THE BORDER RIFLES. A Tale of the Texan War by GUSTAVE AIMARD, Author of "Trapper's Daughter," "Indian Scout," etc. London: Ward and Lock, 158, Fleet Street. MDCCCLXI. PREFACE In the series commencing with the present volume GUSTAVE AIMARD has entirely changed the character of his stories. He has selected a magnificent episode of American history, the liberation of Texas from the intolerable yoke of the Mexicans, and describes scenes _quorum pars magna fuit_. At the present moment, when all are watching with bated breath the results of the internecine war commencing between North and South, I believe that the volumes our author devotes to this subject will be read with special interest, for they impart much valuable information about the character of the combatants who will, to a great extent, form the nucleus of the confederated army. The North looks down on them with contempt, and calls them "Border ruffians;" but when the moment arrives, I entertain no doubt but that they will command respect by the brilliancy of their deeds. Surprising though the events may be which are narrated in the present volume, they are surpassed by those that continue the series. The next volume, shortly to appear under the title of "The Freebooters," describes the progress of the insurrection till it attained the proportions of a revolution, while the third and last volume will be devoted to the establishment of order in that magnificent State of Texas, which has cast in its lot with the Secessionists, and will indubitably hold out to the very last, confident in the prowess of its sons, whose fathers Aimard has so admirably depicted in the present and the succeeding volumes of the new series. L.W. CONTENTS. I. THE RUNAWAY XVI. A POLITICAL SKETCH II. QUONIAM XVII. THE PANTHER-KILLER III. BLACK AND WHITE XVIII. LANZI IV. THE MANADA XIX. THE CHASE V. BLACK-DEER XX. THE CONFESSION VI. THE CLAIM XXI. THE JAGUAR VII. MONKEY-FACE XXII. BLUE-FOX VIII. THE DECLARATION OF WAR XXIII. THE WHITE SCALPER IX. THE SNAKE PAWNEES XXIV. AFTER THE FIGHT X. THE BATTLE XXV. AN EXPLANATION XI. THE VENTA DEL POTRERO XXVI. THE EXPRESS XII. LOVE AND JEALOUSY XXVII. THE GUIDE XIII. CARMELA XXVIII. JOHN DAVIS XIV. THE CONDUCTA DE PLATA XXIX. THE BARGAIN XV. THE HALT XXX. THE AMBUSCADE CHAPTER I. THE RUNAWAY. The immense virgin forests which once covered the soil of North America are more and more disappearing before the busy axes of the squatters and pioneers, whose insatiable activity removes the desert frontier further and further to the west.