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ws Oil der«!M which they litvo unwittingly rc- caivoi in tin placoof evMstica, and upon which the characters of incoinpdteaewatid Infamy are There is so cloirly nmf imlclihly impressed one other species of testimony sought by the questions, and placed upon the records of the committee, equally excluded hy tint principle* upon which I have insisted. Hearsay evi dence is inadmissible, not only hy the code to which we have been accustomed, but by every system of civilisedj jurisprudence with which we It sve any acquaintance; and yet the com- rttteo, apparently asstitn ng, hy a strange com plication of issues, licit every oflicor of the War Department who It id any agency in forming a certain contract with Eli) th Mix, or an in'erest in it, is now actually under trial, have receiv ed and recorded, as testimony, the declarations of time officers, in listincly recollected, an 1 vaguely and douhtingly stated. Admitting that it is proper for the committee to'assn no ittqu sitorial powers in this investiga tion, and in that character to ask of tho wit nesses, not only what they know, but what they h i vo he ini from others, it must be exceed ingly apparent, that tho only excusable purpose, even of an inquisitorial kind, for winch such questions could he propounded, is tho discove ry of other witnesses, by whose evidence tho chtrge nt.tjht bo established. Let us see how far tho proceed ngs of the committee have been conform lido to this view of their functions. In the evidence recorded by tho committee, Col Arm stead sums, in substance, that either M i jor V.indevctiter or General Swift inform"' him that the latter was concerned in the A! x contract. Upon further rocollectmn, the wi 1 - uosi states,aim ho must hive received this in formation from Gen. Swift h in self, for that he rememhors to have had a conversation with h tn, it wh ch the General stated that ho had r.n idea of leaving the annv, and becoming in terested in some contract with die Government, which the witness supposed to have boon tin contract, in question. lie further states, in the same conversation, Gonor.ui Swift informed him that he had naked the permission of Mr. Cal* n- Botin to become thus in.crested. This evi- f fdence, if ovidcnco it may bo called, is to be \ regarded in tho two-fold aspect of implicating ( tCIlfli'aI Suj',4r in • nxim!n..1 — General Swift in a criminal participation in a contract mudo by Vimself, as tho agent of the Government, ami Mr. Calhoun in a scarcely less criminal contnvanco at such a participa tion. So far as it rclatos to General Swift, common justice requires me to remark, that it is contrary to those great principles of criminal jurisprudence which onr forefathers havo con secrated by a constitutional declaration, to sit ■in judgment upon a citizen against whom no charge has boon presen ed; who has no notico that iiis character is even thus informally impli cated, and who, instead of being prosont to confront his accusor, is wholly unrepresented before tho cominittoo. ' But, so far as this testimony tends to impli cate Air. Calhoun, the course adopted by the comtn'ttee is liable to a much sirongor objec tion tli.m iltat merely of receiving, and record* •t>d for publication, incompetent and improper testimony. Thuy havo evidently closed the itivcsiigitton precisely where it ought to have commenced, leaving upon tho repu*n»io(i t>f AI.. Calhoun all the suspicion which dlegd e- vuicace cuuid proiiuce, and omitting to sum mon before thorn the only willies'! who could g.ve legal testimony oft the muter, in question. Colonel Arm.sio.td states, obviously from th • rocollect.ons of a most-treacherous atiif fee ble memory, that Gcueral Swift .informed him, eigln or ume yoars ago, th ii ho h id asked AI . C dnoou’s pei mission to becoino concerned in some cnniruoi wall the Government, This is tho only m renal fact bearing upon tho charac ter ot Air. Calitouu; anJ it miist have been ob vious to die commuieo that General Swrft was tho only witness who could give logal testimony in relation toil. Yet they havo declined to summon lion on tltOir own nto'ion, no doubt from a view of ilio subject satisfactory totheuf- setves. The ground upon wh.ch I must pro- su.uu they iiaVo acted, is tlio mcoinpotency of tile evidence before them,.and its uttor insuffi- cieucy to fix upon Air. Calhoun any imputation which requires to' bo refined. But I must bo permitted to say, that tho in competency and iunulHcioncy ol iho cvidonco, though, a very suthcieiit reason for rejecting it altogether, is no reason at nil for rotusing, when it is impro perly received and recorded, to product) the on ly legal testimony by which judicial certainty could bo obtained on tho subject. Although, therefore, tho committeo must havo acted with a view to impartial justice, the course tltoy have pursued has been precisely that which is best calculatod to givo tho most injurious effi cacy to illegal testimony against Mr. Calhoun, and to avoid tho conclusive refutation which tho production of log il testimony would undoubt edly establish. To do away the effect of-this proceeding, tho only altornutivo loft to Mr. Calhoun is, to placo tho most emphatic add unequivocal negative, -which I urn expressly authorized to do, upon the imputation of his ever having any knowledge or belief of Gener al Swift's participation in tlm contract,' and to call upon the committbo to examino General Swift himsolf as to tho imputed fact of Mr. Cal houn’s knowledge and connivance. Having shown that the entire mass of tho testimony produced is logaily inadmissible on the trial of any issue which can bo made upon Air. Calhoun’s, official conduct or moral inte grity, itjisduo to tho committee that I should explaiu my reasons for not objecting to it os it occurred in tho progress of tho investigation. Convinced of tho absolute falsity of the char~ ges presented, and of the entire purity of Mr. Calhoun’s character in all tho relations, public or privato, in which it can bo crntomplaiad, I determined, from the beginning, that I would interpose no objection to any inquiry which the committee might think proper to institute, nor t0 description of evidence by which they ni.ghr think proper to pursuo it. Any attempt on my part to restrain the latitudo of the in vestigation, or to prevent tho abduction oven of improper evidence, would have been con- stnicil by tho malicious into a desire to screen Mr. Calhoup, behind icehnical forms, from a full and free investigation. And as I was sa tisfied that tho luoro. sovorc the ordeal, the more couclusivo would be the evidence of tho fidelity aud zeal of his uffic.al conduct, I was the more willing tint the investigation should assume any form which the: committee might choose to givo it, and ho prosecuted hy any sort of evidpnee which they might iliuik pro per to admit, upon their own responsibility. But although I had a right, as the personal friend of Air. Calhoun, to abstain from any in terference with the course of tho committee, I have no right, considering tho relation in which he stands, unit in which 1 stand, to the public, to sanction, by my acquiescence, a spe cies of unlicensed inquisition, unknown t<> the a rrudence of ■any free country, and which d furnish a precedent utterly subversive of tho only elfectual safe-guards of the reputation of public men in periods of great political ex citement. H iving disposed of that branch of the inves tigation which relates to the imputations upon Air. Calhoun’s official integrity, it remains for me to offer a few remarks upon a view of this subject, which, though not involved in the issue referred to the committee, is evidently embra ced in the scope of their inquiries. It Ins been too apparent to escape tho observation even of one less interested than I mn to mark the bear ings of this investigation, that n very largo por tion of tho testimony can havo no other appli cation or object than to call in question the general administration of the War Depart- men , while Mr. Calhoun presided over it, by. holding ban responsible for the minute irregu larities of its subordinate branches, and parti- culirly those of tho Engineer Department: Wilde, i here fore, tho charge is specific and 1'- mited, die investigation is general and undefin ed, and the most obvious principles of justice require that tho defence should at least ire co extensive with tho attack, whether it is to bo open and direct, or disguised and incidental. Assuming, then, that the general irregulari ties of ii subordinate branch of tho War De partment, are fiir subjects of inquiry, let its see whether the specifications are such us ad mitting their truth, will fairly fix any portion of the responsibility oil Mr. Calhoun. Tito contract in relation to which tho imputed irre gularities occurred, was made the, 25th of Jn- ly, 1818. Mr. Calhoun took charge of the. War Department, the 8ih of December, 1817; and it is a fact of undisputed notoriety that he found it uttorly destitute of organization in al most all its branches, and pre-eminently so in tho Engineer Department. Tho extensivo o- porations and large disbursements of the then recent war, effected under n system of admin istration having neither organization nor re sponsibility, had introduced such irregularities aud abuses, nnd caused tho accumulation of such a in tss of unsettled accounts nnd unfinish ed business, that llie War De[>artnicnt was ac tually shunned by sovora! distinguished citizens who were solicited to preside over it, ns an Au- gonn stable, holding out in prospect the labors ot a Hercules, without any portiou of his fume. ] Such‘Vine tho condition of the Department when Air. Calhoup became its Chief Officer, and evory irregularity which is imputable to the Al.x contract, including the omission to ad vertise, having been common and frequent in overy p eccdmg administration, without any effectual effort to correct them: tho injustice of holding Mr. Calhoun responsible for not cor roding, in n few months, irregularities which lbs predecessors had hot oven attempted to correct in as irinrty years, is too gross to bo to lerated for a moment. It is obvious that tho head of such a depart ment, cannot, upon any rational principle, be made responsible for n particular instnneo of irregularity in tho details of a subordinate de partment. Tho truo point of his responsibili ty is tho gonerni laxity aud want of system from which the particular instance arises. If, there fore, Air. Calhoun is obnoxious to any censure in tlm prosont caso, it is for the imperfect or ganization of the Engincor Department on the 23th July, 1818. Inthisviewof tho subject, it is to tie remirkod tin. ho look! charge of tho Department in December, 1817, at tho open ing-of the session of congress; left Washington for-South Carolina, ' oh iadisponsablo busi ness, immediately alter' tho close of the ses sion in tho May following; and did not re turn until tho month of July, only two weeks before tho contract in question was closed; ■ and was almost incessantly occupied, during theso two wooks, in tho deliberations of tho cabinot on the military occurrences of tho Seminole carapaigu. Undor. those circumstancos, the irregularity jn question _ cannot bo imputed to him, 'either in factor in theory. Coming into a compli cated department, which was almost literally in a state of chaos, nothing but a spirit of official quackery could havo prompted him to cobt- fcfiodis pit «y«nh>r atic reformation, before ho had deliberately surveyed tho working of its disordered machin ery, and ascertained both tho causes of the ex isting . irrogulurities, and the most effective means of correcting them permanently. In fact, when it is considered that Mr. Cal houn first noccssarily dovoted himself to the creation and organization of tho Departments of .tho Quarter Alaster Goneral, Surgeon Gen- noral, and Commissary Gcncnil, under nn act ot Congress, passed upon his recommendation, in April, 1818, tho wonder is that tho reforma tion of the Engineer Department was com menced and completed at such early, periods as in fact it was. I cannot believe it possible, therefore, tho committee will seTect th minuto irregularities of detail in a transaction which was conducted exclusively by subordinate offi cers, aud of which the irregularities really be longed io tho antecedent period of disorder, os a criterion of Air. Calhoun's general adminis tration of the War Department. - Indeed the very irregularities, which W are now .considering, nro tho‘more striking, bo- cause of tho perfect organization, responsibili ty and system, which Mr. Calhoun has the high merit of having subsequently imparted to all tho arrangements and operations of tho de partment. Standing in contrast with his own improve ments, these petty and subordiuato irregulari ties aro exhibited in bold relief to the prying and invidious research of the censorious, and in this way not only ihe imperfections which lie found in the system of administration, but the signal regularity which he introduced in the proceedings of the department, are made to furnish matter of accusation against him. As the general industry, zeal, and ability, with which Mr. Calhoun discharged-his official duties, are thus distinctly put'in issue by tho direction Which the committee have given to the examination, I claim the right of calling belbre them all the Heads of the subordinate Departments, who were his able co-adjutors in the great work of reform, aud of showing by their united testmony, the condition in which lie found tho dqwr.metit; the fidelity, and un remitting labor villi which he devoted himself to tut improveinmt; and tho high perfection of its arrangemens, which crowned his labors with a success equally conducive to his own laiuo and to tic welfare of his country. I must, therefore, request that the committeo will examino the following gentlemen, touching this branch of tho inquiry: Alujor General Brown, General Thomas S. Jesup, General A. Macomb. Dr. J. Lovell, Colonel N. Tow- son, Colono] G. Gibson, Colonel G. Bomfqrd, Colonel 1, Roberdcjiti, and Colonel John E. Wool. If I am net greatly mistaken, it will conclusively appear from their evidence, that the system of rigorous responsibility and strict economy which ;Mr. Calhoun introduced into ue operations and d.sbursinentsof tho military establishment, havo effected an annual saving n tiie ii.i,tonal expenditure of more than a nid- Ion of dollars, to say' uoiliitig of the striking improvement made in the moral of the army, is well us in its military discipline and effici ency. Although tho views already presented show lie injustice of hulling .Mr. C ilhoun in any degree responsible for the formal irregularities vhicli nt ,y have existed in the formation of the contract with El,jilt Al.x, it is due to tho historical tcutii of the case that I should state, that, in pu nt of fact, no injury resulted to the Government from those irregularities, or from the making of the :oii,ract w.th such a person. On die contruty, it‘was conclusively’ shown iu the investigation which took place on tho sub ject ia the House of Representatives, in May, 1822, that, previous to the formation of the contract, notice was actually given, and inqui ries inado, at uf the points where suitable stone could be procured, and that Colonel Arnti- stead, to uso his own words, “mado experi ments, by haying tho stono quarried near Georgetown by laborers hired by the United States, and fouod that it could not be procured aud carried to Old Point Comfort for less than three dollars fifty conts per perch, togother with the great uncer ainty of getting vessels to transport it.", Tho testimony of Commodore Rodgers, Gen, Alason, Air. Baker of George town, and various other wunosses all concurred m tho uncontradiciod statement, that three dol lars fifty cent* per perch was tho lowest sum for which Watbno could bo delircrcd. Ami accoraingiy.TTnrotr aottars nrty cents was tnc' lowest bid eipcpt that of Elijah AI.x. It is ap parent, therefore, that the contract at throo dollars por perch would hnvo been ruinous to Mix, but for “tho very uuoxpoctcd and rapid fall in tho price of labor and transportation” adverted to by the witnesses in tho former ex amination. Such was tho conclusive force of this, testimony in 1822, that the bare reading of it, without a single word of commentary or argument, induced the the Houso of Represen tatives, by a vote of ono hundred and thirty- one to twenty, to reject tho report and resolu tion of the select committee which recommend ed n suspension of all appropriations for tho fulfilment of that contract. Although, there fore, the character of. Alix was, even at the dato of tho contract, stamped with infamy, the fact was then wholly unknown to Air. Calhoun, aud I bellevo, t> every officer of tho Engineer department; .and however much some of thoso officers may havo suffored from having to deal with a man so profligate and unprincipled, it is clear that the Government has actually saved seventy-five tho iRind dollars in tho whole con tract, by accepting his bid. And I cannot but remark, in concluding this part of tho subject, that tho vigilant regard for the public interest with which Mr, Calhoun has invariably enfor ced upon Alix (lie performance of this contract, hascvidontly brought upon him tho infamous ca lumny which |»as givon rise to this investigation. I cannot bring this communication to a close witbout_jj>»«nHlly and distinctly protesting a- gainst Blending tlm examination and trial of charges against tho subordinate officers of the War Department, with the present invostiga- lion.- Tue.injustice of such a- courso to thoso .officers, has boon already stated. It would be literally condemning them without a trial. The injustice to..Mr. CaUio.uft'Ts Equally groat, though not quiib soffibvious. Upon principles of association which tho committee will readily comprehend, it ■ should bo visiting upon Air. Calhoun, by a most sovore and cruel dispensa tion, tho guilt qf these subordinate officers, es tablished by a modo of proceeding having none of the forms or legal accusation and trial, but assuming the most odious of tho prerogatives of thoso inquisitorial tribunals fortunately known to us only by tho .history of less favored coun tries. Finally: I cannot but express my sincorc regret at tho extraordinary dolay which lias characterised this proceeding, and at tho groat injustice and injury which have unavoidably re sulted to Mr. Calhoun from that circumstance alone. It is nowrapro than four weeks' sinco this coraiftittoc was charged to inquire whether tho Vico President of the United States had been guilty of tho infamous offence of partici pating, whilo Secretary of War, in tho profits of a contract mado with an individual, by tho Department over which ho presidod. Tho u- trocious character of tho chargo, and tho high station of the individual implicated, naturally excited in evory portion of tho Union tho most lively interest ip. tho proceedings of the committee; and the pcopln of tho Unitod States, at a loss to oceount for tho delay up on any other supposition than that tome c- vtdence of guilt bad beon exhibited, have been looking, dey after day, and week after week, with the most intense anxiety,, for tho result of an investigation involving not only the honest name of a public servant, who has been for for fifteen years honorably and omin- enily identified with the political history of the country, but involving, also, in no small de gree, tho reputation of the country—whose rights and whose honor ho has so largely con tributed to defend, whose character he ha3 so largely contributed to elevate, and whose in stitutions he has so successfully labored to es tablish and mature. If, front the high honor and unsuspected purity which have character- nited States and the colonics of GreatlW I was resumed, the motion of Alr. Smqh of 5? I tvhnlfl lilll. nflnr <lin I to strike out the whole bill, after the clause, and to substitute other provisiom — pending, Air. Holmes offered an amend^f to. tho amendment, which, .after some diit^I sion, was rejected. Friday, February 2?, The bill from the other. Houso making il prpprialions for tho. Naval service of the y? ted States, was read twjco and referred to i[u committeo on finance. The consideration A the Bill for regulating the .intercourse beprJ! ilie United States and tho British Cnlnn;„. . ized every action of his life, all who knew him, the United States and the British Colonics v.-jj • i t i I 1 l unaiimnil tlm motinn nfMi*. Smith nf 1\Tj whether friends or enemies, have looked with equal confidence to his entire acquittal of the charge presented, it can scarcely bo doubted that a large portion of tho people of tho Unit ed States, who do not know him, must have re garded the unexpected procrastination of tho inquiry, os a circumstance inexplicable if not suspicious. And, while I am under the neces sity, from the course pursued bv the commit tee, of still further protracting their investiga tion, I shall uso every effort, in which I ear nestly solicit their co-operation, to bring this long labor to a speedy termination. I havo the honor to bo, with very great re spect, your obedient servant, GEO. M’DUFFIE. From Ihe Xattonal Intelligencer, February 17. COMMUNICATION. The communication of Mr. AI’Diiffie to tho select committee instituted at the request of tho Vice President, dated 29th of January, contains one sentence to which we think it our duty to respond. It is in these words: “Such was the conclusive force of this testimony in 1822, that the bare rending of it, without a singlo word of commentary or augument, induced the House of Representatives, by a vote of 131 to 20, to reject the roport nnd resolution of tho select committee, which recommend a suspension of all appropriations for tho fulfilment of that con tact.” H iving beon members of tho select com mittee of 1822, and fully satisfied with their re port and resolution, wo feel disposed to say somothing in our own defence. Had Mr. M'- Dufftc confined himself to facts,and just con clusions, we should have abstained from all re mark. This he lias not done. Ilis misrepre sentations, we will not say intentional ones, de mand, and shall receive correction. Unwilling to depend exclusively upon me mory, wo havo adverted to tho Journal of the Houso of Representatives, from which the fol lowing extracts aro made. Ajtril 22, 1822.—“The resolution of Air. Butler, re quiring the appointment of a select committee, to in quire whether the Rip Rap contract was mndo accor ding to law, and whether the contractor had fulfilled his covenants, was adopted. The committee consist ed of Messrs. Butler Aletcalfe, and Campbell.” (Sec Journal p. 477.) May 2.—“Mr. Cocke moved 4o strike from the “bill making appropriations for the military service for 1322, and for other purposes,” the words “For Fort Calhoun fifty thousand dollara.” _ The House adjourned with' out# decision.” (See Journal p. 547.) .... . - . ^ Jlfnii King tho minnrmea~iTO5i- whth ho denied. preceding day, was a-oin under conside ration.' A debate arising upon Air. ness of the , , arising upon Air. Cocke's amend ment, Air. Colden called for the previous question, which was carried, 131 to 20.” (See Journal, p. 549.) May 6. This bill was returned from the Senate with an amendment in these Vrords, following the ap propriation for Fort Calhoun: “This appropriation not to be regarded as a confirmation of the contract made with Elijah Mix, in regard to this fort." Air. Williams moved to amend, by adding the words “or disaffirmance” after the word “confirmation” which was determined in the negative. Air. Sawyer called for the previous question, which was, will the House agree to the amendment of the 'Senate as aforesaid?— The division was 40 to 80. Sec Journal p.581. May-7. Air. Butler, trom the Select Committo on the Rip Rap contract, made a report; which was read, and ordered to lie on the table. See Journo!, p. 580. The error into which Mr. AI’Duffio has fal len is this: lie assorts that tho report and re solution of tho committeo were, uppn boing barelyjoad, rejected by a vote of one hundred and thirty-ono to ttvonty; whereas tho journal provos beyond all donbt that tho roport was not mado until tho 7th of May, four days sub sequent to the alleged rejection. Besides, thoro was no voto in the House on striking out tho words, making an appropriation for Fort Calhoun. He has boon a member of congress long enough to know, that a call for tho previ ous question, when sustained, pqts aside all a- mendments, and precludes further debate.-— This quostion is often sustained by tho Houso, when tho speody passago of a bill is obviously important, particularly near tho closo of a ses sion. It is possiblo, that Air. Calhoun, through his friend Mr. Al'Duffic, means to prove, hy tho voto of tho Houso of tho 3d of May, 1822, that tho report of tho committeo, if mado at that time, was rojoctod, aud thereby all tho ir regularities of the contract fully sanctioned.— This fact could only bo ascertained by pollixg. the members who voted oa that occasloi a, as it is not practicable to ascertain in any other way, tho motives and reasons by which gentle men were influenced. Ilis declaration to say the least of it, is wholly gratuitous. Wo feel no disposition to engage in a Con troversy with Alossrs. Calhoun and M’Duffie, respecting this contract; nono to dcclino sodi a controversy, if necessary to.our own vindica tion against any unjust imputation. THOMAS METCALFE. J. W. CAMPBELL. IN SENATE. mi , . Wednesday, February 21. I he bill to amend tho act regulating tho 1 ost Office Department, was read twice and referred. Air, Johnson called up tho bill to ro- gulato tho intercourse between the United States and Groat Britain. Tho measure was opposed, as superceding tho Woollons Bill, which was a special order, but was carried Ayes 26, Noes 19. Air. Smith of Md. offered a substitute for tho bill reported from the com- mittee of Commerco, and supported tho prono- sition at great length. Air. S.lsbeo replied, in a speech of about two hours, to Mr. Smith, und defended tho views of tho committbo. . Thursday, February 22. *- 1 no bill making appropriations for the mili- * a JL SCrvico ° ft ' 10 United States for tho year 1827, was read twico and referred. Two hours \iere spent in the consideration of ilio btu to regulate the iatcrcouoo between tho U-. resumed, tho motion of Air. Smith, of AJd. s a pending. Air. Johuston of La. addressed ik Senate in reply to Air. Smith, and in supnj. of the Bill as reported. Mr. Holmes an amendment, the effect of which js to ij. tcrdict the inland trade with Canada, which at ter much discussion, was agreed to-—Ayes 3J, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES; Siturday, February n GEORGIA MILITIA CLAI.MS. *' Tho house, on motion of Air. Cook, into committeo of tho whole on tho state of th* union, Br. Bartlett in the chair, on the ntilio. «• i ... • * . ry appropriation bill, and tbo .question beiu on the following amendment, moved yosterda by Mr. Vance: “For the settlement of the claims of the Alititforf Georgia, for services rendered during the years 175J 3, and 4, agreeably to the estimate of Constant Frit, man, and to be paid under the sanction of the Sects tary of War, one hundred and twenty-nine thoujj3 three hundred aud seventy-five dollars and sixtv-ii cents." Air. Clarke, without expressing any settle! opinion as to tho justice af tho claim, dolivortf Ins views at considerable length in opposite to tho insertion of an appropriation forties in the present bill. He contended that it \q utterly without precedent, and referred to tie frequent ad.orse reports mado by the commit, tees of tho house, by the attorney general, acl by the secretary of war, among othor reason for doubting the justice of tho claim. Air. Thompson, of Georgia, after comment ingtlio candor and diligonco of tho present mi. litary committee of tho house, went into a vie. dication, both of tho general principles of th claim, and of tho propriety of providing fir them in tho present bill. Ho insisted that aS the adverse reports had rested on one comma, nication from attorney general Lincoln, wbo, however, had , expressed but an imperfect re collection of the principal fact in controvert), and that tho positive testimony of the Geor$a commissioners, Baldwin and Jackson, rasbeh ter authority. Air. Wright, of Ohio, vindicated tho justice of the claim, and argued to show that tin troops jn question had beon employed on ac count of tho United States, and hail never de manded or expected their pay irom any other quarter, and then went into the discussion e[ tho question, whether theso claims were* woro not included in the compact by which Georgia coded to the United States hef mid Mr. Burges took tho same view of the sab. joct, and illustrated and insisted on tho art* ments of Messrs. Thompson and Wright, lit denied tho right of the United States to negoti ate away tho claims of individual citizens, and concluded by suggesting that the recent colli sions botween Georgia and tho Gonerni Gov ernment, ought to clevato tho feelings of the house to act with, promptitude on this sub- joct. Lot tho government show to the pw 1>!° of Georgia that they were actuated by n» disposition to deny ihoir just claims, or to de lay tho payment of them. Air. JIT Coy opposed the appropriation: Hi denied that tho justico of the claim had ovef been admitted by president Washington, Is* that it had boon objected to bocanso the get* ernor of Georgia hud transcended his uuthori- ty. lie gavo a history of tho foto of tho claim at diflerent sessionsj nnd insisted that tho chifh was provided, for in thocotupact of scssioti,.&c-‘ Air. Williams rose in reply, discussed the arguments of Air. Al‘Coy, and insisted largely on the testimony of the Georgia commission^ ors, and tho favorabio decision of tho secrct> ty of wan Ho quotet] the instanco of tho al lowance of tho claims of David Golstpn, col lector ut Now York, in a former appropriate bill, to show that tho present allowance would not bo unprecedented. • ’ Nt. Dwight expressed an opinion inclining towards an admission of tho claim - , hut warmly opposed the insertion of a provision for if io t general appropriation bill, which ho considered likely to lead to very injurious coasoquonces. TI10 dobato was further continued by M» Haynes, who contended earnestly for 1b 9 claim. . Ah'.. Vanea followed -on tho~snmo side, and replied in a particular manner to Mr. Clatlfi stated tho principles which had guided tho com mittee in their roport, and vindicated tho re port. Tho quostion boing then taken, tho amend- ™ on * moved by Air. Vauco, for the payracii of the Georgia militia claims, was adopted- ayes 73, nocs 62. - -•. rp, . , Wednesday,FebruaryiU ihe bills establishing sundry post roads, an* making aiv appropriation for tho military servo* ot tho U. Sta.es,were passed. The Housotb® went into committeo of tho Wholo on the making appropriations for tho service of the t* vy. In the cotirso of Debate bn this Bill the Co lony on tho Coast of Africa underwent sen® discussion, in consequence of tho proposed ap* propitiation for tho support of tho Colon)' c ‘ Africans re-capturetl from slave-ships. Rj appropriation was finally agreed to. F« Johnson finished his observation* 11 opposition -to tho resolution offered by Saunders, and Air. Houston obtained tho lor tomorrow, to speak in reply. Thursday, February^}' .Mr, Houston spoko at some longth in octette* of the resolution offered by Mr. Saunders, b cI had not concluded when tho Speaker again if rested tho discussion. Tho bill making *f! proprtnttons for fortifications, sovcrally P 155 ' 1 through committoo of tho Wholo, and weref" ported, and ordered to bo engrossed and third time. The bill making appropriat*®* 1 for the Navy was read a third time nnd pa^