The  plan  of  the  campaign 
should  be  to  push  on  to  Tampico,  obtain  the  co-operation  of  the 
fleet,  reduce  this  important  town,  and  then,  ho  !  for  the  city  of 
Mexico  by  the  way  of  Vera  Cruz  :  and  I  should  not  be  surprised 
if  this  were  the  very  plan  of  operation  adopted." 

If  I  had  been  in  the  War  Department  at  "Washing- 
ton, and  in  the  councils  of  the  government,  at  the 
time  I  wrote  this  letter,  I  could  not  have  framed  a 
more  exact  plan  of  what  was  subsequently  done  than 
is  embraced  above. 

But  as  yet  we  had  heard  nothing,  and  the  armis- 
tice was  still  in  force. 

October  31.  I  have  a  sad  duty  now  to  perform, — 
to  record  the  death  of  my  friend  Captain  Randolph 
Ridgely. 

On  last  Sunday,  the  25th  inst.,  he  sent  over  a  horse 
to  my  camp  and  a  message  that  he  wanted  me  to 
accompany  him  to  town,  and  I  agreed  to  ride  with 
him.  In  the  course  of  the  morning  he  told  me  that 
he  had  received  an  invitation  to  dine  with  Lieu- 
tenant Mackall,  of  the  army,  commanding  a  Battery 
of  Light  Artillery,  and  that  I  was  also  invited ;  he  also 

11 


152  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

informed  me  where  Mackall's  quarters  were,  so  that, 
if  we  got  separated,  we  might  meet  there. 

Our  horses  had  been  put  away  in  the  yard  of  Mr. 
Lloyd  Tilghman's  sutler  store,  and  when  I  went  to  get 
mine,  I  was  told  that  Ridgely  had  just  left  and  that 
I  could  overtake  him,  as  he  was  on  the  road  to  Cap- 
tain Mackall's  Battery.  I  soon  saw  a  crowd,  and  to 
my  distress  learned  that  Captain  Ridgely  had  fallen 
from  his  horse.  I  have  before  said  that  the  streets  of 
Monterey  were  paved  with  basaltic  rocks,  and  many 
had  been  torn  up  to  form  barricades ;  in  the  main 
street  or  road  to  Saltillo,  the  street  through  which 
Ridgely  was  riding,  this  was  especially  the  case. 
One  of  these  barricades  had  been  thrown  down,  and 
the  stones  which  formed  it  scattered  loosely  about; 
Ridgely's  horse  stumbled  over  one  of  these  stones,  and 
fell  so  quickly  that  Captain  Ridgely  was  thrown,  and 
his  head  striking  the  sharp  corner  of  another  of  these 
rocks,  his  skull  was  fractured,  and  he  remained  insen- 
sible until  his  death,  on  last  Tuesday  night.  I  had 
parted  with  him  not  an  half-hour  previously,  in  the 
full  enjoyment  of  life,  health  and  strength,  and  now 
I  could  not  realize  that  though  living  he  was  uncon- 
scious. Everything  that  friends  and  medical  skill 
could  do  was  done  to  save  his  life,  for  we  knew  that 
in  his  death  one  of  the  most  gallant  men  of  the  army 
would  have  perished.  He  died,  regretted  and  esteemed 
by  the  whole  army;  and  the  unprecedented  respect 
paid  to  his  remains,  the  touching  tributes  of  affection 
showered  upon  his  grave,  evidenced  the  love  and  the 
admiration  of  men  who  had  fought  side  by  side  with 
the   hero.     Every  officer  of  standing — regular   and 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  IQ^ 

volunteer  —  was  present:  Generals  Taylor,  Worth, 
Quitman,  1  lamer  and  Persifer  F.  Smith,  with  their 
respective  staffs;  artillery  and  infantry  paraded,  colors 
draped,  drums  beating  the  funeral  march,  and  as  the 
body  was  taken  from  the  gun-carriage  whicli  had  borne 
it,  an  audible  sob  heaved  the  breasts  of  his  comrades. 
General  Taylor  stood  immediately  in  front  of  me, 
and  I  saw  him  weeping,  and  his  strong  frame  shaking 
with  the  extremity  of  his  grief;  so  it  was  with  many, 
and  a  more  solemn  occasion  was  never  witnessed  than 
the  burial  of  Ridgely.  Maryland  has  now  given  of 
her  sons  Ringgold,  Watson  and  Ridgely !  May  those 
who  have  to  follow  them  forget  not  her  glory. 

I  give  place  now  most  willingly  to  the  following 
handsome  tribute,  written  by  Captain  William  S. 
Henry,  of  the  Third  Infantry,  and  which  may  be 
found  in  his  Campaign  Sketches,  pages  234-5  : 

"His  body  was  brought  out  to  the  carap  of  his  company,  and 
buried  with  funeral  honors  on  the  evening  of  the  28th  of  October. 
His  company  escorted  the  remains,  and  the  Baltimore  Battalion 
attended  as  mourners.  The  procession  was  swelled  by  nearly 
all  the  officers  of  the  army.  Colonel  Cbilds  read  the  service  for 
the  dead,  and  three  guns  were  fired  over  his  grave.  Dark 
clouds  hung  o'er  the  mountain  tops ;  mists  were  in  the  valleys  ; 
and  all  nature  seemed  in  mourning  for  the  departed  hero.  Cap- 
tain Ridgely  graduated  from  West  Point  in  1831.  He  was  a 
native  of  Baltimore,  and  from  a  family  identified  with  the  State 
of  Maryland.  He  served  with  distinguished  credit  in  the  battles 
of  Palo  Alto  and  Resaca  de  la  Palma,  and  in  the  storming  of 
Monterey.  For  his  gallantry  in  the  action  of  the  9th  of  May, 
he  was  brevetted  a  captain  and  appointed  an  assistant  adjutant- 
general  ;  the  latter  appointment  he  accepted,  the  brevet  he  de- 
clined. He,  as  well  as  his  friends,  thought  if  he  was  deserving 
of  a  brevet  for  the  9th,  he  was  equally  so  for  the  8th  of  May. 


164  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

It  seems  strange  he  should  die  by  such  means,  after  passing 
through  three  battles. 

"If  any  officer  has  parlicularly  distinguished  himself,  it  is 
the  lamented  Ridgely.  His  dauntless  courage  and  reckless  ex- 
posure of  person,  combined  with  the  most  perfect  coolness  and 
judgment  in  the  hottest  fire,  won  golden  opinions  for  him  from 
all.  Those  who  knew  him  in  the  social  circle  can  well  appreci- 
ate his  loss.  A  bright  star  is  extinguished  1  He  will  never  re- 
turn to  pluck  fresh  honors  for,  and  add  new  lustre  to,  the  gallantry 
and  chivalry  of  the  service.  Strange  and  unfathomable  fate!  He 
died  from  a  fall  from  a  horse,  than  whom  none  could  ride  with 
more  grace  and  fearlessness,  nor  manage  with  more  judgment 
and  dexterity.  He  was  probably  the  best  rider  in  the  world,  an 
accomplished  and  polished  gentleman,  and  one  of  the  most  heroic 
■  and  gallant  officers  of  the  array." 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

END  OF  THE  AKMISTICE  :  GENERAL  SANTA  ANNA  FOR  WAR. 

On  the  2d  of  November,  Major  James  Graham  ar- 
rived at  camp  from  the  United  States  with  dispatches 
from  Washington.  All  was  excitement,  and  rumor 
was  trumpet-tongued ;  it  soon  became  known  that  the 
government  had  officially  notified  General  Taylor  that 
it  disapproved  of  the  armistice,  and  it  was  supposed 
had  instructed  him  to  terminate  it.  On  the  8th  the 
following  general  orders  were  promulgated  : 

"  Headquarters,  Army  of  Occupation. 

"  Camp  near  Monterej',  November  8,  1846. 
"General  Orders,  No.  139.] 

"  Under  instructions  from  the  Department  of  War,  the  general- 
in-chief  of  the  Mexican  forces  has  been  duly  notified  that  the  tern- 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  JQ^ 

porary  cessation  of  hostilities  agreed  upon  at  the  convention  at 
Moiitere}'  will  cease  and  determine  from  the  13th  instant,  after 
which  date  the  American  forces  will  be  free  to  cross  the  line  of 
demarcation  established  in  said  convention. 

"  Saltillo,  the  capital  of  the  State  of  Coahuila,  will  be  occu- 
pied by  the  United  States  troops." 

******* 
Then  follows  the  order  of  march. 
On  the  6th,  Major  Graham  had  been  sent  forward 
to  give  notice  to  the  Mexican  commanding  general  of 
the  orders  of  our  government;  and  on  the  12th,  just 
as  General  Taylor  was  preparing  to  march  in  the 
same  direction,  he  received  notice  that  a  special  bearer 
of  dispatches  was  en  route  to  Monterey.  He  awaited 
his  arrival,  and  Major  Kobert  M.  McLane,  of  Balti- 
more, presented  himself  direct  from  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment with  important  instructions  to  the  general. 
These,  however,  did  not  prevent  the  contemplated 
advance  toward  Saltillo,  and  on  the  13th  General 
Worth  marched  with  his  division,  accompanied  by 
General  Taylor. 

As  to  the  tenor  of  the  dispatches,  we  know  nothing 
positively,  for  old  Taylor  is  as  quiet  as  the  grave ;  but 
rumor  will  have  it  that  the  army  is  to  go  to  Vera 
Cruz,  and  that  our  division  will  remain  on  this  line, 
as  it  was  the  most  cut  up  in  the  capture  of  Monterey. 
We  are  at  this  time  drilling  three  hours  a  day  in 
battalion  drill,  with  the  four  companies  of  the  First 
Infantry,  and  one  hour  at  company  drill;  our  vol- 
unteers are  pretty  generally  disgusted  with  volunteer- 
ing, for  it  is  no  child's  play,  the  daily  labor  now 
being  done  in  earnest.  Our  camp  is  all  bustle  and 
activitv,  for  althouo-h  no  one  believes  we  will  move 


166  ME  MO  IBS  OF  A 

for  a  week  or  so,  we  yet  have  orders  to  be  ready  to 
march  at  a  moment's  warning. 

I  was  much  astonished  and  gratified  when  I  heard 
of  the  arrival  of  Major  McLane,  and  immediately 
called  on  him.  I  was  very  much  pleased  to  see  him, 
and  we  had  a  pleasant  interview  ;  his  citizen's  clothes 
and  city  air  brought  home  fresh  to  my  heart,  and  his 
kind  answers  to  my  many  questions  made  me  very 
happy.  My  !  my  !  this  love  of  home  !  How  strong 
a  sentiment  in  the  human  breast  ! 

General  Taylor  passed  through  our  camp  to-day, 
on  his  way  to  Saltillo;  May's*  Dragoons  were  his 
escort;  as  this  small  body  of  troops  marched  along, 
a  general  interest  seemed  manifested  for  Old  Zack,  as 
the  men  familiarly  called  him  among  themselves. 
There  was  an  unmistakable  anxiety  felt  for  his  safety, 
for  the  carelessness  in  the  exposure  of  his  person  to 
danger  was  well  known  by  the  Baltimore  Battalion. 

Our  sick  list  is  increasing,  and  a  very  general  desire 
to  move  prevails ;  the  sun  at  mid-day  is  quite  warm, 
the  nights  cold,  hence  fever  and  ague  is  abundant. 
The  rumor  of  to-day  was  that  Santa  Anna  is  march- 
ing from  San  Luis  Potosi  toward  Saltillo  with  twenty 
thousand  men ;  he  may  have  this  many  men,  but  he 
is  not  such  a  fool  as  to  drive  or  attempt  to  drive 
Worth's   Division  back   on  Monterey.     One   of  the 

*  Colonel  Charles  A.  May:  this  gallant  soldier  was  a  native 
of  the  city  of  Washington,  District  of  Columbia.  He  served  in 
the  Florida  war:  was  brevetted  major  "for  gallant  service  at 
Palo  Alto,"  lieutenant-colonel  "for  gallant  and  highly  distin- 
guished conduct  at  Resaca  de  la  Palma,"  and  colonel  "  for  gallant 
and  meritorious  conduct  in  battle  of  Buena  Vista." 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  JQJ 

camp  jests  for  the  last  fortnight  has  been  to  inquire, 
"  When  did  you  hear  from  General  Wool  ?"  there 
being  an  opinion  prevalent  that  he  is  marching  some- 
where in  the  wilderness,  hunting  for  the  "army  of 
occupation."  The  soldiers  have  got  hold  of  it,  and 
it  amuses  them  greatly.  I  think  from  all  I  can  learn 
that  there  is  more  truth  than  fancy  in  the  story.  It 
seems  that  he  was  sent  out  to  effect  a  junction  with 
Taylor  for  some  ulterior  object,  but  that  the  geogra- 
phy of  the  country  was  unknown,  and  a  mistake 
made  in  the  i-oute  of  march.  I  expect  that  the  sol- 
diers have  got  hold  of  the  right  story,  or  they  would 
not  have  so  much  fun  in  inquiring  after  him. 

It  is  rumored  to-day  that  the Eegiment  intends 

burning  the  town  of  Marin  in  revenge  for  the  murder 
of  two  of  their  men ;  a  heavy  detail  has  just  marched 
in  that  direction  with  five  days'  rations.  A  Mexi- 
can was  shot  dead  in  his  own  doorway  yesterday; 
Lieutenant  Bowie  was  passing  a  fev/  minutes  after  the 
shot,  and  was  called  in  to  see  him  breathe  his  last. 

We  need  General  Taylor's  presence  all  the  time, 
and  I  hope  he  will  soon  return,  for  the  bad  feeling 
between  the  soldiers  and  country  people  is  reviving ; 
there  are  rumors  of  our  communications  with  the  Rio 
Grande  being  endangered,  and  that  nearly  every  train 
is  attacked  on  its  way  up. 

General  Taylor  has  returned  from  Saltillo,  and  we 
will  soon  move  toward  the  sea ;  there  seems  no  doubt 
about  this,  the  only  anxiety  now  is  what  troops  will 
be  left,  and  it  has  had  one  most  excellent  effect.  It 
is  well  known  that  Taylor  will  select  the  troops  to 
accompany  him ;  he  did  this  when  he  cut  loose  from 


108  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

the  Rio  Grande,  and  as  there  is  ahnost  a  fever  to 
leave  Monterey  the  troops  are  on  their  very  best 
behavior  for  fear  that  their  corps  will  be  left. 

On  his  road  to  Saltillo,  General  Taylor  received  an 
answer  to  his  communication  informing  the  Mexicans 
of  the  cessation  of  the  armistice.  Sure  enough,  General 
Santa  Anna  was  in  command,  for  the  note  to  Taylor 
was  from  him.  The  tone  of  this  letter  may  be  seen  in 
the  single  extract  that  he  (Taylor)  "  ought  to  discard 
all  ideas  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." 

From  this  it  may  be  inferred  that  General  Taylor 
had  expressed  a  hope  for  peace;  but  Santa  Anna's 
voice  was  still 'for  war,  and  this  was  just  the  differ- 
ence between  the  two  men. 

I  went  over  to  the  market  this  morning  to  buy 
some  oranges ;  having  made  my  purchase,  I  was  re- 
turning with  an  armful  of  the  fruit,  when  hearing  a 
call  of  "  Captain,"  I  looked  and  saw  General  Taylor 
sitting  on  a  camp-stool  in  front  of  his  tent.  I  ap- 
proached him,  and  shaking  me  by  the  hand,  he  gave 
me  a  seat ;  I  was  so  highly  flattered  that  I  hardly 
knew  what  I  did,  except  that  I  gave  him  an  orange. 
He  asked  me  how  we  were  getting  on  ;  I  told  him. 
He  then  said,  "  What  could  have  induced  Watson, 
yourself,  and  others  to  come  so  far  from  home  to  go 
through  so  many  dangers  and  hardships  ?"  I  replied. 
He  listened  attentively,  and  when  I  had  got  through 
he  shook  his  head,  smiled,  and  said  "  he  couldn't 
understand  it."  Before  I  left,  General  Twiggs  came 
to   where   wc    were    sitting,    and    made    inquiry   of 


05 


MARrLAXD    VOLUNTEER.  Igg 

General  Taylor  as  to  when  they  would  likely  march, 
and  whether  he  should  take  the  Baltimore  Battalion 
with  him.  General  Taylor  turned  to  me  and  asked 
whether  I  wished  to  go.  I  replied,  "  General,  loe 
always  wish  to  follow  you."  He  answered  Twiggs, 
"  Certainly,  take  them  along."  I  waited  to  hear  no 
more,  but  ran  over  to  our  camp  to  spread  the  joyous 
intelligence. 


CHAPTER   XV. 

APPOINT-MENT    OF    MAJOR    R.    C.    BUCHANAN,    U.    S.    ARMY, 
TO   THE    COMMAND   OF   THE    BALTIMORE    BATTALION. 

November  24,  1846  ;  an  important  day  in  the  cal- 
endar of  the  Baltimore  Battalion.  On  this  day,  by 
order  of  General  Twiggs,  commanding  the  First  Di- 
vision, Brevet-Major  Robert  C.  Buchanan,  of  the 
Fourth  Infantry,  U.S.A.,  was  assigned  to  the  com- 
mand of  the  Battalion  of  Baltimore  and  Washington 
Volunteers. 

On  assuming  command,  this  gallant  and  accom- 
plished soldier  issued  the  following  order  : 

"Headquarters  Baltimore  axd  Washington  Battalion. 
"Camp  Doar  Monterey,  Mexico,  November  25,  1846. 
"Orders  No.  1.] 

"In  obedience  to  special  orders  No.  5,  dated  Headquarters 
First  Division  Army  of  Occupation,  November  24,  1846,  the 
undersigned  assumes  the  command  of  this  battalion. 

"Called  to  the  command  by  the  voluntary  act  of  the  officers 
belonging  to  it,  bis  only  method  of  showing  bis  appreciation  of 


270  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

the  compliment  will  be  by  endeavoring  to  obtain  for  the  bat- 
talion a  name  worthy  of  the  State  from  which  it  comes. 

"  In  this  attempt  he  relies  with  confidence  on  the  cordial  co- 
operation of  the  officers  and  the  good-will  of  the  men  for  his 
success.  With  such  assistance  he  has  no  fears  for  the  result ; 
without  it  be  cannot  hope  to  succeed. 

"A  native  of  Baltimore  and  a  citizen  of  Washington,  his  only 
desire  is  to  make  the  battalion  worthy  of  the  cities  which  sent 

it  forth. 

"(Signed)  "Robert  C.  Buchanan-, 

"Brevet-Major  Fourth  Infantry,  Commanding. 

"P.  B.  SCHAEFFER, 

"  Adjutant." 

This  handsome  inauguration  of  his  command 
elicited  the  hearty  approval  of  the  battalion,  and 
although  there  were  some  few  who  did  *  not  like  a 
regular  officer  being  placed  over  them,  yet  the  feeling 
was  almost  unanimous  in  his  favor.  To  Major 
Buchanan  I  am  under  lasting  obligations ;  to  him  I 
owe  a  lesson  which  was  very  difficult  for  me  to  learn 
— that  of  obedience.  It  was  he  that  made  me  a  sol- 
dier, and  the  respect  which  I  still  entertain  for  him 
is  based  upon  the  knowledge  of  his  integrity,  his 
honor,  and  his  high  military  capacity,  acquired  through 
hard  service  under  his  command  and  his  teachings. 
A  graduate  of  the  Military  Academy  of  West  Point, 
a  thorough  soldier,  a  strict  disciplinarian,  a  Mary- 
lander  by  birth,  he  possessed  in  addition  just  what 
was  needed  to  qualify  him  for  his  new  duties  with  a 
volunteer  command — a  remarkable  equanimity  of 
temperament.  Before  we  left  the  service  he  had  as 
handsome  a  command  as  a  soldier  need  wish :  all 
were  in  harmony  with  him,  and  all  appreciated  the 
value  of  the  services  he  had  rendered  to  every  sol- 
dier of  the  battalion. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  m 

We  had  now  been  in  the  service  six  months,  during 
three  of  which  we  had  been  in  a  brigade  of  regulars ; 
and  yet  we  were  not  soldiers.  We  were  becoming 
so,  and  the  fortunate  advent  of  Buchanan  marked  the 
change  into  a  higher  grade  of  scholarship. 

Drill,  drill,  drill ;  guard-mount  and  guard-duty ; 
morning  reports,  provision  returns,  and  inspection  of 
arms.  All  these  duties  require  attention,  and  with 
proper  instruction  they  may  be  learned.  We  were 
taught  to  do  them  properly,  and  no  more  pride  is  felt 
in  the  acquisition  of  any  knowledge  than  in  that  of 
the  military  art. 

On  the  9th  day  of  December,  Mr.  Samuel  S.  Mills, 
of  Baltimore,  arrived  in  camp  to  convey  the  remains 
of  Colonel  Watson  for  burial  in  his  native  city.  He 
brought  with  him  an  elegant  coffin  which  had  been 
provided  by  the  generosity  of  his  friends ;  and  also, 
having  learned  at  New  Orleans  the  death  of  Captain 
Eidgely,  a  lead  coffin  for  his  remains. 

On  the  next  day  I  was  directed  by  special  orders 
to  superintend  the  exhumation  and  the  ceremony  of 
parade.  I  found  Watson's  body  in  a  tolerable  state 
of  preservation ;  he  was  lying  the  centre  one  of  three 
bodies,  the  others  were  Lieutenants  Hoskins  and 
Wood,  of  the  Fourth  Infantry.  I  knew  Watson  by 
his  two 'front  teeth,  beard,  shoulder-straps,  which 
were  those  of  a  major,  and  the  new  boots  upon  his 
feet ;  I  had  no  doubt  whatever  of  his  identity.  I  took 
a  button  from  his  uniform  coat,  and  his  remains,  in- 
closed in  the  coffin  brought  by  Mr.  Mills,  were  escorted 
by  the  Baltimore  Battalion  to  the  regimental  parade 
ground,  where  a  guard  of  honor  was  detailed  to  receive 


172  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

them.  Here  they  remained  until  the  exhumation  of 
Ridgely's  body,  which  was  brought  and  placed  side  by 
side  with  that  of  Watson ;  our  battalion  and  Ridgely's 
Battery  forming  the  escort  and  working-party.  The 
whole  parade  was  solemn  and  interesting,  witnessed 
by  very  large  numbers  of  the  troops  in  camp ;  and  as 
the  bodies  were  placed  in  the  wagon  for  transporta- 
tion homeward,  a  very  general  feeling  of  sadness 
marked  the  departure  of  all  that  was  mortal  of  two 
of  Maryland's  gallant  dead. 

Before  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Mills,  Lieutenant  Shover, 
of  the  army,  and  I,  had  made  arrangements  to  send 
home  the  remains  of  Ridgely  with  those  of  Watson, 
and  the  thoughtful  consideration  of  Mr.  Mills  had 
relieved  us  from  a  great  deal  of  concern  about  the 
metallic  coffin.  Mr.  Mills  also  brought  coffins  for  the 
bodies  of  Herman  Thomas,  of  Harford  County,  killed 
in  the  assault  of  the  22d  of  September,  and  George 
Pearson,  of  Baltimore,  a  member  of  our  battalion,  who 
had  died  from  disease  after  our  arrival  at  Monterey. 

We  are  making  preparations  to  march,  though  the 
orders  are  not  yet  out ;  another  sifting  process  is 
going  on,  the  last  being  on  the  banks  of  the  Rio 
Grande  three  months  ago.  The  sick  and  disabled  are 
to  be  either  discharged  or  sent  into  general  hospital. 
The  depletion  now  will  not  be  so  heavy  as  then,  but 
still  I  expect  to  have  to  turn  down  some  five  or  six 
of  my  company. 

Time  and  exposure  are  thinning  our  ranks,  but  I  am 
learning  to  be  more  economical  in  wasting  the  strength 
of  the  battalion  by  too  many  discharges.  It  costs 
the  government  too  much  to  get  a  man  here  and  fit 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  173 

him  to  be  of  some  use,  to  let  him  go  on  frivolous  pre- 
tence, and  I  have  learned  to  judge  of  the  sufficiency 
of  the  disability  as  basis  for  a  discharge,  without  too 
much  dependence  upon  the  surgeon's  opinion.  There 
are  two  influences  constantly  at  work  in  reference  to 
these  discharges,  leaving  out  of  consideration  the  sol- 
dier's claim:  the  one,  the  surgeon's  wish  to  diminish 
the  number  of  his  sick ;  the  other,  the  captain's  not  to 
diminish  the  strength  of  his  company.  I  regard  it  as 
one  of  the  most  important  of  all  the  duties  devolving 
upon  the  captain  of  a  company,  this,  of  the  extent 
of  his  interference  with  the  surgeons  in  matter  of 
discharges.  It  is  a  very  delicate  responsibility,  and 
army  regulations  do  not  meet  my  views  upon  this 
subject.  If  the  surgeon  and  the  captain  were  alike 
conscientious  in  sense  of  duty  to  their  government, 
there  would  be  no  trouble  about  the  propriety  of  a 
discharge ;  but  I  lean  to  the  opinion,  without  ques- 
tioning the  skill  to  decide  upon  the  sufficiency  of 
cause,  that  the  captain  is  nearer  to  the  government 
and  has  a  much  better  idea  of  the  value  of  a  soldier 
and  of  the  use  that  may  be  made  of  him  than  the 
surgeon,  and  should  have  more  controlling  influence 
in  granting  the  discharge  than  he  now  has. 

It  would  be  as  well  perhaps  to  make  mention  of 
our  surgeon.  Dr.  Smythe  M.  Miles.  He  was,  I  believe, 
a  native  of  the  State  of  Georgia,  and  had  been,  I  was 
told,  an  Assistant-Surgeon  in  the  United  States  Navy. 
He  became  associated  with  our  battalion  on  the  Rio 
Grande  the  8th  day  of  August,  1846,  by  virtue  of  a 
contract  made  with  Colonel  Watson,  at  the  pay  of 
one  hundred  dollars  per  month,  after  the  withdrawal 


174  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

of  Dr.  Djve,  of  Washington.  There  were  a  good 
many  of  these  contract  surgeons,  as  they  were  termed, 
now  with  the  army,  but  I  am  sure  none  better  than 
Dr.  Miles.  He  continued  with  us  until  our  end  of 
service,  and  I  had  much  confidence  in  his  natural 
medical  ability,  if  not  in  his  acquirements. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

MARCH     TO     VICTORIA. 

On  the  10th  day  of  December  an  order  was  issued 
from  the  headquarters  of  the  army  of  occupation, 
which  transferred  the  Baltimore  Battalion  from  the 
Fourth  Brigade  of  the  First  Division  to  a  volunteer 
brigade,  consisting  of  the  First  Mississippi,  the  First 
Tennessee,  and  the  First  Georgia  Regiments  of  Volun- 
teers, commanded  by  Brigadier-General  John  A. 
Quitman,  United  States  Army.  A  reorganization  of 
the  First  Division  was  necessary  in  view  of  our  con- 
templated march  on  Victoria,  and  we  were  very  much 
gratified  in  being  attached  to  Quitman's  Brigade,  as 
long  as  we  had  to  leave  our  old  friends  of  the  First, 
Third,  and  Fourth  Infantry ;  the  latter .  regiment 
being  left  to  hold  the  citadel  of  Monterey,  the  two 
former  accompanying  our  column  in  the  Fourth  Brig- 
ade, commanded  by  Colonel  P.  F.  Smith. 

The  First  Tennessee  and  the  First  Mississippi  were 
old  friends  of  the  Rio  Grande  in  Hamer's  Brigade, 
and  we  rejoined  them  with  many  a  friendly  shake  of 


MABYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  175 

the  hands.  I  was  not  personally  acquainted  with 
General  Quitman,  but  esteemed  him  for  his  well- 
deserved  reputation. 

The  order  of  march  was  issued  on  the  12th  day  of 
December,  and  on  the  13th  Twiggs's  Division  marched ; 
on  the  14th  our  brigade  left  its  old  camp,  and  the 
Baltimore  Battalion,  after  nearly  three  months  spent 
in  the  wood  of  San  Domingo,  near  Monterey,  took  up 
its  line  of  march  for  Victoria,  distant  some  two  hun- 
dred miles  to  the  south-east. 

General  Taylor  and  headquarters  of  the  army  of 
occupation,  marched  with  our  brigade,  and  the  initia- 
tive of  a  new  campaign  was  taken.  What  might  be 
its  plan,  or  what  was  its  object,  was  left  to  conjecture, 
as  far  as  a  captain  of  infantry  was  concerned. 

General  Worth,  with  his  division,  was  at  Saltillo. 
General  Wool,  having,  as  yet,  not  succeeded  in  finding 
Chihuahua,  was  somewhere  about  Parras  or  Mon- 
clova,  in  the  same  State  of  Coahuila.  General  Butler, 
with  his  division  of  volunteers  and  the  Fourth  U.  S. 
Infantry,  was  at  Monterey ;  General  Patterson  at 
Camargo,  or  on  the  line  of  the  Rio  Grande. 

As  yet  we  knew  nothing  of  General  Scott  nor  of 
his  approaching  arrival,  nor  of  the  transfer  to  him  of 
the  chief  command  of  the  armies  in  Mexico. 

At  9  o'clock  A.M.  we  left  our  huts,  and,  with  almost 
a  feeling  of  home-sickness,  bade  a  final  adieu  to  the 
grounds  so  long  occupied  by  us.  We  tool?;  the  old 
road  to  the  city  which  we  had  followed  on  the  morn- 
ing of  the  21st  of  September;  before  we  reached 
the  fort  we  passed  the  skeletons  of  a  great  many  poor 
fellows  who  had  been  killed  in   the  assault;  their 


]^76  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

bones,  flesh,  and  remnants  of  clothing  were  lying 
about  exposed  to  full  view,  having  been  dug  from  the 
earth,  where  they  had  been  buried,  by  the  wolves.* 
We  crossed  the  San  Juan  or  Tigre  Eiver  by  wading, 
the  depth  being  from  two  to  three  feet  and  the  water 
very  cold.  We  marched  along  a  beautiful  road,  wind- 
ing around  the  base  of  the  mountain  "  Comanche 
Saddle,"  to  the  east  of  the  city,  and  reached  the  most 
beautiful  town  I  ever  saw,  named  Guadalupe.  Per- 
haps one  reason  why  we  all  thought  this  such  a  pretty 
town  was  because  a  lovely  Mexican  senorita  stood 
gazing  at  the  troops  as  we  passed ;  she  excited  uni- 
versal admiration  not  only  by  reason  of  her  beauty, 
but  by  her  modest  appearance  and  demeanor.  She 
was  the  subject  of  our  talk  for  the  balance  of  the 
day's  march,  and  many  a  soldier  said  he  was  coming 
back  to  Guadalupe,  when  the  war  was  over. 

The  houses  were  generally  built  of  cane,  with 
thatched  roofs,  and  a  paling  also  of  cane  surrounding 
the  gardens,  in  which  bloomed  the  orange,  the  lemon, 
pomegranate,  and  banana.  Outside  of  the  tropics  no 
such  enchanting  picture  could  be  seen  as  in  this  little 
town,  when  the  rays  of  the  evening  sun  fell  upon  its 
beauties. 

The  road,  after  leaving  Guadalupe,  passed  through 
a  sugar-cane  country  of  several  miles  in  extent,  and. 


*  I  have  not  before  noticed  the  number  of  wolves  in  ttie 
vicinity  of  Monterey;  there  were  very  many  packs  that  seemed 
to  den  on  the  mountain  sides  in  the  environs  of  the  city,  and  on 
one  occasion  a  pack  of  at  least  fifty  ran,  in  full  cry,  through  our 
camp  at  night. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  177 

the  cane  being  ripe,  each  officer  and  man  was  soon 
seen  chewing  and  swallowing  the  sweetest  of  all  fluids 
that  ever  touched  the  human  palate.  This  sugar- 
cane juice,  to  the  dry  throat  of  a  soldier  who  has 
been  marching  through  clouds  of  dust,  is  the  consum- 
mation of  earthly  enjoyments ;  as  one  of  our  men 
said,  "  There  was  no  let  up  in  it."  As  night  ap- 
proached, we  struck  the  San  Juan  again  ;  the  crossing 
was  quite  difficult,  as  the  river  was  deeper  and  more 
rapid  than  where  we  had  crossed  it  in  the  morning. 
Many  of  the  soldiers  stumbled  and  fell  into  the  water, 
which  occasioned  hearty  peals  of  laughter  from  those 
who  had  successfully  waded  to  the  other  bank. 

We  halted  and  bivouacked  on  the  south  bank  of 
the  river,  the  men  being  very  much  fatigued,  though 
we  had  made  but  fourteen  miles  to-day.  The  sun 
about  noon  was  very  hot,  and  the  road  ankle-deep  in 
dust;  as  night  approached,  it  grew  cold  and  camp- 
fires  pleasant. 

Decemher  15.  On  the  march  by  sunrise,  our  direc- 
tion nearly  due  east,  the  road  good  but  very  dusty ;  the 
country  arid  until  we  approached  the  town  of  Cada- 
rita,  when  it  became  good  and  highly  cultivated,  corn 
and  sugar-cane  fields  alternating.  We  were  told  that 
the  corn  now  in  blossom  was  the  third  crop  this  year. 
The  San  Juan  River  was  becoming  a  nuisance,  as  we 
had  to  cross  it  three  times  during  the  morning's 
march,  and  at  each  crossing  the  water  was  deeper 
than  at  the  preceding,  so  that,  with  the  water  and 
dust,  our  pantaloons  felt  heavy  and  very  disagreeable. 
The  street  of  Cadarita  through  which  we  inarched 
was  lined   with    orange-trees   loaded    with   fruit,  to 

12 


'551* 


178  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

which  we  all  helped  ourselves  ad  lihiium.  In  the 
plaza  a  column  was  erected,  I  could  not  ascertain  for 
what  purpose ;  on  one  of  its  sides  a  very  large  church 
was  in  ruins,  whilst  the  several  bells  belonging  to  it 
were  suspended  not  more  than  five  or  six  feet  from 
the  ground.  After  passing  for  six  miles  through  a 
succession  of  cane-fields,  we  again  had  to  cross  the 
river,  making  four  times  in  this  day's  march.  The 
men  behaved  badly  to-day,  the  column  being  greatly 
scattered,  the  heat  being  intense  and  the  marching 
very  laborious.  We  had  a  long  march  of  twenty-two 
miles,  halting  for  the  night  on  the  banks  of  a  race 
which  fed  a  large  sugar-mill.  My  feet  were  blistered ; 
I  suffered  a  good  deal,  yet  I  had  to  go  on  guard,  and 
passed  the  night  in  watchfulness. 

December  16.  Stiff  and  sore,  I  was  relieved  from 
guard,  and  took  my  place  at  sunrise  at  the  head  of 
my  company.  I  marched  with  difficulty  ;  but  it  was 
not  so  hot  as  on  yesterday,  and  the  wind  was  blowing 
so  that  the  dust  did  not  hang  upon  us.  We  were 
traversing  a  belt  of  sterile  country,  and  at  10  o'clock 
passed  through  a  miserable  hamlet,  few  people  being 
visible ;  at  2  o'clock  p.m.  reached  the  Ramos  River,  a 
beautiful  stream  flowing  east  from  the  Sierra  Madre ; 
wading  the  river,  we  bivouacked  on  the  sandy  bed  of 
its  shore,  having  marched  fourteen  miles.  Here  rumors 
spread  that  we  were  cut  off  by  the  Mexicans,  that  a 
large  force  of  the  enemy  was  ahead  and  between  us 
and  the  First  Division.  We  soon  found  that  we  were 
halted  to  let  a  train  close  up,  to  be  under  the  protec- 
tion of  our  brigade. 

December  17.     Last  night  it  was  bitter  cold,  the 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  J 79 

wind  from  the  mountains  sweeping  down  the  river 
valley;  we  were  aroused  before  daylight  by  the  re- 
veille, and  stood  up  in  ranks  until  8  o'clock,  before 
starting.  Our  battalion  was  thrown  in  the  advance, 
and  for  eight  miles  we  marched  through  a  wood  of 
moschete-  or  ebony-trees,  which,  by  the  by,  had  made 
us  excellent  fires  the  past  night.  At  noon  we  ascended 
a  mountain,  on  the  top  of  which  we  found  Generals 
Taylor  and  Twiggs,  Colonel  Smith,  and  their  staffs. 
The  road  now  descended  rapidly ;  but  we  were  ordered 
to  move  slowly  and  cautiously  ;  couldn't  think  what 
was  up,  but  we  kept  a  sharp  lookout ;  soon  we  saw  a 
body  of  troops,  which  certainly  were  United  States 
soldiers,  and  so  they  proved  to  be ;  a  regiment  of 
Tennessee  volunteers  were  effecting  a  junction,  having 
marched  from  Camargo.  We  are  now  in  the  vicinity 
of  Monte  Morelos,  and  have  to  wait  until  the  train 
has  been  passed  over  the  mountain.  Fortunately  our 
being  in  the  advance  saved  us  from  great  labor,  as 
the  rear  regiments  had  to  help  the  teams  to  pull  the 
wagons  up  the  hill.  Our  men  were  in  huge  spirits  at 
this  luck,  and  many  of  them  went  to  see  the  little 
mules  pull ;  many  were  the  words  of  encouragement 
they  gave  to  the  Tennesseeans  and  Georgians,  as  they 
strained  at  the  wagons. 

Distance  made  to-day,  fourteen  miles. 

December  18.  In  camp  near  the  town  of  Monte 
Morelos,  capital  of  the  department  of  the  same  name, 
and  called  after  a  famous  priest  patriot,  who  distin- 
guished himself  in  the  Mexican  war  of  independence. 
The  town  is  small,  Spanish-looking,  with  a  very  neat 
cathedral,  inside   and  out.     The    mountains  are  all 


180  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

around,  yet  this  is  a  centre  of  a  large  sugar  trade  with 
the  miners  in  the  adjoining  State  of  San  Luis;  it  is  a 
flourishing  well-built  city,  with  well-paved  streets  and 
a  decent-looking  set  of  inhabitants.  There  are  some 
fine  stores,  and  altogether  it  has  a  well-to-do  appear- 
ance. I  noticed  that  the  people  seemed  frightened, 
and  there  was  unmistakably  great  excitement  about 
headquarters ;  we  couldn't  make  it  out,  or  why  we 
didn't  march.  Our  astonishment  was  great  when  we 
saw  the  First  Division  of  Regulars  marching  away 
from  us  and  taking  the  road  by  which  we  had  come. 
They  left  hurriedly,  and  we  hastened  to  camp  to 
learn  that  General  Worth  had  sent  for  help,  and  that 
Taylor  was  on  the  march  back  to  Monterey.  Now 
for  rumors,  and  they  flew  magnificently.  There  was 
no  doubt  about  one  thing, — we  were  left  "in  the 
mountains,"  and  the  next  step  was  looked  forward  to 
with  anxiety. 

During  the  day  orders  were  published  that  the  First 
and  Second  Tennessee  Regiments  were  to  constitute 
one  brigade  under  Colonel  Campbell,  of  the  First  Ten- 
nessee ;  the  First  Mississippi,  the  First  Georgia,  and 
the  Baltimore  Battalion,  another  brigade  under  Colonel 
Jackson,  of  the  Georgia  Regiment ;  the  whole  consti- 
tuting a  field  division,  under  Brigadier-General  Quit- 
man, and  we  were  all  ordered  to  continue  our  march 
on  to-morrow. 

The  most  reliable  news  we  could  get  was  that 
Santa  Anna  was  threatening  Worth,  that  Butler  had 
left  Monterey  with  all  his  disposable  force  to  help 
Worth  at  Saltillo,  and  that  Patterson  was  marching 
from  the  Rio  Grande  with  the  volunteers  to  occupy 


31ARFLANU   VOLUNTEER.  Jg^ 

Monterey.  If  all  this  be  true,  we  are  in  rather  an 
ugly  dilemma,  and  to  get  out  of  this  there  is  only 
one  way,  and  that  is  to  push  on  to  the  Gulf;  lohy  we 
did  not  return  with  Taylor,  we  learned  as  we  marched. 
A  body  of  troops  were  now  en  route  to  Victoria  from 
the  Rio  Grande  to  meet  our  advance,  and  if  we  could 
not  effect  a  junction  with  them  they  would  be  cut 
off 

We  have  had  a  delightful  day,  and  with  the  rest- 
lessness characteristic  of  our  men,  some  of  them  sal- 
lied out,  gunning  ;  they  returned  with  several  parrots, 
which  they  had  killed,  and  "  Pretty  poll"  was  cried 
by  every  rascal  in  the  command,  during  the  whole  of 
the  night,  until  sleep  was  nearly  out  of  the  question. 

December  19.  We  were  on  the  march  this  morning 
at  sunrise,  our  road  skirting  the  base  of  a  mountain, 
and  our  course  east-southeast ;  marched  very  rapidly 
until  we  reached  a  stream  of  ice-cold  water,  which 
we  waded  with  many  a  shiver  and  hard  word  ;  met 
a  good  many  angry-looking  Mexicans — real  moun- 
taineers they  were,  and  not  at  all  abashed  by  our 
presence  ;  they  had  evidently  heard  of  Santa  Anna 
being  on  the  war-path,  and  hoped  to  see  him  at  Monte 
Morelos;  we  would  have  turned  back  if  we  had  not 
been  ordered  forward,  for  a  more  reckless,  daring  body 
of  men  were  never  brigaded  together  than  were  now 
marching  with  Quitman  through  this  foreign  land. 

One  of  the  rumors  circulating  on  the  march  to-day, 
coming  from  the  head  of  the  column,  was  that  they 
never  slept  in  the  camp  of  the  Baltimore  Battalion ; 
that  when  anybody  wanted  to  sleep,  he  would  go  out 
in  the  chaparral.     So  much  iov  pretty  poll. 


182  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

We  made  but  eleven  miles  to-day,  owing  to  the 
mountains  we  had  to  ascend,  and  the  necessity  of 
keeping  well  closed  up.  We  halted  and  bivouacked 
with  but  little  wood  for  fire,  and  passed  a  cheerless 
night. 

Decemher  20 — Sunday.  Got  up  from  my  bed  on 
the  hard  earth  at  two  o'clock  this  morning,  being  so 
cold  that  I  could  not  sleep ;  found  most  of  my  com- 
pany stirring  about  for  wood  to  make  fires  with  ; 
cooked  coffee  long  before  daylight,  and  awaited  the 
reveille ;  off  at  sunrise,  and  had  a  hard  day's  march 
over  the  spurs  of  the  Sierra  Madre.  I  suffered  a  good 
deal  from  my  sore  feet,  the  road  being  hilly  and  rocky 
hurt  them  ;  water  scarce  to-day,  and  for  some  reason 
impossible  to  explain,  the  men  marched  rapidly  with- 
out any  apparent  cause.  We  saw  wild  turkeys  and 
several  deer  running,  the  mountains  being  full  of 
game.  Toward  night  we  descended  into  the  valley  of 
Linarez,  and  were  once  more  among  the  cane-fields. 
We  bivouacked  in  a  thick  chaparral  among  rocks  on 
the  banks  of  a  rapid  stream.  Made  eighteen  miles 
to-day,  and  instead  of  rest  I  was  detailed  for  guard, 
with  instructions  to  be  on  the  alert  and  to  visit  my 
posts  continually  during  the  night.  No  rest  this 
Sabbath,  so  I  sat  by  the  camp-fires,  and  with  their 
light  made  my  notes  of  the  day's  march ;  very  cold, 
and  my  eyes  full  of  smoke. 

Decemher  21.  After  nine  miles  of  pleasant  march- 
ing, we  halted  on  the  banks  of  a  rapid  river  called 
the  San  Fernando,  not  the  San  Juan,  opposite  the 
town  of  Linarez,  one  of  the  principal  towns  of  the 
State  of  New  Leon,  distant  forty  leagues  from  Mon- 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  J 83 

terey,  being  about  one-half  the  distance  to  Victoria. 
Linarez  has  a  population  of  fi-om  six  to  ten  thou- 
sand inhabitants,  is  a  handsome  town,  and  has  more 
respectable-looking  citizens  than  any  town  yet  seen. 
The  greatest  novelty  was  the  large  number  of  its 
people  on  the  streets,  which  made  the  contrast  to  the 
other  towns  we  had  passed  through  striking  and 
agreeable.  Among  the  ladies  who  were  looking  at 
us,  I  noticed  several  with  parrots  perched  on  their 
hands,  and  they  seemed  pleased  with  the  fun  our  men 
made  as  they  marched  along.  I  saw  here  the  first 
house  I  had  seen  in  the  country  which  had  the  ap- 
pearance of  an  hotel ;  it  had  for  a  sign  "  Tienda  de 
Abundancia."  In  fact,  we  all  voted  Linarez  mut/ 
huSno. 

On  the  nine  miles  of  to-day's  march  we  passed 
through  thousands  and  thousands  of  acres — yes, 
miles — of  cane-fields,  luxuriant  in  their  growth,  and 
with  large  establishments  for  the  manufacture  of 
sugar  scattered  at  intervals  through  this  famous 
valley  of  Linarez.  I  thinlc  that  we  were  the  first 
American  troops  the  inhabitants  had  seen,  and  al- 
though they  were  shy  they  seemed  not  to  be  afraid  ; 
it  may  be  that  they  knew,  what  we  as  yet  were  ignor- 
ant of,  that  a  force  of  their  countrymen  was  close  at 
hand. 

December  22.  Took  an  early  start  this  morning, 
and  confidently  expected  an  attack,  as  our  division 
picket,  just  in,  had  reported  a  body  of  Mexican 
Lancers  to  be  in  sight.  We  marched  with  loaded 
arms  and  in  compact  column ;  as  we  crossed  the 
summit  of  a  mountain,  we  caught  a  glimpse  of  the 


184  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

town  of  Linarez  several  miles  in  our  rear,  lighted  up 
with  the  I'ising  sun.  I  believe  that  every  man  in  the 
division  cast  a  look  upon  the  charming  picture  that 
this  town  presented,  in  its  nest  among  the  mountains. 
Our  road  was  bad,  very  bad,  rocky  and  uneven,  no 
water,  and  not  a  ranch  to  be  seen.  We  halted  at 
the  first  stream  we  came  to,  and  in  a  very  picturesque 
spot,  but  a  very  uncomfortable  one ;  we  pitched  our 
tents  in  the  midst  of  a  thick  wood  with  rocks  piled 
up  all  around  us.  The  men  soon  sallied  out,  despite 
Lancers,  with  their  guns,  to  look  for  game,  and  they 
returned  with  wild  hogs,  turkeys,  parrots,  and  arma- 
dillos. The  parrots  were  excellent  eating,  but  I  had 
not  the  heart  to  eat  the  armadillos, — they  looked  so 
beseeching  while  alive. 

December  23.  It  rained  incessantly  all  last  night; 
fortunately  we  had  had  time  to  pitch  our  tents,  never- 
theless we  were  very  damp,  and  the  mud  was  thick. 
We  slept  but  little,  as  there  was  firing  at  intervals 
from  tattoo  to  reveille,  and  several  Mexicans  are 
reported  to  have  been  shot ;  there  was  more  or  less 
of  alarm  all  night.  We  delayed  starting  this  morn- 
ing, so  as  to  have  daylight  to  get  out  of  the  forest; 
the  road  was  heavy,  and  my  sore  feet  were  much 
blistered  from  so  frequently  treading  upon  stones 
covered  with  mud,  which  I  could  not  avoid ;  we 
passed  but  one  ranch  until  four  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, when  we  reached  a  handsome  house  on  the 
banks  of  a  river,  where  we  halted ;  here  there  was 
much  consultation,  as  it  was  thought  we  had  lost  our 
road,  so  primeval  and  undisturbed  was  the  appearance 
of  the  country.     Large  flocks  of  parrots  were  flying 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  185 

overhead  in  countless  thousands,  just  as  I  have  seen 
the  wild  pigeons  in  Maryland ;  deer,  turkeys,  wild 
boar,  a  bird  like  a  pheasant,  and  another  like  a 
guinea-fowl,  wei'e  numerous  and  unquestionably  not 
much  alarmed  by  man ;  the  road  looked  as  if  it  were 
not  often  travelled,  and  the  few  people  about  the 
ranch  knew  nothing,  or  would  tell  nothing.  It  was 
determined  to  pass  the  night  here,  and  await  a  recon- 
naissance which  was  ordered. 

Decemhei-  24.  A  damp,  drizzly  morning  ;  Captain 
Steuart's  and  my  company  were  detailed  for  rear- 
guard, just  as  the  brigade  was  about  moving;  halted 
until  the  division  and  its  train  had  passed,  when  we 
fell  in  and  marched.  The  wagons  kept  well  closed 
up,  but  we  had  much  difficulty  keeping  the  mules 
and  their  arrieros  up  with  the  wagons.  I  pitied  the 
mules  and  saved  them  all  I  could,  yet  they  were 
heavily  loaded  and  seemed  to  suffer.  We  crossed  a 
river,  and  here  the  mules  were  disposed  not  to  come 
out  of  the  water ;  and  as  there  were  several  hundred 
of  them  in  the  stream  at  the  same  time,  some  idea 
may  be  foi'med  of  what  the  rear-guard  had  to  do,  with 
the  knowledge  that  every  minute's  delay  increased 
the  distance  between  our  troops  and  us.  We  got 
them  all  over  after  awhile,  and  pushed  on  rapidly, 
overtaking  our  brigade  at  the  town  of  Villa  Grande ; 
we  received  orders  to  let  the  mules  go  in  advance, 
while  we  waited  until  a  number  of  wagons  were 
loaded  with  corn,  purchased  in  the  town  from  the 
Mexicans.  We  helped  them  to  load,  and  then 
started  after  the  troops.  We  marched  rapidly,  but 
did  not  get  into  camp  until  after  dark,  and  bivouacked 


185  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

in  the  midst  of  a  thicket  of  chaparral  and  thorns  so 
dense  that  there  was  scarcely  room  to  pile  a  stack  of 
arms.  We  had  one  satisfaction,  however,  that  if  we 
did  not  know  where  we  were,  we  were  certain  that 
the  enemy  would  never  find  us.  Here  we  spent  our 
Christmas  eve;  around  the  camp-fire  I  told  my 
officers  that  if  they  would  find  the  materials  for  egg- 
nog,  I  would  supply  the  means ;  volunteers  were 
soon  off  in  search,  but  it  was  midnight  before  they 
returned  with  a  single  bottle  of  muscal  (a  strong 
Mexican  brandy),  and  a  dozen  eggs.  A  camp-kettle 
filled  with  water  was  boiling,  and  with  plenty  of 
sugar,  we  had  a  sweet  but  not  very  strong  mess-pan 
full  of  egg-nog  for  ourselves,  and  a  tin-cup  full  for 
each  one  of  my  men  to  drink  a  happy  Christmas  to 
all  at  home. 

Decemher  25.  Christmas  day,  1846.  It  rained  last 
night,  and  having  no  shelter  but  the  bushes  our  fes- 
tivities were  much  dampened.  To  add  to  our  hilarious 
feelings  this  morning,  we  were  credibly  informed  that 
General  Canales  would  commemorate  the  day  by 
attacking  the  Yankees  on  the  march. 

We  got  out  of  the  thicket  about  sunrise,  ascended 
a  high  mountain  ;  descending,  we  passed  through  an 
orchard  of  orange-trees,  noticeable  for  their  great  size 
and  quantity  of  fruit,  then  through  a  forest,  when 
we  came  to  a  river  running  alongside  the  wood.  We 
waded  this  river  waist-deep,  and  took  a  cold  bath  by 
way  of  a  Christmas  drink,  so  as  to  enter  the  town  of 
Hidalgo,  now  in  sight,  in  proper  trim  for  the  festivities 
of  the  day.  We  had  a  hearty  laugh  before  entering 
the  town.     A  dense  growth  of  timber  was  growing 


MARFLAND  VOLUNTEER.  187 

on  the  river  bottom,  the  trees  must  have  been  of  the 
famous  banyan  species  of  Hindostan;  from  the  trunk, 
great  arms  spread  out,  from  which  descended  roots  or 
branches  which  entered  the  earth  and  gave  birth  to 
another  tree,  which  in  its  turn  threw  out  similar  arms, 
and  again  reproduced  itself  in  others.  Astride  one 
of  these  huge  arms  was  a  Tennessee  volunteer  with 
his  musket  at  a  support,  evidently  waiting  for  the 
Baltimore  Battalion  to  come  along;  as  soon  as  our 
men  saw  him  they  sent  up  a  shout  which  made  the 
woods  ring.  Some  one  asked  him  what  he  was  doing 
up  there  on  guard.  He  replied,  "  Stranger,  I  have 
Jie'erd  tell  of  the  elephant  being  on  show  in  this  he'er 
country,  and  seeing  as  how  I've  found  him,  why  I  am 
jist  taking  a  ride." 

If  the  Moors  in  the  first  century  of  their  occupa- 
tion of  the  Peninsula  had  built  this  Mexican  town  of 
Hidalgo,  which  we  were  now  entering,  it  could  not 
have  presented  a  more  striking  picture  of  the  "  Do- 
minacion  de  los  Arabes  en  Espaua"  so  graphically 
narrated  by  Conde.  Its  very  church,  now  in  ruins, 
was  a  mosque  in  all  its  features,  and  here  in  New 
Spain,  the  tramp  of  the  followers  of  Mohammed  was 
marked  as  distinctly  as  the  heel  of  the  Roman  on  the 
plains  of  Carthage. 

Hidalgo,  with  its  high-sounding  name,  has  seen  its 
best  days ;  it  was  very  dilapidated.  We  saw  but  few 
people,  and  no  sign  of  Christmas ;  marched  two  miles 
beyond,  and  encamped  on  the  road-side.  Made  fifteen 
miles  to-day. 

December  26.  On  guard  again  last  night;  took  an 
early  start  this  morning,  and  after  two  hours'  march 


188  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

came  to  a  deep  and  rapid  stream;  there  was  great 
difficulty  in  fording  it,  and  much  delay  before  our 
whole  division  had  crossed.  The  First  Brigade  was 
in  line  when  we  got  to  the  further  bank,  and  we 
marched  forward,  letting  it  remain  to  cover  the 
wagons  and  the  mule  train.  At  noon  we  halted  and 
went  into  camp,  all  wondering  why  we  had  done  so, 
as  we  had  not  made  more  than  six  miles.  Before 
long  we  learned  that  the  rear-guard  of  May's  Dragoons 
had  been  attacked*  and  his  whole  baggage  captured. 
Things  looked  squally,  everybody  on  the  alert,  arms 
discharged,  cleaned,  and  inspected.  General  Urrea, 
not  Canales,  was  on  our  flank  with  a  large  body  of 
good  cavalry,  and  an  attack  was  expected.  I  now 
admired  the  order  of  march  of  Quitman,  and  his 
excellent  judgment  in  selecting  camps  so  unfavorable 
for  cavalry  to  act  in  with  any  hope  of  success  against 
such  troops  as  we  had. 

December  27 — Sunday.  March  resumed,  Baltimore 
Battalion  in  the  advance.  We  marched  this  whole 
day  with  arms  loaded  and  bayonets  fixed;  and  as  they 
say  of  horses  sometimes  in  a  race,  you  might  have 
covered  the  whole  division  with  a  blanket,  so  closely 
did  they  keep  their  ranks.  At  4  o'clock  p.m.  we 
reached  a  large  ranch,  at  which  there  was  a  sugar- 
mill.  The  Mexicans  had  just  left,  intending,  as  they 
said,  to  fight  us  at  Victoria.  We  went  into  camp, 
and  here  I  took  a  lesson  in  the  proper  formation  to 
resist  a  night-attack  from  cavalry.  During  the  night 
firing  was  heard,  and  in  a  few  minutes  the  division 

*  He  lost  eleven  men,  twelve  horses,  and  all  his  baggage. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  Igg 

was  utvler  arms.  An  attack  had  been  made  upon  the 
picket-guard  lying  in  the  road  to  Victoria,  but  the 
enemy  finding  it  on  the  alert  and  the  whole  camp 
alarmed  did  not  press  the  attack.  We  remained  un- 
der arms  until  nearly  daybreak,  when  we  got  a  little 
sleep. 

Deceynher  28.  We  are  now  at  the  corner  where  the 
three  Mexican  States  of  New  Leon,  San  Luis  Potosi, 
and  Tamaulipas,  join  each  other ;  close  on  our  right, 
the  main  chain  of  the  Sierra  Madre  uplifts  its  tower- 
ing heights,  and  in  the  south-west  may  be  seen  the 
famous  gap  in  the  mountain,  called  the  Tula  Pass, 
through  which  the  road  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico 
passes  into  the  interior.  The  river  which  we  crossed 
day  before  yesterday  is  named  the  Santander,  which 
finds  its  sources  among  these  ridges  and  flows  north- 
eastwardly, emptying  into  the  Gulf  about  the  tropic  of 
Cancer. 

Again  we  marched  slowly  and  cautiously,  hugging 
the  base  of  the  mountain  on  our  right  flank,  still 
under  the  impression  that  we  would  be  attacked, 
until  we  reached  a  large  sugar  plantation  named  the 
Hacienda  of  Santa  En  Gracia,  distant  ten  miles  from 
Victoria. 

Here  we  halted,  and  having  to  report  in  person  to 
General  Quitman  for  orders,  I  was  instructed  to  march 
with  my  guard  to  a  ford,  a  mile  distant,  and  to  pre- 
vent the  passage  of  the  river,  should  such  be  attempted 
by  the  Mexicans. 

I  marched  with  my  guard,  and  during  the  night, 
whilst  sitting  on  the  river-bank,  watching  over  the 
ford,  I  was  startled  by  the  report  of  a  gun  fired  by 


190  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

one  of  my  sentries.  Hastening  to  his  side,  as  I  had 
seen  no  enemy,  I  found  a  Georgian  coolly  reloading 
his  musket.  I  asked  him  how  he  dared  to  suflfer  his 
piece  to  be  discharged,  despite  my  instructions,  as  he 
knew  the  whole  division  would  be  aroused ;  and  even 
whilst  talking  the  roll  of  the  drums  beating  the  long- 
roll  came  drifting  down  with  the  wind.  The  sentry 
saw  the  scrape  he  had  got  himself  in,  and  replied, 
"  Captain,  you  see  I  was  so  tired  and  so  sleepy  that 
to  keep  myself  awake  I  kept  imiting  my  gun  at  a 
duck  I  saw  on  the  river,  and  I  thought  how  I  would 
like  to  ivJiisper  to  it, — and,  dang  it,  I  forgot  the  gun 
was  cocked,  tind  away  she  went."  I  had  barely  placed 
him  under  arrest,  and  another  sentry  on  his  post, 
when  a  staff  officer  came  galloping  from  headquarters 
to  ascertain  the  cause  of  alarm.  I  made  the  best 
excuse  I  could,  that  I  would  prefer  charges  against 
the  sentinel,  and  said  that  I  would  report  in  person 
at  headquarters  as  soon  as  relieved,  to  explain  the 
needless  alarm.  I  did  so,  and  after  telling  the  gen- 
eral the  soldier's  story,  he  sent  for  him  and  told  him, 
that  if  ever  he  whispered  again  without  orders,  it 
would  be  his  last.  The  general  ordered  his  release, 
and  giving  me  a  bowl  of  hot  coffee,  we  both  left 
equally  gratified,  to  take  our  places  in  the  column  then 
forming  for  the  march. 

December  29.  We  advanced  on  Victoria  and  en- 
tered the  town  at  noon,  the  enemy  retiring  as  we 
approached,  which  gave  me  a  very  good  opinion  of 
the  military  capacity  of  General  Urrea.  With  a 
force  of  three  thousand  cavalry,  he  had  been  hanging 
on  our  line  of  march  from  Linarez  to  this  place,  with- 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  ^g^ 

out  a  single  opportunity  being  offered  him  to  make  an 
attack  with  any  hope  of  success,  and  he  very  wisely 
saved  his  command  and  withdrew  it  to  the  Tula  Pass, 
among  whose  mountain  fastnesses  it  was  never  our 
fortune  to  follow  him. 

I  found  here  a  Mexican  chart  which  made  the  dis- 
tance from  Monterey  seventy-nine  leagues,  which  at 
two  and  a  half  miles  to  the  league  (that  we  learned 
to  be  the  length  of  their  league)  gives  the  distance  at 
one  hundred  and  ninety-seven  and  a  half  miles ;  by 
my  itinerary  I  estimated  it  at  one  hundred  and  ninety- 
two  miles ;  if  we  call  it  two  hundred  miles  in  round 
numbers,  it  will  be  very  near  the  correct  distance  by 
a  pretty  good  road  between  the  two  capital  cities  of 
New  Leon  and  Tamaulipas. 


CHAPTEK   XVII. 

VICTORIA. 

General  Quitman  took  formal  possession  of  Vic- 
toria, the  capital  of  the  State  of  Tamaulipas,  on  the 
29th  day  of  December,  1846,  and  the  flag  of  the 
"Baltimore  Battalion,"  of  his  division,  was  hoisted  on 
the  flag-staff  of  the  State  House.  The  ceremonies 
attending  the  entry  and  occupation  were  formal  and 
imposing;  the  infantry,  preceded  by  Bragg's  (now 
Thomas's)  Battery,  formed  in  close  column  of  com- 
panies, marched  with  arms  at  a  support  and  bayonets 
fixed  around  the  main  plaza,  the  artillery  filing  out  of 


192  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

the  column  and  massing  in  the  centre ;  we  then  opened 
our  column  and  wheeled  into  line  facing  inwards 
from  each  side  of  the  square,  officers  to  the  front  and 
arms  presented,  as  the  flag  selected  from  our  battalion 
was  hoisted  amid  the  music  of  all  the  instruments  in 
our  command,  playing  "  Hail  Columbia"  and  the 
"  Star  Spangled  Banner."  At  this  time,  the  Alcalde 
and  municipal  authorities  came  forward  and  made  an 
address  to  General  Quitman,  when  we  marched  out  of 
the  city  and  went  into  camp  in  a  charming  field  near 
by,  where,  foot-sore  and  weary,  I  hoped  to  get  some 
rest. 

I  was  disappointed ;  at  sunset,  Major  Buchanan 
was  ordered  into  town  with  three  companies  of  his 
battalion,  as  rumor  was  rife  that  an  attempt  would 
be  made  to  recapture  Victoria.  We  occupied  the 
State  House,  and  I  was  ordered  to  fortify  it.  In  doing 
so  I  necessarily  entered  the  legislative  chambers,  and 
found  on  the  desks  of  the  members  written  motions 
made  on  the  preceding  day,  showing  that  they  had 
only  then  determined  to  withdraw  without  a  fight, 
trusting  for  an  opportunity  to  take  us  at  a  disad- 
vantage. So  hasty  had  been  their  flight  that  their 
national  flag,  which  had  been  flying  that  day,  was 
left,  and  we  found  it  in  the  Speaker's  desk,  which 
was  upon  a  handsome  rostrum  on  the  south  side  of 
the  hall.  I  took  supper  in  General  Urrea's  quarters, 
and  as  he  had  breakfasted  there  and  was  likely  to 
return,  I  ate  a  very  hearty  one.  ^ 

It  was  a  beautiful  moonlight  night,  and  we 
patrolled  the  town  every  half-hour,  keeping  up  com- 
munications with  the  main  body  at  camp.     It  was  a 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  I93 

melancholy  sort  of  duty  this  wandering  about  an 
enemy's  town,  and  it  would  have  been  a  pleasant 
relief  to  have  met  with  armed  resistance.  A  great 
many  of  the  citizens  had  witnessed  the  ceremonies 
attending  the  occupation,  and  I  had  looked  at  them 
carefully.  They  seemingly  beheld  the  parade  with 
that  love  for  military  display  which  is  characteristic 
of  the  nation  ;  but  their  countenances  showed  they  felt 
that  their  country  was  being  humiliated,  and  I  must 
say  that  I  really  felt  for  them. 

Now  all  was  still  as  death,  even  the  dogs  did  not 
bark;  and,  as  tired  as  we  all  were,  it  was  noticed  that 
not  a  man  of  our  guard  even  said  he  was  sleepy, — so 
intense  was  the  excitement. 

December  30.  On  duty  all  day,  patrolling  the  town 
and  strengthening  the  defenses  about  the  State  House; 
the  stores  were  generally  closed,  all  business  sus- 
pended, and  but  few  people  to  be  seen.  Some  few 
Indians  gathered  in  the  plaza  to  hold  their  accustomed 
market,  but  even  they  with  all  their  stolid  indiffer- 
ence were  forced  to  yield  to  the  general  gloom,  and 
soon  left  for  their  country  ranches.  At  sundown  we 
were  relieved  by  four  companies  from  the  First 
Brigade,  and  gladly  got  under  our  blankets  at  camp 
after  forty-eight  hours'  constant  duty. 

December  31.  No  news  from  General  Taylor  since 
he  left  us  at  Monte  Morelos, — not  even  a  rumor  to- 
day. Our  single  division,  with  a  light  Battery,  com- 
prising the  whole  force  (as  far  as  we  know),  now 
confronting  the  Mexican  army  gathering  in  the  moun- 
tains on  our  west.  "Where  will  they  strike  ? 
General  Patterson  is  undoubtedly  coming  this  way 

13 


194  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

with  his  volunteers  from  the  Rio  Grande,  and  whether 
we  shall  move  toward  San  Luis  Potosi,  through  the 
Tula  Pass,  or  toward  Tampico,  is  the  question  now 
upon  the  lips  and  iu  the  thoughts  of  every  one  in 
Quitman's  Division.  There  is  a  very  general  restless- 
ness, indicative  of  uncertainty,  and  groups  of  officers 
discuss  the  question  with  more  than  usual  earnestness. 
We  all  want  to  go  to  Tampico ;  this  is  the  military 
judgment,  that  we  should  abandon  the  line  of  the 
Rio  Grande  for  offensive  purposes. 

If  Santa  Anna  had  had  the  same  judgment,  he 
would  not  have  sacrificed  the  best  army  Mexico  ever 
put  in  the  field  at  Buena  Vista,  but  would  have  saved 
it  for  the  defense  of  the  capital.  He  made  the  same 
mistake  that  Ampudia  did  at  Monterey ;  he  mistook 
tactics  for  strategy.  Anxious  to  fight,  he  fought  the 
troops  nearest  at  hand,  without  an  idea  that  it  might 
be  possible  he  could  be  outgeneraled. 

While  he  was  now  marshaling  his  army  in  the 
State  of  San  Luis,  the  near  road  to  the  city  of  Mexico 
was  left  open ;  this  was  about  to  be  seized  by  the 
superior  genius  of  one  of  the  greatest  soldiers  of  the 
age — Major-General  Winfield  Scott. 

We  knew  nothing  as  yet  of  the  plan  of  campaign, 
but  we  were  in  the  field,  and  wits  become  wonderfully 
brightened  in  the  presence  of  danger.  As  before 
said,  we  were  unanimous  in  the  opinion  that  we 
should  change  our  strategy;  it  was  idle  to  talk  of  con- 
quering a  peace  in  the  valley  of  the  Sierra  Madre. 
That  we  would  have  to  conquer  one,  no  one  now 
doubted.  Santa  Anna,  the  recognized  head  of  the 
State,  had  made  known  the  sentiment  of  the  nation, 


MARYLAND   VOLVNTEEB.  ^95 

that  not  while  a  hostile  soldier  trod  their  soil  would 
Mexico  make  peace. 

This  had  been  my  opinion ;  its  semi-official  promul- 
gation did  not  startle  me.  And  thus  closed  upon  the 
Baltimore  Battalion,  at  Victoria  de  Tamaulipas,  th.e 
year  1846. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

THE   AEMT   OF   OCCUPATIOlSr   AT   VICTORIA,  AND    THE 
AERIVAL   OF   GENERAL   TAYLOR. 

January  1,  1847 — New-Year's  day.  Oif  duty  and 
on  a  visit  to  the  city ;  no  school-boy  ever  enjoyed  a 
holiday  more  than  I  did  this.  True,  there  was  not 
much  to  be  seen,  but  I  was  free  to  go  where  I  chose 
and  from  the  cares  belonging  to  a  Captain  of  a  com- 
pany. I  rambled  over  the  town,  visited  the  cathedral, 
in  which  divine  service  was  being  held,  looked  into 
the  few  shops  that  were  open,  gossiped  with  my 
brother  otficers  of  the  division,  many  of  whom — like 
myself — were  wandering  about  as  only  Americans  do 
wander,  and  finally  brought  up  in  the  market,  look- 
ing with  interest  at  the  vegetables,  fruit,  merchandise, 
and  country  produce  ofiered  for  sale. 

Victoria  is  on  an  elevated  plain,  close  to  the  moun- 
tains on  the  west.  This  plain  is  of  great  extent, 
highly  cultivated,  and  its  chief  products,  corn  and 
sugar,  make  the  town  an  entrepot  and  place  of  con- 
siderable trade  with  the  adjoining  mining  States  of 
San  Luis  and  Zacatecas,  the  main  road  to  which  runs 


196  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

from  this  town  through  the  mountains,  by  way  of  the 
gap  in  the  Sierra  previously  spoken  of.  Its  popuLition 
does  not  exceed  from  three  to  five  thousand,  although 
the  number  of  houses  (many  of  which  are  unoccu- 
pied) would  lead  one  to  suppose  that  its  population 
was  much  greater.  The  plaza  is  very  large,  the 
cathedral  occupying  one  of  its  faces,  and  the  buildings 
in  this  vicinity  are  respectable ;  as  you  leave  the 
square  and  approach  the  suburbs,  the  houses  decrease 
in  size,  and  the  outskirts  are  the  reed  huts  of  the 
poorer  classes.  .  It  is  by  no  means  comparable  to 
Monterey,  either  as  a  city  or  in  extent  of  trade  or 
population.  There  are  many  genteel-looking  citizens, 
but  they  appear  to  be  of  a  more  peaceable  disposition 
— milder  than  any  before  met.  They  were  not  indif- 
ferent to  their  situation,  were  not  indolent  or  apathetic. 
I  have  given  the  only  word  by  which  I  can  express 
the  opinion  I  formed  of  them, — mild,  they  seemed 
mild. 

I  learned  that  one  of  the  officers  who  had  retired, 
as  we  approached,  was  a  Captain  Augustine  Iturbide, 
who  had  been  a  scholar  at  Saint  Mary's  College,  Bal- 
timore, and  was  now  on  the  staff  of  General  Urrea.* 

I  went  out  to  camp  at  sunset,  and  was  just  in  time 
to  meet  with  the  first  norilier  I  had  ever  seen  or  felt. 
The  wind  blew  a  hurricane,  prostrating  in  a  minute 
nearly  every  tent,  and  the  air  was  filled  with  dust, 


*  He  subsequently  called  to  see  me,  and  made  himself  known 
while  I  was  at  the  National  Bridge.  He  seemed  much  pleased 
to  meet  a  Baltimorean  who  knew  some  of  his  former  scbool- 
mates. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  IQ'J 

sand-burs,  ticks,  and  various  flies  and  insects ;  while 
overhead  clouds  of  parrots,  disturbed  in  their  roosts 
on  the  mountain  sides,  were  flying,  whirling,  and 
screaming  like  mad.  Two  thousand  men  were  turned 
out  of  house  and  home  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye, 
and  a  scene  of  utter  confusion  prevailed  in  the  dark- 
ness which  fell  like  a  pall  over  everything.  For  fully 
half  an  hour  the  storm-king  was  in  command,  and 
not  a  rag  of  canvas  could  be  raised  to  shelter  us  from 
the  fury  of  the  gale ;  by  midnight,  the  wind  had 
abated  and  the  thermometer  must  have  been  down  to 
freezing ;  it  was  very  cold,  and  the  noise  of  driving 
tent-pins  into  the  earth  showed  the  activity  with  which 
our  houses  were  being  reconstructed,  for  even  a  canvas 
shelter  is  better  than  none,  against  cold. 

One  of  the  gravest  objections  to  this  climate  is  the 
violent  alternation  of  heat  and  cold  within  twenty- 
four  hours.  I  think  there  must  be  an  average  difl^er- 
ence  of  thirty  or  forty  degrees  of  Fahrenheit  between 
noon  and  midnight.  At  mid-day,  the  sun  is  hot ;  by 
sundown,  the  weather  is  so  cold  that  you  want  the 
heat  of  a  fire;  and  at  midnight,  you  are  lucky  if  you 
have  blankets  enough  to  keep  warm  enough  to  sleep. 

This  has  been  so  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  since 
last  September,  and  serious  fears  are  expressed  by  our 
surgeons,  that  many  of  our  troops  will  be  unfit  for 
service  three  months  hence,  on  account  of  chills  and 
fevers. 

January  4.  General  Taylor  arrived  to-day  with 
Twiggs's  First  Division,  and  we  were  very  glad  to 
know  that  they  were  again  with  us.  They  had  had 
a  useless  and  tiresome  march  back  to  Monterey  from 


198  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

Monte  Morelos,  merely  to  find  that  the  troops  at  Sal- 
tillo  had  been  stampeded.  So  they  again  set  out  to 
reach  Victoria,  and  came  to  find  Quitman  in  posses- 
sion for  five  days.  General  Patterson  also  arrived  to- 
day with  his  division  of  volunteers,  having  suffered  a 
great  deal  from  the  scarcity  of  water  on  his  march 
from  Camargo. 

We  of  Hamer's  Brigade  knew  all  about  this  last 
August,  and  it  is  very  strange  that  these  troops  had 
not  been  forewarned  to  carry  water  with  them. 

The  number  of  troops  concentrated  here  is  about 
five  thousand  men  of  all  arms,  and  we  have  un- 
doubted information  that  a  force  of  the  enemy  equally 
large,  under  Generals  Valencia  and  Urrea,  is  at  Tula, 
one  hundred  miles  west,  while  Santa  Anna  is  at  San 
Luis  with  an  unknown  force.  General  Taylor  is 
awaiting  instructions,  as  he  is  not  disposed  to  abandon 
his  movement  upon  Tampico  to  look  after  Valencia 
or  his  chief,  the  redoubtable  Don  Antonio  Lopez  de 
Santa  Anna. 

January  8.  The  weather  here  has  been  very  dis- 
agreeable ;  we  have  had  two  more  norUiers,  and  twice 
my  tent  has  been  blown  down ;  cold  and  stormy 
weather  is  very  bad  tor  living  in  the  open  air.  A 
very  noticeable  fact  in  these  fierce  blows  of  wind  is 
the  quantity  of  fine  black  dust  that  is  carried  along 
with  the  gale ;  it  is  so  penetrating  that  my  face  has 
been  covered  with  it  when  I  awoke  in  the  morning, 
notwithstanding  the  tent  was  tightly  closed  and  my 
head  well  covered.  I  am  not  sure  that  the  ticks  (as 
we  call  them  in  Maryland)  are  also  borne  along  by 
the  wind ;  but  that  is  the  opinion  in  camp,  and  we 


'  MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  I99 

are  more  annoyed  by  them  tlian  we  were  by  the  mos- 
quitoes on  the  Rio  Grande  last  summer.  We  have 
another  annoyance,  destined  to  persecute  us  until  we 
left  the  country, — fleas;  their  number  is  legion. 

January  9.  I  think  I  may  safelj'  say  that  every 
tent  went  down  last  night ;  the  wind  changed  sud- 
denly after  dark  last  evening  from  the  south  to  the 
north,  and  again  we  had  a  norther  from  the  ice  pole 
itself,  which  had  gathered  strength  from  every  degree 
as  it  flew  toward  the  equator  ;  it  is  really  impossible 
to  paint  or  imagine  the  quantity  of  discomfort  we 
have  experienced  in  camp  this  month  of  January  at 
Victoria. 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

GENERAL   SCOTT   PLACED   IN   COMMAND — HIS   ARRIVAL 
IN   THE    COUNTRY. 

January  11.  It  was  at  Victoria  that  General  Tay- 
lor first  learned  that  General  Scott  was  in  the  country, 
had  arrived  at  the  Brazos  Santiago;  and  this  was  why 
his  march  on  Tampico  had  been  stopped,  to  await  in- 
structions, which  it  was  to  be  supposed  would  follow 
the  totally  unexpected  arrival  of  the  Commander-in- 
chief. 

These  instructions  came,  and  were  of  such  a  char- 
acter, as  now  to  merit  the  attention  of  every  citizen, 
and  to  deserve  the  profound  consideration  of  every 
lover  of  his    country ;    for   history   cannot   show   a 


200  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

brighter  example  of  patriotism,  of  military  subordina- 
tion, of  high-toned  integrity,  than  was  presented  in 
the  conduct  of  General  Taylor  at  this  time. 
On  the  7th  he  had  written  the  following  letter: 

"  Headquarters  Army  of  Occupation, 
"  Camp  near  Victoria,  Mkxico,  January  7,  1847. 

"  SiR^ — I  have  the  honor  to  advise  you  that  on  the  29th  ult. 
Brigadier-General  Quitman  occupied,  without  resistance,  the  city 
of  Victoria,  capital  of  the  State  of  Tamaulipas.  The  enemy 
had  a  body  of  some  fifteen  hundred  cavalry  in  the  town,  with 
its  advanced  picket  at  Santa  Bngracia,  but  it  fell  back  as  Gen- 
eral Quitman  approached,  and  is  understood  to  be  now  at  Jau- 
mave,  in  the  direction  of  Tula.  At  Tula  there  is  a  strong  di- 
vision of  observation,  under  the  command  of  General  Valencia. 
An  examination  of  the  mountain  pass  leading  to  Tula  shows 
that  it  is  entirely  impracticable  for  artillery  or  wagons.  Such  is 
also  believed  to  be  the  character  of  the  Santa  Barbara  Pass, 
which  opens  in  the  direction  of  Tarapico. 

"I  arrived  here  with  the  division  of  Brigadier-General  Twiggs 
on  the  4th  inst.,  and  was  joined  on  the  same  day  by  the  force 
which  Major-General  Patterson  conducted  from  Matamoras. 
The  force  now  collected  here  is  over  five  thousand  strong,  and, 
I  am  happy  to  add,  in  excellent  health  and  in  good  condition  for 
service. 

"  I  am  unofficially  advised  that  Major-General  Scott  is  now  iu 
the  country,  under  orders  from  the  government.  I  propose  to 
remain  at  this  point  until  I  can  hear  from  him,  and  determine 
what  disposition  to  make  of  the  troops  now  here.  I  am  con- 
stantly expecting  dispatches  from  his  headquarters. 

*****  !|!  * 

"I  am,  sir,  very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

"(Signed)  "Z.  Taylor, 

"  Miijor-Gcneral  commanding. 
"To  THE  Adjutant-General  of  the  Army, 
"  "Washington." 

The  above  letter  I  did  not  see  or  know  anything 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  201 

about  until  the  year  1850.     On  the  14th  of  January, 
1847,  I  wrote  from  camp,  at  Victoria : 

"  I  have  just  returned  from  town  ;  saw  a  train  of  wag-ons, 
escorted  by  Kentucky  cavalry,  arrive  from  Matamoras  ;  it  was 
loaded  with  supplies.  I  heard  many  rumors.  There  is  evi- 
dently some  grand  move  in  contemplation,  and  I  am  inclined  to 
think  Vera  Cruz  will  bring  us  up.  I  am  just  informed  that  Gen- 
eral Scott  is  at  Matamoras,  and  that  General  Taylor  has  received 
dispatches  from  him  ;  if  so,  our  movements  may  be  changed.  I 
am  satisfied  that  we  would  not  have  remained  here  so  long,  but 
for  the  fact  that  General  Scott  was  in  the  country,  and  General 
Taylor  would  do  nothing  until  he  heard  from  him." 

From  the  above  it  will  be  perceived  that  on  the 
14th  I  had  just  learned  what  Taylor  knew  on  the 
7th,  but  had  correctly  surmised  the  cause  of  delay, 
although  I,  in  a  measure,  ascribed  it  to  the  want  of 
necessary  supplies. 

General  Scott  arrived  at  Matamoras  on  the  30th  day 
of  December,  1846,  from  the  United  States,  having 
left  New  Orleans  on  the  23d  of  the  same  month.* 
General  Taylor  was  then  on  the  return  march  from 
Monterey  to  Victoria,  and  he  was  in  the  latter  city 
when  he  first  heard,  unofBcially,  that  Scott  was  in 
the  country.  It  is  well  to  bear  these  facts  and  dates 
in  mind. 

On  the  day  of  his  arrival  at  Matamoras,  General 
Scott  sent  the  following  to  the  Honorable  Secretary 
of  War,  and  the  official  heading  shows  that  he  was 
then  in  command : 

*  He  had  landed  at  the  Brazos  on  the  28th,  and  immediately 
assumed  command. 


202  BiEUoms  OF  a 

"  Headquarters  of  the  Army, 

Matamoras,  December  30,  1346. 

"  Sir, — I  came  here  this  morniDg,  and  found  nothing  but  the 
same  contradictory  rumors  which  prevrailed  yesterday  at  the 
Brazos  Santiago  and  the  mouth  of  the  river.  But  an  officer  has 
just  arrived  here  (for  additional  subsistence)  from  Major-General 
Patterson,  at  San  Fernando,  who  says,  positively,  that  the  latter 
had,  on  the  morning  of  the  2Tth  inst.,  ofiicial  dispatches  from 
Major-General  Taylor,  saying  that  he  was  about  to  return,  with 
a  part  of  his  moveable  column,  to  Monterey,  in  order  to  support 
Brevet  Brigadier-General  Worth,  understood  to  be  menaced  at 
Saltillo  by  Santa  Anna  and  a  powerful  army. 

"This  information  has  determined  me  to  proceed  up  the  river 
to  Camargo,  in  order  to  meet  dispatches  from  Major-General 
Taylor,  and,  if  his  outposts  should  be  seriously  menaced,  to  join 
him  rapidly.  Otherwise  I  shall,  at  Camargo,  be  within  easy 
corresponding  distance  of  him  in  respect  to  my  ulterior  destina- 
tion. 

"  If  the  enemy  be  acting  offensively,  with  a  large  force,  which 
I  yet  somewhat  doubt,  we  must  first  repulse  and  cripple  him  in 
time  to  proceed  to  the  new  and  more  distant  theatre. 

"  No  boat  has  come  down  the  river  in  many  days,  on  account 
of  the  heavy  winds,  which  make  descent  and  ascent  extremely 
diificult.  Hence,  nothing,  it  is  believed,  has  passed  here  from 
Major-General  Taylor's  headquarters  of  a  later  date  than  the  14th 
instant.  The  steamer  in  which  I  write  is  ready  to  depart. 
"  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  etc., 

"  (Signed)  "  WiNriBLD  Scott. 

"  To  Hon.  W.  L.  Marcy, 

"  Secretary  of  War." 

It  was  on  the  11th  day  of  January,  1847,  that 
General  Taylor  received  the  following  astounding 
and  extraordinary  communications,  which  I  give 
entire,  because  of  their  interesting  character  and  inti- 
mate connection  with  the  thread  of  history ;  merely 
premising  that  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  at  this 
time  Taylor  had  by  the  capture  of  and  terms  of  car 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  203 

pitulation  at  Monterey,  driven  the  Mexicans  beyond 
the  Sierra  Madre,  and  that  the  whole  valley  of  the 
Rio  Grande  was  clear  of  the  enemy ;  that  the  cam- 
paign, inaugurated  solely  by  him,  had  been  success- 
fully terminated,  leaving  him  free  to  act,  as  he  was 
about  doing,  from  another  base  on  a  new  theatre. 

"New  Yokk,  November  25,  1846. 
"  Private  and  Confide) dial.  ~\ 

"  My  Deak  General, — I  left  Washington  late  in  the  day  yes- 
terday, and  expect  to  embark  for  New  Orleans  the  30th  instant. 
By  the  12th  of  December  I  may  be  in  that  city,  at  Point  Isabel 
the  ITth,  and  Camargo  say  the  23d,  in  order  to  be  within  easy 
corresponding  distance  from  you.  It  is  not  probable  that  I  may 
be  able  to  visit  Monterey,  and  circumstances  may  prevent  your 
coming  to  me.  I  shall  much  regret  not  having  an  early  oppor- 
tunity of  felicitating  you  in  person  upon  your  many  brilliant 
achievements;  but  we  may  meet  somewhere  in  the  interior  of 
Mexico. 

"I  am  not  coming,  my  dear  General,  to  supersede  you  in  the 
immediate  command  on  the  line  of  operations  rendered  illustrious 
by  you  and  your  gallant  army.  My  proposed  theatre  is  differ- 
ent. You  may  imagine  it,  and  I  wish  very  much  that  it  were 
prudent  at  this  distance  to  tell  you  all  that  I  expect  to  attempt 
or  hope  to  execute.  I  have  been  admonished  that  dispatches 
have  been  lost,  and  I  have  no  special  messenger  at  hand.  Your 
imagination  will  be  aided  by  the  letters  of  the  Secretary  of  War, 
conveyed  by  Mr.  Armistead,  Major  Graham,  and  Mr.  McLane. 

"  But,  my  dear  General,  I  shall  be  obliged  to  take  from  you 
most  of  the  gallant  ofBcers  and  men  (regulars  and  volunteers), 
whom  you  have  so  long  and  so  nobly  commanded.  I  am  afraid 
that  I  shall,  by  imperious  necessity, — the  approach  of  yellow 
fever  on  the  Gulf-coast, — reduce  you  for  a  time  to  stand  on  the 
defensive.  This  will  be  infinitely  painful  to  you,  and  for  that 
reason  distressing  to  me.  But  I  rely  on  your  patriotism  to  sub- 
mit to  the  temporary  sacrifice  with  cheerfulness.  No  man  can 
better  afford  to  do  so.     Recent  victories  place  you  on  that  high 


204  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

eminence,  and  I  even  flatter  myself  that  any  benefit  that  may 
result  to  me  personally  from  the  unequal  division  of  troops  al- 
luded to  will  lessen  the  pain  of  your  consequent  inactivity. 

"You  will  be  aware  of  the  recent  call  for  nine  regiments  of 
new  volunteers,  including  one  of  Texas  horse.  The  President 
may  soon  ask  for  many  more,  and  we  are  not  without  hope  that 
Congress  may  add  ten  or  twelve  to  the  regular  establishment. 
These,  by  the  spring, — say  April, — may,  by  the  aid  of  large 
bounties,  be  in  the  field,  should  Mexico  not  earlier  propose  terms 
of  accommodation  ;  and  long  before  the  spring  (March)  it  is  prob- 
able you  will  be  again  in  force  to  resume  offensive  operations. 

"  I  am  writing  at  a  late  hour  of  the  night,  and  more  than  half 
sick  of  a  cold.  I  may  dispatch  another  note  before  I  embark  ; 
but  from  New  Orleans,  Point  Isabel,  etc.,  you  shall  hear  from 
me  officially  and  fully. 

"  It  was  not  possible  for  me  to  find  time  to  write  from  Wash- 
ington, as  I  much  desired.  I  only  received  an  intimation  to  hold 
myself  in  preparation  for  Mexico  on  the  18th  instant.  Much  has 
been  done  towards  that  end,  and  more  remains  to  be  executed. 

"Your  detailed  report  of  the  operations  at  Monterey,  and 
reply  to  the    Secretary's   dispatch,  by  Lieutenant  Armistead, 
were  both  received  two  days  after  I  was  instructed  to  proceed 
south.     In  haste,  I  remain,  my  dear  General, 
"  Yours,  faithfully, 

"  (Signed)  "  WiNPiELD  Scott. 

"To  Major-General  Z.  Taylor, 

"  United  States  Army  Commanding,  etc." 

On  the  12th  day  of  the  preceding  month  of  Sep- 
tember, General  Scott  had  written  the  following : 

"  Headquakters  of  the  Army,  West  Point, 
"  New  York,  September  12,  1846. 
"  Sir, — In  the'letter  I  bad  the  honor  to  address  you  on  the 
2'7th  of  May  last,  I  requested  that  I  might  be  sent  to  take  the 
immediate  command  of  the  principal  army  against  Mexico, 
either  'to-day  or  at  any  better  time  he  (the  President)  may  he 
pleased  to  designate.^ 

"  The  horse  regiments  (twelve  months'  volunteers)  destined 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  205 

for  that  army  being,  I  suppose,  now  within  fifteen  or  twenty 
marches  of  the  Rio  Grande,  and  the  season  for  conseoitive  ope- 
rations at  hand,  I  respectfully  ask  to  remind  the  President  of 
that  standing  request.  I  do  this  without  any  hesitation  in 
respect  to  Major-Geneval  Taylor,  having  reason  to  believe  that 
my  presence  at  the  head  of  the  army  in  the  field,  in  accordance 
with  my  rank,  is  neither  unexpected  or  undesired  by  that  gallant 
and  distinguished  commander, 

"  A  slight  return  of  chills  and  fever  may  detain  me  here  with 
my  family  long  enough  to  receive  your  reply  to  this  note. 
Should  the  President  yield  to  my  wishes,  a  few  hours  in  New 
York  and  Philadelphia  would  enable  me  to  make  certain  arrange- 
ments and  save  the  necessity  of  a  return  to  those  cities  from 
Washington.  I  suppose  it  would  be  easy  for  me  to  reach  the 
Kio  Grande  by  the  end  of  this  month. 

"With  high  respect,  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir,  your  most 

obedient  servant. 

"  (Signed)  "  Winpielb  Scott. 

"  Hon.  "W.  L.  Makcy, 

"Secretary  of  War." 

It  will  thus  be  perceived  that  General  Scott  had 
done  all  that  he  could  otficially,  to  take  command  in 
Mexico,  at  the  commencement  of  the  war;  and  there 
is  nothing  to  show  that  he  ever,  subsequent  to  this 
letter  on  the  12th  September,  directly  or  indirectly, 
contributed  to  deprive  Taylor  of  his  command. 

To  this  note  of  General  Scott,  the  Secretary  replied  : 

"  War  Department, 
"  Washington,  September  14,  1846. 

"Sir, — I  have  received  your  letter  of  the  12th  instant,  and 
submitted  it  to  the  President.  He  requests  me  to  inform  you 
that  it  is  not  within  the  arrangements  for  conducting  the  campaign 
in  Mexico  to  supersede  General  Taylor  in  his  present  command, 
by  assigning  you  to  it. 

"I  am,  with  great  respect, 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"  (Signed)  "  W.  L.  Marct. 

"To  Major-General  W.  Scott." 


206  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

This  curt  answer  of  the  Secretary  settled  the 
matter,  for,  as  before  said,  Scott  had  written  himself 
into  disfavor  with  the  administration. 

But  the  terms  of  the  capitulation  of  Monterey  had 
been  disapproved,  and  the  following  letter  of  the  23d 
of  November  speaks  for  itself: 

"  War  Department, 
•'Washington,   November  23,  1846. 

"Sir, — The  President  several  days  since  communicated  in 
person  to  tou  his  orders  to  repair  to  Mexico,  to  take  command 
of  the  forces  there  assembled,  and  particularly  to  organize  and 
set  on  foot  an  expedition  to  operate  on  the  Gulf-coast,  if  on 
arriving  at  the  theatre  of  action  you  shall  deem  it  to  be  practi- 
cable. It  is  not  proposed  to  control  your  operations  by  definite 
and  positive  instructions,  but  you  are  left  to  prosecute  tLem  as 
your  judgment,  under  a  full  view  of  all  the  circumstances,  shall 
dictate.  The  work  is  before  you,  and  the  means  provided,  or  to 
be  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  indi- 
cated, and  it  is  hoped  you  will  bave  the  requisite  force  to  accom- 
plish them.  Of  this  you  must  be  the  judge  when  preparations 
are  made,  and  the  time  for  action  has  arrived. 

"  Yery  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

''  W.  L.  Makcy, 

"  Secretary  of  War. 
"  To  ilajor-General  Winfield  Scott, 

"  Commanding  the  Army,  Washington." 

More  ample  powers  or  more  absolute  authority  were 
never  given  to  general-in-chief ;  and  the  high  trust  was 
nobly,  faithfully,  and  successfully  discharged.  But  the 
blow  fell  with  crushing  effect  on  the  modest  soldier 
who  had  done  so  much  to  exalt  the  character  and  the 
reputation  of  Amei'ican  valor. 

Beside  the  disapprobation  of  the  terms  of  capitu- 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  207 

latioii,  there  was  another  disagreement  between  the 
War  Department  and  General  Taylor,  owing  to  the 
Secretary  having  sent  orders  direct  to  Major-General 
Patterson  on  the  Rio  Grande,  without  transmitting 
them  through  Taylor's  headquarters.  This  the  latter 
took  umbrage  at,  as  it  disposed  of  his  troops  without 
his  knowledge  :  strictly  speaking,  General  Taylor  was 
in  the  right;  but  the  reasons  given  by  the  Secretary, 
the  chief  of  which  were  the  necessity  for  prompt 
action,  the  uncertainty  of  Taylor's  whereabouts  in  the 
enemy's  country,  and  the  danger  of  the  orders  being 
captured  by  the  enemy  on  their  way  from  the  Rio 
Grande,  would  seem  to  justify  him.  General  Taylor 
was  very  much  hurt,  as  it  induced  him  to  think  that 
the  Department  had  grown  unfriendly;  but  I  believe 
there  was  no  intention  whatever  to  derogate  from  or 
interfere  with  the  authority  of  Taylor  as  the  com- 
manding general  at  the  time. 

It  was  a  mistake,  however,  on  the  part  of  the  Secre- 
tary, beyond  a  doubt,  and  it  is  equally  clear  that  the 
complaints  of  Taylor  tended  to  hasten  his  removal. 

The  orders  now  received  by  Taylor  from  General 
Scott  were  to  send  his  lohole  command,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  two  batteries  of  light  artillery  and  a  squad- 
ron of  dragoons,  to  Tampico,  where  he.  General  Scott, 
would  meet  them  in  the  latter  part  of  this  month, 
January,  or  the  1st  of  February.  General  Taylor  was 
to  return  to  Monterey  and  remain  on  the  defensive. 
Orders  had  been  dispatched  already  by  Scott  to  Gen- 
eral Worth,  to  move  with  all  tlie  regulars,  except  four 
batteries,  to  Point  Isabel,  and  thus  was  the  old  hero 
stripped.     It  was  a  hard  blow,  but  it  was  met  with 


208  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

the  firmness  of  a  soldier  and  a  patriot.     Nothing  I 
ever  met  with  in  Plutarch  surpasses  Taylor's  behavior. 
Before  leaving  Victoria  he  wrote  on  the   14th  to 
Major-General  Scott : 

"  Had  you,  General,  relieved  me  at  once  from  the  whole  com- 
mand, and  assigned  rae  to  duty  under  your  order  or  allowed  me 
to  retire  from  the  field,  be  assured  that  no  complaint  would  have 
been  heard  from  me;  but  while  almost  every  man  of  the  regular 
force  and  half  the  volunteers  (now  in  respectable  discipline)  are 
withdrawn  for  distant  service,  it  seems  that  I  am  expected,  with 
less  than  a  thousand  regulars,  and  a  volunteer  force  partly  of 
new  levies,  to  hold  a  defensive  line  while  a  large  army  of  twenty 
thousand  men  is  in  my  front 

"  I  cannot  misunderstand  the  object  of  the  arrangements  indi- 
cated in  your  letters.  I  feel  that  I  have  lost  the  confidence  of 
the  government,  or  it  would  not  have  suffered  me  to  remain  up 
to  this  time  ignorant  of  its  intentions,  with  so  vitally  afi'ecting 
interests  committed  to  my  charge.  But  however  much  I  may 
feel  personally  mortified  and  outraged  by  the  course  pursued, 
unprecedented  at  least  in  our  own  history,  I  will  carry  out  in  good 
faith,  while  I  may  remain  in  Mexico,  the  views  of  my  govern- 
ment, though  I  may  be  sacrificed  in  the  effort." 

General  Scott  replied  on  the  26th  of  January,  from 
the  Brazos : 

"If  I  had  been  within  easy  reach  of  you  at  the  time  I  called 
for  troops  from  your  line  of  operations,  I  should,  as  I  had  pre- 
viously assured  you,  have  consulted  you  fully  on  all  points,  and 
probably  might  have  modified  my  call,  both  as  to  number  and 
description  of  the  forces  to  be  taken  from  or  to  be  left  with  you. 
As  it  was,  I  had  to  act  promptly,  and  to  a  considerable  extent 
in  the  dark.  All  this,  I  think,  will  be  apparent  to  you  when 
you  shall  review  my  letters. 

"I  hope  I  have  left,  or  shall  leave  you,  including  the  new  vol- 
unteers who  will  soon  be  up,  a  competent  force  to  defend  the 
head  of  your  line  (Monterey)  and  its  communications  in  the 


UABTLAND   VOLUNTEER.  209 

neighborbood.  To  enable  you  to  do  tbis  more  certainly,  I  must 
ask  you  to  abandon  Saltillo  and  to  make  no  detachments,  except 
for  reconnaissances  and  immediate  defense,  much  beyond  Mon- 
terey. I  know  this  to  be  the  wish  of  the  government,  founded 
on  reasons  in  which  I  concur  ;  among  them,  that  the  enemy 
intends  to  operate  against  small  detachments  and  posts." 

General  Taylor  issued  the  following  order  the  day 
he  left  Victoria : 

"  Itiswith  deep  sensibility  that  the  commanding  general  finds 
himself  separated  from  the  troops  he  so  long  commanded.  To 
those  corps,  regular  and  volunteer,  who  had  shared  with  him 
the  active  services  of  the  field,  he  feels  the  attachment  due  such 
associations;  while  to  those  making  their  first  campaign,  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  happiness, 
confident  that  their  achievements  will  redound  to  the  credit  of 
their  country  and  its  arms." 

Many  an  eye  was  filled  with  tears  when  this  order 

was  read,  for  General  Taylor  possessed  the  affections 

of  his  soldiers.     I  called   to   see  him  and   bid  him 

good-by;    he  received   me,   and  I  parted  from  him 

not  to  see  him  again  until  I  saw  him  on  the  eastern 

portico  of  the   national   capitol,  being   inaugurated 

President  of  the  United  States  of  America,  as  he 

deserved  to  be. 

14 


210  MEMOIRS  OF  A 


CHAPTER    XX. 

DEPARTURE   FROM   VICTORIA,   AND   MARCH    TO    TAMPICO. 

January  16,  1847.  General  Tajlor  left  this  morn- 
ing to  return  to  Monterey,  taking  with  him  the  dra- 
goons, two  batteries,  and  the  Mississippi  Eifles.  The 
Baltimore  Battalion  struck  its  tents  and  marched  out 
of  the  camp  occupied  by  it  since  the  29th  ultimo,  to 
take  its  place  in  the  column  under  orders  to  march  to 
Tampico.  We  were  still  in  Brigadier-General  Quit- 
man's Brigade,  now  consisting  of  the  First  Georgia, 
the  Fourth  Illinois,  and  our  Battalion,  of  infantry,  and 
one  company  of  mounted  Tennesseans.  We  con- 
stituted the  Second  Brigade  of  the  Volunteer  Divi- 
sion, commanded  by  Mnjor-General  Patterson ;  the 
other  brigade  is  composed  of  the  First  and  Second 
Tennessee  and  the  Third  Illinois  regiments  of  infaii- 
try  and  the  Tennessee  regiment  of  cavalry,  with  one 
section  of  artillery,  under  Brigadier-General  Gideon 
J.  Pillow,  which  marched  on  yesterday. 

On  the  preceding  day,  the  14th,  Brigadier-General 
Twiggs  marched  with  the  First  Division,  consisting 
of  the  First,  Third,  Sixth,  and  Seventh  regular  regi- 
ments of  infantry  and  two  companies  of  rifles.  We 
are  now  under  the  orders  of  Major-General  Winfield 
Scott.  We  marched  this  day,  through  an  arid  and 
mountainous  country,  a  south-east  course;  the  road 
was  very  dusty  and  stony,  and  the  heat  intense  at 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  211 

noon.  Toward  evening  we  reached  the  San  Rosa 
River,  and  encamped. 

On  our  march  from  Monterey,  instead  of  hard 
ship-biscuit,  flour  was  issued  as  the  ration  of  bread ; 
we  had  been  told  that  we  could  get  hard  bread  at 
Victoria,  and  such  not  being  the  case,  there  was  a 
great  deal  of  dissatisfaction.  Three  tin  cupsful  of 
flour  was  the  issue  for  three  days,  which  was  carried 
on  the  person  in  the  haversacks  of  the  men ;  to  cook 
this  flour,  except  in  one  way,  was" next  to  impossible 
on  the  march :  this  way  was  to  mix  it  with  water, 
then  pour  it  into  a  pan  in  which  pork-fat  was  frying, 
replace  it  over  the  fire,  and  we  had  slap-jacks — the 
only  bread  I  tasted  for  weeks.  This  mixture  called 
bread,  with  the  meat,  which  was  from  cattle  on  the 
hoof,  driven  with  the  column  and  slaughtered  at  the 
evening's  halt,  laid  the  foundation  for  the  discharge  of 
many  soldiers  from  the  army.  It  took  a  strong  man 
to  stand  it. 

January  17 — Sunday.  Last  night,  after  I  had  laid 
down  in  my  blanket,  I  was  aroused  by  a  report  that 
an  express  had  reached  camp  with  a  mail  direct  from 
the  United  States.  I  flew  through  the  chaparral, 
scratching  my  hands  and  tearing  my  clothes,  but  was 
amply  rewarded  by  receiving  two  letters  from  home, 
which  I  read  over  and  over  again  before  I  turned  in 
or  closed  my  eyes.  The  reveille  beat  this  morning 
before  daylight,  and  we  were  on  the  tramp  before  sun- 
rise; our  march  was  a  very  dusty  one,  but  the  heat 
was  not  so  oppressive  as  on  yesterday;  the  Sierra 
Madre  was  close  on  our  right  and  throwing  off  spurs 
or  buttresses  toward  the  east;  we  had  to  cross  hill  and 


2L2  MEUOIES   OF  A 

dale,  up  one  and  over  the  other  for  miles,  not  passing 
a  single  ranch  the  whole  day.  The  great  object  of 
interest  on  this  Sunday's  march  was  the  President's 
message,  which  one  of  my  men  had  received  direct 
from  his  father,  Colonel  Nathaniel  Hickman,  of  Bal- 
timore. It  was  not  the  message  that  we  cared  so  much 
about  as  the  paper  upon  which  it  was  printed;  it 
was  the  first  fresh  thing  we  had  seen  for  seven  months. 
We  had  received  letters,  but  they  had  a  travel-stained 
look ;  this  newspap'er  had  yet  the  smell  and  the  damp 
of  the  press.  I  think  every  man  in  my  company  had 
it  in  his  hands  and  handled  it  with  great  circumspec- 
tion and  decorum.  Sergeant  Hickman  was  by  long 
odds  the  man  of  the  brigade  on  this  day's  march ;  the 
news  flew  like  lightning  that  the  President's  message 
to  Congress  was  in  the  Baltimore  Battalion,  and  from 
headquarters  down,  applications  came  through  staff 
officers  for  its  loan. 

From  the  top  of  a  ridge  we  beheld  our  camping 
ground  at  El  Pasto,  and  pushing  on  through  the  mos- 
chete  bushes  reached  the  pond,  where  we  halted,  and 
from  the  waters  of  which  we  made  slap-jacks  for  this 
and  the  ensuing  days'  meals.  It  was  a  miserable 
place,  we  had  passed  over  a  miserable  country,  and 
we  felt  miserable. 

January  18.  We  this  morning  buried  one  of  Cap- 
tain Piper's  men ;  he  was  sick,  too  sick  to  be  brought 
on  this  march,  when  we  left  Victoria,  and  had  died 
in  the  wagon  on  the  road.  We  were  ordered  off  just 
as  his  remains  were  about  being  laid  in  their  final 
resting  place,  and  Captain  Piper's  company  remained 
to  pay  the  last  sad  duties  to  a  brother  soldier. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEEB.  213 

This  has  been  the  most  disagreeable  day's  march 
we  have  had  since  we  left  the  Brazos ;  the  dust  was 
more  than  ankle-deep,  and  the  wind  blowing  hard 
covered  us  in  clouds,  rendering  it  impossible  to  see 
twenty  yards  ahead;  eyes,  mouth,  and  nostrils  were 
nearly  closed,  and  we  were  as  black  as  negroes  when 
we  got  to  camp  upon  the  Arroya  Alhagilla,  in  Avhose 
gullies  we  found  water  enough  for  coffee.  We  passed 
to-day  many  isolated  palm-trees,  which,  with  their 
tufted  tops  of  long  green  branches,  were  very  refresh- 
ing to  the  sight  when,  emerging  from  the  clouds  of 
dust,  we  would  strike  a  harder  bed  of  earth  not  yet 
tramped  into  an  impalpable  powder. 

January  19.  Off  before  daylight,  our  road  the 
whole  day  being  through  a  loUderness,  nothing  more 
nor  less.  Cloudy,  and  not  so  dusty  ;  passed  through  a 
deserted  village,  the  picture  of  wretchedness,  and 
crossed  a  stream  called  the  Tamisee,  where  we  en- 
camped. We  made  eighteen  miles  to-day,  and  were 
pretty  tired  when  we  >halted.  Our  beef  contractor, 
Mr.  Biglowe,  while  riding  with  his  party  ahead  of 
the  column,  was  attacked  to-day  by  Mexican  cavalry, 
shot  through  the  leg,  and  his  party  dispersed;  he  had 
been  warned  not  to  keep  out  of  sight,  but  with  the 
rashness  of  his  class  rode  ahead  and  fell  into  an  am- 
bush ;  he  will  lose  his  leg  if  not  his  life,  for  his  temerity. 

January  20.  A  long  march  to-day,  but  rather  a 
pleasant  one.  My  company,  the  advance  guard,  came 
up  to  the  Tamisee  River  again  about  two  miles  from 
camp;  waded  through  it,  water  very  cold;  passed 
through  dense  thickets  of  chaparral  and  forests  of 
large  palmetto-trees,  and  came  to  a  ruinous  hamlet 


214  MEMO  IBS   OF  A 

called  Panucho ;  here  formerly  was  a  mission  of  pious 
Catholic  priests,  named  the  Mission  del  Refugio,  where 
the  old  Spaniards  had  labored  for  a  century  to  Chris- 
tianize the  native  Mexicans  after  the  conquest.  All 
gone,  priest  and  peon,  Spaniard  and  Mexican,  before 
the  Great  Judge  of  the  quick  and  the  dead.  He 
will  render  the  proper  judgment. 

"All  in  the  grave  as  equals  meet; 
'         And  God,  upon  his  judgment  seat, 
Alike  impartially  will  greet 
The  mighty  and  the  mean." 

Being  in  the  advance,  and  the  weather  not  uncom- 
fortable, we  marched  rapidly  and  enjoyed  the  scenery 
which  the  mountains  presented.  The  sunset  was 
grand,  one  lofty  peak  in  the  far  distance  being  lighted 
up  until  it  looked  like  a  cone  of  fire ;  looking  at  it  as 
we  did  from  the  natural  amphitheatre  in  which  we 
were,  it  required  but  little  imagination  to  realize  the 
"  pillar  of  fire"  before  the  Israelites  in  their  journey- 
ings  to  the  promised  land.  This  peak  was  formerly 
an  active  volcano,  and  is  named  Mount  Bernal ;  rising 
three  thousand  feet  straight  up  from  the  plain,  its 
elevation  is  so  great  that  it  is  a  noted  landmark  to 
mariners  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

We  encamped  upon  the  banks  of  a  stream  among 
some  large  beech-trees ;  no  sooner  were  arms  stacked 
than  the  men  hurried  off  to  gather  the  fruit  from  the 
palms,  called  the  cabbage-tree;  we  had  been  marching 
by  them  off  and  on  all  day,  and  fortunately  halted 
near  a  number.  This  cabbage  grows  among  the  leaves 
at  the  top  of  the  trunk,  in  the  tuft  which  crowns  the 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  215 

shaft  of  the  tree,  and  when  boiled  is  a  good  vegetable, 
very  savory  to  those  whose  palate  has  been  cloyed 
with  slap-jacks  and  fried  beef.  I  never  learned  who 
first  told  our  men  about  this  cabbage,  but  they  prized 
them  highly,  and  never  passed  a  tree  without  express- 
ing an  opinion  as  to  the  size  of  the  cabbage  hid  among 
the  foliage. 

January  21.  We  made  a  hard  march  of  twenty-three 
miles  to-day,  nearly  the  whole  of  the  Georgia  regiment 
giving  out,  and  many  of  our  men  threw  themselves 
down,  unable  or  unwilling  to  keep  up  with  the  column. 
From  one  of  those  inexplicable  causes,  the  advance 
started  off  at  such  a  gait  that  the  left  of  the  line  had 
to  nearly  run  to  keep  up ;  the  consequence  was  the 
column  became  first  straggling,  finally  broken  up.  It 
was  fortunate  that  we  had  a  division  of  troops  in 
front  of  us,  although  I  believe  we  would  have  done 
better  had  there  been  apprehension  of  attack.  There 
is  nothing  which  frets  an  officer  more  than  a  disorderly 
march,  and  this  of  to-day  was  as  bad  as  I  ever  saw. 

It  was  a  cold  and  stormy  day,  the  appearance  of 
the  country  rough  and  rocky.  We  passed  through 
the  Hacienda  Alamitas,  one  of  the  largest  in  the 
country.  By  hacienda  is  meant  an  estate,  upon  which 
the  proprietor  is  surrounded  with  all  the  buildings 
and  appurtenances  necessary  for  successful  cultivation 
of  the  soil,  machinery  for  the  manufacture  of  its  pro- 
ducts, houses  for  his  tenants  or  quasi  slaves,  called 
peons,  and  a  church  for  religious  worship.  The  man- 
sion of  the  owner  was  a  large  stone  building,  quite 
respectable  in  appearance;  the  church  looked  well, 
with  a  portico  of  columns  recently  yellow-washed, 


216  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

but  the  hovels  of  the  peons  were  nothing  like  as  com- 
fortable looking  as  the  quarters  of  the  slaves  through- 
out the  Southern  States  of  America.  This  was  the 
largest  country  establishment  I  had  seen,  and  in  much 
the  best  condition;  there  were  large  droves  of  ponies 
running  about,  and  such  a  surplus  of  corn  that  our 
quartermaster's  department  purchased  and  loaded 
many  wagonsful.  Our  arrival  caused  an  immediate 
suspension  of  all  out-door  and  in-door  labor,  except 
that  of  sight-seeing  and  indulging  in  a  little  harm- 
less conversation  with  our  troops,  through  the  only 
two  phrases  known  to  the  brigade, — "  Aguardiente  ?" 
"  Mucho  fandango." 

Mount  Bernal  kept  in  view  until  night,  and  the 
chain  of  mountains  on  our  left  hand  became  more 
distinct  as  we  neared  the  south,  showing  that  we  were 
in  a  valley  between  the  Sierra  Madre  and  a  sierra 
lying  between  us  and  the  Gulf. 

Night  came  at  last,  but  not  until  night  did  we  cease 
marching,  and  I  threw  myself  on  the  earth,  nearly 
broken  down  from  the  fatigues  of  the  day,  and  so 
helpless  that  I  went  to  sleep  without  getting  coffee 
or  anything  else  for  a  supper. 

Janiiary  22.  Took  an  early  start,  although  I  was 
so  stiff  and  sore  that  I  could  scarcely  move ;  passed 
through  the  little  village  called,  I  believed,  Atamas, 
and  beheld  the  glorious  vision  of  the  lofty  peak, 
lighted  up  with  the  rising  sun,  more  beautiful  than 
when  its  parting  rays  had  fired  its  summit  with  a 
beacon  for  the  night.  Our  road  now  lay  across  a 
prairie,  upon  which  large  numbers  of  horses  were 
grazing;  we  could  see  around  us  for  miles,  and  our 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  217 

road  stretching  far  away  in  the  distance.  There  was 
no  straggling  oxer  this  phiin  ;  apart  IVona  reports  that 
we  would  be  attacked,  our  infantry  had  had  some 
experience,  and  they  niarclied  as  compactly  as  if 
closing  in  mass  prior  to  a  deployment.  At  noon  we 
unexpectedly  closed  upon  the  rear  of  General  Pil- 
low's Brigade,  which,  like  our  own,  was  marching 
slowly;  we  marched  together  over  the  prairie,  keep- 
ing a  bright  lookout ;  wc  are  evidently  nearing  the 
coast,  although  the  mountains  are  still  on  either  side 
of  us.  The  cactus  exceeds  in  size  anything  ever 
seen,  and  I  am  sure  it  would  appear  IMunchausenish 
if  I  were  to  attempt  to  describe  it.  There  are 
very  large  numbers  of  horses  running  wild  over  the 
plain,  mustangs,  jacks,  alsi)  horned  cattle  iniunner- 
able.  We  met  a  party  of  Mexicans  eii  route  to  Vic- 
toria; they  said  that  the  Mexican  Congress  had 
unanimously  determined  to  continue  the  war  "hasta 
la  uuierte." 

Tired  enough,  we  were  glad  to  find  water  in  a 
pond,  around  which  the  division  was  regularly  en- 
camped. After  the  fatigue  of  a  march,  the  halt  and 
movements  prior  to  occupying  the  site  designated  to 
a  regiment  as  its  camp  are  trying  beyond  description; 
there  is  nothing  a  soldier  dislikes  more  than  this, 
except,  after  having  got  through  Avith  all  this  march- 
ing and  countermarching  before  settling  down  for  a 
rest,  to  be  called  on,  as  I  was  to-night,  to  go  ou  guanJ. 

I  think  that  all  inftmtry  soldiers  who  have  been 
thoroughly  tired  out  with  marching,  entertain  a  great 
liking  for  the  horse-arui  of  the  service,  cavalry.  They 
want  to  ride.     Is  it  to  be  wondered  at?     I  had  now 


218  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

walked  one  hundred  and  ten  miles*  in  seven  consecu- 
tive days,  without  counting  the  miles  lost  in  manoeu- 
vring for  camp,  and,  tired  as  I  was  and  foot-sore,  to 
have  to  be  up  all  night,  because  a  brother  captain, 
whose  tour  of  duty  it  was,  played  sick,  made  me  a 
very  angry  man  and  somewhat  disgusted  with  foot- 
soldiers.  If  I  had  anticipated  it  during  the  day's 
march,  I  would  not  have  minded  it,  being  in  the 
natural  order  of  things;  but  just  as  I  had  got  my 
boots  off  to  look  at  the  condition  of  my  soles  pre- 
vious to  bathing  them  (the  best  of  all  remedies),  to 
have  to  go  on  guard,  be  up  all  night,  and  march  all 
the  following  day,  was  as  well  calculated  to  disturb 
one's  equanimity  as  anything  one  can  imagine,  par- 
ticularly as  I  knew  the  reason  of  the  officer,  whose 
name  preceded  mine  on  the  roster  for  guard,  being 
sick.  The  very  anger,  however,  that  I  felt,  "  made 
me  young  again,"  and  I  marched  off  with  my  guard 
some  eight  hundred  yards  through  the  prickly  branches 
of  thorn,  cactus,  moschete,  and  chaparral  generally,  to 
spend  the  entire  night  waiting  for  the  reveille.  It 
came  at  last,  and  in  such  a  way  that  it  is  worthy  of 
being   noted.     It   was   what  was    called   the    Texas 


*  It  is  much  more  difficult  to  march  with  a  body  of  troops 
than  it  is  to  walk  singly;  in  other  words,  a  man  walking  alone 
can  make  thirty  miles  a  day,  and  be  not  more  fatigued  after  a 
week's  tramp,  than  he  would  be  if  he  had  made  but  one-half  the 
distance  in  the  same  number  of  days  marching  with  a.  brigade. 
One  hundred  men  can  march  one  hundred  miles  in  less  time  and 
with  less  fatigue  than  if  the  same  hundred  men  were  marching 
with  and  forming  a  part  of  a  division  or  an  army  corps.  Every 
soldier  understands  this. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  219 

Reveille,  and  came  from  the  camp  of  the  Tennessee 
regiment  of  horse  attached  to  Pillow's  brigade. 

It  will  be  readily  apprehended  that  there  was  not 
much  music  in  the  army  of  occupation.  Outside  of 
the  regular  regiments  there  were  but  few  musical 
instruments,  except  fifes  and  drums,  and  of  these 
there  was  a  great  scarcity  among  the  volunteers.  The 
Texas  regiment  of  horse  had  no  music  of  any  kind, 
and,  being  disturbed  in  their  morning  naps  at  Mon- 
terey by  the  music  of  the  troops  encamped  about 
them,  had  in  revenge  got  up  a  reveille  of  their  own. 
This  was  that,  as  soon  as  a  Texan  woke  up  in  the 
morning  and  found  he  could  not  get  to  sleep  again, 
he  commenced  yelling ;  this  very  naturally  awoke 
his  comrades,  and  as  fast  as  each  man  got  cleverly 
awake  he  united  in  the  cry,  and  such  a  din  was  raised 
that,  laughable  as  it  was  at  first,  it  became  a  nuisance 
almost  unbearable.  Many  a  sleeper  has  cursed  this 
Texan  music,  but  now  I  hailed  it  with  pleasure, 
coming  from  the  Tennesseeans,  as  they  heralded  the 
new-born  day  with  their  shouts  of  welcome  in  the 
morning  song  of  military  undiscipline. 

January  23.  On  returning  to  camp  I  was  told  that 
several  of  our  men  had  been  killed  yesterday  by 
the  Lancers,  who  were  still  hanging  about  our  march, 
and  that  one  of  them  was  Henry  Forbush,  a  member 
of  my  company.  He  had  fallen  out  of  the  ranks, 
and,  failing  to  overtake  us,  I  felt  uneasy  about  him, 
as  he  was  a  quiet,  obedient,  and  orderly  soldier,  and 
I  knew  would  have  come  into  camp  if  able  to  do  so. 
He  was  one  of  my  men  that  had  been  detailed  to 
serve  in  Ridgely's  Battery  at  Monterey,  and  Captain 


220  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

Ridgely  told  me  that  his  behavior  was  exemplary  and 
he  was  loth  to  part  with  him.  I  regretted  his  loss 
very  much,  yet  his  manner  of  death  was  of  great 
service  in  hindering  the  men  from  straggling,  and 
made  them  more  obedient  to  authority. 

It  is  also  said,  that  the  Mexican  merchants  who 
passed  us  en  route  to  Victoria  were  first  plundered 
and  then  murdered  by  their  countrymen  for  alleged 
complicity  with  us,  of  which  they  were  as  innocent 
as  Santa  Anna ;  and  I  presume  by  this  time  the  idea 
that  Jte  was  anything  but  a  thorough  Mexican  has 
been  entirely  dissipated.  What  sheer  nonsense  to 
have  supposed  that  a  man  of  his  distinguished  nation- 
ality would  have  been  anything  else  but  a  Mexican, 
in  a  war  popular  with  the  entire  country.  It  was  a 
folly  unexampled  in  its  magnitude,  and  was  near 
proving  fatal  to  our  success. 

After  some  five  or  six  miles'  march  the  plain  fell  off 
suddenly,  and  we  came  to  a  peculiar  country,  entirely 
dissimilar  to  any  heretofore  traversed ;  it  appeared  to 
be,  or  to  have  been,  a  marshy  flat  of  rich  black  soil, 
and  was  heavily  timbered.  While  the  earth  was  still 
wet  it  must  have  been  much  trampled  by  cattle,  for 
now  it  was  in  hard  lumps,  very  uneven,  making  the 
marching  laborious, — to  tender  feet,  painful, — and 
the  men  suffered  or  seemed  to  labor  more  than  usual. 
We  made  very  slow  progress.  I  was  near  giving  out, 
but  continued  the  march  until  we  halted  at  a  large 
lake,  or,  more  properly,  lagoon,  upon  an  extensive 
flat.  This  lagoon  empties  into,  or  is  supplied  from, — 
I  do  not  know  which, — the  Tamisee  River.  Our  officers 
all  think  that  if  we  had  had  rain  we  never  would 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  221 

have  been  able  to  have  reached  this  point  on  foot. 
The  country  evidently  for  miles  is  subject  to  overflow, 
and  that  to  such  a  depth  that  men  could  not  have 
marched  through  it.  Our  opinion  is  confirmed  by 
that  of  the  country  people,  who  seem  astonished  that 
we  should  have  dared  to  undertake  a  march  to  Tarn- 
pico  from  Victoria,  through  the  interior  of  Tamaulipas, 
at  this  season  of  the  year. 

There  was  but  little  wood  near  our  camp,  and  there 
was  difficulty  between  our  men  and  some  of  the  other 
volunteers  about  it,  as,  without  wood  to  cook  coffee 
with,  there  would  be  no  peace  in  camp.  The  rule 
established  by  common  law  or  custom,  and  well  under- 
stood in  our  army,  was  that  all  the  wood  standing  or 
felled  in  front  of  or  in  the  rear  of  the  space  occupied  by 
the  regiment's  front  belonged  to  it. 

In  our  order  of  march,  the  details. for  guard  were 
made  at  roll-call  in  the  morning ;  when  we  halted  to 
go  into  camp,  if  possible  always  before  dark,  the 
brigade  was  formed  in  line  of  battle,  with  the  proper 
intervals  between  regiments,  the  lines  dressed  and 
standing  at  attention.  The  sergeant-major  of  each 
regiment  then  marched  off  with  his  detail  for  grand 
guard  to  the  parade,  where  it  was  turned  off  by  the 
assistant  adjutant-general  to  the  field-officer  of  the 
day,  who  reported  for  instructions  to  the  brigade 
commander.  The  regimental  camp-guard,  with  its 
officer  of  the  day  and  guard,  were  then  turned  off  by 
the  regimental  adjutant  and  marched  to  its  post; 
after  these  details,  left  the  ranks,  arms  were  stacked, 
and  the  accoutrements  of  each  soldier  were  hung 
upon  his  stack,  the  non-commissioned  officers  having 


222  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

a  separate  stack  to  themselves.  In  a  country  scarce 
of  fuel  as  this  was,  all  the  time  these  details  were 
being  got  ready  to  march,  the  rest  of  the  men  were 
intently  gazing  before  and  behind  them  to  see  what 
the  prospect  was  for  wood.*  This  evening  a  large 
log,  the  trunk  of  a  fallen  tree,  was  lying  opposite  our 
right  and  the  left  of  the  regiment  on  our  right.  As 
soon  as  ranks  were  broken,  which  was  nearly  simul- 
taneous, the  men  of  both  battalions  rushed  to  the 
log,  and  a  free  fight  sprung  up  immediately.  It  was 
very  difficult  to  say  to  which  regiment  the  log  be- 
longed ;  but  our  men  were  too  quick  with  their  fists 
for  the  others,  and  it  was  dragged,  pulled,  and  rolled 
into  our  camp.  The  respective  camp-guards  were 
already  formed,  so  that  there  was  no  difficulty  in 
preventing  a  serious  disturbance.  If  this  had  not 
been  the  case,  I  think  we  would  have  had  a  good 
deal  of  trouble  to-night. 

My  tent  is  pitched  near  to  and  immediately  facing 
the  lagoon,  upon  the  dry  mud,  over  which  thousands 
of  cattle  must  have  passed  while  it  was  wet,  as  .-I  had 
to  have  men  beat  it  down  with  axes  to  make  a  level 
to  stretch  my  blanlcet  for  sleep.  In  the  rear  is  a 
thicket,  composed,  it  might  be  said,  entirely  of  thorns, 
for  no  one  would  dare  to  enter  through  the  prickly 
pear  and  other  stickers,  that  grow  s.o  luxuriantly  that 
some  of  these  thorns,  shaped  like  the  horns  of  an  ox. 


*  In  my  company  it  was  not  an  unusual  thing,  for  the  men 
to  commence  picking  up  wood  for  the  night's  coffee,  as  soon  as 
they  left  camp  in  the  morning.  This  they  would  carry  until  the 
evening's  halt. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  223 

and  from  four  to  five  inches  in   length,  are  as  formi- 
dable as  knives. 

Before  dark  I  took  a  stroll  along  the  shores  of  the 
lagoon ;  I  found  an  old  Mexican,  living  in  a  can*  hut, 
from  whom  I  learned  that  the  name  of  the  ranch 
was  La  Tuna,  the  people  of  which  were  principally 
engaged  in  drying  hides,  large  numbers  of  which 
were  spread  upon  the  ground,  with  pegs  driven 
through  the  edges  into  the  earth  to  keep  them  ex- 
tended ;  some  hides  were  also  kept  stretched  by  poles 
running  athwart  them,  and  were  used  as  sails  for 
boats  upon  the  lake. 

The  word  tuna,  which  gave  name  to  the  ranch,  or 
the  ranch  to  the  hamlet,  means  either  the  American 
fig,  fig-tree,  or  the  idle  life  ivliich  vagabonds  lead.  T 
could  not  ascertain  which  signification  was  adopted 
by  its  people,  although  I  tried  to  learn  from  my  aged 
friend,  my  Spanish  not  being  quite  equal  to  this  case. 
During  the  night,  however,  I  found  it  out;  at  least  I 
could  not  help  thinking  so. 

Our  men  had  by  some  means  discovered  a  large 
quantity  of  muscal  (an  intoxicating  drink  made  from 
sugar-cane)  in  one  of  the  houses  near  camp,  and  it 
was  carried  by  the  camp-kettleful  through  the  guards 
into  camp.  I  discovered  it  by  the  smell,  as  it  was 
being  brought  into  my  company  ;  and,  notwithstand- 
ing every  effort  to  destroy  it,  such  large  quantities 
were  in  camp  that  we  had  a  night  of  drunkenness 
which,  once  seen,  is  not  desired  again.  We  had  not 
had  such  trouble  since  we  left  the  Brazos,  and  I 
accepted  the  latter  as  the  proper  meaning  of  La 
Tuna. 


224  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

January  24.  The  Sierra  Madre  Mountains,  it  is  not 
generally  known, — because  no  thought  is  given  to  the 
subject, — are  a  prolongation  of  the  Rocky  Mountains 
of  the  United  States  into  Mexico,  which  decreasing 
in  size  and  elevation  as  they  trend  southward,  are 
finally  lost  in  the  Central  American  States,  to  be  re- 
produced south  of  the  Isthmus  of  Panama,  in  the 
Andes  of  South  America.  The  term  Madre,  or  mother 
mountains,  is  synonymous  with  backbone  or  main 
chain,  as  used  by  Americans;  and  the  crest  of  these 
mountains,  as  we  marched  southward,  bounded  our 
horizon  on  the  west  all  the  way  down  from  Mon- 
terey. Their  craggy  summits  were  a  never-ending 
variety  of  castle,  cathedral,  palace  and  spires,  fre- 
quently reproduced  by  a  mirage  so  wonderful,  as  to 
make  us  at  times  doubt  whether  we  were  not  mis- 
taken in  our  direction,  so  completely  would  they  be 
transposed  by  the  illusion.  I  never  tired  of  looking 
at  the  varied  beauties  of  these  mountains,  when  the 
sun  would  first  strilie  their  tops  in  the  early  morning, 
and  to-day  they  seemed  so  beautiful  that  I  felt  sorry 
to  know  we  were  soon  to  leave  them  for  the  uninter- 
esting flats  of  the  Gulf-coast. 

This  was  Sunday,  and  it  seemed  as  if  we  always 
had  harder  marching  and  more  trouble  on  this  than 
on  other  days.  I  was  assigned  to  the  command  of  the 
rear-guard  of  three  companies  of  infantry,  with 
special  orders  to  leave  nothing  behind  me.  The  road 
was  very  bad,  several  of  the  wagons  broke  down,  a 
considerable  number  of  the  men  were  still  drunk  from 
last  night's  debauch,  and  had  it  not  been  for  fear  of 
the  Mexicans,  I  do  not  think  I  could  have  got  them 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  225 

all  into  camp.  The  main  body,  without  regard  to 
the  rear,  pushed  on  rapidly,  so  that  when  I  was  in  a 
condition  to  move,  we  would  frequently  have  to  march 
so  last  to  keep  within  a  reasonable  distance,  that  the 
stragglers  fell  out  from  sheer  exhaustion  ;  these  would 
beg  tne  not  to  leave  them,  and  I  had  a  very  trying 
day. 

Towards  evening  I  got  up  to  camp  with  my  charge, 
and  grateful  enough  that  there  was  no  cause  of  com- 
plaint at  headquarters. 

The  camp  was  on  the  shores  of  another  large  fresh- 
water lagoon,  upon  which  was  built  the  old  town  of 
Altamira,  and  with  its  fine  large  venerable  cathedral, 
it  looked  very  pretty  rising  from  the  waters.  This 
town  was  the  original  settlement  on  the  coast, 
Tampico  having  been  Ibunded  at  a  much  later 
period,  and  it  continued  to  be  for  a  long  time  the 
seat  of  the  Spanish  power  on  the  Gulf.  It  was  rather 
a  melancholy  sight  to  behold  the  signs  of  decay  and 
the  tumbling  into  ruin  of  this  old  Spanish  settlement, 
and  I  thought  I  could  see  in  the  garb  and  mien  of  its 
inhabitants,  the  haughty  pride  and  sombre  dignity 
characteristic  of  the  race  that  had  won,  by  the  sword, 
a  new  world  for  the  sovereigns  of  Castile  and  Leon. 

That  we  were  now  approaching  the  end  of  our 
march  was  clear  from  the  arrival  of  a  sutler  in  camp 
from  Tampico.  lie  brought  with  him  cigars  and 
potatoes.  All  who  had  money,  bought;  without  money 
they  were  not  to  be  had ;  no  kind  of  promise  or  en- 
treaty was  of  any  avail;  no  claim  of  former  acquaint- 
ance either  with  self  or  friend  was  recognized  by  that 
sutler.     He  charged  just  as  much  as  he  thought  he 

15 


226  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

could  get,  and  he  did  get  high  prices.  My  purchase 
of  potatoes  was  soon  in  a  camp-kettle,  and  I  ate  the 
first  vegetable  that  I  had  had  since  leaving  the  ship 
last  July,  with  the  exception  of  the  cabbage-palm ; 
and  these  potatoes,  with  a  tin-cup  of  vinegar,  of  which 
we  had  had  none  for  a  month  past,  gave  me  a  relish 
for  the  cigars  known  only  to  those  who  have  been  long 
deprived  of  these  necessaries  of  life, — a  soldier's  life. 

Our  camp  to-night  was  a  scene  of  great  noise  and 
confusion,  but  not  quite  so  bad  as  the  past  one.  We 
were  within  sixteen  or  eighteen  miles  of  Tampico,  and 
could  hear  the  roar  made  by  the  breakers  tumbling 
in  from  the  ocean;  the  approach  to  a  town  had 
raised  the  spirits  of  the  men  to  the  highest  pitch,  and 
liquors  flowed  from  unknown  sources  through  the 
swarming  hive  of  the  division.  A  town  or  city  is  to 
a  marching  soldier  the  fountain  of  life,  so  long  and  so 
fruitlessly  sought  by  Ponce  de  Leon.  To  our  battal- 
ion, the  image  presented  was  more  attractive  than  that 
held  up  before  the  followers  of  Mohammed  as  their 
paradise  of  repose.  A  man  raised  in  a  city,  a  genuine 
cockney,  is  nowhere  at  home  except  in  a  crowd  of 
people,  traversing  thoroughfares  lighted  up  with  shop- 
windows,  and  with  resting  places  for  the  idle  and 
thirsty,  in  drink-shops  and  billiard-saloons. 

Our  men  were  good  soldiers,  but  they  were  all  city- 
men,  and  their  absence  for  nearly  eight  months  from 
the  United  States  had  made  them  picture  exaggerated 
pleasures  from  a  visit  to  Tampico,  which  the  sutler ' 
had  told  them  was  overflowing  with  attractions  from 
New  Orleans.  They  were  sadly  disappointed  in  the 
realization  of  their  fancies ;  but  it  was  enough  for  the 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEEB.  227 

present  to  know,  that  they  were  approaching  a  town 
that  was  in  direct  communication  with  home. 

January  25.  After  a  sultry  march  of  five  miles 
through  a  forest  of  live-oaks  and  a  dense  thicket  of 
chaparral,  over  a  sandy  road,  we  were  halted  on  the 
shore  of  a  lagoon.  After  half  an  hour  or  so  we  were 
told  that  we  were  to  make  our  camp  here  ;  if  we  had 
been  ordered  to  march  back  to  Monterey  it  would 
not  have  caused  more  vexation.  Everybody  wanted 
to  go  to  Tampico,  which  was  yet  ten  miles  distant, 
and  a  sullen  hum  arose  through  the  division,  broken 
at  intervals  by  anathemas  upon  the  head  of  the  com- 
manding General.  Into  camp,  however,  we  went,  on 
a  narrow  strip  of  clear  ground,  which  ran  between 
the  chaparral  and  the  water ;  the  ground  was  wet, 
and  from  it  a  hot  steam  engendered  by  the  sun  arose, 
noisome,  stifling,  and  oppressive ;  the  thicket  in  our 
rear  was  so  dense  that  it  Avas  useless  as  a  shelter,  for 
no  one  dared  to  force  his  way  through  the  thorns  to 
find  shade.  It  was  a  horrid,  low,  swampy  place,  and 
a  large  iguana,  running  from  a  tree  whjch  was  being 
burned,  gave  notice  of  the  kind  of  reptile  by  which 
it  was  peopled.  This  caused  a  great  deal  of  amuse- 
ment at  the  time;  the  men  were  just  getting  their 
cofi'ee,  when  this  huge  lizard,  several  feet  in  length, 
heated  by  the  fire,  ran  from  the  hollow  log  which  was 
being  used  to  cook  with,  and  the  men  scattered  and 
ran  for  some  distance  before  they  rallied  and  captured 
it.  Many  a  story  was  subsequently  told  of  the  beha- 
vior of  some  of  the  men  on  this  occasion. 

January  26.  Our  blankets  were  reeking  with 
moisture  this  morning,  and  the  surgeon  waited  upon 


228  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

General  Quitman  to  inform  him  that  the  camp  would 
prove  highly  injurious  to  the  health  of  the  command. 
The  regimental  commanders  made  a  similar  remon- 
strance, and  General  Quitman,  accompanied  by  Major 
Buchanan,  rode  into  the  city  to  induce  General  Pat- 
terson to  order  us  away  from  this  place.  In  addition 
to  mosquitoes  and  the  usual  insects  we  have  been 
tormented  with,  we  had  for  companions  last  night 
several  varieties  of  pinching-bugs,  large  spiders,  and 
what  the  men  seemed  to  dread  more  than  anything 
else, — scorpions  ;  no  doubt  about  this.  I  saw  where 
one  had  bitten  the  leg  of  a  servant ;  the  bite  caused  a 
whitish  swelling  •the  size  of  a  hickory  nut,  but  being 
promptly  treated  by  Dr.  Miles  with  hartshorn,  the 
swelling  subsided,  and  the  man  suffered  no  very  great 
inconvenience,  except  from  fright ;  he  was  very  much 
frightened. 

We  did  nothing  to-day  except  lounge  about  the 
shores  of  the  lagoon,  talk  about  scorpions,  and  catch 
and  kill  big  spiders,  which  we  were  sure  were  the 
genuine,  original  tarantula,  carried  from  here  into  Italy, 
for  the  dance  of  the  people  of  that  favored  land. 

January  27.  I  have  been  in  some  ugly  places,  but 
this  is  the  worst  camp  I  was  ever  in.  Our  clothes  as 
well  as  blankets  were  all  wet  this  morning  from  the 
moisture  which  permeated  through  all  covering,  and 
as  soon  as  the  sun  struck  us,  we  were  steaming  Uke 
kettles  of  boiling  water;  there  was  barely  enough 
wood  for  cooking  purposes,  so  we  dried  in  the  sun ; 
one  of  my  men  said  that  if  he  stayed  there  much 
longer  his  friends  would  not  recognize  him,  as  he 
could  feel  the  moss  growing  all  over  him. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  929 

In  the  afternoon  we  learned  that  the  application  had 
met  with  favor,  as  well  it  might,  and  we  were  ordered 
to  hold  ourselves  in  readiness  to  march  to-morrow. 

January  28.  After  a  tiresome  march — for  it 
seemed  as  if  we  would  never  reach  El  Dorado — of 
eight  miles,  for  part  of  the  way  through  groves  of 
lime-  and  lemon-trees,  we  reached  some  hills  distant 
about  three  miles  from  Tampico,  and  went  into  camp 
on  the  left  of  General  Twiggs's  division. 

We  had  marched  one  hundred  and  fifty-six  miles 
from  Victoria,  making  the  whole  distance  from  Mon- 
terey between  three  hundred  and  fifty  and  three 
hundred  and  sixty  miles. 

If  we  call  it  three  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from 
Monterey  to  Tampico,  it  will  be  found  to  approximate 
very  nearly  to  the  correct  distance. 

The  Baltimore  Battalion  has  now  marched  upwards 
of  six  hundred  miles  from  the  Brazos  Santiago,  every 
foot  of  which  1  stepped. 


CHAPTER     XXI. 

TAMPICO — GENERAL    SCOTT     MARSHALING    HIS    FOfifcES 
FOR    CAPTURE    OF   VERA    CRUZ. 

Tampico,  the  ancient  capital  of  the  Aztec-Mexican 
province  of  Guasteca  or  Mechoacan,  lies  on  the  left 
bank  of  the  Panuco  River,  five  miles  from  its  mouth, 
in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  in  north  latitude  22  degrees 
40  minutes,  and  98  degrees  36  minutes  west  longitude 
from  Greenwich. 


230  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

It  was  a  famed  locality  in  the  days  of  the  Monte- 
zumas;  and  Viejo  Tampico,  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  river,  was  a  bishop's  see  when  Panuco  was  a  de- 
partment of  Mexico,  in  the  days  of  the  Viceroys.* 

Being  the  port  of  entry  for  the  city  of  Sun  Luis 
Potosi  and  the  adjoining  State  of  Quer6taro,  it  has 
long  had  very  considerable  commerce  with  England, 
Prance,  and  Spain ;  giving  in  return  for  their  mer- 
chandise, the  precious  metals  (especially  silver  in 
large  quantities),  hides  and  tallow. 

Were  it  not  for  the  bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  river, 
rendering  access  dangerous  to  vessels  of  heavy  draught, 
this  port  would  always  be  desirable,  be  the  power 
what  it  might  holding  the  government  of  Mexico,  by 
reason  of  its  geographical  position. 

I  found  it  in  the  occupancy  of  the  United  States, 
having  been  taken  possession  of  by  Commodore  Con- 
nor of  the  United  States  Navy. 

Tiie  activity,  the  zeal,  and  the  valuable  services  of 
the  navy  from  the  commencement  of  hostilities,  had 
more  than  justified  the  high  reputation  it  had  won 
in  previous  wars;  and  its  commanding  officers  in  the 
Gulf  and  on  the  Pacific  shore  had  shown  as  good 
judgment  as  zeal,  in  the  conduct  of  their  fleets. 

*  The  site  and  remains  of  an  ancient  city  bave  been  discov- 
ered at  but  a  few  leagues  from  Tampico.  Among  its  interesting 
features  may  be  noted  a  wild  fig-tree  growing  in  the  ruins,  which 
reaches  the  gigantic  height  of  more  than  a  hundred  feet ;  a  large 
head  beautifully  cut  in  stone;  a  gigantic  turtle,  with  the  head  of 
a  man  protruding  from  between  its  highly-wrought  stone  shells; 
fragments  of  obsidian  and  other  curious  relics  of  a  people  far 
advanced  in  the  arts  and  habits  of  semi-civilized  races. 


MAIiVhAXn   VOLUNTEER.  231 

General  Scott  was  now  about  to  have  its  powerful 
co-operation  in  the  great  enterprise  for  which  he  was 
marshaling  his  forces. 

Genera.l  Santa  Anna  had  ordered  the  evacuation 
of  Taiu|)ico,  and  this  step  was  se\'erely  criticised  in 
Mexico  and  the  United  States.  He  defended  his 
action  on  military  grounds,  which  are  so  conclusive 
to  my  mind  that  they  need  no  argument  in  support. 
He  undoubtedly  saved  its  garrison,  and  by  withdraw- 
ing it  to  Tula  and  subsecpieutly  to  San  Luis,  had  it 
within  the  Held  of  his  contemplated  operations. 

The  arnjy  now  being  concentrated  here  was  await- 
ing the  arrival  of  General  Scott. 

On  the  .'ul  of  this  numth  (January,  1S4  7),  having 
learned  that  General  Taylor  had  returned  to  ^"ictoria 
upon  fniding  that  Worth's  alarn\  was  groundless,  he 
wrote  to  iMa,jor-General  Butler,*  the  second  in  com- 
mand, at  Monterey,  as  follows  : 

"  Of  (lio  number  of  troops  at  Tauipieo  and  assembled  at  or  in 
marcli  for  VioUiria, — ro^nbii's  and  voluntooi-s, — I  can  form  only 
a  very  imporfoct  ostimato,  having-  seen  no  r(>turns  of  a  lalo  date. 
I  estimate,  liowovor,  tlio  wliolo  force  now  under  IMajor-Goneral 
Taylor's  orders  to  bo  about  seventeen  thousand, — seven  of 
regulars  and  ten  of  volunteers.  Two  thousand  regulars  and 
five  of  voluiUeers  I  suppose — the  whole  standing  ou  the  defen- 
sive—to be  necessary  to  hold  .Monterey,  Seralvo,  Oaniargo, 
lioynosa,  iMalamoras,  Point  Isabel,  the  Brazos,  tho  mouth  of  the 
Rio  Wrande,  and  Tampieo.     I  do  not   enumerate  8altillo  and 


*  He  also  slated  particularly  to  Butler,  that  it  wms  his  inten- 
tion to  embark  troops  from  Tampieo  and  Brazos  for  an  attack 
upoit  Vera  Cruz;  that  this  was  the  object  contemplated  by  his 
orders. 


232  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

Victoria,  because  I  suppose  they  may  be  abandoned  or  held 
without  hurting-  or  improving  the  line  of  defense  I  have  indicated. 
You  will,  therefore,  without  waiting  to  hear 
from  Major-General  Taylor,  and  without  the  least  unnecessary 
delay,  in  order  that  they  may  be  in  time,  as  above,  put  in  move- 
ment for  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Grande  the  following  troops : 

"About  five  hundred  regular  cavalry  of  the  First  and  Second 
Regiments  of  Dragoons,  including  Lieutenant  Kearney's  troop. 

"About  five  hundred  volunteer  cavalry, — I  rely  upon  you  to 
select  the  best. 

"  Two  field-batteries  of  light  artillery,  say  Duncan's  and  Tay- 
lor's, and 

"  Four  thousand  regulars  on  foot,  including  artillery  acting  as 
infantry;  the  whole  under  Brevet  Brigadier-General  Worth. 

"In  addition,  put  in  movement  for  the  same  point  of  embark- 
ation, and  to  be  there  as  above,  four  thousand  volunteer  infantry. 

^  ^  >;■  *  =f:  ^  ^  ^ 

"P.S. — I  expect  to  be  personally  at  Tampico  to  superintend 
that  part  of  my  expedition  which  is  to  embark  there,  towards  the 
end  of  this  month. 

"  The  whole  of  the  eight  regiments  of  new  foot  volunteers 
will  be  up  with  the  Brazos,  I  hope,  by  that  time.  Major-General 
Taylor  may  rely  upon  three,  if  not  four  of  them,  for  his  im- 
mediate command  ;  and  make  your  calculations  now  for  him 
accordingly." 

At  the  date  of  these  interesting  instructions,  the 
premonitions  which  that  very  distinguished  soldier 
General  Worth  had  of  being  attacked,  the  fact  that 
General  Santa  Anna  was  massing  an  army  at  San 
Luis,  the  fact  that  Taylor  was  to  acton  the  defensive 
after  Worth  and  his  best  troops  were  withdrawn,  with 
an  uncertain  reinfoi-cement  of  new  regiments  to  re- 
place them,  seem  to  have  been  overlooked,  ignored,  or 
totally  unknown,  by  General  Scott. 

General  Taylor  was  instructed  not  only  to  act  on 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEEB.  233 

the  defensive,  but  to  enable  him  to  do  this,  detached 
posts  were  to  be  held,  scattered  over  a  hostile  terri- 
tory with  the  Rio  Grande  as  a  base,  whose  navigation, 
as  Scott  well  knew,  was  so  uncertain  that  for  days 
steamers  could  neither  ascend  nor  descend  it. 

The  game  of  cross  purposes  inaugurated  by  Ampudia 
at  Monterey  was  being  continued  by  the  two  chiefs  of 
rival  armies,  both  alike  distinguished  as  skillful  and 
experienced  generals,  while  he  who  was  to  be  shelved 
in  the  coming  struggle,  or  else  ignominiously  driven 
off  the  fields  he  had  won  by  his  valor,  was  destined 
to  reap  additional  laurels,  and  save  the  name,  and  the 
army  of  him  who  had,  perhaps  unwittingly,  deprived 
him  of  his  command. 

Scott,  intent  upon  Vera  Cruz  and  the  city  of  Mexico, 
looked  but  to  this  road.  Santa  Anna,  intent  upon 
crushing  Taylor,  never  deigned  a  glance  at  the  gather- 
ing hosts  threatening  his  Capital. 

Buena  Vista  was  between  San  Luis  and  Monterey ; 
General  Taylor  between  Scott  and  the  loss  of  fame 
and  name. 

The  friends  of  Santa  Anna  say,  that  he  was  not 
ignorant  of  the  danger  he  had  exposed  the  Capital  to 
by  operating  in  the  northern  States,  but  that  he  had 
left  the  government  to  take  care  of  the  road  from  the 
Gulf  The  friends  of  Scott  say,  that  Taylor  himself 
did  not  apprehend  the  advance  from  San  Luis. 

If  Scott  were  ignorant  of  the  strength  of  the  army 
at  San  Luis,  he  is  less  blameable  than  Santa  Anna; 
if  the  latter  had  reason  to  believe  his  government 
could  protect  its  Capital,  he  is  less  obnoxious  to  cen- 
sure than  Scott ;  the  whole  truth  is,  however,  that 


23i  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

they  were  alike  indifferent  as  to  the  other's  purposes 
or  means  of  accomplishing  results,  violating  a  maxim 
of  war  which  tyros  in  the  military  art  are  familiar  with. 

January  29.  Our  camp  is  now  on  an  elevated 
piece  of  land  which  separates  the  lagoons  which 
flow,  the  one  into  the  Gulf,  the  other  into  the  Panuco. 
On  our  right,  the  Georgians  are  encamped ;  on  our 
left,  General  Shields's  brigade,  consisting  of  the  Third 
and  Fourth  Illinois  regiments  ;  *  in  front  of  us  Twiggs's 
division  is  lying.  The  different  beats  and  calls  of 
each  regiment  are  distinctly  heard  in  our  camp,  and 
military  music — drums,  fifes,  and  bands — is  sounding 
at  all  hours  of  the  day.  The  main  building  of  the 
hacienda  or  sugar  estate  upon  which  we  are  encamped 
is  within  a  stone's  throw  of  my  tent,  and  I  frequently 
visit  it.  The  huts  in  which  the  peons  live  are  like 
those  I  have  heretofore  spoken  of,  made  of  cane  and 
reeds,  with  interstices  through  which  the  Indian-look- 
ing women  may  at  all  times  be  seen  crushing  or 
grinding  the  corn  for  their  tortillas  or  corn-cakes,  as 
we  would  call  them ;  the  men  are  at  work  in  the  ad- 
jacent fields,  cutting  the  sugar-cane  or  grinding  out 
the  juice  with  the  huge  wooden  rollers  of  the  sugar-mill, 
or  else  drying  and  making  jerked  beef  out  of  the  long 
strips  of  meat,  cut  from  the  beeves  just  slaughtered. 

The  revenue  of  this  estate,  derived  from  the  sale 
of  hides,  tallow,  and  sugar,  is  very  large;  and  the 
owner,  having  fought  with  the  famous  Guarda  Costa 
of  Tampico,  at  Palo  Alto  and  Resaca,  is  left  at  liberty 


*  The  Third  was  commanded  by  Colonel  Ferris  Forman,  and 
the  Fourth  by  Colonel  Edward  D.  Baker. 


jMARrLANI)    VOLUNTEER.  235 

to  reap  some  of  the  profits,  as  he  had  shared  in  the 
disasters,  of  the  war. 

Borrowing  a  horse  from  the  adjutant,  I  rode  into 
Tainpico ;  a  hirge  number  of  troops  were  constructing 
elaborate  fortifications  hxndward,  steam  vessels  of  war 
in  the  river;  a  battery  was  drilling  in  the  plaza,  a 
heavy  guard  marching  off"  with  field  music ;  well- 
dressed,  business-looking  citizens  bustling  over  the 
side  flagstones  of  paved  streets,  well-looking  ladies 
flitting  along,  in  and  out  of  handsome  stores,  life  and 
activity  everywhere  visible,  and  the  hum  of  trade 
perceptible. 

I  visited  the  "  Commercial  Exchange"  in  the  main 
plaza :  a  coflee-house  with  handsomely  decorated 
apartments,  billiard-rooms,  private  parlors,  etc.,  which 
would  be  considered  good  in  any  capital  city.  I  ate 
a  meal  here  which,  if  not  couleur  de  rose,  gave  that 
tinge  to  all  I  saw.  Seven  months  without  a  decent 
meal  is  a  good  appetizer,  and  the  prospect  of  visiting 
the  theatre  at  night  (which  I  did)  was  a  dish  fit  to 
set  before  the  king. 

Riding  homeward,  General  Persifer  F.  Smith  over- 
took and  joined  me ;  the  sand  in  the  road  was  ankle- 
deep, — over  the  horses'  fetlocks ;  as  we  rode  along,  I 
saw  a  silver  dollar  lying  in  the  sand ;  to  stop  and 
pick  it  up  was  soon  done ;  remounting,  I  told  the 
General,  and  before  going  a  half  dozen  yards  I  was  off 
my  horse  again,  and  picked  up  another  dollar;  re- 
mounting, the  General  said  we  had  better  change 
sides  so  as  to  give  him  a  chance,  as  we  were  certainly 
on  the  road  to  fortune.  I  agreed,  and  he  took  my 
side  of  the  road ;  going  on,  we  both  kept  our  eyes  on 


236  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

the  sand,  when  I  perceived  the  bright  face  of  another 
dollar,  which  I  secured.  We  were  both  now  full  of 
laugh,  and  I  believe  he  was  just  going  to  dismount, — 
at  least  I  charged  him  with  it, — when  I  found  half- 
buried  in  the  sand  the  woolen  sock  of  a  soldier,  in 
which  there  were  thirty-four  silver  Mexican  dollars, 
and  one-half  of  a  dollar,  making  with  the  three 
which  I  had  picked  up,  a  total  of  thirty-seven  dollars 
and  fifty  cents. 

The  General  claimed  halves,  and  I  agreed  to  give 
it,  provided  I  did  not  find  the  right  owner ;  we  both 
concurring  that  it  belonged  to  some  soldier,  who  after 
having  been  paid  off  in  town,  had  got  drunk  and  lost 
his  money  on  the  way  to  camp. 

I  gave  notice  to  the  various  camps,  and  many  an  ap- 
jjlicant  came  for  the  money,  and  many  and  various  were 
the  schemes  to  get  it  from  me.  It  was  a  source  of  a 
great  deal  of  amusement,  and  finally  the  loser  made 
his  appearance,  but  not  until  several  days  after  my 
finding  it.  His  name  was  Abraham  Murphy,  of  the 
Third  United  States  Infantry,  and  his  behavior  was 
interesting ;  he  wanted,  evidently,  to  reward  me  for 
finding  his  money,  to  give  me  some  of  it;  but  he 
knew  how  improper  that  would  be,  for  he  was  a  dis- 
ciplined soldier,  with  proper  sensibilities,  and  his  em- 
barrassment was  very  expressive.  He  thanked  me, 
left,  and  I  never  saw  him  again. 

February  14 — Sunday  night.  We  have  had  more 
than  a  week  of  continuous  bad  weather ;  rain-storms 
daily.  My  dilapidated  tent  leaks  ;  being  a  line  officer 
there  is  no  fly,  and  the  earth  is  wet  beneath  my  feet, 
no  amount  of  ditching  sufficing  to  keep  it  dry.     I 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  237 

went  out  to  listen  to  the  music  of  the  Second  In- 
fantry's band ;  the  sergeants  were  calling  the  regular 
tattoo  roll-call,  the  rain  foiling  on  the  groups  assembled 
on  their  company  parades,  as  each  answered  quietly 
to  his  name.  The  night  was  intensely  dark,  and  the 
total  absence  of  all  life  or  animation  save  the  dull 
rolling  of  the  drums  beating  tattoo  gave  a  sombre 
cast  to  my  feelings,  in  unison  with  the  heavy  gloom 
and  silence  of  the  camp.  For  two  weeks  we  have 
been  doing  nothing ;  no  drills,  no  news,  nothing  but 
rains  and  storms.  The  men  are  complaining ;  for 
nearly  six  months'  pay  is  due  them,  they  complain  of 
their  rations,  and  are  ragged  and  nearly  barefoot ;  we 
are  without  one  scrap  of  news,  knowing  nothing  of 
our  probable  movements,  and  the  monotony  has  be- 
come so  wearisome  that  even  rumor  has  silenced  its 
tongue  for  want  of  thought.  But  one  question  is  now 
asked  :  "  Has  General  Scott  arrived  ?"  and  the  same 
answer  heard,  "No;  he  is  expected  this  evening." 
Everything  revolves  aroutid  this  centre.  He  has  been 
expected  daily  since  our  two  divisions  of  Taylor's 
army  arrived  here ;  no  one  blames  him,  for  each  man 
knows  that  Vera  Cruz  and  the  plans  for  its  capture 
are  of  more  importance  than  a  soldier's  restlessness 
or  a  soldier's  grumbling.  None  of  the  new  troops  of 
which  we  have  heard  so  much  have  as  yet  arrived, 
except  a  volunteer  regiment  from  New  York,  and 
they  were  scanned  by  our  soldiers  with  much  curiosity 
and  interest.  I  met  three  Baltimoreans  in  town  yes- 
terday, Messrs.  George  Bradford,  Eobert  Armstrong, 
and  Richard  Edes ;  they  came  to  seek  some  position 
in  the  army,  with  no  very  definite  idea,  I  think,  of 


238  MEMOIRS  OP  A 

what  was  before  them,  and  I  know  not  what  success 
they  have  met  with.  Such  weather  as  this,  if  it  does 
not  dampen  their  ardor,  will  at  least  warn  them  what 
they  may  expect,  and  may  determine  their  future 
action. 

February  16.  Our  battalion  has  been  paid  today 
all  arrearages  due  up  to  December  31,  1846,  and  the 
officers  and  men  are  as  bright  and  as  full  of  life  as  if 
the  past  eight  months  had  been  a  season  of  uninter- 
rupted happiness.  With  the  promise  of  an  issue  to 
them  of  new  clothing  and  new  shoes,  they  are  as  gay 
as  boys  home  for  the  Christmas  holidays,  and  it  is  a 
pleasure  to  see  them  so  happy. 

February  19.  The  sound  of  heavy  guns  firing  a 
salute  announced  to-day  the  long-looked-for  arrival 
of  General  Scott;  and  I  rode  in  to  the  city  to  see 
him,  as  I  had  never  had  that  pleasure,  and  to  learn 
the  news. 

The  city  was  in  a  fever  of  excitement,  the  streets 
and  the  plaza  thronged  with  soldiers  and  citizens, 
drums  beating,  cannon  firing,  troops  marching,  bat- 
teries hurrying  along,  and  all  the  indescribable  in- 
cidents to  an  army  roused  to  action  were  in  motion 
and  replete  with  interest.  The  ladies  crowded  the 
streets,  dressed  in  a  style  which  astonished  me.  I 
never  saw  anywhere  more  fashionably  dressed  women, 
European  in  everything,  except  where  Parisian  modes 
fail;  the  head,  adorned  with  their  beautiful  black  hair, 
braided  so  as  to  expose  a  rare  flower,  was  slightly 
covered  with  the  rebosa*,  of  gaudy  pattern,  which  fell 

*  A  long,  narrow  shawl  worn  by  all  classes  of  the  Tampicoans, 
as  the  only  covering  for  the  head. 


lIARrLAlSTD   VOLUNTEER.  239 

gracefully  over  tlieir  shoulders.  With  their  inimita- 
ble carriage,  the  birthright  of  a  Spaniard,  no  one 
would  suppose  that  aught  but  the  blood  of  Castile  or 
Aragon  was  coursing  in  their  veins;  they  were 
Mexicans,  yet  they  were  women,  and  their  curiosity 
to  see  General  Scott  subdued  their  repugnance  to  the 
Llanquies.*  In  the  centre  of  the  plaza,  the  fine  band  of 
one  of  the  artillery  regiments  was  playing,  surrounded 
by  a  dense  mass  of  soldiers  of  all  arms,  and  sailors 
from  the  men-of-war  in  port.  The  adjacent  coffee- 
houses were  filled  with  officers,  and  rumor,  her  tongue 
now  again  free,  filled  Tampico  with  the  buzz  of  her 
joy.  Everybody  talked,  everybody  knew  what  was 
just  told  him,  everybody  was  delighted,  and  every- 
body made  a  night  of  it,  except  the  town-guard,  and  it 
had  a  night  of  it,  for  there  was  the  sound  of  revelry 
on  the  banks  of  the  Panuco.  Drunken  soldiers  and 
drunken  sailors  fraternized,  and  the  long  bitter  oath  of 
the  western  volunteer  and  teamster  di'owned  the  car- 
ambaof  the  Mexican.  The  full  moon  came  up  to  lighten 
the  scene,  while  the  glowing  fires  and  the  fiery  furnaces 
of  the  steamers  in  the  river  threw  a  lurid  glare  upon 
the  heavy  armaments  bristling  upon  their  decks. 
The  sharp  challenge  of  "  Who  comes  there  ?"  was 
answered,  and  "  Boat  ahoy !"  was  followed  by  the 
plunge  of  oars,  deep  into  the  morning  watch.  Every- 
thing was  overflowing  with  enthusiasm  and  life  on 
the  eve  of  the  descent  upon  Vera  Cruz,  for  it  was  an- 

*  This  is  the  way  I  saw  the  word  Yankees  spelled,  written 
with  chalk  oa  a  wall,  and  it  was  some  time  before  I  could  make 
out  what  it  meant. 


240  MEMO  IBS  OF  A 

nounced  that  this  was  the  step  now  to  be  taken.  In 
that  mass  of  men,  not  one  reckoned  the  cost,  not  one 
doubted  the  success,  not  one  thought  of  the  future. 

I  did  not  see  General  Scott,  as  he  was  closely  en- 
gaged with  the  chiefs  of  divisions,  preparing  his  orders 
and  necessary  details ;  and  I  returned  to  camp,  where 
my  arrival  was  awaited  with  anxiety,  as  it  was  sup- 
posed that  I  would  be  able  to  tell  what  were  to  be 
our  orders. 

February  25.  The  orders  are  out,  and  we  are  to 
remain.  Colonel  De  Russey's  Regiment  of  Louisiana 
Volunteers,  the  Baltimore  Battalion,  and  Captain 
Wyse's  Battery  of  Regular  Artillery,  are  to  constitute 
the  garrison  of  Tampico,  with  Colonel  William  Gates, 
of  the  Third  Artillery,  U.  S.  Army,  commanding. 

The  good  name  and  reputation  of  the  Baltimore 
Battalion  were  now  unequivocally  established,  and 
its  designation  as  a  portion  of  the  garrison  of  this  im- 
portant city  was  due  as  much  to  this,  as  to  the  sig- 
nal ability  and  military  appreciation  of  the  worth  of 
Major  Robert  C.  Buchanan,  our  commanding  officer, 
whose  valuable  services  were  thus  secured  to  the  sup- 
port of  Colonel  Gates. 

We  marched  in  on  the  same  day,  and  I  was  assigned 
to  the  command  of  a  fort  on  the  eastern  defenses  of 
the  city,  armed  with  four  eighteen-  and  four  thirty- 
two-pound  guns,  with  a  detail  of  sixty  picked  men 
from  the  battalion,  to  be  drilled  in  the  manual  of 
heavy  artillery,  for  service  of  the  guns. 


JIABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  241 

CHAPTER    XXII. 

TAMPICO. 

On  the  19th  of  February,  1847,  ColonelJ.  G.  Tot- 
ten,  Chief  of  the  Corps  of  Engineers,  made  the  follow- 
ing report  to  General  Scott,  at  Tampico : 

"Sir, — I  have  to  report,  for  the  information  of  the  General,  that 
I  have  this  day  examined  with  care  the  works  lately  thrown  up 
for  the  defense  of  the  two  avenues  into  this  town.  These  works 
are  nearly  complete,  and  it  gives  me  great  satisfaction  to  state  my 
opinion  that  they  have  been  planned  with  judgment  and  executed 
with  skill;  nothing  less,  however,  was  to  have  been  expected 
from  the  officers  who  have  been  engaged  thereon,  namely  :  Cap- 
tain Barnard  and  Lieutenant  Beauregard,  of  the  Engineers,  as- 
sisted for  the  greater  part  of  the  time  by  Lieutenants  Coppee, 
of  the  artillery,  and  Woods,  of  the  infantry.  Lieutenants  McGil- 
ton,  G.  P.  Andrews,  and  Sears,  are  reported  to  have  rendered 
valuable  aid,  though  for  shorter  periods. 

"Although  the  defensive  lines  were  designed  to  meet  the  case 
of  a  weak  garrison,  and  much  talent  has  been  displayed  in  profit- 
ing by  local  circumstances  to  that  end,  still,  the  space  to  be 
covered  is  large,  and  even  a  minimum  garrison  must  consist 
of  a  considerable  body  of  men.  I  do  not  now  take  into  account 
the  value  of  the  object  covered.  If  its  importance  be  such  as 
to  justify  the  leaving  of  a  garrison  at  all,  that  garrison  must 
be  able  to  maintain  itself  for  some  time,  entirely  independent  of 
succor  from  without;  any  less  garrison  we  might  expect  to  lose. 

"Knowing  how  important  it  may  be  to  other  issues  of  the  ap- 
proaching campaign  to  take  hence  all  the  force  that  can  be 
spared,  I  have  looked  at  the  subject  with  a  sincere  desire  to 
reduce  to  the  utmost  my  estimate  of  the  numbers  indispensable 
to  an  efficient  defense  ;  but  I  have  not  been  able  to  reduce  ic 
below  the  following  figures. 

16 


242  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

"Along  the  Allaneii-a  front  of  the  town,  there  are  eight  distinct 
works  requiring  garrisons,  varying,  according  to  magnitude  or 
position,  from  twenty  men  to  one  hundred  and  twenty  men 
each,  at  least, — provision  being  made  for  mounting  thereon 
twenty-six  pieces  of  artillery. 

"  The  aggregate  of  these  posts  will  be      .         .       540  men. 

"  Reserve  of  four  companies     ....       320     " 

"Giving 860     " 

"  On  the  canal  front,  at  the  other  extremity  of  the 

town,  there  will  be  needed  in  these  posts  200     " 

"Total 1060     " 

"  Making  a  total  of,  say,  one  thousand  men. 

"  There  should  also  be  a  reserve  on  the  canal  front  of  not  less 
than  two  hundred  men,  making  the  whole  force  of  that  front 
four  hundred  men,  and  the  total  force  twelve  hundred  men  ;  but, 
in  my  desire  to  reduce  the  estimate,  I  have  omitted  this  reserve, 
on  the  supposition  that  a  body  of  at  least  two  hundred  volun- 
teers may  be  raised  at  a  moment  of  need  among  the  residents  of 
Tampico. 

"Twenty-four  pieces  of  artillery  are  actually  mounted  in  the 
several  works,  which  ordnance  should  be  left  in  the  hands  of  the 
regular  artillery  only.  I  have,  therefore,  in  conclusion,  to  recom- 
mend to  the  General-in-Cbief  that  there  be  left  for  the  defense  of 
Tampico  a  force  of  not  less  than  one  thousand  effective  men, 
with  twenty-four  pieces  of  artillery;  of  which  force,  one  full 
company,  at  least,  should  be  of  regular  artillery. 

"  I  purpose  leaving  orders  with  Lieutenant  Beauregard  to  com- 
plete the  defenses  at  once,  so  that  he  may  be  in  time  to  afford  his 
aid  in  the  contemplated  operations  at  Vera  Cruz. 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  etc., 

"  (Signed)  "  Joseph  G.  Totten, 

"  Colonel  and  Chief  Engineer." 

On  the  same  day,  doubtless  after  the  receipt  of 
Colonel  Totten's  report,  General  Scott  issued  the 
following  instructions  to  General  Patterson : 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  243 

"  gia,^I  am  desirous  that,  after  designating  a  competent 
garrison  for  the  defense  of  this  place  (Tampico),  the  strength 
and  composition  of  which  will  be  given  below,  the  whole  of 
the  remaining  forces  under  your  command  should  be  promptly 
embarked  and  dispatched  to  the  harbor  behind  the  island  of 
Lobos,  some  sixty  miles  south  of  this  place,  there  to  await  fur- 
ther orders Should  I  have   left  that  rendezvous 

before  your  arrival,  you  will  please  direct  all  vessels  of  the  ex- 
pedition you  may  find  there  to  join  me  off  Anton  Lizardo,  and 
follow  yourself  to  that  anchorage;  but  I  shall  exceedingly  regret 
to  leave  Lobos  before  you  are  up  with  me. 

"The  garrison  to  be  left  for  holding  and  defending  this  posi- 
tion may  be  one  company  of  artillery,  the  Maryland  and  District 
of  Columbia  Battalion  of  Volunteers,  and  the  Louisiana  Regi- 
ment of  Volunteers  ;  the  whole  under  the  command  of  Colonel 
Gates,  of  the  Third  United  States  Artillery.  You  will  please 
give  him  such  instructions  as  the  importance  of  the  place  evi- 
dently requires.  His  command  will  commence  from  the  time 
he  shall  iind  himself  the  senior  oEScer  at  that  place 

"  Besides  the  troops  mentioned  above  for  the  garrison  of  this 
place,  there  will  no  doubt  be  a  number  of  men  in  hospital — in- 
vaUds  and  convalescents  left  by  other  regiments  found — available 
in  emergency. 

"  I  remain,  sir,  etc., 
".Signed,  "  Winfjeld  Scott." 

It  will  be  perceived,  from  Colonel  Totten's  report, 
that  he  knew  that  the  moment  the  army  left,  the 
garrison  of  Tampico  would  have  to  maintain  itself 
independent  of  any  succor  from  without;  and  General 
Scott,  while  himself  selecting  the  troops  destined 
for  the  garrison,  carefully  avoided  express  instructions 
to  General  Patterson.  He  was  well  acquainted  with 
De  Russy  and  Buchanan ;  they  were  both  graduates 
of  West  Point,  and  De  Rus.sy  had  been  a  captain  of 
artillery  in  the  regular  army,  so  that  compelled  as  he 


244  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

was  to  leave  so  small  a  force  as  one  thousand  men,  he 
at  least  determined  to  leave  good  officers;  ^et  he 
hesitated  to  direct  by  command,  General  Patterson  to 
detail  the  garrison.  Patterson  avoided  all  responsi- 
bility, a,s.  he  had  a  right  to  do,  and  adopted  the  recom- 
mendation of  Scott,  nnd  the  garrison  of  Tarapico  was 
thus  constituted  and  organized.  If  the  expedition  to 
Vera  Cruz  should  prove  successful,  this  garrison  could 
maintain  itself;  but  should  that  expedition  fail,  we 
would  have  been  badly  situated,  as  the  nearest  help 
would  have  to  be  looked  for  from  General  Taylor, 
distant  three  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  at  Monterey. 
The  navy  would  have  proved  a  powerful  and  ready 
ally  in  case  of  need,  but  I  am  only  speaking  of  the 
militai'y  features  incident  to  the  defense ;  however. 
Colonel  Gates  was  a  very  cautious  conunandant, — in- 
deed, we  thought  that  he  kept  us  too  much  on  the 
alert,  for  we  were  nearly  all  the  time  apprehensive  of 
a  real  or  imaginary  attack. 

We  will  now  follow  General  Scott.  On  the  28th 
of  February  he  wrote  from  the  Massachusetts,  off 
Lobos  Island,  to  the  Secretary  of  War : 

"Sir, — I  left  the  Brazos  the  15th  and  Tampico  the  20th  in- 
stant, having  done  much  official  business  at  the  latter  place,  in  a 
delay  of  some  thirty  hours.  .  .  Perhaps  no  expedition 
was  ever  so  unaccountably  delayed, — by  no  want  of  foresight, 
arrangement  or  energy  on  my  part,  as  I  dare  affirm, — under  cir- 
cumstances the  most  critical  to  this  entire  army  ;  for  everybody 
relied  upon  knew  from  the  first,  as  well  as  I  knew,  that  it  would  be 
fatal  to  us  to  attempt  military  operations  on  the  coast  afier  prob- 
ably the  first  week  in  April,  and  here  we  are  at  the  end  of  February. 

"  Nevertheless,  this  army  is  in  heart;  and  crippled  as  I  am 
in  the  means  required  and  promised,  I  shall  go  forward,  and  ex- 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  245 

pect  to  take  Vera  Ci'uz  and  its  castle  in  time  to  escape,  hj  pur- 
suing the  enemy,  tlie  pestilence  of  the  coast. 

"  Wc  (iad  this  harbor  against  norther»  even  better  than  I  had 
anticipated.  One  has  now  been  blowing  some  forty  hours,  and 
has  brought  down  all  the  vessels  ready  to  sail  that  were  outside 
of  the  bars  at  the  Brazos  and  Tampico.  The  next  will  take  the 
fleet  to  Anton  Lizardo,  whither  I  am  sending  off  ships  with  surf- 
boats,  in  order  that  the  latter  may  be  launched  under  the  care  of 
the  navy,  and  held  ready  for  my  arrival.  .  .  .  The  island 
(Lobos)  has  afforded  the  volunteers  means  of  healthy  military 
exercises,  and  tolerable  drinking-water.  The  few  surf-boats 
landed  are  admirably  fitted  for  the  purposes  intended." 

In  connection  with  this  initial  step, — the  capture 
of  Vera  Cruz  by  Major-General  Scott, — I  find  place 
for  two  letters  from  Commodore  Connor,  interesting 
for  the  matters  embraced  in  them,  but  still  more  as 
showing  the  zealous  co-operation  and  essential  value 
of  the  services  of  the  navy,  in  this  first  effort  by  our 
government  to  combine  the  power  of  the  land  and 
naval  forces  of  the  republic,  in  an  attack  upon  a  foreign 
port  of  any  magnitude. 

"  Commodore  Connor  to  Major-Oeneral  Scott. 

"  U.  S.  Frigate  Raritan, 

Anton  Ltzakdo,  .Tanuary  11,  1847. 

"  Sir, — Your  esteemed  favor  of  the  2Sd  ultimo  was  received 
two  days  since  by  the  United  States  ship  Albany,  from  Pensacola. 

"I  had  received,  some  days  previously,  communications  from 
the  Navy  Department,  apprising  me  of  your  being  about  to  take 
command  of  the  army  in  Mexico,  and  of  the  joint  operations 
contemplated  against  the  enemy.  In  the  prosecution  of  these 
measures,  you  may  rely  on  the  cordial  co-operation  of  the  naval 
forces  under  my  command. 

"  lu  consequence  of  some  apprehensions  being  entertained  of 
an  attack  from  Mexican  privateers,  supposed  to  be  fitting  out  in 


246  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

the  island  of  Cuba,  I  dispatched  the  St.  Mary's  some  days  since 
to  the  Brazos  for  the  protection  of  the  transports  before  that 
place.  Commander  Sanders  is  directed  Xo  perform  any  service 
you  may  require  of  him  ;  and  as  I  attach  little  credit  to  the 
report  concerning  the  privateers,  the  St.  Mary's  might  be  with- 
drawn from  the  Brazos  without  much  risk  to  the  transports,  to 
carry  your  dispatches  to  me  or  to  Tampico,  should  you  wish  to 
communicate  with  that  place.  I  would  employ  steamboats  for 
the  purpose  of  communicating  with  you  ;  but,  unfortunately, 
with  the  exception  of  the  Princeton  (and  she  is  in  very  bad  con- 
dition, and  scarcely  fit  to  keep  the  sea),  I  have  no  steamer  that 
is  capal)le  of  making  the  passage  to  the  Brazos  with  certainty  or 
safety  at  this  season  of  the  year, 

"  My  information  from  the  shore  in  regard  to  the  movements 
of  the  enemy  has  not  of  late  been  either  so  full  or  so  exact  as 
could  be  desired.  Prom  a  source,  however,  which  I  believe  may 
be  relied  upon,  I  learn  that  there  are  now  about  one  thousand 
men  in  the  castle,  and  in  the  town,  eighteen  hundred  effective 
men,  independent  of  the  town  militia,  who  do  not  amount  to  one 
thousand  men.  The  provisions  in  the  town  or  castle  seldom  or 
never  exceed  a  supply  for  three  or  four  days.  In  this  matter  all 
'  accounts  concur.  1  am  not  aware  of  there  being  any  regular 
force  of  any  consequence  between  Vera  Cruz  and  'Mexico. 
There  possibly  may  be  a  regiment  or  more  at  Xalapa,  and  also 
at  La  Puebla  and  the  city  of  Mexico  ;  but  this  I  think  doubtful, 
as  great  exertions  have  been  made  by  Santa  Anna  to  assemble 
the  whole  regular  force  of  the  country  at  San  Luis.  The 
National  Guards,  or  such  numbers  as  can  be  armed,  have  in  some 
instances  garrisoned  the  towns  from  which  the  troops  of  the  line 
have  been  withdrawn.  Such  it  is  believed  has  been  the  case  in 
most  if  not  all  of  those  above  mentioned.  I  am  therefore  of 
opinion  little  opposition  is  to  be  expected  from  anything  like  a 
regular  army  in  your  descent  on  the  coast,  or  from  any  other 
force  than  that  within  the  city  of  Vera  Cruz.  Nor  do  1  believe 
it  in  the  power  of  the  Mexican  government  to  assemble  a  force 
in  a  reasonable  time  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  city  sufficient 
for  its  protection. 

"Xo  neutral  vessels  are  permited  to  enter  or  depart  from  the 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  247 

harbor  of  Vera  Cruz,  except  the  English  steam  packets  that 
arrive  on  the  14th  and  sail  on  the  2d  of  every  month.  Your 
agents  may  either  avail  themselves  of  these  vessels,  which  I  will 
direct  to  be  boarded  at  their  departure,  or  be  conveyed  on  board 
the  vessels  blockading  the  port,  by  means  of  the  fishing  boats, 
which  are  still  allowed  to  pass  out  to  sea  for  the  purpose  of 
fishing. 

"  The  vessels  of  the  squadron  have  all  been  withdrawn  from , 
Tampieo ;  but  I  will  send  one  to  that  place  without  delay,  for 
the  purpose  of  bringing  any  dispatch  you  may  find  it  convenient 
to  send  to  that  place  for  me. 

I  am  informed  there  is  good  shelter  at  the  Isle  of  Lobos  for 
any  number  of  vessels  ;  but  no  water  is  to  be  obtained  there. 
Nevertheless,  it  is  highly  important  the  transports  employed 
should  be  well  found  with  ground  tackle,  to  enable  them  even  in 
the  most  sheltered  positions  to  ride  out  in  safety  the  sudden  and 
violent  gales  from  the  north,  so  frequent  at  this  season  of  the 
year.  This  anchorage  is  considered  one  of  the  best  and  safest 
OD  the  coast,  yet  in  the  gale  of  the  24th  of  November  three  ves- 
sels either  foundered  or  were  driven  on  shore  from  their  anchors 
in  this  road,  and  lost  A  gale  is  now  blowing,  in  which,  during 
the  last  night,  this  ship  parted  one  of  her  best  cables,  and  was 
only  saved  from  imminent  danger  of  being  wrecked  by  others 
which  were  down  bringing  her  up. 

"  Some  reduction  has  occurred  lately  in  the  naval  force  in  the 
Gulf,  by  the  withdrawal  of  the  Cumberland  and  Mississippi. 
Still,  it  is  probable  I  should  be  able  to  land  upwards  of  six 
hundred  seamen  and  marines. 

"I  have  the  honor,  etc.,  etc., 

"  D.    CONNOK." 


"  U.  S.  Ship  Raritan, 

Anton  Lizardo,   January  18,  1847. 

"Sir,— Your  esteemed  favor  of  the  26th  ultimo,  accompanied 
by  a  duplicate  of  your  communication  of  December  23d,  dated 
at  Xcw  Orleans,  was  handed  to  me  yesterday  afternoon  by 
Lieutenant  Rains.     My  reply  to  the  latter  was  dispatched  some 


248  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

days  since  to  Brazos  Santiago,  in  a  prize  schooner,  under  charge 
of  Lieutenant  Commanding  Smith.  By  this  time  it  has  prob- 
ably readied  its  address. 

"The  present  would  be  the  most  favorable  time  for  the  con- 
templated attack  upon  Vera  Cruz.  There  is  every  reason  to  be- 
lieve the  information  contained  in  my  former  communication,  as 
to  the  force  now  in  the  castle  and  town,  correct.  Provisions  for 
the  garrison  are  obtained  with  the  greatest  difficulty,  and  in 
quantities  sufficient  only  to  last  from  day  to  day.  The  supplies 
at  present  in  the  castle  may  be  perhaps  enough  for  a  week  or 
ten  days  at  the  utmost,  all  accounts  agreeing  that  there  are  no 
salt  provisions  in  either.  So  far  as  I  am  able  to  judge,  1  am  of 
opinion  that  if  four  or  five  thousand  troops  could  be  landed  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Vera  Cruz  by  the  end  of  this  month  or  the 
beginning  of  the  next,  so  as  completely  to  invest  the  place,  and 
cut  off  all  communication  with  the  country,  its  surrender,  in  less 
than  ten  days,  with  that  of  the  castle,  would  be  certain,  and 
probable  without  the  necessity  of  firing  a  gun. 

"  The  best  point  for  landing  can  readily  be  ascertained  on  your 
arrival,  after  an  examination  of  the  coast.  Indeed,  in  my  opinion, 
there  are  but  two  points  at  all  eligible  for  this  purpose — one  on 
the  beach,  due  west  from  Sacrificios;  the  other  on  the  shores  of 
this  anchorage. 

"  I  have  already  given  you  such  information  as  1  possessed 
in  relation  to  the  anchorage  at  Lobos.  It  is  perfectly  safe  and 
easy  of  access.  '  Blunt's  Coast  Pilot'  contains  full  and  exact 
directions  for  the  entrance.  Pilots  can  be  procured,  should  they 
be  deemed  necessar}^  at  Tarapico. 

"  I  would  advise  by  all  means  that  the  transports  which  pass 
Lobos  be  directed  to  rendezvous  at  Anton  Lizardo,  instead  of 
Sacrificios.  The  anchorage  at  the  latter  place,  not  already  occu- 
pied by  foreign  men-of-war,  is  unsafe  at  this  season  of  the  year; 
that  of  Anton  Lizardo,  as  I  have  before  stated,  the  safest  and 
best  on  the  coast,  and  sufficiently  extensive  for  two  or  three 
hundred  sail.  No  apprehensions  are  as  yet  entertained  at  Vera 
Cruz  of  the  design  contemplated  against  the  place.  But  it  is  to 
be  feared  that,  before  long,  the  movements  of  the  army  and  other 
indications  may  excite  suspicion.    It  would  indeed  be  greatly  to 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  249 

be  regretted  should  so  favorable  an  opportunity  of  making  a 
successful  attack  on  the  town,  as  the  present,  pass  without  your 
being  able  to  avail  yourself  of  it. 

"  Accounts  received  hero  state  that  General  Woo)  had  joined 
General  Worth  at  Monterey,  about  the  1st  of  January.  The  forces 
of  Santa  Anna  had  commenced  their  advance  some  days  previ- 
ously from  San  Luis  to  Saltillo.  The  return  of  General  Taylor 
to  Monterey,  which  from  all  accounts  seems  likely,  will  probably 
have  the  effect  of  retarding  your  movements  some  weeks. 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  be  your  obedient  servant, 

"  D.  Connor, 
"  Commanding  Home  Sq\iadron 

"  Major-General  Scott." 

As  early  as  December  20,  1846,  General  Scott 
wrote  to  General  Taylor,  from  New  Orleans : 

.  .  .  .  "  The  particular  expedition  I  am  to  conduct  is 
destined  against  Vera  Cruz,  and  through  it  the  Castle  of  San 
Juan  d'Ulloa,  so  as  to  open,  if  we  are  successful,  a  new  and 
shorter  line  of  operations  upon  the  capital  of  Mexico. 

"The  first  great  difficulty  is  to  get  together,  in  time,  and 
afloat,  off  the  Brazos,  a  sufficient  force  to  give  us  a  reasonable 
prospect  of  success  before  the  usual  period — say  the  end  of 
March — for  the  return  of  the  black  vomit  on  the  coast  of 
Mexico. 

"I  have  supposed  fifteen  thousahd  land  troops,  including  five 
of  regulars,  and  the  co-operation  of  the  blockading  squadron,  to  be 
desirable,  if  not  absolutely  necessary,  but  am  now  inclined  to 
move  forward  to  the  attack  should  I  be  able  to  assemble  the 
five  thousand  regulars,  and,  say,  three  of  volunteers.     .     .     . 

"  To  make  up  the  force  for  the  new  expedition,  I  foresee  that 
I  shall,  as  I  intimated  in  my  letter,  of  which  I  enclose  a  copy, 
be  obliged  to  reduce  you  to  the  defensive  at  the  moment  when 
it  would  be  of  the  greatest  importance  to  the  success  of  my  ex- 
pedition that  you  should  be  in  strength  to  manoeuvre  offensively 
upon  San  Luis  de  Potosi,  etc." 

The  elucidation  of  what  I  have   meant  by  cross- 


250  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

'purposes,  and  the  key  to  the  approaching  grand  suc- 
cesses, is  to  be  found  in  the  concluding  lines  of  the 
above  extract. 

On  the  1st  day  of  February,  1847,  Santa  Anna 
had  the  game  in  his  own  hands  Taylor  was  too 
weak  to  act  offensively  toward  San  Luis ;  Scott  had, 
by  no  fault  of  his,  lost  precious  time ;  yet,  with  the 
road  open  and  the  troops  at  command,  Santa  Anna 
elected  to  march  away  from  his  Capital  to  attack 
Taylor.  Nothing  but  the  certainty,  the  absolute  cer- 
tainty, of  success,  would  have  justified  this  movement. 

Doubtless  he  thought  that  he  could  crush  Taylor; 
but — he  was  mistaken,  mainly  because  he  did  not 
properly  appreciate  the  character  of  his  antagonist. 
He  estimated  the  number  of  troops  he  had  to  en- 
counter, not  the  weight  of  the  hero  at  their  head. 

We  must  advance  a  little  in  the  order  of  time  to 
see  how  thoroughly  the  government  at  Washington 
was  alarmed  at  the  status  of  the  war,  before  informa- 
tion reached  it  of  Taylor's  success  at  Buena  Vista, 
and  necessarily  of  the  result  of  Scott's  expedition  to 
Vera  Cruz. 

The  subjoined  letter,  from  the  able  pen  of  the  dis- 
tinguished Secretary  of  War,  Hon.  W.  L.  Marcy,  to 
Major-General  Winfield  Scott,  is  a  compendium  of  his- 
tory in  itself,  and  the  best  commentary  ever  written, 
on  the  conduct  of  the  war  in  the  Valley  of  the  Rio 
Grande,  subsequent  to  the  withdrawal  from  Taylor  of 
the  army  with  which  he  had  stormed  and  carried  the 
city  of  Monterey : 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  251 

"  Wak  Dkpaktment,  March  22,  1847. 

"Sir,— The  information  which  has  just  reached  us,  in  the 
shape  of  rumors,  as  to  the  situation  of  General  Taylor  and  the 
forces  under  his  command,  has  excited  the  most  painful  appre- 
hensions for  their  safety.  It  is  almost  certain  that  Santa  Anna 
has  precipitated  the  large  army  he  had  collected  at  San  Luis  de 
Potosi  upon  General  Taylor;  and  it  may  be  that  the  Generalhas 
not  been  able  to  maintain  the  advanced  position  he  had  seen  fit 
to  take  at  Agua  Nueva,  but  has  been  obliged  to  fall  back  on 
Monterey.  It  is  equally  certain  that  a  Mexican  force  has  been 
interposed  between  Monterey  and  the  Rio  Grande,  and  that  it 
has  interrupted  the  line  of  communication  between  the  two 
places  and  seized  large  supplies  which  were  on  the  way  to  Gen- 
eral Taylor's  army. 

"If  the  hostile  force  between  the  Rio  Grande  and  General 
Taylor's  army  is  as  large  as  reports  represent  it,  our  troops  now 
on  that  river  may  not  be  able  to  re-establish  the  line,  nor  will  it, 
perhaps,  be  possible  to  place  a  force  there  sufficient  for  the  purpose 
in  time  to  prevent  disastrous  consequences  to  our  army,  unless  aid 
can  be  afforded  from  the  troops  under  your  immediate  command. 

"From  one  to  two  thousand  of  the  new  recruits  for  the  ten 
regiments  from  this  quarter  will  be  on  the  way  to  the  Brazos  in 
the  course  of  three  or  four  days.  All  the  other  forces  will  be 
directed  to  that  point,  and  every  effort  made  to  relieve  General 
Taylor  from  his  critical  situation.  You  will  have  been  fully 
apprised,  before  this  can  reach  you,  of  the  condition  of  things 
in  the  Valley  of  the  Rio  Grande  and  at  the  headquarters  of 
General  Taylor,  and  have  taken,  I  trust,  such  measures  as  the 
importance  of  the  subject  requires.  I  need  not  urge  upon  you 
the  fatal  consequences  which  would  result  from  any  serious  dis- 
aster which  might  befall  the  army  under  General  Taylor,  nor  do 
I  doubt  that  you  will  do  what  is  in  your  power  to  avert  such  a 
calamity. 

"A  state  of  things  may  exist  on  the  Rio  Grande  and  at  Mon- 
terey which  will  require  that  a  part  of  your  forces,  after  the 
capture  of  Vera  Cruz  and  the  reduction  of  the  castle  of  San 
Juan  d'Ulloa,  should  return  to  Tampico  or  the  Brazos,  to  carry 
on  operations  from  these  points.  It  is  here  deemed  of  the  utmost 


252  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

importance  that  the  line  of  the  Rio  Grande  should  be  main- 
tained, and  that  Monterey  should  be  held  by  our  forces.  You 
will  be  kept  advised  of  all  done  here  to  sustain  General  Taylor 
and  augment  the  forces  under  him.  In  ignorance  of  what  may 
be  your  own  situation,  and  what  may  be  required  for  the  relief 
of  General  Taylor,  I  can  give  no  distinct  indication  of  what  is 
deemed  proper  for  you  to  do,  if  anything,  beyond  what  you  may 
have  already  done,  but  must  request  that  no  assistance  which 
you  can  render,  without  too  much  hazard  to  your  own  opera- 
tions, and  he  may  need,  should  be  withheld. 

"  I  herewith  send  you  a  copy  of  a  letter  addressed  to  General 
Brooke.  You  will  learn,  as  soon  as  it  can  be  known  here,  what 
action  he  will  take  under  the  authority  therein  given  to  him.  I 
also  enclose  herewith  a  dispatch  from  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy 
to  the  commander  of  our  squadron  in  the  Gulf. 
"Very  respectfullj^  etc., 

"(Signed)  "  W.  L.  Makot. 

"To  Majur-General  Scott,  etc. 

"P.S. — I  have  just  received  your  letters  of  the  23d  ult.  and 
1st  instant." 

If  such  was  the  alarm  in  Washington,  then  ours 
in  Tampico  may  be  readily  imagined.  We  were  at 
our  guns  night  and  day,  for  we  knew  not  at  what 
moment  after  the  departure  of  Scott's  array  we  would 
be  attacked,  it  being  generally  rumored  and  credited, 
that  Santa  Anna  had  abandoned  his  forward  move- 
ment from  San  Luis,  and  would  debouch  from  the 
Tula  Pass  upon  Tampico  to  strike  Scott's  base. 

But  let  us  return  to  the  expedition  on  Vera  Cruz; 
for,  although  its  success  was  subsequent  to  Taylor's 
at  Buena  Vista,  we  will  follow  it  so  as  to  continue 
the  thread  of  our  narration. 

At  the  time  I  paid  a  visit  to  General  Taylor  at 
Victoria,  in  January,  1847,  I  found  him  engaged 
reading  a  work  on  Vera  Cruz  and  its  castle.    Several 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  953 

maps  and  charts  were  lying  about  him,  and  I  was 
satisfied  that  the  General  at  that  time  was  deliber- 
ating upon  an  attack  on  Vera  Cruz,  or  an  advance  on 
that  line  to  the  city  of  Mexico.  It  will  be  remem- 
bered that  we  were  then  on  the  march  from  Monterey 
to  Tampico,  and  that  in  a  few  days  thereafter  General 
Taylor  was  superseded  by  General  Scott  as  chief  in 
command,  and  retired  to  Monterey. 

Before  General  Scott  left  the  United  States,  he  had 
submitted  several  projects  to  the  government  for  the 
capture  of  Vera  Cruz,  and  he  inaugurated  his  advent 
into  Mexico  by  his  preparations  for  that  enterprise. 

All  that  he  did  was  planned  according  to  military 
art,  and  was  successfully  executed. 

Vera  Cruz  was  defended  on  the  land  side  by  several 
redoubts,  mounting  seventy  guns,  and  was  garrisoned 
by  three  thousand  men.  The  strength  of  the  city  as 
a  military  position,  however,  was,  or  was  supposed  to 
be,  in  the  castle  of  San  Juan  d'UUoa.  This  fortress, 
built  upon  a  reef  of  coral  rock  at  about  the  distance 
of  one  thousand  yards  north-east  and  immediately  in 
front  of  the  city,  on  the  sea  side,  mounted  upwards 
of  a  hundred  guns,  many  of  them  new  and  of  heavy 
calibre.  Its  garrison  was  weak  for  the  capacity  of 
the  work  and  the  weight  of  its  armament;  it  was 
counted  in  round  numbers  at  one  thousand  men. 

On  the  morning  of  the  9  th  of  March,  General  Scott 
landed  Worth's  Division  on  the  Gulf  shore  three  miles 
south  of  the  city,  by  the  boats  of  the  navy,  pulled 
by  the  seamen  of  the  fleet.  No  enemy  opposed  the 
landing,  and  before  the  ensuing  morning  Scott's  whole 
army  of  about  ten  thousand  men  was  on  shore.    The 


25.i  MEMOIRS  OP  A 

investment  commenced  from  the  landing  of  the  first 
troops,  and  was  completed  by  noon  of  the  12th, 
making  a  line  of  six  miles,  stretching  from  Punta 
Hornos  on  the  south  to  Vergara  on  the  north. 

The  trenches  were  opened  and  batteries  planted, 
including  one  manned  exclusively  by  officers  and 
seamen  of  the  fleet,  when,  on  the  22d,  General  Scott, 
having  fruitlessly  demanded  the  surrender  of  the  city, 
gave  the  orders  to  commence  firing. 

For  four  days  and  nights  shot  and  shell  were 
poured  into  the  city,  and  the  fire  rapidly  returned 
by  the  guns  of  the  city  and  castle.  The  suffering 
and  loss  of  life  in  the  city  were  great,  and  each  hour 
that  passed  added  strength  and  effect  to  the  fire  of 
the  besieging  force.  On  the  night  of  the  25th,  the 
foreign  consuls  in  the  city  sent  a  flag  to  General  Scott, 
asking  permission  for  the  foreigners  and  Mexican 
women  and  children  to  leave  the  city.  Scott  replied 
that  as  they  had  had  full  knowledge  of  the  proposed 
investment,  and  had  been  furnished  with  safeguards 
which  they  had  failed  to  take  advantage  of,  they  must 
now  stand  the  consequences. 

On  the  morning  of  the  26th,  General  Landero,  who 
had  succeeded  Morales  in  chief  command,  sent  pro- 
posals to  General  Scott,  which  were  entertained. 
These  led  to  a  convention,  by  which  Vera  Cruz  and 
the  castle  with  all  their  guns  and  ordrvance  stores 
were  unconditionally  surrendered  to  the  United  States. 
On  the  29th  of  March  the  garrisons  of  both  marched 
out  with  the  honors  of  war,  saluted  their  flag,  and 
then  laid  down  their  arms  as  prisoners  of  war,  not  to 
serve  again  unless  regularly  exchanged. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  255 

As  a  military  achievement,  this  will  rank  as  one 
of  the  most  brilliant  on  record,  for  it  was  the  result 
of  calculation  and  combination,  entirely  the  work  of 
the  commander-in-chief  From  the  number  of  men 
requisite,  to  the  number  of  intrenching  tools,  the  co- 
operation of  the  navy,  and  the  structure  of  the  surf- 
boats,  the  number  and  size  of  guns  and  mortars,  the 
quantity  and  chai'acter  of  ordnance  stores,  all  had 
been  prearranged,  all  were  aptly  chosen,  all  system- 
atically used,  and  all  worked  as  planned. 

The  casualties  on  the  side  of  the  Americans  did 
not  exceed  one  hundred  men,  while  that  of  the  Mexi- 
cans, soldiers  and  civilians,  was  fully  one  thousand ; 
the  best  port  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  was  in  our  hands, 
and  a  sure  base  established  for  the  conquest  of  Mexico. 

The  convention  was  agreed  on  by  the  commissioners 
on  the  night  of  the  28th,  and  approved  by  General 
Scott,  Commodore  Perry  (who  had  succeeded  Com- 
modore Connor  in  command  of  the  Gulf  Squadron), 
and  General  Landero.  The  terms  were,  the  surren- 
der of  the  castle  of  San  Juan  d'Ulloa  and  the  city 
of  Vera  Cruz,  with  all  their  guns  and  munitions  of 
war;  the  troops  to  march  out  with  the  honors  of  war, 
and  to  surrender  their  arms,  and  the  officers  were  to 
give  their  paroles  for  themselves  and  their  men  not 
to  serve  during  the  war  until  regularly  exchanged. 
1  give  in  full  the  three  last  articles  : 

"  6.  The  sick  and  wounded  Mexicans  to  be  allowed  to  remain 
In  the  city,  with  such  medical  officers  and  attendants  and  officers 
of  the  army  as  may  be  necessary  to  their  care  and  treatment. 

"1.  Absolute  protection  is  solemnly  guaranteed  to  persons  in 
the  city  and  to  property,  and  it  is  clearly  understood  that  no 


256  MEMOIRS  OP  A 

private  buildiug  or  propei'ty  is  to  be  talien  or  used  by  the  forces 
of  the  UQited  States,  without  previous  arrangement  with  the 
owners,  and  for  a  fair  equivalent. 

"8.  Absolute  freedom  of  religious  worship  and  ceremonies  is 
solemnly  guaranteed." 

The  1st  and  4th  articles  were  as  follows  :     ' 

"  1.  The  whole  garrison  or  garrisons  to  be  surrendered  to  the 
arms  of  the  United  States,  as  prisoners  of  war,  the  29th  instant, 
at  10  o'clock  A.M.;  the  garrison  to  be  permitted  to  march  out 
with  all  the  honors  of  war,  and  to  lay  down  their  arms  to  such 
officers  as  may  be  appointed  by  the  General-in-Chief  of  the  United 
States  armies,  and  at  a  point  to  be  agreed  upon  by  the  commis- 
sioners." 

"  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  description 
of  force,  giving  the  usual  parole  that  the  said  rank  and  file,  as 
well  as  themselves,  shall  not  serve  again  until  duly  exchanged." 

Incidental  to  the  fall  of  Vera  Cruz  was  the  capture 
of  Alvarado,  a  town  of  some  fifteen  hundred  inhabi- 
tants, distant  two  days'  march  from  Vera  Cruz.  On 
the  day  after  the  surrender,  General  Quitman  with 
his  brigade  was  ordered  there,  and  on  his  arrival 
found  the  place  in  the  virtual  occupancy  of  the 
navy ;  Commodore  Perry  had  sent  a  vessel  to  watch 
the  mouth  of  the  river  upon  which  the  town  is 
situated,  and  Lieutenant  Hunter,  its  commander,  had 
landed  some  sailors  and  taken  possession  before  the 
arrival  of  General  Quitman. 

On  the  5th  of  April  General  Scott  wrote  a  very 
lengthy  communication  to  the  War  Department,  from 
which  I  make  a  few  extracts  : 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  257 

"I  am  now  orgauizing-  a  movement  of  three  or  four  brigades 
upon  Jalapa 

"  In  the  meantime,  the  city  and  camps  remain  free  from  signs 
of  malignant  fever,  and  we  may  hope  will  continue  healthy  for 

weeks   longer Being  by  default  of  others 

thrown  upon  this  coast  six  weeks  too  late  in  respect  to  the 
vomito,  I  have  been  made  to  feel  the  deepest  solicitude  for  the 
safety  of  the  army.  Tampico  is  not  less  unhealthy  than  Tera 
Cruz,  and  Tuspan  is  considered  the  worst  of  the  three  places. 
Our  depots  must  of  necessity  be  at  this  place 
(Vera  Cruz).  The  harbor  is  the  best  on  the  coast,  and  hence 
to  the  capital  is  the  best  road  in  the  country." 

Leaving  General  Scott  here,  preparing  to  march 
into  the  interior,  we  will  return  to  General  Taylor 
and  the  army  under  his  command. 

And  first,  we  must  place  Brigadier-General  John 
E.  Wool,  which  we  can  now  do,  and  show  how  won- 
derfully he  had  turned  up  at  the  right  time  and  in  the 
right  place,  to  render  with  his  Division  highly  import- 
ant and  valuable  service.  At  the  outset  of  the  war, 
an  expedition  had  been  organized  by  the  government, 
in  Texas,  to  march  overland  into  the  State  of  Chi- 
huahua, the  most  northern  of  the  Mexican  republic, 
and  seize  the  city  of  Chihuahua.  The  column  named 
"Central  Division,  Army  of  Mexico,"  marched  from 
San  Antonio  the  latter  part  of  September,  and  got  as 
far  as  Monclova,  in  the  State  of  Cohahuila,  about  the 
1st  of  November,  1846.  It  was  here  that  General 
Wool,  in  command  of  this  Division,  was  enabled  to 
learn  that  General  Taylor  had  captured  and  was  in 
possession  of  Monterey,  the  capital  of  the  adjoining 
State  of  New  Leon,  and  he  determined  to  abandon 
his  march  after  Chihuahua,  and  endeavor  to  form  a 

17 


258  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

junction  with  Taylor.  He  established  himself  at 
Parras,  in  the  same  State  of  Cohahuila,  and  when 
Worth  was  alarmed,  whilst  Taylor  was  on  the  march 
to  Victoria,  General  Wool  had  by  a  rapid  march  rein- 
forced Worth  at  Saltillo,  and  was  now  near  that  place 
in  camp,  on  a  ranch  named  Buena  Vista,  which  had 
been  selected  by  General  Wool  and  his  engineer 
officer.  Captain  George  W.  Hughes,  of  the  Topo- 
graphical Engineers,  with  especial  reference  to  its 
suitableness  for  advantageous  defense;  a  pass  two 
miles  in  advance  of  this  camp  was  the  key  to  the 
position,  and  it  was  here  that  was  fought  the  battle 
which  gave  eclat  to  the  name  of  the  ranch,  and  im- 
perishable renown  to  American  arms. 

General  Taylor  returned  to  Monterey  about  the 
1st  of  February,  1847,  after  having  been  superseded 
by  General  Scott,  whilst  at  Victoria  en  route  to  Tam- 
pico,  with  the  feeble  (in  point  of  numbers)  escort  of 
two  companies  of  dragoons,  two  batteries,  and  one 
regiment  of  rifles.  His  arrival  was  greeted  with  the 
sad  news  of  the  capture  of  several  parties  of  Ameri- 
cans, a  general  advance  of  Santa  Anna  with  an  over- 
whelming force,  and  a  good  deal  of  demoralization 
among  the  troops  outside  of  Wool's  Division,  and  not 
including  the  body-guard  he  had  brought  with  him. 

His  heart  must  have  been  very  heavy ;  he  had 
been  shamefully  outraged,  all  his  tried  troops  with 
the  exception  of  a  handful  taken  from  him,  and  now 
the  life  of  every  American  in  the  valley  of  the  Rio 
Grande,  the  honor  of  our  arms,  the  success  of  the  war, 
his  own  laurels,  were  in  jeopardy,  and  in  his  single 
keeping. 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  259 

He  had  said  that  he  would  do  his  duty  to  his 
country,  though  he  might  be  crushed  in  the  effort; 
and  he  was  about  to  illustrate  that  he  shrank  from 
no  responsibilities  which  the  duties  of  his  office 
demanded. 

Moving  rapidly  forward  from  Monterey,  he  was  at 
Agua  Nueva,  sixty  miles  from  Monterey,  and  eighteen 
miles  south  of  Saltillo.*  On  the  5th  of  February,  not 
diking  this  position,  he  fell  back  to  the  pass  in  front 
of  Buena  Vista,  which  had  been  observed  by  Wool 
and  Hughes,  and  this  ground  meeting  with  his  ap- 
proval, he  prepared  to  resist  here  the  coming  of  Santa 
Anna  and  his  army. 

On  the  8th  Taylor  had  his  whole  army,  including 
Wool's  Division,  concentrated  here  ;  it  was  comjjosed 
of  two  companies  of  the  First  Dragoons,  under  Cap- 
tain Enoch  Steen  ;  two  companies  of  the  Second  Dra- 
goons, under  Lieutenant-Colonel  Charles  A.  May; 
Bragg's,  Sherman's  and  Washington's  Batteries  of  the 
regular  army ;  one  regiment  of  Arkaiisas  Cavalry, 
under  Colonel  Archibald  Yell ;  one  regiment  of  Ken- 
tucky Cavalry,  under  Colonel  Humphrey  Marshall; 
Second  Kentucky  Infantry,  under  Colonel  William  E. 
McKee ;  First  Regiment  Mississijopi  Rifles,  under 
Colonel  Jefferson  Davis ;    Second    Indiana  Infantry, 

*  The  town  of  Saltillo  was  defended  by  a  field  worli  in  which 
our  old  friends  of  Monterey,  two  twenty-four-pound  howitzers, 
and  Captain  Webster's  and  Lieutenant  James  L.  Donaldson's 
companyofregular  artillery,  were  posted  to  guard  the  approaches, 
whilst  some  infantry  were  within  the  city. 

The  train  was  under  the  care  of  two  companies  of  infantry, 
with  Captain  Wm.  H.  Sbover's  field  pieces,  TJ.  S.  Army. 


260  ME  MO  IBS  OF  A 

under  Colonel  Bowles;  Third  Indiana  Infantry, 
under  Colonel  James  H.  Lane ;  First  Illinois  Infantry, 
under  Colonel  John  J.  Hardin ;  Second  Illinois  In- 
fantry, under  Colonel  AVilliam  H.  Bissel ;  two  com- 
panies of  Texas  Volunteers,  under  Captains  McCul- 
lough  and  Conner;  making  his  whole  force'  three 
hundrQd  and  thirty-four  officers  and  four  thousand 
four  hundred  and  twenty-five  men. 

The  army  of  Santa  Anna,  according  to  Mexican 
accounts,  was  composed  and  numbered  as  follows : 
sappers  and  artillerists,  with  nineteen  guns  and  one 
howitzer,  six  hundred  and  fifty  men  ;  First,  Third, 
Fourth,  Fifth,  Tenth,  and  Eleventh  Regiments  of  the 
line.  First  and  Third  Light  Troops,  six  thousand  two 
hundred  and  forty  men  ;  Fourth  Light  Troops,  mixed, 
of  Santa  Anna ;  First  Active,  of  Calayo,  of  Guadal- 
axara,  of  Lagos,  of  Queretaro,  and  of  Mexico,  three 
thousand  two  hundred  men ;  General  Parrodi's  com- 
mand from  ■  Tula,  one  thousand  men  ;  artillery,  two 
hundred  and  fifty  men ;  Mejia's  Division,  four  thou- 
sand men  ;  with  the  cavalry  of  Miiion,  estimated  at 
two  thousand  men.  General  Santa  Anna  advanced 
from  San  Luis  Potosi  with  about  twenty  thousand 
men  of  all  arms,  on  the  29th  day  of  January,  the  very 
day  that  our  division  marched  into  Tampico.  He  was 
going  north  with  the  elite  of  the  Mexican  army,  while 
we  were  going  south  away  from  the  great  shock  of 
battle.  Certainly  military  annals  may  be  searched 
in  vain  for  a  parallel  campaign.  The  reader  must 
look  at  a  good  map,  to  intelligently  comprehend  the 
situation  and  the  movements  of  the  armies  in  Mexico 
in  this  month  of  February,  1847. 


MAIIYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  261 

On  the  18th,  Santa  Anna  reached  the  hacienda  of 
Encamacion,  distant  sixty  miles  south  of  Saltillo ;  on 
the  19th,  his  army  was  concentrated  and  he  made 
his  arrangements  for  battle  ;  advancing  on  the  20th, 
he  reached  Encantada  on  the  22d,  and  immediately 
sent  a  flag  by  his  Surgeon-General  Lindenberger  to 
Taylor's  headquarters,  with  a  summons,  of  which  the 
following  is  a  copy,  translated  : 

"You  are  surrounded  by  tweQt}^  thousand  men,  and  cannot 
in  any  human  probability  avoid  suffering  a  rout  and  being  cut  to 
pieces  by  our  troops;  but  as  you  deserve  consideration  and  par- 
ticular esteem,  I  wish  to  save  you  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  my  flag  of  truce  arrives  in  your 
camp. 

"With  this  view,  I  assure  you  of  my  particular  consideration. 

"  God  and  Liberty  ! 

"(Signed)  "Antonio  Lopez  de  Santa  Anna. 

"Ca.vip  at  Encantada,  Eobruary  22,  1847. 
"To  General  Z.  Tatlok,  Commanding  Forces  of  tlie  U.  S." 

•  To  this  was  sent  the  replj' : 

"  Headcjuartep.s.  Army  of  Occufation, 

NEAR  BuENA  Vi.sTA,  February  2:2,  1847. 
"Sir, — In   reply  to  your  note  of  this  date,  summoning  nic  to 
surrender    my  forces   at  discretion,  I  beg  leave  to  say   that  I 
decline  iiccedingto  your  request. 
"With  high  respect,  I  am,  sir, 

"Your  obedient  servant, 
"  (Signed)  "  Z.  Taylor, 

"  Major-Gencral  U.  S.  A.  Commanding. 
"  SeDor  General  D.  Antonio  Lopez  de  Santa  xVnna, 
"Commander-in-Cliiof,  La  Encantada." 


262  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

General  Taylor,  aware  of  Santa  Anna's  approach, 
had  marched  out  of  camp  on  the  morning  of  the  21st, 
and  had  taken  up  his  previously  selected  position  for 
battle ;  it  began  immediately  after  the  return  of  the 
flag  with  Taylor's  answer,  by  an  attempt  to  turn  our 
left,  but  the  decisive  battle  was  not  fought  until  the 
next  day,  the  23d  February. 

On  this  day  the  battle  raged  from  right  to  left,  with 
varying  success,  for  eight  hours.  Again  and  again 
our  line  was  broken,  overwhelmed  by  the  masses  of 
the  enemy.  Repeatedly  in  rear  of  our  broken  yet 
unconquered  troops,  the  Mexicans  were  again  and 
again  compelled  to  retire.  While  one  portion  of  the 
field  was  ajjparently  lost,  another  was  tenaciously 
held  by  American  valor.  Cavalry  charges  alternated 
with  the  advance  and  repulse  of  infantry  columns, 
and  artillery  hurled  its  missiles  at  pistol-shot  range. 
Two  hundred  and  sixty-seven  of  our  dead  were  lying 
scattered  among  five  hundred  of  the  enemy,  while 
the  groans  of  four  hundred  and  fifty-six  Americans 
were  mingled  with  those  of  fifteen  hundred  Mexicans. 
Among  our  killed  were  Colonels  Hardin,  McKee,  and 
Yell;  Lieutenant-Colonel  Henry  Clay,  Jr.,  a  son  of  Hon- 
orable Henry  Clay  of  Kentucky  ;  Captain  George  Lin- 
coln, of  Massachusetts,  Assistant  Adjutant-General 
U.  S.  Army;  Captain  Woodward,  of  Second  Illinois; 
Captains  Kinder  and  Walker,  of  Second  Lidiana;  Cap- 
tain Taggart,  of  Third  Indiana;  Captain  Willis,  of 
Second  Kentucky;  Captain  Porter,  of  the  Arkansas 
Cavalry;  Lieutenants  Moore  and  McNulty,  of  the 
Mississippi  Rifles ;  Lieutenant  Houghton,  of  First 
Illinois;  Lieutenants  Campbell  and  Leonard,  of  the 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  263 

Texas  Volunteers  ;  and  Lieutenants  Roundtree,  Flet- 
cher, Ferguson,  Robbins,  Steele,  Kelly,  Bartleson, 
Atherton,  and  Price,  of  tbe  Second  Illinois.  Of  the 
little  army  of  Americans,  twenty-eight  of  its  officers 
were  killed  and  forty-one  wounded,  while  two  hundred 
and  eighty-nine  dead,  and  four  hundred  and  fifteen 
wounded  of  the  brave  rank  and  file  attested  the  ten- 
acity and  unflinching  courage  of  the  United  States 
troops.  General  Taylor,  in  his  official  report  of  this 
battle,  dated  the  6th  of  March,  1847,  after  referiing 
to  the  general  good  conduct  of  his  army  and  its  bril- 
liant success,  thus  speaks  of  his  Batteries  :  "  The  ser- 
vices of  the  light  artillery,  always  conspicuous,  were 
more  than  usually  distinguished.  Moving  rapidly 
over  the  roughest  ground,  it  was  always  in  action  at 
the  right  place  and  the  right  time,  and  its  well- 
directed  fire  dealt  destruction  in  the  masses  of  the 
enemy."  With  such  officers  as  Washington,  Sherman, 
Bragg,  Thomas,  Kilburn,  O'Brien,  Reynolds,  Bryan, 
and  Whiting,  the  artillery  arm  of  the  service  re- 
flected an  undying  lustre  on  the  Military  Academy  at 
West  Point,  and  proudly  displayed  the  standard  of 
its  training,  before  the  admiring  gaze  of  the  American 
people. 

I  have  read  various  reports  of  this  great  battle,  in 
which  five  thousand  American  volunteers  (only  the 
dragoons  and  artillerists  were  regulars)  successfully 
fought  against  four  times  their  number ;  and  I  have 
conversed  with  officers  and  men  of  both  armies  who 
were  in  that  battle,  and  ray  opinion  is  this,  that  the 
victory  was  due  to  the  facts,  that  our  right  was  inac- 
cessible  by  reason    of  the    deep   gullies    which    ran 


264:  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

athwart  the  plain ;  that  our  volunteers  used  their  fire- 
arms with  telling  and  fatal  accuracy ;  that  our  light 
artillery  was  served  with  such  fearful  rapidity  that 
the  Mexican  infantry  could  not  bear  up  against  its 
fire ;  that  Santa  Anna  threw  his  columns  against  our 
light  batteries,  when  he  had  heavier  guns  and  of  longer 
range  without  using  them ;  that  in  broad  daylight 
Santa  Anna  or  Lombardini,  his  infantry  commander, 
hurled  his  brave  footmen  by  column  in  mass  against 
artillery,  which  was  capable  of  and  was  in  fact  being 
manoeuvred  as  rapidly  as  infantry,  precisely  as  if  he 
were  sending  them  against  guns  in  fixed  positions ;  and 
finally  and  chiefly  was  the  victory  due  to  the  coolness 
and  sagacity  and  personal  courage  of  General  Zachary 
Taylor.  It  is  notable  of  this  battle  that  all  who  were 
in  it  bear  witness  to  the  great  courage  displayed 
by  both  armies ;  it  was  a  very  sanguinary  battle,  and 
deeds  of  personal  daring  so  numerous  that  they  were 
not  conspicuous.  Its  results  were  of  untold  import- 
ance, and  are  incalculable,  except  to  those  who  know 
that  from  the  Rio  Grande  to  the  base  of  the  Sierra 
Madre  mountains,  from  Tampico  to  Saltillo,  the  cav- 
alry of  Miuon  and  Urrea  held  undisputed  sway,  and  that 
the  enraged  rancheros  of  the  States  of  New  Leon, 
Cohahuiln,  and  Tamaulipas,  would  have  sprung  from 
the  earth  upon  every  North  American,  so  luckless  as 
to  have  been  in  the  area  described,  had  General 
Taylor  been  It-ss  the  soldier,  and  less  the  man  he 
was,  at  Biiena  Vista  on  the  22d  and  23d  days  of 
February,  1847. 

On  the  night  of  the  23d,  the  army  of  Santa  Anna, 
shattered  and  disorgft,nized,  retreated  toward  San  Luis, 


3IARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  265 

leaving  the  road  as  far  as  Encarnacion  strewed  with 
the  dead,  the  dying,  and  debris  of  a  routed  army. 

Scott  was  free  to  act  from  a  new  base ;  the  laurels 
of  Taylor  imperishable ;  the  campaign  of  the  Rio 
Grande  was  ended. 


CHAPTER    XXII  r. 

TAMPICO VISIT     TO     VERA     CRUZ. 

I  HAD  the  honor  to  fire  salutes  at  Tainpico  for  the 
victories  of  Buena  Vista  and  Vera  Cruz,  and  we  were 
now  comparatively  at  rest;  but  I  had  been  over- 
worked, and  a  chronic  disease  contracted  on  the 
Rio  Grande  had  become  so  aggravated,  that  I  was 
forced  into  the  military  hospital.  Here,  at  the  cool- 
est place  in  the  building,  the  thermometer  stood  at 
102  degrees,  Fahrenheit,  for  several  successive  days, 
and  the  heat  was  so  smothering  and  enfeebling  that 
the  surgeon  in  charge  advised  my  leaving  for  tlie 
United  States.  I  determined  not  to  leave  before  my 
company's  term  of  service  had  expired,  and  thinking 
that  a  trip  to  Vera  Cruz  would  be  beneficial,  I  readily 
obtained  permission  to  go.  On  Saturday,  the  10th  of 
April,  I  went  on  board  the  government  steamer  New 
Orleans;  two  companies  of  the  First  Infantry,  and 
two  hundred  and  eighty  mules,  also  destined  for  Vera 
Cruz,  being  embarked,  we  weighed  anchor,  and,  after 
one  or  two  bumps  on  the  bar  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Panuco,  were  rolling  in   a  heavy  sea  on   the  Gulf  of 


266  31EM0IRS   OF  A 

Mexico.      On   Monday  we  cast  anchor  between  the 

castle  and  the  city,  and  I  went  ashore  for  a  stroll 

through  the  city.     On  the  ensuing  day  I  wrote  the 

following  letter : 

"  Castle  or  San  Juan  de  UlloAj 
Vera  Cruz,  April  13,  1847. 

"  My  dear  Parents, — I  expected  to  find  on  arriving  here 
thiit  all  my  friends  would  have  been  away,  but  how  agreeably  I 
have  been  disappointed  !  My  old  brigade  commander.  Colonel 
Henry  Wilson,  of  the  First  Infantry,  is  the  Governor  of  Vera 
Cruz,  and  my  friend  Major  Bacchus  is  stationed  at  and  in  cora- 
raand  of  this  castle  ;  in  fact,  it  so  happens  that  the  First  Infantry, 
with  whom  we  were  so  long  a  time  brigaded,  and  which  we 
served  with  at  Monterey,  constitutes  the  garrison,  and  I  am 
surrounded  with  acquaintances  and  comrades.  They  have  all 
been  very  kind,  and  have  offered  their  quarters  as  a  home  during 
my  stiiy,  and  I  am  now  the  guest  of  Major  Bacchus. 

"  On  approaching  this  castle  from  the  sea,  I  was  disappointed, 
it  being  so  much  smaller  in  appearance  than  I  anticipated;  but 
now  I  realize  its  immense  strength  and  its  power  to  resist,  if 
well  defended,  the  navies  of  the  world. 

"  I  have  just  returned  from  an  expiration  of  its  interior  laby- 
rinths, which  remind  me  of  my  visit  to,  and  recall  the  wonders  of, 
the  Mammoth  Cave,  Kentucky;  through  vaults,  dungeons,  case- 
mates, passages,  and  covered  waj'S,  deep  down  beneath  the  terre- 
plein  of  the  fort;  across  ditches,  moats,  bridges,  under  portcullis 
and  over  drawbridges  ;  every  side  bristling  with  artillery.  I 
wandered  with  ray  guide  until  I  gave  up,  unable  to  visit  much 
that  was  yet  to  be  seen  of  its  mysteries. 

"  Everything  that  man  as  a  soldier  would  require  is  to  be 
found  within  these  walls,  from  the  chapel  for  worship  to  the 
dungeon  for  punishment,  from  the  foundry  to  the  smith's  shop, 
from  tiie  arsenal  to  the  marine  rope-walk,  from  the  handsomely 
fitted-up  apartments  for  the  priests  and  officers  to  the  more 
humble  barracks  of  tlie  soldiers,  from  the  twenty-four-iuch  shell 
to  the  canisters  of  grape,  from  the  beautiful  bronze  English  guns 
to  the  long  copper  guns  of  old  Spain,  from  the  handsome  English 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  267 

musket  to  the  matchlock  of  the  buccaneers:  the  labor  of  a  hun- 
dred years  to  render  this  work  impregnable,  and  the  wealth  of 
the  Indies  to  complete  the  design,  have  made  this  a  wonderful 
tower  of  human  strength  and  skill. 

"  The  quantity  and  variety  of  the  munitions  of  war  now  piled 
and  heaped  up  are,  I  should  say,  inexhaustible,  and  there  are 
enough  guns,  pistols,  swords,  iron  and  copper  shot  lying  beneath 
the  water  of  the  ditches,  yet  plainly  visible,  to  arm  at  least  a 
regiment  of  troops. 

"Some  of  the  bronze  guns  mounted  en  barbette  on  the  upper 
terrace  of  the  works  are  magnificent;  the  precision  and  accuracy 
of  their  fire  you  may  judge  of,  when  I  tell  you  that  the  Mexican 
gunners  put  twent}' -eight  shot  through  the  brick  wall  of  the  ceme- 
tery, over  on  the  main  land,  behind  which  they  supposed  our 
infantry  were,  (as  we  had  a  mortar-battery  next  adjoining,)  the 
wall  being  five  feet  high  and  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  in 
length,  and  this  at  the  distance  of  one  and  a  half  miles. 

"When  I  looked  at  this  perforated  and  shattered  wall  on  yes- 
terday, and  was  told  that  it  had  been  done  by,  guns  at  the  castle, 
I  felt  a  strong  desire  to  see  the  guns  that  did  such  shooting; 
here  they  were,  made  at  Deptford,  England,  but  a  few  years  ago  ; 
just  lovely,  they  vv'ere  so  beautiful.  I  can't  say  whether  they 
are  twenty-four-  or  thirty-two-pounders;  somevi'here  about  that 
calibre,  perhaps  heavier. 

.  "There  are,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  pieces,  of  various 
calibre,  mounted  now  in  this  work,  but  it  is  capable  of  sliowing 
twice  as  much  artillery  if  needed ;  built  of  the  coral  rock  upon 
which  its  walls  stand,  it  crumbles,  but  it  is  not  shattered,  by 
projectiles  fired  against  it.  Seaward,  its  reefs  project  far  into 
the  Gulf,  while  toward  the  city  a  heavy  water-battery  iidds  weight 
to  its  upper  guns.     It  is  truly  a  formidable  fortress. 

"On  entering  the  city,  I  was  disappointed  at  not  seeing  as 
many  houses  in  ruins  as  I  had  supposed  would  be  the  case ;  but 
as  I  continued  my  stroll,  I  soon  saw  the  dreadful  destruction 
which  (lur  shells  occasioned,  while  solid  shot  from  our  liatteries 
had  passed  entirely  througli  the  city,  reaching  in  their  flight  the 
quay  or  mole  running  into  the  sea,  upon  which  the  affrighted 
citizens  had  fled  for  safetv  from  the  bombs.     As  I  passed  along. 


268  ME3I0IRS  OF  A 

the  poor  women  were  cleaning  up  a  house  in  which  a  thirteen- 
inch  shell,  after  falling  through  three  stories,  had  exploded  in 
the  cellar;  among  the  plaster  and  bricks  and  stones  were  several 
fragments  of  the  shell,  and  I  took  a  piece  to  preserve  as  a  curi- 
osity and  memorial  ;  the  poor  creatures  looked  at  me  as  if  I 
were,  or  must  be,  a  demon  to  rejoice  at  their  griefs,  for  I  judged 
from  their  looks  that  they  supposed  I  was  glorying  at  seeing 
the  effect  of  our  fire  upon  their  homes.  How  much  they  were 
mistaken  the  Good  Father  knows.  Many  of  the  houses  were 
completely  demolished,  and  several  bear  the  marks  of  fire  occa- 
sioned by  the  explosion  igniting  the  wood-work.  I  went  into 
one  of  the  churches,  now  converted  into  a  hospital,  in  which 
there  are  upwards  of  five  hundred  patients;  it  was  a  curious 
sight  thus  to  see  the  pallets  of  the  sick  placed  in  the  chapels, 
and  the  various  ornaments  of  the  church,  sacred  to  many  eyes, 
made  use  of  as  need  required.  On  looking  up  at  the  vaulted 
ceiling,  behold  there  were  several  large  holes  through  which  the 
sky  was  visible  ;  several  thirteen-inch  shells  had  dropped  through 
the  roofing  as  if  it  had  been  paper,  exploding  within  the  body 
of  the  church;  all  around,  walls,  paintings,  and  wood-work 
showed  the  terrified  force  of  their  bursting ;  the  debris  was  still 
lying  over  the  floor  or  swept  into  piles  to  make  room  for  beds. 
It  is  owing  to  the  effect  that  these  shells  produced  in  the  city 
that  the  castle  was  surrendered,  for  it  was  very  little  damaged; 
it  scarcely  shows  a  scar,  and  I  am  told  was  but  little  injured  by 
the  French  in  their  bombardment  a  few  years  ago.  Our  victory, 
in  its  ju'csent  gain  and  future  results,  is  very  great  indeed,  and 
I  doubt  whether  ever  as  great  a  one  was  obtained  with  less  loss 
to  the  victors.     Scott  deserves  immense  praise. 

"One  of  ni}'  companv,  Benjamin  F.  Xiraocks,  is  on  detached 
duty  in  the  Pay  Department,  and  was  here  during  the  siege;  he 
came  after  me  yesterday,  and  giving  me  a  horse,  guided  me 
round  our  lines  of  investment  and  showed  me  the  position  of 
all  our  batteries  and  the  enemy's  line  of  works,  fort  by  fort,  so 
that  1  think  I  am  quite  conversant  with  the  military  opei-ations 
which  resulted  in  the  fall  of  Vera  Cruz.  The  cemetery,  a  beauti- 
ful burial-place,  was  an  object  of  especial  interest,  for  I  never 
expect  to  see  again  a  graveyard  knocked  to  pieces — the  chapel 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  269 

was  in  ruins,  monuments  shattered,  the  graves  of  the  dead  torn 
up,  and  the  silent  tenant  of  one  coffin  was  noiv  exposed  to  my 
sight  by  a  solid  shot  having  unburied  it.     I  saw  this  sight. 

"Vera  Cruz  reminds  me  of  Havre  in  its  commercial-looking 
houses  and  filthy  streets;  it  is  much  larger  than  any  Mexican 
town  yet  visited.  Its  mole  is  magnificent,  running  far  out  into 
the  sea;  here  I  have  passed  hours  gazing  at  the  throng,  who 
find  the  sea-breeze  so  grateful,  at  the  castle,  the  large  fleet  of 
vessels  of  war  in  the  offing  and  the  numbers  of  small  boats  plying 
between  the  shore  and  the  vessels  lying  in  the  roads ;  there  are 
one  hundred  and  fifty  transports  lying  here,  besides  our  own, — 
and  English,  French,  and  Spanish  war-ships. 

"Will  we  have  peace  ?  This  I  cannot  answer,  nor  can  any- 
one else.  I  am  in  possession  of  much  curious  and  important 
information  direct  from  the  city  of  Mexico,  but  I  do  not  feel  at 
liberty  to  communicate  it,  although  1  was  not  held  to  secrecy. 
My  informant  is  Mr.  Moses  Y.  Beach,  of  the  New  York  Sun, 
who  came  down  with  me  from  Tampico.  He  is  direct  from  the 
city  of  Mexico,  and  his  conversation  was  highly  interesting. 

"An  eminent  and  wealthy  merchant,  who  has  been  eighteen 
years  in  the  country,  told  me  on  yesterday  that  he  could  not  tell 
what  would  be  the  result,  etc. 

"I  believe  that  my  health  is  nearly  restored,  and  that  I  am 
now  acclimated.  1  shall  return  to  Tampico  by  the  first  steamer. 
"Your  affectionate  son,  John." 

I  copy  from  "  Chambers's  Encyclopaedia"  its  article 
upon  Vera  Cruz : 

"  Vera  Cruz,  or  Villa  Rica  de  la  Vera  Cruz  (the  Rich  City  of 
the  Real  Cross),  an  ancient  city  on  the  east  coast  of  Mexico,  about 
one  hundred  and  eighty-five  miles*  east  of  the  city  of  Mexico, 
with  a  population  of  about  eight  thousand,  composed  chiefly  of 

*  Vera  Cruz,  by  Mexican  count,  is  ninety  leagues  from  the 
city  of  Mexico,  and  1  judged  this  to  be  correct,  giving  two  and 
a  half  miles  to  the  league.  I  made  the  distance  two  hundred 
and  thirty  miles. 


270  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

a  motley  collection  fi-om  many  nations.  The  city  is  built  in  a 
semicircle,  facing  the  sea,  and  is  regularly  laid  out;  the  streets, 
which  are  wider  than  is  usual  in  tropical  countries,  running  east 
and  west  from  the  harbor,  with  others  crossing  them  at  right 
angles.  The  town  is  well  defended  by  a  strong  wall*  and  other 
substantral  works,  as  also  by  the  castle  of  San  Juan  de  Ulloa, 
whicli  stands  upon  an  island  of  the  same  name  about  half  a  mile 
from  the  shore.  The  principal  buildings  are  the  cathedral  and 
fifteen  other  churches,  generally  built  in  the  Moorish  style,  only 
six  of  which  are  in  use;  several  monasteries,  the  court-house 
and  prison,  which  stand  on  one  side  of  the  great  square  in  the 
centre  of  the  city.  The  houses  and  public  buildings  are  gen- 
erally built  of  rubble  masonry,  formed  of  small  stones,  inter- 
spersed with  red  tiles,  the  whole  being  afterwards  covered  with 
good  durable  plaster,  and  colored  with  a  variety  of  tints;  and 
as  most  of  the  houses  are  in  the  old  Spanish  style,  with  open 
arcades,  balconies,  galleries,  etc.,  the  city  presents  a  very  pic- 
turesque aspect.  There  are  a  few  good  hospitals.  The  drainage 
of  the  city  flows  down  open  channels  in  the  centre  of  the  streets, 
which  are  almost  on  a  level  with  the  sea.  This  combined  with 
the  wretched  water  which  the  inhabitants  are  compelled  to  use, 
the  marshy  and  utterly  barren  nature  of  the  surrounding  coun- 
try, and  the  pestilential  nature  of  the  climate,  generally  easily 
accounts  for  the  frightful  ravages  of  yellow  and  other  fevers, 
yellow  fever  is  most  prevalent  from  May  to  November.  Al- 
though it  is  the  chief  port  for  all  Mexico,  Vera  Cruz  has  no 
harbor,  but  only  an  open  roadstead  between  the  town  and  the 
castle.  The  anchorage  is  exceedingly  bad,  and  when  the  north 
gales,  the  norles  (terrible  hurricanes  bearing  along  with  them 
clouds  of  sand  from  the  sand-hills  behind  the  town),  prevail, 
many  vessels  are  wrecked  on  the  adjacent  shores. 

"The  chief  exports  are  the  precious  metals,  cochineal,  sugar, 
flour,  indigo,  provisions,  sarsaparilla,  leather,  vanilla,  jalap,  soap, 

*  It  was  much  better  defended  by  the  prickly  pear,  which 
grew  outside  in  an  impenetrable  jungle,  than  by  the  walls.  In- 
fantry could  not,  or  would  not,  have  forced  their  way  through 
in  some  places  at  the  time  I  examined  the  defenses. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTKFjH.  271 

logwood,  and  iiinicnto;  and  tho  imports  cotton  goods,  woolen, 
linen,  and  silk  goods,  brandy,  iron,  Htool,  wax,  quicksilver,  paper, 
hardware,  and  cutlery,  cnrtiienware,  (!tc.  'I'lio  imports  in  1856 
were  about  £3,100,000,  and  llic  exports  about  £1,803,100,  tho 
latter  consisting  principally  of  the  precious  metals." 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  dtiy  of  my  arrival,  the  12th 
of  April,  I  saw  General  Seott,  with  his  staff'  and  head- 
quarters, leave  Vera  Crnz  for  his  march  on  the  city  of 
Mexico,*  and  on  the  evening  of  the  15th  I  re-euibarked 
on  the  steamer  New  Orleans  to  return  to  my  post. 

On  the  voynge  we  were  overtaken  by  a  iiorllier, 
which  exceeded  in  violence  and  power  all  that  1  had 
ever  known  or  imagined  the  wind  to  have.  Our 
steamer  was  put  head-on  to  the  gale,  the  full  force 
of  her  steam  used,  and  yet  she  was  driven,  stern  fore- 
most, before  the  storm.  Fortunately  we  were  enabled 
to  get  under  the  lee  of  Lobos,  where  the  steamer's 
anchors  held  her  securely  until  2  o'clock  p.m.  the 
ensuing  day,  when  we  proceeded  on  our  course,  and 
reached  my  quarters  at  Tampico  on  the  evening  of 
the  17th. 


*  He  entered  the  city  of  Mexico  at  the  head  of  his  army,  Sep- 
tember 14th,  after  bis  victories  in  tho  valley. 


272  MEMOIRS   OF  A 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

TAMPICO DISCHARGE    FROM    THE    SERVICE,    ETC. 

As  the  end  of  our  term  of  service  approached, 
various  efforts  were  being  made  to  induce  the  officers 
and  men  to  re-enter  for  the  war.  My  friends  had 
written  to  me  to  come  home,  that  a  regiment  for  the 
war  would  be  accepted  from  the  District  of  Columbia 
and  Maryland,  and  that  Governor  Thomas  G.  Pratt, 
of  Maryland,  would  have  the  appointment  of  its 
Major,  as  soon  as  a  battalion,  then  organizing  in  Bal- 
timore, was  ready  for  the  field,  and  that  he  had  said 
I  should  have  the  Majority.  This  determined  my 
action,  otherwise  I  might  have  united  with  Captain 
James  Boyd,  of  our  battalion,  who  was  receiving  the 
names  of  volunteers  for  a  company  to  be  raised  at 
Tampico  from  our  own  and  other  sources. 

Our  battalion  continued  on  duty  until  the  30th 
day  of  May,  1847,  at  Tampico,  when  and  where  we 
were  mustered  out  and  honorably  discharged  from 
the  service  by  Major  William  W.  Morris,  of  the 
United  States  Army,  under  orders  of  Colonel  William 
Gates,  commanding  United  States  forces  at  Tampico. 
Thus,  after  twelve  months  of  honorable  service,  the 
Battalion  of  Baltimore  and  Washington  Volunteers 
completed,  with  fidelity,  its  obligations  to  the  govern- 
ment and  prepared  to  return  to  the  United  States. 

On  the   31st  day  of  May  I  received  my  pay  and 


MAR FL AND  VOLUNTEER.  273 

allowance  for  mileage  from  Major  J.  Y.  Dasliiell,  pay- 
master United  States  Army.  The  distance  from 
Tampico  to  Washington  was  computed  by  the  Pay 
Department  at  eighteen  hundred  miles,  and  upon 
this  estimate  the  calculation  was  made  for  the  pay 
of  the  men. 

They  were  generally  satisfied  to  be  discharged 
here,  although  some  insisted  that  the  government 
was  bound  to  carry  them  back  to  tlie  United  States. 
I  thought  so ;  but  the  necessity  of  the  case  perhaps 
justified  the  retention  of  their  services  until  the  last 
hour  of  the  term  of  enlistment. 

On  this  night  I  gave  a  supper  to  my  own  company 
at  the  Italian  Fonda.  Our  association  had  been 
pleasant,  and  our  parting  was  painful.  So  long  as 
hfe  lasts  will  the  recollection  of  their  fidelity  and 
attachment  to  me  be  a  bright  spot  for  memory  to 
dwell  upon.  With  every  man  in  the  company  I 
parted  in  friendship  and  good-will. 

I  had  to  remain  when  they  left.  One  of  them, 
Henry  P.  Norris,  of  Baltimore,  had,  on  the  night  of 
the  30th,  unfortunately  killed  a  man  employed  in 
the  quartermaster's  department.  I  could  not  leave 
him;  Major  Buchanan  in  the  kindest  manner  volun- 
teered to  assist  in  his  defense,  and  we  defended  him 
before  a  court  and  jury  organized  under  general  orders 
from  the  headquarters  of  the  army.  He  was  found 
guilty  of  murder  in  the  second  degree,  and  sentenced 
to  be  imprisoned  in  the  prison  of  Tampico  at  hard 
labor  during  the  war. 

I  was  very  sick  at  the  time  of  the  trial,  sutFering 
from  a  high  fever  and  a  return  of  my  old  complaint ; 

18 


274  3IEM0JBS   OF  A 

but,  after  the  verdict  was  rendered,  I  fortified  myself 
with  such  recommendations  and  evidence  as  induced 
the  President  of  the  United  States,  James  K.  Polk, 
promptly  to  order  his  unconditional  release,  when  I 
laid  the  case  before  him  on  my  return. 

I  am  satisfied  that  Norris  would  not  have  been 
convicted  if  his  witnesses  had  remained ;  but  it  was 
uncertain  when  his  trial  would  take  place,  and  they, 
not  dreaming  that  he  would  be  convicted,  left  within 
a  few  days  after  their  discharge,  for  it  was  growing 
very  sickly. 

Captain  James  Boyd  and  Lieutenant  James  Taney- 
hill  remained  at  Tampico,  and  accompanied  me  on 
the  12th  of  June  on  board  the  schooner  Elvira,  bound 
for  Mobile,  she  being  the  only  vessel  then  up  for  the 
United  States.  Bidding  them  an  affectionate  and 
final  farewell,*  I  sailed  from  Mexico  homeward.  I 
suffered  a  good  deal  during  the  voyage  from  my  dis- 
ease and  want  of  attention,  for  the  little  vessel  in 
which  I  was  sailing  had  no  accommodations  for 
passengers ;  the  rain-squalls  were  frequent,  and  the 
cabin  occupied  by  the  master  and  I  was  small  and  far 
from  dry.  Still,  I  was  homeward  bound,  and  the 
light  at  the  Balize  revived  and  strengthened  me.  On 
the  18th  I  landed,  at  sundown,  at  Mobile,  and  on  the 
27th  of  June,  1847,  reached  home,  after  an  absence  of 
twelve  months  and  twenty-three  days. 

I  conclude  this  record  of  a  year's  service  in  the 
army  of  the  United  States  with   the   general  orders 

*  They  were  both  killed  in  an  engagement  with  the  enemy  at 
the  river  Calabozo,  not  far  from  Tampico,  within  less  than  a 
month  after  we  parted. 


MA  R  FLA  ND  VOL  UNTEER.  •  275 

issued  by  Colonel  William  Gates,  Third  Artillery, 
United  States  Army,  commanding  the  Department  of 
Tampico,  dated  at  Tampico,  Mexico,  May  30th,  1847, 
which  honorably  discharged  me  from  the  service, 
and  a  letter  from  Brevet-Major  Robert  C.  Buchanan, 
Fourth  Infantry,  United  States  Army,  lately  com- 
manding the  Baltimore  Battalion,  dated  at  Tampico, 
May  31st,  1847,  to  the  Hon.  Jacob  G.  Davies,  Mayor 
of  Baltimore,  concerning  the  presentation  of  the  Bat- 
talion flag  to  the  corporation  of  the  city  of  Baltimore. 

"  Headquarteks  Department  of  Tampico, 
Tampico,  Mexico,  Mav  80,  1847. 
"  Orders  No.  2?,.'\ 

"  It  has  been  the  earnest  wish  of  the  Colonel  commanding  that 
orders  from  the  general  headquarters  of  the  army  should  have 
been  received  directing  him  when  and  where  the  Battalion  of 
Baltimore  and  District  of  Columbia  Volunteers  should  be  hon- 
orably mustered  out  of  service,  but  circumstances,  not  within  his 
control  have  obliged  him  to  detain  it  at  Tampico  until  the  last 
day  of  its  term  of  service. 

"He  cannot  here  refrain  from  expressing  the  satisfaction  he 
has  experienced  in  beholding  this  brave  body  at  its  post,  where 
it  is  so  much  regarded,  and  where  he  would  gladly  retain  it 
during  the  war.  Nevertheless,  as  that  period  has  arrived  when 
the  expiration  of  the  relations  so  long  amicably  existing  between 
that  corps  and  their  commander  must  cease,  he  here  proclaims 
it  Honorably  Discharged  this  day. 

"His  Excellency  the  President  of  the  United  States  foresee- 
ing these  results,  and  desiring  the  continuance  of  the  services  of 
volunteers  requisite  for  the  prosecution  of  the  plans  in  the  event 
of  the  prolongation  of  hostilities  with  the  enemy,  the  Colonel 
cotDmanding  would  testify  his  desire  that  these  well-drilled,  ex- 
perienced, and  gallant  companies  would  again  promptly  present 
themselves  for  enrollment,  under  the  respective  officers,  deter- 
mined to  abide  the  issue  of  their  country's  struggle,  whatever  it 


276  MEMOIRS  OF   A 

may  be,  secure  ia  their  acknowledged  prowess  and  capacity  in 
asserting  her  rights. 

"  Major  Buchanan,  whose  well-tried  fidelity  and  judicious 
performance  of  service  have  won  the  entire  confidence  of  your 
commander,  who  seizes  this  opportunity  to  make  known  his 
thanks,  has  been  officially  authorized  to  make  terms  with  the 
officers  and  men  of  this  battalion  from  the  city  of  heroic  monu- 
ments and  patriotic  associations,  by  which,  if  any  of  you  think 
proper  to  re-enroll  yourselves,  leave  of  absence  for  sixty  days 
will  be  given,  and  on  your  return  to  Mexico,  the  twelve  dollars 
bounty  paid  ;  and  highly  pleased  will  the  commandant  be  if  even 
one  company  will  raise  their  standard  on  the  parade  for  this 
purpose ;  but  if  not,  and  he  is  left  to  see  you  pass  away,  he 
offers  jovl  his  cordial  good  wishes  that  you  may  have  a  speedy 
passage,  and  find  your  families,  relatives,  and  friends,  ready  and 
proud  to  greet  you  as  your  honorable  services  justly  entitle  you. 
"(Signed)  "  "Wm.  Gates, 

"  Colonel  Third  Artillery  Commanding." 

Letter  from  Major  Buchanan  to  the  Major  of 
Baltimore. 

"  Tampico,  Miiy  31,  1847. 

"  Dear  Sir, — The  term  of  service  of  the  Baltimore  Battalion 
having  expired,  it  becomes  necessary  to  make  a  suitable  disposi- 
tion of  the  flag  under  whose  folds  it  so  gallantly  fought  and  so 
faithfully  sustained  the  toils  and  privations  incident  to  the  last 
twelve  months'  campaign. 

"The  officers  of  the  Battalion  desire  that  it  should  be  pre- 
sented to  the  corporation  of  the  city,  to  be  kept  in  the  City  Hall 
as  a  memorial  of  their  regard  for  Baltimore.  In  this  arrange- 
ment 1  most  heartily  concur. 

"  It  therefore  becomes  my  agreeable  duty  to  forward  the  flag 
to  you,  the  Chief-Magistrate  of  the  city,  with  the  request  that 
it  may  be  disposed  of  in  accordance  with  the  wishes  of  the 
donors. 

"  By  our  fellow-citizens  it  may  well  be  regarded  with  feelings 
of  pride,  as  having  been  the  standard  of  a  body  of  their  friends 
which,  for  good  discipline,  soldierly  deportment,  and  cfiSciency  for 
hard  service,  stood  in  a  most  enviable  position.    The  Rio  Grande, 


MARYLASTD   VOLUNTEER.  277 

Monterey,  Yictoi'ia,  and  Tampico  will  all  bear  witness  to  the 
services  of  the  Battalion. 

"Sergeant-Major  William  T.  Lennox,  who  carried  the  flag-  in 
the  battle  of  Monterey,  after  Hart  was  wounded,  and  who  has 
been  the  color-bearer  since  that  time,  will  be  intrusted  with  the 
duty  of  delivering  it  to  you. 

"  I  am,  sir,  with  much  respect, 
"(Signed)  "  Eobeut  C.  Buchanax, 

"  Brevet-Major  Fourth  Infautrj',  comraauding  Battalion. 
"To  Hon.  Jacob  G.  Davies, 

"Mayor  of  Baltimore,  Maryland." 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

THE  DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA  AND  MARYLAND  REGIMENT  ; 
ITS  ORGANIZATION,  DEPARTURE  FOR  THE  SEAT  OF  Ti'-AR, 
AND   ARRIVAL   AT   VERA   CRUZ. 

By  an  understanding  between  the  War  Department 
and  the  Governor  of  Maryland,  a  battalion  (and  in 
certain  contingencies  a  regiment)  of  volunteers,  to  be 
enlisted  for  the  war  with  Mexico,  was  to  be  raised  in 
the  District  of  Columbia  and  the  State  of  Maryland, 
of  which  the  President  was  to  appoint  the  Lieutenant- 
Colonel,  and  the  Governor  of  Maryland  the  Major. 

Shortly  after  my  arrival  at  home,  I  was  unofficially 
informed  by  His  Excellency,  Thomas  G.  Pratt,  that 
I  should  be  appointed  the  Major  of  the  battalion  as 
soon  as  the  three  companies  then  being  recruited  at 
Baltimore  should  be  accepted  by  the  government. 

Recruiting  had  been  going  on  very  slowly,  and 
there  was  some  difficultv  between  the  several  officers 


278  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

as  to  the  command  of  the  companies  that  were  being 
organized.  I  lent  my  assistance  to  recruiting  and 
reconciling  differences,  so  that  by  the  20th  of  July  a 
sufficient  number  of  companies  were  accepted  from 
the  District  and  Maryland  to  authorize  my  appoint- 
ment ;  on  that  day  I  was  commissioned  Major  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  and  Maryland  Regiment  of  Vol- 
unteers by  the  Governor  of  Maryland,  and  entered  on 
my  duties  at  once. 

At  the  time  tliese  companies  of  infantry  were 
accepted,  several  gentlemen  were  engaged  in  raising 
volunteers  for  a  company  of  artillery,  to  be  attached 
to  the  battalion,  it  being  understood  that  such  would 
be  accepted  by  the  government.  After  much  discus- 
sion, an  amicable  arrangement  was  made  by  which 
the  artillery  company  was  to  be  commanded  by  Cap- 
tain Lloyd  Tilghman,  of  Maryland,  the  other  gentle- 
men from  Baltimore  yielding  their  claims  in  his  favor. 

There  was  much  difficulty  in  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia between  Brevet-Major  George  W.  Hughes,  of  the 
United  States  Army,  and  Charles  Lee  Jones,  Esq.,  as 
to  the  command  of  the  battalion  about  being  jointly 
raised  in  the  District  and  in  Maryland ;  each  gentle- 
man claiming  a  right,  based  either  upon  personal  ser- 
vices or  a  promise  from  the  War  Department  to  be 
appointed  its  commanding  officer.  Finally,  Major 
Hughes  was  commissioned  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  and  Maryland  Regiment  of  Vol- 
unteers by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  and 
immediately  assumed  command. 

The  Maryland  companies  were  quartered  at  Fort 
McHenry;  upon  the  receipt  of  my  commission  I  took 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEEB.  279 

command  of  this  detachment,  and  upon  the  23d 
received  the  following  order  (the  other  three  com- 
panies from  the  District  having  arrived  at  the  fort) : 

"  Heabquarteks  Battalion  oi'  D.  C.  and  M'd  Vol's., 

"  July  23,  1847. 
"Orders  Ko.      .] 

"I.  The  three  companies  heretofore  indicated  to  sail  on  board 
the  transport  ship  Alexandria  will  be  in  readiness  to  leave  Port 
McHenry  to-morrow  morning  the  24th  instant. 

"II.  The  camp  and  garrison  equipage,  arm-chests,  personal 
baggage,  etc.,  will  be  deposited  on  the  wharf  at  9  o'clock  a.m. 
by  companies,  in  the  following  order,  viz. :  Captain  Barry's,  Cap- 
tain Henrie's,  and  Captain  Brown's;  and  the  company  property 
will  be  placed  on  board  by  the  men  of  the  company  to  which  it 
belongs,  quietly  and  orderly. 

"  III.  Major  Kenly,  who  takes  command  of  the  detachment, 
will  assign  the  men  to  berths  by  companies. 

"IV.  The  officers  will  select  their  berths  according  to  rank. 

"V.  Dr.  Campbell,  of  the  Voltigeurs,  accompanies  the  detach- 
ment as  medical  officer,  under  orders  from  the  War  Department. 
"  By  order, 

"George  W.  Hughes, 

"Lieutenant-Colonel,  etc." 

In  obedience  to  the  above  orders  T  superintended 
the  embarkation  from  Fort  McHenry  of  the  three 
companies  designated,  and  put  them  on  board  the 
transport  ship  Alexandria  on  the  24th  day  of  July, 
1847.  The  detachment  consisted  of  eleven  officers 
and  one  hundred  and  ninety-eight  enlisted  men,  with 
some  halfdozen  servants.  With  the  experience  I  had 
encountered,  I  hesitated  going  to  sea  on  a  voyage  to 
the  tropics,  in  the  months  of  July  and  August,  with 
troops  on  a  transport  ship,  unless  I  was  assured  of  the 
attendance  of  a  medical  officer  and  a  full  supply  of 


280  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

water;  to  write  plainly,  I  refused  to  go  until  a  medi- 
cal officer  was  with  the  detachment;  and  then  having 
made  a  personal  examination  as  to  the  quantity  of 
water  on  board,  and  being  supplied  by  the  quarter- 
master with  a  barrel  of  chloride  of  lime  as  a  disin- 
fectant, I  announced  myself  as  ready  to  sail.  There 
was  a  great  deal  of  preliminary  work  to  do,  looking  to 
the  casualties  of  a  month's  voyage,  and  I  attended  to 
it  in  person  to  see  that  it  was  done ;  and  it  was  done. 

My  instructions  were  to  go  to  Vera  Cruz;  being 
ready,  as  far  as  my  judgment  went,  on  the  26th,  the 
steamer  Relief,  Captain  Sprigg,  made  fast  to  the 
Alexandria,  and  towed  us  as  far  as  Poplar  Island, 
where,  casting  us  off,  we  made  sail  down  the  bay. 

Previous  to  leaving,  the  following  was  placed  in  my 
hands : 

"  Baltimoke,  23d  July,  1847. 
"  Sir, — Enclosed  herewith  is  a  charter-party  for  the  ship 
Alexandria,  under  cover  to  the  quartermaster  at  Vera  Cruz, 
which  I  request  you  will  seal  and  hand  to  him,  after  having 
placed  the  requisite  certificate  upon  it, — the  same  as  ou  that  in 
the  hands  of  the  captain  of  the  ship. 

"  Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

"  (Signed)  S.  B.  Duse^-bkry, 

"  Quartermaster. 
"  Commanding  officer  troops  on  board  transport  ship 
Alexandria,  oil'  Fort  McHenry,  Md." 

From  the  tenor  of  the  charter-party  I  learned  that 
the  captain  of  the  ship  could  not  obtain  his  freight 
money  unless  my  certificate  was  given,  and  I  felt 
much  greater  security  for  my  detuchment  when  aware 
of  this  condition  to  the  charter.  No  security  how- 
ever was  needed  as  far  as  seamanship  could  go,  for  a 
better  sailor  never  trod  a  ship's  deck  than   Captain 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  281 

Ordeman,  of  Baltimore,  with  whom  from  first  to  hist 
my  relations  were  harmonious  and  agreeable,  although 
he  was  fretted  because  I  would  not  consent  to  sail  on 
the  24th. 

The  other  detachment,  consisting  of  Captains 
Degge's,  Dolan's  and  Taylor's  companies,  were  em- 
barked on  board  the  ship  Napier  ;  to  this  detachment 
was  assigned  the  surgeon  of  the  regiment.  Dr.  Sted- 
man  R.  Tilghman,  of  Maryland,  and  the  ship  sailed 
for  the  same  destination  a  day  or  two  after  the  Alex- 
andria. 

We  left  the  capes  on  the  27th,  having  had  a  favor- 
able wind  down  the  bay ;  soon  the  roughness  of  the 
sea  was  followed  by  its  usual  consequences,  and  I  had 
a  very  sick  detachment  of  troops ;  they  were  very 
sick.  Notwithstanding  this,  1  mounted  a  regular 
guard  daily,  held  the  officer  of  the  day  responsible 
for  the  discipline  on  board,  and  established  a  school 
of  instruction  for  the  officers.  The  medical  officer 
with  the  detachment,  Dr.  A.  B.  Campbell,  of  the  Vol- 
tigeurs,  was  efficient,  and  made  daily  reports  of  the 
condition  between  decks  (where  the  men  were  quar- 
tered), and  the  general  health  of  the  command.  We 
were  not  too  much  crowded,  the  bunks  kept  scrupu- 
lously clean,  decks  scraped  every  morning  before 
giiiu'd-mount,  and  ns  soon  as  the  men  were  able  to 
stand,  squad  drills  in  the  manual  of  arms  were  begun 
and  continued  until  our  arrival  at  Vera  Cruz. 

On  the  9th  of  August  we  made  the  Caycos  Islands, 
and  on  the  next  day  were  becalmed  between  Cuba 
and  San  Domingo,  both  islands  in  sight,  Cape  Nicola 
Mole  twelve  miles  to  the  eastward. 


282  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

It  was  now  very  warm,  the  heat  between  decks  op- 
pressive, the  thermometer  standing  at  94  degrees  of 
Fahrenheit;  extraordinary  precautions  were  necessary 
to  preserve  the  health  of  my  command.  The  hatches 
were  kept  open,  rain  or  shine,  wind-sails  for  the  ven- 
tilation of  the  hold  were  rigged,  lime  liberally  spread 
and  scattered  between  decks,  and  the  men  made  to 
leave  their  bunks  in  the  day-time,  unless  excused  by 
the  surgeon.  I  established  a  system  of  feet  ivashing, 
which  I  claim  as  an  original  idea,  at  least  I  had 
never  read  or  heard  of  it  when  I  put  it  in  practice. 
Every  evening  at  retreat  the  companies  were  paraded 
successively  upon  the  ship's  deck ;  every  man  with 
his  shoes  and  stockings  oif  and  pantaloons  rolled  over 
and  above  his  knees;  details  were  made  who  hoisted 
and  threw  sea-water  upon  the  legs  and  feet  of  the 
men  as  they  stood  in  ranks,  until  each  man  had  had 
one  bucketful  as  his  quota  of  the  briny  element.  At 
first,  the  men  were  very  restive,  and  it  required  com- 
mand to  enforce  the  order,  both  to  distribute  the  water 
and  submit  to  the  bath,  but  after  a  few  evenings'  ex- 
ercise they  became  fond  of  it,  and  the  chief  difficulty 
was  to  make  them  behave  orderly  while  the  douch- 
ing was  going  on,  each  man  desiring  to  give  jjarticular 
directions  Jioio  and  where  the  water  should  be  thrown. 

The  experiment  was  very  successful,  and  it  was 
continued  daily  until  the  end  of  the  voyage ;  it  con- 
tributed to  the  preservation  of  our  health,  and  I  was 
enabled  to  land  the  detachment  without  the  loss  of  a 
man. 

I  had  with  me  an  excellent  set  of  officers ;  they  not 
only  assisted  me,  they  did  more,  for  they  gave  me 


MARYLAND  VOLVNTEEB.  283 

their  entire  sympathy  as  well  as  their  support.  In 
the  thirty  days  we  were  together  on  board  the  Alex- 
andria, I  am  sure  that  a  cross  word  was  never  heard 
between  us ;  and  I  soon  had  occasion  to  test  the 
strength  of  the  discipline  which  should  mark  their 
character  as  soldiers.  There  were  with  me  Captain 
Edmund  Barry,  First  Lieutenant  John  M.  Thornton, 
and  Second  Lieutenants  John  Carr,  Acting  Adjutant, 
and  Benjamin  E.  West,  of  Company  B;  Captain  Dan 
Drake  Henrie,  First  Lieutenant  Frederick  A.  Klopfer, 
and  Second  Lieutenant  Richard  P.  Henry,  of  Com- 
pany D ;  Captain  George  W.  Brown,  First  Lieutenant 
Washington  Hopper,  and  Second  Lieutenants  James 
O'Brien  and  John  H.  Gronewell,  of  Company  E.  The 
officers  of  Companies  B  and  D  were  from  Washington  ; 
Company  E  was  raised  in  Baltimore. 

On  the  12th  of  August,  while  lying  to  the  south- 
ward of  Cuba,  and  in  sight  of  the  town  of  Santo  Jago 
de  Cuba,  the  pitch  between  the  seams  of  the  deck 
oozing  up  from  the  burning  rays  of  the  sun.  Captain 
Ordeman  informed  me  that  a  great  deal  of  water  was 
being  consumed,  that  the  ship  was  getting  too  light, 
and  asked  me  to  have  the  empty  water-casks  filled 
with  sea-water;  that  he  would  have  the  pumps  rigged, 
and  he  Avould  like  it  done  at  once,  as  he  feared  that 
the  great  heat  would  be  followed  by  a  hurricane.  I 
issued  an  order  directing  a  detail  to  be  made  for  the 
purpose  indicated,  and  retired  to  ray  cabin  to  write. 
While  thus  engaged,  the  officer  of  the  day  came  and 
reported  that  the  men  detailed  refused  to  work;  I 
paid  but  little  attention  to  him,  merely  repeating  the 
order,  and  continuing  at  my  desk.    In  fifteen  minutes 


234  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

he  returned,  and  asked  what  he  was  to  do,  as  the  men 
flatly  refused  to  obey  his  orders.  I  went  on  deck, 
saw  that  the  pumps  were  rigged,  the  detail  standing 
about  them,  the  sailors  grouped  about  the  forecastle, 
and  an  ominous  silence  over  all.  I  directed  the  detail 
to  be  aligned,  then  inquired  why  it  was  they  refused 
to  work ;  several  of  the  men  answered  at  the  same 
time,  "  that  it  was  the  sailors'  place  to  pump  water 
into  the  ship ;  that  they  were  soldiers,  and  would  not 
do  sailors'  work."  I  saw  that  it  was  a  matured  plan 
to  refuse  this  duty,  and  deeming  it  advisable  to  tem-_ 
porize,  I  replied  that  the  work  was  necessary  for  the 
safety  of  all,  that  the  captain  of  the  ship  was  the 
judge  as  to  what  was  expedient  to  be  done  for  our 
common  good,  and  that  when  he  had  told  me  the  ne- 
cessity of  filling  the  empty  casks,  the  reason  was  so 
palpable  that  I  had  not  hesitated  for  an  instant  in 
giving  the  order  which  I  had  issued,  and  that  they 
must  obey  it;  that  a  good  soldier  always  obeyed  an 
order  and  discussed  its  propriety  afterward.  They 
all  answered  that  they  would  not  obey  the  order  to 
pump  water  into  the  casks ;  one  of  them  saying  he 
had  been  a  sailor  and  had  done  sailors'  work ;  now 
that  he  was  a  soldier  he  would  not  be  a  sailor.  In- 
quiring this  man's  name,  and  calling  him  by  it,  I 
ordered  him  to  step  two  paces  to  the  front ;  he  did 
so.  I  directed  the  officer  of  the  guard  to  procure 
several  pairs  of  handcuffs;  these  were  promptly 
brought.  I  ordered  the  man  to  hold  out  his  hands; 
fortunately,  he  obeyed.  I  told  the  officer  of  the 
guard  to  iron  him  ;  it  was  done  at  once  ;  the  mutiny 
was  quelled.     The  second  man  named  in  the  detail 


MARYLAND   VOLVNTEEE.  285 

was  ordered  to  ^tep  to  the  front,  extend  his  hands, 
and  he  was  ironed;  the  third  was  called,  and  likewise 
ironed.  As  the  fourth  man  stepped  to  the  front,  he 
said  he  would  obey  the  order,  as  did  all  the  others  of 
the  detail,  and  the  pumps  were  soon  going. 

It  was  a  touch-and-go  piece  of  work. 

I  kept  these  men  ironed  and  guarded  by  officers  on 
the  quarter-deck  until  a  heavy  storm  came  on ;  when 
they  begged  so  hard  to  have  the  irons  removed,  that 
I  released  two  of  them,  but  kept  the  ringleader  se- 
curely fastened. 

I  had  no  more  trouble  in  maintaining  discipline  on 
board  the  ship ;  the  drills  were  continued,  and  as 
the  fresh  water  was  consumed,  sea-water  was  pumped 
from  the  ocean  and  the  empty  casks  filled.  We  lay 
becalmed  for  several  days  to  the  southward  of  Cuba; 
the  heat  continued  to  increase,  as  did  the  consumption 
of  water,  and  grave  apprehensions  of  a  want  of  the 
latter  daily  arose.  On  Sunday,  the  15th  of  August, 
when  off  the  island  of  Jamaica  and  out  of  sight  of  land, 
a  bird  flew  toward  the  ship  and  alighted  on  my  head. 
I  did  not  move,  and  it  then  hopped  on  my  shoulder. 
We  took  a  good  look  at  each  other,  then  it  flew  away. 
It  would  be  untrue  for  me  to  say  that  I  did  not  con- 
sider this  incident  a  fortunate  augury. 

On  the  17th  we  made  Cape  San  Antonio,  the  west- 
ernmost point  of  the  island  of  Cuba;  at  9.30  p.m.,  on 
the  night  of  the  18th,  saw  a  meteor,  which  like  an 
immense  globe  of  fire  traversed  at  least  one-fourth  of 
the  horizon.  This  was  followed  by  a  hurricane  storm, 
which  drove  us  rapidly  on  our  course  across  the  Gulf. 
On  the  19th  we  were  on  the  Banks  of  Campeche,  off 


286  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

Yucatan,  in  thirty-six  fathom  water,  and  on  the  22d 
made  the  mainland  of  Mexico,  forty  miles  to  the  north 
of  Vera  Cruz. 

At  9  o'clock  P.M.,  on  the  23d,  made  the  lighthouse 
on  the  castle  of  San  Juan  de  Ulloa,  and  at  the  same 
time  approached  a  large  ship,  which  proved  to  be  our 
consort,  the  ''  Napier"  from  Baltimore,  with  the  other 
detachment  of  our  regiment.  I  have  heard  louder 
but  never  more  joyous  cheers  than  those  which  went 
up  from  the  decks  of  the  two  ships,  when  in  response 
to  our  hail,  it  was  learned  that  the  two  detachments 
had  again  met. 

August  24.  This  day  one  month  ago  we  embarked 
at  Baltimore,  and  to-day  at  10  A.M.  we  dropped  anchor 
in  the  roads  between  the  castle  and  the  mole  of  Vera 
Cruz.  Our  whole  ship's  crew  was  well,  our  health 
excellent  during  the  voyage,  while  the  Napier  buried 
in  the  sea  one  of  its  detachment,  and  brought  along 
a  good  many  sick.  The  first  object  that  attracted  our 
attention  was  the  lowering  of  two  dead  bodies  in  coflGns 
from  the  sea-wall  of  the  castle  into  a  boat,  and  the 
next  a  pile  of  empty  coffins  on  the  mole  as  we  landed 
from  the  ship  to  report  our  arrival.  Everything  else 
was  dead  in  the  blazing,  glistening  sunlight;  not  a 
living  object,  not  one  moving  thing  could  I  see,  as  I 
walked  along  the  mole  to  the  governor's  quarters, 
which  I  knew  where  to  find.  It  needed  nothing  but 
the  appearance  of  things,  the  absence  of  all  life,-^not 
a  soldier,  citizen,  or  sailor  to  be  seen,  not  an  animal, 
— to  tell  me  that  the  yellow  fever,  the  dread  black 
vomit,  was  raging  in  this  fiery  oven  of  a  plague- 
stricken  city. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  287 

I  found  my  old  friend  and  former  commander,  Colo- 
nel Henry  Wilson,  of  the  United  States  Army,  still 
Governor,  and  on  his  back  with  the  yellow  fever. 
After  a  brief  consultation  I  left  him,  went  to  the 
quartermaster's  office,  and  putting  life  into  things 
generally, — I  had  every  man  from  both  transports 
landed  on  the  beach  by  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 
Before  dark,  my  camp  and  garrison  equipage,  arms  and 
stores,  were  all  landed,  and  a  regular  camp  established 
at  a  point  called  Vergara,  distant  three  miles  from 
Vera  Cruz. 

This  night  proved  a  rough  beginning  for  young 
soldiers ;  our  sentries  (with  one  single  exception) 
were  driven  in  by  the  Mexicans,  who  fired  into  our 
camp  from  the  adjacent  sand-hills,  while  the  torrents 
of  rain  which  fell  washed  the  sands  upon  Avhich  we 
lay  and  stood  into  the  surf  and  ocean,  tumbling  up 
swelling  waves  on  our  parade  ground,  where  I  had 
had  a  dress  parade  the  preceding  evening. 

There  was  much  alarm  at  Vera  Cruz  ;  no  tidings 
had  been  received  from  General  Scott  for  weeks,  as 
the  road  to  the  city  of  Mexico  was  closed  except  to 
strong  bodies  of  troops.  Eumors  were  rife  that  Scott's 
army  was  in  great  peril,  and  the  whole  country  from 
the  Gulf  coast  to  the  valley  of  Mexico  was  swarming 
with  guerillas;  to  add  to  the  demoralization,  there 
was  lying  near  my  camp  a  detachment  which  had 
started  to  join  Scott,  but  had  met  with  a  disastrous 
repulse  at  the  National  Bridge,  and  retreated  to  Vera 
Cruz.  It  was  believed  that  the  city  itself  was  not  safe 
from  sudden  attack,  and  Governor  Wilson  had  obtained 
from  the  naval  commander  the  presence  of  a  vessel  of 


288  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

war  in  the  roads.     On  the  day  next  succeeding  my 
arrival,  I  received  the  following  order : 

"  Headquaeteks,  Department  or  Vera  Cruz, 
"Mexico,  August  26,  1847. 
"Orders  No.  63.] 

"  Major  John  R.  Kenly,  Maryland  Volunteers,  will  take  the 
entire  command  at  Vergara.*  On  the  31st  inst.,  at  half-past  7 
o'clock  A.M.,  he  will  muster  the  Maryland  Volunteers  ;  and  Captain 
Sheppard,  Eighth  United  States  Infantry,  will  muster  the  rest 
of  the  troops  encamped  and  on  guard  at  that  place,  except  that 
Captain  Fairchild's  troops  of  Louisiana  Mounted  Volunteers  will 
be  mustered  by  Lieutenant-Colonel  Miles, f  United  States  Araiy. 
"  By  order  of  Colonel  Wilson, 
"  (Signed)  B.  H.  Arthur, 

"  Adjutant  First  U.  S.  Infantry,  and  A.A.A.G.  Dep't.  Vera  Cruz." 

Things  looked  very  gloomy ;  I  had  never  before 
seen  anything  like  the  depression  and  despondency 
which  prevailed.  The  heat  was  literally  intense,  and 
the  sun  from  its  rising  to  its  going  down  looked  and 
felt  like  a  huge  globe  of  fire.  At  night  the  mosqui- 
toes— and  their  name  was  legion — were  worse  than 
those  I  had  known  a  year  ago  on  the  Rio  Grande,  and 
the  fear  of  the  fever  was  becoming  very  general.    We 

*  The  troops  thus  assigned  to  my  command  consisted  of  one 
company  of  the  Eighth  United  States  Infantry,  Captain  Sheppard ; 
two  companies  of  the  Eleventh  United  States  Infantry,  Captains 
W.  H.  Taliaferro  and  McComas ;  one  company  of  the  Twelfth 
United  States  Infantry,  Captain  Wells,  and  Captain  Fairchild's 
Louisiana  Mounted  Men:  in  all  about  eight  hundred  men.  On 
the  STth  I  mounted  a  grand  guard  with  details  from  the  various' 
detachments,  which  proved  an  excellent  school  of  instruction,  and 
in  the  several  attacks  which  were  nightly  made  upon  our  camp, 
displayed  a  creditable  degree  of  discipline. 

f  Lieutenant-Colonel  Miles  was  not  with  the  detachment  which 
had  just  been  defeated  at  the  National  Bridge,  nor  was  Captain 
W.  H.  Taliaferro. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  289 

had  one  relief,  one  source  of  great  enjoyment:  at  night 
we  rolled  among  the  breakers  of  the  Gulf  without 
danger  from  undertow,  and  this  luxury  of  a  bath 
strengthened  us  to  bear  the  heat  of  the  day,  by 
giving  us  the  sweet  sleep  of  repose. 

At  an  interview  with  Colonel  Wilson  on  the  29th 
of  August,  I  told  him  that  Colonel  Hughes  would 
shortly  arrive,  and  begged  him  to  permit  us  to  pro- 
ceed as  soon  as  he  came,  to  help  General  Scott,  as  I 
believed  from  all  I  could  learn,  he  needed  every  man 
that  could  be  raised.  The  Governor  intimated  that 
the  force  could  not  be  spared  from  Vera  Cruz,  and  was 
not  sufficiently  strong  to  force  its  way  through  the 
interior,  but  that  he  daily  expected  additional  troops 
from  the  United  States,  and  knowing  the  efforts  I 
had  made  to  hasten  forward,  he  would  give  me  orders 
to  march  as  soon  as  he  deemed  it  safe. 

In  coming  out  of  town  on  my  return  to  camp,  I 
could  not  but  laugh  at  the  handbills  staring  one  in 
the  face  at  every  corner  :  "  Zinc  coffins  of  various  sizes 
and  patterns  were  to  be  had  on  sale,  No.  so  and  so,  Calle 
de  etc.  etc. ;"  and  every  man  I  met  looked  as  if  he  were 
coming  into  town  to  get  one  of  these  identical  coffins. 
I  made  this  reflection  as  I  rode  along,  that  if  I  were 
a  rich  man  or  of  much  higher  rank  than  that  of  Major, 
I  would  also  be  afraid  of  the  yellow  fever. 

"  Headquarters  Battalion  D.  C.  and  M'd.  Vol's., 
Camp,  Verqara,  August  27,  1847. 
"  Order  s.l 

"The  regular  stated  calls  in  this  camp  will  be  as  follows : 
"I.  Reveille  at  5  o'clock  a.m.;  sick-call  at  6  a.m.;  the  first 

call  for  guard-mounting  at  T^  a.m.;  orderly  call   at  11  a.m.; 

retreat  at  6i  p.m.,  and  tattoo  at  9  p.m. 

19 


290  MEMO  IBS   OF  A 

"II.  At  reveille  the  men  will  be  turned  out,  the  roll  called  by 
the  orderly  sergeants,  superintended  by  a  commissioned  officer 
of  each  company,  and  each  company  parade  will  be  policed;  the 
prisoners  at  the  guard-house  will  at  the  same  time  be  made  to 
police  the  regimental  parade  ;  at  the  sick-call  the  sick  of  each 
company  will  be  conducted  by  the  orderly  sergeants  to  the  Sur- 
geon's quarters,  which  will  be  hereafter  designated  ;  the  first 
call  for  guard-mounting  at  Tj  o'clock,  a.m.,  will  be  the  signal  for 
the  men  warned  for  duty  to  turn  out  on  their  company  parades 
for  inspection  by  the  orderly  sergeants  superintended  by  a  com- 
missioned officer  of  each  company  ;  at  the  orderly  call  each 
orderly  sergeant  will  repair  to  the  Adjutant's  office  for  orders; 
at  retreat  there  will  be  a  dress  parade  on  the  regimental  parade 
ground,  prior  to  which  the  commanding  officers  will  make  a 
minute  iuspection  of  the  arms  and  ammunition  of  their  com- 
panies ;  at  tattoo  the  men  will  be  ordered  to  their  quarters,  and 
half  an  hour  afterward  taps  will  be  sounded,  at  which  signal  the 
patrol  will  be  sent  through  the  camp  for  the  purpose  of  arrest- 
ing those  who,  without  a  legitimate  excuse,  are  found  wandering 
about  the  camp. 

"III.  Guard-mounting  will  take  place  at  8  o'clock  a.m.,  the 
orderly  sergeants  of  each  company  conducting  their  respective 
details  to  the  parade  ;  and  commanding  officers  will  be  held 
strictly  respon.sible  for  the  fitness  of  thoir  details  for  guard  duty. 

"  IV.  A  morning  report  from  each  company  must  be  handed  in 
to  the  Adjutant's  office  before  guard-mounting,  each  report  to 
be  signed  by  the  orderly  sergeant  and  the  commanding  officer 
of  the  company. 

"V.  As  it  is  of  the  most  vital  importance  that  the  men  should  be 
instructed  in  the  scliool  of  the  soldier,  the  captains  of  companies 
are  hereby  strictly  enjoined  to  drill  and  cause  to  be  drilled  at 
every  seasonable  opportunity,  their  respective  commands.  The 
efficiency  or  inefficiency  of  a  company  will  rest  alone  upon  its 
commanding  officer. 

"  VI.  No  into.xicating  drinks  will  be  permitted  to  be  sold,  ofl'ered 
for  sale,  or  kept  by  any  sutler,  storekeeper,  or.  camp-follower, 
within  the  camp,  or  its  immediate  vicinity ;  any  person  violating 
this  order  will  be  most  summarily  dealt  with  and  punished. 


ilARTLANn   VOLUNTEER.  291 

"VII.  In  case  of  an  alarm  or  a  night  attack,  each  company 
will  be  rapidly  formed  and  marched  to  the  regimental  parade, 
with  the  exception  of  those  companies,  the  commanding  officers 
of  which  have  received  separate  instructions. 
"  By  order 

"John  R.  Kenlt, 
"Mftjor  Buttalion  D.  C.  and  M'd.  Vol's., 
commanding  tlie  Forces  at  Vergara." 

"Muster  Roll  of  the  Field  and  Staff  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
Ma  and  Maryland  Volunteers,  on  the  3\st  day  of  August, 
184T,  at  Camp  Vergara,  near  Vera  Gruz. 

"  COMMISSIONED  STAFF. 

"  Lieutenant  Colonel  George  W.  Hughes,  absent  on  duty. 
"  Major  John  R.  Kenly,  present  for  duty.* 
"Surgeon  Stedman  R.  Tilghman,  present  for  duty. 
"Adjutant  John  Carr,  present  for  duty. 

"Assistant  Commissary  of  Subsistence,  Henry  A.  Addison, 
"  present  for  duty. 

"  NONCOMMISSIONED  STAFF. 

"William  J.  Gary,  Sergeant  Major,  present  for  duty. 

"John  Purden,  Quartermaster's  Sergeant,  present  for  duty. 

"  I  certify  on  honor  that  this  Muster  Roll  exhibits  the  true 
state  of  the  Field  and  Staff  of  the  Battalion  of  District  of  Colum- 
bia and  Maryland  Volunteers,  called  into  the  service  of  the 
United  States  by  the  President,  under  the  Act  of  Congress 
approved  May  13th,  1846,  and  that  the  remarks  set  opposite  to 

each  are  correct  and  just. 

"  John  B.  Kenlt, 
"  Major  Battalion  D.  0.  and  M'd.  Vol's., 
Inspector  and  Mustering  Officer. 

"  Camp  Vekgaka,  near  Veka  Cruz, 
"August  31,  1847." 

September  1.  Colonel  Hughes  arrived  last  night 
from  New  Orleans,  and  about  the  same  time  we 
learned  that  General  Scott  had  been  victorious  in  a 
battle  fought  not  far  from  the  city  of  Mexico.     The 


292  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

change  that  this  news  made  in  Vera  Cruz  was  so 
great  that  one  scarcely  recognized  his  acquaintances 
of  the  preceding  day.  It  was  from  darl^ness  and 
gloom  to  sunshine  and  joy.  I  this  day  paraded  the 
battalion,  and  felt  great  pride  in  its  appearance  when 
I  turned  over  the  command  to  my  ranking  and  com- 
manding officer.  His  praise  of  my  conduct  was  very 
gratifying,  and  I  had  an  honest  pleasure  in  feeling 
that  I  deserved  it,  for  I  had  made  a  handsome  bat- 
talion out  of  the  command.  I  had  reason  to  believe, 
that  the  officers  and  men  shared  the  pride  they  knew 
I  felt  on  hearing^Colonel  Hughes's  address. 

The  steamer  that  brought  Colonel  Hughes  from 
New  Orleans  brought  also  five  companies  of  the 
Second  Illinois  regiment  of  infantry,  so  that  our  force, 
with  the  co-operation  of  the  sailors,  was  deemed  suffi- 
cient by  Governor  Wilson  to  relieve  all  apprehensions  • 
for  the  safety  of  Scott's  base,  which  would  have  been 
seriously  endangered  had  his  first  battle  in  the  val- 
ley resulted  unfavorably. 

On  the  5th  of  September  we  received  orders  to  pre- 
pare to  advance;  during  the  day  the  'companies 
selected  were  notified,  and  soon  the  busy  hum  of  men 
was  heard  through  the  camp.  There  was  an  unmis- 
takeable  reluctance  to  move  on  the  part  of  those  who 
had  tried  it  once  before,  and  the  heat,  the  intense 
heat  which  prevailed,  depressed  the  spirits  of  others, 
so  that  there  was  not  the  same  enthusiasm  I  had 
always  before  noticed  among  troops  ordered  to  march. 
We  all  wanted  to  get  away  from  the  fever,  but  some 
thought  we  might  go  further  and  fare  worse. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  293 

CHAPTER    XXVI. 

MAECH    INTO    THE     INTERIOR. 

The  city  of  Mexico  lies  to  the  west  and  north  of 
Vera  Cruz,  and  is  distant  by  my  calculation  two 
hundred  and  sixty-two  miles  from  the  latter  city. 
To  reach  it  from  the  Gulf,  you  pass  literally  through 
the  torrid,  temperate,  and  frigid  zones,  for  although 
the  valley  of  Mexico  is  but  seven  thousand  five  hun- 
dred feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  you  have  to  cross 
the  mountains  which  hem  it  on  its  eastern  border  at 
an  altitude  of  between  ten  and  eleven  thousand  feet. 

The  State  of  Vera  Cruz,  into  which  we  were  now 
about  to  penetrate,  lies  under  the  burning  sky  of  the 
tropics,  between  17°  and  22°  of  north  latitude,  and 
96°  and  101°  degrees  west  longitude  from  Paris  ;  it  is 
bounded  on  the  north  by  the  State  of  Tamaulipas, 
on  the  east  by  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  on  the  south 
and  west  by  the  States  of  Tabasco  and  Puebla.  On 
the  Gulf  coast  and  for  several  miles  inland  there  is  a 
belt  of  sandy  desert  and  burning  wastes ;  here  from 
the  month  of  May  to  November  the  black  vomit  rages 
uninterruptedly,  and  the  city  of  Vera  Cruz,  in  the 
centre  of  this  arid  plain,  is  the  focus  of  the  deadly 
scourge*     As  you   march   to  the  west  the   country 

*  Mr.  Brantz  Mayer,  in  his  valuable  work,  "  Mexico  :  Aztec, 
Spanish,  and  Republican,"  says  "  that  none  but  natives  of  the 
town,  or  acclimated  foreigners,  are  free  from  its  attacks,  and  the 


294  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

rises  gently  to  the  Antigua,  and  from  thence  upward 
through  the  Cerro  Gordo  pass,  toward  and  beyond 
Jalapa,  until  you  meet  with  the  spur  of  the  grand 
Cordillera,  called  the  Cofre  of  Perote,  whose  southern 
apex  is  the  magnificent  and  unparalleled  mountain 
peak  of  Orizaba.*  Still  farther  to  the  west,  as  you 
enter  upon  the  vast  plateau  or  plain  of  Puebla  in  the 
State  of  the  same  name,  you  are  in  a  temperate  region, 
growing  the  cereals  of  an  excellent  quality  and  amaz- 
ing productiveness,  until  finally  you  commence  the 
ascent  of  the  mountains  which  form  the  iron  and  icy 
barrier  of  the  far-famed  valley  of  Mexico.  The  State 
of  Puebla  lies  west  of  Vera  Cruz,  and  the  State  of 

frightful  inroads  it  made  among  our  troops  in  the  year  184T 
will  long  be  remembered  in  the  history  of  our  country^  Time 
does  not  appear  to  have  bad  any  effect  on  this  dreadful  disease. 
Increase  of  population  and  sanitary  precautions  do  not  seem  to 
abate  its  malignity,  and  the  science  of  the  ablest  physicians  is 
entirely  at  fault  in  dealing  with  it." 

When  I  was  in  Vera  Cruz  last,  an  expedient  had  been 
adopted  which  was  believed  to  be  beneficial,  that  was,  build- 
ing huge  fires  in  the  streets  of  the  town,  which  were  kept  burn- 
ing night  and  day  by  fresh  supplies  of  fuel. 

*  The  Peak  of  Orizaba,  in  the  Aztec  tongue  "  mountain  of  the 
star,"  is  an  extinct  volcano  which  rises  to  the  enormous  height 
of  seventeen  thousand  nine  hundred  and  seven  feet,  and  is  said 
to  be  the  highest  point  on  the  continent  of  North  America. 
Although  one  hundred  miles  from  the  coast  in  the  interior,  it 
is  visible  fifty  miles  at  sea,  and  is  a  prominent  landmark  to  all 
mariners  who  voyage  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  It  is  covered  with 
perpetual  snow  ;  no  language  can  do  justice  to  the  beauty  and 
unsurpassed  loveliness  of  its  majestic  cone  of  silver,  when  glis- 
tening under  the  rays  of  the  rising  and  setting  sun.  On  two 
occasions  while  in  the  Tierra  Caliente  we  thought  we  saw  smoke 
issuing  from  its  summit ;  we  might  have  been  mistaken. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  295 

Mexico,  to  which  its  capital  gave  the  name,  lies  west 
of  the  State  of  Puebla.  The  State  of  Mexico  lies 
between  16°  and  21°  of  north  latitude,  and  100°  and 
105°  of  west  longitude  from  Paris;  it  is  bounded  on  the 
north  by  the  State  of  Queretaro,  on  the  east  by  the 
State  of  Puebla,  on  the  west  by  the  States  of  Guana- 
juato and  Michoacan,  and  on  the  south-west  lies 
the  broad  Pacific  Ocean  and  its  harbor  of  Acapulco. 

Between  the  Gulf  coast  and  the  valley  of  Mexico, 
we  have  three  distinct  and  diverse  lands,  with  three 
several  climates,  and  with  three  several  names,  viz. :  the 
Tierras  Calientes,  or  hot  lands;  the  Tlei-ras  Templadas, 
or  temperate  lands ;  the  Tierras  Frias,  or  cold  lands. 

Humboldt  says  "  that  the  climates  succeed  each 
other  in  strata  or  layers  as  we  pass  from  Vera  Cruz  to 
the  capital — beholding  in  our  varied  journey  the 
whole  scale  of  vegetable  life.  The  wdld  abundance 
of  vegetation  on  the  shore  of  the  Gulf — its  beautiful 
palms  whose  stems  are  wreathed  by  a  myriad  of  im- 
penetrable parasites  which  grow  with  such  rank  luxu- 
riance in  the  hot  and  humid  air  of  the  tropics — 
are  exchanged,  as  we  begin  to  rise  from  the  level  of 
the  sea,  for  hardier  forest  trees.  At  Jalapa  the  air  is 
milder,  though  the  vapors  from  the  Gulf,  which  con- 
centrate and  condense  at  this  height  on  the  sides  of 
the  mountains,  sustain  the  perpetual  freshness  of  the 
verdure.  Farther  on,  the  oak  and  the  orange  give 
place  to  the  fir  and  the  pine.  Here  the  rarefied  air 
becomes  pure,  thin  and  perfectly  transparent ;  but  as 
it  lacks  moisture,  which  condenses  below  this  region, 
the  vegetation  is  neither  so  luxuriant  nor  so  con- 
stantly vigorous.     Great  plains  or  basins  spread  out 


296  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

in  silent  and  melancholy  vistas  before  the  traveler — 
many  of  them  cold,  bleak,  and  lonely  moors,  whose 
dreary  levels  sadden  the  heart  of  the  spectator.  The 
sun  which  comes  down  through  the  cloudless  medium 
of  an  atmosphere,  unscreened  by  the  usual  curtain  of 
vapor,  parches  and  crisps  the  thirsty  soil,  whilst  the 
winds,  that  sweep  uninterruptedly  over  the  unbroken 
expanse,  till  the  air  during  the  dry  season  with  sand 
and  dust."  Many  of  the  fruits  and  flowers,  the  grains 
and  vegetables,  the  forests  and  the  trees,  the  birds  and 
the  animals  of  the  torrid,  the  temperate,  and  the 
frigid  zones  are  to  be  found  in  this  narrow  strip  of 
less  than  three  hundred  miles,  lying  as  above  de- 
scribed, between  the  ocean  and  the  mountains  around 
the  valley  of  Mexico.  Among  the  plants  and  fruits 
and  trees  which  grow  luxuriantly  may  be  mentioned 
tobacco,  coffee,  sugar,  cotton,  corn,  barley,  wheat, 
jalap,  sarsaparilla,  vanilla,  pineapples,  oranges,  cit- 
rons, lemons,  pomegranates,  bananas,  chirim6yas, 
pears,  water-melons,  peaches,  apricots,  grapes ;  among 
the  trees,  the  mahogany,  ebony,  cedar,  oak,  tamarind, 
palm,  fig,  dye-woods,  and  near  Jalapa.,  a  mimosa, 
from  which  the  pungent  gum  exudes  to  make  the  in- 
cense used  in  the  Catholic  church  ceremonies.  In 
one  day's  ride  a  traveler  may  pass  through  and  expe- 
rience every  gradation  of  climate,  from  the  torrid  heat 
of  the  Gulf  coast  to  the  icy  shiver  of  the  frigid,  from 
the  equatorial  to  the  polar  circle ;  every  zone  marked 
by  its  own  peculiar  vegetation,  the  sugar-cane  and 
the  fir,  the  vanilla  and  the  pine-cone,  the  cactus  and 
the  maguey. 

The  Tlerras  Culkntea  is  the   home   of  the  orange, 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  297 

the  banana,  the  pineapple,  and  the  innumei-able 
variety  of  the  cactus.  Here  swarm  countless  herds  of 
cattle,  whose  hides,  tallow,  and  horns  constitute  a 
large  portion  of  the  country's  commerce.  Here  may 
be  found  the  Bedouins  of  the  New  World,  the  ranche- 
ros, — herdsmen  by  name,  but  true  children  of  the 
desert;  nomadic,  brave,  faithful,  and  attached  to  their 
country,  thej'  furnish  arrieros  for  trade  and  guerill^ros 
for  war. 

The  Tierras  Templadas  is  the  land  of  the  cereals, 
and  the  human  eye  never  beheld  such  fields  of  bar- 
ley as  we  saw  on  the  grand  jolateau  of  Anahuac  and 
in  the  valley  of  San  Martin.  On  its  eastern  borders  the 
sugar-cane  and  the  orange  flourish  luxuriantly,  whilst 
the  perennial  vegetation  in  the  vicinity  of  Jalapa 
makes  it  the  garden  spot  of  the  world.  Tobacco  and 
coffee  grow  side  by  side  with  the  pineapple  and  pome- 
granate, and  the  smoke  of  the  sugar  manufactories 
mingles  with  the  perfume  of  the  mimosa  and  vanilla. 
Countless  numbers  of  orange  groves  are  interspersed 
with  orchards  of  pineapples ;  and  the  melon,  and  the 
unique  chirim6ya  aid  in  making  the  Department  of 
Jalapa  the  land  so  long  sought  by  Ponce  de  Leon, — 
the  land  where  the  dolce  far  niente  of  life  may  be  en- 
joyed in  an  unrivaled  climate,  and  amid  a  people 
whose  nature  is  peace  and  whose  habits  are  Arcadian. 

There  is  nothing  to  mark  the  Tierras  Frias  until, 
after  ascending  the  eastern  slopes  of  its  rocky  ftxst- 
nesses,  you  perceive  the  valley  of  Mexico  lying  at 
your  feet;  here  is  the  land  of  flowers  and  the  maguey, 
both  indigenous,  both  intimately  connected  with  the 
habits  and  the  history,  the  traditions  and  the  charac- 


298  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

ter,  of  the  Aztec  Indian  race.  It  was  here  in  the  lake 
lying  atyourfeet,  that  the  eagle  seized  the  serpent  upon 
the  cactus,  and  marked  the  spot  where  the  wanderings 
of  their  people  should  cease  ;  and  the  beautiful  flowers 
which  decked  the  edges  of  these  magnificent  reser- 
voirs of  sweet  water,  and  which  their  women  plucked 
with  girlish  admiration,  are  still  interwoven  with  the 
dark  locks  of  their  descendants  at  this  day,  as  they 
come  in  their  boats  laden  with  roses  to  the  market- 
places of  the  capital.  The  maguey  was  to  the  Aztec 
what  the  cocoa-palm  is  to  the  Hindoo  and  the  Malay. 
From  its  fibres  thread  was  made  ;  from  its  bark  paper, 
better  than  the  papyrus  of  Egypt ;  their  houses  were 
covered  with  its  leaves,  sewn  together  by  the  needles 
in  the  shape  of  thorns  shooting  out  from  each  edge ; 
its  fluid — pulque — was  meat  and  drink,  life,  luxury, 
and  the  pursuit  of  happiness  then  to  the  Aztec,  as 
it  is  now  to  the  Mexican. 

If,  instead  of  the  cactus,  the  maguey  were  blazoned 
upon  the  shield  of  Mexico,  I  think  perhaps  they 
might  have  better  luck. 

The  three  States  of  Vera  Cruz,  Puebla  and  Mexico 
contain  about  one-fourth  of  the  whole  population  of  the 
Eepublic,  say  one  and  a  half  millions  of  inhabitants. 
Some  writers  estimate  the  total  population  of  Mexico 
at  eight  millions.  I  doubt  this  ;  for  from  appearances 
the  population  has  been  decreasing,  and  this  estimate 
of  eight  millions  was  based  upon  an  increase  of  ten 
per  cent,  over  a  former  estimate. 

I  may  as  well  give  some  data  about  Mexico,  al- 
though I  am  only  personally  acquainted  with  the 
States  of  Tamaulipas,  New  Leon,  Coahuila,  Vera  Cruz, 


MAR FL AND  VOLUNTEER.  2d 9 

Puebla  and  Mexico.  It  lies  between  17°  and  32° 
of  north  latitude,  and  95°  and  115°  west  longitude, 
and  comprises  an  area  of  about  eight  hundred  and 
fifty  thousand  square  miles.  Its  population  has 
been  before  referred  to,  and  I  think  does  not  ex- 
ceed, if  it  equals,  six  millions  of  inhabitants.  The 
States  composing  the  federated  republic  are  :  Chiapas, 
Chihuahua,  Durango,  Guanajuato,  Guerrero,  Jalisco, 
Mexico,  Michoacan,  Nueva  Leon,  Oajaca,  Puebla, 
Qu^r^taro,  San  Luis  Potosi,  Sinalao,  Sonora,  Tabasco, 
Tamaulipas,  Tlascala,  Vera  Cruz,  Zacatecas,  and  per- 
haps Yucatan  may  be  included,  but  its  relations  with 
the  central  government  have  been  more  than  equivo- 
cal for  some  years  past. 

This  territory  is  occupied  by  three  peoples,  as  dis- 
tinct, as  diverse,  and  as  strongly  mai'ked  in  their  dif- 
ference as  its  physical  and  geographical  divisions : 
the  Indian,  the  Spaniard  of  old  Spain,  and  the  off- 
spring of  these  two  races,  making  a  third,  known  as  or 
which  we  should  call,  the  Mexican.  I  include  among 
the  Spaniards  the  white  Creoles,  that  is,  white  people 
born  in  the  country,  and  the  whole  number  does  not 
exceed  one  million  ;  there  are  between  three  and  four 
millions  of  pure-blood  Indians,  and  the  remainder  of 
the  population  embraces  all  the  castes  and  colors  from 
the  Mestizo,  the  offspring  of  the  white  father  and 
Indian  mother,  to  the  Mulatto  and  Brown  Mestizo  or 
Zambo,  which  includes  the  small  proportion  of  negro 
blood  brought  into  the  country  from  the  neighboring 
West  India  Islands. 

I  may  have  occasion  hereafter  to  speak  of  the 
characteristics  of  each  of  these  races. 


300  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

The  religion  of  the  country  is  Eoman  Catholic,  but 
it  seemed  to  me  that  as  a  people  they  were  not  de- 
voted to  the  church ;  the  Indians  were  docile  and 
bittable,  but  it  also  seemed  that  the  story  told  of  one 
of  them  shortly  after  the  conquest  was  still  true.  He 
was  reproached  for  his  inattention  to  the  duties  of 
mother  church,  when  he  replied  that  the  gods  given 
his  people  by  the  Spaniards  were  doubtless  very  good, 
but  he  thought  that  they  might  have  left  them  a.  few 
of  their  own. 

I  make  no  reflection  against  the  church  or  its 
clergy ;  they  have  done  wonders,  and  wrought  mar- 
vellous works  in  reclaiming  an  idolatrous  jDCople  from 
image  worship,  and  the  sacrifice  of  human  beings  to 
hideous  stones ;  yet  the  field  remains  seemingly  but 
half-worked,  and  there  is  abundant  room  for  Christian 
labor,  yea,  for  all  manner  of  labor  looking  to  the  wel- 
fare of  our  fellow-creatures. 


CHAPTER   XXVI I. 

CAPTURE   AND   OCCtlPATIGN"   OF    THE   NATIONAL   BRIDGE. 

On  the  morning  of  the  6th  of  September,  1847,  we 
bade  farewell  to  the  sea-breezes  of  the  Gulf  and  its 
exhilarating  surf-baths  for  nearly  ten  months.  At  4 
o'clock  A.M.  we  broke  camp  at  Vergara,  and  at  5  our 
command  took  up  its  line  of  march  over  the  sands, 
with  our  backs  to  the  blazing  sun ;  for  it  is  a  strange 
fact  that  the  sun  is  as  hot  a  half  hour  after  it  rises 


3IARTLAND   VOLUNTEER.  30I 

as  it  is  at  mid-day,  in  this  tropical  region.  Our  backs 
were  also  fi'om  home,  and  many  a  long  lingering  look 
was  turned  to  the  east,  as  we  plodded  slowly  through 
the  desert  which  environs  Vera  Cruz.  Our  force  con- 
sisted of  five  companies  of  our  regiment,  one  company 
of  the  Eleventh  Infantry,  one  company  of  the  Twelfth 
Infantry,  two  squadrons  of  Louisiana  mounted  men, 
and  one  company  of  United  States  Artillery,  with  two 
guns,  a  six-pounder  and  a  twelve-pound  howitzer.  It 
was  a  well  organized  and  appointed  force,  the  whole 
under  the  command  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  George  W. 
Hughes,  of  our  regiment. 

At  noon  we  arrived  at  the  village  of  Santa  Pe, 
which  had  been  burned  at  our  approach,  and  we  were 
warned  by  every  indication  that  we  would  have  to 
fight  our  way.  We  remained  here  for  rest  and  re- 
organization until  5  P.M.,  when  we  resumed  the  march. 

As  we  approached  the  river  San  Juan,  firing  was 
commenced  against  us  on  both  flanks,  but  without 
doing  us  any  damage,  as  the  guerillas  were  away  in 
the  chaparral,  and  their  aim  was  uncertain.  "We 
drove  them  back  deeper  into  the  thicket,  and  bivouacked 
immediately  upon  the  stone  bridge  which  spans  the 
river,  as  its  parapets  were  an  excellent  protection  to 
the  annoying  fire  continued  at  intervals  during  the 
night. 

September  7.  At  daylight  resumed  our  march ;  at 
8  o'clock  had  a  glorious  view  of  the  Peak  of  Ori- 
zaba, whose  lofty  silver  cone  was  tinged  by  the  sun  to 
colors  as  beautiful  as  ever  charmed  the  eye ;  it  soon 
became  overpoweringly  oppressive  and  sultry,  so  that 
the  men  marched  with  great  difficulty  over  the  heavy 


302  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

sands ;  we  had  to  halt  for  several  hours  to  refresh  the 
troops ;  at  5  p.m.  resumed  our  march  and  discovered 
a  considerable  body  of  the  enemy  on  the  first  heights 
we  had  seen  since  we  left  the  coast;  halted,  made  a 
reconnaissance,  and  I  advanced  with  two  companies  of 
infantry,  driving  the  enemy  from  the  hills,  which  were 
taken  possession  of  and  held,  while  the  cavalry  was 
thrown  forward  toward  the  town  which  was  to  be 
seen  at  our  feet.  I  saw  the  enemy  leaving  the  town, 
and  our  cavalry  returned  and  reported  it  as  being 
entirely  abandoned. 

This  was  the  famous  "  Robbers'  Den,"  as  it  was 
called,  a  noted  haunt  of  guerillas  and  robbers,  but 
properly  named,  El  Paso  de  Ovejnfi. 

We  marched  into  it  very  carefully,  after  crossing  a 
beautiful  bridge,  and  bivouacked  in  the  plaza,  occu- 
pying the  market-house  as  a  place  d'  armes.  Our 
camp-fires  lighted  up  the  gloomy  surroundings,  and  a 
more  compact  body  of  men  I  never  before  saw  than 
was  to  be  found  that  night  in  this  little  town.  There 
was  no  attempt  to  pass  beyond  our  line  of  sentries 
by  either  friend  or  foe,  and  the  night  passed  quietly. 

Septemher  8.  As  Ave  left  the  town  we  were  fired 
upon  with  great  rapidity,  the  firing  seeming  to  come 
principally  from  the  arches  beneath  the  bridge  ;  I  was 
with  the  rear-guard  at  the  time.  It  was  at  once  about- 
faced  and  put  to  firing,  and  this  soon  checked  the 
demonstration.  At  9  a.m.  our  advance  guard  reported 
large  bodies  of  the  enemy  ahead;  we  still  advanced,  the 
enemy  slowly  retiring,  until  we  reached  a  range  of  hills 
distant  some  two  miles  from  the  Antigua,  where  we 
halted.     The  men  could  go  no  farther, — the  heat  was 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEEB.  303 

fearful.     We  liacl  to  stop,  or  we  would  have  had  no 
command,  as  the  men  were  unable  to  march. 

During  the  day,  the  enemy  hovered  around  us, 
firing,  and  feeling  us,  at  every  step  of  our  march,  and 
after  we  halted  they  threw  a  volley  into  us,  having 
approached  to  within  less  than  fifty  yards  of  our 
camp.  Our  escape  was  miraculous;  not  a  man  was 
struck.  Several  of  the  balls  went  through  our  only 
wagon,  in  which  our  colored  servants  were  enjoying 
a  lunch;  their  exit  was  so  sudden  that  a  general 
laugh  followed  their  hasty  flight  to  a  place  of  greater 
security.  Captain  M.  K.  Taylor's  company  of  rifles 
was  thrown  out,  and  the  guerillas  kept  at  a  more 
respectful  distance.  About  midnight,  all  lying  on  our 
arms,  in  the  midst  of  a  deluge  of  rain,  we  heard  heavy 
firing  in  the  direction  of  the  National  Bridge.  Spring- 
ing up,  we  were  totally  at  a  loss  to  account  for  the 
firing  in  that  direction  ;  the  sharp  challenge  of  our 
sentries  soon  brought  to  a  halt  the  party  upon  whom 
the  fire  had  been  directed,  and  we  learned  that  in 
trying  to  run  the  gauntlet  of  the  bridge,  the  enemy 
had  killed  two  of  their  party  and  two  of  their  horses. 
All  night  long  the  firing  was  continued  at  intervals, 
and  the  Mexicans  seemed  to  be  in  great  exultation  at 
the  loss  they  had  inflicted  upon  our  cavalry.  It  might 
have  proved  a  much  more  serious  misadventure  than 
it  turned  out.  As  it  was,  combined  with  the  rain- 
storm which  deluged  our  camp,  and  the  fatigue  and 
loss  of  sleep,  our  men  were  a  good  deal  out  of  spirits. 
On  this  very  day,  there  was  being  fought  in  the 
valley  of  Mexico  a  bloody  battle  at  Molino  del  Rey, 
between  the  armies  of  Scott  and  Santa  Anna,  the 


304  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

result  of  which  caused  great  gloom  among  our  little 
handful  of  braves ;  for  although  the  Mexicans  were 
driven  from  their  defenses,  it  was  at  a  frightful  sacri- 
fice of  life,  and  without  any  corresponding  equivalent 
or  advantage.  Of  course  we  were  entirely  ignorant 
of  this,  but  we  all  felt  that  duty  demanded  every 
effort  on  our  part  to  carry  and  hold  the  pass  which 
we  were  now  approaching.  There  was  an  indescriba- 
ble sense  of  isolation  and  of  responsibility  which  was 
shared  by  each  and  every  one  of  us. 

Septemher  9.  We  left  our  bivouac  at  sunrise, 
marched  slowly  and  with  flanking  parties  for  a  couple 
of  hours,  and  came  in  sight  of  the  large  stone  fort  on 
the  summit  of  the  hill  to  the  left  of  the  road,  and 
which  overlooks  the  bridge  and  commands  the  road 
for  a  long  distance  on  both  sides  of  the  river.  We 
could  see  numbers  of  the  enemy  on  the  walls  and 
parapets,  waving  their  guns  and  swords  by  way 
of  inviting  an  attack.  This  we  came  to  do,  and  pre- 
parations were  immediately  made  to  take  the  fort,  to 
drive  the  enemy  from  the  surrounding  heights  and 
force  the  passage  of  the  bridge,  which  was  strongly 
barricaded  and  covered  toward  us  by  an  earth-work. 

Our  guns  were  placed  in  position  by  Lieutenant 
Fields,  United  States  Army,  and  opened  fire  upon  the 
fort ;  the  solid  shot  flew  over  it  or  were  buried  in  its 
parapets,  the  shell  exploded  all  about  it,  but  owing  to 
the  elevation  the  artillery  fire  did  nothing  but  make 
the  Mexicans  drop  their  heads  below  the  walls  as  the 
missiles  came  towards  them.  Colonel  Hughes  now 
ordered  two  companies  to  move  to  the  right  of  the 
road  toward  the  river,  and  in  person  gave  me  orders 


MARYLAXD   VOLUNTEER.  395 

to  take  three  companies  of  our  regiment,  Captains 
Dolan,  Barry  and  Brown,  with  fifty  dismounted  dra- 
goons, to  endeavor  to  ascend  the  hill  and  take  the 
fort  in  reverse.  At  the  same  time  he  gave  to  me  a 
Mexican  who  had  promised,  for  the  sum  of  fifty  dol- 
lars, to  guide  my  detachment  to  a  pass,  and  by  a  way 
through  which  we  could  reach  the  fort.  I  doubted 
the  trustworthiness  of  this  fellow,  but  he  was  true  to 
us  and  proved  a  trusty  guide  in  this  instance. 

Dismounting  from  my  horse,  and  ordering  my  men 
to  throw  off  jackets  and  haversacks,  I  descended  the 
slope  on  the  left  of  the  road,  the  guide  at  my  side, 
with  a  full  understanding  that  his  position  was  a  very 
delicate  one ;  we  were  soon  in  a  sedge-grass  higher 
than  our  heads,  which  fortunately  concealed  us  from 
the  enemy,  who  could  easily  overlook  us  from  the 
fort,  but  they  were  kept  close  by  the  shot  which  were 
flying  above  us,  and  which  we  could  see  burying 
themselves  in  the  fort.  The  heat  down  here  was 
smothering,  but  we  toiled  noiselessly  and  rapidly  to 
the  ridge  and  reached  a  break  which  looked  as  if 
formerly  a  rivulet  of  water  had  poured  down  at  this 
point.  Our  guide  said  this  was  the  place  to 
ascend.  There  was  no  time  for  hesitation,  though 
I  believed  that  not  one  half  my  command  could 
get  to  the  top,  which  was  at  least  fifty  feet  from 
where  we  stood.  There  was  a  stout  grapevine  run- 
ning down  this  washed  rut  in  the  face  of  the  cliff,  and 
several  bushes  were  growing  with  their  roots  in  the 
earth  between  the  foot  and  the  crest  of  the  height. 
I  ordered  the  guide  to  mount,  told  him  that  I  would 
follow,  and  rapidly  gave  my  instructions  to  Captain 

20 


306  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

Dolan  who  was  at  my  side.  The  guide  hesitated,  said 
it  was  not  a  part  of  his  bargain, — that  all  he  had 
promised  to  do  he  had  complied  with, — had  shown 
us  the  way  to  get  to  the  rear  of  the  fort.  If  we  were 
now  discovered  where  we  were,  we  were  helpless,  and 
my  command  would  have  been  destroyed ;  and,  still 
doubting  the  guide,  I  advanced  arguments  so  forcible 
that  he  sjjrang  to  his  work  and  I  followed  him  to 
the  top. 

Captain  Dolan  was  next  after  me.  By  posting 
several  men  who  held  on  with  one  hand  to  the  bushes 
and  vine,  leaving  the  other  hand  free,  I  passed  the 
musket  of  each  soldier  after  him  as  he  progressed  to 
the  top,  and  as  soon  as  I  got  one  company  up  I  felt 
more  relieved  than  words  can  express.  It  was  a  very 
hazardous  undertaking;  we  could  hear  the  voices  of 
the  soldiers  in  the  fort,  and  every  thud  made  by  the 
solid  shot  striking  seemed  to  be  felt  by  us,  so  close  to 
the  earth  were  we  pressed  whilst  climbing  up  the  face 
of  the  height.  In  much  less  time  than  I  had  antici- 
pated my  command  was  on  the  plateau  in  line,  with 
the  dismounted  dragoons  advancing  as  skirmishers. 
There  was  not  width  enough  for  the  front  of 
my  three  companies,  the  precipice  on  my  left  drop- 
ping down  to  the  river  at  its  base,  and  on  my  right, 
the  hillside  by  which  1  had  ascended  fell  nearly  as 
abruptly  but  not  to  so  great  a  distance.  The  spur 
rose  rapidly  toward  the  fort,  which  was  built  on  its 
farther  end,  overhanging  the  main  road  to  the  city  of 
Mexico,  and  looking  down  on  the  bridge  which 
crossed  the  Antigua  at  this  point.  Beyond  the  river, 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  road,  was  another  and  cor- 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER..  397 

responding  height,  which  was  likewise  occupied  by 
the  enemy  but  not  fortified.  My  command  formed 
in  a  column  of  companieg,  dashed  forward  with  a 
yell,  and  was  soon  over  a  wall  which  I  thought  at 
first  was  belonging  to  the  fort,  but  soon  saw  my 
mistake,  for  the  main  work  yet  loomed  up  fifty  yards 
farther  on. 

The  Mexicans  were  completely  taken  by  surprise ; 
our  pace  was  rapid,  we  received  one  straggling  fire 
and  we  were  within  the  fort.  I  confess  to  this  being 
the  happiest  moment  of  my  life,  for  my  anxiety  had 
been  intense.  The  enemy  escaped  by  leaping  over 
the  walls  which  fronted  toward  the  river  and  de- 
scended well-known  paths,  but  concealed  from  us,  to 
the  jungle  on  its  banks;  while  toiling  up  the  height 
from  the  road  came  Major  W.  B.  Taliaferro's  com- 
panies of  the  Eleventh  and  Twelfth  Infantry,  firing 
as  they  advanced,  fully  believing  that  the  Mexicans 
were  still  in  the  fort.  Colonel  Hughes  had  sent  for- 
ward these  companies  as  a  diversion  in  my  behalf, 
and  it  was  their  advance  which  doubtless  saved  me 
from  a  severe  loss.  I  had  but  one  man  wounded  in 
the  assault,  and  one  of  the  strongest  natural  passes 
in  the  country  was  in  our  possession ;  the  road  to 
Mexico  through  the  Tierras  Calientes  was  never  after- 
ward closed  during  the  continuance  of  the  war.  The 
loss  of  this  place  was  the  death-blow  to  the  guerilla 
system  which  had  nigh  been  successful  in  paralyzing 
the  efforts  of  our  army.  The  view  from  the  parapets 
of  the  fort  was  magnificent,  and  at  our  feet  our  men 
were  destroying  the  barricades  on  the  bridge,  and  the 
artillery  passing   with   the   troops.     It  was  really  a 


308  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

very  interesting  display,  and  to  Colonel  Hughes 
great  praise  is  due  for  the  admirable  manner  in  which 
he  had  succeeded  in  the  attack  and  capture  of  the 
National  Bridge,  which  during  the  whole  war  had 
been  a  thorn  in  our  flanks,  and  had  never  before  been 
held  by  the  American  army. 

In  the  course  of  a  couple  of  hours  orders  were  got 
up  to  me  to  descend  with  one  of  the  companies; 
crossing  the  bridge  I  passed  through  the  village  and 
took  up  my  quarters  with  Colonel  Hughes  in  the 
mansion  of  Santa  Anna,  which  fronted  the  highway 
some  hundred  yards  west  of  the  bridge. 

In  its  marble-paved  halls  my  hammock  was  slung, 
and  side  arms  with  horse  accoutrements  soon  made 
things  look  comfortable,  despite  the  absence  of  beds 
and  chamber  furniture. 


CHAPTEE    XXVIII. 

GUKRILLEROS. 

As  early  as  the  6  th  of  May,  1847,  General  Scott 
wrote  to  Secretary  Marcy  : 

"  Our  difficulties  lie  in  gathering  in  subsistence  from  a  country 
covered  with  exasperated  guerillas  and  banditti,  and  maintain- 
ing with  inadequate  garrisons  and  escorts  communications  with 
the  rear." 

The  following  was  published  in  the  Monitor  news- 
paper, in  the  city  of  Mexico  : 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEEB.  309 


"  PROCLAMATION. 

"  The  citizen  Mariana  Salaa,  General  of  Brigade  and  Colonel 
of  the  Begiinent  Hidalgo,  to  my  fellow-citizens. 

"My  Friends:  The  present  movement  is  the  most  proper  to 
excite  the  public  spirit,  and  form  a  nation  of  men  tnAy  free.  When 
an  enemy  triumphs  by  his  union  to  rob  us  of  our  dearest  inter- 
ests, there  is  nothing  more  sure  and  more  certain  than  to  van- 
quish him  by  valor  and  constancy.  For  this  end  I  have  obtained 
permission  to  raise  a  guerilla  corps,  with  which  to  attack  and 
destroy  the  invaders  in  every  manner  imaginable.  The  conduct 
of  the  enemy,  contrary  both  to  humanity  and  natural  rights, 
authorizes  us  to  pursue  him  without  pity.  War  without  pity  unto 
death!  will  be  the  motto  of  the  guerilla  warfare  of  vengeance. 
Therefore  I  invite  all  my  fellow-citizens,  especially  my  brave 
subordinates,  to  unite  at  general  headquarters  to  enrol  them- 
selves, from  nine  until  three  in  the  afternoon,  so  that  it  may  be 
organized  in  the  present  week. 

"  JosB  Makiana  Salas. 

"Hexioo,  April  21,  1847." 

On  the  4th  of  June,  1847,  General  Scott  wrote  : 

"It  is  ascertained  that  any  sick  or  wounded  men  left  in  the 
road,  or  in  small  villages,  would  be  certainly  murdered  by  guerilla 
parties,  rancheros  or  banditti.  And  I  am  not  absolutely  certain 
that  threats  of  punishment  will  render  our  hospitals  safe,  even 
in  large  cities.  Explain,  to  all,  the  rules  of  war  in  such  cases. 
Military  hospitals  are  universally  regarded  by  civilized  enemies 
as  sacred." 

On  the  19th  of  July,  1847,  the  Secretary  of  War 
wrote  to  General  Scott  : 

"  The  difficulties  to  be  encountered  on  the  route  to  the  interior 
have  rendered  it  necessary  to  detain  the  successive  detachments 
at  Vera  Cruz,  until  concentrated  in  sufficient  force  to  take  up  the 
line  of  march  for  your  headquarters.  The  breaking  up  of  our 
post  at  Jalapa  appears  to  have  greatly  increased  the  diEQculties 


310  MEMO  IBS  OF  A 

of  our  communications  with  the  interior  of  the  country.  Efforts 
are  making  to  raise  several  mounted  companies  of  acclimated 
men  at  New  Orleans  and  in  that  region,  principally  for  the  pur- 
pose of  having  them  employed  at  Vera  Cruz  to  protect  the  pub- 
lic property  at  that  place,  and  to  defend  it,  and  to  clear  the  route 
into  the  interior,  of  the  guerillas  who  infest  and  obstruct  it." 

Again  General  Scott  wrote  : 

"  It  is  the  universal  opinion  of  well-informed  persons  in  this 
country  that  troops  may  land  at  Vera  Cruz,  and  by  marching 
promptly  reach  the  healthy  region,  with  little  or  no  loss  from 
disease,  as  late  as  some  time  in  June;*  whereas  even  Mexicans 
of  the  upper  country  would  suffer  greatly  in  a  week,  by  a  visit 
to  the  Tierra  Caliente.  General  Santa  Anna  is  at  present  at 
Cordova  or  Orizaba,  endeavoring  to  create  a  new  army  of  irregu- 
lars. Other  generals  are  also  endeavoring  to  prepare  for  a  guer- 
illa war  upon  our  detachments,  trains  and  stragglers,  and  they 
may,  without  great  precautions  on  our  part,  do  much  harm  in 
the  aggregate.  Our  dangers  and  difficulties  are  all  in  the  rear, 
between  this  place  (Jalapa)  and  Vera  Cruz  :  1st.  The  season  of 
the  year,  heat ;  and,  below  Cerro  Gordo,  sand  and  disease.  2d.  An 
impossibility  (almost)  of  establishing  any  intermediate  post,  say 
at  the  National  Bridge,  or  any  other  point,  on  account  of  disease, 
and  the  want  of  sufficient  supplies  within  easy  reach.  3d.  The 
danger  of  having  our  trains  cut  and  destroyed  by  the  exasper- 
ated rancheros.  And  4th.  The  consequent  necessity  of  escorting 
trains. 

"The  yellow  fever  at  Vera  Cruz,  and  on  the  road  fifty  miles 
this  way  (Jalapa),  may  soon  cut  us  off  from  our  depot.  Deep 
sand,  disease,  and  bands  of  guerillas  constitute  difficulties. 

"  Within  the  distance  of  fifty  miles  from  Vera  Cruz  I  doubt 
whether  I  can  hazard  a  depot  or  garrison  (from  fear  of  the  fever)." 

In  a  letter  to  Lieutenant  Semnies,  of  the  navy, 
General  Scott  wrote  from  Jalapa  : 

*  We  arrived  in  August. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  ^l\ 

"  The  difficulty  of  seuding  forward  a  flag  of  truoe  at  this  time 
with  communications  to  the  Mexican  government,  if  there  be  a 
competent  government  anywhere,  consists  in  the  necessity  of 
protecting  the  flag  by  a  large  escort  against  rancheros  or  banditti, 
who  infest  the  road  all  the  w^ay  to  the  capital,  and  who  rob  and 
murder  even  w^ouuded  Mexican  officers  returning  on  parole  to 
their  friends." 

On  the  1st  of  September,  1847,  Secretary  Marcy 
wrote  to  General  Scott : 

"  The  last  communication  received  from  you  here  is  dated  at 
PuebJa,  on  the  4th  of  June.  No  doubt  is  entertained  that  the 
difficulties  of  communication  with  Vera  Cruz  have  produced  this 
long  interruption  in  your  correspondence  with  the  department." 

And  on  the  6th  of  October,  1847,  the  Secretary  of 
War  wrote  to  General  Scott : 

"  The  guerilla  system  which  has  been  resorted  to  by  the 
Mexicans  is  hardly  recognized  as  a  legitimate  mode  of  warfare, 
and  should  be  met  with  the  utmost  allowable  severity.  Not  only 
those  embodied  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  out  that  system,  but 
those  who  at  any  time  have  been  engaged  in  it,  or  who  have 
sustained,  sheltered,  and  protected  them,  are  much  less  entitled 
to  favorable  consideration  than  the  soldiers  in  the  ranks  of  the 
regular  Mexican  army.  They  should  be  seized  or  held  as  pris- 
oners of  war,  and  sent  to  the  United  States  if  it  is  not  convenient 
to  hold  them.  Their  haunts  and  places  of  rendezvous  should 
be  broken  up  and  dcstroj'ed.  Those  implicated  in  the  murder  of 
non-combatants,  or  in  robbery  and  plunder,  should  be  subjected 
to  a  severer  treatment." 

The  nature  of  the  country  in  this  Tierra  Caliente 
greatly  favored  the  guerilla  system ;  for  miles  from 
the  Gulf  coast  the  road  was  over  deep  sands,  through 
sand-hills  and  chaparral,  and  our  men  marched 
slowly,  distressed  by  the  intense  heat  which  pre- 
vailed.  The  Antigua  River,  finding  its  sources  in  the 


312  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

Cordilleras,  which  fringe  the  western  border  of  the 
State  of  Vera  Cruz,  runs  nearly  an  eastern  course  to 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  emptying  into  the  latter  about 
forty  miles  north  of  the  city  of  Vera  Cruz,  at  the  old 
town  of  Antigua,  founded  by  the  companions  of 
Cortez.  Stretching  out  on  either  bank  for  some  dozen 
miles,  there  is  a  district  of  strictly  tropical  vegetation, 
a  dense  jungle  of  nearly  impenetrable  forest  foliage. 
The  river  and  the  noble  stone  bridge  which  spans  it, 
with  the  surrounding  heights,  was  a  formidable  mili- 
tary position  ;  the  jungle  was  a  sure  refuge  in  danger, 
and  a  still  better  lurking  place  from  which  to  emerge 
for  sudden  attack.  Thoroughly  acquainted  with  all 
the  by-ways  among  the  sand-hills  and  the  trails 
through  the  wilderness  of  cane  and  vine  and  cacti  of 
the  jungle,  they  would  pounce  upon  our  troops,  dis- 
charge an  unexpected  volley  of  balls  in  their  midst, 
and  if  successful  in  producing  a  stampede,  would 
plunder  and  set  fire  to  the  wagon  or  mule-train  of 
supplies.  If  unsuccessful  in  their  first  assault,  they 
generally  withdrew,  being  lost  to  view  in  a  few  min- 
utes, and  their  vicinity  only  known  by  the  dropping 
shots  into  our  ranks,  fired  from  a  distance,  but  suffi- 
cient to  harass  and  annoy  the  weary  men  toiling 
through  the  burning  sands.  Their  chief  haunts  were 
at  El  Paso  de  Ovejas  and  the  National  Bridge,  where 
they  were  in  considerable  force  under  three  of  their 
famous  leaders,  Chico  (or  little)  Mendoza,  Zenobio, 
and  the  Priest  Padre  Jarauta.  It  was  these  bands 
that  attacked  us,  and  that  we  drove  from  the  occu- 
pancy of  their  strongholds. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTKEK.  2>\Z 


CHAPTER    XXIX. 

VIEWS    OF    OUR    GOVKUNMUNT    AS    TO    THE    CONDUdT    OV 
THE    WAR. 

Ui'  to  tlio  6th  day  of  October,  1847,  the  War  De- 
partiiu'iit  was  not  in  receipt  of  nny  hater  dispatches 
from  General  Scott  than  those  dated  at  Puebla,  June 
4tli.  At  this  date,  October  6th,  however,  the  gov- 
ernment had  learned  of  the  operations  at  Contreras 
and  of  the  success  of  our  arms  in  the  battle  at  that 
place.  It  is  interesting  to  know  the  views  of  the 
administration  at  this  epoch,  and  we  have  the  whole 
history  in  two  letters  from  the  War  Department  at 
Washington;  the  one  dated  September  1,  1847, 
written  by  the  Honorable  John  Y.  Mason,  acting 
Secretary  of  War,  the  other  dated  October  6,  1847, 
and  written  by  the  Secretary  himself.  Both  of  these 
gentlemen  were  very  able  men,  and  this  consideration 
gives  additional  weight  to  the  fact  that  they  were  the 
accredited  organs  of  our  government  and  supposed  to 
speak  its  views. 

They  were  both  addressed  to  General  Scott,  and  the 
first  is  as  follows  : 

"  Waii  DicrAKTMKNT,  Poptcniboi'  1,  18-17. 

"Sm, — In  the  tompoi'nry  nliscnco  of  (lie  Soci-etary  oT  War, 
caused  by  sickness,  tlio  rrusidont  has  reinicsU'd  mo  to  take 
chai'go  of  this  dopai'tnient. 

"Fi'OMi  infornialldii  which  has  reached  us,  it  is  supposed  that 
you  comnionced  your  forward  niovcuient  on  the  city  of  Mexico 


314  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

on  the  7tli  (of  June),  and  it  is  confidently  believed  that  you  are 
now  in  possession  of  the  enemy's  capital.* 

"  The  obstinate  persistence  of  the  ^[exicans  to  treat,  their 
utter  disregard  to  the  rules  of  civilized  warfare,  and  the  large 
expenditures  we  are  compelled  to  make,  have  impressed  on  the 
President  the  firm  conviction  that  those  rights  of  exacting  con- 
tribution from  the  enemy  which  are  conferred  ou  a  belligerent 
by  the  acknowledged  law  of  nations  should  be  exercised.  Tour 
remarks  in  your  dispatch,  dated  at  Jalapa,  May  20,  1S4';,  have 
been  carefnllv  observed.  Your  circumstances  are  since  materially 
changed  ;  and  if,  as  we  doubt  not,  you  have  triumphantly  en- 
tered the  city  of  Mexico,  the  President  directs  me  again  to  call 
your  attention  to  the  dispatch  of  the  3d  of  April  last,  a  copy  of 
which  is  here  inclosed. 

"The  property-holders  of  ^Mexico  have  no  claim  to  find  in  the 
market  afforded  by  sales  to  our  army  an  actual  pecuniary  benefit 
resulting-  from  the  war.  They  must  be  made  to  feel  its  evils; 
and  it  is  earnestly  hoped  and  expected  that  you  will  not  find,  in 
your  present  circumstances,  a  necessity  to  adhere  to  your  opinion, 
that  a  resort  to  forced  contributions  will  exasperate  and  ruin  the 
inhabitants  and  starve  the  army.  Contributions  may  be  exacted 
from  cities  or  states  or  wealthy  individuals,  and  payment  made 
for  provisions  and  other  supplies  brought  to  the  camp  or  col- 
lected in  kind.  It  is  not  improbable  that  men  of  wealth  and 
means  nia}- profess  to  belong  mainly  to  the  peace  party;  and 
it  may  be  apprehended  that  they  will  be  driven  from  their 
pacific  position  by  coercive  proceedings.  But,  however  such  an 
eft'ect  may  be  apprehended,  it  is  more  probable  that  their  exer- 
tions to  promote  a  termination  of  the  war  will  be  made  more 
serious  and  efficient  when  they  feel  the  oppressive  evils  of  the 
state  of  war.  Judging  from  the  cruelties  and  atrocities  which 
are  reported  in  different  parts  of  Mexico  to  have  been  inflicted 
by  the  ^[exicans  whenever  an  opportunity  presents  itself  on  a 
single  soldier  or  a  weaker  party,  there  is  no  hope  of  their  recip- 
rocating kind,  generous,  or  humane  exercise  of  the  rights  of  war 

*  This  was  far  from  the  fact,  and  I  am  inclined  to  think  that 
Mr.  Mason  only  hojjed  so. 


MAR FL AND    VOLUNTEER.  315 

oa  our  part ;  and,  without  retaliating  sucli  disg-raceful  atrocities 
in  kiud,  every  dictate  of  duty  to  ourselves  requires  that  we  shall 
not  abstaiu  from  the  exercise  of  our  right  of  exaction  from  the 
enemy. 

"  The  mode  of  exercising  this  right  is,  and  must  be,  left  to  your 
discretion  ;  but  it  is  earnestly  hoped  that  you  will  put  the  system 
into  operation  to  the  utmost  practicable  extent.  The  safety  and 
subsistence  of  the  troops  under  j'our  command  will,  of  course, 
not  be  placed  in  jeopardy  by  the  desire  to  enforce  this  system  if 
you  find  that  in  its  exercise  such  a  result  will  follow. 

"  Very  respectfullj',  j'our  obedient  servant, 
"  John  Y.  Masox, 
"  Acting  Secretary  of  Wai'." 

Ml'.  Marcy's  letter  is  as  follows : 

"War  Dei'Aktmext, 
'•  AYashingtox,  October  6,  1847. 
"Sir,— 

:i*  *  ^  5|c  :(;  ^  ^ 

"  Accounts  upon  which  reliance  is  placed  have  recently  reached 
us  that  the  negotiations  for  peace  have  terminated  unsuccessfully, 
and  that  hostilities  recommenced  on  the  8th  or  9th  ultimo  (Sep- 
tember). We  have  also  the  gratifying  intelligence  that  you  have 
succeeded  in  capturing  the  city  of  ^Mexico,  and  are  waiting  with 
deep  anxiety  for  the  particulars  of  your  operations  up  to  and 
including  that  important  event. 

"The  terms  insisted  on  b_v  Mexico,  on  which  only  she  will 
consent  to  conclude  a  peace  (which  also  have  been  received 
here),  are  so  extravagant  and  inadmissible  that  there  is  no  alter- 
native left  but  to  prosecute  the  war. 

"It  is  quite  evident  that  the  authorities  of  Mexico  would  not 
present  and  insist  upon,  as  a  basis  for  peace,  terms  which  could 
not  be  entertained  for  a  moment  by  us  without  national  dishonor, 
were  they  not  encouraged  to  continue  tlie  war  by  that  portion  of 
the  population  as  well  as  others  upon  which  the  burdens  of  the 
war  ought  to  fall,  and  upon  which,  in  the  further  prosecution  of 
it,  they  must  be  made  to  fall  as  the  only  means  now  left  of  bring- 
ing it  to  a  close.     Wo  have  hitherto  been  far  more  forbearing 


316  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

than  is  customary  io  exercising  the  extreme  and  even  some  of 
the  ordinary  rights  of  belligerents.  It  is  now  evident  that  our 
leniency  has  not  been  appreciated  nor  reciprocated,  but,  on  the 
contrary,  has  been  repaid  with  bad  faith  and  barbarity,  and  it  is 
only  met  by  a  blind  obstinacy  and  a  reckless  determination  to 
prolong  the  conflict. 

"  However  unwilling  we  maybe  to  modify  our  humane  policy, 
a  change  now  seems  to  be  required  even  by  the  considerations 
of  humanity.  We  must  take  the  best  measures  within  the 
clearly-admitted  course  of  civilized  warfare,  to  beget  a  disposi- 
tion in  the  people  of  Mexico  to  come  to  an  adjustment  upon  fair 
and  honorable  terms.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  people 
of  Mexico,  indulging,  as  it  is  evident  they  do,  the  most  hostile 
feelings,  are  not  less  parties  to  the  war  tlian  the  Mexican  army; 
and  as  a  means  of  peace  they  must  be  made  to  feel  its  evils. 

"  The  guerilla  system  which  has  been  resorted  to  is  hardly 
recognized  as  a  legitimate  mode  of  warfare,  and  should  be  met 
with  the  utmost  allowable  severity.  Not  only  those  embodied 
for  the  purpose  of  carrying  out  that  system,  but  those  who  at 
any  time  have  been  engaged  in  it,  or  who  have  sustained,  shel- 
tered, and  protected  them,  are  much  less  entitled  to  favorable 
consideration  than  the  soldiers  in  the  ranks  of  the  regular  Mexi- 
can army.  They  should  be  seized  and  held  as  prisoners  of  war, 
and  sent  to  the  United  States  if  it  is  not  convenient  to  hold 
them.  Their  haunts  and  places  of  rendezvous  should  be  broken 
up  and  destroyed.  Those  implicated  in  the  murder  of  non- 
combatants,  or  in  robbery  and  plunder,  should  be  subjected  to  a 
severer  treatment.  Independent  of  restraints,  etc.,  upon  their 
persons,  all  their  property  and  effects  within  our  reach  should 
be  unhesitatingly  seized  and  devoted  to  public  use.  In  relation 
to  other  prisoners  and  officers  I  refer  you  to  my  dispatch  of 
May  31st. 

"  Permit  me  to  invite  your  attention  to  the  dispatch  from  this 
department  of  the  1st  ultimo  (a  copy  of  which  is  herewith  sent), 
and  urge  the  suggestions  therein  contained  upon  your  particular 
consideration.  The  burden  of  sustaining  our  forces  in  Mexico 
must  be  thrown,  to  the  utmost  extent,  upon  the  people  of  that 
country ;  its  resources  should  be  resorted  to  in  every  manner 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  317 

consistent  with  the  usages  of  civilized  war  for  that  purpose,  and 
it  is  hoped  that  your  situation  is  such  as  will  warrant  you  in 
making  this  resort,  at  least  to  the  extent  required  for  the  sup- 
port of  our  army.  The  men  of  means  who  have  willingly  con- 
tributed aid  to  support  the  Mexican  army  should  be  forced  to 
contribute  to  the  support  of  ours. 

Without  a  particular  knowledge  of  your   situation,  of  the 
available  force  you  now  have  at  your  command,  or  of  the  resist- 
ance the  enemy  are  still  capable  of  making,  nothing  more  than 
suggestions,  in  regard  to  your  future  proceedings,  will  be  sub- 
'  mitted  for  your  consideration. 

"  I  need  not  urge  upon  you  the  adoption  of  all  measures 
necessary  for  holding  the  city  of  Mexico  and  the  principal  places 
between  that  city  and  Vera  Cruz.  To  open  and  keep  open  the 
way  between  these  two  cities  would  seem  to  be  required  for 
holding  securely  what  is  already  conquered  and  for  future  opera- 
tions.    For  this  purpose  a  considerable  increase  of  your  force, 

it  is  presumed,  will  be  indispensable 

"  With   this   augmentation   of  strength,  it   is 

hoped  that  you  will  be  able  to  accomplish  not  only  the  objects 
before  indicated  (should  you  deem  them  preferable  to  others),  but 
to  carry  on  further  aggressive  operations,  to  achieve  new  con- 
quests, to  disperse  the  remaining  army  of  the  enemy  in  your 
vicinity,  and  prevent  the  organization  of  another.  Left,  as  you 
are,  to  your  own  judgment  as  to  your  military  operations,  the 
fullest  confidence  is  entertained  that  you  will  conduct  them  in 
the  most  effective  way  to  bring  about  the  main  and  ultimate 
object  of  the  war,  namely,  to  induce  the  rulers  and  people  of 
Mexico  to  desire  and  consent  to  such  terras  of  peace  as  we  have 
a  right  to  ask  and  expect. 

"  Should  they  offer  through  you  terms  of  accommodation,  or 
propose  to  enter  on  negotiations,  the  President  directs  that  such 
propositions  be  forwarded  without  delay  to  him ;  but  it  is  not 
expected  that  your  movements  or  measures  for  carrying  on 
hostilities  will  be  thereby  relaxed,  or  in  anywise  changed. 

"I  have  the  honor  to  be,  very  respectfully,  your  obedient  ser- 
vant, 

"W.  L.  Makct,  Secretary  of  "War. 
"Major-General  WiNriELD  Scott, 

"  Commanding  United  States  Army,  Mexico." 


318  MEMOIRS  OP  A 


CHAPTER    XXX. 

OPERATIONS    AT   AND   ABOUT    THE    NATIONAL   BRIDGE. 

We  were  in  full  occupancy  of  the  pass,  but  our 
active  foe  gave  us  little  rest;  by  day  and  by  night< 
the  report  of  firearms  was  heard,  accompanied  by  the 
ringing  of  metal  through  the  air,  and  we  were  not  less 
active.  In  fact,  there  was  a  busy  time  about  the 
National  Bridge,  and  the  kind  of  warfare  waged  on 
both  sides  was  entirely  opposite  to  all  my  feelings. 
This  was  uncongenial  work  to  me.  The  system 
inaugurated  against  us  was  the  apology  for  our 
course ;  but  it  never  met  with  the  approval  of  my 
judgment,  and  at  the  earliest  opportunity  I  made 
known  my  sentiments  with  regard  to  it.  But  I  am 
anticipating. 

To  return  to  my  journal. 

September  13,  1847.  We  were  under  arms  all  last 
night,  hearing,  at  intervals,  heavy  firing,  which  ap- 
peared not  far  from  us,  and  not  knowing  which  way 
to  move,  as  we  could  not  locate  the  whereabouts  of 
the  contest,  the  windings  of  the  river  and  nature  of 
the  country  carrying  sound  in  varied  reverberating 
echoes.  We  had  to  wait  until  we  knew  where  to  strike. 
At  10  A.M.  to-day  a  train  of  thirty  wagons  arrived, 
escorted  by  about  five  hundred  recruits,  under  Cap- 
tain Heintzelman,  Second  Infantry,  United  States 
Army.     He  had  been  attacked  where  we  had  been, 


ilARFLAND   VOLUNTEER.  3^9 

at  El  Paso  de  Oveja.?,  and,  less  fortunate  than  we, 
had  lost  one  man  killed  and  one  wounded.  This 
was  the  firing  which  we  had  heard.  He  had  had  a 
lively  time  on  his  way  up.  As  his  harassed  troops 
threw  themselves  on  the  ground  in  front  of  our  quar- 
ters, a  musket  was  accidentally,  discharged,  and  two 
of  the  men  severely  wounded.  I  was  struck  with  the 
absolute  indifference  with  which  this  mishap  was 
treated  by  the  comrades  of  the  wounded  men.  About 
sundown  an  odd-looking  vehicle — an  antique  family 
carriage — hove  in  sight,  drawn  by  any  number  of 
mules.  It  contained  the  family  of  the  Seilor  Don 
Antonio  de  Maria  Campos,  which  had  the  requisite 
permission  to  leave  the  country.  We  gave  up  to 
the  ladies  two  of  our  rooms  and  made  much  of  the 
children. 

Septemler  14.  Senor  Campos  and  family  left  this 
morning.  One  of  our  companies  scouting  to  day  lost 
one  man  by  drowning  in  crossing  the  Antigua  River, 
and  Lieutenant  Thom,  of  the  Eleventh  Infantry,  was 
wounded.  The  priest  of  the  neighboring  country  came 
into  camp,  waving  a  white  handkerchief.  I  admitted 
hira,  and  learned  from  him  his  business,  which  was  to 
procure  the  release  of  one  of  our  prisoners. 

September  16.  A  great  many  of  our  men  are  sick, 
and  the  duty  upon  all  of  us  who  are  well  is  very  heavy. 
We  don't  know  what  rest  is.  To-day  Colonel  Hughes 
issued  an  order  turning  over  the  command  to  me,  as 
he  was  too  sick  to  continue  on  duty  ;  the  heat  and 
over-exertion  had  broken  him  down.  Lieutenant 
Newby,  of  the  Second  Regiment  of  Illinois  Volun- 
teers, died  at  9  o'clock  p.m.,  from  the  yellow  fever  con- 


320  MEMOIRS  OP  A 

tracted  at  Vera  Cruz  ;  it  was  a  case  which,  when  once 
seen,  would  leave  no  doubt  of  what  was  meant  by  the 
black  vomit. 

Septemher  17.     I  issued  the  following  order: 

"  Headquarters  U.  S.  Troops, 
".  PuENTE  Nacional,  September  17,  1847. 
"  Orders.'] 

"  I.  It  becomes  the  painful  duty  of  the  commanding  officer  to 
announce  the  death  of  Lieutenant  H.  B.  Newby,  of  the  Second 
Regiment  Illinois  Volunteers,  who  died  last  night  of  vomito  con- 
tracted at  Vera  Cruz.  The  deceased,  though  separated  from  his 
brother  ofBcers  and  friends,  had  every  attention  and  medical  aid 
furnished  him  which  this  post  could  supply,  and  by  none  will 
his  death  be  more  regretted  than  by  his  brother  volunteer  officers 
from  the  District  of  Columbia  and  State  of  Maryland. 

"II.  Captain  Lawrence  Dolan,  of  Company  C,  District  of  Col- 
umbia and  Maryland  Regiment  of  Volunteers,  is  hereby  detailed 
to  take  charge  of  the  funeral  escort,  and  to  cause  to  be  paid  to 
the  remains  of  the  deceased  the  usual  military  honors. 

"By  command  John  R.  Kenly,  Major 
"  D.  C.  and  M'd.  Regt.  Comd'g. 

"James  Si'eele,  First  Lieut,  and  Adj't." 

His  remains  were  interred  in  the  north-east  corner 
of  the  court-yard  of  Santa  Anna's  hacienda. 

September  22.  A  train  got  through  and  reached 
us  this  morning,  escorted  by  some  sixteen  hundred 
men  under  Brigadier-General  Lane.  It  was  attacked 
at  El  Paso  de  Ovejas,  and,  among  others,  Lieutenant 
Klein  of  the  Louisiana  mounted  men  was  killed.  His 
body  was  brought  to  my  post  and  excited  great  inter- 
est; there  was  an  unmistakable  smile  on  his  pallid 
countenance;  there  was  something  of  fascination 
about  it,  so  much  so  that  you  felt  indisposed  to  leave 
the  body.     He  was  a  large  man,  and  had  been  shot 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  32I 

through  the  head,  the  ball  making  but  a  small  orifice 
in  the  forehead  where  he  was  hit;  and  his  features 
were  as  regular,  and  his  expression  as  pleasant,  as  if 
he  were  dreaming  of  home  and  of  those  whom  he 
loved.  Groups  continued  around  the  corpse  until  it  was 
enveloped  in  a  blanket  and  buried  in  the  earth.  He 
was  buried  by  a  detail  from  General  Lane's  command. 

September  25.  Before  leaving,  General  Lane  re- 
viewed all  the  troops  now  concentrated  at  this  point; 
the  heat  was  blistering,  and  ill-health  and  ill-humor 
sat  upon  the  countenances  of  many.  In  the  evening 
immense  flocks  of  parrots  flew  over  our  camp,  going 
in  a  north-westerly  direction.  They  invariably  fly  in 
pairs;  among  the  tens  of  thousands  that  went  screech- 
ing and  palavering  in  the  air  each  pair  was  notice- 
able ;  if  there  were  an  odd  one,  a  bachelor  or  a  spin- 
ster, it  might  be  distinguished  on  the  flanks  of  the 
main  body  of  couples.  After  night-fall,  the  perfume 
of  the  vanilla  is  very  observable  in  the  miasma  which 
rises  like  a  fog  from  the  rank  vegetation.  This  fog 
is  dense,  humid,  and  unpleasant  to  all  one's  sensibili- 
ties ;  you  feel  that  there  is  poison  in  its  vapors ;  our 
sick  list  shovFS  its  power,  and  the  mounds  of  upturned 
earth,  its  effects  upon  the  troops.  I  would  single  out 
this  place  for  its  unhealthfulness,  as  the  most  to  be 
dreaded,  not  excepting  Chagres,  on  the  Isthmus,  in 
North  America. 

September  27.  An  express  reached  us  to-night  from 
above,  bringing  the  extraordinary  intelligence  that 
General  Santa  Anna  was  in  the  vicinity  of  Puebla, 
the  garrison  of  which  had  been  driven  into  the  cita- 
del by  the  inhabitants,  and  that  a  general  stampede 

21 


322 


MEMOIRS  OF  A 


existed  among  the  American  troops.  We  had  noticed 
during  the  day  that  the  firing  had  been  more  continu- 
ous than  usual,  and  I  had  held  back  the  scouting  par- 
ties. Colonel  Hughes  was  again  in  command,  and  at 
the  urgent  request  of  General  Lane  he  sent  to  his 
assistance  the  commands  of  Major  Taliaferro,  McCoy, 
and  Captain  Simmonds,*  which  left  us  in  the  midst 
of  all  this  excitement  with  but  four  companies  of  our 
regiment  to  hold  the  bridge,  and  but  two  companies 
occupying  the  fort  on  the  heights.  This  was  a  very 
anxious  night ;  T  can  safely  say  no  one  slept,  and 
from  the  Colonel  commanding  to  the  cooks,  the  con- 
dition of  affairs  above  and  below  was  the  sole  subject 
of  conversation. 

Seplember  28.  An  American  and  a  young  Mexican 
officer  arrived  to-day  from  above  (Jalapa),  bringing  a 
confirmation  of  the  report  that  Santa  Anna  was  at 
Puebla,  and  the,  to  us,  astounding  intelligence,  that 
General  Scott  had  fought  another  bloody  battle  and' 
had  entered  the  city  of  Mexico.  The  reader  will  bear 
in  mind  that  this  was  the  first  intimation  we  had 
that  Scott  was  in  the  enemy's  capital.  But  what  was 
Santa  Anna  doing  at  Puehla  ?  The  solution  of  this 
question  at  this  time  was  beyond  my  military  genius, 
and  I  gave  it  up  in  despair,  only  after  worrying  myself 
nearly  sick  in  the  efforts  I  made  to  understand  it. 

September  29.  If  you  ever  saw  a  beehive  over- 
turned, an  uncommon  degree  of  activity  moves  the 
busy  bee ;  imagine  a  half  dozen  hives  rudely  upset, 

*  McCoy  and  Sinimonds  had  been  left  by  General  Lane  to 
strengthen  the  post  at  the  National  Bridge. 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  323 

and  instead  of  bees,  guerillas  were  the  occupants ; 
then  you  can  picture  the  buzz  that  was  now  about 
our  post  from  the  swarms  of  exasperated  Mexicans, 
who,  maddened  by  the  loss  of  their  capital,  threw 
themselves  on  the  line  of  Scott's  communications. 
Whilst  at  breakfast  this  morning,  a  bullet  passed  over 
our  table  and  buried  itself  in  the  wall;  it  was  not 
safe  to  venture  from  shelter,  and  serious  apprehen- 
sions existed  that  we  would  be  unable  to  get  water 
without  the  sacrifice  of  life,  as  our  only  supply  was 
from  the  Antigua  River  in  rear  of  the  hacienda.  A 
system  of  signals  was  devised  to  communicate  with 
the  fort,  and  during  the  day  I  got  up  the  six-pound 
cannon  to  the  top  of  the  building  in  which  we  were 
quartered,  and  planted  the  twelve-pound  howitzer  in 
the  piazza  which  ran  around  it.  We  concentrated 
our  force  in  and  around  the  building,  grenelled  the 
walls,  and  if  we  could  only  get  water  and  rations  we 
were  going  to  hold  on  for  some  time,  at  least. 

A  little  before  this  time,  there  had  reached  us  from 
Vera  Cruz  two  young  officers  of  the  army,  endeavor- 
ing to  join  their  regiments  with  General  Scott.  Not 
being  able  to  go  farther,  they  joined  our  command 
temporarily;  their  names  were  Lieutenants  Ambrose 
E.  Burnside  and  John  Gibbon.*  These  gentlemen  were 
ol  material  assistance  to  us,  cheerfully  laboring  to  in- 
struct and  drill  the  troops,  and  upon  all  occasions 
showing  such  zeal  and  alacrity  in  the  performance  of 
duty,  as  to  inspire  in  our  officers  a  noble  emulation, 


*  Major-Generals,  both  of  them,   in   the   war   for  the  main- 
tenance of  the  Union. 


324  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

to  equal  the  example  which  the  Military  Academy 
at  West  Point  had  thus  placed  as  frontlets  before 
their  eyes. 

October  1.  The  courier  of  the  British  Legation, 
Captain  John  Bernand,  an  old  cavalry  officer  of  the 
Peninsular  army,  who  rides  post  between  the  capital 
and  Vera  Cruz,  for  his  legation,  came  in  last  evening 
from  above,  and  although  very  careful  in  what  he 
said,  told  me  he  had  seen  Santa  Anna  at  Puebla ;  that 
Scott's  army  was  in  the  city  of  Mexico,  and  the  whole 
country  in  his  rear  swarming  with  armed  Mexicans, 
who  had  escaped  the  defeat  of  their  armies  in  the 
valley. 

We  are  still  fortifying  this  building,  raising  the 
parapets  on  the  roof  with  bags  filled  with  sand,  and 
strengthening  the  palisade  fence  which  surrounds  the 
hacienda  with  chevaux  de  frise ;  it  is  the  opinion  of 
the  prisoners  that  we  will  soon  be  attacked  in  force 
and  driven  out  or  captured.     Vei-emos. 

We  may  be  starved  out,  for  we  are  now  living  upon 
ship-biscuijt  (hard-tack)  and  beans,  this  is  all  we  have 
of  any  kind  of  food  ;  it  is  healthy,  if  not  savory.  The 
news  we  have  heard,  and  the  rumors  on  the  lips  of 
all,  are  meat  and  drink  ;  and  the  very  uncertainty 
which  prevails  as  to  each  and  everything, — whether 
this  be  true,  or  that  but  a  rumor, — keeps  us  on  the  qui 
vive  and  out  of  the  hospital. 

They  say  that  Colonel  Childs  is  having  a  rough 
time  in  Puebla,  and  as  soon  as  he  is  routed  our  turn 
will  come ;  that  Scott  hemmed  in  at  Mexico  is  in 
worse  plight  than  if  he  had  been  repulsed  in  his 
attack ;   and  that  the  loss  of  the  national  capital  has 


3IABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  325 

united  all  classes  and  factions  to  a  prolonged  war  of 
resistance.* 

October  8.  There  is  no  further  intelligence  from 
above;  the  guerillas  have  been  quiet  for  the  past 
few  days,  rumor  saying  that  they  are  being  concen- 
trated on  the  Orizaba  Road.  We  are  in  the  most 
intense  anxiety  to  hear  from  Puebla  and  the  fate  of 
General  Lane's  column,  which  moved  to  the  support 
of  Colonel  Childs,  beleaguered  at  that  city.  We  have 
abnndoned  all  ideas  of  peace  unless  it  be  made  by  our 
Congress.  We  can  get  no  particulars  of  the  last  bat- 
tles at  the  city  of  Mexico,  nor  of  what  is  transpiring 
there  or  elsewhere ;  rumors  reach  us  that  Tilgh- 
man's  battery  is  en  route  from  Baltimore  to  join  us. 
Would  that  it  were  here  ! 

October  12.  A  Frenchman  arrived  to-night  at  our 
post  from  the  city  of  Mexico.  He  says  that  General 
Scott's  force  in  the  city  is  considered  in  a  precarious 
situation,  being  reduced  by  his  losses  in  the  late  bat- 
tles to  six  thousand  effective  men  ;  that  the  Mexican 
Congress  will  disband ;  that  he  saw  Santa  Anna  at 
Puebla,  but  he  was  without  artillery  and  his  troops 
dissipated ;  that  General  Lane  had  arrived  and  our 
people  had  now  no  apprehensions ;  that  the  whole 
country  was  in  a  dreadful  condition,  and  that  Jalapa 
had  been  entered  by  robbers  and  guerillas  who  plun- 
dered all  those  said  to  be  friendly  to  the  Americans, 
many  of  the  same  unfortunates  having  been  hereto- 
fore punished  by  our  troops  for  furnishing  the  guerillas 

*  These  were  the  rumors  current  at  the  time,  and  serve  to 
illustrate  the  actual  condition  of  atfairs. 


326  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

with  supplies  and  munitions  of  war;  and  finally  that 
anarchy  reigned  supreme  in  the  capital,  there  being 
not  even  the  semblance  of  a  government  anywhere. 
I  really  felt  sorry  for  the  poor  Mexicans ;  their  condi- 
tion is  deplorable. 

October  16.  Scouting  to-day,  my  horse  fell,  and  I 
with  him,  into  a  pit  which  looked  to  nie  like  the  cellar 
of  one  of  our  city  houses  ;*  neither  of  us  were  much 
hurt,  but  it  required  a  good  deal  of  labor  to  get  us  up 
again.  The  heat  in  this  chaparral  I  lack  language  to 
describe;  it  radiated  from  the  sands  and  danced  about 
in  front  of  you,  impalpable  but  visible,  like  hideous 
phantoms  of  a  diseased  brain.  We  were  glad  enough 
to  get  again  under  the  shelter  of  our  hacienda  when 
night  brought  to  a  close  the  labors  of  the  day. 

October  29.  The  English  minister,  Mr.  Bankhead, 
arrived  to-night  en  route  to  embark  at  Vera  Cruz  for 
home ;  an  escort  had  been  furnished  him  in  Jalapa 
by  the  Mexicans,  as  they  were  in  full  possession  of 
that  city;  and  as  the  cavalcade  approached  I  had 
directed,  in  obedience  to  orders  from  Colonel  Hughes, 
that  a  salute  should  be  fired.  Whether  by  accident 
or  design  (I  judge  the  latter),  the  non-commissioned 
olficer  in  charge  of  the  squad  had  trained  the  gunf  on 
the  crest  of  the  ridge  over  which  the  road  dipped  as 
it  descended  to  the  bridge.     As  soon  as  the  cortege 

*  I  read,  after  I  had  returned  home,  in  Mr.  Brantz  Mayer's 
interesting  book,  that  there  were  ruins  of  au  ancient  Aztec  tem- 
ple within  a  couple  of  leagues  of  the  National  Bridge,  and  I  had 
no  doubt  that  it  was  these  ruins  I  had  fallen  among;  how  I 
regretted  I  was  ignorant  of  this  when  at  the  Bridge ! 

f  It  was  the  gun  which  was  mounted  on  the  lop  of  the  hacienda. 


MARTLAXlf    VOLUNTEER.  307 

appeared  the  gun  was  disohnrgod,  and  that  Avns  the 
hist  of  the  escort ;  wo  had  no  very  good  name  before 
this,  but  fixnn  one  end  of  the  Tierra  Caliente  to  the 
other  it  was  soon  known  that  we  had  not  hesitated 
to  fire  on  the  British  fh\a;.  It  was  a  very  hidicrous 
affiiir,  and  no  one  enjoyed  it  more  than  Mr.  Bankhead. 
He  was  accompanied  by  a  considerable  number  of 
Mexican  families  who  were  fleeing  from  the  country 
under  the  shelter  of  his  official  protection.  Under 
instructions.  Colonel  Hughes  provided  him  with  an 
escort  to  the  coast;  Captains  Pairchild  and  Biscoe,witli 
their  respective  companies  of  Louisiana  mounted  men, 
doing  that  duty  to  the  satisfaction  of  tlie  minister.  I 
will  mention  here,  and  have  no  reason  to  doubt  the 
truth  of  the  story,  for  I  hear^  it  froiii  one  of  the 
party,  that  whilst  at  Jalapa,  after  his  escort  had  been 
provided,  the  minister  had  to  pay  five  hundred  doUai-s 
to  the  chief  of  one  of  tlie  guerilla  bands  for  j>f'*-?;)>,<vs*o» 
to  reach  our  post  through  his  district.  I  was  glad  to 
learn  from  Mr.  Bankhead  that  our  sick  which  had 
been  unavoidably  left  at  Jalapa  had  not  been  ill- 
treated  by  the  guerillas,  being  only  compelled  to  give 
their  paroles  not  to  ser\c  again  during  the  war  or  until 
duly  exchanged. 

It  will  be  borne  in  mind  that  we  were  literally  in 
a  .state  of  siege ;  it  wa^s  only  when  the  siege  was 
raised  by  the  aiTival  of  a  body  of  troops  sufficiently 
strong  to  fight  its  Avay  successfully  through,  or  the 
departiu-e  and  return  of  our  own  mounted  men.  that 
we  had  communication  with  the  outside  world.  We 
were  surrounded  by  the  guerillas,  who  gaw  us  but 
little  quiet,  yet  wh(^e  desultory  firing  annoyed  with- 


328  MEMO  IBS  OF  A 

out  doing  us  much  harm ;  they  were  in  sufficient 
numbers  to  render  it  necessary  to  organize  a  consider- 
able force  at  Vera  Cruz  before  marching  into  the  inte- 
rior, and  to  keep  us  on  the  alert  to  hold  the  bridge. 
This  Ave  had  done  successfully  for  nearly  two  months, 
and  had  swept  the  country  from  the  Cerro  Gordo 
Pass  to  the  San  Juan  River,  north  and  south  of  the 
main  road.  A  period  was  approaching,  when  we 
were  to  be  relieved  from  the  unpleasant  and  danger- 
ous field  of  duty  in  which  I  had  been  so  unwiUingly 
compelled  to  act,  and  no  wearied  sentry  ever  hailed 
the  approach  of  a  relief  with  more  pleasure,  than  I 
did  the  prospect  of  leaving  this  post. 


CHAPTER    XXXI. 

NEGOTIATIONS  WITH  EL  PADRE  JAEAUTA. 

Our  sentries  and  outlying  pickets  were  instructed 
to  recognize  the  holding  up  or  waving  anything  white 
as  a  token  of  peace,  and  under  proper  precautions  to 
suffer  the  party  to  approach  our  lines  for  intercourse. 
Scarcely  a  day  passed  in  which  women  were  not  per- 
mitted to  come  into  camp  to  visit  the  prisoners,  under 
the  white  flag,  nnd  I  can  say  positively,  that  I  never 
knew  or  never  heard  of  a  woman  being  treated  rudely 
or  unkindly  by  us,  who  came  in  under  this  flag. 

On  the  3d  of  November  a  woman  was  brought  to 
our  headquarters  who  had  come  into  camp  in  this 
way  :  she  said  that  what  she  had  to  say  was  important 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  329 

and  confidential.  She  told  us  that  the  guerillas  were 
tired  of  the  war,  and  wanted  to  know  if  two  of  them 
were  to  approach  our  lines  under  a  flag  of  truce,  w^ould 
we  receive  them  and  permit  them  to  return  "free 
and  unharmed." 

My  relations  with  Colonel  Hughes  were  intimate 
and  friendly  from  first  to  last ;  we  were  alone  with 
the  woman  when  I  interpreted  the  substance  of  what 
she  had  said,  and  we  both  saw  at  once  the  importance 
of  this  overture,  and  the  probable  consequences  which 
might  flow  from  it.  Our  intimacy  was  such,  and  we 
shared  each  other's  confidence  so  fully,  that  a  few 
words  between  us  sufficed  to  determine  our  plan. 

We  answered  that  she  might  assure  any  two  un- 
armed Mexicans  that  they  could  enter  our  lines  in 
the  daytime,  and  depart  when  it  pleased  them,  with 
the  usual  reservation  not  to  communicate  anything 
which  might  prove  prejudicial  to  us ;  that  we  would 
send  an  officer  with  her  to  receive  the  flag  at  our 
picket-post,  and  escort  the  bearers  to  headquarters. 

In  the  course  of  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day, 
the  flag  came  in,  and  with  it  two  officers  of  Jarauta's 
band.  They  were  both  white  men,  well-looking,  and 
well  appareled  in  the  uniform  of  Mexican  officers  of 
the  fine.  One  of  them  I  think  was  a  Frenchman,  as 
it  was  in  the  French  tongue  we  communicated,  this 
language  being  more  easy  for  me  to  speak  than  the 
Spanish.  They  told  us  that  the  guerillas  were  tired 
of  the  war,  as  there  appeared  to  be  no  national  resist- 
ance to  our  arms  ;  that  they  had  been  fighting  us  for 
months  without  any  result,  and  they  could  see  none 
as  long   as  we  could    continue   to   send   additional 


330  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

troops  into  the  field  ;  that  the  country  was  being  de- 
vastated to  no  purpose,  and  that  the  capital  having 
fallen,  they  could  find  nothing  to  encourage  them  in 
the  future.  They  told  us  that  they  belonged  to 
Jarauta's  band,  and  named  the  chiefs  of  other  bands 
with  whom  they  federated  for  general  purposes,  but 
with  whom  they  were  not  very  closely  allied,  and 
they  could  not,  nor  were  they  authorized  to  say  what 
might  be  their  action  hereafter;  but  they  believed 
that  if  we  could  agree  upon  terms  with  the  padre, 
that  his  voice  would  control  their  future  course. 

Colonel  Hughes  told  them  the  terms  upon  which  we 
would  receive  their  submission,  and  as  the  officer  said 
that  the  padre  only  understood  Spanish,  I  sat  down 
and  framed  the  following  communication,  which  I  now 
copy  from  the  original  sent  to  Jarauta. 

As  I  had  no  grammar  with  me,  the  Spanish  scholar 
must  not  criticise  it  too  closely. 

"El  Senor  Jarauta  habiendo  enviado  una  proposicion  il  saber 
sobre  cuales  tenninos  se  le  vecibiria;  este  es  para  garantizar  la 
seguridad  corapleta  de  su  persona  y  la  de  sus  oficiales  y  solda- 
dos  y  sus  propriedades,  con  la  condicion  quo  se  rinden  sujetos  a 
la  disposicion  del  General  Scott. 

"  Ea  cualquiera  ev^nto,  sus  vidas  y  propriedades  del  seiior 
Jarauta,  los  de  sus  oficiales  y  sus  soldados  estaran  solemnamente 
respetados. 

"  PuENTE  Nacional,  3d  November  1847." 

These  terms  were,  that  if  Jarauta  would  surren- 
der, together  with  his  officers  and  men,  they  would 
be  guaranteed  the  complete  security  of  person  and 
property,  subject,  however,  to  the  orders  of  General 
Scott,  as  Hughes   had   no  orders  or  instructions  to 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  331 

make  terms  with  the  guerillas,  but  neither  of  us  had 
the  shadow  of  a  doubt  but  that  our  action  would  be 
approved.  For  greater  security,  however,  to  those 
who  might  surrender  under  this  pledge,  I  added  the 
concluding  paragraph,  "  That  under  any  contingency 
(should  they  surrender)  their  lives  and  their  property 
should  be  solemnly  respected." 

After  the  delivery  of  this  paper,  which  they  as- 
sured us  would  be  accepted  by  the  padre,  and,  with  a 
smile,  they  said  hy  many  others,  we  parted  in  the  best 
of  humors,  and  full  of  hopes. 

Our  arrangement  was,  that  at  3  o'clock  the  next 
afternoon,  the  4th  instant,  we  were  to  get  an  answer 
at  the  same  picket  where  we  had  received  their  flag. 

November  4.  During  the  morning,  we  learned  that 
a  column  of  troops  was  approaching  from  Vera  Cruz, 
and  might  be  expected  at  any  moment.  Here  was  a 
dilemma ;  for  the  war  might  recommence  along  the 
entire  line  at  any  moment ;  and  our  honor  was  in- 
volved in  the  pledge  given  to  Jarauta,  which  he  might 
accept,  and  coming  in  under  it,  might — and  itwas  quite 
possible — be  attacked  by  our  troops,  ignorant  of  the 
terms  granted.  We  felt  very  awkward  and  uneasy  all 
the  morning ;  at  3  p.ii.  our  officer  was  at  the  picket, 
and  punctuall}^  came  the  same  Mexican  officers ; 
again  conducted  to  our  quarters,  they  brought  us  the 
gratifying  intelligence  that  Padre  Jarauta  had  agreed 
to  and  accepted  our  terms,  and  that  he  was  at  that 
moment  but  a  short  distance  outside  of  our  lines,  await- 
ing their  return  to  come  in  person  into  our  camp. 

It  may  be,  and  the  chances  are  many  against  its 
probability,  that  no  one  will  ever  read  these  lines  who 


332  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

is  acquainted  with  the  facts  I  have  narrated  and  am 
about  to  write,  yet  I  cannot  resist  the  sense  of  right 
and  justice  which  drives  me  nolens  volens  to  speak. 

We  were  in  the  full  height  of  mutual  congratula- 
tions, at  the  end  of  the  guerilla  war, — for  this,  if  it 
had  been  consummated,  would  have  ended  it  at  least 
upon  our  line, — when  an  orderly  announced  the  ar- 
rival of  the  commanding  officer  of  the  troops  en  route. 

Colonel  Hughes  hurried  to  meet  him  at  the  gate  of 
the  hacienda,  and  soon  he  came  into  the  hall  where 
our  staff  was  entertaining  the  Mexican  officers. 
Hughes  was  explaining  the  business  to  the  general 
when  they  entered,  and  I  saw  at  a  glance  something 
was  wrong. 

The  first  words  uttered  in  reply  to  my  presentation 
were,  "  Tell  them  that  if  I  catch  Jarauta  I  will  hang 
him  to  the  highest  tree  in  the  Tierra  Caliente." 
These  words  and  this  language  are  yet  ringing  in  my 
ears  ;  there  is  not  a  letter,  much  less  a  syllable,  added 
to  or  taken  from  the  sentence. 

The  language  needed  no  interpretation ;  but  it  is  a 
pleasure  to  say  that  those  Mexicans  left  our  lines  in 
safety ;  and  the  warm  grasp  of  the  hand,  the  up- 
lifted cap,  bade  a  final  adieu  without  the  utterance 
of  a  word. 

The  Thirteenth  Regiment  of  United  States  Infantry, 
Colonel  Echols,  having  been  ordered  to  relieve  us,  we 
left  the  post  on  the  5th  of  November,  and  marched  to 
reinforce  General  Scott. 


MABFLAND    VOLUNTEER.  333 

CHAPTER    XXXn. 

NEGOTIATIONS    FOR     PEACE. 

It  will  be  borne  in  mind  that  at  the  time  of  our 
arrival  at  Vera  Cruz,  on  the  24th  of  August,  all  was 
suspense  and  anxiety  about  the  fate  of  our  ariny,  as 
no  authentic  information  had  been  received  from 
General  Scott  for  several  weeks.  It  was  not  until 
the  night  of  September  1st  that  we  learned  of  his 
success  in  the  first  battle  fought  in  the  valley  of 
Mexico,  and  we  must  now  glance  at  things  past  and 
present  essential  to  a  proper  understanding  of  the 
period. 

Although  the  battle  of  Cerro  Gordo  was  fought  on 
the  17th  of  April,  1847,  no  battle  was  fought  between 
the  two  armies  of  American  and  Mexican  troops  until 
the  19th  day  of  August  following,  when  Scott  struck 
Santa  Anna  a  powerful  blow,  at  Contreras,  in  the 
valley  of  Mexico. 

To  explain  this  delay  in  the  advance  of  our  army 
less  than  two  hundred  miles  toward  the  capital  in 
four  months,  would  be  to  write  a  very  interesting 
history,  and  it  would  be  as  difficult  to  write  as  it 
would  be  interesting  to  read.  There  was  ill-feeling 
between  the  general-in-chief  and  the  government. 
Instructions  had  been  given  him  to  impose  a  tariff 
for  revenue,  and  a  schedule  of  articles  of  trade  to  be 
admitted  at  such  ports  or  places  as  might  be  at  any 
time  in  his  military  possession,  was  furnished  him. 


334  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

with  such  rates  of  duty,  as  well  also  upon  tonnage, 
as  would  produce  the  greatest  amount  of  revenue. 
The  enforcement  of  this  tariff  was  not  all  that  was 
imposed  upon  him.  He  was  informed,  that  it  was 
expected  of  hitri  to  exercise  all  the  acknowledged 
rights  of  a  belligerent,  for  the  purjDOse  of  shifting  the 
burden  off  from  ourselves  ujDon  the  Mexicans. 

"The  right  of  an  army  operating  in  an  enemy's  country  to 
seize  supplies,  to  forage,  and  to  occupy  such  buildings,  private 
as  well  as  public,  as  may  be  required  for  quarters,  hospitals, 
storehouses,  and  other  military  purposes,  without  compensation 
therefor,  cannot  be  questioned  ;  and  it  is  expected  that  you  will 
not  forego  the  exercise  of  this  right  to  any  extent  compatible 
with  the  interest  of  the  service  upon  which  you  are  engaged."* 

The  general  was  sadly  in  want  of  money  for  present 
purposes,  yet  these  imposed  military  contributions 
were  foreign  to  his  nature,  habits,  and  military  train 
of  thought.  He  openly  expressed  a  desire  to  be  re- 
lieved trom  the  command  of  the  army,  and  on  the 
20th  of  May,  1847,  wrote  as  follows  to  the  Secretary 
of  War : 

"  If  it  is  expected  at  Washington,  as  is  now  apprehended,  that 
this  army  is  to  support  itself  by  forced  contributions  levied  upon 
the  country,  we  may  ruin  and  exasperate  the  inhabitants  and 
starve  ourselves  ;  for  it  is  certain  they  would  sooner  remove  or 
destroy  the  products  of  their  farms  than  allow  them  to  fall  into 
our  hands  without  compensation.  Not  a  ration  for  man  or  horse 
would  be  brought  in  except  by  the  bayonet,  which  would  oblige 
the  troops  to  spread  themselves  out  many  leagues  to  the  right 
and  left  in  search  of  subsistence  and  to  stop  all  military  opera- 
tions." 

*  Secretary  of  War  to  General  Scott.  Ex.  Doc.  No.  1,  Senate, 
1st  Session,  Thirtieth  Congress. 


MARYLAND    VOLVNTEER.  335 

These  views  of  this  eminent  find  distinguished 
soldier  are  worthy  the  deepest  consideration  of  all 
who  would  make  the  profession  of  a  soldier  subor- 
dinate to  the  duty  of  a  citizen,  and  the  honor  of 
mankind. 

In  point  of  fact,  supplies  for  men  and  animals  were 
bought  in  the  country  and  paid  for  at  fair  prices,  from 
the  commencement  to  the  end  of  the  war,  as  far  as 
my  knowledge  extends,  both  on  the  line  of  the  Rio 
Grande  and  on  Scott's  line.  The  only  revenue  de- 
rived from  the  country  was  from  duties  collected 
under  the  tariff  above  referred  to,  at  the  ports  in  our 
possession  from  which  the  naval  blockade  had  been 
raised. 

There  were  some  buildings  occupied  as  quarters  and 
as  depots  for  supplies,  and  some  churches  and  other 
edifices  used  for  hospitals  and  public  purposes,  without 
,  compensation ;  but  from  the  barley  growing  in  the 
fields,  gathered  by  our  men,  to  the  corn  husked  by 
the  soldiers  for  daily  food  to  themselves  and  animals, 
all  was  paid  for  in  hard  dollars ;  and  I  have  seen  sugar 
taken  from  manufactories  loitliin  our  line  of  sentries, 
paid  for  by  the  commissaries  of  our  army  in  coin 
brought  from  the  United  States. 

Surely  the  history  of  the  world  cannot  produce  a 
parallel  to  this  conduct,  which  was  owing  in  a  great 
measure — it  might  be  said  with  truth,  entirely — to  the 
thorough  American  character  of  Generals  Taylor  and 
Scott,  whose  magnanimity  and  nobility  of  sentiment 
outweighed  the  meaner  attributes  of  less  exalted 
characters,  which  would  seek  elevation  and  success 
by  subserviency  to  base  motives. 


336  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

Well,  the  forced  contributions  were  not  levied,  and 
the  genera,l-in-chief  was  master  of  the  situation,  but 
there  came  a  blow  from  Washington  which  nearly 
overthrew  his  equanimity. 

I  desire  to  say  here,  in  all  truth,  and  I  think  I 
have  heretofore  said  it,  that  from  the  outbreak  of 
hostilities  to  the  present  time,  I  fully  believe  that  the 
administration  of  President  Polk  was  sincerely  de- 
sirous of  making  an  honorable  peace  with  Mexico, — 
such  a  one  as  would  satisfy  our  just  demands,  without 
compromising  the  honor  or  integrity  of  Mexico. 

I  repeat  it,  with  as  full  an  understanding  of  the 
matter  as  observation  and  personal  knowledge  can 
give  one,  that  the  above  were  the  views  of  the 
American  government  up  to  the  departure  of  General 
Scott  from  Puebla  on  the  10th  of  August,  1847. 

The  blow  referred  to  was  the  arrival  in  Mexico, 
while  Scott  was  at  Jalapa,  in  May,  of  Mr.  Nicholas 
P.  Trist  as  a  commissioner  from  Washington  to  ac- 
company the  headquarters  of  the  army,  for  diplouiatic 
purposes.  His  mission  was  peace,  his  powers  were 
well  defined  and  limited,  yet  all  the  pride  of  a  soldier 
(and  if  Winfield  Scott  were  not  one,  history  may  be 
searched  in  vain)  revolted  at  the  presence  about  his 
headquarters  of  a  civilian,  whom  Scott  regarded  as 
an  aide-de-camp  of  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
sent  to  degrade  him  in  the  eyes  of  the  army  and  the 
authorities  of  Mexico. 

Fortunately  for  the  interests  of  humanity  and  the 
glory  of  our  country,  these  gentlemen  became  recon- 
ciled, and  worked  harmoniously  for  the  attainment  of 
great  ends. 


JIAErLAXI)    rOLCXTEEB.  oo- 

O  -J  I 

Let  11*  look  at  the  turn  of  affairs  in  the  interior. 
beyond  our  lines,  before  we  take  up  the  negotiations 
between  American  and  Mexican  officials,  to  which 
we  propose  to  refer. 

Santa  Anna  had  lost  Buena  Vista,  yet  had  noblv 
struggled  to  regain  his  tarnished  railitarv  fame : 
CerroCrordo  lost,  any  other  than  a  general  bred  amid 
the  internecine  strife  of  Mexico  would  have  been 
irretrievabl}-  ruined,  when  the  flower  of  his  army  laid 
down  its  arms  because  taken  in  reverse  and  rendered 
powerless  through  sheer  negligence  of  military  art. 

The  pride  of  the  Mexican  soldiers  of  the  line  had 
not  been  lowered  by  Monterey  or  Buena  Tista;  but  it 
could  not  stand  the  humiliation  of  Cerro  (rordo.  They 
had  been  defeated,  when  most  willing  to  fight;  they 
had  grounded  their  arms,  with  their  boxes  full  of  car- 
tridges, after  repulsing  one  and  awaiting  another 
attack:  there  was  no  road  for  escape,  nothing  but 
surrender  before  them ;  all  owing,  as  all  knew,  to 
the  incapacity  of  their  chiefe. — not  Santa  Anna  espe- 
cially, but  some  to  whom  had  been  confided  high 
trusts  and  grave  responsibilities. 

The  courage  of  Caesars  tenth  legion  would  have 
been  shattered  by  three  such  disasters  as  the  battles 
of  Monterey,  Buena  Vijta.  and  Cerro  Gordo.  Yet  the 
Mexicans  did  not  abandon  their  grito  of  war  to  the 
knife;  and  their  semblance  of  a  Congress — yet  still  a 
rtspeetable  assembly  of  deputies — declared  every  in- 
dindual  a  traitor  who  should  make  peace  with  the 
United  States.  Such  a  resolution  was  passed  after  the 
news  of  the  loss  of  the  battle  at  Cerro  Gordo  had  been 
received  in  the  citv  of  Mexico. 


338  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

General  Scott  had  said  that  he  wanted  to  make  his 
army  "a  self-sustaining  machine,"  and  he  depended 
for  this,  not  upon  forced  contributions,  but  upon  the 
credit  of  the  United  States ;  to  raise  this  credit,  as 
well  as  his  own,  there  is  no  doubt  but  that  he  was  as 
desirous  to  make  a  peace  and  to  conclude  a  treaty  as 
he  was  to  win  a  battle  or  to  fight  one  when  ready. 
He  was  always  open  to  propositions,  perhaps  too  much 
so,  and  when  arrived  at  Puebla,  in  June,  there  com- 
menced the  celebrated  negotiations  which  were  also 
self-sustaining;  for,  dig  as  deep  as  you  may,  no  founda- 
tion can  be  found,  no  beginning,  as  there  was  no  end- 
ing, none  whatever,  to  those  entam^es  at  Puebla  to 
which  I  shall  now  refer. 

We  must  know  that  despite  the  defiant  attitude  of 
the  Congress,  Mexico  was  cruelly  divided  by  faction, 
and  the  capital  a  prey  to  the  fierce  and  apparently 
irreconcilable  strife  between  the  Puros  and  the  Mod- 
erados.  The  army  proper  was  demoralized,  and  a 
considerable  number  of  leading  and  influential  men 
were  opposed  to  making  the  city  of  Mexico  the  area 
within  which  the  further  march  of  Scott's  army  was 
to  be  opposed.  These  men,  if  not  a  party,  were  at 
least  a  power  in  the  state,  and  they  determined  to 
try  diplomacy  to  stay,  if  not  to  avert,  the  loss  of  their 
capital.  There  was  one  man  eminently  fitted  to  em- 
brace and  further  their  views,  none  other  than  An- 
tonio Lopez  de  Santa  Anna.  The  necessity  for  his 
services,  for  the  aid  of  his  powerful  and  unquestioned 
capacity  for  such  business,  saved  him;  for  the  elections 
having  gone  against  him,  as  he  learned,  he  got  Con- 
gress to  postpone  counting  the  ballots  from  the  15th. 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  339 

of  June,  when  they  ought  to  have  done  it,  until 
January,  1848,  and  this  restored  him  once  more  to 
power  and  to  the  head  of  affiiirs. 

In  Executive  Document  No.  60  may  be  found  the 
following,  on  page  967,  dated  Puebla,  May  19,  1847. 
I  insert  it,  as  it  was  undoubtedly  the  general  opinion 
at  its  date. 

"  The  elections  came  off  in  the  States  on  the  15th.  It  is  gen- 
erally believed  Herrera  will  succeed.  Shots  are  being  fired  in 
the  capital.  A  pronunciamenlo  is  hourly  expected,  and  this  is 
probably  the  secret  of  Santa  Anna's  march  upon  that  point.  He 
is  in  extremis.     All  agree  that  bis  day  is  passed." 

Pas  encore. 

Mr.  Trist  was  anxious  to  begin  negotiations,  and 
hoped  through  the  channel  of  the  British  embassy  at 
Mexico  to  open  his  guns;  a  letter  from  our  Secretary 
of  State,  Mr.  Buchanan,  was  forwarded,  and  there 
came,  in  reply,  a  guarded  answer  which  amounted  to 
just  exactly  what  it  was  intended  to  amount  to, — 
nothing.  There  was  nobody  to  treat  with,  but  there 
was  somebody  to  do  that  which  no  nation  that  ever  ex- 
isted could  surpass  the  Mexican  in  doing,  loriting  letters. 

Along  with  the  Mexican  minister's  letter,  there 
were  found  communications  in  cipher  (key  furnished) 
from  parties  in  the  city  of  Mexico,  declaring  them- 
selves to  be  but  agents,  not  naming  however  their 
principal,  in  which  extraordinary  propositions  were 
contained  in  reference  to  making  peace  between 
Mexico  and  the  United  States.  These  propositions 
were  deemed  worthy  the  notice  of  the  commander-in- 
chief,  and  were  considered  by  him  entitled  to  serious 
consideration.     A  reply  was  sent  through  the  diplo- 


340  31EM01RS  OF  A 

matic  pouch  of  England  in  Mexico  (acting  in  good 
faith  I  believe  to  both  belligerents),  the  purport  of 
which  can  only  be  surmised.  Now  came  distinct  and 
unequivocal  terras  as  a  basis  of  agreement  addressed 
to  the  commander-in-chief  and  signed  by  the  "agents" 
for  whom  ? — this  time  it  was  mysteriously  hinted  that 
none  other  than  Santa  Anna  was  the  primum  mobile 
of  the  cipher  correspondence,  and  was  himself  the 
key  of  the  whole  transaction. 

There  is  no  doubt  whatever  of  what  I  am  now 
about  to  write  :  General  Scott  convened  a  council  of 
general  officers  at  Puebla,  and  to  them  was  made 
known  that  there  had  come  from  the  city  of  Mexico 
propositions  looking  to  making  a  treaty  of  peace; 
that  for  purposes,  as  yet  undeveloped,  a  million  of 
dollars  was  asked  for :  that  said  sum  was  not  in  the 
military  chest,  but  a  project  was  submitted  of  the 
ways  and  means  by  which  it  might  be  raised;  and 
finally,  that  the  sum  of  ten  thousand  dollars  cash  in 
hand  was  demanded  to  bind  the  bargain. 

There  was  difference  of  opinion  in  that  council : 
to  the  honor  of  the  American  name  be  it  known  that 
there  were  gentlemen  present  who  protested  against 
the  whole  scheme,  if  even  the  same  had  come  from 
the  authorities  of  Mexico  or  other  legitimate  source; 
they  protested  against  all  secret  machinations,  and 
especially  against  the  bribery  which  was  indisputably 
the  aim,  if  not  the  acknowledged  purpose,  for  which 
the  money  was  to  be  used ;  they  lifted  their  voices 
and  proclaimed  the  whole  thing  anti-American,  and 
unworthy  the  consideration  of  honorable  men. 

Nevertheless,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  ten  thousand 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  34]^ 

dollars  was  paid,  cash  in  hand,  to  somebody,  out  of  the 
fund  at  the  disposal  of  General  Scott. 

Notes  in  cipher  now  flew  thickly,  and  the  hum  of 
secret  intrigue,  for  the  first  (and  may  it  be  the  last) 
time,  was  heard  in  the  camp  of  an  American  army. 

The  plan  was  somewhat  modified  when  the  ten 
thousand  dollars  in  money  fell  upon  its  platform  ; 
with  a  finesse  worthy  of  the  policy  which  has  given 
eclat  to  Florence,  queries  were  covertly  embodied  in 
other  propositions,  the  plain  English  of  which  was  : 
Our  palms  itch  more  than  ever  since  the  gentle  tick- 
ling you  gave  them ;  how  about  the  million  of  dol- 
lars? there  are  deputies  in  a  certain  Congress  whose 
motions  are  slow,  but  whose  principles  are  well 
known  ;  when  may  we  expect  the  million  of  dollars  ? 
its  receipt  will  antedate  but  a  few  days  a  treaty  of 
peace.    Memorandum  :    Congress  will  meet  next  week.- 

Still  no  million  of  dollars  was  sent,  but  cinother 
modification  of  the  basis  for  the  purchase  of  peace 
came  from  the  "  agents ;"  it  was  now  intimated  as 
delicately  as  the  faintest  penciling,  that  General 
Santa  Anna  thought  it  indispensable  that  Scott  should 
advance  and  carry  at  least  one  outwork  of  the  capital,  to 
give  color  to  the  terms  of  surrender,  which  he,  Santa 
Anna,  would  then  submit. 

Will  it  be  believed  in  this  age  that  such  infamy  was 
ever  written,  much  less  seriously  considered  ?  It  was 
both  written  and  received  consideration,  but  there  is 
nothing  to  show  that  General  Scott  ever  believed  that 
Santa  Anna  would  give  him  an  outwork  of  the  city 
of  Mexico. 

He  may  have  been  deceived  in  his  hopes  and  ex- 


342  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

pectations  ;  he  may  have  mistaken,  as  he  undoubtedly 
did,  the  character  of  Santa  Anna;  he  may  have  lent 
too  much  of  his  high  official  position  to  these  secret 
negotiations  :  but  his  native  integrity  was  so  lofty  and 
his  patriotism  so  pure,  that  never  for  one  moment  did 
he  do  other  than  what  he  thought  was  right,  and 
never  ceased  an  instant  in  the  preparations  daily 
made  for  strengthening  his  army  for  future  battle. 

And  this  is  the  remarkable  feature  of  these  nego- 
tiations, that  neither  of  the  high  contracting  parties 
seemed  to  have  the  least  idea  of  each  other's  character. 

This  is  my  opinion :  that  Scott  thought  Santa  Anna 
venal,  and  that  it  would  be  to  the  interest  of  our 
country  to  buy  him ;  Santa  Anna  thought  he  was 
deceiving  Scott,  might  get  a  million  of  dollars,  and 
was  getting  and  gaining  precious  time  to  strengthen 
the  defenses  of  his  capital,  in  every  cipher  transmitted 
to  Scott's  headquarters. 

Both  were  deceived  ;  Santa  Anna  was  ten  thousand 
dollars  ahead,  and  this  payment  tended  to  strengthen 
his  blindness,  for  what  could  he  think  of  a  general 
who  had  suffered  himself  to  be  humbugged  out  of  so 
much  money?  He  thought  Scott  an  old  fool, — he 
was  much  mistaken. 

Scott  was  outwitted  in  diplomacy,  he  failed  to  see 
through  the  astute  mystification  which  the  wily 
Mexican  had  placed  him  in,  he  utterly  ignored  the 
honesty  of  Santa  Anna  and  his  fidelity  to  country, 
he  was  grossly  deceived ;  but  liis  instinctive  military 
genius  was  a  clue  by  which  he  disentangled  the 
maze  of  his  enemy's  subtle  intrigue.  Following  the 
path  of  duty,  it  led  him  safely  through  the  mire  of 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  343 

political  machinations  to  the  fields  where  glory 
crowned  his  brow  with  undying  fame. 

Santa  Anna  never  for  an  instant  dreamed  of  betray- 
ing his  country,  much  less  selling  for  money  the  life's 
blood  of  the  brave  defenders  of  a  post,  his  old  com- 
panions in  arms,  to  whom  he  had  entrusted  the  iden- 
tical outwork  indicated  as  the  one  to  be  assaulted ; 
but  his  cunning  overleaped  itself,  when  after  receiv- 
ing the  ten  thousand  dollars,  the  latter  proposition 
came  from  the  "  agents  ;"  for  there  were  officers  in  the 
American  army  not  as  good  soldiers  as  General  Scott, 
but  who  possessed  infinitely  more  shrewdness,  and 
they  openly  denounced  the  base  proposition  as  too  ab- 
surd for  serious  thought. 

It  was  the  monstrous  perfidy  of  this  proposition 
which  destroyed  "  the  plan  for  the  purchase  of  peace," 
and  was  near  involving  in  its  destruction  tlie  charac- 
ter of  more  than  one  of  those  who  interested  them- 
selves in  its  success. 

Negotiations,  open  and  secret,  failed  ;  the  Mexican 
Congress,  after  passing  a  resolution  on  the  loth  of 
July,  "  that  it  was  the  duty  of  the  President  to  make 
treaties,  and  theirs  to  approve  or  disapprove  them," 
quietly  dispersed,  leaving  the  responsibility  with 
Santa  Anna ;  he,  alleging  a  constitutional  incapacity, 
and  quite  likely  remembering  the  council  of  the  Texan 
generals  on  the  banks  of  the  Rio  Grande,  referred  the 
question  to  his  generals ;  they  relieved  themselves  of 
diplomatic  functions,  by  saying,  their  voice  was  still 
for  war. 

Both  armies  prepared  for  battle. 


344  MEMOIRS  OF  A 


CHAPTER    XXXIII. 

SCOTT'S     advance      on    the     city    of     MEXICO. 

On  the  10th  day  of  August,  1847,  General  Scott 
left  Puebla  with  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men,  to 
attack  the  enemy  in  the  valley  of  Mexico,  and  to 
conquer  a  peace.  It  was  a  daring  plan,  a  daring 
march ;  for  he  knew  that  General  Santa  Anna  had 
gathered  thirty-five  thousand  men  to  defend  their 
capital,  and  that  military  skill  of  no  ordinary  charac- 
ter had  strengthened  the  natural  defenses  of  the  city 
and  its  environs. 

On  page  175  of  vol.  ii.,  Major  R.  S.  Ripley's  War 
with  Mexico,  the  author  says  : 

"  Under  these  circumstances,  the  American  advance  is  with- 
out parallel.     In  daring  and  in  rashness  the  march  of  Cortez  over 

the  same  route,  centuries  before,  can  hardly  compare  with  it." 

•\ 

The  strength  of  this  army  lay  in  its  prestige  of  suc- 
cess, the  genius  of  its  leader,  the  material  of  which 
it  was  composed,  and  especially  in  its  undaunted 
courage. 

On  the  18th  day  of  August,  there  fell  the  first 
American  soldier  in  the  valley  of  Mexico.  Strange, 
that  he  whose  misfortune  had  been  the  commence- 
ment of  the  war  should  find  the  first  soldier's  grave 
thus  far  beyond  the  Rio  Grande.     So  it  was.     Cap- 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  345 

tain  Thornton,  of  the  Second  Dragoons,  was  killed 
by  a  cannon  ball  as  our  reconnoitering  parties  ap- 
proached San  Antonio. 

On  the  20th  of  August  was  fought  the  battle  of 
Contreras ;  General  Valencia  with  his  division  of  seven 
thousand  men  and  twenty-two  pieces  of  artillery  had 
left  the  position  assigned  him,  and,  contrary  to  the 
advice  and  in  the  teeth  of  positive  orders  from  Santa 
Anna,  had  taken  up  a  position  about  Contreras.  There 
was  an  immense  tield  of  broken  lava  lying  in  front  of 
his  camp  and  between  it  and  San  Antonio,  which  was 
deemed  impassable  for  troops,  but  through  and  over 
which  our  engineer  officers  had  found  several  trails 
which  were  soon  made  practicable  for  troops.  This 
field  was  called  the  Pedregal,  and  was  a  great  natural 
obstacle  in  an  advance  on  the  Acapulco  road  through 
San  Antonio  directly  to  the  southern  gate  of  Mexico. 
Valencia  must  have  thought  that  our  army  having 
turned  from  the  eastern  defenses  of  the  city,  and  find- 
ing the  southern  approaches  so  strongly  guarded  by 
the  lines  of  San  Antonio  and  Churubusco,  would  de- 
flect still  more  to  the  left  and  approach  the  city  from 
the  west ;  it  being  generally  known  that  the  fortifica- 
tions on  this  west  side,  the  farthest  from  the  approach 
of  the  Americans,  were  of  much  less  strength  than  the 
others.  A  road  ran  through  Contreras  from  the  south- 
west to  the  city,  and  here  he  posted  his  division  in  an 
intrenched  camp,  without  any  regard  to  the  disposi- 
tions of  the  commander-in-chief,  or,  as  before  said,  to 
his  positive  orders. 

Valencia  was  the  rival  of  Santa  Anna ;  he  com- 
manded a  corps  d'elite, — the  army  of  the  north,  had 


346  MEMO  IBS   OF  A 

criticised  his  line  of  defenses  on  the  east,  and,  when 
Scott  wisely  avoided  risking  heavy  losses,  by  attacking 
very  strong  points,  and  was  now  feeling  his  way,  as 
if  from  the  south,  Valencia  is  said  to  have  exulted 
and  boasted  that  now  Ids  time  had  come  to  chastise 
the  Yankees. 

Santa  Anna  is  a  lucky  man,  for  it  was  the  disaster 
now  about  to  befall  his  rival  which  once  more  saved 
his  reputation  among  his  fellow-countrymen ;  for  to 
the  willful  disobedience  of  Valencia  to  his  orders  was 
attributed,  by  the  whole  army  and  population  of  the 
capital,  the  final  and  sad  termination  of  their  heroic 
sacrifices. 

Scott  had  sent  General  Pillow's  division,  which  was 
followed  by  General  Twiggs's,  across  the  Pedregal  on 
the  afternoon  of  the  19th.  These  troops,  supported 
by  Magruder's  and  Callender's  batteries,  had  engaged 
the  enemy  in  front  without  doing  him  much  damage. 
During  the  night  General  Persifer  F.  Smith  devised 
a  plan,  which  was  approved  by  General  Scott,  for 
taking  the  camp  in  reverse  and  dislodging  the  Mexi- 
cans. At  sunrise,  on  the  morning  of  the  20th,  Col- 
onel Riley,  with  Cadwalader's  and  Smith's  brigades, 
were  in  the  rear  of  Valencia,  and  in  half  an  hour  were 
in  the  possession  of  the  intrenched  camp.  The  division 
of  Valencia  was  routed  with  an  actual  loss  of  some 
seven  hundred  killed,  one  thousand  prisoners,  and 
the  demoralization  of  the  whole  corps,  if  not  of  the 
entire  Mexican  army.  There  were  twenty-two  pieces 
of  artillery,  some  of  heavy  calibre,  within  the  work, 
all  of  which  were  secured  by  our  force,  which  did 
not  exceed  in  the  aggregate  four  thousand  five  hun- 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEEB.  347 

dred  men,  and  did  not  lose  more  than  sixty  men 
killed  and  wounded  in  these  successful  operations. 

Well  might  General  Scott  doubt  whether  a  more 
brilliant  or  decisive  victory  be  found  on  record.  It 
was  a  brilliant  feat  of  arms,  and  a  glorious  forerunner 
of  subsequent  grand  achievements. 

Santa  Anna  is  blamed  for  not  making  greater  efforts 
to  support  Valencia,  and  gravely  censured  for  not 
compelling  him  to  withdraw  on  the  night  of  the  19th, 
as  his  engineer  officers  had  pronounced  the  position 
untenable. 

I  regret  very  much  that  I  have  never  met  with 
the  pamphlet  which  was  published  by  Valencia  in 
defense  of  his  conduct  at  Contreras. 

Exhilarated  by  the  success,  our  victorious  troops, 
being  rapidly  brought  together,  pushed  on  through 
San  Angel  to  Coyacan,  which  was  well  beyond  and 
to  the  left  of  San  Antonio,  in  front  of  which  General 
Worth  was  awaiting  orders  for  the  assault.  General 
Bravo,  in  command  at  San  Antonio,  had  been  ordered 
to  retreat  as  soon  as  the  fall  of  the  intrenched  camp 
was  known ;  his  troops,  marching  toward  the  capital 
by  the  causeway,  and  closely  followed  by  Worth's 
division,  were  intercepted  and  cut  in  two  by  Clark's 
Brigade  and  Lieutenant-Colonel  C.  F.  Smith's  Light 
Battalion,  which  General  Worth  had  sent  to  turn 
Bravo's  right  by  the  Pedregal.  Another  utter  rout 
here  ensued,  although  General  Bravo  escaped,  with 
numbers  of  his  division,  by  leaving  the  causeway 
and  crossing  the  marshes  to  the  east  of  the  road. 
Our  troops  pressed  on  toward  the  city,  and  soon  the 
sanguinary  battle  of  Churubusco  was  begun. 


348  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

The  enemy  held  a  very  strong  position  :  in  front 
ran  in  an  easterly  course  the  river  Churubusco,  and 
in  the  small  village  of  the  same  name,  a  little  to  the 
south  of  the  river  and  toward  the  advancing  Ameri- 
cans, was  a  large  stone  building,  called  the  Convent, 
which  was  strongly  fortified.  The  bridge  which 
crossed  the  river  on  the  San  Antonio  causeway  was 
protected  by  an  elaborate  fortification  or  tete  du  pont, 
and  in  and  about  these  lines  and  works,  the  army  of 
Santa  Anna  resolutely  stood  to  their  guns.  But  they 
were  in  a  distressed  condition  from  the  disorganiza- 
tion created  by  the  rout  of  the  two  divisions  of  Va- 
lencia and  Bravo,  and,  to  add  to  their  discouragement, 
the  artillery  and  the  ammunition  train  sent  forward 
by  Bravo  from  San  Antonio  had  not  yet  entered  the 
tete  du  pont,  with  the  exception  of  three  guns,  and 
were  jammed  up  on  the  causeway  in  inextricable 
confusion,  when  the  advance  of  the  American  troops 
opened  fire  upon  the  mass  of  fugitives  and  upon  the 
horses  of  the  artillery  trains. 

Santa  Anna  still  held  the  left  and  centre  of  his 
army  intact ;  they  numbered  at  least  twenty  thousand 
men, — outnumbered  more  than  two  to  one  the  army 
of  Scott,  and  behind  chosen  lines  he  ought  to  have 
repulsed  his  attack. 

The  battle  soon  commenced  in  earnest,  our  troops 
rapidly  coming  up,  and  along  the  extended  front  and 
about  the  detached  works  of  the  Mexicans  a  fierce 
struggle  ensued  between  nearly  the  entire  strength  of 
the  two  armies ;  it  raged  for  several  hours  with  intense 
fury.  The  desperate  courage  and  skill  of  the  Ameri- 
cans was  never  more  signally  shown,  and  out  of  not 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  349 

moi'e  than  eight  thousand  five  hundred  men,  there 
Avere  one  thousand  killed  or  disabled  in  this  bloody 
encounter;  but  the  Mexicans  were  forced  to  retreat, 
after  suffering  great  loss,  and  our  cavalry  pursued  the 
fugitives  to  the  very  gates  of  the  capital. 

Our  troops  did  justice  to  the  bravery  of  their  foe, 
and  no  language  is  too  strong  in  admiration  of  the 
gallant  army  of  Americans  that  gained  the  victory  at 
Churubusco. 

The  estimated  loss  of  the  Mexicans  in  killed, 
wounded,  and  missing  at  Churubusco  was  seven  thou- 
sand men ;  but  the  eflfect  of  this  disaster  in  the  city  of 
Mexico  cannot  be  measured  by  the  number  lost  to  the 
army.  When  night  fell  on  this  memorable  day,  the 
population  of  the  city  was  panic-stricken ;  all  were  in 
fear  of  the  immediate  entrance  of  the  American  army. 
But  General  Scott  had  apparently  other  views,  and 
never  showed  more  judgment,  in  my  opinion,  than 
halting,  as  he  did,  outside  the  city  on  the  night  of  the 
20th  of  August.* 

I  cannot  say  as  much  for  his  conduct  on  the  ensuing 
days,  with  reference  to  the  armistice  which  was  agreed 
upon. 

When  Santa  Anna  entered  the  city  he  assembled, 
at  midnight,  those  of  the  ministry  whom  he  could 
find  and  several  leading  citizens.     He  told  them  that 

*  The  city  of  Mexico  contained  at  this  time  nearly  200,000 
inhabitants;  its  streets  and  quarters  were  entirely  unknown  to 
our  army.  If  the  streets  were  barricaded  and  the  houses  de- 
fended, as  at  Monterey,  our  army  might  have  been  sacrificed  by 
the  infuriated  leperos  and  soldiers  of  the  beaten  army,  who  could 
yet  be  numbered  by  thousands. 


350  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

there  must  be  a  suspension  of  arms  to  enable  him  to 
reorganize  his  shattered  army,  that  time  must  be 
gained,  or  else  the  city  was  lost,  and  that  they  must 
take  steps  to  interview  Scott  at  once  for  this  purpose. 
Again  the  British  embassy  was  looked  to  as  a  medium 
of  communication,  and  the  minister  of  Spain  lent  his 
friendly  offices  to  aid  the  beleagured  capital. 

General  Scott  on  the  same  night  matured  his  plan, 
which  was  to  summon  the  city  to  surrender  (and  it 
was  now  at  his  mercy),  and  only  to  agree  to  an  armis- 
tice upon  the  pledge  that  negotiations  should  be  en- 
tered upon  for  a  treaty  of  peace. 

If  he  had  firmly  stood  to  this  plan,  it  is  more  than 
probable  that  months  of  future  toil  would  have  been 
spared  him ;  but  it  is  not  my  purpose  to  assail  him, 
or  endeavor  to  meet  the  powerful  reasons  which  were 
successfully  urged  against  the  maintenance  of  his 
original  determination. 

The  main  reason  which  induced  him,  as  I  under- 
stood from  competent  authority,  was  that,  if  he  per- 
sisted in  either  taking  the  city  or  driving  Santa  Anna 
away  with  his  army,  there  would  be  no  government 
to  treat  with,  and  that  nothing  would  be  left  to  be 
done  but  pursue  a  war  of  conquest  until  all  Mexico 
Avas  held  by  American  troops. 

An  armistice  for  the  suspension  of  arms  and  other 
purposes  was  agreed  upon  the  22d,  ratified  by  Scott 
on  the  23d,  and  finally  ratified  by  Santa  Anna  on  the 
24th  of  August. 

It  met  with  but  little  favor  in  the  American  army, 
chiefly  because  it  was  thought  that  the  recommenda- 
tion of  Major-General    Worth,    that   the   Mexicans 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  351 

should  give  up  to  our  army  the  possession  of  the 
military  castle  and  hill  of  Chapultepec  as  a  guaranty 
for  good  faith  on  their  part,  should  be  a  sijte  qua  non 
in  the  negotiation  for  the  armistice. 

The  Mexican  commissioners  stoutly  and  successfully 
resisted  the  introduction  of  this  article  into  the  pro- 
ject, which  was  ratified  as  above  related  loitliout  this 
article. 

In  one  of  the  articles,  it  was  agreed  that  our  army 
might  obtain  supplies  from  the  city ;  a  train  for  this 
purpose  was  attacked  by  the  lep6ros,  the  worst  class 
of  the  most  vicious  of  Mexicans  who  swarmed  in  the 
alleys  and  faubourgs  of  the  metropolis,  and  blood  was 
shed  in  the  streets  of  Mexico. 

Recrimination  followed  the  just  complaints  of  the 
American  general,  and  the  armistice  was  terminated 
on  the  6tli  of  September  with  a  loss  to  the  Americans 
of  prestige,  character,  and  much  of  the  fruits  of  hard 
won  battles. 

The  negotiations  for  peace  industriously  plied 
during  its  continuance  had  miserably  failed,  Santa 
Anna  had  recuperated  his  army,  whilst  that  of  Scott's 
was  mildewing  away  under  the  malaria  of  the  valley. 
He  had  now  but  eight  thousand  five  hundred  effect- 
ives of  all  arms,  but  he  was  a  host  in  himself,  and 
the  consciousness  of  having  acted  in  good  faith  left 
him  the  invincible  support  of  his  honor  and  his  con- 
science. 

On  the  8th  were  delivered  the  bloody  and  fruitless 
battles  of  Molino  del  Rey  and  the  Casa  Mata  with  a 
loss  of  one  hundred  and  sixteen  killed  and  six  hun- 
dred and  sixty-five  wounded  out  of  our  little  army ; 


352  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

a  still  further  demand  was  to  be  made  upon  a  resource 
which  had  never  yet  failed,  American  pluck,  and  the 
enemy's  capital  was  to  be  stormed. 

Worth  wanted  to  push  on,  and  so  did  Pillow,  after 
our  troops  had  gained  with  such  a  loss  of  life  the 
mill  or  foundry  (as  some  called  it)  del  Eey,  but  Scott 
held  them  back,  for  lie  was  not  yet  ready. 

The  frowning  hill  of  Chapultepec  was  the  key  to 
the  Mexican  line  of  defenses  on  the  south  and  west 
of  the  city.  To  carry  this  was  now  the  immediate 
object  of  the  commander-in-chief.  A  strong  corps 
held  the  hill,  and  Santa  Anna  had  gathered  the 
remainder  of  his  army  about  the  garitas  (gates)  on 
the  southern  side  of  the  city,  posting  them  in  well- 
made  field-works  designed-  for  the  protection  of  this 
front. 

During  the  afternoon  of  the  8th,  bold  reconnais- 
sances were  made  under  the  superintendence  of  Cap- 
tain Robert  E.  Lee,  of  the  Engineers,  and  that  night 
General  Scott  was  occupied  in  gaining  further  informa- 
tion and  maturing  his  plan  of  operations. 

On  the  morning  of  the  9th  there  were  twelve 
thousand  Mexicans  at  work  throwing  up  a  line  of 
intrenchments  between  the  garitas  Belen  and  San 
Antonio,  and  they  continued  at  their  labors  during 
the  entire  day  without  interruption.  As  this  was  the 
front  Scott  purposed  to  attack,  he  was  notified  of 
what  was  being  done  by  the  enemy ;  but  our  troops 
remained  quiet. 

On  the  10th  the  engineer  officers  again  made  recon- 
naissances; they  found  eleven  pieces  of  artillery  in 
position  at  the  garita  San  Antonio,  the  other  works 


,1/  ,1  A"  jVy.i  \n  VOL  I  'A'  r/c /■;/>'.  353 

strong  and  oooupiod  in  foivo.  the  ourtiiins  fiiiisluMl  and 
tlio  ditchos  lull  ot'wator. 

On  tho  11th.  continuing  thoir  iwonnaissiuicos.  thoy 
ftmnd  tlio  works  ^tivngtluMUHl  and  noarlv  tho  wholo 
southern  tmnt  of  tho  oity  inundntod. 

Soott  in  person  oxauiiuod  tho  ouonn  's  linos,  then 
called  a  nuH>tiug  of  gonornl  othoor.s;  tlioro  wore  pros- 
ent  Pillow,  Quitnum,  Twiggs,  Pioroo,  Ondwsihidor, 
wul  Kiloy.  Tho  rosult  of  this  uiootiug  was  ordors 
from  Ciouoriil  Soott  for  tlio  attaok  upon  Cliapiiltopoo, 

On  tho  morning  oT  the  llitli  of  Soptenihor.  tho 
battlo  oponod  against  (^hnpultopoo,  whilst  a  douion- 
stration  was  inado  against  tho  linos  of  Sun  Antonio; 
a  bombardn>ont  of  the  oastlo  whioh  <'ro\vnod  tho  hill, 
(Uid  a  oanuonado  against  tho  linos,  oontinuod  during 
the  day.  Night  loll  without  anything  dooisivo  being 
ftcoouiplishotl ;  soaling-laddors  had  boon  brought  up, 
but  no  assault  was  ordorotl,  and  tho  troops  wore  ooon- 
pyiug  tho  positions  thoy  hold  in  (ho  niorniug.  All 
uight  long  pivparations  woro  boiug  uuvdo  by  both 
armies  lor  tho  struggle  oC  tho  ensuing  day ;  it  was  a 
ttight  of  slooplossnoss  and  anxiety  to  every  huunm 
being  in  tho  valley  of  Mexico,  for  all  know  that  to- 
morrow would  decitlo  tho  fate  of  the  capital. 

At  daybivak  on  tho  morning  of  tho  ISth  day  of 
September,  1817.  the  American  batteries  opened  on 
tl>e  oastlo  of  Chapultopoc  and  the  lines  of  San  Anto- 
nio; the  A[exic«n  guns  ivpliod,  and  for  several  houi"s 
tlie  cannonading  was  very  heavy  ;  in  tho  mean  time 
storaiing  pjwties  were  being  organized  and  pivperly 
equipped  lor  tho  assault.  Bravi>.  seeing  that  it  was 
bis  post  that  wiws  thivateued.  sent  for  a  reiuforce- 

3S 


354  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

ment,  which  had  been  promised  him;  no  attention 
was  paid  to  his  request.  He  ordered  two  brigade  com- 
manders to  bring  their  troops  to  his  support;  they 
properly  refused  to  move  from  the  positions  to  which 
they  had  been  assigned,  without  orders  from  their 
commander-in-chief.  He  had  six  thousand  men 
within  his  lines,  and  these  ought  to  have  been 
sufficient  for  the  defense  of  the  castle  and  its  out- 
worl^s,  but  they  were  not.  For  onward  and  upward 
came  the  gallant  heroes  of  the  Republic  of  the  North, 
sweeping  from  their  front  all  who  dared  to  oppose, — 
leaving  behind  in  their  bloody  tracks  the  dead  and 
the  dying,  then  planting  their  ladders  they  scaled  the 
walls  of  the  castle.  Chapultepec  was  in  their  posses- 
sion, and  the  flag  of  our  Republic  was  floating  from 
its  summit. 

One  cheer  of  victory  rolled  its  volume  of  sound  into 
the  terror  stricken  city,  and  then  "  Forward !"  was 
again  the  word  of  command. 

Worth's  command  took  the  road  to  the  San  Cosme 
garita  on  the  north;  Quitman  followed  the  fugitives 
from  Chapultepec  by  the  aqueduct,  which  entered 
the  city  by  the  Belen  garita  at  the  south-west  angle 
of  the  city.  The  enemy  made  continued  resistance 
with  artillery  and  small-arms  from  behind  every 
available  point  between  the  base  of  the  hill  and  the 
garita;  finally  Quitman  carried  this,  but  found  a 
strong  obstacle  in  the  citadel  within  the  walls,  which 
was  being  rapidly  filled  with  troops  brought  by  Santa 
Anna  from  the  eastern  defenses.  During  the  after- 
noon, a  fierce  struggle  ensued  between  the  reinforce- 
ments brought  up  and  the  wearied  American  soldiers 


MARYLAND  VOLUiVTEEK.  355 

who  were  in  the  works  at  the  garita,  which  they  still 
continued  obstinately  to  hold  against  the  several  at- 
tempts made  to  recapture  them. 

Worth  had  met  with  the  same  resolute  resistance, 
the  same  fierce  struggle;  and,  finally,  Santa  Anna 
having  checked  Quitman's  advance  beyond  the  Belen 
gate  had  now  come  up  to  San  Cosme  to  beat  him,  if  pos- 
sible ;  this  he  did  not  do,  but  eight  hundred  and  sixty- 
three  killed  and  wounded  of  our  army,  in  to-daj^'s 
tighting,  attested  the  spirit  of  the  Mexican  resistance. 

Night  fell  upon  the  combatants  lying  upon  their 
arras  at  these  two  gates  of  the  capital,  General  Worth 
being  icitldn  the  garita  San  Cosme  and  in  the  city  of 
Mexico. 

At  9  P.M.  General  Worth  thought  he  would  show 
where  he  was,  and  directed  a  mortar,  which  was 
planted  in  front  of  his  quarters,  to  be  fired  in  the 
direction  of  the  main  plaza.  This  completed  the 
work.  The  city  was  evacuated  during  the  night;  the 
Mexican  generals  having  determined  to  give  up  the 
city  and  withdraw  their  beaten  army  before  the  en- 
suing day,  when  it  might  be  too  late.  They  left  by 
the  northern  road,  carrying  with  them  a  considerable 
park  of  artillery. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  14th,  the  town  coun- 
cil approached  Scott's  headquarters  to  make  terms 
with  the  conqueror;  this  time  there  was  no  negotiat- 
ing; he  told  them  that  the  city  of  Mexico  had  been 
in  his  power  since  the  afternoon  of  the  preceding  day, 
and  that  now  he  was  going  to  take  it;  and  he  did 
take  it.  On  the  same  day  General  Scott  established 
his  quarters  in  the  Palace  (halls  of  the  Montezumas, 


356  MEMOIBS  OF  A 

in  newspaper  parlance),  the  American  army  was 
quartered  in  its  vicinity;  hospitals  were  organized, 
the  leperos  thrashed,  the  inhabitants  protected  from 
the  villains  turned  loose  in  their  midst,  order  Avas 
restored,  life  and  property  made  secure,  religion 
respected,  by  the  army  which  had  marched  from  the 
distant  north  to  plant  its  victorious  banners  in  the 
valley  of  the  Aztecs. 

All  honor  to  "Winfield  Scott!  ever  green  be  his 
laurels,  and  forever  honored  may  be  the  companions- 
in-arms  who  shared  the  glory  of  his  conquest !  Honor 
to  the  memory  of  the  dead,  who  fell  before  victory 
was  won !  and  honor,  ye  American  citizens,  the  rank 
and  file  of  an  army,  that  sullied  not  the  hour  of 
triumph  with  the  stain  of  rapine  or  lust ! 

No  days  of  ancient  Rome  ever  beheld  on  its  Appian 
or  Flaminian  Ways  a  nobler  host  than  that  which 
crossed  the  Cordilleras  of  Mexico ;  and  the  Capitol 
never  witnessed  honors  more  nobly  won,  than  those 
which  this  army  placed  upon  the  brows  of  Scott. 


CHAPTER    XXXIV. 

CONQUERING     A     PEACE. 

The  American  army  was  in  the  city  of  Mexico, 
the  capital  of  the  country  in  the  occupancy  of  the  in- 
vaders ;  and  that  which  Scott  foresaw,  and  which 
doubtless  influenced  him,  as  I  have  before  said,  to 
agree  to  an  armistice,  had  now  happened.  There  was 
no  government  to  treat  toWi.     The  armistice  was  a  mis- 


MAIiYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  357 

take ;  it  had  cost  the  lives  of  many  brave  men,  was 
near  losing  everything  previously  gained  by  American 
valor,  yet  it  was  granted  in  pursuance  of  and  in 
furtherance  of  the  policy  of  our  government,  in  the 
hope  it  might  lead  to  a  treaty. 

It  looked  much  like  a  stalemate  now.  Santa  Anna 
resigned  the  Presidency ;  even  lie  could  not  meet  the 
overwhelming  indignation  of  the  country  at  the  loss 
of  its  capital,  so  he  said  he  would  continue  to  serve 
his  country  in  the  field. 

I  believe  the  executive  functions  of  the  government 
devolved  upon  the  Justices  of  the  Supreme  Court ;  be 
that  as  it  may,  Santa  Anna  sent  a  corps  of  tbi'ee 
thousand  men  to  Queretaro,  and  a  decree  from  some 
source  made  that  city  the  seat  of  government ;  but 
there  Avas  no  government  there,  not  even  the  sem- 
blance of  one;  nor  was  there  any  government  any- 
where else;  nor  was  there  any  army,  unless  that  be 
called  one,  which  Santa  Anna  led  to  throw  upon 
Scott's  communications.  I  doubt  whether  the  world's 
history  can  show  a  similar  spectacle  to  that  which 
Mexico  presented  at  this  period.  It  was  not  only 
distressing  to  its  citizens,  it  was  most  embarrassing  to 
its  conquerors. 

Scott  could  not  press  hostile  operations  even  if  such 
had  been  his  wish,  for  up  to  the  last  of  November  no 
reinforcements  had  reached  him.  He  had  levied  a 
contribution  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars 
upon  the  city,  and  had  issued  orders  forbidding  the 
exportation  of  coin  or  the  precious  metals,  or  the  pay- 
ment of  rent  for  any  buildings  required  as  quarters  or 
storehouses  for  the  army.     The  troops  en  route  to  the 


358  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

valley  were  stretched  from  Vera  Cruz  to  the  Rio 
Frio.  A  goveriunent  was  being  formed  or  attempted 
to  be  formed  at  Queretaro  by  Peiia  y  Pena,  President 
of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  General  Santa  Anna,  re- 
lieved from  the  command  of  his  troops  by  order  of  the 
latter,  signing  himself  "  Provisional  President."  Gene- 
ral Paredes,  a  known  and  avowed  monarchist,  had 
come  into  the  country,  and  General  Bustamente  re- 
appeared and  issued  his  j^ronimciamento.  All  the 
former  factions  and  elements  of  strife,  strengthened 
instead  of  diminished  by  the  misfortunes  of  the  coun- 
try, rallied  at  Queretaro,  to  thwart  the  good  inten- 
tions and  paralyze  the  efforts  of  all  who  labored  for 
the  good  of  Mexico.  On  the  11th  of  November  a 
number  of  deputies,  assembled  at  Queretaro,  elected 
General  An  ay  a  (who  had  been  unconditionally  re- 
leased by  Scott)  as  Provisional  President.  He  made 
Peiia  y  Peiia  his  Ciiief  Minister;  Senor  Rosa,  Secre- 
tary of  State ;  General  Moray  Villamil,  Secretary  of 
War;  and  appointed  General  Bustamente  Commander- 
in-Chief  of  the  Army.  This  administration  was 
regarded  at  army  headquarters  as  favoring  negotia- 
tion!^, but  it  was  only  to  last  until  the  8th  of  January 
ensuing;  and  Scott,  now  diplomatic  agent,  as  Mr. 
Trist  had  been  recalled,  was  compelled  to  rely  more 
upon  his  "self-sustaining  machine,"  his  army,  than 
upon  hopes  of  a  peaceable  settlement  of  existing  diffi- 
culties between  the  two  nations. 

On  the  27th  of  November,  1S47,  he  wrote  to  Mr. 
Marcy,  our  Seci'etnry  of  War,  a  letter  dated  Head- 
quarters of  the  Army,  Mexico,  of  which  the  following 
extracts  will  give  a  correct  idea  of  the  then  situation  : 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  359 

"I  have  now  been  waiting-  witli  anxiety,  for  nearly  a  month, 
the  arrival  of  the  reinforcements  with  Major-General  Patterson, 
and  others,  coming  up  from  Vera  Cruz.  That  general  in  an  offi- 
cial report,  dated  the  10th  inst.,  informs  rae  that  he  halted,  with 
some  twenty-six  hundred  men,  for  duty  at  Jalapa. 

"He  had  received  my  instructions  of  the  13th  and  28th  ult., 
directing  there-garrisoning  of  Jalapa  with  some  twelve  hundred 
men,  and  the  establishing  of  at  least  two  new  posts  between 
that  city  and  Vera  Cruz. 

"  I  am  happy  to  learn  that  Major-General  Butler  was  hourly 
expected  at  Vera  Cruz  early  in  this  month.  On  his  or  Major- 
General  Patterson's  arrival  here,  with  four  thousand  or  more 
reinforcements,  over  and  above  the  eastern  garrisons,  I  shall 
dispatch  that  surplus,  or  a  force  equal  to  it,  to  occupy  the  mining 
districts  within  —  miles  of  Zacatecas ;  and  should  the  surplus 
be  suflScient,  I  shall  also  occupy  the  mining  district  of  San  Luis 
de  Potosi." 

On  the  4th  of  December  he  again  wrote  to  Mr. 
Marcy,  from  the  city  of  Mexico  : 

"The  force  here  and  at  Chapultepee,  '  fit  for  duty,'  is  only  about 
six  thousand  rank  and  file;  the 'number  of  sick,' exclusive  of 
officers,  being  two  thousand  and  forty-one. 

"No  proposition  looking  to  a  peace  has  been  made  to  me  by 
the  federal  government  of  this  Republic,  or  its  commissioners." 

Oil  the  2d  of  December  General  Scott  wrote  to 
Cummodore  William  B.  Shubrick,  U.  S.  Navy,  com- 
manding Pacific  Squadron  : 

"Sir, — I  have  the  honor  to  receive  your  letter,  dated  at 
Mazailan,  the  16th  ult.,  and  I  am  happy  to  learn  that  our 
Pacifle  Squadron,  under  your  command,  has,  among  other  im- 


360  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

portant  points,  captured   Mazatlan,  Guayamas,  and,  I  suppose, 
San  Bias. 

"  I  have  been  waiting  here  two  months  and  a  lialf  to  learn 
the  views  of  the  government  at  home,  or  at  least  for  the  arrival 
of  reinforcements,  before  undertaking  any  new  and  distant  opera- 
tions. 

"According  to  instructions  from  the  War  Department,  which 
may  be  changed  on  receiving  late  dispatches  from  me,  I  shall, 
in  proportion  to  the  arrival  of  reinforcements,  occupy,  suc- 
cessively, the  principal  mining  districts,  of  which  Zacatecas  and 
Sau  Luis  de  Potosi  are  the  respective  centres  ;  next,  the  State 
capitals  within  my  reach  and  surplus  means  ;  all  with  a  view  to 
the  internal  trade  and  revenue  that  may  be  derived  therefrom, 
to  aid  in  the  payment  of  the  expenses  of  the  occupation,  that  is, 
should  the  government  decide  upon  covering  the  country  in 
order  to  force  this  Republic  to  sue  for  peace  ;  and  we  now  have 
in  Mexico  no  minister  or  commissioner  (since  the  recall  of  Mr. 
Trist)  to  negotiate  a  treaty.  To  effect  that  object,  by  occupying 
the  sources  of  trade  and  revenue,  the  mining  districts  and  princi- 
pal cities,  including  State  capitals  and  ports  of  entry,  at  least 
fifty  thousand  men  in  the  ranks,  not  on  paper  (the  number  I  have 
asked  for),  will  be  indispensable.  ....  The 
common  service  intrusted  to  us,  respectively,  is  interested  in 
frequent  inter-communication.  I  shall  avail  myself  of  every 
opportunity  to  give  you  information  of  the  movements  and  opera- 
tions of  this  arm}'. 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  remain,  with  high  respect,  your  most 
obedient  servant, 

"(Signed)  "  WiNFiELD  Scott." 

The  intelligent  reader  has  before  him  a  picture  of 
the  war  with  Mexico  as  it  existed  on  the  2d  day  of 
December,  1847,  drawn  in  such  a  masterly  manner 
that  no  comment  is  necessary.  I  will  add  a  single 
remark,  that  for  months  subsequent  to  this  period  our 
married  officers  seriously  entertained  the  idea  of  send- 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  3Q2 

ing  to  the  United  States  for  their  families,  lool^ing  to 
a  permanent  residence  in  Mexico. 

Nearly  cotemporaneous  with  General  Scott's  letter 
to  Commodore  Shubrick,  instructions  for  General 
Scott  were  penned  at  Washington,  which  will  show 
the  views  of  our  government ;  they  were  dated  War 
Department,  December  14th,  1847  : 

"It  is  expected  that  you  will  use  the  force  under  your  com- 
mand to  hold  the  city  of  Mexico,  and  other  places  now  in  your 
possession,  and  to  keep  open  the  communication  between  that 
place  and  Vera  Cruz,  so  that  supplies,  munitions  of  war,  and 
merchandise,  can  be  safely  conveyed  along  that  line  with  only 
a  small  force  to  escort  and  protect  them.  Should  robbers  and 
guerilleros  continue  to  obstruct  the  road,  to  plunder  and  murder 
as  heretofore,  the  most  vigorous  measures  should  be  pursued  to 
punish  them  and  prevent  their  depredations.  It  is  desirable  to 
open  the  country  to  the  ingress  of  merchandise,  from  the  ports 
in  our  possession,  to  the  utmost  practicable  extent.  In  this  way 
it  is  anticipated  that  considerable  assistance  will  be  derived 
toward  meeting  the  expenses  of  the  war. 

''  You  will  perceive  that  the  government  here  contemplate  that 
the  resources  of  the  country  are,  to  a  considerable  extent,  open 
to  us,  and  that  they  are  to  be  resorted  to  for  the  purpose  of 
diminishing  the  burden  of  our  expenses.  It  is  also  expected  you 
will  make  them  available  for  this  purpose  as  far  as  practicable. 

"The  internal  reveuues,  to  the  extent,  at  least,  to  which  they 
were  levied  by  the  Mexican  government,  are  to  be  kept  up  and 
paid  over  to  the  use  of  our  army,  so  far  as  it  is  within  our  power 
to  control  them,  with  the  exception  of  the  departmental  or  tran- 
sit duties  mentioned  in  a  former  communication.  For  this  pur- 
pose, and  to  deprive  the  enemy  of  the  means  of  organizing 
further  resistance  to  protract  the  war,  it  is  expedient  to  subject 
to  our  arms  other  parts  of  his  country.  What  those  parts  shall 
be  is  left  to  your  judgment.  Our  object  is  to  obtain  acceptable 
terras  of  peace  within  the  earliest  practicable  period,  and  it  is 
apprehended  that  this  object  cannot  be  speedily  obtained  without 


362  MEMOIRS  or  A 

making  the  enemy  feel  that  he  is  to  beai-  a  considerable  part  of 
the  burden  of  the  war. 

"  Should  there  not  be  at  this  time  a  government  inMexico  of 
sufficient  stability  to  make  peace,  or  should  the  authority  which 
there  exists  be  adverse  to  it,  and  yet  a  large  and  influential  por- 
tion of  the  people  really  disposed  to  put  an  end  to  hostilities,  it 
is  desirable  to  know  what  prospect  there  is  that  the  latter  could, 
with  the  countenance  and  protection  of  our  arms,  organize  a 
government  which  would  be  willing  to  make  peace,  and  able  to 
sustain  relations  of  peace  with  us.     .     .     . 

"  (  Signed  )  "  W.  L.  Makct, 

"Secretary  of  War. 
"Major-General  W.  Scott, 

"  Commanding  U.  S.  Army  in  Mexico." 

There  was  as  much,  if  not  more,  embarrassment  in 
administration  circles  at  Washington,  than  at  army 
headquarters  in  the  valley  of  Mexico.  Politicians 
could  with  great  unction  preach,  Conquer  a  peace,  but 
far-seeing  men  had  difficulty  in  the  savoir  /aire :  it 
was  unmistakably  a  difficult  problem,  so  we  will 
step  along  with  the  column  now  about  to  march,  and 
await  its  solution. 


CHAPTER     XXXV. 

MARCH  FROM  THE  NATIONAL  BRIDGE. 

Novembe?-  5,  1847.  We  bade  adieu  to  the  bridge, 
marching  with  a  column  of  two  thousand  five  hun- 
dred men  of  all  arms  to  reinforce  General  Scott,  who 
was  clamoring,  we  were  told,  for  our  advance.  I  was 
glad  to  leave  this  post,  not  because  it  was  unhealthy 
and  the  duty  arduous,  but  because  the  warfare  we  had 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  353 

been  engaged  in  was  exceedingly  distasteful  to  me. 
The  whole  command  was,  I  think,  glad  to  get  away ; 
it  was  still  hot,  though  the  rainy  season  had  set  in, 
and  our  sick  list  was  increasing  at  a  rapid  rate ;  the 
incessant  watchfulness,  the  same  monotonous  stillness, 
broken  only  by  the  sound  of  fire-arms,  the  isolation  of 
the  post,  the  enervating  and  depressing  atmosphere, 
the  indescribable  earthy  smell  of  vegetation  which 
arose  as  the  shades  of  night  fell,  the  sultry  oppress- 
iveness of  the  heat,  all  had  tended  to  dispirit  us. 
The  most  of  those  we  were  now  thrown  with  were 
new  troops,  and  as  our  men  regarded  themselves  as 
veterans,  the  association  was  beneficial  in  restoring 
health  and  spirits,  so  that  by  the  time  we  reached 
Cerro  Gordo  we  were  once  more  in  pretty  good  trim. 
We  had  had  no  rest  since  leaving  the  transport,  and 
the  novelty  of  the  march  with  enough  support  to  for- 
bid all  anxiety,  exhilarated  our  men,  and  they  really 
were  beginning  to  step  and  look  like  soldiers  when 
we  passed  through  the  city  of  Jalapa,  distant  seventy 
miles  from  Vera  Cruz. 

We  had  marched  some  half  dozen  miles  beyond 
Jalapa,  when  we  went  into  camp  at  a  village  called 
Cedeno ;  we  were  brigaded  with  the  Second  Illinois  and 
Colonel  Withers's  Rille  Battalion ;  the  other  brigade, 
commanded  by  General  Gushing,  was  composed  of  the 
First  Massachusetts  and  Second  Ohio  Regiments.  We 
learned  here  that  General  Lane's  command,  which 
preceded  us,  had  had  a  sharp  affair  at  Huamautla, 
and  that  Captain  Samuel  Walker,  of  the  Rifles,  whose 
company  was  raised  principally  in  Baltimore,  had  been 
killed,  with  a  good  many  of  his  company.     I  knew 


'■■m^ 


364  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

Walker  on  the  Rio  Grande,  and  he  had  a  high  repu- 
tation among  the  Texans  as  a  skillful  soldier.  As 
well  as  I  could  learn,  he  charged  into  the  town  before 
the  infantry  supports  were  up,  and  was  overwhelmed 
by  superior  numbers.  We  also  learned  that  our  turn 
would  come  next,  as  Santa  Anna,  having  abandoned 
his  attempt  upon  Puebla,  was  now  devoting  himself  to 
the  troops  marching  to  Scott,  and  that  it  was  his 
troops  which  had  handled  Lane  so  roughly. 

This  portion  of  Mexico  is  far  superior  to  any  have 
yet  seen,  more  populous,  and  in  a  better  state  of  cul- 
tivation ;  whilst  the  town  of  Jalapa  will  rank  with 
any  European  city  of  its  size  and  population  in  refine- 
ment and  civilization.  We  are  now  in  the  Tierra 
Templada,  and  feel  the  comfort  of  a  blanket  at  night, 
though  at  mid-day  it  is  nearly  as  warm  as  it  was  at 
the  National  Bridge.  The  objection  to  the  climate  is 
its  humidity ;  at  night  we  are  dripping  wet  in  our 
tents,  and  already  the  recognized  grumblers  are  wish- 
ing they  were  somewhere  else. 

November  11.  I  rode  in  from  camp  to  pay  my  re- 
spects to  my  old  brigade  commander,  Major-General 
John  A.  Quitman,  who  was  on  his  way  home  from  the 
city  of  Mexico.  The  meeting  was  most  cordial,  and 
I  congratulated  him  sincerely  upon  his  well-earned 
reputation  ;  he  could  give  me  no  news  as  to  the  proba- 
ble results  of  the  victories  in  the  valley,  and  seemed 
to  be  as  much  at  a  loss  concerning  the  future  of  the 
war  as  we  were.  A  year  had  elapsed  since  I  was  in 
his  brigade,  and  he  told  me  it  was  very  likely  we 
would  be  together,  if  living,  a  year  hence,  as  it  looked 
as  if  we  would  hold  the  country. 


MAUYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  365 

We  are  still  uncertain  as  to  our  movements,  and 
for  the  life  of  me  I  cannot  comprehend  this  delay  in 
our  march;  the  whole  command  is  fretting  and  chaf- 
ing in  a  camp  seemingly  selected  for  those  who,  tired 
with  sand,  must  necessarily  need  wet  earth,  for  a  couch. 

Novemler  16.  The  Massachusetts  Regiment  left  for 
Perote.  This  was  the  regiment  originally  commanded 
by  Colonel  Caleb  Cushing,  now  a  Brigadier-General ; 
the  rest  of  the  troops  are  still  in  the  marsh,  gradually 
losing  strength  as  well  as  spirits  ;  the  calculation  is, 
that  one  month  more  of  this  service,  and  there  will 
be  little  remaining  except  what  may  be  found  in  the 
hospitals. 

November  22.  Our  regiment  has  been  ordered  into 
Jalapa  as  a  portion  of  its  garrison,  and  Colonel  George 
W.  Hughes  appointed  Military  Governor  of  the  depart- 
ment; the  Second  Illinois  Regiment  and  the  Battalion 
of  New  Jersey  Volunteers,  Lientenant-Colonel  Wood- 
ruff, being  likewise  ordered  in  from  camp  to  the  cit}^ 
We  relieved  the  First  Pennsylvania  Regiment,  Colonel 
Wynkoop,  and  a  brigade  previously  stationed  here. 

November  23.  Two  American  teamsters  were  hung, 
by  sentence  of  a  military  commission,  for  a  cold- 
blooded unprovoked  murder  of  a  Mexican  boy. 

November  24.  Two  Mexican  officers,  Lieutenant 
Ambrose  Alcalde  and  Second  Adjutant  Antonio 
Garcia,  were  shot  to-day  by  sentence  of  a  military 
commission  for  breach  of  parole.  They  both  ad- 
mitted that  they  had  broken  their  paroles,  and  plead 
in  justification  an  order,  which  they  produced,  from 
Juan  de  Soto,  Governor  of  the  State  of  Vera  Cruz, 
commanding  them  to  take  up  arms  again,  or  they 


366  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

would  be  reduced  to  the  ranks.  They  both  died  like 
brave  men,  the  words  "  Viva  la  Republica  Mejicana,"* 
being  the  last  that  fell  from  their  lips, 

Noveivher  25.  Large  numbers  of  paroled  Mexican 
officers  came  into  the  city  to-day,  and  registered  their 
names  at  the  adjutant's  office,  as  a  pledge  that  they 
would  not  take  up  arms  until  regularly  exchanged. 

November  27.  Upwards  of  one  hundred  officers 
have  already  registered  their  names  as  having  been 
paroled  by  the  American  arms  ;  they  protest  in  the 
most  indignant  terms  against  the  conduct  of  De  Soto. 

November  30.  I  was  this  day  appointed  by  Colonel 
Hughes  the  Military  Commandant  of  the  garrison  at 
Jalapa;  Colonel  Cheatam  arrived  with  a  regiment  of 
Tennesseeans  ;  our  troops  were  paid  up  to  the  31st  of 
August,  1847;  and  Major-General  William  O.Butler, 
of  Kentucky,  arrived  with  a  large  number  of  troops 
from  Tennessee,  Ohio,  and  Kentucky. 

December  A.  My  command  was  reviewed  by  Major- 
General  Butler  on  the  plain  adjacent  to  the  city  ;  it 
was  a  charming  day,  the  troops  looked  and  behaved 
well,  and  large  numbers  of  the  population  turned 
out  to  see  the  parade.  Captain  Lloyd  Tilghman's 
battery  of  artillery  from  Baltimore  has  arrived,  and 
is  attached  to  our  regiment.  I  have  no  hesitation  in 
saying  it  is  among  the  best  volunteer  organizations 
in  the  army  ;  the  material  of  which  it  is  composed 
is  excellent,  and  Captain  Tilghman's  ability  cannot 
ftiil  to  make  it  very  efficient;  a  company  of  cavalry 
recruited  at  Vera  Cruz  by  my  old  comrade,  Captain 

*  "  Long  live  the  Republic  of  Mexico." 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  357 

Chatam  R.  Wheat,  of  Tennessee,*  has  been  attached 
to  our  regiment,  and  the  Twiggs  Rifles,  mounted  by 
order  of  General  Twiggs ;  so  that  our  own  command  is 
now  composed  of  the  necessary  arms  to  constitute  it 
a  legion,  viz.,  infantry,  cavalry,  and  artillery.  This 
looks  as  if  there  were  some  truth  in  the  rumors  flying 
about,  that,  since  the  appointment  of  Lieutenant-Colo- 
nel William  H.  Emory,  another  topographical  engi- 
neer, by  the  President,  our  regiment  is  destined  for 
service  on  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec. 


CHAPTER    XXXVI. 

THE     CITY    OF     JALAP  A. 

jALiPA  (pronounced  Halapa)  is  a  handsome  city, 
with  charming  environs;  the  surrounding  country 
fertile,  the  vegetation  perennial ;  the  lands  are  well 
cultivated,  producing  sugar-cane,  coffee,  and  some  few 
cereals,  while  groves  of  orange  trees  and  orchards  of 
pineapple  flourish  in  luxuriant  abundance.  The 
people  are  generally  peaceful  and  well  disposed ; 
many  of  the  wealthy  families  of  the  city  and  neigh- 
borhood are  refined,  well  educated,  and  hospitable  ; 
we  have  already  been  the  recipients  of  well-bred 
civilities,  without  any  attempt  on  the  part  of  our  hosts 
to  be  anything  other  than  Mexicans  in  character, 
habits,   and   sentiments.      I    was    much    pleased    at 

*  I  have  been  told  that  his  family  was  originally  IVom  the  city 
of  Baltimore. 


368  ME  MO  IBS  OF  A 


noticing  one  habit  of  the  Mexican  ladies,  heads  of 
families :  whenever  they  received  us,  all  the  children 
were  invariably  brought  into  the  parlor,  and  when 
we  dined  or  breakfasted  with  them  the  children  were 
seated  at  the  table  with  the  family  and  guests. 

This  portion  of  Mexico  has  a  high  reputation  for 
its  climate,  and  Jalapa  is  visited  during  the  sickly 
seasons  by  the  citizens  of  Vera  Cruz,  as  our  summer 
resorts  are  frequented  by  our  people.  It  is,  however, 
at  this,  the  rainy  season,  far  from  being  a  comfortable 
residence  to  North  Americans,  there  being  a  great 
deal  of  rain  with  cold  nights ;  so  cold  that  blankets 
are  indispensable  for  warmth. 

There  are  many  pretty  women  here,  some  with  fair 
hair  and  blue  eyes;  all  the  ladies  are  seemingly  highly 
prized  by  the  gentlemen,  for  a  more  jealous  set  cannot 
be  found  elsewhere.  In  the  main  plaza,  where  the 
market  is  daily  held,  the  Indian  women  are  to  be 
seen  with  their  hair  braided  with  flowers,  sitting  near 
their  heap  of  oranges,  vegetables,  and  fruits,  gently 
inviting  by  their  modest  glances  the  attention  of  the 
purchaser,  and  never  by  look,  manner,  or  speech  show- 
ing aught  else  than  innocence  and  purity  of  character. 
It  seems  so  strange  to  me  that  an  opinion  should  have 
got  among  the  people  of  the  United  States  that  the 
Mexican  women  were  immoral  in  their  conduct.  It  is 
as  groundless  an  error  as  ever  prevailed,  and  as  gross  a 
calumny  as  was  ever  uttered  or  thought.  So  far  from 
it,  I  can  speak  from  an  experience  of  nearly  two 
years'  acquaintance,  that  the  women  of  Mexico  are  as 
pure  as  those  of  any  land,  and  that  in  the  relations 
of  wife  and  mother  they  are  unsurpassed  in  the  per- 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  359 

formance  of  domestic  duties.  One  fact  will  demon- 
strate this  assertion :  nowhere  on  the  face  of  the 
eartli  is  the  wife  and  mother  more  loved  and  respected 
than  in  Mexico.  I  challenge  any  one  to  contradict 
this  who  has  had  the  same  opportunity  of  knowing 
as  myself 

There  is  one  feature  connected  with  these  markets 
which  is  interesting:  the  pulque  is  brought  in  skins 
of  hogs  and  goats  securely  sewed  to  prevent  leakage, 
the  beverage  being  drawn  from  one  of  the  animal's 
legs.  Over  and  over  again  I  have  seen  a  Mexican 
mother,  surrounded  by  her  little  flock  of  half  a  dozen 
children,  from  the  babe  in  arms  to  the  child  of  ten 
or  twelve  years,  approach  a  pulque  seller,  take  the 
skin  from  his  hands,  and,  applying  the  leg  to  the 
open  and  expectant  mouth,  suffer  the  delicious  (to 
them)  drink  to  flow  down  the  greedy  throat.  It  was 
very  attractive  to  me  to  witness  this  treat  of  the  little 
ones. 

This  Indian  blood  of  Mexico,  as  far  as  I  have  seen, 
is  certainly  the  gentlest  of  any  that  runs  among  the 
creatures  of  the  Almighty's  hands.  Men,  as  well  as 
women,  are  mild  and  docile ;  no  one  can  see  them 
without  being  struck  with  these  traits.  Fire-arms 
and  whisky  destroyed  our  North  American  Indians. 
They  cannot  effect  the  same  i"esult  with  these  races; 
for,  unlike  ours,  these  yield.  On  the  advance  of  Scott 
he  found  the  road  filled  with  rock  and  other  obstacles 
placed  by  the  enemy  to  impede  his  advance.  A  large 
force  of  Indians  was  brought  from  a  neighboring 
village  to  remove  the  impediment.  They  were  the 
same  men  who,  by  order  of  the  Mexican   military, 

24 


370  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

had  placed  them  there.  They  smilingly  went  to 
work  and  got  them  out  of  the  way,  looking  upon  the 
whole  matter  as  a  good  joke,  thus  to  undo  for  one, 
without  comijensation,  that  which  they  had  labor- 
iously wrought,  for  the  other  army. 

I  never  saw  a  Mexican  woman  show  what  we  call 
temper,  except  upon  one  occasion,  and  that  Avas  in 
this  town  of  Jalapa.  General  Scott  had  employed  a 
spy  comjDany  for  escort  and  scout  duty,  which  was 
composed  of  the  worst-looking  scoundrels  I  ever 
saw.  Robbers  and  banditti  before  the  war,  being 
renegades,  their  characters  were  not  improved.  They 
came  down  from  the  city  with  their  captain — Colonel 
Dominguez — as  an  escort  to  a  specie  train.  Stopping 
in  front  of  my  quarters,  I  was  looking  at  them  with 
interest,  when  I  noticed  one  of  them,  quite  a  lad, 
drinking  from  the  usual  drinking-cup,  a  gourd,  which 
a  woman  on  the  sidewalk  had  just  handed  him.  He 
drank  with  his  head  averted,  unmistakably  ashamed 
of  the  company  he  was  in.  He  returned  the  gourd 
to  the  woman,  who,  without  a  word,  threw  it  on  the 
ground  and  crushed  it  under  her  foot.  The  action 
was  seen  by  several  of  the  villains,  whose  savage 
looks  might  have  been  followed  by  blows ;  but  I 
made  a  move  which  attracted  their  attention,  and 
the  woman  slipped  into  her  house. 

The  society  of  Jalapa  would  be  considered  good  in 
any  metropolitan  city,  and  I  hope  I  may  be  pardoned 
for  mentioning  the  name  of  Mr.  James  Kennedy,  an 
American  gentleman  intermarried  with  a  Mexican 
lady,  whose  interesting  family  and  hospitable  man- 
sion were  always  open  to  our  visits,  and  whose  con- 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  371 

tinued  civilities  to  us  all  will  be  long  retiiembered. 
We  were  also  under  great  obligations  to  Mr.  Henry 
Hall,  of  Ponghkeepsie,  New  York,  the  superintendent 
of  a  cotton  factory  in  the  vicinity  of  the  town,  whose 
long  residence  in  the  country,  and  familiarity  with  the 
Mexican  language  and  character,  rendered  his  society 
not  only  agreeable  but  at  all  times  advantageous  to 
the  officers  of  our  garrison.  Neither  of  these  gentle- 
men had  lost  any  of  their  attachment  to  their  native 
country,  and  both  were  highly  I'espected  by  the  in- 
habitants of  Jalapa. 

Several  of  the  Mexican  residents  were  owners  of 
estates  in  the  vicinity,  to  which  we  were  frequently 
invited,  and  where  we  enjoyed  the  delicious  fruit  of 
the  country  freshl}'  gathered  from  plant  and  tree, 
where  the  luscious  chirimoya,  the  pomegranate,  and 
the  pineapple  were  piled  upon  tables  already  beautiful 
with  the  golden  hue  of  the  orange  and  the  dark  green 
of  the  lime,  and  where  the  perfume  of  the  vanilla 
mingled  with  the  aroma  of  the  mimosa  and  the  arbor 
vit£e. 

On  one  of  these  haciendas,  belonging  to  Seiior  G., 
lying  five  miles  south-west  of  Jalapa,  and  called 
Apacho,  there  was  one  field  of  cane  three  leagues 
square,  which  produced  twenty  thousand  pounds  of 
sugar  per  week  for  eight  months  in  the  year.  As  the 
fortune  of  this  gentleman  was  princely,  his  entertain- 
ment was  magnificent.  After  the  repast  we  accom- 
panied him  to  the  pineapple  orchard,  which  was  then 
in  full  fruit;  the  laborers  were  all  clad  in  skins,  each 
with  a  long  knife,  called  a  machete,  very  sharp  on 
both  edges,  with  which  the  bushes  or  trees  are  kept 


372  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

trimmed.  These  trees  are  not  more  than  four  or  five 
feet  high,  and  the  peon  (laborer),  severing  the  fruit 
from  the  tree  by  a  single  touch,  seizes  the  branch  be- 
neath the  fruit,  when,  with  two  or  three  rapid  and 
dexterous  cuts,  the  apple  is  pared,  and,  dripping  with 
its  fragrant  juice,  is  banded  you  on  the  end  of  the 
knife.  I  am  sure  in  this  way  the  pineapple  as  a 
tropical  fruit  is  unsurpassed  for  flavor,  except  by  the 
peach  and  cantaloupe  of  dear  old  Maryland,  in  the 
temperate  regions  of  the  north.  The  orange-groves 
on  this  estate  were  so  large  and  the  quantity  so  great 
that  Seiior  G.  said  he  knew  not  what  to  do  with  the 
fruit, — the  beauty  of  the  orchard  when  the  fruit  was 
ripe,  as  now,  and  the  perfume  of  the  blossoms  earlier  in 
the  season,  compensating  for  their  care  and  expense. 


CHAPTER    XXXVII. 

IN    GARRISON. 

The  Ayuntamiento  or  Town  Council  of  Jalapa 
was  continued  in  its  civil  functions,  working  har- 
moniously with  the  military  authorities  of  the  United 
States.  The  town  was  quiet,  except  when  the  pass- 
age of  a  train  with  its  escort  left  in  its  wake  the 
worthless  and  dissolute,  to  molest  the  citizens  and 
annoy  the  military ;  as  a  general  thing,  the  relations 
between  our  soldiers  and  the  townspeople  were 
friendly,  and  it  was  not  at  all  an  uncommon  sight  to 
see  an  American  soldier  mending  his  boots  alongside 


IIAEYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  373 

a  Mexican  shoemaker,  or  a  carpenter  in  uniform  work- 
ina;  at  the  same  bench  with  a  Mexican  mechanic.  I 
saw  a  soldier  looking  with  great  interest  at  some  native 
masons  laying  brick.*  They  were  at  work  upon  a 
platform,  elevated  some  dozen  or  so  feet  from  the 
earth,  to  which  a  man  was  carrying  mortar  upon  his 
head  on  a  square  board  instead  of  a  hod.  The  masons 
stood  immediately  in  front  of  the  wall  they  were 
constructing,  placed  each  brick  separately  on  its  bed, 
used  a  plumb  line,  square,  etc.,  to  see  that  eacJi  brick 
was  correctly  aligned,  occupying  as  much  time  in 
laying  a  half-dozen  bricks  as  an  American  mechanic 
would  in  laying  one  hundred.  The  soldier  asked  if 
he  might  show  the  Mexicans  how  to  work.  I  re- 
plied, certainly,  if  he  were  a  bricklayer.  He  said 
that  he  was.  Mounting  to  the  platform,  one  of  the 
Mexicans  gave  to  him  his  trowel,  the  ordinary  steel 
tool  of  English  manufacture,  and  the  soldier  went  to 
work.  It  was  really  a  pleasure  to  witness  the  grati- 
fication of  the  Mexicans  as  they  saw  the  rapidity 
and  skill  with  which  the  American  mason  did  his 
work.  I  left  him  instructing  his  fellow-craftsmen  ;  and, 
as  the  genius  of  the  Mexican  is  in  imitation,  I  have 
no  doubt  that  hereafter  Mexican  bricklayers  will 
work  secanchtm  artem. 

There  were  twenty-one  companies  of  troops  and  a 
battery  of  artillery  distributed    over  the  town;   the 


*  Bricks  are  now  burned  in  kilns  set  up  recently  by  Americans 
in  several  parts  of  Me.xico.     They  are  made  of  good  quality, 
.and  the  contrast  between  these   kiln-burned   brick  and  the  sun- 
dried  adobe  o(  ancient  days  is  greatly  in  favor  of  the  former. 


374  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

daily  duties  were  onerous  upon  the  Military  Com- 
mandant; it  was  his  duty  to  approve  all  the  requisi- 
tions and  returns,  to  receive  and  revise  the  morning 
reports  (which  I  regard  as  second  in  importance  to  no 
duty  devolving  upon  an  officer),  to  attend  or  be  pres- 
ent when  the  grand  guard  was  turned  oif,  to  receive 
the  reports  of  the  old  officers  of  the  guard  and  to  give 
instructions  to  the  new,  to  inspect  the  company  drills, 
the  company  quarters,  and  the  hospitals,  to  revise 
and  sign  the  consolidated  morning  reports,  then  pre- 
sent himself  in  person  at  the  Governor's  quarters  for 
orders  and  instructions.  These  were  the  invariable 
regular  morning  duties  ;  the  afternoons  were  employed 
in  drilling  the  District  of  Columbia  and  Maryland 
Eegiment  or  the  several  Battalions,  in  evolutions  of 
flie  line.  At  night  the  town  was  thoroughly  patrolled 
by  details  made  from  the  mainguard,  the  commis- 
sioned officer  in  charge  being  required  to  report  imme- 
diately to  the  Commandant  any  cause  for  danger  or 
disturbance.  Scouts  were  daily  sent  in  various  direc- 
tions, the  main  road  patrolled  by  mounted  men, 
pickets  and  videttes  established  on  prominent  land- 
marks, everything  which  ability  or  experience  could 
suggest  for  the  proper  maintenance  of  the  post  was 
successfully  done. 

One  of  our  greatest  sources  of  anxiety  was  the  ill 
health  of  the  command,  especially  the  mortality  in 
the  Second  Illinois  Regiment,  one  company  of  which 
had  lost  twenty-six  men,  including  the  captain  and 
first  lieutenant,  since  reaching  Jalapa;  in  all,  the 
seeds  of  disease  were  planted  in  the  Tierra  Caliente, 
and   the  imprudence  of  the  sick  in   eating  pineapple 


MAR  FLA  ND  VOLVNTEKR.  375 

ines  did  the  rest.  Notwitlistiinding  the  advice  of  the 
surgeons,  despite  the  most  stringent  hospital  reguLi- 
tions,  the  invalids  would  eat  these  pies,  and  they 
were  alinost  as  certain  death  as  a  bullet  through  the 
body.  The  desire  of  the  sick,  the  morbid  craving  of 
these  poor  fellows  for  cheese  and  pineapple,  was  as 
wonderful  as  it  was  painful  to  witness;  no  amount 
of  punishment  inflicted  upon  the  vendors  could 
keep  them  from  selling  their  pernicious  articles  to 
the  sick. 

In  the  month  of  December,  Major-General  Thomas 
Marshall,  of  Kentucky,  arrived  with  troops,  among 
which  was  a  fine  company  from  Washington,  recruited 
and  commanded  by  my  lieutenant  and  friend,  Cap- 
tain Francis  B.  Schaeflfer;  it  was  a  rifle  company, 
handsomely  dressed  in  dark  blue  jackets  and  pants, 
and  attracted  marked  attention  from  our  weather- 
beaten  companies  from  the  same  city.  It  was  perma- 
nently attached  to  our  regiment. 

December  11.  General  JNlarshall  reviewed  the  garri- 
son of  Jalapa  on  the  parade-ground,  and  the  concourse 
of  people  to  witness  it  was  greater  than  on  the  pre- 
vious review.  I  dined  with  the  general,  and  had  the 
pleasure  of  hearing  from  his  lips  an  account  of  the 
"free  fight"  which  took  place  in  Louisville  some  years 
ago,  and  which  gave  an  oclat  to  his  name. 

January  1,  1848.  Last  evening  I  visited  by  invi- 
tation the  dwellincrof  a  citizen  to  witness  a  Nathndad 
or  Naclmiento,  illustrative  of  the  nativity  of  our 
Saviour.  It  was  a  scenic  and  panoramic  representa- 
tion of  the  manger,  the  adoration  of  the  shepherds, 
the  worship  of  the  Magi,  the  star  in   the  east,   the 


376  MEMOIRS  OF   A 

hills  of  Bethlehem,  etc.,  which  occupied  the  walls  of 
two  parlors  and  wns  an  nrtiatic  and  creditable  piece  of 
work.  These  representations  take  the  place  of  our 
Christmas-trees,  much  time  and  money  being  ex- 
pended on  their  construction  and  adornment,  the  old 
as  well  as  the  young  manifesting  much  interest  in  the 
display  and  the  fetes  to  which  they  give  rise.  On 
this  evening,  the  house  was  visit'^'d  by  a  procession  of 
young  girls  dressed  in  white  with  wreaths  of  flowers 
on  their  heads,  who  passed  round  the  rooms  singing 
a  hymn  in  adoration  of  the  blessed  virgin  and  the 
infant  Messiah.  Music  frf)m  a  piano,  harp,  and 
guitars  accompanied  the  singing,  adding  to  the 
melody  and  sweetness  of  the  voices  and  the  measured 
cadence  of  the  march.  Altogether  it  was  a  pleasing 
and  attractive  entertainment. 

To-day  I  attended  high  mass  at  the  cathedral ;  the 
church  was  filled,  and  as  the  bells  pealed  twelve 
meridian,  the  crowd  which  filled  the  main  plaza 
uncovered,  and  for  a  few  seconds  a  silence  still  as 
death  reigned  over  all.  The  solemn  ritual  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church,  impressive  at  all  times,  is 
particularly  noticeable  in  its  effects  upon  the  Indian 
population  of  this  country;  no  man  who  knows  its 
character  would  ever  doubt  the  good  results  flowing 
from  these  ceremonies,  and  the  introduction  of  paint- 
ings and  music,  to  lead  their  plastic  minds  to  the  wor- 
ship of  the  only  true  God,  and  away  from  the  deviltries 
and  superstitions  of  their  former  priests,  and  altars 
smoking  from  the  blood  of  human  victims  sacrificed 
to  their  hideous  idols  of  stone.  Civilization  has 
done,  and  will  do,  much  to  modify  church  ceremonies, 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  377 

but  you  might  as  well  expect  a  child  to  read  without 
knowing  letters,  or  to  speak  other  languages  than  its 
mother-tongue,  as  to  expect  an  idolater  to  give  up 
his  images  and  accept  a  spiritual  worship  before  his 
understanding  can  grasp  the  lesson  intended  to  be 
taught.  All  men  have  a  spiritual  worship  within 
their  souls;  and  to  guide  it  and  to  lead  it,  whether 
such  be  on  the  plains  of  Mexico  or  in  the  streets  of 
London,  requires  all  the  wisdom  of  man,  enlightened 
with  the  grace  of  God.  To  teach  an  Indian  the  ten 
commandm.ents,  is  quite  feasible;  to  explain  the  re- 
hgion  of  Christ  to  them,  is  another  matter ;  if  a  paint- 
ing will  illustrate  a  half  intelligible  idea,  and  music 
elevate  the  soul,  why  not  use  these  adjuncts  to  in- 
struction ?  Object-teaching  ever  has  been,  and  ever 
will  be,  the  true  and  elementary  means  of  instruction, 
in  the  infant  schools  of  the  world. 

Jayiuary  6.  To-day  I  was  awakened  early  with 
the  information  that  a  train  coming  up  had  been 
attacked  by  guerilleros,  and  reinforcements  asked 
for  from  our  garrison.  I  soon  received  orders  from 
Colonel  Hughes  to  march  with  our  regiment,  and  was 
informed  by  him  that  he  would  follow  with  the 
mounted  men  and  the  New  Jersey  Battalion.  I 
marched  rapidly,  reaching  Cerro  Gordo  eiirly  next 
morning;  Colonel  Hughes  coming  up  with  the  cavalry 
assumed  command  and  pushed  the  cavalry  forward 
to  Plan  del  Rio.  Holding  Cerro  Gordo  Pass,  we 
watched  the  approach  of  the  train,  which  we  could 
plainly  do  by  reasnn  of  the  cloud  of  dust  which  hung 
over  and  above  the  line  of  wagons  and  column  of 
troops.     During    the    morning   couriers    reached    us 


378  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

from  the  commanding  officer  of  the  train,  with  news 
that  everything  was  going  on  well,  that  he  had  re- 
pulsed the  attack,  with  a  loss  of  three  men  killed,  and  of 
two  hundred  pack  mules  with  their  cargoes,  and  that 
he  anticipated  no  further  danger.  This  gave  us  leisure 
to  look  over  the  battle-field,  which  will  forever  prove 
an  interesting  study  to  soldiers.  I  have  before  referred 
to  it,  but  notice  it  again  to  say  that  the  whole  right 
of  the  Mexican  army  was  in  a  perfect  cul-de-sac ;  as 
long  as  the  line  of  Mexican  battle  was  intact,  the  right 
was  formidable,  as  the  action  proved ;  but  when  the 
left  was  turned,  as  it  was,  the  centre  was  powerless, 
and  the  right  prisoners  of  war,  without  a  chance  of 
escape.  The  observation  of  this  field  I  would  recom- 
mend to  all  students  of  the  military  art;  it  would  be 
worth  months  of  study  in  books  at  college.  The 
field  was  yet  strewn  witli  the  debris  of  battle,  Ameri- 
can and  Mexican  bones,  clothing,  arms,  belts,  cartridge- 
boxes,  and  some  half-dozen  heavy  guns  lying  with 
battered  carriages  about  their  silent  embrasures.  It 
is  a  solemn  feeling  to  look  on,  in  stillness,  where  the 
crash  of  battle  has  been  heard,  and  see  the  eai'th  en- 
cumbered with  the  harness  of  men  who  grappled  in 
mortal  conflict,  a  belt  plate  here,  a  tuft  of  hair  there, 
with  a  few  buttons  and  a  broken  gun  ;  these  tell  of 
anything  else  than  soldier's  glory  living  in  story. 
They  tell,  in  the  solitude  of  your  heart,  of  the  utter 
nothingness  of  all  this  trash,  that  the  living  reap  what 
the  dead  perished  to  win,  and  that  the  peace  of  God, 
which  passeth  all  understanding,  is  more  to  be  desired 
than  all  this  world  can  give  of  honor  or  of  riches,  of 
glory  or  of  renown. 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  379 

We  returned  to  Jalapa  on  the  evening  of  the  8th, 
the  head  of  the  train  being  well  up  with  us  when  we 
marched  into  the  city.  There  was  a  good  deal  of 
amusement  occasioned  by  the  plunder  of  the  mule 
train,  as  the  merchandise  belonged  to  English  mer-. 
chants,  who  had  been  loudest  in  their  professions  of 
friendship  to  the  guerilleros,  and  who  had  boasted  of 
the  security  with  which  their  goods  could  pass  through 
the  Tierra  Caliente. 

January  10,  11,  12.  President  of  a  court  of  in- 
quiry, convened  by  order  of  Colonel  Hughes,  to  in- 
quire into  the  matter  of  an  alleged  robbery  of  the 
church  at  the  village  of  San  Andres,  by  Lieutenant 

and    a   scouting   party    from    the    garrison. 

The  court  could  find  but  little  to  sustain  the  charge, 
and  the  proceedings  were  abandoned. 

Jamiary  15.  In  corapanj^  with  Colonel  Hughes 
and  a  large  number  of  officers,  I  went  by  invitation 

to  the  hacienda  of  Seitor to  witness  some  of 

the  sports  of  the  connti-}';  a  large  nunjber  of  Me.xi- 
cans  were  present.  The  first  performance  was  this  : 
a  bull  was  driven  from  the  corral  or  cattle-pen,  and 
after  he  had  got  into  the  open  fields  numbers  of  men 
on  honseback  pursued ;  the  foremost  seized  the  bull 
by  the  tail,  then  by  wrapping  it  round  the  leg  and 
giving  the  horse  a  spur  so  as  to  make  him  turn  sud- 
denl\',  letting  go  the  tail  of  the  bull  at  the  same  time, 
they  generally  succeeded  in  pitching  the  bull  on  its 
head,  when  it  would  lie  stunned  and  motionless  for 
some  time.  Several  cattle  were  subsequently  started 
out  together,  and  as  many  as  thirty  horsemen  pur- 
sued with  the  same  result,  the  most  skillful  riders  and 


380  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

tail-geizers  being  first  to  catch  and  throw  the  startled 
and  disconcerted  animals.  I  could  not  but  be  pleased 
with  the  admirable  horsenninship  displayed,  but  was 
disgusted  with  this  sport,  and  still  more  when  a  man 
bestrode  the  neck  of  a  bull,  and  made  him  run  by 
spurring  him  in  the  face,  the  rider  holding  on  to  the 
horns  of  the  poor  benst.  They  then  gave  us  displays 
of  horse-racing  and  throwing  the  lasso,  which  were 
interesting  and  novel,  but  I  had  become  so  vexed  at 
the  wanton  cruelty  of  the  pi'eceding  entertainments 
that  I  paid  but  little  attention  to  the  feats  of  skill. 
My  estimate  of  Mexican  character  was  not  much 
raised  by  the  visit  to  this  hacienda,  and  I  concluded 
that  I  had  seen  my  last  bull-chase. 

January  20.  Information  having  reached  here  that 
an  attack  was  to  be  made  on  a  train  under  charge  of 
Captain  M.  K.  Taylor  of  our  regiment,  the  New  Jersey 
Battalion  and  a  section  of  Til gh man's  Battery  were 
dispatched  to  Corral  Falso  ;  these  troops  returned  on 
the  22d,  bringing  the  train  in  safely. 

Januarij  23.      A   prisoner  named ,  under 

sentence  for  killing  a  Mexican,  made  his  escape  early 
this  morning  from  the  guard-house ;  he  was  recap- 
tured at  Coatepec,  brought  back,  and  at  evening 
parade  he  and  an  accomplice  were  tied  to  the  wheels 
of  a  cannon  and  received,  each,  fifty  lashes  on  their 
bare  backs,  as  a  portion  of  their  sentence. 

January  24.  In  obedience  to  orders  from  the  head- 
quarters of  the  army,  the  larger  portion  of  the  garri- 
son was  marched  out  of  the  city  to  Coatepec,  five 
miles  distant,  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  the  Mexi- 
cans, who  were  to  hold    an   election.     There   being 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  331 

much  aguardiente — Mexican  brandy — in  this  village, 
some  of  the  command  got  drunk,  and  we  had  con- 
siderable trouble;  two  of  the  stragglers  were  mur- 
dered, and  their  bodies  shockingly  mutilated. 

Junuary  27.  Having  received  information  that  a 
considerable  number  of  deserters  from  the  American 
army  were  being  secreted  in  a  village  fifteen  miles 
distant,  Captain  Lloyd  Tilghman  was  sent  with  one 
hundred  mounted  men  to  capture  them  and  the 
parties  who  were  keeping  them.  He  returned  on  the 
28th,  bringing  with  him  four  deserters,  and  on  the 
29th  three  more  were  brought  in  by  a  portion  of  his 
command.  It  is  alleged  that  these  men  were  seduced 
from  their  duty  by  an  organization  now  existing 
among  Mexicans,  whose  object  is  to  corrupt  the  rank 
and  file  of  the  American  army  by  money  and  promises 
of  promotion  in  their  army.  Among  these  so  charged 
is  a  priest  or  curate  of  Naolinco,  with  whom  some  of 
these  deserters  were  found  by  Captain  Tilghman  ;  he 
has  been  arrested,  and  will  be  tried  by  a  military 
commission. 

January  30 — Sunday.  Inspected  the  garrison,  hos- 
pital, and  company  quarters  ;  in  the  evening  went  to 
an  American  circus  which  had  travelled  here  from  the 
coast  en  route  to  the  city  of  Mexico  ;  the  soldiers  were 
delighted,  and  it  reminded  one  of  home  to  hear  the 
familiar  cries  of  boyhood  uttered  by  them  at  the  ring 
performances,  the  antics  and  the  witty  sayings  of  the 
clown;  I  am  sure  our  men  were  as  near  happy  as  it 
is  in  the  power  of  mortals  to  be. 

February  3.  More  rumors  from  Cerro  Gordo;  sent 
Oaptaius  Brown   and    Schaeffer's    companies,   which 


382  MEUOIKS   OF  A 

brought  in  safely  the  train  said  to  have  been  threat- 
ened. 

February  5.  A  Mexican  named  Bustamente  was 
shot  to-day  by  sentence  of  a  court-martial,  for  being 
a  guerilla,  and  for  numerous  acts  of  villainy.  Having 
been  solicited  to  act  as  counsel  for  the  priest  Rafael 
Tgnacio  Cortez,  charged  with  seducing  American  sol- 
diers to  desert  and  harboring  them  in  his  house  at 
Naolinco,  I  appeared  to-day  before  the  militarj^  com- 
mission in  his  behalf  I  continued  to  act  in  his  de- 
fense daily,  until  the  8th,  when  the  proceedings 
against  him  were  suspended. 

February  9.  A  deputation  of  the  citizens  of  Nao- 
linco waited  upon  me  to  thank  me  for  my  services  in 
behalf  of  their  curate,  the  priest  Coitez.  They  knew 
my  services  had  been  voluntary,  and  they  behaved 
very  well ;  no  gentlemen  anywhere  could  have  shown 
more  propriety  of  conduct. 

February  15.  To-day,  for  the  tenth  time  at  least, 
we  have  certain  news  from  the  city  of  Mexico  that  a 
treaty  of  peace  has  been  signed  by  commissioners;  a 
certain  gentleman  of  high  standing  heard  Mr.  So-and- 
so,  brother-in-law  of  the  minister  of  foreign  relations, 
say — these  are  the  kind  of  rumors  that  occupy  much 
of  the  conversation  of  this  garrison. 

February  16.     To-day,  Major  C.  and  Ilerr , 

a  magician,  en  route  to  the  city,  dined  with  us ;  after 

dinner,   Ilerr amused  us  with  a   variety  of 

tricks,  which  suspended  during  their  performance  all 
military  and  domestic  duties  about  my  headquarters. 
I  cannot  say  which  were  the  most  interested,  the  sol- 
diers or  the  Mexican  servants;   this  was  inside  the 


MAKYLANU    VOLUNTEER.  353 

house,  while  outside  the  crowd  was  so  great  that  the 
patrol  had  difficulty  in  dispersing  it  Before  tlie  guests 
left,  I  had  inwardlj-  resolved  never  to  have  a  magldan 
at  headquarters,  it  not  being  conducive  to  military 
discipline. 

February  20 — Sunday.  Having  been  officially  in- 
formed that  a  bull-fight  was  to  take  place  to-day  at 
the  amphitheatre  for  such  purposes  in  the  town,  and 
further,  that  it  was  expected  I  would  be  present  as 
commandant  of  the  garrison,  I  went  with  all  cere- 
mony, and  was  ushered  into  a  room  or  hox  of  state, 
over  the  main  entrance,  and  opposite  to  where  the 
matadors  entered.  These  soon  came  in,  gaudily 
dressed,  preceded  by  a  clown,  holding  a  baton,  which 
be  flourished  as  they  approached,  and  made  obeisance 
with  oriental  dignity.  When  the  bull  came  in,  the  fight 
commenced  by  goading  him  with  lances  in  the  hands  of 
the  picadors,  and  shaking  red  flags  by  the  banderillos 
before  his  eyes;  finally,  blazing  fireworks  were  attached 
to  the  flanks,  shoulders,  and  foreliead  of  the  agonized 
beast,  until,  maddened  to  desperation,  he  received  the 
fatal  blow  from  the  chief  killer,  who  was  honored  by 
an  enthusiastic  round  of  vivas  by  the  large  audience 
which  was  present. 

I  saw  several  bulls  killed,  several  horses  ripped  up, 
and  was  very  much  in  hopes  that  I  would  see  some 
of  the  Mexican  performers  killed  or  nicely  gored,  for 
the  effect  of  the  whole  exhibition  was  to  make  me 
side  with  the  bull,  and  it  was  as  much  as  I  could  do 
to  keep  quiet.  Nothing  but  what  I  deemed  official 
etiquette  kept  me  in  my  seat  to  the  close  of  the  per- 
formance.    I  permitted  another  one  to  take  place  on 


384  MEMO  IBS  OF  A 

the  23d,  and  suspended  the  drills  so  as  to  enable  the 
men  to  witness  a  bull-fight,  but  none  other  were  ever 
allowed  whilst  I  was  in  command. 

Fehruarij  29.  Brigadier-General  N.  Towson,  Pay- 
master-General, arrived  to-day  from  Vera  Cruz,  es- 
corted by  Captains  White  and  Besan^on  of  the 
Louisiana  Mounted  Men.  I  gave  him  a  review,  and 
drilled  the  brigade  in  evolutions  of  the  line;  it  was 
a  beautiful  day,  the  troops  looked  splendidly,  and 
manoeuvred  so  well  that  I  was  much  pleased. 

March  1.  To-day  the  following  order  was  issued 
at  the  headquarters  of  the  army  : 

"  Headquaeteks,  Army  or  Mexico, 
"  Mexico,  March  1,  1848. 
"Orders  No.  16.] 

"  I.  The  troops  of  this  aniiv  are  organized  into  divisions  as 
follows  : 

"  REGULAR   TROOPS — OLD   AND   NEW   REGIMENTS. 

"  1.  Brevet-Major-General  Worth's  Division.  Brevet- 
Captain  George  Deas,  Assistant  Adjutant-General. — Light  Com- 
pany A,  Second  Artillery;  the  Second  and  Third  Artillery; 
Fourth,  Fifth,  Si.xth  and  Eighth  Infantry. 

"  2.  Brevet-Brigadier-General  Smith's  Division.  Brevets 
Captain  J.  Hooker,  Assistant  Adjutant-General. — Light  Com- 
pany K,  First  Artillery  ;  Regiment  of  Mounted  Fourth  Artillery ; 
First,  Second,  Third  and  Seventh  Infantry,  and  Marine  Corps. 

"  3.  Brigadier-Ge.\eral  Cadwalader's  Division.  Brevet- 
Captain  F.  iS.  Page,  Assistant  Adjutant-General. — Field  Bat- 
tery under  the  command  of  Captain  Steptoe  ;  Third  Artillery; 
Kinth,  Eleventh,  Twelfth,  Thirteenth,  Fourteenth  and  Fifteenth 
Infantry,  and  Voltigeurs. 

"VOLUNTEER   TROOPS. 
"1.  Major-General  Patterson's  Division.    Brevet-Captain 


MARYLAND   VOLVNTEER.  335 

W.  W.  Mackall,  Assistant  Adjutant-General. — Battalion  Georgia 
Horse,  three  companies  Illinois  Horse;  Massachusetts,  First 
and  Second  Pennsylvania,  New  York,  District  of  Columbia  and 
Maryland,  South  Carolina,  Second  and  Fourth  Ohio,  Second 
Illinois,  Regiments  of  Foot ;  New  Jersey  and  Georgia  Battalions 
of  Foot,  and  one  company  of  Florida  Foot. 

"2.  Brioadike-General  Marshall's  Division.  Brevet-Cap- 
tain E.  R.  S.  Canby,  Assistant  Adjutant-General.  —  Seven  com- 
panies Louisiana  Horse,  Battalion  Texas  Horse,  Lawler's 
Company  of  Horse  ;  Third  and  Fourth  Kentucky,  Fourth  and 
Fifth  Indiana,  Third,  Fourth,  and  Fifth  Tennessee ;  Louisiana 
Regiment  of  Foot ;  Mississippi  and  Louisiana  Battalions  of  Foot. 

"II.  The  field-batteries  under  the  command  of  Lieutenants 
W.  H.  French,  First  Artillery,  and  M.  Lovell,  Fourth  Artillery, 
are  assigned  to  the  First  and  Second  Divisions  of  Volunteers, 
respectively. 

"  III.  Commanders  of  Divisions  will  organize  the  troops  under 
them  into  brigades  ;  the  Regulars  into  two  and  the  Volunteers 
into  three  brigades. 

"  IV.  The  Fourteenth  Infantry  and  Voltigeurs,  underthesenior 
o£6cer,  will  proceed  to  Toluca,  and  there  relieve  the  Sixth  and 
Eighth  Infantry,  which  latter  regiments  will  then  proceed  to  the 
city  of  Mexico. 

"V.  Colonel  Bonham  with  the  Twelfth  Infantry  will  proceed 
to  Cuernavaca,  and  relieve  the  First  Infantry,  which  regiment 
will  then  proceed  to  the  city  of  Mexico.  Colonel  Bonham  is 
assigned  to  the  command  of  the  department  of  Cuernavaca,  and 
will  relieve  Colonel  Clarke,  Sixth  Infantry,  who,  on  being  re- 
lieved, will  join  his  regiment. 

"VI.  The  chiefs  of  the  several  departments  will  avail  them- 
selves of  the  change  of  troops  to  send  supplies,  should  any  be 
required,  to  Toluca  and  Cuernavaca,  as  well  as  receive  stores 
from  those  posts. 

"  By  order  of  Major-General  Butler, 

"  (Signed)  "  L.  Thomas, 

"A.  A.-G." 

This  was  the  first  official  order  we  had  seen  not 

25 


386  ME3I0IRS  OF  A 

issued  by  Major-General  Winfield  Scott ;  we  knew  he 
had  been  superseded,  or  suspended  from  command, 
but  it  pained  me  to  see  that,  though  in  the  country, 
another  general  officer  was  in  command. 

It  will  be  perceived  that  we  were  in  the  First  Divi- 
sion of  Volunteers,  and  I  was  officially  informed  that 
unless  peace  was  soon  made  our  regiment  would  be 
relieved  and  ordered  to  the  city  of  Mexico,  that  I 
might  expect  orders  to  march  at  any  moment. 

March  2.  General  Towson  and  staff  left  for  Puebla 
and  Mexico. 

March  6.     On  court  of  inquiry  in case. 

March  7.  Visited  the  cotton  factory  under  the 
superintendence  of  Mr.  Hall. 

March  8.  Brigade  drill  and  evolutions  of  the  line  ; 
a  train  arrived  from  the  city  of  Mexico,  bringing  me 
copies  of  an  armistice  which  had  been  agreed  upon; 
sent  copies  of  the  armistice  to  my  father,  to  Hon. 
Reverdy  Johnson,  Hon.  John  Glenn,  Mr.  Thomas 
Hollingsworth  Morris,  and  to  Mr.  A.  S.  Abell,  of  the 
Baltimore  Sun  newspaper. 

March  10.  The  Illinois  Volunteers  left  for  Puebla; 
we  are  expecting  daily  our  orders  to  march  ;  peace- 
stock  low  to-day. 

March  16.  A  train  came  down  from  the  city  es- 
corted by  the  First  Pennsylvania  Regiment,  under 
command  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Samuel  Black,  an 
old  friend ;  Brigadier-General  Joseph  Lane  was  with 
the  escort,  en  route  for  home  ;  he  seemed  much  pleased 
to  meet  me  once  more,  and  gave  a  full  account  of  his 
fight  at  Huamantla  and  other  incidents  of  the  cam- 
paign. Captain  Walker's  company  fought  very  bravely 


MARFLAND   VOLUNTEER.  337 

at  Huaraantla  and  lost  heavily,  which  I  have  before 
stated,  but  mention  again,  as  General  Lane  gave  me 
the  information.  The  general  also  said  that  General 
Butler  had  told  him  there  would  be  a  peace  negotiated 
beyond  a  doubt,  and  that  he  thought  the  troops  would 
be  leaving  the  country  about  the  middle  of  May ; 
peace-stock  up  again  to-day.  After  leaving  General 
Lane,  I  met  several  of  my  old  companions-in-arms, 
who  agreed  that  the  prospects  of  a  peace  were  not 
encouraging,  and  the  general  opinion  of  army  officers 
in  the  city  of  Mexico  was  that  it  was  doubtful  whether 
the  Mexica7is  would  make  peace.  I  visited  at  night 
the  principal  hotel  in  Jalapa,  the  Vera  Cruzano,  which 
was  thronged  with  officers  of  our  army  from  above 
and  below,  a  considerable  number  of  paroled  Mexican 
ofiicers,  and  many  citizens  ;  there  was  but  one  subject 
of  conversation, — the  probabilities  of  peace.  I  knew 
nearly  every  gentleman  in  the  hotel,  and  after  hear- 
ing and  observing  all  I  could,  arrived  at  the  conclu- 
sions that  a  peace  was  doubtful,  that  the  minds  of 
both  Americans  and  Mexicans  were  in  doubt  as  to 
what  was  best  to  be  done,  and  that  neither  cared  much 
whether  the  armistice  would  end  in  peace  or  war. 

March  21.  Captain  Marcellus  K.  Taylor,  of  the 
Twiggs  Mounted  Rifles,  with  his  company,  came  up 
from  Vera  Cruz,  bringing  a  mail-bag  found  by  one  of 
his  men  lying  in  the  chaparral  near  the  National 
Bridge.  It  had  contained  a  mail  sent  from  this  post, 
and  all  the  letters  which  were  recovered  had  been 
torn  open,  presenting  a  muddy  and  very  sorry  ap- 
pearance. I  caused  notice  to  be  given  to  the  garrison, 
and  soon  a  very  animated  and   amusing  scene  was 


388  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

witnessed.  The  officers  were  first  permitted  to  ap- 
proach the  pile  of  soiled  and  crumpled  letters,  from 
which  any  written  by  themselves  might  be  reclaimed. 
Next  the  non-commissioned  officers  came ;  then  the 
privates.  There  were  several  hundred — perhaps  five 
hundred — letters,  and  there  were  at  least  one  thou- 
sand soldiers,  many  of  whom  had  never  written  a 
letter  in  their  lives,  all  desirous  of  a  personal  ex- 
amination of  the  pile,  to  find  a  letter.  There  were, 
perhaps,  fifty  of  these  letters  upon  which  the  address 
could  not  be  made  out,  nor  the  names  of  the  writers. 
These  were,  however,  claimed  by  one  or  other  of  the 
soldiers,  and  formed  the  reading  matter  of  the  entire 
garrison  for  several  weeks.  The  shouts  of  laughter 
which  at  times  were  heard  from  the  barracks  indi- 
cated that  one  of  these  letters,  containing  oiews  from 
the  army,  was  being  read  to  the  great  delight  of  the 
audience. 

March  2.3.  Visited  to-day  Coatepec,  the  Eancho  de 
los  Manueles,  the  Hacienda  of  Orduiia,  and  a  famous 
pineapple  orchard  near  Coatepec. 

March  25.  A  mail  arrived  to-day  from  the  United 
States,  bringing  the  intelligence  that  our  Congress 
was  expected  to  reject  the  project  of  a  treaty  of  peace 
which  had  been  received  from  the  city  of  Mexico. 
The  leading  inhabitants  of  Jalapa  were  soon  in  pos- 
session of  the  information,  and  it  created  an  immense 
excitement.  The  news  took  the  Mexicans  completely 
by  surprise,  as  no  one  in  this  country  thought  that 
ive  would  reject  any  treaty  of  peace.  It  will  have  a 
good  effect. 


MARFLAND  VOLUNTEER.  339 


CHAPTER    XXXVIII. 

GENERAL  SANTA  ANNA,  AND  HIS  RECEPTION,  BY  THE 
DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA  AND  MARYLAND  REGIMENT,  AT 
JALAPA. 

After  Santa  Anna  left  the  city  of  Mexico,  on  the 
morning  of  the  14th  of  September,  he  went  to  Guada- 
lupe, where  he  resigned  the  Presidency  to  PeHay  Pena, 
dispatched  General  Herrera  to  Queretaro,  which,  by  de- 
cree, he  made  the  seat  of  government,  and  then  with 
his  command  marched  eastward  to  Puebla.  He  had  a 
double  purpose  in  view  :  he  was  in  rear  of  Scott  and  on 
his  line  of  communications ;  and  if  he  could  get  pos- 
session of  Puebla,  he  was  in  a  strong  position,  as  a 
point  d'appui  for  bis  friends  and  pai'tisans.  Puebla 
was  near  falling;  but  Colonel  Childs  heroically  held 
out,  until  the  approach  of  General  Lane's  column 
relieved  him,  by  withdrawing  Santa  Anna  and  his 
troops  to  meet  the  latter  at  Huamantla.  It  was 
evidently  the  purpose  of  Santa  Anna  to  fall  upon 
the  column  of  Americans,  while  on  the  march  to  the 
relief  of  Puebla.  If  he  could  have  severed  this, 
General  Rea  would  have  sallied  out  from  Puebla, 
and  thus  Lane's  troops  would  have  been  between  the 
two  bodies  of  Mexicans.  Captain  Walker  brought 
on  the  combat  before  either  genernl  was  ready ;  but 
the  attack  coming  from  the  Americans  disarranged 
Santa  Anna's  plans,  and  gave  the  victory  to  Lane. 
There   were   thirteen   killed   and    eleven    wounded, 


390  MEMoms  OF  A 

nearly  all  of  which  fell  upon  Walker's  mounted  rifles 
and  the  volunteer  cavalry.  The  result  of  this  engage- 
ment was,  the  relief  of  Puebla  by  the  retreat  of  the 
Mexicans,  and  General  Lane  entered  the  city.  This 
was  on  the  13th  of  October,  and  Huamantla  was 
Santa  Anna's  last  battle.  He  had  fought  his  last 
fight  for  a  country  which  requited  his  services  by 
depriving  him  of  command.  Peiia  y  Peua  directed 
him  to  turn  over  his  troops  to  General  Rincon,  and 
the  greatest  of  all  the  generals  of  Mexico  was  an 
outcast  and  a  fugitive. 

There  is  nothing  connected  with  the  history  of  the 
war  with  Mexico  so  unintelligible  as  the  permission 
given  by  our  government,  in  May,  1846,  to  permit 
General  Santa  Anna  to  enter  Mexico.  He  was  at 
the  time  in  Havana,  and  instructions  were  given 
Commodore  Conner  to  let  him  pass,  should  he  desire 
to  return  to  Mexico.  He  did  return,  by  means  of 
having  his  agents  and  emissaries,  thoroughly  to  blind 
and  deceive  those,  who  thought  that  through  his 
agency  peace  might  be  made  with  the  United  States. 

No  fair  man  who  was  in  the  war  from  the  begin- 
ning, but  must  admit,  that  Santa  Anna  was  true  to 
his  country  from  first  to  last.  But  he  never  recov- 
ered from  this  act  of  our  government,  for  it  made  the 
Mexicans  distrust  him.  It  was  beyond  even  tlieir 
statecraft,  to  imagine,  that  the  United  States  would 
suffer  their  ablest  man  to  return  to  Mexico,  unless  he 
had  been  bought. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  Buena  Vista  was  his 
first  battle,  and  a  Mexican  officer  told  me,  at  Tampico, 
that  Santa  Anna  had  designedly  suffered  his  troops 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  39 1 

to  be  cut  to  pieces,  and  in  that  battle  he  had  heard 
soldiers  say  "  tliey  were  sold  hy  Santa  Anna,"  as  they 
were  falling  beneath  the  fire  of  the  Americans.  Such 
language  as  this  was  the  result  of  our  policy,  unin- 
tentionally sowing  distrust  among  the  soldiers  of 
Mexico ;  yet  Santa  Anna  led  the  survivors  from  that 
field  to  meet  the  Americans  again  and  again,  until 
Valencia's  conduct  at  Contreras  crushed  his  fortunes 
and  his  military  prestige.  When  the  city  of  Mexico 
fell,  the  star  of  Santa  Anna  sunk  beneath  the  horizon 
of  his  country;  yet  he  continued  to  struggle,  while 
there  was  the  semblance  of  a  hope,  or  the  shadow  of 
armed  resistance  to  the  American  troops. 

No  man  who  claims  to  be  a  soldier  can  deny  to 
Santa  Anna  military  genius,  courage,  and  fidelity  to 
his  country,  in  the  war  with  the  United  States. 

Some  time  in  January,  1848,  he  made  application 
to  the  Queretaro  government  for  permission  to  leave 
Mexico.  After  some  delay  passports  were  granted, 
and,  having  opened  a  correspondence  with  Colonel 
Hughes,  through  two  of  his  friends  in  Jalapa,  he 
informed  Colonel  Hughes  that  he  proposed,  to  take 
up  his  residence  at  an  estate  belonging  to  him  near 
Jalapa,  called  Encerro,  until  a  vessel  was  ready  to 
receive  him  at  Antigua,  when  he  would  sail  for  for- 
eign parts.  He  desired  to  know  whether  Hughes 
would  give  him  a  safeguard,  concluding  his  letter 
with  complimentary  allusions  to  Colonel  Hughes  and 
this  garrison.  Hughes  replied  that  he  would  receive 
his  Excellency  with  all  honors,  and  furnish  him  with 
the  necessary  safeguard  and  an  escort  when  he  wished 
to  leave  the  country. 


392  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

At  8  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  28th  of  March 
Colonel  Hughes  and  staff  left  the  main  plaza  with 
the  intended  escort  for  Santa  Anna  of  three  com- 
panies of  mounted  men,  which  I  had  the  honor  to 
command.  We  marched  on  the  Perote  road  six  miles 
to  the  village  of  San  Miguel,  and  halted  at  the  resi- 
dence of  General  Durand,  who  had  command  of  the 
castle  of  San  Juan  de  Ulloa  at  the  time  of  its  surrender 
to  Scott.  The  general  had  a  collation  prepared  for 
us  of  bananas,  oranges,  frijoles,  cheese,  wine,  etc., 
which  we  heartily  enjoyed.  After  lunch  our  videttes 
announced  the  approach  of  the  distinguished  Mexican 
leader.  My  command  was  formed  to  receive  him. 
The  first  of  the  cavalcade  was  a  small  body  of  well- 
equipped  and  well-appointed  lancers;  next  followed 
the  General's  carriage  drawn  by  eight  mules,  close 
behind  which  another  company  of  lancers  followed. 
As  the  carriage  was  nearly  up  to  my  right,  I  gave 
the  command,  "  Present  sahres !"  saluting  at  the  same 
time.  The  General,  who  was  sitting  on  the  rear  seat, 
arose  and  returned  the  salute,  and  I  noticed,  sitting 
at  his  side,  his  wife,  "el  flor  de  M^jico."  The  carriage 
halted  at  General  Durand's  house,  and  the  ex-Presi- 
dent, wife,  and  daughter  alighted.  We  were  pre- 
sented formally,  and  I  had  an  opportunity  of  looking 
at  this  extraordinary  man.  My  first  thought  was. 
How  like  my  father  he  is !  and,  whilst  this  first  im- 
pression was  dwelling  in  my  mind.  Captain  Lloyd 
Tilghman  remarked,  "  How  much  he  is  like  Major 
Kenly's  father !" 

General  Santa  Anna  is  a  little  over  the  middle 
height  in  stature,  rather  stout,  with  a  quiet,  sedate 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  393 

air,  and  a  countenance  expressive  of  great  firmness;  it 
was  now  shaded  witli  tliat  cast  wliich  trouble  and 
sorrow  always  give.  He  was  dressed  in  a  dark  olive 
suit,  the  coat  being  large  and  long,  like  what  we  call  a 
surtout,  with  large  brass  buttons.  When  he  received 
me,  he  was  standing  up  with  his  cork  leg  extended 
shghtly  out  from  his  body,  and  his  left  side  he  was 
supporting  with  a  cane.  T  begged  him  to  be  seated, 
but  he  declined,  saying  that  although  he  was  lame  he 
was  not  fatigued,  as  he  was  accustomed  to  standing. 
I  told  him  that  to  a  soldier  the  honor  of  losing  a  leg 
in  battle  compensated  for  the  inconvenience  occasioned 
by  its  loss.  He  seemed  pleased  with  the  remark,  and 
I  stepped  aside  to  permit  others  to  be  presented.  I 
sat  down  by  the  daughter,  who  is  a  child  of  his  first 
wife,  and  looked  with  interest  at  his  present  wife  of 
whom  I  had  heard  so  much.  I  judged  her  to  be  about 
eighteen  or  twenty  years  old,  medium  height,  a  beau- 
tiful figure,  and  with  as  lovely  a  face  as  I  had  ever 
seen — nothing  at  all  Mexican  in  it,  entirely  Anglo- 
Saxon,  fair  skin,  hazel  eyes,  dark  hair,  sweet  mouth, 
and  a  set  of  teeth  rivaling  ivory  in  beauty.  I  readily 
understood  why  she  was  called  the  floioer  of  Mexico. 
Her  manner  was  ladylike  and  pleasing,  but  as  cool  as 
if  she  were  dining  in  the  President's  house  at  Mexico, 
surrounded  by  the  body-guard  of  her  husband.  How 
different  the  demeanor  and  conduct  of  the  daughter, 
a  girl  about  fourteen  years  of  age  !  her  features  were 
hterally  pinched  sharp  with  the  most  evident  anxiety 
and  trouble,  her  manner  so  nervous  and  uneasy  that 
I  pitied  her  very  much.  I  asked  her  if  she  had  ever 
studied  the  English  language;    she  replied,  No,  that 


394  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

she  was  siempre  caminando,  that  is,  always  on  the 
move  or  traveling;  it  is  difficult  to  give  the  fall  force 
of  this  sentence,  accompanied  as  it  was  by  a  look  of 
much  sadness.  Knowing  as  I  did  that  her  father 
had  been  hunted  for  months,  narrowly  escaping 
with  his  life,  I  could  not  doubt  that  she  had  been 
siempre  camiiiaiido.  Dinner  was  announced  at  two 
and  a  half  o'clock  p.m.,  and  we  sat  down.  Madame 
Santa  Anna  sat  at  the  head  of  the  table,  the  Gen- 
eral on  her  right,  with  Colonel  Hughes  on  her  left. 
After  dinner  the  General  asked  me  if  I  would  smoke, 
at  the  same  time  handing  a  case  containing  about 
a  dozen  cigars.  I  declined  receiving  them,  when 
he  inquired  if  I  did  not  smoke;  I  replied  that  I 
did ;  he  then  asked  me  why  I  did  not  take  one,  to 
which  I  replied,  that  they  were  all  such  great  smokers 
at  my  end  of  the  table,  that  if  they  once  got  hold  of 
his  case  he  would  never  see  his  cigars  again.  He 
laughed  very  heartily  and  made  me  take  them ;  they 
were  soon  distributed,  except  two,  which  I  kept  for 
my  father,  and  subsequently  sent  home  to  him. 

I  was  getting  very  uneasy  ;  a  few  days  before  this 
there  had  arrived  a  regiment  of  Texas  Rangers,  who 
were  encamped  between  San  Miguel  and  Jalapa  on 
both  sides  of  the  main  road  along  which  we  had  to 
pass.  I  was  well  acquainted  with  its  commander, 
Colonel  Jack  Hays,  a  famous  partisan,  with  whom  I 
had  served  at  Monterey  and  on  the  Rio  Grande. 
Having  heard  that  threats  were  made,  that  Santa 
Anna  should  not  pass  alive  through  their  camp,  I  had 
spoken  to  Colonel  Hays  on  the  subject.  He  told  me 
he  thought  there  was  no  danger,  but  I  was  not  satis- 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  395 

fied,  and  now  among  the  crowd  which  thronged  at  the 
door  of  the  dining-room  I  noticed  Colonel  Hays.  I 
rose  from  the  table,  and  approaching  the  colonel, 
who  was  dressed  as  usual,  with  a  round  jacket,  Mexi- 
can hat,  and  no  badge  of  rank  other  than  a  silk  sash 
tied  round  his  waist  after  the  fashion  of  the  Mexicans, 
said  to  him,  "  Suppose  you  let  me  present  you  to  Gen- 
eral Santa  Anna;"  he  said,  "Well,"  and  we  walked 
toward  the  head  of  the  table.  As  we  approached  him 
there  was  general  suspension  of  conversation,  a  move- 
ment of  alarm  was  perceptible  among  the  Mexican  offi- 
cers of  the  escort,  and  a  silence  very  painful  to  me  per- 
vaded the  hall.  Santa  Anna  as  yet  was  eating  fruit. 
I  said,  "General,  permit  me  to  present  to  you" — when 
I  had  got  thus  far,  he  turned  his  face  toward  us  and 
was  in  the  act  of  rising — "Colonel  Jack  Hays."  When 
I  pronounced  this  name,  his  whole  appearance  and  de- 
meanor changed,  and  if  a  loaded  bombshell,  with  fuse 
burning  and  sputtering,  had  fallen  on  that  dinner- 
table,  a  greater  sensation  would  not  have  been  caused. 
The  Mexican  officers  arose  from  their  seats;  standing 
and  motionless,  they  looked  at  me.  Mrs.  Santa  Anna 
turned  very  pale ;  the  General  resumed  eating  fruit, 
with  his  gaze  on  the  table ;  Colonel  Hays,  gentleman 
as  he  was,  bowed  politely  and  withdrew  from  the 
room.  Almost  immediately  after  his  withdrawal  the 
Mexicans  surmised  what  had  been  my  object,  and, 
headed  by  the  General,  came  pleasantly  toward  me 
and  said  they  were  ready  to  march.  I  had  time  to 
speak  to  Hays,  and  then  mounted.  Placing  a  com- 
pany on  either  side  of  the  carriage  (which  was 
resisted  by  the  Mexican  escort  commander  until  I 


396  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

made  him  give  way) ,  with  Sergeant  David  G.  Murray, 
of  Tilghman's    Battery,    and    Sergeant    William   U. 
Stuart,  of  the  Twiggs  Rifles,  each  carrying  a  United 
States  flag  and  riding  at  the  head  of  each  company, 
opposite    the   carriage-doors,   I   gave    the    command 
"  Trot,  march !"  and  we  started  at  a  swinging  gait  to 
Jalapa.     The  escort  of  Mexicans  was  next,  the  car- 
riage and  my  remaining  company  closed  the  column. 
As  we  approached  the  camp  of  the  Texans,  they  were 
seen  on  the  stone  fences  on  either  side  which  separated 
their  camp  from  the  road.     There  were  several  hun- 
dred of  them,  and  apparently  as  quiet  as  if  at  a  camp- 
meeting   listening  to  a  sermon ;    with  one   of  these 
companies  I  was  on  very  friendly  terms,  as  they  had 
served  with  me ;  and,  knowing  this,  I  galloped  to  the 
head  of  the  column,  placing  myself  in  the  middle  of 
the  road  just  in  front  of  the  leading  mules'  heads. 
The  Mexicans  had  now  taken  the  alarm,  and  pressed 
forward;  the  drivers,  there  were  two  of  them,  whistled 
and  cried   their  tipas,  upas,  vociferously,  the  mules 
took  the  alarm,  and  away  we  came  at  a  killing  pace.  ■ 
We  were  now  among  the  Texans ;  not  a  sound  to  be 
heard  ;  not  a  motion  perceptible ;  there  they  were  in 
all  manner  of  postures  on  and  about  the  stone  fences. 
At  this  moment  I  saw  coming  toward  us  a  mounted 
Texan  riding  in   the  middle  of  the  road.     I  made 
right    at   him,  struck  the  right  side   of  his   horse's 
head  with  the  flat  of  my  sabre,  he  swerved,  and  we 
were  past  horse  and  rider  before  either  I  am  sure  was 
aware  of  what  was  the  matter.     There  was  no  time 
for  exclamation  or  explanation  ;  we  were  going  at  full 
speed,  and  I  drew  one  long  breath  when  I  saw  the 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  397 

steeples  of  Jalapa.  The  Texans  had  behaved  with 
great  propriety,  the  well-disposed  among  them  check- 
ing even  an  utterance  of  what  might  have  been 
deemed  disrespectful,  to  one  under  the  safeguard  and 
honor  of  our  flag.* 

When  we  got  to  the  garita,  the  General  halted,  and, 
expressing  a  wish  not  to  pass  through  the  city,  Cap- 
tain Tilghman's  company  was  detailed  to  escort  him 
to  Encerro,  distant  eight  miles  from  Jalapa,  and  bid- 
ding us  adieu,  with  a  regret  for  having  incommoded 
us,  the  carriage,  with  its  escort,  proceeded  to  its  des- 
tination by  the  road  outside  the  city. 

March  30.  In  company  with  Colonel  Hughes  and 
most  of  our  officers,  we  went  by  invitation  to  break- 
fast at  12  with  General  Santa  Anna  at  his  hacienda 
of  Encerro.  The  General  received  us  kindly,  and  we 
sat  down  to  a  sumptuous  dejeuner  a  la  fourcliette.  The 
ex-President  spoke  with  much  feeling  of  the  conduct 
of  the  Mexican  people  toward  him,  and  said  that  he 
would  never  return  until  recalled  by  the  nation.  He 
seemed  in  good  spirits  to-day,  and  said  it  was  his  in- 

*  It  gives  me  pleasure  to  record  an  instaoce  of  the  chivalric 
character  of  this  regiment  of  Texaiis,  with  which  I  was  unac- 
quainted at  the  time  of  the  occurrences  I  have  just  related.  Just 
previous  to  his  application  for  passports,  Santa  Anna  had  been 
surprised  by  a  body  of  cavalry  in  his  hiding-place  near  Puebla, 
and  narrowly  escaped  with  his  life,  leaving  everything  in  his 
rapid  flight.  All  his  personal  effects,  carriage,  writing-desk, 
money-chest,  were  captured,  and  the  wardrobe  of  his  wife. 
Among  these  troops  was  the  regiment  of  Texans  led  by  Colonel 
Jack  Hays,  who,  without  disturbing  an  article  of  the  lady's  ap- 
parel, sent  the  whole  of  it,  under  charge  of  some  Mexicans,  to  be 
delivered  to  Mrs.  Santa  Anna. 


398  31EM0IRS   OF  A 

tention  to  embark  from  Antigua  for  Jamaica,  thence 
to  England. 

After  breakfast  I  accompanied  him  to  an  adjoining 
room,  where  some  half-dozen  or  more  of  his  suite  were 
engaged  writing ;  at  the  head  of  the  table,  on  an  ele- 
vated seat,  sat  a  fine-looking  man,  who  was  dressed 
in  a  blue  coat  with  brass  buttons,  white  vest  and 
pants.  He  was  a  native  of  Belgium;  the  others  were 
Mexicans,  some  in  uniform,  some  in  civilians'  dress. 
After  a  few  words  between  the  Belgian  and  the 
General,  the  writers  took  fresh  paper.  Santa  Anna  com 
menced  walking  slowly  about  the  room,  and  I  soon 
understood  him  to  be  dictating  his  farewell  address 
to  the  Mexican  people.  He  spoke  slowly  and  senten- 
tiously,  the  Belgian  making  occasional  notes,  the 
others  writing  rapidly.  I  left  whilst  the  work  was 
going  on,  and  I  much  regret  not  having  seen  this 
address,  if  it  were  ever  published. 

After  several  hours  pleasantly  spent  with  the  ladies 
of  the  family,  and  several  other  guests,  friends  of 
Santa  Anna,  we  gave  good-by  to  all,  and  in  a  few 
days  Santa  Anna  had  left  Mexico,  we  giving  him 
an  escort  to  the  ship's  side  in  which  he  sailed  for 
Antigua. 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  399 

CHAPTER    XXXIX. 

VISIT     TO     THE     CITY     OF     MEXICO. 

April  3,  1848.  Colonel  Hughes  having  official 
business  with  the  headquarters  of  the  army,  I  accom- 
panied him  and  Surgeon  Stedman  R.  Tilghman  of 
our  regiment,  to  the  city  of  Mexico.  With  a  mounted 
escort,  we  left  Jalapa  in  the  morning,  and  reached  Pe- 
rote,  distant  thirty-two  miles,  in  the  afternoon.  Jalapa 
being  situated  on  the  eastern  edge  of  the  first  plain  or 
terrace  which  lies  at  the  base  of  the  Cordilleras,  at 
an  elevation  of  four  thousand  three  hundred  feet 
above  the  sea-level,  the  road  rises  gradually,  passing 
through  the  villages  of  San  Miguel,  La  Hoya,  and  Las 
Vigas,  until  we  turn  the  northern  end  of  the  mountain 
chain  at  Cruz  Blanca,  which  is  at  an  elevation  of 
seven  thousand  and  forty-eight  feet.  The  famous 
landmark,  El  Cofre  de  Perote,  which  rises  to  an  alti- 
tude of  twelve  thousand  feet,  is  on  our  left  as  we 
follow  the  road  at  its  base,  which  leads  into  Perote, 
three  leagues  from  Cruz  Blanca.  I  visited  the  castle, 
(now  in  the  command  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Seymour, 
of  the  Georgia  Battalion,)  which  is  a  mile  or  so  from  the 
town,  and  was  less  amazed  at  its  strength  than  at  its 
location.  Why  the  Spaniard  expended  several  mil- 
lions of  hard  dollars  on  this  immense  fortress  is  a 
mystery;  it  commands  nothing,  being  built  on  a  plain 
of  several  miles  in  extent,  and  if  it  was  intended,  as 
some  assert,  for  an  arsenal,  why  locate  it  on  an  arid 


400  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

plain  nearly  destitute  of  water,  and  one  hundred 
miles  from  Vera  Cruz,  at  which  post  the  castle  of  San 
Juan  de  Ulloa  was  of  sufficient  capacity  to  hold  all  the 
war  material  of  Spain.  It  was  called  by  our  people  the 
graveyard  of  Mexico,  its  reputation  for  unhealthfulness 
surpassing  that  of  any  other  place  in  the  country* 
At  sunrise  the  next  morning  we  left,  and  after  pass- 
ing through  several  large  Haciendas,-)-  reached  the 
town  of  Tepeyahualco,  a  miserable  place,  nearly 
deserted,  seven  leagues  from  Perote;  our  ride  now 
was  over  a  sandy  desert,  with  columns  of  sand  moving 
and  whirled  by  the  wind  over  the  plain,  like  huge 
water-spouts ;  for  a  distance  of  twenty  miles  not  a 
vestige  of  vegetation  was  apparent,  except  the  Agave 
Americana,  the  maguey,  from  which  the  pulque  is 
made.  We  halted  at  the  corral  of  Ojo  de  Agua,  which 
means  literally,  "  eye  of  water  ;"  this  was  a  beautiful 
spring  of  water  gushing  from  the  earth,  around  which 
the  corral  had  been  erected.  Distance  from  Perote 
forty-two  miles,  and  in  a  south-westerly  course. 

April  5.  Left  Ojo  de  Agua  at  5  o'clock  a.m.,  just 
as  the  peons  (laborers)  were  going  forth  to  their 
daily  toil;  there  were  several  hundred  of  them,  men, 
women,  and  children,  moving  in  gangs,  as  I  have  seen 
slaves  on  the  cotton  plantations  of  the  south ;  and 
these  poor  creatures  were,  in  all  but  the  name,  held 

*  Except  Camargo  and  the  National  Bridge. 

■j"  A  hacienda  is  a  large  estate;  a  rancho  or  ranch,  a  unia-ll 
farm  ;  a  corral  signiSc;s  what  the  word  caravansary  does  in  the 
east,  a  place  of  shelter  for  man  and  beast,  within  walls;  it  also 
means  a  pen  or  pound  for  horses  and  cattle,  and  also,  an  inclosure 
formed  by  an  army  or  wagon-train  for  safety  from  attack. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  402 

to  the  same  servitude.  They  were  chanting,  not  sing- 
ing, a  kind  of  hymn,  which  was  as  melodious  as  it 
was  melancholy ;  its  tone  was  that  of  subdued  grief, 
of  passive  obedience  to  a  fate  beyond  their  power  to 
change,  and  a  helpless  submission  to  a  tyranny  it  was 
impossible  to  be  freed  from.  It  made  a  strong  impres- 
sion upon  me.  I  looked  at  the  faces  of  many  of  them 
as  they  passed ;  each  countenance  was  indicative  of  a 
soul's  sadness,  each  lineament  portrayed  the  senti- 
ments I  have  endeavored  to  express  above. 

At  8  A.M.  we  got  to  Nopaluca,  a  smnll  town  or 
pueblo,  situated  at  the  crossing  of  the  main  road  by 
a  road  which  leads  from  Orizaba  to  a  more  northern 
route  to  the  capital.  Here  we  found  my  friend  Colo- 
nel Willis  A.  Gorman,  with  his  Indiana  Eegiment  and 
some  dragoons :  our  road,  still  going  south-west, 
passed  the  base  of  El  Gerro  del  Pinar,  whose  summit 
is  nearly  eight  thousand  feet  above  the  sea-level,  then 
on  to  Amazourka,  famous  over  the  whole  of  Mexico 
and  Central  America  for  its  manufacture  of  steel  spurs, 
bridle-bits,  and  horse-ornaments ;  we  went  through 
several  of  the  manufactories,  and  were  pleased  and  as- 
tonished at  the  skill  and  beauty  of  their  workmanship. 

We  pushed  on,  and,  considerably  after  nightfall, 
reached  the  City  of  the  Angels,  known  more  generally 
by  the  name  of  Pnebla,  where,  after  much  difficulty, 
we  found  lodgings  at  a  meson.*  Distance,  forty-five 
miles  from  Ojo  de  Agua,  and  still  in  a  south- 
westerly course. 

*  The  words  Meson,  Venta  and  Fonda,  all  mean  hotel,  or 
rather,  what  we  used  to  call  in  English,  a  tavern. 

26 


402  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

Puebla  is  at  an  altitude  of  six  thousand  seven  hun- 
dred and  fifty-six  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea, 
nearly  two  thousand  five  hundred  feet  higher  than 
Jalapa.  It  is  really  a  beautiful  city,  and  the  day  I 
passed  here  was  one  of  enjoyment.  Situated  in  a  fer- 
tile plain,  with  a  population  of  seventy  thousand  in- 
habitants, with  wide,  well-paved  streets,  a  large  cathe- 
dral, many  imposing  public  edifices,  and  many  of  its 
dwelling  houses  ornamented  in  front  with  glazed 
tiles  representing  scriptural  and  allegorical  subjects, 
it  is  no  wonder  that  the  Mexicans  regard  it  with  so 
much  pride,  and  boast  of  it  as  being  the  City  of  the 
Angels.  This  name,  however,  was  given  it,  I  believe, 
because  of  its  numerous  churches,  and  the  number- 
less sweet-toned  bells,  which,  even  yet,  attract  the 
population  and  the  stranger  to  the  portals  of  the  con- 
vents, churches,  and  missions,  with  which  .the  city 
abounds.  The  cathedral  is  very  rich  in  its  property, 
as  well  as  in  the  gorgeous  decorations  of  its  interior — 
its  altars,  shrines  and  chapels;  a  chandelier,  cele- 
brated for  its  magnificent  workmanship,  hangs  in  the 
church,  weighing  several  tons,  and  which  is  said  to 
be  mainly  wrought  from  gold  and  silver  metal.  The 
Carmen  convent,  the  San  Franciscan,  and  the 
Bishop's  palace,  are  large  piles  of  masonry,  which  yet 
attest  the  power  and  wealth  of  a  church  that,  in  the 
days  of  the  Viceroys,  swayed  the  destinies  of  the 
Indias.  We  dined  with  Colonel  Childs  of  the  U.  S. 
Army,  the  commandant,  who  showed  us  the  defenses, 
made  by  him  in  his  successful  resistance  against  the 
populace  of  the  city  and  the  army  of  Santa  Anna, 
when  besieged  by  them ;  and  we  visited  with  him  the 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  4Q3 

other  memorable  places  in  the  city  and  vicinity.  I 
regretted  not  being  able  to  go  to  Huamantla,  which  is 
in  the  adjoining  district  of  Tlascala,  so  well  known  for 
the  brave  race  of  Indians  who  fought  side  by  side  with 
Cortez  in  the  first  conquest  of  Mexico.  This  race  is 
nearly  extinct,  though  I  have  seen  some  of  its  caste. 

April  7.  Left  Puebla  and  marched  a  due  north- 
west course  to  the  pretty  village  of  San  Martin, 
twenty-one  miles  from  Puebla.  We  breakfasted  at 
the  hacienda  San  Christobal,  by  the  polite  invitation 
of  the  proprietor,  Seiior  Saviiion,  who  gave  us  an 
entertainment  as  abundant  as  it  was  in  good  taste. 
There  was  hitter  on  the  table,  the  first  I  had  seen 
which  had  been  made  in  the  country ;  by  a  North 
American  this  luxury  was  highly  prized,  and,  being 
deprived  for  so  long  a  time  of  its  use,  we  made  fear- 
ful inroads  upon  the  dairy  product  of  San  Christobal. 
A  league  from  the  town  we  were  at  the  corral  Buena 
Vista,  whose  name  indicates  the  lovely  view  of  a  val- 
ley unsurpassed  in  beauty — the  famed  Valley  of  San 
Martin  ;  it  reminded  me  of  a  valley  which  one  day 
will  become  celebrated,  the  Middletown  Valley,  be- 
tween Frederick  and  Plagerstown,  Maryland.  This 
Valley  of  San  Martin,  though  seven  thousand  two 
hundred  feet  above  the  sea,  is  luxuriant  beyond  de- 
scription, producing  not  only  the  corn,  wheat,  and 
barley  of  the  temperate  zone,  but  pepper  (chile), 
beans  (frijoles),  banana,  tobacco,  eollee,  and  maguey 
of  the  tropics;  its  wheat  flour  makes  the  bread  which 
rivals  the  Parisian  baker's  loaf,  and  its  pulque  is  as 
prized  as  the  Lachryma  Christi  of  Vesuvius. 

Rising  rapidly  from  the  valley,  we  commence  the 


404  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

ascent  of  the  Sierra  Madre,  crowned  by  the  once-seen, 
never-to-be-forgotten  mountains,  Popocatapetl  (the 
smoking  mountain)  and  Iztaccihuatl  (the  white  wo- 
man), the  one  seventeen  thousand  eight  hundred  and 
eighty-four  feet,  the  other  sixteen  thousand  feet,  above 
the  sea.  We  were  now  surrounded  by  mountains 
covered  with  eternal  snow,  but  they  were  as  pigmies 
by  the  side  of  these  two  colossi  of  the  Sierra  Madre; 
the  crater  of  one  receiving  the  first  kiss  of  the  rising 
sun,  and  the  summit  of  the  other  its  parting  rays,  as 
it  sinks  in  the  west.  Called  by  the  natives  husband 
and  wife,  the  traditions  of  the  country  are  full  of 
the  poetry  of  an  imaginative  people  about  these  two 
mountains :  the  one  a  volcano,  of  once  frightful 
eruptions,  the  other  forever  at  rest  in  the  gorgeous 
grandeur  of  nature's  dressing.  There  is  a  sublimity 
and  mystery  round  and  about  them  which  impresses 
a  traveller  from  their  first  view,  and  the  charm  in- 
creases as  you  lessen  the  distance  ;  crossing  the  Sierra 
at  g,n  elevation  of  ten  thousand  feet,  the  summit  of 
the  White  Woman  on  your  left  is  so  far  and  high  up 
in  the  heavens  above  you,  with  her  robe  of  spotless 
white  and  her  diadem  of  gilded  sunset,  that  you  con- 
tinue to  gaze,  for  her  beauties  continue  to  increase, 
until  dimness  of  sight — or  is  it  the  darkness? — 
conceals  her  in  its  embrace. 

Before  reaching  Rio  Frio  (the  cold  river)  we  passed 
through  an  immense  pine  forest,  and  came  to  the  little 
hamlet  which  takes  its  name  from  the  river.  It  was 
a  miserable  place,  the  night  cold  and  dark,  but  while 
shivering  in  the  unaccustomed  temperature  of  the 
frigid  zone,  we  received  an  invitation  to  accept  the  hos- 


MABYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  405 

pitality  of  Colonel  Wm.  Irvin,  whose  Ohio  Regiment  of 
Volunteers  was  stationed  here.  Distance  from  Puebla 
forty-two  miles,  north-west  course. 

April '?>.  We  got  an  early  start;  at  daylight  we 
saw  a  gang  of  rough-looking,  armed  Mexicans  ap- 
proaching, which  caused  us  some  uneasiness,  as  I  am 
quite  confident  there  was  not  a  soldier  in  our  party 
who  could  have  used  either  sabre  or  pistol,  we  were 
so  benumbed  with  cold.  Both  parties  halted ;  after 
a  reconnaissance,  we  saw  a  train  of  pack-mules  and 
another  gang  of  these  ruffians  escorting  it ;  we  learned, 
after  a  brief  parley,  that  they  had  been  hired  to  guard 
a  specie  train  from  the  city  to  Puebla.  We  passed 
each  other,  and  hailed  the  warmth  of  the  rising  sun 
with  unalloyed  pleasure,  as  it  restored  to  us  the  use 
of  our  limbs.  At  8.30  a.m.  we  caught  our  first  view 
of  the  far-famed  valley  of  Mexico,  and,  halting  for 
breakfast  at  the  Venta  de  Cordova,  twenty  miles  from 
the  city,  we  spent  an  hour  in  looking  at  the  unrivaled 
view  spread  out  before  and  beyond  us.  Passing  by 
Lake  Chalco  and  through  the  town  of  Ayotla,  at  2 
o'clock  P.M.  we  were  up  with  the  PeSon  mountain, 
an  isolated  mass  of  rock  several  hundred  feet  in 
height,  rising  up  from  the  plain,  at  the  base  of  which 
the  road  runs  toward  the  city.  Here  was  the  first 
exterior  line  of  Mexican  defenses  to  guard  the  approach 
by  the  causeway,  over  which  we  rode  for  eight  miles, 
and  entered  the  capital  city  of  Mexico  at  4  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon.  Distance  from  Eio  Frio  thirty  miles. 
Course,  west  to  Lake  Chalco,  then  north-west  to  the 
city.  Distance  by  my  calculation,  from  Jalapa,  one 
hundred  and  ninety-one  miles. 


406  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

CHAPTER    XL. 

THE     CITY     OF     MEXICO. 

Soon  after  our  arrival  we  called  to  see  Major-Gene- 
ral  Scott,  though  etiquette  required  that  our  first  visit 
should  be  to  Major-General  Butler ;  our  first  duty,  as 
it  was  our  pleasure,  was  to  call  on  General  Scott, 
though  be  was  not  in  command,  and  neither  Colonel 
Hughes  or  I  hesitated  a  moment  in  telling  General 
Butler,  when  we  called  on  the  same  evening,  that  we 
had  been  to  see  Scott. 

Hughes  was  an  old  acquaintance  and  friend,  so 
that  our  reception  was  cordial  and  pleasant ;  telling 
him  our  purpose  to  call  on  Major-General  Butler,  the 
Commander-in-chief,  he  invited  us  to  come  after  our 
visit  to  sup  with  him  at  10  o'clock.  We  returned, 
sat  down  to  the  first  supper  of  the  kind  I  had  seen 
in  Mexico,  cold  roast  fowl  and  champagne  wine,  and 
spent  one  of  the  most  agreeable  evenings  of  my  life. 
The  General  was  in  excellent  humor;  jested  about 
his  being  superseded  in  command,  said  he  was  an  old, 
broken-down  soldier,  in  disgrace,  etc.,  and,  observing 
me  looking  at  an  object  in  the  corner  of  the  room 
which  had  attracted  my  attention,  he  changed  his 
discourse,  inquiring  what  I  saw.  Without  waiting 
for  a  reply,  he  said,  "Bring  it  to  me."  Leaving  ray  seat, 
I  went  over  to  the  corner,  and  took  up  what  appeared 
to  be  a  stick  of  round  wood,  cajjped  with  brass  at 
either  end  ;  noticing  a  brass  plate,  with  an  inscription, 
attached  to  the  middle  of  the  log,  I  was  about  read- 


IdABYLAiYD    VOLUNTEER.  497 

ing  it,  when  he  arose  suddenly  from  his  chair,  and 
took  it  from  me,  saying,  "  What  do  you  think  this 
is?"  I  made  no  reply,  for  I  did  not  know  what  it  was, 
or  what  I  should  say.  Holding  the  log  at  arm's 
length  from  him,  so  that  the  light  fell  upon  the  plate, 
he  said,  "This  is  my  spy-glass;  read,"  and  I  read 
that  this  was  a  portion  of  the  "  flag-staflf  of  Cliapulte- 
pec,"  captured  by  the  American  Army,  and  presented 
by  General  Scott  to  the  United  States  Military  Acad- 
emy at  West  Point.*  This  is  about  the  substance  of 
what  was  engraved  on  the  plate,  and  which  I  read 
with  every  nerve  thrilling  with  a  creeping  sensation 
impossible  to  describe.  When  he  saw  that  I  had  read 
the  inscription,  he  rapidly  reversed  the  stick,  and 
placing  one  end,  as  if  it  were  an  elongated  spy-glass, 
toward  my  eye,  asked  me  "  what  I  saw?"  Without  a 
thought,  I  replied,  "  Olory !"  From  that  moment 
General  Scott  and  I  were  friends.  I  was  a  young 
man,  very  fond  of  the  profession  of  arms,  and  this 
notice  from  so  distinguished  a  soldier  was  inexpress- 
ibly gratifying. 

During  the  evening  a  gentleman  came  in  hurriedly, 
and  told  the  General  that  a  courier  from  Vera  Cruz 
had  brought  the  astounding  intelligence  to  the  British 
Legation  that  Louis  Philippe,  King  of  France,  had 
been  driven  from  his  throne,  by  a  revolution  in  Paris. 
This  news  became  the  theme  of  conversation.  General 
Scott  saying  that  he  was  personally  acquainted  Avith 
the  king,  etc. 

*  As  I  was  never  at  West  Point,  and  never  inquired,  I  do  not 
know  whether  this  is  there  or  not. 


408  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

That  night  the  French  residents  in  the  city  para- 
ded in  the  main  plaza,  singing  the  Marseillaise,  and 
I  rarely  ever  witnessed  a  scene  of  wilder  riot  and  con- 
fusion ;  there  were  twenty  or  thirty  of  these  half- 
crazy  Frenchmen,  who  entered  the  different  gambling 
saloons,  singing  their  songs  and  brandishing  bottles 
from  which  they  were  drinking  without  stint.  As 
the  players  did  not  like  the  interruption,  I  thought 
once  or  twice  that  there  would  be  a  serious  ending 
to  the  frolic;  finally,  the  party  was  induced  to  with- 
draw, but  they  kept  the  main-guard  busy  until 
morning. 

April  9 — Sunday.  Major  Osboiuie  Cross  (of  Mary- 
land), Quartermaster  U.  S.  Army,  had  kindly  invited 
us  to  share  his  quarters  while  in  the  city.  These 
were  in  the  principal  street,  the  Galle  de  Plateros 
(Street  of  the  Silversmiths),  not  far  from  the  grand 
square  or  main  plaza.  As  the  cathedral  fronted  this 
square,  our  first  visit  was  there,  but  before  speaking 
of  it,  I  will  try  to  give  a  general  description  of  the 
city. 

The  mean  elevation  of  the  great  valley  of  Mexico 
is  seven  thousand  five  hundred  feet,  while  the  moun- 
tain barrier  which  encloses  it  will  average  ten  thou- 
sand feet  above  the  sea-level,  on  the  east,  south,  and 
west  sides.  Its  area  is  eighteen  leagues,  or  forty-five 
miles,  in  length,  and  twelve  leagues,  or  thirty  miles, 
in  width,  or  two  hundred  and  forty-five  square 
leagues. 

There  are  five  lakes  in  the  valley,  which  cover  an  area 
of  a  hundred  square  miles,  with  a  depth  of  from  eight 
feet  to  several  inches  of  water.    When  Cortez  arrived 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  409 

in  1520,  these  lakes  were  surrounded  with  numerous 
populous  villages,  communicating  with  each  other  by 
canals  supplied  from  these  lakes,  and  in  the  centre 
of  the  largest  lake,  Tezcuco,  was  built  the  capital 
city  of  the  Aztecs,  called  Tenochtitlan.  The  city  was 
reached  from  the  shores  of  the  lake  by  well-constructed 
causeways,  which  were  intersected  by  canals  for  the 
passage  of  boats ;  by  which  also  the  neighboring 
populations  approached  the  capital  for  commerce  or 
rehgious  duty. 

The  present  city  of  Mexico  was  built  upon  the  site 
of  the  ancient  Tenochtitlan,  and  amidst  its  ruins ; 
but  the  lake  no  longer  surrounds  the  city,  it  has 
been  filled  by  the  destruction  of  the  old  city,  and  the 
gradual  evaporation  of  its  waters  has  diminished  its 
size,  so  that,  unlike  Venice,  the  water  no  longer  occu- 
pies the  place,  nor  is  used  for  thoroughfares  in  the 
city.  Nevertheless,  as  in  the  days  of  Cortez,  the 
Indians  come  to  the  capital  of  the  conquerors  as  their 
ancestors,  in  boats,  from  the  neighboring  shores  of 
Chalco,  Xochimilco,  and  San  Christobal,  the  waters 
of  whose  lakes  communicate  with  those  of  Tezcuco. 
The  causeway  by  which  we  entered  the  city  is  the 
same  that  was  in  existence  at  the  time  of  the  con- 
quest, but  instead  of  passing  through  and  over  a  lake, 
there  are  dry  patches  of  earth  and  edifices  where  there 
was  formerly  water,  except  at  intervals,  which  are 
fringed  with  the  waters  of  Chalco  and  Tezcuco.  The 
Lake  of  Tezcuco,  being  the  lowest  and  the  most  south- 
erly, receives  the  waters  of  the  northern  lakes,  and, 
there  being  no  outlet,  it  occasionally  overflows  its  banks 
when  flooded  in  the  rainy  season,  inundating  the  city 


410  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

of  Mexico  to  the  depth  of  several  feet.  Were  it  not 
for  the  rapid  evaporation,  owing  to  the  great  altitude 
of  these  waters,  there  would  yet  be  serious  cause  for 
alarm,  that  the  modern,  like  the  ancient  city,  would 
be  in  the  midst  of  the  waters.  There  have  been 
several  attempts  to  provide  against  such  a  fate  by 
constructing  a  desagua,  and  it  is  related  that  upon 
several  occasions,  when  the  valley  was  in  danger  of 
being  submerged,  the  earth  was  split  open  by  earth- 
quakes, and  the  waters  escaped  through  the  fissures. 

The  modern  city  of  Mexico  is  as  regularly  laid  out 
as  Philadelphia,  with  blocks  or  squares  of  large 
stately-looking  stone  houses,  capacious  streets,  showy 
and  attractive  shops,  and,  were  it  not  for  the  flat  level 
upon  which  it  is  built,  would  be  a  handsome  city. 
There  is  always  a  large  concourse  of  people  moving 
through  its  main  streets  and  grand  square ;  and  its 
alameda,  or  public  square,  and  its  passes,  or  public 
walks,  are  thronged  during  the  day  and  evening,  with 
a  motley  crowd  of  all  classes  sauntering  in  shade  or 
sunshine,  in  light  or  darkness,  as  the  humor  or  taste 
suggests. 

The  great  centre  of  the  city  is  the  grand  square, 
upon  which  fronts  the  cathedral,  the  President's  palace, 
the  public  buildings,  and  the  richest  shops  of  the 
metropolis.  It  is  a  large  open  space  worthy  of  a 
large  city;  nothing  contracted  about  it;  paved  with 
square  flag-stones,  regularly  and  artistically  disposed, 
and  radiating  from  the  outer  limits  to  a  circular  space 
in  the  middle,  where  it  is  designed  to  erect  a  monu- 
ment commemorative  of  the  independence  of  the 
country  from  Spain. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  411 

The  cathedral  occupies  the  site  of  the  temple  so 
famous  in  the  history  of  the  conquest;  its  chief  at- 
traction to  me  was  the  Calendario  Azteca,  or  Mexican 
calendar,  which  has  been  placed  in  its  western  wall  near 
the  angle  formed  by  that  and  the  main  front  of  the  edi- 
fice. This  stone,  or  basaltic  rock,  exquisitely  and  elab- 
orately carved,  is  the  most  interesting  object  of  an- 
tiquity on  the  North  American  continent;  in  size  it 
is  thirteen  and  a  half  feet  by  thirteen  and  a  half  feet, 
weighs  forty-eight  thousand  two  hundred  and  seventy- 
five  pounds,  and  upon  its  face  is  sculptured  the  sun 
in  its  four  seasons,  movimientos,  represented  by  the  god 
Tonatiuh,  with  open  mouth  and  extended  tongue  to 
picture  the  flight  of  time.  This  huge  face  of  the  sun, 
or  god,  is  surrounded  by  several  circles  filled  with 
hieroglyphics,  expressive  of  the  division  of  the  days  and 
nights  by  the  revolution  of  the  earth  on  its  axis ;  of 
the  days  of  the  month ;  of  the  signs  of  the  zodiac, 
and  the  number  of  days  in  the  year.  Upon  the  stone 
is  also  delineated  the  great  feasts  celebrated  at  the 
solstices  and  equinoxes,  as,  like  the  Egyptians,  and 
subsequently  the  Israelites,  the  feasts  were  celebrated 
at  the  time  of  these  celestial  phenomena  by  the  Tol- 
tecs  and  the  Aztecs.  The  stone  was  found  some  feet 
below  the  surface  of  the  main  plaza  in  front  of  the 
cathedral  in  the  year  1790,  and  was  most  judiciously 
preserved  by  being  built  in  the  existing  wall  of  the 
church.  There  were  observed  upon  its  face  on  the 
outer  edge  several  small  holes.  The  Mexican  savants 
judged  the  use  of  these ;  by  placing  wooden  pegs  in 
them  and  stretching  strings  over  and  above  the  sur- 
face of  the  calendar,  the  meridian   was  accurately 


412  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

marked  upon  the  face  at  noon,  and  other  most  inter- 
esting astronomical  observations  made  upon  the  stone. 
They  reached  the  conclusion,  that  a  people  who  regu- 
lated their  religious  festivals  by  the  movements  of  the 
heavenly  bodies,  and  sculptured  their  historic  deeds 
upon  a  public  monument  such  as  this,  had  attained 
a  high  degree  of  civilization,  and  showed  by  their  art 
and  knowledge  of  astronomy  a  close  analogy  between 
the  peoples  of  Asia  and  America.  By  placing  this 
stone  vertically  on  a  horizontal  plane,  with  the  face 
to  the  south  and  fronting  a  line  drawn  due  east  and 
west,  it  was  demonstrated  that  the  artificers,  or  those 
who  superintended  its  construction,  were  well  ac- 
quainted with  all  the  principal  celestial  movements, 
and  had  added  to  their  division  of  the  year  into  days 
even  the  number  of  intercalary  days,  to  preserve  the 
equation  of  time. 

The  cathedral  church,  outside  and  inside,  is  worthy 
the  metropolitan  see  of  the  first  city  of  the  Hispano- 
Americans ;  you  may  measure  its  wealth  of  interior 
church  adornments  by  its  exterior  size,  four  hundred 
feet  front  by  five  hundred  feet  in  depth.  We  wand- 
ered through  its  maze  of  columns  and  chapels,  through 
its  atmosphere  of  incense  and  amid  its  altars  and 
paintings,  its  gold  and  silver  vessels  and  figures,  with 
uncertain  steps  and  undefined  impressions.  While  all 
was  gorgeous  and  rich,  you  trod  upon  uneven  or  sliding 
planks  beneath  you,  which  alone  separated  your  feet 
from  the  dust  and  ashes  of  the  graves  beneath,  which 
smelled  of  earth,  earthy. 

That  which  most  excited  my  attention  in  the  cathe- 
dral was  a  railing  several  hundred  feet  in  length,  the 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  4 13 

rails  of  which  were  at  least  three  feet  high,  all  of 
which,  rails  and  balusters,  top  and  bottom,  inside 
and  outside,  were  made  of  gold  and  silver  metal ; 
within  this  railing  approach  was  had  to  the  sanctuary, 
within  which  was  an  image  of  the  Virgin  Mary, 
dressed  with  brilliants,  whose  value  is  estimated  by 
millions  of  dollars. 

What  a  commentary  this  wealth  was  upon  the 
character  of  our  army  !  nothing  whatever  between  it 
and  sequestration,  but  the  honor  of  a  nation,  which 
waged  this  war,  not  for  pillage,  but  for  a  peace  which 
would  redress  the  wrongs  done  our  citizens  and  give 
us  compensation  for  losses  occasioned  thereby. 

The  eastern  front  of  the  square  is  flanked  by  the 
National  Palace,  a  long  line  of  not  very  showy  build- 
ings, yet  imposing  from  their  great  length  and  uni- 
formity of  appearance.  These  were,  when  Mexico 
was  a  province  of  Spain,  the  residence  of  the  Vice- 
roys, and  in  republican  days  the  Executive  Mansion 
and  halls  of  Congress ;  now,  they  are  the  headquarters 
of  the  American  army,  and  the  barracks  of  the  main- 
guard  of  the  city.  Here  is  now  sitting  the  court  of 
inquiry,  convened  by  order  of  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  to  inquire  into  the  differences  which 
unfortunately  arose  between  Major- Generals  Scott, 
Worth,  and  Pillow,  after  the  fall  of  the  city,  and  the 
publication  of  tlie  official  reports  in  relation  thereto. 

I  have  never  witnessed  a  court  whose  proceedings 
were  marked  by  more  dignity  and  decorum  than 
characterized  this  high  military  tribunal.  I  attended 
several  of  its  sittings,  which  were  deeply  interesting, 
from  the  eminence  of  those  who  participated  in  the 


414  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

events  which  were  the  subject  of  the  evidence  ad- 
duced, and  whose  presence  at  the  trial  table,  with  their 
respective  staffs,  added  weight  to  the  prominence  of 
the  grave  questions  under  discussion. 

Military  law  and  usage  found  able  exponents  among 
the  experienced  soldiers  present,  and  when  such 
officers  as  Major-General  Worth  gave  their  testimony 
as  to  the  strategy  or  tactics  of  certain  movements 
the  evidence  was  listened  to  with  profound  attention. 
Large  numbers  of  officers  of  the  army  occupied  the 
court-room  and  galleries,  groups  of  Mexican  officials 
were  noticeable,  while  numbers  of  Mexican  officers, 
prisoners  of  war,  passed  away  their  time  quietly 
listening  to  the  proceedings,  which  they  could  not 
understand,  but  closely  scanning  the  appearance  and 
demeanor  of  the  dramatis  personse. 

The  south  side  of  the  square  was  the  building  de- 
voted to  municipal  purposes,  and  on  the  west  the  old 
palace  of  Cortez,  still  belonging  to  his  family,  now  in 
its  lower  stories  filled  with  shops,  before  which  a  por- 
tico forms,  I  think,  the  most  attractive  part  of  the 
city.  This  portico  is  ten  or  fifteen  feet  wide,  arched, 
and  covered  with  the  second  story  of  the  long  pile  of 
buildings.  It  opens  on  the  grand  square,  toward  which 
the  front  windows  of  the  shops  expose  their  wares, 
and  is  the  select  promenade  of  the  ladies,  who  manage 
to  do  a  little  shopping  even  in  war  times.  There 
were  large  crowds  of  well-dressed  people  circulating 
along  this  portico  for  several  hours  of  mid-day,  and 
this,  with  loolcing  in  the  shop  windows,  made  the  place 
a  favorite  resort  of  mine.  It  was  much  larger  and 
more  unique  in  its  appearance  and  in  the  character  of 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  415 

its  merchandise  exposed  for  sale,  than  the  galerie 
d' Orleans  in  the  old  Palais  Royal  at  Paris. 

I  was  chiefly  to  be  found,  however,  at  the  National 
Museum,  in  the  university  building,  not  far  from  the 
Plaza  Mayor.  It  will  repay  any  archaaologist  or 
antiquarian  to  visit  the  citj^  of  Mexico,  by  an  exam- 
ination of  the  interesting  relics  of  an  age  and  a  peo- 
ple now  unknown,  which  may  be  found  about  this 
building,  in  its  galleries,  courtyards,  cellars,  and  gar- 
rets, for  all  is  in  confusion,  as  all  is  wonderful  and 
strangely  attractive  to  the  imagination  and  the  senses. 

Hei-e  is  the  sacrificial  stone  as  when  it  was  thrown 
down  by  the  Spaniards  from  the  summit  of  the  Teo- 
calli,  while  the  red  blood  of  their  countrymen,  sacri- 
ficed a  few  nights  previously,  still  added  its  stain  to 
the  countless  rivulets  which  had  flowed  down  the 
side,  until  the  whole  place  smelt  like  a  slaughter-house, 
as  described  by  Bernal  Diaz.  Here  is  the  stone  yoke 
which  was  placed  over  the  neck  whilst  the  villains 
tore  the  heart  out  from  the  breast  of  the  murdered 
victim ;  here  the  groove  down  which  the  blood  ran, 
and  here  the  obsidian  knives  with  which  the  priests 
made  the  incision  between  the  ribs.  Here  are  idols, 
and  there  the  huge  basaltic  block  carved  into  the 
grotesque  and  yet  grand  image  of  Huitzilopuxtli,  the 
god  of  war.  Here  the  face  of  the  mysterious  Quet- 
zalcoatl,  the  god  of  the  air,  which  you  will  not  pass 
without  its  attracting  more  than  a  casual  glance; 
there  is  something  in  its  expression  that  rivets  your 
attention.  Here  a  painting  of  a  Mexican  emperor  in 
the  Council  of  kings,  and  there  the  coronation  of 
Yxtlixochitl  by  the  high-priest  Taratzintin  141 5.  Here 


416  ME3I0IBS  OF  A 

a  painting  of  the  army  of  Cortez,  painted  by  the  en- 
voys sent  by  Montezuma  for  this  purpose,  and  show- 
ing the  effect  produced  upon  them  at  first  hearing 
a  discharge  of  firearms ;  and  here  is  another,  painted 
by  the  same  artists,  of  the  tent  in  which,  and  the 
appearance  of,  Cortez  when  he  received  the  presents 
sent  him  by  Montezuma.  Battles  between  the  naked 
Indians,  armed  with  sword,  sjjear,  and  shield,  are 
graphically  represented,  as  the  iron-plated,  half- 
centaur  warrior  of  old  Spain  slaughtered  them,  with 
the  destructive  and  unseen  missiles  sent  by  heaven 
from  the  mouthsof  fiery  serpents.  Here  are  hundreds 
of  square  feet  of  hieroglyphic  writing  on  maguey 
paper,  as  plain  as  when  written  hundreds  of  years 
ago,  to  record  the  daily  marches  of  the  Aztecs  in  their 
long  pilgrimage.  Here  is  a  hieroglyphic  delineation 
of  the  deluge  and  the  confusion  of  languages,  and 
here  a  genealogical  tree  of  the  Aztec  family,  mount- 
ing to  the  first  couple  (they  go  back  to  our  first 
parents)  ;  here  are  the  musical  instruments,  curiously 
wrought,  mingled  with  the  bow  and  the  arrow,  the 
sword  and  shield  of  the  warrior ;  here  a  portrait  of 
Zitlalpopoca,  a  senator  of  Tlascala;  there  the  sad  and 
handsome  face  of  Montezuma;  here  the  armor  of 
Cortez,  there  the  portrait  of  Don  Diego  de  Almagro; 
here  Pedro  de  Alvarado,  there  Diego  de  Ordaz ;  here 
Fr.  Bartolome  de  las  Casas,  there  Fr.  Bernardino  de 
Sahagun.  In  the  courtyard  is  the  very  fine  eques- 
trian statue  of  Charles  IV.  of  Spain,  by  Tolsa,  a 
Mexican  artist;  here  are  also  several  huge  idols  and 
feathered  serpents  grotesquely  carved  in  stone,  which 
will  give  a  better  idea  of  idolatrous  worship  than 
tomes  of  description. 


MARYLAND   VOLUlrfTEEB.  417. 

The  museum  contains  numberless  little  things 
which  the  curiosity-hunter  loves  more  than  gold;  and 
to  such  I  say,  you  have  a  jjleasure  in  store,  if  you 
have  not  seen  the  museum  in  the  city  of  Mexico. 
Eead  and  read  again  the  charming  history  of  the 
conquest  by  William  H.  Prescott ;  then  read  the  ex- 
planation of  the  ancient  history  of  Mexico,  by  Isidro 
R.  Gondra,  it  being  the  introduction  to  Prescott's  his- 
tory translated  into  Spanish,  by  Ignacio  Cumplido. 

As  in  all  Spanish  cities,  there  are  public  walks,  or 
paseos,  and  an  alameda,  which  corresponds  with  the 
English  parks  or  the  public  squares  of  the  American 
cities.  The  Paseo  Nuevo  is  at  the  western,  the  Paseo 
de  la  Viga  at  the  eastern,  end  of  the  city.  Both  are 
alike  broad  avenues  for  equestrians,  with  narrower 
ones  for  pedestrians, — planted  with  stately  trees, 
adorned  with  fountains,  plentifully  supplied  with 
seats  comfortably  located.  The  Mexican  population 
of  all  ranks  and  conditions  frequent  these  airy  and  pic- 
turesque walks  to  indulge  in  the  luxuries  of  idleness 
and  sight-seeing.  It  is  delightful  to  sit  and  look  at 
the  handsome  equipages,  the  tastefully-dressed  ladies, 
the  excellent  horsemanship  of  the  caballeros,  the 
proud  Don  in  his  mantle  and  the  poor  lepero  in 
his  blanket,  passing  in  crowds,  like  a  spectacle  on 
theatrical  boards ;  but  nothing  charmed  me  so  much 
as  to  see  the  Indian  girls,  crowned  with  wreaths  of 
roses,  as  they  danced  in  their  boats,  returning  from 
the  city  to  their  homes  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Chalco, 
by  the  canal  which  runs  for  a  long  distance  alongside 
the  Paseo  de  la  Viga.  This  sight,  as  historic  as  ro- 
mantic, brought  to  memory  the  same  scenes,  related 

27 


■418  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

with  so  much  pleasure  by  the  companions  of  Cortez 
as  so  attractive  when  seen  by  them  on  their  first 
entrance  into  the  valley  of  Mexico.  I  have  no  doubt 
that  the  songs  the  girls  were  now  singing,  and  to 
which  the  dance  kept  cadence,  were  the  same  which 
allured  the  soldiers  of  Spain,  and  which  kept  the 
hardy  warriors  in  these  Ely  si  an  fields  of  the  New 
World.  There  was  but  little  gold,  plenty  of  hard 
blows;  and  a  soldier  must  think  that  there  were  other 
attractions,  besides  the  destruction  of  idols  and  the 
elevation  of  the  cross,  to  the  bold  adventurers  who 
climbed  the  sierras  of  this  far-distant  land  and  who 
planted  the  banner  of  Castile  and  Leon  amid  the 
ruins  of  the  Aztec  dynasty.  Boat-load  after  boat-load 
of  girls  passed  along  this  canal,  as  happy  in  their 
innocent  merriment  as  if  their  parents  had  never 
known  sorrow  and  the  future  would  prove  a  dream 
of  the  present.  Differing  from  all  other  Mexican 
songs  I  had  heard,  there  was  no  melnncholy  what- 
ever in  the  music,  as  there  was  none  in  the  manner  or 
tone  of  the  singers.  Coming  from  a  district,  Xochi- 
milco,  known  in  their  language  as  the  land  of  flowers, 
these  artless  children  of  nature  mingled  with  the 
perfume  of  roses  their  melodious  voices,  in  unconscious 
thanksgiving  to  the  Almighty  Creator  of  heaven  and 
earth,  as  the  bird  warbles  its  praise,  as  the  flower 
sends  forth  its  fragrance. 

There  was  one  other  place  in  the  city  of  Mexico  I 
liked  to  visit,  and  this  was  the  Monie  de  P'ledad,  or 
pawnbroker's  shop.  Here  were  gathered  the  most 
bizarre  articles,  from  the  time  of  the  conquest  to  the 
present  day.     Next  to  the  museum,  here  were  to  be 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  4I9 

seen  such  curiosities  as  could  be  found  nowhere  else, — 
no,  not  in  the  broad  world.  It  would  not  be  saying  too 
much  that  there  are  articles  in  this  pawnbroker's 
establishment,  that  look  as  if  they  had  been  pledged 
by  the  companions  of  the  Cid  or  the  followers  of 
Cortez.  The  offerings  of  all  ages  and  all  countries, 
of  all  sexes  and  conditions,  seem  to  have  been  pro- 
miscuously heaped  about  this  grand  altar  to  the 
penury  of  mankind.  Here,  in  this  mountain-locked 
region,  thousands  of  miles  from  the  great  world,  have 
drifted  and  lodged  the  fragments  of  wreck  scattered 
o'er  the  ocean  of  distress  by  the  storms  of  life,  until, 
mouldering  away,  their  dust  repeats  the  language  of 
Solomon,  "Vanity  of  vanities, — all  is  vanity!" 

There  was,  indeed,  pride  as  well  as  vanity  in  a 
pair  of  earrings  which  excited  my  admiration  :  they 
represented  a  pair  of  pea-fowl ;  the  bodies,  half  an 
inch  long,  were  formed  of  pure  brilliants,  the  necks 
of  small  rose  diamonds,  topaz,  and  emerald,  the  tail- 
feathers,  a  little  more  than  half  an  inch  in  length,  of 
sapphires,  rubies,  and  emeralds,  all  exquisitely  set,  and 
glistening  with  the  unrivaled  colors  of  these  precious 
stones.  I  had  the  temerity  to  price  them.  Eight  hundred 
dollars,  and  muy  barato  (very  cheap),  was  the  reply. 

We  called  to  see  Major-Generals  Worth  and  Patter- 
son, and  Brigadier-General  Persifer  F.  Smith,  the 
military  commandant  of  the  city,  by  each  of  whom 
we  were  kindly  received  and  hospitably  entertained. 
We  attended  guard-mount  in  the  grand  square,  and 
were  present  at  several  drills  of  the  division  of  reg- 
ulars. We  promenaded  the  portales,  the  paseos,  the 
alameda,  visited   the    mint,    the    aqueducts    (which 


420  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

bring  fresh  water  from  the  hills  into  the  city),  the 
citadel,  the  convent  of  La  Merced,  and  the  quarters 
of  the  canaille  of  Mexico, — the  leperos,  as  bad  a 
looking  class  of  men  as  one  would  wish  to  avoid. 
We  also  visited  the  church  of  the  Virgin  of  Guada- 
lupe, in  the  village  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  three  miles 
north  of  the  city.  It  was  here,  that  the  well-known 
picture  of  the  Virgin  of  Guadalupe  is  said  to  have 
been  miraculously  painted  on  the  blanket  of  an  Indian, 
and  which  has  given  to  its  cathedral  church  a  high 
reputation  for  sanctity  over  all  Mexico.  The  name 
of  Guadalupe  is  so  entirely  Mexican  that  it  was  a 
pleasure  to  be  at  the  home  of  its  nativity,  and  I 
visited  the  church  with  respect,  if  not  with  faith,  to 
look  upon  the  miracle  as  it  is  now  shown  to  the 
public.  There  is  a  fountain  adjoining  the  church, 
and  carefully  guarded,  whose  bubbling  and  muddy 
waters  deposit  a  sediment,  which,  collected  in  a  matrix 
at  the  bottom,  gives  a  representation  of  the  picture  of 
the  Virgin  on  the  blanket,  as  seen  by  the  Indian  on 
this  hill-top,  the  site  of  the  church.  I  witnessed  the 
manner  of  formation,  and  possessed  myself  of  one 
of  these  casts  as  a  memorial  of  a  visit  long  to  be 
remembered. 

Honored  by  an  invitation  from  General  Worth,  we 
accompanied  him  over  the  battle-fields  of  the  valley. 
Leaving  the  city  by  the  garita  of  San  Antonio,  we 
followed  the  causeway  through  Churubusco  and  San 
Antonio  to  San  Augustin.  Crossing  the  Pedregal  by 
the  route  over  which  our  troops  marched  on  the  19th 
of  August,  we  reached  the  point  at  which  Captains 
John  B.  Magruder  and  Franklin  D.  Callender  planted 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  42I 

their  guns  and  received  the  fire  of  the  twenty-two 
pieces  of  Mexican  artillery  from  Valencia's  intrenched 
camp.  We  admired  the  daring  and  skill  of  our  artiller- 
ists, and  wondered  that  anything  had  been  left  of 
men,  horses,  or  material  in  this  unequal  contest.  The 
courage  which  brought  the  American  guns  here 
amounted  to  rashness;  3'et  its  result  tended  to  in- 
crease the  self-sufficiency  of  Valencia  and  keep  him 
within  the  lines  he  had  been  twice  ordered  to  leave. 
Crossing  the  ravine  to  Contreras,  we  next  followed 
the  road  to  San  Angel,  passing  the  fields  within  which 
Santa  Anna  unaccountably  (to  us)  held  his  reserves 
on  the  19th  and  came  up  to  the  lines  of  Churubusco. 
These  must  be  seen  to  appreciate  the  obstacles  that 
were  overcome  by  the  gallantry  and  steadiness  of  the 
American  troops.  The  convent  is  a  fortress,  the 
tSte  da  pont  an  elaborate  fortification,  and  the  river 
a  natural  defense,  from  which  troops  should  not  have 
been  driven. 

I  listened  and  looked,  and  was  silent ;  for  the  whole 
success  of  these  operations  was  mysterious. 

Out  of  eight  thousand  four  hundred  and  ninety-seven 
Americans  engaged,  one  thousand  and  fourteen  fell 
killed  and  wounded  here  and  at  Contreras :  this  will 
give  an  idea  that  the  Mexicans  fought  well ;  but  how 
and  why  fifteen  thousand  armed  men  fled  from  such 
a  position  is  mysterious. 

We  next  went  from  Piedad,  through  Tacubaya,  to 
Molino  del  Rey.  There  was  not  much  said,  but  a 
great  deal  was  noticed,  on  this  field.  Fronting  the 
mill,  and'  looking  over  my  left  shoulder,  there  was  the 
lone  fortress,  forever  memorable  as  the  Casa  Mata;  in 


422  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

its  front  the  drj'  ditch  and  maguey  bushes  from  which 
the  stream  of  fatal  fire  was  poured  upon  the  front  and 
flanks  of  the  Americans  ;*  and  here  on  this  narrow  field 
the  blood  of  the  flower  of  our  army  moistened  the 
Mexican  soil.  General  Worth  led  his  division  three 
thousand  two  hundred  and  fifty-one  strong  into  this 
battle ;  he  left  seven  hundred  and  eighty  one  of  these 
killed  and  wounded,  to  mark  the  victory  won  by  the 
individual  gallantry  of  the  officers  and  men  of  the 
regular  army  of  the  United  States. 

It  was  the  most  desperately  contested  battle  of  the 
war,  and  was  the  proximate  cause  of  much  ill  feeling 
among  officers  of  high  rank. 

Going  through  the  mill-building  and  adjacent 
grounds,  we  approached  and  entered  the  cypress- 
grove  at  the  base  of  Chapultepec.  This  grove  of 
trees — so  old  that  the  memory  of  man  and  the  tra- 
ditions of  a  race  run  not  to  the  contrary  —  seems 
to  have  grown,  for  a  Druidical  order  of  j^riesthood. 
There  is  solemnity  and  priestcraft  in  every  trunk, 
mystery  in  every  rustle  of  a  branch,  dark  and  hidden 
ways  in  the  sombre  gloom  of  its  shade.  High  up, 
isolated  and  grand,  the  rock  of  Chapultepec  shoots 

*  Brevet-Major  Daniel  H.  McPhail,a  native  of  the  city  of  Bal- 
timore, and  a  gallant  officer  of  the  United  States  Army,  com- 
manded a  company  of  the  .5th  U.  S.  Infantry  in  the  attack  upon 
the  Casa  Mata.  His  uniform  coat  evidenced  and  illustrated  the 
character  of  the  fire  to  which  the  troops  were  exposed  :  one 
bullet  passed  through  it  from  the  front,  and  another,  striking  near 
the  right  shoulder  of  the  coat,  passed  entirely  across  the  back 
and  made  its  exit  at  the  left  shoulder.  He  providentially  escaped 
without  a  wound 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  423 

into  the  heavens  :  made  by  nature  for  a  temple,  idol- 
aters may  be  excused  for  using  it  as  such,  soldiers 
pardoned  for  making  it  a  fortress.  It  is  now  a  fortress; 
and  as  the  military  college  of  the  Republic  of  Mexico, 
it  witnessed  a  brave  defense  made  by  professors  and 
cadets,  with  the  best  Division  of  its  army,  on  the  13th 
of  September,  1847;  but  it  fell,  and  with  it  the  last 
hope  of  patriotic  Mexicans.  Yet  they  fought;  and, 
descending  the  hillside,  we  continued  along  the  line 
of  their  retreat,  by  the  aqueduct,  to  the  San  Cosme 
garita,  and  halted  at  the  building  occupied  by  General 
Worth,  when  he  entered  the  city,  on  the  night  of  the 
13th  of  September,  1847. 

Going  from  here  by  the  way  of  the  alameda  and 
the  citadel,  we  were  at  the  Belen  garita,  where  Gen- 
eral Quitman  so  heroically  held  the  position  he  had 
gained  after  his  hard  fighting  on  the  Tacubaya  cause- 
way, and  where,  fortifying  himself  on  the  night  of 
the  13th,  he  first  learned  that  the  Mexicans  were 
evacuating  the  city. 

Under  no  more  favorable  circumstances  could  we 
have  gone  over  these  fields,  and  we  felt  under  great 
obligations  to  General  Worth  for  the  knowledge  and 
instruction  it  had  been  our  good  fortune  this  day  to 
receive. 

While  in  the  city  there  was  an  earthquake  felt, 
which  was  so  alarming  that  large  numbers  of  the 
people  rushed  through  the  streets  to  the  main  plaza, 
where  on  their  knees  some  gave  vent  to  paroxysms  of 
prayer  and  terror.  It  was  an  exciting  time,  and  we 
went  into  the  square,  as  it  was  considered  the  safest 
place.    I  noticed  that  there  was  no  disposition  on  the 


424  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

part  of  any  one  to  smile  at  the  terror  of  others. 
There  were  two  distinct  shocks,  one  of  them  sufficiently 
strong  to  make  a  mantel-clock  in  our  room  lean  for- 
ward considerably  from  its  original  perpendicular 
position.  During  the  day  I  was  shown  a  church- 
tower,  in  which  a  fissure  twenty  or  thirty  feet  long, 
and  from  half  an  inch  to  an  inch  in  width,  had  been 
caused  by  the  second  shock  of  the  morning,  and  it 
was  said  that  a  little  more  heaving  of  the  earth  would 
have  toppled  over  every  steeple  of  the  capital.  It 
was  a  very  unpleasant  sensation  while  it  lasted,  and 
I  had  no  desire  to  experience  another. 

We  also  had  a  horse-race,  which  was  attended  by 
every  officer  and  soldier  that  could  get  to  the  grounds, 
outside  the  city.  There  were  many  Mexicans  present, 
and  the  occasion  which  caused  such  an  assemblage, 
presided  over  as  it  was  by  the  Commander-in-chief  of 
the  army,  was  celebrated  with  all  the  eclat  of  a  Derby 
or  a  St.  Leger. 

The  captain  of  our  escort  had  brought  with  him  a 
horse  which  had  won  the  money  of  both  Mexican  and 
American  horse-fanciers  at  Jalapa.  The  captain  had 
had  much  experience  in  racing  in  Texas,  as  well  as 
Mexico ;  he  was  a  natural  born  horse-jockey,  and 
boasted  of  having  learned  horse-taming  from  the  Go- 
manches.  Warily  he  had  been  making  inquiry,  and 
had  gotten  up  a  match  between  his  horse  and  a  fast 
horse  of  one  of  the  Valley  officers ;  we  were  confiden- 
tially advised  that  we  could  safely  bet  upon  our 
horse.  As  the  time  for  the  starting  approached,  our 
excitement  increased,  and  every  man  of  our  party 
wagered  money  on  the  result.     We  took  so  much  in- 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEEB.  425 

terest  in  the  race  that  the  judges  upon  the  stand  invi- 
ted several  of  us  into  that  august  presence.  The  time 
was  blown  from  a  bugle,  the  horses  were  brought  to  the 
starting-pole,  the  word  was  given,  and  away  they  went, 
the  Jalapa  horse  ahead.  Alas!  and  alas!  he  broke 
down,  and  was  distanced,  shamefully  beaten.  Unused 
to  exertion  at  this  great  altitude,  the  extreme  rarity 
of  the  air  had  exhausted  his  powers  before  the  race 
was  fairly  begun,  and  our  captain,  looking  upon  the 
distressed  and  heaving  flanks  of  his  poor  beast,  ex- 
claimed, "As  big  a  fool  as  I  ought  not  to  own  so  good 
a  horse."  We  lost  our  money,  but  we  gained  its  value 
in  experience, — never  to  depend  upon  a  horse's  bottom 
when  the  horse  has  not  been  trained  to  the  climate, 
in  which  it  is  to  be  tested.* 

We  heard  but  little  from  our  Captain  on  the  home- 
ward march  about  his  experience  in  horse  matters  in 
Texas  and  the  Tierra  Caliente.  He  had  been  com- 
pletely whipped. 

A  few  words  about  peace.  As  near  as  we  were  to 
headquarters,  we  could  learn  but  little  more  than  we 
knew  at  Jalapa.  The  senior  officers  of  the  army  be- 
lieved that  we  would  have  peace  before  long ;  this 
was  the  opinion  of  a  majority  of  the  officers ;  there 

*  We  had  all  suffered  more  or  less  from  difficulty  of  breath- 
ing, soi-e  throat,  and  dizziuess,  yet  not  one  of  us  had  had  the 
judgment  to  think  of  the  horse  :  though  we  found  it  difficult  to 
make  undue  exertion,  as  to  ascend  a  flight  of  stairs,  without 
several  halts  to  recover  breath,  we  had  permitted  our  horse  to 
run  a  race  without  a  thought  of  his  powers  of  endurance.  All 
this  was  so  well  known,  that  in  more  instances  than  one  those 
who  had  won  tendered  the  money  back  to  the  losers  of  our  party. 


426  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

were  others  who  thought  differently.  My  own  opinion 
was,  from  all  I  could  hear,  read,  and  see,  that  there 
would  be  no  treaty  made  before  the  end  of  the  armi- 
stice, which  would  terminate  June  2,  and  then,  if 
nothing  favorable  turned  up  for  the  Mexicans,  their 
Congress  would  seriously  look  to  the  ratification  of  a 
treaty  of  peace ;  not  before. 

We  all  feared  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  leave 
the  country  before  October  or  November. 

On  the  18th  I  dined  at  the  Gran  Sociedad  with  my 
old  friend  of  the  Tierra  Caliente,  Captain  John  Ber- 
nand,  courier  of  the  British  Embassy;  he  was  thor- 
oughly au  courant  with  the  news  and  gossip  of  the 
capital,  and  it  is  quite  likely  the  above  views  were 
chiefly  drawn  from  him.  We  parted  with  mutual  re- 
grets, and  indulged  the  hope  of  meeting  again  at 
London  or  Washington,  to  talk  over  our  incidents  at 
the  National  Bridge  and  along  the  Antigua. 

On  the  19th  our  party  dined  with  General  Worth ; 
and  now,  after  a  stay  of  twelve  days,  having  exhausted 
our  leave,  and,  I  much  feared,  the  patience  of  our  hosts, 
we  prepared  to  leave  the  city  of  Mexico  on  the  morrow, 
to  return  to  our  own  post  and  our  own  duties. 

We  left  the  city  of  Mexico  at  noon  on  the  20th  of 
April,  and  rode  to  the  Venta  de  Cordova,  where  we 
remained  all  night.  With  a  beautiful  moonlight  we 
left  next  morning,  crossed  the  sierra  six  miles  beyond, 
and,  descending  rapidly,  for  it  was  very  cold,  we  got 
to  Rio  Frio  at  8  a.m.;  by  3  p.m.  we  were  at  San  Mar- 
tin, and  halted  for  the  night  at  the  hacienda  or  corral 
of  San  Bartolo,  distant  from  Cordova  thirty-three  miles. 

April  22.    Before  daylight  we  were  on  our  march. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  437 

and  still  in  this  lovely  Valley  of  San  Martin.  On 
reaching  the  Casa  de  Diligencias,  called  Prieto,  we 
procured  a  guide  and  started  to  visit  the  pyramid  of 
Cholula,  some  three  leagues  distant.  At  ten  o'clock 
we  were  in  the  village  of  Cholula,  a  pueblo  of  a  few 
thousand  inhabitants.  At  the  time  when  Cortez 
was  here,  in  1520,  there  was  a  city  on  the  present  site, 
of  the  same  name,  which,  in  a  letter  written  to  the 
Emperor  Charles  V.,  he  described  as  being  as  large 
as  any  city  of  Spain,  and  with  as  large  a  population. 
It  was  at  that  time  regarded  as  a  sacred  city,  and  on 
these  plains  there  existed  a  mighty  population.  On 
the  pyramid,  now  in  sight,  was  the  chief  temple  of  a 
nation  whose  mythology  is  believed  to  be  more  ancient 
than  that  of  Greece,  and  in  this  temple  was  the  altar 
to  Quetzalcoatl  (god  of  the  wind,  or  air),  wdiose  his- 
tory belongs  to  the  golden  age  of  the  Indian  race  of 
America.  This  word  Quetzalcoatl  signifies  a  "  ser- 
pent with  green  plumage ;"  yet  so  mysterious  is  all 
connected  with  the  god,  that  he  was  represented  with 
a  white  face  and  with  a  beard.  He  was  the  great  high- 
priest  of  Tula ;  he  founded  colonies ;  would  tolerate 
no  sacrifices  but  those  of  fruits  and  flowers  ;  estab- 
lished religious  orders ;  was  so  great  a  friend  of  peace 
that  he  stopped  his  ears  when  they  talked  of  war, 
and  finally  disappeared,  to  the  great  grief  of  his  wor- 
shipers, who  yet  await  his  return,  and  who,  it  is  said, 
secretly  worship  the  god  of  their  fathers,  in  the  pres- 
ent temple  of  Christian  worship  which  has  replaced 
the  temple  of  the  lost  Quetzalcoatl. 

I  ascended    this  pyramid,  whose   sides   face   lines 
running  due  north  and  south,  east  and  west;  it  is 


428  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

upwards  of  two  hundred  feet  high,  rising  by  four 
successive  terraces  from  a  base  of  more  than  a  thou- 
sand feet  square;  built  mainly  of  sun-dried  brick- 
adobes,  and  covered  apparently  with  earth,  giving 
support  to  the  seed,  wafted  hither  by  the  winds  or 
brought  by  birds.  The  bushes  and  the  trees  growing 
in  its  soil  hinder  and  obstruct  a  clear  view  of  its 
shape  and  beauty.  The  platform  on  the  summit  of 
this  pyramid  is  about  two  hundred  feet  square,  and 
here  Baron  Humboldt  made  many  astronomical  ob- 
servations. The  temple  of  the  Indian  lias  given 
place  to  the  church  of  the  Christian,  and  the  chapel, 
surrounded  by  cypress  growing  luxuriantly  on  this 
high  terrace,  is  dedicated  to  the  Seiiora  de  los  Reme- 
dios,  our  Lady  of  Remedies. 

I  do  not  wonder  that  Humboldt  wrote  so  enthusias- 
tically of  the  view  from  this  spot.  He  says  "  that 
you  can  enjoy  the  sight,  at  the  same  time,  of  three 
mountains,  each  higher  than  Mont  Blanc,  viz.:  Popo- 
catepetl, Iztaccihuatl,  and  the  Peak  of  Orizaba  (two 
of  which  are  known  to  be  volcanoes),  without  counting 
the  Sierra  of  Tlascala,  around  whose  summit  the 
hurricanes  are  now  forming." 

It  is  a  grand  view  ;  and  when  this  plain  of  Cholula 
was  filled  with  four  hundred  villages,  each  teeming 
with  population,  and  the  sacred  city  at  its  base  a 
living  swarm  of  priests  and  attendnnts,  those  who 
stood  on  this  apex  must  have  been  bewildered  with 
the  multitude  of  objects  that  passed  before  the  vision. 

There  is  no  tradition,  much  less  history,  that  gives 
the  slightest  clue  when,  or  by  whom,  this  pyramid 
was  constructed,  and  there  are  no  ruins  on  the  Ameri- 


31AKYLANI)   VOLUNTEER.  499 

can  continent  at  all  comparable  to  it  or  more  worthy 
the  research  of  the  historian  or  the  examination  of 
the  archfeologist  and  antiquary. 

Some  Mexican  writers  have  drawn  very  cleverly 
an  analogy  between  this  construction  and  the  remains 
on  the  plain  of  Babylon  in  Assyria.  They  have 
noticed  that  while  this  is  a  truncated  pyramid,  rising 
by  terraces,  so  w^ere  those  of  Babel  and  Nineveh ; 
that  this,  wdth  half  the  elevation  of  the  great  pyra- 
mid of  Cheops  in  Egj-pt,  has  double  its  extent  of  base. 
I  have  read  also  a  costly  and  interesting  work  written 
by  an  English  gentleman  named  Jones  (whose  Chris- 
tian name  I  regret  to  have  forgotten),  on  the  ruins  of 
Central  America,  who  made  the  discovery  that  all 
these  constructions  were  totally  unlike  those  of  Egypt, 
in  their  being  terraces  and  not  pyramids,  yet  of  pyra- 
midal form  :  his  opinion  was  that  the  ruins  of  Yucatan 
were  of  Phoenician  origin,  that  the  ships  of  Tyre  and 
Sidon  had  brought  hither  colonists,  as  they  had  landed 
them  at  Carthage,  at  Marseilles,  in  Britain,  and  else- 
where. 

My  own  opinion  is  that  whoever  finds  the  key  to 
the  history  of  the  people  who  built  the  pyramid  of 
Cholula,  and  who  dwelt  on  its  plains,  will  find  the 
history  of  the  race  that  built  Paleuque,  Uxmal,  and 
the  other  cities  of  Central  America.  I  do  not  at  all 
agree  with  the  general  current  of  opinion  that  the 
Toltecs,  the  Aztecs,  and  other  races  of  which  we 
know  a  little,  came  from  the  north  :  far  from  it ;  there 
is  not  a  trait  in  common  between  their  descendants 
and  those  from  known  northern  hives.  It  has  been 
a  subject  of  reflection  with  me,  the  present  configura- 


430  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

tion  of  the  two  continents;  and,  as  I  have  never  met 
with  the  idea,  I  throw  this  out  for  the  investigation  of 
geographers  and  the  curious.  Look  at  the  map  of  the 
world  on  Mercator's  projection.  See  Cape  San  Roque, 
an  extreme  western  projection  of  Brazil,  in  South 
America,  throwing  out  its  promontory  toward  the 
African  coast ;  look  at  the  comparatively  narrow 
Atlantic  Ocean  between  these  two  lands,  the  one  of  the 
western,  the  other  of  the  eastern  continent,  and  then 
look  northward  and  southward  at  the  immensity  of 
the  volume  of  water ;  the  conclusion  is  irresistible  to 
my  mind  that  the  two  continents  were  one,  that  here 
the  waters  of  the  one  or  the  other  pole  had  cleft  in 
twain  the  earth  from  some  unwonted  disturbance  of 
its  equilibrium,  and  that  the  inhabitants  of  Mexico, 
the  races  of  whom  we  have  been  speaking,  are  of 
Asiatic  origin;  that  the  Aztec  hieroglyphics  depict  the 
deluge  recorded  in  the  Bible,  and  their  genealogy  their 
descent  from  Adam. 

After  gathering  a  few  small  idols*  of  baked  clay, 
by  digging  among  tiie  debris,  we  rode  over  the  plain 
to  Puebla,  whose  spires  were  in  sight,  distant  eight 
miles  due  east. 

April  23.  This  being  Sunday,  we  remained  at 
Puebla,  entered  once  more  the  cathedral,  and  my 
recent  visit  to  Chohila  seemed  to  impart  additional 
interest  to  my  observation  of  the  people  who  thronged 
its    aisles  and  who  worshiped  at  its  altars.      After 


*  All  through  the  pyramid,  as  far  as  excavations  have  been 
made,  these  idols  are  found,  having  been  evidently  thrown  in 
during  its  erection. 


MART  LAND    VOLUNTEER.  431 

dining  with  Colonel  Childs,  we  rode  with  him  over 
the  paseo,  and  again  enjoyed  the  pleasure  of  viewing 
this  gay  and  handsome  capital  in  its  holiday  dress 
and  favorite  promenade. 

We  left  Puebla  on  the  morning  of  the  24th,  and 
arrived  at  Jalapa  the  night  of  the  26th,  after  an  ab- 
sence of  twenty-three  days. 

During  our  absence,  Lieutenant-Colonel  William 
H.  Emory,  of  the  Topographical  Engineers,  joined 
our  regiment,  having  been  appointed  by  President 
Polk.  This  gallant  and  accomplished  officer  gave  to 
the  regiment  the  benefit  of  his  skill  and  experience 
by  zealous  eiforts  in  its  drill  and  instruction.  He  was 
successful  in  adding  increased  efficiency  to  the  com- 
mand and  in  winning  the  confidence  and  esteem  of 
us  all.  From  first  to  last,  my  relations  with  him,  as 
they  had  been  with  Colonel  Hughes,  were  intimate 
and  friendly.  He  remained  with  the  regiment  until 
its  final  discharge  at  Pittsburg,  Pennsylvania. 


CHAPTER    XLL 

THE     COURT     OF     INQUIRY. 

While  a  nominal  government  was  struggling  into 
existence  over  distracted  Mexico,  a  serious  misunder- 
standing had  arisen  between  Generals  Scott,  Worth, 
and  Pillow,  at  the  city  of  Mexico.  The  trouble  had 
its  origin  in  the  several  official  reports  of  the  Valley 
campaign,  made  by  the  General-in-chief  and  his  Lieu- 


432  ME  MO  IBS  OF  A 

tenants.  There  were  alleged  errors  and  mistakes 
in  detail  and  in  substance,  in  essential  and  non- 
essential particulars,  in  these  reports  of  the  oper- 
ations of  the  American  army  in  the  series  of  battles 
which  led  to  the  capture  of  the  enemy's  capital, 
which  provoked  a  correspondence  between  the  gene- 
rals above  named,  and  the  issue  of  General  Order 
"  No.  349"  by  General  Scott,  that  reflected  severely 
upon  several  of  the  most  distinguished  soldiers,  and 
caused  intense  feeling  throughout  the  entire  army. 

The  immediate  cause  of  the  promulgation  of  this 
memorable  "Order  No.  349"  was  the  publication  of 
a  letter,  signed  Leonidof,  in  the  New  Orleans  papers, 
and  subsequently  published  at  Tampico  and  Mexico. 
This  led  to  the  arrest  of  several  officers,  and  personal 
quarrels  between  those  highest  in  rank,  and  would 
have,  in  any  other  than  the  American  army,  shattered 
it  into  bloody  fragments.  I  sometimes  thought  that 
the  picture  which  was  presented  to  our  eyes  by  the 
condition  of  Mexico,  mainly  the  result  of  the  quarrels 
of  its  generals,  helped  to  steady  our  devotion  to  coun- 
try and  government  by  elevating  our  patriotism  above 
the  fortunes  of  individuals.  These  disputes  between 
the  commanding  generals  of  our  army  culminated  in 
charges  being  preferred  by  General  Scott  against 
Generals  Pillow  and  Worth  and  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Duncan,  the  latter  having  avowed  the  authorship  of 
the  Leonidas  letter,  at  the  same  time  expressly  ex- 
onerating Pillow  and  Worth  from  all  knowledge  of  or 
connection  with  it.  General  Worth  also  preferred 
charges  against  General  Scott,  and  appealed  to  the 
President  of  the  United  States.     General  Scott  was 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  433 

recalled,  his  recall  being  based  on  two  grounds :  first, 
his  own  request,  and,  secondly,  for  having  placed 
General  Worth  in  arrest,  because  the  latter  had  ap- 
pealed, from  and  through  General  Scott,  to  the  War 
Department. 

The  order  of  recall  was  received  on  the  18th  day  of 
February,  1S48,  and  on  that  day  General  Scott  issued 
the  following  noteworthy  order,  formally  transferring 
the  command  to  Major-General  Butler,  in  a  vein  that 
will  never  be  forgotten  by  those  who  received  the 
first  notice  of  his  recall  through  these  orders: 

"  Headquarters  of  thk  Army, 
Mexico,  Februarj'  18,  1848. 
"General  Orders  No.  59  ] 

"By  instructions  from  tbe  President  of  the  United  States,  just 
received,  Major-General  Scott  turns  over  the  command  of  this 
array  to  Major-General  Butler,  who  will  immediately  enter  upon 
duty  accordingly. 

"  In  taking  leave  officially  of  the  troops  he  has  so  long  had  the 
honor  personally  to  command  in  an  arduous  campaign, — a  small 
part  of  whose  glory  has  been,  from  position,  reflected  on  the 
senior  officer, — Major-General  Scott  is  happy  to  be  relieved  by  a 
General  of  established  merit  and  distinction  in  the  service  of  his 
country. 

"  By  command  of  Major-General  Scott. 
"  (Signed)  "  H.  L.  Scott,  A.  A.  A.-G." 

Major-General  Butler  on  assuming  command  issued 
the  following  order,  characterized  by  good  sense  and 
good  taste  : 

"  Headquarters  Army  of  Mexico, 

Meiico,  February  19,  1848. 
"Orders  iVo  1.] 

"  Pursuant  to  the  orders  of  the  President  of  the  United  States, 

and  the  instructions  of  Major-General  Scott,  communicated  in 

his  General  Order  No.  59,  of  yesterday's  date,  Major-General 

Butler  hereby  assumes  command  of  the  army  of  Mexico. 

28 


434  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

"  In  entering  upon  the  duties  assigned  him,  General  Butier 
cannot  be  unmindful  that  he  succeeds  a  General  familiar  alike 
with  the  science  and  the  art  of  war,  and  who  has  but  recently- 
brought  to  a  glorious  termination  one  of  the  boldest  campaigns 
to  be  found  in  its  annals.  He,  however,  feels  less  diffidence  in 
assuming  the  important  and  responsible  command  assigned  him, 
from  the  conviction  that  he  is  aided  and  sustained  by  many  of 
the  talented  and  experienced  officers  who  contributed  nobly  to 
our  recent  success  in  arms,  and  by  a  gallant  army  who  have 
learned  too  well  the  road  to  victory  easily  to  mistake  it. 

"  The  orders  and  instructions  issued  by  Major-General  Scott 
for  the  government  of  this  army  vi^ill  be  continued  in  force. 
"  By  order  of  Major-General  Butler. 
"  (Signed)  "  L.  Thomas,  A.  A.-G." 

When  the  news  of  these  disputes  reached  Washing- 
ton, they  caused  painful  anxiety  to  the  Cabinet,  and 
it  was  not  until  after  full  deliberation  that  the  gov- 
ernment acted.  On  the  13th  day  of  January,  1848, 
the  orders  of  the  War  Department  were  issued  :  these 
embraced  the  recall  of  Scott,  and  the  appointment,  by 
direction  of  the  President,  of  a  Court  of  Inquiry,  to 
consist  of  Brevet  Brigadier-General  N.  Towson,  Pay- 
master-General, Brigadier-General  Caleb  Gushing,  and 
Colonel  E.  G.  W.  Butler,  Third  Dragoons  (the  above 
order  was  modiiied  by  detailing  Brevet  Colonel  Wm.  G. 
Belknap,  of  the  Fifth  Infantry,  a  member,  in  the  place 
of  Colonel  Butler)  members,  to  assemble  in  Mexico,  to 
inquire  and  examine  into  the  charges  and  allegations 
preferred  by  Major-General  Win-field  Scott  against 
Major-General  Gideon  J.  Pillow  and  Brevet  Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel James  Duncan,  Captain  of  the  Second 
Eegiment  of  Artillery,  and  the  charges  or  matters  of 
complaint  presented  by  way  of  appeal  by  Brevet 
Major-General    William    J.    Worth,    Colonel    of  the 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  435 

Eighth  Regiment  of  Infantry,  against  Major-General 
Winfield  Scott;  and  also  into  any  other  matters  con- 
nected with  the  same,  as  well  as  such  other  transac- 
tions as  may  be  submitted  to  the  consideration  of  the 
court;  and,  after  duly  investigating  the  same,  the  court 
will  report  the  facts  in  each  case,  together  with  its 
opinion  thereon,  for  the  information  of  the  President. 

Tn  a  letter  of  the  same  date  with  these  orders,  the 
Secretary  of  War  wrote  to  General  Scott,  giving  him 
the  reasons  why  the  President  had  determined  upon 
a  court  of  inquiry  rather  than  a  court  martial,  and 
said  :  "  Desirous  to  secure  a  full  examination  into  all 
the  matters  embraced  in  the  several  charges  which 
you  have  presented  against  Major-General  Pillow  and 
Brevet  Lieutenant-Colonel  Duncan,  as  well  as  the 
charges  or  grounds  of  complaint  presented  against  you 
by  Brevet  Major-General  Worth,  and  deeming  your 
presence  before  the  court  of  inquiry  which  has  been 
organized  to  investigate  these  matters  indispensably 
necessary  for  this  purpose,  you  are  directed  by  the 
President  to  attend  the  said  court  of  inquiry,  wherever 
it  may  hold  its  sittings;  and  when  your  presence 
before  or  attendance  upon  the  court  shall  no  longer  be 
required,  and  you  are  notified  of  that  fact  by  the 
court,  you  will  report  in  person  at  this  Department 
for  further  orders." 

There  were  various  and  sincere  efforts  made  in 
Mexico  to  settle  these  difficulties  before  the  meeting 
of  the  court,  in  order  to  prevent  the  injury  to  the  ser- 
vice likely  to  arise  therefrom.  They  were  mainly 
successful :  the  fiery  spirit  of  Worth  was  appeased ; 
for  he  had  been  released  from  arrest,  and  restored  to 


436  MEMOIRS  OF'  A 

command,  until  his  appeal  had  been  disposed  of;  he 
withdrew  his  charges  against  General  Scott,  although 
it  is  well  known  it  was  against  the  wishes  of  the 
latter.  General  Scott  refused  to  prosecute  his  charges 
against  General  Worth,  and  withdrew  those  against 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Duncan.  In  the  case  of  General 
Pillow,  the  proceedings  went  on  ;  they  were  interest- 
ing and  lengthy,  involving  not  alone  the  operations 
of  the  army  in  the  Valley,  but,  incidentally,  much  of 
the  history  of  the  entire  war. 

The  opinion  of  the  court  put  an  end  at  once  and 
forever  to  these  troubles.  It  concluded  thus  :  "  The 
court  is  of  opinion  that  no  further  proceedings 
against  General  Pillow  in  the  case  are  called  for  by 
the  interest  of  the  public  service." 

During  the  investigation  there  were  offered  in  evi- 
dence several  letters  written  by  Mexicans  in  the  city 
to  parties  outside,  which  were  intercepted  and  cap- 
tured by  the  American  guard  at  Tacubaya.  Their 
authenticity  has  never  been  questioned.  I  give  them, 
with  the  testimony  of  several  of  our  officers,  as  matters 
of  interest,  interwoven  with  the  thread  of  my  history. 

THE   INTERCEPTED   LETTERS. 

(written  by  MEXICANS.) 

"  San  Aktonio,  Aucnst  19. 
"  Yesterday  we  commenced  firing  upon  the  enemy  with  our 
cannon,  and  killed  some  men  and  horses.  To-day,  up  to  12  m., 
we  have  fired  but  few  shots,  and  the  enemy  are  relreatinpc,  with 
the  object,  I  suppose,  of  going  to  Tacubaya  by  the  way  of  Pedre- 
gal  (Contreras).  They  have  a  long  distance  to  march,  and  1  do 
not  know  what  will  become  of  them  in  their  unfortunate  situa- 
tion. Every  day  is  a  loss  to  them  and  a  gain  to  us.  The  struggle 
will  be  severe,  but  favorable  to  us,  as  the  measures  we  have 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  437 

taken  are  ^^ery  good,  and  they  will  not  laugh  this  time  in  their 

beard,  as  thoy  have  on  former  occasions. 

"Dn.  p.  I." 

The  following   letter  is    from    a  member  of   the 
Mexican  Congress,  and  is  marked  iwivate. 

"  Mexico,  August  21,  1847. 
"My  DEAR  Friend, — I  have  before  me  your  welcome  letter 
of  the  10th  instant,  in  which,  among  other  things,  you  ar^ 
pleased  to  point  out  to  me  the  reasons  why  you  had  suspended 
our  correspondence.  The  idea  you  present  to  me,  that  I  ought 
not  to  leave  this  place  before  having  arranged  everything  rela- 
tive to  that  ,  is  a  good  one,  but  cannot  be  realized  at 

present,  owing  to  the  afflicting  circumstances  which  overwhelm 
us,  everything  being  in  the  greatest  disorder,  and  there  being 
in  fact  no  Congress,  and  government  occupying  itself  only  with 
matters  of  the  war,  and  absolutely  no  other  business  can  be  at- 
tended to.  In  truth,  this  war  is  going  to  cease,  as  I  suppose, 
because,  on  the  19th  and  2uth,  at  the  gates  of  Mexico,  our  nation 
has  covered  itself  with  mourning  and  dishonor,  and  our  generals 
and  chiefs,  in  particular,  with  opprobrium.  There  isnotevenleftto 
us  the  glory  to  say,  with  that  French  personage  well  known  in 
history,  that  '  All  is  lost  but  our  honor,'  as  our  army  has  long 
since  lost  both  honor  and  shame,  which  is  not  necessary  to  prove, 
when  this  capital  groans  with  sorrow  and  anger  against  those 
who  call  themselves  its  defenders.  The  enemy  has  as  yet  not 
soiled  with  his  tread  the  palaces  of  the  Montezumas,  but  that  is 
because  a  suspension  of  hostilities  has  caused  him  to  pause  in 
his  triumphant  march.  This  suspension,  which  has  no  other 
object  than  to  collect  the  wounded  and  to  bury  the  dead,  as  some 
say,  has  also  another  purpose,  and  that  is  to  see  the  propositions 
of  peace  from  the  Government  of  Washington,  of  which  Mr. 
Nicholas  Trist  is  the  bearer.  The  actual  government,  that  is  to 
say,  the  President,  who  finds  himself  compromised  before  the 
nation,  has  seut  a  message  to  Congress,  which  I  take  to  be  a 
matter  of  mere  form,  that  upon  hearing  the  above-mentioned 
propositions  he  would  use  only  the  powers  belonging  to  him  by 
the  constitution.    The  Congress,  besides  the  fact  that  it  does  not 


438  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

exist,  there  being  assembled  to-day  but  twenty-five  deputies,  as 
yet  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  matter,  so  that  the  message  of 
the  President  seems  to  me  to  be  untimely  ;  nevertheless,  being 
so  or  not.  Congress,  as  I  said  before,  as  it  does  not  exist,  can  do 
nothing.  From  this  I  deduce,  with  other  friends  of  the  same 
opinion,  the  following  results:  that  the  case  being  an  urgent  one, 
tlie  enemy  waiting  an  answer  at  the  gates  of  the  city,  a  meeting 
of  Congress  being  impossible  in. order  to  review  treaties  which 
*nust  be  concluded  at  the  latest  next  week,  the  executive  is 
necessarily  obliged  to  assume  powers  not  conceded  to  it  by  the 
constitution, — to  wit,  that  of  approving  treaties  after  having 
made  them.  In  a  normal  state  of  the  country,  this  would  be 
an  assumption  and  against  law,  so  that  the  executive,  in  order  to 
exercise  this  power,  finds  it  necessary  to  use  revolutionary 
means.  Hence  the  necessity  for  a  dictatorship,  which  is  already 
announced  to  us,  and  I  think  that  but  a  few  days  will  elapse 
before  this  will  be  realized.  Be  on  the  lookout.  If  I  learn  any- 
thing more  I  will  inform  you  of  it.  It  is  true  that  if  our  army 
had  been  successful  we  should  have  fallen  under  a  dictatorship, 
about  which  our  military  chiefs  have  so  much  occupied  them- 
selves, and  perhaps  they  were  dreaming  of  that  when  they  were 
all  beaten;  but,  being  beaten,  the  same  hope  remains,  with  this 
difference,  that  as  they  must  have  something  to  lean  upon,  that 
support  I  suppose  will  now  be  the  Yankees.  Be  that  as  it  may, 
I  will  soon  ascertain  and  tell  you.  I  will  not  occupy  myself  in 
giving  you  a  minute  description  of  how  the  action  was  brought 
on  and  how  lost,  nor  will  I  give  you  a  formal  opinion  of  the 
motives  of  the  parties  :  however,  I  will  tell  you  what  I  hear 
from  rational  and  well-informed  people.  General  Valencia,  the 
rival  of  Santa  Anna,  wished  the  glory  of  defeating  the  enemy; 
but  he  needed  assistance,  which  should  have  been  sent  hira. 
Well,  the  battle  once  commenced,  whether  right  or  wrong,  Santa 
Anna  looked  upon  the  rout  of  Valencia  as  a  cold  spectator,  send- 
ing him  no  assistance,  after  which  everything  was  rout  and  dis- 
order on  our  part.  You  can  make  such  commentaries  as  you 
please,  but  bear  in  mind,  in  order  to  make  no  mistakes,  that  our 
army  was  composed  of  twenty -four  or  twenty-five  thousand  men, 
and  that  of  the  enemy  of  only  twelve  thousand  men,  and  that 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  439 

after  the  actions  of  the  19th  and  20th  oui'  forces  do  not  amount 
to  over  eleven  thousand  men,  all  of  whom  are  frightened  to 
death.  Among  the  misfortunes  which  have  befallen  us,  we  have 
in  the  hands  of  the  enemy  many  hundreds  of  prisoners,  including 
the  battalion  of  Independence  and  Bravo,  the  loss  of  Perdig-an, 
Blanco,  and  Prontera,  and  other  generals,  and  a  great  many  killed. 
The  ex- President  Anaya  and  many  others  are  prisoners,  all  our 
artillery  lost,  and  our  regular  troops  dispersed  or  cut  to  pieces. 

"  My  friend,  in  all  our  misfortunes  I  do  not  note,  as  some 
people  will  have  it,  that  there  has  been  any  treason  or  secret 
understanding,  but  I  must  say  that  there  is  great  weakness  and 
ignorance,  and  very  little  honor  shown  on  the  part  of  our  gen- 
erals-in-chief.  We  must  only  look  to  God  for  the  salvation  of 
our  country.  I  am  pleased  that  you  intend  to  enter  into  rela- 
tionship with  the  ministers  and  with  his  excellency  the  President; 
but  I  must  recommend  that  you  be  very  respectful  in  your  letters, 
that  you  touch  their  pride  without  adulation.  The  minister  of 
T says  he  will  answer  your  note. 

"  No  one  knew  of  the  intentions  Valencia  had  ;  but  after  his 
rout  it  was  said  that  had  he  gained  the  victory  he  would  have 
overpowered  Santa- Anna  and  made  himself  dictator;  for  which 
purpose  he  had  alreadj^  named  his  ministers,  and  had  promised 
the  rank  of  general  to  several  of  his  friends.  Others  say  that 
Valencia  was  in  league  with  the  enemy  ;  but  this,  to  speak  the 
truth,  I  cannot  and  shall  never  believe.  However,  the  man 
(Valencia)  who  has  been  ordered  to  be  shot  by  Santa  Anna  has 
escaped  through  the  State  of  Mexico,  which  government  has 
received  him  well,  which  I  do  not  understand. 

"Should  there  be  a  dictatorship  or  not,  you  must  be  very 
vigilant  and  take  care  of  our  interests;  that  is  to  say,  should 
our  territory  not  be  benefited,  that  we  shall  not  lose.  I  have 
heard  it  announced  that  the  States  of  Jalisco,  Guanajuato,  and 
Zaeatecas,  etc  ,  wish  to  make  a  separate  republic,  but  I  do  not 
know  what  to  think,  Colina;  on  which  account  it  would  be  ne- 
cessary for  them  to  think  us  instruments  (tools)  to  be  cheated. 
Others  say  that  those  States  which  are  against  the  army  will 
annex  themselves,  together  with  other  States  of  the  North,  to 
the  United  States  of  America. 


440  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

"  August  21,  1847. 
"  Old  Man, — Although  I  am  a  regidor  (a  civil  officer),  still  I 
resolved  to  go  to  the  fight,  as  I  could  no  longer  remain  in  the  city 
taking  care  of  disorderly  women  and  drunkards.  I  determined 
to  see  the  fate  of  ray  unfortunate  country;  consequently,  on 
Tuesday  last,  I  received  an  order  from  the  Minister  of  War  and 
government,  directing  me  to  join  General  Alcorta,  as  his  aide-de- 
camp  ;  and  on  Wednesday  morning  I  went  to  the  Peiion,  re- 
solved to  endure  all  the  privations  of  a  campaign  and  to  see  in 
what  I  could  serve  ray  country.  The  eneray  presented  himself 
on  Thursday  morning  before  us,  in  order  to  allow  their  engi- 
neers to  make  a  reconnaissance  of  our  position,  but  he  did  not 
like  the  patato,  and  on  Sunday  night  Santa  Anna  heard  that  the 
eneray  had  certainly  taken  the  route  towards  Tlalpan  (Sao  Au- 
gustin).  On  Monday  morning  at  nine  o'clock  we  commenced 
our  march  towards  the  same  place  (by  the  city),  and  on  Tuesday, 
after  an  examination  of  the  place,  we  saw  that  we  could  not  make 
resistance  there,  and  it  was  resolved  that  we  should  take  up  our 
position  at  San  Antonio.  That  same  afternoon  the  Yankees 
arrived  at  San  Augustin  at  2  p.m.  We  proceeded  with  the 
greatest  activity  to  make  preparations  for  resistance,  and  ordered 
the  heaviest  pieces  of  ordnance  to  be  brought  from  Peiion  to  San 
Antonio,  and  we  protected  our  right  flank  as  much  as  possible, 
fearing  that  the  enemy  might  take  advantage  of  us  in  that 
quarter.  We  made  ditches  and  redoubts,  and  General  Perez's 
brigade,  composed  of  four  thousand  infantry,  and  seven  hundred 
horse,  of  the  hussars,  who  were  at  Jalapa,  was  ordered  to  go 
around  by  Coyoacan  (near  San  Angel)  The  Fifth  Brigade, 
composed  of  Victoria,  Independence,  Hidalgo,  and  Bravos,  were 
ordered  to  march  to  Churubusco  ;  this  brigade  was  composed  of 
two  thousand  men,  and  generally  called  Polkas.  On  Wednesday 
the  Yankees  presented  themselves  at  the  hacienda  of  Coapa, 
about  the  fourth  of  a  league  from  San  Antonio.  There  must 
have  been  seven  or  eight  hundred  men ;  and  we  fired  several  shots 
at  them  with  our  twenty-four-pound  piece,  and  some  shells,  with 
a  good  result.  In  the  mean  time  I  took  a  nap  at  general  head- 
quarters, about  half  a  league  this  side  of  San  Antonio,  where 
Bravo  commanded.     Day  before  yesterday  (Thursday)  we  con- 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  44 j 

tinned  firing  cannon  on  the  enemy,  and  at  one  o'clock  we  observed 
that  Valencia,  who  was  posted  at  Magdalena  to  impede  the  enemy 
that  way,  commenced  firing  cannon.  The  fire  was  heavy,  when  an 
aide  of  Valencia's  arrived,  saying  that  he  was  being  surrounded, 
and  we  sent  an  aid  to  Perez,  and  another  to  Mexico  to  Lombar- 
dini  (Minister  of  War),  in  order  that  he  might  tell  Range!  to  march 
vifith  his  two  thousand  men,  together  with  Perez's  brigade,  to  the 
support  of  Valencia.  At  about  half-past  three  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon we  found  ourselves  in  front  of  the  enemy,  who  were  taking 
a  position  on  the  left  flank  of  Valencia,  who,  the  enemy,  on  see- 
ing five  thousand  men  who  came  to  reinforce  Valencia,  com- 
menced covering  themselves  in  the  bushes  and  beiiind  the  church 
of  San  Geronimo.  However,  the  enemy's  forces  in  front  of  Va- 
lencia continued  to  fire  upon  him,  and  he,  Valencia,  returned 
their  fire  with  twenty-one  pieces  of  cannon.  A  little  before  dark 
we  received  three  light  pieces  we  had  sent  for,  and  we  fired  six 
times  with  good  result.  I  had  proposed  not  to  ask  where  we 
were  going,  and  what  was  my  astonishment  when,  at  night,  we 
were  ordered  to  retire  to  San  Angel,  two  and  a  half  leagues  dis- 
tance from  Valencia's  camp  !  We  there  met  llangel's  division  ; 
and  ours,  together  with  his,  amounted  to  twelve  thousand  men. 
"Well,  old  gentleman,  instead  of  marching  early  the  next 
morning  to  the  beautiful  position  we  left  on  the  19th,  we  did 
not  start  till  after  six  o'clock,  merely,  as  it  were,  to  see  the  de- 
struction of  Valencia,  and  we  had  not  arrived  at  the  position  of 
the  preceding  day  when  we  met  two  flying  soldiers,  at  about 
seven  o'clock,  who  brought  the  fatal  news  of  the  complete  rout  of 
Valencia.  Then  Don  Antonio  (Santa  Anna)  gave  orders  for 
our  return  to  Mexico,  as  it  was  to  be  made  another  Troy.  Ran- 
gel's  brigade  was  ordered  to  take  possession  of  the  citadel,  and 
Santa  Anna  gave  Perez  and  Bravo  orders  to  retire  from  San 
Antonio,  as,  San  Angel  being  taken,  we  were  cut  off  by  the 
enemy  ;  and  you  can  imagine  the  confusion  and  the  destruction  of 
the  morale  of  our  army  which  ensued.  In  moving  our  artillery 
and  ammunition  we  were  put  to  much  inconvenience  and  delay  ; 
for,  as  it  had  rained  the  night  previous,  the  wheels  stuck  in  the 
mud,  and  the  mules,  fatigued,  could  not  haul  them.  The  result 
was  that,  when  the  Yankee  observed  our  movements,  and  saw 


>^Ss 


442  .  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

us  withdraw  our  pieces  from  the  embrasures  at  San  Antonio,  he 
detached  two  columns,  one  by  the  Pedregal  (rough,  volcanic 
ground),  and  the  other  down  the  main  road,  and  consequently 
took  San  Antonio;  and  most  of  Alvarez's  troops,  brought  from 
the  south,  were  made  prisoners.  Whilst  this  was  going  on  at 
San  Antonio,  the  same  troops  which  had  routed  Valencia  were 
detached  in  two  columns,  one  of  which  attacked  Churubusco, 
where,  after  a  small  resistance,  the  companies  of  Independence 
and  Bravo  were  taken  prisoners,  as  also  other  companies  that 
were  cut  off  in  their  retreat.  The  other  column  came  down  the 
main  road  and  attacked  the  bridge  by  the  same  name,  where  our 
w^agons  (returning  fi-om  San  Antonio  and  fast  in  the  mud) 
served  them  as  trenches,  and,  after  an  attack  of  infantry  alone, 
they  took  our  position,  which  appeared  impregnable,  putting  us 
shamefully  to  flight,  and,  had  the  enemy  been  any  other,  they 
would  have  gone  directly  into  Mexico,  for  our  cursed  soldiers, 
frightened  to  death,  were  bellowing  in  the  streets,  'Here  come 
the  Yankees  !'  Finally  Santa  Anna  resolved  to  defend  the  city 
at  the  first  line  ;  and,  if  our  soldiers  would  not  run,  we  had  a 
sufficient  number  left  to  defend  this  unfortunate  city. 

"But  now  they  speak  of  a  capitulation,  or  1  know  not  what. 
The  result  is  that  the  Yankees  can  march  directly  into  Mexico 

at  any  hour  they  please,  owing  to  the  cowardice  and of 

our  generals-in-chief  Bassadva,  Mora  Villamil,  and  Aranjois 
started  at  daybreak  this  morning,  with  orders  from  Pacbeco,  to 
ask  Scott  for  thirty  hours'  armistice,  in  order  to  bury  the  dead 
and  collect  the  wounded.  Santa  Anna  became  very  angry,  and 
said.  This  cursed  Pacbeco  has  made  a  fool  of  himself  and  com- 
promised me,  which  remark  having  come  to  the  ears  of  Pacheco 
he  resigned.  Some  say  it  was  a  preconcerted  affair.  I  will  now 
give  you,  my  old  man,  my  opinion  of  all  this.  Valencia  wished 
to  be  the  hero,  but  had  not  the  elements  to  make  him  so.  Santa 
Anna  wished  to  destroy  him,  and,  by  not  sending  him  reinforce- 
ments day  before  yesterday,  he  has  lost  the  nation.  Keep  this 
to  yourself.  Valencia  received  positive  orders  not  to  engage  in 
fight;  but,  notwithstanding  these  orders,  and  the  order  to  spike 
his  artillery  and  retire  if  necessary,  he  remained,  and  replied 
that  he  considered  himself  strong  enough  to  beat  the  enemy, 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  443 

and  that  liis  army  from  the  north  (it  wns  from  San  Luis  Potosi) 
, could  not  be  overcome,  much  less  would  it  retreat  before  the 
enemy.  From  all  I  have  said,  you  will  judge  the  future  destiny 
of  our  unhappy  country. 

"  JUAX." 


From  a  young  lawyer  to  his  father. 

"  Mexico,  August  21,  1847. 

"Dear  Father, — The  end  hasproved,  in  the  most  unequivocal 
manner,  the  correctness  of  our  prophecies.  The  brigade  under 
Valencia  was  completely  routed  between  seven  and  eight  o'clock 
yesterday  morning,  and,  in  continuation,  the  same  fate  befell 
the  brigade  of  Perez,  stationed  at  Coyoacan,  and  the  troops  at 
Churubusco. 

"  Who  is  to  be  punished  for  these  disasters  ?  The  public  voice 
accuses  Santa  Anna  of  having  been  a  cold  and  impassive  spec- 
tator of  the  rout  of  Valencia,  whilst  his  assistance  might  possibly 
have  decided  the  battle  in  our  favor.  The  Yankees  surrounded 
Talencia,  and  some  of  them  placed  themselves  between  him  and 
Santa  Anna,  without  any  interruption  from  the  latter.  Some 
say  that  Valencia  disobeyed  the  orders  of  Santa  Anna,  and 
Santa  Anna  was  piqued  by  the  disobedie'nce  ;  but  this  does  not 
lessen  the  culpability  of  the  rascal  who  gratifies  a  private  feel- 
ing and  thereby  jeopardizes  the  most  sacred  interests  of  his 
country. 

"The  fact  is  that  everything  is  lost,  and  the  Yankees  will  be 

here  to-morrow. 

"J.  "VT." 


From  a  member  of  Congress. 

"Mexico,  August  21,  1847. 
"Loved  Friend,— The  19th  and  20tb  of  August  have  been 
to  Mexico  days  of  mourning  and  ignominy,  as  we  have  lost  a 
great  many  valiant  Mexicans,  and  our  immense  army  has  been 
routed  by  a  handful  of  adventurers.  We  are  all  choking  with 
grief  at  such  a  catastrophe,  and  we  fear  the  sad  consequences 
of  the  triumph  of  the  enemy.     The  enemy  has  not  yet  entered 


444  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

the  city,  but  they  are  at  our  very  gates,  awaiting  the  answer  of 
our  government,  which  has  already  entered  into  negotiations 
for  peace.  What  will  follow  this  negotiation,  God  knows.  What 
does  the  United  States  want?  Who  knows  ?  Congress  cannot 
assemble,  nor  will  it  assemble  ;  therefore  I  shall  go  to  you  in  a 
few  days,  as  I  am  anxious  to  see  you  and  my  family.  Work  for 
your  country.  Do  not  cease  your  labor.  Do  what  you  can  to 
protect  the  public  institutions,  the  arts,  sciences,  etc. 

"L.  B." 


The   first  sheet  of  the  oric;inal  of  this  letter  was 


o' 


lost. 


"  Scott,  a  man  of  superior  talents  in  the  art  of  war,  as  it 
appears,  considering  the  position  of  Valencia  very  advan- 
tageous, established  a  small  portion  of  his  troops  in  a  ravine 
very  near  our  batteries,  from  whence  he  could  use  his  muskets 
to  advantage  without  injury  from  us,  he,  Scott,  having  no  artil- 
lery. Afterwards  he  sent  a  column,  with  three  light  pieces  of 
artillery,  to  take  a  position  on  the  heights  on  the  right  of 
Valencia's  camp,  and.  another  body  of  troops  on  the  left  of 
Valencia,  in  order  to  flank  this  general.  At  about  six  o'clock  in 
the  morning  of  the  20th  of  August  he  obtained  his  object, 
having  troops  concealed  on  both  flanks  of  Valencia,  and  a  very 
few  in  front,  with  a  number  of  wagons,  to  call  the  attention  of 
Valencia  that  way. 

"  The  column  which  on  the  previous  afternoon  had  taken 
position  on  the  right  of  Valencia,  Scott  ordered  should  get  in 
the  rear  during  the  night,  and  the  body  of  troops  that  were  in 
front  of  Valencia  the  same  afternoon  were  divided,  one  part  of 
which  took  the  right  of  Valencia ;  and  in  the  mean  time  he  had 
sent  reinforcements  to  the  body  stationed  on  the  left,  obliging 
his  soldiers  to  cross  a  river  half-body  deep.  In  this  manner 
Valencia  during  the  night  was  entirely  cut  off,  and  at  six  o'clock 
the  next  morning  he  was  attacked  at  the  same  time  in  the  front, 
in  the  rear,  and  on  both  flanks.  The  engagement  lasted  about 
two  hours,  the  result  of  which  was   that  all  our  artillery  was 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER.  445 

lost,  with  the  entire  train,  nmniunition  and  all,  a  great  many 
killed  and  wounded,  and  those  who  were  not  made  prisoners 
were  entirely  dispersed.  On  the  afternoon  of  the  day  previous, 
Valencia,  seeing  that  be  was  in  danger  of  being  flanked,  asked 
assistance  of  Santa  Anna,  who  ordered  him  to  retire  imme- 
diately ;  but  he,  Valencia,  did  not  retire,  probably  because  he 
considered  victory  possible.  Valencia  did  not  send  for  reinforce- 
ments once,  but  several  times,  on  all  which  occasions  he  was 
refused  by  Santa  Anna,  and  the  order  to  retire  was  repeated,  on 
account  of  which,  after  the  unfortunate  result  of  the  engage- 
ment, Santa  Anna  ordered  this  general  to  be  shot  for  dis- 
obedience. Some  assure  us  there  is  foundation  for  this  order; 
for  Valencia  was  very  obstinate,  and  thereby  caused  the  loss  of 
the  whole  ami}'.  Still,  others  do  not  think  so,  as  having  be- 
haved with  valor  saves  him  from  all  discreditable  imputation. 

"  Mv  opinion  is  that  Santa  Anna  should  have  sent  Valencia  re- 
inforcements, and  should  have  procured  a  victory  by  any  means, 
and  after  that  chastised  him  for  his  disobedience  of  orders.  In 
this  manner  he  would  have  rendered  an  important  service  to  the 
nation,  and  it  would  have  been  a  salutary  example  for  generals- 
in-chief  in  future.  Scott,  having  destroyed  our  best  troops,  the 
flower  of  the  army,  then  proceeded  with  his  forces  and  attacked 
the  main  army  immediately  afterwards,  that  is  to  say,  those 
stationed  at  San  Antonio  and  Churubusco  and  Mexicalcingo, 
thereby  effecting  in  one  single  day  the  destruction  of  an  army 
of  more  than  thirty  thousand  men.  The  North  American  gen- 
eral, in  a  strange  country,  has  fought  us  in  detail  and  destroyed 
our  large  army,  a  thing  which  our  general  should  have  done 
with  respect  to  his  army. 

"  It  is  now  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  the  enemy  has  sent 
in  an  intimation  allowing  forty-eight  hours  for  the  evacuation 
of  this  city,  so  that  their  troops  may  occupy  it.  Our  troops, 
which  with  great  difficulty  have  been  brought  together,  do  not 
exceed  eight  or  nine  thousand  men,  with  which  we  can  do 
nothing,  as  they  have  lost  their  morale. 

"The  companies  of  Bravo  and  Independence,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  few  killed,  are  prisoners.  Generals  Salas  and  Goros- 
tiza  are  prisoners,  as  also  others,  whose  names  I  do  not  recollect. 


446  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

As  yet  I  hear  only  of  the  death  of  Generals  Mejia  and  Frontera, 
colonel  of  cavalry.  It  is  also  said,  but  not  certainly,  that  Per- 
digan  was  killed.  I  have  just  been  told  that  Bravo  is  a  prisoner, 
and  also  Anava." 


TESTIMOXT    BEFORE   THE    COURT   OF    INQUIRY   AT  THE 
CITY  OF  MEXICO. 

"Brigadier-General  Persifer  P.  Smith,  duly  sworn. 

"Question  by  i)rosecution. — By  whose  orders  did  the  witness 
pass  the  Pedvegal,  near  the  enemy,  on  the  afternoon  of  August 
19th  last;  about  what  hour  did  he  reach  the  hamlet  called  San 
Geronimo,  that  afternoon  ;  what  does  the  witness  know  of  any 
plan  or  order  of  battle  respecting  an  attack  by  the  American 
forces  on  the  enemy's  left  flank,  rear,  or  intrenched  camp,  coming 
from  Major-General  Pillow,  and  by  whom  was  the  plan  actually 
executed  upon  that  camp,  conceived,  laid  down,  and  executed, 
on  the  morning  of  the  20th  of  August? 

"Answer. — ily  brigade  was  in  General  Twiggs's  Division. 
That  division,  by  General  Scott's  order,  communicated  through 
General  Twiggs  to  me,  passed  through  San  Augustin,  and  in  front 
of  General  Pillow's  Division,  to  cover  that  division  in  making  a 
road  by  which  the  army  might  reach  the  San  Angel  road  to 
turn  the  position  at  San  Antonio.  That  was  the  explanation 
that  accompanied  the  order  for  our  movement  through  San 
Augustin  and  to  the  front  of  General  Pillow.  After  passing  a 
hill  or  mound  to  the  right,  we  got  under  the  fire  of  the  enemy's 
position  at  Contreras.  General  Twiggs  then  ordered  the  ad- 
vance, composed  of  two  companies  of  riflemen,  to  drive  the 
skirmishers  of  the  enemy,  which  were  in  the  corn  in  front,  and 
cover  the  engineers  in  their  reconnaissance.  While  that  was 
doing,  Magruder's  Battery  came  to  the  front.  On  the  report  of 
the  engineers,  the  battery  was  ordered  to  advance,  and  I  was 
ordered  with  my  brigade  to  support  it.  General  Twiggs  at  the 
same  time  turned  Taylor's  Battery  and  Riley's  Brigade  off  to 
the  right,  and  they  soon  disappeared  around  the  corn-field  and 
into  the  Pedregal ;  one  of  the  pieces  of  Magruder's  Battery  got 
fast  in  a  stone  wall,  through  which  it  was  passing,  which  delayed 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER. 


447 


us  a  few  minutes.  Just  as  we  started  again,  General  Pillow 
rode  up.  He  asked  me  where  General  Twiggs  was.  I  told 
him  he  had  gone  in  that  direction,  pointing  to  the  right,  and  he 
turned  and  went  after  him  ;  at  that  very  moment,  as  he  turned 
off,  I  entered  the  corn-field,  and  could  see  no  more  of  him. 

"  The  next  I  saw  of  either  of  these  general  officers — General 
Twiggs  or  General  Pillow— was  after  the  action,  next  morning. 
General  Twiggs  joined  the  division  just  as  its  head  was  march- 
ing out  of  the  village  of  San  Geronimo.  General  Pillow  came 
up  to  the  head  of  the  column  where  I  was,  just  before  entering 
San  Angel,  near  some  ruined  arches  of  an  aqueduct,  on  the  left- 
hand  side  going  in. 

"The  only  orders  I  had  received  up  to  the  time  of  General 
Pillow's  turning  off  to  the  right,  to  follow  General  Twiggs,  was 
the  first  order  of  General  Scott  in  relation  to  the  movement  on 
to  the  San  Angel  road.  The  order  of  General  Twiggs  to  move 
to  the  front  and  support  Magruder's  Battery,  with  some  orders 
of  detail,  in  the  mean  time,  from  General  Twiggs  General  Pil- 
low gave  me  no  order  at  all.  Magruder's  Battery  moved  for- 
ward and  occupied  a  position  pointed  out  by  the  engineers,  and 
I  moved  my  brigade  to  the  left,  and  in  a  position  to  support  the 
battery.  There  was  a  very  heavy  fire  from  the  enemy's  artillery, 
and  the  attack  directly  in  front  would  have  occasioned  a  very 
great  loss.  To  turn  their  position  by  our  left  would  not  cut 
their  line  of  retreat;  and,  seeing  the  church  of  the  village  be- 
tween their  position  and  the  city,  I  determined  to  move  round 
by  our  right  into  that  village  and  take  possession  of  it.  I  called 
the  officers  of  the  battalion  together  to  explain  my  object,  and 
that  I  should  execute  it  in  a  few  minutes  if  no  orders  came  up 
'to  the  contrary.  After  waiting  probably  fifteen  minutes  longer, 
to  see  if  any  order  should  come  from  the  rear,  I  directed  Captain 
Magruder  to  open  again  his  fire,  which  had  been  pretty  much 
silenced  by  the  enemy,  in  order  to  cover  my  movement  to  the 
right.  I  then  moved  off  by  the  right  flank,  filing  round  and 
then  toward  ihe  village.  I  happened  to  come  out  from  the 
Pedregal  along  with  the  rear  of  a  regiment  that  was  under  the 
command  of  General  Cadwalader.  I  do  not  know  what  regi- 
ment it  was,   but  think  from   other  circumstances  that  it  was 


448  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

Morgan's  regiment.  It  was  more  than  an  hour  before  sunset 
when  we  got  on  the  open  field  on  the  right  of  the  village.  As 
we  started  from  the  position  of  Magruder's  Battery,  we  saw 
reinforcements  coming  out  fi'om  the  city.  When  we  came  out 
from  the  Pedregal,  they  were  formed  in  considerable  force  between 
the  village  and  San  Angel,  their  left  on  a  wood,  their  line  per- 
pendicular to  the  San  Angel  road.  As  my  brigade  was  forming 
after  getting  to  the  village,  these  reinforcements  filed  round  by 
their  right  flank  and  formed  in  two  lines  parallel  to  the  road. 
At  this  moment  General  Cadwalader  came  up  and  reported  to 
me.  1  inquired,  first,  if  Colonel  Riley's  Brigade  was  over  there, 
but  could  get  no  information  about  it.  I  then,  in  order  to  make 
force  against  the  new  line  of  the  enemy,  ordered  General  Cad- 
walader to  form  his  brigade,  or  four  regiments,  by  a  movement 
by  his  flank  in  a  line  parallel  to  the  enemy.  I  put  Major  Dim- 
ick's  regiment  of  artillery  in  the  orchard  on  the  main  road 
leading  from  Contreras  to  San  Angel,  and  formed  the  third  regi- 
ment and  the  rifles  on  the  right  flank  of  the  village  in  column. 
I  directed  a  company  from  Lieutenant-Colonel  Graham's  regi- 
ment, and  Lieutenant  Smith's  engineer  company,  to  take  posses- 
sion of  the  church  in  the  centre  of  the  village.  Shortly  after, 
an  officer  reported  that  he  had  met  Lieutenant  Porter,  of  the 
Fourth  Artillery,  who  had  informed  him  that  Riley's  Brigade 
was  then  at  the  farther  end  of  the  village,  or  beyond  it,  and 
Colonel  Riley  soon  after  reported  to  me  that  liis  brigade  was 
there.  The  enemy  in  front  were  commanded  by  Santa  Anna, 
those  in  camp  by  General  Valencia,  though  then  we  did  not 
know  who  commanded  them.  After  examining  Santa  Anna's 
position,  I  ordered  an  attack  upon  it;  Riley  to  attack  towards 
his  left,  Cadwalader  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  to  the 
right  of  Riley,  and  retire  in  echelon,  both  in  column,  by  divi- 
sion, left  in  front.  Riley  was  to  pierce  the  right  of  the  enemy's 
line  about  two  battalions  from  the  right,  and  then  retreat  to  the 
right  and  take  the  enemy  in  flank ;  Cadwalader  to  form  to  the 
front.  This  was  just  about  sunset,  when  the  order  was  given. 
General  Cadwalader  had  examined  the  ravine  in  his  front,  and 
reported  that,  though  difficult,  it  could  be  passed.  Riley  soon 
returned,  and  reported  his  brigade  ready  to  march  out.     In  a  few 


MARYLAND    VOLUNTEER. 


449 


minutes  afterwards  General  Cadwalader  came  up  for  some 
explanation  of  the  order,  and  reported  that  the  ground  occupied 
by  his  brigade  was  so  difficult,  from  ditches,  walls,  and  bushes, 
that  it  would  be  some  time  before  he  could  get  his  regiments  out, 
as  the  staff-officers  had  to  make  great  circuits  on  account  of  the 
obstructions,  in  order  to  convey  orders  for  the  movement  to  the 
different  regiments. 

"  By  this  time  it  had  got  so  dark  that  you  could  scarcely  per- 
ceive the  enemy's  lines  as  be  stood  under  the  brow  of  the  hill ; 
and,  as  it  would  be,  evidently,  quite  dark  before  we  crossed  the 
ravine,  the  order  to  attack  was  countermanded. 

"  Colonel  Riley  mentioned  that  while  he  had  been  to  the 
upper  end  of  the  village,  and  outside  of  it  towards  the  enemy, 
Captain  Canby  and  Lieutenant  Tower,  engiueets,  had  reconnoi- 
tered  the  ground  towards  Valencia's  position,  and  had  found  that 
the  ravine  in  front  of  the  village  led  up  entirely  in  rear  of  Val- 
encia's camp,  and  that  infantry  could  move  up  it.  I  then 
determined  to  attack  before  day,  in  that  direction,  and,  upon  my 
saying  that  I  should  be  very  glad  to  communicate  my  position 
and  intentions  to  General  Scott,  Captain  Lee  volunteered  to 
go  to  hira.  I  desired  him  to  go  over  and  report  that  we 
should  march  out  at  3  o'clock,  attack  Valencia's  position  in  the 
rear,  and  requested  that  such  diversion  as  could  be  made  might 
be  made  on  the  front  of  said  position.  I  then  sent  Lieutenants 
Brooks  and  Tower  to  examine  again  this  ravine  after  dark,  in 
order  that  we  might  be  sure  to  find  it  before  daylight  in  the 
morning.  I  then  disposed  of  the  troops  to  defend  the  place  if 
attacked  in  the  night,  and  to  march  out  with  most  facility  before 
day.  After  the  return  of  Lieutenants  Brooks  and  Tower,  I 
sent  for  General  Cadwalader,  Colonel  Riley,  and  Major  Dimick, 
the  commanders  of  the  three  brigades,  and  gave  to  each  detailed 
instructions  what  he  was  to  do  in  the  attack  in  the  morning, 
providing  particularly  for  the  case  of  an  attack  on  us  by  Santa 
Anna  while  we  were  marching  out  to  attack  Valencia.  About 
10  o'clock,  General  Shields's  Aide,  Lieutenant  Hammond,  came 
up  and  reported  to  me  that  the  general,  with  two  regiments,  had 
got  through  the  Pedregal,  and  was  lying  between,  I  think,  one 
of  the  ravines,  at  the  edge  of  the  Pedregal,  and  the  road.    Being 

29 


450  MEMO  IBS   OF  A 

under  the  impression  that  I  ranked  General  Shields,  I  directed 
that  his  two  regiments  should  occupy  the  position  that  Major 
Diniick  had  occupied  when  we  first  got  over, — that  was  the 
orchard  in  the  road, — directing  that  tlie  whole  of  my  own  bri- 
gade should  then  join  the  column  that  was  moving  out  to  the 
attack.  About  12  o'clock  General  Shields  came  himself.  I  re- 
peated the  instructions  to  him,  still  under  the  impression  that  I 
ranked  him;  and  he,  with  great  delicacy,  as  well  as  with  great 
magnanimity,  did  not  even  hint  at  his  actual  position,  which  was 
that  iif  my  senior.  He  went  and  joined  his  brigade,  which  was 
then  in  the  orchard.  He  was  to  occupy  the  village  after  we 
marched  out.  A  few  minutes  before  3  o'clock,  Riley's  Brigade 
marched  out;  two  of  Cadwalader's  regiments  followed;  the 
other  two,  which  were  at  the  further  end  of  the  village,  and  in 
very  difficnlt  ground,  not  being  ready.  General  Cadwalader 
undertook  to  remain  and  bring  them  up  in  time  ;  Major  Diraick 
followed  the  two  leading  regiments  of  Cadwalader  with  my 
brigade,  and  then  the  two  other  regiments  of  Cadwalader  fol- 
lowed. Owing  to  the  extreme  difficulty  of  the  path,  it  took  us 
three  hours  until  Riley's  Brigade  got  into  position  in  the  rear  of 
the  enemy's  works.  It  had  been  broad  daylight  for  some  time 
before  he  arrived  there.  As  the  enemy  had  a  great  deal  of  cav- 
alry about  their  position,  Riley  was  ordered  to  attack  in  two 
columns,  and  to  deploy  when  the  nature  of  the  ground  would 
permit  him.  Cadwalader's  Brigade  had  been  intended  to  make 
face  against  Santa  Anna,  if  he  moved  to  the  assistance  of  Val- 
encia, and  Dimick  to  have  assisted  in  either  the  one  or  the  other 
attack,  as  circumstances  might  require.  But  Santa  Anna,  dur- 
ing the  night,  had  withdrawn  his  infantry  to  some  houses  at  the 
upper  end  of  San  Angel,  so  that,  when  it  got  to  be  broad  day,  we 
could  only  see  Santa  Anna's  cavalry  in  its  position,  and  the  head 
of  his  infantry  a  great  distance  off,  returning  to  its  position.  Ue 
was  so  far  off  that  it  was  evident  we  had  nothing  to  i'ear  from 
any  movement  he  could  make.  Just  as  Riley's  column  was 
formed  for  attack,  cavalry  were  seen  moving  out  from  Valencia's 
position  up  towards  the  mountains.  As  they  might  by  that  way 
turn  Riley's  right  flank,  and  as  it  was  not  necessary  to  pay  any 
further  attention  to  Santa  Anna's  force,  I  directed  that  Cadwal- 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  451 

ader's  Brigade  should  also  form  in  two  columns,  one  to  move 
round  on  Riley's  right  flank  and  rear,  and  the  other  on  his  left 
flank.  This  order  was  communicated  to  the  senior  ofBcer  of  the 
two  first  regiments  that  had  marched  out;  and  at  this  moment 
General  Cadwalader  came  up  with  the  other  two,  and  imme- 
diately the  attack  commenced.  Seeing  that  there  was  no  neces- 
sity for  reserving  any  troops  to  meet  the  force  under  Santa  Anna, 
Dimick  was  ordered  to  face  to  the  left,  and  advance  in  line  across 
the  ravine,  against  the  flank  of  Valencia's  work,  at  the  same 
time.  I  forgot  to  mention  that  the  Engineer  company  and  Rifles 
had  heen  thrown  on  Riley's  left  and  front,  under  the  brow  of 
the  hill,  to  clear  his  front  of  tbe  skirmishers. 

"  The  whole  of  the  enemy's  works  and  position  were  carried  at 
one  sweep.  A  good  many  of  the  fugitives  were  intercepted  by 
General  Shields,  at  his  position.  After  directing  the  artillery, 
prisoners,  pack-mules,  etc.,  to  be  secured,  I  directed  the  column 
to  be  formed  to  advance  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy.  I  sent  an 
order  to  the  rear  that  Major  Gardner's  regiment  of  artillery 
should  take  charge  of  the  captured  artillery  and  ammunition  ; 
and  another  regiment  of  infantry,  Colonel  Trousdale's  I  think, 
to  take  charge  of  the  other  captured  property  ;  and  General 
Shields's  Brigade  to  take  charge  of  the  prisoners.  I  moved  on, 
however,  towards  San  Angel  before  these  dispositions  were  com- 
pleted; and  I  believe  they  were  altered  afterwards  by  other  offi- 
cers who  came  up.  As  the  Rifles  and  Third  Infantry  moved  out 
from  among  the  incumbrances  which  were  strewn  along  the 
road,  General  Twiggs  came  up  ;  he  directed  the  pursuit  to  be 
continued,  making  occasional  short  halts,  until  the  other  regi- 
ments could  get  into  their  positions  in  the  column.  We  con. 
tinued  until,  on  approaching  San  Angel,  General  Pillow  came 
to  the  head  of  the  column  and  assumed  command." 


"  Mexico,  April  16,  1848. 
"Colonel  Bennet  Riley,*  U.S.A.,  duly  sworn  for  the  defense. 

*  This  gallant  old  soldier  was  born  in  Saint  Mary's  County, 
Maryland.     He  entered  the  army  as  an  ensign  in  the  Rifle  Regi- 


452  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

"  Question  by  defense. — Was  witness  upon  the  battle-field  of 
Contreras,  on  the  19th  of  August?  if  so,  he  will  please  state  his 
movements  upon  that  field  upon  that  day. 

"Answer. — I  was  upon  the  battle-field  of  Contreras  on  the 
19th  of  August  last.  After  Twiggs's  Division  joined  General  Pil- 
low on  the  hills  in  front  of  the  works,  General  Pillow  rode  up  to  my 
brigade  and  gave  me  two  or  three  orders  to  move  a  little  further 
to  the  right,  or  a  little  to  the  left,  and,  finally,  to  move  forward. 
After  baiting  a  short  time,  General  Pillow  gave  me  an  order  to 
cross  the  Pedregal.  I  asked  him  if  General  Twiggs  knew  of  the 
order.  He  said  he  did,  and  that  he  had  sent  the  order  to  him. 
I  think  the  direction  was,  as  well  as  I  can  recollect,  to  cross  the 
Pedregal,  turn  the  enemy's  left,  and  he  would  support  me.  He 
had  scarcely  done  speaking,  when  Lieutenant  Brooks,  the  acting 
Adjutant-General  of  the  Division,  came  up  and  gave  me  a  simi- 
lar order.  1  executed  the  movement,  and  did  not  see  General 
Pillow  again  that  day. 

"  Question  by  defense. — Where  Avas  witness  when  the  order 
spoken  of  by  General  Pillow  was  delivered  ?  was  he  at  or  near 
the  base  of  the  hill  ?  and  where  was  witness's  command  when 
Brooks  delivered  the  order  ? 

"Answer. — I  was  on  the  left  flank,  I  think,  of  the  brigade,  near 
some  trees,  and  the  brigade  was  in  the  same  position,  when  I 
received  the  order  through  Lieutenant  Brooks;  as  it  was  when 
General  Pillow  gave  the  order,  I  was  near  the  Pedregal. 

"  Question  by  defense. — When  witness  asked  General  Pillow 
if  General  Twiggs  knevv  of  the  order  then  given  him  (witness), 

ment,  in  the  year  1813  ;  served  through  the  war  with  Great 
Britain,  and  through  the  Florida  and  Black  Hawk  Indian  wars. 
Brevetted  Colonel  U.S.A.,' for  gallantry  at  the  battle  of  Choka- 
chatta,  Florida  ;  Bi-igadier-Gencral  U.S.A.  for  gallantry  at  Cerro 
Gordo,  and  Major-General  U.S.A.  for  gallantry  at  Contreras. 
He  was  the  first  Military  Governor  of  the  newlj^-acquired 
Territory  of  California,  and  transferred  the  military  to  the  civil 
powers,  upon  the  inauguration  of  Peter  H.  Burnet,  the  first  Gov- 
ernor, on  the  20th  day  of  December,  1849,  at  San  Jose,  the  then 
capital  of  the  new  State  of  California. 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  453 

did  ov  did  not  General  Pillow  say  to  witness  tlial;  he  bad  given 
Twiggs  the  same  order,  and  told  witness  he  would  proba.bly; 
meet  Twiggs,  who  would  deliver  him  the  same  order,  and  if  he 
did  not  meet  Twiggs,  that  he  (witness)  would  go  forward  and 
execute  the  movement  without  further  order  ? 

"Answer. — He  did  not  say  that  he  had  given  the  order  to 
General  Twiggs;  he  did  tell  nie  to  go  forward  and  I  would  prob- 
ably meet  General  Twiggs,  who  would  give  me  the  same  order 
about  the  cornfield,  but  if  I  did  not  meet  him  t^  go  forward  and 
execute  the  movement. 

"  Question  by  defense. — Did  witness  see  and  understand  from 
the  movement  of  General  Smith's  Brigade  and  the  explanation 
and  the  orders  given  him  (witness),  that  General  Smith  had  then 
moved  off  to  attack  the  enemj^'s  works  in  front  ?  and  did  witness 
understand  that  he  was  to  turn  the  enemy's  left  and  gain  his 
rear?  and  if  so,  for  what  purpose? 

"Answer. — General  Smith's  Brigade  had  moved  off  as  I  un- 
derstood, to  support  Magruder's  Battery  ;  I  never  heard  any- 
thing of  the  attack  on  Contreras,  how  it  was  to  be  made,  or 
anything  of  the  kind  at  that  time.  I  supposed  that  the  attack 
was  to  be  made  in  front,  and  that  I  was  sent  across  the  Pedregal 
to  cut  off  the  retreat  of  the  enemy,  and  check  reinforcements 
coming  from  the  city.  This  was,  however,  only  my  supposition 
at  tlie  time  ;  I  never  had  any  explanation  given  to  me. 

"  Question  by  defense. — Where  was  Magruder's  Battery 
placed  in  position  ?  was  it  in  front  of  the  entrenched  camp,  or  in 
some  other  position  ? 

"Answer, — I  thought  it  was  in  front  or  nearly  so;  I  judged 
so  from  the  firing  ;   I  did  not  go  near  the  battery. 

"Question  by  defense. — Did  witness  pass  the  Pedregal,  pass 
through  the  village,  and  engage  the  enemy's  Lancers  in  the  rear 
of  the  enemy's  position  in  several  conflicts  ?  if  so,  was  he  or  not 
endeavoring  to  gain  the  rear  of  the  enemy's  entrenched  camp, 
with  the  view  of  assaulting  that  work?  if  not,  why  did  he  pass 
so  far  to  the  rear  and  beyond  the  road  leading  from  the  city  to 
the  camp  ? 

"Answer. — I  did  pass  the  Pedregal  and  the  village;  I  en- 
gaged the  enemy  in  the  first  instance,  in  front  of  the  village, 


454  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

between  the  village  and  the  city.  I  passed  the  village  and  drove 
the  enemy's  Lancers  from  their  position,  which  was  on  our  right, 
but  not  exactly  in  rear  of  the  entrenched  camp.  I  passed 
through  the  village  with  the  view  of  reconnoitering  the  rear  of 
the  enemy's  works,  and  kept  the  enemy  busy  to  cover  my  re- 
connaissance. I  was  not  endeavoring  to  gain  the  rear  with  a 
view  of  assaulting  the  work;  I  passed  so  far  beyond  the  village 
in  chase  of  the  enemy. 

"  Question  by  defense. — What  was  the  object  of  making  a  re- 
connaissance ?  was  it  with  the  view  of  ascertaining  the  practi- 
cability of  an  assault  from  the  rear,  or  with  what  view  ? 

"Answer. — It  was  my  object  to  get  as  much  information  of 
the  practicability  of  an  assault  upon  the  rear  as  I  could,  to  give 
my  commanding  officer,  without  knowing  where  or  when  he  was 
going  to  make  the  general  attack. 

"  Question  by  defense. — If  witness  had  ascertained  that  an  as- 
sault from  the  rear  was  practicable,  and  he  had  been  supported, 
would  he  have  assaulted  that  work  on  the  19th  of  August? 

"  Answer. — I  should. 

"  Question  by  defense. — Did  witness  or  not  ascertain  from  the 
reconnaissance  that  an  assault  in  the  rear  was  practicable  ?  and 
did  he  report  that  fact  to  Brigadier-General  Smith  ? 

"  Answer. — I  did  discover  that  the  assault  in  rear  was  prac- 
ticable, and  that  it  was  the  best  possible  place  to  attack  the  en- 
trenched camp  of  Contreras  ;  and  I  caused  it  to  be  reported  to 
General  Smith  by  Lieutenant  Tower,  engineer,  that  same  even- 
ing about  sundown. 

"  Question  by  defense. — Did  witness  on  the  19th  have  a  knowl- 
edge that  General  Cadwalader  was  sent  to  his  support  with  four 
regiments;  and  that  he  was  in  the  village  of  Ensalda  that  even- 
ing, shortly  after  witness  left  it,  but  was  prevented  from  support- 
ing witness  by  the  large  body  of  the  enemy's  reinforcements? 

"Answer. — I  never  knew  that  there  was  a  soul  in  the  village 
belonging  to  the  army,  until  I  was  returning  to  make  a  camp  for 
the  night ;  consequently,  I  did  not  know  that  he  was  stopped  by 
a  large  force  of  the  enemy.  If  I  had  known  it  I  should  have 
attacked  the  entrenched  camp  of  Contreras  on  my  own  respon- 
sibility that  evening. 


MARFLAND   VOLUNTEER.  455 

"  Question  by  prosecution. — Had  or  not  any  written  or  oral 
order  been  communicated  to  the  witness  on  tlie  said  l^th  of 
August  last,  either  directly  from  general  lieadquarters,  or  tlirough 
Brigadier-General  Twiggs,  respecting  the  operations  against  the 
enemy  ? 

"  Answer. — Order  No.  258  was  read  to  me  and  brigade  and 
regimental  commanders  at  San  Augustin,  before  I  started,  either 
by  a  staff-officer  of  General  Scott  or  General  Twiggs,  I  don't 
remember  which  ;  and  he,  the  staff-officer,  said  that  he  had  not 
time  to  copy  it. 

"  Question  by  prosecution. — Had  or  had  not  the  order,  witness 
so  heard  read,  any  bearing  or  not  upon  the  operations  tliat  fol- 
lowed against  Ensalda  and  the  enemy  who  might  be  found  in 
that  direction  ? 

"Answer. — The  order  was  to  get  everything  ready,  the  tools 
and  so  forth  ;  and  that  General  Twiggs's  Division  should  sup- 
port General  Pillow's;  and  that  the  army  should  gain  the  San 
Angel  road ;  all  of  which  I  thinlv  bore  upon  the  operations 
against  the  enemy — every  part  of  it.  General  Pillow  never 
gave  me  any  instructions  at  all  concerning  the  attack  of  the 
camp.  I  have  always  believed  myself  that  any  and  every  order 
from  headquarters  has  a  bearing  upon  the  movements  of  the 
army.  I  knew  of  no  instructions  from  headquarters  further 
than  the  general  order  I  have  already  stated. 

"  Question  by  prosecution. — On  meeting  Major-General  Pillow 
at  or  near  the  captured  camp  on  the  20th  of  August,  did  he  then 
in  conversation  or  remark  claim  to  have  given  the  plan  of  attack 
which  had  been  so  successfully  executed  ? 

"Answer. — He  did  not. 

"  Question  by  prosecution. — By  whose  order  was  the  brigade 
of  witness  put  in  march  from  the  captured  camp,  and  again  from 
Coyoacan,  to  support  Twiggs,  Smith,  and  Taylor,  in  the  attack 
upon  the  convent? 

"Answer. — By  General  Scott  in  person." 


"  Captain  Joseph  Hooker,  Assistant  xVdjutant-General,  for  the 
defense,  duly  sworn. 
"  Question  by  defense. — Was  witness  present  at  a  conference 


456  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

of  officers  on  the  11th  of  September  last,  at  Piedad  ?  If  so,  state 
what  were  the  views  of  Major-Generals  Scott  and  Pillow  in  ref- 
erence to  an  earljf  attack  npon  the  enemy,  in  the  direction  of  San 
Antonio  (garita)  and  Chapultepec. 

"  Answer. — I  was  present  during  the  greater  part  of  that  con- 
ference. I  am  confident,  from  the  views  expressed  by  General 
Scott,  that  he  was  decidedly  in  favor  of  attacking'  Chapultepec. 
He  called  on  a  number  of  officers  present  to  express  their  views 
in  regard  to  the  proper  point  of  attack,  whether  Piedad  or  Cha- 
pultepec. Several  of  the  officers  present,  General  Pillow  among 
the  number,  evinced  a  great  desire  for  more  information  than 
they  possessed  on  the  subject.  Tliey  appeared  to  be  anxious  to 
know  what  position  we  should  occupy  in  regard  to  the  city  and 
the  interior  defenses,  after  we  gained  possession  of  either  one  of 
those  points.  The  difficulty  appeared  to  be  a  want  of  knowledge 
of  what  was  behind  these  two  positions.  General  Pillow  sug- 
gested or  asked  for  information  with  regard  to  the  citadel.  Other 
officers  present  inquired  as  to  the  same  fact,  and  suggested  other 
difficulties  on  the  Chapultepec  route.  There  was  one  officer 
present,  of  whose  views  I  coiild  speak  with  more  certainty,  which 
was  Captain  Lee,  who  preferred  the  attack  on  Piedad. 

"  Question  b}' defense. — What  does  witness  faiean  by  the  Piedad 
works  ? 

"Answer. — I  mean  the  work  at  the  San  Antonio  garita. 

"Question  by  the  defense. — Does  witness  chance  to  remem- 
ber any  prominent  reasons  advanced  by  General  Scott  in  favor 
of  attacking  Chapultepec? 

"Answer. — I  know  that  General  Scott  said  that  he  would 
have  more  elbow-room  if  he  had  Chapultepec  ;  and  also  that  he 
had  reason  to  believe,  or  words  to  that  effect,  that  he  would  be 
met  by  a  white  flag  on  taking  it.  I  would  also  state  that,  during 
that  conference,  General  Scott  said  to  one  of  the  engineers 
present  that  Captain  Huger  said  he  thought  he  could  reduce 
Chapultepec  with  bis  batteries  in  one  day.  This  was  stated  in 
form  of  a  question  when  the  engineer  said  he  had  his  doubts. 

"Question  by  defense, — At  what  hour  of  the  night  of  the 
11th  of  September  did  General  Pillow  move  with  his  command 
from  Piedad  to  Tacubaya,  preparatory  to  the  operations  upon 
Chapultepec  ? 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEKR.  457 

"Answer. — I  think  we  moved  between  nioo  and  ten  o'clock 
at  night. 

"  Question  by  defense. — What  knowledge  has  witness  of 
General  Pillow  having  continued  to  direct  the  operations  of  the 
forces  (after  he  was  wounded)  which  made  the  successful  as- 
sault upon  Chapultepec  on  the  13th  of  September?  state  also 
what  forces  carried  that  work;  was  it  those  under  his  command, 
or  other  forces?  if  other  forces,  state  what  forces  they  were. 

"Answer. — On  the  morning  of  the  13th,  three  regiments  from 
General  Pillow's  Division,  with  a  storming  party  from  General 
Worth's  Division,  were  ordered  to  move  to  the  assault  of  Cha- 
pultepec. Four  companies  of  the  Voltigeur  Regiment,  under 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Johnston,  followed  by  the  storming  party 
under  Captain  Mackenzie,  were  the  first  troops  put  in  motion. 
The  balance  of  the  Voltigeur  Eegimeut,  under  Colonel  Andrews, 
were  the  next  to  move  to  the  attack.  Colonel  Johnston  moved 
outside  of  the  wall  surrounding  the  grounds  at  tlie  base  of  the 
hill  at  Chapultepec,  the  others  passed  through  the  Molino  del 
Rev  into  the  inside  of  the  walls.  The  Ninth  Infantry  followed 
the  Voltigeurs,  and  formed  line  of  battle  directly  after  passing 
through  the  gate  into  this  field,  at  the  base  of  Chapultepec.  The 
Fifteenth  Regiment  of  Infantry  followed  the  Ninth,  and  formed 
line  on  the  Ninth.  In  that  order  they  moved  forward  to  the  at- 
tack. With  slight  interruptions  they  progressed  until  they 
reached  the  ditch  inclosing  part  of  the  work  on  the  summit  of 
Chapultepec,  at  which  place  the  Fifteenth,  the  Ninth,  and  a  part 
of  the  Voltigeur  Regiment,  and  the  head  of  the  storming  party 
under  Captain  Mackenzie,  were  stopped  by  the  wall  inclosing 
the  summit  of  the  hill.  Many  of  these  men  entered  the  ditch, 
and  many  of  them  concealed  themselves  behind  rocks  which  lay 
upon  the  surface  of  the  ground.  The  Voltigeurs  that  1  refer  to 
were  particularly  a  part  of  Colonel  Andrew's  party;  appeared 
at  this  time  to  be  under  the  command  of  Major  Caldwell. 
Colonel  Johnston's  command  was  more  to  the  right.  The  hill 
prevented  me  from  seeing  the  main  body  of  the  command. 
While  these  troops  were  occupying  this  position,  the  fire  from 
the  crest  of  the  work  directly  in  our  front  ceased.  I  saw  sev- 
eral pieces  discharged  in  the  air  behind  the  breastwork,  but  the 


458  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

Mexicans  appeared  to  be  afraid  to  expose  even  tbeii'  liands  above 
the  crest  of  the  worls.  A  fire,  however,  was  delivered  by  the 
Mexicans  from  the  roofs  of  the  houses  apd  from  the  windows, 
and  at  that  time  their  riglit  flank  was  occupied  by  the  enemy. 
The  fire  did  but  little  execution,  as  the  shots  were  most  of  them 
high.  I'he  troops  I  have  named,  or  the  main  body  of  them, 
were  kept  in  this  position  I  should  think  at  least  fifteen  minutes 
■ — it  seemed  to  me  much  longer — waiting  for  the  ladders  to  come 
up.  When  the  assaulting  column  was  put  in  motion,  these  ladders 
were  in  rear  of  the  storming  party.  After  waiting  some  time  with  . 
the  troops  at  the  top  of  the  hill,  I  went  after  the  ladders. 

"  In  descending  the  hill,  and  nearly  at  the  redan,  about  half- 
way up  the  hill,  I  saw  the  head  of  the  Second  Pennsylvania 
Regiment,  the  bead  of  the  South  Carolina  Regiment,  and  what 
I  took  to  be  the  New  York  Regiment,  for  the  colors  were  with 
that  party,  but  which  I  have  since  been  told  were  only  two  com- 
panies of  the  New  York  Regiment  under  Lieutenant  Reid.  The 
last  named  party  were  a  little  in  the  advance  of  the  others,  but 
they  were  all  moving  up  the  hill,  and  moving  by  a  flank.  These 
troops  as  I  stood  near  the  redan  and  facing  down  the  hill  were 
on  my  left ;  on  ray  right  was  the  head  of  Colonel  Clark's  Brigade. 
On  reaching  the  foot  of  the  hill,  I  found  General  Pillow  wounded  ; 
I  asked  him  where  the  ladders  were,  and  said  to  him  that  we 
had  more  troops  than  were  necessary  at  the  top  of  the  hill.  I 
asked  him  for  authority  to  take  a  regiment  to  attack  the  right 
flank  of  the  enemy.  He  told  me  to  take  any  regiment,  and  as 
the  Eighth  was  on  its  way  up  the  hill,  I  took  the  Sixth,  which 
was  directly  in  rear  of  the  Eighth.  On  reaching  the  point  on 
which  the  attack  was  intended  to  be  made,  we  found  that  the 
ascent  was  very  difficult.  There  was  no  cover,  and  that  flank 
was  occupied  by  the  enemy,  and  they  were  firing  very  rapidly. 
I  then  directed  Captain  Hoffman  to  halt  and  move  to  the  rear  of 
Chapultepec  with  his  command  around  the  hill.  I  then  returned 
to  the  troops  who  had  been  in  advance,  and  reached  the  summit 
of  the  hill  in  time  to  see  the  first  ladder  planted  to  enter  the 
work.  It  was  planted  in  the  bottom  of  the  ditch,  with  one  or 
two  others  ;  the  others  were  laid  across  the  ditch.  The  first  man 
that  I  saw  enter  the  work — and  I  think  I  saw  the  first  one — was 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  459 

a  private,  I  took  to  be  of  the  Yoltigeur  Regiment;  following- 
him  were  officers  and  men  rushing  over  the  worlc  in  great  rapidity. 
I  think  that  the  greater  part  of  them  belonged  to  General  Pillow's 
Division,  and  to  the  regiments  of  his  division  I  have  before  named. 
I  think  that  the  first  officer  that  went  into  the  work  belonged  to 
the  Voltigeur  Kegiment,*  and  I  know  that  the  first  colors  that 
entered  the  work  were  those  of  the  Voltigeur  Regiment.  When 
I  entered  the  work — and  I  was  not  among  the  foremost — the 
terreplein  was  clear  of  our  troops,  except  those  that  had  entered 
■on  the  side  of  which  I  spesik.  We  had  a  number  of  men  shot 
beloDging  to  our  party,  by  the  cadets — they  appeared  to  be — 
who  were  occupying  the  upper  terreplein,  the  ground  on  the 
side  of  the  work  opposite  to  the  point  of  our  attack.  They 
would  not  have  fired  upon  us  had  an  enemy  been  nearer  to  them 
than  we  were.  I  have  said  that  the  Voltigeurs,  Ninth,  Fifteenth 
R.eginients,  with  a  portion  of  the  storming  party,  were  the  first 
as  a  body  to  enter  Chapultepec  ;  there  may  have  been  individ- 
uals of  other  regiments,  but  the  regiments  I  have  named  were 
started  in  advance,  and  they  kept  it  until  they  reached  the  summit 
of  the  hill,  where  they  were  so  densely  crowded  together  that  it 
was  impossible  for  any  large  body  of  men  to  pass  through  them." 


CHAPTER    XLIl. 

NEGOTIATIONS    FOR    PEACE. 

Although  Mr.  Trist  had  been  recalled,  he  had  not 
yet  left  the  country,  and,  acting  in  harmony  and  con- 
junction with  General  Scott,  continuous  efforts  were 
made,  through   the  channels   heretofore   referred  to, 

*  Captain  John  E.  Howard,  of  Baltimore,  of  the  Voltigeur 
Regiment,  grandson  of  Colonel  John  E.  Howard,  of  the  Mary- 
land Line,  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution. 


460  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

the  British  embassy  and  consulate  at  the  city  of 
Mexico,  to  make  a  treaty  between  the  United  States 
and  the  acting  government  at  Queretaro. 

On  the  27th  of  November  General  Scott  wrote  to 
Mr.  Marcy,  informing  him  that  commissioners  had 
been  appointed  to  negotiate  for  peace,  but  that,  al- 
though they  were  in  the  city,  they  had  not  called  on 
him,  nor  had  they  submitted  to  him  any  propositions 
whatever,  although  the  government  at  Queretaro  had 
been  informed  that  he  was  at  all  times  ready  to  send 
home  any  communication  looking  to  a  renewal  of 
negotiations.  He  concluded  by  saying  that  it  was 
doubtful  whether  the  Mexican  government  or  its 
commissioners  would  adopt  that  course. 

On  the  2d  of  February,  1548,  General  Scott  wrote 
to  the  Honorable  Secretary  of  War  this  important 
communication  : 

******* 

"I  write,  ia  baste,  by  the  e.xpress  who  carries  the  project  of 
a  treaty,  that  Mr.  Trist  has,  at  the  moment,  signed  with  Mexi- 
can commissioners.  If  accepted,  I  hope  to  receive,  as  early  as 
practicable,  in.structions  respecting  the  evacuation  of  this  coun- 
try, the  disposition  to  be  made  of  wagons,  teams,  cavahy  and 
artillerjr  horses,  the  points  in  the  United  States  to  which  I  shall 
direct  the  troops,  respectively,  etc.  (I  have  not  yet  read  the 
treaty,  except  in  small  part.)  In  the  same  contingency,  if  not 
earlier  recalled  (and  I  understand  my  recall  has  been  demanded 
by  two  of  my  juniors!),  I  hope  to  receive  instructions  to  allow 
me  to  return  to  the  United  States  as  soon  as  I  ma3'  deem  the 
public  service  will  permit,  charging  some  other  general  officer 
with  completing  the  evacuation,  which  ought,  if  practicable,  to 
be  finished  before  the  return  of  the  voniito,  say  early  in  May. 

"  In  about  forty  days  I  may  receive  an  acknowledgment  of 
this  report.  By  that  time,  if  the  treaty  be  not  accepted,  I  hope 
to  be  sufficienll3'  reinforced  to  open  the  commercial  line  between 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  /jgl 

Zacatecas  and  Tampico.  The  occupation  of  Queietavo,  Guana- 
juato, and  Giiadaliijara  would  be  next  in  importance,  and  some 
of  the  ports  of  the  Pacitic  the  third.  Meanwhile  the  collection 
of  internal  dues  on  the  precious  metals  and  the  direct  assess- 
ments shall  be  continued." 

The  dangers  of  a  foreign  war  waged  by  a  republic, 
no  matter  how  justifiable  the  cause,  need  not  be 
searched  for  in  the  speeches  of  Cicero,  the  doings  of 
proconsuls,  the  history  of  Rome,  or  in  the  annals  of 
later  times.  American  citizens  will  reflect  upon  the 
subject-matter  of  the  following  letter  and  memoranda, 
and  inquire  if  General  Scott  had  not  been  the  inire  man 
he  loas,  what  might  he  not  have  done,  or  any  other  gen- 
eral similarly  situated,  loaging  a  tvar  thousands  of  miles 
from  the  seat  of  our  government  ? 

"  Headquakteks  of  the  Army, 

"  Mexico,  February  6,  1848. 

"  Sir, — I  have  not  reported  on  the  subject  of  secret  disburse- 
ments since  I  left  Jalapa.  First,  because  of  the  uncertainty  of 
our  communications  with  Vera  Cruz,  and,  second,  the  necessity 
of  certain  explanations  which,  on  account  of  others,  ought  not 
to  be  reduced  to  writing.  I  may,  however,  briefly  add  that  I 
have  never  tempted  the  honor,  conscience,  or  patriotism  of  any 
man,  but  have  held  it  as  lawful  in  morals  as  in  war  to  purchase 
valuable  information,  or  services  voluntarily  tendered  me. 

"Charging  myself  with  the  money  received  at  Washington 
for  the -purposes  indicated,  the  $150,000  levied  upon  this  city 
for  the  immediate  benefit  of  this  army,  in  lieu  of  pillage,  the 
proceeds  of  captured  tobacco  taken  from  the  Mexican  govern- 
ment, and  with  some  other  small  sums,  all  of  which  I  shall 
strictly  account  for,  I  have,  on  the  other  hand,  expended 
$63,Y45.57  in  blankets  and  shoes  gratuitously  distributed  to 
enlisted  men;  $10,000  extra  on  account  of  hospitals,  allowing 
$10  each  to  every  crippled  mau  discharged  or  furloughed  ;  some 
$60,000,  I  think,  for  secret  services,  including  a  native  spy  com- 


462  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

pany,  whose  pay,  commencing  in  July,  I  did  not  wish  to  bring' 
into  txcconnt  with  the  treasury,  and  I  enclose  herewith  a  draft 
for  $100,000,  making  up  according  to  the  memorandum,  also 
enclosed.  I  hope  you  will  allow  the  draft  to  go  to  the  credit  of 
the  Army  Asylum,  and  make  the  subject  known  in  the  way  you 
may  deem  best  to  the  military  committees  of  Congress.  That 
sum  is  in  small  part  the  price  of  the  American  blood  so  gal- 
lantly shed  in  this  vicinity,  and,  considering  that  the  army 
receives  no  prize  money,  I  repeat  the  hope  that  its  proposed 
destination  may  be  approved  and  carried  into  effect. 

"  Number  one,  of  the  san)e  set  of  bills,  is  this  day  transmitted 
direct  to  the  Bank  of  America. 

"  The  remainder  of  the  money  in  my  hands,  as  well  as  that 
expended,  I  shall  be  ready  to  account  for  at  the  proper  time  and 
in  the  proper  manner,  merely  offering  this  imperfect  report  to 
explain,  in  the  mean  time,  the  character  of  the  $100,000  draft. 

"I  have  the  honor  to  remain,  with  high  respect,  sir,  your 

obedient  servant, 

"WiNi'iELD  Scott. 
"  The  Ilonorahlo  Secretary  of  War. 

"Memorandum  of  account  between   Major-General  Winfield 

Scott  and  Paymaster  E.  Kirhy,  at  the  city  of  Mexico,  in  the 

matter  of  the  Asylum  Fund. 

"  1848,  January  19.  By  amount  of  gambling  license, 

money  received  from  Bi'igadier-General  V.  F.  Smith     $9,000.00 

"  February  3.  By  the  check  of  General  Scott  on  Man- 
ning and  Mackintosh 26,000.00 

"  February  3.   By  proceeds  of  tobacco  sales  received 

from  Captain  Lowry,  account  of  late  Captain  Irwin     49,569.44 

"Februarys.  By  the  check  of  Captain  Grayson  in 

favor  of  Surgeon  Satterlee  ....       2,650.40 

"  February  5.  By  the  check  of  General  Scott  on  Man- 
ning and  Mackintosh  .....     12,780.16 


$100,000.00 
"Balance  by  my  bill  of  exchange  No.  18,  in  triplicate,  in  favor 

of  Major-Goneral  Winfield  Scott,  upon  the  Paymaster-General, 

at  ten  days,  at  Bank  of  America,  $100,000. 
"  [No.  18.]     Pay  of  the  army,  $100,000. 


MAIULAND   VOLUNTEER.  4Q3 

"City  of  Mkxico,  Jnnnnry  21,  1848. 
"At  ton  (lays'  sight,  for  valiui  received,  ploaso  pay  this  my 
second  of  oxi-liani^'o  ((ho  first  uiiil  tiiifd  Ijoing  unpaid)  to  the 
ordor  of  IMiijor-d'enoral  Winfield  iSi'ott,  ono  hundred  thousand 
dollars,  on  account  of  the  pay  of  the  army,  for  which  I  am 
ftcconntaliki  to  the  treasury.  I'nyable  at  tiie  Bunk  of  America 
oily  of  Now  York,  without  further  advice. 

"  K,    KlHBY, 

"  Ai'ling  cliiof  of  tlio  Pay  Dfpnrtmoiit  nttlio  lioiulquni'tcrs  of  thoarmy. 
Urigndii'i'-Goiiornl  N.  Towson, 

PaymMster-Genornl  Unilod  States  Army, 
City  of  Wiisliington." 

[Endorsed] 

"'I'lie  Uaiik  of  America,  city  of  New  \o\\i,  will  place  the 
vvilhin  amount  to  the  credit  of  the  Army  A.-^ylum,  subject  to 
the  order  of  Congress. 

"  WiNPiELD  Scott, 

"  Major-GenorKl,  etc." 

Here  was  one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  tlie  pro- 
ceeds of  gambling  licenses,  sales  of  captured  tobacco, 
a  levy  upon  a  captuiod  city,  assigned  for  the  benefit 
of  an  army  under  the  immediate  command  of  one 
who  had  distributed  money  to  his  soldiers  without 
the  shadow  of  other  law  than  his  own  will.  What 
might  not  a  bad  man  do  under  similar  circumstances, 
is  the  query  I  wish  m^'  countrymen  to  consider  when 
war  is  suggested  or  advised. 

I  have  said  that  General  Scott  was  a  pure  man. 
lie  was,  and  so  was  General  Taylor  ;  and  fortunate 
for  our  infant  republic  was  the  sterling  integrity 
and  genuine  patriotism  of  its  two  chiefs  in  the  war 
with  Mexico. 

Peila  y  Peiia  was  again  provisional  President  of 
Mexico,  by  virtue  of  his  office  as  Chief  Justice  of  the 


464  MEMOIRS   OF  A 

Supreme  Court,  succeeding  Anaya,  whose  term  of 
office  expired  by  limitation  on  the  8th  of  January, 
1848,  and  who  accepted  the  office  of  Secretary  of 
War  under  Peiia  y  Peiia.  Senor  Rosa  was  the  Sec- 
retary of  State,  with  whom  the  chief  responsibility 
of  the  new  government  rested.  Its  difficulties  were 
innumerable,  its  dangers  great  and  imminent.  Pro- 
tecting itself  against  the  unfounded  charge  of  bartering 
the  national  honor,  it  was  at  the  same  time  resisting 
the  pronunciamentos  of  Paredes  and  the  insurrec- 
tionary movements  of  Alvarez ;  combating  the  friends 
of  monarchy,  and  maintaining  the  army  of  Busta- 
mente  at  Quer6taro ;  struggling  with  honest  zeal  to 
keep  alive  and  intact  the  government  of  their  coun- 
try, these  officials,  with  Riva  Palacios,  the  Minister 
of  Justice,  had  to  meet  the  stormy  opposition  of  the 
majority  of  their  countrymen  and  the  vindictive 
machinations  of  disappointed  generals,  while  endeav- 
oring to  heal  the  wounds  of  Mexico  by  an  honorable 
peace  with  its  invaders. 

In  an  able  address  to  the  nation,  Seiior  Rosa  said 
truly 


'7 


"That  the  existing  government  was  that  which  bad  been 
fovraed  when  the  country  was  without  a  head,  and  all  the  ele- 
ments of  strength  and  order  were  in  atter  confusion,  and  that 
one  of  the  principal  causes  of  the  inability  of  the  government 
to  carr}'  on  the  war  was  owing  to  the  action  of  the  generals  in 
dispersing  the  army  when  discouraged  by  the  results  of  the  bat- 
tles in  the  environs  of  the  capital.  The  statements  and  Insinua- 
tions that  an  ignominious  treaty  of  peace  had  been  concluded 
were  calumnies.  It  is  a  calumny  to  assert  that  the  national 
government  has  humbled  itself  to  send  propositions  of  peace  to 
the  cabinet  at  Washington,  or  that  it  has   offered,  in   order  to 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  4Q5 

terminate  the  war,  advantages  which  the  same  cabinet  did  not 
exact.  His  Excellency  the  President  authorizes  me  to  give  the 
lie  to  these  calumnies,  and  to  assure  j-ou  that,  in  the  midst  of 
the  misfortunes  of  the  country,  the  national  honor  has  not  been 
tarnished,  and  will  not  be  under  the  present  government,  even 
should  the  condition  of  the  republic  become  worse  than  it  is. 
But  it  is  also  resolved  to  make  peace,  if  the  end  of  putting  a 
stop  to  the  calamities  of  a  bloody  and  disastrous  contest,  which 
has  been  so  long  continued,  can  be  accomplished." 

This  bold  defense  of  the  government,  and  its 
avowal  of  a  determination  to  make  peace,  preceded  a 
circular  from  the  same  minister,  dated  February  6, 
1848,  in  which  he  announced  to  the  Governors  of 
States  that  the  treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo  hud 
been  concluded.  The  main  and  chief  difficulty  of 
the  administration  of  Pena  y  Peria  was  to  secure  its 
ratification  by  a  Congress  not  in  esse.  An  armistice 
had  been  wisely  agreed  upon  by  commissioners  of  the 
Mexican  government,  Generals  Mora  y  Villamil 
and  Quijano,  and  Generals  Worth  and  Smith  on  the 
part  of  the  Americans,  in  pursuance  of  an  article  in 
the  treaty.  One  of  the  articles  of  this  armistice  is 
so  notable,  and  its  being  announced  in  General  Or- 
ders No.  18,  March  6,  1848,  the  occasion  of  its  being 
obeyed  by  the  troops  of  our  garrison  at  Jalapa,  that 
1  give  it  entire  : 

"Article  6.  Whenever  an  election  is  to  be  held  in  any  town 
or  place  occupied  by  the  American  troops,  upon  due  notice  thereof 
being  given  to  the  commanding  officer,  he  shall  march  the  whole 
of  his  force  out  of  the  limits  of  such  town  or  place,  and  there  remain 
with  them  until  after  the  hour  at  which  such  elections  should  be 
concluded,  leaving  within  the  town  or  place  only  the  force  neces- 
sary for   the    security   of  his   barracks,   hospitals,   stores,   and 

30 


466  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

quarters.  And  no  person  belonging  to  the  American  army  shall 
by  any  means,  or  on  any  consideration,  attempt  to  obstruct  or 
interfere  with  any  elections,  in  order  that  they  may  be  conducted 
according  to  Mexican  laws.  In  Vera  Cruz  the  troops  shall 
retire  within  the  walls  of  the  fortifications,  and  there  remain  until 
the  election  is  concluded  " 

This  article  was  introduced  by  the  Mexican  com- 
missioners doubtless  to  save  the  government  from  the 
chiirge  of  the  Congressmen  to  be  elected  being  the 
choice  of  the  American  army.  At  any  rate  the  arti- 
cle met  with  great  disfavor  in  our  army,  though  I 
believe  it  was  the  result*  of  wise  counsel,  as  was 
proved  in  the  end. 

It  had  leaked  out  that  New  Mexico  and  California 
had  been  ceded  to  us ;  and  though  it  was  likewise 
known  we  were  to  give  Mexico  fifteen  millions  of  dol- 
lars, yet  there  was  violent  opposition  to  the  cession  of 
any  territory,  and  members  elect  to  Congress  were 
afraid  to  assemble  to  assume  the  responsibility  of 
severing  the  national  domain.  New  elections  were 
ordered,  the  government  vigorously  prosecuting  its 
measures  looking  to  the  ratification  of  the  treaty  it 
had  made,  many  wealthy  citizens  lending  the  aid  of 
money  and  their  influence,  and  finally  the  clergy  sec- 
onding its  efforts  to  assemble  a  congress  at  Queretaro. 

The  treaty  had  been  sent  to  the  United  States,  as 
the  Secretary  of  War  had  been  advised  by  General 
Scott,  on  the  2d  of  February,  and  early  in  March  it 
was  ratified  by  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  to 
whom  it  had  been  transmitted  by  President  Polk  for 
its  action.  There  were  but  slight  modifications  to 
the  original  articles,  and  to  consummate  the  treaty 


MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER.  457 

Messrs.  Sevier,  of  the  Senate,  and  Attorney-General 
Clifford,  having  previously  resigned  their  respective 
offices,  were  sent  as  commissioners  to  the  seat  of  the 
Mexican  government. 

Between  the  5th  of  March  and  the  2d  of  June, 
1848,  the  beginning  and  the  end  of  the  armistice 
agreed  upon  as  a  condition  of  the  treaty,  the  fate  of 
Mexico  for  a  long  series  of  years  was  to  be  settled. 

In  this  period  the  elections  took  place,  and  the 
choice  for  President  was  General  Don  Jose  Joaquin 
de  Herrera,  a  native  of  Jalapa,  of  whose  good  name 
and  character  I  have  heretofore  spoken.  A  Congress 
met,  but  there  was  no  quorum  until  the  3d  of  May, 
though  the  election  of  Herrera  had  just  shown  that 
a  change  for  the  better  had  been  effected,  and  the 
folly  of  continuing  a  war  while  Mexico  was  in  such 
a  distracted  condition  had  been  seen  and  felt  by  the 
good  men  of  all  parties. 

Peua  y  PeiLa,  still  at  the  helm,  as  the  time  for  the 
inauguration  of  Herrera  had  not  yet  arrived,  strongly 
urged  upon  Congress  the  ratification  of  the  treaty; 
the  seasonable  arrival  of  the  American  commissioners 
at  Queretaro  closed  up  the  business  so  long,  so 
anxiously,  so  earnestly  labored  for  and  desired,  in 
the  ratification  of  the  treaty  by  the  Mexican  Congress 
on  the  24th  day  of  May,  1848. 

The  main  features  of  this  treaty  were  that  Mexico 
gave  to  the  United  States  the  territories  of  New 
Mexico  and  California,  and  relinquished  all  claim  to 
Texas  and  the  country  between  the  Nueces  and  the 
Rio  Grande.  In  consideration  of  these  grants,  the 
United    States  were  to  pay  to  Mexico  the  sum  of 


468  31 E  MO  IBS  OF  A 

fifteen  millions  of  dollars,  and  to  assume  the  debts  due 
by  Mexico,  estimated  at  three  millions  of  dollars,  to 
American  citizens. 

Thus  I  lived  to  see  the  war  ended,  and  the  objects 
for  which  I  had  taken  up  arms  successfully  vindicated. 
I  sincerely  hoped  that  a  peace,  lasting  and  honorable, 
between  the  two  republics  would  continue,  and  that 
those  who  had  fought  against  each  other  would  hence- 
forth and  for  ever  be  friends  and  allies. 


CHAPTER    XLIII. 

END     OF     THE     WAE WE    LEAVE     MEXICO. 

On  the  29th  day  of  May,  1848,  at  the  city  of 
Mexico,  Major-General  Butler  announced  in  general 
ordei's  that  the  loar  ivas  ended,  and  tha>t  the  object  of 
it,  a  treaty  of  peace,  just  and  honorable  to  both 
nations,  had  been  duly  ratified. 

On  the  12th  of  June  the  American  flag  was  lowered 
from  the  National  Palace,  under  a  salute  from  Mexican 
batteries  in  the  grand  square,  the  Mexican  flag 
hoisted  with  the  same  compliment,  and  Worth's  Divi- 
sion, the  rear  of  our  army,  marched  out  of  the  city  of 
Mexico. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  15th  we  received  orders 
to  get  ready  to  leave,  and  I  copy  from  my  journal : 

June  16.  At  sunrise  our  regiment  was  formed  in 
the  plaza,  and  shortly  after  we  took  up  our  line  of 
march  for  home.     We  halted  for  a  short  time  at  the 


MABYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  4(59 

garita  of  Vera  Cruz,  and  I  turned  to  take  a  last  look 
at  Jalapa,  the  garden  of  Mexico,  and  never  had  it 
seemed  more  beautiful.  I  really  regretted  to  leave  it, 
and  our  whole  command  seemed  to  feel  with  me. 

We  had  abundant  evidence  of  the  good-will  of 
many  of  its  citizens,  and  I  can  unhesitatingly  say  that 
our  departure  was  looked  upon  with  sincere  regret  by 
a  large  portion  of  its  people. 

We  halted  and  encamped  at  Encerro,  where  the 
whole  of  the  volunteers  were  lying,  except  the  Massa- 
chusetts and  Peinisylvania  regiments,  which  had 
moved  off  that  morning. 

June  17.  The  reveille  was  beat  at  2  o'clock  a.m., 
and  with  a  bright  moonlight  we  marched  to  Plan  del 
Piio ;  we  halted  for  the  day  at  our  old  post,  the 
National  Bridge,  and  as  soon  as  the  ranks  were  broken, 
the  men  ran  like  boys  out  of  school  to  visit  the  well- 
remembered  haunts  of  former  days. 

June  18 — Sunday.  In  the  midst  of  heavy  rain  we 
left  this  morning  at  3  o'clock  and  marched  to  the  San 
Juan,  where  we  halted  to  dry  our  blankets  and  wet 
clothing  in  the  sun.  At  8  o'clock  p.m.  we  resumed 
our  march,  and  at  1  o'clock  A.M.,  the  morning  of  the 
19  th,  we  arrived  at  Vergara ;  as  soon  as  the  guns  were 
stacked,  one  rush  was  made,  and  the  regiment  was 
bathing  in  the  waters  of  the  Gulf.  Oh,  the  luxury  of 
this  bath  ! 

June  19.  There  being  no  vessels  ready  for  us  to 
embark  in,  and  the  Massachusetts  and  Pennsylvania 
regiments  awaiting  their  turn  ahead  of  us,  I  pitched 
my  tent  on  the  sands,  in  the  identical  place  where  I 
had  put  it  when  we  landed  last  August. 


470  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

Jime  20.  This  morning,  with  colors  flying  and 
music  sounding,  the  Second  Pennsylvania  Regiment 
marched  along  the  beach  past  our  camp  to  embark 
from  the  mole  at  Vera  Cruz ;  several  vessels  are  to  be 
seen  in  the  offing,  and  we  are  in  great  hopes  our  turn 
will  come  in  a  few  days. 

June  21.  This  morning  the  Fourth  Ohio  Regiment 
marched  past  and  embarked  on  a  large  ship  lying  off 
the  castle. 

June  22 — Thursday.  Happy  day,  and  adieu  to 
Mexico.  At  sunrise  we  struck  our  tents,  and,  marching 
through  the  city  to  the  mole,  we  got  on  board  a  small 
steamer  and  were  transferred  to  the  decks  of  the 
steamer  James  L.  Day,  bound  for  New  Orleans.  As 
the  steamer's  capacity  was  not  sufficient  for  our  whole 
regiment.  Companies  A  and  F  were  embarked  on  the 
transport  schooner  Velasco,  for  the  same  destination. 
At  noon  we  got  under  way,  and,  passing  under  the 
frowning  walls  of  San  Juan  de  Ulloa,  before  night  the 
shores  of  Mexico  had  disappeared  from  our  view.  We 
watched  its  receding  land,  full  of  emotion ;  all  eyes 
were  turned  toward  it,  and  as  it  faded  from  the  sight 
men  looked  at  each  other  as  if  they  were  parting  from 
home  and  from  friends,  so  many  had  been  the  incidents 
and  associations  of  ten  months'  service  in  that  country. 
Soon  there  arose  the  favorite  song  of  the  regiment, 
"  Columbia,  the  Gem  of  the  Ocean  ;"  and  the  voices  of 
five  hundred  men  swelled  the  anthem,  "  To  the  shrine 
of  each  patriot's  devotion." 

June  26.  At  noon  we  were  in  sight  of  the  cupola 
of  the  St.  Charles  Hotel,  and  in  the  Mississippi,  abreast 
of  General  Jackson's  lines,  so  memorable  in  the  history 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  4.7]^ 

of  the  war  with  Great  Britain.  In  an  hour  we  were 
abreast  of  the  levee  in  New  Orleans,  when  Colonel 
Hughes  went  ashore  for  orders.  We  were  ordered 
to  proceed  up  the  river  to  the  CarrolUon  race-course, 
distant  eight  miles,  and  go  into  camp  there. 

Our  surgeon.  Dr.  Stedman  R.  Tilghman,  was 
sent  on  shore  for  medical  treatment ;  he  had  been 
gradually  sinking  for  the  past  four  or  five  months, 
but  none  of  us  had  serious  apprehensions  about  his 
condition.  He  was  much  worse  than  we  thous;ht ; 
going  to  see  him  on  the  ensuing  day,  I  told  him  that 
if  he  wished  me  to  remain  I  could  easily  get  permis- 
sion to  do  so.  He  rose  from  his  cot,  and  replied, 
that  I  should  go  with  the  regiment,  and  that 
if  it  were  his  last  request,  he  begged  me  to  leave. 
Poor  Tilghman !  this  was  my  last  interview  with 
him  ;  we  had  been  inseparable  friends  and  companions 
since  our  first  nisrht  on  the  beach  together  at  Vera 
Cruz.  The  climate  had  been  too  trying  on  his  con- 
stitution, and  he  succumbed  to  its  influence.  De- 
scended from  a  Maryland  family  distinguished  for  its 
services  to  the  country,  he  had  abandoned  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession  in  the  civil  walks  of  life,  to  enter 
the  army ;  an  enthusiast  in  the  science  of  medicine 
and  surgery,  he  gave  the  whole  of  his  energies  and 
his  superior  natural  and  acquired  abilities  to  their 
study  and  practice.  No  more  faithful  officer  in  the 
line  of  his  duty  could  be  found,  no  more  honorable 
gentleman,  than  Surgeon  Tilghman,  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  and  Maryland  Regiment  of  Volunteers. 
He  died  at  New  Orleans,  surrounded  by  sorrowing 
relatives   and   friends,  on  the    28th   of  July,  1848. 


472  MEMOIRS  OF  A. 

June  27.  It  being  rumored  that  we  were  to  be 
sent  by  sea  from  here  to  Baltimore,  and  the  men 
being  very  averse  to  another  sea-voyage  in  a  trans- 
port ship,  I  went  into  the  city  of  New  Orleans,  and 
returned  with  orders  that  we  should  go  home  by  the 
way  of  the  river. 

June  28.  Embarked  on  board  the  steamer  John 
Hancock,  and  ascended  the  Mississippi.  We  spent 
the  Fourth  of  July,  the  steamer  halting  for  the  pur- 
pose of  accommodating  us,  at  a  noted  place  on  the 
Ohio  River,  called  "  Cave  in  the  Eock."  A  large  con- 
course of  the  neighboring  people  had  gathered  here 
to  attend  a  barbecue,  which  was  largely  attended  by 
our  regiment,  and  I  think  that  the  celebration  of  the 
Fourth  of  July  at  that  barbecue  will  long  be  remem- 
bered at  the  "  Cave  in  the  Rock." 

July  7.  Arrived  at  Cincinnati;  on  the  9th — Sun- 
day— the  steamer  Taglioni,  on  board  which  were  some 
Pennsylvania  troops,  came  alongside  and  commenced 
racing;  for  several  l\ours,  while  under  full  speed,  we 
were  locked  together,  the  men  from  either  boat  jump- 
ing on  to  the  other ;  a  scene  of  confusion  and  danger- 
ous excitement  ensued,  which  the  officers  of  both 
regiments  found  it  impossible  to  subdue  or  suppress. 
We  expected  every  moment  an  explosion  or  the  boats 
being  set  on  fire  from  the  fuel  which  was  being  put 
on  the  fires  to  increase  the  steam.  We  were  finally 
separated,  a  volley  of  oaths  being  fired  by  the  crews 
of  the  two  steamers,  whose  animosity  against  each 
other  seemed  fierce  and  unrelenting. 

JuJt/  10.  At  9  o'clock  A.M.  we  neared  Pittsburg, 
the  Taglioni  close  behind  us.     A  steamer  came  down 


MARYLAiVD    VOLUNTEER. 


473 


to  us  from  the  city  with  a  committee  of  reception 
on  board ;  we  were  to  be  received  with  all  honors  by 
the  authorities.  The  Committee's  steamer  and  the 
Taglioni  made  fast  to  the  John  Hancock,  and  the 
three  approached  the  levee,  where  thousands  had 
assembled  to  greet  our  arrival.  We  landed  amid  vo- 
ciferous cheering,  firing  of  cannon,  ringing  of  steam- 
boat bells,  etc.  Our  reception  was  enthusiastic  and 
highly  gratifying ;  we  paraded  through  the  city,  and 
from  all  hands  and  quarters  the  evidences  of  a  hearty 
welcome  were  showered  upon  us. 

July  12  When  we  landed,  we  were  met  with  a 
telegraphic  dispatch  from  the  Adjutant-General  U.  S. 
Army,  giving  the  regiment  the  option  of  being  dis- 
charged at  Pittsburg  or  Baltimore  After  many 
consultations  and  much  diiference  of  opinion,  the 
regiment  elected  to  be  discharged  here,  and  receive 
allowance  for  travel  to  Baltimore. 

July  15.  This  evening  the  Pennsylvania  officers 
gave  a  handsome  entertainment  to  the  officers  of  our 
regiment,  at  which  T  was  present,  and  we  parted  as  we 
had  served, — as  friends  and  comrades. 

The  First  Pennsylvania  Regiment  arrived  to-day, 
and  many  of  its  officers  participated  in  the  festivities 
of  the  evening. 

July  20  Our  companies  having  all  been  dis- 
charged and  my  duties  ended,  I  left  Pittsburg  for 
Brownsville  by  the  Monoiigahela  River.  Reaching 
here,  I  had  come  by  steam  direct  from  Vera  Cruz  well 
up  into  the  interior  of  Pennsylvania,  and  was  tired  of 
steamboat  navigation.  I  felt  delighted  to  ride  in  a 
stage-coach,  which  I  did  to  Cumberland,  Maryland, 


474  MEMOIRS  OF  A 

and  thenee  by  rail  to  Baltimore  and  my  home,  the 
home  of  my  parents. 

On  the  24th  day  of  July,  1848,  I  was  honorably 
discharged  from  the  service  at  Fort  McHenry;  and, 
closing  these  memoirs  of  two  years  in  the  armies  of. 
the  United  States,  I  bid  you,  my  comrades,  friends, 
and  companions  of  the  Battalion  of  Baltimore  and 
Washington  Volunteers,  and  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia and  Maryland  Regiment,  an  affectionate  good-by. 
I  know  you  well;  and  the  memory  of  the  fidelity,  the 
readiness,  and  the  good  nature  with  which  you  per- 
formed all  the  duties  required  of  an  American  soldier 
in  the  field,  will  forever  be  associated  with  the  proud 
recollection  of  your  continuous  acts  of  kindness  done 
to  me  while  serving  with  you  in  the  War  with 
Mexico.     Once  more — Good-by. 


CHAPTEE    XLIV. 

CONCLUSION. 

The  army  and  navy  of  the  United  States  had  co- 
operated zealously  and  had  served  harmoniously  to- 
gether in  the  prosecution  of  the  war.  In  the  far  west  and 
on  the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  Commodores  Sloat,  Stock- 
ton, Shubrick,  Samuel  F.  Dupont,  with  Commanders 
Selfridge  and  Lavellette,  had  fought  the  seamen  and 
marines  side  by  side  with  the  soldiers  of  Generals  John 
C.  Fremont,  Kearney,  Wm.  H.  Emory,  Price,  and 
Mason  ;  at  San  Jos6,  the  life  of  a  gallant  young  ofiicer 


MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER.  475 

of  the  navy,  Midshipman  Tenant  McClenahan,  of  Bal- 
timore, was  lost  in  one  of  the  many  combats  fought  on 
that  distant  shore,  and  the  possession  of  all  the  ports 
on  the  Pacific  from  San  Francisco  to  Guayamas  marked 
the  successful  career  of  the  two  arms  of  the  service.  In 
the  Gulf,  the  blockading  and  capture  of  all  the  ports 
of  Mexico  displayed  the  zeal  and  arduous  services  of 
the  navy,  and  the  capture  of  Vera  Cruz  and  the  cas- 
tle of  San  Juan  de  UUoa  was  in  a  great  degree  suc- 
cessful, by  reason  of  the  powerfully  efficient  fleet  of 
Commodores  Connor  and  Perry,  and  the  courage  and 
skill  of  its  seamen  and  marines  ;  t^o  that  at  the  end  of 
the  war  the  whole  nation  looked  with  pride  upon  its 
array  and  navy,  and  everywhere  was  heard  exultation 
at  the  victories  won  by  their  valor. 

The  government  of  the  United  States  had  waged  a 
foreign  war  upon  a  distant  theatre ;  it  had  raised  and 
transported  troops  to  that  country;  its  generals  had 
fought  battles  and  gained  them ;  it  had  dictated 
terms  of  peace  and  they  were  granted  ;  its  armies  had 
been  brought  home  and  were  disbanded ;  and  now  the 
Republic,  scarce  half  a  century  old,  could  contemplate 
with  the  pride  of  a  veteran  the  results  of  the  battles 
it  had  fought. 

Look  at  the  map ;  all  the  territory  between  the  32° 
50'  and  40°  north  latitude,  and  106°  and  124°  west 
longitude,  had  been  acquired  by  the  United  States  : 
all  of  New  Mexico  and  Arizona,  California,  Utah, 
and  Nevada,  with  the  gold  fields  lying  unknown 
in  the  lap  of  the  new  acquisition.  The  area  of  this 
district  of  country  is  greater  than  that  covered  by  the 
States  of  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Vermont,  Massachu- 


476        MEMOIRS   OF  A   MARYLAND   VOLUNTEER. 

setts,  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  New  York,  Penn- 
sylvania, Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Michigan,  Iowa,  and 
Wisconsin.  But  this  land  and  this  gold  in  its  bosom 
are  as  nothing  to  the  power  gained  by  the  Republic 
in  having  it?  grasp  upon  the  waters  of  the  ocean,  that 
bathes  the  Indias  and  the  islands  of  the  South  Seas. 

The  human  mind  is  not  broad  enough  to  compass 
the  torrent  of  traffic  and  travel  that  is  destined  to 
flow  through  this  western  gate  of  the  Republic ;  if  we 
held  the  Isthmus  of  Panama,  the  keys  to  the  world's 
commerce  would  be  at  Washington ;  holding  as  ice  do 
the  harbor  of  San  Francisco,  the  merchants  command 
the  trade  of  the  East,  which  will  bring  wealth  and 
prosperity  along  with  its  teas  and  its  silks. 

If  we  were  to  try,  we  could  not  lose  the  advantages 
gained  by  the  war  with  Mexico :  they  are  incalcu- 
lable— the  future  alone  will  raise  the  veil. 

May  the  same  future  be  propitious  to  Mexico  and 
all  classes  of  its  people  !  the  causes  of  its  internecine 
strife  and  destructive  political  action  are  plain  to  our 
mind — these  result  from  attempting  to  settle  their 
differences  of  opinion  by  a  resort  to  arras.  Mexicans! 
believe  one  who  wishes  you  well ;  bury  in  the  earth 
for  ten  years  every  fire-arm ;  pledge  each  other, 
simply  upon  the  honor  of  men,  not  to  take  them  up 
again  for  that  length  of  time ;  and  my  word  for  it, 
you  will  regain  confidence  in  each  other ;  and  that  will 
establish  a  government  of  your  choice,  a  government 
that  Avill  be  unstained  with  the  curse  of  Mexican 
blood  shed  by  Mexican  hands.  Bury  your  fire-arms, 
and  remember  that  the  women  of  your  land  are 
struck  by  every  bullet  fired  into  a  brother's  breast. 


APPENDIX 

TO    THE 

MEMOIRS  OF  A  MARYLAND  VOLUNTEER. 

WAR  AVITH   MEXICO   IN   THE  YEARS   1846-7-8. 


(477) 


APPENDIX. 


List  of  the  Officers  of  the  First  Battalion  of  Baltimore  and 
Washington  Volunteers. 

FIELD   AND    STAPF. 

Lieutenant-Colonel  William  H.  Watson,  commanding :  com- 
missioned June,  1846  ;  killed  at  Monterey,  Mexico,  Septem- 
ber 21,  1846.  Robert  C.  Buchanan,  commanding,  Brevet- 
Major  U.S.A.*  Assistant  Surgeon  George  M.  Dove,  resigned 
August  8,  1846.  Assistant-Surgeon  Smythe  M,  Miles,  mus- 
tered out  May  30,  1847.  Adjutant  F.  B.  Schaeffer,  mustered 
out  of  service  as  captain  May  30,  1841.  Adjutant  William  E. 
Aisquith,  mustered  out  of  service  May  30,  1847. 

COMPANY    OFFICERS. 


RANK. 

NAME. 

comm'd. 

EEMARK3. 

1846. 

A. 

Captain. 

James  E.  Steuart. 

May  30. 

Mustered  out  of   service 

Baltimore 

at    Tampico,   May    30, 

company. 

1847 

1st  Lieut. 

r.  B.  Owen. 

" 

Resigned  at  Tunipico. 

2d  Lieut. 

Samuel  Wilks. 

" 

Mustered  out  of  service  at 
Tampico,  May  30,  1847. 

2d  Lieut. 

David  P.  Chapman. 

Elected  at  Caniarp;o,  Sept. 
1,  1846.  Mustered  out 
May  30,  1847. 

B. 

Captain. 

James  Piper. 

May  30. 

Mustered     out     May    30, 

Baltimore 

1847. 

company. 

1st  Lieut. 

Lawrence  Dolan. 

Resigned  after  battle  of 
Monterey.  Service  sec- 
ond time  as  Captain  in 
Second  Battalion. 

*Brevet-Major-GenGral  U.S.  Army.  He  commanded  a  Brigade  of  Regulars  in  the  Peninsula 
campaign  and  at  the  battle  of  Antietam  ;  subsequently  he  was  in  command  of  the  District 
of  Louiaiana,  1861-5. 

(479) 


480 


APPENDIX. 


WHEN 

COMPANY. 

RANK. 

NAME. 

comm'd. 

HEMARKS. 

1846. 

B  Co.— a>J^^ 

2ii  Lieut. 

M.  K.  Taylor. 

May  30. 

Mustered     out     Mny    30, 
1847,    whilst    detached. 
Service   second  time  as 
Captain  in  Second  Bat- 
talion. 

2d  Lieut. 

J.  H.  Harrows. 

ElcctrdatCamargo.    Mus- 
tered  out  May  30,1847. 
Second    time    jus    Lieu- 
tenant in   Second  Bat- 
talion. 

c. 

Captain. 

Robert  Bronaugh. 

May  30. 

Resigned      at      Tampico, 

"Washington 

1847.  afterwards  killed 

compivuy. 

by  tlie  enemy  near  Pue- 
bhi,  Mexico. 

1st  Lieut. 

Phineas  B.  Bell. 

" 

Resigned.    Service  second 
time  as  private. 

2d  Lieut. 

William  O'Brien. 

** 

Resigned. 

2d  Lieut. 

Thumas  M.Gleafion. 

Com  d    by  tlie  President. 
Appointed      A.  A.  C.  S. 
Mustered  out  May  30, 
1847. 

2d  Lieut. 

Jacob  Hennnick. 

Elected    after     batlle    of 
Monterey,  Oct.  20,  1846. 
Mustered    out    May  30, 
1847.       Service    second 
time    as     Sergeant    in 
Capt.   SchaefFer's   Com- 

D. 

Captain. 

John  Waters. 

May  30. 

pany. 
Resigned. 

Washington 

1st  Lieut. 

William  J.  Parliam. 

Resigned    at   tlie   Brazos 

conipdiiy. 

Santiago,  July,  1846. 

2d  Lieut. 

Eugene  Boyle. 

Resigned   after  battle  of 
Munterey  on  account  of 
ill  lioalth,  and  died  on 
his  wav  to  the  United 
States." 

2d  Lieut. 

Edward  Murphy. 

Elected     Sept.    27,    1S46. 
Mustered  out  May  30, 
1847. 

E. 

Captain. 

John  R.  Kenly. 

June  4. 

Mustered  our  at  Tampico, 

Baltimore 

May    30,   1847.     Service 

company. 

second  time  as  Major  of 
Second  Battalion. 

1st  Lieut. 

F.  B.  Schaeffer. 

Adjutant     of     Battalion. 
Mustered   out  May  30, 
1847.       Service     svcund 
time  as  Captain. 

2d  Lieut. 

Oden  Bowie.* 

Resigned  at   Tampico  by 
reason  of  promotion  to 
the  U.  S.  Army,  and  np- 
pointfd    Ciiplain   U.  S. 
Army. 

2d  Lieut. 

William  E.Ai^quitti. 

Elected  at  Cannirgo,  Sept. 
1,    1846.      Adjutant     of 
Battalion,     and      mus- 
tered out  May  30,  1847. 

F. 

Captain. 

James  Boyd. 

June  S. 

Mui^tered    out"  Mny    30, 

Baltimore 

1847.  Reniiiined  in  Tam- 

company. 

pico,  raised  a  company 
of   dragoons,   and    was 
killed     bv    the    enemy 
July.  1S47. 

1st  Liout. 

Jos.  II.  Ruddach.f 

" 

Resigned  at  Tampico. 

*  Governor  of  the  State  of  Marylund  from  1868  to  1872. 

t  Resigned  at  Tampico  on  account  of  ill  health,  March  1847. 


APPENDIX. 


481 


COMPANY. 

RANK. 

NAME. 

■wriEN 
comm'd. 

REMAUES. 

1846. 

F  Co.— Cwit. 

2d  Lieut. 

Robert  B.  Haslett. 

June  8. 

Resigned  at  Tampico.  Ser- 
vice second  time  as 
Lieutenant  of  Dragoons, 
U.  S.  Array. 

2d  Lieut. 

James  Taneyhill. 

Elected  Sept.  1,  1846. 
Mustered  out  May  30, 
1847.  Remained  with 
Captain  Boyd  as  Lieu- 
tenant of  his  company, 
and  shared  his  fate,  be- 
ing mortally  wounded 
in  the  same  action. 

NON-COMMISSIONED    STAFF. 

SergeaDt-Major  William  S.  Reed,  discharged  from  the  seryice  September  1,1846.  Quarter- 
master Sergeant  Johu  Hooper,  discharged  from  the  service  December  3, 1846;  service  second 
time  as  Lieutenant  in  Second  Battalion.  Sergcant-Mtijor  Alfred  Day,  appointed  Sergeant- 
Major  September  1,  1846  ;  discharged  on  surgeon's  certificate  November  12,  1846.  Ser- 
geant-Major  Richard  "W.  Reaney,  appointed  Sergeant-Major  September  14,1846;  reduced 
to  the  ranks  by  order  of  Major  Buchanan.  Sergeant-Major  William  G.  Lennox,  appointed 
Sergeant-Major  by  Major  Buchanan  February  18, 1847  ;  mustered  out  May  30, 1847  ;  service 
second  time  as  Sergeant  in  Captain  Schaeffer's  Company.  Quartermaster  Sergeant  William 
S.  Hyde,  mustered  out  May  30,  1847. 


List  of  Officers  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  Maryland 
Regiment  of  Volunteers,  enlisted  for  service  during  the  war 
with  Mexico,  June  and  July,  1847.  Honorably  discharged  from 
the  service  July  24, 1848,  at  the  end  of  the  war. 

COLONEL. 

George  W.  Hughes*  (Captain  and   Brevet-Lieutenant-Colonel 
Topographical  Engineers). 

*  Colonel  Hughes  was  a  graduate  of  the  military  academy  of 
West  Point,  and  a  captain  in  the  corps  of  Topographical 
Engineers,  United  States  Army.  He  was  brevetted  major  "  for 
gallant  and  meritorious  conduct  at  the  battle  of  Cerro  Gordo," 
and  lieutenant-colonel  "  for  meritorious  conduct  while  serving  in 
enemy's  country"  during  the  war  with  Mexico.  He  resigned 
from  the  army  in  1851,  and  was  elected  to  the  Congress  of  the 

31 


482  APPENDIX. 

LIEUTENANT-COLONEL. 

William  H.  Emory*  (First  Lieutenant  and  Brevet-Major  Topo- 
graphical Engineers) 

MAJOR. 

John  R.  Kenlyf  (Captain  in  Watson's  Baltimore  Battalion). 

SURGEON. 

Stedmau  R.  Tilghman. 

ASSISTANT-SURGEON. 

Wakeman  Bryarly. 

ADJUTANT. 

James  Steele  (Second  Lieutenant). 

CAPTAINS. 

William  H.  Degges. 

Edmund  Barry. 

Lawrence  Dolan  (Lieutenant  in  Watson's  Battalion). 

Dan  Drake  Henrie  (Texan  Ranger). 

Marcellus  K.  Taylor  (Lieutenant  in  Watson's  Battalion). 

Francis  B.  Schaeffer  (Lieutenant  in  Watson's  Battalion). 

George  W.  Brown. 

Lloyd  Tilghman  (Light  Artillery  Company). 

FIRST  LIEUTENANTS. 

Frederick  A.  Klopfer  (commanding  Company  D). 
Henry  S.  Addison. 

United  States  as  a  memher  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
Abandoning  the  political  arena,  he  devoted  himself  to  agricul- 
tural pursuits,  and  died  at  his  estate  on  West  River,  Maryland, 
in  the  year  1871,  greatly  regretted  by  family  and  friends. 

*  Brevet-Major-General  U.S.  Army.  He  commanded  the 
Nineteenth  Army  Corps  in  Louisiana  and  Texas,  and  subse- 
quently in  the  Army  of  Virginia  to  the  end  of  the  war,  1861-5. 

f  Colonel  First  Mainland  Infantry  and  Brevet-Major-General 
U.S.  Volunteers,  1861-5. 


APPENDIX. 


483 


John  M.  Thornton. 
Frisby  Tilghman. 
Washington  Hopper. 

Isaac  H.  Morrow  (Lieutenant  in  Watson's  Battalion). 
Jacob  S.  Klassen.  , 

William  J.  Corcoran. 

John  Hooper  (Regimental  Quartermaster ;  Quartermaster  Se 
geant  Watson's  Battalion). 


SECOND  LIEUTENANTS. 

John  Carr  (Actiog  Adjutant). 

Benjamin  R.  West. 

James  O'Brien. 

David  A.  Griffith. 

William  H.  Baker. 

Richard  P.  Henry. 

John  H.  Ballman. 

Arnold  Teusfield. 

John  H.  Gronewell. 

William  J.  Garey. 

Henry  M.  Milnor. 

Ira  Mabbett. 

Robert  0.  Bell. 


List  of  Officers  of  Companies  attached  to  the  Regiment. 


Chatam  R.  Wheat,  Captain. 

Charles  McDonald,  First  Lieutenant. 
Francis  E.  Smith,  Second  Lieutenant. 
Abner  C.  Steele,  Second  Lieutenant. 

Thomas  A.  Rowley,  Captain. 
Andrew  McClure,  First  Lieutenant. 
James  McLean,  Second  Lieutenant. 
Alexander  Scott,  Second  Lieutenant. 


Company  of  Mounted 
Volunteers ;  served 
from  July,  184Y,  to 
July,  1848. 

Company  of  Infantry 
from  Pittsburg,  Penn- 
sylvania ;  served  from 
October,  184T,  to  July 
24,  1848. 


481 


APPENDIX. 


James  Boyd,*  Captain  (Captain  in 
Watson's  Battalion)  ;  killed,  July 
12,  184Y. 

Joseph  R.  West,  Captain  after  death 
of  Captain  Boyd. 

James  Taneyhill,  First  Lieutenant 
(Lieutenant  in  Watson's  Battal- 
ion); killed,  July  12,  184Y. 

Franklin  B.  Niraocks,  Second  Lieu- 
tenant (Private  in  Captain  Kenly's 
Company,  Watson's  Battalion). 

George  De  Groote,  Second  Lieu- 
tenant. 

John  A.  Letten,  Second  Lieutenant. 


Company  of  Mounted 
Tolunteers ;  served 
from  June,  1847,  to 
July,  1848. 


Letter  from  Colonel  George  W.  Hughes,  TJ.  S.Army. 

West  Eitek,  Maryland,  January  2-5,  18-51. 

Mr  Dear  Kbnly, — I  have  been  directed  to  prepare  an  official 
report  in  reference  to  our  operations  in  Mexico,  and  wish  you  to 
assist  me,  especially  in  regard  to  facts  and  dates.  I  kept  no 
memoranda,  and  must  therefore  trust  to  recollection,  assisted  by 
my  letter-book.  I  will  thank  you  to  state  the  days  of  sailing 
from  Baltimore,  the  names  of  the  transports  (and  captains), 
companies,  etc.,  respective  times  of  arrival  at  Vera  Cruz,  time 
of  departure  from  Vera  Cruz,  and  incidents  of  campaign,  more 
particularly  till  the  capture  of  the  National  Bridge ;  also,  the 
designation  of  the  troops,  not  of  our  battalion,  that  accompanied 
us.    What  is  Taliaferro's  Christian  name,  and  to  what  re":iment 


*  Captain  Boyd's  company  was  raised  at  Tampico  upon  the 
muster-out  of  the  Baltimore  Battalion.  It  served  honorably 
until  the  end  of  the  war,  losing  heavily  at  the  battle  of  Rio 
Calabaso,  fought  by  Colonel  de  Russey,  of  the  Louisiana  Vol- 
unteers, against  the  Mexican  General  Garay. 


APPENDIX.  485 

was  he  promoted  as  Major  ?     Have  you  the  Regimental  Order 
Book  ?     Write  me  as  fully  as  you  can. 

I  am  glad  of  the  opportunity  of  doing  justice  (however  tardy) 
to  my  companions-in-arms,  and  especially  to  yourself 
Most  truly  your  friend, 

Geoeqe  W.  Hughes. 
Major  John  R.  Kenlt,  Baltimore. 

Note. — ^Colonel  Hughes  left  the  army  before  he  had  com- 
pleted his  report,  and  it  was  never  sent  to  the  Adjutant-Gene- 
ral's office. 


Notification  of  Membership  of  the  Association  of  the  Soldiers 
of  the  Mexican  War. 

"Washington,  August  9,  1854. 
Sir, — I  have  the  honor  to  inform  you  that,  at  the  regular 
monthly  meeting  of  the  "  Association  of  the  Soldiers  of  the  Mexi- 
can "War,"  you  were  unanimously  elected  an  honorary  member 
of  the  Association. 

Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 
(Signed)  Joseph  P.  Shillenn, 

Cor.  Sec'y  Association,  etc. 
Major  John  R.  Kenlt,  Baltimore,  Md. 


Letter  from.  Major- General  Wm.  JS.  Emory,  U.  S.  Army. 

Headqitakters  Department  oe  the  Gulf, 
New  Orleans,  September  30,  1872. 

My  Dear  General  Kenlt, — Your  letter  of  the  16th  Septem- 
ber, and  that  preceding,  followed  me  as  far  as  Syracuse,  N.  Y., 
and  back  to  this  place,  where  they  only  reached  me  to-day. 

I  hasten  to  reply,  and  take  great  pleasure  in  stating  that  the 
Maryland  Regiment,  for  the  time  it  was  under  my  command, 
during  and  toward  the  close  of  the  war  with  Mexico,  acted  uni- 
formly with  great  gallantry,  steadiness,  and  good  conduct. 


486  APPENDIX. 

When  I  took  command  of  the  regiment  as  Lieutenant-Colonel 
I  had  just  returned  from  the  expedition  engaged  in  the  conquest 
of  New  Mexico  and  California,  under  the  lamented  Genera) 
James  W.  Kearney.  There  I  served  with  what  was  then  con- 
sidered one  of  the  crack  regiments  of  the  army,  the  old  First 
Dragoons,  and  of  course  my  ideas  of  discipline  and  efiSciency 
were  pitched  pretty  high,  yet  I  was  not  disappointed  in  either 
the  discipline  or  the  efficiency  of  the  gallant  Maryland  Regiment, 
with  which  your  name  is  so  honorably  identified. 

Excuse  the  shortness  of  this  note,  and  believe  me  very  faith- 
fully yours, 

(Signed)  "W".  H.  Emory, 

Brevet-Major-General  IT.  S.  Army. 

General  John  B.  Kesly,  Baltimore,  Md. 


Resolutions  and  Acts  of  the  General  Assembly  of  Maryland. 


Eesolved,  by  the  General  Assembly  of  Maryland,  That  the 
thanks  of  the  General  Assembly  of  Maryland  are  justly  due  and 
are  hereby  tendered  to  the  rank  and  file  of  the  Baltimore  and 
District  of  Columbia  Battalion,  also  to  the  Maryland  Battalion, 
and  all  other  officers  and  citizens  of  Maryland,  serving  in  the  army 
and  navy  of  the  United  States,  for  gallant  and  meritorious  con- 
duct during  the  late  war  with  Mexico. 

Pesolved,  That  the  Governor  be  requested  to  make  the  above 
resolution  known  in  General  Orders. — Passed  January  29, 1850. 


II. 

Eesolved,  by  the  General  Assembly  of  Maryland,  That  His 
Excellency  the  Governor  be  respectfully  requested  to  make  ap- 
plication to  the  proper  department  at  Washington,  to  obtain  a 
certified  copy  of  all  the  muster  and  pay  rolls,  or  other  evidence 
of  the  services  of  the  commissioned  and  noQ-coramissioned  offi- 
cers, musicians,  or  privates  of  the  State  of  Maryland,  who  were 
in  the  service  of  the  United  States  in  the  war  with  Mexico  ;  and 


APPENDIX.  487 

upon  application  of  any  of  those  whose  names  appear  upon  said 
rolls,  or  of  the  nearest  relative  of  any  deceased  soldier  thereia 
named,  to  furnish  such  person  a  copy  of  the  same,  duly  authen- 
ticated with  seal  and  signature. — Pasned  May  14,  1853. 


III. 

An  Aot  authorizing  the  Governor  to  grant  duplicate  discharges 
to  the  Maryland  Volunteers  and  certain  citizens  thereof,  who 
enlisted  in  the  Mexican  war. 

Section  I.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  Mary- 
land, That  the  Governor  be  and  he  is  hereby  empowered  and 
directed,  upon  the  application  in  writing  of  any  volunteer  officer 
or  soldier  who  served  in  the  First  or  Second  Battalions  of  Mary- 
land Volunteers  in  the  Mexican  war,  or  any  citizen  of  Maryland 
who  enlisted  in  any  company  composing  a  portion  of  the  ten 
additional  regiments  called  into  service  by  Act  of  Congress 
during  the  said  war,  and  served  therein ;  and  upon  such 
proof  as  he  may  deem  necessary  to  establish  such  service  and  an 
honorable  discharge  or  muster-out  from  the  same,  to  issue  to 
such  volunteer  or  enlisted  officer  and  soldier  a  copy  or  dupli- 
cate of  the  discharge  received  by  him  when  so  discharged  or 
mustered  out  of  service,  the  said  copy  or  duplicate  to  be  printed 
upon  parchment  and  signed  by  the  Governor,  the  Secretary  of 
State,  and  Adjutant-General  of  Maryland,  and  attested  by  the  ' 
great  seal  of  the  State. 

Sec.  2.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  sum  of  five  hundred  dol- 
lars, or  so  much  thereof  as  may  be  necessary,  be  and  the  same 
is  hereby  appropriated  out  of  any  unappropriated  money  now  in 
the  Treasury,  to  defray  the  expenses  of  carrying  into  effect  the 
provisions  of  the  first  section  of  this  act. 

Sec.  3.  And  be  it  enacted.  That  this  aot  shall  take  effect  from 
the  day  of  its  passage. — Panned  March  10,  1854. 


488 


APPENDIX. 


ID. 

TREATY 


THE  UI^ITED   STATES  AI^D  MEXICO. 


Treaty  of  peace,  friendship,  limits,  and  settlement  between  the 
United  States  of  America  and  the  Mexican  republic.  Dated 
at  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  February  2,  1848 ;  ratified  by  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  March  16,  1848;  exchanged 
at  Queretaro,  May  30,  1848;  proclaimed  by  the  President  of 
the  United  States,  July  4,  1848. 


In  the  name  of  Almighty 
God: 

The  United  States  of  Amer- 
ica and  the  United  Mexican 
States,  animated  by  a  sincere 
desire  to  nut  an  end  to  the 
calamities  of  the  war  which 
unhappily  exists  between  the 
two  republics,  and  to  establish 
upon  a  solid  basis  relations  of 
peace  and  friendship,  which 
^hall  confer  reciprocal  benefits 
upon  the  citizens  of  both,  and 
assure  the  concord,  harmony, 
and  mutual  confidence  wherein 
the  two  people  should  live,  as 
good  neighbors,  have  for  that 
purpose  appointed  their  respect- 
ive plenipotentiaries,  that  is  to 
say,  the  President  of  the  United 
States  has  appointed  Nicholas 


En  el  nombre  de  Dios  Todo- 
Poderoso : 

Los  Estados  Unidos  Mexi- 
canos  y  los  Estados  Unidos 
de  America,  animados  de  un 
sincero  deseo  de  poner  termino 
a  las  calamidades  de  la  guerra 
que  desgraciadamente  existe 
entre  ambas  republicas,  y  de  es- 
tablecer  sobre  bases  s61idas  re- 
laciones  de  paz  y  buena  amistad, 
que  procuren  reciprocas  venta- 
jas  &  los  ciudadanos  de  uno  y 
otro  pais,  y  afianzen  la  coneor- 
dia,  armonia  y  miitua  seguridad 
en  que  deben  vivir,  corao  buenos 
vecinos,  los  dos  pueblos  han 
nombrado  d  este  efecto  sus  res- 
pectivos  plenipotenciarios;  & 
saber,  el  Presidente  de  la  repu- 
blica  Mexicana  &  Don  Bernardo 


APPENDIX. 


489 


p.  Trist,  a  citizen  of  the  United 
States,  and  the  President  of  the 
Mexican  republic  has  appointed 
Don  Luis  Gonzaga  Cuevas,  Don 
Bernardo  Couto  and  Don  Mi- 
guel Atristain,  citizens  of  the 
said  republic,  who,  after  a  re- 
ciprocal communication  of  their 
respective  full  powers,  have, 
under  the  protection  of  Al- 
mighty 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. 

Article  I. 
There  shall  be  firm  and  uni- 
versal peace  between  the  Uni- 
ted States  of  America  and  the 
Mexican  republic,  and  between 
their  respective  countries,  terri- 
tories, cities,  towns,  and  people, 
without  exception  of  places 
or  persons. 

Article  II. 
Immediately  upon  the  signa- 
ture 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  gov- 
ernment, to  the  end  that  a  pro- 


Couto,  Don  Miguel  Atristain, 
y  Don  Luis  Gonzaga  Cuevas, 
ciudadanos  de  la  misma  repi'i- 
blica ;  y  el  Presidente  de  los  Es- 
tados  Unidos  de  America  i.  Don 
Nicolas  P.  Trist,  ciudadano  de 
dichos  Estados ;  quienes  des- 
pues  de  haberse  comunicado 
sus  plenos  poderes,  bajo  la  pro- 
teccion  del  Senor  Dios  Todo- 
Poderoso,  autor  de  la  paz,  han 
ajustado,  convenido,  y  firmado 
el  siguiente 

Tratado  de  paz,  amistad,  limi- 
tes  y  arreglo  definitive  entre 
la  republica  Mexicana  y  los 
Estados  Unidos  de  America. 

Articulo  I. 
Habva  paz  firme  y  universal 
entre  la  repiibliea  Mexicana  y 
los  Estados  Unidos  de  America, 
y  entre  sus  respectivos  paises, 
territories,  ciudades,  villas,  y 
pueblos,  sin  escepcion  de  lu- 
gares  6  persones. 

Artiotjio  II. 

Luego  que  se  firme  el  pre- 
sente  tratado,  habra  un  con- 
venio  entre  el  comisionado 
u  comisionados  del  gobierno 
Mexicano,  y  el  6  los  que  nom- 
bre  el  general-en-gefe  de  las  fuer- 
zas  de  los  Estados  Unidos,  para 
que  cesen  provisionalmente  las 
hostilidades,   y  se  restablezca 


490 


APPENDIX. 


visional  suspension  of  hostilities 
shall  take  place,  and  that,  in  the 
places  occupied  by  the  said 
forces,  constitutional  order  may 
be  re-established,  as  regards 
tiie  political,  administrative,  and 
judicial  branches,  so  far  as  this 
shall  bo  permitted  by  the  cir- 
cumstances of  military  occupa- 
tion. 

Article  III. 

Immediately  upon  the  ratifi- 
cation of  the  present  treaty  by 
the  government  of  the  United 
States,  orders  shall  be  trans- 
mitted to  the  commanders  of 
their  land  and  naval  forces,  re- 
quiring the  latter  (provided 
this  treaty  shall  then  have  been 
ratified  by  the  government  of 
the  Mexican  republic,  and  the 
ratifications  exchanged)  imme- 
diately to  desist  from  blockad- 
ing any  Mexican  ports  ;  and  re- 
quiring the  former  (under  the 
same  condition)  to  commence, 
at  the  earliest  moment  practi- 
cable, withdrawing  all  troops 
of  the  Ujiited  States  then  in  the 
interior  of  the  Mexican  repub- 
lic, to  the  points  that  shall  be 
selected  by  common  agreement, 
at  a  distance  from  the  seaports 
not  exceeding  thirty  leagues ; 
and  such  evacuation  of  the  in- 
terior of  the  republic  shall  be 
completed  with  the  least  possi- 
ble delay ;  the  Mexican  govera- 


en  los  lugares  ocupados  por  las 
mismas  fuerzas  el  orden  consti- 
tucional  en  lo  politico,  adrainis- 
trativo,  y  judicial,  en  cuanto  lo 
permitan  las  circunstancias  de 
ocupacion  militar. 


Articulo  III. 

Luego  que  este  tratado  sea 
ratificado  por  el  gobierno  de  los 
Estados  Unidos,  se  cxpediran 
6rdenes  &  sus  comandantes  de 
tierra  y  mar  previniendo  il  estos 
Bcgundos  (siempre  que  el  tra- 
tado haya  sido  ya  ratificado 
por  el  gobierno  do  la  i-epiiblica 
Mexicana,  y  cangeadas  las  rati- 
ficaciones)  que  iumediatamente 
aloen  el  bloqueo  de  todos  los 
pucvtos  Mcxicanos,  y  mandando 
il  los  primeros  (bajo  la  misma 
condicion)  quo  d  la  mayor  posi- 
ble  brevedad  comiencen  il  reti- 
rar  todas  las  tvopas  de  los  Esta- 
dos Unidos  quo  se  ballilren 
entonces  en  el  interior  de  la  re- 
publica  Mexicana,  il  puntos  que 
se  elegiran  do  comuu  acuerdo, 
y  que  no  distariln  de  los  puertoa 
mas  de  treinta  leguas ;  esta 
evacuacion  de!  interior  de  la 
repi'iblica  se  consumeril  con 
la  menor  dilacion  posible,  com- 
prometi(5udoso  il  la  vez  el  go- 
bierno   Mexicano    tl    facilitar, 


APPENDIX. 


491 


ment  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  dis- 
patched to  the  persons  in  charge 
of  the  custom-houses  at  all 
ports  occupied  by  the  forces  of 
the  United  States,  requiring 
them  (under  the  same  condition) 
immediately  to  deliver  posses- 
sion of  the  same  to  the  persons 
authorized  by  the  Mexican  gov- 
ernment to  receive  it,  together 
with  all  bonds  and  evidences  of 
debts  for  duties  on  importations 
and  on  exportations,  not  yet  fal- 
lendue.  Moreover,  a  faithful  and 
exact  account  shall  be  made 
out,  showing  the  entire  amount 
of  all  duties  on  imports  and  on 
exportscollectedat  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  the  cost  of  collection ;  and 
such  entire  amount,  deducting 
only  the  cost  of  collection,  shall 
be  delivered  to  the  Mexican 
government,  at  the  City  of 
Mexico,   within  three   months 


cuanto  queda  en  su  arbitrio,  la 
evacuacioD  de  las  tropas  Ameri- 
canas ;  a  hacer  comodas  su 
marcha  y  su  permanencia  en 
los  nuevos  puntos  que  se  elijan  ; 
y  il  promover  una  buena  inteli- 
gencia  entre  ellas  y  los  habi- 
tantes.  Igualuiente  se  libraran 
6rdenes  &,  las  personas  encarga- 
das  de  las  aduanas  maritimas 
en  todos  los  puertos  ocupados 
por  las  fuerzas  de  los  Estados 
Unidos,  previniendoles  (bajo  la 
misma  condicion)  que  pongan 
inmediataraente  en  posesion  de 
dichas  aduanas  a  las  personas 
autorizadas  por  el  gobierno 
Mexicano  pararecibirilas,  entre- 
gandoles  al  mismo  tiempo  todas 
las  obligaciones  y  constancias 
de  deudas  pendientes  por  dere- 
chos  de  importacion  y  exporta- 
cion,  cuyos  plazos  no  esten 
vencidos.  Ademas  se  formara 
una  cuenta  fiel  y  exacts  que 
manifieste  el  total  monto  de  los 
dereehos  de  importacion  y  ex- 
portacion,  recaudados  en  las 
mismas  aduanas  maritimas  6 
en  cualquiera  otro  lugar  de 
Mexico  por  autoridad  de  los 
Estados  Unidos  desde  el  dia  de 
la  ratificacion  de  este  tratado 
por  el  gobierno  de  la  republica 
Mexicana;  y  tambien  una  cu- 
enta de  los  gastos  de  recauda- 
cion ;  y  la  total  suma  de  los 
dereehos    cobrados,   deducidos 


492 


APPENDIX. 


after  the  exchange  of  the  ratifi- 
cations. 


The  eyacuation  of  the  capital 
of  the  Mexican  republic  by  the 
troops  of  the  United  States,  in 
virtue  of  the  above  stipulations, 
shall  be  completed  in  one  month 
after  the  orders  there  stipulated 
for  shall  have  been  received  by 
the  commander  of  said  troops, 
or  sooner,  if  possible. 


solamente  los  gastos  de  recau- 
dacion,  se  entregara  al  gobierno 
Mexicauo  en  la  ciudad  de  Me- 
xico A  los  tres  mesas  del  cange 
de  las  ratificaciones. 

La  evacuacion  de  la  capital 
de  la  repiiblica  Mexicana  por 
las  tropas  de  los  Bstados 
Unidos,  en  consecuencia  de  lo 
que  queda  estipulado,  se  com- 
pletard  al  mes  de  recibirse  por 
el  comandante  de  dichas  tro- 
pas las  6rdenes  convenidas  en 
el  presente  articulo  6  antes  si 
fuere  posible. 


Article  IV. 

Immediately  after  the  ex- 
change of  ratifications  of  the 
present  treaty,  all  castles,  forts, 
territories,  places,  and  posses- 
sions, which  have  been  taken 
or  occupied  by  the  forces  of  the 
United  States  during  the  pres- 
ent war,  within  the  limits  of  the 
Mexican  republic,  as  about  to 
be  established  by  the  following 
article,  shall  be  definitively  re- 
stored to  the  said  republic,  to- 
gether with  all  the  artillery, 
arms,  apparatus  of  war,  muni- 
tions, and  other  public  prop- 
erty, 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  govern- 
ment of  the  Mexican  republic. 


Articulo  IV. 

Luego  que  se  verifique  el 
cange  de  las  ratificaciones  del 
presente  tratado,  todos  los  cas- 
tillos,  fortalezas,  territories,  lu- 
gares,  y  posesiones  que  hayan 
tornado  ii  ocupado  las  fuerzas 
de  los  Estados  Unidos,  en  la 
presente  guerra,  dentro  de  los 
limites  que  por  el  siguiente 
articulo  van  i,  fijarse  d  la  repu- 
blica  Mexicana,  se  devolverda 
definitivamente  i.  la  misma  re- 
piiblica, con  toda  la  artilleria, 
armas,  aparejos  de  guerra,  mu- 
niciones,  y  cualquiera  otra  pro- 
piedad  publica  existentes  en 
dichos  castillos  y  fortalezas, 
cuando  fueron  tornados,  y  que 
se  conserve  en  ellos  al  tiempo 
de  ratificarse  por  el  gobierno 
de  la    repiiblica    Mexicana  el 


APPENDIX. 


493 


To  tbis  end,  immediately  upon 
the  signature  of  this  treaty, 
orders  shall  be  dispatched  to 
the  American  officers  command- 
ing such  castles  and  forts,  se- 
curing against  the  removal  or 
destruction  of  any  such  artil- 
lery, arms,  apparatus  of  war, 
munitions,  or  other  public  prop- 
erty. TheCityof  Mexico,  within 
the  inner  line  of  intrenchments 
surrounding  the  said  city,  is 
comprehended  in  the  above 
stipulations,  as  regards  the  res- 
toration of  artillery,  apparatus 
of  war,  etc. 


The  final  evacuation  of  the 
territory  of  the  Mexican  re- 
public, by  the  forces  of  the 
United  States,  shall  be  com- 
pleted in  three  months  from 
the  said  exchange  of  ratifica- 
tions, or  sooner,  if  possible  ;  the 
Mexican  government  hereby 
engaging,  as  in  the  foregoing 
article,  to  use  all  means  in  its 
power  for  facilitating  such  evac- 
uation, and  rendering  it  con- 
venient to  the  troops,  and  for 
promoting  a  good  understand- 
ing between  them  and  the  in- 
habitants. 

If,  however,  the  ratification 
of  this  treaty  by  both  parties 
should  not  take  place  in  time 


presente  tratado.  A  este  efecto, 
inmediatamente  despues  que  se 
firme,  se  expedirdn  ordenes  & 
los  oficiales  Americanos  que 
mandan  diehos  castillos  y  for- 
talezas  para  asegurar  toda  la 
artilleria,  armas,  aparejos  de 
guerra,  municiones,  y  cual- 
quiera  otra  propiedad  publica, 
la  cual  no  podrA  en  adelante 
removerse  de  donde  se  halla, 
ni  destruirse.  La  ciudad  de 
Mexico  dentro  de  la  linea  in- 
terior de  atrinchoramientos  que 
la  circundan  queda  comprendida 
en  laprecedente  estipulacion  en 
lo  que  toca  a  la  devoluoion  de 
artilleria,  aparejos  de  guerra, 
etc. 

La  final  evacuacion  del  terri- 
torio  de  la  repiiblica  Mexicana 
por  las  fuerzas  de  los  Estados 
Unidos  quedard  consumada  & 
los  tres  meses  del  cange  de  las 
ratificaciones,  6  antes  si  fuere 
posible,  comprometiendose  d  la 
vez  el  gobierno  Mexicano,  como 
en  el  articulo  anterior,  &  usar  de 
todos  los  medios  que  esten  en 
su  poder  para  facilitar  la  tal 
evacuacion,  hacerla  c6raoda  i. 
las  tropas  Aniericanas,  y  pro- 
mover  entre  ellas  y  los  habi- 
tantes  una  buena  inteligeneia. 

Sin  embargo,  si  la  ratificacion 
del  presente  tratado  por  ambas 
partes    no    tuviera    efecto    en 


494 


APPENDIX. 


to  allow  the  embarkation  of  the 
troops  of  the  United  States  to 
be  completed  before  the  com- 
mencement 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  gen- 
eral-in-chief  of  the  said  troops 
and  the  Mexican  govern raent, 
whereby  healthy  and  otherwise 
suitable  places,  at  a  distance 
from  the  ports  not  exceeding 
thirty  leagues,  shall  be  desig- 
nated for  the  residence  of  such 
troops  as  may  not  yet  liave 
embarked,  until  the  return  of 
the  healthy  season.  And  the 
space  of  time  here  referred  to 
as  comprehending  the  sickly 
season,  shall  be  understood  to 
extend  from  the  first  day  of 
May  to  the  first  day  of  Novem- 
ber. 

All  prisoners  of  war  taken  on 
either  side,  on  land  or  on  sea, 
shall  be  restored  as  soon  as 
practicable  after  the  exchange 
of  ratifications  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  estab- 
lished by  the  following  article, 
the  government  of  the  United 
States  will  exact  the  release 
of    such    captives,    and    cause 


tiempo  que  permita  que  el 
embarque  de  las  tropas  de  los 
Estados  Unidos  se  complete, 
d,ntes  de  que  comience  la  esta- 
cion  malsana  en  los  puertos 
Mexicanos  del  golfo  de  Mexico; 
en  tal  caso,  se  hard  un  arreglo 
amistoso  entre  el  gobierno  Mexi- 
cano  y'  el  general-en-gefe  de 
dichas  tropas,  y  por  medio  de 
este  arreglo  se  senalaran  lugares 
salubresy  convenientes  (que  no 
disten  de  los  puertos  mas  de  tre- 
inta  leguas)  para  que  residan  en 
ellos  hasta  la  vuelta  de  la  estar 
cion  Sana  las  tropas  que  aim 
no  se  hayan  embarcado.  T 
queda  entendido  que  el  espacio 
de  tiempo  de  que  aqui  se  habla, 
como  comprensivode  laestacion 
malsana,  se  extiende  desde  el 
dia  primero  de  Mayo  hasta  el 
dia  primero  de  Noviembre. 

Todos  los  prisioneros  de 
guerra  tornados  en  mar  6  tierra 
por  ambas  partes,  se  restituiran 
d  la  mayor  brevedad  posible 
despues  del  cange  de  las  rati- 
ficaciones  del  presente  tratado. 
Queda  tambien  convenido  que 
si  algunos  Mexicanos  estuvieren 
ahora  cautivos  et)  poder  de 
alguna  tribu  salvage  dentro  de 
los  limltes  que  por  el  siguiente 
articulo  van  <l  fijarse  a  los 
Estados  Unidos,  el  gobierno 
de  los  mismos  Estados  Unidos 


APPENDIX. 


495 


them   to   be  restored   to  their    exigird  su  libertad  y  los  hara 
country.  restituir  &  su  pais. 


Article  V. 
The  boundary  line  between 
the  two  republics  shall  com- 
mence in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
three  leagues  from  land,  op- 
posite the  mouth  of  the  Rio 
Grande,  otherwise  called  Rio 
BraFO  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, 


Articulo  Y. 
La  linea  divisoria  entre  las 
dos  republicas  comenzard  en  el 
golfo  de  Mexico,  tres  leguas 
fuera  de  tierra  frente  d  la  des- 
embocadura  del  rio  Grande, 
llamado  por  otro  nombre  rio 
Bravo  del  Norte,  6  del  mas 
profundo  de  sus  brazos,  si  en  la 
desembocadura  tuviere  varios 
brazos ;  correra  por  mitad  de 
dicho  rio,  siguiendo  el  canal 
mas  profundo,  donde  tenga  mas 
de  un  canal,  hasta  el  punto  en 
que  dicho  rio  corta  el  lindero 
meridional  de  Nuevo  Mexico ; 
continuara  luego  hacia  occidente 
por  todo  este  lindero  meridi- 
onal (que  corre  al  norte  del 
pueblo  llamado  Paao)  hasta  su 
termino  por  el  ladode  occidente; 
desde  alii  subira  fa  linea  divi- 
soria hiicia  el  norte  por  el 
lindero  occidental  de  Nuevo 
Mexico,  hasta  donde  este  lin- 
dero esta  cortado  por  el  primer 
brazo  del  rio  Gila  (y  si  no  esta 
cortado  por  ningun  brazo  del 
rio  Gila,  entonces  hasta  el  punto 
del  mismo  lindero  occidental 
mas  cercano  al  tal  brazo,  y  de 
alii  en  una  linea  recta  al  mismo 
brazo)  ;  continuara  despues  por 
mitad  de  este  brazo  y  del  rio 
Gila  hasta  su  confluencia  con  el 


496 


APPENDIX. 


following  the  division  line  be- 
tween Tipper  and  Lower  Cali- 
fornia, to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 


The  southern  and  western 
limits  of  New  Mexico,  men- 
tioned in  this  article,  are  those 
laid  down  in  the  map,  entitled 
"Map  of  the  United  Mexican 
States,  as  organized  and  de- 
fined by  various  acts  of  the 
Congress  of  said  republic,  and 
constructed  according  to  the 
best  authorities.  Be  vised  edi- 
tion. Published  at  New  York, 
in  1847,  by  J.  Disturnell."  Of 
which  map  a  copy  is  added  to 
this  treaty,  bearing  the  signa- 
tures and  seals  of  the  under- 
signed 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  Colo- 
rado, to  a  point  on  the  coast  of 
the  Pacific  Ocean  distant  one 
marine  league  due  south  of  the 
southernmost  point  of  the  port 
of  San  Diego,  according  to  the 
plan  of  said  port  made  in  the 
year  1782  by  Don  Juan  Pantoja, 
second    sailing-master    of   the 


rio  Colorado;  y  desde  la  con- 
fluencia  de  ambos  rios  la  linea 
divisoria,  cortando  el  Colorado, 
seguira  el  limite  que  separa  la 
Alta  de  la  Baja  California  hasta 
el  mar  Pacifico. 

Los  linderos  meridional  y  oc- 
cidental de  Nuevo  Mexico,  de 
que  habla  este  articulo,  son  los 
que  se  marcan  en  la  carta  titu- 
lada:  "Mapa  de  los  Estados 
Unidos  de  Mexico  segun  lo 
organizado  y  definido  por  las 
varias  actas  del  Congreso  de 
dicha  repuhlica,  y  construido 
por  las  mejores  autoridades. 
Edicion  revisada  que  publico 
en  Nueva  York  en  1847,  /. 
Disturnell;"  dela  cual  se  agrega 
un  ejemplar  al  presente  tratado, 
firmado  y  sellado  por  los  pleni- 
potenciarios  infrascriptos.  Y 
para  evitar  toda  dificultad  al 
trazar  sobre  la  tierra  el  limite 
que  separa  la  Alta  de  la  Baja 
California,  queda  convenido  que 
dicbo  limite  consistira  en  una 
linea  recta  tirada  desde  la  mitad 
del  rio  Gila  en  el  punto  donde 
se  una  con  el  Colorado,  hasta 
un  punto  en  la  costa  del  mar 
Pacifico,  distante  una  legua 
marina  al  sur  del  punto  mas 
meridional  del  puerto  de  San 
Diego,  segun  este  puerto  estil 
dibujado  en  el  piano  que  levant6 
el  aiio  de  1782  el  segundo  piloto 
de   la   armada    Espaiiola   Don 


APPENDIX. 


497 


Spanish  fleet,  and  published  at  Juan  Pantoja,  y  se  publico  en 

Madrid  in  the  year  1802,  in  the  Madrid  el  de  1802,  eu  el  atlas 

atlas    to    the    voyage    of    the  para   el    viage   de   las   goletas 

schooners  Sutil  and  Mexicana,  Sutil  y  Mexicana  ;  del  cual  piano 

of  which  plan  a  copy  is  hereunto  se   agrega   copia  firmada  y  se- 

added,  signed  and  sealed  by  the  llada  por  los  plenipotenciarios 

respective  plenipotentiaries.  respectivos. 

In  order  to  designate  the  Para  consiguar  la  linea  di- 
boundary  line  with  due  preci-  visoria  con  la  precision  debida 
sion,  upon  authoritative  maps,  en  niapas  fehacientes,  y  para 
and  to  establish  upon  the  estableeer  sobre  la  tierra  mo- 
ground  landmarks  which  shall  jones  que  pongan  A  la  vista  los 
show  the  limits  of  both  repub-  limites  de  ambas  republieas,  se- 
lics,  as  described  in  the  present  gun  quedan  descritos  en  el  pre- 
article,  tlie  two  governments  sente  articulo,  nombrara  cada 
shall  each  appoint  a  commis-  uno  de  los  dos  gobiernos  un 
sioner  and  a  surveyor,  who,  comisario  y  un  agrimensor  que 
before  the  expiration  of  one  sejuntardn  antes  del  termino  de 
year  from  the  date  of  the  ex-  un  ano  contado  desde  la  fecha 
change  of  ratifications  of  this  del  cange  de  las  ratificaciones 
treaty,  shall  meet  at  the  port  de  este  tratado,  en  el  puerto  de 
of  San  Diego,  and  proceed  to  San  Diego,  y  procederan  &.  se- 
run  and  mark  the  said  bound-  nalar  y  demarcar  la  expresada 
ary  in  its  whole  course  to  the  linea  di  visoria  en  todo  su  cnrso 
mouth  of  the  Rio  Bravo  del  hasta  la  desembocadura  del  rio 
Norte.  They  shall  keep  jour-  Bravo  del  Norte.  Llevaran 
nals  and  make  out  plans  of  diaries  y  llevantaran  pianos  de 
their  operations ;  and  the  result  sus  operaciones  :  y  el  resultado 
agreed  upon  by  them  shall  be  convenido  por  ellos  se  tendra 
deemed  a  part  of  this  treaty,  por  parte  de  este  tratado,  y 
and  shall  have  the  same  force  tendra  la  misma  fiierza  que  si 
as  if  it  were  inserted  therein,  estuviese  inserto  en  el ;  debi- 
The  two  governments  will  ami-  endo  convenir  amistosamente 
cably  agree  regarding  what  may  los  dos  gobiernos  en  el  arreglo 
be  necessary  to  these  persons,  de  cuanto  necesiten  estos  indi- 
and  also  as  to  their  respective  viduos,  y  en  la  escolta  respec- 
escorts,  should  such  be  neces-  tiva  que  doban  Ilevar,  siempre 
sary.  que  se  crea  necesario. 

32 


498 


APPENDIX. 


The  boundary  line  established 
by  this  article  shall  be  relig- 
iously respected  by  each  of  the 
two  republics,  and  no  change 
shall  ever  be  made  therein,  ex- 
cept by  the  express  and  free 
consent  of  both  nations,  law- 
fully given  by  the  general  gov- 
ernment of  each,  in  conformity 
with  its  own  constitution. 


La  linea  divisoria  que  se  es- 
tablece  por  este  articulo  seril 
religiosamente  respetada  por 
cada  una  de  las  dos  republicas, 
y  ninguna  variacion  se  harA 
jamis  en  ella,  sino  de  expreso 
y  libre  consentiraiento  de  ambas 
naciones,  otorgado  legalmente 
por  el  gobierno  general  de  cada 
una  de  ellas,  eon  arreglo  a  su 
propia  constitucion. 


Article  VI. 

The  vessels  and  citizens  of 
the  United  States  shall,  in  all 
time,  have  a  free  and  uninter- 
rupted passage  by  the  Gulf  of 
California,  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  Colo- 
rado, and  not  by  land,  without 
the  express  consent  of  the  Mexi- 
can government. 

If,  by  the  examinations  which 
may  be  made,  it  should  be  as- 
certained to  be  practicable  and 
advantageous  to  construct  a 
road,  canal,  or  railway,  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 


Articulo  VI. 

Los  buques  y  ciudadanos  de 
los  Estados  Unidos  tendrsln  en 
todo  tiempo  un  libre  y  no  inter- 
rumpido  transito  por  el  golfo  de 
California  y  por  el  rio  Colorado 
desde  su  coiifluencia  con  el  Gila, 
para  sus  posesiones  y  desde  sus 
posesiones  sitas  al  norte  de  la 
linea  divisoria  que  queda  mar- 
cada  en  el  articulo  precedeote  ; 
entendiendose  que  este  transito 
se  ha  de  hacer  navegando  por 
el  golfo  de  California  y  por  el 
rio  Colorado,  y  no  por  tierra, 
sin  expreso  conseutimieuto  del 
gobierno  Mexicano. 

Si  por  reconocimientos  que 
se  practiqueu,  se  comprobare  la 
posibilidad  y  conveniencia  de 
construir  un  camino,  canal,  6 
ferro-carril,  que  en  todo  6  en 
parte  corra  sobre  el  rio  Gila  6 
sobre  alguna  de  sus  niargenes. 
derecha  6  izquierda  en  la  latitud 
de  una  legua  marina  de  uno  6 


APPENDIX. 


499 


either  margia  of  the  river,  the  de  otro  lado  del  rio,  los  go- 
governments  of  both  republics  biernos  de  ambas  republicas  se 
will  form  an  agreement  regard-  pondran  de  acuerdo  sobre  su 
ing  its  construction,  in  order  construccion  Ei  fin  de  que  sirva 
that  it  may  serve  equally  for  igualmente  para  el  uso  y  pro- 
the  use  and  advantage  of  both  vecho  de  ambos  paises. 
countries. 


Article  VII. 

The  river  Gila,  and  the  part 
of  the  Rio  Bravo  del  Norte  lying 
below  the  southern  boundary  of 
New  Mexico,  being,  agreeably 
to  the  fifth  article,  divided  in  the 
middle  between  the  two  repub- 
lics, the  navigation  of  the  Gila 
and  of  the  Bravo  below  said 
boundary  shall  be  free  and  com- 
mon 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 
ofthisright;  not  even  for  the  pur- 
pose of  favoring  new  methods 
of  navigation.  Nor  shall  any 
tax  or  contribution,  under  any 
denomination  or  title,  be  levied 
upon  vessels,  or  persons  navi- 
gating the  same,  or  upon  mer- 
chandise or  effects  transported 
thereon,  except  in  the  case  of 
landingupononeof  theirshores. 
If,  for  the  purpose  of  making 
the  said  rivers  navigable,  or 
for  maintaining  them  in  such 
state,  it  should  be  necessary  or 


Artioulo  VII. 

Como  el  rio  Gila  y  la  parte 
del  rio  Bravo  del  Norte  que 
corre  bajo  el  lindero  meridional 
de  Nuevo  Mexico  se  dividen 
por  mitad  entre  las  dos  republi- 
cas, segun  lo  establecido  en  el 
articulo  quinto,  la  navegacion 
en  el  Gila  y  en  la  parte  que 
queda  indicada  del  Bravo,  sera 
libre  y  comun  a  los  buques  y 
ciudadanos  de  ambos  paises, 
sin  que  por  alguno  de  ellos 
pueda  hacerse  (sin  consenti- 
miento  del  otro)  ninguua  obra 
que  impido  6  interrumpa  en 
todo  6  en  parte  el  ejercicio  de 
este  derecho,  ni  aun  con  motive 
de  favorecer  nuevos  metodos  de 
navegacion.  Tampoco  se  podra 
cobrar  (sino  en  el  caso  de  des- 
embarco  en  alguna  de  sus  ribe- 
ras)ningunirapuesto  ocontribu- 
cion  bajo  ninguna  denominacion 
6  tilulo  il  los  buques,  efectos, 
mercanciasopersonasque  nave- 
guen  en  dichos  rios.  Si  para  ha- 
cerlos  6  mantenerlos  navegables 
fuere  necesario  6  conveniente 
establecer  alguna  contribucion 


500 


APPENDIX. 


advantageous  to  establish  any 
tax  or  contribution,  this  shall 
not  be  done  without  the  con- 
sent of  both  governments. 

The  stipulations  contained 
in  the  present  article  shall  not 
impair  the  territorial  rights  of 
either  republic  withiu  its  es- 
tablished limits. 


6  impuesto,  no  podr<l  esto  ha- 
cerse  sin  el  consentimiento  de 
los  dos  gobieraos. 

Las  estipulaciones  contenidas 
en  el  presente  articulo  dejan 
ilesos  los  derechos  territoriales 
de  una  y  otra  republica  dentro 
de  los  limites  que  les  quedan 
niarcados. 


Article  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,  retain- 
ing the  property  which  they 
possess  in  the  said  territories, 
or  disposing  thereof,  and  re- 
moving the  proceeds  wherever 
they  please,  without  their  being 
subjected,  on  this  account,  to 
any  contribution,  tax,  or  charge 
whatever. 

Those  who  shall  prefer  to 
remain  in  the  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  election  within  on&  year 
from  the  date  of  the  exchange 


Articulo  VIII. 

Los  Mexicanos  establecidos 
hoy  en  territorios  pertenecientes 
antes  a  Mexico,  y  que  quedan 
para  lo  futuro  dentro  de  los 
limites  seiialados  por  el  pre- 
sente tratado  il  los  Estados 
Unidos,  podrAn  perraanecer  en 
donde  ahora  habitan,  6  trasla- 
darse  en  cualquier  tiempo  A 
la  republica  Mexicana,  conser- 
vando  en  los  indicados  terri- 
torios los  bienes  que  poseen,  6 
enagenandolos  y  pasando  su 
valor  a  donde  les  convenga,  sin 
que  por  esto  pueda  exigirseles 
ningun  g^nero  de  contribucion, 
gravamen  6  impuesto.  \ 

Los  que  prefieran  permanecer 
en  los  indicados  territorios,  po- 
dran  couservar  el  titulo  y  dere- 
chos de  ciudadanos  Mexicanos, 
oadquirir  el  titulo  y  derechos  de 
ciudadanos  de  los  Estados  Uni- 
dos. Mas  la  eleccion  entre  una  y 
otraciudadaniadeberan  hacerla 
dentro  de  un  ano  contado  desde 


APPENDIX. 


501 


of  ratificatioDS  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  Mexi- 
cans, shall  be  considered  to  have 
elected  to  become  citizens  of  the 
United  States. 

In  the  said  territories,  prop- 
erty of  every  kind,  now  belong- 
ing to  Mexicans  not  established 
there,  shall  be  inviolably  re- 
spected. The  present  owners, 
the  heirs  of  these,  and  all  Mexi- 
cans who  may  hereafter  acquire 
said  property  by  contract,  shall 
enjoy  with  respect  to  it  guar- 
anties equally  ample  as  if  the 
same  belonged  to  citizens  of  the 
United  States. 


la  fecha  del  cange  de  las  ratiS- 
caciones  de  este  tratado.  Y  los 
que  permanecieren  en  los  indi- 
cados  territorios  despues  de 
transcurrido  el  ano,  sin  haber 
declarado  su  iutencion  de  re- 
tener  el  canlcter  de  Mexicanos, 
se  considerara  que  han  elegido 
ser  ciudadanos  de  los  Estados 
Unidos. 

Las  propiedades  de  todo 
genero  existentes  en  los  ex- 
presados  territorios,  y  que  per- 
tenecen  ahora  a  Mexicanos  no 
establecidos  en  ellos,  serAn  res- 
petadas  inviolablemente.  Sus 
actuales  dueiios,  los  herederos 
de  estos,  y  los  Mexicanos  que 
en  lo  venidero  puedau  adquirir 
por  contrato  las  indicadas  pro- 
piedades, disfrutaran  respecto 
de  ellas  tan  aniplia  garantia, 
como  si  perteneciesen  a  ciuda- 
danos de  los  Estados  Unidos. 


Article  IX. 

The  Mexicans  who,  in  the 
territories  aforesaid,  shall  not 
preserve  the  character  of  citi- 
zens of  the  Mexican  republic, 
conformably  with  what  is  stipu- 
lated in  the  preceding  article, 
shall  be  incorporated  into  the 
union  of  the  United  States  and 
be  admitted  at  the  proper  time 
(to  be  judged  of  by  the  Con- 
gress of  the  United  States)  to 
the  enjoyment  of  all  the  rights 


Aetiodlo  IX. 

Los  Mexicanos  que,  en  los 
territories  antedichos,  no  con- 
serveu  el  cardcter  de  ciuda- 
danos de  la  republica  Mexieana, 
segun  lo  estipulado  en  el  ar- 
ticulo  precedeute,  serdn  incor- 
porados  en  la  union  de  los 
Estados  Unidos,  y  se  admitirsln 
en  tiempo  oportuno  {i.  juicio 
del  Congreso  de  los  Estados 
Unidos)  al  goce  de  todos  los 
derechos  de  ciudadanos  de  los 


502 


APPENDIX. 


of  citizens  of  the  United  States, 
according  to  the  principles  of 
the  Constitution ;  and  in  the 
mean  time  shall  be  maintained 
and  protected  in  the  free  enjoy- 
ment of  their  liberty  and  prop- 
erty, and  secured  in  the  free 
exercise  of  their  religion  with- 
out restriction. 


Estados  Unidos  conforme  &  los 
prineipios  de  la  constitucion  ;  y 
eutretanto  seran  mantenidos  y 
protegidos  en  el  goce  de  su 
libertad  y  propiedad,  y  ase- 
gurados  en  el  libre  ejercicio  de 
su  religion  sin  restriccion  al- 
guua. 


Article  X. 
[Stricken  out.] 

Article  XI. 
Considering  that  a  great  part 
of  the  territories  which,  by  the 
present  treaty,  are  to  be  com- 
prehended for  the  future  within 
the  limits  of  the  United  States, 
is  now  occupied  by  savage 
tribes,  who  will  hereafter  be 
under  the  exclusive  control  of 
the  government  of  the  United 
States,  and  whose  incursions 
within  the  territory  of  Mexico 
would  be  prejudicial  in  the  ex- 
treme, it  is  solemnly  agreed  that 
all  suoh  incursions  shall  be  forci- 
bly restrained  by  the  govern- 
ment of  the  United  States  when- 
soever this  may  be  necessary  ; 
and  that  when  they  cannot  be 
prevented  they  shall  be  pun- 
ished by  the  said  government, 
and  satisfaction  for  the  same 
shall  be  exacted — all  in  the 
same  way,  and  with  equal  dili- 
gence  and   energy,    as   if   the 


Artictjlo  X. 
[Suprimido.] 

Articulo  XI. 
En  atencion  a  que  una  gran 
parte  de  los  territorios  que  por 
el  presente  tratado  van  a  quedar 
para  lo  future  dentro  de  los 
liraites  de  los  Estados  Unidos, 
se  halla  actualmente  ocupada 
por  tribas  salvages,  que  hau 
de  estar  en  adelante  bajo  la 
exclusiva  autoridad  del  go- 
bierno  de  los  Estados  Unidos, 
y  cuyas  incursiones  sobre  los 
distritos  Mexicanos  serian  en 
extremo  perjudiciales ;  esta  so- 
lemnemente  convenido  que  el 
mismo  gobierno  de  los  Estados 
Unidos  contendra  las  indicadas 
incursiones  por  medio  de  la 
fuerza  sieiopre  que  asi  sea  ne- 
cesario ;  y  cuaiido  no  pudiere 
prevenirlas,  castigara  y  escar- 
mentanl  ;l  los  invasores,  exi- 
giendoles  ademas  la  debida  re- 
paracion  :  todo  del  raismo  raodo, 
y   con  la-  misma   diligencia  y 


APPENDIX. 


503 


same  incursions  were  meditated 
or  committed  vvitbiu  its  own 
territory,  against  its  own  citi- 
zens. 

It  shall  not  be  lawful,  under 
any  pretext  whatever,  for  any 
inhabitant  of  the  United  States 
to  purchase  or  acquire  any 
Mexican,  or  any  foreigner  re- 
siding 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  prop- 
erty of  any  kind,  stolen  within 
Mexican  territory  by  such  In- 
dians. 

And  in  the  event  of  any  per- 
son or  persons,  captured  witbin 
Mexican  territory  by  Indians, 
being  carried  into  the  territory 
of  the  United  States,  the  gov- 
ernment 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  so  to  do,  through 
the  faithful  exercise  of  its  in- 
fluence 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  practicable,  give  to  the  gov- 


energia  con  que  obraria,  si  las 
incursiones  se  hubiesen  medi- 
tado  6  ejecutado  sobre  terri- 
tories suyos  6  contra  sus  propios 
ciudadanos. 

A  ningun  habitante  de  los 
Estados  Unidos  sera  licito,  bajo 
ningun  pretesto,  comprar  6  ad- 
quirir  cautivo  alguno,  Mexicano 
6  extrangero  residente  en  Mexi- 
co, apresado  por  los  Indies 
habitantes  en  territoriode  cual- 
quiera  de  las  dos  republicas,  ni 
los  caballos,  mulas,  ganados,  6 
cualquiera  otro  genero  de  cosas 
que  hayan  robado  dentro  del 
territorio  Mexicano. 


Y  en  caso  de  que  cualquier 
persona  6  personas  cautivadas 
por  los  Indies  dentro  del  terri- 
torio Mexicano  sean  llevadas  al 
territoriode  los  Estados  Unidos, 
el  gobierno  de  dichos  Estados 
Unidos  se  comproraete  y  liga 
de  la  manera  mas  solenme,  en 
cuanto  le  sea  posible,  d  resca- 
tarlas,  y  a  restituirlas  ;l  su  pais, 
6  entregarlas  al  agente  6  repre- 
sentantedelgobieruoMexicano; 
haciendo  todo  esto,  tan  luego 
como  sepa  que  los  dichos  cau- 
tivos  se  hallan  dentro  de  su 
territorio,  3'  empleando  al  efecto 
el  leal  ejercicio  de  su  influencia 
y  poder.  Las  autoridades 
Mexicanas  danin  a  las  de  los 


504 


APPENDIX. 


eminent  of  the  United  States 
notice  of  such  captures;  and  its 
agent  shall  pay  the  expenses  in- 
curred in  the  maintenance  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  ob- 
tain intelligence,  through  any 
other  channel,  of  the  existence 
of  Mexican  captives  within  its 
territory,  it  will  proceed  forth- 
with 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  afford- 
ing the  security  and  redress 
demanded  by  their  true  spirit 
and  intent,  the  government  of 
the  United  States  will  now  and 
hereafter  pass,  without  un- 
necessary 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 
the  Indians  from  any  portion 
of  the   said   territories,  or  for 


Estados  Unidos,  segun  sea 
practicable,  una  noticia  de  tales 
cautivos  ;  y  el  agente  Mexicano 
pagara  los  gastos  erogados  en 
el  mantenimiento  yremision  de 
los  que  se  rescaten,  los  cuales 
entre  tanto  serAn  tratados  con 
la  mayor  hospitalidad  por  las 
autoridades  Americanas  del 
lugar  en  que  se  encuentren. 
Mas  si  el  gobierno  de  los  Estados 
Unidos,  antes  de  recibir  aviso 
de  Mexico,  tuviera  noticia  por 
cualquiera  otro  conducto  de 
existir  en  su  territorio  cautivos 
Mexicanos,  procederA  desde 
luego  a  verificar  su  rescate  y 
entrega  al  agente  Mexicano, 
segun  queda  conveuido. 

Con  el  ohjeto  de  dar  a  estas 
estipulaciones  la  mayor  fuerza 
posible,  y  afianzar  al  mismo 
tiempolaseguridad  y  las  repara- 
ciones  que  exige  el  verdadero 
espiritu  e  intencion  con  que  se 
ban  ajustado,  el  gobierno  de 
los  Estados  Unidos  dictara,  sin 
ifiutiles  delaciones,  ahora  y  en 
lo  de  adelante,  las  leyes  que 
requiera  la  naturaleza  del 
asunto,  y  vigilara  siempre  sobre 
su  ejecucion.  Pinalniente,  el 
gobierno  de  los  misnios  Estados 
Unidos  tendra  muy  presente  la 
santidad  de  esta  obligacion 
siempre  que  tenga  que  desalojar 
a  los  Indios  de  cualquier  puuto 


APPENDIX. 


505 


its  being  settled  by  citizens  of 
the  Uaited  States;  but,  on  the 
contrary,  special  care  shall  be 
taken  not  to  place  its  Indian 
occupants  under  the  necessity 
of  seeking  new  homes,  by  com- 
mitting those  invasions  which 
the  United  States  have  sol- 
emnly obliged  themselves  to 
restrain. 


Article  XII. 

In  consideration  of  the  exten- 
sion acquired  by  the  boundaries 
of  the  United  States,  as  de- 
fined 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  mil- 
lions of  dollars. 

Immediately  after  this  treaty 
shall  have  been  duly  ratified  by 
the  government  of  the  Mexican 
republic,  the  sum  of  three  mil- 
lions 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 


de  los  indicados  territorios  6 
que  establecer  en  el  a  ciuda- 
danos  suyos :  y  cuidara  muy 
especialmente  de  que  no  se 
ponga  &  los  Indies  que  habita- 
ban  iintes  aquel  punto,  en 
necesidad  de  buscar  nuevos 
hogares  por  medio  de  las  incur- 
siones  sobre  los  distritos  Mexi 
canos,  que  el  gobierno  de  los 
Estados  Unidos  se  ha  compro- 
nietido  solemnemente  a  re- 
primir. 

Articulo  XII. 

En  consideracion  A  la  osten- 
sion  que  adquieren  los  limites 
de  los  Estados  Unidos,  segun 
quedan  descritos  en  el  articulo 
quinto  del  presente  tratado, 
el  gobierno  de  los  mismos 
Estados  Unidos  se  compromete 
&  pagar  al  de  la  repiiblica 
Mexicana  la  suma  de  quince 
millones  de  pesos. 

Inmediatamente  despues  que 
este  tratado  haya  sido  ratificado 
por  el  gobierno  de  la  repiiblica 
Mexicana,  se  entregara  al  mis- 
mo  gobierno  por  el  de  los  Esta- 
dos Unidos,  en  la  eiudad  de 
Mexico,  y  en  moneda  de  plata 
II  oro  del  cufio  Mexicano,  la 
suma  de  tres  millones  de  pesos. 
Los  doce  millones  de  pesos 
restantes  se  pagaran  en  Mexico, 
en  moneda  de  plata  u  oro  del 
cuSo  Mexicano,  en  abonos  de 


506  APPENDIX. 

dollars  each,  together  with  ia-  tres    millones   de    pesos    eada 

terest  on  the  same  at  the  rate  ano,  con  un  redito  de  seis  por 

of  six  per  centum  per  annum,  ciento  anual :  este  redito  comi- 

This   Interest    shall    begin    to  enzard.    a   correr    para  toda  la 

run   upon   the   whole    sum   of  suma  de  los  does   millones  el 

twelve  millions  from   the  day  dia  de  la  ratificacion  del  pre- 

of  the  ratification  of  the  present  sente   tratado  por  el  gobierno 

treaty  b}'  the  Mexican  govern-  Mexicano,    y  con    cada    abono 

ment,  and  the  first  of  the  instal-  anual   de  capital   se  pagarA   el 

nients    shall    be    paid   at   the  redito   que    corresponda    &    la 

expiration    of    one    year  from  suma     abonada.      Los    plazos 

the  same  day.     Together  with  para  los  abonos  de  capital  cor- 

each   annual    instalment,  as   it  ren    desde    el    misnio    dia    que 

falls  due,  the  whole  interest  ac-  empiezan  k  causarse  los  reditos. 
cruing  on  such  instalment  from 
the  beginning  shall  also  be  paid. 

Article  XIII.  Articulo  XIII. 

The  United    States   engage,  Se  obliga  ademas  el  gobierno 

moreover,  to  assume  and  pay  de  los  Estados  Unidos  a  tomar 

to  the  claimants  all  the  amounts  sobre   si,   y  satisfacer   cumpli- 

now  due  them,  and  those  here-  damente    a    los     reelamantes, 

after  to  become  due,  by  reason  todas  las  cantidades  que  hasta 

of  the  claims  already  liquidated  aqui  se  les  deben  y  cuantas  se 

anddecided  againsttheMexican  venzan  en  adelaate  por  razon 

republic,  under  the  conventions  de  las  reclamaciones  ya  liqui- 

between     the     two     republics  dadas  y  sentenciadas  contra  la 

severally     concluded     on     the  republica  Mexicana  conforme  il 

eleventh  day  of  April,  eighteen  los   convenios    ajustados   entre 

hundred    and    thirty-nine,    and  ambas    republicas    el    once    de 

on  the  thirtieth  day  of  January,  Abril  de  mil  ochocientos  treinta 

eighteen    hundred    and    forty-  y  nueve,  y  el  treinta  de  Enero 

three  ;    so    that    the   Mexican  de  mil  ochocientos  cuarenta  y 

republic    shall     be    absolutely  tres;   de  manera  que  la  repu- 

exenipt,  for  the  future,  from  all  blica  Mexicana  nada  absoluta- 

expense  whatever    on    account  mente   tendrd  que   lasta  en    lo 

of  the  said  claims.  venidero,  por  razon  de  los  in- 

dicados  reclames. 


APPENDIX. 


507 


Article  XIV. 
The  United  States  do  further- 
more discbarge  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  what- 
ever shall  be  the  total  amount 
of  those  allowed. 


Article  XV. 

The  United  States,  exon» 
erating  Mexico  from  all  de- 
mands on  account  of  the  claims 
of  their  citizens  mentioned  in 
the  preceding  article,  and  con- 
sidering them  entirely  and  for- 
ever cancelled,  whatever  their 
amount  may  be,  undertake  to 
make  satisfaction  for  the  same, 
to  an  amount  not  exceeding- 
three  and  one  quarter  naillions 
of  dollars.  To  ascertain  the 
validity  and  amount  of  those 
claims,  a  board  of  commission- 
ers shall  be  established  by  the 
government  of  the  United 
States,  whose  awards  shall 
be  final   and  conclusive :  Pro- 


Articulo  XIV. 
Tambien  exoneran  los  Esta- 
dos  Unidos  a  la  republica  Mexi- 
cana  de  todas  las  reclaraaciones 
de  ciudadanos  de  los  Estados 
Unidos  no  decididas  aun  contra 
el  gobierno  Moxicano,  y  que 
puedan  haberse  originado  antes 
de  la  fecha  de  la  firma  del  pre- 
sente  tratado :  estaexoneracion 
es  definitiva  y  perpetua,  bien 
sea  que  las  dichas  reclamaciones 
se  admitan,  bien  sea  que  se 
desechen  por  el  tribunal  de 
comisarios  de  que  habla  el 
articulo  siguiente  y  cualquiera 
que  pueda  ser  el  monto  total 
de  las  que  queden  admitidas. 

Articulo  XV. 
Los  Estados  Unidos,  exone- 
rando  a  Mexico  de  toda  respon- 
sabilidad  por  las  reclamaciones 
de  sus  ciudadanos  mencionadas 
en  el  articulo  precedente,  y 
considerandolas  completamente 
canceladas  para  siempre,  sea 
cual  fuere  su  monto,  toman  a 
su  cargo  satisfacerlas  hasta  una 
cantidad  que  no  exceda  de  tres 
millones  doscientos  cincuenta 
mil  pesos.  Para  fijar  el  monto 
y  validez  de  estas reclamaciones, 
se  establecera  por  el  gobierno 
de  los  Estados  Unidos  un  tri- 
bunal de  comisarios,  cuyosfallos 
seran  definitivos  y  concluyeutes, 
con  tal  que  al  decidir  sobre  la 


508 


APPENDIX. 


vided,  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,  con- 
cluded 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 
favor  of  any  claim  not  embraced 
by  these  principles  and  rules. 

If,  in  the  opinion  of  the  said 
board  of  commissioners,  or  of 
the  claimants,  any  books,  re- 
cords, or  documents  in  the 
possession  or  power  of  the 
government  of  the  Mexican 
republic,  shall  be  deemed  neces- 
sary to  the  just  decision  of  any 
claim,  the  commissioners,  or  the 
claimants  through  them,  shall, 
within  such  period  as  Congress 
may  designate,  make  an  appli- 
cation in  writingforthe  same,  ad- 
dressed to  the  Mexican  minister 
for  foreign  affairs,  to  be  trans- 
mitted by  the  Secretary  of  State 
of  the  United  States ;  and  the 
Mexican  government  engages, 
at  the  earliest  possible  moment 
after  the  receipt  of  such  de- 
mand, to  cause  any  of  the 
books,  records,  or  documents, 
so  specified,  which  shall  be  in 
their   possession  or  pOwer  (or 


validez  de  dichas  reclamaciones, 

el  tribunal  se  baya  guiado  y 
gobernado  por  los  principios  y 
reglas  de  decision  establecidos 
en  los  articulos  primero  y  quinto 
de  la  convencion,  no  ratifieada, 
que  se  ajusto  en  la  ciudad  de 
Mexico  el  veinte  de  Novierabre 
de  mil  ochocientos  cuarenta  y 
tres  ;  y  en  ningun  caso  se  dara 
fallo  en  favor  de  ninguna  re- 
clamacion  que  no  este  compren- 
dida  en  las  reglas  y  principios 
indicados. 

Si  en  juicio  del  dicho  tribunal 
de  comisarios,  6  en  el  de  los 
reclamantes  se  necesitaren  para 
la  justa  decision  de  cualquier 
reclamacion  algunos  libros, 
papeles  de  archivo  6  docu- 
mentos  que  posea  el  gobierno 
Mexicano,  6  que  esten  en  su 
poder ;  los  comisarios,  6  los 
reclamantes  por  conducto  de 
ellos,  los  pediran  por  escrito 
(dentro  del  plazo  que  designe 
el  Corigreso),  dirigiendose  al 
miuistro  Mexicano  de  relaciones 
exteriores,  A  quien  transmitirA 
las  peticiones  de  esta  clase  el 
Secretario  de  Estado  de  los 
Estados  Unidos ;  y  el  go- 
bierno Mexicano  se  compro- 
mete  A  entregar  a  la  mayor 
brevedad  posible,  despues  de 
recibida  cada  denianda,  los 
libros,  papeles  de  archivo  6 
documentos,   asi   especificados. 


APPENDIX. 


509 


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  docu- 
ments, shall  have  been  stated 
under  oath  or  affirmation. 


que  posea  6  est^n  en  su  poder, 
6  copias  6  extractos  autenti- 
cos  de  los  mismos,  con  el  objeto 
de  que  scan  transmitidos  al 
Secretario  de  Estado,  quien 
los  pasara  inmediatamente  al 
expresado  tribunal  de  comi- 
sarios.  T  no  se  harfi  peticion 
alguna  de  los  enunciados  libros, 
papeles  6  documentos,  por  6  a 
instancia  de  ningun  reclamante, 
sin  que  antes  se  haya  aseverado 
bajo  juramento  6  con  afirmaeion 
solenine  la  verdad  de  los  hechos 
que  con  ellos  se  pretende  probar. 


Article  XVI.  Artioulo  XVI. 

Each  of  the  contracting  par-  Cada   una  de  las  dos  repii- 

ties  reserves  to  itself  the  entire  blicas    se  reserva  la  completa 

.right  to  fortify  whatever  point  facultad  de  fortificar  todos  los 

within  its  territory  it  may  judge  puntos  que  para  su  seguridad 

proper  so  to  fortify,  for  its  se-  estime  convenientes  en  su  pro- 

curity.  pio  territorio. 


Article  XVII. 
The  treaty  of  amity,  com- 
merce, and  navigation,  con- 
cluded at  the  City  of  Mexico 
on  the  fifth  day  of  April,  a.d. 
1831,  between  the  United  States 
of  America  and  the  United 
Mexican  States,  except  the  ad- 
ditional article,  and  except  so 
far  as  the  stipulations  of  the 
said  treaty  may  be  incompati- 
ble with  any  stipulation  con- 
tained in  the  present  treaty,  is 
hereby  revived  for  the  period 


Artioulo  XVII. 
El  tratado  de  amistad,  co- 
mercio  y  navegacion,  concluido 
en  la  ciudad  de  Mexico  el  cinco 
de  Abril,del  afiodelSenor  1831, 
entre  la  repiiblica  Mexicana  y 
los  Estados  Unidos  de  America, 
esceptuandose  el  articulo  adi- 
' clonal  y  cuanto  pueda  haber  en 
sus  estipulaciones  incompatible 
con  alguna  de  las  contenidas  en 
el  preseute  tratado,  queda  res- 
tablecido  por  el  periodo  de  echo 
afios  desde  el  dia  del  cange  de 


510 


APPENDIX. 


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  no- 
tice of  such  intention  to  the 
other  party. 

Article  XVIII. 

All  supplies  whatever  for 
troops  of  the  United  States  in 
Mexico,  arriving  at  ports  in  the 
occupation  of  such  troops  pre- 
vious to  the  final  evacuation 
thereof,  although  subsequently 
to  the  restoration  of  the  custom- 
houses at  such  ports,  shall  be 
entirely  exempt  from  duties 
and  charges  of  any  kind  ;  the 
governmentof  the  United  States 
hereby  engaging  and  pledging 
its  faith  to  establish,  and  vigi- 
lantly to  enforce,  all  possible 
guards  for  securing  the  revenue 
of  Mexico,  by  preventing  the 
importation,  under  cover  of  this 
stipulation,  of  any  articles  other 
than  such,  both  in  kind  and 
in  quantity,  as  shall  really  be 
wanted  for  the  use  and  con- 
sumption of  the  forces  of  the 
United  States  during  the  time 


las  ratificaciones  del  mismo  pre- 
sente  tratado,  con  igual  fuerza 
y  valor  que  si  estuviese  inserto 
en  el ;  debiendo  entenderse  que 
cada  una  de  las  partes  contra- 
tautes  se  reserva  el  derecho  de 
poner  termino  al  dicho  tratadode 
coraercio  y  navegacion  en  cual- 
quier  tiempo  luego  que  baya 
expirado  el  periodo  de  los  echo 
aiios,  comunicando  su  intencion 
A  la  otra  parte  con  un  aiio  de 
anticipacion. 

Artioulo  XVIII. 

No  se  exigirdn  derechos  ni 
gravamen  de  ninguna  clase  a 
los  articulos  todos  que  lleguen 
para  las  tropas  de  los  Estados 
Unidos  d  los  puertos  Mexicanos 
ocupados  por  ellas,  Antes  de 
la  evacuacion  final  de  los  mis- 
mos  puertos,  y  despues  de  la 
devolucion  &  Mexico  de  las  adu- 
anas  situadas  en  ellos.  El  go- 
bierno  de  los  Estados  Unidos 
se  compromete  a  la  vez,  y  sobre 
esto  empena  su  fe,  &  establecer 
y  mantener  con  vigilanciacuan- 
tos  guardas  sean  posibles  para 
asegurar  las  reutas  de  Mexico, 
precaviendo  laimportacion,  a  la 
sombra  de  esta  estipulacion,  de 
cualesquiera  articulos  que  real- 
mente  no  sean  necesarios,  6  que 
excedan  en  cantidad  de  los  que 
se  necesiten  para  el  uso  y  con- 
sumo  de  las  fuerzas  de  los  Es- 


APPENDIX. 


511 


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  attempt  at 
a  fraudulent  abuse  of  this  stipu- 
lation 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. 


tados  Unidos  mientras  ellas 
permanezcan  en  Mexico.  A 
este  efecto,  todos  los  oficiales  y 
agentes  de  los  Estados  Unidos 
tendran  obligacion  de  deuun- 
ciar  a  las  autoridades  Mexicanas 
en  los  mismos  puertos,  cualquier 
conato  de  fraudulento  abuso  de 
esta  estipulacion  que  pudieren 
conocer  6  tuvieren  motivo  de 
sospechar  ;  asi  como  de  impar- 
tir  a  las  mismas  autoridades 
todo  el  auxilioque  pudieren  con 
este  objeto  ;  y  cualquier  conato 
de  esta  clase,  que  fuere  legal- 
mente  probado,  y  declarado  per 
sentencia  de  tribunal  compe- 
tente,  sera  castigado  con  el 
comiso  de  la  cosa  que  se  haya 
intentado  introducir  fraudu- 
lentamente. 


Article  XIX. 

With  respect  to  all  merchan- 
dise, effects,  and  property  what- 
soever 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  na- 
tion, the  following  rules  shall 
be  observed  : 

1.  All  such  merchandise,  ef- 
fects, and  property,  if  imported 
previously  to  the  restoration  of 
the  custom-houses  to  the  Mexi- 


Articulo  XIX. 

Respecto  de  los  efectos,  mer- 
cancias  y  propiedades  importa- 
dos  en  los  puertos  Mexicanos 
durante  el  tiempo  que  hanestado 
ocupados  por  las  fuerzas  de  los 
Estados  Unidos,  sea  por  ciuda- 
danos  de  cualquiera  de  las  dos 
republicas,  sea  por  ciudadanos 
6  subditos  de  algnna  nacion 
neutral,  se  observaran  las  reglas 
siguientes : 

1.  Los  dichos  efectos,  mer- 
cancias  y  propiedades,  siempre 
que  se  hayan  importado  antes 
de  la  devolucion  de  las  aduanas 


512 


APPENDIX. 


can  authorities,  as  stipulated 
for  in  the  third  article  of  this 
treaty,  shall  be  exempt  from 
confiscation,  although  the  im- 
portation of  the  same  be  pro- 
hibited by  the  Mexican  tariff. 

2.  The  same  perfect  exemp- 
tion shall  be  enjoyed  by  all  such 
merchandise,  effects,  and  prop- 
erty, imported  subsequently  to 
the  restoration  of  the  custom- 
houses, and  previously  to  the 
sixty  days  fixed  in  the  following 
article  for  the  coming  into  force 
of  the  Mexican  tariff  at  such 
ports  respectively ;  the  said  mer- 
chandise, effects,  and  property 
being,  however,  at  the  time  of 
their  importation,  subject  to  the 
payment  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,  and  upon  their 
leaving  such  place  for  the  in- 
terior, be  exempt  from  all  duty, 
tax,  or  impost  of  every  kind, 
under  whatsoever  title  or  de- 
nomination. Nor  shall  they  be 
there  subjected  to  any  charge 
whatsoever  upon  the  sale 
thereof. 

4.  All  merchandise,  effects, 
and  property  described  in  the 


fl  las  autoridades  Mexicanas 
conforme  &  lo  estipulado  en  el 
articulo  tercero  de  este  tratado, 
quedarAn  libres  de  la  pena  de 
comiso,  aun  cuando  scan  de  los 
prohibidos  en  el  arancel  Mexi- 
cano. 

2.  La  misma  exencion  goza- 
ran  los  efectos,  mercancias  y 
propiedades  que  lleguen  A  los 
puertos  Mexicanos,  despues  de 
la  devolucion  4  Mexico  de  las 
aduanas  maritimas,  y  antes  de 
que  expiren  los  sesenta  dias 
que  van  a  fijarse  en  el  articulo 
siguiente  para  que  empieze  fl 
regir  el  arancel  Mexicano  en 
los  puertos;  debiendo  al  tiempo 
de  su  importacion  sujetarse  los 
tales  efectos,  mercancias  y  pro- 
piedades, en  cuanto  al  pago  de 
derechos,  &  lo  que  en  el  indicado 
siguiente  articulo  se  establece. 

3.  Los  efectos,  mercancias  y 
propiedades  designados  en  las 
dos  reglas  anteriores  quedar<in 
exentos  de  todo  derecho,  alca- 
bala  6  impuesto,  sea  bajo  el 
titulo  de  internacion,  sea  bajo 
eualquiera  otro,  mientras  per- 
manezcan  en  los  pantos  donde 
se  hayan  importado,  y  a  su 
salida  para  el  interior ;  y  en 
los  mismos  puntos  no  podrtl 
jamas  exigirse  impuesto  alguno 
sobre  su  venta. 

4.  Los  efectos,  mercancias  y 
propiedades  designados  en  las 


APPENDIX. 


513 


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  United  States, 
shall,  during  their  continuance 
therein,  be  exempt  from  all  tax 
upon  the  sale  or  consumption 
thereof,  and  from  every  kind  of 
impost  or  contribution,  under 
whatsoever  title  or  denomina- 
tion. 

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  introduc- 
tion 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  had  there  paid  the 
duties  conformably  with  the 
Mexican  tarilf, 

6.  The  owners  of  all  mer- 
chandise, 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  contribution 
whatever. 


reglas  primera  y  segunda  que 
hayan  side  internados  d  cual- 
quier  lugar  ocupado  por  las  fuer- 
zas  de  los  Estados  Unidos,  que- 
darAn  exentos  de  todo  derecho 
sobre  su  venta  6  consume,  y  de 
todo  impuesto  6  contribucion, 
bajo  cualquier  titulo  6  denomi- 
nacion,  mientras  permanezcan 
en  el  mismo  lugar. 


5.  Mas  si  algunos  efectos, 
mercancias  6  propiedades  de  los 
designados  en  las  reglas  primera 
y  segunda  se  trasladaren  il  algun 
lugar  no  ocupado  4  la  sazon  por 
las  fuerzas  de  los  Estados  Uni- 
dos, al  introducirse  d  tal  lugar, 
6  al  venderse  6  consumirse  en 
^1,  quedardn  sujetos  d  los  mis- 
mos  derechos  que  bajo  las  leyes 
Mexicanas  deberian  pagar  en 
tales  casos  si  se  hubieran  im- 
portado  en  tiempo  de  paz  por 
las  aduanas  maritimas,  y  hu- 
biesen  pagado  en  ellas  los 
derechos  que  establece  el  aran- 
cel  Mexicano. 

6.  Los  duefios  de  efectos, 
mercancias  y  propiedades  de- 
signados en  las  reglas  primera 
y  segunda,  y  existentes  en  alguu 
puerto  de  Mexico,  tienen  derecho 
de  re-embarcarlos,  sin  que  pueda 
exigirseles  ninguna  clase  de  im- 
puesto, alcabala  6  contribucion. 


33 


514 


APPENDIX. 


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  Mexi- 
can 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. 


Respecto  de  los  metales  y  de 
toda  otra  propiedad  exportados 
por  cualquier  puerto  Mexicano 
durante  su  ocupacion  por  las 
fuerzas  Americanas,  y  antes  de 
la  devolucion  de  su  aduana  al 
gobierno  Mexicano,  no  se  exi- 
gir^  d.  ninguna  persona  por  las 
autoridades  de  Mexico,  ya  de- 
pendan  del  gobierno  general, 
ya  de  algun  estado,  que  pague 
ningun  impuesto,  alcabala  6 
derecho  por  la  indicada  expor- 
tacion,  ni  sobre  ella  podri  exi- 
girsele  por  las  dichas  autori- 
dades cuenta  alguna. 


Article  XX. 

Through  consideration  for 
the  interests  of  commerce  gen- 
erally, it  is  agreed,  that  if  less 
than  sixty  days  should  elapse 
between  the  date  of  the  signa- 
ture of  this  treaty  and  the  re- 
storation of  the  custom-houses, 
conformably  with  the  stipula- 
tion in  the  third  article,  in  such 
case  all  merchandise,  effects,  and 
property  whatsoever,  airiving 
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 


Abticulo  XX. 

Por  consideracion  A  los  in- 
ter^ses  del  comercia  de  todas 
las  naciones,  queda  convenido 
que  si  pasaren  menos  de  se- 
senta  dias  desde  la  fecha  de  la 
firma  de  este  tratado  hasta  que 
se  haga  la  devolucion  de  las 
aduanas  maritimas,  segTin  loes- 
tipulado  en  el  articulo  tercero ; 
todos  los  efectos,  mercancias  y 
propiedades  que  lleguen  a  los 
puertos  Mexicanos  desde  el  dia 
en  que  se  verifique  la  devolu- 
cion de  las  dichas  aduanas  hasta 
que  se  completen  sesenta  dias 
contadoB  desde  la  fecha  de  la 
firma  del  presente  tratado,  se 
admitirin  no  pagando  otros 
derechos  que  los  establecidos 
en  la  tarifa   que   este   vigente 


APPENDIX. 


515 


found  in  force  at  such  custom-    en  las   expresndas   aduanas  al 
bouses  at  the  time  of  the  restora-    tiempo  de  su  devolucion,  y  se 


tion  of  the  same.  And  to  all 
such  merchandise,  effects,  and 
property,  the  rules  established 
by  the  preceding  article  shall 
apply. 

Article  XXI. 

If  unhappily  any  disagree- 
ment 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  politi- 
cal or  commercial  relations 
of  the  two  nations,  the  said 
governments,  in  the  name  of 
those  nations,  do  promise  to 
each  other  that  they  will  en- 
deavor, in  the  most  sincere  and 
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  them- 
selves ;  using,  for  this  end,  mu- 
tual representations  and  pa- 
cific negotiations.  And  if  by 
these  means  they  should  not 
be  enabled  to  come  to  an  agree- 
ment, 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 


extenderdn  il  dichos  efectos, 
mercancias  y  propiedades  las 
mismas  reglas  establecidas  en 
el  articulo  anterior. 


Articulo  XXI. 

Si  desgraciadaraente  en  el 
tiempo  futuro  se  suscitare  algun 
punto  de  desacuerdo  entre  los 
gobiernos  de  las  dos  repiiblicas, 
bien  sea  sobre  la  inteligencia 
de  alguna  estipulacion  de  este 
tratado,  bien  sobre  cualquiera 
otra  materia  de  las  relaeiones 
politicas  o  comerciales  de  las 
dos  naciones,  los  mismos  go- 
biernos, i.  nonibre  de  ellas,  se 
comprometen  &  procurar  de  la 
manera  mas  sincera  y  empefiosa 
a  llanar  las  diferencias  que  se 
presenten  y  conservar  el  estado 
de  pas  y  amistad  en  que  ahora 
se  poneu  los  dos  paises,  usando 
al  efecto  de  representaciones 
miituas  y  de  negociaciones  paci- 
ficas.  Y  si  por  estos  medios 
no  se  lograre  todavia  ponerse 
de  aeuei-do  no  por  eso  se  ape- 
lard  d  represalia,  agresion  ni 
hostilidad  de  ningun  genero  de 
una  repiiblica contra  otra,  hasta 
que  el  gobierno  de  la  que  se 
crea  agraviada  haya  consi- 
derado  raaduramente  y  en  es- 
piritu  de  paz  y  buena  vecindad, 


516 


APPENDIX. 


of  that  which  deems  itself  ag- 
grieved shall  have  maturely 
considered,  in  the  spirit  of  peace 
and  good  neighborship,  whether 
it  would  not  be  better  that  such 
difference  should  be  settled  by 
the  arbitration  of  commission- 
ers appointed  on  each  side,  or 
by  that  of  a  friendly  nation. 
And  should  such  course  be  pro- 
posed by  either  party,  it  shall 
be  acceded  to  by  the  other,  un- 
less deemed  by  it  altogether 
incompatible  with  the  nature 
of  the  difference,  or  the  circum- 
stances of  the  case. 


si  no  seria  mejor  que  la  diferen- 
cia  se  terminara  por  un  arbitra- 
mento  de  comisarios  nombrados 
por  ambas  partes,  6  de  una 
nacion  amiga.  Y  si  tal  medio 
fuefe  propuesto  por  cualqiiiera 
de  las  dos  partes,  la  otra  acce- 
dera  A  el,  fl  no  ser  que  lo  juzgue 
absolutamente  incompatible  con 
la  naturaleza  y  circuustancias 
del  caso. 


Article  XXII. 

If  (which  is  not  to  be  ex- 
pected, and  which  God  forbid  !) 
war  should  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  :  absolutely, 
where  the  nature  of  the  subject 
permits,  and  as  closely  as  pos- 
sible in  all  cases  where  such 
absolute  observance  shall  be 
impossible: 

1.  The  merchants  of  either 
republic  then  residing  in  the 
other  shall  be  allowed  to  re- 
main twelve  months  (for  those 
dwelling  in  the  interior),  and 


Artioulo  XXII. 

Si  (lo  que  no  es  de  esperarse, 
y  Dios  no  permita)  desgraciada- 
mente  se  suscitare  guerra  entre 
las  dos  republicas,  estas  para  el 
caso  de  tal  calamidad  se  com- 
prometen  ahora  solemnemente, 
dnte  si  mismas  y  ;lnte  el  mundo, 
a  observar  las  reglas  siguientes 
de  una  manera  absoluta  si  la 
naturaleza  del  objeto  <l  que  se 
contraen  lo  permite;  y  tan  ex- 
trictamente  como  sea  dable  en 
todos  los  casos  en  que  la  abso- 
luta observancia  de  ellas  fuere 
imposible  : 

1.  Los  conierciantes  de  cada 
una  de  las  dos  republicas  que  a 
la  sazon  residan  en  territorio 
de  la  otra,  podnin  permanecer 
doce  meses  los  que  residan  ea 


APPENDIX. 


517 


six  moDths  (fov  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  sub- 
jects of  the  most  friendly  na- 
tions; and,   at  the   expiration 
thereof,   or    any  time    before, 
they  shall  have  full  liberty  to 
depart,    carrying   off   all    their 
efifects  without  molestation  or 
hinderance — conforming  there- 
in 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,   ecclesi- 
astics, scholars  of  every  faculty, 
cultivators   of  the   earth,   mer- 
chants, artisans,  manufacturers, 
and   fishermen,    unarmed    and 
inhabiting    unfortified     towns, 
villages,  or  places,  and  in  gen- 
eral all  persons  whose  occupa- 
tions are  for  the  common  sub- 
sistence 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,  nor  their 
fields   wasted,    by   the    armed 
force  into  whose  power,  by  the 


el  interior,  y  seis  meses  los  que 
residan  en  los  puertos,  para  re- 
eoger  sus  deudas  y  arreglar  sus 
negocios  ;  durante  estos  plazos 
desfrutardn  la  misma  proteccion 
y  estarAn  sobre  el  mismo  pie 
er\  todos  respectos  que  los  ciu- 
dadanos  6  siibditos  de  las  na- 
ciones  mas  amigas  ;  y  al  expirar 
el  tcirmino,  6  Antes  de  el,  tendrdn 
completa    libertad    para    salir 
y  Uevar  todos  sus  efectos  sin 
molestia  6  embarazo,  sujetjln- 
dose   en   este   particular  A  las 
mismasleyes  A  que  esten  sujetos, 
y  deban  arreglarse  los  ciudada- 
nos  6  subditos  de  las  naciones 
mas  amigas.     Cuando  los  ejer- 
citos  de  una  de  las  dos  naciones 
entren  en  territories  de  la  otra, 
las  mujeres  y  ninos,  los  eclesi- 
asticos,  los  estudiantes  de  cual- 
quier   facultad,   los  labradores, 
comerciantes,  artesanos,  manu- 
factureros,    y   pescadores    que 
esten  desarraados  y  residan  en 
ciudades,  pueblos  6  lugares  no 
fortificados,  y  en  general  todas 
las    personas    cuya    ocupacion 
sirva  para  la  comun  subsisten- 
cia  y  beneficio  del  genero  hu- 
mane, podrAn  continuar  en  sus 
ejercicios,  sin  que  sus  personas 
sean  molestadas.     No  serAn  in- 
cendiadas  sus  casas  6   bienes, 
6   destruidos  de  otra  manera ; 
ni  serin  tomados  sus  ganados, 
ni  devastados  sus  campos,  por 


518 


APPENDIX. 


events  of  war,  they  may  hap- 
pen to  fall ;  but  if  the  necessity 
arise  to  take  anything  from 
them  for  the  use  of  such  armed 
force,  the  same  shall  be  paid 
for  at  an  equitable  price.  All 
churches,  hospitals,  schools, 
colleg-es,  libraries,  and  other 
establishments  for  charitable 
and  beneficent  purposes,  shall 
be  respected,  and  all  persons 
connected  with  the  same  pro- 
tected in  the  discharge  of  their 
duties  and  the  pursuit  of  their 
vocations. 


2.  In  order  that  the  fate  of 
prisoners  of  war  may  be  alle- 
viated, all  such  practices  as 
those  of  sending  them  into 
distant,  inclement,  or  unvthole- 
some  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  pat 
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  dis- 
posed in  cantonments,  open 
and  extensive  enough  for  air 
and    exercise,    and    lodged   in 


la  fuerza  armada  en  cuyo  poder 
puedan  venir  &  caer  por  los 
aeontecimientos  de  la  guerra ; 
pero  si  hubiere  necesidad  de 
tomarles  alguna  cosa  para  el 
uso  de  la  misma  fuerza  armada, 
se  les  pagard  lo  tomado  a  un 
preciojusto.  Todaslas  iglesias, 
hospitales,  escuelas,  colegios, 
librerias,  y  demas  estableeimi- 
entos  de  caridad  y  beneficencia 
serau  respetados ;  y  todas  las 
personas  que  dependan  de  las 
mismas  ser^n  protegidas  en  el 
degerapeno  de  sus  deberes  y  en 
la  eontinuacion  de  sus  profesi- 
ones. 

2.  Para  aliviar  la  suerte  de 
los  prisioneros  de  guerra,  se  evi- 
tardn  cuidadosamente  las  pra- 
ticas  de  enviarlos  d  distritos 
distantes,  inclementes  6  mal- 
sanos,  6  de  aglomerarlos  en 
lugares  estrechos  y  enfermizos. 
No  se  confioariln  en  calabosos, 
prisiones  ni  pontones  ;  no  se  les 
aherrojard,  ni  se  les  atara,  ni 
se  les  impedird  de  ningun  otro 
niodo  el  uso  de  sus  miembros. 
Los  oficiales  que  daran  en 
libertad  bajo  su  palabra  de 
honor,  dentro  de  distritos  con- 
venientesyteudranalojamientos 
comodos ;  y  los  soldados  rasos 
se  eolocarstn  en  acantonamlentos 
bastante  despejados  y  extensos 
para  la  ventilacion  y  el  ejercicio, 
y  se  alojariin  en  ciiarteles  tan 


APPENDIX. 


519 


barracks  as  roomy  and  good 
as  are  provided  by  the  party 
in  whose  power  they  are  for 
its  own  troops.  But  if  any 
officer  shall  break  his  parole  by 
leaving  the  district  so  assigned 
him,  or  any  other  prisoner  shall 
escape  from  the  limits  of  his 
cantonment,  after  they  shall 
have  been  designated  to  him, 
such  individual,  officer,  or  other 
prisoner  shall  forfeit  so  much 
of  the  benefit  of  this  article  as 
provides  for  his  liberty  on  pa- 
role or  in  cantonment.  And  if 
any  officer  so  breaking  his  pa- 
role, or  any  common  soldier  so 
escaping  from  the  limits  as- 
signed him,  shall  afterwards  be 
found  in  arms,  previously  to  his 
being  regularly  exchanged,  the 
person  so  offending  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  re- 


araplios  y  comodos  como  los 
que  use  para  sus  propias  tropas 
la  parte  que  Jos  tenga  en  su 
poder.  Pero  si  algun  oficial 
faltare  d  su  palabra,  saliendo 
del  distrito  que  se  le  ha  seSalado, 
6  algun  otro  prisionero  se  fu- 
gare  de  los  liraites  de  su  acan- 
tonamiento  despues  que  estos 
se  les  hayan  fijado,  tal  oficial  6 
prisionero  perdera  el  beneficio 
del  presente  articulo  por  lo  que 
mera  i.  su  libertad  bajo  su  pa- 
labra 6  en  acantonamiento.  Y 
si  algun  oficial  faltando  asi  a  su 
palabra,  6  algun  soldado  raso 
saliendo  de  los  limites  que  se 
le  ban  asignado,  fu6re  encon- 
trado  despues  con  las  armas  eij 
la  mano  antes  de  ser  debida- 
niente  cangeado,  tal  persona  eo 
esta  actitud  ofensiva  serd  tra- 
tada  conforme  a  las  leyes 
comunes  de  la  guerra.  A  los 
oficiales  se  pro veerS  diarianiente 
por  la  parte  en  cuyo  poder 
esten,  de  tantas  raciones  com- 
puestas  de  los  mismos  articulos 
eorao  las  que  gozan  en  especie 
6  en  equivalente  los  oficiales  de 
la  misma  graduacion  en  su  pro- 
pio  ejercito  ;  a  todos  los  demas 
prisioneros  se  proveerA  diaria- 
mente  de  una  racion  semejante 
a  la  que  se  ministra  al  soldado 
raso  en  su  propio  servicio ;  el 
valor  de  todas  estas  suministra- 
ciones  se   pagari  por   la  otra 


520 


APPENDIX. 


spective  commanders,  be  paid 
by  the  other  party,  on  a  mutual 
adjustment  of  accounts  for  sub- 
sistence 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  compen- 
sation or  reprisal  for  any  cause 
whatever,  real  or  pretended. 
Each  party  shall  be  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  prison- 
ers 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  what- 
ever, shall  be  considered  as  an- 
nulling or  suspending  the  sol- 
emn 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 


parte  a)  concluirse  la  guerra,  6 
en  los  periodos  que  se  ponven- 
gan  entre  sus  respectivos  co- 
mandantes,  precediendo  una 
mutua  liquidacion  de  las  cuentas 
que  se  lleven  del  mantenimiento 
de  prisioneros ;  y  tales  cuentas 
no  se  mezclardn  ni  compensaran 
con  otras ;  ni  el  saldo  que 
resulte  de  ellas,  se  rehusara 
bajo  pretesto  de  compensacion  6 
represalia  por  cualquiera  causa, 
real  6  figurada.  Cada  una  de 
las  partes  podril  mantener  un 
comisario  de  prisioneros  nom- 
brado  por  ella  misma  en  cada 
acantonamiento  de  los  prisio- 
neros que  esten  en  poder  de 
la  otra  parte ;  este  comisario 
visitard,  &  los  prisioneros  siem- 
pre  que  quiera  ;  tendra  facultad 
de  recibir,  libres  de  todo  dere- 
cho  6  impuesto,  "y  de  distribuir 
todos  los  auxilios  que  pueden 
enviarles  sus  amigos,  y  podril 
libremente  transmitir  sus  partes 
en  cartas  abiertas  ^  la  autoridad 
por  la  cual,estil  empleado. 

Y  se  declare  que  ni  el  pre- 
testo de  que  la  guerra  destruj'e 
los  tratados,  ni  otro  alguno,  sea 
el  que  fuere,  se  considerara  que 
anula  6  suspende  el  pacto  so- 
lemne  contenido  en  este  articulo. 
Por  el  contrario,  el  estado  de 
guerra  es  cabalmente  el  que  se 
ha  tenido  presente  al  ajustarlo, 
y  durante  el  cual  sus  estipula- 


APPENDIX. 


521 


are  to  be  as  sacredh'  observed  ciones  se  han  de  observar  tan 

as  the  most  acknowledged  obli-  aantaniente    como   las   obliga- 

gations  under  the  law  of  nature  ciones  mas  reconocidas  de  la 

or  nations.  ley  natural  6  de  gentes. 


Article  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  re- 
public, with  the  previous  ap- 
probation of  its  General  Con- 
gress ;  and  the  ratifications  shall 
be  exchanged  in  the  City  of 
Washington,  or  at  the  seat  of 
government  of  Mexico,  in  four 
months  from  the  date  of  the 
signature  hereof,  or  sooner  if 
practicable. 

In  faith  whereof,  we,  the  re- 
spective plenipotentiaries,  have 
signed  this  treaty  of  peace, 
friendship,  limits,  and  settle- 
ment ;  and  have  hereunto  af- 
fixed 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  thou- 
sand eight  hundred  aud  forty- 
eight. 

N.  P.  Trist,  [l.  s] 

Luis  G.  Cuevas,  [l.  s.] 

Bernardo  Couto,  [l.  s.] 

MiOL.  Atbistain.  [l.  s.] 


Artioulo  XXIII. 

Este  tratado  seril  ratificado 
por  el  Presidente  de  la  repii- 
blica  Mexicana,  previa  la  apro- 
bacion  de  su  Congreso  Ge- 
neral ;  y  por  el  Presidente  de 
los  Estados  XJnidos  de  America, 
con  el  consejo  y  consentimiento 
del  Senado  ;  y  las  ratificaciones 
se  cangearan  en  la  ciudad  de 
Washington,  6  donde  estuviere 
el  gobierno  Mexicano,  il  los 
cuatro  meses  de  la  fecha  de  la 
firnia  del  misnio  tratado,  6  antes 
si  fuere  posible. 

En  U  de  lo  cual,  nosotros 
losrespectivosplenipotenciarios 
hemos  firniado  y  sellado  por 
quintuplicado  este  tratado  de 
paz,  araistad,  limites  y  arreglo 
definitivo,  en  la  ciudad  de 
Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  el  dia  dos 
de  Febrero  del  ano  de  nuestro 
Seiior  mil  ochocientos  cuarenta 
y  ocho. 


Bernardo  Couto,  [l.  s.] 

MiGL.  Atristain,  [l.  s  ] 

Luis  G.  Cuevas,  [l.  s.] 

N.  P.  Trist.  [l,  s.] 


THE   END.