Through this essay Thomas Corwin is stating his opposition to President Polk's
adamant propaganda of "manifest destiny." Corwin points out that stealing Mexican land
would only create domestic desputes back in the United States between slave-holding
states and non save-holding states. Corwin states that the acquisition of new land would
lead to desputes about weather of not the new land should be deemed slave territory or
free territory and weather or not slavery would be permitted in its boarders. These
statements act as a eerie forecast of the disputes which will lay the plot for the Civil War
that comes two decades latter. Corwin, being a republican was greatly disturbed by the
fact that with the acquisition of new land would bring about the option of carrying the
immoral and inhumane act of slavery into the newly acquired territories. Corwin states that
a proclamation of war on Mexico would be a direct act of treason against the United
States. Because the offspring would lead to much civil conflict and further risk blood shed
on the domestic home front. Corwin expresses a sympathetic view of Mexico, by stating
that the land is just a part of Mexican heritage as Washington D.C. or New York is to the
United States. Corwin points out that it is the invasion of U.S. troops into Mexico which
has caused war, and proposes that a retreat of all U.S. troops stationed on the Mexican
borders would restore peace to out nation and prevent further blood shed over this
Rhetorical Question: "Have you not room enough in your own county to bury your
Parallelisms: "But this same America goes into a sister republic, and says to poor, weak
Mexico, "Give up your territory, you are unworthy to possess it..." England might as
well, in the circumstances I have described, have come and demanded of us, "Give up the
Atlantic slope-give up this trifling territory fr...