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?,Pm.?r. "17 - rt 0r.
ri ' i '
Fr"
Hie -we;
OF BUENA VISA.
t Lil ' I , .-r 11 '
Orf ins De!t f March 27,
U Ud tke WmiI of an interviewer ster,
?V iit-s fJ'iha Arrnr.whobroucht
Xt ion; olr lhVftinji.ed General who
ff brmreij on1 jle Plains of Chalmette.
iJ& , Uui ofcr Wiles,; by tbe side of tbe
2JL? J.ckkonViiHea at tbe Aid ol Gen.
& in te iIooty fgbt it Buena Vista
first stent
Ur made his
uB l"r p"'"!" f J t v
,J st liufna!YiU. His movement toward
I i iit nueva a r vvj iuu
wjiflflpto they'd Which .he had selected for
t Vbukgwrtdi! At Jsooa as McCulloch's
t'ei wkiwere .invalMbje as scouts, informed-
IJ'of AnV f (,Proa lo Agua Nueva,
LvitlTayKrr qUeW wruke up his camp,'and
iUck lo his jfirsflo , Bujsna Vista. This
Cition Was idtnirabfjj chosen. It was at tbe
IJ of a mountain, or! father jof two mountains
H'ea; hich ( tin e roid through a nar
' jt rallef,. On his right there was adeep'ra-
.wfcwn'proieciea inai nana more eueciuai.
t ikm half a dtzen regiments could have done,
fbi cl K (Jco.jTajflor'a line rested on the
Lof'almounUin. re ijoad in the centre
.. trenched 'and difended by a strong bat.
,J An Jfront the ground was uneven, bro
i J inta hill aod Ue ravines, well adapted
wqUf,itjnieerf andyi its peculiarities sup.
Oa tN 21 kiltie enemy were uscnea ap
acting
over the distal hills. At their ap-
iheUrMuhteect; raised a great shout
h ree tremendous cheers. Their en.
nMfi iand papers' Wre: seen flying uver the
3t!J in4 jfrsgiiny: thjilr! cannon about to get
31 jnlp pwiuon jj; uui ine nature oi ino grouna
U p'bt Vor tfeb Jidde taking, and -it was late
uttedaw befvre be ijigiguns began to open.
!. WWcaljberTheir fire, though kept up
trrilruklT, and apparenily!; well manned, did
wlttle eleculMu ii our ranks that it was not
ctniijeteJ lietfeMiry U return it. Our cannoa
t(r tbert(o;i! silent ho whole of the 22d.
E or (f n Kilco: anuT wounded were tbe ex.
ttt tf tbicaiuilties sustained by our army on
tufiii JDuring the (jay an otlicer approach,
eiwr !ini wita a flag'of truce, and requested
ab, iiorn ujllin. jraylori The brave old
sail vat iltiini quietly on his old white char.
rr, wilhf his leg over the pommel of the saddle,'
tiWing be tn9Vincnis jut trie enemy, when
k Meiic in olHclr Wis presented. In a very
ouricoui iml graceful jmaniier the oflicer stii.
jiitli( kid jheenlserit by his excellency
i. daota Anna to his excellency uen. 1 ay.
in he tnost
respectful manner,
tune iven. i javiorrwas waning lur.
?4n Trior's batteries,' and the
f.nmanncr u wnicnine receivea oauia A a
u'lSfrrificcanupnadink the Mexican supposed
a very pertinent question, lo
m u ifclit:
Ui, hojvev'e, bid lougli and Jteady gave
Vjrery 'perWuejii rely that ' he was only
iiPf (of Santa Anna to surrender.' This
proved to he ti riise to ascertain where
iUvfors position! was t lor, after the re-
fcf ihe Meiicanoflker to his own ranks.
(Mexican batiery seemed to open up.
iljepJ'lajlorfs 'posit ion, and the balls flew
wet MsJmhjI; )ike bajf. Utterly indiirerent lo
iptfrUtf Ills situation, there sat the old chief
fctcoDipicuous whii horse, peeling through
w ipy-gliiss 'at the long lines of Mexican
fjbit couM be seeii at a grout distance oh
51 !' ! eruasion of bis aids could
wduce'htin to abandon his favorable point
jnerratiiunj nor tjilgive up his old white
Wkj Ttflhejsuggeion his staff that old
ai!fT was rather loo eonanit'tiotis a charier for
j-cwnmiiiderj he replied that the old lellow
iniited : the ; hiii at Monterey on account ol
peffooU and he was determined he should
Mhre this time.!!
AtimrUej on
iallrnest.
JL Mill!' ; -Uiili uo Jul -.j Jr v 1 ; A m ri- w k: m ,
' It . T 1 ' 1 ii I ! - . i - - - ; 1 ; y y:- 1 ; - . h - - . ;'.--' -!-;'..'.'- .P .. i :. i 41 I
UUUNE.R & JAMES,
Editor 4 Proprietors.
Kl A CHECK TPOX ALL. YOU
IS, SAFE.'
IpTm,AXD LlEEKTT
Gen'l. Ilarrhon.
NEW SERIES
NUMBER 50. OP VOLUME
SAIilSBURY
!
he 23J February the battle
i 'in1! t .
i ne mexicans were drawn
columns
uld
view
iSiimijieDie number. The dark colurr
f njnjry eitfnded as far as the eye co
't'M M cavalry jo cover the whole vi
,llWr bierinitial.ll
bailie: Infantry and cavalry, their big guiis,
!yt pM?Cted by a large artillery lorce,
i? wv jnceani annonado 1 against our
t-,m,ie! foes were soon in motion.
uit,ry was
Fcted the
thrown forward to meet thpm
j volunteers; General Wool
Jf in person, and was seen
7 tejrii rallying andj encouraging the vol.
JwU' i 0 wero oon engaged
!coj3ict Tjje trten nature of the ground
f?iN forces; so that, instead of one gen.
pgrhchtj the1 regiments werelcbmiivll.1
if.Sc nieasuf to light on their own
rlijonicers were always in the advance
.;thfir tfoops j hence the great mortal.,
ng lhcm. In tUis general melee, one of
STi rf8,"1Cll, f 400! men would bo at.
severai
Sf H$ lho' Kfntiicky infantry was
PM M He footj ol L lull, ! in a deep ravine,
1ne(nif force f the enemy. A large
rafihttvrtiwere killed here : amontr
SIP? WMcCeH" who Ml badly wound"
f Ik 1 Hdiattly dispatched by the ene.
vWI1?Pjcfced himvith their bayonets as he
TI'. tbt 'rAji;ii r .... rVl rl ..-.it .
'lis tbish. and beinr uns.b e lo ws k
.!.. . 1 i i t ; : -
6 'I foe n. but awin? to the steennesa nf
1
Colonel Harden led the lllinoisans in very
handsome style, and the sturdy "suckert" fought
like lions. Their intrepid polonel fell wounded
and experienced the fate i of Colonels McKee
and Clay, and was killed by tbe enemy not
howevef, before he had killed of the cowardly
miscreants with a pistol, which he fired whilst
lying on the ground. j
Col. Yell led, the foremost man, a charge of
mounted volunteers, against a large body of lan.
cer, and was killed by a. lance, which entered
his mouth and tore off one side of his face, 1
The Mississippian$, theheroes of Monterey,
after doing hard duty as skirmishers, were or.
dcLrMi,t 'Kf,1 charge of cavalry
which they did pith their rifles, delivering at
the same time ;a most destructive fire ain'ong
the crowded columns of cavalry. The cnem?
were completely repulsed. The distinguished
commander of this gallant regiment, Col. Jtf.
hjrson Davis was badly Wounded, an estopette
ball having entered bis foot and passed out: of
his leg, He was, however, doing well when
last heard froni The chivalrous Lieut. Col.
McClung wis prevented from doing his share
of the. brave deeds of this brilliant light by the
grievous wound received it tbe battle of Mon.
terey, which stil confined him to his bed, and
from which U Is much feared by his best friends
he will Jievetj recover. ) ' j
Col. Humphrey Marshall's snlend Iff rin!miin
of Kentuckyjcarulry were impatient fer an p.
porlunity ofMhoSving their mettle and avenging
iue capiure 01 ineir urethren, then in the hands
of the enemy. jThey were soon favored with
the desired 'opportunity by the approach of I a
force of more than two thousand lancers and
hu&sars, who gallantly charged them. The Ken.
tuckians stood jtheirgrdund with immovable
steadiness, and, receiving the enemy with a fire
from their carbines, charged in the most gal.
lant style through the column oil the right, and,
wheeling, fell on their left, dispersing and kill,
ing a great many of them. A like charge was
made by Colonel May at the head of a squad,
ron of dragoons, and one of Arkansas cavalry,
against a large body of the enemy's cavalry
with like results. j j
During the engagement on the night, Santa
Anr.a, seeing that Gen. T's force was not well
protected on the left flank, sent a large force of
cavalry around that point; and, out flanking Tay.
lor, succeeded in throwing 2,000 men into bis
rear. IJutGen. T. immediately sent Captj Bragg
with his artillery, against this force, who sue
ceeded in culling them ojfffrom the main body.
Lieut. Crittenden was dispatched, with a Rig
of truce, to demand the ilmmediate surrender of
this force. The Mexicjan officer, pretending
not to understand the character of his minion,'
insisted that he should be blindfold according to
the riiles of war, and thus had the Lieutenant
carried into the camp oft Santa Anna himself.
This was a ruse to get jtime to Extricate the
Mexican cavalry from their dangerous posi.
tion, and peridjjng this truce they were all drawn
off by a different road from that by which they
had gained thjs position, j h
Lieut. Crittenden was conducted blindfolded
to the tent Of the j Mexican General.iniChnsf,
which he found a long distance from the sceue
of action, and Which he thought the safest place
he had been, in during the whole day. As he
approached Santa Anna's tent he was greeted
with a most tremendou flourish of trumpejs,
which might have been heard a mile . off, but
produced no very great terror in the mind of
th Kentiifkan. His blind was taken off, and
n
Tk;m 'j i" o u tj oiiucuii to car
rRito1
vn,??:tlii! Mp young officer he was
'SrLr fighting with his sword the
(J? werf Ebbing him with their bay.
4 ?S? meo, " nead of lhe company
h,i:Jn l,,art sorji, who fought at his side,
feynded, bu ftill clontinued the fight,
:u f! ovfcomrfwiih!fhe loss ol blood.
ff40 time the Indiana brigade, who
iit 'and!0Mere charge the eri
S k.! wilh) a Pw anddisplaying
li0i Assiitant Adjutant General
Hnla1- d-il0 lMif front tt'd, whilst up.
NSSfP1. e'f cowirdice, was shot-f
HwiWafftB-lhrougi his body. In jus
n-.rf'S? H should be stated that they
Srrrit dt H fully , redeemed 4heir
.7. WW gallant and effective
ill
1
i. e .i i .j' i tp ... . f -... -
ue lounu uiuiseii in me presence ol tne lamous
Mexican Chief, surrounded by a brilliant stafl
of bedizzened, gilded, and mustached officers.
Santa Anna apologized to llus Lieutenant for
the act of his officer in having hirrblindfiddcd,
saying that, so far from having any desire lo
conceal his situation, he was desiring of exhibi.
ting to Gen,p Taylor the utter folly of resisting
so powerful tin army as he had under bis com.
mand. To Avhich the Lieutenant replied that
his simple message was to demand his Santa
Anna's immediate surrender to Gen. '1'aylor.
When this extraordinary demand was transla
ted to the Mexican, he raised his hands and
eyebrows in utter astonishment at the temerity
and presumption of such a message, and replied
that he would expect Geii. Taylor toTsurrender
in an hour, jorf he would destroy all his forces.
Lieut. Crittenden's reply, which we have al.
ready given" Gen. Taylor never surrenders J"
terminated the interview, and the battle re
commenced and was continued until1 night.
Santa Anna took three small pieces of our
artillery, which, under Lieut. O'Brien, had been
posted too far in advance to be covered by oiir
infantry. All the gunners were 'shot down,
and when the guns were captured there was
not a soldier left to man them. One ofLthese
pieces was an old Texaij 6-pounder, which, du
ring the Texan revolution, had done good exe
cution amongjhe Mexican ranks. As to the
flags he boists of having taken, they are very
probably mere company markers, which were
dropped on the field and picked up by the valiant
Mexicans. His excellency of the War Depart,
ment, to whom Santa Anna has sent these tro
phies, will no doubt be sorely disappointed in
the size, texture, and beauty of these standards.
Mexican pride is easily satisfied when such
feeble mementoes of their prowess find valor
as these console them for so inglorious a de
feat. Mr S;
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 confidence of his
commander and brother-veteran, by the most
active, zealous, efficient, and gallant conduct.
Throughout the whole action he was constant,
ly engaged in the disposition of our forces, and
in rallying them to the onset. It was a mira
cle that he escaped the thjick-flying balls which
thined the ranks he was i marshalling. There
was but one complaint made against him, and
that was, that lie exposed himself too much.
Brig. Gen. Lane also showed himself to be1 a
brave and capable office r. Although wounded
early in the actibn, he kept his horse until it
closed, and never for a moment left his post J
' The old General-in-Chief remained at his
original abd much-exposed position, superin
tending the battle and narrowly watching its e.
vents.: An escopette ball passed through; his
overcoat thai same old brown, so familiar Uo
all the officers and men who have ever beeni
under his command, and which has seen sever
al campaigns in florida, in Texas, and in Mex
icq. , ,tj . j . ! ;
JOn the night of the 23d both armies 'drew
ofjfrom the field of battle. Our men were en.
gged all night in bringing in the wounded and
taking care of them the Mexicans as well as
their own men. .There Were, however, but
Jj of our men found on the field wounded
Tjhey were, to use Santa Anna' significant
wjrds in his dispatch, "all dead" the cpw
arly miscreants having killed eveiy tnjto whom
they overtook wounded ind helplesi on the
field. With like turpitude and treachery, they
left their own dead unburied and their wound,
ed uncarcd fbr, on the field where they fell.-4l
The latter were carried to Saltillo, in our own
wagons ; the former were buried by the alcadel
under the orders of Gen. Taylor.
; A number of officers Were taken prisoners;
an exchange was effected, by which all our
men who are now in their hands were released.
Cassius M. Clay's party are understood now
lo be in the city of Mexico. "
: , Am6ng the killed and wounded of the Mexi
cans are three general officers and twenty colo.
nels and commanders of battalions, General
Minon, it appears, has not as vet realized the
brilliant career of which he considered bis cap.
lure of Major Borland an earnest. He was or
dered by Santa Anna to attack and carry Sal.
tillo during the engagement at Buena Vista. i
yVjih this object, he made a demonstration a
gainst the town With 2,000 cavalry. Lieuten.
aqrShoyer, with sixty men and two small pieces
of artillery, Went nut to meet the valiant Gen. ,
eral, and, at one discharge of his cannon, sent
him and his large force to the right j about in
dquble.qiiick time.
In concluding our necessarily imperfect sketch
of the few details of the brilliant deeds of A.
merican valor performed at Buena Vsta de.i
tails gathered from a hasty conversation we'
must be allowed to express our satisfaction to
fiid that the anticipations We have so confident.:
and so frequently expressed of the bravery and
efficiency of our volunteers have been more than
realized. Let ihose who have heretofore made
our citizeriisoldiers the theme of theirj ribaldry
and ridicule be ferever hushed into silence by
the unparalleled gallantry and glory which have
consecrated in American history the bloody field
of Buena Vista.
From the New Orleans Picayune, March 27.
j THE KENTUCKY REGIMENT.
An incident at the battle of Buena Vista.
At a very critical point of the battle on the 22d, when
it became necessary to sustain one of our columns, which !
Was staggering under a charge made by the Mexicans in
overwhelming numbers, Gen. Taylor despatched Mr..
Crittenden to order Col. McKee, of the 2d Kentucky"
Regiment, to brhig bis men into immediate action. Mr.
Crittenden found the regiment, men and officers, eager
fpphe fray, delivered the order and rode back to the
General, by whose side it was his duty to keep. The
Kentuckians moved forward in gallant style, led by Mc
Kee and Clay, both of whom alas! fell in a subsequent!
part of the day. It so happened that before reaching ap
position from which they coujd deliver an effective fire,
the regiment had to cross a valley which was broken up
by ravines and masses of stones. Whilst crossing this
Valley the heads only of the men could be seen from the
popnt which Gen. Taylor and Mr. Crittende occupied !
r-and these were bobbing up and down andi crosswise!
in such confusion aa to impress both with the! idea that!
the regiment had fallen into disorder. The Mexicans!
W4re annoying them nt the dame moment by a fire, which!
helped to confirm the opinion of the General that thei
Kentuckians were thrown into dismay. t
It was one of those decisive crises which ocur in ev-l
cy contested field, when the issue of the day-depended,1
for the time being, on the gallantry of a particular corps.;
Gen. Taylor, who, as before said, could only see thei
heads of the troops, and misled by their motion's in get
ting across gullies and going around rocks and other ob
structions into tire belief that they were about to falter,
turned to Mr. Crittenden, who is a KentuckiaLand with '
a countenance indicating deep mortification, fir the Gen
eral 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 good a battle it will riot answer
Sir," and with this he clenched his teeth and knit his
brow and set his teeth hard together. Mr. Crittenden,'
wio was mistaken by the same indications that deceived!
the Gen'l, could scarcely make a reply from very cha
grin and shame. In a lew moments, however, the Keni
tuckians had crossed the uneven places, and were seen
ascending the slope of the valley, shoulder; lo shoulder
arid with the firm and regular step of veterans of a hun
dred 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 deliv
ered their fire by companies with such regularity and
deadly aim that the decimated phalanx of Mexico gav
Wy and retreated precipitously. As the Kentuckians
emerged from the valley, the countenance of the. old gen
eral, 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;
glances of his eye. Forward they moved un Jer his rivj
eted gaze, whose feelings became more and mc re wrought
up as they approached the scene of carnage. Wheij
they opened their fire the old general could n longer re
strain his admiration, but broke forth with a pud huzza
" Huzza for old Kentuck," tie exclaimed, talking as i
were to himself and rising in his saddle "iThat's th
way to do it," and the tears of exultation rolled down
his cheeks as he said it.
i Having got ridl of this ebullition of State Drtde he wen
I i i ii
about looking aftf r other parts of the field.
ANECDOTES OF GEN. TAYLOR
We copy from the Matamoros Flag of the 20th ultimo;
the following interesting items relative to the battle Ot"
Buena Vista: !
I Prodigies of valor were performed by both
men. uen. wool was seen m every-part o
where his presence was mosi required, leading on and ei
horting his men. To him this was an important day, a?
after events will iihow." Cl. Hardin, of the 1st Illinois
regiment distinguished himself particularly. He was
struck on the breast with a musket ball, during the hot
I Ace.
officers and
ine neiu,
test of the fight and died instantly.' CoL'X
Arkansas cavalry1, fell while leading a chargi- of his Ref
gifnent. ; iis intrepic
His intrepidity on the occasion is s1;
ell, of tbe
poken of
jterms of the highest praise. CsptJ Albert Pike, of the
same Regiment, also conducted himself gallantly. Col.
;W. R. McKee of the 24 Kentuckjr Regiment, receiving
a mortal wound in the throat, the command devolved on
-Lt. Col. H. Clay, son of Henry Clsy. While leading
on his men to the charge, he received a severe wound in
the leg. Not being able to stand, four of his men at
tempted joj carrjj him from the field, j They bad not pro
ceeded far before he received a second, and more severe
jwund MK niji5o of the.ftmr men were killed.
fhewoiiosisted upon carrying him off; heroical
ly he, ord lUm tojeave him, and resume their pla
ces in th fight; After the battle, be was found pierced
quite through the breast with a lance. Adjutant Gen'l
Lincoln, on of x-Governor Lincoln, of Massachusetts,
was killed whilejrestmig order among the Aarkansas
cavalry, who, were thrown into momentary confusion by
an ovemhelmirig charge of lancers. His conduct is the
theme of extravagant praise.
I ;! At the desperate attack on CDry
an's battery, when the Indiana brigade wavered and tot
tered al along the line, from the force of overwhelming
numbers. tix, of the Paymaster", department,
snatclied a flag-atatTfrom the hands of its carrier, and
rushed tot the front of the brigade, and exhorted the' men
to stand firm. lis presence reanimated them, and they
redoubled their exertions. Col. Jeff. Davis, the brave.
chivalrou, and accomplished commander of the Miss
issippi, rjffes, was severely wounded whether on the firat
or second day of the fight, is not known. They were
thrown forward the first day as skirmishers, a most peril
ous dutynd sufficed severely, losing 40 men in killed,
and having 110 vounded-a loss, considering the weak
ness of the regiment, not over 400 in number, almost un
paralleled. The Lt. Colonel of thi. Rfgiment from ,
wound received jat Monterey, is yet quivering on the
verge of (he grate, having been the first to mount the
walls at the castellated fort at that battle, and now hi,
chief in command is struck down, and his life vibrates in
the same uncertain fate. Truly may it be said of this
Regiment, it hast performed its duty well.
Thousands of the Mexicans after their defeat, fled to
the mountains, apd after the lapse of a few days, pre
sented themselves to Gen. Taylor as prisoners of war.
He told them, in their own language, to ' vamos that he
would have nothing to do with them.
Two thousand females, who followed the Mexican ar
my, remained, like ministering angels, to take care of the
wounded; Gen. Taylor treated them with the kindness
due to their sex, bind the humanity expected of an Ameri
can. . 4 j j
Bluchei- and j Wellington-like. General's Wool and
Taylor met after the retreat commenced. Gen. Wool
rushed between his extended arms, and congratulated
him upon the favorable results of the day's toil. Gen.
Taylor .playfully) retorted : " O, it's impossible to whip us
when we all pull together !"
The battery commanded by Capt. Braxton Bragg did
terribl execution. The Mexican cavalry made a charge
on him; he waited until they were within two hundred
yards, whin he Jxoured a terrible fire on them, his pieces
charged with market balls. The leading squadrons were
mowed down, and they stopped for a moment. Bragg's
guns were instantly loaded, and a second discharge, as
deadly as the firjst, threw the enemy into confusion, and
a third put them completely to flight, leaving the ground
covered with men and horses. Only imagine for a mo
ment, a battery f cannon charged almost to the muzzle
with musket balls and slugs, fired three times into a dense
mass of men and horses, at a distance of two hundred
yards, and you can form some idea of the terrible slaugh
ter! BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA.
Through the kindness of a friend, says the Washing
ton Union, we have been furnished with the following
extracts from a private letter written by Lieutenant Col
onel Mansfield, of the corps of engineers, to a brother
oflicer in? this city, giving a brief and hastily written de
scriptionof the battles of the 22d and 23d of February :
Eighteen Mh.es South of Saltillo,
4-t Camp United State Army, Agua Nuera,
j ! March 1, 1847. '
Dear Captain : We are just recovering from the fa
tigues of a tremendous battle, fought by this little army
on the 22d and 23d February at Buena Vista, a place
about eleen miles in our rear and seven miles this side
of Saltillo. j
WeJ had previously been on this very ground from the
6th to the 20th j February, reconnoitering the positions,
roads, Ate, and ascertaining where the enemy was, and
his numbers. We found Santa Anna was at Encarna
cion, thirty miles in our advance, with twenty thousand
troops of infantry and artillery, and that on our left was
General Minon, at Ediorda, say twenty-five miles off,
with three thousand cavalry and lancers.
Un the aist, at noon, we broke up our camp, and fell
back to a good position at Buena Vista, to await the en
emy. On the 22d he came in sight his advance a heavy
body of lancers and cavalry, followed by large bodies of
infantry,' and about eighteen pieces of artillery. A skir
mish commenced in the afternoon, and the enemy gained
the mountain side on our left. On our right of the rohd
were impassable gullies, deep and perpendicular, extend
ing across to the j mountains, say one mile. On our left
of the road commenced steep ascents to the tops of the
spurs of the mountain, which united and formed a beauti
ful tableland for;a battle-ground, say one mile east and
west by half a mile north and south. There were other
spurs on the same side, stretching along the road north
and south of us, with deep gullies between, many of them
impassable, but hone forming a table land like this.
A ditch and parapet were immediately thrown across
the road, and Washington's battery placed there, support
ed by twp companies of volunteers behind another para
pet. ; ?
On the morning of the 23d the enemy made a rush
with his infantry and lancers to possess the table-land, tbe
key to the whole position ; and at the same time a column
of infantry and cavalry advanced on the road towards
Washington's battery. A terrible fight ensued. Our left
was forced back to the table-land, and rallied under tbe
bank; but our centre charged with a tremendous fire of
horse artillery (eight pieces) and volunteers, and hurled
them back against the mountain and broke their centre,
so that farge bodies of infantry saved themselves by mov
ing into the ravines and on tbe spurs of tbe mountains to
the rear of our left where we sent regiments and artillery
to fight them arid: drive them back across the same ground
on our extreme left over which they bad been forced. If
we had had but one single foil regiment of regulars in re
serve we could have charged their battery on our extreme
left and taken four or five thousand prisoners. As it was,
we could only hold our own against, such odds.
At the close of! the day they.made another charge and
rush, in great force, to possess the table land, and were a
gain repulsed with grest slaughter, and with much loss on
out part. tNigh t; put an end to the scene, and under the
cover of darkness tbe enemy retreated to this place.
HI.
f1JreoTt ligbt HJihVm tbe
I was a battle-not inUtakp made ,he
whole day; b., man ,eriectly.xh..ed,t night.
Our loss about 2G4 killed and 450 wounded.) The ene
ni7loa,aboot2)0inkUled and woundeJ.ail 3,000
AnnaiainLuretreta M.t.h.
ila and San Lo with hi. army dispirited and dUrgaa-
y 1 , ' T h"' ,0-t of high rank.
Yr'10 gt correct accounts. ! f.
artery mnd dragoons, nor the bravery and good conduct
Of th, volunteers., . Wf. Not a atry .
dier was in this fight, ; , t 1
wn 7 '? T1 Va,"Uc of- M Lincoln
n n,bffri!h'S- Co!. McKee and Lieut.
dm were killed beside, others, in the .ecood charge of
the enemy. We lost three piece, of cannon, which we
had not the men to recover. Our men actually sunk to
b"" uviu recessive exnaastion. - '
It has ever been the misfortune of oar brave Lid Gen
eral to be obliged to fight the enemy with interior num
bers. But there is no backing out with him. ! Thi, his
last battle, has done him more credit than any of hi,
prev,ou, ones. Hi. case w. not near so desperate at
Pa o Aho, for there he had tbe best of regular infantry.
1 had almost forgotten to .peak of our corps. We
endeavored to do our duty. Lieut. Benham behaved
well, and was .lightly wounded. A. for myself, I wa.
more fortunate than at Monterey, .nd escaped unhurt.
The old General, however, w made ragd by tbe
balls passing through his clothes. '
1 Yours, &c. JOS. K. MANSFIELD.
From the U. States Philadelphia bazette
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYjLOR.
Never did a man do more for himself; never
were the machination, of enemie, more con.
founded, more pronely turned to favor the ob.
jects they were intended to defeat, than in the
case of this distinguished citizen, and! his iUus.
trious opponents. f
We read in the good book, that Joseph was
sold into Egypt, Tn order that his glowing popu.
lar.ty at borne might not interfeiie with the
vie ws of others ; and even'in Egypt ho was as
sailed by most formidable means, Hi, wn
merits, however, brought him out of difficulties
enabled him to triumph over home and foreign
enemies, and made him the ruling man the
man whose power was exercised to govern and
feed those who would have destroj-ed him.
The public voice, the enthusiastic admira.
tion of the people, seems to lead to the expect,
ation that tho civil, slstesman-likc qualities of
'1 aylor, are to be tried as openly, as have been
his military talents ; and those who would have
disapdointed the public voice, and have crushed
the hero of Palo Aho, Resaca de la Palrna, and
Monterey, will have. it is likely, to make room
for the bero of Buena Vista. A beautiful pros,
pect, a good prospect, indeed, of the Phkside.
cv, from the plains consecrated by his skill and
valor, and the blood and life of the officers and
men under his command. :; j
It appears now as if Zachary Taylor would
be the candidate of the great Anti Polk party
for the Presidency ; if he enters upon that cam
paign, he must be triumphant, for
TAYLOR NEVER SURRENDERS.
Ge Taylor The New Orleans Dee of
the 24th ult. remarks
There seems to be no limit fo jthe claims
which Zachary Taylor is accumulating upon the
gratitude and undying affection ohthe people.
The stalwart old warrier, put him where you
will, and with whatever force y6ii please, he
has a knack of meeting the foe, and thrashing
him too. He appears to have adopted a motto,
the language used by him just before the battle
of Palo Alto : Should I meet tbe enemy, what,
ever be his force, I shall fight him" A battle
and a victory are with him synonymous terms.
If there was no such word as "fail" in the vo
cabulary of Richelieu, that of Old Rough
asd Ready contains no such combination of
letters as defeat." It seems, likewise, to be
his peculiar and felicitous fortune always to
have the hard fighting thrown on hi shoulders.
When sent back from Victoria to Monterey it
was thought that old Zacii had played his part
long and gloriously enough on the theatre of
war, and that, cooped up in an r impregnable
stronghold, he would have little more active
service to encounter. But no sooner is public
attention diverted from the brave old man, and
turned to Vera Cruz, than Santa Anna, by a
bold coup de main, crosses a dreary desert, and
appears with embattled legions near Saltillo, as
if for the very purpose of making Taylor once
more observed of all observers; jj If such was
bis intention he has fully succeeded. Let oth
ers combat as they may let Vera Cruz suc
cumb, and San Juan de Ulloa fall, let the proud
capital of Mexico itself be captured Gen. Zach
ary Taylor will yet be looked upon as the hero
of the war ; Palo Alto, Resacaf de la Palrna,
Monterey and Buena Vista, will 'still be conse.
crated in the remembrance of the Republic as
the fields of his glory; while- hit; name and
fame become familiar as household words upon
the lips of millions who cberiihUhe honor and
valor of the warrior as the priceless heritage
of our country. jj jj
COL. JEFFERSON DAVIS. $
This officer, we are pleased, lo learn, was
not severely vounded, as was first suppo
sed, in the battle of Beuna 1 Vjfta. The
ball struck him in the right foot below the
ankle, while in the act of charging the
enemy on horseback. He refused to leave
the field during the fight, and consequent
ly the wound became painful ; ,but when
it was supposed that the fight vouId be
continued on the 24tb, he, liidej arrange
ments to be carried at the head his Reg
iment in a wagon ! Such a lierp is wor
thy to be, as he is, the son-inllaHy of Old
Kougn ana Keady. ; ,nc is saia to De iuui-
ized by; ms Regiment, ;
V THE CENTRAL
. From the'Duilia Even'.r'"- ,
At the close of the kit m v ..."
of December) of the Royal IrUh Ac
w. liamiltoQ announced that 1 - ;
ceived from Professor MaJ'.rr, tf '?
eitraordinary and exciting i: : r 1
presumed dfscovery of a central i .
MadlerV essay on the su! j ct (;;
Sonne Dorpat, 1840) was also ci!
S,r W; Hamilton on the same ever.!
eral members of the Academy; I
work may not for some time to ccr - 1
rally known, or, indeed, easily rrc"
this country, we believe that Lur rc
thank us for publishing a sketch cf
which it contains, and which were lr,
fd on the evening already m?ntkr-
course will also aerve to correct at;v ,
ception on the subject, which the v."
nature of the communication, an J t! , .
of a great number of the merriHcrs eft
demy, may poasibl, have occasioned, t,
allowed to arise.- Br .n exteosire sr !
out comparison of the quaothie,' anJ t
of the Drier miam r .i. ' .
parts of the hefvens, combined wUla iKj;
afforded by the parallaxes hUierto d t
and with the" theory of unirenal grav
Professor Madler has arrived at the cc
that the Pleiades form the central -rc
whole astral or sidereal synera, ir cl
Milky Way and all the briSlter itarj, !
elusive of the more distant neb ! I
tars of which those nebulae rr.iy ! c
And within this central group iuelf !. :
led to fis on the stir Alcyone cth ; r ;
by the name of Ata Tauri.) as c;:.
ctly or nearly the position of t!
gravity, and as entitled to I called u
sun. Assuming BissePs parallax if
61 Cygm, long since remarkable f r ;
PJ5fr" mo,n ! he correctly c. ;
Madler proceeds to form a firit aprci
timate of the distance of this central !
the planetary or solar system; and at;
tbe (provisional) conclusion, that Alcj
bout 34,000,000 times as fat ren,ovcd t
or from our own sun, as the latter lu:
from us. It would, therefore, accord:
estimation, be at least a million times t
as the new planet of whichthe thee r
deductive discovery has been io great t
tiful a triumph of modern astronom r,
striking a confirmation of the lav cf .
The same approximate determinate
tance conducts to the result that the 1!,;
central sun occupies more than five 1
in travelling thence to u. The mon
bit which our own sun, with the earth
other planets, is thus inferred to be d
about that distant centre, not indeed l
influence alone, but by the combined r
of all the stars which are nearer to it :
are, and which are estimated to amour. 1 1
than 117,000,000 of masses, each eq : . ,
total mass of our own solar system, U
to require upwards of 18,000.000 of :
its complete description, at the rate". "
eight geographical miles ia every
time. The plane of this vast orbit t f i
is judged lo have an inclination cf e!
degrees to tbe ecliptic, or to the phc
annual orbit of the earth ; and tbe I
of the ascending node of the former
the latter is concluded to be nearly 237 '
The general conclusions of Madler re
tbe constitution of the whole ;sy stem vUl
stars, exclusive of the distant nebula ,
following : He believes that the mid
dicated by a very rich group (tLe I".
containing many considerable individual 1
though at immense distances from us.
this he supposes there is azone. nror
poor in stars, and then a broad, rich, r
ed layer, followed bran interval corn:
devoid of stars, and afterwards by an
nular and starry space, perhaps vuih U
alternations of tbe same kind, the two
rings composing the two parts of th?
Way, which are confounded with each c
perspective in tbe portions most cHu.
ourselves. Professor Madler has ackno . :
iu his work his obligations, which are t
all inquirers in sidereal astronomy, to is
searches of the two Hersche!, Sir Wi::
Sir John. The Tiews of Sir; William f I
respecting the relation of our solar $
the Milky Way will natural! recur to t"
collection of our readers ; and while z
mers are anxiously awaiting the short!
ted appearance of the complete accour.t
John HerschelV observations on the t
nebulae, the following passage of a letter,
was written in 1635 by that illustrious
an illu$triout sire, from the Cape of Go '
to Sir W. Hamilton, may befread with
interest, frorn the agreement between t
it expresses and some of those to whT
lessor Madler has been led. In the I
referred to (from which an extract wai j
ed at the timr); Sir John HencLel c
himself as follows : , j
44 The general aspect of the southern r
polar region, including iu that exr-r
deg. or 70 deg. of S. P. D., fs in a 1. ir;
rich and magnificent, owing to t!. i
brilliancy and larger development cf il
Way; which, from tbe constellation 1
to that of Antinous, is one blazB of l::.tt
ly interrupted, however, with vacant a: J
starless patches, especially in Scor; ' ,
Ceutauri and the Cross ; while to tie
fades away pale and dim, and is in cc:
hardly traceable. , I think it is fm;o"
view this splendid zone, with the ail on"
rich and evenly distributed frin-e c f t
the third and fourth magnitudes, which
broad skirt to its tout hern border, lik
curtain, without anlmpressino, amour.:!
conviction, that the Milky Way is net
stratum, but an annulus; or, at least,
system is placed within ooe cf the pcx:
almost vacant parts of its general m
tat eccentrically, so as to be much t.
tbe parts about the Cross than to that d
cally opposed to it. Times.
! 1 ,
rnr
:omr
1 j .
s GEN. TAYLOR.
The Whigf of Iowa have in State
vention nominated General Taylor i
Presidency ; and the Whigt papers i
State have generally declared for I
One of the resolutions of the Iowa f
concludes as follows,; -
: We fling his banner to the Lrrf :
ly relying upon the patriotism cf ti
pie to sustain him against the ran I
attacks of his enemies, at heme cr a1
f t
t.ft
4
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4r
t
i. i i .
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