|30 CONQUEST OF CALIFORNIA. 
en their works. A number of small houses whig ; h ob¬ 
structed the range of their cannons were burned, and for 
several days things remained in nearly the same state. 
On the 20th, the enemy dragged a piece of artillery to 
a dilapidated building called the old Quartel, the most 
commanding site in the town. A hot fire then com¬ 
menced on both sides, and the enemy came quite close 
to the works at dusk, and fired steadily until eight o’clock 
In the evening. On the following morning Captain Stell 
led a small party against the party working the piece 
in the old Quartel, surprised them, killed six, and carried 
off their flag, which was immediately inverted under 
the star-spangled banner of the garrison. The enemy 
then left the town, and distributed themselves in the 
neighborhood to cut off supplies from the Americans. 
Meanwhile, a party of one hundred and fifty Mexicans 
approached San Jose, where Lieutenant Heywood was 
posted with twenty men and one nine pounder. They 
demanded a surrender on the 20th of November, and 
when that was refused, a heavy firing was commenced* 
which continued all night and the following day. On 
the night of the second day a grand assault was made. 
The leader of the enemy, Mejares, led forty men against 
the front, while a hundred men with scaling ladders came 
upon the rear. The nine pounder opened upon the va¬ 
liant general, killed him and three of his men, and drove 
the rest back in confusion. The gun was then turned 
upon the party in the rear, and they too were at once 
dispersed. A firing was kept up until the morning, when 
two American whalers entered the harbor and sent fifty 
men on shore. The enemy mistaking them for men of 
war, fled in haste towards La Paz. 
By the terms of the treaty of peace between the two 
governments, the boundary line was made to run along 
the southern boundary of New Mexico to its westward 
termination, thence northwardly along the western line 
