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11s1 I [WILLIA\IS tu :\IARTIN I
D1·ar Sir:
I lake advantage of an t'Xprl'fs whieh the Govt. I ilkgihlc I T«'xa:: in order tu gi,·c you i11 a hurried and rnllwr i111pcrfrcl mann,-r. a glanct' al lhl' pres,:nl political lillcgibk] of this H1·p11blic as it prl':-l'nls itsl'lf lo my vi,·w. I will therefore lwgin with that part whid1 rdall's lo the ::illlillion of Col. Austin who with Tcxa~, and more particularly the Braso~ Dt'parlnwnl exrile5 tlw more imnwdialr i11t1·resl- I-le is still in ~lexico. and from appearanrcs 110 nearer the Lenn of his release than lw was in Dccemb. when he was permitted the liberty of the City which and I much fear that it is not the inte11lio11 of the Govl. lo ·permit him lo depart from the City, but hold him there as a clu~ck on the Inhabitants during their advance operations toward the deslrnclion of the lib1!ral form of Govl which has heretofore exiskd. Santa Anna has completely given himself up lo the aristocrntiral party. that party is extremely hiller against all persons not horn in Spain or Mexico, and while they have not, nor cannot have much confidence in him they find him ne<.:cssary for the establishment of their views and plans be<.:a11se he is generally populur with the Soldiery, yet al the appointed time they will rid thcmsl'lvcs of him for a more formidable l illegible I; or possibly as France· made Napoleon Sp. Consul, then Emperor; so i\lexieo may make Santa Anna Dictator, llwn ~lonarch. ( There docs nto exist in my mind a doubt, that the 1dd1·rmination of the present govt. is to change the present system , the Law depriving the Stales from maintaining an [ illcgihl,~ l mil ilia, , or what is 1hr. same reducing th,: number to one for any 500 souls, and mp1iri11g a delivery of all the armar11:11t and [illegible.I lhat ratio. under the promise of an indcminity, must in my opinion ! speak sufficiently clear their vi,·ws, and I Lhink the question now not lw a:;kcd as lo what will lw their next step wlwn they have disarmnl tlu: Stales, and put tlwm beyond the means of rc:.;islanc1·:. Brsidcs this, the manrwr in whi~h the prcscn t Inl Congress is alkmpting a reform of the Constitution is a s11hvcr!;ion of the inslrunwnt itself- they an· not a Convention l,ul a Co111;rcss elected und<"r the promis1:s o·f th,: Con:-titution. Cow;cqucntly all reform proposes must lw slridly in conformity with it. Any otlwr rdorm
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