men, including 300 Austrians, in charge of nearly 200 wagons. On the 16th of June, when near Camargo, he was surrounded by the troops of Escobedo, over 4,000 strong, and after a bloody battle, in which half of the Austrians perished, the convoy was captured, together with nearly 1,000 prisoners. Olvera regained Matamoros with 150 cavalry, and Tucé, who had advanced from Monterey with about 2,000 men to meet him, was obliged to return with his caravans, less a large number of deserters, who took advantage of the proximity to the Texan frontier.[1]
Mejía was now left with only 500 men, many of them disaffected, to defend Matamoros; yet he prepared to do so, withdrawing to this effect the garrison at Bagdad. Foreseeing only a useless loss of life and property, American merchants and other influential persons hastened to prevail on Governor Carbajal and General Garza, then besieging the town, to grant a favorable capitulation, under which Mejía on June 23d retired by sea for Vera Cruz with all his men, arms, and baggage, sacrificing only the artillery. Juarez refused to confirm the arrangement, and the inhabitants were held in suspense for a time.[2]
- ↑ About 80 of the foreign legion left him. He had advanced by three routes, and finding communications cut, he left his encumbrance at Cerralvo under charge of the Belgians, and hurried to Mier, there to learn of the disaster. He managed to reënter Monterey June 28th. There were said to be 1,200 or 1,500 Americans in Escobedo's army. Niox, Expéd. du Mex., 577. Escobedo reported Olvera's force at 2,000 men, and his own at 1,150 infantry and two columns of cavalry, the latter under Treviño. The fight was decided in one hour, with a loss killed of 135 republicans and 396 imperialists, including 145 Austrians, besides 250 wounded and 1,000 prisoners, of whom 137 were Austrians. La Estrella de Occid., Sept. 28, Oct. 12, 1966. Another report mentions only 100 wagons as captured. Id., Aug. 20th. Le Saint gives Olvera's force at 1,600, and his loss in prisoners at 800. Guerre Jex., 165; Pap. y Corr. Famil. Imp., 191. Elton as usual casts a slur on the Mexicans, by saying that they deserted, leaving the Austrians to be slaughtered. With the French, 99. The merchants of Matamoros had paid heavily to have the convoy sent. The fullest account of the affair is to be found in Arias, Reseña, 60-70, 160-1, etc., with plan of the field. See also Voz Méj., Oct. 4-6, 1866; Pájaro Verde, Oct. 3, etc., Mexicano, etc., and Salm-Salm, My Diary, 78, who states that Escobedo kept a sum for himself out of the millions captured, 8,000,000 francs according to Le Saint.
- ↑ Carbajal and Garza were besides held to answer for their conduct. See despatch in Méx., Col. Leyes, 1863-7, iii. 75–6. They merited reprimand; for Escobello was then hurrying to the spot, and to him as commander-in-chief should have been referred the capitulation. Not that he would have Pan saying
