General Carleton was present at El Paso when French left on this dangerous expedition, and I KNOW that he gave French special instructions to bring Skillman in alive “if possible,” and I know the reason for this order. French was a Boston man. He was as large and as well formed as Skillman, and, like him, was of sandy complexion, hair and beard. Skillman and his party were near Presidio del Norte en route for Juarez when Captain French (himself unseen) discovered them and watched them go into camp (April 3, 1864). At midnight, French, with a portion of his little command, including two citizens of San Elizario, _crawled_ into Skillman’s camp, and, rising to their feet, called for surrender. Skillman arose, armed, and refused, when French shot him dead. In the volley which followed two more of Skillman’s party were killed and two wounded. The others surrendered and were brought to San Elizario. There were citizens of El Paso county in each of these parties, some of whom are still living. I regret to see that Col. George W. Baylor has been led, by false information, no doubt, into doing some injustice to the memory of the gallant Captain French. In a late communication to the El Paso Herald the colonel says: “Captain French killed or rather massacred Capt. James Skillman, who was in the C. S. A. and on picket duty in the Davis mountains. They had been personal friends, and through treachery French had located Skillman and killed him. It has been said that the matter so preyed on French’s mind that it became unbalanced before his death.” Colonel Baylor is himself an old soldier, justly proud of his record, and he should be careful not to place too much reliance on the statements of others. It is impossible that French and Skillman could have been “friends,” as the colonel states, because they had never met each other till that fateful night. And again, the colonel shows lack of information by speaking of Skillman as “James” instead of Henry. Captain French’s conduct was soldierly and commendable. [Illustration] ------------------------------------------------------------------------ FURNISHING ARMS TO MEXICO—1865. Early in 1865, when the Mexican patriots, under President Juarez, were hard pressed by the French troops and the forces of the usurping Emperor Maximilian, my friend, Don Juan Zubiran, then collector of customs at Juarez, brought a gentleman to my office and introduced him as a confidential agent of the Mexican government.