Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1847-05-15
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.
THE PHILOSOPHY OF BLooDsHED.

tOlerat0n, III III uoeS HOI duouiit W puuiiC
PROM ruE NEW ORLEANS "MERcURT," APRIL 80.
CosarEsr AM ASsExATIoS.-A great deal is said
a-ays by some censung the baneul influences OF AMBITION
of thirst for conquest, and Of the inquiy OF annexation
and vet if we look back upon the history the world in all
ages shall discover that ambition, conquest and annexa
lion have entered as the chief elements into all the great ad
vancemens nations have made towards higher and
better condition Ambition essential to conquest conquest
10 anne xaon and the positive welfare and ad
vancement very many nations for there very many
lions that never will make any advance in civilization until
they are annexed other nation higher in the scale
civilization. Such all the African, Asatc and Oceanic
nations and They have remained in stationary
don for ages only reproducing generation after generation
the errors the barbarism the government
laws manners and customsthe unaered and perfectly
stationary condition of every thing They have not within
thcmseyes-and this is the of their stationary charac
,e-he elements of advancement and until these elements
are introduced by other nations they advance
SUCH too the strength of their prejudices that these
elements o advancement in civilization cannot be introduced
among them by the simple force of and persuasion
This has been tried long enough show that by such
their advancement in civilization and happiness quite i'm
ercepbe The world have been trying simple and
for cenesIong enough to show that these alone
are insufficient for the advancement of nations to that state of
civilization and refinement for which we are undoubtedly des
tined Something besides these is necessary and that
thing is undoubtedly conquest and annexation
We might illustrate this doctrine by great number OF ex
ampes History abounds with them, and the pages OF the
Sacred Volume show that this the mode pointed
out by the Deity for advancing in civilization nation that
like many existing, would not have made advancement
in any other way. The conquest OF portion of the Holy
Land by the chosen people of God and the subsequent
OF surrounding territories and nations, effected
by the express command of the Deity, the first step
wards improvement Thus the doctrine and practice of an
nexato horrible affect TO believe It adays,
IA ~hn .a1
themselves.
The history of the entire world shows that conquest and
have generally been the prelude to all advance
en wherever the annexng nation has been OF superior
grade of civilization that of the nation annexed. This is
percepbe of the conquests and annexaons of the
Greeks and Romans and in those of modern times. |
Now, whatever may be in theory the zaodIs Operandi in
the worlds advancement, certain is that in practice con-
quest and have been foremost in the work
Indeed far generalization OF facts in the worlds his
tory he made the law of its progression would 10
point conquest and annexation the chief MEANS these
securing wha without them could not be securely the eec
operation of those other means-such superior know
ledge and refinement the arts and sciences of the conquerng
nation.
Can for suppose that any of the Asiatc
African, Oceanic natives will advance in civilization until
they are conquered by some more civilized nation and ncor
porated with II this be doubted then base
generalization upon the history Of those nations during
many centuries past The fact really IS that those nations
will not profit from the civilization of other nations until il is
forced upon them-un they absolutely incorporated with
some nation more powerful and civilized than themselves
They like too many OF youths, who will not
learn until they forced to learn
Conquest and have thus far in the worlds his
been the leading in its onward course, and will
continue to be for many to We do not to
by this that il is the duty the right Of any Of the
powerful and enlightened nations make war, unprovoed,
upon any the stationary and barbarous embarbarous
nations for the purpose Of cvzng them by conquest and
annexation but do say that when powerful and
hghtened nation is drawn into a war with of an
unfair af rs
IN terminating its conquests by annexation, and
tension of its laws, government manners, customs learn
ing, arts and sciences the conquered people, and that
this the only in which the horrors OF inevitable
plunged into by foolish and degraded nation be
pcnslted and its termination made useful the conquered
nation and the world at large.
But, besides this obscurer example in the mere
newspaper press of one who would have u.s. in
effect
"Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war"
against every thing less enlightened or happy than
ourselves, we have from the same quarter more
eminent instance-that of one late a member Of
doubtless the gravest deliberatve body in existence
which distinguished person lately uttered, at din
ner given him in New Orleans, certain sentences
which are but too plainly the sententious general-
cations of which this newspaper Philosophy of
Bloodshed is but the Interpretation and expansion.
Upon that occasion the Ex-senator in question said,
among other things in his speech, that leaving it
10 others 10 celebrate the virtues or the delights
OF his State, (Louisana,) his be an essay to lift
up the veil that envelops her future, TO pluck a
: few leaflets from the book of her destiny He
then proceeds TO show ,chut that destiny-already
partly presents TO be:
Behold what she is nheritng from the fields of battle
that heroic soldiers have immortazed Do the vague but
prophetic rumo the shouts Of victory the paans Of triumph
waited hher by every morning breeze, say nought you
the brilliant destiny awaiting her In the vista of fu,uty
90 you not seem 10 behold hundred States revolving
around her. and striving for the honor Of saung Queen
" Onward, then, noble Louisiana Gory-crowned and
firm, under the guidance of God march with pride in the
mysterious path traced out for you by Providence and snatch
from the flash Of the lightning that iumes your way the
civic disdem which fortune proffers you
"On you, gentlemen, devolves privilege Of preparing
her for this sovereignty. How srduous may he
future destiny, union your part will accomplish it, An
why should you be united In this storm-beaten ocea
every will have his and every thought ,rum
plant swell"
This last extract is made from the Speech, dis
played as gen. in the columns of the " Wash
ington Union.' II breathes Of all sober policy Sc
aside-all the arts Of peace extingushed-the limits
OF law, the checks of constitutions, abolished-his
most pacific of Republics resolved into great Mill
tary Despotism; and reeking, therefore, the
whole passage does, with all the scents of slaugh
he IF GacYar L.. ~ e..