Alexandria Gazette & Daily Advertiser

Congressional Proceedings.
FROM THE NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.
Thursday, January 4.
IN THE SENATE.

Sundry petitions were this day presented, for relief to purchasers of public lands, for the encouragement of domestic manufactures, relieving private cases, &c. &c. amongst them,

Mr. King of New York, presented the petition of the National Institution for the promotion of industry, praying that a duty of 10 per cent. may be imposed on sales at auction of foreign goods, &c. A counter petition was presented by Mr. Sandford, from the Auctioneers of N. York. Both petitions were ordered to be printed.

The Senate took up the resolution offered yesterday by Mr. Noble, to instruct the committee on the Post Office to enquire into the expediency of establishing a distributing Post Office at Lawrenceburg, in Indiana.

Some little debate took place between Messrs. Noble, Ruggles, and Trimble, on the propriety of this resolution, it being objected that the Post Master General had power to establish such an office, if necessary, to which objections Mr. Noble replied, and gave his reasons for desiring the subject to be taken up here. The resolution was agreed to.

Two or three bills were read a second time in course.

The following resolution, submitted by Mr. Eaton yesterday, was taken up and agreed to:

Resolved, That the President of the U. States be requested to communicate to the Senate any information he may have, as to the power and authority which belonged to Don John Bonaventure Maralez, and to the Baron Caron de Bret, to grant and dispose of the lands of Spain, in Louisiana, previously to the year 1803.

The Senate spent some time on Executive business; and then Adjourned.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Mr. Smith of Maryland, from the committee of Ways and Means, to whom was referred an enquiry into the expediency of amending the law for compensating the bearers of the votes for President and Vice President to the seat of government, reported that it was expedient to increase the same; which report, after an unsuccessful attempt, on the motion of Mr. Brush, to lay it on the table, was agreed to.

On motion of Mr. Lowndes, it was

Resolved, That the secretary of the treasury be instructed soon to report to this house a statement of the money in the treasury on the first of January, 1821, together with a statement of the money in the hands of the treasurer as agent for the war and navy departments, on that day.

Resolved, That the secretary of the navy be instructed to report to this house the balance of each distinct appropriation for the navy, remaining in the treasury or in the hands of the treasurer, as agent for the navy department, on the 1st of January, 1821, with an estimate of the amount of each of those balances which will not be required to defray expences actually incurred before that day.

Resolved, That the committee of ways and means be instructed to enquire into the expediency of amending the laws which direct the manner in which money shall be drawn from the treasury for the expenditures of the war and navy departments, or ordered for the use of those departments.

The Speaker laid before the House the following letter from the Secretary of State:

The secretary of state, conformably to the direction of the house of representatives, expressed in their resolution of 30th November last, has the honor of submitting a copy of a report made to the president of the United States, on the 2d of May last, containing all the information in the possession of this department, relative to the annual amount of the fees of the clerks, district attorneys and marshals, of the respective courts of the United States, the amount of whose fees does not appear in the register of officers in the service of the United States. He submits, also, copies of a letter from the secretary of the treasury and of a report of the comptroller of the treasury, with a return of the statements required by the resolution of the house, with reference to the naval officers, collectors, and surveyors, of the customs

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS.
Department of state, Jan. 3, 1821.

The report was read, and, together with the documents, ordered to lie on the table.

MISSOURI.

Mr. Archer of Virginia, read from his seat the following resolution:

Resolved, That the committee on the judiciary be instructed to enquire whether there be at this time existing, and in force, in Missouri, any legal tribunals or tribunal, derived from the authority of the U. States, invested with competent jurisdiction and powers for the examination and determination of cases of controversy which have arisen, or may arise therein, under the constitution, laws, or treaties of the U. States, or controversies to which the United States are or may become a party; and if there be no such tribunals or tribunal, then to report to this house the provisions and measures which, in their opinion, may be necessary to be adopted by congress, for causing the authority of the government and laws of the U. States to be respected, and for assuring protection to the property and other rights of the U. States, and of their citizens, within Missouri.

Mr. A. made some observations in favor of the adoption of the resolution.

Mr. Sergeant suggested the propriety of laying it on the table.

Several other gentlemen made observations for and against laying it on the table. When the question was taken by ayes and nays, and decided in the affirmative 91 to 59.

The engrossed bill to extend the time for the location of Virginia Military Land Warrants, was read a third time, passed, and sent to the Senate for concurrence.

On motion of Mr. Cannon, the house proceeded to the consideration of the resolution, yesterday submitted by him, calling for certain information relative to the Military Academy.

The adoption of this resolution was opposed by Mr. Simkins, as calculated to give needless trouble to the public officers, as requiring information already heretofore given to Congress, & which, if it were received, would not be made use of, &c.

Mr. Cannon declared that he at least considered the information important, as preliminary to a motion which he intended to make, in some shape or other, during the present session, with respect to the Military Academy, &c.

Mr. Little was opposed to acting on the resolution; believing that the required information was already before Congress, or would come before them under resolutions already adopted at the present session, &c.

After some further conversation between Messrs. Cannon, Simkins, and Foote, the resolution was ordered to lie on the table.

The bill for the relief of Daniel Seward was taken up, on motion of Mr. Ross, and ordered to be engrossed for a third reading.

The house then again resolved itself into a committee of the whole, on the state of the Union, Mr. Nelson, of Virginia, in the chair, and the consideration of Mr. Cobb's resolutions for reducing the expenditures of the government was resumed.

Mr. Smith, of Maryland delivered a speech in reply to Mr. Cobb's speech of yesterday, generally in opposition to the resolutions.

Mr. Eustis followed, in reply to a part of Mr. Smith's remarks; and,

At 4 o'clock the committee rose; and The House adjourned.

Mr. Storrs is appointed of the Committee on the expenditures in the Department of State, in the room of Mr. Peck, who is absent, from indisposition.

Friday, January 5.

Mr. Barbour, from the committee of Naval Affairs, reported a bill to amend the act for the gradual increase of the Navy. [Repealing the first section; reducing the appropriation for that object of that law, from one million of dollars annually to five hundred thousand dollars, for six years.]

The bill was twice read and committed.

Mr. Williams of North Carolina, submitted for consideration the following resolutions:

Resolved, That the Secretary of War be directed to inform this house what amount of appropriation' will be necessary to complete existing contracts for the erection of fortifications.

Resolved. That the Secretary of the Navy be directed to inform this House what sums of money will be requisite to complete the existing contracts made in pursuance of the act for the gradual increase of the navy.

These resolutions, from their nature lie on the table one day of course.

The President's Secretary, Mr. Gouverneur, presented two Messages from the President; the one transmitting, (in pursuance of a resolution of the House of Representatives of the 4th ult.) information on the subject of the African slave trade--the other transmitting pursuant to a resolution of the House of Representatives of the 15th December last, a statement of expenditures & receipts in the Indian Department; also the nature and extent of contracts entered into, and with whom, from the 2d March 1817, to the present period.

The first of these Messages was referred to the committee which has that subject under consideration--and the other ordered to lie on the table.

The Speaker laid before the House a letter from the Secretary of State transmitting a list of the names of persons to whom patents have been issued for any useful invention during the year 1820; which was ordered to lie on the table, and

The House adjourned.