It is to be hoped that Her Britannic Majesty's Government will, upon a review of all the circumstances stated in these dispatches, adopt more efficient measures for the suppression of the trade, which she has so long attempted to put down, with, as yet, so little success, and more consonant with the original policy of restoring the captured African to his home.

JOHN TYLER.



WASHINGTON, February 21, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

I transmit to the Senate, for its consideration with a view to ratification, a treaty of peace, friendship, navigation, and commerce between the United States and the Republic of New Granada, signed at Bogota on the 20th of December last. A copy of the papers on file in the Department of State relating to the treaty is also herewith communicated, for the information of the Senate.

JOHN TYLER.



WASHINGTON, February 21, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

I herewith transmit to the Senate, in answer to their resolution of the 14th instant, a report of the Secretary of State, with the accompanying papers.[145]

JOHN TYLER.

[Footnote 145: Instructions to Hon. Caleb Cushing, commissioner to China and envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to the Court of China, etc.]



WASHINGTON, February 21, 1845.

To the House of Representatives of the United States:

In compliance with your resolution of the 23d January last, asking information "if any, and what, officers of the United States have been guilty of embezzlement of public money since the 19th August, 1841, and, further, whether such officers have been criminally prosecuted for such embezzlement, and, if not, that the reasons why they have not been so prosecuted be communicated," I herewith transmit letters from the Secretaries of the Treasury, War, and Navy Departments and the Postmaster-General, and from various heads of bureaus, from which it will be seen that no case of embezzlement by any person holding office under the Government is known to have occurred since the 19th August, 1841, unless exceptions are to be found in the cases of the postmaster at Tompkinsville, Ky., who was instantly removed from office, and all papers necessary for his prosecution were transmitted to the United States district attorney, and John Flanagan, superintendent of lead mines of the Upper Mississippi, who was also removed, and whose place of residence, as will be seen by the letter of the head of the Ordnance Bureau, has been, and still is, unknown.

JOHN TYLER.



WASHINGTON, February 24, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

I herewith communicate to the Senate, for its consideration, a convention concluded by the minister of the United States at Berlin with the Kingdom of Bavaria, dated on the 21st day of January, 1845, for the mutual abolition of the droit d'aubaine and taxes on emigration between that Government and the United States, and also a copy of a dispatch from the minister explanatory of the sixth article of the same.

JOHN TYLER.



WASHINGTON, February 26, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

I transmit herewith a communication from the Secretary of the Treasury, inclosing reports from the Commissioner of the General Land Office, dated the 25th instant, and accompanying papers, in compliance with your resolution of the 17th instant, asking for information relative to reservations of mineral lands in the State of Illinois south of the base line and west of the third principal meridian.

JOHN TYLER.



WASHINGTON, February 26, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

I herewith communicate a dispatch recently received, and an extract from one of a prior date, from our minister at Mexico, which I deem it important to lay confidentially before the Senate.

JOHN TYLER.



WASHINGTON, February 26, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

In compliance with the resolution of the Senate of the 3d instant, I herewith transmit the information[146] called for.

JOHN TYLER.

[Footnote 146: Operations of the United States squadron on the west coast of Africa, the growth, condition, and influence of the American colonies there, and the nature, extent, and progress of the commerce of the United States with the same.]



WASHINGTON, February 26, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

I herewith transmit to the Senate, for its approval, an additional article to the treaty of extradition between the United States and France of the 9th of November, 1843. It will be found to contain the amendments suggested by the resolution of the Senate of the 15th of June last.

JOHN TYLER.



WASHINGTON, February 28, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

I transmit herewith to the Senate, in answer to its resolution of the 17th instant, a report[147] from the Secretary of State, together with the copies of papers therein referred to.

JOHN TYLER.

[Footnote 147: Relating to redress from the British Government for the illegal capture of the fishing schooner Argus and other American vessels engaged in the fisheries, under a pretended infraction of the convention of October 20, 1818.]



VETO MESSAGE.

WASHINGTON, February 20, 1845.

To the Senate of the United States:

I herewith return the bill entitled "An act relating to revenue cutters and steamers," with the following objections to its becoming a law:

The Executive has found it necessary and esteemed it important to the public interests to direct the building of two revenue boats, to be propelled by wind or steam, as occasion may require—the one for the coast of Georgia and the other for Mobile Bay, to be used as dispatch vessels if necessary. The models have been furnished by the Navy Department and side wheels have been ordered, as being best tested and least liable to failure. The one boat is directed to be built at Richmond, Va., the other at Pittsburg, Pa., and contracts have been regularly entered into for their construction. The contractors have made and are making all necessary arrangements in procuring materials and sites for building, etc., and have doubtless been at considerable expense in the necessary preparations for completing their engagements. It was no part of the intention of the Senate in originating the bill, I am well convinced, to violate the sanctity of contracts regularly entered into by the Government. The language of the act, nevertheless, is of a character to produce in all probability that effect. Its language is "that no revenue cutter or revenue steamer shall hereafter be built (excepting such as are now in the course of building or equipment) nor purchased unless an appropriation be first made by law therefor." The building of the two cutters under contract can not be said properly to have commenced, although preparations have been made for building; but even if the construction be ambiguous, it is better that all ambiguity should be removed and thus the hazard of violating the pledged faith of the country be removed along with it.

I am free to confess that, existing contracts being guarded and protected, the law to operate in futuro would be regarded as both proper and wise.

With these objections, I return the bill to the House in which it originated for its final constitutional action.

JOHN TYLER.



PROCLAMATION.

[From Senate Journal, Twenty-eighth Congress, second session, p. 271.]

WASHINGTON, January 8, 1845.

To the Senators of the United States, respectively.

SIR: Objects interesting to the United States requiring that the Senate should be in session on Tuesday, the 4th of March next, to receive and act upon such communications as may be made to it on the part of the Executive, your attendance in the Senate Chamber, in this city, on that day at 10 o'clock in the forenoon is accordingly requested.

JOHN TYLER.

THE END