26
TEXAS STA1'E L1BR.\RY
Don Nicolas Jose Francisco Lauzin for which purpose I have issued him a commission, as he is 'a subject of my complete confidence. )lay God keep your Excellency many years. New Orleans, July 5, 1815. His Excellency, Don Alexandro Leon Durand de Linoir, Counter Admiral, Governor of the Island of Guadalupe and its dependencies. "\Vithin four or five months I hope to have .an answer. Your )Iajesty will be informed of eYerything by eYery available means in order to make sure that my letters reach your Majesty. Here in New Odeans I was asked by many Americans to adopt some measures invented by them for the purpose of obtaining the means wherewith to make a good expedition against Mexico. Their first proposition was that I, as the leader of the Mexican independ- ents and the enemy of the Spanish government, should attempt the capture of the stronghold of Pensacola; a11d that if I would agree fo do it, everything necessary in the way of troops, good officers, artillery, and other agencies of war would be given me immediately. After taking that stronghold, I should have in my possession twent:v thousand guns which were in the ars<'nal, much po,vd<'r, provisions, munitions of war, vessels, and sailors, and many troops which would join my ranks, because most of them are Creoles of Mexico: with these I could make a strong expedition against :Mexico. [If Il desired money to pay the troops. they told me that I could obtain it by selling the [stronghold and] the Province to the Government of the N [orth] for two or three millions of pesos. [I a-pproved ofl the ,vhole plan, and had no doubt of the certain capture of [Pen- i-acola, since] I well knew that manv troops wo~11d follow me. Fur- 1 hermore, f some off] icers hn.d off r er<'d 1 me their senices, among them General.n11mbert, who proposed to stofrm the stronghold.] I told them that before starting on this undertaking, [I wis] hcd [to be c<'rtain] of one thing; namely, [ whctl er, after] the capture [of thel stronghold, [t11e Governme]nt of the Xorlh would recog-ni7.<' fthel capture effected [by the] 1\fexican [indepen] dents RS legitimate; that I w.as of the opinion that the Government, far [from recogniz- inl? us] and from buying the stronghold and the province, would con- sider the capture illegal; would tak<' it away from us and would im- prison all the officers for many years; and this wonld h~ the result of an ill-consicl<'rec1 measure. As soon as I mad<' this statement, many said that it was correct, and that they would not go, unless they were assured beforehancl of the resultc;;. Others said that I was Yrry ap- prehensive ; that it wonId be better not to depend on me; and that they hy themselves would do everything in time. In )farch when the victot'ions army of General Jackson was mus- tered out here, a division of two thonsnnd men petitioned m<' through their officers, to march with them upon San Antonio. I told them thnt I would do it with plcnsnrc. Thr offic·ers met and looked for a house in which onr rnciety might deliberate eYery night npon the arrangements to he made for the journey. There was much difi'crence of opinion in this nss<'mbla~c of men, hut at the rnd of se\'ernl days I suecee<le<l in l'<'Strninin~-thrm a little, and we began to discuss mensurcs for the trip. '!'hey nssnr<'d
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