The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1845-12-19
COM UNIC Ms.
For the Union
OREGON.


pie Of the United States, and especially their repre-
sentaves in Congress should be informed both in re-
ation to the climate, soil and natural and commercial
advantages Of that new but paIuable portion Of the
American domain; and | am the more fully Impress
ed with the necessity of this, from the fact that the
National intelgencer, with other kindred prints, are
laboring hard TO impress upon the people that Ore
gon is mainly barren waste, and not worth pos.
sessing by any nation. In reply to these remarks,
beg leave To state that, from nearly years resi-
dence in the Willamette valley In ls44 and lS45,
and gathering all the information from old settlers in
the Territory could obtain during that time, |
discovered it to be entirely the of what these
editors would give the people to understand in ref
erence to that country.
found the climate mild and agreeable, free from
sudden changes in the winter and summer, heard Of
no diseases prevailing, and found the soil equal to
that Of the Mississippi valley; while its commercial
advantages, from its proximity TO the Sandwich Is
lands, Russia, and China are greater than that
Of the Atlantic coast; Astounding with the best
of harbors on the north side of the Columbia
river; and the streams in that region, espe-
cially Frarer's river are skirted with the best
kind Of timber for shipsbuilding. The Intelli-
gencer of the 18th ult quotes long article from the
New York Journal of Commerce, in which the edi-
tor says at is not to be denied that the failure of
the recent negotiation and the circumstances attend
ing it (the Oregon question: have added to the COM
pcation of the affair, and rendered practicable adj
justment of it more difficult. There must be heavy
blame Of that failure somewhere; and, as at present
advised, we fear large share of 1t rests upon our
own government" And so it appears the sage-like
editor Of the journal Of Commerce "fears" that we
are to bamc" for asserting and maintaining what is
rightfully our own, to wit: the whole of Oregon;
which is ours by purchase, by exploration. and by
possession; and TO which Great Britain has not, as
yet, been able 70 substaitate even the "shadow ofa
claim" Again shut what folly for two great ma
(xa,,t
ty fair chance of being precpitated down the abyss)
just for the sake of compelling themselves to do what
they ought to be willing and desire 10 do without
compulsonl" And what would this Scion have us
dor Why yield up all the BEST PORTION of Oregon,
considering its commercial advantages, by settling
down upon the parallel Of AZ degrees; because John
Bull bristles and storms, and says he must have it
for his navy and the Pacific to conquer f possible,
not only the United States, but TO bring under sub
lection the whole civilized world.
In abiding TO the Presidents able and uneqttipocai
message he remarks, "athough his 1.-THE Presidential
offer Of the 49th degree, with the freedom of any
port in Vancouter's island south of that latitude,
has been Withdrawn; and though the negotiation in
its present shape is virtually at an end, yet we can
not suppose him so belt on ruin for himself aud his
country to be unwilling to resume the negotiation
in another FORM" We do suppose the President SO
"bent," not 'on ruin for his country" but in main
tanning her peace her honor her rights securing her
zens on the Pacific coast, scattered over that rich
and invaluable portion of the American domain, ex-
tending from the parallel of ~ degrees to 81 de-
gress 40 minutes, as not to leopard our title, clear
and settled, by further negotiation with England.
Such is James K. Polk, having the confidence OF
augura address before left,) and the hearty sup
port Of every true .4nercan from Simmons's settle
ment north of the Columbia, on the Pacific, to
Maine, on the Atlantic. ''The spirit of war" con-
tinues the editor, "must be discounenanced and de-
nounced means of redress too vile TO be adopted
by civilized nations under any circumstances, at the
present day, and least Of ALL under circumstances
like the present, when the only difference is about
strip Of poor land at the ends Of the earth" How wise
how confident this gentleman is respecting portion
of his own country which he shows by his own
writings he knows as little about as he does of the
islands in the moon.
But is it to be wondered at that the Journal OF
Commerce and National Intcgencer take this
ground in regard to the Oregon question, though a
"very foolish position" when the Louisville Jour-
nal, quoted and endorsed in the lntegencer of the
10th ult., says: at 10 only under rare auspices that
ship from the Pacific can enter the mouth of that
river, (the Columbia;) and when ship gets into it
her progress is speedily terminated by distractions
in the bed of the river. Such being the condition
of that river, is il not uaspeakably silly in Great
Britain to insist on the right to navigate it. and
speakably silly in the United States to refuse it ]"
And SO suppose the conscientious, candid Prentice
who
Nothing extenuates, sets down augh in malice"
considers the largest class of ships that regu
larly to Fort Vancouver, ninety miles up the Co
lumbia, from England, China, and Russia, always
enter "under rare auspices" and when they leave
as American vessels might, with the same exports
from the Willamette valley, laden with -four, but
ter cheese, beef. pork, and lumber for the Sand.
witch islands and Russia it is under very unfavor-
IL Al E.v (zL~
tons in the bed Of the river" What American ship
master would risk cargo of goods to supply the
wants Of American citizens at Oregon city over
them! Surely, these Constructions" are nearly
equal to the Louisville editors .feas, ticks, mus
quitoes, and pickiy pears on the "desert waste" in
crossing the Rocky mountains; but which, unfortu-
nately for him, turn out TO be akin 10 the
Irishman's flea, which, when he put his hand upon
it, was not there. Prentice and his editorial col
leagues may persuade portion of the American
people that il s 'unspeakably silly" to navigate the
broad, transparent, and deep Columbia l4O miles
but he can never persuade Great Britain that il il
such unspeakablc folly; for she already knows it,
commercial advantages too well, and has made toe
many millions of dollars by SO doing, to give it up
il she can possibly avoid it. But Mr.. Prentice may
find it more difficult than he at first imagined to con-
vince portion Of the American people that Is
very "sy" for Congress to pass an act to extend
the protecting arm Of our government over the
nearly equal in size to the Mississippi-so long a,
SO many able members of Congress, both in the
Senate and the House, go decidedly for the entire
territory of Oregon. Notwithstanding Mr.: Crit.
tenden has declared in the Senate that "hs is but
question regarding some portion Of distant, frozen
barren territory, that has been in dispute for thirty
or forty years, have more confidence" says he
Sin the WISDOM humanity, and intelligence of tn,
two governments, than to suppose 1t possible tina
out Of such cause war could arise" To which
reply, with all due Difference to the opinion of the
distinguished senator, that 81 have more conf
dence" in the present administration and the 'pro
gressve democracy" than to "suppose it possible
for our government to surrender TO the arrogance
and avarice of Great Britain what rghtfuly belong
to America, to witt the "stripn of land lying be
tween the parallel Of 40 degrees and 81 degrees &C
minutes, possessing, it Does such excellent har
bors, whale fisheries and climate not more rigor
GUS, owing to the broad expanse Of the Pacific and
the southwesierly winds, than that of Portsmouth
New Hampshire and surely such a country is no
so "frozen" as to render it not worth possessing.
CHARLES SAXTON.
WAsHNeroN, Dec. 10, lS45.