USA > Texas > History of Texas : from 1685 to 1892, volume 1 > Part 37
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The disorganizing course of the council in pandering to the clamors of a few ambitious and visionary men and usurping the functions of the Governor as commander-in-chief in mili- tary and naval affairs, as well as those of Gen. Houston as general-in-chief of the army, among other things encouraging the suicidal expedition proposed to capture Matamoros, added to what he considered a conspiracy by Barrett and others of the council to destroy his influence, because of his unyielding advocacy of independence, culminated in the following indig- nant and unparliamentary, but very natural outburst from
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Governor Smith, communicated, in secret session, for their own ears, and not intended for the public :
" SAN FELIPE, January 9, 1836.
" Gentlemen of the Council :
" I herewith transmit to your body, the returns and corre- spondence of Col. Neill, Lieutenant-Colonel-Commandant of the post of Bexar. You will in that correspondence find the situation of that garrison. You will there find a detail of facts calculated to call forth the indignant feelings of every honest man. Can your body say that they have not been cognizant of, and connived at, this predatory expedition ? Are you not daily holding conference, and planning co-oper- ation, both by sea and land? Acts speak louder than words ! They are now before me, authorizing the appointment of a generalissimo with plenary powers to plan expeditions on the faith, the credit, and I may justly say, to the ruin of the country. You urge me by resolutions to make appointments, fit out vessels as government vessels - registering them as such, appointing landsmen to command a naval expedition, by making representations, urgent in their nature, and for what? I see no reason but to carry into effect, by the hur- ried and improvident acts of my department, your favorite object, by getting my sanction to an act disorganizing in its nature, and ruinous in its effects. Instead of acting as be- comes the counselors and guardians of a free people, you resolve yourselves into intriguing, caucussing parties ; pass resolutions, without a quorum, predicated on false premises ; and endeavor to ruin the country by countenancing, aiding and abetting parties ; and, if you could only deceive me enough, you would join with it a piratical co-operation. You have acted in bad faith, and seem determined by your acts to destroy the very institutions which you are pledged and sworn to support. I have been placed on the political watch-tower. I feel the weight of responsibility devolving
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upon me, and confidently hope I will be enabled to prove a faithful sentinel. You have also been posted as sentinels ; but you have permitted the enemy to cross your lines ; and, Mexican-like, are ready to sacrifice your country at the shrine of plunder. Mr. President, I speak collectively, as you all form one whole, though, at the same time, I do not mean all. I know you have honest men there, and of sterling worth and integrity ; but, you have Judases in the camp - corruption, base corruption, has crept into your councils -men who, if possible, would deceive their God. Notwithstanding their deep laid plans and intrigues, I have not been asleep. They have long since been anticipated, forestalled and counteracted. They will find themselves circumvented on every tack. I am now tired of watching scoundrels abroad and scoundrels at home, and on such I am now prepared to drop the curtain. The appointment and instructions, founded on the resolutions predicated on false premises, shall now be tested. I will im- mediately countermand the order made out in such haste; and, as you say, and her register says, the armed vessel Invin- cible is a government vessel, I will immediately order a suit- able officer of the government to go and take charge of her in the name of the government, and bold her subject to my order. And, if that be refused, I will immediately recall her regis- ter, by proclamation to the world. I would further suggest to you that our foreign agents have been commissioned and specially instructed to fill out our navy and procure the proper officers and crews ; and unless they can be certainly informed of the absolute purchase, in time to prevent their purchase of a similar one, the purchase so made by you shall never be ratified or become binding on this government ; because you would do the government serious injury by meddling with matters which you have put out of your power by special ap- pointment. You shall not be permitted, by collusion or man- agement, to act in bad faith to the injury of the government. If the appointment of general agents, with latitudinarian
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powers - with the power of substitution and many other things equally inconsistent and ridiculous - which have been engen- dered and emanated from your caucussing, intriguing body recently, does not show a want of respect to my department and a total neglect of the sacred oaths and pledges solemnly made by you, I must admit I am no judge. I wish you to distinctly understand that the ground on which you stand is holy, and shall be guarded and protected with every assiduity on my part. Permit me again to repeat it, Mr. President, this is not intended to touch either yourself or the honest and well-intending part of your council.
" Look round upon your flock. Your discernment will easily detect the scoundrels. The complaints, contraction of the eyes, the gape of the mouth, the vacant stare, the hung head, the restless, fidgety disposition ; the sneaking, sycophan- tic look, a natural meanness of countenance, an unguarded shrug of the shoulders, a sympathetic tickling and contraction of the muscles of the neck, anticipating the rope, a restless uneasiness to adjourn, dreading to face the storm themselves have raised.
" Let the honest and indignant part of your council drive the wolves out of the fold, for by low intrigue and manage- ment they have been imposed upon and duped into gross errors and palpable absurdities. Some of them have been thrown out of folds equally sacred, and should be denied the society of civilized man.
" They are parricides, piercing their devoted country, already bleeding at every pore. But, thanks be to my God, there is balm in Texas, and a physician near. Our agents have gone abroad. Our army has been organized. Our general is in the field. A convention has been called which will afford a sovereign remedy to the vile machinations of a caucussing, intriguing, and corrupt council. I now tell you that the course here pointed out shall be rigidly and strictly pursued, and that unless your body will make the necessary acknowl-
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edgment to the world of your error, and forthwith proceed, and with the same facility and publicity (by issuing a circular, and furnishing expenses to give circulation and publicity in a manner calculated to counteract its baleful effects ), that after twelve o'clock on to-morrow all communications between the two departments shall cease ; and your body will stand ad- journed until the first of March next, unless, from the emer- gencies of the country, you should be convened by proclamation at an earlier period.
" I consider, as the devisers of ways and means, you have done all contemplated by the organic law ; that your services are no longer needed, and until the convention meets, I will continue to discharge my duties as commander-in-chief of the army and navy, and see that the laws are executed.
" The foregoing you will receive as notice from my depart- ment, which will be rigidly carried into effect. You are further notified that audience will not be given to any member or special committee other than in writing. I will immediately proceed to publish all the correspondence between the two departments, by proclamation to the world, and assign the reasons why I have pursued this course, and the causes which have compelled me to do it.
" Your obedient servant,
" HENRY SMITH."
We may not justify the harsher expressions in this commu- nication ; but the provocation was great, and Governor Smith believed there was at least one influential traitor in the council, and others opposed to the independence of the country. He looked upon their factions and revolutionary course as calculated to bring ruin upon the country, and did not hesitate to use words expressive of his innermost thoughts.
On the 29th of March, during his retreat, from his camp on Mill Creek, west of the Brazos, Gen. Houston wrote to Gen.
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Rusk, Secretary of War: " I have ordered D. C. Barrett and Edward Gritten to be arrested and held subject to the future order of the government. I do think they ought to be detained and tried as traitors and spies."
The victory at San Jacinto, twenty-three days later, and the good feeling caused thereby, probably prevented investiga- tion into all such charges.
The council (then and ever afterwards without a quorum ) on the 11th of January passed resolutions denunciatory of the Governor, denying his allegations, preferred counter- charges against him, and, among other things, impotently attempted to depose him from office, in form and words as follows :-
" Resolved, That Henry Smith, Governor of the Provis- ional Government of Texas, be ordered forthwith to cease the functions of his office and that he be held to answer to the General Council upon certain charges and specifications pre- ferred against him, agreeable to the provisions of the fourth section of the Federal Constitution of Mexico of 1824, and the 11th section of the Organic Law of the Provisional Gov- ernment of Texas, as adopted in convention on the 13th of November, A. D., 1835, and that a copy of the said charges and specifications be furnished to the Governor, Henry Smith, within twenty-four hours from this time.
"Resolved, That the treasurer, commanding-general, foreign agents and all other officers of this Government, be notified of the suspension of Henry Smith of the powers and functions of Governor, by the representatives of the people of Texas in General Council assembled, and that they and every one of them hold themselves respectively subject to the order and direction of the Lieutenant-Governor, as acting Governor, and General Council aforesaid."
To which mandate none of those functionaries paid any attention.
On the 12th, before being advised of the action of the non-
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quorum council in its secret session of the 11th, apparently somewhat relieved of the indignation under which he had written, and probably urged thereto by more dispassionate friends, Gov. Smith sent in a less acrimonious message, in which he said :
" The communication sent to your body on the 10th con- tained much asperity of language, which I considered at the time was called for from me, owing to what I deemed im- provident acts of your body, in which I considered much intrigue and duplicity had been used, which, in their nature and tendency, were calculated to breed confusion and greatly injure the public good. Among other things, the appoint- ment of Col. Fannin was one which I deemed unwarranted by law, and of injurious tendency. If the act of your body was ratified by me, it is plain and evident that neither the com- mander-in-chief, the council, nor the executive could have any control over him.1 I, therefore, deemed it a gross insult
1 Students of Texian history are entitled to know what this extraordinary and illegal action was, and here it is :
" 1. Be it resolved by the General Council of the Provisional Government of Texas, that J. W. Fannin be and is hereby appointed and empowered, as an agent for and in behalf of the Provisional Government of Texas, to raise,' collect and concentrate at, or as near, the port of Copano as convenience and safety will admit, all volunteer troops willing to enter into an expedition against Matamoros, wherever they may be found-at the mouth of the Brazos, city of Bexar, or elsewhere, whether in Texas or arriving in Texas, and, when thus collected and concentrated, to report either to the com- manding general or to the Governor and Council, as he may prefer, agreeable to the seventh section of an ordinance and decree passed on the fifth day of December, 1835, for raising an auxiliary corps to the regular army, and con- tinue to report from time to time, as the expedition may progress.
" 2. That the said agent, J. W. Fannin, be and is hereby authorized and empowered to call upon Thomas F. Mckinney, the general agent of the commissary department, or any other public agent, store-keeper or supply- ing-officer of the government, for the proper and necessary munitions of war, the usual supply of provisions, apportioned to number and rank, and the means of transportation thereof and of the troops aforesaid, by land or water, which call and orders of said agent, shall be respected by all public
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offered by the council to my department, and one which I was not willing to overlook," etc. The council preferred charges against Governor Smith and informed him that he could elect whether to be tried by them, or by the plenary convention of the people, to be elected on the first of February and to assemble in Washington on the Brazos, on the first day of March. He promptly replied : " You have left it with myself to choose the tribunal before whom I would be tried - whether before your own body, by whom I had already been con- demned, or before my peers in convention. Reason,
agents or officers aforesaid, and said agent's receipt shall be respected by the government.
" 3. That the said agent, J. W. Fannin, be and is hereby authorized and empowered to negotiate a loan of three thousand dollars, at not more than ten per cent interest, to be paid out of the first money, not otherwise especially appropriated at this date, or the first money which shall come into the treasury of Texas.
"4. That on the concentration of the volunteer troops as aforesaid, an election for a commander and other officers shall be made, agreeable to the law regulating the auxiliary volunteer corps, as referred to in section first of these resolutions.
" 5. That after the agent of the government aforesaid, J. W. Fannin, shall have so raised, collected and concentrated the aforesaid volunteers, he shall make a descent upon Matamoros, if he deems it practicable to take said place, or such other point or place as the said agent may deem proper.
"6. That the aforesaid agent, J. W. Fannin, shall be authorized and em- powered to appoint such special agent or agents under him as he shall deem necessary to carry into effect the object of these resolutions, and to delegate to such special agent or agents such powers, in writing, as he may think proper, not inconsistent with the powers of his own agency.
"7. That J. W. Fannin shall be furnished with a copy of the foregoing report and resolutions, duly certified, immediately upon their passage."
This revolutionary measure was not even submitted to the Governor for his approval, was unanimously passed on the 7th of January, 1836; but there were only twelve members present, when fourteen were necessary to con- stitute a quorum. Turn back and read Fannin's letter to Kerr and the key to the authorship of this extraordinary and ultimately disastrous usurpa- tion, will be found. It was, on the part of the mover behind the curtain, a scheme to ignore the Governor and the commander-in-chief, and ended in the wholly unnecessary sacrifice of Fannin and his four hundred brave and noble followers.
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it would seem, would direct the latter alternative. I demand of your president, as a right, the names of all the members present on the 10th instant, with the proper certifi- cate, commencing with the first of the present month and up to the present date inclusive. And all the members now present are notified to appear at the town of Washington, as witnesses, on the first day of March next; for, by your own acts and the proof of your own body, I hope to be able to exculpate myself, before a liberal and unbiased body, from all the charges preferred against me. It would appear that some jurisdictions ( municipalities ) are not represented, others have, and some (members) long since precluded by law, still seem to hold on and form a part of your body." There were
then twenty-one municipalities, and each entitled to one mem- ber, of which two-thirds, or fourteen, were necessary to form a quorum, while in fact but twelve were present, and of these twelve Barrett had been elected Judge Advocate General and should have vacated his seat. Messrs. Burnham, Tucker, Collard and Malone were new members. So the council lacked two of a quorum and sometimes more. The Governor continues: " Notwithstanding you are the representatives of the people, they have given you the limit over which they will not permit you to pass ; and anything done by your body calculated to bring about disorganization, or not warranted by the organic law, will be viewed and considered as an out- rage for which you will be held responsible. What I have done, however you may view it, has been for the best of reasons, and from the purest motives. I care not for popu- larity, and seek alone the public good. And if the course I have pursued - so condemned by you - should bring down the odium and contempt of the whole community, and at the same time be the means of saving the character, the credit and finally redeem the country, I say to you in the sincerity of truth, that it is a sacrifice I willingly make at the shrine of the public good."
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On the same day, the 13th, the council passed a resolution directing the Executive Secretary, Dr. Charles B. Stewart (afterwards distinguished in the councils of the State and deceased only in 1886), to hold no further communication with Governor Smith, but to recognize as Governor, their presiding officer, Lieutenant-Governor James W. Robinson. They passed a similar mandate affecting the public printers. But their action was wholly ignored by the enlightened patriot, Stewart ; and fell harmless at the feet of Governor Smith, who still maintained his official position, being recog- nized as Governor by Gen. Houston, commander-in-chief of the army; Col. Neill, commandant at San Antonio; Travis, Bowie, and all the chief leaders in the country, and the people at large. The indecent haste with which the council acted, their numerous resolves, and the high-sounding inaugural address of their acting-governor bearing evidence of their prior plan and concert, speedily became known and were treated largely with derision till they were buried in oblivion by the people's representatives in the convention of independence in March, as will be seen later.
CHAPTER XLIII.
More of Governor Smith and the Council - Address to the People by Gov- ernor Smith - Fannin writes another letter - Noble Letter from Lieut .- Col. William Ward of the Georgia Battalion - An Overwhelming Rebuke by Wm. G. Hill to a Committee of the Council.
Nothing could have been more satisfactory to Governor Smith than the notification that he could exercise an option by being tried either by the council - his blind accusers - or by the convention yet to be elected and to assemble on the first day of March. His honest heart was more than willing to intrust his good name, fame and unselfish patriotism, to the judgment of his peers, yet to be elected by the people, for well he knew that the great point for which he had struggled - the independence of Texas -would be overwhelmingly, if not unanimously declared, whenever the voice of the people as now enlightened, should be expressed in a plenary assemblage. He had neither doubt nor fear, and he was correct, for the declaration was unanimously made within twenty-four hours after the convention met. And well he knew also that the real incentive to the malignant charges against him, was his refusal to countenance the disorganizing schemes of the council.
As a matter of fact Governor Smith continued in the dis- charge of his duties and was so recognized by the convention assembled in March.
The remnant of the council, sometimes not exceeding a half dozen, continued to hold sittings till the 16th of Feb- ruary, when it adjourned to meet in Washington on the 22d, but it never mustered a corporal's guard at that place.
It never made a pretense of having a quorum after the 17th of January ; and it is absolutely certain it never had after the
(490)
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9th and there is no positive evidence that it had during the first nine days of the month, and there is conclusive evidence that it did not have a quorum during several of those days. His active enemies in the council did not exceed three or four men, but they artfully operated upon new members, and were aided by outside abettors.
These details are due to truth and to the vindication of a wise and unselfish statesman who stood in the breach to save his bleeding country, and guide it into the haven of independ- ence, and whose political destruction was attempted.
On the 22d of January, Governor Smith published an ad- dress to the people reviewing at length the malversations of the council and presenting the facts to the country in so plain a light as to convince all unprejudiced minds of the justice of the position assumed by him. It is too long for even a re- capitulation in this connection, but his concluding words are given : He said : " I frankly acknowledge that I, knowingly and willfully, set the match ! I have thrown myself into the breach ! and whatever the consequences may be to me as an individual, I honestly own to you it is a sacrifice I have will- ingly made at the shrine of the public good. The agitated state of the country renders it necessary that I should exer- cise the powers delegated to me in the fourth section of the organic law, and I now call upon you, fellow-citizens as the militia of the country, to aid and assist in carrying it into effect. I only ask at your hands, as your executive officer, to see justice administered to me and yourselves. The spec- ulating, intriguing conspirators must be punished, or your in- terests will be ruined. All officers of the army and navy belonging to Texas, or marshaled within its limits, are here- by notified that they will be held strictly amenable to the laws: and at all times, when circumstances require it, to carry into effect the 4th section of the organic law, in conformity with its provisions. The proper officers of this government will fit out expeditions whenever they deem it expedient to do so.
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But this government will not be amenable, or countenance any predatory expeditions calculated to embarrass its circum- stances, or compromise its honor.
" HENRY SMITH, Governor. " San Felipe de Austin, Jan. 22, 1836.
Not only offers of aid from volunteers and citizens in dif- ferent parts of the country, poured in upon Governor Smith, but a party of armed men then at San Antonio notified him of their willingness to march to San Felipe and disperse the council as a band of conspirators against the independence of Texas. The governor rejected the latter offer and urged upon its authors the duty of awaiting the peaceful action of the people to assemble in convention on the first of March. Like Jefferson, he believed that enlightened freemen, when given time and facts upon which to base their judgments, could be relied upon to do justice, uphold the right and repress and punish wrong.
From Velasco, January 21st, J. W. Fannin, agent, etc., addressed a communication to his Excellency, James W. Rob- inson, Governor, and the General Council of Texas, thus fully identifying himself with those conspirators who had passed resolutions ( inspired by himself ), making him virtually the generalissimo of the military forces of Texas. He had gone to the mouth of the Brazos, where there were about 150 newly arrived volunteers from the United States, and enlisted them under his banner. They were mostly from Georgia and being a Georgian himself, it is not surprising that they listened to his representations. Besides, Fannin was a gallant man of fine intelligence and address. But for his over- weening ambition and insubordination, he might have become a pillar of strength to the country. He should have aided General Houston, the legally chosen commander-in-chief. That he did not, must be a source of pain to the people of Texas so long as time lasts. Yet his name and fame as a
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martyr to Texian liberty, the purity of his personal character and his unquestioned gallantry, will ever embalm his memory in the hearts of freemen.
The letter of Fannin to Robinson was a strange admixture of partisan politics and betrayed confidence by incorrectly stating the contents of a confidential letter written by Gover- nor Smith to Lieutenant-Colonel William Ward, an officer just then coming under the command of Fannin. This letter was reluctantly shown to him, at his earnest intercession, under a solemn pledge of secrecy and confidence. This is the darkest stain on the name of Fannin and can only be explained on the hypothesis that his partisan zeal and inordinate desire for military control overrode his sense of propriety.
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