Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-04-17

took almost two hours to get the story
on the wire.
After Gomez Palacio fell there was
no visible enthusiasm among the
troops. Villas worried look passed
away, however, and he became boy
ishly genial again.
The battles at Torreon were practi-
cally duplicates Of the attacks on Go
mez Palacio. The left center and right
attacked and strove by sheer weight
to beat down the federal defenses. In
the first attack lodgment in the town
was effected by the extreme left, and
from their position the troops were
never driven. The right actually cap
tured, and for short time held Gala
bass Mountain, which meant mastery
Of the CITY, and should have been an
impregnable fortress. But the rebel
troops were not REINFORCED and aban-
doned the place. Their advance up
the mountain could be told by the in
candescent sparks Of rife fire coming
closer to the crest, while the valley re-
verberated with the sound Of cannon
shot and passing shell.
The positions that the constitution
alists took were only less surprising
than their abandonment Of them. In
the second attack little progress was
made on the right, but both center and
left fought their way to the middle
early, and the advance Of Villas forces
were checked only some $50 yards
from the federal headquarters.
Little Damage in the City.
For the first time the constitution
alist artillery shelled the city and was
used at night. AS examination showed
subsequently little DANCE was done.
The constitutionalists reached the
light plant early, and the city was in
darkness, except for the flash Of hand
bombs.
This attack was driven back and
morning found Villas men but little
advanced beyond their previous posi-
tions. Villa himself was anxious, and
no attack was ordered for the day or
evening.
The Americans, Of whom there were
eight in the artillery, volunteered for
the attack on Calabasas. They say that
when the reached the summit both
sides fraternized, exchanging guns and
cigarettes.
Their version of Mexican methods of
fighting Is that the soldiers seldom
aim, but are satisfied with pointing
their guns at the enemy and firing.
Before the second attack British
Vice Consul Cummins, whom Villa
sent under protest to demand the sur
render Of the city, returned to ask an
armistice that the dead and wounded
might be collected. This Villa refused,
declaring 1t ruse on the part Of fed
erals to gain time. On his first trip
Cummins told me his flag Of truce was
fired on some thirty times.
After the second attack there was
not a federal general unwounded The
troops were unwilling to fight longer
and many wished to join the constitu-
tionalists. A 9-year-old girl, daughter
Of a soldier attached to the Forty
fourth federal regiment, came under
heavy fire into the constitutionallst
lines to ask help for her mother, who
had been hit. One Of the correspon-
dents crossed to the house where the
mother lay and found her dead. The
daughter stated that the night before
a party of the Forty-fourth regiment
wanted to join the constitutionalists,
but the rest refused, and this led to a
battle, in which many were killed, the
loyalists winning.
One Nurse in Hospital.
Under cover Of a heavy artillery fire
the federals withdrew. No one knew
they were gone until blazing fires used
to destroy stores and ammunition ad-
vertised the fact. l went over the fed
eral positions, and it seemed incredible
that so little should. have been done to
strengthen them or even unstrengthen
as they were, that they should have
been abandoned.
In the center Of the city was the
main hospital Of the federals. Here
for two days and three nights, without
water, light or help, Maria Dorotea de
la Cruz, a Mexican widow, had fought
more bravely than any soldier to COM
fort and save the poor wretches. When
arrived they were in terror Of death,
and their relief on hearing Villa had
promised to spare them was pitiful.
DR.. Dale, an American, was helping to
dress the wounds when arrived.
For more than day before the eva
cuation the federal physicians had not
come near the place, and the condi-
tions, In spite Of Sonora de la Cruz's
efforts, were horrible. The dead were
piled like cord wood. One wounded
man asked for cigarette and /, for
tunately, had q few. Some I passed to
the wounded and some I gave to a
constitutionalist soldier, who gave one
to each Of the wounded and kept none
for himself
Torreon was little DANCED by the
bombardment. Villa told me that the
federals had lost 1000 men at least in
the campaign, more than half killed or
prisoners. My own estimate, based on
the best data l could get, would be
considerably smaller Villas losses
were in the neighborhood Of some l.
200 wounded and 600 killed, most Of
them in the fights at Torreon and Go
mez Palacio. The federals had about
I 1000; Villa about $4,000 men.
There was remarkably little looting
or disorder. The first act Of the con-
was to bury the dead.
A. N..k IT H..