[No. 6.] Mr. Buchanan to Mr. Trist.. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, October 25, 1847. SIR: Your despatches, either in original or duplicate, to No. 16 inclusive, with the exception of Nos. 5 and 8, have been received at the department. From your despatch No. 15, of the 4th September, received on the 21st instant, it appears that you had offered to the Mexican commissioners, that if they would propose to you to establish the boundary between the two republics by a line by which the United States would surrender that portion of the State of Texas between the Rio Grande and the Nueces, and also that portion of Upper California south of the thirty-third parallel of latitude, between the Colorado and the Pacific ocean, you would transmit such a proposition, proceeding from them, to Washington, and would propose to General Scott to continue the then existing armistice until you should receive the answer of your government. You will have learned from my despatch No. 5, of the 6th inst., that we did not believe there was any truth in the statement of the Mexican commissioners that you had made such a proposal. As this fact is now placed beyond a doubt, the President has instructed me to express to you his profound regret that you should have gone so far beyond the carefully considered ultimatum, to which you were limited by your instructions. The State of Texas is in the exercise of peaceable and undisturbed jurisdiction over the country between the Nueces and the Rio Grande. She has made extensive grants of land within its limits; divided it into counties, which have been represented in her convention and legislative assemblies; established courts of justice therein; and, in short, has exercised the same sovereign rights over it as over any other portion of her territory. Congress, acting upon these incontestable facts, as well as upon the clear right of Texas to extend to the Rio Grande, in December, 1845, created a port of delivery west of the Nueces, at Corpus Christi, and in May, 1846, established post routes between these two rivers. This region, also, constitutes a part of one of the congressional districts of Texas, and its people are now represented in the Congress of the United States. Under these circumstances, the President could not for a single moment entertain the question of surrendering that portion of Texas, even if this were practicable. But such is not the case. Considering the enterprising and energetic character of the American people, it would be impossible to expel by force the inhabitants between the Nueces and the Rio Grande from their possessions, and to convert this territory into a desert, for the security of the Mexican . frontier. The President has also directed me to express his regret that you should have been willing to entertain the question of surrendering any portion of Upper California to Mexico. By running the divi sion line from the Colorado to the Pacific, along the thirty-third parallel of latitude, the bay and harbor of San Diego would be restored to the Mexican republic. This port, being nearly five degrees further south, is, for every commercial purpose, of nearly equal importance to the United States with that of San Francisco. It was to secure to us the bay and harbor of San Diego beyond all question, and to prevent the Mexican government from hereafter contesting the correctness of the division line between Upper and Lower California, as delineated on the map which you carried with you, that your original instructions directed that if you could not obtain Lower California, the fourth article of the projét should in terms fix this line as running "north of the parallel of 32°, and south of San Miguel, to the Pacific ocean." To have arrested our victorious army at the gates of the capital for forty or fifty days, and thus to have afforded the Mexicans an opportunity to recover from their panic, to embody their scattered forces, and to prepare for further resistance, in order that in the meantime you might refer such proposals to your government, would, in the President's opinion, have been truly unfortunate. With these considerations in view, the President has directed me to reiterate your recall. The date of the last despatch received at the War Department from General Scott is the 4th June. The President is now becoming apprehensive that he may not receive despatches from him before the meeting of Congress. I transmit herewith a copy, in triplicate, of my despatch No. 5. Yours, very respectfully, To N. P. TRIST, Esq., JAMES BUCHANAN. &c., &c., &c. Mr. De la Rosa to Mr. Trist. [Translation.] QUERETARO, October 31, 1847. The undersigned, minister of foreign relations of the Mexican republic, has had the honor to receive the note under date the 20th ultimo,* addressed to him by his excellency Nicholas Trist, commissioner of the United States of America, clothed with full powers to conclude a treaty of peace with the said republic. The undersigned has received, also, the note of his excellency Mr. Trist, in reply to that addressed to him under date the 6th September† by their excellencies the commissioners, on the part of Mexico, for negotiating a peace. This note has not been received at the Department of State. † A copy of this note has been communicated to the Senate in legislative session. Although the two documents referred to leave but little hope that peace may be re-established, the undersigned can assure his excellency Mr. Trist that the government of Mexico is animated by the same ardent wish as his excellency for the cessation of a war, the calamities of which now bear heavily upon this republic, and the consequences of which will, sooner or later, make themselves felt by the United States of America. The undersigned will in consequence have the honor, in the course of a few days, to advise his excellency Mr. Trist of the appointment of commissioners to continue the negotiations for peace, to whom will be given instructions for the previous adjustment of an armistice, which the government of the undersigned believes will conduce greatly to the good result of the said negotiation. The undersigned offers to his excellency Nicholas Trist the assurance of his very distinguished consideration. LUIS DE LA ROSA: Mr. Trist to Mr. Buchanan. [No. 21.] HEAD-QUARTERS OF THE U. S. ARMY, SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt, on the 16th instant, by a courier from Vera Cruz, of your despatch of the 25th ultimo, accompanied by the triplicate of that of the 6th of the same month, the original of which was delivered to me on the evening of the next day, by Mr. Smyth, the bearer of despatches. The duplicate has not yet come to hand. It probably forms part of the large mail which, agreeably to the intelligence received here, left Vera Cruz in company with General Patterson, who had stopped at Jalapa.. On a future occasion, perhaps, should I ever find time to employ on a theme so insignificant with respect to the public interests, and so unimportant in my own eyes, so far as regards its bearings upon myself personally, I may exercise the privilege of examining the grounds for the censure cast upon my course by the President, and explaining those upon which rests the belief still entertained by me, that that course was calculated to attain the end contemplated by our government, and was the only one which afforded the slightest possibility of its being attained; the end, I mean, of bringing about a treaty of peace on the basis, in all material respects, of the project entrusted to me. For the present I will merely call attention to the fact, that a mere offer to refer a question to my government constitutes the only ground on which I can be charged with having 66 gone so far beyond the carefully considered ultimatum to which I was limited by my instructions." Whether this offer, under the circumstances and prospects of the crisis when it was made, was wise or unwise-I mean with reference to the end desired by our government-is a question which no longer possesses any practical importance; though the time was, when it constituted with me a sub ject of the most careful and the most anxious deliberation; not because of the personal responsibility attaching to the decision in which that deliberation resulted-for that never occupied my mind. for an instant-but because I knew, and I felt, that upon my own decision depended, according to every human probability, the early cessation of the war, or its indefinite protraction. The alternative presented by the position in which I found myself was, on the one hand, to keep on safe ground so far as I was personally concerned, and destroy the only possible chance for a peace; on the other hand, to assume responsibility, and keep that chance alive, with some prospect, at least-and, all things considered, as perhaps I may hereafter take the trouble to show, by no means a prospect to be despised, under such circumstances-that the adoption of our projét might come to pass. * * * Upon perusing your two despatches above referred to, my first thought was immediately to address a note to the Mexican government, advising them of the inutility of pursuing their intention to appoint commissioners to meet me. On reflection, however, the depressing influence which this would exercise upon the peace party, and the exhiliration which it would produce among the opposition, being perfectly manifest, I determined to postpone making this communication officially, and meanwhile privately to advise the leading men of the party here, and at Queretaro, of the instructions which I had received. Their spirits had, for the last few days been very much raised by the course of events at Queretaro; and one of them (the second of the two heads mentioned in a late despatch) called on me on the very day after your despatches came to hand, for the purpose of communicating the "good news," and making known "the brightening prospects." Upon my saying that it was all too late, and telling what instructions I had received, his countenance fell, and flat despair succeeded to the cheeriness with which he had accosted me. The same depression has been evinced by every one of them that I have conversed with, whilst joy has been the effect with those of the opposite party who have approached me to inquire into the truth of the newspaper statement from the Union. By both parties the peace men were considered as floored; this was the coup de grace for them. Mr. Thornton was to set out (as he did) the next morning for Queretaro; and I availed myself of this privately to apprize the members of the government of the state of things, with reference to which their exertions in favor of peace must now be directed, and to exhort them not to give up, as those here had at first seemed strongly disposed to do, and as it was believed here that those at Queretaro would at once do. Fortunately, however, when the news reached there, they had just taken in a strong dose of confidence the result of the meeting of the governors-which has served to brace them against its stunning effect. Mr. Thornton left here on the 17th, and was to complete his journey on the evening of the 21st. Before he had reached there, I was privately advised here of the appointment of the commissioners named in the official note from the minister of relations, under date 22d, herein enclosed, together with a copy of my reply to the same, which was despatched from Queretaro on the morning of that day. Their extreme anxiety on the subject may be judged from the fact, that I have received already the same communication in duplicate and triplicate. The peace men did not cease for several days to implore me to remain in the country, at least until Mr. Parrott shall have arrived with the despatches of which report makes him the bearer. To these entreaties, however, I have turned à deaf ear, stating the absolute impossibility that those despatches should bring anything to change my position in the slightest degree. General Scott at once said that he would despatch a train at any time I might name. And I should have set out before this, but for two considerations: one, that the garrison here is already so small that its duties are exceedingly oppressive to both officers and men, and the matter would be made still worse by the detachment of another escort; the other, that General Scott * * * For these reasons I have determined to postpone my departure until the return of the train under Lieutenant Colonel Johnson, which is expected on the 4th or 5th of next month. Should it be delayed beyond that time, and should any reinforcements have arrived here or be near, I will set out immediately after. It will take us twelve days at least to reach Vera Cruz. I recommend to the peace men to send immediately, through General Scott, whatever propositions they may have to make, or to despatch one or more commissioners with me. After full conversations on the subject, however, I became thoroughly satisfied of the impracticability of either plan: it would, to a certainty, have the effect of breaking them down. The only possible way in which a treaty can be made is, to have the work done on the spot; negotiation and ratification to take place at one dash. The complexion of the new Congress, which is to meet at Queretaro on the 8th of January, is highly favorable. This will be the last chance for a treaty. I would recommend, therefore, the immediate appointment of commissioner on our part. I am, sir, in great haste, and very respectfully, your obedient servant, Hon. JAMES BUCHANAN, Secretary of State. N. P. TRIST. · Mr. Peña y Peña to Mr. Trist. [Translation.] QUERETARO, November 22, 1847. The undersigned, minister of relations of the Mexican government, has the honor to address the present note to his excellency |