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"who should be the Pre ident & Vice-president." Au tin, Smith, and Archer had already been announced and their respectiYe claims freely, and 1mre enedly, djscu ed by the soldiers. It required no scrutiny to know who would receive the support of the Army. In speaking of Au tin they did not mince their word , or speak by Card, but cryed aloud and spared not- reviling him for the many abuses of priveleges which be bas enjoyed in Colonizing Texas- and desparagjng him for want of the high qualifications necessary for so exalted a station at such a crisis. I was not a little astonished at this. Smith ,vas certainly much more in favour. 'l'hey believed him more capable, and, decidedly favourable to the adjustment of the agitating land questions upon fair and equitable grounds. They urged how- ever that he was·hot-tempered, and rash, as was clearly evinced in his intemperate message to the Legislature. This would haYe lost him some strength. But had he not withdrawn the most acceptabl& Ticket would have been '' Smith & Lamar,'' as it has been ''Hou ton & Lamar." I was present & assi ted in conducting an election among t the Regulars at a seperate Encampment On Ga~eat, and out of the ·99 votes polled you did not loose one; and the general vote I under- stand has been quite as satisfactory. I was well a sured so far as I could learn men's opinions from their wo~ds, that your name would be perfectly acceptable to the Army. A few mortified, discontented, spirits, (i\Iillard for example) and men of like calibre, have made puny efforts to run some one in opposition to your name: selecting for that purpose a Iajor l\ ontgomery. The arrangement was made, The horn was sounded- The horse was upon the field; when some sajacious than the rest upon a close out-door inspection finding him in "bad keeping" suggested that he be un°-irthed; and finally after much delay parlance amongst the jockies; the covering is thrown over and the creature is withdrawn. Impressing his manajers; with the wholesome admonition- that the fear of competition is much more sufferable, than ab olute, unqualified defeat. The only breath of dis- approbation of you or your c.our e, since you participation in the public affair of this country comes from those who profe to be- lieve (your positive disclaimer to the c.ontcary not,vith tanding) that your object in comcing to the Army was, to further the views of the President, the general measures of whose administration are con- sidered adverse to the best interests of the Army, and at the ame time to supersede Genl H in the command. I have endeavored o far as I could to drive them from this en·or, by pointing to your po itive declarations in the face of the whole Army, "that the appointment was confercd only for the emergency" which emergency wa alone created by the request of the Commanding Genl. thrice repeated- by bringin to their recollections that the amc command had been ten- dered you and declined at a time much more propitious for reaping laurels and the gratifications of ambition- by the whole tenor of your public life during which you have not only not sought office but invar- iably rejected it when pressed on you and too by a people who certain- ly po scs as strong claims to intelligence and character, as 'l'exians can boast of. There are some still incredulous to thes and similar facts. The truth is, the President and his Cabinet ha\'C incurred such a
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