fended and were passed in safety. The town and castle of Perote were occupied April 22d, without resistance, where many guns and other munitions, abandoned by the enemy, fell into our hands. As the army advanced toward Puebla its progress was delayed only by its limited transportation, which was entirely insufficient to supply its needs over the long line from its principal depot at Vera Cruz. The enemy, however, offered no serious resistance to its progress. On May 14th, while our troops were in bivouac near Amozoc preparing to make an imposing entrance into Puebla the next day, the Mexicans attempted a surprise, but without success. In this affair McClellan distinguished himself by his coolness and daring in the capture of a Mexican cavalry officer, whom he brought in a prisoner after a lively chase.

Puebla was occupied May 15th, and here a long delay was obligatory to await the arrival of the necessary re-enforcements for the prosecution of the campaign, since the little army was depleted by the discharge of seven regiments of twelve months' volunteers, May 4th, at Jalapa, their terms of enlistment having nearly expired. The Government had been inexcusably dilatory in providing re-enforcements for Scott's army, which, having fought its way into the interior of the enemy's country, had suffered such losses by battle, sickness, and expiration of service that its position might well have been considered hazardous in the extreme. The act providing for ten one-year regiments for the regular army was passed in February, but it was not until August 6th that the re-enforcements under General Pierce arrived at Puebla. In this precarious interval the strength of the American army. at Puebla fit for duty, before the arrival of Pillow's troops, was only fifty-eight hundred and twenty; and with his added, the aggregate fit for duty was a little over eight thousand men. Pierce's brigade increased this to a little over ten thousand men for the advance to the Mexican capital. The story of the subsequent campaign seems almost incredible. Against an enemy three

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times its number, fighting in defense of its own capital, which was admirably defended by nature and art, a single defeat might have proved most disastrous. But Scott's army was well officered and disciplined, and his engineers were men of distinguished ability, whose keen perception and wise counsel were continually made of avail in the plans which the matured judgment of the commanding general devised.

Another

Three days after the army moved from Puebla it crossed the summit of the Rio Frio Mountains, and from thence it could see the City of Mexico and the It was soon concentrated at surrounding country. Ayotla, a small village on the north shore of Lake Chalco, where it was halted until the engineers could reconnoiter the most practicable route for the advance. The most direct route lay between Lakes Chalco and Texcoco, which was, however, strongly defended by the batteries erected on the hill El Peñon. reconnoissance on the 13th, in which McClellan took part, and which was characterized by General Scott as the boldest of the war, was pushed as far as Mexicalcingo, which demonstrated the great difficulty of this route and caused the adoption of that to the south of Chalco, so as to approach the City of Mexico by way of San Augustin. With the engineer company at its head, Worth's division led the way, followed by the rest of the army. And now began that series of battles which gave such renown to our gallant little army in Mexico, and brought it to the gates of the Mexican capital: Contreras, August 19th, San Antonio, Churubusco, and San Pablo, on the 20th, were such conspicuous feats of gallantry against an enemy three times their number, in their own well-chosen and fortified positions, that the Mexicans were thoroughly demoralized, and the city could then have been captured had not an armistice intervened. Though but a very junior subaltern officer of the army, McClellan's bravery, gallantry, and good conduct were so conspicuous as to merit and receive special commendation. At Contreras he had two horses shot under him, and

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while temporarily in command of a section of artillery he was struck by a grapeshot, which, however, luckily expended its force upon the hilt of his sword. Upon being relieved by Jackson, of Magruder's battery, from the command of the section, he did effectual service with a battery of mountain howitzers, whose officer had also been wounded. He was with his company of engineers when it led Smith's brigade of regulars in its attack on the flank of the enemy, and afterward routed their cavalry in a charge on the flank of this brigade. Lieutenant G. B. McClellan," says General Twiggs, "after Lieutenant Callender was wounded, took charge of and managed the howitzer battery with judgment and success, until it became so disabled as to require shelter. For Lieutenant McClellan's efficiency and gallantry in this affair I present his name for the favorable consideration of the general in chief." And he says further: "To Lieutenant G. W. Smith, of the engineers, who commanded the company of sappers and miners, I am under many obligations for his services on this and many other occasions. Whenever his legitimate duties with the pick and spade were performed, he always solicited permission to join the advance of the storming party with his muskets, in which position his gallantry, and that of his officers and men, were conspicuously displayed at Contreras as well as Cerro Gordo."

Similar commendation occurs in General Persifor F. Smith's report, who says: "Lieutenant G. W. Smith, in command of the engineer company, and Lieutenant McClellan, his subaltern, distinguished themselves. throughout the whole of the three actions. Nothing seemed to them too bold to be undertaken or too difficult to be executed; and their services as engineers were as valuable as those they rendered in battle at the head of their gallant men."

Summarizing the results accomplished by his army. in these conflicts, General Scott says: It has in a single day, in many battles, often defeated thirty-two thousand men, made about three thousand prisoners,

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including eight generals, two of ex-Presidents, and two hundred and five other officers; killed and wounded four thousand of all ranks, besides entire corps dispersed and dissolved; captured thirty-seven pieces of ordnance, more than trebling our siege train and field batteries, with a large number of small arms, and a full supply of ammunition of every kind. These great results have overwhelmed the enemy."

As no satisfactory conclusion could be reached by the commissioners in their conference for a definite peace, General Scott gave notice of his determination to end the armistice on the 7th of September, and hostilities were accordingly renewed the next day. In the afternoon of the 7th orders were issued for the closer concentration of the army, and the engineer officers were pushed forward in reconnoissance of the defensive position of the enemy. This consisted of the castle of Chapultepec, crowning a hill one hundred and fifty feet in height, strongly garrisoned and armed with artillery; in front was the battle line of the Mexicans, their right resting upon a regular square bastioned fort, inside of which was a large building called the Casa Mata, used for storing powder, and their left five hundred yards east upon the Molino del Rey, a great pile of stone buildings, which with its inclosures was capable of strong resistance to attack. This line was ably defended by a force greatly in excess of the Americans, and was well contested upon its flanks, but after two hours of bloody struggle a complete victory was secured by our troops. This success left Chapultepec as the only obstacle yet remaining to be overcome in front of the city. Whether to assault it in turn or to direct attention to the causeways to the east of it, was now to be determined by careful reconnoissance and study. It was finally decided to assault it, and make the approach to the city by the Belen and San Cosme gates after its capture. On the night of the 11th positions for the batteries were selected, and the construction of Battery No. 2 was confided to McClellan; it was located a short distance to the northwest of the village of Tacu

baya, and had for its armament one twenty-fourpounder gun and one eight-inch howitzer. Exposed as it was to the fire of the batteries of the enemy during its construction, it afforded him some gratification to know that it contributed greatly, by its own well-directed fire, to the successful assault that followed.

The success attending the assaults of these strong outer defenses of the city was very dearly bought at the price of the lives of many gallant officers and men, but the circumstances were such at this critical period that delay meant irretrievable disaster. After the capture of Chapultepec the troops were pushed rapidly against the Belen and San Cosme garitas, the engineer company to which McClellan was attached taking the lead of Worth's division on the line of approach to the latter. In front of the garita the enemy's artillery swept the causeway, while his infantry, covered by the houses that lined both sides, was enabled to pour a destructive fire upon the attacking forces. Lieutenants Smith and McClellan, the two remaining officers of engineers with the company (Stevens having just been wounded), led their men on opposite sides of the road to a position where they could command the battery and thus open the way for the infantry. This they did by breaking through the party walls of the adobe houses, driving out the Mexican infantry, and by this cover reached the desired position. In this hazardous service McClellan displayed great coolness and the highest courage, and as he led his men in person through scenes of the greatest danger he gained their utmost affection and admiration. It was a fitting close to the events which had preceded from the day they landed at Vera Cruz until they now entered as conquerors in the capital of Mexico. This little company of engineer troops formed but a small fragment of Scott's army, but it had performed with the highest courage all the dangerous work intrusted to it, not only of its own peculiar service, but on the fighting line as well, and it had good reason to be proud of itself and its officers. General Scott took possession of the City of Mexico September