Last Filibustering Expediti<ms and Independence, r8r7-r820 151
or the consul at New Orleans. But he was irritated by the contradictory nature of the information transmitted. The frontier commandants were ordered "to put to the sword without quarter whoever dared to violate the dominions of his Majesty."' The preparations of Lallemand and his followers for the establishment of a colony on the banks of the Trinity seemed to indicate much more than an agricultural settlement. Large quantities of material were being bought in New Orleans and sent to Galveston. A ship from New York or Philadelphia brought 45,000 pounds of powder and many recruits. Charles Lallemand, aided by eighteen or twenty officers, was reported to have undertaken a reconnaissance of the country between the Sabine and the Trinity. It was asserted that Joseph Bonaparte, following instructions from his brother Napoleon, was furnishing considerable sums for the expedition.' Cliamp d'A.rile. The first settlers and officers arrived in Galveston in late January or early February of 1818. They brought 600 muskets, 400 sabers, and 12,000 pounds of powder--equipment that could not be classed as agricultural. There were approximately 150 men and a few women. General Rigaud was in command of the first contingent of the soldier-colonists. They found on the island a group of freebooters gathered from all over the earth under the leadership of Jean Lafitte. Fortunately for the prospective settlers, an agreement was made, which permitted the French refugees to live on the island while awaiting the arrival of Lallemand. About a month later the leader came with additional pseudo-colonists. The French exiles sang familiar songs and toasted their mother country and the friends left behind ; they drank to the success of the expedition. Boats were obtained from Lafitte, supplies were loaded, and by the end of the first week in March the refugees were ready to set forth on their great adventure. It was a motley crowd of Frenchmen, Spaniards, Poles, Mexicans, . Anglo-Americans, and a few ex-pirates who cast their lot with the newcomers. Hardly had the little fleet of fifteen or twenty ships left the harbor when a storm forced them to turn back for safety. One ship was wrecked, and five or six men were drowned. Three days later, they landed on Point Perry. A part of the expedition was to proceed overland to the site on 'Juan Ruiz de Apodaca to Felipe Fatio, Mexico, July 16, 1818, Pa;elu u Estado, Me:r:ico, A. G. I. 9 Onis to the Viceroy, May 12, 1818; Fallo to the Viceroy, March 25, 1818, Pape/es d,e Estado, Me:r:i&o, A.G. I.
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