Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1813-01-18
MONDAY, JANUARY IS, 1918.
CONGlsESS.
HOUSE OF re AUTHORIZATIONS
January ..
DEBATE ON THE My 4P1fj,f PyJT
(coNr1Nrrnl

CONTINUED
MIR Clay second, the motion cf VIZ Macon
to strike out one year ard insert i've as the
| term on enllss'nsnt He said az army ought 10
be seasoned before it was carried into tgie field
We nave heard much sand, observed he about
Sickness IN your army much OF The sicknrss
some tune ago 1t New Orleans and much l.ie-
yoi the sickness at plattsburgh. Hsve Won
! yer heard OF AN army ON earth thet was Carried
mo the field bstoge it had been seasoned in
inc camp 1t must, to be good Tor any ding,
nc hfst disciplined iii camp, aus become inll.
req TO the mode OF living anS,tiIc iDrc oy Sd.
Iiers. twill take some time 10 season men to
me change IN their mode of living which mu.t
take place on going INFO camp. IL viii take a
| year 20 prepare them tor the field. Without
discipiiae they w,il be useless. Your seanen.
are brave and successful because they know
what they go to sea for Take ab,ndsman on
board a ship, and what sort of sailor win he
make Such rs the French have On board their
vessels. we take no man into the navy but
VINO understands his business AND tie purpose
Tor which nc goes there; and we sec the effects
OF it. DO not wish il understood, sir. ! vote
against the bill, that am opposed to the war.
NO, SIR; 1T IS righteous war, into which, go
with hand and heart. We may differ about the
mode, but that is all. speak from experience
more than from any thing else. Lc, Us raise
sufficient army to serve during the war; he il
long or short. 1t is absurd TO suppose we
snail not succeed in our cnteprize against the
enemys provinces. We have the Canadas as
| m'lch under our command as she has the ocean
and the way TO conquer her on the ocean is to
drive her from the land. i am not ior stopping
at Quebec or any 'Who re else but would take
the whole continent from them, and ask them
| no fAvors. Her fleets cannot then rendezvous
nj haiitax rs now, and having no place of resort
IN the North, cannot iIfest our coast IS they
nave lately done. 1t is as easy 20 conquer them
| on tie land, As their whole navy could CON
! quer ours on the ocean. As TO coping wi;h
them at sea, we cannot do It We can annov
! them, hat not meet them CD the open sea
would meet them and hurt them, however,
where we can. We must take the continent
from them. l wish never To see a peace till
we DO God has given Us thsa power AID the
means; We are to blame il we 10 not use them
| II we get the continent, she must al low us the
freedom OF the sea. hope, sir, the amend
ment OF my friend from North Carolina, going
1 10 make this army efficient, NAV be adopted
Mi tieasants sad before The question was
taken, he wished TO submit lew reasons why
he was opposed TO The amendment. The queS-
Ton before the House, ii he correctly under
| stood II, was not, What were Lhc best mat erials
"a "i'~i ~ -stiStlic1- MN for
the War, for i've years, or for lNeeiec noni hs
| but the question was, what is the kind of fore ,,
and for what length of tlDe CAN YOU raise IN
| army, to take the field at 1he earliest period ?
| hesitate not a moment, said Mr. p. to declare
that If were within the compass of our 40 iIity
| to raise an army ,Or i've years ny voting il. l
! would authorize il. Not moment should
aouht on the subject. The history ofthe world
| IS strongly in favor of such an army. But we
| perfectly know from the progress of the re-
| cruitlnS service, that we have already authori.
| zed rs many men Orthat description as we shall
| probably be able to raise This force is van
, tea 70 render tie next campaign Efficient I
| consider the bill merely as substitute for the
volunteer system heretofore pursued o. what
/ materials will this army be composed? OF
| young men ready to volunteer their services
Tor one year in the form of regulars & in nine
l ty-nlne cases ont OF hundred men will enlist
III this corps'.ho would not enlist for FIVE years
! or for the war. am sangune in the opinion
! that this measure, II now adopted, will do n
I way the deiec.s a. the present volunteer system
! and am fully Of opinion that under it a force
may be drawn into the field ready to act effici-
( entity IN the rEt campaign. / am not one of
! those, sir, notwithstanding the accounts we
| have heard Of our disasters, who despair of the
Republic. IF we turn TO history we shall find
that we have never engaged in any war in
| which we have come out better in the first
/ caElPaign than we have in this. Look ut the
J war undertaken under the auspices of General
I Washington against the indians. What was
! the history of il : We all recollect the cam
| Paign under Harmsr, and its bloody scenes.
The campaign under St Clair cannot be for
| go. ten. We then suffered defeatup upon de,eat,
disaster upon disaster in the course ofthe war,
! which WAS not terminated till the treaty Of
! C;reenvillO in 1875, though it may be said to
| have virtually terminated BY the previous de-
| feat otthe Indians under Gen. WAYNE If this
| country be wiling TO go into The contest heart
| and hand, we shall in a very short time demon
! siratc to the enemy all we want 20 convince her
| OF, that II IS IN reality her interest to be at
| peace with this country. hope, sir, the motion
TO amend the bill will not prevail. lam per-
fectly convinced that the bill as IL is will cna.
| be us TO cali valuable force into service.
| and am sanguiue in the hope that with its aid
| together with the other force we shall bave, we
may clear the continent of the enemy's domini-
! on IN ono campaign, though do not undertake
! 10 predict that we shalt
I Nj. W. CLAY said he was opposed 10 the pas.
! sage ofthc bill IN its present shape but for rea-
| sons very different from those urged bv the
| gentlemen who had last spoken (Mr MOseley
| and Mr. Gold) His objection to it was that It
| was following the unfortunate policy pursued in
/ the commencement Of the revolution, IN the
| shoTtness Of the term Of Establishments, which is
the greatest misfortune that can befal nation
! st war, in the arrangement Of its military con-
| Germs. Our first men during the revolutionary
/ war, SAID Mr g. were enlisted for six weeks
| our next Tor three months; our next for six
monthsi Ournext fUr nine months; the ncxl for
| twelve months the xtfor two years, then for
| three, and, lastly, during the war. But every
| man who west out 10 scyve under those shOt,
| cnlistments and returned, brought disgust home
with him. Some gentlemen Thought, when wal
was declared last year. that it could be rtrried
on by volunteers, and that they were TO end the
/ war directly. You see the bad policy Of this now
And 1t you pass this bill. enl8.meuts will he de