as some have called them. As soon as he arrived he
took hold, in his own peculiar way, of certain public affairs, and at a
meeting at Nacogdoches he was elected commander of the forces of
eastern Texas. This was directly after the opening of hostilities at
Gonzales.

Had Houston been allowed to act as he wished from the start, it is
possible that the slaughter at the Alamo might have been avoided, but,
as mentioned before, matters, politically, were very much mixed, and
there were frequent clashes of authority. Some secondary leaders took
the liberty to do about as they saw fit, and at one time it looked as
if Houston's command would fall to pieces. In the midst of this came
trouble with the Indians, but this was patched up by the man who had
lived so long among them and who understood them thoroughly.

As the Convention which had reelected Houston commander-in-chief of the
army was in session, the President was handed a letter from
Lieutenant-Colonel Travis, making a last appeal for help. As the letter
was read there was wild excitement, and then it was moved that the
meeting adjourn and the members march in a body to the relief of the
Alamo.

But Houston would not have this. "Your place is here, gentlemen," he
said. "Here, to pass laws and make our State an assured fact. I will
take the field and organise a relief force, and I give you my word that
no enemy shall come near you." The Convention settled down, and inside
of an hour Houston, accompanied by several of his staff, was riding
like the wind for Gonzales.

CHAPTER XXXII.

IN WHICH THE TEXAN ARMY FALLS BACK.

As the excitement in Gonzales continued, and there was no telling what
would happen next, Amos Radbury resolved to remain in the town for at
least several days.

"If I am needed I shall reenter the army," he said.

"Then I shall go with you," said Dan.

"But your side, my son----"

"My side is all right again. It was a mere scratch."

"I wish I could call my wound a scratch," put in Poke Stover. "But
instead of getting better my shoulder seems to get wuss, hang the
luck."

"I think it would be a good plan for you to go up to the ranch, and
take it easy," said Amos Radbury. "Pompey can wait on you, and at the
same time you can keep an eye on Ralph and the place. I do not like to
leave my boy and the negro all alone."

"Then I'll go up to once," answered the frontiersman. "I'm no good at
fighting in the saddle, but perhaps I can mind