The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1916-04-01
Dodd's Troopers, Who Killed
81 Bandits, Again Pursue
Bandit Band
VILLA is REPORTED
AS BADLY WOUNDED
Statements as to Manner in Which He
Was Carried Away Characterized as
Guesses - Another Encounter, and
Possibly Capture, Expected.

Guesses = Another Encounter, and
Possibly Capture, Expected.
Ell PASO, Texas, April 1.-The capture
of Francisco Villa by the flying squadron
of American cavalry searching the Sierra
Nadre mountains is believed by army oil
GERS at Fort Bliss to be only a question of
days. His forces gathered into small
bands after their smashing defeat on We'd
nesday by the forces led by Col Dodd,
Villa IS reported today to have sought
safety in hiding in some of the recesses
Of the continental divide. The bandits in
iured leg, said to have been broken by
doubtless prevent him from making any
/ long flight over the ragged mountains
| That Villa already has been captured
and was being brought back to the army
base at Casas Grandes was a report heard
here today, but it was not credited in Off
cial circles
Mexican Consul Garcia had no word of
any further engagement between the
American troops and the Villa forces
Four hundred American cavalrymen
under the command of Col George A.
Dodd, galIoping down from the granite
slopes of the great continental divide, fell
on the main body OF Villas bandits at the
San Geronimo ranch. scattering them in
many directions and driving the bandit
chief, wounded and crippled to seek d hid
ing place in the mountains. Villa was hur-
ried from danger in a carriage. The fight
opened at Is o'clock Wednesday morning
and continued several hours
The news OF the exploit was flashed into
Juarez. opposite FL Paso, Texas, yester-
day, and sent a thrill along the border
For IL hours the veteran colonel with his
picked troopers OF the eth and 10th cav
airy drove down the valley of the Santa
Maria river. At the end of 5J-mile ride,
they fell upon the unsuspecting Villa
camp, where 500 bandits were celebrating
the massacre of 112 Carranza soldiers two
days previously at Guerrero.
) Villa, shot through the leg and with one
hip shattered, was hurried from the scene,
barely in time to escape the onslaught of
but hopeless stand before a charge OF Col.
Dodd and his troopers. Then they broke
and fled, leaving 81 dead on the field. in
t Guiding their commander, Cen Eliseo
{. Hernandez Two machine guns, number
of horses, rifles, ammunition and equip
Il ment fell into the hands of the Americans
= Among the known wounded is Pablo Lo
3 PEI, Villas lieutenant in the Columbus
S raid. The American casualties were four
y privates wounded.
: The American soldiers did not linger on
+ the field of victory. For five hours they
J drove the enemy before them into the
t wilderness of mountain peak, desert anC
{ canyon, where roads or even trails are un
: known and where a misstep means deatl
r to horse and rider. They halted only afte
e the chase had led them 10 miles and tht
n fugitives were scattered into little band
of half dozen men each
= The scene OF Col Dodd's victory is
> broad valley lying at the head of the SAINT
,r Maria river. On the west side rise th
1T barren foothills of the continental divid
le and to the east is trail, made famous b.
:. Villa, which leads through the Laguna d
1r Castillo district to Santa Ysabel 1t wa
it at the latter place that Villa killed L
n American mining men, a crime which sen
q thrill of horror throughout the Unite
~ States and marked the beginning of VIVA
;, many believe to be the end of his BLOOD
re stained career. 1t was toward Santa Us;
ge bel that he was believed to be headin
IN when the troopers of the United State
swept down from the north upon his caml
81 From the meager details which hav
of reached FL Paso from Mexican and Amer
90 can military sources Col Dodd's men mad
their way unnoticed through the arroyo
IS or deep gulci4es, which split up the foo
e hills in all directions, and were almost
10 the camp before the alarm was givel
oh Villa is reported to have been in sma
of tent nursing his injuries when the cras
of the American volley fire awoke the ban
dit to panic-stricken action The extrao
dinary hold the bandit chief has on his fo
lowers is shown by the fact that their fir
- thought to save him. Unable to wa
or ride, he was placed in a light wage
, and driven over the rough mountain roat
~ to some secret lair
rer While 81 Of the bandits are known
lth have been killed, it is said the numb
may have been considerably larger. Not