266 



CONGRESS, U. S. 



passed the Senate it becomes a finality, and 

 whatever is embraced in it becomes a portion 

 of the Constitution of the United States. Let 

 no such fallacy sink deep into the heart of any 

 man. The Constitution has most amply and 

 cautiously provided that the national legisla- 

 tive branch of the Government can make no 

 such amendment. Why, sir, the resolution 

 simply gives the amendment in so many words, 

 and proposes its ratification, and then the 

 amendment goes to the State legislatures, and 

 must be ratified by them." 



The debate subsequently extended to the 

 general subject of slavery, and was continued 

 at much length. The vote was taken on the 

 next day, and two-thirds not voting in favor, 

 the joint resolution failed to pass. 



The vote was as follows : 



YEAS Messrs. Alley, Allison, Ames, Anderson, 

 Arnold, Bailey, John D. Baldwin, Baxter, Beaman, 

 Elaine, Blair, Blow, Boutwell, Boyd, Brandegee, 

 Broomall, Ambrose W. Clark, Freeman Clarke, Cobb, 

 Cole, Creswell, Dawes, Deming, Dixon, Donnelly, 

 Driggs, Eckley, Eliot, Farnsworth, Fenton, Frank, 

 Garfield, Gooch, Griswold, Hale, Higby, Hooper, 

 Hotcbkiss, Asahel W. Hubbard, John JL Hubbard, 

 Hulburd, Ingersoll, Jcnckes, Julian, Kasson, Kelley, 

 Francis W. Kellogg, Orlando Kellogg, Littlejohn, 

 Loan, Longyear, Marvin, McClurg, Mclndoe, Samuel 

 F. Miller, Moorhead, Merrill, Daniel Morris, Amos 

 Myers, Leonard Myers, Norton, Odell, Charles 

 O'Neill, Orth, Patterson, Perham, Pike, Price, Al- 

 exander H. Kice, John H. Rice, Schenck, Schofield, 

 Shannon, Sloan, Smith, Smithers, Spaulding, Starr, 

 Stevens, Thayer, Thomas, Tracy, Upson, Van Val- 

 kenburgh, Elihu B. Washburne, Webster, Whaley, 

 Wheeler, Williams, Wilder, Wilson, Windom, and 

 Woodbridge 93. 



NATS Messrs. James C. Allen, William J. Allen, 

 Ancona, Ashley, Augustus C. Baldwin, Bliss, Brooks, 

 James S. Brown, Chanler, Coffroth, Cox, Cravens, 



liam Johnson, Kalbfleisch, Kernan, King, Law, La- 

 zear, Le Blond, Long, Mallory, Marcy, McAllister, 

 McDowell, McKinney, William H. Miller, James E. 

 Morris, Morrison, Noble, John O'Neill, Pendleton, 

 Pruyn, Radford, Samuel J. Randall, Robinson, 

 .Rogers, James S. Rollins, Ross, Scott, John B. 

 Steele, William G. Steele, Stiles, Strouse, Stuart, 

 Sweat, Wadsworth, Ward, Chilton A. White. Joseph 

 W. White, and Fernando Wood 65. 



NOT VOTING Messrs. William G. Brown, Clay, 

 Henry Winter Davis, Thomas T. Davis, Dumont, 

 Grinnell, Hall, Benjamin G. Harris, Charles M. Har- 

 ris, Knapp, McBride, Middleton, Nelson, Perry, Pom- 

 eroy, William H. Randall, Edward H. Rollins, Steb- 

 bins, Voorhees, William B. Washburn, Winfield, 

 Benjamin Wood, and Yeaman 23. 



In the House on Dec. 14, 1863, Mr. Arnold 

 of Illinois, offered the following bill which was 

 read the second time and referred to the Com- 

 mittee on the Judiciary : 



A bill to aid the President of the United States in carry- 

 ing into more immediate execution the proclamation 

 of emancipation issued by him on the 1st day of Jan- 

 vary, A. D. 1863, prohibiting the, holding of certain 

 persons as slaves in all that portion qf the United 

 States designated therein. 



_ Whereas the President of the United States, by 

 jis proclamation issued on the 1st day of January, 

 in the year 1863, as commander-in-chief of the Army 

 thereof, did, as a fit and lawful means of suppressing 

 the rebellion, in accordance with the laws of war 



and with the dictates of justice and Ininanity, order, 

 proclaim, and declare that all persons held as slaves 

 within the limits of certain States and parts of States 

 therein designated were, and should thereafter and 

 forever be, free; and that the executive, military, 

 and naval authorities would and should thencefor- 

 ward recognize and maintain the freedom of all such 

 persons; and whereas by said proclamation and 

 order the President has guaranteed to all such persons 

 their freedom, and has pledged the faith and honor 

 of the country that their freedom shall be recognized 

 and forever maintained ; and whereas it is the right 

 and the duty of Congress to make all laws which may 

 be necessary and proper for carrying into execution 

 all the powers, whether civil or military, vested by 

 the Constitution in the President as Commander-in- 

 Chief of the Army and Navy ; and among such mil- 

 itary powers is that of making and executing the 

 proclamation aforesaid ; and whereas all persons 

 heretofore held as slaves, as aforesaid, within said 

 designated States or parts of States, are now of right 

 free, and ought to be hereafter forever unmolested 

 in the enjoyment of that freedom which the Govern- 

 ment of the United States is bound to "recognize 

 and maintain ; " 



Now, therefore, for the purpose of carrying into 

 more complete and immediate execution the'aforesaid 

 proclamation, and to secure forever the recognition 

 and maintenance of the freedom of all persons desig- 

 nated therein, and thereby to provide more effect- 

 ually for the suppression of the rebellion, the securing 

 of domestic tranquillity, the maintaining of the com- 

 mon defence, and the preservation of the liberties of 

 the people ; 



Be it enactedly the Senate and House of Represent- 

 ative* of the United, States of America in Congress 

 assembled, That in all States and parts of States 

 designated in said proclamation as in rebellion, the 

 reenslaving or holding, or attempting to hold, in 

 slavery or in involuntary servitude of any person 

 who shall have been made or declared to be free 

 by said proclamation, or any of their descendants, 

 from and after the date of said proclamation, other- 

 wise than in punishment of crime whereof the accus- 

 ed shall have been duly convicted, is and shall be 

 forever prohibited, any law or regulation of either 

 of such States to the contrary notwithstanding. 



Subsequently, on June loth, the proposition 

 to repeal the commutation clause of the enrol- 

 ment act, being under consideration, Mr. Bout- 

 well, of Massachusetts, said : 



"I am not disposed to despair at all of the 

 Eepublic, or of the power of the Government 

 to maintain itself. The gentleman from Ken- 

 tucky (Mr. Mallory) said this morning that the 

 whole policy of the country was changed by 

 the proclamation of the President, and he 

 attributed that proclamation to the meeting 

 of the Governors of certain States at Altoona. 

 I am not here to be put upon the witness-stand, 

 but it so happens that I have the means of 

 knowing that the proclamation of September, 

 1862, was entirely independent of and antecedent 

 to the meeting of the Governors at Altoona. The 

 meeting of the Governors had no connection with 

 the proclamation. The gentleman from Ken- 

 tucky should remember that prior to the issuing 

 of that proclamation we had met with but few 

 successes, and that we had endured many, many 

 reverses. Lee had battled for four days under 

 the fortifications of the capital, and had finally 

 crossed the Potomac into Maryland. It was not 

 until the country put itself on the side of jus- 

 tice that it had a right to exrect the favor of 



