The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1846-06-16 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

treat the General and his officers with such care and at.
tention as becomes the magnanimity of the great Mexican
nation. Your or five hundred mules, &c , with a large
number of stands of colours, were also taken.
The instructions of Arista were to possess himself of
Point Isabel, and fortify it as strongly as possible. The
Americans, it is estimated, sustained in the action the
loss of three officers and forty men killed, and thirteen
officers and one hundred men wounded. The Mexicans
had upwards of three hundred killed, many wounded, and
a considerable number taken prisoners. General Taylor's
force afterwards encamped at Point Isabel. The town of
Baritta was taken the next day by the Americans, and as
the Mexican troops had marched out of the town of Mata-
moras, it was supposed that General Taylor had taken un-
disturbed possession of the town. The Mexicans, it is
stated, :used copper balls, a wound from which is ex-
tremely dangerous. Numerous requisitions had been is-
sued by the Executive, calling upon the governors of
several of the northern states for troops of volunteers.
New York, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, South Carolina,
&c., had each been called upon ;to furnish their proper
quota.

Some apprehensions were entertained of the operation
of Mexican privateers, which it was contemplated to put
down and treat as pira►es. Measures had been taken by
the Secretary of the United States Navy to protect the
commerce exposed in the Gulf of Mexico, should it be
menaced or interrupted.
The proceedings in Congress bad been interesting. On
the 18th ult. the Senate passed a bill to repeal so much of
the appropriation bill of 1845 as limited the number of
men in the naval service to 7,500. On the 19th, in the
House of Representatives, Mr. King reported from the
Committee on Naval Affairs a bill for
.building by con-
tract twelve iron steamers and one iron frigate ; the
steamers to be of not less than 1,200, nor more than 1,600
tons ; the boilers and the machinery to be so arranged as
to be secure from the enemy's shot; the speed to be at
least fifteen miles an hour; engines not less than 1,000
horse-power ; to carry an armament of at least six
wrought-iron guns, of not less than twelve-inch calibre;
from two to four smaller guns, of the same manufacture ;
and to have at least fifteen days' fuel under high-pressure
steam. The frigate to carry sixty heavy funs ; and one
of the steamers to be built on the plan of Errieson. Five
millions proposed to be appropriated to carry the law
into effect. The bill was referred to the appropriate
committee. In the Senate, on the 23d ult., a bill autho-
rizing the construction of ten war steamers was made a
special order for the following Monday. Subsequently
both houses passed votes of thanks to General Taylor and
the "Army of Occupation." The extra appropriations
so far sanctioned by Congress amount to upwards of
seventeen millions of dollars.

Congress had further discussed the Oregon question,
and evidently with a wish to shelve the subject for the
present session. Several propositions were submitted,
one of them by Mr. Benton, in support of a compromise
on the 49th parallel of latitude, and of the rights of the
United States up to that line : but no final decision had
been come to up to the 29th ultimo—the last paper we
have received (The New York Herald) being of the 30th.
Having their hands full of the Mexican war, and its an-
ticipated great costs—for which 17,000,000 of dollars are
proposed to be appropriated, no immediate response from
the United States is to be expected to the relaxed system
of commercial policy adopted by Great Britain. The
proposed outlay had damped the never very warm advo-
cates of free trade. The official organ still calls upon
Congress to pass the bill ; but, in the heat of war and
fancied glory, the appeal was utterly neglected. A similar
fate appears to threaten the Independeßt Treasury scheme.
Owing to the warlike position of the country, several
propositions for the adjournment of Congress had been
rejected, and the question was deferred for consideration
to the Sth of June.

The Great Britain steam-ship had arrived out at New
York on the morning of the 30th ultimo, after a run of
twenty days. Her prolonged passage arose from a slight
accident to the engine having deprived her of the use of
steam for a portion of the voyage. She was appointed to
leave New York on her return on the 6th instant.

The predictions of public money being heedlessly and
extravagantly squandered upon a war heedlessly provoked
appear to be in course of realisation. At New Orleans
no less than 16,500 dollars per month was paid for the
hire of a steam-boat to transport troops and supplies to
the Rio Grande !

The New York Commercial Inquirer, of May 30th,
says, " Two thousand two hundred and forty-four pas-
sengers from Europe arrived at this port yesterday."
Intelligence from the Havana, in the American jour-
nals, reports that no less than sixteen members of the
Mexican Confederation had notified their Government,
that, if the scheme of establishing a monarchical govern-
ment were forced upon them, they would be compelled,
in self-defence, to ask admission into the union of the
United States of America.

The news from the Canadas is unimportant, if we ex-
cept tne fact that vegetation was rapidly progressing, and
that the prospects for agriculture were most promising.
From Vera Cruz the advices were to the 7th ultimo.
The whole of the American squadron, with the exception
of the Falmouth, had sailed on the sth to the relief of
General Taylor; and, on its return, would proceed to
blockade the Mexican seaboard, and, probably, to attack
the castle of San Juan d'Ulloa. Extensive and spirited
preparations in men and metal were being made for the
defence of the castle; and, the weather being excessively
hot, the vomilo had made its appearance. This would
prove a valuable ally to the Mexicans. The• Cabinet
formed by Paredes still remained in power.
The exiled chief, Santa Anna, still remained at Havana,
with little prospect of being recalled to power.
The revolt of Alvarez in the south had been entirely
suppressed. Several alterations in the constitution of the
Cabinet had been made by Paredes. The Mexicans, re-
mote from the seat of war, were universally confident of
victory upon the Rio Grande, founding their hopes upon
the numerical superiority of their troops. The acts of
the Executive were universally approved of. The re-
ported sale of the Mexican war-steamers Montezuma
and Guadaloupe is said to have been contradicted.
Accounts from Campeachy to the 13th ultimo state,
that the Congress was still engaged in constructing a new
constitution, and would no doubt confirm the declaration
made some time since of the separation of the state of
Yucatan from the Government of Mexico.

The following are a few laughable scraps from letters '
relative to the Mexican war and the assumed valour of
the Yankees, from the Neu, York Herald, the founder of
which, Mr. James Gordon Bennett, announces, in amusinr,
terms, his intention to revisit Europe this summer, with
a view to organize a system of correspondence for Lis
journal from the several courts of this quarter of the
globe : _ _

" About twenty minutes after the commencement of
the action, poor Major Ringgold (of the Bth) was struck
by a six-pound shot, and mortally wounded—he has since
died. I had lent him my pistols on going into the fight.
The shot struck one holster, cut it and the pistol in two
pieces, cut all the flesh off the upper part of the Major's
thigh, yassed through the shoulders of his horse, cut the
other pistol in two, and the flesh off the other thigh. He
fell from his horse—and Lisut. Sherer offered to assist
hi m—but he said, " no sir—let me stay—go on—you have
enough to do—go ahead!" We rested on our arms until
three o'clock, and then commenced the action again; and
fought them till night closed the scene of carnage. We
slept on the field of battle, amid the dead, dying, and
wounded, without refreshment, upon the bare ground, and
with our arms by our side. In this engagement I lost my
mare in extricating myself from a party of seven Mexicans
who had fired at me whilst executing an order on the ex-
treme left for Col. Twigge. I snapped her shoulder in
wheeling to shoot a Mexican who rushed at me with a
lance.

On the next day the enemy made a show, brit retreated,
and took up their position in a thick undergrowth, having
every advantage. We commenced the fight ; the most
awful ever known ; and the old officers say equal only to
New Orleans or Fort Erie. I was in the front rank du-
ring the whole fight, and thank God, escaped without a
wound, though unhorsed, a ball through my coat, and my
horse struck. We whipped them to death. I took the
sword off a captain, just wounded by me, and mean to
keep it—you shall see my trophy one of these days. Lieut.
Randolph Ridgely won as much glory as any officer on the
field—he is a glorious fellow. We lost some few officers
and men. Among the officers was poor Lieutenant Inge
—he had just joined, and was killed in the charge on the
enemy's batteries; I charged by his side, and was un-
horsed, and doubtless thus escaped. lam too gratefu I
first for the opportunity of being in the fight, and then to
escape unhurt."
MR. JOHN B. COZZENS.—Extract from a letter dated
" Camp," May MlL—Your brave friend, Lieut. Roland,
was always proud of his sword, as every American officer
should be ; and he now feels prouder than ever of it, for it
was struck by a six-pound shot near the centre, as it hung
by his side.—P.S.—The muskets of the Mexicins, I no-
ticed, were all marked George Rex, or Fourth, Tower."
The following are miscellaneous extracts :—LrouT-
NING SPEED.—lmmediately, when the Great Britain
was telegraphed, we sent on the account by the lightning
line to the editors at Philadelphia, who sent hack a re-
quest to be forwarded an abstract of her news. The en-
tire was performed within an hour ! to and from Phila-
delphia. What next !TNew Hork Herald.

(From the:Mobile Heralcl,litay 22.)
A specimen of patriotism was related to us yesterday.
A man threw a silver dollar into the street, because it
was of Mexican coinage. Whether some less patriotic
individual picked it up, we did not stay to ascertain.
Camp opposite Matamoras.
On the Rio Grande, May 14, 1846.
Dear M.,—We have had two hard-foughtw ahniedhv;cotuorhioauves
battles, on the Bth and 9th instant, of
doubtless bad accounts in the papers. lam well and un-
harmed, though much exposed in both fights. Not until
next morning did we know our entire success, when we
found they had retired, leaving their dead, and many of
their wounded, upon the field of battle. As my regiment
was marching down in line, my company marched directly
upon a poor Mexican who raised his arm, as if to depre-
cate any harm being time to him. My men shook hands
with him, and re-assured him, giving him water and re-
freshments, and he was turned over to our surgeons, and
very kindiy treated. Since then, 150 or more of their
wounded fell into our hands, who have been all kindly
treated.

We captured one of their generals—Gen. La Vega--
and about twelve other officers, and 170 men. As for
their killed and wounded, the whole ground around was
covered with them. Every feeling of humanity was
excited in my breast by such sights. We bivouacked that
night on the field of battle and of victory, and late at
night, about eleven or twelve o'clock, myself and another
officer sallied out in quest of wounded men. We had the
satisfaction of saving one wounded Mexican, who wits
nearly exhausted from loss of blood, abandoned in the
field, and passed over as dead by all who had previously
seen him. A serjeant who could talk Spanish was along
with es, who gave assurance to the poor fellow that he
should be treated kindly, and taken to the doctor, which
was his desire.—New York Herald.

IGeneral Taylor speaks i❑ high and doubtless unexag