The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1872-11-14
sHELBY's 8 EXPEDITION TO MEXICO
AN UNwRITTEN LEAF OF OUR CIVIL WAR.

Immediately aftor the collapse of th'
Southern Confederacy, one Of the most prom
mont, Confederate Generals on duty in th'
Trans. Mississippi Dcpartu,ent-Gen. JOSEPH
Shelby.-went to Mexico with about twt
hundred and fifty armed followers, mostly
Missouriaps, with tho avowod intention Of
ssttlins with them in that country. That
the enterprise proved unfortunate, and thai
the men engaged in It met with many peril
ous adventures and personal mishaps, ere
facts well known in gpnersl, hut not as to
dntallA. Ono Of these followers of Shelby is
now publishing In the Kansas City (Mo.)
Times series of letters abou. what happen
cd to them on the "other side of the Grande' =
Of great interest, bringing to light much that
was not publicly known before, and trna'
one of the COMMUNICATIONS tha ALLOWING ac'
noapt nf an attack by Mexican bandits some
days after the men had left Monterey for
San Louis de Potosi; is taken;
The column had rsNahod 10 wlshln two
daya' journey of LampaSs some spurs Of
tho mountain ran down to tho road, and
some clusters of palm trees grouped them
selves at intervals by the way side. The
palm is pensivc tree, having voice in the
wind that is eaddor than the pine-~.a aahcr,
saldmR yoips lika the souad Of nuttlcd core
mants whaa The corpse Is given to the ooffin.
Even Up the sunlight they are dark, even in
tho tropics no vine olings to them; no bios
som is born td them, no bird is housed by
them, and no auttor of wings makes Wasip
fbp them, ssraass and shapoly and ooldly
and ohasto, they seem like human and desc.
late beings, standing all alone in the midst
Of luxurious nature, unblessed of the soil and
unloyed ofthe dew and the sunshine. In q
grove Of these tho column halted fhr tha
night. hsyond thsa was pass guarded
by crosses. In that treachcrous land these
arsz agroSth indigenous 70 the, soil They
flourish nowhere elso in such abundance.
Wherever, a decd Of violence is done a
GROSS is planted; Whercyef n traveller il lett
,Npoa bis tsce In q pool Of, blood cross is
rearedy yherevera a grave is made wherein
lies the murdsrod one therc is, seen q cross.
D. o matter who does the deed--whether In
dian or dog, or oommsndante; a cross must
mark. tha qnpt: and "a tho pious Waytsror
Journeys by he lays all rcverently stone at
tho feet Of the sacred symbols, beathing a
pious prayer and telling bead 'or two for
the souls salvation. On the left a wooded
bluff ran down abruptly to . stream: he:
yapA tAa stpeam, nsaf the palm-. y grassy
bottom spread isolf out, soft and graceful,
Here the blankets were spread, and here the
horses grazed their fill,
A.youngt moon, clear and, white, hung low
in ti,S west, not suilens sn5r red, b4t n teRaaF
BianrL fall af tho hsau.s that lovers sock,
and full Sof the yoiceless imagery which
Egves passion TO thc songs Of the night, and
pathos to the deserted and detected swain.
As the moon sets, the horses were gathered
together and tethcred in amid the palma
Fhe4 q deep silence fell upon the camp, TOP
the sentiusls wore bsyond its confines, and
all within side slept the sleep Of the tired
and healthy. It may have been midnight;
it certainly was cold and dark. Tho fires
had gone out, and there was~a white mist
like o shnpa creeping up tho stFiaa and
Scttling upon the fsoas ofthe soepors
On the far right single pistol shot arose,
CHAR and resonent. Shelby, who slunlbered
like night-bird, lifted himself up from his
blankets and spoke in an undertone to Trail
kill aWho haa tha posi- al the anath of thc
pass J" hIop MapOy," 'Thsn something Is
stirring. Macy never fired at shadow in
his life,W Tho two men listened. One q
grim guerrilla himself, with the physique of
a Cossack and the bearing ofa Comanche
The other haYing in hiG hands the lives OF
all the silent and mort slecpers lying still
and grotesque under the white shroud of
the mountain mist. Nothing was heard for
an hour. The two ncn went to sleep again,
but not to aream Off, sudden, and unseen,
tho mist was lifted, and in its place sheet
Of Aamo arose 80 near to tho faces of the
men that it might have scorshcd them,
Two hundred Nexosns had crept down
tho mountain and to the edge of the stream,
and had fred point blank into tho camp. 1t
seemed miracle, but not man was touch
cd. Lying fat upon tho ground and WraE-
psd Ip III theip hlaRkdis tho whole vollsy
moant to be murdoroua had swept over thcm
Shelby was the first upon his feet. His voice
rang out clear and faultless. and without a
treuor, "Givc them the revolver. Charge "
Men awakened from deep sleep grapple with
spsetFra lIowlg: Tha Masiaaps ~ees srae'
tres. Beyond the stream and In amid the
sombrc shadows of the palms they we're Wis,
ibr. Only the powder-ball was on the wa
ter where tn, mist had been.
F Vnclad; barcfooted: heavy with sleep, the
muo ,~sut straight to- tho l'nunlalnS, q fe
yolver in each hand, Shelby leading. From
spectrcs the Mcxicans had become to be ban
dts No quarter was given or asked. The
rush lasted until the game was flushed the
pursuit until the top Of the mountain wa;
gained. "6p6P rargid cook and saesus am1
dagger trees the hurricane poured. TN
roar ar of the revolvers was deaieuing. Mer
died and made no moan, and the wounded
were recognized only by their voices. Whel
it was over the Americans had lost in k'llet
eleven and in wounded seventeen. most o
the latter slightly, thanks to tho d"rknos