crisis, and when hostilities actually began, General Taylor was
directed to advance under conditions which virtually required him
to fight his way to safety. Indeed, he was practically cut off
from all hope of reenforcement as soon as the first shot was fired,
for his orders obliged him to move into the interior of the country,
and had his opponents been properly commanded, they could have
overwhelmed him and annihilated his whole force. The very audacity of
the little American army, however, seemed to paralyze the Mexicans
who practically made no resistance until Taylor reached a place
called Palo Alto, which in Spanish means "Tall Trees."

Meanwhile Grant had been made regimental quartermaster, charged
with the duty of seeing that the troops were furnished with proper
food and caring for all property and supplies. Heartily as he
disliked this task, which was not only dull and difficult, but also
bade fair to prevent him from taking active part in the prospective
battles, he set to work with the utmost energy. By the time the enemy
began to dispute the road, he had overcome the immense difficulty
of supplying troops on a march through a tropical country and
was prepared to take part in any fighting that occurred. But the
Mexicans gathered at TALL TREES on May 8, 1846, were not prepared
for a serious encounter. They fired at the invaders, but their
short-range cannon loaded with solid shot rarely reached the
Americans, and when a ball did come rolling towards them on the
ground, the troops merely stepped to one side and allowed the missile
to pass harmlessly through their opened ranks. After the American
artillery reached the field, however, the enemy was driven from its
position and the next day the advance was resumed to Resaca de la
Palma, where stronger opposition was encountered.