economically supplied; that our small force has been actively employed and
has faithfully performed all the service required of it. The morale of the
Army has improved and the number of desertions has materially decreased
during the year.
The Secretary recommends--
1. That a pension be granted to the widow of the late Lieutenant Henry H.
Benner, Eighteenth Infantry, who lost his life by yellow fever while in
command of the steamer. J.M. Chambers, sent with supplies for the relief of
sufferers in the South from that disease.
2. The establishment of the annuity scheme for the benefit of the heirs of
deceased officers, as suggested by the Paymaster-General.
3. The adoption by Congress of a plan for the publication of the records of
the War of the Rebellion, now being prepared for that purpose.
4. The increase of the extra per diem of soldier teachers employed in post
schools, and liberal appropriations for the erection of buildings for
schools and libraries at the different posts.
5. The repeal or amendment of the act of June 18, 1878, forbidding the use
of the Army "as a posse comitatus, or otherwise, for the purpose of
executing the laws, except in such cases and under such circumstances as
such employment of said force may be expressly authorized by the
Constitution or by act of Congress."
6. The passage of a joint resolution of Congress legalizing the issues of
rations, tents, and medicines which were made for the relief of sufferers
from yellow fever.
7. That provision be made for the erection of a fireproof building for the
preservation of certain valuable records, now constantly exposed to
destruction by fire.
These recommendations are all commended to your favorable consideration.
The report of the Secretary of the Navy shows that the Navy has improved
during the last fiscal year. Work has been done on seventy-five vessels,
ten of which have been thoroughly repaired and made ready for sea. Two
others are in rapid progress toward completion. The total expenditures of
the year, including the amount appropriated for the deficiencies of the
previous year, were $17,468,392.65. The actual expenses chargeable to the
year, exclusive of these deficiencies, were $13,306,914.09, or $767,199.18
less than those of the previous year, and $4,928,677.74 less than the
expenses including the deficiencies. The estimates for the fiscal year
ending June 30, 1880, are $14,562,381.45, exceeding the appropriations of
the present year only $33,949.75, which excess is occasioned by the demands
of the Naval Academy and the Marine Corps, as explained in the Secretary's
report. The appropriations for the present fiscal year are $14,528,431.70,
which, in the opinion of the Secretary, will be ample for all the current
expenses of the Department during the year. The amount drawn from the
Treasury from July 1 to November 1, 1878, is $4,740,544.14, of which
$70,980.75 has been refunded, leaving as the expenditure for that period
$4,669,563.39, or $520,899.24 less than the corresponding period of the
last fiscal year.
The report of the Postmaster-General embraces a detailed statement of the
operations of the Post-Office Department. The expenditures of that
Department for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1878, were $34,165,084.49.
The receipts, including sales of stamps, money-order business, and official
stamps, were $29,277,516.95. The sum of $290,436.90, included in the
foregoing statement of expenditures, is chargeable to preceding years, so
that the actual expenditures for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1878, are
$33,874,647.59. The amount drawn from the Treasury on appropriations, in
addition to the revenues of the Department, was $5,307,652.82. The
expenditures for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, are estimated at
$36,571,900 and the receipts from all sources at $30,664,023.90, leaving a
deficiency to be appropriated out of the Treasury of $5,907,876.10. The
report calls attention to the fact that the compensation of postmasters and
of railroads for carrying the mail is regulated by law, and that the
failure of Congress to appropriate the amounts required for these purposes
does not relieve the Government of responsibility, but necessarily
increases the deficiency bills which Congress will be called upon to pass.
In providing for the postal service the following questions are presented:
Should Congress annually appropriate a sum for its expenses largely in
excess of its revenues, or should such rates of postage be established as
will make the Department self-sustaining? Should the postal service be
reduced by excluding from the mails matter which does not pay its way?
Should the number of post routes be diminished? Should other methods be
adopted which will increase the revenues or diminish the expenses of the
postal service?
The International Postal Congress which met at Paris May 1, 1878, and
continued in session until June 4 of the same year, was composed of
delegates from nearly all the civilized countries of the world. It adopted
a new convention (to take the place of the treaty concluded at Berne
October 9, 1874), which goes into effect on the 1st of April, 1879, between
the countries whose delegates have signed it. It was ratified and approved,
by and with the consent of the President, August 13, 1878. A synopsis of
this Universal Postal Convention will be found in the report of the
Postmaster-General, and the full text in the appendix thereto. In its
origin the Postal Union comprised twenty-three countries, having a
population of 350,000,000 people. On the 1st of April next it will comprise
forty-three countries and colonies, with a population of more than
650,000,000 people, and will soon, by the accession of the few remaining
countries and colonies which maintain organized postal services, constitute
in fact as well as in name, as its new title indicates, a universal union,
regulating, upon a uniform basis of cheap postage rates, the postal
intercourse between all civilized nations.
Some embarrassment has arisen out of the conflict between the customs laws
of this country and the provisions of the Postal Convention in regard to
the transmission of foreign books and newspapers to this country by mail.
It is hoped that Congress will be able to devise some means of reconciling
the difficulties which have thus been created, so as to do justice to all
parties involved.
The business of the Supreme Court and of the courts in many of the circuits
has increased to such an extent during the past year that additional
legislation is imperative to relieve and prevent the delay of justice and
possible oppression to suitors which is thus occasioned. The encumbered
condition of these dockets is presented anew in the report of the
Attorney-General, and the remedy suggested is earnestly urged for
Congressional action. The creation of additional circuit judges, as
proposed, would afford a complete remedy, and would involve an expense, at
the present rate of salaries of not more than $60,000 a year.
The annual reports of the Secretary of the Interior and of the Commissioner
of Indian Affairs present an elaborate account of the present condition of
the Indian tribes and of that branch of the public service which ministers
to their interests. While the conduct of the Indians generally has been
orderly and their relations with their neighbors friendly and peaceable,
two local disturbances have occurred, which were deplorable in their
character, but remained, happily, confined to a comparatively small number
of Indians. The discontent among the Bannocks, which led first to some acts
of violence on the part of some members of the tribe and finally to the
outbreak, appears to have been caused by an insufficiency of food on the
reservation, and this insufficiency to have been owing to the inadequacy of
the appropriations made by Congress to the wants of the Indians at a time
when the Indians were prevented from supplying the deficiency by hunting.
After an arduous pursuit by the troops of the United States, and several
engagements, the hostile Indians were reduced to subjection, and the larger
part of them surrendered themselves as prisoners. In this connection I
desire to call attention to the recommendation made by the Secretary of the
Interior, that a sufficient fund be placed at the disposal of the
Executive, to be used, with proper accountability, at discretion, in sudden
emergencies of the Indian service.
The other case of disturbance was that of a band of Northern Cheyennes, who
suddenly left their reservation in the Indian Territory and marched rapidly
through the States of Kansas and Nebraska in the direction of their old
hunting grounds, committing murders and other crimes on their way. From
documents accompanying the report of the Secretary of the Interior it
appears that this disorderly band was as fully supplied with the
necessaries of life as the 4,700 other Indians who remained quietly on the
reservation, and that the disturbance was caused by men of a restless and
mischievous disposition among the Indians themselves. Almost the whole of
this band have surrendered to the military authorities; and it is a
gratifying fact that when some of them had taken refuge in the camp of the
Red Cloud Sioux, with whom they had been in friendly relations, the Sioux
held them as prisoners and readily gave them up to the officers of the
United States, thus giving new proof of the loyal spirit which, alarming
rumors to the contrary notwithstanding, they have uniformly shown ever
since the wishes they expressed at the council of September, 1877, had been
complied with.
Both the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of War unite in the
recommendation that provision be made by Congress for the organization of a
corps of mounted "Indian auxiliaries," to be under the control of the Army
and to be used for the purpose of keeping the Indians on their reservations
and preventing or repressing disturbance on their part. I earnestly concur
in this recommendation. It is believed that the organization of such a body
of Indian cavalry, receiving a moderate pay from the Government, would
considerably weaken the restless element among the Indians by withdrawing
from it a number of young men and giving them congenial employment under
the Government, it being a matter of experience that Indians in our service
almost without exception are faithful in the performance of the duties
assigned to them. Such an organization would materially aid the Army in the
accomplishment of a task for which its numerical strength is sometimes
found insufficient.
But while the employment of force for the prevention or repression of
Indian troubles is of occasional necessity, and wise preparation should be
made to that end, greater reliance must be placed on humane and civilizing
agencies for the ultimate solution of what is called the Indian problem. It
may be very difficult and require much patient effort to curb the unruly
spirit of the savage Indian to the restraints of civilized life, but
experience shows that it is not impossible. Many of the tribes which are
now quiet and orderly and self-supporting were once as savage as any that
at present roam over the plains or in the mountains of the far West, and
were then considered inaccessible to civilizing influences. It may be
impossible to raise them fully up to the level of the white population of
the United States; but we should not forget that they are the aborigines of
the country, and called the soil their own on which our people have grown
rich, powerful, and happy. We owe it to them as a moral duty to help them
in attaining at least that degree of civilization which they may be able to
reach. It is not only our duty, it is also our interest to do so. Indians
who have become agriculturists or herdsmen, and feel an interest in
property, will thenceforth cease to be a warlike and disturbing element. It
is also a well-authenticated fact that Indians are apt to be peaceable and
quiet when their children are at school, and I am gratified to know, from
the expressions of Indians themselves and from many concurring reports,
that there is a steadily increasing desire, even among Indians belonging to
comparatively wild tribes, to have their children educated. I invite
attention to the reports of the Secretary of the Interior and the
Commissioner of Indian Affairs touching the experiment recently
inaugurated, in taking fifty Indian children, boys and girls, from
different tribes, to the Hampton Normal Agricultural Institute in Virginia,
where they are to receive an elementary English education and training in
agriculture and other useful works, to be returned to their tribes, after
the completed course, as interpreters, instructors, and examples. It is
reported that the officer charged with the selection of those children
might have had thousands of young Indians sent with him had it been
possible to make provision for them. I agree with the Secretary of the
Interior in saying that "the result of this interesting experiment, if
favorable, may be destined to become an important factor in the advancement
of civilization among the Indians."
The question whether a change in the control of the Indian service should
be made was at the last session of Congress referred to a committee for
inquiry and report. Without desiring to anticipate that report, I venture
to express the hope that in the decision of so important a question the
views expressed above may not be lost sight of, and that the decision,
whatever it may be, will arrest further agitation of this subject, such
agitation being apt to produce a disturbing effect upon the service, as
well as on the Indians themselves.
In the enrollment of the bill making appropriations for sundry civil
expenses, at the last session of Congress, that portion which provided for
the continuation of the Hot Springs Commission was omitted. As the
commission had completed the work of taking testimony on the many
conflicting claims, the suspension of their labors, before determining the
rights of claimants, threatened for a time to embarrass the interests, not
only of the Government, but also of a large number of the citizens of Hot
Springs, who were waiting for final action on their claims before beginning
contemplated improvements. In order to prevent serious difficulties, which
were apprehended, and at the solicitation of many leading citizens of Hot
Springs and others interested in the welfare of the town, the Secretary of
the Interior was authorized to request the late commissioners to take
charge of the records of their proceedings and to perform such work as
could properly be done by them under such circumstances to facilitate the
future adjudication of the claims at an early day and to preserve the
status of the claimants until their rights should be finally determined.
The late commissioners complied with that request, and report that the
testimony in all the cases has been written out, examined, briefed, and so
arranged as to facilitate an early settlement when authorized by law. It is
recommended that the requisite authority be given at as early a day in the
session as possible, and that a fair compensation be allowed the late
commissioners for the expense incurred and the labor performed by them
since the 25th of June last.
I invite the attention of Congress to the recommendations made by the
Secretary of the Interior with regard to the preservation of the timber on
the public lands of the United States. The protection of the public
property is one of the first duties of the Government. The Department of
the Interior should therefore be enabled by sufficient appropriations to
enforce the laws in that respect. But this matter appears still more
important as a question of public economy. The rapid destruction of our
forests is an evil fraught with the gravest consequences, especially in the
mountainous districts, where the rocky slopes, once denuded of their trees,
will remain so forever. There the injury, once done, can not be repaired. I
fully concur with the Secretary of the Interior in the opinion that for
this reason legislation touching the public timber in the mountainous
States and Territories of the West should be especially well considered,
and that existing laws in which the destruction of the forests is not
sufficiently guarded against should be speedily modified. A general law
concerning this important subject appears to me to be a matter of urgent
public necessity.
From the organization of the Government the importance of encouraging by
all possible means the increase of our agricultural productions has been
acknowledged and urged upon the attention of Congress and the people as the
surest and readiest means of increasing our substantial and enduring
prosperity.
The words of Washington are as applicable to-day as when, in his eighth
annual message, he said: It will not be doubted that, with reference either
to individual or national welfare, agriculture is of primary importance. In
proportion as nations advance in population and other circumstances of
maturity this truth becomes more apparent, and renders the cultivation of
the soil more and more an object of public patronage. Institutions for
promoting it grow up, supported by the public purse; and to what object can
it be dedicated with greater propriety? Among the means which have been
employed to this end none have been attended with greater success than the
establishment of boards (composed of proper characters) charged with
collecting and diffusing information, and enabled by premiums and small
pecuniary aids to encourage and assist a spirit of discovery and
improvement. This species of establishment contributes doubly to the
increase of improvement, by stimulating to enterprise and experiment, and
by drawing to a common center the results everywhere of individual skill
and observation and spreading them thence over the whole nation. Experience
accordingly hath shewn that they are very cheap instruments of immense
national benefits. The preponderance of the agricultural over any other
interest in the United States entitles it to all the consideration claimed
for it by Washington. About one-half of the population of the United States
is engaged in agriculture. The value of the agricultural products of the
United States for the year 1878 is estimated at $3,000,000,000. The exports
of agricultural products for the year 1877, as appears from the report of
the Bureau of Statistics, were $524,000,000. The great extent of our
country, with its diversity of soil and climate, enables us to produce
within our own borders and by our own labor not only the necessaries, but
most of the luxuries, that are consumed in civilized countries. Yet,
notwithstanding our advantages of soil, climate, and inter-communication,
it appears from the statistical statements in the report of the
Commissioner of Agriculture that we import annually from foreign lands many
millions of dollars worth of agricultural products which could be raised in
our own country.
Numerous questions arise in the practice of advanced agriculture which can
only be answered by experiments, often costly and sometimes fruitless,
which are beyond the means of private individuals and are a just and proper
charge on the whole nation for the benefit of the nation. It is good
policy, especially in times of depression and uncertainty in other business
pursuits, with a vast area of uncultivated, and hence unproductive,
territory, wisely opened to homestead settlement, to encourage by every
proper and legitimate means the occupation and tillage of the soil. The
efforts of the Department of Agriculture to stimulate old and introduce new
agricultural industries, to improve the quality and increase the quantity
of our products, to determine the value of old or establish the importance
of new methods of culture, are worthy of your careful and favorable
consideration, and assistance by such appropriations of money and
enlargement of facilities as may seem to be demanded by the present
favorable conditions for the growth and rapid development of this important
interest.
The abuse of animals in transit is widely attracting public attention. A
national convention of societies specially interested in the subject has
recently met at Baltimore, and the facts developed, both in regard to
cruelties to animals and the effect of such cruelties upon the public
health, would seem to demand the careful consideration of Congress and the
enactment of more efficient laws for the prevention of these abuses.
The report of the Commissioner of the Bureau of Education shows very
gratifying progress throughout the country in all the interests committed
to the care of this important office. The report is especially encouraging
with respect to the extension of the advantages of the common-school system
in sections of the country where the general enjoyment of the privilege of
free schools is not yet attained.
To education more than to any other agency we are to look as the resource
for the advancement of the people in the requisite knowledge and
appreciation of their rights and responsibilities as citizens, and I desire
to repeat the suggestion contained in my former message in behalf of the
enactment of appropriate measures by Congress for the purpose of
supplementing with national aid the local systems of education in the
several States.
Adequate accommodations for the great library, which is overgrowing the
capacity of the rooms now occupied at the Capitol, should be provided
without further delay. This invaluable collection of books, manuscripts,
and illustrative art has grown to such proportions, in connection with the
copyright system of the country, as to demand the prompt and careful
attention of Congress to save it from injury in its present crowded and
insufficient quarters. As this library is national in its character, and
must from the nature of the case increase even more rapidly in the future
than in the past, it can not be doubted that the people will sanction any
wise expenditure to preserve it and to enlarge its usefulness.
The appeal of the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution for the means to
organize, exhibit, and make available for the public benefit the articles
now stored away belonging to the National Museum I heartily recommend to
your favorable consideration.
The attention of Congress is again invited to the condition of the river
front of the city of Washington. It is a matter of vital importance to the
health of the residents of the national capital, both temporary and
permanent, that the lowlands in front of the city, now subject to tidal
overflow, should be reclaimed. In their present condition these flats
obstruct the drainage of the city and are a dangerous source of malarial
poison. The reclamation will improve the navigation of the river by
restricting, and consequently deepening, its channel, and is also of
importance when considered in connection with the extension of the public
ground and the enlargement of the park west and south of the Washington
Monument. The report of the board of survey, heretofore ordered by act of
Congress, on the improvement of the harbor of Washington and Georgetown, is
respectfully commended to consideration.
The report of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia presents a
detailed statement of the affairs of the District.
The relative expenditures by the United States and the District for local
purposes is contrasted, showing that the expenditures by the people of the
District greatly exceed those of the General Government. The exhibit is
made in connection with estimates for the requisite repair of the defective
pavements and sewers of the city, which is a work of immediate necessity;
and in the same connection a plan is presented for the permanent funding of
the outstanding securities of the District.