Ordered, That the said amendments be engrossed, and the bill read a third time to-morrow.

Mr. Crowninshield, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, to which was committed the bill from the Senate, entitled "An act extending the term of pensions, granted to persons disabled, and to the widows and orphans of those who have been slain, or who have died in consequence of wounds or casualties received while in the line of their duty, on board the private armed ships of the United States, during the war," reported the same with amendments; which were read, and agreed to by the House.

Ordered. That the said amendments be engrossed, and the bill read a third time to-morrow.

Mr. Crowninshield, from the same committee, to which was referred a message from the President of the United States upon the subject, reported a bill to re-organize and fix the naval establishment of the United Sates; which was read the first and second time, and committed to the committee of the whole House on the state of the Union.

Ordered, That leave be given to withdraw the petition and documents of John King, of Philadelphia.

A message from the Senate, by Mr. Cutts, their Secretary:

Mr. Speaker: The Senate have received official information that the President of the United States did, on the 24th instant, approve and sign An act to change the terms of the District Court of the United States for the Kentucky District; and An act to authorize the employing of certain assistants in the General Land Office. The Senate have passed bills of the following titles, viz: 1st, An act for the relief of Charles Gwynn, of Baltimore; 2d. An act to authorize the settlement of the accounts of Benjamin Lincoln, and others; in which they ask the concurrence of this House. And then he withdrew.

The said bills were read the first and second time, and committed; the first to the Committee of Claims; the second to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Ordered, That the Committee on Revolutionary Pensions be discharged from the consideration of the petitions of Paul Dudley Sergeant and John Powel, and that leave be given to withdraw the

same.

An engrossed bill, entitled "An act for the relief of Barbara Paulas," was read the third time, and passed.

Ordered, That the title be as aforesaid, and that the Clerk do carry the said bill to the Senate, and ask their concurrence therein. A message from the Senate, by Mr. Cutts, their Secretary:

Mr. Speaker: The Senate have receded from their fourth amendment to the bill, entitled "An act making appropriations for the support of Government for the year 1824," and they have agreed to the amendment proposed by this House to their fifth amendment to the said bill. And then he withdrew.

And so the said bill was passed by the two Houses.

The House again resolved itself into a committee of the whole on

the state of the Union; and, after some time spent therein, Mr. Speaker resumed the chair, and Mr. Condict reported that the committee had, according to order, again had the state of the Union, in general, under consideration, particularly a bill to amend the several acts imposing duties on imports; and had come to no resolution thereon.

Three messages, in writing, were received from the President of the United States, by Mr. Everett, his Secretary; which were read, and are as follow:

FIRST.

To the House of Representatives of the United States:

I herewith transmit a report of the Secretary of War, together with a report from the Commissioner of the General Land Office, accompanied by the necessary documents, communicating the information heretofore requested by a resolution of the House, in relation to the Salt Springs, lead and copper mines, together with the probable value of each of them, and of the reservations attached to each: the extent to which they have been worked, the advantages and proximity of each to navigable waters, and the origin, nature, and extent, of any claim made to them by individuals, or companies; which reports contain all the information at present possessed on the subjects of the said resolution.

March 28, 1824.

JAMES MONROE.

Ordered, That the said message and accompanying documents do lie on the table.

SECOND.

To the House of Representatives of the United States:

In compliance with a resolution of the House of Representatives, of the 14th instant, requesting information whether an advance of compensation had been made to any of the Commissioners who had been appointed for the examination of titles and claims to land in Florida, and by what authority such advance, if any, had been made, I transmit a report of the Secretary of State, which contains the information desired.

March 30, 1824.

JAMES MONROE.

Ordered, That the said message and accompanying documents be laid on the table.

THIRD.

To the House of Representatives of the United States:

I transmit to Congress certain papers enumerated in a report from the Secretary of War, relating to the compact between the United States and the state of Georgia, entered into in the year 1802; whereby the latter ceded to the former a portion of the territory then within its limits, on the conditions therein specified. By the 4th article of that compact it was stipulated that the United States should, at their own expense, extinguish, for the use of Georgia, the

Indian title to all the lands within the state, as soon as it might be done peaceably, and on reasonable conditions. These papers shew the measures adopted by the Executive of the United States, in fulfilment of the several conditions of the compact, from its date to the present time, and particularly the negotiations and treaties with the Indian tribes, for the extinguishment of their title, with an estimate of the number of acres purchased, and sums paid for the lands thus acquired. They shew, also, the state in which this interesting concern now rests with the Cherokees, one of the tribes within the state, and the inability of the Executive to make any further movement with this tribe without the special sanction of Congress.

I have full confidence that my predecessors exerted their best endeavors to execute this compact in all its parts, of which, indeed, the sums paid, and lands acquired during their respective terms, in fulfilment of its several stipulations, are a full proof. I have, also, been animated, since I came into this office, with the same zeal, from an anxious desire to meet the wishes of the state, and in the hope that, by the establishment of those tribes beyond the Mississippi, their improvement in civilization, their security, and happiness, would be promoted. By the paper bearing date on the 30th of January last, which was communicated to the chiefs of the Cherokee nation, in this city, who came to protest against any further appropriations of money for holding treaties with them, the obligation imposed on the United States, by the compact with Georgia, to extinguish the Indian title to the right of soil within the state, and the incompatibility with our system, of their existence as a distinct community within any state, were pressed with the utmost earnestness.

It was proposed to them, at the same time, to procure and convey to them territory beyond the Mississippi, in exchange for that which they hold within the limits of Georgia, or to pay them. for it, its value in money. To this proposal, their answer, which bears date on the 11th of February following, gives an unqualified refusal. By this it is manifest, that, at the present time, and in their present temper, they can be removed only by force, to which, should it be deemed proper, the power of the Executive is incompetent.

I have no hesitation, however, to declare it as my opinion, that the Indian title was not affected, in the slightest circumstance, by the compact with Georgia, and that there is no obligation on the United States to remove the Indians by force. The express stipulation of the compact, that their title should be extinguished at the expense of the United States, when it may be done peaceably, and on reasonable conditions, is a full proof that it was the clear and distinct understanding of both parties to it, that the Indians had a right to the territory, in the disposal of which, they were to be regarded as free agents. An attempt to remove them by force, would, in my opinion, be unjust. In the future measures to be adopted in regard to the Indians within our limits, and in consequence within the limits of any state, the United States have duties to perform, and a character to sustain, to which they ought not to be indifferent. At an early period, their improvement in the arts of

civilized life was made an object with the Government, and that has since been persevered in. This policy was dictated by motives of humanity to the aborigines of the country, and under a firm conviction, that the right to adopt and pursue it was equally applicable to all the tribes within our limits.

My impression is equally strong, that it would promote, essentially, the security and happiness of the tribes within our limits, if they could be prevailed on to retire, west and north of our states and territories, on lands to be procured for them by the United States, in exchange for those on which they now reside. Surrounded as they are, and pressed as they will be, on every side, by the white population, it will be difficult, if not impossible, for them, with their kind of government, to sustain order among them. Their interior will be exposed to frequent disturbances, to remedy which, the interposition of the United States will be indispensable, and thus their government will gradually lose its authority, until it is annihilated. In this process, the moral character of the tribes will also be lost: since the change will be too rapid to admit their improvement in civilization, to enable them to institute and sustain a government, founded on our principles, if such a change were compatible either with the compact with Georgia, or with our general system; or to become members of a state, should any state be willing to adopt them in such numbers, regarding the good order, peace, and tranquillity of such state. But, all these evils may be avoided, if these tribes will consent to remove beyond the limits of our present states and territories. Lands equally good, and perhaps more fertile, may be procured for them in those quarters; the relations between the United States and such Indians would still be the same. Considerations of humanity and benevolence, which have now great weight, would operate in that event with an augmented force: since we should feel, sensibly, the obligation imposed on us by the accommodation which they thereby afforded us. Placed at easc, as the United States would then be, the improvement of those tribes in civilization, and in all the arts and usages of civilized life, would become the part of a general system, which might be adopted on great consideration, and in which every portion of our Union would then take an equal interest. These views have steadily been pursued by the Executive, and the moneys which have been placed at its disposal have been so applied, in the manner best calculated, according to its judgment, to produce this desirable result, as will appear by the documents which accompany the report of the Secretary of War.

I submit this subject to the consideration of Congress, under a high sense of its importance, and of the propriety of an carly decision on it. This compact gives a claim to the state. which ought to be executed, in all its conditions, with perfect good faith. In doing this, however, it is the duty of the United States to regard its strict import, and to make no sacrifice of their interest, not called for by the compact, nor contemplated by either of the parties, when it was entered into; nor to commit any breach of right, or of humanity, in re

gard to the Indians, repugnant to the judgment, and revolting to the feelings, of the whole American people. I submit this subject to your consideration, in full confidence that you will duly weigh the obligations of the compact with Georgia, its import, in all its parts, and the extent to which the United States are bound to go under it. I submit it with equal confidence, that you will also weigh the nature of the Indian title to territory within the limits of any state, with the stipulations in the several treaties with this tribe, respecting territory held by it, within the state of Georgia; and decide, whether any measure, on the part of Congress, is called for at the present time, and what such measure shall be, if any is deemed expedient. JAMES MONROE.

Washington, 30th March, 1824.

Ordered, That the said message and documents be referred to a select committee.

Mr. Forsyth, Mr. Cuthbert, Mr. McDuffie, Mr. Cobb, and Mr. Long, were appointed said committee.

And then the House adjourned.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 1824.

Ordered, That the Committee on Pensions and Revolutionary Claims be discharged from the further consideration of the petition of Robert Scott, and that it be referred to the Committee on Military Affairs.

Mr. Little, from the Committee on Revolutionary Claims, made an unfavorable report on the petition of Rachael Bell; which was laid on the table.

Mr. Kidder, from the Committee on Revolutionary Pensions, made an unfavorable report on the petition of John White; which was, also, laid on the table.

Mr. Wickliffe, from the committee to which was referred a message from the President of the United States, communicating a report of Engineers appointed to examine and survey the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, made a detailed report, accompanied by a bill appropriating money to assist the states of Kentucky and Ohio to open a canal around the falls of the river Ohio, at Louisville, in Kentucky, which was read the first and second time, and committed to the committee of the whole House to which is committed the bill to improve the navigation of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers.

Mr. Hamilton, from the Committee on Military Affairs. made a report on the petition of Jacob Slough; accompanied by a bill for his relief; which was read the first and second time, and committed to a committee of the whole House to-morrow.

The bill from the Senate, entitled "An act to amend an act, entitled An act for the establishment of a turnpike company in the county of Alexandria, in the District of Columbia," was read the third time, and passed with amendments.