El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-04-23
Arms Delivered From Las Cruces to the Old General
Then Camped Across the River From Ell Paso-W.
W. Mills Then Customs Collector at Ell Paso,
Helped to Get Government Assistance.
Tucson Deputy Almost Frus-
trates The Plan.

eminent. they had naturally aroused
the Svunathy of the officials of the
federal government, from president
lincoln down, and had also elected the
svnpathies of all liberty lovers Ii was
therefore not a very hard task Tor MI
Mills. called TO Washington on OH
cial business connected with the col
lectorship at Ell Paso, TO secure ala Io'
the Mexican president This was es
peciaIly true inasmuch as his visit Iol.
lowed closely after that of secret
agent of the Juarez government, who
had also conferred with the high off,
cials at Washington. This agent Is
said to have been 1gnacio Marlseal
later secretary of state. This OFFICIAL
Mr. Mills relates, was brought to him
from Mexico and introduced by Don
Juan Zubiran, then collector OF Mex
can customs in Paso del Norte, the town
where the Mexican president was stay
ing.
Aid for Juarezs Emissary.
Mr.. Mills gave him letters and sent
him on to Santa Fe, N NJ, to Cen
lanes H. Carlton, then commanding
tbe territory of New Mexico for the red
eraI army. and from Santa Fe the Next
can ernissary was passed along the llne
under government escort all the way 70
Washington. Mr.. Mills does not say
that there were any orders about pro-
tecting and extending courtesies TO thlS
ennissary of the Mexican republican
leader. but federal officials so we'll
knew the attitude Of those at Wash
ington that they did not hesitate 70
lend the eTnissary every aid ana Ia1er
when he had returne~ Mr.. Mills uSed
officials of the government, ne de-
clares, for assisting the Mexican IN the
transmission of dispatches relative TO
securing the arms and ammunition
which the federal government allowed
70 he TRANSPORTED into Mexico and
which Gen. Juarez used when he took
up his victorious march against Maxi
milan and his foreign army
The eSale" Of Arms.
Mr. Mills relates that the United
States did not supply the arms as
gfft-at least not in the eyes or the
world-but il was SO near a gilt that
even the pauperized republican army
was able TO buy them-some old timers
wonder if some of the expense money
allowed a short time previous to the
American consul in Juarez was not used
later to buy these arms. The way the
sale was made, according TO Mr. Mics,
was that all the spare arms and ammu-
milton in the territory of New Mexico
and there was considerable al this
time, as il was early in '65, and the
civil war was cloSlug-Were coIlecleo
at Las Cruces-about 40 miles north OF
Ell Paso-and condemned and ordered
sold Las Cruces vas small and I'M
important town. in an outoftheway To-
cation and there could have been no
possible reason for ordering the con-
domination of thousands of perfectly
good rifles, many field pieces and guam
titles of ammunition at that place if the
government had not had an object IN
doing it The United States was not
selling arms in any quantity in those
days. condemned or otherwise, and any
how. they were collected at the larger
cities and sold when there was a dis
position to get rid of anything obsolete
or undesirable. These arms were not
obsolete and the ammunition was the
sort the army was using in the field
and continued to use in the field
against the indians years afterWard,
bringing il into this region at heavy
expense owing to the crude and costly
transportation methods.
The Sale.
Therefore. the sale attracted great
deal of attention and old timers talk