C 124 ] 
 
 LETTER 
 
 FROM 
 
 MR. RODNEY, 
 
 UPON THE SUBJECT OF 
 
 The Beport of a Select Committee, 
 
 To examine the Reports of the Secretary of the Treasury, in relation to the. 
 
 "Eixaminatiou oi tV\e XianA Offices, 
 
 ( 
 
 APRII. 29 , 1822 . 
 
 Read, and ordered to lie upon the table. 
 
 WASHINGTON: 
 
 I'KINTE* BX GALES & SEATON*. 
 
 

[ 124 ] 
 
 3 
 
 April 27, 1822. 
 
 Sir; In a report made to the House of Representatives by the se¬ 
 lect committee, to whom were referred several communications from 
 the Secretary of the Treasury, relative to the manner in which the 
 land offices have been examined, it is stated, 
 
 ‘‘ The committee believe it to have been usual in the War Depart¬ 
 ment, also, to employ members of Congress, as counsel in behalf of 
 the United States, and they refer particularly to the instances of Mr. 
 Baldwin, of the House of Representatives, and Mr. Rodney, of 
 Delaware, of the Senate, employed and paid as counsel, under the 
 direction of the present Secretary of War.” 
 
 With respect to myself, an error has been, unintentionally, com¬ 
 mitted; as I was not, when employed, or paid, a member of Con¬ 
 gress, either of the Senate, or of the House of Representatives. 
 This will appear from the sequel. On the 6th of March, 1820, I 
 received a letter from Major Babcock, of the corps of engineers, 
 who was stationed at New Castle, requesting my professional ser¬ 
 vices, in the case of an ejectment brought for the Pea Patch, the 
 trial of which was expected to take place at Trenton, in the circuit 
 court of the United States, for the district of New Jersey, on the 
 first of April following. Agreeably to his desire, I attended the 
 court; but the trial was postponed, in consequence of the absence of 
 material witnesses on the part of the defendant. Rules were ob¬ 
 tained for taking their depositions, and also for a special jury, and 
 for a survey of the disputed premises. 
 
 In the summer of 1820, a detailed report of the case was prepared 
 and transmitted to the Department of War. At the October term, 
 in the same year, I attended again, at Trenton; and was there on 
 the day of the general election in Delaware, when representa¬ 
 tives to the seventeenth, or present Congress were chosen. The re¬ 
 sult, however, was not known, until some days after my return. 
 
 In the month of November, following, I was paid for the services 
 rendered, and I have not, since, been at the court. The constitution¬ 
 al term of the present House of Representatives, commenced on the 
 4th of March, 1821. Until that period arrived, I was not a member 
 of Congress, and might have held any other incompatible office, un¬ 
 der the constitution of the United States, or of Delaware. 
 
 The legislatu»’e of the state of Delaware chose me a Senator of 
 the United States on the 10th of January last; but the certificate of 
 my election was not received, in consequence of my absence from se¬ 
 vere indisposition, until the 24th of that month, when I took my seat 
 in the Senate. 
 
4 
 
 [ 124 ] 
 
 This simple uarrative of facts, given according to the best of my 
 recollection, assisted by the original papers lately received, is re¬ 
 spectfully submitted to the consideration of the House of Represent¬ 
 atives, with the view of correcting any erroneous impressions which 
 may have been made, by the unintentional mistake of so respecta¬ 
 ble a committee. 
 
 I have the honor to be, &c. 
 
 C. A. RODNEY. 
 
 Hon. P- P. Barbour, 
 
 Speaker of the House of Representatives,