170 RIGHT OF REPRISAL. 
ensuing, eighteen Mexicans were killed, and 
as many wounded, five of whom afterwards 
died. The Texans suffered no injury, though 
the Mexicans were a hundred in number. 
e rest were all taken prisoners except two, 
who escaped and boré the news to Gen. Ar- 
mijo, e ont a with a large force at the Cold 
Spring, 140 miles beyond. As soon as the 
Geist received notice of the defeat of his 
vanguard, he broke up his camp most preci- 
pitately, and retreated to Santa Fé. A gen- 
tleman of the caravan which passed shortly 
afterward, informed me that spurs, lareats and 
other scraps of equipage, were found scattered 
in every direction about Armijo’s camp—left 
by his troops in the hurly-burly of their preci- 
pitate retreat. 
Keeping beyond the territory of the United 
States, the right of the Texans to harass the 
commerce of Mexicans will hardly be denied, 
as they were at open war: yet another con- 
sideration, it would seem, should have re- 
strained them from aggressions in that quar- 
ter. They could not have been ignorant that 
but a portion of the traders were Mexicans— 
that many American citizens were conneeted 
in the same caravans. The Texans assert, it 
is true, that the lives and property of Ameri- 
cans were to be respected, provided they aban- 
doned the Mexicans. But did they reflect 
upon the baseness of the terms they were 
imposing? What American, worthy of the 
name, to save his own interests, or even his 
life, could deliver up his-travejling compa- 
hieienee es ani | eo 
eine eS 
