278
TEXAS STATE LIBRARY
with a column of troops to capture a convoy intended for Santa Anna. Santa Anna sends Anaya in pursuit of Dur,m with one hundred men. The two forces encounter each other. Anaya's defeat. Santa Anna and Bustamante break camp and leave for Puebla. The inhabitants drive Bustamante back. He re- tires to San Juan hill. Santa Anna presents battle. The action is suspended on account of darkness and a heavy rain. Bustamante proposes an armistice. Terms of agreement. Plan of Zavaleta. He is expelled by Congress. The army supports him. Pedraza in the Presidency. Santa Anna announces himself can- didate for the office. He retires to Mango de Clava. Is eleeted. Farias Vice- President. Anecdotes. CHAPTER XV. From the time of Santa Anna's occupation of the national bridge to his appearance before the City of Mexico, many events of great impor- tance transpired which we did not consider necessary to weave into our story, since we are writing a biography and not a history. At that period the nation was experiencing a general convulsion. The people were everywhere under arms-sometimes victorious and sometimes van- quished. For lack of documents we can only refer to a few of those events, and then continue with the part which relates to our hero. March 10. Tampico declares against Bustamante, and Teran, who had marched against the city, raises the siege at the same time that Calderon ends the siege which he had laid to Veracruz.· July 3. Defeated by Montezuma Teran commits suicide in imitation of the ancient Homans by running himself through with his own sword at the same place where Iturbide was shot. July 5. Montezuma enters San Luis Potosi with a large division. August 4. The citizens of Tampico capture the City of Victoria and take l\Iora prisoner. August 11. General Alvarez declares against Bustamante. " 12. Santa Anna writes to Pedraza and sends two commis- sioners with a letter requesting that he return to the country and assume the Presidency as a constitutional right. August 16. Bustamante leaves Mexico for San Luis Potosi with 1500 men and issues a proclamation in which he states that he had not asked for the command and tbat he could only be accused of gov- erning with too much indulgence and humanity. November 6. Pedraza leaves the United States, lands at Veracruz, and reaches Puebla on the 4th of December, eight days before the battle which ended the revolution. December 18 Bustamante and i\Iontezuma meet in a place called El Gallinero in the State of Queretaro, and after a battle lasting eight hours Montezuma is defeated with heavy loss. This victory, howeve.r, did not help Bustamante very much, for immediately afterwards he has to abandon the fruits of victory and return by forced marches to the Capital where his forces were imperiously needed. Let us return to our hero whom we left besieging the City of Mexico. As soon as he received news of l\fontezuma's defeat and Bustamante's advance toward the Capital, he promptly raised the siege and advanced to ~eet him. Finally, these two commanders met twenty leagues from 1\Iex1co, Bustamante havinO' 1500 infantry and 800 caYalry and Santa Anna 5000 infantry, 2000 cavalry and 7 cannons and howitzers. Despi~e the great advantage which Santa Anna had over his adversary, he did not
Powered by FlippingBook