New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1854-05-24
DAILY CRESCENT.


The Walker Expedition.--Its Failure.
The Los Angeles Star of the 22d of April gives
the following relative to the Walker expedition
and its failure:
Walker left San Vicente with one hundred
men and driving off one hundred cattle In
crossing the mountains between them and the
Gulf, two men deserted and twenty head of cat
tie We're lost. Soon after crossing the mountains
they were joined by thirty Cucupas, who fol-
lowed them to the river. where they stole some
thirty head of cattle. Five of the Indians were
seized as hostages for the return of the property
and in attempting to escape, three of them were
shot. -
AT this time the rations had been reduced to
beef alone, and poor at that. There had been
corn, but this had been reduced SO that it was
only to be had in the mess of his Exceliency.
There was murmuring at this, for Walker had
boosted that he would share the hardships of
his men.
They reached the river six miles above its
mouth, and about seventy from Fort Yuma
The Colorado here is about four hundred yards
wide, very deep and not rapid. The men crossed
by means of RATS. In attempting to swim the
cattle several were drowned and some escaped,
and the attempt was abandoned.
The first raft took over, among Others Capt.
Douglass, and Smith, an Englishman; and for
Douglass went along also pint of boiled corn,
by Smith. When Douglass ascertained Smith
to be the thief. he drew his pistol and deliber-
atsly shot him dead. Thus pint of boiled corn
was worth a mans life
The party remained at this point three days.
On the second day after crossing there was
much dissatisfaction in camp, and in barren
country which they had invaded with hostile
intentions, with few means of repellng attack
exhausted, naked, starvation staring them in
the face, many men prepared to abandon the
waning fortunes of the expedition, and return to
the settlements for an honest livelihood. The
party of our informant we're three days reach
ing Fort Yuma, where they were received by
Major ii. with courtesy and their necessities
Nsupplied. Before leaving the Fort many others
came in, and it was ascertained that fifty men
had deserted Walker and others were preparing
to leave-in fact, general stampede had &C.
Cured
Finding his numbers thus reduced that he
could not swim the cattle, which were his only
rations, Walker resolved to retrace his steps te
San Vicente, with the evident intention of re-
joining his ~7llency Smith. He started back
in 60 the winter of his discomfort" with not
more than twenty men and twenty or twenty
five head of cattle.
The character which Walker bears among his
men is by no means an exalted one. He is rep
resented as excessively vain, weak minded and
ambitious. His vanity makes him tyrannical,
his weakness renders him cruel; his unbounded
and senseless ambition has led him to believe
himself born to command His great pride was
in " standing upon his dignity" his men were
constantly harassed with Yexatious orders
upon etiquette. There was not sensible man
In the whole command who did not utterly
despise him. -..
The property destroyed by Walker is esti-
mated at more than million of dollars. And
by his licenses and example, the Indians, who
before we're peaceful, have become aggressors,
and their depredations are cleaning out what
little was left by him. 1t is not supposed that
Walker has appropriated to his own uses more
than $4,000; but vast amount of property
has been wasted