May 25. Engaged on a reconnoissance of the road to Tlascala. There are two roads, one for carriages and one for mules, which continue separate the whole distance to Tlascala. This reconnoissance occupied seven hours, and was supported by twelve sappers.
May 26. Accompanied Captain Lee and Lieutenants Mason and Tower in an examination of the hill and the adjacent parts of the city, to determine a position for our troops in case of the attack of the enemy. The occupation of the hill, the Cuartel San José, and some buildings on the right and left, fulfilled the conditions quite well. It commanded the city, and the approaches to it in the direction of the hill afforded room for stores, wagons, and animals. This examination was suggested to General Worth by Captain Lee on the first occupation of the city, but was deferred in consequence of press of business, and was ordered to-day in consequence of a report that a strong force of the enemy was marching upon the city from Mexico.
May 27. A fatigue party with some sappers, and all under the direction of Lieutenant Smith, were employed to-day in repairing the parapet of Fort Guadalupe, on the summit of the hill. The engineer officers were engaged generally in examining roads entering the city, and plotting the same.
May 28. General Scott and staff arrived to-day. Engineers employed as yesterday.
May 29. General Twiggs arrived with his division to-day at three P.M., and at one o’clock the long roll beat in consequence of a report of the approach of the enemy, twenty thousand strong. This proved to be unfounded.
May 30, 31. The only occurrence of interest is Santa Anna’s solemn renunciation of power, and return to private life. He declares in his manifest that he has labored with a single eye to the good of his country, and can review with satisfaction and without reproach his whole public career. I cannot but entertain the opinion that Santa Anna’s renouncing all authority is in consequence of a fixed determination on his part to be “Aut Cæsar aut nihil.” It may be the deliberate act of a great statesman and patriot, more firmly to maintain the authority necessary to save his country. He may act from the conviction that his country, seeing that he would not continue in authority in this crisis unless he were cordially supported by all parties, would with one voice recall him to public life and invest him with full powers. So far as I am able to judge, Santa Anna’s career, since his return to Mexico, has been most glorious and remarkable. Without resources, and in the midst of internal discord, he has organized two large armies, and made one of the most extraordinary marches in all history. He has been defeated, but throughout has shown an admirable constancy, and exhibited high military qualities. In strategic operations he has shown marked ability. At Buena Vista he came within an ace of utterly defeating General Taylor, and had he succeeded (and the probabilities were in his favor), he would have been able to excite to the highest pitch of enthusiasm the whole nation. A large army might have been raised, and our advance into the interior effectually checked. On the field of battle he has not proved equal to us. But it is probably due to the nature of his troops, who in the shock of the conflict are inferior to us, three or four to one. At Angostura, and at the Cerro Gordo, he exhibited courage and an indefatigable spirit. He did not leave the height of the Cerro Gordo till the very moment of its falling into our hands, and he was obliged to make his escape on one of the wheel mules of his carriage. Nor were his spirits depressed by this overwhelming defeat. He immediately rallied his troops at Orizaba, a strategic position in reference to the whole route of Jalapa from Vera Cruz to Puebla. Here he was able to threaten our lines of communication, and, without moving a step, he compelled us to protect our trains with large escorts as they came up from Vera Cruz to Jalapa. When nearly a whole brigade (Riley’s) was sent down to protect the large train supposed to be the last of five hundred wagons, and it became evident that nothing more would be gained in this direction, he anticipated our advance, and threw himself between us and the City of Mexico. He has now renounced all authority. We must wait until his real object in taking this great step shall have become developed.
June 3. We have rumors to-day that a reinforcement of 3000 men has landed at Antigua, and is on the march to Jalapa. It has been determined to break up Jalapa, place the sick in hospital in Perote, and bring up the whole disposable force to Puebla. At Perote and Jalapa are 800 sick and 1700 men in garrison. Leaving a garrison of 400 men in Perote, the remaining 1300 men, with 900 recruits, will increase the troops now at Puebla, 6000 effectives including officers (there are 700 sick), to 8200; of the 900 recruits, at least 200 will be left behind sick. So that 8000 men will be the extent of our force. We shall probably remain in Puebla till about the 1st of July, and then advance to the city with our whole force.
I write this evening to my wife by a train going down to-morrow. It is doubtful whether the letter will reach the States.
This is Corpus Christi Day. I attended church in the morning, and was anything but pleased with the idle ceremonies of the occasion. The Catholicism of this country is a great corruption of that of the United States. It is chiefly a religion of observances, and of the most burdensome and elaborate kind. Excepting human sacrifices, it is on a par with the religion of the Aztecs.
A bull-fight having been advertised, I attended it with many other officers, but the performance was a very tame one. The bulls were barbarously butchered after having been lassoed and thrown down. Every one returned home disgusted.