WRITINGS OF 5AM HOUSTON, 1863
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the sentiments of my heart, knowing that the days draw nigh unto me, when all thought of ambition and worldly pride give place to the earnestness· of age, I know that you will bear with me, while with calmness and without the fervor and eloquence of youth, I express those sentiments which seem natural to my mind, in view of the condition of the country. I have been buffeted by the waves, as I have been borne along time's ocean, until shattered and worn, I approach the narrow isthmus, which divides it from the sea of eternity beyond. Ere I step forward to journey through the pilgrimage of death, I would say, that all my thoughts and hopes are with my country. If one impulse rises above another, it is for the happiness of the people; the welfare and glory of Texas will be the uppermost thought, while the spark of life lingers in this breast. The success of the Southern cause, for which she and her sister States now struggle, and which has been made sacred by the valor of her sons on an hundred battle fields, will be my fondest, best wish. Without selfishness of heart, then, I meet you, to talk not of the past, but of the present and the future. The country demands the highest energies of the patriot to bear its victorious banners onward to peace and independence. Once I dreamed of empire, as vast and expansive for a united people, as the bounds of American civilization. The dream is over. The golden charm is broken. Let us gather up the links that remain to us, and en- circling with them our hearts, swear to resist to the last that worst of all tyranny, fraternal hate. From one nation, we have become two, and well will it be for mankind, if this fact of destiny is soon recognized by our foes and the world. War may still wage, and its march of desolation trample upon the hopes of millions, yet the chain of unity will be broken, and two people yet live, to attest how vain were the dreams of those who believed that the Union was a thing of forever. . In these momentous times, deprived as we are of means of rapid communication with the immediate and important scenes of conflict, it is impossible to form other than crude and hasty conclusions. Subject, as you are to these disadvantages, we can but speculate. Subject to the same errors, desire and hope may often misguide the judgment. Yet upon one thing I have formed certain conclusions. The success of our cause depends alone upon the ardent and devoted hea1·ts and the strong arms of ou1· people. I believe we are equal to our destiny. We look in vain for nations to lay aside interest for our sake, and as we remain firm and
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