Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1848-01-18

ann And vel how many hears lh'oeT 80,
COMES, beat high with true Loyalty 10 lug oE G
ond WIRE striking or were buin'ns u SIN ~,
her s,andard. No sir, the proposition - no' uI
40 !, ;s sometimes understood. l. means ohly
Inc ability 10 maxi the usurpa;ion sooa py W.
If ans when The usurpcI's Tile Is oy iu'ce vi
arms assaulted SUBJECT 10 ibiS "s': M: WV I t.r
doub, that Texas mad the ahil'y " '!"'n"in n lo
title 10 any par, of The territory ela''n'u ~,
between The Nueces aud Inc mo vi a'uI'
The lacrs give The answer. hiei nei eecIdia.on
~ ;nIcncsdrce and after she had by force driven
Tho MEXICAN troops across the la'!er rlVer 'hey
.herwatds rclnrned but twice and were each
lime driven bsck: and from the period oil The last
incnrsion in 1913, no Mexican soldier ever
crossed The river and no civil officer oil Mex
ico ever exercised jurisdiction over II. !e3as
then claimed The terfitory-TeXas drove Mex
leo from il-TeXas had apparently Inc pow
er, and certainly Inc Will, 10 orl'e hel nun !"
whenever she invaded il. II these were The tac's,
and I appeal 10 The honorable Senator from lex
as for their truth what doubt is there that 10 tha'
mari of her constitutional limits she has perfect
Title Sir, VOID or TWO more, and upon inns
point have DONE What Senator, what Amefi-
can, would be now content 10 abandon The leriilo-
~, make Ike Nueces The boundary, and lsht only
for that boundary? For peace, 10 put an END 10
lie war, 10 spare The further enuslon OF oinoo'
some might be found who would by negotiation
agree to Iha! limit OF Mexico would surrender
al! title TO The rest OF Texas. Bul who IS lheIe
who would now propose 10 tall BACK 10 Inc nue.
ccs, and aba ndon al once the Intermediate terrific
r.. the very fields of Palo Alto and Resaca de la
Palma 10 Mexico, ard fight her only 10 The banks
OF the Nueces2 | believe, hope, for the honor
Of common allegiance, that there Is moi one-
| have said that trusted for lie sake OF our
heretofore stainless character, that The opinion
have thus fully endeavorcd 10 MAINTAIN was cor
rec-,hat The war is on our part Just one.
II not, sir, Why is it no,2 |; is because with
on, justification We invaded Mexican soil. II is
because without justification we caused Mexican
blood 10 be spilled uron Mexican ground. II is
because they were met al their own homes, winch
we invaded; upon their own fields dear 10 mem
as love oil country is dcar-consecraled 10 them
by all the associations which bind man to The
soil of his biIh in The hottest OF all du.ies-lhc
defence OF home and country; and have, without
right without excuse, without palliaiioD, gwen
them TO the sword slaughtered them by hum
dreds and thousands, and driven The Survivors
away. Sir, would not such tale OF wrong, OF
i!se cover our country with i3nominy But 1t
is mol vet hall told. What else have we done =
We have seized upon il as preiext Tor other, and
if possible, yet teeper cnormitles. we nave pub.
lishei 10 The world ial,ehood. We have en-
outrage We have stated that The contest was OF
their own seeking-not ours; and upon This de-
grazing peIversiun, have pursued them with still
more lrishlful outrage. We al once called into
the field so 600 soldiers-rlaced The whole naval
power OF The government al the disposition OF the
Execulive-enuuSied him with ten millions OF
dollars, and carried on the war thus begun-took
possession OF their towns, bombarded Monterey
carried il almost by storm, slaushIeTIn2 men and
women by hundreds and thousands. Sill the
story is not told. The damDng dishonor is not
vet as dark as the truth. Another Congress as
sembled-we Of The Senate composing it in part.
We authorized addtiona troops TO be raised-we
placed additional funds in The hands Of the Pre>i-
dent.-We hear 81 an intention 10 strike outraged
! Mexico in yet more vita pointS-we do not ar
rest il. We suffer the expedition 10 go on. Be-
fore The Mexican blood s.ye dry upon the fields
at Paio Alto Eesaca de la Palma, Monterey,
and Buena Vista, Vera Cruz is bombarded.-
Her churches iali under the dreadful aim Of the
moriar-the blood of her women and children
runs in streams through her before peaceful
and happy sTeeis-her almost every thorough
fare is obsl!ucted BY the mangled bodies OF
her slaughtered citizens, until at last, her valor
can hold ont 10 longer before the mighty and
| crushing power Of our arms She suHenders.-
| Yet still our vengeance is not sluued Innocent,
unofentins, outraged Mexico has yet more cities
10 lie laid waste or conqnered-more hearts 10
| be wrung-mofe gallant blood 10 be shei-moIe
women and children 10 be aughlered-more
| agony in every form to suffer. We have not yet
! had our fiji OF blood. We march on in fiendsh
progress. Al CeTo Gorto, Churubusco, Cha
| puilepec, Moline del Rey, our march of slangh-
ter is renewed and goes on with yet mere teariu!
| violence. Mexican blood waters every plain
| The cries OF Mexican agony s'anle every car,
and still The work goes on We lay siege TO the
| CITY of Mexico Itself lombard its peaceful dwell.
| liDgs- make her streets 10 run win human
| blood, aud slaughter again women and children,
until resistance becomes Hnavaiing We get
decds' Is she 50 deeply serped in criimief Has
she no honor Ina Are wc ch;is' ian and civiz
| ed men, or are We robbers and murdeiers2
hope she will pardon me The inquiry; and yel i:
the war was unjust, il i, was not provoked, il il
was our act and not the act OF Mexico, every hu-
man heart, animated by single human feeling,
can but answer in the affirmative.
But no, sir, no. sir, ii is not So She is high
minded, Just, and honorable. She is civilized,
not savage. Her citizens are moral and chris.
tan. Those scenes are in the eye Of God and
man 10 be justified, because necessary to our no.
nor, and forced upon us in vindicalion of our
violated rights. Mexico is answerable for all
these sad and sckening results. The war is just,
because she commenced it, 1t does not exist by
her act, and, so help me God, but for that convic-
ton, as reverence truth and detesl falsehood, |
would never have voted for The act of the 5,h
May IG.
Without concluding, Mir. Johnson gave way
TO a motion 10 adjourn and the Senate adjourned.