The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1841-12-16

sent of the Secretary of the Navy obedience TO an
act OF Congress passed 7,h February 1919, entitled
act TO alter and amend the several acts Tor estab
fishing Navy Department by adding thereto Board
of Commissioners" This compilation, commonly
called the Blue Book, is i'll practically in force and,
together with the act of 1900, constitutes the only
system of rules and regulations for the government OF
the Navy.
By the act establishing the Board of Navy Commits.
sioners it is provided " that the said Board Of Com
missoners by and with the consent of the Secretary
of the Navy be, and hereby authorized, 10 pre-
pare such rules and regulations shall be necessary
for securing uniformity in the several classes at ,es-
sells and their equipments and for repairing and rei.-
ting them and for securing responsibility IN The sub
ordinate officers and agents. which regulations, when
approved by the President OF the United States shall
be respected and obeyed until altered and revoked
by the same authority and the said rules and regula
tons thus prepared and approved, shall be laid before
Congress at their next session.. Whether or not
the Blue Book which derives its authority from this
law alone ever approved by the President of the
United States laid before Congress- have no
means OF asceraning. The probability is tina, it
not approved, the book itself contains evidence
upon the subject. But, even if both these formal
lies were observed, il is altogether clear TO my mind
that the commissioners acted without authority in pre-
scrbng many OF the rules and regulations contained
IN that book.
The obvious intention of the act of Congress is to
make the Navy Commissioners the ministerial agents
of the Secretary of the Navy, for certain purposes.
he has no authority TO employ any other agents for
those purposes Among other things, 1t Ii their duty,
under the second section of the act by and with the
consent OF the Secretary of the Navy TO prepare such
rules and regulations shall be necessary" in the
execution al the specific duties therein assigned TO
them, and Ion securing responsibility in the subordl-
nate officers and agents employed in those duties.
There is nothing the terms of The act and nothing
in It's plain purpose and intention, to authorize the
Commissioners to prepare general code of rules and
ID he If he
were strictly confined TO the purposes mentioned in the
act, TO wit, securing uniformity in the several
classes OF vessels and their equipments and repairing
and renting them. For these purposes and for no
other, they had authority 10 PREPARE by and with the
consent OF the Secretary of the Navy, such rules and
regulations as they might deem proper and as ne
cessary incident OF this authority TO prepare add-
'onal rules for securing responsibility in their subor-
dlnate agents. .Gt
That this is the true meaning of the act of Con
gIess Is 80 apparent hat deem II wholly unnecessary
To enter into critical examination in order to
prove IL. .t.+t
But the Blue Book is not confined to these objects
IL contains great variety of rules and regulations ap
plying To every department Of naval duty and TO
cry officer and man connected with the naval service.
II Is designed general code of rules and regula
tons for the government Of the navy and SUCH it
u universally received, and daily acted on.
Under this code, thus questionable in its authority
and altogether insufficient in ITSELF the navy has been
governed for twentythree years There Is, intrulh
no law upon the subect-no obligatory rule whatever
except what is found in the act of 1900 and that is
altogether imperfect and inadequate.
This subject was brought before Congress in 1882
law was passed in that year authorizing the Presi-
dent TO constitute board of naval officers, be
posed of the Navy Commissioners and two post Cap
tans, whose duty it should be "wth the aid and as
slsance of the Attorney General carefully to revise
the rules and regulations governing the naval service
with the view to adapt them to the present and future
exigencies of the service which rules and regua-
tlons, when approved by him and sanctioned by Con
gress should have the force OF law and stand in lieu
Of all others heretofore enacted " The Board thus
convened in November of the same year.
In November 1883 they submitted the result of their
labors to the Secretary Of the Navy and the 23d
of the following month the rules and regulations thus
prepared were approved by The President of the UNI
ted States, and submitted 10 Congress. On the 7th
February, 1884 the chairman of the Naval Commit
tee OF the House of Representatives moved that 000
copies be printed which was directed
the following day On the lst May, 1884, the Pre-
sident submitted to Congress proposals for
amending the present laws in relation the naval
service" Whether or not these the same pro-
posals which he had previously submitted wiz. the
23d December 1889 am not informed, is it of
any Importance in itself The probability is that
amendment Of the rules originally prepared was
presented in May, 1884 On the 9Th of the same
month, the chairman of the Naval Committee of the
House OF Representatives reported resolution for the
printing Of 1000 additional copies Of the amended
rules and regulations for the government of the Ma
Wy. No further action was had upon the subject and
Congress adjourned on the 30th of the following
month.
From this statement it appears that this important
subject has been before Congress since the year
1882 and that nothing efecual has yet been done to
accomplish the object of the act of that year Soon
after the appointment ofMr. Paulding Secretary Of
the Navy, he took the subject up and urged il with
TpaI W. he ofl
other duties upon the Board that it impossible for
them To attend to the revision of the naval code, as
Mr. paulding desired until December 1910 On the
10Th of February lS4l they submitted their report to
the Secretary of the Navy, who approved thereof but
did not lay 1t before Congress, the of 1882 d
rected Neither this done at the called session OF
May last have now the honor to lay this report
before you, and to ask that it be submitted to Con
gress.
cannot recommend the approval of these rules and
regulations believe them to be objectionable in ma
ny important respects and, the further action of
congress in regard To them is necessary, recommend
hat they be again submitted to revision. would re-
specially suggest that the preparation of rules and
yulaons for the government of dHclasSes and grades
n the Navy ought not to be entrusted to any one of
hem exclusively mixed commission embracing
he civil well as the military departments of service
you'd it is believed be best qualified to adapt to ev ~
part ofhe service the proper laws and rules for the
row nment and regulation of it, Such commission
nlRHt VIII vi tHt now easily
epoitto Congress in time for its action during the
present session.
The evils resulting from The want of proper naval
ode of the serious character and will ii not
emeeied, ultimately ruin the naval service of our
country What can be expected of a community of
men, living together under circumstances tending to
constant excitement and collisions with no fixed law
o govern them, and where rank and station are
mperiecty defned1 The necessary consequence OF +
such state of things must be disputes contests dsor
Ter, and confusion Sometimes unauthorized power
will be assumed, and at other times lawful authority
will be disobeyed. 1t is impossible that wholesome
discipline prevail in this uncertain condition OF
official rank and authority The same uncertainty
prevails in regard to punishments. The unbounded
altitude Of discretion allowed to courts martial in
his respect is of most evil consequence and calls +
oudy for correction 1t invites to the indulgence OF