The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-03-24 00:00:00

ave advisedly chosen
Lord PALMERS'

)11 moved for copies of all communica-

•••••••10 IT 1.”.... a.......... -.lkea place between the governments or
plenipotentiaries of Great Britain and of the United States
with reference to the treaty signed at Washington the 9th
day of August, 1842, and to the negotiations which led to
• ..• ____ ..._

or extracts of all communications on
Same subjects between her Majesty's Secretary of State
for Foreign Affairs and Lord Ashburton. Various opinions,
he said, were entertained of this treaty, but as a bargain no
thought it advantageous for Oat country, while many.
was one of the number, thought it a bad one, and
of blame. The first disputed point arising from
1783, which was the St. Croix, there being
of that name. The second disputed
" the highlands," the British
" the St. John, while the
St. Lawrence.

that treaty

and co

re near the

WU),
also arose as to the meaning of the
e Americans contendinkthat it was

by geometric
tion. The King
British nor Or

.Ifixed upon an intermediate
the British governmet England.
al-
Ty disadvantageous to g
,ed States rejected the decision,
ed to them that Great Britain
;r. The British claim was

instead of by astro-
Netherlands decided

,can lines met the

782, and

Df the I

St. John falling into the
c river according to the terms
en determined in favour of
Netherlands; and although
~act refused to re-open the question,
.-.equently agreed that a convention should be
_..ied to re-investigate and decide upon the disputed
aoundary. The proposition, however, that the state of
Maine should appoint commissioners to be associated with
roissioners was rejected by the British go-
;ad of continuing to rest on the justice of
the Americans were perfectly aware were
corroborated by the reports of the British commissioners,
Colonel Mudge and IVIr. Featherstonhugh, and conducting
the negotiations through the ordinary channel of our am-
'-- at Washington, a special mission was appointed,
was so far disadvantageous, because
omp
a
thus going out with great parade and p
would feel a natural reluctance to return without doing some-
thing. With respect to the person selected for this negotia-
tion—Lord Ashburton, be wished to speak of him with all
consideration for his private virtues ; but he laboured under
great disadvantages in being connected with America, and in
being wholly unacquainted with diplomacy. When Lord
Webster
Ashburton arrived in America he was met by Mr.
with the demand of " What proposal he
eous po had c mesitio oto make
e
" thus at once taking an advantag
which the British negotiator was ultimately
checkmated.
Lord Ashburton made his proposal, but he was skilfully
one co
played with ; the Americans obtaining concession after
another, until the noble lord was at last brought to a stand-
still by having nothing more to concede. The negotiation
was to have been conducted on the principle of mutual con-
still
and mutual equivalents; but Lord Ashburton flung
down his bag of concessions at once, which Mr. Webster
eagerly took up with a profusion of thanks ; and when Lord
Ashburton subsequently asked for concessions on the part of
America, he had no equivalents ' '''-r, for he had given
lord then con-

Bay of

aims which

as an Ada

to °fit.
them away in the first instance. The noble. -
tended that all our foreign transactions, since. the present
government had come into power, were a continual sliding
backward from the position which this country had taken
with respect to the abolition of the slave trade. The first
step back had been in the non-ratification of the treaty with
France; the second, the treaty with America ;the third, the
letter written relative to the burning of the baracoons on the
coast of Africa, which was conceived to be, be believed
erroneously, a recinding of the former orders up the sub-
ject of these baracoons. The nest step ba onck was in the
ord As
correspondence between Mr. Webst and Lhbtart?n,
erhe course
relative to the case of the Creole, in t of which
Lord Ashburton seemed to admit that sltives on board.Amed-
rican ships, even in British ports, were not to he considered
in any other light than as stand still upon American territory.
otwithstanding, however, all the concessions that. haq been
made, Lord Ashburton was told that all questions in dispute
had not been settled, and as if to prove this a bill had since.
been presented to congress with which,ew to take immediate
possession of the Oregon territory, if it Passed, would
be tantamount to a declaration of war against this country.
Sir R. PEEL said that the noble lord had occupied upwards
of three hours in endeavouring to show that government bad
acted unwisely in the selection of the plenipotentiary sent to
America to bring to a close a negotiation which had lasted
upwards of twenty-five years, and that the whole of that ne-
gotiation was badly managed. He, in short, denounced the
treaty and all concerned with it, and then concluded with a
motion for papers which he knew it was impossible for go-
vernment to produce. Had he been open and manly enough
to move for a vote of censure he would have met it with an
amendment, and the house could then have decided whether
uch censure was fairly attributable to any party. The course
followed was unworthy of one of the leaders of a great party
that house, for he might have even moved to confirm the
aty and condemn the parties who had made it.
step
He
ied that the treaty with America was any
retrograde
ectii olition of the slave trade. On then
f contrary,
americans nad undertaken to keep up a cer.ta the slave
iorce on
oast of Africa for the purpose of suppressing
—a step in advance considerably greater than any which
government d been able to induce the American
~-, adop t.ha The refusal of the French to ratify
to be attributed to the noble
d toe feeling of the French against
in the coast of Syria, and who had
•0 the very verge of war. With

treaty and condemn

the lat,

3g the a,l3'

rn men

lord, who had el!

d, was

Q to the destruction of the barra-

respect to the letter refer
,

t the principles of

al law, b

;(3 to t

end to th
limiis of

defeat their own obj

by treatir

)ulatlo

t :Altogether
at

Lord Ashburton
at home, but /

laid down the
!soaping into Brit
f. there was no w

genera
territoi

it was

ayes to takt advantage of

ery poir

led, and

Lord .Ashburto

weep the

r so iong

'estering

The American govern

so to a conclusion it na

perhaps
)usies and
rod. The

uestion

upon which s

constantly on I
decided upon s,

k as 18:55, taut nown to
eauently Lord Ashburto.

n a ques

ing to the convenience and
treed to by both as the most

chief object was at

for that purpose they
issioner to the United

States—a gentleman certainly not so skilled in protocols as
the noble lord, but who bad, nevertheless,_brought this

difficult subject to a satisfactory conclusion. The noble lord
(Palmerston) had proposed to have three scientific com-
missioners chosen by the Kings of Prussia, Sardinia, and
Sicily, to settle this boundary ; but Mr. Fox exclaimed
and Mr. Featherston-

_ ropc
haugh had also said thit such a commission would last eig
.. ~

so extraordinar

or ten years, in which case the expense of the commiss
would be far greater than the value of the territory in c

r all the c

•cumstances

to tak,

'bile tl:

,nsiderable I

and for

strip a,