. UN THE SUBJECT OF‘ THE 'I”‘HREE MILLIONS APPROPRIATION, '. : AND THE IOJJF fleiivei-ed an the Senate of the ”(§'nitec1%State9, J anua W.AsIiINGToAN= 4 3mI:z4r*m;n% mt a.u.tz~:s% min minnow... 1836. season. , l at‘! Mr. BnN'ro1~z’s Resolutions for setting apartthe surplus revenue for the defence of the eeuntry, being under consideration----- Mr. WEBSTER said: It is not my purpose, Mr. President, to make any re- marks on the state of our affairs with France. The time for that discussion has not come, and Iwait. We are in daily expectation ot'a conntnunication from the President, which will give us light; and we are authorr/.ed to expect a recom- mendation by him of such measures as he thinks it may be necessary and proper for Congress to adopt. I do not anticipate him. I do not forerun him. in this most important and delicate business, it is the proper duty ofthe Executive to go forward, and I, for one, do not intend either to be drawn or driven into the lead. When otiicial information shall be before us, and when measures shall be recoun- mended upon the proper responsibility, I shall endeavor to fornn the best judg- ment I can, and shall act according to its dictates. I rise, now, for another purpose. This resolution lnfs drawn on a debate upon the general conduct of the Senate during the last session of Con,s_:ress, and espe-— cially in regard to the proposed grant of‘ the Three Millions to the lf’resir.lent on the last night of the session. My main object is to tell the story of’ this transaction, and to exhibit the conduct of the Senate fairly to the public view." I owe this duty to the Senate. I owe it to the committee with which I am connected; and although whatever is personal to an individual is ,<_3;enet'ally oftno little importance to be made the subject of rnuch remark, I hope I may be permitted, in a matter in regard to which there has been so much misrepresentation, to say a few words for the sake of defending my own reputation. Vi This vote for the three millions was proposed by the House of Representatives as an amendment to the Fortification bill ; and the loss of that bill, three millions and all, is the charge which has been made upon the Senate, soundedtover all the land, and new again renewed. I propose to give the true history of this bill, its origin, its progress, and its loss. Before attempting that, however, let me remark, for it is worthy to be remark- ed, and ren'nembered, that the btisit1ess,brou_ght before the Senate last session, im- portant and various as it was, and both public and private, was all gone through, i with most uncommon despatch and p-romptitude. No session has witnessed a more complete clearing off and tinishing;~ot' the subjects before us. The communion- tions from the other House, wltether bills or whatever else, were especially at» tended to inproper season, and with that ready respect which is due from one House to the other. I recollect nothing of any important: which came to us from the House of Representtativesf, -which was here neglects , overlooked, or disre-— garded. i y ,, i ' V A . On the other hand, it was the .mist"o,rt;,une ot7,_the ,Senate,and, as I think, the misfortune of the countryl, that, qywiyng‘_it?o theustate of business in the House oi" Representatives towards the close~of{the’session, several measures which had been , . Mt 4 matured in the Senate, and passed into bills, did not receive attention, so as to be either agreed to or rejected, in the other branch of the Legislature. They fell, of course, by the termination of the session. Among these measures may be mentioned the following, via: Tris Postr OFFICE REFORM BILL, which passed the Senate 'unmzt'm‘ou.sZy, and of thenecessity for which the whole country is certainly now most abundantly satisfied; Tran Cus'roM—HotJsn REG'rULA.'I‘IONS BILLS, which also passed nearly unani- mously, after a very laborious preparation by the Committee on Commerce, and a full discussion in the Senate; M Tran JUDICIARY BILL, passed here by a majority of thirty—one to five, and which has agaiii already passed the Senate at this session with only a single dis- senting vote; . ,,. .. " ‘ 'll‘an nrLL INDEMNIFYING CI;.A‘ltMtAN'I‘S FOR. Fntsncn SPOLIATIONS IBEIVOE-{E 1800; Tim "BILL REGULA'I‘ING~ '1‘I;II-'3 IDI'1POSI’1‘E, on THE ronmc runners IN 'rna Da- Pt)SK'I‘E l3.-mics ; _ 'll‘nn nt;t..'r.. I-’tESPEC'1‘ING T-an TENURE or onnzrarn onerous, AND "rt-in ‘rowan or‘ nsntovmt. Lt-‘non: (JFFICE; which has now again passed to be engrossed, in the Senate, by a decisive majority. . All these important measures, matured and passed in the Senate in the course of the session, and many others whose importance was less, were sent to the House of Represetitativcs, and we never heard any thing more frotn thein. They there ‘found their graves. It is worthy of beiitg remarked, also, that the attendance ot'tnembers or the Sen- ate was remarltably full, particularly toward the end of the session. On the last day every Senator was in his place till Very near the hour of adjournment, as the journal will show. We had no hrealsing up for want of a quorum, no delay, no calls of‘ the Senate ; nothtitig which was made necessary by the negligence or in» attention of the members of this body. On the vote for the three millions of dol--' lars, which was taken at about eight o’cloclt in the evening, forty-eight votes were given, every member of the Senate being in his place and answering to his name. Tltis is an instance of punctualit , dilicrence, and labor continued to the vet‘ end _ 8:3 9 » - of an arduous session, wholly without example or parallel. » v The Senate, then, sir, must stand, in the judgment of every man, fully acquit» ted of all remissuess, all negligence, all inattention, amidst the fatigtte and ex- haustion ol'",the closinpj ‘hours of" Coiigt‘ess. 'Notl‘ting passed tttiltecdecl, nothing was overlooked, IlOl'.l‘llYlg forgotten’, and nothing sliglrited. " And now, sir, I would proceed immediately to give the history of the Fortifica- tion bill, it‘ it were not necessary, as introductory to that history, and as shotviitg the circumstances under which the Senate was called on to transact the public business, first to refer to another bill which was before us, and to the proceedings which were had upon it. ‘ t It is well l+Zl’10W1'l, sir, that the annual Appropriation bills always origitiat'e in the I:'iouse of Representatives. This is so much the course, that no one ever Ioolts to see sucha bill first lorougltt forward in the Senate. It is also well known, sir, that it has been usual, l‘]E3l‘t3iOi‘0I‘€‘, to nialtc the annual appropriations for the Military Academy at West Point in the general bill which provides ‘ for the pay and sup-- port of the army. But last year, the Army bill did not contain any appropriation whatever for the support of West Point. I took notice of this sin'gular- omission when the bill was pefore the Senate, but presumed, and indeed understood, that the Iiouse would send us a separate bill for the Military Academy. Tire Army bill, therefore, passed; but no‘ bill for the’ Acadeimytat- West Point appeared. We waited foriitfrorn day to day, and from week to week, but waited in vain. At length, the time for sending bills from one House to the other, according to the joint rules of" the two Houses, expired; and no bill had made‘ its appearancecfor the support of the Military Academy. These joint rules, as is well known, are 5 sometimes suspended on the applicetio-n of one Ijionse to the either, in fi;tvot*o‘i' pet'- ticnlnr hills, wltose progress has been trtnexpcctedly delttyed, hut which the pnhlic interest requires to be passed. But the .l"7i‘ot.tse of “iitepteeentetives sent on no re- quest to suspend the-rules in favor of at bill ‘for the support ofthe Military A<:.:=tde- my, nor made any other proposition to eeve the inetittttion "frotn immediate disso- intion. Notwit;hstainditi,g all the talk about at war, and the tteceseity oft: vote for the three millions, the Military t-"tcnderny, an institution clterisdtecl so ‘long, and at so much expense, was on the very point of being entirely hrolten up. ' Now it so happened, sir, tltet at this time there was another A.t’J[)t‘t1tf)l'it1il0l‘1 hill i which lgtecl. C*0mt3‘i't‘0‘-l‘t‘t the House of R.epi'esentetives, and woe beline the Committee on Finance here. ‘Tltis lgiilliwtte entitled “An not melting appropriations for the civil and diplomatic expenses of the Government for the year ].8ii;3.” In this state of things, seve ‘Ell noemhers of the llllonse of ii.t‘)]7)l‘(3St‘:?l1i;EtllV<:itfét ttpplietl to the committee, and l.H3SOt.!gl]|Z its to snve the Acaderny, lziy '«ttilt'lt:3Z~Zll'1lt; the ltti'.‘t".'tj'é.*.-‘.3?!3l'_‘},«’ appropriations for its support to the bill for Civil and Diplomatic service. We spnlt'.e to them, in reply, oi’ the uniitness, the it"t‘t1~‘.|gt1lt~-tl‘li._V., the it'1c<)ngt‘ttity, ol’ this l'et'cct.l union of sztstch dlSSlt1"lll&lI‘ snhjecte ; hut tl'tey told tie it was it tzztee oi"nl.ne;<;.iltttt:: l"ltT.'(Zt’!:-.‘- eity, and that, without t'czeorting to this tnotle, theitpp1'opt'ietion conlt;.l not {A151-,!lL il‘ll‘t)llg'l'l. ‘We é.1Cqt.lit‘Z‘S(‘.(3d, sir, in these sttggtetstititts. We went out oliottt‘ wn_y. We ttt:;t“t.:r;t;l to do an ezttrnordinnry and it'rt3gttltttr il'tll"lf“., in order to save the pnhlic 'lti)llI~‘~3ll‘lt'.3!-W. front ii‘? p ttiisc:tt't‘i:i,g;;e. By direction oftlie conrtntiittee, ll t"t‘lt§)"'t't“.'t7§l tltt: i;f*,‘.it“.tl:-tlt:! to ntilcl en :mpro-- ll prtzttion i"ort.he Military Acedctny to the hill tin‘ (.i6;‘l't”t1_‘y“ll'tt,{ Civil nntl i.)iph;nnn.ttc. n:t-—- penses. T he hill was so amended; and in this i"ornn the Z1ff)t”l)l't)tI)l‘lt]'tl;lm't Wf.t',-in‘ ilt‘}i'tll‘§,’ xnnde. But this wee not all. Tliis bill for the Civil :tnt,l ifitiplontntic .~:;t'-rvit:t:.~. l.Jti.,7ll"l.‘;_';' ttllnn: mnended, by tncl~;ing the lV.lilitnry A<:t¢1t‘lttattty upon it, Wtl.':;4 t‘%t;,‘l"ilI ln:tcl: lay tn: in l.ltt'.' i"ionse offflopresenttttivee, Wl'lt3.'l‘t;*. its; 'lt;tnp,‘t,l't oi’ mil \='.'ns,t to lite .".t.ill much t"nrtltt:~r in-~ t:t'<‘->t=t:s<:.-tt;l. Tl”tet lilonee lntd l:wli:)t'e it eevwnl 1;*;lil‘)jtf3(‘.i!'i tot‘ pmvieiott, «'ttitl.l 'il'trlt‘ :tpprn—~ pt'iz~tt.it:m, upon which it ltoti not pnesed titty hill, ln;:l'orn the titnn for p:;n~'.::.;iti_z,; 1 ‘lie to ‘he sent: to the Senate lied elnpeed. it was zm:-zion:-:: thnt tlttmt: tltitittgsit elnsnhfl, in eonne way, he provided for; t_-“ttitd when the .lDiplt;>tn:ttit“: hill cttntn he ;:lt, t,li':t'.=t'iti_t;;‘ tin» IV.lilitery .Act1tlc;:t'rtytti'tet' it, it was tltcit.tgl‘tt [)I,’t.tt'.'.lt.:‘t"t1i to (lltiTZ‘l(.Tl‘l to it V'tll‘l(”tlit,"t oi’ tltene other provisions'.. 'l‘ltere were pt"npotitionn to pave t-itteete in ttlic eity ol' "ltll/'atsltttitig;tt>tt, to tepeirthe Capitol, nntl vnrione other tl"tit‘it;e, which it wns nz,-t:t:.~;=.:-s; ry to provide for; end they, thet'el'ore, were ptit; into the satttie hill lay "l‘Vt[t_"_', ol':tnn:nt.l- ment: to en emendtm;-t‘tt;’ tlitet is to ezty, Mr. i.i’t"ti::‘sittict*it, we }hlz‘l(‘li lieen {.tt't.‘.‘\.~’1tllt.‘9tt.lM on to etnend their bill for clei't‘eyiti,r; the enlttry oi‘ our t'r1inis~it.cr:'s ttl.Jt‘t)E1Cl', by ittliltjiiitng on appropriation for the Militttry Academy; and tl‘ie_y' proposed to emctitll "tins inn‘ entendment, by etiditig to it tnette.r as gerrnztin toit tie it tvns. to the t*it'i,t;iat't:ltl hill. There was also the Pt't=eit.lettt’s p;ttt'dt9tteti*. His; ezzxlmy was 1.:nprovided tin", end there ‘t~’fi:.-1 no way of rettiedying" this irnpot'tent ontission, hnt hp gltrlt ltlltl piece in the Diplomatic service hill, among Cltttt",g‘éS d’titii'ttiree, trttttoyts ezttrnortlit*tn.a'y, etnti ministers plenipotenitittry. in and z«1ttmn,tj; tlteso rnnlts, tl"t(i3I‘t:i‘t'fDl’t’.', he WE.tt‘.~’» 'l't)l'tt"tZ.tll_V introduced by the etnendtnent 'olZtl'te Hottet;-, and there he now :~:t:etitt:,le, tttt yn:.i ivi l teeclily see by turtting; to the lnw. i Sir, "l l'izwe not the plt;-tnntrc to l~;rm*.v this t‘l.‘~:t“;!-; fol person; l)nt;‘shonld I see him some t‘ttt)t_'t‘ting;, ()V€3l‘lt'j)tDl£lti§§ the V‘./'t')t‘i~;mttl'l in t;he in ne, wnllts, copsee, and }T)t;ll‘i(;?t't‘('3fj$ which title ‘it the p;ront'tds t:it'nttm.l tlan Tittyt't,'r";l7iittlli’:«t residence, considering the cornpnny into wltich we ltnve it‘tttt'otllntztrtl ltinn, .l. :--ihonld expect to see at least it smell tliplonintic hntton on his Wt‘.tt'l~'.lt”Ig--jtttltliitfiit. When these amendments cetne i'rern the “Ot1:."s1t?!,t1l]ti wt:::rn rrentl :tt om tzthle, ti "~ 0' ‘ in ‘H’ H’ though they, cettsetle sxniie, tliey were yet etloptcd, end the lttw pztssecl, ttlntnsstt wiitlii' the rapidity of at comet, end with slrittlttztltltitiiig liltn the enme ltf)¥t‘l,f;'i'lt oi" littll- i Ttiow, Sit‘, not one oi" these it't'e,g;ttlet*ititi:e or il'lt'I(Ill'l‘Q,'!"Lilliiit;?!‘t‘~, no pert oi’ thi:~; ftfnnhl i0gt?ll'1f3l‘ of distinct and ditiferetit subjects wes',"‘ in tlte Slll£g,l'li(‘:I't5t tiieg‘r't:e, m:t.:nt:;it.it'ictl hy any thing done, or omitted to he done, on the part of the f§let'teto., 'Tt"ht.:it~ pro- l t“ tr . . t,,,, 6 ceedings were all regttlt-11‘, their decision prompt, their despatch of the public busi-« ness correct and seasonable. There. was nothing of disorganization, nothing of procrastinz-ttion, nothing evincive of a temper to embarrass or obstruct the public business. if the history which I have now truly given shows that one tlting was amended by another, which had no sort: of connexion with it, that unusual expo» diettts were resorted to,’and that the laws, instead of arrangement and syrnrnetry, . exhibit anomaly, confusion, and the most grotesqueyassociations, it is nevertheless true, that no part of all this was made necessary by us. ‘We deviated from the accustomed, modes oflegislation only when we were supplicated to do so, in order to supply bald and glaring deficiencies in measures which were before us. lzlut now, Mr. President, let me come to the Fortification bill, the lost bill, which not only now, but ona gr'aver occasion, has been lamented like the lost Pleiad. 'l"l“tis bill, sir, came from the House of Representatives to the Senate, in the usual way, and was relerredl to the Committee on Finance. Its appropriations were not large. Indeed, they appeared to the committee to be quite too small. it struck a tnaiority ofthe committee, at once, that there were several lbrtilications on the coast either not pro‘vir;led for at all, or not adequately provided for by this bill. Tlte whole amount of its appropriatiotis was 400,000 or 430,000’ dollars. It ttoutained no grant ol'tl'tree millions, and if the Senate had passed it, the very day it canto from the House, not only would there have been no appropriation of the three millions, but, sir, none of those other stuns. tvltich the Senate did insert inthe bill. Others, besides ourselves, saw the deliciencies of this bill. Vi/‘e had comntu» nications with and tiom the Departments, and we inserted in the bill”every thing whiclt any department recommended to us. We took care to await the proper period to be sure thatnotlting else was cotitittgg and we then reported the bill to the 5~3enate with our proposed amendments. Antottg these amend meats, there was a sum ot‘&?s7’5,000 for Castle island, in Boston harbor, $100,000 for defences in Maryland, and so forth. These amendments were agreed to by the Senate, and one or two others added, on tl‘1t3,,t‘t1_t)’tl0l‘t ol“ members; and the bill being thus amended, was returned to the House. , . ‘ - Axial now, air, it becomes important to aslt when was this bill, thus amended, rc-tttrnecl to the lilouse of Represettttttivesl WEXS it unduly detained here, so that the ltiottse was obli_;:ed afterwards to act upon it suddenly’! This question is material to he flSl{(3Cl, and material to be answered, too, and. the journal does satisliactorily anstw.=r it; for it appears by the journal that the bill was returned to the House of ,llilt’_(4?l)tl't.3;:2t.:?l’l'[?lllVeS on 'l‘uesday, the Qdcth of February, one whole wcc.7.: before rite r;lri.,w: of tile sc.tstion.~ And from Tuesday, the E3'~il:l.lt oi‘ February, to Tuesday, the flltl of l“vlarr.:lt, we ltoard not one word l'rorn this bill. Tuesday, the 23d ol'March, was, oi’ course, the last day of the session. Vile assembled here at 10 or 11 o’clock in the t't’lftt‘lllt'lg of" that day, and sat until three in the afternoon, and still we were not inllormed whetlter‘the llrlouse had finally passed the bill. fits it was an itnportant matter, and l;ic.tlottgittg to “that part of‘ the public business which usually receives particular attention from the Cornntittee on Finance, I bore the s_ul;i_ject in my‘ xnincl, and felt some solicitude about it, strains; that the session was drawing so near to a close. I tool: it for ,<_;t*ai'ttecl, however,as I had not heard any thing to the con-« trary, that the amendments of the Settate would not be objected to,‘and that when ‘ a convenient time should arrive for taking up the bill in the House, it would be . passed at once into a law, and we should hear no more about it. Nottthe slightest intir-nation was given, either that the lilxectttive wished for any larger appropriation, or that it was intended in the Hottse to insert such larger appropriation. Not a syllable escaped from any body and came to our knowledge, that any further al- teration wltatever was intended in the hill. ., 0 l At three o'clock in the afternoon ofthe {Sid of March, the Senate lOOl{ its recess, as is usual in that period of the session, until five. At live, we again assembled and proceeded with the business of the Senate until eight; o’cloclt in the evening; and, at eight o’clock in the averting, and not before, the Clerk ofthe House appear» 7 ed at our door, and announced that the House of Representatives had disagreed to one of the Senate’s amendments, agreed to others, and to two of those amend-- inents, viz. the fourth and fifth, it had agreed with an amendment of its own. Now, sir, these fourth and fifth amendments of ours were, one a vote of$75,000 for the castle in Boston harbor, and the other a vote of $100,000 for certain de- fences in Maryland. And what, sir, was the addition which the House ofRopre- sentatives proposed to make, by way of“ amerzclmerzt” to a vote of $75,000 for I r repairing the works in Boston harbor? Here, sir, it is: » “ find’ be it further enacted, That the sum of three millions of dollars be, and the same is hereby, appropriated, out of‘ any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to be expended, in whole or in part, under the direction of the President of the United States, for the militjary and naval service, including fortifications and ordnance, and increase of ‘the navy : Provided, Such eapextditut-es shall be rendered necessary for the defence of the coun- try prior to the next meeting of Cong1'ess.’f I This proposition, sir, was thus unexpectedly and suddenly put to us, at eight o’clock in the evening of the last day of the session. Unusual, unprecedented, extraordinary, as it obviously is, -on the face of it, the manner of presenting it was still more extraordinary. The President had asked for no such grant of money ; no Department had recommended it; no estimate had suggested it; no reason whatever was given for it. No emergency had happened, and nothing now had occurred ; every thing known to the Administration, at that hour, respecting our foreign relations, had certainly been known to it for days and for weeks before. With what propriety, then, could the Setittte be called on to sanction a pro- ceeding so entirely irregular and anomalous? Sir, I recollect the occurrences of the moment very well, and I remember the-impressi-on which this vote ofthe Ilouse seemed to make, all round the Senate. Wta had just come out of Executive session : the doors were but just opened ; and I hardly remember whether there was a single spectator in the hall or the galleries. I had been attlie clerlt’s table and had not reached my seat when the message was read. All the Senators were in the chamber. I heard the message certainly with great’ surprise and astonish- ment; and I immediately moved the Senate to cltisdgrce to this vote of the House. My relation to the subject, in consequence of my connexion with the Committee “ ~on,Finance, made it my duty to propose some course, and I had not a moment’s doubt or hesitation what that course ought to be. I took upon myself, then, sir, the responsibility of moving that the Senate should disagree to this vote, and I now acknowledge that responsibility. It might be presumptuous to say that I took a leading part, but I certainly tO0l+I. an early part, a decided part, and an earnest part, in rejecting this broad grant ofthree millions ofdollars, without limitation of purpose or specification of object; called for by no recommendation, founded on no estimate, made necessary by no state of things which was made known to us. Certairily, sir, I took a part in its rejection ; and I stand here, in my place in the Senate, to-day, ready to defend_the part so taken by me ; or rather, sir, I disclaim all defence, and all occasion of defence, and I assert it as meritorious to have been among those who arrested, at the earliest moment, this extraordinary departure from all settled usage, and, as I thinlt, from plain constitutional injuucti0n---this indeflnite voting of a vast sum of money, to rnere Executive discretion, without limit assigned, without object specified, without reason given, and without the least control under heaven. i Sir, I am told that, in opposing this grant, I spoke with warmth, and I suppose I may have done so, If I did, it was a warmth springing from as honest a convic- tion ofduty as ever influenced a public man- It was spontaneous, unaffected, sincere. Therehad been among us, sir, no consultation, no concert. There could have been none. lBetween“tbe reading of the message and my motion to disagree there was not time enough for any two members ofthe Senate to exchange five words‘ on the subject. The proposition wastsudden and perfectly unexpected. I resisted y 8 it, as irregular, as dangerous in itself’, and dangerous in its precedent, as tvltolly unnecessary, and as violating the plain intention, if not the express words, of the constitution. Before the- Senate then I avowed, and before the country I new avour, my part in this opposition. ‘Wliatsoever is to fall on those who sanctioned it, of that let me have my full share. a The Senate, sir, rejected this grant by a vote of TWENTY-NINE against nineteen. Those twenty-nine names are on the journal; and whensoever the n:t:t>uNeINe.~ process may commence, _or how far soever, it may be carried, I pray it, in mercy, not to erase mine from that record. beseech it, in its sparing goodness, to leave me that proof of attachment to duty and to principle. It may draw around it, over it, or through it, black lines, or red lines, or any lines; it may mark it in any way which either the most prostrate and fantastical spiritof nzan-worship, or the roost ingenious and elaborate study of self-degradation may devise, if only it will leave it, so that those who inherit my blood, or who may hereatier care for my reputation, shall be able to behold it where it now stands. The House, sir, insisted on this amendment. The Senate adhered to its dis-~ agreement. The House asked a conference, to which request the Senate innate- diutely acceded. The committees of conference met, and, in a very short time, came to an agreement. They agreed to recommend to their respective Houses, as a substitute for the vote proposed by the Iilotise, the following: “ As an atlditional appropriation for arming the fortifications of the United States, three h:;tntlt'ecl thousand dollars.” . “ As an additional appropriation for the repair and equipment of ships of war of the Unit» States, five hundred thousand dollars.” I immediately reported this agreement of the committees of conference to the Senate; but, inasmuch as the bill was in the House of Representatives,‘the Senate could not act further on the matter, until the House should first have considered tzhe report of thecornrnittees, decided thereon, and sent us the bill. I did not i:cyt:ieilt' take any note of the particular hour of this part of the transaction. 'I‘he honorable rnernber from Virginia (Mr. Lama) says he consulted his watch at the ti:ne, and he knows that I had come from the cotiference, and was in my seat at a quaz'ter past eleven. I have no reason to think. that he is underuany mistalte in this particular. He says it so happened that he had occasion to take notice of the _ hour, and well remembers it. ‘It could not Well have been later than this, as any~ one will be satisfied who will look at our journals, public and executive, and see Wl"lt;lt a mass of business was desp-etched after I came from the committees, and loetbz'e the adjournment of the Senate, Having made the report, sir, I had no daulit that both Hotises would concur in the result of the cionference, and looked‘ erezty moment for the ofticer of the House bringing the bill. He did not come, however, and I pretty soon learned that there was doubt whether the committee on the part of the House would report to the House the agreement of the con» threes. At first I did not at all credit this; but it was confirmed by one comtnu-J tication after another, until I was ‘obliged to thinl»: it true. Seeing that the bill was thus in danger of being lost, and intending, at any rate, that no blame should I O _}ust.ly attach to theSenate, I imrnediately moved the following resolution : “ Resolved, That a message he sent to the honorztble the House of Representatives respect- f:.:l1y to remind the House of the report of‘ the committee of‘ conference appointed on the .d.'.«sstgt*eeititg votes of the two Houses on the amendment: of the House toithe amendment of’ ti: Senateto the bill respecting the fortifications of the United States.” You recollect this resolution, sir,‘having, as I well remember, taken some part on the occasionfll t ‘ y I y , y I This resolution was promptly passed”; the Secretary carriedit to the House, anddelivered it. What was done in the House on the receipt of this message new I*’ Mr. Kine, of" Alabama, was in the chair. 9 appears from the printed journal. I have no wish to comment on the proceedings there recordeclm-—-all may read them, and each beable to form his own _opinion. Suflice it to say, that the House of Represeutatives,‘_having then possession of the " bill, chose to retain that possession, and never acted on the report ofthe committee. The bill, therefore, was lost. It was lost in the House of Representatives. It died there, and there its remains are to be tbund. No opportunity was given to the , members of the House to decide whether they would agree to the report of the two committees, or not. From. a quarter past eleven, when the report was aggreed t_o, by the committees, until two or three o’cloclt..in the morning, the House remained in session. If at any time there was not a quorum of rnembers present, the attend- ance of a quorum, we are to presume, might have been commanded, as there was undoubtedly a great majority of the members still in the city. But now, sir, there is one other transaction of the averting which I feel bound to state, because I thinlt it quite importan't, on several accounts, that it should be known. . A nomination was pending before the Senate for a judge of the Supreme Court. In the course ofthe sitting; that nominationwas called up, and, on motion, was in-— delinitely postponed. In other words, it was rejected; for an indefinite pos’tpone—- ment is a rejection. The ofifice, of course, remained vacant, and the nomination of another person to till it became necessary. The President ofthe United States was then in the Capitol, as is usual on the evenin,<_2; of the last day of the session, in the,chamber assigned to him, and with the heads of Departments around him. . "When nominations are re'ected under those circumstances it has been usual for I I I ‘I I , *1‘ I the President immediately to transmit a new nominatioti to the Emirate; otlierwtse the oflice must remain vacant till the next session, as the vacancy in such case has not happened in the recess of Ctittgress. The vote of the Senate, inc.letinit*ely postponing this nomination, was carried to the P'resit:lent’s room by the Eioct‘ct:‘ftry of the Senate. The President told the Eiiecretaty that it; was more than an hour past 133 o’cloc.:l;i, andthat he could l'(;'.t:O.lVC3 no linrther cornmunications ili‘om the Senate, and immediately after, as I have understood, left the Chtpittil. The retary brou,gl'tt back the paper cttt"tt:1ii.“iiti,«;g the cet'til'ied copy of the vote of the Senate,tand endorsed thereon the. substance of the Pt‘(;*Sl(lt,'t”ti’S answer, and also added that, atccordittg to his own watch, it was a rjuat'ter past one olcloclt. Tlrere are two views, sir, in which this occurrence may well deserve to be no» ticed, One is, a connexion which it may perhaps have with the loss oflthe Forti-— fication bill; the other is its general importance, as introducing a new rule, or a new practice, respecting the intercourse between the President and the Ilottses of Congress, on the last day of the session. - t On the first point I shall only observe, that the fact‘ of the President’s having declined to receive this communication train the _Senate, and of his l‘tt1ving left the i Capitol, was immediately known in the .l'*Iouse' of Representatives; that it was quite obvious thatif he could not receive a communication i'rorn.the Senate, nei- ther could he receive a bill from the House of Representatives for his signature. It was equally obvious that if, under these circunistances, the House of Represent- atives should agr'ee to the report of the committees of conference, so that the bill should pass, itmust, nevertheless, fail to become a law foriwant of the President’s signature; and that, in that case, the blame of losing the bill, on whomsoever else it might fall, couldnot be laid upon the Senate. On the more gene ‘a1 point, I must say, sir, that this decision of the President, not to hold communication with the Houses of .Congress after 12 o’cloclt on the 3d of March, is quite new. No such objection has ever been made before by any President. No one of them has ever declined communicating with either House at any time during the continuauize of its session on that day. All Presidents, heretofore, have left it with the Houses themselves to fixrtheir hour of adjournment, t and to bring their session, for the day,%to a close whenever they saw fit. 10 It is notorious, in point of fact, that nothing is more common than for both Houses to sit later than 12 o’clock, for the purpose of completing measures which are in the last stages of their progress. Amendments are proposed and agreed to, bills_ passed, enrolled bills signed by the presiding officers, and other important legislative acts performed often at 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning. All this is very well known to gentlemen who have been for any considerable time members of Congress. And all Presidents have signed bills, and have also made nominations to the Senate, without objection as to time, whenever bills have been presented for signature, or whenever it became necessary to make nominations to the Senate, at any time during the session of the respective Houses for that day. And all this, sir, I suppose to be perfectly right, correct, and legal. There is no clause of the Constitution, nor is there any law, which declares that the term of ofiice of members of the House of Representatives shall expire at 12 o’cloclt at night on the 3d of March. They are to hold for two years, but the precise hour for the commencement of that term of two years is nowhere fixed by constitutional or legal provision. It has been established by usage and by inference, and very properly established,«that, since the first Congress commenced its existence on the first Wednesday in March, 1789, which happened to be the filth day of that month, therefore the 4th of March is the day of the commencement of each successive term; but no hour is fixed by law or practice. The true rule is, as I think, most undoubtedly, that the session holden on the last day constitutes the last day, for all legislative and legal purposes. While the session commenced on that day con- tinues, the day itself continues, according to the established practice both of legis- lative and judicial bodies. This could not well be otherwise. If the precise mo- ment of actual time were to settle such a matter, it would be material to ask, who. shall settle the time? Shall it be done by public authority, or shall every man observe the tick of his own watch’! If absolute time is to furnish a precise rule, the excess of a minute, it is obvious, would be as fatal as the excesstof an hour. Sir, no bodies, judicial or legislative, have ever been so hypercritical, so astute to no purpose, so much more nice than wise, as to govern themselves by any such ideas. The session for the day, at whatever hour it commences, or at whatever hour it breaks up, is the legislative day. Every thing has reference to the com- mencement of that diurnal session.‘ For instance, this is the 14th day of January; _ we assembled here to—day at 12 o’clock; our journal is dated,Ianuary 14th, and if we should remain here until 5 o’clock to«-morrow morning (and the Senate has sometimes sat so late) our proceedings would still all bear'date of the 14th of Jan-5 nary; they would be so stated upon the journal, and the journal is _a record, and is a conclusive record, so far as respects the proceedings of the body. I It is so in judicial proceedings. If a man were on trial for his life, at a late hour on the last day allowed by law for the holding of the court, and the jury ac» quitted him, but happened to remain so long in deliberation that they did not bring in their verdict till after twelve o’clock, is it all to be held for naught, and the man to be tried over again? Are all verdicts, judgments, and orders of courts, null and void, if made after midnight, on the day which the law prescribes as the last day? It would be easy to show by authority, if authority could he wanted for a thing, the reason of which is so clear, that the day lasts while the daily session lasts. When the court or the legislative body adjourns for that day, the day is over, and not before. » 1 I am told, indeed, sir, that it is true that, on this same 3d day of March last, not only were other things transacted, but that the bill for the repair of the Cumberland road, an important and much-litigated measure, actually received the signature of our presiding ofiicer after 12 o’clock, was then sent to the President, and signed by him. , I do not atlirm this, because I took no notice of the time, or do not re»- member it if I did; but I have heard the matter so stated. a I see no reason, sir, for the introduction of this new practice; noprinciple on 11 which it can be justified, no necessity for it, no»propriety in it. As yet,lit has been applied only to the President’s intercourse with the Senate. Certainly it is equal- ly applicable to his intercourse with both houses in legislative‘ matters; and ifit is to prevail hereafter, it is of much importance that it should be known. The President of the United States, sir, has alluded to thisloss of the Fortifica- tion bill in his message at the opening of the session, and he has alluded also, in the same message, to the rejection of the vote of the three millions. On the first point, that is, the loss of the whole bill, and the causes of that loss, this is his lan- guage: “ Much loss and inconvenience have been experienced in consequence of the failure of the hill containing the ordinary appropriations for fortifications, which passed one branch of the National Legislature at the last session, but was lost in the other.” e I Ifthe President intended to say that the bill, having originated in the House of Representatives, passed the Senate, and was yet afterwards lost in the House of Representatives, he was entirely correct. But he has been altogether wrongly in- formed, if he intended to state that the bill, having passed the House, was lost in the Senate. As I have already stated, the bill was lost in the House of Repre- sentatives. It drew its last breath there. That House never let go its hold on it, after the report of the committees of conference. But it held it, it retainedit, and of course, it died in its possession when the House adjourned. It is to be regret- ted that the President should have been misinformed in a matter of this kind, when the slightest reference to the journals of the two Iiouses would have esltibited the correct history of the transaction. ' I I recur again, Mr. President, to the proposed grant ofthe three millions, for the purpose of stating, somewhat more distinctly, the true grounds of objection to that grant. These grounds of objection were two: the first was, that no such appropriation *llaCl been recommended by the President, or any of the Departments. And what made this ground the stronger was, that the proposed grant was defended, so far as it was defended at all, upon an” alleged necessity, growing out of our foreign rela- tions. The foreign relations of the country are intrusted by the constitution to the lead and management of the Iilxectttive Government. The President not oulyyis supposed to be, but usually is, much better informed on these interesting subjects than the Houses of Congress. tltere he danger of rupture with a. foreign state, he sees it soonest. All our ministers and agents abroad are but so many oyes,.and ears, and organs, to communicate to him wlmtsoever occurs in foreign places, and to keep him well advised of all which may concern the interests of the United States. There is an especial propriety, therefore, that, in this branch of the public service, Congress should always be able to avail itself of the distinct opinions and recom- mendations of the President. The two Houses, and especially the House ofRep- resentatives, are the natural guardians of the people’s money. They are to keep it sacred, and to use it discreetly... They are not at liberty to spend it where it is not needed, nor to offer it for any purpose till a reasonable occasion for the expend- iture he shown. Now, in this case, I repeat agaiu,the President had sent us no recommendation for any such appropriation; no Department had requested it; no estimate had contained it; in the whole history of the session, from the morning of the ‘first day, down to 8 o’clock in the evening of the lastday, not one syllable had i been said to us, not one hint suggested, showing that the President deemed any such measure either necessary or proper. I state this strongly, sir, but I state it truly: I state the matter as“ it is; and I wish to draw the attention of the Senate and of the country strongly to this part ofthe case. I say again, therefore, that when this vote for the three millions was proposed to the Senate, there was nothing before us showing that the President recommended any such appropriation. You very well it now, sir, that this objection was immediately statedas soon as the message from the 12 House was read. We all well remember that it was the very point put forth by the honorable member from Tennessee (Mr. Wt-IITE) as being, if I may say so, the butt—end of his argument in opposition to the vote. He said, very significantly, and very forcibly, “ It is not asked for by those who best knew what the public service requires: how, then, are we to presume that it is needed 2” This ques- tion, sir, was not answered then; it never has been answered since ; it never can be answered satisfactorily. _ ' But let me here again, sir, recur to the message of the President, Speakinigof the loss ofthe bill, he uses these words: “ This failure was the more regretted, notonly because it necessarily interrupt- ed and delayed the progre-ss ofa system of national defence projected immediately after the last war, and since steadily pursued, but also because it contained a con- tingent appropriation, inserted in accordance with the views of the Exectitive, in aid ofthis important object, and other branches of the national defence, some por- . tious of which might have been most usefully applied during the past season.” Taking these words oflthe message, sir, and (201]I1€‘Ctll'lg them with the fact that the President had made no recommendation to Congress of any such appropriation, it strikes me they furnish matter. for very grave reflection. The President says that this proposed appropriation was “ in accordance with the views of the lilxecu-— tive ;” that it was “ in aid of an important object ;” and that “some portions of it might have been most usefully applied during the past season.” Andnow, sir, I ask, if this be so, why was not this appropriation recorm'nenc.led to Congress by the President? I ask this question in the name of the Constitution of the United States; I stand on its own clear authority in aslting it; and I invite all those who remember its injunctions, and who mean to respect them, to consider well how the question is to be answered.- Sir, the Constitution is not yet an entire dead letter. There is yetsome form of observance to its requirements ; and even while any cle._gree of formal respect is paid to it, I mustbe permitted to continue the question, ‘Why was not this appropriation recommended’? ‘It was in “accordance with the I’resiclent’s views ; it was for an important object; it might have been usefully crxgraeitded. The President being of opinion, therefore, that the appropriation was necessary and proper, how is it that it was not recommended to Congress? For, sir, we all know the plain and direct words in which the very first duty of the President is imposed by the Constitution. Here they are : . - i i i “f” He shall, from time to time, give to the Congress information of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.” ‘ After enumerating the powers of the President, this is the first, the very first clnig/, which the Constitution gravely enjoins upon him. And now, sir, in no lan- gua_ge of taunt or reproach, in no langttage ofparty attack, in terms of no asperity i or exaggei*ettioti, but‘-called up by the necessity of tleierirling my own vote upon the subject, I now, as a public man, as a member of Congress here in my place, and as a citizen who feels as warm an attachment to the Constitution of the country as any other can, demand of any who may choose to gives it, an answer to this ques- tion: “ Wm: was NOT THIS Mnasuae, Wttrcn 't‘I~IE Pnusrnnnrr nnot..Anns'rr~tA'r‘r1»m VTHOUGIIT NECESSARY awn uxrnnrumr, nncomiunwnnn TO Corroness 7.” ,And why am I, and why are other members of Congress, rvliose path of duty the Constitu- tion says shall be enlightened by the President’s opinions and communications, to be charged with want of patriotism and want of Iidelityto the country, because we refused an appropriation which the President, though it was in accordance with his views, and though he believed it irnporta‘nt,i would not, and did not, recommend to us? When these questions are answer-ecl,,‘sir, to the satisfaction of intelligent and impartial men, then, and not till then, let reproach, let censure, let suspicion of any kind rest on the twenty--nine names which stand opposed to this appropriation. WWI: 13 How, sir, were we to know that this appropriation “was in accordance with the views of the Executive?” He had not so told us, formally or informally. He had not only not recommended it to Congress, or either House of Congress, but nobody on this floor had undertaken to speak. in his behalf. No man got up to say, “ The is President desires this, he thinks it necessary, expedient,_and. proper.” But, sir, if any gentleman had risen to say this, it would not have answered the requisitionof the Constitution. Not at all. It is not a hint, an intimation, the suggestion of a friend, by which the Exectltive duty in this respect is to befultilled. By no means. The President is to make a recornmendation, a public recommendation, an oflicial recommendation, a responsible recommendation; not to one House, but to both Houses; it is to'be a recommendation to Congress. If, on receiving such recom-— mendation, Congress fail to pay it proper respect, the fault is their". If, deeming the nteasure necessary and expedient, the President fail to recommend it, the fault is his—-clearly, distinctly, and exclusively this. This, sir, is the Constitution of the United States, or else I do not understand the Constitution of the United States. Does not every man see how perfectly unconstitutional it is that the President should communicate his opinions or wisltesjto Congress on such grave and impor- tant suhjects, otherwise than by a direct and responsible recommendation»--a public and open recommendation, equally addressed and equally known to all whose duty calls upon them to act on the subject’i What would be the state of things if he might communicate his wishes or opinions privately to nternbers of one House, and t‘l'1t1ls’.G no such communication to members of the other’! Would not the two Houses he necessarily put in imrnediate collision’! Would they stand on equal footing’! Would they have equal intbrmatzioni What could ensue from such a manner of conducting the public business but quarrel, confusion, and conflict? A member rises in the House of Representatives, and moves a very large appropriation of money for military purposes. If he says he does it upon Executive recotntuendation, where is his voucher? The President is not like the British King, whose ministers and secretaries are in the House of Commons, and who are aut.hori'1.ed, in certain cases, toexpress the opinions and wishes of their sovereign. We have no I*‘§.ing’s ser- vants; at leastvre have none ltnown to the C.()1fl$.llltltlt)n. Congress Ct;tt”l,liut.)‘.V the opinions of the.President only as he oflicially conununicates them. It would be at curious inquiry in either House, when a large appropriation is moved, if it were necessary to ask whether the mover represented the P’resident,spolte his sentiments, or, in other words, whether 'tVl'ltT.lll he t3roposet§l were “ in accordance with the views of tire Executive 2” lrllow could that be judged of’! By the partyjhe btzltitigs to’! ‘ Party is not quite ttnique enough for that. By the airs he giveshimself? Many might assume airs, ifthereby they could give thett:tselves such importance to be esteemed iauthentic expositors of the Executive will. Or is this willto be circu- lated in whispers’! .made known to meetings of party men’! intimated tltrounlt the press? or communicated in any other l"o:rm, whichstill leaves the Executive com- pletely irresponsible’! So that while Executive purposes or ,wishes pervade the ranks of party friends, influence their conduct‘, and unite their efforts, the open, direct, and constitutional responsibility is wholly avoided. Sir, this is not the Con- stitution of the United fitttttis, nor can it be consistent with any constitution which professes to maintain separate departments in the Government. i*Iere, then, sir, is abundant ground, in my judgment, for the vote of the .“3ent1te, and here I might rest it. But there is also another ground. The Constitution de-~ clatesithatt no money shall be drawn from the Treasury but intronsequence of ap- propriations made by law. What is meant by “ appropr-iatz'on.s 2”’ "Does this lan-_-. guage not mean that particular sums shall be assigned, by law, to particular objects’! -Howiar this pointing out and. fixingthe particular objects shall be carrietl, is a question that cannot be settled by any precise rule. But “ specific appropriation,” . that is to say, the designation of every object for whiclzt money is voted, as far as suchtdesignation is practicable, has been thought to be a most important repubw 14 lican principle. In times past, popular parties have claimed great merit from professing to r‘ carry this doctrine much farther, and to adhere to it much more strictly than their adversaries‘. Mr. Jefferson, especially, was a great advocate for it, and held it to be indispensable to a safe and economical administration and disbursement of the public revenues. But what have the friends and admirers of Mr. Jefferson to say to this appropri-r ation. Where do they find, in this proposed grant of three millions, designation of object, and particular and specific application of money’! Have theyforgotten, all forgotten, and wholly abandoned, even all pretence for specific appropriation’! If not, how could they sanction such a. vote as this’! Let me recall its terms. They are, that “ the sum of three millions of dollars be, andlthe same hereby is, appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to be expended, in whole or in part, under the direction ofthe President of the Uriited States, for the military and naval service, including fortifications and ordnance, and to increase the navy: provided such erkzpenditures shall be rendered necessary for the defence of the country, prior to the next meeting of Congress.” In the first place it is to be observed, that whether the money shall be used at all or not, is made to depend on the discretion of the President. This is sufficiently liberal. It carries confidence far enough. But, if there had beenno other ob- jections, ifthe objects of the appropriation had been sufliciently described, so that the President, if be expended the money at all, must have expended it for purposes authorized by the Legislature, and nothing had been left to his discretion but the question, whether an emergency had arisen in which the authority ought to be ex- ercised, I might not have felt bound to reject the vote. There are some prece-~ dents which might favor such a contingent provision, though the practice is dan- gerous, and ought not to be followed except in cases of clear necessity. , But the insurmountable objection to the proposed grant was, that it specified no objects. It was as general as language could make it. It embraced every expend- iturethat could be called either military or naval. It was to include “ fortifica- tions, ordnance, and increase of the navy ;” but it w,as,,n,ot confined to these. It embraced‘ the whole general subject of military service. Under the authority of such a law, the President might repair ships, build ships, buy ships, enlist seamen, and do any thing and every thing else touching the naval service, withouttarestraint or control. ' ' a He might repair such fortifications as he saw fit, and neglect the rest; arm such as he saw fit, and neglect the arming of others; or build new fortifications wher- ever he chose. And yet these unlimited powers over the fortifications and the navy constitute, by no means, the most dangerous part of the proposed authority; be- cause, under that authority, his power to raise and employ land forces was equally absolute and uncontrolled. He might levy troops, imbody a new army, call out the militia in numbers to suit his own discretion, and employ them as he saw fit. Now, sir, does our legislation, under our Constitution, furnish any precedent for all this’! i i We make appropriations for the army, and we understand what we arejdoing, ‘because it is “ the army,” that is to say, the army established by law.‘ We make appropriations for the navy; they, too, are for “ the navy,” as ‘provided for and established bylaw. We make appropriations for fortifications, but we say what fortifications, and we assign to each its intended amount of the whole sum. V, This is the usual course of Congress on such subjects; andlwhy shouldit be departed from”? Are we ready to say that the power of fixing the places for new fortifica- tions, and the sum allotted to each; the power of ordering new ships to bebuilt, and fixing the number of such new ships; the power of laying out money to raise men for the army; in short, every power, greatyand small, respecting the military and naval service, shall be vested in the P'resi_dent, without specification of object or purpose, to the entire exclusion of the exercise of all judgment on the part of r 15 Congress? For one, I amnot prepared. The honorable member from Ohio, near me, has said thatif the enemy had been on our shores he would not have agreed to this vote. And I say, ifthe proposition were now before us, and the guns of the enemy were battering against the walls of the Capitol, I would not agree to it. The people of this country have an interest, a property, an inheritance, in this INSTRUMENT, against the value of which forty Capitols do not weigh the twentieth « part of one poor scruple. T,here_can never be any necessity for such proceedings but a feigned and false necessity, a mere idle and hollow pretence of necessity; least of all, can it be said that any such necessity actually existed on the 3d of March. There was no enemy on our shores; there were no guns pointed against ~ the Capitol; we were in no war, nor was there a reasonable probability that we should have war, unless we made it ourselves. it But whatever was the state of our foreign relations, is it not preposterous to say, that it was necessary for Congress to adopt this measure, and yet not necessary for the President to recommend it’! Why should we thus run in advance of all our own duties, and leave the President completely shielded from his own just respon- sibility’! Why should there be nothing but grant, and trust, and confidence, on on side, and nothing but discretion and power on his’! ‘ Sir, if there be any philosophy in history, ifhuman blood still runs in human veins, if man still conforms to the identity of his nature, the institutions which so- cure constitutional liberty can never stand long, against this excessive personal con- fidence, against this devotion to men, in utter disregard both of principle and of experience, which seems to me to be strongly characteristic of our times. This vote came to us, sir, from the popular branclnof the Legislature; and that such a vote should come from such a. branch of the Legislature, was among the circum- stances which excited in me the greatest surprise and the deepest concern. Cer- tainly, sir, certainly, I was not, on that account, the more inclined to concur. It was no argument with me that others seemed to he rushing, with such lteedless, headlong trust, such impetuosity of confidence, into the arms of Executive power. I held bac,lc..,tlte....st.ronge,r,~ and would hold back the longer for that very reason. I see, or“t“iiin"k‘ I see, it is eitl?1et‘""a~-true"lvisri‘ontrt