The daily national Whig. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1847-1849, 1849-01-18
THE MEXICAN CLAIMS

oSCeItdineu. MtAiCo leiuses " Pay 49,
which are adudicated. The United states
90 to war with Mexico, for the purpose o.en-
forcing payment Of those adJudIeated ciaims'
and of compelling her to adjudicate those
which have not been passed upon. The
war is closed by treaty Of peace, by which
the United States undertake to pay all claims,
which their citizens may have against Mex
leo for spolations.
Such is plain statement Of facts, disem-
barrassed Of adventurous questions.
But, it viii be urged, the treaty stipu-
lates, that the United States will pay all
claims against Mexico, for spoliations, provi-
ded they do not exceed given amount
Such is the fact, but We contend, that the
United States had no power whatever to
conclude any such treaty stipulation with
Mexico
They either had the right to do SO, orthey
had not. If they had, then the right re-
mains to those citizens, whose claims shall
not be included within the stipulated sum, to
demand of Mexico, pay through their gov
srnment, the payment Of the same. If they
had not the right to make such stipulation
Of limitation, then the United States are
bound to pay the claims Of all citizens against
Mexico up to the period of the treaty.
The adjudicated claims against Mexico
have, we believe, been all paid by the Uni
ted States. No provision has yet been
made TO pay those which have been pro-
nounced good by the Commissioners on the
part Of the government, nor to ascertain the
amount Of all other just claims, which have
not vet been submitted to the examination
Of any tribunal.
The Senate, at its last session, passed a
bill for adudicating all nnadjusted claims
against Mexico, and paying them all, if they
should exceed the sum stipulated by the trea-
ty, according TO the proportion they shonld
bear to that amount, That bill, if we re-
member Alright, was a totally different one
from that submitted by General Benton
His proposition went for paying all the just
claims Of our citizens against Mexico, with
out reference to the amount The bill which
passed, if we do not mistake, was opposed
in an unanswerable argument by Mr., West
colt He demonstrated, that the United
States had no right to conclude, with Mex
leo, any stipulation whatever limiting the
smount o. claims against her for spolation
He showed, beyond dispute, that the right Of
the citizens, who suffered from the spoliations
Of Mexico, to demand from Mexico restitu-
ton, through their own government, was
inextinguishable by any act oftheir govern
ment. 1t could only be relinquished OF
modified by the consent of the claimants
themselves.
This bill is now before the Committee on
Foreign Relations, in the House of Repre-
sentatives. That Committee is composed
Of men, who are thoroughly versed in the
laws Of nations, All the principles Of public
polity, which regulate the relations between
citizens and their governments, in constitu-
tional states, are familiar to them. They
are men, we are sure, who would carefully
exclude all partisan considerations from their
consultations upon this bill They owe it to
their high characters, to approach it as states
men. THE government has once before
stained its eseutcheon by bargaining away
the rights Of its citizens for a mess Of pottage,
and then refusing to retreat. 1t will be
bright day for the fame Of the Committee,
which have this bill now in charge, if they
will report it back with an amendment pro-
vidlng for the payment Of all the Just claims
Of our citizens against Mexico. twill, thus,
roll back the dark cloud Of injustice, which
hangs over the relations of the United States
to its own citizens, when their claims against
foreign States for spoliatlons, are the subject
Of federal legislation. Indeed, we will not
permit ourselves to believe that the Com
mittee will not report the bill back with
amendments fully protecting the rights of
the claimants and providing for the payment
Of all just claims, let the amount of them be
what IT may. In the character Of the able
Chairman OF that Committee, the country
has every guarantee, that the Republic will
receive no harm, by any unjus. egislation, SO
far as he Is concerned We do not believe
that he will ever consent to let this govern
meht barter away the rights Of citizen, who
have just claims against Mexico, for mere
trife, or indeed, for any amount whatever
short Of the amount Justly due. Our gov
eminent went to war to compel Mexico to
pay our citizens their claims upon her for
spoliations, and it has received ample indem-
nifty for those spoliations. Shall it be said
that, after it forced Mexico to do Justice in
the premises, II refuses to do what Mexico
refused to doi We are sure that the Com
mittee, which has the matter in hand, will
never consent to any such act Of injustice,
and yet the Senate bill now before it, pro-
vides orthe contamination Of precisely such
an act
ID ~ L IN