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A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875
Journal of the Confederate Congress --SATURDAY, February 9, 1861.
OPEN SESSION.
Congress met pursuant to adjournment.
An appropriate prayer was offered up by the Rev. Dr. Basil Manly.
The Chair announced that the first business in order was the administration of the oath to the deputies to support the Constitution of the Provisional Government.
Whereupon, Judge Richard W. Walker, of the supreme court of the State of Alabama, administered the oath to the President and the President administered the oath to the members of the Congress.
The oath thus taken was as follows:
You do solemnly swear that you will support the Constitution for the Provisional Government of the Confederate States of America, so help you God.
At the suggestion of Mr. Memminger, while the oath was being administered all the members stood upon their feet.
On the call of the different States, Mr. Memminger presented to the Congress from the ladies of South Carolina a model for the flag of
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the Confederate States of America; also another model from a gentleman of the city of Charleston, and accompanied the presentation of the same with appropriate and explanatory remarks:
Mr. Miles moved the following:
That a committee, consisting of one from each State, be appointed to take into consideration the adoption of a flag for the Confederate States of America;
which was agreed to, and the following committee appointed: From Alabama, Mr. Shorter; from Florida, Mr. Morton; from Georgia, Mr. Bartow; from Louisiana, Mr. Sparrow; from Mississippi, Mr. Harrison; and from South Carolina, Mr. Miles.
Mr. Stephens offered the following resolution:
Resolved, That the President proceed to appoint the following standing committees, to consist of five members each:
The Congress then proceeded to the election of a President and a Vice-President for the Provisional Government.
Mr. Curry moved that two tellers be appointed to conduct said election; which was agreed to.
Whereupon, the President appointed Mr. Curry and Mr. Miles as tellers.
The vote being taken by States for President, the Hon. Jefferson Davis, of Mississippi, received all the votes cast, being 6, and was duly declared unanimously elected President of the Provisional Government.
On motion of Mr. Toombs, a committee of three was appointed to inform Mr. Davis of his election.
Whereupon, the President appointed Mr. Toombs, Mr. Rhett, and Mr. Morton.
The vote was then taken by States for Vice-President, and the Hon. Alexander Hamilton Stephens, of Georgia, received all the votes cast, being 6, and he was duly declared unanimously elected Vice-President of the Provisional Government.
Mr. Perkins moved that a committee of three be appointed to inform Mr. Stephens of his electron; which was agreed to, and the President appointed Mr. Perkins, Mr. Harris, and Mr. Shorter.
Congress then adjourned till Monday next at 11 o'clock.
SECRET SESSION.
Congress having gone into secret session,
Mr. Rhett moved the following:
Resolved, That the injunction of secrecy upon the proceedings for framing the Constitution for the Provisional Government is removed, so far as to permit the Delegates of any State to explain to their own conventions in secret sessions the reasons for their action
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which was read the first and second times, engrossed, and read a third time, and agreed to.
On motion of Mr. Toombs, it was agreed to go into the election of a President and Vice-President for the Provisional Government.
Mr. Barry moved that the election be conducted with open doors and that no nominations for either President or Vice-President be made; which was agreed to.
On motion of Mr. Bartow, it was ordered that only the galleries be open to the public, except as to those who are privileged to the floor in open sessions; which was agreed to.
After the election of a President and Vice-President, and the Congress having again gone into secret session,
The resolution of Mr. Rhett, which was number 2 on the Calendar, was then taken up, it being in the words following:
Resolved, That a committee consisting of two from each State to be nominated by the Delegates from the States, shall be appointed to take into consideration and report to this convention a constitution for a permanent government of the States represented in this convention;
which, after receiving three several readings, was adopted.
Mr. Memminger offered the following resolution:
Resolved, That the committee on finance be instructed to report as soon as possible a tariff for raising revenue for the support of the Government;
which was agreed to.
Mr. Harris introduced the following bill:
A bill to be entitled "An act to continue in force certain laws of the United States of America."a
[Note a: a The words in brackets appear in the original draft of the bill on file in the War Department.]
Be it enacted by the Congress of the Confederate States of America, That [all] the laws of the United States of America in force and in use [in these Confederate States] on the first day of November [last], and not inconsistent with the Constitution, be, and the same are hereby, continued in force until repealed or altered by the Congress;
which, after having been read a second time, was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading; and
On the passage of the bill, the vote being taken by States, there were five yeas and one nay, the States voting as follows:
Yea: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi.
Nay: South Carolina.
Mr. Cobb offered the following resolutions.
(1) Resolved, That a committee of three be appointed from the members of this Congress, representing the State of Alabama, who shall inquire and report to this body upon what terms suitable buildings in the city of Montgomery can be procured for the use of the several executive departments of this Confederacy, under the Provisional Government.
(2) Resolved, That the same committee be charged with the duty of estimating and reporting to Congress the necessary expenses for fitting and furnishing such apartments for the official business of such departments;
which were, after the necessary readings, agreed to, and Mr. Shorter, Mr. Chilton, and Mr. McRae were appointed as the committee.
Mr. Fearn offered the following resolution:
Resolved, That a committee consisting of two members from each State be appointed to draft an address making known to the world the motives which have constrained the people of the Confederate States of America to adopt the course they have taken and to declare the motives and objects had in view in the establishment of this Confederacy;
which was lost.
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The committee raised by Mr. Rhett's resolution, viz, on a constitution for a permanent government was then announced: Alabama, Mr. Walker and Mr. Smith; Florida, Mr. Morton and Mr. Owens; Georgia, Mr. Toombs and Mr. T. R. R. Cobb; Louisiana, Mr. De Clouet and Mr. Sparrow; Mississippi, Mr. Clayton and Mr. Harris; and South Carolina, Mr. Rhett and Mr. Chesnut.
Mr. Miles offered the following resolution:
Resolved, That the committee raised to report a plan for a flag for the Confederate States of America be also instructed to report a device for a great seal of State and also arms and a motto for the Confederacy;
which, after being read the necessary times, was agreed to, and the injunction of secrecy thereon was ordered to be removed.
On motion of Mr. Harris, the injunction of secrecy was removed from the bill which he introduced and was passed.
On motion of Mr. Rhett, the injunction of secrecy was removed from the resolution offered by Mr. Memminger and adopted.
Mr. Cobb moved that the injunction of secrecy be also removed from the resolutions he introduced; which was agreed to.
Then,
On motion of Mr. Chesnut,
The Congress adjourned until next Monday.
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