236
WRITINGS OF SAM HOUSTON, 1838
Influenced by these considerations, the Executive is constrained to return this act to the honorable house of representatives with- out his signature. Sam Houston 1 The Jom-nal of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Texas, 1838, 2d Cong., Adj. Sess., p. 163.
TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1
Executive Department, City of Houston, Texas, May 22nd, 1838.. GENTLEMEN: Tbe act locating the seat of government has been submitted to the Executive, who has taken a calm and dis- passionate view of the subject. It will be perceived by the law fixing temporarily the seat of government, that it shall be estab- lished at the town of Houston, on Buffalo Bayou, until the end of the session of Congress, which shall assemble in the year one thousand eight hundred and forty: This will clearly require that at least two elections must take place for members of the house of representatives, and two thirds of the senators will be renewed previous to that time. If these are truths, then it would seem that the law had contemplated the action of the members who, at that time representing Texas as the persons who were to act for the emergency of the time. Many changes must have taken place in the population and condition of Texas previous to the year 1840, and by that time the people would have the opportunity to give some expression of their wishes and opinions on the subject, if it were submitted to them. Were the present congress to pass a law fixing the seat of government at any one point, the Executive believes that either of the two next succeed- ing congresses would have it in its power to repeal the law and commence anew. This act of the honorable congress contemplates the expenditure of a larger portion of the public treasure than the Executive would be willing to see subtracted from the treas- ury at this time: our resources do not seem to justify any course but that of the strictest economy in the government, and this bill would doubtless consume at least one eighth part of the revenue for the current year, while it would leave the subject liable to the action of a subsequent congress; and should the subject be presented to the people, and then their expression ratified by an act of the government, it would be permanently established be- yond all grounds of doubt or cavil. I l
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