From The War

Hea'u irlas Int Briir., 'd Dv U 8 A. Mêxsopué. Statica, Ag. -7. 1-47. Since I left Vera Cruz to tliis liour I have had no tnenns of commur.icating wiih llie States. Ahlio.iigh but n few months in the service, l know what is fatigue, inxie'vand exposure. Cuntían io my expetMations, and contra y to my orders from tho DeprtusTit at Washington. 1 was compelleJ, t'or llie want of the requi.-itp irovisions fir transportaiion, j lo remnin lor more than llirre weeks at Vera Cruz, and more than fur in Terra Caliente, (t-ha v. Milito regiou, as it iscallei.) I Jefi the d rende J oi'y on ihe lOth f J ui v witii 2,300 insn óT.nll nrrjns nud n train of wagons, whic'i, hen clo?eJ u, extended more than lwo miles. On ihe Cili of August I reacheJ Puebla, without the loss of a single wagon, with my cmmand in fine condition. Ai v ominand vas attacked six linies on the ninr. h, b'il tlie enemy's force in eneh nstance wn casi'.y dispersed, with triiling }tss on O'jr side. Tlie National Brilge nfTorded ihe eneniy great naliwal .ndvnntge, to whieh they had added bi'easiworkson n liigh b!utl' whicn conimanded the bridge perfee'ly. Across ihe m u'n bririge the liad also thrown a barricade. I soon di'.covered t'nat there was no way in which his posilion could be turneil, and thai my artillery was ineffecüve from the most corananding wherc it coult) be placed I determined, of course, t') cross under the plunging fire of the enemy's escopetas. My order to advance was ndmirably execuied. Al the riioment Lieut. Coloñel Bonham's battalion rusbed forward with a shout, the enemy poured down a heavy fire, by which several of ny men were severely wounded. Col. Bonbam's horse was slvot near me, and a ball pnssed through the rim of my hat, in very disagreeable proximity lo my face. - Our men leapid the barricade followed by Capt. Djjeru's company of cavalry, and in less than ten minutes the enemy were in flight in every direciion, and the American flag waved uponthe high bluff which they had occupied. - The Mcxican force, as they said aflerwards, consibted of 500 men. Had they possessed courage and skill in the use o.' arms, our loss must have been very greal. Yuu can hardly conceive llie strength ol the natural defeucos of the road over which we passed. Rumors carne lo me almost every night that we woulH be atlacked by largo forces the nextday, but they made nowhere any thing like a brave and stern resistence. The official reports of ihe great battle of Mexico will probably rench you as soon as ihis letter, and 1 shall therefore ot atteinpt to give llie minute details, li was fierce nnd bloody beyond nny thing thathas occurred in ihis ar. 'llie baltic difl'ered in mnny respects from thal ai liuena VMn. Thero Gen. Taylor received the enemy in a strong position selected by himself. Our lorc-o on the 20ih consistid of less than nine thousand J'icn ; the .Me.icu!i force, within ing dislance anJ engaged, undoubtedly exceeded thirly thousand. We attacked him in position, upon ground of his own select iorij admirnbly furtifie.1. You will distinguish,so far as numbeis are concerned, between the battle of the morning and that of the aficrnoontulthough spoken of in the official reports as one engagement, under the dpsignation of "ie batlle of Mexico." We look, during the day, thirty-iïve pieces of arlillery, an immense quiuitity of ammunition, 8 hundred muleu and liorses, and more tlian two thousnnd prisoners,among tliem eight generáis and any number of coloneis. The Mexican loss in killed and wounded must have been immense. Our troops buried five hundred Mexicans upon the field of bnttle, commenced in the morning at Contreros, and the los-s in the afternoon was much greater. Our loss hns been heavy. With thi srnnll army we could not afford to purchase many such victories at such a price; one of the regiments of my brigade f the 13thJ lost in killed and woiinded one-thirdof lts entire force. In kilkfd and wounded we numbiïr not less tlian 1,000, and among them 1 lament to say an unusunl proportion of valuable officers. The New England regiment suffe red severely, and behaved throughout in the mostgallant nianncr. - My horse, at full speed on the ovening of the 19th, when leading my brigade through a perfect shower of round shot and shells, feil under me upon a lec'ge of rocks, by which I susíained a severe injury by the shock and bruises, butes-l pecially by a severe sprain in my left knee, which came under bim. At firsl l was not conscious of any serious injury, but soon became excpedingly faint, when Dr. Ritchie, surgeon oí the l"2th, (a portion of my cominand.) who was folloiving the advancing columns closely, overlook me, and adminis:ereJ lo me as weli n3 he could under the the circu.nstances. In a few m'oments 1 was alile to walk with difficulty, and pressed forward to Capt. McGrudei's battery, where I found ihe i horse ofpoor gallant Licut. Juhnstun,who had just received a mortal wound, of which he dicd that evenitig. I was permitied lo takehim, (my own having been tolally disablcd,) was helped inlo the saddle, ar;d continued in it until 11 o'clock ihat nigh'. It was excceciingly dark, the rain poured in torrents.and, benig eKuated froni my servants and baggflgp,! was without tent or covering; addio tliis that, during the a.'ternoon of il. e 19th, uc luid gaiiifid no advaniages over the enemy, wlio remained firmly enlrenched 'Vitli seven ihousand men opposed lo j boiit four thousand on our side, without the possibiüty of hringing our ar'illej-y U bear, and jou will readily conceive ihat our situation was not tlie rnost agree.ible. The morning of the 20ih wa?,howeer, :is biilliani as ihe niglit of the 10 l was d;uk and giooiny. Soon .Tfter daylight ilie enemy's worka were carried with ine bayonpt,and of tlieir seven tl.ojsand men, rpgul-cr Iroops, undpr the comitnnd of Gen. Valencia, probably four tbpusand cannot be fonnd to-day. As we passfld this fifM in pursuit of the fugitivps, the scène was avyful ; the rond and ndj.-icent lields every wliere strf-wed with mar.gled bodics of the dead and dying. We conlinued the pursuit uitil one o'clocis,wtien oitf front came up wiih the enemy's slroiig ivorks at (Jhuruhiuvo nnd S;ui Anti)iiio,where liie vas great eonfficl of nfternoon. At San Ange!, disposilions having been ma''e to nttnek in reverse the enemy's works on tlie San Augustin rond. Gen.-Scolt ordered me lo tnarch my brigade, in concert with that of tlie intrepid Gen. Shlelds, ocrosa ihe open country lietween Santa Catarina and the al)oe-nami'd road, in order to cut off the enoiny's retreat. VVe gained the position sought, and, although ll:e fcnemj's line was perfeclly formed, and extended as far as the eye could reach in either direclion, thny ere a'.taoked vigorously and successfully. Arriving at ■' ditch which it was impasible íbr my horse to leap, I disniounted and liurriod forward, wilhout thinking of my injury, at the liead of my brigade, for two or three liundred yards, when, turning suddenly upon my knee, the cartilnge of which had been seriously injured, I fainied and feil upon the bank, in the direct range aiui wilhin perfect reach of the enerny's fire. That 1 escaped seems to me providentinl. The rout andoverlhrow of the Mexican furce soon became complete, nnd we could easily have taken the city ; but General S'.-ott was met wilh n pioposition for an armistice, (after demaiKling the BOFrender of the city,J wilh a view lo open negotiations lor peace. In my judgmenl, the army, full of ardor and confidence, was humanely and wisely restrained. Mnjor Gen. Quilman, Gen. Persifer F. Smiih, and myself weie appooiuted C'ommissioners to meet the Mexican Commissioners to setlle the terms of ihe armisüce. I haj not taken off my spurs or slept an hou r for two nights in consecjuence of my engagcments and the ain of my knee. 1 obeved the summons, was helped into my saddle, and rode two and a half miles to Tacubayo, where the cornniission assembied at the house of Mr. Mclnlosh, the Briti&h Confuí-General. Our conference conimenced late in the afternoon, and at fuur o'clock tbe next morning the articles were signed. That I tvas thoroughly exhausted you will readily imagine. I slept an houror two that morning at Gen. Worths's quarters, and my sprained knee, vvhich was by far my most serious injjry, luis bfen daily improving, and to-dny I rode without much inconvenience. I have lost several dear friends, although our ncquaintance had been of short duration. I visited the hospital yesterday, and saw office nnd men with shots in all porta of their persans. Alihoiigh all who were nut really dying seemed cheerful, ar.á many who had lost limbs in high spirits, still I sickened at the sight. My general health has been good. I have been either in my saddle or on my fret every rod since I left Vera Cruz, which can be snid by few officers in my coinrnand ; for almostall were obliged, at sorne point of the maich, in consequence of the change ofelimatP, water, expo-u'e, &e. to avail themselves ofthe nmbnlance. Col. Watson, with his marine corps, accotnpanied me, and has been uniformly well. He is an excellent agreeable gentleman and admirable officer, and I regret that havingbeen left with General Quitman's división at San Augu-tin, he had no opportunity to particípate in he battles of the 19ihand 2Oth. Now a word with regard to the great object of ihis war - peace. There is no doubt that Santa Anna is sincerely desirous of peace. Commissioners to treat have been nppointed, and met Mr. Trist this afternoon at four. My belief is that peace will be the result, although no man can spenk with confidence. LATER FROM MEXICO. ANOTHER BATTLE. News from Vera Cruz to September 15th by wny ofPensacola has been receiveJ. A verbal report says that there had been .1 revohition at Puebla and the Americans at that place and Mexico had lost 2000 men. Letters from the city of Mexico ofthe 9th state that the propositions made by Mr. Trist wera rejected and hostilities re-commenced on the 8th of Sept. in Ihe afternoon. A baille was fought on that evening 'between a few hundred 'men of Scott's anny and 4 picked regiments of Mexicans commanded by General León. Enemy'S forccs defeated with considerable loss. Letters say that Trist's propcsitions were, that citizens of llie Ui:ited States would oot claim from Mexico, diimrtge, occasioned by ibe war. That the United States have privilege of establishing two fictories in the Upper Californias,and the Mexican Government could after that time renew if it choosed tlm article of treaty. This was not accepled Mr. Trist remarked to the Mexican Commissoner, lhnt he thought it bctter to cedñ ihe wliole of Upper California to the U. S., Government would pay 19 or 20 rtiillions f dollars - and this probably would have been agreed upan if the following articlra had met the absent ofthe Mexicans: - That the Texas boundary line would run along from the moulh of the Rio Grande. This wasrejectej - the Mexicans would not yield one inch the other side of ths Neücës. Mr. Trist askcd 48 clnys to consider, as be said he was not authorized to accept such proposats. The Mexicans replied they would give Trist 5 days nnd no more. On the 5lh daj' of conference a letter was wriitcn by Santa Anna to Gen. Scolt, informing him ofthe bre'iking of the armistice, on some triffling, pretence. S;ott replied making similar charges against Sania Anm. On the &th a few hundred Amcricans sent to attaek Chaultcpec, encountered a large forcé of the enemy's best troop?. A terrible fight ensued,in vrhich the Mexicans were defealed. Gen. Leon, who commnnded the. Mexicans, was wounded; and Gen. Balderis of the National Guards was killed. Americana retired to Tscubaya, Ieaving 5 wagons behind. Los ofthe Americans saicï to be comparatively smfill. Proclamations were issued by Herrera of the city of Mexico, recommend ing citizens, men, women and children to collect stones and carry them to the roofs ofthe houses and throvv them at the Amcricans, f they dare to enter the ciiy. Our less since leaving Puebla, is estimaled at 3000 men. Paredes in on the road between Vera Cruz at;d Mexico, wuh a large baüd of guerillas. Troops had been arriving in great numbers at Vera Cruz from the Brazos. There will be from 2 to &000 men ready to march in ihe interior soon. STILL LATER. GEN. WORTII WOUNUED. A speccr.l c'espatch published in the Syracuse Journal, tjaturday morningOct. 2d, soya on the brealung of the armistice "a severa fight look place in the streets of Me.xico. Gen. Worth was severely ïvounded. The Mexicans 'veere d.-ivenin towards the plaza. The Americana seffered severely by the fire from the windo-vs which wns poured fortli wilh tremendous energy bythe Mexicjcns." Oct. 1, 7 r. m. There is nothing fm-therin relation to the Mexican news than was sent lh8 ufiemoon. The news ia not generally believed - it s thought the parts do not hangtogether well. New York, Oct. 2 - 3 r. m. A fire in Pliündelphiu yesterday destroyed a malt house, saw mili and manufactoryin Pearl-st. No news fdom the south. Cincinnaïi, Oct. 2 - 4 v. m. Private letters at Uiclimond from the nrmy confirmed. Express despntchesof the Washington Union also confirma. Gen. Lane at Vera Cruz,Ieaves immediate.ly U join Scoit with 2000 men. The Americans have erected mortar batteries in the stree'.s of Mexico, untior heavy fire, which sattended with great slnughter. LATER. Sectrnd Despalch - Sania Anna uounded - General Bravo Killed. 8 P. M. A note from the P. Af. at New Orlenns to P. M. in Washington, dateë 26th, states that the steamer J. L. Day had arrived from Vera Cruz, bringing the news that the city of Mexico had been taken. Sania Anna is wounded, and with his scaltered troops had retired 12 miles from the city. Gen. Bravo is killed. Our loss supposed to bo 1000 to 1500. Mexican loss not given. ANOTHER BATTLE!- MEXICO TAKEN ! On the 5lh Gen. Scott addressed a etter to Santa Anna, accusing him of violating the armis'ice,to which Santn Anna replied accusing the Americana of plundering churches and stealing and destroyirig urtu'Ies held sacred by the Mexicans. Alter thia hostilities were soon ader resumed. On the 8th of Sept. Scott attacked the Mili de Rey, or King's Mili, in the imroediate vicinity of Chapultepec, and according to the Diaro del Gobierno, and the Boletín, published at Atlisco, after a severe conflict, in which we lost about 400 killed, and from 600 to 700 wounded, our army 1 e II back repulsed, upon Tncubaya. The account given by the Boletín represents the battle to have been the most bloody and severely contrsted of the whole war. This however is a Mexican account, nnd concludes as folluws : "At 12 o'clock, Gen. Scolt commenced a retrograde movement, and by 2 in the afternoon, he had withdrawn all his forces to Tacubaya, abnndonjd the two points he had occupied, blowing up the cburch of Our Lady, though some say it was set on fire by a bomb, from Chapultepec. It is believed Gens. Twiggs and Pierce directcd the attack, and they put in motion about 8000 men. It is certain that their fire was more intense and brisk tharc at Churubusco. It is impossible to asceituin the loss on either side. Ours does not amount to 100 killed, and 150 wounded. There are only two missing, all not killed ar wounded retiring to Chapultepec." "The eneiny, according to the confes sion of an Irishman who cameover to us iu the evening, carried off 400 dead and $0or 700 wounded." A Mexiean letter announces that O'Reilly and his men, 70 in number, had been sentenced to be hun by the court mariial, and on the 8th September, the sentence having been approved by Gen. Scott, the whole legión were hung in presence of both armies. Of the eventful denonement, we have only a brief account, but sufBcient to assure us that our arma have achíeved a biilliant triumph, and thnt our armv is revelling in the "halls of the Montezumas.-" A letter from a credilable eource confirms all that has been said in the above, and only disagree wilh it in stating tliat the city was carried by assault on the 14th, and the Sun of Annahuac has it on 'he 13th. The heights and works of Chapukepec were cirried on the 15th. The city was bombarded and a part of our army enlered it on the 16th, the ballance remaiuing at Chnpultepec. As to our loss, says tho Picayune, before the army entered the city, we have nothing nuthentic. We fear this new vielory has not beon achieved without great loss of lifc. The Mexican accounts show that hostilities commenced on the 8th, and were continued with more or less vigor until tho army took possession of the city. A passenger on Jnmes L, Day infnrms us that it was reported among thre Mexicans at Vera Cruz, ihntwe had lost 1700 mjn in killed and wounded, but ihey could not trace it to any aiutlientic source. Another passenger estimates Gen. Scott's loss at from one fourth or one tbird of his army.