Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 20.pdf/289

 FEDERAL RELATIONS OF OREGON

273

thing to hope for in any of the states or territories of this union who is not absolutely an outcast from society and deprived of all chances of maintaining a respectable standing not to move one foot towards either Oregon or Cali-

We

fornia.

have made inquiries from discreet and

intelli-

gent men who have visited both countries and they have uniformly concurred not an exception now occurs to us in representing both territories as inferior in advantages to those offered by our own state, and as representing no inducement to take any respectable man there." And those already there would be glad to get away if they could.

The Thirtieth Congress presented an example of that midadministration political change which has so often occurred in our country. Instead of a comfortable majority of DemoPolk found the House of Representatives hands of the Whigs by a small majority. The loss to the administration forces had been most serious in New York and Pennsylvania, although there had been scattering defecThis disaster Calhoun traced to tions elsewhere in the ranks. crats in both houses, in the

the "course of the Administration in reference to the

Oregon

and Mexican questions;" the Democratic party had become distracted, disheartened and divided, and the Whigs were not

much

better off. 18

How much

the

situation played a part in the conis open to question certainly it completely to the greater issues of the

Oregon

gressional elections of 1846



was subordinated Mexican war. On the whole, although the Whig party tried to make political capital by holding up as a horrible example the course of the President in the Oregon matter, it seems that a feeling of satisfaction everywhere except in parts of the West prevailed; there was satisfaction that the outcome had

been no worse. 19

Besides, the President had gotten more from Great Britain than many expected that nation to yield

without war. In considering the action of the Thirtieth Congress on the 18 Calhoun to Lewis S. Coryell, to his daughter, 21 Nov., Ibid., 713. 19 This

7

Nov., Correspondence, 709; see also letter

was the note of a speech by Webster

Works (1854)

II,

320 seq.

at Philadelphia

on Dec. zd, 1847.