Meigs County telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy [Ohio]) 1848-1859, 1852-12-11

pal jurisdiction. If she should fail 10 do
this, The fuliilnlen, Of our trea.y sifpulu.ions
Il with Mexico, and our duty "a he Indiana
themselves, will, il is feared, become a sub.
Ilect Of serious embarrassment 10 The Gov.
ernment Ills hoped, however, ,ha. time.
lly and just provision by Texas may aver.
this evil. y
! No appropriations for fof,iica,ions were
made at the TWO las, sessions of Conpress.
Ihe cause Of this omission 10, probabiy, 10
De found in growing belief that the sys,em
oil foriificdtioIs Rdopied In 1916, and hare.
ioiore ucted on, requiref revision.
II The subjc, certainly deserves fI,lr and
careful investigation: sbns Ii should no, bo
Edelayed longer than can be avoided. In The
meantime, there are certain works which
have been commenced some Of Them nsa'f..
ly compleed--designed 10 pfoieci OH prin.
cipal seaports, from Boston 10 New Orleans.
and few other important poinls. In re-.
gard 10 the necessity Of these works, II IL
believed that lille difference Of opinion ex.
lists among military men. therefore rec.
ommend that the appropriations necessary
10 prosecute them be made. s9@ -
| '"'.0 Joui oueHtiou 10 tne remarks on
lhis subject, and on others connected with
this Department, coh'iufned in the accompa.
nylne report Of the Secretary of War. 's9.
I Measures have been taken TO carry into
effect the law Of The last session making
provision for the Improvement of cerlain
rivers and harbors, and il is believed that
the arrangements made for that purpose will
combine efficiency with economy. (,winq
chiefly 10 The advanced season when The act
was passed, little has yel been done in re-.
gard 10 many Of the works beyond making
lhe necessary preparations. With respect
to few of The Improvements, the sums al.
reudy appropriated will suffice to complete
them; but most of them will require addi.
Iional appropriations. trust lha, these ap..
preparations will be made, and that this wise
and benehcenl policy, so auspiciously re.
sumed, will be continued. Great care should
be taken, however, to commence no work
which is not Of sufficient importance to the
commerce Of the country 10 be viewed as
national in its character. But works which
have been commenced should no, be discon.
linued until completed, as otherwise the sums
expended will, in most cases, be lost.
The repors from the Navy Department
will inform you OF the prosperous condition
Of the branch Of the public service commits.
ted TO its charge. lIpresenls to your con.
sideralion many topics and suggestions Of
which | ask your approva. Il exhibits an
unusual degree Of activity in the operations
Of the Departments during the past year.
The preparations for The Japan expedition,
to which ! have already alluded; The arrange.
menls made for the exploration and survey
Of the China Seas, the Northern Pacific, and
Behring's Sirails; the incipient measures tx.
ken towards reconnaissance OF the continent
OF Africa eastward Of Liberia; the prepara.
lion for an early examination Of the tribu,a.
rles OF the River La Plaza, which recen.
decree Of the provisional chief of the Argen.
tine Confederation has opened 10 navigation,
all these enterprises, and The means by which
they are proposed TO be accomplished, have
commanded my full appreciation, and have
no doubt will be productive of most useful
results.
Two officers Of the navy were heretofore
instructed to explore the whole extent OF the
Amazon river, from the confines Of Peru.t ID
It's mouth. The return Of one OF them has
placed in the possession Of Government an
Interesting and valuable account Of tho chdt.
deter and resources Of country aboundihg
in the materials Of commerce, and which; If
opened 10 the industry Of the world, will
prove an ihexhaustible fund Of wealth. The
report Of this exploration will be commtihi-
caled 10 you as soon as II is completed.
| Among other subjects offered 10 your no.
lice by The Secretary of the Navy, select
Tor special commentator, in view Of It's Con.
ncction with the interests Of The Navy, the
plan submitted by him for The establishment
Of permanent corps Of seamen, and the
suggestions he has presented for The reofgan.
izalion Of The Naval Academy.
4 In reference 10 the FIRST of these, I take
occasion 10 sny that j. will greatly improve
the efficiency OF the service, and that re.
gard J. as still more entitled 10 favor for the
salntary influence il must exert upontha ma.
val discipline, now greatly disturbed by the
increasing spirit Of INSTRUMENTATION. resulting
from our presen. system. The pIanproposed
Tor the organization Of the seamen, furnishes
a judicious substitute for the law Of Seplem-
Der, 1850, abolishing' corporal punishment,
and satisfactorily sustains the policy of that
ACT, under conditions we'll adapted to main.
tain The authority Of command, and the or.
der and security Of our ships. hls believed
that any change which proposes permanently
10 dispense with this mode Of punishment,
should be preceded by system Of enlist.
men', which shall supply the navy with sea-
men OF the most meri.orous class, whose
good deporlmenI and pride Of character may
preclude all occasion for resort to, penalties
Of a harsh or degI gIading nature.
The safety of IA ship and her crew is often
dependent upon immediate obedience 10 a
c,mmand, and the authority to enforce IL
must be equally leady. The arrest Of a re-
I, lrac,ory seaman, in such moments, no, only
. deprives The ship Of indispensable aid, bul
imposes necessity for double service on
, Others whose fidelity 10 their dulies may be
relied upon in such an emergency. The
!. exposure 10 This increased and afduous labor,
I since lhe passage Of the &C. Of 1850, has al.
s ready had, 10 a, mos, observable and injur.
I ious extent, The effec, Of preventing the en-
q kslment Of The best seamen in the navy.
I The plan now suggested is designed 10 Pro-
0 mole condition Of service in which this
i Obiection will M lonper exist. ~