The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1806-08-15

which, II was conceded on all hsuds,, wa 'iligh-
w defirsble 70 us YET, what rneafnres had we
taken, or did we ,rcpofe totake, for the refu-
al, on the part OF Spain, ." rdfifr Der fo1q'en-
hon suif5 m,fgnea by b-r osvn aiiriqer nSder
TIE eye Of BIS yo7,eyeien, bie.igiag her TO make
eo,ate1sat;oH fer. sboiiahoai committed upon or
fommeree during a preceding soar 10 iaaenh
nii or eiig;ea5 Tar tie re,,eSvai ofte same prac
fiee5, ALREADY of greaf amognt, d;rig TIE present
srar /: for IRE sbPrutlfon of tie ntpig1fion oftbe
Mobile; far rsti.fng to come 10 any fair ard a.
Nmieab!e adyx7aeuf oftbe boundaries ot'Lonifann
and jor a d,sriRg pioiatioa 5g oeySozJ ading nu-
der tie oufbsrify of Spain and no doubt aboriSsd
I fiber Jenii1,ents and a,ieQv,, Of our mdiJ5ated
limits, aV6icb ne bad eolemriy recognized by tyea-
IT," NoNE The denial of the ftipulated com
penfation for the fnoliatious of former war :;
the reiteration of the fame practices during the
preent the obfruclion OF the Mobile; the
perenptory ,efufalto adult the boundaries of
Louiiiana +; the infuts committed on our ter
ritory, and the violation of the property and
| perfons of our citizens within our acknowledge
| ed limits all fcemed forgotten, in the zealto
purchafc Florida, thrown with the national
| purfe into the icale. :"
| The bill nevertheless pafled by great majo-
rity. a motion was then made tn tranfpit, By
| 2 committee, the following mefiase to the fe-
| nate:
"By the houie of Representatives, January
9th SOC.
| Gentlemen Of the senate.
We tranfnit you hill which has pafIsi
this houfe entitled &C an aet making provifion
for drfraying any extraordinary expenses at
| tending the intercourse between the U. S. and
| foreign nations" and in which we require Your
concurrence. This bill has been paf1ed by us
to enable the PRECEDENT of the u. S. to COM
mence, with more effect, negotiation for the
/ purchafe fthe Spapiih territories lying on the
| Atlantic ocean, and Gulph of Mexico, and eaf-
ward of the river MiiiiiEppi. The nature and
importance of the meafure contemplated have
/ induced us 70 act upon the fubiect with clofed
doors. You will of coniequencc, coniider this
communication as confidential" MIR. J. Ran
dolph then moved to frike out thcwor r;1-r
Mi6;1Tppi,' and to infert Z" bay ofPerdido' up
on this ground-.hat the country between the
I MfIifippi & the Perdido was in difpute between
the U. States and Spain, being part of Louda
ma. "fuch as it was as po1eftd by France"
and conveyed by the treaty OF Paris of the 3oth
in quetion (embracing both banks of the Mo-
billie, and out of which all our differences with
, Spain, on the fubiect of boundary on this fide
of the Miiiiffippi, had growu,) the Executive
had advanced, what they deemed, an undoubt-
ed claim. Upon this claim congrefs had
already legillated, having paifed law, erect
> ing the flores and waters of the river Mo-
|
deemed, that the authorizing the PRECEDENT TO
purchafc that portion of the country would,
not only be compromitment of the national
: homer, but might fairly be con6dered as fur
render on our part of all pretenlion TO The dif.
puted territory. This motion, however, was
. neeatived-Yeas 59,-Nays So. 1t is perhaps
!. worthy of remembrance, that, on this, as on
u Mot of the other queltions arng ont of this
u fuhieft, many OF the waraleR advoc ates of the
mo I -.
I, ty. (See the fecret journal, Gnce publihei,
= page So Bat, to the mefagc lief, as we'll as
to The general courfe of proceeding, this frong,
and, (as 1t IS r:s!umed) unanfwcrable objection
was taken THAT the direction which the
: boufe OF REPRESENTATIVES had choten to purfue
vas 70 be prefcribe,, not to the fena,e, but To
:. the PRECEDENT and that it would be impoiIible
. Tor the Executive, even with the ingenuity OF
= Rdipus himfef, to divine, froma mefrage to the
= fenaFe, what was the real ntenti:,r of the Re.
: prrientatIves of the people: that this mefIagc
y was Mt tc he announced &c h::. ~. =.
: other branch of the Legislature, and that, event
" It were, his duty was to execute the laws
t which thould be enacted, and which coulc
n not be enlarged, refrained, or modified If
e any degree whatfoever, by any rei1age from
c one hou!e of congreis TO the other: and tn,
e appropriation being for any Indefinite mr.
J iPo!s Of extraorainary foreign interconrE, anc
- wv 'if'iC, 'u consequence Oh any lntiUlatiOn, "
n recommendation from the prefdeDt, he muf
IS be Prefumed TO he totally in the dark, at =
l. t6e fcret zviDsJ" ofthe fenate and haufe of II.
d prefentatves, and to be incapable of interim,
n the Intentions of the Legislature from any thin
: but the context of the law itf=lf: mach lel
. ihould he be deemed refponible for the sxecn
J. ton OF plans, of which by the general maxim
q OF legi1a'ion, as well as by the known princi
:, pies OF the contribution, he rnun be fnppofed It
tie altogether ignorant. AS have fad howe
l. YER. this, with every other difficulty that cou
20 not be folyed, was overruIed and on Thur
j. day the 10th of January, the enarofferi bill
y with the meiiage, above recited, was tranfnit
IL ted to the fenate. On the day following whe
% the bill was no longerin the poH-fion of tn
rs houe, or under its control, the difpatches ror
n our minifter at London, of the 18th and 25t
Ie OF October, 1905, which had been four week
'e lying in the office Of he fecretary, were laid be
Y fore the houfe. Thofe difpatches which had
mott important bearing upon our Spanilh rel,
n tiona, which had occupied the attention OF tn
q Houie OF representatives for nearly three pre-
" ceding weeks. during which their doors wer
: clofed, produced an instantaneous conyiaio
PC on the minds of MANY, the bef informed an
% mott influential members of the houfe, who IN
Z hitherto voted with the majority, THAI In
!" courte which they had purified was wrong ,
'e feeble inlinua'ion was indeed made bv certai