Mr. Dawson made the following report:
The committee to whom was referred a letter from Robert Fulton to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, dated on the 9th instant, beg leave to report, in part, that at their request Mr. Fulton attended the committee on this morning, and explained to them his views of the uses and effects of torpedoes, on which the committee forbear to give an opinion, and offer the following resolution:
Resolved, That, when the House shall adjourn on Friday next, it will adjourn to meet on Monday; and that Mr. Fulton have the use of this Hall on Saturday, for the purpose of exhibiting the torpedoes and delivering a lecture on their practice and utility.
Mr. Rhea moved to recommit the report to the committee who reported it, with a view to obtaining a report on the merits of it.—Motion negatived.
Mr. Livermore called for a division of the resolution reported by the committee, so as to take a question separately on the words, "Resolved, That, when the House shall adjourn, it adjourn to meet on Monday."
The question on this part of the resolution was decided by yeas and nays—yeas 90, nays 29.
Mr. Livermore moved to postpone the further consideration of the subject indefinitely.
A desultory debate took place on these various questions. It was said that the Hall of the House of Representatives was exclusively appropriated to Legislative purposes, and that, at this time, to appropriate it to the purpose of experimental lectures, would afford a precedent which would be injurious; that such a measure, if admissible at all, should not be taken unless the House were convinced of the practicability of the system proposed to be illustrated, because it would hold out the idea that the House of Representatives had sanctioned it. It was also said that this system could quite as conveniently be illustrated in one of the other apartments of the Capitol, without spreading on the Journals a formal record allowing Mr. Fulton the use of this House. In reply, it was said, that this was an invention which promised to be of great public utility, and it was but reasonable, as the inventor was known to be a scientific man, that he should have an opportunity of demonstrating its efficacy, when he has offered his services for that purpose. If it succeeded, it might be a saving of many millions to the United States; and if it failed, the House would, by paying attention to it, have shown their disposition to encourage science. The argument against the report of the committee, that this Hall was exclusively devoted to legislation, it was said, would operate with equal force against permitting Divine service to be performed there on Sundays.
Before any question was taken on the latter clause of the report of the committee, the House adjourned.