interesting sights and amusements to keep the soldiers out of mischief,
one might have thought. The many strange and beautiful trees; the
mullard and sea-trout, schools of yellow jackfish, huge, pearly tarpon,
and many other denizens of the rivers and lagoons; the buzzards
coasting on air, the grunting ravens, and forty other kinds of birds;
the long, slender pirogues of red cedar constantly bringing luscious
fruits to the market; the many vessels coming and going: these were
only a few of the attractions. But in reality the town was a hard
problem, for its nearness to the United States and its commercial
relations made the exclusion of all undesirable visitors impossible.
So-called restaurants bearing popular American names flourished, and,
in spite of the prohibition against importing liquor, strong drink
was about all they offered except hard beef; while the existence of
gambling houses was proved by the severe and repeated orders against
them. Almost every volunteer, said a regular officer, celebrated his
arrival with a "frolic,"[31.13] and according to the Mexican accounts,
threats, insults and small depredations were not infrequent.[31.14]
[AFFAIRS AT TAMPICO]
But in Tampico as elsewhere, the people had much less to suffer, in all
probability, than from the Mexican troops who formerly had garrisoned
the town, and the big United States flag set up in the plaza near the
Pánuco represented substantial benefits. Many new kinds of manufactured
articles made their appearance, and all such things were sold at low
prices. Business became active. According to tradition the paving of
the city dates from this time. A theatre was built. Preparations were
made and presumably carried out for the extension of the mole. An
American newspaper appeared. Mexican visitors had to give an account
of themselves, and there were no riots and no dirks. Patrols marched
up and down the broad streets; sentries with fixed bayonets were on
hand at every gathering, even balls; and the very happiest of frolics
were pretty sure to end before morning with a nap on the guard house
floor.[31.14]
Some of the Mexicans thought our volunteer officers were afraid of
their men, but Gates, Shields and the other commanders do not seem
to have been. The assistance of the leading Mexicans in maintaining
order was invited; many of the citizens fraternized with our men; and
in general a high rate of mortality was probably the only serious
consequence of reckless tendencies. The residents thought the American
volunteers careless, badly dressed and poorly drilled; but some of them
admitted they had never felt so safe before.[31.14]
Clearly our troops improved in conduct as time went on, but none
the less their early excesses had serious consequences. For a long
while there had been a tendency in the northeastern parts of Mexico
to secede. The primary scheme had been to join Texas; and after our
absorption of Texas ended it, the idea of an independent republic,
with American protection or annexation to this country in view, gained
much support. Early in 1846 the authors of this project were in
communication with Taylor and the American government. Whether such
a plan could have been executed or not, there were reasons for our
wishing to have the people cherish it. In such a mood they were bound
to be our friends instead of enemies, and the paralyzing influence of
their temper would have extended into other provinces.[31.15]
Accordingly Taylor was instructed to favor the idea. But reports of
the outrages committed by our volunteers penetrated to all quarters;
the Mexican authorities, who understood the popular tendencies, were
doubtless active in spreading the reports; and the disposition to view
us with cordiality received a shock from which it never recovered.
"People near Matamoros, previously inclined to favor the Americans,"
declared the comandante general of Nuevo León in a broadside, "have
written these weighty words: 'The domination of the Grand Turk is
kinder than that of the Americans. Their motto is deceit. Their love
is like the robber's. Their goodness is usurpation; and their boasted
liberty is the grossest despotism, iniquity and insolence, disguised
under the most consummate hypocrisy.'" As an offset, the bad conduct
of Mexican officers and troops did not signify. That was a family
affair.[31.15]
The blackest shadow in the picture, however, was New Mexico. Armijo
had compensated the people for his tyranny and robbery by permitting
them every sort of license in their social relations. Virtue was
little known and less valued. Even women fought duels with dirks or
butcher-knives. Dances, at which all classes mingled in the revelry,
were the chief amusements; the church bells announced them; and at
mass one heard the same music, played by the same musicians. Gambling
and cock-fighting stood next in esteem, perhaps; and then came other
vices that seemed more precisely necessities than ornaments of
existence.[31.18]
To throw into a small and isolated community of that sort, without
books or society or proper diversions, a large number of young and
reckless frontiersmen greatly above the average in physical vigor,
was to make it a seething caldron of gross passions. The soldiers
were not willing to do what little work there was, and they scorned
regulations. "The dirtiest, rowdiest crew I have ever seen collected
together," was a responsible British traveller's description of the
American forces; and a soldier wrote in his diary, "A more drunken and
depraved set, I am sure, can never be found." To be liked, an officer
had to be lax, and to be unpopular was liable to mean--as good officers
learned--a pistol or a sabre in one's face. Half the captains, a letter
said, could be found every night in bad places. The disorder of the
governor's Christmas dinner party disturbed the whole town. There was
probably no deliberate oppression. Gross outrages appear to have been
few. But the drunken, brawling, overbearing volunteers despised the men
about them and showed it; and the latter, flouted at every turn, and
in particular robbed of their women, scowled and brooded with all the
ferocity of an indolent but passionate, jealous race, and plied the
knife when they dared.[31.18]
Kearny might perhaps have ridden the tempest, but a local politician
like Price could only be swept away. A few of the better Americans
got up a prayer-meeting, but that was just a dewdrop in Tartarus. One
began to be ashamed of one's nation, wrote a good officer. To enhance
dissatisfaction, the Indians continued their depredations as if no
treaties had been made. A well-meant code of laws was drawn up, but it
contained certain troublesome provisions about land titles; and some
taxation had to be imposed. The people took fright. "We have come for
your good; yes, for all your goods," began to be their interpretation
of Kearny's assurances.[31.18]
Naturally an insurrection occurred. Price now showed energy, and the
troops courage. In a brief campaign, January and February, 1847,
the malcontents were put down. But the people, though cowed, loved
the victors none the better, and the victors trusted and respected
the people none the more. The conditions became perhaps worse than
ever.[31.16] Supplies were uncertain. Discipline became lax again, and
the Indians were now more rapacious than for twenty years. Dissipation
resulted in much sickness and many deaths. Moreover the people felt
wronged because political privileges bestowed by Kearny in excess of
his authority had to be withdrawn. For most, if not all, of the time
it was impossible to obtain the money required for the administration
of civil affairs, and the civil authorities clashed with the
military.[31.17] Undoubtedly serious difficulties were inherent in the
situation, but nothing could excuse our government for permitting such
a state of things to continue for so long a time.[31.18]
[AMERICAN RULE IN CALIFORNIA]
Very different was the scene in California. Soon after the treaty
of Cahuenga was made Stockton returned to his naval duties, and
Frémont, appointed by him under the law of nations, assumed the
governorship.[31.19] In February, 1847, however, orders that had been
issued at Washington early in November, directing that the chief
military officer should take command, reached San Francisco, and about
the first of March Kearny became the executive. In general he was
inclined to be less indulgent than Frémont or Sloat, but he intended
to be fair and kind. "The Americans and Californians," he proclaimed
with the same exaggeration of his authority as at Santa Fe, "are now
but one people; let us cherish one wish, one hope, and let that be for
the peace and quiet of our country. Let us as a band of brothers unite
and emulate each other in our efforts to benefit and improve this our
beautiful, and which soon must be our happy and prosperous home."[31.21]
At the end of May, 1847, he returned to the east, and Colonel R. B.
Mason of the First Dragoons, whom the government had sent out for
the purpose, became governor and commander-in-chief. Mason was an
excellent executive, able, experienced, sensible, strong and faithful.
Some thought his character hard, but probably all clear-headed persons
realized that it was just. He believed in firm though kind methods,
avoided entanglements, and bore sway successfully till the close of the
war.[31.21]
The restless faction of the Los Angeles district, free from the
restraint of a large American element, still existed, and at intervals
caused considerable anxiety. Indeed it is clear from Mexican sources
that a hope of troops from the south was fondly cherished there for a
long time. The approach of the Mormon battalion, which--after suffering
many hardships on the route from Santa Fe--arrived at San Diego under
Captain Cooke in January, 1847, excited the people, for that sect was
loathed in California. A great deal of trouble about land titles arose,
for the surveying had been poorly done, the boundaries overlapped in
many instances, and few had the proper documents. Frémont's volunteers,
expecting large pay, refused to be mustered into the service under
the law of May 13, 1846, and were discharged in a very angry frame
of mind, April, 1847, with no pay at all; and very little was done
toward compensating the people for the spoliations committed by the
volunteers.[31.21]
The government, though tempered by the maintenance of the alcalde
system, was necessarily a military one; the old alcaldes, familiar
with the customs of the land, would not serve; the new ones, though
generally good men, could not always give satisfaction; and the growing
American element, disgusted with so unsystematic a system, demanded
self-government and written laws. No funds could legally be had for
the expenses of war and civil administration except those derived
from the customhouses, and the Americans were so deeply committed
by their promise of low duties that Mason felt compelled to reduce
the tariff explicitly ordered by the government. There were jealous
differences of opinion on many points between the Californians and
the Americans, between the various nationalities of the foreigners,
and between the old and the new immigrants; and finally the people
were disturbed by serious quarrels between the Stockton-Frémont party
and the Kearny-Mason party, and by the old fear that eventually the
Americans would sail away, leaving them to settle with Mexico as best
they could.[31.21]
For troops, besides Company C of the First Dragoons, Kearny's escort
from Santa Fe, there were Company F of the Third Artillery, which
arrived in February, 1847, the Mormon battalion, and a regiment of
New York volunteers under Colonel J. D. Stevenson, who came in March,
1847, and were expected to remain in California as settlers after the
close of the war.[31.20] Apparently the Mormons were to be a source
of weakness rather than strength, and the antecedents of the New York
regiment inspired little confidence. Stevenson's men did in fact begin
promptly to "sow wild oats." They were not disposed to work on the
fortifications, and they were insubordinate. But under Mason's control
they soon learned to do well, and he reported that at the close of the
war "one common cry of regret arose [from the Californians] at the
order for their disbandment; [and] the little petty causes of complaint
were forgotten in the remembrance of the more substantial advantages
they had enjoyed under the protection of the military." The conduct
of the Mormons was always exemplary and they won the esteem of the
people.[31.21]
Imported articles became cheap. Real estate and all the products of the
soil, particularly at the north, increased in value. Commerce trebled
in a year. All damages caused by men recognized as in the service
of the United States were repaired, and the offenders punished. The
return of José Castro without means or hopes at the beginning of 1848
produced an excellent effect. Gold-digging became more attractive
than conspiracies. And although a certain number of irreconcilables
cherished regrets and grievances, the official news of peace and
absorption in the United States--which came on the evening of August 6,
1848--greeted a busy and hopeful community.[31.21]
So much for the north, and we pass now to the régime of Scott.
After learning of the atrocities perpetrated on the Rio Grande,
that "scientific and visionary" officer drafted and laid before the
secretary of war a martial-law order, to be enforced in Mexico until
action should be taken by Congress. But the idea of putting constraint
on the free American voter probably struck Marcy with terror. He
started at the title, said nothing, and after a while returned the
paper without comment. Scott then sent it on to Taylor, and was
informed that the General threw it aside almost instantly, calling it
"another of Scott's lessons." The crying need of some adequate method
for punishing American soldiers in foreign parts compelled Marcy in
December to recommend that Congress authorize a military tribunal; but
that body also doubtless had an eye to votes, and took no action.[31.25]
[SCOTT'S POLICY]
Scott, however, though an aspirant for the Presidency, did not shrink
from his duty, and on arriving in Tampico he issued General Orders 20,
which threw the pale of martial law round all United States forces
operating in Mexico, and provided for the punishment, through "military
commissions," of offences committed by, in or upon them.[31.22] Orders
20, republished at Vera Cruz, Puebla and the capital and widely
circulated in Spanish, were supplemented by issuing safeguards, under
which one or more soldiers, bearing a proper document signed by a
corps or division commander, could be quartered at any place which
it was especially for the interest of the army to protect.[31.23] In
occupying towns the rule was to billet no officer or man, without
consent, upon any inhabitant, and to quarter the troops in barracks
and other public buildings already used for the purpose by the Mexican
government.[31.24] These arrangements, the practice of paying for
everything used by the army, the principle of treating non-combatant
Mexicans as fellow-citizens, and a strenuous endeavor to enlist the
coöperation of all the decent men of the army in the suppression of
outrages constituted the system of Scott.[31.25]
At Vera Cruz misdeeds were perpetrated, of course, but the culprits
who could be detected paid a price for their sport that put the fear
of the Lord--or at least of Scott--into the hearts of others. One
tipsy fellow, who nearly killed a Mexican woman with kicks and blows,
was strapped over a wagon, given twelve good lashes, and then placed
at labor in a fort with a ball-and-chain for the rest of the war. A
second ruffian, for a worse offence against a woman, was promptly and
publicly hanged.[31.26] On the other hand preventive regulations[31.27]
concerning liquor, gambling, roaming about the city and the like soon
went into force.[31.30]
But the American measures were not simply negative. Worth, who became
governor as soon as the town surrendered, distributed free rations
among the people, and prevented extortion by establishing a fair
scale of prices for eatables. A large force of laborers was employed
at liberal wages to clean the streets and the Augean castle of Ulúa.
Assured of protection the shops reopened promptly. In ten days the
general effects of the bombardment appeared hardly noticeable. Freed
from the exactions of their officials and military chiefs and rapidly
gaining confidence in our intentions, the people seemed like new men.
Commerce, favored by the low American duties, took on fresh life.
Although anti-Catholic sentiment was raging in the United States, Scott
and some of his principal officers attended mass and even marched in
the processions; and the soldiers were bidden to salute not only the
tasselled cane of the magistrate but the cassock of the priest.[31.30]
Worth soon moved on with Scott's army; but his successor was described
by the British consul as deserving "all praise." Those who followed him
did perhaps equally well;[31.28] all branches of the public service
were maintained; the good-will of the citizens was acquired and held;
and Lerdo de Tejada, one of the best statesmen and historians of
Mexico, has declared that Vera Cruz had to suffer scarcely anything
from the American occupation except the humiliation of foreign rule,
while profiting substantially in several respects.[31.30]
These results were achieved, too, under serious and almost crippling
embarrassments. In some regards the city was highly agreeable. Fish
more resplendent than gems lay always in the market. A long list of
delicious fruits and vegetables graced each its proper season. Often a
duet of the military band and the mocking-birds enchanted the ear. To
sip a sherbet at noonday--all the curtains drooping over the balconies,
the blue sky gray with excess of light, the blackbirds panting with
beaks wide open and wings partly spread, the lépero drunk with sleep
in the shadow of a wall, a hush over the docks, a stillness in the
market--had an exotic fascination; and an evening stroll round the
plaza or along the beach at Vergara, where the principal camp lay,
with the soft, languid, lingering breeze of the Gulf on one's face
and every star asking to be counted, was a delight one could not soon
forget.[31.30]
This region, however, was a favorite hunting-ground, not only of the
yellow fever, but of diseases even more fatal.[31.29] A few slices of
the fragrant Córdoba pineapple, washed down with a glass of the almost
irresistible brandy, left one hardly time to make a will. Through the
long day a huge ball of fire called the sun poured down an intense
heat, and at night the mosquitos were numberless. The story of the
invalids was long and sad; and sadder yet the tale of many a gallant
soldier-boy, full of thoughts of the loved ones, who breathed his last
sigh in the crowded wards of a hospital--_alone_.[31.30]
At Córdoba, where the lanes blazed with small red roses, the sentiment
was intensely Mexican, and the authorities ordered that on the approach
of the American forces as many of the inhabitants as possible should
leave town with everything belonging to the state that could be of
service. But the people were mostly satisfied with shutting themselves
up during the brief stay of General Bankhead, and the merchants did
not go so far as that. The legitimate rights of the conqueror were
asserted, but the American commander perhaps made full compensation
for this by requiring the city council to reduce the expenses of
administration. Care was taken to provide for the punishment of all
disorders, and in particular for all interference with religious
observances. After Bankhead left, hearing that some of the garrison
were plundering, he threatened to send an entire battalion, if
necessary, to apprehend the culprits.[31.31]
On higher ground farther west lay Orizaba, sombre yet beautiful amidst
its orchards, gardens, palm groves, orange trees and rich fields of
tobacco and sugar-cane, like a proud Spanish dowager surrounded by
her grandchildren. Here the troops helped themselves occasionally to
fruit and cane, injured trees and committed some graver offences. The
consequence was that soldiers were forbidden to leave the town except
on service and the officers commanding guards in the outskirts had
to arrest every man guilty of such acts or pay for the damages, and
in either case were held responsible for disobedience and neglect of
duty.[31.32]
[THE STATE OF THINGS AT JALAPA]
Of all the places occupied by American troops in Mexico the most
delightful was Jalapa. In fact, probably a more delightful place is
nowhere to be found. For natural attractiveness it surpasses even
Taormina, Kandy and Nikko, the beauty-spots of Sicily, Ceylon, Japan.
The abundant water was excellent, which could rarely be said of
Mexican towns, and ice from Orizaba Mountain could be had to cool the
abundant refreshments. The mercury never stood high and never low.
Spring was almost the only season. The foliage always looked new and
exuberant, and blossoms were constantly opening as if with ever fresh
surprise.[31.34]
From the plaza one gazed into a broad valley tapestried with
many-hued verdure. Here palms, live-oaks, magnolias, tamarinds and
aguacates--often enmeshed with beautiful and sometimes with aromatic
vines--gracefully sheltered the azalea, the verbena, the poppy, the
jasmine and countless varieties of geraniums and roses. Here such
exquisite plants as the vanilla, heliotrope and tree-lily exhaled
with unceasing generosity their delightful odors. Here, amid ancient
forests, gorges curtained with exotic ferns and orchids extended to
mysterious depths teeming with all manner of strange, fascinating
growths. And when, after long surveying this Eden, or descending to
wander far in its mazy paths, one's eye rose to a broad belt of pines
and firs clothing jagged sierras, and at last, above their rich green,
beheld a slender but enormous pyramid of snow, the peak of Orizaba,
heaven-high and resplendent against the deep, tropical blue, it seemed
as if nature had lavished on this chosen spot the whole diapason of
her beauty. Music hath charms to soothe; and such loveliness, grace,
perfume and grandeur, combined, were splendidly suited to still the
passions of war.[31.34]
Scott and the first American troops proved worthy of this paradise.
Nobody was molested. The officers lodged only in vacated houses.
The soldiers tried to make friends among the townsfolk. Our generals
attended the funeral of a worthy Mexican officer killed at Cerro Gordo.
Gold and silver flowed in streams--brighter than "Abana and Pharpar,
rivers of Damascus"--that reached the humblest cottage. Many of the
people wept when Scott marched away.[31.34]
But some later commands, untamed volunteers who stopped there for a
brief time, left a different impression. Lally's men seem to have been
a scourge, and Wynkoop's proved so lawless that even Lally's were glad
to see the last of them. During their stay the shops were closed, and
all business came to an end. Seven officers left their accounts unpaid
at the hotels, and some of them carried away towels or the shirts of
brother officers. In a word they were natural thieves. Other misdeeds
could be traced to the lack, for some time, of pay. But the main cause
of trouble was liquor. Against this evil, as against gambling and the
rest, adequate regulations were issued; but sometimes commissioned
officers, anxious to be popular, would force hotel keepers to let
their men have drink. At the bottom of everything lay the selling of
liquor by wholly unauthorized persons. "Let the municipal authorities
unite with me to put a stop to that _infamous traffic_," wrote one
American governor of the city to the first alcalde, "and I will answer
for it that there will be no disturbances or outrages committed by the
soldiers."[31.34]