The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 7, July 1903 - April, 1904 Page: 123
xvi, 340 p. : ill. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
The Cherokee Indians in Texas.
vation of friendship with the local authorities and a renewal of the
efforts to obtain land; and, possessing confidence in his own abili-
ties, he was willing himself to undertake to secure the long sought
titles to their lands. Hunter may have used other arguments; he
may have unfolded to the Indians the plans that he laid before the
Mexican authorities. Whatever was done, he was sent to the city
of Mexico,' where he arrived March 19,2 1826,-the same day that
Miguel Arciniega, the secret agent, arrived at the Cherokee Vil-
lage.
"Hunter's object in visiting Mexico, (in as far as I could ascertain
it,)" says Mr. Ward, British charge d'affaires in Mexico during the
years 1825, 1826, and part of 1827, "was to induce the government
to assign a portion of the vacant lands in Coahuila and Texas, to
some numerous tribes of Indians, mustering in all nearly 20,000
warriors, who had been driven from their hunting lands on the
Missouri and Mississippi, by the rapid spread of the population
from the Anglo-American Eastern States. Retiring across the
vast prairies of Louisiana, and pursued step by step by that civiliza-
tion, before which they fled, they entreated Mexico to grant them
lands which they might call their own; and offered, if allowed to
settle upon the southern banks of the Colorado [Red River] and
Sabina, to take the oath of allegiance to the government, to embrace
the Catholic religion, to devote themselves to agricultural labor,
and to defend the frontier against all encroachments.
"This favorable opportunity of acquiring a valuable addition to
the population of the country was lost by that dilatory spirit, which,
both in Spain and its dependencies, has been the source of so many
evils. Hunter left Mexico without having received any positive
answer to his demands."3
1It is difficult to see why Hunter went to the City of Mexico, when he
must have known that the power to grant lands rested with the State, or
why he did not apply to the State authorities for land on his return from
Mexico without a grant.
2Yoakum (History of Texas, I 237), quotes Bean's MS. notes for this
date.
8Ward, Mexico in 1827, II 587-589. Cf. letter from the political chief
to the vice governor, dated October 30, 1826, in which is repeated the
substance of this plan, gathered from some source in Texas.
It would be very interesting to know what were the relations between123
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Periodical.
Texas State Historical Association. The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 7, July 1903 - April, 1904, periodical, 1904; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101030/m1/127/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.