All that part of Salvador on the Lempa and the district of Chalatenango were in the hands of the enemy, who acted as the master of a conquered country. One of the commanders was the notorious Manuel Quijano. The Salvadoreños attacked him and were defeated. The Hondurans now felt certain that they could capture San Salvador. But on the 15th of August Guardiola with 900 men attacked the Salvadoreños at the hacienda del Obrajuelo and was routed, losing two thirds of his force and most of his war material.[X-64] He evacuated San Miguel at midnight. The authorities of Honduras soon after published a suspension of hostilities in order to negotiate a peace.[X-65] An armistice was afterward signed at Sumpul.[X-66] Muñoz of Nicaragua, for motives of his own, exerted himself to bring about peace between Honduras and Salvador, to which end he despatched Sebastian Escobar as commissioner to the two belligerents. Sensenti was finally fixed upon as the place for holding the conferences, and a treaty of peace, amity, and alliance was concluded on the 27th of November, 1845, under which Malespin and Espinosa were forbidden to set foot in Salvador without leave of her government.[X-67] [Sidenote: GUATEMALAN INDEPENDENCE.] The government of Guatemala, with a view of not too openly going counter to public opinion in the states desiring to see a national government established, inserted in the treaty concluded with Salvador on the 4th of April, 1845, a clause apparently intended to promote that end.[X-68] And yet it was at the same time considering the expediency of declaring the entire independence of Guatemala, and gathering material which was made public in a manifesto in March 1847. Indeed, she had no desire to carry out the stipulations, though she named Joaquin Duran and Doctor Mariano Padilla her commissioners.[X-69] Pretexts were not wanting, and new commissioners appointed, namely, Marure and Rodriguez, both of whom favored Guatemala's absolute independence. The result was the abandonment of the plan of reorganization as entirely impracticable.[X-70] The declaration of independence was made in the decree of March 21, 1847.[X-71] Carrera, the president, in a manifesto, set forth the causes that had prompted such a measure, which he called one of regeneration, and asked the people to greet it with the same enthusiasm that was shown in 1821, when the cry for separation from Spain was raised.[X-72]