number of killed of the Mexicans in the several battles was almost 5,000 men. It is not easy to ascertain what was the actual loss of life sustained by Mexico during the war.[1] The cost in money to the United States has been estimated at $166,500,000. The loss in money to Mexico will never be ascertained. The gain of territory by the United States was immense, comprising a surface of upwards of 650,000 square miles.
The total strength of the army employed by the United States in Mexico, from April 1846 to April 1848, consisted of 54,243 infantry, 15,781 cavalry, 1,782 artillery, and 25,189 recruits, making a total of 96,995 men. From the foregoing list have been excluded several companies called out in Ohio and Louisiana, but that did not go to Mexico. If included, the total number called out by the government would exceed 100,000 men. The number that actually served in Mexico exceeded 80,000, not all called out at the same time, but in successive periods. At the closing of the war, according to the adjutant-general's reports, there were actually upwards of 40,000 in the field.
The war of the United States against Mexico is fraught with instruction. A hope had been cherished by the friends of peace among some nations, that in a pure republic, where the people rule, a warlike spirit could not be fostered. Here and elsewhere it has proved otherwise. The spirit developed by free institutions makes the republican a most formidable soldier when he is not swayed by moral scruples. In the United States sectional rivalries and interests, and the eagerness to gain distinction, had fanned the flame of passion for war, and the battle-field was looked to as a good arena for deciding the pending issues as well as for competition. Social, political, commercial, or industrial interests are but broken reeds, as man
- ↑ Hernandez, Estad. Mej., 234; El Arco Iris, Feb. 9, 1848.
