Page:A series of intercepted letters in Mexico.djvu/28

, while those of the enemy hardly reached ten thousand, with forty pieces of artillery, as has been reported. The situation of the enemy was a very difficult one, as they had no money. At Puebla they paid one per cent, for money, and on the road they made purchases by drafts payable in Mexico, after occupation by them.

When the news reached here on the 10th, that the enemy were at Rio Frio, some troops, together with the national guards, left the capital, to occupy and strengthen the Penon, where it is estimated we had about seven thousand men and twenty-five pieces of cannon; Valencia was then at Texcuco with five thousand men and twenty-two pieces of cannon,—The enemy came in sight on the 11th, and on the 12th they came within a league of the fortifications of Penon, without interruption, and having made a reconnoissancereconnaissance [sic], they moved towards Chalco, and we were then certain that the point of attack would be San Antonio. Therefore, it became necessary for Valencia to move rapidly to San Angel, and the larger part of the troops at the Penon were ordered, with some cannon, to San Antonio and Churubusco.

At these two points and at the Portalis there were over ten thousand men, with artillery of various calibres, from four to twenty-five pounders, together with large howitzers. Although Valencia had expressed orders to avoid a fight with the enemy still, the thunder of his cannon on the 19th, at about 12 oclocko’clock [sic], gave notice that a fight was going on at the Pedregal (rough volcanic ground), near San Angel. The fight became very sharp at about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, and Santa Anna drew some troops from San Antonio and proceeded towards the scene of battle, and joined to his troops on the road the brigade of reserve, composed of the brilliant 11th and the light battallionsbattalions [sic]. With these forces, which, if they did not exceed, were certainly not less than three thousand men, Santa Anna remained a cold spectator of the battle, although he sent a body of troops to dislodge a portion of the enemy's force in the edge of the woods, near the tower of Padierna (near Contreras), which were cutting off Valencia's communications, but while marching with bayonets fixed to execute this order, Santa Anna ordered them to retire. He then ordered two pieces of cannon to be brought up, which arrived at about dusk, and only about eight shots were fired, without effect, as the evening had set in. At night Santa Anna withdrew his supporting force to San Angel to sleep. The opposing forces, left in the field, lit their fires, and Valencia, in consequence of the heavy rain that fell during the night, ordered