The General and the Jaguar (58 page)

306 Pershing applied for promotion: Vandiver,
Black Jack,
658-661.

306 “My face looks”: Blumenson,
Patton Papers,
352.

307 “You must remember”: Ibid., 354.

307 “If I was sure”: Ibid., 367.

307 amended mission: For a succinct discussion on the failure or success of the Punitive Expedition, see Clarence Clendenen,
“The Punitive Expedition of 1916: A Reevaluation,”
Arizona and the West,
Winter 1961, 311-320.

307 “Going back to the”: Letter, General Pershing to General Scott, September 23, 1916, Pershing papers, box 372, LC.

308 “The identity of”: Harris and Sadler,
Border and the Revolution,
16-17.

309 Edison telephone: Details of home taken from letters written by Farnsworth and his wife, which are on file at the
Fray Angélico Chávez History Library in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

309 “You know”: Dave Young, “Maj. Gen. Frederick Funston.”

309 returned to Namiquipa: Katz,
Life and Times of Pancho Villa,
628, 634.

22. Victims or Bandits?

311 twenty-one Villistas: An enormous amount of confusion exists about how many prisoners were in this second batch and
what happened to them as they moved through the criminal-justice system. Historian Robert Bouilly of the U.S. Army Sergeants
Major Academy in Fort Bliss and author James Hurst have both made valiant attempts to untangle the issue. Pershing, in a telegram,
stated that he sent twenty-one prisoners to Columbus and, as of February 7, 1917, twenty-one prisoners were in the stockade
at Columbus (M. H. Díaz, “Villa Raid on Columbus [Examination of Prisoners], February 7, 1917, Miller claim). For unknown
reasons, only nineteen of these men were indicted, and only seventeen pleaded guilty and went to the penitentiary. Five men—Guadalupe
Chávez, Francisco Herras, Pedro Lujan, Francisco Mejía, and Juan Mesa—are unaccounted for. To complicate matters further,
another prisoner, identified as Rafael Bustamante, age twenty-two, from Namiquipa, was indicted and showed up in prison but
is not among the men described by the expedition’s intelligence officers. Guadalupe Chávez rescinded his plea at the last
minute. The prosecutor, J. S. Vaught, intended to try him, but he does not show up in the penitentiary records in Santa Fe.
It’s not known what happened to the other men. In an article in the February 12, 1921,
Albuquerque Morning Journal,
Silver City Deputy Sheriff Grayson states that two prisoners in the Silver City jail died in a nearby hospital from venereal
disease. “They were moved to the hospital shortly after capture and the county jail paid a special guard to watch them.” But
Mexican author Alberto Calzadíaz Barrera maintains that two prisoners, Juan Mesa and Francisco Herras, died from inadequate
food and medical attention during their stay in Silver City jail and a third, Pedro Lujan, was reportedly released for revealing
the location of a weapons cache. In 1920, the fifteen Villistas still in prison were pardoned.

312 Villa seemed to be everywhere: M. H. Díaz, “Villa Raid on Columbus [Examination of Prisoners],” February 7, 1917,
Miller claim. This is one of the few surviving documents that delves into Villa’s whereabouts during the raid and contains
summaries of the twenty-one interviews.

312 Nineteen were indicted: LCCO Indictments Nos. 718-740; James W. Hurst,
The Villista Prisoners of 1916-1917
(Las Cruces, NM: Yucca Tree Press, 2312), 35-40. For an even more concise discussion of all the Villista prisoners, see the
article by John O. Baxter entitled “The Villista Murder Trials: Deming, New Mexico, 1916-1921,”
La Gaceta
8, no. 1, 1983.

312 to second-degree murder: “Villistas Go to State Pen,”
DH,
August 31, 1917, Dean collection.

312 “most of the witnesses”: J. S. Vaught to Gov. W. E. Lindsey, January 7, 1918, NMSRCA.

312 “It seems to us that”: “Mexican Convicts,”
SFNM,
August 29, 1917.

313 free agents. For an interesting discussion on the question of whether the prisoners were free agents or simply following
orders, see Hurst,
Villista Prisoners,
46-53. Hurst makes a number of correct points about Governor Larrozolo and his executive order. For example, he points out
that some of the prisoners were not rank-and-file soldiers, as alleged by Larrozolo, but officers in Villa’s army. He also
cites evidence that lends support to the idea that some of the Villistas knew they were going to attack a U.S. town. Hurst
also notes that under the Hague Convention, the pillaging and assault of a town was an illegal act and that even if the Villistas
were acting as soldiers they had no duty to carry out an illegal order. But the rules of the Hague Convention weren’t widely
known during Mexico’s revolution. Villa had been given a pamphlet on the rules of war by General Scott but few of the generals
in Mexico adhered to its principles. Towns were routinely pillaged as a reward for soldiers and prisoners on both sides were
routinely executed.

313 “. . . there must be”: Executive Order, O. A. Larrazolo, November 22, 1920, NMSRCA. The state archives also have numerous
petitions filed with previous governors and letters from friends and relatives of Ramón Bustillos, Pedro Burcíaga, Tomás Camarena,
Juan Muñoz, David Rodríquez, and José Tena.

314 American Legion: Resolution, Claud Close Howard Post, American Legion, November 29, 1920, NMSRCA.

314 temporary injunction: Baxter, “Villista Murder Trials,” 14.

314 twenty-five thousand dollars: “Fight to Prevent Release of Villistas Enters a New Phase,”
SFNM,
November 28, 1920.

314 rearrest the men: LCCO Nos. 1180-1187; “New Mexico Sheriff Arrests 16 Villistas Being Detained in Prison; New Charges
Ready,”
EPMT,
December 16, 1920, Bouilly collection.

314 state high court:
Ex parte Bustillos et al.,
26 N.M. 450,
New Mexico Reports: Reported Cases Determined in the Supreme Court of New Mexico, 1920-1921,
26:449-469; “Pardon of Villa Raiders Legal; So Is Re-Arrest, Says Supreme Court,”
SFNM,
December 28, 1920.

314 returned to the Deming jail: “Villistas Are Taken to Deming,”
AMJ,
February 12, 1921.

314 trial: “Eyewitnesses to Tell Details of Villa’s Murderous Raid at Trial of 16 Followers,”
EPH,
April 26, 1921.

315 “Spanish-American” blood: “Woman Would Kill Villa Who Refuses to Aid Men in Trial,”
EPH,
April 27, 1921.

315 “Mother of God”: “Admirable Señora María Rodríguez,”
DH,
April 26, 1921, Dean collection.

315 “Spectators in the court room”: “Six Jurors Are Tentatively Selected in Villista Trial Now Being Held at Deming,”
AMJ,
April 26, 1921.

315 Laura Ritchie: “‘Kill the Gringos’ Was War Cry of Men Who Made Raid on Columbus, Witnesses Declare,”
AMJ,
April 27, 1921.

316 “I did not see”: “Villistas Knew They Were on American Soil during Raid on Columbus, Prosecution Says,”
AMJ,
April 28, 1921.

316 thirty-five minutes: “Jury Acquits 16 Mexicans of Columbus Raid Murders,”
NYT,
April 29, 1921, Bouilly collection.

316 “Like men drawing back”: “Final Chapter in the Columbus Raid,”
DG,
May 3, 1921, Dean collection.

316 “Señores, we are”: “All Sixteen Men on Trial for Murder in Connection with Columbus Raid Freed,”
AMJ,
April 29, 1921.

316 prisoners were delivered: “16 Villistas Cross Line, Going Home,”
EPH,
April 30-May 1, 1921.

317 “Perhaps this inability”: “Verdict in the Villista Case,”
DG,
May 3, 1921, Dean collection.

23. Death Comes for the Horsemen

318 general of the armies: “Overseas Commander in First World War Was Only Officer Ranked as General of the Armies Since
Washington,”
NYT,
July 16, 1948.

319 Tompkins: Robert Bouilly, “Military Service Chronology of Frank Tompkins,” Bouilly collection; also Tompkins,
Chasing Villa,
vii-viii.

319 Castleman: “Brief Account of Columbus Attack,”
CC,
March 24, 1916 (the article states, “Lieutenant Castleman has received very little mention for his part in the battle but
he was the man who saved the town”); also sketch by Robert Bouilly entitled “Lt. James Pryor Castleman”; “J. P. Castleman,
3-War Vet, Dies,”
Louisville Courier-Journal,
April 1950, section 2, Bouilly collection.

320 “They will end up”: Martin Blumenson, “General Lucas at Anzio,” in
Command Decisions,
Kent Roberts Greenfield, ed. (Washington, DC: Center of Military History, 1990), 335.

320 “I am not worrying”: Letter, Father to Son, July 23, 1918, courtesy of Lynn Rivard.

320 Dickinson: Dickinson, “True Story of the Villa Raid,” courtesy of Lynn Rivard.

321 shredded by bullets: Author interview, Lynn Rivard, July 15, 2004.

321 three to four million dollars: “Colonel Slocum Willed $3,322,322 to Family,”
NYT,
April 8, 1928.

322 Zapata: Eisenhower,
Intervention,
312-314.

322
carrancear:
Krauze,
Mexico,
369.

322 he loaded millions: Eisenhower,
Intervention,
316-319.

323 “a virgin lost in a crowd”: V. Blasco Ibáñez, “Is There a Way Out of Mexican Turmoil?”
NYT,
May 26, 1920.

323 Villa: Details of surrender and amnesty agreement taken from memoranda, Gus T. Jones to Senate Subcommittee Investigating
Mexican Affairs, “Recent Surrender of Francisco Villa” and “Text of the Document Drawn Up upon the Surrender of Francisco
Villa,” Albert Fall papers, Collection No. 131, UNM. Also account by American consul William P. Blocker to Secretary of State,
“Conference between Francisco Villa and General Eugenio Martínez, Acting for President de la Huerta,” August 2, 1920, McKinney
claim.

325 “It would appear from this”: Headquarters Southern Department, “Summary of Mexican Intelligence,” July 31, 1920-August
2, 1920, Albert Fall papers, Collection No. 131, UNM.

326 “The organization of this”: William P. Blocker to Secretary of State, “Conference between Francisco Villa and General
Eugenio Martínez, Acting for President de la Huerta,” August 2, 1920, McKinney claim.

326
perfumados:
Peterson and Knoles,
Pancho Villa,
261.

326 “The peculiarity of the situation”: Untitled and undated document that contains intelligence information about Villa’s
daily activities from September 27, 1920, to July 21, 1923, McKinney claim.

326 “It is said”: Ibid.

326 Villa was returning: Eisenhower,
Intervention,
324-325; Katz,
Life and Times of Pancho Villa,
765-766.

327 Obregón: Krauze,
Mexico,
403; Eisenhower,
Intervention,
326.

328 “He was a very . . . stoic”: Author interview, Rudy Herrera, June 22, 2004.

328 “He was very protective”: Author interviews, Gloria Roach, June 1 and June 14, 2004.

328 Miss Farrar: The account of Susan Moore is taken from the numerous letters she wrote to A. B. Fall, which are available
on microfilm at UNM’s Center for Southwest Research, as well as the claim she filed with the federal government and her statements
to Congress.

329 “So I am now sitting”: Susan Moore to A. B. Fall, September 30, 1918, Fall microfilm records, UNM.

329 Dear Sir: Letter, Susan Moore to A. B. Fall, October 17, 1918, Fall microfilm records, UNM.

330 Laura Ritchie had also lost: Affidavit, T. H. Dabney, January 14, 1926, Ritchie claim; transcript of oral-history
interview with Blanche Ritchie Dorsey, May 2, 1981, NMSRCA.

330 washing and ironing: Affidavit, name illegible, June 5, 1936, Walker claim.

330 “the health of Mr. James”: Affidavit, Thomas Dabney, August 5, 1925, James claim.

330 “nervous affliction”: Affidavit, Ruth Miller, April 21, 1925, Miller claim.

330 she secured a teaching: Affidavit, Ruth Miller, February 17, 1925, Miller claim.

331 resigning as superintendent: Author interview, Richard Dean, May 30, 2004.

331 “He has suffered and brooded”: Affidavit of F.A.N. O’Neal, December 1, 1924, O’Neal claim.

331 “Any words would be”: Letter, Mrs. Edward Corbett to Carl Hayden, September 21, 1922, Corbett claim.

331 hearings: One of the witnesses was Jesús Paez, the boy whose leg was amputated and who later appeared as a prosecution
witness at the Villista murder trials. By then, he was sixteen years old and fluent in English, but his recollection of where
he was on the night of the raid was just as confusing and contradictory as ever. Jesús had remained at Ladies Hospital in
Deming for nearly a year, becoming a familiar figure to townspeople as he hobbled to and from school on his crutches. He later
was turned over to an orphanage in Albuquerque and then went to Gallup. Eventually he returned to Deming, worked in Ladies
Hospital for a while, and made his way back to Columbus. At the time of the hearing he was pressing clothes in a tailor shop
in Columbus and then disappeared for good (“Villista Sent to Orphanage,”
DH,
February 16, 1917; Fall hearing, 1621-1622; and “Jesús Paez Itinerary,” Deming museum).

332 “I am now fifty-three”: Affidavit, Susan Moore, December 9, 1925, Moore claim.

332 “characteristics of a bandit”: Brief, “Dissenting Opinion in Santa Isabel Claims,” 209, McKinney claim.

332 paltry awards: According to the National Archives, the Special Claims Commission was established by a convention signed
by Mexico and the United States on September 10, 1923, to adjudicate claims for damages sustained by U.S. citizens during
the Mexican Revolution, spanning the period from November 20, 1910, until May 31, 1920. The commission functioned from 1924
until 1931, an eight-year period in which no claims were allowed. Operations were suspended in 1931. In 1934, Mexico agreed
to pay a lump sum of roughly $5.5 million to settle all the outstanding claims. A domestic commission, called the Special
Mexican Claims Commission, was then established by Congress to review and adjudicate the claims of U.S. citizens. This second
panel operated between 1935 and 1938. The commission allowed 1,358 claims and rejected 1,475. The total amount of the initial
awards was roughly $9.1 million, but since this was greater than the amount that Mexico had agreed to pay, claimants received
57 percent of the initial award figure. Mrs. Moore received $13,310; Eleanor Dean, $14,000; Archibald and Mary Alice Frost,
$6,000; Ambrose and Leona Griffin, the parents of the young sentry, $3,420; James O’Neal, $3,420; and shopkeepers P. K. Lemmon
and E. W. Payne, $7,453.21. The amount received by Eleanor Dean comes from records kept by her great-grandson, Richard Dean.
The awards for the others come from U.S. and Mexican Claims Commissions, Copies of Awards of Special Mexican Claims Commission,
1935-38, box. 1. I was unable to find the awards for the other people who had lost a relative or property during the raid
but a document provided by Richard Dean indicates that they did receive awards. They included the two married daughters of
Charles DeWitt Miller; Milton James; his stepsister, Myrtle Wright Lassiter; Rachel Walker; Laura Ritchie; Mrs. Smyser; Sam
Ravel; Kathryn Walker (no relation to Rachel and John Walker), and Annie Page. Generally speaking, the relatives who lost
loved ones filed claims for $50,000. The claim amounts filed for loss of property varied greatly.