the 9th the army was encamped on its old ground near the Fort, and the
garrison was relieved. The siege had lasted a number of days, but the
casualties were few in number. Major Jacob Brown, of the 7th infantry,
the commanding officer, had been killed, and in his honor the fort was
named. Since then a town of considerable importance has sprung up on the
ground occupied by the fort and troops, which has also taken his name.

The battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma seemed to us engaged, as
pretty important affairs; but we had only a faint conception of their
magnitude until they were fought over in the North by the Press and the
reports came back to us. At the same time, or about the same time, we
learned that war existed between the United States and Mexico, by the
acts of the latter country. On learning this fact General Taylor
transferred our camps to the south or west bank of the river, and
Matamoras was occupied. We then became the "Army of Invasion."

Up to this time Taylor had none but regular troops in his command; but
now that invasion had already taken place, volunteers for one year
commenced arriving. The army remained at Matamoras until sufficiently
reinforced to warrant a movement into the interior. General Taylor was
not an officer to trouble the administration much with his demands, but
was inclined to do the best he could with the means given him. He felt
his responsibility as going no further. If he had thought that he was
sent to perform an impossibility with the means given him, he would
probably have informed the authorities of his opinion and left them to
determine what should be done. If the judgment was against him he would
have gone on and done the best he could with the means at hand without
parading his grievance before the public. No soldier could face either
danger or responsibility more calmly than he. These are qualities more
rarely found than genius or physical courage.