Page:Notes of the Mexican war 1846-47-48.djvu/88

82 camp that Lieuts. E. C. Lewis, of Co. G, C. M. Berry, of Co. C, First Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, with a few soldiers, had fallen in with a large body of Lancers, and after some hard fighting our men had to retreat to a ranch where they are now penned in. Four companies of our regiment were instantly ordered out, and on our way, we were joined by the New York regiment; we had not marched more than four miles when we came upon our penned-in men and released them before the Mexicans discovered them, after which, we marched on until we saw the Lancers drawn up into line on an open common showing fight. The New York regiment filed to the left into the chaparral, and our regiment took to the right also into the chaparral, here we crawled on our hands and knees for about fifty yards trying to surround them, but they saw us and kept backing out; here we laid and watched their movements until near dark, when we came out in the open field, at this, the Lancers put spurs to their horses and fled in all directions; after which we left for our camp, and on our way in we found Mr. Miller's body, of Co. G, First Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, stripped and stabbed in the most horrible manner; we took it along and arrived in our camp at 10 o'clock in the evening, much fatigued and tired of marching.

Last night John G. Craig of Co. C, First Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, was put on picket guard, and about 2 o'clock this morning he heard something approaching towards him through the chaparral. The sentinel holloaed out: "Who comes there?" No answer was given. Holloaed out again. At this time it stopped. In about ten minutes afterwards it again began to approach towards the sentinel. "Who comes there?" No answer. Up with his musket and fired away. He heard it fall, and was satisfied that he hit the object before him. The night being very dark, he could not see what it was until daybreak this morning, and behold, what do you gentlemen think it was? It was a jackass, which caused a great laughter among the men, and the by-word was: "Who shot the Jackass? John G. Craig of Co. C."