Texas Almanac, 1970-1971 Page: 82
[705] p. : ill. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this book.
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Did Travis Draw a Line for
The story of the Alamo combines known facts and
legends, as does most history. One of the most endur-
ing, inspiring events is Col. Travis' speech, asking
those willing to die to cross the line he drew with his
sword. Historians still debate how much, if any, of this
is true; the question may never be answered.
But, as historian Joe B. Frantz wrote in his life of
Travis in the book, "Heroes of Texas" (Texian Press,
Waco): "The story is disputed, but its symbolism ranks
high in Texas tradition . . . Whether Travis actually
drew the line is no longer important. What is important
is that he had become the sort of courageous com-
mander who could ask men to die for him and for liber-
ty, confident in the knowledge that they would follow
him where he led because they trusted him."
Travis' speech was published and the events de-
scribed for the first time in the 1873 Texas Almanac. A
letter from W. P. Zuber attributed the story to Moses
Rose, who did not cross the line. Zuber said Rose told
the story to Zuber's parents; Zuber's mother attested
to its accuracy. Zuber stated his accounts and the
speech were "substantially" correct.
The following account is from that in the 1873 Texas
Almanac, as told by Rose according to Zuber.
"MY BRAVE COMPANIONS-Stern necessity com-
pels me to employ the few moments afforded by this
probably brief cessation of conflict in making known to
you the most interesting, yet the most solemn, melan-
choly, and unwelcome fact that perishing humanity can
realize. But how shall I find language to prepare ybu
for its reception? I cannot do so. All that I can say
to this purpose. is be prepared for the worst. I must
come to the point. Our fate is sealed. Within a very
few days-perhaps a very few hours-we must all be
in eternity. This is our destiny, and we cannot avoid
it. This is our certain doom.
"I have deceived you long by the promise of help.
But I crave your pardon, hoping that after hearing my
explanation, you will not only regard my conduct as
pardonable, but heartily sympathize with me in my ex-
treme necessity. In deceiving you, I also deceived my-
self, having been first deceived by others.
"I have continually received the strongest assur-
ances of help from home. Every letter from the Council
and every one that I have seen from individuals at
home, has teemed with assurances that our people
were ready, willing, and anxious to come to our relief;
and that within a very short time we might confidently
expect recruits enough to repel any force that would be
brought against us. These assurances I received as
facts. They inspired me with the greatest confidence
that our little band would be made the nucleus of an
army of sufficient magnitude to repel our foes, and to
enforce peace on our own terms. In the honest and sim-
ple confidence of my heart, I have transmitted to you
these promises of help, and my confident hopes of suc-
cess-but the promised help has not come, and our
hopes are not to be realized.
"i have evidently confided too much in the promises
of our friends. But let us not be In haste to censure ;
them. The enemy have invaded our territory much ear-
lier than we anticipated; and their present approach is
a matter of surprise. Our friends were evidently not in-
formed of our perilous condition in time to save us.
Doubtless they would have been here by the time they
expected any considerable force of the enemy. When
they find a Mexican army in their midst, I hope they
will show themselves true to their cause.
"My calls on Col. Fannin remain unanswered, and
my messengers have not returned. The probabilities
are, that his whole command has fallen into the hands
of the enemy, or been cut to pieces, and that our cour-
iers have been cut off.
"I trust that I have now explained my conduct to
your satisfaction, and that you do not censure me for
my course.
"I must again refer to the assurances of help from
home. They are what deceived me, and they caused me
to deceive you. Relying upon these assurances I deter-
mined to remain within these walls until the promised
help should arrive, stoutly resisting all assaults from
without. Upon the same reliance, I retained you here,
regarding the increasing force of our assailants with
contempt, till they outnumbered us more than twentyAlamo Defenders to Cross?
to one, and escape became impossible. For the same
reason, I scorned their demand of a surrender at dis-
cretion, and defied their threat to put every one of us to
the sword, if the fort should be taken by storm.
"I must now speak of our present situation. Here we
'are, surrounded by an army that could almost eat us
for a breakfast, from whose arms our lives are, for the
present, protected by these stone walls. We have no
hope of help, for no force that we could ever reasona-
bly have expected, could cut its way through the strong
ranks of these Mexicans. We dare not surrender; for,
should we do so, that black flag, now waving in our
sight, as well as the merciless character of our ene-
mies, admonishes us of what would be our doom. We
cannot cut our way out through the enemy's ranks; for,
in attempting that, we should all be slain in less than
ten minutes. Nothing remains then, but to stay within
this fort, and fight to the last moment. In this case, we
must, sooner or later, all be slain; for I am sure that
Santa Anna is determined to storm the fort and take it,
even at the greatest cost of the lives of his own men.
"Then we must diel Our speedy dissolution is a
fixed and inevitable fact.-Our business is, not to make
a fruitless effort to save our lives, but to choose the
manner of our death. But three modes are presented to
us. Let us choose that by which we may best serve our
country. Shall we surrender, and be deliberately shot,
without taking the life of a single enemy? Shall we try
to cut our way out through the Mexican ranks, and be
butchered before we can kill twenty of our adversar-
ies? I am opposed to either method; for, in either case,
we could but lose our lives, without benefiting our
friends at home-our fathers and mothers, our brothers
and sisters, our wives and little ones. The Mexican
Army is strong enough to march through the country,
and exterminate its inhabitants, and ourcountrymen
are not able to oppose them in open field. My choice,
then, is to remain in this fort, to resist every assault,
and to sell our lives as dearly as possible.
"Then let us band together as brothers, and vow to
die together. Let us resolve to withstand our adversar-
ies to the last; and, at each advance, to kill as many of
them as essible. And when, at last, they shall storm
our fortress, let us kill them as they come kill them as
they scale our wall! kill them as they leap within! kill
them as they raise their weapons, and as they use
them! kill them as they kill our companions and con-
tinue to kill them as long as one of us shall remain
alive!
"By this policy, I trust that we shall so weaken our
enemies that our countrymen at home can meet them
on fair terms, cut them up, expel them from the coun-
try, and thus establish their own independence, and se-
cure prosperity and happiness to our families and our
country. And, be assured, our memory will be grateful-
ly cherished by posterity, till all history shall be
erased, and all noble deeds shall be forgotten.
"But I leave every man to his own choice. Should
any man prefer to surrender, and be tied and shot; or
to attempt an escape through the Mexican ranks, and
be killed before he can run a hundred yards, he is at
liberty to do so.
"My own choice Is to stay in this fort, and die for
my country, fighting as long as breath shall remain In
my body. This will I do, even if you leave me alone. Do
as you think best-but no man can die with me without
affording me comfort in the moment of death."
Col. Travis then drew his sword, and with Its point
traced a line upon the ground, extending from the right
to the left of the file. Then, resuming his position in
front of the centre, he said, "I now want every man
who is determined to stay here and die with me to
come across this line. Who will be first? March"
Zuber then recounted how the defender crossed the
line, with the exception of Rose. He aid Col. Jimes
Bowie, who could not leave his bed, called out "Boys, I
pm not able to come to you,- but Iwish some of you
would be so kind as to remove my cot over there." This
was done and the other Sick made similar requests.
Rose, Zuber wrote, chose not to die, scaled the wall
of the Alamo and escaped to tell his story. This is what
happened in the Alamo-in fact or in legend. The long-
er story may be read In the 1873 Texas Almanac, or in
a book published by the Texlan Press, "The Texas Al-
manac, 1857.-1873."N X%--"C"~~~~ ~- -~-~r
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Texas Almanac, 1970-1971, book, 1970~; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth113810/m1/85/: accessed April 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.