Weekly national intelligencer., 1848-02-05

HOUSE, OF REPRESENTATIVES,, JANUARY 81, IS48.
The House being in Committee Of the Whole on the Pro-
sdent's Annual Message
Mr. THOMPSON, Of Indiana, addressed the committee
during tlle allotted hour
lie did not know he said, that he should have felt himself
all called upon to address the committee upon the several
subjects towards which its attention had been directed for the
last week or ten days. If not that he felt kind OF ne
cessy for doing what he had before done in his life
that was to define his position About four weeks ago he
represented by newspaper in New York having made
speech OF some hours length upon this floor advocating
the entire conquest and subugaon Of Mexico On the day
before yesterday he represented by the Union Of this
city having made another speech uyng the entire course
Of policy pursued by the present Administration in the ssn,
prosecution and objects Of the with Mexico For fear
therefore, that somebody should suppose he might possibly
have made speech of this kind he deemed ii expedent TO
take this opportunity declare what the sentiments he
really entertained upon this questions and he thought he
should cosvnce gentlemen before he got through that he had
made the or the other of those speeches
His chief purpose in rising notice several of the
positions taken by gentlemen upon the other side OF this
chamber-Posions which he thought they had taken with
great care and great reflection with view defend the Ad
mnstaon, not only in the origin but in the progress OF this
and more especially to notice Of the remarkable
features which he found the speech made several days
by the gentleman from Maryland, from the Baltimore district
(Mr McLASE He did not hesitate to characterize this as
remarkable Speech only because delivered this
floor with great ingenuity, with great power and with great
eoquence but because il went bow-shota hundred bow
shobeyond all the speeches which had been made this
floor in the assumption positions which he (Mr cons
dered to be erroneous and which not only did injustice 10 the
O. ngress of the United States and the people the United
Sates but manifest marked injustice to the distinguished
mander Of army, Gen Taylor The gentleman his coh
cepon, had entirely mistaken the great questions OF history
which involved in the origin and prosecution of the
and had made these questions thus msstaed by him, sub
what he thought he should be able show exclu
svey and entirely this party purposes Of this Administration
The genllemans Speech originally written out by him
self he presumed and published in the Union, contained
the assumption, in order justify the President of the United
States in the issuance of the order of 18th January S46 for
the march of the army to the valley Of the Rio Gande that
the President in his message of December s45, had
muncated Congress the fact that General had been
ordered to march the amy TO the valley of the Rio Gande.
Mr. T. read this passage of Mr.. McLASEs speech Now,
he had carefully looked into the history Of this thing he had
examined all the public documents upon which he could lay
his hands, and nowhere did he find, from the beginning to the
end of all the communications which had emanaied from the
President Of the United States in December, S45 prior
that me declaration that General Taylor had been order
ed march the troops under his command to the Rio Gande
There such message such document to be found
such political fact recorded in the history of the country
The President Of the United States did communicate Con-
ercss December lS45 that he had assigned General Tay
or the command of the army, and that his position
be taken beftoen the Nueces and the Rio Grande but
that he march to the Rio Grande. The Secretary Of
War; at the of that session. communicated to
Congress intelligence of that General Taylor had been
assigned the command Of the country between the Nueces
and the Rio Gande with the uiimate destination 10 the
Rio Grande, with purpose of ultimately occupying the val
ley of the Rio Grande but nowhere either the message of
the President in the report of the Secretary of War;
there any communication made Congress that Gen. Taylor
assigned the command Of the army and ordered
march 10 the Rio Grande.
Bu in the published speech of the gentleman pamphlet
FORM he found much greater mistake upon this subject
It there declared that the President December ls45
gave notice Congress that General Taylor had been
signed to the defence Of the country swest Of the Rio
Grandc."
Mr. McLANE explained that this was misprint. 1t
tha al
the gentleman from Indiana read from the document which
he handed him.
Mr. THOMPSON read as follows from the President
sage of 3lst December 1916
Our army ordered take position the country be-
tween the Nueces and the Del Nore and repe nya
sion of the Texan territory which might be attempted BY the
Mexican forces" III
Also the following from the despatch Of Mr. Bancroft of
June Is, 1915, to General Taylor:
The point of your ultimate destination is the western
frontier of Texas where you viii select and occup on or
the Rio Grande del Norte such will best consist
with the health of the troops and will be best adapted TO rePe
invasion, and project what an the euent e anerdsn viii
be our western border"
Mr.. THOMPSON Continuing said neither of the posi-
tons true, far the history Of the country con-
cerned There such order issued to Gen. Taylr
such fact communicated Congress He ordered to
take position betce the Nueces and the Rio Grande, with
the ultimate object Of protecting the Rio Grande valley
and the extracts read the request OF the gentleman
proved this beyond controversy, and proved nothing
The he had read proved nothing in the present
controversy II is part order issued before the
alton Of Texas and under which Gen. Taylor took position
at Corpus Christi, and remained there many months.
But the next posion he conceived to be,
into which the gentleman had fallen, the assumption
that by the of Texas in the formation OF her constitution
with which she was admitted into this Union, she adopted
the of the Republic of Texas Of 1886 part OF her
fundamental law and that by the admission OF Texas into
the Union after the resolutions OF annexation were passed.
with ha tconstuon, she became consequence, part
of this Union the Of boundaries laid down in that
statute He understood that the gentleman from Maryland
assumed first, that the constitution of Texas defined her
boundary line; then that he changed his position when the
gentleman from Texas r KAUrMAS) came to his aid, and
assumed that the Congress Of Texas having in 1885, affirm
ed the Rio Grande be the western boundary the consti,u
on recognised and continued that aw and hence that she
admitted into the Union with that boundary Let them
look into the history of that question If Texas had the right
pass that act thereby acquired the boundary claimed
by it and il the Congress Of the United States did adopt that
claim OF course there would be question about it. But if
Texas had no right to pass that law if she acquired title
by it, then the whole claim up by the President in behalf
of the United States and in his defence, founded upon
il, fell to the ground.
Now the boundary OF Texas before her revolt against
Mexico was lust well defined is the boundary between
the District Of Columbia and Maryland and Virginia. 0rg
nay the territory of Texas constituted very small portion
Of what she afterwards possessed Having been constituted
State with Coahaila Of the Mexican Coniedeacy, the
boundary between Texas and Coahu and Tamaupas and
which, as he had before said, clearly KNOWN was the
Nueces How them did she acquire boundary beyond that
river The gentleman admitted that the Texas which revo
utionized the Texas which admitted Then she &C
quired title but by revolution title that she had not
maintained by the sword and il she had maintained title to