The progressive farmer and the cotton plant., 1905-06-27


answer was ten days of dogged defence, and sklrm-
ished by day and sorties for food and water by
night The MeXicans lost heavily during tle
first days of the siege, but not one INSIDE OF Cne
Alamo was killed. Early in the week Travis had
desUatched courers for help, and the defenders
of the mission we're living in the hope OF re-
endorsements; but four days passed. and neltner
couriers returned nor re-enforcements came. On
the fourth day Colonel Fannin, with three hun
dred men and four pieces of artillery started forth
from Goliad, but put back again for want OF tood
and lack of teams. The garrison OF the Alamo
never knew of this. On the 1st of March we lind
that Capt John Y. Smith, who has found teams,
and who has found rations, brings an offering OF
thrtv-two men from Gonzales, and leads them
safely into the fort. They have come with forced
marches to their own graves; but they do not
know that and the garrison now one hundred
and seventv-two strong, against four thousand
Mexicans continues its desperate sortles and It's
desperate defence
On the 3rd of March, 1886 there is cessation
in the bombardment, and Captain Travis draws
his men up into single ranks and takes his place
in front of them.
He tells them that he has deceived them with
hopes of reinforcement false hopes based on
false promises of help from the outslde--but he
does not blame those who failed him; he makes
excuses for them; they have tried to reach him.
no doubt. but they have been killed on the way
Sidney Lanier quotes this excusing of those who
had deserted him at the very threshold OF death
as best showing the fneness of Travis and the
touched of the strongest points of this story
of great heroism.
Captain Travis tells them that all that
mains to them is the choice of their death, and
that they have but to decide in which manner of
dying they will best serve their country. They
can surrender and be shot down mercilessly, they
can make a sortie and be butchered before they
gained twenty yards,o they die fighting to the
last, and killing their enemies until that last
comes.
He gives them their choice, and then STOPPING
draws line with the point of his sword in the
ground from the left to the right of the rank.
and now" he says, "every man who is deter
mined to remain here and to die with me will
come to me across that line"
Tapley Holland was the first to cross. He
jumped it with bound as though it we're a
Rubcon. 81 am ready to die for my country"
he said.
And then all but one man, named Rose march
ed over to the other side. Colonel Bowie, lying
wounded in his cot raised himself his elbow.
"Boys," he said, "don't leave me. Won't some
| of you carrv me acrossp
And those of the sick who could walk rose from
| the hunks and tottered the line; and those
who could not walk were carried. Rose who
could speak Spanish, trusted to this chance to
escape, and scaling the wall of the Alamo, dropped
into ditch the other side. and crawed, hidden
| by the cactus, into place of safety Through
him we know what happened before that final day
| came. He had his reward.
Three days after this, on the morning of the
oth OF March, Oanta Anna brought forward all of
| his infantry supported by his cavalry, and
| stormed the fortress. The infantry came up on
every side at in long, black solid rows bear
ing the scaling ladders before them, and encour-
| aged by the press of great numbers about them.
| But the band inside the mission drove them
back, and those who held the ladders dropped
| them on the ground and ran against the bayonets
| of their comrades. A second time thev CHARGED
| into the line of bullets and the second time thew
| tell back, leaving many dead at the foot of
| the ladders as there standing at bay within