Wisconsin herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1846-1849, 1848-08-05
From the Philadelphia North .qmericoa.
The Life and Character ooGen. Zach.
airy Taylok.
No e
TAYLOR AT MONTEREY.

of national anxiety, at Palo Alto and reese
ca de Palma, the calm Judgment of the in
telligent citizen cannot but concede that,
amid the circumstances following these eX-
ploits, oppressed by new difficulties which
they brought upon him, he exhibited even
higher qualities than those which had bla-
zed out so glorously on the field OF battle.
The war was no longera calamity to he pre-
vented: it had begun, and was to be fought:
the enemy was to he followed into his own
land, and compelled to peace: everything
was to be thought of and resolved on, with
out delay, by a victor whose government
had left him without sufficient supplies, and,
particularly, without the means of transport
tation Troops were at first wanting: but
they soon Came pouring IN, enthusiastic vol
unteers, IN embarrassing numbers-ln num-
bers beyond Taylor's wants and requlsitions;
but as nothing else came, they only made
bad worse, and increased the difficulties OF
his position.
But. in the midst of these difficulties, his
thoughts and resolutions were equally ac-
tive. Within nine days after the affair of
La Palma, his flag fioated over Matamoros
and the whole lower right bank OF the no
Grande; and, as early as the Goth OF May
only twelve days after the first blow at Paio
Alto-as we know from his correspondence,
he had already meditated the enterprise, the
march, the very route to be pursued, against
the city of Monterey. This march, IN fact,
against Monterey-made with lnsuiilcient
transportation, and, therefore with lnsufil-
cient subsistence and ammunition;th march,
the consequences that
must have flowed from repulse-timld crit
les would have regarded as an over-daring
49, hn nGf
decided proofs of Taylor's Judgment as well
as heroism. His very restitution rendered
it necessary. There were food and amnu-
milton enough in Monterey; and with young
and jealous volunteers anxious to see the
foe, there was less to apprehended from
hard march, and harder fight, than from
a pining inactivity of sickly camps on the
Rio Grande. The autumn was coming,
nay, was already at hand; there were pure
waters and breeZes, the mountain health at
Mopterey-what difference did it make, if
there were tremendous Notifications and
the (standing rule) Mexicans in superior
numbersi The march was resolved on,
pushed in every way; and, about the same
period-almost the same day-when Santa
Anna was 'spasSed" into Vera Cruz, to raise
and head that arny which was To meet lay
lor at Buena Vista, the latter advanced the
first division of his army from Camargo to
Ceralvo, on the expedition against Monte
rev. 1t was on the 9TH September that
Santa Anna arrived at the Capital, and, in
proud array, amid roaring festivities and
the clamor of Mexican oaths of patriotism,
swore to drive the "perfidious Yankees"
the 'barbarians of the North" from the
sacred soil OF the g magnanimous' republic.
Four days later-on the 19th-the Mexican
cannon at Monterey was playing upon Gen.
Taylor, as, with a little accommodating par
ty, he rode up, to inspect for himself the
the formidable defences of citadel, redoubts,
fortified heights, and stone houses with par
apets, each Moorish fortifcaton, or part
of one great Moorish forificaton embra-
cling the whole city-which it was now nee
essary he should carry and storm, and that,
too, within a few days, to prevent the Ell
fects of an entire want of all the necessa-
ries of war and life in his own army.
And so he carried it, What need of re-
peating the details of this glorious siege, of
which every particular has become part of
the recoIlections of every American mind
the chivaIrous exploits Of Worih's division,
on the west, carrying the armed heights,
and hemming in the MeXicaDs IN the rear,
and the bloody assaults upon the town its
elf, on the east, made under the orders of
TAYLOR himself On the second day, the
weak man had the strong man at his mer-
CIV: six thousand American regulars and
volunteers had wrapped m girdle of bay
onets and grape-shot, a Mexican city of fit-
teen thousand inhabitants, defended by a
garrison of ten thousand soldiers; and, on
that second day, the city threw up its hands
for quarters, and the ten thousand Mexican
soldiers hosted flag of truce. and capltu-
lated. This was the third glory of Taylor,
i'm this war How this nation exultedi II was
only the newborn malice of political ieal-
ousy-for on a sudden the wondrous popu-
larity acquired by Taylor, as if by magic,
and the presentation Of his name as a can
ddate for the high office of President by
vast numbers of citizens, and in particular,
hy the entire Wing party, had rendered him
an object Of terror to the scheming Admin
istration which bad made the war-it was
ONLY the strangely unnatural and ungrateful
hatred of LOcofocoiSm which strOve, for
moment to ceDsure that capitulation, and to
reprehend-nay, If possible, to crush-the
brave old victor for the sin of not having
finally not captured or exterminated the
whole garrison, and put, perhaps, the whole
wretched population of Monterey to the
sword
Who forgets the attempt, made 80 shame
lessly, by Locofoco adherents Of Ibe Exec
uiiye, in Congress, to nullify the vote OF
thanks to Gen. Taylor for that immense
success of Monterey, by proviso censuring
the capitulation granted By him 10 the Mex
ieans-in other words, TO affix upon him the
stigma Of having failed 10 the performance
of his whole duty as an American comman-
der, in battle against the enemy! The at
tempt only recoiled with injury upon its au-
thors. The first reflection convinced every
rieht-mnded American that the capiiuIaiion
of Monterey was, in itself, the greatest Of
General Taylor's acts, and that one Of them
4 - -. - l.