Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1819-01-14


~ opposed going into committee was,
that there is a proposition on The table To
reduce The military peace establishment,
and that, until that proposition was final
~ acted on, he did noi trei himself at H.
berry 10 vote "a single cent FOR The support
OF the establishment.
Mr.. FLOYD, of Virginia. was in favor Of
taking up the bill. AS 10 the extra paw
10 soldiers, for work done on roads, fatigue.
duty done by iliem had always been paid
Tor, from The earliest date Of the govern
meni To tie present day, and the appro-
pria'ion for IL now involved no ntw prin
cipie. Asio the question OF The Seminole
War, thai, he said, ougA, 10 stand by it
sell, and net 10 interfere viii, The current
ana ordinary business Of the session
...Mr. REsD,of -siiuyisnd, said, that the
discnssinn i,ai afrea;iy proceeded far T.
n"ns:, ip Stow the propreiy of the oh
servation OF the gentleman from North
Carf1ina. .t'psoved TIA. lasger appro-
pra'lons had been made than were ne
ressary FOR The paymemt 0r The arnuv. and
that part oi the money appropriated IN
der the head of military expenditure, had
been applied To The purpose al making
roads. II appeared clearly 10 him, that
HE Gnes!lon, ON the proposition 10 reduce
The army, Dug lit 10 be first settled.
The question was then laky;i on going
INTO committee Of the whole on lie Mii
larry Appropriation Bill, and d. tided in
'he affirmative, by small majority and
the House resolved itseifinio q commit
Tee accordingly, Mr.. Nelson in The CHAIR.
Mr. CoLsTON, o!Virginia. saiI ne hop
et. that gentlemen would take np the APP
| preparation bill first, and that they wouid
not at this lime urge upon Inc committee
| the consideration OF a bin oi-so much i'm
portance as the other bill referred 10 that
| COMMITTEE, which so short time had
been allowed 10 examine.
The appropriation bili was taken up,
and, having been read through
Mr.. CLAY (SpeakeE said, that, alho
he approved eniir, Is of the course Tie
| House had pursued of iakingup the pub
Inc business OF The session, III preference
| Ia the tedious sitiin2s they bad lately
held torthc adludlcailonni private claims,
| he must confess he was somew hal sur
| prised al ihescast'ness of the Information
which he bad heard, whilst in The chair
| the chairman of the commiitee oil WAYS
| and means was able To afford TO Tie
House ON the subjects embraced in HE
bill. He had given notice, he said, YES
tcrday, 10 the gentleman, that he should
make The enquiry of him, when tins bill
came up, as 10 The amount OF money
Congress had parted with, and The amount
IL was now callrd upon TO appropriate,
Tor the purpose of making roads. 1, vas
with surprise, MIR. C.. said, he had heard
from i.ic gentleman, after this notice, thai
lie had no information on the subject.
He hoped, i,e said. fhe gentleman would
refresh lis memory, and find under what
item al Tie bill the appropriation was
pvsr IN tr,rf ,
purpose OF constructing military roads
1t was very important that the House
should have this Informaiion. II wonld
he recollecied that, at the last session.,
this great constitutional question OF The
power oil Congress 10 make internal I'M
prnvementS lad been discussed IN this
House: II would be recn!Iected that
whilst the power OF the Executive branch
oI the government Ia employ lie iabour
and money of the nation on objects uf IN
iernal improvemen had been sirenuously
maintained, the same power was as siren
uousIy denied 10 Congress. Mr.. c. said,
he had understood, that in addition tn
the Northern Road, 10 which the gentle
man had alluded, other roads, bearing the
denomination ot military roads, were
making for example, great and magni-
iicen, road, from The Tennessee river 10
Lake PonchariraiR and that over this
military road ii was proposed very soon to
march u detachment of stage coaches,
proposals having been already made 10
the post Office department TO avail itself
OF Tie services Of This new description q!
military corps. If it he the pleasure Of
This house, said Mr.. C.. 10 fold IFS arms,
and see, one by one, every power of go
yernment taken from it-i the power TO lay
taxes-io make war--;o apply The sword
and purse OF tie nation, be IT so. Bat
for his part, Mr.. C.. said, i've desired in
formation; as that which flIe House now
had was extremely unsatisfactory. He
begged Tie attention of gentlemen 10 il.
Mr.. Speaker then read The few first lines
OF Tie letter Of the Secretary of War 10
the committee o! WAYS and means--until
lie came 10 that part Of the letter speak
ing Of the documents b ing so volumi
nous rs to make II necessary TO save the
time required for copying them, to send
the originals. Documents so volumi-
Hons, MIR. G.. said, ibat Notwithstanding
the number-llow many clerks were
there in The War Department he really
could not count tl4em-they could moi be
copied. These documents, so volUmi-
| nous that they could not be copied, be-
cause there were so few clerks in the
War Department, considering that they
related TO tie expenditure of some nil
lions of dollars, afforded yet very scaniy
information. sir, said MIR. G.. upon my
| unfortunate friends, the Patriots OF South
America, we can have whole volumes,
nay, whole libraries, copied aud printed ;
| but on this very unimporiant affair, Of
! apprOprlaiing SIX or seven millions Of
| dollars, some few fragments of pa
pers are thrown into The House, and
then we are told Tie affairs of tie country
cannot go Oh, tie wheels of Tie govern