The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 15, July 1911 - April, 1912 Page: 181
382 p. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Declaration of Causes
fore "eight thousand" men are in arms "in support of the prin-
ciples embraced in the Constitution of the Republic of Mexico of
1824." They were fighting for "Constitutional Liberty" against
"the consolidated forces [of the] Mexican Empire." And they
declared themselves, therefore, "separate from, and Independent of
That form of Government that at present exists in Mexico."
Notice that Williamson would fight only for the principles of
the constitution of 1824, and that while declaring Texas inde-
pendent of the existing government he refrains from committing
it to any other Mexican government.
There is a fourth document, endorsed in the hand of the sec-
retary of the Consultation, "Declaration of General Consulta-
tion." It is not the declaration, however, that was finally adopted,
and the journal gives no hint that it was ever presented to the
Consultation. It was written by the same hand as Williamson's
draft, and, with a word changed here and there, is the same as
Williamnson's except for three additional paragraphs. These para-
graphs are prefixed to the Williamson document. The first one
declares that the form of government acknowledged by the Texans
has been overthrown, the "social compact creating the confederacy
of Mexican States virtually dissolved,"2 and that the Texans re-
sort to their "natural right" upon the principle of self-preserva-
tion. The second declares that the people of Texas "are no
longer bound to adhere to a people that have changed that form
of government created by the compact of 1824 of which Tejas
formed an integral part." And the third expresses the reliance
of the Texans upon the generosity of civilized nations to sustain
them against military despotism." Perhaps this was an alterna-
tive draft submitted by Williamson to the committee. The prefa-
tory paragraphs contributed to the phraseology of the final dec-
laration.
At the close of the afternoon's session of November 6 Wharton
'Consultation MS. Texas State Library. This document is signed
"Williamson," and is endorsed. "Referred to Comt of 12."
'Although the constitution of 1824 did deliberately establish a federal
system, the historically fallacious character of the social contract as a
theory of government has probably never been more obvious than in the
government of Mexico from Cortes to the present.
'Consultation MS. Texas State Library.181
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Texas State Historical Association. The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 15, July 1911 - April, 1912, periodical, 1912; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101056/m1/186/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.