Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

Shittljictfc raj* Scntmd’J' - -■ VOL. VI. No. 312] Three dollars per annum.) PUBLISHED BY SAMUEL HAMMOND, NORTH BROAD-STREET, (Half in ad-c an Cc NEW ARRANGEMENT. CE.YTIJYEL OFFICE, 291/i May, 1809. WITH a deep sense of the encou ragement and liberal patronage that this paper has received since, its first appearance, the subscriber now returns hi., sinccrest thanks to the public for then support. He is proud hi the recollec tion that at least he has endeavored to merit it. He henceforth declines all concern in this paper.... 1 he property in which and the printing business of this office he has transferred to Mr. Samuel Ham mond, junior. He respectfully solicits from his friends the continuance of that patron age in his support, not doubting but that he will make Independence his object, Truth his guide, and Decency his com panion. He cannot close without congratulat ing his countrymen at large on the pre sent prospect in the political affairs of the United States, and the succeeding ' editor in particular, on the pWasing du ty he will have, in bearing testimony to the revived growth and renovated pros perity of this land of freedom, agricul ture and commerce, under the auspices of an administration, that in its first step evinces a spirit of moderation, free from disingenuousness, and a wisdom, that appearing to despise the cob-web arts of diplomacy, at once has met a frank atonement and a fair proposition, with an honest face and a cordial desire for reconcilement by honorable negotia tion. GEO: F. RANDOLPH. CEJVTLYEL OFFICE , 3rd June, 1809. ' THE undersigned takes the liberty of requesting the future patronage and support of the public in conducting this paper. He will essay to deserve their good opinion by a steady adherence in politics to principles purely American ; in private disputes to forbearance and dectncy, and in business, to correctness and dispatch. These sheets have never yet been stained with any thing that honor could blush at, or virtue disap prove of. He pledges himself in these respects, that they shall still uphold ■v that character. Remote as he is from the great scenes pf politics and commerce, he feels his duties not the less essential, although in a limited sphere. To amuse, inform & protect, shall he his pleasure and his care. The seat of our general govern ment is not alone that of power nor of science. These independent states, confederated for external defence and internal peace, and in all other regards ' though unequal in size, numbers and wealth, yet co-equal in rights, must preserve within themselves those means of integral existence, necessary to give them due weight in the sovereignty of the nation. They must (acting from their own centre) each guard against the infringments of their sister states, and the encroachments of federalpower, j in order to effect a benign and social combination of the wh01e.... Amongst the mears by which enslaved states have become free, and free ones have been preserved, the Liberty of the Press stands pre-eminent....Where vaunting, the scourge of popular tyranny, or the sword of despotism have ever prevailed. The state of Georgia has shone conspi cuous in the ranks of freedom. She has often felt the pang of adversity.... and she has triumphed in the smiles of victory- She has been agitated by the collision of parties ; but she has grown from infancy to manhood, unimpaired by their convulsions. She has with others pined in the period of interdicted activity....she Ims risen superior to all these. The editor hails the present time, and repeats cordially the preced ing congratulations without the dread that they will be found irksome. The measures then that he shall support, unequivocally will be those that tend to harmonize the general and state gov ernments. He views the latter as sub stantial parts of the constitutional fab- AUGUSTA, GEORGIA. rics, and the former as their cement and ornament. On public men and measures he shall freely comment, and whilst official public virtue receives his aid, official public vice shall meet his animadversions. The.open violator of our rights shall be corrected, and the insidious traitor detected, whenever the one affords the occasion, or the other an opening. In private controversies, his duty will compel him to be the ve hicle for public appeal; but he will strive to mollify. In the transaction of liis business he will vie with his co-tem poraries in obtaining and preserving a just proportion of the confidence of his fellow citizens, on the same terms his predecessor has done. The Columbian Centinel will continue to be sent to present subscri bers as heretofore, unless otherwise directed. SAMUEL HAMMOND, Jun’r. Attention! THE Subscribers, had the misfor tune of being swindled, out of a quantity of Cotton, some time ago, at a store in the city of Charleston, was made public in South-Carolina and Georgia, by advertisements, indifferen- Nevvspapers. They have had the great er misfortune, in their anxiety and zeal to discover the swindler, unjustly, and rashly, to form a suspicion, that Doc tor George A. Brown, of Wrightsbo* rough, in Columbia county, and State of Georgia, was the person, who com mitted the fraud; and at a religious congregation of citizens, at the house of Win. Halbert, Esq. in Pendleton District, S. C. publicly charged him with the act. Dr. Brown, like a man of honor and integrity, fully convinced us of our great mistake, and error, and in con sideration of our being poor men, that we had been actuated by mistake, and not malevolent motives, has charitably and generously forgiven us. While we acknowledge, that Dr. Brown has it in his power to ruin every individual of us, and distress our families; we vo» luntaiily come forward and do solemn ly declare in open Court, at Pendleton Court-house, and to all the world, our mistaken and erroneous conduct, to wards the said Dr. George A. Brown. We testify his innocence, we thank him for his honorable and gentlemanly con duct, and we declare our regret and sor row, for the injuries his feelings may have sustained ; we are fully satisfied, that Doctor George A. Brown, is a man of the first respectability ‘of an excellent character, and that his con duct in life from childhood has been ir reproachable. We can neither say or do, too much to redrcoS the feeling of Dr. Brown, or to vindicate his name and character. We never will forget his honor and generosity in forgiving us for the wrong we have inadvertantly done him, which we believe arose from the similarity of features, between the person who swindled and cheated us out of our property, and the features of the said Dr. George A. Brown. We desire that this declaration may be made public in the Newspapers of Charleston, S. C. and Augusta, in Georgia, at our expence, for the space of three months ; and recorded in the Clerks Office, in Pendleton District, S. C. and Columbia county, in the State of Georgia. Given under our hands and seals this "3 1st March, 1809. his JohnX Crump, mark Wm. Mitchell, George Mitchell, Wm Dodson. Signed, sealed and acknowledged in the presence of William Browin, John B, Dempsv, William Harris, Daniel Massengale. April 22. 92 -Hill „ DOCUMENTS, Accompanying the liill providing for the sale of Gun-bouts, reported by Mr. An derson,i Jo //«■ senate, June , 8, 1809. Committee Room, May 29th, 1809. Sir —The Committee to whom has been refered a resolution ofthe Senate, authorising the committee to enquire whether it be expedient at this time, to . make any modifications of the laws re lating to the army and navy ofthe Uni ted States, have directed me to ask in formation of you upon the following points— How many Gun-Boats have been built under the existing laws ? What has been the average, of ag gregate cost of building them ? In what situation are they now pla ced, or contemplated to be placed ? llow many of them are laid up, and how many in actual service, and were stationed. What will be the annual expense of taking care of those laid up ? What the annual expense of those to be continued in actual service ? \V hat will be the probable state of those gun-boats at the end of one year, which may be laid up or unemployed ? What will be the probable state of those at the end of one year, which may be kept in service, on the coasts or in the harbors ? Which would best promote the true interest of the nation, and of the navy department ; to continue the system of gun-boats hitherto adopted, and dis pose of them in the manner now au thorized by law or to authorize the pre sident to cause them to be sold, except so many as lie may think expedient to be retained in service ? What would be the difference in the expense of keeping one or more fri gates on our coasts, or sending them to the Mediterranean, should it be consi dered expedient to keep any armed ves sels in the Mediterranean seas ? Upon the foregoing points the com mittee wish you to give as full a view as you can, from such data, as you now possess. Is it at this time expedient to make any modifications of the laws of the United States, in relation to the navy department ? If so what are the modifications you deem expedient, so far as you have had time and opportunity to examine them ? Accept assurances of my high con sideration. JOSEPH ANDERSON, Chairman of the Committee . Paul Hamilton Esq, Secretary of the JSavy . Navy-department, June 6th, 1809. Sir, I have received your letter ofthe 29th ult. requesting information which 1 have now the honor to give upon the points therein stated. There have been built under the ex isting laws, one hundred und seventy six gun-boats and bombs ; and the av erage cost of building them may be calculated at 900 dollars. [1,584,000] The paper A herewith sent, affords the requisite information as to the sit uation in which these boats are now placed ; the number laid up ; the num ber in actual service, and where station ed. Paper B is an exhibit of the annual expense of taking care of those laid up” Paper C is an exhibit of the annual expense of maintaining one gun-boat, and twenty four of them on one sta tion, for instance New-Orbans ip ac tual service. As to the “ probable state of those gun-boats at the end of one year, which may be laid up or unemployed, “ I will observe, that with all the care that can j be taked of them, they will unavoidably decay in a greater or less degree; ! those built of green will of course decay ’ much sooner than those built of sea- : soned timber. To keep a gun-boat in a state of preparation for service, wc shall very frequently be subjected to the expense of repairing her ; an expence ' SATURDAY, JULY 15, 1809 to an amount which cannot be fore seen. The sails and standing and running rigging, at present belonging to those laid up, will, piobaidy at tbe end of one year, be so much injured as to be* Unfit for use ; their small boats and water cacks, unless well protected from the rain and sun will sustain consi derable injury in the course oi the same time, —and they connot be so protected without expense. If a gun-boat is suf fered to lie in po'l for one year, with out giving her any repair, bite will probably be found at the expiration of that year, wholly unworthy of being re paired. With respect to those kept in service, they also will decay, if not occasionally repaired ; though it is observed by pro fessional men, that vessels in service, especially in salt water, are less subject to decay than when they are lying-in poit and universal experience does, 1 believe, sanction this idea. In reply to your query respecting the gun-boat system, as relating to the “ in terest of the nation and ttie navy depart ment,” as to the propriety of continuing that system or the abandoning it by the sale of the boats, I am to observe, that much must be said on the species of policy which in the event of a war may be adopted. If that event should shortly occur and it is determined that a plan ol' operations merely defendve shall be pursued, there can be no doubt that gun-boats will aid materially, if properly stationed ; but if the contrary, our marine should be directed against a foreign trade,and i<> the convoying and protection of our own, a system of well armed fast sailing frigates, and smaller cruisers, would, on every principle, fit preferable in point of effect; and com paratively, rated per gun and number of men to be employed, would be much hss costly. It must also be observed, that it is only on board of vessels suited for sea-service, that good seamen are to be formed, and that those calculated merely for ports, afford no opportunity for improvement in naval science. As to the expediency of selling or retain ing the gun-boats, reference to the pre ceding exhibits affords some informa tion ; but I beg leave to remark, that nothing short of a knowledge of the po licy which events may induce, could en able me to give a decided opinion on this point. “ The difference of the expense oi keeping one or more frigates on our own coast, and sending them to the Mediterranean,” vvguld in my opinion be inconsiderable. On our own coast, they will, especially in the winter and spring months, be subject to nume rous accidents from causes universally known, and not existing, it is believed, in an equal degree ir, any other part of the world; such as frequent and sudden heavy squalls of wind, numerous shoals thick fogs, and the irregularity of the motion of the gulpli stream, which in misty weather renders the approach tc our coast peculiarly hazardous. For our vessels stationed in the Mediterra nean, we shoulu be subjected to the ex pense of transporting certain articles of provisions and naval stores, not to be obtained in that sea; but this is, I be lieve, the only additional expense to which they would be subjected, and this expense may be more than counterba lanced by the accidents to which our vessels would be subject on our own coast, and the comparative cheapness of certain supplies which can he obtain ed in the Mediterranean ports, arid I am persuaded that if Congress would authorise the building of a suitable ves sel for the transportation of provisions from this country to the Mediterranean, lor the use of any of our vessels that might be stationed in that sea, the ex pense of maintaining them there would be less than the expense ol maintaining I them on our own coast. you have not required my opinion ! on the expediency ol sending some of ’ our frigates to the Mediterranean, I v\ih j only venture to suggest for considera tion, that we have in that sea, a valua : ble trade at staky, subject to the depre dations of a lawless people, whose dis ' positions might be effectually restrain-