The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 37, July 1933 - April, 1934 Page: 230
330 p. : maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Southwestern Historical Quarterly
politics, schools and churches, population, and revenue. All these
are of course part of the picture, but they have not yet been put
together in the proper relationship.
One is somewhat surprised, also, to find that in this chapter
of thirty-six pages on a period of 104 years, approximately one-
sixth of the space is devoted to the Texan activities of 1841 and
1843 in their relation to New Mexico. It soon becomes apparent,
however, that this is one of those aspects which have been "mis-
understood by earlier writers"; indeed the direct charge is made
that historians have given "a Texan interpretation to the facts"
(p. 206). In attempting to counteract this "Texan interpreta-
tion," the author characterizes the Snively expedition of 1843 as
"just plain highway robbers with some color of authority from
Texas," thus ignoring the established fact that Snively was op-
erating under specific instructions from the Texan government
to put a stop to contraband trade which was being carried on
across Texan territory. Likewise, in placing Snively and Mc-
Daniel in the same category (p. 207), he overlooks the fact that
McDaniel was not commissioned by the Texan government, but
was operating with a band of outlaws from the United States.
And, finally, the United States is accused of having "compounded
a felony" when it paid Texas for the area which was relinquished
in the boundary settlement of 1850. Obviously, this is neither
a Texan nor an objective interpretation of the facts, but must be
described as a New Mexican interpretation, in which the author
has laid himself open to the same criticism that he has directed
against others.
In contrast to such errors of interpretation, it should be said
that errors of fact are exceedingly scarce, although Niles' Register
is described as "a trade publication of Missouri" (p. 204). The
bibliographies indicate a wide acquaintance with the literature
of New Mexican history. Portraits of not less than seventy-five
men, ranging from Spanish viceroys to recent commissioners of
education, compensate for the lack of attention to individuals in
the text. In addition to the eleven maps which have been repro-
duced here, a general reference map of the state would have been
extremely helpful. The index is adequate. The general appear-
ance of the book is decidedly a credit to a new press. And, on
the whole, in so far as the book succeeds in stimulating among230
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Texas State Historical Association & Barker, Eugene C. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 37, July 1933 - April, 1934, periodical, 1934; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101094/m1/249/?rotate=90: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.