Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1854-04-04

If the House Of Representatives. on Thursday
the Steam Frigate bill being under consideration
Mr.. BENroN gave his views on the subject OF The
bill before the committee lie remarked that IT
was one OF the misfortanes of loJg continuance
IN public life 10 have mem Try we'll ~ e1p"r-
iepoe, md 10 be constantly gong back 10 times
and events which were pn-t, to look Mt starting
points and given directions. aud zee how Tar We
are from them nov.
sine the war II -l2the quo ton of an Amer
icsn navy. more or les, Ind ben he question OF
IA American state smen Il wa admitted upon
al hands tint must hive "a nnfY, but how
much va. tirf question. Thai question: IN the
minds Of many who had passed away. was gov
urned hy considerations, some Of IS hicb were naiu-
raj in Themselves, aud others were lndissolubly
connected with our position,
II Wa granted that we should have navy for
defence and for thu protection # our commerce;
but when came II the question of navy for
conquest Of n nnYy which was Ia contend with
the combined navies Of the world for the ~npre
n.acy of the seas, II was another question, which
was not granted by the earliest founders Of our
Government.
Our policy IN respect 10 the question OF the
maintenance oi navy depended partly upon nat
ural, partly upon political causes. We are (he
nib IA continent, not nm island. Our policy Is
peace, not aggression il is dtfeucc.not conquest
hose arc our policies; these are the doctrines
Of earlier times.
standing army was always condemned by
the American people standing navy, navy
in time OF psaec. wns always rejected by The a
merican people. But the yalor of The officers and
scamen OF our ntvy IN the war Of 1877 had IN
ducrd different feeling towards the navy The
navy fought Itself into popularity the army dld
moi fight Itself MO popularity 80 ~ 10 give MS n
standing army in time Of peaee. But the navy
lay is brilliant success during the war Of lHl2,
changed our policy, aud We eerc nov to have
standing navy ia titnc of pcuce.
He ad1crtrd Ia the provision If the bill which
authorized these iiratcs to be built either 10y
contract ~ IN ia, navy yards, at the discretion
Of The Secretary Of the NAVY, and inquired
whether they could not bc constructed Mt the
seven navy yurds of the Government Whit
would be thought Of man v ho owned seven mills
sending hi tub ot meal to neighbor 10 have IT
ground I.aughter.l
Having referred 10 the opinions OF several om-
mrnt statesmen on this subject, he proceeded to
speak against the maintenance OF stationary
squadron-, which he condemned as mistaken
policy. 1t wis British policy. That Govern
mcni had its squadron for home and for the four
quarters ol the world. IL had islands in II por
lions of the globe but We hud noe such W. had
M induecmrnt whatever to follow their plmi oi
stationary -quadron-. lie could SO no AIDE
quite rcason tor keeping them up Mt stallons
where ho nppr, hendcd they had nothing Ia do
Since 1872 three hundred millions ol d"llars
lad been expended for naval purpose, and he
contended thnl W. could not use brnelieially The
ships that we now had.
lleoppnsed the system of building ships in
time of peacc ~ II process oi building up and rot
ting down. Since Isl2 we had had no u,e for
navy, aud he saw but little prospect Of needing
One for We Ind no :, stem OF aggressive, no syo.
ten OF foreign conquest. We had our const and
a.
nothing to do with conquest. lie believed thai
the whole business oferoating nayes had been
nothing in the world but contest in >hip-build-
ing, a contest between ship carpenters. In his
opinion we Ind nonnyal policy, for il was one
that rcluted exclusively t fighting.