far the stronger force, knew he could afford to be considerate, and the latter treated British commerce so well that our government was thanked by England (13to Crampton, June 30, 1847; Sherman, Sloat, xxiv; and note partcularly Journ. Milit. Serv. Institute, xxxii, 249-53). Shubrick was at Mazatlán in May, 1847, but left at the beginning of June. The Cyane remained a little longer. She and the Portsmouth anchored there, at the end of June, but both sailed away within two days. Biddle was ordered Jan. 6, 1846, to take command of the squadron, but did not receive the orders until Dec. 31 (at Lima). Mar. 2 he took command. His vessels then were the Columbus (74 guns) on which he arrived, Independence (razee, 54), frigates Congress (44) and Savannah (44), sloops Portsmouth (20), Levant (20), Cyane (20), Warren (20), Dale (16) and Preble (16), storeships Erie (8), Lexington (8) and Southampton (6), and the captured Malek Adel (Sen. 1; 30, 1, p. 948; 48Bancroft to Shubrick, Aug. 21, 1846). The Savannah and Levant went home; and the Warren, on account of its condition, was assigned to guard duty (120Shubrick to Stockton, Mar. 1, 1847). The Ohio reached the squadron in the early part of 1848. Besides blockading, cruising for prizes, looking after the American whalers, and watching for possible privateers, long voyages were necessary to obtain provisions and instructions. The latter were usually very tardy and the commanders had to follow their own judgment in the main. Monterey, Calif., was in general the base of operations.
26. (Succeeded) 49Bancroft to Shubrick, Aug. 21, 1846; 120Shubrick to Biddle, Mar. 5; July 20, 1847; 47Shubrick, July 21. (Notice) 47Id., Aug. 11. Ho. 1; 30, 2, pp. 1072-5 (Shubrick). 76Téllez, Nov. 4, 1847. (Guaymas) Ho. 1; 30, 2, pp. 1075-83 (Lavallette et al.), 1110 (Shubrick); Correo Nacional, Nov. 30; 13Wooldridge, Nov. 18. (Mazatlán) Wise, Gringos (N. Y., 1849), 95; Lummis, Mex. of To-day, 150; Mofras, Explor., i, 173; Gaxiola, Invasión, 162.
Guaymas, a place of considerable importance, was summoned Oct. 19. The Mexican troops and people decamped, and the cannon were removed. Hence the cannonade did little harm. A civil official reported the evacuation to Lavallette of the Congress, who was there with the Portsmouth. (Montgomery). As Campusano, who was believed to have 600-800 troops and 6-8 guns, remained in the vicinity and cut off water and provisions, the town was abandoned by its foreign residents also. American marines landed, but soon reëmbarked. Nov. 17 a landing party was ambushed in the town, and the Dale, then occupying the harbor, took part in the firing. One American was wounded. The harbor of Mazatlán was open to the worst winds.
27. The references to Téllez in 76 are almost innumerable. It seems enough to cite here: M. Gutiérrez, May 19, 1846; To J. I. Gutiérrez, May 13, 17; To Téllez, Aug. 18; J. I. Gutiérrez, May 9; also Gaxiola, Invasión, passim; Apuntes, 371-3; 13Bankhead, no. 74, 1846; Wise, Gringos (N. Y., 1849), 99. See also chap. xvi, note 5. Téllez, who was a generous, careless person, arrived at Mazatlan at the head of an expedition bound for Upper California. During the year before the war the receipts from the customhouse were about $3,000,000. He pronounced May 7, 1846, in favor of federalism as an excuse for insubordination. In Jan., 1847, fearing the government might overpower him, he pronounced for Santa Anna as dictator. He pretended to be a loyal Mexican, and the government wavered between recognizing him as comandante general of Sinaloa and trying to crush him. Finally it de-
