Page:The War with Mexico, Vol 1.djvu/98

Rh the state of feeling at Mexico as "most bitter"; and such a correspondence, disagreeable enough to Mexican pride, tended naturally to bring the two countries nearer to the tented ﬁeld. Richtofen, the Prussian envoy at Mexico, said that Bocanegra's note led to a distinctly hostile state of things At one time the President of the United States did not see how war could be avoided; and the Mexican press did about all it could to create a ﬁghting temper."

An opera bouffe sequel followed. Commodore T. A. C. Jones, lying at Callao with our Pacific squadron, received some of Bocanegra's effusions from the American consul at Mazatlán, who added that war seemed "highly probable." Jones could not believe that a responsible minister would write so ﬁercely unless prepared for a conflict, and he felt sure the United States would not ﬂinch. Anxious to provide a port of refuge for American vessels, alarmed lest England should now obtain California under some arrangement with Mexico, as she was thought ready to do, and satisfied that hostilities would actually break out before he could reach that coast, he sailed promptly and arrived at Monterey on October 19. Being a rather self—sufficient and hasty person, be investigated the matter there in but a superﬁcial manner, and the next day politely occupied the town. He now found that war had not begun; and upon this, after hauling down his ﬂag and saluting that of Mexico, he sailed away, while General Micheltorena, the governor, thundered grandiloquent language at him from a safe distance. Naturally the authorities at Mexico ﬂared up at this episode} but they soon found that no charge could be made against our government, and, realizing presently with our minister's aid that the longest ﬁnger pointed toward Bocanegra and the loudest laugh was at Micheltorena, they willingly allowed the matter to fade away. It therefore sharpened Mexican hostility far less than might have been expected, yet no doubt considerably.

Meanwhile fresh trouble arose. The continuance of nominal war between Mexico and Texas and the constant danger of raids interfered seriously with our commercial interests. Near the end of June, 1842, therefore, the American secretary of state, hoping to inﬂuence the government of Mexico, observed to our minister that the war was "not only useless, but