New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-10-15
wearer's head is thrust, leaving the pianke' u

wearer's head is thrust, leaving the blanket 70
hang in graceful folds around the body.
Just as the youthful sojourn among the In
dams fixed his habits Of life, his renewed
companionshp with them after his exile as
he called It, from his country, Tennessee seems
to have decided his final career Mr.. Williams
touches upon the rumors that came 10 the
ears Of General Jackson always 1riend ana
patron of Houston. of the latter's plans Tor an
invasion of Texas. 1t must be said that ne dis-
misses them too lightly. While IL Is certain
that they were exaggerated either by houston
himself or by others yet there must nave pee"
basis for them. 1t must be remembered tha'
Houston went into the Indian country feehhg
that he would soon be forgotten by his fellow
mon If his own race When he emerged to the
gaze Of the Nation by means OF the infamous
beating which he gave Stanberry, OF ONO III
the streets Of Washington, and by the sensa-
tional trial accorded him before the House Oh
Representatives he was. as he himself described
IT, politically dead. If he had been merely
fined for assault and battery, his CONN woulu
have been as good as nailed down upon MINI
But the notoriety made for him by congress-
brought him again into the political activity
that he loved.
Now it is plain that he could not have
narrow potics Of an Indian council house
and a continuous succession Of drunken fits long
in any case If he had not emerged from his
misery as he did he would have emerged some
other way And the only other way he could
have emerged would have been as an nsurrec-
! ZIONIST a sort Of Aaron Burr in Texas That he
meant something of this sort as last alterna-
| tive and that he may even nave hoped
| to use the Cherokces in support OF MS
design. comprised The rumor that
came to the ears of Jackson. 'Old Hickory
| had more ways than one of dealing with men
| He would have withheld in the case Of rash
man like Houston till the last moment any such
( threats as he launched at the South Caronna
| Nullihers. But his letter to Houston would
| have been a strange one if he had fully he
lieved in his friends innocence 'lt has been
| communicated to me-" he wrote. that you had
the illegal enterprise in view Of conquernS
| Texas that you had declared that you would
| in less than two years. be emperor OF that
| country by conquest. ] must really have
| thought you deranged to have believed YOU had
| so wild scheme in contemplation: and par
| ticularly when il was communicated that the
| phvscal force to he employed was the Chcro-
| kee Indians. Indeed. my dear sir cannot
believe YOU have any such chimerical. vision
|
the contrary is a sufficient guarantee that you
will never engage in any enterprise injurious to
your country or that would tarnish your fame
Weigh every word of these sentences as JACK '"ll
| evidently weighed them and you Will see that
he acted Just like a man who was taking care
full means to prevent a catastrophe. The out
come Of it all was that when Houston did finally
| go to Texas he went as agent practically
| of President Jackson. He worked FOR the
| United States. not in behalf Of a separate en-
| pire But that he had thought out the subject
was shown long afterward when as an arGu-
| ment for annexation. he sketched in a few
words what must happen if Texas were re-
| iected bv the Union how there would inevitably
| be Pacific empire, stretching from the Gulf
to the northern boundary Of oregon AS a
| member Of the United States Senate. he sup
ported the contention Of Benton in favor OF an
aggressive policy in the far West. In all that
famous controversy he was practically right as
events have shown But II Is pos
sible that he was right simply be-
cause he came SO near being rrevccably wrong
1t is the uncertainty upon this point ana upon
so many others in Houston's life. that wlll gl''
opportunity for legend. not lc1s than thu
countless anecdotes OF his humor. of his deN
teritv in evadng duels often with WORTHLESS.
| characters, put lorWaru III NV ''i'' ~ . '-
| him out Of the way Of designing mcn. oi MS
| Indian cunning in dealing with political OPP
ponents Of his heroism as a soldier, ana Z"
his almost magical power as an orator amoni
the wild men Of the frontier, both whites an'
Indians Mr.. Williams takes no rosc-col"rc'
,,iew Of his theme He sees UoustOn's hat
points as well as his praiseworthy ones and NJ
has written good book upon a man who"
like will probably never be seen again H. thi
country.