[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 38 (Thursday, March 6, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H2250-H2254]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1600
MARCH 6 FROM A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of
January 3, 2013, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) is recognized for
60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.
Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, this is March 6, and I want to talk
about March 6 in a historical perspective, history that is very
important that Americans know about.
Yesterday, on the House floor, I talked about the things that are
going on in the Ukraine and compared Mr. Putin's aggressive actions
toward Europe, similar to the actions of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis.
Before I do that today, I would like to yield some time to two of our
Members who have discussions on other issues. First, I would like to
yield as much time as he wishes to consume on a different issue to the
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf).
Stuttering Foundation
Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Texas for
his courtesy.
Mr. Speaker, today I rise to discuss something very close to me. I
want to talk about stuttering. I have been a lifelong stutterer, and
when I was young I experienced some very difficult times, but that is a
story really for another day.
More than 70 million people stutter. One in every 100 people in the
world stutter. In the U.S., more than 3 million Americans stutter. You
probably have a friend, a neighbor, a classmate, a coworker, or a
family member who stutters. Most people do.
About 5 percent of all children go through a stuttering phase that
lasts 6 months or more. Some will recover by late childhood, but one
out of every 100 children will be left with long-term stuttering.
I would like to take this time to tell you a little bit more about
stuttering, what it is and how family members and friends can help.
Stuttering is a disorder where the flow of speech is broken by
repetition, prolongations, or abnormal stoppages of sounds and
syllables. For some people, unusual facial and body movements may
happen when they try to speak.
Stuttering is most likely caused by four factors:
One, Genetics;
Two, child development. For example, children with other speech and
language problems or developmental delays are more likely to stutter;
Three, the makeup of the brain. An ongoing research study by Dr. Anne
Smith with the Purdue University Stuttering Project shows that people
who stutter seem to process speech and language differently than those
who don't;
And four, lastly, family dynamics have an impact. High expectations
and fast-paced lifestyles can also contribute to stuttering.
People who stutter are no different from those who do not stutter. In
fact, studies by Dr. Ehud Yairi at the University of Illinois show that
people who stutter are as intelligent and as well-adjusted as those who
don't.
Contrary to what many people believe, stuttering can be treated. I
want to let anyone know out there who stutters or who has a child who
stutters, much can be done.
Speech-language pathologists, therapists trained to help deal with
speech issues like stuttering often work in schools, clinics, at
universities, and in private practice to help treat stuttering.
The most important thing, and many experts agree: early intervention
is key. The earlier we can identify stuttering in our children and get
them the help they need, the better chances we have at helping them to
speak more fluently.
If you stutter, or if a child or loved one stutters, or if you even
think they might be stuttering, get help immediately.
One of the best ways to help is by visiting the Stuttering
Foundation. The foundation was started by Malcolm Fraser more than 70
years ago. His book, called ``Self-Therapy for the Stutterer,'' was
originally published in 1978, and still is one of the best books on
stuttering available.
You can visit the foundation's Web site at www.stutteringhelp.org. They have lots of well-trusted, expert information available for free,
including Malcolm Fraser's book, as well as countless brochures and
videos and other materials for parents and teachers.
Unfortunately, there is no instant miracle cure for stuttering, no
surgery, no pills, no intensive weekend retreats. Stuttering takes time
and effort and commitment to work through.
Some people outgrow it. Some people respond well to years of therapy
and learn to speak fluently, with almost no trace of difficulty. For
many others, stuttering becomes a lifelong struggle, as it has for me.
[[Page H2251]]
For those of us who stutter, and for the millions of parents with
children who stutter, we all know stuttering becomes more challenging
for teenagers. Kids can be tough on classmates who stutter and, for
some, the teasing and the mocking can be too much.
We must help people who stutter understand that there are many people
who know firsthand how difficult it is for someone who stutters, and
that help is available.
We need to be patient, kind, understanding, and attentive. We need to
know and show that we care.
If you stutter, let me just tell you something: Don't give up. So
much can be done.
I thank the gentleman for giving me the time.
Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned earlier, I believe
history is something that we should remember and talk about.
Today, is March 6. It probably doesn't mean much to a lot of folks in
the United States, but to those of us from the State of Texas, March 6
is an important day.
I want to put it in context. There are 3 important, very important
days for those of us from Texas, March 2, March 6, and April 21, and I
will get to the significance in just a moment.
Many, many years ago, parts of Texas, Mexico, Central America, and
even South America, were controlled by the European country of Spain.
It controlled all of that area.
The people of Mexico decided that they wanted to have their own
independent country. It sounds familiar, does it not?
They rebelled against the Spanish, and they formed the Republic of
Mexico. They established a Constitution. It was called the Constitution
of 1824.
As sometimes happens with new democracies, the President takes over.
His name was Santa Anna. Santa Anna, when he took power legally,
constitutionally, under a democratic regime, did what some dictators,
unfortunately, still do. He abolished the government. He abolished the
Constitution of 1824. He created a centralist, authoritarian
government.
But several areas, states, if you will, in Mexico dissented,
objected, vocally objected, even rebelled. Those areas of Mexico were
Coahuila y Tejas, the state of Coahuila and Texas; Durango; Jalisco;
Nuevo Leon; Queretaro; San Luis Potosi; Tamaulipas; Yucatan; Zacatecas;
and a couple of others.
Most of those areas, those states did nothing more than just object,
dissent, and quickly Santa Anna moved in to quell any disruption or
disturbances.
But there were three of those areas that actually formed their own
republics, if you will. There was the Republic of the Rio Grande, the
Republic of the Yucatan, and the Republic of Texas.
Santa Anna quickly, of course, moved to stop these new countries, if
you will, areas, that were seeking independence from this totalitarian
dictator named Santa Anna. As history has shown, they all failed--
except the Republic of Texas.
That is what I would like to talk about this evening, Mr. Speaker.
What happened in Texas was that the people objected, people of all
races, both Tejanos--and Tejano is a uniquely Texan name; a Tejano is
someone of Mexican or Spanish descent that is, or was, born in what is
now Texas--and the Anglos as well dissented, objected to Santa Anna's
imperialistic dictatorship.
It started over a cannon. In October of 1835, the Mexican government
sent some military over to the little town of Gonzalez, Texas, and
demanded that the colonists, the people there, give up their cannon,
their arms, and they objected. They refused to do it, and so there was
a skirmish between the Mexican regulars and the colonists who lived in
Gonzalez.
Shots were fired on both sides. I don't know that anybody was really
hurt too bad. A couple of folks were wounded. More importantly, the
Mexican military left, and they did not get the cannon, and thus
started the Texas War of Independence.
You may have heard of the flag, the Come and Take It flag. The
Texians, as they called themselves, painted a cannon on a white
background and wrote underneath it, ``Come and Take It,'' being
defiant.
In any event, that started the battle. That started the Texas War of
Independence against a dictator, a person who had abolished, remember,
the Constitution of the Republic of Mexico.
Santa Anna then decided he would put down this rebellion, all of
these rebellions that I talked about, and he successfully did so in
other parts of Mexico, in those areas that I had mentioned. Then he
moves across the Rio Grande River with three different armies coming
into Texas to put down this so-called rebellion against his
dictatorship.
So the first battles of Texas independence were successful, in 1835,
October of 1835, and that brought us into 1836.
Success was not the norm in 1836. On March 2, 1836, 54 Texans,
including Lorenzo De Zavala, Thomas Rusk, Antonio Navarro, and that
famous person, Sam Houston, gathered not too far from San Antonio in a
place called Washington-on-the-Brazos, declared their independence from
Mexico, wrote a constitution, declaration of independence, rather, very
similar to the American Declaration of Independence. It was signed by
all of them on March 2, 1836.
Turned out March 2 also happens to be the birthday of Sam Houston.
Imagine that. That is the first important date.
Meanwhile, assembled down the road from Texas, declaring independence
at Washington-on-the-Brazos, were a group of volunteers. They were all
together in this old, beat-up Spanish church that was 150 years old at
the time. It was a town called Bear. We know it now as San Antonio.
The place that they assembled themselves to fight off the invasion of
the dictator was the Alamo.
This is an artist sketch of the way the Alamo looked at the time that
the 187 volunteers defended the place.
{time} 1615
You will notice, Mr. Speaker, the flag that is flying over the Alamo
was not what a lot of people think, the Lone Star flag, which was the
flag of the Republic of Texas, the flag of Texas now. It is the flag of
1824. It is very similar to the Mexican flag.
But what the defenders had done was remove the Mexican eagle and put
the number 1824. Why did they do that? Because when they went into the
Alamo, what they were wanting--what they were trying to do was
reestablish a constitutional government in Mexico, and they wanted the
constitution of 1824. That is why that flag flew over the Alamo.
The people who entered the Alamo did so on February 23, 1826. They
did so before March 2, before the declaration of independence, because
they knew that the invaders were coming under the direction of the
president, the dictator, and the general, Santa Anna.
It is interesting, these people who were in the Alamo, they were all
volunteers, Mr. Speaker. They came from almost every State in the
United States and 13 foreign countries, including Mexico; and I will
just mention some of the States that they came from.
They came from Alabama, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Maryland, several from Massachusetts. They came from the
State of Mississippi, Missouri, as far away as New Hampshire, New
Jersey, several folks from New York, North Carolina, Ohio.
A great number came from Pennsylvania and, of course, South Carolina,
even one from Rhode Island; and many, many came from the State of
Tennessee. There were also native Texans in the Alamo, if you would
refer to them as that; and they were the nine--at least nine Tejanos
that fell in the Alamo. There may have been more. We don't know. There
was also one from Vermont and several from Virginia.
They were also from foreign countries, Denmark, several from England,
Ireland, Germany, Scotland, Wales, France, and some other countries as
well.
Mr. Speaker, I will now place into the Record a list of the defenders
who fell at the Alamo and the States or countries that they were from.
The Defenders of the Alamo
1) Buchanan, James, Alabama; 2) Fishbaugh, William,
Alabama; 3) Fuqua, Galba, Alabama; 4) White, Isaac, Alabama;
5) Baker, Isaac G., Arkansas; 6) Thompson, Jesse G.,
Arkansas; 7) Warnell, Henry, Arkansas; 8) Jennings, Gordon
C., Connecticut; 9) Grimes, Albert (Alfred) Calvin, Georgia;
10) Melton, Eliel, Georgia; 11) Shied, Manson,
[[Page H2252]]
Georgia; 12) Wells, William, Georgia; 13) Wills, William,
Georgia; 14) Lindley, Jonathan L., Illinois; 15) Bailey,
Peter James III, Kentucky; 16) Bowie, James, Kentucky; 17)
Cloud, Daniel William, Kentucky; 18) Darst, Jacob C.,
Kentucky; 19) Davis John, Kentucky; 20) Fauntleroy, William
H., Kentucky.
21) Gaston, John E., Kentucky; 22) Harris, John, Kentucky;
23) Jackson, William Daniel, Kentucky; 24) Jameson, Green B.,
Kentucky; 25) Kellogg, John Benjamin, Kentucky; 26) Kent,
Andrew, Kentucky; 27) Rutherford, Joseph, Kentucky; 28)
Thomas, B. Archer M., Kentucky; 29) Washington, Joseph G.,
Kentucky; 30) Despallier, Charles, Louisiana; 31) Kerr,
Joseph, Louisiana; 32) Ryan, Isaac, Louisiana; 33) Garrand,
James W., Louisiana; 34) Smith, Charles S., Maryland; 35)
Flanders, John, Mass.; 36) Howell, William D., Mass.; 37)
Linn, William, Mass.; 38) Pollard, Amos. Mass.
39) Clark, M.B., Mississippi; 40) Millsaps, Isaac,
Mississippi; 41) Moore, Willis A., Mississippi; 42) Pagan,
George, Mississippi; 43) Parker, Christopher Adams,
Mississippi; 44) Baker, William Charles M., Missouri; 45)
Butler, George D., Missouri; 46) Clark, Charles Henry,
Missouri; 47) Cottle, George Washington, Missouri; 48)
Day, Jerry C., Missouri; 49) Tumlinson, George W.,
Missouri; 50) Cochran, Robert E., New Hampshire; 51)
Stockton, Richard Lucius, New Jersey; 52) Cunningham,
Robert W., New York; 53) Dewall, Lewis, New York; 54)
Evans, Samuel B., New York; 55) Forsyth, John Hubbard, New
York; 56) Jones, John, New York; 57) Tylee, James, New
York.
58) Autry, Micajah, North Carolina; 59) Floyd, Dolphin
Ward, North Carolina; 60) Parks, William, North Carolina; 61)
Scurlock, Mial, North Carolina; 62) Smith, Joshua G., North
Carolina; 63) Thomson, John W., North Carolina; 64) Wright,
Claiborne, North Carolina; 65) Harrison, William B., Ohio;
66) Holland, Tapely, Ohio; 67) Musselman, Robert, Ohio; 68)
Rose, James M., Ohio; 69) Ballentine, John J., Pennsylvania;
70) Brown, James Murry, Pennsylvania; 71) Cain (Cane), John,
Pennsylvania; 72) Crossman, Robert, Pennsylvania; 73)
Cummings, David P., Pennsylvania; 74) Hannum, James,
Pennsylvania; 75) Holloway, Samuel, Pennsylvania; 76)
Johnson, William, Pennsylvania; 77) Kimble (Kimbell), George
C., Pennsylvania; 78) McDowell, William, Pennsylvania; 79)
Reynolds, John Purdy, Pennsylvania; 80) Thurston, John M.,
Pennsylvania; 81) Williamson, Hiram James, Pennsylvania; 82)
Wilson, John, Pennsylvania.
83) Martin, Albert, Rhode Island; 84) Bonham, James Butler,
South Carolina; 85) Crawford, Lemuel, South Carolina; 86)
Neggan, George, South Carolina; 87) Nelson, Edward, South
Carolina; 88) Nelson, George, South Carolina; 89) Simmons,
Cleveland Kinloch, South Carolina; 90) Travis, William
Barret, South Carolina; 91) Bayliss, Joseph, Tennessee;
92) Blair, John, Tennessee; 93) Blair, Samuel C.,
Tennessee; 94) Bowman, Jesse B., Tennessee; 95) Campbell,
James (Robert), Tennessee; 96) Crockett, David, Tennessee;
97) Daymon, Squire, Tennessee; 98) Dearduff, William,
Tennessee; 99) Dickinson, Almeron, Tennessee; 100)
Dillard, John Henry, Tennessee; 101) Ewing, James L.,
Tennessee; 102) Garrett, James Girard, Tennessee.
103) Harrison, Andrew Jackson, Tennessee; 104) Haskell,
Charles, M., Tennessee; 105) Hays, John M., Tennessee; 106)
Marshall, William, Tennessee; 107) McCoy, Jesse, Tennessee;
108) McKinney, Robert, Tennessee; 109) Miller, Thomas R.,
Tennessee; 110) Mills, William, Tennessee; 111) Nelson,
Andrew M., Tennessee; 112) Robertson, James Waters,
Tennessee; 113) Smith, Andrew H., Tennessee; 114) Summerlin,
A. Spain, Tennessee; 115) Summers, William E., Tennessee;
116) Taylor, Edward, Tennessee; 117) Taylor, George,
Tennessee; 118) Taylor, James, Tennessee; 119) Taylor,
William, Tennessee; 120) Walker, Asa, Tennessee; 121) Walker,
Jacob, Tennessee.
122) Abamillo, Juan, Texas; 123) Badillo, Juan Antonio,
Texas; 124) Espalier, Carlos, Texas; 125) Esparza, Gregorio
(Jose Maria), Texas; 126) Fuentes, Antonio, Texas; 127)
Jimenez, Damacio, Texas; 128) King, William Phillip, Texas;
129) Lewis, William Irvine, Texas; 130) Lightfoot, William
J., Texas; 131) Losoya, Jose Toribio, Texas; 132) Nava,
Andres, Texas; 133) Perry, Richardson, Texas; 134) Andross,
Miles Deforest, Vermont; 135) Allen, Robert, Virginia; 136)
Baugh, John J., Virginia; 137) Carey, William R.,
Virginia; 138) Garnett, William, Virginia; 139) Goodrich,
John Camp, Virginia; 140) Herndon, Patrick Henry,
Virginia; 141) Kenny, James, Virginia; 142) Main, George
Washington, Virginia; 143) Malone, William T., Virginia;
144) Mitchasson, Edward F., Virginia; 145) Moore, Robert
B., Virginia; 146) Northcross, James, Virginia.
147) Zanco, Charles, Denmark; 148) Blazeby, William,
England; 149) Bourne, Daniel, England; 150) Brown, George,
England; 151) Dennison, Stephen (or Ireland), England; 152)
Dimpkins, James R., England; 153) Gwynne, James C., England;
154) Hersee William Daniel, England; 155) Nowlan, James,
England; 156) Sewell, Marcus L., England; 157) Starr,
Richard, England; 158) Stewart, James E., England; 159)
Waters, Thomas, England; 160) Wolfe, Anthony (Avram),
England; 161) Wolfe, son age 12, England; 162) Wolfe, son age
11, England.
163) Burns, Samuel E., Ireland; 164) Duvalt, Andrew,
Ireland; 165) Evans, Robert, Ireland; 166) Hawkins, Joseph
M., Ireland; 167) Jackson, Thomas, Ireland; 168) McGee,
James, Ireland; 169) Rusk, Jackson J., Ireland; 170) Rusk,
Jackson J., Ireland; 171) Ward, William B., Ireland; 172)
Courtman, Henry, Germany; 173) Thomas, Henry, Germany; 174)
Ballentine, Richard W., Scotland; 175) McGregor, John,
Scotland; Robinson, Isaac, Scotland; 177) Wilson, David L.,
Scotland; 178) Johnson, Lewis, Wales; 179) Brown, Robert,
France.
180) Day, Freeman H.K.; 181) Garvin, John E.; 182) George,
James; 183) McCafferty, Edward; 184) Mitchell, William T.;
185) Mitchell, Napoleon B.; 186) Roberts, Thomas H.; 187)
Smith, William H.; 188) Sutherland, William Depriest; 189)
White, Robert; 190) John (last name unknown).
As I mentioned, they were all volunteers. They did not look like an
army. They were everything from lawyers, doctors, shopkeepers,
frontiersmen, adventurers, people who had served in other armies. They
were all, though, freedom fighters who volunteered to go into the Alamo
on February 23.
Commanding the Alamo was my favorite person in all of history,
William Barret Travis. William Barret Travis was a lawyer. That is one
reason I like him. I am a lawyer. But he was a 27-year-old individual,
first born in South Carolina, raised in Alabama, and found his way to
Texas; and he was a revolutionary. He wanted independence for the State
of Texas--or the Republic of Texas.
He took command of the Alamo, and he sent out ``scouts''--would be
the term--asking that people who lived in the area come to the Alamo
and help defend the Alamo, fight against this imperialistic dictator,
and get Texas independence.
He sent his best friend, who also came from South Carolina, Jim
Bonham, out as a scout, along with others--Juan Seguin was one--trying
to get folks to come to help out at the Alamo.
Unfortunately, only one small town responded in the affirmative, and
that was Gonzales, Texas, where it all began. There were 32 volunteers
from Gonzalez, all men--young men--primarily the entire population of
Gonzales, Texas, marched from Gonzalez to the Alamo. They were the only
reinforcements that were there.
Now, if you would, Mr. Speaker, think about frontier life, the harsh
frontier where the male population--basically the entire male
population of a small town leaves. They headed to the Alamo where they
figured that they were not going to be able to return.
The ones that were left were those strong-willed frontier women and
their children, who later had to forge their own history, absent their
spouses--remarkable women, remarkable men who went to the Alamo.
It is said, in history, that when these 32 defenders showed up at the
Alamo, Travis looked down and said to his friend: They came here to
die.
Now, William Barret Travis, in his plea for help to go and fight for
liberty, independence--as I told you, most of the folks did not go.
They were there already, the ones that were going to fight. He sent out
many dispatches, and he sent a letter asking the people to go to the
Alamo.
I have a copy of that letter, and I have another copy on my wall in
my office. I have had that since the days I was a prosecutor and a
judge in Texas, and many other Members from Texas have what I think is
the most passionate plea for liberty written by anybody anywhere in the
world.
So you see the surroundings, 186 men surrounded by thousands of other
enemies, military. Here is what he said in that letter, Mr. Speaker. It
is dated February 24, 1836, at the Alamo.
To all the people of Texas, fellow citizens, and
compatriots, I am besieged with 1,000 or more of the enemy
under Santa Anna. I have sustained a continuous bombardment
and cannon fire for over 24 hours, but I have not lost a man.
The enemy has demanded surrender at its discretion.
Otherwise, the fort will be put to the sword. I have answered
that demand with a cannon shot, and the flag still waves
proudly over the wall. I shall never surrender. I shall never
retreat. I call upon you in the name of liberty, patriotism,
and everything dear to our character to come to my aid with
all dispatch.
If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain
myself for as long as possible and die like a soldier that
never forgets what is due his honor and that of his country.
Victory or death, William Barret Travis, commander of the
Alamo.
We all know what happened later. He and his fellow freedom fighters
were killed. Some historians say that before
[[Page H2253]]
it was impossible to leave the Alamo, William Barret Travis brought the
whole group--garrison, 186 volunteers, drew a line in the sand and
said: if you are with me, cross the line.
Everybody crossed. They had the opportunity to leave, but they did
not.
After 13 days of glory, if you will, at the Alamo, Travis and his men
sacrificed their lives on the altar of freedom. March 6, 1836, that is
why I mention March 6, because today is March 6. It is an anniversary
of those people who gave up their lives willingly to fight for freedom,
similar to the history of the United States.
You know, America took 7 years to gain independence from the British.
They lost a lot of lives, men and women, during that. It seems as
though freedom always has a cost. Good things always do. Important
things always do.
You see, some people in history have down in their soul, Mr. Speaker,
that living free is more important than anything, including their own
lives; and if they can't live as free people, they will fight and give
up their lives in exchange for that belief. Those are remarkable people
who have done that throughout history all over the world.
But today, we remember those 186 defenders of the Alamo, people like
William Barret Travis, Davy Crockett from Tennessee, Jim Bowie from
Louisiana, the 11 Tejanos that I have mentioned, because they were
willing to do that.
Travis said, in the last letter that he sent from the Alamo, that
victory will be worse for Santa Anna than defeat because of the losses.
It turns out that was true. He was able to delay Santa Anna's march
into Texas while a Texas Army was being built, surrounded by their
commander, General Sam Houston, which I will get to in a minute.
Jim Bonham is another person of interest, I think. He was the scout,
along with Juan Seguin, who went out to send the word: come to the
Alamo for help.
As legend says, when he got to Washington-on-the-Brazos, where the
Texas Republic was being formed, on March 2, 1836, drafting the
declaration of independence, he asked for those men there to come
to their Alamo.
They refused to do it. They said forming a government was more
important than going to the Alamo. Bottom line, they didn't go.
So he gets on his horse, and he starts to ride back to the Alamo. The
men there at Washington-on-the-Brazos tried to stop him: What are you
doing? You will be killed.
And he said: My friends have the right to know that no one is coming.
I don't know if that happened or not. Some historians say it did. It
just shows you the type of people that they were at the Alamo.
So after 13 days, Santa Anna did what he said he was going to do. He
flew the red flag, blew the bugles. It was said that they would not
offer any quarter to anyone unless they surrendered at a certain time.
They did not surrender. None of the men in the Alamo were given any
quarter. They were all killed. Santa Anna then continued his march
through Texas.
Remember, if you will, Mr. Speaker, he had already established his
domain militarily over other peoples in Mexico that had the desire to
object to his dictatorship and suppressed them militarily.
Now, he had moved that experienced army into Texas, one at the Alamo,
and was moving towards Sam Houston, who was moving his army toward the
eastern part of Texas, toward the United States. That time in history
is called the ``Runaway Scrape.''
The colonists, everybody between San Antonio and the American/Texas
border, was moving east. They were leaving their property. It was being
burned. They left in what is called the Runaway Scrape, not only the
volunteer army, but the families as well.
So Sam Houston kept moving toward the east. He did not pitch a battle
right away. He formed the army, as I said, all volunteers. Juan Seguin
and his band of scouts, cavalry, if you will, had ended up joining Sam
Houston.
And then, in April 1836, on the plains of San Jacinto--most Americans
don't even know where that is--but it is down there near Houston,
Texas. You probably have heard of that place.
In the marsh, in the swamp, these same type of individuals who were
at the Alamo were in Sam Houston's army. It was a little larger, almost
600, and these were individuals of all races.
They were people from the United States, foreign countries, from
Mexico, Tejanos; and they finally decided, on April 20, that they were
going to stop where they were on the plains of San Jacinto in the marsh
and pitch a battle.
{time} 1630
Now, the plan was to have the battle held April 22. What had happened
was Santa Anna had already caught up with them. He had pitched his
tents, he had his thousand or so soldiers. He had two other armies
still in Texas moving in to reinforce him, and everyone expected this
battle to take place on April 22.
But history and war determines when battles are to take place. Sam
Houston talked to his commanders. They decided it was time on April 21
to do battle. Now, history has always shown that battles take place at
dawn. They still do. Well, these Texans they didn't get around to it
until the afternoon on April 21. And they decided that they would just
attack the Mexican Army, Santa Anna, who was not prepared for an
attack. And sure enough, in the middle of the afternoon, this
outnumbered Texas Army attacked Santa Anna's army.
The battle lasted 18 minutes. Something that I thought was quite
unique and clever, once again, as I have mentioned, his Tejanos, of
course, were fighting for Texas' independence. They were pushing for
Texas' independence against the dictator Santa Anna. But they weren't
wearing uniforms, not like the Mexican Army. They wore whatever they
had. They looked pretty rough and pretty tough.
So Sam Houston, to make sure that the Tejanos weren't mistaken for
Santa Anna's army, he had all of them put a playing card in their
hatband. In those days, playing cards weren't little like we have
today; they were big. So they would stick a playing card in their
hatbands so they could be recognized.
His cavalry protected the flanks. The Texas Army marched in one long
column. They didn't have enough for two columns. They marched down and
in 18 minutes defeated Santa Anna's army, caught them by surprise, and
captured almost all of them. In fact, they captured more than were in
Sam Houston's army. Casualties on the part of the Texans were minor.
Sam Houston was wounded in the leg. And the rest, they say, was Texas
history. It was American.
Texas quickly declared and set up its own government and claimed a
lot of Texas. Things have changed. When Texas became a country in 1836,
here is a map of what they claimed was Texas. I won't make any
editorial comments about whether we think that still should be Texas or
not, Mr. Speaker, but, anyway, you see what is now modern-day Texas
over here. But Texas claimed part of New Mexico, part of Arizona, all
of Oklahoma, Colorado, and up to Wyoming. And you may ask: Well, how
did you lose that land? Well, when Texas became part of the Union,
Texas sold that to the Federal Government to pay off its debts for the
war.
So, anyway, that is the way Texas used to look. It doesn't look like
that anymore. We have no plans to retake this territory, Mr. Speaker. I
just thought I would mention it. Anyway, that was the Republic of
Texas. And Texas was an independent country for 9 years. Some say we
should have stayed an independent country. I don't know about that.
Texas wanted to join the Union. Finally, after several votes, Texas
got into the Union. After one Louisiana Senator switched his vote,
Texas joined the Union and became part of the United States. Because of
the fact that Texas was a republic, Texas can divide into five States.
I don't see that happening, not like California, who is thinking about
it. I don't think that is going to happen in Texas. Texas flies the
Texas flag even with the American flag because Texas was a republic.
I think Texans still have that independent spirit that our ancestors
had. Things are different in Texas. It is a whole different country,
and the reason is because our history is different. The reason, Mr.
Speaker, is because the people of Texas of all races, backgrounds, and
religions still have that
[[Page H2254]]
independent spirit about freedom, remembering our ancestors who gave
their lives and gave their property so that we could have freedom and
independence, and Texas could be an independent country even for 9
years.
That is why historically I think that we appreciate those people who
want independence. We appreciate people who want liberty. Right now, it
is those folks in Ukraine trying to keep out some dictator--I call him
a dictator--President Putin of Russia.
So, Mr. Speaker, we celebrate today and honor today, March 6, because
it is one of those three important days: March 2, Texas' independence;
March 6, 1836, the Alamo failed, we remember those people; and then
April 21, 1836, is when Texas actually got independent and started its
quest into being an independent entity.
In closing, I would like to read the lyrics of a song that Marty
Robbins wrote a long time ago. Mr. Speaker, you are old enough to maybe
even have heard of this song, but Marty Robbins wrote it in honor of
the people at the Alamo. It goes like this. It says:
In the southern part of Texas in the town of San Antone,
There's a fortress all in ruin and the weeds have overgrown.
You may look in vain for crosses and you'll never see a one,
But sometime between the setting and the rising of the sun,
You can hear a ghostly bugle as men go marching by;
You can hear them as they answer to that roll call in the
sky:
Colonel Travis, Davy Crockett, and 180 more;
Captain Dickinson, Jim Bowie, stand present and accounted
for.
Back in 1836, Sam Houston said to Travis: ``Get some
volunteers and go fortify the Alamo.''
Well, the men came from Texas and from old Tennessee and a
lot of other places.
They joined up with Travis just to fight for the right to be
free.
Indian scouts with squirrel guns, men with muzzle loaders,
Stood together heel and toe to defend the Alamo.
``You may never see your loved ones,'' Travis told them that
day.
``Those who want to can leave now, those who fight to the
death, let 'em stay.''
So in the sand he drew a line with his army sabre,
Out of 185, not a soldier crossed the line.
With his banners a-dancin' in the dawn's golden light,
Santa Anna came prancin' on a horse that was black as the
night.
He sent an officer to tell Travis to surrender.
Travis answered with a shell and a rousin' yell.
Santa Anna turned scarlet: play Deguello, he roared.
``I will show them no quarter, every one will be put to our
sword.''
185 holding back 5,000.
Five days, 6 days, 8 days, 10; Travis kept holding again and
again.
Then Travis sent for replacements for his wounded and lame,
But the troops that were comin', never came, never came,
never came.
So twice Santa Anna charged and then blew recall.
But on that fatal third time, Santa Anna breached the wall
and he killed them one and all.
Now the bugles are silent and there is rust on each sword,
And the small band of soldiers lie asleep in the arms of the
Lord.
In the southern part of Texas, near the town of San Antone,
Like a statue on his pinto rides a cowboy all alone.
He sees the cattle grazin' where a century before,
Santa Anna's guns were blazin' and the cannons used to roar.
His eyes turn a little misty, and his heart begins to glow,
And he takes his hat off slowly to those men of the Alamo,
To the 13 days of glory at the siege of Alamo.
And, Mr. Speaker, that's just the way it is.
I yield back.
____________________