26
AMERICAN IDSTORICAL ASSOCIATION
that Piedras brought with him to this place prejudices against the .American inhabt• which will be difficult to remove. Another circumstance which produced considerable excitement was two men engaged in a combat when an old gambler by the name of ward interfered in order to make peace at which time a soldier arrived with his bayonet in his hand and observing a pocket lmife in Wards hand and he engauged peremptorily ordered him to put the knife in his pocket Ward did not understand only from his man- . ner which was menacing and did not obey the order until spoken by an American who explained to him what the soldier had said Ward immediately put the knife in his pocket though by this time the combatants had retired the soldier proceeded to call a guard who arrived Ward was pointed out by the insulted soldier to the guard who without any thing like an inquiry proceeded to beat Ward with their muskets in a beastly manner broke his arm in two places in that situation conducted him to prison. Piedras observed he would make a fit subject :for sweeping the streets :for the next six months and it was with difficulty that he could be prevailed upon after being in- formed of the circumstances to let Ward out of prison these circum- stances I witnessed myself and if Ward had been a respectable m[an] ... the excitement which pre[vailed] ... would have been serious ... He is now punishing a citizen ... ducting from this place ... giving him a certain num[ber] ... making him carry a chai[n] ... man deserves punishmen[t] ... to do so the truth of ... There is ·nothing like money ... inhabitants Piedras has been borrowing on the faith of the Govt. for some time past and his paper is in circulation for the amount of several thousand dollars still the inhabitants are satisfied that he has a quantity of money on hand and are at a loss to lmow his motive for retaining it some of us are rather suspicious of his principles and rather doubt his attachment to the Govt though we may not be justifiable in so doing it is a thing which we by no means make publick I should be glad to hear from you relative to your trip to the interior the probable success of our Ayish Byou peticion when we may hope for relief of those who are in suspence in this quarter THOMAS F McKINNEY [Rubric] Col. S. F. AusTIN
AusTIN TO Hrs CoLONISTB Public Notice
The Commissioner has arrived to conclude the business of the first Colony of the Empresario Stephen F Austin, and to Commence
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