s the necessity of reopening promotion in the staff
corps of the Army. Particularly is this necessity felt in the Medical,
Pay, and Ordnance departments.

At this time it is necessary to employ "contract surgeons" to supply the
necessary medical attendance required by the Army.

With the present force of the Pay Department it is now difficult to make
the payments to troops provided for by law. Long delays in payments are
productive of desertions and other demoralization, and the law prohibits
the payment of troops by other than regular army paymasters.

There are now sixteen vacancies in the Ordnance Department, thus leaving
that branch of the service without sufficient officers to conduct the
business of the different arsenals on a large scale if ever required.

NAVY DEPARTMENT.

During the past year our Navy has been depleted by the sale of some
vessels no longer fit for naval service and by the condemnation of
others not yet disposed of. This, however, has been more than
compensated for by the repair of six of the old wooden ships and by the
building of eight new sloops of war, authorized by the last Congress.
The building of these latter has occurred at a doubly fortunate time.
They are about being completed at a time when they may possibly be much
needed, and the work upon them has not only given direct employment
to thousands of men, but has no doubt been the means of keeping open
establishments for other work at a time of great financial distress.

Since the commencement of the last month, however, the distressing
occurrences which have taken place in the waters of the Caribbean Sea,
almost on our very seaboard, while they illustrate most forcibly the
necessity always existing that a nation situated like ours should
maintain in a state of possible efficiency a navy adequate to its
responsibilities, has at the same time demanded that all the effective
force we really have shall be put in immediate readiness for warlike
service. This has been and is being done promptly and effectively, and
I am assured that all the available ships and every authorized man of
the American Navy will be ready for whatever action is required for
the safety of our citizens or the maintenance of our honor. This, of
course, will require the expenditure in a short time of some of the
appropriations which were calculated to extend through the fiscal year,
but Congress will, I doubt not, understand and appreciate the emergency,
and wil