The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 49, July 1945 - April, 1946 Page: 367
717 p. : ill., maps, ports. ; 24 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Amelia Barr in Texas, 1856-1868
for the legislature and won the following tribute from Senator
J. W. Throckmorton, chairman of the Senate Committee, and
the Honorable C. W. Buckley, chairman of the House Com-
mittee:
The balance sheet will show the exact pecuniary condition of the affairs
of the Board in every point, and it is unnecessary to say more upon the
subject than to invite an inspection of it. The Committee were extremely
fortunate in procuring the services of a gentleman to act as their Secretary
so well qualified to perform the duties and so well versed in book-keeping
as Mr. Barr. His qualifications have lightened their labors and an inspec-
tion of the exhibit prepared by him is only necessary to prove how for-
tunate we have been in procuring his services.
After three years of idyllic life in Austin, the Barrs began
to discern an ominous change.
In 1859 there were bitter disputes wherever men were congregated and
domestic quarrels on every hearth-stone, while feminine friendships melted
away in the heat of passionate arguments so well seasoned with person-
alities. There were now three distinct parties: One for remaining in
the Union; a second which demanded a strict Confederacy, and a third
which wished Texas to resume her independence and to fly the Lone Star
flag again. It was a quarrel with three sides, and the women universally
entered into it, with so much temper, that I could not help thinking they
had all exercised too much long-suffering in the past, and were glad of
a lawful opportunity to be a little ill-natured.
Amelia seldom heard slavery named as a reason for secession.
Texans were more or less used to losing their slaves, who
would often run away to the Rio Grande and cross into Mexico.
Many' slaveowners told her they would be satisfied to free their
slaves on such terms as those in England had been freed. The
Texans were mainly concerned over the question of states'
rights and were furious that the United States should inter-
fere in the social and domestic arrangements of Texas. So
heated were these discussions that the atmosphere at the last
social gathering in the Barr home was like that in a political
arena.
One night, tired, unhappy and anxious, Amelia slept fitfully.
She dreamed she was on
a vast plain, dark and lonely with the black clouds low over it and the
rain falling in a heavy, swollen downpour; and as I stood with clasped
hands, but without the power to pray, a great white arch grew out of the
darkness. It seemed high as heaven, and wide as the horizon, and I
wondered at its beauty and majesty. But, as I looked, I saw a black line
down the center of it grow to a visible break, and this break grow367
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 49, July 1945 - April, 1946, periodical, 1946; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146056/m1/422/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.