742 



TEXAS. 



was laid on the table. A motion to strike out 

 the word "white" was lost by a vote of 26 to 

 47. A motion to leave it optional with the 

 Legislature to add other inhabitants of the 

 State to the basis of representation was lost by 

 a vote of 26 to 38. Seven members of the con- 

 vention were in favor of intelligent negro suf- 

 frage. One of them read a document occupy- 

 ing two hours in favor of the measure, and a 

 debate was postponed for two days, that there 

 might be an opportunity to print the paper. 

 A residence of five years in the State was made 

 a qualification for membership in the Legisla- 

 ture. All ordinances, resolutions, and proceed- 

 ings of the convention of 1861, were declared 

 null and void. All persons were exempted from 

 pecuniary liability for acts done in obedience 

 to the statutes of the Confederate Congress or 

 in pursuance of military or civil authority given 

 by the Confederate State Government. These 

 were the most important acts of a general char- 

 acter passed by the convention, which embraced 

 in its labors a full revision of the State con- 

 stitution. Before adjournment, June 4th was 

 designated for the general election by the peo- 

 ple of State officers, and the approval or rejec- 

 tion of the amendments to the constitution. 

 The vote on the constitutional amendments 

 was 48,519, or majority in favor of ratifying 

 the same of 7,719. 



Two tickets were presented for State officers, 

 designated a Republican, or Radical, and a Con- 

 servative Union. They embraced candidates for 

 all the State offices, and members of the Legisla- 

 ture and of Congress. The total vote cast was 

 60,682, of which the Conservative Union can- 

 didate for Governor, Throckmorton, received 

 48,031, and a majority of 36,580 over E. M. 

 Pease, who received 12,051. The Legislature 

 consisted of 33 Senators, and 90 members of 

 the House. In the former there were two Repub- 

 licans, and in the latter five. There were several 

 candidates for Congress in each of the four dis- 

 tricts, with no political distinction between 

 them. 



The session of the Legislature commenced on. 

 August 9th. On August 13th, instructions 

 were received from the Federal authorities at 

 "Washington, directing the Provisional Gov- 

 ernor to transfer the civil authority to the State 

 officers elected. The Governor elect immedi- 

 ately entered upon his duties, and on the 18th 

 sent a message on State affairs to the Legisla- 

 ture. There was in the State treasury at this 

 time $96,000. During the provisional govern- 

 ment the receipts had been $344,446, and the 

 expenditures $233,293, with some amounts to 

 be paid, leaving a balance as above stated. Of 

 the amount received, $227,197 was derived from 

 taxation, and the balance chiefly from the sale of 

 United States five per cent, bonds and coupons. 

 By the action of the State Convention all the 

 outstanding ten per cent, warrants, and State 

 bonds issued for services rendered, or expenses 

 incurred, since January 28, 186J, were repudi- 

 ited. Under a previous law, parties who held 



ten per cent, warrants were permitted to return 

 them into the treasury to be cancelled, and to 

 receive eight per cent. State bonds in their 

 stead. A subsequent law authorized the fund- 

 ing of all kinds of outstanding warrants, includ-I 

 ing such as were issued prior to January 28th, 1 

 as well as after that time. Under this law 294 

 bonds of $1,000 were issued. Of these about 

 $92,000 consisted of ten per cent, warrants 

 recognized by the convention as a subsisting 

 State debt. It therefore became necessary to 

 call in all the bonds, the ten per cent, and non- 

 interest warrants, in order to ascertain the por- 

 tion of them recognized as good by the conven- 

 tion. For this reason no statement of the debt 

 has been made. An amendment of the tax 

 laws was required. In consequence of their 

 defect, it was estimated that 444,838,216 acres 

 of land had escaped taxation since 1836, and 

 that the amount of tax lost was $1,201,036. 



An ample amount of the public domain of 

 the State has been set aside, together with one- 

 half of the proceeds arising from the sale of all 

 land, as a basis for a perpetual school fund. A 

 common school system has not yet been put in 

 operation in the State, because it must be sus- 

 tained by the interest accruing from the princi- 

 pal of the fund. Considerable sums belonging 

 to the fund have been used in other depart- 

 ments of the State, thus requiring the indebted- 

 ness to be arranged before a beginning can be 

 made in a successful system of schools. The 

 university fund is similarly embarrassed. 



The system heretofore pursued relative to 

 internal improvements has been to loan the 

 school fund to railroad companies. This has 

 proved to be the speediest mode of securing suc- 

 cess to these enterprises, and, if the war had not 

 intervened, would have furnished to the school 

 fund a safe investment, and to the people a 

 certainty of success in the completion of all the 

 railroads necessary to the wants of the coun- 

 try. This system, however, was weakened by 

 an indiscriminate granting of charters. The 

 great size of the State makes a system of in- 

 ternal improvements indispensable, especially 

 as it is unsafe for the school fund that it should 

 be invested in such securities. 



During the war, the asylums of the State, al- 

 though necessarily neglected, were kept in 

 operation. By the census of 1860 there were 

 between 200 and 300 insane persons in the 

 State. An asylum is in operation in Austin, 

 with accommodation for 50 or 60 persons. The 

 number of patients, in August, was 54 ; ad- 

 mitted during the year, 40 ; whole number 

 treated, 88 ; discharged, 22. It is stated that 

 the number of the insane has been greatly in- 

 creased by the war. The institution is in part 

 supported by State aid. The Deaf and Dumb 

 Asylum contained about 22 pupils. The insti- 

 tution for the blind was broken up about the 

 time of the surrender by want of funds to carry 

 it on. The penitentiary is represented as in a 

 very satisfactory condition. At the close of the 

 war the number of convicts was 118. The ia 



