Brief History of Columbus
for the present, he must be the chief, with the rank of lieutenant colonel; all of which
you will make known to the inhabitants of said district in order that they may recognize
the said Austin invested with said powers, and obey whatever he may order relative to
the public service of the country, the preservation of good order, and the defense of the
nation to which they belong.
"And I transcribe it to you for your information, and in strict compliance on
your part; notifying you, that on Saturday, the 9th., instant, you will collect as many of
the inhabitants of the district under your charge as you can, at the house of Sylvenus
Castleman, that I may communicate to them the superior order with which I am charged,
and that the said Don. Stephen F. Austin may be recognized by the civil and military
authorities dependent on him and by the new colonists who are under his charge.
"God preserve you many years.
"At Castleman 's, August 5th., 1823. "
Aubrey Alvin Gregory was born September 15, 1866 and died on
November 18, 1930. Zumwalt does not say, and it is not apparent, why
Gregory should be regarded as an expert on the location of the home of
Sylvanus Castleman. Castleman was one of the Old Three Hundred. In
1824, he was granted a tract of land on the south side of the Colorado
River just northwest of the present site of La Grange. In the same August
29, 1823 letter cited above, Stephen F. Austin stated that Castleman's
was "about 38 miles" from the site he was surveying on the Colorado
for his capital (see TheAustin Papers, volume 2, part 1, pages 689-690).
Readers may judge for themselves whether or not that qualifies as "in
the vicinity of Columbus." It certainly could not be about 38 miles from
Columbus and on both Cummins Creek and the Colorado River.
Zumwalt also neglects to explain why he states that a document
that is dated August 5 "was handed down" on August 9. He apparently
took the text he quotes from pages 477-478 of A Comprehensive
History of Texas 1685 to 1897 (Dudley G. Wooten, editor, Dallas:
William G. Scarff, 1898). However, his transcription contains thirty
deviations from the text as it is printed therein. The original reads:
"And I transcribe it to you for your information, and that in virtue
of the commission which I have conferred upon you by my
decree of this date, you will proceed, in company with the said
Austin, to organize the colonial establishment which the govern-
ment has granted to him in this province for three hundred
Louisiana families. You will be governed in all things by the
decrees and orders contained in the certified copy of them,
which I have delivered to you, and by such other instructions as
it may be necessary to communicate to you. Until said
establishment is organized and ayuntamientos are established at
the places where they may be necessary, the said Stephen F.
Austin is authorized by the government to administer justice in
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