History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties. Page: 227
[7], iv-vii, [2], 10-826, [2] p., [56] leaves of plates : ill., ports. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this book.
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HISTOR OPTXS.
tance of ninety miles by the route we had to
travel. The feelings of the party can be better
imagined than described. We were
truly a forlorn set, many of us bareheade(d
and barefooted, a relentless foe on tlhe one
land and on the other a trackless and uninlhabited
wilderness infested with reptiles and
wild beasts, entirely destitute of food and no
means of procuring it.' Add to this the
agonizing grief of the party over the death
and capture of dear relatives; that we were
momentarily in expectation of meeting a like
fate, and some idea may be formed of lur
pitiable condition. Utter despair almost
took possession of us, for the chance of escaping
seemed almost an impossibility under
the circumstances. * * * I took one of
my children on my shoulder and led another.
The grown persons followed my example and
we began our journey through thle thickly
tangled underbrush in the direction of Fort
Houston. My wife was in bad he.iltl; Mrs.
Frost was in deep distress for the loss of her
husband and son; and all being barefoote(l
except my wife and Mrs. Frost our progress
was slow. Many of thle children had nothing
onthem but their shirts, and their sufferings
from the briars tearing their little
legs and feet were almost beyond human end
u rance.
4 We traveled until about three o'clock in
the morning, when, the women and children
being worn out with hunger and fatigue, we
lay down on the grass and slept until tlhe
dawn of day, when we resumed our perilous
journey. Here we left the river bottom in
order to avoid the briars and underbrush,
but fi'omn the tracks of the Indians on the
highlands it was evident they were hunting
us, and, like the fox in the fable, we concluded
to take the river bottom again, for
though the brambles might tear our fleshthey might at the same time save our lives
by hiding us from the cruel savages whole
were in pursuit of us. The briars dlid, ill
fact, tear the legs and feet of the children
until they could have beein tracke'll )by tle.
bllood that flowed from their woulids.
It was the nigtll of tlie second day .ifteil
lea illg the tort that :ill, atd e..lecial ly ilit'
wotnel wilo were nlursin g their in fantlts, be
gain to suffer intensely from hunger. We
were then immediately on the bank of the
river, and through the mercy of Providence
a pole-cat came near us. I imlmed(liately
pursued and caught it just as it jumped inl
tile river. The only way that I could kill it
was by holding it ulndler the water until it
was drowned. Fortunately we had tlle means
of striking a fire, and we soon had it cooked
and e(lqually divided among the party, the
share of each being small indeed. This wa-;
all we lhad to eat until the fourth day, when
we were lucky enough to catch another
skunk and two sniall terrapins, whlich were
also cooked and divided between us. On
the evening of the fifth day I folmd that the
women and children were so exha.uted from
fatigue and hunger that it would be immipossible
for them to travel mnnucl further. After
holding a consultation it was agreed that I
should hurry on to Fort Houston for aid,
leaving Mr. Dwight in charge of the women
and children. Accordingly the next morning
I started for the fort (about thirty-five
miles distant), which I reached early in the
afternoon. I have often looked back and
wondered how I was able to accomplish this
extraordinary feat. I llad not eaten a mouthful
for six days, leaving always given my
share of the animals mentioned to the children,
and yet I walked thirty-five miles in
about eight hours! But the thought of the
unfortunate sufferers I lhad left behind de22'l
HISTOR F OP TEXAS.
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History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties. (Book)
Book containing a brief overview of the state of Texas and more specific focus on six specific counties, with extensive biographical sketches about persons related to the history of those places. An alphabetical index of persons who are included follows the table of contents at the front of the book.
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Lewis Publishing Company. History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties., book, 1893; Chicago, Illinois. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth29785/m1/232/: accessed April 20, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.