Ned introduced Obed as the companion of most of his wanderings, and Obed received a warm greeting.  Then other men in the great tent came forward, and Ned, surprised, saw that one of them was Urrea, dressed neatly, handsome and smiling.  But the boy was glad to see him.

“Ah, Senor Ned,” he said, “you did not expect that I would get here before you.  I came by another way, and I have brought information for our leader.”

Ned met the other men in the tent, all destined to become famous in the great war, and then he gave in detail once more all that he knew of the Mexicans and their plans.  Mr. Austin sat on a little camp stool, as he listened, and Ned noticed how pale and weak he looked.  The boy’s heart sank, and then flamed up again as he thought of Santa Anna.  It was he who had done this.  Away from Santa Anna and free from his magnetism he had a heart full of hatred for him.  Yet it depressed him to see Mr. Austin who, good man, was obviously unfit for the leadership of an army, about to enter upon a desperate war against great odds.

When Ned was excused, and left the tent he found that Smith, Karnes and the rest of their force had come up.  The camp which was more like that of hunters than of an army, was in joyous mood.  Several buffaloes had been killed on the plains and the men had brought them in, quartered.  Now they were cooking the meat over great fires, scattered about the groves.  The younger spirits were in boisterous mood.  Several groups were singing, and others were dancing the breakdowns of the border.

Ned and Obed were joined by the Ring Tailed Panther and then by Urrea.  Ned felt the high spirits of the young Texans, but he did not join in the singing and dancing.  He learned from Urrea that Houston would arrive in a day or two with more volunteers from Eastern Texas, and the young Mexican also told him something about San Antonio.

“Cos has a large force of regular troops,” he said, “but he is alarmed.  He did not think that the Texans were in such earnest, and that they would dare so much.  Now, he is barricading the streets and building breastworks.”

The Texans were so resolute and confident that the next day they sent a demand to Cos for his surrender.  He would not receive it, and threatened that if another white flag appeared he would fire upon it.  A day or two later, Houston and the Eastern Texans arrived, and Ned, Obed, the Ring Tailed Panther and Urrea planned a daring adventure for the following night.  They had heard how Cos was fortifying San Antonio, and as they expected the Texan army to make an assault they intended to see just what he was doing.

They made their way very cautiously toward the town, left on foot when the full dark had come.  It was only four miles to San Antonio, and they could reach the line of Mexican sentinels within an hour.  The Ring Tailed Panther was growling pleasantly between his teeth.  He had tired of inaction.  His was a character such as only the rough world of the border could produce.  If he did not live by the sword he lived by the rifle, and since childhood he had been in the midst of alarms.  Long habit had made anything else tiresome to him beyond endurance, but he was by nature generous and kindly.  Like Obed he had formed a strong attachment for Ned who appealed to him as a high-souled and generous youth.