CHAPTER X.
A BAFFLED PURSUIT.
Those were dark days for Texas. Too many of the white settlers werenew arrivals, who as yet were in a strange country and had not made uptheir minds as to what leadership they would trust. There was, indeed,a strong central body of veterans who rallied around Sam Houston andGeneral Austin. They were the right men for a battle-field, but theyhad very little ready money.
Thus far, in fact, very nearly the best protection for the youngrepublic had been given by the disordered condition of public affairsin Mexico. At last, however, the ablest man south of the Rio Grande,General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, had so completely subdued theseveral factions opposed to his supremacy that he deemed it safe forhim to lead an army for the recovery of the rebellious province at thenorth.
There were those who said that in so doing he ran a serious risk oflosing whatever he might leave behind him, especially in case of adefeat, but the pride of the Mexican people had been aroused and therewas a clamorous demand for action.
There had all the while been war, in a scattering aimless way, andthere had been threatening embassies, like that recently accomplishedby Bravo.
How to invade Texas, nevertheless, was a question to puzzle an invader.There were not many points or places in the vast area the Americanswere seizing that were of military value. An invading army would butwaste its time in marching around or in camping on the prairies. Itmust find a Texan army and defeat it or go home useless.
One of the few points of importance, in most men's opinion, was theAlamo fort, but it was really little more than a convenientrallying-place. Apart from that, a scientific general would have saidthat it was nothing but a piece of ground which had been walled in. Itwas worth blockading, perhaps, but it was not worth a hard fight.
The Texans themselves did not think so, nor did the Mexicans. To theTexans it had a certain value as a stronghold, and they took much pridein it on that account. The Mexican generals were possessed with anidea that it was Texas itself and that it would be absolutely necessaryto take it.
General Houston, making a careful inspection of the fort and itssurroundings the morning after his arrival, was deeply impressed bothwith its importance and its weakness.
"Boys," he said, "if this place had rations enough and powder enough init you and Travis could hold it all the year 'round."
"Jesso, gineral," responded a ranger; "but if they fetched big guns,they could knock them walls to flinders."
The walls looked very strong, and his comrades disagreed with him, butHouston shook his head and walked to the eighteen-pounder in the middleof what some of them called the "plaza."
"This would do," he said to himself, "but Santa Anna won't drag in anyguns like this as far as the Alamo. He can't take this fort withnothing but ranchero lancers and field-guns. I must get some moneysomehow and put things in order, but where I'm to get it I don't know."
He went in then to eat his breakfast, and not long afterwards wasriding away, with a sufficient escort to protect him from beingmurdered before he could get out of the town of San Antonio de Bexar.
In the dawn of that very morning a cloud of wild horsemen had gatheredupon the open prairie between the sink-hole and the grove where thelittle party of Colonel Bowie was believed to be still encamped. Thatfrom it came no sign of life was of no importance whatever to warriorswho knew how perfectly the rangers were skilled in all the cunning ofbush and forest fighting.
A mist had covered the rolls and the hollows, but the smoke of thecamp-fire could be seen. Once a log fell, sending up a shower ofsparks, and Great Bear himself remarked that Big Knife's men wereputting on more wood. He now had with him the greater part of hisforce, but every pony was tired, and some of them had given outentirely.
There was no special reason for haste, excepting the water of thespring for men and beasts. Perhaps the better way would be to obtain aparley and induce the Texans to come out of their ambush beforeslaughtering them. A little cunning might accomplish that, and so theComanches waited.
Of course, the grove was surrounded to prevent any sudden dash forescape, but shortly after the rising sun began his work upon the mistthe encircling force moved slowly nearer. The main body moved togetheruntil they were about a hundred yards from the outer shrubbery. Thenthey halted, and a single brave, a chief of rank, dismounted and wentforward on foot, holding out his right hand with the palm up, in tokenof a wish for truce and conference.
The eyes of his band were upon the messenger and he walked steadily,although all the while believing himself to be covered by the unerringaim of Texan sharp-shooters. His nerves were very good. No sooner,however, did he reach the trees than Great Bear and his column movedforward again.
On strode the solitary herald of peace, or of treachery, but no riflecracked, no mustang neighed, no Texan came out of a bush. It was thestrangest affair, to the mind of a man who was absolutely sure that hisenemies were there.
On he marched until he stood by the fire at the spring, and glancedfiercely around him. It was too much! His hand went to his mouth, andhe uttered a whoop which brought every Comanche within hearingpell-mell toward the grove.
Such a rush would have been their best chance for crushing Bowie's menin any case, but the charging warriors found no Texans to crush. Wildwere the whoops of wrath and disappointment, but Great Bear himself wasequal to the occasion. His face expressed strong admiration of such afeat of generalship, and he said, loudly,--
"Ugh! Big Knife great chief! Getaway heap! Comanche tired now. FindTexan by and by."
There was no help for it. The only thing to do was to rest and to eat,for immediate pursuit was out of the question.
Miles and miles away, an hour or so later, in another camping place asgood as the one they had left, the white riflemen also were taking iteasy. They had plenty of buffalo cutlets to broil; they had distancedtheir pursuers, and they were contented.
"Boys," remarked Colonel Bowie, "we've gained a whole day's ride on 'emif we work it right."
"All right, colonel," responded Joe; "but when that young Lipan rid inlast night I begun to wish I was back in the Alamo. My skelp feltloose."
"He's a buster," remarked Jim Cheyne; "but I'm right down glad his dadis here. Best guide we could git."
As for Red Wolf himself, he was sitting apart from the rest. Afterall, he was only a boy and all these others were distinguished warriors.