163
WRITINGS OF SAM HOUSTON, 1858
Choctaws, and there overtook them. He had under him one hun• dred and two white men, Texas rangers, called out by the State, as necessary to its protection; and he had one hundred and thirty of the reserve Indians, who cultivate the soil, and produce ·a super• abundance fer the sustentation of themselves and their families. With these he attacked about four hundred of the Comanches -two to one in number. He killed seventy.six of them and took seventeen prisoners, and retook upwards of three hundred horses. Tell me, sir, what millions you have expended to support your regular Army since Texas has been annexed to this Union, and that they ever performed half the service to the frontier or made reclamation for wrongs upon Texas equal to this. We are charged with having so many troops quartered upon us, and now there is to be a hesitancy about granting the regiment of rangers. Texas has to protect her own frontier after the generous mani• festation of her kindness to the United States in granting reserva. tions on which to locate Indians, prompted by feelings of human• ity that she might reclaim men who had betrayed her people, that she might show them the white path of peace, that their minds might become enlightened from culture and education, their habits reformed, and finally taught the greatest aspiration of intelligence, the conception of a God. She has given you this; and what have the United States done? Have they responded, by exertion on their part, to meet the wishes and the object of Texas? Never. I will show you the feeling that exists on the part of the representatives of this Government-officers educated at public expense by the influence of family and connections. They are the men who, when placed in official situation to render service to the country, forget the duty of a man as well as an officer, and treat the rights of Texas and this Government with contempt. Major Neighbors, anterior to the annexation of Texas, had been an agent for years; he had traveled with the Indians; he was the first explorer that ever found a route directly from the settlements of Texas to El Paso. By traveling with the Jn. dians and associating with them after he was appointed agent, he had their confidence, and they took him where he found water and grass and everything necessary, and he went on comfortably to El Paso by a direct route, which our engineers failed in find• ing. The access now is easy, with everything necessary fer the facilities of travel. For years before annexation we had no bloodshed on our frontier; we had no troops stationed there-not a company; and the President himself had gone up into the
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