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Br^rata to pelure, in A □ 32X 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 ?(- I , HON, ^ &>Uect:u}/v Tlic Joint Ri luiiiiUe llin and Great tory, bc'iiia Ml". ATCl the floor, pro iliat lie Would ho now hiivo the snhjpct, I wcfk, iissunii tioiis for noti ' liiit llic ohjec. notii'e In tho I J'lflhf! Joint oi thofxjiiralioi anioiM,' these coniphfih thin 1 most pointed ' preference to , Committee oi its oliject dire litinnsof any f this did not lad been sent ('ct it was wil Jiim.^elf to vol |ion. He olij thin^', it wa.s Jind the dise.rc ■ontroversy ti »n nniieahlef!! 1) Mr. A. tiiai 10 jwwer on )ower resided )n one hand, he other. I I night be ninci iiat it hail bci "if, "Althouj *- ,< ! > SPEECH or HON. D. R. ATCPILSOX, OF MISSOURI, OH THE OREGON QUESTION. DELIVERED IX THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES, MARCH 12, 184C. :)■■■ , ■» 'iT-i The Joint Rcsoliition for sriviiii^ tlic notice to irr- niiiitUc tlm ronvontion l)ct\vic'ii the lliiitnl Stjitcs and Great IJrilain, rclntive to the Oregon terri- tory, Ijeiii.^ under consideration — Mr. ATCHl.SON, of Missouri, licina; entitled to the floor, [ironii.sed, in the outset of liis remarks, ili.it lie Would not Iniig; detain the Semite, nor.siiould lie now have deemed it necessary to say a word on the suhjeet, had not the question, within the ln^'t week, assumed ii new aspect. Various i)ro|)osi- tioiis for notice liad been mibmitted to the body, ut tiic object common to all of thein was to give notice to the Hrilish Qoverniiient of the tcniiination f the joint occiipnacy of the Orejjon territory after the exjiiratioii of twelve months. Mr. A. ]>ivferred auKuit; tlie.se that form of notice which v.eiit to nc- Iromplish this end in the fewest words and in the imost pointed terms. For this reason he i,^avc the ^reference to the resolution iis reported from the ^inmitlee on Foreiirn Uelalions. It weiu to elfect 13 object directly, and was unencumbered by con- litionsof any sort. Mr. A., however, was ready, f this did not prevail, to (jo for the resolution which id been sent from the House of Representatives, et it was with !;reat reluctance that he could briii;; limnelf to vote for tlu' second clause iif that rciolll- ^ion. Ho objected to it because, if it im ant aiiy- linij, it Was intended to interfere with the riu;lits iiid the discretion of the two parties in the present •ontroverNy to renew or to pursue ne^'otiatioii for »n aniicabk' fiettlement of the difficulty. It seemed ) Mr. A. that the American Congress could confer lo power on the Government to neu:oliale ; that lower resided in thePiT.sidentof the United States in one hand, end in the I'ritish Government on le other. He ndmiited that this rdiistniction u'.tjht be placed on that reso'ution, and he knew hat it had been. It iui!;lit be understood n.s say- ihiit notice should be given, and wc confer on him the power to give such notice to Eiij:land, yet we. do it with rciiictatice, and we do it with timidity." If the latter clause meant anything, it meant tlii.s. ("rrlain'y the House could never intend to confer on the Pvesident the power to negotiate, and every one knew that they cimld not, under any circum- slance.s, prevent negotiation if the President and the P>ritish Government desired it. The resolu- tion, then, wa.s to be uniierstood 1 1 mean this: "Coiign!SM, by this resolution, do advise the Presi- dent and the l^ritish Government to negotiate." If that was its meaning, then the second clause was lufre tnirplucagi', a.id, ••■, : mucIi, Mr. A. ]irotested against it; but still hn !v rvi'liiig to vote for the whole re.sohilion as it stood. The resolutions proposed i. the form of an iimcndnient by the Senator fr li. Kentucky [Mr. I Chittenhen] were, in hi.; vii w, still more objec- tionable, though his objection was directed more c 'ccially against the preamble. Mr. A. here rend fro.n Mr. Chittenden's |ireaiuble as follows: ' With u view, therefore, that steps be taken for ' tlie alirogation of the said convention of the O'th ' August, IStJT, in the m.ide iirescribed by its 2d ' urticle, and that the attention of the Goverimient.H ' of both countries may be the more rarnestly and ' immediately directed to renewed efibrts for the ' settlement of all their ditfercnces and disputes in ' respect to said territory." To this language Mr. A. objected. It was not with n view to commit the President tbat he should .•ote for the notice; it was not in the expectation of changing hi.s course as to negotiation; that was a iiuestioii he should submit to the President hiiti- .sclf; he couKi negotiate or not, at his discretion and at his peril. Mr. A. went on to read from the resolution: "Allhoujjh. the Preaidciit recojuiuciids to \w ' ' TliiU, in order to iiITord ainpior time and oppor- 8 ' lunily for the amicablo snttlnmont niid adjustment • of nil tlirir (liflrcrcriccs mid disputrs in rrtipcct lo ' siiid ifrritory, suid notice ouijlit not to be {jivcn ' till iifttr the close of llie present session of Con- ' gress." To this rlaiise he hnd yet more serious ohjrc- jor.tions. In tiie first place, he had uiiliniitrd con- fidence in the discielion of the President, and was willing to leave it discri:tionary with him to y:ivc the notice or to withhold it, at his pleasure. But, though he had implicit confidence in the Presi- dent's discretion, he wos willing to share with him the responsibility of giving the notice, and not only willing, but anxious, to do so. But if the resolu- tion proposed by the Senator from Kentucky, and whicli he had just read, should be odoptea, then all Excc\itivc action in this matter during the pres- ent session of Congress must be nut a stop to. There were n few neasurcs whicli Congress might adopt, but they must be very limited in their ex- tent until we were set free from thu obligations im- posed upon us by the treaty of joint occupation. Mr. A. said he wa.s prepared to vole for the notice, but not with any purpose thereby cither to retard or to forward negotiation. lie should vote for it without any n;gard either to peace or war. Those were matters 'vhich, as he conceived, should have no influence over bis vote; they were matters en- tirely lujidc from the question. There was but one plain point presented to the Senate for its decision, and that was the .simple question whether it was right, politic, and best for the interests of the coun- try to give the proposed notice for annulling the treaty. This was the question, and the only ques- tion, on which the Senate was now called to net; it wos the only question which i^hould have been considered. And here permit him to soy that the Senator from New Jersey, [Mr. Dattov,] the Senator from Maine, [Mr. Evans,] and the Senator from Mary- land, [Mr. John-son,] the Inst of whom had so eloquently addressed the Senate yesterday, had each of them ossumed high and manly ground. The Senator from New Jfersey and the Senator from Maine doubted altogether of the policy of giving the proposed notice at this time, ona, if their views were correct, they were bound to vote against it. This was the one and the only point to be con- sidered. Encumbrances he knew had been thrown around it, and a great deal had been said about compromise and about title, which had nothing to do with the question. The amendment of the Sen- ator from South Carolina, oflc-red to the resolutions of the Senator from Indiana, [Mr. Hawecaw,] arc surfeited with compromises. Now, if a mainriiy of the Senate were of the mind that there should be a compromise, ond that we should make a ron- cession of what we believed to be our rights for the sake of peace, and if they thought that the resolutions of the Senator from South Caroli'ia were not sufliciently to the point, let gentlemen propose suitable amendments to them. Let them either leave the President unshackled, or let them oflcr abstract and substantive resolutions advising him to a compromise. This w«jiild be a plain and open course; and the opinion of the Senate, if thus expressed, would have quite as much weight with the Executive as if it were contained in a clause attached lo this reaolution of notice. But the Senator from Maine (Mr. Evavs] wa« much embarrassed by this difficulty. He did not know what use the President intended to make of this notice if it was nassed. He apprehended that tlic .')4° 40' men in the Senate, lit the head of whom stood Mr. A.'.s friend from Indiana, [Mr. IIavnb- <;av,] who was considered on nil hands as their leader, were willing to give the President what the Senator frf :n North Carolino [Mr. IIaywooh] called great moral weapon, that thereby he might enfin-ce our rights to the whole of Oregon, from California to the Russian line— fmm latitude 42^ lo .'■>40 40'. The Senator frcmi North Carolina [Mr. Haywood] informed the Senate that the President denied this to be his intention, but wish- ed it in order to force a negotiation on the parallel of 49°. And the Senator from Maine, [Mr. Evans,] in reference to this construction of the President's meaning, said that, in that view of the matter, the notice would not be so objectionable; but still he could not tell which of the two views was correct— whether the President wanted the notice for 54° 40', or whether he wanted it for 40°. Now, on this doubtful point, Mr. A. would a.sk leave to refer the Senator from Maine to the ex- press declaration of the President himself when speaking on this suliject of notice. He thought the President's language was so plain thot it was impossible there should be any difTerence of ojiin- ion as to the construction that was to be put upon it. The Senator from North Carolina [Mr, Hav- wood] assumed one construction, but the language il.self c^n-ied quite another. Whether thot Senator spoke with the tcmgue of the President or not, as to the meaning of this part of tlie Message, he thought there could be no diflereiice between the 49° men and the 54° 40' men. What did the Pres- ident say } " All attempts at eompramisc having failed, it ' becomes the duly of Congress to consider what ' measures it may be proper to adopt for the sccu- ' rily and protection of our citizens now inhabiting ' ov who may hereafter inhabit Oregon, and for the ' maintenance of our just title to that territory. In 'adopting measures for this purpose, care should ' be taken that nothing be done to violate the siipu- ' lations of the convention of 1827, which is still in ' force. The faith of treaties, in their letter and 'spirit, has ever been, and, I tnist, will ever be, • scrupulously observed by the United States. ' Under Miat convention, a year's notice is required ' to be given by either party to the other before • the Joint occupancy shall terminate, and before ' either c^n rightfully assert or exerci.te exclusive • iurisdiction over any portion of the ten-itory. 'This notice it would, in my judgment, be pro])er ' to give; and I recommend that provision be made ' by law for giving it accordingly, and lermiiiatin:; ' in this manner the cimveiitiuii of the Gth of Aug- 'ust,1827." It was pre iscly for the rea.son here given by the President that Mr. A. sustained this resolution for notice. It was that the treaty of 1818 might be removed out of the way; that all objections to ac- tion on the part of Congress niio;ht W put an end to. Hitherto, whenever it had been propiLwd to erect a Territorial Government in Oregon, to extend our laws over the territory, to establish a chain of military posts, and to create Indian agencies in that coun : had been nient, thi with the either poi over eithe annulling : iiig all obi ? it a sufficii , tor ft-om J j whether ll I diction of ; after, lo t I whether o '■■ or to the \ annulling as in the v our title to that bcyoi ness restei perhaps a ting all thi before wc ri.sdiclion less. Mr. A. come to ( facts know from Sou< . called a " matter, wi the coiinlr , century. stood It, tc , enact no li citizens to ready triei J pursuing I ) cessor, n\( i this busir j farthest fi I made it. j in the terr I no sgricul I Siiecchc ) 1840 to '4; j out the W ! re.se nta live i tention of i and advai .' emigrants I purposes ( j the wester \ what had i them well ? men who ■! peeled ha( tend over 1 it would / would see and propc that It was possession men to do tuated me that pcrhi some; but to Oregon could liavi (Mr. EvAVs] wra» ilty. III! dill not ended to nmkc; of iipprciicndcd that the heiid of wlioni iiH, [Mr. IIannk- ill hiuulx nn their Vrsidciit wlinl thn [Mr. IIaywdodJ ihiTeliy he nii:;lit of Ores;on, from •iVom latitude 42^ North Carolina Semite that the itention,bul wish- on on the parallel jni Maine, [Mr. mutruetion of the n that view of the so objectionalilc; of the two views lidcnt wanted the ; wanted it for 41)*^. Ar. A. would ask Maine to the cx- ent himself when tice. He thoiiifht plain that it wa.s lifTerence ofopin- as to be put upon irolina [Mr. Hay- I, but the language icther that Senator ■esident or not, as the Message, he ■ence between the iVhatdid ihePres- ! having failed, it to consider what idopt for the secii- ens now inhabiting Iregon, and for the that territory. In rpose, rare should violate the slipu- n, which is still in in their letter and list, will ever be, le United States, '9 notice is required 1 the other before linate, and Ijefore exercise cxoluaive of the teri'itory, dgment, be pro])nr provision be made y, and tcrmiiiatin!; of the 6th of Aug- 1 liere given by the this resolution for • of 1818 might be ill objections to nc- ";ht ))e pnt an end ueetj propo.fed to 1 Oregon, to extend ;stHblish a chain of Indian agencies in tliat cminlry, the advocates of these measures had been met upon the threshold by the argu- ment, that nil these things were nicon,sistent with the treaty. Hence arose the necessity, if either party desired to extend their jurisdiction over either the whole oru part of the territory, of annulling the convention or 1818, and tlum remov- ing all obstaclts from their path. Mr. A. thought it a sufficient answer to the argument of the Sena- tor from Maine [Mr. Kvans] to remind him that, ■whether the President intended to a.ssert the juris- diction of tJie United States, eitlicr now or here- after, to the whole or to any part of Oregon — whether only to the Columbia river, or up to 4'J°, or to the whole extent of 54° 40' — the necessity of annulling this treaty was as great in the one case as in the other. The Senator from Maine believed our title to be good as far as 40°, though he thought that beyond that line shadows, riouds, and dark- ness rested upon it; though, on the whole, we had perhaps a better title than anybody else. Admit- ting all this to be so, still this notice was necessary before wc could assert and establish exclusive Ju- ri.>idiction to any part of the country, greater or less. Mr. A. vent on to say, that he had long since come to the conclusion — a conclusion based on facts known to all — that the policy of the Senator from South Carolina, who udvocatad what was called a "wise and masterly iiuictivity" in this matter, would not answer. Wc never should get the country in that way before the la|i.sc of half a century. The Senator's policy was, if he under- stood It, to do just nothing — to make no move, lo enact no law, to hold out no encouragement to our citizens to settle there. This course had been al- ready tried. This was the course wc had been pursuing from 1818 to 1840, when Mr. A.'s prede- cessor, the lamented Dr. Linn, hau first moved in this business. This move had corac from the farthest frontier of the West. At the time he made it, there was not a solitary American settler in the territory. Wc had no trappers, no traders, no agriculturists. All these had come since. Si)ecchea and rejxirta made in Congress from 1840 to '43 had been diligently distributed through- out the West by western Senators; and the Rep- resentatives in the other House had called the at- tention of tiic people of the West to the condition and advantages of this new territory. The first emigrants wno ever went into thtit country for purposes of settlement and agriculture went from the western frontiers of the Slate of Mis-souri — and what had been their inducement? Mr. A. knew them well; he was ncrsonally acquainted with the men who went; ana he knew that what they ex- pected had been that this Government would ex- tend over them the laws of the United States, that it would make to them donations in land, and would see that they were protected in their rights and property. They had lieen taught to believe that It was an object with this Government fo take possession of that territory, and they were just the men to do it. It had been said that they were ac- tuated merely by a wild spirit of ad\enture; and that perhaps might have had its influ:';ce with some; !)ut it was not this alone which carried them to Oregon. Wild as that spirit might be, it never could have induced them to encounter such dangers and ilifTlcultics as lay l)etwcf n their hnmes and thia new country. Moit of them went there to better their I'oiidition. Many of them wtMC poor men with large families. 'I hey expected amole grants of land, and they were willing to risk their lives and eiieounlcr every privation and hardship that they might better tneir own comlition, provide a hdine for their children, and curry out the policy of llie Government. In 1813, the first company set out to cross the wilderness with the plough and the pruning hook in one hand, and with defensive weapons in the other. Since then this stream of emigration had constantly increased, and it was increasing at the present hour. But carry out the masterly inactivity of the Senator from Soulli Caro- lina, and this increasiiiir stream would shortly dwindle down to a small brook. Those brave and hardy pioneers who were now pouring over the mountains with their herds and flocks, would no longer be seen making their way through the wil- derness as soon as it should be understood that the protection of this Government was to be withheld; that they were to be left to their own resources, or obliged to become British tubjecLs. Mr. A. spoke from knowledge when he said that from that time emigration would cense. Hence he concluded tliat the Senator's " masterly inactivity" would no longer do. And here he would take occasion to remark, that, although when the Senator from North Car- olina, who addressed the Senate a week ago, was speaking, Mr. A. had understood at the time, as he believed all the members of the Senate did un- derstand, that the opinions he expressed were pre- tended by him to be those of the President of the United States, yet he could not, on redection, reltr 10 any particular expression from which he was justified in that concUe .on; and he had since set- tled down in the opinion that the Senator spoke not from the mouth of the President, but from doc- uments and from the record. He hiul put on the language of the President a difTerent construction from that which hiswordb seemed to others to bear; nor was this surprising, for we found that even the words of Holy Wr it were viewed by men under very different constructions, and hence the variety of re- ligious creeds. The Senator from North Carolina, when interrogated, had refused to answer. He would not expressly say whether he spoke with the tongue of the President or not. But Mr. A. had attributed this, in part, to the manner in which the interrogatory had been j)ut to him. He did not altogether blame the Senator for refusing to answer when the interrogatories were put to him in a manner and with a tone of voice which he deemed exceptionable. From one of the expres- sions employed by the Senator, Mr. A. was led to infer that the reason why he had not replied was, that he would not a|^pear to answer even under constructive compulsion ■. for he had said that, out of doors, and when mild!/ requested, he would do things which he had considered somewhat humili- ating, but he would not do so when catechised in his |>lace in the Senate. From the whole of what the Senator said, Mr. A. had, on reflection, been brought to the conclusion that he derived his in- formation from the same source as the Senators from Ohio and Indiana did. Mr. A. said he must here be allowed to go back fo the l'cs:innin<;, niul in i-rfoi- for a nvmiont to llio views wliicli IukI liocii ciiiitiu'iuj ill the IJiilliinair n'8i)liili(PH.i, l)iii i)f liiis wliolc |iriicrP(liii^'. ill! (lid not rilcr to tlu!S(! i( siilnliiiiis willi liny uliiiii|)t to nIiuw lliat they NViTfi biiidiii:; on the SiiiiUor from Miiiiic, f.\Ir. l''vA\r,] llir Sciiiitor IVoni i\ow JerHcy, [Mr. Daytiis',] or lUv Kcnalor tVom Miiiyliinil, [Mr. J(UiNsiis,l nor timt tlioy wcii; bindinf; on the ninsdr.i ol till' Dcnioi'rulLc |piirly; lull he did Ijc- lievc tliitt, on every iirinii|iltM>r;^ood morals, ilinsr reHolutions \V( re liiiidins; on llic mcnibrr.s of the (•iniveiition, mid on tliosc who were it.s nominee*). The declnriilion of llwit eonvention w;i.s, in mib- slanoe, that onr title to the whole of Oregon was elear and nnqneslionalile. Now, Mr. A. iiiRitited that the PrtHidcnt of the United Stales, and the Vice President, or, if the lilierly woidd lie allowed him, that James K. Polk and Gcor;;e M. Dallas, were bonnd by thut resolution, becau.-aily or church to be better than that of any otiier, he might conc'ude to Join it, though he had still olijectioMS to some of its o|)inions. So, if Mr. A. believed the Democratic party to be sound in its doctrines, or, on the whole, better lluiii the party opposed to it, lie would join it. Yet he did not thereby bind hini.self to adopt every opinion it jnigbt put forth. On this ground it was that he lieid that tin: ma.sses of the democracy were re- leased t'rom the obligation of resolutions |iiisscd at Ballimrjie. But the President of the Senate, and the President of the United States, having accepted the nominations of the convention there assembled, which convention had put I'orth these resolutions, were eeiliiiidy, in common honesty, bound by tliem. riiiice the known ground taken by the PiTKident, in the fact of his accepting the nomina- tion, taken in coiniexior! '.villi the language of his Message, and the laiiin.iage of his Inaugural, left no doui)t as to what his opinions really were. And v/ho could think for a moment that the President would .sacrifice riglils which he had himself iiro- )lounced to be < lear and uiii|ueslioiiable, and he a Dcmocrntic Picsident? If the President could do this, then Mr. A. had no clear notions of right and wrong. If he had been ajipoiiited guardian over a ward, and his ward had a dear title to certain lands which were claimed by a third I'.uty, he would put it to ihe common .venr-e and common honesty of all men whellu'r \\v shoulil ni>t be dere- lict to the .s.icii'd duty he owed to the falln iIchm, if he yieldtd up a half or a ouarter of the land. 'I'lun, if the Pnsdent of the llnildl Slates, in the very fust act of his oHicial liie, had diM'larcd our title lii Oregon to be clear and uiKpieslioiiable, mid the people were fast going into Oregon to eoiisunnuale that title by uctual jioM.session, bow could he now go back from that ground and rcliiKjuish the tc rri- tory by compromi.se? When the |icople of the West heard liis declaration (Ui this subject, the whole Deiuocnilic pnrly, as ota^ man, and large masses of the Whig party also, threw up their ca|)S, and huzzaed for Polk and Dallas, Jlis di:c- laralion was hailed and sanctioned by the Demo- cratic, presses everywhere, and by numerous pub- lic nijeiings. The deeliiratioii was three tunes reiterated in the eonr.sc of his Message. In one clause of it he declared that our title to the whole I of Oregon was the best in existence. Then he ' says: " With this conviction, the proposition of cnm- ' promi.se which had been made and rejected was, ' tiy my direciinu, sulise(|u(ntly withdrawn, ami 'our title to the whole Oregon territory asserted, 'and, as is believed, nLtintaincd by irrefragable ' facts and arguments." In another place he holds similar language. IJut, not content with threi' times declaring Ihe clearness of our title, the President, in his Message, made n further declaration, which the Senalor from Nortii Carolina did not dwell upon, and in which he carried the matter to the extremest jioint: " Near a tpiarter of a century ago, the principle ' was distiiKtly announced to the world, in the ' Annual Message of one of my prrderes.sors, 'that ' the American continents, by the free and iiule- ' [lendent condition which they have a.'isumed and ' maintain, are henceforth not to lie considered a.s 'siibjepis for future colonization by any Kuropeaii 'Power.' This principle will apply with greatly 'increased force, should any European Power at- ' tempt to establish any new colony in North ' America. In the exisliiig eirciiinstanecs of the ' world, the present is deemed a proper occ;\sion to ' reiterate and reaffirm the princiiile avowed by ' Mr. Monroe, and to slate my cordial coiicurrenco ' in ils wisdom and sound prilicy. The ri -asserlion 'of this principle, especially in reference to North ' America, is at this day but the promulg.ition of a ' policy which no European Power should cherish ' the disposition to resist." Now, Mr. \. understood this to he an iisserlion by the President that neither England nor any oth- er Power would be permitted to coUmi/.i'. on this continent: that it was not open for coloni/iitioii to any. Whether in this language he referred to Oregon or not, Mr. A. could not underlake to say, j though he believed that that was the only purt of I the continent at present tree and unoccupied. Did he meiui Oregon.' or did Ik; mean California.- Did I he mean to siy that wo should yield u)) part of , Oregon for the ex|irt!>' purpose of jMirr)peaii ( olo- ; nizalion.' Mr. A. could not for a moment believe ' it. Did he mean to include Mexico.' And to de- clare that she should not transfer California to I eilher England or France? That lliis Government I would forbid her to do so r If so, then he went » step beyond lA' Oicgdu ; ro|ieail coloi ; try would r It was ve: these topics ■ on these sill ■ put foilh b_v Ifloiii Ohio, i guard who the Senate. f th(!y were b j Mr. A. stoi 1 but small c,( 1 part of the t tlU'M (lid, till enforce or U .Oreiroii, it V Lie aiguniel much pri fei . Htor from Si ' would be \v we should ( latiliide, am In this senti I [Ml. IIann i\Ir. H.vv Mr. A re I , the (|ueKlioii ' aiirncd by I iCalhuiin,] V :nmii now in jail,] as well I New York, argued it tie ;reat iiijusi been so \v( II A very pr of Oregon w wc ought to England liai of the territ if her title w nch of it to war. A quest io llirii'ly of d ^oiild nut Si Jilid net pre Ijipiiiion who liimseir, he ! iitor.s shouM rather that t at, if they ion woulj ] itharir(il will the nilli.sh fipjil'iiveil th for friMii Mi ' iresuiiH' to solemn duty lami; to the title to the V (ban wo hail ry on the kinjust war. |s right and liould be ei It led on. J ■f mill commnn Mild iii't lie (ItTc- tlic fallii ilcKH, if llic llllill. 'I'llrll, iili's, ill l!i(; Vfiy Imi'i'iI iiur lltic t(i iiiiiibic, mid llic I til l'OM-jl el.s the same views v. Iiiili had been J put forth by the Si.niitor from Indiana, theSiiiator iiioiii Olilo, and the nsidue of the .small loi {loral'N miani who were the 51'-' 40' men on the. Iloor of till: Senate. If their nniiiber \m n^ Mlill .-inalli r — if , they were 1 nl two; nay, if lliey u ere but one, and I l\lr. A. stood alone, it would be to him a niaiter of | finn' of Inr litli I but Hiiiall e.niMeinienee. ISiit he Would leave this 1 part of the siibji rt. If he believed, as .fonie Seiia- tor.'i (lid, that the President de.sired this iioti'.e to enforce or to iiidme the wiirreiider of any portion of Oieu'oii, it wimid be with him the slroii;;est possi- ble m'^miieiit iiKainsI the measuie; nay, he .should iiiiK'h |in fer lilt! "iiiasti'riy inaelivity" of the: Sen- ator from South Carolimi. In that ease inaelivity would be \i ise niid lila.'-terly. I5ylheoiiee.olir.se we nhoiild certainly lose five and a half degrees of latiliide, mid by the other we could lose lio more. In this .seiilinieiit I believe my friend from Indiana I [All. II wnkuvn] fully eoiniirs with me. Mr. 1 1 ASS'KK.w nodded assent. Mr. j\Tmis(i>( Haid he did not intend to sjo into ilie i|iiisiioii of title: that had be(tii well and fully .irL'iied by the Senator from South Carolina, [Mr. ; f'allioiin,] wlieii Secretary of State; by the ;;, ntle- I man now in the Deparliin^nlof .Stale, [Air. Iiiiclian- jaii,] as well as by the distiiijjiiislied Senator from I New York, [Mr iJii kinsci.v,! who had no ably [argued it the oilier day. Mr. .V slionld do himself L'leat iiijustiee if licj attempted u task which had been so well performed. A very proper in((uiry would be, to what portion of Oregon we wen; entitled; because to that extent we (Might to assert our rights. If he thought that lEiiglaiid liad ii belter title than we lo any iiorlion of the territory, he would let her have il; leit not if her title was diMibtfiil; so(,ii( r than snrriiider an inch of it lo her on a doublftil title, he would go lo war. A question had been raised liere as to the ]irii- ijiriety of discussing li(;rc. llu; Hritish title. He jwould not say how far this might be proper. lie ^ilid net proless to be very competent lo form an .ii)piiiioii when so liinh aiilhoritii s dlllered; but, for iniself, he should think it highl)' proper that Seii- .Uor;: .' Ills |i|'(.'lli:i'('H ■(ili(ill,li(' Wouli Uiil the Senator from North Cnroliim aiiiil, in »iil)- iituncr>, (nH well ns Mr. A. rK'ollcclcil lii.s m|ici'(Ii,) tlint if tlio Prcsidciit Imil iliiiincd any |>ortioii of tlic li'rritory liryoml tin; liilitudf: of 4IP, Ik; would liiivr degradrd liiniNcIf iiiid diHliiiiior((l liin coiiiilry. itui, wliut was worst of nil, lie had iit- U'in|)tt'd to jirovc llii;. Tin,' IVesidcnt saiil lie liay con- tiguity us the country north of 49°, and west of the mounlains belongt-d by contiguity to England. AVe claimed the whole country uniler the Spanish title, as well as by our own right of discovery. The Senator from Maine tried to shake our title from discovery and settlement by saying that Mr Astor, who settled at the mouth of the Columbia, was in partnership with a British subject from Canada; but Mr. Greenhow slated that the greater port of those who settled Astoria were Americans, and that none were Canadians but the tiajipers. But supposing that they were all Canadians, and that the settlement, therefore, according to the Sen ator, might os well be culled a British settlement as uii American, was it not a lillle strange that England should send out a ship-of-wor to capture her own ])0st, and should return to us ot the peace a British settlement which wc never possessed! England herself had answered the Senator's argu- ment. The Senotor from Maine admitted that our title he Spanis oast rarrii Irained by i hey flow. 11 Oregon n alives con Stales, and ''nglish fii ormed citli iiountaiiiN, .eriience ol leiil occupii With the woiilcl ni nilh the Pr he best in Irop (if b|( ■ilates Ireas ion of it w ■ he way of ' edged our ■mail e(|iiiv lower 10 fii recs of l:ii Hilt I lie 'oiue ve iile ini;'lit 119°. ^'et, y was good to the Columbia valley; biitif so, whystop Vonika S at 49°, for the northernmost waters of the Colum bia had their source as far north as 53°? Here, then, we lo.st four degrees. But more than that, by establishing the line of 49° wc should lose twenty- nine-thirtieths of Vancouver's Island, which was the most importmit portion of the whole territory, and indeed of the whole northwest coast. Now, Mr. A. had thought thol if there was any strength in the argument of the Senator from New York, [Mr. Dix,] it was in that part of it which established the Spanislj title to Vancouver's Island. The Span- iards were the fir.st who discovered it, the first who surveyed it, and the first who occupied it. If they had a title to any port of the coast, it was to Vau- couvcr'.s Island. Mr. A. then repeated that he could see no rea- son why our title was to stop at the 49th degree. If England had any valid title to Frizer's ri\er — if she could show any better title to that valley than we could, why let us yield it up to her. There did not, however, exist the slightest cidor of title on the side of Great Britain to the Frazer-rivcr country. Our title in our own right and as the grantees of Spain is complete here and without a ■ iniuM', li:ii egoliators lankeil Ijii Hilt till naled lliiit olten up t' reat place lien out ent'einiin ' hi.-^ procei notivi sr ield our residents nd he wa: iioraKli Vheii the f high lies, he yi till lo (I he rcsohil r. A. wei cxioii.s — I is State ir ihn snke of the fur. It wnfl n fair , tllUl lnTmiH(! lllf ir li(niii(l;iiy with ikf ;litM to the lliu Sciiuliir t^'iiin d( rlitrr'il tlint lie iruliir line of 4\)P 80 boiiMiliiry. 'I'tic wiiH our l)oiiii(li>ry we held the coun- fuity; for with ho wiiy, none could )uld give title; hut -oiii Himth to north the country north to SjMiin ny con- \P, nnd west of the ;uily to Kii^liiud. uniler the Spanish it ofdiHcovery. 1 to Hhake our title ly suyiiig lliiU Mr I of the Colunibin, itish subject from ted ihiit the grenter II wi^rc Americ.uns, but the trnppers. ill Canadians, and cording to the Sen- British settlement little Htriinge that |i-of-wnr to capture ri to us at the peace 1 never possessed? the Senator's nrgu- nitted that our title ; but if so, why stop iters of the Coluin- rth as 53°? Here, more than that, by diould lose twenty- Island, which was he whole territory, st coast. Now, Mr. as any strength in Ti New York, [Mr. Iiich establiKhed the ■iland. The Span- red it, the first who ccujiied it. If they lOst, it was to Van- le could .see no rea- at the 49tli degree. 2 to Frizer's ri\er title to that valley it up to her. There ;hteHt color of title ;o the Frazcr-river n right and as th< here and without a, flaw. The valley of Prnzri's river is rnvelopi'd lietween the Coluinbia on the east and the liiirfliiiH'' pi'Mct , 1(11 iii^'IdiiiiiiH |ii:ii(r,<'.'iiiiM fur liiiii- Rcir 11 iiioiT iiiriiniiiiiH rt'iimvii, inul will riTiive it, Ihiiii Ki'dr-lrnluN. Sir, ilicn.' in oiu- Dllirr rrmmk. Oicijrm rnii lint lir loNi ill Iwd wiiyN: out' in liy n(!;(ilinlion, iiiid llic iitliir i^ liy iiwisti'i'ly iiii\i'iivily. I will ii.it dwell lljioii llie I'liHt |ini|il, lor I do lii>l Illllii'i|i'ili' IJiMt it Will l)(! n 'iirlid to. A < 1 liiivc llw utiiiodi cunfi- driice in llir l^ir.sidciil, I coiiHiIcnlly lii'lirxr llinl lie will not rleerivo Lis fririidf. It limy lie loft by iiinetivity. From iliin lime forwiird Id it In iilideriilniid lliiit CoiifjrcHN is lo .iimid Blill in ri'- pird to (lr<;,'oii; tliiit o'lr ciiiziiiJi in Ore^'oii me not tr> receive the lieiiefii of our luwfo, t!mt iliey nre not to Imvo llio firoteeliim ot our Koidiers; in cM'ry (loiiil of vi"W| tlmt vvc jii-e lo proeced upon tlie jiliilforin of iioii-oetiin; whnt will liu the effect? riir inlmliitaiil'* tliere nmst Imve " ,'oviTiiiiiriif; our iiriiple, uliove all oilierH iiiiu .ho sun, i\re wedded tu govcriiiiienl mid \.\\y. Leave them to themselves, mid they vill form u fjovernmeiit; and wliiit will 1)1' ilio result lis to iiB? Pnlriotisni, on the one linnd, (he ties llmt hind ii ninn to the roim- Iry whii'.h ga\e him liirlh, placed in one scale, and the indnc'-nierU that will lie, and are r.nw, held ■.uit hy «oim; of their lendiii;; men, and hy Dr. IMc- Lan;;nlin mid others of the Hudr.on Itay rom- pany, for the formalion of an independent tiovern- nicnt, placed in the other, and how will ihey likely he deterniiiKd? Will ihey not Riiy : "Our coun- try has rcascd to ■,'ive us proler.tioii; Hhe has jiven iiH no lawn; she han f,'iveii us no noldier^ for our ])rotei';ioii. AHera while, when we shall have in- creased and mul(iplled,and filled the fertile valleyM of Ore^in with population; when wc shall have eovdid her mountains with our (locks mid herds; when our river) shall be covered with vcHsels hear- iiispomnificr; thr.n tlic Qoverninrtil of llio trniletl SlaIeK will lie williie; enouj;h lo exieiid over um her jiiriwiiclion; they will be ready enon;;li lo i>riiil us jrovfrnors, jndijes, marshals, mid ^lll rilTK, to con- trol lis; they will be ready enoiiijh lo eNlablidi cnntom-houseM and ;^ive uh odicorM of eii