c ■ m ■-^\ *T Entered according to an Act of Congress, in the year 1847, by E. H. BUTLER & Co., }ti the Clerk's OfTice of the District Court in and for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. %. B, ^EARS, SlER^OTVPER. :iMlTH AND FETERS, PRIXTKR3. PREFACE. There probably has never been, in the course of our brief history as a nation, a time of such intense general excitement, as that immediately preceding the first engagement between the Americans and the Mexicans in the present war. We have perhaps had on other occasions excitements of a local character equally in- tense. But in this instance the feeling was of the most pervading kind, reaching every part of the great repub- lic. We have perhaps had other causes that have agitated more deeply and gravely the foundations of society ; but here, the lack of depth to the general feel- ing seemed to be compensated by its intensity. It was ^ot so much the deep and distant upheavings of the earthquake, as the wild and frightful sweep of the hur- ricane. It w^as as if the whole American people had been suddenly changed into one mass, as if the whole twenty millions had become one man, and stood with listening ear to hear the first sound that should be borne upon the southern breeze. It was not unlike the human body, when a painful surgical operation is about to be performed on some one point. Every other part or limb is alive with apprehension. The whole body seems to live in that one spot where the point of the knife is about to enter. So was it here. The whole IV PREFACE. American people seemed for a day or two to live at Point Isabel. The heart of a great people seemed for a time to send its every pulsation through that small and distant artery. Then it was — in that moment of breathless anxiety — when the whole nation, wrought to a state of wild excitement, turned its expectant eye towards the banks of the Rio Grande, that the anxious inquiry arose spontaneously in every quarter, WHO IS GENERAL TAYLOR? The answer has been given — an answ'er that has sent through the heart of the American people a thrill of delight as intense and pervading as the anxiety which preceded it — an answer written in living characters upon the fields of Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, Monterey, and Buena Vista. The present volume is the transcript of that answer. It is a translation into words of those glorious deeds by which Taylor and his generals, and his illustrious compeer told the world, who and what they are. It is an attempt to place within the reach of every American citizen, a permanent and lively recoid of deeds and men that will for ever form a part of the inheritance of American patriotism. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. Early life of General Taylor — Enters the Army as Lieutenant — Promoted to a Captaincy — Service in the War of 1812 — Gal- lant defence of Fort Harrison — Promotion to the rank of Major . . , Page 13 CHAPTER II, Promotion to the rank of Colonel — Service in Florida — Battle of Okee Chobee 23 CHAPTER HI. Promotion to the rank of General — Commands the Army of Occupation — Commencement of hostilities .... 40 CHAPTER IV. Battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — Captain May's brilliant charge — Retreat of the Mexicans 5" CHAPTER V. Taylor's humanity — Exchange of prisoners — Our army crosses the Rio Grande — Capture of ^latamoras 75 CHAPTER VI. Siege and capture of Monterey 81 VI CONTENTS. CHAPTER VII. The battle of Bueua Vista 140 CHAPTER VIII. Anecdotes and incidents of the battle of Buena VisU — In- stances of individual j^allantry — Notices of distinguished offic«rsamon^ the slain — Santa Anna's Despatch . . 178 CHAPTER IX. Events subsequent to the battle of Buena Vista . . . 210 Worth 217 Wool 239 Twiggs 26 A Sketch o^ the Life of General Scott, \vith an Account of the Bombardnrient of Vera Cruz 269 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. CHAPTER 1. Early life of General Taylor — Enters the Army as Lieutenant — Promoted to a Captaincy — Service in the War of 1812 — Gal- lant defence of Fort Harrison — Promotion to the rank of Major. General Zachary Taylor was born in Orange county, Virginia, in the year 1790. His father, Colonel Richard Taylor, soon after the birth of Zachary, removed his residence to the state of Kentucky, and settled near Louisville. At the age of six years, Zachary Taylor was placed under a private tutor, Mr. Ayres, who was peculiarly fitted for the task of instruction, and gave that true di- rection to the dawning powers of his pupil which su> sequent events have so signally evinced. With respect to the general's youth, all accounts agree in describing it as one of rare promise for a mili- tary man. He early showed a predilection for the exercises and accomplishments which become a soldier ; and he clearly exhibited those traits of character which a soldier's life demands. 14 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERAL.S. His desire to enter the army was gratified by his fallier, A^hose influence obtained for him in the year 1808 a lieutenancy in the seventh regiment of infantry of the United States army. This period was one in which the irritation of our countrymen asjainst Great Britain, in consequence of her impressments of seamen and seizure of merchant vessels under orders in council, was greatly aggravated by the outrageous attack on the frigate Ches- apeake. Everything portended an immediate war. Before the war broke out in 1812 he had risen to the rank of captain, and being ordered for service in the western country, he was engaged in repelling the border warfare of the Indians, which immediately succeeded the fall of Detroit and the surrender of General Hull's army. The first notice which we find in the history of the war of Captain Taylor's operations, is the account of his splendid defence of Fort Harrison. Captain Taylor, says Mr. Palmer, commander at Fort Harrison, having received information of the approach of the hostile Indians a short time before they made their appearance, had used every precaution that the smallness of his garrison would admit of. The first hostile symp- toms appeared on the evening of the 3d of September, when two young men, who had been employed a short distance from the fort, were shot and scalped, and were found in that condition the next morning by a small party that had been sent out to seek them. This circumstance caused them to redouble their vigilance ; and the officers of the guard were directed to walk the round all night, in order if possible to prevent any surprise. About 11 o'clock on the evening of the 4th, the gar- rison being alarmed by the firing of one of the sentinels, ever}' man instantly flew to his post. In a few minutes TAYLOR. 15 the cry of fire added to the alarm ; when it was dis- covered that the lower block-house, in which had been deposited the property of the contractor, had been tired by the Indians. Such was the darkness of the night, that although the upper part of the building w^as occupied by a corporal's guard as an alarm post, yet the Indians succeeded in firing it undiscovered, and unfortunately, a few^ minutes after the discovery of the fire, it communi- cated to a quantity of whiskey that had been deposited there, and immediately ascended to the roof, baffling every effort that was made to extinguish it. As the block-house adjoined the barracks, which constituted part of the fortifications, most of the men gave them- selves up for lost ; and indeed the raging of the fire, the yells of the Indians, and the cries of the women and children (who had taken refuge in the fort), were suffi- cient to appal the stoutest heart. Happily the presence of mind of the commander never forsook him. He in- stantly stationed a part of his men on the roof of the barracks, with orders to tear off that part adjoining the block-house, while the remainder kept up a constant fire on the Indians from another block-house and tv.o bas- tions. The roof was torn off under a shower of bullets from without, by which, however, only one man w'as killed and two wounded. By this success the soldiers were inspired with firm- ness, and now used such exertions, that before day they h^d not only extinguished the fire, but raised a breast-work five or six feet high in the gap occasioned by the burning of the block-house, although the Indicms continued to pour in a heavy fire of ball and showtTS of arrows during the whole time the attack lasted (which was seven hours), in every part of the parade. On the first appearance of the fire, two of the vsoldiers 16 TAYLOR AND HIS GENKRALS. had, in despair, jumped the pickets. One of them re- turned about an hour before day, and, running up towards the gate, begged for God's sake that it might be opened. On suspicion that it was an Indian strata- gem, he was fired at. He tlien ran to the other bastion, where, his voice being known, he was directed to He down till day-Ught behind an empty barrel that happened to be outside of the pickets. This poor fellow was shock- ingly wounded, and his companion cut to pieces by the Indians. After keeping up a constant tire till six in the morning, which after day-light was returned wdth considerable effect by the garrison, the Indians retreated out of reach of the guns. They then drove together all the horses and hogs in the neighbourhood, and shot them in sight of their owners. The whole of the horned cattle they succeeded in carrying off. In this attack the Americans had but three killed and three wounded, including the two that jumped 'the pickets. The Indian loss was supposed to be conside- rable, but as they always carr}" off both their dead and wounded, the amount could not be ascertained. At the moment of the attack there were only fifteen effective men in the garrison, the others being either sick or con- valescent. The Indians, disheartened by this failure, made no further attempt on the fort, but the garrison still re- mained in a perilous situation, as the greater part of tiieir provisions had been destroyed by the fire, and the loss of their stock prevented future supplies. Captain Taylor therefore attempted to send, by night, two men in a canoe down the river to Vincennes, to make known his situation, but they were forced to return, the river being found too well guarded. The Indians had made TAYLOR. 1^ a fire on the bank of the river, a short distance below the garrison, which gave them an opportunity of seeing any craft that might attempt to pass, with a canoe ready below to intercept it. A more fortunate attempt was made by land, and the garrison was immediately after relieved by the force under General Hopkins, consisting of nearly 4000 men. After the relief of Fort Harrison, Hopkins began his preparations for his expedition against the Peoria tow-ns. They commenced their mai"ch on the morning of the 15th of October, and continued it for four days in a direction nearly north. But here the spirit of insub- ordination began to show itself. The general states in his official despatch, that having ordered a halt in the afternoon of the 4th day, in a fine piece of grass, for the purpose of refreshing the horses, he was addressed by one of his majors, in the most rude and dictatorial man- ner, requiring him instantly to resume his march, or his battalion would break from the army and return. Of the reply of the general to this modest request we are not informed. Next evening, however, an event took place, which seems to have spread the spirit of discon- tent through the whole detachment. A violent gust of wind having arisen about sun-set, just as the troops had encamped, the Indians set fire to the prairie all around them, w^hich drove furiously on the camp. They suc- ceeded, however, in firing the grass around the encamp- ment. Next morning, in consequence of the discontent that prevailed, the general called a council of his officers, to whom he stated his apprehensions, the expectations of the country, and the disgrace attending the failure of the expedition ; and, on the other hand, the exhausted state of the horses, and the w ant of provisions. He then re- IS TAYi-OK AND HIS GilNERALS. quested the commandants of each regiment to convene the whole of the officers belonging to it, and to take fully the sense of the army on the measures to be pur- sued ; adding, that if 500 volunteers turned out he would put himself at their head, and proceed in quest of the Indian towns, and the rest of the army might return to Fort Harrison. In less than an hour the report was made almost unanimously to return. In vain did the general request that he might dictate the course for that day only. His authority was now at an end ; and all the efforts of the officers were necessary to restore order in the ranks, and to conduct the retreat without danger from the surrounding though unseen foe. Though this expedition returned almost without obtain- ing the sight of an enemy, yet it was not altogether unproductive of benefit. The Indians of the neighbour- ing towns, hearing of its approach, had marched the greater part of their warriors to meet it, leaving their villages in a defenceless condition. In this state they were found by Colonel Russell, who had marched upon them in the expectation of meeting with Hopkins' army, and his detachment attacked and defeated those who had been left behind. Having driven them into a swamp, through which the rangers pursued them for three miles, up to their w^aists in mud and water, he returned and burnt their towns, and destroyed their corn. The num- ber of warriors w'ho advanced to meet Hopkins from those towns is stated to have amounted to 700 ; Russell's force consisted of not more than 400 men. A conside- rable number of Indians were killed in this attack. On the part of the Americans tliere were only four wounded, none of them mortally. Craig's force was still smaller than that under Russell ; it is stated to have consisted of not more than 80 men. TAYLOR. 19 Witli this small body he marched >ip the Illinois river, twenty miles above the town destroyed by Russell. Here he attacked an Indian settlement, which he totally destroyed, with all the improvements, and took forty-two prisoners, one of them an Englishman, and a large col- lection of furs. He returned with his prisoners and booty, without the loss of a man. In the month of November another Indian expedition was undertaken by General Hopkins, with about 1250 men. This was directed against the towns on the Wabash, where the battle of Tippecanoe had been fought about twelv^e months before. Having left Fort Harrison on the 11th, accompanied with boats for the transporta- tion of provisions, forage, and military stores, Hopkins arrived at the Prophet's town on the 19th, without inter- ruption. Early in the morning of that day, 300 men were detached to surprise the Winnebago town, on Ponce Passu creek, a short distance below the Prophet's. Having surrounded it about the break of day, they were surprised to find it evacuated. The party accordingly, after destroying it, rejoined the main body at the Pro- phet's town. For three days Hopkins' detachment was employed in achieving the complete destruction of the Prophet's town, and the large Kickapoo village adjoining, the former consisting of 40 and the latter of 160 cabins and huts. They likewise destroyed all their cultivated fields, fences, &c., and constructed works for the defence of the boats and of the encampment. On the 21st a reconnoitering party were attacked by a body of Indians, and one of their number killed. The following day sixty horsemen were despatched to bury their comrade, and gain abetter knowledge of the ground , but they unfortunately fell into an ambuscade, in which 180 lAYLOR AND HIS GLNERALS. eighteen of tlie part^ were killed, wounded, or missing. This party, on their return, brought information of a large assemblage of the enemy, who, encouraged by the strength of their camp, appeared to be w aiting an attack. Every preparation was accordingly made to march early next morning, to engage the enemy. A violent fall of snow, however, prevented the movement on the 23d ; and the camp was found abandoned on the following day. The position which the Indians had thus abandon- ed is spoken of as having been remarkable strong. The Ponce Passu, a deep rapid creek, was in their rear, running in a semicircle ; in front w^as a bluff, 100 feet high, almost perpendicular, and only to be penetrated by three steep ravines. On the return of the troops to camp, the river was found so full of ice, as to alarm them for the return of the boats. Hopkins had intended to have spent one week more in endeavouring to find the Indian camps ; but the shoeless, shirtless state of the troops, now clad in the remnants of their summer dress ; a river full of ice, the hills covered with snow; and, above all, the uncertainty of finding the enemy, all these circumstances determined him to return. They accordingly set out on the 25th, and in a few days arrived at Fort Harrison, having completed a march of upwards of 100 miles into the Indian country-, which is totally devoid of roads, and destroyed three of their principal towns, in the space of less than twenty days. The last Indiim expedition of which mention is made, in this quarter, is one which was commanded by Colonel Campbell, consisting of 600 men, which marched from Greenville, (Ohio) against the towns on the Mississinewa, a branch of the Wabash. On the 17th of December, after marching all night, TAYLOR. 21 Campbell arrived at one of the towns about day-break, which he instantly attacked, and the Indians were driven across the Mississinewa river, with the loss of seven killed and thirty-seven prisoners. Only one American w^as killed and one wounded in this skirmish. After securing the prisoners, a part of the detachment was despatched down the river, who returned the same day, having burnt three villages without resistance. They then encamped on the ground where the first village stood. The following morning, a little before day-light, the camp was attacked by a body of Indians, supposed to be about 300. They commenced their attack on the right, with a horrid yell. After a desperate conflict of about three-quarters of an hour, a charge was made by the cavalry, which forced the Indians to retreat, leaving forty killed on the field. In this affair the Americans had eight killed, and twenty-five or thirty wounded. Another attack was anticipated, as information was received that Tecumseh, with four or five hundred warriors, was only fifteen miles from the scene of action ; but reinforcements shortly after arriving from Greenville, they effected their retreat wdthout molestation. The gallant defence of Fort Harrison by Captain Taylor was duly appreciated by President Madison, who immediately promoted the intrepid commander to the rank of Major. During the remainder of the war of 1812 he was actively employed in the western country, but as he had no opportunity of again distinguishing himself in a separate command, w-e are not able to trace his movements. After the close of the w^ar of 1812, Major Taylor was employed in the western country at the various posts where the demands of the service required his presence. A time of peaoe affords few materials for biography in IE© TAT LOK AND Hlb GLN'LKALS. the life of a soldier; but it atTords the soldier himself the best opportunity for completing many parts of his mili- tary education. Taylor's irreat eminence in every branch of the military art atfords sufHcient proof that this period was employed in the most diligent study, as far as the requisitions of the service would permit. And it is equallv certain that his reading could not have been con- fined exclusively to works on the art of war. He read the fmest models of Enghsh composition ; and we see the result in his published despatches, which are all models of style, attracting the unbounded admiration of the first scholars of the age both in Europe and America. CHAPTER II. Promotion to the rank of Colonel — Service in Florida — Battle of Okee Chobee. In 1832 Taylor was advanced to the rank of colonel. On the commencement of war in Florida he was ordered on service in that district. This contest was, as every one knows, what General Jackson called his own Semi- nole war, " a war of movements." It consisted almost entirely of pursuits and attempts to surround the Indians, which they were generally successful in eluding. Colonel Taylor, however, was more fortunate than his predecessors ; and in December 1837 he was able to bring on a oreneral action at Okee Chobee, which is best described in his own very able despatch, as follows : Head-Quarters, First Brigade, ) Army South of the Withlacoochee. > Fort Gardner, Jon. 4, 1838. ) Sir : On the 19th ultimo I received at this place a communication from Major-General Jessup, informing me that all hopes of bringing the war to a close by negotiation, through the interference or mediation of the Cherokee delegation, were at an end, Sam Jones, with the Mickasukies, having determined to fight it out to the last ; and directing me to proceed with the least possible delay against any portion of the enemy I might hear of within striking distance, and to destroy or capture them. 24 TAYLUK AND IIIS GENERALS. After leaving two otficers and an adequate force for the protection of my depot, I marched the next morning with twelve days' rations (my means of transportation not enablinir me to carry more), with the balance of my command, consisting of Ca})tain Munroe's company of ' the 4th artillery, total thirty-five men ; the 1st infantry, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Davenport, one hundred and ninety-seven strong; the 4th infantry under the command of Lieutenant- Colonel Foster, two hundred and seventy -four ; the 6th infantry, under Lieutenant-Colonel Thompson, two hundred and twenty-one ; the Missouri volunteers, one hundred and eighty ; Morgan's spies, forty-seven : pioneers, thirty ; pontoneers, thirteen : and seventy Delaware Indians ; makinLT a force, exclusive of officers, of 1032 men ; the greater part of the Sliawnees having been detached, and the balance refusing to accompany mc, under the pretext that a number of them were sick, and the re- mainder were without moccasins. I moved down the west side of the Kissimmee, in a south-easterly course, towards Lake Istopoga, for the following reasons: First, because I knew that a portion of the hostiles were to be ibund in that direction ; second, if General Jessup should fall in with the Micka- sukies and drive them, they might attempt to elude him by crossing the Kissimmee from the east to the west side of the peninsula, between this and its entrance into Okee Cliobee, in which case I might be near at hand to intercept them ; third, to overawe and induce such of the enemy who hjd been making propositions to give themselves up, and who appeared very slow, if not to hesitate, in complying with their promises on that head, to surrender at once ; and lastly, I deemed it advisable to erect block-houses, and a small picket work on the TAYLOR. 25 Kissimraee, for a third depot, some forty or fifty miles below this, and obtain a knowledge of the intervening country, as I had no guide who could be relied on, and by this means open a communication with Colonel Smith, who was operating up the Caloosehatchee, or Sanybel River, under my orders. Late in the evening of the first day's march, I met the Indian chief. Jumper, with his family, and a part of his band, consisting of fifteen men, a part of them with families, and a few negroes — in all, sixty-three souls — on his way to give himself up, in conformity to a previous arrangement I had entered into with him. They were conducted by Captain Parks, and a few Shawnees. He (Parks) is an active and intelhgent half-breed, who is at the head of the friendly Indians, both Shawnees and Dela wares, and whom I had employed to arrange and bring in Jumper, and as many of his people as he could prevail on to come in. We encamped that night near the same spot ; and the next morning, having ordered Captain Parks to join me, and take com- mand of the Delawares, and having despatched Jumper in charge of some Shawnees to this place, and so on to Fort Frazer, I continued my march, after having sent forward three friendly Seminoles to gain intelligence as to the position of the enemy. About noon on the same day, I sent forward one battalion of Gentry's regiment under command of Lieu- tenant-Colonel Price, to pick up any stragglers that might fall in his way ; to encamp two or three miles in advance of the main force ; to act with great circum- spection, and to communicate promptly any occurrence that might take place in his vicinity important for me to know. About 10 P. M., I received a note from the colonel, stating that the three Seminoles sent forward in 26 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. the morning had returned ; that they had been at or where Alligator had encamped, twelve or fifteen miles in his advance ; that he (Alligator) had left there with a part of his family four days before, under the pretext of separating his relations, &c., from the Mickasukies, preparatory to his surrendering with them ; that there were several f^imilies remaining at the camp referred to, who wished to give themselves up, and would remain there until we took possession of them, unless they were forcibly carried off that night by the Mickasukies, who were encamped at no great distance from them. In consequence of this intelligence, after directing Lieutenant-Colonel Davenport to follow me early in the morning with the infantry, a little after midnight I put myself at the head of the residue of the mounted men, joined Lieutenant-Colonel Price, proceeded on, crossing Istopoga outlet, and soon after daylight took possession of the encampment referred to, where I found the in- mates, who had not been disturbed. They consisted of an old man and two young ones, and several women and children, amounting in all to twenty-two individuals. The old man informed me that Alligator was very anxious to separate his people from the Mickasukies, who were encamped on the opposite side of the Kissimmee, distant about twenty miles, where they w^ould fight us. I sent t him to Alligator, to say to him, if he was sincere in his professions, to meet me the next day at the Kissimmee, where the trail I was marching on crossed, and where I should halt. As soon as the infantry came up, 1 moved on to the place designated, which I reached late that evening, and where! encamped. About HP. AL the old Indian returned, brinii;ing a very equivocal message from Alli- gator, whom, he stated, he had met accidentally. Also, TAYLOR. 27 that the Mickasukies were still encamped where they had been for some days, and where they were determined to fight us. I determined at once on indulging them as soon as prac- ticable. Accordingly, the next morning, after laying out a small stockade work for the protection of a future depot, in order to enable me to move with the greatest celerity, I deposited the whole of my heavy baggage, including artillery, &c., and having provisioned the com- mand, to include the 26th, after leaving Captain Munroe with his company, the pioneer, pontoneers, with eighty- five sick and disabled infantry, and a portion of the friendly Indians, who alleged that they were unable to march further, crossed the Kissimmee, taking the old Indian as a guide who had been captured the day be- fore, and who accompanied us with great apparent reluctance in pursuit of the enemy, and early the next day reached Alligator's encampment, situated on the edge of Cabbage-tree hammock, in the midst of a large prairie; from the appearance of which, and other en- campments in the vicinity, and the many evidences of slaughtered cattle, there must have been several hundred individuals. At another small hammock at no great distance from Alligator's encampment and surrounded by a swamp, impassable for mounted men, the spies surprised an encampment containing one old man, four young young men, and some women and children. One of the party immediately raised a white flag, when the men were taken possession of and brought across the swamp to the main body. I proceeded with an interpreter to meet them. They proved to be Seminoles, and pro- fessed to be friendly. They stated that they were preparing to come in ; they had just slaughtered a 28 TAVI.UR AND HIS Gl NLKAJ.ii. number of cattle, and were employed m drying and jerking the same. They also informed me that the Mickasukies, headed by A-vi-a-ka (Sam Jones), was some ten or twelve miles distant, encamped in a swamp, and were prepared to fight. Although I placed but little confidence in their ])ro- fessions of friendship, or their intentions of coming in, yet I had no time to look up their women and children, who had fled and concealed themselves in the swamp, or to have encumbered myself with them in the situation in which I then was. Accordingly, I released the old man, who promised that he would collect all the women and children, and take them in to Captain Munroe, at the Kissimmee, the next day. I also dismissed the old man who had acted as guide thus far, supplying his place with the four able warriors who had been captured that morning. These arrangements being made, I moved under their guidance for the camp of the Mickasukies. Between two and three P. M., we reached a very dense cypress swamp, through which we were compelled to pass, and in which our guides informed us we might be attacked. After making the necessary dispositions for battle, it was ascertained that there was no enemy to oppose us. The armv crossed over and encamped for the night, it being late. During the passage of the rear. Captain Parks, who was in advance with a few friendly Indians, fell in with two of the enemy's spies, between two or three miles of our camp — one on horseback, the other on foot — and succeeded in capturing the latter. He was an active young warrior, armed with an excellent rifle, fifty balls in his pouch, and an adequate proportion of powder. This Indian confirmed the information which had previously been received from the other I'AVLIJK. 'zrf Indians, and in addition, stated that a large boilv ol" the Seminoles, headed by John Cohua, Co-a-coo-chee, and, no doubt, Alligator, with other chiefs, were encamped five or six miles from us, near the Mickasukies, with a cypress swamp and dense hammock between them and the latter. The army moved forward at daylight the next morn- ing, and, after marching five or six miles, reached tlie camp of the Seminoles on the borders of another cypress swamp, which must have contained several liundred, and bore evident traces of having been abandoned in a great hurry, as the fires were still burning, and quan- tities of beef lying on the ground unconsumed. Here the troops were again disposed of in order of battle, but we found no enemy to oppose us, and the com- mand was crossed over about 11 A. M., when we entered a large prairie in our front, on which two or three hun- dred head of cattle were grazing, and a number of Indian ponies. Here another young Indian warrior was captured, armed and equipped as the former. He pointed out a dense hammock on our right, about a mile distant, in which he said the hostiles were situated and waiting to give us battle. At this place the final disposition was made to attack them, which was in two lines ; the volunteers under Gentry, and Morgan's spies, to form the first line in extended order, who were instructed to enter the ham- mock, and, in the event of being attacked and hard pressed, were to fall back in rear of the regular troops, out of reach of the enemy's fire ; the second line was composed of the 4th and 6th infantry, who were in- structed to sustain the volunteers, the 1st infantry being held in reserve. Moving on in the direction of the hammock, after 30 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. proceeding about a quarter of a mile, we reached the swamp which separated us from the enemy, three quar- ters of a mile in breadth, being totally impassable for horse, and nearly so for foot, covered with a thick growth of saw-grass five feet high, about knee deep in mud and water, which extended to the left as far as the eye could reach, and to the right to a part of the swamp and hammock we had just crossed, through which ran a deep creek. At the edge of the swamp all the men were dismounted, and the horses and baggage left under a suitable guard. Captain Allen was detached with the two companies of mounted infantry to examine the swamp and hammock to the riirht ; and, in case he should not fmd the enemy in that direction, was to re- turn to the baggage, and, in the event of his hearing a heavy firing, was immediately to join me. After making these arrangements, I crossed the swamp in the order stated. On reaching the borders of the hammock, the volunteers and spies received a heavy fire from the f nemy, which was returned by them for a short time, when their gallant commander, Colonel Gentry, fell, mortally wounded. They mostly broke, and in- stead of forming in the rear of the regulars, as had been directed, they retired across the swamp to their bai^gage and horses, nor could they be again brought into action as a body, although efforts were made re- peatedly by my staff to induce them to do so. The enemy, however, were promptly checked and driven back by the 4th and 6th infantry, which in truth mifht be said to be a moving battery. The weight of the enemy's fire was principally concentrated on five companies of the 6th infantry, which not only stood jirni, but continued to advance until their gallant com- jiianilcr, Licutciiiint-Colonel Thompson, and his adjutant. TAYLOR. 31 Lieutenant Center, were killed ; and every officer, with one exception, as well as most of the non-com- missioned officers, including the sergeant-major and four of the orderly sergeants, killed and wounded of those companies ; when that portion of the regiment retired to a short distance and were again formed, one of these companies having but four members left untouched. Lieutenant-Colonel Foster, with six companies, amount- ing in all to one hundred and sixty men, gained the hammock in good order, w^here he w-as joined by Cap- tain Noel, with the two remaining companies of the 6th infantry, and Captain Gillam, of Gentry's volunteers, wath a few additional men, and continued to drive the enemy for a considerable time, and by a change of front separated his line, and continued to drive him until he reached the great lake Okee Chobee, which was in the rear of the enemy's position, and on which their en- campment extended for more than a mile. As soon as I was informed that Captain Allen was advancing, I ordered the first infantry to move to the left, gain the enemy's right flank and turn it, which order was execu- ted in the promptest manner possible ; and as soon as that regiment got in position, the enemy gave one fire and retreated, being pursued by the 1st, 4th, and 6th, and some of the volunteers who had joined them, until near night, and until these troops w^ere nearly exhausted, and the enemy driven in all directions. The action w^as a severe one, and continued from half past twelve until after three P. M., a part of the time very close and severe. We suffered much, •having twenty-six killed and one hundred and twelve wounded, among whom are some of our most valuable officers. The hostiles probably suffered, all things considered, equally with ourselves, they having left ten 32 TAYLOR AND HIS ChlNKRALS. (lead on the ground, besides, doubtless, carrying off many more, as is customary with them when practicable. As soon as the enemy were completely broken, I turned my attention to taking care of the wounded, to facilitate their removal to my baggage, where I ordered an encampment to be formed ; I directed Captain Taylor to cross over to the spot, and employ every individual whom he might find there in constructing a small footway across the swamp ; this, with great ex- ertions, was completed in a short time after dark, when all the dead and wounded were carried over in litters made for that purpose, with one exception, a private of he 4th infantry, who was killed and could not be found. And here, I trust I may be permitted to say that I experienced one of the most trying scenes of my life, and he who could have looked on it with indifference, his nerves must have been very differently organized from my own ; besides the killed, there lay one hundred and twelve wounded officers and soldiers, who had accompan-ed me one hundred and forty-five miles, most of the way through an unexplored wilderness, without guides, who had so gallantly beaten the enemy, under my orders, in his strongest position, and who had to be conveyed back through swamps and hammocks, from whence we set out, without any apparent means ot doing so. This service, however, was encountered and overcome, and they have been conveyed thus far, and proceeded on to Tampa Bay, on rude litters, constructed with the axe and knife alone, with poles and dry hides — the latter being found in great abundance at the encamp- ment of the hostiles. The litters were conveyed on the backs of our weak and tottering horses, aideil by the residue of the command, with more ease and comfort to the sufferers than I could have supposed, and with as much as they could have been in ambulances of the most improved and modern construction. The day after the battle we remained at our encamp- ment, occupied in taking care of the wounded, and in the sad office of interring the dead ; also, in preparing litters for the removal of the wounded, and collecting Avith a portion of the mounted men the horses and cattle in the vicinity belonging to the enemy, of which we found about one hundred of the former, many of them saddled, and nearly three hundred of the latter. We left our encampment on the morning of the 27th for the Kissimmee, where I had left my heavy baggage, which place w^e reached about noon on the 28th, after leaving tw^o companies and a few Indians to garrison the stockade, w^hich I found nearly completed on my return, by that active and vigilant officer, Captain Munroe, 4th artillery. I left there the next morning for this place, where I arrived on the 3ist, and sent forward the wounded next day to Tampa Bay, with the 4th and 6th infantry, the former to halt at Fort Frazer, remain- ing here myself with the 1st, in order to make< prepa- rations to take the field ao-ain as soon as my horses can be recruited, most of which have been sent to Tampa and my supplies in a sufficient state of forwardness to justify the measure. In speaking of the command, I can only say, that so far as the regular troops are concerned, no one could have been more efficiently sustained than I have been from the commencement of the campaign ; and lam certain that they will always be willing and ready to discharge any duty that may be assigned them. To Lieutenant-Colonel Davenport, and the officers and soldiers of the 1st infantry, I teel under many obligations for the manner in which they have, on all occasions, dis- ;34 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. char^red their duty ; and although held in reserve and not brought into battle until near its close, it evinced, by its eagerness to engage, and the promptness and good order with which they entered the hammock when the order was given for them to do so, is the best evidence that they would have sustained their own characters, as well as that of the regiment, had it been their fortune to have been placed in the hottest of the battle. The 4th infantry, under their gallant leader, Lieuten- ant-Colonel Foster, was among the first to gain the ham- mock, and maintained this position, as well as driving a portion of the enemy before him, until he arrived on the borders of Lake Okee Chobee, which was in the rear, and continued the pursuit until near night. Lieutenant- Colonel Foster, who was favourably noticed for his gal- lantry and good conduct in nearly all the engagements on the Niagara frontier during the late war with Great Britain, by his several commanders, as well as in the different engagements with the Lulians in this territory, never acted a more conspicuous part than in the action of the 2oth ult. ; he speaks in the highest terms of the conduct of Brevet-Major Graham, his second in com- mand, as also the officers and soldiers of the 4th in- fantry, who were engaged in the action. Captain Allen, with his two mounted companies of the 4th in- fantry, sustained his usual character for promptness and efficiency. Lieutenant Hooper, of the 4th regiment, was wounded through the arm, but continued on the field at the head of his company, until the termination of the battle. I am not sufficiently master of words to express my admiration of the gallantry and steadiness of the officers and soldiers of the 6th regiment of infantry. It was their fortune to bear the brunt of the battle. The re- TAYLOR. 35 port of the killed and wounded, which accompanies this, is more conclusive evidence of their merits than any- thing I can say. After five companies of this regiment, against w^hich the enemy directed the most deadly fire, was nearly cut up, there being only four men left unin- jured in one of them, and every otTicer and orderly sergeant of those companies, with one exception, were either killed or wounded. Captain Noel, with the re- maining two companies, his own company, '' K," and Grossman's, " B," commanded by Second Lieutenant Woods, which was the left of the regiment, formed on the right of the 4th infantry, entered the hammock with that regiment, and continued the fight and the pursuit until its termination. It is due to Captain Andrews and Lieutenant Walker, to say, they commanded two of the five companies mentioned above, and they continued to direct them until they were both severely wounded and carried from the field ; the latter received three separate balls. The Missouri volunteers, under the command of Colonel Gentry, and Morgan's spies, who formed the first line, and, of course, w^ere the first engaged, acted as well, or even better, than troops of that description generally do ; they received and returned the enemy's fire, with spirit, for some time, when they broke and retired, w4th the exception of Captain Gilhim and a few of his company, and Lieutenant Blakey, also with a few men, w-ho joined the regulars, and acted with them, un- til after the close of the battle, but not until they had suffered severely ; the commanding officer of the volun- teers. Colonel Gentry, being mortally wounded while leadinof on his men, and encourao-inj 9, 1846. \ Sir : I have the honour to report that I was met near this place yesterday, on my march from Point Isabel, by the Mexican forces, and after an action of about five hours, dislo;^e(l them from their position and encamped upon the field. Our artillery, consistins; of two eicrhteen- pounders and two light batteries, was the arm chiefly eno'aged, and to the excellent manner in which it was manoeuvred and served, is our success mainly due. The strength of the enemy is believed to have been about 6000 men, with seven pieces of artillery, find 800 cavalry. His loss is probably at least one !;?indred killed. Our strength did not exceed, all told, twenty-three hundred, while our loss was compara- tively trifiino; — four men killed, three officers and thirty- seven men wounded, several of the latter mortally. I regret to say that Major Ringgold, 2d artillery, and Captain Page, 4th infantry, are severely wounded. Lieu- tenant Luther. 2d artillery, slightly so. The enemy has fallen back, and it is believed has re- passed the river. I have advanced parties now thrown forward in his direction, and shall move the main body immediately. In the haste of this report, I can only say that the officers and men behaved in the most admirable manner throughout the action. I shall have the pleasure of making a more detailed report when those of the diiTerent commanders shall be received. I am, sir, very respectfully, Your obedient servant, Z. TAYLOR, Brevet Brigadier-General U. S. A.^ Commanding. Tke Adjutant-GfnkraL; U. S. Arniy, Washington, D. C. TAYLOR. 63 Head-Quarters Army of Occupation, 1 Camp at Resaca dc la Palma, 3 miles from > Matamoras, 10 o^clock, P. M., May 9, 1846. ) Sir : I have the honour to report that I marched with the main body of the army at two o'clock to-day, havinpf previously thrown forward a body of light infantry into the forest which covers the Matamoras road. When near the spot where I am now encamped, my advance discovered that a ravine crossing the road had been occupied by the enemy with artillery. I immediately ordered a battery of field artillery to sweep the position, flanking and sustaining it by the 3d, 4th, and 5th regi- ments, deployed as skirmishes to the right and left. A heavy fire of artillery and of musketry was kept up for some time, until finally the enemy's batteries were carried in succession by a squadron of dragoons and the regi- ments of infantry that were on the ground. He was soon driven from his position, and pursued by a squadron of dragoons, battalion of artillery, 3d infantry, and a light battery, to the river. Our victory has been com- plete. Eight pieces of artillery, with a great quantity of ammunition, three standards, and some one hundred prisoners have been taken ; among the latter. General La Vega, and several other officers. One general is understood to have been killed. The enemy has re- fcrossed the river, and I am sure will not again molest us on this bank. The loss of the enemy in killed has been most severe. Our own has been very heavy, and I deeply regret to report that Lieutenant Lige, 2d dragoons, Lieutenant Cochrane, 4th infantry, and Lieutenant Chadbourne, 8th infantry, were killed on the field. Lieutenant-Colonel Payne, 4th artillery, Lieutenant-Colonel Mcintosh, Lieu- vpant Dobbins, 3d infantry ; Captain Hooe and Lieu- 64 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. tenant Fowler, 5th infantr)-' ; and Captain Montgomery, Lieutenants Gates, Selden, IMcClay, Burbank, and Jordan, 8th infantry, were wounded. The extent of our loss in killed and wounded is not yet ascertained, and is reserved for a more detailed report. The affair of to-day may be regarded as a proper supplement to the cannonade of yesterday ; and the two taken together, exhibit the coolness and gallantry of our officers and men in the most favourable light. All have done their duty, and done it nobly. It will be my pride, in a more circumstantial report of both actions, to dwell upon particular instances of individual distinction. It affords me peculiar pleasure to report that the field work opposite Matamoras has sustained itself handsomely during a cannonade and bombardment of 160 hours. But the pleasure is alloyed with profound regret at the loss of its heroic and indomitable commander, Major Brow^n, who died to-day from the effect of a shell. His loss would be a severe one to the service at any time, but to the army under my orders, it is indeed irreparable. One officer and one non-commissioned officer killed, and ten men wounded, comprise all the casualties incident to this severe bombardment. I inadvertently omitted to mention tlie capture of a large number of pack-mules left in the Mexican camp. I am, sir, very respectfully. Your obedient servant, Z. TAYLOR, Brevet Brigadier-General U. S. A. Commanding The Adjutant-General of the AnnVj j Washington, D. C. ) The brilliant charge of Captain May at Resaca de la Palma, is thus described by Sergeant Milton, of his corps : ,.# / '^- ^'■^' ^-.it TAYLOR. 65 *' At Palo Alto," says he, " I took my rank in the troop as second sergeant, and while u})on the field my horse was wounded in the jaw jjy a grape-shot, which disabled him for service. While he was plunging in agony I dismounted, and the quick eye of Captain May observed me as I alighted from my horse. He inquired if I was hurt. I answered no — that my horse was the sufferer. ' I am glad it is not yourself,' replied he ; < there is another,' (pointing at the same time to a steed without a rider, which was standing with dilated eye gazing at the strife,) Amount him.' I approached the horse, and he stood still until I put my hand upon the rein and patted his neck, when he rubbed his head alongside of me as if pleased that some human being was about to become his companion in the affray. He was a noble bay, which had, with a number of others, been purchased for the troop in St. Louis. I bestrode him, and we passed through the first day unharmed. " On the second day, at Resaca de la Palma, our troop stood anxiously waiting for the signal to be given, and never had I looked upon men upon whose counte- nances were more clearly expressed a fixed determina- tion to win. The lips of some were pale with excite- ment, and their eyes wore that fixed expression which betokens mischief; others with shut teeth would quietly laugh and catch a tighter grip of the rein, or seat them- selves with care and firmness in the saddle, w^hile quiet words of confidence and encouragement were passed from each to his neighbour. All at once Captain May rode to the front of his troop — every rein and sabre was tightly grasped. Raising himself and pointing at the battery, he shouted, ' Men, folloia V There was now a clatterinof of hoofs and a rattling: of sabre sheaths — the fire of the enemy's guns was partly drawn by Lieu- 06 TAYLOR AND HIS GKNF.RALS. tenant Ridgely, and the next moment we were sweepmg like the wind up the ravine. I was in a squad of about nine men, who were separated by a shower of grape from the battery, and we were in advance, May leading. He turned his horse opposite the breast- work, in front of the guns, and with another shout ' to follow,' leaped over them. Several of the horses did follow, but mine, being new and not well trained, refused ; two others balked, and their riders started down the ravine to turn the breast-work where the rest of the troop had entered. I made another attempt to clear the guns w^th ray horee, turning him around — feeling all the time secure at thinking the guns discharged — I put his head towards them and gave him spur, but he again balked ; so, turning his head down the ravine, I too started to ride round the breast-w'ork. " As I came down a lancer dashed at me with lance in rest. With my sabre I parried his thrust, only receiv- ing a slight flesh wound from its point in the arm, which felt at the time like the prick of a pin. The lancer turned and fled ; at that moment a ball passed through my horse on the left side and shattered my right side. The shot killed the horse instantly, and he fell upon my left leg, fastening me by his weight to the earth. There I lay, right in the midst of the action, where carnage was riding riot, and every moment the shot, from our own and the Mexican guns, tearing up the earth around me. I tried to raise my horse so as to extricate my leg, but I had already grown so weak with my wound that I was unable, and, from the mere attempt, I fell back exhausted. To add to my horror a horse, who was careering about, riderless, within a few yards of me, received a wound, and he commenced struggling and rearing with pain. Two or three times, he came near TAYLOR. 67 falling on me, but at length, with a scream of agony and a bound, he fell dead — his body touching my own fallen steed. What I had been in momentary dread of, now occurred — my wounded limb, which was lying across the horse, received anotlier ball in the ankle. " I now felt disposed to give up ; and, exhausted through pain and excitement, a film gathered over my eyes, which I thought was the precursor of dissolution. From this hopeless state I was aroused by a wounded Mexican, calling out to me, « Bueno Amencano^'' and turning my eyes towards the spot, I saw that he was holding a certificate and calling to me. The tide of action now rolled away from me, and hope again sprung up. The Mexican uniforms began to disappear from the chapparal, and squadrons of our troops passed in sight, apparently in pursuit. While I was thus nursing the prospect of escape, I beheld, not far from me, a villanous-looking ranchero, armed with an American sergeant's short sword, despatching a wounded American soldier, whose body he robbed — the next he came to was a Mexican, whom he served the same way, and thus I looked on while he murderously slew four. I drew an undischarged pistol from my holsters, and, laying myself along my horse's neck, watched him, expecting to be the next victim ; but something frightened him from his vuhure-like business, and he fled in another direction. I need not say that had he visited me I should have taken one more shot at the enemy, and would have died content had I succeeded in making such an assassin bite the dust. Two hours after, I had the pleasure of shaking some of my comrades by the hand, who were picking up the wounded. They lifted my Mexican friend, too, and I am })leased to say he, as 68 TAYLOR AND HIS GENKRALS. well as myself, live to fight over again the sanguine fray of Resaca de la Palmar The following is the Mexican general's account of the battle of Palo Alto. It is a very amusing specimen of Mexican rhetoric, which has been so frequently called into requisition since the commencement of the present war, for the purpose of converting a defeat into a vic- tory: Gfneral-in-Chief, Most Excellent Sir : Constant in my purpose of preventing General Taylor from uniting the forces which he brought from the Fronton of Sante Isabel, with those which he left fortified opposite Matamoras, I moved this day from the Fanques del Raminero, whence I despatched my last extraordinary courier, and took the direction of Palo Alto, as soon as my spies informed me that the enemy had left Fronton, with the determination of introducing into his fort wagons loaded with provi- sions and heavy artillery. I a 1 rived opposite Palo Alto about one o'clock, and observed that the enemy was entering that posi- tion. With all my forces, I estabhshed the line of battle in a great plain, my right resting upon an elevation, and my left on a slough of difficult passage. Scarcely was the first cannon fired, when there arrived General Pedro de Ampudia, second in command, whom T had ordered to join me after having covered the points which micrht serve to besiege the enemy in. the forts opposite Matamoras. The forces under my orders amounted to 3000 men, and twelve pieces of artillery ; those of the invaders TAYLOR . 69 \\ere 3000, rather less than more, anH were superior in artillery, since they had twenty pieces of the calibre of sixteen and eighteen pounds. The battle commenced so ardently, that the fire of cannon did not cease a single moment. In the course of it, the enemy wished to follow the road towards Matamoras, to raise the siege of his troops ; with which object he fired the grass, and formed in front of his line of battle a smoke so thick, that he succeeded in cover- ing himself from our view, but by means of manceuvres this was twice embarrassed. General Taylor maintained his attack rather defen- sively than offensively, employing his best arm, which is artillery, protected by half of the infantry, and all of his cavalry, — keeping the remainder fortified in the ravine, about two thousand yards from the field of battle. I was anxious for the charge, because the fire of can- non did much damage in our ranks, and I instructed General D. Anastasio Torrejon to execute it with the greater part of the cavalry, by our left flank, while one should be executed at the same time by our right flank, with some columns of infantry, and the remainder of that arm [cavalry]. I was waiting the moment when that general should execute the charge, and the effect of it should begin to be seen, in order to give the impulse on the right ; but he was checked by fire of the enemy, which defended a slough that embarrassed the attack. Some battalions, becoming impatient by the loss which they .suffered, fell into disorder, demanding to advance or fall back. I immediately caused them to charge with a column of cavalry, under the command 70 TAYLOR AJSD HIS GKNERALS. oi" Colonel D. Cayetano Montero ; the result of this ope- ration being that the dispersed corps repaired their fault as far as possible, marching towards the enemy, who, in consequence of his distance, was enabled to fall back upon his reseiTe, and night coming on, the battle was concluded, — the field remaining for our arms. Every suitable measure was then adopted, and the division took up a more concentrated curve in the same scene of action. The combat was long and bloody, which may be esti- mated from the calculations made by the commandant- general of artillery. General D. Thomas Requena, who assures me that the enemy threw about three thousand cannon-shots from two in the afternoon, when the battle commenced, until seven at night, when it terminated, — six hundred and fifty being fired on our side. The national arms shone forth, since they did not yield a hand's-breadth of ground, notwithstanding the superiority in artillery of the enemy, who suffered mucii damage. Our troops have to lament the loss of two hundred and fifty-two men, dispersed, wounded, and killed, — the last worthy oi' national recollection and gratitude for the intrepidity widi which they died fighting for the most sacred of causes. Will your excellency please with this note to report to his excellency the President, representing to him that I will take care to give a circumstantial account of this deed of arms ; and recommending to him the good con- duct of all the generals, chiefs, officers, and soldiers under my orders, for sustaining so bloody a combat, which does honour to our arms, and exhibits their dis- cipline. TAYLOR. 7i Accept the assurances of ray consideratiou and great regard. God and Liberty ! Head-Quarters, Palo Axto, in sight of the enemy, May 8, 1846. MARIANO ARISTA. Most Excellent Sir, ) Minister of War and Marine. ) When the American army had formed its line of battle in front of the Mexicans on the 8th of May, Lieutenant J. E. Blake, of the topogTaphical engineers, mounted his horse and rode out within 150 yards of the enemy's lines to reconnoitre. He then dismounted, drew out his pocket glass very deliberately, and began to reconnoitre. On this being observed by the enemy, two of their officers rode out from the ranks to meet him, supposing that he sought a parley. Seeing this, Blake remounted his horse, rode deliberately dow^n the whole of the enemy's line, and then returning, gave General Taylor an accurate account of the enemyls force in infantry, artillery, and cavalry. This action called forth the un- qualified admiration of the thousands who witnessed it : and increased the regret occasioned by his subsequent loss. On the morning of the next day, this fine officer received a mortal wound from the accidental explosion of one of his pistols as he threw down his holsters. He died a few hours afterwards, expressing his regret that he had not fallen on the battle-field of Palo Alto. His remains were subsequently brought to the residence of his father in Philadelphia, and honoured with a public funeral of the most magnificent kind. A whole city mourned the loss of one of her noblest sons. One of the most romantic incidents of Resaca de la t'Z TAYLOll AND HIS GKNERALS. Palma, was Captain May's capture of the heroic Vega. The Mexicans had been dri\en from their guns by May's dragoons, and charged back with the bayonet to recover t}iem. May, with a handful of men, charged again, and the Mexicans fell back. He observed that one alone kept his ground, and tried to rally the others. Failing in this, he seized a match, intending to discharge one of the cannon, when May ordered him to surrender. He touched his breast, and said '< General La Vega is a prison- er," and gave up his sword. The incidents which fol- lowed, are thus described by a correspondent of the Baltimore Republican : t' I have seen it stated, in some of the late papers, that General Vega was delivered to General Taylor on the battle-field by Colonel Twiggs. This is an error — cer- tainly of no consequence after his capture by the gallant May ; but as ever}1:hing connected with the treatment of this distinguished prisoner on the field, must be more or less interesting, I beg leave to correct the error, and to state what befell the gallant general, after he was con- ducted to Colonel Twiggs, by order of Captain May. " The artillery battalion (a regiment of foot) was sta tioned on the 9th at the outset of the chapparal, and was there formed 'in square.' This battalion, which had suffered the day before more than any other, except the 8th infantry, was placed in this position for these reasons : to protect the train against a charge of the enemy's cav- alry, to repair any disaster which might occur in the ordnance, and to afford fresh troops for the pursuit, when the battle was gained. '' Colonel Twiggs sent tor Colonel Childs, who com- ^najjided it, and turned the prisoner over to him ; but Childsj ii.aying dismounted (General Vega was on foot), TAYLOR. 73 sent an order to his battalion, that the prisoner should be received with the honour due his rank. As soon as the prisoner issued from the chapparal, the words < Pre- sent Arms' were given. The square < presented arms' in perfect silence, and, as he approached, not a smile of gratification, or a word of exultation, was seen or heard ; (so much for the delicacy of the common soldier, who had, perhaps, the day before, lost his nearest friend by the enemy's cannon-shot.) General Vega seemed sur- prised at the salute, courteously and slowly raised his hat, and the square was brought to a shoulder. " Colonel Childs then called from his position Captain Magruder, w^ho commanded one of the companies of the square. Captain Magruder had know^n General Vega before, and immediately insisted upon his mounting his (Captain M.'s) horse. No sooner was this done, than it became necessary for the battalion to move on, and Cap- tain Magruder was ordered by Colonel Childs to escort the prisoner, in security ^ with a small command, to General Taylor. Fortunately no rescue was attempted, as his command w^as very small, and tlie order was promptly executed, w^hen General Vega was introduced on the field, by Captain Magruder, to General Taylor. General Taylor shook him warmly by the hand, and ad- dressed to him the following handsome remarks : " ' General : I do assure you, I deeply regret that this misfortune has fallen upon you. I regret it sincerely, and I take great pleasure in returning you the sword which you have this day worn with so much gallantry,' handing him, at the same time, the sword which General Vega had yielded to Captain May. General Vega made a suitable reply in Spanish, and was then taken charge of by Colonel Twiggs, at the colonel's own request, and 74 TAVLOB AND HIS GF.NERALS. entertained by him in the most hospitable manner, in his own tent, until his departure for New Orleans. <'One must record and admire so much courtesy and gentleness, united, in a most sanguinar}' field, with so much devotion and courage." CHAPTER V. Taylor's humanity — Exchange of prisoners — Our army crosses the Rio Grande — Capture of Matamoras. On the morning after the battle of Resaca de la Palma, General Taylor, with his usual humanity, sent to Mata- moras for INIexican surgeons to attend their own wounded, and for men to bury their dead ; and the same day was occupied by the Americans in burying their dead. On the 11th of May an exchange of prisoners took place ; and General Taylor started for Point Isabel for the purpose of communicating with Commodore Conner, commanding the American squadron in the Gulf of Mexico, who had sailed to Brazos Santiago, in order to render aid to the general. The interview^ is thus hu- morously described by Mr. Thorpe, in his book entitled " Our Army on the Rio Grande," which we would remark, in passing, is by far the most accurate, full, and entertaining account of the early operations of the Army of Occupation, which has yet appeared. " The singular simplicity that marks General Taylor's personal appearance and habits, has become a subject of universal fame. It is curious that a soldier, so emi- nent in all the qualities of discipline, should be so citizen-looking in his own appearance. Commodore Conner, on the contraiy, is an officer that is not only strict in his dress, but has an extra nicety about it. He appears in full and si)lendid uniform on all public occa- 76 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. sions, being the exact contrast, in this particular, of General Taylor. "At the proper time. Commodore Conner sent word to General Taylor, that he would come on shore to pay him a visit of ceremony. This put old ' Rough and Ready' into a tremendous excitement. If Commodore Conner had quietly come up to his tent, and given him a sailor's grip, and sat down on a camp-chest, and talked over matters in an old-fashioned way. General Taylor would have been prepared; but, to have the most carefully- dressed officer in our navy, commanding the finest fleet, come in full uniform, surrounded by all the glittering pomp of splendid equipments — to pay a visit of ceremony, was more than General Taylor had, without some effort, nerve to go through with ; but, ever equal to the emergencies, he determined to compliment Commodore Conner, and through him the navy, hy ap- pearing in full uniform, a thing his officers, associated with him for years, had never witnessed. " In the meanwhile. Commodore Conner was cogita- tino- over the most proper way to compliment General Taylor. Having heard of his peculiar disregard of mili- tary dress, he concluded he would make the visit in a manner comporting to General Taylor's habits, and con- sequently equipped himself in plain white drilling, and, unattended, came ashore. i'The moment General Taylor heard tliat Commodore Conner had landed, he abandoned some heavy work he was personally attending to about the camp, and precipi- tately rushed into his tent, delved at the bottom of an old chest, and pulled out a uniform coat, that had peace- fully slumbered for years in undisturbed quietude, slipped himself into it, in his haste fastening it so that one side of the standing collar was three button-holes above the TAYLOR. 7?7: other, and sat himself down as uncomfortable as can well be imagined. With quiet step, and unattended, Commodore Conner presented himself at General Tay- lor's tent. The noble representatives of the army and navy shook hands, both in exceeding astonishment at each other's personal appearance. <-(- The wags of the army say, diat the above contains the only authentic account of General Taylor's ever being ' headed,' and that since that time, he has taken to linen roundabouts, of die largest dimensions, with more pertinacity than ever." The following despatch contains General Taylor's own account of his movements on the 12th. Head-Quarters, Army of Occupation, Point Isabel, Texas, May 12, 1846. Sir : I am making a hasty visit to this place, for the purpose of having an interview with Commodore Con- ner, whose squadron is now at anchor off the harbour, and arranging with him a combined movement up the river. I avail myself of the brief time at my command to report that the main body of the army is now occupying its former position opposite Mata moras. The Mexican forces are almost disorganized, and I shall lose no time in investing Matamoras, and opening the navigation of the river. I regret to report that Major Ringgold died the morning of the 11th instant, of the severe wound re- ceived in the action of Palo Alto. With the exception of Captain Page, whose w^ound is dangerous, the other wounded officers are doing well. In my report of the second engagement, I accidentally omitted the name of Lieutenant Dobbins, 3d infantry, among the officers slightly wounded, and desire that the omission may be 78 TAYLOR AXU HIS (;l:^:^.^^ALS. supplied in the despatch itself. I am under the painful necessity of reporting that Lieutenant Blake, Topogra- phical Ensjineers, after rendering distinguished service in my staff during the affair of the Sth instant, acci- dentally shot himself with a pistol on the follo\ving day, and expired before night. It has been quite impossible as yet to furnish detailed reports of our engagements with the enemy, or even accurate returns of the killed and wounded. Our loss is not far from three officers and forty men killed, and thirteen officers and one hundred men wounded ; while that of the enemy has in all probability exceeded three hundred killed ; more than two hundred have been buried by us on the two fields of battle. I have exchanged a sufficient number of prisoners to recover the command of Captain Thornton. The wounded prisoners have been sent to Matamoras — the wounded officers on their parole. General Vega and a few other officers have been sent to New Orleans, having declined a parole, and will be reported to Major- General Gaines. I am not conversant with the usages of war in such cases, and beg that such provision may be made for these prisoners as may be authorized by law. Our own prisoners have been treated with great kindness by the Mexican officers. I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, Z. TAYLOR, Brevet Brig. Gen. U. S. .i., Commanding. The Adjutant-Gkneral of the Array, ) Washin;:,noa; D. C. t The loth and 14th of May were spent by General Taylor in organizing and despatching a force to capture Barita, a town near the mouth of the Rio Grande, on the Mexican hide, where the enemy was said to be con- TAYLVR. 79 centrating the remains of his shattered and vanquished army. Commodore Conner ordered a part of his fleet to co-operate, and the place was quietly taken on the loth, the inhabitants fleeing on the approach of the Americans. The next operation was the capture of Matamoras. Everything was ready for an attack on the town on the evening of the 16th. On the morning of the 17th, about sunrise. Gene- ral Ampudia gave the signal that he wished a parley with General Taylor. He sent over to the camp a person, and requested of General Taylor the granting of an armistice. To this General Taylor replied, " Sir, the time for asking an armistice is past ; you should have thought of this before ; it is now too late to think of such a thijig." General Ampudia then desired a suspension of hostilities. This, also. General Taylor positively refused. He had brought out all his cannon to the front, and was determined they should render some service, at the same time pointing to the cannon and its position. General Ampudia then asked General Taylor if in surrendering the town he would be allowed to ex- cept the government property. General Taylor replied " No," and that he intended to take the tow^n at 8 A. M. the next day. Ampudia then retired, and General Taylor marched his forces up to Fort Brown, and at daylight commenced crossing the river. No resistance was offered by the Mexicans on the bank of the river, and it is said many of them assisted in landing the boats. One officer, a lieutenant, was drowned in crossing the river. After crossing they w^ere met by a number of Mexican officers, who desired to know of General Taylor if they could retain the government property. General Taylor re- 80 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. plied " that he wanted all the town." The American forces then marched into the place, and Adjutant Bliss rode up to the fort, and sounding the parley, demanded the surrender of the town. He was asked if the government property would be excepted. He replied " that nothing could be retained, all must be sur- rendered." The Mexican flag was immediately hauled down, and the star-spangled banner was run up in its stead. The citizens joined loudly in the cheering of the army. A sufficient force was then placed in the fort, and the army, after moving through the town, drew off and en- camped in the vicinity. Not a gun was fired. On arriving at the cit}^, it was discovered that Arista had departed with his forces, leaving only the mounted battery ; all the mortars, and such of the military appa- ratus as could not be removed in their haste to escape, were thrown into the wells. A party from our army w^ent out to reconnoitre immediately after the entrance into Matamoras, and overtook a portion of the Mexi- cans, who were retreating, twenty-two of whom were made prisoners. Arista retreated to Reynosa, where he encamped, wait- ing a reinforcement from Paredes. General Taylor, like a true American officer, gave orders to his army not to take the slightest article with- out paying for its actual value. The citizens of Mata- moras were permitted to go on with their business as usual, with the exception of selling liquors. CHAPTER VI. Siege and capture of Monterey. The following letter from an American at Point Isabel, dated May 26th, 1846, gives a graphic account of the state of affairs which immediately followed the capture of Matamoras : " I arrived here yesterday morning, on the steamer Florida, after a passage of eight days, and find that the news of the taking of Matamoras was carried from here a week ago. There is nothing occurring here now of stir- rino" interest, the fiorhtino: havinsf ceased, for some weeks to come at least, and I am inclined to think that there w'ill be no more of it on the Rio Grande. Our army must seek the enemy in their own country if they desire to meet them in any considerable bodies. Ampudia's defeat on the 8th and 9th, has ruined the Mexican army now in the north. They have lost everjthing, mules, pack-saddles, ammunition, arms, and men enough to strike terror to their hearts. Port Polk, as this point is now called, is a complete museum at the present moment, with its Mexican booty — Mexican prisoners, mules, lances, saddles curiously wrought, leather pack-saddles, huge saddle-bags, muskets, drums, ordnance, copper cannon-balls, grape-shot, letters and all kinds of docu- ments picked up on the ground where Ampudia was encamped. One of the officers, who was in the two engagements, says that the supper which the Mexicans had in their confidence prepared for themselves, and S2 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. which they were obliged so suddenly to abandon, afforded a rich repast to our tired and hungry officers and men. He pronounces their liquors, chocolate, soups, roast beef, &c., to have been first rate. Ampudia's plate, which was valuable, was promptly returned to him. Most of the wounded have been sent to Corpus Christi, but there are still enough here to represent most painfully the sad results of war. Captain Page, whose under jaw was completely shot away, is in a fair way of recovering. Captain Hooe is walking about with the stump of his right arm dangling by his side, and appears to be in excellent humour. Colonel Mcintosh, who was badly wounded, was stretched out yesterday in a IMexican wagon, trying to read. He was stabbed in the throat, or rather down the throat, in the neck, and in other parts of the body, and was repeatedly knocked down in the fight. Lieutenant Maclay, who was wounded in the action of the 9th, is here, with an awfully sore shin, across which a Mexican grape-shot passed, shaving a leetle closer than was safe, as it carried with it a slice of bone and sinew. Instances of individual heroism occurred at those two engagements which would have immortalized a Spartan. <' Volunteers are gathering here in crowds. Yesterday the Ondiaka, Mary Kingsland, Florida, and Orleans, arrived with troops from New Orleans. A company of Texan rangers came down to Padre Island, and were crossing over last eveniuGf. Some are encamped near the fort, on the prairie, and six companies of Louisiana volunteers are encamped on the Point, 3^ miles distant, at the bar. I had the pleasure, yesterday, of meetino^ General Memucan Hunt, of the Texan volun- teers. The general looks well, and is anxious to be on the field. His men are hardy-looking fellows. All they pray for is to be })ermitted to go out through the interior, TAYl-OR. 83 as our army marches on towards Mexico, and to take such towns as they can reach. Their knowledge of the country, their hardihood, and experience in fighting Mexicans, fit them pecuUarlyfor such service. " There are more than twenty vessels lying here, inside and outside of the bar — one frigate of war, and the balance transports and trading-vessels. The Florida drew less than seven feet, and bumped heavily on the bar, as she came over yesterday morning. The sutlers put the screws to the poor soldiers here at a cruel rate, in the way of charges. It is really outrageous, and should be looked to by those in power." General Taylor, although now^ in possession of Mata- moras, found himself in no condition to advance further into the enemy's country. He was deficient not only in troops, but in supplies and the means of transportation. It became necessary, therefore, for him to remain at this post through the greater part of the summer, waiting for the necessary means of prosecuting the invasion. The Mexican inhabitants of Mataraoras, though at first rather shy of the Americans, soon became familiarized with them, and readily furnished provisions, taking care to be very liberally paid for them. Assassinations of strag- glers from the camp occasionally took place ; but on the whole the inhabitants seemed cheerfully to acquiesce in the altered state of affairs. In the beginning of June General Taylor's force did not exceed 9000 men, including 750 stationed at Barita, and 500 at Point Isabel. Reinforcements were coming in slowly from the different states of the union, and, al- though he was anticipating the arrival of a sufficient force to warrant his advance towards Monterey, where the enemy was concentrating his forces, neither men nor 84 TAYLOR AND HIS GKNKRALS. steamboats had yet arrived sufficient to enable him even to fix the time of his departure. In the meantime the Mexicans were not only dis- couraged by defeat, but distracted by internal dissensions. Paredes, the president of the republic, was reported to have superseded his defeated generals and assumed the command ; but his authority was defied by Arista, who was organizing one of thosti insurrections which are so frequent in the political history of Mexico. The election of the 16th of June, however, resulted in the choice of Paredes as president, and General Bravo, the gover- nor of Vera Cruz, as vice president. By the military arrangements which followed this re- organization of the government. General Arevalo was sent to Monterey, and Bravo to Mexico, while Mejia was placed in the command of the northern army, and Ampudia was ordered to San Luis Potosi. Monterey, being considered the most probable scene of General Taylor's next operations, was strongly fortified and fur- nished with provisions and munitions of war. Before the end of June General Taylor w^as strongly rein- forced by the arrival of numerous bodies of fresh volunteers from various parts of the union ; but his means of transpor- tation were still deficient. A very intelligent writer says, " Had General Taylor received the number of volunteers he called for in the first instance, with a sufficiency of steamers with which to move them and their subsistence, it is thought by those best acquainted that the 4th of July would have been celebrated in M.onterey instead of Matamoras. The Mexicans certainly could not have recovered from the panic with which they started from Resaca de la Palma in season to make a formidable stand this side the mountains, so that Monterey could have been taken without firing a gun. It is too late now. A TAYLOR. 85 tardiness in forwarding steamers has deprived the com- manding general of a most glorious opportunity of occu- pying one of the strongest holds of the enemy." On the other hand, the secretary of war, in his annual report, thus apologizes for the apparent neglect of the government to follow up the brilliant successes of General Taylor by prompt and adequate support : " Owing to the great difficulty in providing the means of transporting supplies for so large a force as that con- centrated on the Rio Grande ; to the necessity of draw- ing all those supplies from the United States — the enemy's country being destitute of them ; to the unusual freshets which retarded the progress of boats on the river, and to the impracticability of the land route for wagons at that time, arrangements for the movement upon Monterey from Matamoras, by the way of Camargo, the route selected by the commanding general, w^ere not completed until the latter part of August, when a column, consisting of about 6000 regular and volunteer troops, commenced a«forward movement by brigade upon Seralvo, and thence upon Monterey, before which place it arrived on the 19th of September." In the meantime Captain McCuUoch with the Texan rangers had seized and occupied the Mexican ports of Reynosa, Camargo, and Mier, without resistance on the part of the enemy. It was not until the oth of August, nearly three months after the battle of Resaca de la Palma, that General Taylor was able to take up his hne of march from Matamoras for Camargo. On arriving at that place. General Worth was detached to San Juan, while Captain Wall occupied Reynosa, and General Twno;o;s had been left in command of Matamo- ras. Towards the end of August, General Worth was ordered to advance to vSeralvo and there to await further 86 TWLOK AND IllS GKNKRALS. orders. From this port he sent advices to General Taylor on the oth of September, that Monterey had just been reinforced by the arrival of 3000 men under General Ampudia, thus increasing the garrison to 4000. This important information determined General Tay- lor to advance immediately and attack Monterey. He accordingly took up his line of march towards Seralvo on the 7th, leaving General Patterson in command of all the forces stationed between Camargo and Matamoras. Disencumbering his troops of all unnecessary baggage, and sending forward his supplies on pack-mules to Seralvo, Taylor now hastened eagerly on to the next scene in his grand drama. On his arrival at Seralvo, instead of waiting for further reinforcements or fresh orders before attacking so formidable a fort with so light a force, he pushed forward for Monterey with his main body, consisting of but Httle more than 6000 men. Signs of opposition now began to appear. Skirmish- ing parties made some slight demonstrations at Ramas, but were easily swept aside ; and deserters from the enemy spoke of formidable preparations in the city which the army was so rapidly approaching. Still there was no faltering. Every oiBcer and man was eager to hear the first roar of the enemy's cannon. Three months of inaction had rendered them eager for the coming contest. On the morning of the 19th of September, the army encamped at the " Walnut Springs," within three miles of the city of Monterey. Here they could survey the prospect before them — Monterey seated in a beautiful valley, bosomed among lofty and imposing mountains on the north, east, and south, and open to a plain on the TAYLOR. 87 east, Ibrtified with thick stone walls in the old Spanish fashion of another century, with all the apparatus of ditches and bastions, and lowering upon them with deep- mouthed cannon. From their elevated position the Americans could see hi part what they had already learnt from spies and deserters, that the flat-roofed stone houses of the city itself, had been converted into fortifi- cations. Every street was barricaded, and every house- top was bristling with musketry. On one side the Americans could see the Bishop's Palace, a strong fort well fortified ; on the other, redoubts well manned; and in the rear of all, a river. Such was the city which was destined after three days of desperate fighting, to sur- render its garrison of 10,000 men, its castles, redoubts, ' cannon and munitions of war, to an American army of 7000 men, inspirited by the guiding genius of Taylor. General Taylor's despatches always afford the clearest possible coup d^cptl of the ground plan of his operations. We shall therefore commence our notice of this siege in his own words ; and then give the official reports of his officers, following up these documents by the personal narrative of an eye-witness, whose details of individual feeling, and deeds of personal prowess, will serve to fill up and colour the outline contained in the official des- patches. T GENERAL TAYLOR'S DESPATCH. Head-Quarters, Army of Occupation, ) Camp near Monterey. Oct. 9thA8A6. \ Sir: I have now the honour to submit a detailed report of the recent, operations before Monterey, re- sulting in the capitulation of that city. The information received on the route from Seralvo, and particularly the continual appearance in our front of the Mexican cavalry, which had a sliglit skirmish 88 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. with our advance at the village of Ramas, induced the heliefj as we approached jMonterey, that the enemy would defend that place. Upon reaching the neigh- bourhood of the city on the morning of the 19ih of Sep- tember, this belief was fully confirmed. It was ascer- tained that he occupied the town in force ; that a large work had been constructed commanding all the northern approaches ; and that the Bishop's Palace, and some heights in its vicinity near the Saltillo road, had also been fortified, and occupied with troops and artiller}-. It was known, from information previously received, that the eastern approaches were commanded by several' small works in the lower edge of the city. The configuration "of the heights and gorges in the direction of the Saltillo road, as visible from the point • attained by our advance on the morning of the 19th, led )ae to suspect that it was practicable to turn all the works in that direction, and thus cut oiT the enemy's line of communication. After establishing my camp at ihe '' Walnut Springs," three miles from Monterey, the nearest suitable position, it was, accordingly, my first care to order a close reconnoissance of the ground in tijuestion, which was executed on the evening of the 19th, by the engineer oflficers under the direction of Major Mansfield. A reconnoissance of the eastern ap- proaches was at the same time made by Captain Wil- liams, Topographical Engineers. The examination made by Major IMansfield proved the entire practicability of llirowing forward a column to the Saltillo road, and thus turning the position of the enemy. Deeming this to be an operation of essential importance, orders were given to Brevet-Brigadier General Worth, commanding the second division, to march with his command on the SOth ; to turn the hill of the Bisho])'s Palace: to occupy TAYLOR. 89 a position on the Saltillo road, and to carry the enemy's detached works in that quarter, where practicable. The first regiment of Texas mounted volunteers, under com- mand of Colonel Hays, was associated with the second division on this service. Captain Sanders, Engineers, ;ind Lieutenant Meade, Topographical Engineers, were also ordered to report to General Wortli for duty with his column. At two o'clock P. M. on the 20th, the 2d division took up its march. It was soon discovered, by officers who were reconnoitering the town, and communicated to General Worth, that its movement had been perceived, ;md that the enemy was throwing reinforcements towards the Bishop's Palace, and the height which commands it. To divert his attention as far as practicable, the first division, under Brigadier-General Twiggs, and field division of volunteers, under Major-General Butler, were displayed in front of the town until dark. Ar- rangements were made at the same time to place in battery, during the night, at a suitable distance from the enemy's main work, the citadel, two 24-pounder howit- zers, and a 10-inch mortar, with a view to open a fire on the following day, when I proposed to make a diver- sion in favour of General Worth's movement. The 4th infantry covered this battery during the night. General Worth had in the meantime reached and occupied, for the night, a defensive position just without range of a battery above the Bishop's Palace, having made a re- connoissance as far as the Saltillo road. Before proceeding to report the operations of the 21st and the following days, I beg leave to state that I shall mention in detail only those which were conducted against the eastern extremity of the city, or elsewhere, under my immediate direction, referring you for the 90 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. particulars of General Worth's operations, which were entirely detached, to his own full report transmitted herewith. Early on the morning of the 21st, I received a note from General Worth, written at half past nine o'clock the night before, suggesting what I had already intended, a strons: diversion against the centre and left of the town, to favour his enterprise against the heights in rear. The infantry and artillery of the 1st division, and the field division of volunteers, were ordered under arms, and took the direction of the city, leaving one company of each regiment as a camp guard. The 2d dragoons, under Lieutenant-Colonel May, and Colonel Woods' regiment of Texas mounted volunteers, under the imme- diate direction of General Henderson, w^ere directed to the ri2;ht to support General Worth, if necessary, and to make an impression, if practicable, upon the upper quarter of the city. Upon approaching the mortar battery, the 1st and 3d re2;iments of infantry, and battalion of Baltimore and Washington volunteers, with Captain Bragg's field battery — the wiiole under the command of Lieutenant- Colonel Garland — were directed towards the low^r part of the town, with orders to make a strong demonstra- tion, and carry one of the enemy's advanced works, if it could be done without too heavy loss. Major Mans- field, Engineers, and Captain Williams and Lieutenant Pope, Topographical Engineers, accompanied this col- umn, Major Mansfield being charged with its direction, and the designation of points of attack. In the meantime, the mortar, served by Captain Ram- say, of the ordnance, and the howitzer battery under (Daptain Webster, 1st artiller}', had opened their fire upon the citadel, w^hich was deliberately sustained, and an- swered from the work. General Butler's division had TAYLOR. 91 now taken up a position in rear of this battery, when the discharges of artillery, mingled finally with a rapid fire of small arms, showed that Lieutenant Garland's com- mand had become warmly engaged. I now deemed it necessary to support this attack, and accordingly ordered the 4th infantry, and three regiments of General Butler's division, to march at once, by the left flank, in the direc- tion of the advanced work at the lower extremity of the town, leaving one regiment (1st Kentucky) to cover the mortar and howitzer battery. By some mistake, two companies of the 4th infantry did not receive this order, and, consecpiently, did not join the advance companies until some time afterwards. Lieutenant-Colonel Garland's command had approach- ed the town in a direction to the right of the advanced v;ork (No. 1,) at the north-eastern angle of the city, and the engineer officer, covered by skirmishers, had suc- ceeded in entering the suburbs and gaining cover. The remainder of this command now advanced and en- tered the town under a heavy fire of artillery from the citadel and the works on the left, and of musketry from the houses and small works in front. A movement to the right was attempted, with a view to gain the rear of No. 1, and carry that work, but the troops were so much exposed to a fire which they could not effectually return, and had already sustained such severe loss, particularly in officers, that it was deemed best to withdraw them to a more secure position. Captain Backus, 1st infantry, however, with a portion of his own and other companies, had gained the roof of a tannery, which looked directly into the gorge of No. 1, and from which he poured a most destructive fire into that work and upon the strong building in its rear. This fire happily coincided in point of time with the advance of a portion of the volunteer 9- TAVl-OR AM) HIS Ci IlNliR AI.S. division upon No. 1, and conlribuled largely to the fall of that strong and important work. The three regiments of the volunteer division, under the immediate command of Major- General Butler, had in the meantime advanced in the direction of No. 1. The leading brigade, under J^rigadier-General Quitman, continued its advance upon that work, preceded by three companies of the 4th infantry, while General Butler, with the 1st Ohio regiment, entered the town to the right. The companies of the 4th infantry had advanced within short range of the work, when they were received by a fire that almost in one moment struck down one-third of the officers and men, and rendered it necessary to retire and effect a conjunction with the two other companies then advancing. General Quitman's brigade, though suffering most severely, particularly in the Tennessee regiment, continued its advance, and finally carried the work in handsome style, as well as the strong building in its rear. Five pieces of artillery, a considerable sup- ply of ammunition, and thirty prisoners, including three officers, fell into om* hands. Major-General Butler, with the 1st Ohio regiment, after entering the edge of the town, discovered that no- thing was to be accomplished in his front, and at this point, yielding to the suggestions of several officers, I ordered a retrogade movement ; but learning almost im- mediately from one of my staff that the battery No. 1 was in our possession, the order was countermanded, and I determined to hold the battery and defences al- ready gained. General Butler, with the 1st Ohio regi- ment, then entered the town at a point further to the lef[, and marched in the direction of the battery No. 2. While making an examination with a view to ascer- tain the possibility of carrying this second work by f storm, the general was wounded and soon after com- pelled to quit the field. As the strength of No. 2, and the heavy musketry fire flanking the approach, ren dered it impossible to carry it without great loss, the 1st Ohio regiment was withdrawn from the town. Fragments of the various regiments engaged were now under cover of the captured battery and some build- ings in its front, and on the right. The field battery ot Captains Bragg and Ridgely w^as also partially covered by the battery. An incessant fire was kept on this posi- tion from battery No. 2, and other w'orks on its right, and from the citadel on all our approaches. General Twiggs, though quite unwell, joined me at this point, and was instrumental in causing the artillery captured from the enemy to be placed in battery, and served by Captain Ridgely, against No. 2, until the arrival of Captain Webster's howitzer battery, which took its place. In the meantime, I directed such men as could be collected of the 1st, 3d, and 4th regiments and Balti- more battalion, to enter the town, penetrating to the right, and carry the 2d battery if possible. This com- mand, under Lieutenant-Colonel Garland, advanced be- yond the bridge " Purisima," when, finding it impracti- cable to gain the rear of the 2d battery, a portion of it sustained themselves for some time in that advanced position ; but as no permanent impression could be made at that point, and the main object of the general opera- tion had been effected, the command, including a section of Captain Ridgely's battery, which had joined it, was withdrawn to battery No. 1. During the absence of this column, a demonstration of cavalry was reported in the direction of the citadel. Captain Bragg, who was at hand, immefliately galloped with his battery to a suitable position, from which a few discharges effectually 94 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. dispersed the enemy. Captain Miller,. 1st infantry, was despatched with a mixed command to support the bat- tery on this service. The enemy's lancers had pre- viously charged upon the Ohio and a part of the Mis- sissippi regiments, near some fields at a distance from tlie edge of the town, and had been repulsed with con- siderable loss. A demonstration of cavalry on the oppo- site side of the river was also dispersed in the course of llie afternoon by Captain Ridgely's battery, and the squadrons returned to the city. At the approach of evening all the troops that had been engaged were or- dered back to the camp, except Captain Ridgely's bat- tery and the regular infantry oi" the 1st division, who were detailed as a guard for the works during the night, under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Garland. One battalion of tlie 1st Kentucky regiment was ordered to reinforce this command. Intrenching tools were pro- cured, and additional strength was given to the works, and protection to the men, by working-parties during the nigcht, under the direction of Lieutenant Scarritt, Engineers. The main object proposed in the morning had been effected. A powerful diversion had been made to favour the operations of the 2d division, one of the enemy's advanced works had been carried, and we now had a strong foot-hold in the town. But this had not been accomplished without a very heavy loss, embracing some of our most gallant and accomplished officers. Captain Williams, Topographical Engineers ; Lieutenants Terrell and Dilworth, 1st infantry ; Lieutenant Woods, 2d infantry; Captains Morris and Field, Brevet-Major Barbour, Lieutenants Irwin and Hazlitt, -Bd infantry ; Lieutenant Hoskins, 4th infantry ; Lieutenant-Colonel Watson, Baltimore battalion; Captain Allen and Lieu- TAYLOK. 95 tenant Putnam, Tennessee regiment, and Lieutenant Hett, Ohio regiment, were killed, or have since died of wounds received in this engagement, while the number and rank of the officers wounded gives additional proof of the obstinacy of the contest, and the good conduct of our troops. The number of killed and wounded inci- dent to the operations in the lower part of the city on the 21st is 394. Early in the morning of this day (21st), the advance of the 2d division had encountered the enemy in force, and after a brief but sharp conflict, repulsed him whh heavy loss. General Worth then succeeded in gaining a position on the Saltillo road, thus cutting the enemy's line of communication. From this position the two heights south of the Saltillo road were carried in succes- sion, and the guns taken in one -of them turned upon the Bishop's Palace. These important successes w^ere fortunately obtained with comparatively small loss : Captain McKavett, 8th infantry, being the only officer killed. The 22d day of September passed without any active operations in the lower part of the city. The citadel and otlier works continued to fire at parties exposed to their range, and at the work now occupied by our troops. The guard left in it the preceding night, except Captain Ridgely's company, was relieved at mid- day by General Quitman's brigade. Captain Bragg's battery was thrown under cover in front of the town, to repel any domonstration of cavalry in that quarter. At dawn of day the height above the Bishop's Palace was carried, and soon after meridian the Palace itself was taken, and its guns turned upon the fugitive garrison. The object for which the 2d division was detached had thus been completely accomplished, and I felt confident that with a 96 TAYLOR AND HIS GtNERALS. Strong force occupying the road and heights in his rear, and a good position below the city in our possession, the enemy could not possibly maintain the town. During the night of the 22d the enemy evacuated riearly all his defences in the lower part of the city. This was reported to me early in the morning of the 23dj by General Quitman, who had already meditated an assault upon those works. I immediately sent in- structions to that officer, leaving it to his discretion to enter the city, covering his men by the houses and walls, and advance carefully so far as he might deem prudent. After ordering the remainder of the troops as a re- serve, under the orders of Brigadier-General Twiggs, I repaired to the abandoned works, and discovered that a portion of General Quitman's brigade had entered the town, and w^ere successfully forcing their way towards the principal plaza. I then ordered up the 2(1 regiment of Texas mounted volunteers, who entered the city, dis- mounted, and, under the immediate orders of General Henderson, co-operated with General Quitman's bri- gade. Captain Bragg's battery was also ordered up, supported by the 3d infantry, and after firing for some time at the Cathedral, a portion of it was likewise thrown into the city. Our troops advanced from house to house, and from square to square, until they reached a street but one square in rear of the principal phzn, in and near which the enemy's force was mainly concen- trated. This advance was conducted vigorously, but with due caution, and although destructive to the enemy, was attended with but small loss on our part. Captain Ridijely, in the meantime, had served a captured piece in battery No. 1 against the city, until the advance of our men rendered it imprudent to fire in the direction of the Cathedral. I was now satisfied that we could ope- "^1' II .IW..' .//A^/l TAYLOR. 97 rate successfully in the city, and that the enemy had retired from the lower portion of it to make a stand be- hind his barricades. As General Quitman's brigade had been on duty the previous night, I determined to with- draw the troops to the evacuated works, and concert ^vith General Worth a combined attack upon the town. The troops accordingly fell back deliberately, in good order, and resumed their original positions. General Quitman's brigade being relieved after nightfall by that of General Hamer. On my return to camp, I met an officer with the intelligence that General Worth, induced by the firing in the lower part of the city, was about making an attack at the upper extremity, which had also been evacuated by the enemy to a considerable dis- tance. I regretted that this information had not reached me before leaving the city, but still deemed it inexpedient to change my orders, and accordingly returned to camp. A note from General W^orth, Avritten at 11 o'clock P. M., informed me that he had advanced to within a short distance of the principal plaza, and that the mortar (which had been sent to his division in the morning) was doing good execution within effective range of the enemy's position. Desiring to make no further attempt upon the city without complete concert as to the Unes and mode of approach, I instructed that officer to suspend his ad- vance until I could have an interview with him on the following morning, at his head-quarters. Early in the morning of the 24th I received, through Colonel Moreno, a communication from General Am- pudin, proposing to evacuate the town ; which, with the answer, were forwarded with my first despatch. I ar- ranged with Colonel Moreno a cessation of fire until twelve o'cloclc, at which hour I would receive the answer / 98 TAYLOR AND HIS GKNt'.KALS. of the Mexican general at General Worth's head-quar- ters, to which I soon repaired. In the meantime, Gene- ral Ampudia had signified to General Worth his desire for a personal interview with me, to which I acceiled, and which finally resulted in a capitulation, placing the town and the material of war, with certain exceptions, in our possession. A copy of that capitulation was transmitted with my first despatch. Upon occupying the city, it w-as discovered to be of oreat strength in itself, and to have its approaches care- fully and strongly fortified. The town and works were armed with forty-tw^o pieces of cannon, well supplied with ammunition, and manned with a force of at least 7000 troops of the line, and from 2000 to 3000 irregulars. The force under my orders before Monterey, as exhibited by the accompanying return, w^as 425 officers, and 6220 men. Our artillery consisted of one ten inch mortar, two twenty-four pounder howitzers, and four light field batteries of four guns each — the mortar being the only piece suitable to the operations of a siege. Our loss is twelve officers and 108 men killed ; thirty- one officers and 337 men wounded. That of the enemy is not known, but is believed considerably to exceed our ow^n. I take pleasure in bringing to the notice of the govern- ment the good conduct of the troops, both regulars and volunteers, w^hich has been conspicuous throughout the operations. I am proud to bear testimony to their cool- ness and constancy in battle, and the cheerfulness with which they have submitted to exposure and privation. To the general officers commanding divisions — Major- Generals Butler and Henderson, and Brigadier-Generals Twiggs and Worth — I must express my obligations for the efficient aid which they have rendered in their re- TAYLOR. 99 spective commands. I was unfortunately deprived, early on the 21st, of the valuable services of Major-General Butler, who was disabled by a wound received in the attack on the city. Major-General Henderson, com- manding the Texan volunteers, has given me important aid in the organization of his command, and its subse- quent operations. Brigadier-General Twiggs rendered important services with his division, and, as the second in command, after Major-General Butler, was disabled. Brigadier-General Worth was intrusted with an important detachment, which rendered his operations independent of my own. These operations were conducted with ability, and crowned with complete success. I desire also to notice Brigadier-Generals Hamer and Quitman, commanding brigades in General Butler's division. Lieutenant-Colonels Garland and Wilson, commanding brigades in General Twiggs's division ; Colonels Mitch- ell, Campbell, Davis, and W'ood, commanding the Ohio, Tennessee, Mississippi, and 2d Texas regiments, re- spectively ; and Majors Lear, Allen, and Abercrombie, commanding the 3d, 4th, and 1st regiments of infantry : all of whom served under my eye, and conducted their commands with coolness and gallantry' against the enemy. Colonel Mitchell, Lieutenant-Colonel M'Clung, Missis- sippi regiment, Major Lear, od infantry, and Major Alexan- der, Tennessee regiment, were all severely wounded, as were Captain Lamotte, 1st infantry, Lieutenant Graham, 4th infantry, Adjutant Armstrong, Ohio regiment, Lieutenants Scudder and Allen, Tennessee regiment, and Lieuteurint Howard, Mississippi regiment, while leading their men against the enemy's position on the21stan{123d. After the fall of Colonel Mitchell, the command of the 1st Ohio regiment devolved upon Lieutenant-Colonel Weller ; that of the 3(1 infantry, after the fall of Major Lear, 100 TAYLOR ASD HIS GLNEKALS. ilevolved in succession upon Captain Bainbriclge and Captain Henry, the former being also wounded. The following named officers have been favourably noticed by their commanders : Lieutenant-Colonel Anderson and Adjutant Heiman, Tennessee regiment ; Lieutenant- Colonel M'Clung, Captains Cooper and Downing; Lieutenants Batterson, Calhoun, Moore, Russel, and Cook, Mississippi regiments ; also Sergeant - Major Hearlan, Mississippi regiment ; and Major Price and Captain J. R. Smith, unattached, but serving with it. I beg leave also to call attention to the good conduct of Captain Johnson, Ohio regiment, and Lieutenant Hooker, 1st artillery, serving on the staff of General Hamer, and of Lieutenant Nichols, 2d artillery, on that of General Quitman. Captains Bragg and Ridgely served with their batteries during the operations under my own observation, and in part under my immediate orders, and exhibited distinguished skill and gallantry. Captain Web- ster, 1st artillery, assisted by Lieutenants Donaldson and Bowen, rendered good service with the howitzer battery, which was much exposed to the enemy's fire on the 2Jst. From the nature of the operations, the 2d dragoons were not brought into action, but were usefully employed, under the direction of Lieutenant-Colonel May, as escorts, and in keeping open our communications. The 1st Kentucky regiment was also prevented from par- ticipating in the action of the 21st, but rendered liighly important services, under Colonel Ormsby, in covering the mortar battery, and holding in check the enemy's cavalry during the day. I have noticed above, the officers whose conduct either fell directly under my own immediate eye, or is noticed only in minor reports which are not forwarded. For further mention of individuals, I beo; leave * "> refer TAYLOR. 101 to the reports of division commanders herewith respect- fully transmitted. I fully concur in their recommenda- tions, and desire that they may be considered as a part of my own report. From the officers of my personal staff' and of the engi- neers, topographical engineers, and ordnance, associated Avith me, I have derived valuable and efficient assistance during the operations. Colonel Whiting, assistant quar- termaster-general. Colonels Croghan and Belknap, in- spectors-general. Major Bliss, assistant adjutant-general, Captain Sibley, assistant quartermaster. Captain Wag- gaman, commissary of subsistence, Captain Eaton and and Lieutenant Garnett, aids-de-camp, and Majors Kirby and Van Buren, pay department, served near my person, and were ever prompt, in all situations, in the communication of my orders and instructions. I must express my particular obligations to Brevet-Major Mans- field and Lieutenant Scarritt, corps of engineers. They both rendered most important sei-vices in reconniotring the enemy's positions, conducting troops in attack, and strengthening the works captured from the enemy. Major Mansfield, though wounded on the 21st, remained on duty during that and the following day, until con- fined by his wound to camp. Captain Williams, Topo- graphical Engineers, to my gi'eat regret and the loss of the service, was mortally wounded while fearlessly ex- posing himself in the attack of the 21st. Lieutenant Pope, of the same corps, was active and zealous throughout the operations. Major Munroe, chief of the artillery, Major Craig, and Captain Ramsey, of the ord- nance, w^ere assiduous in the performance of their proper duties. The former superintended the mortar- servidfe on the 22d', as particularly mentioned in the report of General W^orth,to which I also refer for the 102 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. services of the engineers and topographical officers de- tached with the second division. Surgeon Craig, medical director, was actively em- ployed in the important duties of his department, and the medical staff generally were unremitting in their atten- tions to the numerous wounded — their duties with the reo-ular regiments being rendered uncommonly arduous by the small number serving in the field. I respectfully enclose herewith, in addition to the reports of division commanders, a field return of the force before Monterey on the 21st of September — a return of killed, wounded, and missing during the operations — and two topographical sketches — one exhibiting all the move- ments around Monterey — the other on a larger scale, illustrating more particularly the operations in the lower quarter of the city — prepared respectively by Lieutenants Mead and Pope, Topographical Engineers.* I am, sir, very respectfully. Your obedient servant, Z. TAYLOR, Major-General U. S. A., Commanding, The Adjutant-General of the Army, ) Washington, D. C. ) The operations of General Worth with his command on the opposite side of the city are detailed in the fol- lowing full report, from that able and distinguished officer : — GENERAL WORTH'S REPORT. Head-Quarters 2d Division Army of OccurATioN, ) Monterey. Mexico, September 28, 1846. ) Sir : I have the honour to report that, in obedience to the verbal orders of the general-in-chief, the division * The reports referred to in this despatch are superseded by the particular details which the general gives in the des- patch itself, and are therefore omitted. TAYLOR. 103 under my cominaud, composed of Lieutenant-Colonel Duncan's battery of horse artillery, artillery battalion, Lieutenant-Colonel Childs, and eighth regiment, Captain Scriver, constituting the first brigade, under Lieutenant- Colonel Staniford ; Lieutenant Mackall's battery, horse artillery, fifth infantry, (Major Scott ;) seventeenih, (Captain Miles ;) and one company Louisiana volun- teers, (Captain Blanchard ;) second brigade, under Brigadier-General Persifor F. Smith, (colonel of rifles,) and Colonel Hays's regiment of Texan mounted rifle- men, moved from the main camp at El Bosque de St. DomiiiQ'o at two o'clock P. M. on the 20th. My instructions were by a detour to the right, to endeavour to find and reach the Saltillo road, effect a thorough reconnoissance of the approaches to the city from that direction, to cut off' supplies and reinforce- ments, and, if practicable, carry the heights. Owing to the difficulties of the ground after leavmg the Mai'hi, and before striking the Presquina Grande road, the division had reached only six miles, in con sequence of the delay in making the route practicable for artillery, which service was performed by Captain Sanders, at six o'clock P. M., and was halted just without the range of a gun-battery on the summit of an isolated hill called Loma de Independenda, midway on the ascent of which was the Bishop's Palace. Thence a reconnoissance was made, under cover of detach- ments of Hays's Texans, to the intersection of the Pres- quina Grande route, then in our possession, with the Saltillo road. This examination resulted in the convic- tion that the grounds in our front and on our left, , in advance, constituted at the same time the weak and the strong points of the enemy's position, and entered mainly into the defences of the city — the weak pomt, 7 104 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. because commanding the only lines of retreat and of supply in the direction of Saltillo, and controlling that in the direction of Presquina Grande ; the strong point, because of the peculiai'ly defensive character of the hills and gorges, and of the very careful and skilful manner with which they had been fortified and guarded. It was also clearly indicated tliat our further advance would be strenuously resisted. On the morning of the 21st, the division was put in motion, and with such formation as to present the readiest order of battle, on any point of assault. At six, the advance, consisting of Hays's Texans, sup- ported by the light companies 1st brigade, under Cap- tain C. F. Smith (both extended, as the valley widened or contracted), closely followed by Duncan's light artillery and battalion, heads of columns, on turning an ande of the mountain at a hacienda called Safi Jero- nimo^ came upon a strong force of cavalry and infantr}^, mostly the former. A conflict immediately ensued. The Texans received the heavy charge of cavalry with their unerring rifles and usual gallantry ; the light com- panies opened a rapid and well directed fire ; Duncan's battery was in action in one minute (promptly supported by a section of Mackall's), delivering its fire over the heads of our men. Ere the close of the combat, which lasted but fifteen minutes, the first brigade had formed to the front, on the right and left, and delivered its fire. The second brigade was held in reserve, the ground not admitting of its deployment. The enemy retired in disorder (leaving on the ground 100 killed and wounded : among the former, Don Juan N. Najua, colonel of the permanent regiment of lancers) upon the Saltillo road, and was closely pursued, until we got possession of the gorge, where all the debouches from Monterey unite, TAYLOR. 105 whereby the force just dereated, as also reinforcements and supplies iirom that direction, were excluded from entering the city. At this important point the divi- sion was halted, and attention directed to the mountain forts which envelope the city on its western and south-western faces. Soon discovering, however, that our position brought us within effective range of the batteries, the troops were advanced some eight hundred yards further on the Saltillo road. The examination, thus far, had manifested, besides the importance of the positions, the impracticability of any effective operations against the city, until possessed of the exterior forts and batteries. Independent, how- ever, of ulterior objects, the occupation of these heights became indispensable to the restoration of our lines of communication with head-quarters, necessarily aban- doned for the moment in order to secure the gorges of the Saltillo road. At twelve M., a force w^as detached under Captain C. F. Smith, with orders to storm the batteries on the crest of the nearest hill, called Federa- cion, and after taking that to carry the fort called Sol- dada, on the ridge of the same height, retired about 600 yards. The two effectually guarded the slopes and roads in either valley, and consequently the approaches to the city. This command consisted of four companies (K 2d, B 3d, and G and H 4th artillery,) of the artillery battalion, and Green's, McGowan's, R. A. Gillespie's, Chandler's, Ballone's, and PvIcCulloch's companies of Texan riflemen, under Major Chevalier, acting in co- operation — in all about 300 effectives. It was impos- sible to mask the movement of the storming party. On approaching the base of the mountain, the guns of both batteries opened a plunging fire, and numerous light troops were seen descending and arranging themselves 106 TAYLOR ASD HIS GENERALS. at favourable points on the slopes. Perceiving tlie indications of determined resistance, Captain Miles was detached from the 7th, to support and co-operate with the first party. In a short time the fire became general, the enemy gradually yielding and retiring up the rugged acclivity, and our men as steadily pursuing. The appearance of heavy reinforcements on the summit, and the cardinal importance of the operation demanding further support, the 5th under Major Scott, and Blanchard's companies of volunteers were immediately detached, accompanied by Brigadier-General Smith, who was instructed to take direction in that quarter. On reaching the advance parties, General Smith discovered that under favour of the ground, he could, by directing a portion of the force to the right, and moving it obliquely up the hill, carr}'- the Soldada simuhaneously with the Federacion. He accordingly very judiciously pointed and accompanied the 5th, 7th, and Blanchard's company in that direction. Captain Smith's command having most gallantly carried the first object of attack, promptly turned the captured gun — a nine-pounder — upon the second, and moved on with his main body to participate in the assault on Soldada, which was carried in gallant style by the forces under Scott, Miles, Blanchard, and Hays (who had been detached on special service, but who returned in time to share with fifty of his men in the first assault, and to take a prominent part in the second), the whole directed by General Smith. At this point we secured another nine-pounder, and immediately botli pieces were brought to bear upon the Bishop's Palace, situated upon and midway the southern slope of the hill Independencia, a valley of only six hundred yards intervening. We had now secured an TAYf.oU. 107 important advantage, and yet but half the work was done. The possession of these heights only made the more apparent the controlling importance of those opposite, and the necessity of occupying the palace. A violent storm ensued, and night closing in, operations for the day ceased. The troops had now been thirty-six hours without food and constantly tasked to the utmost physical exertions. Such as could be permitted slept with arms in hand, subjected to a pelting storm, and without covering till three A. M., w^hen they were aroused to carry the hill Independencia. Lieutenant-Colonel Childs was assigned to lead the storming paity, consisting of three companies, I and G, (fourth), and A, (third artillery battalion ;) three compa- nies 8th infantry, (A, B, and D, under Captain Scriven, with two hundred Texan riflemen, under Colonel Hays and Lieutenant-Colonel Walker (captain of rifles), act- ing in co-operation. The command moved at three, conducted to its point of ascent by Captain Sanders, military, and Lieutenant Meade, topographical engineers. Favoured by the weather, it reached by the dawn of day within about one hundred yards of the crest, in which position, among the clefts of rocks, a body of the enemy had been stationed the previous evening in apparent anticipation of the attack. The enemy's retreating fire was ineffectual, and not returned until Colonels Childs and Hays's command had reached to w^ithin a few yards of the summit, when a well directed and destructive fire, followed by the bayonet of the regulars and rush of the Texans, placed us in possession of the work ; the cannon having been previously withdrawn, no impression could be made upon the massive walls of the palace or its outworks, without artillery, except at enormous sacrifice. Lieutenant Rowland, of Duncan's battery, was ordered 108 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. from the main rank with a twelve-pound howitzer, and in two hours (aided by fifty men from the Kne, under Captain Sanders, mihtaiy engineer, for the purpose of selecting the route least difficult) that enterprising and gallant officer had his guns in position, having ascended an acclivity as rugged as steep, between seven and eight hundred feet in two hours. A fire was immediately opened from the howitzer, covered by the epaulement of the captured battery, upon the palace and its outworks, four hundred yards distant, and soon produced a visible sensation. Meanwhile, to reinforce the position, the fifth, Major Scott and Blanchard's volunteers, had been passed from the first heights, and reached the second in time to participate in the operations against the palace. After many affairs of light troops and several feints, a heavy sortie w^as made, sustained by a strong corps of cavalry, with desperate resolution, to repossess the heights. Such a move had been anticipated and pre- pared for. Lieutenant-Colonel Childs had advanced, under cover, two companies of hght troops under the command of Captain Vinton, acting major, and judi- ciously drawn up the main body of his command, flanked on the right by Hays, and left by Walker's Texans. The enemy advanced boldly, was repulsed by one general discharge from all arms, fled in confusion, closely pressed by Childs and Hays, preceded by the light troops under Vinton ; and while they fled past, our troops entered the palace and fort. In a few moments the unpretending flag of our union had replaced the gaudy standard of Mexico. The captured guns — one six-inch howitzer, one twelve, and two nine-pounder brass guns, together with Duncan's and Mackall's field- batteries, which came up at a gallop, were in full and effect i^■e play upon the retiring^ and confused masses TAYLOR. 109 that filled the street (of which we had the prolongation), leading to the nearest plaza, La Capella, also crow^ded with troops. At this moment the enemy's loss was heavy. The investment was now complete. Except the forces necessar}' to hold the positions on Independencia and serve the guns (shifted to points where the shot could be made to reach the great plaza), the division was now concentrated around the palace, and prepara- tion made to assault the city on the following day, or sooner, should the general-in-chief either so direct, or, before communication be had, renew the assault from the opposite quarter. In die meantime attention was directed to every provision our circumstances permitted, to alleviate the condition of our wounded soldiers and officers ; to the decent interment of the dead, not omitting in either respect all that was due to those of the enemy. About ten A. M., on the 23d, a heavy fire was heard in the opposite quarter. Its magnitude and contin- uance, as well as other circumstances, did not permit a doubt that the general w^as conducting a main attack ; and that his orders for my co-operation (having to travel a circuit of some six miles,) had miscarried or failed to reach me, by means of the numerous cavalry of the enemy. Under these convictions the troops were in- stantly ordered to commence an operation, which, if not otherwise directed, I had designed to execute in part, under favour of the night. Two columns of attack were organized, to move along the two principal streets, leading from our position, in direction of the great plaza, composed of light troops slightly extended, with orders to mask the men whenever practicable, avoid those points swept by the enemy's artillery, to press on to the first plaza, Capella, to get hold of the 110 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. ends of streets beyond, then enter the buildings, and by means of picks and bars break through the longitudinal section of the walls, work from house to house, and ascending the roofs, to place themselves on the same breast height with the enemy. Light artillery by sec- lions and pieces, under Duncan, Roland, Mackall, Martin, Hays, Irons, Clarke, and Curd, followed at suitable intervals, covered by reserves to guard the pieces and the whole operation against the probable enterprises of cavalry upon our left. This was effect- ually done by seizing and commanding the head of every cross street. The streets ^vere, at different and well-chosen points, barricaded by heavy masonry walls, with embrasures for one or more guns, and in every instance well supported by cross batteries. These arrangements of defence gave to our operations at this moment a complicated character, demanding much care and precaution ; but the work went on steadily, simul- taneously, and successfully. About the time our assault commenced, the fire ceased from our force in the oppo- site quarter. Disengaged on the one side, the enemy was enabled to shift men and guns to our quarter, as was soon manifested by accumulation of fire. At dark we had worked through the walls and squares, and reached to within one block of the great plaza, leaving a covered way in our rear — Carried a large building which towTred over the principal defences, and during the night and ensuing morning, crowned its roof with tw^o howitzers and a six-pounder. All things were now prepared to renew^ the assault at dawn of day, when a flag was sent on, asking a momentary suspension of fire, which led to the capitulation upon terms so honour- able to our arms. As the columns of attack were moving from the palace TAYLOR. Ill hill, Major Munroe, chief of artillery, reached me with a ten-inch mortar, which was immediately advanced to the plaza, chapel^ put in position masked by the church wall, its bed adjusted as rapidly as possible, and by sunset opened upon the great square. x\t this period, our troops had worked to within one square of the plaza ; the exact position of our comrades, on the opposite side, was not known, and the distance of the position to be assailed by the bomb battery, but conjecturing eight hundred yards was assumed, and the fuze and charge regulated accordingly ; the first shell fell a little short of the point on which it was directed, and beside our troops ; a slight increase of the projecting charge gave exact results. The w^hole service w^as managed by Major Munroe, most admirably, and, combined with other operations, exercised a decided influence upon the final results. Early on the morning of the 23d, Major Browm's artillery battalion, was despatched with a select command, and one section of Mackall's batter)', under Lieutenant Irons, to occupy the stone mill and adjacent grounds, constituting, one league in advance, the narrow- gorge near St. Catarina. The major took possession, repulsed the enemy's pickets, and was preparing his command to resist any attack, when he received my orders to retrace his steps, enter the city, and form the main reserve to the assaulting columns. He came up in good time and in good order, and was at once under fire. On the 25th, in conformity to the articles of capitu- lation, the citadel was taken possession of by a com- mand consisting of two companies of each regiment, and one section of each battery, 2d division. General Smith was directed to take command of this corps, and conduct the ceremony ; which duty he executed with delicacy to the unhappy and humiliated foe. 112 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. You will receive lists of captured munitions of war, lists of such as were surrendered having already been handed in. It is a source of high gratification that we have been able to accomplish such fortunate results with so moderate a sacrifice of gallant men. Annexed is a return of killed and wounded, exhibiting dates, actions, and circumstances. When eveiy officer and e\ery soldier, regular and volunteer, has, through a series of harrassing and severe conflicts, in the valley and on the mountain, in the street and on the house-top, cheerfi.illy, bravely, and successfully executed every service and complied with every exaction of valor and patriotism, the task is as difficult as delicate, to distinguish individuals ; and yet it will always happen, as it has always happened in the varied scenes of battle and siege, that fortune presents to some those opportunities which all would have seized with gladness and avidity. It is my pleasing and grate- ful duty to present to the consideration of the general- in-chief, and through him to the government, the dis- tinguished conduct of Brigadier-General Smith, colonel of rifles, Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Childs, artillery battahon. Colonel Hays, Texan riflemen, Brevet Ca})- tain C. F. Smith, 2d artillery, commanding light troops first brigade. My thanks are also especially due to Lieutenant-Colonel Staniford, 8th, (commanding first brigade,) Major Mun- roe, chief of artillery, (general staflf;) Brevet-Major Brown, Captain J. R. Vinton, artillery battalion; Cap- tain J. B. Scott, artillery battalion light troops ; Major Scott, commanding, and Captain Merrifl, 5th ; Captains Miles, commanding, Holmes and Ross, 7th infantry, and Captain Scriven, commanding 8th infantry ; to Lieu- h^'.iant.Colonel Walker, (captain rifles,) Major Chevalier TAYLOR. 113 and Captain McCulloch, of the Texan, and Captain Blan chard, Louisiana volunteers ; to Lieutenants Mackall, (commanding battery,) Roland, Martin, Hays, Irons, Clarke, and Curde, horse artillery ; Lieutenant Longstreet, commanding light company, 8th ; Lieutenant Ayres, artillery battalion, who was among the first in die assault upon the Palace, and who secured the colours. Each of the officers named, either headed special detachments, columns of attack, storming parties, or detached guns, and all was conspicuous for conduct and courage. . My attention has been particularly directed by Gene- ral Smith, to the gallant conduct of Lieutenant Gardner, 7th infantry, during the assault upon the city ; on which occasion he threw- himself in advance, and on the most exposed points, animating his men by his brave exam- ple. Particular attention has also been called to the Leutenants NichoUs', (brothers) Louisiana volunteers, as having highly distinguished themselves by personal daring and efficient service. The officers of brigade and regimental staff, were conspicuous in the field, or in their particular departments. Lieutenants Hanson, (commanding,) Vanhorn, aid-de-camp, 7th ; Lieutenant Robison, 5th, (quartermaster's department,) on the staff of General Smith ; Lieutenant and Adjutant Clark, 8th infantry, staff 1st brigade ; Lieutenant Benjamin, adju- tant artillery battalion — Peck, ordnance officer, artillery battalion ; G. Deas, adjutant 5th ; and Page, adjutant 7th infantiy, are highly commended by their respective chiefs, to the justness of which I have the pleasure to add my personal observation. In common with tlie entire division, my particular thanks are tendered to Assistant Surgeons, Porter, (senior,) Byrne, Conrad, De Leon, and Roberts, (medical department,) who 114 TAYLOR AND HIS GF.NKRALS. were ever at hand in the close fight, promptly admin- istermg to the wounded and suffering soldier. To the officers of the staff, general and personal, more especially associated with myself — Hon. Colonel Balie Peyton, Louisiana troops, who did me the honour to serve as aid- de-camp ; Captain Sanders, military engineers ; Lieutenant Meade, topographical engineers ; Lieutenants E. Deas, Daniels, and Ripley, quartermas- ter's and commissary's staff; and Lieutenants Pemberton, 4th artillery, and Wood, 8th infantry, my aids-de-camp — I have to express the greatest obligation. In such diversified operations during the three days and nights, they were constantly in motion, performing every exec- utive duty, with zeal and intelligence only surpassed by daring courage in conflict. I beg to commend each to special consideration. We have to lament the gallant Captains McKavett, 8th infantry, an officer of high merit, killed on the 21st, and Gillespie, Texas volunteers, on the 22d. The latter eminently distinguished himself while leading his brave company at the storming of the first height, and perished in seeking similar distinction on a second occa- sion; Captain Gatlin and Lieutenant Potter, 7th, Lieu- tenants Rossell, 5th, and Wainwright, 8th infantry, and Lieutenant Reece, Texas riflemen, received honourable, happily not mortal wounds. The following non-commissioned officers are reported as having highly distinguished themselves: Sergeants Hazard, 4th, and Dilworth, 3d artillery; Quartermaster Sergeant Henry, 7th infantry ; Cross, company C ; Rounds, Bradford, (colour sergeants,) and Nogg, com- pany E ; Bailey, company I, and Ballard, 7th infantry. In the several conflicts with the division, the enemy's TAYLOR. 115 loss is ascertained to exceed four hundred and fifty men, four nine-pounders, one twelve-pounder brass gun, one twenty-four-pounder howitzer, and two national (gar- rison) standards captured. Very respectfully. Your obedient servant, W. J. WORTH, Brevet Bngadier- General ; commanding 2d division. Major W. W. S. Bliss, ) Ass't Adj. Gen. Army of Occupation, j The following series of letters in a journalized form from Air. Haile, a co-respondent of the New Orleans Picayune, who was present with General Worth^s divi- sion of the army, we have selected from an immense mass of similar documents, as presenting the most lively, graphic, and minute account of this splendid siege, which has yet appeared. At the risk of some repetition we give it complete. San Francisco, Mexico, Sept. 18, 1846. Gentlemen : We are, at length, within five hours march of Monterey, say twelve miles distant. ***** The habitual order of battle is to be as follows : — " 1st division on the right, the 2d on the left, and the volunteer division in the centre," the chiefs of divisions to organize such reserves as they might judge proper. This order of battle not to be considered invariable, but to be controlled by the nature of the ground. Four men from Gillespie's company were attached to each of the two (2d and volunteer) divisions. Everything connected with this day's march has been intensely interesting to all, and novel to many. The 3 IIG TAYLOR AND HIS GKNF.RALS. troops marched in close columns, and were always held in readiness to act promptly. The column, embracing the trains, reached nearly or quite three miles. It was a grand sight, and so much did the men feel interested in coming events, that every one w^ent at it in a business manner, and, although it had been hot and dusty, not half a dozen out of nearly six thousand live hundred have given in to-day on the march. We have forded a number of streams to-day, commencing near Marin, with the San Juan, which was nearly waist deep. Of course, we are now in the midst of the mountains, but so imper- ceptibly have we ascended what appeared like moun- tains, this morning, that we now seem to be on a great plain, with mountains rising into peaks in every direc- tion around us. Our road has been through a richer region since leaving Marin, than any I have seen since leaving the Rio Grande. We passed two or three large haciendas, w^here sugar-cane is cultivated to a considera- ble extent, and the second corn crops are in a flourish- ing state. All these plantations are irrigated from the mountain streams. . Well, to-morrow evening or next day morning, we shall have seen the question decided, with regard to the strength of Monterey. Information came into camp from Monterey, last evenino-, which Mr. Kendall for- warded to you. This evening the report is, that there are 8000 (one report says 15,000) troops there, and that the city is surrounded by a ditch anrl breastworks, and the streets are all fortified. How do the troops act on the eve of an expected bat- tle ? Only that they are a little more precise in the per- formance of their duties — a little more carv-'ful in arrang- ing their arms and knapsacks to be in readines:^ for an instant's notice — and a little more careful to procure rest TAYLOR. 117 while they may — I see no change in their demeanour. The only conversation is how tJiey will probably go to work to take the city, should resistance be offered. It is the settled belief that the Mexicans will fight, and it is also believed that many lives will be sacrificed on both sides. I predict that, on their retreat, the army will be awfiilly cut up. About twelve hundred Texan horse- men are now with us, and they are desirous of paying off old scores. In taking the town they cannot engage very actively, but in overtaking the retreating troops they will be active and destructive. Mm o^clock, P. M. — The impression of those who ought best to know, is still, that the troops at Monterey will resist. Our troops will be greatly disappointed if no resistance is offered them. They have come a long distance to seek a fight. I was amused at a remark made by Colonel Persifor F. Smith, when asked what he thought of the probabilities of a battle. " I never knew a man to seek perse veringly for a thing a long time, but what he found it," replied he ; " and General Taylor will not, I think, seek in vain for another set-to with the Mexicans." One thing is certain, the enemy has been at a heavy expense to fortify Monterey, and if we do not find out before to-morrow night at this time, that they do not intend to expend their money and labour for nothing, I shall then be satisfied that there is no spirit left among them. Two hundred Mexican troops lefv this place this morning, after ill-treating and pillaging the inhabitants as usual. But these people are singular beings, and very ungrateful. In Marin, where Torre- jon's troops had, a day or two before, robbed, whipped, and insulted the citizens, I saw a family selling muscnl to the Americans for two dollars a bottle, and at the same time sellino- it to Mexicans at four bits per bottle. 118 TAVLUR AND HIS GENERALS. We march to-morrow at six o'clock, to encamp three miles from Monterey. Camp before Monterey. ) September 18. at 12 o'clock, M. ] Well, "the ball has opened!" When within four miles of the city, we heard a brisk cannonading in that direction. On arriving here we learn tliat General Tay- lor, with a detachment of dragoons and the Texajj rangers, advanced within a few hundred yards of the city, when the enemy opened upon them with tweh e-. pounders. The hrst ball came within about ten yards of the general. Some twenty-five or ihiity shot v,ere fired at the dragoons and rangers, passing through ilieir lines, but hurting neither man nor horse. A picket of 260 Mexican cavalry appeared on the plain when our advance first approached, and after firing a volley or two with their escopettes, retired into the city. Bishop's hill is strongly fortified, and they hard at work on a height commanding that place. So to-night or early in the morning we will probably have hot work. Thev will fight, now, beyond a doubt. Camp before Monterey, i September 19, 1846. | Gentlemen : This has been a day of excitement and interest to our isolated little army. The general left the camp at San Francisco this morning at sunrise, and by eight o'clock the whole column was in motion, the Texan rangers, and Colonel May with a squadron of dragoons, in advance. The men started ofT briskly, and the road was fine. After two hours' march a bridge was found broken up by the Mexicans. A corn-field near at hand afforded materials for filling up the place, ;ind the army proceeded over the first corn-stalk bridge I TAYLOR. 119 i ever heard of. When wilhin about four or five miles of the city we heard a brisk cannonading. Some of the men had just previous to this begun to lag, some suf- fered from blistered feet, and others from the intensity of the heat, but no sooner did the sound of cannon reach their ears, than they straightened themselves up and pressed forward witk an eagerness which showed that their sufiering-s w^ere all forgotten. Captain Scott (the veritable), or rather now Major Scott, who commands the 5th infantry, marched immediately before us, and the moment the brave old soldier heard the enemy's cannon, he drove his spurs into his horse and pranced about his regiment as if he would give a liberal portion of his life to be at Monterey. Captain Miles, commander of the 7th infantry, by whose side I w^as riding at the moment, likewise rose in his stirrups, with his keen black eyes sparkling, and his nostrils slightly dilated, and gave orders to his regiment to close up; but his orders were useless, for the noble fellows were already pressing upon the staff, to the very rumps of the horees. Ag^in, again and again, the noise of the twelve-pounders reverberated through the lofty mountains which rose before us and upon each side, and a buzz, a suppressed hurra, ran through the line. The officers ran their eyes over their commands with looks of pride and confidence, and the men returned the glance, as if to say <■<■ we are ready," and pressed on still more eagerly. I rode out of the column and fell back to look at the Louisiana boys. Every eye among them was bright with eager excitement. Captain Blanchard, and Lieutenants Tenbrink and the two brothers Nicholls, wore a peculiar smile upon their countenances, an ex- pression that I shall never forget. I translated its mean- ino^ thus : " Now w^e are about to be rewarded for all 8 120 TAYLOR AXD HIS GENERALS. sacrifices ana toils, and we will show old Louisiana that we can represent her worthily, though our numbers are small." They regretted the absence of their fellow-citi- zens who had returned to their quiet homes, for they well knew how many a brave heart would burn with bitter disappointment and laudable envy, could their re- turned friends but see them and know their feelings at that moment. On reaching the place of encampment, we came up wdth General Worth, riding his horse in beautiful style. A handsomer officer than he appeared then, I never saw. Every one marked the change that had suddenly come over him. From the somewhat dejected air, and sad- dened countenance that he is said to have worn of late, Richard was now himself again — and the gallant soldier, forgetting all his cares, now appeared before us, the per- sonification of an accomplished military chieftain. His handsome face was lighted up with a proud, but affable smile, as he motioned gracefully to his officers, pointing out to them the direction they were to take with their respective commands, and not a man who saw him, but what would at that moment have followed him to the cannon's mouth. Such is the feeling manifested by the whole army — which renders this body of men invincible. This evening the enemy's batteries have been opened again upon a reconnoitering party of ours. Generals Taylor, Worth, Twiggs, and others, have been out, looking at their works. J\'^in€ o''dock, P. M. — An attack is expected, and every man in the army will rest to-night on his arras. A night attack is what a soldier dislikes very much, because it is llien difficult to distinguish friend from foe. September 20th. — Everything; remained quiet last night. TAYLOR. 121 To-morrow an attempt will be made to take Monterey. A stout resistance is expected, for the town is strongly- fortified, as well as the heights that command it, and the enemy has troops and ammunition enough there to de- fend it. A movement will no doubt be made to-night. No one expects an easy victory, on the other hand, all have made up their mhids to see much bloodshed. It is believed that a large number of the enemy is hi our rear — in fact there is little doubt on the subject. Bishop's Palace, ) Monterey^ Mexico^ Sept. 24. j Gentlemen : This is the fourth day since the battle of Monterey commenced. On the 20th at noon. Gene- ral Worth marched from the camp east of the town in the direction of the heights w^st of the tow^n, McCullough's and Gillespie's companies of rangers forming the recon- noitering party. At night the division bivouacked almost within range of the guns stationed upon the highest point of the hill, on w^hich the Bishop's Palace is situated. At daylight of the 21st, the column was again in motion, and in a few moments w^as turning the point of a ridge w^hich protruded out towards the enemy's guns, bringing us as near to them as their gunners could desire. They immediately opened upon the column with a howitzer and tw^elve-pounder, firing shell and round shot as fast as they could discharge their pieces. The road now wound in towards a gorge, but not far enough to be out of range of their guns, which still played upon us. Another ridge lay about three-fourths of a mile beyond the first, around the termination of which the road wound, bringing it under the lofty sum- mit of a height which rises between Palace Hill and the mountains w^iich arise over us on the west. When ihe head of the columi! jipproafhrd this 'idge, a b««(lv of 122 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. Mexican cavalry came dashing around the point to charge upon our advance. Captain Gillespie imjnediately ordered his men to dismount and place themselves in ambush. The enemy evidently did not perceive this manoeuvre, but the moment ihey came up, the Texans opened on them a most effective fire, unsaddling a num- ber of them. McCullough's company now dashed into them — Captain C. F. Smith's camp, and Captain Scott's camp of artillery, (acting as infantry,) and Lieutenant Longstreet's company of the Sth infantry, with another company of the same regiment, likewise charged upon the enemy. The Texan horsemen were soon engaged with them in a sort of hand-to-hand skirmish, in which a number of the enemy fell, and one Texan was killed and two wounded. Colonel Duncan now opened upon tht^m with his battery of light artillery, pouring a few discharges of grape among them, and scattering them like chaff. Several men and horses feli under this destructive fire. 1 saw one horse and rider bound some feet into the air, and botli fell dead and tumbled down the steep. The foot companies above named then rushed up the steep and fired over the ridge at the retreating enemy, a con- siderable borly of whom were concealed from our view, around the point of the hill. About thirty of the enemy were killed in this skirmish, and among them a captain, who, willi Iwo or three others, fell in the road. The captain was wounded in three places, the last shot hitting him in the forehead. He fought gallantly to tlie Inst, and 1 am sorry that I cannot learn his name. The light batteries, one of which is commanded by Lieutenant Mackall, were now driven up on the slope of the ridge, and the howitzers opened upon the height of Palace Hill. A few shells oidv were thrown before TAYLOR. 123 \ the enemy commenced firing with a nine-pounder from the height immediately over the right of the column, aiming at Duncan's batteries. The several regiments took positions, and a fuw more shells were thrown towards Palace Hill, but did no execution. The nine- pounder continued to throw its shot, with great pre- cision, at our batteries, one ball falling directly in the midst of the pieces, but fortunately hitting neither men nor guns. Finding his batteries thus exposed, and . unable to effect anything. Colonel Duncan removed hi.' command to a rancho about half a mile farther up the Saltillo road, where General Worth took up his position, after ordering the foot regiments to form along the fence, near the point of the ridge. The artillery battalion, 5th, 7th, and 8th infantry, and the Louisiana volunteers, remained in this position about two hours, directly under the fire of the enemy's guns, (now two.) The balls fell directly in their midst all this time without wounding a man I To begin with, the Mexicans manage their artillerv in battery "as w^ell as the Americans do — this, I believe, is now conceded by every officer. At half-past ten the column moved towards the general's position. At this time. Captain McKavett, of the 8th infantry, was shot through the heart by a nine-pound ball, and a private of the 5th infantry was severely wounded in the thigh, and he died the n.ext morning. About fifty Mexicans now appeared upon the side hill, over the moving column, and fired at our troops some hundred musket shot, without doing any harm. The division deployed into the position pointed out, and remained an hour or two, when Cap- tain C. F. Smith of the artillery battalion, with tw^o companies (his own and Captain Scott's), and four com- panies of Texas rangers on foot, were ordered to storm 124 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. the second height. This the gallant officer cheerfully undertook, and was followed with enthusiasm by the officers and men of his command. It was considered on all sides to be a dangerous undertaking, and his party was considered most emphatically a forlorn hope. That the height would be taken, no one doubted, but that many brave fellows would fall in the attempt, seemed inevitable. The distance to be climbed after reaching the foot of the hill, was about a quarter of a mile ; a part of the way was almost perpendicular and through thorn bushes and over sharp pointed rocks and loose sliding stones. The 7th infantry, commanded by Captain Miles, was ordered to support Captain Smith's party, and by marching directly to the foot of the height, arrived before Captain Smith, w^ho had been ordered to take a circuitous route. Captain Miles sent up Lieutenant Gantt with a detachment of men, upon the hill side, to divert the attention of the enemy from Captaui Smith's command, which could not yet be seen. The 7th had already sustained a heavy fire of grape and round shot, as they forded the San Juan, which winds around the foot of the height, which fell like a shower of hail in their ranks, without killing a man. Lieutenant Gantt's party were greeted with grape and round shot, which cut the shrubs and tore up the loose stones in the ranks without killing any one ; but the gallant young officer came within an inch of being killed by a cannon-ball, which ran down the steep and filled his face with frag- ments of rock, dust and gravel. The fire was accom- panied by a constant discharge of musketry, the enemy covering the upper part of the hill side, but the detachment continued to move up, driving the Mexicans back, until they w^ere recalled. TAYLOR. 1^5 Captain Smith's party now arrived and moved up the hill, the rangers in advance, and did not halt for an instant until the Mexicans were driven from the summit. Whilst this was going on, Colonel Persifor F. Smith, who commanded the 5th and 7th infantry — the 5th, with Blanchard's Louisiana boys, under Major Martin Scott, had been ordered to support the whole — gave orders for these commands to pass around on each side and storm the fort, which was situated about half a mile back of the summit on the same ridge, and commanded the Bishop's Palace. Such a foot race as now ensued, has seldom, if ever, been seen ; the Louisiana boys ma- king tremendous strides to be in with the foremost. Captain Smith had the gun which he took upon the height, run down towards the breastworks and fired into it. Then came Colonel P. F. Smith's men, with a per- fect rush, firing and cheering— the 5th and 7th, and Louisianians reaching the ridge above nearly at the samfe time. The Mexicans fired at them with grape, but it did not save them, or cause an instant's hesitation in our ranks. Our men run, and fired, and cheered, until they reached the work, the foremost entering at one end, whilst the Mexicans, about 1000 in number, left the other in retreat. The colours of the 5th infantry were instantly raised, and scarcely were they up before those of the 7th were alongside. The three commands entered the fort to- gether, so close was the race — the 5th, however, getting an advance, were in first. J. W. Miller, of Blanchard's company, was among the first four or five who entered. The three commands maybe said to have come out even in the race, for the 7th was not five seconds behind. In less than five minutes the gun found in the fort was thundering away at the Bishop's Palace ! 126 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. More ammunition was found than our troops will use, with the three guns which were captured. One of the guns was found concealed. They are nine pound brass pieces. Several mules and half a dozen beautiful tents were likewise captured. Killed, none. Wounded, in 7th infantr}', Lieutenant Potter, bullet through the calf of the leg ; Orderly-Sergeant Hurdle, of Company K ; Corporal S. P. Oakley, seriously, in the thigh. Corpo- ral Oakley is from New York city, and a ver}^ intelligent, well-educated man, as well as a good soldier. Private White — the same v;ho captured the Mexican officer's trunk at Marin, and who received it and its contents from General Taylor — wounded in the head. Fifth in- fantry, killed, none ; wounded — Lieutenant Russell, in the arm ; Sergeant Major Brand, badly, in the mouth, wifh musket ball. Privates McManus and Grubb, slightly wounded — Sergeant Uptergraph, colour-bearer, distinguished himself by his gallantry. Thus was this brilliant coup de main made almost without bloodshed. I have not time to give the particu- lars of this glorious affair. Captain C. F. Smith, was in the advance, with M'Call, at the battle of Resaca de la Palma, and is one of the most gallant and accom- plished officers in the army — so say all his fellow officers whom I have heard speak of him. Colonel P. F. Smith — General Smith, of Louisiana — distinguished him- self on that occasion, as did Major Scott and Captain Miles, and, in truth, every officer and man did his duty nobly. The gallant conduct of Captain Blanchard and Lieu- enant Tenbrink, and the two brothers Nicholls, are praised by all the officers who were there. In trutli, the Louisiana boys have fought every day for four days, and I assure you, as General Worth's report will bear TAYLOR. 127 me out in saying, and as every officer in the 2d division will testify, that this corps has distinguished itself on every occasion where they have been called on. Tht sons of Judge Nicholls, of Donaldsonville, have stood fire four or five hours at a time, driving the enemy — under their battery — from bush to bush, and rock to rock, and at last were among the foremost to rush into the Bishop's Palace and take it by storm. Captain Blanchard and his company have already made a repu- tation that will not soon be forgotten. S. G. Allen, pri- vate of this company, was mortally wounded in this fight, and died next morning. Captain Smith had no one killed or wounded in his party of regulars — two Texans were wounded, viz : William Carley and B. F. Keese. H. Bishop's Palace, Monterey, > September 24, 1846. J Gentlemen : I date both my letters on one day, be cause I am obliged to foot up the news of the last four days, having had no writing materials along. Even now, though I write in a palace, I am obliged to hold the sheet of paper in one hand on my knee, for want of a desk. But I have no time for extra remarks — a chance offers to send you the news, and I must hurry to give you a glance at what has been done here, before the express goes off. On the morning of the 21st, Colonel Childs, of the artillery battalion, with three of his com- panies — one commanded by Captain Vinton, another by Captain J. B. Scott, and the third by Lieutenant Ayres, and three companies of the 8th infantry — company A, commanded by Lieutenant Longstreet and Lieutenant Wainright; company B, Lieutenant HoUoway com- manding, and Lieutenant Merchant ; company D, Caj 128 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. tain Scrivner and Lieutenant Montgomery — was ordered to take the summit of Palace Hill. The colonel left the camp at three o'clock, A. M., and climbed the mountain through the chapparal and up the steep rocks, with such secrecy, that at daybreak he was within one hundred yards of the breastwork of sand-bags before he was discovered. Three of the artillerymen, having rushed ahead too fast, found themselves in the hands of the Mexicans. They surrendered : the Mexi- cans took their muskets, and shot them down with the very pieces they had given up. I saw the poor fellows lying there. I have but a few moments left to WTite in, and must therefore defer the particulars of the storming of the palace until I have more time. Colonel Staniford went up at daylight with the balance of the 8th, and Major Scott led up the 5th. The Louisiana boys were on the hill with the 5th, at eight o'clock, A. M. One of Dun- can's howitzers, in charge of Lieutenant Rowland, was dragged up, or rather lifted up, and opened on the palace, which was filled with troops. The Mexicans charged on the howitzer, but were driven back. A con- stant firing was kept up for several hours, particularly by Blanchard's men, who left a dozen Mexicans dead upon the hill-side. At length a charge was ordered, and our men rushed down upon the palace, entered a hole in a door that had been blocked up, but opened by the how- itzer, and soon cleared the work of the few Mexicans who remained. Lieutenant Ayres was the lucky one who first reached the halyards and lowered the flag. One eighteen-pound brass piece, a beautiful article, manufactured in Liverpool in 1842, and a short brass twelve-pound howitzer, were captured, with a large quantity of ammunition, and some muskets and lances. TAYLOR. 12) The fort adjoiiiii)g the palace walls is not complete, but is very neatly constructed, as far as it is built. The killed on our side, in taking the palace, were seven — wounded, twelve. Lieutenant Wainwright was wound- ed in the side and arm by a musket-ball, but will soon recover, it is hoped. Mr. John Francis, of New Orleans, belonging to Blanchard's company, was killed. Colonel Childs, Captain Vinton, Captain Blanchard, Lieutenant Longstreet, Lieutenant Clark (adjutant of the 8th), Lieu- tenant Ayres, Lieutenant McCown, and the two Nicholls, seem to have been the heroes of the day. The two latter performed prodigies, and not only Judge Nicholls, but old Louisiana may well be proud of such sons. The Mexicans lost at least thirty killed — twenty-one had been buried this morning, and I have seen a number lying on the hill-side, that were not discovered by our men when they brought in the dead. Yesterday morning the whole division under General Worth entered the town on this side, and have been fighting there ever since. The heart of the city is no- thing but one fortification, the thick walls being pierced for muskets and cannon, and placed so as to rake the principal streets. The roofs being flat, and the front walls rising three or four feet above the roof, of course every street has a line of breastworks on each side. A ten-inch mortar came around from General Taylor last evening, and it is now placed in the largest plaza, to which our troops have fought step by step, and from house to house. Duncan's batteries are in town, and the present impression is that the place will soon be taken. General Worth has gained all the strongholds that command the city, and has pushed the enemy as far as they can go without falling into General Taylor's hands on the otlier 130 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. side of the cky. All this has been done with the loss of only about seventy killed and wounded. The achievement is a glorious one — sufficient to sa- tisfy the ambition of any man on earth. I was expect- ing to see General Worth rushing his men into unne- cessary danger, in order to win for them and himself great military fame, but his conduct has been very dif- ferent from this. His great study has been to gain these commanding points with the least possible sacrifice of life. At first it seemed totally impossible to storm these heights — it looked like charging upon the clouds — but it has been done. The Bishop's Palace, which is ajs strong as it has been represented to be, has been stormed and taken by our brave soldiers. I should have stated that Colonel Hays, with a body of his troops, and Cap- tains Gillespie and McCuUoch, were at the taking of the palace. Captain Gillespie was mortally wounded, and died yesterday morning, regretted by the whole army. I cannot keep up, at all, with the rangers. Their services have been invaluable to General Taylor, from the commencement of the campaign. They fight with all the steadiness of old soldiers — and are constantly on the move. The country owes them much for their noble conduct. I say nothing, as yet, about General Taylor's proceedings on the other side of the town, be- cause the information I have received is not well authen- ticated. Mr. Kendall and I both came out with this division, neither knowing that the other was coming with it, until it was too late to return, and there is no communication between the divisions except by armed bodies of men. The general has, however, taken three batteries near the town on the other side, in doing which he has lost about three hundred men^ killed and wounded ! I do not know the exact number killed, but will be able < - -J '\ |i 7^1 1 ' "' 'Ml, ■,. "''. 1 [ill 111 i TAYLOR. 133 to ascertain before this letter goes — and will try to give other particulars. General Taylor has arrived at General Worth's head- quarters to-day, and is now engaged in town with Am- pudia's messengers considering the enemy's proposals for surrendering the town and the large fort at the north-east side of it. That fort is very strong, and is believed to contain at least twenty guns. Hostilities have ceased until the conference shall be concluded. There must be an immense quantity of property in town, particularly arms and ammunition. I should have mentioned that the 2d division marched from camp with only two days' rations, and no tents. A large majority of the officers, and many of the men, worked and climbed mountains, chased the enemy, and fought forty-eight hours, with nothing to eat but raw corn. Much of the two days' rations were spoiled by the rains, and as the troops were frequently ordered off at an instant's notice, they left their haversacks behind. There have been from ten to fifteen thousand troops at this place ever since we have been here, but they are leaking out, in citizen's clothes, as fast as they can dodge off. As soldiers, there is no escape for them. H. MoNTEREYj Mexico, September 25, 1846. Gentlemen : The city has capitulated on the follow- ing terms. (Terms stated page 138). Many persons, p-articularly the Texan volunteers, who fought so bravely, are displeased at these terms. The town was all but in our hands, and, could they be believed, would have been taken in three hours. I believe that it would have required much more hard fighting to have taken it, but this was not the question with General Taylor. He and his officers knew perfectly well, of course, that the town could soon 134 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. be taken, but he wanted no prisoners to take up his time and eat up his substance ; but he did have an object in view which will be reached by the terms of this capitu- lation, and that object in view will lead to a result most beneficial to our government, under whose advice or order General Taylor acted in agreeing to these terms. As I have a few moments to spare before the express goes out this morning (he was detained last night by the slow progress of business with Ampudia), I will speak of the operations of General Taylor on his side of the town. Major Mansfield, of the Engineers, reconnoitered the enemy's works on the night of the 19th, but could obtain no very accurate information, although he approached very near to some of them on the heights. On the 20th, Lieutenant Scarrit and Lieutenant Pope were sent out to reconnoitre the works, Scarrit on the right and Pope on the left of the town. The latter approached and dis- covered the position of a battery on the extreme left, and was exposed to a fire of cannon and musketry from lancers, from which, after finishing his observations, he retired in safety. On the night of the 20th, the mortar and howitzer batteries were placed in a position to play on the strongholds around the citadel. The action commenced on the morning of the 21st, by the opening of these two batteries. Colonel Garland's brigade were ordered to move to the left for the jmrpose of storming the battery discovered by Lieutenant Pope the day before, and to occupy, if possible, the lower part of the city. Major Mansfield, Captain Williams, and Lieutenant Pope were ordered in advance, to select the most available point of attack, anil to direct the movements of the column upon it. Three companies were thrown forward as skirmishers, and advanced rapidly towards the works, followed bv the brio;ade in line of battle, under a cross TAVI.OK. 13.'j fire of artillery from the citadel and fort, and a heavy fire of musketry. The column charged into a street about two hundred yards to the the right of the battery, passed the works entirely, and effected an entrance into the tower. After advancing rapidly about four hundred yards beyond the battery, they came immediately in front of a masked battery of artillery and musketry, which swept the street completely by its range. The barricades of the streets at sixty yards distance from the head of the column, were lined with Mexican troops, who, entirely covering themselves, opened a murderous discharge of grape and musketry upon the advancing column. Every house in the street was ])ierced for musketry and enfiladed the street in every direction. Under this fire the following officers were killed or mortally wounded : Major Barbour, 8d infantry, by grape-shot in the abdomen ; Captain Williams, Topographical Engineers, shot through the body by a musket-ball, fell into the street and was carried into the doorway of a house by Lieutenant Pope, amidst a shower of balls that covered him with dust. The gallantry of this young officer, now in his first battle, is spoken of in admiration by the army. Captain Williams died the next day, and was buried with the honours of war by the Mexican troops, into w^hose hands he had fallen. Lieutenant Merritt, 1st infantry, shot through the body, and died the next day. Wounded. — Major Mansfield, ball through calf of the leg:. This brave officer \vould not leave on account of his wound, but rode about, behaving in the most gallant manner all day. Captain Bainbridge, od infantry, slightly wounded in the hand. Major Lear, dangerously wounded in the mouth, the ball passing out at the back of his head. Major Aberrrombie, 1st infantry, severely 9 132 lAYf.UR AND HIS UiMlRALS. ness and gallantry at the head of his regiment on this day entitle him to the particular notice of the govern- ment. The S(\ Indiana regiment, under Colonel Lane, and a fragment of the 2d, under Colonel Bowles, were associated with the Mississippi regiment during the greater portion of the day, and acquitted themselves creditably in repulsing the attempts of the enemy to break that portion of our line. The iventucky cavalry, under Colonel Marshall, rendered good service dis- mounted, acting as light troops on our left, and afterward, with a portion of the Arkansas regiment, in meeting and dispersing the column of cavalry at Euena Vista. The 1st and 2d Illinois, and the 2il Kentucky regiments, served immediately under my eye, and I bear a willing testimony to their excellent conduct throughout the day. The spirit and gallantry with which the 1st Illinois and 2d Kentucky engaged the enemy in the morning, restored confidence to that part of the field, while the list of casualties will show how much these three regiments suffered in sustaining the heavy charge of the enemy in the afternoon. Captain Conner's company of Texas volunteers, attached to the 2d Illinois regiment, fought bravely, its captain being wounded and two subalterns killed. Colonel Bissell, the only surviving colonel of these regiments, merits notice for his coolness and bravery on this occasion. After the fall of the field-officers of the 1st Illinois and 2d Kentucky regiments, the commaml of the former devolved upon Lieutenant-Colonel Weatherford ; that of the latter upon Major Fry. Regimental commanders and others who have ren- dered reports, speak in general terras of the good con- duct of their officers and men, and have specified many names, but the limits of this report forbid a recapitulation TAYLOR. 163 of them here. 1 may, liowever, mention Lieutenants Rucker and Campbell of the dragoons, and Captain Pike, Arkansas cavalry, commanding squadrons ; Lieutenant- Colonel Field, Kentucky cavalry ; Lieutenant-Colonel Roane, Arkansas cavalry, upon whom the command de- volved after the fall of Colonel Yell ; Major Bradford, Captain Sharpe (severely wounded), and Adjutant Grif- fith, Mississippi regiment ; Lieutenant-Colonel Hadden, 2d Indiana regiment, and Lieutenant Robinson, aid-de- camj) to General Lane ; Lieutenant-Colonel Weathertbrd, 1st Illinois regiment; Lieutenant-Colonel Morrison, Ma- jor Trail, and Adjutant Whiteside (severel}' wounded), 2d Illinois regiment ; and Major Fry, 2d Kentucky regi- ment, as being favourably noticed for gallantry and good conduct. Major McCuUoch, quartermaster in the volun- teer service, tendered important services before the en- gagement, in the command of a spy company, and during the affair was associated with the regular cavalry. To Major Warren, 1st Illinois volunteers, I feel much in- debted for his firm and judicious course, Avhile exercising command in the city of Saltillo. The medical staff, under the able direction of Assist- ant-Surgeon Hitchcock, were assiduous in attention to the wounded upon the field, and in their careful removal to the rear. Both in these respects, and in the subse- quent organization and service of the hospitals, the ad- ministration of this department was eveiything that could be wished. Brigadier-General Wool speaks in high terms of the officers of his staff, and I take pleasure in mentioning them here, having witnessed their activity and zeal upon the field. Lieutenant and Aid-de-camp McDowell, Colonel Churchill, inspector-general. Captain Chapman, assist- ant quartermaster. Lieutenant Sitgreaves, Topographical 164 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. Engineers, and Captains Howard and Davis, volunteer service, are conspicuously noticed by the general for their gallantry and good conduct. Messrs. March, Addicks, Potts, Harrison, Burgess, and Dusenbery, attached in various capacities to General Wool's head- quarters, are likewise mentioned for their intelligent alacrity in conveying orders to all parts of the field. In conclusion, I beg leave to speak of my own staff, to whose exertions in rallying troops and communicating orders I feel greatly indebted. Major Bliss, assistant adjutant-general. Captain J. H. Eaton, and Lieutenant R. S. Garnett, aids-de-camp, served near my person, and were prompt and zealous in the discharge of every duty. Major Munroe, beside rendering valuable service as chief of artillery, was active and instrumental, as were also Colonels Churchill and Belknap, inspectors- general, in rallying troops and disposing them for the defence of the train and baggage. Colonel Whiting, quartermaster-general, and Captain Eaton, chief of the subsistence department, were engaged with the duties of their departments and also served in my immediate staff on the field. Captain Sibley, assistant quarter- master, was necessarily left with the head-quarter camp near town, where his services were highly useful. Ma- jor Mansfield and Lieutenant Benham, Engineers, and Captain Linnard and Lieutenants Pope and Franklin, Topographical Engineers, were employed before and du- rinir the eni^ao-ement in makini]: reconnoissances, and on COO O ' the field were very active in bringing information and in conveying my orders to distant points. Lieutenant Kingsbury, in addition to his proper duties as ordnance officer. Captain Chilton, assistant quartermaster, and Majors Dix and Coffee, served also as extra aids-de- camp, and were actively employed in the transmission TAYLOR. 165 of orders. Mr. Thomas L. Crittenden, of Kentucky, though not in service, volunteered as my aid-de-camp on this occasion, and served with credit in that capacity. Major Craig, chief of ordnance, and Surgeon Craig, medical director, had been detached on duty from head- quarters, and did not reach the ground until the morning of the 24th — too late to participate in the action, but in time to render useful services in their respective depart- ments of the staff. I respectfully enclose returns of the troops engaged, and of casualties incident to the battle. I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, Z. TAYLOR, Major- General U. S. A. Commanding. The Adjutant General of the Army, ) Washingtoiij D. C. ) The following are the summons of Santa Anna and General Taylor's answer. The latter has been greatly admired for its modesty and strict propriety. There is no bravado — nothing like theatrical flourish about the general. [Translation. 1 Summons of General Santa Anna to General Taylor. You are surrounded by 20,000 men, and cannot, in any human probability, avoid suffering a rout, and being cut to pieces with your troops ; but as you de- serve consideration and particular esteem, I wish to save you from a catastrophe, and for that purpose give you this notice, in order that you may surrender at discre tion, under the assurance that you will be treated with the consideration belonging to the Mexican character, to w^hich end you will be granted an hour's time to make up your mind, to connnence from the moment when my flag of truce arrives in your camp. f 166 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. With this view, I assure you of ray particular conside- ration. God and Liberty. Camp at Encantada, February 22, 1847. ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SAN TA ANNA. To Gen. Z. Taylor, j Commanding the forces of the U. S. ) Head-Quartkrs Army of Occupation, Near Buena Vista, February 22, 1847. Sir : In reply to your note of this date, summoning me to surrender my forces at discretion, I beg leave to say that I dechne acceding to your request. With high respect, I am, sir. Your obedient servant, Z. TAYLOR, Major- General U. S. Jirmy, Commanding. Senor Gen. D. Antoxio Lopez De Santa Anna, Commander-in-Chief, La Encantada. The following description of the battle of Buena Vista, is from the pen of a gentleman who was present and shared in the dangers and labours of this tremen- dous encounter. Its details of personal matters will serve to fill up the general outline of the official account. Camp at Buena Vista, \ Februanj 24. 1847. ) Messrs. Editors: — On the morning of the 22(1, intel- ligence reached General Taylor, at his camp on the hill overlookino: Saltillo from the south, that Santa Anna, whose presence in our vicinity had been reported for several days, was advancing upon our main body, stationed near the rancho Sancho Juan de Buena Vista, about seven miles from Saltillo. The general imme- diately moved forward with May's squadron of dragoons. TAYLOR. 167 Shenncjn's and Bragg's batteries of artillery, and the Mississippi regiment of riflemen, under Colonel Davis, and arrived at the position which he had selected for awaiting the attack of the enemy, about eleven o'clock. The time and the place, the hour and the man, seemed to promise a glorious celebration of the day. It was the 22d of February, the anniversary of that day on which the Got of battles gave to freedom its noblest champion, to pa- triotism its purest model, to America a preserver, and to the world the nearest realization of human perfection — for panegyric sinks before the name of Washington. The morning was bright and beautiful. Not a cloud floated athwart the firmament or dimmed the azure of the sky ; and the flood of golden radiance which gilded the mountain tops and poured over the valleys, wrought light and shade into a thousand fantastic forms. A soft breeze swept down from the mountains, rolling into graceful undulation the banner of the republic, which was proudly streaming from the flag-staflf of the fort, and from the towers and battlements of Saltillo. The omens were all in our favour. In the choice of his position. General Taylor had exhi- bited the same comprehensive sagacity and masterly coi/j) d^ceil which characterized his dispositions at Resaca de la Palma, and which crowned triumphantly all his operations amid the blazing lines of Monterey. The mountains rise on either side of an irregular and broken valley, about three miles in width, dotted over with hills and ridges, and scarred with broad and windinsr ravines. The main road lies along the course of an arroyo, the bed of which is now so deep as to form an almost impass- able barrier, while the other side is bounded by precipi- tous elevations, stretching perpendicularly towards the mountains, and separated by broad ofullip-s, until they 11 168 TAYi-OR AUB HIS GENERALS. mingle into one at the base of the principal range. On the right of the narrowest point of the roadway, a bat- talion of the 1st Illinois regiment, under Lieutenant- Colonel Weatherford, was stationed in a small trench extending to the natural ravine, while, on the opposite heio^ht, the main body of the regiment under Colonel Hardin was posted, with a single piece of artillery from Captain Washington's battery. The post of honour on the extreme right was assigned to Bragg's artillery, his left supported by the 2d regiment of Kentucky foot, under Colonel McKee, the left tlank of which rested upon the arroyo. Washington's battery occupied a position im- mediately in front of the narrow point of the roadway, in rear of which, and somewhat to the left, on another height, the 2d Illinois regiment, under Colonel Bissel, was posted. Next on the left, the Indiana brigade under General Lane was deployed, while on the extreme left the Kentucky cavalry, under Colonel Marshall, occupied a position directly under the frowning summits of the mountains. The two squadrons of the 1st and 2d dragoons, and the Arkansas cavalry, under Colonel Yell, were posted in the rear, ready for any service which the exigencies of the day might require. These dispositions had been made for some time, when the enemy was seen advancing in the distance, and the clouds of dust which rolled up before him, gave satisfac- tory evidence that his numbers were not unworthy the trial of strength upon which we were about to enter. He arrived upon his position in immense numbers, and with force sufficiently numerous to have commenced his attack at once, had he been af5 confident of success as it subsequently appeared he was solicitous for our safety. The first evidence directly afforded us of tlie presence of Santa Anna was a white flag, which wa-? dimlv seen TAYLOR. 169 fluttering in the breeze, and anon Surgeon-General Lin- denberg, of the Mexican army, arrived, bearing a beau- tiful emblem of benevolent bravado and Christian charity. It was a missive from Santa Anna, suggested by consid- erations for our personal comfort, which has placed us under lasting obligations, proposing to General Taylor terms of unconditional surrender, promising good treat- ment ; assuring us his force amounted to upwards of 20,000 men, that our defeat was inevitable, and that, to spare the effusion of blood, his proposition should be complied with. 'Strange to say, the American general showed the greatest ingratitude, evinced no appreciation whatever of Santa Anna's kindness, and informed him that w^hether his force amounted to 20,000 or 50,000, it was equally a matter of indifference ; the terms of adjustment must be arranged by gunpowder. The messenger returned to his employer, and we watched in silence to hear the roar of his artillery. Hours rolled by without any movement on his part ; and it appeared that the Mexican commander, grieved at our stubbornness, was almost disposed to retrace his steps, as if determined to have no further intercourse with such ungrateful audacity. At length he mustered resolution to open a fire from a mortar, throwing several shells into our camp, without execution. Vv^hile this w^as going on, Captain Steen, of the 1st dragoons, with a single man, started toward a hill, on which the Mexican general seemed to be stationed with his staff, but before he completed the ascent the party vanished, and when he reached the top he discovered that two regiments had thrown themselves into squares to resist the charge. The captain's gravity was overcome by this opposition, and he returned. Just before dark, a number of Santa Anna's infantry 170 TAYLOR AN*D HIS GtNLRALS. had succeeded in getting a position high up the moun- tains on our left, from which they could make a noise without exposing themselves to much danger, and at a distance of three hundred yards opened a most tremen- dous fire upon Colonel Marshall's regiment. This was returned by two of his companies, which were dismount- ed and detached for the purpose, as soon as they could arrive within a neighbourly range. The skirmishing continued till after dark, with no result to us, save the wounding of three men very slightly. During the night, a Mexican prisoner was taken, who reported Santa Anna's force as consisting of fifteen pieces of artillery, including some 24-pounders, 6000 cavalry, and 15,000 infantry — thus confirming the statement of his superior. The firing on our extreme left, which ceased soon after sunset on the 22d, was renewed on the morning of the 23d, at an early hour. This was also accompanied by quick discharges of artillery from the same quarter, the Mexicans having established during the night a tw^elve-pounder on a point at the base of the mountain, w'hich commanded any position which could he taken by us. To counteract the eflfect of this piece, Lieutenant O'Brien, 4th artillery, was detached with three pieces of Washington's battery, having with him Lieutenant Bryan, of the topograpoical engineers, who, having planted a few shells in the midst of the enemy's gunners, for the time effectually silenced his fire. From the movements soon perceptible along the left of our line, it became evident that the enemy was attempting to turn that flank, and for that purpose had concentrated a large body of cavalry and infantry on his right. The base of the mountain around which these troops were wending their May, seemed girdled with a belt of steel, as thf">ir oflittpring sabres nnd pojishrH 1nnrp<: TAVI.OR, 171 flashed back the beams of the laornin^- sun. Sherman's and Bragg's batteries were immediately ordered to the left ; Colonel Bissell's regiment occupied a position be- tween them, while Colonel McKee's Kentuckians were transferred from the right of our line, so as to hold a position near the centre. The 2d Indiana regiment, under Colonel Bowles, Avas placed on our extreme left, nearly perpendicular to the direction of our line, so as to oppose, by a direct fire, the flank movement of the enemy. These disposi- tions having been promptly eff'ected, the artillery of both armies opened their fires, and simultaneously the Mexican infantry commenced a rapid and extended discharge upon our line, from the left to McKee's regiment. Our artil- lery belched forth its thunders with tremendous eflfect, while the Kentuckians returned the fire of the Mexican infantry with great steadiness and success : their field oflncers, McKee, Clay, and Fry, passing along their line, animating and encouraging the men by precept and ex- ample. The 2d Illinois regiment also received the enemy's fire with great firmness, and returned an ample equiva- lent. While this fierce conflict was going on, the main body of Colonel Hardin's regiment moved to the right of the Kentuckians, and the representatives of each state seemed to vie with each other in the honourable ambition of doing the best service for their country. Both regi- ments gallantly sustained their positions, and won unfad- ino; laurels. The veterans of Austerlitz could not have exhibited more courage, coolness, and devotion. In the mean time the enemy's cavalry had been stealthily pursuing its way along the mountain, and though our artillery had wrought great havoc among its numbers, the leading squadrons had passed the extreme 172 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. points of danger, and was almost in position to attack his rear. At this critical moment * * * * * * * Several othcers of General Taylor's staff immediately dashed off, to arrest, if possible, the retreating regiment. * * Major Dix, of the pay department, formerly of the 7th infantry-, * * and seizing the colours of the regiment, appealed to the men to know whether they had determined to desert them. He was answered by three cheers, showing that * * * they were not unmindful of an act of distinguished gallantry on the part of another. A por tion of the regiment immediately rallied around him, and was reformed by the officers. Dix, in person, then led them towards the enemy, until one of the men volun- teered to take the flag. The party returned to the field. ***** While the day, however, by this disgraceful panic, was fast going against us, the artillery was advanced, its front extended, and different sections and pieces under Sherman, Bragg, O'Brien, Thomas, Reynolds, Kilburn, French, and Bryan, wert workino: such carnao:e in the ranks of the enemy as to make his columns roll to and fro like ships upon the billows. His triumph at the Indiana retreat was but a moment, and his shouts of joy were soon followed by groans of anguish, and shrieks of expiring: hundreds. Washington's battery on the right had now opened its fire, and driven back a large party of lancers, advancing in that direction.- Along: the entire line the battle ragred with great fury. Twenty-one thousand of the victims of Mexican oppression and the myrmidons of Mexican despotism were arrayed against five thousand Americans, f^nt foith to conquer a peace. The discharges of the infantry followed each other more rapidly than the sounD HIS GtlNERALS. squadronb, besides a tierce tire of grape iiom Reynolds's six-pounder. The lancers once more rallied, and, directing their course towards the Saltillo road, were met by the re- mainder of Colonel Yell's regiment and Marshall's Ken- luckians, who drove them towards the mountains on the opposite side of the valley, where, from their appearance when last visible, it may be presumed they are still run- ning. In this precipitate movement, they were com pelled to pass through a rancho, in which many of our valiant comrades had previously taken refuge, who from this recure retreat opened quhe an efieclive lire upon them. ****** At this time the Mexican force was much divided, and the fortunes of the day were with us. Santa Anna saw the crisis, and by craft and cunning sought to avert it. He sent a white flag to General Taylor, desiring to know " what he wanted." This was at once believed to be a mere ruse, to gain time and re-collect his men; but the American general thought fit to notice it, and General Wool was deputed to meet the representative of Santa Anna, and to say to him that w^e " wanted" peace. Before the interview could be had, the Mexicans themselves re-opened their fires, thus addintr treachery of the highest order to the other barbarian practices w^iich distinguish their mode of w^arfare. The flag, however, had accomplished the ends which its wily originator designed, for though our troops could have effectually prevented the remainder of his cavalry from joining the main body, it could only have been done by a fire, which, while the parley lasted, would have been an undoubted breach of faith. iVlthough a portion of the lancers durino- this interim had regaintnl TAYLOR. 175 their original position, a lormidabie number still lemained behind. Upon these the infantry opened a brisk fire, while Reynolds's artillery, beautifully served, hailed the grape and canister upon them with terrible effect. The craft of Santa Anna had restored his courage, and with his reintbrcement of cavalry he determined to charge our line. Under cover of their artillery, horse and foot advanced upon our batteries. These, from the smallness of our infantry force, were but feebly supported, yet, by the most brilliant and daring efforts, nobly main- tained their positions. Such was the rapidity of their transitions, that otficers and pieces seemed empowered with ubiquity ; and upon cavalry and infantry alike, wherever they appeared, they poured so destructive a fire as to silence the enemy's artillery, compel his whole line to fall back, and soon to assume a sort of sauvs qui pent movement, indicating anything but victory. Again our spirits rose. The Mexicans appeared thoroughly routed, and while their regiments and divisions were flying before us, nearly all our light troops were ordered forward, and followed them w'ith a most deadly fire, mingled with shouts which rose above the roar of ar- tillery. While our men were driven through the ravines, at the extremities of whicli a body of Mexican lancers were stationed to pounce upon them like tigers, Brent :.:u\ Whiting, of Washington's battery, gave them such a torrent of grape as put them to tlight, and thus saved the remnants of those brave regiments which had long borne the hottest portion of the fight. On the other flank, while the Mexicans came rushing on like legions of fiends, the artillery was left unsupported, and capture by the enemy seemed inevitable. But Bragg and Thomas rose with the crisis, and eclipsed even the fame they won 176 TAYLOR AND HIS GLNLKALS. at Monterey, while Sherman, O'Brien, and Br}'an proved themselves worthy of the alliance. Every horse with O'Brien's battery was killed, and the enemy had ad vanced to within range of grape, sweeping all before him. But here his progress was arrested, and before the showers of iron hail which assailed him, squadrons and battalions fell like leaves in the blasts of autumn. The Mexicans were once more driven back with great loss, though taking with them the three pieces of artillery which were without horses. In this charge the 1st Illinois regiment and McKee's Kentuckians were foremost. The pursuit was too hot : and as it evmced too clearly our deficiency in numbers, the Mexicans, with a suddenness which was almost magi- cal, rallied and returned upon us. They came in myriads, and for a while the carnaoe was dreadful on both sides. We were but a hanrlful to oppose the frightful masses which were hurled upon us, and could as easily have re- sisted an a valance of thunderbolts. We were driven back, and the day seemed lost beyond redemption. Vic- tory, which a moment before appeared wnthin our grasp, was suddenly torn from our standard. There was but one hope; but that })roved an anchor sure and steadfast. Thus thrice during the dav, when all seemed lost but honour, difl the artillery, by the ability with which it was mananivred, roll back the tide of success from the enemy, and give such overwhelming destructiveness to its effect that the army was saved and the glory of the American arms maintained. At this moment, however, let it never be forgotten, that while every effective man was w^anted on the field, hundreds of volunteers had collected in the rancho with the wagon train, whom no efforts or entrea- ties could induce to join their brethren, neighbours, ai)d friends, then in thr ]\\'<\ •'truii^'j^lr for victory. TAYLOK. 177 The battle ha(i now raged with variable success for nearly ten hours, and by a sort of mutual consent, after the last carnage wrought among the Mexicans by the artillery, both parties seemed willing to pause upon the result. Night fell, and the American general with his troops slept upon the battle-ground, prepared, if neces- sary, to resume operations on the morrow. But ere the sun rose again upon the scene the Mexicans had disap- peared, leaving behind them only the hundreds of their dead and dying, whose bones are to whiten their native hills, and whose moans of anguish w^ere to excite in their enemies that compassion which can have no existence in the bosoms of their friends. CHAPrER VIII. Anecdotes and incidents of the battle of Buena Vista — In- stances of individual gallantry — Notices of distinguished officers among the slain — Santa Anna's Despatch. MAJOR COFFEE'S NARRATIVE. Major Coffee, of ilie army, the bearer of General Taylor's despatches — a son of the distinguished general who fought so bravely on the plains of Chalmette, and in various other battles, by the side of the illustrious Jackson, and acted as the aid of General Taylor in the bloody fight at Buena Vista, gives these particulars of this hard-fought battle : — General Taylor had fallen in love, at first sight, with the position at which he finally made his stand — at Buena Vista. His movement towards Agua Nueva was merely a ruse to decoy the enemy into the field which he had selected for his battle ground. As soon as McCullough's men, who were invaluable as scouts, informed him of Santa Anna's approach to Agua Nueva, General Taylor quietly broke up his camp, and fell back to his first love, Buena Vista. This position w'as admirably chosen. It was at the foot of a mountain, or rather of two moun- tains, between which ran the road through a narrow valley. On his right there was a deep ravine, which protected that flank more effectually than half a dozen regimenis could have done. The left of General Taylor's line rested on the base of a mountain. The road in the centre was intrenched and defended by a strong battery. TAYLOR. J 79 In front the in-ound was uneven — broken into liills and deep ravines — well adapted to. the mode of fighting suited to our volunteers, and by its peculiarities supply- ing the disadvantage of a great inferiority of numbers. On the 21st the enemy were descried approaching over the distant hills. At their appearance the volunteers raised a great shout, and gave three tremendous cheers. Their engineers and officers were seen flying over the field, and dragging their cannon about to get them into position, but the nature of the ground did not favour the undertaking, and it was late in the day before the big guns began to open. The enemy had w^ith them thirty-two cannon, mostly of large calibre. Their fire, though kept up very brjskly, and apparently well manned, did so little execution in our ranks that it was not considered neces- sary to return their fire. Our cannon w^re therefore silent the whole of the 21st. Eight or ten killed and wounded was the extent of the casualties sustained by our array on the 21st. During the day an officer approached our lines w^ith a flag of truce, and requested to be shown to General Taylor. The brave old man was sitting quietly on his white charger, with his hg over the pommel of the saddle, watching the movements of the enemy, when the Mexican officer was presented. In a very courteous and graceful manner the officer stated that " he had been sent by his excellency General Santa Anna to his excellency General Taylor, to inquire, in the most respectful manner, what he (General Taylor) was waiting for ?" From the silence of General Taylor's batteries, and the quiet manner in which he received Santa Anna's terrific cannonading, the Mexican supposed he was asking a very proper question; to which however, old Rough and Ready ^ave 180 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. the very pertinent reply that " he was only waiting for General Santa Anna to surrender." The Mexican returned hastily to his lines. This message proved to be a ruse to ascertain where General Taylor's position was, for after the return of the Mexican officer to his own ranks, the whole Mexican battery seemed to open upon General Taylor's position, and the balls flew over and about him like hail. Utterly indifferent to the perils of his situation, there sat the old chief on his conspicuous white horse, peering through his spy-glass at the long lines of Mexican troops that could be seen at a great distance on the march. The persuasion of his aids could not induce him to abandon his favourite point of observation, nor to give up his old white horse. To the suggestions of his staff that '' old whitey" was rather too conspicuous a charger for the commander, he replied, that " the old fellow had missed the fun at Monterey, on account of a sore foot, and he was determined he should have his share this time." All the officers on our side, in this hard-fought battle, distinguished themselves. The details of the battle were confided to General Wool, who nobly justified the confi- dence of his commander and brother veteran, by the most active, zealous, efficient, and gallant conduct. Throughout the whole action he was constantly engaged in the disposition of our forces, and in rallying them to the onset. It was a miracle he escaped the thick-flying balls which thinned the ranks he was marshalling. There was but one complaint made against him, an that was that he exposed himself too much. Brigad r-General Lane also showed himself to be a brave a d capable officer. Although wounded early in the actit i, he kept his horse until it closed, and never for a mom»-nt left his post . TAYLUIl. ISl On the night of the 22il, both armies drew off from the field of battle. Our men were engaged all night in bring- ing in the wounded and taking care of them, the Mexicans as well as their own men. There were, however, but few of our men found on the field wounded. They were, to use Santa Anna's significant words in his despatch, '' all dead," the cowardly miscreants having killed every man whom they overtook, wounded and helpless on the field. With like turpitude and treachery, they left their dead unburied and their wounded uncared for, on the field where they fell. The latter were carried to Saltillo in our own wagons, the former were buried by the alcalde, under the orders of General Taylor. A number of officers w^ere taken prisoners, and an ex- (;hange was effected, by which all our men in their hands were released. Cassius M. Clay's party are understood now to be in the city of Mexico. Among the killed and wounded of the Mexicans are three general officers, and twenty colonels and com- manders of battalions. General Minon, it appears, has not as yet reaHzed the brilliant career of which he con- sidered his capture of Major Borland an earnest. He was ordered by Santa Anna to attack and carry Saltillo during the engagement at Buena Vista. With this ob- ject he made a demonstration against the town with 2000 cavalry. Lieutenant Shover, with sixty men and two small pieces of artillery, went out to meet the valiant general, and at one discharge of his cannon sent him and his large force to the right-about in double quick time. In concluding our necessarily imperfect sketch of the few details of the brilliant deeds of American valour per- formed at Buena Vista — details gathered from a hasty eon\ersation — we must be allowed to express our satis- 182 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. faction to find that the anticipations we have so confi- dently and so frequently expressed of the bravery and efficiency of our volunteers, have been more than real- ized. Let those who have lieretofore made our citizen soldiers the theme of their ribaldry and ridicule, be for ever hushed into silence by the unparalleled gallantry and trlory which have consecrated in American history the bloody field of Buena Vista. THE KRNT['CKY REGLMENT. At a very critical point of the battle on the 23d, when it became necessary to sustain one of our columns, which was staggering under a charge made by the Mexicans in overwhelming numbers, General Taylor despatched Mr. Crittenden to order Colonel McKee, of the '2d Ken- tucky regiment, to bring his men into immediate action. Mr. Crittenden found the regiment, men and officers, eacrer for the fray, delivered the order and rode back- to the o-eneral, by whose side it was his duty to keep. The Kentuckians moved forward in gallant style, led by McKee and Clay, both of whom, alas I fell in a subse- quent part of the day. It so happened that before reachino- a position from which they could deliver an effective fire, the regiment had to cross a valley which was broken up by ravines and masses of stone. Whilst crossing this valley the heads only of the men could be seen from the point which General Taylor and Mr. Crittenden occupied — and these were bobbing up and down and crosswise in such confusion as to impress both with the idea that the regiment had fallen into disorder. The Mexicans were annoying them at the same moment by a fire, which helped to confirm the opinion of the creneral that the Kentuckians were thrown into dismay. It was one of those decisive crises which occur in T.WI.oU. 183 every contested field, when the issue of the day depend- ed, for the time being, upon the gallantry of a particular corps. General Taylor, who, as before said, could only see the heads of the troops, and misled by their motions in getting across gullies and going around rocks and other obstructions into the beUef that they were about to falter, turned to Mr. Crittenden, who is a Kentuckian, and with a countenance indicating deep mortification — for the ge- neral is a Kentuckian too — and an eye fierce with emotion, exclaimed, " Mr. Crittenden, this will not do — this is not the way for Kentuckians to behave themselves when called upon to make a good battle— it will not answer, sir : " and with this he clenched his hands, and knit his brow, and set his teeth hard together. Mr. Crittenden, who was mistaken Ky the same indications that deceived the general, could scarcely make a reply from very chagrin and shame. In a few moments, however, the Kentuck- ians had crossed the uneven places, and were seen as- cending the slope of the valley, shoulder to shoulder, and with the firm and regular step of veterans of a hundred fields. On they moved until they reached the crest of the hill, where they met the enemy before the flush of a temporary advantage had subsided. Here they delivered their fires with such regularity and deadly aim that the decimated phalanx of Mexico gave way and retreated precipitously. As the Kentuckians emerged from the valley the countenance of the old general, who was regarding them with the intensest interest, gradually relaxed the bitterness of its expression. A glow of pride supplanted the deep mortification which fixed its muscles, and enthusiasm qualified the fierce glance of his eye. Forward they moved under his riveted gaze, whose feelings became more and more wrought up as they 12 184 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. approached the scene of carnage. When they opened their fire the old general could no longer restrain his admiration, but broke forth with a loud huzza — '< Hurrah for old Kentucky," he exclaimed, talking as it were to himself and rising in his saddle — " that 's the way to do it; give it to them," and the tears of exultation rolled down his cheeks as he said it. Having got rid of this ebullition of state pride, he went about looking after other parts of the field. The Kentuckians that day did their duty as others did. They paid toll in travelling the highroad to glory, as the list of killed and wounded shows. THE FLAG OF HUMANITY. An eye-witness — one who was near General Tay- lor's person all the time, with the exceptions of those intervals during which he was carrying his orders over the field — informs us that not a man of the American lines, with the exception of the momentary panic of the Arkansas regiment, wavered for an instant whilst facing the most galling fire and receiving the repeated charges of the enemy, which, it is but candour to say, were con- ducted with spirit and address. As an instance of the desperation with which both armies fought, Mr. Crittenden, who acted as General Taylor's aid throughout the fight, when asked whether the Mexicans had taken three pieces of ordnance from us, as Santa Anna reported, repHed in the affirmative, and said that the guns were not given up till every man at them w^as shot down, and every horse killed near them ; and, moreover, that in bearing them o^\ the Mexicans suffered a loss of some six hundred men. They inter- fered madly between the retreating guns and our men, seeking to regain them. These ajuns were a part of TAYLOR. 185 Captain Washington's battery, under the command of Lieutenant O'Brien. Lieutenant O'Brien was wounded before his guns were taken, and when reporting his loss to General Taylor, was complimented for his bravery — it was no fault of his. Captain Washington was in another part of the field, and sustained himself with great coolness and intelligence, as did Captains Bragg and Sherman, w^ith their respective batteries — in all but four- teen guns. It may be proper here to explain the circumstances upon which a report is founded that General Taylor had sent Santa Anna a flao; of truce durinoj the action. It occurred that a body of Mexican infantry, about a thou- sand strong, had become detached from Santa Anna's army, and were being mowed down with terrible slaugh- ter. General Taylor sent Mr. Crittenden with a flag to say to them that if they would surrender he would stop killing them. When Mr. Crittenden got amongst them, he w^as taken by them to Santa Anna with his eyes Wind folded. This he remonstrated against without effect. When he was brought to Santa Anna, he was asked his mission. He told him he had no message for him ; that he was sent to ask a detached force to surrender, to save the effusion of blood, and as his errand was unsuc- cessful, he demanded to be sent back to his general. It was then that Santa Anna requested him to tell General Taylor that if he would surrender he would be protected and well cared for. Mr. Crittenden replied that he had no commission to speak with him (Santa Anna) upon that or any other matter, but it was no use to send any such message, as General Taylor never surrendered.^^ 186 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. DISTINGUISHED OFFICERS SLAIN. A gentleman writing from the scene of action, with reference to the officers of distinction who fell at Buena Vista, says : At sunrise on the 22d of February, the bat- tle began in earnest. The Mexicans were drawn out in immense numbers. The dark columns of infantry ex- tended as far as the eye could reach, and the cavalry seemed to cover the whole viev; with their interminable lines. At intervals, between the infantry and cavalr}'*, their big guns, strongly protected by a large artillery force, kept up an incessant cannonade against our lines. Their forces were soon in motion. Our artiller}' was thrown forward to meet them, protected by the volunteers. General Wool led the main body in person, and was seen everywhere rallying and encouraging the volun- teers. The two armies were soon engaged in hot con- flict. The broken nature of the ground divided the forces, so that, instead of one general engagement, the regiments were compelled in a great measure to fight on their own hook. Our officers were always in the ad- vance, leading their troops — hence the great mortality among them. In this general " melee," one of oui small regiments, of 400 men, would be attacked by a whole Mexican brigade of several thousand. Thus the Kentucky infantry was attacked at the foot of a hill, in a deep ravine, by an immense force of the enemy. A large number of officers were killed here — among them was Colonel McKce, who fell badly wounded, and was immediately despatched by the enemy, who pierced him with their bayonets as he lay on the ground. Lieu- tenant-Colonel Clay was shot through the thigh, and being unable to walk, was taken up and carried some distance by some of his men, but owing to the steepness TAYLOR. 181 of the hill, the men finding it very difficult to carry him, and the enemy in great numbers pressing upon them, the gallant lieutenant-colonel begged them to leave him imd take care of themselves. Forced to leave him on the field, the last that was seen of this noble young officer he was lying on his back, fighting w^ith his sword the enemv, who were stabbing him with their bayonets. The veteran. Captain William S. Willis, of the same regiment, at the head of his company, with three stal- wart sons w^ho fought at his side, was badly wounded, but still continued the fight, until he was overcome with the loss of blood. In the mean time the Indiana brigade, who were drawn out and ordered to charge the enemy, were seized with a panic, and displaying some hesitation, Assistant Adjutant-General Lincoln rushed to their front, and, whilst upbraiding them for their cowardice, was shot, several balls passing through his body. In justice to this brigade, it should be stated that they subsequently rallied, and fully redeemed their reputation by the most gallant and etfective fighting. Colonel Hardin led the Illinoisians in a very handsome style, and the sturdy «' suckers" fought like lions. Their intrepid colonel fell w^ounded, and experienced the fate of Colonels McKee and Clay, and was killed by the enemy — not how-ever before he had killed one of the cowardly miscreants with a pistol, which he fired whilst lying on the ground. Colonel Yell led, the foremost man, a charge of his mounted volunteers against a large body of lancers, and was killed by a lance, which entered his mouth and tore off one side of his face. The Mississippians, the heroes of Monterey, after doing hard service as skirmishers, were ordered into line ^88 TAVLOR AND HIS -GENERALS. LO receive a charge of cavalry-, \Yhich they did with their rifles, dehvering at the same time a most destructive fire among the crowded columns of cavalry. The enemy were completely repulsed. The distinguished com- mander of this gallant regiment, Colonel Jefferson Davis, was badly wounded, an escopette ball having entered his foot and passed out of his leg. He was, however, doing well when last heard from. The chivalrous Colonel McClung was prevented from doing his share of the brave deeds of this brilliant fight, by the grievous wound received at the battle of Monterey, which still confines him to his bed, and from which it is much feared by his best friends he will never recover. Colonel Humphrey Marshall's splendid regiment of Kentucky cavalry w^re impatient for an opportunity of showing their mettle and avenging the capture of their brethren, then in the hands of the enemy. They were soon favoured with the desired opportunity, by the ap- proach of a force of 2000 lancers and hussars, who charged on them. The Kentuckians stood their ground with immoveable steadiness, and receivinof the enemy with a fire from their carbines, charged in the most gal- lant style through the column on the right, and wheeling fell on their left, dispersing and killing a great many of them. A like charge was made by Colonel May, at the head of a squadron of dragoons, and one of Arkansas cavalry, against a large body of the enemy's cavalry, with like results. GENERAL CHARACTER OF THE BATTLE. The following remarks on the battle of Buena Vista, by the accomplished editor of the Baltimore American, comprise the ablest general view of its merits which has yet appeared. The writer does no more than strict TAYLOR. 189 justice in the high encomiums which he bestows on General Taylor, his officers, and his men. "It appears that the battle of Buena Vista was really foua^ht by less than 4000 Americans against 20,000 Mexicans. With a proportion of five to one against us, in point of numbers ; it is to be remembered too that the Mexicans were regular soldiers, while nearly nine-tenths of our troops were volunteers on their first campaign. With the exception of the Mississippi regiment, which fought at Monterey, the rest of the volunteers met an enemy in the field for the first time at Buena Vista. We may then estimate, in some sort, the valour of those brave men who stood for nine hours against overwhelm- ing numbers, firm in their owm heroism, indomitable in spirit, inflexible in purpose, rolling back the tide of war, as rocks repel the surges of the ocean, and finally stand- ing victorious on that field of terrific strife. The standard of the republic never streamed over a battle-field more gallantly won. General Taylor's loss in killed, wound- ed, and missing, was nearly one-sixth of his entire force. Yet, when the battle ceased on the evening of the 23d, and a renewal of the fight was expected with the next day's dawn, what record do we find of that epoch of suspense! Here it is: — 'During the night,' says General Taylor, ' the wounded were removed to Saltillo, and every preparation made to receive the enemy, should he again attack our position.' There was no misgiving in that little band. This battle of Buena Vista, remarkable in many points of view, is particularly so a? exhibiting extraordinary steadiness, endurance, and courage, on the part of raw troops exposed to fire for the first time. Here was a pitched battle entered upon deliberately ; an enemy im- mensely superior in numbers ; regular troops, commanded 190 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. by the ablest and most experienced general in Mexico ; and this battle to be fought in open field, without fortifi- cations or intrenchraents, was awaited by our soldiers, who lay upon their arms on the night of the 22d, know- ing that the morning's light would usher in a day of conflict and carnage. It was a crisis to try veterans ; it was met by men w^ho less than a year before were en- gaged in every variety of industrial pursuit in peaceful life, who had never seen a battle or met a foe. While these facts demonstrate unyielding elements of hardihood and courage in the men who fought at Buena Vista, they indicate also the high and commanding character of the officers who brought those sterling ma- terials into order and efficiency. Those lamented sons of Kentucky, McKee and Clay, the gallant Davis of Mississippi, and others, educated at West Point, added all the aids of military knowledge to their own heroic bearing in the discipUne of their troops and in the inspi- ration of confidence, so essential to success in war. But where the blaze of glory concentrates with most particular lustre, its brilliant light falls upon the calm countenance of the general-in-chief, Taylor, the invincible, to whom all eyes were turned in every crisis of danger — who formed in himself the stay and bulwark of the hopes of his array — the only man, perhaps, who would have fought the battle of Buena Vista ; the only man, probably, who could have won it. Imperturbable and self-possessed, he held the battle in his eye; and amid the storm and fury of the strife he inspired renewed courage by his presence at every point of danger. With such a commander and such troops, victory is fast bound to our standard, let it float where it may." The following account of the battle of Buena Vista by General Santa Anna, we think it due to General Taylor TAYLOR. 191 to insert. It fully confirms every particular of General Taylor's own despatch ; and with the usual amusing and absurd effrontery of Mexican reports, it claims a tri- umph o^er the American arras. Liberating Army of thk RepubliCj General-in-Chief : Campaign Secretary^ Office. Most Excellent Sir: In my despatch from the battle- field of Angostura, dated the 2od, I promised to give you details of the action of the 22d and the battle of the 23d, so soon as I should effect the movement which our entire lack of water and of all supplies made indispen- sable. In those engagements the army and the nation have restored the lustre of their arms by overcoming ob- stacles inconceivable to all save those who witnessed them. These arose, not only from the difficulties of this contest, and of our own situation, but also from the rigour of the season, and the exhaustion of the country along an almost desert route of over fifty leagues, that was destitute of good water, and of all save the most limited supplies. The supreme government was informed by commu- nications made before my leaving San Luis, that the army under my command would not commence its ope- rations till the end of winter, as I knew^ by experience the severe climate of the region, which was also scant of habitations, provisions, shelter, and even of fuel. I, therefore, resolved to go on organizing, drilling, arm- ing, and clothing the army ; and, in a word, to put into a military shape the forces which had just been assembled. My intentions, however, could not be ma- turely realized. Tlie want of pecuniary resources embarrassed all my dispositions. The soldiers, though well disposed to 192 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. combat with the enemy, had been badly supplied for a month, and would soon have been in want even of food, but that the exertions of the commanders of corps pre- vented that destitution from driving them from their ranks. While those meritorious men were suffering all kinds of privation, certain writers, from ignorance, want of reflection, party spirit, or, perhaps, from mistaken patriotism, were zealously engaged in thwarting the plans which might otherwise have proved successful. This they did by unjust charges against the army and par- ticular individuals, whom they abused for not marching to the conflict, accusing them of want of decision, and asserting that the position of the army at San Luis was more threatening to our liberties than to the enemy. In the clubs of that capital they laboured with assiduity to make the army the instrument of a revolt ; but I frus- trated their intrigues by timely steps. There was one writer who had the audacity to intimate that I was in collusion with the enemy. Yes, I, to whom they may attribute errors, but whose whole previous course has shown the most elevated patriotism ! Traitors are they who seek not only to traduce me, but by their detraction of the army to unnerve its vigour for the service of the country. It seems as if a fatality directs the destinies of this nation, and interdicts a unanimity of the public will for its defence ; and from this fiital blindness, the moment when every heart and every aspiration should be directed to one object, is the very juncture when division and distrust are disseminated. Behold me, then, compelled by every circumstance to change my plans. Desertion had already commenced to a shameful extent ; and I was fully persuaded that if the scarcity should continue, the army would be dishonourably frittered away. I therefore resolved that, if annihilated, it should TAYLOR. 193 be with glory. Having no supplies, I, to obtain them, compromitted my private fortune and the credit of my- self and friends. All this procured me the sum of one hundred and eighty thousand dollars, with which I was able to furnish the needful sup[)lies to the army for twelve days. I knew well the country we had to cross, and the necessity there would be for carrying provisions ; and I sympathized in anticipation with the soldier for what he would endure from the rigour of the season ; but to ren- der good service to the country, and save its honour, I had to overlook all this. The army moved from San Luis by brigades, so as to render available the scanty resources afforded by the country we were to cross. The force consisted of 13,432 infantry, divided into twenty-eight battalions ; 4338 ca- valry, in thirty-nine squadrons ; and a train of artillery of three twenty-four-pounders, three sixteen-pounders, five twelve-pounders, five eight-pounders, and a seven- inch howitzer, all served by 413 artillerymen — the total being 18,133 men. Of this force there remained behind, the garrison of the works at San Luis, and others which I allotted to the towns on the route ; as also two squad- rons to escort our small and only reserve of ammunition ; a brigade of infantry, of two battalions, under General Don Ciriaco Vasquez, which remained as a corps of reserve in Matehuala, and of observation upon Tula ; as also a brigade of cavalry, under General Don Jose Urrea. The latter was intended to pass Tula, and move through Tamaulipas to the neighbourhood of Monterey, so as to call the enemy's attention to that quarter. The point of concentration for the brigades ought necessarily to be near this place, so that in the region through which they had to move, many troops might not be at once thrown together. I therefore fixed on the hacienda of Encarna- 194 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. cion for that point, it being, as I calculated, the last stage but one of my march. I there held a review of the army, which had already lost a thousand men by sick- ness and desertion. The former was caused by the scantiness and bad quality of food, and still more of water, which was brackish as well as scarce, as also by snow-storms and the exposure of the troops, who had always to be in bivouac and without fuel. These snow- storms obliged me to suspend the march two days, till the weather became more settled : for the cold had already caused the death of several men and horses, and I felt bound by every means to diminish the losses we WTre incurring. These hardships will account for the number of desertions which occurred up to our arrival at Encarnacion, and w^hich afterwards even increased. It must also be remembered, that almost the whole army had been recently formed, and, as is well known, of men taken by violence from their homes. We had advices that the enemy were fortified in the hacienda of Agua Nueva, with 6000 men and thirty pieces, resolved to defend the defiles known by the names of the passes of Carnero and Agua Nueva. The Ameri- cans did not know the precise point on which our march was directed ; for, though they exchanged some shots with our advance in Encarnacion, and had frequent small skirmishes with us in the above passes, they supposed our troops to be scouting parties of the first brigade of cavalry, under Don Jose V. Minon, whom I had ad- vanced as far as the hacienda of Potosi. These were the impressions when I made my dispositions. It was my intention to place my forces between the enemy and Saltillo, so as to oblige him to fight under the disadvantage of having his communication cut off, or, if he would not leave his works, to enable me to besiege TAYLOR. 195 him in Agua Nueva. This plan niight be carried out in three different ways. One was by marching twenty leagues by the direct road, another by moving to the right by La Hedionda, so as to occupy Buena Vista ; and the third, by moving to the left by La Punta de Santa Elena, so as to occupy the hacienda of La Banqueria, and thereafter the road to Saltillo. The two last movements were at this time impracticable, for they would either of them require three or four days, march, while we were without provisions, forage, or water. I therefore resolv- ed to operate by the direct road, force the positions, and, after passing the last defile, make a diversion by the left, and occupy the rancho of Encantada, with the view of obtaininiT water, none of which was to be had for more than eighteen leagues. All this was favoured by the enemy's ignorance of our march ; but misfortune still followed us. A deserter from the regiment of Coraceros, a native of Saltillo, named Francisco Valdes, passed over from Encarnacion to the enemy, and gave him in- formation of the movement. The execrable treason of this infamous wretch frustrated the best combinations. On the 21st, at noon, I ordered the march to com- mence, the four light battalions, under General Don Pedro Ampudia, forming the vanguard. I had not hesitated to allow that general, and other officers who had been court-martialled for the affair of Monterey, to participate in these operations, not only because I did not consider them culpable, but also on account of the zeal they manifested. This brigade was followed by one of artillery, of sixteen-pounders, with the regiments of engineers and their train, and those by the park of the regiment of hussars. Then came the first division, commanded by General Don Manuel Lombardini, with four twelve-pounders and the park. The second division, 196 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. under General Don Francisco Pacheco, followed next, with four eight-pounders and their park ; after these the whole of the cavalry, under Don Julian Juvera ; and then the remainder of the general park and baggage, the rear being covered by a brigade of cavalry under General Don Manuel Andrade. In this order of march the troops were ordered to make the first fourteen leagues, between Encenada and a plain called De la Guerra, which is in front of the first defile, called the Pass of the Pinones ; and to pass the night on that plain in the same order of column. The troops having eaten their rations, order was given for carry- ing water, as none could be met with till the day following, after having overcome the enemy at Agua Nueva, three leagues beyond the aforesaid pass. I, with my staff and the regiment of engineers, occupied the front, a little behind the light troops. On arriving at the plain, De la Guerra, I continued the march in order to pass the defile of Pinones, which was accom- plished ; and I ordered the light brigade to take a position in the pass of Carnero, where it had a skirmish with an advance of the enemy. Under these dispositions we passed the night. At dawn on the 22d, the army continued its march, with the idea of carrying by force of arms the pass of Agua Nueva, which I supposed would be defended by the enemy ; but I found to my surprise that it was abandoned. I then concluded that the American forces had retired to their fortifications in the hacienda, to concentrate their defence under cover of the intrenchments, which I had heard they had there thrown up. Under this idea I continued the march, in order to turn by the right to the rancho of Encantada, which, as I have befi^re mention- ed, is on the Saltillo road, being between that city and TAYLOR. 197 Agua Nueva, and four or five leagues from each. Till that time no one had appeared to give me information, nor did any one after, except a servant from Agua Nueva, who told me that the enemy had been evacuating his po- sition since the day previous, and falling back towards Saltillo ; and that on that same morning, the hacienda had been wholly abandoned, by the retreat of a small de- tachment which escorted a large quantity of munitions. By this movement my first plans and dispositions, found- ed on an expected resistance, were rendered abortive ; but I still did not despair of a successful result, for I had in anticipation directed General Minon, with his cavalry brigade, 1200 strong, to occupy, on the morning of the 22d, the hacienda of Buena Vista, distant three short leagues from Saltillo. This force might arrest the ene- my's march, or, at least, make a diversion that would give time for the army to come up. I therefore continued my march, without losing more time than would allow the soldiers to drink water on the road. The light bri- gade came within sight of the enemy's rear-guard, and I ordered them to charge in conjunction with the hussar regiment. I had reason to believe the enemy were making a precipitate retreat, as they left several articles on the road, such as carts, forge implements, extra wheels, and other things, which we gathered while marching. In consequence of the different reports I re- ceived, I ordered the cavalry to advance ; I thought we would be able to reach their rear-guard, and placed my- self at the head of those troops. On arriving at a place called i^ngostura, I found the main body of the enemy awaiting me in position. The road from the pass of Pinones to Saltillo runs between two chains of mountains, which form that pass and those of Carnero and Agua Nueva. The ridges open beyond 198 TAYLOR AND HIS GENKRALS. that hacienda and approach each other again at Angos- tura, where the road turns to the right. At this place there is a succession of ridges, which run out toward the Une of our route, and at right angles with it, and be- tween them are ravines which form the drains of the mountains on the right. They are more or less passable, but all very difficult. The enemy's position was in front and in rear of the road, his right and front being covered by ravines that were impassable, even for infantry, and a battery of four pieces being planted on the highest point. His battalions were formed on the heights with two other batteries, one of which was in a low part of the road, between two hills; and, to my view, their forces appeared to be about 8000 men, with twenty pieces ; but the prisoners taken from them report twenty-six pieces, and upwards of 8000 combatants. I reconnoitred the position and situation of the ene- my, and ordered the director of engineers. General Don Ignacio de Mora y Yillamil, to do the same. After as- certaining the force of the invader, it was necessary either to await the infantry, to take position, or to fight, as might seem most advisable. At this interval, I ob- served that the enemy had neglected to occupy a height on his left flank ; and, without losing a moment, I ordered General Ampudia's light brigade to take posses- sion of, and hold it at every cost. As the brigade came up, I formed them in two lines on a rising ground that fronted the enemy, there being another eminence be- tween our two positions ; the first division of infantry was under the command of General Lombardini, and ihe second under the command of General Pacheco. I di- rected that General Mora y Villamil, in conjunction with the commanding general of artillery, Don Antonio Corona, should find a position for a battery of sixteen- TAYLOR. 199 pounders, to be sustained by the regiment of engineeis. Two other batteries, of twelve and eight-pounders, were located by me. The cavaliy, commanded by General Juvefa, were placed on the right of our rear, and on our left flank. The regiment of hussars was also posted in the rear, and on the flank aforesaid was a height which I ordered the battalion of Leon to occupy. The gene- ral park was in the rear, covered by the brigade of Gen- eral Andrade, and between this park and the lines of battle I took my own position. The making of these dispositions, as may be supposed, occupied some time, for the troops arrived at their posi- tions after a 'march of more than twenty leagues. It was therefore not an hour for combat, and the army lay on its arms. The enemy, however, so soon as he perceived that we had occupied the height that flanked his left and our right, despatched two battalions to dislodge us, which led to a warm engagement, that lasted all the afternoon and till after dark, when he was repulsed with a loss of 400 men, according to the report of the prisoners. Ours was much less, as we had the advan- tage of the ground. At dawn on the 23d I mounted my horse ; the enemy had not changed his previous dispositions, and was ready to receive us. I observed but one difference, which was, that on his right, and at some distance from his position, he had formed two bodies of infantry, with a battery of four pieces, as if with the intent of threat- ening our left flank, but I at once believed this to be a mere demonstration, for he would never have left in his rear the difficult ground which gave strength to that position, being the web of impassable ravines before referred to. I, therefore, gave no attention to this dis- position of his forces, and resolved to move mine by the 13 200 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. right. With this intention, I advanced the divisions of General Lombardini and General Pacheco in that direc- tion. I ordered General Don Manuel Micheltorena to plant the battery of eight-pounders on our right flank, so as to rake obliquely the enemy's line, and to remain with tlie staff, of which he was chief, and await my orders. I directed that General Ampudia,with the light brigade, should charge by our left flank on the enemy's right, and that General Mora y Villamil should form a column of attack composed of the regiment of engineers, the 12th battaHon, the fijo de Meaico, and the companies of Puebla and Tampico, commanded by Colonel Don San- tiago Blanco. At the same time, I directed General Corona, commanding the artiller}', to place the battery of twelve-pounders in a more commanding position, while the 3d division remained in reserve, under Brevet-Gene- ral Don Jose Maria Ortega. So soon as the enemy perceived our movements he commenced the action at all points, attacked our troops with int'^epidity, and maintained the conflict with great vigour. Our men received them with proper energy, driving back and following up the assailants. At this time my horse was disabled by a grape-shot, and it was some time before I could mount another. As the enemy had yielded ground, I ordered the cavalry to advance and charge, which was done with vigour. Suitable orders had been sent to the oenerals of division and brigade, amono; the rest to General Don Angel Guz- man : but, though the oflicers and troops acted with great resolution, it was impossible to overcome the difficulties of the ground ; and after a struggle which did them honour, they were obliged to fall back to their positions. After various alternations, the same occurred with the infantry. TAYLOR. 201 The battle, which commenced at seven in the morning, was prolonged for many hours, our loss every moment accumulating. Many officers and soldiers had already been killed, and a number of commanders and distin- guished officers wounded, among whom were General Lombardini, Lieutenant-Colonels Brito, Galloso, and others. Among the slain were Lieutenant-Colonels Asonos, Berra, and other meritorious officers, whose loss the country will ever lament. The enemy maintained his ground with the utmost obstinacy, insomuch that some of our troops faltered in their attacks, and many of the raw recruits dispersed. This, however, ought to exalt the merit of those w^hose intrepidity was never paralyzed, and may also be cited to show how" hc^ly contested was the action. Things were in this situation when I concluded io make the final effort. With this view I ordered tha. a battery of twenty-four pounders should be mounted; that the column of attack then posted on our left flank, wht-re it had no object of operation, should be transferred to our right, and there be joined by the remains of the 11th regiment, the battalion of Leon, and the reserves, all under the command of Brevet-General I/on Francisco Perez. I executed this in person, and afterwards sent for General Mora y Villamil, and mad . him acquainted with my final dispositions. I had already directed Gen- erals Perez and Pacheco, each with his command, to be prepared for an extreme struggle, and had ordered the battery of eight-pounders to advance and take the enemy's line in flank. The charge was made with daring valour and was resisted with animated vigour, with a fire so heavy and rapid as to cause admiration ; but the Ameri- cans could not sustain themselves — they were driven back and overcome, with the loss of three pieces of can- 202 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. non and as many stands of colours. I sent two of the latter to the government with my last despatch ; the other, w^hich I then omitted to notice, will be presented to the honourable congress of the state of San Luis Potosi, as a. testimonial of the army's gratitude for the patriotic services they had rendered, and the generous sacrifices they had made for its benefit. We moreover captured a travelling forge, and some smaller articles, which I will not enumerate. Our cavalry, which so bravely executed the order to charge, reached the enemy's rearmost positions ; but, owing to the nature of the ground and the fatigue of the men and horses, I did not think it prudent to attempt to dislodge them from those. The battle closed at six in the evening, our troops being then formed on the ground which the Americans had occupied. Our last effort would have been decisive, if General Minon had done his part by attacking the enemy in the rear ; but he omitted to do it, and 1 am under the painful necessity of subjecting his conduct to a court- martial, that he may explain it. An action thus con- tested necessarily involved considerable loss. Ours in killed and wounded amounted to more than 1500 men, and that of the enemy was much greater, for we had time to take a view of the great number of their dead. The plans of these two actions, and of the route from Agua Nueva to Saltillo, and the reports of the generals of division and brigade, which I send with this to your excellency, will give the supreme government an idea of such details as I have not dwelt on without making this report more diffuse ; but this will still serve to attest the bravery of our troops, and tlie glory acquired by the nation during these days of action. In the order of the day, I expressed, as in duty bound, my satisfaction with the conduct of the officers, com- TAYLOR. 203 manders of corps, and generals, and gave them thanks for it in the name of the republic. I could wish to announce in this report the names of numerous com- manding officers, that their memory maybe engraved on the gratitude of the nation, not only for their resolute and honourable deportment in both actions, but for the con- stancy with which they have overcome so many priva- tions, sufferings, and fatigues, and given therein an example, both of civic and military worth. Anxious to do this justice, I adopt, as my own, the authorship of those eulogies which the generals of brigade and division have bestowed on their subordinates. I would, more- over, place in view of the government the merit mani- fested by the director-general of Engineers, Don Ignacio Mora y Villamil, who fulfilled, to my entire satisfaction, all the duties I assigned to him, for which I consider him worthy of the highest praise, and of such remuneration as the supreme government may be pleased to award to his distinguished services. General Ampudia, to whom, from the favourable opinion which I had of him, I intrusted the command of the four light battalions, acquitted himself w^th gallantry. General Lombardini, who commanded the first division of infantry, conducted himself wath valour, and was wounded. General Pacheco, commanding the second division of infantry, came up to my orders and his duties, and fought to my satisfaction. General Juvera comported himself hon- ourably, and had his horse killed under him. Brevet- General Torrejon received a contusion, and General Guzman displayed the gallantry for which he was already distinguished, and was wounded. Brevet-General Micheltorena, as head of the staflf, duly performed all that belonged to his station ; and I also confided to his special charge the battery of eight-pounders, which was 204 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. that most in advance. General Perez acted as might be expected from his accustomed gallantry, and for this I intrusted to his command the troops I have before mentioned, with which he contributed to disorder the line of the enemy at five in the evening. I would also commend General Ortega, who commanded the third division of foot, and performed his duties to my satis- faction, as also Brevet-General Uraga, and Generals Parrodi, Portilla, Vasquez, Jauregui, Terres, and San- chez. It is entirely due to the commanding general of artillery, Don Antonio Corona, that I should commend him for carrying out my dispositions, as might be expected from him, and for labouring assiduously at San Luis, in the heaviest duties of his branch of service ; and it is a pleasing duty for me to laud the merit acquired by Colonel Banench, and Colonel Brito, who was wounded ; Colonel Aldrede, of the hussars, who, to my satisfaction, evinced his usual bravery; Colonel S. Blanco, w^ho commanded a column of attack on the left, and acted well, and Colonel M. Blanco — both of the last beino- of the engineers — as also Colonel Obando, of the flying artillery, and Colonel Garay. [Here follows a long list of colonels, lieutenant- colonels, captains, and subordinates, who are all com- mended, and the particular service of some mentioned. One is named Antonio Lopez de Santana, late a custom-house officer at Tampico, who acted as a volunteer aid to his namesake, the general-in-chief.] The report of the killed and wounded, which I also send, will show what has been our loss. I should be lacking in justice, and not express my own feelings, were I not most earnestly to request that attention be paid, as is by law provided, to the cases of the widows, TAYfoh. *i05 orphans, ami such of tlie wounded as may be perma- nently disabled. The formidable position which the enemy occupied, was all that saved him ; the victory would otherwise have been decisive, notwithstanding his obstinate resist- ance. Still this triumph will have favourable results to the national cause, as it will show to every one what can be accomplished when all hearts are united, and with one aim. The army has done more than could be expected un- der the laws of nature. It had just been formed, and as yet had not acquired discipline or military habits: yet in marching to the combat, it overcame difficulties which might have subdued the stoutest heart. After a march of twenty leauges, sixteen of thera without water, and without other food than a sino-le ration, which was dealt out at Encarnacion, it endured the fatigue of combat for two days, and finally triumphed. With all this, its physical powders were exhausted. My know^ledge of this, and the duty I felt of attending to such a number of wounded, constrained me, after remaining a few hours on the field of battle, to fall back upon Agua Nueva, for the relief and refreshment of the troops. From the impression we had made on the enemy, he did not appear before us for three days. The bearer o£ a flag of truce, however, arrived with a proposition from General Taylor for an exchange of prisoners, and for our sending for the w^ounded who had remained on the field. He also expressed to me the desire which the Americans felt for the re-establishment of peace. I re- plied, in order that he might say the same to his general, that we sustained the most sacred of causes — the defence of our territory, and the preservation of our nationality and rights: that we were not the aggressors, and that our 2(>> TAYLOR ANli flrS GENERALS. government had never offended that of the United States. / observed that we could say nothing of peace while the Americans were on this side of the Bravo, or occupied any part of the Mexican territory, or blockaded our ports ; and that we were resolved to perish or vindicate our rights; that fortune might not be always favourable to the enemy, and their experience of the 22d and 23d should convince them that it could change; I added, that the Americans waged against us a war of vandalism, whose excesses outraged those sentiments of humanity which one civilized nation ought to evince -towards ano- ther : and that if he would go outside of the apartment, he would still see smoking, which was the fact, the dwellings of Agua Nueva, recently a flourishing, though a small settlement : that the same vestio-es of desolation marked the route of his retreat ; and that if he would go a little further on, to Catana, he would hear the moans of the widows and orphans of innocent victims who had been sacrificed without necessity. With respect to the wounded, whom I was invited to send for, I replied that there could be none save those who had been too much hurt to rise from the field, or those most in the advance, who had remained in the ra- vines ; and that as I had not means for their convevance, the enemy m.ght take them to Saltillo, under the protec- tion of the laws of nations. As for the prisoners which he offered to exchange, I told him T did not know \vho they could be, unless it were some of our dispersed troops, or some who, from the fatigue of the two previous days, had remained asleep when we moved. In answer to the courtesy the enemy's general had shown with re- spect to our woimded, I consented, in the name of the nation, to release all the prisoners we had — those taken both in the battle and at Encarnacion. At the same TAYLOIt. 207 time I allowed the bearer of the flag, who was a superior officer, of preposspssinf^ appearance and manners, to take the bandage from his eyes, and informed him that it was for him personally that the honour of this concession was meant. I did it also that he might see our camp and our troops. As I have said in the preceding paragraph, we re- mained at the hacienda three days ; but the only supply we could obtain was ninety beeves, and these were con- sumed on the 2oth. The horses were also without for- age, and notwithstanding all the efforts or provisions that I could make, many of the wounded had been but once attended to, and some not at all. From the rigour of the climate, the badness and scantiness of the sustenance, the entire want of bread, and the bad quality of the water used in our former bivouacs, a bowel complaint had broken out in the army, and rendered ineffective at least one-half of it. I knew that a retrograde movement to our former positions had become inevitable ; but though everything around me proclaimed this necessity, my feelings revolted against it, solely because I foresaw that from ignorance, malice, or presumption, the countermarch would be condemned, and that those who did not witness our situation would imagine the possibiHty of the army's continuing its operations. Six days before, when the troops had not suffered so much, nor fought for two successive days, nor been em- barrassed with sick and wounded, but were still sound in morale and in health, I had not deemed it prudent to augment the labours and difficulties of the army by moving to the right or to the left ; how then would i-t have been possible to go on operating after all that sub- sequently occurred ? But let detractors say what they will, the army as well as myself will always answer by '20S TAYLOR AND HIS CKNKKAI.S. an appeal to our conduct, our wishes, and the notorious impossibility of carrying them out. Notwithstanding my conviction, I wished to hear the opinion of the gene- rals and some of the commanders of corps, and to ascertain if they could point out any resource which had not occurred to me ; without disclosing my own ideas on the subject I listened to theirs, and they all unanimously and each one, by his opinion, separately expressed, showed and demonstrated in various ways, that however good their will to remain, the countermarch of the army had become indispensable, but that this necessity was not forced upon us by the enemy. It was not till I had heard their opinions that I announced my own accordant resolution, and the proceedings of the council being drawn up, I had the honour of remitting them to your excellency on the 2oth. On the 2Gth, after I had ordered General Minon to follow the movement, the army commenced its retreat with the view of occupying the first peopled localities, where resources might be obtained, such as Vanegas Catorce, El Cadral, and Matehuala, as also Tula ; but 1 doubt if in those places proper attention can be given to the sick and wounded — or the losses we have sustained in those laborious movements be remedied. The nation, for which a triumph has been gained at the cost of so many sutferings, will learn that, if we were able to conquer in the midst of so many embarrassments, there will be no doubt as to our final success in the struggle we sustain, if every spirit but rallies to the one sacred object of common defence. A mere determined number of men will not, as many imagine, suffice for the prosecution of war; it is indispensable that they be armed, equipped, disciplined, and habituated, and that a sys- tematized support for «?urh an organized force be provided. TAYLOR. '209 We must bear in mind that we have to combat in a region deficient of all resources, and that everything for subsistence has to be carried along with the soldiery : the good-will of a few will not suffice, but the co-operation of all is needed ; and if we do not cast aside selfish inter- ests, and petty passions, we can expect nothing but dis- aster. The army, and myself who have led it, have the satisfaction of knowing that we have demonstrated this truth. Your excellency will be pleased to report to his ex- cellency the vice president of the republic, and to present to him my assurance of respect. God and Liberty I Rancho de San Salvador, Febru- ary 27th, 1847. (Signed) ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA. To His Excellency, the Minister of War and Marine. CHAPTER IX. Events subsequent to the battle of Buena Vista. On the 2d of March, Mr. Crittenden, to whose report we have already referred* was sent off for the seat of government, bearing despatches from General Taylor. He took the usual route from Monterey to Camargo, under the escort of about 250 troops, commanded by Major Geddings, having along a train of some 130 empty w^agons. As they approached Seralvo, a small party was sent in to provide forage, &c., when the ene- my, under Urrea, were discovered, about 1500 strong. Our troops were immediately placed on the defensive, and received the assault of the superior numbers with the resolution of men determined to cut their way through. They were repulsed with a loss of thirty men, while we lost about half the number. A part of our baggage train was destroyed (forty or fifty of the w^agons), when the gallant Urrea made good his retreat in the direction of the Tula pass. The teamsters w^ere unwilling to pro- ceed without a stronger escort, and Mr. Crittenden was detained five or six days at Seralvo, when Colonel Curtis arrived from Camargo with a large body of troops. He was too late to overtake Urrea, who had probably commenced his retreat as soon as he heard of Santa Anna's discomfiture. Colonel Curtis proceeded towards Monterey, and the escort and train came on to Camargo, the enemy having fled as rapidly as possible. In this affair an ammunition wagon, by some accident, TAYLOJl. 21 1 was cut off with the others near Seralvo. It was destroyed, as most of the others were, by fire, and when the explosion unexpectedly took place, killing some, wounding others, and alarming all, it was regarded as a Yankee tricky and it was remarked that our wagons might henceforth stroll through the land, unharmed, as each would be regarded as some combustible machine, desio^ned to ensnare the Mexicans. After the battle of Buena Vista, General Taylor left his encampment at Agua Nueva, with two companies of Bragg's artillery and Colonel May's squadron of dragoons, in pursuit of General Urrea, who, as the general learned from a spy that w^as captured by one of the Texan ran- gers, was retreating towards the mountains with oOOO cavalry and rancheros. On the 16th of March, General Taylor met Colonel Curtis near Marin. This officer, with about 1200 infan- try, composed of Ohio and Virginia volunteers, one company of dragoons, and two pieces of artillery, was now in charge of another train of w^agons, with supplies for the army. General Urrea had left Marin the even- ing before, where he was said to be waiting to attack Curtis's train ; but learning that General Taylor w^as ad- vancing on his rear, he had made a rapid movement some twenty miles from Marin. General Taylor followed in pursuit the next morning, after sending on the train without an escort, and adding Colonel Curtis's command to his previous force. General Taylor pursued the enemy as far as Caidereta, where he ascertained that he had escaped beyond the mountains. General Taylor then fell back upon Mon- terey. By the latest advices from the army, 29th March, he was encamped at Walnut Springs, about four miles from Monterey. His force consisted of a squadron of 212 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. dragoons, under Colonel Fauntleroy, and the Mississippi regiment of volunteers, under Colonel Jefferson Davis, the latter numbering only 248 men. General Wool, with about 5000 troops, was encamped at Buena Vista. It was reported that General Urrea was at Linares, at the head of 2000 cavalry, and a corps of artillerists. There was some prospect of " an affair" coming off' between the respective forces of these two generals. The character of General Taylor is best displayed by his actions in the present war. Every emergency in which the qualities of a great commander could shine forth in full brilliancy, has presented him anew to the admiration of his country. The reputation which he had acquired at Fort Harrison and Okee Chobee, inspired confidence at the moment when it became known that he was hemmed in by multitudes of Mexicans on the banks of the Rio Grande ; and when he announced that "he should fight the enemy, in whatever numbers he might appear," it w^as confidently believed that he would conquer or perish. The brilliant victories of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, nevertheless excited astonish- ment mingled with admiration. The siege o( Monterey was a new surprise. The hardihood of this enterprise was still more remarkable than the cool determination and firmness called forth by the preceding battles. Such incidents as the following, evince the lofty spirit of chivalry in which the Monterey affair was conducted throughout. The first shot fired at Monterey was from one of the long culverins, aimed at General Taylor himself, whilst reconnoitering. It struck a short distance in front of him and bounded over liis head. " There I I knew it would fall short of me," he calmly remarked. TAYLOR. 213 One anecdote of General Taylor at Monterey, told by his staff, has never appeared in print. In traversing the field of battle, it was necessary to cross a bridge which was constantly swept by the Mexican artillery. When approaching it, it was agreed that they (the gen- eral and his staff) should cross it singly at a gallop. Four had crossed thus, when it came to the general's turn. Just as he reached the middle of the bridge, and when the balls were showering around him, something going wrong in another part of the field attracted his attention. Stopping his horse (much to the discom- fiture of those following him), he deliberately took out and arranged his spy-glass, satisfied himself, and then closing it, rode on. But the crowning glory w^as that terrible battle of Buena Vista. It reminds us of Cromwell at Dunbar, but with the very important difference that the victory of Dunbar w^as gained by mailed veterans, the famous Iron- sides of a hundred battles, while that of Buena Vista Avas won by new^ recruits, well officered it is true, but elevated to the highest moral tone of military daring, chiefly by their undoubting reliance on the commander " who never surrenders." xA-ll the incidents of the battle which we have already narrated present the same view of General Taylor's traits. They are all consistent, un- affected, simple, forming a grand whole which has rarely been rivalled, never surpassed. But the military resources of General Taylor's char- acter by no means comprise the whole of his merit. To the highest order of genius as a commander, he adds the noblest virtues of the man. He is always magnanimous in his character of a conqueror, humane towards the "wounded and the captive, and sympathizing towards the frienils of those who fall bv his side in the field. This 214 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. beautiful trait is well expressed in a letter to the Hon. Henry Clay, on the occasion of the death of his gallant son at Buena Yista. As a composition it has received the enthusiastic admiration of the leading authors and critics of our country ; but its chief value consists in those noble feelings of the heart by which it was dictated. With this letter we close our present notice of General Taylor's life, services, and character. It shines as a star of mild but beaming lustre on his war-worn brow. Head-Quarters Army of Occupation, | Agim Nuevaj Mexico^ March 1, 1847. j My DEAR Sir : You will no doubt have received, be- fore this can reach you, the deeply distressing intelli- gence of the death of your son in the battle of Buena Vista. It is with no wish of intruding upon the sanc- tuary of parental sorrow, and with no hope of adminis- tering any consolation to your wounded heart, that I have taken the liberty of addressing you these few lines ; but I have felt it a duty which I owe to the memory of the distinguished dead, to pay a willing tribute to his many excellent qualities, and while my feelings are still fresh, to express the desolation which his untimely loss and that of other kindred spirits has occasioned. I had but a casual acquaintance with your son, until he became for a time a member of my military iamily, and I can truly say tliat no one ever won more rapidly upon my regard, or established a more lasting claim to my respect and esteem. Manly and honourable in every impulse, with no feeling but for the honour of the service and of the country, he gave every assurance that in the hour of need I could lean with confidence upon his sup- port. Nor was I disappointed. Under the guidance of himself and the lamented McKee, gallantly did the sons TAYLOR. 215 of Kentucky, in the thickest of the strife, uphold the honour of the state and the country-. A grateful people will do justice to the memory of those who fell on that eventful day. But I may be per- mitted to express the bereavement which I feel in the loss of valued friends. To your son I felt bound by the strongest ties of private regard ; and when I miss his fa- miliar face, and those of McKee and Hardin, I can say with truth, that I feel no exultation in our success. With the expression of my deepest and most heartfelt sympathies for your irreparable loss, I remain. Your friend, Z. TAYLOR, Hon. Henry Clay, New Orleans, La, 14 cf^ MAJOR-GENERAL WILLIAM J. WORTH. WORTH WORTH. General William J Worth, who has so conspicu- ously distinguished his name in the present war with Mexico, is one of" the sons of the Pilgrims. He belongs to one of the oldest New England families. In early- life he was atibrded the means of a solid English educa- tion, and he so far availed himself of them, as to present invariably the appearance of an accomplished as well as able officer. When quite young, Worth was engaged as a clerk in some mercantile house at Albany ; but the military ardour, which' forms a large element of his character, induced him to enlist, just before the opening of the war of 181'i, as a private in the regular army. Another clerk was his companion, in what must have been esteemed by their friends a rather Quixotic enterprise. It was not long befoie Worth's friend committed some indiscretion and was placed under arrest. He was in de- spair: Worth, instead of deserting him in his disgrace, told him to pluck up courage, and address a memorial to General (then Colonel) Scott, praying to be excused. The poor fellow confessed his utter inability to write one. *' I will write one for you," says Worth ; and accord- ingly it was done. When it was presented. General Scott read it attentively and said to the delinquent, " Did you write this paper ?" "No, sir." " Who did write it ?" 220 Taylor and his gf-nkrals. " Private Worth wrote it, sir." " You are excused. Send Private Worth to me." On receiving this notice, Worth was apprehensive that he had got himself into a scrape, by attempting to get his friend out of one. His astonishment therefore may be imagined, w^hen on presenting himself at the colonel's quarters, the following short dialogue ensued. " Are }ou Private Worth ?" " I am, sir." " Did you write this paper ?" (presenting hira with the memorial.) '' I did, sir." *' From henceforward, sir, you are my private secre- tary." Promotion from the government, obtained through the influence of Scott, soon followed, and on the 19th of March, 1812, he was commissioned as first lieutenant of the 23d regiment of infantry. His first opportunity for signalizing himself, was at the battle of Chippewa. It was on the morning of the 4:th of July, 1814, that General Scott advanced with his brigade and corps of artillery, and took a position on the Chippewa plain, half a mile in front of the village, his ridit restinof on the river, and his front protected by a ravine. The British were encamped in force at the village. In tlie evening General Brown joined him with the reserve under Gene- ral Ripley, and the artillery, commanded by Major Hind- man. General Porter arrived the next morning, with the New York and Pennsylvania volunteers, and a num- ber of Indians of the Six Nations. Early in the morning of the 5th, the British commenced a firing on the pick- ets. Captain Treat, who commanded one of them, hastily retreated, leaving one of his men wounded on WORTH. 221 the ground. General Brown instantly ordered him to retire from the army, and directed Captain Biddle to assume the command of the picket, lead it back to the ground, and bring off the wounded man ; which he accomplished without loss. At four in the afternoon, General Porter advanced, taking the woods in order to conceal his approach, and in the hope of bringing their pickets and scouting parties between his line of march and the American camp. In half an hour his advance met the Ught parties of the British in the woods on the left. These w^re driven in, and Porter, advancing near Chippewa, met the whole British force approaching in order of battle. General Scott, with his brigade and Towson's artillery, met them on the plain, in front of the American encampment, and \vas directly engaged in close action with the main body. General Porter's command gave way, and fled in every direction, by which Scott's left flank was entirely uncovered. Captain Harris, with his dragoons, was ordered to stop the fugitives at the ravine, and form them in front of the camp. The reserve were now ordered up, and General Ripley passed to the woods in left of the line, to gain the rear of the enemy ; but before this was efl^ected, General Scott had compelled the Bri- tish to retire. Their whole line now fell back, and were eagerly pur- sued by the Americans. As soon as they reached the sloping ground descending towards the village, their lines broke, and they regained their works in disorder. The American troops pursued until within reach of the guns from the works; when they desisted and returned to their camp. The British left two hundred dead on the ground ; ninety-four w-ounded, beside those in the early part of the action, who were removed back to the 222 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. camp, and fourteen prisoners. The American loss v\as sixty killed, and two hundred and sixty-eight wounded and missing. General Brown, in his official despatch giving the details of this celebrated battle, says, the family of Gene- ral Scott (i. e. his aids, secretary, Si,c.), were conspicu- ous in the field. Lieutenant Smith, of the 6th infantry, the major of the brigade, and Lieutenants Worth and Watts, his aids. Promotion was the rew^ard of Worth's services on this occasion. His commission as captain bears date August 19th, 1814. We will now follow the course of events to his next promotion. After the battle of Chippewa, the British retired to Fort George; and General Brown took post at Queens- town, where he remained some time, expecting reinforce- ments and aid from Sackett's Harbour, and calculating that with them he should be able to dislodge the British and obtain possession of the Peninsula. On the 12th of July, Brigadier-General John Swift, of the New York militia, with a detachment of 120 volunteers, reconnoitered the British position and works at Fort George, wdth a view of preparing for an investment of the fort. He surprised and took a picket guard of six men. After they were made priso- ners, one of them shot the general through the body. The alarm occasioned by the discharge of this gim, im- mediately brought to the spot a British patroling party of sixty. General Swift immediately formed his men, 'dvanced at their head, and commenced a successful engagement on the patrol, when he fell exhausted by the loss of blood ; the other officers, animated by this last example of their general, continued the action, and WORTH. 223 •drove the enemy into the fort. They then returned to camp, bearing their expiring commander in their arms. He died the same evening, and was interred the next day with mihtary honours. On the 13th of July, General Brown wrote a pressing letter to Commodore Chauncey, informing him of his situation, and urging an immediate co-operation. He heard nothing from the fleet until the 1st of September, when he received an answer from the commodore, dated the 10th of August, stating that the fleet had not been in a situation to co-operate with him, that it could have afforded him no essential aid in any event ; that his fleet was destined to attack the British, and not to act a subordinate part to the land forces. This produced a sharp reply from General Brown ; the correspondence ended ; and the general and commodore pursued their different objects without any co-operation. On the 18th, Lieutenant-Colonel Stone was detached with a corps of volunteers to dislodge a party of British troops, who were near the village of St. David's, four miles west of Queenstown, watching and attacking the American reconnoitering parties. The Briti^ were routed and driven in ; and soon after the action, the village was set fire to, and burned by some Americans, without the orders or knowledge of the commanding officer. On the next morning. Colonel Stone received an order from General Brown, stating that the accounta- bility for burning the houses at St. David's must rest with the senior officer : that it was directly contrary to the orders of government, and of the commanding general. The order conclu.Jes in these words, <' Lieu- tenant-Colonel Stone will retire from the army." Whether Colonel Stone was guilty of negligence in not preventms: the conflagration, does not appear. But 224 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS, his friends considered this proceeding, as a manifest usurpation of authority not warranted by any law ; they claimed that an officer, holding a commission under the president, holds it at the pleasure of the supreme execu- tive, and no intermediate superior officer has a right to deprive him of his command, without the intervention of a court-martial, where he may be tried by his peers, and have an opportunity of establishing his innocence. No person fit to bear a commission, would consent to hold one subject to the disgraceful condition of a dismissal at the will of an officer a grade or two above him. This conduct of General Brown's passed without censure, and was alluded to with approbation, in a letter from the secretary of state to x\dmiral Cochran. On the 20th, General Brown advanced v»-ith his army towards Fort George, drove in the outposts, and encamped near the Fort, in the expectation that the British would come out and give him battle. On the 22d, he returned to his former position at Queenstown ; here he received a letter from General Gaines, informing him that the heavy guns, and the rifle regiment, which he had ordered from Sackett's Harbour, together with the whole fleet, were blockaded in that port, and no assistance was to be expected from them. On the 24th, he fell back to Chip- pewa, and on the 25th, received inteUigence that the enemy, having received large reinforcements from King- ston, were advancing upon him. The first brigade under General Scott, Towson's artillery, all the dragoons and mounted men, were immediately put in motion on the Queenstown road. On his arrival at the Niagara cataract. General Scott learned that the British were in force directly in his front, separated only by a narrow piece of wood. Having despatched this intelligence to General Brown, he ad- WORTH. 225 vanced upon the enemy, and the action commenced at six o'clock in the afternoon. Although General Ripley with the second brigade, Major Hendman with the corps of artillery, and General Porter with the volunteers, pressed forward with ardour, it was an hour before they could be brought up to his support ; during this time his brigade alone sustained the conflict. General Scott had pressed through the wood, and engaged the British on the Queenstown road, with the 9th, 11th, and 12th regiments, the 25th having been thrown on the right. The fresh troops under General Ripley having arrived, now advanced to relieve General Scott, whose exhausted briofade formed a reserve in the rear. The British artil- lery had taken post on a commanding eminence, at the head of Lundy's Lane, supported by a line of infantry, out of the reach of the American batteries. This was the key of the whole position ; from hence they poured a most deadly fire on the American ranks. It became necessary either to leave the ground, or to carry this post and seize the height. The latter desperate task was assigned to Colonel Miller. On receiving the order from General Brown, he calmly surveyed the position, and answered, " I will try, sir ;" which expression was afterwards the motto of his regi- ment. The first regiment, under the command of Colo- nel Nicholas, were ordered to menace the British infan- try, and support Colonel Miller in the attack. This corps, after a discharge or two, gave way and left him without support. Without regarding this occurrence, Colonel Miller advanced coolly and steadily to his object, amid a tremendous fire, and at the point of the bayonet carried the artillery and the height. The guns were immediately turned upon the enemy ; General Ripley now brought up the 23d regiment, to the support 226 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. of Colonel Miller ; the first regiment was rallied and brought into line, and the British were driven from the hill. At this time Major Jessup, with the 25th regi- ment, was engaged in a most obstinate conflict, with all the British that remained on the field. He had suc- ceeded in turning the British left; flank. Captain Ketchum, with a detachment of this regiment, succeeded in gaining the rear of the British lines, at the point where Generals Drummond and Riall, with their suites, had taken their stations, and made ihem all prisoners. The British ofl[icers, mistaking this detachment for a company of their own men, were ordering them to press on to the combat, when Captain Ketchum stepped fonvard and coolly observed, that he had the honour to command at that time, and immediately conducted the oflScers and their suites, into the rear of the American lines ; General Drummond, in the confusion of the scene, made his escape. The British rallied under the hill, and made a despe- rate attempt to regain their artillery, and drive the Ameri- cans from their position, but without success ; a second and third attempt w'ere made with the like result. General Scott was engaged in repelling these attacks, and though with his shoulder fractured, and a severe wound in the side, continued at the head of his column, endeavour- ing to turn the enemy's right flank. The volunteers under General Porter, during the last charge of the British, precipitated themselves upon their lines, broke them, and took a large number of prisoners. General Brown, during the whole action, was at the most ex- posed points, directing and animating his troops. He received a severe wound on the thigh, and in the side, and would have given the command to General Scott, but on inquiring, found that he was severely wounded. WORTH. 227 He continued at the head of his troops until tlie last effort of the British was repulsed, when loss of blood obliged him to retire ; he then consigned the command to General Ripley. At twelve o'clock, both parties retired from the held to their respective encampments, fatigued and satiated with slaughter. The battle con- tinued, with but little intermission, from six in the after- noon until twelve at night. After Colonel Miller had taken the battery, and driven the British from the heights, and General Riall and suite had been taken, there was a short cessation, and the enemy appeared to be about yielding the ground, when reinforcements arrived to their aid, and the battle was renewed with redoubled fury for another space of two hours ; much of this time the combatants were within a few yards of each other, and several times, officers were found commanding enemy platoons. Captain Spencer, aid to General Brown, was despatched with orders to one of the regiments ; when about to deliver them, he suddenly found himself in contact with a British corps ; with great coolness, and a firm air, he inquired, What regiment is this ? On being answ^ered, The Royal Scots, he immediately replied. Royal Scots, remain as you are ! The commandant of the corps, supposing the orders came from his commanding general, immediately halted his regiment, and Captain Spencer rode off. Colonel Miller's achievement, in storming the battery, was of the most brilliant and hazardous nature ; it was decisive of the events of the battle, and entitled him and his corps to the highest applause ; most of the officers engaged in that enterprise were killed or wounded. The battle was fought to the west of, and within half a mile of the Niagara cataract. The thunder of the cannon, the roar- ing of the falls, the incessant discharge of musketry, the 228 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. groans of the dying and wounded, during the six hours in which the parties were engaged in close combat, heightened by the circumstance of its being in the night, afforded such a scene, as is rarely to be met with in the history of human slaughter. The evening was calm, and the moon shone with lustre, when not enveloped in clouds of smoke from the firing of the contending armies. Considering the numbers engaged, few contests have ever been more sanguinary. General Drummond, soon after the battle of the 5tli, had been concentrating his forces, and receiving rein- forcements from Kingston, for a general attack on the American troops, and in the battle of the 25th, they were all engaged, to the amount of 5000 ; many of them troops selected from the flower of the army of Lord Wellington. General Brow^n had failed in receiving his expected rein- forcements from Sackett's Harbour; many of his Indians had left him, and most* of his troops were soldiers of less than one year's experience. But the general had done evei-^ihing which his limited means could accomplish to ensure success. With the aid of General Porter, he had assembled a considerable force of militia and volunteers ; his whole army may be estimated at about 4000. With the aid of his officers, he had instructed, and infused into them a spirit of bravery and discipline, which enabled them to meet and successfully combat British veterans. This was unquestionably the most severe and bloody battle that was fought during the war. One-fifth of the combatants on each side, were put hors de combat. On the American side, the commanding general and the second in command were severely wounded. On the British, their commander-in-chief was wounded, and for a few minutes a prisoner, and the second in command WORTH. 229 severely wounded and captured. General Brown states his loss to be, ,^, KiUed, . - - . . 171 Wounded, 572 Missing, 117 860 General Drummond acknowledges a loss of. Killed, 84 Wounded, 559 Missing and Prisoners, - - - 235 878 On the morning of the 26th, Generals Ripley and Porter reconnoitered the battle-ground, and found there parties of the British on the same errand. Neither Americans nor British appeared disposed to renew the bloody scenes of the preceding night. In their official reports, both claimed the victory. But considering the number and nature of American troops compared with the British, the honours of the day unquestionably belong to the former ; the latter were the first to leave the field. From the reinforcements which they had re- cently received from Kingston, their army after the bat- tle was evidently superior to the American ; and the latter, under the command of General Ripley, on the 26th, fell back to Fort Erie. General Brown retired to Buf- falo, and General Scott to Batavia, to recover from their wounds. Captain Ambrose Spencer, son of the chief justice of New^-York, and aid to General Brown, was mortally wounded in the action, and taken prisoner; Captain Loring, aid to General Drummond, was also made prisoner, but not wounded. Soon after the battle, General Brown received a pro- 230 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. position from General Drummond, for a mutual exchange of their aids. For obvious reasons, it is not according to the usages of war to offer or accept a wounded man in exchange for one who is well ; but from motives of affection for his aid, and from respect to the feelings of his parents, General Brown was in this instance induced to listen to the proposition, and sent a flag to ascertain whether Captain Spencer was living. The flag was not permitted to see the prisoner, or communicate with his surgeon. On the return of the flag, General Brown sent the brother of Captain Spencer, with a note to General Drummond, introducing the brother, and requesting that he might be permitted to see and attend upon him, and assuring the general that Captain Loring should be exchanged for Captain Spencer if living, or for his corpse if dead. The brother returned the next day with the CORPSE, bearing a note from General Drummond, claim- ing the discharge of Captain Loring ; which General Brown, faithful to his engagements, complied with. Captain Worth, like his patron General Scott, received a severe wound in this battle, which compelled him to remain inactive during the stirring events which fol- lowed it. He was, however, rewarded for his good conduct in the action by being promoted to the rank of major. After the peace he was for a considerable time super- intendent of the Military Academy at West Point, an office which would only be confided to one in whose discretion, judgment, ability, and high gentlemanly de- portment, the government reposed unlimited confidence. Worth was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel by brevet, on the 25th of July, 1824, and was appointed major of ordnance in 1832. On the 7th of July, 1838, .»« WORTH. 231 he was appointed colonel in the 8th regiment of in- fantry. The war in Florida, which furnished occasion for a display of General Taylor's military skill and intrepidity, also presented a theatre on which Colonel Worth was destined to figure. The service was one of the most tedious and unpleasant which could possibly be imposed upon an ardent soldier, desirous of winning distinction ; for it consisted in hunting up the lurking-places of an insidious and savage enemy, and driving him into action. The Seminoles had eluded pursuit for a long time pre- vious to i\Iay 1841, when the conduct of the war was intrusted to Colonel Worth. Sickness among the men impeded his operations, but he was soon able to comipel the surrender of several considerable detachments of hos- tile Indians ; and on the 19th of April, 1842, he succeeded in compelling a large body of Indians to fight at a place called Palaklaklaha. The result, as might have been anticipated, was a complete defeat of the enemy, which was soon after followed by the surrender of one of the leadinsr chiefs of the Indians with his band. Colonel Worth had already received (March 1st, 1842) the appointment of brigadier-general by brevet. After the battle of Palaklaklaha, the Florida war was speedily brought to a close, for the time ; and Gen- eral Worth was ordered to another post ; but, hostilities again breaking out, he was again ordered to Florida ; but his subsequent service there afforded him no oppor- tunity for distinction. Previous to the breaking out of open hostilities be- tween Mexico and the United States, General Worth being attached to the Army of Occupation, deemed it necessary, upon some point of military etiquette, to re- sign his commission. He thus unluckilv missed the 15 232 TAVLUR AND HIS GENCKALS. battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma. With feelings highly honourable to him as a soldier, he in- stantly withdrew his resignation ; and, being restored to the army, repaired with all haste to General Taylor's camp at Matamoras, to share the honours and dangers of the veteran commander. Of course General Worth was extremely anxious for an opportunity of signalizing himself in the subsequent operations of the army, and this General Taylor was determined to afford him. The opportunity speedily presented itself at Monterey, where W^orth was honoured with a commission of the greatest importance, that of carrying the heights which commanded the place, and which v;ould have proved completely impregnable to a less resolute commander. On the 19th of September, General Taylor arrived before Monterey with about 6000 men. He reconnoi- teped the city at about 1500 to 1600 yards from the Cathedral front, during which he was fired upon from the battery. His force then encamped at the "Walnut Springs, three miles short of the city. This was the nearest position where the army could obtain a supply of water and bread, and, at the same time, be beyond the reach of the enemy's batteries. The remainder of the 19th was occupied by the engineers in making recomiois- sances of the city batteries and commanding heights. On tlie 20th, General W^orth was ordered with his division to move by a circuitous route to the right, to gain the Saltillo road, beyond the west of the town, and to storm the heights above the Bishop's Palace, which vital point the enemy appeared to have strangely neglected. Circumstances caused his halt on the night of the 20th, short of the mtended position. On MojKJav, the 21st, he continued his rnuto, and WORTH. 233 after an encounter with a large body of the enemy's cavahy and infantry, supported by artillery from the heights, he repulsed them with loss, and finally encamped, covering the passage of the Saltillo road. It was here dis- covered that, beside the fort at the Bishop's Palace, and the occupation of the heights above, two forts on com- manding eminences on the opposite side of the San Juan had been fortified and occupied. These two latter heights were then stormed and carried — the guns of the last fort carried being immediately turned with a plunging fire upon the Bishop's Palace. On the same morning, the 21st, the 1st division of regular troops, under General Twiggs, and the volun- teer division, under General Butler, were ordered under arms, to make a diversion to the left of the town, in favour of the important operations of General Worth. The twenty-inch mortars and two twenty-four pound howitzers, had been put in battery the night of the 20th, in a ravine of 1400 yards distant from the Cathedral fort or citadel, and were supported by ^he 4th regiment of infantry. At half-past eight o'clock, A. M., on the 21st, the order was given for this battery to open upon the cita- del and town ; and immediately after, the 1st division, with the 3d and 4th infantry in advance, under Colonel Garland, were ordered to reconnoitre and skirmish with the enemy, on the extreme left of the city, and, should prospect of success offer, to carry the most ad- vanced battery. This attack was directed by Major Mansfield, Engineer, and Major Kinney, quartermaster to the Texas division. A heavy fire from the first bat- tery was then opened upon the advance, but the troops soon turned. At entering and engaging with the enemy, in the streets of the citv, having passed through an 234 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. incessant cross fire from the citadel and the first and second batteries, and from the infantry, who lined the parapets, streets, and house-tops of the city, the rear of the first battery was soon turned, and the reverse fire of the troops through the gorge works, and killed or dis- lodged the artillery and infantry from it, and the build- ings occupied by infantry immediately in its rear. The 1st division was followed and supported by the Missis- sippi, and Tennessee, and first Ohio regiments ; the two former regiments being the first to scale and occupy the fort. The success of the day here stopped. The Mis- sissippi, Tennessee, and Ohio regiments, though warmly engaged in the streets for some time after the capture of the first battery, and in its adjoining defences, were unable, from exhaustion and the loss they had suffered, to gain more advantage. A heavy shower of rain also came up, and caused a suspension of hostilities before the close of the day. The 3d, 4th, and 1st infantry, and Baltimore battalion, re- mained as the garrison of the captured position, under Colonel Garland, assisted by Captain Ridgely's batter)'. Two twelve-pounders, one four-pounder, and one how- itzer were captured in this fort. Three officers and some twenty or thirty men were taken prisoners. One of the twelve-pounders was served against the second fort and defences, with captured am- munition, by Captain Ridgely. The storming party of General Worth's division also captured two nine-pound- ers, which were also immediately turned against their former owners. On the morning of the 22d, General Worth continued his operations, and portions of his division stormed and carried successively the heights above the Bishop's Palace. Both were carried by a command under Cap- WORTH. 236 tain Vinton, of the 3d artillery. In these operations, the company of Louisiana troops, under Captain Blanchard, performed efficient and gallant service as part of Captain Vinton's command. Four pieces of artilleiy, with a good supply of ammu- nition, were captured in the Bishop's Palace, some of which were immediately turned upon the enemy's de- fences in the city. On the evening of the 22d, Colonel Garland and his command were reheved as the garrison of the captured forts, by General Quitman, with the Mississippi and Tennessee regiments, with five companies of the Kentucky boys. Early on the morning of the 23d, General Quitman, from his position, discovered that the second and third forts and defences east of the city had been entirely abandoned by the enemy, who, apprehending another assault, on the night of the 22d, had retired from his defences to the main palace and its immediate vicinity. A command of two companies of Mississippi and two of Tennessee troops were thrown into the street to recon- noitre, and soon became hotly engaged with the enemy. They were soon supported by Colonel Wood's regi- ment and the Texas regiment dismounted ; by Bragg's light battery and the third infantry. The enemy's fire w^as constant and uninterrupted from streets and house- tops, barricades, &c., in the vicinity of the Plaza. The pieces of Bragg's artillery w^ere also used with much efld- ciency from the heart of the city. This engagement lasted the best part of the day ; our troops having driven the scattered parties of the enemy, and penetrated quite to the defences of the main Plaza. The advantage thus gained it was not considered necessary to hold, as the enemy had permanently abandoned the city and its defences, except 236 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. the main Plaza, its immediate vicinity, and the cathedral fort or citadel, early in the afternoon. General Worth assailed from the Bishop's Palace the west side of the city, and succeeded in driving the enemy and maintaining his position within a short distance of the main Plaza. On that side of the city, towards evening, the mortar had also been planted in the ceme- tery enclosed, and during the fight, it did great execution in the circumscribed camp of the enemy on the Plaza. Thus ended the operations of the 23d. Early on the morning of the 24th, a communication was sent to General Taylor, from General Ampudia, under a flag of truce, making an offer of capitulation — to which the former refused to accede, as it asked more than the American commander would, under any circum- stances, grant. [General A. wished to stipulate that he should march out^vith all his m.en, arms, ammuni- tion, &c.] At the same time, a demand to surrender was, in reply, made upon General Ampudia. Twelve o'clock, M., was the time at which the acceptance or non-acceptance was to be communicated to the Ameri- can general. At eleven A.M., the Mexican commander sent a note requesting a personal conference with Gen- eral Taylor, which was granted, — the principal officers of rank on either side accompanying the generals. After several offers in relation to the capitulation of the city, made on either side and refused, at half-past four P. M., General Taylor rose, and saying he would give General Ampudia one hour to consider, and accept or refuse, left the conference with his officers — at the expiration of the hour, the discharge from the mortars to be the signal for the recommencement of hostilities. Before the expiration of the hour, however, an officer was sent on the part of General Ampudia, to inform the American general that, in order to avoid the further effii- WORTH. 237 sion of blood, and the national honour being satisfied by the exertions of the Mexican troops, he had, after con- sultation with his general officers, decided to capitulate, accepting the ofler of the American general. The terms of capitulation were in effect as follows : That the officers should be allowed to march out with their side arms ; that the cavalry and infantry should be allowed to march out with their arms and accoutrements ; that the artillery should be allowed to march out wdth one battery of six pieces and twenty-one rounds of am- munition; that all other munitions of war and supplies should be turned over to a board of American officers appointed to receive them ; that the Mexican army should be allowed seven days to evacuate the city, and that the American troops should not occupy it until evacuated ; that the cathedral fort or citadel should be evacuated at ten A. INI. next day, the 25th. The Mexicans were then to march out, and the American garrison to march in. The Mexicans were ^allowed to salute their flag w^hen hauled down ; that there should be an armistice of eight weeks, during which time neither army should pass a Ime running from the Rinconada through Linares and San Fernando. The only Baltimorean or Philadelphian in the list of killed or wounded, is Colonel W. W. H. Watson, of Baltimore. Ampudia reported his force as 7000. It is estimated at 11,000. The forts that were taken were occupied by Ridgely's artillery, who turned the captured pieces against the Mexican forces, and the firing was kept up during the day. During the whole of this severe siege, General Worth displayed the most perfect coolness and intrepidity. His services were properly appreciated by the government : for on the od of March, .1847, ho v.a.s raised to the 233 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. rank of major-general by brevet, his commission being dated from the storming of Monterey. In our notice of the life of General Taylor, we have already informed the reader, that after the capture of Monterey, General Worth was stationed at Saltillo, where he remained until the middle of January, when he received orders to m^rch with the main body of the reo-ular forces and volunteers, which had been under his o ... ov7n and General Taylor's command, in order to join the expedition of General Scott, intended for the capture of Vera Cruz. A full and accurate history of the operations of the army and fleet, in the siege of Vera Cruz, will be given in our notice of General Scott, the commander-in-chief of the American armies in Mexico. General Worth bore a conspicuous part in the siege, and was present at the grand ceremony of the surrender. The 29th was fixed upon as the day upon which our army should take possession ; and on the morning of that day, General Scott, with General Worth and his divi- sion, accompanied by the chief officers of the army and a large representation from the squadron, entered and took possession, the enemy at the same time marching out. As the American flag was hoisted at the Plaza, and over San Juan de Ulloa, salutes were fired simulta- neously from the castle, the batteries of the city, and the squadron. General Scott immediately took up his quar- ters in the Pakice, and invested General Worth with the command of the city, assigning at the same time the command of the castle to Colonel Bolton ; that of Fort Jago, at the southern extremity of the city, to Major Scott. For the present, we take our leave of General Worth, occupying the very responsible and important office of Governor of Vera Cruz. WOOL. WOOL. Brigadier-General John E. Wool, who has dis- tinguished himself so remarkably during the present war with Mexico, is a native of the state of New York, and entered the army as captain of the 13th regiment of infantry, on the 14th of April, 1812. Like the other veterans of our army, who w^ere in the service during the war of 1812, Wool was actively engaged in the campaigns of that and the following year, during which time his bravery and good conduct merited and received promotion to the office of major. It was not, however, till the glorious campaign of 1814, that Wool found an opportunity of signalizing his courage, coolness, and ability, in a separate com- mand of first-rate importance. This opportimity was afforded in the battle of Plattsburg. The best account of this affair is contained in the followins; official des- patch of General Macomb, in which Major Wool's important services are recorded and commended as they deserve. Copy of a Letter from Brigadier-General Macomb to the Secretary of War, dated Head -Quarters, Plattsburg, September 15, 1814. Sir : I have the honour to communicate, for the in- formation of the war department, the particulars of the advance of the enemy into the territory of the United States, the circumstances attendino^ the sie2:e of Platts- burg, and the defence of the posts intrusted to my charge. 242 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. The governof-generai of the Canadas, Sir George Prevost, having collected all the disposable force in Lower Canada, with a view of conquering the country as far as Crow^n Point and Ticonderoga, entered the ter- ritories of the United States on the 1st of the month, and occupied tlie village of Champlain ; there avowed his intentions, and issued orders and proclamations tending to dissuade the people from their allegiance, and inviting Uiem to furnish his army wdth provisions. He immediately began to impress the wagons and teams in the vicinity, and loaded them with his heavy baggage and stores. From this I was persuaded he intended to attack this place. I had but just returned from the lines, where I had commanded a fine -brigade, which was broken up to form the division under Major- General Izard, ordered to the westward. Being senior officer, he left me in command ; and except the four com- panies of the 6th regiment, I had not an organized bat- talion among . those remaining. The garrison was composed of convalescents and recruits of the new regiments — all in the greatest confusion, as well as the ordnance and stores, and the works in no state of de- fence. ' To create an, emulation and zeal among the officers and men in completing the W'Orks, I divided them into detachments, and placed them near the several forts ; declaring in orders, that each detachment was the gar- rison of its own work, and bound to defend it to the last extremity. The enemy advanced cautiously and by short marches, and our soldiers worked day and night ; so that by the time he made his appearance before the place, we w^ere^ prepared to receive him. General Izard named the principal work Fort Moreau, WOOL. 243 and, to remind the troops of tlie actions of their brave countrymen, I called the redoubt on the right Fort Brown : and that on the left Fort Scott. Besides these three works we have two block-houses strongly fortified. Finding, on examining the returns of the garrison, that our force did not exceed 1500 effective men for duty, and well inform.ed that the enemy had as many thousands, I called on General Mooers, of the New York militia, and arranged with him plans for bringing forth the militia, en masse. The inhabitants of the village fled with their families and effects, except a few worthy citizens and some boys, who formed themselves into a party, received rifles, and were exceedingly useful. By the fourth of the month General Mooers collected about 700 militia, ana advanced seven miles on the Beck- mantown road, to watch the motions of the enemy, and to skirmish with him as he advanced : also to obstruct the roads with fallen trees, and to break up the bridges. On the lake road to Dead Creek bridge, I posted 200 men under Captain Sproul of the 13th regiment, wdth orders to abattis the woods, to place obstructions in the road, and to fortify himself; to this party I added two field-pieces. In advance of this position was Lieu- tenant-Colonel Apphng with 110 riflemen, watching the movements of the enemy, and procuring intelligence. It was ascertained, that before daylight on the 6th, the enemy would advance in two columns on the two roads before-mentioned, dividing at Sampson's, a little below Chazy village. The column on the Beckmantown road proceeded most rapidly; the militia skirmished with his advanced parties, and, except a few brave men, fell back most precipitately in the greatest disorder, notwithstand- ing the British troops did not deign to fire on them, except by their flankers and advanced patroles. The 244 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. night previous I ordered Major Wool to advance with a detachment of 250 men to support the mihtia, and set them an example of firmness. Also Captain Leonard of the hght artillery was directed to proceed with two pieces to be on the ground before day, yet he did not make his appearance until eight o'clock, w^hen the enemy had approached within two miles of the village. With his conduct, therefore, I am not w^ell pleased. Major Wool, with his party, disputed the road with great ob- stinacy, but the militia could not be prevailed upon to stand, notwithstanding the exertions of their general and staff officers ; although the fields were divided by strong stone walls, and they w^ere told that the enemy could not possibly cut them off. The state dragoons of New Yorkw^ear red coats, and they being on the heights to watch the enemy, gave constant alarm to the militia, who mistook them for the enemy, and feared his getting in their rear. Finding the enemy's columns had pene- trated within a mile of Plattsburg, I despatched my aid- de-camp. Lieutenant Root, to bring off the detachment at Dead Creek, and to inform Lieutenant Apphngthat I wished him to fall on the enemy's right flank. The colo- nel fortunately arrived just in time to save his retreat, and to fall in with the head of a column debouching from the w^oods. Here he poured in a destructive fire from his riflemen at rest, and continued to annoy the column until he formed a junction with Major Wool. The field-pieces did considerable execution among the enemy's columns. So undaunted, however, was the enemy, that he never deployed in his whole march, always pressing on in column. Finding that every road was full of troops crowding on us on all sides, I ordered the field-pieces to retire across the bridge and form a battery for its protection, and to rover the retrent of tli(^ WOOL. 245 infantry, which was accordingly done, and the parties of Appling and Wool, as well as that of Sproul, retired alternately, keeping up a brisk fire until they got under cover of the works. The enemy's light troops occupied the houses near the bridge, and kept up a constant firing from the windows and balconies, and annoyed us much. I ordered them to be driven out with hot shot, which soon put the houses in flames, and obliged these sharp- shooters to retire. The whole day, until it was too late to see, the enemy's light troops endeavoured to drive our guards from the bridge, but they suffered dearly for their perseverance. An attempt was also made to cross the upper bridge, where the militia handsomely drove them back. The column which marched by the lake road was much impeded by the obstructions, and the removal of the bridge at Dead Creek, and, as it passed the creek and beach, the galleys kept up a lively and galling fire. Our troops being now on the south side of the Sara- nac, I directed the planks to be taken off the bridges and piled up in the form of breast-works to cover our parties intended for disputing the passage, which after- wards enabled us to hold the bridges against very supe- rior numbers. From the 7th to the 11th, the enemy was employed in getting on his battering train, and erecting his batte- ries and approaches, and constantly skirmishing at the bridges and fords. By this time the militia of New York, and the volunteers of Vermont were pouring in from all quarters. I advised General Mooers to keep his force along the Saranac to prevent the enemy's cross- ing the river, and to send a strong body in his rear to harass him day and night, and keep him in continual alarm. 246 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. The militia behaved with great spirit after the first day, and the volunteers of Vermont were exceedingly serviceable. Our regular troops, notwithstanding the skirmishing and repeated endeavours of the enemy to cross the river, kept at their work day and night, strengthening the defences, and evinced a determination to hold out to the last extremity. It was reported that the enemy only w^aited the arri- val of his flotilla to make a general attack. About eight in the evening of the 11th, as was expected, the flotilla appeared in sight round Cumberland Head, and at nine bore down and engaged our flotilla at anchor in the bay oflf the town. At the same instant the batteries were opened on us, and continued throwing bomb-shells, shrapnels, balls, and congreve rockets until sunset, W'hen the bombardment ceased, every battery of the enemy being silenced by the superiority of our fire. The naval engagement lasted but two hours, in full view of both armies. Three efforts wTre made by the enemy to pass the river at the commencement of the cannonade and bombardment, with a view of assaulting the works, and he had prepared for that purpose an immense number of scaling-ladders. One attempt to cross was made at the village bridge, and another at the upper bridge, and a third at a ford about three miles from the works. At the two first he was repulsed by the regulars, at the ford by the brave volunteers and militia, where he suffered severely in killed and wounded, and prisoners ; a con- siderable body having crossed the stream, but were either killed, taken, or driven back. The woods at this place were very favourable to the operations of the militia. A whole company of the 76th regiment was here destroyed, the three lieutenants and twenty-seven men taken prisoners, the captain and the rest killed. WOOL. 247 I cannot forego the pleasure of here stating the gal- lant conduct of Captain M'Glassin, of the 15th regi- ment, who was ordered to ford the river, and attack a party constructing a battery on the right of the enemy's line, within 500 yards of Fort Brown, which he hand- somely executed at midnight, with fifty men ; drove off the working-party, consisting of 150, and defeated a covering party of the same number, killing one officer and six men in the charge, and wounding many. At dusk the enemy withdrew his artillery from the batteries, and raised the siege, and at nine, under cover of the night, sent off in a great hurry all the baggage he could find transport for, and all his artillery. At two the next morning the whole army precipitately retreated, ^leaving the sick and wounded to our generosity, and the governor left a note with a surgeon, requesting the humane attention of the commanding general. Vast quantities of provisions were left behind and destroyed, also an immense quantity of bomb-shells, cannon-balls, grape-shot, ammunition, flints, &c., &c., intrenching tools of all sorts, also tents and marquees. A great deal has been concealed in the ponds and creeks, and buried in the ground, and a vast quantity- carried off by the inhabitants. Such was the precipitance of his retreat, that he arrived at Chazy, a distance of eight miles, before we discovered he had gone. The light troops, volunteers, and militia pursued immediately on learning of his flight ; and some of the mounted men made prisoners fivC dragoons of the 19th regiment, and several others of the rear-guard. A continual fall of rain and a violent storm prevented further pursuit. Upwards of 300 deserters have come in, and many are hourly arriving. We have buried the British officers of the army and 16 *248 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. nav-y with the honours of war, and shown eveiy atten- tion and kindness to those who have fallen into our hands. The conduct of the officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers of my command, during this trying occa- sion, cannot be represented in too high terms, and I feel it my duty to recommend to the particular notice of government, Lieutenant- Colonel Appling of the 1st rifle corps : Major Wool, of the 29th ; Major Totten, of the r.orps of engineers ; Captain Brooks, of the artiller}' ; Captain, M'Glassin, of the 15th ; Lieutenants de Russy ' and Trescott, of the corps of engineers ; Lieutenants Smyth, Mountford, and Cromwell, of the artillery ; also my aid-de-camp, Lieutenant Root, who have all dis- tinguished tliemselves by their uncommon zeal and ac- tivity, and have been greatly instrumental in producing the happy and glorious result of the siege. I have the honour to be, with sentiments of profound respect, sir, your most obedient humble servant, ALEX. MACOMB. The loss of the enemy in killed, wounded, prisoners, and deserters, since his first appearance, cannot fall short of 2500, including many officers, among whom is Colonel Wellington of the Buffs. Major WooFs services on this important occasion were rewarded by promotion to the rank of lieujtenant- colonel by brevet, the department of war taking care to specify that it was for his gallant conduct at the battle of Plattsburg. During the long peace wliich followed, Colonel Wool was employed at the different posts of the regular army, whore hi>; presence was required by the exigencies of the service. On the 27th of April, If^lG. ]>e was created WOOL. ^ 249 i'nspector-general, with the full rank of colonel ; and teii years after, April 29th, 1826, he received the appoint- ment of brigadier-general, his brevet. His commission as brigadier-general, dates Jmie 29th, 1841. When the Mexican w^ar had been so gloriously com- menced on the Rio Grande, a force was directed to be organized by General Wool, to be styled the Central Division of the Army of Mexico. Its operations have been but little noticed among the other interesting de- tails of the war, because the march of this portion of the troops was through an unfrequented part of the country ; and also because this division became merged in the main body under General Taylor, during the period which elapsed between the capture of Monterey and the famous battle of Buena Vista. Of this latter battle we have already given an extended account, and w^e now propose to give the reader a transcript in full of a letter addressed to the accomplished editor of the New York Spirit of the Times, in which a full account is given of the organization of this division of the army. The reader will pardon us for inserting the long hsts of names, when he comes to compare them with General Taylor's detailed report of the battle of Buena Vista, where they are nearly all noticed with strong commen- dation. No other course could show the reader so clearly, how large a share of the glories of Buena Vista is to be ascribed to General Wool and his coi&mand. The letter is as follows : San Antonio de Bejar, Tejas, Oct. 14, 1846. My dear Mr. Porter — You see by the orthography of the above, that I am progressing according to the rules of the Academy. I shall, no doubt, soon learn to 250 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. talk Spanish, and if I escape being obliged to imlk it, I shall do well. The left wing of General Wool's divi- sion leaves San Antonio for the Presidio del Rio Grande, to-day. In the hurry and "thousand things to think of," incident to the morning of marching, I can only catch a moment here and there, which I can employ for your particular benefit. Our army — that is, " The Central Division, Army of Mexico," nobody seems to know anything about. The newspapers have nothing in them in relation to it, and for that reason I have " taken my pen in hand," with a determination that our whereabouts shall be known, whether or not. What I write ^vill not smell much of the camp, or make pretensions to particular smoothness of style, or harmony of diction ; but when you come down to the bare facts, you will find my letters full of " nothing else." There is no time here for poetry. It was the last of August before all the various detachments w^hich had been ordered here to compose this division, arrived. As soon as they had done so, they were actively employed in organizing, drilling, manosuvering, &c., preparatory to taking the field. The stores, both of subsistence and ammunition, came in but slowly, as they had to be hauled in wagons- from Port Laraca, on the Gulf — a distance of 150 miles ; and sufficient means for transporting them, were not supplied in season to bring them all on at once. It was the 2-Jth of September before these stores had accumulated here, over and above the necessary quan- tity for the daily use of the troops, to allow the general to commence his campaign. By that time a train of wagons large enough for the advance had been collected, and the 26th was appointed as the day on which that WOOL. 251 portion of the division should move. It was composed of the following troops : — j Colonel W. S. Harney, 2d dragoons, in command. ^ First Lieutenant Daniel H. Rucker, 1st dragoons, acting assistant adjutant-general. Captain Osborne Cross, assistant quartermaster. Dr. Josiah Simpson, assistant surgeon U. S. A. Dr. William Levely, assistant surgeon U. S. A. Captain Robert E. Lee, U. S. corps of engineers. Captain William D. Fraser, U. S. corps of engineers. Captain George W. Hughes, U. S. corps of topo- graphical engineers. First Lieutenant Lorenzo Sitgreaves, U. S. corps of topographical engineers. Lieutenant William B. Franklin, U. S. corps of to- pographical engineers. Captain John M. Washington, 4th artillery. First Lieutenant John P. J. O'Brien, 4th artillery. First Lieutenant Thomas L. Brent, 4th artillery. Second Lieutenant Henry M. Whiting, 4th artillery. Total. Aggregate. These are the officers of Washington's light artillery, (Company «< B," 4th artiller}^,) which numbered for duty, j, and able to march . . . 95 99 One squadron 2d regiment U. S. dra- ' goons, composed of " A" and <' I" Companies — able to march . .118 124 The officers composing this squadron were B^i:. Maj. Benj. L. Beall, 2d dragoons. First Lieut. John H. Hill, " First Lieut. Dan. G. Rogers, " Sec'd Lieut. John Y. Bicknell, " Sec'd Lieut. Jas. M. Hawes, " 252 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. One battalion of light infantry, com- posed of three companies of the 6th U. S. infantry, and one of Kentucky volunteers— able to march . . 253 266 These are the officers of that battalion so far as I have been able to ascertain — Major B. L. E. Bonneville, 6th U S. Infantry, Captain William Hoffman, Captain Albemarle Cady, Captain John Williams, Kentucky volunteers. First Lieutenant Edw. H. Fitz- gerald, 6th infantry A. C. S. First Lieutenant Leonidas Wetmore, 6th Como;. Com. Second Lieutenant Edwin Howe, 6th, Second Lieutenant William Read, 5th U. S. infantry. Brevet Second Lieutenant William Rhea, 6th U. S. infontry, (Three subalterns of Captain Williams' company of Kentucky volunteers, names not known.) Six companies of Arkansas mounted volunteers. Their collective strength of men able to march, was . . 392 421 Col. Arch. Yell, xirks. Mtd. Vol. Lieut. Col. J. S. Roane, First Lt. G. Meares, Adjt. Capt. Albert Pike, Capt. John Preston, Jr., Capt. John Dillard, Cnpt. Danlev, WOOL. 253 Capt. Porter, Ark. Mid. vol. Capt. Inglish, " " (Subalterns' names not known.) Two companies ("A" and "I") 1st regiment of Illinois volunteers, com- manded by Captain Morgan, of the Quincy riflemen, . . • • 150 156 Two companies ("B" and"H") 2d regiment of Illinois yolunteers, com- manded by Captain Webb of the 2d regiment I. V. . * * • l'^5 141 One company of pioneers, under the direction of Capt. Lee, and numbering 30 Advance — with 66 officers, . . 1171 1237 Tw^o boats had been constructed at this place by Captain Fraser, Engineers, by which the division is to cross the Rio Grande. They were taken apart and transported thither in wagons. The general directed that all the men who were unable to march fifteen miles per day should be left behind, to come up with other troops, should they recover from sickness, and regain their strength. This force started on the morning of the 26th Sep- tember. Every man in fine spirits, and every company in the best possible fighting order. Captain Washmgton had a fine battery of six brass pieces — tw^o twelve-pound- ers and four six-pounders — and a good supply of ammuni- tion for them. Tw^o more brass six-pounders are to be forw^arded from here. These are to be added to his battery, and will reach him at the Rio Grande. On the morning of the 29th September General Wool, staff, and escort (one squadron of ist regiment U. S. 254 TAYLOR AND KIS GENERALS. dragoons) left San Antonio for the Ptio Grande. The ofTicers were — Brigadier-General John E. Wool, U. S. army. First Lieut. Irvin McDowell, 1st artillery, A. D. C. Bvt. Sec. Lieut. Francis T. Bryan, Top. Eng., addi- tional A. D. C. Capt. James H. Prentiss, 1st artillery, asst. adj. gen. Capt. Wilham W. Chapman, asst. quartermaster. First Lieut. Marsena R. Patrick, 2d infantry, A. C. S. Dr. Charles M. Hitchcock, asst. surgeon, U. S. A. Major David Hunter, paymaster, U. S. A. Sec. Lieut. Charles P. Kingsbury, ord. department. Captain Enoch Steen, 1st regiment U. S. dragoons. Captain William Eustis, " " Sec. Lieut. Abram Buford, " " Sec. Lieut. Joseph H. Whittlesey, " " The squadron of 1st Dragoons w^as composed of " A" and "E" companies, and numbered 131. Aggregate of all the force which left on the 29th, 144. Colonel Sylvester Churchill, inspector-general U. S. army, w^as left in command of the forces remaining at San Antonio de Bexar, w^hich forces were to be for- warded on to join the general at the Presidio del Rio Grande, as fast as means of transportation would allow. On the 2d of October eight companies of the 1st regiment Illmois volunteers took up their line of march. This force was commanded by Col. John J. Hardin, 1st regiment Illinois volunteers. His field and staff oiTicers were — Lieut-Col. Weatherford, " " " Major Warren, " " " Captain Robert H. Chilton, A. Q. M., U. S. army. ' Dr. Herrick, assistant surgeon (by the new law). WOOL. 255 Dr. Zabriskie, acting assistant surgeon (by appoint- ment). First Lieut. W. H. Wallace, adjutant 1st regiment Illinois volunteers. The captains of companies were — Captain Mower, 1st regiment Illinois volunteers. Captain Fry, " " Captain Zabriskie, " " Captain Richardson, " " Captain Crow, " " Captain Wyatt, " " Captain Montgomery, " " Captain Landon, " " The total of Colonel Hardin's command was 538 — 36 officers — aggregate, 574. This command was also in fine order, and not encum- bered by any men unable to march fifteen miles per day. The last intelligence received here from General Wool w^as dated at his head-quarters on the evening of October 5th. He had overtaken Colonel Harney and the advance, and was then encamped 25 miles only from Presidio del Rio Grande. By liis table of dis- tances from one watering-place to another, for the whole route (and giving an account of the grazing, &c., for the information of the forces to succeed him), Presidio is estimated to be 157 miles from San Antonio. The water abounded in sufficient quantities, and at intervals short enough to prevent the necessity of transporting it, except for a part of one day's march, for the whole way. The grazing is also reported as being generally good, except at the Leona and Nueces rivers. Since writing the foregoing, another express has arrived from the general, with communications dated the 11th instant. He had arrived at the river on the 256 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. 9th, and nearly the whole of the advance had crossed without opposition, and was already in Mexico. The following order was published to the troops on the 9th: — Head-Quarters, Camp on the Rio Grande, ) near PresidiOj 9th October j 1846. ) (Orders No. 89.) Soldiers I — After a long and tedious march, you have arrived on the bank of the Rio Grande. In the per- formance of this service the commanding general has witnessed with the greatest pleasure your patience, good order, and perseverance under many deprivations and hardships. All have done their duty, and in a manner that reflects the highest credit on both officers and men. From this remark he would not except his staff, who have actively and zealously devoted themselves to the service ; whilst Captain Cross has been eminently suc- cessful in forwarding his long train of supplies, \\dthout delay or serious accident. To-morrow you will cross the Rio Grande, and oc- cupy the territory of our enemies. We have not come to make war upon the people or peasantry of the coun- try, but to compel the government of Mexico to render justice to the United States. The people, therefore, who do not take up arms against the United States, and remain quiet and peaceful at their homes, will not be molested or interfered with, either as regards their per- sons or property ; and all those who furnish supplies will be treated kindly, and whatever is received from them will be liberally paid for. It is expected of the troops that they will observe the most rigid discipline and subordination. All depreda- tions on the persons or property of the people of the country are strictly forbidden ; and any soldier or fol- WOOL. 257 lower of the camp who may so far forget his duty as to violate this injunction, will be severely punished. By command of General Wool, (Signed) James H. Prentiss, Asst. Adj. Gen. A report reached San Antonio last evening, that the Mexicans had assembled a force of 7000 at Monclova, to arrest General Wool's advance at that place ; and it is also reported that Santa Anna has taken command of his army in person, and already estabhshed his head- quarters at Saltillo. The rear of the central division leaves here 'this day, to join the general. The officers are — Colonel Sylvester Churchill, inspector-general U. S. A., commanding. First Lieutenant J. Henry Carlton, 1st dragoons, aid- de-camp. Major Charles Thomas, quartermaster U. S. A. Captain Davis, A. Q. M. (Under new act.) Captain Howard, A. C. S. " " Dr. Edward B. Price, surgeon, <« Dr. J. Ham White, surgeon, " Major John B. Butler, paymaster, " Captain George A. H. Blake, 2d dragoons, command-, ing detachment of artillery dragoons and infantry. Brevet Second Lieutenant James Oaks, 2d dragoons, on duty with Captain Blake. Two companies of Arkansas mounted volunteers, com- manded by Captain Wm. G. Preston and Captain Hunter. Colonel William H. Bissell, commanding 2d regi- ment Illinois volunteers. Lieutenant-Colonel Morrison, 2d regt. Illinois vol's. Major Trail, " *' Seven companies only of the 2d regiment march with 258 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. this command — two having gone with Colonel Harney, and one (Captain Hacker's) left as a guard to this place. They are commanded by the following officers : Captain Wheeler, Captain Baker, Captain Coffee, Captain Armstrong, Captain Lemon, Captain Lott. Captain Miller, One company of Texas volunteers, commanded by Captain Charles A. Seefeld. (Names of subalterns not known.) The\vhole of this command numbers, asrsfreofate, 724. With the next train of wagons, Major Solon Bor- land, with the remaining two companies of Arkansas volunteers, is to come up. They are commanded by Captain Moffitt and Captain Patrick, and will number, aorcyres^ate, 150. Then all the forces of tills division w^ill have left for the field, and will number, all told, only 2829. The general will probably establish a depot for stores somewhere in the interior beyond Presidio — as when the rainy season commences, he no doubt desires to have the distance for immediate and frequent transportation as short as possible. It is thought by many here that we shall have a hard struggle before we capture Chi- huahua. Let that be as it may, we will all try to render our country a good account of ourselves. I shall write you again from the Presidio del Rio Grande. You have in this crude letter tlie different corps, and the strength of each ; and when they are mentioned in future letters, you can refer to this for many data which will in them be necessarily suppressed. The northwestern frontier of Texas, durino- our ad- vance, will be protected by a military police, composed of four or five companies of mounted rangers, three of WOOL. 259 which have already been mustered into the service of the United States for twelve months. Our sick have all been left here in general hospital, under the care of Dr. John C. Glen, assistant surgeon U. S. A.; and Captain William Wall, 3d artillery, is to remain in command of the post. , I am very truly yours, J. H. C. The array described in the foregoing letter advanced into Mexico under General Wool's command. On arriving at Monclova, General Wool, learning that there was no pass across the mountains to Chihuahua, pro- ceeded to Parras, and thence to Saltillo, where his division remained till called upon to take part in the battle of Buena Vista. The battle of Buena Vista afforded a splendid oppor- tunity for displaying the courage, coolness, and military ability of General Wool. To him the details of the battle were confided by General Taylor, and nobly did he justify the confidence of his commander and brother veteran in the service. His zeal, efficiency, and gal- lantry were not surpassed by those of any officer in the field. He led the main body in person, and was every- where seen rallying and encouraging the volunteers ; while his excellent judgment was conspicuously dis- played in ordering the various rapid movements, which were called for by the terrible emergencies of those trying hours. Throughout the whole action he was con- stantly employed in making the various dispositions of the forces, and encouraging them to the onset. The only complaint made against him, was that he exposed himself too much. The ruse of masking a battery of artillery, charged with grape, by interposing a body of infantry between them and the advancing enemy, until they were within point-blank shot, and then ordering the infantry to fall back and pouring in a deadly fire, which 260 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. i repulsed tlie tremendous masses of the enemj* witli gi-eat slaughter, is ascribed to his prompt presence of mind. On more than one occasion the fate of that bloody day was determined by the skill and ability of Wool. Next to General Taylor, he was the a?gis of the army, the conquering sword and protecting shield. The anecdote of their meeting at the close of the action is characteristic of the men, and the occasion. «■ Blucher and Wellington like," says an eye-witness, " Generals Taylor and Wool met after the retreat com- menced. General Wool rushed between the arms of his brother veteran, and congratulated himself upon the favourable result of the day's trial. General Taylor playfully retorted : < Oh ! it 's impossible to whip us when we all pull together.'" A happier comment on the benefits of united action was never made. I In his official despatch General Taylor did not omit to notice the excellent conduct of his tried and gallant friend. He says, «' I may be permitted here, however, to acknowledge my great obligations to General Wool, the second in command, to whom I feel particularly in- debted for his valuable services on.this occasion." This notice occurs in General Taylor's first despatch, where no other similar one appears. In his detailed report we find the following warm commendation. " To Brigadier-General Wool my obligations are especially due. The high state of discipline and in- structions of several of the volunteer regiments was attained under his command, and to his vigilance and arduous service before the action, and his gallantry and activity on the field, a large share of our success may justly be attributed. During most of the engagement he was in immediate command of tlie troops thrown back on our left flank. I beg leave to recommend him to the favourable notice of tlie government." TWIGGS. TWIGGS. Brigadier-General David E. Twiggs is a native of tlie state of Georgia. He entered the arrny as captain of the 8th regiment of infantry, on the 12th. of March, 1812, served with distinction in the war of 1812, was promoted to the office of major on the Mth of May, 1S25, and was made colonel of the 2d regiment of dragoons on the 8th of June, 1836. At the commencement of the present war with Mexico, Colonel Twiggs's regiment formed a part of the Army of Occupation ; and through the whole course of opera- tions he has figured among the most active and useful officers in the field. On the 25th of March, 1846, we find Colonel Twiggs detached by General Taylor for the service of capturing Point Isabel, which was held by General Garcia whh a force of 250 men, composed of infantry and artillery. The public buildings were set on fire by the Mexican authorities at the approach of the Americans, and the soldiers and inhabitants, with General Garcia at their head, incontinently took to flight, escaping just in time to avoid the swords of Colonel Twiggs's dragoons, who, however, arrived in the town in season to save a few of the burninsf houses. At the battle of Palo Alto, Colonel Twiggs com- manded the whole of the right wing, comprising Mcin- tosh's infantry, Ringgold's artillery, Morris and Allen's infantry, Churchill's artillery, part of the fourth brigade under Garland, and the dragoons of Kerr and May, IT 264 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. How the several parts of his command distinguished themselves in tliis great battle is already familiarly known to the reader. His humanity to the wounded after the battle was as conspicuous as his courage and coolness in action. At the battle of Resaca de Ja Palma, Colonel Twicjors's services were also recosrnised as of great importance ; and to him were intrusted the arrangements respecting the exchange of prisoners after the batde. He also led the van at the capture of Matamoras, and on its falling into the hands of the Americans, be was appointed governor of the town. His summar}' manner of dealing with the roguish pre- fect of the place is humorously noticed by Mr. Thorpe, in his "Army on the Rio Grande." Colonel Twiggs's services on the 8th and 9th of May were very properly noticed by the government ; w^ho, on the 30th of June, 1846, promoted him to the rank of brigadier-general. From this time he participated in the labours and perils of General Taylor, until we find him before Monterey, where the most arduous service was assigned to him. It wdll be recollected by our reader, that the first division, under General Twiggs, was ordered on the 21st of September to make a diversion to the left of the towm, while General Worth was attackingr the heights which commanded it. A battery opened upon the citadel and town, while the first division were to advance, and skirmish with the enemy, and, if possible, carry the most advanced battery. This duty was gallantly performed, under the most terrible and galling fire from the city and forts. The posts thus captured were held by the captors themselves till the evening of the second day, w^hen this wearied ojarrison was relieved bv General Quit- TWIGGS. 265 man's troops. They nevertheless participated in the severe street-fighting of the third day, which brought on the proposition for surrender on the fourth. We refer our readers to the very full and accurate accounts which we have already given of the siege and capture of Monterey, in our life of General Taylor, as well as to his official despatches, for notices of the par- ticular part taken by General T^^^ggs in this glorious affair. After the capture of Monterey, General Twiggs was occupied in garrisoning with his division that and the other posts which fell into the hands of the Americans, until the strand movement on Vera Cruz occasioned General Scott to detach him, w^ith his division, from General Taylor's command. He was thus prevented from sharing the glories and perils of Buena Vista ; but he bore an honourable and conspicuous part in the siege and capture of Vera Cruz. According to the latest advices from the army. Gene- ral Twiggs took up his line of march from the camp near Vera Cruz tow^ards Jalapa, wdth a column of 2500 men, on the 3d of April. Colonel Harney, with 500 dragoons, had preceded, and Colonel Bankhead, with the 2d regiment of artillery, and a long train, w^as to follow General Tvnggs. In the future operations of the army, we doubt not that the skill and bravery of this veteran commander will prove of great service to the cause in which he is engaged. No officer appears to have inspired greater confidence in his capacity for every emergency which the war may hereafter present. The following report of General Twiggs shows the part taken by his di\'ision, at the opening of the siege of Vera Cruz. ^ • 266 ■ TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS Head-Quarters, Second Brigade of the Army, ) Camp at Vergara, near Vera Cruz, > March 15, 1847. ) Sir : — I have the honour to report the occurrences in which my brigade has been concerned since the com- mencement of the march from the place of debarkation until now. The brigade took up the line of march on the morn- ing of the 11th instant, the regiment of mounted rifle- men leading. After passing the position of the first brigade, the first squadron of riflemen, composed of the 3ompanies of Captains Loring and Mason, under the command of Major Summer, 2d dragoons, was sent forward as an advanced guard. On crossing the rail- road, the advanced guard took the direct vray over the hills, but this being impassable for the artillery, the rest of the brigade wdth the pieces was obliged to make a detour to the left. On passing the position of General Pillow's brigade. Brevet Captain Alburtis, 2d infan- try, and one private of riflemen, were killed by a round shot, and two privates wounded. TiTajor Sumner hav- ing passed some distance beyond the position occupied by the volunteers, was opposed by the enemy's light troops, whom he drove ofl", and halted near a small ranch, when the rest of the brigade joined him and proceeded to clear the ground to be occupied by my brigade. The advance drove the enemy's skirmishers before it, receiving ^vithout loss their fire, until it arrived at the Orizaba road. On passing the road, a party of horsemen were perceived stationed on it to our left. Captain Sanderson's company of mounted riflemen was detached to attack them, being supported by Captain Simsori's company of the same regiment. He dreve TWIGGS. -267 them off, killing two captains — one of the lancers, and the other of the auxiliary guard of Jalapa, named J. Platos. In this affair, Private Weller, of Captain San- derson's company, was severely wounded in the thigh by an escopette ball. Having driven these parties off, th.e brigade took its position in line, extending as far towards the Jalapa road on the beach as the strenofth of the brig-ade w^ould allow, and bivouacked till the morning of the 13th, w^hen w^e took up the line of march towards the sea — Major Sumner again commanding the advance guard, composed of the left wing of the rifle regiment. Making a considerable detour to the left to avoid some ponds of water, I arrived about noon on the o;reat road leadinsr to the city of Mexico. On coming out here. Lieutenant Robert's company of mounted riflemen leading, a party of mounted men w^as discovered. After a short skirmish the enemy w^ere dispersed, my men receiving no injury. The head of the column arrived at its present position on the beach at the village of Vero-ara, about two and a half miles from Vera Cruz, a few minutes after twelve o'clock. I would commend to particular notice. the conduct of Major Smnner, 2d dragoons. His skill and coolness inspired those under his command with the fullest con- fidence, and gave to them the bearing of old soldiers. The officers and men of all the companies engaged gave entire satisfaction. An important mail which I had the honour to transmit to the head-quarters of the army this morning by Cap- tain Taylor, was taken last night by Captain Magruder, 1st artillery, who W'as in command of one of the sup- porting companies sent out yesterday morning to skirmish in the front of my brigade towards the city. 268 TAYLOR AND HIS GENERALS. The mail carrier was shot at, and is supposed to have been wounded. His horse, hat, and cloak were left on the ground at the place where he was fired at, and the mail along with these effects. Captain Magruder deserves praise for his zeal and good conduct in this affair. FHere follows the list of killed and wounded.] SCOTT MAJOR-GENERAL WINFIELD SCOTT. A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT, WITU AN ACCOUNT OP THE BOMBAEDMENT OF VEEA CRUZ, Major-General Winfield Scott, at present com- mander-in-chief of the army of the United States, was born on the 13th of June, 1786, near Petersburg, Vir- ginia. He was sent in early life to the High School at Richmond, went to William and Mary College, and studied for the profession of the law. In 1808, when the country was evidently approaching a war with Great Britain, Scott determined to seek dis- tinction in the service, and accordingly entered the regu- lar army as a captain cf light artillery. His excellent character as a disciplinarian and his punctual attention to his duties led to his rapid pro- motion, and we find him a lieut._^-colonel in July 1812. Being posted at Black Rock to protect the navy yard, in October of that year, he was called upon by Lieu- tenant (afterwards Commodore Elliot) to assist in cutting out the Adams and Caledonia from under the guns of Fort Erie. He furnished a detachment for the expedition, which was successful ; and he afterv>-ards successfully de- 272 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF fended the vessels against a detachment of the British who were sent out to retake them. At the battle of Queenstown Heights, which took place on the 12th of October, 1812, Colonel Scott dis- tinguished himself by the ardour with which he aided tlie expedition, as well as by his personal bravery in the action. After the heights were stormed, Colonel Scott, who had not before been allowed to cross the river, came over as a volunteer; and Colonel Van Rensellaer having been wounded. General Wadsworth of the militia request- ed Scott to take the command. The British sent up rein- forcements of regulars and Indians from Fort George, and a new battle ensued in which all the energies of Scott were exerted. Colonel Chrystie, coming over to the Canada side, took the command : the main body of the British reinforcements, 8^0 strong, under General Sheaffe, arrived, and the American militia could not be got across the river ; so that a force of only 300 Ameri- cans, opposed to some 1300 British and Indians, were left at tlieir mercy. After maintaining the contest for many hours, the whole detachment surrendered. Scott was taken with the other prisoners to Quebec, w^here he was exchanged and sent in cartel to Boston. His good conduct at Quebec in rescuing certain natural- ized Irish prisoners who were threatened with being treated as British subjects, was well rewarded. He threatened the British in return with retaliation, head for head, and the Irishmen were exchanged. Scott long afterwards witnessed their landing at New York, and being recognised by the poor fellows, was loudly thanked and cheered for his firm defence of their lives. The next year, May 1813, Colonel Scott returned as adjutant-general to the army near Niagara, where General Dearborn commanded. MAJOR-GENERAL SCCTT. 273 The capture of York, in Upper Canada, opened the campaign of 1813. The troops which had been en- gaged in this expedition, joined the army collected in the neigfhbom'hood of Fort Niajrara, ab;utthe middle of May. Preparations for an attack on Fort George, situated on the opposite side of the strait, had already far advanced under Major-General Le^vis, and were continued by the commander-in-chief, General Dear- born, with increased diligence. Batteries w^ere erected, subsidiary to the fort, commanding the enemy's works ; and boats were collected or constructed for the transpor- tation of the troops. While these exertions for an attack were making on our part, the British were not inactive in providing means for defence ; but both sides were permitted to pursue their respective labours un- molested. Those petty hostilities which disgraced the first year, and many subsequent periods of the war, here gave place to a seemingly chivalrous forbearance. A slight incident interrupted this truce, and renewed all the horrors of warfare. Some boats, which had been built a few miles up the strait, were launched and con- ducted dowTi under the English batteries, with provok- ing indifference. The enemy, determined to punish this temerity, opened upon them a desultory and ineffectual fire. This occured on the night of the — instant. It was probably the intention of the commander-in-chief to have reserved the fire of our batteries until a simulta- neous attack could be made in another quarter by the troops; but the fire, once communicated, could not be controlled, and kindled into flame all our artillery. JJn- der the direction of Colonel Porter, assisted by Major Totten of the engineers, and Captain Archer, of the artillery, they poured red-hot shot into the enemy's combustible works, with such .sldlful efficacy, that, ere 274 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF the dawn of morning, they were a levelled mass of smoking ruins. The prematurity of this attack some- what dimmished the satisfaction which was felt at its complete success. The army was not ready to take advantage of the discouragement and panic which the sight of his eviscerated fortress must have produced on the enemy. He had time to recover from his dejec- tion, and renew his defences. At length, on the 26th of May, our preparations ■were deemed sufficient, if not complete, and the army was directed to embark the next morninsc at two o'clock The fleet under Commodore Chauncey, which had ar rived the- night before, W' as at anchor off the creek (about four miles dow^n the lake from Fort Niagara), where the army lay encamped. The following distribution of com- mands had previously been settled: viz. Colonel Scott commanded the advance, amounting to about 600 men, consisting of a detachment of the 22d regiment, Forsyth's corps of riflemen, two companies of his owm regiment, the second artillery, one company of the third artillery, and a company of dismounted dragoons. The rest of the troops, exclusive of the light artillery, were divided into three brigades, amounting to about 1400 men each — the first, consisting of detachments from the 6th, 15th, and 16th regiments, and Colonel M'Clure's corps of volunteers, was commanded by Brigadier-General Boyd; the second, consisting of detachments from the 5th, 13th, 14th, and 20th regiments, was commanded by Brigadier-General Winder ; the third, acting as a reserve, was commanded by Brigadier-General Chandler. All these troops were to be embarked in boats. Colonel Macomb's corps of 3d artillery, to which the mariners «^ere attached, — having arrived in the fleet, was not in- cluded in the first arrangement, but directed to remain on MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 275 board, to act as the commander-in-chief — who, although sick, was Ukewise to be there — might deem necessary. The immediate command of the troops was assigned to Major-General LcAvis. Every exertion was made to insure a punctual obe- dience of the orders of the commander-in-chief; but difficulties, inseparable from embarkations of this kind, delayed the departure of the troops until about sunrise. At that time the divisions of boats were seen moving, in prescribed order, on the smooth surface of the Ontario. The fleet weighed anchor and accompanied them. A dense focr rested on the face of -the waters, and veiled their movements. The points of attack had previously been determined. A brief topographical explanation will indicate and render, them understood. The course of the Niagara strait, for about one mile from its mouth, describes the segment of a circle, its convex side formed by the American shore. Fort George stands on the Canadian side, about thirteen hundred yards from the lake ; the village of Newark interjacent. A cleared level plain lies between Newark and the lake. Skirting this plain and the rear of the village, is a thick wood, which, commencing on the lake, spreads, with the exception of a few farms, over the adjacent country. The lake shore of this plain, and particularly of the wood, is steep, high, and rather difficult of ascent, declivous a few yards from the brink, and forming a natural breast- work. The woody part of this shore was selected as the principal point of attack. Auxiliary to this main attack, and by way of diversion, a company of light artillery, and a squadron of dragoon?, under Colonel Burn, were directed to march up the right bank of the strait, and threaten a passage to intercept the route 276 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF leading to Queenstown. Our batteries were likewise opened, early in the morning, upon all the enemy's works. About nine o'clock A. M., when our fleet and boats had arrived within about two miles of the Canadian shore, a brisker breeze sprung up, dispersed the fog, and unveiled them to the enemy. The ascending vapours, gilt by the bright sun, floating above, — the lofty fleet and bannered boats, movmg below, together formed a scene -at once imposing and beautiful. The proud or anxious feehngs of the combatants subsided for a moment, at the sight, into emotions far removed from the mood of war. The enemy lay concealed within the woods, and sheltered behind the natural breast-work from the fire of our smaller vessels, which had already taken com- manding anchorage near the shore. The advance, under Colonel Scott, led the van, — the other brigades follow- ing in numerical order. As soon as the advance came within reach of his shot, the enemy, with a kind of magical celerity, arose from his concealment, and poured upon our troops a severe but ill-directed fire. Undis- mayed by this reception, our boats, disdaining to return a shot, only accelerated their course. They soon struck the beach, and leaping upon it, formed with rapidity, and rushed up the bank. The unbroken and far supe- rior enemy soon obliged them to recoil. Two or three times, it is believed, this gallant little band ascended, with undiscouraged but inefl*ectual valour, during the eicrht or ten minutes w^hich intervened between the com- mencement of the attack and the arrival of the first brigade. This brigade now joining the advance, the whole resolutely mounted the bank, and formed on its cr£st. A destructive fire was interchanged for about MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 277 ten minutes, with equal obstinacy on both sides, when the different regiments being ordered to advance, the enemy gave way, and retreated upon the rear of the village. Just as the shout of victory proclaimed our triumph, the second brigade reached the shore. Gen- eral Chandler's reserve and Colonel Macomb's command followed in quick succession. The whole line now marched by the left into the contiguous plain, and form- ing there, waited the arrival of Major-General Lewds. In this position, the enemy, probably to stay our pro- gress, and mask his intended retreat, opened upon us a ure of shrapnel-shells from the village ; but was soon silenced by our light artillery, under Colonel Porter. Major-General Lewis now assumed the command, and directed a pursuit of the enemy. Just as the head of our coluimi debouched from the village, the rear of the enemy's column w^as seen evacuating the fort. The pursuit was urged, but his main body w^as already out of sight. As the flag of the fort was still flying. Captain Hindman w^as detached to take possession of it. A few omcers, among whom were Scott and Porter, preceded him. As they approached, a magazine exploded. The remembrance of York made them pause ; but entering immediately after, Scott took down the flag with his owTi hands. Rejoining the column, he continued the pursuit towards Queenstow^n. Colonel Burn now crossed w^ith his dragoons, and joined the army. An order from the commander-in-chief arrested their march, when within a few miles of QueenstowTi, and directed them to return and encamp at Newark. The day was now^ far spent, and the army exhausted ; it retrograded to Fort George, and there reposed that night. After this affair (July 1813) Colonel Scott was pro- moted to the command of a regiment ; and, resigning his 278 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF office of adjutant-general, he was present at the expedi- tion to Burlington Heights, and the capture and burning of York. He next commanded a battalion in the corps d'' elite of General Macomb, and led the van-guard of the army when it descended the St. Lawrence in the expedition against Montreal. The expedition failed for want of concert and co-operation among the generals, who were to meet and act in concert. In 1814 occurred the most brilliant campaign of the whole war. The battles of Niagara, Cnippewa, and Qneenstown, in which Scott bore a conspicuous part, form the brightest ornaments of this famous campaign. In our notice of General Worth we have given an accoiyit of the battles of Chippewa and Niagara. The following more minute account of the battle of the Falls is contained in an extract from the journal of an officer who was in the battle of Niagara, intimate with General Brown and high in his confidence. In pursuance of a previous determination, the army was busily engaged preparing for a rapid march upon Burlington. About noon on the 25th, Colonel Swift, w^ho was posted at Lewistown, advised General Brown, l5y express, that the enemy appeared in considerable force in Queenstown and on its heig:hts ; that four of his fleet had arrived during the preceding night, and were then lying near Fort Niagara, and that a number of boats were in view, moving up the strait. Within a few minutes after this intellioence had been received, the commander-in-chief was further informed by Cap- tain Denman, of the quartermaster's department, that the enemy was landing at Lewistown, and that ourbag- gage and stores at Schlosser, and on their way thither, w^ere in dangler of immediate capture. It was conceived that the most effectual method of recalling him from MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 279 this object, was to put the army in motion towards Queenstown. If he was in the field upon the Canada side of the strait, our business was to meet and fight him without loss of time, as General Brown had almost ceased to hope for reinforcements or co-operation from any quarter. The support, upon which the general hitherto relied, had failed to appear, and the enemy having the power of the lake could reinforce at pleasure. General Scott, with the first brigade, Towson's artillery, and all the dragoons and mounted men, were accordingly put in march on the road leading towards Queenstown. General Scott was particularly instructed to report if the enemy appeared, and to call for assist- ance if that were necessar}^ — having the command of the dragoons, he would have, it w^as believed, the means of collecting and com.municating intelligence. On the general's arriving near the Falls, he learned that the enemy was in force directly in his front, a narrow piece of woods alone intercepting his view of them. Waiting only to send this information, but not to receive any communication in return, he advanced upon them. — Hearing the report of the cannon and small arms. Gen- eral Brown at once concluded that battle had commenced between the advance of the armies, and, without waiting for any information from General Scott, ordered the 2d brigade and all the artillery to march as rapidly as possible to his support. Having done this, he rode willi his aids-de-camp and Major M'Ree with all speed to- w^ards the scene of action. As he approached the Falls, a full mile from the Chippewa, he met Major Jones, assistant adjutant-general, who had accompanied Gen- eral Scott, bearing a message from him, advising Gen- eral Brown that he had met the enemy. From the information fr^von bv Major Jonfs, it \v?i3 mnrluded to IS 280 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF order up General Porter's command. Major Jones was sent with the order to General Porter. Advancinor a little further, General Brown and suite met Major Wood of the coi-ps of engineers, who had also accompanied General Scott. He reported that the conflict between Scott and the enemy was close and desperate, and urged that reinforcements might be hurried to his support. The reinforcements were now marching with all possi- ble rapidity. IMajor Wood accompanied the command- ing general to the field of battle. Upon his arrival the general found that General Scott had passed the wood and engaged the enemy on the Queenstown road, and on the ground to the left of it, with the 9th, 11th, and 22d regiments, and Towson's artillery. The 25th had been thrown to the right, to be governed by circum- stances. Apprehending that these troops were much exhausted, and knowing that they had suffered severely in the con- test. Gen. Brown determined to mterpose a new line with the advancing troops, and thus disengage General Scott and hold his biigade in reserve. By this time Captains Biddle and Richie's companies of artillery had come into action, and the head of General Ripley's column was nearly up with the right of General Scott's line. At this moment the enemy fell back, and, as was be- lieved, in consequence of the arrival of fresh troops, which they could see and began to feel. General Rip- ley was ordered to pass Scott's line and display his column in front. The movement was commenced in obedience to the order. Majors M'Ree and Wood had been rapidly reconnoiterhiji^ the enemy and his position. M'Ree reported that the enemy appeared to have taken a new position, and with his artillery occupied a height which gnve him great advantages, it being the key of MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 281 the whole position. To secure the victory it was neces- sary to carry his artillery and seize the height. M'Ree was ordered by the coinmander-in-chief to conduct Rip- ley's column on the Queenstown road, with a view to this object, and to prepare the 21st regiment, under Colonel Miller, for this duty. The 2d brigade imme- diately advanced- upon the Queenstown road. General Brown, with his aids-de-camp an^ Major Vv^ood, passed to the left of the 2d brigade, in front of the first, towards the enemy's artillery: an extended hne of infantry was formed for the support of his artillery. The 1st regiment of infantry, under the command of Colonel Nicholas, which had arrived that day, and was attached to neither of the brigades, but marched to the field of battle in the rear of the 2d, was ordered promptly to break off to the left, and form a line facing the enemy's on the height, with a view of drawing his fire and attracting his attention, as Miller advanced with the bayonet upon his left flank to carry the artil- lery. As the 1st regiment, conducted by Major Wood, and commanded by Colonel Nicholas, approached its position, the conmiander-in-chief rode to Colonel Miller and ordered him to advance with the bayonet and carry the enemy's artillery — he rephed, \vith great prompt- ness and o-ood humour, " It shall be done, sir." At this moment the 1st regiment gave way under the fire of the enemy ; but Miller, without regard to this occurrence, advanced steadily and gallantly to his object, and car- ried the heights and the cannon in a style rarely equal- led — never excelled. At the point of time when Miller ' moved, the 23d regiment was on his right, a little in the year — General Ripley led this regiment : it had some desperate fighting, and in a degree gave way, but was promptly rallied and brought up and formed upon the 282 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF right of the 21st, and the detachments of the 17th and 19th. General Ripley, being now with his brigade, formed in line, with the captured cannon, nine pieces, in his rear, and the enemy driven from their commanding ground — the 1st regiment having been rallied, was brought into line by Colonel Nicholas on the left of the 2d brigade; and General Porter, coming up at this time, occupied with his command the extreme left — our artillery formed on the right and between the 23d and 21st regiments. Having given the order to Colonel Miller to storm the heights, and carry the enemy's cannon as he ad- vanced. General Brown moved to the rear of his ricrht flank with Major Wood and Captain Spencer, as far as the Queenstown road. Turning down that road, he passed directly in the rear of the 23d regiment, as they advanced to the support of Colonel Miller. The shouts of the American soldiers on the height, at this moment, convinced him of Miller's cuccess, and he hastened towards the place, designing to turn from the Queenstown road up Lundy's Lane. In the act of doing so. Wood and Spencer, who were about a horse's length before him, were very near riding upon a body of the enemy, and nothing prevented them from doing this, but an officer exclaiming before them, " They are the Yankees :" the exclamation halted the American officers, and upon looking down the road they saw a line of British infantry drawn up near the north fence of the road, with its right resting near Lundy's Lane. The officer who i^^ave the alarm, had at that moment discovered Major Jessup. The major, as has been al- ready stated, had been ordered by General Scott, at the commencement of the action, to take ground to his M-'UOR- GENERAL SCOTT. 283 light. He had succeeded in turning the enemy's left flankj had captured General Riall and sundry other ofiiceis, and sent them to camp ; then, feeling his way silently towards where the battle was raging, he had brought his regiment, the 25th, with but little compara- tive loss, up to the southerly fence of the Queenstown road, a little to the east of Lundy's Lane. The moment the British officer gave Jessup notice of his having dis- covered him, Jessup ordered his command to fire upon the enemy's line. The lines could not have been more than four rods apart ; Jessup behind the south fence, the British in front of the north. The slaughter was dreadful: the enemy's line fled down the Queenstown road at the third or fourth fire. As the firing ceased. General Brown ap- proached Major Jessup ; the latter asked where he should form his regiment, and was directed to move up Lundy's Lane and form upon the right of the second brigade. The enemy rallying his broken corps, and having re- ceived reinforcements, was now discovered in good order and in great force. The commanding general doubted the correctness of the information, and, to ascertain the truth, passed in person with his suite in front of our line. He could now no longer doubt, as a more extended line than he had seen during the engagement was near and advancing upon us. Captain Spencer, without saying a word, put spurs to his horse and rode directly up to the advancing jfine ; then, turning to the left towards the enemy's right, in- quired, in a strong and firm voice, " What regiment is that ?" and w^as as promptly answered, " The Royal Scots, sir." General Brown and suite now threw themselves behind our own troops without loss of time, and patiently awaited the attack. 284 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF The enemy advanced slowly and firmly upon us: perfect silence was preserved throughout both armies, until the enemy's line approached to within from four to six rods — our troops had levelled their pieces, and the artillery was prepared — the order to fire was given — most awful was its effect : the lines closed in part before that of the enemy was broken; he then retired pre- cipitately, the American fire following him. The field was covered with the slain, but not an enemy capable of marching was to be seen. We dressed our lines upon the ground we occupied : General Brown was not disposed to leave it in the dark, knowing it to be the best in the neio-hbourhood : his intention then was to maintain it until day should dawn, and then to be governed by circumstances. Our gallant and accomplished foe did not give us much time for deliberation. He showed himself again within twenty minutes, apparently undismayed and in good order.' General Ripley now urged the commander-in-chief to order up Scott, who had all this time been held in reserve with three of his battalions. The commander rode in person to General Scott and ordered him to advance. That officer was prepared and expecting the call. As Scott advanced towards Ripley's right, Gen- eral Brown passed to the left to speak with General Porter, and see the condition and countenance of his militia, who, at that moment, were thrown into some confusion under a most galling and deadly fire from the enemy ; they were, however, kept to their duty by the exertions of their gallant chief, and most nobly sus- tained the conflict. The enemy was repulsed and again driven out of sight. But a short time, however, had elapsed, when he was once more distinctly seen, in MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 285 great force, advancing upon our main line under the command of Ripley and Porter. The direction that Scott had given to his column wonld have enabled him, within five minutes, to have formed line in the rear of the enemy's right, and thus have brought him between two fires. But in a moment most unexpected, a flank fire from a party of the enemy, concealed upon our left, falling upon the centre of Scott's command, when in open column, blasted our proud expectations. His column was severed in two ; one part passing to the rear, the other by the right flank of platoons towards our main line. About this period General Brown received his first wound, a musket-ball passing through his right thigh. A few minutes after- wards. Captain Spencer, aid-de-camp to General Brown, received his mortal wound. By this time the enemy had nearly closed with our main line. Moving up to the left of this line. General Brown received a violent blow from a ball of some description upon his left side. The ball did not enter, but such was its force that it nearly unhorsed him. In the general's own words, " he began to doubt his ability to sit his horse ; and, meeting wuth his confidential friend, Colonel Wood, he thought proper to inform him of his wounds and condition." Wood exclaimed, with great emotion: " Never mind, ray dear general, you are gaining the greatest victory that was ever gained by your nation." " His gallant soul (says General Brown) was exclusively occupied with the battle that was then raging, if possible, with redouble:! fury." This was the last desperate effort made by the enemy to regain his position and artillery. A broader display of heroism was never exhibited ; the hostile lines met in several places, and we captured a r umber of prisoners 286 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF who surrendered, at the point of the bayonet. Porter's volunteers were not excelled by the regulars during this charge. They were seen precipitated by their heroic commander upon the enemy's line, which they broke and dispersed, making many prisoners. The enemy seemed now to be effectually routed — they disappeared. In a conversation which occurred a few minutes after- w^ards, between General Brown, Colonels Wood and M'Ree, and two or three other officers, it was the unanimous belief of the whole circle, that we had no- thing to fear from the enemy with whom we had been contending ; but it appeared to be admitted upon all hands, that it would be judicious to retire to camp. The idea did not occur to any one present that it would be necessary to leave behind a man or a cannon. Colonel M'Ree expressly stated, that there would be no diffi- culty in removing the cannon by hand : wagons had been provided for the wounded. General Brown, sufferino- severely from his wound, now moved off with Captain Austen, his surviving aid-de-camp, observing to the other officers, that they would remain and aid General Ripley by all the means in their power. As the general moved towards camp, many scatter- ing men were seen by him on the road ; none appeared to be alarmed ; not a man was running away ; but, hav- ing lost their officers, had taken the liberty to seek for water, and were either drinking or struggling for drink. This scene confirmed General Brown in the belief that it was proper for the army to return to camp, for the purpose of being re-organized and refreshed before morn- ing ; that being the only situation where our scattering men could, in the night, be certainly collected and arranged to their companies and battalions. An officer was accordingly sent to say to General Ripley, that the MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 287 Tvounded men and cannon being brought olF, the army would return to camp. Being supported on his horse, the commander-in-chief moved slowly on to his tent. It was not many minutes before it was reported to him that General Ripley had returned to camp, having left the captured cannon on the field. General Ripley being immediately sent for, General Brown stated to him, that no doubt remained upon his mind but that the enemy had retired, and that our victory was complete. He appeared to be of the same opinion, as was every officer present. General Brown then, in strong and emphatical lan- guage, ordered General Ripley to re-organize his bat- talions, to see that they were refreshed with whatever comforts it might be in his power to afford, and put himself, with every man he could muster, on the field of battle, as the day dawned, there and then to be governed by circumstances : — at all events to bring off the cap- tured cannon. It was not believed that the enemy would dare to attack him if he showed a good counte- nance. General Ripley left General Brown with the conviction that he would execute the order given him — he did not make the shghtest objection to it — no objec- tion was made from any quarter. As day approached, finding that the columns had not moved. General Brown ordered his staff to go to the commanding officers of every corps, and order them to be promptly prepared to march in obedience to the order given to General Ripley ; but it was sunrise be- fore the army had crossed the Chippewa. General Ripley led on his troops as far as Bridge water mills ; halting his column there, he returned to the commander- m-chief, and objected to proceeding further — General 288 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF Brown persisted : when he informed him that General Porter was also opposed to proceeding. At ihese words, General Brown replied, " Sir, you vnll do as you please :" and had no farther uiter course with lum until they met at Buffalo. General Brown entertained no doubt of the intelli- gence or personal bravery of General Ripley ; nor did he ever express himself to that effect. In consequence, however, of the events of the night of the 25th, but more especially of the morning of the 26th, his confi- dence in hirpi as a commander appeared to be somewhat diminished. He was apprehensive that he dreaded re- sponsibility more than danger — that he had a greater stock of physical than of moral courage. General Scptt and himself being both severely wounded, he, therefore, without loss of time, despatched a courier to General Gaines, ordering him on to take the command of the gallant remains of the army of Niagara, that were now preparing to defend themselves vrithm the lines of Fort •Erie. Scott fell severely wounded in the battle of the Falls. At first his life was despaired of; but after he had suffi- ciently recovered to be removed to Philadelphia and placed under the care of Drs. Physic and Chapman, he was soon completely recovered. When peace returned it found him a major-general, and specially honoured by a gold medal conferred by a resolution of Congress ot November 1814, for the battles of Chippewa and Nia- gara. In 1816 the Virginia legislature conferred upon General Scott a sword, as a token of the high opinion that assembly entertained of his gallantry and dis- tinguished services in the battles of Chippewa and Niagara. The legislature of New YorK also conterred MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 289 a sword on General Scott, with a vote of thanks for his services. General Scott in 1817 married Miss Mayo, of Rich- mond, Virginia, by whom he has several children. We pass over the incidents of the Blaclc Hawk war, the Florida w'ar, and the threatened border war with Canada ; because these afforded no opportunity for the display of those brilliant military talents which distin- guished General Scott in early life. We believe, how- ever, that it is generally admitted in military circles that General Scott's plan for terminating the Florida war would have brought the whole affair to a speedy close ; and that his being withdrawn from the command pro- tracted it. It is also admitted that his services in bring- ing those New York border troubles to an end w^ere of the utmost importance — that his skill and prudence as a diplomatist w^ere fully equal to his courage and con- duct as an officer. The gallant Taylor was placed in command of the Army of Occupation, on the recommendation of General Scott. His success has evinced the sound judgment of Scott in the selection. When actual hostilities occurred; General Scott was offered the chief command. In order to afford General Taylor a full opportunity to further distinguish himself, Scott suggested to the government the propriety of his passing the summer months, the period of inevitable inaction, in collecting and drilling the forces, necessary for effective operations in Mexico ; and then joining Taylor with large reinforcements. The subsequent character of the war has evinced the superior judgment of General Scott in this plan of opera- tions. As this plan was not acceded to, he requested to be ordered at once to the scene of action, and was per- emptorily refused. S90 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF In November, he received the following order : War Department, Washington, | November 23c/, 1846. j Sir : The president, several days since, communi- cated in person to you his orders to repair to Mexico, to take the command of the forces there assembled, and par- ticularly 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 practicable. It is not proposed to control your operations by definite and positive instructions, but you are left to prosecute them as your judgment, under a full view of all the circum- stances, 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 advantag-e. The objects which it is desirable to obtain have been indicated, and it is hoped that you will have the requisite force to accomplish them. Of this you must be the judge, when preparations are made, and the time for action arrived. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, W. L. MARCY, Secretary of War. Gen. WiNFiELD Scott. In obedience to this order. General Scott left Wash- ington on the 24th of November, and sailed from New York on the 30th. He reached the Rio Grande on the 1st of January. As the force which he found there was totally inade- quate to the object of capturing Vera Cruz, he was under the necessity of detaching a portion of General Taylor's army, and General Worth was accordingly MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 291 ordered to leave Saltillo, with a body of regular infan- try, requisite for storming Vera Cruz, leaving 10,000 volunteers, and several companies of regular artillery, with General Taylor. These forces were distributed in the different parts under his command, so as to leave him, as we have already seen, but o-iOO men for Buena Vista. The troops from the upper Rio Grande were taken on board transports at Tampico, and joined others who were ordered to rendezvous at the island of Lobos, about one hundred and twenty-five miles west and north of the city of Vera Cruz. This is a small island about a mile in circumference. On the 15th of Feb- ruary, there were encamped at this place the Charleston regiment, seven companies of the 1st Pennsylvania regiment, three of the 2d, three of the Mississippi, ten North Carolina, six Louisiana, and a New York regiment and 400 regulars under Major Bates, amount- ing in all to 4000 men, with eighteen first-class vessels at anchor, all awaiting' the arrival of the other forces under General Scott. Meantime a regiment of Louisiana volunteers in the Ondiaka were wrecked on the coast. General Cos, with a larofe Mexican force, demanded their surrender. But Colonel de Russy, their commander, having shown a firm front, although his men were nearly without arms, delayed a final answer till night ; and then marched off, leaving the camp-fires burning, and the heavy baggage, and reaching Tampico by a rapid march, without en- countering opposition. It was not till the 7th of March that General Scott, after concentrating his forces, amounting to about 12,000 men, and embarking tliem in the fleet, consisting of 292 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF ships and transports of all sizes amounting to one hun- dred, arrived at Anton Lizardo. In company with Commodore Conner, then com- manding the naval force, the general, in the steamer Petrita, made a reconnoissance, and selected the beach due west from tlie island of Sacrificios as the most suitable point for making the landing of the troops for the investment of Vera Cruz. The commodore's official letter to the secretary of the navy, dated off Sacrificios, thus describes the landing. " The anchorage near this place being extremely con- tracted, it became necessary, in order to avoid crowding it with an undue number of vessels, to transfer most of the troops to the vessels of war for transportation to Sacrificios. Accordingly, on the morning of the 9di, at daylight, all necessary preparations — such as launch- ing and numbering the boats, detailing officers, &.C., — having been previously made, this transfer was com- menced. The frigates received on board between twenty- five and twenty-eight hundred men each, with their arms and accoutrements, and the sloops and smaller vessels numbers in proportion. This part of the movement w^as completed very successfully about eleven o'clock A. M., and a few minutes thereafter the squadron under my command, accompanied by the commanding general, in the steamship Massachusetts, and such of the transports as had been selected for tlie purpose, got under way. " The weather was very fine — indeed we could not have been more favoured in this particular than we were. We had a fresh and yet gentle breeze from the south-east, and a perfectly smooth sea. The passage to Sacrificios occupied us between two and three hours. Each ship came in and anchored without the slightest M.UOR-GKNERAL SCOTT. 2D3 disorder or confusion, in the small space allotted to her — the harbour being still very much crowded, notwith- standing the number of transports we had left behind. The disembarkation commenced on the instant. " Whilst we were transferring the troops from the ships to the surf-boats (sixty-five in number), I directed the steamers Spitfire and Vixen, and the five gun-boats, to form a line parallel v/ith and close in to the beach, to cover the landing. This order was promptly exe- cuted, and these small vessels, from the lightness of their draught, were enabled to take positions within good grape-range of the shore. As the boats severally received their compliments of troops, they assembled in a line, abreast, between the fleet and the gun-boats; and when all were ready, they pulled in together, under the guidance of a number of officers of the squadron, who had been detailed for this purpose. General Worth commanded this, the first line of the army, and had the satisfaction of forming his command on the beach and neighbouring heights just before sunset. Four thousand five hundred men were thus thrown on shore, almost simuUaneously. No enemy appeared to offer us the slightest opposition. The first line being landed, the boats in successive trips relieved the men- of-war and transports of the remaining troops, by tea o'clock P. M. The w^hole army (save a few straggling companies,) consisting of upwards of 10,000 men, were thus safely deposited on shore, without the slightest accident of any kind. 'i The officers and seamen under my command vied with each other on this occasion, in a zealous and ener- getic performance of their duty. I cannot but express to the department the great satisfaction I have derived from vatnessing their efforts to contribute all in their 294 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF power to the success of their more fortunate brethren of the army. The weather still continuing fine, to-day we are engaged in landing the artillery, horses, provisions, and other material. The steamer New Orleans, witli the Louisiana regiment of volunteers, 800 strong, arrived most opportunely at Anton Lizardo, just as we had put ourselves in motion. She joined us, and her troops were landed with the rest. Another transport arrived at this anchorage to-day. Her troops have also been landed. «' General Scott has now with him upwards cf 11,000 men. At his request, I permitted the marines of the squadron, under Captain Edson, to join him, as a part of the 3d regiment of artillery. The general- in-chief landed this morning, and the army put itself in motion at an early hour, to form its lines around the city. There has been some distant firing of shot and shells from the town and castle upon the troops, as they advanced, but without result. I am still of the opinion, expressed in my previous communications, as to the inability of the enemy to hold out for any length of time. The castle has, at most, but four or five weeks' provisions, and the town about enough to last for the same time." The following vivid descriptions are from the pens of different persons w^ho witnessed the landing of the besieging army from the shore. The first is from the correspondent of the New Orleans Picayune. " It would take a page of our paper to give full effect to a description of the first landing of our troops on the afternoon of the 9th — a more stirring spectacle has probably never been witnessed in America. In the first hne there were no less than seventy heavy surf-boats, MAJOR- G FINER A L SCOTT. 295 containing nearly 4000 regulars, and all of them expected to meet an enemy before they struck the shore. " Notwithstanding this, every man was anxious to be first — they plunged into the water waist-deep as they reached the shore — the " stars and stripes" ^vere instantly floating — a rush w^as made for the sand-hills, and amid loud shouts they pressed onward. Three long and loud cheers rose from their comrades still on board, awaiting to be embarked, and meanwhile the tops and every portion of the foreign vessels w^ere crowded with spectators of the scene. Not one who witnessed it will ever forget the landing. Why the Mexicans did not oppose us is a greater mystery than ever, considering their great advantages at the time, and that they have since opposed every step of our advance." A correspondent of the Weekly Herald wTites as follows : Camp of the Besieging Army, | five miles below Vera Cruz, March 9, 1847. ) I arrived at Anton Lizardo to-day about twelve o'clock, in the steamship New Orleans, which came to at the anchorage among the fleet. Immediately after the steamship's anchoring, the Massachusetts sailed by us, w^hen General Scott appeared in the shrouds of the vessel, and inquired for General Quitman. As soon as the general responded to the call, General Scott remark- ed — '« General Quitman, we are to land in the enemy's country. What is your force on board, and the condition of your men ?" General Quitman replied—" Six hun- dred and My, and in good condition." '« Your position, sir, will be in die second line, under the command of General Patterson." Shortly afterwards General Jessup visited General Patterson and tendorerl his personal 19 T^6 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF services and those of his staff, which were accepted ; and they are now on shore, <'all ready," if circum- stances require. Purser Thomas B. Nalle, of the navy, attached to the frigate Potomac, who came passenger in the steamship New Orleans, finding it impracticable to join the ship, has volunteered his services to General Shields, has been accepted as his aid, and is now acting in that capacity. At eleven o'clock the fleet set sail for Sacriflcios, the Princeton leading, with the Raritan in tow. Atone o'clock, the steamer Vixen, with five gun-boats, took a survey of the coast and anchored off the shore opposite the point, when the troops landed. The first and second, and part of the tliird, lines are now safely landed on the beach about five miles below the city of Vera Cruz, contrary to all expectation, with- out any resistance. The first line, composed of the 2d and 3d artillery, and 4th, 5th, 6th, and Sth infantry ; Cap- tain Blanchard's company Louisiana volunteers (attached to 5th infantry) ; and Captain Williams's company Ken- tucky volunteers (attached to 6th infantry), under com- mand of General Worth, disembarked on board the barges between Sacrificios and the main land between two and three o'clock, P. M., and formed inline on the 4th infantry, preparatory to their departure for the shore. At a signal gun fromtlie Massachusetts, at four o'clock, the first line " gave way" on their oars and pulled heartily for the landing. This, with the sailing of the fleet fronx Anton Lizardo, was decidedly the most magnificent view ever presented to the eye of an American citizen. I have a perspective draught of it, which I will send you, with a general account of the battle. The second line, \inder General Patterson, composed MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 297 of General Quitman's, General Shields's, and General Pillow's brigades, with some artillerj', landed directly afterwards, and General Twiggs's, tlie resene line, made up of the 1st and 4th artillery, mounted riilcs, 1st, 2d, 3d, and 7th infantry, are bov/ landing, and before day- light will probably be on the beach, as also a battery of heavy artillery, under Captain Taylor. The mountain rocket and howitzer company have their battery planted. All the troops that have yet landed are formed in line of battle, and will rest on their arms during the night. Notwithstanding we have now about 6000 troops on shore, not a single whisper can be heard along the whole extent of the line — all are listening for the first signal of alarm. If the enemy should visit us before daylight, they will find us ready to give them a w^arm reception. During the landing of the troops to-day, I was much pleased to see Commodore Conner in his small boat, superintending in person the landing of the troops, Camp of the Besieging Army, ) March 10th, 1847. j At two o'clock this morning, the camp was aroused by,a brisk fire from the enemy, and the balls came whistling through, '« as thick as hail," breaking one man's thigh, and wounding two others. Instead of " beating the long roll," as usual in cases of alarm, a small detachment, under Captain Gordon, was sent out to reconnoitre. He had not proceeded over two or three hundred yards, when he found his command in the close vicinity of a body of men. He hailed them, and tliey answered him in English, but the captain not admiring their accent, withdrew his small force a short distance, and again hailed, when he was answered with a volley of musketry from their whole body, which was returned by the de- 298 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF tachment, and had the effect of compelling the Mexicans to retire towards the town. Nothing but the sagacity of an experienced and able officer prevented the capture or destruction of the whole reconnoitering detachment. The steamer Spitfire, Captain Tatnall, at sunrise took position in front of the castle and town, and commenced a fire, by w^ay of «' opening the ball," which she con- tinued for about an hour, and which w^as returned by the castle and city. Shortly after the Spitfire commenced firing, the 1st and 2d divisions moved in a column up the beach towards the city, about a mile, and proceeded to invest the place. A Mexican force of cavalry and infantry, numbering perhaps four or five regiments in all, showed themselves on the sand heights towards the city, at the distance of half a mile from our advance, and com- menced firing musketry. One of the mountain howitzers and rockets were placed on the hills, and fired a few shots and sent a few rockets w^hizzing through the air, without any effect. The Mexicans appeared to be a little shy of them at first, but soon recommenced spread- ing their line along the hill, and firing their muskets. Captain Taylor was then ordered to try their mettle with a six-pounder, which had not been fired but a few times before they w^ithdrew behind the hill, and left for some place secure from danger. In this firing, there was one Mexican killed. General Worth succeeded in taking his position on the right of the line of investment by eleven o'clock. The line circumvallating the city, when completed, w^ill run along a chain of sand hills about three miles from the city, ranging from three hundred to fifteen hundred feet high, and completely overlooking and commanding the town and fortifications, but the heavy gnuF from the MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 301 castle can be brought to bear ui^on tlie ilprht wing of the line, where no doubt the quarteis will be very hot. As soon as General Worth had occupied his ground, General Patterson's division took up its march, with General Pillow's brigade in advance, for the purpose of forming on the left of General Worth. The advance, however, did not proceed over a mile before they be- came engaged with the enemy in a thick cluster of chapparal. A rapid fire immediately ensued, whicl" lasted about twenty minutes. The Mexicans retreated, and no loss on either side, that I could ascertain posi- tively ; though I have heard it repeatedly this evening that five dead Mexicans had been found. General Pillow again commenced extending the line, but owing to the great difficulty and labour of cutting a road in the chapparal, through which he had to pass, he had not proceeded more than half a mile up to four o'clock P. M., when he again came in contact with the enemy, who were in ambuscade. The firing w^as so heavy, and appeared so to increase, that General Pat- terson despatched the New York regiment, of General Shields's brigade, to the assistance of General Pillow — but only one company of the New^ Yorkers arrived at the point of attack, before General Pillow had routed the enemy by a charge. In this engagement, two of the 1st Pennsylvanians were slightly wounded, viz. : M. Crann, of company C, and T. Tice, of company F. A body of Mexicans was shortly afterwards dis- covered, through a glass, on the left flank of General Pillow's cominand, at a house known as a magazine, and I expect it has been occupied as such. A six- nounder was brought to bear on it from one of the heights in our possession, which caused them to leave without rorcmonv. 302 SKLTCH OF THE LIFE OP Towards sundown General Pillow's brigade, very unexpectedly, succeeded in reaching one of the highest points in the rear of the city, and planting the " Stars and Stripes," which they greeted, as one of the Tennes- seans said — with " three of tne biggest kind of cheers." The batteries from town and castle kept throwing thirteen-inch shells, and twenty-four-pound round shot, at the entire line, until dark. One of them exploded im- mediately in front of General Worth and staff, and a portion of it passed through Captain Blanchard's com- pany, but fortunately without injuring any one. ', General Quitman's brigade now moved forward and encamped on the right of General Pillow. Camp of the Besieging Ar3it. | threi miles in rear of city, March llth, 1847. ) This morning, shortly after daylight, the batteries from the castle and the town opened on our lines, and continued with short intervals throughout the day. I sincerely regret to announce that among our losses to- day, is the death of Captain William iVlburtis, of the 2(i infantry. His head was shot off with a tu'enty-four- pound shot from the city, w^hile marching with the regi- ment to join General Twiggs, at the north end. Cap- tain Alburtis was a printer, and former editor of the Virginia Republican, at Martinsburg, Va. There was also killed by the cannonade, Private Cunningham, of company A, mounted rifles, and a drummer boy of company B, 2d artillery, had his arm shot off. About seven o'clock this morning. General Quitman^s brisfade was ordered to relieve General Pillow from the position he had occupied during the night, in order that his troops might get their breakfast, and procure water to last during the day. The Mexicans saw our party MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 303 leaving the height, but did not see the other coming up "with their cavah'y, expecting, no doubt, to steal upon their rear, but they were very much mistaken. Gen- eral Quitman advanced to the top of the hill, and a rapid fire at long shots was kept up for about an hour. Captain Davis, of the Georgia regiment, with twenty riflemen, were sent as skirmishers, to incline round under the hill and engage them at close quarters. As soon as they observed Captain Davis about 200 ad- vanced on him, but with his small force he held them in check until Colonel Jackson, with the balance of three companies, and Colonel Dickenson, with his regiment, came to his assistance, when the enemy were compelled to retreat under the cover of the guns of the town, with the loss of several dead and some wounded. Our loss in this affair this morning, is seven slightly wounded. The column of General Twiggs moved up this morn- ing, with the mounted rifles in advance, at nine o'clock, to take position on the left of the line. The under- taking was a most arduous one, but with General Twiggs there is "no such word as fail." When his cannon could not be hauled by horses they were pulled and lifted by his men, and they were taken up and over sand ridges that I should think it utterly impossible and beyond the physical strength of men to surmount. The advance of this column arrived at their destination on the sea-shore above the town about two o'clock, and the rear closed up at sundown. This entirely, now, circumscribes the place, and the entire line investing occupies a space of ground about eight miles in length. As the troops lay stretched along the hills and valleys, with the stars and stripes dotted here and there, fluttering in the breeze, they present to the view a majestic and sublime appearance. The 304 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF enemy are now completely within our grasp, and whether they can rend asunder the chains that bind them to the confined limits of the walls of the city and castle, remains to be seen. General Worth occupies the right. General Twiggs the left, and General Patterson the centre. If either of these officers can be moved from their positions one foot by any force that can be brought against them, I am very much mistaken. Hav- ing our position, in the course of two or three days, the mortars and heavy cannon will be planted on the heights, when the enemy will have an opportunity of witnessing the effects of our shot upon their city. I was informed at a late hour last flight that Colonel Persifor F. Smith, with his rifles, has had a very pretty fight with a force of about 800 from the city, and com- pelled them to retire in quick time, with a Toss of about twenty-five killed and several wounded, and sustaining a loss of two or three privates killed and wounded. I have made diligent inquiry into the health of the army to-day, and the surgeons state that they never know the army to be in better health and condition, and no evidence of anything like vomifo. From tlie Cuiresponclence of Tropic. Off Vera Cruz, 3Ianh nth, 1847. . # * * Nothing has been more remarkable m this campaign than the quietness wdth which the troops were permitted to land. I have the assurance of officers, whose experience qualifies them to judge, that three pieces of cannon, judiciousl}- planted, and masked by the small eminence which overhangs the point of landing, would have produced terrible havoc amongst ou^ troops. I believe that three pieces, so planted and masked, and served with grape and canister- shot, would have placed at least oOOO of our men hors MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 3dS du combat, before they could have reached the position -which they were permitted to take unmolested. They could have spiked their guns upon our advance, and retired in perfect safety. To what are we to attribute this supineness ? I cannot guess. General Scott may have deceived them somewhat by his reconnoissances of the 6th instant, in which he examined the coast to the northward, as well as to the southward of the city ; but this vnW not account for the matter, as half a dozen guns upon each side of the city could form a considera- tion of trifling importance to them in the way of de- fence. But so it was. The summary of events, from the disembarkation to the surrender, is thus given by Colonel Totten : March 9, 1847. — The disembarkation commenced. March 13, 1847. — The investment is complete— two mortars landed. March 17, 1847. — Ten or twelve mortars were on shore to-day. March 18, 1847. — Trenches opened at night. March 22, 1847.— City summoned at two P. M., to surrender ; and, on refusal, the fire was begun fron seven mortars— afterwards increased to nine mortars. March 24, 1847.— The naval battery of three thirty- two pounders and three eight-inch paixhan guns began its fire this morning. Marcli 25, J847.— A battery of four twenty-four pounders and two eight-inch howitzers opened to day. March 26, 1847.— The enemy, early this morning, commenced the negotiation for a surrender. March 29, 1847.— Possession taken of both city and castle — the garrisons marching out and laj-^ng down their arms. 306 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF The trenches were open seven days. The fire from our batteries was continued three and a half days. During the sixteen days that intervened between the disembarkation of the troops and the opening of nego- tiations, there were five days of violent " northers," in which all landing of stores, &c., was interrupted. And, during the seven days of open trenches, there were two days and nights, in which it was impossible to undertake any new works ; or even, by clearing the trenches and batteries of large quantities of drifting sand, to arrest the accumulating damage. The official despatches of General Scott which fol- low, fill up the above outline in the most satisfactory manner, not only by a clear military detail of proceed- ings ; but by the circumstance of his awarding praise where it is due, to the gallant officers of the army. Head-Quarters of the Army, Camp Washington, ) before Vera Cruz, March 23, 1847: ) Sir : Yesterday, seven of our ten-inch mortars being in battery, and the labours for planting the remainder of our heavy metal being in progress, I addressed, at two o'clock P. M., a summons to the governor of Vera Cruz, and within the two hours limited by the bearer of the flag, received the governor's answer. Copies of the two papers, (marked respectively, A and B,) are hercAvith enclosed. It will be perceived that the governor, who it turns out is the commander of both places, chose, against the plain terms of the summons, to suppose me to have de- manded the surrender of the castle and of the city— MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 307 when, in fact, from the non-arrival of our heavy metal — principally mortars — I was in no condition to threaten the former. On the return of the flag, with that reply, I at once ordered the seven mortars, in battery, to open upon the city. In a short time the smaller vessels of Commodore Perry's squadron — two steamers and five schooners — according to previous arrangement with him, approached the city within about a mile and an eighth, whence, being partially covered from the castle — an essential condition to their safety — they also opened a brisk fire upon the city. This has been continued, unin- terruptedly, by the mortars, only with a few intermis- sions, by the vessels, up to nine o'clock this morning, when the commodore, very properly, called them off a position too daringly assumed. Our three remaining mortars are now (twelve o'clock, M.) in battery, and the whole ten in activity. To- morrow, early, if the city should continue obstinate, batteries Nos. 4, and 5, \\all be ready to add their fire : No. 4, consisting of four twenty-four pounders and two eight-inch Paixhan guns, and No. 5 (naval battery), of three thirty-two pounders and three eight-inch Paix- hans — the guns, officers, and sailors landed from the squadron — our friends of the navy being unremitting in their zealous co-operation, in every mode and form. So far, we know that our fire upon the city has been highly effective — particularly from the batteries of ten- inch mortars, planted at about 800 yards from the city. Including the preparation and defence of the batteries, from the beginning — now many days — and notwith- standing the heavy fire of the enemy from city and castle — we have only had four or five men wounded, and one officer and one man killed, in or near the trenches. 305 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OP That officer was Captain John R. Vinton, of the United States 3d artillery, one of the most talented, accom- plished, and effective members of the army, and who was highly distinguished in the brilliant operations at Monterey. He fell, last evening, in the trenches, where he was on duty as field and commanding officer, uni- versally regretted. I have just attended his honoured remains to a soldier's grave — in full view of the enemy and within reach of his guns. Thirteen of the long-needed mortars — leaving twenty- seven, besides heavy guns, behind — have arrived, and two of them landed. A heavy norther then set in (at meridian) that stopped that operation, and also the land- ing of shells. Hence the fire of our mortar batteries has been slackened, since two o'clock, to-day, and cannot be reinvigorated until we shall again have a smooth sea. In the mean time I shall leave this report open for journalizing events that may occur up to the departure of the steam ship-of-war, Princeton, with Commodore Conner, who, I learn, expects to leave the anchorage off Sacrificios, for the United States, the 25th instant. March 24. — The storm having subsided in the night, we commenced this forenoon, as soon as the sea became a httle smooth, to land shot, shells, and mortars. The naval battery, No. 5, was opened, wdth great activity, under Captain Aulick, the second in ranK of the squadron, at about ten A. M. His fire was continued to two o'clock P. M., a little before he was relieved by Captain Mayo, who landed with a fresh supply of ammunition — Captain A. having exhausted the supply he had brought with him. He lost four sailors, killed, and had one officer, Lieutenant Baldwin, slightly hurt. The mortar batteries, Nos. 1, 2, and -1, have fired MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. ' 309 but languidly during the day, for the want of shells, which are now going out from the beach. The two reports of Colonel Eankhcad, chief of artil- lery, both of this date, copies of which T enclose, give the incidents of those three batteries. Battery No. 4, which will mount four twenty-four pounders and two eight-inch Paixhan guns, has been much delayed in the hands of the indefatigable engineers by the norther, that filled up the work with sand nearly as fast as it could be opened by the half- blinded labourers. It will, however, doubtless be in full activity early to-morrow morning. March 25. — The Princeton being about to start for Philadelphia, I have but a moment to continue this re- port. All the batteries, Nos. 1, 2, 8, 4, and 5, are in awful activity this morning. The effect is, no doubt, very great, and I think the city cannot hold out beyond to-day. To-morrow morning many of the new mortars will be in a position to add their fire, when, or after the delay of some twelve hours, if no proposition to sur- render should be received, I shall organize parties for carrying the city by assault. So far the defence has been spirited and obstinate. I enclose a copy of a memorial received last night, signed by the consuls of Great Britain, France, Spain, and Prussia, within Vera Cruz, asking me to grant a truce to enable the neutrals, tofrether with Mexican women and children, to -withdraw from the scene o-f havoc about them. I shall reply, the moment that an opportunity may be taken, to say — First. That a truce can only be granted on the application of Governor Morales, with a view to a surrender ; Second. That in sending safeguards to the different consuls, beginning 310 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF as far back us the 13th instant, I distinctly admonished them, particularly the French and Spanish consuls — and, of course, through the two, the other consuls — of the dangers that have followed ; Third. That although, at that date, I had already refused to allow any person whatsoever to pass the line of investment either way, yet the blockade had been left open to the consuls and other neutrals to pass out to their respective ships of war up to the 22d instant ; and. Fourth. I shall enclose to the memorialists a copy of my summons to the go- vernor, to show that I had fully considered the impend- ing hardships and distresses of the place, including those of women and children, before one gun had been fired in that direction. The intercourse between the neutral ships-of-war and the city w^as stopped at the last-men- tioned date by Commodore Perry, with my concurrence, which I placed on the ground that that intercourse could not fail to give to the enemy moral aid and com- fort. It will be seen from the memorial, that our batteries have already had a terrible effect on the city (also known through other sources), and hence the inference that a surrender must soon be proposed. In haste, I have the honour to remain, sir, with high respect, your most obedient servant, WINFIELD SCOTT. Hon. William L. Marcy, Secretary of War. Head-Quarters of the Army, \ Vera Cruz, March 29, 1847. ) Sir : The flag of the United States of America floats triumphantly over the walls of this city, and the castle of San Juan de Ulloa. MAJOR-GLNEHAL SCOTT. 311 Our troof'S have garrisoned both sinee ten o'clock. It is now noon. Brigadier-General Worth is in com- mand of the two places. Articles of capitulation were signed and exchanged at a late hour night before the last. I enclose a copy of the document. I have heretofore reported the principal incidents of the siege, up to the 25th instant. Nothing of striking interest occurred, until early in the morning of the next day, when I received overtures from General Landero, on whom General Morales has devolved the principal command. A terrible storm of wind and sand made it. difficult to communicate with the city, and impossible to refer to Commodore Perry. I was obliged to entertain the proposition alone, or to continue the fire upon a place that had shown a disposition to surrender ; for the loss of a day, or perhaps several, could not be permitted. The accompanying papers will show the proceedings and results. Yesterday, after the norther had abated, and the com- missioners appointed by me early the morning before had again met those appointed by General Landero Commodore Perry sent ashore his second in command, Captain Aulick, as a commissioner on the part of thf navy. Although not included in my specific arrange- ment made with the Mexican commander, I did not hesitate, with proper courtesy, to desire that Captain Aulick might be duly introduced and allowed to parti- cipate in the discussions and acts of the commissioners who had been reciprocally accredited. Hence the pre- amble to his sigTiature. The orifrinal American com- missioners were, Brevet Brigadier-General Worth, Bri- gadier-General Pillow, and Colonel Totten. Four more able or judicious officers could imt hiwr 1)iTn dc^iied. 312 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF I have time to add but little more. The remaining details of the siege ; the able co-operation of the Uni- ted States squadron, successively under the command of Commodores Conner and Perry ; the admirable con- duct of the whole army— regulars and volunteers— I should be happy to dwell upon as they deserve ; but the steamer Princeton, witli Commodore Conner on board, is under way, and I have commenced organizing an advance into the interior. This may be delayed a few days, waiting the arrival of additional means of trans- portation. In the mean time, a joint operation, by land and water, will be made upon Alvarado. No laternal expedition, however, shall interfere with the grand movement towards the capital. In consideration of the great services of Colonel Totten, in the siege that has just terminated most suc- cessfully, and the importance of his presence at Wash- ngton, as the head of the engineer bureau, I intrust this despatch to his personal care, and beg to commend him to the very favourable consideration of the department. I have the honour to remain, sir, with high respect, your most obedient servant, WINFIELD SCOTT. Hon. W. L. IMarcy, Secretary of War. The following were the terms of surrender, finally ao-reed upon by Generals Worth and Pillow^, and Colonel Totten, on the pQJ-t of the Americans, and Villannuera, Ilerrera, and Robles, on the part of the Mexicans. 1. The .whole garrison, or garrisons, to be surren- dered to the arms of the United States, as prisoners of war, the 39th instant, at ten o'clock A. M. ; the garri- sons to he permitted to march out with all the honours of war, and to lay down their arms lo such oflicers as MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 313 may be appointed by the general-in-chief of the United States armies, and at a point to be agreed upon by the commissioners. 2. Mexican officers shall preserve their arms and private effects, including horses and horse furniture, and to be allowed, regular and irregular officers, as also the rank and file, five days to retire to their respective homes, on parole, as hereinafter prescribed. 3. Coincident with the surrender, as stipulated m article 1, the Mexican flags of the various forts and stations shall be struck, saluted by their own batteries ; and, immediately thereafter. Forts Santiago and Con- ception, and the castle of San Juan de Ulloa, occupied by the forces of the United States. 4. The rank and file of the regular portion of the prisoners to be disposed of after surrender and parole, as their general-in-chief may desire, and the irregular to be permitted to return to their homes. The officers, in respect to all arms and descriptions of force, giving the usual parole, that the said rank and file„ as well as themselves, shall not serve again until duly exchanged. 5. All the material of war, and all public property of every description found in the city, the castle of San Juan de Ulloa and their dependencies, to belong to the United States ; but the armament of the same (not injured or destroyed in the further prosecution of the actual war) may be considered as liable to be restored to Mexico by a definite treaty of peace. 6. The sick and w^ounded Mexicans to be allowed to remain in the city, with such medical officers and attend- ants, and officers of the army as may be necessary to their care and treatment. 7. Absolute protection is solemnly guarantied to persons in the city, and property, ind it is clearly undcr- 40 * 314 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF stood that no private building or property is to be taken or used by the forces of the United States, Avithout pre- vious arrangement with the owners, and for a fair equivalent. 8. Absolute freedom of reUgious worship and cere- monies is solemnly guarantied. CO-OPERATION OF THE NAVY IN THE SIEGE. i Our readers will recollect that on the arrival of Gene- ral Scott at Vera Cruz, he was received and assisted in his reconnoissance and landing by Commodore Conner. Commodore Perry was sent out to supercede this gallant officer, and arriving during the progress of the siege, he received the transfer of the command of the home squad- ron from Commodore Conner, on the 21st of March. On the 24th, Commodore Conner sailed for the United States, with Colonel Totten, as bearer of despatches to the government. The following despatches of Commodore Perry will afford the reader a clear view of the extent to which the navy contributed towards the triumph of our country's arms on this brilliant occasion. Commodore Perry's despatches are remarkably modest in feeling and terse in expression. Flag-si^ip Mississippi, Off Vera Cruz, March 25, 1847. Sir: The sailing of the Princeton this day for the United States offers me an opportunity of informing the department that General Scott had, on the 22d instant, the day after I assumed command of the squadron, so far completed the erection of his batteries in the rear of Vera Cruz as to autliorize the summoning of the city, and on tlie refusal of the governor to surrender, of opening his fire at three oV'lock of that day. MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. 315 In conformity \vith arrangcmen'-S made in the morn- ing witli General Scott, I direr ced the llotilla of small steamers and gun-boats of tlie squadron, led by Com- mander J. Tatnall, in the Spitfire, to take a position and commence a simultaneous fire upon the city. The order was promptly and gallantly executed, and the fire was kept up with great animation until late in the even- ins:. On visiting them at their position, I found that the two steamers had nearly exhausted their ammunition, but having received a fresh supply during the night from this ship, they at sunrise moved to a more favourable and advanced point, and resumed and continued their fire until recalled by signal. At the earnest desire of myself and officers. General Scott generously assigned a position in the trenches to be mounted with guns from the squadron, and w^orked by seamen. Three eight-inch Paixhans and three long thirty- two pounders (all that was required), were consequently landed, and after immense labour in transporting them through the sand, in W'hich parties from the divisions of Generals Patterson, Worth, and Pillow, respectively detached by those officers, cheerfully participated, the pieces w^ere placed in position and opened upon the city about ten o'clock yesterday, immediately drawing upon them a sharp fire from the enemy, which in a short time Idlled and wounded ten of the detachment from the squadron. In order to give all a chance to serve in the trenches, for the honour of which there is a great, though generous strife, I have arranged that detachments from each ship in charge respectively of lieutenants, and the whole commanded by a captain or commander, shall be relieved eveiy twenty-four hours. Captain Aulick, assisted by 316 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF Commander Mackenzie, and several lieutenants, had the direction of mounting the guns and opening tlie fire, and well and bravely was the duty performed. Captain Mayo is now in charge and will be relieved in turn. The Ohio arrived on the 22d instant, but in conse- quence of a norther, did not reach her proper anchorage until yesterday afternoon. Detachments of boats from all the vessels are employed night and day in landing from the transports the stores and munitions of the army. Enclosed is the list of killed and wounded ascertained up to this hour (twelve meridian), with the report of Captain Aulick ; also a list of the small vessels com- prising the flotilla of the squadron, all of which were engaged on the 22d instant. I have the honour to be your most obedient servant, M. C. PERRY, Commanding Home Squadron. Hon. John Y. Mason, Secretary of the Navy, ) Washington City, D. C. ) Friday, March 27, 1847. Sir : The detention of the Princeton enables me to inform the department of events up to this hour, (ten A. M.) Captain Mayo and his party have returned, having been relieved tn the batteries by a detachment under Captain Breese. I hardly need assure the department that the party under Captain Mayo sustained, vaih. una- bated courage and spirit, the admirable fire of the naval battery. The bombardment from the trenches was con- tinued through the night. A heavy norther now blow- ing (the third in five days), has prevented communica- tion with the shore since last evening. Several merchant vessels have been thrown, this morning, ashore by the gale. MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT. .jl < The report of Captain Mayo is enclosed, as also ar, additional list of killed and wounded. Araonj^ the names of the killed, will be found tliat of Midsliipraan T. B. Shubrick, a most amiable and promising young officer. I have the honour to be your very obedient servant, M. C. PERRY, Commanding; Home Snv.adron Hon. John Y. 1\Iason, Secretary of the Navy, ) Washington City, D. C. i Sunday^ March 28, 1847. Sir : I am happy to inform you that the city and castle of Vera Cruz surrendered yesterday to the com- bined force of the army and navy of the United States, on terms highly favourable to us. With high respect, your obedient servant, M. C. PERRY, Commanding Home Squadron. Hon. John Y. Mason, Secretary of the Navy. Enclosed is an informal copy of terms of capitula- tion. M. C. P. After the surrender, General V>^orth was appointed governor of Vera Cruz, and occupied it with a part of his brigade. He forthwith entered upon the duties of his office, and commenced establishing a strict police, and repressing every tendency to disorder. The port was soon opened to the commerce of the whole world, and a tariff of duties published. General Scott, with the main body of the army, in the meantime had commenced his march towards the city of Mexico. Such has been the military career of General Scott to tlie present time. We have no doubt that new 318 SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. laurels are destined to be won by him on the fields of Mexico. On the 29th of March, the ceremonies of laying down their arms and formally delivering up to the conquerors the city and castle of Vera Cruz, were performed by the Mexicans. The spot selected for the ceremony of lay- ing down arms was a plain near the city. The American army was drawn up in two lines facing inwards, occupy- ing a mile in extent. General Worth appeari'ed on the field in full uniform to direct the arrangements, and receive the conquered troops. At ten o'clock the Mexicans marched out to the strains of their national music, the bugle, fife, and drum, passing between the American lines. Women and children accompanied the troops, bearing heavy burdens. The Mexican army halted between the American lines, stacked their arms, laid down their colours and equip- ments, and then marched off, while a portion of General Worth's division marched into the city with colours fly- ing, and the military- bands playing national airs. THE END. E. H. BUTLER & CO. PUBLISHERS AND BOOKSELLERS, NO. 23 MINOR STREET, PHILADELPHIA, PUBLISH THE FOLLOAVING STANDARD WORKS. SMITH'S GRAMMAR. English Grammar on the Productive System ; a method of instruc- tion recently adopted in Germany and Switzerland. Designed for Schools and Academies. By Roswell C. SiiiTH, A. M. Price 34 cents. This work has been before the public several years. Notwithstanding the many new works on this subject which have from time to time appeared, Smith's Grammar has been constantly increasing in favour, and it is believed that at the present time its popularity is greater than that of any other School Book published m the country, and that the annual sales of the work in the United States exceed that of the aggregate of all the other works on English Grammar. Thousaads of recommendations could be given if the limits would admit. PETER PARLEY'S COMMON SCHOOL HISTORY: A General History for High Schools, Young Ladies' Seminaries, Academies, and Common Schools ; with one hundred and fifty engravings, illustrating History and Geography. Price 75 cents. This work is universally admitted to be the most successful attempt to bring General History within the scope of our schools and academies that has ever been made ; and is calculated to remove the difficulties which have hitherto excluded this study from our schools. It presents Universal History in a series of interesting and striking scenes, weaving together an outline of Chronology, illustrated by descriptions, which once impressed on the mind, will never leave it. One peculiar advantage of the work is, that History is here based upon geography, a point of the utmost importance. The success of the work, in actually interesting children in l]ie study of history, has been practically tested and demonstrated. Several instances have occurred, in which pupils, before averse to history, have become deeply interested in it, preferring it to almost any other subject. The publisher requests my opinion of Parley's Common School History. It is seldom that I give an opinion upon school books, there are .so few that I can recommend wilh a clear conscience ; and publishers do not wish, of course, to send forth a condemning sentence to the \vorld. But in this case I can truly say that, having used the book in my school since it was published, I consider it a most interesting and luminous corapeiul of general history lor the younger cla.sses of scholars ; and that, were I deprived of it, I know not where I could find a work that I could use wilh so much pleasure to myself, and profit to those for wlioiri it is designed. Uespectfully yours. C. D. CLEVETi.\ND. E. H. BUTLER AND CO'S PUBLICATIONS. Philadelphia, September 19, 1839. Having examined Parley's Common School History, I do not liesitaie ti; say that, in my opinion, it is decidedly the best elementary general histoi-y I .lave seen, and I recommend its use to other teachers. M. L. HL'RLiJuT. The above is concurred in by the undersigned as I'lllows : I intend to introduce it into the academical department of the University of Pennsylvania, under my care, as .soon as possible. SAMUEL W. CRAWFORD. I have already introduced Parley's Common School Hi.story as a class-book. SAMUEL JONES, Principal of Classical and Mathematical Institute. I consider it one of the best wftrks of its talented and indefatigable author. Its style is clear, and its plan shows the labour of thought. It is based, as all such works should be, upon geography, and judiciously cemented with chro- n<}logy. It is surprising that any analysis of so complex a science as Hi-story, should disregard what have been so aptly called its " two eyes" — Geography and Chronology. I am submitting these volumes to the practical test of daily lessons with my children, and find them both pleaRing and instructive. Their division into short chapters, and the general classification, render their great variety oi subjects easy to the unfolding mind. L. H. SIGOURNEY. ANGELL'S SERIES OF READERS. Complete in six numbers. By Oliver A^'gell, A. M. Principal of the Franklin High School. Angell's Reader No. 1, or Child's First Book. The arrangement of the Lessons in this book is such, that the child coramonces reading as soon as he commences putting the letters together into syllables ; the e.xercise of spelling and reading being simultaneous. The same syllables and words which form the Spell- ing Lessons, are arranged as Reading* Lessons directly opposite, or immediately under the spelling columns. It is believed that by this arrangement, the greatest difficulty which children usually experience in learning to read is removed. Price 8 cents. Angell's lieader No. 2, or Child's Second Book. This is a continuation of the First Number, containing Easy Reading Lessons, most of which are pleasing stories, designed to interest the mind of the learner, and aflbrd instruction. Spelling Lessons, con- sisting of words from the Reading Lessons, precede every Reading Lesson, Price 14 cents. AngeU's Reader No. 3, or Child's Third Book. This is a gradual advance from th.e Second Number, having the Reading and Spelling Lessons arranged on the same plan. The Lessons, in each of the Numbers, are followed by a set of Questions, to exercfee the reader on what he has read. Price 17 cents. E. H. BUTLER ANP CO'S PTTBLICATlONS. Angell's Reader, No. 4. A gradual advance from the Third Number, and designed as a Reading and Spelling Book, and containing a variety of useful and entertaining matter. Price 30 cents. Angell's Reader, No. 5. A Reading Book for the higher classes in Common Schools, withSpcU- ing Lessons and Definitions adapted to each reading section. Price 50 cents. Angell's Reader, No. 6, or Select Reader. Being a selection of pieces, in Prose and Verse, which can scarcely fail to interest the mind, improve the heart, and inform the under- standing ; accompanied with an Explanatory Key, containing much useful information ; and a large collection of Verbal Distinctions, with illustrations. Designed as a Reading Book for the highest classes in Academies and Schools. Price 75 cents. The whole forming a Series of interesting, useful, and economical School Books. These Six Volumes, compiled by Olh-er Angkll, comprise a Series which is undoubted!}- more suitable for the purpose for which they are designed, than any previous publications ; and they are more popular among those who have the direction of education than any ever prepared in this country. There is a decided advantage in possessing sets of Elementary books by the s:ime author, who has pursued a similar plan with each, ri.^ing step by step, and who, it is pre- sumed, would be better able to preserve the proper gradation of style and matter, than several indivitluals would. COATES'S NATURAL PHILOSOPHY. First Lines of Natural Philosophy, divested of Mathematical Formulae; being a practical and lucid Introduction to the Study of the Sciences. Designed for the use of Schools and Academies. Illustrated with 264 cuts. By REY>fELL Coaxes, M. D. This work has already passed through several editions and been introduced into many of the first schools in the United States. Duodecimo, Price 75 cents. I have exammed with some care the " First liines of Natural Philosophy," by Reynell Coates, M. D.. published by E. H. Butler & Co., and I believe it to be a work unusually well calculated to give to the student a clear understand- ing of the different subjects upon which it treats. The clear and familiar style of'the author, and his mode of preparing the learner to comprehend the meaning of the different scientific terms, previous to their being used in the work, are advantages in my opinion of no small merit. Signed, BENJAMIX HALLO'W'ELL. PHTLi.BELPHr.*., September, 184G. Coates' First Lines in Natural Philosophy, is used as a text-book for the junior classes in this institution. JOHN S. HART, Principal of Central High School E. H. BUTLER AND CO'S PUBLICATIONS. COATES'S PHYSIOLOGY. First Lines of Physiology; being an Introduction to the Science of Life, >\Titten in Popular Language. Designed for the use of Common Schools, Academies, and General Readers. By Reynell Coates, M. D. Sixth Edition, illustrated with engravings. Price $L00. Physiology' is a subject of the deepest interest to all who are desirous properly to cultivate their powers of body and mind ; and it is now beginning to be conceded, that no course of education can be regarded as complete, without including some general knowledge of the science of Life. A text-book upon this subject is anxiously sought for by the leading teachers and professors of our country ; but it has been supposed that, desirable as such knowledge must be for those who are charged with the care of the young, there is something in the nature of the study, rendering it unfit for introduction into seminaries. The error of this opinion is most clearly shown in the work now offered to the public. It con'.ains not a word that can be regarded as objectionable by the most fastidious delicacy. KENDALL'S URANOGRAPHY: Or, a Description of the Starry Heavens. Designed for the use of Schools and Academies; accompanied by an Atlas of the Heavens, showing the places of the principal Stars, Clusters, and Nebulae. By E. Otis Kendall, Professor of Mathematics and Astronomy in the Central High School of Philadelphia, and Member of the American Philosophical Society. The Uranography contains 365 pages and 9 fine engravings ; the Atlas is in quarto, and contains 18 large maps. Price of the Uranography and Atlas $1.25. Uranography, as the word imports, is simply a description of the Heavens. It is Descriptive, as distinguished from Practical Astronomy. Astronomy, as a E radical science, requires the use of costly instruments and a knowledge of the igher mathematics. But Uranography requires for its study no more expensive apparatus or higher attainments than Geography. The same boy or girl who is competent to study the description of the earth, may ^vilh equal ease, and from the same teacher, learn a description of the heavens. The " Uranography and Atlas" are to the one study what the " Geography and Atlas" are to the other. This work has already reached its fourth edition, and is highly recommended by Professors Olmstead, Loomis, and Walker, as well as by nearly every teacher who has examined it. HART'S CLASS BOOK OF POETRY. HART'S CLASS BOOK OF PROSE. BeJng Selections from distinguished English and American Authors, from Chaucer to the present day ; the \>hole arranged in Chronological Order, with Biographical and Critical llemarks. Price 75 cents each, sold separately. In making a compilation like the present, intended chiefly for the use of those whose characters and opinions are still but partially formed, it has been deemed important to select not only master-pieces of style, but also master-pieces of thought. It fs believed to be a defect in some of the more recent publications, intended as reading-books for schools^ that sufficient care has not been used in regard to the sentiments contained in them. Such books very often, indeed, contain pleasing descriptions, and interesting stories, written in an agreeable style, and capable of affording amuseinent for children of a rerlain age. But E. H. BUTLER AND Co's rUBLICATIONS. f) they are not of that masculine character tliat stiniuluten the mind to' action, or that gives it materials \o act npi)n ; and tlu-y not unfrcquently cultivate a taste for reading ot" tlie most unprofitable description. These volumes liave been introduced into ihe public schools of the city and county of Philadelphia, and in the city of Baliinmre, and have received the most ujiqualified recommendations from those who are the best able to judge— (Aose that have used them in their schools. HART'S CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. A Brief Exposition of the Constitution of the United States. By John S. Hart, A. M. , Principal of the Central High School. Fourth edi- tion. Price 34 cents. This work has been recommended by Chief Justice Gibson, Judges Sergeant, Randall, and Parsons. HART'S ENGLISH GRAMMAR. An Exposition of the Principles and Usages of the English Language. Price 38 cents. In the preparation of this work no special attempt has been made at novelty. The author's aim has been chietly to make a careful and accurate digest of thof^c principles of the language which have been remarked byprevioas writers, and to siute these principles with precision and perspicuity. At the same time, the work is believed to contain many observations that are new, and a satisfactory solution of many difficulties not solved ni other works on the subject. Chamber of the Controllers of PtiBLic Schools, > Philadelphia, January 10, 1845. ) Resolved, That Hart's English Grammar be introduced as a class book into the grammar schools of the district. From the minutes, THOMAS B. FLORENCE, Sec. New York Ward School Teacher's Association, ) February 19, 1846. J Resolved, That this Association considers Hart's English Grammar very well adapted to forward the progress of students in that most diificult study, anl earnestly recommends its adoption in the ward and other schools of this Asso- ciation. WILLIAM KENNEDY, Rec. Secretary. This work, although it has been before the public but about nine months, has met with an unusual demand. Ten thousand copies having already been sold. SMITH'S INTRODUCTORY ARITHMETIC. Price 10 cents. COMSTOCK'S ELOCUTION. A System of Elocution, with special reference to Gesture, to the Treatment of Stammering, and Defective Ar'iculation, com- prising numerous Diagrams and Engraved Figures illustrative of the subject. By Andrew Comstock, M. D., Principal of the Vocal and Polyglot Gymnasium. Eighth edition, enlarged. Price $1.00. E. II. Bb'TLER AND Co's PUBLICATIONS. COMSTOCK'3 PHONETIC READER. The Phonetic Reader: consisting of a Selection of Pieces, Classical and Moral, in Prose and Verse, m both the Old and New Alpha- bet ; to which is prefixed a System of V"ocal Gymnastics. By Andrew Comstock, M. D., Principal of the Vocal and Polyglot Gymnasium. Price $1.00. OOMSTOCK'S PHONETIC SPEAKER. The Phonetic Speaker : consisting of the Principles and Exercises in the Author's System of Elocution, with additions ; the whole printed in the New Alphabet only, and illustrated with numerous Engravings. By Andrew Comstock, M. D., Principal of the Vocal and Pol)'glot Gymnasium. Price Si. 00. GREEN'S ALGEBRA. Gradations in Algebra. By Richard W. Green. 12mo. sheep. Price 63 cents. This work is used in the Public Schools of the city and county of Philadel- phia, and lias passed through six editions. GREEN'S KEY TO GRADATIONS IN ALGEBRA. Price 81.00. LIBRARY OF ENGLISH LITERATURE. Price S4.00. M'CARTNEY'S ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES. Price 81.00. VIRGINIA HOUSEWIFE. Price 50 cents. FROST'S EASY EXERCISES IN COMPOSITION. Price 25 cents. KENDALL'S WALKER'S GEOMETRY. Price 75 cents. RICHARDSON'S NEW ENGLISH DICTIONARY. A New Dictionary of the English Language. By Charles Richard- son. Two volumes quarto, 2300 pp. Originally published as a part of that highly scientific work, the Encyclopaedia Metropolitana. Price, best sheep binding, §12. " A Dict'onnry, such a.s, perhaps, no other language could ever boast.-' — London QunrUrly Rtvi,w. '* Tills Dictionary is a mine of wealth in English literature, and shows on every page the irniTien£e cudilion of its autlior"- -.YaM^na/ Gazette. E. ir. BUTLER AND CO'S PUBLICATIONS. DONNEGAN'S GREEK AND ENGLISH LEXICON: Revised and Enlarged. By Robert B. Patton, Professor of Ancient Lang-uages in the College of Now Jersey, with the assistance of J. Add SOX Alexander, D. D., of the Theological Seminary of Prince- ton, N. J. 1 vol. octavo, 1420 pp. Price, fine sheep, S4. The qiuck sale of so many large editions of this Lexicon, ia the heal evidence the publishers could desire of its acceptubleness to scholars generally. From C. C. Felton, Professor of Greek Literature, Harvard University, Cam- bridgi', Mass. T h five, for some time pnst, been in the hiibit of consulting frequenliylhe American edition of Donnegan's " Greek and English Lexicon." I have jkj hesitation in savin?, that it i? a most valnable addition to ihc means of acquiring a knowledije of the Greek langua-je and lileratnre ; and that it deserves to be extensively adopted in the sciiools and collenres of the United States. The American editor has Ion? stood amon^j the most distins:uislied men of letters in our country ; and is well known, in particular, for his masterly knowledge of Greek. FLEMING AND TIBBIN'S FRENCH AND EN- GLISH DICTIONARY. An entirely new and complete French and English and English and French Dictionary, adapted to the present state of the two Languages. By Professor Fle.mixg, Professor of English in the College of Louis le Grand, and Professor Tibbtns, author of several lexicographical works ; with important additions by Chakles Picot, Esq., Professor of French in the University of Pennsylvania, and Judah Dobson, Esq. Member of the American Philosophical Society, &,c. &c. 1 vol. octavo, 1400 pp. Price, fine sheep, $4. FLEMING AND TIBBIN'S FRENCH AND EN- GLISH DICTIONARY.! Abridged and adapted to the use of Academies and Schools. By Pro- fessor Charles Picot and Judah Dobsox, Esq. 1 vol. duodecimo, 724 pp. Price, sheep, $1.25. This work has been made on the basis of the ROYAL DICTIONARY EN- GLISH AXD FRENCH AND FRENCH AND ENGLISH, compiUd from the Dictionaries of .Johnson, Todd, Ash, AVebster. and Crabbe, from the last edition of Chambaud, Garner' and. I. Descarrieres, the sixth edition of the Academy, the Supplement to tlie Academy, the Grammatical Dictionary of Laveaux, the I'ni- versal Lexicon of Boiste, and the standard technological works in cither lan- guage ; and containing, 1st, all the words in common use, with a copious selection of terms obsolescent or obsolete, connected with polite literature ; 2d, technical terms, or such as are in general use'in the arts, manufactures, and sciences, in naval and military language, in law, trade, and commerce; 3d. terms geographical, &c. &c., with adjectives or ei)ithets elucidating history ; 4th, a literal and figured pronunciation for the use of the .Vmericaijs and English ; 5th, accurate asid dis- E. H. BUTLER AND CO'a PUBLICATIONS. criminating definitions, and, wlien necessary, with appropriate examples and illustrations tending to fix as well as display the signification, import, rank, ami character of each individual word ; 6th, peculiar constructions, modes of speech, idioms, &c. &c.; 7th, synonymy; 8th, the difficulties of French Gram- mar presented and resolved in English, as they occur throughout the work. The American edition contains complete tables of the verbs on an entirely new plan, to which the verbs throughout the work are referred, with the addi- tion, in their respective places, of a very great number of terms in the natural sciences, chemistry, medicine, &.c. &c., which are not to be found in any other French and Englisli Dictionary. The sale of this work has been so great, that the publishers, notwithstanding the very heavy expense attendant upon its publication, are enabled to offer the large work at the very low price of $4. and the abridgment at $1.25. Among tlie numerous evidences of the high authority and practical utility of the work, ths publishers have received the strongest commendatory notices from Peter Stephen Duponceau, President of the American Philosophical Society, — Roblcy Bunglison, M.D., Professor of Materia Medica and Practice of Medicine in the Jetferson Medical College, and Secretary of the American Philosophical Society, — F. A. Bregy, Professor of the French and Spanish Languages in the Central High School, Philadelphia, — George B. Emerson, Esq., — Thomas Slierwin,E.sq., of the High School, Boston, Mass., and from many other distinguished persons. The abridgment has already been extensively introduced into many of our fir»l Academies and Schools. NUGENT'S FRENCH AND ENGLISH DICTION- ARY. In two parts. 1. French and English. 2. English and French. Con taining all the words in general use, and authorized by the best writers. By Tho:\ias Nugext, LL.D., with additions by J. OuisEAU, A. M. Square 12mo. Price 63 cents. WALKER'S PRONOUNCING DICTIONARY. A New Edition, corrected. Octavo, 782pp. Price, fine edition, $2.50. Common edition $1.25. M'CARTNEY'S. CALCULUS. The Principles oi" the Diiierential and Integral Calculus, and their application to Geometry. By Washington M'Cartney, Professor of Mathematics in La Fayette College, Easton, Pa. 2d edition. 8vo. Price SI. 50. E. H. Butler & Co., No. 23 Minor Street, Philadelphia, have always on hand a full and complete assortment of books in the various departments of Literature and Science, which they will furnish at whole- sale at very low rates. A liberal discount from the prices in the above list w ill be made to dealers. aWSa^^ A •• > AM'.- 1^ ^ A *«; '^^ t W " '^ m >/flfl'-« f^. M^ : '^ ./#■*. V^-' ::/? .»- .I'f-V-i-i ,A 'M^??;. -f^m LIBRARY OF CONGRESS .^:.^mSFfig^ • X4^: