The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1846-04-23
CoNGREs AL.
REMARKS OF MR.. PENNYBACKER,


OF VIRGINIA,
In Senate, Thursday, April l6, Is46-0n the Ore
... . gon question.
Mr.. PENNYBACKER rose and said he would
detan the Senate but very few moments, his OBJ
Jeet ~ rising was simply 10 explain the grounds OF
the vote he should be called upon TO give.
| IL may be remembered by the Senate (said Mr..
P.) that on the celebrated Thursday" of which the
senator from Arkansas Mr.. SEuERl spoke week
or two ago, he (Mr P.) had made some remarks
which indicated the views he then entertained of the
subject before the Senate He had stated il 10 be
his purpose 10 vote for the notice. and he went for
t az a meals Of promoting negotiation and settle
ment OF the question. Before he had brought him
self TO that determination he had necessarily con-
sidered whether the giving Of the notice would be
productive Of the results which he had anticipated
from IL; and he had satisfied himself II probably
would. He sas aware that the President had ex-
pressed the opinion that no compromise which the
United States ought 10 accept could be effected
but still he (Mr. had entertained the belief that
tho matter might ye, be houorabiy adjusted II had
never entered into his head for solitary moment
that, If the British goyornmoat should propose TO
settle the matter upon something like the terms
which the Presdent had offered the question might
not yet still be 90 ad listed On the occasion alluded
TO he had assigned very briefly Of the reasons
for the belief entertained In the letter of Mr. Blu
chanan, in which he had demonstrated, the
President had supposed he had demonstrated, the
title Of country to the whole Of the territory
in that very letter the proposition was made to
lcompromIse at the 49th parallel Of latitude Ii is
true II was said the President had made the offer in
Difference alone TO what had been done by his pre-
decessors in Office but still the offer was made by
the President, and the cause of the offer had not
ceased TO exist In the concluding paragraph, also, of
the letter Of the Secretary Of Stale, in which the
proposition 10 compromise al the 49th parallel of
altitude was Withdrawn by the President, the hope
INUas he inc
might yet be adjusted in such manner not TO dis
turb interrupt the peace or the harmony then
happily subslstIng between the two nations In the
letter also IN which the proposal 10 arbltrate
declined by our government, II was emphatlcaly
said IL not in words, in substance al least, that
there necessity for referring to arbitration;
that two such governments as the United States and
Great Britain, bound together by such ties of COM
merce, ought To he able aud ought be willing to
settle their own differences without resoning TO
btrauon; ay, and TO do each other Justice, too. IT.
them the President should have an opportunity TO
settle the question he had proposed TO do, would
not the Difference which was due to his predeces-
sors-nay would not the respect which he owed to
hmself-require him TO take what he had offered TO
givel Then how could the hope be entertained by
the President that the longpending controversy be-
tween the two governments in regard to the terrific
ry might yet be adjusted without disturbing the
peace interrupting the harmony 30 happily SUBJ
sistng between the two nations-I1s insisting upon
having The phOe Of The country, and yielding nothing
10 Great Britain ichaterer? How could it be expect
ed that the two nations ought to able and willing
! 70 do each other Justice, and that too without
resorting to arbitration, the taking all, and the
other receiving none, For these reasons Mr. p.
had been of opinion, on the occasion alluded to,
that if an opportunity should be afforded the Presl
dept to accept what he had in good faith offered he
would yet be bound to take II, though the title had
been asserted TO the whole Of the territory And
hxs,u still fbe Of Mr. NV uh nj
did the President say in his message Listen to his
language: .....,.
made m aesesnce what had by my pre-
decessors and the implied obligation which their acts
promise which the United States ought accept Gag be- e
iected With this conviction the proposition of compro
mise which had been made snd sIscted by my dec-
ton, subsequently withdrawn, and title to the whole
Oregon territory asserted and believed maintained by
irrefragable facts and arguments.
| Mr.. z. would pray senators TO mark that lam
guage. The extraordinary and iDhOLg inddnissbie
demaads of the British government, and the reiec.
tor, Of the proposition made alone IN Difference to what
had been done by my predecessors, afford Sutistac-
tory eridence that no compromise which the United
States ought to accept can be effected. Win this
conviction, the proposition Of compromise which
had been made and rejected was, by my direction,
subsequently Withdrawn, and our title to the whole
of the Oregon territory asserted DC. Now, ask
the question: (said Mr. P.,) if the British minister
|
government at home would be willing TO settle the
matter on the terms proposed by the President, or
on something like the terms proposed by him,
whether the demands of the British government
would any longer, in the opinion of the President,
be considered "extraordinary" and "wholy mad
missible" and whether the rejected propositions"
now returned upon the President himself, would
''aford satisfactory evidence" that no compromise
which the United States ought to accept could be
effected Would there be conviction" on the
mind of the President, in the altered state of the
question, that no compromise which the United
States ought to accept could ever be effected If
not, would he not be willing that the proposition of
compromise which he had submitted Nigh still be
considered as pending for the purpose of further
negotiations-and, on the suggestion he (Mr.P) had
supposed the British minister to make, would not
the President withdraw his withdrawal of compro-
mise, and reinstate what had originally been pro-
posed? 1t appeared to him (said Mr.. P) that
something Of that sort would necessarily and inevi-
tably take place.
But the senator from Georgia Mr.. BERRIEN
thinks that this is not sound reasoning. In his
ply portion of the remarks of the senator from
South Carolina, Mr.. CALHOUN, who glanced very
slightly at the view of the subject, the senator
from Georgia said that the distinguished senator
from South Carolina had not been as logical in that
part of his speech as he usually was. How
the senator illogical in his speech If the facts
should change, would not the opinion changei If
|
the opinion itself ceasei Cessante ca,sa, csssat If
Jsctus: not that logicaR Mr. P. conceived it
| to be the very essence Of sound reasoning. And he
submitted it to senators to know whether 1t was
right or prsper-nay, whether it was fair---to hold
the President bound to opinion expressed upon
certain state of facts, when the facts themselves
might afterwards be changed in important and es-
sential particulars.
But suppose (said Mr.. P that the President of
the United States should not feel inclined himself to
aette the question on the terms which he had pro-
posed: think you, sir, if his own proposition should
be returned upon him by the British minister, he
would not consult the Senate Think you, sir, that
he would take upon himself the responsibility of re-
iecting his own proposition, and thereby incur the
immense responsibility of assuming upon himself
the question of peace or war; Would he not con-
suit his constitutional advisers, the great executive
council of the nation, which had been erected by
the constitution for purposes like these Who could
doubt III asked Mr.. P) And if he should consult
the Senate, did any doubt what the advice would
be- The senator from Mississippi [Mr. CHALMERS
had said that four-ffhs of the Senate would be will
IL n. u ~. n