The author of this primary source is Sam Houston. As the governor of Texas in the year of 1860, Houston was a participant in this case as he was delivering a speech. The speech given addressed slavery in Texas and secession in the era leading to the start of the Civil War. In this speech, it is evident that Houston’s race, economic status, as well as personal background had an effect on his opinion regarding the subject at hand. Houston was a white man who was an unregretful slave owner, and with that it is important to considered upon analyzing this primary source. It is also important to consider that Houston was a war veteran, having served in the War of 1812, Creek War, Battle of Horseshoe Bend, the Texas Revolution, as well as the Battle
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He was attempting to hold together the union through his stance as he sensed an impeding civil war, as he mentioned several times. Houston displayed through this speech that he was highly opposed to the secession of Texas from the union, but that he was not against slavery. From Sam Houston’s beginning as the governor of Texas in 1859, he was campaigning against secessionists (History.com Staff). From this it is evident that he believed this was not the solution to the rising issue regarding the institution of slavery in the United States. Houston believed that secession would only cause disaster in the United States and that this would not favor the proslavery argument (McClarey). Although he opposed the idea, with the popular vote there would be no other option in place. Though it seemed a hopeless argument with most supporting the idea, Houston attempted to persuade the citizens while he still could as he did not want to see Texas lead into a civil war. Houston stated “To secede from the Union and set up another government would cause war. If you go to war with the United States, you will never conquer her, as she has the money and the men. If she does not whip you by guns, powder, and steel, she will starve you to death. It will take the flower of the country-the young men” (Houston). One can infer from various statements …show more content…
Houston, as a highly experienced war veteran, took the idea of an impending Civil War very seriously as he believed it to be precarious as a result. Not only was this evident through this source, but it was also clear that he simply did not want to see the nation divided. With Houston’s experience as a war veteran, it is important to understand that he did have a biased point of view. Houston did not want to see a nation go into disarray over such an issue, as he fought to preserve it. Sam Houston is also a biased source as a slave owner, as he was widely known to be proslavery and felt it should be maintained in the Texan way of life. These biases do limit this source marginally, but are insignificant in the larger scope of ideas displayed in this address. Houston’s position on slavery was typical of Texans in his era, but his proslavery viewpoint did not correlate with his anti-secessionist point of view. With that, upon analyzing this primary source you must consider the context of the time and understand the popular belief of Texans in this era. Overall, this was a credible primary source with relevant ideas that displayed the Texan sentiment on the issue of slavery and
He was attempting to hold together the union through his stance as he sensed an impeding civil war, as he mentioned several times. Houston displayed through this speech that he was highly opposed to the secession of Texas from the union, but that he was not against slavery. From Sam Houston’s beginning as the governor of Texas in 1859, he was campaigning against secessionists (History.com Staff). From this it is evident that he believed this was not the solution to the rising issue regarding the institution of slavery in the United States. Houston believed that secession would only cause disaster in the United States and that this would not favor the proslavery argument (McClarey). Although he opposed the idea, with the popular vote there would be no other option in place. Though it seemed a hopeless argument with most supporting the idea, Houston attempted to persuade the citizens while he still could as he did not want to see Texas lead into a civil war. Houston stated “To secede from the Union and set up another government would cause war. If you go to war with the United States, you will never conquer her, as she has the money and the men. If she does not whip you by guns, powder, and steel, she will starve you to death. It will take the flower of the country-the young men” (Houston). One can infer from various statements …show more content…
Houston, as a highly experienced war veteran, took the idea of an impending Civil War very seriously as he believed it to be precarious as a result. Not only was this evident through this source, but it was also clear that he simply did not want to see the nation divided. With Houston’s experience as a war veteran, it is important to understand that he did have a biased point of view. Houston did not want to see a nation go into disarray over such an issue, as he fought to preserve it. Sam Houston is also a biased source as a slave owner, as he was widely known to be proslavery and felt it should be maintained in the Texan way of life. These biases do limit this source marginally, but are insignificant in the larger scope of ideas displayed in this address. Houston’s position on slavery was typical of Texans in his era, but his proslavery viewpoint did not correlate with his anti-secessionist point of view. With that, upon analyzing this primary source you must consider the context of the time and understand the popular belief of Texans in this era. Overall, this was a credible primary source with relevant ideas that displayed the Texan sentiment on the issue of slavery and