The Scouting Expeditions of McCulloch's Texas Rangers; or, the Summer and Fall Campaign of the Army of the United States in Mexico--1846; including Skirmishes with the Mexicans, and an accurate detail of the Storming of Monterey; also the Daring Scouts at Buena Vista together with anecdotes, incidents, descriptions of country, and sketches of the lives of the celebrated partisan chiefs, Hays, McCulloch, and Walker. Page: 109
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EXPLOITS OF COLONEL HAYS. 109
pearance, and his manners are bland and very prepossessing, from
his extreme modesty. Col. John Coffee Hays was born in Wilson
county, Tennessee, and was named after the gallant Gen. Coffee
who commanded a brigade at the battle of New Orleans. He is
now about twenty-nine years of age. In 1837, when only nineteen,
he emigrated to San Antonio, Texas, as a surveyor, and was
employed on the frontier in surveying lands. His long life on the
frontier has given him a hardy and iron constitution, and there are
few men more able to stand hardships and privation than Col.
Hays. His extraordinary talent as a commander early developed
itself, and he was chosen captain of a company on several expeditions
against the Indians, in which he was very successful. His
reputation as a warrior rose so rapidly, that the Texian Congress
made him captain of a spy company; and in 1840, or thereabout,
he was made commander of the frontier, with the rank of major.
Were an account of the Indian fights, skirmishes, and adventures
of Col. Hays to be given to the world, it would fill a volume,
and the work would be looked upon rather as the effusion of a fertile
imagination, consisting of legendary tales, and the adventures
of some fictitious knight-errant, than to be the faithful account of
the achievements of a man, living and moving among us, and that,
too, comparatively unknown. But that "truth is stranger than
fiction," is exemplified daily; and we are almost inclined to believe,
that there are but few things which exist in the imagination
of man, that could not, with the proper spirit, perseverance, and
determination, be reduced to living reality. In order to give to
our readers some idea of the character and bold daring of this
border chief, and the estimation in which he was held by both
friend and foe, we must beg leave here to relate a few of his exploits.It was some time in the month of July, 1844, that he was engaged
in one of the most remarkable Indian fights perhaps on
record. Remarkable, not for the numbers engaged, nor the duration
of the conflict, but from the fearful odds against the Rangers.
At the time we speak of, Hays was surrounded by as gallant a
little band of noble and brave men, numbering only fourteen, as
ever fought for the liberty of any land. Among this Spartan band
were the names of a Gillespie, a Walker, and a Chevalier, whose
noble deeds have since made them known to the world. On this
occasion, Hays had gone out with his men some eighty miles from
San Antonio, towards the river Pierdenales, for the purpose of
ascertaining the position of the Indians, and to watch their movements.
On arriving near the river, they discovered some ten or
fifteen Comanche warriors, well mounted, who immediately made
demonstrations of fight. As the Rangers advanced upon them,
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Reid, Samuel C., Jr. The Scouting Expeditions of McCulloch's Texas Rangers; or, the Summer and Fall Campaign of the Army of the United States in Mexico--1846; including Skirmishes with the Mexicans, and an accurate detail of the Storming of Monterey; also the Daring Scouts at Buena Vista together with anecdotes, incidents, descriptions of country, and sketches of the lives of the celebrated partisan chiefs, Hays, McCulloch, and Walker., book, 1859; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth38096/m1/115/: accessed May 21, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Austin History Center, Austin Public Library.