Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1846-10-15
NEW MEXICO.

The conquest Of this province Of the Mexican
Republic, and its formal annexation to the United
States, by Gen. KEARNEY, very naturally, as il is
an event 50 unexpected, gives rise to the inquiry in
the public mind, what is it worth, and how is it
likely to profit us2 The following extract of 3
letter from an officer of the Army, connected with
the expedition, which we find in the National In
telligencer, and which is addressed 10 the editors
seems to have been written as if in anticipation of
such an inquiry, from the known calculating habit
OF our people. 1t does not strike us as being much
OF speculation either regards its lands or lis
people.
AS we may now call this country part of the
United States. it may be well to inquire what adj
vantage Is likely to accrue to the United States If
any advantage, 1t is not revealed to us short sighted
mortaIs now IN the country for of all the country
we nave passed over, there is not one acre in
million susceptible Of cultivation. Only the mar
row strips of land in the river bottoms can be cuIt
waited, and these only by irrigation The country
can scarcely be made to produce enough for the sub
sstence of its inhabitants. As to horses tey have
to depend entirely upon pasturage. We have not
been able to get one grain of corn for our horses.
The whole province could not turn out n hundred
bushels at this time. The Mexicans have an i'm
mense number Of sheep and goats and these focks
constitute their whole wealth, and on them thew
chiefly depend for subsistence. The people are n
bout as tar advanced in civilization as the Chero
KEGS perhaps the proportion who can read and
write is not so great"
In addition to the foregoing, we observe that the
ST. Louis Union says that all its correspondents de-
scribe the country Gas being extremely poor, and
not well adapted to agricultural pursuits We
make the extract below from the letter of one of
them: @
''ln my opinion the whole country, from the
Crossing of the Arkansas to this place is not worth
what it has cost the Government to march the
troops here. No man who has not visited this re-
gon can form any idea Of the character of the coun
try. Never has nation been SO completely hum
plugged about any thing as the United States have
been about this province. | am candidy of the o.
pnion that General Kearney would do his country
much service by abandoning the expedition and re-
turning to the United States. j am fully persuaded
that, if the President and Congress knew as much
about the state of things here as we do, no effort
would have been made to acquire it. have disco
vered that every man we have met OF seen since
we left the States has exaggerated the accounts of
this country. Ii appears that there is something in
the atmosphere that creates propensity to lie.
would therefore advise you to pay no attention
to what you may learn from those who have
have visited this city OF the mountains. Before
we reached here there were two places where
we expected fight There were gaps in the
mountains where five hundred we-dsciplined
troops could have successfully resisted five thous
and yet no effort was made to stop us. The last
place where we expected the enemy we discovered
that some preparations had been made for defence
but, In consequence of the dissatisfaction amongst
the troops of Armijo, the whole had been abandon
ed Armijo left the city about thirty hours be-
fore our arrival, and has been moving towards the
South with all dispatch ever since"