The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-02-03

and TO the world, for the wisdom and the tenn
per, the moderation and the dignity, with which
he executes these great trusts. L propose, on
the other hand, to reserve my own authority,
my own constitutional power, and to maintain
the dignity of my own official functions, and not
at all TO become party to an insult which the
President of the United States may be sup
posed to have already offered to Spain. l can
not consent to 60 to his aid, though it may be
necessary to draw him out of the dilemma in
which he finds himself involved by rashness
which did not advise.
Sir, | will not stop to inquire, as an abstract
question, about the wisdom of great nation Of
fering insults and indignities to other nations.
| will not stop now to inquire about the virtue,
the morality, and the honor, to say nothing of
the dignity, of such a course But l will say
this, that it is not wise to offer an indignity to
foreign Power if you are to gain nothing by it.
So much may at least be conceded to me. And,
now, what is to obtained by insulting Spain
Nothing, but only this: we must expect that
she will be provoked to war to resent the indig
nifty; and when the war has come to resent the
indignity, then the prize of Cuba may be at
tanned as indemnity for the expenses of the war.
Sir, if we desire to acquire Cuba by negotiation,
let us negotiate. The President disclaims and
disdains TO seek it by war directly. Are we to
understand him, and a majority of the commit
tee here, that they ask us to bring Spain indi-
rectly into a war, in order that we may con-
quer Cuba? That would be to impute to the
President and to the committee bad faith, which
l must utterly disclaim.
These considerations satisfy my mind that it
is not expected, that it is not intended, that
Cuba shall be acquired in consequence of this
proceeding; but that it is supposed that some
other advantage, some domestic and local bene-
fit, will be securedto the President of the United
States by provoking debate on this subject in
Congress. Sir, do not so much undervalne
the intelligence of the American people as to
apprehend any such result. The proposition
seems to be an empty one, an idle one, ludi-
crous one; and if it were not for violating the
respect due to the President of the United States
and the majority of the committee who sanction
it, should say o ridiculous one There is a
play which we have sometimes seen at the thea
tire, in which the heorine is an honest house
wife who has propensity for buying everything
at auction, and she is always able to assign at
least one good reason for 1t, namely, that,
though the article bought is not wanted at the
time yet it is cheap, and it viii be so handy to
have it if it shall ever be wanted. So, one day
she bought huge door-plate sold at an auction
of a neighbor's furniture, on which was inscribed
in large letters the name of Thompson" spell
ed with al" p," although her own name, as well
as her husbands, was Toodle. When the in
dignant Mr.. Toodle called her to account for
the expense, "why," she said show do you
know, my dear, that we shall not one day have
a child, and that that child may not be a daugh-
ter, and that that daughter may not be married
to somebody, and Just as likely as not that some
body will be man named Thompson, and
his name may be spelled with 'p,' laughter
so it will then just fit exactly. / could not help
buying it, because it was so cheap, and it will
be so handy, you know, to have it in the house."
That sir is exactly the value of this great Presi-
dental demonstration, made, / think, to retrieve
the sinking and wasting fortunes of an Admin
istration that has disappointed its own immoder-
ate desires not more than the less sanguine ex-
pectatons of the American people.
Mr.. HALE. Mr.. President, do not intend
to occupy the attention of the Senate great
while; but if | do nothing else before / sit
down, hope to be relieved from the censure
which the honorable Senator from Georgia has
made on the Senator from New York; and that
is, that he has not expressed plainly his views
on the main proposition. | am opposed to it
utterly, totally, and entirely. 1 remember, sir
for it is some years since this matter of acuui,
sition has been talked of in this country that it
was first inaugurated under the genius of what
was called manifest destiny; " bat / see that
manifest destiny has been ridden to death we
have got rid of it, and now succeeds to "mani-
fest destiny" political necessity" / want to
Examine that a little. / do not know but what
D is necessary that this should come under the
auspices Of political necessity" because
believe the doctors who taught in the school of
> manifest destiny only contend that manifest
destiny extended over the whole continent, and
now We are 10 leave the continent, and 90 to
sea ; we must have a new era and We are TO
take political necessity; and l suppose that
IS the reason of the change. l am opposed to
them both. | was opposed to manifest des-
tiny" and am opposed to political necessity"
j am opposed to them for this reason. "Mani.
fest destiny always travelled South. Laugh
teri Although it was the mission of :" mani
fest destiny TO take in the whole continent he
never seemed to remember that there was
north side of it. He was always travelling
South. Laughter. We could not get him to
turn his eyes North. So wanting in fidelity
TO his mission was " manifest destiny" that was
to oyerrun this whole continent, so engrossed
was he IN looking South, that whilst his mis-
sion had been proclaimed, and he was attend
ing to Southern interests, the Administration
actually sold out part of one of the Northern
States, the State Of Maine manifest des-
tiny" was SO taken with the Southern aspect,
that he actually let the Administration trade off
a part of one of our own States. Well, sir, for
that never fbrgaye manifest destiny"
But, again, we had another case. The Sena-
tor from Georgia has a magnificent imagina.
ton, to say nothing else; but, sir, we had an
empire big enough to crafty the ambition of
the most ambitious man, lying on the Pacific
coast, running from the Rocky Mountains to
the Pacihc--one that we required neither pur-
chase TO obtain, nor war TO keep-our own,
8 our own indisputable soil; " soil so clearly
ours that this very man now at the head of
your national affairs, the present President of
the United States, as Secretary of State would
not consent to enter into a negotiation with
Great Britain about that splendid Western en-
pire of ours because if he consented to 90 into
arbitration, or TO discuss an arbitration, it
would admit that there was a doubt about it.
while there was not any doubt, and the Adj
ministrati0n yGuld NOT admit that there was
any doubt as TO our right; it vas " clesr and
indisputable." However, manifest destiny.0
that was to overrun the whole continent was
looking so constantly southwark, that the Adj
.minstration did not sell out that time, but gave
'away-gaye away with G mere dash of the
pen-that magnificent empire from the Rocky
Mountains TO the Pacific ocean, and from 4go
10 $40 north latitude.
M ~ nhEL anu otherS, flfJy'four forty.
Mr.. HALE. Yes, sir we were to have IN
10 " $40 40| or fight" and we gave every inch
Of that away. II was done with a mere dash
Of the pen. Then, there lay off the Pacific
coast another splendid island, occupying not
far from the same relative position to the Co
iumbia river that Cuba does to the Mississippi
Vancouver's Standard that was down below
490; but, with mere dash of the pen. we
threw in this gigantic empire for nothing and
gave them Vancouvers Island, to induce them
20 take it.