Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1848-08-12


Mr.. DICKEY then renewed the amendment which he had
before submitted give the President discretion increase
companies to 100 in emergencies but not TO increase the
aggregate Of our army beyond 10000.
Mr. MCKAY entered into explanations TO show that
there necessity for the amendment Of the gentleman
from Kentucky (Mr DUNCAN while the law Of the 18th Of
May ls46, remained operative He however, expressed his
willingness TO give discretion to the President increase the
rank and file of those companies that may be employed in
Oregon and the newly acquired Mexican territories 100
And that all that the Secretary Of War asked He pro
posed offer amendment In accordance with his views
Mr.. HALL, Of New York, moved 70 amend the amend
ment by striking out all thereof and inserting
Sand that the number Of pryates each Of the
companies OF the dragoon artillery infantry and mounted RI
emen Of the army of the United States shall not hereafter
exceed forytwo Provided That the President may, in his
dcreon Increase the number Of pyaes in each OF the
panies exceeding sixty which shall any time be order
ed and kept in the permanent service in the Territories
such number exceeding hundred company
he may think discreet order such transfers from and
70 the . may bs necessary for tina, p
Yates including the company OF engineers and the enlisted
men Of ordnance, at time in the service, shall not
coed 5000 men, and that the number OF and
poyes belonging to, at any time attached to the army
shall not exceed one thousand"
In explaining the grounds Of his amendment Mr. H. OBJ
served that the army it existed before the
Of the Mexican war; had consisted of 7,04O prvateshe to-
tai number being s,6l6. This amendment limited the
Der Of pvaes to 5000 Il proposed to fix the number of
men to company at foywo; but allowed the President
to increase the companies that might be employed in the
There would he fifty per prvates in the whole
army than there had been before the
The amendment of Mr. HALL was carried, on a count by
tellers-ayes rs, noes AZ.
The question being on the amendment Of Mr.. Dun
CAN, of Kentucky, amended motion of Mr. HALL, Of
New York, above stated
Mr.. DUNCAN, of Ohio, moved an amendment providing
that the officers and of the regiment of mounted rifle
who had recently returned from Mexico should on APP
plicaton, be honorably discharged. Agreed to-
Mr. GENTRY moved to amend the bill by striking out the
whole of the second section amended He said he
derstood that if this section should be stricken from the BILL
the existing law, which allows sixty men company,
would remain in force.
Mr.. TOOMBS said he was mistaken as to the law: it
raised the number of men in company TO hundred and
permitted the President to reduce that number
Mr. GENTRY said, he understood the law, it fixed the
number in company to sixty FOUR and allowed the Pesi
dent to raise it to one hundred. Voices Yes that's it,
That the law and the President in his message
commended that that be adopted the standard for peace
establishment The President recommended few things that
Mr. g. approved but this which he could and did
approve The chairman of the Committee of Ways and
Means had told the House Of the expense would
to keep up army this scale. No doubt it would
great deal of money but what do We had got
by treaty and vastly extended territories and in that
treaty we had bound ourselves protect the inhabitants from
Indian depedatons. We had promised this and must
keep faith nvoate. We should require considerable
mounted force in each of these territories The report Of the
Aduant General estimated the requisite force be kept up
at eleven thousand His estimates made the basis
Vi men 10 company WIN THIS suengtn our
army might preserve peace the frontier and in New
Mexico and California But i, out Of mistaken economy,
we should suffer ourselves get into with the Indian
tribes it wouldcost far than would have done to
make the army efficient As to using the militia and taking
volunteers pine and angulsh in garsons he utterly
opposed to it. II it great evil TO be obliged keep
SO large military force, the fault lay in the wrong policy
which had umphed in the counses Of the country and had
brought the burden OF these and useless conqess
hands But much he disapproved that policy much
ne had laboed to oppose it and deo he depored its
consequences, nothing should induce him to shrink from
the responsibility cost what would of maintaining the
good faith OF the country. He much opposed to
large standing army any could be but he would curry
favor nowhere 10y reducing military force improperly and
disabling ourselves from giving eectua protection those
had bound ourselves to defend He should be ready
vote for what he believed his country needed her duty and
her honor This army, they had been told, would cost the
country five millions of dollars year. He could help
that II we needed that number of troops, must have
hem and we must for them The old army that had
before the would not be sufficient garrison the
forts and protect the territories We have
enough to do this. As doing without military force it
was what he did not expect ill the millennium should
For one, ne wished IT would come but till then must
have army proportional to the country inhabited The
views Of his friend from Georgia (Mr. TooMBs) ultra.
radical To keep up standing army, limited extent
had been the fixed policy of this country from the days Of
Washington till now II was only skeleton army, capable
OF expansion when necessity It preserved
nucleus around which might gather greater force and
must be maintained. We were bound--we had bound
selves py ne was keeping good
faith He should therefore give his for placing the army
the footing recommended by the President and estimated
for by the War Department.
Mr.. TOOMBS said that the better reasoner a the
surer he was to wrong he started wrong Now the gen.
heman from Tennessee Mr GENTRr) wrong in his facts,
and therefore, be wrong n his argument The gentle
man talked Of our needing fifteen regiments to keep New
Mexico and California quiet when had conquered them
with three Yes, three regiments had conquered the
try, and, now conquered, three regiments amply
sufficient TO keep all the Indians quiet and the Mexcans
Mr. GENTRY said we wanted large force to all our
posts
Mr.. TOOMBS said ii was all imagination-a pure fancy
sketch Mr. T. said that FIVE thousand men were enough for
every purpose. The gentleman said it would take fifteen
thousand He might well have said fifty thousand or one
hundred thousand once, for was all fancy He had shown
documents prove it. and he might well conjecture
number another The gentleman talked about treaty
stipulation protect the people Of New Mexico and Cafor-
mia. No doubt bound protect all citizens and
not the bound because was in the treaty He merely
recognised the duty but had enough the bill stood
enough and than enough do all that The gentleman
wanted big army He said the Adutant General estimated
for eleven thousand No doubt the Adutant General wanted
big army. All officers liked big army Il was natural
they should He said in his report that the old amy-such
had before the repudiaed. II Sas not il
had been epudaed Gen. Jones wanted one hundred
thousand men, he could get them Military officers were al
ways exavagan in their notions and their acquisitions The
old army had never been repudaed There word
Of truth in L. II had been altered till this
menced. Was that 'repudiaing ii Ithad been changed
when went into this and the would show that
had cost 500 He still insisted that three thous-
and would be