Litchfield enquirer., 1847-12-30
PpIITINAL.
From the National IntrlligsReeF MIR. pcLK,S PRETEXTs FOR HIS WAR AGAIN UTTERLY DEMOLISHED
COMeiil.M q.

1 To the same effect that great democratic
 leader the Hon. Silss Wright .wh"sr late death 1 has been % justly lamenied hy men m sli par
 IIes, who w .. present during the whale .!rhasS
 upon the Texas rTeaiv. and gave his v"ie D.
 aainst ils ratification. declared to his r0Rstitu
 ents, in SD sech delivered al WaIert"wn, g.
 fullUws:
 q let it my duty io vote against the ra'its- cation of the treaty E,H the annexatInn. '--
 l,evrd that the treaty HLJ-Irom tNe boundaries
 that must he imhlItd irNx it, embraced 3 coDniry to wi ich Texas had no claim, ov-,
 which she had never asserted jurisdiction and | which she had DO right to tede.'
 But, many years bSfoe the date of this d.. bate. the recold, cf the United States had borne testimony tc the trur b"undarv c Texas | In 1886 an agent was dispatched hy the Prrsi- dent of the U. s. (Gen. ,Jacks"n.) to examin. And report upon the condition ot Texas. winch had then established an independent GoveTa> ment ana iR his report, dated i0 Aug of that year, he reported that 'the political limits "' 1 Tpxas propPr. previous tO the last rev0 uiiOn
 we:e the Nuecesrite oh the wrsi along the
 Red river on the nprih; The Sabine on the east
 and the Gulph "f Mrx'c" "o the south.' Al the time ofthe communication of ihe arl 1 of the annexation, Mir DnnelsHn. being the Charge d'AffaiIe of the United States [" that
 young Republic, communicated freely with hIs l Government as io the p'sitien of things iH
 Texas. From his letter. we extract the f"l- 1 lowing pasagea. showing what was the .faet ss to the limits of the territory actually occupi- , ed by Texas, even at that time:
 Corpus Christi is said to he as healthy ss Pensacola. a convenient Piace for supplies. and the most sOesfeTm point now occupied by Tex ! as.-Letter to Secretary of State, June Sth. | ls45.
 .Che occupation ofthe rountry between the Nneces and the Rio Grande, you are aware, Is l a disputed question. Texas holds C"rpss Christi. Mexico holds the Rraz"a de Santiago Letter to Gen. Taylor, Jure 2s. 1895.
 The proclamation ot truce between the two nations, founded on propositions mutually ae- cepiahl' to them. Ocj-ieaving the question "f boundary not only an open one. but Mex'e" in possession If the easi bank of the Rio Csraa- de seemed to me inconsistent ~ith the expecs taiiun that in defence of the claim of Texas our troops should marrh immediately to thai river What the Executive Of Texas had de. te,mined not to fgh, for, bat to settle bs nee go,iation. ,o gay Ahe least of 1t. could as well he left to the United Stat, on the same coDdi. tin,.s.
 The question was whether, under the cir- cums, ances we should take posi'i"n to make for this claim in the fac" of an ackn"~ledg- ment on the part ot this government that q could be settled by neg',iation. at once de cided that we should take TO such position. but should regard only .s within the limits nf our protection that portion of terFi:"ry actually possessed by Texas, and which she did moi con slider as subject to negotiation. .'-Letter to Mir Buchanan, July Il, le43 i
 These extracts taken together establish. up- on the evidence of our Government ilse lffhT0 it's diplomatic repI esentatlves in Texas. that MrxicO was in possession Ot the trTrlt"r! west of the Nueces-excrpting the c"untS of Patricio-and Texas ci the territory ess, oi the Nueces, with the addition of Pairici"; that Mexico was admitted by. our own Env". to be in possession "f the ea.t bsnkI the Ri" Grande and that Corpus Christi was the most western point then occupied by T-xas These admissions frt.m a snurce 50 well informed. 6" free from bias in favor of any interest but that of the United States, including Texas. are ta~ tai to every pretension of territorial right on the part of Texas between the Rio Grande and the Mucous, the small county of PatriciO Per. haps excepted.
 All that remains therefore. to sustain the pretensiun of our Administration that the boundary of Texas extended to the Rio Grande and that by her annexation the Ri" GraRde became the boundary ot the United States, is the act of the Legislature of Texas declaring ts boundary to extend to the Rio Grande. IL that act could he considered of any efteci whatever. it would at most leave ground for controversy and negotiation. az wac assumed bv Mir D0nelsOn. But the act itself was . mere nullity.
 To that effect we have the opinion of Sens> 1 tor Woodward. now an Associate Judge cf the l Supreme Count of the United Sfstes in his speech in favou of ratilyi"g the Treaty Of An ncxation se| Texas by mere law said he, could ac- nuire no title but what she conquered from | Mexico, and actuslly governed Hence. th"' her law includes more than the ancient Texas ,he could hold and convey only that, or, si the ut,ermo.t. ,nly what she exercised clear jus risticton over
 Texas never had exercised jurisdiction of a. nv sort over any ,erri,ory om the Ris Grandr, and could not therefore by possibility convey lo the United States aay title to it.
 To the same effect we have the authority "f Mr Gallstin. which saves us and Nr readers | the trouble of sea ch;ns further on the snbject The Republic of Texas did. by an act ~f December. 1886, declare the R,o del Norle to be it's boundary. lt will not he seriousl scon. tended ti.at nation has right by law of its own,. to determine what is Nr shall be the boundary between it and anoihes couRtrv. The act was nothing more than the exrressicn oi the wishes or pretensi"ns of the Government As regards rights, the act is perfect null'ty.'
 It is thus conclus,vely demonstrated thst ,lrp territory between the Nueccs aud the Rio Grande never had passed out of the pOssesbiOn GIT right of MexicO, aud wac inno aense Ameri. ran soil Ur territory of the United States. Aye, Gen. Taylor hinself. after literally obeS ing the Execut ve orders hy occupying s1osi,ion op. posi'e Matamoras. thus reported io the War Department. under date of April 6, ls46, his | proceedings;
 On our side . battery for four eighteen
 p"nnde's will be completed and the guns pla>
 ced m battery to day. These guns beau di.
 recily upoa the public square uf Ma,amoass,
 and within good rauge tor demoli.hing the
 town. O. Their object cannot be mistaken b,
 the enemy.
 The enemy Whaf enemy Does not this
 language prove that that the blave old General
 understood very we'll what he was seat there
 tor Wsr d.d not exist until he had placed
 . battery of guns bearing directly upon ,h. TpNhlic GOtlarea of Mafasunras eka ,,h;..~, .,