Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1846-05-21
UNITED STATES SENATE.

| During the consideration OF the War Bill IN
the U. S. Senate on Tuesday, after MIR. Hun
rINGToN had moved the striking out the pre-
amble, viz "W hereas, by the act of the Re
public of Mexico, a state OF war exists between
that Government and the United States
! Therefore''-Mr. Johnson of Md. rose and
made the following remarks:
! Mr. REvERDY JOHNSON said that, from the
first moment be had heard that the American
army was in danger, and that the honor of the
nation required It's relief, he had in his own
heart resolved that nothing he could do would
be wanting to secure the one and TO yindcate
the other and for that purpose il was deemed
necessary to place the whole physical and pc
cuniarv power of the Government at the dis
posal of the Executive, he was prepared TO do
il. In voting upon the several amendments
which had been proposed upon his own
side of the Senate, he had been actuaied by the
single purpose Of procuring, il such thing
were possible, n unanimous vote ofthe Senate.
That most desirable end seemed TO be now Inn
possible.
In relation to one of the amendments which
had been proposed, his own personal wishes
would have been gratified could 1t have been
adopted, SO that he might have beeen relieved
from the necessity of asserting that state of
war now existed between the United States
and Mexico. But in this he had been disap-
pointed, and he had found himself obliged to
act upon such information as was now IN his
possession; and, forming his judgment from
that alone, he must believe that state of war
did now exist; not, to be sure, in the constlu-
tional sense, because the Constitution conferred
upon Congress the exclusive power to declare
war but in sense equally important. The
territory of the United States has been invaded.
And why did he say this? He had I been
here at the time Texas had been received into
the Union but il was but frank in him to say +,
however his opinions might be now, since he
had seen how Texas was represented here, he
should at that time have voted against her adj
mission.
But Texas was now received she const.tu-
ted one of the States Of this Confederacy. And
how had she been received? What had been
her condition then, and what is il now? She
had claimed the Rio del Norie as her boundary
line ever since 1896. She had announced that
river to the world as one of her boundaries
What else had she done2 In pursuance of
the offer of the United States she had adopted a
Constitution and in that instrument she asser-
ted the same limits TO her jurisdiction. In
view of that instrument, the portion of coun-
try now occupied by our troops constituted by
law as one OF our own Congressional districts.
BY receiving her we had made that district as
much our charge as any other portion of the
United States-whether by Mr.. J.'s consent or
not, was lminatcrial to him. Texas was now
in the Union; and her rights and interests, as
one of the States, were now as dear in the
view ofevery true American as those of any Of
the other States. We were bound by our
plighted faith to maintain her territory as it
was. We had received her with boundaries
specifically defined and, certainly, the nation
al faith was pledged TO maintain those boun-
diaries as we had recognized them, and to de-
fend her territory IN It's entire extent
MIR. J. was unwilling to vote for the amend
ment of his friend from Connecticut, (Mr
HUNTINGToN) That gentleman was unwil-
ling TO adopt the preamble of this bill. because
ii asserted not only that a war existed. but
what was the cause of the war and it charged
it altogether upon the act OF Mexico. But
what would be the effect of striking out this
part of the bill I? 1t was virtually to say that
the war was owing 10 some other cause and
what was that2 1t could be nothing else than
some wrong done by the United States. Now
Mr. J. was willing TO ADOPTING amendment i'm
plying the dishonor of his own country. He
never would consent by vote of his to declare
TO the world that III this war the United States
had been the aggressor. lie would not have
voted 10 declare war out II war was necessary
and could not be avoided, he was not going to
begin it by telling the world that it had been
induced by the fault the United States Gov
ernment
lie was not called upon to vote that the eros
sing Of the Rio del Norte was an act OF war, or
that it was done by order Of the Government
Of Mexico. He had no positive proof that it
was; but he could not but believe, with the
honorable Senator from Michigan, MIR. CAss,)
that The presumption was strong, nay, violent,
that It had been ordered by that Government !.
lie was asked to vote simply that state Of
war did exist and the amendment moved by
his friend from Connecticut asked him to say
Ihai y existed by some wrong on our part
This he would not do. Ifhe was right in hol-
ding the Rio Del Noue to be the western