Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume I.djvu/260

236 ALAMANNI ALAN in 1870 were 86,284 bushels of wheat, 177,772 of corn, 66,274 of oats, and 155,570 Ibs. of to- bacco. In 1867 there were 26 churches, 4 academies, 5 cotton factories, and 5 flour mills. The North Carolina railroad traverses the county E. and W. Capital, Graham. ALAMAMI, or Alcnianni, Lnigl, an Italian poet, born at Florence in 1495, died at Amboise, France, in 1556. His father was devoted to the party of the Medici. Suspected of con- spiring against the life of Cardinal Julius, who was governing Florence in the name of the pope, he fled first to Venice, and, after the ac- cession of the cardinal to the papal throne under the name of Clement VII., to France. Kepeated attempts to reestablish himself in his native city failed. Francis I., who had a high opinion of him, finally took him into his ser- vice, and, after the peace of Crespy in 1544, appointed him ambassador at the court of Charles V. He retained the good will of the successor of Francis, Henry II. He left many poems, satires, fables, and other light litera- ture. His principal work is his didactic poem, La Coltinazione (Paris, 1546). ALAMEDA, a W. county of California, on San Francisco bay; area, 820 sq. m: ; pop. in 1870, 24,237, of whom 1,939 were Chinese. The San Francisco and Alameda, and the San Jos6 and Stockton railroads run through the county. Gold and some other minerals are found in small quantities. The principal productions in 1870 were 854,888 bushels of wheat, 668,975 of barley, 69,080 of oats, 114,053 of potatoes, 138,975 Ibs. of wool, 198,910 of butter, and 23,464 tons of hay. There were 6 newspapers published, of which 3 were dailies. The scen- ery of this county is very attractive. The warm springs, in a little valley among the foot hills of the Coast range, are much frequented for their medicinal properties, the water con- taining sulphur, lime, magnesia, and iron, in various proportions. Capital, San Leandro. ALAMO, a fort in Bexar county, Texas, near San Antonio, on the left bank of the San An- tonio river, celebrated in the Texan war for independence. It was an oblong structure, about an acre in extent, surrounded by a wall 8 or 10 feet high and 8 feet thick. Gen. Sam Houston had caused San Antonio to be dismantled, upon which Santa Anna with a large detachment of his army invested Fort Alamo, Feb. 23, 1836. The Texans, consisting only of 140 men, commanded by Col. William Barrett Travis, retired into the fort, while the Mexicans, 4,000 strong, after taking possession of the town, erected batteries on both sides of the river, and bombarded the fort without ces- sation for 24 hours. During this time over 200 shells were discharged into the fort, yet not a man was injured, while the Texan sharp- shooters, standing upon the ramparts, were able to pick off man after man of the enemy. Several assaults were now made, but in every instance the Mexicans were repulsed with loss. Col. Travis repeatedly sent couriers to San Felipe asking for assistance, but only 32 men succeeded in forcing their way through the Mexican lines and reaching the garrison. By March 3 scarcity of provisions, combined with constant watching, had undermined the health of the men, without, however, affecting their spirits. Before daybreak on the 6th a combin- ed attack was made by the whole Mexican force. Twice assaulting, they were twice driven back, with severe loss. The Texans, unable to load in the hand-to-hand fight which now en- sued, clubbed their rifles and fought with des- peration until but six of their band remained alive. These, including Col. Crockett, surren- dered to Castrillon, under promise of protec- tion ; but being taken before Santa Anna, they were by his orders instantly cut to pieces. Col. Crockett fell stabbed by a dozen swords. Col. Bowie, ill in bed, was then shot, after having killed several of his assailants. Major Evans was shot while in the act of firing the powder magazine. The bodies of the slain were collected in the centre of the Alamo, and after being horribly mutilated (in which act, it is said, Santa Anna and his generals joined), they were burned. But three persons, a wo- man, a child, and a servant, were spared. The Mexican loss was 1,600. The massacre of the Alamo was followed by the battle of San Jacin- to, the defeat of the whole Mexican army, and the capture of Santa Anna himself, with his best generals. At this battle the Texans, with the war cry of "Remember the Alamo I " car- ried all before them. ALAMOS, Real de los (Camp of the Poplars), a town in the southern part of Sonora, Mexico, 175 m. S. W. of Chihuahua, and about 45 m. E. of the gulf of California; pop. about 11,000. The houses are built of stone or brick, overlaid with stucco, the streets are tolerably well paved, and the place is celebrated for the beauty of its avenues (alamedas). It was severely injured by a storm in November, 1868. The district of Alamos, extending to the gulf of Cal- ifornia, is famous for its rich copper and silver mines, and for ite salubrious climate, its average height being several hundred feet above the gulf. The silver mines in the vicinity of the town employ about 4,000 persons. ALAN, Allen, or Allyn, William, an English the- ologian, born in Lancashire in 1532, died in Rome, Oct. 6, 1594. Being a zealous Catholic, he left England soon after the accession of Elizabeth, and settled in Flanders, where he published several works in defence of the old faith. In 1568 he founded the famous ecclesi- astical college of Douay for the education of English youth, Pope Gregory XIII. assisting him with a subsidy. Ten years later the magistrates ordered it to be closed, and Alan removed the establishment to Rheims, but il was restored to Douay in 1593. Dr. Alan was concerned with other professors of this college in making the English translation of the Bible commonly known as the Douay version. He was deeply implicated in the Catholic schemes