Page:Vol 4 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/416

400, on being apprised of these doings, despatched a force to bring away from Aculcingo the church paraments and the frightened priest. His force was attacked by the insurgents, who dispersed the cavalry and compelled the infantry to retreat to Orizaba.

Before long the villa of Orizaba found itself seriously menaced by the united forces of the curate of Zongolica, Juan Montezuma y Cortés, and Alarcon. The place had a garrison of 400 or 500 men under Lieutenant-colonel José Manuel Panes. Its only defence was a stockade on the Santa Catalina bridge, half a league from the villa, manned by 100 infantry, thirty cavalry, and a few artillerymen to manage one gun. The independents attacked on the 22d of May, and again on the 28th. They had no difficulty in entering the villa by the Angostura gate. Panes at first concentrated in the Carmen convent, but having neither provisions nor water he evacuated the place and went to Cordoba, after destroying the ammunition he could not carry away, the Carmelites, who were mostly Spaniards, and the rest of the Europeans accompanying him. The curate of Zongolica, now having the rank of colonel, tried to intercept the royalists on the Escamela bridge; but being attacked by the major of the Tlascala regiment, he fled to the Tuxpango sugar-mill, leaving with the custom house guards his baggage. Marching by night, Panes reached Cordoba early next morning.

At 5 o'clock in the afternoon of the 28th Alarcon and Moreno entered Orizaba. Their men were poorly armed and had but little ammunition, which they consumed that night in salutes to the virgin of