Letters from the Secretary of the Navy to the chairman of the committee appointed on so much of the President's message as relates to aggressions committed within our ports and waters by foreign armed vessels; to violations of our jurisdiction, and to measures necessary for the protection of our ports and harbours: accompanied with a statement relative to the number and condition of the frigates , &c. and to the additional number of gun boats necessary for the protection of our ports and harbours. November 30, 1807. Ordered to lie on the table.
Washington [D.C.]: A. & G. Way, Printers, 1807. 8 pp., 1 fold-out. Illus. with b/w folding chart. 8vo. Removed. First edition. A very good copy, faint soiling and edge wear, contents clean. American Imprints 13978. Item #37543
Following the humiliating defeat in the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair, Secretary of the Navy Robert Smith was required to answer for the current strength of the Naval Force, and was asked to determine the cost of repairing and improving the performance of the Naval fleet. In these two letters, Smith provides a statement, "exhibiting the number and condition of the frigates and other vessels of war...", and later ascertains that the U.S. would need 188 additional gun-boats in order to secure the ports and harbors.
Price: $25.00