Chapter XII: Section 1: The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not (9)

In addition to the claim that Great Britain may have upon the good faith of this Government to consider the legislation necessary in connection with the questions which that Government presented as the subject of a negotiation which has resulted so favorably to this Government upon the other questions in which the United States felt so much interest, it is of importance that the rights of the American fishermen, as provided for under the treaty, should be determined before the now approaching fishing season opens, and that the serious difficulties to the fishing interests and the grave questions between the two Governments that may arise therefrom be averted.

U.S. GRANT.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _February 25, 1873_.

_To the Senate and House of Representatives:_

Your attention is respectfully invited to the condition of affairs in the State of Louisiana.

Grave complications have grown out of the election there on the 6th of November last, chiefly attributable, it is believed, to an organized attempt on the part of those controlling the election officers and returns to defeat in that election the will of a majority of the electors of the State. Different persons are claiming the executive offices, two bodies are claiming to be the legislative assembly of the State, and the confusion and uncertainty produced in this way fall with paralyzing effect upon all its interests.

Controversy arose as soon as the election occurred over its proceedings and results, but I declined to interfere until suit involving this controversy to some extent was brought in the circuit court of the United States under and by virtue of the act of May 31, 1870, entitled "An act to enforce the right of citizens of the United States to vote in the several States of the Union, and for other purposes."

Finding that resistance was made to judicial process in that suit, without any opportunity, and, in my judgment, without any right, to review the judgment of the court upon the jurisdictional or other questions arising in the case, I directed the United States marshal to enforce such process and to use, if necessary, troops for that purpose, in accordance with the thirteenth section of said act, which provides that "it shall be lawful for the President of the United States to employ such part of the land or naval forces of the United States or of the militia as shall be necessary to aid in the execution of judicial process under this act."

Two bodies of persons claimed to be the returning board for the State, and the circuit court in that case decided that the one to which Lynch belonged, usually designated by his name, was the lawful returning board; and this decision has been repeatedly affirmed by the district and supreme courts of the State. Having no opportunity or power to canvass the votes, and the exigencies of the case demanding an immediate decision, I conceived it to be my duty to recognize those persons as elected who received and held their credentials to office from what then appeared to me to be, and has since been decided by the supreme court of the State to be, the legal returning board.

Conformably to the decisions of this board, a full set of State officers has been installed and a legislative assembly organized, constituting, if not a _de jure_, at least a _de facto_ government, which, since some time in December last, has had possession of the offices and been exercising the usual powers of government; but opposed to this has been another government claiming to control the affairs of the State, and which has to some extent been _pro forma_ organized.

Recent investigation into said election has developed so many frauds and forgeries as to make it doubtful what candidates received a majority of the votes actually cast, and in view of these facts a variety of action has been proposed. I have no specific recommendation to make upon the subject, but if there is any practicable way of removing these difficulties by legislation, then I earnestly request that such action may be taken at the present session of Congress.

It seems advisable that I should state now what course I shall feel bound to pursue in reference to the matter in the event of no action by Congress at this time. Subject to any satisfactory arrangement that may be made by the parties to the controversy, which of all things is the most desirable, it will be my duty, so far as it may be necessary for me to act, to adhere to that government heretofore recognized by me. To judge of the election and qualifications of its members is the exclusive province of the Senate, as it is also the exclusive province of the House to judge of the election and qualifications of its members; but as to State offices, filled and held under State laws, the decisions of the State judicial tribunals, it seems to me, ought to be respected.

I am extremely anxious to avoid any appearance of undue interference in State affairs, and if Congress differs from me as to what ought to be done I respectfully urge its immediate decision to that effect; otherwise I shall feel obliged, as far as I can by the exercise of legitimate authority, to put an end to the unhappy controversy which disturbs the peace and prostrates the business of Louisiana, by the recognition and support of that government which is recognized and upheld by the courts of the State.

U.S. GRANT.

VETO MESSAGES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _January 6, 1873_.

_To the House of Representatives:_

I return herewith, for the further consideration of Congress, House bill No. 2291, entitled "An act for the relief of Edmund Jussen," to which I have not appended my approval, for the following reasons:

The bill directs the accounting officers to transfer from Mr. Jussen's account to that of his successor all indebtedness arising from the loss or destruction or nontaking of warehouse bonds on certain spirits destroyed by fire. This provision would be wholly ineffective in so far as it proposes to increase the liability of Mr. Jussen's successor, he having been appointed subsequently to the destruction of the spirits. It might operate to relieve Mr. Jussen, but it seems probable that he is already relieved by the act of May 27, 1872, passed since the introduction of this bill. That act provides for the rebatement of taxes on distilled spirits destroyed by fire, except in cases where the owners of such spirits may be indemnified against tax by a valid claim of insurance. The relief of the taxpayers of course includes the relief of collectors from liability caused by failure to take bonds. It does not appear whether there was any insurance in this case. If not, the applicant is already relieved; but if there was an insurance the effect of this bill, if it became a law, might be to except Mr. Jussen from the operation of the general rule established by the proviso of the act of May 27, 1872. If such exception be proper, it should not be confined to an individual case, but extended to all. If there was an insurance, this bill would relieve Mr, Jussen from the liability with which it is very doubtful if his successor could be legally charged, or with which he ought to be charged.

U.S. GRANT.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _January 22, 1873_.

The SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

SIR: I herewith return to the House of Representatives, in which it originated, H.R. No. 630, entitled "An act in relation to new trials in the Court of Claims," without my approval.

The object of the bill is to reduce from two years to six months the time in which a new trial, upon motion of the United States, may be granted in the Court of Claims.

Great difficulties are now experienced in contesting fraudulent and unjust claims against the Government prosecuted in said court, and the effect of this bill, if it becomes a law, will be to increase those difficulties. Persons sue in this court generally with the advantage of a personal knowledge of the circumstances of the case, and are prompted by personal interest to activity in its preparation for trial, which consists sometimes in the production of false testimony and the suppression of the truth, while the United States are dependent for defense upon such inquiries as the officers of the Government, generally strangers to the transaction, are enabled to make, not infrequently in remote parts of the country and among those not averse to depredations upon the National Treasury. Instances have occurred where the existing opportunities for a new trial have enabled the Government to discover and defeat claims that ought not to have been allowed, after judgments thereon had been rendered by the Court of Claims.

By referring to the act which it is proposed to modify it will be seen that the payment of judgments recovered is not necessarily suspended for two years; but where the proofs are doubtful or suspicious the Government may appeal to the Supreme Court, and in the meantime may avail itself of any discovery or revelation of new evidence touching the facts of the case.

I fail to see the necessity or advantages of the proposed change in the law, and whatever may be the purposes of the bill, its effect, if passed, I am apprehensive will be to facilitate the prosecution of fraudulent claims against the United States. Believing that justice can and will be done to honest claimants in the Court of Claims as the law now stands, and believing also that the proposed change in the law will remove a valuable safeguard to the Treasury, I must for these reasons respectfully withhold my assent to the bill.

U.S. GRANT.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _January 29, 1873_.

_To the Senate of the United States:_

I have the honor to return herewith Senate bill No. 490, entitled "An act for the relief of the East Tennessee University," without my approval.

This claim, for which $18,500 are appropriated out of the moneys of the United States, arises in part for the destruction of property by troops in time of war, and therefore the same objections attach to it as were expressed in my message of June 1, 1872, returning the Senate bill awarding $25,000 to J. Milton Best.

If the precedent is once established that the Government is liable for the ravages of war, the end of demands upon the public Treasury can not be forecast.

The loyalty of the people of the section in which the university is located, under circumstances of personal danger and trials, thus entitling them to the most favorable construction of the obligation of the Government toward them, is admitted, and nothing but regard for my duty to the whole people, in opposing a principle which, if allowed, will entail greater burdens upon the whole than the relief which will be afforded to a part by allowing this bill to become a law, could induce me to return it with objections.

Recognizing the claims of these citizens to sympathy and the most favorable consideration of their claims by the Government, I would heartily favor a donation of the amount appropriated by this bill for their relief.

U.S. GRANT.

WASHINGTON, _February 8, 1873_.

_To the House of Representatives:_

I have the honor to return herewith House bill (H.R. 2852) entitled "An act for the relief of James A. McCullah, late collector of the fifth district of Missouri," without my approval, for the following reasons:

It is provided in section 34 of the act of June 30, 1864, as amended by the act of July 13, 1866, that it shall be proved to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue that due diligence was used by the collector, who shall certify the facts to the First Comptroller. This bill, should it become a law, clearly excuses Mr. McCullah, late collector, from showing that he used due diligence for the collection of the tax in question while the lists remained in his hands.

U.S. GRANT.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _February 11, 1873_.

_To the Senate of the United States:_

I return herewith without my approval Senate bill No. 161, entitled "An act for the relief of those suffering from the destruction of salt works near Manchester, Ky., pursuant to the order of Major-General Carlos Buell."

All the objections made by me to the bill for the relief of J. Milton Best, and also of the East Tennessee University, apply with equal force to this bill.

According to the official report of Brigadier-General Craft, by whose immediate command the property in question was destroyed, there was a large rebel force in the neighborhood, who were using the salt works and had carried away a considerable quantity of salt, and were preparing to take more as soon as the necessary transportation could be procured; and he further states "that the leaders of the rebellion calculated upon their supply of salt to come from these works," and that in his opinion their destruction was a military necessity. I understand him to say, in effect, that the salt works were captured from the rebels; that it was impracticable to hold them, and that they were demolished so as to be of no further use to the enemy.

I can not agree that the owners of property destroyed under such circumstances are entitled to compensation therefor from the United States. Whatever other view may be taken of the subject, it is incontrovertible that these salt works were destroyed by the Union Army while engaged in regular military operations, and that the sole object of their destruction was to weaken, cripple, or defeat the armies of the so-called Southern Confederacy.

I am greatly apprehensive that the allowance of this claim could and would be construed into the recognition of a principle binding the United States to pay for all property which their military forces destroyed in the late war for the Union. No liability by the Government to pay for property destroyed by the Union forces in conducting a battle or siege has yet been claimed, but the precedent proposed by this bill leads directly and strongly in that direction, for it is difficult upon any ground of reason or justice to distinguish between a case of that kind and the one under consideration. Had General Craft and his command destroyed the salt works by shelling out the enemy found in their actual occupancy, the case would not have been different in principle from the one presented in this bill. What possible difference can it make in the rights of owners or the obligations of the Government whether the destruction was in driving the enemy out or in keeping them out of the possession of the salt works?

This bill does not present a case where private property is taken for public use in any sense of the Constitution. It was not taken from the owners, but from the enemy; and it was not then used by the Government, but destroyed. Its destruction was one of the casualties of war, and, though not happening in actual conflict, was perhaps as disastrous to the rebels as would have been a victory in battle.

Owners of property destroyed to prevent the spread of a conflagration, as a general rule, are not entitled to compensation therefor; and for reasons equally strong the necessary destruction of property found in the hands of the public enemy, and constituting a part of their military supplies, does not entitle the owner to indemnity from the Government for damages to him in that way.

I fully appreciate the hardship of the case, and would be glad if my convictions of duty allowed me to join in the proposed relief; but I can not consent to the doctrine which is found in this bill, as it seems to me, by which the National Treasury is exposed to all claims for property injured or destroyed by the armies of the United States in the late protracted and destructive war in this country.

U.S. GRANT.

PROCLAMATION.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas objects of interest to the United States require that the Senate should be convened at 12 o'clock on the 4th of March next, to receive and act upon such communications as may be made to it on the part of the Executive:

Now, therefore, I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States, have considered it to be my duty to issue this my proclamation, declaring that an extraordinary occasion requires the Senate of the United States to convene for the transaction of business at the Capitol, in the city of Washington, on the 4th day of March next, at 12 o'clock at noon on that day, of which all who shall at that time be entitled to act as members of that body are hereby required to take notice.

Given under my hand and the seal of the United States, at Washington, the 21st day of February, A.D. 1873, and of the Independence of the United States of America the ninety-seventh.

[SEAL.]

U.S. GRANT.

By the President:
HAMILTON FISH,
_Secretary of State_.

EXECUTIVE ORDERS.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.

EXECUTIVE ORDER.

WASHINGTON, _January 17, 1873_.

Whereas it has been brought to the notice of the President of the United States that many persons holding civil office by appointment from him or otherwise under the Constitution and laws of the United States, while holding such Federal positions, accept offices under the authority of the States and Territories in which they reside, or of municipal corporations under the charters and ordinances of such corporations, thereby assuming the duties of the State, Territorial, or municipal office at the same time that they are charged with the duties of the civil office held under Federal authority; and

Whereas it is believed that, with few exceptions, the holding of two such offices by the same person is incompatible with a due and faithful discharge of the duties of either office; that it frequently gives rise to great inconvenience, and often results in detriment to the public service, and, moreover, is not in harmony with the genius of the Government:

In view of the premises, therefore, the President has deemed it proper thus and hereby to give public notice that from and after the 4th day of March, A.D. 1873 (except as herein specified), persons holding any Federal civil office by appointment under the Constitution and laws of the United States will be expected, while holding such office, not to accept or hold any office under any State or Territorial government or under the charter or ordinances of any municipal corporation; and further, that the acceptance or continued holding of any such State, Territorial, or municipal office, whether elective or by appointment, by any person holding civil office as aforesaid under the Government of the United States, other than judicial offices under the Constitution of the United States, will be deemed a vacation of the Federal office held by such person, and will be taken to be and will be treated as a resignation by such Federal officer of his commission or appointment in the service of the United States.

The offices of justices of the peace, of notaries public, and of commissioners to take the acknowledgment of deeds, of bail, or to administer oaths shall not be deemed within the purview of this order, and are excepted from its operation and may be held by Federal officers.

The appointment of deputy marshal of the United States may be conferred upon sheriffs or deputy sheriffs; and deputy postmasters the emoluments of whose office do not exceed $600 per annum are also excepted from the operations of this order, and may accept and hold appointments under State, Territorial, or municipal authority, provided die same be found not to interfere with the discharge of their duties as postmaster.

Heads of Departments and other officers of the Government who have the appointment of subordinate officers are required to take notice of this order, and to see to the enforcement of its provisions and terms within the sphere of their respective Departments or offices and as relates to the several persons holding appointments under them, respectively.

By order of the President:

HAMILTON FISH,

_Secretary of State_.

DEPARTMENT OF STATE, _Washington, January 28, 1873_.

Inquiries having been made from various quarters as to the application of the Executive order issued on the 17th January, relating to the holding of State or municipal offices by persons holding civil offices under the Federal Government, the President directs the following reply to be made:

It has been asked whether the order prohibits a Federal officer from holding also the office of an alderman or of a common councilman in a city, or of a town councilman of a town or village, or of appointments under city, town, or village governments. By some it has been suggested that there may be distinction made in case the office be with or without salary or compensation. The city or town offices of the description referred to, by whatever names they may be locally known, whether held by election or by appointment, and whether with or without salary or compensation, are of the class which the Executive order intends not to be held by persons holding Federal offices.

It has been asked whether the order prohibits Federal officers from holding positions on boards of education, school committees, public libraries, religious or eleemosynary institutions incorporated or established or sustained by State or municipal authority. Positions and service on such boards or committees and professorships in colleges are not regarded as "offices" within the contemplation of the Executive order, but as employments or service in which all good citizens may be engaged without incompatibility, and in many cases without necessary interference with any position which they may hold under the Federal Government. Officers of the Federal Government may therefore engage in such service, provided the attention required by such employment does not interfere with the regular and efficient discharge of the duties of their office under the Federal Government. The head of the Department under whom the Federal office is held will in all cases be the sole judge whether or not the employment does thus interfere.

The question has also been asked with regard to officers of the State militia. Congress having exercised the power conferred by the Constitution to provide for organizing the militia, which is liable to be called forth to be employed in the service of the United States, and is thus in some sense under the control of the General Government, and is, moreover, of the greatest value to the public, the Executive order of the 17th January is not considered as prohibiting Federal officers from being officers of the militia in the States and Territories.

It has been asked whether the order prohibits persons holding office under the Federal Government being members of local or municipal fire departments; also whether it applies to mechanics employed by the day in the armories, arsenals, and navy-yards, etc., of the United States. Unpaid service in local or municipal fire departments is not regarded as an office within the intent of the Executive order, and may be performed by Federal officers, provided it does not interfere with the regular and efficient discharge of the duties of the Federal office, of which the head of the Department under which the office is held will in each case be the judge. Employment by the day as mechanics and laborers in the armories, arsenals, navy-yards, etc., does not constitute an office of any kind, and those thus employed are not within the contemplation of the Executive order. Master workmen and others who hold appointments from the Government or from any Department, whether for a fixed time or at the pleasure of the appointing power, are embraced within the operation of the order.

By order of the President:

HAMILTON FISH,

_Secretary of State_.

SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS.

FELLOW-CITIZENS: Under Providence I have been called a second time to act as Executive over this great nation. It has been my endeavor in the past to maintain all the laws, and, so far as lay in my power, to act for the best interests of the whole people. My best efforts will be given in the same direction in the future, aided, I trust, by my four years' experience in the office.

When my first term of the office of Chief Executive began, the country had not recovered from the effects of a great internal revolution, and three of the former States of the Union had not been restored to their Federal relations.

It seemed to me wise that no new questions should be raised so long as that condition of affairs existed. Therefore the past four years, so far as I could control events, have been consumed in the effort to restore harmony, public credit, commerce, and all the arts of peace and progress. It is my firm conviction that the civilized world is tending toward republicanism, or government by the people through their chosen representatives, and that our own great Republic is destined to be the guiding star to all others.

Under our Republic we support an army less than that of any European power of any standing and a navy less than that of either of at least five of them. There could be no extension of territory on the continent which would call for an increase of this force, but rather might such extension enable us to diminish it.

The theory of government changes with general progress. Now that the telegraph is made available for communicating thought, together with rapid transit by steam, all parts of a continent are made contiguous for all purposes of government, and communication between the extreme limits of the country made easier than it was throughout the old thirteen States at the beginning of our national existence.

The effects of the late civil strife have been to free the slave and make him a citizen. Yet he is not possessed of the civil rights which citizenship should carry with it. This is wrong, and should be corrected. To this correction I stand committed, so far as Executive influence can avail.

Social equality is not a subject to be legislated upon, nor shall I ask that anything be done to advance the social status of the colored man, except to give him a fair chance to develop what there is good in him, give him access to the schools, and when he travels let him feel assured that his conduct will regulate the treatment and fare he will receive.

The States lately at war with the General Government are now happily rehabilitated, and no Executive control is exercised in any one of them that would not be exercised in any other State under like circumstances.

In the first year of the past Administration the proposition came up for the admission of Santo Domingo as a Territory of the Union. It was not a question of my seeking, but was a proposition from the people of Santo Domingo, and which I entertained. I believe now, as I did then, that it was for the best interest of this country, for the people of Santo Domingo, and all concerned that the proposition should be received favorably. It was, however, rejected constitutionally, and therefore the subject was never brought up again by me.

In future, while I hold my present office, the subject of acquisition of territory must have the support of the people before I will recommend any proposition looking to such acquisition. I say here, however, that I do not share in the apprehension held by many as to the danger of governments becoming weakened and destroyed by reason of their extension of territory. Commerce, education, and rapid transit of thought and matter by telegraph and steam have changed all this. Rather do I believe that our Great Maker is preparing the world, in His own good time, to become one nation, speaking one language, and when armies and navies will be no longer required.

My efforts in the future will be directed to the restoration of good feeling between the different sections of our common country; to the restoration of our currency to a fixed value as compared with the world's standard of values--gold--and, if possible, to a par with it; to the construction of cheap routes of transit throughout the land, to the end that the products of all may find a market and leave a living remuneration to the producer; to the maintenance of friendly relations with all our neighbors and with distant nations; to the reestablishment of our commerce and share in the carrying trade upon the ocean; to the encouragement of such manufacturing industries as can be economically pursued in this country, to the end that the exports of home products and industries may pay for our imports--the only sure method of returning to and permanently maintaining a specie basis; to the elevation of labor; and, by a humane course, to bring the aborigines of the country under the benign influences of education and civilization. It is either this or war of extermination. Wars of extermination, engaged in by people pursuing commerce and all industrial pursuits, are expensive even against the weakest people, and are demoralizing and wicked. Our superiority of strength and advantages of civilization should make us lenient toward the Indian. The wrong inflicted upon him should be taken into account and the balance placed to his credit. The moral view of the question should be considered and the question asked, Can not the Indian be made a useful and productive member of society by proper teaching and treatment? If the effort is made in good faith, we will stand better before the civilized nations of the earth and in our own consciences for having made it.

All these things are not to be accomplished by one individual, but they will receive my support and such recommendations to Congress as will in my judgment best serve to carry them into effect. I beg your support and encouragement.

It has been, and is, my earnest desire to correct abuses that have grown up in the civil service of the country. To secure this reformation rules regulating methods of appointment and promotions were established and have been tried. My efforts for such reformation shall be continued to the best of my judgment. The spirit of the rules adopted will be maintained.

I acknowledge before this assemblage, representing, as it does, every section of our country, the obligation I am under to my countrymen for the great honor they have conferred on me by returning me to the highest office within their gift, and the further obligation resting on me to render to them the best services within my power. This I promise, looking forward with the greatest anxiety to the day when I shall be released from responsibilities that at times are almost overwhelming, and from which I have scarcely had a respite since the eventful firing upon Fort Sumter, in April, 1861, to the present day. My services were then tendered and accepted under the first call for troops growing out of that event.

I did not ask for place or position, and was entirely without influence or the acquaintance of persons of influence, but was resolved to perform my part in a struggle threatening the very existence of the nation. I performed a conscientious duty, without asking promotion or command, and without a revengeful feeling toward any section or individual.

Notwithstanding this, throughout the war, and from my candidacy for my present office in 1868 to the close of the last Presidential campaign, I have been the subject of abuse and slander scarcely ever equaled in political history, which to-day I feel that I can afford to disregard in view of your verdict, which I gratefully accept as my vindication.

MARCH 4, 1873.

PROCLAMATIONS.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas, under the pretense that William P. Kellogg, the present executive of Louisiana, and the officers associated with him in the State administration were not duly elected, certain turbulent and disorderly persons have combined together with force and arms to resist the laws and constituted authorities of said State; and

Whereas it has been duly certified by the proper local authorities and judicially determined by the inferior and supreme courts of said State that said officers are entitled to hold their offices, respectively, and execute and discharge the functions thereof; and

Whereas Congress, at its late session, upon a due consideration of the subject, tacitly recognized the said executive and his associates, then as now in office, by refusing to take any action with respect thereto; and

Whereas it is provided in the Constitution of the United States that the United States shall protect every State in this Union, on application of the legislature, or of the executive when the legislature can not be convened, against domestic violence; and

Whereas it is provided in the laws of the United States that in all cases of insurrection in any State or of obstruction to the laws thereof it shall be lawful for the President of the United States, on application of the legislature of such State, or of the executive when the legislature can not be convened, to call forth the militia of any other State or States, or to employ such part of the land and naval forces as shall be judged necessary, for the purpose of suppressing such insurrection or causing the laws to be duly executed; and

Whereas the legislature of said State is not now in session, and can not be convened in time to meet the present emergency, and the executive of said State, under section 4 of Article IV of the Constitution of the United States and the laws passed in pursuance thereof, has therefore made application to me for such part of the military force of the United States as may be necessary and adequate to protect said State and the citizens thereof against domestic violence and to enforce the due execution of the laws; and

Whereas it is required that whenever it may be necessary, in the judgment of the President, to use the military force for the purpose aforesaid, he shall forthwith, by proclamation, command such insurgents to disperse and retire peaceably to their respective homes within a limited time:

Now, therefore, I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States, do hereby make proclamation and command said turbulent and disorderly persons to disperse and retire peaceably to their respective abodes within twenty days from this date, and hereafter to submit themselves to the laws and constituted authorities of said State; and I invoke the aid and cooperation of all good citizens thereof to uphold law and preserve the public peace.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 22d day of May, A.D. 1873, and of the Independence of the United States the ninety-seventh.

U.S. GRANT.

By the President:
J.C. BANCROFT DAVIS,
_Acting Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas by the thirty-third article of a treaty concluded at Washington on the 8th day of May, 1871, between the United States and Her Britannic Majesty it was provided that--

Articles XVIII to XXV, inclusive, and Article XXX of this treaty shall
take effect as soon as the laws required to carry them into operation
shall have been passed by the Imperial Parliament of Great Britain,
by the parliament of Canada, and by the legislature of Prince Edwards
Island on the one hand, and by the Congress of the United States on
the other.

And whereas by the first section of an act entitled "An act to carry into effect the provisions of the treaty between the United States and Great Britain signed in the city of Washington the 8th day of May, 1871, relating to the fisheries," it is provided--

That whenever the President of the United States shall receive
satisfactory evidence that the Imperial Parliament of Great Britain, the
parliament of Canada, and the legislature of Prince Edwards Island have
passed laws on their part to give full effect to the provisions of the
treaty between the United States and Great Britain signed at the city
of Washington on the 8th day of May, 1871, as contained in articles
eighteenth to twenty-fifth, inclusive, and article thirtieth of said
treaty, he is hereby authorized to issue his proclamation declaring that
he has such evidence.

And whereas the Secretary of State of the United States and Her Britannic Majesty's envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary at Washington have recorded in a protocol a conference held by them at the Department of State, in Washington, on the 7th day of June, 1873, in the following language:

PROTOCOL OF A CONFERENCE HELD AT WASHINGTON ON THE 7TH DAY OF JUNE, 1873.

Whereas it is provided by Article XXXIII of the treaty between Her
Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
and the United States of America signed at Washington on the 8th of
May, 1871, as follows:

"Article XXXIII.

"The foregoing Articles XVIII to XXV, inclusive, and Article XXX of this
treaty shall take effect as soon as the laws required to carry them into
operation shall have been passed by the Imperial Parliament of Great
Britain, by the parliament of Canada, and by the legislature of Prince
Edwards Island on the one hand, and by the Congress of the United States
on the other. Such assent having been given, the said articles shall
remain in force for the period of ten years from the date at which they
may come into operation, and, further, until the expiration of two years
after either of the high contracting parties shall have given notice
to the other of its wish to terminate the same; each of the high
contracting parties being at liberty to give such notice to the other at
the end of the said period of ten years or at any time afterwards;" and

Whereas, in accordance with the stipulations of the above-recited
article, an act was passed by the Imperial Parliament of Great Britain
in the thirty-fifth and thirty-sixth years of the reign of Queen
Victoria, intituled "An act to carry into effect a treaty between Her
Majesty and the United States of America;" and

Whereas an act was passed by the senate and house of commons of Canada
in the fifth session of the first parliament held in the thirty-fifth
year of Her Majesty's reign and assented to in Her Majesty's name by
the Governor-General on the 14th day of June, 1872, intituled "An act
relating to the treaty of Washington, 1871;" and

Whereas an act was passed by the legislature of Prince Edwards Island
and assented to by the lieutenant-governor of that colony on the 29th
day of June, 1872, intituled "An act relating to the treaty of
Washington, 1871;" and

Whereas an act was passed by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled, and approved on the
1st day of March, 1873, by the President of the United States, intituled
"An act to carry into effect the provisions of the treaty between the
United States and Great Britain signed in the city of Washington the
8th day of May, 1871, relating to fisheries:"

The undersigned, Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State of the United
States, and the Right Hon. Sir Edward Thornton, one of Her Majesty's
most honorable privy council, knight commander of the most honorable
Order of the Bath, Her Britannic Majesty's envoy extraordinary and
minister plenipotentiary to the United States of America, duly
authorized for this purpose by their respective Governments, having
met together at Washington, and having found that the laws required
to carry the Articles XVIII to XXV, inclusive, and Article XXX of
the treaty aforesaid into operation have been passed by the Imperial
Parliament of Great Britain, by the parliament of Canada, and by the
legislature of Prince Edwards Island on the one part, and by the
Congress of the United States on the other, hereby declare that
Articles XVIII to XXV, inclusive, and Article XXX of the treaty
between Her Britannic Majesty and the United States of America of
the 8th of May, 1871, will take effect on the 1st day of July next.

In witness whereof the undersigned have signed this protocol and have
hereunto affixed their seals.

Done in duplicate at Washington, this 7th day of June, 1873.

[SEAL.] (Signed) HAMILTON FISH.
[SEAL.] (Signed) EDWD. THORNTON.

Now, therefore, I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States of America, in pursuance of the premises, do hereby declare that I have received satisfactory evidence that the Imperial Parliament of Great Britain, the parliament of Canada, and the legislature of Prince Edwards Island have passed laws on their part to give full effect to the provisions of the said treaty as contained in articles eighteenth to twenty-fifth, inclusive, and article thirtieth of said treaty.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 1st day of July, A.D. 1873, and of the Independence of the United States of America the ninety-seventh.

U.S. GRANT.

By the President:
HAMILTON FISH,
_Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas by the act of Congress approved March 3, 1871, providing for a national celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the independence of the United States by the holding of an International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures, and Products of the Soil and Mine in the city of Philadelphia in the year 1876, it is provided as follows:

That whenever the President shall be informed by the governor of the
State of Pennsylvania that provision has been made for the erection of
suitable buildings for the purpose, and for the exclusive control by
the commission herein provided for of the proposed exhibition, the
President shall, through the Department of State, make proclamation of
the same, setting forth the time at which the exhibition will open and
the place at which it will be held; and he shall communicate to the
diplomatic representatives of all nations copies of the same, together
with such regulations as may be adopted by the commissioners, for
publication in their respective countries.

And whereas his excellency the governor of the said State of Pennsylvania did, on the 24th day of June, 1873, inform me that provision has been made for the erection of said buildings and for the exclusive control by the commission provided for in the said act of the proposed exhibition; and

Whereas the president of the United States Centennial Commission has officially informed me of the dates fixed for the opening and closing of the said exhibition and the place at which it is to be held:

Now, therefore, be it known that I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States, in conformity with the provisions of the act of Congress aforesaid, do hereby declare and proclaim that there will be held at the city of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, an International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures, and Products of the Soil and Mine, to be opened on the 19th day of April, A.D. 1876, and to be closed on the 19th day of October, in the same year.

And in the interest of peace, civilization, and domestic and international friendship and intercourse, I commend the celebration and exhibition to the people of the United States, and in behalf of this Government and people I cordially commend them to all nations who may be pleased to take part therein.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 3d day of July, 1873, and of the Independence of the United States the ninety-seventh.

U.S. GRANT.

By the President:
HAMILTON FISH,
_Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas satisfactory evidence was given me on the 13th day of September current by the Marquis de Noailles, envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary from the French Republic, that on and after the 1st day of October next merchandise imported into France in vessels of the United States, from whatever country, will be subject to no other duties or imposts than those which shall be collected upon merchandise imported into France from countries of its origin or from any other country in French vessels:

Now, therefore, I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by law, do hereby declare and proclaim that on and after the 1st day of October next, so long as merchandise imported into France in vessels of the United States, whether from the countries of its origin or from other countries, shall be admitted into the ports of France on the terms aforesaid, the discriminating duties heretofore levied upon merchandise imported into the United States in French vessels, either from the countries of its origin or from any other country, shall be and are discontinued and abolished.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the city of Washington, this 22d day of September, A.D. 1873, and of the Independence of the United States of America the ninety-eighth.

[SEAL.]

U.S. GRANT.

By the President:
J.C. BANCROFT DAVIS,
_Acting Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

The approaching close of another year brings with it the occasion for renewed thanksgiving and acknowledgment to the Almighty Ruler of the Universe for the unnumbered mercies which He has bestowed upon us.

Abundant harvests have been among the rewards of industry. With local exceptions, health has been among the many blessings enjoyed. Tranquillity at home and peace with other nations have prevailed.

Frugal industry is regaining its merited recognition and its merited rewards.

Gradually but, under the providence of God, surely, as we trust, the nation is recovering from the lingering results of a dreadful civil strife.

For these and all the other mercies vouchsafed it becomes us as a people to return heartfelt and grateful acknowledgments, and with our thanksgiving for blessings we may unite prayers for the cessation of local and temporary sufferings.

I therefore recommend that on Thursday, the 27th day of November next, the people meet in their respective places of worship to make their acknowledgments to Almighty God for His bounties and His protection, and to offer to Him prayers for their continuance.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 14th day of October, A.D. 1873, and of the Independence of the United States the ninety-eighth.

U.S. GRANT.

By the President:
HAMILTON FISH,
_Secretary of State_.

EXECUTIVE ORDERS.

WASHINGTON, _March 14, 1873_.

In consequence of the peculiar and confidential relations which from the nature of the service must exist and be maintained between the Department of State and its clerks, rules 2,3, and 4 of the rules and regulations for the civil service promulgated by the President 19th of December, 1871, as amended by the Executive order 16th of April, 1872, shall in their application to that Department be modified as follows, namely:

Vacancies occurring in any grade of consulates or clerkships in the Department may be filled either by transfer from some other grade or service--clerical, consular, or diplomatic--under the Department of State, or by the appointment of some person who has previously served under the Department of State to its satisfaction, or by the appointment of some person who has made application to the Secretary of State, with proper certificates of character, responsibility, and capacity, in the manner provided for applications for consulates of which the lawful annual compensation is more than $1,000 and less than $3,000, and who has on examination been found qualified for the position.

U.S. GRANT.

[From the New-York Daily Tribune, May 10, 1873.]

WASHINGTON, _May 9, 1873_.

The President announces with deep regret the death of the Hon. Salmon P. Chase, Chief Justice of the United States, who closed a life of long public service, in the city of New York, on the 7th instant, having filled the offices of Senator of the United States, governor of Ohio, Secretary of the Treasury, and crowning a long career in the exalted position of Chief Justice of the United States. The President directs that the public offices in Washington be closed on Saturday, the 10th instant, the day of his funeral, and that they be draped in mourning for the period of thirty days, and that the flags be displayed at half-mast on the public buildings and forts and on the national vessels on the day of the funeral, in honor of the memory of the illustrious dead.

By order of the President:

HAMILTON FISH, _Secretary of State_.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _Washington, D.C., May 21, 1873_.

SIR:[75] The President directs me to say that the several Departments of the Government will be closed on the 30th instant, in order to enable the employees of the Government to participate, in connection with the Grand Army of the Republic, in the decoration of the graves of the soldiers who fell during the rebellion.

I am, sir, your obedient servant,

O.E. BABCOCK,

_Secretary_.

[Footnote 75: Addressed to the heads of the Executive Departments, etc.]

WASHINGTON, _August 5, 1873_.

The Civil Service Commission, at its session at Washington which terminated June 4, 1873, recommended certain further rules to be prescribed by the President for the government of the civil service of the United States. These rules as herewith published are approved, and their provisions will be enforced as rapidly as the proper arrangements can be made.

U.S. GRANT.

By the President:
HAMILTON FISH,
_Secretary of State_.

FURTHER RULES FOR PROMOTING THE EFFICIENCY OF THE CIVIL SERVICE OF THE UNITED STATES.

_Rule 1_.--It being essential to the public welfare to maintain in the Executive the exercise of the power of nomination and appointment vested by the Constitution, and thereby to secure that measure of independence and separate responsibility which is contemplated by that instrument; and it being needful, in making such nominations and appointments, that the appointing power should obtain and in the proper Department preserve the evidence of fitness in reference to which all such nominations and appointments should be made: Therefore recommendations concerning any nomination or appointment to office or place in the civil service can not be considered unless made in writing, signed by the person making them, setting forth the character of the person recommended and his qualifications for the office in reference to which the recommendation is made; nor, when the recommendation is by a person holding an office or station in or under the Government of the United States, can such written recommendation, except when made in response to a written request by the officer making the appointment, or in the discharge of an official duty imposed by the Constitution or the laws, be considered as entitled to any greater weight than if made by such person as a private individual. But this rule shall not apply to recommendations made by officers as to their own subordinates.

_Rule 2_.--While it is not the purpose of the rules and regulations prescribed for the government of the civil service either to restrict the power of removal or to extend the tenure of service, such power will not be exercised arbitrarily, and therefore applications must not be entertained by any authority having the duty of nomination or appointment for the removal of any person in the civil service, nor will any person be removed for the mere purpose of making a place for any other person.

_Rule 3_.--To prevent any misapprehension in the public mind in regard to the functions of the members of the Civil Service Commission and of the members of any board of examiners, it is declared not to be any part of the duty or authority of any such member to act upon, take part in, or in any way entertain any recommendation, application, or question concerning appointments or removals in respect of the civil service, otherwise than in the strict discharge of their respective duties as prescribed by the rules and regulations; and for the same purpose it is further declared that the functions of the members of said Commission as to the matters aforesaid extend only to the question of the proper rules and regulations to be made and to supervising their application, and that the functions of the examiners as to said matters extend only to preparing for, conducting, rating, and making reports concerning examinations required to be made under such rules and regulations.