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VOL. I. THE GEORGIA JOURNAL. ft IILT ' EDGEV1I -»F'E, TUESDAY, APRIL 24, ism. No. 26. PUBLISHED BY SEATON GRANTLAND, (PRINTER TO THE STATE,) ON JEF* FERSOlA'STREET, OPPOSITE Till: ' NORTH END OF THE STATE-HOUSE TERMS ,THREE DOLLARS PER AN- 1 KUM, ONE HALF TO BE PAID IN AD VANCE. ADVERTISEMENTS WILL BE THANK FULLY RECEIVED, AND PUBLISHED AT THE CUSTOMARY PRICES. CONGRESS. REDUCTION OF THE ARMY AND NAVY. Mr. Randolph said he wished to submit a motion to the House, which was of a nature that would require "perhaps, at least justify, some gene ral observations. During his una voidable absence from his duty in the House the present session, Mr. R. said it had been some consolation to him to reflect that if he had been una ble to participate in any of the mea sures which the wisdom of the and give a premium to have his cot ton or tobacco placed in Liverpool or London, or to have ah assorted cargo of prohibited goods placed in any street of Baltimore or Philadel phia. Whether these habits will e ver be checked, it belongs not to me to predict—but they certainly will never be checked by high duties o- perating as a premium on smuggling. But it may be said that the nation is in that situation in which it is ne cessary to act, to do something, agree, sir, that it is—although I hold it not to be the least of the qualifica tions of a statesman to be apprised when it is not necessary to act. A proposition is now in substance— and I wish to bring it in form—sub mitted to the nation whether they will encounter a system of addition al taxation and loans, or whether they will make a reduction in their unprofitable establishments. I think, if I have not forgotten, that the Se cretary of the Treasury, in his annu the necessity of the state, at least those measures were not in any wise retarded or impeded by any oposition of his. True it is (said he) that at the distance at which I was placed from the seat of government, and through the medium through which I viewed its measures, it was impossi ble for me to discern anything like a svstem pursuing or about to be pursu ed by the government of this nation. But this, sir, I attributed to my own want of information, not to the want of decision or wisdom in the govern ment. I flattered myself that when I should have reached the scat of go vernment, when I should be on the spot that I should then at least be ena bled to discern a degree of something like a regular system of policy per- vadingthe great councils ofthenation. But, sir, using all the means accessi- 8°* vernment might have devised to medal report, has stated, that by an ade quate rcductiou in the army and na vy the necessitous state of our finan ces may be relieved. But, perhaps, sir, it may be said, shall we, in the present undecided state as respects the belligerents of Europe, make any movement which shall indicate a dis position on our part to submit to those belligerents ? Certainly not. But, Mr. R. asked, was thtTe any one who heard him who seriously thought of war, or believed it a rela tion in which we could be placed ? He for one did not. War with whom ? War with France ! Carri ed on where ? By us here, and by France in old France ? For she had no possessien in our neighbor hood. War with England i Car ried on where ? In the hospitals at New-Orleans ? Granting that our situation with either of the bellige rents w’as a hostile one, Mr. R. said ble to me, during the time that I have been in Washington, I havejhe for one would in that case still be been unable to detect any thing like'ready to accede to his proposition- design, any thing like concert, any for he saw no use in keeping up an thing like a plan about to be pursu-'establishment, a costly set of tools, ed bv this House in relation to ourwhich we could not if we knew how national concerns—I ought perhapslto use. to say*, until this moment. But I. It is possible, however, said Mr. understand, sir, at length the budget R. that all this time I may be under has been opened—that a system has been brought forward for raising sup plies bv loans and by additional tax a mistake—that there is a system that there is a plan, that there is a con' cert—and indeed if the old maxim be es. It is in relation to this svstemjtrue, ars est celare artem, ours must that the motion which I am about to be one of the most refined systems— make will stand. I had indeed sup-jit eludes not only sight but touch posed, sir, that when the govemment;&would elude even a chemical ana- of the United States should get into operation at this session, the first act would be, (if indeed we could not build up) to pull down that which e- very one seemed to acknowledge was inefficient, ridiculous and hurtful— 1 allude to the celebrated non-inter course law—and I certainly should have felt it mv duty to submit a mo tion on that subject as soon as I tool; my seat, if I had not been informed that a bill was in transitu between the two Houses to effect that object. Why indeed the nation should have tolerated this acknowledged evil, I have never been enabled to discover, I had supposed that the first step would have been to do nwav the confessed evil, by way of preparati on for some substantial good. In this, however, I have been unfortu nately mistaken. Whether the peo ple of the United States were ever to receive that flourishing commerce which bad been so childishly spoiled, Mr. R. said it was not for him to undertake to determine. Commerce Was a delicate, ticklish thing—and when it had formed for itself new channels, like the mighty water course, it was difficult indeed to turn it back into the old. But, if the com merce of the United States was ever to be regained, he would venture to say that it was not to be brought back by the means of additional du ties. The embargo and non-inter course—he had almost forgotten to mention the non-importation ac had changed the habits and feelings and principles of the mercantile class in this country. As foreseen and predicted, a system of smuggling, of illegal trade the most injurious to the agricultural interest and destruc tive to the revenue that could be conceived, had been organized. A m in lias nothing to do (said Mr. othfcr who shall have the blame of it, to reduce them with honor...if it is th was surpassed in disaster by the moi tahty of the American army. And yet, sir, for this shadow, this skeleton —it is indeed a skeleton of an army, the people of the United States are to submit to loans & taxation. With respect to the navy, I say Nothing of that. Its exploits are alrcadj^egis- tered in our Journals. And the fact ot the frigate Philadelphia’ having run ashore on the tail of the Horse shoe, is the only one in our naval annals for several years past. With respect to war—we have, thank God ! in the Atlantic, a fosse wide and deep enough to keep off my immediate danger to our territo ry. The belligerents of Europe know, as well as we feel, that war is out of the question. No, sir——if* our preparation was for battle, the state physicans have mistaken the state of die patient—we have been embargo ed and non-intercoursed almost into a consumption, and this is not the time for battle. If indeed the state was a- bout to undergo innoculation for the small pox, this reduction would have been according to the best medical authorities. Mr. R. said he would therefore submit to the House, under these views, the best he had been able to take, two distinct propositions in a single resolution, in order that the House and the people of the United States might determine whether they would submit to encounter the Euro pean system of loans and taxes, or whether they would reduce establish ments, which (to say the best of them that could be said) were mere incum brances. It was he thought, about nine years ago since he had the honor of making a similar motion in this intention of gem^uen thus to syimj themselves wit^B charge of folK for originally in^Ksing them, I can not coincide with them; but if it wa^ originally proper to raise this force, there are no circumstances whicl ought at present to induce Congress to reduce it. But at the same time, sir, I am far from saying that I do not believe that both the army and na vy may be reduced before the end of the present session. It is true that the deficit in the revenue may be sa ved by a reduction of the army and navy ; but that is no reason why it should be done when every other cir cumstance forbids it. There is a bill before the House for the increase of duties ; it is reported in blank, and the ratio of addition will be fixed at the pleasure of the House. It is re ported on the principle which is fair that those who incur a debt should pay it. The deficit of revenue should be supplied by those who incurred the expence which causes it, I voted for the army, and shall not be deter red from voting money’ for an ob ject which I believed necessary and which I still believe wr.3 neces sary at the time it was adopted. As to the picscnt situation uf tlic army of the U. States, I am not acquainted with it, except from private letters. No man more than myself deplores the situation of that army ; and from whatever cause it has proceeded, whoever is to blame, whoever is re sponsible for keeking the troops in a swamp, and sacrificing one half of them, 1 hope will be exposed to the public. It may be proper to observe that a bill passed th‘13 House yester day for organising a force more con genial to the feelings of freemen, House, which was the precursor of which will perhaps much reduce the the abolition of the internal tuxes. He necessity of keeping a military force hoped the motion he was now about embodied. to make would be the harbinger of protection against the system intro duced into the House yesterday— that, at least, if it was not made the means of taking off taxation, it might prove an antidote agaist it. Mr. R. then moved “ that the malitary and naval establishments ought to be re duced”—not that he was at all oppos ed to a reduction in any other article of expence. He believed that ma nv other and important reductions, Sir, I do not for my part know what course will be pursued bv Congress at the present session. The gentle man from Virginia seems disposed to repeal the non-intercourse—and I consider it perfectly consistent in him to vote against it because he did so, when it was passed—it is pcfectly consistent in him to say’ that it is in efficient because he has said so before —and that it is perfectly consistent in him to reprobate every lysis. I would wish to ask this House, after all that has been said or that can be said on the subject whether we must not—we may make as many wry faces as we please—go back to that ground (if it be possible to regain it) which we have so childishly and wan tonly abandoned ? We must—we may begin upon the system of loans and taxation, but the people of the U. S. will tell us to stop, and we must obey’. Will the people of the U. S. consent to keep up expensive milita ry and naval establishments,of the ve ry existence of which they are igno rant until they are made acquainted might be made in the expences of taken for four or five years past, bc- the government. The spirit of re- cause he did at the time reprobate form, he said, had long slept in this them. Our situation as to commerce, House. He would go as far as any sir, does not proceed from our acts man in retrenching expences, but hejbut from the injustice of the bellige- confessed his object now was to take rents, who by’their decrees St orders the bull by the horns. He consideredjat a single blow reduced our export these two objects to be the gieat from one hundred and eight millions drains and fcinks of the public trea- to less than seven. During the year sure. I do not (said he) profess a better acquaintance with the public sentiment than others, but I believe, if you svere to propound the question to every’ man in the U. S. capable of judging, that not merely’ nineteen twentieths, bvit nine hundred S: nine ty nine hundredths of them....alivay’s excepting those who draw emolu ments from these establishments, h their immediate connexions, whether with them by burthensome taxes and! ,nt ^‘ s U° use or out of it....thc good a debt entailed on their posterity—.honest yeomanry of the U. States, and lor what ? To what earthly end ?|who never saw these things, whose If you cannot keep your army’ alive in, on ly p r °°f °f their existence is in the time of peace, I ask in the name of money they call for, would say, in common sense what will you do withL oc l* s nam e let us have none of them, them in time of war ? Is there a man.If we are to I> ave war, we know that who hears me who feels one atom ofi wc » the people of the United States, additional security to his person or ant I no1 invalids from the hospi- propertv from the army of the U. S. ? ; tals on the Mississippi, must fight Has it ever been employed to protect:^ 1 ® battles. the rights of person and property ? J'he ^° use a g ree( l to consider the Has it ever been employed but in vio- mot ‘ 0 f n °* ^ r * Randolph; and the lation of personal rights & property—question being stated on its passage in the violation of the writ of habeas * n the following words; corpus and as a new modem instru-| 44 Resolved, 1 hat the military and ment of ejectment ? Sir, go through; nava l establishments ought to be re- the country’, & put to every freehold- duced er in the land this question—Are you willing to pay one third more of. Mr. Eppes presumed that the gen tleman from Virginia would not ask duty, and an hundred per cent on of the House to decide this question that third, upon sugar, coffee and so at a moment’s warning. I have, said forth, for the sake of the establishment at New-Orleans ? We may say what w’e phase, sir, but that expedition which, until ours, surpassed in folly every other expedition ever under taken—the famous expedition of a British army against Flushing, where they had an army as w’ell as climate to contend against—that expedition, which even their own ministry dar* Randolph) but to go into the market,aot defend, but quarrel amergst each 1809 our revenue was about ten mil lions—during the year 1810 it will probably not be more than eight. I have as I before said, no objection to meet the question, but the reduction of the army will not do away the ne cessity of additional revenue, because our exports are so much reduced that we cannot avoid this year increasing the duties, or perhaps for some years to come. One reason of the reduc tion of revenue is that our manufac tures have increased so much us to ex clude many foreign articles—nay so far have those manufactures progres sed, that samples of the manufactures have been sent to England to be imi tated and sent to this country to ri val our domestic manufactures.— With this view of the decrease of our imports, an additional duty of 5 per cent, on goods paying duty ad valo rem, would produce a million : and raising the specific duties 33 1-3 per cent, wou^d produce two millions, m iking three millions, the supposed amount of the deficit. Mr. Randolph said he had no idea of provoking the discussion which had commenced. He was willing to submit his proposition to the same committee as had underconsideration the gentleman’s proposition for laying additional duties, and let gentlemen take their choice. The great difficul ty which he felt in speaking in this Hall hud caused Mr. R. to omit one remark, & that was—that if Congress Jid mean to lay additional duties, it would be necessary to keep them on not only this year, but many years, Mr. It. said he had not expected from the gentleman who is at th this House, such an opinion on tl e subject of indirect taxation as was to be gathered from his observations. What would be the effect of laying additional duties for one or two years ? The effect would be that the articles on which the duty was laid would not be imported, because they would I rave to compete in the market with those articles already imported free of additional duty and moreover would have to contend a- gainstthe well-grounded expectation that in a short time the duty would be taken oft*. So that instead of get ting revenue you diminish it by lay ing additional duties, because the very articles which are to produce revenue will cease to be imported. There is no clearer question in finance or even in arithmetic than this. His colleague had said, Mr. R. observed, that, the revenue having diminished, heavier duties must be imposed on certain articles—why ? Because, forsooth, the articles are imported under a disadvantage, ow ing to the increase of our domestic manufactures. If so, in order to get revenue higher duties were to be laid on imported articles not able to con tend in our market* under only the present duties, this was altogether a new plan to him—it must be of the new school of finance—it was altogc* ther incomprchenvble. With res* aect to the principle that those who incur debts ought to pay them, Mr. R. said he agreed with his colleague —and, although he was not one of those who incurred the debt, he was one of those that were willing to pay it. They would unquestionably by this system of additional duties des troy what revenue was left from duties on imports and tonnage. He said he rather suspected his colleague had fallen into a small mistake, and that when he spoke of ad valorem duties on goods imported, he ought to have said on articles dutied—for under the present regime they did not amount to precisely the same thing—and Mr. R. said, if we got back, which lie did not kuow to be practicable, to the old system, we should find an increase of revenue, notwithstanding the rivalry of our own manufactures. One word more, said Mr. R. and I have done, at least for to day. A- mong the objects v.’hich induced me to submit the motion now before the House, or at least one which in my mind ought to weigh in its favor, is this : that this planting our soldi? ers like so much rice in a swamp, which my colleague wishes to see brought to light, and i.i which wish I concur, has had one effect—it gives the coup de grace to the recruiting service, which never was a very flou- rishing branch of our home manu facture of a standing army. If it be true, as allcdgcd, that dead men tell , no talcs, it must be also true that they can draw no rations. But I can de monstrate, however true in common sense, that it is not true in the Trea- sury....for there never has been an Instance of one dollar refunded in the army or navy for persons not in place although the estimate is always made up on the supposition that the com pliment of men is complete and full. My colleague is mistaken, sir. I have not reprobated every measure for five years past. I had the honor of proposing some measures....that of arming the militia for instance, which was adopted, with what grace I will not say. I had the honor of propos ing others which were subscquentlv adopted when taken up by other geu- tlemen. I might mention the con tract bill, the alteration of the rules and articles of war.... I might go fur ther, but I arn not disposed further to trouble the House or exhaust my* he, no objection to refer the resoluti on to a committee of the whole House and to discuss it. If gentlemen on this floor who voted in 1807 for an increase of the army and naval csta blishments, can find in the present posture of the affairs of this country a sufficient ground to reduce these establishments, and at the present moment, when perhaps the first gale may bringnews which will enable us'hcad of the committee of finance in sell. Mr. Smilie said he was surprised that the gentleman from Virginia had expected an immediate decision of his motion. He could not expect that it should be immediately decided. He did not regret that it had been brought forward, and he did not say what his opinion would be when they came to decide on it ; but to do it at present, he said, would be certainly premature. The observations made with respect to the finances, the state of the army, and all that, he consider 'd out of the question at present, rhe cv.bicct of the state of the army