"Whether any, and, if any, what additional compen- to the Committee of the Whole to whom was Ordered, That the said memorial be referred sation ought to be allowed to the several officers ap- committed, on the eighteenth instant, the bill sent pointed under the act, entitled 'An act regulating the grants of land, and providing for the disposal of the from the Senate, entitled "An act relating to the lands of the United States south of the State of Ten-recording, registering, and enrolling of ships or nessee;' vessels in the district of Orleans."

The House resolved itself into a Committee of the Whole on the bill to authorize the courts of the United States to appoint commissioners to take depositions of witnesses out of court, to administer oaths to appraisers, and for other purposes. The bill was reported with an amendto be allowed for laying in of claims before the regis-ment; which was read twice, and agreed to by

Resolved, That a committee be appointed to inquire whether any, and, if any, what, alteration "Whether an act of Congress be necessary to le- ought to be made in the times of holding the disgalize the proceedings of the commissioners for the district court in the State of Rhode Island; and trict east of Pearl river, in consequence of their not that they report by bill, or otherwise. having met on or before the first day of December last, agreeably to the sixth section of the act abovementioned."

H. OF R.

Georgia Claims-Indiana Territory.

Mr. NEWTON, from the committee appointed on the seventeenth instant, presented a bill altering the days of session of the district court for the district of Virginia; which was read twice and committed to a Committee of the Whole on Monday next.

Mr. THOMAS, from the joint committee of the two Houses, made a report, specifying the business, in their opinion, necessary to be transacted the present session, and concluding with a resolution that it be closed the 12th of March.

Messrs. HUGER and VARNUM advocated an immediate agreement to the report; and Messrs. NICHOLSON, LEIB, SMILIE, FINDLEY, and S. L. MITCHILL Supported a postponement.

The motion to postpone its consideration to Friday was agreed to-yeas 56, nays 49.

Mr. SAMUEL L. MITCHILL, from the committee appointed, presented a bill to provide for lighthouses and buoys in the cases therein mentioned, and to establish the district of Saint Mary's for that of Nanjemoy; which was read twice and committed to a Committee of the Whole on Monday next.

GEORGIA CLAIMS.

Mr. J. RANDOLPH said, the House would recollect that he had, on a former day, offered a resolution barring any claims derived under any act of the State of Georgia passed in the year 1795, in relation to lands ceded to the United States. It was not his purpose in rising at this time to trespass on the patience of the House; nor did he know that he should in future offer any remarks additional to those he had already made. But he conceived it his duty to place the subject in such a point of light that every eye, however dim, might distinctly see its true merits. For this purpose he withdrew the resolution which he had before offered, and moved the following resolutions: Resolved, That the Legislature of the State of Georgia were, at no time, invested with the power of alienating the right of soil possessed by the good people of that State in and to the vacant territory of the same, but in a rightful manner, and for the public good:

That, when the governors of any people shall have betrayed the confidence reposed in them, and shall have exercised that authority with which they have been clothed for the general welfare, to promote their own private ends, under the basest motives, and to the public detriment, it is the inalienable right of a people, so circumstanced, to revoke the authority thus abused, to resume the rights thus attempted to be bartered, and to abrogate the act thus endeavoring to betray them: That it is in evidence to this House, that the act of the Legislature of Georgia, passed on the seventh of January, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five, cated territory of this State, for the payment of the late State troops, and for other purposes," was passed by persons under the influence of gross and palpable corruption, practised by the grantees of the lands attempted to be alienated by the aforesaid act, tending to enrich and aggrandize, to a degree almost incalculable, a few individuals, and ruinous to the public interest: That the good people of Georgia, impressed with general indignation at this act of atrocious perfidy and unparalleled corruption, with a promptitude of

entitled "An act for appropriating a part of the unlo

FEBRUARY, 1804.

decision highly honorable to their character, did, by the act of a subsequent Legislature, passed on the thirteenth of February, one thousand seven hundred and ninety ix, under circumstances of peculiar solemnity, and finally sanctioned by the people, who have subsequently ingrafted it on their constitution, declare the preceding act, and the grants made under it, in themselves null and void; that the said act should be expunged from the records of the State, and publicly burnt; which was accordingly done; provision at the same time being made for restoring the pretended purchase-money to the grantees, by whom, or by persons claiming under them, the greater part of the said purchase-money has been withdrawn from the treasury of Georgia:

That a subsequent Legislature of an individual State has an undoubted right to repeal any act of a preceding Legislature, provided such repeal be not forbidden by the constitution of such State, or of the United States:

That the aforesaid act of the State of Georgia, passed on the thirteenth of February, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-six, was forbidden neither by the constitution of that State, nor by that of the United States:

That the claims of persons derived under the aforesaid act of the seventh of January, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five, are recognised neither by any compact between the United States and the State of Georgia, nor by any act of the Federal Government: Therefore,

Resolved, That no part of the five millions of acres reserved for satisfying and quieting claims to the lands ceded by the State of Georgia to the United States, and appropriated by the act of Congress passed at their last session, shall be appropriated to quiet or compensate any claims derived under any act, or pretended act, of the State of Georgia, passed, or alleged to be passed, during the year one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five.

On considering the resolutions, the House divided-ayes 53. Carried.

Mr. J. RANDOLPH then moved their reference. to the Committee of the Whole on the bill providing for the settlement of sundry claims to public lands lying south of the State of Tennessee. Carried-yeas 50, nays 30.

INDIANA TERRITORY.

The House went into a Committee of the Whole on the report of a select committee on the bill from the Senate, to divide the Indiana Territory into two separate Governments. The report, for the reasons assigned, recommends a rejection of the bill.

The report was supported by Messrs. GREGG and LYON, principally on the ground that the population around Detroit was too small to justify the expenses attending a separate Territorial Government; and on the ground that if the advantages derived from a separate Government were conferred on them, they might, and would be claimed, with equal justice, by several detached settlements in the Mississippi and Louisiana Territories.

The report was opposed by Messrs. LUCAS, JACKSON, SLOAN, and MORROW, on a variety of grounds. They contended that equal justice was due to every member of the American community,

and that of course, however small the population, it was entitled to the same protection with a community composed of larger numbers; that the distance of this population from St. Vincennes was so great as to deprive them of the benefits resulting from the administration of justice; that Michilimackinac, which exported produce valued at above $200,000, and from whose imports the United States derived a revenue of $17,000 was more than eight hundred miles from the present seat of Government.

The question being put on agreeing to the report, it passed in the negative-yeas 34.

When the bill from the Senate was read, and so amended as to designate the new Territory by the name of Michigan, instead of Northwestern Territory; and the Committee rose and reported the bill, which was ordered by the House to a third reading to-morrow.

THURSDAY, February 21.

H. or R.

Mr. HOLLAND moved to postpone its further consideration until the first Monday in November next.

This motion was supported by Messrs. HOLLAND, SANDFORD, and S. L. MITCHILL, and opposed by Messrs. MORROW and SLOAN; and was disagreed to-yeas 56, nays 62, as follows:

YEAS-John Archer, David Bard, Phanuel Bishop, Adam Boyd, Robert Brown, Joseph Bryan, William Butler, William Chamberlin, Martin Chittenden, Clifton Claggett, Thomas Claiborne, Matthew Clay, John Clopton, Frederick Conrad, Jacob Crowninshield, Richard Cutts, John B. Earle, Ebenezer Elmer, William Findley, James Gillespie, Peterson Goodwyn, Edwin Gray, Andrew Gregg, Thomas Griffin, Samuel Hammond, Josiah Hasbrouck, Joseph Heister, William Helms, James Holland, Nehemiah Knight, Michael Leib, John B. C. Lucas, Matthew Lyon, William McCreery, David Meriwether, Samuel L. Mitchill, Nicholas R. Moore, James Mott, Anthony New, Gideon Olin, Beriah Palmer, Samuel D. Purviance, John Randolph, Thomas M. Randolph, Jacob Richards, Thomas Sandford, Ebenezer Seaver, John Smilie, Henry Southard, Richard Stanford, John Trigg, Philip Van Cortlandt, Daniel C. Verplanck, Richard Winn, Joseph Winston, and Thomas Wynns.

A message from the Senate informed the House that the Senate have passed the bill, entitled "An act supplementary to an act, entitled 'An act to incorporate the inhabitants of the city NAYS-Willis Alston, jun., Isaac Anderson, Simeon of Washington, in the District of Columbia," with Baldwin, George Michael Bedinger, Silas Betton, Wilseveral amendments; to which they desire the liam Blackledge, John Boyle, George W. Campbell, concurrence of this House. The Senate have Levi Casey, Joseph Clay, Manasseh Cutler, Samuel W. passed a bill, entitled "An act to ascertain the Dana, John Davenport, John Dawson, William Dickboundary of the lands reserved by the State of son, Thomas Dwight, Peter Early, James Elliot, John Virginia, northwest of the river Ohio, for the W. Eppes, William Eustis, John Fowler, Gaylord satisfaction of her officers and soldiers on Conti- Griswold, Roger Griswold, Wade Hampton, John A. nental establishment, and to limit the period for Hanna, Seth Hastings, William Hoge, David Holmes, locating the said lands;" also, a bill, entitled "An David Hough, Benjamin Huger, Samuel Hunt, John act to erect a light-house on the south end of St. G. Jackson, Walter Jones, William Kennedy, Henry Simon's Island, in the State of Georgia, and for W. Livingston, Andrew McCord, Nahum Mitchell, the placing a buoy or buoys on or near St. Simon's Thomas Moore, Jeremiah Morrow, Joseph H. Nicholson, Oliver Phelps, Thomas Plater, John Rea of Pennbar" to which bills, respectively, the Senate de-sylvania, John Rhea of Tennessee, Erastus Root, Cæsar A. Rodney, James Sloan, John Cotton Smith, Joseph Stanton, William Stedman, James Stephenson, John Stewart, Samuel Taggart, Samuel Tenney, Samuel Thatcher, David Thomas Philip R. Thompson, Killian K. Van Rensselaer, Joseph B. Varnum, Matthew Walton, Lemuel Williams, and Marmaduke Williams.

sire the concurrence of this House.

The bill sent from the Senate, entitled "An act to erect a light-house on the south end of St. Simon's island, in the State of Georgia, and for the placing a buoy or buoys on or near St. Simon's bar," was read twice and committed to the Committe of Commerce and Manufactures.

The bill sent from the Senate, entitled "An act to ascertain the boundary of the lands reserved by the State of Virginia, northwest of the river Ohio, for the satisfaction of her officers and soldiers on Continental establishment and to limit the period for locating the said lands," was read twice and committed to a Committee of the Whole on Friday next.

The House proceeded to consider the amendments proposed by the Senate to the bill, entitled "An act supplementary to an act, entitled 'An act to incorporate the inhabitants of the city of Washington, in the District of Columbia:" Whereupon, Ordered, That the said bill, together with the amendments, be committed to Mr. NICHOLSON, Mr. JOSEPH LEWIS jr., and Mr. ELLIOT.

INDIANA TERRITORY.

A bill to divide the Indiana Territory into two separate governments was read the third time.

The question was then taken on the passage of the bill, and passed in the negative-yeas 58, nays 59.

The bill is therefore lost.

The House went into Committee of the Whole on the bill making appropriations for the support of Government for the year 1804. Mr. LEIB moved to strike out the appropriation of $11,885 for fifteen per cent. compensation to clerks, additional to that allowed by the act to regulate and fix the compensation of clerks.

Mr. J. RANDOLPH opposed the motion; which was agreed to-yeas 42, nays 36.

The Committee, having filled the respective blanks, reported the bill. The House negatived the amendment of Mr. LEIB, respecting compensation to clerks-yeas 42, nays 46-and reinstated the appropriation struck out in committee. The bill was then ordered to be engrossed for a third reading to morrow.

On motion, the House adjourned.

District of Orleans.

Mr. STANTON, from the committee appointed, presented a bill, to alter the time of holding the district court in the State of Rhode Island; which Mr. NICHOLSON, from the select committee to was read twice and committed to the Committee whom were referred the amendments of the Senof the Whole to whom was committed, on the ate to the bill supplementary to the act to incor20th instant, the bill altering the days of ses-porate the inhabitants of the City of Washington, sion of the district court for the district of Virginia. reported a recommendation to agree to the same. An engrossed bill making appropriations for On agreeing to the first amendment, extending the support of Government for the year one thou- the duration of the incorporation to fifteen years, sand eight hundred and four, was read the third instead of five, the House divided-yeas 51, nays time and passed. 35; Messrs. SOUTHARD, NICHOLSON, and S. L. MITCHILL, having previously spoken in favor of agreeing to it.

FEBRUARY, 1804.

Naval Peace Establishment.

H. OF R.

CAMPBELL, J. CLAY, NICHOLSON, and VARNUM; itants, and would therefore feel themselves agwhen the question was put and the House nega-grieved in being denied the rights extended to tived, by yeas and nays, the amendment-yeas 31, the inhabitants; and that the situation of citizens nays 78, as follows: owning Spanish or French bottoms, previous to the cession, if inhibited from registering them, would be peculiarly hard, as great doubts were entertained whether those vessels did not, together with the ceded country, lose their national char

YEAS-Simeon Baldwin, Silas Betton, William Blackledge, Adam Boyd, William Chamberlin, Clifton Claggett, Frederick Conrad, Manasseh Cutler, Samuel W. Dana, John Davenport, Thomas Dwight, William Eustis, Gaylord Griswold, Roger Griswold, Seth Has-acter; and if that was the fact, (and it was betings, William Helms, Benjamin Huger, Samuel Hunt, Henry W. Livingston, Thomas Lowndes, James Mott, Thomas Plater, James Sloan, John Cotton Smith, William Stedman, John Stewart, Samuel Taggart,

Samuel Tenney, Killian K. Van Rensselaer, Peleg

Wadsworth, and Lemuel Williams.

lieved to be so,) such bottoms would be divested of all the advantages and immunities of American, Spanish, and French bottoms.

On motion of Mr. MOTT, the words "thirtieth

of April." were substituted in the room of "twentieth of December," his object being to place the citizens and inhabitants on the same footing. Adopted-yeas 45, nays 36; and the bill was ordered to a third reading to-morrow.

[This is the bill introduced at the instance of Mr. NICHOLSON, with a view to a more economical and beneficial arrangement in relation to the national ships laid up in ordinary.]

YEAS-Willis Alston, jr., Isaac Anderson, John Archer David Bard, George Michael Bedinger, John Boyle, Robert Brown, Joseph Bryan, William Butler, George W. Campbell, John Campbell, Levi Casey, Thomas Claiborne, Joseph Clay, Matthew Clay, John NAVAL PEACE ESTABLISHMENT. Clopton, Jacob Crowninshield, Richard Cutts, William Dickson, John B. Earle, Peter Early, James Elliot, The House went into Committee of the Whole Ebenezer Elmer, John W. Eppes, John Fowler, James on the bill supplementary to an act providing for Gillespie, Peterson Goodwyn, Edwin Gray, Andrew a Naval Peace Establishment. Gregg, Thomas Griffin, Samuel Hammond, John A. Hanna, Josiah Hasbrouck, Joseph Heister, William Hoge, David Holmes, Walter Jones, William Kennedy, Nehemiah Knight, Michael Leib, Joseph Lewis, jr, John B. C. Lucas, Matthew Lyon, Andrew McCord, William McCreery, David Meriwether, Samuel L. Mitchill, Nicholas R. Moore, Jeremiah Morrow, Thomas Moore, Anthony New, Thomas Newton, jr., Joseph H. Nicholson, Gideon Olin, Thomas M. Randolph, John Rea of Pennsylvania, John Rhea of Tennessee, Jacob Richards, Cæsar A. Rodney, Erastus Root, Thomas Sandford, Ebenezer Seaver, John Smilie, John Smith of Virginia, Henry Southard, Richard Stanford Joseph Stanton, David Thomas, Philip R. Thompson, Abram Trigg, John Trigg, Joseph B. Varnum, Daniel C. Verplanck, Matthew Walton, Marmaduke Williams, Richard Winn, Joseph Winston, and Thomas Wynns.

Mr. LEIB moved an additional section, virtually abolishing the office of Lieutenant Colonel Commandant of the Marine Corps, and authorizing the President to make such other reductions of the subordinate officers as he may think fit. The object of the bill being a reform of the expenses attending the Naval Establishment, the measure contemplated in the amendment was, in his opinion, a very proper one to be answered by it. The bill, he said, contemplated an annual saving, in the single article of provisions, of $7,000. By abolishing the office of Lieutenant Colonel Commandant, a saving of sixty thousand dollars in adBy the advocates of the amendment it was con- dition might be made. This officer made, it appeartended, that however proper it might be, accord-ed, all the contracts, and it would be seen by docuing to the stipulations of treaty, to extend the ments before the House, that while the price of right of registering their vessels to the inhabitants the ration in the War Department was fifteen of Louisiana, at the time of the cession, it was cents, that fixed by this officer was twenty centsneither just nor obligatory upon Congress to ex- the difference made the sum of $3,750 a year. It tend this right to citizens of the United States in would also be seen that exorbitant sums were exthe ceded territory, while the like right, under sim-pended in postage and fuel. In the single article ilar circumstances, was refused to citizens in the Atlantic States. This was unjust, as it would enable citizens of Louisiana to naturalize foreign bottoms which they might have purchased on speculation, and to trade with them, not only in the ports of Louisiana, but also in the ports of the United States-thereby affecting the rights of those who, under the existing navigation system, had obtained registers.

On the other hand, the opponents of the amendment declared their conviction that it became the Government to place the citizens of the United States on an equal footing with the inhabitants of Louisiana, and that the denial of rights to which they conceived themselves entitled, would sow much dissatisfaction among them. It was observed that the citizens who had gone to Louisiana must have had in view their becoming inhab

of postage, $150 had been expended within three months. The amendment was then agreed toyeas 62.

Mr. EUSTIS moved a new section, for the allowance to captains, holding themselves in readiness to enter the service, the same rations they are entitled by law to receive when in actual service. Disagreed to-yeas 37, nays 45.

The Committee rose, and the House agreed to the amendment of Mr. LEIB without a division.

Mr. JACKSON moved a new section, for the allowance to captains, required to hold themselves in readiness for service, of the same rations they are entitled to receive when in actual service.

Mr. NICHOLSON supported the amendment, to which the House agreed-yeas 44, nays 40; when the bill was ordered to a third reading to-morrow. On motion, the House adjourned.