Page:Vol 5 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/438

418 party being sent as prisoners of war to Mexico. A few days later Captain Heady, Lieutenant Churchill, and seventeen Kentucky volunteers were also captured while reconnoitring. The rumors of the advance of the Mexicans, supported by these untoward circumstances, assumed such a positive shape as to induce Taylor to remove his headquarters from Monterey to Saltillo, where he arrived on the 2d of February. To restore the confidence of the volunteers, which was somewhat shaken by the late occurrences, he decided to establish a camp at Agua Nueva, eighteen miles in advance of Saltillo, and remove the main force thither, leaving at the latter place a suitable garrison. By the 14th the occupation of the new position was completed; a depôt was established; and supplies were brought in as rapidly as possible. As yet nothing certain was known with regard to the movements of the Mexicans, but on the 20th it was ascertained by reconnoissances, skilfully conducted by Major McCulloch and Lieutenant-colonel May in the directions of Encarnacion and Hedionda, that the enemy was i large force at the former place, and Miñon within a short distance of the latter. As the camp at Agua Nueva could be turned on its left flank by the road from Hedionda to Encantada in the rear, Taylor decided to fall back to the hacienda of Buena Vista — about twelve miles distant — where, owing to the nature of the ground, he could take up such a formidable position as would greatly neutralize the superiority in numbers of the enemy. He therefore broke up his camp at noon on the 21st, and moved the main body to the new position. During the same day and night the removal of the stores was assiduously carried on, and Colonel Yell with his regiment of Arkansas cavalry remained behind to protect them against attack, with instructions to fire the hacienda and such stores as remained on the approach of the