him to abandon his fieldpiece; but before it could be reached and taken
possession of, Captain Mervine gave orders to withdraw. With great
indignation, therefore, the volunteers discontinued the action, and
after picking up his killed and wounded--harassed by the enemy who
pressed after the column, and covered by the volunteers and sixteen
marines, under Captain Gillespie--Captain Mervine slowly and sadly fell
back to San Pedro, where he arrived about dark on the same day,
"Thirteen noble tars were buried on the island in front of San Pedro,"
the victims of this badly managed expedition.

On October 23d the Commodore reached San Pedro--Lieutenant-Colonel
Frémont meanwhile having returned to Monterey--and on the 31st he sailed
for San Diego, which had been invested by the insurgents and needed
assistance. He reached that port a few days afterward; and, with the
assistance of Captain Gillespie's command, the besiegers were repelled,
and a fort was erected to protect the town from similar troubles in
future.

Strenuous efforts were made to obtain horses for the use of the troops,
with some degree of success; and Commodore Stockton sailed toward San
Pedro again. During this temporary absence of the Commodore the
insurgents appear (on November 18, 1846) to have moved against San Diego
a second time, and were again driven back by Captain Gillespie and the
volunteers and marines under his command; and on December 3d a messenger
came into the town bearing a letter from General Kearney, apprising the
Commodore of his approach, and expressing a wish that a communication
might be opened with him that he might be informed of the state of
affairs in California.

It appeared that after the General had taken Santa Fé (on October 1st)