Speech Transcript:

Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives:

Our deep and heartfelt gratitude is due to that Almighty Power which
has bestowed upon us such varied and numerous blessings throughout
the past year. The general health of the country has been excellent,
our harvests have been unusually plentiful, and prosperity smiles
throughout the land. Indeed, notwithstanding our demerits, we have
much reason to believe from the past events in our history that we
have enjoyed the special protection of Divine Providence ever since
our origin as a nation. We have been exposed to many threatening and
alarming difficulties in our progress, but on each successive
occasion the impending cloud has been dissipated at the moment it
appeared ready to burst upon our head, and the danger to our
institutions has passed away. May we ever be under the divine
guidance and protection. Whilst it is the duty of the President "from
time to time to give to Congress information of the state of the
Union," I shall not refer in detail to the recent sad and bloody
occurrences at Harpers Ferry. Still, it is proper to observe that
these events, however bad and cruel in themselves, derive their chief
importance from the apprehension that they are but symptoms of an
incurable disease in the public mind, which may break out in still
more dangerous outrages and terminate at last in an open war by the
North to abolish slavery in the South. Whilst for myself I entertain
no such apprehension, they ought to afford a solemn warning to us all
to beware of the approach of danger. Our Union is a stake of such
inestimable value as to demand our constant and watchful vigilance
for its preservation. In this view, let me implore my countrymen,
North and South, to cultivate the ancient feelings of mutual
forbearance and good will toward each other and strive to allay the
demon spirit of sectional hatred and strife now alive in the land.
This advice proceeds from the heart of an old public functionary
whose service commenced in the last generation, among the wise and
conservative statesmen of that day, now nearly all passed away, and
whose first and dearest earthly wish is to leave his country
tranquil, prosperous, united, and powerful.

We ought to reflect that in this age, and especially in this country,
there is an incessant flux and reflux of public opinion. Questions
which in their day assumed a most threatening aspect have now nearly
gone from the memory of men. They are "volcanoes burnt out, and on
the lava and ashes and squalid scoria of old eruptions grow the
peaceful olive, the cheering vine, and the sustaining corn." Such, in
my opinion, will prove to be the fate of the present sectional
excitement should those who wisely seek to apply the remedy continue
always to confine their efforts within the pale of the Constitution.
If this course be pursued, the existing agitation on the subject of
domestic slavery, like everything human, will have its day and give
place to other and less threatening controversies. Public opinion in
this country is all-powerful, and when it reaches a dangerous excess
upon any question the good sense of the people will furnish the
corrective and bring it back within safe limits. Still, to hasten
this auspicious result at the present crisis we ought to remember
that every rational creature must be presumed to intend the natural
consequences of his own teachings. Those who announce abstract
doctrines subversive of the Constitution and the Union must not be
surprised should their heated partisans advance one step further and
attempt by violence to carry these doctrines into practical effect.
In this view of the subject, it ought never to be forgotten that
however great may have been the political advantages resulting from
the Union to every portion of our common country, these would all
prove to be as nothing should the time ever arrive when they can not
be enjoyed without serious danger to the personal safety of the
people of fifteen members of the Confederacy. If the peace of the
domestic fireside throughout these States should ever be invaded, if
the mothers of families within this extensive region should not be
able to retire to rest at night without suffering dreadful
apprehensions of what may be their own fate and that of their
children before the morning, it would be vain to recount to such a
people the political benefits which result to them from the Union.
Self-preservation is the first instinct of nature, and therefore any
state of society in which the sword is all the time suspended over
the heads of the people must at last become intolerable. But I
indulge in no such gloomy forebodings. On the contrary, I firmly
believe that the events at Harpers Ferry, by causing the people to
pause and reflect upon the possible peril to their cherished
institutions, will be the means under Providence of allaying the
existing excitement and preventing further outbreaks of a similar
character. They will resolve that the Constitution and the Union
shall not be endangered by rash counsels, knowing that should "the
silver cord be loosed or the golden bowl be broken at the fountain"
human power could never reunite the scattered and hostile fragments.

I cordially congratulate you upon the final settlement by the Supreme
Court of the United States of the question of slavery in the
Territories, which had presented an aspect so truly formidable at the
commencement of my Administration. The right has been established of
every citizen to take his property of any kind, including slaves,
into the common Territories belonging equally to all the States of
the Confederacy, and to have it protected there under the Federal
Constitution. Neither Congress nor a Territorial legislature nor any
human power has any authority to annul or impair this vested right.
The supreme judicial tribunal of the country, which is a coordinate
branch of the Government, has sanctioned and affirmed these
principles of constitutional law, so manifestly just in themselves
and so well calculated to promote peace and harmony among the States.
It is a striking proof of the sense of justice which is inherent in
our people that the property in slaves has never been disturbed, to
my knowledge, in any of the Territories. Even throughout the late
troubles in Kansas there has not been any attempt, as I am credibly
informed, to interfere in a single instance with the right of the
master. Had any such attempt been made, the judiciary would doubtless
have afforded an adequate remedy. Should they fail to do this
hereafter, it will then be time enough to strengthen their hands by
further legislation. Had it been decided that either Congress or the
Territorial legislature possess the power to annul or impair the
right to property in slaves, the evil would be intolerable. In the
latter event there would be a struggle for a majority of the members
of the legislature at each successive election, and the sacred rights
of property held under the Federal Constitution would depend for the
time being on the result. The agitation would thus be rendered
incessant whilst the Territorial condition remained, and its baneful
influence would keep alive a dangerous excitement among the people of
the several States.

Thus has the status of a Territory during the intermediate period
from its first settlement until it shall become a State been
irrevocably fixed by the final decision of the Supreme Court.
Fortunate has this been for the prosperity of the Territories, as
well as the tranquillity of the States. Now emigrants from the North
and the South, the East and the West, will meet in the Territories on
a common platform, having brought with them that species of property
best adapted, in their own opinion, to promote their welfare. From
natural causes the slavery question will in each case soon virtually
settle itself, and before the Territory is prepared for admission as
a State into the Union this decision, one way or the other, will have
been a foregone conclusion. Meanwhile the settlement of the new
Territory will proceed without serious interruption, and its progress
and prosperity will not be endangered or retarded by violent political
struggles.

When in the progress of events the inhabitants of any Territory shall
have reached the number required to form a State, they will then
proceed in a regular manner and in the exercise of the rights of
popular sovereignty to form a constitution preparatory to admission
into the Union. After this has been done, to employ the language of
the Kansas and Nebraska act, they "shall be received into the Union
with or without slavery, as their constitution may prescribe at the
time of their admission." This sound principle has happily been
recognized in some form or other by an almost unanimous vote of both
Houses of the last Congress.

All lawful means at my command have been employed, and shall continue
to be employed, to execute the laws against the African slave trade.
After a most careful and rigorous examination of our coasts and a
thorough investigation of the subject, we have not been able to
discover that any slaves have been imported into the United States
except the cargo by the Wanderer, numbering between three and four
hundred. Those engaged in this unlawful enterprise have been
rigorously prosecuted, but not with as much success as their crimes
have deserved. A number of them are still under prosecution.

Our history proves that the fathers of the Republic, in advance of
all other nations, condemned the African slave trade. It was,
notwithstanding, deemed expedient by the framers of the Constitution
to deprive Congress of the power to prohibit "the migration or
importation of such persons as any of the States now existing shall
think proper to admit" "prior to the year 1808." It will be seen that
this restriction on the power of Congress was confined to such States
only as might think proper to admit the importation of slaves. It did
not extend to other States or to the trade carried on abroad.
Accordingly, we find that so early as the 22d March, 1794, Congress
passed an act imposing severe penalties and punishments upon citizens
and residents of the United States who should engage in this trade
between foreign nations. The provisions of this act were extended and
enforced by the act of 10th May, 1800.

Again, the States themselves had a clear right to waive the
constitutional privilege intended for their benefit, and to prohibit
by their own laws this trade at any time they thought proper previous
to 1808. Several of them exercised this right before that period, and
among them some containing the greatest number of slaves. This gave
to Congress the immediate power to act in regard to all such States,
because they themselves had removed the constitutional barrier.
Congress accordingly passed an act on 28th February, 1803, "to
prevent the importation of certain persons into certain States where
by the laws thereof their admission is prohibited." In this manner
the importation of African slaves into the United States was to a
great extent prohibited some years in advance of 1808.

As the year 1808 approached Congress determined not to suffer this
trade to exist even for a single day after they had the power to
abolish it. On the 2d of March, 1807, they passed an act, to take
effect "from and after the 1st day of January, 1808," prohibiting the
importation of African slaves into the United States. This was
followed by subsequent acts of a similar character, to which I need
not specially refer. Such were the principles and such the practice
of our ancestors more than fifty years ago in regard to the African
slave trade. It did not occur to the revered patriots who had been
delegates to the Convention, and afterwards became members of
Congress, that in passing these laws they had violated the
Constitution which they had framed with so much care and
deliberation. They supposed that to prohibit Congress in express
terms from exercising a specified power before an appointed day
necessarily involved the right to exercise this power after that day
had arrived.

If this were not the case, the framers of the Constitution had
expended much labor in vain. Had they imagined that Congress would
possess no power to prohibit the trade either before or after 1808,
they would not have taken so much care to protect the States against
the exercise of this power before that period. Nay, more, they would
not have attached such vast importance to this provision as to have
excluded it from the possibility of future repeal or amendment, to
which other portions of the Constitution were exposed. It would,
then, have been wholly unnecessary to ingraft on the fifth article of
the Constitution, prescribing the mode of its own future amendment,
the proviso "that no amendment which may be made prior to the year
1808 shall in any manner affect" the provision in the Constitution
securing to the States the right to admit the importation of African
slaves previous to that period. According to the adverse
construction, the clause itself, on which so much care and discussion
had been employed by the members of the Convention, was an absolute
nullity from the beginning, and all that has since been done under it
a mere usurpation.

It was well and wise to confer this power on Congress, because had it
been left to the States its efficient exercise would have been
impossible. In that event any one State could have effectually
continued the trade, not only for itself, but for all the other slave
States, though never so much against their will. And why? Because
African slaves, when once brought within the limits of any one State
in accordance with its laws, can not practically be excluded from any
State where slavery exists. And even if all the States had separately
passed laws prohibiting the importation of slaves, these laws would
have failed of effect for want of a naval force to capture the
slavers and to guard the coast. Such a force no State can employ in
time of peace without the consent of Congress.

These acts of Congress, it is believed, have, with very rare and
insignificant exceptions, accomplished their purpose. For a period of
more than half a century there has been no perceptible addition to the
number of our domestic slaves. During this period their advancement in
civilization has far surpassed that of any other portion of the
African race. The light and the blessings of Christianity have been
extended to them, and both their moral and physical condition has
been greatly improved.

Reopen the trade and it would be difficult to determine whether the
effect would be more deleterious on the interests of the master or on
those of the native-born slave. Of the evils to the master, the one
most to be dreaded would be the introduction of wild, heathen, and
ignorant barbarians among the sober, orderly, and quiet slaves whose
ancestors have been on the soil for several generations. This might
tend to barbarize, demoralize, and exasperate the whole mass and
produce most deplorable consequences.

The effect upon the existing slave would, if possible, be still more
deplorable. At present he is treated with kindness and humanity. He
is well fed, well clothed, and not overworked. His condition is
incomparably better than that of the coolies which modern nations of
high civilization have employed as a substitute for African slaves.
Both the philanthropy and the self-interest of the master have
combined to produce this humane result. But let this trade be
reopened and what will be the effect? The same to a considerable
extent as on a neighboring island, the only spot now on earth where
the African slave trade is openly tolerated, and this in defiance of
solemn treaties with a power abundantly able at any moment to enforce
their execution. There the master, intent upon present gain, extorts
from the slave as much labor as his physical powers are capable of
enduring, knowing that when death comes to his relief his place can
be supplied at a price reduced to the lowest point by the competition
of rival African slave traders. Should this ever be the case in our
country, which I do not deem possible, the present useful character
of the domestic institution, wherein those too old and too young to
work are provided for with care and humanity and those capable of
labor are not overtasked, would undergo an unfortunate change. The
feeling of reciprocal dependence and attachment which now exists
between master and slave would be converted into mutual distrust and
hostility.

But we are obliged as a Christian and moral nation to consider what
would be the effect upon unhappy Africa itself if we should reopen
the slave trade. This would give the trade an impulse and extension
which it has never had, even in its palmiest days. The numerous
victims required to supply it would convert the whole slave coast
into a perfect pandemonium, for which this country would be held
responsible in the eyes both of God and man. Its petty tribes would
then be constantly engaged in predatory wars against each other for
the purpose of seizing slaves to supply the American market. All
hopes of African civilization would thus be ended.

On the other hand, when a market for African slaves shall no longer
be furnished in Cuba, and thus all the world be closed against this
trade, we may then indulge a reasonable hope for the gradual
improvement of Africa. The chief motive of war among the tribes will
cease whenever there is no longer any demand for slaves. The
resources of that fertile but miserable country might then be
developed by the hand of industry and afford subjects for legitimate
foreign and domestic commerce. In this manner Christianity and
civilization may gradually penetrate the existing gloom.

The wisdom of the course pursued by this Government toward China has
been vindicated by the event. Whilst we sustained a neutral position
in the war waged by Great Britain and France against the Chinese
Empire, our late minister, in obedience to his instructions,
judiciously cooperated with the ministers of these powers in all
peaceful measures to secure by treaty the just concessions demanded
by the interests of foreign commerce. The result is that satisfactory
treaties have been concluded with China by the respective ministers of
the United States, Great Britain, France, and Russia. Our "treaty, or
general convention, of peace, amity, and commerce" with that Empire
was concluded at Tien-tsin on the 18th June, 1858, and was ratified
by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate,
on the 21st December following. On the 15th December, 1858, John E.
Ward, a distinguished citizen of Georgia, was duly commissioned as
envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to China.

He left the United States for the place of his destination on the 5th
of February, 1859, bearing with him the ratified copy of this treaty,
and arrived at Shanghai on the 28th May. From thence he proceeded to
Peking on the 16th June, but did not arrive in that city until the
27th July. According to the terms of the treaty, the ratifications
were to be exchanged on or before the 18th June, 1859. This was
rendered impossible by reasons and events beyond his control, not
necessary to detail; but still it is due to the Chinese authorities
at Shanghai to state that they always assured him no advantage should
be taken of the delay, and this pledge has been faithfully redeemed.

On the arrival of Mr. Ward at Peking he requested an audience of the
Emperor to present his letter of credence. This he did not obtain, in
consequence of his very proper refusal to submit to the humiliating
ceremonies required by the etiquette of this strange people in
approaching their sovereign. Nevertheless, the interviews on this
question were conducted in the most friendly spirit and with all due
regard to his personal feelings and the honor of his country. When a
presentation to His Majesty was found to be impossible, the letter of
credence from the President was received with peculiar honors by
Kweiliang, "the Emperor's prime minister and the second man in the
Empire to the Emperor himself." The ratifications of the treaty were
afterwards, on the 16th of August, exchanged in proper form at
Peit-sang. As the exchange did not take place until after the day
prescribed by the treaty, it is deemed proper before its publication
again to submit it to the Senate. It is but simple justice to the
Chinese authorities to observe that throughout the whole transaction
they appear to have acted in good faith and in a friendly spirit
toward the United States. It is true this has been done after their
own peculiar fashion; but we ought to regard with a lenient eye the
ancient customs of an empire dating back for thousands of years, so
far as this may be consistent with our own national honor. The
conduct of our minister on the occasion has received my entire
approbation.

In order to carry out the spirit of this treaty and to give it full
effect it became necessary to conclude two supplemental conventions,
the one for the adjustment and satisfaction of the claims of our
citizens and the other to fix the tariff on imports and exports and
to regulate the transit duties and trade of our merchants with China.
This duty was satisfactorily performed by our late minister. These
conventions bear date at Shanghai on the 8th November, 1858. Having
been considered in the light of binding agreements subsidiary to the
principal treaty, and to be carried into execution without delay,
they do not provide for any formal ratification or exchange of
ratifications by the contracting parties. This was not deemed
necessary by the Chinese, who are already proceeding in good faith to
satisfy the claims of our citizens and, it is hoped, to carry out the
other provisions of the conventions. Still, I thought it was proper
to submit them to the Senate by which they were ratified on the 3d of
March, 1859. The ratified copies, however, did not reach Shanghai
until after the departure of our minister to Peking, and these
conventions could not, therefore, be exchanged at the same time with
the principal treaty. No doubt is entertained that they will be
ratified and exchanged by the Chinese Government should this be
thought advisable; but under the circumstances presented I shall
consider them binding engagements from their date on both parties,
and cause them to be published as such for the information and
guidance of our merchants trading with the Chinese Empire.

It affords me much satisfaction to inform you that all our
difficulties with the Republic of Paraguay have been satisfactorily
adjusted. It happily did not become necessary to employ the force for
this purpose which Congress had placed at my command under the joint
resolution of 2d June, 1858. On the contrary, the President of that
Republic, in a friendly spirit, acceded promptly to the just and
reasonable demands of the Government of the United States. Our
commissioner arrived at Assumption, the capital of the Republic, on
the 25th of January, 1859, and left it on the 17th of February,
having in three weeks ably and successfully accomplished all the
objects of his mission. The treaties which he has concluded will be
immediately submitted to the Senate.

In the view that the employment of other than peaceful means might
become necessary to obtain "just satisfaction" from Paraguay, a
strong naval force was concentrated in the waters of the La Plata to
await contingencies whilst our commissioner ascended the rivers to
Assumption. The Navy Department is entitled to great credit for the
promptness, efficiency, and economy with which this expedition was
fitted out and conducted. It consisted of 19 armed vessels, great and
small, carrying 200 guns and 2,500 men, all under the command of the
veteran and gallant Shubrick. The entire expenses of the expedition
have been defrayed out of the ordinary appropriations for the naval
service, except the sum of $289,000, applied to the purchase of seven
of the steamers constituting a part of it, under the authority of the
naval appropriation act of the 3d March last. It is believed that
these steamers are worth more than their cost, and they are all now
usefully and actively employed in the naval service.

The appearance of so large a force, fitted out in such a prompt
manner, in the far-distant waters of the La Plata, and the admirable
conduct of the officers and men employed in it, have had a happy
effect in favor of our country throughout all that remote portion of
the world. Our relations with the great Empires of France and Russia,
as well as with all other governments on the continent of Europe,
unless we may except that of Spain, happily continue to be of the
most friendly character. In my last annual message I presented a
statement of the unsatisfactory condition of our relations with
Spain, and I regret to say that this has not materially improved.

Without special reference to other claims, even the "Cuban claims,"
the payment of which has been ably urged by our ministers, and in
which more than a hundred of our citizens are directly interested,
remain unsatisfied, notwithstanding both their justice and their
amount ($128,635.54) had been recognized and ascertained by the
Spanish Government itself.

I again recommend that an appropriation be made "to be paid to the
Spanish Government for the purpose of distribution among the
claimants in the Amistad case." In common with two of my
predecessors, I entertain no doubt that this is required by our
treaty with Spain of the 27th October, 1795. The failure to discharge
this obligation has been employed by the cabinet of Madrid as a reason
against the settlement of our claims.

I need not repeat the arguments which I urged in my last annual
message in favor of the acquisition of Cuba by fair purchase. My
opinions on that measure remain unchanged. I therefore again invite
the serious attention of Congress to this important subject. Without
a recognition of this policy on their part it will be almost
impossible to institute negotiations with any reasonable prospect of
success. Until a recent period there was good reason to believe that
I should be able to announce to you on the present occasion that our
difficulties with Great Britain arising out of the Clayton and Bulwer
treaty had been finally adjusted in a manner alike honorable and
satisfactory to both parties. From causes, however, which the British
Government had not anticipated, they have not yet completed treaty
arrangements with the Republics of Honduras and Nicaragua, in
pursuance of the understanding between the two Governments. It is,
nevertheless, confidently expected that this good work will ere long
be accomplished.

Whilst indulging the hope that no other subject remained which could
disturb the good understanding between the two countries, the
question arising out of the adverse claims of the parties to the
island of San Juan, under the Oregon treaty of the 15th June, 1846,
suddenly assumed a threatening prominence. In order to prevent
unfortunate collisions on that remote frontier, the late Secretary of
State, on the 17th July, 1855, addressed a note to Mr. Crampton, then
British minister at Washington, communicating to him a copy of the
instructions which he (Mr. Marcy) had given on the 14th July to
Governor Stevens, of Washington Territory, having a special reference
to an "apprehended conflict between our citizens and the British
subjects on the island of San Juan." To prevent this the governor was
instructed "that the officers of the Territory should abstain from all
acts on the disputed grounds which are calculated to provoke any
conflicts, so far as it can be done without implying the concession
to the authorities of Great Britain of an exclusive right over the
premises. The title ought to be settled before either party should
attempt to exclude the other by force or exercise complete and
exclusive sovereign rights within the fairly disputed limits." In
acknowledging the receipt on the next day of Mr. Marcy's note the
British minister expressed his entire concurrence "in the propriety
of the course recommended to the governor of Washington Territory by
your [Mr. Marcy's] instructions to that officer," and stating that he
had "lost no time in transmitting a copy of that document to the
Governor-General of British North America" and had "earnestly
recommended to His Excellency to take such measures as to him may
appear best calculated to secure on the part of the British local
authorities and the inhabitants of the neighborhood of the line in
question the exercise of the same spirit of forbearance which is
inculcated by you [Mr. Marcy] on the authorities and citizens of the
United States."

Thus matters remained upon the faith of this arrangement until the
9th July last, when General Harney paid a visit to the island. He
found upon it twenty-five American residents with their families, and
also an establishment of the Hudsons Bay Company for the purpose of
raising sheep. A short time before his arrival one of these residents
had shot an animal belonging to the company whilst trespassing upon
his premises, for which, however, he offered to pay twice its value,
but that was refused. Soon after "the chief factor of the company at
Victoria, Mr. Dalles, son-in-law of Governor Douglas, came to the
island in the British sloop of war Satellite and threatened to take
this American [Mr. Cutler] by force to Victoria to answer for the
trespass he had committed. The American seized his rifle and told Mr.
Dalles if any such attempt was made he would kill him upon the spot.
The affair then ended."

Under these circumstances the American settlers presented a petition
to the General "through the United States inspector of customs, Mr.
Hubbs, to place a force upon the island to protect them from the
Indians as well as the oppressive interference of the authorities of
the Hudsons Bay Company at Victoria with their rights as American
citizens." The General immediately responded to this petition, and
ordered Captain George E. Pickett, Ninth Infantry, "to establish his
company on Bellevue, or San Juan Island, on some suitable position
near the harbor at the southeastern extremity." This order was
promptly obeyed and a military post was established at the place
designated. The force was afterwards increased, so that by the last
return the whole number of troops then on the island amounted in the
aggregate to 691 men.

Whilst I do not deem it proper on the present occasion to go further
into the subject and discuss the weight which ought to be attached to
the statements of the British colonial authorities contesting the
accuracy of the information on which the gallant General acted, it
was due to him that I should thus present his own reasons for issuing
the order to Captain Pickett. From these it is quite clear his object
was to prevent the British authorities on Vancouvers Island from
exercising jurisdiction over American residents on the island of San
Juan, as well as to protect them against the incursions of the
Indians. Much excitement prevailed for some time throughout that
region, and serious danger of collision between the parties was
apprehended. The British had a large naval force in the vicinity, and
it is but an act of simple justice to the admiral on that station to
state that he wisely and discreetly forbore to commit any hostile
act, but determined to refer the whole affair to his Government and
await their instructions.

This aspect of the matter, in my opinion, demanded serious attention.
It would have been a great calamity for both nations had they been
precipitated into acts of hostility, not on the question of title to
the island, but merely concerning what should be its condition during
the intervening period whilst the two Governments might be employed in
settling the question to which of them it belongs. For this reason
Lieutenant-General Scott was dispatched, on the 17th of September
last, to Washington Territory to take immediate command of the United
States forces on the Pacific Coast, should he deem this necessary. The
main object of his mission was to carry out the spirit of the
precautionary arrangement between the late Secretary of State and the
British minister, and thus to preserve the peace and prevent collision
between the British and American authorities pending the negotiations
between the two Governments. Entertaining no doubt of the validity of
our title, I need scarcely add that in any event American citizens
were to be placed on a footing at least as favorable as that of
British subjects, it being understood that Captain Pickett's company
should remain on the island. It is proper to observe that,
considering the distance from the scene of action and in ignorance of
what might have transpired on the spot before the General's arrival,
it was necessary to leave much to his discretion; and I am happy to
state the event has proven that this discretion could not have been
intrusted to more competent hands. General Scott has recently
returned from his mission, having successfully accomplished its
objects, and there is no longer any good reason to apprehend a
collision between the forces of the two countries during the pendency
of the existing negotiations. I regret to inform you that there has
been no improvement in the affairs of Mexico since my last annual
message, and I am again obliged to ask the earnest attention of
Congress to the unhappy condition of that Republic.

The constituent Congress of Mexico, which adjourned on the 17th
February, 1857, adopted a constitution and provided for a popular
election. This took place in the following July (1857), and General
Comonfort was chosen President almost without opposition. At the same
election a new Congress was chosen, whose first session commenced on
the 16th of September (1857). By the constitution of 1857 the
Presidential term was to begin on the 1st of December (1857) and
continue for four years. On that day General Comonfort appeared
before the assembled Congress in the City of Mexico, took the oath to
support the new constitution, and was duly inaugurated as President.
Within a month afterwards he had been driven from the capital and a
military rebellion had assigned the supreme power of the Republic to
General Zuloaga. The constitution provided that in the absence of the
President his office should devolve upon the chief justice of the
supreme court; and General Comonfort having left the country, this
functionary, General Juarez, proceeded to form at Guanajuato a
constitutional Government. Before this was officially known, however,
at the capital the Government of Zuloaga had been recognized by the
entire diplomatic corps, including the minister of the United States,
as the de facto Government of Mexico. The constitutional President,
nevertheless, maintained his position with firmness, and was soon
established, with his cabinet, at Vera Cruz. Meanwhile the Government
of Zuloaga was earnestly resisted in many parts of the Republic, and
even in the capital, a portion of the army having pronounced against
it, its functions were declared terminated, and an assembly of
citizens was invited for the choice of a new President. This assembly
elected General Miramort, but that officer repudiated the plan under
which he was chosen, and Zuloaga was thus restored to his previous
position. He assumed it, however, only to withdraw from it; and
Miramon, having become by his appointment "President substitute,"
continues with that title at the head of the insurgent party.

In my last annual message I communicated to Congress the
circumstances under which the late minister of the United States
suspended his official relations with the central Government and
withdrew from the country. It was impossible to maintain friendly
intercourse with a government like that at the capital, under whose
usurped authority wrongs were constantly committed, but never
redressed. Had this been an established government, with its power
extending by the consent of the people over the whole of Mexico, a
resort to hostilities against it would have been quite justifiable,
and, indeed, necessary. But the country was a prey to civil war, and
it was hoped that the success of the constitutional President might
lead to a condition of things less injurious to the United States.
This success became so probable that in January last I employed a
reliable agent to visit Mexico and report to me the actual condition
and prospects of the contending parties. In consequence of his report
and from information which reached me from other sources favorable to
the prospects of the constitutional cause, I felt justified in
appointing a new minister to Mexico, who might embrace the earliest
suitable opportunity of restoring our diplomatic relations with that
Republic. For this purpose a distinguished citizen of Maryland was
selected, who proceeded on his mission on the 8th of March last, with
discretionary authority to recognize the Government of President
Juarez if on his arrival in Mexico he should find it entitled to such
recognition according to the established practice of the United
States.

On the 7th of April following Mr. McLane presented his credentials to
President Juarez, having no hesitation "in pronouncing the Government
of Juarez to be the only existing government of the Republic." He was
cordially received by the authorities at Vera Cruz, and they have ever
since manifested the most friendly disposition toward the United
States.

Unhappily, however, the constitutional Government has not been able
to establish its power over the whole Republic. It is supported by a
large majority of the people and the States, but there are important
parts of the country where it can enforce no obedience.

General Miramon maintains himself at the capital, and in some of the
distant Provinces there are military governors who pay little respect
to the decrees of either Government. In the meantime the excesses
which always attend upon civil war, especially in Mexico, are
constantly recurring. Outrages of the worst description are committed
both upon persons and property. There is scarcely any form of injury
which has not been suffered by our citizens in Mexico during the last
few years. We have been nominally at peace with that Republic, but "so
far as the interests of our commerce, or of our citizens who have
visited the country as merchants, shipmasters, or in other
capacities, are concerned, we might as well have been at war." Life
has been insecure, property unprotected, and trade impossible except
at a risk of loss which prudent men can not be expected to incur.
Important contracts, involving large expenditures, entered into by
the central Government, have been set at defiance by the local
governments. Peaceful American residents, occupying their rightful
possessions, have been suddenly expelled the country, in defiance of
treaties and by the mere force of arbitrary power. Even the course of
justice has not been safe from control, and a recent decree of
Miramort permits the intervention of Government in all suits where
either party is a foreigner. Vessels of the United States have been
seized without law, and a consular officer who protested against such
seizure has been fined and imprisoned for disrespect to the
authorities. Military contributions have been levied in violation of
every principle of right, and the American who resisted the lawless
demand has had his property forcibly taken away and has been himself
banished. From a conflict of authority in different parts of the
country tariff duties which have been paid in one place have been
exacted over again in another place. Large numbers of our citizens
have been arrested and imprisoned without any form of examination or
any opportunity for a hearing, and even when released have only
obtained their liberty after much suffering and injury, and without
any hope of redress. The wholesale massacre of Crabbe and his
associates without trial in Sonora, as well as the seizure and murder
of four sick Americans who had taken shelter in the house of an
American upon the soil of the United States, was communicated to
Congress at its last session. Murders of a still more atrocious
character have been committed in the very heart of Mexico, under the
authority of Miramon's Government, during the present year. Some of
these were only worthy of a barbarous age, and if they had not been
dearly proven would have seemed impossible in a country which claims
to be civilized. Of this description was the brutal massacre in April
last, by order of General Marquez, of three American physicians who
were seized in the hospital at Tacubaya while attending upon the sick
and the dying of both parties, and without trial, as without crime,
were hurried away to speedy execution. Little less shocking was the
recent fate of Ormond Chase, who was shot in Tepic on the 7th of
August by order of the same Mexican general, not only without a
trial, but without any conjecture by his friends of the cause of his
arrest. He is represented as a young man of good character and
intelligence, who had made numerous friends in Tepic by the courage
and humanity which he had displayed on several trying occasions; and
his death was as unexpected as it was shocking to the whole
community. Other outrages might be enumerated, but these are
sufficient to illustrate the wretched state of the country and the
unprotected condition of the persons and property of our citizens in
Mexico.

In all these cases our ministers have been constant and faithful in
their demands for redress, but both they and this Government, which
they have successively represented, have been wholly powerless to
make their demands effective. Their testimony in this respect and in
reference to the only remedy which in their judgments would meet the
exigency has been both uniform and emphatic. "Nothing but a
manifestation of the power of the Government of the United States,"
wrote our late minister in 1856, "and of its purpose to punish these
wrongs will avail. I assure you that the universal belief here is
that there is nothing to be apprehended from the Government of the
United States, and that local Mexican officials can commit these
outrages upon American citizens with absolute impunity." "I hope the
President," wrote our present minister in August last, "will feel
authorized to ask from Congress the power to enter Mexico with the
military forces of the United States at the call of the
constitutional authorities, in order to protect the citizens and the
treaty rights of the United States. Unless such a power is conferred
upon him, neither the one nor the other will be respected in the
existing state of anarchy and disorder, and the outrages already
perpetrated will never be chastised; and, as I assured you in my No.
23, all these evils must increase until every vestige of order and
government disappears from the country." I have been reluctantly led
to the same opinion, and in justice to my countrymen who have
suffered wrongs from Mexico and who may still suffer them I feel
bound to announce this conclusion to Congress.

The case presented, however, is not merely a case of individual
claims, although our just claims against Mexico have reached a very
large amount; nor is it merely the case of protection to the lives
and property of the few Americans who may still remain in Mexico,
although the life and property of every American citizen ought to be
sacredly protected in every quarter of the world; but it is a
question which relates to the future as well as to the present and
the past, and which involves, indirectly at least, the whole subject
of our duty to Mexico as a neighboring State. The exercise of the
power of the United States in that country to redress the wrongs and
protect the rights of our own citizens is none the less to be desired
because efficient and necessary aid may thus be rendered at the same
time to restore peace and order to Mexico itself. In the
accomplishment of this result the people of the United States must
necessarily feel a deep and earnest interest. Mexico ought to be a
rich and prosperous and powerful Republic. She possesses an extensive
territory, a fertile soil, and an incalculable store of mineral
wealth. She occupies an important position between the Gulf and the
ocean for transit routes and for commerce. Is it possible that such a
country as this can be given up to anarchy and ruin without an effort
from any quarter for its rescue and its safety? Will the commercial
nations of the world, which have so many interests connected with it,
remain wholly indifferent to such a result? Can the United States
especially, which ought to share most largely in its commercial
intercourse, allow their immediate neighbor thus to destroy itself
and injure them? Yet without support from some quarter it is
impossible to perceive how Mexico can resume her position among
nations and enter upon a career which promises any good results. The
aid which she requires, and which the interests of all commercial
countries require that she should have, it belongs to this Government
to render, not only by virtue of our neighborhood to Mexico, along
whose territory we have a continuous frontier of nearly a thousand
miles, but by virtue also of our established policy, which is
inconsistent with the intervention of any European power in the
domestic concerns of that Republic.

The wrongs which we have suffered from Mexico are before the world
and must deeply impress every American citizen. A government which is
either unable or unwilling to redress such wrongs is derelict to its
highest duties. The difficulty consists in selecting and enforcing
the remedy. We may in vain apply to the constitutional Government at
Vera Cruz, although it is well disposed to do us justice, for
adequate redress. Whilst its authority is acknowledged in all the
important ports and throughout the seacoasts of the Republic, its
power does not extend to the City of Mexico and the States in its
vicinity, where nearly all the recent outrages have been committed on
American citizens. We must penetrate into the interior before we can
reach the offenders, and this can only be done by passing through the
territory in the occupation of the constitutional Government. The most
acceptable and least difficult mode of accomplishing the object will
be to act in concert with that Government. Their consent and their
aid might, I believe, be obtained; but if not, our obligation to
protect our own citizens in their just rights secured by treaty would
not be the less imperative. For these reasons I recommend to Congress
to pass a law authorizing the President under such conditions as they
may deem expedient, to employ a sufficient military force to enter
Mexico for the purpose of obtaining indemnity for the past and
security for the future. I purposely refrain from any suggestion as
to whether this force shall consist of regular troops or volunteers,
or both. This question may be most appropriately left to the decision
of Congress. I would merely observe that should volunteers be selected
such a force could be easily raised in this country among those who
sympathize with the sufferings of our unfortunate fellow-citizens in
Mexico and with the unhappy condition of that Republic. Such an
accession to the forces of the constitutional Government would enable
it soon to reach the City of Mexico and extend its power over the
whole Republic. In that event there is no reason to doubt that the
just claims of our citizens would be satisfied and adequate redress
obtained for the injuries inflicted upon them. The constitutional
Government have ever evinced a strong desire to do justice, and this
might be secured in advance by a preliminary treaty.

It may be said that these measures will, at least indirectly, be
inconsistent with our wise and settled policy not to interfere in the
domestic concerns of foreign nations. But does not the present case
fairly constitute an exception? An adjoining Republic is in a state
of anarchy and confusion from which she has proved wholly unable to
extricate herself. She is entirely destitute of the power to maintain
peace upon her borders or to prevent the incursions of banditti into
our territory. In her fate and in her fortune, in her power to
establish and maintain a settled government, we have a far deeper
interest, socially, commercially, and politically, than any other
nation. She is now a wreck upon the ocean, drifting about as she is
impelled by different factions. As a good neighbor, shall we not
extend to her a helping hand to save her? If we do not, it would not
be surprising should some other nation undertake the task, and thus
force us to interfere at last, under circumstances of increased
difficulty, for the maintenance of our established policy.

I repeat the recommendation contained in my last annual message that
authority may be given to the President to establish one or more
temporary military posts across the Mexican line in Sonora and
Chihuahua, where these may be necessary to protect the lives and
property of American and Mexican citizens against the incursions and
depredations of the Indians, as well as of lawless rovers, on that
remote region. The establishment of one such post at a point called
Arispe, in Sonora, in a country now almost depopulated by the hostile
inroads of the Indians from our side of the line, would, it is
believed, have prevented much injury and many cruelties during the
past season. A state of lawlessness and violence prevails on that
distant frontier. Life and property are there wholly insecure. The
population of Arizona, now numbering more than 10,000 souls, are
practically destitute of government, of laws, or of any regular
administration of justice. Murder, rapine, and other crimes are
committed with impunity. I therefore again call the attention of
Congress to the necessity for establishing a Territorial government
over Arizona.

The treaty with Nicaragua of the 16th of February, 1857, to which I
referred in my last annual message, failed to receive the
ratification of the Government of that Republic, for reasons which I
need not enumerate. A similar treaty has been since concluded between
the parties, bearing date on the 16th March, 1859, which has already
been ratified by the Nicaraguan Congress. This will be immediately
submitted to the Senate for their ratification. Its provisions can
not, I think, fail to be acceptable to the people of both countries.

Our claims against the Governments of Costa Rica and Nicaragua remain
unredressed, though they are pressed in an earnest manner and not
without hope of success.

I deem it to be my duty once more earnestly to recommend to Congress
the passage of a law authorizing the President to employ the naval
force at his command for the purpose of protecting the lives and
property of American citizens passing in transit across the Panama,
Nicaragua, and Tehuantepec routes against sudden and lawless
outbreaks and depredations. I shall not repeat the arguments employed
in former messages in support of this measure. Suffice it to say that
the lives of many of our people and the security of vast amounts of
treasure passing and repassing over one or more of these routes
between the Atlantic and Pacific may be deeply involved in the action
of Congress on this subject.

I would also again recommend to Congress that authority be given to
the President to employ the naval force to protect American merchant
vessels, their crews and cargoes, against violent and lawless seizure
and confiscation in the ports of Mexico and the Spanish American
States when these countries may be in a disturbed and revolutionary
condition. The mere knowledge that such an authority had been
conferred, as I have already stated, would of itself in a great
degree prevent the evil. Neither would this require any additional
appropriation for the naval service.

The chief objection urged against the grant of this authority is that
Congress by conferring it would violate the Constitution; that it
would be a transfer of the war-making, or, strictly speaking, the
war-declaring, power to the Executive. If this were well rounded, it
would, of course, be conclusive. A very brief examination, however,
will place this objection at rest.

Congress possess the sole and exclusive power under the Constitution
"to declare war." They alone can "raise and support armies" and
"provide and maintain a navy." But after Congress shall have declared
war and provided the force necessary to carry it on the President, as
Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy, can alone employ this force
in making war against the enemy. This is the plain language, and
history proves that it was the well-known intention of the framers,
of the Constitution.

It will not be denied that the general "power to declare war" is
without limitation and embraces within itself not only what writers
on the law of nations term a public or perfect war, but also an
imperfect war, and, in short, every species of hostility, however
confined or limited. Without the authority of Congress the President
can not fire a hostile gun in any case except to repel the attacks of
an enemy. It will not be doubted that under this power Congress could,
if they thought proper, authorize the President to employ the force at
his command to seize a vessel belonging to an American citizen which
had been illegally and unjustly captured in a foreign port and
restore it to its owner. But can Congress only act after the fact,
after the mischief has been done? Have they no power to confer upon
the President the authority in advance to furnish instant redress
should such a case afterwards occur? Must they wait until the
mischief has been done, and can they apply the remedy only when it is
too late? To confer this authority to meet future cases under
circumstances strictly specified is as clearly within the
war-declaring power as such an authority conferred upon the President
by act of Congress after the deed had been done. In the progress of a
great nation many exigencies must arise imperatively requiring that
Congress should authorize the President to act promptly on certain
conditions which may or may not afterwards arise. Our history has
already presented a number of such cases. I shall refer only to the
latest. Under the resolution of June 2, 1858, "for the adjustment of
difficulties with the Republic of Paraguay," the President is
"authorized to adopt such measures and use such force as in his
judgment may be necessary and advisable in the event of a refusal of
just satisfaction by the Government of Paraguay." "Just satisfaction"
for what? For "the attack on the United States steamer Water Witch"
and "other matters referred to in the annual message of the
President." Here the power is expressly granted upon the condition
that the Government of Paraguay shall refuse to render this "just
satisfaction." In this and other similar cases Congress have
conferred upon the President power in advance to employ the Army and
Navy upon the happening of contingent future events; and this most
certainly is embraced within the power to declare war.

Now, if this conditional and contingent power could be
constitutionally conferred upon the President in the case of
Paraguay, why may it not be conferred for the purpose of protecting
the lives and property of American citizens in the event that they
may be violently and unlawfully attacked in passing over the transit
routes to and from California or assailed by the seizure of their
vessels in a foreign port? To deny this power is to render the Navy
in a great degree useless for the protection of the lives and
property of American citizens in countries where neither protection
nor redress can be otherwise obtained.

The Thirty-fifth Congress terminated on the 3d of March, 1859,
without having passed the "act making appropriations for the service
of the Post-Office Department during the fiscal year ending the 30th
of June, 1860," This act also contained an appropriation "to supply
deficiencies in the revenue of the Post-Office Department for the
year ending 30th June, 1859." I believe this is the first instance
since the origin of the Federal Government, now more than seventy
years ago, when any Congress went out of existence without having
passed all the general appropriation bills necessary to carry on the
Government until the regular period for the meeting of a new
Congress. This event imposed on the Executive a grave responsibility.
It presented a choice of evils.

Had this omission of duty occurred at the first session of the last
Congress, the remedy would have been plain. I might then have
instantly recalled them to complete their work, and this without
expense to the Government. But on the 4th of March last there were
fifteen of the thirty-three States which had not elected any
Representatives to the present Congress. Had Congress been called
together immediately, these States would have been virtually
disfranchised. If an intermediate period had been selected, several
of the States would have been compelled to hold extra sessions of
their legislatures, at great inconvenience and expense, to provide
for elections at an earlier day than that previously fixed by law. In
the regular course ten of these States would not elect until after the
beginning of August, and five of these ten not until October and
November.

On the other hand, when I came to examine carefully the condition of
the Post-Office Department, I did not meet as many or as great
difficulties as I had apprehended. Had the bill which failed been
confined to appropriations for the fiscal year ending on the 30th
June next, there would have been no reason of pressing importance for
the call of an extra session. Nothing would become due on contracts
(those with railroad companies only excepted) for carrying the mail
for the first quarter of the present fiscal year, commencing on the
1st of July, until the 1st of December--less than one week before the
meeting of the present Congress. The reason is that the mail
contractors for this and the current year did not complete their
first quarter's service until the 30th September last, and by the
terms of their contracts sixty days more are allowed for the
settlement of their accounts before the Department could be called
upon for payment.

The great difficulty and the great hardship consisted in the failure
to provide for the payment of the deficiency in the fiscal year
ending the 30th June, 1859. The Department had entered into
contracts, in obedience to existing laws, for the service of that
fiscal year, and the contractors were fairly entitled to their
compensation as it became due. The deficiency as stated in the bill
amounted to $3,838,728, but after a careful settlement of all these
accounts it has been ascertained that it amounts to $4,296,009. With
the scanty means at his command the Postmaster-General has managed to
pay that portion of this deficiency which occurred in the first two
quarters of the past fiscal year, ending on the 31st December last.
In the meantime the contractors themselves, under these trying
circumstances, have behaved in a manner worthy of all commendation.
They had one resource in the midst of their embarrassments. After the
amount due to each of them had been ascertained and finally settled
according to law, this became a specific debt of record against the
United States, which enabled them to borrow money on this
unquestionable security. Still, they were obliged to pay interest in
consequence of the default of Congress, and on every principle of
justice ought to receive interest from the Government. This interest
should commence from the date when a warrant would have issued for
the payment of the principal had an appropriation been made for this
purpose. Calculated up to the 1st December, it will not exceed
$96,660--a sum not to be taken into account when contrasted with the
great difficulties and embarrassments of a public and private
character, both to the people and the States, which would have
resulted from convening and holding a special session of Congress.
For these reasons I recommend the passage of a bill at as early a day
as may be practicable to provide for the payment of the amount, with
interest, due to these last-mentioned contractors, as well as to make
the necessary appropriations for the service of the Post-Office
Department for the current fiscal year.

The failure to pass the Post-Office bill necessarily gives birth to
serious reflections. Congress, by refusing to pass the general
appropriation bills necessary to carry on the Government, may not
only arrest its action, but might even destroy its existence. The
Army, the Navy, the judiciary, in short, every department of the
Government, can no longer perform their functions if Congress refuse
the money necessary for their support. If this failure should teach
the country the necessity of electing a full Congress in sufficient
time to enable the President to convene them in any emergency, even
immediately after the old Congress has expired, it will have been
productive of great good. In a time of sudden and alarming danger,
foreign or domestic, which all nations must expect to encounter in
their progress, the very salvation of our institutions may be staked
upon the assembling of Congress without delay. If under such
circumstances the President should find himself in the condition in
which he was placed at the close of the last Congress, with nearly
half the States of the Union destitute of representatives, the
consequences might he disastrous. I therefore recommend to Congress
to carry into effect the provisions of the Constitution on this
subject, and to pass a law appointing some day previous to the 4th
March in each year of odd number for the election of Representatives
throughout all the States. They have already appointed a day for the
election of electors for President and Vice-President, and this
measure has been approved by the country.

I would again express a most decided opinion in favor of the
construction of a Pacific railroad, for the reasons stated in my two
last annual messages. When I reflect upon what would be the
defenseless condition of our States and Territories west of the Rocky
Mountains in case of a war with a naval power sufficiently strong to
interrupt all intercourse with them by the routes across the Isthmus,
I am still more convinced than ever of the vast importance of this
railroad. I have never doubted the constitutional competency of
Congress to provide for its construction, but this exclusively under
the war-making power. Besides, the Constitution expressly requires as
an imperative duty that "the United States shall protect each of them
[the States] against invasion." I am at a loss to conceive how this
protection can be afforded to California and Oregon against such a
naval power by any other means. I repeat the opinion contained in my
last annual message that it would be inexpedient for the Government
to undertake this great work by agents of its own appointment and
under its direct and exclusive control. This would increase the
patronage of the Executive to a dangerous extent and would foster a
system of jobbing and corruption which no vigilance on the part of
Federal officials could prevent. The construction of this road ought,
therefore, to be intrusted to incorporated companies or other agencies
who would exercise that active and vigilant supervision over it which
can be inspired alone by a sense of corporate and individual
interest. I venture to assert that the additional cost of
transporting troops, munitions of war, and necessary supplies for the
Army across the vast intervening plains to our possessions on the
Pacific Coast would be greater in such a war than the whole amount
required to construct the road. And yet this resort would after all
be inadequate for their defense and protection.

We have yet scarcely recovered from the habits of extravagant
expenditure produced by our overflowing Treasury during several years
prior to the commencement of my Administration. The financial reverses
which we have since experienced ought to teach us all to scrutinize
our expenditures with the greatest vigilance and to reduce them to
the lowest possible point. The Executive Departments of the
Government have devoted themselves to the accomplishment of this
object with considerable success, as will appear from their different
reports and estimates. To these I invite the scrutiny of Congress, for
the purpose of reducing them still lower, if this be practicable
consistent with the great public interests of the country. In aid of
the policy of retrenchment, I pledge myself to examine closely the
bills appropriating lands or money, so that if any of these should
inadvertently pass both Houses, as must sometimes be the case, I may
afford them an opportunity for reconsideration. At the same time, we
ought never to forget that true public economy consists not in
withholding the means necessary to accomplish important national
objects confided to u