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bers from the United States and from other countries; and their labours have received in general the same liberal reward. Gold to the amount of nearly two millions of dollars had been coined at the mint of the United States in the month of July, and probably a much larger amount had been exported to England, China, and other countries. Measures had been taken to form a constitution for upper California, and it can scarcely be doubted that thus provided with a form of government the people of that country will apply to the next Congress to be received as one of the States of the Union. On the 1st of July, the immigrant population was estimated at 30,000.

Some of the emigrants from the United States overland to California having, in their march, passed through the Mexican province of Chihuahua, were charged with wantonly destroying the growing crops, and under pretext of having been robbed of some of their horses, they had even fired on the peaceful inhabitants. Formal complaint of these outrages was made by Don Luis de la Rosa, the Mexican minister, to the Secretary of State, who accordingly applied to Mr. Crawford, the Secretary of War, to interpose the military authority under his control. He gave the requisite orders, and farther suggested as a more efficient remedy, that permission to pass through the Mexican territory should be refused to all persons who were not provided with passports.

The other portion of our newly acquired territory, New Mexico, has been a source of uncompensated vexation and trouble. Unprovided with a territorial government by the last Congress, like the Californians, but not like them consoled by new and rich mines for the inconvenience, the inhabitants have been far more discontented than in California. Nor is this all. In the absence of all regular government, the neighbouring Indians have made incursions into the territory, and the American citizens found there have been their first victims. They have even assailed and overpowered small detached parties of United States troops. It is now found that mounted riflemen are the only species of force competent to keep these marauders in check. The conflicting claims, moreover, of the State of Texas and the United States to that part of this territory which lies east of the Rio Grande, threaten to prove a theme of troublesome and heated controversy in Congress, whenever the organization of a territorial government there shall be brought up.

In the latter end of July, the people of Florida were alarmed at what they regarded as clear indications of the hostile temper and purposes of the remnant of Seminole Indians still remaining in the southern part of that State. Murders and other outrages had been committed on citizens of Florida nearly at the same time at two points, on Indian River and Peace Creek, about one hundred miles apart. Volunteers

*See Quarterly Chronicle for an account of the steps taken by Gen. Riley to effect the election of delegates to a convention and for the organization of a government.

were immediately ordered out by the Governor of Florida, and application was made to the general government for the aid of regular troops. Mr. Crawford, the Secretary of War, wrote to the Governor of Florida that, from the information received at Washington, the outrages at both places were committed by the same party of Indians, not exceeding five; that there was no evidence of their receiving the support or countenance of the Indians generally; and that, consequently, there had existed no necessity for the employment of the State troops. He added, that the course taken by the State of Florida was to be regretted, as it would raise a new obstacle to the success of the effort the administration was then making of removing all the remaining Seminoles from Florida, In conformity with these views, two special agents sent by the Governor of Florida to Washington to learn the purposes of the general government, were informed by Mr. Crawford, on the 10th of August, that the administration should rely upon the United States regular troops alone, and should decline the services of the Florida volunteers. That the 7th regiment of infantry, and eight other companies, chiefly of artillery, should be ordered to Florida, under the command of Major General Twiggs. That the operations of the army should be confined to a specific line of posts, in order both to keep the Indians within the limits formerly assigned to them, and to keep the whites from intruding on the neutral ground around those limits. That the government would endeavour to effect the removal of the Indians by contract on liberal terms; but should all pacific methods fail, they would be removed by force.

These purposes of the administration not proving altogether satisfactory to the people of Florida, they held meetings at St. Augustine on the 22d and 25th of August, at which it appeared that the points of disagreement between them and the general government were: that the volunteers were required to be discharged before the regular troops arrived in Florida: that the authors of the late robberies and murders should be brought to punishment: that the Indian agents should be required to reside within the Indian limits, so as to take away all pretexts from the Indians for roaming beyond their bounds: and that the exclusion of Indians as well as whites from the neutral ground was a duty of the general government and not of the State. This last position seems to have been urged in reply to a remark made by Mr. Crawford to the Florida agents; that Florida was not free from blame in this matter, because, having extended her laws over the neutral ground, "it became her duty rather than that of the general government" to keep the whites from intruding on that ground; and this intrusion, he doubted not, had been the chief cause of the late disturbance.

According to intelligence from Tampa Bay of the 17th Sept., it appears that Captain Casey of the United States army succeeded in having interview with some of the Indians; who appointed a future day to have a "talk" with General Twiggs. Billy Bowlegs, it is

understood, is willing to deliver up to General Twiggs the Indians who committed the late outrages. The result of the expected interview between General Twiggs and Billy Bowlegs was looked for with the greatest anxiety by the citizens of Florida.

In connexion with the difficulties already enumerated a diplomatic misunderstanding of a serious and unpleasant nature has very recently grown out of a correspondence between the French minister, M. Pouissin, and Mr. Clayton, the Secretary of State.

On the 7th day of February last, one month previous to the expiration of office of the late cabinet, M. Pouissin addressed a note to Mr. Buchanan, then secretary of State, presenting to the consideration of the government of the United States the claim of a Frenchman, M. Port, for indemnification for damages sustained by him in consequence of the acts of officers and agents of the United States in Mexico. It appears from the correspondence published by the government, that during the Mexican war M. Port purchased a quantity of tobacco which had been seized and sold by the agents of the American army. Col. Childs, the commanding officer, having ascertained that the tobacco was private property, caused it to be restored to its proper owner, and the purchase money to be refunded to M. Port. The claim, as presented by M. Pouissin to our government, was for several thousand dollars, being the amount of the difference between the price for which Port had purchased the tobacco and that for which he had sold it. A court of inquiry was immediately convened, which examined into the whole matter, and decided that the claim was unfounded. The evidence before the court rather raised a doubt of the honesty of purpose of M. Port, and went to prove the fact that he was aware when he purchased the tobacco, that it was private property. Gen. Scott confirmed the decision of the court.

Before any action could be had by the government upon the report of the court, Mr. Buchanan went out of office. Soon after the organization of the new cabinet, Mr. Clayton examined into the matter and announced, as the result of his inquiry, that the decision of the court had his entire approbation. This communication of the secretary received an angry response from the French minister, who animadverted with severity on the testimony of Col. Childs before the court, and in a subsequent note to Mr. Clayton, of the 18th of April, remarked, that "the government of the United States must be convinced that it is more honourable to acquit fairly a debt contracted during war under the pressure of necessity, than to evade its payment, by endeavouring to brand the character of an honest man." When the letter containing this offensive language was received, M. Pouissin was not at Washington, and a message was immediately sent requiring his presence. After an interview with the Secretary, he withdrew the letter and expunged the offensive matter. It was believed that the usual friendly understanding between the French embassy and the government was restored,

but on the 12th of May, M. Pouissin, commenced another correspondence with the Secretary of State, which has resulted in an open rupThe facts that led to this unfortunate difference are substantially

as follows:

During the Mexican war, Commander Carpender, in command of the sloop-of-war Truxton, forming part of the United States blockading squadron off the harbor of Vera Cruz, was called upon by the captain of the French barque Eugenie, to rescue her from shipwreck, as she had struck upon a reef. After strenuous and laborious exertions, on the part of himself and his crew, he succeeded in doing so, and presented to the captain of the Eugenie his claim for the legal amount of salvage. The captain refused to pay it, and Commander Carpender thereupon restored the vessel, which he had detained from the time of effecting her rescue but thirty hours-abandoning his claim. His conduct in the matter elicited the decided approbation of Mr. Clifford, the American Minister, to whom it was afterwards submitted. It had also been officially approved by Mr. Mason, late Secretary of the Navy. The French captain, however, complained of the treatment to which he and his vessel had been subjected by the detention, and the French Minister addressed a note to the Secretary of State, in which, after narrating the circumstances, he proceeded to say that the Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, requested him to address to the cabinet of Washington the most serious observations on the abuse of authority committed by this officer, in illegally detaining the ship Eugenie. He concluded his note with the following remark: "You will easily comprehend, Mr. Secretary of State, how important it is that such occurrences should not be repeated, and that severe blame, at least, should be laid on those who thus considered themselves empowered to substitute arbitrary measures for justice; and, I doubt not, that you will, without delay, give satisfaction to the just complaints of the French republic." This note, unaccompanied as it was by any testimony to justify the charge against Commander Carpender, was promptly referred to the Navy Department, for the purpose of ascertaining the facts on which his condemnation was demanded.

A detailed statement of the whole case was transmitted from the Secretary of the Navy, in which the conduct of Commander Carpender was justified, and the Secretary of State, in transmitting to M. Pouissin the explanations of that officer, expressed the hope "that they would remove any misapprehension which might exist on the part of the French government, relative to his conduct on the occasion in question."

The explanations were not satisfactory to the French Minister, who, without submitting the case as it then stood to his government, took the matter into his own hands, and passed sentence of condemnation upon the officer and the government of the United States.

He concludes his disrespectful answer, of the 30th May, to Mr. Clayton in these words:

"I called on the cabinet at Washington, Mr. Secretary of State, in the name of the French government, to address a severe reproof to that officer of the American navy, in order that the error which he has committed, on a point involving the dignity of your national marine, might not be repeated hereafter.

"From your answer, Mr. Secretary of State, I am unfortunately induced to believe that your government subscribes to the strange doctrines professed by Commander Carpender, of the war steamer Iris; and I have only to protest, in the name of my government, against these doctrines."

On the receipt of this letter, the President directed Mr. Clayton to transmit the whole correspondence to Mr. Rush, the American ambassador at Paris, to be communicated to the French government. The answer of M. Tocqueville, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, was entirely unsatisfactory to the government at Washington; and the President thereupon caused M. Pouissin to be notified, by the Secretary of State, that the government of the United States would hold "no further correspondence with him as the Minister of France;" but "that due attention would be cheerfully given to any communication from the government of France, affecting the interests of our respective republics, which may reach the department through any other channel."

Amongst the documents printed in this number will be found so much of the correspondence, published by the government, as will suffice to possess our readers of the whole subject matter in controversy. It is not generally believed that there was any premeditated design on the part of France or its Minister to insult this government; and it is hoped that the friendly intercourse between the two governments will speedily be restored.

Congress, at its last session, for the purpose of having the census (of 1850) more carefully and accurately taken than it has hitherto been, appointed a Census Board, consisting of the Secretary of State, the Attorney General and the Postmaster General, who were required to prepare forms and schedules for the enumeration of the inhabitants, and also for "collecting in statistical tables, under proper heads, such information as to mines, agriculture, commerce, manufactures, education, and other topics," as would exhibit a full view of the pursuits, industry, education, and resources of the country; with a proviso "that the number of inquiries, exclusive of the enumeration, should not exceed one hundred.”

For the better execution of this duty, so important to the legislator, the statesman, the political economist, and the philosopher, the Board have, by printed circulars, invited the suggestions of individuals relative to the general objects of the Board, and to the particular circumstances of the individual States. With the advantage of this co-operation, and of a more deliberate preparation than was likely to be given

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