Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1845-02-01
THE FOREIGN POLICY OF THE U. STATES

THE FOREIGN POLICY OF THE U. STATES,
That our country is at this moment in position
OF imminent peril, through the proposed action Of
Congress in regard to Texas no man in his senses
can deny. That we may escape it through the
wisdom OF the Senator survive it through the
providence Of Cod should that body give its sane
ton to the measure presented to it by the House Of
Representatives, are far from despairing Yet
can we not reconcile to our sense Of its mere mag
nitude the levity discoverable in the actions and
language OF most of our contemporaries who sup
port it, With them Texas seems to be considered
as a rich boon which we have only to put forth
hand dseize; its acquisition wedding garment
which we have but to don, and straightway sit
down to sumpnous feast To us, this wedding
garment is the shirt of Nessus; coveted in the
prospect, but pregnant with disease, dangerous un-
doubleday, and possibly fatal, to political con-
stitution.
| In this view of the Texas project, we refer to
il, of course, iii its present shape, measure be-
yond the constitutional competency of Congress,
the consummaion of which will be effected, if at
all, through wide breach in the Constitution to
which we are indebted, as people, for all the
blessings and all the exemptions from evil that we
enjoy. Of the value Of these blessings and these
exemptions, which we are invited rashly to put at
hazard, no more striking illustration could be pre-
scented than is furnished by the living and actually
present examples of the Republics south of US
even Of that one of them nearest to us--at this
moment in convulsion, its soil reeking with blood
Of civil war. Too soon may such be our fate
also, il, regardless of the lessons of experience,
we suffer our foreign policy to yield to every i'm
pulse of the moment even to the extent Of dis
membering empires, Selling upon provinces which
do not belong to us and extending our legislation
over territory as foreign to and little within
our proper sphere of government as the mountains
in the moon.
Looking beyond the great paramount objection Of
want of power in Congress to make the proposed
g annexation " of Texas, we deprecate the measure,
not merely because Of its at least apparent nconsis
tency with that public faith on the maintenance of
which materially depends the national honor, but
because it proposes an entire departure from our
protested and hitherto uniform and invariable policy
of non-interference in the affairs of foreign nations
or peoples II is now for the first time proposed to
do what WASHINGTON in his Farewell Address most
solemnly warned his countrymen never to do; that
is, to quit our own to stand foreign ground.
We are about to engage, not only without provo
cation, but without the shadow Of an excuse
the poor pretences of political necessity, human
ty, &c. being abandoned TO general contempt ant
ridicule--in war with Power with whom W,
have an existing treaty of limits, Of peace, and 0
amity which limits it is proposed to pass, which
peace to break, and which amity, in all probability
to convert into an inextinguishabe enmity. We
are about by force, moreover, to take possession
territory to which it is as absurd TO say that we
can acquire any right title by act of Congress
| as it would be to say that man may become pos
SCISSOR of his neighbours farm because he coves it.
And all this we are about TO do at the sacrifice OF
that good name, bereft of which zoe shall be :" poor
indeed" In comparison with that good name, of
what value were the lands OF Texas, the mines Of
Mexico, the plumber of the Word'
In the face Of objections so grave as these, it is
enough to excite ones mplacable disgust" to see
the Richmond Enquirer, the fruitful parent of alb
stractions innumerable the consructonist strict
as to dispute with Congress the exercise of pow
worthy Of respect, leaping and gambolng in its joy
at the partial success of this new claim Of power for
Congress, as though it were triumph won for the
strict constructonists instead of the Texas specua
tors and talking to "gliby' about the " Fed
eral school" and the Federal party, as though
any Federast the most latitudnaran that lived, ever
dreamt of stretching the powers Of Congress the
extent that the Enquirer itself now does when it
claims the right to seize upon foreign empires under
the clause in the Constitution which says that "ne,O
States may be admitted by the Congress into this
Union" Shade Of John Taylor of Caroline -
Spirit of /" the Resolutions of 1881" Only think of
a moment have entertained an idea so extrayagant
as that new States could be admitted into the
Union formed out of territory not at the time belong
ing to the United States TO cut this matter short,
however, and tie down the Enquirer to its own rule
of constructions we demand of the Editor to "put
his finger on the clause in the Constitution which
confers upon Congress any power whatever to le-
gslate upon foreign ground to extend the laws of
the United States over foreign lands; to march ar
mics upon them, otherwise than in the prosecution
Of lawful war to any clause in the Constitution, in
fine, authorizing the proposed legislation for Texas,
which would not authorize Congress to exercise any
power whatever within the range Of omnipotence.
If the Editor of the Enquirer can show no war
rant in the Constitution for such action we seal his
Inns at once by APPLYING to him his own test Let