Part 60

Some time previously, the president of the United States, desirous of ending the war, had deputed a commissioner, Nicholas P. Trist, Esq., to proceed from Washington to Mexico, there, if possible, to effect a treaty with that government. The present was deemed a fit moment, ere the victors entered the city; and, in order to avoid a forcible entry, to propose an adjustment of difficulties. Accordingly, the commander-in-chief decided to pause, and await the action of its councils. On the 21st, an armistice was agreed upon. This was followed by consultations between Mr. Trist and Mexican commissioners, in relation to the terms of peace. These, however, failed; and infractions of the armistice having occurred, the conflict was resumed. On the 8th, the two armies were engaged in a severe action at _Molinos del Rey_. In this action, Santa Anna commanded in person. It continued two hours, and was attended with great loss on both sides, but resulted in the triumph of the American arms.

There remained yet one formidable obstacle to the entrance of the city. This was the fortress of _Chepultepec_--a natural and isolated mount of great elevation, strongly fortified at its base and on its acclivities and heights. On the morning of the 12th, the bombardment and cannonade of this fortress was commenced, and was continued on the 13th. The Mexicans resisted with stubborn obstinacy, and, at length, yielded only by dire necessity. The officer who had the honor of striking the Mexican flag from the walls, and planting the American standard, was Major Seymour, of the New England regiment, soon after he had succeeded the gallant Colonel Ransom, who fell while leading his troops up the heights of Chepultepec.

Such was their position on the night of the 13th. On the following day, the victorious army entered the ancient and still proud, but now subjugated city of the Aztecs--a place celebrated for its wealth and magnificence--for its public squares and public palaces--its churches and other beautiful structures--from the very discovery of the country. At the capture of Mexico, the effective force of General Scott did not exceed six thousand.

_Treaty._--The occupation of Mexico, by the American army, essentially terminated the war. A few other engagements, between detachments of the armies, occurred at subsequent dates; but the fate of the capital crushed the hopes and paralyzed the efforts of the Mexicans. In this posture of affairs, Mr. Trist renewed his proposal for a treaty between the two republics. At length, this desirable object was effected, and "a treaty of peace, friendship, and settlement," was signed at Guadalupe Hidalgo. On its being submitted to the senate of the United States by the president, a long and exciting debate ensued. But, at length, after important amendments, it was ratified by a constitutional majority. To facilitate its ratification by the Mexican government, and to explain the modifications which it had undergone, the Hon. Mr. Sevier and Hon. Nathan Clifford were dispatched to Mexico. On their arrival at the city of Querataro, on the 25th of May, they found that the house of deputies had already sanctioned the treaty, and, on that day, it was adopted by the Mexican senate by a vote of thirty-three to five.

By this treaty, Upper California and New Mexico were ceded to the United States. The latter paying to the former fifteen millions of dollars, in four annual instalments, and assuming such debts as were due by Mexico to American citizens, not exceeding three millions and a quarter of dollars.

_California and its Gold._--The territories of New Mexico and Upper California, were known at the time of their cession to be sufficiently large for a great empire. But, by many, they were considered of comparatively little value to the United States, excepting the bay of San Francisco, on the Pacific, as a place of harbor for our ships. But, since their acquisition, California has become, from its mineral wealth, especially its gold, an object of great interest and attraction. The whole civilized world has been astonished by the reports which have been put in circulation respecting its golden treasures, and thousands upon thousands have set forth for this western El Dorado.

California is separated into two divisions by a range of mountains, called the Sierra Nevada, or Snowy Mountains, which stretches along the coast at the general distance of one hundred and fifty miles from it. West of this range are the valleys of San Joaquin and the Sacramento, which are watered by rivers of the same name. They rise at opposite ends of these valleys, and at length meet and enter the bay of Francisco together. The greatest point of interest in this newly-acquired territory, is the valley of the Sacramento, which is distinguished by its gold deposites or "_placers_," as they are called. The recent discovery of the existence of gold in this region was accidental. In enlarging the race-way of a water-wheel, connected with a saw-mill just erected by a Mr. Marshall for Captain Sutter, by letting in a strong current of water, a considerable quantity of earth was carried to the foot of the race. Not long after, Mr. Marshall discovered some glittering particles in this earth, which, on further inspection, proved to be virgin gold. Further explorations ensued, and deposites have been found to exist in various portions of this valley for several hundred miles.

_Election of General Taylor._--The administration of Mr. Polk was signalized by many interesting and important events. Yet, it cannot be said to have been popular, even with the party to which he owed his elevation. Towards the close of his term, few, if any, seriously advocated his rëelection. At a democratic convention, held in Baltimore May 21st, 1848, Lewis Cass, of Michigan, was nominated for the presidency, and General W. O. Butler, of Kentucky, for the vice-presidency. The candidates proposed by a whig convention held at Philadelphia, June 7th, were General Zachary Taylor, of Louisiana, and Millard Fillmore, of New York. Subsequently, a free-soil convention assembled at Utica, and nominated Martin Van Buren. The votes of the several electoral colleges resulted as follows:

Key: A. Zachary Taylor, of Louisiana. B. Lewis Cass, of Michigan. C. Millard Filmore, of New York. D. Wm. O. Butler, of Kentucky.

+-----------------+----------+--------------- No. of | |PRESIDENT.|VICE-PRESIDENT. Electors | STATES. |----------+--------------- from each| | A. | B. | C. | D. State. | | | | | ---------+-----------------+----+-----+-------+------- 9 | Maine, | | 9 | | 9 6 | New Hampshire, | | 6 | | 6 12 | Massachusetts, | 12 | | 12 | 4 | Rhode Island, | 4 | | 4 | 6 | Connecticut, | 6 | | 6 | 6 | Vermont, | 6 | | 6 | 36 | New York, | 36 | | 36 | 7 | New Jersey, | 7 | | 7 | 26 | Pennsylvania, | 26 | | 26 | 3 | Delaware, | 3 | | 3 | 8 | Maryland, | 8 | | 8 | 17 | Virginia, | | 17 | | 17 11 | North Carolina, | 11 | | 11 | 9 | South Carolina, | | 9 | | 9 10 | Georgia, | 10 | | 10 | 12 | Kentucky, | 12 | | 12 | 13 | Tennessee, | 13 | | 13 | 23 | Ohio, | | 23 | | 6 | Lousiana, | 6 | | 6 | 6 6 | Mississippi, | | 6 | | 12 | Indiana, | | 12 | | 9 | Illinois, | | 9 | | 9 | Alabama, | | 9 | | 7 | Missouri, | | 7 | | 3 | Arkansas, | | 3 | | 5 | Michigan, | | 5 | | 3 | Florida, | 3 | | 3 | 3 4 | Texas, | | 4 | | 4 | Iowa, | | 4 | | 4 | Wisconsin, | | 4 | | ---------+-----------------+----+-----+-------+------- 290 | Whole No. of | | | | | electors, |163 | 127 | 163 | 127 | Majority, 146 | | | |

FOOTNOTE:

[81] Life of Andrew Jackson, by John S. Jenkins.

XVII. ZACHARY TAYLOR, PRESIDENT.

INAUGURATED AT WASHINGTON, MARCH 5, 1849.

MILLARD FILLMORE, VICE-PRESIDENT.

HEADS OF THE DEPARTMENTS.

John M. Clayton, Delaware, March 6, 1849, Secretary of State.

William M. Meredith, Pennsylvania, March 6, 1849, Secretary of the Treasury.

Thomas Ewing, Ohio, March 6, 1849, Sec'ry of Home Department.[82]

George W. Crawford, Georgia, March 6, 1849, Secretary of War.

William B. Preston, Virginia, March 6, 1849, Secretary of the Navy.

Jacob Collamar, Vermont, March 6, 1849, Postmaster General.

Reverdy Johnson, Maryland, March 6, 1849, Attorney General.

It was an occasion of great rejoicing on Monday, the 5th of March, when the hero of Buena Vista stood on that spot at the eastern portico of the national capitol, where had stood Jefferson, Madison, and others, and baring his head, took the oath prescribed, to support the constitution, which was administered to him by Chief Justice Taney.

The inaugural address of General Taylor, like all his official communications to government while in the field, was brief--shorter than any similar address by any other president, except Mr. Madison's. To a majority of the people, it proved quite satisfactory, and even in England was pronounced an eloquent production. Previous to his election, General Taylor had declined all pledges, excepting the assurance to the nation, that he would never be the president of a party, but should endeavor, if elected, to bring back the government to the spirit of the constitution, as understood and administered by Washington. Other pledges than this, he now declined, standing, as he did, before God and the nation; but this pledge he was ready to renew. "In the discharge of these duties," said he, "my guide will be the constitution, which I this day swear to 'preserve, protect, and defend.' For the interpretation of that instrument, I shall look to the decisions of the judicial tribunals established by its authority, and to the practice of the government under the earliest presidents, who had so large a share in its formation.

"Chosen by the body of the people, under the assurance that my administration would be devoted to the welfare of the whole country, and not to the support of any particular section or merely local interests, I, this day, renew the declarations I have heretofore made, and proclaim my fixed determination to maintain, to the extent of my ability, the government in its original purity, and to adopt, as the basis of my public policy, those great republican doctrines which constitute the strength of our national existence."

The ceremonies of the inauguration being over, General Taylor entered upon the duties of his office, respected for his private worth and public services, with many supplications, on the part of the pious and the patriotic, that his official course might, in its issues, prove as beneficial to his country as was Washington's, which he had presented to himself as the model of his administration.

Taylor's administration continued on page 902.

FOOTNOTE:

[82] A new office, embracing certain portions of business heretofore transacted in the Departments of State, Treasury, &c.

BRITISH AMERICA.

GENERAL REMARKS.

British America embraces not far from one equal half of the North American continent. The whole area amounts to about four millions of square miles. The Arctic ocean bounds it on the north, and the Atlantic on the east. The southern boundary is the St. Lawrence, and the extended chain of lakes as far westward as the Lake of the Woods, whence the dividing line between the British possessions and the United States follows the forty-ninth parallel of latitude westward to the Strait of Fuca, and thence along its channel south-west to the Pacific ocean. On the west, British America is bounded in part by the ocean, and in part by the line of the one hundred and forty-first degree of west longitude.

The greater portion of this immense region is a waste, uninhabited, the home of wild beasts, and the seat of eternal snow and ice. It possesses little value, except the skins and furs which are taken from the animals that rove there. The settlements are few, even in those parts that have been reduced into provinces, and these embrace but an inconsiderable portion of the whole region.

It has not been thought important to establish regular governments in all the provinces, so called. Such governments are established only in the Canadas, Nova Scotia and Cape Breton, New Brunswick, Prince Edward's Island, and Newfoundland. The Canadas consist of Upper and Lower, or Canada West and Canada East, and embrace the principal amount of the population and productive resources of that whole northern world.

Canada East is a country of some considerable extent, measuring about two hundred thousand square miles, but mostly hilly and rocky, and unproductive, except on the borders of the St. Lawrence.

Canada West contains an area of one hundred and fifty thousand square miles, if its western boundary, as is generally considered, extends no farther than to the heads of the streams which fall into Lake Superior. The climate of Canada West, or Upper Canada, is less severe than that of Lower Canada. It has also some quite productive soil.

I. CANADA.[83]

DISCOVERY--Settlement--Capture of Quebec--Death of Champlain--Religious Enterprises--War made by the Iroquois--Accessions to the Colony--Progress of the Colony--Attempts of the English to Conquer Canada--Condition of Canada in 1721 and 1722--General Prosperity of the Colony--Refusal to join in the War of American Independence--Consequences of American Independence to Canada--Territorial Divisions and Constitution--Dissensions after the close of the war of 1812--Disturbances and Insurrections.

_Discovery._--Jacques Carter, of St. Malo, in France, is the acknowledged discoverer of Canada. He was a distinguished mariner, and was solicited by the French to conduct a voyage to Newfoundland. This he undertook with two small vessels, of only twenty tons burden each. On the 10th of May, 1534, he saw the shores of that island, and steering to the south along the coast, landed at a harbor which he named St. Catharine's. Thence, proceeding westward and northward, he entered the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the mouth of the river of the same name; but the unfavorableness of the weather, and the lateness of the season, induced him to return to France. He, however, first took possession of the country in the name of his king.

During the following year, he was invested with the command of three ships of larger size, and well equipped with all sorts of supplies; and making a second voyage to Newfoundland, he entered the gulf on the day of St. Lawrence. Hence, it is supposed, is the name of the gulf and of the river. This voyage was not completed till he reached, in a pinnace and two boats, the present site of Montreal on the St. Lawrence river. This was then the principal Indian settlement, named Hochelaga, where the natives received him with great kindness. He took formal possession of the country in the name of his sovereign, and returned home in the spring of the following year, 1536.

Voyages of discovery were made successively by Roberval, Pontgravè, and Champlain, down to the beginning of the seventeenth century; but of these, no particular notice need be given.

_Settlements._--The important city of Quebec was founded by Champlain, in 1608. On the 13th of July of that year, he fixed on a most commanding promontory, on the north side of the River St. Lawrence, for the site of his settlement. The choice of such a spot for "the capital of a great trans-Atlantic empire, does him immortal honor." Here he remained through the winter, but, as soon as the season admitted, he resumed his voyage up the river. At a distance of twenty-five leagues above Quebec, he met a band belonging to the celebrated nation of the Algonquins, whom he agreed to join in their wars against the Iroquois. In this step, he committed a fatal error. It was the means of bringing upon the French settlements, in Canada, all the calamities of savage warfare for nearly a hundred years. He was, however, successful at that time in an engagement with the Iroquois.

A few years after the settlement of Quebec, viz., in 1611, Montreal was founded. Champlain, who had in the mean time returned to France once and again, visited America that year, arriving at a place of rendezvous appointed for another warlike expedition. Not finding the Indians, he employed his time in selecting a spot for a new settlement, higher up the river than Quebec. Carefully examining the region, he fixed upon ground in the vicinity of an eminence which he called Mount Royal; and it would seem from the prosperity which has since attended the place, under the name of Montreal, that his choice has been amply justified. After sowing grain on a cleared spot of some extent, he inclosed it with a wooden wall. Champlain explored the River Ottawa, and many other parts of the country, while he remained in it. In consequence of expeditions from France, at various times, a few other settlements were formed; but the colony, though bearing the imposing name of New France, was in a condition of extreme weakness, and seemed to be viewed with indifference, both by the mother-country and England.

_Capture of Quebec._--The growth of this place was very inconsiderable for many years; but it early became a mark for the assaults of an enemy. Hostilities having commenced with England, two French subjects, David and Louis Kirk, entering the service of that country, equipped a squadron, which sailed to the mouth of the St. Lawrence, captured several vessels, and intercepted the communication between the mother-country and the colony. In July, 1629, Sir David Kirk summoned Quebec--a summons which was followed by a surrender of the place, the invaded party being promised honorable conditions, and allowed to depart with their arms, clothes, and baggage. The request of a ship to convey them directly home was not granted, but they were promised a commodious passage by way of England. In consequence of the adjustment of difficulties between the two countries, the place was at length restored; and Canada, with Cape Breton and Acadia, was confirmed to France. The final treaty, however, was not signed till the 29th March, 1632.

_Death of Champlain._--Champlain, as the founder of the most important places in New France, was for a long time the life and soul of the colony. His energy, scientific accomplishments, and popularity, seemed to be most intimately connected with the prosperity, and even existence of the colony. In 1633, he was appointed governor, and sailed with a squadron, carrying all necessary supplies, to Canada, where, on his arrival, he found most of his former colonists. A greater prosperity now attended the affairs of New France. Means were employed for maintaining harmony among the inhabitants, and methods devised for introducing into the colony only persons of unexceptionable character.

But the end of his enterprising career was now come. He perished in the year 1636, having been drowned in the lake which bears his name. His death was, of course, a severe misfortune to Canada, and the loss could not well be repaired. M. de Montmagny was appointed his successor, and appeared to have commanded the general respect of the native inhabitants. But the colony was in a critical condition, and he could act only on the defensive, in the hostilities in which they were disposed from time to time to engage. Owing to the policy of the court at home, of continuing no governor in power longer than three years, Montmagny was displaced at the end of that time by the appointment of another governor. This system, however, was ill-suited to a settlement like that of Canada, where an intimate local knowledge, and a peculiar mixture of firmness and address, were necessary to deal with tumultuary tribes whom they were too feeble to subdue. Ailleboust, his successor, is said to have been a man of probity, but he indifferently possessed the energy required in so difficult a situation. The Iroquois now became peculiarly turbulent, and, as will soon be seen, brought dreadful calamities on the whites.

_Religious Enterprises._--Catholic missionaries had not merely formed establishments at Quebec and Montreal, but had also penetrated into the domains of the savages. These religionists certainly gave full proof of sincerity in their work, as they renounced all the comforts of civilized life, and exposed themselves to every species of hardship and danger. The religious "establishments did little for the immediate improvement of the colony, yet as points of possession, occupied by persons whose avocations were professedly holy and useful, they laid the foundation on which arose the superstructure of those morals and habits that still and will long characterize the Gallo-Canadians."

As to the effect of the Catholic missions on the native tribes, it is to be observed, they undoubtedly reclaimed their votaries from many savage habits, and trained them up to some degree of order and industry. The tribe found to be the most docile and susceptible of improvement, was that of the Hurons; and their great numbers presented a wide field for religious effort. More than three thousand of them are recorded to have received baptism at one time, though only a portion of the number probably retained even the profession of Christianity. The general effect produced was in a degree favorable, and softened somewhat the aspect of this wild region. The main object was to unite the Indians in villages. Of these, several were formed, the principal of which were Sillery, or St. Joseph, and St. Mary.

_War made by the Iroquois._--In 1648, the Iroquois, as already intimated, were resolved on renewing the war; for what cause, if for any, does not now appear. Their movements were rapid and fatal. The village of Sillery was occupied by four hundred families, and was accordingly a tempting object to the savages. In a time of profound peace, and while the missionary was celebrating the most solemn ordinances of religion, the shriek was suddenly heard, "We are murdered!" The enemy had commenced an indiscriminate massacre, without distinction of sex or age. The women fled for safety into the depths of the forest; but the infants whom they carried in their arms betrayed them by their crying, and mother and suckling were alike butchered. The assailants, at length, fell upon the priest, and after each in succession had struck him a blow, they threw him into the flames.[84]