The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1880-03-25
AN ANCIEN 4 TEXAN.
A Hero, and Yet II MeSicnn-The H'
n,nrlsnbIe History OF John q.
q. Hill. m Old Time
Texas hoy.


Texas Hoy.
Tho Galveston News of March 9th m
nouncos the fact that on that day II was OK
pected that Mr.. John O. q. Hill would ar
rive In Galveston, having left Vera Cruz
few days before, via New Orleans, There
upon tho News proceeds to tell It's reader
who Mr.. Hill is, chiefly correct, and yet fall
into several errors as 10 dates and facts. The
truth is, the history of Mr. Hill smacks o.
romance in tho history Of Texas and Mexico
Without going into details, lot me tell tho good
readers of the HERALD who John Q. q. Hill Is
Born in Georgia, his father brought him
when child to Fayetto county, Texas. He
lind several brothers and sisters. Ono of his
sisters has long been tho wife Of General
William g. Webb, u lawyer Of distinction,
long AT LAGRANGE and since Mt Houston.
Another sister is, or was, for | am not sure
she ia living, the wife of the Rev. MIR. Kerr, u
Methodist or perhaps of his brother.
When tho Mexican expedition under Gem
eral Someryell invaded tho Rio Grande, in
1874, the father of Mr.. Hill, his brother,
Ira G. Hill, and himself u boy of
thirteen, were soldiers In tho COM
pany of the brave and lamented Captain
William NJ. Eastland, of Fayette, who was
subsequently one ofthe seventeen who drew II
black bean and was shot, with his sixteen
black. bean companions, by order of Santa
Anna. The senior Hill and two sons fought
brayely in the nineteen-hour battle Of Mier,
mot an hour or two, as inferred by the art-
Gle in the News and became prisoners. So
great and reckless was the daring Of little
John Hill, boy of thirteen, that 1t arrested
the attention of General Ampudia, tho Mex
lean commander. Ampudra, as was suisse
quently proved at Monterey in 1916, was n
gallant man. After the surrender he sent
for the little thirteen year-old
bow, Hill, and was so pleased
with the interview that no sep
arated him from the prisoners, and sent him
under Especial escort, with commendato.ry
notes, to Santa Anna, then President, in the
City of Mexico. Bold, blood-thirsty and
bad, as history makes him, Santa Anna was
captivated by the little Texan. At that time,
having no family in tho capital, he placed
little Hill in the family of General Tornell,
Secretary of War, and one of the most dis.
tingushed men of Mexico--withal an orator
of renown- and made him a.free student in
the Minerva, the great College of Mines. In
due time the Mier prisoners arrived in Mexico.
The little boy had acquired the language and
felt at liberty to approach General Santa
Anna.
SO, as the prisoners arrived in the city
some three months after his arrival--upon
permission granted by the college, he met
General Santa Anna des ending the steps OF
the palace and saluted him. Santa Anna
said: my son, what do you wishT The boy
replied: General Santa Anna, you have
been good to me and am grateful, but
have come to ask you to lberate my father
and brother and let them go home to take
care Of my mother and little sisters" SAINTS
Anna made no replyto Hill, but simply said
"Go back to the office, issue the order for the
relief of Mr.. Hill and his other son, and give
them money to 60 homo"
Well, naturally enough we Texans, We
think Santa Anna was an av full bad man
but little John Hill, child as he was, was won
over to the great Mexican chief
The father and son were released mot in
1874 as stated by tho news, but in l843), and
sent home with plenty of money to pay all
expenses and get good luncheons on tho way
John G. @. Hill, universally known over
Mexico as Don Juan Hill, graduated from
the Minera Mineria, as a civil engineer with
the highest honors and soon became an en-
ployee Of the government in laying out and
building up series of roads in the tropical
rainy country of Mexico.
When, as poor broken Confederate. ar
rived in the beautiful city Of Orizaba, in De-
tober, 1867, with my wife and five children,
the sun only rose once till Mr.. Hill--or as
the Mexicans called him, Don Juan Hill
came to my room to offer his kindness in
any way in the world to make our sad soiourn
pleasant With him was bis Mexican
wife, Donna Augustine, the daughter
of Don Gregorio Lergreds, of Real del
Morte, and their precious little child of four
years, Macloria, and their baby boy,
Alberto.
l then learned that Mr.. Hill, or Don Juan
as universally called by the Mexicans, was
an engineer of great distinction in that
country, and Liberal, OF Democrat, of the
most pronounced character. In my long
absence then following, the great earthquake
came. was in Yucatan and Central Amer
ica. My two sons were on the
mountains, fifteen miles away on the noun
tains, my wife and three little daughters
were In suite Of third-story rooms in the
largest house in 0rizaba. The tremendous
earthquake came and bursted the walls
asunder. But in five minutes, Don Juan
Hill and his wife Augustine, were on the
ground and took my family to their house
treating them as kindred till my return from
Central America.
And this boy Hill, has come to Texas tC
SEQ bis brother and sisters, after an absence o.
thirty-eight years.
His father and mother, as We well know, arr
dead, but his brothers and sisters will hus
him 10 their bosoms as one risen from thu
dead. SO be II; but this humble family o
mine, and write for wife and daughters
the sons having crossed over the river--desir'