The globe. (Huntingdon, Pa.) 1856-1877, January 16, 1861, Image 6
=2 =MI The 1 iendly and peacrlol polity pulat,ed by the tioveinntent of li, United ;:taten towards the empire of ('hina has modueed the most :lit isfactory re , ulin. The treaty of Tienb.in of the 181 It of Jana 1 1i,"; , , been fail !d u ll y .1,- : , erved by the Chine,o :tut horities. The con vention attn. 11th OVelllbPr, 11.1 ti, ,upplemen lary to thin treaty, for the adinstmeut and !,attst action of the claims of our citizens on China, referred to iu my l•tni Annual Message, has been already carried into effeet, so far as this Was practicable. Under this convention the sum of 500,000 taek, equal to about •:z700.0110, was stipulated to he paid in satisfaction of the claims of Anteri eut mimic, out of the one-fifth of the receipts for tonnage import, and export duties on Amet an vessels at the pods of Canton, tihanghae, and Pnehau and it was “agreed that this amount shall be in full liquidation of all claims of American citizens at the various ports to !hi.: (late. - Debenture, for this amount to wit: :;11(1,00tnelstbr Canton, 100,000 for Shaughae, :111.1 11)0,1100 I.n• Foch:tit—were delivered ac cording to the terms of the convention by the r,spective (!binr , o collectors of the customs of Ih e.) - ) perk to the agent selected by our minis- ter to receive the saute. Since that time the claims of our citizens leave le en adjusted by the board of commisSioners ap pointed for that purpose under the act of March 3, and their awards, which proved satisfactory to the claimants, have been approved by oar min i,lcr la the aggregate they amount to the sum of 5126,1301 75. The claimants have already received a huge p.oportion of the sums awarded to them out of the fund provided, and it iscordidentlyespected that the remainder will ere long be entirely paid. liter the awards shall have been satisfied, there 'l, In remain a surplus at more than $2OO 000 at the disposition of Congress. As this will in equity be long to the Chinese government, would not justice requtro its appropriation to some benevolent object id which the Chinese may he specially interested? Our minister to China, in obedience to his in structions, lots remained perfectly neutral in the oar between Great Britain and France and the Chinese empire : although, in conjunction with the Russian minister, he wac ever ready and willing, had the opportunity ofiered, to employ his good offices in restoring peace hotween the parties. It is but an act of Eimple justice, both to our present minister and his predeeesbor, to state, that they have proved fully equal to the delicate, trying and responsible positions iu which they litre on differ ent occasions been placed. ME The ratifications of the treaty with Japan concluded at Vedo, on the ;null of July, 18:39, were exchanged at WaQhington on the 11'.2,1111ay la , t, and the treaty itcelt na, proclaimed on the stiecer ding day. Thine is good reason to expect that, under it: pi election ;Ind influence, our trade and intercourse with that distant and interesting people will rapidly increase. The ratifications of the treaty were ex changed with unusual solemnity. For this purpose the Tycoon had accredited three of his most distinguished subjects as envoys extraor dinary and ministers plenipotentiary, who were received and trested with touched distinction and kinduesss both by the Government and people of the United iiiitates. There is every reason to believe that (hey have returned to their native laud entirely satisfied with their visit, and inspired by the most friendly feelings for our country. Let us at tlently hop, in the language of the treaty itecif, that "there shall henceforth be perpetual peace and friendship between the t acted Matus of Anierien and his Majes'y the Tycoon of Japan an.l hi- i.ticces sors. MEE Kith the conservative and liberal gov ernment of the empire of llrazil our relations continue to be of the most amirable charac ter. = 'l`he exchang.o of the ratifications of the con vention with the republic of New tirauada, signed at Washington on the 10111 September, 1817, has been long delayed from accidental causes, for which neither patty is censurable. These ratifications were duly exchanged in this city no the :111 of - . yozejpd l e . 4.l Thm-Vr I)VT - 6. - : soy inaururation, as to require me, on the 1 7th April, 1857, to direct our minister to demand is passports and return to the United 'States. Under this convention the government of New Granada has specially acknowledged itself to be responsible to our citizens "for damages - which were caused by the riot at Panama on the 15th April,lBso. - These claims, together - with other claims of our citizens which had been long urged in vain, era referred f‘n• ad justment to a board of commissioners. I sub mit a copy of the dOnsTeritiOn to Congress, and recommend the legislation necessary to carry it into effect. =1 Persevering efforts have been made for the adjustment of the claims of American citizens against tho government of Costa Rica, and 1 am happy to inform you that these have finally prevailed. A convention was signed at the city of San Jose, on the Ca of July last; be ts mem the minister resil et 4 of the United Statesin Costa Rica and th iitenipotentiarics of that republic, referring. tiles ,claims to a Board of Commissioners, and pi oviding for the pay ment of their awards. This convention will be submitted immediately to the Senate for their constitutional action. The claims of our citizens upou the republic of Nicaragua have mu yet been provided for by treaty, although diligent efforts for this purpose have been made by our minister resi dent to that republic. These are still contin ued, with a fair prospect of success. MEM Our relations with Mexico remain in a most un satisfactory condition. In my last two araual messages I discussed extensively the subject of these relations, and do not now propose to repeat at length the facts and arguments then presented. They proved conclusively that our citizens residing in Mexico, and our merchants trading thereto, had suffered a series of wrongs and outrages such as we have never patiently borne from any other nation. For these our successive ministers, invoking the faith of treaties, had, in the name of their coun try, p rsistently detnanded redress and indemnifi cation, but without the slighte:t elleet. ludectl,so confident had the lifexican authentic, become of our patient endurance, that th..y universally be lieved they might commit lh e. , e outrages upon American citizens with absolute impunity. Thus wrote our minister is ldii6, and expressed the opinion that" nothinr, but a manifestation of the power of the Government, and of its purpose to punish these wrongs, will avail." Afterwards, in 1857, came the adopt ion of a new constitution for Mexico, the election of a President and Congress under its provisions, and the inauguration of the President. Within one, short month, however, this. President was expelled from the capital by a rebellion in the army, and the supreme ponce of the republic was assigned to General Zulu:tea. This usurper was in Isis turn i-..eou compelled to retire and give place to General Miramon. Under the constitution which had thus been adopted, Senor Juarez, is chief justice of the Supreme Court, became t he lawful President of the Republic; and it was for the maintenance of the constitution unit hi, authority derived from it that the civil war commenced, and continues to be prosecuted. Throughout the year 1853 the constitutional party grew stronger and stronger. lit the pre. 'PIOUS history of Mexico a successful military revolution at the capital had almost universally been the signal for submission throughout the republic. Not so on the present occasion. A majority of the citizens persistently sustained she constitutional government. When this was recognized in April, 1859, by the Government of the United States, its authority extended over a large majority of the Mexican States and people, including Vera Cruz and nll the other important sea ports of the republic. From that period our commerce with Mexico began to revive, and the constitutional government has afforded it all the protection in their power. Meanwhile, the government of Mira:non at.II hell sway at the capital ana over 'the surrounding country, and continued its outrages against the few American citizens who still had the courage to remain within its power .1a cap the climes : After the battle of Tdenhay,i, iu a l ,”1, 1 sis, con, nnh•rrd Huron cititen.. of tho United Slat's, two of them physicians, to he salted in the hospital at that place taken tut and shot, without 'crime and without trial. This was done, notwithstanding our unlortnoa e ..inutrytneu were at the momout engaged in the holy e •use of atfordinw retie•! to the mu them of oth patties who had been a ounded in the battle, with. out .. 11.; nun distinction botwesu them. Tine t nue bed arrived, in my op nice., lilies this floe - etnment nab bound to exert its power to avenge and re di ern The wrong> ol our Valero. And to afford them pro tection in Mesi Tim interposing obstacle Was that the port on of the country under the sway of Minium could not to learbed without penning over territory un der the jurintlietion of the ronstitutional ge comment Under these circumstances, I deemed it any duty to re commend to Congress. in any last annual rummage. the employment of a sufficient military force to penetrate into the interior, whore the government of fireman was to be found, with, or, if need be, without the consent of the .loan Z government, though it nos not doubted that this consent could be obtained. Never have I hada clearer con s lotion on any subject than of the justice as writ an wis dom ofesuch a, polecy. No other alternative Was left, ex cept the entirs abandonment of our fellow-eiliZers who had gone to Men to, under the faith of trestles, to the systematic km:dice ' cruelty and opprn salon of kliramon's government Ileeldest it in almost certain that tine sin pie authority to employ flea force would of Itself have to complished all oar objects without striking a tangle blow. The constitutional government would then ere thin have been established at the city of Mexico, and would have been ready and nettling, to the extent of An ability, to do us justice. .tu addition—and I deem this a most impel tent con sid eration—Europeau governments oriel,' have been de prinicel of all pretext to interfere in the territorial and domestic concerns in Mexico. Wo should thus have been relieved from the obligation of restating, even by forte, should this become necessary, any attempt by these gov ernments to deprive our neghboring republic of portions of her territory; a duty from which we could not shrink a intent abandoning the In aditional and established policy of the American people. f ain happy to observe, that, firmly relying upon the justice nod good faith of throe governments, there is no present danger that sorb a contingency a ill happen. Raving discovered that me recommendation would not be sustained by Congress, the next alternative lons to accomplish, in some degree. if possible, thennemeohmets by treaty ktipulations with the constitutional govern ment Such treaties wore accordingly concluded by nor late able and excellent minister to Mexico, and on the 4th of January last were submitted to the Senate for ratifica tine,' As these have not yet received the final action at that body, it would be improper for me to present a de tailed statement of their provisions, Still I may be per mitted to express the opinion in advance that they are calculated to promote the agricultural. the tuannfactu• ring and commercial interests of the country, and to se cure our just influence with an adjoining republic as to whose fortunes and fate we can never feel indifferent: whilst at the same time they provide for the payment of a considerable amount townots the satisfaction of the claim, of our injured teller-eititans. = At tile period of my inauguration I nos confronted in Kansas by a revolutionary government, existing tinder what is called the Topeka constitution. its avowed ob ject wan to subdue the territorial government by force, and to inaugurate what seen called the Topeka govern ment in its Stead. To accomplish this object an extensive milktary organisation was formed, and its command en trusted to the most violent revolutionary leaders. Under these circumstances it became toy imperative duty to exert the whole constitutional power of the Executive to prevent the Moues of civil war front again raging In Kansan, which. in the excited state of the public oiled both north and south, might hasp extended into the neigh boring States. The hostile parties in Kansas lied been inflamed against each other by emissaries both from the north and the south, two. degree of malignity without parallel lu our history. To prevent actual collision, and to assist the civil magistrates in enforcing the laws, a strong al: tachment of the army woe ststioned in the Territory ready to old the marshal and hi, deputies. when lan fully called upon, as a posse comitatus in the execution of cis and criminal process. Still, the troubles in Kansas could not have been per inauently settled without an election by the people. The ballot box is the surest arbiter of disputes among fa cc inen. Tinder thin conviction, every ploper ellort tins ein ployed to induce the hostile parties to vote at the election CI delegates to frame astute constitution. and nftet winds at the election to decide wbetherKansas shouldbe n slave or a tree State. The insurgent party telused to vote at either, lest this might he considered n recognition on their part of tho territro ial goberninent established by Congress. A better spirit, however, seemed soon after to prevail. nail the two parties met face to face at the third election. held en the first Monday of ;January, ISSiS, for members et the lege.lature and State officers under the hecompton constitution The result scan the to itimph of the anti-slavery party at the polls This decision of the ballot box proved clearly that thin party were in the majority. and removed the danger id civil nor. From that time we love heard little or nothing of the Topeka gm, eminent; and all serious danger of revolu tionary trouble-, iu Kansas a a, then at an old. The Lecompton COD atitution which had been thus recognized at this State election by .the votes of both political parties in Kansas, was transmit's - A to me with the requmt that I should preeent it to Cotw•ess. This I could not have refused to do without violating my clearest and strongest con victions of duty. The constitution, and all the pro ceedings which preceded and followed its forma tion, wore fair and regular on their face. I then beleived, and experience has proved, that the Ili- . . . . . , coon, especia y as the majority, within a brief period, could have amended the constitution ac cording to their will and pleasure. if fraud ex isted in all or any of these proceedinne, it was not for the President, but for Congress, to investigate and determine the question of rand, and whlit ought to be its. consequences. If, 'at the two first elections, the majority refused to vote, it cannot be pretended that this refusal to exercise the elective franchise could invalidate an election tairly held under lawful authority, even if they hail not sub sequently- voted at the third election. It is true that the whole constitution had not been submitted to the people, as I always desired; but the prece dents are numerous of the admission of States into the Union without such submission. It would not comport with nu: present purpose to review the proceedings of Congress upon the Lecompton constitution. It is sufficient to observe that their final notion has removed the last vestige of serious revolutionary troubles. The desperate band recently assembled, under a notorious outlaw, in the southern portion of the Territory, to resist the execution of the laws and to plunder peaceable citizens, will, 1 doubt not, be speedily subdued and brought to justice. _ . fad I treated the Lecornpion constitution as a nullity and refused to transmit it to Congress, it is not difficult to imagine, whilst recalling the posi tion of the country at that moment, what would have beon the disastrous consequences, both in and out of tho Territory, from such a dereliction of duty on the part of the Executive. Peace has also been restored within the Territory of Utah, which at the commencement of my admin istration, was in a state of open rebellion. This was the more dangerous, as the people, animated by a fanatical spirit and entrenched within their distant mountain fastnesses, might have made a long and formidable resistance. Cost what it might, it was necessary to bring them into subjec tion to the Constitution and the laws. Sound pol icy, therefore, as well as humanity, required that this object should, if possible, be accomplished without the effusion of blood. This could only be effected by sending a military force into the Ter ritory sufficiently strong to convince the people that resistance would be hopeless, and at the same time to offer them a pardon for past offences on condition of immediate submission to the Government. This policy was pursued with eminent success: and the only cause for regret is the heavy expenditure required to search a large detachment of the army to that remote region and to furnish it subsistence. Utah is now comparatively peaceful and quiet, and the military force has been withdrawn, except that portion of it necessary to keep the Indians in check and to protect the emigrant tr,tins on their way to our Pacific possessions. MEM GI my first annual message I promised to employ Iv best exertions, in co-operation with Congress, to reduce the expenditures of the Government within the limits of n . sits. and judicious economy. An overflowing treasury hail produced habits of prodigality and extravagance which could onlybe'gradually corrected. The w ork re quired both time and patience I applied myself dili gently to tbii task front the beginning, and n as aided by the able and energetic efforts of the heads of the differ ent Executive Departments. The esult of our labors in this good cause did not appear in the sum total of our expenditures for the first two years, mainly in conse quence of the extraordinary , expenditure necessarily in curred in the Utah expedition, and the very large amount of the contingent expenses of Congress during this period. These greatly exceeded the pay and mile rge of the members. For the }ear coding 30th June, 1838, whilst the pay and mileage amounted to $1,490,214, the contingent expense , rose to :2,093,309 79, and for the year ending 30th June, 1859, whilst the pay and mileage amounted to $859,093 66, the contingent ex penses amounted to $1,431,563 78 I am happy, hem , er, to be able to inform you that during the last fiscal year ending on the 110th June, 1800, the total expendi tures of the Government in all its branches—legislative, executive and judicial—exclusive of the public debt, ere reduced to the aum of $55,402,465 46. This con clusively appears from the books of the Treehury. In the year soiling on the 30th June, 1858, the total expen ditures. exclusive of the public debt, amounted to $71.901,129 77, mod that for the year ending 30th June, 1959. to $66.346,226 13. Whilst the books of the Trea sury show an actual expenditure of $39,858,474 72 for the 'year ending on the 30th June, 1860, including $1,010,667 71 for the contingent expenses of Congress, there must he deducted from thin amount the east sit $4,296,009 26, with the interest upon it of 9150.000, ap propriated by the act of 15th February, 19110, for the purpose of supplying the deficiency in the revenues and deftaving the expenses of the Post Oilier Department for the year ending the thirtieth of June, one thousand eight hundred and tilty-nine.” This sum, therefore, putty chargeahlo to the year 1859, must be deducted front the sum of $59,843,474 72, in order to ascertain the expenditure for the year ending on the 10th June, 1800. which leaves a balance for the expenditures of that year of $55,402,463 40. The interest on the public debt in cluding Treasury notes fur the same ihical year ending on the 30th Juno, 10119, amounted to $3.177,314 62, which, adeb,l to the silo, I. Nom of ~ :55,502,41, : , 10, nn AL the aggregate of 155,79,780 lei. It ought Injustice to be oloerved that several of Ho estimates from the departments for the year endingaltb dune 1814 , was redueed by Congress below what 1101 and ;till is deemed eompati hie wi tin the pa hi iI . in ten est Alton ing a liberal margin of $2,500,000 for thin ceder. lion, and for other mussy, it may be sately asserted tlPit the SIMI of $11,000,000. or at the moat "62,000,000. ii amply sufficient to administer the Coverninient and to pa . , the interest on the pulilie debt, unless contingent events I,llould hi...after iendei extraordi rimy neees,iiry This result . ha , been attained in IL considerable de gree by the care cool eised by the appropriate departments in entering into public contracts. I have myself never interfered with the anon! of any such contract except in a single caw with the Colonization Society, deeming it advi-able to moot the whole responsibility in each caao on the pioper heed of the department, smith the general instruction that these contracts should always be given to the lowest and best bidder...lt has ever been my opinion that public contract: are not a legitimate sou ri e of patronage to be route, red upon personal or politic al favorites; but that in all .net, rases a public othvor is bound to net for the Gin ,rnment as a prudent individual would act for himself. =I . , . It is with gloat , atislaciion I communicate the tact, that, since the date of my last Annual Message. not a single slave has been Imported into the United states in violation of the lams prohibiting the An lean slave trele. This statement is founded upon a thorough e‘animati on and investigation of the subject. Indeed. the spirit it Ilia prevailed 0001 e time since among& portion or our follow-citizens in laver of this trade groins to have en tirely subsided. I also congratulate you upon the public sentiment which now exists, against the crime of setting on foot military expeditions within the limits of the 'United States. to proceed from thence and make war upon the people of tinoffending States. with whom we are a t pen. s. In this respect a happy change has brew effected Kin', the commencement 01 my Administration. It surely ought to be the prayer of every Christian and patriot, that such expeditions may never itgLin receive counte nance in our country or depart from our shores. trn'old be a t,ele‘s repetition to do more than rotor, with earnest commendation, to my former recommen dations in laver of the Pacific railroad—of the great of power to the President to employ the nasal force in the vicinity, for the protection of the lit es and property of our fellow-citicens forcing in transit over the different Cent) al American routes, against sudden and lawless outbreaks and depi edationa; and also to protect Ameri can merchant vessels, their crews and cargoes, against violent and unlawful seizure mid confiscation in, the ports of Mexico and the South American republics. . hen these may be in a disturbed and revolutionary condition. ft in my nettled cons fiction, that without such n power we do not afford that pit - dm:Pion to those engaged in the commeice of the country which they have a right to de mand. =1 T again leen:lmmo," to Congress the passage of a law in pursuance of the provisions of the Constitution, ap pointing a day cei tale. previous to the 4th March. in each year of an odd number, for the election of repro. bentatires throughout all the States. A /similar pi:ll,er has already been e‘erci,ed. with general approbation, in the appointment of the same day throughout the Union for holding the election of electors for President and Vice President of the United Platen. My attention •as einuestly directed to this subject front the fact that the 413th Congre,s terminated on the March, 1859, without making the nece.sary appropriation for the service of the Post Oilice Department. I was then forced to consider the best remedy for this omission, and au immediate call of the present Congt cos was the untural resort. Upon however, I ascertained that fifteen out of the thirty-three States composing the Confederacy wet e without representatives, and that. consequently, these fifteen States would be disfranchised by such a rail. These fit teen Stater will be in the same condition on the 4th March next. Ten of them cannot elect representatives, according to es Ming State lau , . until different periods, extending from the beginning of August next until the mouths of October and November. --• • • . In my last message I gavo naming that, iu a timo of sudden and alarming danger. the salvation of our initi tutione might depend upon the pon er of the Pi evident Immediately to ns,emble a lull Congres., to meet the emelgency. BUM It is now rytite evident that the financial necessities of the ti. - :verninent hill require a modification of the tariff during the present sesssion for the purpose of in creasing the revenue. In this aspect, I desire to reit crate the recommendation contain• I in my last two an nual messages, in Carer at imposing specific instead of ad saloem duties on all imported articles to ohich these can he properly applied. Prom long ehservat ion and es pc inure. I am coil% inced that specific duties are neees both to protect the revenue and to secure to stir manufacturing interests that amount of incidental en• rour•genteut n high num oid.thly results from a essence tariff As an abstract proposition it may be admitted that ad rdlorem duties would. In theory, ba the most just and equal. But if the experience of tide end ol all other com mercial nations Inns demonstrated that such duties cannot be assessed and Lalleeted without great trawls upon the ref emu!, then it is the part of w tallow to resort to specific duties. Indeed from the s cry oat.° of an ad valorem duty, this must be the result. Under it the inv. iteble consenuenee is, that Manias goods will he entered at less than their true value.. The t roman y gill, therelore. lose the duty on the difference between their real and fictitious value, and to this extent we are defrauded. The temptations which ads Aoreni duties present to a dishonest i m pot ter are in resistible. Ili, object is to pass his goods through the custom house at the very lowest valuation necessary to Moe them from conn , mtion. In ' • • • • -" e e. I ' AIR, r t leor '' ...ain't` audio nuttier for the custom house, and In other expedients to defraud the government. The honest importer produces his ins oiee to the collector. elating the tote it price at a bleb he purchased the arti cles abroad. Not so the dishonest importer and the agent of the foreign manufacturer. And here it may he ob i erred that a vary large proportion of the manmactures imported from abroad are consigned for ease to commis nion merchants, who are mere egoists employed by the manufacturers. In such canes no actual sale Las tiecn made to liv their value. 'I he loreian manufacturer, if he be dishonest, prelim es an invoice ot the goodsowit at their actual s elite, but at the very lowest rate necessary to escape detection. t n this intones the dishOnest im porter and the foreign manufacturer enjoy a decided advantage of er the honest mei chant. They are thus en abled to undersell the fair tsr ler, and drive him front the snorkel. In fact, the operation of thin system hits all cady drivels from the pursuits of honorable commerce ninny of that OMR of regular and conscientious merchants whose character throughout the world, is the pride of our country. The remedy for these evils is to be found in specific duties, so far as this maybe practicable. They dispense with any inquire at the customs-house into the actual cost or value of the article, and it pays the precise amount of duty previously hard bylaw. They present DO temptations to the appraisers of foreign goods elm receive but small salaries, and might, by undervalua tion in a few cases, render themselves independent Besides, hpeciiie duties best conform to the resmisi.. Con in the Constitution that " no preference shall be given by any regulation of commerce or revenue to the porta of one State over those of another." Under our ad valorous system such preferences are to some e'.tont inevitable, and complaints have often been auntie that the spirit of this precision has been violated by a lower apprassement of the same articles at one port than at another. An impression stn sagely enough prevails, to some ex tent, that specific donee are necessarily protective du ties. Nothing eon be more fallacious. Crest Britain glories in tree trade, and yet her whole eel eAle from imports is at the present moment collected tinder a sys tem of specific duties. It is a striking fact in this row 'motion that, in the commercial treaty of 23i1 January. 1800, bet, ern Prance and England, ono of the articles pros - ides that the ad valorem duties which it imposes shall be converted into specific duties within six months from its date. and these are to be ascertained by making an aver age of the pt ices for six months previous to that time. The reverse of the proposition would be nearer to the truth, because a much larger amount of revenue would he collected by merely converting the ad valorem duties of a tariff into equivalent specific duties. To this extent the revenue would be increased, and in the same proportion the specific duty might he diminished. Specific duties would secure to the American manu facturer the incidental protection to Which he is fairly entitled entire a revenue hill fr, and to this surely no poi son would object. The framers of the existing tariff have gone further, and in a liberal spirit have discrimi nated in favor of Int ge and metal branches of our 11101111. factures, unit by raising the rate of duty upon the iinjim - tation of similar articles from obi Oftli, but what is the same in effect, by admitting article, free of duty which enter into the composition of their fabrics. Under the present s' stem It has been el ten truly re marked that this incidental protection dee. eases alien the manufacturer needs if most, and increases , hen he needs it least, and constitutes a sliding scale which always operates against him. Tho revenues of the coun try are subject to similar fluctuation. Instead of up in °aching a. steady standard, as would he the case under a system of specific duties, they sink and rise with the sinking and icing prices of articles in foreign countries. It would not be difficult for Congress to arrange a tem of speeific duties widen - would afford additional sta bility- b both to our revenue and our manefactures, and without injury or injustice to any interest of the coun try. This alight ho accomplished by ascertaining the average value of any given article for a series of years at the place of exportation, and by simply converting the rate of nil valorem duty upon it which might be deemed necessary for revenue purposes, into the foam of a spe cific duty. Such an arrangement could not injure the consumer. If lie should pay a greater amount of duty one year, this would be counterbalanced by a lesser amount the next, and in the end the aggregate n gild be the same. I desire to call your immediate attention to the pres ent condition of the Treamary, so ably and clearly pre sented by the Secretary in his report to Congress; and to recommend, that measures be promptly adopted, to ena ble it to discharge its pressing obligations. The other recommendations of the report ace well worthy of your favorable consideration. I herewith transmit to Congress the reports of the Secretaries of War, of the Navy, of the Interior and of the Postmaster General. The recommendations and sug gestions which they contain are highly valuable and de setve sour careful attention. The ropmt of the Postmaster General details the al r miustances under which Cornelius Vanderbilt, on my re quest, agreed, in the month of July last, to carry the ocean mobs between our Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Rad lie not tints acted, this important intercornmanication must have been suspended, at least for a season. The Postmaster General had no power to make him any other compensation than the postage on the mail matter is hints he might carry. It wan karma, at the time, that these postinies would fall far short of an asequate commas, tion, as well an of the Me which the same service had previously cost the Government. Mr. Vanderbilt, in a commendable spirit, was willing to rely upon the justice of Congress to mahe up the deficiency; and I, tuerefore, recommend that an appeopnation may be granted for thin purpose. I shoutl do great injustice to the Attorney General, wore I to omit the mention of Ilia distinguished services In the measures adopted and prosecuted by him for the defense of the Government against numerous and un founded claims to land in tiliternia, purpurtiug to have II With by the 31i an-an Gorr] nment factious 10 the ..aty I,i CB B Bl.. Tile buceeMlnl oppo,ition to tunic i its hits .V2t to the Unitcd Mum, plop uv orth many nullion.s doll are, and to individuals lug title and, then, to at 10.1,a an equal amount. It has been represented to nie, from 1.(111:0, tc11,1 . 11 demo tell tole, that the sea. not porta), of hanque have been retie, ed utarly Le a -tale Ili sta. alma, 00 Recount al the almost total failure of their crop, chi let the harvests in every other portion M the el. try hare been abundant The prospect below them line the approaching, winter is well calculated to enlist the ...ynipx tides of every heart. The destitution appears to be 80 general that it cannot he relieved by private ~.ontribli flops, and they are in such indigent tireentatences as to he unable to purchase the necetHaries of Me fur them meth es. I refer the imbject to Congress. II any constitu tional measure for their relief can be dorm. I would recommend Its adoption. I cordially commend to your favorable regard the in terestx 01 the people of this District. They ore eminently euii tied to ycur c nsideration, egpaeially since. unlike the people or the States. they can appeal to no government except that of the Union. JAMES BUCHANAN W kSHINGTON CITY, December:,, MO. THE TOMB OF THE WASHINGTON Fri IL Y IN ENGLAND. LETTER FROM tIRMII.1:13 tiumNix, spARKs. • [Fromm the Beside Advertiser, November 2t.] We take pleasure in printing the following interesting letter from Mr. Sumner to Mr. Sparks, describing the "memorial stones" of the Washington family, received from the Earl of Spencer. The letter describes the parish church of Brington, near Althorp, (the home of the Spencors,) and the magnificent park at Al thorp : and exhibits the associations between the Spencer family and Washington: BOSTON', '2'..!d November, 1800. My MIAR SIR: Since our last conversation the Earl Spencer has kindly sent to me precise copies of the two "Memorial Stones" of the English family of George Washington, which I have already described to you as harmonizing exactly with the pedigree which has the sanc tion of your authority. These are of the same stone and of the same size with the originals— and have the original inscriptions, being in all respects far ,Uniirs. They will, therefore, give you an exact idea of these most interesting memorials in the parish church of hirington, near Althorp, in Northamptonshire. The largest is of Lawrence Washington, the father of John Washington. who emigrated to America. It is a slab or bluish gray sandstone and measures five feet and nine inches long, and two feet and seven inches broad. here is the inscription : HERE LIETH THE CODS OF LAYRENCE WASHINGTON SOIGNE AND HETRE OF ROBERT WASHINGTON OP SOVLG ICAVI IN THE COUNTI 11 OF NOR'PHANI PTO?: ESQUIER WIIO MARRIED MARGARET THE ELDEST DAUGHTER OF WILLIAM BUTLER OF TEES IN TILE COUNTIE OF SUSSEXE ESQUIER, WHO HAD ISSU BY HER S SONS AND 9 DAUGHTERS WHICH LAYRENCE DECESSED THE 1% Or DECE3IBER A. UNL 1516 THOSE THAT BY CHANCE OR CIIOYC OF THIS HART SIGHT KNOW LIFE TO DEATH RESIGNES AS DAVE TO NIGHT, BUT AS TILE SUNNS RETURN!: REVIVES TILE DAY SO CHRIST SHALL VS THOUGH TURNDE TO DUST fi CL Above the inscription, carved in the stone, are the arms of the Washingtons with an ad ditional quartering of another family. The other is of Elizabeth Washington, daugh ter of Lawrence Washington, and sister of the emigrant. This is a slab of the same sandstone. and measures three feet and five inches long and two feet and sia inches broad. The inscription is on a small b r ass plate set into the stone and is as follows : HERE LIES INTERRED YE BODIES OF El/WAIL WASIILNU TON WIDDOWE WHO CHANGED THIS LIFE FOR IMMORTALITY YE HII OF MARCH 1142. AS ALSO YE BODY OP ROBERT WASHINGTON GENT. HER L ITE HUSIIA ND SECOND SONNE OF ROBERT WASHINUTON OP SOLORAVE IN YE COUNTY OP NORTH. ESQR. WHO DEPITED TILES LIFE YEIOTII OF MARCH lte2. AFTER THEY LIVED LOVINGLY TOGETHER MANY YEARS IN THIS PARISH. On a separate brass, beneath the inscription, are the arms or the Washingtons without any addition. These, as you are well aware, have sometimes suppose' to lave suggested our no tional Slag. In heraldic language there are bars of goles, and argent, with tilt ee mallets or stars. In the interesting chapter on the origin and genealogy of the Washington family, winch you give in the appendix to your Life of Washing ton, it, appears that Lawrence, the father of the emigrant, died 1;:th December, and was buried at Brington Lith December, MN. But the genealogical tables which you followed gave no indication of the locality of this church. llad it, appeared that it was the parish church of the Spencer family in Northamptonshire, the local ity, which 1 believe has not been heretofore known in our country, would have been pre cisely fixed. In point of fact, the slab which covers Law rence Washington is in the chancel of the church, by the side of the monuments of the Spencer family. These are all in admirable preserva tion, with full length effigies, busts or other sculptural work, and exhibit an interesting and connected series of sepulchral memorials front the reign of Henry VIII. to the present time. Among them is a monument by the early English sculptor, Nicholas Stone; another by Nollekins, front a design by Cipriani, and another by Flaxman, with exquisitely beautiful personifications of Faith and Charity. Beneath repose the successive representatives of this illustrious family which has added to its aris tocratic claims by services to the state, and also by thc unique and world-famous library collected by one of its members. In this com panionship will be found the last English an cestor of our Washington. The other slab, covering Elizabeth, the sister of the emigrant, is in ono of the aisles of the nave where it is scraped by the feet of all who pass. The parish of llrington is between seven and eight miles from the town of Northampton, not far from the centre of England. it is written in Domesday Book Brinintone" and also " &intone." It contains about 2,210 acres, of which about 1,400 acres belong to Earl Spencer, about :;:!G acres to the rector in right of the church, and about MO acres to other persons. The soil 13 in general a dark colored tote with a small trace of clay towards the north. Nearly four-titths of the n hole is pasture and feeding land. In the village still stands the house, said to have been occupied by the Washinn,lons when the emigrant brother left. them. You will see a vignette of it on the title-page of the recent English work, entitled The ]I ail Over the door is carved the words, , 6 The. Lord giv eth ; the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord;" while the parish register gives a pathetic commentary byshowing that, in the very year when this house was built a child had been born and another one Mid died in this family. The church, originally dedicated to the Vir gin, stands at the northeast angle of the village, and consists of nu embattled tower with five bells, a nave, north and south aisles, a chancel, a chapel and a modern porch. The tower is flanked by buttresses of two stages. The pre sent fabric goes back in its origin to the be ginning of the fourteenth century, nearly two hundred years before the discovery of America. The chancel and chapel, where repose the Spencers and Lawrence Washington, were re built by Sir John Spencer, the purchaser of the estate, at the beginning of the sixteenth century. They afford one of the latest speci mens of the Tudor style of architecture. The church is beautifully situated on the summit of the highest ground of Brington, audsurrounded by a stone wall flanked on the inside by trees. Dibdin says that a more complete picture of a country churchyard is rarely seen. A well trimmed walk encircles the whole of the inte rior, while the tine tiothic windows at the end of the chancel till the scene with pi9tnrescine beastly. The Register of the Parish, which is still preserved, commences in 1560. From this it appears that William Proct or was therector from leol to 16'27. covering the period of the last ot . the Washingions there. The following fur ther utiles occur relating to this family : lult. • Mr Learonce WRRltington wsv buried XV th 41,13 •a U. HI k Hins Amy Wanltinllon %tore 1.1111.11 Allgust 8 ' tli Itllblil t 111,511ingtoti am tomitrl Mai eh ye llth ' "Mr , Bli/altil Wa4liingt son ,1 , 10 , . MEin h I e .20111." Of one to the ministers in this church we have an jut crest ing glimp , e in Evelyn's Me moirs l felt 1., p. 012, I where he following entry will be mind under date of July, 1088: •• Dr. Jeffryes, the minister of Althorp, who was my lord's chaplain when ambassador in Prance, the shortest discourse I ever heard; but what was defective in the amplitude of his sermon, be had supplied in the largeness and convenience of hr par-onage-house. - At a short, distance—less than a mile—is Althorn, the seat of the Spencers, sarrounded by a park of five hundred acres ' one of whose gates opens near the church. There are oak trees bordering on the churchyard. which were growing at the time of the purchase of the estate in the reign of Henry VII. Evelyn was erten here a delighted visitor. On one occasion he speaks of " the house or rather palace at Althorp.'' (Vol. T., p. 612.) In another place lte desetibes it tie "placed in a pretty open bottom, very finely watered and flanked with stately woods and groves in a park." (Vol. 1., p. 451.1 Let ate add that there is an engraving of Althorp at this time, by the younger Voster man, a Dutch artist. There is one feature of the park which ex cited the admiration of Evelyn, and at klater day of Mrs. Jameson, who gives to it some beautiful pages in her Visits and Sketches at Home and Abroad. It is the record of the time when different plantations of trees were begun. While recommending this practice in his Suiva, Evelyn remarks: "the only instance I know of the like in our country is in the park at Al thorp.'' fhere are six of these commemora tive stones. The first records a wood planted by Sir John Spencer, its 1507 and 1568; the second, a wood planted by Sir John Spencer, son of the former, in 1589 ; the third, a wood planted by Robert. Lord Spencer, in 1602 and 1603 ; the fourth, a wood planted by Sir William Spencer, Knikht of the Bath, afterwards Lord Spencer, its 1624. The latter stone is orna mented with the arms of the Spencers, and on the back is inscribed "lip and be doing and God will prosper." It was in this scenery and amidst these associations that the Washingtons lived, When the emigrant left in 11357, these woods must have been well-grown: . It was not Inns afterwards that they arrested the attention of Evelyn. The Household BOoks at Althorp show that for many years the Washingtons were frequent guests there. The hospitality of this seat has been renowned. The queen of JamesJ. and the Prince Henry, on their way to London, in 1003, were welcomed there in an entertainment, memorable for a masque from the vigorous muse of Ben Jerson. (Ben Jonson's Works, Vol. VI., p. 485.) Charles I. was at Althorp, in 11147, when he received the first intelligence of the approach of those pursuers from whom he never escaped until his lire had been laid down upon the scaffold. In 1698 King William was there for a week, and according to Evelyn was "mightily entertained." (Vol. 11. p. 50.) At least one of the members or this family was famous for hospitality of a different character. Evelyn records that he used to dine with the Countess of Sunderland—the title then borne by the Spencers—" when she invited fire-raters, stone-eaters and opera singers, after the lash , ion of the day." (Vol. 1., pp. 458, 483, 579.) The family was early and constantly associa ted with literature. Spencer, the poet, be long(' to it and to one of its members he has dedicated his "Tears of the Muses." It was for Alice Spencer that Milton is said to have written his Arcades, and Sir John Harrington has celebrated her memory by an epigram.— The Sacharissa of Waller was the Lady Dorothy Sydney. wife of thp first Earl of Sunderland, the third Lord Spencer, who perished fighting I for King Charles I. at Newbury. Ido not of a later nay, as tn., object is simply to allude to those which existed ' in the time of the Washingtons. "The nobility of the Spencers has been il lustrated and enriched by the trophies of,Marl-• borough; but I exhort them to consider the Fairy Queen as the most precious jewel of their coronet." Thus wrote Gibbon in his memoirs, and all must feel the beauty of the passage.— Perhaps it is not too much to say that this nobility may claim another illustration from its ties of friendship andneighborhood with the family of Washington. I cannot doubt that, hereafter the parish chni-ch of Brington will be often visited by ourcouutrymen,whowillloek with reverence upon a spot, so closely associated with American history. 1 trust that this little sketch, suggested by what I saw at Althorp during a brief visit last autumn, will not seem irrelevant. Besides my own personal impressions, and the volumes quoted, I have relied upon Didbin's -Liles thorpirow, so interesting to all bibliographical students, and especially upon Baker's History of Northamptonshire, one of those magnificent local works which illustrate English history, to • which you refer in your Appendix, but which was not completed till some time after the Life of Washington appeared. Of course, the Memorial St ones, which I have received from Lord Spencer, are of much his toric value, and I think that J shall best carry out the generous idea of the giver by taking care 'that they are permanently placed where they can be seen by the public; perhaps at the State house, near rhantry's beautiful statue of Washington—if this should be agreeable to the Commonwealth. - .sled. our Pray pardon this long letter, and believe me, my dear sir, with much regard, Ever sincerely yours, CHARLES Si 3INER. Jana Sparks, Esii THIEF-TAKING IN LOXIMN. From Household Words Your wife discovers, on retiring for the night, that her drawers are void : her toilette table is bare ; except the ornaments bite now wear., her beauty is as unadorned as that. ail (bud:cress : not a thing is left ; all the fond tokens you gave, when her pre-nuptial lover, are gone; your own miniature, with its setting of gold and brilliants; her late mother's dia monds ; he bracelet "dear papa" presented her on her last birth-day; the top of every bottle in the dressing case brought from Paris by Uncle John, at the risk of his life, in February 1848, (being of gold,) are off—but the bottles (being of glass) remain. Every valuable is swept away with the most discriminating vil lainy; for no other thing in the chamber is touched; not a chair has been moved; the costly pendule on the chimney-piece still ticks ; the entire apartment is as neat and trim as when it had received the finishing touch of the housemaid's duster. The entire establishment runs frantically np stairs and down stairs, and finally congregates in my lady's chamber. No body knows anything whatever about it. The ,housemaid bursts into tears; the cook declares she is going into hysterics; and at last you suggest sending for the police, which is taken as a suspicion of an insult on the whole assem bled household, and they descend into the lower regions of the house in the sulks. 90 arrives. His face betrays sheepishness combined with mystery. lie turns his bull's eye into every corner of the passage, and upon every countenance on the premises. Me ex amines all the locks, bolts and bars, bestowing extra diligence on ;those which enclosed the stolen treasure. These he declares have been "Wiolated:' thus concisely intimating, without quoting Pope, that there has been more than one "Rape of the Lock." lie then notes the non-disturbance of other valuables: takes you solemnly aside, darkens his lantern, and asks, in a mysterious whisper, if you suspect any of your servants, which implies that he does. He then examines the upper bed-rooms, and, in the room of the female servants he discovers the least valuable of the rings and a cast-oil silver - - , tooth-pick, between the mattresses's; You have every confidence in your maids; but what can you think? You suggest their safe custody; but your wife intercedes, and the policeman would prefer speaking to his inspector before he locks anybody up. Ilad the Whole ruatter,rentainecl in the hands of X 40, it is possible that youeivhole troubles would have lasted till now.' 'A train of legal proceedings—actions for defamation of charac ter and suits for damages—would have followed. costing more than the value of the jewels, to gether with the entire execration of all your neighbors anti every private friend of your domestics. But, happily, the inspector promptly sends a plain, earnest-looking officer, who an nounces hinisetf as one of two detectives of the X division. lie settles the matter in ten min utes. Ills examination is ended in five. As a connoisseur can determine a painter ofa picture at the first glance, ore wine taster the precise vintage of a sherry by the merest sip, so the detective at once pounces upon the authors of the work of art under consideration, by the styles of performance, if not upon the precise executant, upon the "school" to which he be longs. having finished the toilette branch of the inquiry, he takesa short view of the parapet of your house, and makes an equally cursory itivestigatiou of the attic window fastenings. Ills mind is made up, and most likely he will address you in these words: " All right, sir. 'this is done by one of the ' Dancing School?"' "impossible!" exclaims, your plundered partner. "Why, our children go to Monsieur Pattitoes, of No. 81. and I assure you he ie highly respectable professor. As to his pupils. I The detective smiles, and interrupts, " Dan cers," he tells us, "is a name given to the sort of burglars by whom you have been robbed : and every branch of the thieving profession is divided into gangs which are termed "Schools." From No. 82-to the mot of the street the houses are unfinished. TheMbief made his way to the top df one of these, and then crawled to your garret—" "But we are twenty houses distant: why did he not favor one of my neighbors'!" you ask. "J ither uppermost stories are not so practi cable, or the ladies have not such valuable jewels." •But how did the thieves know that?" "By watching and inquiry. This affair may have been in preparation for. more than a month. Your house has been watched; your habits have been ascertained. They have found out when you dine—how longyou remain in the dining room. A day is selected; while you are busy dining, andyour servants waiting on you, the thing is done. Previously, many journeys have been made over the roofs, to find out the best means of entering your house. The attic is chosen; the robber gets in and creeps noiselessly, hr 'dances' into the place to be robbed." "Is there any chance of recovering our property?" you ask, noxiously, seeing the whole matter at a glance. " I hope so. I have sent some brother offi cers to watch the Fences' houses." "Fences ?" • "Fences," explains the defective, in reply to your innocent wife's inquiry, "are purcha sers of stolen goods. Your jewels will soon be forced out of their settings and the gold mel ted." A suppressed scream. " We shall see, if at an unusual hour of the night, there is any bustle in or near any of these places; it' any smoke is coming out of any ono of the furnaces, where the melting takes place, I shall go and seek out the precise garretteee—that's another noise the plunder ers give themselves—whom IMtspect. fly this trying to 'sell' your domestic by placing the ring and toothpick- in their bed, I think I know the man. The next morning you Will find all these suppositions verified:" The detective calls and' obliges' you; at breakfast, (after a sleepless night,) with a complete list of the - stolenlaticleiciiiid - prodtices some them for identification. In three months- more your wife gets nearly every article back, except some of the gold r, her damsel's, innocence is fully established; and the thief' is taken from his 'school' to spend a long holiday in a penal colony. Sometimes they are called upon to investigate robberies so executed, that no human ingenuity appears, to ordinary observers, capable of find ing the thief The robber has left no trail; net a trace. Every Clue seems cut off; but the experience of a detective guides hint into tracks invisible to ocher eyes. Not long since a trunk was rifled at a fashionable hotel. The theft was so managed, that no suspicion could rest on any one. The detective sergeant, Niko had been sent for, fairly owned, after making a minute examination, that he, could afford no hope of elucidating the mystery. As he was leaving the lied-room, however, in which:the portman teau' stood, he picked up an ordinary shirt button from the carpet. He silently compared it with those which the'thief had left behind in the trunk. It 'did not match them. He said nothing, but hung about the hotel for the rest of the day. Had he been . narrowly watched, lie would have been set, down for an eccentric critic of linen. He was looking out for a shirt front or a wrist-band without a button. Ills search was long and patient; but at length it was rein - Merl. One Of the inmates of the house showed a deficiency in his dress, which no one but a detective would 'have noticed.— He looked as narrowly as he dared at the pat tern of the remaining buttons.' It corresponded with that of the little tell-tale he had picked up. lie went deeper into the subject, got. a trace of some of the stolen property, • ascertained a connection between it and the suspected person. confronted him with the owner of the trunk, and finally succeeded in convieting'him of the theft. At another hotel robbery, the blade of elan, broken in the lock of a portmanteau, formed the clue. The detective 'employed in that case was for some time indefatigable in seeking out knives with broken blades. At length lie found one belonging to an under waiter, who proved to he the thief. AMEItletN MINISTM; IN P %nts,—A letter dated Paris, November 10, says:—The Ameri can Minister again threw open his hospitable doors a few evenings ago and brought together, in a very brilliant and very agreeable reunion, the American colony in Paris, with a light sprinkling of diplomacy and other foreign ale ! monts. Among the ladies present,noted either for their position or beauty, Or both, were, after the amiable and charming ladies of, the Minis ter's family, Mrs. Spencer, wife of the consul, and Miss Spencer; Mrs. Commodore Stuart; Mrs. Coleman, (daughter of Senator Critten. den,) and Miss Coleman; Mrs. Caldwell, (Miss Breckinridge, of Kentucky :) Mrs. and Miss King, of Alabama; Mrs. Dr. Hitchcock, of Cali fornia, (Miss Hunter, of Virginia,) and Miss Lillie Hitchcock; Mrs. Bass, of Mississippi; Mrs. and Miss Thorn, of Louisiana; Mrs. Ro bles, of Paris, (grand daughter .of John Cl. Coster, of New York* Mrs. Fagnani, wife of the artist; Miss A. C. Johnson,, the anthoress ; Mrs. Field, of New York; Mrs. Butterfield, New York; Mrs. Estelle Lewis, the poetess; Mrs. Hutton, Jr.; the Misses Downing, of Newyork, and others. ORR MINISTER TO PERIL—John B. Clay, ilfEtfo is on his way from Peru,.is a veteran diploma tist. lle went from Pennsylvania in 1830 witle John Randolph, as his Secretary of legation at st. Petersburg, where' be 'afterwards noted it the same capacity with Mr. Buchanan, who has ever since been his friend. In 1838, Mr. Clay was transferred to Vienna, 'where he waa secretary of legation until 1845; when be wad restored to his positihn at St. Petersburg by Mr. Buchanan, then Secretor.* of State. In 1841, Mr: Buchanan obtained from President Polk the appointment of ohaige d'affaires to Peril for Mr. Clay, and in 1863 he was made a minister plenipotentiary.