The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1895-06-11
The Fall OF the Alamo.

49,
The Fall OF the Alamo.
The massacre Of q oaBd OF Texans in
the Alamo by an overwhelming Next
u army under General Santa Anna
ON the 9Th Of March, 1895, after .. siege
ot eleven days, Is the most important
efent In the history of Texas, writes
Colonel Sweet, editor of Texas Siftings.
The refusal of the Texans to SUR
render, and their successful effort to
old their foes at bay, enabled General
Houston to concentrate his forces.
Moreover, the slaughter OF the heroes
OF the Alamo transformed their breth-
rem in arms from men into demons, and
when the day OF reckoning came, a few
weeks later at San Jacinto, they at
tackled the Mexicans with q fendish
ferocity that was absolutely irresisti-
BILE. With Remember the Alamo,n
for their battle Cry, they slaughtered
the terrified Mexicans like sheep, ac-
tually killing more than their number
and capturing the rest of the Mexican
army along with General Santa Anna
himself, thereby securing the indie
penience of Texas. Had 1t not been
for tho massacre at the Alamo the
probabilities r hat the Texas reyo-
luton would nave been crushed.
In February, 1885, a portion of Santa
Anna's army unexpectedly appeared
on the outskirts of the town of San
Antonio. The Texas garrison, con-
sisting Of 150 men under Colonel
Travis, were taken by surprise but
succeeded in ~retreating to the Alamo
on the east side of the river. Fort
Alamo consisted of a large enclosure
OF five acres surrounded by q strong
stockade and high walls OF masonry.
The fort included a chapel ard a con-
vent, massively constructed stone
buildings and was defended by eight
pieces of heavy artillery. While the
walls were well adapted to keeping out
.Indians they r too-weak TO resist
artillery. The story of the Alamo has
been told SO often that we will not at
tempt to reproduce it in detail. After
eleven days of %unceasing lombard
ment, General Santa Anna male
arrangements to take the Alamo by
storm, the Texans rejecting ever over
ture to surrender.
Sunday, March 6, was the fatal day.
Shortly after midnight the Mexican
army began its march to assigned posi-
lions. AT 4 O'Clock the bugle call
sounded, and Santa Anna headed an
advance. Grape, musket and rifle
balls met them, n twice they were
repealed. They combined, forming a
dense mass, and at last, reaching the
tops OF some houses forming the wall
OF the fort, effected an entrance to the
inclosed yard. About the same time
they forced a breach in the wall and
captured one OF the Texan guns. This
was at once turned upon the convent,
to which the Americans had retreated.
The cannonadO OF the besieged still did
fearful execution, but the feeble garri-
son could not resist the Overwhelming
numbers. The surviving Texans re-
treated to the chapel, and there took
place the most desperate hand-to-hand
tight that ever occurred. The Texans
fought to the last gasp, and when all
was over the chapel was u slaughter
house, clogged with hundreds of man.
gled cOrpses.
the boyhOod OF the editor Of Texas
Siftings was spent almost within the
shadow of the old Alamo, aud he heard
many interesting stories of the memo.
rable event from the lips of the Tex
ans, who knew whereof they spoke.
Travis, the heroic leader of the Tex
ans, was killed early in the fight cheer
ing his men,. The body of the i'm
mortal David Crockett was fousd i'm
the baptlstry of the chapel, the door of
which was congested with secondhand
M~exicans. Referring to Crockett, an
interesting story is told by an old
Mexican who was in Santa Annals
army, and in one of the attacking col
umns. When the Mexican regiment
got within gnnshot range of the fort,
a tall man wearing a cap appeared on
the roof of the chapel. He shot the
Mexican colonel Off his horse and dis
appeared. This man was undoubtedly
David Crockett. for he was the onIy
Texan wearing a cap. He wore a coon
skin cap.
Colonel Bowie, of Bowie-knife fame,
was in dying condition from typhoid
fever at the time of the battle. He
was probably the last man killed. He
was lying on the ground with his head
In the lap OF q Mexican woman who
nursed him during his ~illness. The
Mexican soldiers impaled him with
their b%ayonets and tossed his BODY
about like a plaything. His faithful
nurse, Madame Candalaria, is still
living in San Antonio, and bears in
her lace the marks of a wound made
at That time by the bayonet:of one of
BOwie's murderers.
General Santa Anna and other high
Mexican officers had u special spite ut
Bowie He had married Ursula Vor-
ramendi, the daughter of Governor
Veramendi. The Mexicans thought
because he had married into an aristo.
cratic Mexican family he should have
sided with them instead Of with his
W countrymcn.
An old Mexican, who as IA boy, visit
cd the Alamo on the day after the
massacre, was an eyewitness of the
disposition made of the bodies of the
slaughtered Texans. A number of
bodies were placed side by side on the
ground and covered with fence rails.
then another layer of corpses was
placed on the fence rails and covered
with brush and set on fire. The
bodies OF all e~Texans were thus
burned, and the narrator said with
uplitted eyes and hands that it was
mny feo." which means very ugly"
mere are conflicting accounts of the
number OF Mexicans engaged in this