The Cairo bulletin., 1914-01-12
Packed Into Corral of Several Acres
With Herds of Cattle and
Chickens
WOMEN CAMP FOLLOWERS
DEWAIL L0sS OF CHILDREN
Scenes of Desolation Revealed When
hay Breaks on the Bat
tlefield

Thousand eight hundred MeAican
federal soldiers, 6 Mexican generals,
200. Goa rounds OF ammunition, ,
cannons, large field pieces and l.
jo1 civilian refugees were in thc
,cstcdy Of the United States army
border patrol today as tnc result os
the federal army's evacuation Of
Ojinaga, Mexico, tho flight to Amer
lean territory and the occupation pf
the MvNican village By General
villa.
The distress OF the refugees is in
tense. rhcy nave no food and no
shelter. Men, women, children,
dogs. chickens and cattle are packed
together in a space covering sev-
eral acres. About them are scatter
ed all the wreck and turmoil which
thoy brought i'm fleeing from the
Ojinaga battle.
Urgcnt requests for tho immedi-
ate removal of the soldiers and
refugccs to some other place were
sent by Major McNamcc to the war
department through Brigadicr Gen
eral Bliss. Other results of the
rebel successes placed General Viii
las army in undisputed control Of
vast section cf northern Mexico.
Federal Generals Mercado Cas-
tro, Orinal Romero, Aduno and
tassFst-ssra i%~-fhe- -ettstodH of ti4t,
United states troops awaiting tLeir
disposition by the war department.
General OrozcO and General Sala2ar,
federal volunteer commanders, eS-
capped along the border to some
point remote from Presidio. Salazar
was wounded.
They were accompanied by Cen
eral Caraveo and General Rojas and
SEQ cavalrymCn. Salazar aud OrC2cO
are berg watched tor in the United
States on indictments charging
them with violation of tho neutral
Iity laws
Gena"al Landa said he was Ger
tain nil the federal generals es-
capped the rebels Charges OF cow
ardice were made against Generals
Garavco. Sala2ar and Rpjas. Gen
eral Mercado said the three. latter
generals abandoned their troops at
the beginning of the battle and
thus weakened the federal defense
After the confusion incident to
the evacuation of OiInaga by one
iarmy and its occupation by another
the battlefield over Presidio at day
light revealed scene OF desoldtion.
cannon topplod muz@el down
ward, Mood stained sabcr stick
ing in the muddy river bank, rifles
thrown in heaps, crumpled forms
among the cactus and the unclosed
eyes which pccrcd here and there
from among tho wreck We're mute
suggestions OF what had gone DO
fore,
Scores Of women camp followers
lost thcir children in The scramble
aud cried ptcously in the corral
provided for them on the American
side. Others were without clothing
sufficient to protect them from the
cold and all were drenchcd from
wading through the river.
Tho scene Of disorder was almost
as bad on the American side as o.
| the Mexican. From a military
standpoint tho situation was re-
garded as being without precedent.
In time OF peace, tao United States
army never has Lad to surround,
disarm, mold in custody and care for
so large body of aliens. Less than
500 L. s cavalrymen handled the
panic stricken mob of almost ten
times thcir number Though many
of the soldiers had loaded rifles and
well filed cartridge belts the rolnd-
ing up of the army was Done with
out any untOward incident.
Both General Villa and General
Mercado, standing on opposite sides
of tho Rio Gfande, discussed the
incidents in Mexican history in
which they had Just taken part.
General Villa sat triumDhantly in
the middle of an adobe palace on
the plaza in Ojinaga. General Mer-
cado, the refugee, sat in the camp
of the border patrol. lit was hope