USA > California > San Diego County > San Diego county, California; a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume I > Part 53
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53
The story of this terrible conflict was never known in detail, even by the par- ticipants, but a few of the incidents and a record of results have come down to us. Captain Moore was killed early in the fight, in a combat with Pico. The General was armed with a lance and the captain with a sword, which broke at the hilt while parrying the lance. Moore then reached for his pistol, seeing which, two rangers rushed in and killed him with their lances. One of these men was Jose Antonio Serrano, the other Leandro Osuna, both residents of San Diego. Moore's body was found near a pond of water, his sword hilt still in his hand, and the blade broken in two pieces.
Captain Gillespie, a skillful swordsman, was attacked by Dolores Higuera, commonly called "El Guero." Gillespie received first a slight wound in the chest
447
HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY
and was then struck full in the mouth and had two of his teeth knocked out. He was thrown from his horse where he lay still and feigned death. Higuera seized his horse with the saddle and bridle, also Gillespie's serape, and made off with them. Had he not been in such haste to secure this loot he would probably have discovered that his antagonist was shamming and have killed him. He afterward offered to restore this property to Gillespie, who refused to receive it since its loss had saved his life. General Kearny was singled out by a young Californian, who twice wounded him, but spared his life. While in San Diego at a later date the General inquired for this young man, had him call, greeted him warmly and praised his brave and soldierly conduct. Carson was thrown from his horse and his rifle was broken.
Davis says that in this fight General Pico's conduct was brave and honorable ; that he watched the conduct of his men, and whenever he saw a soldier unhorsed and wounded, called upon his men to spare his life. Kearny says in his report, however, that most of the killed and wounded were lanced while unhorsed and incapable of resistance. They all had as many as three lance thrusts and some as many as ten. An instance of unsoldierly conduct is related by Fremont as having been told him in Los Angeles by an eye-witness: "One of the Califor- nians in the melee ran his sword through the body of a Christian or Mexican Indian who was fighting on the American side. When he felt the sword going through him the Indian knew that he was killed and called out, 'Basta !' (enough). 'Otra vez,' (another time), said the soldier-murderer, and ran him through the second time. 'Ahi esta' (there it is), said he. 'Si, senor' (yes sir), said the dying man, with the submission of an Indian to his fate."
Conspicuous among the rangers were Captain Juan B. Moreno, Juan Lobo, a ranchero of Mission Vieja, and Dolores Higuera. Casimiro Rubio was wounded, one account says fatally. The horse of Pablo Vejar fell early in the second fight and he was taken prisoner. Gabriel Garcia killed Henry Booker, one of the men in charge of a howitzer, which was captured by the Californians. This gun came up at full speed near the close of the fight, the mules being fright- ened and the men unable to control them, and plunged madly after the retreat- ing enemy. Seeing this, the rangers closed in on the gun, captured one of the men in charge of it, wounded the second, killed Booker and made off with the howitzer.
The Americans rallied around the remaining howitzer in a circle to protect it from attack. As soon as it was ascertained that the Californians had drawn off, Kearny's first thought was of his rear guard, following at some distance under Major Swords, with the baggage. Some of the Californians were still seen in the rear, and Lieutenant Emory was sent back with a few men. He met Major Swords at the foot of the first hill, in the rear of the enemy's first position. Returning, they took up the body of Captain Johnston, which was partially plundered, his watch being gone, and carried it into camp.
It was a sadly demoralized body of men who now stood on their guard wait- ing to see what would happen next. The first report sent in by Kearny stated that he had eighteen killed and fourteen or fifteen wounded. His official report places the killed at nineteen and the wounded at fifteen. Griffin's diary says nine- teen men were killed, one missing supposed to be killed, and seventeen wounded. The best conclusion appears to be that nineteen was the correct number of the
.
448
HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY
killed; nineteen wounded and three of these died later, making the total deaths twenty-two; and one missing ; making the total casualties thirty-nine-every man, save two, engaged. The discrepancy is only in the number of wounded, General Kearny having apparently failed to take any account of a number of slight wounds. Only one death and one wound were caused by firearms, all the rest being due to lance and sabre thrusts. Following is a list of those killed and wounded :
Killed: Captains Johnston and Moore; Lieutenant Hammond; Sergeants Moore and Whitness; Corporals West and Ramsdale; privates Ashmead, Camp- bell, Dunlop, Dalton, Lucky, Repsoll, Gholston, Fiel and Gregory, of the dra- goons, and Booker of the volunteers; Farrier Johnson; and Menard of the engineers.
Missing and supposed to have been killed: McKaffray, of the dragoons.
Wounded: General Kearny; Captains Gillespie and Gibson, of the volun- teers; Lieutenants Warner of the engineers and Beale of the navy; Sergeant Cox, dragoons, who died December 9th; Roubidoux, interpreter; Kennedy, of the dragoons, who died at San Diego December 21st, David Streeter, who also died; and ten other dragoons.
Of the two prisoners taken by the Americans, Lara and Vejar, the latter was placed under the care of Philip Crosthwaite, who soon had to protect him from attack by one of the Delaware Indians. This Indian apparently did not believe in taking prisoners and therefore proceeded to try to massacre Vejar, but was prevented from doing so.
Regarding the losses of the Californians, the accounts are very conflicting. General Kearny in his official report expressed the opinion that "the number of their dead and wounded must have been considerable," although he adds that they carried aff all but a few. Judge Benjamin Hayes, who was personally ac- quainted with many of the Californians, and their friend for years, was never able to discover that a single one of Pico's men was killed. The prisoner, Vejar, thought that Lara was killed and twelve men wounded. He had probably seen Lara fall from his horse at the time he was shot, but as Vejar was taken prisoner early in the second action, he could have known little about the casualties. Pico himself reported to General Flores that he had eleven men slightly wounded. Two days later upon Kearny's offering to send Dr. Griffin to Pico's camp to care for his wounded, the latter replied that he had none. Doubtless this was a piece of bravado but it is clearly the fact that not more than eleven or twelve were wounded, and there is a strong doubt whether a single man was killed. A ranger named Andrado was shot in the thigh. He lived at Old Town in after years. Another wounded ranger was named Alvarado. He was shot in the thigh but recovered.
Camp was made and the dead and wounded collected and cared for. Kearny first gave orders that the eighteen bodies should be packed on mules to be carried to San Diego but it was found there were not enough strong mules to carry both the dead and the wounded, and it therefore became necessary to bury the dead. They were interred at night under a willow tree to the east of the camp. The burial was hurried and secret, as it was believed that if the graves were found the bodies would be disinterred and stripped. The bodies were afterward re- moved to the American cemetery near Old Town but now rest in the military
449
HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY
burying ground in the government cemetery at La Playa. "Thus," says Emory in his diary, with deep feeling, "were put to rest together, and forever, a band of brave and heroic men. The long march of two thousand miles had brought our little command, both officers and men, to know each other well. Community of hardships, dangers and privations had produced relations of mutual regard which caused their loss to sink deeply in our memories."
The General's wounds were so serious that it became necessary for Captain Turner to take command. The day was spent in caring for the wounded and manning ambulances. It took Dr. Griffin all day to dress the wounds. The situa- tion of the camp was on a little height, surrounded by cactus, in a defensible posi- tion, but without water. The ground was covered with rocks and cacti, so that it was hard to find a place where the wounded could rest comfortably. The pro- visions were exhausted, the horses dead, the mules on their last legs, the men worn out and suffering from the cold, and the Californians on guard near by. Pico reported to Flores that he only awaited the arrival of Cota to attack, and that the Americans could not escape.
Among the matters to which Captain Turner gave early attention were the questions of reinforcements and transportation for the wounded. Being informed by Beale that there were wheeled vehicles in San Diego, he determined to send there for help. Godey, Burgess and one other man were selected for this service and started early in the day, bearing the following letter :
"HEADQUARTERS, CAMP NEAR SAN PASQUAL, December 6, 1846. COMMODORE R. F. STOCKTON, U. S. NAVY, SAN DIEGO.
SIR: I have the honor to report to you that at early dawn this morning Gen. Kearny, with a detachment of the United States Dragoons and Captain Gillespie's Company of mounted riflemen, had an engagement with a very con- siderable Mexican force near this camp.
We have about eighteen killed and fourteen or fifteen wounded, several so severely that it may be impracticable to move them for several days. I have to suggest to you the propriety of despatching, without delay, a considerable force to meet us on the road to San Diego, via the Soledad and San Bernardo, or to find us at this place, also, that you will send up carts or some other means of transporting our wounded to San Diego. We are without provisions, and in our present situation find it impracticable to obtain cattle from the ranches in the vicinity.
Gen. Kearny is among the wounded, but it is hoped not dangerously; Cap- tains Moore and Johnston, First Dragoons, killed; Lieutenant Hammond, First Dragoons, dangerously wounded.
I am, sir, very respectfully, Your obedient servant, H. S. TURNER, Captain, U. S. A., Commanding."
Of the adventures of these men on the way we know little, but they reached San Diego safely the following day, December 7th. Another messenger had preceded them. This was Captain Stokes who, after witnessing the beginning of the battle and without waiting to see the close, hurried away to San Diego Vol. 1-29
450
HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY
and gave a highly colored account. He saw a great many men engaged and was sure the Americans had suffered defeat. Very little attention seems to have been paid to this vague report but when Godey and his companions arrived the next day the gravity of the situation began to be realized. This incident has been much discussed and one writer goes so far as to say that Stockton only left a fandango at Bandini's house long enough to hear Godey's story, gave a contemp- tuous refusal to do anything, and returned to the merry making. It may be true that the Commodore was found at a ball and also that he showed irritation and made use of hasty words, as he might be excused for doing. It appears, however, that he at once set about the sending of a relief expedition with two pieces of artillery and at first intended to have it leave on the evening of the 7th and to join it himself the next day, but it was found that it could not move so soon. Gillespie's party had taken all the good horses. Hensley had not yet returned from the south with more, there were no carriages for the guns, and supplies of all kinds were scarce. Godey and his men returned with letters to Kearny but seem to have carried with them the impression that no relief would be sent.
At 10 p. m. on the 9th a messenger arrived who made the urgency of the situation unmistakable. This was Lieutenant Beale, bleeding, exhausted, reduced to a skeleton, and scarcely recognizable. He was so weak that the pickets had to carry him in and soon after telling his story he became delirious. Of his two fellow messengers, Carson and the Indian alcalde Panto, the latter arrived a short time before, and the former soon after, he came in. It was now imperative that the relief column should start at once. The effort to get the artillery ready was therefore abandoned, and two hundred and fifteen of the sailors and marines who had been drilling on Presidio Hill were started off with one field piece, under Lieutenant Andrew F. V. Gray, of the Congress, Lieutenant Jacob Zeilin, also of the Congress, was in charge of the marines. They marched until nearly daylight on the 10th, then camped in a secluded spot and remained concealed during the day. They succeeded in evading Pico's men and joined Kearny's force at 2 p. m. on the 11th.
After burying their dead on the night of the 6th, the Americans spent a sleepless and uncomfortable night. "Day dawned," says Emory, "on the most tattered and ill-fed detachment of men that ever the United States mustered under her colors." Kearny was able to resume command and at an early hour gave the order to march. The wounded were placed in six litters made by "the mountain men," Peterson, Londeau and Perrot, formed of poles placed like the shafts of a wagon and each dragged by a mule, one end of the poles resting on the ground and the men reclining on a bed of willow branches woven between. This was but a crude conveyance and the roughness and stoniness of the ground caused the wounded great suffering, despite the utmost care. The wounded and baggage were placed in the center.
The route taken was toward the San Bernardo rancho, along the hills to the right of the stream. The enemy retired as they advanced keeping near the bed of the stream on the opposite side. At Snook's San Bernardo rancho the horses and mules were watered and a few chickens killed for the sick. They also found a number of cattle here and proceeded to drive them along, moving toward the bed of the stream in the hope of finding grass. About a mile from
451
HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY
the ranch house, near the foot of a detached hill, the Californians suddenly appeared in the rear and a body of thirty or forty of them dashed off to take possession of the hill. Kearny sent Captain Gibson with six or eight volunteers, who drove these horsemen from the hill with a few volleys and without loss. The booty in this skirmish consisted of three spears, abandoned by the foe. The cattle had been lost in this movement, as it appeared that any attempt at a further advance would bring on a fight and might cause the loss of the wounded and the baggage, it was determined to halt for the night. The men were now dismounted with the intention of performing the rest of the journey on foot. An insufficient supply of water was secured by digging and the fattest of the mules was killed for meat. The enemy took up a position across the creek and threw out pickets and the siege began. Early the next morning (December 8th) a ranger came in with a flag of truce, bringing some sugar, tea, and a change of clothing for Captain Gillespie, sent by his servant from San Diego. He also brought from Pico a proposal for the exchange of prisoners. Godey, Burgess and their companion had been captured by the Californians. Pico treated these prisoners well and inquired for the welfare of the wounded, particularly for Captain Gillespie, whom he knew. He had four prisoners-Godey, Burgess, their unnamed companion, and the man captured with the howitzer. Kearny had only Vejar and the wounded Lara.
Emory's simple and straightforward account reads as follows :
"In the morning a flag of truce was sent into our camp, informing us that Andres Pico, the commander of the Mexican forces, had just captured four Americans, and wished to exchange them for a like number of Californians. We had but one to exchange (this was Pablo Vejar), and with this fellow I was sent to meet Andres Pico, whom I found to be a gentlemanly looking and rather handsome man. The conversation was short, for I saw the man he wished to exchange was Burgess, one of those sent on the morning of the 6th to San Diego, and we were very anxious to know the result of his mission. Taking rather a contemptuous leave of his late captors, he informed us of the safe arrival of himself and Godey at San Diego. He also stated that when captured his party consisting of himself and two others, on their return from San Diego, had pre- viously 'cached' their letters under a tree, which he pointed out; but on sub- sequent examination, we found the letters had been abstracted."
The remaining prisoners were sent to Los Angeles by Pico .. The letters buried by Godey and his comrades to keep them from falling into the enemy's hands, having been found and seized, Kearny failed to receive the .n, and Bur- gess, ignorant of their contents, gave the general to understand hat help was refused. The situation now seemed more desperate than ever. The wounded were in no condition to move and starvation was drawing near. It was there- fore determined to send another party to San Diego with dispatches, in the hope of having Stockton understand the true situation, and of prevailing upon him to come to their relief. Lieutenant Beale volunteered for this service and Carson and the Indian alcalde Panto were also sent. The command settled down to await the result of this mission, though not hopeful of its outcome, and deter- mined to cut their way through as soon as the wounded were in condition to move. In the meantime, the baggage was burned, as it was thought there was no longer any hope of getting through with it.
452
HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY
The dispatch bearers began their hazardous journey at night, creeping past the sentinels inch by inch, so close they could hear them whisper and smell the smoke of their cigaritos. At one time Beale thought all was over. Pressing Carson's thigh to get his attention and putting his mouth upon his ear, he whis- pered : "We are gone ; let us jump and fight it out." Carson said: "No; I have been in worse places before and Providence saved me." His religious reliance encouraged the sinking hopes of Beale and they got through. After passing the sentinels they took different routes and as we have seen, all arrived. The Indian, being acquainted with the country, arrived first and in best condition, but Beale and Carson suffered terribly from the rocks, thorns and fatigue.
This night, December 8-9th, was one of the hardest the little company had spent. Emory tells one of the incidents with touching simplicity :
"Don Antonio Robideaux, a thin man of fifty-five years, slept next to me. The loss of blood from his wounds, added to the coldness of the night, twenty- eight degrees Fahrenheit, made me think he would never see daylight, but I was mistaken. He woke me to ask if I did not smell coffee, and expressed the belief that a cup of that beverage would save his life and that nothing else would. Not knowing there had been any coffee in camp for many days, I supposed that a dream had carried him back to the cafes of St. Louis and New Orleans, and it was with some surprise that I found my cook heating a cup of coffee over a small fire made of wild sage. One of the most agreeable little offices performed in my life, and I believe in the cook's, to whom the coffee belonged, was to pour this precious draft into the waning body of our friend Robideaux. His warmth returned and with it hopes of life.
"In gratitude he gave me the half of a cake made of brown flour, almost black with dirt, and which had, for greater security been hidden in the clothes of his Mexican servant, a man who scorned ablutions. I ate more than half without inspection, when, on breaking of a piece, the bodies of several of the most loath- some insects were exposed to my view. My hunger, however, overcame my fastidiousness, and the morceau did not appear particularly disgusting."
The annals of the following day (December 9th) are pathetically brief. Dr. Griffin's diary says : "In camp; nothing going on; the enemy parading the hills on the other side of the valley. We are reduced to mule meat." Sergeant Cox died in the night and was buried on the hill in a deep grave and covered with stones. He was a young man and married a pretty wife just before leaving Fort Leaven- worth.
On the Ioth while the horses and mules were grazing near by. the Californians tried to stampede them by driving up a band of wild horses and mules, some with dry hides attached to their tails. This movement was seen and by active work, a stampede prevented. One of the enemy's mules was shot and proving fat, was butchered and eaten and proved, in the language of Dr. Griffin, "a god- send." The wounded were now improving and Dr. Griffin reported that most of them could ride. General Kearny therefore determined to move the next day. About 2 o'clock the next morning, however, when everything was quiet in camp, one of the sentries reported that he heard voices speaking in English. This was shortly followed by the tramp of feet, and soon Lieutenant Gray and his men were welcomed into camp with joy. They busied themselves until day in dis- tributing food and caring for the wants of their comrades. The jack-tars were
453
HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY
delighted with the adventure and only sorry they had no opportunity to fight. When the sun rose the enemy had disappeared, leaving the cattle behind. At IO o'clock camp was broken and the march commenced, in close order. At night they arrived at Alvarado's Penasquitos rancho, where they camped and made free with the turkeys, chickens, goats and wine. A good night's rest followed and on the morning of the 12th they set out gaily for San Diego, which they reached about 4 p. m. and received a warm welcome from the troops and inhabitants.
The wounded men were distributed among the private families in San Diego, taken in charge by Dr. R. F. Maxwell, surgeon of the Cyane, and very tenderly nursed back to health. All but two recovered: Streeter, who was cut in sixteen places, and Kennedy, who died December 21st. William Heath Davis, who visited the invalids, says that they all had the utmost horror of the Californians. He spoke particularly of one young man who lapsed into delirium during his visit and called out in terror, thinking the Californians were put upon him.
How shall Kearny's encounter with Pico be characterized? Kearny him- self called it a "victory," and thought it might "assist in forming the wreath of our national glory." Looking back to it over a period of sixty years, it is impos- sible to regard it otherwise than as a defeat, even though it is true that the Americans finally reached San Diego, which was their objective, with the major portion of their forces. The performance of a commander must be judged by the use he makes of his opportunities and it is difficult to imagine how General Kearny could have made worse use of the opportunity which he had, after the union of his forces with the first relief party, under Gillespie, to overwhelm the Mexican commander and end the war in California at San Pasqual.
Had he chosen to avoid a fight he might have found excuse for such a course in the fact that his men and horses were utterly worn out by a long and ardu- ous journey across the deserts, and that the way was open, as shown by Gilles- pie's march. There are times when the avoidance of battle is good generalship. Beale advised this course and there were surely some arguments in its favor, yet it seems clear that most commanders in General Kearny's situation would have chosen the opportunity to strike a decisive blow at the enemy and thus crown the long adventure of the Army of the West with a victory of lasting importance.
Choosing the latter course, Kearny should have planned and fought his battle in thorough, soldierly fashion, instead of neglecting every precaution and expos- ing his followers to every danger. On the night before the battle he had a good knowledge of the situation and numbers of the enemy, and knew that his own presence had been discovered through the detection of his scouts. He knew Pico had separated himself from his horses and he had the benefit of the sugges- tion that it would be well to capture the animals, then make a night attack on the Mexican camp. Failing to adopt this plan, it was obviously his duty to pre- pare his forces for battle in the morning by having them recharge their water- soaked guns, form in a compact column and advance in such a manner that they could readily be disposed of to advantage and so meet the situation as it should develop. Think of sending men into battle with guns that could not be fired, mounted upon horses that could scarcely be ridden, and scattered along over a distance of half a mile in helter-skelter fashion. That is what General Kearny did. The result was inevitable-nearly every one of his men actually engaged was horribly slaughtered or grievously wounded and his own life was saved only
454
HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY
by the magnanimity of a gallant young foeman. He was able to inflict almost. no damage in return for this fierce assault, and there is a strong probability that he would have been utterly annihilated or compelled to surrender before reaching San Diego, except for the timely arrival of a second and powerful relief party from Commodore Stockton with ample ammunition and provisions.
The only possible explanation of Kearny's incapacity was that he underesti- mated the strength and ability of his chivalrous opponent. This fault is very serious in a soldier under any circumstances; in Kearny's case with the informa- tion supplied by Stockton, by a deserter from Pico's camp who came with Gilles- pie, and by his own scouts, it was utterly inexcusable. All the glory of the battle of San Pasqual belongs to General Andres Pico and his Mexican rangers. They made a hard and skillful fight with nothing but lances and swords against a more numerous enemy armed with muskets and howitzers, and withdrew in good order prepared to renew the attack at any favorable moment. The issue was finally determined by the arrival of reinforcements, not by the skill of the American commander. If Kearny be judged by the use he made of his oppor- tunity, he met inglorious defeat at San Pasqual. It is hard for a soldier to con- fess his mistakes and Kearny made no attempt to do so. In his official report he suppressed material facts and tried to regain the lost battle on paper. Doubt- less he suffered some injustice at the hands of his rivals for supreme authority in California, but the undisputed facts of the case leave no room to doubt his failure.
The war ended as far as California was concerned, with the battle of San Gabriel, near Los Angeles, January 9, 1847, and the treaty signed four days later by John C. Fremont for the United States and Andres Pico, for Mexico. From that day henceforth San Diego was undisputed American soil.
The 29th day of July, 1906, the sixtieth anniversary of the first raising of the American flag, was observed by the people of San Diego with fitting cere- monies. Fully four thousand people assembled on the Plaza at Old Town and gave earnest attention to the proceedings. In the procession were included the Mexican War Veterans, the Loyal Legion, Confederate Veterans, Sons of the Revolution, the Grand Army of the Republic, Spanish War Veterans, a battalion of the United States Coast Artillery, Company B Seventh Infantry National Guard of California, Masonic and other fraternal societies, and public officials.
Mayor John L. Sehon, chairman of the committee on arrangements, acted as master of ceremonies. After the invocation, a large new flag, donated by the sons of George Lyons, was raised on the flag pole already standing on the old Plaza, by Major Charles G. Woodward, U. S. A. Following this, a large granite boulder, designed to mark the spot where the first flag was raised sixty years before, and bearing a suitable inscription, was unveiled by Miss Fremont, daughter of John C. Fremont, assisted by Mayor Sehon, U. S. Grant, Jr., Major Edwin A. Sherman, president of the Mexican War Veterans, Colonel E. T. Blackmer, Captain Joseph D. Dexter, and others. A salute was fired and the oration of the day was delivered by William E. Smythe. Another feature of the day was the planting of a large date palm by Dr. T. C. Stockton and a committee of citizens, to commemorate the work of Commodore Stockton at San Diego. Hon. W. W. Bowers made appropriate remarks at this ceremony. 1
1481
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.