953
THE AUSTIN PAPERS
AUSTIN TO HENRY AUSTIN
Copy of n letter 1 from Stephen F Austin to Capt. Henry Austin Dated Snn Felipe de Austin April 19th 1833: To Capt. H Aus1·1N , DEAR Sm-I leave to-morrow for Mexico on the state Government mission- I go with considerable-I may say-strong hopes of success- The course taken by the convention~ is the true one I think- The memorial for admission as a state 2 is respectfully [sic] and dignified and based upon the law of the 7th May 1824, and I can see no just reason why any offence should be taken [to] it by the Government, nor why it should be refused- Texas can not do any longer without a Government-things have been so disjointed ever since the military authority began to interfere with the civil, and with citizens, that nothing can set them to rights again but a state Government- I approve fully of the application fot· admis- sion as a state and I think it will succeed- The consequence of a failure will no doubt be war- Texas can not evidently get a[lo]ng without a. Govt. and if there should be no means of obtaining one with the approbation of con- gress she must form one of herself in the best way she can. I have always been opposed to hasty and imprudent measure but if om· ap- plication fails, I shnll say we have exhausted the subject so far as it can be done by mild steps, and that a totally different course ought to be adopted, for we can then take a firm stand for rights that were respectfully petitioned for and unjustly detained- The sUID and substance of the whole matter is that Texas must have a.state Gov- ernment nothing else will quiet this country or give nny security to persons or property, and nothing else will be agreed to [by] me as the representative of the public wishes- I think I shall succeed- ! was opposed to putting our Govt. into operation until we first obtained the sanction of congress Such a step could not haYe been justified on solid grounds, but if after our application we get no remedy, I sha.11 advise an immediate organization under the law of 7th 1rfay 1824, and a second application for admission, as organizeit- That also failing we shall have to do the best we can-I say that I shall advise this-I mean in case the situation of the country con- tinues to be as it now is-for at this time we are in anarchy and there will be no middle course left between total ruin and an imme- diate organization-if our application should fail- There is a rumor, and it appears to be well founded, that tho most of the army are to be sent to Texas, for the purpose of getting them
1 Copy by Moses .Austin Bryan. In tile of Aug. 27, 1829. • See note above, convention to Congress, Apr. 13, 1883. 88370-28---61
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