Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1869-12-08
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phia and Baltimore, they have no hosp
tai accommodations for sick and disable
seanlen. A careful examination Of thes
institutions has been made by Or. AeW
art, OF the Treasury Department, and b
Dr. Billings, of the United States army
The result Of these examinations Is tbs
several hospitals have not been properI
managed. and Others should -be ciose1
! and lLaL-h hospitals should be erected q
( View York, Baltimore and Philadelphia
Measures have already been taken for IN
sale OF the hospitals at several place
where they are NOS needed. IN
[ hospital at New Orleans is represented a
unsuitable, from bad location and othe
circumstances.
The War Department Is in possession q
( suitable hospitals az New orleans dEl
New York, which I ala informed are "a
/ longer needed for the useOf thg arHly.
/ respectfully recommend they be trans
/ ferred TO the Treasury Department.
The revenue marine system rs an i'm
I portant, and expensive branch. OF Gus
| tom revenue service there are thirty-si1
| vessels belonging to the department. o
! which twelve are sailing vessels &n'
/ tweuty-fOur are steamers. Vhey vary ],
| size from forty to four hundred and eighty
! tons. One hundred and seventy-three OH
/ GERS and two thousand four hundred mel
are required 10 man these vessels, anC
their running expenses amount 10 abou
! $500. 900 a year. Five of these vessels arr
side-wheel steamers of four hundred anC
eighty tons, are lake steamers, and with
out commanders; they are rapidly diinin
ishing in value, while tEs care of then
involves an expenditure of about $4,000
Vessels now in service have been pur
chased and built, at various times, and, a
far as l can ascertain, without spe
eial reference 10 the nature o
the duty TO be performed, etc.
and certainly without any matured plan
From one-half to three-quarters of The
whole number are not adapted to bust
ness. Congress recently appropriate
S300,OO0 for the construction OF four addi'
tiOnal vessels, and proposals were issued
and bids received under the authority
thus conferred upon the Secretary of the
Treasury, but no contracts have been
made. An examination of the subject
has forced the conviction upon me that il
is ineXpedient to incur the expenditure
until the Department is in possession OF
more accurate and complete Information.
1 shall therefore take the opinion of a
board of cOmpetent officers upon the fol
lowing points: First. The size and char
acter Of the vessels required by the ma
ture of the service they are to perform.
Second. Whether they should be con-
structed of iron or wood, or a combins-
ton of the materials; whether the re-
port OF the Commissioner shall have been
received proposals Will be issued for the
construction of four vessels rs authorized.
In addition 10 the parent mint of Phila-
delphia, six branch mints have been es-
tablished at various times in different parts
of the country, one at San Francisco, one
at Charlotte, y. c., one at DahlOnega, Ca,
one at Denver, Col, and one at Portland.
Oregon. Since the commencement Of the
war the branches at New Orleans. DahlOn-
ega and Charlotte have been closed. An
assay Office, it is believed, will satisfy the
necessities Of the the mining interests in
Colorado, as for the present only a lin
tied business is being done at the Port
land mint. Indeed, with the construction
of railroads, and consequent increased IA
p;lities for communication, | am of opin-
ion thar the business of coming win be
chiefly at one mint upon the Pacific, and
at one upon the Atlantic coast. Under
the act Of Congress passed July %, 1856,
preparations are making for Il sale of the
mints at Charlotte and Dahlonega. The
mining aud coming Of the precious metals
is now so large a national interest that il
deserves more attention than it has hith-
erto received There 10 no bureau or
officer in the Treasury Department at
Washington, charged especially with the
management OF this great interest. ]
therefore recommend that provision be
made for the appointment Of a proper
officer. to be entrusted with this branch of
public business, under the direction of the
Secretary Of the Treasury.
The coinage Of the couiSry l. diminish
ing in amount, from the fact that In Eng
land the mint expenses are much less
than in this country, " which, no doubt, has
a tendency 10 prevent the export oI i,rr-
ciOus metals il the form of bullion il
the mint charges were to be reduced, or
altogether abolished.
An agreement was made on the iitii dIy
of February, 1856, by the Secretary OF
the Treasury, on behalf Of the 7 niIed
States. and certain parties in California,
leasing a lot of land in san Francisco, for
a period of twenty wears. The lease -
suojeot to condition that il shall be void.
if Congress, ou o. before the lst day Of
January. $50, shall taNe adverse action In
reference thereto.
In view of the fact that the lease Is for a
long period Of time, and being Of opinion
that the Government should retain con-
troll of all properly that may be needed
for public purposes, think 10 eApeiient
for Congress to annul the lease.
One of the most efficient means Of
the country in its financial
relations with other countries Is the de-
OF our commercial marine.
The returns show that NeT-- lsTge
of the foreign trade is in English
hands. We are not only thuS dependent
upon rival country iut the performance
of the business which should be iu the
hands OF orr own people, buJ our ability
10 maintain specie payments IS materi-
ally diminished. If the entire toreigntrade
Of the country both of exports and i'm
ports were carried on in American ships,
the earning gould not be less than S75,
BOO, 600. Were the trade exclusively in
American hands, a large part OF this
difference Of S4f, 900, 900 would be due to
citizens ofthe United States, and payable
in other countries. This amount wOuio
be thus added to our ability to pay for
goods imported from those countries. If,
for example, an American citizen pur-
chase in New York athousand barrels Of
flour for $1,000. and export it to Liverpool
n an American vessel, and il ls there sold
for 5000, bill Of exchange may be drawn
against the proceeds, and an invoice OF
goods of the value of 5000, purchased in
England, entirely iquidated, although at
he CustomhOuse -at New y Ork there
would be an apparent balance against the
country Of $1,000; but if. on the other hand,
.he one Thousand barrels of flour are eX-
.he -four realized in New York, and
which can be applied to the payment
for goods bOught in England, viii
be only $1,000, and there will re-
main an actual balance against the
country of $1,000. This familiar example
shows tho Importance of re-establishlng
Dur commercial supremacy on the ocean.
and 1 deem, therefore, 6sSential to our
that the shipping interests of
"a. 10 .,y,Iv
nursery of seameu, bUt also as an essen
.jal agency in enabling The Government
10 institute and maintain specie pay
ments. IL is an interest also, which. III
It's development, j. as important 20 ihc
States and people remote from tN5
sea coast, as Il Is - the maratimo sections.
Every addition TO our facilities tor Toe eE-
iort OF the products of the interior Is AZ
to the producers as to lie
merchants and ship-builders of the East.
While / DO not anticipate that ii viii he
necessary to delay resumption until our
proper commercial position is regained,
am satisfied that the development OF the
navigation and ship-building interest viii
improve the credit rapidly and augment
the wealth Of the country.
The suggestions th2t ] have made indi-
cate my opinion, that u viii not be wise
10 resume specie payment while SO large
a part of the interast-bearing debt of the
country is represented by five-twenty
bonds and held by European merchants,
bankers and manufacturers. Questions
that have been raised in regard to the
nature of the obligation assumed by
the Government in the issue Of
these bonds have undoubtedly de-
TERED many persons from purchasing
hem as a permanent investment, and
they are largely held in this
country and Europe for speculative pur-
poses by persons who design to put them
lpOn the market whenever an advance
shall furnish a sufficient inducement or
when political or financial disturbances
may create demand for money for other
purposes. 1t is probable that from seven
20 nine hundred millions of these bonds
are now held in Europe, and TO consid-
srable extent by persons who will dis
pose of them under the influences to
which have referred. Such a panic as
existed in Europe in 1866, at the opening
Of the Austrian aud Prussian war. would
Ia sreT.ss.f