Letter 6.
Difficulties of the conquest of Mexico. The acquisition of California.
Difficulties of the conquest of Mexico. The acquisition of California.
Difficulties of the conquest of Mexico. The acquisition of California.
November 2, 1846.
Sir: The conquest of Mexico is talked of as a thing settled, and yet, how few have examined the nature of the undertaking and the difficulties to be encountered and overcome! To form some idea of these, we must take into consideration the number of the inhabitants and the extent of the country to be conquered. It is true, the warlike character and resources of such a country, may not be in proportion, as is the case with the Chinese, from unwillingness to keep pace with other nations in the arts of peace and war. The Mexicans are not in this condition; they either have adopted or may adopt all the improvements in war, at least, of modern European nations. Their military strength ought to bear some proportion to their numbers and resources. If the Indian population is destitute of patriotism, their religious feelings and the influence of the priesthood, over them, ought, in some measure, to supply the deficiency. Let us now consider, what we may expect to encounter in the invasion of Mexico.
The population is estimated at eight millions; of these, five millions are contained in a comparatively small space, of which the capital is the centre. Four fifths of this number are Indianpeasantry; the others, either of the pure Spanish race or mixed with the Indian. The whole Mexican territory is said to be a million and a half of square miles—the whole of the portion containing the five millions does not exceed three hundred thousand square miles. The two roads, as already mentioned, are from Saltillo and from Vera Cruz. Let us see what States and population General Taylor would have to pass through, and then we may form some idea of the kind of resistance he may meet, if any defence at all be attempted:
States.Chief Cities.Zacatecas,272,000Zacatecas,40,000Guanawhato,500,000Guanawhato,60,000San Louis,250,000San Louis,25,000Queretaro,200,000Queretaro,30,000Guadelahara,800,000Guadelahara,90,000Mexico,1,500,000Mexico,200,000──────3,522,000
All the above States must be traversed or passed through—they must be occupied in such a manner as to keep open the line of march of the army. We must not think that our marches will be similar to an insurrectionary movement among themselves. A Mexican General, at the head of a column, approaches the city of Mexico, or Guadelahara, apronunciamentotakes places among the soldiers and citizens, and they invite the insurgent army to enter as friends and countrymen. If we look for suchpronunciamentosin favor of an American invading army, especially of heretics, we will be disappointed. There was nothing of this at Monterey, and the further we penetrate to the interior, the less there will be, of this kind of fraternization.
But did not Cortez take the city of Mexico with only nine hundred men? Not exactly; Cortez had, as his allies, two hundred thousand Indian warriors, twenty thousand of whom were Tlascalans, the bravest of that region. The taking thecity occupied seventy days, after a terrific slaughter. He divided his army into four divisions, of fifty thousand each, entering the city at different points, and leveling the houses in the way, until the different armies met in the great square. Even if the Mexican armies should avoid pitched battles, they can fortify strong natural positions, and being well provided with artillery, and having good engineers, it would be strange if they did not avail themselves of these advantages. We must expect hard fighting in the mountain passes which abound and also in taking towns entirely constructed of brick or stone, and incombustible. General Whitlock attempted to take the city of Buenos Ayres, which had little to no defence, except the barricades across the streets and the flat roofs of the houses; his army was twelve thousand strong, and was repulsed with great loss. The Texan mode of burrowing through the houses had not then been invented. I do not say, that General Taylor would not be able to reach Mexico, but it would be very hard fighting.
Let us now consider what it is to be overcome on the Vera Cruz line of march.
States.Chief Cities.Mexico,1,500,000Mexico,200,000[!]Michuacan,450,000Valladolid,25,000[!]Wahaca,600,000Wahaca,40,000Puebla,900,000Puebla,60,000Vera Cruz,200,000Vera Cruz,15,000Chiapa,100,000Chiapa,3,000Tobasco,75,000Tobasco,5,000──────4,347,000! I have endeavored to accommodate the spelling to the pronunciation.
! I have endeavored to accommodate the spelling to the pronunciation.
The army, by way of Vera Cruz, would have to pass through four millions, and would meet with greater difficulties on the way than that from Saltillo. I am supposing that while the invading army advances from this latter place, theStates along the other road will remain passive; and so of the army taking its march from Vera Cruz, that the northern States will not take part. But this will not be the case. It will, therefore, be necessary to take both roads at once, and advance with two armies simultaneously, at an enormous expense and loss of life. It is true, we may find efficient allies in the discords among the Mexicans themselves, which may prevent them from uniting against us. The Indians may remain perfectly passive; the men of property, tired of internal revolutions, and despairing of ever seeing a settled government in their country, may desire to seek security and peace under the wings of the American eagle. These dissensions and jealousies, although of a different kind from those which favored the conquest by Cortez, may lead to the same result. If they were a patriotic and united people, the attempt to conquer them would seem to me hopeless. Yet, when we consider the force they can bring into the field in defence of their homes, and as they believe, of their altars, instigated by hatred towards us, and that sense of degradation, which even the dullest of the human race must feel at the idea of subjugation by a foreign enemy, we cannot but expect a powerful resistance. They ought to be able to arm and embody two hundred thousand men for defence. This is a very different affair from marching an army a thousand miles to attack Texas. They would be called out to defend the very soil on which they exist, and it seems incredible, that they would not respond to the call.
And should we make ourselves masters of the capital, will this be the conquest of the whole country? When Cortez took the city, he, at the same time, overturned the dynasty and Empire of Montezuma, which had become odious to the surrounding nations. It was, in fact, those nations which overthrew that empire, under the guidance and with the aid of the Spaniards, little thinking, that they were only fighting for a change of masters. And suppose, that notwithstanding our signal success in taking the Metropolis, the Mexican Congressretiring to some other city should still persist in refusing to make peace on our terms, or on any terms, what are we then to do? We must go on to conquer, and hold each separate State, or we must retire, without either conquering the country or conquering a peace. We should bring back laurels and glory, but foiled and baffled in the objects for which we made such mighty efforts. And I confess, I should be sorry to annex such a population, incapable of defending themselves, incapable of self-government, and who must be our dependants, or rather bondsmen. The conquests and annexation of nations on the soil of Italy, gave strength to Rome, but when she acquired distant provinces as dependencies, and established colonies, the government became hopelessly corrupt, and the empire fell by its own weight. It is not so much the annexation of territory, as of people unfitted for republican government, that I dread. If it be necessary to govern them as dependencies, a degree of corruption will be so rapidly introduced into our Government, that its whole character will be changed, and republican virtue will hardly be a name among us.
These, after all, are but speculations, and may prove to be visionary. Our scope of vision into the future is very limited. The great event of the war, in my estimation, is the taking of California. As respects Mexico, it was a mere waif or derelict, liable to be seized by the first comer; and, in fact, we were only about a week before the British squadron, who were utterly astonished to see our flag flying at Monterey and San Francisco, when it was their design to place St. George’s Cross there. It was merely a question as to who should occupy the country, and surely, in such an alternative, no American can hesitate to say, that possession should be taken by us. It was lost to Mexico, at any rate; and, in the hands of Great Britain, would have been an endless source of vexation to us, and, perhaps, lead to ultimate rupture with that country. We have now a sea coast on the Pacific corresponding to that on the Atlantic.Our republic stretches from sea to sea, and in time, a land communication will be established between the two, reducing the distance more and more every day. The Republic thus fronts Europe on the east, and Asia on the west, with an ocean boundary, beyond which we cannot go. Here let our proud progress be stayed! Let us be content with filling up the vast space, and improving our condition and the condition of our fellow men. An immense commerce must spring up in less than half a century, from our Pacific coast, with the five hundred millions of people, who inhabit the shores washed by the western and Indian oceans!