The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1847-10-16

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is us plain ms turnpike; as visible as yonder
sun now shining upon us.
SIR m eminent person, belonging to the |
administration, most eminent certainly oiall
that do belong 10 it, so eminent that it strikes
one rather oddly that the administration !
should not belong TO him, rather
Than he to the administrations mean
Mr. Calhoun, one of the most practical
politicians and debaiers in this counry-u
gentleman who is not apt to concede away
his case, declared in the last session of Con-
gress that ifthere had been no annexation of
TGxas,there would have been no war. And he
went further,& SAID that the immediate cause
of war was the order for the march of our mr.
my from Corpus Christi to the Rio Grande-
But how did the war grow out of anneXa-
ton? This is u case in which correctly to an
| swer this question, we must adopt proper
distinctions, aud follow the light afforded by
| asccrtaincd facts.
Now, Mr. President, do not stand here at
! this time, nor have ] at any time been an adj
vocate or apologist of Mexico. have very
! poor opinion of her government, i'll all its
states, and at all times. pity the people of
Mexico from my heart, and | should pity
them more if they appeared to me to have
sense enough TO understand the misery of
their own condition. | believe the govern
ncnt of that country to be the very worst in
the civilized world pretending to regard the
rights of the people. This republic, which
by the way is no republic Mt all, but militia
ry anarchy, has been, am sorry to say, for
| years and years the prey Of every miserable
military upstnrt that could find money enough
to sustain miserable army. Ihaye no sym
pathy, therefore, with any government, or
men connected with any Oi'the governments,
Of Mexico, for the last twenty years.
think that the object of this war was SIM
ply this. MIR Polk became President of the
United States in March, 1915. In June, lS45
Santa Anna was banshcd from Mexico to Gu
la, on what is called halfpay. lie seems to
have been discontinued with his situation at
Cuba, and am strongly suspicious that the
"haf pay" never wns paid. Through 1915,
the condition ofthings between us aud Mex
leo was thus angry and unsatisfactory.
Not TO trouble you, sir, with many, dates,
allow me to approach period of some in
terest. 1t was in January, lSi6, that the ar
my ofthe United States, which in the sum
mcr preceding, had been ordered to take It's
position ut Corpus Christi, was now ordered
10 advance to the Rio Grande. The reason
given by MIR Buchanan for this order, among
other things, was that it mi ght be at hand, in
case Mr. Slidell was rejected by Mexico, TO
act as Congress should authorize. Now,
there had been an opinion, believe very lar
back, from the time of Santa Annals re
lease from imprisonment in Texas,
that he was rather more favorable to
the Acknowledgements of Texan indie
pendence that any other of the military
chiefs in Mexico. AT any rate, after his BAN
ishment by Paroles, the sentiment became
general that he was more favorable TO peace
, with the United States than the government
then existing.
The President of the United States sent his
: war message to Congress on the llth of May
1916, placing the existence of the war upon
the fact that Mexico had invaded our terrific
nv and shed the blood of our people. On
that very day he despatched orders TO Com
modore Conner, at Vera Cruz. that in case
Santa Anna should come that way, he should
not obstruct his passage into Mexico. Now
how came it into Mr. Folks imagination that
Santa Anna was likely 10 come that way?-
At about the sumo tme II remember Alright,
MIR Slitlell Mackenzie, brother ofour Minister
, to Mexico was despatched TO Cuba 1t APP
pears too, from the correspondence, that our
government also had an agent III Cuba, by
The name of Brown. And it is notorious
that il was n matter of public conversation in
Cuba, that Santa Anna was to return to Mex
leo, with the concurrence otthe President OF
the United States ] state this on good au-
, thoritv. Mark the coincidence Of time and
purpose, The President said in his commu-
| ncation at the opening ofthe session OF the
, last Congress, that he did not see any pros
meet of putting an end TO our difficulties while
Pnredes was in power think his precise
| words were these:-"Scarcely hope OF adj
iusting our difficulties could be cherished,
while Paroles remained at the head OF the
Mexican government" What were those
, difficulties, sir? Our chiefdifficulty, certain
". was that Mexico would not assent to the an
, nexation ofTexas This was the greattrouble.
Now. sir. | would call the attention of this
, meeting to a matter not unknown, but which
, it seems to inc, has not received the weight,
, the scrutiny, which it deserves. again pre-
mise that the war message OF the lin OF
} Nav, placed the war upon the ground OF ac-
! tual invasion by Mexican troops,and the muir
der of American citizens upon American
} ground. Now, about the LIST OF June proc
I lamation was drawn up, which on the 9th of
lime. was DESPATCHED TO Gen. Taylor, TO be
nv him distributed throughout all MeXico,nnd
$ that purported to set forth to the people of
l Mexico, the causes of the war. l have this
S proclamation, and hope the gentlemen OF
the press will publish 1t,
=, Well what did the proclamation say to the
people of Mexico, as to the causes ofthe war;
9 ANYTHING abont invasion ofAmerican terrific
: nv and murder of American troops? Not n
: word like it-not one word. That procla-
nation goes upon the old matter ofthe debts,
and upon the refusal to receive Mr. SlIdell us
our Minister, and upon supposed declara-
= ton by Pnretles which / cannot find any
! where, that war did actually exist But the
), fact alleged in the war message OF May lin,
!! and the fact enacted, ifa fact can he enacted
by legislative power, that war existed ny Mex
lean invasion, is not alluded TO, stated, or IN
. timated, in the proclamation to the Mexican
people. On the contrary, speaking through
General Taylor the administration uses the