Mississippi. Later, however, in an attempt to justify his commission, he would claim that he had brought more than nine hundred men to Texas, inflating his muster rolls by including the names of hundreds of volunteers who had enlisted by other means.9 Nonetheless, Green had performed ably in the service of Texas up to this point. The discrepancy between the number of troops he actually brought to Texas and the number he claimed to have raised notwithstanding, he had proven himself to be a successful agent and had incurred considerable personal expense as a result of his efforts. But he would soon demonstrate that his talents as an agitator far exceeded his talents as a recruiter.

On June 1, 1836, the steamer Ocean landed at Velasco at the mouth of the Brazos River with Green and his volunteers aboard. Unhappily for Green, the war had been over for some time. Santa Anna's forces had been defeated at San Jacinto five weeks earlier, although a sizable portion of the Mexican army under General Filisola remained above the Rio Grande. Santa Anna had signed the Treaty of Velasco with the ad interim government of Texas two weeks before Green arrived, declaring an end to the hostilities and calling for an exchange of prisoners; in a separate, secret treaty, Santa Anna also agreed to use his influence with the Mexican government to accept the independence of Texas.

As Green disembarked, he learned that a schooner anchored offshore, the Invincible, was preparing to set sail for Veracruz with Santa Anna and three aides aboard. Although the Mexican leader's imminent release was in accord with the provisions of the treaty calling for an exchange of prisoners, Green and others argued that only the First Congress of Texas, which had yet to be elected, had the authority to decide Santa Anna's fate. The night after the Ocean dropped anchor, public meetings were held in Velasco to protest the release of the Mexican leader. The next day, June 3, Green and his volunteers marched to the little cabin where Burnet had made his headquarters to demand that the Mexicans be detained. Burnet, James Collinsworth, and others pleaded with the angry mob to honor the terms of the treaty, but to no avail.10

The provisional government's position was a precarious one. Burnet's decision to allow Santa Anna to leave for Mexico had met with widespread popular disapproval and produced deep divisions within his own cabinet. Moreover, the two military leaders with the authority to ensure the army's compliance with the civil government's orders were absent when Green arrived (Sam Houston had sailed to New Orleans for medical treatment of an ankle wound suffered during the battle of San Jacinto, while Thomas Rusk had marched south in pursuit of General Filisola's forces). The men gathered at Velasco seem to have openly supported Green's sedition; the captain of the Invincible refused to sail unless ordered to do so by Green himself. Reluctantly, Burnet ordered Santa Anna and his aides returned to shore.11

The captive Mexican leader later alleged that Green and his volunteers "with threats and violence demanded that I be delivered into their hands."12 On