The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 29, July 1925 - April, 1926 Page: 271
330 p. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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A Trip to Texas in 1828
Samuel Williams, secretary of the empresario, Mr. Stephen Aus-
tin; and we were given lodging in a house that had been prepared
for the purpose.
This village has been settled by Mr. Stephen Austin, a native
of the United States of the North. It consists, at present, of
forty or fifty wooden houses on the western bank of the large river
known as Rio de los Brazos de Dios, but the houses are not ar-
ranged systematically so as to form streets; but on the contrary,
lie in an irregular and desultory manner. Its population is
nearly two hundred persons, of which only ten are Mexicans, for
the balance are all Americans from the North with an occasional
European. Two wretched little stores supply the inhabitants of
the colony: one sells only whiskey, rum, sugar, and coffee; the
other, rice, flour, lard, and cheap cloth. It may seem that these
items are too few for the needs of the inhabitants, but they are not
because the Americans from the North, at least the greater part of
those I have seen, eat only salted meat, bread made by themselves
out of corn meal, coffee, and home-made cheese. To these the
greater part of those who live in the village add strong liquor, for
they are in general, in my opinion, lazy people of vicious charac-
ter. Some of them cultivate their small farms by planting corn;
but this task they usually entrust to their negro slaves, whom they
treat with considerable harshness. Beyond the village in an im-
mense stretch of land formed by rolling hills are scattered the
families brought by Stephen Austin, which today number more
than two thousand persons. The diplomatic policy of this em-
presario, evident in all his actions, has, as one may say, lulled the
authorities into a sense of security, while he works diligently for
his own ends. In my judgment, the spark that will start the
conflagration that will deprive us of Texas, will start from this
colony. All because the government does not take vigorous meas-
ures to prevent it. Perhaps it does not realize the value of what
it is about to lose.
From April 28 to May 9.-Having to repair several parts of
the wagons it was necessary to remain in the village, and it was
with much regret we noticed the river begin to rise as is cus-
tomary at this time of the year.
The water rose considerably next day, and the stream began
to bring down enormous tree trunks, pulled down from its wood271
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 29, July 1925 - April, 1926, periodical, 1926; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth117141/m1/297/: accessed April 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.