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ifuiitro Rico AP!-‘AIR,-’-‘+SPANISH ACCOUNT
Pontro Rico, Nov. 9.3. '18-‘Z4:
iS'Iimriqful £5‘ ressiovi, by Cdptairi Porter, if
the Unite - tates’fn'gate John addants, in
violation qf the rig/it of nations.
On the 14th ofthe pres'erit nionlh,the cont-
mander of the United States’ frigate John
Adams, displaying the flag of a nation with
which we are at peace and with which there
was no appearance of our ‘having declared
war, ancliored in the port of Fajardo, with 2
schooner-s, landed a ntimber of armed troops,
and placing liiniselfattheir head, under_spe-
pious pretexts. threatened destruction to the
town and to the lives of its iriliabitants, who
had no other bulwark, but their own courage,
and no other authority in their front but that
of an Alcalde, and of a militia officer of the
district. He carried his inconsiderate enter-
prize so far, (lalting. advantage of the sur-
prise of the moment and of the state of peace
in which we are with the,n'ati_on whose flag
waved over lriin,) as to spike the artillery, re-
embarkiug when the people began to collect,
by which he avoided the pnnishnient which
was his due. If his precipitate ernbarkation
and the wealmess ofthe Alcalde, (whom we
cannot positively pronounce ctilpable on ac-
count ofour not be_iug yet acquainted with all
the circumstances,) saved capt. Porter from
the indignation of a people most atroeiously
insulted, and, for the.present, frorii the pun-
ishrncnt which the laws of society impose ;—_
the thinking world will jtidge ofthe cri‘tninal-
ity in both cases of the aforesaid Porter, as a
public man, commanding the uavalforces of
:1 civilized nation,and as a private individual,
according to the result of the facts we are a-
bout to relate.
Under date of the 80th of October, the Al'-
calde ofthe aforementioned town ofFajardo,
gave notice that at 7 o’clock on the evening
of the 25th, , the American war sclir. Beagle,
capt. J. Platt,liad arrived at that~port,having A
on board Mr. George Beafon, clerk in the
house of Cabbotfit. Bailey, in the Island of
St. Thomas, with orders and recommenda-
tions froiii Mr. John Campos, oftliat place,
i'n search ofsome goods said to have been sto-
len from tbesaid house on the night of the
24—9.5th of March. . .
The captain ofthe port, (to who‘n‘_i,--as well
as to the other military a'utlior’iri‘es, vigilance
was reconinrended on account of tlie,n'i'i‘niber
of vessels which, a'cco'rding to advices receiv-
ed, had been titted out in the United States
under the’ flags of what are called the insur-
gent states,)liad his suspicions of the b'ri‘g,and
requested the assistance of the Alca'lde to ex-
amine her papers, when finding them regular,
he gave the sclir. liberty to proceed on‘ her
voyage‘ the sani'e day. '
,_ Under the date ofthe trfth, he says that at
7 o’clock oftliat day, iut"ormatio‘n was receiv-
ed oft! American schooucrs, with l’a'unc‘h'es in
tow, having passed the isle of Palominos,‘
which is in front" ofthe port ; that from these
launches, bearing the American flag, I50 ar-
med men landed, and with a drurri beating
marched to the town where the people of the
neigbborliood had already began to assemble,
armed with whatever they could lay their
hands on, and resolved as good Spaniards to
sell dear the ground they occupied, when they
observed a white flag borne in front, and hav-
ing been commanded to lialt,|ie went out and
met. an officer, who brought the Alcalde a
letter in English, which was as follows :-
U. S. .Fri'g'ate, John ./ldams, ./Vov. lfllh.
Sir: I have been officially informed that an
otiicer under my orders who visited the town
ofFajardo, ofwhichyou are chief, in search
ofa quantity of American property, supposed
to be secreted there, and carrying with him
sufficient testimonials of his object‘ and char-
acter, was, after he had made all known to
you, Sir, arrested through your orders, ‘by ar-
med men, arid shamefully insulted and abused
in your presence by the captain ofthe Port,
and that, after he was sent away by your or-
ders,and,set at liberty, he was insulted and
abused afresh by the inliabitants ofthe town.
His object in visiting Fajardo has been frus-
trated through these means, and for these of-
fences has been rriade neither expiation nor
explanation. The object of my visit is to
obtain both, andI leave it entirely to your
choice, either to coiue with the captain ofthe
portand the other offenders wberel am, to
give me satisfaction for the part which you
haveail had in this shameful affair, or to ex-
pect my visit in your towti. Ifyou, Sir, de-
cline to come to me, I shall take with me an
armed force competent to chastise the ag-
gressors: and ifauy resistance be made, the
fatal destruction ofFajardo shall be the cer-
tain and immediate consequence.
If atonement for the injury is promptly
made, those innocent ofthe offence shall es-
cape all punlshment; but there must & there
shall be an atonement, and ifi am impeded,
' they shall be involved in the general punish-
_ ri‘ient.——-I shall hold the town and the ves-
sels ofthe port, ifthe officer who is setit with
this letter be detained or ill-treated. '
Igrant you, Sir, an hour to decide on the
subject, at the expiration ofwhich period, if
you do not present yourselfin person before
me, Isliall niarch‘ to Fajardo.
I have thebonor to be, with great respect,
your obedient servant, POR'1‘EIt,
Commander of the Naval Forces of the U.
States on the coast ofAfrica and Florida,
in the Antilles and the Gulf of Mexico.
To the Alcalde of Fajardo.”
The Alcalde says, that, to avoid the conse-
quences with which he saw the town was
threatened, he resolved to go and speak to
Commodore Porter, with whoin be held a
' conference in the most friendly manner, and,
after having removed all difficulties, retired.
Afterthis he supposes they spiked the four
pieces of artillery at the port.
Various persons who were present say,_tliat
Commodore Porter and the Alcalde having
iuterchaugetl invitations to partake of refresh-
merits, the former accepted the invitation of
the latter, passing to the town , butthat when
he arrived where the people ofthe neighbour-
hood were collected, who had acannon ready
with a lighted match, and when he saw their
boldness and resolution, be excused himself
under various preteuces, and retired immedi-
ately. It is inferred from the contents of
Commodore l’orter’s letter, that he made his
throat with the intention of commariding the
town, before disembarking: bntihc must now
know the people of Porto Rico well enough
to be convinced that even the small titnelie
allowed them might have cost him dear, and
that only by abusing good faith and confid-
ence in the friendly relations of the flag he
‘bore, amid llé have succeeded in" entering up
on the 'ter‘rito‘ry-w»ithou’t paying for-"it with t e
lifeofas nialiy as were bold enough to'-_- inake
the atteriipt,and so waslhe in person at the
head dfhis troops till they were commanded
to halt at the entrance ofthe town.
The arrogant tone of Captain Porter in his
threat to the miserable Alcalde of a defence-
less town,- ofa friendly nation, demanding
satisfaction for an offence which, is denied to
have been committed, and satisfaction for
which, even ifcertain,should have been exact-
ed only from the sovereign,witli arms in_ hand,
is sufficient proof that his conduct has been a
crime against the laws ofnations and ofhonor.
- If Captain Porter has acted as an oflicer of
the navy ofthe U. States, not only has he of-
fended the Spanish nation by violating its ter-
ritory, and committing hostilities and outra-
ges, when it was reposing in the confidence
that he brought peace with him, but he has
committed an offence against all the recogni-
sed nations ofthe civilized world, and even a-
gainst his own, by usurping sovereignty, to
which only it appertains to change a state of
peace tonne of war.
[The writer here goes on to prove what can
scarcely be -denied, that the Commodore has
transgressed the Laws ofNations, and cites
Vatteland others as authority on this point.
He then proceeds as follows :]
To threaten the whole population ofa little
town with destruction, if it did not give him
a satisfaction which he has not obtained, and
could not have obtained in the manner he so-
licited, whatever may have been the conduct
ofthe Alcalde ofFajardo, is to gainsay the
opinion we had formed of Capt. Porter, who
we supposed to possess those noble, humane,
and generous sentiments which are proper to
a gentleman. But to abuse the good faith of
the treaties under which we live, to employ
force agaiustweakness,and then to retire with-
out accomplishing his object, and without fol-
fillirig his duties as a commander, when he
saw a-force was collected to oppose him, is to
act directly contrary to those sentiments.
Ifhe believed that satisfaction was due to
the officer under his orders, it was not to be
obtained but through the competent authori-
ty, that is the Captain General of the Island,
and not the Alcalde of a town, which, on the
other band charges him with being the ag-
gressor. Whatevcr has been done or said by
the Alcalde,will be considered as the personal
proceedings of a weak man overpowered by,
force, and can in no way be any satisfaction
to Capt. Porter or his aggrieved otiicer. If
they desire a satisfaction purely personal, as .
officers ofhonor they ought to know that there
are other ways of obtaining it.
We will not be those who shall decide as to
the true qualities of the conduct observed by
Commodore Porter. We leave it to the
whole world for decision.
Ifthe Alcalde had only known his duty, or
been desirous offulfilling it,altbough he could
not prevent the landing of Capt. Porter with
an armed force,—-ifhe had delayed to reply
to the letter, and done nothing else, this geri-
tleman would have received a suitable answer
in a few hours. The Alcalde of Noguabo,
who saw the two schoouers anchor at Fajar-
do, and thebrig at the Cape, had already col-
lected his people, and given the necessary in-
formation to the Commandant of the Depart-
ment, who immediately took up the line of
march for the point which was threatened-—
The neighboring inhabitants, with the Corn-
rnandant, would, we feel confident, have re-
newed the scene ofJauuary 93d, 1817, when,
having at their head the captain of Grena-
diers, they resisted Q insurgent corsairs,which,
after having tried in vain to capture an Eng-
lish sclir. that had taken refuge in the port,
made a landing which cost them the loss of 30
men, and ofa great quantity of arms and airi-
tnunition, and forced them to give up a prac-
tice which they had taken tip under the Arner-
icati flag, and a boat and three men which
they had captured.
The editor ofthe Nat. Gazette says——Tlie
reasoning which has been employed at Porto
Rico against Com. Porter, would, if followed
out, lead to the absurd conclusion that he
should be passive even under a constant rep-
etition of acts ofviolence and insult upon our
citizens and their property from the petty of-
ficers oftlie Spanish islands. American mer-
chants, or his very officcr's,iiiay, day after day,
be seized when engaged in a lawful inquiry,
looking for plundered effects, be detained_.irn-
peded, treated with indrgriity ; but, they be-
ing released, though without any satisfaction,
he niust acquiese,when told——“Now you know
that it is against theLaw ofNations to attempt
immediate retaliation upon its, the heroic Al-
calde, and our valorous band of assistants;
first try our Governor, good innocent man ;
perhaps he may at some future period regret
in form the mistake or exigency ; and if he
do not honor you with a reply or explanation,
why then complain to your President, who
may complain to his MajestyKingFerdinand,
who may consult with his Majesty the King
ofFraiice, who may refer the case to the next
Congress ofAllied Sovereigns, &z.c. and it is
poesible that an answer tii'ay be received in
the course ofa few years hence.”
The editors of the N. York Statesman say
they have no faith in this Spanish story, and
are disposed tojustify the gallant coniinudore
in all he has done. There are two objections,
they say,to reinonstrating to the Spanish gov-
ernment. lii the first place, there is no Span-
ish government ofany binding force, to take
cognizance ofthese outrages; and in the 2d
place, that government seem to feel no dispo-
sition to interfere, ifthey possessed the author-
ity. The experiment has already been i.ulii-
ciently tried ; and the better way is to redress
otir wrongs and repel the insults to our flag,
leaving the laws of nations to be expounded
afterwards. It is time for the Spanish au-
thorities to turn complainants, and prefer their
rernonstrances to our governtnerrt, if they
have been aggrieved. The conduct ofPorter
will have a tendency to bring our relations
with Spain to a ct'isis, which is of the utmost
"importance to the interests ofthe country.
The editor of the “Worcester Yeoman ex-
presses great surprise that Com. I’orter’s con-
duct should be so generally applauded in this
coriritry. He says he has on his own respon-
sibility waged war against a friendly power,
and assumed the prerogative of sovereignty,a
prerogative which belongs exclusively tothe
people, and consquently that his conduct is an
insult upon them. He hopes that some rricru-
ber of Congress will have the independence
to call for an investigation, as it is time to in-
terpose to preserve the rights of the people. A
isms As;sstei.—l2uét§§§‘, Apes‘-papers
appears that on the‘»9th
despatched Capts. Robertson and_F.leiriian,
and Lieui. Sulmans, with I25 rpen'i_n 9 beats,
into the harbor ofCallao, where they took and
destroyed the following vcsselsoftlie Spati-
ish naval force :—President, 20 guns, burnt-—
Juanoa Gordon, flag-ship, taken—Perla, for-_
merly of Chili,taken, and a large vessel burnt.‘
Nolwitlistanding this small force‘ was oppo-
sed by 1000 soldiers and marines in the ves-
sels, and I500 artillerists who manned the bat-
teries, the Patriots achieved this victory with
the lo'_ss ofonly 4 men killed and If v‘round-
ed. During the attack, t_lie Pertiviafi ships
Protector, Congress, and Macedonian, en-
deavored in vain to divert the attention ofthe
batteries, whose fire was directed against the
small force which had entered the harbor. A
ALL of Marines, and a clerk of the captain of
the Congress, were mortally wounded.
It is stated that previous to this afl'air,a_bril-
liant enterprize had been executed by a Capt.
Addison, who with four boats and 50 volun-
teers, burnt and sunk six vessels,including the
frigates Venganza and Santa Rosa, and drove
14 others under the forts of Callao. All this
was performed without the loss ofa man.
The LiberatorBolivar and all his artny pas-
sed the Andes in 3 divisions on the 25th of
June. The vanguard of the enemy compo-
sed of3500 tneii in Acobamba, was coniplete-
ly routed; Gen. Monet who couinianded it,
was wounded andtaken prisoner. Almost all
this division fell into the power oftlieI_’atriots.
Before this action 500 infantry and 100 cav-
alry under the Spanish chief Berra, joined the
Patriots, and fought valiantly under the di-
rection of their C()lfllltl1lI(l6l’. The Patriots
took four cannon, the train, _&'. many niuskets.
Dfflicully between Frdnce and Colombia.—«
A French brig of war arrived at Laguayra on
on the 30th ult. from Martinique, to demand
satisfaction for an insult said to have been of-
fered to the French flag. The circumstances
are tlnrs reported : Captain Chitty,‘a distin-
guished officer in the Colombian service,
while cruizing off Cartbagena in the Colom-
bian corvette Venezuela, fell in with the
French brig ofwar Gazelle, then bound as it
is said to Martinique, and not liking her ap-
pearance, ordered the Captain on board with
his papers. With this order the French Cap-
tain complied without rernonstrances or re-
sistance, although the respective vessels were
of equal force. On his arrival at Martinique
the Captain of the Gazelle was broke and
dismissed the navy.
The report adds, that the authorities at La-
gnayra and Caraccas refused to give the sat-
isfaction (Ieuianded by the French Captain,
and that he had sailed from Laguayra, de-
claring that he would bring a fleet to enforce
the demand. The Colombian authorities al-
legcd that Captain Cliitty had made a stifli-
cieut apology when he said [0 the Captain of
the ‘ Gnzelle’—-“ now that I see who you are,
I regret having putyou to this inconvenience.”
It is understood that our treaty with Co-
lombia recognizes the principle, that Free
Sirius make Frcc_ Goods. If we could prevail
on that great maritime power, Great Britain,
to recognize this principle, great advantages
would accrue to our commerce in cases of
wars among the powers ofEurope.——-Plzil.pa.
There is not, in the Christian world atleast,
frotn what we can learn, a more despotic gov-
ernineut than that of Hayti. Political and
religious freedom exist there in name only,
and we have no question but bitter and trua-
vailing regrets, from the uioirient of their
landing, fill the minds ofthose free‘ people of
color who have emigrated from the United
States, that they suffered themselves to be se-
duccd from a land of freedom to place them-
selves under the sway ofa political and reli-
gious tyranny, ofwhich they had no concep-
tion, until the prison bolts were drawn upon
tlietii.—Nal. lnlelligencer. ‘
Road front 7Vashing'ton. to N'ew- Orleans.-
By a recent report frotri the P. M. General to
the U. S. Senate it appears that the present
mail route from Washington to N.Orleans, is
by the way of Fredericksburg,Va. Knoxville,
Ten. Hnnisville,Alab. Natchez,Miss. and Ba-
ton Rouge. This route is l,3tl6 miles, aml
requires a travel of 9.4 days. The tnilitary
road fr. Columbus,Miss. to Madisonville,Lou.
is much nearer, but so much otit of repair as
to render the transportation ofthe mail upon
it itnpracticable. The post route toN.Orleans
which passes thro’ the capitals ofthe southern
states is 1,319. miles, and may be reduced to
1,100, but in the winter and spring the unru-
erous streams of water over which there are
no bridges nor ferries present great obstacles
to the rapid transportation ofthe mail.
On a direct line frotn Wasliington to New-
Orleans the distance is 960 miles, atid passes
near \Varrenton, Va. Ashville, N. C. the In-
diau country, and Caliawba, Alab.: but the
tiortliwest part of N. Carolina is so mountain-
ous as to compel a deviation to the south or
north in making a road. A deviation north
will pass tliro’ Abingdon, Va. Knoxville,Ten.
the Tenriessee valley, and Cahawba. This
rotite is 1,056 miles, and is the nearest route
practicable. A deviation to the south would
pass near Salem, N. C. Greenville, S. C. and
Athens, Geo. This route would not vary at
any one point tnore than 60 miles from a di-
rect liiie. The route thro’ VVarrentou,Ab-
ingdoii and Knoxville, affords great facilities
for constructing a road : tliro’ Alabama and
Mississippi the country is level, and the soil
well adapted to the formation ofa solid road.
If a substantial road were made in this direc-
tion the mail could be transported to N. Or-
leans from Washington in It days. lfit were
to pass thro’ the capitals ofVirginia, N. Car-
olina, South Carolina and Georgia it could
be conve ed in twelve days.
The royute on which the mail is now carried
is safe and better than any oilier, although in
the winter and spring it is sometimes so en-
tirely obstructed by high waters that the mail
is much injured by the friction fin. the move-
ment ofthe horses in swirnrriing. When the
mail is a considerable time in the waterletters
and papers are often destroyed.. About $53
per mile is now paid forkcarging thedmaildon
this route 8 times a wee . n a goo me it
could be conveyed in a stage at the same ex-
pense and in half the time. And what is nrost
important,tlie utmost security would be given
to themail by such a transportation,8La great
increase to the receipts ofthe department.
to the 6tll Oct. received at Baltimore. Contain '
the partichlars of events in, N11. Ofwlllch “'3'
had received before but va'gue“»ac_counts.-‘ .
' July, A"tlin_ir,al Guise’
‘
.:SENATIfa‘>.lVIo'nda_y; gDec. 20.]——Il'_Ir._Hay'r'ie._
from the cornrjnittee ' 15, i'vliorii,-was referred
Abe $tibjec‘t~offri=i.1iirig‘i>r.ofisiim f°r,£3°li-;‘«‘-I.-A.-=
rAve'1‘tij1=.j,'reported’-.t_lié’ following biillfg:-‘—'-, '3 .,
-'7.Il§,e itwenactedf ,"‘I-éfllliat tliel‘.-su_in“ of,,Tw'o,
H undregl Tltousriilgd-_:Dollaz's be,and.th_e saint;
is herel'iy,graiited~'=t_o'Major General\L:ifayette'a,'
in cr,ijnpe_risation~forillijs important services 8:.
exp“e"_riditures _duriii’g _ the . "A_merican; Revolu-
gtion,”-aiid that‘; for this purpose‘, a stock'to that
amount be" issued in his favor,‘ dated the ’4th
July,‘ 1824, bearirig,-arr‘2a’nnual interest of six
percent. payable qiiart_eH"yeai'ly, and,re,deenr-
able o_n-the 31st Dec. 189.4. : V
‘See. 2. And be it further enacted, That
one-_compl'ete and entire Township of-,Lan’d.
be,and the same is hereby, granted to the‘said:
Major General Lafayette, and that the Pres-
ident—ofthe U. States be authorized to’ cause‘
the said township to be located o_'n any of the
Public Lands which renfairi unsold, and tli'a't
Patents be issued to Lafayette. for the same.’
The bill was twice re,ad,by general. consent
and Mr. Hayrie gave noticed that he slio'tt_l_d
tnove its third reading to-niorrow.. ‘"“
A resolution was proposed for an inquiry
into the expediency oflirniting the number’ of
cadets at the Military Academy“ at West
Point,to the number ofMeuibers iri“tlie“Hoiisé
of Representatives, and that the number to
be admitted f'rUtl_I,.éjaCll State" and Territory,
respectively, sha'll be the.same as that of the
Representatives to which such Stateior Ter-
ritory shall be entitled. ‘ .
5”,
In the Housc.—-The‘ resolution offered by
Mr. Cambreleug, calling" for the correspon-
dence with the Spanish government relative
to the piracies ofthe Island of Cuba, was ta-
ken tip, amended so as to include the corres-
pondence respecting piracies at the other
Spanish Islands, and adopted.
The committee on claims were instructed
to inquire into the propriety of providing by
law for the reinibnrsement ofthe amount of
interest, paid by the state of Virginia upon
loans ofrnoney negotiated by her for the rise
of the general gov’t. during the late war.
The naval committee was instructed to in-
quire as to the expediency of making provi-
sion for building a steam vessel of war for the
defence ofLake Cliatnplain. Mr. Mallory
observed,tbat it was well known to the House
that the Government had some time since e-
rected fortifications on air extensive scale
with a view to the defence of Lake Cliam-
plainébut that, owing to a dispute or error
with respect to the boundary line which sepa-
rates that part ofthe U. States from Canada,
those works had been abandoned. The lake
was, in consequence, now left destitute of any
defence whatever, as the navy, which, for a
time, floated on its waters, was now disman-
tled and fast going to decay. Ifthe general
principle of defence oti which the country
was acting in relation to ourAtlantic seaboard
was a just and wise principle, it stirely appli-
ed with additional strength to a case where
the country ofthe enemy was not on the oth-
er side ofthe Atlantic, but in immediate adja-
cency to our territory.
On motion of Mr. Tomlinsan, the Com-
uiittee on Commerce were instructed to in-
quire as to the expediency of increasing the
appropriation for aLighthouse atThrog’s neck.
A resolution was offered by Mr. Vlfliipple,
ofN. H. That the President of the U. States
he requested to communicate to this House a-
ny information which he may possess and
which in his opinion, it may not be improper
to riiake public, relative totlie intentions of
the allied powers of Europe to aid Spain in
the subjugation and recovery of her former
Colonies in America.
COLOMBIA Rrvizn.-—-The house then went
into committee ,on the bill to authorise, the
occupation ofthe Columbia or Oregon River,
and after filling the blanks so as to allow each
settler, who is the head ofa family, 640 acres,
and each unmarried settler 3:20 acres ; and to
.tnake the term for.which executive officers
shall hold their appointments 6 years; and to
appropriate $50,000 for carrying the bill into
effect, Mr. Floyd rose to state his views.
He had heard objections uiade to this mea-
sure, because it would scatter population too
much for military purposes, in a time ofwar,
when our resources should be conceritrated.—
He thought it a very doubtful question wheth-
er our military posts were at all necessary.-
VVe often receive opinions without due delib-
eration-—receiving them from our teachers
and books, without dtie reflection ; and this
he thought the case with respect to our mili-
tary posts. He adverted to the necessity
which existed in feudal times and countries
for the erection efforts, kc. and then went on
to show that these very fortresses which had
been erected to protect one baron against a-
nother, had been converted into forts to keep
the people in awe by the monarch. Another
objection to these fortifications was, the ex-
pense of keeping up the garrisons. Another
was founded on the supposition of their being
taken by an enemy, when they would serve
him as a defence, and a source ofannoyance
to the United States. He considered that
much ofour present military force might be
withdrawn from its present positions, and pla-
ced on our northern and western frontier.-—
He considered the troops at Sackett’s Harbor
might be transported to the frontier. By a-
dopting this plan", additional expense might
be avoided. By establishing a post at the
Mandan villages, and another at the mouth of
the Columbia river, you destroy the necessity
of establishing intermediate posts. He allud-
ed to the fur trade, and the advantages which
the British merchants possessed over those of
America,because they made direct shipments
to the Columbia River, and obtained supplies
in an equally direct niatirier. The Columbia
river is so situated, that there can be no dati-
ger ofany separation from the United States;
because, by such an act, its population would
be exposed to the greatest danger frbrn the
Russian government, as well as from the Vast
empire growing up in Mexico. The country
he described as healthy, and though much fur-
ther north than the spot where we now are,*it
was known to be equally mild. . During all
the European wars,it was notorious that Great
Britain always had her manufactures peacea-
bly going on ; and Buonaparte had acknowl-
edged that in all his schemes against Great-
Britain, he had been uniformly foiled. Now,
ifwe had the command ofthis great river, it
would give us equal strength. Aftertlie oc-
cupation oftliis river, no nation of the earth
could come in cornpetitiou with us in that
quarter. It is, therefore, the rnost;;.secure
point for us. Russia is too much engaged in
her European politics. China will not inter-
I
jfer§J'- Brigtafdv-will ‘rare -tier-ctr ms _emt._-.«.-'.
Mexico, Pér,‘fi‘,fantl Chili, have i1'dttl'r'e t'rniberJ_
}W-e”sli‘otil'll_ _liav'e.-jalso’;'t.,«a [if;'_I’ll()_f‘i‘\l‘-_€fll:E"fi.-I om‘,
and _il',__‘b ',“c‘otn _- Landing tlte; produce "of
", "'e"}fi|ei-io_r;jl)e>.,gin§éttg and tltt.e"fu’i;‘,f«,\}"t:°._,r:nituId
ltlistribntej._~ from’.tli,e;?’_()i?,egon. _,tliese, prridticts H
thrigugli tlié worlr_l,[otir sit'ua'ti‘ori' Iw_ou_ld lrekatli. '
'§z_\7'?!>lt,,£ti"get)‘llS. ’ __ U
.'alst"_ateriie’nt of otiftratle with Catitou, giving
the number of ,,v,essels‘»a"nri:tiall yien_iployed, an't_l -
rferent articles of.rnercliandiz'e_,,{and-'showing A
otlier.~ Fromttliese’data“‘*lie -arguetjl that tlri '
trade ivitliCliiria was oftlie."lt'igpest import-‘ I
‘ancii, not or;i_l.jy.,.g.y.-i,tli7;re’spect'to tlije actiial value‘
of the ex p'orft_s‘,’aifd'iuiports,bntiri',c0bseqtIeIt.§§¢'
also,‘ol' tlje.'é’fiipl"oydi'e,pt‘hvliicli it gives -to-‘it’
'greaf'»tttlmhg_f_t§f" ’”_ ‘a
creation .0f:'tll§ lie_stfs'ail})r’s,fwh_ich ni‘:'inned hour
navy. _’ By ,tli,eifu'°r"‘;7rarlc,‘we" t)O3_:t)ttly coti'trtfl
the power'of R”oss_iaf2‘a’t)rl ‘England, but give"
employment to several ihousanrl sezunen.‘ ‘
.";He went on to slioiv_tl3ii,tlr;.’tlie _r‘rve'i_,aiitf
country were rich-i_n th‘e tneahs ofstihs‘istétice.'
Salmon was a_bnn,d'ant,' a‘iid_.ili‘e‘:i,iieaiis of life’ »
-we re ample;“"-‘Tlic‘,,iiitei-.coyrs’e‘ivns_a,lso easy
wagons go‘ frequently-~frjo’ni:-Franklin-in Mrs-’_
.<ou'ri.an'd other parts. Mr. "11‘ra.riliain and
Mr. Cro’oks‘, ivlio-are,eiiiployetl_liy‘J. J. Astor,’
represent the travelliiig fr.o_ni. this country as’
freed from those (lifficiilties w'uic_li had been
represented as so terrible and iiistiliei-alile ;--i
aud were ready" to invest 'large«='su’nis in rner-'*
cl1and‘i'ze', whenever the-.territory_ should be
o'c'ct_ipied. For this purpose, ‘lllé suin- now
asked fOl§_‘¢‘§V0tlll(-l,,lJe sufficierit. ' He had infor-,
mation from a geritleiiian who had travelled
l'roni Franklin"to_ tliemorrtli of the Columbia’
river, in fifty days, and had done this frequent-'*
ly'; that civilization had penetrated to the Rio
Colorado, and Rioidel Norte,;:,,aiirl the coast
of California, where flocks Varied herds‘, and all
the benefits ofcivilizatiori,gwere to be liotlntj.
He next proceeded to sliow the facility of
transportation by water to Mexico, toPeus:i-
cola, the Gulph ofPanama, He referred
to the statements ofan |ionoi;ab_le member fr.-'..
New York, at the last'Coiigt'_t2s:§,'tlirt’t England
would also send her mercliarrdise to N. York,-
and by the Assinibria river to Colombia, and
thence by ferries to Catmiu ; and althonglrhe
did not go exactly with that gentleman to»the_.
full extent of his speciilatiori, he thought’ it
deserved consideration. ' He their stated rtr¢;,
market prices of the furs which ._were to be.‘
found in that district of country. - , ,
\Vith regard to the military occupation of.
the country, he tliouglitjiiore was to bedone.
by a judicious arrangement of posts, than by
numerical power. He remarked upon the jo-
dicious re_gul'ati‘cns by which Great'Briiain
keeps the European powers in check,by hav-
ing her force so distributed as to gnand every
part where her commercial in_terests could
possibly be endangered or attacked. The 0--
pinions which had prevailed as to the impos-
sibility ofnavigating the Missouri, in conse-
quence of the sand bars, had now been explo-
red. He had authority, (as we understood
him, froiu General Jesup, the Quartertnaster
General) to say that a boat could now ascend‘
this river, not only without danger, but with-
out ditiiculry; and concluded with expressing
Ids desire that an experiment which promised
so much "benefit to the country, should now-
be tried. A
Mr. Poinsett moved an amendment to the
second section ; leaving it discretionary witlf
the President to strike out Columbia river, Ex’.
insert any other place where the establish-
ment ofa post might appear to him to be more
expedient.
In introducing his amendment, he stated
that he considered a survey necessary, in or-,
der to arrive at some correct opinion on the
subject; he had,frorn every information which
it had been in his power to obtain, come to
conclusions entirely different from those on-
tertained by the gentleman from Virginia.--
He might be wrong, and the gentleman from
Virginia might be right, but this could only
be determined on better continuation than
the reports oftradcrs.
The conrriiittee then rose, and reported the
bill with its amendments.
Mr. Cook suggested that the bill should be
committed to the Comtnittee_ on that part of
the President’s Message which referred tothe
subject, as then the House would be enabled
to take a proper and broad view ofthe subject.
Mr. Floyd objected.—It was not his wish
to have this an exclusively military post; he
desired that the American citizen should be
able to have some protection from his govern-
ment, independent ofa iriilitary defence. He
appealed to the American fcelliug of every
gentleman whetlier it was proper to place tin-
der rnilitary law or the caprice of the com-
mander ofa post of 200 troops, the number of
persons who would belong to such a civil set-
tlement. He could not, for his own part,
think of such a thing for a monient. , '
Mr. Cook thought the present bill went to
delnde citizens by the offer oflarge grants of
lands to this country, before we had any prop-.
er information as to the situation, and irieans
ofthe country to support its population. He
wished that people should not be dect.-.ived,hrit
that information should be first obtained, and
for this purpose that engineers should be eru-
ployed to make an accurate topographical
survey of the country. It was with this view
that he wished the reference ofthe bill to the
committee on that part of the President’s
Message which related to it. He moved to
discharge the committee from the further
consideration of the bill, and to refer it to the
committee which he had named. -
Mr. Trimble of Ky. thought the objects of
the gentleman who last spoke might be ob-..
tained by striking out that part ofthe bill es-
tablishing a civil government, to’ which alone
his objections seemed to apply—-for, certain-
ly, when he talked of sending topographic’.
mean to turn those gentlemen out defencele
among savages. But it was necdful that tl :
house should act upon the subjc-ct,and for tli
reason: By the treaty ofGhent England an
the U. States are to trade in common tbro
out that country, and the rights possessed b_
each at the time of the treaty are to rem:i'n-
14 years. At the close ofthe war.an agent
ofthe American gov't went to Astoria and
demanded that the British flag should be low-
ered and the American flag hoisted, which
wasaccordingly done; but no sooner did. the
American turn his back than down went the
we shall leave the territory in possession of
the British until the 14 years expire, it will
then be theirs by" right of possession, and they
will expel ouritraders. The pessessiou that
‘ Hp ‘|'B£l“(II.~f‘l;,l)ll)_ s'evet'iil papr‘-.155 . '
the value ot't'he‘,ir-ade, p’art_i‘c_ula’rizing the difé. 1.
the" relative‘“vafl‘iie"in .ivl_iicl_i,tltey‘St09tl (0 08¢}! , —
i‘_‘e‘rii‘ca'n_- citizens, arit1_i'td, '
engineers to survey the country, he did u ,, '
eagle, and up went the lion again. And,.if ’
Norwalk Chronicler