Texas Centinel. (Austin, Tex.), Vol. 2, No. 36, Ed. 1, Thursday, August 5, 1841 Page: 2 of 4
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' ' Vi ..
unconstitutional. There is great excitement upon that'
subject mrougnout tne whole r.ast.
Yesterday I saw a letter from Red River written by
a gentleman of high standing- at Clarksville in which
he asserts that Judge Burnet will get three thousand
majority in those counties. There is no question but
the Judge will get considerable majorities in Jefferson
Jas-perBurnetand Houston counties; and if the west is
true to herself his election is morally certain and by a
maionty ot three thousand votes.
As to the Vice President we are going here almost
unanimously for ben. Burleson and his election by-
all is looked upon with certainty. This is as it should
be; he i a man of irreproachable character and a
sound thinking man who has done more public duty
. than any man in 1 exas and has made less fuss in
doing it.
The following we extract from the letter of a gentle
man well known in Franklin Robeilson county:
Franklin July 18lli 1S41.
My id Friend and Neighbor
1 have merelv time to drop you a line we are in
nigh excitement about our iiidian campaign all seem
eager for the contest and 1 doubt not but our brave men
will bring back a good account.
' Since the travelling land commissioners was here a
powerful revulsion in public sentiment has taken place
agai-ist Gen. Houston. We have seen his Gonzales
letter and know what he says about protecting the
frontier while he was President to be false. We once
sent .Major Sterling Robertson to him for troops to aid
us soon after several of our men women and children
had been butchered and his insolent and unfeeling re
ply was "God eternally d n you wish the In-
dians had the whole of your scalps." Do you think
Sir after this sort ot protection the people of this fron
tier will go for him? It so you wrong us for Judge
Burnet will get a large majority.
TEXAS GENTIN EL.
AUSTIN THURSDAY AUG. 5. 1841.
FOR PRESIDENT
DAVID G. BURNET-
FOR VICE PRESIDENT
GEN. EDWARD BURLESON.
3 We call attention to Judge Burnet's letter in
answer to the charges of the "Civilian" truth will
prevail.
Iu another column will bo found a very randid "Address to the Peo-
ple of Texas" It ts from the pen of a highly respected and worthy
gentleman ot Austin county.
33 We are requested by the General Commissioner of the Land of.
fice. to call the attention of those concerned to the advertisement
relative to the forfeiture of surveys which will be found in anotheri
column.
Hon. James Webb arrived in town on Monday. A circular from
him to the voters of this district will be found in another column.
The President arrived in town on Saturday evening.
Hon. Mr. Wright member of Congress from Victoria arrived in
town a few days sincet and left again yesterday.
THE SEAT OF GOVERNMENT AND GEN'L
HOUSTON.
The following extract of a letter from a gentleman
of Houston (whose name any one who wishes can see
by calling at this office) is another evidence of Gen'H
Sam Houston's settled hostility not only to this citybnt
to the West generally. S it seems the General has
determined to take the ''responsibility" whether the
people are willing or not! This we have upon the evi-
dence of Col. James Morgan of New Washington
and Mr. Edmondson both of whom are his devoted
friends. At the city of Houston where they expect the
archives to be removed to they make it a boast and a
good electioneering promise. Gen. Houston has at-
tempted to gull the worthy citizens of Washington up
on the Brazos and the new town upon theTrinttywith
like promises. How are all his promises to be complied
with? Will he divide the archives into three parts and
distribute them to his three bantlings? Or will he roll
the government about upon wheels first to the one and
then to the other?
"Houston remarked but a short time since in the
presence of Col. James Morgan and Mr. Edmoxdson.
(which I learned from these gentlemen themselves)
that he (Houston) was determined if elected Presi-
dent TO REMOVE THE ARCHIVES OF THE
GOVERNMENT WHETHER CONGRESS OR-
DERED THE REMOVAL OF THE SEAT OF
GOVERNMENT OR NOT that he (using an oath
would not risk his scalp up in thatd d hole called
Austin!"
Since the above was in type we have seen a letter from a highly
respectable gentleman at Galveston from which we make the follow.
ing extract as another evidence of the low and disgraceful mode ofj
electioneering which Gen. Houston has for a long time practiced. We
do not know that the gentleman who wrote this letter has been cor
rectly informed; but this we do know that one of the first acts of Gen.
Houston after he was made President in 1836 was to send a misera-
ble creature of his by the name of Kokernot to Galveston and arrested
this same Col. Jamct Morgan commandant of that post upon a
-charge of high treason and theft and ordered that he should be brought
to Columbia in irons to.behung- That Col. Morgan did come to Co-
lumbia under the greatest possible fear of the consequences and sought
the intercession of several leading men then at that place; that he was
turned loose through such intercession; and the second time arrested
by this same Gen. Houston and his striker Kokernot. Now how it is
after this most imperious and unlawful to say nothing of tho justice of
this treatment that Gen. Houston and Col. Morgan should become
bosom fnends we leave for the public to judge. At that day and for
a long time since Gen. Houston wa3 in the constant habit of denoun
cing Col. Morgan as a traitor and as having stolen and applied to his
own use provisions which were sent out from the United States to sus.
tain the country; and on the other hand Col. Morgan denounced him
as the basest of liars and scoundrels. Al the present time General
Houston cannot pass New Washington without stopping and spending
a few days with his old fkie.nd.
QUERE. What will the people of Washington Alabama city
Houston city and the divers other places which Gen. Houston haspro-
miscd the seat of government to now think?
We demand of Col. Morgan to know th truth and the whole
truth of this matter.
"Galveston July 22 18-11.
"I have been iuformed here that
bam Houston has made an arrangement with Colonel
James Morgan of New Washington to use his efforts
it elected President to nave the seat of government re-
moved to said place; and that Morgan has promised
mm a league ot land in the vicinity lor so doing."
THE FRANCO TEXIENNE BILL AGAIN.
Since we have published the true "Franco Texien-
ne Bill" wo perceive that the people throughout the
Republic are beginning to get alive to this subject. Its
features before were not generally kuown. We do not
say a concerted attempt was made to blindfold thepeo
pie to the most odious ieatures of this bill ; but facts
go to show that this was the case. A garbled paper
purporting to be the true bill although it was curtailed
of the most odious porlions of that bill was published
in four different papers of the Republic viz: the Red
Lander the Matagorda Gazette the Houstonian and
the Austin Gazette all of which papers support Gen.
Houston for the Presidency; and Gen.H. was the pm-
icipal advocate of this most obnoxious bill. Well might
the friends of Gen. Houston wish to shield him from the
odium which in a community of freemen was sure to
attach to the advocate of so destructive a measure to
the best interests of our country and so anti-Republi
can in all its features. But the people are beginning to
find out these odious features and are meting out to the
bill that condemnation which it so richly deserves.
We take the following extracts in relation to this sub
ject from articles published in the San Augustine Red
Lander; the first fs from an 'able address of the Hon.
Wyatt Hanks who is a candidate to represent that
county in the next Congress; and the other is an ex
tract from a communication over the signature of 'B.'
"As to the Franco Texian Bill that was submitted
for Ihc consideration and action of the last congress 1
view its adoption as not only impolitic and inexpedient'
but absolutely an insult to the intelligence of the nation.
What? Grant to a. few foreign speculators and capita-
lists three millions of acres of onr best soil including
the whole mining region of Texas and for what? In
consideration that they would introduce a few thous
and persons mostly miners into the Comanche region ofj
country build a lew fortr lor their protection dig
all the mines introduce as many goods as they please
reap all the benefits and hnallv by a combination
with the Indians and Mexicans subvert the liberties of
the people create upon the ruins of our free constitu-
tion a French dynasty Read Fellow Citizens the
Franco lexian Bill and imagine how you would like to
have S000 French over 17 vears of age completely
armed and garrisoned from Red River to the Rio Gran-
de with almost every lri'-c of Indians in N. America in
their immediate rear and Mexico upon their right.
You who have lived in Texas as long as I have never
read or seen as wild and mad a project emanate from the
imbecile and corrupt councils of Mexico for the coloniza
tion of their country as that of the rranco lexian Bill.
"Had the loan been obtained as we anticipated;
we would have been under additional obligations to
France we then could scarcely have refused her any
thing she might demand and instead ofrrench influ
ence being conhned to our Legislative Halls it would
be felt and exercised in every department of our gov
ernment and what they now claim us to bc(perhaps
in jest) we should in a short time actually become a
trench Colony. The rranco lexian Bill would then
be passed almost by acclamation the French minister
would oe restored loan nis lorme inuuence anayatw
and then then what? poor Bullock would be
hung without benefit of clergy.
I have heard of men being whip't for stealing what
had been pigs. And 1 believe there are cases reported
when fine and imprisonment had been inflicted for the
same ofiense;but to kill a .man's pigs and then hang
him for daring to resenttheinjury would be something
new in the annels of jurisprudence and yet we could
expect nothing less."
We perceive with the lone exception of the Ga-
zette of this city that all of Geo. Houston's news
papers have propped Anson Jones as a candidate for
Vice President his chance being looked upon as worse
than hopeless- We further learn from letters from the
lower country that Gen. Burlesox's election is con
sidered certain even by all parties.
INFAMOUS FALSEHOOD.
We copy the following from the "National Intelli-
gencer" published at Galveston under date of the 24th
ultimo. When Gen. Houston made this statement
he pledged his sacred Aord and honor to its truth and
said ir Col. John A. Wharton was alive he could
prove it. Judge Webb being present said "General
can't you prove it by any other out of the seven hundred
men in thut bailie -who are al present living ?" He re-
plied "Yes Major Bex. F. Smith knows the fact who
is a gentleman of unquestioned veracity." "Well"
;said Judge W. " I am glad to hear he is for he told
me that every word in 'Coleman's pamphltt' was true.''
This struck the General dura.
We ask the question in sober serious earnest is there
an honest independent patriot in the land who will
vote for Gen. Houston when he is day by day fulmi-
nating such shameful unprincipled preposterous noto-
rious falsehoods? and when he is called upon to tell i
double falsehood by denying he ever said so. We do
believe there is sufficient public virtue and integrity in
the land to stamp such degradation with that punish-
ment which is its just due; and Ave venture the predic-
tion that the ballot box on the fir: t Monday in next
month will disabuse the public morals from the unjust
odium of sustaining for the first office in the land a
common drunkard and a base calumniator as Gen.
Houston is well known to be. In his late electioneer-
ing tour to the East he pronounced the President of
this Republic a Mnrrel man and the Yice President a
heg thief. If tbe people of Texas are willing (which
we do not believe) fo endorse such infamous slander of
themselves and nation they will deserve all the odium
which ought to attach t them therefor.
'As to the consistency of the declarations of Gen.
Houston in regard to men and things either at that
time or the present it may be inferred from the fact that
within the last thiee weeks he declared to several
gentlemeu at the Termont House in Galveston that
Gen. Lamar rcas not in the. buttle of iSun Jacinto. Ill
confirmation of this veracious statement we would
refer to his official account of the battle dated --Hend
Quarters of the Army of San Jacinto River April 25
1S3G. Our cavalry sixty-one in number commanded
by Col. Miradeau B. Lamar (whose daring and gallant
conduct on the previous day had attracted the admira
tion of his comrades and called him in that station)
placed on our extreme right completed our line. Our
cavalry was first despatched to the enemy's left" &c.
and agaiu"our cavalry had chrged and routed that of
the enemy upon the right and given pursuit to the fugi-
tives" fcc. And yet as confirmation of the declaration.
that he was not there Gen. Houston could have proved
(he fact by John II Wharton if he had been alive. We
shall take an opportunity of referring to the testimony
of this witness while he was alivp made to living wit
nesses on some matters connected with that battle and
Houston's conduct which will be better substantiated
than to appeal to his testimony when dead. But more
of this anon."
COL. COLEMAN'S PAMPHLET.
The Editor of the Gazette in his last week's paper mado use of the
following remarks in relation to this pamphlet :
"We learn that the friends of Judce Burnet determined if possi
ble by honorable or dishonorablo means to secure the election of their
favorite have forgetful of ever- principle of decency and self-respect
re-published for electioneering purposes a pamphlet which appeared in
1837 and was then we have been informed denounced bv even the
opponents of Gen. Houston as a gross and libelous attack."
Now what are the facta in relation to this pamphlet the history of
which our neighbor seems so entirely ignorant of? In 1837 Colonel
Coleman a brae and distinguished officer of the revolution; who had
been aid-dc-camp of the commander in chief Gen. Sam Houstonwrote
the above pamphlet which he avowed and challenged contradiction of
its truth. Col. Sherman adjutant general John A. Wharton and many -other
distinguished officers who served in the spring campaign of '36
and the fall previous at Bexar all confirmed its truth. Col. 'Wharton
offered to establish the facts therein contained by nine-tenths of all the
officers who had served in those campaigns. Indeed such was its
universal credence that neither General Houston or his most strenuous
apologist ventured a contradiction to it; and Coleman though he
was drowned at Velasco in the fall of 1837 lived to see his unsophisti-
cated and honest labors bringdown universal odium and merited infa-
my upon Gen. Houston the author of his wrongs. How was it then
answered? Such were its blighting expositions and withering truths.
that Gen. Houston betook himself to his bed and drowned his reflec-
tions in the bottle; and though there were many hundreds of these
pamphlets then published Gen. H. and friends destroyed or procured
the destruction of nearly everyone. Lately the friends of the coun-
try and of truth have had a second edition of this work issued from the
press. It is a part of the tr e history of the country and will always
be looked upon as such notwithstanding the feeble and untimely de
nunciations of such new comers as the Editor of the Gazette.
Ann is j'.for this that the new and almost unknown Editor of the
Gazette alcuses the friends of JudgeBurnet with using "dishonoxablt
mean for his election" Has it come to this that the oldest and most
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Texas Centinel. (Austin, Tex.), Vol. 2, No. 36, Ed. 1, Thursday, August 5, 1841, newspaper, August 5, 1841; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth80054/m1/2/: accessed May 8, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.