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'1 1 i .f r'- - J i; V r-r" CASSIUS No. IT. -V ' V, ECOXOJIF-JIR. CMEOUyj9 Crcaf iartfl rt in lA War Department.', ' The power of "the Secretary of War had arrived at its highest point about the close of the year 181S He had oroduced a strong impression upori the Members'of Congress, as well as upon the public, that to oppose his measures, ' was to oppose the administration of the . Hrcsment or me unueu crates 5 auu thus ho availed himself, to a certain ex tent, of the weight of Mr. Monroe's character. , He had also produced an other strong impresion, which still seras to prevail, that he had more influ ence than any other member ofthe ca binet, in procuring appointments to of . fice ; and, this, .however groundless, has been of the greatest advantage to him. Itrhas given him extensive influx ence, & added prodigiousljc.'to the facif nation of his manners. It has brought to hid party, all the office-hunters in - the Union': and - taken collectively they are a very formidable body. llis measures 'thus fa although con--&idered as wild and extravagant by sorae of the. old.- fashion2d republicans, had met with no decided opposition by a majority of either house of Congress.! J)ut his estimates of the appropriations necessary for his department for' the vear 1820, startled thoe who had plac- ea some reliance on nis pruaence anu talents for business. Even those who had believed all the accounts of the .'great savings in the War Depart ment," now began to examine for them selves into his expenditures.- -The con -.scnuen.ee of which wa, that a majority of both houses of Congress concurred in the propriety of arresting the Secre tary in his favorite, but useless and ex travagant scheme," of. sending an army to the Yellow Stone River, fifteen hun dred miles upthit Missouri. They de termined to check the recruiting ser vice which he was urging with as much ardour, as if a powerful enemy had in vaded our shores, a .d wasmarching to "Washington. And what was still more offensive, they adopted measures for re ducing the arniv to six thousand men. For these and similar offences, they have been stigmatized asv Radicals, 'and denounced as enemies to the adminis tration. " The Secretary has made war upon them by every means in his pow er. A paper has been established at Washington, under his immediate pa tronage to write them down. He nas . pursued them into the remotest parts of . the Union j-and South Carolina is not ;the first nor the last state," in which J - Ms vindictive hand has been seen and "rat. v ' Jit the commencement of the year 1817, tbe anny in the a egate, amounted to -;.. : .10,024 There were recruited m that Tear ' 3,935 In the year 1818 4,238 Fa the year 1819 4,304 1thlKtvstr. Tn the three last vears more CvmmvnU ated for the Raleigh Regittef. j I tlian 12,000 men have been enlisted ; and still the ajrgrefrate of thearmy at the close ot tne last vear did not exceed '9,000 men. - V: l . It is tree, onlySOO men are entitled to .1 discharge bv the expiration of their term sti) if the desertions and ether casualties, should be as crreat as in former vears, the army wil not exceed 8,000 men at the close of the year mcmcumj ine rrcruuswuicu may uc vmhiisu with 21.000 Dollars voted for that purpose, j I hsve the honor to be, - Sir, your .obedient servant, D. PARKER, Adj't Insp. Genl. "The Secvtart ot Wim." - This letter which the Secretary makes his own, by comotmunicating it to the Senate, was evidentl v meant as a severe reprimand upon the House of Jiepre sentatives, for neglecting their duty; and an admonition to the Senate to attend to theirs, and amend the bill, so as to correspond wih the 'wishes and instructions ot the War Department It shews too, that the Secretary perfectly understood that th 1 l.ise of Represen tatives had determined to authorize the recruiting ot louu men ana no more for the vear 1820. The Senate on this point were as re fractory as the House of Represent tiyes, and nvtwitlistaudingtlie instruc tions ami admonitions of the Secretary, and the utmost exertions of his friends, they passed th e hi 1 1 as i t was se n t to thenii hlCongrcss had refused an appropriation tor moving our troops irom touncu lilufts to Yellow Stone, & were adopting measures for: reducing our peace esta blishment. This was pressing very far upon the forbearance of the Secretary But to limit the recruiting service af tiie warning he had grren, particularly to the Senate, was an evidence of mark ed disrespect, calculated to call, forth all the enendes of his character. Were his munificent schemes to be defeated, V tne Secretary And, this precaution was by .no means unnecessary,5 for m 3939 men, and in -the jear 1 8 1 8, '423 S i al though Coriirress meant to for the recruiting of no more than 2500 in the former year, and jSOOO in the lat ter. The ' Secretary authorizeoVthis excess of rec mi ting over the appropria tions, probably under jSome usage. 0 the, War Department, by which he ven tures to exceed the appropriations Tor any particular year,; cc -nil up uie raiiK of the army as established by law, pro vided he can frcnl unexpended balan ces that may be transferred to that ser- vice. Ana. ms oossioie, mai in me last case of 182a, ' he thought himself, under the ame principe, justified in disregarding the will of CongresseX' pressed in direct terms. ; By the peace ;establshment Of 1815, the armv, was fixed at 10,000 imen: but whether the ranks were to be kept full at all times or not, depended on the will ot Congress as thev believed, and not upon that of .the Secretary of V 1 r- IF lift h4if he r-i rr li f fr T-o r-m 1 1 f 171 1 men in 1820, beyond tlie number for which Cunsress had made the ap propriation, he wouldhave had an equal risit to rec uit that number, even if Congress had made, no appropriation whatever, for, the recruiting service'of that vear. ; The safetv bf the countrv requires that Congress" &Tould have the power of Controlling the recruiting service.-7-In this case it was peculiarly import ant, tor they nad determined to reduce the army, and did reduce it in the year following. j If the Secretary of War could thus recruit men-at his pleasure, against the will nf Pnncrrtf. nnd thpv wrft hnund his brilliant prospects to be obscure to appropriate for the pa subsistence, from the paltry con. lderatiou of savia- -n(i riftnfncr of ctirh rpr.niirs ann1 if - a' ,1.1." . - 1 ) " 1 I ' rl O ' a lew mousanu, or nuimrea uiousana Dollai-s? : He bethought himself of all the great STATBMBjrr Exhibiting the fundi eitt f 'wtechffiexptmct l of recruiting have been paid, iltnfng the year 1 820, in obedience to o. resolutijtt sundrf tifiesi Vnd in dif era uanners As to-the ? sixth item of gS5,S64 56, refunded ' by Robert Brent, it must have ofRepreentative$dated26fhDrc.lQ20. Mirprixeu uiuc Wuu kbcw mat Air. BOV.Ytms D PRkillUMS Brent died in September, 1819, utterly insoiyenr, aim u ueiuuiirr to ine Uo- of the-HtnUte Balance unexpended . in the hands of the Treasurer of the Uf ' i States on 1st of Jan.1 1820 .! " Amount appropriated for the year 1820 .. ' Amount refuitdefl to . the Treasurer of the U. States by sundry persons during the 'year 1820 i Amount brought to the credit of this appro ' priation on the books of this office!, oirset tlement of accounts, bein balances due thereon, by sundry persons, arijsjng: out of advances made in 1819 and 1820 Amount bro't to the credit of this appro priation from the books of the 3d Au ditor, ' . - Amount due by Rob't. Brent, late paymas ter general," being part pi" the advance made him on account of bounties and pre miums, outl of the appropriation for? 1816, refunded in 1820, on settlement of his account 21,000,00 3,441,0 26,9ir,54 1,211 35,364,55 $91,133 03 EXPEA'SES OF RECRUITING. Amount appropriated for the yeapr 1820 Amount available by the Secre- 34,125 vernment to a very laree amount. ' ' By a letter of the .-Comptroller '6f the Treasury of the 27th of November, 1820, it appears that a balance was due tq United States; fi om Robert Brent, late Pavmasfer-General, on the books of the Third AWditor, of g40,9ll 18 Be-i sides jwhich there were other and much larger sums due from him to the United States ; for by a report of the- Comp. trolleir of the Treasury of the 27th De bomber, 1822, it appears that he1 was a delinquent to the amount of SH5,598 38, accruing oiit of advances made to him from: the 18th of j May, .1816, to June,r 181 9, reported for suit on the 4th of May, ISZOi 'j . x As! the sixthj item Was involved in some obscuri tjf Mr. Lee' adds an ex planatory note,; ' whicbMr.; Calhoun must ! have take"n. for a satisfactory el u cidatmn of the subject, or he would not have made it a part of. his Report I have examined this explanatory note over and oyer, ahd never read auy thing- more ingeniously perplexed." W hoj would suppose tnat tn; Jagic forcei of a "few 'entries j in the books uf tlie econdtAuditor, jbv which not c cent was obtained from Mr. Brent, and which was not to diminish the feeueral halarirp ftcrninat' hiiti in. the. amnnitt f a cent,! couRl authorize the Secretary of AVarf or any other person, to draw gS5,S64 5G trora any itina belongm to the United States ? f , , Robert . Brent had I expended , more tary of war for the recruiting- $125,25803 j money upon the article , of subsistence the could nidke contracts to the amount of millions of dollars, for fortifications things that had bee:i said of him in the public papers : He'recollected, 'although it had not been foruially announced, that " South Carolina had given to tlie nation, the ablest man that ever filled the War Department," He consider and oHter objects connected with the - In three year, 12,481 v At the clone of tlie year 1819 the army amounted to 8,688 less than the ajrcate at the ) . ' commencement oflrfJ 7 by 5 l3oS -This jijimbcr added to the 12,481 amounts to 13,817 men lot to the army in three years. Ofthe&e probably aboirt.3000 were discharged on the c.piration.of their terms jf service t the remainder were lost by desertion and other-casualties i Mr Calhoun required for the lecruitm? sdrvi.ee of the year 1820 the sum of $183,925 ,Vfc for 5,0 W recruits .. Bounties at 12 dolla. each 60,000 -PrcmiuriMi at 2 dolls.- each 10,00i ,JPor quarters, fuel, bunks, ci tizen suiecirs for.'exarain iujthe recruits and attend ing to the rick, fees for ma gistrates for qualifying- r omits until orgninlzed for toininqr Reciments or Corps at 22 78 1-2 perman 113,925183,925 Y These estimates appear from a letteri from the Adjutant and Inspector Gene- . ral to the secretary ot Var, and bv him communicated to the Senate of ' the United States on the 20th of March ; 1820. V The House bfItepresentatives paid but little "attention to the Secretary's estimates and instructions. 1 iiey vot ed to appropriate for tlie whole recruit h service of that year, no more than 855,15, not one third part of what the Secretary required. I his appears from the first section of the bill making ap propriations for the military service lor 1820, ot whtcn passed into a law on tue 14th of April ot that year. . So much '. N of the section as respects this appro nriation is iu these words. 44 For bounties and premiums for fifteen hundred re ' cruit$i twehtyone thousand j dollars. lFor fuel, straw, & all other expenses for recruits, until organiz.eu tojoin.regi ."tnents and corps, thirty four thousand, one hundred and -twenty five dollars!" .On the 22nd of March, after this bill had passed the House of Rcpreseuta- tivef , and was depeoding oeiore tne . Semite,' the following letter from tlie ' Adjutant, and Inspector, General,, was , rtoramunicated to the Senate by the Se tetary of War: ' ! " JtJjvtunt Ulntpecfor Genera f Office, . SIRtt apptarsy Ae n fszvpufcfi that the .Houic'.of .lUpii'avc-i voted utfy 21,000 ... - ttoliln for bounties and preiciuins, on ao veointcf the rcruitin servirc of the year. 1us um'wiU oiilr inhst 1500 men ; less than fro mister actual ixl by deeiia dujrg 1 C . t defence ot the country, ana impose upon Congress the obligation, to1. make tlie appropriations! necessary for c ry- ui sucIl contracts into efft, then in deed, tne Representatives of the Peo cu U141 n nuaiu ue imiu-iu uiiacriui ,nc power of the yar Department -iKf. c..i-.:., UT.1J I . " ummuie, uuweiw, tiiatuii o'i r i ;Vu fia irss will find means hereafter, to res VV-l l IUIU1UII9 lit tilt, t,VJ 11WU3C3 i I , .. ! .l fi . it a i j i 1 l i ttrain the recruitinservice within proper Congress. He reflected, that - snould I, , ... , , , , 1 i . i I r, iwrnimx i iiriu nicy nac- an cau v,: uy an this contumacv, particularly on te part , r . X1-v .0, 1 jxu . War Department, it would soon grow . iU L 1 c I j nnin .r.irirnf ,n,Mnv, ihnt if miVhf u ulc I,euu3 -m -a ". U1 -' ucpai muu be difhcult to check. Besides, some calculations alarmed the Secretary. If the arny at the cloi of the year 1820, would amount to no more than 8,000 me u, including the except under aaaw authormns: the same, or under an appropriation ade quate to itH fulfilment and, excepting also, contracts mane by the Quarter uawt.jrs rVjpartment, which may be mane by the SeCretanes of tlio9e Ue t.500, to be recruited by the authority Inartmeiits'1? iom ru,..' kj kq ... icv.di If the Secretary of War shall censi u- 11 T i der tins verv radicallaw as binding up- loss of sixteen thousand including those uu ' lL VVUi d" cim LU discharged on the expiration of their f pnn nf sprvirp Tt fnlinwprl frnm thia. that should the recruiting service be hlian soo men h been recruited for checked, the arnly in two years more would be reduced to a regiment, which would afibrd ho apology for keeping in pay, nearly 700 commissioned oincer3 ; ana mignt - muuee tougress to reuuee die number of officers, which the Father of the Army ouirht in no wise to ner mit. And should any considerable portion of the officers of the armv be the year '1820. the House of Represent- I atives, on motion of Mr. Tracy, called upon the Secretary for information up- ! on this subject. In answer to which, on I the 2d of Jnuajy 1821, he communicat ed the folio wing fetters and statements a Departmejit of TVart 130th Uec. 1820. SIR In reply to the resolution of the service of the year 1S20 EXPENDITURES. 1 i Amount oi warrants is- ' j sued by the Secreta tary of War to the ' 26th of Dec. appli cable to bounties & premiums - 33,610, ITS Amount disbursed by sundry persons ap plicable to bounties anH premiums, and brought to the debit of that appropriation on settlement of .1 accounts', there be ing balance due by them to that am't. of sundrv soecific appropriations '9,030 4- Amount disbm-sed to 26th of Dec, on ac count of expenses of recruiting . i 18,749 1 Amount expended deducted 66,390 22 ons on the 26th ot Dec, 1820, of -1 than-j had been put: into his hands t'jr that particular purpose, which he took from monies put into his hands to pav boun ies arid premiums $ upon bott items; of account, however, there was a lafgepalance' due from him to the Uni ted States. It is easy to understand hoW his subsistence account was balan ced, By charging it .with 35,565 56 whicl! he had taken from the monies in his hands to pay bounties anl prejniums, and that the balance on his account o& bounties and premiums should be-diminished by that amount. 'This mih be a convenient mode of ascertain a the fipal balance iluerom him on b-jik accounts, but could' be of no other im portance to. him or to the United States,, as thy were to receive no money frum him on either account, and surely were not expected to pay any;' But 'whence -cameltne money r Robert Brent refund ed in! " settlement of accountonly. This (is not money : Yet the money was obtained from some quarter, fbr bounties and premiums cannot be paid in "settlement of account only.'? If thia sum ofg35,354 56, fiaid to b, Treasury Department, 2d Au 28th Dec. 1820. WM. LEE. Undc the following' f Bounties & premiums 43,492 4i P.-rnfnsus nf rftr.mitinP- 15.475 5 -4 aB;eoo oui reiunueu uy ivuuerx nrtiit, uui yuici ditor's OfEce, nevefc was and never will be refund!. was)drawn from the Treasurer of the United States, as agent for the War Notb. When we say Robert Brent, late Deriartment, - or from the ireasurv or Paymaster General, refunded in 1820 S35,- anfttW fund hplonnin toMhft Umtnl L lil.i t I , , : O-O . " charged to Robert paid to hirri'on ab- balance beintr due to him, for disbursements COUtlt of his advances for subsistence, on account of subsistence, and beinir a debtor I and ' credited to him as if actual 1 y re under the head of bounties and premiums, to funded nn J account of an unpYnen:!! a a m 'm. 1 m L - 7 -a funded that sum in money he refunded it in S )T ij 11 0ttimmt nf account oniv i that is to sav. a I prent as it actually Uismisseu, it mignt enuanger tne eiec- I House ot uepreseniativesor tne 20m insi. re- tionoi tne army candidate ; a calamity H,l,r,,.'sH "'"'n wnijnmi m I'cpnmcHi, . i 11 1 x t t -i 1 wr. iJ I shpwiiiMT thp number of soMiers rreriiitpa fo I . u v auu.m va7 vvr is. C4 f wau va w uuii l balance of money placed in his haiVds to pay bounties and premiums, aad f then applied to the'rcruiting service o.fl the year , 1820 5 if all , this was done with Robert Brent, whil e he was iu his . grave and knew nothing of the matter, l ': Li t . A At. a Ak 1 (J - . . : i. ci i. I'll1"17 8UU V1 -ul"?uc " occi etary urn fnnd jrty)m flich the experts of recruiting uoc long nesiiaie. ne ueiermmeu 10 1 had been paidr-jnnd whether any unexpend recruit 1,500 men by the authority bf I ed balance of fprmer appropriations had been Conirress. and 1.711 bv the authority used, and in what year said appropriations of the War Department Accordingly ijniwle: I enclose repum of the Adjutant r .jr- 0 v. and Inspector General, and the Second Au- 3,211 men were recruited for the ser- (litor J the fressury; 8hew5np the number vice of the year 1820. Whether Congress is to have any control over the recruiting service, pi 1 . . . 1 siuc; IIIIU1UC1, U! ICUUIU CAbCCU JWW,,UIC il wueuier it-is w ueuenu upon me Wlli Oi mv illia no, bten so much increased ;th the secretaryof uar, seems a question hast vear.. The difference between the en not yet settled. By the 8th section of hutments and the increase, is accounted for tlie first article of tlie Constitution of b7.tbe dischiu-es, desertions, and other casu- the United States, Congress shall have aitie9 autii ine year, amounting to nan as power ' to raise and support armies!," under which they have presumed to re,- to the amount oi the appropriation, and as to the number of men necessary for that service. . ; , In tlie case of 1 820, they, were more 1 explicit than usual ; they expressly de signated the number ot men to be recruited. The word of the act are for bounties and premiums for jlftrrn hundred recrwts." In the act of the 29th of Aprils 1816, the appropriation for tlie recruiting service is in thee 1 . - . a r? i . . ir - J i worus : " ror oouniies anu premiums, fifty-six thousand dollars." . In theiact of the 3d of March, 1817, " for boun ties and premiums, thirty -two thousand dollars.' - In the act of the 19th Fe bruary, 1818, : for bounties and pre miums, forty-four, thoasand dol lars'v8 In the actofthe 15th of February, 1819, for bounttes and premiums, sixtv- two thousand five hundred dollars, "r wnnout designating tn any of these ca ses the number to be recruited.. The numJer, however, was easily ascertain ed by calculation: A ' ; I tThe' unusual form of appropriation n thi particular for the year 1820, was evidently meant 'as 'a limitation 1 to the disorett).! previously exercised by a large , amount ; his account cjf subsistence was closed, by carrying a part or tne balance,' due by him ;on , bounties and premiums j. say $35,364y56 to his debit on thai df subsistence, by which transaction, bounties ind premium received a credit on our books! while subsis tence was debited." )- ; This statement, which the Secretary it proves, at least, that the Secretary ' the Armv, during the year 1820, in dicating communicated to tpe House of Reprer1 Us very ..expert at raising the wind. , , sentatives by way of throwing light up j In Junet 1820, Robert Brent was in on a subject of enquiry, is a most rare debted to the United States In the sum and singular Document The Radi- of gl 15,598 38. He was dead, -and cals were about as wise after this elu- his estate utterly insolvent; and this cidation as they were before it, as the money never has been nor never will be. Secretary, no doubt, intended they refunded. An attempt to draw money should be. But a paper of this cha- from , such a fund, thus sunk in the bot racter, tlius com mu ni cateil to Con- tomless pit of the Payroaster'd pocket, gress, deserves a little mare attention would formerly have been deemed aS than it has received. As1 ta the ba- hopeless as the attempt of the pbiloso- lance of 58,867 B0 remaining on the pherof Lamputa to extract sun-beams 26th of December, 1820J nearly the from cucumbers : But this is an age of whole of it would be expended when improvements, and every ; thing yields all the expenses of the recruiting ser-ljxi thepowere of genius, ;f; xA:. vice oi xnat year snouiu uc paiu. ic it -was discovered that Mr,; ijrent of recruits an4 the expensrs of the recruiting service It is deemed proper to observe, that altho' many as have been enlisted. I have the honor to be your obedient ser vant, J. C: CALHOUN. Hon. J. V. Tatlow, ' Speaker of the Route of Representatives. 2djvtaijl tf Inspector GeneruPt Office, 30th Dec. 1820. SIR In answer to that Dart of the Resolu- t;on of the1 House of Representatives, requir ing the number of soldiers enlisted during this veur, wh5jch you referred to me,I take the li berty to make the following1 extract, from my report to you of the secondanst. viz: "Ab stract of the recruiting returns for 182(, whole number enlisted during" the vear, 3,211." j The number of jrecruits for this vear is ta ken from the returns made to this oflfice, of the first three quarters, and an estimate for the present quarter, j ! 1 have the honoijto be, with perfect respect, your obd't. serv't! V j D. PARKER, Adjt. 81 Insp. Gen. The SlCBSTART Or WiH. 2d Mdtior9 Office. Dec, 23, 1820. S . SIR -In compliance with the resolution of the Huse of Representatives ot the 26th mat. i hayetthe honor to transmit to you,1 .here with, a statement of the funds otit of which the ex penses of recruiting for this' year "have been paid. A 1 have thehonor-to be,' very respect fully, 5. oar obedient servant. - s ; 4 ,; i:.r -,A- , Hon. J.C i.ior, Secretarv tf newt hnnriflpa. nrfmiiims. And hther exnen-il . rlioKiivcwl- tHH TR f anhalsx ses of recruiting 3,211 men, would aj tehee over and above what was charge I mount, according to tlie estimate fur to him on that account. It was tlibughv nished by the War Department, to that this .sum might be paid to him 01 3118,116 .63. The amount available the part of the United States to balance by the Secretary of War for this ser- and close this account of subsistence, vice, as by Mr. Lee's statement, was provided he should immediately refund 31,25, 358 03, leaving a surplus of no the same; on account of 4 very largl more than 37,141 40. l :: " balance; due frata him' on account of The funds out of which bounties and bounties and premiums, ! But, as this premiums were paid for 1820, consist payment and re -payment would have of sit item9. Tlie first ar unexDended L balance in ! the hands of the Treasurer discovered that it might be dispensed of 33,197:92. This balance is not with, by a few entries on the books of luciiuuiigu in uw wvvjv!:uv:0 fcs?m uie oecona Auaitorr jwr. joreufc in which he ask 3183,025 for recruit- therefoi-e, charged with this sum to close ing 5000 men. Congressfdid not take his subsistence account, and credited ( it into consideration, orj they would with nn enual ahm on account of boun- have appropriated a certain sum in ad- ties and premiums ; by which transact dition to this balance, to recruit 1,500 tin. says the Second 5 Auditor, (he . men. The second is the um of 21,000 ought to havfe said matuzuvre) ; " boun dollars appropriated, andj all that Con- ,t and wniums received a credit ou gress intended should be fexpended for four books while subsistence.iivas debit bounties; and premiums I for. the yearL,i .J snft Hi credit thW obtained was 1820. As tthe third, iourtli, & fifth jcousidercd as a part of the availabi items, the becretary could not suppose fUBds, which; were applied to the 're that any body should understand them, j 'rmitinV service of 1820 under warrant He might as : well have 'informed Cob ;? drawn- by the Secretary of War, as il gress that ;30,000 dollars- and upwards the ame had been appropriated by Con had beenlxefundej tdtbe" Trcure'iv ss Tar's tki " mhutiaz service of. th.i and received from certaui 'pejwskt! r-& Yll F'i
The Weekly Raleigh Register (Raleigh, N.C.)
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Jan. 16, 1824, edition 1
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