Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1846-04-10
SPEECH OF MA. HAYWOOD,
OF NORTH CAROLINA,
ON THE OREGON QUESTION.
Delivered in the Senate on the 4,h and 5,h March

Delivered IN the Senate on the 4th and 5th March.
CONCLUDED.
Mr. President: am very 10th to trespass
upon the patience Of the Senate, and perhaps
might safely stop hare. But your induigent
attention encourages me TO proceed; and, as
proposed at this point, so L invite you to
look and see whether the tUOrds Of the ''record"
are, alas! so plain. and their meaning so clear,
as to exclude those differences which the con-
iaence Of generous friendship, the justice of
Senate, and even the ordinary charity of
any man. might accord TO the President OF
the United States, in 3 full view of that
which have already imperftctly reviewed.
Before doing that, remark, however, that
| when Senators talk about making the infer
ence from these "records" that the negotIa-
tion is at an end, thew forget that the fact app
pears in their face directly opposite to their
| Inference. The negotiation which begun in
Mr.. TyIer's time, and which has been contin-
ued by President Polk, is, in reality, pend
ing negotiation this very day. 1t never has
been terminated on our part, up to the hour
when | am addressing this Senate. Only
discriminate for moment between negOtiG-
ton and the correspondence of the Ministers,
and the fact is at once pa pably before you.-|
A negotiation may be open and continued,
whilst the correspondence Of the Ministers
may be suspended, or delayed for month or
year. This distinction needs but to be sta
ted in so enlightened body as this. Illus
tratons would be useless and Improbable
HERE. Yet may Aot be pardoned for re-
minding you that negotiation, IN :he proper
Sc Sc is business between two Governments.
as acknowledgement by their mutual con-
Seut as Governments TO treat with one another
upon State affairs; and which, once opened,
cannot be amicabIy concluded without like
mutual consent, Gas by treaty or a conven-
tion,) except one of the parties shall first d.
rectLy n9ity The other ef its intention to cl0se It,
| think this definition, if not precisely accu-
rate. is enough so to answer the purpose Of
presenting this point to the mind of the Sen
ate distinctly. and that is all shall aim to do,
making TO references to dictionaries or author
tiles. With this distinction In our minds, it
will he seen that if the President had said to
Congress in so many words, Negotiation
has terminated" it would h ;ve been nothing
e but the mistaken statement Of fact, so long
as a reference TO the "whole correspondence"
clearly showed the fact to be otherwise. The
Presidents own direct statement could not
alter the fact. Ii it would be so, were the
9 statement unequivocal and direct. VIII t is to
he said of d mere INFERENCE by his
it is a FALSE INFERENCE! Now, then,
this whole correspondence does show clearly
that the neg otatlnt was regularly opened: but
it nowhere appears that the President has no
tilted the BRUSH Minister. or that The British
Minister has notified the President, of any un'
willingness to pursue it, nor that they have
mutually agreed to terminate 1t; and therefore
it Is still open. On the contrary, the BFtlsl
Minister was informed by the President (pdge
85) that he earnestly ''hoped that this long
pending controversy may yet be hnaily ad
- iusted IN such manner as not TO disturb tht
peace or interrupt the harmony now so hap
PLY subsisting between the two nations. -
That hope is ag in expressed upon the oc
casion of our refusal to ARBlTRATE.-
Great Britain so understands it; and accor
dinghy We see her Ministers daily in GU
streets, and our intercourse with Great Brit
ain is as friendly as it ever was.
The assertion or the inference, therefore
that this negotiation has been concluded, i
thus shown 20 be directly contrary to an asc n
tanned FACT; and every attempt to prove
o is most absurd, may ! say ridiculous, al
tempt TO prove before an American Senat
that, which we both see and know. from tn
s. record itseIf,'' to be UNTRUE.
IDS Negotiation, then, in its proper sense,
tiation is it! That same unconcluded negc
. tiation which, by the first protocol, our Go,
eminent agreed, in writing, to approach I" i
-. the spirit Of compromise" page SO } The
! , same unconcnded negotiation which Pres
st dent Polk declared to the British Minister
:. had determined to pursue to Its cOnchtsi0,
- upon the principle of compromise" (Pag
62) That Same negotiation in which Pres
dent Polk admitted to the British Ministe
that this Government was ''committed"
- "a COMPROMISED which he offered to Gree
Il Britain. page 62.) That Same negoria'io
in which the President said to Congress tn,
he was committed" by the conduct of hi
predecessors to offer the line of 40 as con
. promise, and that he had therefore superadde
;. his own offer OF it to their precedents." (P,
a ges 10, 1l) That same negotiation where
~ he declared to Congress that the brill.
proposition 10 us is ''wholIy inadmissb
+" and cannot be entertdned,'' with due rega,
p" t" onr honor, We're it re- offered; but in hic
he has NEVER said that he would refuse
entertain the american proposition if it shou
g.. be returned upon him again. But he does a
, ''' NIT, and by his conduct he has confirmed Il
truth of 1t, that the american proposition
compromise was consistent with our hon
and demanded by his regard for the nation
character. Yet, Mr. President have YOU be,
constrained to sit here and listen to a lono =,
q fear it will beg tedious speech from II,
TO prove, TO demonstrate, that the Preside
has not terminated Negotiations ON HIS PAR
r. and that he has not resolved not to compronn,
- fh's controversy, almost upon his own term
should Great Britain ask him to do it.
Of One or two general remarks upon the Oh;
acter OF the message, ! must make, before
Y. dissect those particular sentences which,
- being separated from their context and i
properly associated and identified with t
opinions of Mr. Polk upon our paper title, ha
msled SO many people. ''''
Co. h. 6 L.: