PAPERS OP MmABEAU BuoNAPARTE LA!IIAR
395
surrender at discretion he would turn loose his troops upon them and give up the city to fire and sword. This forced the Govrs to surrender conditionally, and coming forward, presented their swords to Ber- nanl_o; as soon as this was clone, Solcaclo was commanded to give orders to Ins troops to de! iver up their artillc>ry and other arms; and that he (Bernardo) should [he] recd. uy the troops as the supreme commander of the proYince. All this being done, he caused many arrests to be made of surh persons as he deemed the circumstances required; he then com- manded the pc>ople to assemble, whom he address on the subject of the Revolution and requested them as a free people to form a provisional GoYernment. This was accordingly done by electing him Go\'ernor & gen<>ral of the army with power to form a Junta as his council. This council immediately required the Govr to delfrer up the prisoners to · the vengeance due thE>ir crimes; which Bernardo refused saying that it was better that they should be heard & tried by the forms of law. 'fhis the junta deemed unnecessary as these prisoners had already been once set free h_v Gimenes & had again taken up arms; and that they would do the same if releasC'cl by Bernardo. Bernardo was further told by the pre~i<lPnt of the Junta that if he refused the vengeance of the pop- ulace might tum against him; whereupon he addressed a note to the Americ:ans, apprisinJ! them of these matters & asking their adrise as to whether he should deliver up the prisoners or not; the American Officer agreed to surrender them provided Bernardo would gi,·e them a c-erti fic:ate that they had no participation in the matter. They were accordingly dcli,·erecl up and suffered the vengeance of nn exaxperated [ sic·I people. On the 6th April, the Jndependence of Texas wns solemly declared; free trncle and amity to all nations, except Spain proclaimed. Bernardo now determined thnt one of his divisions should march to the other proYinces and cooperate with the generals there in uniting these provinces. And acting in concert. He also wished to know whether they had estabfo:hcd any govt. in them. The troops were about to march, when suddenly the .American Officers objected to the measure: The Americans had o-ained a controul o,·er the junta superior to that of Berna.rdo; the ju;ta declared the measure impolitic & unwise; but the people and many of the Creole officers uniting in opinion with the Americans compelled Bernardo to countermand his orders, altho' he urged the measure as inclispcnsible to secure the liberty & safety of the four provinces. His object was to establish b~ this plan a_ regular <!omnnmication with the interior, so that they might not 11rnil them- selves of additional resources, but that they might know what wn:- going on in the Interior, whether they had established any Gort. th~re or not, & to act in concert, &C All this & more urged; but not berng able to satisfy the Creoles, they being ignorant of sudl mutters.; but the Americans knew the aclvantacre of the policy but opposl•cl 1t bc>- cause, they saw that they might 1iose the balan_ce of J~ower ,~·h.id1 the.,· now possessed; and woul<l not be able to gratify then· nm~1t1?11:; 1111_d ,·iews which they entertained- \\'hen Bernardo so [~11,1· ~ I 1t 1111po:;s1- ble to to [sic] execute his plan, he called together, Junta 1111d ur~t•t,I upov the necessity of mnrchincr to meet the enemy tlrnt was preparing to inrnde them, that it was° better to nclrance on them nnd driYC' thc>m back taking possession of the province's, than idly wait for thc>ir nu-
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