The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 45, July 1941 - April, 1942 Page: 17
409 p. : ill., maps ; 24 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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The Laredo City Election and Riot of 1886
that there is a horde of cutthroats and outlaws, both
in Mexico and about Laredo, who live at either place
only so long as they are able to gain anything by it,
and if an opportunity for securing booty presented
itself would, without preference, cross to either side
of the river from that on which they were, to pillage
either of the Laredos. Every night for several nights
previous to the riot and for twenty-four hours after it,
I was apprised of the fact that at several points along
the opposite side of the river there were large bodies
of men congregated, waiting for a preconcerted signal
from their spies here to cross over. They finally be-
came so bold that they appeared in the day-time, and
could be seen by the post. This made my duty then
plain. I determined upon the first outbreak of the hos-
tilities to march my forces out and disarm every
armed man I saw, and guard the river bank and stop
any incursion. I noticed on the day of the riot that
the ferry boats ran an unusually large number of
trips, and this excited my suspicion. When the ball
opened, I called out two-thirds of my troops and double-
quicked them a mile and a half to the scene of the fray.
Several volleys passed very close to the troops, but no
one was hit, and when we advanced to the battle-
ground the combatants were ordered to desist and were
disarmed. I called upon the sheriff, who was in the
thickest of the fight, to go to the river's bank with
some of his deputies and the regulars to stop the in-
cursion, as by this time the Mexicans were swarming
across the river. Some in their eagerness to get across
were swimming, while others were on horseback, and
their horses were swimming. The ferry boat was
densely packed with them. The sheriff obeyed the
order with alacrity. The invaders were stopped and
sent back to the other side of the Bravo in short order.
The armed men on this side were disarmed by the
troops, order was soon restored and we patrolled the
town until I learned that the governor had been tele-
graphed and had ordered state troops. The regulars
were then withdrawn, but a close watch has been kept
on the river. I understand that there are numbers of
armed men, members of gangs of outlaws, now camped
in the brush in the suburbs of the town, awaiting an
opportunity to take advantage of another outbreak;
but I believe they will not be likely to have such an
opportunity to embrace. The rangers here know how
to deal with that class, and they are apt to keep at a
safe distance from the rangers.388sSan Antonio Express, April 11, 1886.
17
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 45, July 1941 - April, 1942, periodical, 1942; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146053/m1/23/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.