Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-07-23


man and woman. Col. Bowie drew
8 newspaper from his pocket and be.
gan to read. The other male passeng-
er lighted cigar and began smoking
it. In q few minutes the lady re-
quested the gentleman to stop smok~
ing, saying it made her head ache
The man paid no attention to the re-
quest. Col. Bowie, who had observed
what had taken place, folded up his
paper and replaced it in his pocket.
He then drew a murderous-looking
knife from its sheath at his side, and
addressing MS male companion, said:
Il am Col. James Bowie. You may
know me. You have heard the lady's
request. I will give you five minutes
to throw that cigar out of the window.
If you don't do it you must take the
consequences"
The name was enough. The fellow
surrendered Internationally. The
cigar disappeared through the win
dow and the man through the door,
glad to get away from such dangerous
company with whole skin.
Col. Bowie's death was as heroic as
his life had been lawless and daring.
When the war of Texan independence
broke out he joined the patriots and
became one of their ablest leaders.
Retreating with $50 men before an
overwhelming force of Mexicans,
commanded by Gen. Santa Anna, he
made his way to San Antonio de Bex-
ar and took UP a position behind the
walls of the Alamo, fort of consi0-
cradle strength. and which command
ed the city. The Mexicans 5000 strong,
laid siege to the place, constructed
batteries and began to play away
against the fort, while masses of in~
fantry rushed forward to scale the
wall. Many a daring feat was per-
formed by Bowie and his men, who,
surrounded on all sides, neither
thought of captivating or asking for
quarter IN any extremity.
Such was the extent of the fort that
it required the incessant vigilance of
all the besieged at the different points
of the attack. There was no time for
sleeping. The day of the night on
which the Alamo fell was one of in
cessant lighting. The night was dark,
and the exhausted patriots sought to
obtain few hours sleep. '"The Mex
leans are upon the wall!' were the
startling words which caused every
Texan to spring to his feet and grasp
his rifle. The enemy, taking advan-
tage OF the darkness. had crept up to
the fort unperceived by the drowsy
sentinel. and were in possession of the
wall. The struggle was desperate.
The patriots had no choice between
the death and victory. Hundreds of
the enemy were either pitched from
the wall or put to death by the Bowie
knife or bayenet. AT last the Mexi.
cans rushed forward, and surrounding
the patriots on all sides, cut them to
pieces, Not a man escaped.
On the night of the attack, Col.
Bowie was confined to his room by
sickness. When the Mexicans broke
over the wall some of them rushed to
his apartment. He was up in time to
take his stand at the door, and with
his terrible knife he for some time
kept the enemy at bay. When his
mighty arm grew tired with the work
of death he fell upon the heaps of
slain which he had piled up around
him, and was instantly hacked and
stabbed to death.
Col. Bowie's second in command
at the massacre of the Alamo was Col
David Crockett, many of whose quaint
sayings are household words in this
country. AS hunter and backwoods-
man, he had no equal. He served
one term in Congress, and was a can
didate for re- election, but was defeat
ed. He then emigrated to Texas and
joined the patriot army, He escaped
from the massacre of Col. Fannin's
command, and reported to Col. Bowie
for orders. He was with the little
army during the retreat to San An
tonic, and with it entered the Alamo,
which became the grave Of the entire
command. The only persons in the
fort who escaped were a servant wo-
man and her child, which was after
ward adopted by the Republic Of
Texas. and educated at public cost.
That Crockett fell when the Mexicans
rushed over the wall is all that is
known; by whom or how no one was
left to tell. But the imagination can
well picture him hurting whole squad
rons from the wall, or heaping up
pyramids of the slain where the strug-
gle was most desperate.
Another noted duelist, Col. Travis,
who was admitted to bp the best pistol
shot in the United States, also fell at
the massacre of the Alamo, but how
he met his fate is unknown. His body
was found under heap of Mexican
dead. showing that he had fought
with desperate courage until over
powered by Numbers. Next day the
bodies of the fallen patriots were col
lected ard reduced to ashes.
This wholesale butchery sent
thrill Of horror throughout Texas.
Gen. Sam Houston issued stirring
call for volunteers. He took the field
at the head of a small but gallant
army. Santa Anna, with q greatly
superior force, marched against the
patriots Houston retreated to San
Jacinto, where he determined to make
a stand The two armies met, and
victory declared for the Texans