To Honble Asa Brigham
J. S. D. Byrom.
Delegates of the Hon. Convention from Brazoria
Gentn.
I am impelled by a sense of duty as an individual citizen of Texas to
apprize you and through you if you think it consistent with your public
duties the President and members of the Convention of the deranged state
of the interests of Texas in this city The Commissioners of Texas when
here appointed Mr. William Bryan General Agent and Edward Hall
Purchasing Agent for Texas and contracted a loan here for Two hundred
thousand dollars of which ten per cent or Twenty thousand dollars was paid in
cash, the balance to be paid in instalments on receipt of the ratification of
the conditions of the loan by the Convention. Another Loan of Fifty
thousand dollars was also contracted here on which it is said Forty thousand
dollars cash was paid, of this amount say Sixty thousand dollars, Eleven
thousand only have been received by the Agents, Ten thousand remain in
the Bank subject to the draft of the Government of Texas only, nearly all
the remainder it is believed was placed in the hands of sundry purchasing
Agents,* and disbursed to their discretion without supervision by any
comptroaling officer or the usual checks upon disbursements of public moneys.
The Agents here in full confidence that the loan would be promptly
ratified and the money be ordered to be placed at their disposition have
purchased and accepted for the navy and supplies to an amount exceeding
Ninety thousand Dollars. Such articles as could only be had for cash have
been paid for cash untill the General Agent is actually in advance of cash
to the amount of Six thousand Dollars, and has cash responsibilities for
Two thousand Dollars over and above all he has received. The
Commissioners wrote him from Nashville that they had requested the Provisional
Government to send him a check on the Bank for Five thousand dollars.
None has been transmitted and there is reason to fear that before this will
be attended to the credit of the Government of Texas will be utterly
prostrate whilst the public money is idle in the Bank. For the payment of
supplies purchased the Agent has issued promisory notes signed by him
as Agent for Texas where such would be received, where not—his own
individual responsibility. These notes are falling due and not a dollar of
public money to meet them. No ratification of the loan has been received.
No authority to the Agent to receive what money there is in the bank has
been transmitted and it is apprehended [that ere] this shall be attended to
the credit of the Government will be prostrate and the Agent injured in his
credit and private business if not involved in ruin. Had the Government
attended to the all important matter of sustaining the public credit the
proceeds of the loan would have been now at the disposition of the Agent who
could by discounting at this moment of unpresedented pressure for money
the paper now out have raised the credit of the Texas Govt. to such high
repute as to have made all future purchases on the faith of Texas
Government on long credit and have left the balance of the money disposable for
the payment of the troops. Our only hope now is that the ratification of the
terms of the loan and a check of the bank for the funds in deposits may
arrive before the operation of protesting commences. You Mr. Byrom are
too well acquainted with fiscal matters not to know that public credit like
a woman's reputation once lost is seldom regained, never without time and
difficulty. I solicit your immediate attention to these subjects as one
involving all our interests and all our hopes in an eminent degree— I take
the liberty to call your attention to the insecurity and improvidence of
authorizing numerous receiving and disbursing agents of the public money
without connection with or accountability to the chief or foreign Agent of
the Government. Champaigne and laced uniforms will not kill Mexicans
though they be merged in charges for naval or military stores, and it would
be absurd to expect that young and inexperienced officers unacquainted wilh
business would disburse money placed in their hands to fit out an armed
ship or equip a regiment with that economy and judgement indispensable
for the success of such a cause as ours which can only be sustained by the
most prompt and vigorous exertions and the most frugal use of the scanty
means at our command.
The commissioners have in my opinion made a most judicious selection
of Agents in Mr. William Bryan and Mr Edward Hall, Gentlemen of sound
integrity and sufficient capital not involved in extensive business or
speculations and whose books accounts and vouchers shew them to be well
acquainted to the necessity of transacting public business with such
scrupulous exactness as to enable them to submit an exhibit of their doings to
the most rigid scrutiny.— There appears to be an effort making to procure
a separation of the agency giving to a new agent the control of the money
and to the others the present agents the burthen of the work and
responsibility that is the purchase and shipment of supplies correspondence and
forwarding of volunteers etc. this will be impolitic and unjust in the
extreme, I believe you will so view it and I beg your strenuous opposition to
such a measure should it be proposed. The neglect of the fiscal concerns of
Texas has heretofore been ascribed to the unfortunate quarrel of the
executive with the council but now that the convention has been organized a
month and nothing done I am forced to the conclusion that the
correspondence of the agents with the Government and the needful information
on this subject may have been witheld from that body. I feel it my duty to
apprize you of the alarming excitement which the capture by one of our
cruisers in the Sisal Roads of a schooner owned by an american merchant
resident in Campeachy and a house here, wearing the Mexican flag for the
benefit of difference in import duty has produced in this city. If our armed
vessels are to be employed to rob the very citizens of this city who furnished
the money to purchase them, of the property which they think proper to ship
to Mexico under cover of the Mexican flag for greater profit instead of being
directed to protect the commerce between the United States and Texas and
to prevent the transportation of provisions and troops by sea to the army of
Santa Anna, the disposition to aid our cause which has been so ardently
evinced by the citizens of New Orleans will speedily be changed to an
extreme disapprobation. Large quantities of provisions and other supplies are
shipping from this place by the house of M. de Lizardi & Co agents of Santa
Anna to Matamoros in American vessels— were our little squadron
confined strictly to public service between Matamoros and Matagorda they
could not only protect our own commerce but effectually prevent the
transmission of troops and provisions by sea to the seat of war or other parts of
the coast. Capturing American vessels would no doubt produce great
dissatisfaction but taking out of them provisions and munitions destined to the
enemy and for the enemy's use and paying the freight would I think be
justified by the necessity of the case and not be censured by any reasonable
man. You will pardon me for troubling you so long with so long a
communication, I am impelled to it by the conviction that it is the duty of every
citizen to do spontaneously whatever he may believe to be serviceable in
any degree to the community of which he is a member.
March 31st 1836 Henry Austin