SPEECH F 880 .Vi63 Copy 1 OF THB HON. WM. W. WICK, OF INDIANA, ON THE OREGON QUESTION DELIVERED IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, JANUARY 30, 1846. WASHINGTON: PRINTED AT THE UNION OFFICE. 1846. SPEECH On the resolution of notice to Great Britain to abrogate the cowvention of joint occupancy relative to the Oregon territory. The House being in Committee of the Whole on the State of the Union — Mr. WICK rose and addressed tVie committee as follows: He was in a place, he said, in which it had been juatly remarked that one could neither speak nor hear, and in which, in point of fact, little that was aaid was heard. Though aware of this difficul- ty, he should undertake the task of speaking, and, atrange as it might seem, not for Buncombe, but for this House. Hia good constituents at home had been quietly enjoj/ingthe Christmas holyday, eating their ducks and turkeys, or pursuing their ordinary avocations, and were perfectly unconscious that their represent- ative here had for the last two or three weeks ex- hibited the ungraceful figure of sitting here, leaning upon a desk, crouched like a catamount watching for prey, and waiting for the moment to spring forward, at the close of each of some hundred or more speeches, and, at the top of his voice, cry out "Mr. Chairman !" His constituents had heard Rothirg of this; but he meant to tell them about it •when he got home, and let them know that the difficulty here is, not to make a speech, but to ob- tain the floor for the purpose of making one. No vf that I have obtained the floor, Mr. Chair- man, (said Mr. W.,) I find that it is a privilege scarcely vi orth rejoicing over, for everything had been &aid that could be said on the subject, and it was now perfectly exhausted. There was not an infinitismal point which had not been made the aubject of a long speech; and I am too proud (said Mr. W.) to repeat what others have said before. What, then, shall 1 do? In the Comrahtee of the Whole on the state of the Union, I believe it is in order to speak of matters and things in general, and also to respond to things which had been said by some things which had been said in the debate to which no direct answer has been made, and I (said Mr. W.) will attend to them. While we are engaged here in deliberating upon a subject concerning our foreign relations — the most delicate of all topics discussed here — he could well comprebei'd the propriety of not "o'erstepping the mcdoaty of nature," and of measuring every sen- tence by the dictates of calm discretion and pru- -cJedce. He would erdeavor to control himself ac- cordingly, and to "let his moderation be seen." Yet he felt at liberty to remember that he was th« representative of a fearless and independent people, who speak their minds in free oft-hand style — al- ways, however, in courtesy, or, what is better, good nature. At an early stage of this debate we had been told by an honorable member from South Carolina [Mr. Uhett] that the West and Northwest had claimed a special interest in this question; and in other quar- ters it seemed to be understood as a western or northwestern question. He (Mr. W.) would say that the Northwest had a strong interest in this question. So had the entire country; and he (Mr. W.) was surprised to see the representatives from some portions of the country apparently blind to that interest. The honorable member from South Carolina [Mr. PcHett] had, in addressing the committee, seen prop- er to infer or suppose that the Northwest was de- sirous, by means of this question, to bring on a war for war's sake, and on the supposition that war would be profitable to the northwest in a pecuniary point of view; and in this conclusion, so dishonora- ble to the Northwest, the member from South Caro- lina [Mr. Rhett] is fully sustained by some foreign newspapers, and by some of the opposition papera at home. Sir, (said Mr. W.,) I live in the North- west, and 1 know what the feelings and tlie wishes of her people ai-e much better than the gentleman does. He guesses, but I know. I would take his word upon any subject concerning which his means of informing himself were ample and mine limited; and he may take my word when I tell him that he has been grossly misinformed. I have never seen a man in the Northwest who wanted a war for the sake of war, or of any supposed pecuniary profit to result from it. We, sir, are afraid of the evils of others in the course of this discussion. There ari^, war, for it would deprive us of our market for our products, and of many of the blessiogs which we enjoy. War would bring as much trouble to us as to any part of the country. We would never wish for a war, either for profit or glory. Again, it has been said that the West wants a war, or a war fever, for the purpose of making a northwestern President. What is the gentle- man's position in regard to this allegation.' Did the gentleman refer to the distinguished senator from Missouri. [Mr. Bfnton?] If so, what will become of that geutleman's hobby, the hard-money system, if a war ehould take place? A war would at once deprive him of all the benefit of his long advocacy of the hard-money principle; for his untiring advo- cacy of which the northwest has so much and so long admired him; for, as the honorable gentlemem from South Carolina says, an era of war is always an era of paper money. Does the gentleman refer to a distinguished citi- zen of Michigan and senator from that Statd" That distinguished gentleman lives within eleven hun dred yards of the British line, and the occurrence of a war would inevitably consign his houses to the flames, and his property to destruction. Why ehould he invoke a war? But still (said Mr. W.) I do expect that, in the course of our history, the northwest will, at a short day, too, furnish an actu- al live President of the United States, to the great Empire State, the Ancient Dominion, and to South Carolina. And I do not think that we shall be obliged to make a war for the purpose of effecting that ob- ject. Living in the West, I am well informed as to ite feelings, and I speak with confidence in regard to them. It has been said by the honorable niem- ber from South Carolina, [Mr. Rhett,] that we in the northwest have nothing to lose by a war, as we export nothing, whereas the South would lose the market for her cotton. The honorable gentle- man from South Carolina was evidently misin- formed on this subject. The wheat and other products of the northwest found its way to England, formerly through Canada, but now directly. The northwest makes as many clear dollars in proportion to her population from the export of her wheat and other products, as South Carolina does from the export of her cot- ton. The prices of our produce are as well under- stood in Liverpool, and London, and Charleston, as is the price of cotton. We sell our produce wher- ever It is wanted— to England, when her starvin"- population require it, and to South Carolina, when her cotton and rice crops are good, and her terrapin erop fads. In reference to the sentiment which the gentleman from South Carolina had advanced, that those should not hazard a public war — wholesale murder —who do not defend their personal honor accord- ing to the peculiar fashion adopted in some parts of the world, because, they say, that tends to murder, I wdl say that the gentleman is mistaken, if he applies It to us of the northwest, for we do defend our personal honor, according to our own code. The gentleman cannot refuse us our own way of doing this, while he remains a consistent advocate of State Bovereignty and State rights. The gentleman cannot gainsay that Indiana, for example, is a sovereign State, and therefore entitled to establish her own customs and usages. In ex- treme cases, sir, according to our custom, two gen- tlemen lock themselves up in a room in the third- story, and then proceed to assert their personal hon- or; and he that jumps out of the window, at the end of a half-hour, carrying with him the ears, eyes, no- jses, &c. belonging to both is the victor. That, sir," is our code; and when the whole world, (I mean the civilized world,) shall adopt it, we will fight the whole world according to that system for Oregon, or on any other point. In the event of the universal adoption of this mode, the non-voting constituents of the honorable member from South Carolina would be admirable combatants, in a war with England, it would be nigger against cockney. But the gentleman is excusable for knowing liltk of the northwest, for he has never been there. No one ever emigrates from Indiana to South Carolina, and therefore South Carolina knows nothing about us; but many emigrants from South Carolina conae among us, and tell us all about it; and they had taken occasion to tell us of the raanifokl merits and great achievements of that State. I have reason to admire that old State on many accounts. She has taught us the revenue-tariff doctrine; for though it came to us originally from Virginia, it was doubly distilled by South Carolina into a con- centrated essence, and we swallowed it, and loved the dose. We admire South Carolina, also, for her talented sons. We admire her honorable bearing. "We acknowledge her right to «ecede from the Union, and will give her, or any other discontented State, a pass for that purpose. But we do not recognise her right to remain in the Union, and yet j nullify the laws of the Union. The course of South Carolina is always rather eccentric, in our estimation. She will at one time oppose the elec- tion of a President, and then support him after his election; and at another time she will contribute t© elect a President, and then oppose his administra- tion. We think she sometimes has carried h&r viewsof State sovereignty a leetk too far — to wit, when she affected to nullify the laws of the United States; and that in her pohtical course she is a leetlc too South Carolinaish. But one thing we will ■ say for South Carolina: we will excuse her and i her politicians from the charge of any presidential , aspirations at the present time. The finger-board i that directed to the White House, pointed also &.1 ■■ the late election to Texas and Oregan, and now it • pointed to Oregon alone; and there is no other way i by which the executive mansion can be reached. I do not see South Carolina on that road. >. 1 now turn my attention to my democratic whig friend from Illinois, [Mr. Bakeh,] who hat? asked the supporters of Mr. Polk to reconcile our clear and unquestionable right to Oregon with the offer of the 49th parallel as a compromise, , He asked how Mr. Polk, after making such an as « sertion of our title, could offer a compromiee. 1 do i not find in the message that Mr. Polk described any ( particular Oregon as ours. There is Russian Ore- s gon, for instance, and Mr. Polk could not claim tj that. The assertion was made in regard to our title i to the whole of our Oregon — to that part of J the territory to which our right should be J ascertained. How that right should be aneer- taincd he does not say. Perhaps it must be by the ^^ullitna ratio res^um.''^ But the President was partially committed upon this subject by the action of his predecessors, to offer the 49th par- allel not as a right, but as a compromise, for the sake of peace — so his message tells us. Will a Clay man reprehend him for this, when the same offer was made by Mr. Clay himself, although he had said that Gre^t Britain had no colorable title to any part of Oregon? My friend from South Carolina [Mr. Hoimrb,! has also made some remarks on this subject, to which I must pay some attention. The gentleman had contended more strongly for the British right to Oregon, and has more strongly denied the Ameri- can rights there, than any British statesman or nego- tiator has ever done. I will turn the honorable gen- tleman over to his particular friend the honorable chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for an answer to his argument on that point The gen I ^ 1 Ueman had very poetically described the evila, and disastcra, and destruction of a war. His description of British triumphs and American defeat?, whicli lie anticipates, 'm vastly more poetic and^raphic than will he any British song written after the war shall be over to record its events. The gentleman, in his description cf the immense power of Great Britain, said that she had forty war-s!eamer3. Mr. Holmes. One hundred and forty. Mr. W. continued. Well, let them bring them all on, no matter hov/ many, they c^n do us very little harm. According to the gentleman, we shall be very badly oiT for means of de.''ence or offence, for he saya that our little privateers, and all our vessels, as soon as they leave port will be out-run, overtaken, and captured by the British steamers. 1 know (said Mr. W.) that (ho British are great mo- nopolizers; but I never heard before that they had obtained the exclusive patent to the use of God Al- nnighty's steam. I hope that we also can exercise the right of using it; for if v/e are deprived of that rig'it, we shall next be denied the use of the wiiid. The gen- tleman has also asked us how we are going to take Oregon? whether we can march an araiy across the Rocky mountain"?.' He says v/e cannot, for every height would prove a. Gibraltar, and that every rocky pass, and every vale in Oregon, will bristle with British bayonets. Alas! we h.-ive noriSesI: Our riflemen are all dead!) Where are our rifles and' riflemen? If a loyal subject of England asked the question, I v/ou!J ansv/er that our rifles were al! taken, and our riflemen v/ere all killed at the battle of liew Orleans! ! But v/e cannot take Canada: that, the gentleman says, is impossible, because the Welland ranal would afford the means of transporting British tleets to the lakes, and iliat we could never got across to Canada, the Bi-iiish having command of the lakes. We cannot cross on the ice, he says, in the winter .season, bocau;c the British would lay down lowder kegs, all m one continued row, from the ii'alls of Niagara to the northwest corner of Lake Superior, tl\en touch them off by a galvanic commu- t)ication, and blow up the whole of the jce. Now, sir, these powder kegs must be all in a string, and idl connected together; and there must not be a leaky t)ne among them, and no Yankee must iind it out, lest he arrangement should be disturbed. Sir, the gen- .leman knows nothing of our climate in tlie north- ivest. Why, sir, you may blow up the whole of .he ice one night, and the water v/ill bt frozen 3ver again the next night. Ths British government fvill have to get .something stronger thnn gunpowder for this purpose. No article knov^'n to her extensive lommerce will answer the purpose. She must deal n young volcanoes, and import some small speci- toens of the infernal regions to keep the lakes th.aw- ^d in winter lime. I am gratified, however, to learn rom the lionorable gentleman tliat South Carolina (vill be able to look out for herself in time of war, Ind that she will ensconse herself in her swamps, where she will be out of harm's v/ay. The gentleman asserted for South Carolina, and ';e sons of Marion, of Sumter, and Pinckney, the pa<",ity to retreat into her impenetrable fastncsse.-i, lid there deffnd her against the v.'orld. In tlie :vent of a v/ar for Oregon, will South Carolina thus ;reep into her shell? Mr. Hoi.MK'?. I said v/e v/ou)d come to j'our tissistance. We thank you, (said Mr. \V.,) u;id I will say to South Carolina, that when the northern fanatics hall trouble her, we will come to her rescue. The gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Giddings'j has threatened the South with a w.ir o! fminr.ipation, and an invasion by the black regi neiii.^ from the West Indies. The southern gentifnen have pre- ferred -to answer him. They hail Ixiier leive the one idea and its professors to us of the northwest. I had an answer for the genthmiur a-^ t.) this most untastcful devel(>pment of his one idea. We in the northvi^est know h.is ways, for wc have a few of his party in Indiana. I v/ill waive my answer to him, but will say to him that my non-si ivehold- ing constituents mean that justice shall be done ta,, the South and its constitutional right.«; for so intense is their anxiety on th.is subject, lest it should dis- turb the harmony of the Union, that ihev ure ready to do full and amnlejustice to the South. If I should endorse v.-hat was said by the honorable member from Missouri — viz: that the getitlein.oi's wish was father to his thought — my non-slaveholding constit- uents would believe me; and were they V^ read hia [Mr. G.'s] speech, they would swear to their be- lief of tlie idea suggested by the honor ibie member from Missouri. We in the West do not lenounce these men, but rather laugh at them, and at their utter failure to propagate their Union-destroying principles. But, sir, I can devote no more time to answering the remarks of those who have preceded me. Were I to go into a full notice and refutation of arguments against the measure before the com- mittee, it would consume twenty hours iiistpad of one. The little time which is left to ivie I will de- vote to the consideration of the cpiestion; and iff. am asked why my speech contains no more about Oregon, 1 will answer that almost every thing ha."? been said over and over again in the course of the debate. I am not careful wljcther or not my opin- ions will he deemed heretical on this subject, when I say that I am for Oregon and against a war; buv for Oregon, v/ar or no war. I adopt (said .Mr. W.) the opinion of the venera- ble gentleman from Massachusetts, [Mr. Ad.vms,] and ofthn chairman of tlie Committee on Foreign Re- lations, [Mr. Ingersoll,] as to the proper construc- tion of the convention of 1S27 — to wit: that it is a commercial treaty, stipulating for a joint occupancy for the ])urpr.'ses of trade, 'riie logic of all thosa gentleman who h.ad spoken in favor of Oregf)n ap- pears to ^je very sound; and therefore I adopt prin- cipally all the views of gentlemen who l'.ad spoken on this side of the subject; and I have transmitted many of their speeches to my constituency, there- by, in the main, endorsing their views, and making my own known. 1 am determined to claim all Oregon, and am rea- dy to claim all the continent, upon the principle of manifest destiny urged by the gentleman iVom Illi- nois [Mr. Baker] and my transcendental friend from Pennsylvania [Mr. Levin.] lam not accustomed to deal in poetry, and there- fore gentlemen must excuse me for noi introducing any in my remarks ; but 1 am perfectly willing irr take all the poetry that has been recited here, goo(S and bud, applicable or not, and whether new or old acquaintances. So in regard to all the declaratiotv? v/hich have been made in the debate ag'.inst thrinciples are extending all over the world. The last war did much to extend them, and another will extend them further. We h;ive seen gradual en- croachment on the monopolies and governmental abuses of the Old World, and we have witnessed the concessions made by them to populcir rights. Lately we have witnessed the yielding of British ninislers to the progress of liberal principles; and oh! how grudgingly do tliey make any concession. All this is the result of the American principles in •favor of equal rights and popular self-government becoming gradually known to the world. The ulti mate triumph of our principles, such as progressive democracy will make them, is sure, and it will come in God's own gooil time. We started at the la'e election with our princi- ples — the reduction of the tariff, Texas, and Ore- gon. One of them has been carried triumphantly through, and the tariff reform and Oregon remain to be disposed of. 1 presume that a few democrats will be found missing when we come to the vote on the Oregon question. Well, 1 hope there will be enough democrats left to carry the measure; and we are desirous to Ciirry it independently of the action of our political opponents- We would not desire to be, like a di.itiiiguished whig member in 1841, [Mr. Wise,] obliged to appeal to our adversaries to "save us fr^iiji our friends," and to look around us to hunt up republicans. I see public opinion rally- ing around this question, and that democrats and whigs are sendirig up their prayers here for Ore- gon, their country, its integrity and honor. I am glad to see that, on this truly American question, our political opponents here instructed by their con- stituencies, are, many of them, about to give their voices to us upon this question; but I would be yet more delighted to see the party to which I be- long a unit now as heretofore. In the northwest, we go for all the i.?sues of 1844. 1 regret to see thtit some portion of the party in Con- gress is hanging back: perhaps it is expected to save the tariff of 1842. I hear of a drag on that point, of some inipracticable Pennsylvanians who will not sustain us in carryii.g out all the principles of 1844. I will t:ay to our political opponents that if we should find Pennsylvania a "fixed fact" in the way of our tariff reform, yor. cannot laugl? at up for it. So if South Carolina siiould bT a "fixed fact" in our vv'ay on the Oregon question, you need not jeer us. Our opponents cannot Isuigh at us even should ^ve fail; for we have gained Texas even should we lose the tariff reform and Oregon, and that is much morr" than yon gained. What did you get by your victory iu lb'4(l •' Nothing but the distribution law, which we repealed in a few months after. But you cannot repeal tiie annexation of Texas. I am glad to sec that we have many honorable friends on the other side of the House, who, although at the late election they considered Oregon a humbug, now find themselves paralized by the will of their con- Sitituents; and I would not discourage them from taking that <'ourse which they now found expe- diert, even by a taunt which 1 am incapable of ut- tering. I have said that 1 believed this treaty to be strict- ly commercial in its character; and, therefore, I care not wJiat we may do, it will not violate its provi- aions so long as we leave the British in possession of their .vtipu luted rights. ! think that we can do all ui der it that Great Britain has done, and some- fhing more. We may organize a Territorial govern- .T>pnt ill Oregon, and eve-i admit it as j State of the Union. We may take military possession of it for the purposecf defending our yettlers there from the Indians; and all this we have a right to do before | we give the notice. If the President had not re- | commended the notice, I should not myself have proposed it. I would have waited until the presence of the British subjects in Oregon, and their enjoy- | ment of the privileges secured by treaty had become uncomfortable to our people. The British always professed that they valued the territory merely for I its commercial privileges and for nothing else, and ' we have a right to take them at their word. Bjr giving the notice, as it seenis to me, we make a quasi admission that v.e have not a right to take the j s'/ps above alluded to without first giving the notice. These arc my opinions, and I am not pre- pared yet to relinquish them: but the President has had the subject under his eye, and has given to it much attention. He recommends the notice, and it may, and probabl)' will, turn out that he ia right. In cases where no practical principle is involved, and where the question presented is one of expediency merely, I will sustain my party friends, and the ad- ministration created by them. If you ask why I will do this, I v/ill say that it is necessary in order to harmonize our party, and that it is the only way to keep our whig friends beaten. But I have an- other reason for going for the notice — that I am in- structed positively by my constituents to go for it. There is not one democrat, and but very few whigs, among my con.'Jtiluents who would not unite in in- structing me to tl^at effect. Some gentlemer, -say that they will fiot vote for the notice for fear it should result in a war. Some have even suid that the notice will be, per se, cause of war. But the British negotiators never consider- ed that it would be a cause of war. How was it possible that those who framed the convention could have provided for tiie notice, if it was to be the cause of a war.' But others say that it is no cause for a war, and that, on the contrary, it will hasten an adjustment of the question; and that is probably a fair view of the I'ubject. Some say that It will irritate Great Britain — that it will wake her up, and alarm the fludson Bay Company, because it threatened their valuable firivileges, and induce them to strengthen themselves in Oregon. For the Q:ike of peace I would yield the British subjects their present commercial privileges for a good time to come; but this would be on condition of a full recognition of our light to Oregon; and I would sus- tain the President in making such a treaty after the notice was given. But I admit that the notice may tend to war, and very probably lead to it when it shall be carried out by the adoption of measures for taking possession of the territory, and practically asserting our rights by establishing a Territorial goveriunent, granting lands to settlers, and controlling the Indian tribes. But shall this prevent us from asserting our title? Ia that the attitude of the American people.' Shall we look across the waters, and ask Great Britain whether we shall be allowed to take possession of our own foil, of; our own continent.' Of course she would an.'-'wer, No. In my opinion, sir. v;e shall, at the end of the year, if not before, lake possession j of Oregon: and that may bring the iiatter to the issue of war. I think so because I believe that the I pretence of Great Britain that she wanted Oregon merely for a hurtiiig-ground is fcilsc: but that she places the highest value on it on account cfits com- taercial facilities. Great Britain had always been alert in improving her commerce with barbarous nations, for no commerce was more profitable. The Indian traders, as it was v/ell kjiown in our country, always reaped rich harvests. Great Brit- ain knows the value of Oregon, and I believe that she will fight for it; and 1 know that the American people will fight for it. The harbors of Oregon, fronting a barbarous world, atTord admirable facili- ties for carrying on trade; and barbarous nations are always the best cu.stomers of civilized people Northern Oregon would also be a manufacturing country, for it abounded in water power. Califor- nia will afford vast quantities of raw cotton for the supply of Oregon factories, and there is no difficulty in the navigation between Oregon and California. And so great is the supply of .ship tin^ber which Oregon furnishes, that more than half the ships of the world will in forty years be built in the northern part of that territory. The harbors of Paget's sound will afford naval stations, and through them we would soon command the whole commerce of the Pacific; without them, Oregon would not be ■worth a straw to us, for there were no good harbors south of Puget's sound, and the major part of com- anercial and ship-buiidiog facilities are north of lati- tude 490. My doctrine is, to go ahead and assert our rights; and 93 to the results, not to stop to calculate them. 1 will at least utter no boastful calculations as to the results. "Let not him who putteth on his armor boast himself as he who putteth it off." Even if we were certain that the results of a war would be at first adverse to us, yet should we vote for tha no- tice, and the other measures consequent upon k. We may safely put our trust in the justice of our cause and in the kind protection of divine Providence, and ihf struggle must end like our former wars — in a glorious triumph, and in the diffusion of our prin- ciples. The day v/ill come v.-Iien every interest and eve- ry party that is opposed to Oregon will crumble in- to dust. 1 have heard some speculations upon the consequences of our extension of territory, and of the annexation of the Mexican and other states to our Union. I do not want any mixed races in our Union, nnr men of any color except white, unless they be f'laves. Certainly, not as voters or legisla- tors. My constituents will never consent that iheir representative in this Jiall shall hold political discus- sion with the honorable colored member from Mex- ico. They know that this would lead to a political strife for asf'pndency betv^'een colors, ending in rev- olution and blood. If Mexico, after going through half a dozen more revolutions, should become capable of self-govern- ment, and apply for annexation, I would vote against it, unless her colored races should come in as slaves, or be otherwise excluded from political privileges. My constituents cannot agree to admit colored men to the exercise of the right of suffrage; and they cheerfully acquiesce in the representative basis which the constitution has provided for the fliave-holdmg States. Independent Slates, com- posed of white people thoroughly imbued with our principles of self-government, we will receive into our Union at theirown request; but even them we do not wish to coerce into our Union, or to annex by conquest. If v/e find a stray independency float- ing about, and v^anting protection, we will take it in. When the volcano, sleefiing in the bosom of the British empire, shall burst forth, and Canada shall be lopped off, it might be a question v^helher it shall be annexed to our Union. Should we con- quer it, we will give it back to Great Britain; for I do not wish to annex her loyal Scotch and English people. Her Irish and French inhabitants I might be willing to unite with; but it would take fifty years to learn the Scotch and English of Canada,^ un-Araericanized by association, the principles ot* our free institutions. The Irish make good citizens. They take to lib- erty naturally. Pat is an American from the word go. If Canada should ever become independen: and capable of self-government, and af)ply for an- nexation, v/e will think of it. But I would annex any part of the world where the American people go and settle, and form communities. We have done so, and we will do it again. This, sir, (said Mr. Vv .,) is a progressive question. Texas was so also; and it Great Britain wants a compromise with us, she had better speak at once. When the annexation of Texas was i)roposed here, I remember how fearful some gentlemen were in this Flouse, that the people would not sustain it;^ but they soon found that the people were ahead of them on the question, and were almo.st unanimous for the measure. When gentlemen first take their seats here, they sometimes itnagine themselves very wise, and think that wisdom will die with them; but after a v/hile they begin to find themselves mis- taken, particularly it'they try often to get the floor. A little experience here has learned many a man not to be wiser than his constituents. The same lesson may be learned again. Wc annexed the territory of Texas. We, in the northwest, charge nothing for ourassist- ance in that matter. We went "on our own hook" on that question, and if we had not done so, Indiana herself would have gone and taken it with a rush. The people, as usual, are ahead of their representa- tives; it was so on the Texan question, and it is so on this. If I should come back to this House at the next Congress, (and I think, perhaps, I may,) 1 shall find, I fear, that several of my excellent old acquaintances will not be here, and they will owe iheir defeat to their opposition to this measure- This, I say, sir, is a progressive question, and before this Congress is ended the days of compromise will be ended. So, you who are trembling at the thought of war, and reasoning as to the value of rights, had better yield and obey the voice of the people. The people alone have the right to do a.nd command wrong. Your constituents at home, while yon are debating this question, are going strong for Oregon. They expected that, before this, we should have provided measures for the protection of emigrants, our friends and brothers, and their v/ives and children; and that by this time they would be with their horses and wagons on the road to Oregon. We will have to do it, or the people vnW send representatives here who will obey their voice. Note. — It would be totally unnecessary for Mr. Wick to explain any of his remark.^ to his own constituency, or to those who heard them. But his speech will be read by others, strangers to him, and his peculiarities of manner. To such, he has de- sired us to say, that some of his descriptions were intended to be caricatures, and especially that his description of the mode in which the citizens of the northwest assert their personal honor is so highly a caricature, that the fact represented would no: readily be guessed. The people of the northwest are essentially kind in feeling, peaceable, and mod- erate in their modes of seeking satisfaction for per- sonal griefs or insults. LIBRftRV OF CONGRESS 017 187 425 71 #