The Belmont chronicle, and farmers, mechanics and manufacturers advocate. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1848-1855, 1853-01-28
From the National Inteiligeneer.
TO THE EDITORS.

| GENTLEMEN: Knowing that several Sena.
! tors had had interviews with Col KING since
the statement made in the Senate by Gen.
CAss on Thursday last, and the publication
! in the lntellgencer Of Col KrSe's note to
Mr.. CLAYTON of the 4th OF July, 1850, in
reference to the Clayton and Bulwer Treaty,
went to the Senate this morning confident.
| ly expecting to hear such an explanation of
the apparent Inconsistency between the
statement and the note as would be satisfac-
| tory to all parties, and place the whole mat
ter in proper light before the country.
! No such explanation having been made in
the Senate, (perhaps from want of proper
! information on the subject,) and it having
| been my privilege as well as my duty to. be
very frequently with Col KING during his
present distressing illness, and thus to have
had opportunities to understand his views not
| open to others, it seems to me that Justice to
him requires that there should be no LONGER
delay in placing this matter in its true and
proper position. The propriety of this is
deemed to be the more urgent from the fact
that Ger. CAss reiterated to-day his state
ment in the Senate. 1t is as follows:
81 conversed with Col King, and he au-
thorized me TO say that there is an entire
mistake upon this point. He told me that
after this quasi ratification came from Eng
land, on the 29th of June he had an interview
with Dir. Clayton, who desired to know if the
treaty should be sent back to the Senate for
its action upon this conditional ratification.
lie told MI Clayton that if it came there for
that purpose it would not get vote in the
Senate; and that till this day he supposed the
PROJECT OF accepting this declaration had been
abandoned, and that the treaty stood upon
its own provisions. Col. King further said
he had some general idea of claim of Eng
land TO cut logwood in Honduras, but he new.
er thought OF It's being set up as the founda-
ton OF pTetenaion to establish a colony
there"
The following is the Note of July 4th.
Air King TO Mr.. Clinton.
JULY 4, 1850
Ny DEAR Sir: The Senate perfectly I'M.
derstood that the Treaty did not include Brit.
ish Honduras. Frankness becomes our Gov
ernment; but you should be careful no, TO
use any expression which would seem to re-
cognise the right Of England to any portion
O. Honduras. WIN. r. KING.
To Hon. JOHN II. CLAYTON, Secretary Of
State.
Now, this whole difficulty is susceptible Of
explanation in a few words. Col KINGS
language to Mr. CAss was based upon a sup
posed statement Of facts, very different from
the facts as they actually exist.
After the negotiation and ratification of
the Treaty by the Senate it was sent to Eng
land, and returned with proposition that il
should De considered as ratified on the part
of the British Government, provided con.
dtion should be annexed to it recognising
title and jurisdiction in that Government
over certain portion Of Honduras. Col.
KING never saw the proposed provision in
writing but understood it was insisted on
by Lord PALMERsroy. He very promptly
told both Mr.. CLAYTON and Sir HENRY BUL-
wER that with such condition the Treaty
could not get vote in the Senate. Mr..
CLAYTON afterwards informed him that the
provision had been abandoned, and he con-
sidered the Treaty ratified by the British
Government precisely as it had been ratified
by the Senate.
When Gen. CAss called on Col. KING, for
his recollectons upon the subject, the latter
that the Documents furnished by
the State Department showed that Lord Pal.
merston's demand had been yielded to in all
its extent instead of abandoned, as he had
been told by Mr. Clayton. Upon this sup
position he did say what Gen. CAss repre-
sents him to have said in his statement.
In reference to British Honduras, Col.
KING was well aware, as every schoolboy is,
that Great Britain has long had certain priv
iIeges there, and from these he did not SUD-
pose, nor until very recently did he imagine
that any body supposed, she was to be sum-
mariy ousted by the Bulwer and CLAYTON
Treaty.
In making this explanation have had no
desire to obtrude myself before the public.
Senator CLEMENS, learn, has been for some
time detained from his seat by indisposition,
and Alabama has no representative in the
Senate. The character of Col. KINF is too
dear to his friends and his State for them to
stand by and see it even remotely implicated.
without at once coming to his vindication
Had it comported with parliamentary rules
this should have been done from my seat in
the House OF Representatives. As it is,
have to ask place for this communication
in your columns.
Very respectfully, your obcdient servant,
J. BRAGG.
WASHINGTON, JANUARY 10, 1853.