The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-09-16

upon coral reef After examining her situa.
ticn, it was fouad that she was lying in about
Ieight feet OF water, while her draft was over
nine feet and that it vas necessary that the
fierce should b. Immediately landed. which wa
done; and about 4 O'Clock on the morning OF
the l2th Of August. the last Of us dixembas I'd
upon the shore OF what We had been taught 10
consider would soon be the free island Of Cuba
The first boats v hch landed were fired upon by
"A party of twenty mer, who fled on their fire
being returned from the boat which contained
Captain Gouti Ga Cuban commanding an Ameri-
can company Lieut.. birmingham, and about
thirty privates of his company. One OF Gouti's
men was wounded in the afm and returned in
the ship, and the cap of the lieutenant was cut
into halves on his head.
| At Daylight Lopez sent pronunciamento to
Los Posas, small village ten miles distant, in
which he informed the inhabitants that he was
about to march to hat place, and would give M
quarter TO any whom he found there who did
not join him. There being no means of trans
porting baggage at Cabanos. where we landed
Lopez ordered Col. Crittcnden to remnin there
and protect our stores, consisting Of 100, 00J
musket cartridges, three thousand muskets, and
several hundred pounds Of powder, in kegs, to-
gether with the personal baggage Of all the Off
GERS, saying that he would march on to Los
Posas with the regiment OF infantry commanded
by Col. bowman, and send from thence trans
portafion; and that he would remain there until
joined by Col Crittenjen. Accordingly Lopez
marched at o'clock, with three hundred and
twenty three men, Ie,.viny Crittenden at Caba-
nos, 18th one hundred and thirty men. At IL
O'clock that night Crittenden received two cart,
and started Immediately after to join Lopez at
Los Posas
The carts being heavily loaded and the roads
bad, our progress was Of necessity slow. not adj
vancing more than mile IN hour About two
hours after daylight on the morning Of the lsth,
we reached house containing a store and grog
shop, about four miles from Los Posas. The
advance guard and min BODY only had reached
the house, (the rear guard with the carts being
still some quarter of milo behind) and were
engaged in eating breakfast, their arms being
laid aside, when they were surprised by the re-
port of muketry and the whisting of bullets,
which proceeded from thu advanced guard of a
body of the enemy, five hundred strong. We
immediately siezed our guns and killed nine of
the enemy, and made one prisoner, none Of our
party having been injured. Not seeing any
more of the enemy, the Colonel concluded it
was but foraging party that had attacked u.s.
and our rear guard having come up with the
carts, ordered ia to resume Onr breakfasts,
which we did. About ten minutes after we
were again attacked by the whole force of the
enemy, they having the advantage of position,
being posted on the brow of hill overlooking
our position, with belt Of chapparal, some
three hundred yards wide, Intervening over
which we could not fire. Crittenden immedi-
ately gave the order to charge, leading himself,
and forced The enemy to retreat to large body
of chapp some seventy-five or eighty yards
in the rear of their first position, from which
they opened heavy fire upon our force as soon
as it appeared in sight on the brow Of the tl
Finding that he could not maintain that posi-
ton, Crit enden gave an order to retreat to the
house, which was DONE while the enemy re-
sumed his position on the hill and ag lin opened
his fire upon which Crittenden ordered a second
charge, at the same time saying that he wished
n small party to attain a position at the right
flank of the enemy, to charge from that side the
same moment he charged from she front Second
lieutenant w. II Crafts, (also of company X,
and myself volunteered, and succeeded in attain
ing the position with twenty men. After re-
naming in it for about half an hour and hear
ing nothing Of Crittenden, we returned to the
house, where We found Capt. Kelly, Of company
A, with ten men, guarding the carts, but could
hear or see nothing Of Crittenden. The enemy
soon after advancing towards the house, W.
were compelled to retreat, leaving our baggage
and Stores and that night, or rather the next
morning, we succeeded In forming junction
with Lopez at Las posas, half an hour before his
march from that place. AT the same hour that
Crttenden was attacked at the hacienda, body
Of the enemy, eight hundred strong, under Gen |
Emma, attacked Lopez at Las Posas
After hard fight Of over two hours, the |
enemy retrea ed leaving the Americans masters
of the field, and over two hundred Of their mum.
Der (among whom We're several of their highest |
olicers) dead and wounded-the American |
loss being, In killed, wounded, and missing only
cbcut thirty men, among whom Colonel Down
man and Lieut.. Labizan were killed, and Gen. !
Pragay and Captains Brigham and Cont were
MORALLY wounded. After the action the Span
ish wounded were brought in, and IA well taken
care of as circumstances would admit Lopez |
rode entirely unarmed over the field, through |
the hottest of the fire, occasionally applying
r d raw hide, with a great deal of vigor, to the |
shoulders of such men he thought could be |
hurried into firing little faster. Ga the morn
ing of the l4th, at 2 O'Clock, Lopez marched
from Los Posas into the mountains, leaving
there seventeen wounded Spaniards and thirteen |
VI ouf siucf aii VI NHtW Wtft utNputtcO UN tnt
Spaniards, and their bodies piled in heap, cross
ways, at the foot of hill
Two days after, ION the l6th) Lopez was
again attacked by three hundred lancers and six
hundred infantry, while encamped at hacienda
which formerly belonged to himself, but was
conf seated some three years since Here the
action lasted from | 3 TO 2 o'.lock, on one Of the
hottest days ever experienced. The enemy
were again compelled to retreat, with loss of
three hundred and twenty men, and at the same
thai the retreat of the Spaniards in one
direction was reported to Lopez, he issued an
order to his own force to retreat in an opposite
and actually, that day, made forced march
eighteen miles In FIVE hopfs, over mountain
road On the l9h, being still on the mountans,
we were overtaken by severe rain storm,
which destroyed the greater portion of our am.
muniiion, and rendered our guns entirely use.
less We encamped on the evening Of that day
at a rancho on the foot of the mountains, about
two leagues from Bahia Honda We remained
that night; and were attacked just at
breakfast time on the morning Of the Goth, being
taken by surprise, the sentry on the outpost hav.
ing leh his post TO wash himself in creek,
where he was killed Owing to the unservcea-
Mo r1,stor, If sho,a