Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1857-1858, 1857-12-14


dent, would il hsve received the appreciation
of the Senate. The universal conviction IN the
United States WIS, that when our government cor.
sented TO violate its traditional and time honored
policy, and to stipulate with foreign gov.rnment
never to occupy or acquire territory in the Get
trail American portion of our own continent tnr
consideration for this sacrifice was that Great BIT
tain should, in this respect at least be placro ID
the same position with ourselves. " MIST we usVe
right to doubt the sincerity ct the British gov
ernmont in their construction Of the tr'atV, IS 81
the time nv d'Iiberits conviction that this
construction is in opposition both to its letter ana
its spirit.
! Under the late administration negotiations
wer. instituted between the two governments
for the purpose if possible, OF removing IheSe
difficulties: and treaty having this lauduble
object in view. was signed a. London on tie
17Ih October 1856. and was submitted by the
President to the Senate on the following ION
! of December Whether this treaty, Ell her N
its regular or amended form, would have accom-
Dlished the Object intened. without giving birth
to new embarrassing complications between the
| two governments, may, perhaps, be Wen
questioned. Certain it l., however, 1t wac
| rendered much less Objectionable by the differ
eut amendments made to it bv tn Senate.
The treaty. as amended. was ratifel by me
on the 18th of March, 1857, and was transmit
| ted TO London for ratification by the BRUSH
! government. That government expressed It's
made bv the Senate with the single exception
of the clause relating to Rualan and the oth.r
islands in the Bay Of Honduras. The article
in the original treaty, as submitted to the De
nate. after reciting that these islands aud their
| inhabitants "haviug been by convention
bearing date the 9th day of August, 1900, De-
tween her Britannia Majesty and the rePuOhc
! of Honduras, cOnstitut and declared Tree
territory under the sovereignty of the said re-
public of Honduras" stipulated that "the two
! contracting powers do hereby mutually engage
! to recognize and respect in all future time the
! independence and rights of the said free terri.
! tory aa part of the republic Of Honduras:
Upon an examination of this convention be-
| tween Grsat Britain and Honduras OF the 2ith
| August 1855 it was found that, whilst declaring
! the BAY Islands TO be free territory under the
sovereignty of the republic of Honduras, It de
prVed that repnbic OF rights without winch It's
sovereignty over them could scarcely De sald 10
exist. It divided them from the remainder o.
Honduras and gave to their Inhabitants separate
government of their own, with le isdtlVe, '1ecu-
tive and Judicial officers elected by themselves
It deprieed the government of Honduras of the
t King power in every form, and exempted th'
people of thu Island from the performance OF mil
itY duty except for their exclusive defence
It also prohibit the repuc from erecting torld-
cations upon them for their prOtecuon-thus Law
ing them op n to invasion from any quarter; and,
iuaIly it prov led that slavery shall not at any
Had Honduras ratified this convention, she
would have ratified the ESTABLISHING OF a state
substantially Independent within her own Hhlts'
and a State at all times subject to British lnHu-
ence and control. Moreover, had the United
States ratified the treaty with Great Britain in
its original form, we should have heen bound Ito
recognize and respect in all future time" these
stipulations to the prejudice of Honduras. Be
ing in direct opposition to the spirit and mean
ing of the Clayton a d Bulwer treaty, as under
stood in the United States, the Senate rejected
the entire clause, and substituted IN rs stead
simple recognition of the sovereign right OF
Honduras to these islands in the following Ian
guagc: 'The two contracting parties do hereby
mutually engage to recognize and respect the
islands of Ruatan, BonacO, Utila, Barbaretta,
Helena and MOrat. situate in the Bay of Hon
duras, and off the coast of the Republic of Hon
duras as under the sovereignty and as a part OF
the said republic of Honduras.
Great Britain rejected This amendment, as
signing as the only reason, that the ratIhca-
tons If the Convention of the 27th Of August,
1855, between her and Honduras, bad not
been exchanged owing to the hesitation Of
that government" Had this been done, it is
stated that "Her Msje~ty would have had lit
tie difficulty in agreeing to the modification
GRO posed hy the Senate, which then would
have he'd 10 effect the same Specification as the
original wording" Whether this would have
been the effect, whether the mere cirCum-
stance cf the exchange of the Publications of
the British Convention with Honduras prior
10 point of time to the ratification at our trea-
ty with Great Britain would, Sin effect, " have
had ''the same Specification as the original
wording" and thus nulfed the amendment
of the Senate, may we'll be doubted. 1t is
perhaps, unfortunate, that the question has
ever arisen.
The Br;tish government, Immediately after
iecting the treaty amended, proposed to enter
into a new treaty with the United States similar in
all FpGD "a IN he WI re-
fused to ratify if the United States would consent
10 add to the Senate's ClraF and unqualified TecOg-
milton Of the sovereignty OF Honduras, ovrr the
Bay Islands, the following conditional stipulation
"Whenever and 80 soon IS the republic OF Hondu-
ras shall have concluded and ratified treaty with
Great Britain, Ly which Great Britain shall have
ceded, and the republic of Honduras shall have
accepted the said islands, subject to the provisions
and conditions cont inpd in such treaty"
After the Senate had refused to recognize the
British convention with Honduras on the 9th Of
August, 1856, with full knowledge of its con-
tents, il was impossible for me, necessarily ig-
nOTant of the provisions and conditions which
might be contained in future convention be-
tween the same parties, to sanction them IN adj
vance.
The fact is that when two nations like Great
Britain and the United States, mutually DESTROYS
as they are, and / trust ever may be, Of main
tanning the most friendly relations with each
other have unfortunately concluded treaty
which they understand in senses directly OppO-
site the wisest course is to abTOgate such treaty
by mutual consent, and to commence anew. Had
this been done promptly, all difficulties in Cen
trail America would most probably, ere this, have
been adjusted to the satisfaction of both parties.
The time spent in discussing the meaning of the
Clayton and Bulwer treaty, would have been de-
voted to this praisewOrthy purpose, and the task
would have been the more easily accomplished,
because the interest Of the two countries in Cen
trail America is identical, being confined to secu-
ring safe transits over all the routes across the
IsthmuS
" lille entertaining these sentiments, shall new
erthelvss not refuse to contribute 20 any ressona.
ble adjustment Of the Central American questions
which is not practically Inconsistent With the Ama
ercau nterpre tatiOn of the treaty. OVertures for
the purpose have been ntly made by the Brit
ish Government in a friendly spirit, when !
dialy reciprocate; but VII, Their this renewed effort
will result in success, am not yet prepared TO eX-
press an opinion. A brief period will determine.
With France our ancient relations of Friendship
still continue 20 exist. The French gOvernm, mt
have in several recent instances, which need not
enumerated, evineed spirit Of good will and
kindness towards our c0uutTy which heartily re-
CprOuute. Il IT, uOtNiths landing muca TO be re-
GREETED that nations whose produC tons are OF
such a character Co invite the mot txlvn,iEe
exchanges aud freest comm rcial Intercourse
should CONTINUE 90 enforce ancient aud OTIS Il-te
strictiOns of tTsde against each other. Our COM
merci4l treaty With France Is ia Lhi- respect
crptiOn from treaties with al 9th CONNER
cal nations Il jealousy lyVies die .iminatnI du-
lies both on tonnage and on asSicle-, tue growth
produce, or manufacture OF the on country, when
arriving Ia vessel. b On ling 20 the othor
More than forty years ago, on the Sd OF March
1915, Congress passed an act Offering 20 all ma
tions TO admit their vessels laden with their ma
tional productions into the ports OF the United