Magnifisent Basterds (III)

"I have at last succeeded in getting into a fight."

- Lt George S. Patton
letter to his father
14 May 1916

U.S. Army Signal Corps aircraft flying over American troops in Mexico. Lt George S. Patton described the land in a letter to his father in law: "This is a big country and very difficult to operate in. There are no rodes [sic] at all just tracks over the plains and mountains. There is very little water..." Of the political climate he wrote "One must be a fool indeed to to think that people half savage and wholly ignorant will ever form a republic. It is a joke. A despot is all they know..."⁽¹⁾

Friends, we'll return our attention to more recent news in good time, but our reading today comes from the Book of Patton, an early chapter, in which our young hero, though restricted by onerous rules of engagement, sets out to lead a spontaneous raid while serving as part of a military counterinsurgency effort in a foreign, desert land...

And it came to pass in those days that VILLA rode forth from MEXICO into these lands, and did burn and loot and pillage and kill.

Then scribes and pundits did rend their clothing so that a hue and cry was raised among the people throughout the nation, and there was much lamenting. WILSON looked upon these acts, and saw that it was not good, and was sorely vexed.

Then did WILSON summon unto him PERSHING the champion, and to him spake: "Now shalt thou take thine Army and set forth to seek retribution, and pursue this evil-doer even unto the ends of the earth. Thou shall not rest until thine mission be accomplished."

"Sir, yes sir!"

"And along with sufficient men and horses for thy task, unto thee I bequeath these many other great and wonderful things, heretofore never used in such an endeavor. Thou shalt have at thy disposal self-propelled vehicles that move without horses...

"...and wondrous aeroplanes to bear men aloft as an eagle, to see all things from afar and aid thee greatly in thy quest to seek mine enemy and smite him."

"Thank you sir. Truly the advantage is ours!"

"Verily. In thy quest to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat this base villainy there is nothing for which thou shalt lack. All that we have is at thy disposal, not least among these things the great and true support and thanks of all who treasure justice, freedom, and liberty. We are behind thee all the way. Hast thou any questions for me, or art thou ready even now to carry out this most important task?"

"No questions, sir!" And the scribes were dismissed, and then did PERSHING salute smartly, and prepared to take his leave.

"Oh," added WILSON, "I almost forgot. Here's a list of various restrictions and limitations and agreements governing your actions and behaviors that must not be violated at any time. Really, old boy, it's a delicate situation, and we aren't interested in appearing to be anything other than a progressive and peaceful, isolationist peoples with no interest in entanglements beyond our borders - and what with all this war going on in Europe that we're staying out of (except for reasonable material support to our British cousins) and the Germans getting involved in Mexico... well, it's delicate, as I'm sure you understand and appreciate. Thanks for taking it on, you have my utmost confidence, and really, let me know if there's anything at all you need."

Amidst the knowing nods of the congregation I see some nodding off... so let's skip forward a few verses...

And it came to pass that the mighty host went forth unto MEXICO, and after much wandering in the desert knew hunger. Then did PERSHING call forth PATTON, and he said unto him: "Lieutenant, take these men and those cars and drive into town and get us some food."

Now there was in those days a man CARDENAS, who was under VILLA a mighty leader, a High Value Target, men would call him today. His home was near that place where PATTON sought food, but each time before when they had launched a no-knock raid in hopes of nailing that sumbitch it had come to naught.

Annnnnd... action!

Accompanied by ten soldiers and four civilians - two scouts and two drivers - in all a party of fifteen traveling in three automobiles, Patton obtained corn at the villages of Coyote and Salsito. He drove to Rubio and found a number of rough-looking men in the town. Whether their presence made him suspicious or whether he acted on impulse or a hunch, he decided to go to Saltillo, about six miles to the north.

Once out of sight of the town, he stopped his party and explained what he wanted to do. He knew the house because he had been there before. It stood about 200 yards east and and to the right of the road running north from Rubio. It was built in a rough square about an interior courtyard. The main entrance to the house was away from the road and looked toward a stream running parallel with the road.

As soon as the driver of the first car, Patton's, saw the house, he was to go at full speed, pass the structure, and stop just beyond. Patton and two others were to sprint across the northern end of the building. The second and third cars were to halt just short of the house, and three men from each vehicle were to race across the southern end of the house. These nine men were to converge on the main gate and search the interior. The six men remaining with the cars were to cover the road.

It was a simple plan, very clear to the men, and they carried it out at Saltillo. The uncle was there, and he sold some corn and promised delivery. Something in the uncle's face or behavior led Patton to wonder whether Cardenas was home at San Miguelito.

The house there resembled the one at Saltillo, and Patton and his men repeated their performance. The only thing different was the sight of three old men and a boy skinning a cow. As the cars appeared, one of them ran inside for a moment, then returned. The four Mexicans paid no attention to the Americans and continued their work.

Carrying a pistol and a rifle, Patton reached the eastern side first and started to walk toward the gate, a large arched door leading to the patio. Three armed men on horseback dashed out. When they saw Patton, they wheeled to the southern corner. With several of Patton's men running toward them, they turned back to Patton, who was standing with his pistol drawn. They fired at him, and he discharged five rounds. Two of his bullets found their mark, one entering the belly of a horse, the other breaking the arm of the rider.

Because his soldiers were shooting and he was in their line of fire, Patton retired around the corner and reloaded his pistol...⁽²⁾

"I rounded the corner and walked about half way to the gate. When I was fifteen yards from the gate three armed men dashed out on horseback, and started around the northeast corner.

"So schooled was I not to shoot, that I merely drew my pistol and waited to see what would happen... When they got to the corner they saw my men coming that way and turned back and all three shot at me. One bullet threw gravel on me. I fired back with my new pistol five times. Then my men came around the corner and started to shoot. I did not know who was in the house. There were a lot of windows only a few feet from our right side. Just as I got around the corner three bullets hit about seven feet from the ground and put adobe [chips] all over me."⁽³⁾

"So schooled was I not to shoot..." - as Patton biographer Martin Blumenson explained the comment⁽³⁾, "Pershing's orders prohibited Americans from firing against Mexicans until their hostile intentions were certain." But "Pershing's orders" were based less on tactical expediency than political reality. The situation in Mexico, where civil war and revolution had brought Venustiano Carranza to the presidency, was volatile. In Mexico Villa was viewed as an insurgent (one who employed brutal tactics, including rape and murder) by many (including the Caranza government), but to others (in part due to his own extensive and favorable press coverage) he was seen as a modern-day Robin Hood. Still, official Mexican government support - or acquiescence - to the American expedition was reluctant and fragile. Individual or group loyalty to competing leaders and their causes in Mexico were subject to rapid change, and for the most part armed supporters of various factions did not wear distinguishing uniforms. Obviously making that distinction would be even more difficult for American soldiers - viewed by many on all sides as the enemy (if not outright despised) regardless of alliances or other temporarily expedient considerations. A bit of the cautious thinking behind Patton's decision is revealed in his own explanation (or the obvious fact that he felt the need to explain in the first place) for not taking a "shoot first" approach to the confrontation: "I thought they might be Caranza men." Lt Patton's concern is one shared by American soldiers through history, and his politically critical point would not be overlooked in the subsequent coverage of the action in the American media.

But Patton's thoughts on Wilson, the president who had ordered and restricted Pershing's mission, would most certainly not appear in the newspapers. They are revealed in numerous letters home to his family at the time. Compounding the many political difficulties regarding the expedition, it was conducted during a U.S. election year. Among the candidates for office, President Wilson was seeking re-election. Also on the Democratic ticket in California was Senate candidate George Smith Patton, Sr, father of young Lt. George. While many of Patton's private observations of the president appear brutally frank and candid - the sort that would end the career of a young officer (or his father the same-party candidate) were they stated publicly (ranging from "Wilson ought to take iron or something to stiffen his back..." to "I would like to go to hell so that I might be able to shovel a few extra coals on that unspeakable ass...") this complaint from a later note sent from Mexico to his wife Beatrice likely reflected its writer's sense of humor: "I wish Pa was out of politics so I could say what I think about Wilson." ⁽¹⁾

Pershing, too, would keep his opinions out of the public fora, but confide in his (also politically-connected) family:

"When the true history of the Expedition, especially the diplomatic side of it, is written," he wrote to his father-in-law, Senator Warren, "it will not be a very inspiring chapter for school children, or even grownups to contemplate. Having dashed into Mexico with the intention of eating the Mexicans raw, we turn back at the very first repulse and are now sneaking home under cover like a whipped cur with his tail between his legs." ⁽⁴⁾

The expedition would actually consume most of a long year, during which many hard lessons were learned, even as - for a mostly reluctant America - a war in Europe loomed.

But while Patton's actions, like those of soldiers today, were restricted by guidance from on high, his decision to have only five rounds loaded in his six-shooter was a safety measure of his own.

Returning to the action:

When Patton came around the corner again, he was almost run down by a horseman. Patton fired at the animal, broke its hip, and brought it down. When the rider disentangled himself and rose with pistol in hand, Patton and several other Americans who were now with him cut the man down at a range of about ten yards. The second was a hundred yards away and escaping until the fire of several soldiers and Patton, who discharged three rifle rounds, brought him down.

The third man, who had reentered the inner patio, dismounted from his wounded and bleeding horse, dropped out of a window, and was running along a wall when shots fired from soldiers felled him. One of the scouts went to him, and the downed man made what seemed like a motion to surrender. Instead, he raised his pistol and fired, but missed. The scout killed him. ⁽²⁾

...Still uncertain how many Villistas were present, Patton "thought there were some men in the patio and as the flat roof had a parapet I was afraid they would climb up there and shoot us. I hated to climb up but hated worse not to, so took two men and told two others to watch the roof." Two soldiers propped a dead tree against the wall while Patton climbed onto the dirt roof of the hacienda. Suddenly it gave way under his feet, plunging him through up to his armpits. He might have been cut in half if there had been anyone inside the house with a saber, and with considerable urgency he quickly managed to pull himself back atop the roof. ⁽³⁾

"All this time," Patton wrote, "there had been four men out in front skinning a cow. They never looked at us at all."

The New York Times report does not include the bit about Patton falling through the roof - but does emphasize the soldiers' efforts to observe the rules of engagement, withhold fire and protect the innocent... "As yet the ranch house had not been searched," wrote correspondent Frank Elser. "How many Villistas were there Lieutenant Patton did not know..."

He got a long ladder and with four enlisted men scaled the flat 'dobe roof. No one was there. But from that vantage point he saw a strange and curious sight. The four Mexicans who were skinning a beef when the Army cars first came up were still engaged in that occupation. With rare cool-headedness they had reasoned that if they kept busy with heads bent they would not be shot at. And so they had worked on during all the shooting. If any of them had broken and run he would have been killed. That none of them was shot at by the enlisted men speaks well for the discipline maintained by the expedition.

Such support for the troops is admirable, but while emphasis on (and praise for) their courageous restraint is welcome it's difficult to imagine the rest of the story reported without criticism in the New York Times today.

Feeling it necessary to search the house in case other Villistas were hiding, Patton called over the four men skinning the cow. He and three others used them as shields and entered the building. They found several old men and women, who revealed the identities of the three dead men. One was indeed Cardenas. While Patton's men tied the bodies to the hoods of the cars, Patton put Cardenas silver-studded saddle and swords into his vehicle.

They noticed about forty horsemen in the distance and coming at a gallop. They fired a few shots at them, then cleared out. Beyond Saltillo, remembering the tough hombres in Rubio, Patton had one of his men cut the wires along the road to prevent the word of his skirmish from reaching the town before they arrived. The appearance of the three cars and bodies in Rubio caused great commotion, but Patton and his party sped through and reached headquarters without further incident. ⁽²⁾

"Mr Elser New York Times wrote a good article about me," Patton wrote his wife. "He thinks that it is published today." Numerous reporters accompanied the expedition, and Patton's exploit, early in the mission, gave them a welcome opportunity to provide readers - already losing interest just weeks into the larger effort - a glimpse of something other than the utter boredom of camp life.

He hadn't revealed the nature of the forthcoming report to Bea, but to his father he wrote "I have at last succeeded in getting into a fight..." a proud note to which he appended this advice: "Run for the Senate."

Patton's raid would be one of the few such "good" news stories from the expedition. But while historians still debate the "success" of the mission (here's a recent example ) the outcome of the American elections was clear: though Wilson prevailed in California (and the nation as a whole), his party's candidate for senate there, even though bolstered on the campaign trail by appearances with his heroic son at his side, was defeated.

But on that earlier day Lt Patton was triumphant, though his letter to his Aunt Nannie revealed his reception on returning to camp from his routine supply run with an enemy corpse strapped to the hood of each car: "People have been teasing me about not using the saber on them," he wrote - a bit of good-natured ribbing explained here.

Sources:

1. Martin Blumenson, The Patton Papers, Vol 1

2. Martin Blumenson, Patton: The Man Behind the Legend, 1885-1945

3. Carlo D'Este, Patton: A Genius for War

4. Stanley Hirshson, General Patton: A Soldier's Life

Previously:

Magnifisent Basterds

Magnifisent Basterds (II)