WRITINGS OF SAM HOUSTON, 1824-1857
31
General Rusk's letter to Major Marshall, (setting forth that he, Rusk, would support the standard-bearers;) said that Rusk had been dogged by the Democrats and the Central Committee until he had made this admission, but that it was equivocal, for he considered himself as good a Democrat standard-bearer as any- one, and that they, (the Undemocrats) would find that there was a cat in the meal bag about Rusk's voting for the Waco nominees; he said that it was his time now, but that it was to be Tom's after a while, and that the man to fill his place was already staked out. He said that he would acknowledge that L. T. Wigfall had made one impression if he (Houston) should not cross the Trinity into the West with between 9,000 to 12,000 majority; that Wig- fall's speeches had only increased his vote; that he (Houston) had saved him (Wigfall) from being slain by a man who followed him from Clarksville to Bonham to kill him; that Oldham was making votes for him (Houston) now, and that he would con- tribute to pay his expenses if he would only continue to follow him. Houston, finally, descanted upon his own speech at Boston, and that of Toombs, and showed that his was the only true Southern vindication of slavery. He branded Douglas as a demagogue, Pierce, as an enemy to the South; he reviewed Breckinridge's Tippecanoe speech to declare that he was not a Southern man. He wanted to rent the Governor's mansion for the next two years; said that he would promise to be a good neighbor; that there should be no stealing out of the Treasury, and that he would not steal himself; he emphasized the declaration-that there should be no more Creuzbaur contracts; he told the hot coffee story, and advised the ladies to pour hot water down their husbands' backs if they should refuse to vote for him on the 3rd of August next. We do not pretend to give more than a mere sketch of this three hour's speech, nor to follow the speaker in the use of his peculiar phraseology, or to repeat many of his low anecdotes! "I am going to tell you more of what I did" etc., turned several of his sentences, but the dirty blackguardism, the filthy allusions to mules, etc., and the garralous abuse of men, are things beyond desc1-iption! Better they should soon be forgotten forever. To believe that in all this tirade female modesty was unshocked, and that his own particular friends regarded the speech in any other light than serious, or as a mere caricature, would be to libel his respectful and dignified audience. Indeed, if half that Houston said was believed to be true, our state would not only be
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