690 



TEXAS. 



On the 8th, the Convention passed the fol- 

 lowing ordinance in relation to the Governor's 

 letter : 



Whereas, a letter bearing date March 6, 1861, has 

 been read before this Convention, written by the Ex- 

 ecutive of this State, addressed to a Committee of this 

 body, calling in question the power of the Convention 

 to do more than submit the ordinance of secession to 

 the people of Texas for their ratification or rejection ; 

 and whereas it is important that there should be no 

 misunderstanding on this subject 



Resolved, That this Convention do now declare that 

 it not only had the power to pass and submit the ordi- 

 nance of secession, but also that it possesses and will 

 exercise the right, on behalf of the people of Texas, 

 to do whatever may be incidental to the same, and 

 that may be necessary and proper for the protection 

 of the rights of the people and the defence of the 

 State in the present emergency, and that it will as 

 speedily as practicable consummate the connection 

 of Texas with the Provisional Government of the 

 Confederate States of America, whose Constitution 

 has already been ratified by an ordinance of this Con- 

 vention. 



Resolved further, That this resolution be communi- 

 cated by th'e Secretary of this Convention to the re- 

 spective Departments of the State Government. 



An ordinance was also passed declaring that 

 vessels sent by the Federal Government to 

 receive the returning troops should not he 

 seized. The unexpected turn of affairs in the 

 Texas Department, hy which all or nearly all 

 of the troops had been suddenly discharged 

 from service by the surrender of the various 

 military posts in that State, devolved on the 

 "War Department the necessity of promptly 

 furnishing them with the means of subsistence, 

 and, if required, of conveyance to more north- 

 ern posts. For this purpose, steamers were 

 sent out from New York by the authorities at 

 Washington. The condition of affairs in the 

 State at this time, as viewed under a commer- 

 cial aspect, may be briefly told in the words of 

 one who was a calm spectator of the passing 

 scenes : " There is a wild spirit of legislation 

 here, that will lead to improvident expenditure, 

 onerous taxation, stay laws, prostration of 

 credit, and mischief generally. You know 

 nothing of the recklessness afloat here in all 

 matters of law and government. Our interests 

 here are at the mercy of a set of men who think 

 they can legislate the State into glory and 

 grandeur by passing stay laws, and who bid 

 fair to legislate it, posthaste, into debt, bank- 

 ruptcy, and another repudiation of the scaling 

 sort. Several expeditions are already on foot 

 to be paid for by taxation. Several sessions 

 of Convention and Legislature are on hand to 

 be paid for by taxation. A new Govern- 

 ment is to be organized and got under way, 

 with all its costly machinery, to be paid for by 

 taxation. Every expenditure will be of the 

 most thriftless sort, and on a reckless scale, for 

 we are no economists down here. Government 

 has become a mere child's play, and law a thing 

 to be made and unmade at pleasure. Of course 

 the remedy may come after awhile, with the 

 retribution, when the evils weigh heavily on 

 the people. But, in the mean time, much mis- 

 chief will have been done." 



For the protection of the frontier, the Leg- 

 islature passed an act to authorize the organi- 

 zation of mounted companies of sixty men in 

 each frontier county. Ten men of the com- 

 pany were to be constantly in service, and the 

 others called out for any time not exceeding 

 twelve days at once. An issue of treasury war- 

 rants, receivable for taxes, was authorized to 

 defray claims against the State. 



The House also passed a bill authorizing 

 the Governor to issue State bonds to the 

 amount of five hundred thousand dollars, in 

 case of invasion from any quarter, one fifth of 

 the whole annual State tax to be appropriated 

 as a sinking fund until the bonds were paid. 



The numerical strength of the United States 

 army in Texas was about 2,500 men, divided 

 into thirty-seven companies twenty-two in- 

 fantry, five artillery, and ten cavalry. Twenty 

 companies were on the Kio Grande fifteen 

 infantry, and five artillery. The other seven- 

 teen companies were stationed in the interior, 

 from Camp Cooper, Phantom Hill, in the 

 northern part of the State, south as far as San 

 Antonio and Fort Inge, near Fort Duncan, on 

 the Rio Grande. 



On the withdrawal of these troops, their 

 places on the Eio Grande were supplied by 

 State militia from Galveston. and the neighbor- 

 ing counties. 



Previous to this time, the surrender of Major- 

 General Twiggs, the United States commander 

 in that Department, to the authorities in Texas 

 took place. This caused great astonishment at 

 Washington, where it was hardly anticipated. 

 The secession of the State was not then, in fact, 

 consummated. There had been no vote of the 

 people upon the ordinance. The United States 

 army was allowed to inarch to the coast by 

 the articles of agreement, and to take with 

 them their side-arms, facilities for transporta- 

 tion, and subsistence, as well as two batteries 

 of flying artillery of four guns each. The means 

 of transportation were to be surrendered, and 

 left upon arrival at the coast. By this treaty, 

 without one drop of bloodshed, and u with- 

 out sullying in the least the honor of the United 

 States army," Texas came into possession of 

 over thirteen hundred thousand dollars' worth 

 of property, principally consisting of munitions 

 of war. 



The seizure of all the property of the United 

 States was complete. The revenue cutter was 

 surrendered, and the lighthouse supply-vessel 

 for the coast was captured. This vessel, the 

 " Guthrie," sailed from New Bedford, Massachu- 

 setts, November 8, 1860, with a full cargo of sup- 

 plies for one year for all the lighthouses and 

 light vessels between Amelia Island, Georgia, 

 and the Rio Grande, Texas. The master in charge 

 reached the bay at Galveston on the 5th of 

 March, for the purpose of delivering the year's 

 supply of oil, &c. to the Bolivar Point and other 

 lighthouses in that vicinity. While he was ab- 

 sent from the vessel, attending to the delivery 

 of the supplies, the Guthrie was boarded by 



