is older companions who little realized the savage nature of the
newcomer. That night Davy lay in wait for the larger boy and set upon
him so fiercely and beat him so unmercifully that he was soon ready to
cry for quarter. On the way home Davy persuaded his brothers to say
nothing about the fight, and the next morning instead of going to
school, he ran off into the woods, where he stayed until the children
returned at night. He kept this up for several days, fearing to return
to school and take the whipping he knew he must get from his teacher. In
the end his father heard that he was playing truant, and tried to force
the boy back to school. Davy refused to go, and when his father tried to
punish him, ran away from home and engaged himself to a drover. He was
fifteen years old before he returned to his home, and then he had
changed so much that his parents did not recognize him, and it was some
time before one of his sisters discovered who he really was. They
received him joyfully, and thereafter, until he reached his majority, he
worked faithfully for his father, paying off the latter's indebtedness
and assisting the family in every possible way.

His life during this time was that of a backwoods boy, working hard and
finding his recreation in hunting, fishing and the sports of the border.
It was during this time that he acquired the over-powering taste for
hunting in the woods, that lasted all his life. During these years, too,
he developed that sturdy manhood which carried him through many trying
ordeals. Though he never had schooling, and his conversation and
writings were lacking in grammar, yet his speech was full of a sharp,
rude wit, and his ideas were characterized by shrewd common sense.

Davy's motto, adopted early in life, was, "Be sure you are right, then
go ahead,"--words that his own career made famous.

When the Creek War broke out, Crockett volunteered, and he served as
soldier and spy till peace was declared. His experiences there we will
let him tell himself, as he wrote them in his autobiography. (See page
37.)

After his return from the Creek War, he was elected to Congress in 1826
and in 1828. He was defeated in 1830 and re-elected in 1832. When he was
first elected he knew very little about the government, and was totally
ignorant of his duties as a member of Congress, but here again his good
common sense and bright mind came to his aid; and although he worked
under great disadvantages, yet he