# What did Sam Houston call the Scottish guy in the Alamo? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 13, 2004, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852 "2004-04-13T20:59:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Poetgrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@Poetgrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poetgrrl)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2004, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/1 "2004-04-13T20:59:04Z")
I watched the Alamo yesterday, and was a bit puzzled when Sam Houston called this Scottish guy a name. It must have been derogitory, because the guy nearly blew his top, and Houston called him another name too boot. I can’t remember what he called him, but perhaps some savvy dopers who saw the movie knew what the mean words meant? (I’m guessing some racist slang for Scots at the time maybe?) ---
**Author:** ![Spaceace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7bcc69/32.png) [@Spaceace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spaceace)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/2 "2023-03-15T13:12:34Z")
If the script is correct Sam Houston calls him a Scottish Calamite which in ancient rome was a pubescent boy who was in an intimate relationship with an older man or a “pederast” ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/3 "2023-03-15T13:39:48Z")
[Calamites](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calamites) are an extinct species of horsetails (plants). The paedophile is a catamite. Either the Scottish guy was mad at being called an old fossil, or the scriptwriters substituted ‘calamite’ for ‘catamite’ to get past the censors. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/4 "2023-03-15T14:01:35Z")
Just as long as he didn’t call him a Calymene. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/5 "2023-03-16T18:57:27Z")
Nineteen years for an answer is surely a record. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/6 "2023-03-16T20:38:30Z")
And now we have the witchcraft to provide an exact video clip, instantly! [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/l_POYXxRnWg/hqdefault.jpg "Clip from "The Alamo," 2004") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_POYXxRnWg) ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/7 "2023-03-16T21:03:22Z")
Or a catamount. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/8 "2023-03-16T23:44:18Z")
Now _that’s_ a knife! ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2023, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/9 "2023-03-17T00:08:06Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Nineteen years for an answer is surely a record. Sadly, @Poetgrrl gave up after waiting 4 months for an answer. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2023, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sam-houston-call-the-scottish-guy-in-the-alamo/239852/10 "2023-03-17T08:37:46Z")
Or some calamine.