American telegraph. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1851-1851, 1851-12-03
AMERICAN TELEGRAPH
The President,s Mes.age.

Y We have already presented this document to
our city readers, and it will have reached those
at q distance through the newspapers of their
respective neighborhoods long before our paper
can be received by them. We shall, however,
abridge and adapt to our use the synopsis given
in this mornings Rpa5Acs 2 A2"F+
BY far the larger proportion of the message
is occupied with our foreign relations. A brief
history is given Of the Lopez expedition, and of
the course pursued by the Government in re-
gard to it. The Administration, it is intimated,
sought to prevent the invasion, and warned all
who might engage in it that they would forfeit
all claim to the protection of our Government; /;
but it has not. withheld from its unfortunate
victims the benefits Of the most urgent and So
Gcitous appeals to the clemency of her Catholic
Majesty. 5eL lgs @ a54 .i
The message reafirms the policy of Wash
ington and jackson in regard to our relations
with other governments, and explains the mis-
sion of republicanism to be that Of teaching by
example, not of propagating its opinions by
force or fraud But it adds, with q degree Of
significance and emphasis that cannot fail to
be observed and remarked upon, that the feel
ings and sympathies resulting from our educa-
ton, and the nature of our institutions, will
not permit us to sbe Indifferent to a case in
which the strong arm of a foreign Power inter-
yenes to repress the spirit Of freedom in any
country. " fasf4s
The orders of the British and French govern
ments to their naval forces in the West Indies,
with regard to the protection Of Cuba, are said
to have been well considered and properly
treated by our Government. a
The American people felt Indignantly the
great public shame and scandal of the treat
ment of the Spanish Consul at New Orleans
and Congress is expected to adopt prompt mea-
sures for his indemnifcation.
The revision of the public statutes of the
United States, by a commission appointed for
that purpose, is recommended.
The citizens of this District may well ac-
the attention of the President to
their comfort and convenience, both through
what they see commenced about them already,
and his recommendation for their prospective
benefit.
The President renews his recommendation of
the establishment of commission for the adju-
dication of private claims against the Govern
ment. This measure, under his previous re-
failed in the House by only
few votes.
The President distinctly reafhrms the recon-
of his last annual message respect
ing the Fugitive Slave Law and the Compromise
Measures.
We quote the following from the Union:
Among the special recommendations of the
President, we enumerate, in the order in which
they occur, the following, as likely to attract
particularly the attention Of the public:
n 4. n Al.
ton and punishment of Consuls: the establish
ment of trade between the United States and
Canada on the principles of reciprocity: the
consideration by Congress of suitable recep-
tion for Governor Kossuth on his arrival: the
modification Of the present tariff by the adop-
ton of specific instead of ad vqlorem duties,
whenever practicable, with further discrimna-
tions for the purpose of protection-such modif-
cation to be made in view of the principles as
sumed in the message that a low rate does not
benefit the farming population of the coun-
try by increasing the foreign market for ag-
ricutural products: legislation to extend the
public land system Of the United States over
the public lands of California and Oregon,
and, in this connexion, an increased compensa-
ton to the three commissioners to settle land
titles in California to leave the mineral lands
in California in their present condition, instead
of surveying and selling them in small parcels
in the manner cmphatically recommended by
the President in his annual message of last year:
the establishment of o Bureau of Agriculture:
legislation to guard against frauds upon the
government under existing laws in regard to
pensions aud bounty lands: prompt appropria-
tions to complete the classihcations and publish
the results of the census: the prompt passage
Of the apportionment bill under the census as
A.. ~ ol.ll
ceived: an extended system of river and harbor
improvements on the lakes, the Atlantic sea-
board, and in the rivers Of the West: an in
crease Of the standing army for the protec-
ton of our own frontier and the Mexican
frontier from Indian hostilities: reorgani-
zation of the naval establishment, fixing the
number of officers, creating o retired list, and
promotions by merit and capacity
rather than seniority in the service: revision
of the whole subject of punishment in the navy,
in the view that the abolition of fogging has
not worked we'll: the separation of naval ap-
from those for ocean steam mail
service adherence to the present rates Of post
age on letters and a revision Of those rates on
printed matter: o commission to revise the
statutes Of the United States, and report them,
in revised form, to Congress: liberal legisla-
ton for the District Of Columbia the estab-
lishment of q commission to settle private
claims against the United States: and, finally,
the faithful maintenance and execution of the
measures, as q final adjustment Of
the slavery question.
But these recommendations Of the message
are, most of them, of less Importance as an
of the spirit and policy of the ad-
ministration than the view which is taken of
the foreign relations Of the country. In regard
to the Cuban transactions we notice that the
President has not thought fit to say single
word in respect to the treaty alleged to have
been concluded between England, France, and
Spain, guarantying the possession Of that island
to the Spanish crown on conditions, among the
most prominent of which is said to be the
gradual or immediate abolition of slavery there.