The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1892-01-06
The Border War in Texas.

The United States the past week has had
serious border war on its hands, and the
difficulty is assuming still more threatening
proportions. CARA, desperate revolu-
ZIONIST taking advantage of the popular
discomfort growing out of poor crops and
scarcity of food in Mexico, has gathered an
army of cattle thieves, brigands, and dis
reputable characters for miles around, and
has been lodging backward and forward
across the border, occasionally fighting the
Mexican troops and skirmishing with our
own. General Lorenzo Garcia, in command
of the troops in the field in the northern
part of Mexico, and capable officer, was
murdered by his men, and the entire COM
mand of several hundred deserted to Cara.
December q Captain Bourke with a detach-
nent of the Third cavalry and Company e
of the Eighteenth cavalry came upon
camp of the bandits. "Quien "a dllR" rang
out from sentry. There was no answer
from our soldiers who, advancing in Skin
mish order, held their carbines at a
ready" "Quien "a dHiP" came again, and
then two shots from the two pickets.
Bourke's men replied with volley, kneel-
ing, and the bandits broke for the hills,
their herd bell ringing to round up their
horses. The troops then fell back ten miles
TO the Rio Grande and camped. They were
attacked in the night and during a sharp
engagement prisoner escaped from Deputy
Marshal Perez, who was put under arrest
Bourke's men struck straight back, hoping
threw out two accommodating parties to circle
through the brush. Corporal Charles II.
Edstrom, of Troop G, who commanded one
ran upon the enemy in force and was al
most surrounded. He kept the attacking
party at bay until the main body of the
rangers came up. They charged across a
soft, open, muddy fiat, exposed to the ene-
my's fire from rifles and carbines. But our
men were not to be restrained. In the face
Of three or four to one they made gallant
rush for the outlaw band headed by Ser
geants Ihing and Glib and Corporal Honey
man. The infantry with their long guns
did capital work, and in another minute the
bandits were scampering for the brush.
Hampered with prisoners and wounded, our
troops could not pursue. One man was
killed, Corporal Charles Edstrom, a most
excellent soldier, who was shot twice
through the head and once through the leg.
The outlaws have perfect organization,
good system of signals, know the country
thoroughly, and being without uniform can
change themselves into ranchmen and goat
herders in five minutes. The farcical side
of the matter lies in the inadequacy of the
United States troops in Texas to corral the
nimble Cara. AS the New York Sun hui
morously sizes up the situation: q" We re-
greet to notice that the state of Texas is ex-
posed defenceess to the enemy, if there is
any enemy looking for her Governor
James Stephen Hogg has ordered her reg
against Cara and bide by the border.
Meanwhile who is left to protect the state?
A home guard of twenty ought to be or
ganized for the defence of the affairs and
fires of the Lone Star state while her army
is engaged in active operations. Never be-
fore in the history of war has so small a
force defended, and successfully defended,
50 magnificent an empire. A Happy New
Year to the Texas Rangers"
A dispatch to government headquarters at
San Antonio, Tex, reports that last Satur-
day Lieutenant Langhorn with ten regulars
and posse of deputy marshals struck a
camp of revolutionists three miles from Las
Cuevates. The revolutionists ran, leaving
everything, escaping into the dense thicket.
The situation calls for prompt and ener-
getic action on the part of our government,
before international complexities arise. 1t
is TO be hoped that Mexico will not be
shaken by general revolution, after so
many years of tranquility. Diaz has made
an excellent president, and under his guild.
ance Mexico has progressed as rapidly in
tue rast dozen years as it had before in
fifty ears.