Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1847-10-14

ID o ltttral.
LETTERS OF JOHN p. KENNEDY,
TO THE CITIZENS OF THE DISTRICT.
To the Citizens of the 9TH Congressional
District, and particularly to the Me-
chan'cs and " orkingmen of that Dis
trict of both Political Parties.
NO. 2

tf1Ct Oh DOtn IOiftICat fdFttes.
NV subject is now the Mexican war.
mean TO devote this and one or two other let
ters to that subject. for two reasons First,
that inulnscally, il is a very important topic
10 the people of the United States just now !;
and Second, Because there has been great
deal of studied and perverse misrepresen,a-
ton spread abroad in regard to il, with view
10 bring the Wings into disesteem, and TO CO.
yer up and conceal very awkward political
blunder made by Mr.. Polk. The outcry. how
ever, has no, yet hurt the Wings in the opin-
ion Of any judicious men, nor has il been We
~ successful in hiding Mr.. Folks delinquen.
cies from the public. Some men seem TO
think that to SANDER the Wings is the best
way TO screen the President Mr.. Polk him
self has set the example i'll his last annual
message, in which he intlmates that any man
who will not adopt his opinion about the orr
gin OF the war, is a traitor. A traitor for not
believing what he, the President, announces
TO be fact! Some Of ''the organs" repeat
this miserable slang. One of them says, for
instance, ''the treason OF Benedict Arnold is
nothi-g" compared TO this refusal OF the
Wings to believe Mr. Polk--for that is The
amount o. it. When men write and publish
such dwelling nonsense as this, il only shows
what a centemptuous opinion they have for
those whom they expect to believe them.
| intend TO give history Of the origin Of the
prese MT war, which ! shall take, as much as
possible from the official records Of the coun-
| Try, and from the recorded opinions and pro-
ceedings o. the most distinguished leaders of
the Democratic party. These shall endea-
vor to lay before you in the simplest and
clearest narrative can give. You will then
be able TO judge for yourselves, whether the
the Wings are right or wrong in what they
have said and done about this war.
II is proper, therefore, before begin the
narrative, that should explain to you what
have been and are the opinions the resolves
of the Wings in regard to the war. | will do
this in few words:
l. First. The Wing party believe that what
ever wrongs or injuries Mexico may have
done to this couniry-and we do not deny
they were many-still the President had no
right TO make war upon Mexico, rithout The
consent of Congress, TO whom the war making
power exclusively belongs.
2. Second. That the present war did not be-
gin by the act Of Merico, as Mr.. Polk declared.
but by the act of MIR. Polk himself, in order
ing an army to march into territory under the
jurisdiction of Mexico, for the acquisition of
which our government had proposed TO open
negotiations with Mexico, 10 the hope OF be-
ing able TO purchase il from that nation.
8. Third The Wings have held, and still
hold, the opinion, notwithstanding the man
ner this war was commenced, that, being
commenced, their duty was TO give the ad-
ministration all the supplies Of men and mon :
ey which it might ask for. to prosecute the
war to a successful termination andS6 accor-
dance with this opinion they have voted for
everything asked for that purpose by the gov
ernment-and will continue so TO vote, if the
war is to be continued.
The Wings, in common with the whole
country, feel a grateful pride in the gallantry
of our soldiers, and in the glorious success of
their arms. In proof Of their willingness TO
encounter the perils and sacrifices of the war,
they have furnished their share,--and more
than their siare-of the bravest officers and
men, to the army. Without, therefore, boas-
| ting to be more patriotic than their opponents.
they treat with becoming scorn all attempts
10 represent them as wanting in love of coun
Try, or in any just appreciation Of its true glo-
Y.
! These are the views and sentiments OF the
Wings, every where announced and acted
upon.
! | now proceed TO show upon what founda-
ton their opinions have been formed in regard
to Mr.. Folks conduct in the origin Of the
war.
This will require that should recall few
| facts connected with the annexation of Texas.
The treaty for the annexation was made at
Washington on the 10Th of April, 1884,
! This treaty was rejected by the Senate on the
9Th of June following, by vote Of 35 20 To-
Messrs Benton and Wright both voting
against it.
| have given these two names because they
NAV be considered undisputed leaders OF the
democratic party.
What were their objections 10 this treaty
! shall presently quote their own words 10
show what their objections were; but before
! | do so il was necessary to say word as TO
the geographical division of Mexico.
! II has never been denied by any one that
J that the river Nueces was the boundary
which divided the province OF Texas from the
province of Tamaulipas, through which lat
Ter province the Rio Grande runs into the
/ Gulf-Matamoras being its capital. This was
the old boundary. And when Mexico, in
] 1924, formed her confederation of nineteen
States, Tamaulipas became one State and
Texas another, with the same boundary, to
wit. the Nueces, separating one from the
other, as the Potomac separates Virginia from
Maryland In 1885 the confederation was
broken up by Santa Anna. Tamaulipas and
the other States joined the new Government,
but Texas refused revoted against that Gov
eminent, and declared her independence as
separate State. That independence she secu
red by the battle Of San Jacinto, in 1896.
A few months after the battle Of San Jacip
to, the Congress of Texas determined to en-
large their boundaries, and accordingly passed
law by which they declared their boundary,
on the west, to be the Rio Grande from the
mouth 10 It's source; thence due north TO the
Add deg. of latitude; and from that point
along the boundary Of the United States TO the
Gulf of Mexico. This boundary, as you will
see by looking at the map,-whlch ! hope you
will do.-extends far beyond the limits OF the
State of Texas as it was known to the Mexi-
can Confederation, and takes in large part
Of four Mexican provinces which have never
revolted acains, that Government, nor ever
been conquered by Texas. These four prov
inces are Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Chihuahua
and New Mexico.
What RICH, Texas had to extend her boun-
Diary over her neghbors has never been ex
planned. find that she even had it in
contemplation 10 take the tchoLe Of California
into her empire SHE only did moi do this be-
cause Il ,ous not Convenient. NV authority for
| this fact is n ynatter of r,uhlic record In All