Talk:James Bonham

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[edit] Bonham's news

"It is claimed by some that Bonham is often mistakenly remembered as bringing the news that Colonel Fannin was not coming to Travis's aid. But it was no mistake; word had reached Gonzales BEFORE Bonham left to return to the Alamo that Fannin was not coming. Therefor Bonham knew that Fannin was not coming. This is true, whether or not there was a Williamson letter (it has never been found)."

The italics mark an argumentative (and misspelled) addition made by an anonymous editor some time ago. I intend to delete it in a moment, because I think it's ill-founded and improper in tone for an encyclopedia. No source is provided for the claim that Bonham knew Fannin was not coming. The letter from Williamson that he carried to Travis, dated from Gonzales on March 1, clearly indicates the opposite, and read: "Colonel Fannin with 300 men and four pieces of artillery has been on the march toward Bexar three days now." Travis, obviously referring to Williamson's statement, wrote in a letter of March 3: "Col. Fannin is said to be on the march to this place with reinforcements; but I fear it is not true, as I have repeatedly sent to him for aid without receiving any." Travis had doubts about whether Fannin was coming, but assertions that it's based on something Bonham "knew" while carrying a letter he "knew" to be false don't seem to rest on any material foundation. Travis, as he clearly indicated, disbelieved the information just on the basis that Fannin had never shown up. In spite of the casual attempt by the editor to suggest a hoax, no historian that I know of doubts the authenticity of the Williamson letter; the original was not preserved, but it was printed in contemporary newspapers --- the same situation that exists for most of Travis's own Alamo correspondence. 69.227.126.47 18:29, 29 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Vandalism reverted

I reverted as best I could tell the vandalism that has been put into this article over recent days. I hope I have not accidentally reverted some valid stuff as well. Famspear 02:03, 29 July 2007 (UTC)