The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1914-04-01
| EDERALS ARE
TRAPPED IN CITY
So Reports Villa, Telling News
Of TOTTeOn Victory
REBELS WIN GREAT BATTLE

JuaTez reports mat Ihree Federal
Generals Were Slain During Five
Days ighting-GeneraI Villa a
Picturesque Leader as He Heads
Army in onslausht-Losses Report
ed Heavy at Gomez Palacio.
Juarez, Mex, March 30-Oficial
rebel advices from Gomez Palacio say
that three federal generals, all of
them prominent commanders in Gen
eral Velasco's army at Torreon, have
been killed in the fighting.
They are Generals Pena, Reyes and
Anaya. General Occasanza, another
prominent commander of the federals,
is reported to have been desperately
wounded.
The dispatch conveyed the intelli-
gence that the federals were making
what was regarded as a last stand.
General Herrera, with his own rebel
command and part of General Ben
avides force, had entered Torreon
from the east and had driven the fed
erals into the western part of the city.
Officials here declared that the fed.
erals already had tried to escape from
the city, but were driven back, and
are in no condition to withstand such
an attack as that of which Villa gave
notice in his telegram.
Out of the wealth of conflicting re
ports of rebel defeats and rebel
victories from federal and rebel
| sources during the week the first az
thentic news for several days ca n
when newspaper correspondents At
the front reported the complete in
vestment of Gomez Palacio by the
rebel army and the driving of all fed
erals across the river into Torreon.
Tie messages declared that Gen
eral Velasco, the federal commander,
had been maintaining general head
quarters in Gomez and had tried to
make his strongest stand there instead
OF Torreon.
Villa kept his artillery plugging
away all of Thursday night at the
federals in Torreon, refusing to allow
them to get a rest. The artillery fire
continued Friday while many OF
Villas men engaged in burying the
dead and removing the wounded from
Gomez Palacio, Lerdo and surrounding
localities.
The loss on both sides was heavy,
but the rebel advices state that the
federal loss is the greater. They claim
that 500 federals were killed in Gomez.
The rebels admit losing 100 in the
fighting.
Villa is quoted In one message from
the front as stating that he would kill
or capture every federal in Torreon;
that he had them effectively bottled
up and they could not escape. Villa
denied that the federals had been
reinforced from Saltillo and advised
that he had a force of men between
Torreon and Saltillo to keep communi-
cation cut.
II was confirmed that Villa did not
have his entire force engaged in the
fighting at Lerdo and Gomez, but Ben
avides and several other command
ers have been hammering Torreon
from the east and northeast for the
past four days, thus keeping a large
part Of the federal garrison confine'
to Torreon proper in its defense, while
Villa and other chiefs were fighting
their way into Gomez Palacio.
CARRIED in a dusty torn suit,
slouch hat and red handkerchief
tied about his neck as in his bandit
days, General Villa among the ragged,
thirsty, half famished soldiers who
have fought day and night for tho
capture of Torreon, was a conspicuous
figure.
The conventional notion of q com
manding general directing a campaign
through field glasses and with a map
spread before him found no illustra-
tion in Villa. Instead he climbed over
the rocky hills or crept among the
mesquite bushes to tell the men at
what point to fire. His principal ac-
tivity was that of scout, but his pres
ence never failed to inspire the sol
diers wherever he appeared.
General Villa, during pauses in the
firing, talked confidently of the fall
of Torreon. He did not place him
self, however, among those who be-
lieve the capture of Torreon would
spell the collapse of the Huerta
regime, but intimated rather that he
expected Huerta to fight on until pos
sibly the rebel forces surrounded Mex
leo City.
after Torreon," said General Villa,
1--WE will establish our military base
there for movements eastward and
southward. Chihuahua, with General
Carranza there, will become the provi
sional capital. 1t will be the center
of our civil government. But the mill
tary government will be here and it
will be a moving government"