Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1835-03-12

Bill, by suspendlng the operation OF the rule,
as to the time of sending bills from House to
House, or in any other way. In this predca-
ment, individuals of the House besought the
Committee of the Senate to interfere, and in
some extraordinary way, help 10 pass the Or
dna,y appropriation through Congress. The
Senate accordingly attached the whole Mill
tary Academy appropriation bill to the bill
making provision for the Civil and Diplomat
ic Expenditures Of the year, and in this form
it passed into law; and, but for the adop-
tion Of this mode,-there could have been no
appropriation at all, and the school would
have been broken up. We may add, that
when this bill for covering Civil and Diplo-
matte Expenses went back to the House with
amendments, the occasion was eagerly seiz-
ed to add to the Senate's amendments other
amendments, respecting totally different mat
tiers, thus giving the bill tail as long as that
of comet Thus the bill, pending in the
House making provision for the repairs Of the
Capitol and Presidents House,-improving
the public grounds-payng the Presidents
gardener, &c. &c. was tackled on to the bill,
as being among the civil and diplomatic ex-
penses Of the Government
This bill however, and we rejoice at it, had
the good fortune to pass, with all its length
thanks to the House of Representatives. the
West Point Academy, therefore, was kept a.
live.
Not SO fortunate was the other of the two
appropriation bills, TO which we have allud-
ed above The Fonifcation Bill is totally lost
Yes, in this very critical moment of affars,-
not only have no new measures of defending
the country been adopted, but the bill for the
M al al fir nt in m q
is totally lost! We can hardly credit our
selves when we write this paragraph. Yet
such is the fact; not dollar is appropriated
to Notifications, and we doubt whether it be
not the bounden duty of the President to call
the new Congress at the earliest day possi-
Bile. Certainly-most certainy-such is his
duty, if he has any reasonable apprehension
whatever of hostiltics with foreign nation.
We will state shortly the history of this
bill. 1t came from the House to the Senate
and all its provisions were agreed to by the
Senate's Committee. Various additions were
also made to it by the Committee, in pursu-
ance of communications from the War De-
partment, and reports from the Military Com
mittees Of the two Houses. Large sums were
added for the better defence OF Baltimore
Philadelphia, Boston, &c. and an additional
amount for arming all the fortifcations.-
When 1t appeared that the Department had
no other measures to recommend, the Com
mittee reported the bill, the Senate agreed to
the amendments,-a the bill was returned
to the House, with the amendments, on Tues
day, the 24th day of February.
The House did not take up the Senate's
amendments till the last day of the session.,
one whole week after the Senate had sent
them; and on that day, at half past eight o.
clock in the evening, they returned the bill
to the Senate, having agreed to some Of the
Senate's amendments, disagreed to others
and agreed to others again, t0iM amendments
ofther o,cn! The loss Of the whole bill was
finally by one of these last amendments; and
therefore we have taken pains to collect the
facts, precisely as they appear on the jour-
nails and in the proceedings.
One of the amendments, proposed by the
Senate, was the addition of the following sec
tions:
Sec. -, find be 1t further enacted-That
the sum Of seventy five thousand dollars be,
and the same is hereby appropriated, toward
the repair of the Notifications on Castle Is
land, in the harbor of Boston, according to
the plan submitted by the Board of Engineers
on the thirteenth day of March, eighteen
hundred and thirty four; the same to be paid
out Of any money in the Treasury not other
wise appropriated.
"Sec. -, find be II further enacted-That
the sum Of one hundred thousand dollars be,
and the same is hereby appropriated, out OF
any money in the Treasury not otherwise ap-
propriated, to be applied or expended under
the direction of the Secretary Of War, in i'm
proving the defences within the State of Ma
ryland.
"Sec. -, find be II further enacted-That
the Secretary of War be,-and he is hereby
authorized, to purchase six acres of land ad-
joining Fort Mcllenry, near Baltimore, being
the same rented from the heirs of the late
Philip Swartzance, and now occupied for mil
itary purposes; and that he cause the same to
be paid for from the funds appropriated for
the service Of the Quartermaster's Depart
ment."
To this the House agreed, adding the fol-
lowing as an amendment, viz:
".4nd be ii, Sc. That the sum Of THREE
MILLIONS OF DOLLARS be,-and the
same Is hereby appropriated out of any mo-
ney in the Treasury, not otherwise appropri-
ated, to be expended, in whole or in part un-
der the direction of the President Of the Uni
ted States, for the military and naval service,
including fortifcations and ordnance, and in
crease of the Navy: Provided, such cxpend-
lures shall be necessary for the defence of
the country prior to the next meeting Of Con-
gress."
When this came to the Senate, the above
extraordinary section was opposed, as con-
ferring on the President unlimited military
power. 1t was said, he had asked for no
such power-the War Department had re-
commended no such appropriation-t never
had been suggested, any where, until this
late moment. 1t was urged that the section
itself was altog ether indetensible, inasmuch
as it proposed to give u vast sum into the
hands of the President, withom any specific
object, leaving it to him to use it as he might