CHAPTER XI.
THE OPENING OF THE WAR.
To get so many men across the river by boat would have taxed the resources of Gonzales to the utmost, so the majority of the Texans went around by way of the ford, only a few going over in the ferry with the four-pounder.
The trip was made during the night of October first, and every man was cautioned to be as silent as possible.
"We'll give them a surprise," said Dan to one of the young men, a ranchero named Henry Parker. He had known Henry Parker for over a year, and the two were warm friends.
"Or get a surprise," was the answer. "They may be watching us just as hard as we are watching them."
"Pooh! I am not afraid of a greaser!"
"Neither am I. But it will pay to be careful."
They had passed the ford, and now in the utter darkness the little band made its way through the brush toward the spot where the Mexican com-
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