The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1853-01-20
CONGRESSIONAL PROCEEDINGS.
rHrRrY-sEcosD CONGRESS - SECOND .sEssrol
SENATE.
JANUARY 10.


SENATE
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10
Mr.. Hunter reported the House bill making
appropriations for the payment Of naval PEN
sons for the year ending June 80, 1854 which
was considered and passed
Also, the House bill making appropriations
for the payment of invalid and other pensions
for the year ending June 80, 1854; which was
also passed with verbal amendment.
Mr.. Cass submitted the following resolution,
which lies over
Resolved, That the President of the United
States be requested, 80 far as may be compati-
BILE with the public interest, to communicate
to the Senate copies Of any correspondence
which took place with the Minister of Great
Britain in the United States in respect to the
treaty negotiated by Mr.. Squier with Nicara-
qua, which was submitted to the Senate in
1850; also, copy of said treaty, and of any
substitute tor it or any part of it, submitted
to the American Government by the British
Minister, and of the letters of the latter,
urging the acceptance of such substitute, and
the replies thereto; and also copies of any
correspondence which took place between the
Secretary of State and the British Minister
and the Minister from Costa RIGA. in re-
spect to projet which was submitted to
Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and the Mosquito In
dams, and copy of such projet, with the in
structiops given to Mr.. Walsh, the special
agent deputed by the United States to present
that projet to the States of Nicaragua and
Costa RIGA, as also of such other correspond
ence as may have passed between him and the
Secretary of State upon the subject; as also
copies OF the correspondence with Mr. Kerr,
Charge d'Afares of the United States in Mic
aragua, in reference thereto, together with
any correspondence with the Government of
Nicaragua or its Minister in respect to the same
projet And the President isfnrther requested
to communicate to the Senate copies of any
letters which may have been addressed to this
Government by the Ministersof Nicaragua or
the Minister of Great Britain, in reference to
the Construction and purport of the Convention
between The United States and Great Britain,
signed April 49, 1850, and proclaimed July S,
1850, and of the replies made to them, if any.
Mr.. Soule said that, when the other day the
debate was suspended, he was going to state
the occurrences which transpired in Executive
session upon the ratification of the treaty He
thought it, however, due to himself not to pro-
coed to do 80 until he had ascertained the
oohoU Vi Viz cCnaiC do W buc pIOpTltby anu
right of abiding to the secret proceedings and
the sensibility which had been evinced after
wards had but confirmed him in the wisdom
and proprlety OF that course. Not that he ap-
pretended any serious consequences would re-
suit to the nation from any such disclosure
for indeed in this, as in many other instances,
that which Is kept secret is found when divuig-
ed to be of but little Importance Still, it was
due to those who had voted for the treaty, that
the nrtb reasons tSs govs,nng should
He had indicated on Monlsy last the scru-
Piles which induced him to b6(dissatisfed with
the wording of the treaty, when informally
presented to some Senators, himself included,
and also how those scruples had been met and
answered. He was not altogether satisfied with
that answer; and though he felt the utmost
confidence in the then Chairman of the Com
mlttee on Foreign Relations, he presumed to
call the attention of that gentleman to the
questionable provision of that treaty and the
assurances he received from that gentleman, O
few seconds after an interview with Mr. Clay
ton, were the same as had formerly been given
When the treaty came before the Senate, he
felt it to be his duty to state in debate on il
the difficulties and doubts which had arisen liz
his mind on this point, although he intend ed
to rest his vote upon the intelligence, wisdom
and learning of those more competent to Judge
OF such matters than he was and then It wa,
that the Senator from Michigan used the Ian
guage that never before had Great Britain
been known to surrender dominion without
war. When he had expressed the doubts upor
his mind as to the effect of these words, FRIEND
of his from the South, but now no longer il
the Senate, declared he had heard enough O
1T and would vote against it. These assurances
thus given, and thus repeated, of the true OBJ
Ject OF the treaty. were undoubtedly the rea
sons governing him, as well as other Senators
in voting for the treaty. He could hardly
have supposed that there was single Senator
who voted for the treaty, but who supposed i
contained an absolute remuneration by Grea
Britain of all her rights and claims to dominion
in Central America If there was one who sup
posed it meant only to relate to the canal, ant
contained no remuneration by Great Britain
let that one take the floor and 80 declare him
self
He had seen in the newspapers a correspond
ence going to show discrepancy between Mr.
Kings letter to Mr.. Clayton and what he had
just said was the understanding of the treaty
He did not 80 understand it, 1t was fully ad-
mitted and understood by all, when the treaty
was under consideration, that its terms did not
refer to or interfere with the license-for that
was the proper term-of Great Britain to cut
logwood at the Belize and Mr. King in his
letter merely refers to this precarious right or
license to cut logwood in Honduras, as being
in no way affected by the treaty. Mr.. King
does not mean that the claim of Great Britain
to dominion in British Honduras is not exclu-
ded by the treaty for hs expressly warns Mr..
Clayton not to use any words implying an ad.
mission of any right to such dominion. Mr..
Kings whole letter amounts TO nothing more
than that the treaty does not abolish the pre-
Curious license of Great Britain to cut logwood
in Honduras
1t was a remarkable fact that the converse
tions respecting the British Minister'S scruples
upon the point Of national pride, &c, took
place some time after the treaty had been sent
to England, and had been supervised by Lord
Palmerston and that not till two months af-
ter its ratification by the Senste, did the Brit
ism Minister deem any explanation of its terms
to be necessary But it was, he thought, easy
to see what the object of Great Britain may
have been. Forgetting the nature Of our Gov
eminent and its institutions, and supposng the
Minister Of State to possess powers unknown
to our Constitution, but the exercise of which in
other countries is not unusual, they may have
believed that by protocol the two negotiators
could have changed the whole features Of the
treaty. Rut such was bevond the reach of the