WRITINGS OF SAM HOUSTON, 1854
94
story as did Stapp, with less detail however, in enumerating the stolen articles brought in by the Texans. All three say practically the same thing about the conduct of the soldiers as is voiced by Glasscock: "The conduct of some of our men was most disgraceful to our flag, and it will forever remain a reproach to the entire expedition. Here was a town on soil claimed by Texas, and its inhabitants claimed to be Texans. They had greeted us as friends and brothers; they had opened their doors to us, and had acclaimed the Texas soldiers as deliverers from the oppression of the Mexican garrison that had been forced upon them, and yet their private property had not been safe from pillage." And from McCutchan we have: "What a stain Texas must always bear because of the conduct of a few disorderly volunteers! Oh, here was glory indeed! a town without protec-- tion, without soldie1·s, without arms, and of no importance, either to the Texians, or to the Mexicans. It had surrendered without loss of blood, without the fire of a gun. . . . The volunteers could have been easily re- strained had the officers taken the proper course; but, oh shame to relate, some of the officers led the pillage!" After General Somervell had 1·eturned as much of the pillaged goods as was possible to the alcalde of the town to be returned by him to the inhab- itants, the Texan army marched on down the river on the morning of December 10th, as McCutchan explains: "Our army took up the line of march-no one knew whither; but it was evidently a retreat, although no enemy had appeared." •See Houston to Charles Elliott, January 24, 1843, Volume III, 299-304. 0 Percy W. Doyle was the British charge d'affaires to Mexico, 1842-1843. He had great sympathy for the Texan prisoners, and did all he could to make them more comfortable and to alleviate their suffering while they were confined in Perote Castle. Every man of the Mier Expedition who kept a diary that has come down to us, writes with gratitude concerning the efforts of Mr. Doyle to relieve them in their imprisonment. See, also, Garrison, Diplomatic Co1"1·espondence of the Re1)'1tblic of Texas, III, 1090-1091. °For some data concerning Waddy Thompson, see Houston to Anson Jones, August 2, 1843, in Volume III, 139; also see Dictioruwy of American Biogmphy, XVIII, pp. 473-474; and Biographical Directo1-y of the American Congress (1928), 1613. 7 For James W. Robinson, see Houston to Robinson, January 11, 1836, Volume I, 336-337; also Houston to Joseph Eve, April 22, 1843, Volume V, p. 184-186. snavid G. Burnet, in March, 1836, commissioned Thomas Jefferson Green "to return to the United States and to receive contributions, negotiate loans, and to do other things, as may be necessary for the completion of your laudable undertaking." And Burnet assured Green that the Texas Republic would remunerate him for all expenditures made by him; he also authorized Green to negotiate for a loan of not more than $60,000. The commission is signed by Burnet as President, and by Samuel P. Carson as Secretary of State. See Burnet to Green, March 19, 1836, in Executive Record Book, No. 94, p. 84, Texas State Library; also see W. C. Binkley (ed.), Official Correspondence of the Tcxa,n Rcvoltttion, 1895-1896, I, 617-518. It was Burnet, too, who gave Green a commission as brigadier general, although as Burnet himself said, "Green was not, in strict justice entitled
Powered by FlippingBook