Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1907-02-23

and convent, and the rIfiemen suffered
severely. The ammunition soon be-
gan to fail in the convent. and Gen.
RincOn asked Santa Ana for supply,
and for re-enforcements, but was told
that taiI had been given that could
be, and he must defend himself to the
last extremity" Santa Ana did, how
ever, send the San Patricio men and q
few others to the convent, as well az
wagon load of ammunition, of which
the deserters made good use, but the
others could not use it on account of
their muskets being of small caIiber-
After nearly two hours of hard fight
ing, part of Worth's brigade worked
it's way to the rear of the tete-de-pont,
and carried it at the point of the bay
onet, Santa Ana thereupon fed, and
the guns in the battery were turned
against the convent. Up to this time
the deserters had been making terri
Bile havoc in the American ranks. but
now, with their retreat cut on. and
their own guns turned against them.
the outlook began to grow dark. In
vain Rincon and Anaya rallied the
men for defense The riflemen leaped
the stone wall. and hurled themselves
fiercely upon the deserters- They were
driven into stone corral which ad-
joined the convent building, and was
without doors or windows, save one
opening Here they threw down their
arms and held up their hands in token
of surrender. But the rifiemen were
not taking prisoners that day. Smith.
who had led the final, charge, seeing
his men shooting down helpless pris-
| ~ w iftr nod of h0 Uya
in front of them, and threw up his
arms.
Men, he shouted, 'tfor. Gods sake
stop. Are you going to lose all the
glory you have won? You are disgrace
ing yourselves forever. Save these
men for the gallows."
Well" says Israel. Eve stopped
then, but if Smith had not interfered
we would have killed every one of
them. Every man in the regiment
thought the world of Smith. He didn't
know what fear was. 1 saw him after
ward, at the storming of the Belen
gate. standing up there, with grape
and gunshot flying all around him,
thick as hail, and he was not more
scared than if it had been hail."
This is the true story of the capture
of the San Patricio battalion at the
battle of Cherubusco. 1t might give
the story more romantic coloring to
follow the lead of other writer's, and
represent the final act as bringing the
San Patricios and the Contra guer-
rillas into deadly combat. But surely
the tale is romantic enough.
More than a hundred of the San
Patricio men were made prisoners, in
Guiding Capt. Reilly. They were tried
by court=martial and all who deserted
on or after the Sth day of May, 1876
(the date of the battle of Palo Alto)
were condemned to death. Those who
deserted before that time, it was
found, could not be executed, because
a state of war was not then in exist
ence; nevertheless, ample punishment
was melted out to them. A few were
pardoned because of their youth and
one because his son had remained
true to the flag, but SO were hanged.
Those condemned to- death were as
signed to the regiments from which
they had deserted and hanged by their
| former comrades. The first lot of 16
| was hanged at the town of San Angel,
| on Sept 9, 1s47. by the rif1emen. On
| the following day four more were
| hanged at Mfxcoac, and the 18th, 80
| more, at the same place. Those not
hanged or pardoned were whipped
with so lashes each, the letter d. for
deserter, being branded with red
| hot iron upon the cheek, and then con-
| demned to wear an iron yoke weighing
| eight pounds, with three prongs, each
about foot in length. around the
neck; to be confined at hard labor in
charge of the guard during the time
| the army should remain in Mexico, and
then to have their heads shaved and
/ to be drummed out of the service .
Those who were spared were also
compelled to dig their comrades
graves. Surely, war is -, what Gen.
| Sherman called it.