Deaf Smith: Scout, Spy, and Texas Hero - Hardcover

In colloquial and simple language, Houston author Jo Harper recreated the life of Erastus Smith who walked to Texas from Mississippi with his hornless cows and consumption. Erastus was always known as "Deaf" or "El Sordo" in Spanish because he could not hear, but he mastered lip reading in both English and Spanish. With a land grant of 4,000 acres, he settled in Texas with a Mexican wife and four children. In 1825 he helped plan and build the town of gonzales, but there was not to be peace in Texas. Stephen F. Austin sent Deaf to serve under General Sam Houston. Following orders, Deaf burned Gonzales and scouted for General Houston. After deaf and six men burned down Vince's Bridge, Santa Anna and his men were trapped and beaten at San Jacinto. Lively black and white drawings by Virginia Roeder add more excitement to the narrative. While Harper tells a good story, she also instructs young readers about a lesser known figure in Texas history. -- Sally Dooley, Review of Texas Books, Summer 1996