The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-12-09


the Adjutant General.
II requires but slight examination Of the extern
sWe line OF frontier the southwest, at the west,
and IN the northwest, exposed TO any attack Of the
Indians which may be prompted by any uniriendly
influences or by supposed wrongs, to perceive that
our present force is scarcely adequate to afford that
protection, which, it is admitted on all hands the
Government owes TO its citizens, and especially those
who at i,s invitation have occupied its remote public
domain, and rendered IL valuable TO the whole coun
try The very nature of the service required, rem
ders the employment of mounted men Indispensable
The rapidly of their movements is the element which
gives to us the advantage in any collision with lndlans
while the same circumstance will render unnecessa.
ny the numerous and frequent posts which such
an extended line would require If foot soldiers only
were employed. IL may be affirmed that true econo-
my, well as effective service, will be promoted by
the continuance Of at least the present mounted reg
ments, reduced, as the rank and file will soon be, TO
fifty men Tor each company. Concurrng entirely In
the views Of the commanding general il is earnestly
hoped that the law which requires the dismounting of
the second regiment of Dragons the 4th of March
next, will, at least be so far modified to leave the
tune discretionary.
The regular force as now authorized by law, con-
sists of seven hundred and seventeen commissioned
officers, seventeen storekeepers, OF whom fifteen are
attached TO the Ordnance, and two to the Purchasing
Department; two hundred and fifty enlisted men for
the ordnance service, and seven thousand five hun
dred and ninety non-commissioned officers, musi-
schoolmasters, and as many ordnance sergeants as
there military posts. Clerks, forage masters and
wagon masters, are also employed in the Quarter
masters Department, from time to time, according to
the exigencies of the service. The act of August
80 1912 reduced the rank and file of the army three
thousand nine hundred and twenty men. The reduc-
ton is gradually proceeding, in the contem
plated by the act, and the excess according to the
last return, is 1870 men, 1t is supposed the pre-
scribed minimum will be reached by the beginning Of
the year lS44.
From the general returns Of the army accompa-
nying this report, il appears that the whole number
of troops now in service is nine thousand eight hun
dred and fortyseyen, consisting Of seven hundred and
eighy-one commissioned officers, nine thousand six
hundred non-commssioned officers, musicians artii-
GERS and prvates, and two hundred and forty-seven
enlisted men of ordnance. The aggregate eight
hundred and fortyseven less than the number stated
in the last annua! report.
The assertions have not been numerous, but un-
precedented number of men have been discharged by
the Judges and court, (three hundred and eighty
eight between July /, lS4l, and October 81 lS42)
principally on the ground OF their being aliens The
state of the law this subject has occasioned vari
Gus constructions perpeXiDg to the officers charged
with the duty of recruiting, embarrassing to the De-
parment, aud injurious to the Government. 1t Is
very desirable that it should be rendered precise
and definite. While the hand it is
obvious army ought not to consist OF
an undue proportion OF foreigners, yet, on the
other, the low wages offered constitute in
ducement quite insufficient to the young men of our
land, whose habits and enterprise enable them so
easily to acquire the means OF subsistence, and OF in
dependence ii not wealth, IN the cultivation OF The
soil Probably middle course would avoid all diff
culties, namely allowing those to be recruited who
are citizens who have taken the preliminary oath
and initiatory steps to naturalization.
The report Of the officer in charge of the Ordnance
Bureau exhibits the very satisfactory condition OF
that most important branch of the service. BY a
adv N
of peace, those materials which require length
of time to adapt them to use and of abrcatng those
articles which not be supplied on an emergency,
we shall soon have at our command cannon, small
arms fixed ammunition gunpowder and its compo-
nent parts, to an extent commensurate with our
wants.
By the table exhibiting the apportonment Of arms
to the several States under the act Of l-OS, for arm
ing and equpping the whole body of the militia, 1t
will be seen that notwithstanding the efforts made by
annual report, several States delinquent in the
returns of their militia AS these returns constitute
the basis Of the apportionment, the States which
fail to make them are deprived of their just proper
ton of military supplies. 1t will be that New
Jersey Delaware, Arkansas, and Louisiana have not
made returns for periods varying from twelve to
eighteen years. If the cause of these omissions be
the want of militia organization in those States 1t
may be worthy Of serious inquiry whether some mea-
sures should not be adopted to remedy the evil, by
Withholding distribution until returns are made, or
by the exercise of some ot,r power vested III Con-
gress. A reference TO the same table will show an
Extraordinary disproporion between the arms allot-
ted several States and their respective populations
Whether this arises from variant constructions of the
law in those States by which some return the num-
Der enrolled and others the number mustered or in
! spected, or from some other cause, would seem to
be worthy of an inquiry by Congress, who alone can
| supply adequate remedy.
! The state of the Treasury as this Department was
advised by the proper authority, rendered it necessa-
ry to withhold the expenditure of as much of the APP
propriations made at the last session of Congress-
could be suspended without great and manifest injury
to the public service. In reference TO the condition
of our foreign relations and the quantities Of arms,
cannon and gun carriages in possession, it SEEM
ed that such suspension could take place in the OPP
erations of the armies and arsenals with less imme-
date public injury Inconvenience than IN other de-
partmen,s Extensive repairs also became necessary
at the armores. For time, therefore, no work was
carried on at either Of them during the past season.
Labor has now, however been resumed on mod
crate scale, and instructions have been given TO COM
plete the muskets the course OF fabrication, and TO
make five hundred rifles and five hundred percussion
muskcts, each month, for the ensuing six months
The arsenals will be chiefly employed in the repairs
of arms and in the manufacture of the iron work of
gun carriages and military equipments Our supply
OF heavy cannon being very good it is not contem-
plated al present TO purchase many OF that descrip-
! ton but a sufficient number of large chambered
guns to arm our forts will be procured And in
sequence Of the adoption of the suggestion of the
Treasury Department, aforementioned, large por-
ton of the money intended for the service of the year
1912, remains unexpended; and any specific appro-
prations for the Ordnance Department for the first
six months of 1Si3, will be unnecessary.
The estimates fol the fiscal year commencing July
|, lS43, are made upon scale so reduced as to be
warranted only by the possible state of the Treasury
The usual appropriations for the ordinary objects Of
expenditure in this branch of service desirable
now as at former PERIODS and it is believed that a
mistaken economy only would dictate The continuance
Of such reduced amounts, when the condition OF the
public finances will admit of what is demanded by our
true interests.
| cannot omit to refer to the recommen dation con-
tanned in the last annual report, for national oun-
dry on limited scale, at which the qualities of iron
may be tested and a>ccrtained, and models for ord
nance may be fabricated. II is apprehended that the