March 10, 1861; The New York Herald
The government have received despatches from San Antonio and Fort Brown, Texas. Col. Waite, the commander of the United States forces in Texas, had endeavored to reorganize the troops, but found it impossible to do so, owing to their complete demoralization through the conduct of Gen. Twiggs. The troops were in a destitute condition, having scarcely supplies sufficient to enable them to reach the coast. Capt. Hill, the commander at Fort Brown, was in expectation of a collision between his command and the State authorities.
The steamship Empire City, bound for Texas, with troops and ordnance stores, anchored at Quarantine last night.
The Hon. John Cochrane was last evening serenaded at his residence by Dodworth’s brass band, at the instance of a large number of his political friends. The object of the serenade was to welcome him on his return home from his congressional duties, and was intended to show for the satisfaction his conduct has given then during the four years he had been a member of Congress, and from which duties he was not about to retire.
In another column we publish an account of the twenty sixth day’s proceedings of the Southern Congress, embracing a report of the special committee appointed to devise a flag for the new republic, together with a correct representation of the flag selected by the committee and subsequently adopted by the congress. The design is striking, and the flag has the merit of originality as well as durability. The upper and lower sections, composing the part, are red, the middle section white, while a blue union, containing seven stars in a circle, reaches from the top to the lower red. This flag possesses an heraldic significance probably not comprehended by the uninitiated. The blue union signifies firmness, constancy, faithfulness; the white, purity and peace; and red is emblematic of war. With the seven stars in the blue, this flag can be read as follows: – Blue – Seven States have entered into a covenant of Good Faith. White – To promote the general welfare in time of Peace. Red – to provide a common defence in times of war. To assist the reader to interpret the flag more fully, we would state that in engraving heraldic devices it is ruleable to make the portions delineating blue in horizontal lines, and red in perpendicular ones.