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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 --WEDNESDAY, JULY 24, 1782
In pursuance of the order of the 11, the agent of marine transmitted to Congress a copy of the last instructions given to Captain Harding of the Confederacy, by the late Board of Admiralty.
The delegates for Virginia laid before Congress two resolutions passed by the legislature of that State, dated 28 May last; 1. that it will not be expedient to authorise Congress to alter the mode appointed by the Confederation, for apportioning the quotas of the respective states, as is proposed in the act of 20 February, 1782; and 2. for the appointment of persons to examine and state, with all possible exactness, to the next assembly, the losses and injuries sustained by that State in the course of this war, from obstructed commerce and the enemy's cruizers within the bay of Chesapeake.1
[Note 1: 1 These resolutions are in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 75, folios 361, 363, 365.]
On a report of a committee, consisting of Mr. [Ezekiel] Cornell, Mr. [Samuel] Osgood, Mr. [Ralph] Izard, Mr. [Theodorick] Bland and Mr. [James] Duane, appointed to consider and report the most just and practicable means of reducing expenditures in the several departments:
Resolved, That all resolutions and appointments respecting the department of commissary general of prisoners be, and hereby are repealed:
Resolved, That the Commander in Chief be, and hereby is empowered to appoint, from time to time, a commissary of prisoners, who shall be subject to his orders and instructions:
That the commanding officer of the southern army have also power to appoint, from time to time, a commissary of prisoners, who shall be subject to his orders and instructions:
That the power of negotiating the exchange of marine prisoners be henceforth vested in the agent of marine, who
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is hereby authorised to appoint a commissary for marine prisoners to be subject to his orders and instructions:
That the Secretary at War be, and he is hereby authorised, from time to time, to appoint so many persons as he may find necessary to assist him in superintending and safe keeping all prisoners of war, reporting such appointments to Congress as soon as they shall be made:
That the Secretary at War direct returns to be made once in every three months (or oftener if applied for) to the Commander in Chief, of all land prisoners, and to the agent of marine, of all marine prisoners who shall be under his charge:
That the pay of the commissaries for the army shall be seventy-five dollars per month each, and they shall each be allowed two rations of provisions per day, and twelve dollars and two-thirds of a dollar per month subsistance, and also six dollars and two-thirds of a dollar per month each for a servant, for whom they shall draw from the public the cloathing and ration allowed to a private soldier, together with forage for two horses each, which pay and allowances shall include what they may be entitled to from the public as officers in the army:
That the commissary to be appointed by the agent of marine, shall receive in full for his services, including any pay or allowances that he may be entitled to as an officer of the United States, the sum of twelve hundred dollars per annum:
That the allowance of pay and rations to the persons to be appointed by the Secretary at War, to assist him in supertending and safe keeping prisoners of war, shall not exceed forty dollars per month, and four rations per day, or subsistance equivalent, including what they may be entitled to as officers of the army.1
[Note 1: 1 This report, in the writing of a clerk, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 28, folio 93.]
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On another report of the above mentioned committee,
Resolved, That the act of Congress of the ll day of February, 1778, and all subsequent resolutions, so far as they respect the department of the commissary general of military stores, be and they are hereby repealed.
Resolved, That the Secretary at War be, and he is hereby, empowered to appoint, from time to time, a commissary of military stores, who shall be subject to his orders and instructions, and shall receive a salary of twelve hundred one thousand dollars per annum:
That the Secretary at War be further empowered to appoint, from time to time, so many officers, to be taken from the officers of the army, if agreeable to them, as he may find necessary to superintend the business in that department.1
[Note 1: 1 This report, in the writing of a clerk, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 27, folio 173.]
[Motion of Mr Arthur Lee, Mr Jonathan Jackson, July 24, 1782.]
That the Commission of the 15? June, 1781, appointing Ministers Plenipotentiary to negotiate a Treaty of Peace with Great Britain together with the instructions given to the said Commissioners be re-considered.2
[Note 2: 2 This motion, in the writing of Arthur Lee, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 36, I, folio 355.
On this day, according to the indorsement. was read a letter of July 23, from the Superintendent of Finance inclosing one, of July 22, from J. Burrall, in reference to the adjustment of the late Joseph Trumbull's account. The Superintendent's letter is in No. 137, I, folio 651 and the inclosure on folio 653. They were referred to Mr. [George] Clymer, Mr. [Jonathan] Jackson, Mr. [Edward] Telfair.
A letter of July 11 from the Governor of Virginia to the delegates of that State, respecting a garrison for the towns of York and Gloucester, was referred to a committee composed of Messrs. [Ezekiel] Cornell, [Joseph] Montgomery and [Thomas] McKean on this date, as the indorsement states. It is in No. 20, II, folio 277. A letter to the committee, dated August 22, from Robert Morris is on folio 281, and one from the Secretary at War of the same date on folio 283. See post, August 27.]
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