Alexandria gazette, commercial and political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1812-1817, 1813-04-07
MASSACHUSETTS tfeIsIArusE'
House of RetreseatatiDes.
CREPoR7-coNTINuED

lars of the places of birth or residence
sc. of the seamen, which are 60 essen
dial to determine the fact whether the
applicants were .Americans,'or not VI
the 1856 cases contained in the report
last mentioned, about l2I6 have no ae !
sianation of the towns * states to WINCH
the seamen belonged, the time ana pisee
of impressment, SC. and only inc o44
remaining cases are accompanies WIZ
these particulars. 1t should be ooserV
ed, further, that this list is entities oy
the Secretary ofState, +" A list OF ANE-
RIcAN seamen and citizens VINO haso
been smhressed and held in bondage IN
MS Britannia maiesty's ships OF vars
This very title is calculated to misl aa'
it purports to be list OF persons M
dressed and held on eoard British shlPs'
yet in many of the cases 1t appears .ha'
The men voluntarily entered into the bFl-
fish service and received bounty x pay
The list is also given as list ct .dmer'-
cans yc, in vast number OF cases tbs
men acknowledged themselves to DC
Eoglishnen, Irishmen, or other subjects
of Great Britain. Further many OF the
men, it appears, had entered into frenc"
privatecrs, and were taken In the ser
vice of the enemies of Great Britain
Some, tho taken from american mer-
chant ships, were the subjects OF Den
mark OF other nations at war with Great
Britain. Some acknowledged the names
in their projections were not their
true names; others had projections
that did not correspond with their per-
sons. Some had projections that were
forged or altered. Many OF the seanlen
were taken from English merchant ships
and no suggestion is made that they had
not entered Voluntarily.
= Your committee will make but one
other remark on these documents. The
secretary of state, in his report last mem
toned; observes, that there Is reason
to believe that no precise or accurate
view Is nov or ever can be exhibited OF
the names, or the number ct our sea-
men, who are impressed into, and de-
tanned ia the BRITISH service" and that
"'it is equally impossible from the want
of precise returns to make an accurate
report of the names or number OF cltl.
zsns of the United States, who have
been compelled to onter into the French
service, or are held in captivity under
the authority Of that government, who
Their taken from vessels captured on the
high seas, or seized in rivers, ports or
harbors; the names of a few only, great
~ below the number believed To be SO
detained, being within the knowledge
of this department. A detail is there
fore not attempted with respect to this
part of the call of the house Of repre-
sentatlves."
Why the secretary ofstate thought it
proper to give " detail" Of British i'm
prsssments, and to withhold a detail
of French impressnerts or fetsntlons,
under such circumstances, it Is not the
part Of your committee to determine.
From this examination it wa. appa
rest that these Official documents were
SO uncertain and nnssti,tao tpsv, that lite
tie reliance could DO placed On ,hem.-
Il became necessary, therefore, to resort
to other evidence and meme appeared
TO your comMIttee To promise SO salts
factory result ~ the testimony OF eml
nent merchants and experienced ship
masters Of some of the principal sea-
ports OF this state /; men, whs from their
professional, as we'll a. local knowledge
must be acquainted with the case of i'm
pressments from their own vessels, and
their own towns. Your committee &C.
cordingly, undor the order Of the house,
authorizing them to send for persons
and papers. summoned great number
of merchants and snip masters, without
distinction of party, from Boston, Salem,
Marb!ehead, Portland, and other sea-
ports, which, all together, owsed vast
proportion OF the whole shipping of this
eommonw cath. They also examined
some OF the custom bGuse officers, and
also made enquiries of experienced off
GERS Of tho navy. The united testimony
of these witnesses (Which will be found
in The dispositions hereto annexed, mum
bered from to 81, and which your
committee request may be considered
as part of their reporD forms body OF
evidence, from which highly important
and interesting results have been obtain.
ed, some of which your COMMITTEES beg
leave here to offer to the consideration
Of this house.
1t appeers from the dspositions Of the
merchants who were examined, & who
have been engaged in commerce and
navigation for ten, fifteen and twenty
years past. that the whole number of
seamen they have together employed
upon an average for the last twelve or
fifteen years (deducting tAe period Of
the embargo) amounts 10 about 1860,
annually-whtcb for fifteen wears, would