It was a chill nineteenth of April, back in eighteen-thirty-six
and ol' Sam Houston's scouts put out their lamps an' trimmed their wicks.
Word of Goliad had come two days afore. The men were willin'
an' chompin' at the bit to hit the field an' do some killin'!
The mem'ry of the Alamo was still dust in their mouths
when the Yella-Bellies come across the misted fields off south.
Them Mexes didn't have a hint of what they'd gotten into
when they met two thousand screamin Texans, there at San Jacinto!
There weren't a man-jack fightin' hadn't lost somebody dear
at Goliad, the Alamo or somewhere to the rear.
Weren't a Texan wanted one Mex gettin' back to Mexico.
Houston hollered "Quarter!" an' a sergeant tol' him where to go!
"If tol' by God, himself, I won't stop killin' Mexicanners!"
"Then, Sir, I laud your valour, but can only damn your manners!"
says our General, on that bloody field where Texas got hers back,
for the massacre of Goliad and the Alamo attack.
We put a spire topped by a Lone Star, standin' on that field
where Santa Ana's murderers dropped rifles an' cried "Yield!"
An' Texas stands, an' Texas holds her pride to this day, still!
'cause where there stand's a Texan, Son...there'll always be a will!
(c) 11/28/2007 by eric lee
Author notes
With word of the massacres at the Alamo and Goliad, the Texas forces met the Mexican Army at San Jacinto out for blood and vengeance.
Three of my ancestors died on that field, and two others were decorated for valor and given field commissions. It was a bloody day, and mercy was in short supply, but let everyone who'd think to oppress Texas remember that day...and think again!
Kaitlyn:
The exchange between Houston and the sergeant on the field is a matter of historical record; I never swear for swearing's sake in poetry (since I cuss enough in normal conversation to make up for the lack) but it didn't seem right to edit such a dramatic line from this field of battle.
A contest entry
- Time Travelling by FallingTwilight.
600 points, ended December 10, 2007, 6 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Guaranteed Comments! III by Nam.
1750 points, ended April 14, 159 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 5 of 5
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"when they met two thousand screamin Texans, there at San Jacinto!" -- nothing wrong with the line, it's just previous to this line you use the apostrophe quite often in place of end-letters yet you don't have it in "screamin" in this line. Seems a bit off, to me.
I'm not really a fan of the whole Alamo story. I mean, I get it's an important part of Texas history but I really don't feel it applies too much to anything else. But that's me, and I'm sure most (including you) disagree, which is fine; we all have our differing opinions. But you got to admit, that one John Wayne directed and starred in "The Alamo" wasn't very good. I own the remake (I got it for $2), and I found it to be okay but entirely better than the John Wayne version. John Wayne can't direct good, at all. I mean, I love John Wayne movies, I own 10 from the 1920s to the 1970s but man, that movie blew. Anyway, I like this narrative, you do the accents quite well, and you told a nice story, though I'm not really interested in the historical aspect, I found this to be quite good on its own.
-Nam -
This poem kept my interest and had some very good lines 'damn your manners' is one of the best, the whole thing is a joy.
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Wow, this is a very memorial peice of a time when we fought for our independence, when we gather we gather and thrust all our forces onward. To stand tall and mighty in the USA.
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It's fine that you used a swear word, you have a valid reason. That rule was merely to keep out overly-excessive swearing.
Now to the poem, Fantastic piece! Just what I was looking for. This has definitely taken me back to that time. Vivid imagery and I love the speech and tone you used in this piece. Very well done. Thank you for entering and good luck,
-Kaitlyn -
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It's always a pleasure to enter a well-thought competition, Kaitlyn...the inspiration to do good work is reward enough, on its own.
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