546
WRITINGS OF SAM HOUSTON, 184,7
Moses stood on the top of a mountain to witness the battle, with Aaren and Hur. And it came to pass that [when] Moses held up his hand that Israel prevailed, and when he let down his hand Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands became heavy, and they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side and the other on the other side, and his hands were steady to the going down of the sun. And Joshua discomfited Amelek and his people with the edge of the sword. So should we uphold the hands of our President, and smite Mexico with the edge of the sword. [Mr. Calhoun interposed to say that the administration wished to do all that it could, but that Congress alone could declare war.] The Senator from Texas said ·that those movements did more to endanger the peace of the country than the marching of General Taylor from Corpus Christi to the Rio Grande. But that movement at last produced no war. The truth was, that although there was a possibility that Mexico might interfere when the negotiations were known; although she might have a strong desire to do so, yet her condition at that time was such that she had little capacity to make any war, and his impression was, that if we had stood on the defensive-if we had maintained Texas as we found Texas, there -would have been no danger of wa,r. That was his impression. And on that impression he had all along acted. He would not go into this subject; but the Senator had said that the line he proposed was an extensive one, and that it would take ten thousand men for its maintenance. But he supposed there was a part of that line which would require no considerable defence. A brief conversation ensued between the Senators from South Carolina and Texas, respecting that line, and the possibility of protecting it without a large force. Mr. Houston then returned to the letter of the Senator from South Carolina, when Secretary of State, to the Texan Commis- sioners, to show that his interpretation was sustained by its phraseology. He said he could not suppose that the Texan Com- missioners would have entered into negotiations without the full- est assurance of protection for Texas.in all emergencies. [Mr. Calhoun explained.] Mr. Houston desired to know whether, if Congress had ad- journed without acting upon such a message as the Senator from South Carolina had intimated the President would have sent
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