Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1846-03-21
THE OREGON QUESTION.
IN sENATE-M.ncu le. 1916.


The Senate having proceeded the consideration of the
special order being the Joint resolution of the Committee
Foreign Relations proposing TO give notice TO Great Britain
of the intention Of this Government to annul the treaty for the
Joint occupation Of the Oregon territory and the resolutions
Messrs HANSEs.S CALHOUN, CRITTESDEN, and CoLaUIrr
having relation to the same subject
Mr.. CALHOUN being entitled to the floor rose and ad
dressed the Senate very nearly follows
The question under order for discussion is whether
notice shall be given Great britain that the convention
occupancy between and Der shall terminate end
of the year. To that question shall confne my remarks
limiting them to that and to the questions Immediately
nected with it. shall say nothing in regard TO the title to
Oregon. Having been personally connected with previous
negotiations which that question wasconcened, it will be
by all that is proper that should pass il by without
notice. shall abstain from every thing of personal cha
racter, and from every thing calculated wound the feelings
Of any gentleman but the time shall express my
self freely fully and candidy all the subjects which
shall consider my duty touch With these few predatory
remarks shall proceed at TO the question of notice.
There point which all be agreed and that
that great change has taken place since the
ment OF the session in the importance Of this question: and in
its bearing upon peace and AT that time, this
of notice of the greatest and weighty importance,
involving did the question whether peace with Great
Britain should should not continue. Now, has become
of comparatively minor Importance and be decided
either way without exeng decisive effect those
important interests So great, indeed this change, that the
very which urged in the Executive message
support of the recommendation that notice shall be given, have
longer their application The bearings both of the
Of it, entirely altered. That the Executive recommends
terminate the notice is founded the conviction that
pending such notice, there be compromise of
difficulties the Oregon question, must be, Think admitted
all sides Indeed, the language of the message explicit
TO that effect II expresses the Presidents conviction that
compromise could be effected which ought accept
announces to that he made to the British commissioner
offer Of the parallel Of 49o but that that offer having been
rejected, he ordered that should be Immediately withdrawn
And that conviction he recommends Congress the
passage Of this notice, with view the removal Of all i'm
pednents TO the assertion Of right to the whole Of the
Oregon territory. Assuming that there would be compro-
MISE the President tells that the expiration of twelve
months aperod will have arrived when title that coun-
try must either be abandoned firmly maintained Through
out the whole message there is not the slightest ntmation
that compromise expected but the contrary, the
entire document assumes the opposite view.
Yet admit that the grounds which the President bases
this his conviction, derived from the negotiation ITSELF
mainly from the fact that his offer Of compromise on ago
rejected. admit that, proceeding on that foundation il
is fair inference that if England shall on her part
the proposition which, when made ours she rejected there
would be no impedment in the way to its acceptance the
same time the President nmates not the slightest expecta
zion that such offer will be made her part, that any
| compromise will be effected.
Such is the view which have been constrained to take
after the most careful examination which have been able
give the message Of the President and II may draw am in
ference from the opinions Of those members of the Senate who
believe in the soundness Of title 10 the whole territory
they in this view Indeed the grounds which they
place themselves will admit Of their supporting the notice
II
because they assert that title TO the whole territory,
up $40 40, is clear and unquesonable and they
think il better that should that title by than
abandon any part portion Of it, Hence il manifest
that if they thought the notice could possibly result in
promise, they would vote against il.
And this view which take Of the message, and in which
these gentlemen concur, is believe the entertained
by the country large Certainly il Is, IL draw
conclusions from the general of the public press
if look at what is, perhaps still better index Of
public olnion-the of intelligent business
for the reception of the message had the decided effect
upon the public stocks No It's language heard
than insurance Immediately rose and vessels returned
from their foreign voyages instead of their being sent out
again sea, they suffered remain inactive at the
wharvcs.
Senate-among which consider myself incIuded-and
who opposed to the giving Of this notice They opposed
grounds directly the Of those which these gem
emen advocated it. Those who advocated the notice did
they believed there would be compromise and could
be none We opposed TO the notice. because did
not agree with them in that opinion We believed, the
contrary, that compromise might be effected and
ground assumed TO which both nations would agree We did
not think that the American title 10 the whole of Oregon to
DC so perfectly clear 10 be ndsputab We held that The
e o. neither nation to the whole country perfect and
therefore, we could not and did believe that power
wi ana enlightened nations, such Britain and the
ed STATES would go to question: 40 long as
wa could by possibility be honoraly and properly avoided
was he view Of all who opposed the giving of notice nj
~ w "ished 10 give 10 both parties in this contro-