morcover well suited to carry a blanket or two and well-filled saddlebags. Habiting myself in buckskin, broad-brimmed hat, and stout Mexican mantle or poncho; armed with a double-barrelled gun, one of which was a rifle, a pair of pistols in my belt, and a bowie-knife (the couteau-de-chasse of the country); a store of bullets, shot, powder, coffee, sugar, tobacco, and a change or so of linen, I started alone, in the month of August, for Western Texas.

Leaving the Pirate's Isle"* by the ferry at Virginia Point, with myriads of mosquitos and horse-flies now as companions, generally halting at a settlement at sun-down; or if benighted in the woods, or having lost my way, or my mustang got tired, I camped for the night at any convenient spot.

I visited the ever-memorable battle-field of San Jacinto, where the sanguinary Santana was beaten and made prisoner by the Texans in 1836. They generously gave him his liberty; and in return, on his arrival in Mexico, he made a lengthened and savage war upon Texas until last year, when Texas was annexed to the United States.

Visiting Houston, the then scat of Government, and paying my respects to President Sam Houston, I crossed the Brazos river at San Felipe, founded in 1824 by S. F. Austen (the father of Texas), now in ruins and deserted, having been burnt by Santana, a few days before the battle of San Jacinto. Remaining a few days at Columbus, on the Colorado river, visiting La Grange, Austin, on the same stream, and Gonzales, on the Guadaloupe river, I arrived at last at San Antonio de Bejar, "the Thermopyla+ of Texas."

Descending into its romantic and picturesque valley, the deserted missions of Concepcion and San José‡ are seen; and on approaching nearer, the ruins of the devoted Alamo present themselves. On the western bank rises the towering steeple of the so-called cathedral; and through the bright and almost tropical foliage peep the castellated houses of the Spanish and American resident, and the square huts of the Rancheros and Peons. The river, which is clear and sparkling, is generally fordable, formed by tepid springs a few miles distant. The Texans, in their raptures regarding this locality, call San Antonio their Vale of Avoca.

The then population of San Antonio might be classed under the following heads: A very few opulent Mexican residents, foreign mer

*This is in allusion to Galveston Island having been the residence of Jean Lafitte, the " Pirate of the Gulf," from 1817 to 1821.

† Called so on account of the slaughter of about 160 Texans in the Alamo fort, by Santana, a few weeks before he himself was taken prisoner. David Crockett was one of the victims.

Lower down the country are the ruined missions of Espoda, San Juan, Goliad, Refugio, &c. These edifices are built of stone, and remind one of the old feudal castles in Europe. They are nearly all erected on the same plan, consist. ing of a church, granaries, and dwellings, inside a fort. Doubtless, the pious fathers in olden times essayed to Christianize (!) the Indians-the sword in the dexter hand, the missal in the other. The turrets of these missions rise in solitary grandeur amid the forests of the west, forming an interesting feature in the scenery of that wild country. Some of these towers are crowned with shrubbery; some are found in the lonely wastes, now only traversed by the red man and the wild herds of the prairies; others rise amid cultivated fields; and an American author says: 66 An Italian, gazing at the setting sun over the dilapidated walls of some of these venerable missions, might well imagine that he was in his own bright clime, where similar structures designate the sway of superstition and folly."

chants, Rancheros, and Peons. The two first need no particular description, but the latter require some notice.

The Ranchero, or herdsman, has a preponderance of Spanish blood over the Indian. Still, he is an uncultivated being, who passes the greater part of his life in the saddle, herding cattle and horses, hunting wild cattle, mustangs, deer, and buffalo. Unused to comfort, and regardless of ease and danger, he has a hardy, brigand, sunburnt appearance, especially when seen with his high, broad-brimmed hat, buckskin dress, Indian pouch and belt ornamented with various-coloured beads, armed with his rifle, pistol, and knife. He is abstemious in the way of food or strong drink, but passionately fond of his "cigarito de oja de maize." As a useful and judicious companion on a long journey, or on a trip into the woods, it would be difficult to recommend his equal.

The Peon, or labourer, has generally more of the Indian in his composition than the former. He is superstitious and ignorant, and has but little of the energy of the Ranchero. The Peon resides in the city and suburbs, tilling and cultivating the productive land, or "labores" (small farms), and appears of a contented disposition. In Mexico the Peon is nearly as much a slave as the Negro is in the southern states of America. His usual dress is a calico shirt, wide calico trousers, a fancy coloured girdle about his waist, his jacket thrown carelessly over his shoulder in summer, a broad-brimmed hat, the band studded with silver ornaments and coloured beads. Early in the morning he goes to mass, then to work; after dinner he sleeps his siesta; and in the evening amuses himself by tinkling his rude guitar to his mistress, dancing zapateos, smoking, and gambling at times.

The females of the Rancheros and Peons are pretty, good-natured, and obliging. They dress plainly, but tastefully; and well know how to show off their figures and feet when tripping to matins or vespers, their heads and greater part of their faces coquettishly covered with the black mantilla. These are the votaries of the bayle and fandango: they flock to the scenes of mirth and music, conducted with decorum and gentleness. From early evening to the soft hour of twilight, they may be seen, in the summer season, going in joyous groups to sequestered parts of the river, to bathe; and there the curious eye might occasionally observe them gliding about in the limpid stream, their regularly-formed, bronzed faces peeping above the surface of the water, and their black hair floating over their shoulders.

The days of the governador and alcalde have passed away for ever; and in their place are seen the American mayor, sheriff, and constables. Excepting in the few principal families and foreign residents, the inhabitants still adhere to the tortilla or maize-cake as bread; and a sort of olla podrida, seasoned with garlic and red pepper, is their favourite food. The never-failing stone metate, on which the maize is ground, to make the tortilla; a hide stretched upon a frame, serving for a bedstead; a few low stools, a small table, a little crockery, their clothes, a few valuables in an antique trunk, and jorongos, or Mexican blankets, constitute the catalogue of their worldly effects.

San Antonio has ever been the theatre of strife and bloodshed, and hardly a wall or house has escaped the effects of cannon balls: even the church bears evidence of very rough usage. Those turbulent times have passed; and whatever may be the result of the present war be

tween the Americans and Mexicans, San Antonio has a good chance of becoming a flourishing city in the hands of the former.*

Having remained some time at San Antonio and its vicinity, I was one of a party of six, principally with the object to hunt the bear in the Guadaloupe mountains.

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We were better armed than mounted; and it was pretty clear, had we got into a difficulty" with the Indians, we should have had to fight, for but little dependence could be placed on the retreating movements of our mustangs. In addition to rifles, pistols, and bowie-knives, we had our spears, such being useful instruments at times in a bearhunt. We loaded two mules with Indian corn-meal, salt, bacon, groceries, tobacco, some whiskey, an iron pot, coffee-pot, frying-pan, and tin pannikins. All were habited in buckskin, each having his warm Mexican mantle, or xorongo.

We left San Antonio the beginning of October; but ere we started, an old Indian fighter, my respected friend Colonel Jack Hays, "guessed" that six was too small a party to go far into the Indian country, without we wanted to get up a fight with “thom d-d red

*It may not be uninteresting to give a short history of San Antonio, as connected with its political changes. It was founded by the old Spaniards as carly as 1692, first as a mission, then as a military outpost, and afterwards became a flourishing town. Excepting occasional attacks from the Comanche Indians, San Antonio was comparatively undisturbed until 1812, when the Mexican revolutionists under Bernado obliged the Spanish General Salcedo to evacuate it; but shortly afterwards Bernado in his turn was defeated and routed. The following year the patriots were again defeated near to San Antonio, on the Medina. In 1835 San Antonio, being then in the possession of the Mexicans, 2,000 strong, was successfully stormed by the "warborn" Milam and 300 followers. Cos, the Mexican General, lost from 200 to 300 in killed and wounded, and was generously allowed to retire with the rest of his force into Mexico. In 1836 the Mexicans, in great force, entered the town of San Antonio, forcing the Texan troops, only 160 in number, over the river into the Alamo, once a large church, then converted into a fortress; but early on the morning of the 7th March, Santana in person, with an army of from 5,000 to 6,000 men, stormed the Alamo. Here fell Travis, Jim Bowie, David Crockett, and others—names revered in the annals of Texan history. Only two persons escaped-a Mrs. Dickinson, and a negro servant belo: ging to Travis; but Santana lost more than 1,200 men during the siege. Soon had Santana to repay his many acts of barbarity committed in the Alamo, the massacre of Fanning and his 400 men at Goliad, after they had signed articles of capitulation, and other sanguinary proceedings, by the routing of his own army a few weeks afterwards, and by himself being made prisoner. San Antonio was pretty tranquil until March, 1840, when a large party of Comanches were induced to come in, to treat relative to delivering up some white prisoners. It appears that they wished to get the ransoms before they gave their prisoners up. This was objected to by the Texan commissioners, when it was decided to keep some of the chiefs as hostages, until their captives should be brought in. This being made known to the chic's, they attempted to escape out of the Court-house, killing and wounding several Texans. A fight ensued, when 35 Comanches were killed, including some of their principal chiefs. This led to some very severe encounters afterwards-viz., at Plum Creek, Las Morras, &c., &c. In 1842, an armed party of Mexicans under General Vasques entered San Antonio, distributing a bombastic proclamation calling on the Texans to return to their duty! He then retreated; and on the 17th September, Caldwell (Old Paint) defeated the Mexican General Woll, on the Salado, a few miles cast of San Antonio; and a few days afterwards, Col. Jack Hays gave Woll a "whipping" at the Honda river, west of San Antonio. It may be mentioned here, that when Woll entered San Antonio, he found the Court in session, when he made the judges, juries, clients, and the lawyers prisoners, sending them all to Mexico, where they were brutally treated by Santana for a lengthened period, during which many died.

rascals," adding, "Citizens, before you slope, come and have a drink.” This we did, at the French consul's groggery; then, lighting our " Alamo pipes,"* left for the woods.

Travelling a few miles, we camped down for the night at the springs or head-waters of the San Antonio river. Here we saw numberless even-running streams, issuing out of a limestone rock containing silica, giving rise to four streams, which soon unite, and form one of the clearest and prettiest rivers in the world. Round the springs is an almost impenetrable wood; and under the huge branches of its giant trees we "fixed our pallets," consisting of our saddles for pillows, horse-cloths for beds, and our Mexican mantles for covering. We had our supper, which was quickly prepared. One of the party made the fire; another mixed up the Indian corn-meal with water and salt, baking it in the frying-pan-this was our bread; another made coffee; another broiled the dried meat on sticks; and the other two watered and hobbled the horses round the camp.

Late in the evening, it blew a coolish "norther" (as yet the freezing and wintry "northers" have not set in), which cleared the sky; and, when the moon was up, we anticipated sport amongst the wild turkeys, or, as called by the Mexicans, "guajalotes." The moon being now bright, three of us left camp, the other three remaining on guard. Creeping silently through the woods, we got under the branches of a huge cotton-wood tree, espying on the upper ones a dozen or more wild turkeys at roost. Each of us marked his bird; and at the word "Fire!" the woods re-echoed again, and three wild turkeys, large and fat, came tumbling down through the foliage. We returned with our game, had a cup of toddy, and then to sleep, each keeping a guard of two hours during the night.

By day break we had had our sylvan meal-breakfast, dinner, tea, and supper are pretty much the same in the woods-and commenced travelling over an undulating country, covered with frost-oak, with here and there pieces of rock, and occasionally a few siliceous pebbles seen. During the day we shot many fine deer, with the object of making bags of their skins-by taking them off whole-to contain the wild honey we expected to get in the woods. Large flocks of turkeybuzzards hovered above us, eager to dart down on the carcasses of the deer. These birds will follow hunters and Indians great distances, in the hope of getting any flesh that is not eaten. Moreover, when one is in an Indian country, a flight of these birds seen in the distance hovering about ofttimes warns the solitary hunter not to approach the trail of a body of Indians.

We camped on one of the branches of the Salado river, where we had fine rich musquit-grass for our horses. This grass is excellent food for sheep.

We had some rough travelling to the Cibolo river ("Cibolo," the Indian name for buffalo). The country traversed was hilly, and covered with insulated masses of the limestone of the district; and in the gullies it was seen stratified. During heavy rains the Cibolo, like the other streams up in this country, rises rapidly, and runs with much impetuosity. The deer seen to-day were very tame-that is, we could

These pipes are made of the stone of the ruined Alamo. It is white and soft, and easily worked. It is the rock of this part of the country.

come up with them to within 70 to 80 yards. Thus, the wilder the country, the tamer are the deer; or rather, they are confused when they see strange objects, and even approach hunters, at times, to within a few paces; they then lope off a little way, stop, and so on, until they get scared," or frightened, and then they run off.

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Our next day's journey was to the Esequia. The only American of our party was superstitious, which is a rare thing in an American, and told us that he should have no luck when hunting if he had not a gold or silver coin about him. One of the Scotsmen of the party loudly protested at hunting on a Sabbath; but yesterday, although it was Sunday, he could not resist a "crack" at a fine buck. He wounded it; but the animal got away. (Retribution!)

Continuing our track the following day towards the Sabinas creeks, which take their names from the quantity of cypress woods in them, we got a glimpse of wild cattle, and anticipated some rough sport with them. The land and pasturage here would suit stock-raisers. In a thicket we camped under at noon, we found the wild summer and winter grape, mountain plum, black walnut, black and red haw, persimon, the nutritious peccan, hickory and other nuts, the Indian bread-plant, small red pepper, or chiltipin, sassafras, sumach (Indian tobacco), &c., &c. With fine weather, the sky being beautifully blue and clear, and abundance of sport amongst deer, antelope, and wild turkey on the wing, we arrived at the sources of the Sabinas creeks, where thousands of springs are seen rushing out of the rocks, forming rapid streams; and where there are deep holes in the beds of the streams, we found a small species of turtle, trout, and fat cat-fish. The steep and rocky banks of these streams have a shelving appearance, as if recently formed by the retiring of waters. This same characteristic is perceived on the face of the different ranges of hills and mountains in the distance; and the ground is strewed with isolated angular masses of rock of all dimensions. We were now in the Comanche " range," or country, and had to keep a sharp look-out, and thought if we had been fifteen to twenty strong, it would have been safer.

The next morning we started for the Guadalupe valley; and when traversing a small prairie, co upon a fresh Indian trail. We halted, and commenced an examination of it, when, from the number of horses that had apparently travelled this way, and other indications, we supposed that about twenty Indians had passed, and about five or six days before us. We continued on this Indian trail for a few miles, to one of the branches of the Guadalupe, when we came to where the Indians had camped, and here, from further observations, satisfied ourselves that they had gone somewhat rapidly towards the north, into the heart of the mountains towards the San Saba, one of their favourite rendezWe camped in the temporary Comanche wigwams, composed of boughs bent over so as to form an alcove; and the best mounted of us went off on the trail some miles, with great caution, so as to be satisfied that the enemy was not in the vicinity, to hear the report of our rifles when we might be hunting. We saw occasionally wild cattle and buffalo roaming about the hills. Formerly, very large droves of the latter were to be met with here, but appear to have gone more to the north. Returning to our camp through a thick cypress "bottom," for the first time saw some recent bear-tracks. We were a little too soon

vous.