Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1852-05-22

to erreout abuses which had existed under former Adj
minstliops, and which had dshed the economy. and
wsdonand vigilance of other Secretaries for many years
Thereto, it is hardly reasonable to suppose that Mr.
Conran short interval Of time could detect and
coech the errors Of his predecessors In very little
more fan four months after he had been in Office, WHAT
did til Secretary do Allow to say, that in the
port ch he submitted to the Senate in 1850 he spoke
Of th6robabty Of there being abuses, and will show
chat hile his suspicious then awakened he took
veryarly opportunity Of endeavoring to put end to
thesjabuses II viii show that ut time which, consider
ing is period Of service, quite early in his admins
non and vigilance which feel bound in all sincerity
ty I've himwithin short time he issued sundry regu-
latins, intended to have, and which shall show have
has most happy effect on the service On the 9th OF
January, 1851, the Secretary issued this order
GENERAL ORDERs-No. /.
WAR DEPARTMENT, ADJurAsT GESERAL's OFFICE,
Washington January 8, lSol
To promote the health Of the troops and to reduce the
expense Of subsstng the army the commanding ocer OF
eery post and station where the public lands are
scen private land be ensed on reasonable TERMS
will annually cultivate kitchen garden with the soldiers un-
DIR his command enable him supply the hospital and
men with necessary vegetables throughout the year
enced as as possible 1t such may
BY department commanders under rom Genea
in %ary Nos Z Th.
field cuirao will be carried under the direction OF COM
manding officers posts by the troops, and at stations with
in the Indian country hired Indians be paid out Of the
proceeds Of the farms The field farm culture will
brace far practicable grains for bread and forage and
s. Supplies for component parts the ration and Of forage
exceeding the quantity required for the garrison viii be
delivered 70 and eoepted for by the assistant
at the following rates. Ats the posts in Nos
and IL according to the market IN S Lous and At the
posts in Departments q s. and ~ 20 the market
From the proceeds Of the sales directed viii be de-
Quoted the expenditures account Of Seeds farming mple
ents land and hire of Indian labor and the surplus
win be equally distributed quarterly by the assistant commits
sary Of subsistence under the direction Of the commanding
the an
separate receipt rolls prepared for this purpose. .
s. The assistant commssaries Of subsistence WIN make all
necessary expenditures the farm cultivation the
of the commanding officers of their posts and will rem
der quarterly return Of all receipts and expenditures on such
accounts to the Adutant General through the commanding
officer Of the post according to the printed blanks which will
/ be furnished for that purpose WEE
g. The commanders Of departments will Immediately the
receipt this order report what portion Of land in the vicni-
ty posts within their departments adapted to cultiya
on and also what changes may be made in the
ton troops which, without mpang the defence Of the
frontiers will afford more suitable locations with view to
field cultivation
AS soon as farm cultivation has been ordered particu
posts thereof win adopt all
sures carry successfully and immediately thereafter
report the adopted They win report the state and
the LIST day of October of each year. the quantity of each ar
4 Gle cultivated and actually gathered in
g. Whenever officer is transferred relieved from the
command Of post where garden farm cultivated the
vegetables grain and long forage hand will be recepted
for by his He will make statement of their
dton amount de-; copy Of which viii be forwarded to
the Commissay General Of Subsistence and duplicate
tered the post order book for the inspection of the
authority.
For any Improper management Or loss not strictly un
avoidable the commanding officers will be held responsible
By order of the Secretary OF War
R. JONES, Adjutant General.
do not know that need read all these details; but
the Senate viii from them that the Secretary of War
has very infinitely into the matters that he has not
merely suggested the general leading idea of cuvang
grain and forage at these distant posts but that he
been cautious and precise nprescrbng all the
details.
Mr. HUNTER. Is the Senator aware that that is mere
revival Of an order issued when Mr. Calhoun was Secre
tary of War?
Mr. PEARcn am aware that the Senator said in his
speech that 1T was the revival Of order issued
MIR. Calhoun but pray, who abandoned the practice
Under what circumstances it abandoned? Does the
Senator know with what effect it pursued under Mr.
Calhoun? understand that it has lain dormant for many
years But is praise the less due this officer that he had
revived very good regulation long since abandoned
which had escaped the vigilance and economy of his
decessors Is he not to have due credit because others
have forgotten because Mr. Calhoun had originated it?
do not know that the Secretary of War claims the org
naty Of this idea but dare say he heard of Mr..
Cahouns order before, or If he did he must have sup
posed that had been dispensed with for very sufficient
reasons suspect the fact to be- that the order
found to answer the purposes in view The truth that
soldiers do not make good farmers and farmers do
not make very good soldiers Besides, in Mr. Calhouns
time our military posts accessible by steam nayga-
ton The products which they required for forage and
subsistence were raised in very great plenty and
cheap rates. throughout the country where they sta
toned and could probably be supplied Mt cost quite as
little that of raising them for when soldiers work as
farmers aborers they paid for it. When they do
such work they get eighteen cents day additional pay
suspect thatf there very much paid for this extra
work. il would cost rather than the amount of the
produce which they would raise Circumstances are now
altered. There is new state Of things Since it cost
dollars to get barrel Of pork and thrtytwo
dollars to get barrel of -four Taos in New Mexico
perhaps it may turn out to be good thing to establish
this system Of cultivation at distant posts This is
what the Secretary of War has attempted The Senator
did give him little credit for atemptinr it. But
think he destroyed the grace Of his concession when with
out his usual generosity he suggested that Mr. Calhoun
thirty -four years ago, had tried the thing If Mr.
Calhoun tried it and abandoned it, certainly should
give the present Secretary the credit Of revng What the
Senator considers good thing. s
AS for myself am somewhat doubtful to the utility
OF it, These distant regions in which the posts locat-
ed very barren, and generally it is very difficult
obtain good military SITE and the same time proper
soil for profitable cultivation. do not know that the
system could be carried out very successfully Still the
attempt is good one and the Secretary is entitled to
credit for it. a4fa #Ht e3Eltl 81 f#
Them the 18th Of February 1885, the Secretary Of
War issued another order to which wish refer Ibeg
leave that both these orders originated before the
criticism Of Congress Of which the Senator from Virginia
has spoken The action Of Congress was at the close of
the session. when it refused to pass the appropriations
according to the estimates and striking in the dark
when itcut down the appropriations for the Quarermas
ters department from $4 900 900 to 81, 100000 That
was the criticism Of Congress But before that criticism
had reached the Of the Secretary he had attempted
this Improvement by the order Of January 1851 which
have read The order Of February % 1851 also pre-
coded the action Of Congress- though only by few days
On that day he issued this circular: