feature," who escaped annihilation on the Texas frontier a few months ago. Córdova's band of some fifty to a hundred men, "chiefly Indians," supported by a number of "mixed up Mexicans, mulattos, negroes, and desperate renegade Americans," for the last six months, it was said, had "been committing murders, depredations, and robberies along the Río Grande, and between that river and the Nueces." He was said "to have immense droves of cattle, horses, and mules, stolen from the ranchos and from the Mexican traders, besides large quantities of other plunder. The prospect of a rich harvest of spoils," declared the editor of a leading newspaper,[92]  "will doubtless allure into an expedition against Córdova many whom the desire to rid the frontier from this scourage, and protect the Mexican trade from ruin, would fail to call out." A correspondent of the Colorado Gazette reported on the 11th of April that there was "force enough now [at Victoria] to occupy the disputed territory between the Nueces and the Río Grande -- peace or war. Why should a people care about their independence being 'acknowledged'," he asked, "when Nature assists them so much in acquiring territory and enables them to hold it?"[93]

With these objects in mind, during Court Week when there were many persons in town from various parts of the Republic, "a large and respectable meeting of [the citizens] of Western Texas" was held in the courthouse at Victoria on Thursday evening, April 23. On the motion of Colonel Plummer, Judge John Hemphill was elected chairman of the meeting; and on motion of John D. Morris, Andrew Neill, the district attorney, was appointed secretary. Other prominent persons in attendance were: Judge James W. Robinson, French Strother Gray, E. L. Holmes, Major James Kerr,[94]  and John J. Linn. Representatives from the surrounding counties were present. Judge Robinson explained that the object of the meeting was to petition the government for the protection of the people on this exposed frontier. Colonel Plummer