Taller and taller, like an airy vision,
Till when the enemy's cannon oped on us,
He, with a voice that drowned their mighty roar.
Called out to Sherman's volunteers: "Remember
The Alamo![1] As darts the lightning-bolt
Athwart the air, so flashed this battle-cry
Through every bosom, and from wing to wing
The startled breezes bore its thundering echo.
Awed by this deafening peal the enemy
With terror broke their ranks; this battery
Alone sustained its fire against our men.
They wavered for an instant; wresting then
The regimental standard from the ensign,
And waving it with vigor, Colonel Bradburn
Rushed straight against the cannon's mouth and planted
The banner on the rampart. So he stood
In high relief against the smoke-wrapt sky.
Ere yet our men had scaled the parapet;
But when I reached his side, he suddenly
Sank lifeless to the ground, exclaiming yet:
"It is achieved: the fight is won—I die!"
But see, he moves, he lives, he opes his eyes.
Bradburn.
[With faint voice.]
Where am I?
- ↑ The battle-cry of the Texans in the battle of San Jacinto.
