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Show 428 WESTERN WILDS. The best accounts place the Mexican loss at twelve hundred. The* dead heroes had accomplished their object; Santa Anna was weak-ened and delayed, and the young State was saved. Shortly after Colonel Fannin, with four hundred men, began his retreat from Goliad to Victoria; but was surrounded, and surrendered his com-mand to General Urrea, as prisoners of war. They were barbarously massacred by order of Santa Anna, only a few medical men being spared, because the Mexican army need-ed them. On all sides the Anglo- Texan families now fled before the in-vaders; the latter followed close, burn-ing every thing they could not carry away. Finally Gen-eral Sam Houston, the Commander- in- Chief, with only eight hundred men, made' a stand at San Jacinto, on B u ffa 1 o Bayou, where he was at-tacked by the whole army of Santa Anna. T h e Texans a d-vanced furiously to the charge, a hand- to- hand combat followed, and in one hour the Mexicans fled in confusion, leaving six hundred and thirty dead upon the field, and eight hundred prisoners in the hands of the Texans. This battle, fought April 21st, 1836, settled the question of independence forever. Early next morning a party of Texans found, hidden in a marsh near the bayou, a slender and light com-plexioned man, wearing a valuable ring on his finger, but awkwardly clad in the dress of a common Mexican soldier. He begged for his life ; and when his captors told him he was safe, seized the dirty hand of the nearest and covered it with kisses ! It was Santa Anna I Other Mexican officers, similarly disguised, were detected in like GENERAL SAM HOUSTON. |
