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

248 EVENTS OF THE AUTUMN REVIEWED.
road to Saltillo, he remained quietly at San Luis until the
28th of January, 184-7; during which time many and exaggerated accounts of his forces and designs reached our camp.
There were some among us, who saw in every fire that
blazed upon the mountains, the signal for an insurrection;
and who magnified every plump of partisan Lancers seen in
the valley, into the van-guard of an approaching army. But
General Taylor, from his time-worn tent at San Domingo,
calmly watched the gathering storm; and when told that
Santa Anna would finally advance with thirty thousand men
of all arms, is said to have replied, " In that event, I shall
want ten thousand."
Let us now examine the position and strength of the
American forces at this period. It will be remembered that
at the commencement of hostilities, our government determined to invade 1 Mexico with three columns. The first or
" Army of the West", under General KIearney, marching
from the frontier of Missouri across the Indian territory,
was ordered to conquer the State of New Mexico; and, with
the co-operation of our Pacific fleet, the State of Alta California. This column performed the task assigned it before
the close of the year 1846. Those distant departments of
Mexico were virtually annexed to the United States, and
supplied with constitutions of the most approved pattern, and
laws of the latest fashion. It must be confessed that the
establishment of these civil governments, was not calculated
to convince the world, that the object of the Cabinet at
Washington was diflerent from that which had been previously disclosed with such amiable naviete by our minister to