History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties. Page: 24

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other army, under the command of Colonel
Ignacio Elizondo, the renegade who had betrayed
Hidalgo. Gutierrez was reinstated in
command for the emergency, and the invasion
repulsed. Gutierrez was again deposed,
mainly by the influence of the American
element. Factions, attempts at revolution
and counter-revolution, and accompanying
skirmishes, etc., continued to be the order of
the day, Spaniard-like, or rather Mexicanlike,
until by the spring of 1814 victory was
established by the royalists with some degree
of permanency, and another "6 lull " or period
of peace followed; but the condition of Texas
was deplorable, on account of the devastations
of the many little armies, and desperadoes,who
took unusual advantage of the unsettled state
of affairs in such times, and the general uncertainty
that always attends such a barbarous
state of public affairs. Many of the
inhabitants had fled and taken refuge in
other parts of the world, their crops were
destroyed, cattle carried off and their houses
burned. The spirit of insurrection was suppressed,
or perhaps more strictly expressed,
had 4" eaten up its own substance," so that for
years the public had the opportunity to settle
itself to more peaceable and profitable pursuits.
But little, however, was done, or
would have been done, until a new "'race)"
began again to take the field.
In addition to those already named, the
men who most prominently figured in the
public affairs of Texas during the above
period were Toledo, Arredondo, Perry, Taylor,
Billard, Cayetano Quintero, etc.
Sympathy for the oppressed in this region
spread meanwhile throughout the Jnited
States, and attempts at further revolutionary
measures were made in various places within
our domain. Vigilance was exercised by our

government to prevent the organization of
armies against Mexico, and to maintain
neutral ground.
Conspicuons among these sympathizers
with the patriots in Mexico was Colonel
Perry, who proclaimed in the New Orleans
papers in 1815 that an expedition was in
preparation to invade Texas; that 1,000 men
were ready to engage in the enterprise; and
that the undertaking was a worthy one, in
respect to both honor and profit. President
Madison prohibited Perry's movement, or
anything like it; and during the same year
several men were indicted in the United
States District Court for violating the nelttrality
laws. Perry, however, eluded the
vigilance of our Government, and succeeded
in making his way beyond the Sabine within a
small body of men. Jose Manuel de Herrera,
who had been appointed minister to the
United States by Morelos, and was at the
time residing in New Orleans, conceived the
idea of establishing. in connection with
Perry's movements, a system of privateering
from Galveston harbor. He established a
complete system of State government, witli
headquarters at Matagorda, in 1816, and was
supported with such a large force of revolutionists
as to again intimidate the Mexican
govern menut. Prospect for a successful revolution
seemed brighter than ever; Aury,
who was commodore of the fleet, at length
began to differ from the policy of Perry, of
the land forces, and amid other jealousies
the cause of the revolutionists was again
much weakened, and Perry was soon compelled
to flee back toward the United States
with only about forty men, and, after several
repulses of the more numerous band of Mexicans,
were finally compelled either to sur.
render or be put to death-which latter

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HISSTORY P EXS