The Mexican reinforcements, 12,000 strong, had
halted on the main road, their advanced guard within a few hundred
yards of the village. Leaving two regiments to hold this imposing
force in check, it was determined to make a night march and turn the
rear of the intrenchments on the ridge. The Commander-in-Chief was
beyond the Pedregal, opposite San Antonio, and it was necessary that
he should be informed of the projected movement.
"I have always understood," says an officer present in this quarter
of the field, "that what was devised and determined on was suggested
by Captain Lee; at all events the council was closed by his saying
that he desired to return to General Scott with the decision, and
that, as it was late, the decision must be given as soon as possible,
since General Scott wished him to return in time to give directions
for co-operation. During the council, and for hours after, the rain
fell in torrents, whilst the darkness was so intense that one could
move only by groping."
The Pedregal was infested by straggling bands of Mexicans; and yet,
over those five miles of desolation, with no guide but the wind, or
an occasional flash of lightning, Lee, unaccompanied by a single
orderly, made his way to Scott's headquarters.
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