CONGRESS. (PBESIDENT'S MESSAGE.) 



159 



an additional Federal judge in the district where these 

 Government suite have accumulated, so that by con- 

 tinuous sessions of the courts devoted to the trial of 

 these cases they may be determined. 



It is entirely plain that a great saving to the Gov- 

 ernment would be accomplished by such a remedy, 

 and the suitors who have honest claims would not be 

 denied justice through delay. 



The report of the Secretary of War gives a detailed 

 account of the administration of his department, and 

 contains sundry recommendations for the improve- 

 ment of the service, which I fully approve. 



The army consisted at the date of the last consoli- 

 dated return of 2,103 officers, and 24,946 enlisted men. 



The expenses of the department for the last fiscal 

 year were $36,990,903.33, including $6,294,305.43 for 

 public works and river and harbor improvements. 



I especially direct the attention of the Congress to 

 the recommendation that officers be required to sub- 

 mit to an examination as a preliminary to their pro- 

 motion. I see no objection, but many advantages, in 

 adopting this feature, which has operated so bene- 

 ficially in our Navy Department, as well as in some 

 branches of the army. 



The subject of coast defenses and fortifications has 

 been fully and carefully treated by the Board on 

 Fortifications, whose report was submitted at the last 

 session of Congress ; but no construction work of the 

 kind recommended by the board has been possible 

 during the last year, from the lack of appropriations 

 for such purpose. 



The defenseless condition of our sea-coast and lake 

 frontier is perfectly palpable ; the examinations made 

 must convince us all that certain of our cities named 

 in the report of the board should be fortified, and that 

 work on the most important of these fortifications 

 should be commenced at once ; the work has been 

 thoroughly considered and laid out, the Secretary of 

 War reports, but all is delayed in default of congres- 

 sional action. 



The absolute necessity, judged by all standards of 

 prudence and foresight, of our preparation for an 

 effectual resistance against the armored ships and 

 steel guns and mortars of modern construction which 

 may threaten the cities on our coasts, is so apparent, 

 that I hope effective steps will be taken in that direc- 

 tion immediately. 



The valuable and suggestive treatment of this ques- 

 tion by the Secretary <>t War is earnestly commended 

 to the consideration of the Congress. 



In September and October last the hostile Apaches 

 who, under the leadership of Geronimo, had for eight- 

 een months been on the war-path, and during that 

 time had committed many murders, and been the 

 cause of constant terror to the settlers of Arizona, 

 surrendered to General Miles, the military command- 

 er who succeeded General Crook in the management 

 and direction of their pursuit. 



Under the terms 01 their surrender, as then re- 

 ported, and in view of the understanding which these 

 murderous savages seemed to entertain of the assur- 

 ances given them, it was considered best to imprison 

 them in such manner as to prevent their ever engag- 

 ing in such outrages again, instead of trying them for 

 murder. Fort Piekens having been selected as a safe 

 place of confinement, all the adult males were sent 

 thither, and will be closely guarded as prisoners. In 

 the mean time the residue of the band, who, though 

 still remaining upon the reservation, were regarded as 

 unsafe, and suspected of furnishing aid to those on 

 the war-path, had been removed to Fort Marion. 

 The women and larger children of the hostiles were 

 also taken then 1 , and arrangements have been made 

 for putting the children of proper age in Indian 

 schools. 



The re-port of the Secretary of the Navy contains a 

 detailed exhibit of the condition of his department, 

 with such a statement of the action needed to improve 

 the same as should challenge the earnest attention of 

 the Congress. 



The present Navy of the United States, aside from 

 the ships in course of construction, consists of 



First, fourteen single-turreted monitors, none of 

 which are in commission, nor at the present time serv- 

 iceable. The batteries of these ships are obsolete, and 

 they can only be relied upon as auxiliary ships in har- 

 bor defense, and then after such an expenditure upon 

 them as might not be deemed justifiable. 



Second, five fourth-rate vessels of small tonnage, 

 only one of which was designed as a war-vessel, ana 

 all of which are auxiliary merely. 



Third, twenty-seven cruising-ships, three of which 

 are built of iron, of small tonnage, and twenty-four 

 of wood. Of these wooden vessels it is estimated by 

 the Chief Constructor of the Navy that only three will 

 be serviceable beyond a period of six years, at which 

 time it may be said that of the present naval force 

 nothing worthy the name will remain. 



All the vessels heretofore authorized are under con- 

 tract or in course of construction, except the armored 

 ships, the torpedo and dynamite boats, and one cruiser. 

 As to the last of these, the bids were in excess of the 

 limit fixed by Congress. The production in the 

 United States of armor and gun- steel is a question 

 which it seems necessary to settle at an early day, if 

 the armored war-vessels are to be completed with those 

 materials of home manufacture. This has been the 

 subject of investigation by two boards and by two 

 special committees of Congress within the last three 

 years. The report of the Gun Foundry Board in 

 1884, of the Board on Fortifications made in January 

 last, and the reports of the select committees of the 

 two houses made at the last session of Congress, have 

 entirely exhausted the subject, so far as preliminary 

 investigation is involved, and in their recommenda- 

 tions they are substantially agreed. 



In the event that the present invitation of the de- 

 partment forbids to furnish such of this material as is 

 now authorized shall fail to induce domestic manu- 

 facturers to undertake the large expenditures re- 

 quired to prepare for this new manufacture, and no 

 other steps are taken by Congress at its coming ses- 

 sion, the Secretary contemplates with dissatisfaction 

 the necessity of obtaining abroad the armor and the 

 gun-steel for the authorized ships. It would seem 

 desirable that the wants of the army and the navy in 

 this regard should be reasonably met, and that by 

 uniting their contracts such inducement might be 

 offered as would result in securing the domestication 

 of these important interests. 



The affairs of the postal service show marked and 

 gratifying improvement during the past year. A par- 

 ticular account of its transactions and condition is 

 given in the report of the Postmaster-General, which 

 will be laid before you. 



The reduction of the rate of letter-postage in 1883, 

 rendering the postal revenues inadequate to sustain 

 the expenditures, a_nd business depression also con- 

 tributing, resulted in an excess of cost for the fiscal 

 year ended June 30, 1885, of eight and one third mill- 

 ions of dollars. An additional check upon receipts 

 by doubling the measure of weight in rating sealed 

 correspondence and diminishing one half of the charge 

 for newspaper carriage, was imposed by legislation 

 which took effect with tne beginning of the past fiscal 

 year ; while the constant demand of our territorial de- 

 velopment and growing population, for the extension 

 and increase of mail facilities and machinery, neces- 

 sitates steady annual advance in outlay ; and the care- 

 ful estimate of a year ago upon the rates of expendi- 

 ture then existing contemplated the unavoidable aug- 

 mentation of the deficiency in the last fiscal year by 

 nearly two millions of dollars. The anticipated rev- 

 enue for the last year failed of realization by about 

 $64,000 ; but proper measures of econoniv have so 

 satisfactorily limited the growth of expenditure i hat 

 the total deficiency, in fact, fell below that of 18S5; 

 and at this time the increase of revenue is in a gaining 

 ratio over the increase of cost, demonstrating the suf- 

 ficiency of the present rates of postage ultimately to 



