In passionate prose, de Zavala argues for the incorporation of the true democratic ideals of the enlightenment in the fledgling Republic of Texas. He hoped Texas would meld the best of both Mexican and American cultures. de Zavala believed that if his colleagues who helped frame the Texas Constitution understood the complexities of democracy and the ideals that their state could achieve through a liberal, federal government that gave equal rights to all of its constituents: Native Americans, Mexicans, Euro-Americans, and free African Americans. The original text is accompanied by John-Michael Rivera’s critical introduction and an English translation based upon Wallace Woolsey’s deft translation, expanded and revised for the purposes of this volume.