Travels and Adventures of Monsieur Violet

by Frederick Marryat

  CHAPTER NINETEEN.

  In the last chapter but one, I stated that I and my companions, Gabrieland Roche, had been delivered up to the Mexican agents, and werejourneying, under an escort of thirty men, to the Mexican capital, to behanged as an example to all liberators. This escort was commanded bytwo most atrocious villains, Joachem Texada and Louis Ortiz. Theyevidently anticipated that they would become great men in the republic,upon the safe delivery of our persons to the Mexican government, andevery day took good care to remind us that the gibbet was to be our fateon our arrival.

  Our route lay across the central deserts of Senora, until we arrived onthe banks of the Rio Grande; and so afraid were they of falling in witha hostile party of Apaches, that they took long turns out of the generaltrack, and through mountainous passes, by which we not only sufferedgreatly from fatigue, but were very often threatened with starvation.

  It was sixty-three days before we crossed the Rio Grande at Christobal,and we had still a long journey before us. This delay, occasioned bythe timidity of our guards, proved our salvation. We had been but oneday on our march in the swamp after leaving Christobal, when thewar-whoop pierced our ears, and a moment afterwards our party wassurrounded by me hundred Apaches, who saluted us with a shower orarrows.

  Our Mexican guards threw themselves down on the ground, and cried formercy, offering ransom. I answered the war-whoop of the Apaches,representing my companions and myself as their friends, and requestingtheir help and protection, which were immediately given. We were oncemore unbound and free.

  I hardly need say that this was a most agreeable change in the state ofaffairs; for I have no doubt that, had we arrived at our destination, weshould either have been gibbeted or died (somehow or another) in prison.But if the change was satisfactory to us, it was not so to JoachemTexada and Louis Ortiz, who changed their notes with their change ofcondition.

  The scoundrels, who had amused themselves with reminding us that all wehad to expect was an ignominious death, were now our devoted humbleservants, cleaning and brushing their own mules for our use, holding thestirrup, and begging for our interference in their behalf with theApaches. Such wretches did not deserve our good offices; we thereforesaid nothing for or against them, leaving the Apaches to act as theypleased. About a week after our liberation, the Apaches halted, as theywere about to divide their force into two bands, one of which was toreturn home with the booty they had captured, while the other proceededto the borders of Texas.

  I have stated that the Shoshones, the Arrapahoes, and Apaches hadentered into the confederation, but the Comanches were too far distantfor us to have had an opportunity of making the proposal to them. Asthis union was always uppermost in my mind, I resolved that I would nowvisit the Comanches, with a view to the furtherance of my object.

  The country on the east side of the Rio Grande is one dreary desert, inwhich no water is to be procured. I believe no Indian has ever donemore than skirt its border; indeed, as they assert that it is inhabitedby spirits and demons, it is clear that they cannot have visited it.

  To proceed to the Comanches country, it was therefore necessary that weshould follow the Rio Grande till we came to the presidio of Rio Grande,belonging to the Mexicans, and from there cross over and take the roadto San Antonio de Bejar, the last western city of Texas, and proceedthrough the Texian country to where the Comanches were located. Itherefore decided that we would join the band of Apaches who wereproceeding towards Texas.

  During this excursion, the Apaches had captured many horses and armsfrom a trading party which they had surprised near Chihuahua, and, withtheir accustomed liberality, they furnished us with steeds, saddles,arms, blankets, and clothes; indeed, they were so generous, that wecould easily pass ourselves off as merchants returning from a tradingexpedition, in case we were to fall in with any Mexicans, and have toundergo an examination.

  We took our leave of the generous Apache chiefs, who were returninghomewards. Joachem Texada and Louis Ortiz were, with the rest of theescort, led away as captives, and what became of them I cannot say. Wetravelled with the other band of Indians, until we had passed thePresidio del Rio Grande, a strong Mexican fort, and the day afterwardstook our farewell of them, having joined a band of smugglers who were ontheir way to Texas. Ten days afterwards, we entered San Antonio deBejar, and had nothing more to fear, as we were now clear of the Mexicanterritory.

  San Antonio de Bejar is by far the most agreeable residence in Texas.When in the possession of the Mexicans, it must have been a charmingplace.

  The river San Antonio, which rises at a short distance above the city,glides gracefully through the suburbs; and its clear waters, by numerouswinding canals, are brought up to every house. The temperature of thewater is the same throughout the year, neither too warm nor too cold forbathing; and not a single day passes without the inhabitants indulgingin the favourite and healthy exercise of swimming, which is practised byevery body, from morning till evening; and the traveller along theshores of this beautiful river will constantly see hundreds of children,of all ages and colour, swimming and diving like so many ducks.

  The climate is pure, dry, and healthy. During summer the breeze isfresh and perfumed; and as it never rains, the neighbouring plantationsare watered by canals, which receive and carry in every direction thewaters of the San Antonio. Formerly the city contained fifteen thousandinhabitants, but the frequent revolutions and the bloody battles whichhave been fought within its walls have most materially contributed todiminish its number; so much indeed, that, in point of population, thecity of San Antonio de Bejar, with its bishopric and wealthy missions,has fallen to the rank of a small English village. It still carries ona considerable trade, but its appearance of prosperity is deceptive; andI would caution emigrants not to be deceived by the Texian accounts ofthe place. Immense profits have been made, to be sure; but now even theMexican smugglers and banditti are beginning to be disgusted with theuniversal want of faith and probity.

  The Mexicans were very fond of gardens and of surrounding their houseswith beautiful trees, under the shade of which they would pass most ofthe time which could be spared from bathing. This gives a fresh andlively appearance to the city, and you are reminded of Calabrianscenery, the lightness and simplicity of the dwellings contrasting withthe grandeur and majesty of the monastic buildings in the distance.Texas had no convents, but the Spanish missions were numerous, and theirnoble structures remain as monuments of former Spanish greatness.Before describing these immense establishments, it is necessary to statethat, soon after the conquest of Mexico, one of the chief objects ofSpanish policy was the extension of the authority of the Roman CatholicChurch. The conversion of the Indians and the promulgation ofChristianity were steadily interwoven with the desire of wealth; and atthe time that they took away the Indian's gold, they gave himChristianity. At first, force was required to obtain proselytes, butcunning was found to succeed better; and, by allowing the superstitionsof the Indians to be mixed up with the rites of the Church, a sort ofhalf-breed religion became general, upon the principle, I presume, thathalf a loaf is better than no bread. The anomalous consequences of thispolicy are to be seen in the Indian ceremonies even to this day.

  To afford adequate protection to the Roman Catholic missionaries,settlements were established, which still bear the name of missions.They are very numerous throughout California, and there are several inTexas. The Alamo, at San Antonio, was one of great importance; therewere others of less consideration in the neighbourhood; as the missionsof Conception, of San Juan, San Jose, and La Espada. All these edificesare most substantially built; the walls are of great thickness, and fromtheir form and arrangement they could be converted into frontierfortresses. They had generally, though not always, a church at the sideof the square, formed by the high walls, through which there was but oneentrance. In the interior they had a large granary, and the outsidewall formed the back to a range of buildings, in which the missionariesand their converts resided. A porti
on of the surrounding district wasappropriated to agriculture, the land being, as I before observed,irrigated by small canals, which conducted the water from the river.

  The Alamo is now in ruins, only two or three of the houses of the innersquare being inhabited. The gateway of the church was highlyornamented, and still remains, although the figures which once occupiedthe niches have disappeared. But there is still sufficient in the ruinsto interest the inquirer into its former history, even if he could for amoment forget the scenes which have rendered it celebrated in thehistory of Texian independence.

  About two miles lower down the San Antonio river is the mission ofConception. It is a very large stone building, with a fine cupola, andthough a plain building, is magnificent in its proportions and thedurability of its construction. It was here that Bowie fought one ofthe first battles with the Mexican forces, and it has not since beeninhabited. Though not so well known to fame as other conflicts, thisbattle was that which really committed the Texians, and compelled thosewho thought of terms and the maintenance of a Mexican connection toperceive that the time for both had passed.

  The mission of San Jose is about a mile and a half further down theriver. It consists, like the others, of a large square, and numerousMexican families still reside there. To the left of the gateway is thegranary. The church stands apart from the building; it is within thesquare, but unconnected. The west door is decorated with the mostelaborated carvings of flowers, images of angels, and figures of theapostles: the interior is plain. To the right is a handsome tower andbelfry, and above the altar a large stone cupola. Behind the church isa long range of rooms for the missionaries, with a corridor of ninearches in front. The Texian troops were long quartered here, and,although always intoxicated, strange to say, the stone carvings have notbeen injured. The church has since been repaired, and divine service isperformed in it.

  About half a mile further down is the mission of San Juan. The churchforms part of the sides of the square, and on the north-west corner ofthe square are the remains of a small stone tower. This mission, aswell as that of La Espada, is inhabited. The church of La Espada,however, is in ruins, and but two sides of the square, consisting ofmere walls, remain entire; the others have been wantonly destroyed.

  The church at San Antonio de Bejar was built in the year 1717; andalthough it has suffered much from the many sieges which the city hasundergone, it is still used as a place of public worship. At the timethat San Antonio was attacked and taken, by Colonel Cooke, in 1835,several cannon-shots struck the dome, and a great deal of damage wasdone; in fact, all the houses in the principal square of the town aremarked more or less by shot. One among them has suffered very much; itis the "Government-house," celebrated for one of the most cowardlymassacres ever committed by a nation of barbarians, and which I shallhere relate.

  After some skirmishes betwixt the Comanches and the Texians, in whichthe former had always had the advantage, the latter thought it advisableto propose a treaty of alliance. Messengers, with flags of truce, weredespatched among the Indians, inviting all their chiefs to a council atSan Antonio, where the representatives of Texas would meet them and maketheir proposals for an eternal peace. Incapable of treacherythemselves, the brave Comanches never suspected it in others; at thetime agreed upon, forty of their principal chiefs arrived in the town,and, leaving their horses in the square, proceeded to the"Government-house." They were all unarmed, their long flowing haircovered with a profusion of gold and silver ornaments; their dressesvery rich, and their blankets of that fine Mexican texture whichcommands in the market from fifty to one hundred and fifty dollarsapiece. Their horses were noble animals and of great value, theirsaddles richly embossed with gold and silver. The display of so muchwealth excited all the worst propensities of the Texian populace, whoresolved at any price to obtain possession of so splendid a booty.While the chiefs were making their speeches of peace and amity, a fewhundred Texian blackguards rushed into the room with their pistols andknives, and began their work of murder. All the Indians fell, exceptone, who succeeded in making his escape; but though the Comanches werequite unarmed, they sold their lives dearly, for eighteen Texians werefound among the slain.

  I will close this chapter with a few remarks upon the now acknowledgedrepublic of Texas.

  The dismenmberment of Texas from Mexico was effected by the reports ofextensive gold mines, diamonds, etcetera, which were to be found there,and which raised the cupidity of the eastern speculators andland-jobbers of the United States. But, in all probability, thisappropriation would never have taken place, if it had not been that thesouthern states of America had, with very different views, given everyencouragement to the attempt.

  The people of Louisiana and the southern states knew the exact value ofthe country, and laughed at the idea of its immense treasures. Theyacted from a deep although it eventually has turned out to have been afalse, policy. They considered that Texas, once wrested from Mexico,would be admitted into the Union, subdivided into two or three states,every one of which would, of course, be slave-holding states, and sendtheir members to Congress. This would have given the slave-holdingstates the preponderance in the Union.

  Events have turned out differently, and the planters of the south nowdeplore their untoward policy and want of foresight, as they haveassisted in raising up a formidable rival in the production of theirstaple commodity, injurious to them even in time of peace, and in caseof a war with England, still more inimical to their interests.

  It is much to be lamented that Texas had not been populated by a moredeserving class of individuals; it might have been, even by this time, acountry of importance and wealth; but it has from the commencement beenthe resort of every vagabond and scoundrel who could not venture toremain in the United States; and, unfortunately, the Texian characterwas fixed and established, as a community wholly destitute of principleor probity, before the emigration of more respectable settlers hadcommenced. The consequences have been most disastrous, and it is to bequestioned whether some of them will ever be removed.

  At the period of its independence, the population of Texas was estimatedat about forty thousand. Now, if you are to credit the TexianGovernment, it has increased to about seventy-five thousand. Such,however, is not the fact, although it, of course, suits the members ofthe republic to make the assertion. Instead of the increase stated bythem, the population of Texas has decreased considerably, and is not nowequal to what it was at the Independence.

  This may appear strange, after so many thousands from the United States,England, and Germany have been induced to emigrate there; but the factis, that, after having arrived in the country, and having discoveredthat they were at the mercy of bands of miscreants, who are capable ofany dark deed, they have quitted the country to save the remainder oftheir substance, and have passed over into Mexico, the Southern UnitedStates, or anywhere else where they had some chance of security for lifeand property.

  Among the population of Texas were counted many thousand Mexicans, whoremained in the country, trusting that order and law would soon beestablished; but, disappointed in their expectations, they haveemigrated to Mexico. Eight thousand have quitted St. Antonio de Bejar,and the void has been filled up by six or seven hundred drunkards,thieves, and murderers. The same desertion has taken place in Goliad,Velasco, Nacogdoches, and other towns, which were formerly occupied byMexican families.

  It may give the reader some idea of the insecurity of life and propertyin Texas, when I state, that there are numerous bands of robberscontinually on the look-out, to rifle and murder the travellers, andthat it is of frequent occurrence for a house to be attacked andplundered, the women violated, and every individual afterwards murderedby these miscreants, who, to escape detection, dress and paintthemselves as Indians. Of course, what I have now stated, although wellknown to be a fact, is not likely to be mentioned in the Texiannewspapers.

  Another serious evil arising from this lawless state of the country is,that the Indians, who wer
e well inclined towards the Texians, as being,with them, mutual enemies of the Mexicans, are now hostile, toextermination. I have mentioned the murder of the Comanche chiefs, inthe government-house of San Antonio, which, in itself, was sufficient.But such has been the disgraceful conduct of the Texians towards theIndians, that the white man is now considered by them as a term ofreproach; they are spoken of by the Indians as "dogs," and are generallyhung or shot whenever they are fallen in with. Centuries cannot repairthis serious evil, and the Texians have made bitter and implacable foesof those who would have been their friends. No distinction is madebetween an American and a Texian, and the Texians have raised up a foeto the United states, which may hereafter prove not a littletroublesome.

  In another point, Texas has been seriously injured by this total want ofprobity and principle. Had Western Texas been settled by people ofcommon honesty, it would, from its topographical situation, have soonbecome a very important country, as all the mercantile transactions withthe north central provinces of Mexico would have been secured to it.

  From the Presidio del Rio Grande there is an excellent road to SanAntonio do Bejar; to the south of San Antonio lies Chihuahua; so thatthe nearest and most accessible route overland, from the United. Statesto the centre of Mexico, is through San Antonio. And this overlandroute can be shortened by discharging vessels at Linville, or La Bacca,and from thence taking the goods to San Antonio, a distance of about onehundred and forty miles. The western boundary line of Texas, at thetime of the declaration of its independence, was understood to be theriver Nueces; and if so, nothing could have prevented San Antonio frombecoming an inland depot of much commercial importance.

  Numerous parties of Mexican traders have long been accustomed to come toSan Antonio from the Rio Grande. They were generally very honest intheir payments, and showed a very friendly spirit. Had this trade beenprotected, as it should have been, by putting down the bands of robbers,who rendered the roads unsafe by their depredations and atrocities, itwould have become of more value than any trade to Santa Fe. Recognisedor unrecognised, Texas could have carried on the trade; merchants wouldhave settled in the West, to participate in it; emigrants would havecollected in the district, where the soil is rich and the climatehealthy. It is true, the trade would have been illicit; but such isever the inevitable consequence of a high and ill-regulated tariff. Itwould, nevertheless, have been very profitable, and would haveconciliated the population of Rio Grande towards the Texians, and in allprobability have forced upon the Mexican government the establishment offriendly relations between the two countries.

  But this trade has been totally destroyed; the Indians now seize andplunder every caravan, either to or from San Antonio; the Texian robberslie in wait for them, if they escape the Indians; and should the Mexicantrader escape with his goods from both, he has still to undergo thechance of being swindled by the _soi-disant_ Texian merchant.

  If ever there was a proof, from the results of pursuing an oppositecourse, that honesty is the best policy, it is to be found in thepresent state of Texas.