WRITINGS OF 5AM HOUSTON, 1859
329
was the reverned gentleman. He continued there, in his position as staff officer, until the arrival of the army on the Brazos. An order was given by the general that no one should com- municate from camp without the communication passing the general's eye; and whenever an express was to leave camp the letters were to be brought to him, so that he might know that nothing detrimental to the army should go .out, or that anything necessary to be concealed would be disclosed to the world. An express ·was about to start. A letter of Major Perry, that then was, was brought to the general. It was ·sealed. He opened it, and found it contained the grossest defamation and slander of himself; he sent for Major Perry; he gave the letter to the Assistant Inspector-General, and told him to read it to Major Perry; it was so done. Major Perry, when asked by the Com- mander-in-chief what he thought of it, observed, it was stronger than he imagined, and may be it was wrong. He then said, "Go to your duty, sir; I do not care for all the spies in the world if they will tell the truth." Perry remained in camp, still attached to the staff, and when they arrived at Harrisburg he passed over Buffalo bayou with the spies. On the march to San Jacinto he was taken under suspicious circumstances-having left the line of the Texans. He was taken by Captain Karnes and private Seacrist, of the spies, and brought to the general. They reported that he had changed his horse's caparison, also his musket for an escopet, and they believed he had communication with the enemy. The general ordered him to be disarmed and sent to the guard fire. Karnes said, "General, are you not going to execute him?" "No, Karnes," replied the general, ''I have no leisure at this time to look into the matter." "Sir," said he, "if we had known that you would not have instantly executed him, you would never have been troubled with him; he is a traitor and a spy." That was on the 20th. He remained under guard until the morning of the 21st. He sent the general a message, which is not precisely recollected. The general gave orders to restore his arms, giving him an opportunity to wipe off the stigma that he had placed upon his character, and gave him leave to go into the battle; whether he did or not is not known to me. When I heard of his conduct, the general might have apprehended that he would have been the first object for him to assassinate; but he defies a traitor, a spy, or an assassin, if he can confront him.
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