During the first days of January, 1866, the French men-ofwar referred to had already landed some provisions and quite a number of French marines and Austrian soldiers. The Antonia had transported a number of these to Matamoros, being fired on in almost every instance.

The Liberals having received information of the arrival of the men-of-war, prepared to surprise Bagdad and to prevent the landing of the supplies and reënforcements. Escobedo ordered Cortina to make some demonstrations against Matamoros in order to hold Mejia there in check. Cortina encircled Matamoros and in person came over to Brownsville and interviewed the Federal Commander, requesting that the latter should assist the Liberals by sending a force of negroes into Bagdad to head off the French who already had landed some 80 men, those aboard the steamboat Antonia en route to Matamoros.

Bagdad
Raid

Colonel Crawford, then mustered out of the service, in charge of some three hundred negroes who likewise had been mustered out, crossed the Rio Grande into Bagdad at 3 o'clock on the morning of January 6, 1866, while Col. Adolfo Garza and Maj. Enrique Mejia of General Escobedo's general staff attacked the town from the east and south. The negroes quickly overpowered the few Imperialist soldiers in charge of Bagdad and then, having partaken of the native drink, Mescal, went wild and started on an expedition of pillage, murder, and rapine. They looted the principal warehouses and moved their pillage to the Texas side. Escobedo had not counted on such a result of his effort to obtain assistance. He immediately rushed to Bagdad with his troops but arrived just in time to see the negroes with their loot embarking for Texas.

8 Americans were killed in this affair, including 2 respectable American ladies, while about ten Mexicans were killed.

A petition was immediately forwarded to Washington by the loyal imperialists of Matamoros, protesting against the outrage. A Commission was appointed to take evidence to fix the responsibility. Its decision was that as the constituted Mexican authorities had called upon the Americans to invade their territory to render them assistance, no damages could be recovered. General Sheridan, through correspondence, followed Colonel Crawford as far as Cuba but was never able to intercept him and bring him to trial for his part in the affair.

Gen. Godfrey Weitzels arrived at Brazos de Santiago on June 22, 1865, and two days later moved to White's Ranch with four brigades. As soon as General Weitzel, in command of the Federals then at Brownsville, heard of the ĺ raid he sent 300 men to suppress the disorder, but many of these united with the invaders and assisted them in disposing of their stolen goods. It was M. Montholon, French Minister, who brought the matter to the attention of Minister Hunter through whom the Commission was appointed, as above referred to.

Major-General Lew Wallace, U. S. Army, author of Ben Hur, arrived in Brownsville on March 15, 1865, and at once communicated with Gen. J. E. Slaughter and Col. John S. Ford relative to a cessation of hostilities, soliciting their aid in offering terms to Gen. Kirby Smith. Colonel Ford, in temporary command during the absence of Slaughter, stated that it would be impossible for him to comply with the request, but that he would forward the request to the Brigadier commanding. In his letter Ford frankly stated, "You do not mistake when you suppose me willing to make any sacrifice short of honor to restore peace." And in a letter of date March 26, 1865, referring to the same subject, Ford said; "We are at all times, General, ready to soften

the asperities of the war by an interchange of the courtesies which should exist between all parties prosecuting civilized warfare." Later, on March 30, 1865, General Wallace addressed Maj.-Gen. John G. Walker C. S. Army, at Houston, referring to his communications which had been forwarded by Colonel Ford. General Walker refused to treat on the subject. From a careful study of the communications passing between General Wallace, Gen. U. S. Grant, Gen. E. Kirby Smith and John Slidell, Commissioner to Paris, France, the fears entertained by the Northern leaders of a Confederate intrigue with France and Mexico, were well founded.

See reference to Colonization of Confederate leaders at Cordova, Mexico.

Sheridan on

CHAPTER VII

On May 17, 1865, Gen. U. S. Grant ordered Maj.-Gen. Phil H. Sheridan to proceed from Rio Grande Washington to Fort Brown, Texas, informing him that he would place at his command 25,000 men under Maj.-Gen. J. J. Reynolds, being the 4th Army Corps then at Nashville, Tenn., and the 25th Army Corps then at City Point, Va. The ostensible purpose of this move was to restore order in Texas and to prevent a renewal of hostilities by the Confederate, Gen. Kirby Smith. The real purpose was to discourage any efforts of the Confederates to obtain aid from the Imperialists then operating in Mexico under Maximilian, Grant believing that the efforts to put down secession would never be complete until the French and Austrian invaders of Mexico were compelled to quit Mexico.

Generals Price, Magruder, Sterling Price, Maury, Governor Harris of Tennessee, and others equally as prominent in Confederate Military circles already were proceeding to Cordoba, Mexico, not far from Vera Cruz where a great colonization scheme was being organized. Grant believed that Maximilian desired these sturdy veterans of the American Civil War to support him on his throne, and that in order to win their assistance he might go as far as to back them up in a renewal of the struggle in the United States.

Gen. E. B. Brown, U. S. Volunteers, arrived at Brownsville, May 30, 1865. On June 6 to 9, 1865, Gen. Frederick Steele arrived with the bulk of the 25th Army Corps. Gen. Phil Sheridan arrived on June 23, 1865.

Upon his arrival at Brazos de Santiago, Sheridan at once became acquainted with the difficulties of landing troops at the mouth of the Rio Grande, where Bagdad and Clarksville, Texas, at that time were flourishing little war villages, where the average depth of water on the bar was but 2% feet and that Brazos was the only feasible point, the water

on the bar there being on an average from 9 to 11 feet. So, one of his first acts was to build a railroad from Brazos along the island 18 miles west and southwest to a point on the river then known as WHITE'S RANCH, long since washed away by the river encroachments.

The railroad was duly operated and remained until several years after the close of the war, when it was torn up, but its roadbed still remains intact from the nearest approach to the site of White's Ranch down to Boca Chica, where the bridge piling still stands.

As has been stated in the preceding chapter, General Mejia arrived at Matamoros during September, 1864. From within a month after his arrival there, the guerrilla warfare began and hardly a day passed but that from 1 to 15 men were killed, either of the besieged or the besiegers. Among some of the killed and wounded who were affiliated with the Imperialists were such as J. D. McCaskill, Jacob Sneider, a 16-year old youth, P. G. Hammond. And some of these men were led by Lieutenant Sullivan, Major Gerard, Captain Norris, and J. P. St. Clair. And, among the liberals we find such names as Birch, Gholson, McKinney, Miller, Granger. On several times during the siege which lasted until June, 1866, the besiegers bombarded Matamoros, and on numerous occasions the shells were embedded in the brick or abode walls of the City.

On June 8, 1866, two battalions of the foreign legion, Belgians and Mexicans, a number of cavalry, and six pieces of artillery left Monterrey en route to Matamoros, Tamaulipas. They marched along three parallel roads. Escobedo learned that the object of the Imperialists was to attack and to take possession of the frontier towns from Mier to Matamoros.

When Escobedo ascertained that the most important body had arrived at Cerralvo, about 140 miles west from Matamoros, he placed 600 cavalry in a position where the Imperialists