Chapter X: Section 5522: , which provides for the punishment of the crime of (4)

It is gratifying to learn from the Bureau of Education the extent to which educational privileges throughout the United States have been advanced during the year. No more fundamental responsibility rests upon Congress than that of devising appropriate measures of financial aid to education, supplemental to local action in the States and Territories and in the District of Columbia. The wise forethought of the founders of our Government has not only furnished the basis for the support of the common-school systems of the newer States, but laid the foundations for the maintenance of their universities and colleges of agriculture and the mechanic arts. Measures in accordance with this traditional policy, for the further benefit of all these interests and the extension of the same advantages to every portion of the country, it is hoped will receive your favorable consideration.

To preserve and perpetuate the national literature should be among the foremost cares of the National Legislature. The library gathered at the Capitol still remains unprovided with any suitable accommodations for its rapidly increasing stores. The magnitude and importance of the collection, increased as it is by the deposits made under the law of copyright, by domestic and foreign exchanges, and by the scientific library of the Smithsonian Institution, call for building accommodations which shall be at once adequate and fireproof. The location of such a public building, which should provide for the pressing necessities of the present and for the vast increase of the nation's books in the future, is a matter which addresses itself to the discretion of Congress. It is earnestly recommended as a measure which should unite all suffrages and which should no longer be delayed.

The joint commission created by the act of Congress of August 2, 1876, for the purpose of supervising and directing the completion of the Washington National Monument, of which commission the President is a member, has given careful attention to this subject, and already the strengthening of the foundation has so far progressed as to insure the entire success of this part of the work. A massive layer of masonry has been introduced below the original foundation, widening the base, increasing the stability of the structure, and rendering it possible to carry the shaft to completion. It is earnestly recommended that such further appropriations be made for the continued prosecution of the work as may be necessary for the completion of this national monument at an early day.

In former messages, impressed with the importance of the subject, I have taken occasion to commend to Congress the adoption of a generous policy toward the District of Columbia. The report of the Commissioners of the District, herewith transmitted, contains suggestions and recommendations, to all of which I earnestly invite your careful attention. I ask your early and favorable consideration of the views which they express as to the urgent need of legislation for the reclamation of the marshes of the Potomac and its Eastern Branch within the limits of the city, and for the repair of the streets of the capital, heretofore laid with wooden blocks and now by decay rendered almost impassable and a source of imminent danger to the health of its citizens. The means at the disposal of the Commissioners are wholly inadequate for the accomplishment of these important works, and should be supplemented by timely appropriations from the Federal Treasury.

The filling of the flats in front of the city will add to the adjacent lands and parks now owned by the United States a large and valuable domain, sufficient, it is thought, to reimburse its entire cost, and will also, as an incidental result, secure the permanent improvement of the river for the purposes of navigation.

The Constitution having invested Congress with supreme and exclusive jurisdiction over the District of Columbia, its citizens must of necessity look to Congress alone for all needful legislation affecting their interests; and as the territory of this District is the common property of the people of the United States, who equally with its resident citizens are interested in the prosperity of their capital, I can not doubt that you will be amply sustained by the general voice of the country in any measures you may adopt for this purpose.

I also invite the favorable consideration of Congress to the wants of the public schools of this District, as exhibited in the report of the Commissioners. While the number of pupils is rapidly increasing, no adequate provision exists for a corresponding increase of school accommodation, and the Commissioners are without the means to meet this urgent need. A number of the buildings now used for school purposes are rented, and are in important particulars unsuited for the purpose. The cause of popular education in the District of Columbia is surely entitled to the same consideration at the hands of the National Government as in the several States and Territories, to which munificent grants of the public lands have been made for the endowment of schools and universities.

RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.

[Footnote 40: See pp. 547-548.]

SPECIAL MESSAGES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _December 19, 1879_.

_To the Senate and House of Representatives_:

I have the honor to transmit herewith a draft of a bill submitted by the Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia, entitled "A bill to provide for the reclamation of the marshes in the harbors of the cities of Washington and Georgetown, and for other purposes," together with the accompanying letter of the president of the board requesting its transmission to Congress.

The bill embraces a plan for the reclamation of the marshes of the Potomac River and its Eastern Branch within the limits of the city of Washington, and is carefully framed with a view to economy in the prosecution of the work. The attention of Congress is again invited to the urgent need of legislation for this important work, which has been so long delayed.

The improvement contemplated is essential to the health of those who reside, whether permanently or temporarily, at the capital, and to the safe and convenient navigation of the waters in its vicinity by vessels employed in the service of the Government and for the purposes of commerce. It is a measure of more than local benefit. The capital of the nation should be relieved from every disadvantage which it is practicable to remove, and should possess every attraction with which it can be invested by the intelligent and fostering care of those who are intrusted with its immediate supervision. The people of the country will sustain and approve the efforts of their representatives in the discharge of this responsibility.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _January 7, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

In reply to a resolution of the Senate of December 3, 1879, requesting the President of the United States to inform the Senate whether payments have been made to the Ute Indians in accordance with the fourth article of an agreement made with said Indians September 3, 1873, I transmit herewith a letter from the Secretary of the Interior and accompanying papers.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _January 12, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

In answer to resolution of the House of Representatives of the 3d of December, 1879, relative to the consulate at Hongkong, I transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of State, with its accompanying papers.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _January 14, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

I have the honor herewith to transmit the final report of the board for testing iron, steel, and other metals, with the accompanying papers. These papers constitute the remainder of the reports made by the board, which were transmitted by me to the House of Representatives on the 15th of June, 1878 (House Ex. Doc. No. 98, Forty-fifth Congress, second session).

The United States testing machine at Watertown Arsenal, constructed for the board, is reported as being of great value in the determination of data and the solution of problems of interest to the people of the whole country, and the special attention of Congress is called to the necessity of an appropriation to enable the War Department to make use of it. An estimate of $20,000 for the purpose was submitted to Congress in the last Book of Estimates (see p. 82), and an appropriation of that sum is respectfully recommended.

The act of July 31, 1876 (19 U.S. Statutes at Large, ch. 246, p. 119), made an appropriation for completing the experiments in testing iron, steel, and other metals, and provided that the board should be discontinued from and after the expenditure of the amount appropriated. In accordance with this legislation, the board ceased to exist on the 30th of June, 1879.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _Washington, January 21, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

I transmit, for the consideration of the Senate with a view to ratification, a convention between the United States of America and the French Republic for the settlement of certain claims of the citizens of either country against the other.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _January 26, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

In reply to the resolution of the House of Representatives of the 21st instant, requesting the Commissioner of Agriculture to furnish all information which he may have in his possession bearing upon the culture of the sugar beet, etc., the accompanying letter and report, received from the Acting Commissioner of Agriculture for this purpose, are herewith transmitted.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _February 5, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

In reply to a resolution of the House of Representatives of the 3d instant, requesting the Commissioner of Agriculture to forward any facts or statistics in his office on the subject of forestry not heretofore published from his Department, the following report, received from the Commissioner, upon this subject is hereby transmitted.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _February 16, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives of the United States_:

In compliance with the resolution of the House of Representatives of the 5th instant, calling for any information which I may have received of the proceedings of the International Polar Congress convened in Hamburg, Germany, October 1, 1879, I transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of State on the subject.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _February 16, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

In compliance with the resolution of the Senate of the 19th of January, 1880, calling for information in relation to claims before the American-Spanish Claims Commission and the proceedings of the commission, I transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of State upon the subject.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _February 24, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

I herewith transmit a communication from the Attorney-General, with reference to the requisite appropriation for the current fiscal year for the compensation, of the marshals of the United States, including their reimbursement for necessary expenditures in the discharge of their official duties.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _February 25, 1880_.

_To the Senate and House of Representatives_:

I have the honor to transmit herewith a preliminary report and a draft of a bill submitted by the Public Lands Commission authorized by the act of Congress approved March 3, 1879.

The object of the report and of the bill accompanying it is of such importance that I respectfully commend it to the prompt and earnest consideration of Congress.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _February 27, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

In answer to the resolution of the Senate of the 27th ultimo, I transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of State, with its papers, relating to the claim of Max. Bromberger against the Government of Mexico.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _February 27, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

I transmit herewith to the Senate, for its consideration with a view to ratification, a treaty between the Government of the United States and His Highness Sultan Abdallah, King of Johanna, concerning commercial intercourse with that independent East African island, concluded at Johanna Town on the 4th day of October, 1879.

For your better understanding of the subject, I transmit also the correspondence of Commodore Shufeldt with the Navy Department, which accompanied the treaty, describing the condition and resources of the island of Johanna and narrating the progress of the negotiation, which was undertaken under the general instructions of the Department of State.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _March 1, 1880_.

_To the Senate and House of Representatives_:

I deem it proper to invite the attention of Congress to the subject of the unsettled claims of Spanish inhabitants of East Florida during the years of 1812 and 1813, generally known as the "East Florida claims," the settlement of which is provided for by a stipulation found in Article IX of the treaty of February, 1819, between the United States and Spain. The provision of the treaty in question which relates to the subject is the following:

The United States will cause satisfaction to be made for the
injuries, if any, which by process of law shall be established
to have been suffered by the Spanish officers and individual
Spanish inhabitants by the late operations of the American
army in Florida.

The act of Congress of the 3d of March, 1823 (3 U.S. Statutes at Large, p. 768), to carry into effect the ninth article of the treaty in question, provided for the examination and judicial ascertainment of the claims by the judges of the superior courts established at St. Augustine and Pensacola, and also made provision for the payment by the Secretary of the Treasury of such claims as might be reported to him by the said judges, upon his being satisfied that such claims were just and equitable; and a subsequent act, approved the 26th of June, 1834 (6 U.S. Statutes at Large, p. 569), gave further directions for the payment, and also provided for the hearing and determination by the judge of the superior court of St. Augustine of such claims as had not then been already heard and determined. Under these acts of Congress I understand that all claims presented to the judges in Florida were passed upon and the result of the proceedings thus had reported to the Secretary of the Treasury. It also appears that in the computation of damages the judges adopted a rule of 5 per cent per annum on the ascertained actual loss from the date of that loss to the time of the rendition of their finding, and that the Secretary of the Treasury in 1836, when the first reports were presented to him, not deeming this portion of the claims covered by the 5 per cent rule just and equitable within the meaning of the treaty and the acts of Congress, refused to pay it, but did continue to pay the ascertained amounts of actual loss. The demand for payment of this rejected item has been pressed at various times and in various ways up to the present time, but Mr. Woodbury's successors in the Treasury Department have not felt at liberty to review that ruling.

Under these circumstances I have thought it proper to lay the subject before Congress for its consideration and such action as may be deemed necessary. The history of the proceedings already had in regard to the matter is of record in the Treasury Department, and will be furnished by the Secretary of the Treasury should Congress desire it.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _March 8, 1880_.

_To the Senate_:

I transmit herewith the report of the Secretary of State and the accompanying papers, in response to the resolution adopted by the Senate on the 11th day of February last, requesting copies of all correspondence between this Government and any foreign government since February, 1869, respecting a ship canal across the isthmus between North America and South America, together with copies of any _projet_ of treaties respecting the same which the Department of State may have proposed or submitted since that date to any foreign power or its diplomatic representative.

In further compliance with the resolution of the Senate, I deem it proper to state briefly my opinion as to the policy of the United States with respect to the construction of an interoceanic canal by any route across the American Isthmus.

The policy of this country is a canal under American control. The United States can not consent to the surrender of this control to any European power or to any combination of European powers. If existing treaties between the United States and other nations or if the rights of sovereignty or property of other nations stand in the way of this policy--a contingency which is not apprehended--suitable steps should be taken by just and liberal negotiations to promote and establish the American policy on this subject consistently with the rights of the nations to be affected by it.

The capital invested by corporations or citizens of other countries in such an enterprise must in a great degree look for protection to one or more of the great powers of the world. No European power can intervene for such protection without adopting measures on this continent which the United States would deem wholly inadmissible. If the protection of the United States is relied upon, the United States must exercise such control as will enable this country to protect its national interests and maintain the rights of those whose private capital is embarked in the work.

An interoceanic canal across the American Isthmus will essentially change the geographical relations between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States and between the United States and the rest of the world. It would be the great ocean thoroughfare between our Atlantic and our Pacific shores, and virtually a part of the coast line of the United States. Our merely commercial interest in it is greater than that of all other countries, while its relations to our power and prosperity as a nation, to our means of defense, our unity, peace, and safety, are matters of paramount concern to the people of the United States. No other great power would under similar circumstances fail to assert a rightful control over a work so closely and vitally affecting its interest and welfare.

Without urging further the grounds of my opinion, I repeat, in conclusion, that it is the right and the duty of the United States to assert and maintain such supervision and authority over any interoceanic canal across the isthmus that connects North and South America as will protect our national interests. This, I am quite sure, will be found not only compatible with but promotive of the widest and most permanent advantage to commerce and civilization.

RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.

[A similar message was sent to the House of Representatives, in answer to a resolution of that body of February 10.]

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _March 9, 1880_.

_To the Senate and House of Representatives_:

I have the honor to transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of the Interior, containing an agreement signed by the chiefs and headmen of the Ute Indians now present at the seat of Government. The stipulations of this agreement appear to me so reasonable and just and the object to be accomplished by its execution so eminently desirable to both the white people of the United States and the Indians that it has my cordial approval, and I earnestly commend it to Congress for favorable consideration and appropriate legislative action.

RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _March 9, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

I transmit herewith to the Senate, for its consideration with a view to ratification, a convention between the United States and His Majesty the King of the Belgians, defining the rights, immunities, and privileges of consular officers, concluded this day at Washington.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _March 9, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

I transmit herewith a report, dated on the 9th instant, from the Secretary of State, with the accompanying papers, in answer to a resolution of the House of Representatives of the 25th ultimo, requesting the President to transmit to that body, if not deemed incompatible with the public interest, copies of such dispatches as have recently been received by the Secretary of State from the consul-general at Shanghai upon the subject of slavery in China and those portions of the penal code of China which forbid expatriation.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _March 12, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

In answer to a resolution of the House of Representatives of March 2, 1880, requesting the Secretary of State to communicate to the House certain information in relation to the publication and circulation of commercial reports, I transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of State, with its accompanying papers.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _March 29, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

In compliance with the resolution of the Senate of the 29th of January, 1880, calling for information in relation to the awards of the mixed commission organized under the provisions of the treaty of April 25, 1866, between the United States and Venezuela, I transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of State upon the subject.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _April 12, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

In response to the resolution of the House of Representatives of the 12th of February last, on the subject of negotiations concerning the immigration of Chinese to the United States, I transmit a report of the Secretary of State, to whom the matter was referred.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _April 15, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

In response to the resolution of the Senate of the 27th of February last, concerning the action had by the Executive with respect to the investigation of certain cases in which awards were made by the late United States and Mexican Commission, I transmit herewith a report of the Secretary of State, to whom the matter was referred.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _Washington, D.C., April 16, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

The board for testing iron, steel, and other metals, appointed under the authority of "An act making appropriations for sundry civil expenses of the Government for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1876, and for other purposes," contracted with Mr. A.H. Emery, of New York, for a testing machine, to be paid out of the appropriation made for the purpose. That machine has been completed and accepted, and is now in position at the Watertown Arsenal, Mass. It is spoken of by the members composing the late board as the most perfect and reliable machine in the world, embodying new mechanical principles and combinations not heretofore used in any other constructions.

In designing, perfecting, and making this machine the contractor has expended large sums of money over and above the contract price, besides giving years of labor, for which he has received no compensation. He now appeals to Congress for relief, and the papers herewith exhibit a case that calls for Congressional action. It is respectfully submitted to the House of Representatives, recommending speedy and favorable consideration.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _April 22, 1880_.

_To the Senate and House of Representatives_:

I have the honor to inform Congress that Mr. J. Randolph Coolidge, Dr. Algernon Coolidge, Mr. Thomas Jefferson Coolidge, and Mrs. Ellen Dwight, of Massachusetts, the heirs of the late Joseph Coolidge, jr., desire to present to the United States the desk on which the Declaration of Independence was written. It bears the following inscription in the handwriting of Thomas Jefferson:

Thomas Jefferson gives this writing desk to Joseph Coolidge,
jr., as a memorial of his affection. It was made from
a drawing of his own, by Ben. Randall, cabinetmaker of
Philadelphia, with whom he first lodged on his arrival in that
city in May, 1776, and is the identical one on which he wrote
the Declaration of Independence.

Politics, as well as religion, has its superstitions. These,
gaining strength with time, may one day give imaginary value
to this relic for its association with the birth of the great
charter of our independence.

Monticello, _November 18, 1825_.

The desk was placed in my possession by Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, and is herewith transmitted to Congress with the letter of Mr. Winthrop expressing the wish of the donors "to offer it to the United States, so that it may henceforth have a place in the Department of State in connection with the immortal instrument which was written upon it in 1776."

I respectfully recommend that such action be taken by Congress as may be deemed appropriate with reference to a gift to the nation so precious in its history and for the memorable associations which belong to it.

RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, D.C., _April 14, 1880_.

His Excellency RUTHERFORD B. HAYES,
_President of the United States_.

MY DEAR SIR: I have been privileged to bring with me from Boston, as a present to the United States, a very precious historical relic. It is the little desk on which Mr. Jefferson wrote the original draft of the Declaration of Independence.

This desk was given by Mr. Jefferson himself to my friend, the late Joseph Coolidge, of Boston, at the time of his marriage to Jefferson's granddaughter, Miss Randolph, and it bears an autograph inscription of singular interest, written by the illustrious author of the Declaration in the very last year of his life.

On the recent death of Mr. Coolidge, whose wife had died a year or two previously, the desk became the property of their children, Mr. J. Randolph Coolidge, Dr. Algernon Coolidge, Mr. Thomas Jefferson Coolidge, and Mrs. Ellen Dwight, who now desire to offer it to the United States, so that it may henceforth have a place in the Department of State in connection with the immortal instrument which was written upon it in 1776.

They have done me the honor to make me the medium of this distinguished gift, and I ask permission to place it in the hands of the Chief Magistrate of the nation in their name and at their request.

Believe me, dear Mr. President, with the highest respect, very faithfully, your obedient servant,

ROBT. C. WINTHROP.

WASHINGTON, _May 13, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

I transmit herewith to the Senate, in response to their resolution of the 24th of March last, in relation to the fulfillment of the ninth article of the treaty of 1819 between the United States and Spain, a report of the Secretary of State on the correspondence asked for by the resolution, with its accompanying documents, and in connection therewith a previous report from the Secretary of State and an opinion of the Attorney-General on the subject of the East Florida claims.

R.B. HAYES.

WASHINGTON, _May 17, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

In compliance with the resolution of the House of Representatives of the 27th ultimo, calling for copies of the correspondence with the Government of Great Britain in regard to the alleged outrage upon American fishermen at Fortune Bay, in the Province of Newfoundland, I transmit herewith the correspondence called for and a report from the Secretary of State on the subject.

In transmitting this correspondence and the report I respectfully ask the immediate and careful attention of Congress to the failure of accord between the two Governments as to the interpretation and execution of the fishery articles of the treaty of Washington, as disclosed in this correspondence and elucidated by the exposition of the subject by the Secretary of State.

I concur in the opinions of this report as to the measures proper to be taken by this Government in maintenance of the rights accorded to our fishermen by the British concession of the treaty and in providing for suitable action toward securing an indemnity for the injury these interests have already suffered.

Accordingly, I recommend to Congress the adoption of these measures, with such attendant details of legislation as in the wisdom of Congress shall seem expedient.

R.B. HAYES.

[The same message was sent to the Senate, in answer to a resolution of that body of April 28.]

WASHINGTON, _May 24, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

I submit to the Senate, for its consideration with a view to ratification, the accompanying convention for the extradition of criminals, concluded between the United States and the Government of His Majesty the King of the Netherlands on the 22d instant.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _May 25, 1880_.

_To the Senate and House of Representatives_:

I have the honor to transmit herewith a communication from the Secretary of the Interior, with reference to the agreement made with the chiefs of the Ute Indians recently in Washington, a copy of which was submitted to Congress on the 9th of March last.

The special and immediate attention of Congress to the imminent danger attending the postponement of appropriate legislation to carry into effect the stipulations of this agreement is earnestly solicited.

R.B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _June 5, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

In response to a resolution of the Senate of the 31st ultimo, requesting the President "to communicate to the Senate whether any supervisor or supervisors of the census appointed by and with the advice and consent of the Senate have been removed from office by him or with his consent," etc., I transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of the Interior.

R.B. HAYES.

VETO MESSAGES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _May 4, 1880_.

_To the House of Representatives_:

After mature consideration of the bill entitled "An act making appropriations to supply certain deficiencies in the appropriations for the service of the Government for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, and for other purposes," I return it to the House of Representatives, in which it originated, with my objections to its passage.

The bill appropriates about $8,000,000, of which over $600,000 is for the payment of the fees of United States marshals and of the general and special deputy marshals earned during the current fiscal year, and their incidental expenses. The appropriations made in the bill are needed to carry on the operations of the Government and to fulfill its obligations for the payment of money long since due to its officers for services and expenses essential to the execution of their duties under the laws of the United States. The necessity for these appropriations is so urgent and they have been already so long delayed that if the bill before me contained no permanent or general legislation unconnected with these appropriations it would receive my prompt approval. It contains, however, provisions which materially change, and by implication repeal, important parts of the laws for the regulation of the United States elections. These laws have for several years past been the subject of vehement political controversy, and have been denounced as unnecessary, oppressive, and unconstitutional. On the other hand, it has been maintained with equal zeal and earnestness that the election laws are indispensable to fair and lawful elections, and are clearly warranted by the Constitution. Under these circumstances, to attempt in an appropriation bill the modification or repeal of these laws is to annex a condition to the passage of needed and proper appropriations, which tends to deprive the Executive of that equal and independent exercise of discretion and judgment which the Constitution contemplates.

The objection to the bill, therefore, to which I respectfully ask your attention is that it gives a marked and deliberate sanction, attended by no circumstances of pressing necessity, to the questionable and, as I am clearly of opinion, the dangerous practice of tacking upon appropriation bills general and permanent legislation. This practice opens a wide door to hasty, inconsiderate, and sinister legislation. It invites attacks upon the independence and constitutional powers of the Executive by providing an easy and effective way of constraining Executive discretion. Although of late this practice has been resorted to by all political parties when clothed with power, it did not prevail until forty years after the adoption of the Constitution, and it is confidently believed that it is condemned by the enlightened judgment of the country. The States which have adopted new constitutions during the last quarter of a century have generally provided remedies for the evil. Many of them have enacted that no law shall contain more than one subject, which shall be plainly expressed in its title. The constitutions of more than half of the States contain substantially this provision, or some other of like intent and meaning. The public welfare will be promoted in many ways by a return to the early practice of the Government and to the true rule of legislation, which is that every measure should stand upon its own merits.

I am firmly convinced that appropriation bills ought not to contain any legislation not relevant to the application or expenditure of the money thereby appropriated, and that by a strict adherence to this principle an important and much needed reform will be accomplished.

Placing my objection to the bill on this feature of its frame, I forbear any comment upon the important general and permanent legislation which it contains, as matter for specific and independent consideration.

RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.

EXECUTIVE MANSION, _June 15, 1880_.

_To the Senate of the United States_:

After mature consideration of the bill entitled "An act regulating the pay and appointment of deputy marshals," I am constrained to withhold from it my approval, and to return it to the Senate, in which it originated, with my objections to its passage.

The laws now in force on the subject of the bill before me are contained in the following sections of the Revised Statutes:

SEC. 2021. Whenever an election at which Representatives or
Delegates in Congress are to be chosen is held in any city
or town of 20,000 inhabitants or upward, the marshal for the
district in which the city or town is situated shall, on the
application in writing of at least two citizens residing in
such city or town, appoint special deputy marshals, whose
duty it shall be, when required thereto, to aid and assist
the supervisors of election in the verification of any list
of persons who may have registered or voted; to attend in each
election district or voting precinct at the times and places
fixed for the registration of voters, and at all times
or places when and where the registration may by law be
scrutinized and the names of registered voters be marked
for challenge; and also to attend, at all times for holding
elections, the polls in such district or precinct.

SEC. 2022. The marshal and his general deputies, and such
special deputies, shall keep the peace and support and protect
the supervisors of election in the discharge of their duties,
preserve order at such places of registration and at such
polls, prevent fraudulent registration and fraudulent voting
thereat, or fraudulent conduct on the part of any officer of
election, and immediately, either at the place of registration
or polling place, or elsewhere, and either before or after
registering or voting, to arrest and take into custody, with
or without process, any person who commits, or attempts or
offers to commit, any of the acts or offenses prohibited
herein, or who commits any offense against the laws of the
United States; but no person shall be arrested without process
for any offense not committed in the presence of the marshal
or his general or special deputies, or either of them, or of
the supervisors of election, or either of them; and for
the purposes of arrest or the preservation of the peace the
supervisors of election shall, in the absence of the marshal's
deputies, or if required to assist such deputies, have the
same duties and powers as deputy marshals; nor shall any
person, on the day of such election, be arrested without
process for any offense committed on the day of registration.

SEC. 2023. Whenever any arrest is made under any provision of
this title, the person so arrested shall forthwith be brought
before a commissioner, judge, or court of the United States
for examination of the offenses alleged against him; and such
commissioner, judge, or court shall proceed in respect thereto
as authorized by law in case of crimes against the United
States.

SEC. 2024. The marshal or his general deputies, or such
special deputies as are thereto specially empowered by him in
writing, and under his hand and seal, whenever he or either
or any of them is forcibly resisted in executing their duties
under this title, or shall by violence, threats, or menaces
be prevented from executing such duties or from arresting any
person who has committed any offense for which the marshal
or his general or his special deputies are authorized to make
such arrest, are, and each of them is, empowered to summon
and call to his aid the bystanders or _posse comitatus_ of his
district.

SEC. 2028. No person shall be appointed a supervisor of
election or a deputy marshal under the preceding provisions
who is not at the time of his appointment a qualified voter of
the city, town, county, parish, election district, or voting
precinct in which his duties are to be performed.

SEC. 5521. If any person be appointed a supervisor of election
or a special deputy marshal under the provisions of title "The
elective franchise," and has taken the oath of office as such
supervisor of election or such special deputy marshal, and
thereafter neglects or refuses, without good and lawful
excuse, to perform and discharge fully the duties,
obligations, and requirements of such office until the
expiration of the term for which he was appointed, he shall
not only be subject to removal from office with loss of all
pay or emoluments, but shall be punished by imprisonment for
not less than six months nor more than one year, or by a fine
of not less than $200 and not more than $500, or by both fine
and imprisonment, and shall pay the costs of prosecution.

SEC. 5522. Every person, whether with or without any
authority, power, or process, or pretended authority, power,
or process, of any State, Territory, or municipality, who
obstructs, hinders, assaults, or by bribery, solicitation,
or otherwise interferes with or prevents the supervisors of
election, or either of them, or the marshal or his general or
special deputies, or either of them, in the performance of any
duty required of them, or either of them, or which he or they,
or either of them, may be authorized to perform by any law of
the United States, in the execution of process or otherwise,
or who by any of the means before mentioned hinders or
prevents the free attendance and presence at such places of
registration, or at such polls of election, or full and free
access and egress to and from any such place of registration
or poll of election, or in going to and from any such place
of registration or poll of election, or to and from any room
where any such registration or election or canvass of votes,
or of making any returns or certificates thereof, may be had,
or who molests, interferes with, removes, or ejects from
any such place of registration or poll of election, or
of canvassing votes cast thereat, or of making returns or
certificates thereof, any supervisor of election, the marshal
or his general or special deputies, or either of them, or
who threatens, or attempts or offers so to do, or refuses or
neglects to aid and assist any supervisor of election, or the
marshal or his general or special deputies, or either of them,
in the performance of his or their duties, when required
by him or them, or either of them, to give such aid and
assistance, shall be liable to instant arrest without process,
and shall be punished by imprisonment not more than two years,
or by a fine of not more than $3,000, or by both such fine and
imprisonment, and shall pay the cost of the prosecution.

The Supreme Court of the United States, in the recent case of _Ex parte_ Siebold and others, decided at the October term, 1879, on the question raised in the case as to the constitutionality of the sections of the Revised Statutes above quoted, uses the following language:

These portions of the Revised Statutes are taken from the act
commonly known as the enforcement act, approved May 31, 1870,
and entitled "An act to enforce the right of citizens of the
United States to vote in the several States of this Union,
and for other purposes," and from the supplement to that
act, approved February 28, 1871. They relate to elections of
members of the House of Representatives, and were an assertion
on the part of Congress of a power to pass laws for regulating
and superintending said elections and for securing the purity
thereof and the rights of citizens to vote thereat peaceably
and without molestation.

It must be conceded to be a most important power, and of a
fundamental character. In the light of recent history and of
the violence, fraud, corruption, and irregularity which have
frequently prevailed at such elections, it may easily be
conceived that the exertion of the power, if it exists, may be
necessary to the stability of our form of government.

The greatest difficulty in coming to a just conclusion arises
from mistaken notions with regard to the relations which
subsist between the State and National Governments. * * *

It seems to be often overlooked that a national constitution
has been adopted in this country, establishing a real
government therein, operating upon persons and territory and
things, and which, moreover, is, or should be, as dear to
every American citizen as his State government is. Whenever
the true conception of the nature of this Government is
once conceded, no real difficulty will arise in the just
interpretation of its powers; but if we allow ourselves to
regard it as a hostile organization, opposed to the proper
sovereignty and dignity of the State governments, we shall
continue to be vexed with difficulties as to its jurisdiction
and authority. No greater jealousy is required to be exercised
toward this Government in reference to the preservation of
our liberties than is proper to be exercised toward the State
governments. Its powers are limited in number and clearly
defined, and its action within the scope of those powers is
restrained by a sufficiently rigid bill of rights for the
protection of its citizens from oppression. The true interests
of the people of this country require that both the National
and State Governments should be allowed, without jealous
interference on either side, to exercise all the powers which
respectively belong to them according to a fair and practical
construction of the Constitution. State rights and the rights
of the United States should be equally respected. Both
are essential to the preservation of our liberties and
the perpetuity of our institutions. But in endeavoring to
vindicate the one we should not allow our zeal to nullify or
impair the other. * * *

The true doctrine, as we conceive, is this, that while the
States are really sovereign as to all matters which have not
been granted to the jurisdiction and control of the United
States, the Constitution and constitutional laws of the latter
are, as we have already said, the supreme law of the land,
and when they conflict with the laws of the States they are
of paramount authority and obligation. This is the fundamental
principle on which the authority of the Constitution is based,
and unless it be conceded in practice as well as theory the
fabric of our institutions, as it was contemplated by its
founders, can not stand. The questions involved have respect
not more to the autonomy and existence of the States than to
the continued existence of the United States as a government
to which every American citizen may look for security and
protection in every part of the land. * * *

Why do we have marshals at all if they can not physically lay
their hands on persons and things in the performance of their
proper duties? What functions can they perform if they can not
use force? In executing the process of the courts must they
call on the nearest constable for protection? Must they rely
on him to use the requisite compulsion and to keep the peace
while they are soliciting and entreating the parties and
bystanders to allow the law to take its course? This is the
necessary consequence of the positions that are assumed. If
we indulge in such impracticable views as these, and keep
on refining and re-refining, we shall drive the National
Government out of the United States and relegate it to the
District of Columbia, or perhaps to some foreign soil. We
shall bring it back to a condition of greater helplessness
than that of the old Confederation.

The argument is based on a strained and impracticable view
of the nature and powers of the National Government. It must
execute its powers or it is no government. It must execute
them on the land as well as on the sea, on things as well as
on persons. And to do this it must necessarily have power to
command obedience, preserve order, and keep the peace; and
no person or power in this land has the right to resist or
question its authority so long as it keeps within the bounds
of its jurisdiction.

I have deemed it fitting and proper to quote thus largely from an important and elaborate opinion of the Supreme Court because the bill before me proceeds upon a construction of the Constitution as to the powers of the National Government which is in direct conflict with the judgment of the highest judicial tribunal of our country.

Under the sections of the present law above quoted officers of the United States are authorized, and it is their duty in the case of Congressional elections, to keep the peace at the polls and at the places of registration; to arrest immediately any person who is guilty of crimes against the United States election laws; to protect all officers of elections in the performance of their duties; and whenever an arrest is made to bring the person so arrested before a commissioner, judge, or court of the United States for examination of the offenses alleged against him. "Such special deputy marshals as are specially empowered thereto by the marshal in writing," if forcibly resisted, may call to their aid the bystanders or _posse comitatus_. It is made a crime punishable with fine or imprisonment to hinder, assault, or otherwise interfere with the marshal or "his special deputies," or to threaten or to attempt so to do. If any person appointed such special deputy marshal has taken the oath of office and thereafter neglects or refuses to fully discharge the duties of such office, he is punishable not only by removal from office, but by fine and imprisonment. The functions of the special deputy marshals now provided for by law being executive, they are placed under the authority of the well-known chief executive officer of the courts of the United States. They are in fact, and not merely in name, the deputies of the marshal, and he and his bondsmen are responsible for them. A civil force for the execution of the law is thus instituted in accordance with long-established and familiar usage, which is simple, effective, and under a responsible head. The necessity for the possession of these powers by appropriate officers will not be called in question by intelligent citizens who appreciate the importance of peaceable, orderly, and lawful elections. Similar powers are conferred and exercised under State laws with respect to State elections. The executive officers of the United States under the existing laws have no other or greater power to supervise and control the conduct of the Congressional elections than the State executive officers exercise in regard to State elections.

The bill before me changes completely the present law by substituting for the special deputy marshals of the existing statutes new officers hitherto unknown to the law, and who lack the power, responsibility, and protection which are essential to enable them to act efficiently as executive officers.

The bill under consideration is as follows:

_Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled_, That
from and after the passage of this act the pay of all deputy
marshals for services in reference to any election shall be $5
for each day of actual service, and no more.

SEC. 2. That all deputy marshals to serve in reference to any
election shall be appointed by the circuit court of the United
States for the district in which such marshals are to perform
their duties in each year; and the judges of the several
circuit courts of the United States are hereby authorized to
open their respective courts at any time for that purpose; and
in case the circuit courts shall not be open for that purpose
at least ten days prior to a registration, if there be one,
or, if no registration be required, then at least ten days
before such election, the judges of the district courts of
the United States are hereby respectively authorized to cause
their courts to be opened for the purpose of appointing such
deputy marshals, who shall be appointed by the said district
courts; and the officers so appointed shall be in equal
numbers from the different political parties, and shall be
well-known citizens, of good moral character, and actual
residents of the voting precincts in which their duties are
to be performed, and shall not be candidates for any office
at such election; and all laws and parts of laws inconsistent
with this act are hereby repealed: _Provided_, That the
marshals of the United States for whom deputies shall be
appointed by the court under this act shall not be liable for
any of the acts of such deputies.

It will be observed that the deputy marshals proposed by the bill before me are distinctly different officers from the special deputies of the marshal, as such officers are now provided for in the statutes. This bill does not connect the new officers with the existing laws relating to special deputy marshals so as to invest the proposed deputy marshals with the same powers, to impose upon them the same duties, and to give them the same protection by means of the criminal laws. When new officers are created, distinct in character and appointed by different authority, although similar in name to officers already provided for, such officers are not held by similar responsibilities to the criminal law, do not possess the same powers, and are not similarly protected unless it is expressly so provided by legislation.

The so-called deputy marshals provided for in this bill will have no executive head. The marshal can neither appoint nor remove them. He can not control them, and he is not responsible for them. They will have no authority to call to their aid, if resisted, the _posse comitatus_. They are protected by no criminal statutes in the performance of their duties. An assault upon one of these deputies with the intent to prevent a lawful election will be no more than an ordinary assault upon any other citizen. They can not keep the peace. They can not make arrests when crimes are committed in their presence. Whatever powers they have are confined to the precincts in which they reside. Outside of the precincts for which they are appointed the deputy marshals of this bill can not keep the peace, make arrests, hold prisoners, take prisoners before a proper tribunal for hearing, nor perform any other duty. No oaths of office are required of them, and they give no bond. They have no superior who is responsible for them, and they are not punishable for neglect of duty or misconduct in office. In all these respects this bill makes a radical change between the powers of the United States officers at national elections and the powers uniformly possessed and exercised by State officers at State elections. This discrimination against the authority of the United States is a departure from the usage of the Government established by precedents beginning with the earliest statutes on the subject, and violates the true principles of the Constitution. The Supreme Court, in the decision already referred to, says:

It is argued that the preservation of peace and good order in
society is not within the powers confided to the Government of
the United States, but belongs exclusively to the States. Here
again we are met with the theory that the Government of the
United States does not rest upon the soil and territory of
the country. We think that this theory is founded on an entire
misconception of the nature and powers of that Government.
We hold it to be an incontrovertible principle that the
Government of the United States may, by means of physical
force, exercised through its official agents, execute on every
foot of American soil the powers and functions that belong to
it. This necessarily involves the power to command obedience
to its laws, and hence the power to keep the peace to that
extent.