The Hillsborough recorder. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1820-1879, 1848-02-16

HANs@s - aaAsNe ttsN MEHN NuA al NrEANrN
Some u them. not receiving lhe con
finnalion Of The commissioners, were re
leFEed ~ IN umpire. who had not Tim,
10 decide. and some we're NOT acted oE
n al. Wei, Mexico did NOT wilhhalt
fram ~ or rsfnse the payment of Ihoss
. rlains which were admitted by he CON
missioners. On The contrary. she man.
J Iiesied . disposition 10 meet die nav.
} ment By lesying forced contributions npou
! her citizens Tor that purpose. and eonrlu.
ded another convention in lS43. providing
lor the organization Of another commission
Tor the adjudication Of the claims MOI
settled by lhe FIRST. In consequence of her
embarrassed condition and exhausledr Urea.
sury. Mexieo was unable 10 make pay
meni of The adjudicaied claims as siipuia-
ted; but she entered into an arrangement
with General Thompson. the Minister Of
The United Slsles. 10 pay The claims by
instalmenls. showing llIsl she acted in good
faith. and with no disposition 10 withhold
the payment. She paid all the arrears Of
inhresI Al eigh. per rent, and three install
ments ofprinrIpsl, nor was IL until the ne
COLLATION. Of The Annexation Treaty, the
expnisi,n Of Santa Anna from power, and
his exile from Mexico. that they failed TO
make payments. Whether annexation
was the cause Of such failure, or whether
u arose from their inability 20 pay, can.
mol undertake 10 say; but, think. the lat.
ter the more probable ranse. One thing
is certain. that Mexico made great efforts.
and IL she did not make punctual pay
menis, IL was rather to be attributed 10
her distressed condition than 10 any wan,
of faith. Well. who is there who does
not ree"lleci that we ourselves have been
delinquent in this way in reference 10 the
claims Of Great Britain against nsl re-
fer To the debts due the British merchants.
recognized by the treaty OF 1888. and no,
paid, believe. for twenty years after that
date. ! remember. TOO. sir. thai our claims
against Great Britain for the negroes carri-
ed off at the close OF the war of 1919,
were not settled finally iill 1926. although
provided FOR in the treaty OF peace. Who
does not recollect the claims FOR spoliaiion
by Naples and Denmark. and The more
remarkable case Of spoliaiions by France,
the most fragrant Of all committed in the
wanionness of poweT-in very scom &c
our righis-wi,houi The slightest jusliiica-
lion. and persisted in, repeated, and boldly
defended with the most offensive etTron-
terry, and yet endured by this country
issS SSB an fqcfs sserSea d.,"S.s o%
gentleman. who was formerly member
OF ,his body, iMr. Rives of virginia,) ne
goiia'ed the treaty Of indemnify; and then
france. adding further wrong 10 The heap
ed up injury which we had sustained so
patiently, withheld the paymen, OF the
money f"r four wears longer! Gen. Jack.
son did, indeed, in 1885, address Con-
gress on the subject, and sugges. reprisals
as proper mode OF redress; and he asked
three millions of dollars 10 be placed a, his
disposal 10 enable him TO act as circnm-
stances might require. But Congress
neither adopted his recommendation or re-
prisals. nor voted him the three millions.
and the Senate chose rather to allow the
dciea, of the fortifca,ion bill.
Sir. France was not feeble--her ,rea.u.
ry was not exhausted; she was the most
elasilce Power in Europe. as was man.
iiested by her immense payments made
TO the allies after the restoration Of the .
Bourbons. Yet. sir, we submitted 10 all
this from France, and il was only in 1885
that we recovered from her the indemnity
that was due for spoliations committed IN
1906 and 1913. Neither was the indem-
nifty which we obtained from her, a com.
plete aud full one. II was a partial and
imperfect indemnity. thur robbed mer.
chants got only dividend Of their claims.
And YET we talk of violated honor! and
The President rants about our claims
against Mexico! some OF them, by the by.
oil very questionable character; some Of
Them, in fact, grossly fraudulent, as I have
been informed by distinguished gentle.
man from South Carolina, and such as
never could be properly demanded nv our
Government under the treaty with Mex.
leo. speak of those contracts for land
npon which enormous demands for indem.
nifty were lounded-which demands this
Government was asked TO enforce. Sir.
lake il altogether, and | do say tina, there
never was urged in legislative body so
a proposition as, that il is
nst and necessary to wage war for the
mere procrassina,ion Of payment of claims
like these, against weak and impovsrish.
ed government. And yet this is urged
as though il were a sufficient cause for
war; when every body knows, who reflects
al all upon The matter, that such has ne.
yer been heretofore regarded as ius,ifia.
bic cause Of war, No. sir, l will Tell ven
what was the cause of this war. II was
The unauthorized act of the President in
!akIng possession of territory TO which
his country had no title--to which Con.
sress had not authorized him to make
claim, and agains, making a claim for
which they had warned him by the very
Terms OF the resolution Of annexation.
Fl