204 



CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



solemnly bound to assume this responsibility; and 

 that in the performance of this duty, it must see that 

 everywhere, throughout the rebel communities, loy- 

 alty is protected and advanced, while the new gov- 

 ernments are fashioned according to the require- 

 ments of a Christian Commonwealth, so that order, 

 tranquillity, education, and human rights shall pre- 

 vail within their borders. 



4. That, in determining what is a republican form 

 of government, Congress must follow implicitly the 

 definition supplied by the Declaration of Indepen- 

 dence, and, in the practical application of this defi- 

 nition, it must, after excluding all disloyal persons, 

 take care that new governments are founded on the 

 two fundamental truths therein contained : first, that 

 all men are equal in rights ; and secondly, that all 

 just government stands only on the consent of the 

 governed. 



5. That all proceedings, with the view to recon- 

 struction, originating in the Executive power, are in 

 the nature of usurpation ; that this usurpation be- 

 comes especially offensive when it sets aside the fun- 

 damental truths of our institutions ; that it is shock- 

 ing to common-sense, when it undertakes to derive 

 ile'w governments from that hostile population which 

 has just been engaged in armed rebellion ; and that 

 all governments having such origin are necessarily 

 illegal and void. 



6. That it is the duty of Congress to proceed with 

 the work of reconstruction, and to this end it must 

 assume jurisdiction of the Stages lately in rebellion, 

 except so far as that jurisdiction may have been 

 already renounced, and it must recognize only the 

 loyal States, or those States having legal and valid 

 " Legislatures," as entitled to representation in Con- 

 gress, or to a voice in the adoption of constitutional 

 amendments. 



In the House, on December 6th, Mr. Kasson, 

 of Iowa, offered the following resolution : 



Resolved, That the Judiciary Committee consider 

 the propriety of providing by law that it shall be the 

 duty of the President to establish martial law in 

 every county or district of the States lately in rebel- 

 lion, wherein murders of citizens adhering to the 

 Union shall take place, and the local authorities do 

 not promptly arrest, convict, and punish the mur- 

 derers, and that said committee report by bill or 

 otherwise. 



The previous question was seconded, and the 

 main question ordered ; and under the opera- 

 tion thereof the resolution was agreed to. 



On December 10th, Mr. Spalding, of Ohio, 

 offered the folio wiug resolution, which was re- 

 ferred : 



Resolved, That the Committee on Keconstuuctionbe 

 requested to inquire into the expediency of passing 

 a joint resolution declaratory of the purpose of Con- 

 gress in the reception of Senators and Representa- 

 tives from the rebellious States, respectively, upon 

 the ratification by them of the constitutional amend- 

 ment, and the establishment of republican forms of 

 government, not inconsistent with the Constitution 

 of the United States. 



On December 16th, Mr. Moulton, of Illinois, 

 offered the following resolution, which was 

 agreed to : 



Resolved, That the Committee on the Judiciary be, 

 and they are hereby, instructed to inquire into the 

 policy and expediency of repealing all laws provid- 

 ing for the paymept, under any circumstances, to 

 persons claiming to*be the former masters or owners 

 of persons heretofore known as slaves, for the loss 

 of such slaves, under any circumstances whatever, 

 and whether any consiitutional objection exists to 

 the repeal of such laws, and that they report to this 

 House by bill or otherwise. 



On January 21st, Mr. Baker, of Illinois, of- 

 fered the following resolution : 



Resolved, First, that the ten communities lately in 

 armed rebellion against the United States of America, 

 known as the States of Virginia, North Carolina, 

 South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Missis- 

 sippi, Louisiana, Texas, and Arkansas, were left 

 without civil governments upon the overthrow of 

 said armed rebellion; second, that the pretended 

 governments since set up therein, through the mili- 

 tary interference of the President of the United 

 States, are de facto governments of military origin, 

 without civil foundations, and are not valid State 

 governments under the Constitution of the United 

 States, and could only become such, if at all, by 

 being so recognized and declared by Congress in due 

 form of law. 



It was referred to the joint Committee on Be- 

 construction. 



In the House, on December 4th, Mr. Stevens, 

 cf Pennsylvania, offered the following resolu- 

 tion, which was agreed to : 



Resolved (Ihe Senate concurring), That the joint 

 Committee of Fifteen on Reconstruction, appointed 

 during the last session of Congress, shall be reap- 

 pointed under the same rules and regulations as then 

 existed, and that all the documents and resolutions 

 which were referred then, be now considered as re- 

 ferred to them anew. 



The resolution was subsequently concurred in 

 by the Senate. 



On December 4th. Mr. Broomall, of Pennsyl- 

 vania, offered the following resolution : 



Resolved, That the Committee on Territories be in- 

 structed to inquire into the expediency of reporting 

 a bill providing territorial governments for the sev- 

 eral districts of country within the jurisdiction of the 

 United States, formerly occupied by the once exist- 

 ing States of Virginia, North Carolina, South Caro- 

 lina, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisi- 

 ana, Arkansas, and Texas, and giving to all adult 

 male inhabitants, horn within the limits of the 

 United States, or duly naturalized, and not partici- 

 pants in the late rebellion, full and equal political 

 rights in such territerial governments. 



The resolution was agreed to yeas 107, 

 nays 37. 



On December 4th, Mr. "Wentworth, of Illi- 

 nois, offered the following resolution : 



Resolved, In response to that portion of the Presi- 

 dent's message which relates to those communities 

 that claimed to be the Confederate States of America, 

 that this House find in the many acts of disloyalty 

 that have transpired in those communities since its 

 last adjournment, as well as in the recent elections 

 in the loyal States, additional reasons for insisting 

 on the adoption of the pending constitutional amend- 

 ment before it will consider the propriety of giving 

 them congressional representation. 



The resolution was adopted. 



In the House, on January 3d, Mr. Stevens, 

 of Pennsylvania, called up his substitute to the 

 bill to provide for restoring to the States lately 

 in insurrection their full political rights. The 

 substitute was as follows : 



Strike out all after the word " whereas " in the pre- 

 amble, and insert in lieu thereof the following : 



The eleven States which lately formed the govern- 

 ment called the "Confederate States of America" 

 have forfeited all their rights vinder the Constitution, 

 and can be reinstated in the same only through the 

 action of Congress : Therefore, 



