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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, June 11, 1864.
OPEN SESSION.
A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Dalton:
Mr. President: The House of Representatives agree to the resolution of the Senate extending the time for the adjournment of the present session of Congress to Tuesday, the 14th instant.
The President pro tempore laid before the Senate a communication from the Secretary of the Treasury, transmitting, in conformity with an act of Congress, a list of certificates filed in that Department for increased compensation of officers and employees in the various Executive Departments who are liable to perform military duty; which was read.
Ordered, That it lie upon the table.
Mr. Barnwell, from the Committee on Finance, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 155) in relation to the pay of clerks in the office of the depositary, reported it without amendment.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the said bill; and no amendment being proposed, 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. Barnwell, from the Committee on Finance, to whom was referred the joint resolution (H. R. 14) explanatory of the act to increase the compensation of certain civil officers and employees in the President's office and in the executive and legislative departments at Richmond for a limited period, approved January 30, 1864, reported it with the recommendation that it ought not to pass.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the said resolution; and no amendment being proposed, it was reported to the Senate.
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On the question,
Shall the resolution be read a third time?
It was determined in the negative.
So the resolution was rejected.
Ordered, That the Secretary inform the House of Representatives thereof.
Mr. Burnett, from the Committee on Claims, to whom was referred the bill (S. 47) to facilitate the settlement of the claims of deceased soldiers, reported it with the recommendation that it ought not to pass.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (S. 80) to extend the provisions of an act entitled "An act to provide for the appointment of officers with temporary rank and command" to officers of and below the grade of colonel; and no amendment being proposed, it was reported to the Senate.
On the question,
Shall the bill be engrossed and read a third time?
It was determined in the negative.
So the bill was rejected.
On motion by Mr. Henry,
Ordered, That the Hon. Landon C. Haynes have leave of absence from the sessions of the Senate during the remainder of the present session.
Mr. Semmes (by leave) introduced
A bill (S. 81) in relation to general officers heretofore appointed; which was read the first and second times and considered as in Committee of the Whole.
On motion by Mr. Oldham, that the bill be referred to the Committee on Military Affairs,
It was determined in the negative.
No amendment being proposed, the bill was reported to the Senate.
Ordered, That it be engrossed and read a third time.
The said bill was read the third time.
On the question,
Shall the bill now pass?
It was determined in the negative.
So it was
Resolved, That the bill do not pass.
The Senate resumed, as in Committee of the Whole, the consideration of the bill (S. 36) to provide for the impressment of the railroad iron, equipments, and rolling stock of railroads when the same shall become necessary for the public defense, and to make further provisions for the efficient transportation of troops and military supplies.
On the question to agree to the motion submitted by Mr. Graham on the 4th instant, that the further consideration of the bill be postponed indefinitely,
On motion by Mr. Graham,
The yeas and nays being desired by one-fifth of the Senators present,
Those who voted in the affirmative are,
Messrs. Baker, Graham, Oldham, and Walker.
Those who voted in the negative are,
Messrs. Barnwell, Burnett, Henry, Hunter, Jemison, Johnson of Missouri, Mitchel, Orr, Semmes, Simms, Sparrow, and Watson.
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No amendment being proposed, the bill was reported to the Senate.
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.
The Senate resumed the consideration of the bill (S. 64) to provide for the establishment of a bureau, of polytechnics for the examination, experiment, and application of warlike inventions.
On the question,
Shall the bill now pass?
On motion by Mr. Graham,
The yeas and nays being desired by one-fifth of the Senators present,
Those who voted in the affirmative are,
Messrs. Burnett, Henry, Johnson of Missouri, Oldham, Simms, Sparrow, and Wigfall.
Those who voted in the negative are,
Messrs. Baker, Barnwell, Graham, Hill, Hunter, Jemison, Orr, Semmes, Walker, and Watson.
So it was
Resolved, That the bill do not pass.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (S. 18) to repeal an act entitled "An act to provide a staff and clerical force for any general who may be assigned by the President to duty at the seat of government;" and
On motion by Mr. Henry,
Ordered, That it lie upon the table.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (H. R. 90) to authorize the President to confer temporary rank and command upon officers of the Provisional Army who may be assigned for special service; and
On motion by Mr. Sparrow,
Ordered, That the further consideration thereof be postponed indefinitely.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (S. 1) to provide and organize a general staff for armies in the field, to serve during the war; and the reported amendments having been agreed to, the bill was reported to the Senate and the amendments were concurred in.
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.
A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Dalton:
Mr. President: The House of Representatives insist on their disagreement to certain amendments of the Senate to the bill (H. R. 107) to amend the tax laws, and on their amendments to other amendments of the Senate to the said bill; they agree to the conference asked by the Senate on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses, and have appointed Mr. Lyon, Mr. Colyar, Mr. Gholson, Mr. Chambers, and Mr. Hilton managers at the same on their part.
The House of Representatives insist upon their amendments to the amendments of the Senate to the bill (H. R. 138) to increase the compensation of the heads of the
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several Executive Departments and the Assistant Secretary of War and the Treasury; ask a conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses thereon, and have appointed Mr. Barksdale, Mr. Gaither, and Mr. E. M. Bruce managers at the same on their part.
The Senate proceeded to consider the amendments of the House of Representatives, insisted on by the House, to the amendments of the Senate to the bill (H. R. 138) last mentioned; and
On motion by Mr. Graham,
Resolved, That the Senate insist on their disagreement to the amendments of the House of Representatives to their amendments to the said bill, and agree to the conference asked by the House of Representatives on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses thereon.
On motion by Mr. Graham,
Ordered, That the committee of conference on the part of the Senate be appointed by the President pro tempore; and
Mr. Graham, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, and Mr. Burnett were appointed.
Ordered, That the Secretary inform the House of Representatives thereof.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (H. R. 146) to amend an act entitled "An act regulating the granting of furloughs and discharges in hospitals," approved May 1, 1863; and no amendment being proposed, it was reported to the Senate.
On the question,
Shall the bill be read a third time?
It was determined in the negative.
So the bill was rejected.
Ordered, That the Secretary inform the House of Representatives thereof.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (S. 56) to authorize the appointment of graduates of military institutions as cadets in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America; and no amendment being proposed, it was reported to the Senate.
On the question,
Shall the bill be engrossed and read a third time?
It was determined in the negative.
So the bill was rejected.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the bill (S. 54) to organize the light artillery of the Confederate States of America; and no amendment being proposed, it was reported to the Senate.
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.
The Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to the consideration of the joint resolution (H. R. 12) to impose certain additional duties on the Quartermaster-General.
On motion by Mr. Barnwell, that the resolution be transferred to the Secret Legislative Calendar,
It was determined in the negative.
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On motion by Mr. Hill,
Ordered, That it lie upon the table.
A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Dalton:
Mr. President: The House of Representatives have passed the joint resolution of the Senate (S. 14) for the relief of James Lyons.
A message from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary:
Mr. President: The President of the Confederate States, yesterday, approved and signed the following acts:
Ordered, That the Secretary inform the House of Representatives thereof.
Mr. Orr submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:
Resolved, That the Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate be, and he is hereby, authorized to pay, out of the contingent fund of the Senate, such bills as may be presented by various newspapers for publishing the advertisement of the committee of the Senate authorized to make contracts for publishing the debates of the Senate, and ordered to be published by said committee.
The following message was received from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary:
To the Senate of the Confederate States of America:
I return to the Senate, in which it originated, the joint resolution directing "the settlement of the claim of Zedekiah McDaniel and Francis M. Ewing, for destroying the Federal gunboat Cairo by means of a torpedo," with the objections which induce me to withhold my approval.
The character of this claim may be thus briefly stated: Z. McDaniel and F. M. Ewing were appointed acting masters in the Navy in August, 1862. Their letters of appointment stated that they were "appointed for special service on submarine batteries," and ordered them to report to Flag Officer William F. Lynch at Jackson, Miss.
Submarine batteries were at that time the subject of device and experiment for river and harbor defenses, and these gentlemen were recommended as well qualified for such service--McDaniel as having been engaged a short time in preparing torpedoes, and Ewing as being enterprising and bold. In accepting their appointments it appears that they did not allege that they had invented or contrived a torpedo, nor were they appointed to use specially any one of the numerous devices, more or less ingenious, which had been suggested and brought to the notice of the Government.
They reported in obedience to orders and entered upon the duty of placing torpedoes in the Yazoo River under the immediate command of Commander Isaac N. Brown, and the gunboat Cairo was destroyed on the 14th December, 1862, by a torpedo placed by them in company with others.
In March, 1863, McDaniel and Ewing for the first time apprised the Department that they claimed a reward for this service on the ground that the torpedo which exploded under the Cairo was invented by them. The claim was based on the provisions of three acts of Congress: First, an act recognizing the existence of war between the United States and the Confederate States, and concerning letters of marque, prizes and prize goods, No. 106, approved May 6, 1861; second, an act amendatory of the foregoing, No. 170, approved May 21, 1861; third, an act amendatory of this last-mentioned law, approved April 21, 1862.
The second section of the act No. 170, above cited, secures to the inventor of "any new kind of armed vessel or floating battery or defense" certain rewards and privileges upon the condition that "he shall deposit a plan of the same accompanied by suitable explanations or specifications in the Navy Department, together with an affidavit setting forth that he is the inventor thereof." This deposit and affidavit are prerequisite to any exclusive rights in favor of the inventor and a reservation is made specially in favor of the Government of "the right of using such invention in all cases."
The very basis of the claim of these parties was the originality of their invention. The joint resolution under consideration recites that a board of naval officers have reported that the Cairo was destroyed "by means of a torpedo invented and used by
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them (McDaniel and Ewing) in the Yazoo River in 1862." This is an error, no board of officers of the Navy having ever investigated or reported on this point. The description given of the torpedo by Commander Brown is on record, and does not justify the claim of original invention made by these parties. It represents the torpedo to have consisted of two demijohns connected together, filled with gunpowder, and exploded by means of the ordinary friction primer. The letter of Commander Brown further declares that other parties rendered "most material aid in the destruction of this vessel and are justly entitled to much of the credit of the success."
Independently of this objection to the claim, the legislation above recited seemed to be conclusive against it. The policy of the law plainly provided that inventors should have the exclusive privilege of their inventions and should be entitled to the rewards promised them only on condition that they should file in the Navy Department such a description of their invention as would enable the Government to render available the right of using the invention which it had reserved for itself. In the present east the Government was deprived of its right to use the alleged invention by the failure, of the claimants to give the description or file the proper papers in the Department till May, 1863, or about five months after the destruction of the Cairo. The high bounty of fifty per centum, the largest, it is believed, ever allowed for similar service, was granted by Congress according to the act of April 21, 1862, and it may be reasonably assured that, such extraordinary bounty was partly in consideration for this right expressly reserved to the country.
Upon these grounds and especially upon the important principle to which reference will he subsequently made, the Secretary of the Navy rejected the claim of McDaniel and Ewing, who appealed to the Executive from his decision. The views of the head of the Navy Department were sustained, and application was then made to Congress which afforded the claimants a fresh tribunal by directing the Secretary of the Treasury to adjust their claim. The joint resolution directing this reference was passed in February last, and the Secretary made a report to Congress at its present session stating the value of the vessel and armament destroyed, but also stating that no investigation had been made of the merits of the claim or the originality of the invention. The naval board called together at the request of the Secretary of the Treasury performed no ether duty than estimating the value, but did not (nor could they under the joint resolution) act as a tribunal for the examination of the other questions involved in the claim.
My objections to the present joint resolution are:
So far as is known to the Government all the means, the materials, the expenditures of the torpedo service in the Yazoo River, including the pay and allowances of these claimants, were at the charge of the Government, and the service was performed under the control of a Navy officer of superior rank; nor was the sanction of any officer of the Government asked or given that these claimants should conduct torpedo experiments at public expense, without risk of time, labor, or capital of their own, and with the right to large reward in the event of success.
No public officer charged with a special duty for which he is paid, and the means of performing which are also paid for by the Government, can be allowed to claim a reward for the performance of his duty without evils of the greatest character to the public service.
Large numbers of army and navy officers have been employed in torpedo service and submarine defenses. Scarcely one has failed to suggest and essay new devices and combinations, many of which have proved successful. Numerous vessels have been destroyed, but the claim now under consideration is the only one that has been presented to the attention of the Government. None of the other officers seem to have imagined that it was not their duty to devote all their mind, talent, and inventive faculties in performing the service to which they were assigned without any
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other pecuniary reward than the pay and allowances accorded by law to other officers of the same grade. If the present joint resolution should give sanction to the opposite view of the duty of an officer, it is easy to perceive how injuriously it will affect the service. It is less easy to estimate the amount of the claims on the Treasury that would thus be sanctioned.
If these claimants are to be rewarded for the destruction of the Cairo, why are they to receive the whole sum allowed by the law? There seems no ground for excluding the others who aided in the enterprise and who in the language of Commander Brown "rendered most material aid and are justly entitled to much of the credit of the success."
My examination of the legislation leads me to a view of the policy of Congress quite different from that which would be implied by the passage of this joint resolution. The three acts above recited seem to me clearly to indicate a desire to encourage private enterprise and to stimulate the investment of private means in the effort to destroy the armed ships of the enemy by awarding a reward (originally of twenty per centum, afterwards increased to fifty per centum) to private armed vessels and to private individuals operating at their own-expense with torpedoes or other devices for the public defense. They do not seem to me to have contemplated offering the same rewards to the officers and seamen of the Navy, paid and maintained at public expense, for doing their duty in waging war on the vessels of the enemy on the high seas or in rivers and harbors.
I have deemed this full explanation of the facts and law of this case due to Congress as justifying the refusal to sign what is apparently an unimportant bill for the relief of private claimants, but is in reality the sanction of a principle deemed unsound and pernicious, involving in its consequences injury to the public service and heavy demands on the public Treasury.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
Richmond, Va., June 11, 1864.
The message was read.
The Senate proceeded to reconsider the joint resolution (S. 8) returned by the President with his objections; which resolution is in the following words:
Joint resolution directing the settlement of the claim of Zedekiah McDaniel and Francis M. Ewing, for destroying the Federal gunboat Cairo by means of a torpedo.
Resolved by the Congress of the Co,federate States of America, That the Secretary of the Treasury be, and is hereby, authorized and required to issue to Zedekiah McDaniel, of Kentucky, and Francis M. Ewing, of Mississippi, the sum of seventy-six thousand seven hundred and twenty-six dollars and thirty cents, in Confederate States eight per cent bonds; that being one-half of the value of the Federal gunboat Cairo destroyed by them by means of a torpedo invented and used by them on the Yazoo River, in the year eighteen hundred and sixty-two, as reported by a board of naval officers appointed to ascertain the value of said boat, together with her armament, etc., etc.
I certify that this resolution originated in the Senate.
JAMES H. NASH, Secretary.
On motion by Mr. Brown,
Ordered, That the further consideration of the resolution be postponed until Monday next.
On motion by Mr. Walker,
The Senate resolved into executive session.
The doors having been opened,
The hour of half past 3 o'clock having arrived,
The Senate took a recess until 8 o'clock p. m.
8 O'CLOCK P. M.
On motion by Mr. Orr,
The Senate adjourned.
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EXECUTIVE SESSION.
The following messages were received from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary:
Executive Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 10, 1864.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
Agreeably to the recommendation of the Secretary of War, I nominate the officers on the accompanying list to the rank affixed to their names, respectively.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
No. 33]War Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 3, 1864.
Sir: I have the honor to recommend the following nominations for appointment in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America:
I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES A. SEDDON,
Secretary of War.
To His Excellency Jefferson Davis,
President, etc.
Executive Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 11, 1864.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
Agreeably to the recommendation of the Secretary of War, I nominate W. S. Griffin, of Texas, to be commissary, with rank of major in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
War Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 3, 1864.
Sir: I have the honor to recommend the nomination of W. S. Griffin, of Texas, to be commissary, with rank of major in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States, for duty with brigade under the command of Brig. Gen. C. J. Polignac, to rank from February 19, 1864.
I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES A. SEDDON,
Secretary of War.
To His Excellency Jefferson Davis,
President, etc.
Executive Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 11, 1864.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
Agreeably to the recommendation of the Secretary of War, I nominate Thomas C. Dupree, of Arkansas, to be an assistant quartermaster in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America, with the rank of captain, for duty with Second Arkansas Regiment Cavalry.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
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War Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 8, 1864.
Sir: I have the honor to recommend the nomination of Thomas C. Dupree, of Arkansas, to be an assistant quartermaster, with the rank of captain, in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America, for duty with Second Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, to date from November 18, 1862.
I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES A. SEDDON,
Secretary of War.
To His Excellency Jefferson Davis.
President, etc.
Executive Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 11, 1864.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
Agreeably to the recommendation of the Secretary of War, I nominate John B. Sydnor, of Texas, to be an assistant commissary, with rank of captain in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States, for post duty at Rusk, Cherokee County, Tex.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
War Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 8, 1864.
Sir: I have the honor to recommend the nomination of John B. Sydnor, of Texas, to be all assistant commissary, with the rank of captain in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America, for post duty at Rusk, Cherokee County, Tex., to rank from May 2, 1864.
I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES A. SEDDON,
Secretary of War.
To His Excellency Jefferson Davis,
President, etc.
Executive Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 10, 1864.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
Agreeably to the recommendation of the Secretary of War, I nominate the officers on the accompanying list to be assistant quartermasters, with rank of captain in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
No. 34.]War Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 4, 1864.
Sir: I have the honor to recommend the following nominations for appointment in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America:
I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES A. SEDDON,
Secretary of War.
To His Excellency Jefferson Davis,
President, etc.
Executive Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 11, 1864.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
Agreeably to the recommendation of the Secretary of War, I nominate Capt. C. I. Walker, of South Carolina, to be lieutenant-colonel of the Tenth South Carolina Regiment in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
War Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 11, 1864.
Sir: I have the honor to recommend the nomination of Capt. C. I. Walker, of South Carolina, to be lieutenant-colonel of the Tenth South Carolina Regiment in the
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Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America, vice Lieutenant-Colonel Percher, killed, the officers entitled to promotion waving their claims, to rank from June 11, 1864.
I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES A. SEDDON,
Secretary of War.
To His Excellency Jefferson Davis,
President, etc.
Executive Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 11, 1864.
To the Senate of the Confederate States:
Agreeably to the recommendation of the Secretary of War, I nominate the officers on the accompanying list to the grades affixed to their names, respectively.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
War Department, Confederate States of America,
Richmond, June 11, 1864.
Sir: I have the honor to recommend the following nominations for appointment in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States of America:
I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES A. SEDDON,
Secretary of War.
To His Excellency Jefferson Davis,
President, etc.
The messages were read.
Ordered, That they be referred to the Committee on Military Affairs.
On motion by Mr. Brown,
The Senate resolved into open legislative session.
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