The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1853-11-23
rTnccTNn IN THE NAVY.

L FDtbd0lEN0 AAS a tA'-t 49,
/ According to the Providence Journal .ne
substance of the charge delivered BY Judge
| Curtis to the Grand Jury Of the United States
i C;rcu;t Court, at Providence, tR. lsl y
different from the Geographic report which
has been published. The Journal says;
.rhe charge wac confined to az, exposition Of the
recent Act OF Congress ebolishius the punishment
| by Hegsing in the American Navy and vessels OF
Commerce The first question considered was wheth.
ar the provisions of the Act were limited the Ma
w and merchant vessels or extended TO ships en-
4 gagged in the fisheries. the Judge stated that the
ang employed left the intentions Of Congress in
much uncertainty IN this respect, but he construed
the to extend to fishing vessels, and he drew TINS
conclusion from the object and policy of the law
from the nature OF the employment OF such vessels
aud the jurisdiction which Congress had heretofore
assumed 10 exercise over such vessels. lie asnueo
Fiction OF stripes with the cat-of.nine -taiis o. I
shscnf Rhteh eds the in nature ana tVeeas, ta
stated that the act did not extend TO blows ~ ,nr
to enforce the immediate execution OF oLas, 49,
the suppression of disturbances, and th8t sns Jsy'
before hnding Indictment for volatoh ., Wy ~
must be satisfied that the accused was ;niai;n,
olating, might be taken to be knowingly sioat'uS
the Act, aud was not iniicting punishment wn,cn
he supposed was not prohibited by the Act anu .na.
they should not find an indictment against any que
who. from his position. would no. na.e oee ~
acquainted with the passage OF the TAe''
The punishment in the Navy, before the alb
clifton of fiocging, was inflicted by the cat Of
nine tails and the colt. The former was the
most severe and could only be inflicted by
order of the Captain, who could not cause
more than dozen lashes to be administered
with that instrument for the same offence. 1t
was only within the province of Court Mar
tial to infict larger number. The colt was
simply a ropes end, which each boatswain's
mate carried about him, and which could be
used by order of the officer of the deck. This
sort of ectemporGaeoas stimulus, it would
seem from the above decision, is not abolish
ed by the act of Congress.
There seems some difference of opinion
among Naval men as to the practical working
of the law abolishing fogging in the Navy
A large number of the officers, and what
seems singular, great majority of the sailors,
appear to be in favor of restoring the use of
the lash. The reason assigned by the old
salts is, that unless the bad men are flogged,
the good men will have all their work to d.
as confinement between decks is no punish
ment at all, but exactly the thing to suit the
tastes and inclinations of the idle and vicious
They maintain, moreover, that this kind of
punishment interferes seriously with the
working of the ship. In the Naval vessels
every man has his post assigned him ON a
station book for every evolution in which the
ship can be engaged, and any considerable
interruption of the prescribed order, resulting
from the confinement of a number of the
crew, would produce great Inconvenience IN
the management of the ship, and frequently
great peril to the vessel.
However, there is no chance of gratifying
Jack in restoring the practice of brushing his
Jacket with the cat, but it is clear that some
mode should be devised of preserving the
efficiency of the service. We know of none
so promising as to raise the wages ofthe sea-
men, so as to make it an object with Ameri-
can sailors, who are now absorbed in the
commercial marine, to enlist under the flag of
their country, With Navy composed of
such materials, there will be no need of the
lash, and we shall have service which, in
proves and seamanship, will be unequalled
in the world.