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A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875
Journals of the Continental Congress --THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 1781
A letter, of this day, from G. Measam, was read.1
[Note 1: 1 This letter is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 78, XVI, folio 139.]
A letter, of January 14, from Major General Greene, was read, with sundry papers enclosed:
Ordered, That it be referred to the Medical Committee.
The report of the Medical Committee, delivered the 15, was taken into consideration, and it was thereupon resolved as follows:
Whereas the late regulations for conducting the medical department and military hospitals passed the 30th day of September last, and amended by several subsequent acts of Congress, extends no farther southward than to include the State of Virginia; and whereas the present operations of the war to the southward, make it necessary that the hospital department, in that district, be rendered as uniform to that in the northern army as circumstances will permit, that no inconveniences may arise to the army in general from different and opposite systems, as its operations may eventually be interchangeable from one district to another in a short space of time; therefore,
Resolved, That there be one deputy director of the military hospitals,in the Southern district subject to the general control of the director who shall, in the absence of the director, have the general control and management of all the military hospitals that are or may be establishedto the award of Virginia under the orders of the commander of the southern army for the time being.
When the foregoing resolution was under debate, a motion was made by Mr. [John] Mathews, seconded by Mr. [Thomas] Bee, after the words "the director," to insert "for the southern army;" and on the question, shall those words be inserted?
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the yeas and nays being required by Mr. [Thomas] Bee,
{table}
So it passed in the negative.
Resolved, Thatwithin the for the army aforesaid,district there shall be one chief physician of the hospital, who shall also be a surgeon; one chief physician to the said army, who shall also be a surgeon; two hospital physicians, who shall also be surgeons; and four surgeon's mates for the hospitals; one deputy purveyor with an assistant, one deputy apothecary with an assistant; and to each hospital, a steward, matron, orderly men and nurses as is directed in the arrangement of thenorthern hospital, passed the 30 day of September aforesaid.
That the deputy director, deputy purveyor and deputy apothecary, have and exercise the same powers which are exercised by the director, purveyor and apothecary respectively, agreeably to the arrangement above-mentioned:
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That the pay of the deputy director be one hundred and forty dollars per month, that of the deputy purveyor and deputy apothecary, each one hundred and twenty dollars per month; and they shall severally be entitled to the same emoluments, and subject to the same regulations and restrictions as their respective principals are entitled or subjected to by the above-mentioned arrangement and the amendments thereto:
That all the other officers of the hospital and medical staff for the southerndistrict army, exercise the same powers, perform the same duties, receive the same pay and emoluments, and be subject to the regulations and restrictions laid down in the aforesaid arrangement for officers of like description:
Provided nevertheless, that the powers therein directed to be exercised by the director, and any two chief physicians and surgeons of the hospital, shall, in the absence of the deputy director, be vested in and exercised by the next officer in the hospital department for the southern army, and so on in succession, in conjunction with the two next seniors.1
[Note 1: 1 This report, in the writing of Theodorick Bland, is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 22, folio 33.]
Ordered, That Monday next be assigned for the election of the officers in the hospital department for the southern army.
The committee to whom was referred the letter, of 13, from the Board of War, together with the estimate of quartermasters' stores for the ensuing campaign, delivered in a report, which was taken into consideration, and, after debate:
The Committee to whom was referred the estimate from the Board of War and the report of that Board of the 13th inst, Report.
That they approve the said estimate and recommend that money be granted and appropriated to carrying the same into execution with all possible expedition and thereupon beg leave to submit the following Resolve,
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Resolved, that the Board of Treasury report to Congress, the ways and means for furnishing the Board of War with seven hundred and fifty four thousand five hundred and seventy four dollars and sixty ninetieths of a dollar in specie value to be appropriated to the procuration of Stores for the Army so far as concerns the Department of the Quarter Master General.1
[Note 1: 1 This report, in the writing of Theodorick Bland, is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 27, folio 129.]
Ordered, That it be re-committed.
Ordered, That the Board of Treasury report the ways and means of furnishing the sum of five hundred thousand dollars specie value for the quartermaster's department.
The committee to whom was referred the letter, of 17, from the Board of War, delivered in a report:
Ordered, That the same be taken into consideration to Morrow.
The committee, to whom was referred "The act of the legislature of the State of Connecticut, vesting in Congress, for a limited time, a power to levy and collect duties for the purposes mentioned in the act of Congress of the 3 day of February last;" report,2
[Note 2: 2 From this point the entries are by George Bond.]
"That it appears by an estimate reported to Congress, that upon loan office certificates and other loans made for the use of the public, an annual interest arises of more than one million of dollars:
"That the said debts being contracted on the faith and for the defence of the United States, and Congress having no means to discharge either the principal or interest, justice, good faith and the honor of the Confederacy, require that certain adequate and permanent funds should be provided by the respective states, and appropriated for the satisfaction of the public creditors and for supporting the war:
"That, upon mature deliberation, it was the unanimous opinion of Congress that a duty on imports and prizes would
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be most equal throughout the United States, and least burthensome to our citizens:
"That Congress, therefore, recommended it to the respective states as indispensibly necessary, to vest a power in Congress to levy the duty on imports and prizes, mentioned in their act of the 3d of February last; and that the said duties should be continued until the principal and interest of the debts already contracted, or which might be contracted, on the faith of the United States, for supporting the present war, should be fully and finally discharged:
"That in the opinion of the committee, the proviso at the close of the act of the legislature of Connecticut, will defeat the good intentions of the said requisition, which aims at giving the public creditors, who have vested or shall vest their property in the funds, a substantial and adequate security which shall operate until their debts are fully satisfied:
"That from the estimate laid before Congress, the produce of the duty on imports and prizes will, during the war, fall greatly short of the annual interest, even of the loan office certificates; and will, in the opinion of the committee, justly alarm those who have lent their money to the public, if the funds so to be assigned, should be limited for a short or any period, which will not afford them reasonable security, and continue in force until the debts due to them are faithfully discharged;" Whereupon,
Resolved, By the United States in Congress assembled, That it be, and hereby is earnestly recommended to the legislature of the State of Connecticut, to revise the above-mentioned law, and to alter and amend it agreeably to the requisition in the act of Congress of the 3d day of February last to wit:
That the proposed duties on imports and prizes shall be continued until the principal and interest of debts already
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contracted on the faith of these United States, for the support of the present war, shall be fully and finally discharged.1
[Note 1: 1 This report, in the writing of James Duane, is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 20, I, folio 269.
On this or an approximate date was read a letter of Theophilus Gardner and Patrick Ferrall, dated this date. It is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 78, X, folio 311.
Here Thomson resumes the entries.]
Adjourned to 10 o'Clock to Morrow.
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