Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1843-12-12
TwENTY-EsGur,l coNCREss--Fir,ts Session
Doeamtnts accompanying the Presideats Message.


DOea,neats accompanying tie President's Message.
REPORT or rue SECRETARY Of TIE NAVY
NAVY DEPARTMENT, Nov -, 1915
Sir. Rave the honor 1, present Ia yoa the ANIMAL
Repor, Of the coud ani operations Of this Depart
lnsnt of the pabiic sevrice.
Tie Navy a: the present time consists OF the follow
inp number and description OF vessels One ship 0!
i2O guns: ships Of the line Of 30 guns each: on
razee OF G. guns twelve % gun irisaes; one 30 gun
rgais two IL gao igats eleven first class s'aops oil
war 81 guns each; three y gun sloops; live 10 gun
soops two sloops for ships, gnrs each. There
are four class sonps thu stocks neuriy ready
for launching Eleven 10 gun briggs and schooners;
three ditto used store ships, and one for receiving
vessel a, Charleston The steamship MISSES ppi Of IL
guns the Fulton OF guns, the PRINCETON ericsson :
propel!er) Of u .unS, s Union old guns, (wi;h Hun
ters submerged Wheels tine Polnsett Of gGas, ana
on IRON steamer, the Michigan of guns nearly read,
to launch on Lake Enc. There kewIsc four
email scloone:s employed packe.s receiving
vessels IL all, sevcniy-sIx vesses o. the various de-
sc.,e,lons
Tae Washington, 90 gun ship, has been broken Up
the las: year, and The ifgat- ucson un repair.
The sloop Concord, Il guns, los, in the Mozam-
bique channel, on the Eastern coast Of Africa on Tho
"a of Oc.ohe7 lc.2 The Commander, Wm Boernm,
the purss7, b F. Hart, and James Davis, ordinary
seaman, were drowned while crossing tae bar a. he
mouth Of Loranso RIVER, IN the Captain $ gig Tn
Surviving officers aud crew conveyed vessel
chartered the purPcsa, II Rio Janslo and thence
TO the u. States.
reare, to report that thu schooner Gfamnns has not
been heard from since h- iith Of March last, when
she was If Charleston. $ e. and IS supposed 10 haze
been lost, wiki all minds, in Of tie gales
which occurred about tlGt time
have also The unpleasant duty Of reporting the loss
OF the steamship Missouri The lrtELta departed ear
" in August, for the purpose Of conveying The Com
missioner for China, the Hon. Caleb Cushing 10 Alex
andra, in Egypt, q. route 10 the Court oil Pskin.-
While she laying in the hatbor of Gibraltar, into
which port she hsd for the purpose Of replen shns
her fuel she took tire on the evening or ts Oth OF Az
gust and The exerious q! her officers and
during the trying and perious event, were unavang
IN extngushnr the anmes, and this costly ship, an
Dament 10 The Navy, entreIy destroyed. The lar
ger ratt OF her officers and !av~ reached the
S.a,es IN a shi3 chartered IN bring them home Her
commander, Capt Newton, remains. wi'I portion OF
her force 10 Secure what be- recovered from the
wreck. All the accounts of thus disaster concur IN re
presenting The officers acd crew ~ having made the
ntmcs. eSefons To exiingu Sd the linss; and that
their conduct NJ tins perlous pcTlrd hsn
plosion of the n,ayezlne momeatury expected
marked hy grea, GOODNESS and lntcpidy. Capt. New
toms ofcia report, copy Of winch Is hereto append
ed having been LAID before YOU. further ,nveste atoms
the of this loss postponed until after his
return.
The ship Franklin requiring heavy repairs hrs been
laid up at the Charleston Yard, awa'tIng f.
vorahie for prosecuting suc york. The razee
independence has been ordered 20 the yard Tor
r.
and the sloop- Yorktown, a, NV York. are I'm
dergo,ng rena,is preparatory Ia Tie b
Dolphin, al Norfolk. IS awa't'ng repairs
Inquiries instituted ea-ly in The Snmmcr 20
thu cost of building IRON steamer o! about 600
TONS ct Pnisburg, with Hunters submerged VIII, els;
and in the execution Of this plan contract was enter
ed into early October, with Messrs. Tomlnson II
Co, for building it definite price per ronnd, and
the whole cost 10 exceed, any event, S3O,O0o
with guarantee of speed at the rate of nine miles
per hour from her steam power, in smooth water
Some months since order was given to build q
small iron steamer at the Washington Navy Yard, or
Hunters plan, to be partly OF galvanized IRON; but ow
ing the heavy drafts upon the appropriation, FOL
other purposes that work IL now suspended.
Instructions also given IN April last for The
building of six slpops of Of the lrses class; twc
Of which have been launched, and tie others o.
the stocks, nearly ready for launching. The work OF
two of these has been suspended for the present II
addition 20 these sleeps the stocks there are Of h,
vessels previously named constituting part OF tn:
naval force the following the stocks, the Yer
mont and Virginia, 30 guns each at Boston the Ala
hama, 80 guns, at Portsmouth, n Hampshire; the New
York 30 gurs al Norfolk; the Saa,ee rgata, - guns
at Portsmouth, n. H.. aud the ftigats Sabine, 52 guns
at New York.
The yess,l Is niioai have been employed during ID,
past wear as fellows In the Home Squadron the
Independence, commanded by Captain Sirngham IN
I'll Nav, snd snce that tine by Captain McKeepes
the sloop Failnouth, commandedb by Commander j. Me
Intash 40 IL August, when .ic relieved bv Com
mander Il San4-; the slonp fincennos commanded
by Commander + buchanan; the soop Nauda!,a, eom
manded by Commander W J Mckinney, who 70
levsd consequence Of III he In IN September, ART
succeeded BY Commander j S Chauncey the big
Dolphin, commanded by Commander J. d Knight
who was r, leved in October by Commander II Bruce
the brig Sotners, commanded by Lieut.. }. w. West
the brig Boxer commanded by Lieutenant .. Bnllus
the brig Bain5tidgs, commanded by Lieutenant 4. r
johnson, who relieved III September, aad succeed
ed by Commander J N!lt,ison; aud the schooner Gam
pus Lieutenant A. j. Downss; the whole under ih,
command Of Commodore Charles Stewart The c'us
ing ground of this Squadron extends from the banks
Ees Homeland 10 the Amazon, and includes The
Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea
In the Mediterranean Squadron, conformatly with
previous arrangements, IN exchange OF commands has
taken place between Commodor,s Morris and Morgan
Commodore Morris sailed from the coas; Of Brazil in
the Delaware seveDty-!ouf, Captain 4 NcCauey
on the 10Th of February. s2d arrived in the Msdea
mean on the OH Of April, when he command ci the
Mediterranean Squadron WIS t-arS'ef:ed to han by
Commanders II ,tpan, and the ter sailed 10 june VITA
the Columbus seventy four Captain b Cooper for ihe
coast of Brazil. The frgate Congress, Captain 7. +
Voorhees, has been employed in Inc Mediterranean du
ring the Shes year, and Is expected to sail IN January
next for Braz u Interchange with the ff'gate Colu"-
bia Capt, F. II ShGhfct, now that station The
sloop Fairfield, Commanded by Commander a. B'gs-
ov duringu part # the year. and s;lsequeniiy hY Com
mander S. W. Downing, has also been attached to The
Mediterranean squadron This vessel wall the
United States upon the ariissi out OF The rev sloopo
war Plymouth, about 10 sail under t.e command
Of Commander IL. Henry The s.oop Piesle, Com
r:ander S. B. W itnn, having finished her cruise in
the Mediterranean, arrived al Boston the 3ls Of Az
gust and is ready again for SEQ. The sloop Lexpg
ION has been employed us tore-shp fer tbs squad
ron. Size has made one voyage with provisions and
stores, ana is her second trip.
The term Of Commodore Morriss command having
expired, Commodore Joseph Smith has been St iscied
succeed hun and tas sailed for the Mediterranean
in The new frgale Cumberland, Captain s. l.. BIeese: