Sketches of the campaign in northern Mexico : in eighteen hundred forty-six and seven / by an officer of the First Regiment of Ohio volunteers.

THE NIGHT BEFORE TIHE BATTLE. 147
and tumultuous cloud, unable to extend its front, was dispersed as rapidly as it advanced. In this splendid spectacle,
this combat of the elements, the deities of the air had imparted to us a practical lesson in the art of war.
Having loitered around the city until the glimmering landscape faded from the sight, we galloped back to camp. It
was a pleasant night, and I did not regret that duty called
me to watch through its witching hours. A solemn stillness
pervaded the camp, when, soon after our return, I set out to
visit the guard. Miany of the men, whose tents had been
lost on the march, were stretched in sleep beneath the umbrageous trees, dreaming, perhaps, of the kindred and country
some of them were never more to see. A few individuals
wrapped in their blankets were sitting or standing, silent and
alone, their minds, it may be, occupied with dazzling and
ambitious hopes of distinction, or obscured by gloomy presentiments of the coming strife. As I groped my way among
the many obstructions which then filled the grove, I came
upon a party of officers who were discussing in low and
earnest tones, the rumored result of the first reconnoisance.
In a brief conversation with them, I discovered that they were
all greatly disappointed in the strength of the city, and
anticipated a sanguinary conflict. One of them, a thorough
soldier, asserted that any attempt to take the place without a
battering train, would be to convert the army into a forlorn
hope. But dark as the prospect was, all had evidently determined to triumph or die, and in passing the canteen, united
in the sentiment, that a victory worthy of our arms and
country might be gained at Monterey. The volunteers