Arkansas true Democrat., 1859-05-04

vice by the King of the two Sicilles, their construction. however, being designed only for the defense of Naples Bay and the islands therein; they were clumsy, inactive vessels, bad to sail, bad to row, and bad for our small vessels to tow in high wind, and rough see, but when once got under their batteries for actionthey proved most efficient and powerful ,auxiliaries against permanent works of opposition, and being small themselves as an object to flre at. At the point-blank range of a twenty tour pounder, they were hard to hit; at little shorter or longer distance, all firing at them became random firing. Now, for the attack of ships under breeze in bottom less places, or where ship could get an chorage and springs on her cables, they were almost useless; but where a ship be- came fixed object, by calms or grounding, they were then most efficient for cutting them to pieces, and compelling surren- der
 Commodore Preble wrote strongly to the government of the United States to send him dozen of them, of such construction as would enable him to navigate the Allan tic and the Mediterranean sea in safety, and capable of being moved with facility, with wind or oars; this was done, and the first twelve were constructed and sent out Only one was lost out of that number and they would have proved all that could be wished, had they been used at Tripoli
 The appropriation for the gun boats built afterwards was obtained from Congres, un der the pretext of harbor defense; at that time lS06) 1SO boats were built and build ing. l have seen since, in DIr. Jefferson's first published letters, that as war was at that time almost inevitable with Spain, he had intended them especially for an attack on the island of Cuba, as the most efficient means of blockading all their outports and for the attack of their protecting batteries l presumed at that time the intended war against Spain, grew out of our extensive claims on that country, for our deprivation of the right of deposit at New Orleans, granted by Spain in l795 in perpetuity to the interior commerce of the United States. 1 well recollect that in consequence of Mr. Jelferson's having in his message to Con gress, at the session of December, 1895, recommended something like a war on Spain, which he at the same time contract ed tn ough ca back door message" Gas Nlr. Randolph tel med it, and which caused Ar. Randolph's deserting him, and making a violent opposition speech, against him, and his double policy. Randolph was then, think, chairman of the committee on fin ance, in the then Congress The letter I refer to, may have seen among the cores pondence Mr. Jefferson had with Mr. Merzza, of Leghorn who put into my hands all the letters of Mr Jefferson, addressed to him after our revolutionary war aad ter minated up to 1907. l was then spending three months in Pisa on the Arno, while my vessel, the Hidernio, in which was then engaged on voyage to Calcutta, was collecting her funds in Spanish dollars, and selling her cargo from Philadelphia. It was among those letters of Mr. Jefferson that l saw his reasons for not entering into the views of the Emperor Paul of Russia. who, when about to make peace with the Sultan of Turkey, proposed to Ak-. Jef1ear- son to insert in the treaty an article to open to the flag of the United States the com merce of Turkey in Europe, and that oi the shores of the Black sea, provided the United States would accredit a minister tc and from the Empire of Turkey and that of Russia. It struck me forcibly at that time that Mr Jefferson lost a valuable '' hand maid to agriculture and manutac- lures, " as well as strong friends, in those other two powers, for the promotion of oul relations with those of Tunis, Tripoli and Algiers.
 You see have given youa ''Roland fol your Oliver"
 Truly yours,
 C. l.. STEWART.