The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 27, July 1923 - April, 1924 Page: 273
344 p. : maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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The Texas State Mililary Board, 1862-1865
phase of its activities. It was called upon by each house of the
legislature in the fall of 1864 for full and exact information, but
replied in generalities, alleging that it was awaiting reports from
its agents.41 It is evident from the legislative queries that not
only was there no general acquaintance with what the board was
doing, but there was much suspicion of whatever it was doing.
The tone of the public press and the attitude of the people gen-
erally revealed even more openly a want of confidence in both the
ability and the integrity of the board. A request from the state
comptroller in February, 1865, for a full report on all cash and
property accounts, all receipts and disbursements, was answered
in a way which was declared by the comptroller to be very unsat-
isfactory. A more detailed report still left much uncertainty.42
The end of the war came suddenly in Texas. There was a
panic among public officials and many, including Governor Mur-
rah, fled to Mexico. In the late summer of 1865 a commission
appointed by Provisional Governor Hamilton to audit the accounts
of the Military Board, reported that while the records of the old
board were intact, most of those of the new board had been re-
moved or destroyed and the remainder were in great confusion.
The auditors found that large sums of money and considerable
amounts of property were unaccounted for and were due the state
from the members of the board. Murrah died in Mexico and
practically nothing was recovered except a few U. S. bonds that
had passed into the possession of the appointed members and a
relative of Murrah. It is impossible to say whether the amounts
unrecovered were morally chargeable to the board members them-
selves, or to the agents in San Antonio and along the Mexican
border, or to both.
The creation of the Texas Military Board in 1862 was in re-
sponse to the need felt by the legislature for some additional
machinery of government to deal with a new, a perplexing, and a
dangerous situation. The simple business system of the com-
munity had been upset by the conditions of war and blockade;
and if the people and the armies .were to be sustained, trade with
41Murrah's replies to these inquiries are in Executive Record Book No.
280, pp. 159-160, 162-163.
"MSS. in "Military Affairs, 1862-65," Texas State Library.273
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 27, July 1923 - April, 1924, periodical, 1924; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101086/m1/279/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.