Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1916-03-16


Just before tho fight this morning he APP
I reared clad in a trim military uniform
and rode one of three handsome sorrcl
chargers. which had not been used dur
Ing the long march. Mrs. Wright said
| Villa led nearly l,50o men on the sleep
! ing American town, at which were quar-
tered less than 80 American troopers
| She said some of the mon detailed to
! guard her during tho march north told
her Villa had 900 men and 6O0O horses
1T appeared TO me as if he had twice
! that many men and horses" she added,
| Just before she and her husband were
! taken prisoners with the Hayden hoy.
! Mrs Wright said, the Villa men told
her they had raided Colonia Juarez, an
, american Mormon settlement west OF
| Pearson. looted all the stores and had
killed some Of the foreigners
BANDITS TOOK EVERYTHING.
! "Scrvantes with twelve mon came to
the ranch the night of March L. Mrs.
Wright said in her story '"rhey pre-
TENDED to he Carranza soldiers and ask
, ed nc il ! had any food to sell. My
husband and Frank Hayden wcrc at
Pearson buying supplies, told them
! we had only n little flour and meal
Just enough for our family and the
family OF a Mexican cmployc. ! was
cooking, in expectation of my husband 8
arrival homo. and Servantes asked #
he might buy food for some of his mon.
; told him | would give him and his
men something to eat
| 1t was lust about dark then and my
! husband came into the yard with tWh
I pack miles which he unloadeG. AS soon
as that was done some of tn. McXicans
caught and saddled thc animals My hus
band came into the house and said: That
looks bad | said We would have 10 pu,
upwiih il and do the best We could. Scr
,1antcs became impatient and demanded
to sec our stores Of -four and meal. As
soon as / opened the store room he or
dcrcd some of his mon to take all our
supplies Then they called my husband
outside. The next ! saw of him his hands
had been tied behind his back. Ny hus-
gand called TO Hayden and he also Was
tied. Then | went with my baby III my
arms to Scrvantcs and told him that he
had eaten our food. taken all of Or -four
and mcal leaving US nothing, and that I
| did not think II was just to make pris
oncr of my husband. Meanwhile tie SOL
diors. evidently at Scrvantes order began
stripping the house Of everything. They
took Is horses ard every other animal
ON tho ranch. ! protested again and Scr
vantcs said he would order the -four to
he returned but tho man To whom nc
gavo the orrler never moved
Ny husband was taken ont to tho gate
Of the ranch. Scrvantcs turned to some
other officers and said Y really believe
she would, and will not give her rifle. =
Then turning to me. he said: You arc
tho hardest woman ever saw replied
This would make any woman hard
lust before the march, for tho border
began, ! spoke to General Villa again,
asking him tn set me flc, because I did
not want my own countrymcn. the Am
crcan soldiers firing upon mo In the
ranks of the McXicans. But he laughed
, and said that when We rot 10 Columhu.
he would give me my papers in tho office
Of tho bank there. lie also said that tho
. life had led with his troops was malinl.
me fat.
" Your checks arc rosy and fat he
said. 'Sunhurnt and Swollen 7 said
Villas THREAT
we lett Eoca Grandc yesterday and
} crossed tho border west or Columbus
before -four o'clock. The officer I'm
charge Of tho company / was with said:
We will lay the town In waste and
Villa said, We arc to make torches ~
every man, woman and child 10 he
, found
AS We entered Tho ditch leading
past tho American army cRlnp below
Columbus tho captain of my compan,
told me that Ire and twenty other Of
ficcrs had crossed the border yester
I day as spies and found that only Il few
e American soldiers were i'm camp tina
tho others were further west. He add
cd that cVcrNhodY expected an cas-,
time capturing and burning the towr
i and destroying every American in Il
. The McNican' inhabitants, he told nc
were TO be spared,
, II was in the line villa threw alons
Il the railroad tracks after his troop
: had swept eastward through the Uni
ted States cavalry. A bullet hit the
saddle Of my horse as stood dis
mounted bchind il. villa sent his mei
. across the tracks into the town. Soor
saw buildings ON fire. then tn,
Il American troops apparently got iutc
action and ia a little while the MeXi
cans came back.
Il MA rode among the men. cursiu,
= and threatening TO shoot any man VII,
: Manuel who said he was too sick {,
uGhr had been detailed TO guard me H.
u sand II he could he would run into Ameri
= can territory with me because he ha
/ had enough of war. hut he was afraid
ana went back with the retreatIn,
J. forces until | reached n point near IN
s. house where Mr.. Moore was killed an,
H. his wife wounded.
REGAlNS HER FREEDOM
Here Villa came upon me. Again
- asked him TO set me free
y "Nou go, YOU are at liberty lie said
| went to the Moore house and foun,
" Mr.. Moore lying face down on the step
~ dead. His wife was I'm nearby fol,
wounded. She had seen her hushan
shot, but did not know he was dead
~ Some American soldiers came by The
y called for an ambulance and I came I
" Columbus with Mrs Moore"
. Mrs Wright assisted surgeons who at
" tended Mrs. Moore and IN the arm
~ camp she again assisted in helpin
wounded soldiers She was then take
80 in charge by Mrs. Socum. who put he
to he'd, the nrs, bed she had slept 4