XRE AUSTIN PAPERS 271 until we .get strong enough lo whip them into· subjection, an<l by this course of policy I have snved .this settlement and brought it to wha.t it now is, ancl have secured large landed estates tq hundreds of poor men who otherwise would [not] or could not ever have got one foot of land. Some of these men have never yet paid one cent, and accuse me of speculating and cheating them because I ask it of them. It is human nature and I do not com- plain, besides it is my duty to bear these matters with patience, for it·is a sacrifice that is due to the future prosperity and greatness of this favored country, to bear with patience and perseverance all the labor and all the mortifications attendhnt upon the difficult ta.sk of laying the foundation of that prosperity. I have again be- come an egotist. Perhaps I am influenced by the idea that a man who la.hors faithfully to the best of his abilities and [with] pure intentions is entitled ~o s01ne compensation, and that unless I derive one by getting a little credit for whn,t I have done or tried to do, I shall come off badly, for I doubt very much whether I shall live to reap much advantage from my premium· land, which ns I before observed, is iny only stake, and it is not free from embarras- ments created solely for the benefit of this settlement. I have just recovered from a dangerous sp·en of sickness, and also I have to mourn the recent death· of an only and beloved brother, a.n~ I am not in a situation to write connectedly on any subject; you must therefore overlook my style. I will be.responsible for the facts which I have stated. STEPHEN F. A l.:STIN.
BYRD LOCKHART TO AUSTL"ll
Nacogdoches, October 14, 1829.
See Calendar.
' Aus·nN TO JosE ANTONIO NAVARRO i
Villa .de Austin Octubre 19, 1829.
JosE ANT° NAVARRO
• Mr MUI ESTIMAoo A;uao, entre ·los·quehaceres y desgracias q• de atropel me ha colmado de pesadumbre, el ul[trn]je en nna de las cartas de V'. -q 0 he faltado en contestar y escribir tan amenudo como debia haber hecho, ha tenido su influjo. digo con entera ingenuidad que la buena opinion de V. me es apreciable, por la razon que creo q 0 el juicio y el desir cono-[torn] a fondo, tien~n mas influjo•sobre· sus opinion~s, que ·el capricho O ·10.s 1 From Lamar Papers, Texas State Library.
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