Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1846-02-14
ANOTHER LETTER From THE .sPLAIN FARMER
TO THE EDITORS.

you respecting the financial embarrassmens OF the
country during the last war.
recurrence to these matters is, can assure you,
as unpleasant to me il can be to you; for | can
never forget the deep modification which felt on
the occasions alluded to. But since it has become
necessary and proper, at the present time, to advert
to this disagreeable topic let us spread the tohole
truth before the public, SO that all, young and old,
may the straits TO which we were driven to car
ry on war much more popular and necessary,
will venture to say, than the fear now in con-
temptation by portion of the misguided men now
in power, and Temporarily, trusD ruling the des-
TIMES OF this present prosperous andhappy country.
Speaking of the loans made to the Government
during the last war, you say, the premium paid
upon the last loan the Government was able TO OBJ
tain, we find, on recurrence to the record, was
twenty per cent" &c. Have you forgotten the une-
quail not to say disgraceful terms to which we were
obliged to submit in obtaining that loan, or the one
Immediately preceding it One of its provisions
was, in substance, this: that if in any succeeding or
future loan, better terms should be obtained by the
lenders, these last mentioned terms should be ex-
tended to the lenders in the loan then negotiated ;
thus making it the interest Of the stockholders in
that loan las told Mr.. Campbell, the Secretary of
the Treasury al the time) to deprecae the price of
their own stock. His reply was that the President
Ito whom helawhad nominally confded the power)
had directed him to make the contract with that OBJ
jectional stpuation and that without it, hard as it
was, the money could not be obtained. 1t turned
out in the sequel, had been anticipated, that the
stock fell III price; another loan had to be made to
defray the expenses of the Government and such
was its bad credit at thes time that the loan could
not be obtained except considerably better terms
to the lenders than that of the Immediately prece
ding one and thus were the United States COM
PEELED, under their agreement with Mr.. Jacob Bar
ker, to issue additional stock to him and his as
signees, for the amount of difference arising under
the terms of the two loans
repeat, it is no qualification to me, but the re-
verse, to spread these facts and truths before the
public in this way though they are all of record on
the public archives. | had much rather that they
should there remain and not be brought to the open
light. But if their exhibition shall serve in any
way as beacon to warn the tax-paying people of
the country of the danger which surrounds them at
the present crisis, they ought to be made as public
as possible, however ungracous may be the task Of
doing so.
While | have my pen in hand allow me to
say one word more upon this Oregon question. y
The President has proclaimed to the nation and
to the world that our right to the Whoie OF Oregon
"is clear and unquestionable. In talking over
this matter with my neghbors at our respective fire.
sides, the question is not unrequently asked if
right to this land is indeed, thus clear and uques-
tionabe," how has it happened that during peri
cd Of about thirty years in which we have been fire.
quenty negotiating with Great Britain about line Of
division of it, Thereby admitting that she had some
sort of right to part of it, the wisest and most
acute men of our country, who were charged with
the negotiation about this divisional line, never once
discovered (although they had all the lights before
them the subject that now EXIST that our title to
the ichOle of the land clear and unquestiona-
ble!" And how did it come TO pass that the nota-
bic discovery should be left to be made by our pre-
sent Chief Magistrate, with no other lights before
him than those possessed by his predecessors
Entertaining, we do, all due respect for the tai
ens and discernmeat of our present Chief Magis-
trate, we cannot, in our sober judgments, whatever
partiaties we may have for him on other grounds,
believe that he possesses more sagacty and pene-
tration, that he has investigated this subject with
more assduiy and skill, than either Mr.. Gallatin,
MIR. Adams, Mr. Calhoun, and others who have
been charged with its investigation. The public de-
caration OF the President that our title to the mhole
of this territory was clear and indubiable was not
only ill-timed and uncalled for, land, | will add,
very much unlike him. but it was reflection also
upon the understanding and good of those dis
tingushed gentlemen just named, who for years had
had the subject under their close examination, and
who had never been able TO the matter in con-
troyersy in that "clear and unquestonable " light
in which II presented itself to the mind Of Mr.. Polk
Believing, as did, the President to be prudent,
cautious man, have been wholly at loss to ac-
count for this hasty uncacdfor declaration, (which,
| have reason TO believe, he much regrets having
made, for reasons which must be obvious to all J
until somebody told me that il was mere response
to one of the resolutions of the BALTIMORE Con-
vENTIoN," self-created body, which nominated
him as a candidate for the Presidency. Thus the
enigma was solved and thus perceive, too, that
we are still TO have the President of party in
stead OF President Of the people. Now, Messrs.
Editors, would almost dare swear that the indi-
vidual who drew that famous resolution, and those
who passed it, knew little more about the real mer-
its OF our claim to Oregon than the humble individual
who is now addressing you and that the whole
thing has been done with view TO political effect.
See, then, how peaceful and industrious people
may be brought into difficulties, and even ruin, by
the selfish projects Of few ambitious and design
ing men.
am aware Of the ungracious course pursue in
making these remarks. have heard and read the
slang OF many demagogue: For my country,
right or Trong." | shall not stop here TO discuss
the morality of that sentiment as an abstract propo-
sition or otherwise. But this much will say
have known many fellow who, with these same
words upon his lips, would not scruple, whenever
opportunity might offer, Ia cmbezzlc half mil
lion or more Of "my country's" money.
Having extended these remarks 10 much greater
length than Ishad intended, will conclude by ass,l-
ytsns Oh