Page:Life and Select Literary Remains of Sam Houston of Texas (1884).djvu/105

Rh and rely upon His providence. My country will do justice to those who serve her. The rights for which we fight will be secured and Texas free.

" '.' "On the opposite or left side will appear the words of Rusk one day after the battle:

'".—This glorious achievement was attributed not to superior force, but to the valor of our soldiers, and the sanctity of our cause. Our army consisted of 750 effective men The sun was sinking in the horizon as the battle commenced, but at the close of the conflict the sun of liberty and independence rose in Texas, never, it is to be hoped, to be obscured by the clouds of despotism. We have read of deeds of chivalry and perused with ardor the annals of war; we have contemplated with highest emotions of sublimity the loud warring thunder, the desolating tornado, and the withering simoon of the desert, but no one of these, nor all, inspired us with emotions like those felt on this occasion. There was a general cry which pervaded the ranks, "Remember the Alamo! Remember La Bahia I," These words electrified us. Onward was the cry. The unerring aim and the irresistible energy of the Texan army could not be withstood. It was free men fighting against the minions of tyranny, and the result proves the inequality of such a contest.'

"At the front of the die will be the name of B. R. Brigham; on the base the name, 'San Jacinto.' Upon one side of the pediment will be the words, 'Remember Goliad.' On the other, 'Come to the Bower,' the air to which the Texans marched to the fight. On the reverse of the base will be Napoleon's words, 'Dead on the field of Honor.'

"It was set in the center of the stage last night, supported upon either side by a howitzer from the Galveston Artillery. Immediately in its rear a detachment of the Washington Guards were formed in a quarter circle, at 'rest on arms.' Four artillerymen manned each gun, standing also 'at test.'

"At 8.30 o'clock Lindenberg's orchestra began playing an overture from Meyerbeer's Huguenots. At the conclusion of the overture, the curtains were drawn, and the striking tableau presented. Upon the right of the monument stood Mr. Oscar Farish, of this city, and on the left Capt. R. J. Calder, of Richmond, Texas, both veterans of San Jacinto, and the latter the only surviving captain of the gallant little army, who fought the invaders forty-five years ago. To him was delegated the task of unveiling the shaft, and as he slowly lowered the flag the act was greeted by an outburst of applause. The band sounded the notes of 'Will You Come to the Bower,' the music to which the Texans marched into the fight, and simultaneously a salute was fired by a detachment of the artillery company stationed upon the beach. The whole effect of this tableau was strikingly pleasant, and served well to introduce the remainder of the exercises. The presence upon the stage of Calder, Farish, Sullivan, and Wood, gray-haired veterans, the link between the history of infant Texas and the era of a State's proud strength, bore in itself an eloquent significance. Occupying the post of honor, in the auditorium, sat Mrs. Martha H. Mitchell and Mrs. Calder, a wife and a sister of brave men who ventured all for the land they loved. With them was Mrs. Buchanan, a granddaughter of Lemuel Stockton Blakey, who was killed at San Jacinto.

"After the unveiling, the Guards stacked arms and withdrew, and Mr. E. S.