San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1886-04-08
TWENTY YEARS AGO.
"REMINISCENCES oFTHE MAMMALIAN
REGIME.
A Shooting Scrape and Murder of an
Innocent American in Matamo-
ras, Mex, on an Easter
Sunday Evening.

Ckoate, both belonging to battery Of
heavy artillery. Mr.. John Dewitt, who
was Chief Clerk of the United States
Ordnance Department, and the writer
Of this sketch formed q plan to cross the
river from Brownsville to Matamoras to
witness the Inauguration of the new
opera-house just then completed, and for
which a genuine Italian opera troupe
had been engaged at heavy expense.
They started at about O'Clock in the
afternoon for the Heroic City,"
for this is what the capital letter
"H" implies, which Is placed as a prefix
10 the name Matamoras by all Mexicans.
Ii recollection be correct "Les Huge
nots" was to be performed and tickets
were sold at 81, at which price the whole
house was sold out long before the per-
Torrance commenced. The party after
reaching the city in rickity "caretella"
procured tickets and then + aid attention
toward procuring lodging, which, after
a little trouble, was secured with
promise OF a good supper by Messrs.
Greene and Bianchini.
Having thus made provision for every
thing needed for the temporal comfort
of the party, a proposition to take a gen.
eral view OF the city was made and car
ried out, since the three first named gen.
tlemen had never been In Matamoras be-
fore. The "plaza GO capilla," common-
ly called Jackass plaza, was visited.
Here the same unique sights can be seen
in the way. of vendors of the Mexican
national dishes as the scene presents it
self to the visitor of the Military plaza of
San Antonio. The next point OF inter-
est was the Cathedral with its perforated
steeples, caused by the bullets of differ
ent besieging and besieged factions who
would take refuge in and near this tenn
pie of worship. 1t had in the meantime
grown dark. The moon would not rise
until about 8 p. M, and the old-fash:
Toned oil lamps placed at far distance
gave but poor illumination to the
streets. The two officers were dressed
in civilian costume, in order not to at
track attention, and were walking to-
gether arm in arm, followed by Mr.. De-
Witt and the writer. When in the street
next back Of the Cathedral, near the old
Gubernatorial Palace, and just before
out of a grocery store, the party was at
tackled from the rear one Of the officers
and the writer received a hit with the
but end Of pistol in the back. While,
simultaneously with the exclamation
Take that, Cd d-m you !" shot was
fired, hitting Dewitt in front on the left
shoulder, the ball ranging down to the
heart and killing him instantly; he fell
into the arms of his companion, ex-
claiming, "Oh God, am shot ~
Report was at once made to police
headquarters by one of the party, while
the other two remained with their dead
comrade and friend, whose body was
soon after removed to the police station.
The two officers were taken in custody,
and as soon as the third one returned
from useless search after some Ameri-
can friends, was also arrested at Green's
restaurant. They were then taken to
police headquarters and searched, all
articles Of value and everything that
their pockets contained taken away and
then locked up in the worst and mean
est dungeon in the prison. By oonsid
cradle talking and the promise of re-
ward the guard furnished some two or
three Mexican drip tallOw candles, which
were planted into the soft dirt floor,
only half of which was covered with
loose brick. These were raised by the
trio in making small piles and placing
their handkerchief on them as seats,
since anything of that nature was con-
spicuously absent.
The night passed on slowly, and a
more miserable and bitter night, full of
ironioal contemplation, probably was
never spent by man. When dawn at
last made its appearance further prom
Use of reward softened the descendant of
Montezuma on guard to get some coffee
from the establishment Of Don Bian-
chini, which was brought to the prison.
ers.
In the meantime the report of the
shooting and killing of De Witt had
gotten across the Rio Grande to Fort
Brown nd..Brownsville. Major General
Getty, Of the regular army, who was in
command of the fort, at once took steps
to have us released. Colonel Branson,
Of the 62nd Regiment of Infantry, was
sent over, accompanied by two officers
of the staff and several non CONN
stoned officers and attended by Peter
Nichols, known under the sobriquet
"Proverb Me-" at that time prominent
attorney and possessed of fine linguistic
qualities as Interpreter. Mr.. Nichols
tells the balance Of the graphic account
in his own humoristic manner. Colonel
Branson, upon arrival in Matamoras, had
himselfintrOduced to the Alcalde, who, to
all appearances, was hardened and
senile sinner, but who, upon close in
were 10000 little devils dancing in his
dark eyes.
Upen inquiry what was the cause of
detention Of the Americans, the only
answer and excuse given was, to have
them at the proper time as witnesses
for the examination in regard to the
murder. Colonel Brausen asked,
through the interpreter, Mr.. Nichols,
when this examination was to take
place. The Alcalde, with a peculiar
Struggling of his shoulders and facial
gesticulation, answered:
"No 10 puedo hacer hoy, por ser muy
occupado."
Colonel Bransen again asked could it
not be conveniently done to-day, when
the already described features of the
satellite of Emperor (?) Macmillan as
sumed the transcendent features Of Me-
phistophilian deviltry, in addition to
his former answer, said:
''Pero 10 podra hscer manano o passda
manana."
This was the straw that broke the
cancels back. Col. Bransen, who was a
magnificent specimen Of American
manhood, stamped his cane on the oe-
ment floor, and, emphasizing each word,
told the interpreter, Mr.. Nichols: "You
tell that old scoundrel IL he don't have
those men examined right now and In
my presence within the next half hour
I'll have the whole Of the Twenty-fifth
Army Corps and every battery in old