man feels himself a part. It is a happy illustration, too, of the importance of preserving to the State authorities all that vigor which the Constitution foresaw would be necessary, not only for their own safety, but for that of the whole. In making these acknowledgments of the merit of having set this illustrious example of exertion for the common safety, I pray that they may be considered as addressed to yourself & the Legislature particularly, & generally to every citizen who has availed himself of the opportunity given of proving his devotion to his country. Accept my salutations & assurances of great consideration & esteem.1

1 Later the President wrote to the Secretary at War.

"WASHINGTON, Oct 27, 07.

"DEAR SIR,-I have reflected on the case of the embodying of the militia in Ohio, and think the respect we owe to the State may overweigh the disapprobation so justly due to the conduct of their Governor pro tem. They certainly had great merit, and have acquired a very general favor thro' the Union, for the early & vigorous blows by which they crushed the insurrection of Burr. We have now again to appeal to their patriotism & public spirit in the same case; and should there be war, they are our bulwark in the most prominent point of assault from the Indians. Their good will & affection, therefore, should be conciliated by all justifiable means. If we suffer the question of paying the militia embodied to be thrown on their legislature, it will excite acrimonious debate in that body, & they will spread the same dissatisfaction among their constituents, and finally it will be forced back on us through Congress. Would it not, therefore, be better to say to Mr. Kirker, that the general government is fully aware that emergencies which appertain to them will sometimes arise so suddenly as not to give time for consulting them, before the State must get into action; that the expenses in such cases, incurred on reasonable grounds, will be met by the general government; and that in the present case, altho' it appears there was no real ground for embodying the militia, and that more certain measures for ascertaining the truth should have been taken before embodying them, yet an unwillingness to damp the public spirit of our countrymen, & the justice due to the individuals who came forward in defence of their country, & who could not know the grounds on which they were called, have determined us to consider the call as justifiable, & to defray the expenses. This is submitted to you for consideration. Affectionate salutations."

SPECIAL MESSAGE ON GUN-BOATS.1

February 10, 1807.

To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:In compliance with the request of the House of Representatives, expressed in their resolution of the 5th instant, I proceed to give such information as is possessed, of the effect of gun-boats in the protection and defense of harbors, of the numbers thought necessary, and of the proposed distribution of them among the ports and harbors of the United States.

Under the present circumstances, and governed by the intentions of the legislature, as manifested by their annual appropriations of money for the purposes of defence, it has been concluded to combine ist, land batteries, furnished with heavy cannon and mortars, and established on all the points around the place favorable for preventing vessels from lying before it; 2d, movable artillery which may be carried, as an occasion may require, to points unprovided with fixed batteries; 3d, floating batteries; and 4th, gun-boats, which may oppose an enemy at its entrance and co-operate with the batteries for his expulsion.

On this subject professional men were consulted as far as we In the preparation of this message, the President wrote to Dearborn and Smith:

"The H. of Representives ask what particular ports are proposed to be furnished with gunboats, & how many to each. I give you a list of the ports, but instead of saying how many to each, I will throw them into groups, as below, & say how many boats to each group. Will you be so good as to state how many you would think necessary for each of the ports below mentd to give them a reasonable measure of protection in time of war? Also to strike out & insert ports in the list as you think best.

had opportunity. General Wilkinson, and the late General Gates, gave their opinions in writing, in favor of the system, as will be seen by their letters now communicated. The higher officers of the navy gave the same opinions in separate conferences, as their presence at the seat of government offered occasions of consulting them, and no difference of judgment appeared on the subjects. Those of Commodore Barron and Captain Tingey, now here, are recently furnished in writing, and transmitted herewith. to the legislature.

The efficacy of gun-boats for the defence of harbors, and of other smooth and enclosed waters, may be estimated in part from that of galleys, formerly much used, but less powerful, more costly in their construction and maintenance, and requiring more men. But the gun-boat itself is believed to be in use with every modern maritime nation for the purpose of defence. In the Mediterranean, on which are several small powers, whose system like ours is peace and defence, few harbors are without this article of protection. Our own experience there of the effect of gun-boats for harbor service, is recent. Algiers is particularly known to have owed to a great provision of these vessels the safety of its city, since the epoch of their construction. Before that it had been repeatedly insulted and injured. The effect of gun-boats at present in the neighborhood of Gibraltar, is well known, and how much they were used both in the attack and defence of that place during a former war. The extensive resort to them by the two greatest naval powers in the world, on an enterprise of invasion not long since in prospect, shows their confidence in their efficacy for the purposes for which they are suited. By the northern powers of Europe, whose seas are particularly adapted to them, they are still more used. The remarkable action between the Russian flotilla of gun-boats and galleys, and a Turkish fleet of ships-of-the-line and frigates, in the Liman sea, 1788, will be readily recollected. The latter, commanded by their most celebrated admiral, were completely defeated, and several of their ships-of-the-line destroyed.'

'The following, evidently prepared for some newspaper was written by Jeff

erson:

"Mr. Elliot in his speech on the subject of gunboats, inserted in the National

From the opinions given as to the number of gun-boats necessary for some of the principal seaports, and from a view of all the towns and ports from Orleans to Maine inclusive, entitled to protection, in proportion to their situation and circumstances, it is concluded, that to give them a due measure of protection in time of war, about two hundred gun-boats will be requisite. AccordIntelligencer of Dec. 30, quotes from the President's message of Feb. 10, 1807 the following passage in the remarkable action between the Russian flotilla of gun-boats & gallies, and a Turkish fleet of ships of the line and frigates in the Liman sea in 1788, the latter, commanded by their most celebrated admiral, were completely defeated and several of their ships of the line destroyed' he adds that he has not only consulted the professed annals of the times, but has obtained some information from a writer who appears to have been personally acquainted with the scene of action' & then he gives such an account of the action as may suit the scope of his argument, but not naming either the professed annals' or 'the writer who seems to have been personally acquainted with the scene of action,' so as to enable his hearers to question his account, it stands on his own personal authority only. Mr. Elliot's situation probably had not given him an opportunity of consulting the new annual register of 1789, which is certainly among the professed annals of the times' and the most respectable of them. The following account of the two actions in the Liman of the 19th & 28th of June 1788, is copied verbally from that work, pa. 70 a fleet of an inferior sort &c-in which they had placed themselves.' § in the Leyden gazettes of Aug. 1, 22 & 28, 1788. the reader will find official and more detailed accounts of these two actions from these authorities. Taken together it appears that the Turkish force was 16 ships of the line 9 frigates and many smaller vessels. The Russian force 4 ships of the line, some frigates & galleys (under which denomination they include gunboats) making 27 in all, in the 1st action of June 19th the small vessels on both sides alone engaged, the Turks were defeated & having lost 4 of their number the residue retired under the protection of their ships of the line. That in the 2d action of the 28th. the Turkish admiral carried his large as well as small vessels into the Liman sea or lake. the Russians had in the meantime been reinforced by 22 gunboats carrying an 18 pounder each. The result was by the annual register 9 vessels ships of the line & frigates taken or destroyed & by the Leyden account 16. The remainder of the Turkish fleet, the large as well as small vessels, retreating under shelter of the walls of Ocrakow. It does not appear in either account that any part of the Russian force was ever engaged but the flotilla of small vessels which were almost entirely gallies & gun boats, and in the second and decisive action were arranged in two lines in the form of a cresent. The reader will now judge for himself whether the statement in the message of Feb. 10. is not a fair summary of these accounts and whether it be true as Mr. Elliot has said that it appears that no such battle as that described in the message of Feb. 10 ever happened."

ing to first ideas, the following would be their general distribution, liable to be varied on more mature examination, and as circumstances shall vary, that is to say:

To the Mississippi and its neighboring waters, forty gun-boats. To Savannah and Charleston, and the harbors on each side, from St. Mary's to Currituck, twenty-five.

To the Chesapeake and its waters, twenty.

To Delaware bay and river, fifteen.

To New York, the Sound, and waters as far as Cape Cod, fifty. To Boston and the harbors north of Cape Cod, fifty.

The flotilla assigned to these several stations, might each be under the care of a particular commandant, and the vessels composing them would, in ordinary, be distributed among the harbors within the station in proportion to their importance.

Of these boats a proper proportion would be of the larger size, such as those heretofore built, capable of navigating any seas, and of reinforcing occasionally the strength of even the most distant port when menaced with danger. The residue would be confined to their own or the neighboring harbors, would be smaller, less furnished for accommodation, and consequently less costly. Of the number supposed necessary, seventy-three are built or building, and the hundred and twenty-seven still to be provided, would cost from five to six hundred thousand dollars. Having regard to the convenience of the treasury, as well as to the resources of building, it has been thought that one half of these might be built in the present year, and the other half the next. With the legislature, however, it will rest to stop where we are, or at any further point, when they shall be of opinion that the number provided shall be sufficient for the object.

At times when Europe as well as the United States shall be at peace, it would not be proposed that more than six or eight of these vessels should be kept afloat. When Europe is in war, treble that number might be necessary to be distributed among those particular harbors which foreign vessels of war are in the habit of frequenting, for the purpose of preserving order therein.

But they would be manned, in ordinary, with only their complement for navigation, relying on the seamen and militia of the port if called into action on sudden emergency. It would be only