Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1863-12-09


eide -Gch claims y. tae ,hafactef referred To
IS may have arisan under treaties and the pab-
lie law. Conventions for adJuetin& she claim
by ioirt commission have been proposed to
.ome governments, but no dehnihve aaswef 10
the proposition has yet been received from ANY.
IN tha course of the eessien shall probably
he ye occasion 10 request you to provide in .
decentralization 70 claimants where DEGREES OF
restitution have been rendered, and damages
awarded by admiralty courts; and in other
eases, where this governm. ut m lay be acknowi-
edged to he Liable in principle, aud where the
amount of that liability has been ascertainad
by An informal Arbitration.
The proper officers Of the treasury have
dee med themselves req uired, by the law of tn e
United Sta'es upon the subject, to demand
tax upon the IL comes OF foreign consuls in this
country. While such . demand may not, in
sIristness, he In derogation Of public law. OF
ted States and foreign country, the expe.
diency Of 60 far modifying the act as to exempt
from tax the income OF such consuls as are not
citizens of the United States, derived from the
emoluments OF their Office, or from property
not situated In the United States, is submitted
TO your serious consideration. i make this
sug lection upon the ground that a comfy
winch ought to be reciproc ated excmpts our
coE.uls, in all other countries, from taxation
10 the extent thus indicated. The United States,
think, ought not to be exceptionally illiberal
TO International trade and commerce..
The operations of the treasury during the
last year have been successfully conducted.
The enactment by Congress of a national bank.
q
public credit; and the general legislation in re-
lation to loans has fully answered the expec.
'ations OF its favorers. Some amendments
may be required to perfect existing laws: but
is believed to be need.
Since these measures have been in operation,
al demands on the treasury, including the
pay Of the army and navy, have been prom nj
" met and fully satisfied. No considerable,
body Of troops, il is belle we'd, were ever more
amply provided. and more literally and pune
tually paid; and it may be added that by no
people were the burdens incident 10 a great
war ever more cheertully borne.
Ire receipts during the year from all sources,
including loans and the balance in the treas u
and the aggregate Disbursements 1896 79f, $50 to,
leaving balance on the LIST July, 1868, of ST.
3sS,ai 2i. OF the receipts there were derived
from the customs s6s,c59,sie 10; from internal
revenue, s32<Bie,7s7 IS from direct tax, ST.
Ae5,1t3 81 from lands, S167,6i7 Il from mis-
ceilaneous sources, S3s6l6,il5 35 and from
loans, S:76 ~, 3Gl s.. making the aggregate,
sal, 1854 IS. or the disbursements there
We're for the civil service, 80. 255, Oh OS; for
pensions ana Indians, Si,2l6,52i n; for inter.
est on public debt, 2t,.29,-i6 81 for the War
department, $500, % : 500 Sc for the Navy De.
partment. S63.2l1, los p; tor PAYNE Mt Of fund
ed and temporary debt Slc1 ,0-tj, 6}5 o. making
the aggregate, 500, 796, $50 IS, and IfaHir. the
balance of s5,32a.0ii 81. But the pay lent Of
funded and temporary debt, having been made
from moneys borrowed during the year, must
be reg ardeG as merely nomiital payments, and
the moneys borrowed to make them as merely
nominal receipts, and their amount, Si"l, cs6, :
62a %, should therefore be deducted both from
receipts and disbursements. This being done,
there remains as actual receipts, s72Ot - $50 -;
and the actual disbursements, 7Ii,s09,9n5 -,
leaving the balance az already stated
The actual receipts and disbursements for
the frs Gnarter. and tie estimated receipts
and disbursements for the remaining thfea
quarters, OF the current fiscal year, 1861, will
be shown in detail by the report OF the Sec
rotary Of the Treasury, 10 which I invite
your attention 1t is sufficient 10 say
here that it is not believed that actual results
yorable to the country than the estimates
OF that officer heretofore submitted; while it Is
confidently expected that at the close of tie
year both disbursements and debt will BE-
found very considerably less than has been
anticipated.
The report OF the Secretary OF Warts docu.
nlcnt Of great interest. II consists Of
J. be military operations OF the year, de-
tailed In the report OF the General in chief
2 The organization Of colored persons into
the var service
.. The exchange of prisoners fully 80 forth
in the letter Of General Hitchcock
!: The operation under the act eRrolling and
calling ont the national forces, detailed in the
report Of the Provost Marshal General.
5. The organization Of tho Invalid Corps
6. The OPERATIONS OF The several departments
General, Paynaster General, Chief OF Engi-
neers, Chief OF Ordnance, and Surgeon General
II has appeared impossible to make 8 valua-
Bile summary Of this report except such as
would be too extended for this place, and
hence content myself by asking your careful
attention to the report itself
be duties de evolving on the naval branch
Of the service during the year. aud through
out the whole OF THE unhappy contest, have
been discharged with fidelity and eminent
success. The extensive blockade has been
constantly increasing in efficacy, "a the navy
has expanded yet or go long linz i, has 50
far been Impossible to entirely suppress Illicit
irads. From returns re 'eivsd a. the Navy
Del artmsnt 1t appears that more than one
thousand vessels have been captured SINGS the
blockade was instituted, ADD thst the value OF
prizes already sent IN from adi:,di "a ton
smounts to over thirteen millions OF dollars
The naval force OF the United States consists
1t this time Of FIVE hundred and eighty EIGHT
vessels, completed and in tg,s course Of
completion, and OF these seventy ve are IRON
clad or armored steamers. The events Of the
war gives an increased Interest and iu,port-
arca TO the navy which wilt probably extend
beyond the war itself.
The armored vessels - our navy Completed
and in service, or which are under contract
and approach ching completion, ara believed to
exceed in number those of any other power
But while these may be relied pom for harbor
defence and coast service, others Of greater
strength and capacity will be necessary for
cruising purposes, and to maintain our rixh..
fui position on the ocean.
] he change that has taken placs in naval
We. els and naval " aTfSre sill CO the .irtroiuc.
war demands either corresponding changr
10 some OF our existing navy yards, or tho
establishment OF new ones, for the construc.
ton and necessary repair of modern naval
vessels. No inconsiderabie embarrassment, de-.
lay. and public injury have been experienced
from The want Of snch governmental estsb-
lishmeuts. The necessity Of such navy yard,
so furnished, at some suitable place upou the
Atlantic seahoard, hiss on repeated occasions
been brought To the attention OF Congress nv
the Navy Department, and is again presented
in the report of the Secretary which &C corn pa
pies this communication. think il nv duty
invite your special attention TO this subjact.
and also 20 that OF establishing ward and
depot for naval purposes upon one Of the wes-
tern rivers. A naval force has been created
on those interior waters, and under many dis
advantages, within little more than two years
exceeding in numbers the who's naval force OF
The country at the commencement OF the pres.
ent administration. Satisfactory and impor.
tant as have been the perfor mances Of the
heroic men OF the navy at this interesting pc.
Rod, hey are scarcely more wonderful than
the success VI our mechanics and artisans I'm
the production Of war vessels which has ere.
ated . new form OF naval power.
Our country has advantages superior to anv
other nation In our resources OF iron and tim