Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1807-11-17

iectcd u;a.it could &c appropr;a ted to other |
purposes, If necessary
Mr.. QcINcY said, the committee would
recohect tltat IN the communication from
the President Of the u To this House, he
FIST states that he has made greater
provision oftnOse articles of military stores.
with which we were not before sufficiently
furnished; he then states that he had also
mculrred some expenses, uupr0vided for,
tor gna-6oGiS. Mr.. q. understood by the
communicated from the Treasury and Ma
~ Departments, thar the present appro.
prlation WAS for extraordinary expenses
incurred for the Navy, other than those
which come under the general name OF nil
litaTy stores, and not including those OK
penscs for g,m-bosts He asked of the
chairman Of the commute OF Ways and
Means. merely for information, whether
these extraordinary expenses were those
which the President Alluded to? Whether
expenses, not produced to the House, were
not yet behind the cGrta;n? Whether they
were the whole expenses that had been in
Cured
] Mr.. Wv. CAMPBELL said, he could on
! ~ answer TO the gentieman's euau:r,es,
that, as the message ron the President OF
\ the Z. y. had Informed the House that
! Certain extraordinary expenses had been
| incurred. and that estimates wouid be laid
before them; and as such estimates had
bcen laid Before the House, The committee
had cnncciS ed ;Aat these expenses were
the same as those mentioned by the Pre-
sident, and acted upon them under n AZ
impression They had no information be-
fore them from which ;iIey could MORN
the House whether there were uthcr ex-
pend lures made. and tley haS not enquir,
ed whether thc message had reference Il
any othcr
MIR. QUINCY hoped the committee would
excuse him, II he proposed another QucS-
ton. The committee would perceive that
IN the documents accompanying the bill,
there was a statement Of articles said tc
be purchaeed. He wished 10 kaow Of the
committee % ways anA means, whether, In
the common sense oc the world these ar:i.
oleS were actually purchased and paid for
or only contracted Cor If purchased and
pald tcr, cut OF what mon;cs the payment
had been made Whether out Of The Pub.
lc Treasury, from the private resources
OF che Secretary of the NAVY, or from an.
preparations destined TO other objects Tie
committee would see tie direction ne wish.
ed to give to this enquiry; that the com
mittee might know before they voted this
appropriation, the course which had becr
adopted by the officers of the Navy De.
apartment.
Mr.. EppEs said, that neither nc, nor a,
, ny other member of this House, cou,d sa.
tasty all the enquiries Of tie gentleman
from Massachusetts. Al the expenses
provided toT5y this law were nct au,hori.
lsed by existing laws. Uaslcr th.. c:itraor.
binary circumstances which had occurred
ON the 22d of June last, at time when
the gentlemen from Massachusetts himselt
had declared that the most violent attack
which ever d:Sgr&ccd the country was
made, the Executive had the choice oftw,
courses; either immediately TO convene
the representatives of the people, or to de.
: mand PREPARATION from G, Britain As thc
last was the course pointed oct by the La W:
! and example OF nations, il was ticcsier
proper to postpone the meeting of The l..gjs.
'ature till 1T could be uscerta.npd whetha,
or not the outrage had been authorised n,
the British government. In the mean tinnf
II WAS deemed necessary to provide 10,
such eXigcucies as might Occur. Unde,
former appropriations military stores bat
been procured; but all the stores thus oil,
tanned we're found To belunr properly to thf
war Department md 9ltho' the DeDar,.
nent CT War WAS sufficiently supp led with
saltpehe, the Navy Department was nat
ana IN case OF any pressing emergency
1t would have become necessa1.y 10 rnr.
chase II at high price. Fit was ASKED
why saltPctre was purchased in preference
opowder, Ii was because it had seen found
that powder could not be preserved in ma
Ig'zines; on this account il was thouyh,
better t. purchase the ingredients for ma.
knS powder than 10 purchase the art CT,
itself, as 1t could be made IS fast as wanted
lie believed that all the other items of the
stores depended on a similar principle.
Under the existing law Of the iaod the
president WAS authorised to increase tive
marine corps TO the number of 1904: under
IPTesent circumstances lie thought propert c
exercise that power. No AUTHORIZATION
had been made for the purpose but it wa.
presumed that if The law provided the pow.
er Of increasing this corps, it intended thai
they should be supported and clothed.
! as TO timber, the same reasoning would
apply. IL was thought essential 10 make
preparations to guard our Gegenccless ports.
and 20 prevent our cities from being burn
Ior destroyed. With n view tothis purpose
1t was thought proper; 10 procure a quanti-
ty OF timber for gun boats and in order 10
ienable lhe legis ture to give such form
to the preparations for the defence of orr
Iharbors as they should think fix, the timber
was 50 selected as to suit any purpose. And
1t il sh"uld not BE- necessary To make t,se ~
this timber, il was well known that it could
be sold without loss.
| There bad beenno other expenses incur.
7 eco e e 4.