FOOTNOTES (1-46) ON CHAPTER VII Pages: 79-84

1. Upton, p. 195.

2. On March 2, 1836.

3. As a result of the victory won by General Sam Houston with 800 Texans over General Santa Anna with 5,000 Mexicans at the battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836.

The independence of Texas was recognized in 1837 by the United States, Great Britain, France, and Belgium.

4. By Texas.

5. McMaster, A History of the People of the United States, VI, pp. 256-257, VII, pp. 325, 356-369, 391-396 and 406; Ladd, The War with Mexico, pp. 22, 26-35.

6. This was in accordance with the treaty between Mexico and Texas in 1836.

7. This Officer, who commanded the First Military Division at New Orleans, had been ordered on June 15th to proceed to the month of the Sabine River or some other place suitable for an advance to the Rio Grande. During July he sailed with 1,500 troops, arriving early in August and establishing his headquarters near Corpus Cristi.

8. Orders dated August 6th, 23rd, and 30th, 1845.__House of Representatives, Executive Document, No. 60, 30th Congress, first session, pp. 83-85, 88-89.

In the last order the Secretary of War said:

"You have been advised that the assembling of a large Mexican army on the borders of Texas, and crossing the Rio Grande with a considerable force, will be regarded by the Executive here as an invasion of the United States and the commencement of hostilities...

"In case of war, either declared or made manifest by hostile acts, your main object will be the protection of Texas; but the pursuit of this object will not necessarily confine your action within the territory of Texas. Mexico having thus commenced hostilities you may, in your discretion, should you have sufficient forces and be in a condition to do so, cross the Rio Grande, disperse or capture the forces assembling to invade Texas, defeat the junction of troops uniting for that purpose, drive them from their positions on either side of the river, and, if deemed practicable and expedient, take and hold possession of Matamoras and other places in the country."

9. On August 26th, 1845.

10. On August 28th.

11. "To execute the laws of the union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions." _Article I, Section 8, paragraph 14.

12. Pages 59-60, 63-64.

13. House Executive Document, No. 60, pp. 91-92.

14. H.R., Ex. Doc., No. 24, 31st Congress, 1st session, p. 8-a, table.

15. On March 29th, 1846.

16. H.R., Ex. Doc., No. 60, pp. 132-133.

17. General Scott in his annual report in November, 1845, recommended the expansion of the companies to 100 privates. Had this been adopted, Taylor's 73 companies could have been raised to 7,300 men or 8,000 with the full quota of officers, non-commissioned officers, etc., thus giving it an effective strength of about 6,000.

The Secretary of War's report urged "that authority to increase the number of privates in a company, to any number not exceeding eighty should be vested in the President, to be exercised at his discretion, with special reference to what the public interest might suddenly require.

"THIS MODE OF ENLARGING THE ARMY, BY ADDING TO THE BANK AND FILE OF THE PRESENT COMPANIES, WILL NOT, it is believed, IMPAIR, BUT, on the contrary, GREATLY IMPROVE THEIR COMPARATIVE EFFICIENCY, AND on that account as well as on the score of economy, IS DEEMED PREFERABLE TO THAT OF EFFECTING THE SAME OBJECT BY RAISING NEW REGIMENTS at this time.

"It is only in view of a probability that a force considerably larger than a permanent peace establishment might soon be required that I should prefer the mode of increasing the Army by raising new regiments, organized on our present reduced scale. This scale is undoubtedly too low for actual service and has nothing to recommend it to a preference under any circumstances but THE FACILITY IT AFFORDS OF EXPANDING AN ARMY SO ORGANIZED BY INCREASING THE BANK AND FILE, AND OF RENDERING IT EFFECTIVE FOR SERVICE IN A SHORTER PERIOD THAN NEW REGIMENTS COULD BE RAISED, ORGANIZED AND DISCIPLINED." _Senate Ex. Doc., No. 1, Twenty-ninth Congress, first session, pp. 195-196.

18. Four regiments from each State. McMaster, VII, pp. 441-442. On the same day, in reporting Thornton's skirmish, General Taylor declared that

"If a law could be passed authorizing the President to raise volunteers for twelve months, it would be of the greatest importance for a service so remote from support as this."_H.R., Ex. Doc., No. 60, p. 141.

19. Where he had established a base of supplies.

20. 6,000 strong.

21. At this battle Taylor's forces numbered 2,222 officers and men, but only 1,700 were engaged. His losses in the two actions were only 170 killed and wounded, whereas the Mexican casualties were 1,000.__General Taylor's Official Report; H.R., Ex. Doc., No. 24, table B.

Taylor concluded his report by stating that "the causes of victory are doubtless to be found in the superior quality of our officers and men."__Montgomery, Life of General Taylor, p. 162.

22. The Military Policy of the United States, p. 200.

23. Napier, Peninsular War, II, p. 113.

The maxim as given by Napoleon is: "In war three-fourths are moral affairs; the balance of the actual forces is only the other fourth." __Observations on Spanish Affairs, August 27, 1808. Corresp., No. 14,276.

24. Upton, p. 201.

The troops who responded to the call of Generals Taylor and Gaines numbered 12,601, viz: men enlisted for three months, 1,390; men illegally enlisted for six months and held for three, 11,211.

25. On May 11, 1846.

26. He evidently took his cue from Taylor's own suggestion. See page 80.

27. H.R., Ex. Doc., No. 196, Twenty-ninth Congress, first session, p. 6.

28. Act of May 13, 1846._Callan, pp. 367-368.

29. "Unless sooner discharged, according to the time for which they shall have been mustered into service."

Section 2 prolonged to 6 months the term of militia mustered into United States service; Section 3 required the volunteers to furnish their own clothing, horses and equipment, the Government supplying the arms; Section 4 gave $42 in lieu of clothing allowed to regular troops; Section 5 authorized the appointment of officers in conformity with the laws of their respective States, Congress evidently forgetting that these troops were not militia but a Government force; and Section 9 granted the same allowances as to regulars, the volunteer cavalrymen receiving 40 cents per diem as a compensation for their horses.

30. On the governors of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas for 26 regiments.

31. Nine regiments and one battalion of volunteers had already been called for "to serve to the end of the war," thus demonstrating that the longer enlistment would in nowise have discouraged those who offered themselves for service.

32. Act of May 13, 1846._Callan, p. 369.

33. See above, p. 78.

34. The 12,601 volunteers who responded to the calls of Taylor and Gaines (footnote 24) had neither equipment nor means of transport. They were therefore obliged to remain idly near their supply depots for three months, never fired a shot and lost 145 by death, only 25 less than the casualties at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma.

35. Upon, pp. 204-205.

36. Acts of May 15 and 19, and June 18 and 26, 1846.__Callan, pp. 369-375.

37. The authorized strength of the Army under the five acts of 1846 was fixed at 17,812.__Heitman, II, pp. 590-591.

Section 2 of the law increasing the staff departments empowered the President "to call into service, under the act approved May 13, 1846, each of the general officers of the militia as the service, in his opinion, may require, and to organize into brigades and divisions the forces authorized by said act, according to his direction."__Callan, p. 373.

"This section would apparently denote that Congress regarded the volunteers under the Constitution as substantially the same as the militia, and that conformably with the law of 1792 the Governors of States had an equitable right to the appointment of all the officers, from the highest to the lowest grades. This partial adhesion to the State system was the means, in many instances, of placing the fortunes of the country as well as the lives of our soldiers, in the hands of generals utterly ignorant of the military art at a time when the Government had at its disposal numbers of competent officers who had devoted their lives to the theory and practice of their profession."_Upton, p. 205.

38. The first arrived in June.

39. "Never was the value of disciplined men more triumphantly demonstrated than on these glorious occasions; and since we have learned that General Taylor compels the volunteers with him to receive six hours' drilling per day and relieves them from all other duties, to make soldiers of them, we venture to predict that they too, when they meet the enemy, will add to the reputation of our arms. 'Rough and Ready' will first make them soldiers and then win victories with them."__Quoted by Upton, p. 208.

40. "While some 20,000 volunteers were sent to the theater of war, not a wagon reached the advance of General Taylor till after the capture of Monterey."__Stevens, Campaigns of the Rio Grande and of Mexico. p. 21.

41. Order No. 108, dated Camargo, August 28, 1846.

42. With about 6,000 troops.

43. Early on the morning of September 22, 1846.

44. The Mexicans at this battle numbered 7,000 regulars and 3,000 militia, and their loss is unknown.

Taylor's force was only 6,645. The regulars lost 205 in killed and wounded; the volunteers, 282, a total of 487.__Ripley, War with Mexico, I, pp. 198-199; H.R., Ex. Doc., No. 24, Thirty-first Congress, first session, pp. 10 and 28.

The training received by the volunteers was evident from the admirable way they fought.

45. Except for the major part of the artillery, the Mexicans were permitted to retain their arms. Such favorable terms raised a storm of indignation in the United States.

46. 2,829 troops, composed of volunteers from Illinois, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Texas, together with a few regulars. Leaving their camp of instruction at San Antonio de Bexar on September 26th, they proceeded via Presidio, the Rio Grande, and Santa Rosa to Monelova, where Wool reported his arrival to Taylor and was ordered to advance in Parras.

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