USA > Texas > A comprehensive history of Texas, 1685-1897 > Part 18
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that he then had on hand belonging to the Mexican government, and which had been loaned to him by that government, the following property, viz. : two hundred and twenty-one muskets, twenty-four rifles, one hundred and fifty-seven bayonets, two hundred and twelve cartridge-boxes, four drums, five trumpets, three six- pounder rifled brass cannon, with carriages and limber-chests, fifteen horses, and ten mules.
Upon the arrival of the French army at the mouth of the Rio Grande River, Colonel Jolin S. Ford at once placed himself in communication with its commander, and through his untiring efforts a very friendly feeling was at once established be- tween their officers and the Confederate States authorities. Repeated efforts made by the latter failed to embroil the United States authorities in a conflict with the French, and several indignities which the French offered the United States government were unresented and unnoticed.
By a preconcerted arrangement between the Union commander at Brazos San- tiago and Colonel Cortina, it was provided that the latter should cross the Rio Grande above Brownsville and attack that city at the time of a simultaneous attack from below by the Union forces, but its miscarriage resulted in a signal defeat of the latter. On the morning of September 10, 1864, a small body of Confederate cavalry on picket duty at San Martin Ranch under Captain W. H. D. Carrington, of Giddings's battalion, observed a force of about two hundred and fifty of the enemy approaching. Captain Carrington withdrew his small force and sent to Colonel Giddings for reinforcements. About half-past two o'clock Lieutenant- Colonel George H. Giddings, with the companies of Captains Carr, Saunders, and Benavides, met Captain Carrington, who had drawn the enemy along slowly, and, after placing about one hundred of his command under cover in the resaca, sent the other thirty out to meet the enemy and drew them into an ambuscade. The ruse succeeded so well that when the whole Federal force charged the decoy party, the latter retreated precipitately and the former fell into the trap.
When the Federals charged up to the resaca, the Confederates, who were dis- mounted under the bank, poured a deadly fire into their ranks, before which they turned and fled. The Confederates then mounted their horses and pursued them several miles. The Federal commander, Major Noyes, was so closely pressed that he threw away his clothing and private papers, which fell into the hands of the pursuers. The Federal force engaged was two hundred and fifty men, and they lost eighty-six killed, wounded, and missing, and one stand of colors. The Con- federate force engaged was one hundred and thirty men, and they lost one man killed, one wounded, and four horses killed.
The intended co-operation of Colonel Cortina failed principally because some of the leading officers under his cominand disapproved of his plans, and when his force reached the river above Brownsville these officers made a pretext of the slightly swollen waters for not crossing and returned to Matamoras. But so con- fident were the Federal authorities of the fruition of the plan of capture that a de- tailed account of the recapture of Brownsville was published in the New Orleans papers.
Twenty Mexicans belonging to Cortina's command, who had gone to Brazos Santiago to join the Union forces, were captured on the 12th of September by the
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Confederates and turned over to General Tomas Mejia, the commander of the Im- perial Mexican army at Matamoras, who enrolled them in his army. Although not within the scope of this history, it may be mentioned as an interesting fact that when the Imperial army of Mexico under General Mejia occupied Matamoras, Colonel Cortina was not untrue to his instincts as a traitor, but joined the enemy himself and attempted to betray the entire garrison. In this, however, he was partially foiled by the watchfulness and patriotism of his subordinate, Colonel Canalcs, who escaped to the Texas side of the river with a large number of the Republican Mexican troops. Upon their arrival they stacked their arms and asked refuge of Colonel Ford, the Confederate commander. This was granted, and their arms purchased and paid for.
A few words concerning General Mejia may also be pardoned. He was.a full- blooded Cerro Gordo Indian, very dark, of the pure Aztec type, and was rugged, honest, candid, and fearless. He received his education at the Mexican military academy at Chapultepec, and was a trained, educated soldier. He was one of the prominent men of the nation who had joined in the invitation to Prince Maximilian to assume the imperial crown of Mexico, in which he was actuated by the purest motives of patriotism. Warned by the frequent revolutions which had disturbed the peace of his native country, he believed that this was the only way to assure it a stable government capable of protecting the lives and property of its citizens. He surrendered with the Emperor Maximilian at Querétaro, and the commander of the victorious Liberal army was his former friend, General Escobedo, whose life Mejia had saved on one occasion. At a late hour the night before Maximilian, Mejia, and Miramon were to be shot, Escobedo entered the prison cell of Mejia and told him that at a certain hour he would find a man on guard who knew him and who had orders to let him pass. He gave him directions how to reach an indicated point, and said : "There you will find a saddled horse ; mount him and leave ; save your life, and permit me to repay the debt of gratitude which I owe you." His calm reply was : "I thank you, general, but I will stay and die with the emperor ;" and he died as he had lived, a true patriot, unawed by fear, and met death with the stoical fortitude of his race.
At this place it may not be inappropriate to refer, for the purpose of correc- tion, to a glaring misstatement in Bancroft's "History of Texas." He prints a letter, without disclosing the name of the writer, but he is evidently a Mexican, which represents the French army, five thousand strong, as moving against Mata- moras, when General Cortina, with three thousand Mexicans, attacks the invaders ; Colonel John S. Ford crosses the Rio Grande, takes a large number of cattle to the French, and attacks Cortina in the rear. That hero whips both his assailants and drives the French back to Bagdad and Ford across the Rio Grande ; he crosses over with his whole force, including artillery, and drives the Texans from Browns- ville. He hoists the United States flag and informs the Federal commander at Brazos Santiago of the event, and places the city at his disposal. The pseudo-his- torian evidently fixes this Quixotic achievement on the 9th of September, 1864. It is well known to hundreds of reliable men now living that no such an event ever took place, and Colonel Ford himself denounces the narrative as the falsehood of a calumniator. and not the mistake of a historian. If any proof was needed to dis-
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prove the statement, the testimony of the hero of the episode himself is not want- ing. In 1891, Colonel Ford was in the City of Mexico, saw General Cortina, and obtained from him the following repudiation :--
" ALZEAPOZULCO, October 17, 1891.
" SIR,-At your request, I will state that the accounts in Mr. Bancroft's . His- tory of Texas,' on page 408 and other pages, contain mistakes. The account of my having burned Roma is without foundation. No such thing ever occurred. The statement in Mr. Bancroft's 'History of Texas' that Colonel John S. Ford passed the Rio Grande in 1864 and carried beef to the French invaders of Mexico, and afterwards joined the French forces in an attack on the Juarez troops com- manded by myself, in which the French and Confederates were defeated by me and forced to retreat, is an error. No such thing ever occurred.
"The same author states that I, subsequent to the engagement, -an untruthful account of which he publishes, -passed the Rio Grande and captured the city of Brownsville in 1864. Mr. Bancroft must have been imposed upon by some man who was in the habit of stating falsehoods. The reputed capture of Brownsville in 1864 never took place. Mr. Bancroft could have learned this had he applied to me for the facts.
"This letter will, I hope, convince the public that Mr. Bancroft's utterances in respect to these affairs are utterly unreliable.
"I am, sir, your obedient servant, "J. N. CORTINA." "To COLONEL JOHN S. FORD, of San Antonio, Texas."
On the 11th day of March, 1865, Brigadier-General James E. Slaughter, who was then in command of the Confederate forces on the lower Rio Grande, received, through Mr. Charles Worthington, an invitation from Major-General Lew Wallace, of the United States army, to meet him in consultation at Point Isabel, for the purpose of a friendly talk. Accompanied by several members of his staff and Colonel John S. Ford, General Slaughter repaired to the designated point, about twenty miles from Brownsville. The parties held a conference which lasted twenty- four hours, and terminated in the submission by General Wallace of the following written communication, a true copy of which has been furnished by Colonel Ford for this work :---
" At your instance, I beg leave to submit the following points upon which it is possible, in iny judgment, to secure immediate peace.
"For the sake of a perfect understanding permit me to say :--
" First. The proper authorities of my government have not authorized me to present terms or make overtures of any kind to anybody.
" Second. As you will observe, the propositions are drawn with special refer- ence to the trans-Mississippi region, and to what, I think, is a certainty that they will prove acceptable to my government. It should be understood, therefore, that they are by no means in the nature of finalities. It would be presumptuous in me to undertake to announce in my name what may be the result of negotiations sincerely concluded by parties properly empowered.
" Third. I will venture to suggest that, considering the present situation in the region alluded to, your highest present obligations are to your army, your civil authorities, and your citizens. A voluntary settlement on your part cannot, in my opinion, be hoped for unless the honor, happiness, and security of these classes are guaranteed. To this end my propositions are drawn.
----
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:
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" Propositions .- First. That the Confederate military authorities of the trans- Mississippi States and Territories agree, voluntarily, to cease opposition, armed and otherwise, to the re-establishment of the authority of the United States government over all the region above designated.
"Second. That the proper authorities of the United States, on their part, guar- antee as follows :--
" I. That the officers and soldiers at present actually comprising the Confed- erate army proper, including its bona fide attaches and employés, shall have and receive full release from and against all actions, presentations, liabilities, and legal proceeding's of every kind, so far as the government of the United States is con- cerned, upon the simple condition that, if they choose to remain within the limits of that government, they shall first take an oath of allegiance to the same ; if, how- ever, they, or any of them, choose to go abroad for residence in a foreign country, all such shall be at liberty to do so, without obligating themselves by such oath, taking with them their families and property, with liberty of preparation for such departure.
"2. That such of said officers and soldiers as shall determine to remain in the United States shall be regarded as citizens of the United States government, in- vested as such with all the rights, privileges, and immunities now enjoyed by the most favored people thereof.
"3. That the above guarantees shall be extended to all persons now serving as civil officers under the National and State Confederate governments at present existing in the region above particularized upon their complying with one or the other of the conditions mentioned, viz. : residence abroad or taking the oath of allegiance.
"4. That persons now private citizens of the region named shall be included in and receive the same guarantees upon their complying with the same conditions.
"5. As respects rights of property, it is further guaranteed that there shall be no interference with existing titles, liens, etc., of whatever nature, except those derived from seizures, occupancies, and proceedings of confiscation under and by virtue of Confederate laws, orders, proclamations, and decrees, all of which shall be consid- ered and treated as void from the beginning.
"Lastly, it is further expressly stipulated that the rights of property in slaves shall be referred to the Congress of the United States.
" The above, as it seems to me, offers a sufficient basis for a definite settlement. If it could be accepted in the spirit it is offered, I believe we would be a reunited and happy people.
"I am very truly your friend and obedient servant, "LEW WALLACE, " Maj .- Gen. Vols., U. S. Army.
"TO BRIG .- GEN. J. E. SLAUGHTER and
COL. JOHN S. FORD, C. S. Army."
During the interview General Slaughter and Colonel Ford disclaimed any authority to act upon any proposition which General Wallace might submit, but could only report the matter fully to their superior military authorities. They had agreed between themselves to talk as little as possible, but hear all that General Wallace had to say. General Wallace, also, upon his part, disclaimed any authority to act for his government, but distinctly stated that General Grant would endorse whatever he might do in the premises. "And," said he, " whatever General Grant recommends Mr. Lincoln will do. I suppose it is now the same with the govern- ment at Richmond in regard to General Lec." Said he : " Mr. Lincoln declined to meet the Confederate commissioners, but General Grant wrote suggesting he
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should do so, and Mr. Lincoln obeyed with as much promptness as if the suggestion had been a military order and he a soldier."
He said that he proposed to treat directly with the military authorities of the Trans-Mississippi Department, remarking frequently during the interview : "The armies must make peace ; they alone have the power to enforce treaty stipulations ; politicians must have nothing to do with the matter. What is the use of treating with the civil authorities? they are powerless."
He also assigned as a reason for making these propositions to the military authorities of the Trans-Mississippi Department, " that the Confederate government had abandoned that department ; that the people thereof had a perfect right to take care of themselves, and it was their bounden duty to adopt such measures as they found necessary for their self-preservation." He insisted that they might now return to the Union without the imputation of coercion, as the territory composing it was not being formidably invaded, or even threatened with immediate invasion, nor would it be until the termination of the demonstration against Mobile, which was then being made. He said it would be a matter of no consequence to the Southern people whether their slaves were emancipated by their own voluntary act, by the action of Congress, the amendment of the Constitution, or by an invading army ; that wherever an army of the United States went the slaves were freed, and hence the. futility of Mr. Lincoln's proclamation.
To these suggestions the Confederate officers replied that the Trans-Mississippi Department could not honorably entertain any propositions on the line suggested, unless they were also submitted to the other States of the Confederacy ; that the Confederate government alone had the power to treat. General Wallace asked : "Did not the States go out of the Union by separate State action?" The Con- federate officers replied : "They did ; and they have a right to secede from the Confederacy for just cause ; but we feel bound to our brethren on the other side of the Mississippi by a stronger tie than our Constitution, -- our plighted faith to stand by them. Honor forbids us to deliberately desert them."
During the conversation General Wallace acknowledged that the negro pre- sented himself in every phase of the question as a stumbling-block ; neither the North nor the South knew what to do with him. The Confederate officers told him there was an inconsistency, an injustice, in asking Texas and the other States to go back into the Union by sacrificing many millions of dollars without compensation ; that Mr. Lincoln's proclamation declared the negroes free, and the proposed amend- ment to the Constitution emancipated them.
He replied : "Let me tell you confidentially, we regard Mr. Lincoln's procla- mation as a great mistake. It is looked upon by the most intelligent men of the North, outside of the radical abolition party, as a nullity, and will be treated ac- cordingly. The amendinent to the Constitution will probably not be ratified by a sufficient number of States to give it validity for years ; indeed, it may never be. Slavery in the returning States would be governed by the action on that amend- ment."
During this protracted interview General Wallace also referred to the struggle then going on in Mexico between the adherents of the Emperor Maximilian and the Republicans led by President Juarez. He asserted unequivocally that the
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government of the United States intended to enforce the " Monroe doctrine," and refuse to recognize any empire in Mexico, but would aid the Juarez party, and in the end place Mexico under the protection of the United States.
He descanted upon the glory of such an undertaking, appealed to the preju- dices of Americans to enlist their sympathies in a cause which proposed to establish upon this continent a policy peculiarly American, and invited the Trans-Mississippi Department to assist in the consummation of the work. He suggested the proba- bility of his government sending a navy of three hundred armed vessels into the Mediterranean Sea as a demonstration of strength. Colonel Ford asked him if he did not consider it probable that the execution of these plans would involve a war with France, England, and their allies. He replied, unhesitatingly, that he did ; but made no secret of his confidence in the ability of the reunited Americans to hold their own, even against such formidable European powers.
In pursuance of General Wallace's suggestion, it was then decided not to fight any more on the Rio Grande ; that a desperate encounter in that out-of-the-way place, if all of both sides were killed, could have no effect whatever on the final result.
. It was also agreed that the adherents of President Juarez, who presented them- selves, should have facilities afforded them of passing over the intervening space between Brownsville and Brazos Santiago ; that a Confederate general would escort them to the Union lines and there turn them over, and many distinguished Mexicans were thus passed away from Mexico.
The above propositions of General Wallace, with the reports of General Slaughter and Colonel Ford as to the details of the interview, were immediately forwarded under the seal of secrecy to Major-General John G. Walker at Houston by a special messenger, Lieutenant Colonel Fairfax Gray. Instead of forwarding thein on to Lieutenant-General E. Kirby Smith, commanding the Trans-Mississippi Department, General Walker had them published in the Houston newspapers ; his reason for doing so, as he afterwards explained to Colonel Ford, being that the character of the reports made by General Slaughter and Colonel Ford had been so greatly misrepresented that he thought it best to have everything connected with the interview published, in order to allay undue excitement.
These documents have not yet been published in the records of the War of the Rebellion, but will in all probability be published in due time.
During the spring of 1865 every thoughtful man felt that the downfall of the Southern Confederacy was a matter of a very short time. The little army of Texans on the lower Rio Grande, very much depleted by many leaves of absence and some desertions, had been lying idle for two months ; seeming to be waiting for something unusual to turn up. Some occurrence out of the ordinary of passing events seemed to be expected ; it might be the end of the war, or it might be the end of the world, which many would equally have welcomed, for they felt sure that the war would not otherwise terminate than with disaster to the Southern cause.
On the 12th of May the garrison at Brownsville was electrified by the news that Giddings's battalion at Palmito Ranch, twelve miles below Brownsville, had been attacked by the enemy, capturing their camp, rations, clothing, and two sick sol- diers. Preparations were at once made to reinforce Captain W. N. Robinson, commanding Giddings's battalion, and give the enemy battle ; and all the available
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force was hurried to the front. The cavalry and artillery horses were in a most pitiable plight, the former scarcely able to bear their riders, and the latter could with difficulty draw the gun-carriages at a moderate trot. Arriving in the vicinity of Palmito Ranch on the morning of the 13th, it was learned that Captain Robinson had attacked the enemy the evening before and driven them back from Palmito Ranch to the White House, about four miles, but that they had been reinforced and were then advancing.
Colonel Ford, who was in immediate command of the Confederates, by three o'clock P.M. had made such preparations as were possible with his inadequate force to meet the enemy. Anderson's battalion of cavalry, commanded by Cap- tain D. M. Wilson, was placed on the right, and Giddings's battalion on the left, and one section of Captain O. G. Jones's battery of light artillery placed in the road, one on the left, and the other held in reserve. In a short time the skirmishers became engaged, and then the artillery opened with quite a rapid fire. The shot and shell did considerable execution, and seemed to throw the enemy into confusion. It was evident that they were not aware that the Confederates had any artillery until the guns opened, and this was afterwards confirmed by the prisoners captured. The artillery fire checked the advance of the main body of the enemy, thus leaving their skirmish line unprotected ; and as soon as Colonel Ford discovered this, he ordered the cavalry to charge. This they did with im- petuosity, and captured the whole of the skirmish line. By this time the main body was in full retreat, and a simultaneous advance was made along the whole Con- federate line. The artillery moved forward at a gallop, amid the shouts of excited men, now and then taking positions on the elevated points adjacent to the road and firing at the routed and retreating enemy ; and the cavalry harassed their flank and rear with repeated charges, in which great gallantry was displayed. Thus the fight continued for seven miles, the enemy now and then endeavoring to make a stand and check the pursuit, but as fast as they did so they were driven from their posi- tions before they had time to recover from their demoralization. Many of the Union soldiers jumped into the Rio Grande, some swam over to the Mexican shore, and many were drowned in the muddy waters of the river. The strength of the Union force engaged was about eight hundred infantry, and they lost thirty killed and wounded who were found upon the field, besides those who were lost in the river, one hundred and thirteen prisoners, and two stands of colors, one of which belonged to the Thirty-fourth Indiana Regiment ; and a great quantity of guns, accoutrements, and clothing were scattered along the whole line of retreat. The Confederate forces engaged consisted of Giddings's and Anderson's battalions of cavalry, the former commanded by Captain W. N. Robinson and the latter by Captain D. M. Wilson, their combined strength being about three hundred men, and Captain O. G. Jones's battery of light artillery of six guns, with Lieutenants C. H. Williams, Charles I. Evans, J. M. Smith, and S. Gregory and about seventy men. Their loss was five men wounded, but none of them dangerously.
It was learned for the first time, from the prisoners who were captured, that the Confederacy had fallen, that its arinies east of the Mississippi River had surren- dered ; and the Union officers, thinking that the Confederates had also heard of the termination of the war, had marched up from Brazos Santiago to take possession of
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Brownsville, not expecting any resistance. This was the last blow struck for State rights. The first clash of arms at Bull Run had ushered in the great Civil War amid the exultations of the victorious Southern soldiers, and the curtain now fell upon the last scene of the dark and bloody drama amid the victorious shouts of the Texans at Palmito Ranch, -THE LAST BATTLE OF THE WAR.
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