Alexandria daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1803-1808, 1807-11-25
MINUTES.
..Welnesdau, Nggem5er 1s.

number CT merchants OF the city OF New
3 York, stating, that owing to the ambiguity Of
-sshe laY respecting the impertatian of copper,
some differepce had taken place among the
collectors of revenue, and praying that the
law may be amended. Refeiredto the COM
Tnittee Of commerce and manufactures.
Mr.. Holmes said he was instructed by tie
committee Of claims to move that they be
discharged from the further consideration of
several petitions and claims for compensation
for services rendered during the revolutionary
war, and to move that they be referredto a
comraittce appointed on claims barred by acts
of limitation, &c, Agreed.
Mr.. Quiney said the house might have OBJ
served that in the message of thepresident Of
the y. S. to congress, delivered on the 9th
of October, there was an express reference
to a certain proclamation interdictisg our
ports and llarbors to British armed vessels. Il
was in Great Britain, he understood, an u,.i-
versal parliamentary rule that proclamations
of this kind should be laid before the paria-
ment; and In this country it had heretofore
been the usual practice. In the case of the
proclamation of neutrality issued by president
Washington, in 1898, in his first commuili-
cation to congress, he laid it before them, and
il was entered on the journals. Circumstan-
ces of however great notoriety, werenot Off
cial information on which they could act bat,
were it SO, he had not been able to find it in
any papers he could procure. He had ex-
pected it would have been connected with the
report O. the committee on expressions; but,
as il was net yet before The house, he moved
tho following resolution:
Rescued, That the president Of the U. S.
be requested 20 cause to be laid before this
house a copy of his proclamation mterdicting
our harbors and waters to British arnAed YES
sells, Sc. referred to in his message of the
9Th Of October last.
Mr., Crozaninstield could not see any neces-
sity for calling for this paper. He well re-
collected that the president had issued pro-
CARNATIONS sn other subjects which. had never
been laid before the house. That issued in
the case Of captail Whitby commanding an
armed ship of Great Britain, had not bean
transmitted to the house; so, III the case q
the famous conspiracy Of Mr.. Burr, pre-
clamation was issued 1T The time, and not
laid before the house, nor had the hotsse tho't
necessary to call for these papers. They
were before the public, and every member of
the house must have perused them. Mr.. c.
wished his colleague to shew some necessity
for the present cali; for he could see none.
The practice which had taken place in other
countries was Elot to govern them; he might
IS well have drawn precedent from the
practice Of France, Germany, CT any ether
country as from Britain. Besides, he doubted
whether it was the practice there: twas well
known that under that government the king
and council legislated in variety OF instanc-
es. The citizens of this country had suffe ed
severely by these measures. They legislated
FOR peutrals In this way, and property to an.
immense amount had been taken from cur
merchants under these orders, and MIR, c. did
no; know dat theiracs in such cases had been
laid before the parliament or even called for.
He should, however, have no objection to the
call in this instance, but that ne saw 10 neces-
sity for it. The gentleman might perhaps
not have seen the proclamation but it was
we'll known that it had been published in al
most all the papers in the union. It first APP
peared.in a paper. Of this city, and he presurn
ed was copied from that paper into the others
Ee had ne doubt but the proclamation would
be communicated, or any other paper that
might be called for.
Mr.. .Elsto1y Said, It was certainly very i'm
material whether the resolution was adopted
6rHot; but it was certainly causing conside-
rablc trouble for nothing to submit such re-.
solution TO the house. The gentleman might
have laid his hands on it in any paper publish
cd IN the union. Did that gentleman receive
an official copy of The proclamation for con-.
vcnins Congress at this time? Ifhe dix, Mr..
A. said he had an advantage over him for
he saw the proclamation in the newspapers,
and came Oh IN consequence !; andiftkere had
been any proclamation issued, Mr. G. could
have found 1t in thc.newspapers, Ike had an
objection to the resolution because it WAS co.
ing out Of the way; be had never before
known an instance Of cali uron the president