of him, giving him swords and dinners, and
securing for him the command of the schooner "Taney," in which he made
a roving cruise to the Mediterranean. As long as he lived he was
always spoken of as "Alvarado" Hunter. A sense of humor is sometimes a
dangerous cargo for a public man to carry; but the absence of it also
is often dangerous. In this instance Commodore Perry, because he did
not see the amusing aspect of Hunter's escapade, made himself so
ridiculous that he came near cutting short his own career, which, as
will afterward be seen in this history, was destined for greater
achievements than any in the past.

[Illustration: Blue-Jackets before Vera Cruz.]

The next objective point for the navy was Tuspan, where the "Truxton"
had been lost. The bar at Tuspan is dangerous, and even the small
steamers of the squadron had their masts hoisted out of them to
lighten them. Commodore Perry hoisted his flag on the "Spitfire" and
led the way up the river with the boats of the squadron in tow. The
first fort on the river below the town, called the Pana, was silenced
by the gun of the "Spitfire" and then stormed by the sailors; two
other forts were taken in the same way and the town was occupied. The
Mexicans made a spirited defence, but did little damage, only one man
being killed. Among the wounded were Captain Tatnall, Commander
Whittle, and Lieutenant James Parker. The guns taken from the
"Truxton" were found in one of the forts and restored to the fleet.

The last naval operation of the war was against Tabasco. Commodore
Perry took all of the fleet which could possibly go up the river from
Frontera. This town was easily captured, but when the ascent of the
river began the boats were continually fired upon from the trees and
chaparral along the banks. At a place called Devil's Bend, the passage
of the river was interrupted by a sunken obstruction, technically
called a _chevaux de frise_. Commodore Perry did not mean to let this
stop him, so he organized a land force of seamen and marines and
concluded to march to Tabasco. He had numerous skirmishes, but was not
stopped. One day his own ships passed him, the _chevaux de frise_
having been raised by attaching rubber bags to it and then inflating
them with air. When Perry arrived at Tabasco he found the American
flag flying, the town having fallen without resistance to his own
ships. So his own arduous march across country had been all for
nothing. This was the last work