CONGRESS, CONFEDERATE. 



163 



1 



On Saturday, July 20, the Congress again 

 assembled. It convened in the hall of the 

 House of Delegates at Richmond, in Virginia. 

 About seventy members out of ninety-two 

 were present. Messrs. Scott, Tyler, Prior, 

 Bocock, Mason, and Preston were absent. The 

 President's Message was received and read, 

 and five thousand copies ordered to be printed. 

 (See PUBLIC DOCUMENTS.) Afterwards a secret 

 session commenced. A standing resolution re- 

 quired that all business relating to the public 

 defence should be discussed in secret session, 

 and although it did not extend to other sub- 

 jects, yet these were soon included. 



The report of the Secretary of "War stated 

 that one hundred and ninety-four regiments and 

 thirty-two battalions had then been accepted, 

 besides various detachments of artillery and 

 companies of cavalry not made into regiments. 

 He also recommended that Congress should 

 call forth and accept three hundred regiments, 

 in view of the immense additions to the forces 

 of the Federal Government. 



R. M. T. Hunter, of Virginia, was nominated 

 and confirmed as Secretary of State in place of 

 Robert Toombs, resigned. 



The principal business of the session was to 

 provide ways and means to sustain the opera- 

 tions of the Government. A disposition pre- 

 vailed to look in a considerable measure to the 

 action of the banks. (See FINANCES, U. S.) 

 This action, however, was somewhat embar- 

 rassed by the banks at New Orleans, which 

 continued to pay specie, as they otherwise 

 would forfeit their charters. The banks of 

 Mobile still continued to pay specie, although 

 not subject to such a penalty on suspension. 



An act was adopted which prescribed a uni- 

 form mode of taking, authenticating, and pre- 

 serving the evidence of the abduction or recep- 

 tion by the enemy, of slaves owned by any of 

 the Confederate States, as also of the age, sex, 

 and value of said slaves, to the end that indem- 

 nity might hereafter be exacted from the enemy. 



Another act was passed in relation to the 

 telegraph, which illustrates the degree of power 

 concentrated in the hands of the military lead- 

 ers, and shows the prudent surveillance exer- 

 cised by them over military matters. It was in 

 these words : 



" During the existing war the President is here- 

 by authorized and empowered to take such con- 

 trol of such of the lines of telegraph in the 

 Confederate States, and of such of the offices 

 connected therewith, as will enable him effect- 

 ually to supervise the communications passing 

 through the same, to the end that no communi- 

 cations shall be conveyed of the military opera- 

 tions of the Government to endanger the suc- 

 cess of such operations, nor any communication 

 calculated to injure the cause of the Confederate 

 States, or to give aid or comfort to their enemies. 



" The President shall appoint trustworthy 

 agents in such offices and at such points on the 

 various lines as he may think fit, whose duty it 

 shall be to supervise all communications sent 



or passing through said lines, and to prevent 

 the transmission of any communication deemed 

 to be detrimental to the public service. 



" In case the owners and managers of said 

 lines shall refuse to permit such supervision, 

 or shall fail or refuse to keep up and continue 

 the business on said lines, the President is here- 

 by empowered to take possession of the same 

 for the purposes aforesaid. 



" The President shall from time to time issue 

 instructions to the agents so appointed, and to 

 the operators of the various lines, to regulate 

 the transmission of communications touching 

 the operations of the Government, or calculated 

 to affect the public welfare. 



" No communication in cipher nor enigmatical 

 or other doubtful communication shall be trans- 

 mitted, unless the person sending the same shall 

 be known to the agent of the Government to be 

 trustworthy, nor until the real purport of such 

 communication shall be explained to such agent. 



" If any person shall knowingly send or trans- 

 mit any message or communication touching 

 the military operations of the Government, 

 without the same being first submitted to the 

 inspection of the agent of the Government, or 

 any message calculated to aid and promote the 

 cause of the enemies of the Confederate States, 

 he shall be subject to indictment in the District 

 Court of the Confederate States, and on con- 

 viction, shall be fined in a sum not less than 

 five hundred dollars and imprisoned for a term 

 not less than one year." 



An act was also passed relative to alien ene- 

 mies. It makes all citizens within the Confed- 

 eracy of any nation with which the Confeder- 

 ate States are at war, enemies who shall be 

 liable to be apprehended, restrained, or se- 

 cured, and removed as alien enemies, unless 

 steps are taken for naturalization. 



The official reports made the number of men 

 in the field at this time 210,000. Upon which 

 an act was passed further to provide for the 

 public defence, of which the following was the 

 first section : 



SEC. 1. The Convress of the Confederate States of 

 America do enact, 'that in order to provide additional 

 forces to repel invasion, maintain the rightful posses- 

 sion of the Confederate States of America, and to se- 

 cure the independence of the Confederate States, the 

 President be, and he is hereby, authorized to employ 

 the militia, military and naval forces of the Confed- 

 erate States of America, and to ask for and accept the 

 services of any number of volunteers, not exceeding 

 four hundred thousand, who may offer their services, 

 either as cavalry, mounted riflemen, artillery, or in- 

 fantry, in such proportions of these several arms as 

 he may deem expedient, to serve for a period of not 

 less than twelve months, nor more than three years 

 after they shall be mustered into service, unless sooner 

 discharged. 



The nomination of Gustave T. Beauregard 

 to the rank of General was made and confirmed 

 unanimously. This is the highest denomina- 

 tion known under the act organizing the army 

 of the Confederate States, passed May 16, 1861. 

 The commission was to bear date from July 21st, 

 the day of the battle at Manassas. This promotion 



