Chapter 141
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 141
Chapter Title: A Hellish Dilemma
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“The United States has declared war on Mexico!”
“Good heavens. Then what are we supposed to do?”
“What do you mean, what are we supposed to do? Let’s just use this chance to join the United States!”
“We are a proper independent nation, and you want us to abandon that status to become one of them? You people have not a speck of pride.”
The Republic of Texas, which had long debated whether to join the Union or maintain its independence after breaking away from Mexico, was now faced with an unprecedented dilemma.
The sudden outbreak of war made it difficult to keep up with events, but the die had already been cast.
Immediately following the United States’ declaration of war, Mexico had declared war in return, and the Republic of Texas, suddenly caught in the middle, had to choose its position quickly.
Of course, given the circumstances, it wasn't difficult for anyone to predict which side the Republic of Texas would choose.
After all, a significant number of the Republic of Texas’s residents were Anglo settlers from the United States.
It was safe to say from the beginning that there was no possibility they would side with Mexico over joining the Union.
“How about we just open the way for the United States army and stay out of this war?”
“If we do that, Mexico will lose the war nine times out of ten, and at that moment, our territory will be completely surrounded by the United States. How could we maintain our independence in such a state? That’s no different from just saying we should join the Union.”
“Then what do you suggest we do? The time to tell them both to cool their heads and not fight has already passed.”
And even if they were told to hold back, it was highly unlikely those anger-management-impaired fools in the United States would listen.
After considering the various circumstances, public opinion in the Republic of Texas eventually shifted toward siding with the United States over Mexico.
After all, weren't those Mexican taco-eaters the ones who caused this war in the first place?
Just as it seemed Texas would fall smoothly into the hands of the United States.
A shocking truth that would throw the entire nation into a crucible of shock thrust its face forward without any warning.
[A War for Whom? The Ugly Truth of a War Without Justification]
[“My son only worked, dedicating his life to the United States. But in an instant, he’s been branded a traitor bought by Mexico!” The tears of a parent who lost their child. Were the Hounds truly slave hunters who took bribes from Mexico?]
[The Evidence Was Fabricated. Journal Detailing the Schedule of the Massive Slave Hunting Organization, the Hounds, Discovered!]
At first, people thought some money-grubbing, idiotic newspapers were committing suicide.
No matter how you looked at it, with a declaration of war already made, spouting nonsense that the state had committed fraud would surely bring down the stern judgment of public authority.
But strangely, instead of subsiding, these bizarre rumors burned ever more fiercely with each passing day.
The reason was that the one who presented such irrefutable evidence was a member of the nation's House of Representatives.
The revelation that this mad war was ultimately a conspiracy for the South's expansion of power plunged the political world of the United States into deep chaos once again.
‘Your Highness, is it alright to hand this information over to them? We could choose to just bury it for the sake of the nation’s interests.’
‘Anyone else might, but not Lincoln. Not simply because he is a moral man, but because he will judge that this fabrication, which will permanently tarnish the prestige of the United States, is more harmful to the national interest than the outcome of a fleeting war.’
The belongings of a member of the slave-hunting group, the Hounds, passed through the hands of the Pinkerton Detective Agency to James's NBA, and from there, into the hands of Lincoln.
And Lincoln, who discovered a journal in which all the schedules and plans of the Hounds were recorded, could not contain his rage and publicly exposed the material in Congress.
“Mr. President! Acting Governor of Virginia! Please provide an explanation for this material!”
“Now, now, what explanation? How long do you intend to cling to a matter that is already concluded?”
“It is not a concluded matter, but one that begins now! At this very moment. Look at this material. Not a single part of it matches the data released by the Acting Governor of Virginia!”
“Then what are you trying to claim? Are you suggesting that all the evidence presented by the government was fabricated?” “It is not a suggestion, but an objective fact. If the material I am presenting now is false, then provide an explanation!”
But of course, the White House remained silent, maintaining its silence as if determined to simply steamroll the controversy.
At first, even the congressmen who had criticized Lincoln, thinking, ‘That crazy bastard Lincoln is pulling some stunt to build his reputation,’ or ‘The war has already started, he should just shut his mouth,’ began to feel puzzled.
Looking at the material, it seemed that what Lincoln was saying was right.
Then what on earth was the data presented by the Acting Governor of Virginia and the White House?
The situation was such that a cross-verification would inevitably show that one of the two was lying.
The question then was who was telling the truth, and making the comparison was a waste of time.
“These items were recovered from the body of a Hound member who died in Canada. Although there are parts torn by a bullet graze, it does not significantly hinder the confirmation of the contents. It details from whom they received the request in the state of Virginia, what route they took, and the entire reason and process for why they crossed the Canadian border, all written in great detail.”
“But even if they had taken bribes from Mexico, would there have been any reason to write that down?”
“Does it not state that the very reason they crossed the Canadian border was because they had obtained information that a group of slaves who had escaped from Virginia had passed through the North and entered Ontario! And it also states where they obtained that information. It was from the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, which is currently expanding its scale throughout the United States. I have already inquired with the detective agency whether the Hounds had indeed requested such information, and I have received confirmation that they conducted an investigation for a fee and provided the information!”
If the Hounds bought information from the detective agency and crossed the border into Ontario based on that, then the government's story becomes a blatant lie.
Until now, the government had been claiming that Mexico had issued a directive to cross into Ontario to provoke the British Empire and had distributed bribes.
“Of course, the detective agency said they had no idea they would actually cross the border and attack a Canadian town. But if the information about Ontario came from a detective agency on the United States’ side, then the claim that Mexico singled out that region and incited the Hounds is fundamentally untenable, is it not!”
The cornered government side hastily offered a rebuttal, but knowing that nothing they said about the content would stick, they attacked from another angle.
“Congressman Lincoln, where on earth did you get that information! Could it be that you too were instigated by anti-government forces?”
“Instigated? From the moment this incident occurred, I have been continuously striving to have the bodies of our United States citizens who died in Canada repatriated. No matter that they crossed the border and committed a crime, the fact that they are citizens of our United States does not change. But the government dismissed them as traitors who had been bought by Mexico and made no effort whatsoever! So I did it instead. But seeing this journal found on their bodies, I think I understand why the government was so passive about repatriating the bodies.”
As the situation escalated, even the Northern congressmen who had supported the war began to lean toward the opinion that a fact-finding investigation should be conducted.
At the same time, a rumor began to circulate in D.C. and in the far-off Republic of Texas.
That the United States had concocted this conspiracy to wage war with Mexico and easily absorb Texas.
Texas was a region predominantly populated by people with a particularly strong rebellious streak, even among those from the United States who would go left if told to go right.
They were a bunch of contrarians who declared independence when Mexico told them to behave, and whose pro-annexation faction gained strength when the great powers told them not to join the Union.
With such a mess erupting in such a place, how would public opinion change?
-The annexation of Texas into the Union is to be postponed indefinitely until the United States thoroughly investigates this incident and provides a satisfactory response.
We have no intention of siding with the United States in this war, so get lost.
The United States commander, Zachary Taylor, and his army, who were attempting to pass through Texas to the Rio Grande, thus found themselves stuck with nowhere to go at the very start of the war.
* * *
-As expected, Lincoln has exposed the whole truth. The White House is currently in a state of paralysis. Northern congressmen have risen up, demanding a fact-finding investigation now, while Southern congressmen are countering, criticizing it as a treasonous act that harms the national interest by diverting attention elsewhere when a war has already begun.
-The escape of slaves from the South is proceeding successfully. More than 2,300 slaves have succeeded in a mass exodus from Virginia, South Carolina, and Mississippi, and some say they will remain behind to start riots. If this incident escalates into a large-scale slave rebellion, it seems the South will find it difficult to avoid chaos.
Hmm. It's a complete mess.
Even though it's my own doing, everything is proceeding flawlessly.
In the North, the Northern congressmen, having completely seized the initiative, are beating the Southern side like a punching bag, and the already battered South is in a state of having belatedly discovered that their own backyard is on fire.
Under normal circumstances, they would have immediately dispatched the army to suppress it, but what to do now?
A significant portion of the Southern army is already tied down near Texas and New Mexico.
Even the fleet, which was supposed to devastate the Mexican coast and carry out an amphibious landing at the start of the war, was now in limbo, unable to move one way or the other as it monitored the situation.
The commanders in the field must be feeling like they could die.
They had charged forward bravely when ordered to fight, but now that their home base is crumbling, would they have any will to continue the fight?
But the war had already broken out, and the Mexican army did not miss this opportunity.
Since Texas had officially stated it would not cooperate with America, Mexico concentrated its forces only near Arizona and New Mexico and splendidly defeated the wavering United States army... or not.
As I had repeatedly emphasized to James and Pinkerton, Mexico was currently something at the level of a pseudo-state that could hardly be called a proper country.
Even for an America that was showing an unbelievably disgraceful performance after starting a war, the difference in weight class with Mexico was too great.
Still, the United States army could not push back the ragtag Mexican forces and continue its advance.
How could their feet move westward when they kept hearing that slaves were escaping and starting riots in their own home base, the South?
With public opinion in the North already unsettling, it was inevitable that talk of simply turning the army around and going back would emerge.
However, since the war had already started, they couldn't just go back because they wanted to, and no matter how ragtag, the Mexican army, armed with firearms, was eagerly watching for a chance to attack.
While the United States, caught in a situation where it could neither advance nor retreat, fell into confusion, I steadily carried out my existing plans.
“Governor-General, looking at the situation, it seems the war could become protracted. Shouldn't we take preemptive measures to protect our own people?”
“Preemptive measures, you say…?”
“Right now, there is a region where Mexico, the United States, and our British Dominion of Canada all meet, isn't there? I'm talking about the Oregon region. I hear that a significant number of our citizens have settled and are living in Oregon, and with the current atmosphere, I am concerned that our citizens may be caught in the flames of war.”
“As expected of Your Highness. The citizens will be deeply moved by your benevolent heart, which worries even for the well-being of the colony.”
“At any other time, it might be different, but Her Majesty the Queen is currently staying in Canada. Even if it is a colony, giving the impression that we cannot protect the well-being of our citizens is a grave matter that could tarnish the prestige of the British Empire. What are your thoughts?”
What was there to think about?
The Governor-General immediately nodded and his eyes swept over the massive map of North America.
“Your Highness is absolutely right. I will immediately dispatch a portion of the standing army and organize militias in various places to send to Oregon. If we firmly establish security in the Oregon area, our citizens will be able to return to their livelihoods with peace of mind.”
“Please do so. Ah, and I have sent a letter to Parliament, so a reply should arrive soon. When it does, we may have to move the army in earnest, so please complete the necessary preparations.”
“Preparations in earnest, you mean…?”
“Looking at how things are unfolding, there is a high probability that the United States intended to pin all the blame on Mexico and then use us in their territorial expansion plans. If they have committed such a despicable act, they must naturally pay the price. I have already summoned him, so Ambassador Everett should be rushing over here as we speak.”
If we were to actually wage war, our own costs would be high, but from America's perspective, if we, holding the perfect justification, were to so much as poke them, they would have no choice but to bow their heads in terror.
If they were to fight a two-front war in the current situation, they could suffer a defeat so disastrous that they would have to cede territory not just to the British Empire, but even to the likes of Mexico.
First, I'll start the negotiations with the basic premise that they hand over all disputed territories in the west to us.
And if they refuse, what will happen?
What else? As the price for daring to touch our Queen, the world's strongest Royal Navy will be deployed.
If you don't want your entire coastline reduced to rubble, you'd better think carefully.