San Antonio de Bexar A OUIDIC AND HISTCJRV Compiled and Kditkd uv WILLIAM CORNER I ■ //, /, L^S TRA TED San Antonio. Texas Hainbridge & Corner Christmas. 18(10 Corvuu.HT. l!Si)il. uv r.AIXKRIDGE & CORNI':U AM, Kicirn; kivSi^kvkh. Gift from Mrs. Marcus Benjamin Pec. 5, 1932 PREFACE. It yet remains forme to express thanks to mj- helpers. To such Texaiis as Mrs. M. .\. Maverick, Mrs Canterbury, Dr. Cupples, General H. P. Bee, Dr. Herff, Colonel Ford, Colonel Withers, Mr. John Dobljin and to others I owe much more than p;;rhap-i they are aware of, forit was my talks with " old-timers" that put me in touch and sympathy with their and earlier times. Not all, of course, that I have learned about San Antonio has lieen herein written down, liut every smallest detail was counted b)- me as a help towards the better understanding i)f my subject. I was continually impressed by the excellence and accurac}" of Sidney Lanier's Historical Sketch, and desig'ued verj- earl}' that it .should form a part of this work. To Hishoi^ Neraz I owe thanks for a glimpse of the older Church Records, .^s to the County Records, the kind directions of Messrs. Thad. .Smith and Tlieo. Ro/.eine, have been of nuich service to me. To all these mentioned, and to many others who have unconsciousl_v helped me at the cost of being l)ore 1, I return my thanks ; nor do I forget that an acknowledge- ment is here due to my brother, Charles Corner, tor work an to 3!l Public lUiildings • . 39 Banks 40 San Antonio Clulj 40 Other Clubs 40 Vf'Ung Men's Christian Association 40 Military or Militia Organizations 40 I'riendly Societies 41 TiiK W.^ters oi' S.\x Antonio .\Nn S.\x Piciiro — The Ditches or Acecjuias 41 The Pajalache or Coneepcion Ditch 43 The San Pedro Ditch 44 The Alamo Madre Ditch 44 The Upper Labor Ditch and the History of Its Construction . . 4li The San Antonio River oO The Water Works .",4 vi SAN AXTOXlo DI'! HIvXAR. San Aiitci:iici as a Ilcal'.li Resort ")S Some Resources of Western Texas (il List of Charters and Aineiulments do List of Mayors of the City of San Antoi:io liii San Antonio dk Bexar, bv Sidney Lanier — Anthony Crozat, 1712. Huchereau St. Denis, 1714, Xew Philippines. Spain's Earliest Claims. La Salle, 1H8.5. San Antonio de Valero. 171-5. Franciscans of Queretaro. San .\ntonio de Valero, 1722. Spain's Mission. French Claims. Correspondence of D'.Marconne and De la Harpe. The San Antonio Missions. "Lastekas" — 'fexas. Indians. Teslimonio de nn Parecer. Apaches, 1732. Sandoval and Franqnis — iireat lawsuit. " San Antonio de Vejar." Foundation of the Church of the Alamo, 1744. French and Spanish Policies, 1702. San Saba Mission, 17.58. Seculariza- tion of the Alamo Mission, 1783. Partition of Alamo Jlission Lands, 1793 Closing the .\larao Records, 1793. Americans, 1800. Philip Nolan. Lieutenant Pike, 1807. San Antonio Society Prior to 1810. Troublous Times. Colonel Delgado. Revolutions. Magee and Gutierrez Colonel Kemper. Colonel James Gaines. Governor Salcedo. Battle. Surrender of San Antonio by the Royalists. Ma-^sacre of Royalists. Don F.Usondo. Another Battle. Royalist Loss. Captain Perry. Don Jose Alvares Toledo. General Arredondo. Another Battle, Royalists Victorious under .'\rredoiido, 1813, A "Black Hole" o( San .\ntonio, San .\ntonio .\lmost Abandoneil, 181(i. Moses Austin, 1820. American Colonists. Treaty of Cordova, 1821 Secession from Spain. French Merchants in San Antonio, 1824. The Bowie Brothers, 1831. Shawnees and Comanches. 1832. Sam Houston, 18.'5.3. Texas and Coahuila. Stephen F. Austin and Mexico, 1833. Revolutionary Meetin.g, 1834, I'gartechea and Cos. Santa .-\una. Deaf Smith. Dr. James Grant. Burleson. Alaverick. San Antonio Besieged by Texans, 18.'!o, Milam and Johnson. San .V'ltonio Taken. Karnes. Surrender of the .\lamo by Cos, Travis. Crockett, .\rrival of Santa -Anna, l.'^3(). Siege of the .\lamo. Bonham aiul Fannin. Account of Rose. Fall of the Alamo. Mrs. Dickinson and the "Child of the Alamo." Indians, 1840. Captain Howard. War between Texas and Mexico. Raids of Vasquez and WoU, 1842. Annexation, 1S45. Ccsmopolitan San .'\ntonio. Meteorological. Geo- graphical. San Fernando. Religious. Points of Interest. Conclusion. . . 08 to 91 Interviews and Memoirs of Old Time Ti'.xans. F;xtracts from the Memoirs of Mrs, M, .\. Maverick 95 to 101! Interview- with Mrs. Canterbury . , , 107 A Talk with Right Reverend Bishop Neraz , , , . , i09 Interviews with Dr. Cupples 112 .\n Interview- with Dr. I'erdinand Herff, Sr 115 An Interview w-ith Mr. John Dobbin ,,1111 Seiiora Candelaria 117 Colonel Ford's Memoirs 119 The Alamo Monument at .\ustin 124 The Count)- Records 125 The Founilin.g of the Town of San Fernando 120 Historical, interesting and statistical dates of, and relatingto, the City of .San Ai.tonio, 129 to l(i(i ILLUSTRATIONS AND PLANS. iwr.!'; Chiircli of the Mission del Alamo Fi oiilispici'C Mission de la Concepcioii (First MisBion^l •'^ ISIission San Jose de Aguayo (Second Mission) 1- Group of Views of Missions and Mission Bui'dings l'> Plans illii'trating the Alamo. Concepcion, San Josd, San Juan and Kspada Missions, San Jose Granary and the Villa Capital de San Fernando, with References Ui Group of Views of Portals and a Window of San Jose -" Group of Detail of Mission Carving -4 Group of Views of Military Post -•'^ Federal Building •">- The San Antonio National liaiik I" Group of Scenes of Mexican I.ife in San Antonio 14 Groupof River Scenes and old Jlission Aqueduct ''li Spanish and Jlexicau-Texas Seals . '4 Facsimiles of Signatures of Historical Personages '^ll Western Texas Cowboy Sketches li'4 San Antonio City Hall liS Numerous small cuts incUuled in the letter press Ma]) of the central (lortion of the City of , San Antoi'iii ERRATA. 1. Mrs. Hockett has chantjecl from St. Mary's Street to the Apartment House, corner o( Houston and Jefferson Streets. Page o. 2. For '■ turning soutli at Laurel Street," read " turning west, etc." Bottom of Page (i. ;>. Since the first sheets of this work were printed the electric rapid transit Street Car Lines have been extended in several of the suburbs of the city. Page 6. 4. For "Espado" read Espada. on illustration. Page 20. ■5. The Magnetic Needle omitted from Alamo Mission Plan. Note— the .Alamo Church fronts almost due west. Page 24. fi. The Government Post has been recently officially named Fort Sam Houston. Page 2"). 7. Turner Hall has been converted into Rische's Opera House. Page 34. 5. For " weeky " read weekly. Eleventh line, page .3-5. !». ForW. .A. Little, Esq., read C. C. Cresson, Esq., last line 'San Antonio Club." Page4l). 1(1. The Waterworks proposition was rejected by a large majority on September 80th, 1890. Page .57. 11. For "Prom" read From. 4th line, page 7."). 12. For "St. Patrick's Day :" read without the colon. KItli line, page 117. 13 For "anialuer" read amateur. ]7tb line, page 117. 14. .American Biographical Dictionaries differ OS to the year of General R. E. Lee's birth, but the liest aiithoritits give January 10th, l.tll7 ; not 1S06. Page IMl. J San Antonio de Bexar. Introductory. — " By far the most pleasant as well as interesting town in Texas is San Antonio.'' So writes George Wilkins Kendall in ISKJ, in his " Narrative of the Texan Santa Fe Expedition " of the good city of old Bexar, that stood for a generation or two, bravely up in the seething of the " meeting of the waters, ' ' — the meeting of two great opposing races and civilizations. Over the rolling western prairies had crept, moving eastwardly, the fringe of the tide of the Spanish, — the I^atin-Indian civilization from Mexico meeting after awhile here a mightier and colder current pushing westward — the American, the ever restless Anglo-Saxon flood. The stronger influence overcame. To-day, San Antonio is a flourishing, enterprising, American city, as Texas is the greatest of American States and one destined to a magnificent future. It boasts an historical past. San Antonio was a bone of contention, Texas was the meat and fat for the victors, and all good San Antonians believe, with some show of reason, that the nearer the bone the sweeter the meat, which is just about what Kendall means, only expressed rather differently, for he adds later to this praise of San Antonio the following : " I have an abiding faith in Western Texas, and will stick by it till the Guadalupe runj dry." Such love had old Texans it seems for the land they had foaght for and won. Both floods still remain, but now commingle harmoniously, having long since ceased to maintain an unequal contention. Strange traces, however, of the strug- gle are everywhere present in the old city, in spite of its new face and smile of prosperity. Its quaint traditions, customs and reminiscences are quickly recog- nized by a stranger's enquiring eye. Alas ! while these, the old houses, here and there, and the Missions, more or less the worse for age, remain to us, the strong, grand old pioneer faces of men who had in tiieir turn taken up their " pistols '' their " sharp-edged axes," and the "Task eternal, and the bunleii and the lesson," are getting to be few and far between. l)ut their work, llieir sons and their sons' sons remain. San Antonians, pure and simple, and Texans mostly, walk with a ste]) that bespeaks tradition and a certain pride of country, of a jeal- ous remembrance of that part their fathers took in the winning of the brightest star of all in a galaxy, and a demeanour which tells strangers ])lainly enough if thej' be too prompt with unwelcon:e criticism of .some of their seemingly odd old ways, fashions and methods, — " Sirs, we have a history, find it out, it will repay you and perhaps j-oti may discover why we do some things that you would not do and leave tindone some things that \ou would do." And, indeed it will repay the student right nobly. It is a stirring, thrilling history almost inexhaustible in interest. 2 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. It is lunvc\t.-r the modern town which has to be dealt with just now. Its history, chronicles and .som° deeds of its doughty men will be found as fully set out in other pages as space will allow. But, as this guide is compiled as much for the benefit of strangers and enquirers as for home folks, it is as well that a few of the leading facts of the city's origin and being be emphasized in this introductory. San Antonio is now probably the most cosmopolitan spot on the face of the globe. Representatives of everj- race of the earth have been counted here, except perhaps the aboriginal Oceanicans. The larger elements of the existing popu- lation are American, Mexican, German, Colored, with smaller groups of French, Italian, Polanders, Irish and many other nationalities. San Antonio partakes more of the appearance of an old world town than any in the Union — Boston not excepted. Although the modern business blocks and fine residences, with all their adjuncts in the way of the conveniences of civiliza- tion so largely predominate, yet the ancient looking house here and there, the crooked streets and allej-s, the plazas, the relics of an older and altogether differ- ent dynasty — lend the city a venerable air that is particularly pleasing to the visitor's eye so used to straight, wide streets and compact blocks laid out in the mathematical precision of a chess board. The peculiarities of the city will be better understood if the facts hinted at above are remembered. To comprehend things rightly the city's history and origin must be constantly borne in mind. Eet the rule, for instance, be applied in reference to the venerable Missions, at once the pride, glorv and regret of San Antonio. Let a traveller from the East or North be .set down before the gateway of San Jose. In his journeyings he has seen nothing like this before. The Mission must be to him an enigma. He hears that it is a centur}' and a half since its foundations were laid by Catholic missionaries, aided by their converts, half or more than half savage Indians, all under constant peril of their lives from the outside from the cruelest of hostile tribes, that were uncompromising in their enmity. If he is practical, the traveller will wonder whence the stone came where no quarries were — from where the lime, with no kilns — who was the architect, the superintendent of works, the artist stone cutter — the engineer, for he may be told that this old Mission was once fortified. An intelligent man is bound to ask these things, and if he merely remembers that the Mission is on the outside edge of his own territory and civilization he will fail to understand and realize how it was all done; he is even in the dark as to the .spirit and design of its founders, much less comprehending the hard, practical fact of the presence of the.se great ma.sses of masonry and beautiful sculpture in a lone, wide, wild prairie, as he knows the spot must have been in the days of the erection of these Missions. But, suppose that the traveller had come from, say, the City of Mexico — had a smattering, at least, of Spanish and Mexican History, knew and understood that the aggrandizement of Spain's Empire was the object alike of Church and State — the King and the Church going hand in hand, the one establishing the other; the King granting, conceding, and sending his soldiers to protect, the Church sending its well-trained servants to work, to proselytize, to acquire, to RAILROADS. 3 bless. Coming through Mexico, the progre.ssion from one great religious fouiula- tioii to another would seem natural, as he travelled northward and eastward, and, keeping in view Spain's necessity to firmly establish her borders, the Texas Missions would appear at last perfectl\- in place and keeping with a definite de- sign and scheme. The puzzle would be ab.seiit, but the admiration for indefatiga- ble workers would be none the less. The Missions would be the ornament on the fringe of the Spanish and not the Anglo-Saxon skirt. To the brothers — Franciscans — who had the ac(|uirements, resources, devotion and energy to plan, design and build the magnificent churches of the City of Mexico, the religious houses, chapels, bridges and aqueducts scattered over the land, the foundation and construction of the San Antonio Missions, wonderful as the work was, does not seem to be a very difficult task. Perhaps some of the same workers who built the great .stone aqueduct at Queretaro about the year 1730 came up to San Antonio with the Queretaro Franciscan lirothers and helped in the conqaletion of the beautiful San Jose. It is thus, then, that he nuist be in touch with its history who would come to correct conclusions about the grand old City of Bexar. This is only a single instance of a brighter side — but to other and sterner chapters the rule applies with a like reason. Not to delay further a practical description of San Antonio as it is — what there is to see and how to see it — the visitor is strongly recommended, before setting out on the rounds, to read Sidney Lanier's historical sketch. It will be found to be reliable, and is the best short history of the city that has been written. It is from the pen of one of America's most charming writers, and no praise of it is needed here. The name of the author is sufficient to ensure its being read with interest and attention. Railroads. — Three main lines of raih'oad with a niullitudc of tributaries run into and through San Antonio. The visitor may arrive at either of three different depots. The Southern P.vcific or Sunset, as it is familiarly called, has its depot in the northeastern suburbs. The main line stretches from New Orleans to be- yond San Francisco. Many of the New York and Eastern mails come in over this route, it having quick competing communications for eastern traffic and travel. Its principal business done with San Antonio is from California on the west — from New Orleans, Galveston and Houston, etc., on the east. It was the first railroad to reach this city, arriving here early in February, 1S77. An electric street car line — Belknap system — car labelled Avenue C. Line, etc., color green, nickel fare, does service for this depot to the Alamo Plaza citywards and to the Government Hill northwards. Another electric car line also does service here to Avenue E. and Alamo Plaza citywards and to the Alamo Heights, at the head of the river, northward — fare, nickel: color, yellow; light, purple. The South- ern Pacific ticket office is in the Adams & Wickes building, on Alamo Plaza. Till-: l\TKRNATi()N.\L -VND Gre.vt NORTHERN depot is in the western sub- urbs of the city. This line gives us communication with all parts directly north and east, via Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, etc., passing through our city, on via Laredo, to the City of Mexico, to which city it is at present one of the shortest 4 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. routes. It also brings manj' eastern mails. It made its first appearance from the north in this city February 16th, 1881. It has an electric city street car service — Belknap system — color, orange; labelled City Hall, Plazas and all Hotels. The International and Great Northern ticket office is on the corner of N. Alamo street and Alamo Plaza. The San i^.NTONio .\nd Aransas Pass Railroad familiarly "S. A. P." " Our Railroad," the spoilt child of San Antonio, is an enterprise of which the city may well be proud. Under the far-sighted policy of its able president, U. Lott, who has a strongly developed prophetic instinct in him, this road is destined to become an important system. At present, with upwards of SOO miles in operation, it does good service, firstly with Boerne and Kerrville on the north, whence it is pushing a northwestern extension ; secondly with Corpus Christi and Rockport, and eventually deep water at Aransas, and the short est route to the City of Mexico on the .south ; thirdly with all that fertile grazing and farming country lying between Kenedy and Houston, doing here an immense cotton and cattle freighting business ; fourthly with Houston and Galveston east ; fifthly with another rich mid-Texas district by an important branch to Waco. Other branches are under construction and in contemplation. Mr. Lott's able lieutenant is General Manager B. F. Yoakum. The first ground was broken for this railroad in this city Maj- 18th, IS.S."). It is identified with the interests of San Antonio. The depot is in the southern suburbs. It is served by two car lines, the red car coming to Alamo Plaza the yellow car serving through South Flores street to the Military Plaza and North Flores street. The ticket office is in the Kampmann building, on Main street. Mallory Line of Steamers. — The pleasantest though not the shortest route to New York, is by rail to Galveston, thence by one of the Mallor}- steamers. This is a most delightful trip especially in the summer time. Transfer. — Busses and transfer wagons meet every train incoming or out- ward bound. The company is moderate in its charges for baggage or passengers, and their servants are as a rule punctual and obliging. Hacks and Carriages. — One of the peculiarities of San Antonio is an immense hack traffic. It is a favorite mode of locomotion. The charges are not high on account of the considerable competition. It is however always advisable to have a perfect understanding with your Jehu beforehand as to his ultimate charges, or in nine cases out of ten upon settlement you will harbor suspicions of being over-reached. Many of the hacks are costly vehicles, and nearly all have good stepping, strong hor.ses. On the whole it does well to fall into the custom of the place as to hacks. There are always plenty of them at train times at the depots and the stands are convenientl}' placed on the Plazas and Houston street. Hotels. — The Menger is the oldest and best hotel in the city. It is con- .spicuous on the eastern corner of Alamo Plaza, not far from the Alamo Church building. The Menger was established in 1S5S, being opened January 31st, 185!) It has been constantly added to until now its extensive buildings cover the greater part of the block. It is in the hands of its proprietor, Mr. H. D. Kamp- mann, and well managed by Mr. Browder. Its service and appointments are first-cla.ss in every particular. The facade is prettily shaded bj- trees, and the PUBLIC COMFORT. 5 court yard contains one of the prettiest groups of banana trees in Texas. In the season musical evenings are an attraction to its guests, and fashionable gernians are periodically held. It is impossible to state the various hotel charges. It is perhaps sufficient to saj' that the charges of none are exorbitant. It is well situated as to street car service, many of the various city lines starting and terminating on the Alamo Pla/.a, viz : the scarlet line car plying between this plaza down Houston street to San Pedro Avenue and Spring.s — scarlet light. The City Hall line on Main and Militarj' Plazas. I. & G. N. depot and all hotels — color, orange: light, orange. The Avenue C line to Southern Pacific depot and Government Post — color, green: light, green. The S. Alamo, Mill street and S. A. & A. P. R. R. depot — color, red; light red. Green cars do service from the end of E. Commerce. A hack stand fronts the hotel. Another good hotel is the Maverick, on Houston .street. The building was originally erected for Military Headquarters, and was used for this purpose troni January '25, '7S till l.S.S-2, being enlarged and opened as a hotel in Ajiril of tliat year. As a hotel it is second in importance niily to the Menger. It is verj- well .served by the proximity of all the important street car services of the city, many of the lines passing its doors. Still other good liotels are the Southern, the St. Leonard, the Central, all on the Main Plaza, and the Mahncke, on Houston street. Boardingf and Lodging" Houses, Flats. — San Antonio is not quite so well off for good boarding houses as it might be. Probably the reason may be found in the fact that it enjoys a number of other facilities for easy and cheap living. Nevertheless, a number of really good boarding houses can be reckoned. Mrs. Cole's hou.se, on Pecan street, enjoj^s a first class reputation for the excellent table that is kept and the attention paid to the general com- fort. Mrs. Murphy's, on St. Mary's street, is noted for similar good qualities, al.so Mrs. Sappington's, on Tobin Hill. Mrs. Hockett's. on St. Mary's street, has a well-established reputation. Of course there are many other fairly good houses, but changes .so constantly come that the list mentioned must .suffice. A custom that very well suits the visitor making an extended .stay is that which many of the inhabitants have of letting for rent bj^the month, certain rooms, very often the best in their houses. Such visitors can make themselves very com fortable, and live more economically, by rooming in this fashion and boarding where best suits their appetites and convenience. Of course, all sorts of bargains can be made. It only requires a little searching for every class to be made perfectlj' comfortable. In fine, San Antonio, if not provided specifically with a large number of good boarding houses, is nevertheless a city in which living is made easy, not to say delightful. Mention must here be made of two excellent institutions, the Webb house, on Houston street — hplf boarding house, half hotel — spoken of highly as a place of comfort, and the Alamo Flats, on Alamo Plaza, a most convenient arrangement of rooms and suites of rooms, nicely furni.shed and excellently well conducted under its present management. Restaurants — Good ones are Harniscli & Baer's, on Alamo Plaza: the Elite, at the corner of Soledad street and Main Plaza: and Lang's Dining Room, on Commerce street. 6 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. Street Car Lines and Street Railways. The Belknap System of Lines comes first. For years — since 1S7S almost up to the present time — this system was the only one which San Antonio had. It was inaugurated by the late Col. Augustus Belknap, formerly such a popular and genial figure in our community. It is now under the management of the able president of the company, Mr. W. H. Weiss. We have other systems and lines, and still others are projected. This system serves about all parts of the city, and all its lines, except the Flores street line, focus on the Alamo Plaza. Taking, therefore, the Alamo Plaza as a starting point, we will describe this system, mentioning principal streets, in progress and the termini. The Scarlet Lake Cars, named San Pedro line, take Houston street, turning north to Acequia street to San Pedro avenue and San Pedro Springs, turning east awhile down Locust street, then north again through Crockett Place and encom- passing Laurel Heights, back to and terminating on San Pedro avenue, far above the Springs. Night light, red; fare, a nickel. Electric line. The Green Cars, named Avenue C line, take Houston street, shortly turning north on Avenue C to the Southern Pacific depot, following Austin street to Canson street to Grayson street to Government Post, terminating at the southwest corner of the New Post. Night light, green; fare, a nickel. Electric line. The Orange Cars, named City Hall line, take Houston street. Sole- dad street south, across Main Pla/.a to Military Plaza, Dolorosa street, West Commerce street to the I. & G. N. depot, where it terminates. Night light, orange; fare, a nickel. Electric line. The Dull Red Cars, named S. A. & A. P. R. R. line, takes Alamo street south to Mill street to the S. A. & A. P. R. R. depot. Night light, red; fare, a nickel. The white cars, named Cemetery line, take East Commerce street to ceme- teries. Fare, a nickel: color, yellow and green. The Yellow Cars plying between San Pedro Springs to North Flores street, to Military Plaza, to South Flores street and Arsenal, to S. A. & A. P. R. R. depot terminating on South Flores street south of that depot. Night light, purple ; fare, nickel. The McCrillis, or Alamo Electric Street R. R. System, is next in impor- tance. Going .south from the heart of the city it crosses Houston and Commerce streets on Navarro street, crosses the Mill bridge down Garden street, turning on Mill street to Presa street, going far down that street, terminating at the Fair and Exposition grounds and Riverside Park. Fare, nickel. The McCrillis System al.so starts from the Alamo Plaza out Avenue E. a short distance to Third street, making a turn down that street crossing Avenue C, then into Martin street, making a junction on that street with its main line, then crossing the river over the bridge by the Convent on to Richmond Avenue, Madi.son Square, to Main Avenue, to Howard Street and Crockett Square, turning south at Laurel street across the San Pedro creek to the Fredericksburg road to Key- STREET CARvS AND I'lvACICS OF INTIvRKST. 7 stone Park. Another line of the same system starts from Alamo Phiza east on Crockett Street to the Cemeteries. Fare, nickel. The West End System, built principally for the accommodation of the West End Town Company's passenger traffic, is a good line of Thompson-Houston Electric System. Starting from the corner of Houston and Acecjuia streets it goes west out Houston street, skirting the western limits, to the West F^nd Eake, where it terminates. Styled "Houston Street and West End." Color, blue: night light, lilue; fare, nickel. The Alamo Heights System. This line, starting from the Alamo Plaza out Avenue 1\. into Austin street, past the Southern Pacific R. R. depot into River Avenue past the head of the river, encompassing that propert\- to the Alamo Heights, a new and important addition to the improved suburbs of the city. Color, yellow; night light, purple; fare, nickel. There is a short car line from the I. & G. N. depot to the summit of Prospect Hill. Also one called the Cro.ss Town R. R., little used, from the Southern Pacific Railroad to the bottom of San Pedro Avenue. What There is to See and How to See It. The visitor once housed to his satisfaction in the city, so much around him is so interesting and so different to what he has hitherto seen, that he is sure to be earlj' asking questions and ent|uiring generally as to the lions of the neigh- borhood, what there is to see and how best to see it. Here is a list and following a more extended description with mention of the attractions of San Antonio and Western Texas. The Alamo of course leads the list, that is a shrine before which every pil- grim to San Antonio bows. The First and Second Missions should not be missed, and the Third with its substantial old Aqueduct, and the Fourth with its more per- fect fortifications, if time will allow, should be visited. All four Missions have different points of interest and will repay a thousand times in pleasure any diffi- culty in getting to them. The San Fernando Cathedral, the extensive Irrigation Ditches, are worthy of note. The Pla/.as, the curious custom of the all-night out- door Supper on the Plazas. The stranger should certainlj' take a Mexican supper. The Mexican quarter and its denizens, trans-San Pedro creek, should be done. Riverside Park and Exposition Grounds, the San Pedro Springs, the Head of the River, a peep at the Horse and Stock Yards, two or three fine Public Buildings, and last but not least the Government Military Post and Depot, with its extensive grounds and works, drills, parades, music and barracks. This Post is probably the most important in every respect of any in the United States. 8 SAN ANTONIO DK HI-:XAR. The Alamo Church as it is in 1890.* The foundation stone of the Church was laid on Maj' 8th, 1744. A stone in the carved front bears a date of 1757 ; it is uncertain what this date means ; it may be the date of the Church's dedication. Giraud shows (Yoakum's History, App. IV.) that the Mission was founded in 170.!, on the Rio Grande, and after being twice removed to different sites it was finally brought to San Antonio by order of the Viceroj- of New Spain, the Marquis of Valero, May 1st, 1718. A printed copy obtained from Rev. Father Bouchu, Padre at the Mission Espada, of " Informe Oficial del Conde Revilla-gigedo, Virey de Mejico al Rey de Espaiia, 179-^," concerning the Missions of Texas, relates that the " ereccion " of this Mission dated 1710. The Mission was secularized with the others by decree of Don Pedro de Nava, April 10th, 17!I4. The famous siege began February 22d, 183(1. The " Fall of the Alamo" occurred March fith, 18;5H. A visitor to-da}- at " The Alamo," will be met at its entrance by the worthy janitor, Capt. Tom Rife, a Te.xan of pioneer days. He guards the building with a jealous care it is indeed a pleasure to note in these days of the irrepressible relic hunter and wall scribbler. The visitor will be given in short the particulars of the foundation of the Mission and the church. A description will be given him of the desperate stand to the la.st man of Travis, Bowie (the inventor of the cele- brated bo wie knife), "Davy" Crockett, Bonham, and Iheir companions, in de- fense of their countrymen's liberties and the independence of Texas. One hun- dred and seventy or more men, with sublime recklessness, decided that the)' would never surrender or retreat. Death to each was the cost of this magnificent temer- ity. He will be shown the arch pillars upon either side, evidences of a ma.ssive arched roof and dome, the remains of the towers, with the vaulted ceilings to the ground floor cells, the connection of the place with the convent from the choir, the cruciform of the Church, the site of the dome, the room used as a powder magazine during the siege, which is interesting for its massive walls and strong, vaulted stone roof or ceiling, and for the fact that it was here that Evans was shot in a last vain endeavor to set fire to the residue of the ammunition and that in all probability it was here that Bowie was bayoneted on his sick bed too ill of typhoid fever to do an\lhing but set a high example of admirable fortitude and courage. The present roof, some of the upper windows and floorings and other improvements, the visitor will be reminded are modern. The captain will be found ever ready to answer the questions that naturally arise to those not too familiar with the Alamo's eventful history. Some Further Notes on the Alamo. " And their t\ag floated out on the breeze Like tremulous liands strelched forth to l)Iess." The building now commonlj- known as the Alamo, and which is realh- the Church of the Mission of the Alamo, or of San Antonio de Valero, is on the east side of the Alamo Plaza, its carved i>ont faces west ; it stands at a point a little * "Alamo " is the Spanish name for the Cottonwood tree, a species of poplar quite common npon the banks of Texas rivers and creeks ; its timber is in demand for the beauty of its texture : on account of the height of its close foliage it makes a favorite roosting place for wild ttirkeys. The Alamo seems to have been built in a grove ofthes trees. THE ALAMO. 9 nortli i)t midway on the east side of this Plaza, as at present constituted. As will be seen on reference to the plan of the Mission as it originallj' was, both the Alamo Church and the Convent yard were outside the eastern boundarj' of the ancient enclosure known as the ''Square of the Mission." This enclosure ex- tended its northwest corner down Avenue D one hundred feet or more, embracing with the north-west walls a good portion of the actual building site of the new federal building. Its western boundary was almost exactly along the sidewalk past the Maverick homestead across Houston .street past the Maverick Rank and the row of buildings following on the west side of Alamo Plaza. The boundary all along here, as is most frequently the case with these Missions, consisted of dwellings and barracks for the use of those connected with or dependants of the old Missions. Two irrigation ditches or acequias, both of them abandoned many years ago, ran upon each side of this row of dwellings, one a branch of a branch and the other a branch called the Acequia del Alamo of the Villita ditch, now running under the eastern wall of the Church through the Menger hotel on to "La Villita," which ditch, by the way, is itself a branch of a main acequia (Acequia Madre del Alamo) which pa.sses farther east from the head of the river and on to Water street. All these ditches were used not only for irrigating the lands in the immediate vicinity and belonging to the Missions, but provided water for the domestic uses of the Padres and their numerous dependants and coadjutors. Similar dwellings and buildings to those mentioned formed the northeastern corner of the square. The southern boundary was more prominent on account of the strongly built entrance and sally-port of the square being there. The build- ing each side of the entrance were most commonly used as a prison and strong- hold ; further mention of this building will appear later. Hardly a vestige o' these enclosing walls of the Mission Square could be found to-day. The eastern wall or boundary was also conspicuous for the Convent buildings which it in- cluded, and upon the.se Convent foundations Honore Grenet, in the year 1S78, built for a grocerj' warehouse the inartistic erection now occupied by the firm of Hugo & Schmeltzer. This property has been condemned by the city (1.S.S9) so that these remnants, too, will in all probability soon disappear before the mandates of improvement committees; when, all that will be left of this once prominent and always most famous of the Texas Missions will be those walls in the form of a cross, which with " ears to hear," caught to themselves the secrets of the closing scenes of a sublime tragedy. They alone know the last personal results of a unanimous resolve of desperate but calmly deliberate heroism. Old, battered, time-worn, silent walls, no word of any single hero's prowess, or separate and supreme feats do your portals tell. They are carved with emblems and signs of quite another story. Those deeds are your secret. Nevertheless, echoed from you, shall be heard the whispers adown the farthest "corridor of time" of a mag- nificent story of reckless and immovable self-sacrifice. East of the Convent building, projected from its walls the Convent yard, a rectangular enclosure, about 100 feet square, surrounded by strong walls, it touched and joined with its .southeast corner the wall of the near corner of the north wing of the cross formed by the walls of the Mission Church. The Convent building was 191 feet long, running to the south line of East Houston street, so no doubt on the north side of the Convent yard was another enclosure proba- 10 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. bly fenced with a wall, but not of the importance of the main Con\-eiit yard. The Convent, the Convent yard, the pri.son building already mentioned, and which was e.xisting till l.S6(i, 'when a s;orni blew the roof off) or later, the .space imme- diately in front of the Alamo Church which was protected by a temporary battery stockade of cedar posts and earthworks stretching from the prison build- ing to the southwest corner of the Church, and lastly, the Church itself, were the chief scenes of the siege of February and March, LSoH. In the Church the last desperate stand ot the remnant of the defenders was made. These portions of the Mission were those that in these later troubles were connnoidy understood to constitute the fortress of the Alamo. While some of the dwellings might have been used and undoubtedly were used as barracks by larger forces, it could not have been but impossible for a handful of men (less than ISO) to have manned the whole extensive original walls of the Mission square. Indeed, tradition says that much of the western and northern boundaries of the large Mission square had been destroyed in ISM"), before the sie,ge, and that even the prison portion was abandoned quite early in the siege, though still covered by unerring marks- men with the long rifles which the Texans knew .so well how to handle. Before, General Cos did much to damage the place as a tenable fortress and during and after the siege, the walls were dismantled. Piecemeal, " here a little and there a little," the old Mission has been improved off the face of the earth. Very for- lorn and dilapidated must it have appeared when it left the hands of Santa Anna and his myrmidons in the spring of ISoG. " The Alamo," says Kendall, writing of 1S4I " is now in ruins, only two or three of the houses being inhabited." For thirteen or fourteen years after "the fall," the place remained in a state of almost absolute ruin. For much le.ss than a century had this church stood in the beauty of completeness. There are strong evidences that the Alamo Church in original general design resembled the Church of the Mission Concepcion, that is to say, it had a carved front, on either side of which was a tower with baptismal or vestry rooms at their bases, with belfries in their second stories. Both Churches were built in the form of the cross and had similar arches and arched stone roofs. The Alamo Church, probably like the Mission Concepcion Church, had a dome at the intersection of the cross arches. Here, perhaps, the resemblance between the two Churches ceased Now, long before the siege, tradition saj's, the towers had disappeared, the roof and dome had mostly fallen in, but what was left of the walls stood bravely up. These thick, strong walls, the Convent with its yard and the carcel or prison entrance were recognized by the man}- military leaders of the various factions and armies in the struggles and troublous times of the early part of the present century as about the safest harbor of refuge the neighborhood afforded, as at times others of the Missions were considered good frontier fortresses. About the year 1S49, Major E. B. Babbitt, acting Quartermaster of the Eighth Military Department, and father of the present popular commander of the Arsenal, Major Lawrence S. Babbitt, took possession of the Alamo buildings in the nan^e of the U. S. Government to use them as a Quartermaster's Depot. The ownership of the Alamo was disputed at this time, the city claiming it on the one side, the Roman Catholic Church upon the other. The city claimed from Major E. B. Bal)bitt, on January 3d, l.S.'jO, rents due for the occupation of THl', ALAMO. 11 the " buildings and propuitN- known as Ihc Alamo." In a subsequenl suit which the city lost, Bishop Odin, on behalf of his Church, proved her title to the pro])erty. Major Babbitt, as has been said, found the whole place in appearance an ab- solute ruin. The Church building- was choked with drbn's, a conglomeration of stones, mortar and dirt forming on the inside a slanting heap from the base of the rear wall to the top of the front " so that a person could run up and look over the top of the front." Much work was necessary to put the place into anything like the shape necessary for offices and depot houses, and sheds. The Major .set to work to do this. The Churcli was first cleared, and deep down in the debris were found two or three skeletons that had evidently been hastily covered with rub- bish after the fall, for with them were found fur caps and buckskin trappings, undoubted relics of the ever memorable last stand. In a later year, March '29, 1878, other skeletons buried at an earlier and apparently more peaceful period, were unearthed in the Church, and a beautifully carved baptismal font was brought to light, November 1-"), 1,S7S. What \aried scenes in the life of man it had witnessed ! One would be tempted to moralize writing for anything el.se but the pages of a bald historical guide. The next work done was the repairing of the front. To restore the upper part of it to its original form was impracticable. Bare practical utility is the desired feature of any Government Military work. So the top was finished off in its present modest shape, the rest of the walls were raised to an equal height, a roof was added, and to assist in bearing up this roof, two stone pillars were built inside at points in the wings of the cross in line with the arch pillars. A second floor was added, and in the southwest tower, once a belfry, an office was made. Other offices were added on the ground floor. A few troops were at first quartered in the Church, the Convent and yard were also fitted up for storerooms, stables and sheds. The carcel was also roofed and cleared, and a serviceable granary was made of it and used as such by the Quar- termasters for many years. It was demolished soon after the war, the wind be- ginning this work of destruction in ISIifJ. This old prison building u.sed to stand east and west across the north end of the garden of the Alamo Plaza and its foundations were brought to light in ISSl), when the leveling of the Plaza, prepar- atory to laying mesquite blocks, began. The buildings as restored by Major Babbitt, were used as a Quartermaster's Depot by the United States troops until the breaking out of the war, when the Confederate authorities used it for a similar purpose. After the war it was again u.sed by the United States Oovern- menl until the new Quartermaster Depot was ready on Go\-ernment Hill, on January •'!!, isys. In 1877 Grenet purchased the Convent portion of the Alamo property, and shortly (October 5, 187S) erected the atrocious lumber building before noticed. Objection was made on the part of the Church authorities to using the Alamo Church building as a mercantile storeroom, yet it undoubtedly was used for this at times. Early in ISS.-J the State began negotiations for the purchase of the old Church, and under Act of April 23, 1883, this was done, and on May Ki, the final transfer to the State for Si'O.OOO was made. This was tht; right and proper thing to do, and it was but a slight recognition of the valor of the men to whom 12 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. Texas owes so much, not to mention the many other historical associations that its walls embody. Many particulars and details of the foundation and earlier history of this Church and the Mission will be found in Sidney Lanier's histori- cal sketch. These notes are intended in part to supplement and fit into his ex- cellent description. The Cathedral of San Fernando- This structure, once merely a Parish Church, now a Cathedral (the first Bishop of San Antonio was installed here Christmas eve, 1874), is a mixture of the old and new regimes. All that is left of the old building is the rear part, easily dis- tinguished by its marked Moorish characteristics, its dome and massive walls and octagonal design. The first Parish Church seems to have been built by subscription and the " subject of the construction was first considered in the Royal Presidio of San Antonio de Bexar, February 17th, 173S.* Don Prudencio de Orobio Basterra being Governor and Captain-General of the Spanish State of Texas, and Don Juan Rezio de Leon being Curate, Vicar and Ecclesiastical Justice of the town of San Fernando (without the Presidio of San Antonio), and it was resolved that this Parish Church should be erected under the invocation of the Virgin and our Lady of Guadalupe." Many Spanish names which appear in the original list of contributors are names well known in the present daj-, held by descendants. This old Church stood upon much the same ground as the modern structure does, that is, midway between the two Plazas, the Main and the Mili- tary. It bore, however, a nearer relation to the Military Plaza and its habitants than to the other, for it was here mostly that Spain's soldier-guardians of her border colonies dwelt, and it was for their use, more especially, that the Church was designed.! The corner stone of the new structure was laid on September 27th, ISfiS. The old main dome was destroyed April 21>th, 1S72, and the new walls went up outside the old, so that the Church was only for a short time in disuse. July '■'•(], 1873, the old front was torn down. F. Giraud, who was Mayor of San Antonio at the opening, October (ith, lS7o, had furnished the architect's plans and speci- fications. It was the intention of the architect to have two similar towers, yet only one was partially completed. These towers were to have additional struc- tures of wood surmounting the masonry, twentj'-five feet above the summit of the tower now erected. In this tower are several bells that chime out morning, noon and evening, telling to all the city the time of day. Daily services are held, the Sunday morning congregation is, as a rule, large, and then the music is good and well worth hearing. The Church is open all day and under the care of a sacristan. There is an old and interesting font and several large pictures and other notable decorations. The present Bishop is San Antonio's second — the Right Reverend J. C. Neraz. * Another authority says that the foundation stone of this ohl Church was laid May i.-^th. 1734. — {Sail Antonio Herald, yitty tyth, 1872). t There was formerly mention existing in the church records of a still older church building on a dififerent site, at about No. 500 North Laredo street; all traces of this foundation have entirely disappeared. It was the origin of the old San Fernando Parish Church, and in a measure the building of the latter was probably a re- moval merely from the I.aredo street site. o > t C C > tl. n c •7. c 5'. THIv MIvSSIONS. i;j The Missions. " (5ood friend, for Jesus' sake forbear, Blest be tbc man that spares these stones." ¥ ^: * ^- * A protest must be recorded here against the wanton mutilation of the sculp- ture of the Missions by thoughtless relic liunters. The shameful cliij)ping of the beautiful carving has been going on for years. At San Jose whole figures have been stolen and others made headless ; the fine old carved cedar paneled doors of this Mission were entirely wrecked and carried away piecemeal. Can any good use warrant such senseless robbery ? Good friend, forbear ! forbear even to add your name to the thousands scratched, scribbled and penciled on walls not meant for such a purpose. How to Get to the Missions. How can I get to see the Missions ? is the anxious inquiry of almost every traveling sightseer that comes to San Antonio. The idea that if one is seen all are seen is erroneous. Each Mission has its distinctive feaUires, and all are well worth a visit. Time, of course, is of great consideration to most people, and they would rather see one than none, which is reasonable enough, but if the time can possibly be spared none of the four Missions should be missed. There is nothing of the kind of equal interest on this continent. It is an experience of a lifetime, especially so to him who is engaged in the rush and torrent of business life. Let him then sacrifice a little to this object and he may be sure that, far from regretting the time, it will be a memory to be long cherished. It is a simple matter to get to the Missions, except after a heav}' rain, and then the muddy roads, as everywhere else in the world, are a little unpleasant. The wa}- for a stranger to go, to thoroughly enjoy the time, is to hire a buggy, or, if a small party is made up, a larger conveyance. Northern visitors are often seen making themselves very un- comfortable b\- going out to the Missions on horseback thinking that it is the thing to do in Texas. If you are a good rider, all right, but don't make yourself miserable bj- putting yourself for the first time in a Texas saddle to see the Missions, or you are verj- sure not to appreciate what there is to see. The ride should be made a separate number on the program. Granted, — that you have made up your mind to hire a buggy and to see all the Missions. Start in the morning after breakfast taking a liglit lunch with you. You take Garden street going south, and noting as you leave town the wide old Concei)cion Ditch on the left hand side of the road. You still follow the same street crossing the Southern Pacific Railroad track and bearing slightly to the right ; cross the S. A. & A. P. Railroad track, still following the same road, until you see the Towers of the Mission Concepcion standing conspicuously up on the left hand side of the road, just two and one quarter miles from the centre of the city. Having seen all that there is to be seen here, >ou make your way along the same road towards the Riverside Park, then down to the River, crossing a new county bridge there at the old ford. 14 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. It was just in this neighborhood that the first battle was fought for Texan Independence, in 1835. After crossing the River, you take what is called the River Road, but you do not catch sight of the River again until you reach the Mission of San Jose, not four miles from the city. It should be noon by the time that j-ou have done these two Missions thoroughly, so if you choose you can drive down a short distance to the River and water your horse, tie, and at a very prettj' spot under the Pecans, take your lunch. You must return to San Jose to take the road to the Third Mission, passing the Pyron homestead on the left, keeping on between fences until you reach a branch of the road, one towards Berg's Mill, where there are both a bridge and a ford. The Third Mission is on the other side of the River. It will be noted that the Mis.sions are alternately on different sides of the River. The First on the east bank, the Second on the west, the third on the East and the fourth on the West. Leaving the third you return over the bridge a short distance to the branch of the road that you left, and go down abruptly to the wooden bridge over the Piedra creek. Quite close to this bridge to the left is the old acjueduct made by the Franciscan brothers nearly 150 years ago. Alight and examine it. It is indeed a substantial and interest- ing work, a series of low massive arches on the top of which runs the Mission irrigating ditch. Leaving this, follow this branch road to the fourth Mission and return to the City at pleasure. Mission Concepcion. "To ruinate proud buildings with thy hours .\nd stiiear with dust their glittering, golden towers." In the report of the Viceroy Count Revilla-gigedo, referred to many timts in this work, the date of the "ereccion" of this Mission as well as those of the Missions of the Alamo, San Juan and San Francisco de la Espada, is given as 1716. San Jose is given as being "erected"' four years later 17:2(). This does not mean that the buildings were then erected, but simply that in that year it was determined to establish Missions in suitable localities on Spain's frontiers for the purposes of subjecting, christianizing and civilizing In- dian tribes and of firmly establishing Spain's right to the.se regions of territory to which she laid a just claim. It was in the year 1730 that the Mission of Nues- tra Seiiora de la Concepcion Purissima de Acuiia was located as the report says on the site that it now occupies in the neighborhood of the Capital Town of the Province. The Church records show that the foundation stone of this Mission was laid March 5, 1731, about the time that the Mission San Jose was completed, and that taking twenty-one years to build it was completed in 1752. The won- * Translation from the " Infornie oficial " of Count-Revilla-gigedo, Viceroy of Mexico 1798. Article 196. " On the third e.xpedition of the year 17Hi, nine friars of the College of Santa Cruz of Que- r^taro and of Our Lady of Guadalupe of Zacatecas together with the Superior or President. V. P. Fr. .\ntonio Margil de Jesus established six missions in the most northerly part of the Province (Texas) and a few years thereafter another was built near the Presidio of Our Lady del Pilar de los Adaes distant seven leagues from the fort of Nachitoches in Louisiana. Article 197. In the year 1780. three of these missions. Wz, Our Lady de la Concepcion. San Juan Capistrano and San Francisco de la Espada were transferred to the sites they now occupy in the neighbor- hood of the Capital Town of the Province (Sau Antonio) and the other three were extiugnished in the year 1774 as may be seen by Article 22 of the instructions contained in the Royal Regulations of the Presidios which His Majesty ordered dispatched under date of lOlh September 1772." MISSION CONCEPCION. l") der is, not that it took so long but that it could be completed in the time by the founders, with materials to find, manufacture and hew, and with the nece.ssit> of teaching an intractable people, strange to industry, at once, how to labor and the arts. The reader is referred to the ground plans of the Missions illustrated in this book and he will realize how enormous in the wilderness and with such difficulties was the undertaking. Mission Concepcion was built like the others for worship, for scholastic pur- poses and for defence. The barracks that surrounded the square have long since disappeared and what was for a period the home of hospitality and the .strong- hold and refuge of many wayfarers and travellers and alive with the daily toil ot its little community and the quick purpose of its founders, is now quiet and deserted, a relic, and but for the occasional service in the chapel is an institution that has served its day. It is pathetic, realizing that there is no help for the.se grand old monuments of the past but to fall more and more into decay. Mission Concepcion is the best preserved Mission of Texas. Its ''twin towers" and Moorish dome rising out of the brush and small timber in its vicinity arouse within one a mixture of curiosity, a sense of the incongruous and a delight of the picturesque. At the Mission lives a family, which is in charge and some one of them will bring you the key of the chapel and show you what there is to be seen, but it would be useless to try and elicit any information. To them the past of the Mission is as a sealed book and it has no romance for them. The Mission Church fronts due West, and is built in the form of a cross, with the towers forming two wings at the foot of the cross. This design corresponds e.^actlj* with that of the Church of the Alamo. The front gateway is worthy of clo.se ex- amination. The upper part of the ornamented facade is not an arch but a simple triangle and the arch of the doorway is, for want of a better definition, a divided poh-gon. In the division or center of the arch is a shield with arms and devices, and here and there on the portal facade are cross and .scroll, and carved relief pillars at the sides ornamented with carved lozenges. In angular spaces over the archway as shown below is the legend: ^CESSA 2> - ^^\ rO »^ ^ M 5d w w ts; > which, being interpreted, is " With these arms be mindful to the Mission's Patron- e.ss and Princess, and defend (or vindicate) the state of her purity." Over this Iti SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. winds, circling in and ont, the flagelhnn or knotted scourge of the order of St. Francis, reahstically carved — "Ifitwan't for the knots, 'twould be like a hair lariat," as a boy once remarked. It also has an uncanny suggestion of a hang- man's noose. These are again surmounted with other designs, and above all on the summit of the facade is a stone bearing the date 1794, and immediately under- neath this is a shield with the initial, ^^.^ meaning, "Ave Maria." The only stained glass in all the Missions is the panes of two little windows each side of the upper part of the facade. The front of the Mission Concepcion must have been very gorgeous with color, for it was frescoed all over with red and blue quatrefoil crosses* of different pattern and with large yellow and orange squares to simulate great dressed stones. This frescoing is rapidly disappearing, and from but a little distance the front looks to be merely gray and undecorated stone. The topmost roofs of the towers are pj'ramidical and of stone, with smaller comer pyramidal cap-stones. The upper stories of the towers have each four lookout windows of plain Roman arches. The tops of the side walls of the Church and the circle wall of the central dome have wide stone .serrations in the Moorish character, the points of which around the finely proportioned dome stand out like canine teeth. The towers have belfries, and at their ba.ses, on either side of the entrance are on the right, a baptistry 11x11 feet with massive thick walls, and on the left a similar small chamber used as a vestry. The baptistry walls are fres- coed with weird looking designs, dim and faded, of the Crucilixion and " los dolores." It is quite dark in this room, there being no window, and a light must be procured to examine it. A semi-circular font projects from the south wall, its half bowl carved with what appears to be a symbolical figure with out- stretched arms supporting the rim. It is a rude piece of carving, but is artistic. Inside, the stone roof of the Chapel with its series of arches and central dome, is massive but plain. In each wing of the cross are altars or altar places. In the west end is a choir loft. In the east, an altar gorgeou.slj- decked and painted in the Catholic manner, for Mass. The walls, roof, and ceiling are newly white- wa.shed, the floor is " Mother Earth," but some bran new seats have been pro- vided. The Chapel up till recently, was in a very neglected state. To Bishop Neraz belongs the credit of having it restored to its present state of cleanliness and comfort. He it was who re-dedicated it to Our Lady of Lourdes on May '2. 1887. The mission was frequenth' used for the quartering of troops, notably in IS.So. Santa Anna is said to have expressed surpri.se that the Alamo was chosen to be defended bj-the Texans in l8o(i rather than the Mission Concepcion, affecting to recognize, more effective military points in the Concepcion Mission as a strong- hold. In 1849 the United States troops were quartered there for awhile and it is said that they cleared the chapel of an immense amount of accumulated rubbish and bat guano. In the holes in the walls outside are to be found the nesting places of owls, pigeons, doves and other birds. To the south of the chapel, westerly, are a series of arches which were formerly cells, chambers and cloisters for the Mission inmates, but now used as storage rooms and stables. To the * These quatrefoils are repeated over and over agaiu in the carved lozenges of the pillars in relief, and frescoes of this Mission and at Sail Jos6. Whether there is any meaning attached to these particular forms of the cross beyond that they are crosses, the editor is unable to discover. _ Wniaturt ^laiij ■in,'/- jOlt frrZ-J iiieA Sai} Jose 0)155109. TTie shaded part is in ruins. D represents door, W window. The dotted lines represent arches or abutments for arches. The front walls are $ f^ft thick, others jyi and 2}4 feet. Scale, JO feet to the inch. The river is to the north about y^ mile, runnijig south of east. jH^^S^ttSSL^ D/rCM "^ y^ ^ Sar) Jose (Jrai^ary. F F F etc. are flying- buttresses. The dwelling- is two stories high. The adobe wall is modern. The material is rough stone laid in mortar. The river is towards the north, runniog: south of east. Scale, 20 feel to the inch. \r Smnarij. L D -^ GaM OfX/i'/"! Tlffw. D D Church 3n Sap Juap fnissiop. ^/jV /jn« jAow existing works, dolled lines, old and ruined ones. The river is to the west about loo yards, flowing in a southerly direction. D is for door, W is for window. The Granary and Church are partly in ruins. Scale, 80 feet to the inch. Espada /T)i55i09. Solid lines show existing works, dotted lines, ruined works. T T T are bastions or bulwarks. A A A A A are arched doorways. Scale, loo/eet to the inch. I^efere9<;e8 Illustrating the Uilla Capital de San Fernando, Sparjisf] Garrison, Etc. 1. The old Church of San Fernando. 2. Churchyard Burying Ground, now covered by the Cathedral of 1868-72. 3. The Presidio Garrison Barracks, long since removed. 4. The old Plaza de Armas Dwellings and Ramparts. All 3 and 4 were claimed by the city as city property and in most cases the city substantiated its claims, and, acquiring it, cleared the old buildings away. The lot marked 6 was the last private property to disappear- 1889. In the '40s and '50s a man named Goodman gave much trouble before he was finally ousted by law by the city. Plats of most of these properties, and the names of claimants, may be found in Book 1, City Engineer's Records. The City Hall of 1850-90, with City Jail, occupied N. W. corner, c d. 5. Properties of N. Lewis, Callaghan, Groesbeeck, et al., on Main Plaza, claimed and cleared by the city similarly to those on Military Plaza (See note 4). 6. The isolated Spanish family names on the plan are those of some of the original property holders. 7. The faintly dotted lines to and from the Veramendi and Garza Houses are the approximate routes to Zambrano Row and to the Priest House taken by the besieging companies under Milam and F. W. Johnston in 1835. The capitulation of Cos to Burleson fol- lowed in 1835. This plau is about 75 varas to the inch, Rampart Dwellings from 6 to 12 varas wide. Garrison Barracks, 20 varas wide. MIvSvSION SAN JOSfi. 17 south forming a wing easterly are other hnildiiigs probably the sacristy, superior's vestries and ijuarters, these have two stories, the upper being ap- proached by a stone stair-case. The s(juare of the Mission at this date, can very hardly be defined, but that the Mission was situated in the southeastern corner of a ramparted square is without doubt. The Mi.ssion Square enclosed about four acres. The brothers of the Mission formerly owning about 100 acres. On April 10th, 17i'4, the lands of Mission Concepcion were partitioned in a simi- lar manner to those of the Alamo Mission, among its Indian dependents, setting aside certain portions of the land for the payment of Government taxes. This was done by an order of the Viceroy dated 17S0. The names of the recipients may be found in a document among our County Records. There were -tS souls at that time in the Mission community, namely Hi men, 12 married women, 1 boy, (> girls and ■"> widows. In 1S0.5 a census showed 41 souls. The name of the Mission refers first to the doctrine of the Immaculate Con- ception of the Virgin which was a new and burning religious question of the day. Acuna it derives from the name of the Marquess Casa de Fuerte, Viceroy of Mexico at the time of the Mission's foundation. The Mission San Jose. Mission San Jo.se de Aguayo or Second Mission as it is familiarly called, is dedicated to St. Joseph, the husband of the Virgin Mary, and was "erected" or founded in the year 1720, when Marquis San Miguel de Aguayo came to be Gov- ernor of Texas ; hence the name San Jose de Aguayo. It was probably begun shortly after, during this man's Governorship, for it was the first to be finished and the day of its completion was made the occasion of locating and beginning the Concepcion, San Juan and San Francisco Missions, March •"), 1731. San Jose Mission is the most beautiful of all, and its carving is surely "a joy forever." The hand that chi.seled the wonderful faoade at the main entrance of the Church, the doorway, window, and pillar capitals of the smaller Chapel, that now goes by the name of the Baptistry, was one of marvelous cunning. The facade is rich to repletion with the most exquisite carving. Figures of Virgins and Saints with drapery that looks like drapery, cherubs' heads, sacred hearts, ornate pedestals and reces.ses with their conch-like canopies, and cornices wonderful. The door way, pillar and arch, is daring in its unique ornamentation — .showing in its com- bination of form the impre.ssion of Moorish outlines. Otherwise the whole faeade is rich Rennaissance — figures and hearts alone with anything realistic about them. All other ornamentation is conventional but with nothing stiff, every curve showing a free hand. The window above the archway is a simple wreath of stich acanthus-like curves and conchoids of surpassing workmanship. The south window of the Baptistry is considered by good judges the finest gem of architectural ornamentation existing in j^.merica to-day. Its curves and propor- tions are a perpetual delight to the eye, and often as the writer has seen and ex- amined it, it is of that kind of art which does not satiate, btit ever reveals some fresh beauty in line or curve. And to think that men can be found who can ruthlessly deface these for the sake of possessing a piece of the material. Was it not that the .sculptor saw the perfect statue in the stone ? Surely here the fool 18 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. sees only the stone in the material that has been given a beauty not its own. If stones ever do cry out, it is when they are alive with this touch of genius. " Do you not kuow me; does uo voice within Answer my cry. and say we are akin ? " But can these desecrators have any kinship with Art ? It is not the Te.xan or the Mexican who has done these things. Kendall says, writing of '42, " though the Texan troops were long quartered here, (San Jose) the stone carv- ings have not been injured." And this was in wartime when men are more than usually bent on destruction. Turn to the foundation plan of San Jose. It will be seen how extensive these Mission buildings are. They are placed in the northeast corner of the square, running almost due east and west. " The Mission San Jose consists also of a large square, and numerous Mexican families still make it their residence. To the left of the gateway is the granar}-." So says Kendall. The gatewa)- is gone to-day. The granary, with its strong and curious flying buttresses and arched stone roof, is still there and in it families make a home. The road still enters the Mission Square just at the right of the granar}', where the old en- trance was. Here you are in full \iew of the facade of the Mission Buildings with the square spreading out to the right or .south of the long main building of the Mission. The Mexican families still exist in huts erected upon the ruins of the ramparts of the Mission Sqirare. and in a few years these now hardly to be defined foundations will have been " improved " from the place. At the south- western corner of the Mission buildings is a belfry tower, about sixty feet high. It has four lookout windows and a pyramidical stone roof. Tucked in the angle made by this tower and the south wall of the large Chapel, is a peculiar round tower to accommodate the winding stairway of solid hewn wooden steps to the second story of the belfry tower. From the second story are very curious stairs or ladders made of solid tree trunks notched and dressed with an axe, leading to the upper lookout of the tower. Here, are to be had some fine views of the country. All over the tower chamber's walls are thousands of names of visitors. Only a small portion of the large stone roof of the main Chapel remains and much of the north wall has gone, leaving a great ugly gap on this side and the remnant of the roof very unsafe in appearance. These portions of the Chapel with its dome fell in with a great crash on a stormy night of December, ISIJS. To the south of the main Chapel is a smaller one, the window and carving of which were referred to above. This is roofed by three domes, the tops of the enclosing walls being serrated, all quite in Moorish style. The entrance to this Chapel is from the east from an ante-chamber or wing of the cloisters. The arch and side- stones of the entry door are beautifully sculptured, and here, there still remain, much chipped, once finely carved, cedar double doors, and although so badly dam- aged they suggest to one's mind what the beauty of the front doors or gates at the fa'^-ade of the main Chapel might ha\'e been. In this little Chapel services are still occasionally held. Its altar is decked with gaudy patchwork of a distinctly Mexican design, and many a little trumpery, by way of offering is placed there by the simple and believing women folk of the place. Some of the details of the capitals of the pillars, the font and other car\ing of this little Chapel are illustrated • in this book. There are two ancient Spanish pictures, one hanging each side of the MISSION SAN JOSE. 19 altar, much the worse for age, scenes from the life of St. Jo.seph. One is very phiinly the " Flight into Egypt." The other, more difficult to make out, is most likely a picture of the Circumcision. The fan-like fluted canopies of the window and recesses have a pretty architectural efifect. The cloisters and cells, which were of two stories, are quite extensive with a double series of arches stretching eastwardly from the main building. The outside arches are plain, wide semi- circular arches, and pointed (iothic arches inside and on the second floors. These monastic additions to the Mission had formerly fallen very much into decay, but in l showed ibrtyone souls in Mission Concepcion. t This extr.ict from " Pike's Kxpedilion " is taken from Yoakum's History, Vol. I., p. til. With regard to this — Where are the nations of the Indian i"with half his face vermilion") mentioued in the Recordsof Marriages of Mission Concepcion ? (See Interview with nishop Neraz) " Kven with the good Knight Charlemain! " 20 SAX ANTONIO DE BEXAR. Mission of San Juan. The Third Mission, or Mission San Juan de Capistraiio was named after Santa Giovanni di Capistraiio, a friar of the Franciscan order who was born in the year KiSfi in the little town of Capistraiio in the Abruzzi in Italy, or rather in what was formerly the kingdom of the two Sicilies. The Mission was begun in 17'U on March "ith. It is situated on the left or east bank of the river al)out six miles from San Antonio, a very picturesque locality by the San Juan ford and bridge. The settlement there is called Berg's Mill after a Scouring Mill erected some years ago. The S. A. & A. P. R. R. Depot goes by that name al.so. About a half mile from this settlement on the right or west bank of the River is the old aqueduct already alluded to in the introductory to the Missions — this aijueduct takes water over the Piedra creek for the u.se of the P'ourth Mission lands. Mission San Juan is less remarkable and distinguished than the other two just described but has its points of interest. Its square is well defined and the design of a complete Mi.ssion can be made out with less difficulty here and at the Fourth Mission than at the others. Its little granary, its chapel, its ruined convent or monastery which must have been a building of some importance in its day, and the foundations of a chapel which was never completed are all objects of interest. These main buildings unlike those of the First and Second Missions form parts of and are built into the boundary or rampart walls. A number of Mexican families live here, some of the members of which possess marked Indian features. In the neighborhood of San Juan there are more traces of the Indian in faces and characteristics than anywhere else in Texas. The best time to note this is on a Sunday afternoon when they usually congregate at one of the houses near the ford for their weekh- cock fight which seems to be the excitement of the community, that is among the men. The Chapel of San Juan is very plain and simple in construction. Just four walls — the tower being merely an elevation of a portion of the East wall with open arches in it for bells. There is still one l:)ell left. The Chapel is roofless except for one small room at the .south end which is walled off by an adobe wall and which is used as a Sacristy, vestry, and receptacle for the small remaining stock of figures, books, pictures and other such bric-a-brac. The inside of the walls of the Chapel, however, will affiard to such as care for that sort of thing a few min- utes interesting study in rude frescoing. The frescoes are almost obliterated bv exposure to the weather andthe wonder is that they have not long since been washed entirely off by lieavj' rains. They are a curious mixture of Old and New World ideas. Detail of Moorish design, a Roman arch, an Indian figure and pigments. "These frescoes, ' says Father Bouchu, "I think are of later date than the comple- tion of the Chapel and they were probably permitted, to satisfy the Indian na- ture's love of color." A painted rail about four feet high running around the Chapel first attracts the eye, then the elaborately painted Roman Arch in red and orange over the doorway. The design of this decoration is decidedly of a Moorish caste, zigzag strips and blocks of color with corkscrew and tile work, and pillars of red and orange blocks. These pillars are about twelve feet high and support another line or rail of color and upon this upper line are a series of fig- ures of musicians each playing a different instrument. The figures for .some rea- , son are much more indistinct than their instruments, the latter being accurately TTTffTff^T^: — ^^— WEST I'dHTAl. OK CHAI'EL, MIS^ImS" s A ■. JOM.. %♦ ''f^. ii>'ik. KM-IISIKV, SAN JOSK. SOUTH VVINnOW . MISSION SAN FRANCISCO. 21 drawn and easy to distinguish. There is one of these figures over the frescoed arch of the door. It is a mandolin player. The player is indistinct, portions of his chair and instrument ])Iainer, the latter can be made out to be of dark brown color with the finger board and keys, red. To the right of him is a violin player, the best preserved sample of all — the violin and bow are quite distinct, so are the features of the face of the figure, his hair is black, lips red, face and legs or- ange, feet black, the body of the \iolin orange, the re.st of him and the bow red. To the right of him again is a guitar player, dressed .in a bluish green color, sitting in a red chair, the instrument is quite di.stinct. Directly opposite this figure vis a vis is a viol player; the instrument being held by the player, finger board up, from the left shoulder across the body ; head, hands, instrument and bow being distinct, but the body of him is "played out." To the right of thi.s gho.stly looking viol player is a harp and a chair but the player is either invisible or van- ished. The lower rail, which is the much more elaborate of the two, supports here and there a flower pot and ilowers in incongruous colors of bluish green and dull red — carnations and roses being prime favorites, with an occasional cress on a painted pedestal or dado. If there is any record of the partition of the lands of this Mission it has not been discovered, at any rate with regard to the rooms in the ramparts it seems to have been customary at the Mi-ssions that a nundier of years occupation of rooms or barracks in any Mission gave some kind of title or claim to those rooms to the occupants. The Mission Government was generous to its converts and depend- ants. The Missions were projected for their benefit. This must explain such documents as that which may be found in the County Records dated January' 2.Sth, 1826, which relates that Maria de las Santos Lope/, and Bartara de las Santos Lopez who were then occupying three rooms in the Mission San Juan conveyed the same to the Province of Texas for the sum of S''>4.()() January 'iNth, 1S26. This sum was paid to them 1n- Antonio Saucedo. then Chief Justice. Mission San Francisco de la Espada. The Fourth Mission or Mission San I'Vancisco de la Espada, was "erected" as were Missions Concepcion and San Juan, in the \ear 17 Hi, but it was not lo- cated and begun to be built until March •")th, 17-!1. It is situated on the right or west bank of the San Antonio River about nine miles from the city, and is dedicated to San Francisco de la Espada, that is, to St. F'rancis of Assissi, the founder of the great order of Franciscans, but the question ari.ses, whence " de la Espada ? " St. Francis of the sword ? -Tradition says that the old tower of the Chapel was built in the form of the hilt of a sword, and that the imagination of the founders supplied length to the blade to complete the similarity to the whole weapon. Perhaps it was that they were possessed with a portion of the spirit of that Greek parent who.se .son complained of the shortness of his .sword; "Add a step to it, my son ! " The allusion to the sword may have had some reference to the period of the awakening of St. Francis after his early illness, for it is related of him thai he did not know at first whether he was called to be a valiant soldier and knight, or to be a faithful servant of the Church Militant. 22 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. Parts of the ramparts or enclosing walls of this Mission are pretty well pre- served, others are in total ruins, hut the foundations of the limits can be clearly made out all around except at points facing- the banks of the River. The Square is of irregular shape as will be seen by the plan furnished. In the southeast corner is an object ofnuich interest. Projecting from the angle of the walls outwardly, is a small round tower of quite a feudal character. It is in a state of fine preservation and its three dressed stone round cannon holes near the base, and its seven musket holes about eight feet from the ground, lend it quite a menacing presence. The interior of it is in equally good repair, and one cannot refrain from conjuring up vivid scenes of fights with Indians in those early days of the Mission struggles with the red man — of women handing out the loaded muskets from the secure chambers to the right and left rear, of the unerring marksmen making it very hot for the attacking hostile, with an occasional lull in which is run out a small brass swivel gun* to the dinuiiiitive embrasure, which makes the Apache or Comanche wish he were safe home in his fastness among the hills of Bandera. And it might have been that the recent remembrance of the total destruction of the San Saba Mission and the massacre of its inmates in IToiS lent some zest to these en- counters. For while these old Missionary pioneers were ever anxious to deal ten- derly with any hostile, 3'et unfortunately there were occasions when sternness was necessary-, " Thai they might feel The velvet scabbard held a sword of steel." There was another of these " baluartes " or bastions on the south wall by the road, west of this one, but no trace of it is to be found. The chambers to the west of the existing "baluarte" have, looking out upon the square, alternate doors and arches, and one of the wide arched entrances .still e.xists. The rooms to the north have been fitted up for a school hou.se by Rev. Father Bouchu, who is wonder- fully active and persevering. He knows something of many subjects, which he has practically proved here at the Mission. "Padre Francisco" is Priest, law- yer, bricklayer, stonemason, photographer, historian, printer. His little pamph- lets in Spanish would be a credit to an office of much larger pretensions. He has lived in this community for many years and is well versed in information pertain- ing to the history of the Missions, and being himself one of those Priests who join with their vocation a knowledge of practical handicraft, he enters into the spirit of the founders with more than ordinary keenness. He is simple, unaffected, and garrulous, and meets the wants of the little settlement. He has built with his own hands upon the ruin of the old Convent and arcade a comfortable Priest house. Under his rule the Mission Chapel has been almo.st entirely renewed, the front only retaining a portion of its ancient work. The Chapel is in the form of a cross. The front is the belfry tower and is that portion that is supposed to represent the likeness to a sword — perhaps it bore more of that resemblance be- fore its restoration. Its three bells clang out three times a da)', and would be startling on the still country air to one who was ignorant of the vicinity of the Mission. It is said that some of the Mission bells were cast in San Antonio in its earliest days, so there is no knowing what these old Missionaries did not come *• Mr, .\lbert Maverick has one of these little Spanish brass guns as .in ornament or cnriosity in his drawing loom. MISSION SAN FRANCISCO. 23 prepared to do. There are several pretty little bits of wrought iron work in this and the other Missions. Here is another artistic accomplishment to be added to the list of those posses.sed by the fathers. The entrance door of the Chapel is un- mistakably Moorish, having the true Alhambra shape and lines. Seba.stian Tejada, the Mis.sion's oldest resident, maintains that there was still another place of worship on the inside of the South wall by the road, here was the old main South entrance and the Granary was built projecting lengthwise outside the walls by the same entrance. Only the bare foundation of these two buildings now exist. Opposite the old Convent is the well which was never forgotten in the building of a Mission. The Convent, its yard, (which form now the Padre's residence) and the Chapel or Church are built into and form portions of the western ramparts. A plan and three illn.strations of this Mission are included in this book. Several Mexican families still reside in tumble-down huts on the lines of the Mission Square. It was this Square that the Te.Kan Army of Independence made their first camping ground — on the place that is now much overgrown with mesquite brush. Here Stephen F. Austin joined the troops as Commander in Chief upon his escape from Mexico, and where — " but that is another story," — An interview with Sebastien Tejada will perhaps be of some interest. An interview with Sebastien Tejada. an old and intelligent Mexican, who was born in one of the Mission Dwellings in 1818, Mission Francisco de la Es- pada or Fourth Mission. Interview held on May 'iOth, 181K). In reply to many questions he stated substantially as follows : "I was born here in 1.S18. I have lived here all my life. I was born about the time that Arredondo came through. This Mission seems to be much the same as when I first remember it,— only some of the buildings were more com- plete. I remember the Convent before it was so much altered. I remember the arcades (row of arches of the Convent) and the granary which projected from the entrance on the .southern boundary. Also the foundations of the old Church in- side the walls projected from the granary — the present Church is quite new, except the front. I do not remember ever seeing the " baluarte " — (the fortified tower on the southeastern corner) — used but I have heard of its being used against the In- dians. Yes I remember the hostile Indians coming upon us many times — but they were generally fought in my time inside the square of the Mission. The dwellings used to be much more used formerly. We used to have and house friendly Indians, but they mostly left at last. I remember when there were three Padres to do service here. The old Church was pulled down about fifty j'ears ago. Dependants of the Mission used to live in the barracks at the corner where the baluarte is. I remember another "baluarte" at the entrance opposite the granary. The walls by the other entrance of the western boundary had loop holes, too, but not round towers. I remember often the Spanish troops camping here. I remember Howie well, he married Gov. \'eramendi's daughter. He was a fine looking, fair man. I remember the army of Austin and Fannin camping here in l.S.'S'"). They camped in the middle of the Plaza. Many colonists (he called them colonists of his own accord which was a touch of old days) came here at that time. I remember Santa Anna, I saw him. He had one leg. I re- 24 SAN ANTONIO UE BEXAR. member verj- well that the dead of the Alamo fight were burnt. The Texans separately from the Mexican dead. It was the Mexican cu.stom to thus burn their dead after battle. I remember the fight well. I don't know what the Tex- ans defended in the Alamo, but thought it was the whole Mission walls. I don't know. I knew Sefiora Candelaria formerly. She is old, may be a hundred. She might have been in the Alamo during the fight. Quien Sabe." HERE ENDETH THE FOURTH JIISSION. The Plazas. These open spaces which are characteristic of Latin America, and to a great extent of Texas are as follows, beginning in the east and traveling westward : Alamo Plaza. — Is the outcome of an original space around the Alamo, added to by the destruction of its outworks the " Muralla del Alamo." It has recently been converted into a beautiful garden and surrounding it are the follow- ing buildings of interest : The Church of the Alamo, the Opera House and Club, the Federal Building, and the Menger Hotel. This ground was the .scene of Santa Anna's bloody assaults on the Alamo in March, 1836. Main Plaza. — Is situated on the we.st side of the business heart of the city and is connected with Alamo Plaza by Commerce and North Alamo street. This Plaza was anciently named La Plaza de las Yslas, and fronting on it and running back to the Military Plaza is the Cathedral of San Fernando, formerly the old Parish Church and yard. This square is also laid out as a handsome pleasure ground. Military Plaza, — Or, La Plaza de Armas, lies a block to the west of Main Plaza and, previous to the erection of the new Municipal Building, which occupies a site in its centre, was from time immemorial the heart of Mexican life. The small vendors, the freighters, the pastores, peones and vaqueros, all congre- gated here. Here, too, still stand the old Court House and Jail, commonly called the ■■ Bat Cave." At night, in the olden time, and in a modified form up to within a few months, was to be seen a unique spectacle of open air life belonging rather to the tropics than to any part of the realm of Uncle Sam. Imagine a large square at that time badly lighted as to municipal illumina- tion, but ablaze with small camp fires and flaming lamps swinging above rows of improvised and shaky tables. All night long one might be served here with viands hot from the Mexican aiisine — Chili con came, Tamales, Enchiladas, Chili verde, frijoles and the leather-like tortillas. The more fastidious American might enjoy delicately fried eggs and chicken with a cup of fair coffee, followed, perchance, by a corn-shuck " cigar ro," rolled l)y the hand of the dark-eyed '' muchacha " in charge. These al fresco restaurateurs have been hunted by electric lights and city im- provements from Plaza to Plaza, iintil now a poor remnant of them may be found still further west on Milam Square near the grave of the hero, whilst a few others \ f I.' .Hi '.-1?. ' '■^U I. — ^ / itg-,s- T. .^ iry^ ^t^ : li'M ly ''I '■■L.?'^ '■■ ^ CKDAK r\Nl' FONT A !■ SAN JOSfi, OKNICE Ar SAN JOsfi. A CAl'l I A[ V I - \N ;■ A CAllTAL A I SAN JOSK. THE MILITARY ESTABLISHMENT. 25 cling tenaciously to a coign of vantage in front of the Kedcral liiiilding on Alamo Pla/.a in the east. B)- the tourist " from the states," these peripatetic tables are eagerly sought for as a curiosity to be seen, but only to be patronized in a gingerly kind of way from a weak misgiving as to tiK- origin of the victuals. As day dawns and the lamps show dimmer, these queer hotel keepers put out their fires and foldi;;^; their tables, " silentlj- steal away " until another night. ■'= THE MILITARY ESTABLISHMENT. Headquarters Department of Texas and the Post of San Antonio. The Post of San Antonio now established on Government Hill, about one mile uorth of the city, had its official beginning in 18fio. This date, however, is only that of a new birth, and for those who are interested in such matters, we append to the purely "Guide Book" information of this page .some further re- marks on the Military history of San Antonio from a much earlier date. The Present Post, then, went to housekeeping in 1S(;."5, immediately after the war, in buildings hired for the purpose The troops remained here until 187-!, when they were withdrawn under Special Order No. 148, Headquarters Depart- ment Te.xas, dated August 7th of that year. They returned in accordance with Special Order No. loS, dated August '^Sth, 187."), from the same Headquarters. After many changes, as set forth hereafter, the present magnificent site was occupied under orders dated December "iOth, 18711, — the occupation, so far as the Post was concerned, taking place on the 'lid of the same month, the Department Headquarters remaining some time longer in the citj'. The following will l)e of interest to visitors : The hill is reached by the Belknap Street Cars, Avenue C. line. The Post is situated on a rolling plateau, overlooking the city, and elevated 7(52 feet above the Gulf of Mexico in latitude 29° 2(r 83" north, and 98° 27' 38" west longitude. There is a telegraph office at Department Headquarters and a railway con- nection between the Quartermaster's Depot and the Southern Pacific system. The buildings were begun on June 2I.st, 1877, Braden & Angus, contractors, and have only recently been completed, the Government Hospital being built in 188.5 and the "New Post," contracted for September 18, 1888. They are tastefully designed, as will be seen from the accompanying illustrations, and are located on a reservation of 11)2.21 acres. Of this noble site, so worthily occupied by Uncle Sam, '.'2.7'l acres were donated by the city ; 49.18 were acquired by purchase, Ajiril 2Sth, 1884 ; 19.29 acres by decrees of the District Court of Bexar County, dated April 7th and May 2r)th, 1888, and .!I5 acres were granted by the city of San Antonio to complete the donation heretofore referred to. •Reference i-* had for further parlicuLirs as to these interesting public i)l.'ice-i to the acconipanyinfj maps of I.a Villa Capital de San Fernando, and the niaj) of the heart of the modern city, also to many further details in historical portions of this work. •2r, SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. It will be noted, further on, that other sites had been offered to the Govern- ment by the city authorities, both before and after the war, but for various reasons none of them were accepted. In addition to the Officers' Quarters of the "' Old " and " New " Posts and the extensive Barracks, are the Department Offices and Ouartern;aster's Depot, the following data will give an idea of their importance : They are built around a quadrangle ()24 feet square, the main faoade fronting south is 499 feet li inches by •')-■) feet and two stories high. The north front is (524 feet by 30 feet and of one story ; the whole comprising 3(1 store rooms, 20 offices, extensive work .shops and a cellar. In the center of the quadrangle is a tower formerly used as a water tower, and containing a clock. It is SS feet high, and from its summit a fine view of the city and its environs may be obtained. Below lies the town with the San Antonio River meandering .southward on its tortuous way to the Gulf doubling and turn- ing on its journey, as tho' loath to leave the scenes of its l)irth. Military Drills. — A feature of Post life, of probably the most interest to visitors, is the Dress Parades and other military functions which are constantly taking place on the hill. They occur as follows : Drills. — Almost daily, the time varying with the season of the year. Dress Parade, generally on Tuesday and Thursday at the hour before sun-set. The Monthlj' Muster and Inspection takes place on the last day of each month, usually about 10 a. m., it is an interesting sight. Guard Mount, with full band, occurs daily about >i:oO, a. m., but the hour is sometimes changed during the in- tense heat of summer. The Organization of the Department and Post may be learned in great de- tail from the Roster issued monthly from the office of the Assistant Adjutant General of the Department. The Arsenal is located far from the Post on South Flores street and may also be reached bj' the Belknap line of street cars. It is commanded by an officer of the Ordnance Corps, Major Babbitt, who constitutes one of the Department Com- mander's Staff and supplies the troops with ammunition and accoutrements. At the Post are quartered Brigadier General Stanley, commanding the De- partment, and his Personal and Departmental Staffs. Col. Black commanding the Post with four troops of Cavalry, two Batteries of Light Artillery and six com- panies of Infantry, and Col. Weeks Chief Quartermaster, in charge of the De- partment Depot and Offices. The following is a list of the Post Commanders. The history of the De- partment is treated elsewhere. Capt. N. Prime, lOth Infantry up to June, 1n7;'>, afterwards transferred to Fort McKavett. Capt. J. W. French, July, ISTo, held command until the removal of the troops in August and September of the same year. Capt. French was transferred to Fort Clark. NOTES ON MILITARY AFFAIRS. 27 Capt. Sellers returned with tlie troops (Co. D, Idth Infantry) in Aiignst, I.S7.'i. Capt. Wilson, April, 1S77, Co. U. 10th Infantry. Major McMillen, December 12th, 1(S77, in command of four companies of the '2nd Artillery at Camp Guilford Bailey (the lower portion of the present "old" post) with Capt. Patterson and Company A, 20th Infantry, stationed in town. Capt. Patterson and his Compan> were transferred to Fort Brown in June, ISSO. Col. Shafter, June, 18S(), six Companies, IsV Infantry, afterwards transferred to Fort Davis. Capt. Dickey, December, 1890, Co. E, 22nd Infantry, afterwards transferred to New Mexico. Col. Otis, October, 1SS3, two Troops, Sth Cavalry, increased by four companies, IGtli Infantry. Col. Otis was transferred with the Sth Cavalry to Dakota in October, 1887. Captain Lancaster, commanding Battery "F," 8rd Artillery, arrived in December, 18S'2 Capt. Lanca.ster was relieved in November, ISSd, by Capt. Bnrbank — the Battery remaining here. Col. Smith, May, 1888, the Kith Infantry left for Utah and were replaced by six Companies of the I'.lth Infantry. Col. Black, May, 1S!)0, I'.tth Infantry leaves and are replaced by six Comjianies, 2;!rd Infantry; four troops, .'>rd Cavalry and one Battery of Light Artillery. These troops, with the Battery of Artillery before mentioned, now constitute the Garrison of the Post of San Antonio. Some Further Notes on Military Affairs. Perhaps it is because of the Wars and rumors of Wars which have made up so much of the life of San Antonio in the past, that everything military is popular with its citizens. It is purposed in the following article to trace the history of the present huge establishment from its birth in humble surroundings, thence through a checkered career of weary wanderings to its final abode on Govern- ment Hill. That San Antonio is a natural strategic point, has been recognized by Aboriginals, Spanish. French, Mexicans, Texans and both the National and Con- federate Governments : thus its development has been but a natural growth, sometimes aided, and sometimes impeded, by local influences. From the end of the seventeenth century, Spanish troops had marched and counter-marched in the valley and acro.ss the country, taking promiscuous save his ant'U^r /'24 Soledad street. Fourth Ward Prcslnlerian Sunday School, 4:>f) South Presa street. Baptist. — I'irsl Baptist Church, Travis S(iuare. Alamo Baptist Church, northeast corner Nacogdoches and Crockett streets. Aransas Pass Mission, corner South Flores and Herff streets. International Mission, corner Frio and Hidalgo streets. Sunset Mission, corner Burleson and Cherry streets. 32 SAN ANTONIO I)]'; BEXAR. Methodist.— Methodist Episcopal Church South, Travis Square. Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church, southwest corner Avenue C. and Pecan street. Methodist Episcopal, south side Crosby street. German Methodist Episcopal Church, 2o0 Villita Street. Mexican Methodist Episcopal Church, southwest corner Pecan and San Fernando streets. Tenth Street Methodist Church, south side Tenth Street. Jewish. — Temple Beth-El, Travis Square, a Synagogue the place of worship of the influential Hebrew citizens. Rev. M. P. Jacobson, Rabbi. The City Hospital. — in the western part of the city. It may be, not inaptly, mentioned here, as an evidence of the practical religion of the city Government. Many other denominations are represented, but this list will suffice for the spiritual needs of the majority of visitors. It should be mentioned, however, ■ that the colored people have manj' places of worship- — Catholic, Methodist and Baptist. EDUCATIONAL. Schools. — Education is well cared for in San Antonio. There are manj' private institutions of great efficiency, for both .sexes, and the denominational establishments have been already noticed. The Public Schools are the pride of the city. There are twelve school buildings, all excellent, and under Superintendent Smith. There are about seventj'-five teachers of trained ability in charge of a scholastic population largely in excess of that of any other city in the State. The Central Grammar and High School is situated on Acequia street ; Professor Schoch, Principal. It may be reached by the Belknap cars, San Pedro Ime. There are, besides, eight Ward Schools for whites, and three for the colored people. The colored people having, perhaps, most accommodation in proportion to population, than the whites, were not the latter supplemented by tlie denom- inational and private effort before referred to. The German-English School should be nienlioned, as being an old established high-class day school, and somewhat of a land mark. It is situated on South Alamo street, and may be reached by the Belknap line of street cars. Let us glance at the history of Public Education in San Antonio since the good Mission P'athers gave up their labor of love and patriotism. The first mention of an American School in Texas is in a document in the Bexar County Records, dated July -"jth, 1S2.S, referring to the " McClure " School. This was under Mexican rule, and was probably an institution started for the benefit of the growing Anglo-Saxon colony. About this time there existed, also, a Spanish Public School, on the east line of the Military Plaza, near the Cathedral. After this, and until l(S;3i), education in San Antonio received EDUCATIONAL 38 little attention. In that j-ear the corporation evidently saw the necessity of a system of Public Education, and the question aroused general interest, for we find that on February 14th, 183!), J. H. Winchell proposed to the City Council to open a public school on the first of March ensuing, and offers to teach all that may enter therein, the English language, together with peinnanship and arithmetic, provided the number shall not exceed thirty pupils. All this for the sum of $S()() per annum, payable quarterly or monthly, as the honorable body may think proper. His system of in.struction, the good man goes on to say, has met with general approbation, as heretofore pursued by him, but he admits that it is susceptible of much improvement, which he is willing to effect, providing suffi- cient emoluments Ijc given him, and begs a committee of three to examine fully into the merits of his system and to report thereon. Again this subject of education comes up on June 'id, 1.S44, when P. L. Buquor (a well known old City Official) presented a memorial urging the utility of opening a Public School, and .stating that he is willing to undertake to do so if sufficient encouragement be given him by the Council. A committee was thereupon appointed, and it reported substantially as follows on June '2'.)th, 1844 : The committee are of opinion that the law for incorporating the city, passed December 14th. is;!?, makes it obligatory upon the Council to encourage by every means in their power the opening of a public .school, and also to have a Court House and Jail, and the report goes on to recommend a plan to accomplish these things, and also to repair the old Court House, (this is prior to the ' Bat Cave ") and fit it up in such a manner as to serve for both Court House and School House. Certain lots were to be appropriated to this object, for Section 8 of the Charter set aside certain lots for this purpose and for the endowment of a Public School. This was recommended to be done as soon as the lots would fetch a rea.sonable price. For some reason the land was not ordered to be sold uutil August L'lth, 1849. See Article "The River." Out of the proceeds of this sale and in accordance with the recommendation, the " Bat Cave " was built. J. N. Devine, in a long address on January 15th, 1841), urged the questions of education, peace, law and order very forcibly upon the people. His action produced the effect of a "Sunday Closing" ordinance, April oth, 1849, for the closing of Bar Rooms, Workshops, etc., after 9 o'clock A. M , on Sunday. He al.so closed the Fandangoes for awhile. We mention these things to show that a spirit of reform was abroad, and from this epoch San Antonio has been ever watchful and generous in the matter of Public Education. Indeed, at this time ihe tide set in which changed San Antonio from a blood-.stained border town to a progressive and prosperous modern city. And to-day there is an inherited tradition of liberality toward Public Schools. International Fair Grounds and Buildings.— These are situated about three miles south of the city in a fine park on the banks of the San An- tonio river and are used for an annual fair and other gatherings. The buildings are handsome and spacious and among other attractions is a good race course. 34 SAN ANTONIO DK BEXAR. The grounds are reached by the Aransas Pass railway with a depot in tlie adjacent park, and from town direct by the McCrillis electric cars. The president of the association is Mr. A. C. Schryver, whose office is on Commerce street near the bridge. The grounds were established in the fall of 1SS8 and the military encampment of the state militia was held here in 1 SDO. Riverside Park. — A beautiful sylvan pleasure ground, with lovely drives and groves of giant pecan trees, whose fruit is the delicious Texas nut of that name. It is the very place of all others for pic-nics, with the river, the Missions San Jose and Concepcion adjacent, and the Exposition Park and buildings across the fence. There is a fine pavilion in the grounds and arrangements for refreshments. It is reached by the San Antonio & Aransas Pass railway when there is a crowd, and always from town direct by the McCrillis system of electric cars. San Pedro Park. — A city park about a mile from the center of the town. Here are the lovely San Pedro Springs with stretches of green-sward and groves of stately live oaks, a southern evergreen that always makes us seem a summering. Pecan trees and shrubbery abound. Refreshments may be had, and there is a collection of birds and animals well worth a visit. It may be reached by Belknap System Cars. This park is a remnant of the former magnificent do- main of the city. In olden times it was a favorite resort of the Indians, and an- other fact of interest connected with the locality is, that the Canary Island set- tlers dwelt there for a short time previous to their removal to San Fernando. Vide Dr. Cupples' reminiscences. Opera House. — Situated on the west side of the Alamo plaza, fronting the garden antl almost opposite the Menger hotel. It is a veritable "Bijou" and during the season. Opera and the legitimate, follow each other unceasingly. The building is the home of the San Antonio Club, tasteful in all things. This admirable institution is treated of at length el.sev,'here. Turner Hall. — A fine hall for public meetings; concerts and other at- tractions hold the boards throughout the season. Casino Hall. — An elegant room attached to the Casino club. The home of a famous German association. This hall is frequently used for concerts and, nearly always, for the larger select dances and gennans that take place during the winter. It has pleasant parlors, is prettily decorated, and located in a re- tired bend of the river in the heart of the city. Convention Hall. — A hall erected on Flores and Hou.ston streets for the accommodation of the State Democratic Convention of 1890. There are other halls in the city, but these are all that will interest the tourist. Newspapers. — The San Antonio Daily Express (morning) is the lead- ing journal of the city, as of Western Texas. It is devoted to the interests of its section, and, while democratic in politics, it is blessed with a large share of refreshing independence and the brightest staff of newspaper men in the state. NKWSl'A PICKS, IvTC. 35 Its quarters are on Coinnierce street, and with its new press, stereotyping appar- atus and airy offices, Die lout cmcmblc is a credit to journalism anywhere. The San Antonio Daily Times (evening) is a sturdy democratic sheet. It claims to be the heir of the San Antonio Daily Herald (the earliest Texan daily) and is a pushing paper convinced of the great destiny of its city, and untiring in furthering; its progress. The San Antonio Daily Light, (evening) Republican. "The only Republican daily of the State,'' a newsy and al)ly edited journal. It makes local items a specialty, and is energetic in promulgating its principles according to the Light that is in it. The Express has a good "semi-weekly" edition, and the Times a weeky one. The Freie Pre.s.se fur Texas is also puhli.shed here with a daily and weekly edition. It is a very influential German paper. El Heraldo is a Spanish weekly for tho.se citizens who prefer the language. The Te.xas Stockman is what its name indicates, and circulates all over the State, being the recognized medium of the enormous stock industry of Western Texas. There are other minor puljlications, and a Monthly Magazine, the Texas Field, devoted to sport. Stock Yards — On South Flores street are many lots given up to the Horse and Mule trade. Here may be seen the true and only Cowboy, and with little difficulty in the matter of introductions, the tourist may make the acquaintance of stockmen whose flocks and herds browse upon a thousand hills. Here, too, may be met many a ((ueer liorder type as may be noted in the accompanying illustrations taken from life. City Additions. —The suburban Additions to the town are numerous, and enormous sums have been spent in land. Electric Street Railways and Landscape Gardening for their development. The most important are the West End, the Alamo Heights, the Lake View, East End, Beacon Hill, and Southern Heights. It would be invidious to compare them. The visitor will find ample facilities to visit them all. Artesian Wells.— The finest Artesian Well of the State is the natural one formed l)y the Springs of the Head of the San Antonio River. This water comes from an enormous depth, being of an even temperature of 70° Fahr. the year round. It affords the purest possible drinking water, and is San Antonio's chief blessing. It is evident that there are several water-bearing strata, all arte- sian and of considerable volume, in the neighborhood. Mr. Brackenridge is having a well bored which is already '2"><)() feet deep, but artesian water has not j'et been struck : the boring however will continue to the depth of ."i(MH) feet. The Kampmaim well, sunk on the Salado to a depth of -l(i.") feet, yields a strong sulphur water, used for medical purposes. The Crystal Ice Factory has a well of pure water at a different depth, flowing .several hundred thousand gallons per diem. 86 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. The Scholz well, on the River bank, flows water slightly brackish, and by a separate pipe the same well supplies his establishment with gas. At West End clear Artesian water was reached at a depth of only 250 feet in one case, and 250 in another. These wells have their overflow into the artificial lake of that suburb. In boring most of these wells, oil and gas were encountered, but the most notable instance of this is that of Mr. G. Dullnig, near the Salado. It has a flow of oil which is marketed. The apparatus on the ground is extensive and altogether this subject is worthy the attention of visitors with capital to invest. Real Estate- — There are many reliable and old established Real Estate firms in the city. The stranger should consult onl>- such, and if purchasing, it is well to get an abstract of title: this is easily obtained. Amongst all the States, Texas is peculiar in her land matters, and differs in many things, even from her ancient Spanish sisters. The United States owns no public lands within her borders, save such small tracts and parcels as may have been ceded for Military Posts. Cemeteries, or Public Buildings for Federal purposes. The old Spanish vara i^Vol inches) is still a legal land measure, though, curiously enough, the Mexicans have long since discarded its use for that of the metre. We speak, too, of o '' league," of a " labor," or of a " suerte " of land. The titles to land in Texas are very variously derived and their origin frequently curious. We have grants from the Kings of Spain, ^= grants to colonists and individuals by the Republic of Mexico, and similar concessions by the Republic of Texas. Then there are Headrights. and Locations on Scrip, issued to supply the necessities of the infant State, or to reward veterans. Later we have * Yoakum, who has done more for Texas History than any other man has or now can. relates an interest- ing chapter on Land Titles iu Texas. The following is an interesting excerpt. Vol. li, pp. 231 et seq,: "The first grants of the Spanish government in Texas of which we have any record, are those of the three Missions of Concepcion, San Juan, and La Hspada. The grants for the Missions of V'alero and San Jose were doubtless made earlier, and probably some individual grants, but we know of none now in existence. The three first-named Missions were located in the first instance on the St. Mark; but such was the difficulty of procuring water for irrigation, 'so necessary to the support of the people who were to be indoctrinated,' that on the 2()th of October, 17211, the viceroy of Mexico. Casa Fuerte. commissioned the Governor of Texas, the ex -guardian of the apostolic college of (jueretaro, and the president of the Texan Missinus, to make a new settlement or location. After some search, they made their selections of three places— two on the San Antonio river, and one on the 'Me- dina.' below the junction of the two streams. They next proceeded to the neighboring tribes of Indians, to whom "they spoke, and explained the holy and benevolent purpose of their institution; and three tribes, among others in the vicinity, viz.. the Paeans, the Pajaiats, and the Pita/acs, agreed lo settle the three places selected, and to submit to doctrine.' The commissioners, having completed their labors, made a report to the viceroy- and petitioned him to make the necessary decrees. The viceroy laid the matter before Ribera. former inspector of the //-<>/(//(),« of New Spain for his opinion. The ex-inspector reported on the 22d of September, 1780, con- curring with the report of the commissioners, except in regard to the location for the lower Mission 'on the Medina river, at thirty leagues' distance from the presidios (San Antonio and La Bahial, where it may be liable to attacks from the Apaches, who on many occasions appear in a hostile manner in that territory This danger would not exist if the said Mission were located iu the same vicinity with the other two." The viceroy, in conformity with this opinion, on the 2d of October, 1730, decreed that the captain of the royal presidio of San Antonio, should issue a decree that the three Missions should be located as recommended using his judgment as to the plan of locating the lower Mission. He further ordered that each Mission so to be located 'be furnished with three soldiers for the term of two years, this time being considered necessary for the instruction of the Indians in tillage, and at the expiration of this time one soldier shall remain in each Mis. sion. the other two returning to their corps.' On the l')th of December, 1730. the captain of the presidio of San Antonio de Bexar, in pursuance of this order of the viceroy, remitted the same to Don Gabriel Costales, captain of the presidio of La Bahta del Espiritu Santo, with orders to execute it, he being delegated as judge for that purpose, in the absence of any public or royal notary. In making a return of his proceedings, Captain Costales says; 'A dispatch was presented to me from the most excellent viceroy, through the captain of the royal presidio of San Antonio, which I kissed and RIvAL livSTATK. 37 the State granting sections to Railway, Canal and Irrigation Companies, and issuing scrip to Confederate veterans. The State has still a vast domain subject to homestead entry, and the University and School land endowments are princely. The State Capitol, at Austin, was built by disposing of ;!,()()0,O()() acres of ])ublic lands to a Chicago syndicate. Hence, it will be seen that Real Estate in Texas is a large question. To be seized of a piece of property is an old English law phra.se, and means to own it : The following curious ceremony of taking possession smacks strongly of that old-time expression, and .seems to lend point to the poor joke of William the Conqueror who, falling to the ground upon stepping from his boat at Hastings, quieted the ill-omened fears of his followers by remarking that he was only taking "seizin' " of the laud. Here is the record : "I took said Simon de Arocha and proceeded with him over the said property, and he pulled weeds and threw rocks and made other nece.ssary demonstrations in actual jiossession, calling upon the adjoining property holders to show cause why he should not be put in possession." April 21 , 1778. Other induction ceremonies refer to the grantee as " throwing stones to the four winds of Heaven," " driving stakes " and performing such like ceremonies. The original City Grant from the King of Spain having been lost in the troublous revolutionary days, the city found it advisable to sue out its title, con- sequently, on February 26th, 1845, an agreement was entered into with T. J. Devine to prosecute certain trespas.sers upon the city domain. The consideration the attorney was to receive, was one-eighth of the assessed value ot land recov- ered and SI 00 per year in addition thereto for no longer a period than five years, or to receive nothing if he did not prosecute successfully. Then followed the celebrated suit of the City versus Nat Lewis, senior, in which the City sues Nat Lewis and others for certain lands specified to be within the confines of the Original Royal Grant to the people and inhabitants of the town of " ,San placed ou my head, as a message from my king and natural lord, which with blind obedience I obey, and am ready to execute whatever it commands.' Upon this return, the captain of the presidio of San Antonio, on the 12th of January, 17:U, decreed the establishment of the Missions named. All these formalities being attended to, and the acts of each party written down, and attested by assisting witnesses, the captain of San Antonio pro- ceeded ou the -^th of March. 17-il, to the first Mission-ground, called Our I.ady of the Concepcion de Acuila. accompanied by several of the officers of the presidio, and Father Uergara. and seized the hand of the captain of the tribe, in the name of all the other Indians who had attached themselves to said Mission, and led him about over the locality, and caused him to ])uU up weeds, throw stones, and perform all theother acts of real possession, that by virtue thereof they might not be dispossessed without being first heard and detended by Father Hergara, president of the Texas Missions, or such other of the clergy as might have administration over tbeni. Afler declaring the bounds of the Mission, there was attached to it pasture-lands, watering-iilaces. irrigatnig privileges, uses, and services, and the further right, in planting time, to drive their stock out west for pasture, so as not to prejudice the crops. The act of possession concluded by notifying the Indians, through an interpreter, what they should do in advancement of Christian doctrine, and in avoidance of crime. At the same time. Captain Perez proceeded to put other tribes in possession of the Mission-grounds of San I^rancisco de /a EspaJa, and Aati Jitan, situated below, on the San .\ntonio river: the same formality being observed in each case. The record of the titles (which, as will be .seen, is a simple narrative of the action of each partyi was then filed in the archives of San Fernando de Hexar. and a certified copy furnished to each Mission. It will be obser^'cd. in the foregoing abstract of the transfer, that the title was assmned to be in the king of Spain, and that the transfer was to the Indians, and not to the priests, who. by their vows, could own no worldly estate. In regard to the Mission-lands of San Jose de Agnayo, they were claimed by Don Domingo Castelo. one of the king's ensigns, for his sen-ices at the presidio of San Saba: but, after a protracted lawsuit between him and the Mission, the title was vested in the Indians of the Mission, ou the "*th of November, ITllli, by purchase, for one hundred and fifty dollars." 38 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. Fernando" (San Antonio). The Lower Courts first decided and established the boundaries of the Original Grant to the cit)' (John James, Sr. , surveying the same)* and gave judgment for the city. The Supreme Court affirmed the decision, and upon this rests the title to all lands situated within the " Town Tract," as it is now called. Vide : Tex. Rep. \'ol. \'II. pp. 2S.S, et seq. Passing from the old-time reflections and recollections the reader's attention is invited to the following remarkable table for which we are indebted to the daily press. It shows the comparative sales during the first six months of the years 18.S!) and 1.S90 : Jauuary, 1889. . Janiiary. 1890. . February, 1889.. February, 1890.. March, 1889 . . March, 1890 . . April, 1889. . . April, 1890 . May, 1889 . May, 1890 . . . June, 1889 . . June, 1890 171,045 574,889 100,315 397.559 19),8:i2 704.247 293,441 132,184 319.438 1.489,692 183 198 1.1104 o02 * October 29, 1849. The Council resolved to ask the I'nited States Minister to Madrid to secure a copy of the Original Grant to the Corporation or town of San Fernando, in the Province of Texas or New PUHIJC HWILDINGS. 39 Public Building's. — The Alamo church, amply treated elsewhere. The F'ederal Building affording accommodation for the Federal Court and Postoffice (for dates see calendar) was designed by M. E. Bell, of Chicago, who was super- vising arcliitect at Washington under President Arthur's adniiuistration. The original plan was modified, in the direction of economy, by VV. A. Freret, of New Orleans, during President Cleveland's term. Mr. Gordon of this city being appointed architect in charge, again re-arranged the building in its present form. Under his direction, the structure grew to be the beautiful mediaeval dream that it is. Its details are worthy of careful study. The style n\ay be called Richard- sonian Romanesque with a touch reminding one of I_vOmbardy and the South of France. Notice the tower and the bold angle turret — the arcades whose pro- portions are so cleverly relieved b>' the flight of approaching steps — the beautiful mass of the building, and the construction and outline of the tile roof. The City Hall, a Renaissance Building designed by Mr. O. Kramer, and now nearing completion on Military Plaza. Its location is the best possible one, and the effect of the four white facades of native lime-stone relieved by pink granite columns, is extremely fine. The County Jail is a massive and serviceable building designed by Mr. A. Giles. The County Court House on Soledad street by the same gentleman completes the list of public buildings. PhiUipines. What came of this we arc unable to sny. The field notes of the town tract are as follows : F. I pp. 28, 2q. I Rr;rrBI.IC of TK.VAS,— county of bexar. COVNTY Sl'RVKVOR'S RKCORDS. - BEXAR COUNTY. ) FicM Notes of the survey of the lands claimed by the Corporation of the city of San Antonio, made nnder au order of the District Court of Bexar Connty, at the Sept. term. 1H^5. Ileginningr at an old stone dam on the Coucepcion ditch from the southeast corner of which a pecan ;iO in. in diameter bears south 27° west, 7'., varas. this place being pointed ont to me as the presita of the Concepcion ditch, by Rafael Herrera and Manuel Cadena. Theiice north S:l° east. (iSOO varas to a pecan tree 10 in. in diameter, on the west bank of the Salado creek, marked x from which a pecan 9 in. in diameter bears south 70° west, !;, vara; a pecan Ki in. diameter bears north 58i<°, west 16^ varas. This point was shown to me as the Paso Hondo on Salado, by Rafael Herrera and Manuel Cadena. Thence north 35!^° west, 37SK) varas to a stake set on the top of a hill from which a mesquite S in. in diameter bears north 2.'J-*^° west. 42;4 varas, a mesquite ."Mn. diameter, bears north 84° west -IJ^ varas, this be- ing pointed out to me as the I,omtta Devisidera, by Manuel Cadena. Thence north i^^i^^ west, 1.700 varas to a mound of rock, shown by Pedro Hlores and others as one of the corners of this tract. Thence north 52- i° west. 10.000 varas to a pile of rocks round the roots of a live oak tree, now nearly destroyed by fire, from which a live oak I'l" diameter bears south 75° east, 9 varas. a live oak 0" diam- eter be;irs south 10Jj° east. 7 varas. This point is between the Almas {sic) and Norillo creeks, and was shown to me by Manuel Cadena as one of the corners of this survey. Thence south 21M^° west, 11.77.5 varas to a stake set on the east bank of a small creek at a water hole from which a hackberry on west side of the creek bears south S5° west. 50 varas. a mesquite 2 in. diameter, bears south :W!-° west, 12',:? varas. this i>oint being shown to me by Do- mingo Bustillo, Dclgado and others as one of the corners of this survey, called the real of San Nicolas, or Tomas Hernandez. Thence south I2.M10 varas to a stake set on the east bank of the Leon creek, at the present crossing of the road leading from San Antonio to Jett's rancho. from which a mustiuite {sio H) inches diameter, bears north !)° east. SJ varas. a musquite .'i inches diameter, bears south (U° east. :15 varas. This point shown to me by Manuel de la Oarza and Dclgado as the pass of the acalitos and one of the corners of this survey. Thence south 2S^ east, 2400 varas to a Cottonwood tree 12 in. diameter in the bed of the I.eon creek, from which a pecan (i in, diameter bears south 57 ° east, 5 varas, a pecan ♦! in. diameter bears south 14'/^® west, K-}/^ varas. This point was shown to me by Pedro Plores and others as the I/Aguila. {sic) one of the corners of this sun-ey. Thence north :"-"i ° east, 12.010 varas to a pass on the San Pedro creek, shown to me as the Paso Nogalilos by Pedro Klores and others as one of the corners of this sur\'ey. Thence south >iS'~,. ^ east. 2655 varas to a stone dam, the place (»f beginning, including within its limits thirty-eight thousand acres of land. This survey was commenced on the 1st and ended on the llth day of February. IHI({. Nathaniel Melton and James Cocks, chaiumeu, who were duly sworn. Bearings marked j. Then follows John James* sworn certificate of Sur\'ey. This survey does not actually closr, and was after- wards corrected as to course and distance by r.iraud. The natural marks, however, here described are the basis for establishing the boundaries of tlu- Town Tract 40 SAN ANTONIO UE BEXAR. Banks. — San Antonio is a wealthy city. There are no less than four Na- tional and six Private Banks, all stable institutions. They occupy palatial quar- ters. Bank failures in the city are unknown. The bank rate of interest is from eight to twelve per cent. There are many mortgage and loan institutions who furnish money on good security at six per cent. There is, moreover, a Local In- surance Company, the directory of which is made up of our wealthiest citizens. San Antonio Club. — This institution was founded by the a.ssociation of a party of gentlemen who obtained a charter dated December 21st, 1881. It was instituted for "literary purposes, to promote social intercourse among its members and to provide them the convenience of a Club House." The following were the original incorporators ; Messrs. E. D. L,. Wickes, H. B. An- drews, Jas. T. Thornton, C. K. Breneman, Erastus Reed, A. B. Frank, J. B. Lacoste, H. B. Adams, Frank Grice, F. P. Hord, Jas. Callaghan, Thos. J. Devine and H. Grenet. The club is managed by a committee of thirteen direc- tors elected annually ; their terms expire on the .'JOth of November of each year. They elect from among their number a president, vice-president, treasurer and secretarj- and have power to fill vacancies. Thej' also pass upon the admission of members. Their meetings are on the first Tuesday of each month at S o'clock p. m. in winter and 8:30 p. m. in summer. The president, or in his absence the vice-president, authorizes the call of special meetings of directors or of the club. The finst president was E. D. L. Wickes, Esq., and he held the office many years. The present president is A. W. Houston. The club installed itself .speed- ily after its formation in a suite of rooms ( now occupied by the Harmony club) at the corner of Alamo Plaza and Alamo street abo\e the old postoffice, but soon set about plans for a more suitable home. Eventuallj' a comprehensive scheme was realized and the present club and opera house was occupied in the winter of 1886-87. The building fronts on Alamo Plaza, it is of brick and is al- together a tasteful structure. Here the club fulfils its ends and during the sea- son dispenses a hospitality that has become proverbial. Its receptions are among the great social functions of the winter, and its attentions to distinguished stran- gers who deserv'e well of their fellow-men have been iinuimerable. Members have the privilege of introducing visitors who are non-residents of the county. The present secretary is W. A. Little, Esq. Other Clubs. — .^re the " Harmony," a coterie of influential Hebrews; "The San Antonio Rifles,'' inaugurated by a compau}- of volunteers of that name ; The " Casino," an old established German association : the Turners and various Singing, Literary and Shooting societies. Young Men's Christian Association.— This body has rooms on the corner of Alamo and Commerce streets, up stairs, temporarily. Mr. Rae will be found in charge and everybody is welcome to their Reading Rooms and Gymnasium. iVlilitary Organizations. — San Antonio has seen much of war in ear- nest and in the peaceful contests of competitive drilling has retained her military laurels. The San Antonio Rifles, under Capt. Badger, and the Belkna]5 Rifles, under Capt. R. Green, achieved a national reputation at Washington, and have won prizes at every inter-state and state drill thej' have attended. The Maverick ■J- > c z THE WATERS OF .SAN ANTONIO AND SAN PEDRO. 41 Rifles, a younger company, has also distinguished itself. The armories of these companies are the scene of many pleasant informal hops during the season, and the members are otherwise a great soci;d force in the city. Many dates of interest in the history of these companies will lie found in the Calendar at the end. Friendly Societies. — All these organizations are very adequatel}' rep- resented here. The Masons are contemplating erecting a fine hall. The Odd Fellows are already installed in a magnificent building on Houston street. The Knights of Pythias are extremely strong, and the society comprises some of our most active business and professional men. The Waters of San Antonio and San Pedro. THE DITCHES OR ACEQUIAS. ' He'll turn vour current in a ditch." -Shakespeare. And now comes a pleasant chapter to narrate, pleasant because it deals with that which makes San Antonio the naturally charming place that it is, pleasant because it deals solelj' with the efforts and arts of peace in a history that is only too full of the strivings of war, bloodshed and contention ; pleasant because it has to do with clear crystal springs rising in volume from unknown, mysterious depths, deep translucent pools and bubbling brooks, a .swirling river of pure living waters and the arborous accompaniments of foliage, high canopies of greenery, broad groves, great trunks and tangled vines, and with the plenty of fields of waving corn. Let imagination wander back to the time before the waters were in the least fouled by the contact of civilization, when the first Spanish Missionaries traveling over the drier western plains happed suddenlj' upon this valley, knowing little of it, and that little only by hearsay, how their hearts must have leaped at the sight of this aliundance of pure water, these strong Several of the smaller cuts in the letter-press are produced here by perinis-sion of I,. I'rang Si Co.. Hostou. and are copyrighted designs from their series of studies. 42 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. constant springs, and goodlj' lands. They might have had within tliem a feeling of thankful exultation that their lot was cast for at least a brief space in pleasant paths. In these peaceful glades they might soon forget the lurking danger and hostility of the warlike natives : and overlooking the valley they might have concluded " Verily a river went out of Eden to water the garden ; and here are provided two, that river was divided into four heads, these by the blessing of God and our Lady Mary on our labors and resources shall be divided into many to water this second Eden." Some such an inspirtion was likely enough the origin of some of the older acequias or irrigation ditches. Or it may have been that the plain practical thought only occurred to them, " here is provided an abundance of water and fine facilities for irrigation, necessi- ties to the success of our undertakings and Missions. Let us take and have enough and to spare, for nature is lavish ; besides our converts and the people that shall be afterwards drawn here and .shall follow us soon, and shall enjoy and supplement our labors, — these will need it all by and by.'' It may be that this is nearer the truth, for that the Fathers were eminently practical and unselfish workers as well as thinkers has been proved by works which testify to this day. In these later days, when the Spanish domination is almost forgotten by the prevail- ing population, when the representing race of it is regarded simply as one of the attractive curiosities rather than one of the main historic quantities of the place, when the past and present influence of it is only keenly remembered by the lawyers, searchers after land titles and aspirants to local political emoluments (and honors) at election times, we are apt to forget how much we modern San Antonians owe to the right estimate that these men and their generation put upon the value of the water of this valley and their quick appreciation of the facilities for its distribution. San Antonio owes its very e.xistence to this estimate. For that it has been a city always more or less flourishing, it may thank these pioneers. Are we not now also — in our arrogance of the possession or rather enjoyment of an almost perfect modern system of water works, with its miles upon miles of iron pipes that was almost pressed upon the citizens like a dose of wholesome medicine upon a wilful and perverse child — only too prone to despise in our scientific superiorit)' these monuments of a simple wisdom and industry of the past. If any reader should weary at the length of these remarks on the " taking of the water," fsaca de agua) he may skip it ; but it must be written if only to do justice to the founders of our city, not to speak again of the pleasure of the task. Let this be the apology, if one be needed, for an article that may prove wearisome to some by reason of its length ; the editor has found that no such true estimate and understanding of the history, domestic and public, of the aims of these good old religious pioneers, and later their imitators in ditch construction, of " their useful toil their destiny obscure," nor indeed for that matter, the history and growth in the last century of the whole community, as by following up the gradual construction, fact of existence, and logic of these old water ways. The reader may judge for himself if it is not so, by following the story of one of these acequias from the discovery of its public necessity to the formation of a company of shareholders among those settlers mo.st nearly interested and concerned, to the obtaining of the permission from His Majesty, the King through his CONCKPCION DITCH. 43 representative the Governor, to the settlement of the neighbors' real or fancied prior water rights, to the election or appointment of the Acequiero or Aceqniador (the constructor of acequias), to the actnal construction, and finally to that interesting operation of the drawing of lots among the shareholders of the company for the " suertes " of land which the King will grant to them upon the simple conditions of cultivating the lands thus granted, of keeping the channels clear and clean, the locks, water gates, sluices, fences, aqueducts, troughs, etc., of the ditches in proper repair, and one hor.se, and arms and ammunition in read- iness to meet enemies in the protection of the colony. On this line, from how they learned to grasp the natural water advantages of the valley, may he traced the true inwardness of the life and growth of the town in the eighteenth century, say from 17'29 to 1798, of its population gradually increased by soldiery, settlers, special immigrants as those from the Canary Islands, camp followers, adventurers and Indian converts. The main or madre acequias shall be herein described in as near chronolog- ical order as it is possible to make out. The Pajalache or Concepcion Ditch. This is the oldest of all the Acequias. The exact date of its construction is doubtful, hut it was begun early in the last century. In evidence in a lawsuit — Rhodes v. Whitehead — this date was given as 1729 (see Calendar of San Antonio, October, 22d, ISo.S). It is perhaps more probable that it was completed a few years later than this. It was finally abandoned in 1869, thus .serving its puqrose nearly 140 years. It was abandoned on account of the dam which provided it with water proving too great an obstruction to the river's current and a nuisance to the city during flood times. This dam was built across the river a short dis- tance above the town ford, and above the pre.sent dam of the old Lewis Mill, about on a line with Presa street. It was very high — some two or three feet higher than the Lewis dam. From this high level, through a deep cutting, the Pajalache ditch took its waters, and striking Garden street almost immediately, it followed the direct line of that .street to the Concepcion Mi.ssion, and thence on to join the River below, irrigating lands on its way by laterals. At the intersection of Mill and Garden streets, the Alamo Madre ditch, coming from Water street a few years later, met it, and the waters of this ditch were taken across on a substantial arched stone aqueduct, which exists now, only the arches have remained buried since the disuse of the Pajalache. Before or upon the abandonment of the Pajalache, in order that the compronii.se between the citizens and the holders of water rights might be as peaceably effected as possi- ble, part of the waters of the Alamo Madre were taken at this .same intersection into a new ditch down Garden street, to the left of and on a higher level than the Pajalache, but joining the old Pajalache channel below, and .so on to Concep- cion Mi.ssion. This was a .small enough ditch in comparison to the old one, but was better than no water at all. The main water of the Alamo Madre still crossed on the aqueduct and continued down Mill street, crossing this street some distance down, turning to the left and on to join the River below. 44 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. A number of laterals issued from these ditches right and left, as from all the main ditches; but only those minor laterals that have some historical interest in themselves — such as the Alamo Mission branches — will be mentioned. The Pajalache ditch was made both wide and very deep, as may yet be traced on Garden street; of sufficient size — tradition has it — that the Fathers and their Indians kept a boat on it, from which to do the work of keeping its bed clean and clear of obstruction. The main object of this old acequia was to supply the Concepcion Mi.ssion and its lands with water. The San Pedro Ditch. This ditch comes next in point of interest. It was constructed to supply the Villa Capital de San Fernando as well as to irrigate lands along its course. It issues from the east side of the head waters of the San Pedro creek, taking its way towards and down North Flores .street crossing to Acequia .street and flowing across the west side of Main Plaza immediately under the front of San Fernando Church (Cathedral now), then still keeping to the east of South Flores street passes through the United States Arsenal grounds to the east side of the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railroad Depot, on to join the San Antonio River, with a branch to the San Pedro Creek, in the fork of the Y of the River and Creek. As to the date of the construction of both this ditch and the Alamo Madre, the evidence is a little tangled. It cainiot be many 3'ears the junior of the Pajalache. It is frequently mentioned in the docinnents relating to the Upper Labor ditch of 177(J to 1784 in the County and City Records and other documents, and at the earliest of these dates the San Pedro ditch had undoubtedly been in use many years. Such evidence in regard to these two ditches as has been found bearing upon the point will be given, and the reader may draw his own conclusions. A fuller description of the origin of the Upper Labor, the editor trusts, will in a measure make up for the lack of accurate knowledge as to these. In 1730 the Canary Island settlers came, and on November the "JSth of the same year, La \'illa Capital de San Fernando was founded and a Presidio " erected " under Antonio de Aviles, so says an ancient copy of the Ordinances of San Antonio. In 1738 the corner stone of the old Parish Church of San Fernando was laid, and on February 10th, 1773, that good Governor, Baron Ripperda, who .seems to have been so active in any matters that pertained to the welfare of San Antonio, built the first Quarters, Guard- house and Jail for the Presidio. Now, it is highly probable that the San Pedro ditch was completed just about the time of the building of the Parish Church. This period was very active in the prosecution of many public and ecclesiastical works. There is good reason to believe that it was constructed later than the Pajalache and earlier than some of the others. The Alamo Madre Ditch. The purpose of this ditch was to supply water to the Mission of San Antonio de Valero, or the Alamo Mission, and its lands. Its course was and is a long and useful one, and its carrying capacity is large. It has manj^ useful and historical laterals and branches, and some that are abandoned and some that were failures from the first. The course of the mother ditch (the laterals will be spoken of ALAMO MADRl'; DITCH. 45 afterwards) is on this wise : After leaviiii>" its source, at one of tiie most easterly points of the head of the River, its meanderin.i^s follow a little to the east of the line of the road known as River Avenue, passing between the west end of the Government Post Reserve and the River, whence it goes on to a jjoint a little to the west of the Southern Pacific Depot, passing on through properties Ij'ing between Avenue li and Austin street : thence across llie junction of Nacogdoches street and Nolan street, across Crockett, Blum and Ivist Connnerce streets (nearly all this course was formerly irrigable land), down Water street, over the old Pajalache in an aqueduct ; thence down Mill street, across it, turning t(3 the left to the River l^elow. Its first notable branch (to go back again to its source and going down) was one which was called the \'alley Ditch, constructed from plans of Mr. Frei.sleben ; and wliich, Irom the time of its completion — about 1S72 — proved to be an utter failure, and but a .sorry venture to the city, the engineer having made errors in the grade. It was almost immediately aban- doned. It issued from the Madre at a point at the extremity of Grand Avenue, near the Southern Pacific Railroad Depot, taking a south-easterly direction down Walnut street to a course left of the old Goliad road, over the south-eastern limits. The next branch — that one which issued from a jioint near the end of Fifth street (east), not far from the angle formed by Nolan and Nacogdoches streets, is of some historical importance. It makes at once for the eastern walls of the Alamo Mission, and may be seen close under the east end of the Alamo Church, and is said to have supplied the beseiged with water in that terrible strug- gle of ISMC). From here it passes on through the Menger Hotel court-yard ; thence to supply, in old times, the inhabitants of East Villita, joining the mother ditch once more near the intersection of Goliad and Water streets. This ditch was known as the ditch of the Alamo proper, and itself had a branch abandoned years ago, reaching around the north and west ramparts of the Alamo Mission square, passing along the west line of stores on our modern Alamo Plaza, through the Opera House ground, joining the River there at the back on Crockett street. Then another modern branch (about in the '()(t's) reached backward from the mother ditch on Martinez street toward Garden street, cro.ss- ing the old Pajalache in one of those curious acjueducts spoken of in the Spani.sh records as " canoa " — a canoe or hollowed log, of cj-press generally — ^joining the River immediately after crossing Garden street. The next branch was one already mentioned in the description of the Pajalache — a compromise ditch to the lands around Missicjn Concepciou. The Mission of San Antonio de Valero, as shown by Giraud, was moved to the east bank of the San Antonio River from the Post of San Jo.se, out West, in 171.S, " on account of the .scarcity of water ; " but the building up of the Mission went on l)ut slowly, and the foundation of the Church was not laid until 1744. The date that this Mission supplied itself with water by means of the Acequia Madre del Alamo is uncertain. That it is one of the earliest ditches is certain. At any rate, it is placed here third in the order of chronology. One reason of the scarcity of mention of this ditch, may be found in the fact that the partition of the Alamo lands did not occur until 1793; so that it is not mentioned in deeds as a property boundary line until then ; but of course it was made manv years before that date. 40 SAN ANTOXIO DE BEXAR. The Upper Labor Ditch. More particulars concerning tbe origin of this ditch can be given than of any of the others that have been described, and they are given in the belief that these particulars throw an interesting light upon the life and workings of a period in the history of San Antonio which cannot be regarded but curiously and in- quiringly. In the County Records may be found many documents and copies of decrees, ordinances, petitions and letters in the original Spanish relating to this Acequia, and in the City Engineer's office may be found translations of some of these and other documents, presumably sent from Coahuila, and from other sources have been obtained copies of translations of these with additions, notably a lengthy document, which, it is alleged, was published in the San Antonio Ledger on April 1st, 1852 ; all these are more or less tangled in their dates and abound in other clerical errors,* These dates have been compared and checked off as far as possible, and from this material has been gleaned most of the follow- ing information. In the first days of the year 177<), it was found to be desiraljle to irrigate lands lying between the upper part of the San Antonio River west and the San Pedro Springs. The matter was agitated among some citizens interested tuitil * The foUowiug is a specimen excerpt of the documentary evidence referred to, the translation does not seem to be very good, a few of the most conspicuous errors have been corrected. The first decree of the Goveruor. "Don Juan Maria de Ripperda. Baron of Ripperda. Colonel of Cavalry, Goveruor of this Province of Texas, its Missions and Conquests and Frontiers, Commander of Arms lor Forces) of the same and of Coahuila and Nueva Leon. Captain of the Royal Presidio of San Antonio de Bexar, by his Majesty the King. "Not having been practised up to this, the interesting and important conveyance of water, which operation is rendered so easy by the proximity of the San Antonio river to the city and garrison, and although in a commu- nication from the Viceioy, the Marquis Casa Fuerte dated September 20th, 1781, His Excellency ordered that the water of the two springs should be divided among the four first settlers that should come to this place, and Mis- sion with their families, allowing to them such hours of the day as might suit their convenience for the irrigation of their land, letting afterwards the waters to flow freely so as to give the same benefit to the next neighbors by such means all would be provided with plenty of water for their lands in cultivation without injuring each other. "In a second communication from the same Most Excellent Viceroy dated the 12th of May 17315 to the Governor of this Province, Don Antonio Bustillos y Cevallos. the order was given to distribute the waters ofthe San An- tonio river and the San Pedro creek among the Fathers ofthe ^Missions, the Garrison and all tlie settlers of the town of San Fernando giving to all the necessar\- supplys isio without depriving the Indians in their settle- ments, but with the condition that should the water at any time be insufificient to give to all continually a sup- ply, in such a contingency to be served by turns between all the neighbors, according to law 11. title 17. book 4. ofthe Recapitulation of the Indies, which states that iu case their town should increase in population, it was the imperious duty ofthe Governor to have all the inhabitants well supplied with water. "In compliance with the said law. the actual Governor (being sick at the time.) appointed Don Mateo Perez Lieutenant of this Company of Bexar with instructions to give possession ofthe right of water for irrigation to all the actual settlers, and for any other that might come in future, accordingly the right was given in due form on the '27th of October 17o;3. to all the settlers residing above the town ford on the same river, San Antonio, and with the intention of carrying into effect the taking of the water, several of the neighbors of this city and Pre- sidio have applied to me wishing to aid in its execution, and as all the families ofthe Canary Island settlers as well as all the rest of the inhabitants feel iutei est in it, according to former supenor decrees, and in order to avoid in future all motives of discord between settlers. I have ordered that if the said families of the Canary Island settlers, or their actual descendants should have any other document that taay prove in their favor, to pre- sent it to me within four days with the answer signed by all the persons, heads of said families, so that I may pro- ceed without delay to the construction of the work, it being of great importance. "In faith thereof I have signed this ray decree on January lOth ]77(i. "El B.A.Rl)N RlI'rKRD.\. "Acting as Judge Receptor with the witnesses of my assistance in the absence of a Notary Public, there being none in the Province, and on the present common paper not having an\' with the Royal Seal or stamp. HL BARON RIPPERDA. "Witnesses;— JOSE Ygnacio Orneles. Antonio Barcenaz." * * * *^ * And so on, the decrees, correspondence, etc., continue. UPPER LABOR DITCH. 47 the Governor of the Province of Texas, Baron Juan Maria de Ripjterda, a pro- gressive and industrious man, directed his attention to it, and on January 10th, 1776, he issued a decree in order to avoid, as he says, in the future, all motives of discord between settlers, ordering the Canary Island settlers or their actual descendents to ))roduce any document, if they have one, that might prove in their favor, and present it to him within four days, their reply to be signed by the heads of the said families. To this decree on January 15th, they reply that they have no document, but think there are some decrees or schedules in their favor, deposited in the Archives of this town, and they respectfully ask permission to be allowed to examine the Archives to search for these. This request is signed by eleven of the Canary Island settlers, or their descendents. The next day, January Kith, 177<), a meeting of the Cabildo is called by .special order of the Governor, and in the ]>resence of that coqioration, it was decided that all the documents Ijearing any relation with the town and the Canary Island settlers should be examined, and it was there and then declared that should any document be found in the Archives of the Captain-General, the right should be reserved to make use of them at any future time. A memoran- dum to this effect, besides being signed by the settlers, bears also the signature of the President, Father and Friar of the Mi.ssions Pedro Ramirez. Baron Ripj^erda next addresses a communication similar to the first- mentioned to the President of the Mi.s.sions, reiterating that there were only two documents or superior decrees in exi.stence in connection with the water rights granted to the Mi.ssions and settlers of the town and maintaining that the inhabitants of the place were free to u.se the water of the River for irrigating purposes if they did not interfere with the supply to the Missions. Those documents being decrees of the Viceroy the Marquis of Casa I-'uerte dated September 'idth, 17-'U, and May l'2th, 17Ho, therefore the Governor wishes to know if the Missions under the President's charge have any claim emanating from any superior decree. If they have, the Governor would like to be infonned of it as soon as practicable, " so that the public may be no longer de- prived of such a great benefit " as the distribution of the water. To which communication the President of the Missions replies, dating from the Mi.s.sion of San Juan, January 2()th, 177(), that none of the five Missions possesses any document in their favor in prejudice of the inhaljitants, he sees clearly, however, that the Mi.ssions being situated by Royal decree upon the banks of the River, with the rights of permanent and sufficient water for the cultivation of their lands, they have the jirior right of possession and construction of channels, he mentions this right in ca.se the Mi.ssions may wish to exercise it at some future time, but the President is not of the dog in the manger kind, and he says he is of the opinion that there is such a profusion of water in the River that it aflbrds to all the .same benefit, and the Missions will make no opposition under the one understanding that the right of priority be reserved to them. The Governor Rii>]ierda having thus satisfied himsell that he is trespassing on no one's proper rights, he desires that the two ch)cuments be filed under the understanding that any taking of the water nnist lie eflfected without injuring the supply to the Mi.ssions. He is also .satisfied that it has been clearly shown 48 SAX ANTONIO DE BKXAR. and declared that there exists no other superior decree that might act in the favor either of the settlers or the " five towns of the Missions," he accordingly issues an ordinance requesting the neighbors and those who maj- wish to con- tribute to the taking of the water, to enlist themselves forthwith, contributing every one any and "necessary utensils," and the Baron promises that the partition of the lands " will be made with the due equity of chance." He insists that the person who may take charge of the work must possess intelligence and experience ; the election of the Acequiero to be decided by a plurality of votes among the shareholders. The Acequiero elected shall be entitled to an extra portion or suerte of land, but he shall furnish two additional men. The Gov- ernor then makes in his decree, numerous suggestions concerning the construction of the ditch, as to its protection from cattle by the planting of nopal trees (prickly pears) or other thorny bushes, and says that the water gates must have stone and mortar foundations and suggests other sensible precautions concerning the width, depth and general completeness of the work to be done. He is very thorough, but withal indulgent, and he says that all the persons engaged in the construction may .suggest any opinion that may contribute to the convenience and benefit of all, so that everything (lie loves peace — this good Governor) may move .smoothly and peaceably, for the end, he says, "of the respectable laws of his Catholic Majesty, is to avoid in his dominions all kinds of discords amongst his subjects." And in order that this important decree may be made known and promptly executed, " I have ordered its publication, after holding High Mass, at the beating of the drum at the door of the Court House, as cu.stoman.-." In the meanwhile, we ma}' surmise that things went along smoothly for a while, for nothing more is heard of the Upper Labor Ditch and its con,struction until July 13th, 1776, when we learn of the second election, in which one Angel Galin is elected over his opponent, Bartholome Seguin, to take the place of Foribio Fuentes, who, for "reasons by him expo.sed, which were found .suffi- cient," makes application to be relieved and to be awarded the emoluments in land, etc., to which he was entitled. He is relieved on July loth, on the condi- tion that he put two men daily on the work of construction until the new director shall bring the irrigation to a convenient place, which means that the first Suertes of land would be drawn for and granted when the water had been conveyed over sufficient land to warrant a partition. On the former date, July 13th, the share-holders who seem to desire to profit by some undesirable experiences entered into a hard and fast agreement with Angel Galin, the newly elected Ace- quiero, in which he is bound to continue the work to its conclusion without the in- terference of any person, for the sum of one dollar per da}-, deducting the price of four men of the twenty-six to work daily, (the poor peones or laborers could not have made much above the price of their salt, according to this), and under no consid- eration whatever will a substitute be allowed him, and that those entitled to irrigation shall have the right to remove him, in case the work shall be badly directed, or for any "other motives that impartial persons may find, such as delay, bad work, directior. &c, " he is to inspect the work daily until the object of fur- nishing all the neighbors with water be accomplished, and lie binds himself to the completion of the contract "with all his present and future property." To all this Angel Galin is ready to agree, so he takes charge of the work. TIIK UPPlvR LABOR DITCH. Ill All these decrees of the Baron are dated, "in the town of San Fernando &c., &c.," now comes one however dated "In the Royal Garrison of San Antonio de Bexar, and city of San Fernando" on the 2.Sih day of April 1777, in which the Governor says, that he has been informed that the work has reached as far as La Lomita de Vieja, and tlial the first distribution of Snertes could be made to the twenty-five persons entitled to them and two for Foribio Fuentes, the Kx- Acequiero. Twenty-six chances contain •25,2;!;! varas of land, which are meas- ured for irrigation into portions of different lengths lying between the River and the Acequia. It is a pity to waste a season, and it is now April and the season for planting corn is passing, so the Governor orders the drawing at once to be made in the Court House of the town, giving admittance to all the persons inter- ested, (a complete list of the shareholders follows) and to everybody wishing to witness the operation. The twenty-six tickets are placed in one covered urn and the names in another, two children draw these, the Governor reads the results. Each shareholder draws his Suerte (literally his luck) of good rich acres of the Labor de Nuestra Seiiora de los Dolores, and it is granted to them by the king that they may take possession of it, and bequeath the titles to their children or any other heirs, and no other person or persons .shall at anv time have any claim or right in the said properties which have hitherto been considered as be- longing to the Crown af Spain. The Governor forthwith directs Don Simon de Arocha Lieutenant-General of the Province to give to those entitled, possession of their lands thus drawn, upon the simple conditions mentioned in the introductory to this subject. The .second and final drawing was held on the sth day of March 1778, the total being fifty-two Suertes distributed, thus; first drawing, twenty-five among the shareholders; one extra to the ex-constructor who was also a share holder; second drawing, twenty-one among the shareholders; one extra to Angel Galin, con.structor who was also a shareholder; and four to be cultivated in com- mon, to cover some expen.ses; total fifty two Suertes. Perhaps it is a fact sufli- ciently interesting to notice, that the family of Rodriguez still occupies the land thus granted near the junction of this ditch and the San Pedro ditch. Every- thing is not cleared up however with regard to construction until April 2nd 1781 when Angel Galin reporting that the ditch being newly cleaned, and the water turned in, he desires to be released from further obligations. And still the shareholders were not satisfied, and in 17S4 the quarrels over the Upper Labor ditch were waxing so hot, that the Governor by petition, used his influence to keep the peace. This ditch, the Upper Labor, taking its waters from the west side of the head waters of the San Antonio ri\-er, takes the course of the Rock Quarry Road, reaching around Tobin's Hill, across San Pedro avenue, joining the San Pedro ditch at the Rodriguez property near the west extremity of Laurel street, and b}- an overflow here really joins, acro.ss the narrow strip of land intervening, the San Pedro creek. From a point soon after it leaves the Rock Quarry road, a branch issues from it in a direction towards Madison Square, watering lands between that point and the San Antonio river. It has another more important but quite mod- ern branch in the Alazan ditch, this was constructed from plans made by Mr. Giraud in 1S72, and in reality carries the Upper Labor water north up San Pedro Avenue and around the San Pedro Springs to the west, then taking a .southerly 50 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. course irrigates all those lands west of the San Pedro creek. The I. & G. N. R. R. follows pretty closely its line as far as the ditch goes. This ditch finall}- joins the Alazan creek some little distance before that creek joins the San Pedro creek. It was finished and opened June '.Hh, IST"). It cost the city with the X'alley ditch, a branch of the Alamo Madre ditch, mentioned before, and constructed at the same date $o3,00n. The Alazan was a bold and practical conception, but the work seems to have been inadequately done. The control of the ditches has long since left private hands. The first Amer- ican manager of ditches was Capt. J. H. Beck in 1.S.30. In 1S.")S the citj- took them in hand and on January 1st of that year John Fries was appointed first Ditch Commissioner by A. A. Lockwood, mayor. That office is at present held by Mr. P'rank Huntress. The San Antonio River. But then I love its lazj- days' Perpetual blaze of bluest blue, Aud love to bask as oft I do Down where the river winds its ways, Where giant trees the Summer through Seem halls that echo wizard lays. Where all day long those lays are heard From throbbing throat of mocking liird Above the chorus crickets raise, Where most I miss the purple hue And scents of heaths and heather. And where I love to sing the praise Of Texas Summer weather. —The B. B. in' Texas. The story of the river as applied to the public interests of our city is a stor)' to make angels weep and to cause the alligators, if our river had an}', not only to shed crocodile tears, but to actual!}' feel sad, and this is all the more touching when it is considered that sadness must be a feeling strange to animals of such proverbially good digestions. Of coarse the alligators are hypothetical, they were never pets of our Saint Anthony. The gootl saint in the first place made his river too crooked for their comfort and in the second they concluded that he and his river were entirely too fresh for them, so they returned to the muddy bayous of Eastern Texas. But this is not to be a history of angels or alligators, but a word or two about a subject we are just a little chary of handling without gloves ; this accounts for our quoting poetry and dragging angels in by the nim- bus and wandering off to such irrelevant subjects as alligators. THK SAN ANTONIO RIVKR. ol " We would a rouiul unvarnished tale deliver " but it is just this waj' with us — we don't know exactly whether to feel glad that the Head of the River is not a beer garden — or to be sad that a city could sell so t^rand a birthright, not only to sell it but to lie so blind and remorseless that it refused to buy it back when it had a good chance. And as " To mourn a mischief that is past and gone Is the next way to draw new miscliicf on " we won't be sad about it. There is such a variety of ways of looking at this subject that we will just state some incidents and particulars that we know about, nor rashly rush into any unseemly display of high spirits. The worst that can be said about our splendid system of water supply is, that " it gomes a leedle high." The City of San Antonio is a credit to its Water Works. It is said that the first permanent settlement on the San Antonio river was near its head in the year 1602. Nearly two hundred years ago. For years after this the river source to mouth belonged to the Crown of Spain.* The first char- ter granted to San Antonio was given by the King of Spain in the year IToo or 'o4. It only has to l)e remembered that the Recapitulation of the Indies con- tained strict laws and rules concerning public water rights, to be certain that the wondertul resources of our river in relation to public comfort and welfare were duly remembered. True, to the Mi.ssions were granted the prior priviliges, but then the Missions were one of the many starting points of our City's history. Forty years afterwards neither these privileges nor those alleged to have been conferred upon the Canary Islanders were held to interfere with the rights of any other citizens or settlers in and about San Fernando. And it came to pass in later days when Texas had changed hands the new City Government found it necessary to establish the boundaries of San Antonio. This was finally done in the courts, all about which doings can be found in Texas Reports, Vol. 7, page 288 et seq. And Giraud made the " Original City Survey." The lots contain- ing the Head Springs of the river, or the Worth Springs as they were called about that time — because General Worth had camped there with his Militar)- force — were accounted, with nnich other land, as belonging to the City's public domain. Now, the finances of the City ni the years preceeding IS.'iO were not in the most flourishing condition. The Council hardly knew to what quarter thej- should turn for funds to build the long talked of Court Hou.se, Jail and School House. The Council felt themselves to be " land poor." In section eight of the City Charter of December 14th, 1837, it was permitted that certain parcels of Public Land might be .sold. The proceeds of any such sale to be appropriated to the erection of the buildings mentioned and the endowment of a Public School. The land was not ordered to be sold until August 2 Itli, 184H. It was decided on October 2'.)th, 184!), to erect such buildings and in the following year, September (ith, they were begun on the northwest corner of the Military plaza. This, the old "Bat Cave,'' is to be removed soon or as .soon as the New City Hall is completed. And this old ' Bat Cave ' furnished the excuse and grounds upon which were sold the City's lands. Shortly after this there was ap])ointed by the City "■ a committee to regulate the sale of the City Lands " and on November 4lh, « 01»scrve Willi regard to this in the article on " The Upper I^abor tiitch." 52 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. 1852 when the foil}' was ripe another committee which had been similarly ap- pointed "to decide the manner of selling the City property" reported to the Council that they had chosen Martin H. Campbell licensed auctioneer to sell the City lands bj- public outcry. To Giraud's everlasting credit be it said, that he saw the mistake that was about to be made and the wrong that would eventually revert upon the City, and to a meeting of the Council on November Sth, 1852, he presented a report* which was adopted strongly advising the reservation of certain lots at the Head of the River to the use of the City. He thought it would be a good place for the U. S. Arsenal and other public works. Whilst he was on the subject he wished also to recommend that a Square be kept at the San Pedro Springs for " a male college." Also that certain hard stone quarries on the City properties be not sold, and the wise Engi- neer continues to beg the Honorable Body to reserve and make a road upon the east bank of the river, twenty varas wide, also a similar road on the east side of the Alamo Madre ditch, " as near the river and ditch as they may be placed con- sistently with public interests." But alas ! on that very day, November Sth, 1852. Lot 31, Range 1, District No. 2, containing 11 /^^ acres had been sold by the auctioneer upon the usual terms, 20 per cent, cash down, the rest in fifty years bearing interest at 8 per cent, per annum, for the sum of $820. Also lot 30, same Range and District containing 12, ^s,,, same terms, for the sum of $655, — both to Alderman J. R. Sweet. Lot 31 is the land upon which was erected the old Sweet Homestead, and the lot upon which the fine residence of Mr. Brackenridge now stands adjoining it. These lots were the nucleus of that most desirable property that is generally known as the "old Sweet place," with- out doubt one of the most beautiful, if not the most beautiful, places in Texas, its woodland grace and parklike beauty so heightened by the perpetual mystery of its profound and noble springs. This is the Head of the River. There are other fine properties in this neighborhood with exceptional water advantages and privi- leges, but this property was really the key to the situation, the Ojo de Agua, the birthright of the city. The "Sweet place" included besides the two already men- tioned, five other lots, originalh' sold at the same time by the City to various pur chasers, but all finally acquired by Mr. Sweet by the summer of 1859, and by him sold on August 29th 1859, to Mr. G. W. Barnes, ofSavanah, Ga. These other lots were Nos. 30 and 31, Range 1, District 3; something over twenty acres apiece sold by the City to Francois Marchant, Marchant and City to Sweet through the sheriff. Eots Nos. 28 and 29, Range 1, District 2, sold by the City to T. J. Devine, Nov. 8th, 1852, by Devine to O'Hara, by O'Hara to Sw^eet. Lot 32, Range 1, District No. 2, sold by the City to Geo. M. Martin, by Martin to Sweet in 1859. These seven original City lots formed the "Sweet property" and this, G. W. Barnes owned for just ten years when he sold it to Mrs. Isabella H. Brackenridge, September 15th 18G9. It is now owned by Mr. Geo. W. Bracken- ridge, the well known banker and president of our Water Works, who has by many improvements, additions and wise investment, made it what it is to-day — ■ an invaluable possession. If the story of our City's negligence and folly had * It would be interesting to hear what good tlie adoption of this Report ever did for the City of San Antouio. and further to learn why the members of the Honorable Body themselves paid so little heed oi respect to its purport. And was it not this same question which so agitated the honest soul of our good Aldermau Mackey, some two years ago. ? THK vSAN ANTONIO RIVER. 53 ended here in the sale of her finest heritage, it would hardly he worth while to waste further space. But there is a .sequel, a le.sson it is well for the rising gen- eration of electors and embrvo aldermen to take to heart. It is highly probable that Mr. Brackenridge, with his keen instinct for real values, did not underate the prize. It is moreover not wholly surmise upon which it might be averred that he saw that the City ought to be the owner of this mag- nificent property. He sees it to-day, but now as before he does not underate his possession, as far as their value to the City is concerned. The Head of the River property and the Water Works are too closely linked together by mutual interesst, to allow a consideration of them apart. That Mr. Brackenridge was willing to part with the Head of the River at all, is an indication of some disinterestedness, but what speaks more loudly- for this, is, that he was willing to part with it at not an immoderate price. His terms are sufficient proof of this to-day. The area of the Sweet tract was altogether 108 acres more or less. This with im- provements and some important additions, Mr. Brackenridge on Januarj- l(Jth 1872, offered to sell to the City for the sum of $.50, 000. He offered it upon easier terms than those upon which the City had sold its lands twenty years before, ex- cept that he was the better judge of values. He did not even ask for the 20 per cent., cash down, it appears. He would, he said, rent the place for $4,000 per annum, the exact amount of interest he asked, viz 8 per cent., the money in fifty years. It seems almost incredable, yet if the very full reports and large corres pondence may be relied upon, the.se are true particulars. His offer was read and accepted on Januarj' 22d by some members of the council and Mayor Thielepape, yet there must have been a division of opinion among the members. The matter at once became a subject of consuming interest in the town. The newspapers were full of it. People for the time talked of nothing else. A most prophetic letter, viewed in the light of subsequent developments, appeared in the San An- tonio Herald over the signature of "Citizen" on Feliruary 2nd 1S72. It strongly urged that the purchase be consummated and pointed out that the price and term? were reasonable. The mi.sguided faction won the day. Governor Davis on March 12th put a check upon the proceedings. The Secretary of State with many others unfortunately, threw what influence they possessed, unwittingly, against the be.st interests of the community. On March 27th Governor Davis appointed Mr. Newton in the place of Thielepape removed, and effectually threw the business into abeyance. Thielepape, as long as he had the power, without doubt had done all he could to clinch the bargain. He said he saw that the purcha.se would prove to be a bargain for the City. It must be acknowledged that the odds are that he did, and that he was much more of a prophet than the majority of his fellow citizens. Another clear case of the minority being in the right. On April 3rd a special conuuittee of four — Their names? — It matters not — was appointed by the council "to test the finality of lix-Mayor Thielepape's contract with Mr. Brackenridge. This committee on May (ith, causes the alleged purchase to be revoked and rescinded. Of course this proceeding does not satisfy Mr. Bracken- ridge so on August ord, he tenders the rent for the property he has been occupy- ing This is refused by Mayor Newton. Not even content with this and fear- ing a cloud on his title, Mr. Brackenridge enters suit to try and compel the City 54 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. to its obligations. This suit 'was however very amicably settled in November 1874. The alleged contract being declared null and void. This is the true story of how and why the City of San Antonio to-day does not own the property commonly called "The Head of the River." And where, O where are your twenty vara road.s — good honest hearted Giraud?! It has already been said what a lovely river the San Antonio is, what a source of blessing it is, and how it meanders and winds up and down. " in and out and around about" the City, that this is mentioned again must be excused for we have acquired the San Antonian love for this dear stream, and we leave the sentiment with regret to talk of iron pipes, contracts, engineers and incorporaters, and suchlike soulless articles and beings. The Water Works. That our best water brought by couduits liither. — Coriolanus, Act ii, Scene iii. The first "Water Works" of San Antonio were ofcour.se the early irrigation ditches, supplemented by shallow wells. The abundance of water, apparently pure, but really impure by reason of generations of drainage over and through accumulations of filth, was a stumbling block to the minds of the less enlightened citizens. The constant preaching however of those who knew to those who wished to know, at last made a system of Water Works possible in the community. Very gradually the conversion went on, until to-day every citizen of us is alive to the importance of the handy profusion of sweet pure water, and keenly sensible of the tremendous growth year by year in monetary value of "The Water Works" property. The water question was in constant agitation from the date of the last visitation of cholera in ISfiG. Many suggestions and offers were made and discussed, but the first really definite proposition was made in May 1873, by Mr. Geo. M. Maverick, but it fell through. In April 1875 there was a meeting to consider an offer made by "The National Waterworks Company" of New York. The offer was refused. The matter did not abate in interest, how- ever, for on May 3d, 1875, a meeting was called, and held on the 6th at the Menger Hotel, at which much was said in favor of a system of Water Works for the City. It was hard Missionary work. September 3d a company was sug- gested, in spite of apathy and indifference prevailing, of which Mr. H. B. Adams was to be President and F. Giraud Secretary. The time, however, was not quite ripe, and this company was never probably fully organized. On April 3d, 1877, the City of San Antonio gave the original contract of the San Antonio Water Works Company to J. B. L,acoste and associates, in which the latter were to supply the City of San Antonio with water, using the Head of the San Antonio River as a .source of supply. The work was to be begun " six months from the date of the arrival of the Railroad," and to be finished within Till'; \vati:r works. 55 fifteen months from and after April ;')(1, 1S77. This arrangement as to time was literally carried out. The storage reservoir was to be completed within two years from April .'id, ISTT. The City of San Antonio agreed to lease to J. B. Lacoste and associates for a reservoir, six acres of ground on the upper or western part of Rock Quarry Road, and also the property at the head of the Upper Labor Ditch, " heretofore set aside by the City for the purposes of Water Works," so long as this contract continues in force. Permission for the Company to use rock from the City quarries was al.so given. The contract " shall subsist " for a period of twenty-five years from the com- pletion of said works, at the end of which time the City shall have the right to buy the works at an appraised value, but if the City does not buy back at the end of twenty-five years, the contract shall run until the works are purchased, and tlie right to purchase the same shall inure to the City every five years thereafter, the City to give twelve months' notice of its intention to buy. The amended contract or ordinance was made on January 2'Jth, 18S1, when Mr. J. H. French was mayor, and when Mr. Brackenridge had acquired the con- trol of the Water Works Company, he being President of the Company at that date. The features of the amendment were the relinquishment by the City of the rental of $500 per annum, that the Company was to pay taxes on an assessment up to the amount of $2")0,0flO, and that at the expiration of the contract if the City should "avail itself of the right to purchase, and the parties cannot agree as to price, the matter is to be decided by arbitration." To return to the work done by J. B. lyacoste and associates under the original contract. Credit must be given to the first engineer of the works, Mr. W. R. Freeman, for the simple and effective scheme to utilize the water power of the River to pump the water of the Head to a still higher level, to obtain sufficient pressure. The reservoir, was not constructed upon the site originally selected, but on the summit of a hill higher in the eastern vicinity of the Head of the River. The raceway, however, was constructed as designed without interfering to any appreciable degree with the supply of water to the irrigation ditches. And the turbines did good service for many jj'ears. The works were duly finished under the original contract, and upon completion, they were tested and re-tested, and on July 5th, IST.S, Mr. J. P. Newcomb, Chairman of the Com- mittee on Water Works, etc., reported to the Council that the Water Works had been duly finished on July 3d, 1S78, and recommended that the following reso- lution be adopted : " Resolved, That the City of San Antonio hereby formally accept the Water Works constructed by J. B. Lacoste and associates under the contract made with the Citj' under Section 560 of Digest of Revised Ordinances. This acceptance to date from od day of July, 1878." This report and the accoinpanj'ing resolution was unanimously adopted July 5th, 1878. There was for some time l)ul poor patronage for the Water Works. People had to be educated to the importance of their new acquisition. Prejudice had to be overcome. Mr. Lacoste disposed of his interest, and the Works took a new lease of life under the Brackenridge rule. With a .serene faith in the future of the City, Mr. Brackenridge has yearly put and advised his Company to put thousands •V) SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. and thousands of dollars tinderground, until to-day the City has a vast network of iron pipes. For several years there have been factions, each having a different opinion as to the proper mode of settling this question as to the ownership of the Works. For a long time previous to 1885 attacks on the validity of the contract were constant from certain quarters. This, however, was temporarily set at rest by an exhaustive opinion by Mr. S. G. Newton, who was City Attorney in that year. He decided : "I am of the opinion that the City Administration was authorized under its Charter to make the contract, and that the contract contains no pro- visions that invalidate it." Others again now advocate that the City .-diould con- demn the property. This policy could not be defended upon any just ground, for it behooves a City Council or Corporation to be as just and honest as the indi- vidual. The purchase of the Water Works is, as we go to press, the burning question of the hour. An offer from the San Antonio Water Works to sell the Works for §2,000,000 is before the people. Mayor Callaghan with characteristic foresight is stronglj' in favor of the purchase. Being a man of progress and ha\-- ing in view first and foremost the best interests of the Cit}', he tirges upon the citizens the necessity of a sj-stem of sewers. Such a work he argues caiuiot be economicallj' carried out unless the control of water is in the hands of the own- ers of the system of sewers. Water is indispensable to the best systems. "Recognizing," he says, "the growing needs of the citizens for proper sewage works," he held, "that a water supply was of utmost necessity and consideration, and to this end he would urge the purchase of the Water Works plant." The citizens trust him. Nothing he has done has forfeited this confidence. He has done much to win it. Yet no one knows better than he that from some quarters he will get hard knocks for his pains. No one cares less for hard knocks when he thinks himself to be in the right. It is this independent and progressive spirit that has earned for him a long lease of the Mayor's seat. A lease that is not likely soon to expire unless he seeks or has thrust upon him the honor of repre- senting this district in the National Congre.ss. His influence is almost an assurance that the purchase will be favorably voted upon by the citizens on Sep- tember .'JOth. It has been shown how on a former occasion, the citizens by opposing a farseeing Maj'or (Thielepape in l'S72), upon a similar question, in a great measure sowed the seeds of the harvest that to-da}- has to be gathered. It is wisest to make the best of the crop as it .stands. It is not within the scope of this .sketch to discuss the financial aspect of the question. But it occurs that the Water Works enjoys a large income (which has hitherto been spent in developing), therefore the purchase could not actually be a burden on the City., although theorists would try so to prove. Not to mention the value of Real Estate which the offer includes. Many of the City's influential men favor the project. The question is to be decided by a vote of the tax-paj^- ers, on September 30th, 1890. Mr. Brackenridge in a recent interview, expres.sed himself decidedly as follows : "Now, the stockholders, after sowing for thirteen years, with the hope of ultimately harvesting, think it a little hard that their large expenditure of patience and money should be met by public clamor, as though they had perpe- THIv SAN ANTONIO RIVER. 57 trated some great wrong upon the coniiiuiiiity, instead of having addud a valuable and necessarj' property to the City. Yet they believe strongly in the justice of mankind and feel confident that the stockholders of the Water Works will be permitted to reap the benefits which they feel are due them. Should it bj con- sidered necessary for the public good to deprive them of their property, and rights under their franchise, they think they will be honestly and fairly dealt with." " The Water Works were constructed in 1.S77, at a time when the City was unwilling or unable to do anything, and the citizens would have nothing to do with the scheme, giving it neither countenance nor credit, believing that it would be a very great advantage to the city, and of little benefit to the stockholders. These were, I believe, the views entertained bj' very nearly all the citizens, including myself. At present the Company is completing what the stockholders hoped would be the last large addition in the plant, necessary to l)e made during the contiiuiance of its contract with the city. I can say truly, that, so far, they have received less interest on their investment than any citizen in San Antonio would be willing to accept, even upon the most undoubted and infallible invest- ment. There has been paid them less than 2 per cent, per annum upon the amount invested to the present time. For the first seven years the officers contented themselves to work without salaries. I traveled over the country at my own expense to make contracts for pipe and material." The.se articles on the Head of the River and the Water Works are inserted in this work in the belief that, whether the vote goes for or against the purcha.se, the historical matter they contain will be of more than mere passing interest. San Antonio as a Health Resort. "If a iiiau wants to die there lie must go somewhere else." — Gi;o. WiLKiNS Kendall, 1843. To those that are aflected with throat and Uiiil!; troul)les, San Antonio and its vicinity nndoubtedly stand pre-eminent in interest at the head of the list of the health resorts of this continent; its pnre and dry air, and the facilities its neighborhood affords for obtaining varied temperatures, in the high lands North, or the low lands South to suit the subject or case, are advantages which .speak for themselves. The editor of this Guide was anxious to obtain what he felt to be a disinter- ested estimate of these advantages, and found it when least expecting it; he gives an old opinion, but he feels it to be the better for the thirty years during which it has been put to the proof. It stands as just to-day as when it was written, and has everything to recommend it to health-seekers. It is to be regretted that it does not touch upon one important item, the northers. Our northers have been much noised about, and the rapid changes that these boisterous visitors cause during our short winter, have been much objected to. The writer's eight years of experience has taught him that their bark is far worse than their bite; that in the severest stress it is never quite so cold as it seems; the wind is cer- tainly trying as long as it lasts, but out of the wind, and you are out of the Norther. They are ea.sily avoided if an invalid desires to do so, all one has to do is to keep indoors, they are invariably of short duration, lasting three or four days at most at a time: they come very suddenh', it is true, but they assudddenly leave, and it should be remembered by visitors that they alwaj's come from a northerly direction, necessarily therefore, from a much colder climate than our own vSunny .South. The longer one lives in Texas the better he likes the North- ers: they are to a Texan an impersonation almost of everything that is bracing and invigorating, and they are oftener welcomed with a leap and a whistle than met with complainings. The extracts that follow further on, are from a letter written many years ago by an invalid who had sought San Antonio as a health resort, and who appar- ently found relief. The letter was published as far back as 1S5.S in tlie New Orleans Crescent. It furni.shes, an unbiased and independent opinion by one who had had much experience, of the restorative qualities of the climate of San Antonio, all the more unbiased and telling if it is considered that the climate was at that time passing through its probationary period, and that to-day, more than thirty years after, San Antonio stands unchallenged as a resort, unequalled for restorative ({ualities for lung and throat troubles. The letter is given almost as it stands in the old file, only such paragraphs are eliminated as .speak dispar- agingly of certain malarial districts of vSoutheast Texas, of the stages, "which are SAN ANTONIO Av^ A HIvAI/fH REvSORT. oO rnmiiug" dail\- and weekly" [and which have long ago given place to the iron horse,] and of the "white lime dust that is confined entirely to the business ])or- tion of San Antonio, and which does not affect the outskirts, which present within an area of six miles the best situation which I have seen for the enjoyment ol l)ure air, and cool and refreshing breezes." This "white lime dust" has never existed to the younger generation in ,San Antonio, and is an utter impossibility in the business portions of a now important city, which are paved, some, with mes- quite blocks, some, macadamized, and all kept thoroughly well sprinkled. The writer is spoken of as being "a citizen of Mol)ilc, and has no other interest in the subject matter than to dissemhiate truth for the general benefit." "Jui.v 2.",th, 1S.-),S. liuiTORS OF TlIK CkHSCKNT: The superiority of the climate of Western Texas over that of other sections, which have heretofore been resorted to for the cure of pulmonary diseases is certainly very great. To me it is the most important feature which Texas pre- .sents. I have experienced to a limited extent its curative influence; and, from what I have seen, felt, and heard of it, I am indviced to believe that if fully understood and appreciated by the country at large. Western Texas would speed- ily become the most favored resort on the Continent for persons afflicted with diseases of the throat and lungs. As far back as I can remember the Medical Facult}' of the United States have been in the habit of recommending patients afflicted with pulmonary disease to cross the ocean, or take a trip on the .sea — to visit Cuba, or take up their re.si- dence in Florida, or some other Southern state. The di.scovery of Gold in California led to the discovery of the beneficial effects of the rarified atmo.sphere of the plains on pulmonar},' disea.ses. Manj- ca.ses of laryngitis, bronchitis and of confirmed consumption were said to have been entirelj' cured b}- crossing the Continent to California. The facts sustained by reports received since from the interior of Asia, have roused the Medical Faculty, and the result is that the mo.st intelligent of them now believe that .sea breezes and humid atmosphere are verj' injurious in cases of pulmonary disease, and that the best localities for them are these where rarified atmos])here prevails. Such localities are not to be found near the Atlantic or Gulf coasts. The atmo.sphere there is neces.sarily humid and of course too heavy for tlie weak lungs of a consum])tive to respire with ease. It is also impregnated witli salt which is extremely irritating to the throat and lungs. It is said that in the interior of Cuba and of Florida, this irritating atmo.sphere does not exist. This niav l)e cor- rect, but in its .stead is a malarious atmosphere which keeps the consumi)tivc in continual fever and thus accelerates his di.sease. Humidity, too, in both Cu])a and I'lorida, cannot t)e otherwise than great. The water which surrounds thcni and is held in their soils and on their surfaces is sufficient to prove this. In fact, there is no place in the Gulf or Carribbean sea, nor within one thousand miles of our Atlantic coast, that pre.sents .so favorable a climate for those who are afflicted with pulmonary disease as Western Texas. I know this to be true. I speak from experience. 60 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. For three years before my arrival in Western Texas, I was afflicted with laryngitis. During that period I tried various localities on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, and in the interior of Florida and other states, and I found that the farther I removed from the sea, and from lakes, ponds, swamps, and rich cultivated .soils, the better I felt. When e.xposed to winds which blew over swamps, river bottoms, or .still bodies of water, I invariably experienced a choking sensation. At all times and in all places I suffered in proportion to the humidity of the sur- rounding atmo.sphere. So .sensitive was mj' throat to dampness that I could tell the approach of rain, even before there was any apparent indication of it in the heavens. When the atmosphere was dense and heavy with moisture, my throat was clogged with mucus: Dut when it was dry, the mucus did not cling with such tenacity to the membrane, and there was less of it. This, together with my experience in medical remedies, induced me to believe that nothing but a dry, rarified atmo.sphere would restore the mucous membrane of the larynx to healthy action. Unfortunately for me, I was not governed by that discovery until the disease had reached my lungs. After being confined to my bed three months, on the coa.st, I set out for San Antonio. On my arrival there I was verj^ weak and feeble, suffered much from pain in my lungs, and was not able to do anything which required any physical strength. I am now, after a lap.se of two months, able to walk two miles without being fatigued, and can write about three hours each day. This improvement I attribute to the purer, dr}-, light atmo.sphere which prevails here the greater part of the time. My improvement, however, has not been so rapid as that of many others of whom I have heard. This may be in consequence of difference in the natural strength of constitution. ********** That the atmo.sphere is usually dry and light there can be no doubt. The intense, piercing heat of the sun, the quick changes of rain clouds from black to white, and their sudden expansion as they pass over the land towards the West, together with many other things, such as the impossibility of producing mildew, etc., prove it. ******** If the atmo.sphere here .should not prove to be dry enough for particular cases, excellent facilities are afforded for removal we.stwardl}- where the rarefac- tion increases in proportation to the di.stance traveled towards the "Colorado Desert," which affords the lightest and driest atmosphere on the Continent. If the temperature .should be too high for other cases a lower temperature can be found by proceeding northwardly to the mountainous country. At a distance of sevent}- miles is Frederick.sburg, which, according to its elevation above and dis- tance from San Antonio, is, in temperature, equal to seven and two-thirds degrees further north. And there are many other places of much greater altitude within one hundred and fifty miles of San Antonio. ***** It is not change of temperature which the consumptive needs, but a light, dry atmosphere, free from irritating and feveri.sh influences." * * * Remarking upon this letter, Dr. Cupples said: "That is, I think, a pretty fair estimate of the case, for a layman. He did not know enough about the sub- ject to speak quite correctly, for instance, salt is not irritating to the throat and lungs in such a form, that is to say, naturally in the air, and it corrects the vSOMI<: OK TIIK RIvS()URCl';S OF WI'STI'RX TEXAS. c.l luuiiidity, which is an advantage. I believe the summer heat is sdinewhal inju- rious, not so much on account of its intensity, l)ut the duration of it — it becomes wearisome to an invalid. The northers need not be considered — they are not really .so cold as they seem, and as you say, they are invigorating and bracing, especially to those acclimated. San Antonio is a desirable winter resort for invalids. The winter climate is good. As to northers, if anyone is afraid of them — there being always a warning before a norther — it is easy to avoid them by staying indoors. The advantages of our climate are, freedom from colds, and the fact that all of our houses are freely and naturally ventilated, the average weather permitting all of our windows and doors to be left constantly open, insuring pure air." Some of the Resources of Western Texas. In presenting any remarks on the .subject of this title, in a work of the present character, it is important to avoid injudicious exploiting and rash .state- ments. The following observations aim simply to describe the face of the country as it actually is, and not to draw immature bills on the future or to anticipate, by one jot, the pro.sperity it is destined to enjoy. Many .statistics have been pur- po.sely avoided, and the reader is presented with an idea of the country, which is the fruit of ten years' jourueyings throughout its length and breadth. This article must be confined to sofiic of the Resources of Western Texas. The title is both vast and vague. P'or the Resources are but partially known and still less develoi^ed, whilst the region itself is a somewhat indeterminate Geographical expression. 62 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. As a fair generalization we will discuss the country lying west of the Colo- rado. By a glance at the map, this will be seen to be a great plain, sloping from the northwest to the .southea.st, and drained by the following principal rivers, flowing — with the exception of the tributaries of the Rio Grande — in the direc- tion indicated. They are the Colorado, Concho, San Saba, Llano and Per- denalis, Guadalupe and San Marcos, the San Antonio and Medina, the Frio, Sabinal, Nueces, L,os Moras, San Felipe, Devil's River, the Pecos and Rio Grande. Nearly all these streams head in bold springs of the clearest water, whose banks are of great natural beaut)* and whose volume never varies. In the lower counties, the Frio, Sabinal and Nueces sometimes disappear from the surface in extremely dry weather. They, however, continue to flow underground and alwaj-s maintain abundant pools for stock and other purjjoses. These valleys are agricultural — more especially the eastern ones — and with occasional irrigation, such as is practiced at San Antonio and some points on the Rio Grande, might become the granary of the continent. The intervening prairies are given up mostlj- to stock-raising, and are the finest breeding grounds of the world. All of this immen.se territory has more or less intimate relations with the City of San Antonio de Bexar, which has ever been the nursing mother of its phenomenal growth. So true a parent has San Antonio been to this region, that, even within the past ten years, happenings and belongings anywhere within its borders have always had a local savor in the streets of " vSantone." Was it a cattle trade or a rovnid-up ? a death or a wedding ? all the way from here to El Paso or eke the coast or the Lower Rio Grande, the parties and incidents were discussed with qtute a personal interest and knowledge. And so it is to some extent to-day. The evolution of this broad land has been somewhat after this manner : Twenty years ago the country was a rolling prairie, with occasional islands of timber giving in places a park-like appearance to the landscape, and under these clumps of Live Oak, Hackberry or Mesquite, the stock of man\' owners gathered for shade and rumination. The valle3^s and canons which we have already described were filled with a thicker growth of Pecan, Elm, Cypress and Cedar, the trees festooned with wild grapes and other vines. There are, too, great belts of Post Oak. The roads were prairie trails of immense width, cros.sing the streams at fords which, .sometimes, were not fordable. These roads led by stage stands, frontier posts and villages and to the small ports on the coast. There were daily .stages North, South, East and West, and endless wagon trains, drawn by many oxen and mules and driven by picturesque Mexicans armed to the teeth, with a view to Indians. The outgoings and incomings of these waj'fayers made neighbors of the whole province of their travels, even far into Mexico, whose trade with Texas has always been extensive. SOME OI* TIIIv RI'ISOURCES OK WIvSTlvRN TEXAvS. 03 After a while came the stoppaj;^e of the prairie fires, from the increased value of the nutritious mesquite grass, and the consequent rapid growth of the niesttoms aud in the Post Oaks and Black Jacks some saudy and gravelly lands, These are the soils of Western Texas. + Wool— IST.'i. :!(X),000 pounds ; IKTIi, 400,000 pounds; ls77, it suddenly sprang to '.i.asT.'ill pounds. This in- crease was probably owing to the increase of flocks and to the new railroad facilities of San .\ntonio. The ship- ments have steadily grown year by year to the present large market of Issil. \ 12.000 bales local wagou receipts, including country consignments by rail would probably amount to 20.000 bales, and the amount of cotton handled b\ San .\ntouio merchants, by order and otherwise, would not be less, say, than a lot.il of 120.000 bales. The Mexican cotton trade was almost the only cotton business here for the years previous to I^isl. in this year the Mexican market was -MIOO bales and the next season shows the first nota- ble increase in the Sau Antonio market, on account, probably, of new railroad facilities. 64 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. The San Antonio has many mills on its banks, and its capacity for water- power is everything that could be desired. Coal-mines are being extensively worked at Eagle Pass and L,aredo, on the frontier, and in the vicinity of San Antonio. There is also a fine seam in the Eagle Spring Mountains, near the junction of the Southern and Texas Pacific Railways. Iron ore of great purity and inexhaustible quantity is found at Llano with a fine Eime-stone flux innnediately adjacent. In the same neighborhood and sur- rounding counties are many lieautiful marbles and granite of the hardest texture. Good clay of various colors is abundant and brick-making is extensively carried on in Laredo, Eagle Pass, San Antonio and vicinity and many other places. In Uvalde county are deposits of guano and kaolin ; asphaltum has been found in many localities, and lately while boring for artesian water in San An- toino and its neighborhood, bt)th natural gas and oil have been found. Of the precious metals, Silver is being worked in paying quantities in the Chinati mountains. This Range, as well as the Chisos and Diabolo abound in Galena ore, rich in Lead and Silver. There are also strong indications of Copper, Iron and Coal in this moun- tainous country of the extreme West, but from inaccessability and lack of trans- portation, the subject has not received adequate attention. A geological survey of the state is now being made under the direction of Prof. Dumble, of Austin, from which much additional light is hoped. Of the Fruits of Texas, the most successful are the Fig, Vine, Peach and Mulberry. Melons of all sorts and varieties grow to perfection, together with the usual vegetables — maturing early, and, in fact, with care, a garden may be main- tained all the year around. This brings us to say a few words about the climate : — There are perhaps twenty days in the year, on an average, that a man cannot work out of doors. The heat of summer is tempered by a breeze from the Gulf which fans the whole country bj- S o'clock in the afternoon, an hour which would otherwise be the hot- test part of the day. The nights are always cool, and at an elevation of 1,500 feet a blanket is needed the summer through. The official mean temperature, Post of San Antonio is :— Summer, 82.43°; Winter, 51.l')7°; Rainfall '24 to Si> inches. In the Winter the northers are disagreeable while they last, as their duration is generally not longer than forty-eight hours, the objection is slight. The climate is a good one, and in conjunction with the country we have been briefly describing, will in a few years rear a people which will have the controlling voice in all our dealings with our neighbors to the South, and, grow- ing as it must, in culture as in material wealth, it will be a people of ideas, and yet not lose that resourceful Western character which disposes of obstacles by destroying them and dissolves difficulties in a solution of success. As for those who come to the land and grumble that everything is not achieved, let them remember, that, in that event, there would be nothing left for them to do. Ir SELLO / . v^ANOS DE |l.CUAKTILLO U||lf| 1822 Y 25. T Ti:i:i:i:i:i :i:i:i:i: SCLLO CUATRO #•> LWClAETEIL^fe PARAELBIF.MIMODE 1832 Yt833, Sl'AMSlI AND MEXICAN- IKXAS SKALS. LIST OK CHARTlvRS Ol' Till' CVV\ ()!• SAN ANTONIO. i Moreover, the generation passing away, /las d(jne all the hard work. Piuiieer heroism has finished its self appointed task. The battle of barbarism and law- lessness has been fought. The Indian and the outlaw are almost extinct and the institutions of our fathers are established. We may enter upon our inheritance in peace, and, in its literal sense, the dweller in Western Te.Kas nia\- sit under his own Vine and Fig-tree, fanned by the cool Gulf breeze, and thankfully murmur to the Goddess of plenty. O DUIXE DOMUM. List of Charters and Amendments to the Same of the City of San Antonio, First. Charter granted by King of Spain in 17-')-'> or 17.']4. Second. Au act to incorporate the town of Nacogdoches and ()ther towns herein named, by the Republic of Texas, January •"), 1S.'>7. Third. Act of Incorporation, December II, ls;!7. Fourth. Act Supplementary, January 2G, 1839. Fii-Tii. Act of Incorporation, Jaiuiary 14, 1.S42. Sixth. Act to incorporate the City of vSan j^ntonio. January 24, 1N52. Seventh. An act to amend the act of January 14, 1S42, November 26, IS.-).-). Kic.iith Act of Incorporation, July 17, ISoG. Ninth. Act of Incorporation, August I'l, 1870. Thntii. Amendments to Sections •'), C, 24, ;!3, 4(i, 1.51, l.'.'), 189, 280, made by the people at an election held December 15, 1S74. Eleventh. Amendments to Sections ■^, 24, 4o, 4.'), April |s, 1S7'.I, by Sixteenth Legislature. Twelfth. Amendments of March 4, 1X85. 66 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. List of Mayors of the City of San Antonio. From Its Incorporation, Junk, 1837, to January, isuo. September 19, lS;i7, to March !), 18;>, INC..') ; Mayor pro teni, from Aui;ust 1') to October il, ISi;.'), C. F. Fisher. .VI'l'OIN'TKKS OF C.OVHRNOR HAMILTON, PKOVISION.VL GOVKRNOR OF TK.XAS. From October, II, l.S(>.'), to August 23, 1866 — Mayor, I). Cleveland. Old officers reinstated by act of Legislature, from August 24, ISIU], to December Ml, ISC.d— Mayor, J. H. Lyons. CHARTER ICLKCTION. January 1, ISliT, to November S, 1,S()7 — Mayor, J. H. Lyons. Military appointees, by Colonel J. J. Reynolds, U. S. Army, Novembers, 1S(;7, to March 2S, 1870— Mayor, W. C. A. Thielepape. Al'I'OI.XTMENTS OF K. J. DAVIS, GOVERNOR, UNDER E.N'.VBLING ACT, FROM M.\RCH 2S, 1S7(), TO NOVEMBER 12, 1872. Mayor W. C. A. Thielepape— From March 28, 1870, to March 12, 1872. Mayor S. G. Newton — From March 1.'., 1S72, to November 12, 1S72. CHARTER ELECTION. November L>, 1S72, to January V.'>, 1S73 — Mayor, F. Giraud. January 1 1, 1S7.">, to Jainiar\- I'.l, lS7o — Mayor, F. Giraud. January I'.l, 1S7."), to January 11), 1S77 — Mayor, James H. French. January III, 1S77, to January 2"'), 1S79 — Mayor, James H. French. January 2"), 1879, to Januarys 2-j, ISSl — Mayor, James H. French. January 25, 1881, to January 25, 1883 — Mayor, James H. French. January 25, 1883, to February 1, 1885 — Mayor, James H. French. February 1, iss."), to February I, 1887 — Mayor, Bryan Callaghan. February 1, 1887, to February 11, 18S9 — Mayor, Bryan Callaghan. February 11, 1889, to Mayor, Bryan Callaghan. San Antonio de Bexar. By Sidney I,anier. fF peculiarities were quills, San Antonio de Bexar would be a rare porcupine. Over all the round of aspects in which a thoughtful mind may view a city, it bristles with striking idiosyncracies and bizarre contrasts. Its history, popula- tion, climate, location, architecture, soil, water, customs, costumes, horses, cattle, all attract the stranger's attention, either b}- force of intrinsic singularity or of odd juxtapositions. San Antonio de Bexar, Texas, had its birth in 171"). It was. indeed, born before its time, in consequence of a sudden fright into which its mother, Spain, was thrown by the menacing attitudes of certain Frenchmen, who, upon other occasions besides this one, were in those days very much what immortal Mrs. Gamp has declared to Mrs. Harris "these steam-ingines is in our business," a frequent cause of the premature development of projects. For Spain had not intended to allow any settlements, as yet, in that part of her province of the New Philippines which embraced what is now called Texas. In the then situation of her affairs, this policy was not without some reasons to support it. She had valuable possessions in New Mexico ; between these po.ssessions and the French settlements to the eastward, intervened an enormous breadth of country, whose obstacles again.st intruders, appalling enough in themselves, were yet magnified by the shadowy terrors that haunt an unknown land. Why not fortify her New Mexican silver-mines with these sextuple barriers, droughts, deserts, mountains, rivers, savages, and nameless fears ? Surely, if inclosure could be made impreg- nable, this would seem to be .so ; and accordingly the Spanish Government had finally determined, in l()fl4, not to revive the feeble posts and missions which had been established four years previously with a view to make head against the e.xpedition of L,a Salle, but which had been abandoned already by soldier and friar, in consequence of the want of food and the ferocity of the savages. But in ITl'i, Anthony Crozat, an enterprising French merchant, obtained from Ivouis XIV a conditional grant to the whole of the French province of Louisiana. Crozat believed that a lucrative trade might be established with the northeastern provinces of Me.xico. and that mines might exist in his territory. To test these beliefs, j^oung Huchereau St. Denis, acting under instructions from Cardillac, who had been appointed Governor of Louisiana by CrozUt's influence, started westward, left a nucleus of a settlement at Natchitoches, and proceeded This sketch was written by Sidney Lauier in 1S72, so that some of the references to the modern city must to-day he taken cum itrano sir/:s, or at least, to a certain extent, as historical. The history throughout the article is, as a rule, excellent and reliable. K.xchmive rights in this article have been purchased by the publishers of this work.— W. C, F,d. SIDNl'A' LANIlvR'S HISTORICAL SKIvTCH. 69 across the country to the Rio tiraiule, where his explorations, after romantic advejitures too numerous to he related here, came to an inglorious suspension with his seizure and imjirisonnient by the .Spanish \'ice-regal authorities in Mexico. It was this expedition which produced the premature result hereinbefore alluded to. Spain saw that instead of surrounding New Mexico with inhospita- ble wastes and ferocious savages, she was in reality but leaving France free to occupy whatever coigns of vantage might be found in that prodigious Debatable Land, which was claimed by both and was held by neither. Perhaps this consideration was heightened by Spain's consciousness that the flimsiness of her title to that part of the '' New Philippines " which lay east of the Rio Grande, really recpiired an actual occupation in order to bolster it up. Pretty much all that she could prove in support of her claim was, that in 1 I'.ll Pope Alexander VL, acting as arl)itrator between Portugal and Spain, had assigned to the latter all of the American possessions that lay west of a meridian running three hundred and seventy miles w^est of the Azores ; that De Leon, De Ayllon, De Narvaez, and De Soto, in voyages made between the years l.")12 and 1.5.')8, had sailed from Cape Florida to Cape Catorce ; and that Philip IL had denounced the penalty of extermination against any foreigner who should enter the Gulf of Mexico or any of the lands bordering thereupon. These were, to say the least, but indefinite muniments of title ; and to them France could oppose the unquestionable fact that La Salle had coasted the shore of Texas westward to Corpus Christi inlet, had returned along the same route, had explored bays and rivers and named them, and had finally built F'ort .St. Louis on the Lavacca river in KiS.'). Here now, in 1714, to crown all, was this daring young Lord Huchereau St. Denis traversing the whole land from Natchi- toches to the Rio Grande, and thru.sting in his audacious face like an apparition of energy upon the sleepy routines of post-life and mission-life at San Juan Bautista. This was alarming : and in \~\'i the Duke of Linares, Viceroy of Mexico, despatched Don Domingo Ramon to Texas with a partj' of troops and some Fran- ciscan friars, to take steps for the permanent occupation of the country. Ramon established several forts and missions : among others he located a fort or presidio (Spanish, '" a garrison"), on the western bank of the San Pedro river, a small stream flowing through the western suburbs of the present city of San Antonio de Bexar, about three-fourths of a mile from the present Main Plaza. This presidio was called San Antonio de Valero. In May, 171.S, certain Alcantarine Franci.scans, of the College of Querctaro, established a mission under the protec- tion of the presidio, calling it by the same invocation, San Antonio de Valero. It was this mission whose Church of the Alamo afterwards shed so red a glory upon the Texan revolution. It had been founded fifteen years before, in the valley of the Rio Grande, under the invocation of San Francisco Solano ; had been removed to San Ildefonso in 170S, and again removed back to the Rio Grande in 1710 under the new invocation of San Jose. It had not indeed yet reached the end of its wanderings. In M'l'l both the presidio and mission of San Antonio de Valero 70 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. were removed to what is now known as the Military Plaza, and a permanent system of improvements begun. • Here then, with sword and crozier, Spain set to work at once to reduce her wild claim into possession, and to fulfill the condition upon which Pope Alex- ander had granted her the country — of christianising its natives. One cannot but lean one's head on one's hand to dream out, for a moment, this old Military Plaza — most singular spot on the wide expanse of the lonesome Texan prairies — as it was a hundred and fifty years ago. The rude buildings, the church, the hospital, the soldiers' dwellings, the brethren's lodgings, the huts for the con- verted Indians ( Viidios Rcducidos) stand ranged about the large level quadrangle, so placed upon the same theory of protection which "parks" the wagon-train that will camp this night on the plains. Ah, here they come, the inhabitants of San Antonio, from the church-door ; vespers is over ; the big-thighed, bow- legged, honse-riding Apache steps forth, .slowly, for he is yet iu a maze — the burning candles, the shrine, the genuflexions, the chants, are all yet whirling in his memory ; the lazy .soldier slouches by, leering at him, yet oli.serving a certain care not to be .seen therein, for Seiior Soldado is not wholl)- free from fear of this great-thewed Seiior Apache ; the soldiers' wives, the squaws, the cate- chumens, the children, all wend their ways across the plaza. Here advances Brother Juan, bare-footed, in a gown of serge, with his knotted scourge a-dangle from his girdle : he accosts the Indian, he draws him on to talk of Manitou, his grave pale face grows intense and his forehead wrinkles as he spurs his brain on to the devising of arguments that will convince this wild soul before him of the fact of the God of Adam, of Peter, and of Francis. Yonder is a crowd : alas, it is stout Brother Antonio, laying shrewd stripes with unsparing arm upon the back of a young Indian — so hard to convince the.se dusky youths and maidens of the wide range and ramifications of that commandment which they seem most prone to break. Ha ! there behind the church, if you look, goes on another flagel- lation : Brother Francis has crept back there, slipped his woollen gown from his shoulders, and fallen to with his knotted scourge upon his own bare back, for that a quick vision did, by instigation of the devil, cross his mind even in the very midst of vespers — a vision of a certain seiiorita as his wife, of a wann all- day sunned hacienda, of children playing, of fruits, of friends, of laughter — " O blessed St. Francis of A.ssis), fend off Sathanas ! " he cries, and raises a heavier welt. Presently, as evening draws on, the Indians hold meetings, males in one place, females in another ; reciting prayers, singing canticles : finally it is bed- time ; honest Brother Antonio goes around and locks the unmarried young male Indians into their sleeping apartments on one side, the maidens on the other side into theirs ; casts a glance mayhap towards Mexico, breathes a prayer, gets him to his pallet, and the Plaza of San Antonio de Valero is left in company of the still .sentinel, the stream of the San Pedro purling on one side, that of the San Antonio whispering on the other, under the quiet stars, midst of the solemn prairie, in whose long grass yonder (by all odds) crouches some keen-eyed Apache bravo/'- who has taken a fancy that he will ride Don Ramon's charger. ♦Spanish, 2'j/if/i>s Urai'Ds: I'ncouverted Indians. SII)N1*,V LAXIl'R'S HISTORICAL SKIvTCII. 71 The infant settlement soon begins to serve in that capacity which gives it a " iDad eminence" among the other Texas settlements for the next hundred years: towit, as the point to which, or from which, armies are retreating or advancing, or in which armies are fighting. Already, in 1719, before the removal to the Military Plaza, the scenes of war have been transacting themselves in the young San Antonio de Valero. On a certain day in the spring of that year, the peaceful people are astonished to behold ;ill their Spanish brethren who belong to the settlements eastward of theirs, come crowding into the town; monks, soldiers, women and all. In the confusion they quickly learn that in the latter part of the year before, France has declared war against Spain ; that the Frenchmen at Natchitoches, as soon as they have heard the news, have ru.shed to arms with Oallic impetuosity, and led by La Harpe and St. Denis, have advanced west- ward, have put to flight all the Spanish at Adaes, at Orquizaco, at Aes, and at Nacogdoches ; and that these are they who are here now, disturbing the peaceful mission with unwonted sights and sounds, and stretching its slender hospitalities to repletion. The French do not attack, however, but return towards Natchi- toches. In a short time enter from the opposite side of the stage, that is to say from Mexico, the Marquis de Aguayo, Governor-General of New Estremadura and the New Philippines, with five hundred mounted men. These march through, take with them the men of Orquizaco, of Adaes and Aes, re-establish those settlements, and pursue the French until they liear that the latter are in Natchitoches ; De Aguayo then returns to San Antonio and .sets on foot plans for its permanent improvement. About this time occurs a short and spicy correspondence, which for the first time probably announces the name of the State of Texas, and which explicitly broaches a dispute that is to last for many a year. The Spanish \'iceroy in Mexico appoints Don Martin D'Alarconne Governor of Texas. Soon afterwards La Harpe leaves the French post of Natchitoches and busies himself in advanc- ing the French interests among the Nassonite* Indians. In beginning this enterprise La Harpe sends "a polite message" to the Spanish Governor, who thereupon writes : '^Monsieur . — I am very sensible of the politeness that M. de Bienville and yourself have had the goodness to show to me. The orders I have received from the King my master are to maintain a good understanding with the French of Louisiana ; my own inclinations lead me equally to afiford them all the services that depend upon me. But I am compelled to say that your arrival at the Nassonite village surprises me much. Your Governor could not be ignorant that the post you occupy belongs to my government, and that all the lands west of the Nassonites depend upon New Mexico. I coun.sel you to inform M. Bienville of this, or you will force me to oblige you to abandon lands that the I'Vench have no right to occupy. I have the honor, etc. D'Alarconne. " Trhiily River, May 20, Jj/9." • A triUc. or set of triljcs. wlio?e scat of govcTiinitiit sefiiis lo liavc Itccii :i village calte*! Ttxas. on the cast bauk of the Neches River. 72 SAN ANTONIO DK BKXAR. To this La Harpe makes reply : "Monsieur: — The order from his Catholic Majestj' to maintain a good understanding with the French of Louisiana, and the kind intentions you have yourself expressed towards them, accord but little with your proceedings. Permit me to apprise you that M. de Bienville is perfectly informed of the limits of his government, and is verj' certain that the post of Nassonite does not depend upon the dominions of his Catholic Majesty. He knows also that the Province of Lastekas,* of which you say you are Governor, is a part of Louisiana. M. dela Salle took possession in 1685, in the name of his most Christian Majesty, and since the above epoch possession has been renewed from time to time. Respect- ing the post of Nassonite, I cannot comprehend by what right you pretend that it forms a part of New Mexico. I beg leave to represent to you that Don Antonio de Minoir, who discovered New Mexico in KiSS, never penetrated east of that province or the Rio Bravo. It was the French who first made alliances with the savage tribes in this region, and it is natural to conclude that a river that flows into the Mississippi and the lands it waters belong to the King my master. If you will do me the pleasure to come into this quarter I will convince j'ou I hold a post I know how to defend. I have the honor, etc., De La Harpe. " Nasso7iite, July Sth, 1719." For several j-ears after the permanent location round the Military Plaza no important events seem to be recorded as happening in San Antonio ; but the quiet work of Post and Mission goes on, and the probable talk on the Plaza is of the three new Missions which De Aguayo establi.shes on the San Antonio River, below the town, under the protection of its garrison ; or of the tales which come slowly floating from the northward concerning the dreadful fate of a Spanish expedition which has been sent to attack the French settlements on the Upper Mississippi, and which, mistaking the hostile Missouris on the way for friendly Osages, distributes fifteen hundred muskets, together with sabres and pistols, to the said Missouris to be used against the French, whereupon the Missouris next morning at daybreak, fall upon the unsuspecting Spaniards, butcher them all (save the priest, whom they keep for a "magpie," as they call him, to laugh at), and march off into the French fort arrayed in great spoils, their chief wearing the chasuble and bearing the paten before him for a breastplate ; or of Governor De Aguayo's recommendation to the home government to send colonists instead of soldiers if it would help the friars to win the Indians; or of the appointment of a separate Governor for Texas in 1727 ; or of the withdrawal of ten soldiers in 1729, leaving only forty -three in garrison at San Antonio. About 17''!1, however, an important addition is made to the town. Under the au.spices of the home government — which seems to have accepted De Aguayo's ideas — thirteen families and two single men arrive, pure Spaniards from the Canary Islands, al.so some Tlascalans, and a party from Monterey. These set to work around a Plaza (the " Plaza of the Constitution," or " Main Plaza") just eastward of and *Lastekas, /. (•. I^as Tekas : Tfxas. Th(- Frenchmen in those days appear to liave -rreat difficulty in in- venting orthographies for these odious Indian names. The Choctaws, for instance, appear in the documents of the time as " 7i://afM.s," the Chickasaws as " C///Crtc//f//.v-," the Cherokees as " CA('r«//«/V," and they can get no nearer to " Canianches " than ■' <. fiouniaii.f." or " Cauiieiisis" ! SIDXlvV I.ANII'RS HISTORICAL SKIvTCII. 73 adjoiiiir.g the Military Plaza, and conmieiice a town which tliL-x- call San Fernando. ='= They are led, it seems, to this location by the same facility of irrigation which had recommended the Military Plaza to their neighbors. The new colonists impart vigor to affairs. The Missions prosper, Indians are ca])lured and brought in to be civilized whether or no, and on the Tjth of March, IT^il, the foundation is laid of the Mission of La Purisima Conccpcion dc Aania, on the San Antonio River, a mile or so below the town. Meantime a serious conspiracy against the welfare of San Antonio and S;in Fernando is hatched in the northeast. The Natchez Indians wish to revenge themselves upon the French, who have driven them from their home on the Mississippi. Tliej' resolve to attack St. Denis at Natchitoches, and to ])revent the Spaniards from helping him (the French and Spanish are now friends, having luiited against England), they procure the Apaches to assail San Antonio. St. Denis, however, surprises and defeats the Natchez ; and the Apaches appear to have made an organized attack, but to have confined themselves to murdering and thieving in parties. These Apaches, indeed, were dreadful scourges in these days to San Antonio and its environs. The people of the presidio of San Fernando and of the Mi.ssions on the River complained repeatedly (says the Ti'slimonio dc un Parcccr'^ in the archives of Bexar) that they cannot expand (sin podcr cstcndeysc) on account of " las freipiiejittes hosltilidadcs que experimcnltan de los Yndios Apaches." This great tribe had headquarters about the Pass of Ban- dera, some fifty miles to the northwestward, from which they forayed not only up to San Antonio, but even as far as to Coaliuila. Moreover, they manage (.says the Testimonid) horses, firearms, and arrows con miiciia dcstlreza y agilidad. Finally the men of San Antonio and San Fernando get tired of it, and after some minor counter- forays, they organize an expedition in 17o2 which conquers com- parative peace from the Apaches for a few years. Nothing of .special interest is recorded as happening in San Antonio from this time until 17o(). In Sejiteniber of that year arrives Don Carlos de Fraiupiis, who immediately proceeds to throw the town into a very pretty ferment. Fran(|nis had come out from Spain to Mexico to be Governor of Tla.scala. On arri\ing he finds that .someone else is already Governor of Tlascala. X'izarron. Arch- bishop of Mexico, and acting Viceroy since Casa I'uerte's death, dis])oses of him — it is likely he made trouble enough till tlial was done — by sending him otTto Texas to supersede Ciovernor ,Sando\-al, a fine old veteran, who has been for two years goveniing the Province with such soldierly fidelity as has won him great favor among the inhabitants. Franquis begins by insulting the priests, and follows this up with breaking o]>en people's letters. Presently he arrests Sandoval, has him chained, and causes criminal proceedings to be connnenced against him, charging him with treacherous complicity in certain movements of St. Denis at Natchitoches. It .seems that St. Denis, having found a higher and drier location, has removed his garrison and the French Mission of St. John the Bajnist some miles further from Red River toward the Texas territory, and bnill a new fort and settlements: that • Tile Villn Capital dc San I'lTiiaiido was not exclusively llu- M.iin IMaza seltlcnicnls — the I'1;iz.t dc Armas, or Military rlaza, was also ofit.— W. C, Ei». • Testimony of a witness; this document is hereinafter described. 74 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. Sandoval, hearing of it, has promptly called him to account as an intruder en Span- ish ground; and that a correspondence has ensued between St. Denis and Sandoval, urging the rights of their respective goverinnents in the premises, which has ju.st been brought to the point of a flat issue upon which to go to the jur>- of \\ar when Sandoval is ousted by Franquis. Tlie Viceroy sends the Governor of New Leon to in\'estigate the trouble; and the famous law-suit of Franquis versus Sando\-al is fairl}- commenced. The Go\-ernor of New Leon seems to find against Franquis, who is sent back to the presidio on the Rio Grande. He gets away, howe\-er, and off" to the Viceroy. But JSandoval is not .satisfied, naturally, for he has been midcted in some three thousand four hundred dollars, cost of the investigating commission. He pays, and in 1738 files his petition against Franquis for redress of his injuries. Franquis, thus attacked in tuni, strengthens his position with a new line of accu.sa- tions. He now, besides the French business, charges Sandoval with li\ing at San Antonio instead of at Adaes, the official residence: with being irregular in his accounts with the San Antonio garrison: and with peculation in the matter of the salaries of certain paid missionaries, whom Sandoval is alleged to have discharged and then pocketed their stipends. The papers go the \^iceroy, and from the \'iceroy to Attorney-General Vedoya. In 1741) Vedoya decides Sandoval guilty of living at San Antonio, though it was his dut\- to be there to defend it against the Apaches; guilty of irregular book-keeping, though through memoranda it is found that there is a balance in his favor of thirteen hundred dollars: not .guilty of stealing the mis- sionary money. ITpon the French matter Vedoya will not decide without further evidence. With poor Sandoval it is pay again; he is fined five hundred dollars for his "guilt." Meantime, some months afterward an order is made that testimony be taken in Texas with regard to the French affair, said testimony to embrace an account of prett}- much everything in, about, and concerning Texas. The testi- mony being taken and returned, the Attorney- General, in November 1741, entirely acquits vSandoval. But alas for the stout old soldier! this is in Mexico, where from of old, if one is asked who rules now, one must repl\- with the circumspection of that Georgia judge who, being asked the politics of his son, made answer that he knezv not, not haviiis; seen the ercature since breakfast. Vizarron has gone out; the Duke de la Conquista has come into the Viceroyalt}-; and Sandoval has hardly had time to taste his hard-earned triumph before, through machinations of Fran- quis. he finds himself in prison by order of the new Viceroy. Finally, howe\-er, the rule works the other way; in December, 174;!, anew Viceroy, Count Fuenclara, gets hold of the pajiers in the case, acquits Sandoval, and enjoins Franquis from proceeding further in the matter. It was in the course of this litigation — a copy of the proceedings in which, "filling thirty volumes of manuscript, " was transmitted to Spain — that the old doc- ument hereinbefore referred to as the tcstimonio de un Parecer had its origin. In this paper San Antonio is called San Antonio de Vejar o \ 'alero: \'ejar being the Spanish orthography of the Mexican Bexar (pronounced Vay-har.) This name San Antonio de Bexar, seems to have attached itself particularly to the military post, ox presidio: its origin is not known. The town of San Fernando was still so called at this time; and the town and mission of San Antonio de Valero bore that name. In 1 744 this latter extended itself to the eastward, or rather the extension had probably gone on before that time and was only evidenced then. At any rate, SIDNKY LANIliR'S HISTORICAL SKETCH. 75 oil tlie Stli of May, 1711, llic first stone of tin.' ]irL-SL'iit Church of tlic- Ahuiio was laid and lilessed. The site of this church is nc-arly a quarter of a mile to the ea.st- ward of the Military plaza, where the mission to which it belonged had been located in ll'l'l. Prom an old record-book purporting to contain the baptisms in "the Parish of the Vuahlo of San /ose del A/amo," it would aeem that there must have been also a settlement of that name, San Antonio de Bexar, therefore — the modern city — seems to be a consolidation of the presidio of San Antonio de Bexar, the mission and pueblo (or villa) of San Antonio de \'alero, and the pueblos of San Fernando and San Jose del Alamo. For the next forty years after the foundation of the Alamo in 1741, the colonists and missionaries seemed to have pursued the ordinary roiuid of their labors without unu.sual events; in point of material prosperity San Antonio seems to have led but a struggling existence. Yoakum * estimates the whole European population of of Texas in 1744, to have been fifteen hundred, which, together with about the same number of converted Indians, "was di\-ided mostly between Adaes and San Antonio. ' ' The same author again f estimates the population of Adaes and San Antonio in 17()'") to have been "hardlj- five hundred" Europeans, besides converted Indians, of whom he adds that there were only about seven hundred and fifty in the whole province of Texas. It was impossible indeed during the.se j-ears that any legitimate prosperty could ha\-e been attained. Up to the year 1762, when France, to save Louisiana from the clutches of England, ceded it to Spain, trade had been prohibited by the latter between her Texan colonists and the French .settlers in Louisiana, though some intercourse alwa\s went on in a smuggling way between the two, whenever they cxmld get a S]ianisli official to wink his e\-e or tuni his back; and even after the cession of Louisiana matters were little better in point of com- mercial activity. There were also restrictions even upon the agricultural energies of the colonists; they were, it is said, prohibited from cultivating the vine and the olive, and also from the manufacture of many articles. Indeed, the inmiediate nec- es,sity of settlements having pa.ssed awa\- with the removal of the danger of French occupation, the old policy of Spain seems to have been resumed in full force, that of keeping her provinces around New Mexico and Mexico impenetrable wastes, as barriers against enterprising neighbors. Nor was the sjiiritual pro.sperity nuich greater. The arduous toils and suliHnie devotions of the Franciscan brethren bore but moderate fruit. Father Mare.sl had declared in 171'2 that the conversion of the Indians was "a miracle of the Lord's mercy," and that it was " necessary first to transform them into men, and afterward to labor to make them Christians." These noble brothers too liad reason tobeheve in the inhumanit\' of the Indians. They could remember the vSan Saba Mission: where, in 17")S, the Indians had fallen upon the ])eo])le and massacred ever\ huni.ui being, lay and clerical ; and here, in 1 7M''), they coukl see for themselves the company of ,San Carlos de Parras driven by the fierce Comanches to place their quarters within the enclosure of the .Mamo. In nSo-'S") San Antonio de Yalero ceased to be a Mis.sion. For .some rea.son it had become customary to send whate\-er capti\e Indians were brought in to the • History of Texas, vol. 1. p. H7. tVol. 1. p. W. 76 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. Missions below the town for Christianization. The town, however, which had been built up about the Mission buildings, remained, having a separate alcalde, and an organization politically and religiously distinct from that of vSan Antonio de Bexar and San Fernando for some years longer. In 17'.**) the population around the Alamo was increased by the addition of the people from the Presidio de los Adaes ; this post was abandoned, and its inhabitants were provided with lands which had been the property of the Mission of vSan Antonio de Valero, lying in the neighborhood of the Alamo to the north. " The upper labor'"- of the Alamo," says Mr. Giraud, in an interesting note wliich constitutes Appendix iv. of Yoakum's History of Texas, " . , . is still counnonly called by the old inhabitants the labor de los Adaesenos.'" These Mission lands about the Alamo seem to have ceased to be such about this time, and to have been divided off to the Mission people, each of whom received a portion, with fee-simple title. f In 1793 the distinct religious * Labor: a Spanish laud-measure of about one hundred and seventy-seven acres. ■(•[the partition of the lands of the mission of SAN ANTONIO HE VALERO OR ALAMO MISSION TO THE SETTLERS OF THE EXTINGUISHED POST OR PRESIDIO OF ADAES WHO HAD liEEN BROVGHT TO THIS MISSION UPON THE BREAKING UP OF THAT POST. The Presidio of the Adaes was a Spanish frontier Post of Eastern Texas. Its site was almost due east from Nacogdoches between the Sabine and Red Rivers, in Louisiana Territory. It was abandoned and broken up about 1790. It had been of some importance iu its day. Upon its extinction its settlers were brought to Sau Antonio de Valero. It would appear that the Spanish Government, about the year 17S4, were a little dissatisfied with results iu the Province of Texas, and became curious or anxious to know something of the general welfare and condition of the Missions of Texas, aud an order was issued under the mandate of the King for an official report of the Texas Missions. This report was not concluded and forwarded until December '27th. 17U.S, when it was done by El Conde de Revilla-gigedo. Viceroy of Mexico. He instituted some changes, apparently sug- gested to him by his enquiries and by petitions sent to him by certain resident Adaes. San Antonio de Valero was now no longer a Mission, but of course it enters into his report. The following is a letter from a tran- slated copy deposited in the City P^ngiueer's Records iu IH08, apparently addressed to Manuel Munioz. Pro- visional Governor, in 17!>2 : '* I return you the enclosed proceedings marked P. V. number 21, pages 19, which you seut me with your letters marked M94, dated the 29th of last October, and in which the residents of San Antonio de Bexar petition for the distriVnition amongst them of lands in consideration of their having been the settlers of the extinguished Presidio of the Adaes, so that in conformity with the opinion of the War .Auditor with which I have agreed iu a superior decree of the I7th, present, (month) you shall order its compliance. God keep you many years. " Mexico, November the 20th, 1792. •' The Count of Revilla-gigedo. " S. Dn. Ramon de Castro, Secretary. " (A copy. Coahuila, 27th December. 1792. Castro.) " (Translated by A. A. Lewis, October 2d. 1S5S.) The document translation from which this is an excerpt, is headed: " Copy of Proceedings sent to the Commander titneral on July 27th, 17!i;>. respecting the Partition of lands to the Adaes and returned by that Superiority to the Government so that the interested parties have it more in their reach to apply for testimonios that may serve them as titles. " M. Munioz, " Lieut. Col. of Cavalry of the Royal Armies of His Majesty, Political and Military Governor of the Province of " Texas and Wew Philippines." So, it seems, that these Adaes might be fittingly provided for, the Count issued an order to Manuel Munioz to divide amongst them the Alamo Mission lauds. Accordingly Don Pedro Huizar is ordered to snr\-ey the suertes and Bernardo Zervantes is appointed to divule the lands among the Indians and settlers, January 17th, 179;{. A drawing or lottery was to be held to decide who should have first choice of the suertes surveyed, each individual to be granted by lot a piece of land, as much as 4 pecks of seed corn will cover, and they are all cautioned to be satisfied with what falls to their lot or luck, whether they draw land bordering the irrigating ditches or merely ordinary pasture land. "'On February 24th, 179;i. the following named Adae Indians received their portions of land," then follows in the recordsof the County a list of names, viz : " No. 1. Suerte a, Manuel Martinez. " No. 2. Suerte ^ Jose Rodriguez. " No. vl. Suerte a Manuel de los Santos. " No. 4. Suerte a Joachin Musquiz, etc., etc. 5(i Grants altogether," The only condition under which these Indians seem to have held their lands, was that they were to pay a Church debt out of a part of the crops and produce of their lauds. At this date, Father Francisco Josu Lopez was President of the Missions.— W. C, Ed.] MEM. The Labor of Abajo to pay with its products the debts that the Mission miglit have at the time of its delivery over to tlie public. MEM. Ramon de Castro was Count ol Sierra Gorda.— W. C. Ed. STDNKV LANIKR'S IIISToRICAl, SRICTCH. 77 organization of the Mission of San Antonio de Valero terminated, and it was aggregated to the curaey of tlie town of San Fernando and the presidio of San Antonio de Bexar ; as appears by the following note whicli is found on the last page of an old Record book of baptisms in the arcln\-es of Hexar : — "On the 22d day of August, 17!);>, I passed this book of the Records of the pueblo of San Antonio de Valero to the archives of the curacy of the town of San Fernando and presidio of San Antonio de Bexar, by order of the most illustrious Seiior Dr. Don Andres de Llanos y Valdez, most worthy Bishop of this diocese, dated January 2d, of the same year, by reason of said pueblo having been aggre- gated to the curacy of Bexar ; and that it may be known, I sign it. " 1'k. Josk Francisco Lopkz, Parroco." In the year ISOO San Antonio began to see a new sort of prisoners brought in. Instead of captive Indians, liere arrived a party of eleven Americans* in irons, who were the remainder of a company willi which I'liili]) Nolan, a trader between Natchez and San Antonio, had started out, and who, after a sharj) fight with one hundred and fifty vS])anish .soldiers in which Nolan was killed, had been first induced to return to Nacogdoches, and there treacheroush' manacled and .sent to prison at vSan Antonio. Again, in LSOo, three Americans are brought in under guard. In this year, too, matters begin to be a little more li\-ely in the town. Spain's neighbor on the east is not now France ; for in ISO.'! Lonisian.a has been formally transferred to the I'nited .States. There is already trouble with the latter about the boundary line betwixt Louisiana and Texas. Don Antonio Cordero, the new Governor of Texas, has brought on a lot of troo])s through the town, and fi.xed his official residence here ; and troops continue to march through eii route to Natchitoches, where the American General Wilkinson is, menacing the border. Again, in 1S(I7, Lieutenant Zebidon .M. Like, of the Lnited States Army, ])a.sses through town in charge of an escort. Lieutenant Like has been sent to explore the Arkansas and Red Rivers, and to treat with the Comanches, has been apprehended by the S])anisli anthorities in New Mexico, carried to vSanta h'e, and is now being escorted home. At this time there are four hundred troops in San Antonio, in quarters near the Alamo. Besides the.se, the town has a1)out two thon.sand inhabitants, mostly Spaniards and Creoles, the remainder F'renchmen, Americans, civilized Indians, \and half-breeds. New .settlers have come in ; and what with army officers, the Governor's people, the clergy, and prominent citizens, society begins to form and enjoy itself. The Governor, Father McGuire, Colonel Delgado, Captain Ugarte, doctor Zerbin, dispense hospitalities and adoni social meetings. There are, in the I'enings, levees at the Governor's ; sometimes Mexican dances on the Plaza, at \iichall assist ; and fretpient and prolonged card parties. But these peaceful .scenes do not last long. In IM 1 the ]iassers across the San itonio river between the Alamo and the Main Plaza l)ehold a strange sight: it is thVhead of a man stuck on a jiole, there, in bloody menace against rebels. This lie\ but vesterday was on the shouhlers of Colonel Delgado, a flying adherent of HiOgo, in Mexico: Hidalgo, initiator of how long a train of Mexican revolutions! Vincricniis, /. f. I'nited Stales people ; in wliich sense, to avoid the awkwardness of tile only other equiv • aleut\|„s. I shall hereafter use the word. 78 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. having been also put to death in Chilmahua. It was not long before this blood was (as from of old) washed out with other blood. Bernardo Gutierrez, a fellow-rebel of the unfortunate Delgado, escaped to Natchitoches, and met >oung Magee, an oflficer of the United States army. In a short time the two had assembled a mixed force of American adventurers and rebellious Me.Kican republicans, had driven the Spanish troops from Nacogdoches, marched into Texas, captured the fort and sup- plies at Ea Bahia, enlisted its garrison, and sustained a .siege there which the enemy was finally compelled to abandon with lo.ss. It was in March, isi;}, that the Spani.sh besieging force set out on its retreat up the river to .San Antonio. Gutier- rez — Magee having committed suicide in consequence of mortification at the indignant refusal of the troops to accept a surrender which he had negotiated .soon after the beginning of the siege — determined to pursue. On the 2,Sth of March he crossed the Salado, en route to San Antonio, with a force consisting of eight hundred Americans under Colonel Kemper, one hundred and eighty Mexicans led by Man- chaca,* under Colonel James Gaines, three hundred Lipan and Twowokana Indians, and twenty-five Cooshattie Indians. Marching along the bank of the San Antonio river, with the left flank protected by the .stream, this motley anuy arrived within nine miles of San Antonio, when the riflemen on the right suddenly discovered the enemy ambushed in the chaparral on the side of a ridge. Here the whole force that Governor Salcedo could muster had been po.sted, consisting of about fifteen hundred regular troops and a thousand militia. To gain time to form, the Indians were ranged to receive the opening charge of the Spanish cavalry: the enemy mean- time having immediately formed along the crest of the ridge, with twelve pieces of artiller\- in the centre. The Indians broke at the first shock: only the Cooshatties and a few others stood their ground. These received two other charges, in which they lost two killed and se\-eral wounded. The Americans had now made their di.spo.sitions, and proceeded to execute them with matchless coolness. They charged up the hill, stopped at thirty }-ards of the enemy's line, fired three rounds, loaded, then charged again, and straighway the slope towards San Antonio was dotted with Spanish fugiti\-es, whom the Indians pursued and butchered regardless of quarter. The Spanish conunander, who had pledged .sword and head to Governor Salcedo that he would kill and capture the American army, could not endure the sting of his misfortune. He spurred his horse upon the American ranks, attacked Major Ross, then Colonel Kemper, and while in the act of striking the latter, was shot b}- pri\-ate VV'illiam Owen. The Spanish loss is said to have been near a thousand killed and wounded. Next day the Americans advanced to the outskirts of San Antonio and d' nianded a surrender. Governor Salcedo desired to parley, to delay. A secorl demand was made — peremptory. Governor Salcedo then marched out with 's staff. He presented his sword to Captain Taylor ; Taylor refu.sed, and refer-'d him to Colonel Kemper. Presenting to Colonel Kemper, he was in turn refe^ed to Gutierrez. No, not to that rebel ! Salcedo thrust his sword into the groid, wdieuce Gutierrez drew it. The victors got stores, arms, and treasure. Seen- teen American prisoners in the Alamo were released and armed. The t'ops were paid — receiving a bonus of fifteen dollars each in addition to wage.s — cthed * A proiniuent Mexican, of Te.xas. of strong hut iiiu-nUivatt'd intellect. SIDNEY LANIER'S HISTORICAL SKlvTCH. 79 and niountcd out of the booty. The- Indians were not Ibri^otten in llie dislrihu- tion ; they " were .siii)plied," says Yoakiun, "with two dollars' worth of ver- milion, together with jiresents of the value of a hundred and thirty dollars, and sent away rejoicing." Antl now llowetl the hloocl that must answer that which dripjied down the pole from poor Colonel Delgado's head. Shortly after the victory. Captain Del- gado, a son of the executed rebel, falls upon his knees before Gutierrez, and de- mands vengence upon the ])risoner. Governor Salcedo, who apprehended and executed his father. Gutierrez arrays his army, informs them that it would be safe to send Salcedo and staff to New Orleans, and that it so happens that ves- sels are about to sail for that port from Matagorda Hay. The army consents (we are so fearfully and wonderfully rei)ublican in these days : the army con.sents) that the prisoners be sent off as pro])osed. Captain Delgado, with a company of Mexicans, starts in charge, ostensibly en route for Matagorda Hay. There are fifteen of the distinguished captives : (lovernor Salcedo, of Texas, Governor Herrera, of New Leon, Ex-Governor Cordero, whom we last saw holding levees in San Antonio, several vSpanish and Mexican officers, and one citizen. Delgado gets his prisoners a mile and a half from town, halts them on the bank of the river, strips them, ties them, and cuts the throats of every man : " some of the assassins," says Colonel Navarro, whetting "their knives upon the .soles of their shoes in presence of their victims." The town of San Antonio must have been anything but a pleasant place for peaceful citizens during the next two months. Colonel Kem])er, who was really the commanding officer of the American army, refused further connection with those who could be guilty of such barbarity, and left, with other American officers. Their departure left in the town an uncontrolled iiody of troops who feared neither God nor man ; and these immediately proceeded to avail themselves of the situation by indulging in all manner of riotous and lawless pleasures. With the month of June, however, came Don Elisondo from Mexico with an army of royalists, consisting of about three thousand men half of whom were regular troops. His advance upon San Antonio .seems to have been a complete .surprise, and to have been only learned by the undisciplined republican army in the town, together with the fact that he had captured their horses, which had been out grazing, and killed part of the guard which was protecting the caballada. If El- i.sondo had marched .straight on into town, his task would probably have been an easy one. But he committed the fatal mistake of encami)ing a short distance from the suburbs, where he threw up two bastions with a curtain lietween, on a ridge near the Alazan Creek. Meantime the republican army in the town recovered from the confusion into which they had been thrown by the first intelligence of Elisondo's ])roximity, and organized themselves under Gutierrez and Captain Perry. It was determined to anticipate the enemy's attack. Ingress and egress were prohibited, the senti- nels doubled, and all the cannons spiked e.xce])t four field-])ieces. In the darkness of the night of June 4th the Americans marched ([uietly out of town, by file, to within hearing of the enemy's pickets, and remained there until the enemy was heard at matins, The signal to charge being given — a cheer from the right of 80 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. companies — the Americans advanced, surprised and captured the pickets in front, mounted the enem3''s work, lowered his flag and hoisted their own, before they were fairly discovered through the dim dawn. The enemy struggled hard, how- ever, and compelled the Americans to abandon the works. The latter charged again, and this time routed the enemj- completely. The royalist loss is said to have been about a thousand in killed, wounded and prisoners; and that of the Americans, ninetj^-four killed and mortally wounded. For some reason Gutierrez was now dismissed from the leadership of the army (we republican .soldiers decapitate our commanders very quickly if they please us not !), and shortly afterwards troops and citizens went forth in grand procession to welcome Don Jo.se Alvarez Toledo, a distingui.shed republican Cuban who had been forwarding recruits from Louisiana to San Antonio ; and having escorted him into town with nuich ceremony, elected him commander-in- chief of the Republican Army of the North. Toledo immediately organised a government ; but ihe people of San Antonio enjoyed the unaccustomed blessing of civil law only a little while. In a few days enter, from over the Mexican border. Gen. Arredondo, with the remnant of Elisondo's men and some fresh troops, about four thousand in all, en route for San Antonio. Toledo marches out to meet him with about twent}^- five hundred men, one-third of whom are Americans, the balance Mexicans under Manchaca ; and on the 18th of August, 1813, they come together. Arredondo decoj'S him into an ingenious cul de sac which he has thrown up, just south of the Medina River, and has concealed by cut bushes ; and pours such a murderous fire of cannon and small arms upon him, that in spite of the gallantry of the right wing where the Americans are, the retreat which Toledo has ordered too late becomes a mere rout, and the republican army is butchered without mercy. One batch of sev^enty or eighty fugitives is captured by the pursuing royalists, tied, set by tens upon a log laid across a great grave, and shot ! On the 20th Arredondo enters San Antonio in great triumph, and straight- way proceeds to wreak fearful vengeance upon the unhapp}' town for the massacre of his brother governors. Seven hundred citizens are thrown into prison. Dur- ing the night of the 20th eighteen die of suffocation out of three hundred who are confined in one house. The.se only anticipate the remainder, who are shot, with- out trial, in detachments. Five hundred republican women are imprisoned in a building, derisively termed the Ouuita, and compelled to make up twenty-four bushels of corn into tortillas every day for the royalist army. Having thus sent up a sweet savor of revenge to the spirits of the murdered Salcedo, Cordero> Herrera, and the others, Arredondo finally gathers their bones together and buries them. In all this blood the prosperity of San Antonio was drowned. To settlers it offered no inducements ; to most of its former citizens it held out noth- ing but terror ; and it is described as almost entirely abandoned in 181(1. In December, 1820, arrived a person in San Antonio who, though not then known as such, was really a harbinger of better times. This was Moses Austin, of Connecticut. He came to see Governor Martinez, with a view of bringing a colony to Texas. The two, with the Baron de Bastrop, put in train the prelimi- nary application for permission to Arredondo, Commandant-General at Monterey. Jr^Ci^-trz^^ ^ yT^-rrc^n^€^ ^ RJ/fo jlo^cj lyfC^h/,^^ -^ C Qy^T-^ ^Z^3- FAC-SIMII.KS OK SKINA I T RES OK HlSrOKICAL I'KKSONAGKS. SIDNlvY LANIlvR'S HISTORICAI. SKl'.TCH. 81 Austin, it is true, died soon afterwards ; Iiut he left his project to his son Stephen F., who afterwards carried it out with a patience that amounted to genius and a fortitude that was equivalent to the favor of Heaven. On the 24th of August, 1.S21, Don Juan O'Donoju and Vturhide entered into the Treaty of Cordova, which substantially perfected the separation of Mexico from the mother-country. When the intelligence of this event had spread, the citizens of San Antonio returned. Moreover, about this time a tide of emigra- tion began to set towards Texas. The Americans who had composed part of the array of Gutierrez had circulated fair reports of the country. In IS'i.'i San Antonio is said to have had five thousand inhabitants ; though the Comanche.s appear still to have had matters all their own waj- when they came into town, as they frequently did, to buy beads and other articles with skins of deer and buffalo. One would find this difficult to believe, but reasoning a priori, it is rendered probable by the fact that in the decree of the the Federal Congress of Mexico of the ■24th of August, l.s2(j, to provide for raising troops to serve in Coahuila and Texas as frontier defenders, it is ordered that out of the gross levies there shall be first preferred for military service " los va^os y mal cni/r/aiidos," vagrant and evil disposed persons ; and a posteriori, it is quite confirmed by the experience of Olmsted in San Fernando (a considerable town west of the Rio Grande) so late as 1S.54, where he found the Indians "lounging in and out of every house .... with such an air as indicated they were masters of the town. They entered every door," adds Olmsted, '" fell on every neck, patted the women on the check, helped themselves to whatever suited their fancy, and dis- tributed their scowls or grunts of pleasure according to their sensations." In the year 1S24 a lot of French merchants passed through San Anionio cii route to Santa Fe on a trading expedition. Some distance from town their pack- animals were all stolen by Indians ; but they managed to get carts and oxen from San Antonio, and .so conveyed their goods finally to Santa Fe, where they sold them at an immense profit. In 1831 the Bowie brothers, Rezin P. and James, organised in San Antonio their expedition in search of the old reputed silver mines at San Saba Mission. In the course of this unlucky venture occurred their famous Indian fight, where the two Bowies, with nine others, fought a pitched battle with one hundred and sixty-four Indians who had attacked them with arrow, with rifle, and with fire from sundown to sun.set, killing and wounding eighty-four. They then fortified their position during the night, maintained it for eight days afterwards, and finally returned to San Antonio with their horses and three wounded comrades, leaving one man killed. It is related that in ls.';2 a Comanche Indian attempted t(j abduct a Shawnee woman in San .Antonio. She escaped him, joined a party other people who were staj'ing some thirty five miles from town, and informed them where the Comanches (of whom five hundred had been in town for some purpose) would probably camp. The Shawnees ambushed themselves at the spot indicated. The Comanches came on and stopped as expected : the Shawnees poured a fire into them, and repeated it as they continually rallied, until the Comanches abandoned the con test with a loss of one hundred and seveut\-five dead. 82 SAN ANTONIO BE BEXAR. Early ill 1S?)3 (or perhaps late in December 1832) arrives in San An'ionio for the first time one who is to be called the father of his country. This is Sam Houston. He comes in company with the famous James Bowie, son-in-law of Vice-Governor \'eramendi, and holds a consultation with the Comanche chiefs here, to arrange a meeting at Cantonment Gibson with a view to a treaty of peace. Meantime trouble is brewing. Young Texas does not get on well with his mother. What seems to hurt most is the late union of Texas with Coahuila. This we cannot stand. Stephen F Austin goes to the City of Mexico with a memorial on the subject to the federal government. He writes from there to the municipality of San Antonio. Oct. 2d, 18o.'5, informing the people that their request is likely to be refused, and advising them to make them.selves ready for that emergency. The municipality hand this letter over to Vice-President Farias, who, already angry with Austin on an old account, arrests him on his wa}- home and throws him in prison, back in the city of Mexico. In October, 1834, certain people in San Antonio hold what Yoakum calls ' ' the first strictly revolutionary meeting in Texas;" for Santa Anna \\2.\^ pronounced, and got to be at the head of affairs, and he refuses to separate Texas from Coa- huila. So, through meetings all over the state ; through conferences of citizen deputations with Col. Ugartechea, Mexican Commandant at San Antonio, for the purpose of explaining matters ; through confused arguments and resolutions of the peace party and the war party ; through confused rumors of the advance of Mexican General Cos with an army ; through squabbling and wrangling and final fighting over the cannon that had been lent by the Post of Bexar to the people of Gonzales ; through all manner of civic trouble consequent upon the imprisonment of Governor Viesca of Texas by Santa Anna, and the suspension of the progress of the civil law machine, we come to the time when the committee of San Felipe boldly cry : ''Let us take Bexar and drive the Mexican soldiery out of Texas!" and presently, here, on the 2Sth of October, 1835, is General Cos with his army in San Antonio, fortifj'ing for dear life, while yonder is Austin with a thousand Texans, at Mission Concepcion, a mile and a half down the river below town, where Fannin and Bowie with ninety men in advance have a few hours before waged a brilliant battle with four hundred Mexicans, capturing their field-piece, killing and wounding a hundred or more, and driving the rest back to town. General Austin believes, it seems, that Cos will surrender without a battle ; and so remains at Concepcion till November 2d, then marches up past the town on the east side, encamps four or five days, marches down on the west side, dis- plays his forces on a hill side in terrorein, sends in a demand for surrender — and is flatly answered no. He resolves to lay siege. The days pass slowly, the enemy will not come out though allured with all manner of military enticements, and the army has no "fun," with the exception of one small skirmish, until the 2()th, when "Deaf" Smith* di.scovers a party of a hundred Mexican troops, who have been sent out to cut prairie-grass for the horses in town, and reporting them in camp, brings on what is known as the "grass-fight." Colonel James Bowie *Oiic of the most celebrated and efiicieiit scouts ortlic revolution. [Whose grandchildren are well known in this city to-day. — W. C. Kd.] SIDNEY LANlHR'vS HISTORICAL SKI'TCH. 83 attacks with a hundred mounted men ; l)i)th sides are ([uickly reinforced, and a shar]) running fight is kept up until the enemy get back to town: the Texans capturing seventy horses and killing some fifty of the enemy, with a loss of but two wounded and one missing. Meantime discontents arise. On the day before the "grass-fight" Austin resigns, having been appointed Commi.ssioner to the United States, and Edward Burleson is elected by the armj^ to the command. General Burleson, for some reason, seems loth to storm. Moreover, one Dr. James Grant seduces a large part\- with a wild project to leave San Antonio and attack Matamoras, when he declares that the whole of Mexico will rise and over- whelm Santa Anna ; and on the 2!lth of November it is actually announced that two hundred and twenty-five men are determined to start the next morning. But they do not start. It is whispered the town will be stormed. On the ord of December, Smith, Holmes, and Maverick escape from San Antonio, and give the Texan commander such information as apparently determines him to storm. Volunteers are called for to attack early next morning ; all day and all night of that December ord the men make themselves ready, and long for the moment to advance : when here comes word from the General's quarters that the attack is put off ! Chagrin and indignation prev'ail on all sides. On the morning of the 4th there is open disobedience of orders ; whole companies refuse to parade. Finally, when on the same afternoon orders are issued to abandon camp and march for La Bahia at seven o'clock, the tumult is terrible, and it s^ems likelj- that the.se wild energetic souls, failing the Mexicans, will end by exterminating each other. Midst of the confusion here arrives Mexican Lieutenant \'uavis, a deserter, and declares that the projected attack is 7iot known (as had been assigned for reason of postponing), and that the garrison in town is in as bad order and dis- content as the besiegers. At this critical moment a brave man suddenly crystal- li.sed the loose mass of discordant men and opinions into one compact force and one keen purpose. It is late in the morning. Col. Benjamin R. Milam steps forth among the men. and cries aloud : " Who will go with old Ben Milam into Sau Antonio?'' Three hundred and one men will go. A little before daylight on the oth they "go," Gen. Burleson agreeing to hold his position until he hears from them. Milam marches into and along Acequia Street with his party : Johnson with his along Soledad Street. Where these debouch into the Main Plaza, Cos has thrown up breastworks and placed raking batteries. The columns march parallel along the quiet streets. Pres- ently, as Johnson gets near the Veramendi House (which he is to occupy, while Milam is to gain De la Garza's house), a Mexican sentinel fires. Deaf Smith shoots the sentinel. The Mexicans prick up their ears, prick into their cannon- cartridges; the Plaza batteries open, the Alamo batteries join in ; spade, crowbar, rifle, escopet, all are plied, and the storming of Bexar is begun. But it would take many such papers as this to give even meagre details of all the battles that have been fought in and around San Antonio, and one must pass over the four days of this thrilling conflict with briefest mention. It is novel fighting ; warfare intranuiral, one might say. The Texans advance inch by inch by piercing through the stone walls of the houses, necking loop-holes 84 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. with crowbars for their rifles as the}- gain each room, picking off the enemy from his housetops, from around his cannon, even from behind his own loop-holes. On the night of the oth with great trouble and risk the two coknnns succeed in opening communication with each other. On the Gth they advance a little beyond the Garza house. On the 7th brave Karnes steps forth with a crowbar and breaks into a house midway between the Garza house and the Plaza ; brave Milam is stricken by a rifle ball just as he is entering the yard of the Veramendi house and falls instantly dead ; and the Navarro house, one block from the Main Plaza, is gained. On the 8th they take the " Zambrano Row" of buildings, driving the enemy from it room b)' room ; the enemy endeavor to produce a diversion with fifty men, and do, in a sense, for Burleson finds some diversion in driving them back precipitately with a six-pounder ; at night those in the Zam- brano Row are reinforced, and the "Priest's House" is gained amid heavy fighting. This last is the stroke of grace. The Priest's House commands the Plaza. Early on the morning of the 9th General Cos .sends a flag of truce, asking to sur- render, and on the lOth agrees with Gen. Burleson upon formal and honorable articles of capitulation. The poor citizens of San Antonio de Bexar, however, do not yet enjoy the blessings of life in quiet ; these wild soldiers who have stormed the town cannot remain long without excitement. Presently Dr. Grant revives his old Mata- moras project, and soon departs, carrying with him most of the troops that had been left at Bexar for its defense, together with great part of the garrison's winter supply of clothing, ammunition and provisions, and in addition "pressing" such property of the citizens as he needs, insomuch that Col. Neill, at that time in command at Bexar, writes to the Governor of Te.xas that the place is left desti- tute and defenceless. Soon afterward Col. Neill is ordered to destroy the Alamo walls and other fortifications, and bring off' the artillery, since no head can be made there in the present crisis against the enemy, who is reported marching in force upon San Antonio. Having no teams. Col. Neill is unable to obey the order, and presentlj' retires, his unpaid men having dropped oflF until but eighty remain, of whom Colonel Wm. B. Travis assumes command. Colonel Travis promptly calls for more troops, but gets none as yet, for the Governor and Coun- cil are at deadly quarrel, and the soldiers are all pressing towards Matamora?. Travis has brought thirty men with him ; about the middle of February he is joined by Colonel Bowie with thirty others, and these, with the eighty already in garri.son, constitute the defenders of San Antonio de Bexar. On the 2;>d of Feb- ruary appears General Santa Anna at the head of a well-appointed army of some four thousand men, and marches straight on into town. The Texans retire before him slowly, and finally shut themselves up in the Alamo ; here straight- way begins that bloodiest, smokie.st, grimiest tragedy of this century. William B. Travis, James Bowie, and David Crockett, with their hundred and forty-five effective men, are enclosed within a stone rectangle one hundred and ninety feet long and one hundred and twenty-two feet wide, having the old church of the Alamo in the southeast corner, in which are their quarters and magazine. They have a supply of water from the ditches that run alongside the walls, and by way SIDNKY LANII'R'S HISTORICAL SKKTCII. 85 of provision they have about tiinetN- l)usht-ls of corn and Uiirty beef-cattle, their entire stock, all collected since the enemy came in sij^ht. The walls are un- broken, with no angles from whicli to command besei.ning lines. They have fourteen pieces of artillery mounted, with but little aninumition. Santa Anna demands unconditional surrender. Travis replies with a cannon- shot, and the attack commences, the enemy running up a blood-red flag in town. Travis dispatches a messenger with a call to his countrymen for reinforcements, which concludes : " Though this call may be neglected, I am determined to sus- tain myself as long as possible, and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor and that of his country. Victory or death ! " Meantime the enemy is active. On the 25th Travis has a sharp fight to prevent him from erecting a batterj' raking the gate of the Alamo. At night it is erected, with another a half-mile off at the Garita, or powder-house, on a sharp eminence at the extremity of the present main street of the town. On the 26th there is skir- mishing with the Mexican cavalry. In the cold — for a norther has commenced to blow and the thermometer is down to thirty-nine — the Texans make a sally suc- cessfully for wood and water, and that night they burn some old houses on the northeast that might afford cover for the enemy. So amid the enemy's constant rain of shells and balls, which miraculously hurt no one, the Texans strengthen their works and the siege goes on. On the 2Sth Fannin starts from Goliad with three hundred troops and four pieces of artillery, but for lack of teams and pro- visions quickly returns, and the little garrison is left to its fate. On the morning of the first of March there is doubtless a wild shout of welcome in the Alamo ; Captain John \V. Smith has managed to convey thirty-two men from Gonzales into the fort: These join the heroes, and the attack and defence go on. On the 3rd a single man, Moses Rose, escapes from the fort. His account of that day* must entitle it to consecration as one of the most pathetic days of time. "About two hours before sunset on the 3rd of March, l.s;!G, the bombard- ment suddenlj- ceased, and the enemy withdrew an unusual distance Col- onel Travis paraded all his effective men in a single file, and taking his position in front of the centre, he stood for some moments apparently speechless from emotion : then ner\-ing himself for the occasion, he addressed them substantially as follows ; — "'My brave companions: stern necessitj' compels me to employ the few moments afforded by this probably brief cessation of conflict, in making known to you the most interesting, yet the most solemn, melancholy and unwelcome fact that humanity can realise Our fate is sealed. VV^ithin a very few days, perhaps a very few hours, we must all be in eternity I I have deceived you long by the promise of help ; but I crave your pardon, hoping that after hearing my explanation you will not only regard my conduct as pardonable, but heartily sympathi.se with me in my extreme necessity I have continually received the strongest assurances of help from home. Every letter from the Council, and ».\s transinittecl by the /iilier family, whose resideiict «,is the first place at which poor Rose had dared to slop, and with whom he remained some weeks, healing the festered wounds made on liis legs l>y the cactns- thorns during the days of his fearful journey. The acctmnt from which lhc.se extracts are taken, is contriliulcd to the Texas .Almanac for 1S7."1. by W. p. Znltcr, and his mother, Mary .\nii Zuber. 86 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. ever}- one that I have seen from individuals at home, has teemed with assurances that our people were ready, willing and anxious to come to our relief. . . . These assurances I received as facts In the honest and simple confidence of my heart I have transmitted to j^ou these promises of help and my confident hope of success. But the promised help has not come, and our hopes are not to be reali,sed. I have evidetitly confided too much in the promises of our friends: but let us not be in haste to censure them Our friends were evidently not informed of our perilous condition in time to save us. Doubtless they would have been here by the time they expected any considerable force of the enemy. .... M\- calls on Colonel Fannin remain unanswered, and mj' messengers have not returned. The probabilities are that his whole command has fallen into the hands of the enemy, or been cut to pieces, and that our couriers have been cut off. [So does the brave simple soul refuse to feel any bitterness in the hour of death.] .... Then we must die Our business is not to make a fruitless effort to save our lives, but to choose the manner of our death. But three modes are presented to us ; let us choose that by which we may best ser\^e our country. Shall we surrender and be deliberately shot without taking the life of a single enemy ? Shall we try to cut our way out through the Mexican ranks and be butchered before we can kill twenty of our adversaries ? I am opposed to either method Let us resolve to withstand our adversaries to the last, and at each advance to kill as many of them as possible. And when at last they shall storm our fortress, let us kill them as they come! kill them as they scale our wall! kill them as they leap within! kill them as they raise their weapons and as they use them! kill them as they kill our companions! and continue to kill them as long as one of us shall remain alive! .... But I leave every man to his own choice. Should any man prefer to surrender . . . or to attempt an escape . . . he is at liberty to do so. My own choice is to stay in the fort and die for my country, fighting as long as breath shall remain in my body. This will I do even if you leave me alone. Do as you think best ; but no man can die with me without affording me comfort in the hour of death ! " "Colonel Travis then drew his sword, and with its point traced a line upon the ground extending from the right to the left of the file. Then resuming his position in front of the center, he said, 'I now want every man who is determined to stay here and die with me to come across this line. Who will be the first? March ! The first respondent was Tapley Holland, who leaped the line at a bound, exclaiming, ' I am ready to die for my country ! ' His example was instantly followed by every man in the file with the exception of Rose. . . . Everj- sick man that could walk, aro.se from his bunk and tottered across the line. Colonel Bowie, who could not leave his bed, said, ' Boj-s, I am not able to come to you, but I wish some of you would be so kind as to remove my cot over there.' Four men instanth- ran to the cot, and each lifting a corner, carried it across the line. Then every sick man that could not walk made the same request, and had his bunk removed in the same way. " Rose too was deeply affected, but differently from his companions. He stood till every man but himself had crossed the line. . . . He sank upon the ground, covered his face, and yielded to his own reflections. ... A bright idea SIDNEY I.ANIlUrS HISTORICAL SKI'.TCH. 87 came to his relief ; he spoke the Mexican dialect very fluently, and could he once get safely out of the fort, he might easily pass for a Mexican and effect an escape. . . . He directed a searching glance at the cot of Colonel Bowie. . . . Colonel David Crockett was leaning over the cot, conversing with its occupant in an undertone. After a few seconds Bowie looked at Rose and said, ' You seem not to be willing to die with us, Rose.' ' No,' said Ro.se ; ' I am not prepared to die, and shall not do .so if I can avoid it.' Then Crockett also looked at him, and said, ' You may as well conclude to die with us, old man, for escape is impossi- ble.' Rose made no reply, but looked at the top of the wall. ' I have often done worse than to climb that wall,' thought he. Suiting the action to the thought, he sprang up, seized his wallet of unwashed clothes, and ascended the wall. Standing on its top, he looked down within to take a last view of his dying friends. They were all now in motion, but what they were doing he heeded not; overpowered by his feelings, he looked away and saw them no more. . . . He threw down his wallet and leaped after it. . . . He took the road which led down the River around a bend to the ford, and through the town by the church. He waded the river at the ford and passed through the town. He saw no per- son .... but the doors were all closed, and San Antonio appeared as a de- serted city. " After passing through tin.' town he luruL-d dciwn the River. A stillness as of death prevailed. When he had gone about a (|uarter of a mile below the town, his ears were saluted by the thunder of the bombardment which was then renewed. That thunder continued to remind him that his friends were true to their cause, by a continual roar with but slight intervals imtil a little before .sunrise on the morning of the Uth, when it ceased and he heard it no more." * And well may it "cease" on that morning of the (>th ; for after that thrilling 3d, the siege goes on, the enemy furious, the Texans rejilying calml\- and slowly. Finally Santa Anna determines to storm. Some hours before daylight on the morning of the 6th. the Mexican infantry, provided with scaling ladders, and tracked b}- the cavalry to keep them \ip to the work, surround the doomed fort. At daylight they advance and plant their ladders, but give back under a deadly fire from the Texans. They advance again, and again retreat, A third time — Santa Anna threatening and coaxing b\- turns — they plant their ladders. Now they mount the walls. The Texans are ovei whelmed by sheer weight of numl)ers and ex- haustion of continued watching and fighting. The Mexicans swarm into the fort. The Texans club tlieir guns: one by one they fall fighting — now Travis yonder by the western wall, now Crockett here in the angle of the church-wall, now Howie butchered and nuitilated in his sick-cot, breathe ([uick and ])assaway; and ])resently every Texan lies dead, while tliere in horrid heai)s are stretched five hundred and twenty-one dead Mexicans and as many more wounded! Of Iht.' human beings that were in the fort five remain alive : Mrs. Dickinson and Iier child, Coloiiel Travis' negro-servant, and two Mexican women. • Rose succeeded in ni.lkin^ his escape. .Tiid re.iched the lioiLse of tile Ziibers. as l>efore staled, in fearful condition. .After remaining liere some weeks, he started for his home in Nacogdoclics, l>ut on the way his thorn-wounus became inflamed anew, anct when he reache;t the Texan Commissioners in the Council- house in San Antonio, to redeem their promise. Eeaving twenty warriors and thirtj'-two women and children outside, twelve chiefs entered the council-room and presented the only captix'e the\- had lirought — a little white girl — declaring that they had no others. This statement the little girl pronounced false, asserting that it was made solely for the purpose of extorting greater ransoms, and that she had but recently .seen other captives in their camp. An awkward pause followed. Presently one of the chiefs inquired. How the commissioners liked it? By way of reply, the company of Captain Howard, who had been .sent for, filed into the room, and the Indians were told that the}- would be held prisoners initil they should send some of their party outside after the rest of the captives. The commissioners then rose and left the room. As the}' were in the act of leaving, however, one of the Indian chiefs attempted to rush through the door, and being confronted by the sen- tinel, .stabbeil him. Seeing the sentinel hurt, and Captain Howard also stabbed, the other chiefs sprang forward with kni\-es and bows and arrows, and the fight raged until the}- were all killed. Meantime the warriors outside began to fight, and en- gaged the company of Captain Read; but, taking shelter in a stone-house, were sur- rounded and killed. Still another detachment of the Indians managed to continue the fight until thej- had reached the other side of the ri\'er, when they were finally despatched. Thirty-two Indian warriors and five Indian women and children were slain, and the rest of tlie women and children were made prisoners. The savages fought desperateh', for se\-en Te.xans were killed and eight woimded. "For uarticulars of this terrible eucouiiter see memoirs of Mrs. M. A. Maverick. — W. C.. Kd. vSIDNKY I.ANIIvR'S HISTORICAL SKETCH. 89 Tlie war between Texas and Mexico had now languished for some years. The project of annexation was much discussed in the United States; one great objection to it was that the ITnited States would enil)n)il itself with a nation with which it was at peace — Mexico — by annexing Texas, then at war. The war, however, seemed likeh' to die away; and to prevent the removal of the obstacle to annexation in that way, Mexico made feeble efforts to keep up such hostilities as might at least give color to the assertion that the war bad not ended. Accordingly in the year 1842 a Mexican army again invested San Antonio. After a short jiarley Colonel Hays withdrew with his .small force, and the Mexicans, numbering about seven hundred men under General Vasquez, took po.sse.ssion of the place and formally reor- ganized it as a Mexican town. They remained, how-ever, only two days, and con- ducted them.selves, officially, with great jM-opriety, though the citizens are .said to ha\-e lost a great deal of valuable property by unauthorized depredations of private soldiers and of Mexican citizens who accompanied the army on its departure. Again on the 11th of vSeptember, 1842, a Mexican army of twelve hundred men under Gen. Woll, .sent probably by the same policy which had despatched the other, surprised the town of San Antonio, and, after having a few killed and wounded, took possession, the citizens having capitulated. Gen. Woll captured the entire bar of lawyers in attendance on the District Court, then in session, and held them as prisoners of war. He did not escape, however, so easily as Gen. \'asquez. The Texans gathered rapidly, and by the 17th had assembled two hundred and twenty men on the Salado, some six miles from town. Capt. Ha\s. with fifty men, decoyed Gen. Woll forth, and a battle ensued, from which the enemy withdrew at sun.set with a loss of sixty killed and about the same number wounded, the Texans losing one killed and nine wounded. It is easy to believe that the honest citizens of San Antonio got little sleep on that night of the 17lh of September, 1.S42. Gen. Woll was busy making preparations for retreat; and the Mexican citizens who intended to accompany him were also busy gathering up plunder right and left to take with them. At daylight they all departed. This was the la.st time that San Antonio de Bexar was ever in Mexican hands. After annexation, in 1S4."), the town began to improve. The trade from cer- tain portions of Mexico — Chihuahua and the neighboring States — seems always to have eagerly sought San Antonio as a point of supplies whenever peace gave it the opportunity. Presently, too, the United States Government selected San Antonio as the base for the frontier army below El Paso, and the large quanti- ties of money expended in connection with the supply and transportation of all materiel for so long a line of forts have contributed very materialh- to the pros- perity of the town. PVoni a population of about 3.")(HI in IS.'ii). it increased to lU.UUU in iSoB.* Abandoning now this meagre historical sketch, and pursuing the order indi- cated in the enumeration of contrast and eccentricities given in the earl>- jiart of this paper ; one finds in San Antonio the queerest juxtaposition of civilisations, white, yellow (Mexican), red (Indian), black (negro), and all possible permuta- •San Antouio li.is now an isliniaUil |>opnlalion of iiO.OUO.— W. C. \\\>. 90 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. tions of these significant colors. Americans, Germans, and Mexicans; Ijesides these there are probably representatives from all European nationalities.* Religious .services are regularly conducted in four languages, German, Span- ish, Engji.sh and Polish. Perhaps the variety of the population cannot be better illustrated than by the following " commodity of good names," occurring in a slip cut from a daih' paper of the town a day or two ago : Matrimoni.vl. — The matrimouial market for a couple of weeks past has been unusually lively, as evidenced b)- the following list of marriage licenses issued during that time : Cruz de la Cruz and Manuela Sauseda ; Felipe Sallani and Maria del R. Lopez ; G. Isabolo and Rafaela Urvana; Anto. P. Rivas aud Maria Quintana ; Garniel Hernandez and Seferina Rod- riguez ; T. B. Leighton and Franceska E. Schmidt ; Rafael Diaz and Michaela Chavez : Levy Taylor and Anna Simpson, colored ; Iguacio Andrada and Juliana Baltasar ; August Dubiell and Philoinena Muschell ; James Callaghan and Mary Grenet ; Albert Anz and Ida Pollock ; Stephen Hoog and Mina Schneider ; Wm. King and Sarah Wilson, colored ; Joseph McCoy and Jesse Brown ; Valentine Heck and Clara Hirsch ; John F. Dunn and E. Annie Dunn. ' Much interest has attached, of late years, to the climate of San Antonio, in consequence of its alleged happy influence ttpon consumption. One of the rec- ognized '' institutions " of the town is the consumptives, who are sent here from remote parts of the United States and from Europe, and who may be seen on fine days, in various stages of decrepitude, strolling about the streets. This present writer has the honor to be one of those strolling individuals ; but he does not in- tend to attempt to describe the climate, for three reasons : first, because it is sim- ply indescribable ; second, if it were not so, his experience has been such as to convince him that the needs of consumptives, in point of climate, depend upon two variable elements, to wit, the stage which the patient has reached, and the ]ieculiar temperament of each individual, and that therefore any general recom- mendation of any particular climate is often erroneous and sometimes fatally de- ceptive : and third, becau.se he forttuiately is able to present some of the facts of the climate, which may be relied upon as scientifically accurate, and from the proper study of which each intelligent consumptive can make up his mind as to the suitableness of the climate to his individual case. For the past five years, Dr. F. V. Pettersen, a Swedish physician and ardent lover of science, resident in *,Sidney Lauier here says of the old bridge which preceded the present cue : "At the Commerce street bridge over the San Antouio River, staudsa post supporting a large sign board, upon which appears the following three legends : Walk your horse over this bridge, or you will be fined. Schnelles Reiten uber diese Briicke ist verboten. Auda despacio con su caballo, <5 teme la ley. To the the meditative stroller across this bridge — aud on a soft day when the Gulf breeze and the sunshine are king and queen, any stranger may be safely defied to cross this bridge zvitlnmt becoming meditative — there is a fine satire in the varying tone of these inscriptions — for they are by no means faithful translations of each other; a satire all the keener in that it must have been wholly unconscious. For mark; 'Walk your horse, etc., or j'ON ~f/7/ fn-Jiftt'tf." This is the American's warning : the alternative is a money cousideraiion, aud the appeal is solely to the pocket, lint now the German is simply informed that sclinelU's Reiten over this bridge hi verholcn — is Jori'iiUiiii ; as who should say: "So. thou quiet, law-abiding Teuton, enough for thee to know that it is forbidden simply.' And lastly, the Mexican direction takes wholly a different turn from either: Slow there with ^-our horse, Mexicano, ' o teme la ley,' — or 'fear the lew',' " * This refer.s more appropriately to the date of Sidney Lanier's remarks. Since that day there has been an increasing influ.x of .Americans. — W. C, Ed. SIDNKY LANIKR'S HISTORICAL SKKTCH. 91 San Antonio, Ims conducted a scries of meteorological observations with accurate apparatus ; and the results which follow have been compiled from his records : Seasons of 1 8(58 18(i!) 1870 1871 1872 Seasons of 1868 1869 Mkan ThERMOMIvTKR. Sfirinif. Siiiltiurr. 1 4.'>'> \ Mean Hygrometer. 1870 1871 1872 For the j-ear 18(),S 18(i9 1870 1871 1872 65* (12 60 64 64 78 71; Anttiinn. 71.;!8 67.5;5 70.66 68.;is 6.s,9(; 64 (•>2 (55 lil Whilir. 54.66 52.93 51 .30 54.. -U 49.75 49 49 46 50 k; Total Rain-kai.l. 46.60 inches. 49.03 35.12 24.. S6 .■!l.r,2 These are averages, but the view which thej' present of the climate, although strictly accurate as far as it goes, is by no mear.s complete San Antonio is at an altitude of 564 feet above the le\-el of the sea, in latitude 29 ° 28', longitude 9,S ° 24'. It is placed just in the edge of a belt of country one hundred and fifty miles wide, reaching to the Rio Grande, and principally de- voted to cattle-raising Inside, the location of the.citj' is picturesque. Two streams, the San Antonio and San Pedro rivers, run in a direction generally par- allel, though specially as far from parallelism as capricious crookedness can make itself, through the entire town. The San Antonio is about sixty feet wide; its water is usually of a lovely milky-green. The stranger, strolling on a mild sunny day through the streets, often finds himself suddenly on a bridge, and is half start- led with the winding vista of sweet lawns running down to the water, of weeping willows kissing its surface, of summer houses on its banks, and of the swift yet smooth-shining stream meandering this way and that, actuallj' combing the long sea-green locks of a trailing water-grass which sends its waving tresses down the centre of the current for hundreds of feet, and murmuring the while with a palpa- ble Spanish lisping, which floats up among the rude noises of traffic along the street, as it were some dove-voiced Spanish nun out of the convent yonder praying heaven's mitigation of the wild battle of trade. Leaving this bridge, walking down the main (Commerce) street, acrcss the Main plaza, then past the San Fernando Cathedral, then across the Military Plaza, one come pres- ently to the San Pedro, a small stream ten or fifteen feet in width, up which the Fractions omitted. 92 SAN ANTONIO DE BKXAR. gazing stroller finds no romance, l)Ut mostly strict use; for there sqnat the Mexican women on their haunches, by their flat stones, washing the famil}- garments, in a position the very recollection of which gives one simultaneous stitches of lumbago and sciatica, yet which they appear to maintain for hours without detriment. . . . Crossing the San Pedro we are among the Jacals more pretentious dwellings are built oi adobes, or sun-dried brick. The majority of the substantial houses of the town are constructed of a whitish limestone, so soft when first quar- ried that it can be cut with a knife, but quickly hardening by exposure into a very durable building material. In the more pretentious two-storied dwellings there are some very good Moorish effects of projecting stone and lattice-work. A fine architectural example in the town is the San Fernando Cathedral, which presents a broad, varied and imposing faijade upon the western side of the Main Plaza The curious dome, surrounded by a high wall over which its topmost slit-windows just peer — an evident relic of ancient Moorish archi- tecture, which one finds in the rear of most of the old Spanish religious edifices in Texas — has been preserved, and still adjoins the queer priests' dormitories, which constitute the rear end of the cathedral building. There are other notable religious edifices in town. Going back to Com- merce Street, one can see a fine large church for the German Catholics (San Fernando Cathedral is Mexican Catholic). Cro.ssing a graceful iron bridge, that turns off to the north from Commerce Street, one glances up and down the stream, which here flows between heavy and costly abutments of stone to protect the rear of the large stores whose fronts are on the Main Street, and whose rear doors open almost immediately over the water. Across the bridge in this odd nook of the stream is St. Marj^'s, the American Catholic Church, its rear adjoining a long three-storied stone convent building, and its yard .sloping down to the water. Strolling up the river a ([uarter of a mile, one comes upon a long white stone building, which has evidently bad much trouble to accommodate itself to the site upon which it is built, and whose line is broken into four or five abrupt angles, while its roof is varied with dormer windows and sharp projections and sjiires and (juaint clock-faces, and its rear is m)-sterious with lattice-covered balconies and half-hidden corners and corridors. This is the Ursuline Convent; and standing as it does on a rocky and steep (steep for Texas plains) bank of the river, whose course its broken line follows, and down to which its long stern-looking wall descends, it is an edifice at once piquant and sombre, and one cannot resist figuring Mr. James' horseman spurring his charger up the white limestone road that winds alongside the wall, in the early twilight, when dreams come whispering down the current among the willow-sprays. There are notable places about the town which the stranger must visit. He may ride two miles along a level road between market gardens which are vital- ised by a long accquia. or ditch, fed from the river, and come presently upon the quaint graj' towers of the old Mission Concepcion.* The old church, with its high- walled dome in the rear, is in a good state of preservation, and traces of the sin- gular many-colored fre.scoingon its front are still plainly visible. Climbing a very •'The Mission of Our I.adyofthe Coiirrpcioii d,' Atiiiia. SIDNEY LANIIvR'S HLSTORICAL SKETCH. 93 shaky ladder, one gets upon the roof of a long stone corridor running off from the church building, and, taking good heed of the sharp-thorned cactus which abounds up there, looks over upon a quaint complication of wall-angles, nooks, and small-windowed rooms Further down the river a couple of miles one comes to the Mission San fose dc Aguayo. This is more elaborate and on a larger scale than the buildings of the first Mission, and is still very beautiful. Religious services are regularly con- ducted here; and one can do worse things than to steal out here from town on some wonderfully calm Sunday morning, and hear a mass, and dream back the century and a half of strange, lonesome, devout, hymn-haunted and Indian- haunted years that have trailed past these walls. Five or six miles further down the river are the ruins of the Mission San Juan in much dilapidation. Or the visitor may stroll off to the eastward, climb the hill, wander about among the graves of heroes in the large cemetery on the crest of the ridge, and please himself with the noble reaches of country east and west, and with the perfect view of the city, which from here seems " sown," like Tennyson's, "in a monstrous wrinkle of the" prairie. Or, being in search of lions, one may see the actual animal, by a stroll to the "San Pedro Springs Park," a mile or so to the northward. Here, from under a white-ledged rocky hill, burst forth three crystal- line springs, which quickly unite and form the San Pedro. With spreading water-oaks, rustic pleasure buildings, promenades along smooth shaded avenues between concentric artificial lakes, a race-course, an aviary, a fine Mexican lion, a bear-pit in which are an emerald-eyed blind cinnamon bear, a large black bear, a wolf and a coyote, and other attractions, this is a ver>' green spot indeed in the prairies. Or one may drive three miles to northward and see the romantic spot where the San Antonio River is forever being born, leaping forth from the moun- tain, complete, totus, even as Miner\-a from the head of Jove. Or one may take one's stand on the Commerce Street bridge and involve oneself in the life that goes by this way and that. Yonder comes a long train of enonnous blue-bodied, can- vas-covered wagons, built high and square in the stern, much like a fleet of Dutch galleons, and lumbering in a ponderous wa\- that suggests cargoes of silver and gold. These are drawn by fourteen mules each, who are harnessed in four tiers, the three front tiers of four mules each, and that next the wagon of two. The ' ' lead ' ' mules are wee fellows, veritalile mulekins ; the next tier larger, and so on to the two wheel-mules, who are alwa>-s as large as can be procured. Yonder fares slowly another train of wagons, drawn by great wide-homed oxen, whose evident tendency to run to hump and fore-shoulder irresistibly persuades one of their cousinship to the buffalo. Here, now, comes somewhat that shows as if Birnam Wood had been cut into fagots and was advancing with tipsy swagger upon Dunsinane. Presently, one's gazing eye receives a sensation of hair, then of enormous ears, and then the legs appear, of the little roan-gray burros, or asses, upon whose backs that Mexican walking behind has managed to pile a mass of mesquite firewood that is simply astonishing. This mesquite is a species of acacia, whose roots and body form the principal fuel here. It yields, by exudation, a gum which is quite equal to gum arabic, when the tannin in it is extracted. It appears to have spread over this 94 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. portion of Texas within the last twenty-five ,vears, perhaps less time. The old settlers account for its appearance by the theory that the Indians — and after them the stock-raisers — were formerly in the habit of burning off the prairie-grass annually, and that these great fires rendered it impossible for the mesquite shrub to obtain a foothold ; but that now the departure of the Indians and the transfer of most of the large cattle-raising business to points further westward, have resulted in leaving the soil free for the occupation of the mesquite. It has certainly taken advantage of the opportunity. It covers the prairie thickly, in many directions as far as the eye can reach, growing to a pretty uniform height of four or five feet — though occasionally much larger — and presenting with its tough branches and innumerable formidable thorns, a singular appearance. The wood when dry is exceedingly hard and durable, and of a rich mahogany color. This recent overspread ot foliage on the plains is supposed by many persons to be the cause of the quite remarkable increase of moisture in the climate of San Antonio which has been observed of late years. The phenomena — of the coincident increase of moisture and of mesquite — are unquestionable : but whether they bear the relation of cause and effect, is a question upon which the unscientific lingerers on this bridge may be pennitted to hold themselves in reserve And now as we leave the bridge in the gathering twilight and loiter down the street, we pass all manner of odd personages and "characters." Here ■ hobbles an old Mexican who looks like old Father Time in reduced circumstances, his feet, his body, his head all swathed in rags, his face a blur of wrinkles, his beard gray-grizzled — a picture of eld such as one will rarely find. There goes a little German boy who was captured a 3'ear or two ago b}' Indians within three miles of San Antonio, and has just been retaken and sent home a few days ago.* Do you see that poor Mexican without any hands ? A few months ago a wagon- train was captured by Indians at Howard's Wells ; the teamsters, of whom he was one, were tied to the wagons and these set on fire, and this poor fellow was released by the flames burning off his hands, the rest all perishing save two. Here is a great Indian-fighter who will show you what he calls his " vouchers," being scalps of the red braves he has slain ; there a gentleman who blew up his store here in '42 to keep the incoming Mexicans from benefiting by his goods, and who afterwards spent a weary imprisonment in that stern castle of Perote awaj^ down in Mexico, where the Mier prisoners (and who ever thinks nowadays of that strange, bloody Mier Expedition ?) were confined ; there a portly, handsome, buccaneer-looking captain who led the Texans against Cortinas in 'oil ; there a small, intelligent-looking gentleman who at twenty was first Secretary of 'War of the young Texan Republic, and who is said to know the history of everything that has been done in Texas from that time to this, minutely ; and .so on through a perfect gauntlet of people who have odd histories, odd natures or odd appear- ances, we reach our hotel Sidney Lanier. *T1us was written of ISV:).— W. C, En. Interviews and Memoirs of Old Time Texans. Extracts from the Memoirs of Mrs. M. A. Maverick. We have been pcnnitted by the kindness of tlie I'aniily to examine this remarkable document, — "This little family history necessarily private," as it is modestly described in the jireface. In reality the Record is a portion of the annals of Texas, and from the early days of trial and difficnlly it reads us besides, a latter-day lesson of courage, pati- ence and fortitude. From the point of view of the historical trifler, the feelin,t; that impresses one, on laying down the manuscript after scanning all its lines, is as though one had stumbled upon the diary of a nol>le Roman matron of the days ot Regulus. The few extracts and running comments which follow will give an idea of the story — A tale not told in heroics, but which simply worded, never falls short of heroism, and which, in the unaffected courage, and affecting piety of its writer is probablj' unique. Samuel Augustus Maverick was born Julv 23, 1803, at Pendleton, South Car- olina of distinguished revolutionary stock of luiglish and Huguenot extraction. Mrs. Maverick w^as an Adams — the Ma.ssachusetts famil\- transplanted to Virginia and intermarried with a Lewis of that state. Mrs. Maverick was married August 4th. 1.S36, near Tu.scaloosa, Alabama, her mother's home. The family started for Texas October 14th, IS."!?; Mr. Sam Mav- erick being then a baby of five months. Mr, Maverick senior, had been in Texas in 1835, and his friends thought him killed in the Alamo fight. As a record of old time travelling, and to illustrate the up-building of the Southwest, their progress to the Lone Star State is of interest in the.se days of Pullman sleepers; Mrs. Maverick .says: "Father accompanied us half a day. . . . We traveled in a carriage, Mr. Maverick driving and nurse Rachel and baby and myself the other occupants. In a wagon with Wiley as driver, was Jinny our future cook and her four children. We reached mother's, (Tuscaloosa, Alabama, from Pendle- ton, South Carolina) about the last of October, and stopped with her about six months making final preparations December 7th, 1.S37, we set out for Texas. . . . Our part\- was composed of four whites and ten negroes. The negroes were four men Griffin, Granville. Wiley and Uncle Jim — two women Jinny and Rachel, and Jinny's four chiUlren We had a large car- riage, a big Kentucky wagon, three extra saddle horses and one blooded filly. The wagon carried a tent, a supply of provisions and bedding, and the cook and children. . We occasionally stopped several days in a good place to rest and to have washing done, and sometimes to give muddy roads time to dry. We 96 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. crossed the Mississippi at Rodney, and Red river at Alexandria, and came through bottoms in Louisiana where the high-water marks in the trees stood far above our carriage-top, but the roads were good there when we passed. We crossed the Sabine, a sluggish, muddy, narrow stream, and stood upon the soil of the Republic of Texas about New Year's day 1838. "January 7th, 1838, we occupied an empty cabin in San Augustine, while the carriage wheel was being repaired. This was a poor little village principally of log cabins, on one street, but the location was high and dry. We laid in a supply of corn and groceries here and pushed on through Nacogdoches, to the place of Colonel Durst, an old acquaintance of Mr. Maverick. . . . There we met General Rusk. . . . We now had to travel in occasional rains and much mud, where the country was poor and sparsely settled and provisions for mau and beast scarce. We, on advice, selected the longest but the best road, namely, the one leading by the way of Washington, high up on the Brazos. From Washing- ton we went to Columbus on the Colorado, and thence about due south towards the Lavaca River. Now came a dreadful time. About January 26th we entered a bleak, desolate, swampy prairie, cut up by what are called dry bayous, and now almost full of water. This swamp, covered by the " Sandy," Mustang and head branches of the Navidad, was fourteen miles wide. . . . Every step the animals took was in water. We " stalled " in five or six of the gullies and each time the wagon had to be unloaded in wind, water and rain, and all the men and animals had to work together to pull out. The first " norther " struck us here, a terrific, howling north wind with fine rain, blowing and penetrating through clothes and blankets. I never before experienced such cold. We were four days crossing this fourteen miles of dreadful swamp. The first day we made three miles and that night my mattress floated in water. No one suffered from the exposure, and Mr. Maverick kept cheerful all the while. Our provisions were almost gone when, on the 80th, we crossed the Navidad, stopping at Spring Hill, Major Sutherland's place. Mr. Maverick now went on to see if it was safe to take us to San Antonio, and visited other points with a view to .settling, especially Matagorda, where he owned land. "At Major Sutherland's boarded Captain Sylvester, from Ohio, who had captured Santa Anna after the battle of San Jacinto. I attended a San Jacinto ball at Texana on April 21st. Here, too, I met old 'Bowles,' the Cherokee chief, with twelve or thirteen of his tribe. "After tea we were dancing when Bowles came in dressed in a breech cloth, anklets, moccasins and feathers and a long clean white linen shirt which had been presented to him in Houston. He .said the pretty ladies in Houston had danced with, kissed him and given him rings. We, however, begged to Ijc excused, and even requested him to retire. . . . He .stalked out in high dudgeon, and our dance broke up. Bowles told us of President Houston li\-ing in his Natioii, and that he had given Houston his daughter for a .squaw, and had made him a big chief. "June 2nd we set off for San Antonio de Bexar, in those days frequently simply called Bexar June 12th, late in the afternoon, we reached camp again, and were loading up to move two or three miles further to a l)etter cam])- MICMOIR.S ()!•• MRvS. M. A. M.WlvRICK. 97 iiig i)lace, when several Iiu'.ians rode uj). They said ' niuclio ainis:o,' and were loud and filthy and manifested their intention to he very intimate. More and more came, until we counted seventeen of them. They rode in amoni(st us, looked greedily at the horses, and without exa^Keration annoyed us very nnich. They were Tonkawas and kept repeating ' nuicho amigo,' telling us further that they were just from the Nueces, where they had fought the Comanches two days previously and gained a victory. They were in war-paint and well armed and displayed in triumph two scalps, one hand and several pieces of i)utrid flesh from various parts of the human body. Tlie.se were to be taken to the tril)e, when a war-dance would ensue over the trophies, and they and their sipiaws would devour the flesh. I was frightened almost to death, but tried not to show my alarm. They rode up to the carriage window and asked to see the ' Papoose.' I held up the bab\- and smiled at their compliments, but took care to have mj' pistol and bowie knife visible and kept cool I kept telling Griffin to hurry the others, and Mr. Maverick worked cool>' with the rest. Jinny said, ' Let's cook .some supper first,' and grumbled mightily when Griffin* ordered her into the wagon and drove off. Imagine our consternation when the Indians turned back and every one of the seventeen followed us. It was a bright moonlight night and finally the Indians, finding us unsociable and dangerous, gradually dropped behind." On June loth, l.s.'SS, the travellers reached San Antonio, having left home October 14th of the previous year. While Mrs. Maverick was at Spring Hill, Mr. Maverick made one journey l:)ack to jnirchase household effects in New Orleans. Mrs. Maverick goes on to descrilie the San Antonio of the period and gives a charming picture of the society of the little coterie of Americans then living here. " Early in Februarj' 1S39, we moved into our own house at the Northeast cor- ner of Main and Soledad streets. This hou.se remained our homestead until July 1849 — over ten 3'ears — altho' five of the ten years, those from '42 to '47 we wand- ered about as refugees '' Let Mrs. Maverick describe a San Antonio home of the better class at that period "The main hou.se was of stone, and had three rooms, one fronting South on Main street and West on Sole- dad street, and the other two fronting West on Soledad; also a shed along the East wall of the house toward the north end. This shed we closed in with an adobe wall, and divided it into a kitchen and servants' room. We also huilt an adobe room for the servants on Soledad street, leaving a gateway between it and the main house, and we built a stable near the river. We put a strong picket fence around the garden to the North, and fenced the garden off from the yard. In the garden were sixteen large fig trees, and many rows of pomegranates. In the yard were several china trees, and on the river bank, just below our line on the De la Zerda premi.ses, was a grand old cypress which we could touch through our fence, and its roots made ridges in our yard. It made a great shade, and we ♦This Griffin was a faithful slave, who a ft tr Mr. Mavcnck'scapttireatSaii .\iitoiiio, in IK-fJ. dctcnniufd to follow his master into Mexico to serve him as he best micht. lie was kilted fighting bravely with I>awson's com- mand in the beginningof the journey. Mr. Maverick often remarked: " We owe GriRiu a niunument," 98 SAN ANTONIO DK BKXAR. erected our bath-house and wash place under its spreading branches. Our neigh- bors were the De la Zerdas. In 1S4() their place was leased to a Greek, Roque Catahii, who kept a shop on the street and lived in the back rooms. He marrried a pretty bright-eyed, laughing Mexican girl of fourteen years. He dre.ssed her in jewelry and fine clothes and bought her a dilapidated piano. He was jealous and wished her to amuse herself at home. The piano had the desired effect, and she enjoyed it like a child with a new trumpet. The fame of her piano went through the town, and after tea, crowds would come to witness her performance.'' "Our neighbors on the north were Doiia Juana \'arcinez and her son Leonicio. She sold us milk at 2-") cents per gallon, pumpkins at 25 cents each, and spring chicken at 12yi cents each. Butter was oO cents ^ lb. When we returned from the coast in '47, she had sold her place to Sara S. Smith. (The Court House stands there now, and the son, Thad. Smith, is there too as Count}' Clerk). My son Lewis Antonio, was born at this house of ours, and, until quite recently, I was of the opinion that he was the first child of pure American stock born in San Antonio. But now I understand that a Mr. Brown came here with his wife in 1.S2S from East Texas, and during that year a son was born to them. That son, John Brown, is said to be now a citizen of Waco ''This summer (1S39) M. B. Jaques brought his wife and two little girls and and settled on Commerce Street. Al.so Mr. Elliott came with his wife and two children and bought a place on Soledad street, opposite the north end of our garden. * .... "Mr. Maverick was a member of tlie \'olunteer Company of 'Minute Men,' commanded l)y the celebrated Jack Hays, an honored citizen of Cali- fornia. He came to Texas at the age of eighteen and was appointed a deput}' sur\'e>-or. The surve\-ing parties frequently had ' brushes ' with the Indians and on the.se occasions Jack Hays displaj-ed marked coolness and militar}- skill, and .soon became by unanimous con.sent the leader in all encounters with the Indians. There were from fifty to seventy-five young Americans in San Antonio, at this time, attracted by the clinuite, the novelty or by the all-absorbing spirit of land speculation. They came from every one of the United States. Many had engaged in the .short and bloody struggle of '3') and '36 for the freedom of Texas. Some pos.ses.sed means and others were carving out their own fortunes ; all were filled with the spirit of adventure and daring and more or less stanii)ed with the weird wildness of the half-known W'e.st. "They were a noble set of ' boj'S,' as they styled one another, and were ever ready to take horse and follow Hays to the Indian strongholds They accomplished wonders, for in a few years they crushed the Comanche Nation and the country around vSan Antonio became habitable. " The signals for their expeditions were the ringing of the Cathedral bell and the hoisting the flag of the Republic in front of the Court House." Mrs. Maverick tells of many depredations by Mexicans and Indians, showing the insecurity of the place even up to the very walls of San Antonio. * Mr. Thomas Higgiuhothain. a cari)enler ami his wife, took the house opposite us ou the corner of Commerce Street autl Maiu Plaza, where the Danenhaiier buiUliugnow stands. MEMOIRS OI* MRS. M. A. MA\'KRICK. 99 "This year (1839) our iifsro men plowed and planted one labor above the Alamo, and were attacked by Indians. Oriflin and Wiley ran into the River and saved tliemseh-es. The Indians cut the traces and took off tlie work horses. We did not farm again." Here is a riding party of the period : — " In November, IS.'JU, a parly of ladies and gentlemen came fnun Houston to visit San Antonio. They rode on horseback. The ladies were Miss Trask, of Boston, Mass., and Miss Evans, daughter of Judge Evans, of Texas. The gentle- men were Judge Evans and Col. J. W. Darcey, .Secretary of War of the Republic of Texas. Ladies and all were armed with pi.stols and bowie knives. I rode with this party and some others around the Head of the San Antonio River. W^e gal- loped up the West side and pau.sed at and al)ove the Springs long enough to admire the lovely valley of the San Antonio. The leaves were almost all fallen from the trees, leaving the view open to the Missions below town. The day was clear, cool and bright, and we could see as far as San Juan Capistrano, seven miles below town. We galloped home down the east side, and doubted not that the Indians watched us from the heavy timber of the River bottom. ■' In the fall of ISoi) or '40, eighteen dead bodies were brouglit in from the edge of town and laid out in the Court House. The\- were the remains -, flat roofed and floored with dirt. Captain Tom Howard's Company was at first in the Court House yard. The Indian women and boys came in there too and remained during the powwow. * See maps. 100 SAX ANTONIO DE BEXAR. " The 3'oung Indians amused themselves shooting arrows at pieces of money put up by some of the Americans. " I adjourned over to Mrs. Higginbotham's, whose place adjoined the Court Hou.se 3-ard, and we watched the young savages through the picket fence. ' ' This was the third time the Indians had come for a talk, pretending to seek peace and trying to get ransom money for their American and Mexican captives. Their present proposition was that they sliould be paid an enonuous price for Matilda Lockhart and a Mexican they had just gi\-en up, and that traders be sent with paint, powder, flannel, blankets and such other articles as they .shoidd name to ransom the other captives. This course had been adopted once before, and when the traders reached the Indian camp the smallpox broke out amongst them, and they killed the traders, alleging that they had introduced the disease to kill off the Indians. After the .slaughter they retained both the captives and the goods. Now, the Americans, mindful of the treachery and duplicit\- of the Indians, answered as follows : " ' We will, according to a former agreement, keep four or five of your chiefs and the others of you shall go to your Nation and bring all the captives here, and then we will pay all you ask for them. Meanwhile, the chiefs we hold we will treat as brothers, and not one hair of their heads shall be injured. This we have determined upon, and if 3'ou resist our .soldiers will shoot 5'ou down.' " The above ultimatum being interpreted, the Comanches, instautlj', and as one man, raised a terrific war-whoop, drew their bows and arrows and com- menced firing with deadly effect, at the same time endeavoring to break out of the Council Hall. The order, ' Fire ! ' was given by Capt. Howard and the soldiers fired into the midst of the crowd. The first volley killed several Indians and two of our own people. Soon, all rushed out into the public square, the civilians to procure arms, the Indians to escape and the soldiers in close pursuit. The Indians generally struck out for the River. Some fled southeast towards Bowen's Bend, some ran east on Commerce street and some north on Soledad. Soldiers and citi- zens pursued and overtook them at all points: Some were shot in the River and some in the streets. Several hand-to-hand encounters took place, and some Indians took refuge in stone houses and closed the doors. Not one of the sixty-five Indians escaped ; thirtj'-three were killed and thirty-two taken prisoners. " Six Americans and one Mexican were killed and ten Americans wounded. Our killed were Julian Hood the Sheriff, Judge Thompson an attorne}- from South Carolina, G. W. Cayce, from the Brazos, and one oflScer and two soldiers and one Mexican whose names I did not learn. Those .severely wounded were lyieutenant Thompson brother of the Judge, Captain Tom Howard, Captain Mat. Caldwell a citizen volunteer from Gonzales, Judge Robinson, Mr. Morgan Deputj- Sheriff, Mr. Higginbotham and two soldiers. vSome others were .slightly wounded. "When the deafening war-whoop sounded in the Court Room, it was so loud and shrill, so sudden and inexpressiblj- horrible, that we women, looking through the fence cracks, for a moment could not comprehend its purport. The Indian boys, however, instantlj- recognized its meaning, and turning their arrows upon Judge Robinson and other gentlemen standing nearb\-, slew the Judge on the spot. MEMOIRS OF MRS. M. A. ^rAVKRICK. 101 We fled precipitately, Mrs. Higginbothani iiitu her Iidusl- and I across the street to my Commerce .street door. Two Indians rushed by me on Commerce .street and another reached my door, and turned to push it, just as I slannned it to and beat down the heavy bar. I rushed into the house and in the north room found my husband and my brother Andrew sitting cahnly at a table inspecting some plats of surveys. The\' had heard nothing ! I soon gave them the alarm, and hurried by to look after my boys. Mr. Maverick and Andrew seized their arms. Mr. Maverick ru.shed into the street and Andrew into the back 3-ard where I was, now shouting at the top of my voice, ' Here are Indians ! Here are Indians ! ' Three Indians had gotten in through the gate on Soledad street and were making towards the River. One had stopped near Jinny Anderson, our cook, who stood bravely in front of the children, mine and hers. She held a great stone in her hands, lifted above her head, and I heard her cry out to the Indians : ' G'way from heah, or I'll ina.sh your head with this rock ! ' The Indian seemed regretful that he hadn't time to dispatch Jinny and her brood ; but his time was short, and. pausing but a moment, he turned and rushed down the bank, jumped into the River and .struck out for the opposite shore. As the Indian hurried down the bank my brother ran out in answer to my loud calls. While the Indian was swimming, Andrew drew his unerring bead on him. Another Indian was climbing the opposite bank and was about to escape, but Andrew brought him down also. Then Andrew rushed uj) Soledad street looking for more Indians. " I hou.sed my little ones and then looked out of the Soledad street door. Near by was .stretched an Indian wounded and dying. A large man, an employe of Mr. Higginl)otham, came up just then and aimed a pistol at the Indian's head. I called out, ' Oh, don't : he is dying ! ' and the big American laughed and said, 'Well, to please you I won't ; but it would put him out of his mi.ser}'.' Then I saw two others lying dead near by. " Captain Lysander Wells, about this lime, passed by riding north on Soledad street. He was mounted on a gail>- caparisoned Mexican horse, with silver- moiuited saddle and bridle, which outfit he had secured to take back to his native State on a visit to his mother. As he reached the X'erameiidi house, an Indian who had escajied detection, rushed out from his hiding place, and jumping upon the horse behind Wells, clasi)ed his arms and tried to catch hold of the bridle reins. The two men .struggled .some time, bent back and forwards and .swayed from side to side, until at last. Wells managed to hold the Indian's arms with his right hand and with his left to draw his pistol from the holster. He turned partly round, placed the pistol against the Indian's body and fired, — a moment more and the Indian rolled off and dropjied dead to the ground. Wells put spurs to his horse and did good service in the pursuit. " I had l>ecome so fa.scinated by this struggle that I had unconsciously gone into the middle of the .street, when Lieutenant Chevalier, who was pa.ssing, called out to me : ' Are you crazy ? Go in or you will be killed ? ' I obeyed : but my curiosity and anxiety again got the better of me, and I peeped out on Commerce street where I saw the dead bodies of four or five Indians. ... It was dark when Mr. Maverick and Andrew returned. .... 10-2 SAN ANTONIO UE BEXAR. " Several incidents occurred soon after the fight of the liHli which are worth narrating. On March 28th, 250 or .'JOD Conianches under a dashing young chief, Isimanica, came close to the edge of the town, where the main body halted, while Chief Isimanica and another warrior rode daringly into the Public Square and circled around the Plaza, then rode some distance down Commerce street and back, shouting all the while, offering to fight, and heaping abuse and insults on the Americans. Isimanica was in full war-paint and almost naked, He stopped quite a while in front of Bluck's saloon, on the northeast corner of the square. He shouted defiance, rose in his stirrups, shook his clenched fist, raved, and foamed at the mouth. " The citizens, through an interpreter, told him that the soldiers were all down at the Mission San Jose de Aguayo, and that if he went there Colonel Fisher would give him fight enough. ' ' Isimanica took his braves to San Jose, and with fearless daring bantered the .soldiers for a fight. Colonel Fisher was sick in bed and Captain Redd, the next in rank, w^as in command. He said to the chief: ' We have made a twelve days' truce with your people, in order to exchange prisoners. Mj- country's honor is pledged, as well as my own, to keep the truce, and I will not break it. Remain here three days, or return in three days, and the truce will be over. We burn to fight you.' Isimanica called him 'liar,' 'coward,' and other opprobrious names, and hung around for some time ; but: at la.st, the Indians left and did not return. Captain Redd remained calm and unmoved throughout this stormy talk, but his men could with difficult)- be restrained ; and, in fact, some of them were ordered into the Mission church and guarded there. "When Captain Lysander Wells, who was in town, heard of all this, he wrote Captain Redd a letter, in which he called him a ' dastardly coward,' and alluded to a certain petticoat govenmient, under which he intimated the Captain was restrained. This allusion had reference to a young woman who, dres.sed in boy's apparel, had followed Redd from Georgia and was now living with him. This letter of Wells was signed, much to their shame, by several others in San Antonio. "Colonel Fisher removed his entire force of three companies to the Alamo in San Antonio. Redd challenged Wells to mortal combat, and one morning at 6 o'clock they met where the Ur.suline Convent now stands. Facing his antagonist, Redd coolly remarked: ' I aim for your heart ' ; and Wells replied: 'And I for your brains.' They fired! Redd sprang into the air, and fell dead with a bullet in his brain. Wells, too, in fulfillment of their fearful repartee, was shot very near the heart ; he, however, li\-ed a fortnight in great agony, begging e\-ery one near him to despatch him or furnish hiiu with a pistol to kill himself. Dr. Weidemann, of whom more anon, nur.sed him tenderly. It turned out that the girl before referred to w'as married to Redd, and they found the marriage licen.se and certificate in his pocket : also letters to members of his own and her families, speaking of her in the tenderest manner and asking them to protect and provide for her. She followed him to the grave and seemed heart-broken, and soon thereafter returned to her people." .... MI'MOIRS OF MRvS. M. A. MAVI'IKICK. 1(« Mrs. Maverick oi\-u.s terrible accounts of the fearful treatment of captives Ijv the Indians, and her narrative is another warrant fi)r the belief that the only "good Indian is a dead one." " Matilda Lockhart, who came in on March I'.'th, had Ix-en in captivity about two \ears. When she was taken, two of her family were slain and she and her little sister were taken ])risoners. At that time .she was thirteen and her sister three years old. .She came along with the Indian party as a herder driving a herd of extra horses — thus the Indians could change horses from time to time for fresher ones She was in a frightful condition, poor girl Her head, arms and face were full of brui.ses and sores, and her nose actually burned off to the bone. "Marcli '-liitli. .Mrs. Webster came in with her three-\ear-okl child on her back. The poor, miserable being was so unlike a while woman that the Mexicans hailed her as ' Indio ! Indio I ' She came into the Public Square from the west and was dre.s.sed as an Indian, in buckskin, her hair was cut .short and scjuare upon her forehead, and she was sunburned dark as a Comanclie. She called out in good Knglish, however, saying she had escaped from Indian captivity. She was im- medialel)' taken into John \\'. Smith's hou.se, and we American ladies gathered to see her and care for her. She was very tired and hungry and almost exhausted. .... Her story was as follows: She came to Texas from Virginia early in 188"), with her husband, who, she claimed, was a relative of Daniel Wel)ster. They built a house northeast of Austin; and in August of that year her husband was removing her and her four children to to this wild home. They had also in the party two negroes and one white man. They were camped one evening on Brushy Creek, not far north of Austin, when a large body of Comanches suddenly attacked them. The three men fought braveh-, but were o\-erpowered and killed. Mrs. Webster's infant was taken from her arms and its brains dashed out against a tree and her second child killed. She and her eldest boy, ' Booker ' were tied upon horses and she held her child of two years so tightly to her breast and pleaded so pite- ously for its life that the Indians left it with her. They were taken by rapid marches to the mountains, where they stripped ' Booker ' and shaved his head. He was attacked with brain fever, and an old squaw, who had just lost a son of his age, adopted him and nursed him very tenderly. The Indians let her keep her little girl, but forbade her talking to her son. They made her cook and stake out ponies and beat her continually. She had been nineteen months in captivity when she seized a favorable opportunity to escape. It was one night after a long day's march, when, having learned the general direction of San Antonio, she quietly slipped out of camp with her child in her arms and bent her steps towards Bexar. She spent twelve terrible days on the road without meeting a human being. She .sustained herself all this while on berries, small fish which she caught in the streams and on bones which she sucked and chewed. Sometimes she gave uj) and almost resigned herself to death The morning of the 'ilith a fog came on, and unable to see any distance through the fog, she gave up all for lost and lay down in utter despair. Soon the sun shone out and the fog disappeared, when, looking towards the East, she saw a "golden cross shining in the sky." Then she felt that God had answered her prayers, and again took up the march with a 104 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. thankful heart. She approached the golden cross with earnest steps. It proved to be the cross of the Cathedral of vSan Fernando* in San Antonio " In the great raid to I^avaca Bay, in August, 1S4C), when Liiniville was sacked and General Felix Houston inflicted a memorable defeat on the Indians, Mrs. Maverick lost many household effects en route from New Orleans. Amongst other things, was a set of law books for Mr. Maverick. These were heard from as being ' ' tacked by strings to the Indians' saddle-bows and then used as cigar- ette papers. This shows how little respect the Indians had for Blackstone and the law." The temptation to quote is constant ; in 1.S41 we read about the society of San Antonio as follows : "We began, now, to have a society and great sociability among.st ourselves, the Americans. During this summer, 1S41, Mr. Wilson Riddle brought his bride and Mr. Moore his family. These gentlemen were both merchants on Commerce street. Mr. John Twohig (the present banker) started a small grocery on the cor- ner of Commerce street and Main Plaza. Mrs. Jaques had a boarding house at south west corner of Commerce and Yturri streets. She had a considerable place rented from Yturri, boarded all the nice j-oung Americans, and was very hospitable and pleasant. She was a good nurse, very kind to the sick and wounded, and was very popular with the gentlemen President Lamar, with a very considerable suite, visited San Antonio in June. A grand ball was given him in Mrs. Yturri's 'long room,' — all considerable houses had a "long room ' for recep- tions — the room was decorated with flags and evergreens, flowers were not much cultivated then ; at the ball General Lamar wore very wide trousers which, at the same time, were short enough to show the tops of his shoes. The General and Mrs. Juan N. Seguin, wife of the Mayor, opened the ball with a waltz. We were forced to smile, for the gallant President, although a poet and a first rate conversationalist, could not dance. ... At this ball Hays, Chevalier and Howard had but one dress-coat between them, and they agreed to use the coat and dance in turn ; the ones not dancing would stand at the door and watch the happy tenant of the garment disporting himself on the floor, at the same time continually making faces to remind him that his time was up. Their by-play and good humor furnished quite a di\ersion and anmsed us ver\- much " During this summer the American ladies led a lazy life of ease. We had plenty of books, including novels. We were all joung, health)- and happy, and were content with each other's society. We read, joked and laughed away the time and in those days there were no envyings and no backbiting. . . . Now that merchants were establishing themselves on Commerce street, bathing at our place had become rather ])ublic, so we ladies got permission of old Sefiora Treviiio to erect a bath house on her premises, some distance north on Soledad street, afterwards the homestead of the Jaques family. Thither we went in a crowd every afternoon at about four o'clock, taking the children and their niirses with us and a dainty lunch prepared by one of us in turn to eat after the bath. ' ' * Theu the Parish Church. SKETCHES or WESTERN TEXAS. COWIiOV LIFE. MKMOIRS Ol' MRS. M. A. MAVlvRICK. 105 An eccentric character of those days was a Doctor Weidemaim, — his memory is worth keeping green as showing that the present cosmo]iolitan characteristics ot San Antonio are congenital, so to speak. ..." He was a Russian scholar and naturalist, and an exceUenl physician and surgeon ; a highly cultivated man and .spoke many languages, and he had been a great traveler. He lived on tiie old Chavez place on Acequia street. I remember that on the night ol" the Indian fight of March 19th, 1840, I visited Mrs. Higginbotham, as I have before stated. While I was there Dr. Weidemaim came up to her grated front window and placed a severed Indian head upon the sill. The good Doctor bowed courteously, and saying: 'With your permission. Madam,' disappeared. Presently he returned with another bloody head, when he explained to us that he had exam- ined all the dead Indians and had selected these heads, male and female, for the skulls, besides two entire bodies, to preserve as skeletons. He said, ' I have been longing exceedingly to secure such .specimens, and now, ladies, I must get a cart to take them home.' Dr. Weidemann had taken an active part in the fight, and done good service mounted on his fine horse, and now he was all begrimed, bloody and dirty, the result of his labors as a warrior, surgeon and scientist. He soon returned with the cart loaded with his magnificent speci- mens, took the two heads from the window and departed That night he stewed the bodies in a soap boiler, and when the flesh was com- pletely de.ssicated, emptied the cauldron into the Acequia. Now, this ditch furnished the drinking water generally for the town ; it being understood that the River and the San Pedro were reserved for bathing and washing. There was a city ordinance to this effect coupled with a heavy fine. On the '21st it dawned upon the dwellers on the banks of the ditch that the Doctor had defiled the drinking water,and that probably they had taken in particles of Indian in their fluid. The people, very properly, gathered in indignation, a mob rushed to the Mayor's oflice, the men talked in loud and excited tones, the women shrieked and cried, they rolled up their eyes in horror, they vomited, and some of them were so frightened that they suffered mis-carriage. Many thought they were poisoned and would die. Dr. Weidemann was arrested and brought to trial ; they overwhelmed him with abuse, and called him 'diablo,' ' demonio,' ' sin verguenza,' and so forth. He took it calmly, assured them the Indians had all sailed by in the night, paid his fine, and went away laughing. Once the Doctor lost his watch. He .suspected one of his servants — Jose ; and after waiting in vain for him to confess and .give up the property, he determined to get his own again liy ma.gic. He invited a party to see the fini, and arraying himself in a figured gown and a conical hat, and preparing a fire and cauldron on the roof of his hou.se, he sununoned all his servants to his presence and announced that they were all to dip their hands into the pot : at the .same time informing them that the hand of the guilty one would turn l^lack. The conscience-stricken Jo.sc waited till the last, all the others had come through the ordeal with clean hands. He at last approached, plunged in his hand, and when he withdrew it, lo, it was black ! The wretched man confes.sed in terror, and immediately gave uji the watch. Thereafter no Mexican pa.s.sed Dr. Weidemann without cro.ssing himself, for they all firmly believed he was in league with the Devil. The Doctor told them thai the 106 SAN ANTONIO DIC H1';NAR. spirits of the boiled Indians were under his control and told him everything. He set their skeletons up in his summer house and defied any one to steal from him ; it is needless to say his property was not further molested. The Doctor was drowned in lS4-'> or 1814 in attempting to swim Peach Creek near Gonzales, during a rise." Mrs. Maverick gives a graphic account of the flight from San Antonio in 1842 on the approach of Vasquez. She mentions the burying of valuables, the disposing of doubloons in bustles manufactured for the occasion, the turning over of furniture to Mexican friends and other incidents of what is known as the " Runaway of '42." Mr. Maverick and many gentlemen escorted the ladies as far as the Capote Farm, the Erskine place, on the Guadalupe. ' ' On the way from Capote Farm to Gonzales we passed King's rancho, which had just been deserted by the owners. Here was desolation amidst plenty. The corn-crib was full, the smoke-house well supplied, and chickens and hogs were running around as usual. On the front door was pasted the following notice : ' To all refugees, welcome: help your- selves to what you need. Also to all marching to repel the invaders, take what you want but leave the remainder to the next comers.' Hays reoccupied San Antonio, but the fugitives continued their flight first to Gonzales and afterwards to L,a Grange. Mr. Maverick made a trip to Alabama and returning to San Antonio to the fall term of Court, was taken prisoner in the raid by Woll after a gallant but ineflectual resistance io a complete surprise. ' ' San Antonio was again reoccupied by the Texans after the battle of the Salado, but too late to rescue the prisoners, largely on account of the jealousy of the commanding ofiicers of the Texan forces, Moore, Morehead and Caldwell. Caldwell was the hero of the Salado, but Moore was the ranking officer. Each division wanted its own commander to lead, leaving Hays, who had already captuied the Mexican Artillerj', to maintain himself "unsupported. The troops returned di.sgusted, in small squads, to vSan Antonio, Woll getting off in safety, his prisoners being already far on their way. Mr. Ma^-erick was liberated in the City of Mexico on March 30th, 1843, through the good offices of General Waddy Thonip.son, a connection of his, and then United States Minister to Mexico. The remainder of the prisoners were not released by Santa Anna until June Kith of the same year. Mr. Maverick started for home on April 2d, and on " May 4th he dismounted at our cabin on the Colorado." The family afterward removed to Decrow's Point, on Matagorda bay, remaining until October loth, 1847. They found the town on their return much changed since '42, "emigrants arriving daily." . . . "We mo\-ed directly to our old home, the fence was nearly gone and everything dilapidated." In July, L^.'iO, what is known as the Maverick Homestead, was begun on the corner of Alamo Plaza and Houston street, although that street then had no existence, and years after its opening, was known as Paseo. This date brings our quotations to an appropriate end, Init we close the MvS. , this mirror of by-gone days, with regret. Our extracts have been limited to matters of general interest, and we commend them to the reader who lives in calmer times, and who would learn somewhat of the struggles to which he owes his present comfort, with the admonition to profit by them, not only by informing himself of the facts of history, but also by observing some of the spirit of that society which has created his own. IXTI'RX'II'AV WITH MRS. CAXTl'.Rin'RV. 107 Interview with Mrs. Canterbury. "The Repul)lic of Texas!" Nowadays when "The vState of Texas" is so con- stantly in our ears we are a])t to "disrenienil)er" that our wide, broad, .i;iant Texas was a star "apart", "lone," by itself and not of the threat and glorious constellation. Every year makes the fact of the Republic le.ss faniibar, less paljiable to us. Every year thins the ranks of that remnant which can claim that they were citizens of the Republic of Texas. Soon this will be a coveted family tradition. To-day rfeal old timers are accorded a certain respect, not more indeed than is their due. One cannot help being reminded of that exquisite touch of Canon Kinysley in his famous "Westward Ho" by which he illustrates the deference — almost filial — of a younger generation to the old pioneer "Pelicans" who had sailed the world about with their revered and worshipful Master Drake. What had not the "Pelicans" not enduied? Fire, battle, murder, sudden death, torture, all this and more, was the jiortion of these "wilder comrades sworn to seek." What was there then for the .sons of such fathers to do, but to emulate as far as easier times would allow so high an example? Now and then in those annals — mention is made of noble women who dared to share these perils and hardships. And in the annals of Texas — of the Texas Republic — that sort of woman was not so very rare. Scientists have adopted an "irresistible impulse theory" with regard to the tendency of ]ieople and races to travel — to pioneer — ever Westward, the course of the sun. Xot an altogether new theory if. one may credit the verse maker. HE •'The sun goes West. Wliy should not I? I still deem best That old tittle cry Of 'Westward Hoi' My love don't you think so?" SHE "My sun goes West Why should not I?" It was such impulses that built the best of the Texas of the new regime. It required no weak impulses to dare the dangers of those early days — war — IndiaiLS — and an almcst untried future were no inconsiderable trifles. There is something "deeper than the lips" in such a simj)le coiniuunication as "I came to Texas a bride in 1S41." "On May "J'id 1.S41," said Mrs. Canterbury, "I came to San Antonio, a bride, with my hu.sband Wilson Irvine Riddle. He was one of the earliest American merchants on Main street. I was a native of \'irginia, my maiden name was Elizabeth Menefee. There was a Menefee, one of the signers of the Declara- tion of Independence of Texas, of our family I believe. I was married however in Tennessee. Colonel Hays, the noted Indian fighter was a connection of mine by marriage, he married my first cousin — a Miss Calvert of Seguin. My husband's store was that little quaint two-storied building that still .stands next to Sullivan's shoe store, now one door east of the corner of St. Mary's and Commerce streets. At that date it was one of the most important buildings on Main or Commerce street, and altogether considered to be the finest house in the town. It was some years subsequently rented by General 108 vSAX ANTONIO DK BKXAR. Harney for 8(J0 per month, as his residence and for a while military headquarters, and still later Major Belger made use of it as a Quartermaster's Depot. It was here that my daughter Mrs. Eagar, was born, as also my .son James Wilson Riddle, a merchant of Eagle Pass, Texas. Mrs. Eagar was a child only ten days old when the Mexicans came on March 7th 1842, I was the last American lady to leave the city. I went to Gonzales and remained there from March to October 1.S42. In my flight I stayed at Don Maiuiel Flores ranch, a stopping place between San Antonio and Seguin. Mrs. Maverick went afterwards to Decrow's Point on the coast and stayed there about five years. It was a terribly anxious time for the women. After all, these Mexicans under Vasquez, were little more than a band of marauders. And when in September of the same year, WoU was reported as advancing upon San Antonio with a large force, many of the citizens determined if possible to make some kind of defence, but so strong a force was very much of a surprise, and many of the citizens were made prisoners, even as the District Court was sitting. It was a much more .serious affair than the investment of the city under \'asquez in the spring. Our store was robbed of all our goods — and a claim against Mexico for the damage done us, is still unsettled. The claim was made through the British government, for my husband was a British subject, but in the midst of the man>' important events that quickly followed each other at that epoch, the claim although acknowledged to be a just one was neglected. When it will be settled I know not. Fifty-three good citizens were taken and put in chains by Woll, and marched all the weary way to the City of Mexico. I knew most of them well. My husband was chained to Wm. E. Jones. His brother to John Twohig, the banker — at the time John Twohig had a general store at the corner of Main Plaza and Main street, where Deutsch's store is. He coolly blew up his store — declaring that no man .should rob him of his goods. Sam A. Maverick had for a companion Major Colquhoun, I believe — then there were John Bradley the father of Mrs. Waelder, James Truehart, Judge Hutchesou, Dr. Hatch, Dr. Booker, Dr. Mackay, Duncan B. Ogden and many others. I have a list but don't know just whereto find it now Many men were killed a few days after in the fight on the Salado. It was a dreadful time. I also knew many of the Mier prisoners — that was a sad bit of history — you have heard all about that I expect. Soon after I came, my hu.sband gave me a piano — it was about the first in Texas. I was the only player in San Antonio then — I still play a little. I had that piano until a few months ago, when I sold it for $10; I am sorrj* now that I sold it. I still have my old music stool. When the Mexicans came I had my piano hastily boxed, and on my return, that, my music stool and a rocker were almost my only household possessions. Many of the prominent Mexican families were at first wealthy and well-to-do, but they had to live, and they were not mer- chants, and extensive farming was out of the question on account of the great danger of Indian raids — they did not dare trust themselves for long, out of town, so their great estates dwindled, and passed into the hands of others. I have seen many and vast changes in San Antonio." Many other interesting matters were discu.ssed by Mrs. Canterbury, and per- sonal recollections were given of events, the history of which will be learnt in school by the children of Texas for many future generations. IXTlvR\II';\V WITH RT. RIvV. lilSlIOP NKRAZ. 109 A Talk with the Rt. Rev. Bishop Neraz About the Old Records of the Churcli and the Missions. I shall not soon forget my interview with Bishop Neraz. The meeting at which much of the information herein written was obtained was one which im- pressed me much. It was an appointment. The morning- was a lovely one in Jnnc, warm outside but cool and airy in the high rooms of the plain but comfortable house on Dwyer Avenue. Would I please come up stairs, the Bishop was somewhat lame by reason of advancing years, and found it difficult to move about ? I found him busy in his rooms but he put aside his work upon my entrance and bid me draw a chair towards his desk. He received me with a direct kindliness of maimer at which had there been any restraint it must ha\-e \-anished at once. A mixture of quiet dignity and simplic- ity one does not wonder in his presence that he is Catholic Bi.shop of San Antonio. Said the good Bishop "I have brought here the records that you wished to see, some of the old archives of our Church and the Missions, we will look them over together — there they are," said he, pointing to his bookshelf — "Will 30U please bring them to the desk here?" Taking up the top volume I found the leaves of the second one to be loose, and before I could secure them a gust of the breeze through the open windows had scattered them over the floor. The Bi.shop in spite of my remonstrance hastened to help me to gather them up and laughingl}^ remarked " We must take great care of these, the wind is fresh this morning," and then we sat down to talk and write. I had written to the Bi.shop some few days previously, enclosing at his desire, a string of questions, so he knew just about what I wanted. " Your letter came to me," he said, "and I know what you require. I wish that you had come to me some years ago, for my memory is not so good as it used to be for these things. I used to have charge of the records and formerly made it my business to know all abount them, but I will tell you what I remember. It is very much to be regretted that many of our church records were destroyed by the fire in the Priest House on March ■23rd, 1869. Many of the older records were removed to Zacatecas by the Mexican militarj^ authorities in 1824. I do not know why they took them from here nor if they are still in existence at Zacatecas or elsewhere, but it is a fact that many were taken there. The volumes that I have here are very old and about the most interesting that we now possess, they are of various matters concerning the church." The books were in manuscript and bound in thick brown rudely tanned leather or hide, worn smooth by much use and stitched here and there with laces of hide, most 01 them were cpiarto shape, eight by ten inches or thereabout, varying a little. The character of the writing was mostly good, .some of it, however, was difficult to decipher, many of the " ss " were made in the old fashioned way like " f f " and this made some of the Indian names at first sight a little doubtful, for instance. Tilosa read like Tilofa ; Pasala, like Pafala and there were other peculiarities of the times and style in which they were written, The Bishop made many running translations from the Spanish which I did my iiest to follow. " Here is an old book," continued the Bishop, " It is the Record of Marriages of Mission Concepcion, I think it will interest you. There is the original record nil SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. you see 'Mission Coiicepcioii, Pueblo de Acuiia, founded March 5th, ITol, on the border of the River of San Antonio." Here follow 'Marriages of the same Mission 17o3 to 1790,' let us make excerpts of the different Indian nations men- tioned in this record of marriages. The first marriage is Joseph Flores of the nation Patumaco with Efiegenia of the nation Pasalat. The second is Juachin Antonio, of the nation Patumaco, with Brigida of the nation Pachalque. The third is Christoval, of Nacion Grande de Patalca, with Beatriz, of the nation Tilosa, and so on, in IT'iO there appear to have been no marriages. Other nations recorded here are Narame, Siquipil, Tilpocopal, Pusan, Pasalat, Pamache, Chayopina and the eighty-first marriage is that of Berndino Chaygoya of the nation Patumaco, with Antonia of the nation Apache. " "Here is a 'Book in which are entered the Baptismal Records which were made of the children of the Second Company of Volunteers de San Carlos de Parras which sta3ed (or remained) in the Alamo. The Chaplain of it being Brn. Don Manuel Saenz de Juan Corena, and it begins on March 1st. 1788.' The book is apparently opened however on February (ith 178S. The Alamo is also herein mentioned as 'The Pueblo of San Jose,' a style it bore at one short period of the Mission's Histor\-; this book runs on till after 1806 when there is a note to the effect that the Chaplain Jose Bravo having died then, one Clemente de Aroclia took the place of him. It is in the beginning of this book that we find the memo- randum that 'On May 8th, 1744 the first (or corner stone) of the new Church of San Antonio (de Valero) was blessed, being at the time Clergymen of the Mission, Diego Martin Garcia, Mariano Francisco de los Dolores and Friar Juan de los Angeles. In proof of which I sign my name in the Mission of San Antonio September 29th, 1745' — here follow the three signatures — this however is appar- ently a copy of an original entry, made at the date of the opening of this book. "The next volume is a book of Episcopal orders, the first signed August (Jth 1701 concerning various matters of Church Government, these orders were brought by courier in advance of the visitation of the Bishop, we shall .see men- tion of this later. The first lengthy order in this book refers to previous general orders from Rome dated 1681, this is in October 1761. \'erj- likely if we went through all this we should find man>' interesting references to doings of the times. "This book," said the Bishop, taking up another, "is of similar intention to the last, it is the record of 'The Bishop of the 2nd Mitre, begining 1795' — it is styled Book 2. Number 1 was probably lost in the fire. It contains copies of 'Tetters Pastoral and orders which belong to the town of San Fernando, Royal Province of San Antonio de Bexar,' they seem to have been sent in advance of the Bishop of New Leon (Nueva Leone) by courier and in order that there shall be no miscar- riage of the document, note that the instructions to the recipients are 'and you will hold this until the Bishop makes his visitation, when it is to be signed by him,' afterwards it is sent to the next church and so on and here is a list of the parishes to which this letter was .sent : Cordillera, (Hills), Cerrio, Santiago, San Cantez(?) San Nicholas, Croizeri?) Cruallay, Burgos, San Fernando,* Reynosa, Camargo, Mier, Bahia, Bexar, Nacogdoches. (Some names are difficult to decipher) "and see the careful way," said the Bishop, turning to the end of the volume, "in *Pr(ibal>l3' tlie S;iii I't-niando a Mexican border town, i. e. Rio Grande border. INTKRVIKW WITH RT. RlvV. BISHOP XI'.RAZ. Ml which any interpolations or additions to the letters were avoided or made iniposible, 'This l)ook has 75'i pages used but there could be used 7-57,' and here are the five blank pages at the end." ''The next book we come to is a book of the Baptisms, etc., of the Mission of San Jose — the Second Mission as we call it — here is a memorandum of its contents : Baptisms of the Mission of San Jose 1777 to 182o, and one of 1N24. Marriages " " " 1778 to 1824. Burials ': " " " " " 1781 to 1824. This same book also contains the same records for San Juan and San Francisco de la Espada Missions from 1818 to 1824 which is evidence perhaps that the Missions were already becoming of less im]iortance. "This last is a 'Book of the Government (or Administration) and Visitation of the Foreign Vicar of the Province of Texas, being Don Juan Nepomuceno de la Peiia. Anode 1825.' It opens with a circular letter sent by courier, dated December, 1824, entitled 'Orders of the Church concerning Civil and Eclesiastical administration together,' and signed Sor. Col. Cont. Citizen Estevan de Ostin. It also contains the orders of the Bishop to the Priest. "We have other Records but this is a representative lot and perhaps these are as interesting as any. "I am not sure whether Don Juan Nepomuceno de la Peiia, the Foreign Vicar (Vicario foraueo) of 182.J was the last President of the Missions, or more likely perhaps Francisco Maynes who was named Foreign Vicar by Seiior Dn. D. Leon Lobo Guerrero, \'icar Capitular and administrator of the Diocese of Mon- terey, on September 3Uth 182"). Ah — I remember — certainly V. Maynes for he was the Reverend President at the time when the Superior of the Franciscans came and passed, or delivered to the Bishop of Monterey all the Missions and their lands. Most of the lands of the Missions had been divided among the Indians be- longing to each, with the exception of, it appears, fifteen acres which the Mexican Government attached to and granted to each Mission. The lands were I believe given or distributed to the Indians by suertes or lots. Bishop Odin bought back some of the .suertes and the taxes of this land have been paid by the Church ever since. The Church has been in possession of the Mission properties since 1824 or January 1825. Some of these facts may be seen in the deeds to Bishop Odin. The state never excluded the rights of the occupants as has been averred, on the contrar}-, it recognized their rights as is proved by the result of the law suits gained by Bishop Odin in 1856. Mr. Altgelt knows a good deal about these matters. He has in his possession a book which gives the history and laws re- garding these lands and transactions. "Who was San Antonio? He was St. Anthony of Padua, he was born in the year 1195 and entered the Franciscan Order in 1221 , he died June K^th 12:51 ." 112 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. Interviews with Dr. Cupples— 1890. To Dr. Cupples thanks are due for many valuable hints and suggestions to the compilation of this work. Was the editor at a loss to trace the date of any particular happening of the earlier days after the Texan Declaration of Independence, if Dr. Cupples could not give it out of his excellent memory, in talking over the event, some old and apparently insignificant recollection would be incidentally dropped that would be sure to lead to the elucidation of the point in question. It is interesting to note how closely linked in one's memories are stirring and momentous actions with the commonplaces of every day life. Once was discovered the name of a man who had done some action worthy to be forgotten, but which was not inconsequent to a more important event, by the Doctor remembering that he had cured the man's brother of an extraordinary gall stone. It is the evidence and aid of such witnesses as Dr. Cupples that the historian even of modest pretensions knows how to value. Documentary evidence is one thing in its strength and firmness, but that of the contemporary or eye witness is another. A dear, musty-smelling, frayed, don't-touch-me-or-I-shall fall-to pieces kind of document, written all over with the rigmarole of other days in quaint old-fashioned characters and signatures of familiar sounding names and lots of dates, is indeed a treasure and invaluable in the eyes of a searcher. But for that keen interest and enjoyment which is peculiar to triflers with the past, there is nothing to compare with the excitement of hearing that of a truth, such a man looked thus and another did that in this manner at such a moment, when each actor's senses were strained and quivering, and the listener feels that the emotions of men and facts in some momentous doings of the past are being recalled with a vividness that no second hand or written evidence could array. Dr. Cupples has seen, experienced and endured much in a long, active and useful life, and to his taste for action he has brought the relish of a learned and enlightened observation. The editor here wishes to acknowledge the value to him of many comments by Dr. Cupples, upon notes of his prior to their final preparation for the press. " I note," said the Doctor, " the curious discrepancy and anachronism in the fac simile drawings of those .seals. You see this Royal seal dated l.S^o, sometime after the secession of Mexico, is on the same document with a Mexican Govern- ment seal of even an earlier date. My explanation would be that in the desire to have the document legal at all hazards, it was thought best in that unsettled period to make sure of having the right .seal by using both. I don't know that it was so, but it looks as if it were, does it not ? '■ I think you should note that the original settlement of the Canary Islanders was not around the Military and Main Plazas, as is commonly supposed ; that was an after move. The first settlement was at the San Pedro Springs, between the crossing on North Flores street and the head springs. They subsequently removed to the location of those Plazas, concluding that it could be more easily defended against the incursions of hostile tribes than the settlements at the Springs. The Head of the San Pedro had always been a favorite watering place of the Apaches and other hostiles of the hills to the north and northwest. INTERX'IlvW WITH DR. CriM'M!;vS. ll". ' Yes, I remember many i5, at Laredo. I am 1(>"> years old. I have been twice married : my first husband was Silberio Mores y Abrigo ; nn- second was Candelario \"illanueva,* but I am called familiarly vSeiiora Candelaria." 1 may add that I read to my companions these interviews at the dates of our visits. I wrote them from notes taken at the time upon arriving home, and my com]-anions subscribed to every partictilar. * I find the following in the County Records— Kl>. " I do solemnly swear that I was a resident citizen of Texas at the date of the Declaration of Independence. That I did not leave the country during the Campaign of the spring of ISili to avoid participation in the War. and that I did not aid nor assist the I%neniy ; that I have not previously received a title for my quantum of land, and that I conceive mj-self to he justly entitled under the Constitution and laws to the quantity for which I now apply. April2!lth, 1.137. C.\ndki..\rio Villani-eva." Col. Ford's Memoirs. The Fighting of the Alamo. The following description ofthefall of the .\lamo is from the memoirs of Col. Ford, a gentleman mentioned many times in this work— a pioneer, an Indian fighter, a Te.van. The information he gives is derived first hand from informants he well knew: In l, l,s3.^, to the Texans under General Edward Burleson. The Texas troops were disbanded and went to their homes, except a small force left in San Antonio, commanded bv Colonel Neill. General Cos and his com- 120 SAX ANTONIO DIv BKXAR. iiiand moved in the direction of Laredo. The)- were paroled and promised not to bear arms against Texas during the war. The bod\- known as the "Consultation" reassembled at San Felipe de Austin November 1, 18?)."). They formulated a provisional government, elected Henry Smith, governor ; James W. Robinson, lieutenant-governor ; Sam Houston, com- mander-in-chief, and elected five of their members to remain and assist the gov ernor in the discharge of his duties. The "Consultation" adjourned to meet at Washington, on the Brazos, March 1, 1836. The five members remaining at San Felipe de Austin took it upon themselves to control the governor and General Houston. Deposed the governor, advocated the invasion of Mexico, appointed ofiicers to command, and had a large number of troops in the west where they were beaten in detail. Colonel Bowie aided General Houston in his efforts to concentrate the Texas troops. He came to San Antonio, saw Colonel Neill, who soon after left, with a view, as many affirm, to procure transportation to move the artillery and munitions of war. He carried Deaf Smith with him. He left Colonel James Bowie in com- mand. Bowie fell sick. In a few daA-s Colonel Travis arrived and assumed com- mand. Juan N. Seguin sent a cousin of his to Laredo with orders to report the appearance of a force from Mexico of sufficient strength to invade Texas. He returned and affirmed that General Santa Amia had crossed the Rio Grande with an arnu'. He forced General Cos and his men to violate tlieir parole, and to take service against the Texans. When the report was made at San Antonio, the Texans refused to Ijelieve it. They remained too near the town to learn what was transpiring outside. A sen- tinel was placed in the church on the west side of the river. One day he reported Mexican troops westward of the town. A man ascended to him and was unable to see any armed men. The sentinel was accused of reporting falsely. Eventually Travis ordered Dr. John Sutherland and J. W. Smith to go out on horseback and ascertain the truth. They proceeded to the top of Prospect Hill, and found them- selves within 1")() yards of the Mexican army. They started back at a run. Suth- erland's horse gathered mud on his feet, turned a .somersault, crippled Sutherland and broke his gun. Smith dismounted and relieved Sutherland. When they reached town and reported all was in conunotion. Travis marched the Texans to the Alamo, (^n the way they found twenty or tliirty beeves, which they drove into the fort. All was activity now. The first thing was to place tlie building in a position to stand the seige. That night they tore down a number of "jacales" (huts) not far from the Alamo, and brought in the wood for cooking. Men were told what part of the walls they were to defend. David Crockett and his twelve brave Tennesseeans were allotted a conspicuous point to cover. Every man was at his po.st and read}- for duty. This is learned from Dr. vSutherland who wrote an article on the fall of the Alamo, full of information. He was too badly hurt l)y the fall of his horse to do good duty, and for that reason Col. Travis directed him to proceed to Gonzales and procure reinforcements, a duty he performed properlj- and promptly. Gen. vSanta Anna reached San Antonio February 22nd or 2.']rd. Two nights pre\'iously he encamped on the Medina where he learned the Texans were attend- COL. FORD'S MICMOIRS. ■ 1'21 in<'i. The next paper is a description of a disastrous flood of the San Antonio river and ditches which destroyed much property, with a list of drowning casualties, Jul}' '^tli, ISl'.). Following is a royal decree making vaccination compulsory, dated May 20th 1S()4. Another census of the Missions. Decrees of Coahuila and Texas, 1808. Census of the Alamo, Dec. 31st, 1808. City ordinances 1827-28. Boundaries of Texas. Anglo-Americans and their doings. De,scri]Hion of jail and barracks built liy Rijiperda in ITT-'S. Then an intensely interesting letter from Antonio Morales, from New Orleans just after the l)attle in LSI."), concern- ing the i)irates of the gulf coast and the j'art they took in the fight. Ordinances of La \'illa Capital de San Fernando foundeil November 2.Sth, IT-iD by Antonio de xAviles, or rather the growing settlement was then erected into a Royal Presidio. Large numbers of militaiy jiapers, rosters and rolls of the S])anish armies. Papers relating to American colonists and their " uprisings" — prisoners of war. 126 SAN ANTONIO DE BKXAR. This is only a partial list of the historical evidence accumulated in the county vault. It is sufficient to show that there is much material for an ambitious local historian. Mem. — 111 the County Records may be seen a power ol atloriiey to Domingo Bustillo from James Bowie, to administer James Bowie's properly and the property belonging to James Bowie's deceased wife, Urj^nla de Vera- mendi, during his. the said James Bowie's absence from Sau Antonio, Dated June 2!)th, 1H;!4. Mem, — The Saints are usually spoken of in the documents as "Seiior San Jose, etc." The Founding of the Town of San Fernando By the Canary Island Settlers, 1730-31. On pages 293 et seq., of the work "Apuntes para la Historia Antigua de Coa- huila y Texas," por Esteban L. Portillo, already mentioned in a note appended to the plan of Mission Concepcion, are some interesting passages of earliest San Anto- nio history. The author, Portillo, gives at length a document which he says is to be found in the City Records of Saltillo concerning certain aid and assistance rendered by Don Mathias de Aguirre to the sixteen families of Canary Island emigrants when on their way through Saltillo to the Presidio of San Antonio de Bexar. The document as it stands is not quite lucid, at least not from the modern reader's point of view. It requires some explanation here and there, and the edi- tor regrets that for the pre.sent he is unable to inspect the original document, to see if there is not "more to it." For instance, these sixteen Canary Island fam- ilies, numbering, as the document avers, fifty-six persons, arrived in San Antonio according to accepted history and tradition, on November 28th, 1730, and here apparently, are fifteen persons representing sixteen families, four of whom rep- resent one family of themselves, * already (Jan. 29th, 1731), back in Saltillo. witnessing to this voucher of substance delivered to them, all in order that Don Mathias de Aguirre may be paid. Are we to suppose that these men made the long weary journey back to Saltillo just for this purpose and noth- ing more, or was Saltillo the early trading post of this new Texas Territory and did they visit Saltillo for these two or more purposes? The reader must answer for himself this and other questions that wnll naturalh- arise upon the perusal of the following most interesting matter ; The author E. L. Portillo sa^-s : " By a Royal decree of 10th May, 1723, the King of Spain ordered that four hundred families from the Canary Islands should emigrate (pasaran) to populate Texas "I think it opportune that the names of the founders of Bexar should be known, after having remained forgotten for .so many years. In an official docu- ment existing in the Archives of the Town Hall of this cityf is to be found a valuable record leading back to the year 17-')1." *This reads something like oue of those equations in .\lgebra with which tlie good Bishop Coleiiso used to JiUiizIe Us.— t Saltillo, Mexico. Till' I'OUNDING OI' Till' TOWN OK SAX FKRXANDO. l-'T 111 the town of Santiago del Saltillo ile la Nueva Vizcaia, on the twenty-ninth of January, lT:il, appeared present before me the Notary Public and the undersigned witnesses : Juan Leal Goraz, Juan Leal the boy, Antonio .Santos, Salvador Rodriguez, Josephe Cabrera, Manuel de Niz, Francisco Aroclia, Vicente Alvarez, Juan Delgado, Marino Melano, Juan Curbelo, and Phelipe Perez, Josephe Antonio, Martin Lorenzo, Ignacio Lorenzo. These last four comprise one family. They are sixteen families, although the Derrotero counted but fifteen. It was resolved here l)y Captain Don Mathias de .Xguirre, at the request of the above named parties, to adjust (or regulatei for sixteen families, numbering altogether fifty-six persons, and these families declared that having presented and represented in writing to Captain Mathias de Aguirre that they came without provisions of any kind and were with neither mules nor horses, as stated to his Honour (or to his Worship) and proved by the fact that the horses they had exchanged were unable to continue the journey, and the mules had been returned to their owners ; that in order that they might be enabled to continue the journey to the Presidio of San .\iitonio de Vejar* they w^ere given what was most convenient and necessary, namely : Eighty-six horses, as stated in detail in the account of the repartition that was made to each one of the families ; also, seventy-seven mules loaded with provisions for their maintenance during the journey from this town to San .Antonio; also, twenty-seven mules moreover to carry biscuit, meat and everything needed and necessary ; also, four mules employed to carry four panier loads (cargas de arganas), making in all the number alluded to, seventy-seven t mules. Also, sixteen yokes of oxen. But His E.xcellency ordered Captain Don Mathias de Aguirre to give only fifteen yokes, yet there was added one yoke for the four single men who make np a family, adding to said yoke the necessary ploughshare, an axe and a pickaxe. In the same manner they declared having received from the said Captain sixteen metales J with their grinding stones, as His Excellency had ordered the said Captain. And they said that the said Captain had delivered faithfully and without fault in the said Presidio de San .Antonio de Eejar the sixteen yokes of oxen. All of which contained in aforesaid arrived as expressed (or staled). Thev confessed and acknowledged to have received con- formably all the above-mentioned, remaining satisfied, renouncing the laws of the delivered (las leyes de la t ntrega) and the proof of the receipt contained in them. Leaving the payment of the amount to the will and convenience of His E.xcellency the Viceroy, Governor and Cap- tain General of this New Spain, which amount the said Don Mathias de Aguirre will give in detail to the officials of the Royal Treasury in the Citv of Me.xico, and to his Attorney, in order that he be paid the sum that would be equivalent to the above named in conformity with that which His Excellency would be pleased to determine and order to be executed, and in order that all agreed upon remain as expressed in the above named contents, they signed it, the witnesses being Joseph Ramon Ramos, Diego de los Santos and Augustin de Imenarrieta. present, and neighbors of this said town, and who signed it at the request of tho.se who could not sign, and tlio^e that could sign for themselves before me, the present Notary, I certify Juan Leal (ioraz, Francisco Arocha, Bisente Alvarez, Francisco .-Vntonio Santo". Juan Del- gado, at request of Juan Curbelo, Manuel de Niz, Juan Leal the boy, Josephe Cabrera, Salvador Rodriguez Josephe Padron, and the four that comprised the e.xtra family ; and for the widows Maria Rodriguez and Maria Meleano. (Witnesses) Diego de los Santos, Josephe Ramon Ramos, Augustin Imenarrieta. Before me, Jf-^^N' Sanchez de T.^gle, Royal Notary Public and of the Corporation. 1] "At that epoch the Marqui.s of Casa Fuerte was Governor in New Spain, it was he who ordered General Don Mathias de Aguirre to provide the settlers of San Antonio de Bejar with necessaries to enable them to continue their expedi- tion to the said Presidio. ' Tl:c various spellings of Bexar arc indicative of tlie plasticity of Spanish pronmiciatioii. t The translation is not at fault, but there seems to be an error here in a^''^-ery" 1868 First R. R. train leaves San .\ntiHiio with U. S. Officers as passengers for New York on the Sunset or G. H. & S. A. R. R 1877 E. H. Terrell, U. S. minister to Belguim (1S901 is nominated for Mayor of S. A. but Callaghan is elected on February 14th 1887 6 Texas volunteers elect John S. Ford, iCol. Rip. 1 F 7 First freight train on Railroad construction work arrives at San Antonio depot i. Sunset 1.1877 James I'. Newconib appointed I'ostniaster 1883 8 A reniarkal>le political illustration published in the S. A. ICxpress, drawn b_v an Artist Iwonski 1868 Hanquet given in honor of 25th anniversary of fire company No. i 1883 9 Kirst appearance of Lawrence Barrett in San Antonio 1883 10 First Jail Guard House and Military Quarters erected under Haron Ripperda on the Military Plaza |,old document in County records) 1773 Mexican Royalists are defeated at Goliad and return to San Antonio 1813 J. D. Logan, the founder of the first daily paper in Texas, "San Antonio Herald" diesl878 Maverick Ranch fence, on Bandera Road, cut 1885 Frank Scott sent to the Penitentiary for life for the murder of Frank Harris, this is one of the final chapters in the frightful Roljber Cave incidents 1887 11 Carl Schurz lectures at the Casino 188S 12 Joseph Jefferson says he will not come to San Antonio because there is no Railway. (See. April nth, iSS,Sl 1872 13 Supplementary act to supt. act to San Antonio and Mexic.in Gulf R.-iilroad approved . 1854 14 Supplementary act to San Antonio and Mexican Gulf Railroad enacted 1852 15 Sun.set Road really reaches San .\ntonio, i. e. first freight for business men received this day. J. H. Kanipniann receiving a carload of lumber 1877 Two new bridges on Navarro Street tested 1879 16 Annexation of Texas to the United States consummated 1846 Government property surrendered by General Twiggs at San .\ntonioto the Secession Convention Commissioners 1860 The old Conception Ditch abandoned on I'agalda Street and the Mill Dam subse- (juently lowered 1869 Resolution adopted in the City Council to donate forty acres to the Creneral Govern- ment for army purposes in the eastern portion of the City, on the site of the Government corral, near the present site of the Post 1870 International Railroad arrives at last. First passenger trains arrive and de])art . 1881 l:!4 vSAX ANTONIO DK HKXAR. 17 Hand of Lipan Indians only nini- miles from San Antonio, on the Castroville Road, trv to stampede a bunch of mules in charge of a Mexican who holds on to the bell mule. The Indians fail and shoot a mare with arrows, the arrows were afterwards gathered by Mr. Froboese and handed to Gen. Carleton 1870 Government takes posses.sion of the Jlexican Gulf Railroad 1870 Kdwin Booth, the actor, here again 1888 18 Dr. J. II. Bernard, one of Fannin's men, who was spared at the (Voliad massacre, be- cause of his necessity to the Me.sican wounded, revisits San .\ntonio and finds "all the old landmarks vanishing" 1860 19 Major James Longstreet in San Antonio on his way Ivast "to the States" 18S8 Torch light procession, .S,ooo strong, in honor of the arrival of tlie Sunset, first Rail- road for San Antonio 1877 Paul Wagner begins his new store on Commerce Street 187 9 San -Antonio and Aransas Pass FIngineers make one more start for the Gulf 1885 20 Supt. act to supt. act to supt. act of S. A. ^c Mexican Gulf Railroad 1856 Indians kill a wotiian and children in Bandera County 1870 Contract let for Bexar County new jail. Work begun F'ebruary 27th 1878 21 Colonel Robert E. I-,ee, Lieutenant Colonel of and regiment of cavalry arrives at San Antonio to take charge of the Department of Te.xas 1860 Honor^ Grenet dies 1882 Marshall Hal. Gosling shot and instantly killed on the train at New Braunfels by Pitts and Yeager. Pitts and Mrs. Downes are killed. Rosa Veager and Charles Veager are wounded. Yeager jumps with Pitts from the train, train going at forty miles an hour, Yeager mashes with a stone Pitts' dead hand and escapes. Deputy Marshall Manning, who had made a brave fight almost alone, is wounded in five places 1885 22 Santa Anna's advanced troops arrive in San .\ntonio 1836 Travis retires with 150 men to the Alamo 1836 J. S. Friend advertises for two children stolen by Indians in Llano County 1888 A meeting called to consider the advisability of petitioning U. S. Congress to divide Texas into two States, East and West Texas 1868 Yeager is captured after an exciting trail , 1885 23 Large excursion trains are now constantlv coming in from New luigland on their wav West 1887 24 The Texans in the Alamo are summoned by Santa .Anna to surrender, he is answered by a cannon shot 1836 Adams and Wicks' wagon master is killed by the Indians near Fort Mason 1870 The County withdraws from the agreement to buibl a joint City and Covmty Hall . , J 888 THE MONTH OP MARCH. 135 25 The Dreiss Ijuildiiii; ;un to-day from San Pedro Sprinj^s to corner of Alamo I'laza 1878 27 Voakum. in his History of Texas, says, funeral honors were accorded the ashes of the heroes of the Alamo. "The dead had been burnt in three piles. The ashes were collected and placed in a neat black coffin, and interred byjuan Se^nin by order of the General in Chief." 1837 Turner Hall on Houston Street is besfun 1879 F;(hvin Hooth at the Opera House 1887 28 Colonel R. E. I,ee is ordered to follow Cortinas into Mexico if necessary 1860 It is decided to enlars;e the Casino 1877 29 Corner stone of the first Presbyterian Church (corner of F'lores and Houston Streets) is lai Fannin 1836 Fitzhugh Lee lectures at the Casino on the Battle of Chancellorsville 1883 The old "Jack Harris" and "Vaudeville" corner is burnt out 1886- Siege of the Alamo 183& Amendments to the City Charter itwelfth documenti 188& 5 Foundation of the Concepcion Mission 1731 It is completed 1752 Mi.ssiou of San Jose completed 1731 San Juan and Kspada Missions begun 1731 First district court held at the New Court House on Soledad street 1883 6 Fall of the Alamo, Sunday morning 1836 Death of Travis, i Howie, -and about 170 others. Crockett, J Vasquez, with 7(11) Mexicans, takes possession of San .\ntonio. Shew of authority on the piirt of Mexico 1842 I,. Uhjazzi, a Hungarian patriot of Kossuth's party, shoots himself here at the age of almost SO years 1870 8 Wolfson makes additions to his store 1880 •""' 1883 The Government accepts a contract for the erection of the new l'"ederal lUiilding and I'ost Office 1888 9 Fir.-t fight at the .Mission Refugio (see March 10 and 11) 1836 The Mexicans under Vasqne/, retire from .Sau .\ntonio after two days' occupation . . , 1842 10 Retreat of Houston from Gonzales 1836 Second battle of Mission Refugio, Mexicans worsted (see JIarch III 1836 11 Retreat from Refugio 1836 General Sherman in San .\ntonio 1882 Ben Thomp,son and King Fisher shut and killeil at \audeville theatre, .loe Forster wounded in the same scrape 1884 T. T. Raymond at tlu- Opera House 1887 THE MONTH OF MARCH. 187 12 Groos' liank and Store begun 1879 13 La Salle killed by his nieu ^see March ;>()| 1687 First telephone wire erected in San Antonio from City office of Water Works to the office at the head of the River 1878 The buildinjj of Alameda block begun 1882 14 I'hil. Sheridan is here again. From Laredo this time 1883 15 Governor Davis is given a reception at the Meuger Hotel 1870 16 Population of San Antonio is estimated to be between ten and twelve thousand . . . I860 U. Lott elected President of the S. A. & A. P. R. R 1885 T. J. Devine, a much respected old citizen of San .-Vntonio, having occupied nianv high public offices, came to San .\ntonio in 1843, identified with nearly all the best interests of the city, dies at the age of 7S 1890 17 Battle of Coleta Creek, where the Te.xaus under Fannin gain the advantage 1836 Rig overflow of the river. A man named Tannenberg is drowned on Commerce Street bridge. Two children of Mr. Staarke are drowned the same daj- 1865 John Twohig lays the foundation stone of his wall on St. Mary's Street 1869 18 Fannin surrenders to Urea at Coleta Creek 1836 19 Telephone system is about to be fstablislied 1881 20 \ blooily battle with Comanche Indians on the .Main and Military Plazas; H~ Indians killed, 7 whites killed. Mrs. M. A. Maverick wa.s an eye witness of this battle from a place of vantage in the original Maverick Himie at the corner of Main Street and Soledad Street . 1840 A party on an outing start from the Head of the River in a boat, after many difficulties arrive in the city by nightfall 1870 A similar feat was performed by John and Joseph Weber (see January 15, '8()| . 1858 21 Nolan is defeated and killed liy Mexicans 1801 22 Josh Hillings is in .San .\ntonio , . 1878 Joe Forster dies of a wound received in the Vaudeville shooting scrape of IMarch I lili 1884 i;^.s SAN AXTOXIO DP: BEXAR. 23 No. 1 of the Weekly San Antonio Herald appears 1854 No. 1 of the Daily San Antonio Herald, the oldest Texas daily newspaper, appears . . 1857 Confederate Tannery was turned over to the " I''reednian's Bureau" 1866 24 The Mier prisoners are decimated bv order of Santa .\nna, 17 are shot upon drawing black beans at the Hacienda Salado, Mexico 1843 25 (Jeneral Grant and party arrive here and get a grand reception. He stajs here four days 1880 Mrs. Andrea Castanou de Villanueva, alias Candelaria, petitions for « pension as being the last survivor ot the Fall of the .\lamo 1889 26 F'irst Public Meeting (of what proved to be a very bitter campaign! of the Prohibition- i.sts at Turner Hall 1887 27 The Fannin Massacre, 330 men are shot by the order of Santa Anna at Goliad . 1836 No. 1, of Vol. 4, of San Antonio Weekly Herald is issued 1858 The Flores Street Street Railroad is completed 1884 The work of paving the Alamo Plaza with ine.s()uite blocks is begun in earnest . 1889 28 Battle of Salado. after the death of Magee, the .Americans under Kemper and Mexican Republicans under Menchaca, I "Rebels" I with some Indian bands, are victorious over the San .\ntonio Royalist troops under the officers in the command of Gov- ernor Salcedo 1813 29 A band of squaws and a notorious hostile Indian buck, Castalito, are in town, brought in by Mackenzie 1873 Some skeletons are unearthed in the .\lamo Church Building 1878 30 La .Salle murdered by one of his own men near the Neches River 1687 Total miles of Railroad graded on all lines in Texas 257 miles 1 | oco Total miles of Iron laid on this 132 miles ) -loOo E. H. Terrell is appointed :\Iinister to Belgium 1889 31 Incident in the "Magee Expedition" (see March 28): Governor Salcedo, Governor Herrera of New Leon, Ex-Goveruor Cordero and twelve officers of the defeated Rovalist troops are murdered a few miles from San Antonio in revenge by the son of Colonel Delgado and others. Kemper and the .'Americans leave di.sgusted at this barbaritv 1813 THK MONTH OF APRIL. 139 APRIL. First case of cholera in the great epidemic (last case June 10th) 1S4:9 Adolpli Korn, a bo}-, stolen by Indians in Llano Co., on Jan. Isl, is now advertised for 1870 The .Mavericks sell Fort Clark for $(iO,00() .... 1884 Dr. Carver is beaten by Penrose at San Pedro Springs in a .shooting contest 188S First issue of San .\ntonio Light. "Kvening Light" from January '20, l.S.SL (See January 20,1881.) 1883 .Auifudnicnts to the City Cliarter enacted by the legislature ■ 1889 Federal Court chooses rooms in the French building, Main Plaza, for Court Room . 1879 R. .\. Procter lectures at the Casino 1885 Water carts first used for street sprinkling 1878 John Chinaman is here James Burns, well known citizen, dies of a rattlesnake's bite 1875 1883 6 President Kustamente prohibits Americans entering Texas 1830 John L. Sullivan gives an e.xhibition at the Turner Hall 1884 Col. Frank W. Johnson, one of the most famous Texas veterans. President of the Texas Veteran Association since its inauguration, second in command under Milam and who assumed command at the death of Milam at the storming of San Antonio, dies at Agua Calientes, Mexico 1884 Mexican troops are stationed at San Antonio to check American influence 1830 General Sheridan, W. W. Belknap secretary of war, and General Myers are tendered a big reception at San Pedro Springs, and " wined and dined " at the Menger . 1873 14(J SAX NATOXIO DE BEXAR. 8 St. Mark's parsonage was begun 1884 Belknap and San Antonio Rifles are ordered out to quell disturbances at Laredo, Texas . 1886 First League base ball game played in San .'Vntonio 1888 Dr. F. Herff, Senior, permanently settled in San .\ntonio alii.ut this date. iDr. HerlT came first to Texas the end of April. 1.S.I7- < 18S0 9 A band of 73 Indians arrive under government escort on their way to Fort Mason, Flor- ida. (This is not the Geronimo and Natchez band.) 1886 10 The .Avenue C extension of the street car Hue is begun 1880 11 A mass meeting is called in San .■\ntonio to devise means for removing the Kickapoo Indians from the Texan and Mexican frontier 1868 Rear enlargement of the Maverick Hotel begun. (See also Sept. 15, '77, and Vah. H. '82. il883 Joseph Jefferson plays Rip Van Winkle at the opera house 1888 12 F'irst Baptist Church begnu 1873 13 French Building is constituted the County Court House 1868 The sixteer.th saengerfest is begun to be held here 1887 14 Tom Green dies in the Confederate war of a wound 1864 A fight is arranged just outside the city limits, at the old Fair grounds, between a bull and a lion and a lioness. The bull gets much the best of it 1878 Bishop Pellicer, first Bishop of San .Antonio, dies 1880 15 A home market for wool is established, fir.st wool bought and warehoused here .... 1859 Capt. King, the great cattleman and land owner, dies in 1885 16 Uriah Lott is in San .\ntonio, talking al)out narrow gauge railroads 1880 17 The corner .stone of the additional infirmary at Santa Rosa Hospital is laid 1884 Belknap Rifles go to New York 1889 18 Amendments to certain sections made to the city charter of San Antonio by the Six- teenth Legislature (11th document! 1879 A Mexican named Martinez, suspected of horse theft, was hanged by vigilantes near the Medina. .After hanging six hours he was cut down by friends and he recovered . 1 882 THE MONTH OF APRIL. HI 19 Session of CTrami I,o Mission Church laid 1744 Death of F. P. Giraud 1877 Right Rev. J. C. Neraz consecrated second bishop of San Antonio 1881 (General Stanle)-, new Department Commander, arrives here . 1884 9 Colonel Reeves surrenders with .SIS soldiers to Van Dorn, San .\ntonio 1861 Organization of a Jockey Club . 1868 Victor Considerant, returns to France 1868 10 The City tiovernnient moves to the French building on Main Plaza 1879 Terrell Hlock. Presidio Street, begun 1881 11 The earliest agitation for Water Works begins about now 1870 San Antonio Street Railroad Company is inaugurated 1874 12 Captain J. S. Ford engages in a fierce fight with Indians on Canadian River, New Mexico. (Colonel "Rip" again. 1 1858 13 The first foundation stone of San Fernando Church, l)etween Main and Military Plazas, was laid. (It was rebuilt and reopened with much ceremony October 6. 1S73.) 1734 F'lrst marriage of .\mericans in San .\ntonio, F. L. Paschal to Miss I". Roach of Soutli Carolina 1844 14 Potter anil McDaniels receive a life sentence for murder and mail robberies. Federal Court. (See June 5 and July i.) 1885 15 New Braunfels is founded by Prince Solins and a number of German families . , 1845 Van Dorn has another great fight with Indians on the Wichita expedition in which fifty Indians are killed. P"itz-Hugh I.ee was reported mortally wounded in this fight 1859 144 SAN ANTONIO l)K BEXAR. 16 Military telegraph coiiipleteii to San Antoniii 1876 Tlie sale of the Alamo Church is tinally consummated at Austin for #20,000. (Ne- gotiations had been pending since February 18. 1S8H. when the committee of the Legislature decided to report favorably to buy. See .April 2.3rd.) 1883 Much building going on at this date in San .Antonio. Stumberg's, Winslow's, anil Kampmann's (opposite the Maverick Hotel), and other new blocks of stores go- ing up on Houston Street. Real estate transactions have been very active this spring 1890 17 Important meeting in relation to Columbus and San Antonio Railroad 1867 Ignatius Coyle smashes the image of Saint Theresa at Alamo Church and is arrested by Captain Tom Rife 1887 18 Five Indians attack a camp six miles from Bandera 1867 First ground broken for San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railroad 188S The Garza Block, an historic corner, sold for J;r>l,;{00 1889 19 Terrible hailstorm or shower of ice ; pieces weighing 2}4 pounds fall, doing upwards of J;IOO,00() worth of damage in the city and neighborhood, besides ruining crops 1868 Belknap Rifles get second prize for company drill at Austin. San Antonio Rifles get fifth prize. Captain Badger, San Antonio Rifles, gets first prize for best captain . 1888 20 D'.Alarconne, Spanish Governor of Texas, writes to De la Harpe, French Repre- sentative, claiming all the lands West of the Nassonites. (See July Sth.) . , . . 1719 Vaccination made compulsory by order of the King of Spain. (County Records, old document. ) 18 04 21 A band of thirty-seven Digger Indians in town on their way to their reservation Nome Lackwa . . 18S9 22 A sea-gull was found on the .Arsenal grounds. suppo.sed to have been killed by hail on the 19th 1868 San Antonio Rifles organized . 1884 23 .\n election held to decide if bonds for 1.50,000 shall be issued for additional school buildings and other facilities for education, the income of permanent fund to go to the sinking fund of bonds. The proposition is carried by a majority of 329 . . 1885 24 Dry ISufi'alo meat, "just from the plains, " is on sale in , San .Vnttniio. (Seejan. 2,=;th. ) . 1874 25 First Ma.ss said at Mission San I'rancisco on the coast 1 690 THI-: MONTH OF MAY. 14.'> 26 San Antonio's first velocipede is seen careerinj; around 1869 21 The cattle trail to Kansas is now in constant public use 1873 28 Archbishop Odin diem the Sati Antonio Post (see August :iH) 1873 8 Jacques Hainline hanged here accordiug to law, for the murder of Peter Maddox 1879 9 The Kampinaun, Steves and Beunett buildings are now going up on the south side of Commerce street 1870 10 The Mexican cart and teamster troubles of Goliad and Karnes counties excite consider- able public attention 1857 11 Belknap and San Antonio Rifles return from i;alveston 1886 12 The city charter passes the legislature 1870 13 Stephen Fuller Austin arrives in San Antonio 1821 Act of incorpt)ration of San Antonio (ninth document) 1870 14 French building, southeast corner of Main i)laza, is nearly comi)leted 1858 15 The Alamo KifU-s resolve to disband, but did not do so until a short time afterwards 187 8 Opening of the Confederate and F>deral re-union at San Pedro Springs , . 1888 16 Notorious counterfeiters arrested and manv stolen drafts and coin dies are found in a jewelry store on Commerce street ... 1859 17 David Crockett born 1786 THE MONTH OF AUfirST. 151 Tlie Santa Rosa hos])ital is in nroL'r 26 27 1869 1889 28 Am arniad.llo is caught by some clnl.lren ,n the eastern suln.rbs Captain W. G. Tobin dies . «ein suln.rbs jgg^ Ground broken for the Club and Opera hot;se on' Alamo plaza ^^^^ 1 o8o 29 Corner stone of Tnnity Methodist Episcopal church laid 30 '^""'^mirr::::::;''^^"'^'^ --' '-'-^^^ '--^--"-'^ e„con„ter.ith a bear in 1879 31 Senator and General Rusk, one of the chiefs nf t), r cides throu„.h grief for the death of h!s Jk '"^^'^ "^^ ^°^ "'' ejjendence. sui- 1859 1857 xtz: AUGUST. San Antonio Herald, daily edition. No. 11:^ „f Vol. 1 is file issue). ssued (this is the first existin.. Kattle at \acog,loches between Texans and Mt 1857 1832 Belknap battalion formed 1889 1"'" SAN ANTONIO UE BEXAR. 13 Incii.-m raid (by Kicnvasi at Fiederickst)iir>; 1 Rft? The Daily Herald discontinues to be publislud | Qfifk 14 Deaili (if l''alher Johnston, a well known Catliolir priest of this city 1885 15 The Alamo Insurance Company, a local c-ouipaii\ , formeil i ccq 16 Avenue C is jrraded Curb hvilrauLs are first established 1878 1878 H. Brauer is mysteriou.sh- murdered at the San I'edro Sprinj;.-, | OOCl 17 Act of iucor])oralion of City of San Antonio (i-ii;litli document) 1856 18 |7">, 0(10 additional is voted for quarters and barracks at the Post 1885 19 The < )ld Lewis mill stopped. I"or nearly 20 years this mill had su])]ilied ground corn to San Antonio 1869 This mill was rebuilt and still "goes round" 1890 20 Goliail citizens lake justice into their own hands and consummate terrible vengeance on horse thieves and bandits. They haug and shoot six and arrest others . . 1858 The building which preceded the new Kampmanu bank building and took the place of the original Maverick House, corner of Main and Soledad streets, is now being built 1869 21 J. H. Kani])mann's bank building, corner of .Main and Soledad streets, is begun . 1883 22 The work on tlie I'ederal b\iilding. Alamo i)laza, is busily going on when J. R. Gordon pronounces some of the work done defective 1888 23 Sam Hou.ston dies at Huntsville 1863 Another noisy prohibition meeting on C.overnnunt F.ot. The campaign is now grow- ing bitter 1887 24 R. Bragance iTexan veteran! dies here . . 1886 25 The X'ance building on Houston street was the old military lu-ad(|uarters l)efore llu- war. 1859 THE MONTH OF JITLY. 14i> 2 A iiiinute of the City Records this day reads as follows: "In consequence of the Council and citizens generally being engaged in making preparations to repel the aggressions of the Indians there was no meeting of the Corporation this day. Signed, W. P. Delmour Secretary. July 2nd" 1838 Buildings now occupied by Goldfrank. Frank S: Co.. Main Street, are about half completed 18T0 H. Vuakum completes \'uluuie I. History of Texas iPublished IHnH] 1834 Rainfall in San Antonio from Saturday, July ;->rd, midnight, to Tuesday morning. July 6th, is fourteen and a half inches 1869 The old front of San Fernando is torn down 1873 4 Annexation Bill pas.sed by the Convention of Delegates at Austin . 1843 5 The present 1 1891)1 Iron Bridge on Commerce street is liegun 1881 Scholz's new Palm Garden is opened with a concert 188S 6 Joseph Moore, wife and children, are killed in their wagon by Indians at Bandera. One child escaped 1873 7 Jose Cordova hanged according to law at the Bexar Couutx- Jail for the murder of R. Trimble 1879 First game of Polo between Blues and Reds (another game on July 9) 1883 8 De la Ilarpe replies to D'Alarconne's letter and claims the Nas.sonite lands for France 1719 9 A quiver ol arrows and a bow is exhibited at the San Antonio Express office as a curiosity. The trophy was captured in the "upper Country." 1870 Cornerstone of County and City Hospital laid 1888 10 Ten trt)ops of I'nited States Cavalry ordered out for Indian service 188S 11 Indians reported eleven miles from the city 1870 Ben Milam's grave is marked by a stone on Washington Square Park 1878 Bias Herrera, Texan veteran, dies 1878 .lack Harris is shot by Ben Thompson in the saloon at "Jack Harris' corner" .... 1882 12 Groos' house on "Alameda" street begun i.\lameda now V,. Commerce street) . 1872 Stnnniforth is murdered with two bullets in his brain as he sleeps 1885 THE MONTH OF Al'(UTST. 153 18 Battle of Medina — Mexican Royalists are victorious under Arreilondo 1813 19 The Mexicans are jfrowinj; very jealous of the growing influence of Americans in Texas about this time 1829 20 Arredondo enters the city in triunipli; 7(K) of llie citizens are imprisoned, eighteen die of suffocation out of 300 in one house; the remainder are shot 1813 The "Great August Storm;" wind from the northeast; many thousands of dollars dam- age done to roofs and houses in the city, anil the people are had ly scared 1886 21 Delegates to Denver Deep Water Convention are selected 1888 22 Tin roof workers are autocratic just now (see August 20l 188 6 23 Indian raid at Castroville 1867 Third Volksfest was almost abandoned on account of the adverse decisions of the city attorney (see October 22) 1884 Jim :\IcCoy hanged at County Jail for the murder of .Sheriff McKinney 1889 24 Treaty of Cordova perfected I)y which Mexico separates from Spain 1821 Vance & Bros, give one lot of land, for the erection of an Episcopal place of worship, to St. Mark's congregation. Mr. ,S. A. Maverick also donates four city lots for church purposes 1858 25 I'erd. Niggli shot at Castroville by Sheriff Thumm. He dies .\ugust 30. Thiniini refuses to surrender to San Antonio officers subsequently 1885 26 First experiments in raising "Chinese Sugar Cane," or Sorghu, now known a.s Sor- ghum, mentioned in the Herald 185T Right Rev. Bi.shop Klliott, Episcopal Bishop of Western Texas, dies 1887 27 The Street Railway Company begins its extension to the International depot 1880 tVreal fire at Hugo & Schmcltzer's on Commerce Street; very heavy loss; three men severelv burned: two subse(|uently die of tlieir injuries 1883 28 Mexico revolts against Spain to become a Republic 1821 The Military Post is re-eslablisheil here isee .\ugnst 7i 1875 A plague of crickets is upon us 1888 154 SAN ANTONIO UK liKXAR. 29 The way we got ice in those days; an advertisement announces, ••Arrival of Ice Wagons from the Bay." 185T Another advertisement (Saturday i: "The HI I'asT mail will close next Tuesila\ morn- ing at nine o'clock 185T 30 Henry Karnt-s, one of the old leniarkalile trappers and pimieers, raised in Tennessee, and was at the battle of Cmicepcion, dies m the nunith of August in Sau Antonio. (Karnes County gets its name from him. i _ 184:0 (^eorge Hoeruer dies .... 188^ 31 San Antonio Gas Works are inaugurated about this date .... Two car loads of ponies are shipped from San Antonio to England 1859 1877 ^^=^^=±^ SEPTEMBER. ^-£^<5=^ San Antonio and Monlerej- this day connected bv railroad 1882 Letter carrier system established 1882 Joske Bros, introduce copper pennies into their business. (They had previously lieen introduced into the city on December 17, 1886.) 1887 Copper pennies are very little used ! 1890 Very brilliant .Aurora Borealis seen here (see September 24* 1859 First case of the Cholera epidemic was near Concepcion Mission. (Last case October 12, IKOO. Total fatal cases 202. 1 1866 Mr. S. A. Maverick dies. (Texan pioneer of early thirties, was intimately identified with the city and .state's history and interests for upwards of 40 years.) 1870 Comaiu'he Indians troul)lesoiue around the city. Two surveyors were killed on the Leon Creek. The Indians were followed and seven killed 1838 TIIK MONTH Ol' S1vPTP:mbER. I0.5 Comer stone of Joske's building, cornt-r of Cniinuene aiie Forces at Gonzales, 1835, and says : " 1 fully lioped lo have found Texas at peace and in tranquility, but regret to lind it in commotion * * and threatened with immediate Uostilitie.s. " The Texas Revolution is now beginning in earnest. I 1835 The old ■' Hat Cave " Court House, northwest corner Military plaza, begun 1850 7 A Southern Pacific Railroad is being strongly urged at this early date 1857 Bob Augustin, who came up from Goliad with others of his kidney to join vSibley's Brigade, is arrested by Wm. Lyons for disorderly conduct, upsetting anil over- riding the chile stands on Main Plaza (see September i)th) 1861 8 Meeting held to devise means of turning the 01 nios creek into the .\la/.an to prevent overflows in the San .\ntonio River 1868 9 Bob Augustin is released by the Mayor, but is taken in charge by a determined mass of citizens and one of the most exciting lynchings in the histor)' of the city fol- lows. Bob is hanged on a tree at the southeast corner of Military Plaza at the en- trance of Flores street (this tree was grimly named *La Ley de Mondragon) at the hands of a vigilance committee and by the unanimous consent of a large mass of citizens, who had concluded that Bob was a bad man (see September 7, 1861) . . .1861 O.x carts are seeing their great day 187 Saengerfest in San .\utonio 1870 10 The Jewish Synagogue on Travis Park is dedicated 1875 11 General WoU and his Mexican army invests San .\utonio (also General Vasquez, March 7, l84:2i 1842 h.\ I,i-;v i)K M(j.\i)K.\c;;(i.\ — I'"lokks Stkeet. A little tree once grew In a street of San Autone, That little tree we knew .^s " La ley de Mondragon," Which in a street of flowers Put forth no blossom fair. Yet by the Holy Powers A ghastly fruit it bare. Whose seed was sudden death, Whose stem a tight drawn rope. The Vigilante saitli '■ Well founded is the hope That the law of Mondragon .Ml Texas will endorse That ' here in .San .■Vntone Vou inusl not steal a horse.' " lo6 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. 12 Sixth Animal Fair is held 1875 Lone Star Brewery is opened . -1884 Additional Barracks and Quarters are to be liiiilt at the New Post. Contract let Sep- tember 13 1888 13 A German named Tliulle is killed l>y Indians at Castroville 1867 At an election held this day 11.566 votes for and 46 against) the Columbus or "Sunset" route is subsidized by the city and county $.500,000. (This did not materialize, see January 29thi ..,'....'., 1873 14 Celebration in San .\ntonio of the one hundrtclth anniversary of Humboldt's birtlida\ 1869 A Light .\rtillery Company reorganized, Stanley Welch, Captain 187 Pancoast's building on Commerce street begun 1880 Through communication with Saltillo completed 1883 Last stone of the New Federal Building on Alamo Plaza laid 1889 15 Great "Indianola" storm on the coast, 821 lives lost at Indianola, which city is de- stroyed I Herald sa\-s .September 17? I 1875 The Military Headquarters be.gun (now Maverick Hotel, see also .\pril 11 and Feb- ruary 8l 1877 The Texas .State Univer-sity is opened at .Austui with Id", students 1883 Belknap Rifles inaugurated 1884 16 Mexican Independence Day. Don Miguel Hidalgo proclaims in favor of libert\ 1810 The Colored Catholic Church is dedicated by Bishop Neraz 1888 The corner stone of the City Hall. Military Plaza, is laid 1889 17 Captain Hays defeats General W'oll on the Salado creek. Captain Dawson's command loses 36 men on the same day. General WoU retires to the Rio Grande 1842 18 George 'Wilkins Kendall advertises "Merino Bucks;" this is probably one of the earliest introductions of this lireed into Texas 1857 19 First issue of the San .\ntonio Daily Times 1880 20 St. Joseph's Church is almost finished 1872 21 'While yellow fever is raging at Houston and Galveston there is none in San .\ntonio 1867 The ,San .\ntonio Daily Herald is sold by auction 1878 22 The Dullnig bldck, corner nf Commerce anil .^lamo streets, is begun 1883 THE MONTH OF AUGUST. 153 18 Battle ul Medina — Mexican Royalists are vicloriinih under Arredimdo 1813 19 The Mexicans are growing very jealous of the gri>vvii\g inllumce of Americans in Texas about this time 1829 20 Arredondo enters the city in triumph; 7(UI of the citizens are imprisonetl, eighteen die of suffocation out of 300 iu one house; the remainder are shot 1813 The "Great August Storm;" wind from the northeast; many thousands of dollars dam- age done to roofs and houses in the city, and the people are badly scared. . . . 1886 21 Delegates to Denver Deep Water Convention are selected 1888 22 Tin roof workers are autocratic just now (see August 20| 1886 23 Indian raid at Castroville 1867 Third A'olksfest was almost abandoned on account of the adverse decisions of the citv attorney (see October 22) 1884 Jim McCoy hanged at Cmmty Jail for the murder of Sheriff McKinney 1889 24 Treaty of Cordova perfected by which Mexico separates from Spain 1821 Vance & Bros, give one lot of land, for the erection of an Episcopal place of worship, to St. Mark's congregation. Mr. .S. A. Maverick also donates four citv lots for church purposes 1858 25 Ferd. Xiggli shot at Castroville by Sheriff Thumm. He dies August 30. Thunim refuses to surrender to San Antonio officers sulxsequently 188& 26 First experiments in raising "Chinese Sugar Cane," or Sorgho, now known .is Sor- ghum, mentioned in the Herald 185T Right Rev. Bishop Klliott, Episcopal Bisho]) of Western Texas, dies . 1887 27 The Street Railway Coinjiany begins its extension to the International depot 1880 Great fire at Hugo & Schmeltzer's on Commerce Street; very heavy loss; three men .severely burned; two subsetjuently die of their injuries 1883 28 Mexico revolts against Spain to become a Republic 1821 The Military Post is re-established here (.see .\ugust 71 1875 .\ plague of crickets is U])on us . 1888 154 SAN AXTOXKl DE BKXAR. 29 The way we got ice in those days; an advertisement announces, "Arrival of Ice Wagons from the Bay. " 1857 Another advertisement iSalurdavi: "The ICl Paso mail will close next Tnesdavmorn ing at nine o'clock 1857 30 Henry Karnes, one of the old remarkable trappers and pioneers, raised in Tennessee, and was at the battle of Concepcion, dies in the month of August in San Antonio. (Karnes County gets its name frimi him. 1 | 840 George Hoerner dies ,,. 1885 31 San Antonio Gas Works are inaugurated al)out this date . Two car loads of ponies are .shipped from San Antonio to Englam 1859 1877 ^^^fez SEPTEMBER. T=2^g=r' IK San Antonio and Monterey this day connected by railroad 1882 Letter carrier system established . 1882 Joske Bros, introduce copper pennies into their business. (They had previously lieeii introduced into the city on Decemlier 17, 1886.) 1887 Copper pennies are very little used 1890 Very brilliant .Aurora Horealis seen here (see September '2^] . 1859 First case of the Cholera epidemic was near Concepcion Mission. (Last case October 12, !«()(). Total fatal ca.ses 292.1 1866 Mr. S. A. Maverick dies. (Texan pioneer of early thirties, was intimately i 4 Corner stone of Joske's liiiildiiig, corner of Conuneri-e and Alamo streets, laid . . 1888 5 Sam Houston electeil President of the Repulilic of Texas ... 1836 Six Mexicans found liau,L;in,t; on trees on the Ciljolo Creek, near Boerne 1868 6 Stephen F. Austin returns to Texas about this date, after a prolouj^ed enforced deten- tion since April or May. lSo8, in Mexico. ( He is shortly elected (General of the Forces at Gonzales, 1835. and says : " I fully hoped to have found Texas at peace and in tranquility, but rej;ret to find it in commotion * * and threatened with immediate hostilities." The Texas Revolution isnow be.<(innin,L; in earnest, i 1835 The old "Bat Cave " Court House, northwest corner Military plaza, be,gun 1850 7 A Southern Pacific Railroafi(i votes for and 46 against! the Colunil)usor "Sunset" route is subsidized Ijy the city and county $oOO,00(). (This did not materialize, see January 20th i 1873 14 Celebration in San Antonio of the one hundredth anniversary of Humboldt's birtlid.iy 1869 A Light Artillery Company reorganized, Stanley Welch, Captain 1870 Pancoast's building on Commerce street begun ... 1880 Through communication with Saltillo completed 1883 Last stone of the New Federal Building on Aluno Plaza laid 1889 15 Great " Indianola " storm on the coast, .'Ul lives lost at ludianola, wliiih city is ilc- stroyed ( Herald says September IT.""! 1875 The Military Headquarters begun (now Maverick Hotel, see also April 11 and Feb- ruary Ml 1877 The Texas state University is opened at Austni with 108 students 1883 Belknap Rifles inaugurated ,....,.... 1884 16 Mexican Independence Day. Don Miguel Hidalgo proclaims in favor of liberty 1810 The Colored Catholic Church is dedicated by Bishop Neraz 1888 The corner stone of the City Hall, Military Plaza, is laid 1889 17 Captain Havs defeats General Woll on the Salado creek. Captain Dawson's command loses 36 men on the same day. General Woll retires to the Rio Grande ... . 1842 18 George Wilkins Kendall advertises "Merino Bucks;" this is probably one of the earliest introductions of this breed into Texas 1857 19 First issue of the San Antonio Daily Times 1880 20 St. Joseph's Church is almost finished 1872 21 While yellow fever is raging at Houston and Galveston there is none in San .Antonio 1867 The San .\ntonio Daily Herald is sold by auction 1878 22 The Dullnig block, corner of Commerce anL- 1878 Grenet begins the inartistic wooden building for a grocery store adjoining the Alamo Church, and partly on the site of the convent u .dls and convent yard . 1 878 San .Xntonio and .Aransas Pass Railroad is completed lo Kerrville. 1887 The first St. Marv's street bridge is erected 1858 8 Ground is broken for the otii San Antonio .X.itional bank Iniildiiig i now occupieil by O'Connor & Sullivan, bankers) 1867 Yguacia Cortez is acquitted of the murder of Stanniforth 1885 TIIK MONTH OF OCTOBER. 159 9 CollinswortU and Milam captiiix- (ioliail 183S Mrs. Hannig, who was a survivor of the storininjf of the Ahiimi, ami was tht.- wife of I/ieutenant Dickinson who was killcfi there, ihes. (Mrs. Dickinson was the mother of ■• The Chilli of Ihe .\laMK>."i 1883 10 Stephen I', .\ustin assumes ronnnand of llu' 'I'exans at (iouzales 1833 Case of San .Antonio and Mexican Cult K dlroail v. City of San .\ntoiiio is decidecl ajjainst the city. 1868 11 lU Paso and ,San .\ntonio mail attacked liy Indians; two of the escort are killed . . 186T 12 S. F. .Austin, commanding the Te.xaus, starts for San .\ntonio a.a^ain^t Cos . . 1835 Last case of cholera epidemic (see Septeiubor 2) . 1866 13 First revolutionary meeting held in San .\ntonio . . . 1834- Citizens are breathing more freely and are thankful th.it the cholera was no worse isee Septeinlier li and ll'i . 1866 14 city authorities are talking of widening Commercj .street, along liv Groos' Ijank . . . 1867 GroHUii broken for the new San .\ntoaio National Bauk building, Commerce .street. . 1885 15 Many fences are being cut ami Imrned about this time 1883 16 -V three hundred dollar foot-bridge is opened on Commerce street 1866 17 Ncarl\' all the American Texans are bc^coiuini^ conviiiceil thai il is now coniplcle iiule- ])en(lfn('o from Mexico or notliinj^ , 1 R^'i 18 J. I-jiiesl Smith, express messenger, is given a rousing reception for having st) ctlect- ually disposed of train robbers on the .Southern Pacific Railroad near \i\ I'aso . . 1887 19 Eighty-two camels are imported by private enterprise from the Canary Islands . . . 1858 20 Austin arrives with the Texan forces at the Mission Kspada . 1835 The colored " F^xcelsior (iuards " are organized 1882 The Prospect Hill Street Railroail is organized 1883 ic.d SAN ANTONIO DK BEXAR. 21 George Wilkins Kendall, a gooil ami true friend lo .San .\utonio and Te.xas. dies at Boerne 1861 It is to-dav decided to build the .Southwestern Lunatic .Asylum in Hexar Counly 1889 22 Case of Rhodes v. Whitehead el al. is decided in favor of defendant. This suit was to test certain rights to use the old Concepcion ditch. This ditch was afterwards abandoned ; it ran along Garden street from the old dam, now the Lewis mill dam, and was constructed about the time of the founding of the Con- cepcion Mission, probably about the year 1729. and it watered the lands of that Mir.sion. This case was decided 1858 23 Suit city V. Bishop Odin beguu — .\lanio properly . . 1850 Second day of the third annual Volksfest. The Belknaps now win first prize for best drilled company. San .\ntouio Rifles win second . 1885 24 J, B. Lacoste, old and progressive citi/.en, first president of ,Saii .\nl(iniu WaUr Works and the San Antonio Ice Factory, dies 1887 25 Some genuine Gyp.sies encamp lliis week al .San Pedro .Spring- 1873 26 Fastest record of stage mail from HI I'aso in six days 1868 27 Fannin, with a force of Texans, arrives al Mission Concepcion 1835 Captain W. G. Tobin hastens with a company of 60 men to relieve the frontiersmen from the aggressions of Cortina's invasion 1859 28 Battle of Concepcion between Fannin's force of 90 Texans and the Mexican troops from San Antonio, under Cos. The latter are driven back to the city. Richard .\ndrews is killed, the first in this campaign 1835 29 First Convent foot-bridge is built by .subscription ; it is afterwards washed away 1868 Cardinal Gibbons is here, and next day he officiates at San Fernando Cathedral 1887 30 General Cos is fortifying San .Antonio 1835 One thousand Texans under Austin at Mission Concepcion. (Many of them disperse shortly afterwards to escape the severity of the weather. Having been hastily summoned, they came unprepared to winter. ' 1835 31 Tlie bell of St. Mark's arrives from Troy, .N. Y. It was cast from an old cannon dug up in the .Alamo, and was cast at the expense of S. A. Maverick 1874 [Mem .—The revolutionary ideas of the Texan party had arisen by the refusal of Santa .Anna to separate Texas from Coahuila.] 1834 TH1-: MONTH OI' NOVKMBER. ICl NOVEMBER. The United States Arsenal is bei^in to be built on its present site . . . . 1859 Antonio Manchaca, a prominent Mexican-Texan veteran and citizen, born ISOd, dies this day , 1879 Mr. Herman Kanijmiann takes the Menger Hotel in hand 1887 I''irst match game of base ball played in this city 1867 The Belknap Rifles receive their charter 1884 The first survey of the San Antonio and Ar.insas I'ass Railroad is completed 1884 The city is first lighted with gas 1866 The Edison Phonograph makes its first appearance here at the Alamo Literary Hall 1878 Floresville and San Antonio are connected by wire : first message on the /)th 1886 Corner stone of German Catholic Church of St. Joseph laid with great ceremony . . . 1868 The new building of the San .\ntonio National Bank, on Commerce street, is occupied 1886 6 San .Antonio National Bank is organized The second International Fair is opened 1866 1889 Magee is at (loliad with the " Republicans :" the Royalists are defeated 1812 8 The Texans take up a position at Powder House Hill overlooking San .\ntonio . 1835 Giraud, City Engineer (afterwards Mayor), begs the City Council to reserve the lots and head springs at the head of the river, and to reserve a strip of land on the cast bank of the river within the city limits. . 1852 T. C. Krost's residence. Soledad street, begun 1881 Milam Block begun 1 88 1 IHi' SAN ANTONIO DH BEXAR. 9 A large trail! of United States camels pass thn>in;li Commerce street 1859 10 " Ledger ami Texan Daily Newspaper," No. 1, published . 1859 11 Foundation stone of joint City and County Hospital laid 1886 12 The V'ance House is first opened as a hotel. (This was the old Military Headquarters l>efore anri for some years after the war. i 1872 13 First trial of the new steam roller for street improvements 1885 The first International Fair held at the new Fair grounds, at Riverside Park, opened li\ President Diaz, of Mexico, by telegraph 1888 14 The corner stone laid of the original Odd F'ellows' Hall building, on Houston street. (This hall was added to and remodeled in 1889-90. ) 1878 Reunion of the Terry Rangers in San .\ntonio 1889 15 Lorenzo de Zavalla dies at San Jacinto mot at the hattle ) 1836 .San Antonio thoroughly aroused over the Cortinas invasion at Brownsville. Much excitement in town 1859 The West End Town Company is organized and receives the final transfer of the property 1887 16 It is finally seen that \'ictor Con.siderant's Socialistic Colony, near Dallas, does not prove to be a success 1858 J.J. Duerler secures a charter for a street railway to San Pedro Springs iit') lights. This is the seconroi)erty 1877 30 I'irsl Presbyterian Church, Houston street, dedicated 1879 James I,. Trnehart, Te.xas veteran, dies 1882 Cornerstone of Madison Presbyterian Church laid . . . 1882 '■ Deaf," or Krastus Smith, a celebrated scout and pioneer of Texas revolutionary times, was born April 19, 1787. He took an active part in the preparation of the defense of the Alamo, but was absent on duty during the seige, and shortly after- wards did good service at the battle of San Jacinto; dies 1836 164 SAN ANTONIO DE BEXAR. DECEMBER. 1 I'ostnuister Johnson takes charge of tile San Antonio I'ost office 1889 2 (ieorxe Dnilnijs; finds petroleum on his ranch bv ilriUing for artesian water . . 1887 3 The population of the City of San Antonio is reported about this date b\ the assessor as 7142. (It is supposed to be incorrectly estimated on August 18. ]S5S. as City of San Antonio, 5281 ; County of Bexar, 4.S97. 1 1856 4 Stock amounting to |.5U,()0() taken by the city in the .San .Antonio .Mexican Culf Rail- road. I J. M. Devine, Mayor. I See December 30 . . , . 1850 Experimental " tube well " sunk on Military Plaza, 26 feet deep 1868 5 San .\ntonio is assaulted by the Texans under Milam and F. W. Johnson ; one Texan killed and fifteen wounded 1835 The abandoned wires of the Military Telegraph are purchased liy the Erie Telephone and Telegraph Company 1883 6 l-'ive Texans wounded in the assault this day 1835 George Hoerner's saloon opened on Commerce street 1858 First raid by the city on gamblers 1867 7 Death of .Milam aud two others in the assault 1835 8 Texans succeed in taking a house on Main Plaza 1835 9 General Cos surrenders the city to General Burleson, comtnander of the Texans 1835 Till' MONTH OV DECEMBER. 1C.3 10 Hfiiry Klmeiidoif's resilience l>e.miM 1881 11 Memorial services held ill the (Ipera House in nunmrv of Jefferson Davis 1889 12 National cattle trail has l)ecii the principal to])ic anionj; the caltlenien at their ineetiiit; this week. (The trail had "toyn ' lii'fore the land-grabbers and the railroads !) . 1884 13 Railroad communication with New Orleans is nincli a<;itated at this date 1858 The Alazan ditch is nearly completed , 1876 14 Act of incorporation of the City of San Aiilonio. (This is the third document of incor- poration. See January, 178H :,iid 17.'!4. .'\lso January .5, 1S3T) 1837 Indisjnation meeting of citizens held strongly coudenining fence cutting 1883 15 Amendments to certain sections of the City Charter of Sail Antonio made at the elec- tion held this date (tenth document ) 1874 HulTalo Hill entertains us at the Casino 1879 16 The City Council decides to open Crockett street across the river to St. Marv's street. (This is an important improvement. ) 1889 17 Kit Carson's letter published in the .San .\ntonio Daily Herald, dated from Taos, New Mexico, saying that a little Texas boy had been recovered from the Indians and he wishes him to be advertised 1859 Copper pennies are introduced into the city into commerce 1886 18 The .\lamo Rifles give a granil dress anil military ball at the " New " Casino Ilall . 1857 19 S. M. Wills, who had been held for four years a captive by the Comauches. escapes and relates his experiences in San Antonio 1878 Kinnia .\bbott opens the Grand Opera House, .\lamo I'laza 1886 20 Ycager is arrested, and on the 2il of this month Pitts .and \'eagLr .arc identified as the much wanted postollice ami mail roliliers 1884 21 The first I'air of the Agricultural and IiuUistri.d .Vssociation of Western Texas isopenedl868 I'ourteen thousand dollars is appropriated by the I'nited States Congress to purchase laiul to enlarge the .Xrsen.il grounds 1880 1()0 SAN ANTONIO DI'; BIvXAR. 22 Gallaghfi's corner, near Menger Hotel, is occui)icil on tliis date by the ,San Antonio I'osloffice 1879 23 Janu-s Kerr, tlie oldest American settler west of Colorado river, (lies 1850 We hear of a battle with the Ceroninio baud of Apaches in which two officers are killed and some men 1885 24 Uitcht Revercnil Anthony Dominic I'elicer is installed at San I-ernando Cathedral as first Hishop of .San Antonio the was buried in this Cathedral April 17, 1SS{| 1874 25 Stephen !•'. Austin. Secretary of State of the Republic of Texas, dies at Columbia 1836 The battle at Mier, Mexico, is fought 1842 The International Railroad track is completed to Iility of beconiin;i a market for cotton 1858 29 The Maverick Printing House have just moved into their fine new five-story building on Avenue I-; 1890 30 A cit)' election is held to consider the advisability of taking stock in the San .\ntonioand Mexican Gulf Railroad ; 2(i7 voles cast, of which ii3 were in favor of the fTjd.dOd subscription 1850 31 Dedication of the KUiott Memorial Hall 1889 Moses Austin was in San .\utouio about this date . 1820 German-English school established about this dale 1858 James and Resin P. Howie are in San Antonio to organize the San Saba expedition 1831 We have the most populous city ol Texas, three main railroad lines, a perfect system of water works, the purest water, wood block-paved plazas and streets, several electric street car systems, the prettiest Opera and Club House in the South, beautiful public buildings, good electric lighting and gas systems, good hotels, a lovely river, a cli- mate second to none on this continent, efficient schools, three daily newspapers, the juost important military post in the fnited Slates, immense markets for horses, cattle, wool and cotton, a progressive mayor, a history inexhaustible in interest, and a magnificent future 1890 FINIS. ADVERTISING APPENDICLE. The Alamo Heights. a A Very Iiovely Residence and Villa Addition to the City of San Antonio. The properly in the neighborhood of the head waters of the San Antonio River has always held an undisputed reputation of being the Garden Spot of Texas. The River rises here, almost full-grown within the distance of a quarter of a mile, from great mysterious springs bubbling in translucent pools of limpid water. Around and above this, the land is luxuriant to a degree with fine trees and sylvan greenery, and, while enjoying all the attractions of a well timbered river bottom, it yel stands high and above the low lands and the city, with exquisite views of the fertile valley below and of the mountains Hud hills reaching away to the north. Giant Pecans, Live Oaks, Hackberry, Elm, Box Elder, and many other noble trees are here in profusion, with a rich sprinkling of the beautiful Mountain Laurel, an evergreen which in the Spring-time blooms in purple dress among the myriads of wild flowers with which the neighborhood teems at certain seasons of the year. Such in brief is an unexaggerated description of the property acquired over a year ago by TUB fllamo HBignts ImproYBinGnt ConiDaim, And, up to the date of the publication of this work, not a lot has been placed upon the market, but, under the management of Mr, W. J. B. Patterson, the designs of Mr. R. R. Salter, C. E., of Denver, have been assiduously carried out. For a year or more a large force of men has been busily employed to make this place the most desirable residence property of our attractive and historic city. Landscape engineering as a science has been brought to tone a naturally be lutiful locality. Wide streets, 80 to 100 feet, with 12-feet sidewalks, have been graded and graveled- Drives and roads have been constructed upon the contour lines of the land, insuring a natural drainage of all lots. Parks have been laid off and trimmed, and here the picturesque arroyos, which dip dow n to the Olmos creek, have been put to very effecUve purpose. This creek runs in an unbroken stretch of nearly a mile on the west side of this property and empties itself into the River, just below.. A magnificent drive has been constructed from the city to the Alamo Heights Property by the City Council, a bonus having been provided by the Company towards this work. Along this drive, starting from the Federal Building, an Electric Street Car Line is rapidly being laid to this Suburban Addition, winding through and around. Five miles of track, standard gauge, are already under construction. The .system will be Thonip.son- Houston. Cars will start every fifteen minutes and transit will be rapid — twenty or iwenty-Cve miles beiug counted upon as the usual rate of travel. N. B. — Five or six big springs, and fifty or sixty minor springs niiike this property a perpetual paradise, and insure the purest of drinking water. For particulars, call on or write to ^la/T\o )^ei<5l7ts lapd andJnprouemeQt <5ompar)y. W. J. B. PATTERSON, President and General Manager. No. 42 7 East Houston Street, San Antonio, Texas. I'. K. HAINBRIDGH. W. CURNER. BAINBRIDGE & CORNER, iTiu.iSHKks or San Antonio de Bexar, Bv W. CORNER. Stationers and flems Agents, NEXT r 4G N TICKET OFFICE Squ Antonlo, Tcxas. Books, Periodicals, Fine Stationery of All Kinds, Newspapers, Fancy Articles, Boston Linen, Crane's, Marcus Ward's Irish Linen, Bond Writing Papers, Siibsniplions to Newspapers and Magazines Solicited. ,tiold and Foiiiitaiii Pens. Ir^Koto 'Y'iews of San ^ntoriio and ^icinitq. /^(^eQts for LiyrlQl^t Ditsorj's lauii) Je^^is (joods. Tlie largest collection of Fine Japanese Ware in this cit\'. Birtlida)' Presents and Cards. Visitini; and Wedding Cards Kngraved in the most Fashionable Styles. Progressive I'Uu'hrc Prizes. I'lMunpt ll*'livery nl'all KetidinK' Mattel'. THE INTERNATIONAL ROUTE." ypteFDationalf Gre at floFthern H- K ^ • •— < \ SHORTEST, OUICKEST AND BEST \^__/ LINE FROM ST. yeyia^^^ ^'^ANSAS eiTY. GHieAee. nev york AND ALL POINTS NORTH AND EAST TO •^^ #lNjfe w^^ i^-Afe PULLMAN BUFFET SLEEPING CARS THROUGH WITHOUT CHANGE BETWEEN St. Louis, Houston, Galveston, Austin, Laredo, and San Antonio. J. E. GALBRAITH, TRAFFIC MANAGER, PALESTINE, TEXAS. F. O. BECKER, GENERAL AGENT. GALVESTON, TEXAS D. J. PRICE, ASST. GEN. PASS AGENT, PALESTINE, TEXAS. T. M. ORR, GENERAL AGENT, SAN ANTONIO. TEXAS. ^Inl'il'.l III I 1. 1 'I li|"l'<|t'i'i ii'i'114'i'i i"t>i til t-'t irfi I I i''iiii<:iiii<-fr|i'rifn|ni>j DRdGGISr. (■).|ll|l.|l |i'|l<|rlll|ll|ll||.|II|.l|l[|;<| It.!.!!. |Mili>liiliiii I I I I I I I 11 r i.j iri 36 West Commerce Street, San Antonio, Texas. nm. J£NGG, WHOI.KSAI.K AND KKTAIL Booblle[iStationef, 218]W35l goii!n[)3rc3 Slreat, ] ' SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. 5f^;'*^'^S^.*sc»fe.is;^^ Maps, Souvenirs, Stereoscopic and other views of tlie City. The Historj' of San Antonio de Bexar mailed to an\- part of the world. Tea, Coffee, Coeoa, Spiee & Baking Pouider ESTABLISHMENT, 3a7 West Commerce Street, San Antonio, Trxat*, Is always replete vvith choice pure goods, antl purchasers may rely on getting honest value for their money. Mr. Holland is an expert in Teas, and personalh superintends the Tea Department. Pure Java, Mocha, and other fine Coffees are being constantly roasted and ground on the premises. Please call upon, write or telephone to WM. HOLLAND Telephone No. 311. The Tea Man. * KEHHViiiiiE, Kerr GooiiTY, Texas. * AN EARTHLiY PARABlSn. THE HEALTH RESORT OF AMERICA. Kenville, on tlu- GuadaliiiK- river the queen of Texas rivers, is the lerniinus of the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway, and is seventy-one miles northwest of San Antonio. It has an altitude of l.lioO feet above sea level, is 1,(170 feet higher than San Antonio, and "wd feet hif^her than Koerne. It has a mean annual temperature of (i'> degrees. Six degrees above zero is the lowest temperature KVKR. registered, and !IS degrees the highest. Rainfall L'7 inches, with a 'i i JWexiean o- piligpee o- Jewelpy :o:' ONYX BLOCKS. IH Coninieree ir^ti^eet. Sai:i, ^^ i^toixio, 'I'e>s.;i!S ESTABLISHED 1875. C. H. TVYUELLER, wholesale and Retail Healer in Rptists' and Paintens' Supplies, F*ictuire F'rMiiiess, Hhite £ii-(d Window Oltiww, Xlii'rors, Kle-. COMMERCE STREET. •• s SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. S. K. Martin, Cliicago. A. C. Schrvvkr, Sa)i Anloiiio. MARTIN & SCHRYVER, Of all sorts, kinds and qualities. ^^BUIl-DING 7VYMTERIML- Of all Kinds, Shapes and Sizes. k large assortment of ornamental goods always in stock. We keep constantly on hand large quantities of the never yet surpassed J. HIjPlISHI'S B-A.K.BED FH:n:CE: Ax7"IK.E We are sliccessfnl competitors in price and goods. Come and be convinced. ^OFFICE OF YARDS- CnHIN OFFICE South of Sunset Depot. 2 West Commerce St. ^^T-iSAN ANTONJO, TEXAS.: et7olz's palm Qardei;. ^jjp 5 _ Str.v.nt.icks should not fail to visit this Paradise ot lro])ical Plants. Three Storie.s of .\iry (ialleries. Regular Musical Hvenings. ICxtjuisile .String and Brass Hand. ICleclric Service ami Lights. Hrequenteil l>y the best families. Card Tables, I,nnch Stand, and most complete Hilliard Rooms in the cit\ . Alamo Plaza to liosoya Street TWO ENTRANCES. JVtORGHN • St ■ CQ, plumbers, apd . (^as-pitt^rs. 225 E. Houston St., SAN ANTONIO, TEX. .\\\ kinds of Plumbing, C!as and sieani Fitting executed with neatness and dispatch. JOSKE Bt^OS. i CLOTHING. BOOTS «^LP SHOES. JOSKE BROS. : • DRV GOODS, 7V^II_1_INERV. NOTIONS. HUNT St BOOTH, > WHOLESALE GRAIN AND SAL7\ SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. CAR LiOHD PRICES ON HAY, GRAIN AND SALiT AT ANV POINT IN TEXAS, THE SOUTHWESTERN STATES AND mEXICO. H. VOGLER & CO.'S Alamo TrunkFactory Manufacfiirers of and dealers in TRUNKS, TRAVELING BAGS, SATCHELS, STRAPS, COLLAR AND OUFF BOXES, LEATHER TRAVELING CASES. LEATHER GUN CASES, ETC., ETC. 223 ALAMO PLAZA, Ori'. THE ALAMO. San Antonio, Trunks and Sample Cases made to order. PAUL . WAGNER'S . BAZAAR, IMPORTKR AND DEALER IN ^oy§i.^^9an0y (iood§. NOS. 22, 24 &. 26 COMMERCE STREET, SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS S' /T\(?xiear>, Irjdiar) AND C^aliforpia . . (furiosities . . l^ou^ltii^S, Statiooery, /r\a(Ji(; I_ai7l:(?r95, goqKs- — RAUL WAGNER, >t; S 25 COMMERCE 5T. 4 A G?.A>J '(^^ NTO N I O.TeXA.c> ^ M e\i(;a.n cu Ri 031 ri E^ ^/niLUREN'5 'C^RRlAq£5 ^ S*^**" SHOVV^ CASES X^^r*-' "Souuepir /^Ibams of S^i? /^Qt09io,"=°;~'~'j.°^°/ (9 BiGy<;li?s, Tr^yeles, Ueloqipedes, Express . U/a(}0Q5, U/illovju-U/are, Bird TE;x^, THE KAMPMANN BUILDING. take elevator. SPECl.M/riES: Commercial Law, Colloctiniis, ami Real fvstatt- I,aw in all il.s Ijranche.s. I refer (without permission) to United States and State Judges and Court Officers in the Western District of Texas, and to all Hanks .uid Hankers of the city. €> .M.\NUl''.\CTrRKH OK Saddlery tflarness Wholesale and Retail Dealer in Leather, Saddlery Hardware, Heady-|VIade Baggy Tops Riil)l.ier, Enameled and Wiiite Duck, AND EVERYTHING IN THE CARRIAGE TRIMMING LINE. IVIexiean Haif Bridles, Quirts F^idirn^ UJhips), and Uassoes, ANGORA SKINS AND OTHER PELTS. 309and3ll Main Plaza, SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. The Healthiest and (Dost flttractive Section of Texas IS FOUND AMONGST THE HILLS AND FERTILE VALLEYS ON THE LINE OF THE SAN ANTONIO AND ARANSAS PASS RAILWAY, NORTH OF SAN ANTONIO, SEE S. A. i'rtv in ^iBOERNE'K^ Til*' well known llfultli Kcsoi-t ;in»l <'«niiity Seat ot K4'ii(lall i'oiiiilv. TIhtc is a I>ail,v MaH and Staf^e I.int' lM't\v*'«*ii BOERNE HMD BKNDERH, A Oistancr of '^."i Mileii, the latter Town beini:: the County Seat of Bandera C'onnty. W. G. HUGHES. Real Estate Agent. I'oHt OlKce, ila>>tint;<, l\«*ndall Connt.v on l>ord«*r uf Kendall and Handera Countiesi. ELITE HESTAURAI^T Aj^D SAliOO]^ *-K-riSH, GAnE ANB OYSTERS -^-•> AND ALL THE DELICACIES OF THE SEASON ALWAYS ON HAND. MEALS TO ORDER AT ALL HOURS. WITH EXCLUSIVE DINING ROOM FOR FAMILIES Main Plaza and Soledad Street. Ladies' Entrance, Soledad Street. J. LOUSTAUNAU & CO., Proprietors. "^^ . FACULTY. w C BUCKMAN, President. B. F. Williams, Principal. E. M Barber, Principal. C. E Ball, Principal. T. T. DOWNEV, Principal Charles Johnson. Operator. J t COURSES. '•= "~ "1^ Al Ui siNiiss Course. ^.W-^ ■tj^ifr Shortha.vd (Eclectic and Sloan-Duployan Systems). J^|E£|n| ^■^^^Mt^**" TVPE-WRITIN... l^^^l j jMB^ai Telegraphy. iHl Pq^ NOK.MAL. StlENTII-IC AND Mathematical Normal I'knmanship. rb~™^ip^ English, .Spanish and GEO. OULLNIG BLOCK. Occupies the third floor of this large aud haudsonie building, aud is, without doubt to the knowing, the only absolutely first-class institution of its kind in the State of Texas. Its illustrated catalogue is a master-piece of art and beauty, and should be in every household as an index to a School of Business and Normal training, whose influence and popularity are felt and recognized throughout the land. SESTT X"iaE2 o3sr -fi^FFXjicA.xioisr. B. F. COBB. PnesiDENT. Geo. a. Dascomb. Vice-p RESIDENT. A. J. SCHUREMAN, Secy and Taeas- 'j\}e[pii\^\3r)3 l^ufrjberQo., limited. SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. LONG LEAF YELLOW PINE R.^ I LRU -11) M.HTERML .V SPECl.^LTY. J. S. AI,]';XANI)I:R, /'lesii/ful. A. A. AI.KXAXDRR, Cashier. ->Ii>. ;^li!)f-(- Thxas National Bank, 23S CoiTimerce fcilreel, SjOlist jPs.nsrTON:io, TH::K:jPi.s. -Ml*. DIRECTORS: J. S. ALEXANDER, President. H. H. ANDREWvS, Capitalist. WM. HEUERMANN, Hugo & Schwellser, Wholesale Grace) s. AMOS MORRILL, Heywood Bros. & Co., Gardner, Mass. A. A. ALEXANDER, Cashier. 'It!- The Accounts of Business Firms, Corporations and Capitalists Solicited. aiXX'ESTMENTS MAOE BILLS DRAWN ON THE CITY BANK, LONDON Mexican Dollars and other Foreisjn Money Bought and Sold, flpartmeot Hoose Cor. Houston r.^ Jefferson Sts., Fitted up with all modern improveiiients, i :UR0P£A1 PLAN. RESTAURANT CONNECTED WITH HOUSE. New Building, fitted up with Entirely New Furniture. Reception room on rirst floor for convenience of guests. Southeastern exposure. Large, airy rooms. Steam heatetl throughout. Hot and cold baths. Gas. Electric l)ells. Elevators. Fire escapes. EVERYTHING ENTIRELY NEW. MRS. HOCKETT Has had five years experieuce. SUITES OF ROOMS, WITH PRIVATE BATH ROOMS. Houston Street, opp. Maverick Hotel. Hflf^NiscH & BRER, 15 COMMERCE STREET AND OPERA HOUSE BLOCK, TUVHISURKCTUReRS OR- ©l^Giee ©GnJeGtioRepiei), PURE CANDIES, Decorated Cakes of all Kinds, Styles and Sizes. RESTAURANT AND CONFECTIONERY, OPERA HOUSE BLOCK. THEY ALSO MAKE A SPECIALTY OF FINEST ICE CREAM AND FRUIT ICES. Orders Delivered with Neatness and Dispatch HERM HARMS, TAILOR-MADE CL OT HING, GEf^TS' FUHNISHIHG GOODS, HATS, SHOES and NOVEIiTIES. specialty: Custom Made Shirts and Clotliing. Opera House Building, Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, :-: Texas Commerce, Navarro and Crockett Streets, SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. rllhlill I ■ > I I I , I I I I I I II I I I 1 llllli|ll|l'|ll|ll|lll^ 1 _. : :THR LARGEST: \ House-furnishing Goods Establishment Crockery, China, Earthemware and Glassware from every part of the Globe. Bric-a-Brac, Cut Glassware, Silverware, Cutlery, Lamps, Gas Fixtures, Man- tels, Fire-place Goods, Wrought Iron Goods, Japanese and Chinese Goods. Household articles, Gasoline vStoves, Kitchen utensils, Tinware, Wooden- ware, Brushes, Washing Machines and General Laundry articles, etc., etc. Hotel and Saloon Supplies. OUR MOTTO: ^1 li'l-'li III III Ifil liil liilili I I I I t I I I I I I I II I IM II WE CANNOT BE UNDERSOLD." 1858 ESTABLISHED 1858 F. I. MEVEH, illljllllll '|ljlllll|ll|lllll|n|'!|«|'l|li is — .■^knd4>' — RHINE: WINK, IMPORTER OF FDiElDn and DalllDrnla Wines, Liquors, CORDIALS, Etc. ALL COUNTRY ORDERS PROMPTLY FILLED. DEC 2 1 i^32 I