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rUESDAY. JULY 5. 1*598.BATTLE OF THE ALAMO.t Wais One of the Most Thrilling Fijghts in American History.HE battle of the Alamo, Texas, was one of the most thrillingfights in American history, says a c orres pondent. The Mexican bombardment o f the place had lasted eight days and ights, almost without cessation.On the evening of the eighth day—it as March 8, 1830—about two hours efore sunset, it suddenly ceased.Col. Barrett Travers, taking advan-ige of the lull, immediately collected is little army of patriots in single file, Lid delivered to them one of the most:irring and portentous addresses ofistory. Among other things he said: “Our fate is sealed. Within a few ays—perhaps a few hours—we shall e in eternity. * * * Our business ; not to make fruitless efforts to save in* lives, but to choose the manner of ur death. * * * Let us resolve to dthstand our enemies to the last, and t each advance to kill as many of them s possible. Kill them as they scale ur walls! Kill them as they leap nthinl Kill them as they raise their reapons and as they use them! Kill hem as they kill our companions, and ontinue to kill them as long as one of s remains alive!“But I leave'every man to his choice, •hould any man prefer to surrender or tternpt to escape, he is at liberty to do o. My own choice is to stay in the ort as long as breath shall remain in ny body and die fighting! This will I :o even if you leave me alone! Do asonly to the ants. However, this Is not jthe case. The ants are fierce defenders of their flocks, and make it very uncomfortable for the many insect enemies of the aphids. Some species of ants build sheds over the aphids upon the trees and other species remove them to the safety of their own nests; but the special claim of the ants as aphid protectors lies in the care of the aphid eggs, which are shown asmuch attention as their own.THE PL1MSOLL MARK.What It Is and What It Has Done forthe Merchant Sailor.The death recently in London of Samuel Plimsoll, popularly known as the “sailors’ friend,1” removed a man who earned the gratitude of merchant seamen through many acts of kindness and justice. The most famous of hislabors for the sailor was the establishment of the Plimsoll Mark. The Plimsoll mark may be found on 09 of every 100 merchantmen to-day. It is a circle, crossed in the center by a horizontal line. Before the law establishing this load line there were no restrictions on private merchant vessels as to the amount of load. Owners were restricted only by their fears for the safety of their vessels, and many a ship was so overloaded, meeting heavy weather, she sank with all on board. To correct this evil Mr. Plimsoll had worked out by experienced ship-loaders a system of tables showing how many tons a vessel of a certain displacement could safely carry, and by an act of Parliament this rule was applied to every merchant vessel under the British flag, and on the outside of each vessel's hull the Plimsoll mark was painted. It did not matter how much more room there was for cargo; when the ship was loaded sorou think best, but no man can die vith me without affording me comfort n the hour of death!”Col. Travers then drew his sword, mcl with the point traced a line upon lie ground a few feet in front of his nen; then, resuming his position, he said:“I now want every man who is de-ermined to stay and die with me to!orm upon that line.”With one exception this order was mmediately obeyed. Every sick man who could walk arose and tottered to ns place. Col. Bowie, who was dying f typhoid fever, asked that his cot night be carried to the line. The one exception, a man named Rose, could lot muster sufficient courage to reach [he mark. He was allowed to attemptro escape and by a miracle succeeded n getting through the Mexican forces. When it .was all over he was the only man of the garrison who was alive.It was not until the morning of March 6 that the storming of the Alamo took place. It was not a battle, but slaughter. The 4,000 Mexicans swarmed over the walls, and the little handful of Texans within killed, and killed—and died. Col. Bowie, sitting on his cot with his back to the wall, with death already written on his face, and with a strength that seemed supernatural, slew the enemy with his sword until they heaped about him so heavily that he could no longer strike. He fell, his body pierced in a dozen places. At the end of his cot was his nurse, an old Mexican woman, old oventhen, who caught the stricken soldierand supported his head on her arm.And then, when the fighting had ceased, there were 2,000 dead Mexicansand the 200 dead Texans heaped together in the ancient church. With bloody hands the surviving Mexicans sorted out the Texans and carried them into the plaza, where they piled them up, with rails between, and so burned them. Surely no more acceptable Incense than that altar smoke ever ascended to heaven!The Alamo Church is shaped like a cross, and it was upon this crucifix thatthe martyrs died.that she sank to the Plimsoll line no more cargo could be taken on penalty of a heavy fine, and no seaman was required to sail on a vessel wffiose Plimsoll mark did not show above thewater.The legislation which provided thisSAMUEL PLIMSOLL.safeguard for the lives of seamen wasion by Jack in the forecastle, but as thewisdom of the precaution has been justified by years, prejudice has vanished and the Plimsoll mark has been adopted by most civilized nations.Vanity of Dummy Shoes.It is said that a coquettish trick prevails among the women at the seasideand watering-place hotels in Europe. They have extra sets of tiny boots and shoes made, not for wear, but to be left outside their bedroom doors. It seems that foreigners, particularly Frenchmen, are in the habit of scrutinizing closely the ladies’ boots in the corridors of hotels. The furnishing of such tiny sets is a recognized part of the boot and shoe trade in Paris. It is also said that similar sets of very small boots, and shoes, and slippers are sold by the big shoe houses of Paris to be placed on exhibition with the bride’s trousseau. The French boot-opposed strenuously by ship owners, by .shippers, and even by marine insurance companies, and, strange as it may seem, was a fruitful subject for deris-STORMING OF THE ALAMO.
Newspaper Details
Worthington Times
Worthington, Indiana, US
Tue, Jul 05, 1898
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Grapevine P.
Tx, USA 29 Apr 2019
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