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distance was not great, but the road bad, and the horses .on their 
last legs. : 4 
smal] detachment was sent forward at day-break, and at six 
the army followed. ve miles from old Pecos the road ~~ 
leads into a cafion, with hills on each side from 1,000 to 2,000 feet 
_above.the road, in all cases within cannon shot, and in many with-. 
in point blank musket shot; and this continues to a point but 12 or 
15 miles from Santa Fé. . . 
The scenery 1s wild; the geological formation much the same as 
before described, until you begin to descend towards the Del Norte, _ 
when granitic rocks and sands are seen in great abundance on the ~ 
road as far as Santa. Fé. Cedar, pifion, anda large growth of long- _ 
leafed pine are densely crowded wherever the rock affords a cre- _ 
vice, until within six or eight miles of the town. Fifteen miles 
from Santa Fé we reached the position deserted by Armijo. The 
topographical sketch, by Lieutenant Peck, will give some idea of 
it. It is a gateway which, in the hands of a skilful engineer and , 
one hundred reso'ute men, would have been perfectly impregnable. © 
ad the position been defended with any resolution, the general _ 
would have been obliged to turn it by a road which branches to _ 
the south, six miles from Pecos, by the way of Galisteo. 
Armijo’s arrangements for defence were very stupid. His abattis 
was placed behind the gorge some 100 yards, by which he evident- — 
ly intended that the gorge should be passed before his fire was | 
opened. This done, and his batteries would have been carried with- 
out difficulty. } ; 
Before reaching the cafion the noon halt was made in openey a. 
covered with some gama, and the native potato in. full” loom. 
The fruit was not quite as large as a wren’s egg. As we approach- — 
_ed the town, a few straggling Americans came out, all looking anx- 
iously for the general, who, with his staff, was clad so plainly, that 3 
they passed without recognizing us. Another officer andamyselt 
were sent down to explore the by-road by which Armijo fled. On 
our return to the main road, we saw two Mexicans; one the acting 
secretary of state, in search of thegeneral. They had passed him ~ 
without knowing him., When we pointed in the direction of the ~ 
general, they broke into a full run; their hands and feet keeping 
time to the pace of their nags. We followed in a sharp trot; an 
as we thought, ata respectable distance. Our astonishmen 
great to find, as they wound through the ravine, throngh t 
well-grown pine forest, that they did not gain on us perceptibly. — 
‘‘Certainly they are in a full run, and as certainly are we only in 
a trot,” we both exclaimed. I thought we were under some opti- — 
cal delusion, and turned to my servant to see the pace at which he © 
.was going. ‘Ah!’ said he, ‘those Mexican horses make a mighty Z 
great doing to no purpose.” That was a fact; with their large 
cruel bits, they harrass their horses into a motion which enables 
them to gallop very long without losing sight of the starting | a 
The acting secretary broughi a letter from Vigil, the heut 
governor, informing the general of Armijo’s flight, and o! 
ness to receive him in Santa Fé, and extend to-him the b 
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