Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-04-22

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hold in my hand the protocol or original
draft of the constitution, referred to by Judge
Terrell. Is is throughout in the handwriting Of
AustiRs certified TO be his handwriting by = cer-
tIhcateN appended, signed by my brother NJ {.
Austin Bryan and myself. and sworn to byeach
OF US before notary public; At the beginning
''Project of a Constitution for
the Republic of Mexico,
formed by
STEPHEN A. AUSTIN
| of Texas.
City of Mexico, March %, 1921
would state for information I did not know
of the existence of this document until
of recent years, for although I am the
owner of Austin's papers (Which are
| very numeTous) q portion of them L never
! examined until recently. Among these was this
| document: We will return to CITY of Mexico
| and 1923. The Emperor Iturbide, having been
| deposed, the congress. which by force he had
| there. Bancroft. in his history of Mexico, vol
! ume five, says: 1.-THE. national congress, hav-
| ing been installed on March 20, 1923, decreed on
the 8lst the cessation OF the power conferred on
| the executive created on May f9, 1922, appoint
ing in its place trinmyirate- consisting of Gen.
| Nlcho!as Bravo, GuadaIoupe Victoria and Pedro
Celestine Negrete. - The same author says:
| THE victorious Republicans soondivided them
| selves into two distinct Darties-namely, FEEDER
alists and Centralists.' - The latter wanted q
f~Strong government conferred at the City of Mex
| leo: the Federalists wanted confederate reure-
! sentative government, like that OF the United
| States Austin, having had. his colonial con-
| tract ratified and confirmed by the new
!
| April IS, having been detained there
| tor one year account of the revolutions and
| changes of government.
lie writes at SaItiIIo on May 10th that he ar
| rived there on the oth, and had conferred with
| Don Miguel Ramos Arspe, and would leave on
! the 18th for Monterey, where he would probably
remain ten days TO confer with the new governor
! general, Felipe de la Gsrzia, who (he says
! IS particular friend of mine At the same
| time, referring to the change of government he
| says: And the result, hope and confidently
/ believe, viii be a confederate republic, very
similar TO that of the United States. Some of
| the principle provinces of the nation have de-
| clared IN favor OF this system, such as OaXaca,
! Guadaiajara, Guatemala, Guanaxuato and
/ these provinces, and l think a majority of the
| members of congress are in favor of it,
At Monterey he met and conferred with Gov
! ernor GarZia, and the deputies of EueVo Leon,
! Coahuila and Texas, who were in session.
! He writes here May 20, 1.-THE people in
this uu-arter are all in favor of a Federal repub-
/ lie. hope Bexar is the same. a central re-
! public is the worst government in the world, for
| all the power VIII be in the hands OF q few
! in Mexico, and instead OF a republic it will in
| effect be an aTlstocracy, winch Is worse than
monarchy, for in it we shall have one hundred
! tyr6nts instead OF one. do not wish to take
| active part in politics, but If l can do anything
! in favor OF the confederate system 1 will do so
with pleasure -
At the beginning of a Spanish manuscript
document in my possession in the hand writing
Of Austin, the following words in Spanish,
which | have had translated. project of a
Federal Republican constitution for the Mexican
nation; formed by citizen Stephen +. Austin of
Texas and presented to the most ex-
| inces at Monterey. Written originally in English
by stepaen +. Austin, and translated into
was presented to the 6igh fGnctonaries of these
provinces, that Austin previously met and con-
ferred with Arispe at Saltllo, who Bancroft
says, was the most influential man among the
Federalists, and deputy from Coahuila in the
constituent congress, which was installed on
November Z, 1929 In that congress it was
moved, (says some author ION the 14th
that the house should proceed at once to carry
out the wishes of the people" In response,
A ignn 1F3Ir1f Tfrfne
promised to present~Yithin three days the draft
Of an organic law fulfilling that object, which
was to remain in force until a constitution
could be framed ana promulgated Discussion
of the constitution commenced the first of
April and continued until adopted, and was
solemnly published in October, 1924. During |
the whole of this time Arispe was chairman of |
the committee constitution, and the leader Of |
the Federalists in congress. The great fightin |
congress was made on the system, central or Fed
eral which terminated in favor of latter. In De-
cemberthis congress closed its sessions to make |
way for the first constitutional congress, which
began its labors January l, 1925. In November, |
Arispe was called to the cabinet. of President !
Victoria, and afterwards was governor of Goa |
hula and Texas.
Now, these facts 'controvert the statements
made by Major Btown' namely; That the |
mind that can conceive of Austin having the re- |
hottest connection with the constitution of 1924 |
must have transcendental imagination at vari |
with q well balanced intellect; - that Aus |
tin at the time in Mexico was 'su Sect |
without influence, Ignorant of the political |
geography language Institutions and people of
Mexico, and that he could not maintain per-
sonal self-respect to claim. What have shown |
he had a right to claim from what he wrote, and |
in Mexico. In the City of Mexico he !
associated with and made friends of |
the leading men of that country, which |
friendship greatly contributed to his after sue
cess in colonization. make this statement be-
fore you because it is history, and due not only
10 myself, but to Judge Terrell, to whom 1
communicated the fact OF the existence of this
constitution This confidence in me induced
him to make the statement he did in mis- own
eloquent 1 stated /
shown to you, that the original copy of the con-
possession, and that the fundamental principles
of the same with but few changes were adopted
by the congress of Mexico in the constitution of
1924.
Austin during the year he was in the city of
Mexico, devoted himself to the perfection of his
knowledge OF the Castillian or Spanish language.
He learned to speak and write 1t with facility
and correctness, and no American of his time
ever stood. higher in the estims-
t MeRoo OF h ths s se6RE public Ras,S
OF this have ample evidence. And why should
he not stand thus? He was Mexican in all of |
his interests, educated, accomplished gentle
man, Of easy address and winning manners; a
man Of talents OF legal ability and of rreproach,
able character. Conscious of the fact that sue
cess in the great mission to which he had dedi-
djns life depended upon him making himself
acceptable to and gaining the confidence of the
leading men, with whom he was associated dur
ing, the long time he detained in the City of /
Mexieo; every laudable effort and means were
used by him to accomplish this That he sue
seeded in doing so well known to the Next
cans and Americans Of the time, and is SO
recorded in history. That he should be con-
suited by his Mexican associates about the insti-
tutions and organic law of his native Hand with the
principles of which he was intelligently familiar
and be requested to aid in forming a similar |
organic law for his adopted country, is not I'M
reasonable nor surprising. But it is most sur
prising that any patriotic Texan at this day
should, upon his own infere noes and as
sumptions, deny with indignant feel
ings the truth of a statement made
by honorable gentlemen well known to him, in
reference to a concrete question OF Mexican his
tory, because it was before unknown to him or
interfered with his views or preconceived opin-
ions. And yet, he claims that he can impair
italy write history, that history made by you and
your compatriots and AustInl Errors of fact |
where facts are cleaned from others, all writer's
Cmore or less) are liable to make, but the con-
scientious writer is always willing and ready to
recognize the truth and to acknowledge errors
when truth is the object
On motion of Hon. T. r. Lubbock Mr..
Wilson 6reeg's address was ordered
placed upon the records of the associa-
ton.
The usual closing resolutions were
passed, and the association adjourned to
meet on April 20, 1891, at Brennan
The veterans repaired TO the Hotel
Pickwick, where most of them sat down
to such, fine banquet as only Mine Host