British Interests and Activities in Texas, 1838-1846 (Classic Reprint)

Book excerpt: Excerpt from British Interests and Activities in Texas, 1838-1846 The material for the lectures included in this volume was gathered by research in the Public Record Ofiice in London during the winter of 1907 - 1908. That time was spent in an examination of documents and correspondence connected with english-american re lations from 1815 to 1855, after which date they are inaccessible. Such papers are chiefly in the foreign office correspondence and, while they throw much light on many controverted points in history, they are nowhere more illuminating than in the matter of the British attitude toward the American annexation of Texas. 'hence the invitation of the Department of History of the Johns Hopkins University to deliver the Albert Shaw Lectures in Diplomatic History in May, 1909, seemed to be most opportune and I gladly pre sented there the result of my work relating to Texas.' This presentation is purely technical, and, while seek ing to meet doubtful points, it depends upon docu mentary substantiation only. It might be indefinitely elaborated by citations from secondary authorities, or greatly bettered by a more complete portrayal of contemporary conditions. The purpose of the lectures forbade this. The California chapter, previously printed in the American Historical Review, is added because of its intimate connection with the Texan question. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.