The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1845-08-19
THE aNATIoNAL INTELLIGENCERn AND
THE "MExIcAN question" ONCE
MORE

MohE-
We assure the editor Of the National Intelligencer
that we have no desire TO "de6ne [his] position in
regard to the Mexican question" Such task Is
beyond our capacity to accomplish. II would be
something like the boys attempting to catch the
rainbow. Vain effort No sooner is the boy per-
susded that he is near the object of his Wishes than
it seems to recede to greater distance, and con-
stantly eludes his grasp. How could we, indeed,
expect to define his position, when he does not
seem to understand it himself' AT first, the Ma
tonal Intelligencer assumed strong ground-the
more remarkable, because il was in favor Of our
own country, and not Of any foreign power. He
declared, in the generous impulse of the moment,
sentiment, for which we were the first, and happy
too, to give him due honor:
Let Us here however, sdd-for we win justify gladly
the military aid to Texas for deen
vs .r she shall have accepted the terms Of an
that shall BY acquired not merely the
s. on sSeS snSny %sns, SM s,a ana Ins S
sfatssS
ana now, what has become Of the generous
chivairy with which 1t commenced the campaign
All Its ne public spirit seems, like the Courage Of
Bob Acres, to have oozed out at its fingers ends"
II has already given way, so far as to be willing to
abandon all the territory west OF the Nueces to the
invading Mexicans. The Nueces' Unqueshona-
bly,. Because It quotes an authority, which, ne
says, fully Justies us Che editor OF the Ma
tiona lntelligencer'o in regarding the constitutional
operations of the Executive as confined to the ter
rtory east ofme .N''ecess The "inteilgencer' thus
shows ITS chivary m yielding, at the hrst blast Of
the Mexican trumpet the whole country west ofthe
Nueces to the Rio del Norte, certainly; the direct
possession OF that whole territory to the arms Of
Mexico. II begins by abandoning to the Next
cans, anu a'so W 'he savage Cuhahchcs, this
large range 81 errAory' ior inc ehcaihPmen'
OF the one anu uie huhung-grounds OF tne
other. Here they may not only annoy the few
Iexians VINO are scattered upon II, out mere, TOO,
they may rally their forces, ana prepare Their
means Tor annoying, ana plundering, and de-
sToying the inhapitants on lhe eastern settlemens
Inc "Nauonai inteligencer" Is prepared 70 give
the Mexicahs the iuii possession o. this terEtory-
thus giving Mexico the advantage IN any negotia-
tonwhich may take place for the future settlement
OF the boundaries between Texas and herself. The
inteliigencer would put the whoie line OF the Rio
Grande IN the bands OF Mexico, 20 DC held until she
may surrender II, after protracted negotiation and
on the payment OF heavy equivalent or she con-
tnues TO hold IT. we lose the beneht OF establishing
mucn better boundary than the Nueces--better
calculated 70 protect us aganst the Mexicans them
selves well as against the Cumanches Such rs the
FIRST step which the accommodating disposition ofthe
National inteligencer has taken. Perhaps Its next
impulse to obllge the Mexicans VIII be TO retreat to
the San Antonio; and the next, It may be, TO the
Colorado How much further It may ultimately
modify its first manly position, we are unable to
conjecture
We can as little reconcile this recession of our
boundary to its intermediate as to its first position
In attempting TO back out, the lntegencer seized
)upon the ground that the President had no right to
protect territory within The 'setlled limits Of the
Mexican population The Intelligencer, indeed,
attempted to stretch The rule so as to regard the
whole Of an extensive territory as belonging to the
Mexicans, because there happened to be a ts,o Mer-
icms scattered at remoter points oft. This appli-
cation Of the rule, however, is ridiculous. But, il
f'rictly applied it would have kept off our troops
from one or two points alone. "The settled Hmits'
were not the Nueces, because the Mexicans had
not settled up to that river In fact the rule laid
down by the National Intelligencer, and proper
III applied, would exclude us but from a very
incensiderable portion Of the banks of the Rio
Grande We are assured, by our correspondent
D., (who is famiiar with the country } that there
are only few small buildings at Brazos Santiago on
the lagoon, about twenty miles from the mouth Of the
river; and that, until You ascend Fria Cristobal
near eight hundred miles from the mouth there is
no Mexican settlement that this is very sparse one;
and that there scarcely Mexican to the OF the
Nueces, and these participate in the election Of the
Texan members to Congress and the convention.
Why, then, should we be prohibited from marching
to the Rio Grande when in that immense tract Of
country there are no posts no stationary troops and
scarcely settlement in hundreds of miles to stay
our progressi The second rule, therefore, as laid
down by fbt 1ntegcncer, and properly applied,
would limit 10 d yery small degree the actual and
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