325
WRITINGS OF 5AM HOUSTON, 1859
the general affairs of Texas, that can be found; in which nothing is stated upon individual responsibility; everything in it is sus- tained by the official documents. 13 With the exception of the Commander-in-chief, no gentleman in the army had ever been in ·a general action, or even witnessed one; no one had been drilled in a regular army, or had been accustomed to the evolutions necessary to the maneuvering of troops. So soon as the disposition of the troops was made, accord- ing to his judgment, he announced to the Secretary of War the plan of battle. It was concurred in instantly. The Commander- in-chief requested the Secretary of War to take command of the left wing, so as to possess him of the timber, and enable him to turn the right wing of the enemy. The General's plan of battle was carried out. About all the silly and scandalous charges made against the general, as to ordering a halt during the action, and after he was wounded, leaving the field, I will examine the facts, known to the·army, and every brave man in it. I will, as authority, refer to the report of the Secretary of War, General Rusk, and see what he says in relation to that. In his report to the President ad i?iterim, he says : "Major-General Houston acted with great gallantry, encourag- ing his men to the attack, and heroically charged, in front of the infantry, within a few yards of the enemy, receiving at the same time a wound in his leg." 14 This is the testimony of General Rusk, in relation to one of the calu~mies that have been brought forward and paraded by the maligners of the Commander-in-chief. Again, to show that the General was not laggard throughout the action, we find the attes- tation of as gallant a man as lives, General Benjamin McCulloch. He says: "At the battle of San Jacinto, I was in command of one piece of artillery. The fire from it opened upon the enemy about two hundred yards distant. We advanced after each discharge, keeping in advance of the infantry, until we were within less than one hundred yards of their breastworks, at which time I had aimed the gun, but was delayed in firing for a moment by General Houston, who passed across, some thirty yards in front of the gun, and was at that time nearly that distance in advance of every man in that part of the field. After this, I saw him advancing upon the enemy, at least one- third of the distance between the two armies, in front of Colonel Burleson's regiment, when it was not more
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