Republican vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1857, 1856-01-12


form the duties Of every of the service
but to give the highest eff cheney to artillery
/ requires the practice and special study of
! many years; and it is not, therefore, believed
/ to be advisable to maintain, in time Of peace,
! a larger force OF that arm than can be usu-
! ally employed in the duties appertaining to
/ the service of field and siege artillery. The
| duties of the staff in all its various branches
belong to the movements of troops, and the
efficiency of an army in the field would ma
! tcrially depend upon the ability with which
those duties are discharged. 1t is not, as in
| the case Of the artillery, speciality, but re-
! qnires, also, an intimate knowledge of the
duties Of an officer Of the line, and it is not
doubted that, to complete the education Of
| an officer for either the line or the general
! staff, it is desirable that he shall have served
| i'll both. With this view, it was recommcn-
ded on former occasion, that the duties of
the staff should be mainly performed by de-
tails from the line; and, with conviction of
| the advantages which would result from such
a change, it is again presented fer tho con
| sideration of Congress. ea EHa
NAVY. 3s ISL y"
The report of the Secretary of the Navy,
herewith submitted, exhibits in full the ma
val operations of the past year, together with
the present condition Of the service, and
it makes suggestions Of further legislation,
to which your attention is invited
| The construction of the six steam frigates,
| for which appropriations were made by the
| last Congress, has proceeded in the most sat
1sfactory manner, and with such expedition
as to Warrapt the belief that they will be rea-
I dy ior service early in the coming SPRING
Important as this addition to our naval force
| IS, it still remains inadequate to the contin-
gent exigencies Of the protection Of the ex-
, tensivo sea Coast and vast commercial inter-
ests of the United States In view of this
md rf al lad vtisI ,ftt
policy of gradual and systematic increase
of the navy, an appropriations is recom-
mended for the construction of six steam
SleopS- of-war,
In regard to the steps taken in execution
Of the act of Congress to promote the eff
cheney of thesnavy, it is unnecessary for me
to say more tnan to express iertire concur
renee in the observations on that subject pre-
sented by the Secretary in his report.
POST OFFICE. az
1t will be perceived, by the report Of the
Postmaster General, that the gross expendi-
ture of the department for the last fiscal year
was nine million nine hundred and sixty
| eight thousand three hundred and forty-two
dollars, and the gross receipts seven million
three hundred and forty-two thousand one
hundred and thirty-six dollars--makng an
excess of expenditure over receipts Of two
million six hundred and twenty-six thousand
two hundred and six dollars and that tho
cost of mail transportation during that year
was six hundred and seventy-four thousand
nine hundred and ifty-two dollars greater
than the previous year. Much OF the heavy
expenditures to which the treasury is thus
subjected, is to be ascribed to the large guam
tity of printed matter conveyed by the mails,
either ranked, or liable to no postage by
law, or to very low rates Of postage compar-
ed with that charged on letters, and to the
great cost Of mail service on railroads and
by ocean steamers. The suggestions Of the
Postmaster General on the subject deserve
the consideration of Congress. .-url my
INTERIOR. HH i# =4ls
The report of the Secretary of the Interior
| will engage your attention, as well for tho
useful suggestions it contains, as for the inter-
est and Importance Of the subjects to which
they refer.
The aggregate amount of public land sold
during the last fiscal year, located with mill
tary SCRIP or land warrants, taken up under
| grants for roads, and selected as swamp lands
| by States, is twenty four gillion five hum
drod and fifty-seyen thousand four hundred
and nine acres; of which the portion sold
was fifteen million seven hundred and twen-
| ty-nine thousand five hundred and twenty
! four acres, yielding in receipts the sum of
| eleven million four hundred and eighiy-tve
| thousand three hundred and eighty dollars.
| In the same period of time, eight million
seven hundred and twenty-three thousand
| eight hundred and iifty-four acres have been
surveyed; but, in consideration Of the guam
tity already subject to entry, no additional
| tracts have been brought into market.
| The peculiar relation of the general gov
| erninent to the District of Colum bia renders
| it proper to commend to your care not only
! its material, but also its moral interests, in
! GLIDING education, more especially in those
parts of the District outside Of tho cities of
Washing on and GEORGETOWN.
The commissioners appointed to revise and
codify the laws of the District have made
such progress in the performance Of their
task, as to insure its completion in the time
prescribed by the act of Congress.
Information has recently been received,
that the peace of the settlements in the Ter
rltories of Oregon and Washington is dis
turbcd by hostilities on the part of the In
| dians, with indications of extensive combin-
| atoms Of hostile character among the tribes
in tn It quarter, the more serious i'll their pos
| sible effect by reason of the undetermined
| foreign interests existing in those Territo-
| rics, to which your attention has already
| been especially invited. Efficient measures
| have been taken, which, it is believed, will
| restore quiet, and afford protection to our ei-
| tizens. l..r FL.
| In the Territory of Kansas, there have
! been acts prejndicial to good ORDER but as
! yet none have occurred under cireumstan-
| ces to justify the interpretation OF the federal
| Executive. That could only be in case of
| obstruction to federal law, or Of organized
resistance to territorial law, assuming the
| character of instruction, which, if it slould
occur, it would he my duty promptly to over
| come and suppress. l cherish the hope,
| however, that the occurrence of any such
| untoward event will be prevented by the
| sound sense of the people of the Territory,
| who, by its organic law, possessing the right
| to determine their own DOMESTIC institutions,