Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 19.djvu/331

 FEDERAL RELATIONS OF OREGON 313 by the roll taken when the resolution was defeated by a vote of 28 to 18. 5 The eighteen who voted for the notice were Democrats all ; twenty- four of those voting against it were Whigs; four Democrats, Crittenden, Huger and McDuffie (S. C.), and Haywood (N. C), made up the number of opponents. Merrick of Maryland and Phelps of Vermont were both members of the special Committee on the Oregon Territory, but, as Whigs, they voted against the resolution. Of the eighteen affirmative votes five were from the North, four from the South, and the rest from the West. Six west- erners voted against the measure, both Senators from Ten- nessee and Kentucky, and one each from Indiana and Michigan. A further political aspect is seen in connection with the activity of Mr. Buchanan of Pennsylvania in supporting the resolution. Not only did he give his hearty approval to it, but he took particular pains to demonstrate the validity of the title to 54 40'. He was the only Northern Senator who took the floor in support of the resolution. One must recall, however, that the Baltimore Convention was only a few weeks off, and however slight others might think his chances, Buch- anan himself believed he was entitled to consideration as a candidate for president. Such was the result of the trial of strength on the resolu- tion for notice that the Oregon men were not anxious to press Atchison's bill, even had the Whigs been willing to allow it. The western Democrats were content to rest their cause on the stand of the Baltimore Convention and toward influencing that body they now bent all their efforts. Even Atchison stated that it was better to wait until the results of the negotia- tion were known before the matter was pressed. But the Senate desired to learn how this affair was progressing, for, in June, after the Convention had taken its stand for 54-40, a resolution requested the President to lay before the Senate confidentially "a copy of any instructions which may have been given by the Executive to the American minister in England ~, XIII, 427.