up with water plants.  These ditches, however, were not over eight or ten feet in width.  The howitzer was taken to pieces and carried by the men to its destination.  When I knocked for admission a priest came to the door who, while extremely polite, declined to admit us.  With the little Spanish then at my command, I explained to him that he might save property by opening the door, and he certainly would save himself from becoming a prisoner, for a time at least; and besides, I intended to go in whether he consented or not.  He began to see his duty in the same light that I did, and opened the door, though he did not look as if it gave him special pleasure to do so.  The gun was carried to the belfry and put together.  We were not more than two or three hundred yards from San Cosme.  The shots from our little gun dropped in upon the enemy and created great confusion.  Why they did not send out a small party and capture us, I do not know.  We had no infantry or other defences besides our one gun.

The effect of this gun upon the troops about the gate of the city was so marked that General Worth saw it from his position. (3) He was so pleased that he sent a staff officer, Lieutenant Pemberton—­later Lieutenant-General commanding the defences of Vicksburg—­to bring me to him.  He expressed his gratification at the services the howitzer in the church steeple was doing, saying that every shot was effective, and ordered a captain of voltigeurs to report to me with another howitzer to be placed along with the one already rendering so much service.  I could not tell the General that there was not room enough in the steeple for another gun, because he probably would have looked upon such a statement as a contradiction from a second lieutenant.  I took the captain with me, but did not use his gun.

The night of the 13th of September was spent by the troops under General Worth in the houses near San Cosme, and in line confronting the general line of the enemy across to Belen.  The troops that I was with were in the houses north of the road leading into the city, and were engaged during the night in cutting passage-ways from one house to another towards the town.  During the night Santa Anna, with his army—­except the deserters—­left the city.  He liberated all the convicts confined in the town, hoping, no doubt, that they would inflict upon us some injury before daylight; but several hours after Santa Anna was out of the way, the city authorities sent a delegation to General Scott to ask—­if not demand—­an armistice, respecting church property, the rights of citizens and the supremacy of the city government in the management of municipal affairs.  General Scott declined to trammel himself with conditions, but gave assurances that those who chose to remain within our lines would be protected so long as they behaved themselves properly.