PAl'rns OF ilrnABEA(j BuoxAPARTE LA:\UR
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U:re~ in the mean time, who hall hecn sent to )latagonla, left n part of l11s men ther~. and mo,·etl 01; for the Brazos, crossing at l'azy's ancl reaehed Columhrn, & thence proceeded to Brazoria- H ~uston a_ll this tim~ was hiding on the Brazos, _The disposition of the lorc·es of both parties was now tlrns. The :Mexicans-Uowana nt :-i1111 Fillippi; Fellisola nt Fort Ben<l; Urea at Columbia & Brazoria and ~anta Anna about Harrisburah- 'l'he Tcxian forces thus-t~ wit- Houston at. Grosses- Baker op- posite San Fillippe ~lorehouse About fort Bend; )Iartin some where on the Brazos not distant from the others. Before the army left Choses, the soldiers became impatient for fight. ~he_,. ha~l been preventell from fighting at Beasons when they lay oppo- site Felh!'!ola. The enemy was now scattered up & down the Brazos & no steps taken to meet them. Our soldiers·, talked about clisl,ancling.- No prospect of Battle, on my arrival at Grosses, I proposed to Genl. Rusk to let me strike up for Volunteers and go with as man~- as could lie <'nrriecl in the Steam Boat Yellowstone down to Sau Fillippi and make battle with Gowana, and if successful proceed on to Fort Bend be reenforced b_y ?IIorehouse Baker &C and fight Fellisola & push for the mouth & occupy that port. To this he consented, but was afTraid to take the respousibility of saving nnvthing to Houston about it or acting independent of 11 im. ;\I)~ p1·oject wus therefore not carried into exPcution. The boat proceded down the river without any force- Houston now became extremely offem:ivc to bis soldiers-was opcnl_y branded with C'OWal'(lisc- A Petition was got up to haw him broke; Hockley, Wharton & one or two others only opposed it- (See Summer- ,·ille on this point)- It was talked nbout his marching to the Trin- ity-the Officers were resolved to leave Grosses at any rate; Houston ~aw this and consented to go- he marched, but ~a~ told by Wharton 1 f he took the Nachadoches road the army would dmde, that they were determined to meet the enimy; that he must go down the river & fight; he accordingly took at the forks_, the Harrisburg road- Toluca is the capital of the State of l\Iexico- Santa shortly after coming into power by means of his Vera Cruz plan, wanted to change matters into a Central govt; but fearing that Centralism wonltl not take, he thought he would test -its popularity by a strntn!!<'lll: he accordingly got two partizan friends of his, Arista and Durand, to <- 0 n- sent to proclaim Centralizm; they done so, Santa Anna went to put them clown, (still preten<lina to federalism) when he wac: apprch<'ncl<'d by his two friends & made ~ prisoner- nomez Fariaz h<'arin~ of thi;:, raised 5000 men at once by aeneral outcry and marclw<l for ~n11t11 Anna's rescue; Santa of course 0 hy this mon;ment, pt>rl'ei\°in/_! th11t l '1•11- trnlism woulcl not take took Jenni of his two frit>1Hls Aristn & Durnncl, ( pretencling to have effected his escnpc) 11n1l unite,] with F'urit>z in a war against his friencl!'!. The Col<.'ra now hroke out in hi;: arnn·- th?usand:-; were swept off-he be<:nmc despcrnt<.'- hi:- olli1·1•r;: 1~l,1 1 ui him snHl they wanted to die. He sent for a Doctor, nml r11111111'l•il wl11lt proYisions were most likely to prochtC'P the Cholert>n ! tlw ph_r--i1·in11 11!1- swered, that fruit would Lest <:alculate1l. Santa Anna sC'Ht for fruit. he offered it to his discontented Oflkers: tlll'Y declined eatin!!-hr th1•n took it himself & eat hartily, but without pi·ocluc-ing 1111~· ill t•ll'rl"f: he
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