The Cairo bulletin., 1914-01-03
ffDFRA[S DESERT
TOESCAPE AWFUL
HUMAN bUTCH[RY
Flight of Entire Army Across Amer
can Border is Momentar ly
Expected.
WOUNDED PRESENT PITIFUL
SCENE CRAWLING TO RIVER
Refugees DIsallneG and Forced Back
Unprotected Into Their
Own County.

| Nv iuio, en-, Jan. - Tho
northern division OF the Mexican
iederal army With its eleven gen.
erals and o,hc~ oil, crs 2nd abo,,,
4''0b soldiers, after three days' MGR
CHESS attack by General Ortcga. to-
night appear d TO be- on tie verge
CT fleeing in disorder ac, oss the
river into the Uni cd states.
The ending of the Ojlnaga battle
as darkness fc1, attending by the
NEST horrifyins scenes of dead and
wounded soldiers witnossc- on the
border in tn" present revolution,
was declared to have in store only
one possible result--thc momentari-
ly expected fight OF the who.c army
to the American shore.
| With struggling line Of woundey
ut the border TO indicate The extent
of tho carnage and dcscrters already
appearing in large numbers, Major
McNamcc, commander of he border
patrol, made eye"y plan in anticipa-
ton of the hisht.
Less than 500 cayalrym n, mcstl,
from the Fifteenth Cavalr~, form
the border patrol. To this small
body of American soldiers win fall
the task of disarming 1000 fed raj
soldiers, less the rumber killed AM
wounded The abiIisg O. the Rmcsi
can soldiers to handle the refugees
was on the assumption that the
rebels would pursue the fedoraIs
only to the river. M
An estimate, as nearly as could
be obtained, of The wounded was
1000, most Of whom were left or
the battlefield. Those slightly in
jured succeeded in reaching t.
river and were cared for by the Red
Cross society on This side. Scores
of uninjured federal deserters came
to the river andIn defiance Of til
American patrol crossed with their
arms. All were disarmcd and forte
back across the border. More than
200 rifles and other arms and am
munition thus were taken from thtI|
fugitiyes.
II is impossible 10 learn the ac
tuaI number Of dead and the belize
is it will be great Many are be-
liovcd to have died through lack OF
medical attention.
Those who venturcd to help the
wounded from the river rlskcd the
danger OF being shot. A few shots
were fired so close to tho American
side that they lit in Peesidio, but "a
ono was injured. So far Major NJ:
Nance has adhered to the policy OF
sending back ak combatants. -
As for the battle at 0jinagas oAc
mile back from the river, it proceedsI
ed uninterruptedly with the1 feds
erals firing from the adobe hnts.
while the rebels across the plain, al
ways drawing closer, fred with ar
tillery and small guns. The fcderals, |
making a desperate attempt to rally.
oven extended the line of their IRE
outward but this brought only an
increasing fire by the rehels, which
sent the defenders back to their de-
fcmses. Thereafter the position OF
the opposite forces remained @the
same, with General Ortega driving
in shot and she'll from three sides
while General Castro's federals fred
from what vantage points they had
within the city.
Never in the border history- has
there been depicted sight such as
was presented by the federal wound
ed and deserters who scrambled to.
reach the United States, while from
the rear poured the shells and bull
| let's of the rebels. The rieer's edge
was a ragged fringe of smoke be
| grimed, manned and hall naked
soldiers, some of them rushing pell
nell into the river, some crying
from the pain of their wounds and
Others crawling because Of their
shattered limbs over the rocks and
cactus, some greedily try to
drink of the muddy wafer and all
begging the Americans on the other
side for shelter within their bor-
ders.