Norwalk Gazette, Wednesday, April 8, 1846 · page 2

CONGRESSIONAL.

MONDAY, March 30.

In the SENATE,tO-day, Gen.Houston took
his seat as Senator from the State of Texas.

He fell into the class whose terms ex-
pire March 3d, 1847.

His colleague, General Rusk, was lucky
enough to draw the ballot marked March
3d, 1851.

Mr. D. M. Clay-ton’s resolution calling
on the President for any further corres-
pontlence which.,may have taken place
between the U. &*Government and that of
Great Britain on the Oregon question, was
taken up.

Mr. Webster’ rose and said : I shall ad-
vise my honorable friend, the member
from Delaware, to forbear from pressing
this resolution for a few days.

There is no doubt that there are letters
from Mr. McLane; but, as the Chairman
of the Committee on Foreign Relations
opposes this motion, 1 am to presume that
the Executive Government finds it incon-
venient to communicate those letters to
the Senate, at the present moment.

Yet,.it is obvious, that as the Senate is
called on to perform a legislative act, it
ought, before the hour of its decision
comes, to be put in possession of every
thing likely to influence its judgment;
otherwise, it would be required to per-
form high legislative functions on mere
confidence. There is certainly some eni-
barrassment in the case. If the Executive
Government deems the communication of
the correspondence inconvenient, it can
only be because negotiation is still going
on, or, if suspended, is expected to be re-
sumed. So far as negotiation is coiicern-
ed, the communication, or publication, of
the correspondence, may very properly
be thought inconvenient. But, then, the
President has recommended the passage
of a law, or resolution, by the two Houses
of Congress. In support of this recom-
mendation, he himself sent us, unaskcd, at
the commencement of the session, the
correspondencehp to that time. Now, if
that was necessary, the rest is necessary.

_ If we are entitled to a part, we are entitled
to the whole.

In my opinion the mistalre was in call-
ing on Congress to authorize notice to
England of the discontinuance of what has
been called the joint occupation until ne-
gotiation had been exhausted. Negotia-
tion should have been tried first, and when
that had failed,and finally failed, then, and
not till then, should Congress have been
called upon. I

I now go on the ground of course, that
the notice for discontinuing the joint oc-
cupancy is properly to be given by author-
ity of Congress; a point which I do not
now discuss.

It is said, indeed, that notice is to be
uscd as a weapon or an instrument in ne-

. gotiation. I hardly understand this- It is
a metaphor of not very obvious applica-
tion. A weapon seems to imply, not a
facility, or mere aid, but the means either
of defence against attack, or of making an
attack. It sounds not altogether friendly
and pacific. Idoubt exceedingly whether,
u_n ler present circumstances, notice would
hasten negotiation; and yet such are those
circumstances that there may be as much
inconvenience in standing still as in going
forward.

The truth is, that great embarrassment
arises from the extreme pretensions and
opinions put.forward by the President, in
his inaugural address, a year ago, and in
his message last December. But for these,
notice would have been harmless, and per-
haps would have been authorized by both
Houses without much opposition, and re-
ceived by England without dissatisfaction.
But the recommendation of the notice,
coupled with the President's repeated
declarations that he held our title to the
whole of the territory to be “clear and
unquestionable,” alarmed the country.-—
And well it might. And if notice were
required, in order to enable the President
to push these extreme claims to any and
every result, than notice ought to be re-
fused by Congress, unless Congress is
ready to support these pretensions at all
hazards. I-lere lies the difficulty. Con-
gress is not prepared, and the country is
not prepared. as I believe, to make the
President's opinion of a clear and unques-
tionable right to the whole territory an
ultimatum. If he wants notice for such a
purpose, he certainly must see that it be-
comes a grave question whether Congress
will grant it. -

It was a great, a very great mistake, to
accompany the recommendation of Notice
with so positive an assertion of our right
to the whole territory. Did the President
mean to adhere to that, even to the ex-
tremity of war? If so, he should have
known that,‘after what has happened in
years past, the country was not likely to
sustain him. Did he mean to -say this
and afterwards recede from it’! If so:

\

of years, that England has rights in the
northwestern parts of this continent which
are entitled to be respected.

Mr. President, ..one who has observed
attentively what has transpired here and
in England, within the last three months,
must, I think, perceive that public opinion
in both countries is coming to a conclu-
sion that this controversy ought to be set-
tled ; and is not very diverse, in the one
country and the other, as to the general
basis of such settlement. That basis is
the offer made by the United States to
England in 1526. i

There is no room to doubt, I think, that
this country is readyto stand by this offer,
substantially in effect. Such is my opiri-
ion at least, and circumstances certainly
indicate that Great Britain would not, in
all probability would not, regard such a
proposition as unlit to be considered. I
said, some weeks ago, that I did not in-
tend to discuss titles at length, and cer-
tainly not to udduce arguments against
our own claim. But it appears to me that
there is a concurrence of arguments, or
considerations, in favor of regarding the
49th parallel as the just line of demarca-
tion, which both countries might well re-
spect. It has, for many years, been the
extent of our claim. We have claimed
up to 49°, and nothing beyond it. VVe
have offered to yield every thing North of
it. It is the boundary between the two
countries on this side the Rocky Moun-
tains, and has been since the purchase of
Louisiana from France.

Ido not think it important either to
prove or disprove the fact, that Commis-
sioners under the treaty of Utrecht estab-
lished the -I9th parallel as the-boundary
between the English and the French pos-
sessions in America. Ancient maps and
descriptions so represent it; some saying
that th-is line of boundary is run “indefi-
nitely West,” others saying, in terms, that
it extends “to the Northwestern ocean. ’
But, what is more important, we have con
sidered this boundary as established in the
treaty of Utrecht, at least on this side of
the Rocky Mountains. It was on the
strength of this that we drove back the
British pretensions, after we had obtained
Louisiana, North, from the head waters of
the Mississippi to the parallel of 493.

This is indubitable. VVe have acted,
therefore, and induced others to act, on
the idea that this boundary was actually
established. It now so stands in the trea-
ty between the United States and England.
If, on the general notion of contzguity, or
Cf)71tI..7Z‘ltl'!_‘I/, this line he continued “indefi-
nitely west,” or is allowed to run to the
“northwestern ocean,” then it leaves on
our side the valley of the Columbia, to
which, in my judgment, our title is main-
tainable on the ground of Gray’s discovery.

The Government of the United States
has never offered any line South of forty-
nine, (with the navigation of the Colum-
bia,) and it never will. It behooves all
concerned to regard this as a settled point.
As to the navigation of the Columbia, per-
manently or for :1 term of years, that is all
matter for just, reasonable, and friendly
negotiation. But ‘the 49th parallel must
be regarded as the general line of bounda-
ry, and not to be departed from for any
line farther south. As to all straits, and
sounds, and islands, in the neighboring
sea, all these are fair subjects for treaty
stipulation. If the general basis he agreed
to, all the rest, it may be presumed, may
be accomplished by the exercise of a spirit
of fairness and nmity.

And now, Mr. President, if this be so,
why should this settlement be longer de-
layed? Why should either Government
hold back longer from doing that which
both I think, can see must be done, if they
would avoid a rupture ? Every hour’s
delay is injurious to the interests of both
countries. It agitatcs both, disturbs their
business, interrupts their intercourse, and
may, in time, seriously affect their friendly
and respectful feeling toward each other.

Having said this, Mr. President, it would
be needless for me, even if it were proper,
to add more. lhave expressed my own
opinions plainly and without disguise. I
think I see clearly where the business
must end, if it is to end without serious
collision; and I earnestly hope that those
in whose liands power is, on both sides,
will exercise that power promptly, in re-
moving the great evils produced on both
sides by the pendency of this unfortunate,
disturbing, and dangerous controversy.

It is not a case in which either Govern-
ment should stand on matters of form or
etiquette. The interests at stake are too
important for that. It is not humiliation,
it is not condescension even, for either
Government to signify to the other its
readiness to do at once what it sees must
be done ultimately. Thus far, the dispute
does not touch the honor of either Gov-
ernments. Let, then, the propitious mo-
ment be seized ; let candor and fairness,
and prudence rule the hour; and let these

why say it at all’! Surely the President
could not be guilty of playing so small a
part, as to endeavor to show himself to
possess spirit, and boldness, and fearless-
ncss of England, more then his predeces-
sors, or his countrymen, and yet do all
this in the confident hope that no serious
collision would arise between the two
countries. So low an ambition, such pal-
try motives, ought not to be imputed.-
Whcri the President declared that, in his
judgment, our title to the whole of Oregon
was “clear and unquestionable,” did he
mean to express an otiicial or a mere per-
sonable opinioni If the latter, it certain-
ly had no place in an Official communica
tion. If the former—if he intended a
solemn official opinion, upon which he
was resolved to act oflicially, then it is a
very grave qestion how far he is justified,
without new lights, or any change of--ch-.
cumstances, to place the claims of this
country, in this respect, on other grounds
than those on’ which they had stood under
his predecessors, and with the concur-
rence of all branclies of the Government,
for so many years; for it is not to, be
doubted that the United -States Govern-

ment has ifldmilied, through a long series

two great nations be restored to the full
enjoyment of their vast, useful, and har-
monious intercourse.

Mr. Allen knew that every Senator was
ffqllfll On this floor, but some Senators,
from their position, had, more attention
paid to what they said than others. The
gentleman from Massachusetts added
more solemnity to his position, which he
hlld lh_|S m0l‘nl_ng for the first time taken
°E‘ “"5 ‘l"°3“°"a by the elaborateness of
his notes and the precision of his laiionnge,

The Senator from Massachusetts:-i con.
demns the President for error. This is
the first time that any Senator who pre-
tended to understand the President had
condemned him. Some said if he meant
so and so he was wrong; but the honor-
able Senator not only understood him, but
charged him with having committed an
error. .

He was astonished to hear any talk
about the navigation of the Columbia. We
commenced the session with claiming all
Oregon. At the end of three months we
fall back South of 49 to the Columbia.

_ If'we had passed the Notice at the be-
ginning of the session, the matter would
have been settled without blood’. The

Senate faltered to come up to the action
of_the House, which passed it three to one,
faltered till now a Senator proposed to
compromise on the Columbia. England
would soon ‘claim all the Territory when
she saw us with divided councils.

And yet we seem to wish delay for an-
other month to see whether Queen Victo-
ria was pouting at us. This was National
degradation. But he would not trespass
longer.

Mr. Vvebster said it was true that he
had been concise and precise, and it would
be well if other gentlemen would be pre-
cise also in what they say.

As for the National disgrace, that would
probably come as much from the other as
from this side of the Senate.

“fill the Senator from Ohio now say
that public opinion is not tending toward
a settlement on our offer of 1826'!

Mr. Allen did not believe so.

Mr. Webster—-Will the gentleman from
Ohio now say that there is nota tendency
to settle on 49.

Mr. Allen did,not believe public opinion
was tending toward any settlement South
of the Russian boundary. (L-augliter.)

Mr. Webster then went on to defend
himself against the false construction put
upon his arguments by Mr. Allen. So far
from recommending any surrender South
of 49° he distinctly- said that England
could expect nothing South of 49° The
assertion he made was that the offer of
our government in 189.6 should be the
general, not the specific basis of n settle-
merit,

Mr. J. M. Clayton said he was willing
that the notice should lie at present; but,
as the votes of some of the Senators on
the notice would be influenced by the in-
formation from the President, he hoped
the call would be made before the ques-
tion should be taken. .

The subject of the Oregon Notice was
taken up, and Mr. Barrow spoke in favor
ofa compromise of the question.

In the House. the Bill to supply defici-
encies in the appropriations for the fiscal
year ending 30th June, 1846, was passed

The Siib-Treasiiry Bill was taken up;
but the House adjourned without action
upon it, and with not more than forty
members present.

Tunsnar, March 31

In the SENATE, several petitions were
presented.

The resolution of J. M. Clayton, calling
on the President for Correspondence, &c.
coming up, was, on Mr. Cl:iyton’s sug-
gestion passerl over informally.

The special order of the day coming up
on the Oregon Notice to Great Britain.

Mr. Cass then addressed the Senate on
the question. He would not attempt to
prove our tit'e. That had been done by
others so ably. Our late and present Sec-
retary of State and several Senators had
done their country good service while
honoring themselves.

He could not see how the parallel of 49
degrees could be made a line of division.
In 1604-, Mr. Madison made the first trien-
tion of 49 degrees to l\"lr~ Monroe to ex-
amine strictly whether there was any
claims for that parallel before making it
an offer as the basis of negotiation.

He then went into a long argument
in reply to several Senators, particularly
the Senator from N. Carolina——l\-‘Ir. Hay-
wood. He said that Mr. Polk was in fa-
vor of ‘:5-1- 40’, and that Mr. Haywood had
been egregiously mistaien. The Oregon
of the President was the Oregon of the
People—-[rather doubtful.]

He referred to Mr. C:illioun’s speech,
whom he complimented highly. He met
the opinion of Mr. Cnllioiin, that peace was
now certain, by quotations from a great
many English papers, that war was prob-
able if not irresistible. He reviewed Mr.
Calhoun’s speech and appealed from the
Senator of 1846 to the Senator of former
days.

Mr. Calhoun and Mr. Cass had some
conversation on the propable events of a
war with England, which was carried on
with mutual respect and courtesy.

Mr. Cass having concluded, Mr. Ashley
took‘ the floor; when, on motion of Mr.
Sevier, the Senate went into Executive
Session for a few minutes. Adjourned.
In the Housi-2, on motion of Mr. Sims,of
S. C., the hour of meeting was changed to
11- o‘clock.

On motion of Mr. Dromgoole, of Va.
the House voted to terminate the debate
on the sub-treasury bill on 'l'hI.isday at 1
o'clock-—thus allowing two or three days
for this iniquitous and exploded humbug.

Mr. Chipman of Mich. spoke out his
time in favor of the bill. ‘

Mr. J. R. Ingersoll of Pa. spoke in op-
position to the bill.
He was followed by Mr. Holmes of _S.
C. in favor of it."
Mr. C. lngersell of Pa. spoke in favor of
the bill. ‘
. Mr. Brown of Tenn. spoke in oppposi-
tion to it.
At the conclusion of Mr. Brown's speech
the. House adjourned till to morrow at 11.
Correspondence of the Newark Daily Adv,
IMPORTANT SCENE IN THE
SENATE. I
‘\Vr.nNr.sn.A.ir, April 1.

MR. Bl3:\'TON'3 DEMONSTRATION.

The preliminary business of the Senate
was unimportant, and the special order
(Oregon) was resumed at an early hour on
motion of Mr. Speight, that Mr. Benton
might have an opportunity for an explan-
ation before Mr. Ashley commenced his
expected speech:

Mr. Benton then rose, not for the pur-
pose of making a speech, but of clearing
up a single point in the remarks of Mr.
Cass yesterday. He did this for the pur-
p9se_of‘ making an appeal to history, and
vindicating the character of the Senate
for intelligence, and thus prevent its being
cheapened in the eyes of the world. The
Senator from Michigan had promised that
he would be governed in this question by
the fact of the establishment or non-es-
tablishinent of the line of 49° by the treaty

of Utrecht. '

. - —..-..«.-.n

Mr. B. then proceeded to show that this
line was established by that treaty. The‘
very first dispatch to our minister in Lon-
dou,Mr. Rufus King, by Mr. Madison,
then Secretary of State to Mr. Jefferson,
in the very first dispatch written after the
acquisition of La. it was assumed as cer-
tain that the line of 49 was established,
but, ignorant of the particulars, our Miri-
ister was told to examine what had been
done by the Commissioners who were ap-
pointed to run the line. At that time a
great object was had in view in fastening
this line upon and against Britain.

[Here Mr. B. read from a vol. of State
Papers. and proved his statement]

This I have done, said Mr. B. not only
to vindicate the character of the Senate
for sense, but for the purpose of holding
the Senator from Mich. to his promise
that he would reverse his opinion, when
the fact I have just shown is proved. In
a speech of three months deliberation, a
speech almost committed to heart, and
well studied, /ie gave his pledge, and he is
now on patrol, upon 49! ,

This then is his condition—after having
made his speech upon the darling side of
the question, a speech well mixed with
other topics calculated to inflame. the
country, he has ended by rendering him-
self a prisoner upon thc-19th parallel. His
speech, with its warlike accompaniments,
now disappears, and his friend along with
it. “Ulysses being a prisoner, the Ajaxes
and Achilles, great and small, must all
share his fate.” The estimates for the
$30,000,000 military expenditures fall to
the ground, and the inaction of the com-
mittees upon them if not “masterly” has
been at lezist lucky. War is no longer
“inevitable,” but clearly evitable—peace,
peace, becomes inevitable-there is no
way to avoid it.

l\Ir. B. concluded a statement of about
an hour’s duration or more, by professing
his adherence to this Administration, and
his readiness to support the President as
soon as he knew his position. if he could
bring his conscience and his judgment to
coincide with him.

Mr. Hnnnegan then rose (Mr. Ashley
still yielding the floor,) and said he should
not have opened his lips, but for a remark
of Mr. B. accompanied with a significant
look towards his (Mr. H’s.) quarter of the
chamber. I, said Mr. H., learnt my les-
son about Oregon from the Senator
from Missouri liimself~he was the
Gamaliei at whose feetl sat-—he taught
me, but ‘he cannot unlearn me. It was
from his speech on the Aslibiirton Treaty
that I learnt my duty in regard to Oregon.
1 am not even an Ajax in this question—
no, sir, nothing but an humble private sol-
(llr'l‘, and would far rather be such than to
be one who (looking toward Mr. B.) holds
himself so loftily as to regard the Earth he
trends as to') mean to bear him—-one who
seems determined to rule or ruin, and is
indifferent which!

Self complacent as the Senator "from
M0. is, and confident as he is that he holds
the Agamemnon of our little band a pris-
oner, I too, say that whenever the 49th
parallel is proved to have been adopted by
the Treaty of Utrecht, I will stand upon it
—iiay, more,I will give up all of Oregon.
I congratulate the Senator from S. C. that
he has made a convert of the Senator frotn
Mo. to masterly inactivity.

The Senator from Mo. will remember
that there were other actors at the siege
of Troy besides Agamemnon and Ajax.
Achilles (here he put his hand on the va-
cant chair of Mr. Cass,) may yet drag
Hector (pointing at Mr. Benton,) as a
trophy of victory. (Applause in the gal-
lery.).

Mr. Webster said if there was any more
applauding this session he should exercise
his privilege of calling for the galleries to
be cleared.

Mr. Hannegan was greatly excited,
which proved most conclusively that Mr.
B. had made the fur fly among the 54- 40
men.

The Senate then passed into Executive
session. .

In the HOUSE, on motion of Mr. Dram-

oole the House went into Committee of
the Whole, and resumed the consideration
of the sub treasury bill.

Mr. Grider of Ky. spoke against the bill,
and Mr. Harmanson of La. Sawyer of 0.
Daniel of N. C., G. VV- Jones of Tenn. and
others spoke in favor of the same.

Tnunsnar, April 2.

In the Szruifrs, some unimportant bus-
iness having been performed such as the
presentation of petitions, &c.

Mr. Ashley moved that the Senate pro-
coed to the special order of the day on the
Oregon Resolutions.

Mr. Cass requested Mr. Ashley to yield
the fioor for an explanation and reply to
Mr. Bcnton’s crushing attack upon him
yesterday. He took up the speech of Mr.
Benton by paragraphs, and tried to set
himself right. It was rather a tedious
process, and took him a long time. Mr.
Benton had charged him with "saying that
he would be bound to the line of 49° if
the treaty ‘of Utrecht established that line.
He made no such assertion. But that
Treaty did not establish that line. Ihave
then broken the bonds of captivity.

Mr. Benton rose and looked rather om-
inously around him. The 54- 4-0 men felt
that a thunder clap was coming, and gath;
ered together round Mr. Hannegau. He
stated Mr. Cass's proposition, and showed
that Jefferson followed the Treaty of
Utrecht in 1807 to the ocean on 49. If
the Senator from Micli.' tries to escape
here, he must deny that we "had any terri-
tory west of the Rocky Mountains by dis-
covery or otherwise previous to 1807. It
would not do to call Mr.JefTerson, British.
We might. all go over the board, yet he
would remain. Therefore his opinions
must be explained away, and another
Greenhow must write another book to ex-
plain away his opinions.. He had risen to
correct the impressions which might have
been entertained of the Senate by endor-
sing such a book as that of Mr. Greenhow.
He had been compelled to mention it thus
once, but would not do so again.

"each other’s corns.

The controversy closed by a pleasant
little reminiscence of the different times
at which the two Senators had trod upon

' Mr. Hannegan moved to go into Execu-
tive Business. . _
Mr._l/Vebster rose and said he wished
the gentlemen who are about_ to discuss
this question historically, which he was
not, would turn their attention to one or
two questions which he would propound.
How came Davis’s Straits to be. men-
tioned as the starting point of the division
between the two countries '4 and how came
the parallel of 49 to be generally received
as the boundary, unless it had been under-
stood as sanctioned by the treaty of
Utrecht I

The Senate then. went into Executive
session. .
The House was occupied entirely with
the sub treasury bill. Mr. Davis of Ky.
made an able speech against it. The hour
of 1 o'clock having arrived, the Comm. of
the Whole proceeded to vote on several
amendments. About 3 o’clock the bill
was reported to the House and was finally
passed by a vote of Yeas 123-—Nays 67.
The House then adjourned. .

8 .

FRIDAY, April 3.
SI-3NATE.~—TllB journal having been read, a
Message was received from the House an-
nouncing that thc Sub—Treasury Bill had been
passed by that body.

Several Petitions and Reports of no general
interest. were presented.

The Coinniitteo on Commerce reported a
bill for the repeal of the Pilot Law of 1837.

The special order of the day was then brought
up, and Mr. Ashley having yielded the floor for
two days to personal explanations between Mr.
Benton and Mr. Cass, addressed the Senate on
Oi-egon——advocating the right of our country to
that territory clear up to 54 40.

He contended that the President and Vice
Prcsidciit were as certainly bound to go for the
whole of Oregon as a Presidenti.-il Elector is
bound to go for the Nominee of the Party.

YVhen he had concluded, Mr. McDuti‘ie, of
S. C., took the floor and will speak to-marrow.

Mr. VVebster rose and stated that the papers
he had called for on the N orth-Eastern Boun-
dary Treaty were in the hands of the Secreta-
ry, and he moved that they be printed for the
use of the Senate. If the Senator from South
Carolina should get through with his speech in
time he would follow him to-rnorrow—if not, he
would address the Senate on Monday.

The Senate then adjourned.

The HOUSE went into Committee of the
\Vholc. Mr. Foot, of Vt., in the Chair, and
took up the Cpinbei'l:iiid Road Bill.’ The Bill
proposes to appropriate for the Road in Ohio
$100,000; for Indiana and Illinois, each 3150-
000.

The bill was still under consideration when
the House adjourned.

SATURDAY. April 4.

Mr. Calhoun moved that the S1-2i\'A'l"E pro-
ceed to the consideration of the Special
Order of the day. .

Mr. l\IcDuflie then rose and addressed
the Senate. On his conscience he would
state the truth, the whole truth and noth-
ing but ti e truth, in regard _to the conflic-
ting claims between our country and Eng-
land.

He apprehended that there would be no
more difficulty from ourselves than from
England in the settlement of this question.
He agreed with the Honorable Senator
from Massachusetts that the good sense of
the two Countries was rapidly settling
down on a compromise on 4«.:v°. Upon
this, if upon any line_must the question he
finally settled.

He would also proceed to show that our
title pointed to that line as the basis of
negotiation, that the claims of the two
countries clearly indicated that as the line
of settlement.

The only title he considered worth any-
thing, was the discovery of Capt Gray, and
the subsequent exploration of Lewis and
Clarke, followed in a reasonable time by
settlement at Astoria.

In 1818, ".24. "26 and 41-4, our Govern-
ment made the offer of the 49th Parallel,
and we never claimed a line higher. How,
then, do we get higher nowl \Ve are ad-
monished to do to others as we would that
others should do to us.

Great God! exclaimed he, I have been
shocked with the coolness with which
war has been talked about. What shall
we go to war about? It cannot be about
National honor. Does any man believe
that we would compromise National hon-
or by repeating the offer of Mr. Gallatin,
sanctioned by the Patriots of the Revolu-
tion and of the last war’! It is then not a
question of honor but of property.

The Senate then adjourned.

The HOUSE was occupied with the pri-
vate calander. No business of public in-
terest. Adjourned. '

The proceedings of Congress on Friday, pre-
vious to our last publication, were not received
when we went to press. Among the business
of that day, since received, we find the subject;
of Atlantic steamers was reported upon favor-
ably by Mr. Hilliard of the Committee on the
Post Ofiice and Post: Roads. The proposed
line of steamers as contemplated, will run be-
tween this country, England, France and Bre-

“fl

From the National Intelligenccr.
° W'e adverted yesterday to the declar-
ation of Mr Chalmers,made in his speech
of ' Tuesday, that three-fourths of the
friends of the President in the Senate, and
four fifths of the whole body,‘ were in fa-
vor ofcompromise. 'We, thought, we con-
fess, when the honorable Senator from
Mississippi stated this fact, that the state-
ment might prove to be a little too strong.
But subsequent occurrences convince us
he was right. Among these occurrences
we give a prominent place to Mr. Sevier,
on Wednesday. This gentleman was an
ardent supporter of the Administration— _
one of its chiefsoutli western pillars. He
is well known to be among the foremost
and the boldest, on all occasions, in main-
taining what he thinks his country’s rights.
He has been reckoned, too, among the
“fifty four-forty” men ; and we doubt not
is so, in his opinions and feelings. But,
notwithstanding all this, we have greatly
misunderstood the scope of his observa-
tions on Wednesday, unless he be now
ready to take a line of boundary substan-
tially like that offered by the United States
in 1826. Mr. Sevier does not like the
word “compromise.” He thinksit implies,
or may imply, something lit e. cession.—
But, objectionable pliraseology being out
the way, we greatly err, if the honorable
Senator did not mean to be understood
that, for the sake of peace, he would be
willing to stop at forty-nine.

 

From JlIe:c:'co.—We are indebted to a
gentleman who arrived here to day from
Havana via Charleston, in the short pas-
sage of eight days, for the following ini-
pprtant intelligence:

The Juriiata l'1ll‘l\ ed at I-lavanna on the
evening of the 22d ult. bringing advices
up to that day, and by the Captain we
learn that a great change had taken place
in the state of our relations with Mexico.

It appears that Parades has been induc-
ed to alter his tone, owing to strong man-
ifestations exliibitcd against a war with
the United States, and Mr. Slidell, our
Miiiistei‘, has both duly noti"er.l that the
Govcrnmeiit were ready to consider prop-
ositions he had to ma e on bclialf of our
G()\'el'l'tlll8Dl, and that there cxistetl no
doubt but that the l‘I;&1li'PT'\‘.’OlliCl be Sp(‘£(l-
ily adjusted. A rista, and the troops under
his command, had pronounced against
Parcdes and the war party.—-—_l;'ve. Guz.

Ftanocious Arr,-.01: or A M.Ai~:i.-=.c.-Sur.-
day morning, about six o'clock, a person
named Jas. Tucker, who is said to be a
merchant from Madison county, Virginia,
in a fit of insanity or mania potu, attacked
Captain Ramsay and three of his sons,
ll-lessrs. \Vadsworth, David and Douglass
Ramsay, with a sharp clasp knife, cutting
and maiming all of them, (the eldest son
severely.) The maniac first attacked the
servant at the door of Capt. Ramsey's
house, about six o’cloc'-: in the morning,
and then ran into the captain’s bedroom,
and made an assault upon him. The sons
of Capt. Bamsay, coming to the aid of their
father, could and would have killed the
maniac but for the self possession and sin-
gular forbearaiice of the Captain, who,
believing the wretched man to be insane,
protected him from certain destruction.
The maniac was afterwards secured, and
is now in jail under medical treatment.

National lntcll7'gmcer.

 

Rescue of the Sfir'pu'rec/red.--In our last
we mentioned the wreck of the Henry
Clay offthe Jersey Shore ; at the time of
our going to press 300 passengers were on
board in danger of perishing. A gentle-
man residing in the vicinity of the ship, in-
forms the Journal of Commerce, that the
passengcrs were safely lauded, by means
ofa half hogshead slung upon a hauser
leading from a derick raised upon the ship’s
deck, and made fast on shore. This hogs-
head being swung to the ship, and there
receiving two or three passengers, was
drawn ashore, (not touching the water,)
discharged, and then swung back to the
ship for a new cargo. In this way all
the passengers were got safely ashore
without even wetting their feet.

flcquiltal of Albert J. TirreIl.—A Boston
jury have acquitted Tirrell of the murder
of Maria A. Bickford.

In reply to a question from the Court,
on what ground the prisoner was acquit-
ted——wliether for want of proof or on the
ground of sornnanibulism—-the foreman of
the jury stated, that the question of insan-
ity or somnambulism was not considered
at all by thejury.

The prisoner was then discharged from
the iudictinent of murder, and on motion
of the County Attorney, was remanded to
prison, to be tried on an indictment for
arson, at the next term of the Court.

The excitement was intense in and
about the Court House, the crowd raising
an immense shout as he was carried off.

For Engl_a:zd.—The British steamship
Hibernia, Capt. Harrison, left Boston at
1-2 past ‘.3 o’clock, Wednesday afternoon,

men. The Committee are of the opinion that
the receipts for postage will immediately pay
the expense, and that ultimately, it revenue will
accrue to the United States. The following
resolution accompanied the Report: '

RI-3:0LV1-JD, That so much of the letter
of the Postmaster General, addressed to
the House, under date ofMarcli 9th, 184-(i,
as relates to the establishment of an At-
lantic Line of Mail Steamers, be referred
to the favorable consideration of the Com-
mittee of VVays and Means, that the up-
propriations asked for by the Postmaster
General may be provided for.

The beautiful organ now in course of
erection in Trinity Church,.sullered con-
siderable damage during the thunder storm
on Friday, in consequence of the rain beat-

which were open.

 

Cheap fares on the North River are
likely to prevail again this season.‘ The

Oneidia has commenced, running at 50 etc.

ing through the windows in .the spire,

for Halifax and Liverpool, with 120 pas-
isengers, a mail containing about 40,000-
fletters and other mailable matter to the
lbulk of six wagon loads, and despatches
for our ministers at London and Paris.—
Every berth has been taken, and several-
iwere prevented from obtaining a passage
,in her.

I

l Abel Crawford-, whom to distiiiguislr
ifrom his giant sons, Ethan and ",1 cm, we
l used to [mow as “Old Crawford. Of the
White Mountain N.otclI,- 15 among’ ‘he

Whig Representatives recently elected to .

the New I-Iampslll-1'8 Legislature. The
old gentleman, now on the borders of
not half his years. , _

The She-rbrookie (Canada) Gazette state
that 1000 shares ($200 each) of" the stock

 

have been subscribed in Boston, which,
added , to the shares recently taken inl,
Montreal, will enable the Company to. gr" “
ganizc and proceed under their chartcp‘

‘“<‘

-»>..- -3»:-6.’.-*.-1: .,-.‘ , -- -- *'

eigh-ty, is as hale and active as many of

of the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad‘.

 

,4