drawn by the Junta set up by Gutierrez de Lara in San Antonio in 1813 is the first of its kind in Spanish North America, since it ante- dates that of Morelos. In view of contradictory but reliable evidence, the oft repeated and generally accepted conclusion appears unfounded that the Anglo-American contingent that had been cooperating with Gutierrez left shortly after the capture of San Antonio in April, 1813, because they had been shocked by the bloodthirstiness of the Mexican leader, who had the Texan governor and his officers treacherously be- headed. A large number of American filibusters did leave, but as their leader frankly confessed in his correspondence, they left because of their disappointment at not having been given a more important post in the newly or~ized Junta of the First Republic of Texas under the green flag. The reader will find in this volume a number of similar incidents presented in a new light. Made clearer, too, are the relations between the Mina Expedition, Lafitte and Aury, Lallemand and the Champ d'Asile, and Long; the bases for misunderstandings between the set- tlers are reviewed, and the progress of the Revolution is followed in the light of the original sources. More particularly, what happened to the missions, bow the Catholic Church slowly deteriorated, the reasons why the new settlers were not made to comply with their oath of al- legiance to the Catholic Faith, and the part that Catholics in Texas played in the development of the colonies and in the struggle for in- dependence-all these questions are answered for the first time by a carefur study of contemporary records and other sources. The good- natured but unscrupulous Muldoon, the sacrificing and unselfish Fray Diaz de Leon, and the services of many others who labored in the sunset of the Church in Texas under the Spanish and Mexican regimes are presented with accuracy. Throughout the volume an earnest effort has been made to maintain the same high standards of scholarship that have characterized the previous volumes. Sources have been scrutinized; accounts of incidents, compared; doubts, investigated; and figures, verified. The author wishes to acknowledge his deep gratitude first of all to Reverend James P. Gibbons, C.S.C., Chairman of the Texas Knights of Columbus Historical Commission, for his patient guidance and con- structive criticism. Equally useful have been the suggestions and advice of the Most Reverend Laurence J, FitzSimon, D.D., Bishop of Amarillo, and Most Reverend Mariano S. Garriga, D.D., Bishop of Corpus Christi;
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