Summary
Summary of For the Liberty of Texas
For the Liberty of Texas at a glance
Summary: 8 min to read
- Reading time
- About 3 h 45 min3 h fast, 4 h 30 min slow
- Length
- 54,000 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1899by Edward Stratemeyer
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
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Key ideas
Key idea 1
A stolen deer puts courage first
On a lonely Texas farm in 1835, a stolen deer brings two brothers face to face with danger. Eight-year-old Ralph Radbury points his gun at the grown man who has taken his first deer. His brother Dan must decide whether to stand with him, knowing that the thief belongs to a band of raiders.
Edward Stratemeyer begins this historical adventure with a choice between backing down and standing together. A boy’s moment of pride has suddenly become a test of courage.
Key idea 2
The brothers defend their home together
With their father missing in the woods, Dan and Ralph turn their cabin into a shelter against attack.
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Key idea 3
Missing papers put the farm at risk
After the settlers abandon a pursuit that could lead into an ambush, the Radburys return to a ransacked cabin.
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Key idea 4
A cannon becomes a stand for rights
At Gonzales, a small brass cannon becomes the centre of a much larger dispute.
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Key idea 5
Dan must watch for his chance
Dan’s search for the stolen land papers brings him back into conflict with Hank Stiger.
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Key idea 6
A promise offers hope for Ralph
Ralph is missing, and his family does not know where to look.
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Key idea 7
Liberty and mercy carry a cost
The adventure asks how people should treat their enemies.
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Key idea 8
Adventure carries the history forward
Stratemeyer places the invented Radbury family among real figures, using quick scenes and dialogue to carry them through the fighting.
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Key idea 9
Ordinary choices draw the brothers onward
The brothers’ journey begins with a quarrel over a deer, but each new danger pulls them further from ordinary farm life.
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Who it’s for
This book suits readers who love frontier adventure, battle stories and the early history of Texas, and families who like to share stories aloud.
What this book is
What would you do if a thief walked off with your first deer, and the thief belonged to a band of raiders? That is where this book begins, on a lonely Texas farm in 1835. Eight-year-old Ralph Radbury aims his gun at a grown man, and his brother Dan must decide whether to back him.
For the Liberty of Texas is a historical adventure by Edward Stratemeyer, the first of three volumes in his Mexican War Series.
In this summary
- 1A stolen deer puts courage firstFree
- 2The brothers defend their home together
- 3Missing papers put the farm at risk
- 4A cannon becomes a stand for rights
- 5Dan must watch for his chance
- 6A promise offers hope for Ralph
- 7Liberty and mercy carry a cost
- 8Adventure carries the history forward
- 9Ordinary choices draw the brothers onward
A stolen deer starts a feud
In 1835 Dan Radbury is fourteen and his brother Ralph is eight. They live with their father, Amos, on a farm near the Guadalupe River. Ralph shoots his first big deer, runs home to boast and forgets to reload. When the boys return, the deer is gone, and moccasin prints lead them to Hank Stiger tying it to his pony.
Ralph, pale but steady, steps in front of the pony and aims his gun at the man's head. Dan stands beside him with the old Mexican musket. Stiger drops the deer and rides off, swearing the boys will regret it.
Dan knows they have made an enemy for life, because Stiger is close to a Comanche leader named Bison Head. On the way home Dan spots turkey feathers above bushes where no wild turkeys live. Comanches are gathering around the cabin.
A quarrel over pride on the frontier can quickly grow into a danger for a whole family.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
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Check yourself
Why do the stolen land grant papers threaten the Radburys?
Right. “With the country in turmoil, someone else could claim the land.”Not quite. “With the country in turmoil, someone else could claim the land.”
Why does Big Foot offer to help find Ralph?
Right. “True to his word, he offers to find the boy.”Not quite. “True to his word, he offers to find the boy.”
What does the struggle over the missing papers show about liberty?
Right. “Amos says he will hold his claim, papers or no papers, and the missing papers show that liberty depends on law and records as well as on rifles.”Not quite. “Amos says he will hold his claim, papers or no papers, and the missing papers show that liberty depends on law and records as well as on rifles.”
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About 3 h 50 min to read.Start freePaperback, hardcover and large print, printed for you at cost, are on their way.Email me when it is printed
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 54,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 3 h 45 min
Questions about For the Liberty of Texas
What is For the Liberty of Texas about?
It follows brothers Dan and Ralph Radbury, who live on a Texas farm in 1835. Raiders, a land-paper mystery and the Texas Revolution pull them from cabin sieges to the capture of San Antonio and the siege of the Alamo.
Is For the Liberty of Texas a true story?
The Radbury family is invented, but the setting and many events are real. Gonzales, the capture of San Antonio and the Alamo siege appear, along with Bowie, Crockett, Travis, Houston and Santa Anna.
Who is Poke Stover?
Poke Stover is an old frontiersman who drifted into Texas from Missouri. He knows the Comanches well, saves the boys during the cabin siege, and stays loyal to the Radburys through the war.
Is this book part of a series?
Yes. It is the first of three volumes in the Mexican War Series by Edward Stratemeyer, though it tells a complete story on its own. The next volume is With Taylor on the Rio Grande.
Is For the Liberty of Texas easy to read?
It is told in plain language with short chapters, lively dialogue and a fast pace. Each chapter moves the adventure forward, and the narrator explains historical background as the story goes.
Cite this edition
Stratemeyer, Edward. For the Liberty of Texas. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/for-the-liberty-of-texas.
Stratemeyer, E. (2026). For the liberty of Texas. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/for-the-liberty-of-texas (Original work published 1899)
Stratemeyer, Edward. For the Liberty of Texas. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/for-the-liberty-of-texas.
@book{stratemeyer2026for,
author = {Stratemeyer, Edward},
title = {For the Liberty of Texas},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/for-the-liberty-of-texas},
note = {First published 1899}
}
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