The Sun.
London, England, 1846-01-27 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF THE TIMES.

Sir,—A long letter from General Pasley, of the Board
of Trade, Inspector-General of Railways, on various
matters connected with railways, especially as to the
construction of engines, appears in your paper of to-day.
The Inspector-General's letter is avowedly to correct
errors in the report of statements made by him at the
coroner's inquest lately held at Thetford; but among
other general remarks on points connected with rail-
ways, the Inspector-General thinks fit to prejudge the
inferences to be drawn from the late experiments on en-
gines of the broad and narrow gauges.
The parties interested in the narrow gauge, who were
commanded by the Commisssioners to undertake the ex-
perimentr, desire me to explain that they were made for
the information of the gauge commissioners—to
whom, and not to the Inspector-General, the deci-
sion of the question of gauge—including, therefore,
the inferences to be drawn from the late experi-
ments—are referred by her Majesty ; and that
consequently, the correct and authentic report of
these experiments has been put into the hands of the
gauge Commissioners only. They further desire me to
say, that the reports which have been published in the
newspapers, from the omission of essential facts, da not
afford the means of deducing from the experiments any
correct inference as to the issue of the question to de-
termine which they were made.
The parties at whose request I write are, therefore,
they believe, in possession of more precise information
as to these experiments than is possessed by General
Pasley, who, though present at the experiments on the
broad gauge, was, it is to be remarked, not present at the •
experiments on the narrow; but respect to the Commis-
sioners, under whose consideration the matter still rests,
prevents them from saying more than that they them-
selves feel satisfied that a correct statement of the whole
facts connected with the experiments leads to a directly
opposite conclusion to that expressed by General Pasley,
and that the results of the experiments, as far as they
prove anything, tend to confirm in every respect the
evidence (derived from long experience) which has been
laid before the Commissioners in favour of the efficiency,
as regards safety, speed, command of power, economy,
and convenience, of the engine which the narrow gauge
admits of, as compared pith those which the broad gauge
admits of.—l am, Sir, your most obedient servant,
London, Jan. 21. GEORGE P. BIDDER.

AIVI ER ICAN NEWS.

THE OREGON QUESTION.

LIVERPOOL, MONDAY.
The Yew York packet-ship Henry Clay, Captain Nye,
arrived here this afternoon, after a voyage of eighteen
du) s from New York, having left that port on the Bth
inst., and brought papers of her day of sailing.
The news by this arrival is again of a very warlike
tendency. A resolution from the Committee on Foreign
Affairs was brought up by its chairman, Mr. Wenthrop,
on the 3d inst., to the House of Representatives, to the
effect that immediate notice be given to Great Britain of
the termination of the joint occupancy of the Oregon
territory, after a very lengthy debate lasting four days,
in which the venerable J. Q. Adams took part in sup-
port of the Bill. It was referred to a Committee of the
whole House ; but, upon the motion that it be made a
special order for the first Monday in February, and
which required a vote of two thirds to carry it, it was lost,
the Ayes being 102, and the Noes 89. During the debate,
an outline of which we subjoin, the most violent language
was indulged in towards Great Britain, and the asser-
tion of the right of the United States to the whole of
Oregon, and the vehement repetition that they would
stand for "the whole of the Oregon or none" was of fre-
quent occurrence; in fact, the whole of the proceedings
are characterised by the greatest violence of language,
and is throughout utterly unworthy of a deliberative
assembly.
The agitation of the question had greatly affected the
markets. Stocks of all descriptions were lower, busi-
ness in many kinds of produce dull and slack, and al-
though the best papers in the city of New York depre-
cated the war feeling, which was thus being so assi-
duously fanned into a flame, yet it is evident that the
feeling has taken a strong h )Id on the people, and might
work mischief.

T WENTY• NINTH CONGRESS-HOUSE OF REPRE-

SE STATWEB:

1 WASHINGTON, JAN. 2, 1846.-Various resolutions, de-
claring the American right to the whole of Oregon, were in-
, troduced ; and upon the question being put to the vote, the
yeas were 75, and the nays 89.
A Bill was then introduced for the organisation of rifle-
men, as also for an increase of infantry, artillery, and
dragoons, for the purpose of protecting emigrants to Oregon.
After an animated discussion of the question, Mr. J. Quincy
Adams rose sad addressed the House. After apologising to
the representatives for his physical inability to enter upon
e
the important matter before them with adequate power,
proceeded to say that he hoped the first measure adopt edhy
Congress would be to give in the most solemn manier the
i
notice to Great Britain which the treaty required "Let it
be made the special order of the day; for, in his opinion,
they were wasting time in legislating or talking anything
about the increase of the defences of the country until we
give this notice. It did not follow that there would be
war; it did not even follow necessarily that we should take
possession of the country. We would only say to Great
Britain, after negotiating twenty odd years under that
convention, made and repeated, we do not choose to
negotiate any longer in this way. We choose to take
y negotiate.
possession of our own. If we have to sett
e m
whatti is our
or whether any portion belongs to you,
We might negotiate after taking possession. That was the
military way of doing business. It was the way in which
Frederick 11. of Prussia had,negotiated with the Emperor of
Austria for Silesia. He said he hoped the first step taken
would be to give, in the most solemn manner, notice to Great
Britain. Then we should have our elbows clear, and could
do as we pleased. It did not follow as a necessary con-
sequence that we should then take possession, but he hoped it
would follow as a consequence, and a very immediate one.
But whether we give the notice or not, it did not necessarily
draw after it hostility or war. If Great Britain chose to take
it as an indication of hostility, and then to commence hos-
tilities, why, we had been told there would be but one
heart in this country ; and God Almighty grant that it
might be so ! But if this should be so, we should hear no
more of these extraordinary terrors of war on the part of the
gentleman from South Carolina, whose course on the Texas
question had been contrasted with his position on this
question. How gallant the gentleman was at the time
' that Texas was in question was not for him to say. He did
not wish to draw any comparison between the disposition of
Members of this House for the acquisition of Texas, and the
—not acquisition but—taking our own, of Oregon. He said
if this war came—which God forbid ! and of which, by the
way, he had no apprehension whatever—he hoped the whole
country would go into it with one heart and one mighty
hand ; and if that were done he presumed the question be-
tween us and Great. Britain would not last long, neither Ore-
gon nor.any country north of this latitude would long re-
main to Great Britain. Strong as was his moral aversion to
modern war and military establishments, then, if he should
have the breaths of life at the time when the war commences,
he hoped he should be able and willing to go as far in any
sacrifice necessary to make the war successful as any Mem-
ber of this House. He could say no more. He now said, and
lie repeated, that until the notice was given to Great Britain,
he was not prepared to go, for any of the subsequent mea-
sures. He thought we might with great propriety, without
waiting for the effect of the notice, extend to our countrymen,
who are in possession of parts of that territory not claimed by
Great Britain, the laws of the count i y, and the protection of the
country in any form which may be necessary. But he saw
no necessity for an increase of the army or navy at all. He
I supposed that the measures taken after the notice would not
be of a disposition offensive to Great Britain, nor did he sup-
, pose that they would commence war upon it. But for the
occupation of the territory he did suppose some additional
force would be necessary for the army ; and, howeverunwil- ,
1 ling lie was ever to give his vote for the increase of the
mili-
tary forces of the country, he thought he should overcome
on the appearance on
, the difficulties in the way, especially