The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 26, July 1922 - April, 1923 Page: 200
324 p. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Southwestern Hisiorical Quarterly
went into effect January 14, 1843, "To provide for the establish-
ment and maintenance of peace, and to regulate friendly inter-
course with the Indians." One of the fundamental articles of
this act was for the formation of an Indian Bureau to be attached
to the War Department.25 Up to this time the Indian affairs of
the Republic had been directed in a haphazard way, sometimes by
the State Department, sometimes by the War Department, or by
the President. The centralization of responsibility, brought about
by this act naturally resulted in the more orderly management of
the Indian relations of the government. The President was given
the power to appoint a Superintendent of Indian Affairs, not more
than four agents, and not more than four interpreters. All the
agents were required to report at least twice a year to the Chief
Executive.26 In accordance with the above instructions the Presi-
dent appointed Joseph C. Eldridge, Commissioner of Indian
Affairs. He served until the fall of 1843, when he and the Presi-
dent had a slight misunderstanding.27 Thomas J. Western, who
took his place, conducted the affairs of the Indian Bureau until
Texas was incorporated into the United States.
After creating the machinery for the conduct of Indian rela-
tions, the act bf 1843 prescribed specifically the manner in which
peace and friendly intercourse with the wild tribes was to be
maintained. Trading houses should be located, respectively, at
or near the sputh fork of the Trinity, somewhere between the
lower and upper cross Timbers; at or near the Comanche Peak;
at or near the old San Saba Fort or mission; at or near Porto
Vandero; at or near the junction of the Moras and Rio Grande.28
In his last message to Congress on December 7, 1844, Houston
said that all the different tribes of Indians were completely pacified
and in regular friendly intercourse with the trading establish-
ments, thereby rendering the frontiers safe from "savage depre-
dations and butcheries."29 As far as the writer has been able to
ascertain only, two trading houses were ever put into operation
25Gammel, Laws of Texas, II, 842-845.
2"Ibid.
27Brown, Indian Wars and Pioneers of Texas, 93-99.
28Gammel, Laws of Texas, II, 842-845.
2"Journal of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Texas, 9
Congress, 1 Session, 12-13.200
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 26, July 1922 - April, 1923, periodical, 1923; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101084/m1/206/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.