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Til E CON ST IT LIT lOXALIST.
JAMES GARDNER, JR.
t e n :>i s.
Daily, per annum, S' 1 00
Tri-VV eekly, per auuum, 6uo
If paid in advance, 3 00
Weekly, per annum, 3 00
If paid in advance,
All new subscriptions must be paid in advance.
OCT 1 Postage must be paid on all ContinunicaUc ns
a id Let’ers of business.
I' ruui .Urxito.
[From the New Orleans Mercury, Jau. 7.]
The steamship Alabama, arrived last
night from the Brazos Santiago, whence
she sailed on Sunday la>t.
The accounts by this arrival relieve
all apprehension of immediate collision
with the enemy. The report that Santa
Anna was advancing on Saltillo with a
largo force, turns out to be an exaggera
tion, at least. The Mexican iroops which
were seen, are pronounced only to have
been a large foraging party, Santa Anna
remaining, with the body of his army,
at San Luis de Potosi. (Ten. Taylor, in
his counter-march from Victoria, met on
the second day, Col. May, of the Dra
goons, bearing this version ot the alarm,
and Gen. T. accordingly again turned
on his steps and advanced towards Vic
toria. The forces in Saltillo have been
considerably strengthened. The Ken
tucky and Ohio Regiments, under Gen.
Butler, have marched there; and the
Kentucky Cavalry were to march on the
23d nit. Monterey, also, under the com
mand of Col. Garland, is considerably
reinforced.
Gen. Scott left Matamoros on the 30th
nit., for Comargo, and probably thence
to Monterey, and the head quarters ol
Gen. Taylor.
The division under Gen. Wool, broke
up their encampment at Parras on the
ISth nit., and marched on Saltillo, and
were expected to enter the latter place
about the ‘23d. The strength of Saltillo
on this junction of forces taking place,
was full 6000 men.
Among the passengers of the Alabama
"ere Major Gen. Jesup and staff. Also,
240 sick and discharged soldiers.
The mortal remains of the following
brave and lamented officers and soldiers
were brought to this city by this arrival:
Col. Watson, Capt. Ridgley, Lieut. R.
H. Graham of the 4th Infantry, Herman
Thomas, of Texas Rangers. George
W. Pearson of the Washington Battalion
(all under the charge of Lieut. Mills, of
Baltimore,) Capt. Holmes of the Georgia
Regiment, and Captain Gillespie of the
Texas Rangers.
[From the New Orleans Delta,lth in si.]
I.nteat from TI« \ico.
The IT. S. transport steamship Ala
bama, Cant. Windle, arrived las? even
ing from Brazos St. Jago, whence she
left on the 3J inst. Siie had on board
Gen Jesup and staff, and thirty other
cabin and two hundred and
forty sick and discharged soldiers. Wm.
J. Berry, an old acquaintance, who left
Monterey on the 23d nit., furnishes us
with the following memoranda :
All idea of an immediate engagement
has passed over, and it would now seem
dial Santa Anna is only to be met at San
Luis Potosi—where, it appears, he means
to stand the hazard of the die.
(Ten. I aylor, as we had been prevl
ously advised, countermarched when on
bis route to Victoria, and was approach
ing Saltillo, when he met Col. May and
bis squadron, who had pushed on in ad
vance of him, returning to Monterey.
Col. May having informed him of the ac
tual and existing state of things at Sal
tillo, he returned and recommenced his
march for \ ictoria. It turns out that
the alarm originated thus; General
Worth intercepted a letter from the gov
ernor of New Leon to a partisan Mexi
can General, whose name our informant
could not recollect, telling him to ad
vance and attack Saltillo on a certain
day, and that he had so arranged it iiiai
the Mexican inhabitants would rise, join
them, and defeat the American forces
Add to this, a large cavalry force was
reported on the advance from San Luis
Potosi. With reference to the lelter—
Gen. Worth enclosed it to llie author,
telling him that if again detected in any
such proceeding, lie would be shot. The
cavalry advance turned out to be, as our
Monterey correspondent guessed they
were, a foraging parly —pretty numer
ous, to be sure— nothing more.
The forces in Saltillo have, however,
been considerably strengthened. The
Kentucky and Ohio regiments, under
Gen. Butler, have marched on there; and
the Kentucky cavalry were to march for
that point on the 23 1 ult. Monterey, too,
under command of Col. Garland, is con
siderably reinforced. Our informant met
between there and Comargo, the two In- <
diana regiments, the Kentucky mounted
cavalry, and about seven hundred of the
recently enlisted regulars. Col. Mor
gan, of the second regiment of Ohio vol
unteers, who has command at Comartro,
••r O *
is activiy engaged in fortifying the place.
The Georgia, M ississippi and Tennes- j
see infantry are in Victoria. There was
no truth in the report that a Mexican force
was stationed there.
Since we wrote the above, we have
conversed with a military gentleman,
who came passenger in the Alabama, and
whose sources of correct information were
the very best. He informs us that Gen.
Wool, with his forces, was en route to
join Gen. Worth (in addition to the rein
forcements mentioned above,) and that
he was, when last heard from, within a
few miles of Saltillo. Gen. was
on his way to the headquarters of Gen.
Taylor, which would be at Victoria.
Our reliable informant’s information
still farther dissipates all apprehensions
of Santa Anna assuming an offensive |
position. He now holds the Key to South
ern Mexico; he deems all the forces he :
can possibly concentrate there necessary ,
to retain it, and will only surrender it to j
a greatly superior force. The strength of ;
his own army at San Luis Potosi, by the |
wayr, is greatly exaggerated. It does pos- ■
itively not exceed 10,000 men, all told, \
and those poorly provisioned, and having j
in their possession a scanty supply ol !
arms and ammunition. He reckons, j
however, among his officers, men ot high |
military scientific attainments —English, t
German and French. The place he will
of course, have fortified in the best possi- i
Die manner. He, therefore, coolly wraps
himself up in the cloak of security, at ;
least for the present, well knowing that
we have no force now west of the Rio |
Grande from which he fears an attack.
It behooves, then, our Government to
look promptly to it. Too much time has ;
already been wasted since winter set in. |
According to the calculation of our in- |
formant, who speaks knowingly, from !
I 30,000 to 40,000 men, subordinate and !
well disciplined, must be thrown into ;
Mexico before we can hope to conquer an I
honorable peace. Let the Government,
then, no longer procrastinate. Lei lire
Executive show its hand—let it come
boldly forward and demand of Congress
the men and the money which it kuoics to
be necessary to conquer a peace; and if
there he those who would thwart it in sucii
a purpose, let them he unmasked—let the
country see who they are. The ques
tion of the war is now no longer one of
crimination or re crimination; it is who
are for their country, or who are against
it?
[Correspondence of the N. O. Picayune]
Matamoros, Ja*. 1, 1817.
Your friend Haile popped in upon us
a few days ago. and ! had hardly time, to
ask a question before he was off for Co
margo and Monterey. Since that time
we have had many reports of battles, and
marches, and counter marches—General
Wool’s column cut otf, General Worth
driven back upon Monterey from Saltillo,
and be and Gen. 'Baylor surrounded and
shut up in Monterey. General Scotland
staff left here two days ago, in haste for
Comargo, by the river. They met the
‘•Rough and Ready” steamer with the
mail, which brings intelligence that some
part of a corps of observation belonging ,
to Santa Anna’s army has been seen near
Parras, where Gen. Wool’s army was, j
and he had joined Gen. VV orth at Saltillo. ;
Gen. Taylor, with the division of General j
: Twiggs, bad gone back to Monterey, and
Gen. Quitman had gone on to Victoria,
and was at Linares when last heard ;
from. Gen, Patterson’s division crossed
the river San Fernando five days ago,
and would soon reach liis destination. A
company ot Tennessee cavalry came
hack two days ago, to escort a train of
wagons with subsistence for the command
of Gen. Patterson, who will no doubt soon
join with the command of Gen. Quitman.
Gen. Scott will go to Comargo, and it is !
thought will soon return here. I have j
very little doubt but that General Taylor
will go home as soon as Gen. Scott takes 1
command. When Gen. Patterson gets lo
Victoria, all the passes to San Luis Poto- |
si will be shut up; and if Urrea, with his
5000 or 6000 lancers, does not clear out
across the mountains, our cavalry will
chase them about like rabbits pursued by ,
a pack of hounds. 1 wish that Jack
Havs, Walker, Chevalier and the rest of I
our old Texas hoys were here now ; Ca- j
nales and Seguin want looking after bad- t
|y. I have learned that the former has j
been elected to the new Mexican Con- j
gress, hut do not vouch for the report. — i
His old men are prowling about at all j
events.
A dins, COMPANERO.
[From the N. O. lire. Ith Gflf.]
From i'aiii|»ico.
The Schooner Anspe, Capt. Gates, arrived
in our portal an early hour yesterday morn
ing bringing dates to the 30th nil. Mr. Lums
den of the Picayune, came pessenger by the
Arispe. Since our last advices but little
news of public interest had transpired. On
tlie 29th. the bark Ivanona arrived from New
York with a company of the Ist Artillery,
119 strong, under command of (’apt. John
Magruder. The troops were immediately
marched into camp.
Tampico was perfectly quiet and orderly,
the police regulation being excellent and ri
gidly enforced. Rumors are occasionally
circulated of the approach of Mexicans, but
they have all proved groundless.
A very large marble pedestal in the cen
tre of the grand plaza, originally construct
ed to support a statue of Santa Anna, has
been appropriated to the reception of a lofty
flagstaff", ninety five feet high, from the sum
mit of which stream the stars and stripes.
Mr. Chase, formerly Consul at Tampico,
has been appointed collector of the customs.
The Steamer “Coosa,” Captain Rafferty,
arrived yesterday morning, and discharged
( her freight, (cotton.) and left in the evening
j for Gadsden, Alabama.
Consignees—D’Anlignac, &, Evans, Daw
son & Weaver, Adams. Fargo & Co., Au
gusta, Brown & Goldsmith,Charleston.
The steamer has commenced her regular
trips between this and Gadsden, and the
business increases as the seasonadvanc.es—
on her trip last week, she brought up 30
passengers, on yesterday 14, who took seals
in the accommodation Coaches for the Rail
road, lately put upon this end of the line, by
Grimes &. Jcmison, which completes their
line of four horsepost coaches between King
ston Ga., and Tuscaloosa Ala., tri-weekly.—
Rome [Ga.] Journal , 6lh inst.
Tbs Picayune of this morning contains the
Mexican account ot the transaction at Los
Angelos, in California. Instead of 150
American seamen being massacred by the
Indians and Mexicans under General Flores,
it appears that not one was killed—but that
27 were made prisoners under a capitulation,
and 3 were wounded;one Mexican was killed.
The capitulation allowed the Americans lo
go on board their ships, with their arms and
private property. The Mexican account i
states, that 3UO men were afterwards landed
from the ships, and took possession of the
town, of which they intended to retain per
manent possession. This is the Mexican j
version ofthe affair, as the Picayune observes, j
— N. O. Courier 6th inst.
[Retwrted for the Baltimore Sun.]
TWENTY-NINTH CONGIIESS,
SECOND SESSION.
Washington, Jan. 6, 1847.
Senate was not in session—having yester
day adjourned over to Monday.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
A motion was made to reconsider the vote
by which the House yesterday decided to
I close the debate to-morrow, in committee of
the whole, on the bill to provide for an in
: crease of the regular army, with a view to
i adjourn over to Monday, but the motion did
I not prevail.
The bill was limn again taken nr», com
! mit?ee of the whole, and Mr. Toombs, of
! Georgia, addressed the committee in favor of
> the prosecn!, a of le war, but in opposition
; to the bill in its pr- sent shape. He also con
i tended that * 'ongress had no right to disre
| gard the terms of the Mi ouri compromise,
• and prohibit slavery in California. The
! south were willing to adhere strictly to the
| terms of that compromise, though he believ-
I ed that they had sacrificed unquestionable
} rights to preserve the peace of the Union—
that they had a perfect right to no where
they pleased, within the territory of the j
United Stales, with their flocks and their
heards, their families and their slaves. These
rights, he said, they had consented to yield,
fur the sake of harmony and union; and they
now asked no huge concession from the ]
North —they were prepared to do their whole
duty to the country. In regard to the war
with Mexico, let us prescribe to her terms of
peace, and if she refuse them, force her into |
a compliance with those terms—an honora- j
ble peace—a peace which shall meet the ap- |
probation of a!! mankind.
Mr. Winthrop followed Mr. Toombs. Ho i
was not prepared to vote for the bill in ns
present shaje. nor it) any shape, though he
was not one of those who would withhold
all supplies, because the war might he unjust,
or improperly conducted. Rut while he was
not willing to class himself among those
who would withhold all supplies, he was op
posed to adopting privately and implicitly ail
measures recommended by the Executive.
Mr. Tibbatls next obtained the floor, made
■ a very able defence of the war, andauvocat
-1 ed the passage ofthe bill, modified so as to
| include among its provisions the amendments
| offered by himself a few days since.
Mr. Ligon, of Maryland, followed, in favor
i ofthe bill, ofthe war, and of the compro -
mises ofthe constitution in regard to slavery.
At the conclusion of his remarks, Mr, Car
rol offered an amendment, from the committee
I on military affairs, providing for the appoint-
I ment of five additional surgeons and fifteen
| assistant surgeons of the army.
Mr. Long, of Maryland, then obtained the
fl or, and proceeded to address she committee
i in opposition to the bill, and to the admin
| istration; but before he had concluded, gave
! way for a motion that the committee rise.
1 The mo'ion prevailed, and be House adjourn
ed to 10 o’clock to morrow.
[Correspondence of the Baltimore P/itriot.]
Washington. Jan. 9, 2 p. in.
SENATE.
This body was not in session to-dav.
llt )USE OF R E PRESEN TATI VES.
The House met at 10 o’clock, and after j
some unimportant business, went into Com- I
mittee of the Whole.
Mr. Longresumed the speech he commenc
ed yesterday on the bill tor increasing the
army. He was decidedly eloquent—cared
I not who was in the Executive Chair—when
i war existed we ought to present an undivid
; ed front in its support —the people would do
j it. Mr L. wanted the tariff of’42 restored.
Mr. Ficklin followed and was opposed to
I the bill. Its object, he said, «ould not hr
carried out. Before the enlistments could
be made the war would, or ought to be, end
ed. He preferred raising more volunteers,
i Mr. Haralson next spoke, and in the course
I of his argument reflected upon the tardiness
I of Massachusetts and North Carolina in
! raising volunteers. This brought up the re
j presentafives from those Stales and from Vir
i ginia, byway of explanation, when a highly i
| entertaining and amusing comedy was cn- j
acted.
Mr. Thompson, of Mississippi, followed, |
and made a strong argument in favor of r «is- |
ing volunteers. He confined hiinselt to the i
bill and spoke his hour.
At 2 o’clock the commifee|commenced de
ciding on the amendments. Those submited
by the Committee on Military Affairs were ,
agreed to.
Mr. Thurman offered one, allowing the 1
soldiers to obtain theirdischarge at the close |
ofthe war; which was adopted.
Mr. Thompson offered an amendment pro- j
viding three months’ extra pay and a bounty ;
for those who serve out the war and are
honorably discharged,
'l’he amendment of Mr. Thompson, of Mis- 1
sissippi, authorizing she President to appoint ;
a Lieutenant General of all the forces of the i
United Slates,was agreed toby a vole,taken
by tellers, of 84 to 67.
Mr. Rathbuu’s substitute, in favor of rna- I
king the force to be raised a volunteer one,
was now considered. A mo'ion was to j
amend if by adding (he cMu-e for a Lieu- i
tenant General. The vote on ti is was taken
by tellers, and decided in toe negative yeas ;
66, nays 95,
Mr. Ralhbun’s subs’itu'e, being somewhat j
amended, was adopted, the vote by tel lots j
standing yeas 96, nays BS.
On motion the Committee then rose and j
reported the bill as amended.
Mr. Thompson, of Mississippi, offered the j
amendment which authorizes the appoint
ment of a Lieutenant General.
A motion was now made to adjourn On :
this the yeas and nays were demanded and
taken. Yeas 89, nays 114. Refused to ad- j
jonrn.
The vote on the Lieutenant General amend- I
mont was now taken and stood as follows :
yeas 90, nays 125. Rejected.
The vote was next taken on the amend
ment reported to the House by the committee,
and stood as follows: Yeas 103, nays 104;
so Mr. Ralhbun’s substitute was rejected.
The question now came upon the passage
of the bill as reported by the committee, but
before it was put a motion to adjourn was
made and carried.
And so the House adjourned.
Delaware 17. 8. Senator.
The Legislature of Delaware, now in ses
sion at Dover, on the Bth inst., elected Pres
ley Pruance (VV.) a Senator of the United
Stales, in place of Mr. Thos. Clayton, whose
term expires on the 4th of March next, and
who declines a re-election.
- *
MR. OWENS’ SPEECH,
[concluded ]
A temporary government is, from the
necessity of the case, usually imposed on the j
I conquered by simple proclamation of the
i victorious general. The right thus to impose
j it is universally recognised among civilized j
nations. But, under any government not ■
despotic, these temporary laws remain in ,
force only until the constitutional authorities, ;
considering their conquests permanent, may j
choose to enact permanent laws for their gov- |
eminent. For the exercise of this temporary |
power, essential to the security of conquest, !
and what is more important, demanded by a j
just regard for me safety and protection ot
tiie conquered, we have precedents enough
in the history of our own government. Ot !
there, the most strictly in point, perhaps, is a
proclamation issued during the late war by
General Harrison and Commodore Perry,
dated the 17lh October, 1813, and. it may
with probability be conjectured, dictated by
President Madison himself. Here it is:
"Bv William Henry Harrison, major general !
in the service of the United Slates, com
mander-in-chief ofthe northwestern army, I
and Oliver Hazard Perry, captain in the j
navy, and commanding the fleet ol the
United States on Lake E> ie.
‘•a PKOCLAM ATION.
“Whereas, by the combined operations of I
the land and naval forces tinderour command, j
those of the enemy within the upper district j
1 of Upper Canada have been captured or des
troyed and the said district is now in the quiet ;
possession of our troops, it becomes necessary j
to provide for its government: therefore, we !
do hereby proclaim and make known that the
! rights anti privileges of the inhabitants, and j
the laws and customs of the country, as they ;
j existed or wore in force ut the period of our
! arrival, shall continue to prevail, All
-1 magistrates and other civil officers arc to re
j sume theexercise of their functions, previous
I taking an oath to he faithful to the govern-
I ment of the United Si ales as long as they
I shall be in possession of the country. The
authority of all miiila commission is suspend- i
ed in said district, and the officers required
to give their parole, in such way as the of- j
finer who may be appointed by tho command- 1
i ing general io administer the government '
| shall direct.”
1 commend to the attention of th se whose !
; fears have discovered in the recent proclama
tions of Stockton and Kearny alarming and
unprecedented encroachments on our repub
lican system, this proclamation of Harrison
and Perry. It my allay their fears to reflect,
that among the distinguished men of the last
generation, lew better understood rfinstituti
! onal law, or more jealously guarded con
i btitutional rights, th-.-l Janies Madison. Such
! reflections, one might hope, would somewhat
! reconcile "them to the rightful character of
■ the steps taken by our government during the
! past progress of this Mexican war. Yet, even
then, the future and its destiny rise up to
i alarm. Where (they demand) is all this to
■ end? 'l’he torch of glory, the phantom of
j ambition, whither are these to lead? At what
! point in our career of aggrandizement shall
t we ptay onr steps? What conquest will
; satisfy? What boundary content ns? If. is
j impossible, with so much uncertainty before
i us, to offer a trustworthy opinion as to the
exact line of boundary, which, in any future
treaty with Mexico, it may he deemed proper
| to demand, in satisfaction of debts long due
and as indemnity for the expenses of a war
j thrust upon us without provocation. If that
: war be much longer protracted, public opinion,
in my judgment, will settle down upon a line
running ill) the Rio Grande to about the
parallel of thirty-two; thence, with that
parallel as a basis, west to the Gulf of Califor
nia, and thence, perhaps, down that gulf to
the Pacific —giving us the territory of New
Mexico and the Californias, and leaving un
touched the Stales, or rather the departments, j
of Mexico proper. The country which, un
der sue!) a boundary, would fail to the United i
States, is very sparsely peopled. California, |
! in its upper portion, including three-fourths
ofthe entire territory, is estimated to contain |
but one inhabitant to every sixteen square
miles. The London Times, a paper sufficient- j
ly disposed to favor Mexico, speaking of the j
probability that the war will make this conn- j
trv ours, expresses, in its leader of the 9th
November last, the opinion fiiaf the loss will I
I not he “a sensible blow to Mexieo,” and adds;
“The Mexicans possessed it, as Spain had '
I possessed it before them, in nominal, rather i
i than in real sovereignty.”
'l'he territory of New Mexico is some- j
| what more populous; but even there the es- 1
I tiruale is but one inhabitant to each square
I mile and a half; and, with Texas and Cali-
I forma onr<, it would he wholly inadmi-sible
on our part, and of little advantage on Mexi
-1 co’s to leave her a narrow, almost datached
| strip of country, projecting some five hun-
I dred miles into the possessions ot the United
i States. The annexation to onr Union of j
j wild territory, such as the Californias,lchiefly j
1 occupied bv nomadic tribes of Indians, pre
i sents little difficulty, cither present or pros-
I pective. It, will he gradually settled, like j
| Oregon, by our citizens, carrying wil.li them j
our language, our law’s, and onr republican
1 institutions. South of latitude thirty two, j
i the stale of things is widely different. Even !
j in the northern department, the population !
' seldom tails below an average of iPve to the 1
| square mile; in San Lu IS Po’osi and Zo a
< tecas it reaches ten or twelve. And this
| population has its own customs, habits, lan
j guage. religion; all different from ours. It
j has its prejudices, too, against ns. Its rulers
j have sought to persuade it, that we are the ;
i aggressors, led on by thirst for conquest and
waging a war of race and religions. It lias j
been told—and voice-, even from this hall
1 have endorsed the charge—that our inten
tion,is, first to overrun and subjugate; and
then to annex department after department
to our Union by force. But our government j
has expressly/lisclaimed all such intentions, j
The language of its proclamation, issued by
General Taylor, i-:
“ We’come tolobtain reparation for repeated
wrongs and injuries; we come to obtain in
demnity for the past; we come to overthrow !
the tyrants who have destroyed your liber- j
ties; but we come to make no war on the (
people of Mexico, nor upon any form of free I
government they may select for themselves.”
If the Mexican authorities should chance
to cast their eyes over these remarks of mine
and should fin'd in what I am about to sav, !
one of those “springs and artifices” by which I
according to them, we despoil their country j
of her possessions, so be it! I avow my hope,
that the northern departments—states, alas!
no longer—will rise, will cast off the yoke of
a military despot, and select for themselves ,
a form of free government. 1 avow my hope
that if they do rise, our government, so long
as this war shall last, will aid and support
tho movement. Grievances enough have
they to ledress, wrongs enough to avenge. A
federal constitution overthrown, the right of
suffrage abolished, the liberty of the press
destroyed, the very arms seized upon, with
which alone women and chiidred could be
protected from Indian massacre—if outrages ,
such as these absolve not from a'l alleg - I
i ance to the government that inflicts them, i
I then is all revolution but rebellion, and men,
' once enslaved, should remain for ever slaves.
I Until this war commenced, we of the United ;
States couifl but look on. when Mexican re
publicans struck for freedom*, could but give
: them our good w ishes, o r at most, an onctmr
! agmg word. But now, our hands are tree, j
! Tnoir oppressors are onr enemies; and no 1
j law forbids that, when they move tor their |
j' rights, we should make common cause with
i them. Such a movement, however, in its in
j cepiion, is their affair, not ours. To be ef
fect nil, if must be spontaneous. Its benefits
will enure to the Mexicans, and with them
it should originate. I suppose, that our gov- i
eminent will not interfere. It will not, I im
agine persuade or di-suade, in the matter.
Bui if, without its agency, The republicans of !
; northern Mexico raise against the central
j government, wo shall have the right, and I
j hope we shall use it, to extend to any such
movement the protection of the American
army- Ido not beneve that northern Mexi- j
j co, if, by such aid, she achieved her indepon
i deuce, would desire other relations with us
■ than those of peace, friendship,and commerce.
I do not believe she would desire annexation. '
I am very sure that, at the present, she is !
j vvio'ly unprepared for it. Il this day, she
j become part, and parcel of our Union, it
would be tmt the beginning of trouble. Co
. lor, an established creed, domestic inslitu
: tion-—at every step some new difficulty
would start up in our path. We neither
; share her feelings, not understand her pre
-1 judices. Therefore we cannot frame laws :
to meet her wauls, or to satisfy her people.— I
It may not alwavs be so. Free intercourse i
will soften, and al last remove, the prejudice
which Mexican rulers, to serve tneir own ;
ends, have spread abroad against, us in these
1 departments. And when opinions, political,
| social, religious, shall, by the assimilating
! influence of lime, have approached each oth
, er—when railroads, and telegraphs, the great !
| machinery of Civilization, shall have crossed i
i the Rio Bravo; when, if may be, the sons of
I our republic, attracted by the black eyes of j
Mexican beauty, shall have found homes and |
| wives in those far regions of the south; then, |
j when mutual relations of peace and good will |
i shall have sprung up between Hie races— !
then may come annexation; come, when mu- 1
tually disireci; come, because mutally accep- j
table.
Meanwhile,since in southern Mexico mili- ;
tary di-position reiains ttie ascendant, 1
should rejoice to >oe arise, north of latitude
twentv-two, perhaps, an independent repub- i
lie. The departments of Sonora, Sinaloa, j
Chihuahua, Durango, Coahnila, New Leon, !
Tarnaulipas, San Luis Rotosi, but. above all, ’
republican Zacatecas, have all, at tunes, j
evinced iheir impatience of'lie tyranny which
robs them alike of their freedom and of their j
j substance; burdening them wi'h the main
tenance of a greedy and numerous soldiery,
who live without work, except that of oppres
sion; ard thus reducing them at once to pov
erty and to bondage. Stung by repealed inju
ries, they have several times attempted a re- I
volution. I believe that the spirit nf the j
brave and generous Mexia lives among them !
yet, and will show itself, ere lung, in a deci- j
give and victorious movmfent. If they sue- '
ceed, with them we shall find no difficulty to i
negotiate a treaty of boundaries. And with I
a belt of free States thus interposing some de- |
grees of latitude between us end southern i
Mexico, the chances would be much dnnm- ■
ished of injury from that miscalled republic
in war, or of quarrel with her in peace. And
i now, in conclusion, will gentlemen on the j
I other side of the llou.-e suffer me to address
to them a few not unfriendly words. That
i wiiich is spoken in tit's hall remains not here.
It is published to the world. It. goes to our
i enemies as well es to our friends. When
1 members of an American Congress as-ert
i that the war in which their country is en
| gaged is unholy, unrighteous, damnable; the
President’s war. who ought to be arraigned
j as a usurper for making it; every word they
I speak may he read—in all human probability
i is read, and with avidity—in tne national
| palace of Mexico. When members of an
j American Congress declare that. Mexicans,
j for their manlyjjesistance in such a war, are
; to be honored and applauded, they speak, as
I it were, to the very men they praise and on
: courage; even in the ears of Santa Anna and
| Ids advisers. Words 'hat. are to strengihen
the hands and cheer 'he hearts of the public
enemy should he well weighed before they
are uttered. I condemn no man, who speaks,
from the depths ofthe heart,his honest thought, j
It is Ids right; and not the less Ids right, be- I
cause o! the consequence, be that what it
wi 1. If those who pul Mexico in *he right
i and their country and her President in the
wrong, sp°ak as they ar* prompted by the
love oftruth and justice alone, their language,
no matter whom if may aid and comfort, shall
j pass mire proved by me. But if, with thisin
! dignani zeal for justice to Mexico, there rnii
i g’e one motive less pure than truth, one
lurking thought of party profit in an ap- j
j proacldng contest at home, how stands the
matter then? Not national treasure and na
; tional honor only, human lives are at stake
in flits war. They who drag if, as an ele
ment of advantage, into the arena of party
strife, play with human live- ! It any man,
with even a glancing thought in his mind to
wards the presidential succession, use words,
i put forth arguments, of which the tendency !
! is to nerve the arm of the enemy, and thus |
j protract she war, fie sacrifices, on the prosli- i
: tilted altar of party. Ins country’s treasure,
; honor, well-being—yes! and the blood of her
bravest sons. And such a man. thus placing
obstacles in the way of negotiation, thus re
tarding an honorable peace, is she enemy,
j alike of Ids country and of civil zation. 'i'he
1 spirit of war is fast departing from the earth.
One feels, in these modern days, when en
gaged even in the mn-t justifiable war, as
may some participant in a disreputable brawl, !
I reluctantly dragged into it by chance and bad
; neighborhood. The necessity of the thing |
cannot blind one’s eyes to its barbarianism. j
1 A man, or a nation, meriting to be called 1
civilized, seeks the first pause in she combat,
to hasten its termination. Bui what chance j
of terminating the war, while the enemy is j
daily fed with hopes, that, divided in feeling !
and distracted in counsel, we cannot, for any
length of time, conduct military operations !
with vigor, or prosecute them with success, j
To dispose Mexico to peace, she must see us
united, harmonious, conscious of the justice
of our catt-e, ready to put forth all our |
strength. Then, and thus, may she be brought
to terms. Then, and thus, may this appeal
to arms, the last, 1 trust, in which America ■
shall ever be forced to engage, come to a J
close; and the period at last arrive, when we
may turn our swords into ploagtishares, and ■
duty war no mure. j
- -if. t ‘urtm n~iriii—m
AUGUSTA. GEO..
WEDNESDAY MORNING, JAN. 13, 1317.
Indemitifirntion for ihc Expense* ofWur,
Under tins head, the Chronicle submits three
questions for discussion, and advances some asser
tions which we do not feel disposed to pass by m
silence. The questions are as follows:
Ist—Will the United States, having overpower
ed Mexico, have the right, according to the laws
of nations, to seize and permanently hold such
territory?
*2d.—lf not, would she not be hound by the same
laws to make amends for tv rungs committed against
' that nation?
.‘> i.—Will the territory be valuable and ought it
to he acquired now?
It is evident that the Chronicle is under the
liveliest apprehensions for the territorial rights of
our foreign foe. it is alarmed at the idea that
when negotiations are instituted for peace, this
country will insist on remuneration for expense*,
in the only way, or at least in the most convenient
way that Mexico can pay ns. So much so that
now, while the war is still raging—perhaps at the
very moment that our armies are in deadly con
flict,its voice is raised to screen Mexico from blaraa
i —to insist that she has incurred no responsibility by
her acts eitherof commission or of omission. That
on the contrary she is the injured patty. Mo far
from this country being entitled to claim inderani
i tv for past w rongs to our citizens, in the destruc
tion of life—the detention of their persons in loath
-1 some prisons, and in the confiscation of their pro
perty —indemnity for the long catalogue of assassi
nations, of legalized murder and robbery which
they have suffered from Mexican perfidy, it seem*
that all this is to be not only forgiven, hut a pre
mium is to be paid for the violation of these sacred
rig is of our citizens. This is carrying the doc
trine of Christian forbearance very far, and ex
| reeds even the literal terms of the scriptural in
i junction, which was but a figure of speech,
“If thy neighbour smite thee on one click, turn
to him the other, and if he take thy coat, give him
i thy cloak also.”
'l’he Chronicle not only denies that the war wai
commenced by the act of Mexico, but cites Mr.
Calhoun as holding the same opinion. It repre
sents Mr. Calhoun as having voted against the
i preamble because it asserted that tin* war was con -
menced by the act of Mexico, and that entertain*
| itur the belief that the preamble was false, “Mr.
Calhoun said he could sooner plunge a dagger into
his heart than vote for it.” The Chronicle hero
misrepresents Mr. Calhoun. That paper is not
1 authorized to assert that Mr. Calhoun over enter
tained any such belief. It is very certain that bo
| never expressed if. Nor is that the reason assign
| ed by him for not voting for the Preamble. lie
| refused to vote for the preamble and the bill both.
| and said he would not vote fur the bill even with
out the preamble. The reason lie assigned was
! that he did not, w ith the facts then before him,
| feel pre} aredtosay that a state of war existed be
, tween the two count ies. There was a state of
hostilities, but the acts of Gen. Arista in attacking
I our forces on the east side of the Rio Granda
might be disavowed by his government. If so,
: then it could not be said that those acts created a
state of war. The hair-splitting subtleties of the
honorable Senator were not appreciated by Con
gress at a time of such overw helming excitement,
when the blood of our slaughtered countrymen
j was yet reeking hot from onr soil and crying
j aloud for vengeance. The result proved that the
; metaphysical sagacity of the Senator was wasted
j upon that occasion, and that the popular impulse
j was riijlit in its conclusion. The acts of Arista
were not only avowed by his government, but had
j been duly authorized.
The Chronicle quotes freely from Valtel to prove
j the enormity of the crime in a sovereign who
j without necessity plunges not only his own roun
l try but that which he invades. In a!! the calami
! ties of war—with all its concomitant horror* of
j “the slaughter of men, the pillage of cities—the
devastation of provinces.” The lecture of Vattel
is a good one, and was of especial application in
the despotic days in which he wrote, and for the
sovereigns at whom he wrote. Then war was and
had too long been “the pastime of Rings.” It vvaa
too often commenced to gratify family pride, or
ambition, or personal pique, or to avenge private
quarrels, or subserve the bad passions of ministers
and mistresses.
Rut in the present day, wars have become na
tional matters—nations and nut individual Prince*
move to redress wrong to a whole people, to
avenge insult, to seek indemnity for the past, and
’security for the future. Milch is the predicament
of this quarrel. Each nation considers itself the
aggrieved party. At least a large majority of the.
American people, and who practically constitute
the nation, think that the United States is the ag
grieved party, on one side. On the other side, all
Mexico and her numerous and active friends in
this country, think she is the aggrieved party.
How then will the Chronicle enforce upon its own
country the following dictum which it quotes from
Vattel:
“lie who does any injury, is hound to repair the
damage, or to make adequate satisfaction if the
evil be irreparable, and even to submit to punish
! ment, if the punishment be necessary, either as an
j example, or for the safely of the party offended,
I and for that of human society. In this predica
| m.oit stands a prince who is the author of an un-
I just war.”
j The Chronicle has long since asserted that this
country is in lids predicament. Os course it will
therefore insist, or ought to, to be consistent, on
compliance with the following requisitions of Vat
tel quoted by it:
“He is under an obligation to restore whatever
he has taken—to send back the prisoners at his
own expense—to make compensation to the enemy
for the calamities and looses lie has brought on
i him—to reinstate mined families—to repair if it
were possible, the loss of a father, a son, a hus
band.”
We presume that the Chronicle, if ever its party
gets into power, will urge the imposition of a heavy
tariff for the purpose of paying off its Mexican
friends who have been so badly used by the Ame
ricans. And if the tariff will not raise enough
revenue, perhaps it w ill advocate the cession of
some of our public lands for that purpose. Or
would ilpref r a direct tax? It wuuld be a cu
rious result if a Whig Congress were to tax tea
and coffee to refund the Mexicans the expen
ses they have incurred in this war. This would
be a novel excuse for a protective tariff, and a very
ingenious expedient for getting rid of money. The
Whigs have always been remarkably fertile in
schemes for extravagant appropriations. But this
last one is entitled to the medal.
We shall reserve for a seperate article our com
ments on the third question. Upon that point the
Chronicle has taken the ground that the territory
of New Mexico and California ought not to be ac
quired by us, even if justice could give it to us, ac
cording to Vattel, because the Anti-Slavery party
of the North objects to a further extension of slave
territory. We shall not fail to discuss as it de
serves, this MISERABLE TRUCKLING TO ABOLI
TIONISM-
The N. O. Jeffersonian of the 7th inst,
says—“ Lieut. Boyle, of the Baltimore battal
ion died yesterday morning?on board the Ala
bama, while coming up the river.”