The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1807-11-24

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5;rccffrr i.fo h,scsdSst"
| hr. RaaG9ibb bsi;sye;i .ha, the onipon which
he had iuit fcad @ou'd bear him fully ont in the
farinciplrs which lie had laid dowu veftcriav rs
tho'e on which the Old wing or republican nil
norityin Congrefs had acted. on which they had
iipecIfically as we'll as virtually pledged them
| lelves 70 the nation 70 continue tn act, and
which when they deferted, they defsrved the
rcprobation of every honee mind Can any
man pretend To fay that the wettern iniurreSti-
on. in the very infancy of this government, pre-
tented cafe of LET'S public exiecncy than the
capture of thu Cheiapcake And vet the then
Prefident of the u. s. for having illegally de
travrd the expence of that expedition, infead
OF convoking the legislature and acting under it's
authority, had deiervedly received the couture :;
not OF the multitude, for they were with him
hnt of the ing few. lie was condemns d
by The rejecting part of the community and
The fytem on which he aeted, and which his
iucceHor had fuhfequentiy puhed to the mott
extravagant lengths, was kua!ly arreaed by the
public voice. t.sH
In preceding part of his work (page roy the
Secretary pafles fomc tleferved hrittures on the
practice of mincling appropriations. " The
appropriations heretofore made for the military
ehabihment have been fUhdivided into num-
Der ofteparate heads making fpecihc and diftinSt
appropriations for the pay of the army, for its
fubiiaence, for clothing, Sc. and it was fup
pofed thatthe neutrality-suspicious.,
were respectively applied to the fpeci6c objects,
!orwhich they were appropriated. II howe
yer appears by letter from the Secretary of
the Treafury of May 7e6, that by far the great
eft part of the expenditures for the military de-
partment are found by experience to be unfit.
ceptible of that particular diar5ution which is
obferved III the ifiues of monies appropriated to
other objects and that appropriations for mill
taly purpoies ough. 20 be confdered as gener-
al grant of iuch iums the public tervice is
found TO require to be itiued according to ext
gencies, and applied and accounted for purfu.
ant to law" The Houfe will recoleSt that at
this time we had not that other department.
which has iince proved yet more unExitrotibie of
any economical regulation, or legal control
The Secretary ofthe Treafury goes on to fay
=" II would fem that, if thofe appropriations
are coniidered by. the treaiury department., as
general, of which grants, TO be ilued according
20 s%igencies, thai or !orae other ,xscu,ive de-
partment is to Judge, and if, therefore, the mo-
MES specifically appropriated to one head of
iervice are applied to another head, they are not
applied and accounted for puruant, but con-
trary to law. Such mode is undoubtedly liza
hle to great abuies it deceyes the legiHature
who, when appropriatng one hundred thouf.
and dollars for the defeniive protection Of the
frontiers, did not think that the treafury would
aiume power to apply them to the quarter
matter or any other department. 1t deprives
the legislature from any control, not only over
the ditribution Of the monies amonglt the ir-
veral heads of fervice, but even over the total
fun to be expended. For the million and
halt OF dollars, appropriated for the annual fu D
port OF Tx thoutand men, the nominal eilabIiitt-
ment may be fpent in the fame time, and in fact
has actually been expended within IL months
for the $500 men who contributed the effective
Establishment. The fame abuie has, for con-
ildera6le time, prevailed in England, where il
has, at ieveral periods. been taken notice of,
and did lately produce motion of inpeach-
ment againft the minifers.
:" On the other hand it is impofiibie, for the
Legislature to forefee, in all its detaic, the nece
fairy application of monies /; and . reafoDable
diicreton ihould be allowed to the proper exc
cutive department. The mott proper way
would perhaps be, not to enter into 10 mary
details, not to make fpecifc appropriations Tor
every 6iitiptt head of iervicc, but to divide the
general appropriation under few general heads
only, allowing thereby a fufficient latitude to
the executive officers of government, but con-
fning them ftrictly,in the expenditure under
each OF thoie general heads, to the fun appro-
priated by law"
The two cafes noticed by Mr.. Galla;iu, were
the minel ling or Jumping of appropriations, and
the expenditure OF money on objects authorized
by law, but for which there was no appropria-
ton. The preieut cafe not only embraced
tnoie two, but another, and much itronger cafe
than any which Mr.. Gallatu had imagined -
tie expenditure Of nioncy not only qUisbout an nb
prcpriafion, but nPom 09jed5 not previoyQy aHtbo-
rijtd6 Lazu.
But Mr.. X fdid it was aiIerted that the art;-
cies were not paid for-that contracts only had
been made for them. So much the worfe. In
point of principle, there was no difference be-
tween contracting an illegal debt, and making
an Illegal diiburiement Of money. Bat in point
of economy, there was great difference againh
the former. If theie articles had been bought
with CaIh, they would have cof lefs. Mer-
chants all over the world looked TO broft.
Would they deliver upon contract to be paid
fome months hence, provided Congrefs aporoy-
ed, their faItpetic, for innance, at cath PRICE
ar time too CT imminent danger of war, and
when every article of military equipment muft
be expected to rife enormously IN value He
could not fee in tuch procedure Granting the
fact to be 70, of which however he doubted)a
theme for eulogy on the economy of men in
Office, or any mari; of promptitude TO provide
for the public defence, which could be done ef-
fetluaIly by the legllature alone.
He put il to the candor of the gentleman
from Maryland to fay whethe., If the Prelident
had puriued different courie, had met the pub
lie expectation and convened CoDgrefs, he could
not have found in the refpet fhewn by the Ex-
ecutve for TIC laws, and the constitutional rights
of that Houie, by a prompt recurrence to the
only fource OF legitimate authority, a more rea-