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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 --FIFTY-SECOND DAY--TUESDAY, January 10, 1865.

Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America, 1861-1865 [Volume 7]
FIFTY-SECOND DAY--TUESDAY, January 10, 1865.

OPEN SESSION.

The House met pursuant to adjournment, and was opened with prayer by the Rev. Dr. Duncan.

The Speaker laid before the.House a message of the President, inclosing a communication in response to a resolution of the House, containing information relative to the commissioned officers attached to and employed in the different Departments and bureaus in Richmond; which was laid on the table and ordered to be printed.

Also, a message from the President, covering an estimate for additional appropriations for the Engineer Bureau; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means and ordered to be printed.

On motion of Mr. Goode, leave of absence was granted his colleague, Mr. Montague (detained from his seat by indisposition).

Mr. Lyon, from the Committee on Ways and Means, under a suspension of the rules, reported

A bill "to make appropriations for the support of the Government for the half year ending June thirtieth, eighteen hundred and sixty-five;"
which was postponed and made the special order after existing special orders are disposed of.

Mr. Goode, from the Committee on Conscription, under a suspension of the rules, reported

A bill "to regulate conscription;"
which was made the special order after the pending special orders are disposed of, and ordered to be printed.

Mr. Cruikshank moved to suspend the rules, to allow the Committee on Printing to make a report.

The motion did not prevail.

The House then proceeded to the consideration of the unfinished business; which was the bill "authorizing the consolidation of companies, battalions, and regiments."

Mr. Foster moved to recommit the bill to the Committee on Military Affairs.

The yeas and nays were ordered,

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And the motion rejected by the following vote:
• Yeas ... 32
• Nays ... 47

The question recurring on the passage of the bill.

Mr. Orr called the question; which was ordered.

Mr. Miles demanded the yeas and nays thereon;

Which were ordered,

And recorded as follows, viz:
• Yeas ... 43
• Nays ... 35

Yeas: Akin, Anderson, Atkins, Barksdale, Batson, Baylor, Blandford, Boyce, Horatio W. Bruce, Chambers, Chilton, Clopton, Colyar, Conrad, Conrow, De Jarnette, Dickinson, Ewing, Farrow, Funsten, Garland, Gholson, Goode, Gray, Hatcher, Hilton, Holliday, Johnston, Lamkin, Lyon, McMullin, Menees, Miller, Miles, Moore, Pugh, Rives, Russell, Shewmake, Simpson, W. E. Smith, J. M. Smith, and Wickham.

Nays: Ayer, Baldwin, Bell, Bradley, Branch, Burnett, Cruikshank, Chrisman, Clark, Darden, Echols, Fuller, Gilmer, Herbert, Hanly, Keeble, J. M. Leach, Lester, Logan, Machen, McCallum, Norton, Orr, Perkins, Read, Sexton, Smith of Alabama, Snead, Staples, Triplett, Turner, Vest, Villeré, Wilkes, and Witherspoon.

So the bill was passed.

The bill finally agreed upon is as follows:

• Section 1. The Congress of the Confederate States of America do enact, That whenever any companies, battalions, or regiments in service shall have been so far reduced in numbers as to make it necessary, in the opinion of the general commanding the department or the separate army in the field in which such companies, battalions, or regiments are serving, to consolidate them, under such rules and regulations as the President may prescribe. But troops from different Slates shall not, without their consent, be consolidated in the same company, battalion, or regiment; nor shall troops be transferred to a different arm of the service from which they originally belonged. And any noncommissioned officer or soldier belonging to another State than that from which the troops to be consolidated come may, at the time of such consolidation, at his own option, be transferred to such company from his own State as he may indicate; and it shall be the duty of the general consolidating the troops to make the transfer immediately.
• Sec. 2. That whenever the consolidation of companies, battalions, and regiments shall have been determined upon in accordance with the provisions of the first section of the act, the general commanding the department or separate army in which such reduced organizations are serving shall recommend from the officers and men of the several organizations which it is proposed to consolidate (excluding prisoners of war) the officers for the command of the new organizations from the consolidation of the old; which officers shall forthwith assume the respective commands to which they may be assigned by the general commanding the department or separate army in the field, subject to the sub.sequent appointment of the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The general commanding is hereby authorized, in his discretion, to appoint a board composed of three general officers, and to require from said board.a report upon the qualifications and fitness of the officers whom he proposes to recommend.
• Sec. 3. The officers of the organizations consolidated not selected as officers of the new organizations shall forthwith be notified of the fact, and from that time shall be dropped from the rolls. Such officers may, within sixty days after the consolidation of their commands, organize themselves in numbers sufficient to form companies, battalions, or regiments, and shall be officered from among themselves, by appointment of the President. by and with the advice and consent of the Senate; and the generals commanding the armies to which the consolidated organizations belong shall afford reasonable facilities for forming such organizations. The officers so dropped shall have the privilege of selecting the company and arm of the service in which they may desire to serve, whether such company belongs to the army with which they are now connected or some

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  other army of the Confederate States, and shall be entitled to transportation to such company; and failing to make such selection, such officers, if within the conscript ages, shall be conscribed and placed in the service where they may be found; but no officer in the hands of the enemy shall be dropped from the rolls by reason of anything contained in this section: Provided, That no officer shall be permitted to select a company on the opposite side of the Mississippi River from where he is now on duty, unless he resides beyond said river.

• Sec. 4. That any officer who was a prisoner of war at the time of the consolidation of his company, battalion, or regiment may, after his exchange, be assigned by the general commanding the department or separate army in which the new organization is serving to any vacancy that may exist or occur in the new organization of which his company, battalion, or regiment forms a part; and all officers who are not so assigned within sixty days after being exchanged shall be dropped from the rolls, but shall be entitled to the privileges conferred by and subject to the provisions of the third section of this act, in relation to officers not selected for command in the new organizations: Provided, That the President or general commanding is hereby authorized to assign any officer to any duties appropriate to his grade after the expiration of the sixty days herein prescribed: And provided further, That the general commanding is authorized, in his discretion, to appoint a board, to be composed of three general officers, and require from said board a report upon the qualifications and fitness of any officer after his exchange.
• Sec. 5. That all company, battalion, and regimental officers now without commands, and all staff officers not assigned to duty within sixty days after the passage of this act, including all quartermasters and commissaries and excluding all officers who are prisoners of war, shall be dropped from the rolls, and shall be entitled to the privileges conferred by and subject to the provisions of the third section of this act. But nothing in this act shall be construed to apply to officers of the Invalid Corps, except where they shall be pronounced by the proper medical board fit for field service, in which case they shall be entitled to the privileges conferred by and subject to the provisions of the third section of this act.
• Sec. 6. That where the whole number of the officers, noncommissioned officers, and privates in any army from any one State shall not be sufficient in numbers at least to form a battalion of the minimum strength under existing laws, it shall be the duty of the Secretary of War forthwith to order the transfer of such officers, noncommissioned officers, and privates to some other army in which there are other troops in the service from the same State, where they may be consolidated under the provisions of this act: Provided, The transfer required by this section shall not be made against the wish of the troops to be transferred.
• Sec. 7. Those officers who shall be assigned to the same grade in the new organization which they were holding in an old shall take rank from the day of their original appointment to that grade; the commissions of all others shall date from the day of their appointment to their new grade.
• Sec. 8. That when regiments, battalions, or companies shall have been consolidated under the provisions of this act, no subsequent consolidation of the same shall be made, unless by virtue of laws hereafter to be passed.

On motion of Mr. Lyon, the House resolved itself into secret session; and having spent some time therein, resumed business in open session.

Mr. Baldwin offered

A resolution "instructing the Committee on Public Buildings to inquire whether the Hall of the House of Representatives can not be better ventilated, so that the health of the members shall not be endangered, and also whether more suitable accommodations can not be obtained for the use of the House;"
which resolution was adopted.

The House then took up for consideration the bill "to protect the Confederate States against frauds, and to provide remedies against officers and employees of the Government committing them."

The pending question being upon the bill offered by Mr. Garland at the last session, and now offered by Mr. McCallum as a substitute

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to the present bill of the Committee on Quartermaster's and Commissary Departments,

Mr. Sexton moved to lay the bill and substitute on the table, in order to take up the exemption bill.

No quorum voting,

Mr. Conrow demanded the yeas and nays;

Which were ordered,

And recorded as follows:
• Yeas ... 41
• Nays ... 20

So the motion to lay on the table prevailed.

Mr. Lester moved that the House consider no other measure until the exemption bill shall have been disposed of.

Mr. Sexton moved to amend the motion so as to allow other business to be considered in the morning hour.

Mr. Conrow called for the yeas and nays;

Which were ordered,

With the following result:
• Yeas ... 37
• Nays ... 18

So the motion to amend was agreed to.

The motion as amended was adopted.

On motion of Mr. Marshall,

The House adjourned until to-morrow at 11 o'clock a. m.

SECRET SESSION.

The House being in secret session,

The Chair laid before the House a communication from the Secretary of the Treasury, inclosing a report on the state of the finances; which was read and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Mr. Marshall offered the following resolution:

Whereas it having been communicated to the House that the general assembly of Virginia has, in secret session, raised a committee by whom a desire has been manifested to confer with the committee of the two Houses of Congress as to the means of serving the interests of the Confederacy which may be in the power of Virginia,

Resolved (the Senate concurring), That the Joint Committee of the two Houses on the Public Defense be authorized to confer with any committee raised in secret session by the Virginia legislature, on the subject of subsistence, and the extent to which Virginia can aid therein, and any other aid the State can render in the defense of the country.

Mr. Hilton moved to amend the resolution of Mr. Marshall by striking out all after the word "therein."

Pending which,

Mr. Bell moved that the consideration of the resolution and amendment be postponed until the joint committee shall have made a report, and called the question; which was ordered.

The motion to postpone was lost.

Mr. Burnett moved the previous question; which was ordered.

The question recurring on the amendment of Mr. Hilton,

It was decided in the negative.

The question recurring on the resolution of Mr. Marshall,

It was decided in the affirmative.

On motion of Mr. Russell, the injunction of secrecy was removed from the act of Congress authorizing the impressment of railroads in certain cases.

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Mr. Gilmer, by consent, introduced

A joint resolution "in favor of independence and peace;"
which was read a first and second time and referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

On motion of Mr. Baylor, the joint resolution "for the relief of Manuel and Rafael Armijo and Julian Tesorio" was taken from the Calendar of the last session and placed upon the Calendar of the present session.

On motion,

The House resolved itself into open session.

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