480
TEXAS STATE LIBR.\RY
applied to the territory . ·orth an<l West of Bexar as also to that ~orth & East of it - especially r'orth & Westwardl.y so far a the ~uece!. and it ori,.in, & the head of the Colorado, whirh latter tream runs North and ,vest to about 30 miles of the Rio Puerco, a branch of of [sic] the Rio Grande, beyond the h~ds of the Colorado, timber i very scarce indeed, water the same, the prairie is high & sandy, but good water can be obtained by digging a few feet · · Columbia 25th. Octr. 1 36
Jno. Cameron [rubric]
[Endorsed]
Jno. Cameron
COMANCHE INDIAN
• 1 0 . 473 1836 Oct. 28, W. A. THOl\IPSON 'PO L B. LAMAR New York 28. Oct: 1836.
To His
Excellency
l\Iirabeau Lamar, Sir,
I have been favoured witi1 a copy of the constitution of the Republic of Texas--and by it, I perceive 'That no free persons of African descent either in whole or in part, shall be permitted to re- side permanently in the Republic, without the consent of Co-ngress, & the importation of regroes except from the United States i declared piracy-Now Sir, the ob,ject of this letter, is, to ask you to confer with some of the most influential men in Texas on the propriety of your Congress adopting measures on that subject: -That is, to pass some law authouriseing judges of courts & justices of the Peace, to grant permission to egroes, either from the West India Islands, or the Coast of Africa, who are willing either to ap- prentice or hire themselves for any number of years to planters to labour; to reside in the Republic, for uch a length of time, & on such conditions as shall not be incompatible with the interest of the Gov- ernment- If Peace wa guarenteed in Texas, I would in less than 3 months take into the Republic, several hundred of negroes from the west I Island·& captured liberated slave from the con t of Africa, who would either go for hire, or a apprentice , or as tenants, agree- ing to take a certain -number of acres & pay 200 pounds of cotton per annum, per acre, for the use of the land- And I think anr per n can easily foresee that such a population admitted into Tcxa under suitable but severe an<l ·strict regulations would add mnch to the weal! h & iutere. t of Texas-- There are a Large nnml>er of capitnli ts in this city, who would at once send in a number of free African or We t Indian Xegroes, if yonr Congre wonlcl nt once ad?pt a pla!1 of of [sic] givcing their consent in the manner I have subJectcd or m . ome other way- I pay yon will how this, to some of your most prominent members of concr ss and urge the propriety of acting upon it a 0011 as po.siblc- The effect it would hn\'e on the rnlue of lands would be immcnso
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