No. 11.-Receipt-roll of California refugees, amounting to $9,443 50-Final payment of awards at Monterey. We, the subscribers, acknowledge to have received at Monterey, Upper California, December 30, 1848, from Edward D. Reynolds, special agent for military contributions, the sums set opposite our names respectively, being in full of the amounts awarded to us by commissioners appointed to adjust the claims of citizens of Lower California arising during the late war, viz: 772 00 Angel Lebrija... Feofilo E. Echeverria.. Fran. Palacio de Miranda. No. Amount in words. Amount. Names. Fifteen hundred and forty-two dollars and fifty cents.... 24 Five hundred and four dollars.... 26 Two hundred and fifty-five dollars. Thirteen hundred and seventy-two dollars. $1,542 50 * 504 00 * 255 00 1,372 00 Seven hundred and seventy-two dollars Forty-seven hundred and forty-six dollars. 4,746 00 33 Seven hundred and thirty dollars.. * 730 00 One hundred and ninety-nine dollars and fifty cents. # 199 50 51 * Not yet called for, but subject to payment on demand. * 141 00 his Antonio Estrado. S. A. McCreery, passed assistant surgeon. S. A. McCreery, passed assistant surgeon. Subsequently paid by J. D. Reynolds, at San Francisco, March 7, 1849. * Not yet paid, claimants not applying before I left California, Dec. 27, 1850.-T. AP C. J. Very respectfully, Commodore THOMAS AP C. JONES, Commander-in-chief U. S. Naval Forces, Pacific Ocean. E. D. REYNOLDS, Special Agent. The payments upon the within roll, amounting to nine thousand four hundred and forty-three dollars and fifty cents, were made by me from the military contributions received from Samuel Forrest, placed in my hands by the order of Commodore Thomas Ap C. Jones, commander-in-chief of the United States naval forces, Pacific ocean. E. D. REYNOLDS. DR. E. D. Reynolds, Special Agent for Military Contributions, in account with the Military Contributions. CR. By amount of cash paid to California refugees, as per accompanying receipt rolls... By amount of cash on hand February 20, 1849. To Commodore T. AP C. JONES, Commander in-chief U. S. Naval Forces, Pacific Ocean. E. D. REYNOLDS, Special Agent. NAVY DEPARTMENT, September 7, 1850. SIR: On the occasion of your visit to the department after your return from the Pacific, in the early part of last week, I informed you that complaints had been made touching your official conduct, in your late com. mand of the squadron in that ocean, which I had not at that time examined. I have the honor to transmit herewith copies of the letters and other papers, comprehending these complaints, which have been lodged in the department, and to request that, at your early convenience, you will return such explanation or reply as you may deem necessary or proper for your vindication. I am, with high respect, your obedient servant, Com. THOS. AP C. JONES, WILL. A. GRAHAM. United States Navy, Washington, D. C. NAVY DEPARTMENT, October 14, 1850. SIR: Your communication of the inst., enclosing a copy of a let ter addressed to you by Brevet Captain Maddox, of the marine corps, has been received. The statements in relation to Lieutenant Stanly will not escape the attention of the department. I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, Com. THOS. AP C. JONES, WILL. A. GRAHAM. U. S. Navy, Prospect Hill, Fairfax Co., Va. NAVY DEPARTMENT, November 1, 1850. SIR: 1 have delayed a reply to your letter of the 22d ultimo until I could inform you of the nature of the investigation of the transactions occurring in the course of your command of the Pacific squadron, which would be directed. I have now the honor to state that J. M. Carlisle, esq., has been appointed judge advocate of the court-martial ordered to assemble for your trial; and that on application to him satisfactory arrangements can no doubt be made for taking the evidence of the Hon. T. Butler King, as desired by you. Hoping the delay of this answer may occasion you no inconvenience, I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, Com. THOS. AP C. JONES, WILL. A. GRAHAM. Prospect Hill, Virginia. NAVY DEPARTMENT, November 1, 1850. SIR: I transmit to you herewith a copy of the charges and specifications of charges preferred against you by the department. A naval general court-martial will convene at the navy yard, Washington city, on the third Monday in December next, to the presiding offcer of which court you will report yourself for trial. J. M. Carlisle, esq., of this city, will act as judge advocate, to whom you will hand a list of your witnesses. On the receipt of this order you will regard yourself as under arrest. I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, Capt. THOMAS AP CATESBY Jones, WILL. A. GRAHAM. U. S. Navy, Prospect Hill, Fairfax Co., Va. NAVY DEPARTMENT, November 16, 1850. SIR: Your letter dated the 5th inst., with an endorsement, stating that it had been withheld until the 13th, the period of my expected return to Washington, has been received. In reply, I have the honor to state that, in my conception, neither the law nor the usage of the department requires a list of the witnesses in support of charges against an officer to be communicated to him, as a matter of course, with a copy of the charges, as seems to be the impression entertained by you; and accordingly it was not done in this instance. But understanding from your letter that such a list is desired, I have instructed the judge advocate of the court ordered for your trial to prepare it, and it is herewith transmitted. As suggested, however, in the letter of the judge advocate which precedes this list, it will not prevent the tender of other witnesses, if others shall hereafter be discovered to be material. It seemed to me irregular to accede to your request, to take the testimony of the Hon. T. Butler King, in reply to interrogatories propounded by you, before the charges and specifications had been prepared, to which such testimony would apply. I did not doubt, however, that between the 1st and 12th of November, upon your application to Mr. Carlisle, the judge advocate of the court, arrangements could be made between you and that gentleman for taking the evidence of Mr. King upon any points material to the investigation required by these charges and specifications, and hence my suggestion to that effect in my letter. It was not the intention of the department, in making the usual and necessary arrest, to assign any limits of confinement which might interfere with your personal convenience, and therefore none were designated. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, Com. THOS. AP C. JONES, Prospect Hill, Virginia. WILL. A. GRAHAM. NAVY DEPARTMENT, December 10, 1850. SIR: Your letter of the 22d ultimo was received a few days after its date. In it you do no more than justice to the head of this department in expressing the belief that he entertains no feeling of hostility or unkindness towards you; but you express your surprise that the charges preferred against you should be signed by him, and suppose that this may have occurred from inadvertence. It is certainly true, as you remark, that I have no personal knowledge in relation to the subject matters embraced in these charges, and that they were brought to my attention officially by other and junior officers in the service; but the offences they impute, if established, are offences against the criminal code of the navy; and the questions presented to the department, when such charges are preferred, are, whether, from their nature, they are worthy of consideration by a court; and if so, what is the proper form of proceeding? Designing to divest your case of all such as imputed mere technical breaches of discipline, I directed the omission of any charge on some of the grounds of complaint against you, and that those brought forward should be put in such form as, in the opinion of the judge advocate, would correspond with the evidence by which it was alleged they could be sustained. This is a discretion, of the right and duty to exercise which I presume there can be no doubt. Without it the department would of necessity be obliged to order a court on any charges that might be presented to it, and in the technical form which the party making the complaint should select, however erroneous or inartificial. Then, as to the person in whose name the charges are to be brought before the court-martial, I apprehend it can hardly be supposed that they should be signed by those on whose information they originated, or any one of them. The proceeding is, in fact, a proceeding of the government of the United States; and the inquiry raised, by your exception to the course of the department, is, what officer is to represent the government in such proceedings? Entertaining doubts on this point, I caused precedents to be searched, and find that the course of such proceedings in naval courts-martial has not been uniform, the charges being sometimes signed by the Secretary and sometimes by the judge advocate. In the case bearing the strongest analogy to yours, its facts and circumstances having occurred on distant service, (that of Commander Wilkes, of the exploring expedition,) the charges were signed by the late Secretary Upshur. Upon that precedent, and others in the time of Secretary Thompson, another eminent jurist, who formerly administered the affairs of this department, the present form was adopted. It neither implies that the head of the department makes the prosecution his personal affair on the one hand, or that the person on whose information false and malicious accusations are made shall on the other escape consequences by this form of proceeding which he would have incurred in another. The great point in all such cases is, whether the charges are true. If so, it matters not in what motive they originated; if not, the accuser may be culpable; and more or less so, according to the circumstances and motives of his conduct. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, Commodore THOS. AP C. JONES, U. S. Navy, near Prospect Hill, Va. WILL. A. GRAHAM. NAVY DEPARTMENT, December 14, 1850. SIR: Enclosed herewith, agreeably to the request contained in your note of this date, is a certified copy of your account-current of the expenditures |