The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1897-10-28
HEROES OF BUENA VISTA,
Their Sadly Neglected Burial GrOun,
Near SaltillO, Mexico.

Near Salttl1O, Mexico.
The hardy young Americans who left
their comfortable homes in the United
States more than half a century ago
and came to Mexico with Gen. Taylor to
fight against the people of this country
probably did not think that should they
fall in battle their bones would be left
to crutnble to dust in an unmarked
spot in this distant land. But to-day the
dead heroes of the Buena Vista battle
field lie under but few feet of earth
in a. neglected place just outside this
city. At the time of their hasty burial
their devoted comrades evidently sought
to make the spot somewhat sacred by
constructing an adobe wall around it.
This wall is fast succumbing to the raw
ages of time, and in places it is COM
pletely gone. Visited the burial ground
of the dead heroes recently. A tram
car took me as far as the pretty San
Francisco plaza and from there walked
through dirty, narrow street until I
came to an arroyo, on the other side Of
which the faint marks indicating the
cemetery may be seen. Had not re-
ceived careful directions would have
passed the place unnoticed. On the side
toward the city the wall is entirely gone
for the most part, and much Travelled
wagon road passes through. the place
and over the sacred dead. The place
which had once been inclosed, by the
adobe wall embraces probably two
acres, but investigation shows that
many were buried west of the wall and
up close to the arroyo.
Some time ago the report was pub
lished in the press of the United States
that the bones of the buried soldiers
were protruding from the ground, and
that the place presented a sickening
spectacle. This report was not strictly
true, but it is undoubtedly fact that
parts of many of the skeletons have
come to the surface. The ground is
strewn with fragments of bones, and it
is evident that they come from the men
who were buried there. None of these
bones is large, as the heavy traffic
through the place has broken them up
into small pieces. If any skulls came to
the surface they were no doubt quickly
taken by the Mexican children who were
about, and made innocent playthings
of. Had they ever appeared they Ger
tainly would not have remained intact
on the surface long. In the arroyo,
through which floods of water pass at
times and wash one side of the burial
ground, there are also many pieces of
bones among the rocks, and among
them saw an unbrokenrib bone which
looked like that of human.
There is not spear of grass nor
sign of vegetable life within the inclo-
sure. It is perfectly barren. The place
should certainly receive attention at the
hands of the United States congress,
even if nothing more is done than to
take such steps as will stay the ravages
OF time and weather on the treacherous
soil, and permit the bodies lying there
tc rest undisturbed. It could easily be
made an attractive and even beautiful
place by laying it out in walks and
planting trees and plants. The ravages
OF the Hoods in the arroyo on the soil of
the cemetery could be checked by the
building of substantial wall along that
side. In addition to the several hun
IA SN WIZ "CAC h111Cu Ill OdILlc, VI Tue
soldiers who died in the hospital here
were also buried there.-St. Louis Globe
Democrat. ID. --.. -.
Siberia's Snow Flower.
|. Travellers in Siberia tell of the won
derful, flower that grows there and
which blooms only in January, when
the winter is at its height. The bios
som has something of the character
istic of a"morning glory,' lasting only
single day. The flower, when it opens.
is star-shaped, it's. petals of the.same
length as the leaves, and about half an;
inch in width. On the third day the
extremities OF. the antherss which are
five in number, show minute, glisteningp =
specks, veritable vegetable diamonds.
about the size Of a pins head; .these are
the seed of the flower. A Russian noble
man named Anthoskoff took q number
OF the seeds to st. Petersburg. They
were placed in pot of snow and frozen
earth. On the coolest day of the fol-
lowing January the miraculous flower
burst forth its icy covering and dis
played Its beauties to the WONDERING
aaionfis<c Tho Mo - ~ = I. !.