The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1892-05-26

tics which made him famous were such as
he ought to have learned in his young man.
hood, and he had proved poor student Of
his art if he did not. There were before him
i'll his Mexican campaigns and in the cur
rent text books and war histories of his
military professorship days numerous in
stances Of successful flank movements
Scott, who was his chieftain and must have
been his exemplar, was a master hand at
f1anking, and won his first laurels with
that style of tactics at Lundy's Lane in tho
1912 war. I remember that as a boy, in
1862, heard my older comrades discuss
these matters and assert that the best way
to beat enemies who stood across your
path to dispute it with great guns was to
''come Scott over them," that is, turn their
position by a flank attack. This may have
been a "reminiscences of schoolboy battles
with snowballs, but it was sound policy all
the same and it boots little who originated
the maneuver.
Forrest, the illiteraue slave trader, who
became the greatest cavalry general on
this continent, used tactics that won Fred
erick the Great his grandest victories with
out ever having heard of the famous Prus-
sian and his battles.
Jackson may have brought little out of
his Mexican campaigning to light the way
for his Manassas and Charlottesville ex-
ploits but not so his commander, Robert
E. Lee. Lee doubtless put jackson up to
every great stroke he made as corps leader
in the Army of Northern Virginia. He had
been with Scott in Mexico, and was
prominent factor in the exploit at Cerro
Gordo. where Santa Anna, with choice of
position superiority of numbers and much
more in his favor, was not only outfanked
by Scott, as neatly as Hooker was by Stone
wall at Charlottesville, but his army was
completely routed and virtually destroyed
Scott made clean sweep.
Cerro Gordo was Scott's first bout with
Santa Anna. It was after the successful
siege of Vera Cruz, when Scott had set his
face toward the Mexican capital the an
Gent seat of the Montezumas Gen. Zach
airy Taylor, who had been humping the
willy dictator on the Rio Grande line, sent
his best troops to REINFORCE Scott, and
Santa Anna fastened to the scene to sam
pie the new American leader. The route
from Vera Cruz to the City of Mexico is
along the great national highway running
through Jalapa and Puebla. At point
twenty miles east of Jalapa the Mexicans
had taken position to dispute Scott's ad-
''SAAS>, "AAu w Clleto pIcICc oIi1Gd Auud Ill
rected all his troops from the Rio Grande,
and the re-enforcements gathered from the
country at large. Cerro Gordo was a COL
lection OF huts belonging to ranch on the
slopes between the mountains and the Rio
del Plan. East of Cerro Gordo the ma
uonal road winds among bare elevations
sloping toward the American approaches,
and commanding the roadway for long
distance
The Mexican defenses formed a semi
circle, both ends resting on the river. On
the right three separate heights, 100 feet
above the plain, were fortified and secured
by abatis and manned with an aggregate
OF 1,5OO troops and 25 cannons. Parallel
with the road behind these heights was an
extensive breastwork, with $50 men and 2
cannons, and across the road at an arrow
pass between mountain and river were Z
cannons and 400 men. Farther to the west
and the Mexican left and looking down
upon the pass was a, conical hill 200 feet
high, known as Cerro TELEGRAPH This hill
was fortified near its summit with works
OF stone and logs and was protected by
fallen trees. It was the key of the position.
On the extreme left mound above Cerro
Gordo ranch was occupied by force with
z cannons. All told the Mexicans had u, 900
men on the field the day of the fight, April
10, 1s47.
Between the fortified elevations there
were deem pOrpaS n6 low nj c,,,,~+