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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 --TUESDAY, September 23, 1862.
OPEN SESSION.
Mr. Hunter, from the Committee on Finance, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 12) authorizing the Secretary of the Treasury to offer a reward for the apprehension and conviction of persons engaged in forging or uttering counterfeit Confederate Treasury notes, reported it without amendment.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (H. R. 12) last mentioned; and no amendment being made, it was reported to the Senate.
Ordered, That it pass to a third reading.
The said bill was read the third time.
Resolved, That it pass.
Ordered, That the Secretary inform the House of Representatives thereof.
Mr. Sparrow, from the Committee on Military Affairs, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 13) to amend an act entitled "An act providing for the appointment of adjutants of regiments and legions, of the grade of subaltern, in addition to the subalterns attached to companies," approved August 31, 1861, reported it without amendment.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (H. R. 13) last mentioned; and no amendment being made, it was reported to the Senate.
Ordered, That it pass to a third reading.
The said bill was read the third time.
Resolved, That it pass.
Ordered, That the Secretary inform the House of Representatives thereof.
Mr. Sparrow, from the Committee on Military Affairs, reported
A bill (S. 97) to amend an act entitled "An act to provide for the public defense," approved 6th March, 1861;
which was read the first and second times and ordered to be placed upon the Calendar and printed.
Mr. Sparrow, from the Committee on Military Affairs, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 15) to provide for the filling up of existing
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companies, squadrons, battalions, and regiments of the Provisional Army of the Confederate States, reported it with an amendment by way of substitute therefor.
Mr. Hill, from the Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 14) to empower certain persons to administer oaths in certain cases, reported it without amendment.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (H. R. 14) last mentioned; and no amendment being made, it was reported to the Senate.
Ordered, That it pass to a third reading.
The said bill was read the third time.
Resolved, That it pass.
Ordered, That the Secretary inform the House of Representatives thereof.
A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Lamar:
Mr. President: The House of Representatives have passed bills and joint resolutions of the following titles, viz:
In which bills and joint resolutions they request the concurrence of the Senate.
The House of Representatives have passed Senate bills of the following titles, viz:
They have also passed a Senate bill of the following title, viz:
The Speaker of the House of Representatives having signed sundry enrolled bills, I am directed to bring them to the Senate for the signature of their President.
Mr. Hill, from the Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred a communication from the Secretary of the Treasury on the subject, reported
A bill (S. 98) for the prompt settlement of claims for arrearages of pay, commutation for clothing, and bounty due to deceased officers and soldiers of the Army of the Confederate States;
which was read the first and second times and considered as in Committee of the Whole; and having been amended on motion by Mr. Orr, by striking out the words "the same as the head of the quartermaster's division in said office," in the seventh and eighth lines, and inserting in lieu thereof the words "fifteen hundred dollars per annum," the bill was reported to the Senate and the amendment was concurred in.
Ordered, That it be engrossed and read a third time.
The said bill was read the third time.
Resolved, That it pass, and that the title thereof be as aforesaid.
Ordered, That the Secretary request the concurrence of the House of Representatives therein.
On motion by Mr. Hill,
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Ordered, That the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from the further consideration of the resolution inquiring into the propriety of so amending existing laws as to require all disbursing officers of the Government to execute a covenant, instead of a bond, with stipulated penalty.
On motion by Mr. Brown, that the Secretary be instructed to request the House of Representatives to return to the Senate the bill (S. 62) to exempt certain persons from military duty, and to repeal an act entitled "An act to exempt certain persons from enrollment for service in the Army of the Confederate States," approved 21st April, 1862,
It was determined in the negative.
On motion by Mr. Clay,
The Senate resolved into secret legislative session.
The doors having been opened,
The following message was received from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary:
Richmond, Va., September 22, 1862.
To the Senate and House of Representatives:
I herewith transmit for your consideration a communication from the Secretary of the Treasury, covering certain estimates.
I recommend an appropriation of the amounts and for the purposes specified.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
The message was read.
Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee on Finance.
The bill (H. R. 17) to provide for the payment of sums ascertained to be due for postal service to citizens of the Confederate States by the Postmaster-General, was read the first and second times and referred to the Committee on Finance.
The bill (H. R. 18) supplementary to an act concerning the pay and allowances due to deceased soldiers, approved February 15, 1862, and to provide for the prompt settlement of claims for arrearages of pay, allowances and bounty due to deceased officers and soldiers, was read the first and second times and considered as in Committee of the Whole.
On motion by Mr. Hill, to amend the bill by striking out of the third section the words "the same as the head of the quartermaster's division in said office" and inserting in lieu thereof the words "fifteen hundred dollars,"
It was determined in the affirmative.
No further amendment being made, the bill was reported to the Senate and the amendment was concurred in.
Ordered, That the amendment be engrossed and the bill read a third time.
The said bill was read the third time, as amended.
Resolved, That it pass, with an amendment.
Ordered, That the Secretary request the concurrence of the House of Representatives in the amendment.
The following joint resolutions were severally read the first and second times and referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs:
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On motion by Mr. Orr,
Ordered, That the vote on ordering the bill (S. 98) for the prompt settlement of claims for arrearages of pay, commutation for clothing, and bounty due to deceased officers and soldiers of the Army of the Confederate States, to be communicated to the House of Representatives, be reconsidered.
The said motion being again under consideration
On the question to agree thereto,
It was determined in the negative.
So the motion was rejected.
Mr. Orr submitted the following motion for consideration:
Ordered, That the vote on the passing of the bill (S. 98) last mentioned be reconsidered.
The Senate proceeded to consider the amendment proposed by the House of Representatives to the bill (S. 78) to determine the annual pay of the engineer in chief and passed assistant surgeons of the Navy; and
Resolved, That the Senate concur therein.
Ordered, That the Secretary inform the House of Representatives thereof.
On motion by Mr. Maxwell,
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the joint resolution (S. 15) for the relief of Walker Anderson; and no amendment being made, it was reported to the Senate.
Ordered, That it be engrossed and read a third time.
The said resolution was read the third time.
On the question,
Shall the resolution now pass?
The vote having been taken by yeas and nays, as required by the ninth clause of the ninth section of the first article of the Constitution,
Those who voted in the affirmative are,
Messrs. Baker, Burnett, Clay, Davis, Dortch, Haynes, Henry, Maxwell, Oldham, Peyton, Semmes, Sparrow, and Yancey.
Those who voted in the negative are,
Messrs. Clark, Hunter, Johnson, Lewis, Orr, Phelan, Preston, Simms, and Wigfall.
So it was
Resolved, That the resolution do not pass, two-thirds of the Senators present not agreeing thereto.
On motion by Mr. Maxwell,
Ordered, That Walker Anderson have leave to withdraw his memorial.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (H. R. 15) to provide for the filling up of existing companies, squadrons, battalions, and regiments of the Provisional Army of the Confederate States.
On the question to agree to the following reported amendment,
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Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:
That the President be, and he is hereby, authorized to call out and place in the military service of the Confederate States for three years, unless the war should have been sooner ended, all white men who are residents of the Confederate States, between the ages of thirty-five and forty-five years, at the time the call or calls may be made, and who are not, at such time or times, legally exempted from military service; such call or calls to be made under the provisions and according to the terms of the act to which this is an amendment: Provided, That nothing herein contained shall be understood as repealing or modifying any part of the act of which this is amendatory, except as herein expressly stated: And provided further, That those called out under this act, and the act to which this is an amendment, shall be first and immediately ordered to fill to their maximum numbers the companies, battalions, squadrons, and regiments from the respective States at the time the act to further provide for the public defense, approved sixteenth April, eighteen hundred and sixty-two, was passed; and the surplus, if any, shall be assigned to organizations formed from each State since the passage of that act, or placed in new organizations, or disposed of as now provided by law: Provided, That the President is authorized to suspend the execution of this act, or the act to which this is an amendment, or any special provision or provisions of said acts in any locality where he believes such suspension will promote the public interest,
Mr. Sparrow demanded the question; and
It appearing on a division of the Senate that they were equally divided on sustaining the call for the question,
The Secretary, under the thirtieth rule of the Senate, took the decision of the President, who voted in the negative.
So the question was not ordered.
On motion by Mr. Burnett, to amend the amendment reported from the Committee on Military Affairs, by adding thereto the following:
And that, in such localities, and during said suspension, the President is authorized to receive troops into the Confederate service, under any of the acts passed by the Confederate Congress, prior to the passage of the act to further provide for the public defense, approved sixteenth April, eighteen hundred and sixty-two,
Mr. Burnett demanded the question; which was seconded, and
The question being put,
Will the Senate agree to the amendment?
It was determined in the affirmative.
So the amendment was agreed to.
On motion by Mr. Phelan, to amend the amendment reported from the Committee on Military Affairs, by inserting after the word "amendment," line 17, the words
and such authority shall exist in the President during the present war, as to all persons who now are or may hereafter become eighteen years of age; and, when once enrolled, all persons between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years shall serve their full time,
Mr. Sparrow demanded the question; which was seconded, and
The question being put,
Will the Senate agree to the amendment?
It was determined in the affirmative.
So the amendment was agreed to.
On the question to agree to the amendment reported from the Committee on Military Affairs, as amended,
Mr. Sparrow demanded the question; which was seconded.
On motion by Mr. Haynes, that the vote on sustaining the call for the question be reconsidered,
It was determined in the negative.
A motion being made to amend the matter of the bill proposed to be stricken out, and the same being objected to,
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Mr. Orr raised the question whether it was not in order to amend any portion of the original text of the bill, which it was proposed to strike out, before the question on striking out was put to the Senate and a vote taken thereon.
The President decided that under parliamentary law it was in order to amend any matter proposed to be stricken out before a vote was taken on the motion to strike out; but that under the rules of the Senate, when the question had been demanded, and the demand sustained by a majority of the Senate, no motion to amend was in order.
From this decision Mr. Orr appealed; and
On the question,
Shall the decision of the Chair stand as the judgment of the Senate?
It was determined in the affirmative.
The question being then put,
Will the Senate agree to the amendment as amended?
On motion by Mr. Dortch,
The yeas and nays being desired by one-fifth of the Senators present,
Those who voted in the affirmative are,
Messrs. Baker, Burnett, Clark, Clay, Davis, Haynes, Henry, Hill, Hunter, Johnson, Maxwell, Mitchel, Phelan, Preston, Semmes, Simms, Sparrow, Wigfall, and Yancey.
Those who voted in the negative are,
Messrs. Dortch, Lewis, Oldham, Orr, and Peyton.
So the amendment as amended was agreed to.
No further amendment being made, the bill was reported to the Senate and the amendment was concurred in.
Ordered, That the amendment be engrossed and the bill read a third time.
The said bill was read the third time, as amended.
On the question,
Shall the bill now pass?
On motion by Mr. Oldham,
The yeas and nays being desired by one-fifth of the Senators present,
Those who voted in the affirmative are,
Messrs. Baker, Burnett, Clark, Clay, Davis, Dortch, Haynes, Henry, Hill, Hunter, Johnson, Maxwell, Mitchel, Peyton, Phelan, Preston, Semmes, Simms, Sparrow, Wigfall, and Yancey.
Those who voted in the negative are,
Messrs. Lewis, Oldham, and Orr.
So it was
Resolved, That the bill pass, with an amendment.
On motion by Mr. Sparrow, the title was amended to read "An act to amend an act entitled 'An act to provide further for the public defense,' approved sixteenth April, eighteen hundred and sixty-two."
Ordered, That the Secretary request the concurrence of the House of Representatives in the amendment.
On motion by Mr. Orr,
The Senate proceeded to the consideration of the bill (S. 73) to amend an act entitled "An act for the establishment and organization of a general staff for the Army of the Confederate States of America."
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On motion by Mr. Clark, to amend the bill by striking out all after the enacting clause and inserting
That hereafter the Quartermaster-General, the Commissary-General, the Chief of Ordnance of the Confederate States, and the chief officer of the Engineer Corps of the Army, shall have the rank, pay, and allowances of brigadier-generals,
After debate,
Mr. Haynes demanded the question; which was seconded, and
The question being put,
Will the Senate agree to the amendment?
It was determined in the negative.
So the amendment was rejected.
No further amendment being proposed, the bill was reported to the Senate.
On the question,
Shall the bill be engrossed and read a third time?
On motion by Mr. Clay,
The yeas and nays being desired by one-fifth of the Senators present,
Those who voted in the affirmative are,
Messrs. Baker, Burnett, Haynes, Henry, Hunter, Lewis, Maxwell, Mitchel, Oldham, Orr, Peyton, Phelan, Preston, Semmes, Sparrow, and Wigfall.
Those who voted in the negative are,
Messrs. Clark, Clay, Dortch, Hill, and Yancey.
So it was
Ordered, That the bill be engrossed and read a third time.
The said bill was read the third time.
Resolved, That it pass, and that the title thereof be as aforesaid.
Ordered, That the Secretary request the concurrence of the House of Representatives therein.
On motion by Mr. Clay,
The Senate resolved into executive session.
The doors having been opened,
The following message was received from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary:
Richmond, Va., September 23, 1862.
To the Senate and House of Representatives:
I herewith transmit for your consideration a communication from the Secretary of War, covering an estimate "to supply the deficiencies in the engineer appropriations for engineering purposes."
I recommend an appropriation of the amount and for the purposes specified.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
The message was read.
Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee on Finance.
Mr. Maxwell, from the committee, reported that they had examined and found truly enrolled bills of the following titles:
The President having signed the enrolled bills last reported to have been examined, they were delivered to the Secretary of the Senate, and
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by him forthwith presented to the President of the Confederate States for his approval.
Mr. Davis presented a memorial of citizens of Chatham County, N. C., praying for the establishment of a mail route; which was referred to the Committee on Post-Offices and Post-Roads.
On motion by Mr. Haynes,
The Senate adjourned until to-morrow morning at 11 o'clock.
SECRET SESSION.
Mr. Clay presented a memorial of Dr. J. B. Read, of Tuscaloosa, Ala., submitting a plan for the construction of a torpedo gunboat; which was referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs.
A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Lamar:
Mr. President: The President of the Confederate States, on the 19th instant, approved and signed the following act:
On motion by Mr. Sparrow,
The Senate resolved into executive session.
EXECUTIVE SESSION.
The following message was received from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary:
To the President of the Senate of the Confederate States:
I nominate the persons named in the annexed letter of the Secretary of the Navy, agreeably to his recommendation.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
Confederate States of America, Navy Department,
Richmond, September 22, 1862.
The President.
Sir: I have the honor to recommend the following nominations for appointment in the Navy of the Confederate States:
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
S. R. MALLORY
Secretary of the Navy.
The message was read.
Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs.
Mr. Sparrow, from the Committee on Military Affairs, to whom was referred (on the 19th instant) the nomination of John Dunwody to be an assistant adjutant-general, with the rank of major, reported, with the recommendation that said nomination be not confirmed.
The Senate proceeded to the consideration of said report; and
After debate, it was
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Resolved, That the Senate do not advise and consent to the appointment of John Dunwody to be an assistant adjutant-general, with the rank of major.
The Senate proceeded to the consideration of the resolution defining the meaning of the first clause of the sixth article of the Constitution; which was agreed to, as follows:
Resolved, That the Senate, in response to the executive message transmitted on the twelfth instant, do advise the President that it is intended by the first clause of the sixth article of the Constitution that the officers of the Regular or Provisional Army or of the Navy, appointed during the existence of the Provisional Government and confirmed by the Congress, should be renominated and confirmed by the Senate, or other persons to succeed them should be nominated and confirmed.
Mr. Yancey submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:
Resolved by the Senate, That the President be requested, in making nominations to offices in the Navy, that the rank and date of the commission of the nominee be stated, and also the rank and date of the commission and names of such officers in the Navy as may be superseded by said nomination.
On motion by Mr. Clay,
The Senate resumed the consideration of the nomination of D. R. Jones as major-general.
After debate,
On motion by Mr. Haynes,
Resolved, That the further consideration of said nomination be postponed.
The following message was received from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary:
Richmond, September 23, 1862.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
I nominate Douglas H. Cooper to be Superintendent of Indian Affairs, agreeably to the recommendation of the Secretary of War.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
Confederate States of America, War Department,
Richmond, September 20, 1862.
His Excellency Jefferson Davis,
President, C. S. A.
Sir: I have the honor to nominate Gen. Douglas H. Cooper as Superintendent of Indian Affairs.
General Cooper has been nominated as a brigadier-general, but the Department having since been informed that he would probably accept the office of superintendent desires to avail itself of his experience in Indian affairs, should he prefer that position.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
GEO. W. RANDOLPH,
Secretary of War.
The message was read.
Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
The following message was received from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary:
Richmond, September 23, 1862.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
I herewith transmit for your information two communications from the Secretary of State, in answer to your resolutions of the 9th and 12th instant, respectively.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
The message was read.
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Ordered, That the message and accompanying documents be referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs.
On motion by Mr. Clay,
The Senate resolved into open legislative session.
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