the 16th of September, 1844. Mr. Calhoun, then Secretary
of State, in the letter enclosing the commission, says:

"'The state of things in Texas is such as to require that the
place (Charge d'Affaires) should be filled without delay, and
to select him who, under all circumstances, may be thought best
calculated to bring to a successful decision the great question
of annexation pending before the two countries. After full
deliberation, you have been selected as that individual; and I
do trust, my dear sir, that you will not decline the
appointment, however great may be the personal sacrifice of
accepting. That great question must be decided in the next
three or four months; and whether it shall be favorable or not,
will depend on him who shall fill the mission now tendered you.
I need not tell you how much depends on its decision for weal
or woe to our country, and perhaps the whole continent. It is
sufficient to say that, viewed in all its consequences, it is
one of the first magnitude; and that it gives an importance to
the mission at this time, that raises it to the level with the
highest in the gift of the Government.

"Assuming, therefore, that you will not decline the
appointment, unless some insuperable difficulty should
interpose, and in order to avoid delay, a commission is
herewith transmitted, without the formality of waiting your
acceptance, with all the necessary papers.'"

President Polk, after this, confided an important and most critical
foreign negotiation to Major Donelson; and his estimate of the prudence,
discretion, and ability with which Major Donelson discharged his trust,
appears from a letter to Major D. from the Hon. John Y. Mason,
President Polk's Secretary of War, dated August 7th, 1845. From that
letter, complimentary from beginning to end, we copy only this portion:

"The services which you have rendered your country in the
delicate negotiations intrusted to you, are justly appreciated.
_Your prudence, discretion, and ability have inspired the
President with a confidence which would make him feel much more
at ease if that delicate task could be in your hands._

"It gives me great pleasure to assure you that _the publication
of your official correspondence will give you a most enviable
reputation for the highest qualities of a statesm