The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 40, July 1936 - April, 1937 Page: 5
348 p. : maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Prince Solms's Trip to Texas, 1844-1845
future is assured the society. . . German commerce and
German shipping will revive. The jealousy between England and
France concerning commerce with Texas must, if used properly,
give us the protection which otherwise a German fleet would have
to furnish. . . . If things go as I hope and wish-and God
will help us-you must not resign from the directorate in Europe
to bury yourself in Texas before everything is in smooth running
order. So far as the colony and Nassau Farm are concerned I
shall get everything in order so that, once a start has been made
and protection against the Indians is assured, only supervision and
control over the expenditure of the money and over him [Bour-
geois d'Orvanne] will be necessary. . . . You and I shall be
working for a great national object and our names will have a
good reputation with the German people. To have offered the
German farmer a new existence through colonization, to have
given commerce, shipping, and industry a new impetus seems to
me to be worth more than the Order of the Red Eagle, fourth
class. I am exerting all my energy for the cause. We must
succeed.7
In a second letter from New York of even date with the first,
Prince Solms reported that the question of annexation had not
been settled and that the majority of the people adhered to the
opinion that the United States Senate would reject annexation.
Paraphrasing an opinion offered by Mr. Brower, Texan consul at
New York, he wrote:
Texas has a national debt of seven million dollars which it can-
not pay. In case of annexation the United States is to assume this
debt while Texas surrenders her expansive public domain and
adds one to the number of stars in the American flag. The whole
trade of Texas would be directed to the United States, which
would be of greater importance than the increase in the number
of states, for this [annexation] can at best only mean hostilities
with Mexico and, what would be worse, with England and France.
If Texas is not annexed her whole trade goes to Europe, and
with little effort we can direct it to Germany. Which future is
more important for the Society, to see its lands increase slightly
in value with annexation or to create a market for German prod-
ucts in Texas and to buy the raw materials of Texas at a lower
price than has been paid before?
To recognize the independence of Texas and to see it main-
tained seems to me to be to the advantage of the Society. We
would become the agent for trade between Texas and Germany
and would reap great benefits. The German population would
7S-B A., XLIX, 118-120.
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 40, July 1936 - April, 1937, periodical, 1937; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101099/m1/13/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.