The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1853-01-11

80 vague and uncertain? No one 1t is not so, that
Great Britain resigns or the United States take do
msnion. The terms ssany part Of Central Ameri
ca" then, did not include British Honduras; and
80 the Senators cannot have understood, if they
knew the political condition Of British Honduras as
have described it. That condition was known
here prior to the 10th of May, l649; and Senator
stated in debate here that four companies of Brit
ish troops had marched from the Belize, in Yucca
tan, and that this the act of the colonial
thorties of Great Britain at the Belize; and he who
made that statement was no other than the Senator
from Michigan, (Mr. CAss.)
But waving, for arguments sake. all the points
thus far made, shall next show that the Senators
were not ignorant of the construction officially
given by Mr. Clayton to the convention until the
9th of January, when they proclaimed il dis
closure then obtained through the Presidents com
munication. The ratification was made on the 4th
of July 1850. On the 18th of that month the Pres
dent transmitted to Congress communication
which contained these words
ga copy of the treaty concluded between Great
Britain and the United Suites in regard 10 Central
America is herewith submitted It's enga gements
| apply to all the five States which formerly com
posed the republic Of Central America and their
dependencies, of which the Island OF Tigre was
part. 1t does not recognise, affirm, Or deny the
title ofthe British settlement at Belize @hlchis by
the coast more than 500 miles from the proposed
| canal at Nicaragua. The question of the British
title to this district Of country, commonly called Brit
ash Honduras, and the small islands adjacent 10 it,
claimed its dependencies, stands precisely IL
stood before The treaty No act Of the late Presidents
| administration has IN any manner committed this
Government to the British title in thatterriory airy
part Of it'' ~ -
This paper gave to the Senators just two years
five months and twenty-five days ago the same
information which surprises, shocks, and alarms
them now.
But even that communication was only reite-
ration of the information before given For
on the 9th day of July, 1850, the official exposition
appeared in the National Intelligencer, together
| with the convention then officially promulgated
Senators who accuse Secretaries OF stupidity or
suppression and fraud, cannot be allowed TO plead
ignorance of official expostions in the official
journals R.s
shall attempt to convince the Senators that they
and the Senate did understand that the conUe.tion
did not include British Honduras tohe they approx
ed it.
Mr.. King, of Alabama, chairman of the
Committee on Foreign Relations, and SO the proper
medium of communication between the Senate
and the Secretary of State The Senator from
Michigan tells US that Mr.. King has stat, 10 him
that, ssafter the quasi ratification from Eng,
land the 29th of June, he had an interview with
Mr.. Clayton, who desired to know whether the
treaty ought to be sent back to the Senate for its
| action on that conditional ratification TIE only
| reason of sending it back to the Senate was that
the Senate might have not understood the conven-
ton not including British Honduras, and 20
might object to the ratification of it az thus ex
planned by the negotiators. The correspondence
between Mr.. Clayton and Mr. King tells the result
L Y,
dated July 4, 1850, and MIR. Kings reply of same
date, which have been published
So the proper organ of the Senate represented
that they perfectly understood that the convention
did not include British Hon'lu The accusing
Senators will not impeach the chairman; nd since
they have SO broadly assumed to speak for all,
they will not now deny that they did not know
what we all "perfectly understood .
Just what MIR. King advised was done BY the
Secretary He took effectual care not to use any
expression which should seem to recognise the
right of England to the portion of Honduras-lhat
is, to British Honduras-which she possessed. That
right remains just it was before; good or bad,
it 10 not made worse better by the treaty. AS
to the Bay of Islands, if it was in fact a de-
tendency of British Honduras on the 4th of July,
1850, then the formation Of colony there not
violation of the convention. If 1T was not then
in fact dependency, then that transaction is a
violation of the treaty. But in either case it has
nothing to do with the present question
The Senator from Louisiana, (Mr. DowNs,) in
very wantonness OF censure, has supposed that not
only the Senate but the late President, General
Taylor, was Ike Ut in ignorance of the conditions OF
ratification; and this upon the ground, merely, that
General Taylor sickened on the 4lh, and died on
the 9th Of July. But the Committee on Foreign
Relations now appears to have known the condi.
tions on the 29th Of June, and the President may
be presumed to have been entrusted by the Secre-
tary with a fact that was officially communicates
to the Senate. Whatever else might have been
the errors mistortunes of that administration
want Of mutual confidence between the Secretary
of State and his distinguished chief was not one
of them. They stood together firmly. undivided
and inseparable to the last 81 rs
Storms of faction from within their own party
and from without beset them, and combinations
and coalitions in and out of Congress aesailed
them with degree of violence that no other adj
ministra ton has ever encountered But thew
yielded and fatered for instant; they
went on firmly united together their great
work of consolidating the then newly extended
Republic upon the foundations of universal liberty
nj ltah mo ia tai al,
foundations of commercial interests and republi il
can systems. That administrator which they
conducted was not beaten down by human hands
nor human words, nor human votes but it went
down only under provdential visitation; that if
it had happened on the fe d of NJ Inferey or M /
Buena Vista would have either forever lost or
longer postponed the extension OF our boz ers to
the shores of the Pacific ocean. Those who have
profted by political changes consequent on tits
sad event may listen unmoved to the ceremonies
which for two years past have hurled and are still
hurting equally around the Secretary of State in
his retirement and over the veteran ami war ex.
hausted President in his grave. Let me, on the
other hand, who had some humble portion of heir 4
confidence and knew their fidelity to each other,
to their country, perform, though it be alone
the duty of vindicatng them against the ella n,ors
of prejudice and error saaE
And let me say to the Senator from Louisiana,
and to the Senator from Ohio, and even to the
Senator from Michigan, that long as their ca
reers respectively may be, protracted even hope
they may to the end of their natural lives in ri
pening age, and strong and devoted as know
they are, yet that it will be happy for them, and
for US all, if then they shall have established
claims upon the affection of their country and the
gratitude of mankind equal to those which were
perfected in the administration, broken off in its
seventeenth month, but conducted for that short
period by John M Clayton the venerable states
man Of Delaware, and presided over by z ,chary
Taylor, the hero who indicated and opened the
way of our armies to the conquest of Mexico
MIR. MASON hoped that the debate would BE-
be postponed till to- morrow. %
Il Mr.. CASS said he would not follow Mr. SEWARD
into the merits of the oulogy or elegy which he
had pronounced on the Clayton administration. /,
The Senator from New YORK said he would con-
vince them that they did understand the treaty as
Mr.. Clayton did, Notwithstanding they had as
serted to the contrary. The Senator had no right
to say this He again said to the Senate tina, 4
he did not understand the treaty when he voted
for it as excluding from it's provisions any part
of Central America; he thought the treaty stood
SO, and was understood go by ALL till the pnblica-
ton of these papers. Great Britain lately had |
been making encroachments in that quarter, and
he had looked into the subject. He was not here |
to arraign Mr.. Clayton; all he had said was that
it was strange diplomatic proceeding. In the
case of the protocol to the treaty with Mexico,
cited by the Senator from New York, there was
no change made in the obvious meaning, Bpur-
pose and intent of the treaty. .ra