The Republican., 1897-03-25
PEN PICTURES
From the Southland.

snort ana lnadeq quate description OF
that beautiful country the writer feels
his inability to do the subject at hand
justice
The city of Galveston, Tex, where
the business sessions of the Editorial
Association were held, is a well laid
out city. Every street in it is as
straight as it is possible to make them,
and it was through the courtesies
shown us by the citizens of that city
which made our short stay there en-
joyable. Turning, however, from the
hospitality of these Southern folk, we
leave them and shall be content for
short while to dwell upon scenes of
more historic interest, and with
hurried glance leave Galveston and
journey westward a short distance to
San Antonio, the\ City of Mis-
sions and the western metropolis of
Texas.
COmmercially,S San Antonio is busy
bustling city of probably forty thous-
and inhabitants. Its streets are wide
and shaded. Its plazas or parks,
beautifully laid out, of which there
are three-the Alamo Plaza, the Main
Plaza and the Military Plaza. All of
them are in the business heart of the
city and around them are collected
the greater portion of the retail estab-
lishments, the hotels, the city and
government buildings and other COM
mercial institutions.
But to the writer these beauties
were as nothing compared to the pages
of history written in blood drawn from
the hearts of the brave followers of
Travis, Cockett and Bowie. We felt
that we were upon sacred soil.
1t was under the white and gold
standard OF Spain that the first habi-
tatiOn of the future city of San An
tonic de BeXar was constructed. For
two hundred years the galleOns and
caravels of the peninsular kingdom
had borne doughty knights and pious
FranciScans to the shores OF the New
World. While England and France
were struggling for supremacy east of
the Mississippi, the Spaniards had
conquered Mexico, and pushing to the
nOrthward, had established the mis-
siOns and presidios of California and
New Mexico Between the Rio Grande
and the French territory of Louisiana
stretched vast wastes Of desert lands,
inhabited only by tribes of savages
and beasts of prey, forming an APP
parently impossible barrier to inva-
sion. This fancied security however,
soon proved to be delusiOn, for, in
1714, Huchereau st. Denis set out with
an exploring party from the settle
ment of NatchitOches, braved the des-
ert wastes and savage hOrdes, and ac-
tually reached the banks Of the Rio
Grande Here, it is true, he was
promptly seized and imprisoned, but
the mischief had been done, the i'm
pregnable barrier had been shown to
be vulnerable, and immediate steps
were necessary to prevent future, and,
perhaps, more successful incursions:
consequently, in the following year,
Don Domingo Ramon, with a band of
troops and Franciscans, was deputized
by the Niceroy of Mexico to establish
Il line of forts on the northeastern
frontier, and on this expedition, on the
of ha ~,
he located the first military post of
San Antonio. In 171S band of Fran
ciscans from the college of Queretaro
arrived at the little presidio and un-
der It's protecting care began the es-
tablishment of the Mission of San An
tonic de Valero, the first of the mis-
sions and the one whose career was
destined to be the most eventful, for
it afterwards became the Mission of
the Alamo.
From the beginning Of the nine
teenth century the history of the Ala
mo is the history of San Antonio.
Its sculptured walls witnessed the
scenes of the Revolution of the Hidal-
go in 1911, the first of long series of
similar uprisings; it saw the separa-
tion Of Mexico from Spain in 1921; in
the same year it welcomed Austin and
his followers, the pioneers of the new
and American colonization; it re-
sounded with the cries of the revolt
against Mexico in 1884; it became, in
1886, the last rallying place of Travis,
Crockett and Bowie and their devoted
band Of patriots who, beneath its
groIaed arches, fought for Texas and
for freedom until the last man had
yielded up his LIES blood it saw this
massacre avenged by the glorious vic
tory Of San Jacinto six weeks later; it
passed through the prosperous era
following the annexation OF Texas to
the United States; beheld the advent
of steam, Of electricity, of modern
progress and enterprise, and it stands
to-day q silent memory of the vicissi-
tudes and hardships, the bloody deeds
L u. :