The Northern Standard. (Clarksville, Tex.), Vol. 7, No. 39, Ed. 1, Saturday, May 25, 1850 Page: 1 of 4
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ORTHERN
jL JiJi A
-
s'" yrwiia
HggMg3CBl.H I '.I- UAWJUiCTE
CMARl.o DE MORSE.
VOL. 7
f firm mpn-J'- -1-'1
UJ
COL. FREMONT'S LETTER
To the Pacific Rallioad Convention.
Tlie. Railroad Convention adjourned on
the lth hist. The session was spent in dis-rnssinn-
the various nroiects. but no conclu
sion was armed at. The Convention lion-
et er will hate the effect of dnccting public
attention to the subject. Below w c copy a
letter from Col. Fremont to the Contention
in which hi3Ctcnsie knowledge is brought
to hear upon the question "which is the most
practicable route?" '"'- "-""--
To Mcssis. B. Geiharnd and others com-
mittee vc.
Gr.NTMMr.- It would hate giten me
great pleasnte to hae been able to accept
Tola kind imitation and to hate met the in-
teresting Mississippi and Pacific Railroad
f'ontciTion on Monday but the remains of a
Chnncs fctu confine me to mv loom and
leave nw no other mode of showing my sense
ni'xmirnttteiilioii. and maiiilcstiii!: the interest
I take in the irrcat obicct which assembles
this Contention than to contnbute so far as
1 can to the mass of the infoimation which
will he laid bcfoie it In doing this. I rcgicl
that the state of my health docs not permit
cten the labor neccssarj to git c the distances
nnd barometiical dotations along the loute
which 1 shall offer for voui con-uletation but
I hate caused a skeleton map lodc-ly sketched
o be pieparcd to accompany this comiiuuiica-
ion and which in club ting the piominent
"oatuie-of the country and general ducctlon
Tthe line will be found sufiicicnth full
md accuiatc to illustrate what I hate to
av.
"Many lines of exploration through the wil-crne-s
country fiomoer inhabited hoi'.licr to
he Pacific Ocean hate conrlusitclt sati-lied
le that the region or bell of countiy hing
etween the :th and iWtli parallels ol latitude
ffcr smgulai facilities and extiaouhnai t com-
aratitclidtan'.ngcs fur the co'Stinuatiua of the
roposcd road.
1 nrono-c. thcieforc to occupy your altcn-
on solely with this line for the clearer uu-
rstandmg of which it will aid to keep uu-
cr the ec the accompauting nap upon
Inch the unbroken icel hues aie intended to
iow that tlie. legion- which hitc been
rcadv explored t.lule the bioken icd '.me-
dicate what is -known onl) fiom ichable
formation. "
The countrv to be travcr-cd by the pro-
ised road exhibits-but tw o great features
c pianics teaching to about the Hloth dc-
ce of longitude; and the mountains ttnh
Inch it is bii-lhng fiom th.it point to the
.ores oi the Pacific oct.ui some tear- of
icl anion-Mlic-c mountain- during which:
t as occupied piincipallv m seai clung tor con
incut pas-cs and good line- ot communica-
m gradually led me comprehend thestiuc-
rc and to undeistand that among this extend-ma-
of mouut.ii.i-. theie is nowhere e be
jnd a meat continuous langc hat mg anuii-
oken ciest where pa-ses are only to bo
ji'd in the coupai -"lively small dcpicssion-
ihe summit hue.
Tlnnn-rhniit thi- gieat extent of country
ctchai" Hi "ah twi about 17 degrees all
parent! continuous i.-nges me compost 1
leu-'lhened blocks of mountain- sepaialed
d detached of grcatct or less length ac-
rdui" to the in igmtude of the chain which
compose each one pos-es-mg it- -cpa-
te noted and pi omuient peaks and hing
rallel to each other but nut u-uailt so to
; "cnei-il diicctiou of the langc but in main
es ltmg diagont'lly acro-s it springtng
Jdcnlv up fi"om ti:e gencul let el of the
jnti : sometimes using into bale and lock
limits of great height the leatc opening-
ough the langc but little above this ge-ic-i
level and by which they can be p.is-ed
hout climbing a inounui.i Genet allt
sc openings aie wooded t.ilhe- where the
mil. mi -prings from eithoi side collect
ether funning often the mini biancl.es oi
some mighty stieam. Aggicgatcd togethei
in this w at ' they go on to lonn the great
chain-of the Rocky Mountains and Siena
Netada a-well as the smaller and secundaiv
janges which occupy the iueit cning space.
With the giadu.il discoteiy of this -tstem
I becam --- " '- '" - ' "
r ur t '-' i . - " - r
t o d . : -s .' iugg' n i t . ti
.... l . " " !iii i v loiai- '.. I -
..itoi . ':0! . I .i'i-iit I i st. U i "
vi c o'l'sct i'i rder that I miii! be niorr
rcadilt underoto.iJ u' ptocetdmc to shot" ' ..'
t'us continent cit Lectossed Ircm the M.- J
JlsoPW'l iO
;!' 1 acibc wufaoat c
J. tain snd on the lEert line which every no
t'jnal c.T".sidc.atijn would requt.-e to connect I
tlie "real va'.ey of the ivest with ihe Pacti.;
Ocean.
In c'cscribing tlie bell otH' coun'-v th -oe.!
vitrh the ro-d should pass t tii'! l ' '
conenient t - 4ji5 '"ir c-'ire line iiit' 'i
tints in. r-at5ia leiicr.uig iron' ui .. . .
luc Kansas to the uead of the Del Ncri.; I
.e Middlu iron the .ead oi lhc Dei Noitcl
tu thenm of the Gteat Basin; and the -t-rn
V-om tne rim or the Great Basin to t e
" an Beginning near the "Otr pjral1.1 oi
. .ude at the moutli oftlii Katiias. the roid
would e-ttind -long itn" valley of that r'lti
some Ibrer or uur Iiuidrc'i miles txater u
a beatitifai iiid -ooi'cv. countiy of great !c-
tihli of 30il R"!! cdected to scttknicnt ai .
caltivalion. Fran the upper enters of l'n
Kansas falling cas:"y -er into the tpl.ev o.
the rk.nsr.-: the r. tj s'rihes that tif-i a'.jjt
a huud'cd miles below the fool of the raoun-
ft IS. eo 'i.UIl'g i") !
only to ihs
!H.'.h tf
point the
the Iluer!. no rifci.
From tins
prairie plain- sweep directly up to the moun-
tains which ilofunite them as h.ghiands lo the
...
- - -
n.- Tlr. M-ier-ano is One ol tile linm r
brandies of :!-e A.rl:ansas and follov'ing the
line of tuis sM -am lb road would here enter
a country ma- ficcr.tiy beautiful iin'ben
having many b its or vallejs of rcat ;ci'' i
ty; ha.iii'ia u. .id and beautiful c!uniie; i.
!n" througi out the xaliey coantrt shoit wn
fcrs which spend their force in .he cai'.'
regions cf tho mounlrins. The rangrs
mottntains ir. which this stream find1: its hex.
spiinr-! '3 distinguished by Int-ng ltssumim"
alll'iisl consianiit cnteiupou iu ciuuus oi rr
f ..v. - : i ...:. ... . ..-
m Mojaca or Wet Mountain. This chain -
remarkable among the Rocky Mountain ran
"es for the singular grandeur of its v. ml
tri.nn.r-v wlnrii has been charactcri-"ed I
. 1lll- Ir 1ir-l W- llll t II II IIHTIIh III llillllr (If " I T
travellers who havo teen both as mtv.up-s
..a .! . .i.. Ai-.e. .t.n n;m-.lnVJQ. 'IV..."r
naked rocky summits aro grouped into num t-
It Tl
bUs peaks which lise fiom the midst of black linforiiniion 1 am now able to gite upon tins hue.
piney forests whence issue many small The first section of it from the Missouri frontier to
stteams to the talley below. Following by the head of the Del Xurtc is explored and needs
an open wagon way the talley of the Huci- no further rccoimuisancc. It is ready for the Ioca-
fano the load reaches the immediate foot of i r iic r(nl lv a nractical ensmcer. 'll.e
the mountain at tnc eniiancc oi a rcinaiiiaoic
. . i l
pass almost ctery where sin rounded by
bold rocky mountain masses. Fiom one foot
of the mountains to the other the pass is
about lite miles long; a Ictcl talley from two
to four bundled yards wide the mountain
rising abruptly on cither side. With scaicc-
ly a d'-tinguishable rise from the ritcr plains
the road here passes directl) through or be-
tween themountains cmciging in the open
talley of the Del Norte hcic some forty or
fill j miles broad or more pnpeily acontini.-
..tinn northvaid of the vallot in which the
Del Norte runs. Cio-sing this lint country
opening between the mountains end encoun-
tering no water course in its way the load
would reach the entrance of a pass in the
Cohn.-.do mountains familial ly Knott i to the
New Mexicans and Indians tradeis who aie
accustomed to tiatcrse it at all seasons of the
t car and who lepiescnt it as conducting to
the waters of the Colorado liter tin ough a
hand-omc rolling giass-cotcred countiy and
ailbrdmg piacticable wagon routes.
This section of the route so fdras the oil-
trance to this p.t-s catering tweltc dogicej
ol longitude 1 am able to speak of from cx-
ploiation and to say that the line dcsciibcd
s not only piacticable hut afibrds many and
singular facilities for the consti notion of a
lailway and offeis many adtantages m the
fcrtde and wooded countiy through which it
lie- in the greater pait of its course.
In the whole distance there is not an ele-
vation worthy of the name to he sin moun
ted; and a let el of about fcOOO feet is gained
almost without noiccptibihtv ascent. Up the
Kansas and Huctfanosiver t allots the conn
trt i- wooded and watered; the valley of the
Del Norte is open but wood is ahundiut in
the ncijihboi m mountains and land lit tor
cultitation is found almost continuously alonu
the water courses from the mouth of the Kan
sas to the head of the talley of the Del Xoitc
A louincy iindci taken in the wiuter of
ISSrS-ID (and mtenupted here by entciing
more to the sou'liald the i tigged mountain
of St. John's one of the most impiacticablo
on the continent )tt as intended to make a cor-
rect examination of ibis pa-s and the country
be oud to the i im of the Gieat Basin. The
failure of this expedition leates only for this
middle poition of our hue -uch knowledge as
we hate been able to obtain fiom trappers and
I.'.diaus tiadcis. The information thus ob-
tained had led me to attempt its cxploiation
as all accounts concui red in repie-euting it
practicable for a load; and the information
thus obtained was consideied to be sufficiently
i citable.
Accoidmg to this information the sanlC
-ttuciurc of the country to which I have call-
attention abotc a- forming a -t-lrm among
the mountains imlds good; and 1 accordingly
in no difficulty m hclie-ting that the road
would icidilt at oul ant obstacles Inch might
be pio-cuted in luc sh ipe of mount am langcs
and ea-il reach the Ba-in.
In pionnuncing upon ihe practicability of a
ro.ul tin ough this section I proceed upon ni)
gitiei.il knowledge of the face ofthe country
upon infoimation icccitcd fiom h'intcis Jnd
ic-i.leut- in New Mux.co and upon the cs-tabh-hed
net lltil it has not only beentratel-
led but at all seasons of the teli ptii" is mil
of the tratclhug loutcs fiom New Mctco to
California
The thud section of the map is from the
Wall-- itch mountain to thcsicria Netada
and theucc to the bay of San Fi.iucisco
Tins ionic tiateisc- the Great Basin prescn-
tinij tluee difiereni lines which you will find
indicated on the map. Hcpcated journets
hate git en me more or less knowledge of the
country along these lines and 1 consider all
of them piacUcable althou-h the question of)
nrcfcience lem.un- to be settled. The Not ill- !
ern line is that of ihe Humboldt riter which
although dcllectui; fiom the dncct coui-e to
the hay commands in its appionch to iho
mountains setctal pncticablc pis-es the
lowest uf which is onK lo'JO feet abo.c the
outhcrn line which in cros-itig the
1 . i not the same fi ccdoui from obstruc-
i . i yed by the open liter line of the
. i still entirely piacticable nnd po---
i ?i j advantage of crossing the Sierra
N.
t i icnnrkablc lowdepicssion call-
ii'- pass more commonly known as
I'flhc .luuiiftii and beins in fact a
-. i
" on of one ofthe mountains which go
chain.
ass is near the 35th degree of lati-
near the head of the beautiful and
i Hey of the San Jopquin which (he
ce would folow down to its junction
Sacramento or to some point on the
ay. This loute deflects to the South about
s much the other docs to the North hut sc-
ores a good way and finds no obstacle from
ic SieriPurning that mountain where it has
link down nearly to the Ictcl of the countiy.
Among the recent proceedings ofthe Caiifor-
. ia Legislatuic resolutions were introduced
l fator ot biinging in the inilway at this
1 .IsS.
The third line which is the middtc and
ircct line and that whirh I gate a decided
reference is less known to me than either
of the olhci-.; hut I believe fully in its prac-
icabihty and only see as the principal ob-
tablc to be ovcrcomc.thu Great Sicira itself
thich it would strike near its centre. That
ibstacle is not considered insurmountable
lor in the present slate of r.iilwav science
. - .. - . ..
J. t.f..nt fn .. .. I . .1 ..:. .. ..i.4n
-""-- mm us nuiu me mi cci ionic-.
' J- Pass ls Knotyn as indicated by lhc line upon
he map which labor would render nractica-
jic. u.ncr passes arc also Known to the
north and south; and if tunnelling becomes
accessary the structure of the mountains is
such as to allow tunnels lo be used with the
greatest advantage. Narrow places aie pre-
sented whcic opposite gorges approach each
other and a wall of some two or three thou-
' sand leet often separates points which may
not be more than a quarter or a half a mile
nnnrt nt its base
It will also he remember-
..-.. .- .-
c lhat the Great Basin cast or the Sierra
Nevada has a general elevation of over four
thousand feet so that the mountain would be
appronched on the cast at that elevation and
! the west the slope is wide through descen
ding to near the level of tide water.
Thc foregoing remarks embody all the general
LONG SHALT. OUR IIAXXCli BRAVE THE
CLAIIKSVILLE RED RIVER COUNTY TEXAS SATURDA Y MAY
I -f
. -..
second ami third sections require further explana
tions to determine not upon practicaliihlt but
upon the preference due to one oter the others.
A pint of "00 mci' skilfidlt directed with ths
a-si-t nice of three or four practical engineers
would he siiflicicnl to hy out the whole routes and
clcir and open a common road in the course of the
nrxt Sprum -iitil Summer so as to ho pissable for
w agotis and carmges and as npully tratcrscd as
anv of the common ro"ds in the United States.
The oli-Urles which I Into not mentioned are
the winter impediment of snows and the tcinpora-
r one from the hostility of Iudiins. Tl-c lillcr
cm he surmounted hy imhtiry stations sending out
iiuht irv tiatruls to clear and scour the line. The
snows aie Ic-s torimd ililc thin trenld he suppo-cJ
from the great dotation of the cculral pirt of the
route.
Tliet arc dry and therefore more rcidily passed
through arc thin in the vallevs and remtm on
them oidv during a ten brief winter. The winter
of my list expedition was one uf unproccduutcdly
deep and e irly -nous tel in the talley of tl'.c Kau---is
and Aikinsas it was thin ; m the talley of the
lluerf-tnii none; and in the talley of the Del
Norte -it the end of Not ember hut a few inches
deep. I'tcn in this set ere winter on the jth of
December at the greatest elctatiun crossed bt the
cistern eriiiin of the line being m the narrow
piss between the Arkansas and Del Norte the
stinu ttasoniy three lect deep; tlie thermometer
it Zeio near mid-dit. The weather in these lush
mount uns and deep t allots is of a chaiaclcr adapt-
ed tu such localities extremely cold on the lnoiin-
tiitis while temperate in the tallets. I Into cen
it storming for da together on the mountains
in a way to he destni" tite to all auinnl life expos-
ed to it while in the tallet there would be pleasant
sun-lmic ami the animals feeding on nutritious
jra-is. Ilctoud the 1'ockj Mountains the cold is
le-s ami the snows become a less and more tran-
sient ohsl lclc.
These are mytiewsof a route for the road or
rouls (a common one is fir".t wanted) trcm the
Miis-ippi to the Pacific. It lulfilh m my opin-
ion all the conditions of a route for a national thor-
ouejitare. 1-t. It is direct. The course is almost a stra'ght
hue from end to end. St. Louis is between 33
3'J ; San Franei-co is about the s une ; the route is
between these pirallels or nearly between them
the whole way.
2d. It is central to territory. It is through the
terntorul centre west of the Mississippi audits
pmlo.nr-Uon t" the Atlantic occ-ai would be central
to the Sntcs cast of that rncr. It is also ccnlril
to business am! population and unites the -rc.iicst
coMimercial point m the tallet of the Mi-sis-ippi
tt itii iho greatest eommercial point on the coast of
lhc Pacific.
3rd. It eonihines the adtantages for miking and
prcscitina the road wool water and soil lor in-
Inbititioa and cultitation.
Jth. It U a heiltny route. No di-case of any
kind upui it ; ami the talctulmarian might Intel
t m his own chicle on horse or even on foot for
the mere restoration of health and rccotcry of
spirits.
It not only fulfills all the conditions of a national
route but is preferable to any other. It is preferable
to the South Pass from being near four degrees
turiher south more frc- from open plitns and free
from the rising of great ritcrs. Its course is par-
allel with the ritcrs there being but one (the upper
folorado) directly crossing its b ic. There arc
'ls'!e3 al 1c hcaA of lic Arkansas in the Three
I'Jik-. and north of them but none equal to this by
t'.e Hio del Norte. There is no route north ot it
tl-.it is companhlc to it ; I behcte there is no pne-
t..i'ie route south of it within the Piutcd Slates.
'I ; disaster which turned mo so uh from the head
r ' Del Norte and sent me down the tallcj of
thai ntcr and to the mountains around the Upper
Uila enabled me to satisfy m. self on th .1 point. 1
went middle route a new waj bctt.ccn the
ti'ih nir vid the wagon road through the Mexican
province ut Sonora and im sitisfitd that no route
for a nt " can be hid on tint line except by gou.g
through Mi xico then crossing the gri it Colorado
ot the fost near its mouth to cross the desert to
irr w al S .n Diego where there is. nonbusiness
and sllll bo six bundled miles by land and three or
four bund od by water from the hiy of San Fran-
tisco which now is and forever must be the grjat
centre ol commerce wealth and power on the
America-! coast of the Pacific ocean.
In conclusion I hive to say that I believe m the
praclicabilily of this worU and lint ciert nation d
i unsidcratioii require." it to be done and lo he done
.it once and .s a luiioinl work hy the U. States.
Your obliged fellow "citizen
J. C. FltCMOiNT.
The Foit Smith Herald mentions a rumor
that the Gov eminent intend sending out ear
ly in Juno an expedition for the purpose of
sin v eying Hie route Irom Iort bimlh to San
Diego on the Pacific and to select sites fot
the establishment of Military Posts. The
Herald hopes that the command of tins expe
dition will be given to Captain Mnrcy.
Uapt. itjarcy I. as alrcauy surveyed a route
Irom Foit Washita to the head of the Gila
passing throujr the counties of Grayson and
Cooke in this Sate If the above rumor is
not unfounded that is probably the route up-
on which the Posts will be established. A
moie noi thorn route would bo longer and out
of the way of supplies and would cover no
frontier settlements. ISoiiJIdv.
We are informed that tho wheat crop is
sufieiing severely from the birds. Wc hoar
instances of fields that promised an abundant
harvest being almost entirely destroyed in a
few dayi. Dallas Herald.
The Amcsbury (Mass.Manufacturing Com
pany have purchased a library ol six hundred
volumes ol valuable books for the use of their
opciativcs.
It is stated that a reporter of tho London
Times was in attendance during the whole of
the trial of Dr. Webster at Boston.
The Southern Aptcryx is now exhibiting in
London; it is a wingless bird.
llREEZE THE STANDARD OP THE FREE.
IN (JONGKESS OP THE U. STATES. I
Tliirlr-Firtl Cotisrcii Firit Siiou
THURSDAY MARCH 11 1830.
The Senate having resumed tlie con-
silient! ion of the motion to lcfer tlie reso-
lutions ptoposed hy Mr. Hell to a select
committee of thirteen
Mr. Cass resumed and concluded as
follows :
Mr. President : Before I resume mv
icnnuks at the point where I left off yes-
terday I have aquc-tion to put to the sen
ator horn Ali-is-ippi; who (i.nu .Mr. U.i
looking round) I am sorry to vc is not
in his seat. I regiet he is not ; but I will
postpone the reference I designed making
to him until lhc close ot" my remarks
when perhaps he may be here. I spoke
to him this morning on the subject and
therelbie he is perfectly aware of the
question I wish to put to him.
I was remarking yesterday when I re-
signed the floor that there were certain
tilings we could not accomplish and oth-
er that with equal ceitainty we might
take for granted we could do. Anion:;
the latter va- the bill providing for the
iccapttire of fugitive -lavrs ; and another
object which I trust will be accomplished
is tlie providing of a government for the
ntw I crntones. 1 think it essential to
calm this agitation ; and so long as tbe-e
Territories are left without a government
so long will the pre-ent state cf things
continue and this agitation be kept up.
which is so harassing to the tranquility
and dangerous to the peace ot the Union.
That a law may be passed attthoriying
the people of the Territories to govern
themselves without any Wilmot Proviso
being attached to it is my wish and my I
hope. I am not going to say much upon j
the propriety of the admission of Califor-1
nia : for the remarks that have fallen from
my friend from Illinois Mr. Douglas
are so well expressed and so pertinent
that they preclude the necessity of en- j
tering anew into that topic at ant length.
I under-stood the distinguished senator
from youth Caiolina to admit xesterd.iy
that he did make it expressly a test ques-1
tion. As 1 remai Kcd before it wa this
demand of the honorable senator that ex i
cited in 1113 mind serious apprehensions
as to the result ; for I knew and every
member of this Senate knew tli.it il this
was made a test question upon which the '
fate of this republic depended that fate
was scaled. 1 trust I may be permitted I
to say with regard to this i-sue that it
appears to me not only unwise but use-
less for the reasons so well cx"prcs-cd by
the senator liom Illinois in his speech to-1
day.
No gentleman on this floor from the
North or the South the East or West will l
iise in his scat and say he believes thai j
slavery will ever go into the Territory ofi
California no one can believe this for a
moment. What &ir would the southern
States gain bv sending California after1
she has conic here xvith a constitution in I
her hands back again to undergo the I
pi ocess of a territorial government and'
then to return here a ear hence every
t ear pcthaps for ten years and revive the '
question anew.' What wouiu os gamed
by it lor any portion ol tlie countiy' Is
it'a battle woith fighting' Is the o-'ject
to be accomplished really worth the con-
test? Sir there is no object that can be
accomplished by such a course of proce
dure. Undercistingcircumstanceswhat
kind of territorial government can be es
tablished there' Can any territorial gov-
ernment be established' And is this un-
settled state of things to go on from year
to year pel pctuating the bitter fecfing-
that have already sprung up between one
section of the Union and the other.' P.tit
I have said also that such a course is un-
wise ; and I trust my southern frier is ill
p.iidon me for saying that they are ma-
king a very unwise issue.
Sir wc cannot stand before the country
and before the world and object to the
admission of California on tin ground that
h:is been urged. The objection is not to
her boundaries though that topie has
been much debated. The honorable sen-
ator fiom Illinois whom wc have all just
heard with so much pleasure has discuss-
ed the subject to ably and clearly that it
would be a work of supecrogation in me
to renew it 1 myself was at first star-
tled at the boundary claimed stretching
as it docs along the coast of the Pacific
one thousand miles a much greater ex-
tent than any one State in the Union ought
to possess. As the senator fiom Illinois
and myself arc together in thesamc house
we have conversed repeatedly upon this
subicct and with an earnest desire to re
duce these boundaries if the nature of
the country would permit. With this view
he examined 'arious lines proposed the
parallel of .115 dcg. 30 min.? and the south-
em range of mountains to ascertain
what proper limitation could be imposed
upon the new State. But he ultimately
became satisfied that no change could be
made. The country between the ocean
and the sea is a narrow one and cast ol
the mountains is a desert and in propor
tion to its extent the quantity of arable
land is small. Be the boundaries as they
may it is not probable that its population
will ever be as great as that of some of
the other Stated of this Union. And if
its southern boundary were to stop at the
mountains tnere would be lelt between
them and the Mexican possessions a small
district of country which Would have to
remain for an indefinite period perhaps
torever in a colonial condition.
The senator from South Carolina Mr.
Calhoun. who I regret to sec is not in his
seat to-day does not assume this ground
as an objection to the admission of Cali-
fornia. That objection rests upon her
present position and mode of application
iPW"KBj3e33rTHFTKT3nSfc"f"M"Ii""""L.
25 1850.
"" WMemw-w-m
because she has established a "overn-
I incut of her own without passing through
a territorial process and comes nere oi
her own accoul and asks .admission into
this Union. This grotind of objection
cannot be maintained in this age of the
world before the people of this country
and I may add the people of Christen-
dom. One hundred thousand American citirons
on the shores of the Pacific arc or might
be so far as depends upon our action m a
nei feet state of anarchy. Three sessions of
Congress have intervened since these nev
Tcintorics came under the jurisdiction of
the United States and you hate not legisla-
ted for them in .1 single instance except lo
mal'c provision for the collection of revenue
at their ports. All other duties devolving
upon you as lc-iisk'tcrsi for the entire Union
have been totally neglected. You have iiscd
them only for the purpose of collecting taxes
from tbein. Are wc sir to be told in the
middle of the nineteenth century that these
people under such circumstances hate no
light to form a government? No man can
stand up here and assert this doctrine and
expect to receive the support of the people
of this country. My friend from Illinois
Mr. Douglas correctly said that the right
of government of some kind of government
was a right inherent in all people upon the
face of the earth and that the establishment
of civ il and social order was among the first
necessities of men cntcrimr into civil society.
Without government they cannot c"ist; and
you have provided no government for the)
people of California and it is now contended
that they hate no right to provide one forj
themselves. You have neglected your own
duty towards them for the last three sessions;
and now when they come here acknowledge
mg your jutisdtction and with a constitution t
in their hands you are about to send them '
back to the shores of the Pacific to enter in-1
to a tcnitorial condition and to return again (
at some future time as suppliants to your la-
tor. They lot e the Union. They have felt
its blessings and desire to secure them to
themselves and posterity. They will hate
no other standard to wave in the breezes cf
the Pacific on their coast but the standard of
their fathers tho stars and stiipes of our
country. Would to God that this feeling
prevailed with equal intensity at the centre '
of the republic as it prctaiis at its distant c-
tremity. While they wish to come in there i
aie those who wish to go out. Itisconso-j
hr.g to find the patiiotic ardor of our coun-
tijmcn docs not diminish as they recede from
the older portions cf the republic. I icpeat I
they come here not as revolutionists betas
an integral part of our great community
asking admittance into the confederacy.
Mr. Kini (in his scat) Who is it that
prevents them?
Mr. Cass. Tho scuitor from Alabama in-1
quires who it is that has pretcutcd them from
hating a government and I answer it is the
Congies- of the United States and in saying
this I take the blame myself as one of its.
members
.Mr. Downs. The Wihnot Protiso prc-
tents them.
Mr. Cass. I am not speaking of the cause
of our neglect. The Wihn it Proviso is an-
other thnilj. I am not examining what dtf-
leicaces oT opinion may have prevented our
action. I am speaking of our neglect -ml
ot its effect upon the people of California
and of their justification in forming a State
gov eminent. What has the Wilmot Prov isO
or any other difference of opinion here to
do with them5 They would still have rc-j
mained without a government had they not
taken their own cause into their own hands
and done for themselves what ttc ought to
have done for them. Aie they lo be depu-
ted of social organization and of tlie cle-1
ments of social order I may add of cast-1
once and to be treated by us with contume-
Iv and mockcrv under the pretence that we
can do nothing for them because some one
thinks proper to introduce the Wilmot Proti-
so into our lcgisl.ititc proceedings?
Mr. Downs. Docs not tlie gentleman
know tint that is the only reason5 (
Mr. Cass. To be sure; gentlemen would (
not hate voted for a territorial got eminent
c!o"gcd with the Wilmot Protiso. I would '
nouTo it myself. 15ut the great fact still re-
mains. It is our fault they have no govern-
ment. It is not theirs; and it is because
tint question has divided you and pretcn-.
led you from doing your duty that they ap-
pear here to-day and ask justice at your
hands.
Mr. Footc. Will the senator bear tvitu
mo;
Mr. Cass. With pleasure.
Mr Vo.-itc. 1 presume the senator docs
not wish to do injustice to any one; but hej
knows well that what may properly be call-
ed the Walker amendment was prevented
from being adopteii according 10 ins own
account by the senator from New York.
Mr. lass. n any geiiiic-iii.ni suppusc-s
that I had the slightest idea of casting ecu-1
1 ...... l.ntt.ir lf ... (ffncl.l
sure upon one nuiu.ui uu0 - - u.n...; .
mistaken: such a sentiment never occured to
me. I was speaking of the Congress of the
United States and of the duties they had to '
perform and had neglected to perform and
did not intend to rcllcct the slghtcst censure
upon any gentleman North South East or
West much less to arraign their motives.
I was speaking of the relation which cx-istcd
between this nvcrnincnt and the people ot
California which has justified in my opin-
ion the course they have taken.
Mr. Butler. Will the honorable senator
allow me to ask him a question ?
Mr. Cass. Certainly.
Mr Butler. Do I understand the honora
ble senator now" to say that it was the duty of
Congress to hate protideil a competent gov-
ernment for these Territories?
Mr. Cass. There are two positions I
have always maintained with reference to thi3
subject. First that Congrc-s under the con-
stitution has no right to establish govern-
..!. rn ilm Trrritiiries: secondly that un-
liiuilia iv. ..w j -- .
dcr no circumstances have they the right to1
pass any law to regulate the internal affairs'
ot luc people innaoiiing mum no iirsi may
be a matter of necessity; and when the ne-
cessity exists if a senator totes for it he
votes upon his own responsibility to his con-
stituents. If they believe the necessity and
support him he is safe; but if not he must
fall. If I had voted under such circumstan-
ces I must have looked to my constituents
EDITOR Si PROPRIETOR.
NO. 39.
for my justification; but under no circum-
stances could I lute toted for any law inter-
fering with the internal concerns of the peo-
ple of a Territory. No necessity requires
it There is no necessity which would justify
it.
Mr. Chase. Will tho senator allow nlc
to ask him a question?
Mr. Cass. Certainly; I stand ready lo
be catechised all day on this subject if sen-
ators desire it.
Mr. Chase. Did I understand th'c senator
as sating that in votmtr lor a bill to estab
lish a government in the Territories he
would assume the exercise of any authority
not given in the constitution?
Mr. Cass. The honorable Senator will
undoubtedly recollect that in a historical
document called the Nicholson letter which
subsequent circumstances have made some-
what important I distinctly stated my views
upon this subject and those views have re-
mained unchanged to the present hour I
maintained that no power is given by the
Constitution to establish territorial govern-
ments but that where an imperious necessity
exists for such a moasurc the legislator who
yields to it must look to his constituents for
his justification.
Mr. Chase. I understood the Senator lo
say. that there was no such authority given
by the Constitution?
Mr. Cas3. I said that if we do an act
not authoiizcd by the Constitution under a
pressure of necessity that act must be done
upon our own responsibility; and I refer thd
gentleman to the authority of Mr Madison
who justified the action of the Congress of
the Confederation on the subject of tcrrito
rics upon this ground and upon this alone.
If the gentleman will take the trouble to look
at my speech on the Wilmot proviso he will
find my tiews on this point distinctly laid
down What is the objection in principle to
the admission of California? Allow me to
say that great political rights and movements
in this age of the world arc not to be deter-
mined by mere abstract or speculative opin-
ions. There is no want of heavy books in
the world which treat of political science;
but you need not go to them to ascertain tho
rights of men cither individuals or in com-
munities; if you do you will lose yourself
gropir.j; in a labyrinth where no man can
follow ou. If there arc rights of sovereign-
ty there may be wrongs of sovereignty; and
this truth should be held in everlasting re-
membrance. And this is the case with re-
gard to California. We have rights and
we have duties; and if the former ate sacred
the latter should be sacred also. One of
these duties we have neglected to perform:
and wc are told by gentlemen who have spo-
ken here that when a State wishes admis-
sion into the Union she should come to the
door of Congress and knock for admission.
California has thus come and knocked; but
no door is opened to her and she is to he
told "Go back and wait till we arc ready.
There is but one door through which you can
enter and that door we keep shut. You
must pass through a territorial government;
but that government wc hate neglected to
give y on and wc arc probably as fir from
establishing it as ever." And such is the
paternal regard wc manifest toward one hun-
dred thousand American citizens who arc
upholding the flag of our country on the dis-
tant shores of the Pacific. A good deal has
been said about precedents: I am not going
to examine cither their application or author-
ity though it lias been pretty clearly shown
by others that they fully justify this measure
cf admission.
Great political measures must be judged
by thcm-cltcs. When new and imposing
circumstances dictate an unusual course
they furnish the justification for action and
they furnish also a precedent for future pro-
ceedings; and whether such cares as this are
to be found in our legislative history our du-
ty is still the same. That duty imperiously
rcquiics the admission of California into our
Union hhe comes and asks admission not
as the honorable senator from Illinois says
in language of equal force nnd beauty not
to reject your sovereignty but because her
citizens love their native country knot the
value of our institutions and dc-iie to be-
come bone ot our bone and flesh. They
come I repeat not as revolutionists but as
petitioners asking the greatest favor wc can
bestow upon them. The distinguished sena-
tor from South Carolina has objected that wc
can only admit a State into our confederacy
and that California is not a State. Well sir
in my opinion it is a State and as truly so
"- any existing under the sun. Tho honor-
able senator from Maine asked the very em-
phatic question What constitutes a State?1
And his answer will find arcsponslte chord
in the heart of ctery American. Ic said
with truth that it is men who make a State.
They do sir. It is not land nor trees nor
gold mines but it is men by whom and for
whom States arc constituted and maintained.
Why sir any other doctrine would carry us
hack to the worst portion of the middle ages
when governments were instituted for the
protection of the few and men without prop-
erty were men without rights. Doctor Frank-
lin with his natitcgood sense and I may
add his native good humor rebuked this
principle of legislation in a manner far moro
significantly thin could have been done by
the most labored argument. He -aid t'i a
certain amount of property is nc . - u c
entitle a man to vote. He possess c ick-
ass to-day of the requisite value ar i .i. ex-
ercise this right. To-morrow t -ickufs
dies and he loses it. To whom ' .es the
right belong? To the man or th .'a33
Here Mr. Duller srtid somcl g in a
tone inaudible to the Reporter ; to wiucti
Mr. Ca-s replied I go for the tain and net
for the j.ick-iss.
But Mr. President there are .ier con-
siderations oI.Lh seem to mc f.-rcbly to urge
the admission of California. T'. senator
from Illinois truly said that tlu pride of
opinion is strong in tlie human In ist and
Hint it hclonss as well lo coinmur. ies a3tn-
tiduals The tt ilmot Protisd ts ofienstve.
... ? . .!. .1 . - ... - .
J'lslly otlensivo io uiu auuiuuiii -i cinui oi
the confederacy ouensivo mucpi .'ucnl'v ot
it? practical consequences. It I c iisidcr-
cd an arbitraiy a-sumptioil of pow ar ai.d is
therefore icsi-tcd agreeable to . c estab-
lished laws of human nature. V e oppose
instinctively all improper assuuipt ms of ao
thority over us without stopping to in. mire
into the pecuniary value they may affect.
No man is willing to hate a measure orccn
3
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De Morse, Charles. The Northern Standard. (Clarksville, Tex.), Vol. 7, No. 39, Ed. 1, Saturday, May 25, 1850, newspaper, May 25, 1850; Clarksville, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth80778/m1/1/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.