the wounded being extremely limited, they
were left to struggle with suffering and with
death, and the sighing of the wind and the
cry of the wolf were their only requiem.
Abandoned to their fate, without food, parched
with thirst, without medical aid, and with no
shelter to protect them from the piercing
night air, they awaited the moment when
death should release them from their suffering.
The main body of the army reached Agua
Nueva at midnight, and, dying with thirst,
many of the soldiers plunged into a stagnant
sheet of water which, in many cases, produced
instant death. Suffering from the want of food
and water, dispirited and disheartened by the
result of the battle, they presented a striking
contrast to that splendid array which, buoyant
with hope and confident of victory, had
attacked the American army."

Many anecdotes of this period of Taylor's
career are told with pride by his countrymen.
Here are some of them which amusingly
illustrate the character of the man.

First we have one descriptive of his
personal appearance.

"Winding down a hill near Mont Morales, the
column is halted to let a troop of horse pass.
Do you see at their head a plain looking gentleman,
mounted upon a brown horse, having upon
his head a Mexican sombrero, dressed in a brown
olive-coloured loose frock coat, grey pantaloons,
wool socks, and shoes? From under the frock
appears the scabbard of a sword; he has the eye
of a hawk, and every lineament of his countenance
is expressive of honesty, and a calm determined
mind. The plain-looking gentleman is General
Zachary Taylor, who, with his military family, and
a squadron of dragoons as an escort, is on his way
to the front."

A few more anecdotes will serve to show
the peculiarities of the now deceased general.

"After the capitulation of Monterey, the officers
of the army used their exertions to get General
Taylor to move from his camp at St. Domingo to
the Plaza, and there establish his head-quarters.
Several public buildings were examined and
decided upon as suitable. After considerable
persuasion General Taylor consented to move, at the
same time giving the following instructions:—
'Choose a pleasant location—a house that is
surrounded by a garden filled with large trees; put
up a tent under the trees for my residence, and
you [the staff and other officers] may have the
house in front.' It is needless to add, that no
more was said about the head quarters being
removed into the city of Monterey.

"In the early part of a severe action, when the
enemy had succeeded in turning the left wing of
his little army, and secured a seeming advantageous
position in rear of their line, at the base of the
mountain; when a portion of the troops,
overpowered by the superiority of numbers, were
forced to retire in "hot haste;" when, indeed,
the fortunes of the day seemed extremely
problematical, an officer of high rank rode up to
General Taylor, and announced the temporary
success of the enemy, and expressed his fears for
the success of the army. Taylor's reply was
characteristic of the man. 'Sir,' said he, 'so long
as we have thirty muskets, we can never be
conquered! If those troops who have abandoned
their position can be rallied and brought into
action again, I will take three thousand of the
enemy prisoners. Had I the disposition of the
enemy's forces, I would myself place them just
where they are.' The officer resumed his duties
with a light heart, considering that the battle, in
spite of appearance, was already won."

The volunteers who flocked to his standard
soon learned to regard the old general as a
friend as well as a commander.

"As proof of his humanity, it is recorded that
Taylor, before leaving the battle-ground of Buena
Vista, ordered upwards of forty mule loads of
provisions to be sent from his camp to Incarnacion,
for the use of the wounded Mexicans who
were in the hospital there, and starving from
hunger.

"Taylor told General Ricardo that General
Ampudia had written to him, stating that the
war should be conducted in accordance with the
usages of civilised nations, but that after the last
battle they had barbarously stripped and mutilated
our dead. To this charge General Ricardo
replied, that 'this was done by the rancheros, who
could not be controlled.' 'I am coming over, and
will control them for you,' said Taylor.

"The general had assembled his council of
officers the night previous to the conflict of Buena
Vista, for the purpose of hearing their suggestions
in relation to the approaching battle. A
good deal of uneasiness was exhibited—objections
were raised—the disadvantages of the immense
'odds' were presented—propositions to retire
and wait for reinforcements were urged—some
were for giving the enemy battle—and one
proposed that the American army should 'fall back'
—when the old hero's opinion was asked. 'Are
you all done, gentlemen?' Every one had finished.
'Then, gentlemen, I will adjourn this meeting,'
coolly added Taylor, 'till after the fight to-morrow.'
'Good!' was the unanimous response. The
battle was fought and—won."

But we must return to our narrative.
Whilst Taylor was holding his position in the
interior, General Scott was approaching the
sea-coast, and a naval force being there ready
to co-operate with him, the news that reached
Santa Anna not long after he had been beaten
by Taylor was, that the Americans had
bombarded and captured Vera Cruz. The
Mexicans were deeply dispirited; intestine
quarrels and partisan disputes, added to the
presence of a foreign enemy, rendered them
more than ordinarily indisposed to make any
really great and national exertions for their
defence. Santa Anna had by his personal
crimes gained many enemies, and there were
not wanting Mexicans who secretly hailed the
advent of the Americans rather as an advantage
than a calamity. Hence, when Scott
advanced from his newly acquired stronghold
upon the city of Mexico itself, Santa Anna could
at first bring only six thousand men to oppose
his march, and these were met and beaten at
Jalapa by the Americans. Three desperately