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In 1794 Congress Grudgingly Voted To Build Six Ships,- This Year It Talks About a Billion Dollar Navy! By ELMO SCOTT WATSON (Released by Western Newspaper Union.) PRESIDENT ROOSE VELT'S budget recom mendation of a billion dollar naval program, the largest peacetime sum ever consid ered for that purpose, is by its sharp contrast, an inter esting commentary on the spirit of economy (perhaps "parsimony" would be the more appropriate word) in which provision for our "first line of defense" was con ceived 146 years ago. For it was in March, 1794, that the first congress ap proved a bill out of which grew the United States navy, albeit its passage was marked by a long and acrim onious debate during which it was declared that "a navy is the most expensive of all means of defense, and the tyranny of governments con sists in the expensiveness of their machinery." Indicative of the grudging spirit in which this first con gressional provision for a navy was made is the fact that the bill won in the house of representatives by a vote of 50 to 39 and in th,e senate the sentiment was so evenly divided that it look the vote of Vice President John Ad ams to break a tie and pass the measure. Despite the success of John Paul Jones and other American sea captains against the superior sea forces of England during the Revolution, one of the Arst acts of congress, after the Aght for liberty ended, was to dispense with the services of the victor of the famous Bon Homme Richard Serapis battle and begin scrap ping such war vessels as we had. In doing this congress was only following the wishes of the citi zens of the new nation. But the United States soon learned a bitter lesson from its naval disarmament program. For centuries the Barbary states in northern Africa?Algeria, Trip poli, Tunis and Morocco?had preyed upon the commerce of European countries and, despite the huge indemnities which France, Spain and the Italian states paid to these pirates, their shipping and their coasts were never safe from destructive raids. England, because of her eea power, had suffered but little from these marauders but her former colonial shipping:, now dy ing a new Aag, Immediately be came the prey of the corsairs. Ask (M.N6 Ransom. In 1785 the Algerian pirates seized two American merchant men and by the time of Wash ington's inauguration their 21 of ficers and men were still held prisoners The Continental con gress had made some efforts in their behalf but these had been contemptuously rejected by the Dry of Algiers who demanded a ransom of nearly (60.000 for his captives. Soon after Thomas Jef ferson was appointed secretary of state in Washington's cabinet, he was called upon to report to con gress upon the negotiations which he, as minister to France, had carried on with the Algerines. In 17(0 Jefferson submitted a ?sport, remarking that a solution of the problem "rests with con gress to decide between war, trib ute and ransom. If war, they will consider how far our own tesourcei shall be called forth, and how far they will enable the Executive to engage, in the ?arms of the Constitution, the co operation of other Powers. If tribute or ransom, it will rest with them to limit and provide the amount; and with the Execu tive, observing the same consti tutional forms, to make arrange ments for employing it to the best advantage." But congress was slow to take any action. In the meantime, the Algerian pirates continued their raids on American commerce in the Mediterranean until it was al most destroyed. Finally by 17M, when die corsairs had captured 10 more American ships and im prisoned 106 more American sailors, the federal government $ decided to do something about it la January, 1794, a committee of 'f the house o< representatives ? brought in a resolution tor build ing lour ships of 44 guns and ? two of 10 guns each tor the pro ?" lection of our commerce. Debate on the matter began fr early in February and immedi | ately it became apparent that 1 aantiment was against creating a ? federal navy. One of toe lending I opponents was James Madison oI Virginia who believed that peace with the pirates "might be pur chased for less money than this armament would cost." Another Virginia representative "feared that we were not a match for the Algerines" and a Georgian thought that "bribery alone could purchase security from them." A New Jersey congressman ob jected to the "establishment of a fleet, because, when once it had been commenced, there would be no end to it." Smith of Maryland and Fitz simmons of Pennsylvania, who championed .the resolution, and Fisher Ames of Massachusetts, who supported them, called upon Madison to define his position and he proposed a substitute for the resolution. It was that "money should be employed in such a manner as should be found most effectual for obtaining a peace with the Regency of Algiers; and failing of this, that the sum should be applied to the end of obtaining protection from some of the European powers." Navies "Foolisli Tilings." This suggestion was denounced as an attempt to get other na tions to fight our battles for us but Giles of Virginia came to Madison's support with a state ment that he "considered navies altogether as very foolish things. An immense quantity of property was spread oo the water for no purpose whatever, which might have been employed by land to the best purpose." As it became clear that the two Virginians were taking an isolationist stand which would make the United States a hermit nation, sentiment began to swing in favor of the original resolution. Despite the effort of opponents of the bill to delay consideration of it, on March 10, 1794, it came up for Anal passage in the house. Giles made a last effort to pre vent its passage. He argued that fitting out a navy would inevitably involve us in wars with all the European powers. Besides that, it would be a perpetual threat to American liberties. But despite his eloquent plea, the final vote was SO In favor and 39 against the measure. It had an even harder struggle in the senate for, as has already been stated, it required the vote of the vice president, as presiding of ficer over that body, to break the deadlock and concur in the action of the bouse. However, in order to get the measure passed an amendment had to be tacked on that, if peace terms with the At gerines could be arranged, "no farther proceeding be had under this act" On March 27, 1794, President Washington signed the act pro viding for the building of six frigates?the President, the Unit * ed States, the Chesapeake, the Congress, the Constellation, and the Constitution. However, be fore they could be completed a treaty of peace was concluded with Algiers in September, 1796, under the terms of which we paid Algiers a total of *842,500 for the ransom of captives, for tribute and for presents to of ficials. Besides that we agreed to build a frigate for the Algerine navy and also supply naval stores, bringing the total cost ot the treaty up to *992,463.23. By the terms of the amend ment to the navy act, we had to stop building vessels for protec tion of our commerce. Of the five frigates authorized, work on three, the United States, the Con stellation and the Constitution, was already under way and even tually they were completed. The timber for the others was sold, except for the ship which was to be presented to the Algerines. Although the navy act of March 27, 1794, was emasculated by the amendment, nevertheless it marked the real beginning of the American navy and, as such, should be a red letter day on our national calendar. In 1793, France and England were at war again and America soon found itself trying desperately to main tain its neutrality in the conflict. Jay's treaty with England in 1794 put an end to most of the disputes between England and America which grew out of the Revolu tion and which brought us close to another war with Britain. But the next year the British Orders in-Council against neutral trade with F/ance raised the war fever in this country again and France, angered by Jay's treaty, did all she could to fan that flame. But eventually France over played her hand and when her blackmailing schemes were ex posed, American sentiment ap proved the strong stand taken by the new President, John Adams, against our former ally. Not only did congress agree to complete three of the frigates authorized in 1794 at a cost of $1,141,180 but on April 20, 1798, it voted $950,000 for the purchase and equipment of an additional naval force. On April 30 a separate navy depart ment was established (heretofore naval affairs had been adminis tered as a part of the war de , partment) and Benjamin Stoddert was appointed the first secretary of the navy. The Constellation, oldest vessel on the United States navy list, now nsed as a training ship at the Newport (R. I.) naval training station. In this old frigate Commodore Thomas Traxtnn won two great victories oyer superior ships daring oar "undeclared war" with France at the beginning of the Nineteenth centory. A Naval Program. By thia time America was def initely committed to a naval pro gram and on May 4 President Adams was authorized to procure cannon and build foundries and armories. Thia act was soon fol lowed by an appropriation of WO,000 for galleys to be used "as porcupine quills in punishing en emy attacks." With what was already appropriated, the Presi dent waa authorized to accept. If offered by private citizens, six frigates and six sloops of war, and to pay for them with govern ment bonds. Meanwhile France had substi tuted force for Talleyrand's de vious diplomacy and it had seized nearly a thousand American ships. As a result, our alliance with that country, formed during our fight for liberty, was abrogat ed and in June, 17M, congress authorized the President to use our navy to "subdue, seize, and take any armed French vessel which shall be found within the Jurisdictional limits of the United States or elsewhere on the high seas." This was an important step because it said, in effect, that if we were to compel an enemy to do us justice we must no longer depend upon harbor galleys but must send ships swift enough to search out the enemy vessels in their own waters and strong enough to overcome them. The result was our "undeclared war" with France which contin ued for two and a half years during which time one of the new frigates, the Constellation, woo two brilliant victories over FreDCh men-of-war and our little navy captured 83 armed French vessels, nearly all privateers and lost only one war vessel, which had been originally a captured French ship. But despite the les sons learned in this conflict it re quired two more of them?the War with the Barbery Pirates of 180*44 and the War of 1813 with England?to teach us the neces sity of maintaining an adequate naval establishment if we were, as Washington said, to "secure respect" for our flag and to save it "from insult or aggression." Although the name of Commo dore Thomas Truxtun is but little known to most Americans, yet two victories which he won dur ing our "undeclared war" with France entitle him to ? place alongside John Paul Jones, Ste phen Decatur, Isaac Hull, James Lawrence, and Oliver Hazard' Perry in our galaxy of naval heroes. Early in 1799 Truxtun was placed in command of the Constellation, flagship of a squad ron of Ave vessels which were sent to the West Indies. At noon on February 9 while the Constellation was cruising off the island of Nevis, a large ship was discovered away to the south. Truxtun immediately gave chase and by the middle of the afternoon he had overhauled the fleeing ship and was engaged in a hot battle with her. Within an hour and a quarter the swift and accurate fire of the Ameri can gunners had so shattered the enemy ship that her captain struck his colors. She proved to be the famous French frigate, La Insurgents, whose loss was 70 men killed and wounded, whereas the only casualties on the Constellation were three wounded. The captured French ship was put in charge of a prize crew commanded by Lieutenant (later Commodore) John Rodgers and taken to St. Kitt's. When news of Truxtun's victory reached the United States it sent a thrill of joy through the country such as it had not known since the days of John Paul Jones. Truxtun was eulogized in the newspapers, sent "congratulatory addresses" by groups of citizens and re ceived from the merchants of Lloyd's coffee house in London a handsome service of plate worth more than $3,000. A year later Truxtun gave his fellow-countrymen even more cause for rejoicing. Early on the morning of February 1, 1800, while cruising off Guadeloupe seeking the large French frigate, La Vengeante, which was be lieved to be in those waters, he discovered a sail to the south which he took to be that of an English merchantman. So he ran up the English colors, but, upon receiving no response, gave chase. The stranger began piling on sail and for 15 hours succeeded in keeping out of range of the Constellation's guns. Then the American ship came within hail ing distance and Truxtun discov ered that the stranger was the very ship he was seeking?La Vengeance. At eight o'clock in the evening the Americans opened fire and from that time until one o'clock in the morning the two ships carried on a run ning fight, sometimes coming within pistol shot of each other. Suddenly the French frigate ceased firing and disappeared so completely in the gloom that Truxtun believed she had sunk. But at that moment ha discov ered that nearly all the Constel lation's shrouds had been cut away by the fire of the enemy and that her mainmast was about to fall. Soon afterwards a heavy squall came up and the mast went overboard. Although badly crippled, the French ship managed to reach the safety of a harbor on the coast of South America. There her commander, Captain Pitot, acknowledged that twice during the engagement he had struck his colors but in the gloom of night this signal of surrender was not seen by the Americans. Once more Truxtun's victory over a superior foe?although La Vengeance carried 54 guns and 400 men, as compared to the Constellation's 33 guns and 300 men, the French loss was 162 killed and wounded while the Americans' was only 14 killed and 23 wounded?sent his name ringing through the United States. Two months later con gress authorised the President to pi as tut him with a gold medal "emblematical of the late action" with the thanks of the nation, the second time in our history that such an honor was bestowed upon a naval officer. Two year* later Truxtun was ordered to command a squadron destined for* service in the Medi terranean. His request tor a cap tain to command his flagship be ing denied, he declined the serv ice and President Jefferson con strued this action as a resigna tion, which eras accepted. Thus the navy lost the services of one of the best officers in its history. Truxtun retired to a farm near Philadelphia and died there May 5. 1822. Lights of New York by L. L STEVENSON Traced;: When he was a very small boy his talent became appar ent. His father, a musician, gave up thoughts of a career and his mother went into business that ex pensive teachers might be engaged. The lad justified the faith of his parents. His piano became his life. His fingers flew over the keys like butterflies and wonderful melodies came forth. Instead of baseball it was Bach and Brahms, with Brahms his favorite. In his early teens he reached such a point that he appeared in a children's concert with the symphony at Carnegie hall. Then something happened. Gradu ally it grew more and more difficult (or him to walk. His interest in music also waned. Now he's help less in a hospital. At 19 he has given up hope and ceased to fight. And his father and mother hold that there are worse things than death. ? ? ? Manhattan Intelligence: Babe Ruth, who recently celebrated his forty-sixth birthday, carefully saved all flashlight bulbs left behind by press photographers ... He uses them as ammunition for cats that serenade him in the court beneath his windows ... As he lives 15 floors up, he gets results . . . That was Dorothy Lamour who let out a loud "Pshaw," when she knocked off a heel getting into a cab . . . Bea Wain didn't wear pajamas into a theater the other night ... It was a slick evening ensemble . . ? Mark Warnow, whose orchestra plays hit tunes every Saturday night, likes to listen to hits of yester year played by hurdy-gurdies . . . There's the street photographer who never tires of snapping Dinah Shore, comely blues singer. ? ? ? Sights: Dave Elm an, who brings an average of five persons a week from here and there to New York for his radio program, holds that the automats are what most out-of towners want to visit first. They have seen them on the screen and are eager to poke nickels in slots for food. A ride in the subway is attraction No. 2 with Radio City and the Statue of Liberty third and fourth. At least that's his conclu sion after steering around some five hundred men, women and chiftren in the last two years. ? ? ? Source: Read in "What's Your Allergy," by Dr. Laurence Farmer and George Hexter, of a young fel low who suffered with asthma once a week. The chap was a night clerk in a drug store. Thursday was his evening off and he was in the habit of spending it with his best girL One of Dr. Farmer's colleagues found a clue in the gal's face pow der. So she switched to a non scented talcum and her swain was asthma free seven nights a week. Dr. Farmer, chief of the allergy clinic of Lenox Hill hospital, holds that hay and not goldenrod causes hay fever. An interesting book written in language understandable to a layman. * * * Service: The other day a woman guest at the Biltmore reported that the bathroom was out of order. A plumber was sent up with his kit of tools and after a thorough inspec tion could find nothing wrong. So be asked the lady about it. She said everything was wrong, that the tub should be on the other side, the washbowl in a different place and so on indicating changes that would take at least a week and cost sev eral hundred dollars. The plumber reported to Joseph Liggett, assist ant manager. Within an hour, the guest bad what she wanted. Mr. Liggett simply shifted her to anoth er suite with a bathroom layout sim ilar to the one she had suggested. ? ? ? End Piece: George Jessell, an aerial commuter between New York and Miami, on the hottest day the Florida city has known this season encountered a movie producer nat tily and heavily swathed in a blue overcoat. "Say," inquired Jessell, "what's the idea of a blue overcoat on a day like this?" "Because," responded the produc er with a shoulder shrug, "1 look terrible in brown." <B*H Syndicate?WNU Sanrtca.) Opportunities on Farm Held Higher for Bride INDIANAPOLIS.?If you want op portunities, marry a farm youth, Mrs. Charles W. Sewell, administra tive director of the Associated Women of the American Farm Bu reau Federation, advises girls in a matrimonial mood. "Opportunities are greater on the farm than in a small city apart ment," she contends. "Individual effort counts a lot more there." A farmer's wife, she says, has advantages that a professional man's mate does not have. Quadruplets Born To Chinese Woman SHANGHAI?A Chinese woman named An Tsaosse, gave birth to quadruplets, at a village in Hooan province, according to reports re ceived here. Mother and babies, all sons, are said to be progress ing wen. The provincial govern ment is granting the family spe cial aid. ? t U. S. Census Bureau Has Sound Reasons For *Nose-Counting (Because ike one can. ten-year census is ike government activity that comes most directly home to eech of the 132flOOfiOO ?f us, the census bureau here explains ike vital inquiries to be usede. This is one of e series of articles on this subject.J \XTHOEVER would bake a cake v* for Charlie, grow a patch of spinach, or drive his car to Kokomo, must have in mind a number of facts. The bigger the task in hand the greater the need of information. Take, for example, an undertaking like that of governing the richest and most active nation in the world. It is a tougher job than teaching a one-room country school. It calls for great numbers of facts. At all times the government of the United States faces a multitude of problems, many of them so large that they spread from ocean to ocean. None of them can very well be faced unless the facts are known. Since this is a democracy, its being well governed depends largely on the information which its people possess. The citizen must have the facts that he may properly share in the direction of the course of gov ernment. It is because of this need of facts that the census is taken. If we count the unemployed we will have a measure of the task of finding work for them to do. If we count the children now two years old we can figure how many we will have to take care of in the second gTade in 1945. If we count trie houses that are showing their age we can esti mate the building problem of the near future. Compares With Inventory Whoever runs a business, of course, takes an inventory every once in a while. If he has a grocery store he is likely to have been find ing out lately that buckwheat flour is not moving as fast as it used to, and that the sale of tomato juice, on the contrary, has greatly in creased. That same fact, since it is true nationally, should be a tip to the farmer that tomatoes are a better crop to grow than buckwheat. The latest figures the Census bu reau has shown that jobs for lum bermen, coal miners, farm hands, blacksmiths, glass blowers, tailors, locomotive firemen, are on the de crease. But there- is increasing work for floorwalkers, undertakers, machinists, cooks, waiters, account ants. Naturally it is important for every young man, at the age of choosing his life work, to know which callings are going into eclipse and which are shining brightly. Similar guidance may be given young women. The figures show that opportunity practically has dis appeared for this village milliner and the home dressmaker. On the contrary it is shown that there are growing demands for teachers, trained nurses, beauty parlor work ers, stenographers. Obviously young people should give concentrated at tention to the figures on occupations that will be produced by the next census. Population Increase Bate. Nothing could be more fundamen tal as a national fact than the rate at which the population is increas ing. When a nation was young, and up to the time of the Civil war, the increase in population between cen suses amounted to about 35 per cent. Then, up to 1900, it was above 20 per cent. Between 1920 and 1930 it was 16 per cent. The estimates are that for the 1930s there will be no more than 8 per cent increase. There has been a slump in the rate at which babies were being born. In 1915, 25 babies were being born each year to each group of 1,000 people. In 1937, only 17 babies were coming to each such group. Is this still going on? When will it come to pass that Americans are dying faster than they are being born? It will not be long, the experts figure. They estimate that we now have 132,000,000. The latest fore cast is that we will never have more than 145,000,000. The course of busi ness, the value of real estate, many fundamentals, have in the past been based on a continuing increase in the population. Without it we face a future that will be different. The change in the position of the farm in the national economy is revolutionary. In 1870 more than half (53 per cent) of the people of the nation who were gainfully em ployed worked on farms. By 1900 this figure had dropped to 37 per cent, in 1930 to 21 per cent In the 20 years between 1910 and 1930 the number of hired hands on the farm decreased 40 per cent Farm work ers were driven to the cities. There, however, they found that labor saving machinery was doing away with jobs. What to do about these people out of work? If we had more facts we might work more intelligently toward solutions. This census win dig deeper than ever before in massing information about employment and unemploy ment This is a gathering of facts that reveals the state of the nation as an examination by an auditor shows the conditio of a business. A wise citizen win study the facts that he may contribute his modicum of people rule. Careful analysis and study at the facts gathered is highly important to the general well-being of every citizen. The census infor mation is gathered with care and should be studied with care. Strange Facts (Continuous Growth V Versatile Products ? Mail Must Go On! ? Although most creatures have a definite growth limit, others con tinue to increase in size as long as they live, among them being trees, fish, oysters, clams, shrimps, crabs and lobsters. Products of the farm have more than 400 nonfood uses in industry. For example, corn is used in mak ing adhesives, potatoes in laundry starch, soybeans in plastics, cattle grease in antifreeze mixtures, grape-seed oil in soaps, buttermilk in paints, and eggs in leather dressing processes. In many Japanese bedrooms the compass points are painted on the floor. Few Japanese will sleep with the head pointing north, the position in which they are buried. Although the transatlantic clip pers are built to carry 3,000 pounds of mail, they have trans ported 4,300 pounds, or 140,000 let ters and packages. Incidentally, a clipper must carry all mail given to it by the post office de partment, even if it has to cancel all passenger bookings.?Collier's. *"jasmSB* 1 SHOWS the Newest Indepen dent 1M0 wallpapers created ! by the world's leading artists. Priced to save you up to 76%. Guaranteed by Pitts- , burgh's reliable and oldest , wallpaper company. Sue Mtr tor TRIE Wallpaper Style book. * , I Indcpendeat Wallpaper Ca. 1 D?pt. B nttakarih, raaaa. I In One's Place It is surprising to observe how much more anybody may become by simply being always in his place Salina Watchman. V inKUMI Does your throat fool A prickly when mo swallow J ? duo to o cold? Bonofit ti from Luden's special Car- fl mulo. Contains cooling fl menthol that helps bring ? quick relief. Don't suffer ? another second. Got ? Luden's for that "lead* ? paper throat!" LUDEN'S 5*0 MoofHol Cooph Drops No Just in Unjust To entreat what is unjust from the just is wropg; but to seek what is just from the unjust is folly.?Plautus. \ HOTEL M?ALPIN "aguatHouc IN NEW YORK Thing* are booming here ? and here it where the "Big Men" oi-business stay when in Hew York. Everything is "as they like it". Good, last service, up toblate, pleasant rooms,, a perfect "heart ol the City" location and rates which are sympathetic to the expense account. ? trrrtt\ BROADWAY AT 34th ST. ONE SHORT BLOCK TBOM THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING AND PENNSYLVANIA R R: STATION Dita KHOTT ^ MBS 1 WOELTU. m rn
The Alamance Gleaner (Graham, N.C.)
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March 21, 1940, edition 1
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