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■ TfIE C O V S r l' 1T UT IO X A ?-1 -S T .
BY GUIEU THOMPSON.
PUBLIBIIKRS or THK LAWS OF Til* UKITEII STAI tS.
XT TERMS. —TRI-VVE EKL YPA PER, per nn
nuui, six dollars; for the Weekly (containing men
y-eight columns) three dollars—all payable in ad-
ADVERTISEMENTS inserted at Charles
ton prices. SET Postage m usl be paid on all commu
nications and Letters of business.
THE PUBLIC FINANCES.
REMARKS OF MR. CA3ISRELENS,
OF NEW YORK.
In the House of Representatives, June, 1838—
On the bill to modify and repeal certain pro.
visions of the deposite act of June, 1836.
Mr. CA.VIBRELENG said that, at an earlier
period of the session, he would have moved to
refer llic hill to the Committee of Ways and
Means. He should have preferred adding some
of the salutary provisions of the Sub-Treasury
bill, restricting public officers, prescribing their
duties, and protecting the revenue by additional
guards. But the mere proposition of any of the
sections of that bill, he was sure, would alarm
gentlemen, and produce debate, and there was
no time now to hear denunciations or discuss
amendments,
lie thought the bill ought to be acceptable to
both sides of the House. The first section re
moved the restriction in the act $f 1836, on the
receipt of the notes of banks issuing notes of a
less denomination than five dollars since the 4th
of July, 1836, and placed the banks which had
resumed specie payments on a footing with the
Bank of the Untied Slates and other banks
which had resisted the resumption. The second
section proposed to repeal the provision of the
same act, establishing the State bank deposite
system, which had been, so far as that system
was concerned, rendered mere nullities by the
general suspension of specie payments; which
event brought into operation other provisions of
that act, the last of which placed the public mo
ney in the keeping of the Treasurer of the Uni
ted States, according to the act of 1789.
H e was at a loss to discover what part of the }
deposite act of June, 1836, worth struggling for
or against, remained to produce so much excite
meat on cither side. The law prohibits the Se
cretary from employing almost every bank in
the Union, and whether the Stale bank deposite
provisions arc repealed or not, the cfioct will be
essentially the same. The first section makes
it “the duty of the Secretary of the Treasury to
select, as toon as may be practicable, and em
ploy as the depositories of the money of the Uni
ted Stales, such of the banks incorporated by the
several States, by Congress for the District of
Columbia, or by the Legislative Councils of the
• respective Territories lor these Territories, as
may be located at, adjacent or convenient to, I
the points or places at which the revenues may
be collected or disbursed,” etc.
The banks then employed were to be cont inued
as depositories. Once employed, the Secre..ary
was not authorized to discontinue them as de
positories, or to withdraw the public money from
their keeping, unless, as provided for in the ;
eighth section, “any one of said banks shall fail
or refuse to perform any of said duties as pre
scribed by this act, and stipulated to be perform
ed by its contract; or if any of said hanks shall
at any time refuse to pay Us own notes in specie
if demanded; or shall fail to keep in its vaults
such an amount of specie as shall be required by
the Secretary of the Treasury, and shall be, in
his opinion, necessary to render the said bank a
safe depository of the public moneys, having due
regard to the nature of the business transacted
by the bank."
This case uncxpectly occurred in May, 1837,
and this section farther and expressly provides
that “in any and every such case, it shall he the
duty of the Secretary of the Treasury to discon
tinue any such hank as a depository, and icith
draw from it the public moneys which it may
hold on deposite at the time of such discontinu
ance. And in case of the discontinuance of any
of oaid banks, it shall be the duty of the Secreta
ry of the Treasury to report to Congress immedi
ately if in session, and if not in session, then at
the commencement ofits next session, the facts
and reasons which have induced such discontin
uance.”
The late deposite banks have forfeited their
right to be employed as depositories of the public
money. The Secretary lias discontinued them
as such, and, in September last, reported to Con
gress. His authority under this act, as it re
spects these banks, is exhausted. The power
lias returned to the source from whence it was
derived—the Congress of the United States;
and it now rests with that branch of the Govern
ment to determine what measures, if any at all,
shall be adopted in regard to them. There is
no provision whatever in the Deposite act of
1836, which authorizes the Secretary of the
Treasury to employ any such bank, under that
act, as a depository of the public money. Its
repeal cannot, therefore,in any manner affect the
late deposite banks.
Far from being authorized to employ, under
th is act, these banks, the same section provides
that “in case of the discontinuance of any of said
banks as a place of deposite of the public money
for any of the causes hereinbefore provided, it
shall be lawful for the Secretary of the Treasury
to deposite the money thus icithdrawn in some oth
er bank of deposite already selected, or to select
some other Bank as a place of deposits, upon the
terms and conditions prescribed by this act.”—
The condition of the banks of this country ren
dered this provision a nullity. The Secretary
found it impracticable to execute the law and
place the money in other banks of deposite; for
the fifth section of the same act expressly pro
hibited him from selecting or continuing any
bank “as a place of deposite of the money which
shall not redeem its notes and bills, on demand,
in specie,'' or “which shall, after thedth of Ju
ly, in the year one thousand eight hundred and
thirty-six, issue or pay out any note or bill of a
less denomination than Jive dollars.”
These two provisions excluded every bank in
the United Stales, from Canada to Texas, or I
the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, and especially ;
at all the great points where our revenue was ;
collected. A bank or two in the interior, and a j
savings banks, may have escaped the prohibition. :
It would, however, be uifficull to had in any ■
State in the Union any bank, though it may not
have suspended specie payments, issued notes or
bills under five dollars, or may not have been a
bank of issue at all, which did not “ pay out”
during the suspension, the notes or bills of other
banks or corporations of a less denomination than
five dollars. The Secretary of the Treasury is
consequently, by these restrictions, prohibited
from employing almost every bank in the Union,
and it is not easy to perceive what interest they
have in resisting the proposed repeal of the de
posite act of 1836.
But, sir, I have now to refer to another, and
by far the most important, provision of the act
of 1836, especially as it regards the power of the ■
Secretary of the Treasury over the public money,
and the employment hereafter of any bank not
already employed under the provisions of the act-
Under the provisions already referred to, the Se
cretary was authorized to select deposite banks,
to discontinue them* to report to Congress his
reasons for such discontinuance, and to place
the public money in other banks. These duties
have all been discharged except the last, and
that was wholly impracticable. Here the power
of the Secretary of the Treasury under the act
of June, 1836, was exhausted. Another provi-
sion, being the last clause of the eighth and
same section, took effect, and transferred the
keeping of the public money to the Treasurer of
the United Stales in the follow ing words :
“ In default of any bank to receive such de
posite, the money thus withdrawn shall be kept
by ihe Treasurer of the United States, accord
ing to the laics now in force, and shall be subject
to be disbursed according to law.”
Tins provision of the act of 1836, has been
executed ; the public money is in the custody of
the Treasurer “according to the laws now in
force,” and is “disbussed according to law.”—
Such is the end of the cieposilo act of 1836, so
far as it regards the power of the Secretary of
the Treasury to employ State banks, under that
act, as depositories of the public money. The
act of 1789, the foundation of the Sub-Treasury
System of collecting, keeping, and disbursing
the public revenue, is revived and confirmed by
the act of 1836 ; and until Congress repeals that
provision, and the act of 1789, they must re
main the law of the land. The power of the
Secretary of the Treasury relates to the “col
lection,” not to the “ keeping,” of the public
money, which is given, by the act of 1789, to
the Treasurer. That act became the law in
1837, when the provision referred to, took effect;
and the Secretary has no power to set it aside,
lie cannot, by mere construction, undo what
lias been done according to law, and take the
public money fiom the keeping of the Treasurer
of tlie United States, deposite it with banks, and
revive the Stale bank deposite system. This
power now rests exclusively with Congress. If
banks are hereafter to be employed for any pur
pose, the authority must be found in the seve
ral powers given underacts which were in force
prior to the existence of the deposite law of
1836. This is, and must remain, the law of the
land, and no “ lamentations here or elsewhere,”
to excite alarms for parly purposes, can change
it. It depends upon no veto, nor in any man
ner upon the will of the President or of the Se
cretary of the Treasury. They are bound to ex
ecute the law, and dare not disobey it. The
Sub. Treasury, or the collection, keeping, and
disbursement of the public money by our own
officers, must continue, till our existing laws are
modified or repealed.
What prospect is there of any modification of
our financial laws—of our concurrence in any
new plan for collecting, keeping, and disbursing
the public revenue? None, sir. The two Houses
are at variance, and a majority even here can
nut agree on any plan whatever. The National
Bank, Stale hank, and special deposite system,
have been each and all rejected. The Sub-Trea
sury is undoubtedly the strongest measure here
and abroad. Whenever and wherever an issue
maybe made between that and any one of the
various plans proposed, it will be ultimately tri
umphant. There is, however, but one issue be
tween parties, and that is, whether we shall em
ploy agents who hold their offices under the au
thority ofi and are responsible to, the people; or
j others, responsible alone to stockholders, from
whom they derive their appointments; whether
our public money shall be devoted to public use,
or surrendered to banks to acid to their profits
and embarrass trade. The issue is now, as it. has
been, and will be, whether we shall confide in a
; Government of our own choice, or submit the ad
; ministration of our affairs to the dominion of a
National Bank.
Until this great issue is decided, we must have
some system; and as we cannot concur in the
principles or details of any other plan, vve must
submit to the laws as they are. By the failure
of the State bank deposite system, and the nulli
fication of that law, we have returned to the con
stitutional point from whence we started; and
all that is now required, arc judicious laws for
regulating the duties of our public officers, and
inoio perfectly guarding our revenue. Whether
the deposite portion of the act of 1836 be or be
not repealed, is not material. The only impor
tant provision now in existence, and which has
superseded the others, h the last clause of the
Blh section of the act, which puts aside hanks as
the keepers and disbursers of the public money;
and, dropping all future intervention of the Sc.
cretary of the Treasury under that act, express
ly directs that the public money “shall bo kcut
by the Treasurer of the United Slates according
to the laws now [then] in force, and shall be sub
ject to be disbursed according to law.” If the
twelve sections were repealed, the revenue would
be collected, kept, and disbursed “according to
the laws in force” prior to the passage of the de
posite act; and if they are not repealed, the same
laws are in operation.
The act of 1836 clothes the Secretary of the
Treasury with no authority to revive the system
then proposed. Ills powers are prescribed in the
act; he has discharged his duties under it, and ex
hausted his authority. He cannot revoke the last
condition of that act, nor can he revive its provi
sions without new and express authority from Con
gress. If these provisions are not superseded and
extinguished, that officer would at this moment
possess extraordinary powers. By the first section
of the act, it is made the duty of the Secretary to
select banks “adjacent or convenient to the points
or places at w hich the revenues may be collected
or disbursed; arid in those Slates, Territories or
Districts in which there are no banks, or in which
no hank can be employed as a deposite bank, and
within which the public collections or disburse
ments require a depository, the said Secretary may
make arrangements with a bank or banks in some other
Slate, Territory or District, to establish an agency or
agencies, in the States, Territories or Districts so
destitute of banks, as hanks of deposite; and to re
ceive through such agency such deposites of the public
money as may be directed to be made at the points
designated, and to make such disbursements as the
public sei vice may require at those points.
What would have been the operation of this sec
tion but for the last clause of the eighth section ? or
what would it be if the Secretary could now' revive
the act? It is said that a few banks, among others
the Bank of Missouri and the Bank of Wheeling,
have not violated the provisions of that act, though
I doubt whether they have not “paid out” the bills
or notes of other banks or corporations of a less
denomination than five dollars. But, suppose either
of these- banks had not, under such a construction,
it would have been, and would still be, the Secre
tary’s duty to make arrangements with the Bank
of Wheeling, or of 3lissouri, to establish agencies
throughout the Union to receive and disburse the
public money. If such be the true construction of
the act, it would be his duty to make arrangements
with some one of the new free trade banks in New
j York to establish agencies in almost every State
lin the Union. But such is not the law. The case
! provided for in the act of 1836 has occurred. De- '
I posite banks coming within ail the provisions of that
| act were not to be found, and the public money has
j gone, according to the last and express condition of
that act, into tne custody of the Treasurer of the
United States. It cannot be drawn from the depos
itories, created under the act of 1789, to be placed
in banks, under the deposite act of 1526, the former
having superseded the latter in all the collection
districts throughout the Union, with very few ex
ceptions. Until the law is changed, the deposites
must be made under the authority of “the laws in
force” prior to the existence of the act of June,
1836.
iSo far, then, as it regards the question of revi
ving a State bank deposite system, it is not very
material whether the first twelve sections of the act
of 1836 be repealed or not. With the exception
of a very few districts, where little revenue is col
lected, the depositories are all established under
the laws in force prior to the act of 1836 , and if the
remnant of the act were repealed, we should have,
as w e ought, one system for the whole Union.
The first section of the bill is more important. It
removes the restriction on the receipt of the notes
of banks which have, since the 4th of July, 1836,
issued notes of a less denomination than five dol
lars. There is, under existing circumstances, an
obvious propriety in removing the discrimination
which now exists.
The notes of banks which have zealously labored t
to resume specie payments, cannot be received in i
payment of public dues, while those of the Bank j
of the Lotted States and of other banks, which ,
have uniformly resisted the resumption, would b j
received. Whatever opinion may be entertaine ,
of the receipt of bunk notes of any deuoaicaUQH 1
all such discrimination should, for the present, be
removed. We can agree on this point, if wo can
not concur in any judicious financial plan. The
next most important measure for the public is an
adjournment. When this session ceases, tve shall
not be disturbed by ridiculous alarm about the
Sub-Treasury, spread abroad by those who never
read a section of the bill It is now in operation,
and the longer we try it the better shall we appre
ciate its simplicity and economy. iSo other sys
tem ran relieve irade from an embarrassing con
nection with Government, and render our Treasury
independent of hanks.
[BY AUTHORITY.]
LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES PASSED AT THE SE
CONDSESSION OF THE TWENTY-FIFTH CONGRESS.
[Public. — No. 38.]
AN ACT authorizing the appointment of per
sons to test the usefulness of inventions to im
prove and render safe the boilers of steam En
gines against, explosions.
Be it enacted by the. Senate and House of Re
presentatives of the United Stajes of America,
in Congress assembled, That the President of
tile United Stales be, and he hereby is, authori
sed to appoint three persons, one of whom at
least, shall be a man of experience and practical
knowledge in the construction and use of the
steam engine, and the others, by reason of their
attainments and science, shall be competent
judges of the usefulness of any invention design
ed to detect the causes of explosion in the boil
ers; which said persons shall jointly examine
any inventions made for the purpose of detecting
the cause, and preventing the explosion of boil
ers, that shall be presented for their considera
tion; and if any one or more of such inventions
or discoveries justify in their judgment the ex
periment, and the inventor desires that bis inven
tion shall be subjected to the test, then the said
persons may proceed and order such prepara
tions to be made, and such experiments to be
tried, as in their judgment, may be necessary to
determine the character and usefulness of any
such invention.
Sec. 2. And be it further enacted. That the
said board shall give notice of the time and place
of their meeting to examine such inventions,
and shall direct the preparations to bo made, and
the experiments to be tried, at such piace as they
shall deem most suitable and convenient for the
purpose; and shall make full report of their do.
I iugs to Congress at their next session.
Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That to
carry into effect the foregoing objects, there be,
and hereby is appropriated, out ofany money in
the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the sum
of six thousand dollars; and so much thereof as
shall be necessary fur the above purposes shall
be subject to the order of the said board, and to
defray such expenses as shall be incurred by their
direction, including the sum of three hundred
dollars to each, fur his personal services and ex
penses : Provided, however. That the accounts
shall be settled at the Treasury in the same man
ner as those of other public Agents.
JAMES K. POLK,
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
RICHARD M. JOHNSON,
Vice President of the United Slates, and
President of the Senate.
Approved, June 28th, 1838.
M. VAN CUREN.
[Public. —No. 75.]
AN ACT to provide for the better security of
the lives of passengers on board of vessels pro
pelled in whole or in part by steam.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Re.
presentatives of the United States of America in
Congress assembled, That it shall be the duty
of all owners of steamboats, or vessels propelled
in whole or in part by steam, on or before the
first day of October, one thousand eight hundred
and thirty-eight, to make a new enrolment of
the same, under the existing laws of the United
States, and take out from the collector or survey,
or of the port, as the case may be, where such
vessel is enrolled, a new licence, under such con
ditions as arc imposed by law, and as shall be
imposed by this act.
Sec. 2. And be it farther enacted. That it
shall not be lawful for the owner, master, or cap
tain of any steamboat or vessel propelled in whole
or in part by steam, to transport any goods, wares,
and merchandize, or passengers, in or upon the
bays, lakes, rivers, or other navigable waters of
the United Slates, from and after the said first
day of October, one thousand eight hundred and
thirty-eight, without having first obtained, from
the proper officer, a license under the existing
law’s, and without having complied with the con
ditions imposed by this act; and for each and
every violation of this section, the owner or own.
ers of said vessel shall forfeit and pay to the
United States the sum of five hundred dollars,
one-half fur the use of the informer; and for
w’hich sum or sums the steamboat or vessels so
engaged shall be liable, and may be seized and
proceeded against summarily, by w T ay of libel, in
any district court of the United Slates having
jurisdiction of the offence.
Sec. 3. And be it further enacted. That it
shall be the duty of the district judge of the
United States, within whose district any ports
of entry or delivery may be, on the navigable
waters, bays, lakes, and rivers of the United
Stales, upon the application of the master or
owner of any steam-boat or vessel propelled in
whole or in part by steam, to appoint, from time
to lime, one or more persons skilled and com
petent to make inspections of such boats and
vessels, and of the boilers and machinery em
ployed in the same, who shall not be interested
in the manufacture of steam engines, steamboat
boilers, or oilier machinery belonging to steam
vessels, whose duty it shall be to make such
inspection when called upon fur that purpose,
and to give to the owner or master of such boat,
or vessel duplicate certificates of suedi inspection;
such persons, before entering upon the duties en
joined by this act, shall make and subscribe an
oalii or affirmation before said district judge or
other officer duly authorized to administer oaths,
well, faithfully, and impartially to execute and
perform the services herein fequired of them.
Sec. 4. And be it further enacted. That the
person or persons who shall be called upon to
inspect the hull of any steamboat or vessel, un
der the provisions of this act, shall, after a tho
rough examination of the same, give to the
owner or master, as the case may be, a certifi
cate, in which shall be stated the aiie of the
said boat or vessel, when and where originally
built, and the length of time the same has been
running. And he or they shall also state whe.
then, in his or their opinion, the said boat or ves
sel is sound, and in all respects seaworthy, and
fit to bo used for tiie transportation of freight or
passengers; for which service, so performed
upon each and every boat or vessel, the inspec
tors shall each be paid and allowed by said mas
ter or owner applying such inspection, the sain
of five dollars.
Sec. 5. Aitd be it further enacted, That the
person or persons who shali be called upon to
inspect the boilers and machinery of any steam
boat or vessel, under the provisions of this act
shall, after a thorough examination of they same,
make a certificate, in which he or they shall stat.
his or their opinion whether said boilers are
sound and fit for use, together with the age of
tho boilers; and duplicates thereof shall be de
livered to the owner or master ofsuch vessel, one
p of which it shall be the duly .of the said mask
- and owner to deliver to the collector or survey t
} of the port whenever he shall apply for a licenst
2 or for a renewal of a license; the other he sha
e cause to be posted up, and kept in some conspit
r uous part of said boat, for the information of th
i, public; and, for each and every inspection £
- made, each of the said inspectors shall be pai
i- by the said master or owner applying, the sui
of five dollars.
• Sec. 6. And be it farther enacted, That
shall be the duty of the owners and masters <
‘ steamboats to cause the inspection provided ui
der the fourth section of this act to be made i
least once in every twelve months; and the e:
animation required by the fifth section, at lea
once in evcr} r six months; and deliver to the co
lector or surveyor of the port where his boat (
vessel hastieen enrolled or licensed, the certi)
cate of such inspection; and, on a failure therco
he or they shall forleit the license granted 1
. such boai or vessel, and be subject to the san;
penally as though he had run said boat or ve
sel without having obtained such license, !o I
' recovered in like manner. And it shall be tb
duly of the owners and masters of the steamboat
licensed in pursuance ofihe provision of this at
to employ on board of their respective boats
competent number of experienced and skilfi
engineers, and, in case of neglect to do so, th
said owners and masters shall be held respons
ble fur all damages to the property or any pas
senger on hoard of any boat occasioned by a
p explosion ofihe boiler or any derangement of th
engine or machinery of any boat.
t Sec. 7. And he it further enacted , That when
[ ever the master of any boat or vessel, or the pet
. son or persons charged with navigating said boa
or vessel, which is propelled in whole or in pai
t by steam, shall stop the motion or headway e
said boat or vessel, or when the said boat or ves
sel shall he stopped for the purpose of discharg
, log or taking in cargo, fuel or passengers, he o
r they shall open the safety-valve, so as to kee
' the steam down in said boiler as near as pracl
cable to what it is when the said boat or vesst
, is under headway, under the penalty of two him
dred dollars for eacli and every offence.
Sec. 8. And be it further enacted. That i
I shall be the duty of the owner and master c
every steam vessel engaged in the transports
, lion of freight or passengers, at sea or on th
, Lakes, Champlain, Ontario, Erie, Superior, an
, Michigan, the tonnage of which vessel sha;
not exceed two hundred tons, to provide and t
, carry with the said boat cr vessel, upon eac
, and every voyage, two long-boats or yawls, cacl
ot which shall be competent to carry at
[ twenty poisons; and where the tonnage ofsaf
, vessel shall exceed two hundred tons, it shall b
, the duty of the owner and master to provide an
carry, as aforesaid, not less than three long-boat
or yawls, of the same o/ larger dimensions, an
, for every failure in the particulars, the said mas
ter and owner shall forfeit and pay three hun
’ dred dollars.
, Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That i
. shall be I lie duty of the master and owner o
] every steam vessel employed in either of th
, lakes mentioned in the last section, or on the se
r to provide, as a part of the necessary furniture
j a suclion-hosc and fire engine and hose suitabl
to be worked on said boat in case of fire, an
s carry the same upon each and every voyage, i
good order; and that iron rods or chains shal
be employed and used in the navigation of a
sleamboat.s, instead of wheel or tiller ropes; an
-for a failure lo do which, they, and each of them
shall forfeit and pay the sum of three hundre
dollars.
I Sec. 10. And be it further enacted, That i
shall be the duty of the master and owner c
every steamboat, running- between sunset an
sunrise, to carry one or more signal lights, tha
may be seen by oilier boats navigating th
f same waters, under the penalty of two huudre
- dollars.
Sec. 11. And be it farther er,acted, That th
- penalties imposed by this act may be sued so
i and recovered in the name of the Unied States
I in the district or circuit court, of such district o
1 circuit where the offence shall have been com
3 milled, or forfeiture incurred, or in which th
1 owner or master of said vessel may reside, one
f half to the use of the informer, and the other ti
1 the use of the United Stales; or the said penaltj
- may be prosecuted for by indictment in either o
i the said courts.
Sec. 12. And be it farther enacted, That even
' captain, engineer, pilot, or other person employ
ed on board of any steamboat or vessel propellei
- in whole or in part by steam, by whose miscon
■ duct, negligence, or inattention to his or thei
* respective duties, the life or lives of any pcrsoi
. or persons on board said vessel may be destroy
ed, shall be deemed guilty of manslaughter, and
upon conviction thereof before any circuit cour
in the United States, shall be sentenced to con
finement at hard labor, for a period not mori
than ten years.
Sec. 13. And be it further enacted, That ii
all suits and actions against proprietors of steam
boats, for injuries arising to person or property
from the bursting of the boiler of any steamboat
or the collapse of a fiue, or other injurious escapi
of steam, the fact of such bursting, collapse, o
injurious escape of steam, shall be taken as ful
1 prima facie evidence, sufficient to charge the de
fendant or those in his employment, with negli
genee, until he shall show that no negligence
has been committed by him or those in his cm
ployment.
Approved. July 7th, 1838,
EDUCATION.
THE subscriber has commenced his SCITOOI
in the rear of tfie Medical College and will
at his residence, instruct youth of both sexes, it
the various branches of an English and Classics
Education. He takes tins opportunity of returning
his sincere acknowledgments for the liberal pa
tronage given him, the past three years, in this city
and respectfully solicits a continuance of the- same
with the full assi ranee on his part, that he w ill ineri
it, by his indefatigable attention to the youth ove
whom lie may preside. Having been sixteen year
an instructor of youth, he feels himself called npot
to say, in his own behalf, that he is wel aware o
the responsibility he assumes, and wishes toinforn
those who may favor him with their patronage, tha
he is conversant with the proper mode and discip
line by which Schools and Academies should bt
governed in this land of his adoption, as well a
that of his nativity.
The number of pupils will be confined to 25, i
the major number be Classical, or 30 if in English
The ages of the pupils are to be from G lo 16—ihi
females from 6 to 14.
The Scholastic year is to be divided into tw<
terms, consisting of five months in each term : firs
term to commence on Monday the 16th of July, an<
to end on the 23d of December; the second tern
from the second Monday in January, 1339, until lh(
15ih of June.
Kates for tuition, $2O per term, for Classics; so
English, ST2 per term.
At the end of each term there wall be an Exami
nation, that parents may witness the progress o
their children.
The subscribers’ interest being connected will
this city, he intends to make it his permanent plan
of residence during life, and shall be happy to de
vote his attention lo the youth who may be confi
ded lo his care, and wishes an early application tt
be made, and that his students wuuld be punctua
and regular in their attendance.
There will be no deduction of the tuition money
except in case of sickness.
DANIEL MAHONY.
July 19 6 13
The Sentinel will insert the above three times
a week for two weeks.
WOTICE.-The firm of ADAMS, PARME
-i-* LEE & CO. is this day dissolved by mutual
consent. The business of the concern will be set
tled by either of the partners.
J. M. ADAMS,
A. O. PARMELEE,
H. WEBSTER.
July 1? tu!2—w* 13
I
INDISTINCT PRINT
or
ill
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■‘“ C., .:._ ' -
it ■
01
m-
‘‘' A G U I C ULTDKiL.
1 »**V.
or Read , Jult/ Itfh, 'B3S, before the “Agricultural
jg. Society of Richmond County ,” aad published ut
of, their request, by Dr. J. G. 31’VVhorter.
to Extract from the minutes.
ne On motion of Judge Schley, Resolved, That
;s. the thanks of the society be presented to Dr. Mc
he W horter for h>s scientific and practical lommuni-
j le cation upon the subject of sowing; Small Grain,
and that a copy be requested fur publication in the
1 papers of Augusta.
_ a j It is believed that great improvements may be
'*l made in our agricultural operations, not excepting
e j our two most perfect cultivations, Cotton and Rice,
Sl * . which are supposed to have reached the ne plus
in " I ultra of improvement We at the south are greatly
, le behind the age in every thing relating to tite culti
' valion of the earth, the great employment which
n . ! supports the human race, and indirectly the mass
r. of animal existence. So importanMin employment
at of man deserves his serious attention, and should
.i t ! engaoe-his best exertions for its improvement. To
ot contribute our mite to this great object was the
:S - motive which led to the formation of the Agricul
g" tural Society of Richmond County; and no citizen
who has witnessed or can conceive the different
j'P aspects of a w'ell cultivated and a neglected coun
ej try, could hesitate to assist in extending a more
general knowledge of the principles of agriculture
and its improved operations. With that view, the
it writer has hastily, (in the absence of a regular re
of port from the Board of Agriculture,) drawn up this
a- pa er, not with the expectation of imparting any
to thing new, but with the hope of calling greater
1( 1 attention to the best mode of putting into the earth,
L h wheat, oats, and grain of all kinds, and the princi
to pies which demand and justify it.
'j 1 These three maxims hold universally true, in
agricultural operations: j| %
jj Ist. What is worth doing at all, is worth doing
’e welt
-1(j 2d. The best ploughing a crop gets, is that which
• g it receives before it is planted. And,
id 3d. A crop well put in, is half made,
s- As a universal rule, the first thing to be done,
n- allowing the ground to be fertile enough, is to
break it up well, having it soft and pulverized to a
depth proportioned to the depth of the soil. The
°f next thing is the proper disposition and inhumation
le of the seed. With regard to the preparation of
a the soil, as it is believed all understand the neces-
Q
sary operations, I shall say nothing, hut confine my
u j remarks to the disposition and inhumation of the
j n seed, and the reasons for such directions as shall
be given in tegard to these operations.
tl! The ground should be harrowed and levelled,
id and the surface pulverized to the depth of at least
n, two or three inches, before sowing the seed, which
cd will then lie more evenly and regularly distributed,
without falling in masses into open furrows and
“ indentations in the surface, thus throwing too
°f many seeds in one spot, while other places have
1 none at all, or not their proper proportion. The
seed sown should then be covered by the harrow
1G J
j alone, and the levelling process previously executed
will prevent the harrow from throwing the seeds
)e from a ridge, on which they might lodge, into the
j r adjoining hollow, where they will be too thick to
s j be productive of abundant headsff If from thV
or 'gj-eat inequality of the surface, an equal distrimi
n- tion of the seed is supposed not to have been ef
ie fectcd, the harrowung should he repeated in the
c- opposite direction; indeed, this cross harrowing it
1° would be well to repeat in all cases, so that if the
J harrow teeth are not too far opart, the seed will be
r> ‘ placed in relation to cadi other at such distances
as, by a proper distribution, will ensure a full oc
cupation of all the land, without those inequalities,
;c j which are otherwise almost inevitable, and which
n. by crowding particular spots allow the farmer but a
ir moderate return of straw without grain.
in These remarks, it is hoped, are so far intelligible.
y- They are designed to show, that it is important to
d. procure an equal distribution of seed over the land,
rt which cannot be done, if sown on an unlevelled
surface, and without double harrowing to separate
le the seeds which have fallen too many in one place,
I and into the furrows made by the teeth of the har
j row in the first operation of covering. This second
y operation, if the harrow has teeth not too far from
each other, cuts the field in small squares, each of
)e which has its proportion of seed without any part
ir having thrown on it mure than it is able to nourish.
II The next direction in the process, and on which
e- the principal improvement depends, is to rover tie
i- seal shallow, which cannot be done with the plough.
;e The plough besides, throws the seed into furrows,
and although most of the seed fall only half the
depth of the furrow, yet many reach the bottom and
are thus covered so deep, that they either never
come up, or reach the surface at so late a period,
L that its pasturage is already occupied by more thrif
11, ty competitors. Thus ’here is a waste of seed, and
II J the production of weaker plants, which either pine
‘ till they die, or lead a sickly existence, entirely
f. without fruit or with an imperfect product. What
y, more could be rationally expected from the too
c. common way of putting inthe oats crop? The own-
er scatters in the fall or spring, his seed over the
rg j unploughed surface of some fallow field, beat hard
m ! by the year’s rain and the feet of his cattle, and
*f finishes the slovenly process by once ploughing it,
™ | leaving it uneven and cloddy, andiho seed cover
p* j ed by long shces of the tough surface, through
re | which it will be very difficult to penetrate,
is The direction to cover shallow is indefinite. It
should be more explicit, and forthis purpose an inch
Ij may be indicated as about the proper depth. This
le is the rule of ISature, but she is so abundant in the
production of seeds, and intends in her benefi
-0 cence so many of them for the consumpiion of
lt j j her creatures, that loss of seed is thus part of her
m | maternal intention, and an immense proportion is,
ic ‘ therefore, never covered by the earth for re-pro
duction. These are either consumed by animals,
jr or, exposed to the sun’s heat without sufficient
j_ moisture, decay and are lost to the re-productive
of process. Those, however, which are more fortu
nate, and are covered by the animal foot, ram, or
any other accident, strike their roots near the sur-
B face, and there alone enjoy the benefits of mois
-- tore, air, solar heat, and light, which are all essen
o tial to their healthful and productive existence.
“ Now what are the facts in this regard ?
v If you examine the roots of any of the grains
mentioned, you will find that those plants are the
most thrifty, whose germination took place near
the surface of the sail, while the weakly-looking
s plants have sprung from a depth of three or four
- inches The latter continue weakly, branching
J” little or none, while the former throw out addition
al shoots from the root, and multiply the produc
tion more than an hundred fold. The deeply-co
vered seeds are eight or ten days later in appear
ing, and their further growth is delayed, not sim
ply by the existence of monger rivals for the pas
- turage, but they stop when they approximate the
surface to take that start which Nature intended
for them at first. Within an inch of the surface
they shoot forth new roots, and all below, down
to the seed, shrivels and dies, so that the future
plant depends alone for nourishment on those sets
of organs, which it has developed in proximity with
the surface, where it can receive the direct in*
fluencc of these essential agents, moisture, air,
heat, and light. Phis process still farther delays
its taking a vigorous stand among its more fortu
nate competitors, who were from the first placed
5 more within the reach of those salutary agencies,
lint many of these deeply-covered seed are never
able to send their shoots to the surface at all—they
7 perish below. And why? Because Nature hav
ing allowed only a certain quantity of nourish
-1 ment for the embryo, that is exhausted before its
stalk reaches the surface, where its leaves derive a
new and addiiional nutriment from the atmosphere.
1 The roots only form near the surface, that are to
give permanent nourishment to the future plant,
, so that as they are not formed, the plant cannot
5 yet he nourished by their activity in the soil. The
| nourishment, then, intended for the germination of
. the leaf and the first roots, being exhausted before
r the young plant can reach its store-house above
’ the surface, it must necessarily perish for want of
, sustenance, and thus disappoints the hopes of the
husbandman.
r
I wish to be understood. When you plant your
t c° rn , potatoes, &c., you do not imagine the whole
mass of seed, the whole pom toe or grain of corn,
’ ; constitutes the embryo of the future plant. No,
I lhe livi "g point which contains the rudiments of
! future plant, is very small generally speaking,
a mere point, and the mass of substance in which
it is embedded is the nourishment w hich provident
Nature has stored up for its support, before it is able
‘ to seek its stores in earth and air. The yolk of the
' 6 ?S a similar provision for the chicken before it
i is hatched, and for the short period of helplessness.
' which succeeds its birth. While thelittle prisoner
. ls e *bausting this store, its wants and instincts urge
it to seek that liberty, the desire of which is nolborn
with ur, nor confined to animal existence alone, but
urges even the vegetable creation before its strug
ghng embryos have assumed their forms of beauty
in the outer world.
1 here is another reason, why many deeply co
vered seeds perish .Moisture and warmth pro
dace m tiie germinating seed a fermentative pro
cess, which evolves carbon in quantities sufficient
Jo overpower the germinating energy, if the quan
tity is not lessened by combination with the oxy
gen derived from the atmosphere. If the seed,
then, is buried too deep for the influence of the*
atmosphere on the chemical process going on in
germination, the embryo is dissolved and destroyed
and the husbandman disappointed in his hopes!* 1
lhe carbon thus formed, however necessary that
article may be to the future growth of the plant,,
would be fatal to the germ, if its superabundance
• %vere not f combined with the oxygen of the atmos
phere. This combination yields the carbonic achi
gas, delivered in the germination—the very same
gas which bubbles up through the beer tubs of tho
distillery, and derived in the same way from the
fermentation of the farinaceous matter of the seeds
used in such establishments. The oxygen gas of
the atmosphere is moreover essential even to this
fermentation; for seeds planted so deep, as to be
beyond its reach, will lie dormant for years, if kept
dry, but still capable of continuing the species on
the accession of heat, moisture, and air. This se
clusion of the air is the reason why seeds come up
so badly, if, after sowing, the surface of the earth
becomes muddy after a heavy rain, and hardened
into a close crust.
V\ itli regard toother matters connected with this
subject, lime of sowing, &c., our time will compel
, bre '' lt >’- We think all small grain should be sown
f the first or second week of October. Local situa
tions will, of course, modify all general rules. For
instance, in situations subject to a superabundance
of moisture, the plants would be liable to be frozen
—a result the more probable from the spewing up
of the earth by the frost, and thus more exposing
their roots to the severity of the w inter. But w hen
the crop thus early sown escapes injury, its pro
duct is much more heavy and perfect; and it f ur l
nishes the farmer an earlier supply by a month at
a season, when his stores hove diminished to a
scanty supply. Our wheat should never be sawn
later than the middle of October. It would be bet
ter if sown the middle of September, and then its
risks are nearly reduced to one, the danger of a late
frost in the spring.* It would ripen before those
diseases occur, which are aggravated, if not produ
ced, by those moist hot periods so common to our
vernal season. All the successful producers
of wheat, those, who, in the language of their
neighborhood, never failed, it will be found on en
quiry , ha\ e invariably in every instance, sown their
seed from the middle of September to the middle
of October, according to seasons. Wheat should
not be sown on a fresh manured field; it is a plant
. of delicate laste and suffers from gross living. But
after other plants, corn for instance, have fed on
the manure, and used its grosser parts, then wheat
may be grown advantageously, without the risk,
which a soil, rank with animal substances used
for manure, invariably incurs in this crop. Bust
and blasted heads are almost uniformly the conse
quence, particularly if the last of April and May
are hot and wet.
* There were two heavy frosts on 13th and £ofh
April this year, which killed down to the earth
the early corn, but which appeared to have no
effect on the wheat. One ponion of my wheat
crop wms sown on the 17th September, and the
other on Bth November The former had not a
particle of rust on its straw, which was bright
and healthy to perfect maturity—the latter was
slightiy touched, but at a period 100 late to affect
it much.
[From the Mobile Examiner .]
THE STATE RIGHTS PARTY.
The position which this party occupies in the
South is one of great rcsponbilify, and peculiar
delicacy. It was originally organized upon cor
rect principles—the democratic doctrines of ’9B
—but in the shifting of parties it became allied,
for a time, with those wiio are the most violent
opponents of these doctrines. We will not say
that in this the parly was inconsistent, for we
do not think it was. It thought some of the acts
of the late .administration erroneous, and, of
course opposed them, thus identifying itself
partially with that parly whose bond of union is
indiscriminate opposition to all the acts of the
Administration. But the State Rights Parly
could never be properly looked upon as a com
ponent part of whiggery —though they were uni
ted by opposition, they were distinct and sepa
rate in principle, and aimed at very different re
sults. Tbe sole object of the one was the pos
session of power, that of the other the establish,
merit of correct political doctrines. It could not
he expected that a union between masses so in.
congruous would be very closely cemented, or
of very great duration. So soon as those who
contended for principle should find that it could
not be advanced by a longer councction with
one party, but that it might be ultimately at
tained by acting with the other, they would not
and ought not, to hesitate upon the proper course
to pursue. It is a matter of perfect indifference
to the State Rights Party, whether the whigs or
the democrats triumph; whether Martin Van
Buren or Henry Clay be President; they regard
themselves as distinct and separate from both,
having objects peculiarly their own in view; and