Newspaper Page Text
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bells awoke us by the announcement of an
alarm- The batteiies of San Antonio Abad
and the corresponding battery of the enemy
opened a fire upon each other. We have seen
discharged by the enemy a multitude of bombs,
the greater number of which burst in the air
and long before they reached our trenches.
At the same hour a firing commenced at Cha
pultepec, on the right side of which and in the
mountains, whence came the attack, at a short
distance from the enemy are stationed our
forces of cavalry and infantry, who are watch
ing the enemy.
We opened, at half after 6, from the battery
of the “garita’*of Belen. or it may be from
that starting from the end of Paseo Nuevo,
which is situated iu the angle formed by the
causeway leading to the villages of La Piedad
and Tacubaya. But where the enemy directed
all his efforts appears to be the ‘-garita” of San
Antonio Abad. The servant is at the door; I
must close—the alarm-bell still continues to
ring.
This brings us to the 12th, but at what hour
of the day the letter was closed we are not in
formed. Os the eventful denouement we have
only a brief .account, but sufficient to assure us
that our arms have achieved a brilliant triumph
and that our army is “ revelling in the halls of
the Motezumas.” The only reliable account
we have of the last struggle before the capital
is in a letter addressed to Mr. Dimond, our
Collector at Vera Cruz, from Orizba, which
will be found below. Our correspondent at
Vera Cruz vouches for its accuracy, and we
have reason to believe it is from the same
source as was the letter giving the first and a
correct account of the battles of Contreras and
Churubnsco.
Orizaba, Sept. 10, 1847.
Dear Sir —l have the honor to inform you
that an express arrived here this evening from
Mexico, which brings the intelligence that
Hen. Scott was in the city of Mexico ; that on
the 13th the American troops took Chapnl
tepec and the citadel, and went into the city
that night. Gen. Bravo was killed, and Gen.
Santa Anna was wounded in the arm and had
retired with the remainder of his troops, which
had suffered much, to Guadalupe. Your
friend. &c.,
To F. M. Dimond, Esq., Collector, Vera Cruz
A letter from a credible source confirms all
that is said in the above, and only disagrees
with it in stating that the city was curried by
assault on the 14th. The Sun of Anahuac has
it that on the 13th the heights and works of
Chapultepec were carried; that on the 14th
and 15th the city was bombarded, and that a
part of our army entered it on the morning of
the ldth, the balance remaining at Chapultepec.
As we have already stated, however, we place
no reliance oil any of these reports except that
of the correspondent of Mr. Dimond.
As to our loss before the army entered the
city, we have nothing authentic. We feur this
new victory has not been achieved without
great loss of life. The Mexican accounts show
that active hostilities commenced on the Bth,
and were continued with more or less activity
until our army took possession of the city. A
passenger by the James 1,. Day informs us that
it was reported among the Mexicans at Vera
Cruz that we lost 1700 men iu killed and
wounded, but he could trace it to no authentic
source. Another passenger estimates Gen.
Scott's loss at from one-fourth to one-third of
his army, in killed and wounded, hut upon
what data he bases this opinion we cannot
learn, and are inclined to think if is purely con
jecture.
We come now to what our renders have
looked for with great anxiety—the basis upon
which Mr. 1 rist and the Mexicans proposed to
negotiate. It will be seen that from the com
mencement there was no real intention on the
part of the Mexicans to conclude a peace. In
fact it is not saying too much to assert that their
propositions were farcical in the extreme, and
originated in fraud and deception, the only mo
tive which evidently actuated them being a de
sire to obtain time to strengthen themselves for
a renewed conflict.
For want of time and space, we only give an
outline of the propositions of each party. The
first proposition we come to is that of Mr.
Trist:
Art. 1. There will be a linn and universal pence
between the l nited States of America and the United
States of Mexico, without any exceptions whatsoever.
All hostilities by sea or land shall cease immediately
anil definitely as soon as the ratification shall have
been exchanged by both |»artics.
A&t. 2. Alt prisonersol war made bv both parties,
both on sen and land, shall be liberated as soon ns
practicable alter the exchange of ratifications of this
treaty. Besides, it is agreed that if any Mexican citi
sens should be prisoners of the 1 -a inane lies, or of any
tribes of Indians within the limits of the United States
the government of the United States will endeavor to
obtain their return to their homes, according to the
treaties existing with those Indians.
Art. 3. As soon as tin* present treaty shall have
been duly ratified by the l T uifed States of Mexico, or
ders will be issued without delay to the commanders
of both parties, both on sea and land, that hostilities
are susj>etided, ami that such suspension shall be
strictly observed. Immediately after the ext h .nge of
ratifications of the present treaty, all the ports, terri
tories, towns anti possessions of every kind, which
may hat >’ii captured by the United States from
the Unite i -tales of Mexico during the war, except
those c.onij . ised within the limits of the United States,
as defined by article No. 4 of this treaty, will be
given up without delay and without occasioning any
damage, or without any exportation of artillery, or
public ptoperty captured originally in said ports or
towns or which may be therein at the ratification of
this treaty.
Art. J. The tliritling line lief ween the two Repul>-
l.cs, will commence in the Gulf of Mexico, three
leagues Mil land fronting the mouth of the It in Grande,
♦ hence upwards by the middle of said river to a j>oint
where it touches the meridian line of New Mexico ;
thence towards th; west to the longitude of the
southern limit of New Mexico, at the angle southwest
ol the same; thence towards the north to the longi
tude of the northern line of New Mexico, until it is
intersected by the first arm of the Rio Gila, or if it
should not be intersected by any arm of that river,
thence to the point of said fine nearest to said arm,
thence in a direct line to the same and descending by
said arm ami by the said river Gila, until its discharge
into the river Colorado, ami from thence downwards
by the Colorado and the middle of the Gulf of Cali
fornia to the Pacific Ocean.
Art. 5. In consideration of the extension of terri
tory, as defined by the preceding article ami by the
stipulations which will appear in article No. the
I mted States abandon, forever, all claims against the
United States of Mexico, <*n account of the expenses
of the war; and besides this agree to pay to the
United States of Mexico, $> . [The sum is not
specified.]
Art. 6. In consideration of article No. 4 the United
States agree to guarantee and pay to the claimants
all the obligations which are now due and which may
fall due according to the convention concluded be
tween the two Republics 111 the city of Mexico on the
30th January, 1843, and to provide for the payment of
the decisions given in favor of the claim nits, given
und«‘r a convention between the United States and
R '*l»»bUe, under date of the Uth April,
ISd. . And the United States also agree to assume tin
payment of the claims of citizens of the United
States not previously decided against the Government
..I the l .mod Stoles of M, to „ sum whirh
, not exceed three miliums of dollars, and which
shall have originated previous to the 13th May, 1846,
and which also shall have been acknowledge.! as jus.
' ‘Vt ut commissioners appointed bv
dminriTv 101 ,I :i lTnl,ed *•»<«. wC. decision's
■ hall be definitive and brndiiio, provided that deci
ding CHI satd demands, the said tribunal shall 1 -
beiTv J ,' h '' >T r' Ci, -’ l 0 a,,d ™ les prescribed by ar
- un-h 5 ,h T convent.on. not ratified but
concluded ~, the envoi Me.vieo on the JO;!, of \n
vent bee, 1543; and ... no cas.-shall a decision
in favor at any clam, unless u , s reifnlaied bv tins..
principles and rules: and the l nit, ,1 States hv tins
mid forever alter, exonerate the United States ol
Mexico trom a.I responsibility to these claimants,
whetherrejected „r admitted by said couonissioi.ei-s
' ‘ „, - v s ' al ’C thM ■'* case of any difficulty
m the settlement of the claims, the archive. of the
Oovermnent are to be at the service of the como.ission
to ascertain the validity of the claims.
-ART. S. l'he l nited Slates shall have pe nwniilv
tree .a any tax or claim whatsoever, for the produce
ot their own country or the produce introduced under
tbetr.tlao, ,he transportation of goods through the
isthmus Ol rehuantepec, for or from the Pacific, by
any means ol conveyance now in existence, or to be
established hereafter, by cinais or railroads.
Art 9. All the goods introduced during ihe occu
pation ol the country by the United States shall be
tree from either importation or internal duties, and
tree tram confiscation.
Art. 10. The article of amity, cmnni-rce and navi
gation concluded in the city ofMevi. th • %tb
Ajwil. ls.vl, between the two {towers. shall be renew
ed tor the period ot eight Years after die ratification of
this treaty ; each party having the right alter the ex
piration ot that period, to terminate the saute bv a no
tice of one year.
i A .r o*' V ,ls,r ''? ,v *■“ be approved and ratified
bv the President of the United States America
•n***’® and consent of the Senate, a f
1 -i- - Mexico with
*’* I 1 ”' G *' neri ’ l ‘--niress ; and ,he
rntitun.ion will !* exchanged in the citv of W.,.hm«-
w'hJ'h ," n 1 ' , ‘ from the date on
winch it may bo signed, or as soon as possible.
l eaving aside for the present the first instruc
tions Iron. Santa Anna to the Mexican control*,
stoner^ we proceed to give an outline of the
by then, under his renewed
mslruenotis. which tinier* slightly from the on
gmai proposition:
Shafts srssusit:
■
that any Mexicans who mu . *
1
i
Mato* and rw iruftl tfatrfaiucw
Art d. All the tons, towns octemtorv and antl
er y taken tvv the forces of the United States shall ■ •
returned tv' Vexjo**
AnT.4. T-te dixtdtng hoe between the tw R. ■
ICS Sha commence in the Gul: m \| , ,
fro “ :h ’- =* uthera 'mcHt.f
Ch "f . wran ”> a strait line
N
it ■ th», ! ' -
■ ■' N ' -
M,t. . lfl , -‘ ■ '•»>•'«* '-hex ' \f«
N V
\ n X
37. which wdi •.«.* , unls * :hc
wro Re
• • '■ Nrv. M \ • p
m . pees . .
or (donm m the space at Und whK-h *' ' " !Ivrm
N
Art 5. In e«isiJ«ni»n this extern; n •. v
terrttav « -ru»ts vis the U-i ’red States. - ,;
** to f mv ; (fat G'. r- -
1 -- M x : v .
vmi the dav ol it* exchange* oJ oi tv*
imn .
Art*. 6 and 7. By these articles the United States
agree to release the Mexican Government from all
claims of the Government or citizens of the United
States.
Art. 8. Provides lor the settlement of claims in the
same manner as is provided in the proposition of Mr.
Trist.
Art. 9. Stipulates that the Catholic religion and
the property' belonging to that persuasion shall be re
spected in the territory ceded to the United States.
Art. 10. Citizens of Mexico who may happen to
be in the United States to have the privilege of re
turning to Mexico, without any tax being exacted
from them.
Art. 11. AH grants of land made by the Mexican
Government previous to this cession of territory are
to be respected by the Government of the United
States.
Art. 12. The Republic of the United States binds
itself, solemnly, not to admit henceforward the annexa
tion of any district or territory comprised within the
limit assigned by the present treaty to the Mexican
Republic. This solemn compromise is one of the
conditions under which Mexico makes a cession of
territory to the Republic of North America.
Art 13. All goods now in the ports occupied by
the American troops will pay the duties established
by the Republic unless they have been pre-paid ;
otherwise they will be confiscated.
Art. 14. The government of the United States will
satisfy justly the claims of Mexican citizens for the
damage the American troops have done them.
Art. 15. Merely relates to the ratification of the
treaty.
Fro m the New Orleans Delta of the 26th nit.
we cull such additional items of the Mexican
news brought by the Jas. L. Day as we deem of
interest to our readers.
INSTRUCTIONS OP THE MINISTERIAL COUNCIL TO
THE MEXICAN COMMISSIONERS.
('auditions (or Points) on which the Commissioner
of the linited - tales ought to be negotiated with,
and which should serve as a basis to those of
Mexico, proposed to the most excellent Pesident
by the IMinister of Foreign Relations, and ap
proved by hi 3 Excellency in a Council of Min
isters :
Provided, That the place of conference ought to be
intermediate between the two armies.
Provided, equally, That before entering upon nego
tiations, the American Commissioner should acknow
ledge the right ofdeliberation on the part of Mexico,
that is: whether the intention of the United States lias
been to aggrandize its territory—why do they not re
main contented with that which they already occupy?
If that which he has come to seek in the Capital is
our consent and sanction to their demands, they ought
to desist from what cannot be conceded —in any other
event, they can proceed as they have begun, and the
war will continue.
1. The independence of Texas shall be acknow
ledged upon consideration of an indemnification.
2. If is understood by Texas, the territory known
by* this name after the treaties of 1819, and when it
formed part of the States of Cnahuilaand Texas ; and
by no means the territory comprehended between the
Nueces and Bravo rivers, which the Congress of the
pretended Texans declared belong to it.
3. The evacuation of all of the Mexican Republic of
which they are in occupation, and the raising the
blockade, leaving free our ports, shall be a condition
of treating upon any portion of territory'.
4. Upper < 'alifbrnia can he a subject of negotiation.
6. In no event shall the parallel of 26 deg. he made
the boundary, which would cause the Republic to lose
all New Mexico, almost all of Durango, all of Upper
California; the concession of a part, should it be San
Francisco, shall be yielded as a factory', never as a
boundary.
6. A settled indemnification for the port of San
Francisco, and away to communicate to Oregon.
7. The same for the injuries, prejudices, and extra
ordinary expenses of this war, made in the territory
of the Republic, as it is that for which they come to
negotiate, and which has brought them to the Capital.
8. The same for that which the families of Mat a mo
ms, Monterey, Vera Cruz, and other cities, towns
and villages of the Republic have suffered in conse
quence of" the war.
9. The same for the depredations committed by
their troops.
10. The same for those committed by their hands
of foragers, whose licentious conduct lias violated the
laws of nations.
11. There shall be presented tor payment as well
the cost of liquidation as that of the reclamations which
have been made.
12. The United States shall recognize the legitima
cy of the titles of owners of lands in Texas, under
grants given anterior to its declaration of indepen
dence, as well by the General Government, as by
that of the State, and shall leave to them their free use
and profit.
13. The United States shall engage not to permit
slavery in any part of the territory acquired from
Mexico.
14. The negotiations shall be upon the basis of re
ciprocity, and due regard shall he paid to the respec
tive conditions of the |»eople of the two nations.
15. Less than a year for carrying into effect the de
finitive treaty, cannot bo agreed to.
16. The guarantee of its observance must, by agree
ment, he sought in a European power, or iu a Conti
nental < Congress.
17. The basis of this will be the Republican system
upon the whole Continent, excepting Brazil and
French Guiana.
18. The treaty which may be formed, shall not pre
judice in any manner the principle of “ the most fa
vored nations,” which the Republic has conceded to
the most of the nations w ith which it lias treated.
19. The restoration of the foreign prisoners shall be
demanded, and none of the American army shall en
ter the city.
20. The return of the ships and trophies.
21. And as a geneal basis to treat ot peace, as if we
had triumphed, and as if the war could be prosecuted
with advantage.
Antoni j Lopez, he Santa Anna, J R. Pacheco,
\ . Romero, Alcorta, Kondero.
Mexico, Aug. 24, 1847.
The undersigned, Commissioner appointed by the
l nited States ol America, near the United Mexican
States, invested with lull power to treat and cottier
with whatever persons who mav be equally authorized
by the Mexican Government, and to negotiate ami
conclude with them a lasting treaty of peace, friend
ship and boundaries between the two Republics,
takes the liberty of calling the attention of his Excel
leney, the Minister of Relations of Mexico, to the mi
litary convention concluded on the 23d, and ratified
on 24t1» inst., w hich establishes an armistice, and has
the honor t*» inform him that he is ready to treat with
the Uoinmi>sioner or Commissioners on the part of
Mexico, begging that an early day may be desig
nated for tht- meeting at a point convenient to botn
parties.
The undersigned of lets to his Excellency the Minis
ter of Relations, the assurances of his most distinguish
ed consideration. [SignedJ N. F. Trist.
I'acubaya, Aug. 23, 1546.
I’alace, &c., August 26, 1847.
To Senor \icfiolas l*. 'Frist, i|V. :
riie undersigned. Minister of Interior anil Exterior
Notations, lias hid the honor to receive and lay before
Excellency the President of the Republic, the note
dated yesterday, in which, in consequence of the ar
mistice concluded with the General-in-Chief of the
troofisof the l nited Stales, S.-nor Nicholas P. Frist,
Commissioner of that nation, intimates that he is rea
dy to treat with the Commissioner or Commissioners
of this Republic, concerning the propositions of peace
which he is authorized to make, asking, at the same
time, that an early day may be appointed for the
meeting, at n place which may he considered conve
nient by both parties.
The undersigned has been ordered by the President
to state, in reply to Sc nor Trist, that he is now occu
pied in appointing Commissioners to hear the propo
sitions which Senor Trist has to make, and who will
assemble at 4 o'clock to-morrow evening, at the vil
lage of Atzcopoxaleo, it being an intermediate point
between the two armies, always providing that this
apjKiintment be not inconvenient to Senor Trist— to
whom the undersifined offers the assurances of Ids
most distinguished consideration.
[Signed] J. K. Pacheco.
Tacvbaya, Aug. 26, 1847.
The undersigned, Commissioner of the United
States of America, has the honor to acknowledge the
receipt of the note of the most excellent Senor Pache
co, in which In- informs him that the Commissioners
upon the part of Mexico, will meet him for the pur
pose of negotiation, to-morrow at four o’clock in the
evening, at the village of Atzcopoxaleo, that being an
intermediate j*oint between the respective forces oft he
two nations, if the undersigned should not consider it
inconvenient.
Ihe undersigned has the honor to state, in reply,
that he accepts with pleasure this invitation, in the c*»n
ii lent liepe that this first interview will l»e promptly
toll.wed by the satisfactory arrangement of all the dif
ferences bct'veeu the sister Republics.
IP has the honor to renew tt> s»onor Pacheco, the
assurances of his distinguished consideration.
.. .. i'' N. P. This
lo S. E. l>. J. R. Pacheco, Minister of Relations of
the Mexican Republic.
Statement of the 3/osf Kxeellent President in a
yiinisterial louncU.
August 25, 1817.
Ibo armistice which the General of the enemy
asked, having been agreed to, and it being ncccssarv
’<> ujkui the part of tin Mexican Government,
t omtuissioners, who should hear —nothing more—the
• «rl C
• ■ i States might wish to make in the name of his
•oiovntncn!, IVut Jos.- Joaquin do Herrera, Deputy
> Moi Magistral
prei.u t >*urt, atu! D. Anto:iio Garav, were apjH>inted,
• ht. in at the same time the notification of their
appointment, in which they were not,tied to meet to
tuorrow at 11 o'c,«k at.hy Minwxy ~l'Rela.tons, to
ie Mtmstvr to th Pres-
J vn« ; .„ onler to receive .her instrucons, aS rcetl to
in Ministerial 1 ontacil.
r.'u- Mincer of Relation* will form a n.c.nontndam,
which the Commissioners will take with them and
which the President will place in their hv. is. Bv this
they shall be restricted to their true mission which
tor the present, is no other than to hear the p.-editions
United Suites
Mcj • >
the x oivents oi the prujxisitions, that thev mav be duly
that i Pres nd’ his Minis!, fs
m riie Goxemmt nt will -
to iise!* to give to the Co:nnnss*oncrs su the tent instruc
tions to enter upon the j reliminarics of the negotia
tions, consulting the Minister of Relations ;is tar ,as
may bo necessary to the discharge of their commis
sion. and certainly i»v>; agreeing to anything wituout
the previous of the Government.
y? s - Ksce-Ur:: scnvr —The annistsce asked bv
the Gem ri'-ii;-Uhief of iho American U .»'ps. being
entered n-.t , l ■ u: i ss.o icrs are now being named to
in >.r ;:ie ; r 'positions ot p»»acc which tb it nxti n wish
es to make through its Coiainissiom r. and the most
excellent President having tall knowledge anxi con -
dem-c ui the patriotism and other gn»sl qualities which
adorn you. has named vow. ; i c-so; unci son with P.
A,r mu Kernan-Jer Mo-.oariiin and D Antonio Garav.
xv h Are kr w o • »K>s>es> the htgliest q-iai;'.‘-ations.
A- : cru.e.ti c:icunistances in whu*h fie cujtj
sa( present place ■ r
i her cads, the President vioos not do n-: th t: you and
t o sb«f g,-alien- -i will ieml yourselves
- set . - teresting service,
and therefore h i-s that at 1 i ,cl vk t>morrow
- - it i M - .
■ - - First
Magistrate of LAC K . . xx h wtd coo;. ; :tv:ate to
> the instrucr nxas which bav-> been agreed uimri in
M mstenal Counc:’;.
" ■"..svew I reiterate to you tiic assurancesof
' v 4 -00.- : Gvx! and l iberty*
t ' Pachi
I ~ ■ ,s ' « hect General Doe J.w Joaquin xie
Most Excellent Sir —By your favor of to-day I
have been informed that the most Excellent President
has been pleased to appoint me in connection with D.
Antonio Fernandez Monjardin and I>. Antonio Garay
to hear the propositions of peace which the Commis
sioner of the United States may wish to make. As a
Mexican desiring the good of my country, I should
state to you that finding myself at the head of the go
vernment in the year 1845, when the government of
the United States sent a commissioner to arrange the
differences which, through the Texas question, dis
turbed the harmony which should have existed be
tween the two republics, for the single act of being wil
ling to listen to his propositions, my administration
was calumniated in the most atrocious manner—this
act alone causing the revolution which deprived me of
the command—and to take part in the same question
at this day would cause a renewal of the calumnies
which then assailed me.
Other reasons could be given to excuse me, but it
appears to me that this exposition will be sufficient to
cause the most excellent President to admit my de
clension of the honorable commission which he has
been pleased to impose upon me.
I have the honor to assure you of my appreciation
and consideration. God and L’berty!
Mexico, Aug.2o, 1847. Jose J. de Herrera.
To the Most Excellent Minister of Relations D. Jose
Ramon Pacheco.
The two letters which follow, are from An
tonio Fernandez Monjardin and Don Antonio
Garay, both of whom decline the office of com
missioner which had been offered to them by
Santa Anna.
The following letter again presses Herrera
to accept the commission:
Most Excellent Sir —1 have laid before the most
excellent President your favor dated yesterday, in
which you excuse yourself from accepting the office of
commissioner to hear the propositions which the go
vernment of the United States wished to make through
its commissioner, and he has commanded me to say in
answer, which I have the honor to do, that the same
reasons which you urge for your refusal were those
which he himself entertained for appointing you. It is
proved by this that two distinct administrations, indif
ferent circumstances, have come to concur in an es
sential point, which is, the propriety of hearing propo
sitions which are offered with a view to terminate the
evils of war. His Excellency continues to insist in his
desire that you will take upon yourself the conduct of
this most grave and delicate negotiation, for which he
invokes your well known patriotism, and the good
disposition you have always manifested to serve the
Republic.
You will see by the subjoined communication, which
to-day I direct to Don Nicholas P. Trist, that the meet
ing ought to take place at four o’clock to-morrow eve
ning, at the village of Atzcopozalco, and the Presi
dent will deliver to you the instructions by which it
should be regulated.
I reiterate to you the assurances of my especial con
sideration. God and Liberty! Pacheco.
Mexico, Aug. 26, 1847.
To the most excellent General of Division, D. Jose Jo
aquin de Herrera.
The next letter is from Herrera, accepting
the commission. The one which follows is
from Sr. Pacheco to Sr. Don Ignacio .Vlora y
Villamil, offering him the office declined by those
to whom it had previously been offered. It is
couched iu the same language as the previous
letters of appointment. The next is a letter of
acceptance from I). Ignacio Mora y Villamil.
The following is the order appointing the
commissioners:
August 27, 1847—The following persons are to
day appointed commissioners; I). Jose Bernardo ( 'un
to, and D. Miguel Atristain ; so that the commission
will be composed of the following persons:—The most
excellent General of Division, D. Jose Joaquin de Her
rera, D. Jose Bernardo Gouto; General of Brigade,
Don Ignacio Mora y Villamil, D. Miguel Atristain;
Secretary and Interpreter, D. Jose Miguel Arroyo.
The two letters which follow are from Don
Jose Bernardo Couto, and Don Miguel Atris
tain, accepting t lie office of commissioner. The
next two are also letters of offering and accpt
ance—from Pacheco to Don Jose Miguel Ar
royo. and from the latter to the former. Then
follow the instructions to the commissioners,
which we have before given, and the creden
tials of the commissioners, signed by Santa An
na and Pacheco.
James K. Polk, President of the United Slates of
America , to all those to whom these presents may
come, greeting:
Know ye, Thai, desirous of re-establishing peace,
harmony and good relations between the United States
of America and the United Mexican States; to remove
all ground of distrust, having especial confidence in
the integrity, produce and talents ofSenor Don Nicho
las P. Trist. we have named him Commissioner of
the United States to the Mexican Republic, and ittves
him, in the fullest and most complete manner, with
ample power and authority, in the name of the United
States, to meet and confer with any person or persons
vvhosliall have similar authority from the Republic of
Mexico, and between them to negotiate and conclude
an arrangement of the differences which exist between
the two countries —a treaty of peace, amity and last
ing boundaries between the United States and the
Mexican nation—for the definite settlement of all re
clamations of the citizens and Government of the Uni
ted States against tin* Government of that nation, and
of all reclamations of that Government and its citizens
against the l nited States, and in like manner to de
termine the limits and boundaries between the United
States of America and the United States of Mexico,
and all other matters and things suitable fi»r negotia
tion, and bearing upon the interests of both nations,
transmitting and delivering said convention, when it
shall lie concluded, for ratification, to the President of
the United States, by and with the advice and con
sent of the Senate.
In testimony whereof, this document is sealed with
the seal of the United States.
Done and executed under my hand, inthecityof
Washington, on this the 15th day of April, in the year
..four Lord l'-17, and in the 71st year of the Indepen
dence of the United States.
JAMES k POLK,
President <>fib« United Stales.
James Bc t it a n a n , S* ec ret.i rv of State.
After Mr. Trist had submitted the project
of a treaty (the outline of which was published
in our Extra of Thursday.) to the Council of
Ministers, they issued outlie 21)th of August
another set of instructions to the Commission
ers. the substance of which was also contained
in our Extra.
These additional instructions, on being trans
mitted to the Commissioners, .vith instructions
that in no case were they to treat contrary to
their express tenor, they returned the following
answer :
To the Minister of Foreign Affairs:
Excellent Sir—Having examined the bases and in
structions transmitted to us by your Excellency on
the morning of to-day, for the purpose of prosecuting
the negotiation which has been o|>ened with the Min
ister of the United Stales, we deem it our duty to mani
fest to the supreme government, with the frankness
of honest men, that upon those bases and instructions
it is impossible to take upon ourselves the negotiation,
us we shall feel ourselves without the capacity to dis
charge the duty as we ought.
We beg, then, that the supreme government will
hold as not accepted on our part the jmwerswith which
its favor would honor us. God and Liberty.
Me.vieo, -lt/g. 31 1847.
Joseph J. Herrera,
Pernarpo Cor to,
Ignacio he Mora Villamjl,
Miguel Atristain,
Jose Miguel Arroyo. r.
Our readers will perceive by the above, the
attitude assumed by Mexican madness, and
they are already aware of the unfortunate ter
mination :
Correspondente of the Della.
Veka Cruz, Mexico, Sept. 14.
bids. Delta. —Gentlemen —Since my last the par
lies in the Quartermaster’s Department have been
kept rather busy here in sending up trains, troo|»s,
vVc.. not only t>> ‘ clear the track, but to keep it
clear between here and the National Bridge, in order
to prevent those frequent and vexations annoyances
which have so constantly been met with by our late
trains going up, and especially by the reinforcement
which was on its way up, under command of 1. apt
Wells, for tlie purpose of fulfilling a requisition made
on the Governor bv M ij. Lilly for help.
The first tram 1 mentioned as having left, in my
advice sent you per the McKim; the train (under
command of Lt. Col. Hughes) took complete posses
sion of the National Bridge, the great stronghold of the
guerillas, and the scene ot Jarauta s great general
ship, in the matter of Capt. Wells. Jarauta had 4000
tn.-n and Wells had n > more than one-eighth the num
ber. Col. Hughes' command, which next came up,
took possession" of this point alter tiring tweniy-four
round ofshot and shell into the enemy's ranks, which
were immediately after scattered with contusion and
dismay. The ininotia of this little skirmish have not
as yet transpired, but they are such as doubtless will
reflect honor on the command. Col. Hughes' com
mand was composed of the mounted volunteers and
Biscoc’s Rangers. In all about 400 men.
The next train which went upconsisted of 47 wag
gons. t m company >f the 23 Illinois volunteers and a
detaclmu nt of the mounted Rangers under command of
N Bridge
(Fairchild holding the j*ost of commander of the a.I
vance guard all the wav going and coming) in per
fect safety. Col. Collins had the command of this
train amfex pressed himself rather in high .'otnplimen
torv terms of Capt. Fairchild’s conduct on the occa
sion.
The third train xvent upon Friday last, and has
not yet returned, it consisted ot 35 wagons and an es
cort of about 350 troofvs; they went under the com
mand of Capt. Heitzelman and have not vet return
ed.
Another train, it is expected, will leave here to-mor
row or next dav. and it is beueveu tiiat .he Q ;rtei
master intends to establish a depot, t r t rage.
s,&c„ - #an Jua - ’ -< - f
from here, and represented as being a most delightful
situation, tv,-II watoreJ an,! extremely healthy. Ooe
. ■'< nta Anna’shac en ias is a Ijacent tothisplace, tnd
is represented to me as ’oeing x very delijhtlnl dwell
ing place; the dwelling itself being, althonghsi . | l<
in°design. of singular Ivautv in us appear tnce. 1:
was there, when the I tent ot Vet a Crai was
'' I
terest g y f sweet sixt en, reside
VI nvever, th- hi nous Mexican Genera! did t •
his defeat at N era Cruz l-*se any time in remov :.;
more of the costly and valuable furniture which his
villa contained, than \v«s ablsoluteiv necessary for ’.he
personal comfort of himself and suite, to their next
stopping place. It lias been decided here to establish
N
accomplished without much difficulty ; tor although
the place was infest- i and overrun with guerillas a
short t - such - terror spread
amongst them bv the few small bands ot American
troops which have <ii wn themseives in t tiei r midst,
that now thev ... rather ;t scarce thereabouts. It is
: - ped now and from - nc« forth, thei l re, t. U
the ditfic allies or communicating with the interim r will
be much lessened —the great danger to be appre
' . ‘ s existing etween here Pu<
N Nation;
Bridge.
The contradict .he report concerning Hender
son. 2d Lie.:tenant < : Fairchild s coenpanv Louisan*
Rangers, and e deta.'htnent under him, has been
fu: y sustained, tr. -s*. of the party having returned,
'- ■ ’ ' fßes ton's me rhey
gxf.cM -, tla ' •M - rdid n < think tht cir
cumstances r* .aired him toallow them to go t ack to
their original e nunand. and although he may hare
. - ' . re.i''. ns fjt
this hue ot conduct, yet r.’-xay think that h*s not send
- • • tek was th W
sij-.n t hav u.g oeen so signally r. utcd.
" < have Lad awhrabiy gvod idsa - f wlut * ryurtii
cr inhere since the 10th, having more or less of a
“blow” oil* and on ever since. There is one good ef
fect the result of a norther, and that is that it most ef
fectually dispels fever, if any exists in the city, when
it sets in. lam glad to say, however, that there was
but very little at Vera Cruz for the present norther to
dispel. Alpha.
Vera Cruz, (Mexico,) Sept. 19, 1847.
Editors Delta —The hugest train that left here
since Gen. Pierce’s, left camp Berra Gorda to-day, for
the interior. It went under command of Gen. Lane,
and will be accompanied by about seventy-five wa
gons. The governor not having received any official
report of the strength of the command of General L.,
I learned through the politeness of the quartermaster,
that it will amount to about 1750 men, and two pieces
of artillery; 50 of the Louisiana Mounted Rangers,
the Ohio and Indiana regiments, with about 250 regu
lars, chiefly composed the body. Col. Hughes, who
is now stationed at the National Bridge, with a large
force, will transfer 400 regulars to General Lane’s
command, and these will swell the latter’s to 2100 or
2200.
I am sorry to inform you of the sickness of acting
Adj. Lieut. Crittenden ; he has had a fever, but un
der the care of I)r. Macfarlane, is now recovering
speedily. Adjt C. is an old “ West Pointer,” and
one who enjoys the esteem of his officers, and the high
respect of all who know him.
Adj. Arthur met with a severe accident on Sunday
lust, by being thrown from his horse, but is now re
covering. —— Alpha.
Vera Cruz, Sept. 21,1847.
Editors Delta —Since I closed my letter of the
19th, a vessel arrived here from Caiupeachy with a
requisition upon Com. Perry to forward one or two
vessels of war, to assist in repelling and putting down
the outrages still waging against the white population
in that neighborhood. I had no time to inquire into
the particulars, but am informed that murders are
committed by wholesale there, and an immense de
struction of property has taken place. 1 understand
it is the intenf on of the Commmodore to despatch
without delay two vessels and as large a force of ma
rines as he can spare from this place. Alpha.
Our files of the Sun of Anahuao are from
the 12th to the 20th inst., inclusive. We
make from them the fetv following extracts:
From Major Lully's Train. —We yesterday saw
one of the parly detached by Captain Wells, under
command of Lieut Henderson, and which our readers
will recollect was sent fir ward for the purpose of in
forming Major Lally of the advance of his reinforce
ment. From him we learn that this small party (al
ready reported to have been all shot by order of the
chief Aburto, commanding guerrillas at the National
Bridge) had lost hut one man in all and some four or
five horses. After passing the National Bridge, and
from thence the whole line of their march, until they
reached Maj. Lally. they had continual skirmishing,
were frequently surprised by parties greatly outnum
bering them, and subjected to much suffering for want
of provisions. They succeeded ultimately, however,
in reaching the train, and when there found that Be
sancon’s company was along with it. In the fre
quent skirmishing which ensued during the period
which elapsed between the dcjiarture of Henderson’s
party and their joining Major Lally, our men suffered
severely at times. The whole loss however was, it
appears, but trifling—one man is reported killed whose
name has not transpired. The detachment left Jn
lapa, accompanied by some of Besancon’s men, on Sa
turday morning last, and arrived here yesterday.
They numbered m all twenty-eight men, they report
Maj. Lally at the former place when the left. —Sun
of the 1 Mh .
The men belonging to Fairchild’s company, who
were reported as having been killed, have arrived
here, together with a few of Besancon’s troops. They
had been sent on a scouting expedition by Maj. Lally,
who is still at Jalapa, but while in the act of return
ing to that place, they found themselves surrounded
by so large a number of the enemy that it was con
cluded to make for this city, and they got safely on
their route as far as the National Bridge, when the
Mexicans attacked them, and succeeded in killing
one of the party (Mr. Ralph Depass, of New Orleans)
and three horses. The)’ finally succeeded in crossing
the Bridge, and met a few miles from there the train
which left here a few days ago. We learn also that
they found on the road the body of Lt. Twiggs, which
had been disinterred by the Mexicans. — Sun of the
14/A.
A small party of American troops left this city yes
terday, and when about six miles from this place,
they suddenly found themselves surrounded by a
strong body of Mexican guerrillas, but finally broke
through their line and succeeded in getting off safe.
— Sun of the 15/A.
Several guerrilh-ros have been taken prisoners by
the troops who accompanied the lasi train. Some of
them had in their possession articles lost by Captain
Well’s command. — Sun of the 18/A.
From the N. O. Picayune , 28/A ult.
Additional Xem from Mexican Papers.
On an attentive perusal of our files by the
James L. Day, we find much of interest that
escaped our attention in a first glance at them.
First we find it stated in the Area Iris . of Vera
Cru/., of the D»th inst., on the authority of pri
vate letters, that in the battle of the Mill of I I
Rev, fought on the Bth inst.. the Mexican loss
was considerable, “for besides,’’ says that jour
nal. “the death of Gen Don Lucas Balderas,
the regiments Nos. 15 and 4 of light troops, and
the 1 Ith of the line have been cut to pieces.”
'The Area Iris adds: "The loss of the eiiemv
has been large, be having lost three pieces of
artillery and five liundrej men. it is vsserted,
who were placed hors du conduit .”
W e may here slide that we have a letter from
Pensacola, giving verbal information obtained
from Capt. Frank Smith, of the brig Osceola,
who left Vera Cruz on the 18th inst., stating
that in the action which followed the termina
tion of the armistice Gen. Worth was danger
ously wounded, and about eleven hundred of
bis men killed. This intelligence was in all
probability, gathered in Vera Cruz, and is only
one of the thousand rumors that were circulat
ing there. 'The correspondence »f the Arc**
Iris differs materially from the first Mexican
accounts oftiie affair, and strengthens our be
lief that the representations that it was disas
trous to our arms were to a measurable extent
Mexican bombast.
We have already given the so called ultima
tum of the enemy m his negotiations with Mr.
'Prist. It appears from a communication from
tiie Mexican commissioners, a translation of
which is published below, that Mr. 'Prist rece
ded from his first proposition, ui his territorial
demands, and that on this point the only imme
diate difference was upon the cession of New
Mexico; Mr. 'Prist, according to the Mexican
commissioner-, being willing to recede from
his demand of the California* below the 37th
parallel of latitude, and also expressing his
willingness to refer to his Government the dif
ference in relation to fie- territory between the
Nueces and the Rio Grande. The reader will
observe on a peru-al of one of the communica*
tiors of the Mexican commissioners that it was
tlie wish of their Government to make it a con
dition of the treaty that the British Government
should guarantee its fulfilment.
'Phis was certainly a singular proposition,
and was of itself sufficient to terminate the ne
gotiations if it was the only point of difference,
and was insisted on.
House ok Alfaro, Avenue ok < ’hapui.tepec, )
September 0, 1847. )
To his L.ver Henry Dun Nicholas TrUt . Commis
sioner with full powers near the Itepublic of
Mexico.
l'lie undersigned <*.»ininissi«»ners on the part of the
Ht'puhlic <>t Mexico to concert with your F\r* Ib-nrv
a ireaty «*t p«-aor. in placing hi your hands the coun
ter project which has been drawn up in conformity
with the last instructions of their Government, deem
it proper to accompany them with the observation con
tained iu this not**, which w ill serve to place in a
clearer light the dispositions of M exico in this contest,
which unfortunately divides the two countries. The
article No. 4. of th ■ prop *sition which your E.xcel
lency submitted to us on the evening of the 27th of
August last, and on which all our subsequent confe
rences were based, demands the cession mi the part of
M.-xico : First, of th" >: <te of i'exas; secondly, of
the territory beyond the limits of said State which
runs on the left bank ol the Ri" Grande to the south
ern boundaiy ol Vvv Mex ic«>; thirdly, all New
Mexico; and fourthly, the two Californius.
The war which now exists has been undertaken
solely on account of the territ rv of tie- State of Tex
as. to which the Republic of North America presents
ns a title, the act f that State, by which it annexes it
\
ing declared its independence of Mexico. The Mex
ican Republic having expressed i's readiness, as we
have manifested to your F.vcellency, to consent to the
pretensions f tie <» veminent at Washington in re
gard to the territory of Texas, provided a due indem
nification be m ule, the cause of the war has disap
peared. and it ought therefore to cease, as there is
n • longer any ground for its continuation. As to the
No. 4
position, no right or title has so far be ;n alleged by
North A
possible that any can be made. The l nited Mates
could not therefore acquire th>*se territories, except by
the right of conquest, or by a cession or sale made
now bv Mexico. But as we are persuaded that the
Republic of Washington would not only absolutely
repel, but would hold in odium the first of these titles,
and. as on the other hand it would be new and con
trary to all ideas of justice to carry on a war against
a nation only f>r the reason that u refused to sell the
territory which a neighb-T wishes to buy. wo hope,
from the justice of the Government and people o: the
s, that th< it iph m»d : itions wh:h w e
have to propose to the cessions of territory (except the
Si |te t l x
named article No. 4. will leave no motive for continu
r general of t
l - s has - ■ mtural
In our conferences we have presented !•> your Ex
t Mexic ■ inn tgr
N
s* i tor this is not onlv the certainty that this territory
has never f irmed a part of Texas, although, in itself,
it is of very little value, but also that this tract of
land, with the Rio Grande, forms the natural
ary of Mexico, both in military and commercial points
of" view ; and it cannot be expected, nor could any
nation consent to give its natural boundary. But to
rent ve anv causes of difficulties for the futute. the
Government of Mexico agrees not to establish any
new settlements or colonies in the sp ice between the
two rivers; so that continuing destitute ol populati n.
a « it* now -is. it will ffer equal security to the tw Re
publics. Tiie conservation of this territory is accord
mg to our instructions a condition sine qua non of
-
n>ble character of your Excellency will know how to
appreciate, as well as motives of interest, prevent • ur
Government from consenting to the dismemberment
\ M W
u ,ore on tins point thin we have said in our discus
sions. _
The cessic ’’l wer C liforn f very huh va-
N
sto Mcj ' ring t nation ol
~
straits te*. Your
Exce oct has attached due importance to it eer
, _ nthis subject, and. with satis&ction, we hare
seen that v vie!d r them The fact that Mexico
would keep Low California is sufficient t render it
irubspensaibe ■ keep a Is-' a pan ot l pper Cal»i>>rma.
| as otherwise that peninsula would remain without any
........ ind w the rest ftb R<
I Tins would be always a disadvantage, especially:, a
i power like Mexico, wbic.: is without a marine. Th*
! ceawon which our Government offers to make for due
compensation is the part *? I PP* r California, which
runs from the 37th parallel of latitude upward,
would secure to the U. States the acquisition not only
of an excellent sea coast, fertile lands and perhaps un
discovered mines, but also it presents the advantage of
an uninterrupted route to your possessions in Oregon.
The wisdom of the Government of Washington and
the laudable industry of the American people will
reap rich fruits from the important acquisition we now
offer.
By the article No. 8 is claimed a concession of a
free passthrough the Isthmus of Tehuantepec to the
Pacific for the citizens of the United States. We
have verbally informed your Excellency that some
years ago the Government of this Republic gave
privileges over this matter to a certain party, (em
presario f ) which were afterwards transferred, with
the consent of the Government, to British subjects,
whose interests Mexico cannot control. You will,
therefore, not be surprised that on this point we cannot
meet the wishes of your Government.
We have rendered these plain explanations of the
motives of the Republic for not consenting to aliena
ting all the territory that is demanded, except the
State ol Texas, because we are desirous that the Go
vernmeiliutnd people of North America may be con
vinced that our partial negative does not proceed from
sentiments of aversion engendered by the antecedents
of this war, or by the losses Mexico has suffered, but
rest on considerations dictated by the reason and jus
tice which will ever guide this Government in its in
tercourse with the most friendly powers. The other
alterations which your Excellency will find in our
counter-project are of less moment, anti we believe
there can be no serious objection to them. The 12th
article has been frequently discussed in your own
country, and we flatter ourselves that the loyalty
(lealtad) of your Government will not refuse to con
tract an engagement so conformable to honor and the
good harmony in which neighboring nations should
live. [This refers to the article of the Mexican pro
position providing that the United States shall not here
after annex any portion of Mexican territory.— Eds.]
The peace between the two countries will be more
solidly established if any friendly power (England)
who has so nobly offered her good offices to Mexico
and the United States in the present contest, would
now offer her guarantee for the faithful observance of
the present treaty. The Mexican Government thinks
it proper (may conviente) to solicit this guarantee.
Our Government lias instructed us to recommend
to your Excellency to communicate to us within three
days your resolutions on this counter project, which
we have had the honor of presenting to you.
The good and salutary work of peace cannot, iu our
opinion, be brought to a happy termination, unless
each of the contending parties be determined to aban
don some of its original pretensions. Such has al
ways been the case, and no nation has hesitated, un
der suehcircumstances, to make great sacrifices, in
order to extinguish the desolating flame of war. Mex
ico and fie United States have special reasons for such
a We must confess, not without mortifica
tion, That we are giving to humanity the scandal of
two Christian nations —of two Republics in the sac e
of nil the monarchies, who inflict upon each other all
the evil they can in their disputes about boundaries,
when we have abundance of lands to populate and
cultivate, in the beautiful hemisphere in which Provi
donee has placed us. We venture to recommend
these considerations to your Excellency, before you
take any definitive resolution upon our propositions.
We have the honor to oiler all our attention and
respect. JOSE J. I)E HERRERA,
BERNARD A COUTO,
IGNACIO MORA V VILLAMIL,
MIGUEL ATRISTAIN.
After this follows another communication
from the commissioners to the Secretary of
State of Mexico. Passing over the first part of
the communication, which merely relates to the
presentation of credentials anti the appoint
ment of a new place at which the negotiations
should he continued, we proceed to give a
translation of the important conclusion. The
communication is dated September 7th :
On Wednesday we exhibited the full powers which
the Supreme Government had conferred upon us, and
we entered into long and calm discussions on the prin
cipal points of his proposition, which were continued
during the following day. Ot the particulars w«* have
informed the Supreme Government. The result of
these negotiations was the following : Mr. Trist show
ed himselt disposed to abandon his first claim on Low
er California, and on a part of Upper California, so
that we might have a communication by land with
Sonora. He proposed that if no other point of differ
ence to the conclusion of peace existed, except that
relating to the territory between the Rio Grande and
the Nueces, he would consult his Government on that
jKiint with some hope of success, although this would
occasion a delay of some forty odd days in the nego
tiations. But that the cession of New Mexico on our
part was a condition that he could not abandon ; nor
could he submit it to a new consultation at Washing
ton, being certain that his Government would con
sider it as a condition sine qua non of peace The
oilier points mentioned in his propositions appears lo
us could be overcome, both parties proceeding in the
negotiation iu a spirit of accommodation. At all
event , such was the opinion we formed from the ne
gotiations.
Having given an account to the Supreme Govern
ment of these occurrences, your Excellency commu
nicated to us its tinal determination in your note of
yesterday, in conformity with which, and with the
approbation of the Cabinet, given in a Council of
Ministers, we extended immediately ami delive red on
the same day to Mr. Trist the counter-project in our
explanations herewith annexed in Nos. 1 and 2.
Without any further discussion, he offered logive an
answer to-day, and he has done so in his note, of
which No. J is a copy. (This note of Mr. Ti ist’s,
unfortunately, is not included iu the pamphlet from
which we obtain this history of the negotiations.—
Eds. Pic. | This put an end to the commission with
which the Supreme Government had honored us; and
we regret iu a manner contrary to that which we sin
cerely desired and endeavored to bring about in our
negotiations.
It remains now for us to state that in our intercourse
with Mr. Trist, we have had ample reasons t«> appre
ciate his noble character, and that if at another time
peace should be concluded, it will be by means of ne
gotiators of the estimable qualities which, iu our opi
nion, distinguish this Minister.-
The Arco Aris of the 4th of this month has
ail abstract of the report of Gen. B,alas—who,
it will be remembered, was taken prisoner by
onr arms—at the battle of Contreras. He at
tributes the defeat of his army to the want of
judgment iu Gen. Valencia in selecting his po
sition for giving «>ur forces battle, and to the
cowardice of Gen. Torrejon. The report fur
nishes a list of the Mexican officers killed,
wounded and taken prisoners:
The Arco Iris, of the loth, under a caption
of the I’tuire Jarauta. relates that he captured
an American named I). N. Curtis, with goods
valued at .’3>7,000. which he was endeavoring to
smuggle into the territory by tin* Orizaba road.
Exasperated by his 10-s. says the Arco Iris, he
watched an opportunity, seized a musket and
shot three prisons who were at play at a table,
one ofwhom has since died, and effected bis
escape.
The State of Zacatecas, taking advantage of
the distracted condition of the country, it is
said, has sent a force to Aguasralientes. which
has for some time acted independently of Zaca
tecas, and has been recognized as an indepen
dent S ate, to reduce it to submission, which
consisted of 150 men and two pieces ofcannon.
to oppose which “ hot water" the people had 200
infantry, a number of mounted guerillas, and
relied upon the bravery of the inhabitants to
defend them.
In relation to Paredes, the Arco //■*'s of the
1-dlt inet. after mentioning that the Padre Ja
rauta had left Solednd for Jalapa with a force
of three butt Ired men. well mounted, and arm
ed and equipped, with the intention of attack
ing the first train that went up. says it has re
liable intelligence that the e\-President was m
the Slate of Puebla with a force of six thousand
men. prepared to prevent any reinforcements,
from reaching Gen. Scott, it is sdded that he
had declared it was his intention tit returning
to his native country, only to serve her in her
difficulties and not to foment a revolution for
liis personal advancement. Earlier advices
state that he had been sick at Tepeaca. from
which bt* hail recovered. He bad been appoint
ed Inspector General of the National Guard.
!or Militia of Puebla; but the Arco Iris shrewd
ly observes that it is not probable he returned to
.Mexico to obtain so empty an honor as this.—
The Government up to the last advices had
made no attempt to arrest him in his last pro
ceedings.
Here are the conditions upon which the Lo
gon of St Patrick entered the Mexican service.
It is contained in a communication from the
Secjetary of State to the Secretary of War and
of the Navy. \\ e find it in th** Arco Iris of
Vera Cruz:
FoKKIoS Leo I <N. CoMPAMr>OF S l'.P.\ TRICK. I
M' Xico. July 7. J-47. )
W • the undersigned foreigners, voluntarily agree to
sen- in the above named Legion for tie- term of six
months from the dare hereof, h gaily, under the fol
lowing conditions, in the Mexican service : Fir.ef.
the Mexican Government slnll give us lauds t > culti
vate at the close of the war; second . those who do
not desire to remain in the country shall be sent to
Europe at die expense ot*the Supreme * > ■-■-rntnent.
and shall receive a gratification iu money : third, the
Mexican Government agrees to give to the Legion du
ring the time of its engagement quarters, ci thing,
shoes, &c. ; fourth, the first sergeants shall receive
five rials, th< 2d sou three, and th- sol
diers tw .and a Haifa day : fifth, we ackn iwledge as
commander of the Legion Col. Don Francisco R. Mor
... - • •-
ail orders given by said chief will be obeyed by the
Legion—and in case of misbehaviour we will be sub
ject* It punishment according to the ordinances of
the Mexican army; sixth, the L*:g: >« will be subject
ed in e-erv respect to the aforesaid ordinances.
FRANCISCO R. MORENO.
Mexico. August 9. 1>47. A true c ; v
MAM'EL MARIA PE SANDOVAL.
Anti-Re\tl'M.—The Hudson Republican
sa\» that another attempt was made by the
sheriff to sell the property of 8 ::nuel If-tlstead
and Philip IE Miller, upon which he had levied
and which he had before endeavored to sell
A large number of persons were present—
near a hundred at each place—but no one would
bid. Before he returned, the Sheriffarr* -ted
iEtrem Van Wagoner, against whom he field a
bench warrant. Van Wagoner, tl will be re
membered. was the person put into possession
ot the place occupied by James L. Weeks,
when the latter was turned out of his house at
midnight bv a gang of'Calico Indians '*
Prom the St. Louis Republican. Sept. 23.
Aery late from California.
A letter was received in this city, yesterday,
from Moulerev, in California, dated on the idth
of Julv—a little more than two months on the
way. ’ It represents the country as perfectly
quiet. The weather was so cold at that dare,
that it was* impossible to sleep without one ur
two blankets, and large fires were necessary in
the evening.
As vve said yesterday, in all onr recent ac
counts fr<<ni California there is every thing to
deter emigrants from leaving our own fine
country, to oust their ots in so mi.-erable a Sand
as California or Oregon. The statements of
this letter, iu regard to California, confirm our
impressions, and represent a life there a* any
thing but agreeable.
Augusta, oa.:
MONDAY MORNING, OCT’R. 4, 1847.
The Mexican News.
The startling news issued in our Extra of
yesterday, from the City of Mexico, only serves
to heighten the public anxiety for full and re
liable accounts, while the mind is held in a pain
ful state of suspense. The accounts, though
principally based upon the private letters of
Mexican citizens, prone, as all are aware, to
exaggeration in reference to the American
losses, are well calculated to cast a gloom over
the public mind, because of the feared loss of
so many gallant spirits.
These statements, however, as to the Ameri
can loss, we think, should be taken with many
grains of allowance, for in no instance during
the war, have the Mexicans failed to represent
our losses in killed and wounded much greater
than it really was, which should have its influ
ence in allaying our fears. We trust, how
ever. that mji very few days we shall be re
lieved from suspense by full and accurate ac
counts.
More Georgia Troops. —The Montgomery
Advertiser of the 2nd inst. says: The battalion
of infantry from Columbus, reached the railroad
depot Thursday evening, on their way to the
seat of war. They went on board a steam
boat the same evening, and have gone down
the river.
The Georgians Safe. —The Picayune of the
29th ult. says : A private letter addressed to us
from Vera Cruz, dated the 2d inst. says: l am
happy to be able to inform you of the safe arri
val at the headquarters of Maj. Lally [at Jalapa]
of the detachment of mounted men belonging to
Capt. Fairchild’s company under Lieut. Hen
derson, accompanied by Dr. Cooper, of the ar
my, and three mounted Georgians, all of whom
where supposed to have been captured at the
National Bridge.”
The Steamship Northerner on her trial
trip in the Bay of New York made fifteen miles
in sixty-two minutes—she carried eleven inches
steam and made seventeen and a half revolu
tions per minute. This is the fleetest speed
ever made by a sea steamer of equal tonnage.
From the JV. O. Picayune 28th ult.
Tiie Late News from Mexico.
Taking it fti all its hearings, we cannot hut
look upon the last news from Mexico as the
most important that has been received from
there since the opening of the war. We know
how severe were the battles of Contreras and
Cluirubusco. An attentive perusal of our Mex
ican papers convinces ns that in the battles that
followed those, and preceded the taking of the
capital, the Mexicans made even a still more
obstinate resistance and that the city was not
carried until onr little army had suffered a loss
unparalleled in any of the battles of this war.
There is no doubt the Mexicans were prepar
ing for another conflict during the whole time
that negotiations were pending. On the day
the Mexican commissioners gave notice that
the proposition of our Government for peace
was inadmissahle, circulars were addressed to
the clergy, exhorting them to endeavor to ob
tain a popular insurrection, and at the same
time to the magistrates of the States of Mexico
and Pnehlu with the same object. Herrera, by
whom the circulars were signed, as the military
commandant of Mexico, tells the people to arm
themselves with any and every description of
weapon within their reach, and assures them
that a people determined not to be conquered
must ultimately overcome their invaders, whom
lie enjoins upon them io destroy “ by fire and
sword.”
Meagre as our accounts are. they are suffi
cient to show that the battle at the Mill of El Key
was a hard fought one. Again, on the 12th
there is reason to believe there was a general
engagement, for the correspondent of the ISolc
tin at Atlisco, writing on that day from the cap
ital, says in a letter, a translation of which we
gave on Sunday last:
“At (i o’clock ; n the morning tlie bells awoke us
by the announcement of an alarm. The batteries of
San Antonio A bad and the corresponding battery of
the enemy opened a fire upon each other. We have
seen discharged by the enemy a multitude of bombs.
At the same hour a firing commenced at Chapultepec,
on the right side of which and in the mountain (whence
came the attack) at a short distance from the enemy
arc stationed our forces of cavalry and in faulty ,
who are watching the enemy."
The italics are our own, to draw the atten
tion of the reader tothe statement that the ene
my tire stationed in force at this point to attack.
These engagements, however, were hut the
prelude of what was yet the severest task of
all—the storming of the heights and works of
Chapultepec and of the citadel, and from some
accounts it would appear, of the city itself.
Many will perhaps he disposed to censure
Gen. Scott for not following up the victories
of Contreras and Churubiisco by assaulting the
city immediately. 'This, however, it is obvi
ous, was not so easy a task as the letters from
his camp, written as ter those battles, led ns to be
lieve. Those letters left the impression that no
re>isiance could he offered unless in the city
itself: but the fact that he fought from the morn
ing of the Bth to the night of the 13th before he
effected an entrance is proof conclusive that
he had yet the hardest work before him. Be
sides. in granting an armistice (we say “grant
ing,” because it is certain Gen. Scott was re
quested by Santa Anna, through the British
Minister, to take the initiative in the matter)
there was a possibility of negotiating a peace,
and he had presented to him the alternatives of
either taking the city at once, without the pros
pect of obtaining a peace, (for the Mexican
Government and Congress had declared its
intention of retiring tit once several leagues
from the capital iu the eventofits being taken,)
or lo enter into tin armistice, by the terms of
which neither army was to he reinforced or
their fortifications repaired or strengthened.—
And it may he well supposed that our troops,
alter the hanlships they lmd undergone in their
march from Chaleo until they came in front of
the enemy’sjmain works—a march of three day
over a brokenaml difficulteoiintrv—and after
their hard lighting on the I Dili ami 20th of Au
gust iu taking Contreras and Churuhusco,
wanted rest, and possibly might not have been
in a condition to attack at once the formidable
works between them and the city.
It is not in the great loss our army has suf
fered alone that this inteilig nee is important.
It shuts out ail prospects of a peace. The
Mexican commissioners, with Herrera, the
peace advocate, at their head, declare that
the moderate terms proposed by Mr. Trist
were entirely inadmissible, and their ultimatum
was equally so to us We find that the Go
vernors of several oftiie .States, at the very mo
ment that negotiations were pending, were is
suing addresses to the people inciting them to
rise against tiieir invaders. Even as early as
the 23d of August it is announced in the Din
no del Gohierno that seventy members of Con
gress had declared their unwillingness to delib
erate in the capital while th*; atmy of the ene
my wa- threatening it, and they accordingly
retired lo Toluca. Santa Anna, there is every
reason to believe, is still in the field with a
force of no inconsiderable strength—and Pare
des is said to he between Puebla and Jalapa
with a body of six thousand men. We have
nothing to look for, therefore, hut a prosecu
tion of the war for an indefinite period.
The position- of our two commanding gene
rals—Taylor reduced to the feeblest defensive
strength, and Scott cut down we know not to
what extent, in an enemy's citv of two hun
dred thousand population—are such as to de
mand the immediate attention of the Govern
ment. Santa Anna is doubtless -till strong
nough to menace the valley oftiie Ilio Grande,
and there should he no delay in reinforcing
Gen. Taylor. With Gen Scott, the demand
for more troops must he equally pressing.
He is not only in a city containing a hostile
population of two hundred thousand, but has
Santa Auua in his immediate vicinity, and we
have had too many proofs of the celerity with
winch he can raise armies to trust to his inac
| livity. Prompt and energetic action is re-
I quired of our Government, or much of the
i work that has been done may have to he done
over again. Tne Mexican- are learning to
; fight from us. as did tiie Russians under Peter
| the Great from Charles the Twelfth, and we
cannot be too well or too soon prepared for
-ome ne w demonstration on their part.
California. —The correspondent of the X.
Bedford Mercury from California says that the
number of emigrants from the United States is
about 3.000: about one-half of whom have ar
rived there during the last season. The nutiv e
population of Upper California, according to
the most authentic data. > about 23,0fHU of
whom about 4000 are classed as people of
character, and the remaining 19,000 as ‘neo
, phytes.” He is of opinion that Caifurnia is des
tined to be a grazing rather than an agricultu
ral county, the extreme dryness of the summer
causing a serious drawback to the fertility of
the land, which can only be remedied by irri
! gation.
Ei m Chihuahua. —Letters were received
in Louis on the 17th inst. from Chihuahua,
ol as late a date as the l>t of July From one
ol the>e. the lit publican learns that a very
satisl.ictory slate of things existed, up to that
date, between the American traders and th**
citizens and Government of Chihuahua. The
M* xicans adhered rigid.-* to the terms of the
treaty made with the traders uf:er the depar
ture ot Col. Doniphan's command, and the
latter were kindly treated. The only excep
tion was in the case of the murder of James
Aull. but that was for the purpose of plunder ;
and the Mexican authorities were active and un
wearied in securing the murderers, and it was
supposed that they would suffer the penalties
due their crimes. Iu regard to Mr. Anil's pro
perty. it *9 said that the authorities had posses
sion of it, blit it was for the purpose of keep
ing it safe, and not with the view of confisca
ting it, as seems to have been supposed. The
traders were permitted to go to any part of
the State, for the purpose of selling goods, and
some advantageous sales have been made.
James Magoffin was in Chihuahua, ac
quitted of all the charges which had been made
against him. —Delta 28 th ult.
From the Baltimore Sun.
Destructive Fire—Total loss Thirty Thou
sand Dollars*
Philadelphia, Oct. i, 0 P. M.
At an early hour this morning, a fire broke
out in the building on Pearl street, at its inter
section with Dock street, long known as Ab
bott’s Old Brewery, though it had long been in
the occupancy of various manufacturing estab
lishments. The flames soon spread to every
portion of the building, and it being of so com
bustible a nature the firemen were unable to
control the flames, though they prevented them
from extending to the adjoining buildings.
The old brewery was occupied by Eisen
berg’s extensive steam saw-mills, Robert New
lins malt-house, and; Win. Green’s hair-seating
manufactory. Mrs. Eisenberg’s loss is about
$12,000; the others were partially insured. The
total loss is estimated at $20,000, besides the
building. The surrounding property was in
considerable danger fora time,but the exertions
of the firemen proved all sufficient for their
protection.
Depth of tile Ocean.
At the annual meeting of the Association of
American Geologists and Naturalists sitting in
Boston, Commander Wilkes, United States
Navy, made a communication upon the subject
of the depth and saltness of the ocean. The
maximum depth has never been attained. Capt.
Ross sounded 4,600 fathoms, about 27,000 feet,
and got no bottom. There are great difficul
ties attending deep sea soundings. Bottom has
been obtained in 2,000 or 6,000 fathoms. Ex
periments show that the great valleys of the
ocean run at right angles to the ranges near
our coast. The basins of the southern hemis
phere dip and rise alternately from the equator
towards the pole, causing very unequal depths
of water. Captain Wilkes imped that some
means would yet be discovered to sound by
means of the explosion of a shell.
The mean temperature ofthe ocean is 39.5 ; in
latitude from 54 to f>o south, the temperature is
the same at the top and bottom. It has been
asserted, as the result of experiments, that the
mean temperature of the Mediterranean is 55
degrees.
Experiments were made by Captain Wilkes
upon the penetration of solar light. A pot
painted white was let down into the water, and
he point of invisibility marked ; upon taking
it out, the point of visibility was marked, and
the two were found to vary but a fathom or
two. In water at 66 degrees, the pot disap
peared at six fathoms; in water at 76 degrees,
at thirty fathoms; in the Gulf Stream, at twenty
seven fathoms; just outside of it, at twenty
three fathoms.
Boston ISank Dividends*
The Boston Transcript of Tuesday evening
has the October dividends of the Banks in that
city. 'File percentage generally is much larger
than on any previous year. The average divi
dends of all the banks is over 6J per cent., and
the excess in amount over last April, is over
$35,000. The following semi-annual dividends
will be paid on the 4th of October:
Dunks. Capital. Dividend. Ain't.
Atlas $500,000 3£ pr ct. $17,500
Atlantic 500,000 3J pr ct. 17,500
♦Boston 900.000 pr ct. 31,500
Boylston 150,000 4 pr ct. (>,OOO
City 1,000.000 3 pr ct. 30,000
Columbian 500,000 3 pr ct. 15,000
Eagle 500.000 3 h pr ct. 17,500
+ Exchange (new) 500,000 no dividend
Freeman’s 200,000 4 pr ct. 8,0. 0
Globe 1,000,000 3£prct. 35,000
Granite 500,000 3.V pr ct. 17,500
Hamilton 5'0,000 3.j pr ct. 15,500
Market 560,u00 5 pr ct. 28,000
Massachusetts 800,000 3 pr ct. 24,000
Mechanics’, (S. Boston) 120,000 4 pr ct. 4,800
Merchants’ 3,000.000 31 pr ct. 105,000
New England 1,000.000 4 pr ct. 40,000
North 750 000 3 pr ct. 22,500
Shawinut 500,000 4 pr ct. 20,000
Shoe &. Leash. Dealer’s 500.000 4 |>r ct. 2u,000
State 1,800.000 3 pr ct. 51,000
Suffolk 1.000,000 5 pret. 50,000
Tremont 500.000 31 pr ct. 17,500
Traders’ 400,000 31 pr ct. 14,000
Union 800.000 31 pr ct. 28,000
Washington-• • 50u,000 31 pr ct. 17,500
$13,950,000 $658,300
Amount last April 62^,000
Excess fromj last April $35,300
♦Boston Bank lias increased its Capital $300,000
since last April, and pay on the whole amount.
fExchange Bank went into operation on the 15tli
July, on Capital ($250,000) halt paid in.
From the Baltimore American.
Linv Deform.
The Legislature of New York, acting under
the revised Constitution, has appointed Com
missioners to take into consideration the pre
sent forms of pleadings in the Courts of law
and equity, and, if practicable, to devise, in
place of existing formulas, other modes more
simple, intelligible and easy. A majority of
the Commissioners. Messrs. Graham and
Coomis, have accordingly reported to the Leg
islature, and have presented, as the result of
their labours, thus far, the following proposi
tions :
1. The establishment of a new system of
practice and pleading instead of a plan of a
uicndment merely.
2. The abandonment of the distinction be
tween the modes of proceeding and pleading
ill cases of legal and equitable cognizance, and
the adoption of an uniform system, as applica
ble to all cases.
6. That the distinctions of form of actions at
law be no longer retained, and that every ac
tion shall be tried upon its own facts, and the
law of the case, as applicable to the rights which
it involves.
4. 'Elbe establishment of a new system of
pleadings based upon the principles stated in
the Report.
These propositions involve a very great
change in the forms of law proceedings ; and
we must say that the prospect of reform, in
this particular, thus held out by the New York
Commissioners, is very gratifying indeed. The
gentlemen who have charge of this important
business are lawyers of eminence, whose pro
fessional habits and predilections, however, do
not prevent them from seeing how the action
ofthe law is dogged by its own technicalities
and how justice is often defeated by a flaw or
an oversight in some minor details, which, pre
paratory to the introduction of the case, are
really of no pertinence whatever to the merits
involved.
The third proposition, it will he seen, recom
mends that the distinction* of form of actions at
law be no long retained, and that every action
shall be tried upon its own facts, and the law
ofthe case. The issue thus formed will be
made by an allegation on tbe one band and a de
nial on the other of the essential matter in ques
tion ; and this simple rule is designed to meet
all cases. It goes upon the supposition that :
when there isa dispute between parties there
must be something which affirmed on the
one side and denied on the other ; and it is
proposed to bring all questions on trial down
to that simple point. The matter i~ then to he
tried by the facts of the case and the law that
applies to it. The projected change in the
New York Courts, involving many incidental
changes through a long range of legal formulas
and customs, will be awaited with some interest,
and its results will be watched with curious so
licitude.
Disinfkc ting Fluid. —The Norfolk papers
announce that Professor Grant, who has been
recently lecturing in that city, has invented a
disinfecting thud, which has been tested in pu
rifying the frigate Raritan. The Raritan ar
rived at Norfolk lately, from the Gulf of Mexi
co, with the yellow fever extensively prevail
ing on board. Since her arrival, sailors who
ventured below, were sure to be seized with a
violent sickness—five out of seven on hoard
having been prostrated by the foul stench that
arose from her hold. Prof. Grant vent on
board with his apparatus on Tuesday week last,
and, after labouring day and night, most of
the time “solitary and alone," in a week he
i reported the ship to Capt. Ambling, of the
Pennsylvania, perfectly healthy. A connnit
i tee of medical gentlemen appointed by the
■ government, have inspected every part of her,
and will report forthwith. The Herald says
Mr. Grant deserves much credit for his fear
lessness and ingenuity.
Troops for thk War. —We understand
that the General commanding this division of
our arrnv has under Ins command at
least 7000 men, distributed in the towns along
the Mississippi, between this city and Memphis.
They consist of tiie new regiments of volun
teers which have been raised ;n Ohio, Illinois,
Kentucky and Tennessee. We understand
that this large force will be ordered immediate
ly to join Gen. .Scott, and with the force he
now has, and which will join him from Gen.
Taylor’s division, will swell Gen. Scott’s army
to near 30,000 men.—*V. O. Delta 2\Hh ult
Health of Vera Cruz. —By a table show
ing the number of deaths in Vera Cruz during
the month of August from variouscauses, kind
ly furnished by a friend, we make out the fol
low statement : There were total deaths from
yellow fever s^: totai deaths from other dis
; ease, wounds, Ac., Jdo : making altogether a
grand total of UKJ. Os the deaths by yellow
fever 2? were American
master's men. 6 Mexicans. 1 American camp
wornan, and J foreigner. Os the deaths by
other diseases, wounds, A c.. 37 were American
soldiers, Jd quartermaster’s men, ‘62 Mexican
children. 5 foreigners, and 1 soldier’s child.
Average deaths in the month of August were
a« follows : First week, per day, 4 00-100 ; se
cond week. per day. 7: third week, per day.
0 10-lOO; fourth week, per day, 0 ■%■*-]OO. ha-?t
three days in August, 4 00-100 — Fic.2&th ul
timo.
'Augusta, (3a.:
TUESDAY MORNING, OCT. 5, 1847.
Eire*
A fire occurred Sunday night about 10
o clock, in a negro house on Reynold-street, 1
immediately in the rear of the Eagle &. Phce- j
nix Hotel, which destroyed the Hotel Stable, ,
(unoccupied.) and several small wood build- 1
ing s adjoining. Flie property destroyed was 1
of little value, and we believe was not insured. |
A brick building (insured) adjoining the Stable,
occupied by Mrs. Montgomery, was slightly
damaged, and a wood building (insured.) occu
pied by Mrs. Bustin, was damaged a few hun
dred dollars. The Furniture ot Mrs. Bus
tin. Mrs. Montgomery and Mrs. Sims was
removed from their dwellings, and suffered
some damage. Wo have not learned whether
it was insured.
Too much praise cannot be bestowed on the
Firemen, who were promptly on the spot, and.
as soon as water could he obtained, rendered
(together with the Hamburg Company) the
most efficient service.
The official list of Interments in the city of
New Orleans from 9 A. M., of Monday, the
27th September, to Tuesday, the 28th, at the
same hour, shows 29 in all, of which 10 were
Yellow Fever.
A salute of one hundred guns was fired in
the public square in New Orleans at noon of
Monday, tbe 28th ult. and one hundred more
at Lafayette square, at 6 o’clock in the evening,
in honor of the late victories of Gen. Scott.
War on the Cotton Worm. —The VVood
ville(Miss.) Republican records a very inte
resting circumstance in what follows. After
saying—“ We hear little or no complaint of
the worm at present,” that paper of the 18th
inst. adds—“ A little fly, called by some the‘ich
neumon,’ in consequence of some similarity
between its habits and those of tbe Egyptian an
itnal, seems to have taken the worm and crysalis
in hand, and ’devoured nearly all of them This
they do, we are told, by boring into the shell
or crysalis and eating its contents. Myriads of
the crysalists may be found in the cotton fields
thus conditioned, and had it not been for this
fact our cotton fields would doubtless have been
destroyed before now. What a wise order of
Providence! and what an impressive example
of a trust in llis dispensations !”
Cotton in Mississippi. —The Vicksburg
Sentinel of the 21st inst. says:—“ It is perhaps
our duty to state that so fir as we arc informed
the alarm as to the worm has proved wholly
groundless. Neither the first nor the second
generation has done any injury worth speaking
of, and it is now too late in the season for them
to do any real damage even should they appear
in their great numbers. So far as our observa
tion and information extends, the cotton crop
will be a fair one.”
The Whigs of Massachusetts. —A Con
vention of the Whigs ofthe .State of Massachu
setts was held at Springfield on Wednesday
last for the purpose of nominating candidates
for State officers; the Hon. Geo. Ashmuii pre
siding.
Governor Briggs and Lieutenant Governor
Reed were unanimously nominated for re
election.
'Flic Resolutions of the Convention, which
were adopted unanimously, were strong against
the Mexican war and the extension of slavery.
Two of them related to Mr. Webster; the first
speaking in his praise, and the second recom
mending him to the Whig National Conven
tion as the first choice of Massachusetts for
President of the United States.
The Hon. Rufus Choate and Win. G. Bates
were appointed Delegates at large to the Whig
Sat io nat Co n rent ion. — No t. Intel lige nee r.
A Missing ShipTurnkd Slaver. —The New
London (Mass.) News says:
Captain Haniley, late of ship Stonington, of
New London, arrived home on Saturday mor
ning last. While landing some passengers from
his ship, at San Bias, in March last, he was de
tained on shore by the authorities, and his ves
sel sailed without him. He afterwards pro
ceeded to Guayaquil, whence he took ship di
rect for Baltimore. The vessel in which he
was a passenger spoke a ship otf the Coast of
Brazil which had been into the port of Macahe
to stop a leak, where she saw the bark Fame,
of this port (before reported missing.) It has
been ascertained that she had made one voyage
after slaves, and was supposed to he fitting for
a second voyage at the above port. The ves
sel which saw her there also reports the United
.States brig Bainbridge going into Macahe as
she came out.
British Dail Roads.
A London letter, published in the National
Intelligencer, has the following statistics :
It appears that in May last there were 3,505
miles of railroad in England and Scotland com
pleted and in operation, and that on these finish
ed roads there were 1,045 stations. These
roads employed 47,218 persons. There were
also at that time 6,455 miles of railway in course
of construction, employing 256,509 men ; ma
king an aggregate of 303,727 persons absolute
ly employed on railroads.
Os these, 263,594 were laborers and artificers.
8,867 inspectors, porters and police.
9,021 quarry men and carters.
5,514 superintendents, foremen, &e..
3,597 engineers, surveyors and draughts
men.
5,024 Plate-layers.
5,933 clerks, cashiers and accountants.
2,178 secretaries, treasurers, &c.
303,727
A very tolerable army of employees! Anti
when to this number is added the host of
butchers, bakers, tailors, &c.. who derive an in
oome and living from the expenditure of these
600,000 persons; when we add to these the ;
brickmakers, carriage-builders, iron-u orkers,
hewers of wood, Ac., whose labor is demand
ed for the production of the materials consum
ed in these roads; and again, add in the women
and children dependant upon the husbands and
fathers employed, we shall find, says the Times,
that the number of persons absolutely depend
ant upon the railroads already completed, and
upon those actually in progress, is not less than
three, millions. 1
But tiie entire tale is not yet told. In the
session of 1846-7 acts were passed for the con
struction of 4.61$ additional miles of railroad;
authorizing calls for £90,298,430, and loans to
the amount of £42,318,938; being together,
£132,617.365. This amount will probably be
spent in about four years; and, if the average
earning of each person employed he taken at
£4O per annum, it follows that 700,000 persons
will he employed and these will represent, in
cluding themselves, an aggregate of at least
3,000,000 of men, women and children, to de
rive their support for four years from the con
struction of the railroads *Hthorized to be con
structed by the acts of Parliament passed du
ring the last session. This aggregate of ex
pense and employment is indeed a large one,
but probably considerably within the fact. It
is not to he supposed that the whole of these
roads will be in the course of formationat one
and the same time ; hut it is pretty evident, if
my calculations he correct, and I have derived
them from the most authentic sources, that
from six to seven millions of the population of
Great Britain will derive their support from
this source for several years to come; and.
further, that if the railroad speculation should
not lead to their extension a single mile beyond
their present authorized length, those at present
legalized by Parliament would, when comple
ted, furnish employment and support to at least
tiro millions of persons, so long as that mode of ;
conveyance shall remain in the ascendancy.
The extent of business on working lines may
be deduced from the statement that the latest
J annual return of receipts for—
Passengers on railroads was £3,976,341
For Goods 2,333,373
Together £6,309,714
I have not at hand a statement of the number
j of pa ssengers by railroad later than for the
last six months of J~45, (the least productive
half year, by-the-bv,) which is stated by Dr.
| Bowring as having been 16,720,550.
j Railroad travelling enables you to get a hun
| dred miles from home between early rising and
i a late breakfast, and you are among new scenes
I and a new people with scarcely any expense
j of time and money, and with very little fatigue,
j This lias led to ten people travelling now where
! onlv one travelled before. It i> three hundred
miles from Sunderland to London, yet such is
the perfection of railway travelling that I have
known a lady in delicate health leave the for
mer place after midday lunch and be with her
friends at the latter place before 9 o’clock in
| the evening.
Roger Sherman’s Plough.— jAmong the
many curious things now exhibiting at the Me
chanics' fair, m Boston, one of the most in
teresting is a plough which formerly belonged
to that distinguished patriot, Roger Sherman,
of Connecticut, one ofthe signers ofthe Decla
ration of Independence.
A Conscientous Juror. —"l remember,’*
says Lord Eldon, “ Mr. Justice Gould trying a
case at \ ork. and when be had proceeded about
two hours, he observed—* Here are only ele
ven jurymen in the box, where is tbe other
one • Please you. my lord,’ said one ofthe
jury, * he is gone away about some business, but
he ha* left his verdict with me '* ”
From the New York Express.
The Late William Pophaui*
Major William Popham, whose death at New
York has been lately announced, was born in
k the. town of Bandon, Cork county, Ireland, on
the 19th of September, 1752. He was brought
to this country at the early age of nine years,
and his parents having settled in the town of
Newark, State of Delaware, it was in that place
lie spent his youth, and where he received a
finished education. It was his intention to en
ter upon the holy office of the ministry; but on
the breaking out of the Revolutionary war he
was fired with military zeal, and accepted a
commission in the army, and immediately
raised a company to fight in defence of his coun
try. II is first engagement was at the battle of H
Long Island, where he great ly distinguished
himself by taking prisoner the famous Captain
Ragg, with eighteen more of the enemy. He
was then appointed a Captain in the army, and,
having followed the American arms to White
Plains, he there again distinguished himself as
an accomplished soldier and a brave man. As
a Captain he took part in the battle of Brandy
wine, and also acted as aid to Gen. Clinton ill
the northern division of the army, and was also
the aid of Gen. Sullivan in his western expedi
tion among the Indians.
After the war he resided a few years in the
city of Albany, in New York, where he entered
upon the study of the law, and practiced his **
profession. Subsequently to that time he prac
ticed his profession in the city of New York
for a few years. In the year 1789 he purchased
a farm in Westmoreland county, upon which
he resided for many years, during the whole of
which time he held the office of Clerk of she
Court of Exchequer. He held this office until
it was abolished. In 1804 he again took up his
abode in New York where he remained until
18J1, attending to his profession and paying
particular attention to the education of his
children. He then returned to his farm, and
lived there until the year 1836, when the death
of his wife occurred, and he then returned toJ
New York and resided until his own death. 1
Major Popham, before his death, was the only I
original member of the Society of Cincinnati, f
of which he was the President. Among his
predecessors, as such, was the immortal Wash- •
ing ton; but his immediate predecessor was Gen. )
Morgan Lewis. Major Popham, however, was
not only the President General ofthe Cincin
nati Society ofthe Union, but was also the Pres
ident of the State Society. He was ever a re
markably religious man, and died at the age of
ninety-five, the peaceful and happy death of a ’
firm Christian and member of the Episcopal
Church. He was not, as has been stated, a man
of property, though he was always blessed with
an abundance. He was a friend to the poor
and needy, and derived much of his happiness
by doing good. He was a friend and compan
ion of Washington, and claimed, as his inti
mates, many of the most distinguished men of
his day. He belonged to the old school of
American gentlemen, and in mind and body
was distinguished for his activity and sprightli
ness. He was an accomplished scholar, and in
every particular was a thorough-bred gentle
man.
How to Cleanse Furniture. —Oil rubbed
over varnish, when discolored by water, will
restore the color and polish. 1 must remember
to tell this to Betsey, as she scolds terribly at
the hot water spoiling the varnished bedsteads,
if the oil don’t succeed, a little varnish will,
hut the hot water must be used. Betsey and I
have had u long talk about the best method of
cleaning furniture, and the following recipes
are decided on as the best. Varnished furni
ture should be nicely washed with warm soap
suds on a very soft cloth, and wiped per
fectly dry with a fine soft towel; and then pol
ished with a little sweet oil, rubbed and care- 1
fully wiped off again with a silk handkerchief.
Maiiogony furniture must be kept perfectly
clean, or it bespeaks had house keeping.—
Should it become mouldy or otherwise soiled,
wash it clean with warm soap and water, then
polish by rubbing on a paste made of equal
parts of beeswax, soft soap, and spirits of tur
pentine melted together; when this is well rub
bed in, spread on a thin coat of hard beeswax,
let this be thoroughly rubbed in with a hard
brush, and then polish with a silk handker
chief.
From the Saturday Courier.
Tlie Lastofthe Signers.-BY george lippard.
Come to the window, old man !
Come! and look your last upon this beauti
ful earth ! The day is dying—the year is dy
ing—you are dying; so ligfit, and leaf, and
life, mingle in one common death, as they
shall mingle in one resurrection.
Clad in a dark morning gown, that revealed
the outline of his tall form, now bent with age
I* —once so beautiful in its erect manhood—rises
a man from his chair, which is covered with
pillows, and totters to the window, spreading
forth his thin white hands.
Did you ever see an old man’s face, that
combines all the sweetness of childhood, with
the vigor of matured intellect ? snow white
hair, falling in waving flakes, around a high
and open brow, eyes that gleam with mild,
clear light, a mouth moulded in an expression
of benignity almost divine ?
It is the 14th Nov., 1832; the hour is sun
set and the mail, Charles Carroll, of Carrolton,
the last of the signers.
Ninety-five years of age, a weak and trem
bling old man, be has summoned all his strength,
and gone along the carpeted chamber to the
window, his dark gown contrasted with the
purple curtains.
He is the last!
Ofthe noble Fifty-Six, who in the Revolu
tion, stood forth, undismayed by the axe or
gibbet—their mission the freedom of an age,
the salvation of a country—he alone remains.
One by one, die pillars have crumbled from
the roof of the temple—and now the last—a
trembling column—glows iu the sunlight as it
is about to fall.
But for the pillar that crumbles, there is no
hope that it shall ever tower aloft in its pride
again, while for this old man, about to sit k
into the night of the grave, there is a glorious
hope. His memory will live. His soul will
live, not only iu the presence of its God, but on
the tongues and iu i... hearts of millions. The
hand in which he counts one can never he for
gotten.
The last!
As the venerable old man stands before ns,
the declining day imparts a warm flush to his
face, and surrounds his brow with a halo of
light. His lips move without a sound ;he is
recalling the scenes of the Declaration—he is
murmuring the names of his brothers in the
good work.
All gone hut him !
Upon the woods—dyed with the rainbow of
the closing year—upon the stream darkened
by masses of shadow—upon the homes peep
ing out from among the leaves, falls mellow
ing the last light ofthe declining day.
He will never see the sun rise again !
He feels that the silver cord is slowly, gently
loosening : he knows that the golden howl is
crumbling at the fountain’s brink. But death
comes on him as a sleep, as a pleasant dream,
a kiss from beloved lips !
He feels that the land of his birth has become
a M ighty People, and thanks God that he was
permitted to behold its blossoms of hope ripen
into full life.
in the recess near the window, you behold
an altar of prayer: above it, glowing in the
fading light, the image of Jesus seems »m -
ling, even in agony, around that death cham
ber.
The old mail turns aside from the window.
Tottering on, he kneels beside the altar, his
long dark roe drooping over the floor. He
reaches forth his white hands —he raises his
eyes to the face of the crucilied.
There, in the san tity of an old man’s last
prayer, we will leave him. There, where
amid the deepening shadow glows tbe image
of tbe Saviour—there, where tbe light
falls over the mild face, the wavy hair and tran
quil eyes of the aged patriarch.
The smile of the Saviour was upon the De
claration on that perilous day, the 4th of July,
1776: and now that its promise has brightened
into fruition, Jle seems to — He does smile on
it again, even as His sculptured image meets
the gaze of Charles Carroll, of Carrollton,
The Last of the Signers.
Hints for Young Ladies. —ls young wo
men waste in trivial amusement the prime sea
son for improvement, which is between the
ages of sixteen and twenty, they will hereafter
regret bitterly tbe loss, when they come to feel
themselves inferior in knowledge to almost
every one they converse with : and, above all, if
they should ever he mothers, when they leel
their own inability to direct and assist the pur
suits of their children, they will then find ignor
ance a severe mortification and a real evil. Let
this animate their industry; let not a modest
opinion of their capacities be a discouragement
to their endeavors after knowledge. A moder
ate understanding, with diligent and well di
rected application, will go much larther than a
more lively genius if attended with that impa
tience aiuf inattention which too often accom
pany quick parts. It is not for want of capa
city that so many women are such trifling, in
sipid companions, so ill-qualified for the friend
ship and conversation of a sensible man, or for
the task of governing and instructing a family;
it is oftener from the neglect of exercising the
talents which they really have, and from omit
ting to cultivate a taste for intellectual improve
ment; by this neglect they lose the sincerest of
pleasures, which would remain when almost
every other forsake them, of which neither for
tune nor age can deprive them, and which
would be a comfort and resource in almost
every possible situation in life.— Mrs. Chaponc.
It is mentioned by the Spanish historians, as
an historical fact, and recognised as such by
Robertson, Hume and other English historians,
as well as bv Voltaire, that Ferdinand IV., King
of Spain, died on the day that he was sum
moned bv two of his noblemen to meet tbe ni
at the bar of God ! and was always called Fer
dinand the summoned. He had become offend
ed with them without a cause, and in a
rage wantonly ordered them to be thrown head
long from the top of a high precipice which he
knew would be instant death to them. I hey
begged for their lives, and remonstrated at lus
cruelty, but to no purpose: the insatiate