eavy guns. The Commodore's gallant reply was: "Certainly,
General, but I must fight them." And fight them he did, as we shall
see. Six heavy pieces of ordnance were landed, and about 200 seamen
and volunteers were attached to each gun. Three of these were
sixty-eight-pounder shell guns and three thirty-two-pounder solid-shot
guns. Each of these guns weighed about three tons. Now each of these
had to be dragged through the loose sand, almost knee-deep, for
something like three miles before it could be put in the position the
engineers had assigned to it. This battery, by the way, was protected
by bags of sand piled on each other, and this was the first time that
this device had been used. When the battery was in position the
officers and men of the ships were so anxious to fight it that, to
prevent jealousy, the officers first to be assigned drew lots for the
honor. The first day Captain Aulick commanded, and the next day
Captain Mayo. The naval battery fired with such precision that they
did amazing damage to the enemy's works, and on the second day the
guns in Vera Cruz were silenced. Then began a parley as to terms, but
on the 28th there was an unconditional surrender. Now Scott had a
foothold in the part of Mexico which counted for something, and he was
able to begin that masterly march through the Valley of Mexico and on
to the capital of the country. But he never could have obtained this
foothold without the assistance of the navy. The country did not
recognize this at once, and the newspapers being printed by landsmen,
all of the immediate glory was bestowed on General Scott.

Now that Vera Cruz had fallen and General Scott's plans called for a
movement toward the interior, it was most desirable for him to have
better cavalry. But he lacked horses. Singular as it may seem, he
called upon the navy to assist in supplying this deficiency. It was
known that there were Mexican horsemen in and about Alvarado, so it
was determined to proceed against this place by land and sea, so that
the town could be reduced, and the horses secured at the same time.
General Quitman, with a brigade, was sent by land, so as to keep the
horsemen from running away, while the "Potomac," Captain Aulick, and
the "Scourge," Lieutenant Charles G. Hunter, were sent to appear in
front of Alvarado. It was evidently intended that Captain Aulick and
General Quitman would move on the place on some appointed day.
Lieutenant Hunter did not know what th