PAPERS OF iirnABEAU BuoNAPARTE L.uun
371
sionly giv~ us a Jittle beef, they then tied us all and started us to Matamoras with about forty guards they march us Yer_r hard the first two days, at night they would make us all lie in a roe tied to- gether HJ1<l orders were given the guards if we or any one of us should attempt to raise up or untie our~eh-es to fire on u~, hm·ing been starved so long we could ~:c-arcely work we were forced to mareh to )fntamoras in les:-: tha11 six days upwards of two hundrell miles, when we reaehed Matamoras we were almost necked they had taken our c-lothin<r from . . ,., us 111 that :;ituntion we were put into a very cold camp prison where we remained six clays without food 011 the serenth clay the .Americ-an citize11s were pcrmitec1 to send us food and continued to do so, we re- mai11ecl about one month without any information what the,· entended <loing with us-at length they c-on1Ji1ence<l taking our decl;1rations as though they were giving us a trial after getiug through with us in that way, we Legan to think they would not shoot us but we did not enjoy that belief but few days, then came se,·eral officers one evening <lrawecl up a strong guard before the prison door unlocked the door and took out the )le.xican prisoners of there own who had been guilty of murtlC'r robiug &C. at that we were much pleased for they had been Yery dis- agreeable companions, we were ordered to form out side of the prison the interpreter came up and drawed out a paper and rend as follows the Commander not being pleased at the decision of the Judge, has ordered that the strangers here shall be executed to morrow morning at eight oclock, we were prety much surprised at that mo,·ement, I 11st the in- terpreter in what way we would be executed he observed shot, we were put back in the prison and a much stronger guard th,m usual placed round. we saw no chance of escape, however as soon as it was dark we· commenced working at th~ wall with the handle of u spoon that being the only instrument we had or could get we made but little progm:.s finding the wall verry hard, while thus imployed one of us was placed at the grates watching out so as to giYe item if any of the officers should c-ome near the prison about Twelve oclock an officer with about fifty guards came up to the door of the prison the one that w11s plac-ctl at the grates ease<l himself clown from the window said boys we are dis- cov('red we believed they would come in and commence killing us with- out cerrimony, while they were unlocking the door we engaged in geting hold of Brickbats and beef bones detennined to fight until the last spark of life remained, "·hen the door oµenecl the officer stepecl in he presented a paper to us which was a compliance of a petition that we had sent out to the c-ommander wishing three days to write to our friends and prepare our seh·es for the doom that awaited us, after we received this favor from the commander we belie,·ed he was disposed to spare our life so far as he was able, we were apprised of the influence the Priests in that country we concluded to send for the priest nnd all become Cnth- olic's we done so the Priest seemed to be ,·ery much of n gentlem1111 and saicl he woulcl use his influence to the utmost for us- and I hnn.l not the least doubt but he aided considerably in sadngs us but we ft.el ourselves grC'ntly indebted to the forreign citnzC'ns of )fnrnmorns for our liYe:-;, the females of that place was also useing their inflnenrr in our farnr, after a space of twelve days Suspence we rcreiYed n ,·illit from the Col in command that we had been repreived by Con~rcss and inti- mated that we would be sent to the Fnitcd States, a few day:s after that
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