Arizona republican., 1916-06-23
IT
 TENTH REACH
 PERSH|NG bASE.
Republican A. p. Leased Wire1

SAN ANTONIO, June 22.-Strag- glers from the Tenth cavalry detach- ment that was in the fight at Carrl gal, arrIved at General Pershings headquarters today and told him that the fighting began with an unprovoked attack on the Americans at the con- clusion of barley with the Mexican commander. General Pershing trans mitted their story to General Funston tonieht, who immediately referred it to the war department.
 The men were unable to tell any thing regarding the casualties or even the later phases of the engagement. They retreated during the fight, be- came separated from their commands. making their way back to the Ameri- can lines The troops of the Tenth cavalry, Company C., commanded by Captain Charles T. Boyd. and Company K, commanded by Captain Lewis Mercy, comprised the detachment that arrived within mile of CarIizal at ' a. m June 21. They had stopped at Ojo Ge Santo Domingo on the previ- 'lio iiiSiAb, itouiliiio tilCil iAe'iNii tp~ ward the east at o'clock the next | morning.
 Frcm their position in front of Car rizal, the commander sof the detach- | ment believed by General Pershing | to have been Captain Boyd, since he was senior in rank to Captain Mercy, 1 sent forward a Mexican guide to se- cure from the commander of the Mex | ican garrison their permission to pass through the town.
 General Felix Gomez sent back word 1 by the guide that the Americans might pass through if they would consent to parley Without waiting for the | commander of the American force to | reply. General Gomez. accompanied by | an aide, appeared and the American officer rode forward to talk with him.
 While they were talking, tke men said, the Mexican troops moved for ward in force and deployed in sucl: | manner that there appeared danger of the American force being surrounded. One of the men who had been holding the horses of the American officer and the man who had ridden forward with him, said the American officer appear ed to protest against the positions General GomeZ's troops were taking
 A few minutes later General Gomez
 rode off toward che end of the Mex
 ican line and immediately after get
 ting there the Mexicans began to at
 tack. sweeping the American line with 9 machine gun
 It was not until then, according to
 It was not until then, according l.commanGers gave orders for both troops to dismount and return the
 fire.
 General Pershing said that before the Americans left on the expedition
 both he and Major Evans of the Tenth
 cavalry cautioned the commanding of ficer to be very careful not to provoke : a fight
 General Perslfing had received nc - news of the two squadrons of the : Eleventh cavalry he sent out thi, = morning to get in touch with tn,
 troops that were at CarriZal. Staff of. . ficers here calculated that the relic z party should reach the remnant of tho . little detachment late tonight or to- = morrow morning. It was assumed tha
 because the two troops were returnn; | with their wounded, progress neces s sarily, was slew and that the relic
 party would have to travel almost th = entire distance from the main line O
 communications to Carrizal. some 8
 miles
 General Funston appeared impresse,
 with the sincerity of the story brough
 in by the stragglers but said that
 would not cause him to send any ney
 instructions to General Pershing or [
 any of the border commanders. Tn
 report will be in Washington befor
 morning.
 General Pershing manifested surpris
 in his reports early today over the re
 port that the officers of the troop ha " precipitated the ngagement. He tol If General Funston in his report that a ,e of his men had received the mo. ,- positive orders not to do anything ths
 might precipitate fight
 Reports of routine character weI ,o received from all parts of the bordt ,d but none showed any marked inereas ,d ed activity of the bandits along u =. Rio Grande but almost all told of aC is tNlty Cn Ine part O1 the Qe fdcto gov
 ernment troops and of the Mexica
 population on all border towns. IT 1s tendency to q general evacuation
 border points by Mexican garrison = was offset to some extent by failu @ of the garrisons at Eagle Pass al " Laredo to withdraw
 - From Laredo it was reported tn
 orders from Washington were receiv h there to close the port to foodstui n offered in large quantities. No @ ba planation was offered but it was a no stunned by the customs officers tn n- ] ii was done to prevent the Mexic ah troops receiving supplies. e.
 la Prisoners at Chihuahua lat CHIHUAHUA CITY, Mex, June