Book Description

This is a history of the conflict between whites and Native Americans in Texas, written from a white point of view.From the preface:"I FEEL that for those who will read the description of the conflicts and Indian cruelty contained in this volume some preface which will introduce the author to his readers and which will explain the motives which inspired him to write this book is needed. I came to Texas over half a century ago, and am now an old man, the only survivor of three brothers who served Texas in her early struggles. Josiah Wilbarger, who was scalped by the Indians a few miles east of where the capitol of Texas now is, was my brother. He survived, as this book relates, the massacre of his companions, but afterwards died from a disease of the skull caused by injuries. Having spent the prime of my life among the pioneers of Texas, and therefore knowing personally about many of the fights and massacres described in this volume, the idea occurred to me many years ago that when the early settlers were all dead their posterity would only know from tradition the perils and hardships encountered in the early settlement of Texas. When I found that no one else seemed inclined to preserve in history the story of massacres and conflicts with Indians, I undertook the work myself. During some twenty years I have carefully obtained from the lips of those who knew most of the facts stated in this volume. For their general correctness I can vouch, for I knew personally most of the early settlers of Texas, and have relied on those only whom I believed to be trustworthy. Many of the articles contained in this book were written by others, who were either cognizant of the facts themselves or bad obtained their data from reliable sources."