WRITINGS OF SAM. HOUSTON, 1836
394
impossible for them to pass the prairies, owing to the rains that have fallen since we passed- then it was only possible for us to pass with our wagons. If they come, their artillery must come. They must raft it over the Colorado, which is very high, as I am informed. It must be out of its banks. I have looked for an express from you for several days. Eighty Redlanders have arrived, and ai.·e on the opposite bank. The arrival of others is daily expected. Sam Houston. 1 Yoakum, History of Texas, II, 489-490. Morphis, History of Te:.cas, 250-252. [C. E. Lester], Authentic Memoirs, 103. 2 William H. Patton. See Houston to Henry Smith, January 17, 1836. 3 This was the steamboat Yellow Stone commanded by Captain John E. Ross. See Houston to Captain John E. Ross, April 2, 1836. 4 Edward Este, of Morristown, Maryland, came to Texas in 1829. He was a brother of Mrs. David G. Burnet and of Mrs. J. C. Clopper. During the early months of 1842 he was .married to a young girl of Matagorda. In a few months his bride was dead, and Este was grief-crazed. He joined the Mier Expedition, saying he hoped he would meet death so as to be reunited with his young wife. His wish was fulfilled, for he was one of the unfor- tunates who drew a black bean at the Salado, and was executed on March 25, 1843. See the Quarterly, XIII, 128-144, pass-im. ~Peter Ke1·r came to Texas in 1828. He was a hor£e trader. In 1835, he with Fernando de Leon and Jesus J. M. Carbajal, drove a caballado of horses to New Orleans. After selling the horses, the traders chartered a vessel, the Hannah Elizabeth, freighted her with goods for the Texas trade-including a quantity of arms and ammunition~and set out for Texas ports. On the Gulf this vessel was captured by the Mexican man-of-war Bravo. A prize crew was put on board the Hannah Elizabeth, ~nd Kerr was left with them. Carbajal and DeLeon were made prisoners . and were put on board the B1·avo. But a storm drove the Bravo to sea, ultimately to Matamoras. A group of Texans at Matagorda, hearing of this affair, came down in the Will-ia,n Robbins and retook the Hannah Elizabeth, prize crew and all. The new captors appropriated the cargo, tut finally allowed Kerr to keep his goods upon his paying half the value of them. Subsequently, in his efforts to sell out, he fell under suspicion, as is stated in Houston's letter. After much difficulty and loss of prop- erty he finally was able to prove that he was not a Mexican spy; and after the Battle of San Jacinto, Houston appointed him interpreter for a part of the army. He was never paid for his services as interpreter, but he petitioned various Texas Congresses for relief (see Memodals and Peti- tions, Texas State Library). On December 6, 1839, he offered a new petition to Congress; he was asking for a divorce. He got it. He settled finally on the Colorado River a few miles below Austin, and he died there. See J. J. Lynn, Fifty Yem·s in Texas, 259-260; also see Yoakum, II, ~9: OLorenzo de Zavala (1788-November 15, 1836) was born of a d1stm- guished and wealthy family of the town of Merida in the State of Y~catan. He was given a good education, and at an early age was well trained to
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