Winchester gazette. [volume], December 31, 1824, Image 1

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A FREE PRESS. THE PALLAHt-’M OF OUR LIBERTIES.
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WINCHESTER, VIRGINIA, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 31, tS24. No. G.
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T3S RECESS.
HYMN.
The following Hymn was sung at Salem, (Mass)
on Tuesday week, at the consecration of a
New Church in that place. This simple dc*
• votional piece is from the pen and from the
heart of the Rev. Mr. l’ierpont, of Boston, the
author of the Airs of Palestine.
0 Thou, to whom, in ancient time,
The lyres of Hebrew hards were strung,
Whom kings adored in song sublime,
And prophets praised with glowing tongue.
Not now, on Zion's height alone,
Thy favored worshipper may dwell;
Not where, at sultry noon, thy Son
Sat, weary, by the Patriarch’s well.
From every place below the skins,
The grateful song, the fervent prayer—
The incense of the heart—mnv rise
To I lea ven ; and liiui acceptance there.
In this, Thy House, whose dooiswe now
For social worship first unfold,
To thee the suppliant throng shall how,
While circling years on years ure rolled.
To Thee, shall Age, with snowy hair,
And Strength, and Beauty, bend the knee,
And Childhood lisp, with reverend air,
Its praises and its prayers to Thee.
Oil Thou, to whom, in ancient time, '
The lyre of prophet bards was strung,
To Thee, at Iasi, in every clime !
Shall temples rise and praise be sung.
1 MHJ ■ I •—_!_ ■
(Congress.
GRATITUDE TO LAl'AYETTE.
IN SENATE.
Tuesday, December 21.—The Senate,
according to the order of the day, took u|
the bill making provision for (Jen. La
fayette; and no amendment being propos
ed thereto, the question was about to be
put on ordering the bill to be read a third
lime—
Mr. Macon rose, and said it was w ith
painful reluctance that he felt himself
obliged to oppose bis voice to the passage
of this bill. He admitted to the lull ex
tent claimed for them the great and meri
torious services of-(Jen. Lafayette, and lie
did not object to the precise sum which
tills bill proposed to award to him ; but hr
was opposed upon principle to making
an appropriation, in any case or umlei
any circumstances Sic. Sic.
Mr. Brown of Ohio was opposed to the
details of the hill, lie should like to
know what evidence had induced the com
mittee to suppose that the amount propos
ed was the proper amountofeom pensation.
lie should liketokuowhow far the propos
ed appropriation was grounded on claims
for services or for expenditure Sic. Sic.
Mr. Ilayne, of S. Carolina, replied to
Messrs Macon and Brown. He entered
at some length into the* merits of the bill.
He conjured gentlemen who concurred in
the principle of the bill, to come prepared
to surrender their peculiar views in rela
tion to the details &c.
The bill was then ordered to be engros
sed for a third reading.
Mr. Smith, of Maryland, entirely ac
corded in the suggestion of the gentleman
from South Carolina, that what-ever w'as
done on this subject, if done, ought to be
done quickly, moved that the bill should
have its third reading this day.
The engrossed bill making provision for
Gen. Lafayette was accordingly read a
third time : and the question being stated
Mr. Noble,of Indiana, professing a due
sense of the merits and clai/ns of Gen.
Lafayette, said, that, nevertheless, to a bill
shaped as this was, he could not give his
sanction. If, for opposing it* the nation,
•or his constituents thought proper to cou
th run him, he was perfectly willing to a
bide their verdict. To shew that be was
so, he asked for the Yeas and Nays on the
question of the passage of this bill.
The A eas and Nays were ordered ac
cordingly, and were taken as follows :
YEAS.—Messrs. Barbour, Bouligny, Branch,
Chandler, Clayton, Dickerson, Eaton, Jackson,
Johnson, of Ky. Johnson, Louis. K-elly, King o*
Alab. King of N. Y. Knight, Lanmnn, Lloyd, of
Ain's. Lloyd, of Maryland, lid wards, Elliott,
Findlay, tiaillard, Wayne, Holmes, of Maine,
Ifolirtbs of Miss. Lowric, M’Lcan, Mills, Pal
mer, i’arrolt, Seymour, Smith, Talbot, Taylor,
^Alio-nas, Van Huron. Van Dyke, Williams.
NAYS.—Messrs Burton, Bell, Brown, Cobb,
Alncnn, Noble, Buggies.
So the bill was passed and sent to the
House of Representatives for concurrence.
fiOUSE OF KEI’BESENTATIVES.
Tuesday. Dec. 21.
Mr. Randolph moved that the orders of
the da)- be dispensed with, in order to
»ake up the bill concerning < tenoral Lafay
ette. Mr. IIeccher hoped the Mouse would
lint consent to do so—but the question not
admitting debate, it was put and carried
by a large majority.
The House accordingly went into cmn
rrutieoof the whole on that bill, Mr. Alaik
Icy in the chair; and the bill having been
read,
Mr. Campbell, of Ohio, rose, and said,
that it might appear uncourteous in any
gentleman to oppose the passage of a bill
having such an cfbjc.ct ns that now before
the committee ; yet, under present circnm
Wiances, brought in as that bill bad been,
t^bd'h-nly upon the Mouse, and called,as
gentler,ten were to act upon it, without die
opportunity of cmiMillation, or a moment's
reflection, be felt it to be his dutv to op
pose ils f.ntler pfogre >. This might.
e n *
perhaps, be considered as his reproach :
but he felt it to be his duty, and lie must
fearlessly discharge it. lie could have
wished that the gentleman who introduced
ihe bill had cultivated a little more of the
virtue patience. II<* did expect that, in
presenting such a bill to this House, the
merits and claims of the individual for
whose benefit it was intended would have
been stated, and the reasons which bad
induced the committee to lix upon this u
mount of compensation would have been
disclosed. lie was far from being insen
sible to the merits of that distinguished in
dividual ; and, if, upon a deliberate state
nent of all the facts of his case, he should
be convinced that his claims, even to such
i large amount of remuneration, were
founded in justice, he would go as far as
my member of the House iu allowing
hem, and in voting an appropriation.—
Whatever might be thought of his present
:onduct, Mr. declared that he was nei
:her insensible to the services of den. La
fayette, nor ungrateful for them ; but he
disapproved of tin* manner in which the
>iil had been attempted to be hurried thro’
he House; and, tho’ he might not sue
*.eed in preventing its passage, he should
r^rtninly, in this public manner,enter, for
me, his protest against it.
Mr. dazlay, of Ohio, snid, that he, too,
felt it to be bis duty to protest, in colnmon
ivitli bis colleague, against the passage oft he
bill, at least in its present form. He mo
red to postpone the further consideration
of it till Monday next.
i ne question D: ing taken on tue motion
to postpone, was lost—ayes 75, noes 9-1.
Mr. Sterling.of Connecticut,then moved
o amend the l ill by striking out the scc
mkI section, (which grants a section of
land.) but the motion was lost by a consi
derable majority, only f>8 members rising
in its favor.
Mr. V ance, of Ohio, then moved to re
duce the sum in the bill to $150,000: but
this motion was negatived by a still larger
majority ; when
Mr. (ia/.ley moved to reduce the amount
o $100,000, on which question he deman
ded the yeas & nays, which were ordered.
Mr. Tracy of New-York, moved to lay
the bill on the table, which was carried,
jyes 93, noes 84.
So the bill was laid upon the table.
Wednesday, Dec. 22.
On motion of Mr. Litle, of Maryland,
the House resumed the consideration o/'j
lie bill yesterday reported by a commit
ce of the House concerning Gen. La
fayette.”
Mr. Sloane, of Ohio, moved that the
bill he postponed until Monday next, and
that a committee be appointed to report
a statement of the facts and accounts on
which it is founded.”
Mr. Tucker, of Virginia, said he was
willing to postpone the bill, if any gen
tleman desired it for his accommodation,
but, for his part, he wanted no further in
formation on this subject: neither, lie
presumed, did any gentleman of this
House. He, therefore, moved to strike
out the part of .Mr. Sioane's motion which
proposed the appointment of a committee.
Mr. Sloane thought the nature and im
portance of the question now depending
called for such information as he asked to
obtain. Indeed, Mr. S. said lie had no
wish for a. postponement of the bill if he
was to get no additional information by it.
The question, whether one hundred thou
sand or two hundred thousand dollars, or
whether any thing should be voted to gen.
Lafayette, would depend upon the state
of the accounts between him and the L'ni
1 lie motion of Mr Tucker was negatived.
Mr. Cook, of Illinois, said that the se
nate, it appeared, had passed a bill on this
subject, from tire features of which it seem
ed that they entertained a different view
from that presented by the committee of
this House as to the mode of awarding
this money to Gen. Lafayette; and what
the Senate would do with this bill, if serif
to that body, he could not say. To t'ive
time to consider of the proper mode of
finally arranging this matter, Mr. C. pro
posed to recommit the bill to a committee
of the whole, so as to endeavor at least to
act in harmony and concert on it. This
was what was expected from Congress bv
tire People, and he hoped they would not
be disappointed. If the bill was re-com
mitted, it could be called up and acted nit
on with something like unanimity whenev
er tin: House was prepared to act defini
tively upon it.
The motion to re-commit the bill was
declared by tire Speaker not to be in order
whilst a motion for postponement was
pending.
Mr. Herrick, of Maine, after enquiring
whether sr.ch a motion would be in order,
moved to postpone tire bill indefinitely.
Mr. Livingston, of Lottsiana, rose, as
one of die members of the committee
who reported the bill, to speak to the me
rits of it. The delay in doing so which
had taken place on the part of the com
mittee. would not have occurred if it had
been thought necessary to offer to the
House any explanation on the subject.—
The roiiiiiiiltee, however, thought it would
have been only necessar r to echo the voice
which is heard from one end of the coun
try to the other. Tlier thought the im
portance and value of tie services of gen.
Lafayette had been so generally known,
that it was unnecessary u report the facts,
in regard to the servic*) of (Jen. Lafay
ette. on which they thught it expedient
to recommend the passive of the hill now
before the House. Thef hoped that the
proceedings of this Husc, when, by an
unanimous vote, at thelast session, they
acknowledged the valuebf those services,
would have made suc^ h report unneces
sary. Jiy that vote ( ingress subjected
the country to an e/pease nearly, i( not
quite, equal \>> tin* amount of the propo
sed appropriation, by agreeing lo send
out a ship/d the line to convey General
Lafayette to this country. The commit
tee did mv calculate, after having bpve so
and his dMimug to put the l'nite.1 '• ‘e*
to that clitrge, then would have h c: i,
bbjectio! In mmii-t . ,i g Cen. Layeae,
in some iegree, for ' ;s services and sacri
fices in ;ln cause of the l'nucd States.—
Y\ Ik a, nore recently, tin Speaker of the
House nad been directed by an equally
unaniimus vote, to present the ucknow
ledgiuetts not only of the nation, but oi
this House, of the important services ren
dered o the country by Gen. Lafayette,
the committee would not have supposed
themselves deficient in their duty if thc\
failed to report tacts or a statement of ac
j counts in regard to that distinguished
man. Speaking for myself, said Air. L. 1
considered the proposed appropriation not
as an affair of account—not as the pay
ment of a debt to Gm. Lafayette, but as
tiie «xpression cf a national sentiment,
| which would do honor not only to this
j House, but to this Peopk-as an act which
would, as far as it goes, serve to take away
from us the reproach that Republics art
ungrateful. 1 thought it would not be do
ing justice to our constituents, if we mad'
this award a matter of valuation—an af
i;ur ui Hollars anu cents: t thought adit
ferenf mode of treating it most respectful
to tin* House, most befitting the ilignit)
of tills government. Other gentlemen, it
appears, entertain different views : per
haps they an* more correct vii ws. I do
not stain here to set up my sentiments a
gaiust those who think, the matter ought to
have been treated in a different way. isome
think, and 1 have no doubt they very ho
nestly ami sinecii.-ly think, that they have
no power to express the national gratitude
in the manner proposed, or to vote away
public money in any case to which a claim
to it could not be substantiated on such
evidence as would establish it in a court
of justice. It was not for the want of such
evidence, that the committee did not re
port it. The evidence in their possession
was sucli as would, if duly weighed, sat
isfy the most scrupulous, of the justice <
[giving not only the amount proposed hi
the committee, hut even double that a
mount.
The services of general Lafayette du
ring the war of the revolution, Mr. L.
said, were known to, and must be ac
knowledg'd by, every one. He came to
this country at the commencement of tin*
revolution. He continued his personal
services until very shortly before the ter
mination of that war by ihe treaty of
peace. He ceased those personal exer
tions here only to render them in the same
cause where, at the time, they were more
useful. He was, indeed, very instrumen
tal in bringing about that peace so impor
tant to us. At that time, yet in prosperi
ty, he would have refused any compensa
tion for his services and sacrifices, had
they even been greater than they were.
When oppressed by adversity, after the
confiscation of the remainder of his prin
cely estates, lie accepted 'from the United
States, what he would never before re
ceive, the pay of a major general, the
I ranK which lie Held during the war. Uut,
besides that, he was entitled, upon every
principle of strict justice, to the half pay
of Major General for life. Owing to the
civil mission which had been already ic
ferred to, General Lafayette was not in
service at the close of the war, and had
not a legal title to this luflf-pay, but his
right to it, on every principle of equity,
could not be questioned. To the repre
sentatives of another distinguished odi
cer, General Hamilton,) similarly situat
ed, Congress granted the amount of half
pay which would have been due to him,
and that without commutation. The two
cases were nearly parallel. The officers
had generally the option, anti almost if
not quite ail availed themselves of it, of
receiving a commutation in lieu of half
pay. General Lafayette had not this op
tion, however, from the circumstance, al
ready mentioned, of his absence in Lu
rope at the conclusion of the treaty of
peace. What would be the amount of
half pay for the more than forty years
that have since elapsed, and the long life,
which, Mr. L. said, he trusted this vener
able iiian would still live to enjoy? Twen
ty added to the forty years already ex
pired, would not be deemed an extrava
gant estimate : these sixty years of half
pav, without calculating interest, would
alone amount to something like eighty
thousand dollars. Would any gentleman
in this Hall say, that General Lafayette
was not as well entitled to Ins half pay
as the family of General Hamilton wcte,
after his decease ?
Rut was this ail? No, said Mr. L., it
is not all. It is known as a public histo
rical fact, that Lafayette, when lie came
to this country, brought also important
and very necessary supplies to a large
amount—an iiuineuse amount, consider
ing that it was the offering of a single in
dividual. What was the cost ot those
supplies, is information which chance
alone has thrown in our w ay. Lverv one
knew that it was great; but a mere for
tuitous circumstance led a gentleman,
lately at 1 aris, to inquire into what had
been the pecuniury sacrifice of Lafayette
in the cause ol the United States during
the Revolution ; and he obtained a docu
ment which shows ptecisel) what money
Lafayette did expend in our cause, at that
time. (Mr. L. here made a statement
corresponding with that yasterdny made
in the Senate by Mr. ILwne, establish
ing that the expenditure of Lafayette, for
the use of the United States, during the
War of the Revolution, was 700,000
trancs, or 140,000 dollars, besides sums
modestly kept out ot the account, which
would have increased that sum.] Add
this amount to that w hich is justly due to
him lot half pay for life, said Mr. L., and
sa\ whether a fair, honest, and equitable
settlement of the account between him
and the United States, w ould not leave us
in debt, to him, interest included, more
than double the amount which the com
mittee had reported in his favor. Here,
then, sir, is an account ol dollars and
cents, since gentlemen desire it: here is
something to satisfy tlie most scrupulous.
When you offer to Gen. Lafayette these
two hundred thousand dollars,you do not
pay the debt—you do not pay what you
justly owe to him. I am very much afraid
sir, that, in going through this detail, 1
m.iy Muunu i in; ucmricy oi me gentleman
concerned; for I am persuaded that no
circumstances would have induced him to
bring forward, as a debt, what he gavr to
us. iialf of his princely estates lie free
ly spent in our service, without any other
recompense than the secret satisfaction of
aiding the cause of liberty, to which lie
liom his cradle had devoted himself.
Jvlr. T. said he would not press upon
the House arguments drawn from the feel
ing of the People of the United States on
this subject. Those feelings, said he, are
well kn^wn: and from wliat 1 know of
the temp of this House, and of the feel
ings of tli gentlemen who compose it.
there is not one of them who will not re
gret that any consideration of wliat lie be
lieves to be his duty will prevent him
from giving his assent to this bill, i yet
trust, however, that the vote on the bill
will be unanimous. I hope it will be
seen that the whole House is moved by
one consentaneous feeling, of obedience
to the wishes of our constituents—one de
sire of expressing the sentiment of nation
al gratitude which we owe to the nature
ot the government under which we act_
one wish to satisfy our own feelings. I do
not believe there is one gentleman in this
House who will not excessively regret,
that any notion ot his duty, or regard to
the disposition of the funds of the coun
try, would prevent his giving a vote for
this bill.
Gne circumstance there was, in relation
to General Lafayette, which, though it did
not come strictly into account, as forming
a demand upon this government, furnished
an argument which could not but strongly
appeal to this house in favor of that distin
guished individual. [Mr. L. here stated
the circumstance of the location of General
Lafayette’s land in the vicinity of New Or
leans, and his giving it up to the city, &c.
substantially as stated in the Senate yes
terday by Mr. IIayne. Mr. L. had the
advantage of personal knowledge of the
facts, and of having been the medium of
communication with General Lafayette on
that subject.J Genera! I.. declared, on
that occasion, he would enter into no liti
gation with any one in regard to a grant
which the United States had thought pro
per to make to him. II* withdrew the
location he had made on a most valuable
land, now worth 400,000 dollars, and
transferred it t<» land hardly worth a dol
lar an acre. Mr. Livingston said lie knew
an idea lquj hern held out, that the rem un
der of thrHand granted to the Genera! b\
Congress had been sold very well. What
had been obtained for it, he did not know;
but lie could say, for certainty, that, if any
body had given one dollar an acre for it,
they had made a bad bargain. That part
of it which he was acquainted with he
would not have for a gift. The lands
which the General yet held were of no
value, as the expense of raising the levee,
&c. on the bank of the river, would be
greater than the value of the land after it
should be so improved.
Knowing a good deal of tlie circumstan
ces connected with Gen. Lafayette, and
having born a member of the Committee
tvlio reported this bill he h.d :bought pro
per to state them, ami he hoped what he
had said would s.ive to remove whatever
doubts existed on the minds of gentlemen
on this subject.
'] he Speaker here corrected an error in
to which he had fall, n in supposing that a
motion for indefinite postponement took
preference ot a motion to postpone to a
day certain. The question being then sta
ted to be on INIr. Sloane’s motion to re
commit with instructions, & c.—
Mr. McPuflie, of South Carolina, ad
dressed the chair. He repeated the terms
of the motion, to rceotumit with instruc
tions to report a statement of facts and ac
counts, &c. because it more clearly indi
cated the genius of opposition to this bill,
and the principles on which that opposi
tion was based, than any illustration could
do. 'I he motion involved the principle
that Congress was about to render com
pensation to General 1 alayette under the
obligation of a bond. Put it upon that foot
ing, and Gen. Lafayette would tiisdaiu
your offer of payment. What were the
sort ices which lie rendered to this coun
try, ami what the motives upon whTcli they
were rendered ? Did he render those ser
vices, and make those disbursements, up
on any calculation of future retribution?
Did be enter into a computation of what
bene (its he was thereafter to derive from
them ? Not so, sir: they were the mag- <
nunimous sacrifices of a heart devoted ' j
liberty, reckless of consequences, succour
ing a people struggling.for liberty. A\ lien
we come to consider these services, ren
dered under such circumstances, shall wo
cuter, into a cold calculation as to what
was the actual amount of the sacrifices of
Gen. Tafayetie, and hold out to the world
that wo are rendering him this tardy tri
bute, not as the voluntary oftcring of the
heart, but as the obligation of a bond ? I
admit, sir, tire extent ot the services of this
individual—1 am perfectly satisfied, in
deed, that, upon a fair calculation, the in
terest alone ot the money which lie spent
than double the amount which this bill
pi eposes to appropriate for liis use. The
extent of his service! might well be a mo
tive in this grant : bu* refer this bill back
to a committee, to r.' . ,.e ;i minute calcula
tion ol the money ,/.e advanced for us,
would be an act of ugratitude and disre
spect to his higher » more elevated claims
upon the country. llo joti expect to el -
tab, vouchers, said IVlr. McD., for what
was a grant tu you, which the generous
donor never w ished nor intended to re
claim ?
llo did not intend to express any thing
disrespectful to t lie supporters of the pend
ing motion, but he must b* allowed to say
there was a degree ol indeiicaev in it which
would shock the sensibility of any honoia
ble mind, and particularly of hint whom
it was proposed local! upon to be an agent
in a case so nearly affecting himself. 1
very much doubt, whether, if he heard this
discussion, lie would receive j our dona
tion. 1 trust that we shall put this offer
of an expression ol our gratitude on such
grounds that lie will be induced to receive
it : that we sbail net render it as a debt
due to him, but as the gratification of our
owrn teelings, and of the feelings of this
nation. And, notwithstanding what has
occurred here, I trust he will accept the
(>ller, not as his right to receive, but as
ours to give, as a gratification to onus* Ives,
and as a small testimony of (be gratitude
of the nation. Mr. Mel), trusted that the
House would not attempt to investigate
what cannot be proved, and will not ; that
it would not descend to the investigation
ol tacts which are known to the whole
world, and are interwoven with the most
interesting and important parts of our own
history.
'1 lie question was then taken on the
motion of Mr. Sloanc, and decided in the
negative.
1 lie question was then taken on the mo
tion-of Mr. Ga/.ley, to-strike out 200,000
! dollars, the amount proposed to be paid to
Gen. Lafayette, and inserting 100,000, and
decided in the negative by a large majority.
! he question was then taken on order
ing the bill to be engrossed, and.decided fir
the affirmative by a large majority.
The bill was then read a third time, ac
cordingly, and the question thereupon de
cided, on request ol Mr. Beecher, by Yeas
and Nnvsc The following are the per
sons who voted in tiie negative:
Messrs. Beecher, Burk. Burleigh, Campbell,
ol Oltio, ( mils, <».izlny, (list, I'. Johnson, I.in*
coln. Livermore, McCoy,McLean,of Ohio Mtf
syn, Metcalfe, Patterson, of Ohio, Bo**,
Sloanc, Steiliin-, Thou pson, of Ken., Turkcr. in
S. C., \ nice, of Ohio, Vinton, Whittlesey, Wil
son, of Ohio, Wright—-26.
W hen the yeas and nays had been rail
ed and recorded, the Speaker rose, and
observing, that, having been precluded, by
the place lie held, from the expression of
his sentiments in relation to either lim prin
ciple or the form of the bill, be requested
of the House that lie might be permitted so
far to give expression to his feelinrrs, in
relation to both, ns to record his vote with
those of the members—and leave having
been promptly given, the Clerk called the
Speaker’s name, and his vote w as record
ed in the affirmative.