Jim Bowie Page 6

  “Jim. It’s so good to see you.”

  A woman ran from one of the rooms and hugged Jim.

  “Juana. It’s good to see you too. How have you been?”

  “I’ve been fine, Jim. I married Dr. Alsbury. He’s away on business right now. My sister Gertrudis is here. Do you remember her?”

  “Of course I do.” Jim walked over to the fire. “Are you staying here?”

  “Yes. There are plenty of rooms. You and your dog are welcome to stay here while you are in San Antonio.”

  Jim coughed, then warmed his hands by the fire.

  “Thank you. I’m not sure how long I will be here. I have orders for Colonel Neill from General Houston. I must go to the Alamo. I’ve heard that’s where Colonel Neill is.”

  Juana walked over and took Jim’s hand. “Be back for supper. Gertrudis will want to see you.”

  “I’ll be sure to be back.”

  Jim walked outside. He coughed and bent over to catch his breath. I was getting worried about him. I was beginning to think that the cough was caused by much more than a cold.

  We rode into the Alamo. Several men were busy working on making the walls stronger. Some were placing cannons on the walls. Jim stopped beside a man who was sitting on a box.

  “Excuse me,” Jim said. “Can you tell me where Colonel Neill is?”

  The man pointed toward a small room in one of the buildings. “His office is in there.”

  Jim rode over and stopped in front of the room. He got off his horse and knocked on the door.

  “Come in,” said a voice from inside.

  We walked into the small room. As our eyes adjusted to the darkness, we saw a man sitting behind a small desk. He was staring out of the window.

  “Colonel Neill. I’m Jim Bowie.”

  Colonel Neill sprang to his feet and walked over to us. “I heard you were in town. I’m sure glad to see you. Have a seat.”

  Jim sat down. I sat next to him. Colonel Neill walked behind his desk and sat in his chair. “I guess you can see we’re busy building this mission into a fort.”

  Jim nodded. “Looks like you and your men have done a lot of work. The problem is I have orders from General Houston to blow up the Alamo and take the cannon to a safer place.”

  Neill stood up. “I don’t believe it. After the fighting we did to take this place? After all the work to turn this mission into a fort? We can’t just blow it up and leave.”

  Jim reached down and scratched my ears.

  “General Houston is worried about our troops getting penned up in forts. He thinks we have a better chance of beating Santa Anna if we fight him in the open.”

  Neill walked over and looked out of the window.

  “Jim, this place is the only thing standing between Santa Anna and the colonies. If we don’t stop him here, or at least slow him down, he’ll burn our towns and destroy our crops. People have come to Texas looking for a new life. The men here are willing to fight for that life. This is the place to make that fight.”

  “How many men do you have, Colonel?”

  Neill shook his head. “Not many. Most of them went off on that crazy Matamoros expedition. But I believe that reinforcements are being sent to us. We should have more men very soon. How many did you bring?”

  “I brought thirty men. They’re good men, but we need many more to hold this place.”

  “More will come, Jim. I think everyone understands the importance of San Antonio. You lived here. Don’t you think it’s worth fighting for?”

  I watched Jim as he stared at the ceiling. I knew he was thinking about Ursula and Mr. Veramendi. He was thinking of all the happy times he had spent in San Antonio. Finally he stood up.

  “Colonel Neill, you’re right. We must stop Santa Anna, and the Alamo is the place to do it. I’m sure General Houston won’t like it, but by the time he gets back from visiting with the Indians, we’ll have whipped Santa Anna and sent him back home.”

  Chapter Twenty

  The next couple of weeks were busy. William Travis arrived with thirty men. Travis and Jim had never gotten along too well. But then, not many men got along with Travis. Colonel Neill had to leave town to attend to some family business and left Travis in command of the troops. When the men found out, they were mad. They wanted Jim to be their leader. An election was held and Jim was chosen to be the leader of the volunteer troops, while Travis continued to lead the regulars. Both men agreed to sign all letters and orders that were necessary.

  The spirits of the men were raised one day when a company of men rode into town. I sat on the sidewalk and watched the men stop their horses in front of the building. A tall man wearing a coonskin hat walked up to me and scratched my ears.

  “Hello, boy. How are you today?”

  His voice was kind, and I licked his hand. Jim walked out of the building and walked over to us.

  “Hello. My name’s Jim Bowie. That’s my dog, Gator.”

  The man stretched out his hand. “Glad to meet you. I’ve heard of you. My name’s Davy Crockett.”

  Jim smiled. “Welcome, Davy. We are sure glad to see you.”

  Jim motioned for Davy to come into the office. Travis sat at a table writing a letter. Jim stood in front of him and pointed to Davy.

  “Colonel Travis, this is the latest man to join us. Davy Crockett.”

  Travis jumped to his feet. He came around the desk and shook Davy’s hand. “Very glad to meet you. We can sure use men like you.”

  The men sat down around the desk.

  “Tell me what’s going on here,” Davy said.

  Travis leaned back in his chair. “We’re waiting for Santa Anna to come back here. We’ve heard that he’s on his way with his army. But I don’t think he’ll come until the spring. It would be too hard to move a large army across the prairies in the winter. He’ll wait for spring so his horses will have green grass to eat.”

  Davy saw Jim frowning. “You don’t agree, Jim?”

  Jim shook his head. “Juan Seguin’s men report that Santa Anna is already getting close. This dead grass makes good food for the horses. I believe he’ll be here soon.”

  Davy looked at both men. “I didn’t see too many men when I rode into town. How do you plan to stop Santa Anna’s army?”

  Travis stood up and walked to a window.

  “We’re fortifying that old mission across the river. The Alamo. We’ve sent requests for reinforcements to the government, and we expect General Houston to send us more men at any time.”

  Davy scratched his head. “I don’t know if I like the idea of being penned up in a fort. I like to be able to move around.”

  Jim nodded. “I agree with you, Davy. But we’ll hold Santa Anna here for a little while, then more men will come and we can send him back to Mexico.”

  Davy stood up. He stuck out his hand to Jim. Jim coughed and then took Davy’s hand.

  “That’s a bad cough, Jim. You should have the doctor give you some medicine.”

  “I’ve been to the doctor. I think it’s only a bad cold.”

  Davy shook Travis’s hand. “I’d better find a place for my men to stay.”

  “We’re glad to have you here, Davy,” Travis said.

  Davy waved as he walked out of the door.

  “I told you more men would come,” Travis said to Jim. “With men like Davy Crockett, we can hold the Alamo against Santa Anna as long as we need to.”

  Jim coughed and sat down in the chair. “He’s a good man, but we need many more men to hold this place.”

  Travis sat down and began to write another letter.

  “They will come, Jim. They will come.”

  A few more men did come during the next several weeks. Work on the Alamo continued. Jim was getting weaker every day, but he tried not to let anyone know how sick he was. Colonel Travis finally agreed to post sentries to watch for the approach of the enemy army. One morning I was sleeping at the foot of Jim’s bed. I was dreaming of a nice, juicy bone. Suddenly a bell bega
n to ring. Jim jumped from his bed. He coughed as he pulled on his clothes, then we ran outside. People were coming from their houses. Everyone looked at the bell tower, where the sentry was pulling the rope as hard as he could. Colonel Travis ran to the bottom of the tower and yelled up to the sentry.

  “What’s wrong?”

  The sentry pointed towards the open prairie. “The enemy are in view,” he yelled.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  The streets of San Antonio were filled with people running in all directions. Some were headed out of town; others were rushing toward the Alamo. Travis was trying to put some order into those headed toward the old mission, but most ignored him and rushed to get inside the walls. Jim found a wagon and drove to the Veramendi house. Juana and Gertrudis ran out of the house as Jim was getting down from the wagon.

  “Jim, what’s happening?” Juana asked.

  “Santa Anna’s army’s here. We need to get inside the Alamo,” Jim said as he walked into the house.

  The women followed him inside.

  “Get some of your things and climb in the wagon,”

  Jim said.

  “What should we take?” Gertrudis asked.

  “Nothing big. Just some clothes and maybe something small you really value. Everything else we have to leave.”

  The women ran to get their things. Jim started coughing and sat in a chair. There was a chill in the air, but sweat rolled down Jim’s face. I thought he looked worse than I had ever seen him. He looked at me and scratched my ears. I licked his hand. It felt warm. The women came back and Jim loaded their bags on the wagon. We drove toward the Alamo. I rode in the back of the wagon.

  As we neared the old mission, I saw the first men of Santa Anna’s army entering San Antonio. Inside the Alamo men climbed to the top of the walls to look at the enemy army, while the women and children tried to find a place to stay in the old chapel. I saw Susannah Dickinson carrying her baby into the chapel. Her husband, Almeron, was one of the men standing by a cannon, watching the enemy enter the town.

  Jim sent the women into the chapel and then climbed onto the wall. I stood beside him. I could see through a crack in the wall. The enemy army was much larger than the small group of Texans. I saw a large red flag flying from a flagpole in the center of San Antonio.

  One of the men shouted to Juan Seguin.

  “What does that flag mean?”

  Juan took off his hat and wiped his forehead. “It means they’ll give us no mercy when the fighting starts.”

  The men stared silently at the flag flapping in the breeze. Travis walked over to Jim.

  “Do you have any suggestions, Jim?”

  Jim shook his head. He pointed toward a rider heading toward the Alamo. “I think we’re about to find out what Santa Anna’s thinking,” he said.

  Soon the enemy officer stopped his horse in front of the Alamo walls. He pulled out a sheet of paper and read a message from Santa Anna. The message said that the Texans should surrender. Santa Anna would then decide what he would do with the men. If they did not surrender, he would attack the Alamo without mercy.

  Jim looked at Travis. “What do you say to that?”

  Travis looked at Captain Dickinson. “Fire the cannon,” Travis shouted.

  Captain Dickinson put his torch to the powder, and the cannon roared. The men watched as the cannonball bounced down the main street of San Antonio. It finally came to rest against the wall of a small house. The enemy messenger turned and rode back toward the enemy army.

  Travis turned to Jim. “What do you think of my answer?”

  Jim looked at the enemy soldiers moving around in the town.

  “I say you spoke very loudly and very clearly. And now we’ve got a fight on our hands.”

  Jim started coughing and leaned against the cannon for support.

  “Jim.” Travis walked over to him. “You should go and see Dr. Pollard.”

  Jim waved him away. “I’ve been to see him. There’s nothing he can do. Excuse me, Colonel Travis, I need to see about my sisters-in-law.”

  I followed Jim down the ramp. We walked across the courtyard toward the chapel. Jim staggered as he walked. He stopped several times to catch his breath. He looked down at me and smiled.

  “It sure is a long way across this courtyard. I don’t remember it being so far.”

  He coughed again, then started walking toward the chapel. I heard the roar of an enemy cannon being fired. The cannonball whistled as it flew through the air. It landed in the courtyard and exploded, throwing dirt and metal all around. I ducked under a wagon when I heard the cannonball coming. When the smoke cleared away, I looked out from under the wagon. Jim lay on the ground. He was not moving.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “Did the CANNONBALL hit Jim?” Princess asked as tears filled her eyes.

  The old dog licked her face as he went on with his story…

  I ran to Jim as fast as I could. The dust and smoke still filled the air. I sniffed him and licked his face. There was no blood, but Jim’s face was covered with sweat. Colonel Travis, Davy Crockett, and several other men rushed over to us. They pushed me aside as they kneeled by Jim.

  “Where’s Dr. Pollard?” Travis called.

  A man pushed his way through the crowd. “Here I am.”

  He felt Jim’s head then checked his body for wounds. “He wasn’t hit by the cannonball,” he said.

  “What’s wrong with him?” Davy Crockett asked.

  Dr. Pollard felt Jim’s head again. “He’s very sick. I’m not sure what it is, but it’s very serious.” He looked at the crowd. “Stand back. Give him some air. Some of you men pick him up and carry him into that room.”

  Several men picked Jim up and carried him inside a small room in one of the buildings. I followed them in and sat in a corner. I watched them lay Jim on a small bed.

  “Bring me some water and some towels,” Dr. Pollard said.

  “What’s happened to Jim?” Juana asked as she and Gertrudis ran into the room.

  “He’s very sick,” Dr. Pollard said. Someone brought a bowl of water and some towels. Dr. Pollard began to wash the dirt from Jim’s face.

  “All right, everyone,” Colonel Travis said. “Time to get back to your posts. The enemy might attack any time.”

  The men left the room. Colonel Travis walked over to Dr. Pollard.

  “I need to write some letters. I’ll check on him later.”

  Dr. Pollard nodded and continued to wash Jim’s face. I moved over by the bed. Travis patted me on the head as he left. Juana knelt next to Jim’s bed. She looked up at Dr. Pollard.

  “Let me do that. You have other people to look after.”

  Dr. Pollard handed her the towel. “Keep washing his face. We need to keep him cool. He has a fever. I’ll check on him later. I’ll see if there’s any medicine I can give him.”

  Dr. Pollard walked out of the room. Juana and Gertrudis were taking good care of Jim, so I walked outside. Men were looking over the walls at the enemy army. The enemy cannons fired every now and then. They caused some damage, but no one was injured. I saw Colonel Travis walk out of his room and hand a letter to a man on horseback. Travis said something to the man. The man nodded, then turned his horse and rode out of the gate. The gates closed after the messenger rode off.

  Although there were people everywhere, I felt alone as I walked around the old mission. I was worried about Jim. I knew he had more than a cold. I walked by the chapel where the women and children were staying. Susannah Dickinson walked out holding her baby. She stared across the courtyard at her husband firing a cannon at the enemy. She sat down and leaned against the chapel wall. I sat next to her. She put a hand on my head. We sat there a long time, neither of us moving. Susannah watched her husband while I thought about Jim. The baby started to cry. Susannah patted my head, stood up, and walked back into the chapel.

  I trotted over to Jim’s room. As my eyes adjusted to the dark room, I saw Jim sitting up in bed. Juana was feeding
him some soup. I ran over to the bed and stood on my back legs with my front legs on Jim’s bed.

  Gertrudis tried to push me away. “Go on, Gator. Jim needs to eat and rest.”

  Jim shook his head. “Leave him alone, Gertrudis. We’ve been friends for a long time. I’m happy to see him.”

  Jim put his hand on my head. His touch was weak. Juana tried to give Jim some soup. She spilled some and the hot soup fell on my nose. I yelped and jumped back. Jim laughed until he began to cough. He patted the bed beside where he was lying.

  “Come here, boy. That was the funniest thing I’ve seen in a while. You always could make me laugh.”

  I put my head on the bed next to Jim. He laid his hand on me and scratched between my ears. Outside the cannons were shooting and the men were yelling, but in that small room with Jim scratching my ears, I felt a strange peace.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Jim grew weaker with each passing day. Juana and Gertrudis stayed with him and did the best they could to make him feel better, but there was not much they could do. One day Dr. Pollard stopped by. He checked Jim, then walked outside with Juana. I followed them into the courtyard.

  “You’re doing a good job,” Dr. Pollard said.

  Juana’s eyes filled with tears. “He’s not getting any better. Sometimes he feels stronger, but then he begins to cough and he becomes very sick. What’s wrong with him, Doctor?”

  Dr. Pollard took off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair.

  “I don’t know for sure. He has tuberculosis or pneumonia, or typhoid, or all of them. I just call it consumption. You’re doing all you can for him. Just keep him comfortable and try to get him to eat something. I better go. I have some sick men over in the next room I need to check on.”