Page:Mexico (1829) Volumes 1 and 2.djvu/267

MEXICO. 229 The army for the present year consists of 58,955 men, of whom 32,161 are actually under arms; the remainder are ready to be called out should their services be required. The troops of the line are composed of twelve Battalions of Infantry, each of 823 men (full war complement 1,223) ; twelve Regiments of Cavalry, each of 559 men, (war com- plement 815) ; and three Brigades of Artillery of 1,767 men in all. In addition to these, there are thirty-four Presidial Com- panies, consisting entirely of Cavalry, and employed, prin- cipally, in the protection of the Northern frontier ; and eleven Companias Sueltas, (local corps of infantry and cavalry) dis- tributed upon different points of the coast ; the first consists of 3,317 men in all ; the second of 1,120. With those pre- viously enumerated, they make a total of 22,788 regular troops, now under arms, as specified in the accompanying table, (No. 1,) taken from the official report of this year. The Milicia Activa, or Militia on actual service, consists of 9,373 men, divided into four battalions in the Interior, — four upon the Coasts, and fifteen Presidial companies. ( Vide Table 2.) This force can be augmented, at pleasure, to 36,167 men, who are already enrolled, and disciplined to a certain extent, although allowed to retire to their homes, while not wanted: {Vide Table 1.) A similar regulation is adopted, though to a less extent, with the troops of the line ; so that as long as the country is not menaced with actual hos- tility from without, the War establishment, although nomi- nally kept up, is attended with, (comparatively) but little po- sitive expense. The Estado-Mai/or-General, which unites the duties of the Quarter-master Generars Office, with the more scien- tific branches of the department of Engineers, has been occupied, since its creation in September, 1823, in making military surveys, — preparing a general plan of defence in the "^vent of an invasion, determining, astronomically, the posi-