Page:Letters from the Battle-fields of Paraguay (1870).djvu/335



FROM CORRIENTES TO HUMAITA. 305

yards long. But^, despite the energy of the troops, matters looked desperate till Marshal-President Lopez, two days afterwards, hit upon the notable expedient of proposing on interview with the Allied Generals. The Commander-ic. Chief, President Mitre, fell into the trap — not so General Polidoro, the Brazilian, who had succeeded General Osorio. Letters passed under flags of truce ; the two Presidents and General Flores had a long palaver, drank some brandy- pawnee, exchanged riding-whips, and parted without agreeing upon the conditions of a peace. The "Conference of Yataity- Cora ^' has, however, the merit of gaining two days for the works at Curupaity ; and by 20th September the strongest position of the whole campaign was ready to be fought.

The assault was given at noon on September 22, and Curupaity proved itself, under General Diaz, and afterwards Colonel Alen, a Pei-ho. Instead of attacking by nighty en chemise, the Allies pushed recklessly across an open plain under a terrible fire of grape and canister, delivered by eight-inch guns at point-blank range. The Brazilians suf- fered the least, as they attacked and carried a small out- work on the right which was partially concealed by bush. The Argentines gallantly struggled up to the trenches despite mud knee-deep, and then found that they had for- gotten their scaling-ladders. Nothing remained to the assaulter but a disastrous retreat, leaving behind him 5000 killed and wounded, whilst the Paraguayans had but fifty- four hors de combat. The mishap filled the Argentine Confederation with rage and grief, and the Allies de- clined further operations during the ten months between September 22, 1866, and July, 1867. Finally, Cu- rupaity was, like many other posts, evacuated by the de- fenders, who left quaker guns to deceive the assailants.

We have now seen two of the four river positions — Curuzii, Curupaity, Humaita, and Angostura — which did the Para-

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