The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1850-09-05

broken and his commission taken away Il he baS 'e'"
=, niL bolLEh tconilnaing). He certainly made for
money we have sanctioned his Office / do moi saw
uai TINS PHI is to rafy all the acts OF General Ksarny
q those q Commodore S'ockson but TO compensate
consequence OF his taking upon himself duty different
from that he was fret intended to fulfil as simple chap
lain ~ the navy lie did wish do H. but You com
Pehea hm 10 do Il under order, and subjected him to
great losses.
The senator from Indiana says he not compelled
70 accept this Office. Perhaps he would have had very
different opinion if be had been there and the sol
diers under the command OF General Kearny and Com.
modore Stockton, who could have been called TO en-
force the order IL very easy for senator stand up
here and maintain abstract rights, but not quite so easy
TO maintain them when naval officer has few soldiers
at his command, 10 break you i you do not obey Take
the circumstances under which this chaplain performed
these services for the They are anomalous
grant he did not have quite much instruction
kind upon him as we have. lie performed great services
Tor you. and you ought TO compensate him
Mr. TURNKEY. | should like to submit an inquiry
TO the chairman OF the Committee the Judiciary and
upon that will turn the whole extent of my vote
should like to know whether this gentleman is playing
game at which he may win, but cannot possibly lose
anything Suppose that we put the that he had
been compelled to sell the vessel at less than he paid for
IT, He proposes bid for this vessel as an actual agent
He does this. he says TO prevent the sacrifice Tor the
OF the bid
A SENATOR, (n his seat) There were two nominal
bids
Mr. TURNKEY He bids over the highest to save the
snip Tor The government and To prevent sacrifice, and
therefore becomes the purchaser equity for the gov
eminent. Now, sir he afterwards sells the vessel at a
profit. and pays into the treasury, and then asks Con-
sress 70 refund 70 him the surplus Suppose that he had
been compelled TO sell il for 81 900 less than he had bid
II offor Ii he had then to Congress- saying that lie
acted in good faith seeing the vessel be sacrificed
at loss TO the government 10 prevent that he had bid
OFT for 100000 he had shown to the Committee on the
Judiciary that he acting in good faith and unless Con-
gress would relieve him he would have sustain loss
m nfrG Luna 10 Nv. la.
Committee would not have reported him bill. releasing
HIM from the losses he had ncurred-he difference be-
tween the bid for and sale OF the vessel.
II that be what will be the effect OF this precedent
about to be established Here is agent for the
govemment-who could speculate in his fducal char
actercould the funds his hands for the purpose OF
speculation; you TO establish precedent to encour-
age this thing and say that If your agent engages
speculation, and shall be able TO sell large profit you
nothing and if he loses, then you will release him from
his lossesthus placing in the power OF that description
OF officers to speculate without danger Of losses think
the precedent would be in its effects than ii this
vessel had been sold at that great sacrifice
If Mr. Cotton will present his reasons to show hath
sustained loss alcalde and also show what will
reimburse him. will vote that amount But the commit
Tee did not act upon that principle They undertake TO
refund to him. by BILL the precise amount and
that the bill is founded upon the principle that the
OF profit is to be refunded to hmthat is the precise
amount TO be given 10 him. Why did the committee fix
upon that precise amount' There is nothing to show
that that is the precise of his losses But is
said that he could have honestly put this in his own
pocket, but he failed TO do paying il over TO the Uni
ted States. Now do not think Ii he had done so,
think he could have been sued for it and made
count for 1t. cannot support the bill.
Mr. DAVIS, of Mississippi. When this bill was under
consideration on former OCCASION objected TO the pay
ment OF this money, because it payment for
vices rendered civil magistrate and alcalde OF Mon
terey. The ground upon which the comnlttee has
placed to-day is that we have recognised the admiralty
transactions OF this in this particular and,
after having shown that he has good faith acted for
the interests OF the government my objection ceases,
more especially all that part of the bill stricken out
which makes this compensation for his services as
civil magistrate in California. will state further that
since the bill was under dscussion-I suppose
count OF the remarks then made have received
PLANTATION OF the case from the party himself, who sent
me book that be published. called "Three Years in
California and letter explanatory OF the transaction
1t satisfies that he acted for the interests of the gov
eminent alone, and that would have lost much
done wha, he did do no, like the precedent do not
like the fact Of his having been appointed alcalde, and
discharged from his duty as chaplain upon board his
ship All that have objected to but thai is no longer
contained in the bill. The amendment Of the senator
from Maine has stricken it out Neither do | like the
precedent OF paying to an officer any amount that he may
by bidding IN vessel that has been captured, be-
may lead 10 species of speculation that is alto
gether nadmissible But this is extraordinary
cised this 1t does appear from all the state
nents that the highest bid that he had received was
S6o,oo0 and that upon terms that inadmssibe.
Now, does not appear that the person able TO pay
the $4,000 Ii the vessel had been lost that night, the
government would have lost the Now, the
present ell to shows that he compelled TO send
the vessel to MaZaian, order 10 make the money upon
it that he did He however, incurred pccuniary
pense 10 the whole extent of his whatever they
were.s
He has behaved with singular good faith in not paying
10 the gov ernment Just the which had been bid
which would have closed the account, and questions
would have been asked. In paying over the whole
he received for the vessel and he has
ainy evinced the highest degree of honesty and good
faith towards the government But then It may be said
that should reward honesty ii 10 be expect
our agents any harm objection at least, of such
force as will prevent from voting for this bill, when
placed upon the simple ground that he bid in the YES
sci to loss TO the United States government and
itis proposed to give him the amount be saved by
selling the vessel the bad that he gave. lie could
have kept that amount without the government being
aware OF IT.
| Mr.. BERRIEN. This case very carefully exam
ined by the Judiciary Committee, and there was a
unanimous the validity and justice oil the
claim IL does not appear to TO be necessary. Tor The
purpose OF deciding upon the passage OF this bull TO con-
slider the validity OF the appointment of this chaplain
acade, to look into the admiralty jurisdiction he ex
ercised. The United States have preclnded themselves
from entering into any question that subject They
have recognised the validity OF his proceedings as adm
rally Judge by receiving the proceeds oil the decree which
in that character he rendered As admiralty Judge he
cree the vessel and cargo so and the United States
have received the proceeds under that decree They
precuded therefore, from entering into any question
10 the validity Of his proceedings but after having re-
ceived these proceeds ia not necessary to into
| examination OF that question. The claim, with the