fieldston american reader volume i – fall 2007 - Ethical Culture ...

Viewpoints of the Mexican WarThe following are textbook excerpts examining the causes ofthe war between Mexico and the United States often referredto as the Mexican War by American historians. Considerhow the American textbook excerpts differ in content, toneand emphasis from the Mexican textbook excerpts. Thenexamine the primary source quotations that follow. Whatdo the textbook excerpts and the primary source quotationsindicate about the causes of the Mexican War? What do thetextbook excerpts indicate about history and the difficultiesone encounters in trying to understand the past?American Textbooks:“Many Americans in Mexico had lost their property or hadbeen injured because the Mexican government could not keeporder. Mexico had paid some of the claims of these Americansbut stopped such payments when Texas was admitted to theUnion. That event brought the two nations to the verge of war.The people of Texas declared that their territory extended asfar south and west as the Rio Grande. The region which theyhad actually settled, however, was not so large. As soon asTexas entered the Union, the United States sent an army underGeneral Zachary Taylor to take up a position on the northbank of the Rio Grande with orders to hold the country forthe United States.Meanwhile, President Polk developed a plan he thought wouldsolve the whole matter to the satisfaction of both Mexico andthe United States. Polk knew that the vast region which nowincludes California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah,and part of Colorado contained very few Mexicans, althoughit was part of Mexican soil.... There seemed little chance thatMexico would be able to fill it with settlers. Polk offered tobuy that broad and almost empty country for a good priceand also to relieve Mexico from paying any more of oldclaims of Americans against the [Mexican] government. Thegovernment of Mexico, though poor, was too proud to sell.The Mexicans refused even to listen to Polk’s plan. Meanwhile,some Mexican soldiers crossed to the North side of the RioGrande, and a fight occurred between some of them and someof Taylor’s troops. This fight brought on the Mexican War.”— Casner and Gabriel, Exploring American History“The trouble lay in the question, where is the boundary betweenMexico and Texas? Mexico said that it was on the Nueces River;Texas said that it was the Rio Grande.... The space between theriver was almost uninhabited.... Although Mexico had somejustification for her claim, so also had Texas. President Polksent Zachary Taylor with American troops clear down to theRio Grande; that is to the farthest edge of the disputed area.A fight resulted between American and Mexican troops. ThenPresident Polk sent a message to Congress saying that Mexicansoldiers had invaded American territory and killed Americantroops on American soil. He asked Congress to declare war onMexico.”— Tryon, Lingley, Morehouse, The American People andNationMexican Textbooks:“The prosperous development of the American Union furtherencouraged the... acquisition of larger territory. The North-Americans succeeded in getting Florida, Louisiana and Oregonwith but little effort. However, the rich, fertile and extensiveprovince of Texas excited their greediness. The governmentmade itself the agency of these desires and first proposed toSpain and then to Mexico to purchase that territory.These offers having been rejected, the American governmentresorted to a more perfidious policy. It defended the insurrectionof the settlers [of Texas] against the Mexican government....Texas, having made itself free... the United States annexed it insuch an outrageous manner that our minister in Washington,Don Manuel E. Gorostiza, asked for his passport and left theUnited States.The Congress of the United States approved this scandalousrobbery of land, and the government, not yet satisfied, gave theterritory further extension by asserting that the Rio Bravo wasits boundary. By means of this brutal stratagem, supported bymight, they wished to make people believe that Mexico was theassaulter while she was being mutilated contrary to al rights.For this reason war was declared.... A treaty was enteredinto on February 2, 1848, by virtue of which Mexico cededto the United States, Texas, Upper California, New Mexico,and the northern parts of the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila,and Tamaulipas. Mexico received in return fifteen milliondollars....Mexico lost in this war a third of her territory.... This richacquisition of the United States is not going to erase the blot ofiniquity which has been written into the pages of her historyby this invasion.”— Prieto, Lessons in National History (translated fromSpanish)“The result of that war was lamentable not only for our countrybut also lamentable for the reputation of the Americans. Thedespoliation which we suffered was qualified as a real robberyeven by citizens of that country.... [Wars] cost, also, much271