The Arkansas banner., 1845-12-24

American government that the said install mens have been paid by the Mexican govern ment 10 the agent appointed by the U. s. to receive the same, in such manner as to dis charge all claim on the Mexican government and said agent to be delinquent in remitting the money to the United States."-
 The unsettled state of our relations with Mexico has involved this subject in much mystery. The first information, in an aulhen- tic form, from the agent of the U. S, appoint ed under the administration of my predeces- sor, was received, al the State Department on the 9th, of Nov last. This is contained in a letter dated the Eth of October last, ad- dressed by him 10 one Of our citizens then in Mexico, with the view of having it com municated to that department. From this 1t appears, that the agent on the 20th of Sept, l644, gave receipt 10 the treasury of Mexi- co, for the amount of the April and July in sialments of the indemnity. In the same communication, however, he asserts that he had not received a single dollar in cash; but that he holds such securities as warranted him at the time in giving ihe receipts, aad entertains no doubt but that he will eventual ly obtain the money.
 As these insIalments appear, never to have been actually paid by the government of Mexico to the agent, and as that government has not therefore been released so as to dis charge the claim, 1 do not feel myself war ranted in directing payment to be made to the claimants out of tic Treasury, without further legislation Their case is, undoubt- edly, one of much hatdship, and il remains for Congress to decile whether any, and what relief ought to be granted to them. Our Minister to Mexico has been instructed to ascertain the facts of the case from the Mexican government, in an authentic and of fieial form, and report the result with as lit tie delay as possible.
 My attention was early directed to the ne- gotiation which, on the 4th day of March, last, Hound pending at Washington, between the United States and Great Britain, on the subject of the Oregon territory. Three sev- eral attempts had been previously made to settle the question in dispute between the two countries, by negotiation, upon the prin- ciples of compromise; but each had proved unsuccessful
 These negotiations look place in London, in the years ISIS, l824, and 1926; the two first under the administration of Mir. Monroe, and the last under that of Mir. Adams. The negotiation of ISIS having failed to accom- plish it's object, resulted ill the convention of the 20th oi Oct, of tfet year. By the third article of that convention, 1t was ''agreed that any country that may be claimed by either party on the northwest coast of America. .t. NJ eloI1 gethef with its harbors, bays, and creeks, and the navigation of all rivers within the same. be free and open for the term of ten years from the date of the signature of the present convention, to the vessels, citizens and sub jects of the two powers; it being well under stood that this agreement is not to be con strned to the prejudice of any claim which either of the two high contracting parties may have to any part of the sad country, nor shall 1t be taken to effect the claims of any other power or State to any part of the said coun- try; the only object of the high contracting parties in that respect being to prevent dis putes and differences among themselves"
 The negotiation of 1924 was productive of no result, and the convention of ISIS was left unchanged.
 The negotiation of 1926, having also failed to effect an adjustment of compromise, re- suited in the convention of August the 9th, 1927, by which it was ag eed to continue in force, for an indefinite period, the provisions of the third article of the convention of the 20lh of Oct, 1918; and it was further pro- vded, that cit shall be competent, however. to either of the contracting parties, ill case either should think fl, at any lime after the 20lh of October, 1928, on giving due notice of twelve months to the other contracting party, to annul and abrogate this convention; and il shall, in such case, be accordingly en- tirely annulled and abrogated after the exPi- ration of the said term of notice.7 In these attempts to adjust the controversy, the paral- Tel o the 18th degree of north latitude had been offered by the U. s. to Great Britain, and in those of ISIS and lS26, with further concession of the free navigation of the Co inmbia river south of that latitude. The pa- raIlel of the 49th degree, from the Rocky Mountain to it's intersection with the north ernmost branch of the Columbia, and thence down the channel of that river to the sea- had been offered by Great Britain, with an addition of a small detached territory north of tie Columbia. Each of these propositions had been rejected by the parties respectively
 Ins October, lS43 the Envoy Exlraordiary and Minister PIenipotentiary of the U. States
 in London was authorized 10 make similar offer to those made in ISIS and 1926. Thus stood the question, when the negotiation was shortly afterwards transferred to Wash
 ngton; and, on the 23rd of August, lS44 was formally opened under the direction ol my immediate predecessor. Like all the previous negotiations, 1t was based upon prln- eiples of .scompromise," and the avowed ob- iect. of the parties was, to s'trea of the respcc- tive claims of the two countries to the Ore gon territory, with the view to establish a permanent boundary between them westward of the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific ocean," Accordingly, on the twenty sixth of August, lS44, the British plenipotentary offered to divide the Oregon territory by the torty-nnth parallel of north latitude. from the Rocky Mountains on the point of its intersection with the north-easternmos branch of the Columbia river. and thence down that river to the sea; leaving the free navigation of the river to be enjoyed In com mon by both parties-the country south oi this line to belong to the United States, and that north of il 10 Great Britain At the same time, he proposed, in addition; to yield to the U. States q detached territory, north of the Columbia, extending along the Pacific and