CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



139 



inquiry should bo made the subject of joint 

 action ? " 



Mr. Dixon, of Connecticut, said: "I desire 

 to otlVr ;i proviso by way of amendment, and I 

 will only pay that without such proviso I can- 

 not vote for tho resolution. My amendment 

 is, after tho words l bill or otherwise ' to insert : 



/, Tlmt nothing herein contained shall bo 

 BO constructed as to limit, restrict, or impair tho 

 right of each House at all times to judge of the olec- 

 rflurilS, and qualifications of Its own IIK-III- 



Mr. Gnthric, of Kentucky, said : " I wish to 

 nsk the friends of this resolution if it is contem- 

 plated that this committee shall take evidence 

 UIIT! report that evidence to tho two Houses. 

 If they arc only to take what is open to every 

 member of the Senate, the fact that tho rebel- 

 lion has been suppressed ; the fact that the 

 1'resident of the United States has appointed 

 officers to collect the taxes, and in some in- 

 stances judges and other officers ; that he has 

 sent the post-office into all the States; that 

 there have been found enough individuals loyal 

 to the country to accept the offices; the fact 

 that the President has issued his proclamation 

 to all these States appointing provisional gov- 

 ernors ; that they have all elected conventions; 

 that the conventions have rescinded the ordi- 

 nances of secession ; that most of them have 

 iimeaded their constitutions and abolished slave- 

 ry, and the Legislatures of some of them have 

 1 the amendment to the Constitution on 

 tho subject of slavery if they are only to take 

 these facts which are open and clear to us all, 

 I can see no necessity for such a committee. 

 My principal objection to the resolution is, that 

 this committee can give us no information 

 which we do not now possess, coupled with 

 the fact that the loyal conservative men of the 

 United States, North, South, East, and West, 

 do most earnestly desire that we shall so act 

 that there shall bo no longer a doubt that we 

 are the United States of America in full accord 

 and harmony with each other. 



" I know it has been said that the President 

 had no authority to do these things. I read 

 the Constitution and the laws of this country 

 differently. He is to " take caro that the laws 

 be faithfully executed ; " he is to suppress in- 

 surrection and rebellion. The power is put in 

 his hands, and I do not see why, when he 

 marches into a rebel State, he has not authority 

 to put down a rebel government and put up a 

 government that is friendly to the United 

 {Mutes, ;uid in accordance with it; I do not 

 see why he cannot do that while the war goes 

 on, and I do not see why he may not do it after 

 tho war is over. The people in those States 

 lie at the mercy of tho nation. I see no UMIT- 

 patioh in what he has done, and if the work 

 is well done, I, for one, am ready to accept it. 

 Are we to send out a commission to see what 

 the men whom he has appointed have done? 

 It is said that they are not to be relied on ; 

 that they have been guilty of treason, and we 



will not trust them. I hope that no such ideas 

 will prevail here. I think this will bo a cold 

 chock to tho warm feelings of the nation for 

 restoration, for equal privileges, and equal 

 rights. They were in insurrection. Wo have 

 suppressed that insurrection. They are now 

 States of the Union ; and if they como hero ac- 

 cording to the laws of the States, they are en- 

 titl-<!, in my judgment, to representation, and 

 wo liave no right to refuse it. They are in a 

 minority, and they would bo in a minority even 

 if they meant now what they felt when they 

 ruisi'd their arms against the Government; but 

 they do not, and of those whom they will send 

 here to represent them, nineteen out of twenty 

 will be just as loyal as any of us even some 

 of those who took up arms against us." 



The question being taken by yeas and nays, 

 on tho amendment of Mr. Dixon, resulted 

 yeas 12, nays 81. 



So the amendment was rejected. 



The question on concurring in the resolution 

 as amended being taken by yeas and nays, re- 

 sulted as follows : 



YEAS Messrs. Anthony, Brown, Chandler, Clark, 

 Conness, Creswell, Fcssenden, Foot, Foster, Grimes, 

 Harris, Howard, Howe, Lane of Indiana, Lane of 

 Kansas, Morgan, Morrill, Norton, Nye, Poland, Pom- 

 eroy, Ramsey. Sherman, Sprague, Stewart, Sum- 

 ner, Trumbull, Van Winkle, Wade, Willey, Williams, 

 Wilson, and Yates 33. 



NATS Messrs. Buckalew, Cowan, Dixon, Doolit- 

 tlo, Guthrie, Hendricks, Johnsou, Kiddle, Suulsbury, 

 Stockton, and Wright 11. 



ABSENT Messrs. Cragin, Davis, Henderson, Me- 

 Dougal, and Nesmith 5. 



So the resolution, as amended, was concurred 

 in, as follows : 



Resolved, by the House of Representatives (the Sen- 

 ate concurring), That a joint committee of fifteen 

 members shallbe appointed, nine of whom shall be 

 members of the House, and six members of the Sen- 

 ate, who shall inquire into the condition of the States 

 which formed the so-called Confederate States of 

 America, and report whether they, or any of them, 

 are entitled to be represented in either House of 

 Congress, with leave to report at any time by bill or 

 otherwise. 



The consideration of the amended resolution 

 took place in the House on December 13th. 



Mr. Stevens, of Pennsylvania, moved that the 

 House concur in the amendments of the Senate. 

 Ho said : " The Senate took what to them ap- 

 peared to he the proper view of their preroga- 

 tives, and though they did not seem to differ 

 with us as to the main object, tho mode of get- 

 ting at it with them was essential, and they 

 very properly put the resolution in the shape 

 they considered right. 



u They have changed the form of the resolu- 

 tion so as not to require the assent of the Presi- 

 dent ; and they have also considered that each 

 House should determine for itself as to the ref- 

 erence of papers by its own action at the time. 

 To this I see no objection, and while moving to 

 concur, I will say now that when it u- in order 

 I shall move, or some other gentleman will 

 move when his State is called, a resolution pro 



