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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, December 17, 1864.
OPEN SESSION.
A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Dalton:
Mr. President: The House of Representatives have passed a bill (H. R. 283) to amend an act entitled "An act providing for the establishment and payment of claims for a certain description of property taken or informally impressed for the use of the Army," approved June 14, 1864; in which they request the concurrence of the Senate.
The President of the Confederate States has notified the House of Representatives that on the 13th instant he approved and signed an act (H. R. 190) concerning the emoluments and pay of the clerk of the district court of the Confederate States of America for the eastern district of Virginia.
And that on the 15th instant he approved and signed an act (H. R. 270) to provide for the printing ordered by either House of Congress.
A message having been received from the President of the Confederate States, by Mr. B. N. Harrison, his Secretary, in response to a resolution of the Senate of the 5th instant, calling upon the President
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for certain information in regard to the operation, under the regulations made by the Government, of the act to impose regulations upon the foreign commerce of the Confederate States to provide for the public defense, approved 6th February, 1864;
Before the reading of the message,
On motion by Mr. Graham,
Ordered, That it be transferred to the Secret Legislative Calendar.
On motion by Mr. Hill.
The Senate resolved into secret legislative session.
The doors having been opened,
The President laid before the Senate a communication from the Secretary of the Treasury, asking the passage of a law authorizing him to redeem and cancel, before maturity, such bonds and notes as may be received in payment of sequestrated property; which was read.
Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee on Finance.
Mr. Brown, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, reported
A bill (S. 141) to increase the pay of noncommissioned officers, privates, and musicians of the Marine Corps; which was read the first and second times and ordered to be placed upon the Calendar.
Mr. Brown, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, reported the following bills; which were severally read the first and second times and ordered to be placed upon the Calendar and printed:
Mr. Brown, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, reported
A bill (S. 146) making an appropriation for the removal and erection of the naval ropewalk;
which was read the first and second times and considered as in Committee of the Whole; 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.
On motion by Mr. Brown,
Ordered, That the Committee on Naval Affairs be discharged from the further consideration of the memorial of professors in the Confederate States Naval School.
Mr. Barnwell, from the Committee on Finance, reported
A bill (S. 147) to provide for the transfer of certain appropriations; which was read the first and second times and considered as in Committee of the Whole; 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.
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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. Barnwell,
Ordered, That the Committee on Finance be discharged from the further consideration of the following subjects:
Memorial of J. S. Whitten; and
Resolution inquiring into the expediency of extending to nonresident taxpayers in counties and districts of country now, or which may hereafter be, in the vicinity of the enemy, a longer time than is now allowed by law for the payment of taxes, etc.
The bill (H. R. 283) received this day from the House of Representatives for concurrence was read the first and second times and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
On motion by Mr. Maxwell,
The Senate adjourned.
SECRET SESSION.
The Senate resumed, as in Committee of the Whole, the consideration of the bill (H. R. 267) to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus in certain cases for a limited time; and
On motion by Mr. Walker,
Ordered, That the further consideration thereof be postponed until Monday next.
Mr. Brown, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, who were instructed by a resolution of the Senate to inquire into the expediency of suspending appropriations for the construction of vessels of war, and of limiting the operations of the Naval Department during the war, submitted the following resolution for consideration:
Resolved, That it would be unwise, at this time, to suspend the appropriations for the construction of vessels of war, or to restrict the operations of the Navy Department within narrower limits than they are at present.
The following message, received this day from the President of the Confederate States, in open legislative session, having been read:
To the Senate of the Confederate States of America:
I herewith transmit to the Senate the reports made by the heads of the Treasury and War Departments in response to the resolutions of the Senate of the 5th instant, making various inquiries relative to the subjects embraced in the act of 6th February, 1864, entitled "An act to impose regulations upon the foreign commerce of the Confederate States to provide for the public defense."
The importance of this subject induces me to present at some length to the Senate my views upon the policy of the law, and upon its effects as developed by experience.
The first section of the law (which was passed at the fourth session of the First Congress, and was the expression of its matured judgment) prohibits the exportation of the principal products of the Confederate States except under uniform regulations; and the reason for this prohibition is expressed in the preamble to be this: "That the condition of the contest demands that the Confederate States should call into requisition whatever resources of men and money they have for the support of their cause."
The fifth section of the Jaw indicated that the purpose of eCongress, in granting power to allow or refuse permission to export the produce of our country, was to enforce a return, in whole or in part, of the value of the produce exported, "in military or other supplies for the public service." But a full understanding of the policy of your predecessors can be attained only by taking into consideration another act passed on the same day and entitled "An act to prohibit the importation of luxuries, or of articles not necessaries or of common use." This last-mentioned act absolutely prohibited, during the pending war, the importation of any articles not necessary for
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the defense and subsistence of the country, and among those excluded from importation were wines, spirits, jewelry, cigars, and all the finer fabrics of cotton, flax, wool, or silk, as well as all other merchandise serving only for the indulgence of luxurious habits.
In a word, the two acts were an exercise of the power to regulate commerce, so as to make it subservient to the success of our struggle, by prohibiting the importation or exportation of merchandise or produce, for any other purpose than national defense and necessary subsistence, until these vital objects should be placed beyond the reach of danger. The two laws form one common system, and they should be so regarded in discussing the propriety of the repeal or modification of either.
When signing my approval of these acts, I considered them as measures eminently wise and proper, and as well adapted to remedy existing evils. Complaints were rife through our country that its foreign commerce was almost exclusively in the hands of aliens; that our cotton, tobacco, and naval stores were being drained from the States, and that we were receiving in return cargoes of liquors, wines, and articles of luxury; that the imported goods being held in few hands and in limited quantities, were sold at prices so exorbitant that the blockade runners, after purchasing fresh cargoes of cotton, still retained large sums in Confederate money, which they invested in gold for exportation and in foreign exchange; and that the whole course of the trade had a direct tendency to impoverish our country, demoralize our people, depreciate our currency, and enfeeble our defense. Congress believed these complaints well founded, and in that belief I fully concurred. None doubted that a remedy was desirable, and the present inquiries of the Senate seek information in relation to the efficacy of the remedy provided by the legislation then devised, as developed by actual experience.
My conviction is decided that the effect of the legislation has been salutary; that the evils existing prior to its adoption have been materially diminished; and that the repeal of the legislation, or any modification impairing its efficiency, would be calamitous. This opinion is shared by every Executive Department that has been intrusted with the execution of these laws and regulations, and thus enabled to form a judgment based on observation and experience.
The propriety and justice of a claim on the part of the Government that a share of all vessels engaged in the blockade trade should be held subject to its use for the benefit of the whole people was so obvious that even before the legislation of Congress few owners of vessels refused to place at its disposal one-third of the tonnage, both outward and inward, for the importation of supplies and the exportation of the produce necessary to pay for them. On the passage of these laws it was deemed proper to increase the demand of the Government to one-half. This decision was based not only on the consideration that the Government was burthened with the entire expense of defending the ports of entry, but on the further reason that the enormous gains of the commerce were monopolized by foreigners free to engage in commerce at their pleasure, while our citizens were engrossed in the sacred duty of defending their homes and liberties, and, therefore, unable to compete for the trade. It was foreseen that this increase would be resisted, and in a message on this subject addressed by me to the House of Representatives on the 10th of June last it is stated that "for some weeks after the adoption of these regulations strenuous efforts were made by parties interested in the business to induce a relaxation of the regulations. Many of the vessels remained unemployed on the allegation of the owners that the terms imposed by the regulations were so onerous as to render impossible the continuance of the business. The regulations remained unchanged, for I was satisfied from an examination of the subject that this complaint was unfounded, and that the withdrawal of the vessels was an experiment, by a combination among their owners, on the firmness of the Government. The result proved the correctness of this view; for, after various attempts to obtain increased advantages, the vessels resumed their voyages, their number has been largely increased, the ability to export produce and import supplies on Government account has been developed to a greater extent than had been anticipated, and the credit of the Government has been so improved in foreign markets that the quotations for its loan have rapidly advanced."
In the same message it was also stated that "among the efforts made to induce a change of the regulations was a warning given to officers of the Government that the owners of vessels could make better bargains with the governors of States than with the Confederate Government, and that, if the regulations were not relaxed in their favor, they would transfer their vessels to the executives of the several States, and thus withdraw them from the operations of the regulations."
Reverting now to the precise inquiries contained in the resolution of the Senate, I answer:
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in the act entitled "An act to impose regulations," etc., approved 6th February, 1864. Each State not only exports whatever it pleases, but the obligation imposed on private individuals to bring back into the country necessary supplies, equal in value to half of the produce exported, is not extended to the States. They are, in these respects, on a footing of absolute equality with the Confederate Government.
I am aware that complaints have been made of the effect of these regulations by the governors of some of the States; but their objections are, in my judgment, without just foundation.
It is not denied by any of them that when a State purchases a vessel it is left under the exclusive control of the State authorities, and that the Confederate Government claims no share of the outward or inward tonnage. It is also admitted that where the States purchase or charter any part of a vessel not exceeding one-half, the Confederate Government does not interfere with the enjoyment of the portion so purchased or chartered, and confines itself to exacting from the private owner the use of that half not conveyed to the State; but the complaint is that the Confederate Government will not further consent to yield, for the benefit of a single State, any part of that moiety of the tonnage of each vessel which it has secured under the regulations for the common use and benefit of all the States, of which it is the agent.
By the regulations, as now existing, half the tonnage of all vessels in the trade has been conveyed to the use of the Confederacy. Why should a single State be allowed to take for its separate use from the Confederacy, any part of this half? Is it not enough that the remaining half is left open for purchase or charter by the State?
It is plain that a State and the owner of a vessel can have no motive for contracting in such manner as to diminish the tonnage claimed by the Confederacy unless for a profit that is to be shared by both. Any concession, therefore, made on this point, is, in effect, the loss of an interest which is the common property of all the States, for the joint gain of a single State and of a private capitalist.
Again: The army in the field is the Army of the Confederacy, which is charged with the duty of supplying it with clothing, subsistence, and munitions of war. The performance of this duty demands the most strenuous exertions and the command of all the resources that can be reached. Any diminution of our command of those resources by a modification of the existing legislation might lead to disastrous consequences. Under our present arrangements, we are barely able to supply to our brave defenders a moderate share of those comforts which are indispensable to their efficiency. As long as privations are endured by all alike, there is a noble and patriotic emulation in the display of cheerful fortitude in enduring them. But if the common supply now distributed among all is diminished for the purpose of enabling any one State to add to the supplies furnished her own troops, the effect will be pernicious to an extent that can scarcely be appreciated in advance. I leave it to others to imagine the state of feeling which would ensue if the soldiers of the seaboard States were to be found amply supplied with all necessaries and comforts, standing side by side with the troops of interior States, who would be deprived of a part of what they now receive, in consequence of a diminution of our present means of providing for all alike. If, to this, it should be answered that the interior States could enjoy the same advantages as the seaboard States, by sending agents to the ports to represent them, thus placing all on an equal footing, the reply is obvious. The result would then be to bring all the States back to the same condition in which they now are; that is to say, each possessing its fair share of the advantages derived from the tonnage used by the Confederate Government.
It appears to me that any change in the present regulations, so as to affect the rights of the Confederate Government, must necessarily be either useless or mischievous--useless, if no advantage is to be gained by any one State over the others; mischievous in the extreme, if such an advantage is to be the effect of a change.
It has been suggested that there are many articles required by the people of the different States which can only be obtained through the aid of their governments, and that the efforts of the Confederate Government are confined exclusively to the supply of the needs of the Army. This is true. But one-half of all the tonnage of private owners remains open to employment by the States for the purpose suggested, though, perhaps, at somewhat greater cost than would be charged if they were permitted to use the portion reserved for the Confederacy; but I repeat that there is no justice apparent in the demand that all the States should sacrifice a common right for the profit of a single State, or in diminishing the necessary comforts of the soldier for the benefit of those who remain at home. It is also competent for each State to purchase vessels for its own use, or to purchase shares in common with one or more other States, for the introduction of supplies necessary for the people, without encroaching on the means used by the Confederacy for supplying the Army.
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Secretary of the Treasury gives such information as satisfactorily establishes the reverse to be the case. In addition to the statements made by him, derived from official returns, the Secretary of War reports that many new steamers are understood to be on the way to engage in the trade, notwithstanding the impression which prevails, that the stringency of the blockade is constantly increasing.
The number of vessels which arrived at two ports of the Confederacy between the 1st November and 6th December was forty-three, averaging more than one per day, and indicating no check in the trade. A further and conclusive proof that the profits of this commerce under present regulations are sufficiently tempting to secure its increase is afforded by the fact that the shares of the companies engaged in it have greatly advanced in value. The shares of one company, originally of $1,000 each, were selling, in July last, for $20.000 each, and now command $30,000. Those of another company have increased in the same period from $2,500 to $6,000; and all exhibit a large advance.
These laws and regulations have enabled the Government not only to provide supplies to a much greater extant than formerly, and to furnish the means for meeting the installments on its foreign loan, but to put an end to a wasteful and ruinous contract system by which supplies were obtained before Congress determined to exercise control over the imports and exports.
Instead of being compelled to give contractors a large profit on the cost of their supplies, and to make payment in cotton in our ports, at 6 pence per pound, we now purchase supplies abroad, by our agents, at cost in the foreign market, and pay them in cotton, which sells at a not price of 24 pence per pound. When all the elements of the calculation are taken into consideration, it is by no means an exaggeration to say that 100 bales of cotton, exported by the Government, will purchase, abroad, the same amount and value of supplies that 600 bales would purchase, delivered to contractors in the Confederacy. A reference to the report of the Secretary of the Treasury shows that of 11,796 bales of cotton shipped since 1st July last, but 1,272 were lost, not, quite 11 per cent. If this be taken as a fair average, and it is believed to be so, out of 600 bales of cotton exported, 534 would arrive abroad, and yield, at 40 pounds per bale, £21,360, while the same 600 bales, delivered in payment at a home port, at 6 pence per pound, would yield less than £6,000.
There are other advantages derived from buying abroad rather than contracting with blockade runners, of no small magnitude; but the foregoing statement will show the enormous profits that were made by them when the Government was forced to contract, instead of purchasing for itself, and will suggest a motive for the strenuous efforts they have not ceased to make to get rid of the regulations and procure a change in the policy of the Government. It is to the law and regulations that the Government owes its ability to command freight room, and thus buy and sell for itself, instead of being forced to make contracts so extravagant as those above described. It requires little sagacity to perceive that, with temptation so great, the owners of vessels would spare no pains to obtain contracts from the several States, if allowed to do so by law, with the view of again withdrawing from our use, as far as possible, the tonnage of their vessels, and thus compelling a return to the ruinous contract system.
The reports of the Secretaries will fully inform the Senate of the quantity and nature of the supplies obtained by the Government under the present system, and their importance to the national defense will be perceived at a glance.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
Richmond, Va., December 17, 1864.
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On motion by Mr. Barnwell,
Ordered, That the message and accompanying documents be printed in confidence for the use of the Senate.
On motion by Mr. Sparrow,
The Senate resolved into executive session.
EXECUTIVE SESSION.
Mr. Sparrow, from the Committee on Military Affairs, to whom were referred (on the 12th instant) the nominations of W. A. McPheeters, J. S. McDonough, C. A. Rice, Robert Duncan, A. A. Lawrance, John M. Lawing, W. R. McCreight, William S. Fowler, William J. Cocke, J. L. Pressley, M. A. Brown, Junius Terry, Thomas B. Elkin, A. T. Gordon, Richard Boyd, Elvis McCrory, William H. Dulaney, Thomas S. Young, A. S. Murphy, John De Butts, Charles Duffy, E. W. Thomason, W. X. Moseley, Calhoun Sams, J. C. W. Steger, Caleb Toxey, William Toxey, John R. Leigh, William A. Blount, Z. T. Murphy, Lucien Hall, John H. Gibbs, J. W. Leftwich, James F. Davis, C. D. Owens, J.P. Humphreys, D. W. Booth, Jos. Yates, H. R. Branham, A. Monteire, Jos. B. Brock, M. J. De Resset, C. L. Garnett, John S. Wilson, J. C. Abernathy, James B. Clifton, W. McC. Piggott, H. J. Parramore, Frank Spencer, Simon Baruch, James J. Knott, Charles S. Carter, Isaiah J. Roberts, Nelson G. West, John S. Stoney, W. A. Thompson, James S. Herron, J. E. Ferguson, John T. Jones, B.C. Harrison, William M. Swarm, William H. Taylor, William W. Gaither, R. Murdoch, T. B. Wilkerson, A. V. Doak, Benjamin S. Barnes, Jos. M. Meggett, T. R. Trotter, B. St. G. Tucker, and Arthur Brogden, to be surgeons, reported, with the recommendation that all of said nominations be confirmed.
The Senate proceeded to consider said report; and in concurrence therewith, it was
Resolved, That the Senate advise and consent to their appointment, agreeably to the nomination of the President.
On motion by Mr. Brown,
The Senate resolved into open legislative session.
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