The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1840-07-21
CONGRESS.
ARMY APPROPRIATION BILL

ARMY APPROPRIATION BILL.
The House of Representatives was engaged until
midnight with the Senates extraordinary amend
ments TO this bill
A discussion the appropriation for the out
fit Of the Charge TO Texas, which is certainly in
congruous appendage to the bill The amendment
however, was concurred in
Another debate the appropriation Of $1,000
for the outfit Of the Minister resident at CONSTANT
nople Commodore Porer) II was agreed to-
But the subject which gave rise to the most ami
mated and interesting discussion Of the evening was
the following notable and unprecedented proposition
which the Senate introduced into the bill as AN add
tional section
And be Il further enacted That in Of def
cheney of receipts of revenue from customs lands,
or other sources of failure the pan of the late
depose banks or of the Bank OF the United States
of Pennsy lvana to pay the debts due from them,
become due in the course of the present year. or II
from any other cause the means of the Treasury shall
not be sufficient to meet all the appropriations made
by Congress- the President Of the United States shall
be authorized to postpone the expenditures under the
following heads of appropriation in this act, viz For
barracks, quarters and storehouses, &c for the ma
tional armores for armament of Qualifications; for
the expenses OF the ordnance service for ord
nance stores and supplies for arsenals for repairs
and improvements at the Springfield arnory for re-
pairs and improv at the Harpers Ferry arnory
for the purchase Of satpetrc and birthstone for con
tinulng the barracks, quarters, &c. AT Fort Leaven
worth at Fort Wayne at Fort Smith, at Plattsburgh
| and at Fort Jesup or such and many of them, or
| such proportions Of each in his Judgment after
careful examination and inquiry the condition of the
| Treasury shall demand such posponemcnts TO be
merely temporary until the close of the
| of Congress, the Treasury will warrant &c
Mr.. BARNARD inquired how much the appIo
priations amounted to which the Executive thus
| allowed to postponed
| Mr.. JONES said he could not tell at the moment,
with perfect accuracy but he believed the amount to
be about 81 900, 900.
| Mr.. BARNARD then went into speech at large
in opposition to the amendment in which he discussed
the financial condition of the country. From the re-
turns of the Secretary of the Treasury he showed
expected deficit Of "a ,400,0 00-to meet which the
only provision was this postponemcnt of " 200 OOO-
And yet the Departments were calling on Congress
for appropriations to the amount Of millions.
Mr.. SALTONSTALL opposed the amendment
in speech of great force and effect He contended
that it wrong in principle, and fraught with dan
ger to the liberties of the country.
What a spectacle does this great nation, does our
| Government now exhibit How humiliatng The
| Administration have exhausted the many millions
which IN the Treasury when they came into
power. The Treasury Is empty. We have been OBJ
| liged to stop important national works upon which
vast sums had been expended and the discontnuance
OF which VIII be attended with great sacrlfce ana
loss The President informed US, in his annual mes
sage that the several departments and bureaus had
been required 10 reduce their estimates to the very low
est scale Of economy. They had been accordingly
reduced to amounts deemed to he absolutely necessary
They have been submitted to the examination
of the committee who reported bills upon the basis
of those estimates We have authorized the Govern
ment to issue five millions of Treasury notes, and
now the very close of the session. communication
| is received from the Treasury Department which my
| fri fran New York Mr. RnrnartN thinks hp has
been fortunate enough to translate but from which |
| only learn that deficit of four millions and half
may be expected And what remedy is proposed A
loan More Treasury notes No! Our great ma
tional establishments to be abandoned crippled
| The Navy, which had supposed was the last thing
which would be permitted to suffer, is to be dsman-
tied The provision which had been made in this
House, upon full consideration, for third steam ship
wsI snd a Sf Ensh House has lust eoneared in the
amendments And now, the Army bill based upon
estimates reduced To scale of expenditures demanded
by public necessypublic safety, in the opinion of
| this House--comes back to us with proviso submit
ting il to the discretion Of the President whether the
expenditures, which what portion of Them shall
be madei They necessary, in the opinion of this
House and of the Senate too, and yet the President
is to be authorized &c postpone certain heads of APP
| preparation" And what heads Barracks" !" Ar
senals, National armories," and, indeed, every
| thing important to the naval service.
Mr., s. said he hoped this nation not reduced
so low TO render such an expedicnt necessary and
he commended against it, increasing greatly Execu-
tive power and influence, and as Objectionable in ma
ny respects He would provide at for the wants
Of the Government by loan Treasury notes or in
any constitutional mode, rather than permit our great
national works-our means of defence by and by
and-to suffer, confer such power on the Execu-
| tive
! Mr. CALHOUN, Of Mass, spoke 10 SO much OF
the amendment referred to the appropriations for
the armories and pleaded in behalf of the numerous
dependent worklnen on these establishments; and
then went INTO review of the past financial history
of the Administration, and demonstrated against
placing such an enormous discretionary power in the
hands of the Executive, and Frustrating the cgisla-
tive authority at his feet The effects Of such mea-
would go throughout the whole mass of our in
erests, but would fall with peculiar weight on the
manufacturing interest.
| Mr. PROFIT commented with severity on the
course and character of the Administration accusing
them of deceit in misreprcsenting the state of the
Treasury at the commencement of the session; and
now when they found themselves utterly out of means
TO carry the Government demanding exorbitant
powers TO the President to meet the difficulty they had
created
| Mr., PROFFlT concluded a warm denunciatory
speech with yowing eternal opposition To the men in
power.
| Mr. MORGAN then went into speech on the
broken condition of the Treasury and the dsngcnu-
attempts of the Administration conceal its true
fiscal condition
Mr.. EVERETT made some remarks which, MS
usual, were mpercctly heard He commented on the
confession involved in the Senatcs amendments
The measures of the Administration had first bank
rupted the people, and then bankruped themselves ;
and here they came TO Congress with virtual admis-
sion of the fact. He opposed to the posponcmcni
oil necessary and proper expenditures the nation was
able, and did not desire such thing; but the Prcs
Dental election approaching the Administration dare
not out openly and Apply to them for the ncces
sary means. Mr.. +. advcred to the loans obtained on