Chapter XXXIX: Section 3: Neither the Constitution, nor any amendment (5)

Mr. MASON:--The Senator from Illinois and I construe our duties in a very different way. I have no parliamentary ends to obtain here by dexterous motions to give preference. The Senator has never heard me express the slightest approbation of these resolutions from the Peace Conference. On the contrary, he has heard me point out, with whatever ability I might, the objections that would compel me to vote against them. I intend to vote against them; but I deem it due to the character of these resolutions, and the way in which they were brought before the Senate, that their precedence should not be taken from them, and that we should have the first vote upon them. The Senator from Illinois will not find me taking back one word that I have said of objection to the resolutions that came from the Peace Conference; but I protest against their precedence being taken from them--a matter which has engaged the attention of the Senate for the last two hours to effect it. Now that it is done, I shall vote against the motion to give precedence. The resolutions of the Peace Conference should not be thrust aside by this resolution of the House; but that is the motion now before us, to thrust aside these resolutions in order to give place to the resolution of the House, and I shall vote against it.

Mr. CRITTENDEN:--I shall pursue, on this occasion, the course I have pursued throughout. My object is to attain a great end, and, if possible, to give entire satisfaction to the country, and restore it to peace and quiet, or to go as far in that direction as it is in my power to go. I shall vote to take up the resolution of the House, because we can act upon it immediately. I am an advocate of the resolutions from the Peace Conference. I have shown it; I have expressed it, and my determination to vote for them, and so I will; but I confess that I feel somewhat as the gentleman from Illinois does--surprised at the great zeal with which gentlemen want to keep up these propositions merely to strike a blow at others, claiming a precedence for a thing they mean to trample and spit upon.

Mr. MASON:--It has precedence, if the Senator will allow me, and he took it from it.

Mr. CRITTENDEN:--And he wants to continue that precedence. Sir, the way to manifest respect for their proposition is to vote for it. I do not understand this sort of proceeding on the part of gentlemen who desire to afford any means of pacification to the country. I am for this resolution of the House of Representatives; and I hope the Senate will vote to take it up. We can act upon it, and we can vote upon it, and we know well that we cannot pass these propositions of the Peace Conference. There are but two hours more of session in the other House--from ten to twelve o'clock on Monday morning. I cannot indulge in a hope, sanguine as I have been throughout, of the passage of those resolutions; and, indeed, the opposition here, and the opposition on this [the Democratic] side of the Chamber to those resolutions, are confirmation strong as Holy Writ that they cannot pass. Do gentlemen want to press them forward in order to prevent a vote on this resolution of the House? I hope not. I hope the motion of the gentleman from Illinois will prevail, and that we shall take up the House resolution.

Mr. BAYARD:--Mr. President, I have forborne to take any part in this discussion about the merits of any of these propositions before the Senate, nor do I intend to do so now. I shall reserve what I may have to say to another occasion. I shall not occupy the time of the Senate now. I shall vote against this motion, because, while I feel I do no injustice to others, I must necessarily exercise my own opinions. I consider the resolution passed by the House of Representatives as not worth the paper on which it is written, for the purpose of adjusting the difficulties in this country. I shall not detain the Senate by any attempt to give the reasons. Sufficient for me to state the ground of my objection, why I shall not vote to give preference to a resolution which, as it stands, I think will lead to no attainable result as regards peace or quiet in the country. As regards the other propositions, for which it is sought to be substituted, I express no opinion now, except to say, they are not exactly those that I should have preferred; but that I would gladly and willingly vote to adopt the distinct resolutions offered originally by the Senator from Kentucky. As to attaining a vote and disposing of this House resolution at once, of course, as I do not attach any importance to the measure, if passed, for the purpose for which it is to be passed, that would be a sufficient answer; but further, it will not stop debate, and it cannot prevent amendments. Amendments may be made; one substitute after another may be offered, and you can be led into debate quite as much as on the other. I would rather see the other proposition discussed; and on the whole, not thinking the particular resolution of the House entitled to preference as being of any great importance, I am not disposed to give it precedence.

Mr. SEBASTIAN, in speaking on the House resolutions, said: "It is now past four o'clock in the morning of the 4th of March, and it is evident, from obvious causes, that it is utterly impossible that any expression of preference for any other resolution than this can now have any effect, or receive even the notice of the House of Representatives."

At different stages of the proceedings of the Senate, in proposing and voting in relation to various amendments, the following among other things said and done, occurred with reference to the Report of the Peace Conference:

Mr. JOHNSON, of Arkansas:--I beg leave to offer as an amendment, and I presume it will be the last, the propositions submitted by the Peace Conference. I offer them not with a belief that they will be accepted or sustained at all. I should be glad to see even that step taken by the party who are to have, and who, in point of fact, do have possession of this Government. I offer them for the purpose of obtaining a vote upon them. I offer them, stating frankly that I shall not vote for them. I offer them with the conviction that there is between the Representatives on the other side of the Chamber, and those on the southern side, an irreconcilable difference; and it ought to be proclaimed, and it ought to be made frank and unmistakable. I offer it because it evolves truth. There is nothing left here to this Senate, on this the last night of the session, but this: to declare to the American people what is true, in order that they may know it, and may prepare themselves to meet it; that they may prepare, if they can, to reconcile it with peace, or to reconcile it to themselves; to stand by all the sorrowful consequences that shall otherwise come. This is the reason why I present this amendment. I believed when I voted for them that the propositions of the Senator from Kentucky were fair, were just to the people of the South, and to my own State among that number; and it is but honest that I should say now in presenting this amendment, that I consider these propositions a thousand fathoms beneath the propositions of the Senator from Kentucky.

It is in that condition that I offer this amendment. I hope Senators will have the courage and the nerve, if they have faith in and regard for their constituents, to whom they have taught their doctrines heretofore, to adhere to them and to stick to them now; and while they will vote against this amendment, I will stand by them also and vote against it, as one person who for fourteen years has represented his State in one or the other branch of this Congress. In saying this, I say it as the last act of my political life, and it is one upon which I put my faith, and on which I would put the last hope I have on earth. I know from the bottom of my soul that I am not averse to the continuation and the preservation of the present Union of States, which I have always considered sanctifies the continent of North America to peace and to prosperity forever. I feel from the bottom of my heart that whenever it shall be divided, it will be given up, from petty causes, and from petty irritations and misapprehensions, to the contingencies of war and the contingencies of blood and disaster, which have followed the divisions and separations of every other continent in the whole wide world.

Then, Mr. President, I offer this amendment from the conviction that common honesty of purpose, and the common frankness of men of nerve and of honor, will give us one vote to show that there is among us an irreconcilable difference, or that will give hope to those who, like the Senator from Kentucky, it seems to me, can hope against hope, that there is something to be done. I cannot believe that any thing is gained by this resolution. I cannot conceive that the proposition of the House gives security to my people. I will not stop to comment upon it, and to show why it is that I cannot vote for it. I sincerely hope that we may have a vote of the Senate upon the amendment I now offer; and I call for the yeas and nays upon it.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

Mr. JOHNSON, of Tennessee:--I wish merely to repeat again, before the yeas and nays are called on this amendment, that I shall vote against this, as I have voted against all preceding amendments, with the distinct understanding that I am not committed for or against any proposition contained in those amendments. I hope we shall vote them all down.

Mr. DOUGLAS:--I will merely state that when we have disposed of this resolution, I hope we shall take up the Peace Conference propositions immediately, and get through with them.

The Secretary proceeded to call the roll.

Mr. CRITTENDEN (when his name was called):--I desire to say that, although preferring this amendment, I shall vote against it, as I have against all others, in order to pass it as it came to us from the House.

Mr. JOHNSON, of Arkansas:--I should like to have made a further explanation; but I will not do it. I vote "nay."

The result was then announced--yeas 3, nays 34; as follows:

YEAS.--Messrs. Foot, Nicholson, and Pugh--3.

NAYS.--Messrs. Anthony, Baker, Bigler, Bingham, Bright,
Chandler, Clark, Crittenden, Dixon, Doolittle, Douglas,
Durkee, Fessenden, Foster, Grimes, Harlan, Hunter, Johnson
of Arkansas, Johnson of Tennessee, Kennedy, King, Latham,
Mason, Morrill, Polk, Rice, Sebastian, Sumner, Ten Eyck,
Trumbull, Wade, Wigfall, Wilkinson, and Wilson--34.

So the amendment was rejected.

Other amendments--of which some were approved and some rejected--were offered to the joint resolutions, and, finally, the proposals of amendments to the Constitution from the Conference Convention were again brought forward in this manner:

Mr. CRITTENDEN:--I intend to be perfectly consistent in my course on this subject. I look upon the result of the deliberations of the Peace Congress, as they call it here, as affording the best opportunity for a general concurrence among the States and among the people. I determined to take it in preference to my own proposition, and so stated to many of the members of that Convention. I now propose the propositions agreed to by them as a substitute for my own.

I came here this morning, without the least expectation of any vote being taken on this proposition of mine. It has never been in a condition before where I was prepared to offer amendments to it. I had amendments which I intended to propose, not intending to make material changes, as I supposed, in substance and effect, but changing the phraseology, particularly of the first article, in which I propose to substitute an amendment, to declare merely that the _status_ of persons held to servitude or labor under the laws of any State shall continue with the laws thus unchanged, as long as the Territory remains under a territorial government; and when it forms a constitution, to come into the Union as a State, to be received with or without slavery. All my papers and the amendments which I prepared are at my room, not here. That is the condition of the thing.

Mr. HUNTER:--The resolution stands now as several States have instructed for it, and I hope we shall have a vote on it.

Mr. CRITTENDEN:--I now move to substitute the resolutions of the Peace Convention. I have declared that I would do this; that I would abandon my own resolutions, and take that proposed by the Peace Conference.

Mr. HUNTER:--Then I call for the yeas and nays on the amendment of the Senator from Kentucky.

The PRESIDING OFFICER:--Does the Chair understand the Senator from Kentucky to offer as an amendment to the resolution now before the Senate, the resolution of the Peace Conference?

Mr. CRITTENDEN:--Yes, sir.

Mr. HUNTER:--That is an amendment, and on that I ask for the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

Mr. CRITTENDEN:--I wish to say a word in explanation; of course I shall make no speech at this hour. I have examined the propositions offered by that Convention; they contain, in my judgment, every material provision that is contained in the resolution called the CRITTENDEN resolution. The resolution that I offered contained nothing substantial that has not been adopted by the Convention, except in one particular, and that particular is this: they reject so much of the resolution offered by me as embraced future acquired territory. They said it was enough to settle in regard to the territory we now hold; and they have substituted a provision which, I think, ought to be perfectly satisfactory, as to acquisition of future territory. They say none shall be acquired, unless it be by a two-thirds vote of the Senate, which two-thirds vote shall include a majority of the Senators from the slaveholding States, as well as a majority of the Senators from the North. That gives ample security to the South; it gives ample security to the North. No territory can be acquired without the approbation of both sections of the Union, and having this in their power, they can then make any previous arrangement in regard to slavery that they please, before the acquisition of territory. That is the way they dispose of future acquisitions. I prefer it to the disposition made in the resolutions which I submitted to the Senate. I therefore offer them, and for other reasons: out of deference to that great body of men selected on the resolution of Virginia, and invited by Virginia herself. The body having met, and being composed of such men, and a majority of that Convention concurring in these resolutions, I think they come to us with a sanction entitling them to consideration; therefore I have moved them.

Mr. GWIN:--I hope the substitute will not be adopted. The very reason the Senator has given in favor of it, with reference to the acquisition of future territory, I think should be the cause of its being voted down. I am sure Senators from Northern States should not vote for such an amendment as this; because the first acquisition, if we get any at all, will be the very kind of acquisition that the Northern States want. It is well known that if we had had the same counsels in 1854 that we had in 1803, we should have acquired the whole Russian Pacific territory to Behring Straits. If THOMAS JEFFERSON had been President, we should have got the whole of the Pacific possessions of Russia, as we got Louisiana from France, on the same principle; and I believe the first acquisition of territory we shall get will be the Russian possessions to Behring Straits. I hope this amendment of the Constitution will not be voted for by those who are in favor of acquiring territory, especially which will give us such important advantages on the Pacific Ocean. I am utterly opposed to restricting all acquisition hereafter; especially on the Pacific coast of the United States, both north and south. I hope this amendment will be voted down.

Mr. DOUGLAS:--I was exceedingly anxious to get a separate and distinct vote, first on the Peace Conference propositions, and then on the CRITTENDEN proposition, as perfected by the Senator from Kentucky. I have announced several times to-night, that that was my purpose; but after what the Senator from Kentucky has said about his obligations to the Peace Conference, to give priority to their proposition, I must follow him, although I should be delighted if we could make arrangements for separate votes. I prefer his perfected amendment to the Peace Conference proposition; but still, I cannot separate from him on this question, when he thinks he is bound to bring it forward.

The Secretary proceeded to call the roll on the amendment.

Mr. NICHOLSON (when his name was called):--I greatly prefer the resolution of the Senator from Kentucky, because it is unequivocal, unambiguous in its language, and embraces future as well as present territory; but I am willing, if that cannot be got, to vote for the other; and I do not concur in the criticisms that have been made on it to the full extent, though there are features in it to which I very much object. I shall, therefore, vote "nay" on this proposition.

Mr. POWELL:--As I have before announced, I have paired with the Senator from Pennsylvania [Mr. CAMERON]. If I were not paired, I should vote "nay."

Mr. GWIN:--He would vote with you, if he were here.

Mr. POWELL:--I cannot tell; he is not here.

The result was announced--yeas 7, nays 28, as follows:

YEAS.--Messrs. Crittenden, Douglas, Harlan, Johnson of
Tennessee, Kennedy, Morrill, and Thomson--7.

NAYS.--Messrs. Bayard, Bigler, Bingham, Bright, Chandler,
Clark, Dixon, Fessenden, Foot, Foster, Grimes, Gwin, Hunter,
Lane, Latham, Mason, Nicholson, Polk, Pugh, Rice, Sebastian,
Sumner, Ten Eyck, Trumbull, Wade, Wigfall, Wilkinson, and
Wilson--28.

So the amendment was rejected.

No. IV.

[The action of both houses of Congress in relation to the Peace Conference, and the propositions of amendments therein adopted, would seem to form a portion of its history. I shall endeavor to furnish their action so far as it can be separated from other matters connected with the propositions presented. Immediately after the adoption of the resolutions of Virginia, under which the Conference was called, and on the 28th of January, 1861, the following proceedings took place in the House of Representatives of the United States.]

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, } WASHINGTON, MONDAY, _January 28th, 1861._ }

The SPEAKER, Hon. WM. PENNINGTON, laid before the House a message from the President of the United States, which was read by the Clerk, as follows:

_To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States:_

I deem it my duty to submit to Congress a series of
resolutions adopted by the Legislature of Virginia, on the
19th inst., having in view a peaceful settlement of the
exciting questions which now threaten the Union. They were
delivered to me on Thursday the 24th inst., by ex-President
TYLER, who has left his dignified and honored retirement, in
the hope that he may render service to his country in this
its hour of peril. These resolutions, it will be perceived,
extend an invitation "to all such States, whether
slaveholding or non-slaveholding, as are willing to unite
with Virginia in an earnest effort to adjust the present
unhappy controversies in the spirit in which the Constitution
was originally formed, and consistently with its principles,
so as to afford to the people of the slaveholding States
adequate guarantees for the security of their rights, to
appoint Commissioners to meet, on the 4th day of February
next, in the City of Washington, similar Commissioners
appointed by Virginia, to consider, and, if practicable,
agree upon some suitable adjustment."

I confess I hail this movement, on the part of Virginia, with
great satisfaction. From the past history of this ancient and
renowned Commonwealth, we have the fullest assurance that
what she has undertaken she will accomplish, if it can be
done by able, enlightened, and persevering efforts. It is
highly gratifying to know that other patriotic States have
appointed, and are appointing Commissioners to meet those of
Virginia in council. When assembled, they will constitute a
body entitled, in an eminent degree, to the confidence of the
country.

The General Assembly of Virginia have also resolved "that
ex-President JOHN TYLER is hereby appointed by the concurrent
vote of each branch of the General Assembly, a Commissioner
to the President of the United States; and Judge JOHN
ROBERTSON is hereby appointed, by a like vote, a Commissioner
to the State of South Carolina, and the other States that
have seceded or shall secede, with instructions respectfully
to request the President of the United States and the
authorities of such States to agree to abstain, pending the
proceedings contemplated by the action of this General
Assembly, from any and all acts calculated to produce a
collision of arms between the States and the Government of
the United States."

However strong may be my desire to enter into such an
agreement, I am convinced that I do not possess the power.
Congress, and Congress alone, under the war-making power, can
exercise the discretion of agreeing to abstain "from any and
all acts calculated to produce a collision of arms" between
this and any other Government. It would, therefore, be a
usurpation for the Executive to attempt to restrain their
hands by an agreement in regard to matters over which he has
no constitutional control. If he were thus to act, they might
pass laws which he should be bound to obey, though in
conflict with his agreement.

Under existing circumstances, my present actual power is
confined within narrow limits. It is my duty at all times to
defend and protect the public property within the seceding
States so far as this may be practicable, and especially to
employ all constitutional means to protect the property of
the United States, and to preserve the public peace at this
the seat of the Federal Government. If the seceding States
abstain "from any and all acts calculated to produce a
collision of arms," then the danger so much to be deprecated
will no longer exist. Defence, and not aggression, has been
the policy of the administration from the beginning.

But while I can enter into no engagement such as that
proposed, I cordially commend to Congress, with much
confidence that it will meet their approbation, to abstain
from passing any law calculated to produce a collision of
arms pending the proceedings contemplated by the action of
the General Assembly of Virginia. I am one of those who will
never despair of the Republic. I yet cherish the belief that
the American people will perpetuate the Union of the States
on some terms just and honorable for all sections of the
country. I trust that the mediation of Virginia may be the
destined means, under Providence, of accomplishing this
inestimable benefit. Glorious as are the memories of her past
history, such an achievement, both in relation to her own
fame and the welfare of the whole country, would surpass them
all.

JAMES BUCHANAN.

The "series of resolutions" referred to, and transmitted in President BUCHANAN'S message to Congress, are in the body of this book on pages 9 and 10.

The following communication by the Governor of Virginia to the General Assembly thereof, was also submitted with the President's Message:

_The Commonwealth of Virginia,
to all to whom these presents shall come, greeting:_

Know you, that the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of
Virginia, having, by joint resolution, adopted on the 19th
instant, and hereto attached, appointed ex-President JOHN
TYLER a Commissioner to the President of the United States to
carry out the instructions conveyed in said resolution:
therefore, I, JOHN LETCHER, Governor, do hereby announce the
said appointment, and authenticate the same.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and
[L.S.] caused the great seal of the State to be affixed, in the
City of Richmond, this 20th day of January, Anno Domini
1861.

JOHN LETCHER.

By the Governor:
GEORGE W. MUNFORD,
_Secretary of the Commonwealth._

Mr. STANTON:--I move that that message be printed, and referred to the Standing Committee on Military Affairs.

Mr. JOHN COCHRANE:--I move as an amendment to that motion, that it be referred to the special committee of five.

Mr. HOWARD, of Michigan:--I would suggest that whatever committee the message is referred to, ought to have power to report it back at any time; otherwise it will be locked up where the House cannot control it.

Mr. BURCH:--The gentleman from Virginia only yielded the floor for the reading of the message, and is now entitled to the floor.

The SPEAKER:--It is proper that the message should be disposed of in some way.

Mr. STANTON:--If the House will allow me, I will move that the message be referred to the Standing Committee on Military Affairs, with power to report on it at any time.

The SPEAKER:--That motion is not in order. A motion has been made to refer the message to the Committee on Military Affairs, and the gentleman from New York moves, as an amendment, that it be referred to the special committee of five.

Mr. BOCOCK:--If there is to be any debate on this motion, it should be allowed to go over until my colleague (Mr. PRYOR) makes his speech.

Mr. STANTON:--I move the previous question.

Mr. CURTIS:--The question should first be taken on the motion to refer to the Committee on Military Affairs.

The SPEAKER:--That statement is correct. The question is on referring the message to the Military Committee.

Mr. BOCOCK:--I am bound to interpose on behalf of my colleague, who says he only yielded to have the message read.

Mr. STANTON:--The previous question is demanded, and that will put an end to the matter at once.

Mr. MILLSON:--I think the question deserves some little consideration. I therefore move to postpone the further consideration of the President's message till to-morrow.

Mr. STANTON:--Very well; let that course be taken.

The motion was agreed to.

* * * * *

After the report of the Peace Conference had been transmitted to the House of Representatives, and while the joint resolutions were under consideration, several ineffectual attempts were made to get the labors of the Conference before the House. Here is one of the first:

Mr. MAYNARD:--It is known, I suppose, to most members of the House, informally and unofficially, that what is known as the Peace Conference, to which the country has been looking for several days, has concluded its labors and dissolved. [Cries of "Order!"] I desire to make a proposition.

Mr. BINGHAM, and others objected.

Mr. MAYNARD:--I have a right to make a proposition.

Mr. CRAIGE, of North Carolina:--I call the gentleman to order, and insist upon the enforcement of the rules.

Mr. MAYNARD [amid loud cries of "Order!"] moved to postpone the vote upon the pending propositions until to-morrow after the morning hour.

The motion was not agreed to.

And again, the same day, February 27th, the following effort was made:

Mr. McCLERNAND:--I wish to state that I understand there is on the Speaker's table a communication from the president of the Peace Conference. I ask the unanimous consent of the House that it be taken up and read.

Mr. LOVEJOY:--I object.

So action was further delayed.

_March 1st, 1861._--When a communication from the Navy Department came up for consideration in the House, the motion to postpone the special order brought out the following action on the communication of the Peace Conference:

The SPEAKER:--There is a communication, which has been for some time lying upon the Speaker's table, from the president of the Peace Conference. The Chair thinks it is right that it should be taken up.

Mr. LOVEJOY:--I object.

Mr. GROW:--I call for the regular order of business.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair has not thought proper to present it until the propositions of the Committee of Thirty-three had been disposed of; but he thinks it right that they should now be presented.

Mr. STEVENS, of Pennsylvania:--I object, on behalf of John Tyler, who does not want them in. [Laughter.]

Mr. McCLERNAND:--I move to suspend the rules.

Mr. GROW:--I call for the regular order of business.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair thinks he ought to have the privilege of presenting these papers.

Mr. GROW:--I rise to a question of order. The territorial business is the special order. I am entitled to the floor; and I submit that it cannot be taken from me by any motion to suspend the rules.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair thinks the motion to suspend the rules is in order.

Mr. GROW:--The Chair can hardly understand my question of order. It is that the territorial business is the special order, made so by a suspension of the rules. While that is pending, therefore, by the uniform decision of the House, no motion can be entertained to suspend the rules.

The SPEAKER:--The territorial business was made the special order for the two succeeding days after the propositions reported by the Committee of Thirty-three had been disposed of.

Mr. BOTELER:--I want to know if there is any business, or can be any business, that should take precedence of these propositions of the Peace Conference?

Mr. LOVEJOY:--Yes, sir; there are ten thousand things that should take precedence.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair decides that the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. McCLERNAND] has the floor, and is entitled to make the motion to suspend the rules.

Mr. GROW:--Do I understand the Chair to decide that the business of the Territories does not come up to-day?

The SPEAKER:--The Chair is of opinion that, under a strict construction of the rule, it would properly come up to-morrow.

Mr. GROW:--I appeal from the decision of the Chair.

Mr. HATTON: I move to lay that appeal on the table.

Mr. HICKMAN:--Upon that motion, I call for tellers.

Mr. WASHBURNE, of Illinois:--Before the House divides upon the appeal, I desire the Chair to state precisely what the point of order is that we are to vote upon.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair decided that the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. McCLERNAND] had the floor, and was in order in moving to suspend the rules for the purpose of receiving the communication the Chair desired to lay before the House. From that decision an appeal was taken, and a motion made to lay the appeal on the table. The question is now upon the latter motion.

Mr. GROW:--I rise to a question of order again. The Chair has not stated my question of order correctly. My point of order was, that the business of the Territories was set down as a special order immediately after the disposal of the business of the Committee of Thirty-three.

Mr. HATTON:--I call the gentleman from Pennsylvania to order.

Mr. GROW:--I have the right to state my point of order.

The SPEAKER:--The gentleman from Pennsylvania will state his point of order.

Mr. GROW:--It is, that the Territorial business having been made the special order, comes up now as the regular order of business.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair decides that the gentleman from Illinois obtained the floor, and had the right to submit the motion to suspend the rules.

Mr. GROW:--He had no right to take the floor from me for any such purpose.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair overrules the question of order.

Mr. GROW:--And from that decision I take an appeal.

The SPEAKER:--The appeal is already pending; and a motion has been made to lay the appeal on the table.

Mr. GROW:--I call for tellers on the motion.

Tellers were ordered, and Messrs. ADRAIN and GROW were appointed.

The House divided; and the tellers reported--forty-seven in the affirmative.

Mr. HOWARD, of Michigan:--I move that the House adjourn.

Before the vote had been taken on the motion, the hour of five arrived; and

The SPEAKER declared the House had taken a recess until seven o'clock.

* * * * *

EVENING SESSION.

The House reassembled at seven o'clock P.M.

COMMUNICATION OF THE PEACE CONFERENCE.

Mr. GROW:--What is the regular order of business?

The SPEAKER:--The Chair had decided that the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. McCLERNAND] was entitled to the floor, to move that the rules be suspended to receive a communication from the Peace Conference. From that decision the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. GROW] appealed; and a motion was made to lay the appeal on the table.

Mr. McCLERNAND:--I think we can perhaps agree to an arrangement that will be satisfactory to gentlemen upon both sides, by which any difficulty upon the question of order can be avoided. If gentlemen upon that side of the House will allow the propositions to be presented, we are willing that they shall be referred, and the House then proceed to the consideration of the territorial business.

Mr. KELLOGG, of Illinois:--I hope that will be done.

Mr. LOVEJOY:--I object to the reception of the proposition.

Mr. HICKMAN:--There are but few members present. I move that there be a call of the House.

The motion was disagreed to.

Mr. HICKMAN:--I ask the Chair for his judgment whether there is a quorum present or not.

The SPEAKER:--In the opinion of the Chair, a quorum is not present.

Mr. McCLERNAND:--I inquire whether there is any objection to the propositions of the Peace Conference being taken up and referred?

Mr. LOVEJOY:--I certainly object in _toto coelo_ to any such proposition.

Mr. BOTELER:--I desire to ask this question: can any member object to the reception of a communication from the Peace Congress?

Mr. LOVEJOY:--It is not a Peace Congress at all. There is no such body known to this House.

Mr. BOTELER:--I merely ask the question for information, for I do not profess to be familiar with the rules; I desire to know whether the objection of a single member can defeat the reception of such a proposition, especially when that single member is known not to be a conservative man, but a man opposed to all compromises?

The SPEAKER:--The Chair will suggest that a great deal of time will be saved by having a call of the House, as there is evidently no quorum present.

A call of the House was taken. A quorum having appeared, the House proceeded to dispose of several special orders, when, on a motion of postponement, it returned in this wise to the Peace Conference:

Mr. LOGAN:--I demand the yeas and nays on the motion to postpone.

The yeas and nays were not ordered.

The special order was then postponed.

Mr. McCLERNAND:--I now move to suspend the rules of the House, for the purpose of receiving the memorial of the Peace Congress, which assembled lately in this city.

Mr. GROW:--To be received? What for?

Mr. McCLERNAND:--For reference I suppose.

Mr. BURNETT:--No; but to get it in, and put it upon its passage.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair understood the proposition to be, that the rules should be suspended, in order that the paper should be received for reference.

Mr. McCLERNAND:--I withdraw that part of the proposition.

Mr. SICKLES:--If it be received, it is then in the power of the House to do with it what it pleases.

Mr. GROW:--The understanding was that the motion should be made for the suspension of the rules only to receive the proposition.

Mr. SICKLES:--That is all right. When the paper gets in, the House can do with it what it may deem fit.

Mr. LOVEJOY:--I demand the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

Mr. SHERMAN:--Is it proposed to act on the memorial of the Peace Congress?

Mr. SICKLES:--If it comes before the House, it will be for us to say what disposition shall be made of it. [Cries of "Call the roll!"]

Mr. CRAIGE, of North Carolina:--This motion is merely for the suspension of the rules to receive the proposition, and this, therefore, may be considered a test vote. [Cries of "Call the roll!"]

The question was taken; and it was decided in the negative--yeas 93, nays 67; as follows:

YEAS.--Messrs. Charles F. Adams, Green Adams, Adrain,
Aldrich, William C. Anderson, Avery, Barr, Barret, Bocock,
Boteler, Brabson, Branch, Briggs, Bristow, Brown, Burch,
Burnett, Campbell, Horace F. Clark, John B. Clark, John
Cochrane, Corwin, James Craig, John G. Davis, De Jarnette,
Dunn, Etheridge, Florence, Foster, Fouke, Garnett, Gilmer,
Hale, Hall, Hamilton, J. Morrison Harris, John T. Harris,
Haskin, Hatton, Hoard, Holman, William Howard, Hughes,
Jenkins, Junkin, William Kellogg, Killinger, Kunkel,
Larrabee, James M. Leach, Leake, Logan, Maclay, Mallory,
Charles D. Martin, Maynard, McClernand, McKenty, McKnight,
McPherson, Millson, Millward, Laban T. Moore, Moorehead,
Edward Joy Morris, Nelson, Niblack, Nixon, Olin, Pendleton,
Peyton, Phelps, Porter, Pryor, Quarles, John H. Reynolds,
Rice, Riggs, James C. Robinson, Sickles, Simms, William N.H.
Smith, Spaulding, Stevenson, William Stewart, Stokes,
Thomas, Vance, Webster, Whiteley, Winslow, Woodson, and
Wright--93.

NAYS.--Messrs. Alley, Ashley, Bingham, Blair, Brayton,
Buffinton, Burlingame, Burnham, Carey, Case, Coburn, Colfax,
Conway, Burton Craige, Dawes, Delano, Duell, Edgerton,
Eliot, Ely, Fenton, Ferry, Frank, Gooch, Graham, Grow,
Gurley, Helmick, Hickman, Hindman, William A. Howard,
Hutchins, Irvine, Francis W. Kellogg, Kenyon, Loomis,
Lovejoy, McKean, Morrill, Morse, Palmer, Perry, Potter,
Pottle, Christopher Robinson, Royce, Ruffin, Sedgwick,
Sherman, Somes, Spinner, Stanton, Stevens, Tappan, Tompkins,
Train, Vandever, Van Wyck, Wade, Waldron, Walton, Cadwalader
C. Washburn, Elihu B. Washburne, Wells, Wilson, Windom, and
Woodruff--67.

So (two thirds not voting in favor thereof) the rules were not suspended.

During the vote,

Mr. WOODSON said:--I rise for information. What are we voting on? [Cries of "Order!"] I cannot for my life imagine how this can be regarded as a test vote. I will vote to receive the proposition of the Peace Conference; but on its passage I will vote against it.

The SPEAKER:--The motion is, to suspend the rules for the reception of the memorial.

Mr. CRAIGE, of North Carolina:--I understood the gentleman from Illinois to state that this was a test vote.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair cannot undertake to decide whether it is a test vote or not.

Mr. JOHN COCHRANE stated that his colleagues, Mr. CLARK B. COCHRANE and Mr. LEE, were paired.

Mr. CRAIGE, of North Carolina:--I would have no objection, Mr. Speaker, to permit this resolution to come before the House, but I understood the gentleman from Illinois to proclaim that this was a test vote. Utterly opposed to any such wishy-washy settlement of our national difficulties, I vote "no."

Mr. CURTIS stated that he was paired with Mr. ANDERSON, of Missouri.

Mr. FOSTER:--While I am willing to vote for the reception of the memorial of the Peace Congress, of which I was a member, still I am unwilling to be considered as favoring their proposition. Is this vote a test vote on that proposition?

The SPEAKER:--The Chair does not think that it is; but each gentleman will decide for himself.

Mr. HALE:--I am willing to receive this memorial in courtesy to the Peace Conference; and not regarding this as a test vote, I vote "ay."

Mr. LEACH, of Michigan, stated that he had paired with Mr. ENGLISH, or he would have voted in the negative.

Mr. LEAKE (when his name was called) said that he regarded this _thing_ as a miserable abortion, forcibly reminding one of the old fable of the mountain and the mouse; nevertheless, he was willing to let the mouse in, in order to have the pleasure of killing it.

Mr. RUFFIN:--As it is announced that this is a test vote, I am compelled to vote "no." Otherwise, I would have been willing to let the matter be brought before the House for its consideration.

Mr. JENKINS:--Who can make this a test vote? Certainly no man in this House. This is a vote to receive the memorial, and nothing more.

Mr. WILSON stated that Mr. VALLANDIGHAM was paired with Mr. BEALE.

Mr. JUNKIN stated that his colleague, Mr. MONTGOMERY, was detained at home by illness.

Mr. NIXON stated that his colleague, Mr. STRATTON, was detained at his room by illness, and that if he were present, he would vote to receive the memorial of the Peace Conference.

Mr. ELY stated that his colleague, Mr. LEE, was detained at his room by indisposition.

Mr. PENDLETON stated that his colleague was detained at his room by indisposition.

Mr. CAMPBELL stated that his colleague, Mr. SCRANTON, was absent from the Hall because of illness.

Mr. POTTER:--As this is a test vote, I vote "no."

Mr. BRAYTON:--I understand this to be a test vote, and therefore vote "no."

Mr. HOARD:--These papers are not before us. They are not printed, and we cannot be supposed to know any thing of them; and I would ask, therefore, how they can be regarded as a test vote? I vote "ay."

Mr. BOCOCK:--Mr. Speaker, out of deference to the Peace Conference, called as it was by my State, I vote to receive this report. But unless the report, as it appears in the papers, can be amended, it cannot receive my approval.

Mr. SHERMAN:--I vote against this, simply because we have no time to consider it.

Mr. HINDMAN:--I vote against suspending the rules, because I desire to defeat the proposition of the Peace Conference, believing it to be unworthy of the vote of any Southern man.

Mr. COX (not being within the bar when his name was called) asked leave to vote.

Mr. WASHBURNE, of Illinois, objected.

Mr. GARNETT:--Mr. Speaker, intending and desiring to express my abhorrence of these insidious propositions, conceived in fraud and born of cowardice, by giving a direct vote against them, yet from respect for the conference which reported them, I am willing to receive them, and therefore now vote "ay."

Mr. HARRIS, of Virginia:--I vote "ay," because I am in favor of the resolutions as a peace measure.

Mr. MAYNARD:--Believing these propositions eminently wise and just, I will let my vote stand in the affirmative.

Mr. BURNETT:--I hope the Chair will enforce the rules.

The SPEAKER:--I am trying to, all I can; and I hope gentlemen will keep their seats and preserve order.

Mr. DE JARNETTE:--I vote "ay," with the hope of having an opportunity to vote against the propositions of the Peace Conference.

Mr. BOTELER:--I vote "ay," to introduce these propositions, because I believe it to be my duty to do every thing, consistent with honor, to preserve the peace and save the Union of my country.

Mr. COX:--I desire to ask a question of the Chair.

The SPEAKER:--The Chair will hear you.

Mr. COX:--I desire to know whether or not it will be in order to move to suspend the rules to enable me to have my vote recorded?

Mr. SPEAKER:--No, sir.

Mr. COX:--I would like very much to have it recorded in favor of these peace propositions. I vote "ay," if there is no objection.

Mr. HINDMAN:--Consent is not given to the gentleman from Ohio to have his vote recorded.

The SPEAKER:--It is not received.

Mr. ROBINSON, of Rhode Island:--Believing that this is a test vote, I change my vote, and vote "no."

Mr. JOHN COCHRANE:--I wish to know whether the vote of my colleague, CLARK B. COCHRANE, is recorded.

The SPEAKER:--It is not.

Mr. JOHN COCHRANE:--I think he has retired from the House on account of sickness in his family; and I believe he is laboring for the Union in other quarters.

Mr. MILLSON:--I desire to vote.

Objection was made.

Mr. MILLSON:--I am entitled to vote, having been absent upon a committee of conference. I vote "ay."

Mr. HINDMAN:--Is the gentleman entitled to vote under the rules of the House?

Mr. BARR:--Objection comes too late.

The SPEAKER:--It has been usual to allow gentlemen to vote under such circumstances.

Mr. HICKMAN:--Do the rules allow him to vote?

The SPEAKER:--The Chair supposes that is the rule of the House.

Mr. HINDMAN:--I ask to have the rule read.

Mr. MILLSON:--No rule of the House could take away the right of a member to vote when he is absent by order of the House. If the rules deprived a member of the right to vote under such circumstances, it would be void.

The result was announced as above recorded.

Mr. McCLERNAND:--This vote divides the Republican party, and sounds its death knell.

No. V.

REPORTS OF DELEGATES TO STATES.

_Report of the Peace Commissioners to the Legislature of Virginia._

_To His Excellency_ JOHN LETCHER, _Governor of Virginia:_

The undersigned Commissioners, in pursuance of the wishes of
the General Assembly, expressed in the resolutions of the
19th day of January last, repaired in due season to the City
of Washington. They there found, on the 4th day of February,
the day suggested in the overture of Virginia for a
Conference with the other States, Commissioners to meet them
from the following States, viz.: Rhode Island, New Jersey,
Delaware, Maryland, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut,
Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and
Kentucky. Subsequently, during the continuance of the
Conference, at different periods, appeared likewise
Commissioners from Tennessee, Massachusetts, Missouri, New
York, Maine, Iowa, and Kansas. So that before the close
twenty-one States were represented by Commissioners,
appointed either by the Legislatures or Governors of the
respective States.

The undersigned communicated the resolutions of the General
Assembly to this Conference, and, both before its committee
appointed to recommend a plan of adjustment, and the
Conference itself, urged the propositions known as the
CRITTENDEN resolutions, with the modification suggested by
the General Assembly of Virginia, as the basis of an
acceptable adjustment.

They were not adopted by the Conference, but in lieu thereof,
after much discussion, and the consideration of many proposed
amendments, the article with seven sections, intended as an
amendment to the Constitution, was adopted by sections (not
under the rules, being voted on as a whole), and by a vote of
the Conference (not taken by States), was directed to be
submitted to Congress, with the request that it should be
recommended to the States for ratification, which was
accordingly done by the President of the Conference.

The undersigned regret that the Journal showing the
proceedings and votes in the Conference has not yet been
published or furnished them, and that consequently they are
not able to present it with this report. As soon as received
it will be communicated to your Excellency.

In the absence of that record it is deemed appropriate to
state that on the final adoption of the first section, two of
the States, Indiana and Missouri, did not vote, and New York
was divided, and that the votes by States was, ayes 9, nays
8--Virginia, by a majority of her Commissioners, voting in
the negative.

The other sections were adopted by ranging majorities (not
precisely recollected), and on the fifth and seventh sections
the vote of Virginia was in the negative. The plan, when
submitted to Congress, failed to receive its recommendation,
and as that body, having adjourned, can take no further
cognizance of it, the undersigned feel the contingency has
arrived on which they are required to report, as they herein
do, the result of their action.

Respectfully,

JOHN TYLER,
G.W. SUMMERS,
W.C. RIVES,
JAS. A. SEDDON.

The above report having been read and ordered to be printed, Mr. SUMMERS stated that the reason it was not signed by Judge BROCKENBROUGH, the other Virginia Commissioner, was because that gentleman was not in Richmond. Mr. SUMMERS presented a communication in which Judge BROCKENBROUGH stated his views at length on the propositions adopted by the Convention, and it was printed, by vote of the Legislature, in connection with the report.

After reviewing the different sections of the propositions adopted by the Peace Conference, Judge BROCKENBROUGH, in his letter, states that the said propositions, _as an entirety_, would have received his vote, and therefore the vote of Virginia, in the Peace Conference, if it had been submitted to a vote in that form.

* * * * *

_Reports of the New York Commissioners to the Legislature of that State._

MAJORITY REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS TO THE PEACE CONVENTION.

_March 23d, 1861._

_To the Honorable the Legislature of the State of New York:_

The Report of the Commissioners appointed by the Legislature of the State of New York to meet Commissioners from other States in the City of Washington on the fourth day of February, 1861, upon the call of the State of Virginia, by resolutions passed by the General Assembly of that State on the nineteenth day of January, 1861.

A copy of the Journal of the Convention is submitted herewith, from which it will be seen that prior to the presence of the Commissioners from New York, that body had been completely organized, rules of order adopted which excluded all persons other than members from witnessing its deliberations, forbidding any publication or other communication of its proceedings, and the taking of any entry from its Journal without leave; in short, requiring all its debates and acts to be kept secret. A committee had also been organized of one from each State to be appointed by the Commissioners from such State, to which the Virginia resolutions were referred, "with all other propositions for the adjustment of existing differences between the States, with authority to report what they might deem right, proper, and necessary to restore harmony and preserve the Union;" and this committee had been in session two days before your Commissioners were enabled to appoint any one of their number upon it. This was done on the eighth of February by the appointment of Mr. Field.

William E. Dodge, one of your Commissioners, took his seat in the Convention on the seventh day of February, 1861, and Messrs. Field, Noyes, Wadsworth, Corning, King, and Wool, on the eighth of February, Mr. Smith on the eleventh, and Judges James and Bronson on the twelfth day of February, and Mr. Granger, who was appointed in the place of Judge Gardiner, who declined, on the eighteenth day of February, 1861.

It was deemed advisable by your Commissioners that the proceedings of the Convention should be open to the public and the press, and hence they advised and concurred in resolutions introduced for that purpose, which were laid on the table on the motion of a Commissioner from the State of New Jersey. On a subsequent day they also concurred in a resolution authorizing the employment of a stenographer, to "preserve accurate notes of the debates and other proceedings of 'the Convention,' which notes should not be communicated to any person, nor shall copies thereof be taken, nor shall the same be made public until after the final adjournment of this Convention, except in pursuance of a vote authorizing their publication;" but this was refused, and the resolution laid on the table on motion of a Commissioner from the State of Pennsylvania, by a vote of eleven to eight, all the Slave States represented voting against it, with the addition of the States of Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Before the Convention closed its session, the following states, twenty-one in all, were represented in the Convention: Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, Missouri, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Vermont, Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, Iowa, Pennsylvania, and Kansas. With the concurrence of a majority of your Commissioners, Mr. Field offered in the committee of one from each State, on the fourteenth of February, the following proposition:

"Each State has the sole and exclusive right, according to
its own judgment, to order and direct its domestic
institutions, and to determine for itself what shall be the
relation to each other of all persons residing or being
within its limits;"

but it was rejected by a majority of the committee, and formed no part of its report.

That committee made its report on the fourteenth of February, unaccompanied by any written observations, in the shape of an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, in the following words:

ARTICLE 1. In all the territory of the United States not
embraced within the limits of the Cherokee Treaty Grant,
north of a line from east to west on the parallel of 36° 30´
north latitude, involuntary servitude, except in punishment
of crime, is prohibited whilst it shall be under a
Territorial Government; and in all the territory south of
said line, the status of persons owing service or labor, as
it now exists, shall not be changed by law while such
territory shall be under a Territorial Government; and
neither Congress nor the Territorial Government shall have
power to hinder or prevent the taking to said territory of
persons held to labor or involuntary service, within the
United States, according to the laws or usages of the State
from which such persons may be taken, nor to impair the
rights arising out of said relations, which shall be subject
to judicial cognizance in the Federal Courts according to
the common law; and when any Territory north or south of
said line, within such boundary as Congress may prescribe,
shall contain a population required for a member of
Congress, according to the then Federal ratio of
representation, it shall, if its form of government be
republican, be admitted into the Union on an equal footing
with the original States, with or without involuntary
service or labor, as the constitution of such new State may
provide.