Vermont telegraph. [volume] (Brandon [Vt.]) 1828-1843, 1836-05-12


From the Guide to Teas, a work aohieh
appears to be published under the direc-
ton of the Trustees Of the GGLvestoas
Bag and Texas Land Compamv 1885.
They 1.-THE inhabitants OF Texas,l are
perfectly free, and contented with their
condition; they desire no better. 1t is a
free republic. like thai. ofthe United States;
the people choose their own rulers and
make their own laws, and those laws ex-
empted them from duties on all imported
goods for their own use, and from all tax
rs for the support of government for ten
years from their settlement What more
can they desire? And if they did, we
know not to what government they can
look with prospect ofobtaining it,
The settlers were chiefly from the con-
uguous and neighboring states of Louis
lana, Alabama, Mississippi, and the terri
tory of Arkansas; and, In general, thev
carried sIares 1oith them, or subseoucntIv
purchased them from the United States.
BY the Constitution of Mexico, adopted
in 1924, it was provided that no person
should thereafter be born or introduced
slave into the Mexican States and that all
slaves then existing should be subject to
punishment only upon trial and Judgment
by magistrates. They were also to be
paid stipulated wages, which were to 90
to their masters, if the slaves were en-
ployed by other persons, and to be credit
ed to slaves if they continued in the en-
ployment of their masters until their re-
spective prices, to be fixed by magistrates,
were worked out. Many regulations
touching food, clothing, quantity of labor,
and literary and religious instruction were
added. 1t is sufficient for the present pur-
pose to say, that the intermediate state be-
twixt slavery and perfect freedom, was to
be a sort Of apprenticeship. The Amer-
can settlers continued under these provis-
ions, not only to hold their slaves, which
might be lawful, but to bring in others
which could not be So 1t is understood
that the general mode of evading the law
was to represent the slaves to be apprenti-
ces, lndented for ninety-niue, or a grea:
number Of years. This condition of the
new laborers was analogous to that of
those already existing in the country, and
it does not appear, that this important mod
ification to which it would seem that the
slaves in appearance asscnted, was contra
ry to the letter of any law then existing in
Mexico.
On the 18th ofSeptember, 1929, the
Anniversary of independence, and few
days after the capitulation of the Spanish
expeditionary force at Tampico, President
Guerrero, in conformity to an article of
the Constitution, empowering him to that
end, issued a decree, abolishing slavery
Immediately, totally, and Internationally
throughout the republic.
That decree, received with applause by
the civilized world, not even excepting the
United States, produced the greatest dis
satisfaction among the American settlers
and they determined to resist the execu-
ton of it, Within the present year, we
were informed by one of them, that he was
deputed to the United States to contract for
arms and ammunition for the purpose
A revolution in the general government
having occurred about this time, the party
in power, to avoid the embarrassment Of a
serious affair in that remote quarter, and
perhaps, also, to strengthen their hands in
the immediate conflict for the possession
of the government, granted dispensation
ofthe decree so far as respected Texas
Ofcourse the apprenticeship system was
revived within that territory But to meet
the fragrant abuses of which the emigrants
were guilty, law was enacted, that no
identures of apprenticeship, or contracts
for service or labor, should be valid for
more than ten pears from their respective
dates. Thus our American emigrants,
born and educated in land Of liberty,
found it difficult, with all their ingenuity,
to carry slavery into country, which but
for them was entirely free. They have
therefore, with all their unrivalled physic-
al advantages and their unprecedented
political privileges, remained in an unqui-
ct and fearful state respecting the tenure
by which they held slaves, and the conse-
quences, which might accrue to them if
the government should become settled, and
have leisure to look to the execution ofthe
ordinary laws. They, however, continu-
ed to introduce slaves from the U. States,
and even engaged to some extent in the
African slave trade by way of Cuba.
In the beginning Of 1888, to relieve
themselves from their apprehensions, they
held convention at st. Felipe de Austin
to form Constitution for the new State of
Texas, separate from Coahuila. This
convention, in point of form, was not agree
able to law. They proceeded, however,
to form constitution, and commissioned
Mr. Stephen F. Austin to proceed to Mex
leo and request ratification oft, and the
admission of the proposed State into the
Mexican Union This Mr. Austin is the
son of Moses Austin, originally of Con-
necticut to whom the royal government
had granted large and fine tract of land
in the central part of Texas. He died
I without of4cactino rnuch towards nosSess-