301
WRITINGS OF SAM HOUSTON, 1856
To JosEPH SMITH 1
Washington 26th Mar 1856
Dear Sir, I thank you for your favor, and the enclosure. The administrator of Col Bryan has him charged with fogery, and his guilt is undoubted! Call on this fellow Green for the "origi- nal" which he says he has. I do not believe he has any such letter of mine. What he and the forger Phinehas G. Merritt may have done in the way of forgery I do not pretend to say. If you wish any explanation from those to whom his "fac-simile" refers to, you can address Gail Borden at Galveston, Texas. It, or some- thing, as I suppose, like this, was once published by P. G. Merritt at Galveston where all the facts were known & it was laughed out of the community. This Green started in North Carolina, after one or two cow- hidings, and since I have known him for thirty years, deserved one every day. He is a man of infamous character, and has robbed Texas of many valuable lives by his cowardice, and has cost her thousands of money. If you can get the "Civilian" of Galveston, where the publication was made in reply to Merritt I presume any facts existing were explained. I never read any of this fellow's writings, only on one occasion. To let you know how he is estimated in Texas, I will tell you one fact. He ran for Congress, and I think there were some forty counties in the District. In them he only received forty- three votes. This was his standing in Texas where he was well known. Ask him for the original, and make him show it. Take no put off, or denial, for the truth is not in him unless he has in- herited it from Mr. Phinehas G. Merritt. I thank you for your kind intentions and return the facsimile by "T. Jefferson Dog Green," as he is familiarly known in Texas. I am truly yours
I I
Sam Houston [Rubric]
·1
I I
Joseph Smith Esq., Boston, Mass.
1 From the original in the collection of Mrs. Madge W. Hearne.
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