Daily American telegraph., 1852-01-13

motive which actuated them. That motiveis ex-
planned in letter from the Mexican Minister OF
Finance to the American Secretary OF the Treas
ury, as follows:
"By the Secretary of the Mexican Legation are
sent drafts for the sum of Sc 000, 000 and inter-
est thereon, to be accepted by you. | beg that
you will be pleased to accede to this, as by this
the multitude of usurers who wish to speculate
on both governments will not remain favored
mo quedaran, faooyecidos. y
The Mexican Minister, Mr.. De la Rosa, unwil-
ling to compromise the honor of his government
hestated, after what had occurred at the close of
the lst session, 3lst Congress, to present the
drafts for acceptance but called on the Secretary
of State to explain the grounds on which his
government had acted in forwarding them, the
benefits to result by the arrangement to both
governments and the great desire of his that the
assurances given by Mr.. Clayton should be re-
spected, and the drafts accepted Mr.. Webster
| refused to listen to him, and said that, having
otherwise disposed of the matter, he did not wish
to be importuned on the subject, In the mean
time, news of the action and debates in Congress
reached Mexico and new instructions were sent
to Mr.. De la Rosa, " to urge, by every means in
| his power, measure SO advantageous to both
governments" but in doing so to guard the honor
of Mexico with his usual ability, and to avoid,
above "al things, doing anything that could be
construed as offensive to Mr.. Webster" We also
received similar instructions. Acting under these
instructions, Mr.. De la Rosa had several inter-
views on the subject with Mr.. Webster, who per-
tinaciousy refused to comply with the wishes of
Mexico; also, refused to reduce the substance of
their interviews to writing, by procesv verbal
and on Mr.. De la Rosa proposing to address him
note, replied that he would receive it with great
displeasure- (disgusto.)
Under these circumstances we appealed to you.
We are pleased to be able to say that you ex-
pressed desire to aid Mexico and crafty the
wishes of her government. But you said that
you felt yourself compromised by the contract
which Mr.. Webster had made, and referred us to
Congress-
Here we remark, as we urged upon you then,
that the Secretary of State had no authority, pre-
vious to the appropriation by Congress, to make
any contract which could be binding either upon
Congress or on you! This was repeatedly asserted
in the debate; and it was admitted by all that
the Secretary of State had no such authority
And, moreover the Hon. chairman of the Com
mittee of Ways and Means proclaimed again and
again, the authority of the Secretary of State,
that the contract which be had made was q con-
/" binding nobody unless an appropriation was
made, and at this session." (See Congressional
Globe" LIST session, 3lst Congress, pages Is, 81,
and 52.) Mr.. Dickinson, chairman of the Com
mittee on Finance, also informed the Senate to
the same effect. (See "Appendix to Congress
sional Globe" lst session, 31st Congress, page
1867 But you have since informed us that,
having taken the trouble to send for and examine |
the papers, you found that the contract was not
only for the third but for the fourth instament
also, and that it was absolute, without any con-
dition about it. Now, we submit that the secre-
tary of State has either deceived and misled the
Hon. chairmen of the Committees of Ways and
Means and of Finance, or else, still further to
compromit you, he has since made new contract
and antedated it.
Being referred by you to Congress, we ap-
peaed to them. In the Senate, the matter was
referred at the last session to the Committee on
Finance We called on the chairman of the COM
mittee, and, in conversation with him, learned
that the difficulty of the case consisted solely in
this that there was before the committee, or be-
fore Congress, no official expression of the wishes
of the Mexican government on the subject
With pleasure we heard that distinguished |
statesman declare that it was his wish-with
greater pleasure did we hear him express the
opinion that it was the wish of Congress and of
the whole people of the United States-to aid
Mexico by every means in their power, and that
her wishes, as soon as made known, would be
complied with by the representatives of the peo-
pie of the United States. This conversation we
repeated to his Excellency Mr.. De la Rosa, who,
eager to vindicate the honor Of his government,
and to sustain the proprety Of its course, in re-
lying on the fulflment, by one administration of
this government, Of the assurances given by its |
predecessors, was at first disposed to adopt our
suggestions and seek interview with the chair
man of the Committee on Finance, for the pur-
pose of communicating, through him, to the Con-
gress of the United States, the wishes of the
Mexican government and the circumstances by
which it had been led on the assurances and at
the invitation of the United States government,
to draw on it before the day of payment and in
q manner not expressly indicated by the treaty.
On more mature reflection, however, that able
statesman and diplomatist judged, more wisely
than we, that to appeal thus from the Executive
to the Legislature would be violation of his
instructions not to do anything which could be
construed as offensive to the Secretary Of State,
and that it would moreover give Mr.. Webster an
occasion to remind him that the Secretary of
State was his proper medium of communication