Wharton told him he must not do that.

He should like to see who’d hinder him, he said, and walked on.  The next moment he shot the first artilleryman.  After that they let him take his own way.

Neither Wharton, nor any of his men, knew what had become of him; but at last I met with a bear-hunter, who gave me the following information.

“Calkilatin’,” said he, “that the wild prairieman’s rifle was a capital good one, as good a one as ever killed a bear, he tho’t it a pity that it should fall into bad hands, so went to secure it himself, although the frontispiece of its dead owner warn’t very invitin’.  But when he stooped to take the gun, he got such a shove as knocked him backwards, and on getting up, he saw the prairieman openin’ his jacket and examinin’ a wound on his breast, which was neither deep nor dangerous, although it had taken away the man’s senses for a while.  The ball had struck the breast bone, and was quite near the skin, so that the wounded man pushed it out with his fingers; and then supporting himself on his rifle, got up from the ground, and without either a thankye, or a d—–­nye, walked to where his mustang was tied up, got on its back, and rode slowly away in a northerly direction.”

This was all the information I could obtain on the subject, and shortly afterwards the main body of our army came up, and I had other matters to occupy my attention.  General Austin expressed his gratitude and approbation to our brave fellows, after a truly republican and democratic fashion.  He shook hands with all the rough bear and buffalo hunters, and drank with them.  Fanning and myself he promoted, on the spot, to the rank of colonel.

We were giving the general a detailed account of the morning’s events, when a Mexican priest appeared with a flag of truce and several waggons, and craved permission to take away the dead.  This was of course granted, and we had some talk with the padre, who, however, was too wily a customer to allow himself to be pumped.  What little we did get out of him, determined us to advance the same afternoon against San Antonio.  We thought there was some chance, that in the present panic-struck state of the Mexicans, we might obtain possession of the place by a bold and sudden assault.

In this, however, we were mistaken.  We found the gates closed, and the enemy on his guard, but too dispirited to oppose our taking up a position at about cannon-shot from the great redoubt.  We had soon invested all the outlets from the city.

San Antonio de Bexar lies in a fertile and well-irrigated valley, stretching westward from the river Salado.  In the centre of the town rises the fort of the Alamo, which at that time was armed with forty-eight pieces of artillery of various calibre.  The garrison of the town and fortress was nearly three thousand strong.

Our artillery consisted of two batteries of four six, and five eight-pounders; our army of eleven hundred men, with which we had not only to carry on the siege, but also to make head against the forces that would be sent against us from Cohahuila, on the frontier of which province General Cos was stationed, with a strong body of troops.