Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1809-03-17
NO. III.
TO THE PEOPLE OF VIRGINIA,
(Concludcd from our iast.)

(C0nctndc6 Prom our toSEs
When ,his cut of doors intrigue had been
going on long enough, and the minds OF the
members, presume, were supposed to be
sufficiently poisoned for the purpose, mem
Der iron the county of Cnt1effier the coen-
~ of John Strobe and Of the editors before
mentioned, rose in his place and moved that
the House should come to the following re-
solution:
WResotved, That committee be ap-
po;nsed to enquire and examine into the ST.
ruation OF the Armory Established for the
manufacturing of public arms; and that 50
much of the GovermSs communication as
relates thereto be referred to the same" =
This resolution you will find upon the
10th page Of the journals of the House OF
Delegates If the question had been put
upon this resolution, it mnsthave been car
ried in the affirmative /; and thea according
20 the forms Of proceeding in the House,
the gentleman who made the motion
must have been appointed the chairman
The chairman of the special committee is
ALWAYS the most effective member on 1t: IT
the object of the committee be'to prepare
a bill, it is he who draws the bill and re-.
ports il to the House if the object be TO
draw resolutions or To do any other special
thing, the chairman is the prime agent
he presides in the committee eontrou!s in
very great degree, by his authority, the
operations in that committee, his pen pre-.
pares the report; he brings it down and
presents it TO the House, and the whole no
nor of the transaction whatever it may BE-,
il ascribed to him. la a former lester /
called Daniel Shelley, member from
Wythe, the seif-treafed chairman OF this
committee you will now see that the epl.
thet was Justly applied That man who
had been for several years uttering oracles
against the armory, and fpretellng the in
iuries which " would inficf OH the state,
finding, now, that the plan was likely to be
borne ANY, by the memper trem CuipepPer,
X the fruits of his own sagacity gathered by
another hand, hit upon an ezpedient TO in-
tercept that member and thrust himself
in the post of homer. He moved that the
resolution, offered by the member from Gull
pepper, might lie on the table !; stating
that he himself would on the next cay offer
one upon a broader scale, end which that
member would find TO answer his own OBJ
ject more completely, perhaps, than that
which he had rendered. This was an ar
gument TO the modesty of the Membcr from
Culpepper and he accordingly gave way
I take this opportunity of saying that i'm
pute nothing Improper to this young gentle
man. He is represented to me 10 be an
honorable gentleman have no reason to
doubt it. In making the motion he did, /
believe he was led to suppose that he was
doing useful service to his country. On
the next day Mr.. Shelley, car forward
with his resolution. 1t IS in these words 4,
"ReSo!ucd, That SO much OF the Govern
or's communication as relates to the mana-
factory of arms be referred to a select COM
mttee, and that they be instructed to- en-
1ut, int No. IN Vyhfrh h. nett
ton has been conducted since its commence
ment; the amount of money appropriated
and expended the number of arms com !.
peated and the various descriptions there
OF the unwrought materials OH hand the
component parts of the arms the quantity
of arms made and to make such farther
enquiries into the state and operations Of
the said mandatory rs they may deem in
teresting to the public, and make report
thereof 10y bill or otherwise ;" this IS on the
18th page of the journals. 1, Will be OBJ
served that the resolution first offered was
a general one, the last resolution in de.
taIi but il ain correctly informed (and
from the interest which / feel in the sub.
ject, have taken no small pains to inform
myself correctly committee appointed
under the first resolution, might have en-.
tered upon the examination of every object
III NnC ldols OhCU Il icdFN Is tRt
constant habit Of committees nor do they
meet with the censure Of the House, as long
as the topic of enqnlry is connected with
the general object Of the resou,iyn Mr..
Sheffey's resolution, then. although differ.
ent IN form from that first oFere1, created
IN fact, no d iference ofpower, aud produc
ed no substantial change whatever: but il
answered Mr.. Sheffey's object for 1t placed
him IN the chair OF the committee, anC
placed in his hands the moulding Of the re.
port.
The number Of the committee first ap
pointed was thirteen. On the next day il
was agreed to enlarge the numberto TWEEN.
ty-one and on this occasion the additional
nomination was til ken in great degree ou
Of Speakers hands. 1t is proper here
TO inform you that in the preceding session
Chat of 1907 committee had been ap
pointed to examine and report upon tn,
state Of the armory; they made repor