The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1901-10-10
THE "REPUBLIC
OF SONORA"
The Retreat of Walkers UnfOr,
tunate FiIibusters.

James Jeffrey Roche, in describing the
Inflated attempt Of Walker and his fill
busters to conquer Sonora a half century
ago, gives vivid story of the retreat
across the line into California:
Less than 100 men now formed the
army of the Republic He gave orders to
march to Sonora by the mountain paths,
around the head of the Gulf of CaIifor-
mia. They buried the arms and ammuni-
ton of the deserters in caches. Two men
deserted on the march and joined the In
dians, who harried the little band at every
step.
The Colorado River was crossed on
RATS. Disease and desertiOn thinned
the ranks. The wounded died for lack of
proper treatment, as there was not q case
of surgical instruments in the army.
They extracted arrow-heads from their
wounds with probes improvised from ram
rods. Every mornings roll cali showed
dwindling force. Beef was the only food
left. Two men quarreled over a handful
of parched corn, and one shot the other
dead. They were in rags. The Presi-
dent of Sonora, wearing a boot on one
foot, shoe on the other, Jared no better
than his followers. Those followers soon
numbered less than 80.
a council of war was held, and it was
decided to return to San Vincente. The
Mexicans hung upon their TANKS and
rear. cutting off every straggler. Re
crossing the mountains, they narrowly es
capped humiliation in gorge which
widened out at the middle to a plateau
of half mile across, with a narrow open
| ing at either end. Half way across the
plains the Indians appeared on flank and
front and opened calling fire. Walker
here showed GOODNESS and generalship
Leaving y men hidden in a clump OF
| bushes under command of Lieut. Z. s.
| IppGpp q cool col1iar of lie
| distinguished in Nicaragua, he retreated
with the rest of the command toward
the entrance of the valley. That passage
had already been closed by the enemy's
| forces, who met the retreating party
with an ill-aimed yolley of arrows and
| bullets. At the same time those guard.
ing the other pass joined their friends on
the tanks in charging the Americans
| As they passed the thicket where YeedeI
and his men lay in ambush, they received
deadly yOlley at short range.
Every bullet struck down its man
| Walker at the same time turned and de-
livered an equally well-aimed fire, which
put the enemy to full flight.
The two detachments then passed I'M
molested through the further defile be
fore the ast0nished natives could be raj
lied to the charge. No brides of aguar
diente, with which the Mexicans were
wont to ply their Indian allies, could
thenceforth induce the natives to face the
deadly American rifles. They hung upoI
the line of march like coyotes, prowline
about the late scene of each encampment
and robbing each new-made grave of its
tenants blanket, the only shroud of the
poor filibuster who fell in the waste place:
of Sonora.
At San Vincente, where Walker haG
left in March a party of IS men to guarC
the barracks, he found not one remaining
A dozen had deserted, and the rest, I'm
suspicious of danger, had been swOopeC
upon by band of mounted Mexicans
who lassoed and tortured them to death
| So many successive reyerses sealed thu
| fate of the expedition.
To wait for reinforcements. even cOult
they have come, from California was
hopeless. Walker had but 30 men re
naming They We're destitute of every
thing but ammunition and weapons; o.
these they had more than enough. A
various places they had buried boxes o.
carbines and pistols. Eight guns wer'
sniked at San Vincente. a hundred key
of powder were cached on the banks o
the Rio Colorado. Years afterward thu
neon herdman or prowling Cucupa Indian
stumbled in the mountain by-paths owe
the bleaching skeletons of some nameles
one whose resting-plac was marked b.
no cross or cairn, but the Colts reyolye