rolled in the several ports or harbours, or the towns or country thereto adjacent, to which they belong or are most convenient, by their names, the dates & places of their births, their abodes & proportion of their whole number as circumstances may require, to perform tours of duty not exceeding one year in any [two] on board of any of the public armed vessels of the US. in which the sd. militia officers, in subordination to the regular officers of the US. of equal or superior grade shall have the immediate command & care of them. And if any person so called on shall refuse or unnecessarily delay to enter on duty he shall be arrested as a deserter either by the civil or military authority, delivered to the proper military officer & either punished as a deserter or compelled to perform his tour of duty: but any person so called on may commute his personal service by tendering an able bodied free white man a citizen of the US. fit for the service in the Judgment of the officer who is to command him, and willing to engage therein. And all persons while engaged in the performance of a tour of duty, shall have the pay & rations allowed in the navy of the US. & be subject to the rules & regulations and articles provided for the government of the same."

Concerning this, and the following bills, Jefferson wrote:

"Th. J. to Mr. Gallatin.

'November 3, 1805.

"I wish for an à peu près of the number of seamen we call ours. I suppose the best way of estimating will be by our tonnage, including coasters, bay and river craft, and everything employed on the tide-waters. Can you assist me with the materials for such an estimate? It is of some importance for my bill for a naval militia; that and the one for the land militia I will send you for consideration as soon as you can assist me as above."

These notes of Jefferson seem to be the basis of the bills:

"November 1805.

"The best ground for estimating the number of seamen of the United States to be enrolled under the Act for establishing a naval militia is the tonnage of our vessels. The latest return of tonnage states it to have been on the 31st. of December, 1803, as follows.

"We are supposed to employ usually in navigating our vessels about 6 men to every 100 tons. But allowing for those who are not free white citizens within the military age, we may estimate 5 to the

100 tons.

5

45,852

personal descriptions: which enrollment shall be made by such person as the Pres. of the U. S. shall authorize in each place in a book to be kept by him for that purpose, without delay as to To these should be added the seamen then in our navy, and those employed on the tide-waters within the United States, which we may safely state as making the whole number amount to

50,000

"An Estimate of the Land Militia of the United States.

"The census of 1800 gave us of free white males of

16 and under 26

of 26 and under 45

384,554
423,836

Our military age excluding those under 18, we must from the number

384,554

deduct those in their 17th and 18th years, which, by Buffon's tables, will be

80,405

Remain of the age of 18 and under 45, to wit, the minor and junior classes,

304,149

"Our census of 1790 and 1800 having showed our increase to be in a geometrical ratio of 3 per cent. per annum, the increase from 1800 to 1805 is

54,184

leaving our whole number of free white males from 18 to 26 in 1805

358,333

From these are to be deducted the naval militia-men, but far the greater part of those employed in the foreign trade and whalefisheries being always absent, it is believed that not half of them were included in the census. Those supposed included, then, are 35,000, of which, according to Buffon, those of 18 and under 26 will be only

leaving of free white landsmen from 18 to 26 in 1805

From these are still to be deducted those not able-bodied:
suppose them I to 10,

leaving of free, white, able-bodied landsmen of 18 and under 26
"To find what proportions of these will be of the minor and what
of the junior class, we are to inquire, of 311,960 persons of 18 and
under 26 years of age, how many will there be of each different year
of age?
Buffon's tables resolve them as follows: As 84,589 in
Buffon from 18 to 26: to 311,960 in the United States of the same
age: so are 11,014 in Buffon in their 19th year: to x, the number
in the United States in their 19th year; then

x =

311,960

84,589

XII, 014 3.69 X 11,014. Consequently those in their

=

11,711

346,622

34,662

311,960

those now within the descriptions of this act, and from time to time as to others, who shall hereafter become so, always registering the date of the enrolment, and placing in a distinct page or

"To obtain the respective numbers of the middle and senior

classes, the census of 1800 gave for both Add the increase from 1800 to 1805,

from which are to be deducted seamen from 26 to 45,

423,836

75,506

499,342

23,289

deduct those also not able-bodied, suppose 1 in 10,

476,053

47,605

428,448

=

leaves free, white, able-bodied landsmen from 26 to 45,
"Buffon's tables make the numbers of 26 and under 35 84,182,
and those of 35 and under 45 84,018. These are so nearly equal
that we may consider the middle class one-half, to wit,
and the senior class one half, to wit

Recapitulation.

214,224

214,224

50,000

120,598

191,358

214,224

214,224 740,404

790,404

On Dec. 31, 1805, Jefferson wrote to Dearborn : "Considering that the important thing is to get the militia classes so that we may get at the young for a year's service at a time, and that training may be supplied after they are called out, I think we may give up every part of the bill which respects training & arming. Let us once get possession of the principle, & future Congresses will train & arm. In this way we get rid of all those enemies to the bill to whom different details would be objectionable. I send you the bill thus modified, & I have thrown in a few words in the clause beginning with the words 'The junior class shall be liable &c.' in order that the law may execute itself without waiting for any legislature. Will you be so good as to communicate it to General Varnum & Mr. Bidwell? The sooner the better."

part of the book those born within the limits of one & the same year of the Christian aera. And whenever a person enrolled in one part of the U S. shall remove to another, the enrolling officer of the latter port shall immediately enter his name on his book, noting the date & place of his former enrolment, in addition to the other circumstances before prescribed, and all questions between the enrolling officers of the land and Naval Militia, whether a citizen belongs really to the one or the other service, shall be decided by the Executive authority of the state.

Every person enrolled shall be entitled to receive from the officer possessing the book of enrolment an authenticated transcript from the same, of the entry respecting himself, on paiment of 25 cents, and to have the same renewed on the same condition from time to time, when lost or destroyed which shall exempt him from the duties of the land militia, & shall be considered otherwise as instead of the certificate of citizenship heretofore given by the Collectors of the Customs, which certificates shall hereafter cease to be given.

Every enrolling officer shall on or immediately after the 1st day of October in every year, make a return of his roll to the Secretary of the Navy of the U. S. according to it's actual state as affected since the last return, by age, discharge, death, removal, new enrolments or otherwise.

The ld. Naval Militia of each port & of the town & Country thereto adjacent to which they belong shall be distributed into sections, each of which sections shall consist of all those individuals born within the limits of the same year of the Christian aera, & shall be distinguished by the name of the year of their birth : and in cases of insurrection, of opposition to the civil authority or of sudden attack, either actual or imminent, in any port, harbour, or town on the tide-waters, or on the coasts or shores in their vicinities, all persons then and there being who make a part of the said militia, whether of the same or any other place, shall be liable to be called on by the President of the U S. or the person invested by him with authority for that purpose, to do duty with artillery, or on board any armed vessels, for the special occasion of quelling the insurrection, enforcing obedience to the civil authority, or resisting the attack as the case may be. Such call

shall be made on them by sections, in the numbers which the exigency may require by regular rotation in the numerical order of the years of their birth, and for a term not exceeding months: & non-residents shall always make a part of the section of the respective year of their birth.

The said Sections when called into service, shall be organized & officered by the state authority, suitably to the service they shall be called to, whether with Artillery or on board any armed vessels, and while engaged in the performance of a tour of duty shall have the pay & rations allowed in the navy of the U S. and be subject to the rules, regulations, & articles provided for the Government of the same.

AN ACT FOR CLASSING THE MILITIA AND ASSIGNING TO EACH CLASS ITS PARTICULAR DUTIES.

Be it enacted, &c., That every free, able-bodied white male citizen of the United States of the age of 18 years and under the age of 45, whose principal occupation is not on the high sea or the tide-waters within the United States, shall be of the militia for the land service of the United States.

Enrolement. The persons so to constitute the land militia shall be enrolled by their names and ages and their proper districts, and in books to be kept for that purpose; such enrolement to be made without delay of those now within the description, and from time to time as to others who shall hereafter become so, always noting the date of the enrolement, and placing in a distinct page or part of the book those of every different year of age, from 45 down to 18. In deciding on the ages of the persons to be enrolled, the officer shall make up his judgment from the information of the party himself, and from such other information as he can obtain, and where this is not satisfactory, then from his own inspection.

Classification. The said militia shall be distributed into classes as follows, to wit: the junior class shall be composed of those above 21 and under 26 years of age; the middle class of those above 26 and under 35 years of age; the senior class of those