follows, beginning at the mouth of the Rio del Norte, about 26 north latitude, and up that river to its source; thence a due north course to the source of the river Arkansas, the boundary-line of the United States, following that river in all its meanderings to about the 99th degree of longitude from London; then a line due south to the Red River, following the course of the Red River to a line due north from the junction of the Sabine River, with the 32nd parallel of latitude, and about the 94th degree of longitude; then taking the course of the Sabine River to its termination in the Gulf of Mexico."

Thus this boundary embraces that portion of the Mexican states I have mentioned, which lies east of the Rio del Norte; hence, then, the injustice to the unoffending Mexicans of those states. But our modern geographers are not satisfied with this wholesale plunder, as defined by the Texan congress, and recognized by Lord Palmerston; they needs must leave a sally-port in the north-western corner, which may be seen in Mr. Arrowsmith's map, as published in Mr. Kennedy's work, through which the Texans, " in the constancy of the AngloAmerican spirit," are to reach the shores of the Pacific!

But surely Messrs. Arrowsmith and Kennedy must be aware that the physical features of the country, that lies between the north-western boundaries of Texas as correctly defined in the map which accompanies this work, present in

N

numerable and indeed insurmountable obstacles to the influx of emigrants from Texas or the United States to California and the shores of the Pacific. While the hostile Indian tribes on the frontier, and the dense population in the interior of Mexico, at once render the ingress and egress of the Texans to the Californias from the western frontier of Texas, so totally impossible, it is almost too absurd to allude to such visionary projects, except to illustrate the folly which is constantly brought before the public by authors, who collect matter to form their works in other countries, which is the course Mr. Kennedy says he pursued, instead of writing from personal observation, and the latter he could not have done, as he was not more than six weeks in Texas. The boundary line between the United States and Texas has also been commented on by Mr. Kennedy at great length, in which he would lead the world to believe that the former has had an indisputable title to the soil of Texas since the cession of Louisiana to the United States by France, up to the time the states recognized the independence of Texas, notwithstanding that the boundaries between Mexico and the states were unalterably defined by Onis's treaty of 1829, which has long been the law of nations on that subject; thus we find the boundary in question defined in the third article of Onis's treaty of 1829 :

"ARTICLE 3. The boundary line between the two countries west of the Mississippi, shall commence from the Gulf of Mexico,

at the place where the river Sabine empties itself into the sea; and it shall continue northward by the west bank of this river, until it reaches the 32nd degree of latitude, from which point it shall continue in a straight line due north, until it strikes the red river of Natchitoches, and then it shall proceed eastward up the course of that river as far as the 100th degree of longitude west from London and 23 degrees from Washington, at which point it shall cross that river, and continue by a straight line due north on the same degree of longitude to the river Arkansas, the south bank of which it shall follow up to its source in the 42nd degree of north latitude, and from this point a straight line shall be drawn following the same parallel of latitude to the Pacific Ocean. All according to the map of the United States, published in Philadelphia, by Mellish, and perfected in 1818. should it be found that the source of the Arkansas river is either to the north or the south of the said 42 degrees of latitude, the line shall continue from the source of that river due north or due south, as the case may be, until it reaches the said 42 degrees of latitude, and then shall follow that parallel to the Pacific Ocean. All the islands of the Sabine river, red river of Natchitoches, and Arkansas river in the whole of the course described, shall belong to the United States; but the use of the waters and navigation of the Sabine to the sea, and of the before-mentioned red river and Arkansas river, along the whole course of their respective banks, comprehended within their limits here specified, shall be common to the inhabitants of both countries."

But

Then follows a clause by which Spain for ever renounces all right, &c. to territories to the east and north of the said line; and the United States in like manner renounces for ever all rights, claims, and pretensions, to all territories situated to the west and south of the said line. But whilst every effort was and is being made to disturb the established order

180 GEN. HAMILTON'S LETTER TO LORD PALMERSTON.

of things-while the creation of a new country, and the dismemberment of an old and friendly nation were going on, not a voice was raised in the British parliament on this important subject, except that of Mr. O'Connell, who unfortunately took a wrong view of the Texan question in the first instance, and when advised as to the right course, did not think proper to follow it. However, he urged the propriety of the treaty between Texas and England being brought before the house; but this Lord Palmerston evaded, and not a particle of information upon this vital subject could be obtained in any quarter until the month of May, 1841, when the following official communication from General Hamilton was published, to lull the natural suspicions and apprehensions of those who were most deeply interested in the Texan question, namely the British creditors of Mexico:

"MY LORD,

"London, November 5, 1840. "As our communications in relation to the proposed mediation of Her Majesty's government, in procuring a pacification between Texas and Mexico, and the assumption by the former of a portion of the public debt of the latter, have hitherto been entirely verbal, I beg leave to transmit you this despatch, that the reasons and motives, which may influence the republic of Texas in making this assumption, may not be liable to any farther misconstruction. In the first place, I must enter a protestando against the inference that Texas is BOUND in any degree for any portion of the said debt on any principle of international law, or by any one obligation of private justice.

* Vide Letter to Mr. O'Connell in Appendix.

GEN. HAMILTON'S LETTER TO LORD PALMERSTON. 181

"Mexico violated the charters she had granted to Austin's colonists, on the faith of which the Anglo-Americans had emigrated to Texas, and recovered its territory from the savage tribes, with whom Mexico was incapable of coping. These violations were accompanied by atrocities, which rather belonged to the dark ages than the day in which we live.

"Texas consummated her independence in 1836. In 1837, after Mexico had lost all possession of and sovereignty over Texas, she concluded a convention in London with the Mexican bondholders, and assigned certain portions of her public lands in several of her provinces or departments. She was guilty of the absurd mockery of including in this convention those situated in the department of Texas, where she had neither a man nor a foot of land over which she exercised jurisdiction east of the Rio Grande.

"I need not insist, I am sure, with your lordship, on the absolute nullity of this convention, as far as Texas is concerned. But what I desire to do is to do voluntarily, as a concession to the benevolence and philanthropy of her Majesty's government, which have induced you to come forward and offer its intervention in producing a pacification between the two countries, honourable to both.

"If, therefore, Mexico will consent to a truce with Texas within thirty days after the communication of any convention, we may conclude on the subject by her Majesty's ministers at her capital, and in six months after will conclude a treaty of amity and commerce with Texas, which shall provide for a satisfactory and well-defined boundary between the two countries, I shall be quite willing to come under a stipulation that Texas shall assume one million sterling of the public debt of Mexico, contracted by Mexico prior to the year 1835, which is precisely the sum the United States offered for the whole country in 1830. The value it has acquired since has been conferred on it by the enterprise, heroism, and intelligence of the citizens of Texas themselves, and is a just and honourable acquisition of their own. "This I desire to be regarded as a voluntary concession; for