Sept 24 1836 to Oct 24 1836 - PTR, Vol. 9

SUNDAY, MARCH 6, 1836. The President called the Convention together, and informed them that he had received by express a letter from Colonel W. Barrett Travis, Commandant of the Alamo, at Bejar de San An- tonio, which required the ipimediate action of the Convention. The letter being read by the secretary, was as follows, to wit: Co:mcANDANCY OF THE ALAMO, l Bejar, March 3d, 1836. f Sm: -In the present confusion of the political authorities of the country, and in the absence of the commander-in-chief, I beg leave to communicate to you the situation of this garrison. You have doubtless already seen my official report of the action of the twenty-fifth ult., made on that day to Gen. Sam. Houston, to- gether with the various communications heretofore sent by ex- press, I shall therefore confine myself to what has transpired since that date. From the twenty-filth to the present date, the enemy have kept up a bombardment from two howitzers, (one a five and a half inch, and the other an eight inch,) and a heavy ca~nonade from two long nine pounders, mounted on a battery on the opposite side of the river, at a distance of four hun.dred yards from our walls. During this period the enemy have been busily employed in encircling us with entrenched encampments on all sides, at the following dis- tance, to wit: In Bejar, four hundred yards west; in LaYilleta, three hundred yards south; at the powder house, one thousand yards cast by south; 011 the ditch, eight hundred yards north ea$t, and at the old mill, eight hundred yards north. Notwithstanding all this, a company of thirty-two men from Gonzales, made their way into us on the morning of the first inst. at three o'clock, and Colonel J. B. Bonham (a courier from Gonzales) got in this morn- ing at eleven o'clock, without molestation·. I have fortified this place, so that the walls are generally proof again.st cannon balls; and I still continue to entrench on the inside, and strengthen the walls by throwing up the dirt. At least two hundred shells have fallen iuside pf our works without having injured a single man; indeed we have been so fortunate as not,to loose a man from any cause, and we have killed many of the enemy. The spirits of my men are still high, although they have had much to depress them. We have contended f9r ten days against 11n enemy whose numbers are variously estimated at from· fifteen hundred to six thousand men, with General Ramier Siesma and Colonel Batris, the aid de camp of Santa Anna, at their head: A report was circulated that Santa Anna himself was with the enemy, but I think it was false. A reinforcement of about one thousand men is now en- tering Bejar, from the west, and I think it more than probable that Santa Anna is now in town, from the rejoicing we hear.

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