--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Ivins, Anthony W. collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 20 number: 7 published: 1917-05 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Anthony W. Ivins, "On Villa’s Trail in Mexico—IV," *Improvement Era* 20, no. 7 (May 1917): 598–603.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2007unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera2007unse start_page: 598 end_page: 603 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1917-05) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2007unse publication_year: 1917 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1917, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # On Villa’s Trail in Mexico—IV Dave Brown, chief scout with Major Howze's division of the punitive expedition. He was in all of the fights in which the troop participated. On Villa's Trail in Mexico By Hon. Anthony W . Ivins VI The battle of Ojos Azules was the last engagement fought between the American troops and Villistas in the southern part of Chihuahua. Villa, wounded and abandoned by his followers, was in hiding in the Sierra Madre mountains, the Tarahumara Indians, it is said, giving him asylum, and nursing him back to health, while his followers scattered, and without leadership returned to their homes and became pacificos. Many of his officers and men had been killed or made pris- oners, and for the time being his power was broken. The two most serious engagements fought by the Americans during the campaign were not with the Villistas, but with Car- ranza troops, the first at Parral, as already related, the other at Carrizal, under the following circumstances: Captain Boyd was sent out from headquarters, with a troop of the 10th Cavalry, (colored) to reconnoiter the country east, in the direction of Carrizal and Villa Ahumada, the latter town ON VILLA'S TRAIL IN MEXICO 599 These Mexican women have just crossed the Rio Grande, from Mexico to the United States, where they will seek refuge from the Villistas. All of their earthly belongings are on the back of the donkey. being on the Mexican Central Railroad, about six miles east of Carrizal. Captain Boyd and Lieutenant Adair were the only white officers with the command. The night the soldiers camped at the Santo Domingo Ranch, however, Lieutenant Mowry, with a small detachment of the Tenth formed a junction with the main force, and the following morning, as the troop approached Heaton Lunt, left, and Will Curtis, right, two of the boys who did splendid service as scouts. Lunt and Brown were together at the battle of Ojos Azules. 600 IMPROVEMENT ERA Carrizal, it consisted of 76 troopers, 3 officers, and Lem Spills- bury, who acted as scout and interpreter to Captain Boyd. When near the town a Mexican captain came out with a flag of truce and met Captain Boyd, whom he informed that Carrizal was garrisoned by several hundred Carranza troops, and that orders had been issued by General Jacinto Trevino, military commander of Chihuahua, to prevent the Americans from pass- ing through the town, or proceeding to the east or south. Cap- tain Boyd replied that his orders were to proceed to Villa Ahumada, and that he desired to follow the road which passed through the town. The captain sent for General Gomez, who was in command of the Mexican garrison. The general reiter- ated what the captain had said and requested the American of- ficer to wait until he could wire Trevino, at Chihuahua, for permission to pass the Americans on to Ahumada. Captain This picture of U. S. Infantry on Villa's trail was taken in the Sierra Madre Mountains. The troops have since marched back to the United Slates. Boyd replied that he could not wait, and Gomez returned to the garrison. Boyd then asked Spillsbury, who had acted as interpreter, if he thought the Mexicans meant to fight. "They certainly do," replied Spillsbury, "we had better go back." "No!" replied Boyd, "I am going in, you can go with me, or go to the rear as you choose." "I will go with you," replied Spillsbury. Captain Boyd then dismounted his men, leaving 15 to hold the horses, formed the remaining 61 in open battle line and advanced on the town. ON VILLA'S TRAIL IN MEXICO 601 United States Infantry, resting after a long march, at a temporary camp 300 miles south of the international boundary. In front of the American line, and west of Carrizal, is a deep irrigation canal, while on both flanks the country is covered with a heavy growth of mesquite. The Americans had advanced but a short distance when the Mexicans opened fire from the canal, and on both flanks, with rifles and machine guns. Cap- tain Boyd led his men to the canal where he was killed. Lieutenants Adair and Mowry both fell soon after, one killed, ihe other desperately wounded, as they led the advance on the town. With only Spillsbury to lead them the colored troopers fought their way through the town to where there was no enemy to dispute the way, but they could not continue in that direc- The same body of troops, with their shelter tents pitched, at another temporary camp. 602 IMPROVEMENT ERA tion, so turned and fought back to where the battle commenced, only to find that the detachment left with the horses had been attacked and defeated, and had retreated toward Santo Domingo, taking the horses with them. Surrounded as they were by enemies, their thinned ranks being constantly decimated, there was but one thing to do, they surrendered. Of the 64 men who went into the fight only 23 were together, the remainder were either killed, wounded, scat- tered in small groups, or alone making their way back to the Headquarters Camp. The bodies of seven troopers and the two officers were later brought to El Paso, Texas; the remainder of the Americans, The walls of this building show the effect of rifle and artillery fire, in a battle between Villistas and Constitutionalists. Villa won the battle, the men in the foreground are his followers. with the exception of three, who were unaccounted for, event- ually found their way back to the American lines. The Mex- ican losses, as near as can be ascertained, were 40 killed, among them General Gomez, and as many wounded. The condition of the Americans who surrendered was des- perate. The Mexicans, after robbing them of everything thev possessed, including their clothing, declared it to be their in- tention to execute them, and would probably have done so, had not Spillsbury warned them that if they executed American prisoners of war they would start something which they would not be able to stop. This caused them to hesitate, and finally send the prisoners to Chihuahua, from which point they were subsequently released, and returned to their command. ON VILLA'S TRAIL IN MEXICO 603 The battle of Carrizal was the last fought by the troops of the punitive expedition. Orders were issued by the War De- partment for the withdrawal of the advance columns to El Valle, and headquarters was established at Colonia Dublan, 63 miles farther north. These positions were maintained until the latter part of January, 1917, when General Pershing received orders to with- draw his forces to the American border, which he did. In the meantime Villa remained in hiding among the Indians, and his Mexican friends, in the Sierra Madres, while his wound healed. He gradually collected his scattered forces, and finally attacked and captured the city of Chihuahua, defeating General Trevino, the Carranza commander of the district. Since that time he has been defeated by General Murgia, who succeeded General Tre- vino to the command of the Constitutional forces in the state of Chihuahua. What the future will develop is purely problem- atical. The