The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1847-02-26
THE CALIFORNIA EXPEDITION.
EXTRAORDINARY CORRESPONDENCE
BETWEEN
mr.. Secretary Marcy and Gov. Wright.
Views Of the Wnght-Van-Buren Section of
the Huge-PawS on tho Mexican War.
&c Be &c

cy wrote the following letter to Gov Wright covering
COL STEVENSON TO Gov WRIGHT
CRY OF NEw YoRx, June 3d. 1886.
SiR-I have the honor to enclose ysu the copy Of a
the Willingness Of the PRESIDENT Of The United States to
accept the services of volunteer regiment from this
state with the consent of the Governor The regiment
10 assigned to be organized pursuant to the laws OF this
State and commissioned by your Excellency and Is
to be regarded ~ forming part Of the regiments
to the circular OF the Secretary of War of May
respectfully request permission to enrol and organ
Secretary Of War EaosaDcy hs
the organization request you will advise mo Of tho
same at your earliest convenience and forward
j. D. STEVENSON.
To His Excellsncy sILAs WRIoHr, Governor N. Y,
Gov Wright did not reply the above letter at very
early day. for stated in the following remarks
BILE letter Of Mr.. Wright to the Secretary of War;
GOVERNOR wRieHr TO SECRETARY MARCY.
EXECUTIVE CHSMBER,
ALBANY, July 7, 1876.
The Hon WIZ. L. NANCY, Secretary Of War:
DEAn sIR-I had seen II repeatedly mentioned in the
public papers, during the last week. that Coi iona.
than s,evsnson Of the city Of New York. had received
authority from the President or the War Department.
vice in California.
Some days since, in opening and distributing my let
ters my private Secretary laid upon my table letter
which, he said, was from Col Stevenson relation to
hi. raising the men in question Being very much
friendly correspondence from the Colonel inform me
Of his authority and prospects did not and leisure
noon Of the I'd inst At that time put the papers In my
pocket but did not get opportunity TO read them upon
upon at my lodgings at the City Hotel in New York
and told he had written second note requesting me
to answer his 6rst communication My occupied
him any farther than tell him that his papers were
with me- but had not even been read He then made
remark from which rst learned that il was expeclsd
would and COmmiaROn the the agi.
ment Of men he was raising He requested to find
leisure to read the papers upon my passage up the river
on Saturday evening" and to drop him by the mail
Of Sunday evening which did send enclosed copy
Of his communication to and the enclosure of which
dated aSth june last of which YOUR Office 6ss will Of
course furnish you copy.
The notices had seen In the newspapers had not in
any manner in connexion with me- under my autho.
rty and the suggestion to that effect made by him
the afternoon Of Saturday, gaveme surprise and
caused the earliest to exa.
mine his communication.
His letter. you will ses is very specific, and tells
me that the reEtm mt 10 to be organized under the
laws Of this State that the officers arc to be
commissioned BY me. and that DO considered
one Of the seven regiments of volunteers called for from
the State. by your requstion Of the i9h day Of May
last.
Your communication to Col. Stevenson would have
left me in soubt upon all these points, and especially
upon the last the only remark touching any agency
of mine which find in that letter. the closing
tence Of the first parsg raph these words s proper
il should be done with the appreciation of the
of New York" II may be that the Colonel has given
broader Interpretation to this clause Of your letter than
you designed It should bear, although inferred
from the positive and explicit manner in which he
speaks that he has information upon these points pro.
baby verbally communicated from yourself
II he be right that this regiment ia not to be consider.
cd one OF the seven which you had previously called
upon me- to raise and organize but is force indepen
dent OF and beyond that then consdr your let
ter to him as IN any sense unofficial rsqustion upon
me, either from the President or the Department ;
but merely as a permission to him to raise
the corps, IL ] sh0ull choose. of nv own
voltion, to give him the aid of the State law D.
and Of my authority to issue military commissions
enable him to accomplish it, Viewing the matter In this
light, the information communicated your letter
Col Stevenson Is not sufficiently full aud specific
BILE me to determine whether shall be willing, as n
mere voluntary act on my part to make myself agent
TOR organising this force
Your letter shows that the disposition designed to be
made OF this regiment and the service in which it 10 to
90 employed are both special and pee uar but
suags you employ is altogether too vague aud general
to enable far TO understand either az to bs able to
say whether shall be willing to volunteer nv aid 10
put the force in the field doubt not that
between yourself and Col Stevenson rendered the Ian.
guage OF your letter sufficiently explicit and Ineligible
10 him. but think perusal OF it will satisfy that it
not SO much 20 a. to render the views and objects of
the government in desiring this force very clear to
stranger to these subjects.
beg you to be assured that il requisou had been
or shall be regularly made upon me for any military
iorce my best efforts would be cheeruy contributed to
comply with it, and that should feel called upon
such case, to trouble myself inquiry either
to the object in raising the fsrce required
or the service expected from 1t. These would be
,idera,ions for the government and not for me- while my
DUTY would be discharged by obedience TO its re-
QUESTIONS.
Such am unable 70 consider the now presented
to me by Col stevenson, but that I am called upon
men as part of the militia OF the State the cond
ton substantially that they shall leave tho State and
no. ie.u,p OF ~ o.ner words TO 20 upon distant
they do return, it Is to be at their own expense
after their public service shall have terminated.
am forced to infer, from tho language of your letter
that the object is to have these men become emf
grants in fact. though they to leave the State
have them prepared 10 settle the country q which
foTcibly 4 they must" TO ali this nigh. subscribe
the facts and circumstances which induce the govern
ment to desire to send out such force and of the pre-
knowledge upon either those points am not prepared
to become the voluntary agent tor organizing the force
If II Is designed to make our present with Mexico
one OF conquest and appropriation of any part OF the
territory proiessedly and indputably hers think the
design m ssken one am, decidedly 30 any man in
the country for prosecuting this war with all tho requ
site vigor and energy necessary to bring 1t to early
end sue essul termination and for as
well within the conceded territory and jurisdiction OF
Mexico as within the United States, the territory 10
dispute between the tu countries. But would cause
II 10 be constantly and distinctly understood that did
not invade the territory Of Mexico for the purpose Of
conquest and appropriation and that far tho ques
ton of boundary IL involved, should be at all times
ready to make treaty establishing the same boundary
which we claimed at the commencement of the war
Hero the original 10 intoflinesed and very obscure
This would do as matter Of sound and just principle,
and equally as a matter OF wise and Just policy.
Any violation of the boundary elaine by at the
OF the by treaty with Mexico, and
cession oil her part for equivalents she may conien
receive would ofcourse be acquisition oferitory by
In way not to infringe upon the rule propose to
adopt and would be ponable to If be the
treaty should be the result Of open. fair negotiation
between the two countries and not the fruit of previous
conquest and OF treaty based upon rights thus acquired
Entertaining very strongly these views upon this point,
could not you will readily soc, voluntarily consent
lend my Official exertions to organise force designed
conquer appropriate, settle upon, and hold any part
Of the territory Of that pc wer because the force
raised, and under my command, would not SO employ
it, or permit Of its employment
do not say this is the design Of raising the regiment
spoken Of in your letter To Col Stevenson, but do not
know that it Is not, while the letter appears to to
authorize the inference that such may be the object
wait therefore, for explanation from you upon this point,
before give the consent and perform the act requested
by the Coonops letter to II the force is still desired
from this sats without further explanation, for this
avowed object requston-havng the character OF an
order-upon me, win doubtless command it, end my pre-
sent declnation only 10 be consideres as decnaon
to maketny self a volunteer in the enterprise.
have another difficulty In the way Of conserving to
nTu t,s efah