The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1847-12-07

| 10 be assaIled-the great capital OF great coun-
| try, defended by army full three times his
numbers, and known to be so-that capital sur
rounded by lakes or swamps, and only to be APP
preached by narrow causeways, with deep bitches
| on either side, and swept by artillery in front
and in flank In view Of all this, Gen. Scott said,
before he left Puebla, in SO many words, that he
! would march to the neighborhood of the capital,
and either defeat the Mexican army in the open
| field, If they would give him battle; or he would
take strong position from the enemy, and then,
| if he could restrain the enthusiasm of his army,
he would pause without the city, and Summon
it To surrender, in order to give the authorities
within the city an Opportunity and motive
| Che safety of the capits) for making a peace:
He did precisely. what he designed, He marched
from Puebla in four columns, with the interval
of days march between each two columns, and
! arrived himself, being with the leading column,
at Ayotla, before the Penon, on the llth OF Au-
| gust.
While the rear was coming up, he recopnoi;;
tired the Penon and country around, and satisfied
himself of the practicability. of a march by the
way of Chalco to San Angustin AS the rear CO.
lumns came up they were directed towards Chsl.
went to San Augustin, Is or II mies--,he road,
as the letters will show, being deemed mpracti-
cable by the Notwithstanding there on the
18th Of August. being. then IL miles from the
capital, and in front of the Notifications Of San
Antonio, which are about two and a hall or three
miles from San Augustin. These Notifications
were threatened by division, while the Gene
RAJ ION the 18th, ordered force TO open road in
order to turn them to the left. This force had to
pass what in the letters, is called p edregal, l.
e. surface OF volcanic scoria, broken into every
possible form, presenting sharp stones and deep
assures, exceedingly difficult Tor the passage of
infantry, and impossible for that of cavalry, ex-
cept by single road, in front of which, and per.
| fecty commanding 1t, Gen Valencia had estab-
which camp he occupied with his division Of
| 5000 men from San Luis Pot0si. everywhere
in the letters spoken of as the "fower'' of TIE
Mexican army. He had twenty three pieces Of
| nark xrttI lnru r.l L..
| body of cavalry. There was firing from and upon
this entrenched camp during the afternoon ofthe
18th OF August, but no serious demonstration was
I upon it that day. the time being employed
studying the grounds around 1t; so that the
Mexicans, both IN the emp and in the city, ina
gined they had gained victory, merely because
our army had not yet defeated them. The bells
in the city were rung for Joy, and Gen. Valencia
| distributed honors among the leading officers Of
his camp, as the shadeso of evening left him in
| curlty within his lines.
During the night of the 18th, body of our
troops passed along. ravine under cover of
night made doubly dark by heavy rain, and in
the morning they had gained the rear of the en-
trenched camp, into which they plunged head
| 10, before the astonished Mexicans had time to
put themselves in position for defence. The
assault was commenced and completed in the
short period OF seventeen minutes, though our
troops were engaged during an hour or two 10
picking up the scattered fragments of the proud
"division OF the North"-Valencia himeelf dis
appearing altogether. Several names are ap.
piled 10 this entrenched camp, (San Geronimo,
called Contreras, and it is about five or Elk
| miles from San Augustin, to the left of the San
Antonio road. Passing by Contreras our troops,
before midday, were IN full march by San An
| the Mexicans were In force In a church con.
vent, strongly fortified. About five or six hum
I dred yards beyond this convent the road by San
| Angel, &C., comes into that OF San Antonio, at a
point where, by bridge, the San Antonio road
| or causeway crosses a small stream, or canal,
called the ChurubuscO river. This bridge
! defended by perfectly constructed, scientific
tete de pont, the defences here and at the convent
forming system mutually supporting each
| other.
No time was to be lost; and at few minutes
before p. M. our troops were pushed forward
to the attack of the fortified convent, where the
and small arms. There had been some firing at
| San Antonio on the 18th and again on the 18th:
but on the 10th, after the defeat OF the enemy at
Contreras, Gen. Santa AAta saw that our troops,
rear of his fortified position ut San Antonio and
he therefore ordered that place to be abandoned,
directing some few of the guns, which there was
no time TO remove, to he spiked; but the Amer-
can division in front, by passing column TO the
left, had already turned the position and suc-
ceeded in cutting the line Of the retreating
troops, which were also attacked along the
| causeway itself, by another portion of the d.
vision, and thus the Mexican force at San An.
| tonic was broken and in great part dispersed or
taken prisoners, only few reaching the tete de
pont-the American division now passing down
to the attack Of that place, while the attack upon
| the convent of Churubusco was soing on At
about half past P. M. the Mexicans were in
force at the church convent, and at the tefe de
ponf, and had, besides, an Immense body Of in
ianry to their left. (our rlght) along and behind
the Churubusco river, nearly at right angles to
| the San Antonio causeway; they had also an
other body OF infantry and an immense body Of
! cavalry extending along the cduseway itself
from the tete de pont towards thekity. The Anne
| rlcan general being on the San Angel road in
| front of Churubusco, directed the whole of the
operations, which soon after p. M. became
| general, extending throughout the entire Mex
| lean army. He directed columns to support the
! main attack in front, aud other columns to the
right to support the San Antonio division in the
attack upon the tste de pont and the extensive
| line OF infantry along the Churubusco river;
other columns again, to the left, in order to turn
| both the convent and the tGte de pont in which
operation the enemys force along the causeway
/ beyond the fGte de pont was engaged The bat
tie now ragged at all points and in all directions,
wherever the enemy was found in position and
c9utinuId without intercession during period
o. nearly three hours, when the convent and
tee de ponf were both carried, and the enemy
was driven from the river and the causewav.
and compelled to fly in CONSERVATION towards
the city, entering Il by the gate of San Antonio,
| IN confusion and dlsmsy, followed by a cons-
derabe body of our troops, at least a mile and
| hall beyond the fSfe de ponf, while body of ca.
valry pushed the pursuit into the very gate il
| sell, about mile and half still further. not
hearing, or needing the recall which had been
sounded from the rear. This cavalry charge is
| frequently referred to in the following letters
and no doubt amazed the Mexicans to an extra,
ordiaary degree, both by its boldness and by the
| little loss attending its successful retirement to
| the main army, which had halted near a place
called in The letters Portals. The American
! force, at about Z. NJ, was In the entire posses
sion OF all the outer defences of the city, on the
| San Antonio causeway, and could have entered
| the city that evening without serious difficulty
But the general had accomplished exactly what
| he had designed before he left Puebla lie
therefore halted the troops, and after giving ne
cessary Instructions, returned by he San Antonio