city of Puebla wit 1 its eighty-thousand population next fell into the hands of General Scott without offering resistance. His small army marched in and took possession on the 15th of May. By this time, although the advance of the invaders had been marked by a series of triumphs, they were suffering from the effects of the climate, to which they were unaccustomed, and the arduous campaign they had prosecuted in the mountainous country. Scott, therefore, paused to allow his small army its much needed rest, and to wait for re-enforcements to be sent them.

You will gain a good idea of the character of the corrupt and incompetent Santa Anna, when told that at this time he sent a proposal to Scott, guaranteeing peace without any more fighting on condition that one million dollars should be paid personally to him. The negotiations were carried on through the British consuls. Santa Anna demanded ten thousand dollars at once, and the rest on the establishment of peace. The ten thousand dollars was paid him, and he set out to convince the Mexican congress it was useless to continue resistance longer, but the authorities thought otherwise, and ordered the war to go on.

By the 7th of August, General Scott had received enough re-enforcements to swell his army to eleven thousand. Leaving a small garrison at Puebla, he continued his march toward the capital. He expected to meet with resistance at the passes of the Cordilleras, but none was offered, and the victorious army sweeping through, looked down upon the Valley of Mexico.

It gleamed with beautiful lakes and streams, was studded with cities, while around all clustered the romance, mystery and splendor of the civilization that had vanished in the dim past.

At Ayotla the army was within fifteen miles of the capital. Because of the numerous fortifications in front, the army swung to the south around Lake Chalco and thence west to San Augustine, which took it five miles nearer the city.

But had the Mexican officers been anywhere near the equal of the Americans, the City of Mexico could never have been taken by a force twice as large as that which assaulted it. It could be reached only by causeways leading across marshes and the beds of ancient lakes. Massive gateways defended the ends of these causeways, and to the left of the line of march were the powerful positions of Contreras, San Antonio and Molino del Rey, and in front, closer to the city, were the strong defenses of Churubusco and Chapultepec. The latter was a castle of prodigious strength. All these positions were held by Santa Anna with an army three times as large as that of Scott.

On the 19th of August, the divisions of Generals Pillow and Twiggs were directed to storm the position at Contreras. At dusk, the line of communications between that place and Santa Anna's reserves was cut, and at midnight General Persifer F. Smith led an assaulting column against the camp of the enemy. The attack was made at sunrise, and in less than twenty minutes the six thousand Mexican defenders were sent flying pell-mell out of the fortifications. Soon after, General Worth assailed San Antonio and routed the garrison, and, about the same time, General Pillow attacked one of the heights of Churubusco, where an immense force of the enemy was gathered. The fighting was desperate, but the Mexicans were routed. General Twiggs with his

1848.]

PEACE.

355

division stormed and held another height of Churubusco, while generals Shields and Pierce repulsed Santa Anna, who was advancing to re-enforce his garrisons. Thus in a brief space of time on the same day, the Americans gained five distinct victories.

The next morning Santa Anna sent out a proposal to negotiate. Their terms were such as a conqueror would have offered the vanquished, and of course were rejected. The proposal, however, was not in earnest, but a device to gain time. Having rested his men until the 7th of September, General Scott renewed hostilities. General Worth was ordered the next morning to take Molino del Rey and Casa de Mata, the western defenses of Chapultepec. Fourteen thousand Mexicans defended these positions, but the Americans, after losing one-fourth of their number, captured them. Chapultepec was carried by storm on the 13th, and, when the sun went down, the army of the Union was within the suburbs of the City of Mexico.

That night Santa Anna turned loose two thousand convicts to fire on the American soldiers, and with the officers of the city stole out in the darkness. At daylight, a deputation came forth to treat with General Scott, but the old hero was weary of doubledealing and refused to have any thing to do with them. The order to advance was given, and the resistless veterans swept through the lovely streets of the famous city. By seven o'clock in the morning the flag of the Union floated above the halls of the Montezumas. Safely beyond the blows of the American army, Santa Anna turned to attack the hospitals at Puebla, where there were nearly two thousand invalids under charge of Colonel Childs. They kept up a brave resistance for several days, until General Lane arrived, and again the cowardly Mexicans were scattered. Shorn of all authority, Santa Anna became a fugitive, while the military power of Mexico was utterly broken. All that remained was to arrange the terms of peace.

American ambassadors in the winter of 1847-48, met the Mexican congress in session at Guadalupe Hidalgo, and on the 2d of February a treaty of peace was concluded between Mexico and the United States.

With some modifications by the American senate, the treaty was adopted by that body on the 10th of March and ratified by the Mexican congress at Queretaro on the 30th of May. It was proclaimed by President Polk on the 4th of July, and the long and bitter quarrel between the two nations was over.

By this treaty we gained not only Texas, but New Mexico, California and Arizona, so that Mexico was compelled to give up a large part of her territory in order to procure peace with her powerful neighbor on the north of the Rio Grande.

The United States agreed to pay Mexico fifteen million dollars and to assume all debts due from that government to American citizens to the extent of three million, five hundred thousand dollars. This was in payment for our gain of territory and privileges.

Now, in reading the history of the Mexican war, you have noticed that the soldiers of that country were no match at all for those we sent thither. They were inferior in every respect, and the American troops had no difficulty in routing two or three times their own number of them. You will be amused, therefore, when I tell you that, ever since 1848, the Mexicans have celebrated the defeats of which I have given you an

account, and really look upon them as great victories for themselves. They say that if our government had not paid the indemnity of fifteen million dollars, General Scott and his army never would have been allowed to leave the City of Mexico! In other words, since we were rash enough to begin the war, we escaped utter overthrow only by

paying for the forbearance of our conquerors, the Mexicans. Such being the case, you can understand why, in the summer and fall of 1886, when we had our little flurry with Mexico over the Cutting case, that country was so defiant.

For more than twenty years, Great Britain and the United States had jointly occupied Oregon territory, the agreement being such that it could be ended by either on

1846.]

THE OREGON BOUNDARY.

357 a year's notice. Whether such notice should or should not be given was the cause of many bitter debates in Congress, during the winter of 1845-46. The United States claimed that the boundary line should be 54 degrees 40 minutes, and the phrase, "Fiftyfour forty or fight," was familiar to every body. Both countries made preparations for war, but it is fortunate that two such powers as England and the United States generally

WLYMPER

PRESIDENT FILLMORE.

have clear-headed men at the helm of government. When both sides had become cool, there was no trouble in locating the boundary line. It was agreed that it should continue along the 49th parallel of north latitude to the middle of the channel which separates the continent from Vancouver's Island, and thence southerly through that channel and Fuca Strait to the Pacific Ocean; and that the navigation of the whole of the channel and the strait south of the 49th parallel should remain open to both; and that the

navigation of the great northern branch of the Columbia should be free to all British subjects. The land thus conceded to England became British Columbia. In 1848, a territorial government was organized for Oregon, and in 1853 the territory was divided, the northern portion becoming Washington Territory.

In the month of February, 1848, James W. Marshall, a native of New Jersey, with a companion named Weimer, was erecting a saw-mill at Coloma, California, for Colonel Sutter, a Swiss, the commandant of Fort Sutter. The mill was located at the head of a bar where the river curved like a horseshoe. The mill-race was cut through the bar, but, when the mill was started, the race was found to be too shallow. Marshall and Weimer went to a point about fifty yards below the mill to deepen the race. Suddenly Marshall asked:

"What is that shining at the toe of your boot?"

Weimer stooped over and picked up a piece of glittering metal.

"It must be brass," he said, after examining it.

"But how could it get there? We haven't used a piece of brass in the whole mill," said Marshall.

This was a question that could not be answered. It might be gold, they thought. The wife of Weimer was busy with her washing that day, and had made lye by leaching wood-ashes. To test the metal, she boiled it several hours with the lye. It proved to be gold, in shape like a long irregular pumpkin-seed, and weighed eight and three-quarters pennyweights. Its value was about $7.

Marshall and Weimer returned to the mill-race, and with wooden bowls washed out several ounces of gold. Marshall then took charge of all that had been secured, mounted his horse and galloped to Monterey, the nearest point where a proper test could be made. It was past midnight, and Colonel Sutter was dozing in his bed, when he was startled by the sound of a horse's hoofs outside the fort. In a moment some one banged at the gate; then the clank of spurs was heard on the brick floors. An instant later there was a knock at Colonel Sutter's door. The colonel hastily loosed the fastenings, when Marshall, white with excitement, rushed in, shouting:

"IT'S GOLD! IT'S GOLD!"

In this manner was discovered the presence of gold in California. How strange that while hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of the precious metal lay in the soil, while the beds of scores of streams sparkled with the yellow grains, while unnumbered rocks gleamed with the auriferous deposits—yet the fact seemed never to have been suspected until that day in February, 1848, when Marshall caught the yellow sparkle at the toe of Weimer's boot, while the two were digging at the mill-race in Coloma.

You can gain no idea of the excitement that followed. The discoverers tried to keep the momentous matter a secret, but it was impossible. Marshall employed a number of Indians to help him get out the gold. He bought Colonel Sutter's place, and became rich, but he was a poor business man, and died a short time ago in poverty. Multitudes swarmed from every part of the world to Sutter's Fort. They literally overran the poor Swiss, who was without the means of keeping off the intruders. He, too, died a poor

man.