The recorder, or, Lady's and gentleman's miscellany — Richmond, Va., 1802-06-23 00:00:00, page 4

-^•*ar^N.'W4ir-u*sn« MjT . . v aBXMaMfc »%»w.ivu
i vfv,.. *2 frjrtt the-hi. Valuer of f'liE Pros
ppct Befofc Us
CHAPTER X?V.
Farther specimens of
'■EDERAL ECONOMY.
On November 6th, 179s, there up-1
'r^d in the Aurora, a letter trorr*. the *'
•' c\V6 of two French veH'E', the Sanfpa
nel, and the Jaloux. They had been
c iptured by fome of our armed (hip-?,
t ie men had been confined, from
the ..oth ot September 1778, in the
dr.dd prifonof New- Caftie ' This let
* -v delcribcs their treatment and their ii
uation. nor the firft two days ot impn
iontnent* the French leamen were left
‘iml 'UT food! ' They have not,* fays
the letter, » been allowed even a bade c,
c to contain the provide? ns, which pri
* vate humanity bellowed upon them.
* A lmgle pot fetees for every fpecies
c ot veifcl for fixty men. Locked up at
‘ night, they are under the ncccftitv of
* making ufe of their hats, their limes,
their handkerchiefs, arid their Hurts; to
* contain T’tofe excretions, from which
* nature ha5 not exempted an individual
of trie animal creation. They have
* been without i iepcrate apartment
u»r the fickj nor have they been grant
ed the molt trilling r ten hi to pre
' pare or ad mini (ter to the ,'ick the few i
■ medicines which rhev ha- **: leic. They I
am totally deli itute oi warm cloathingj ’
and the naked Boor cf the room, often
‘wet, is the place wiiei-j they ,;ur, rc
‘ P°fc during the night. Men not long j
< frori a tropical climate, men long !
* cft.rangedfrom the rig >v* of i northern j
"inter, may, without being deemed I
* unreafoilable, call this treatment cruel.' j
After fuch a fampie of true federal j
numanity, v/e mould net iay much about !
tijy rnaflacres of Nantes, or the horrors
of the Jerfey prifon lbip. The cabinet
could have no peiional piryje at theft
unhappy men : and therefore, the ddigii
i.'uft have been to exafperate the French
nation beyond hi poflibility of recon
cilement, and thus to rivet upon Ameri
ca the numerous felicities of a French
>va*\ klls letters excepted, even Trenck
y .:s r. v.i'j woitreated ior his imputed
cachei*y_a? iokfter, for his inexpiable
fui^a.in * on die king of P ruff a, and
for his improper connediiorl with Frede
rick s filler 1 he French letter pro
ceeds in theft words:
1 wo ot our number have Iiterallv
■perijhidy-j* fince our confinement in this
; prifon j one died through ev///, ft
not oeing in our power to adminiiter
medicines,arid the other fell a vi ftimto
dir ft verity of die cold. Two others
c rcufthaVe paid the laft debt to natme, j
c had it not been for the humane artmi- j
tioris of the inhabitants of New-Gallic, j
‘to whom they owe their protracted j
e-xntcnce. 1 heir aebs or humanity ]
< Wire attributed by ?. pettifogger of the
lame piitcc to Jomc lurking rein urns
cp .nienaunp lor tne french; but Jus
- wickednefs was of no avail.-* The pri
foner* then relate, that the people of
New-Cattle iapplied t.hem with ck'th^s,
without which they iky that r-a:j of them
fifi have perijkcd. They add that, on
me day of writing rhis letter, they were,
lor the frill time, v if red by Mr. Robert
Hamilton, commiflary of prifoners.
* '-ey comnlan-cd to him, and vver*.- an -
Ivercd that gj-jem.-aeet ailoved us no- ;
t.s.hs. i
i .'it* .iC ufriion thus lYicihh* in tbte fn^c
of day has not been concradidfed ; and
there is complete re Aon to believe that
Ihr "'hole (nrement is llri&ly true.
, * hate*''*!* i uienuent barbarities may
nave be.-:», ':ommrrec! by the ?>Yf*ncii
bpon Amerh in prifonen/thc letter fr m ?
1 ,c w~Caft!e mult Hr it bur iips. d o -hr I
ot'c!i:.fPUc- , America : mil
tea hrrO:it lrnmealiirabiy inhehn ! lor I
redeeming our general character from I
>{.• i ‘ ifi.:t“ aegrec of iguomny and |
VOTE.
* -in merman, forne Vcan ago,
p ’blifhed memoirs of this monarch j
aHvi avers that the accufadon "Vas totally
f tlfe. 7
i: Th meaning, though imperfer)Iy
t ei'i <1 mull be that they died for
v u<i. of ne zeflaries.
»>
\
perdition. When Charles the ninth
wanted the governor of i town in France
to null acre the proteftants, he received
lor aniwer tha>. the people were brave
1 oldiers, and faithful fnbjeffs, but that
they had not among them a fingV exe
c iici yier. W hen Robefpierre ilined
an ediit/or giving no quarter to Hefli m
orj h loldi'Ts, die French armies
retufeu to comply, incite fame m::n- ■
ncr, when r ur admlnitfration attempted,
and. with fome tuecefs, to icarve then
prdonu-, the inhabitants of New-Cattle
tele, as men ought to fed, ‘ in the vene
1 cable prefence ofmifery.’ * Theie are
the gentry who forbid i.s * to bring
* them into co.ntenipr or dd repute,* un
cler a penalty of two thoufand cl -lb; s.
Tb citizen's of NeW-Caftle haac cer
c:iinly incurred the penalties of fire
years of imprifonrrent, and a fine of five
thoufand dollars, for they d;d 4 an law
fully combine or confpire together3 ro op
pofe the ftarvatinn and murder o!
French prifoners, when that me attire
was f dire tted by proper atAkority.' j
fn Iyrj2, William Duer Was
engaged as commiflary, for fuppFinp
thr army of general Sf. Clair. On May
okh. 1792, a report on this affair was
ma le by a committee of Con refs,
i t£ 1 he defathing for the levies,’^ fays
the report f appears to have been of a
yrry inferior q :a!by, particularly coats,
f hats, and fhoes, rhe lift of which, in
1 '7an>r 1 aft cl not more thrui four
‘ UV'( ^ K( peafed complaints were
' I7J,dc of ratal miflnanagements and nc
* gain chi quarter-matter, and mrlita
' v\ ft*>r s department, particularly as to
1 tvnrs, ;c nap lacks, camp-kettles, cart
* rit*gr-bo::es, pack-fadules, &c. &c. all
01 wfleh articles were deficient m
quantity, and bad in quattry.
1. he pack-faddles, , particularly
^7 ' f^r'c;c >n I’hiladelynia, which with
tt]C tiJnfportation amounted to more
* 'iC:{6- tbe 'price at which they
; ^Vlcat have b?fcn procured a? Fo.’t
t ltr> llnd were found upon txarrdni
‘ i.l0n» co bc unfit for ufe. The arms fent
‘ forward appeared nor to have been dti
, T examined,and arrived at Fort Pitt ex
t 11 out °‘. °-'^er> ahd rrianv, totally
* :'fJ“j°r ufe' ^ wo oompL te tray dim «
^for-es were fent forward, and vdch
f examination, both ofthem were found
t-j be ‘wirbou! an anvil! Many other
uimgs equally neccfiary were either ]
* wholly omitted, or unfit for their in- *
L< i - led life. X lie re were fix hundred
c ai7‘ ^. 'enty- f ve f and of arms at Fort
W •linngton, fine ot June, I1791]
•;5‘u rr>°^ of rherri totally out of repair, i
l tie contracvors for fuppiies, agreeably
co the terms of contract, were to f r
, nd“ *wnes, &c. for rbe tranfportction
' o: nie iiXppbes. In this condition of
- tne contract, there was a total failure,
t ,l ne private.-; of tin- levies received
* but ti. ye 'oltars py -each, from the
: ' -"’r enliftn c nr, td the time
f tneir rclpeclive difchargcs, and
'hc
* ther pay or fettlernent. Notes ofd’if*
‘ charge were given them. The notes
re fold for trifling confideratioris,
1 at TC2i nuns due or.' the notes were
' various, from ten to twenty live dof
<]*rs\ aR“ they were frequently fold
‘ l°y fi7,/c dollar., or one gallon of whif
fy*’ There fs a great deal more to
£hc frime purpofe. The very com
mrncenient of the o impels betrayed the
utmoll inconfifrcncv and. needtohicd.
Alexander f lamdron originally0 con
uafltd for (applies with Theodofius
P oulcr, who Qtrnd feeuWty for the fut
f 11 ienr of hnr bargain to the amount of
it»i iiuHv!ieel thotiiinrl doli. i j, d 11 at onre
the trui[ w.w, transferred to the km
vV-)!*; ,i Duer, r wretch of the rroft
abandoned cbaracdh, and who has frc
qt-f'irly been diftinguihed by the .m- A
iation of the Kiv* of villains ! l rom
this outcaft, no fecurity was required,
and the bond which lie gr lted contain
'd penalcy of no more than four rhou
fand dolfnr J* On ti'.is hopeful e:<pt li- j
tnn, the report fays that five hundred
and (evemy-five thoufand dollars had
N'Vfg.
* Stern#:.
I Vid. The .’Edition AO:.
been ifluedj and from the fample whfch
we have feen„ it appears likely that one
half or two-thirds of the whole fu:n was
pillaged, The weffern expedition pVe
fen ted a iimiiar lcene, and of this Yoet
tiie refufai co produce an accompt of
die charges affords a figtr leant attefca
tion, *
In this way your money is managed
in every department of acim’niffrarion.
In rlu* depl arable event of a French or
BrFilh war, forty or an hundred millions
ut dollars .per annum are fure to be
wienched from your lungers, and the
p-"tof that 'urn will undoubted
ly be embe dded by a thoufand official
nurpies. W ar is always a vortex of rob
be;y, p.s well as of daughter; and this is
one 01 the principal veafons why ft ate i
men are commonly fo ford ofit.
I s\ (1. In Ins report to cong'refs of
Dcceml.v.r, 17th, 1790, Mr. Wblcott |
mentions that the collection of t!ie af
! v of t\v ^ millions of dollars was
orig.ua:!^ expected to cofl one hundred
ri-ty fiiouland dollars; bur. that two
hundred and fifteen thoufand dollars
ttddllior.al J are found ncctfiaryf and,
after all, it turns out that ho niore than
twelve hundred thoufand doMars [j can
be (craped together in the c jurffe of the
prer nt year. Thus we Hi,ill colleCt
twelve hundred thoufand dollars at an
expence-of three hundred and ilxty-five
thoufand. The charge of collecting
this latter ium from the pockets of the
people vms probably quite as large in
proportion to ics amount.
d he real charge will
then Hand thus:" F)jHs.
F01 collecting the
a defied rax, ~ ...
i r>r collecting the money
wnich was paid for collecting
it, at tiie rate (if thirty per
cent.
If tbefe twelve hundred '9}5C0
thoufand dollars had been
fullered to remain in the
hands of their owners, they
would, bpon a medium, have
produced a clear profit of at
leait twelve per cent per an
num, Tins, upon the whole
fumi extends for one year to 144)Coo
^ota* 618,500
Tne refill c is that the collefticn of the
ant'{fed tax, for the prefent year, will
coH more than ?h ty rm< cjjwt of the
whole fums which can be colle&ed
This is much worfe, more prodKal!
more ruinous and frantic than evenin'*
*&* t*'*** l>*l~ The latter, rherefore,
dm not defervc t..2t peculiar degree oi
reprobation, \vh:ch has been railed
againft it.
The import-is sot ra’fetf upoit much
fietter terms. Pnt the cafe that p whole
lale merchant imports a yard of cloth
which is Valued at four dollars: and th r
he pay- twelve and an half per cent
thac i -tor pity half a -dolfc*r as in,poll!
»ut in felling out this cloth to his enfto
ipers, he mult, in n- re jirfticc to h;n
fell, charge foraeching beyond the 'net
”■* f d°iiar*. -n this rr-aimer, goods
often pals through two of three h'nds,
while every one lays an additional tas,
before they reach the ultimate coniu
mer; %vh° muft fi-cqt/cntly pay ih fact!
doli "• or , r<‘b!“ the nominal amount of
tne impoft. Thus the co Me ft ion of a
duty, although it {hall anparently coft
bin ten per cent, for cuftom houfe ofh
cers, may very ofren rife in effect, £0
thirty, fifty, or an hundred percent; or
poflibly ro much more. Some years
¥?-\fn exCdc was kdd upon American
coders, at lea ft in this ftafe, infhnclv
raie.il th prK- ol their liquor in a vaft
ly great'-proportion than the vhoh
amount of the durv. A fimilar caufr
irnqireftioRably produces the fame ef
'■ Vi:!* &C
t y; 30.
, t 'bids immenfe undercharge pro^s
?>y tJ,e u*v, die habitual 'accuracy of
tiwm* previous ellimates. The act of
1 ‘>>, 7rh, i2oo, a.Tigr.s two hundred
: and 1 ixteen ?houfand dollars fofrhr, a»
t'cie.
11 Hie bitter efrimatc I have fren in 1
ionic official document, of which I c
ftotf at prelcnt. rc ..f.der.t the to r
iccliriVtt C.ifc ofimp6:t i and if would
be null to affirm that, on a medium, it
finally colls leu to the confiatier than ad
hundred per cent additional, befidcs the
tax iclclr. 1 he exorbitant expence of
imp ;it, as here clefcrii.-ed, has more
than once been explained to the federal
representatives by General Smith ofB !
timore, one of rhe mod intelligent
fpeahers, that has ever entertained orin
* c^ a;i American cor.grefs. The
clamour c*. cited againll an eigl\t percent
ioan, as more than ufually wasteful,fervea
only to prove* that the public are unac
quainted with the practical effects fff
American taxation. It is aflurcdly bet
rer to borrow money at eight, or even
at ten per'cent, than to raife affefifed
taxes at hfty per cent, or import at ad
hundred. .
* Vleu of Virginia! This is Voiir feds*
rai government. This is that fyftern
of robbery and rapine, which Jiffs biirrt
from the bofom of your wcjimable con
tutu ion. And ir is for the guilt ofde
mo nitrating cjiat we are go verned by
ralcais, that- furrounded by riialefirtois
.mu prolto utes, t am now compiling 'Lhi *
page, ip the lfcerich and fuffocation of
a jaih . Ky fellow-citizens! Do yod
| not A. 3 the difgrace of your condition?
{ i as the blood of Europe froze iu it<5
paflage acrofs the Atlantic ? Has that
cor:vulfive effort which began with thl
• amp duty, exhauiled tiie fum total of
American animation ? Has the Tpirit of
Jcventy-ijx expired \ Or where lies the
* vifible diffinction between the tyranny
f oi die old England, and die new one ? ’
j , lAIAIMORE, 'June <{.
.f W/vx? cf a letter from a gentleman p*
Sunjbury, Penufykania, to a gentleman
this city, dated z^th May, 1S02
This morning "parted this town, four
a.^Ks from the Gentifee country; two of
which were loaded with fatted oxen, of a
vu y large fize, one with ftaves,- and the
fourth with wheat, all for the Baltimore
mai-Ket. Thefe arks belong to Colonel
V,.ku worth, who lives on a branch of the
1 *ogvi, extending about feventv miles uri
iu-.> die weftern pa; rs ot the Gencilee
country. 1 hey performed their voyage
to this place iti about three and a half
ca} a diftance by Water or three hun
dred miles. U is pleating to obfe' ve
the rapid progrefs of agriculture in that
country. Colonel Wadfworth, who has
.■>een a refident but a few vears, a fibres
ijs that he has now Kid down in the belt
—ngidn grafs, a meadow' containing
fr,'s> which lie receives yearly
j :\om 2 ro d tons of hay per acre. It
alio gives us much pleafureto think that
j cv? watc s are calculated to afford a Conv
veyance of the numerous productions of
mat country .0 your market, inftead of
m. aymg them to Albany and New
i ork; . f; To° rnbch cannot be done by
j ’ eunlylvania and Maryland to encou^
! rage and mpport this trade.’*
ks;n k'afikrfcn, Georgia, May
General Oark has received a letter
1 Oin c-ol. f-Jarisot Jackfon county,da
ted die fft.of May, cnclofrng two letters
trom Ma jor Carfon and John Me. Con
del F%*. the purport ofwhidi rs, that the
Indians have been committing fome de
predations on the frontier fettle rs, that
vn the evening of the ,3d of April, th«
Cherokees killed a child of Mr. Shel
| con’s and threw ft into the fire, and clef
I perarely wounded two others. The pa
; rents being out of the houfe, but within
, hearing oi the.children, Mr.’Shelton ran
to a neighbouring hotife for a gun, with
wmen he killed an Indian, and took his
c.tad and al.ruoft corrfumed child out r f
tne fa tries.
, ,v7‘ ^ .Alrichs, an ingenious me
Cu"' 1 j t;f Wilmington, (Del.) has in
a mode of confcruainp ejo^c
J!!hc1 P-*°mifcs robe of irttrch utility,
flocks made in his manffer, will have
o ‘ Hx wheels and oiYe p:nion, inflead of
tf-ive wheel; and fa pinions, whir.’:
t'» >1e of th» moil, firnple kind now in ufr
P*v P rom the fimplicity of their con
Itruftioir. they can be made for about
two thirds of the price or* the comment
kind-—wul keep time better, and b'
more durable. We un'derftand that Mr
A^ichs intends to apply fi r a patent fa
t <# improvement.