Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1822-02-15

20 authorlze the rec0nveyance of ~. .
tain tract Of land to the city Of n W. at
reported the bill with the f.liow;n..' s
mendment:
stThat the President Of the u s,...
be, and he Is hereby authorized 49,
ever he shall have determined thai u !.
tract Of land, on and near the west ~. ~ !
of the Battery, $50 called,) in the ~,
ofNew Y ork, heretofore granted to ~
United States, by the Mayor and Gu s
poration Of said City. is no longer :.
quirsd as q military position for II. 4:
fence ofthe harbor and city Of N Val
to cause the works erected thereon n !.
dismantled, and the materials theraof y
be disposed Of in such manner a. j. H. |"
Judgment the public interests NAV :. -
quire & to re- convey to the said M.v.:
and Corporation the said tract Of l,,S S
grantedby them for the purposes afors
said"
In this amendment the house concm
red; and the bill was ordered to be \,
crossed for a third reading.
Mr.. Russell from the committs. :,
Foreign Affairs, to whom was refer,.S y
the Message from the President, tran.
uniting report from the Secretarv :,
State on the case of Capt Shane, Of Il.
Ajax, made report, detailing the Al,
cumstances ofhis suffering from per,s
nal violence. in the port Of Havanna,t
concluding with the recommendatioo
that Congress take no further ord,
thereon; which report was agreed d
s(Ws shall publish it,
Mr.. Cooke rose TO submit resolut;,,
directing an inquiry into certain matt,,,
concerning the Naval Establishms.,
The resolution would point out the Oh
jscts which he had in view; but he tho,
it important that the house should ).
advised Of the reasons which ipdue,i
him to offer the resolution for consider.
ton. The act Of Congress, Mr.. C. said
directed shat the officers Of the Nav
should receive but half their month,
pay, when not under orders for ,ctuiI
service. By regulation Of the Seen
tary Of the Navy, each officer ATTACHED
to the Naval Establishment recsivu
Discriminating the law foil pay, q.
cept when on furlough. He made thl
statement from an inspection ofths o.
der itself. He viewed it as a-depsrtur
from the law-an evasion Of the Law
more reprehsnsible than a direct viola.
ton Of it-an attempt to get round the
law, such ~ should never receive biz
sanction whilst he held . seat on Thu
floor. There was another thing to
which he was desirous especially to al
the attention ofthe committee on N,w
Affairs, Wig: the plumber ofseparate Il.
tons at which officers are placed, h,r
ing the effect to increase their compes
sations, without any correspondent ser
vice being rendered. At Norfolk, fa
example, he understood there were tw
officers in independent commands, On,
in the Navy Yard, and one at the town
At Baltimore there was, he understood
another commander; and, from whatb
formation he had received, there wi
not single armed vessela that port
though there is q commander for ID
station, who receives three thousa,
dollar, year whilst living on his fsr
and not attending to any duty at al
He wished also some information n
specting the vessels on the Lakes b
understood that most of them were SUM
and none of them fit for service; us
withstanding which a number Of ud
were kept in employ to take care
these sunken vessels: and, if he was %
mistaken, the superior officer on tb
station was dubbed Commodore, ~
he were commanding squadron of"r
ed ships cruizing against an enemy
received pay accordingly. This. MtV
said, could not have been the intsnl''
of the law. He wished also an enga,7
to be made with regard to re.org'li
ing the Naval Establishment, soar
to have Secretary Of the Navy y
commissioners Of the Navy too.
friend from Kentucky had told
house, the other day, that millionia .
been saved to the government By. !ls
Commissioners. Mr.. Cooke sald
did not pretend to understand mus'
bout the subject; but he wished @s
plain what he did know. He knew
the annual expense of that Board ;.
it's Clerks, &c. had been twenty
thousand dollars per year since 'a NV
adjustment. If the Secretary o.
Navy wanted Councillors, Mr.. 80
he thought they might be obtalnsa%r
less expense than this to tho g0''
ment, sc.