orders, the troops appointed to convoy it to Mexico were so often attacked upon the road by the La Puebla, and Vera Cruz Insurgents, that their progress was extremely slow. In these Provinces the Spaniards possessed little more than the great towns; all the open country was in the hands of the Insurgents; and they mustered in such formidable numbers about Nŏpălūcă, that Ŏlăzabăl, who commanded the convoy of the artillery, was detained there, in a state of siege by Ŏsŏrnŏ, on the 23d of March, and was only released by the arrival of a strong detachment sent from La Pūēblă to his assistance.
The great object of Mŏrēlŏs was to prolong the siege until the commencement of the rainy season, when he knew that the Royalists would be forced to raise it, as Cuautla is situated in Tierra Caliente, and is a most unhealthy spot. Calleja was aware of this, and felt the ignominy with which a retreat would be attended; yet not even this could induce him to risk another general attack. All his efforts had been hitherto unavailing; and, at the end of April, he could not boast of having gained one single advantage. Unfortunately for the Mexicans, he had but too powerful an ally within the walls of the town. Cuautla had never been properly supplied with provisions, as Morelos had not expected to be besieged there in form, and famine now prevailed to a horrible extent; maize was almost the only sustenance of the troops; a cat sold for six dollars; a lizard for two; and rats or other vermin for one.
