Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1845-12-31
3 HON. CALEB CUsHING's
,LECTURE, ON OREGON.

SutNeCL OF SUCH uetp anu ScucIo
interest to the United States, and there
is, at the same time, none in regard to
which, Judging from the language oi
many public journals, such complete
and extraordinary Misrepresentation pre-
walls among us, as that Of Oregon. Hav-
ing been much connected with this
question myself, while in Congress, my
attention has been drawn very natural
" to the passing discussions regarding
Il. I find some persons OF opinion,
that the British title to part,or even the
whole, OF Oregon is equal-nay, suPe'
rior-to that Of the United States; al
though, as appears from official public
documents, the British government, in
its correspondence with ours, has never
pretended, but, on the contrary, had ex-
pressly and unequivocally disavowed,
title to a single acre OF ground In Ore>
gon. A respectable newspaper now
Before me, published in this State, in
which it is assumed-by ourselves at
least,-.hat great degree Of knowl-
eoge is diffused. through all classes OF
men. deliberately affirms, that, if possi-
,sble,,the British and American claims
Be eoaal north of latitude 49, yet TO the
south OF that parallel, the British claim
is clearly better than the Americans;
when the exact reverse Of this is the
=. fact. One writer argues, with perfect
selfcomplacencyr Of belief, that the es-
adjustments of the Hudson's Bay Com
panyin Oregon give title to England,
nqwithstanding the contrary is posi>
lively agreed by treaty between the
two governments, How, often it is SAID,
also, that Great Britain would willingly
compromise this question; and that the
unIeasonabIeness and obstinacy Of the
American government are, precIpltat>
ing the UnIted States into war; when,
to the contrary Of this, the United
States have, at several stages of the
controversy, made the most liberal Of
fers 10 compromise-such as to divide
the disputed territory into two equal
parts, by continuing our present boun-
dary from the Rocky Mountains 10 the
Pacific ocean, although our government
thinks we have a good title TO the
whole Of Oregon; and the British gov
ernment admits that England has no
title to any part Of it; which offers have
been most unreasonably refused by
Great Britain. am unwilling to as
cribe all these, and host OF other pre-
vailing errors on the subject, to mere
party prejudice; and | am sure they
cannot come from want Of patriotism;
but apprehend the evil to arise from
the deplorable tendency which exists
among US to copy our ideas from Eng
land; from the many popular English
ESSAYS on this question which have been
republished and widely circulated in
the United States, and from the conse.
quence that, under the insenslble inau'
ence of our want of intellectual lnde.
pendence, Americans have suffered
their judgment Of the merits OF con-
troversy between US and Great Britain
to be fixed by the interested, disingenu-
Gus, false, and, let me add, profoundly
ignorant argument Of our adversary's
press, regardless of what is said by our
own statesmen, and ofthe truth Of the
case. as exposed in the official cores.
pondence OF the two governments. And
in view of all this, feel confident there
is nothing / could say on the present
occasion more we'll timed and useful,
or, I trust, more acceptable, than brief
iy to explain the real nature and pre-.
sent state Of the Oregon question.
beg leave, in advance, to say to the
gentlemen present, that, in the discus
sion Of this question, I shall Of course
avoid all party matters to the ladies'
that-historical and diplomatic as the
subject isl trust they cannot be un.
willing to understand the merits OF a
question upon which their fathers and
husbands may one day possibly be
summoned to the battle field in de-
fence Of their country against foreign
invasion; and to all, Of either sex, that,
as l shall say nothing in this matter
which do not deem to be true, and
which | should not be free and glad te
say to an assembly Of EngIishmen,
of course cannot presume that any A.
merican will shrink from listening to q
frank but, temperate exposition OF the
rights Of the United States. .n
There is great region Of this con
tinent, washed, by the Pacific ocean, ano
bounded by the possessions Of the Mex
ican republic on the south. those Of Rus
sia on the north. and those Of the Uni
ted States and Great Britain on tht
east, which is not subjected to the law
fiji, government Of any European o.
American power. and it is the only
remaining part Of North Am,rics