USA > Texas > A new history of Texas; being a narration of the adventures of the author in Texas, and a description of the soil, climate, productions, minerals, tons [!], bays, harbours, rivers, institutions, and manners and customs of the inhabitants of that country; together with the principal incidents of fifteen years revolution in Mexico; and embracing a condensed statement of interesting events in Texas, from the first European settlement in 1692, down to the present time: and a history of the Mexican war > Part 5
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24
Brassoria .- This is a county town on the west bank of the river, twenty-five miles above Quintinia, and it is at this time one of the most important towns in point of trade in the country-situated in a fine cotton country that is well cultivated.
Columbia, is a small village 12 miles above Brassoria, remarkable for nothing except a house in which the first Texan congress held its session.
Richmond .- This town is situated on the west bank of the river, 32 miles above Columbia. The site is handsome, but the traffic of the inhabitants is inconsiderable. There is, however, a prospect of improvement, and the inhabit- ants merit success; some few of whom have already been remarkably fortunate in matrimonial engagements so far . as wealth is good fortune; and among these, a namesake of mine, the first and last that I have ever seen bearing the name, whose genealogy could not be traced to a more tangible source than Caroline County in Virginia. At this town I saw the only mail stage in Texas, which on examination proved to be an open waggon drawn by two horses, which if belonging to a person possessed of human-
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ity would have been relieved from labor, and recruited in d.h. or turned out and abandoned to the buzzards.
San Felipe De Austin .- This fair famed town is situated . on the west bank of the Brassos, 38 miles above Richmond, rendered famous on account of the transactions of the first consultation of delegates in Texas, who deliberated here; and not less celebrated in remembrance of a mixture of alarm and patriotic feeling that burst forth here on the reported approach of the Mexican army, in 1836, when the inhabitants fired the town and precipitately fled. It has since remained a solitude, until, Phoenix like, there are now symptoms that it will speedily rise from its ashes.
Washington .- Who would have conjectured. that a Virginia youth, that was three quarters of a century ago running the surveyor's chain, and planting his Jacobstaff in the mountain passes of the blue ridge, and sleeping at night on the earth, enveloped in a single blanket, was des- tined to become the tutelar deity of a town on the Brassos river in Texas, as well as the father of an empire of twen- ty six flourishing states, in 1839? Yet. however, unex- pected, 'tis true, and the town of Washington on the west bank of the Brassos is a promising village, having already assumed a bold position in history, being the first seat of the Texan Government, and gave birth to the declaration of Independence, and the Constitution of the country; and . whatever may be said of the conduct of the President and chry officers who fled from here, first to Harrisburg. and thenre to, Galveston. to avoid an introduction to his Mexi- an Highness, General Santa Anna. the circumstance can n fort no discredit to the town of Washington or its pres- en' inhabitants, who nember about 500, who are mostly
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natives of the United States, and are in the main an en- terprising people.
I had the pleasure of meeting here a representative from seventeen of the different states of the Union, and among them a musical little yankee from the land of steady habits, who, when I asked him how he was pleased with the coun- try, replied substantially as follows:
I bave wandered on through many a clime, Where flowers of beauty grew ; Where all was blissful to the heart, And lovely to the view : I have seen them in their twilight price, And in the dress of morn, But none appeared so sweet to me, As the spot where I was born. Sun.
Nashville and Tenoxticlan are small villages recently founded above Washington in a section of country that is well watered and favourable to health, and of considera- ble fertility, and emigrants can locate in this section on the lands of the government, where, by the rearing of stock, and the increase that may be expected in the value of real estate, a handsome property may, by economical and indus- trious habits, be accumulated in a few years.
The Brassos bottoms throughout, are perhaps inferior to no soil on the globe: composed of a dark mould of sever- al feet in depth, resting on a substratum of clay on the uĮ .- per waters, and below Richmond on a bed of shells .- There is, however, in the surrounding country much land that is sterile and much better adapted to grazing than cultivation. Cotton and sugar are she staple commodities of this region, but corn and most culinary vegetables thrive well.
The first American settlement in Texas, was made on this river, under the auspices of Stephen F. Austin, a native
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of Connecticut, and from the germ of a nation, then plan :- ed, has grown the present population; a population that is gradually emerging into manhood, and among whom, if wise councils prevail, the materials are fast accumulating that will rear a structure of government uniting the clas- sic columns of the ancients with the interior decorations which time and experience will continue to suggest.
In travelling in the vicinity of the Brassos, I was pleas- ed with the neatness displayed in the structure of houses, fences, and the laying out of the gardens and grounds, ex- hibiting all the appearances of comfort and opulence that meet the eye among the southern planters in the United States, and uniting those marks of system and taste that distinguish the farmers in New England: but the farms are in better cultivation here than in any other portion of Texas, and the society will compare handsomely with that of the southern United States generally, a remark that cannot apply to any other section of Texas except the country of the red lands, yet to be described.
Throughout the whole extent of the country, surrounding the Brassos, until ascending to the vicinity of Washington, there is an evident scarcity of timber and of wholesome water; the better class of planters invariably collect and preserve rain in cisterns, which is more pleasant to the taste than any other water to be there obtained; and if climate does, as is generally believed, exercise much in- fluence over the bodily and mental powers, there are many parts of Texas more desirable than any of the Brassos country below Washington.
In travelling east from the Brassos, the next water course is Buffalo Bayou, a most singular inlet, having no current and is brackish 100 miles from the sea; and although there is a sufficient depth of water to admit of Boats of two hundred ton burden, yet it is so narrow that their speed is
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much impeded by the overhanging timber on both sides; they however manage to ascend to Houston, and in turn- ing to descend have to avail themselves of a fork in the Bayou. While the stern of the Boat is with difficulty propelled into the cast branch, the bow is gradually brought to, and as if conscious of having escaped a dilemma, proudly dashes down the stream.
The soil in the vicinity of this stream, the whole dis- tance from its junction with the San Jacinto river to Houston, is light and sandy, but favorable to the culture of sweet potatoes, melons, &c., and these kinds of productions are in great demand, and are sold at enormous high prices. The timber consists mostly of pine, cedar, gum and clm.
Harrisburg, Buffalo, and Houston, are towns which are located on this Bayou, the last mentioned of which, the only place worthy of notice, Harrisburg having been burned during the revolution, and Buffalo is not yet built.
Houston is the present (1839)* seat of government, and contains 382 houses, and a population that would be diffi- cult to number on account of the constant coming and. going that is every day witnessed. They may emphatically be termed a roving people, and do not seem to heed the whole advice of one of the burgers which reads near like the following:
Rove not from pole to pole-the man lives here Whose razor's only equall'd by his beer; And where in either sense the cockney-put May if he pleases, get counfounded cut. On the sign of an ale house kept by a Barber
Perhaps about 3,000 people are to be found at Houston generally, and among them are not exceeding 40 females. Here may be daily seen parties of traders arriving and de- parting, composed too, of every variety of colour, "from
*Removed to Austin in the fall of 1839.
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snowy white to sooty," and dressed in every variety of fashion, excepting the savage Bowie-knife, which as if by common consent, was a necessary appendage to all.
Again, the squads of land speculators are sprinked about the streets and domiciled in the tap rooms, and ever and anon, the wily politician will give you a friendly grip, and invite you to take a glass, witha knowing squint, as much as to say, you are mine. Emigrants from every where crowd the streets in whole regiments, and if a man had come from the moon, fancy would lead us to suppose he might have some chance of meeting an old acquaintance, particularly during the sessions of Congress, when if a Wall Street Broker was suddenly dropped down in the streets of Houston, he would scarcely realize the change, were his ears not assailed with unfamiliar sounds. Some men are there looking about and thinking of a permanent settlement before removing their families, and some who have deserted wife and children from less worthy motives; and there are many who when setting out for Texas had no time to think of any person but themselves.
This being the grand focus of the republic. I have thought that a particular notice of Houston and its inhabitants might prove both useful and interesting ; useful in many ways, particularly to emigrants. Where the public records are kept, where the public officers reside, and where all land titles must be perfected, and where even after the soat of government shall have been removed, almost every man of business in the country will in progress of at- fairs have transactions of some sort.
Interesting if for no other reason than the fact of its being the resort of nine out of ten of those who are now. or will hereafter settle in the country, an I from this grand reservoir, streams of tarbulent or placid water are flowing in every direction and fertilizing or defacing the natural
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beauty of the fair plains of Texas; and while it is admit- ted that the society is decidedly worse than is elsewhere to be found, the materials of which it is composed pene- trating as they do, into every part of the Republic, mus: necessarily spread the influence of amiable qualities or vi- cious propensities in proportion to their natural strength and the circumstances that may hereafter surround them.
Pick-pockets and every description of bad characters abound here and are in promiscuous confusion mingled with the virtuous part of the community; and so much is this the case, that a man can scarcely divine when or where he is safe from their depredations. The police of the City is entirely worthless, and the unfortunate wight who suffers by the light fingered gentry must find out the rogue as best as he can, and then take the law into his own hands or suffer in silence; a part which I not only learn- ed by daily occurrences, but also by bitter experience, my own trunk having been abstracted from my Hotel, and rifled of its most valuable contents, on the second night after my arrival in the City.
I subsequently without any aid from the civil authori- ties arrested two men who I supposed participated in the theft; but certain mysterious circumstances induced me to believe that they were mere tools in the hands of others, and being unable to probe the whole affair and punish the principals I declined appearing against their instruments. This larceny was committed at the Eagle Tavern, now called the Lamar House, the property of Charles Cham- berlain, and through all the countries, and among the great variety of people among whom I have been accustomed to move, this was the first depredation of the kind I have been made to feel, and with the exception of a few dol- lars picked from my pocket at two different times after_ wards, and a bowie knife out of my bosom when sleep.
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ing, the last time I have been subjected to these operations; and I therefore am bound to believe that adepts are among them, and that New York or any where else is but half initiated.
Many ludicrous affairs transpired during my residence at the seat of government ; a narrative of a few of which will serve to convey to the reader a tolerably definite idea of the fashions of the place, and particularly their capacity to enforce order and their modes of adminis- tering justice.
The president had been some time absent from the city, and preparations were made for a welcome reception by getting up a grand spree, which was echoed about the tap rooms in articulations much resembling the following.
Here are we met, we merry boys, And merry boys I know are we As ever tasted Bacchus' joys, Or kicked up jolly rig or spree !
The president entered the town escorted by the Milam guards, whose white pantaloons were in strange contrast with the torrents of rain descending, and the half leg deep mud in the streets, which at a short distance gave each man the appearance of a pair of black boots drawn over his inexpressibles, and the illusion might have bean com- plete had not a shoe been occasionally lost in the mud, which caused the heroes to halt until the bare-foot man could recover his understanding. Arrived at the white house, the door was thrown open, the guards entered, and stacked their arins in the porch, between a brace of which the president entered followed by as many thirsty and hungry beings as was ever congregated in the most refin- ed society.
Here followed the formality of receiving the guests who hurriedly shook the hero of San Jacinto by the hand,
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flattered his vanity by obsequious bows and fulsome eulo- gies, and turned into the next room to enjoy his wine and bacon. He had entered his appearance at 1 o'clock P. M., and in two hours there was not less than one thousand men half seas over at his expense.
For two days this revelry was kept up, amid the beat- ing of drums, firing of guns, cutting of throats and a con- fusion of tongues, and on the second night the guards es- corted the President to the Theatre, ant at the earnest solicitation of Colonel I was induced to help him gallant a pair of ladies to witness the performance of Belvidere.
The orchestra was discoursing sweet sounds when a peal of three cheers proclaimed the arrival of the Presi- dent and suit which was speedlily followed by a hissing, the discharge of pistols, the glistening of Bowie-knives, while many a knight proclaimed his prowess by a volley of profanity, some leveled at the President, some at the Mayor, some at the police ; when at length all seemed ex- hausted, the field of battle was examined and three reported wounded ; killed none. By this time the Colonel had dealt rather freely with the jolly god, and in attempt- ing to get out. fell down stairs and I was compelled to escort to their homes two ladies, an occurrence that has never happened before or since in the City of Houston.
However unfortunate the termination of this splendid affair to certain individuals, it is believed to have replen ished the pockets of others whose motto was probably something after this fashion.
Together join to beat this ample field, Try when the open what the covered yiou! : Try fushi mas wilks in search of beauty's prize. Drub the police an ! knock out bully's eyes ; Shake fortune's box, whoo: rich men if you can, And keepup the me- A; - Jamimo, that's the plan !
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Early one morning it was rumored that a duel was to come off' between two knights of the toddy stick, and the ground selected was in an open prairie in sight of the Capitol, and within 50 yards of the limits of the City .-- The news flew like lightning, and soon crowds of new- ly awakened slumberers were seen wending their way to the seat of war, apparently much pleased at an opportuni- ty of witnessing the sport.
Some gentlemen who felt disgusted at such ridiculous farces cooperated with what few worthy citizens could be found, and waited in a body on the Mayor with a request that he would interpose his authority and prevent the bat- tle. His honor replied that it was out of his power, and were it otherwise he would not act in the premises; but advised them to call on one of the justices of the peace, who being county officers, it was supposed might feel it their duty to officiate. It however turned out that one of their worshipswas on the battle field enjoying the sport and the other after being awakened, stated that on the evening previous the Mayor had called on him, wlien an understanding had taken place that nothing should be done by either of them, and that the friends of the Mayor should not beset him about this affair, inasmuch as the election was approaching, and any thing on their part but silence would operate to the prejudice of his honour and certainly effect his defeat if it did not subject him and his associates to a coat of tar and feathers. The parties therefore stood up and shot at each other, and one of them received a ball in the hip that will render him a crip- ple for life; and he now hops about the streets and lanes of Houston and handles the toddy stick with as much nonchalance as though he was the hero of many a well faught field.
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A Mrs. , a most notorious character, and keeper of a boarding house near the theatre, had purloin- ed a trunk, the property of Doct. B and to recover the same, and punish the culprit, he had recourse to the civil authorities, who issued a warrant and placed it' . in the hands of Mc --- , a city constable, who repaired to her quarters, from which he was speedily ejected. This limb of the law then sought the aid of his comrades, and I happened to be in sight when the worthy posse arrived at the scene of action. The Madam seemed to have committed to memory the whole vocabulary of Billingsgate, which she in no measured terms dealt out; called to her aid a band of renegades which she retains in her service, and emphatically declared that her house should inherit the fame of Goliad if the invading army did not immediately beat a retreat. The official band of heroes soon took the hint. and it was amusing to see some half dozen lusty constables with the rear brought up by Doct. B. , scampering across the common.
This whole occurrence served to impress my mind with unpleasant feelings. The utter impotency of the laws were established, and the rights of one of my countrymen, a citizen of the U. States, was trampled on by a lawless banditti, and he compelled to pocket the insult and leave his property at their mercy.
The affair however afforded much merriment about town and a gentleman of my acquaintance who was preparing to settle permanently in Houston. unwilling to believe that the City authorities would tolerate repeated acts of fraud and robbery, resorted to a stratagem to test their moral honesty, by giving this female freebooter an opportunity of gratifying her natural propensity.
The bait took, and a trunk containing, as she supposed, a handsome sum of money and other valuables was borne
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off and stored in her office of deposit, from where it was removed by the aid of the sheriff of the county, who arrest- ed this woman* and her accomplices, and by his conni- vance the affair was investigated at her own domicile, she being rich and there not being more than forty women among some thousand of men composing the population of Houston.
"Maids! come maids. to my dressing bower, And deck my nut brown hair; Where'er ye laid a plait before Lay now-me ten times more."
The robbery was conclusively proven-the trunk found in her possession, but the spectators were numerous, and were occasionally regaled with delicious refreshments, and the prosecutor having during a kind of recess left the house for a short time was not a little surprised on his return to find the gates closed and the whole party imprisoned in the castle, and defended by no small garri- son. A siege under such circumstances was useless, and the officers and spectators were finally liberated on condition of immediate departure and a nolli prosiqui ! !
The gentleman being now convinced respecting the kind of law prevalent in Houston, obtained possession of his trunk in his own way, but from which, he had before the theft, been wise enough to remove the princi- pal value ; a circumstance wholly unknown to any person but himself and a few confidential friends.
The discharge of the prisoners under all the circum- stances exhibited a melancholy picture of a government of law, and furnished abundant evidence of the want of moral courage in the magistrate. The proprty was left
* NoTE .- This woman has since been convicted of forgery and sentenced to be hanged-but pardoned by the Executive.
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Dy him in the possession of the culprits when believing, as the court certainly did, that the stolen trunk contained every dollar in money, and every article of clothing, pos- sessed by the prosecutor, and she and her myrmidon; thus tacitly encouraged to the commission of new crimes.
The prosecutor is not chargeable with any evil intent, or with making a single statement that was not strictly true-he was willing to run some risk, and the value of his trunk and contents were no doubt correctly and con- scientiously estimated, but a few hundred dollars was doubtless much below the supposed value when stolen.
Bad as is this picture of society, it must be acknow .- ledged that there are many other localities on the contin- ent of America where interested and bad passions have their influence, and much injustice is certainly practised ; indeed when it is remembered that the population of Hous- ton is in a great measure composed of unfortunate and reckless characters who have hastily congregated, it is perhaps more to be wondered that things are not worse, than any surprise felt at what is every day to be seen. No man, certainly, of common understanding, would ever dream of finding in so newly settled country, and among such a heterogeneous mass, that high tone of moral feel- ing, or that respect and deference paid to the laws, or those clothed with authority, as ought, and generally does, exist in older communities ; and however desirous may be many worthy individuals to introduce wholesome " reforms, they cannot as yet exercise much influence, and the unfortunate disappointed and degenerate spend their time in fully, dissipation and vine without any salutary restraints.
The fact is, these people are not happy, and perhaps are more to be pitied than blamed. Many of them have been unsuccessful in business elsewhere, and have been
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drawn into Texas by the protection their laws promise from the collection of foreign debts, and by reading esag- gerated accounts of the country, have supposed that by some sort of off hand speculation, a fortune might be accu- mulated at once. Ninety-nine out of a hundred are disap- pointed in this.
Many again who have promised themselves offices of honor and profit, and perhaps spent nearly their whole substance in getting to the country, find when it is too late, that such offices do not go begging in Texas more than elsewhere, and that there, as well as from whence they came, many noisy partisans are to be provided for, embracing every grade from the highest functionary down to the street scavengers ; and that there are more candid- ates than places, to say nothing of the very worst of char- acters who have found in Texas the last asylum left for them upon earth.
Under such circumstances, these people are far less cen- surable for their irregularities and disorders than the inhabit- ants of older and differently situated countries, where mob law is frequently the order of the day; and by people too, who have not been subjected to the misfortunes, hardship and privations which many of the people of Texas have, who are now denied many of the blessings which are else- where enjoyed.
In the next chapter the attention of the reader will be called to a more pleasing theme, and be made acquainted with the brighter side of the picture of Texas generally, and the city of Houston in particular; its rapid growth, future prospects, and the great probability that in a few years the condition of the inhabitants will be matica im- proved.
. The climate. however, in this part of Texas is ,! dly unfriendly to health; quive as much so as I' .. , IS.
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Musquetoes and other insects annoy the over-heated emi- grants by day and by night; and there is but a single spring of water yet discovered any where in the vicinity; and from that a supply cannot be obtained for a much larger number of inhabitants. The morning sun beams down with a scorching and sickly heat; and,
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