Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, praying compensation for damages and losses sustained by reason of the suspension by the Government of a contract therein set forth. By Mr. McDONALD: The petition of William Frost and others, assistant marshals, praying for increased compensation. By Mr. MOORE, of Louisiana: The project of a law, drawn up under the instructions of the Chamber of Commerce of New Orleans, relative to steam boilers and inspectors of steam boilers. By Mr. DURKEE: The petition of A. F. Stockwell and others, praying Congress to grant a portion of the public lands for the extension of the Mobile and Chicago railroad. By Mr. FAULKNER: The petition of John H. King, praying compensation for his inventions and improvements used by the Government of the United States at Harper's Ferry. By Mr. DUNCAN: The petition of Homer Bartlett and others, for an appropriation of money to the executive committee for the Industrial Exhibition at London, to relieve them from the expenses incurred in the display of articles from the United States. By Mr. APPLETON, of Massachusetts: The memorial of the city of Boston, in the State of Massachusetts, calling the attention of Congress to the situation of the harbor in that place. By Mr. FICKLIN: The petition of certain persons, praying for the passage of an act to incorporate the Washington City Water Company. By the SPEAKER: A statement relative to the manner of paying the compensation of the members and officers of the two Houses of Congress. Also, the petition of merchants and others, of the city of Philadelphia, asking for an improvement of the navigation around the Falls of the Ohio, by the construction of an additional canal. IN SENATE. SATURDAY, February 7, 1852. Prayer by the Rev. L. F. MORGAN. PETITIONS. Mr. SEWARD presented the petition of citizens of Mount Morris, New York, remonstrating against an extension of C. H. McCormick's patent for a reaping machine; which was referred to the Committee on Patents and the Patent Office. Mr. SHIELDS presented documents in support of the claim of the widow of Brevet Major J. P. O'Brien, late of the United States Army, for a pension; which was referred to the Committee on Military Affairs. Also, the petiton of Rufus L. Baker, of the Ordnance Corps, praying to be allowed the difference of pay between the grades of captain and major, during the time he performed the duties of the latter grade; which was referred to the Committee on Military Affairs. Mr. WALKER presented the petition of the Board of Supervisors of Columbia county, Wisconsin, praying that the military reserve at Fort Winnebago may be granted to the State for the improvement of the Fox and Wisconsin rivers; which was referred to the Committee on Public Lands. CONGRESSIONAL LIBRARY. Mr. HUNTER. I would ask the general consent of the Senate to take up the bill providing for the repair of the old Congressional Library. The motion was agreed to. The bill was read a second time, and the Senate proceeded, as in Committee of the Whole, to its consideration. look further into it, they will find a complete description in the report of the Architect, which was submitted to the Committee on Public Buildings. The bill was reported to the Senate without amendment, and ordered to be engrossed for a third reading. BILL PASSED. The bill for the relief of Lieutenant Colonel Mitchell, of Missouri, was read a third time and passed. MEXICAN CLAIMS. Mr. BRODHEAD. I desire to submit the following resolution, and if there is no objection ask for its consideration at this time: Resolved, That the Secretary of State be directed to inform the Senate whether all the claims, which were exhibited to the late " Board of Commissioners on claims against Mexico," were finally adjudicated; and also whether the sum designated in the treaty was adequate to the full payment of the sums found due. There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the resolution. Mr. BRODHEAD. I will, in a very few words, state the reasons why I have submitted the resolution, and why, in my judgment, it should be adopted. It is stated that there is a balance of forty-odd thousand dollars remaining in the Treasury, after paying all the claims which have been found to be due by this Board. This balance, alleged to be now in the Treasury, is claimed by the Mexican Government, or rather has been assigned to a Mexican citizen, who has presented to the Senate a claim for it. The whole amount appropriated to meet the claims was three millions and a quarter. The Board of Commissioners adjudged all the claims, as is alleged, and now it is stated that there is a balance of forty-odd thousand dollars remaining in the Treasury. The Committee of Claims desire to know-and it is also important for the Senate to knowwhether all the claims presented against Mexico, on the part of this Government or of its citizens, have been finally adjudicated and passed upon by the Board; and we can only obtain that information from the Secretary of State. I hope, therefore, the resolution will be adopted. The resolution was adopted. SALT SPRINGS IN IOWA. On the motion of Mr. DODGE, of Iowa, the Senate proceeded to consider, as in Committee of the Whole, the bill to relinquish to the State of Iowa the lands reserved for salt springs therein; and no amendment being made it was reported to the Senate and ordered to be engrossed and read a third time. RELIEF OF SOLDIERS' WIDOWS. On the motion of Mr. BORLAND, the Senate proceeded to consider, as in Committee of the Whole, the bill to revive a portion of an act for the relief of the widows of deceased soldiers; and on his motion it was further postponed until Monday next. CONTRACTS FOR MAILS. Mr. CLEMENS submitted the following reso It provides that the sum of $72,500 be appropria-lution for consideration: ted to repair the Congressional Library room, which was lately destroyed by fire, according to the plan described in the report and drawings which were submitted by the Architect to the Secretary of the Interior, and approved by the Committee on Public Buildings of the Senate; provided, however, that the work shall be executed under the direction of the Secretary of the Interior, and be subject to such a modification of the details as may be consistent with the general arrangement of the plan, and necessary and proper in the opinion of the President of the United States. Mr. HUNTER. I will say a very few words in regard to the bill. It provides only for the repair of the old Library room, which we hope to have fitted up and ready for use by the middle of May. It is an object which is very anxiously desired by members of both Houses of Congress, that we should have it fitted up as soon as possible. The room will be according to its old dimensions. I hold in my hand a drawing of a vertical section of it. As it is proposed, it is to consist of three stories and an alcove, surmounted above by light iron galleries, the whole to be crowned by a skylight the entire length of it. It is proposed to make it fire-proof, and that the only material used shall be iron. I believe that is a general description of the room. If Senators are anxious to Resolved, That the Secretary of the Navy and Postmaster General be requested to furnish Congress with copies of all contracts originally made and at present existing for the transportation of the mails between New York and California by steamships on the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and all information they possess in regard thereto; what amount has been paid, and to whom; what amount is now paid, and to whom, for the transit of the mails across the Isthmus of Panama, in connection with said steamship service; the gross amount of money that has been paid under each service; when such contracts commenced; in what sums and at what periods of time paid, and to whom each payment has been made; whether at such periods as expressed under the terms of said contracts or otherwise; the amount of service rendered, and by what vessels; how often they arrive and depart; what time has been and is now occupied in the carriage of the mails between said ports; whether all the vessels stipulated under said contracts to be built have been so built, or what portion of them; whether, if two or three of the five ships contracted to be built under said contracts were not so built, but other vessels engaged in independent lines united with the vessels of the Government contractors, thus forming one line; each of the parties, however, owning their own vessels, and in that manner answering the terms of the contracts to build said five ships? Whether other facilities exist for performing the same or a similar service, and if other propositions have been made, and upon what terms, to perform said service, and within what periods of time? THE EXILED IRISH PATRIOTS. At one o'clock the Senate proceeded to the consideration of the special order, viz: the resolution submitted by Mr. Foote, of Mississippi, on the 2d of December last, in these words: Joint Resolution expressive of the sympathy of Congress for the exiled Irish patriots, Smith O'Brien and Thomas F. Meagher, and their associates. Be it resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That in consideration of the general sympathy felt by the people of the United States for Smith O'Brien, Thomas F. Meagher, and their immediate associates, exiled Irish patriots, and the warm sympathies felt by the countrymen of these distinguished sufferers, who have become adopted citizens of the United States, the President of the United States be requested to authorize a correspondence to be opened with the Government of her Majesty the Queen of Great Britain, appealing to the magnanimity of the British Government and people in their behalf, and respectfully requesting the liberation of these personages from their present confinement, with an offer to receive them upon the hospitable shores of the United States. On Thursday, the 29th of January, Mr. SHIELDS submitted the following amendment; which is the pending question: Strike out all after the enacting clause, and insert: "That while we disclaim all intention of interfering in any way in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, we deem it our duty to express, in a respectful manner, our firm conviction that it would be highly gratifying to the people of the United States, many of whom are natives of Ireland, and connected by blood with the inhabitants of that country, to see Smith O'Brien and his associates restored to liberty, and permitted, if so disposed, to emigrate to this country. We would regard this act of clemency as a new proof of the friendly disposition of the British Government towards our Republic, and as calculated to strengthen the bonds of affection now happily existing between the people of the United States and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland." Mr. SHIELDS addressed the Senate at some length in support of his proposition. A report of his speech will be found in the Appendix. Mr. SEWARD. I desire to suggest to the consideration of the honorable Senator from Illinois, who has favored us with a very eloquent, and I hope very influential argument, in favor of the passage of this resolution, some amendments to his amendment, which, if he will give me his attention, I will read. They are to strike out, in the fourth line of the printed amendment the word respectful," and insert the word "courteous;" in the same line, strike out the word "convic tion," and insert the word "opinion;" in the ninth and tenth lines, strike out the words "we would regard this act of clemency," and insert "this act of clemency would be regarded;" so as to make the amendment read: 66 "That while we disclaim all intention of interfering in any way in the internal affairs of the kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, we deem it our duty to express, in a courteous manner, our firm opinion that it would be highly gratifying to the people of the United States, many of whom are natives of Ireland, and connected by blood with the inhabitants of that country, to see Smith O'Brien and his associates restored to liberty, and permitted, if so disposed, to emigrate to this country. And that this act of clemency would be regarded as a new proof of the friendly disposi tion of the British Government towards our Republic, and as calculated to strengthen the bonds of affection now happily existing between the people of the United States and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. I have a few words to say upon these amendments, and also upon the resolution itself. I will be governed by the preference of the Senate, as to whether I shall proceed now or at a future time. Several Senators expressed a desire to adjourn. Mr. SEWARD. I move, therefore, that the Senate do now adjourn. The motion was agreed to and the Senate adjourned. IN SENATE.; MONDAY, February 9, 1852. Prayer by the Rev. L. F. MORGan. EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS. The PRESIDENT pro tempore laid before the Senate a communication from the War Department, transmitting, in compliance with a resolution of the Senate of the 4th instant, a report from the Chief Engineer, that a communication from the Board of Engineer officers for the Pacific coast, addressed to the Engineer Department on the 28th of October last, recommended that Congress be asked to appropriate not less than $500,000 for the commencement of fortifications at San Francisco; which was read, and ordered to be laid on the table and printed. The PRESIDENT pro tempore laid before the Senate a communication from the War Department, transmitting, in compliance with the resolu tion of December 13, 1815, sixty-two copies of the official Army Register for the year 1852, for the use of the Senate; which was read, and ordered to be laid on the table. PETITIONS. The PRESIDENT pro tempore laid before the Senate a memorial of the Legislature of Alabama, praying that the citizens of that State may be indemnified for losses sustained during the Indian hostilities in 1836 and 1837; which was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs, and ordered to be printed. Mr. WADE presented a memorial of assistant marshals, in Licking county; a memorial of assistant marshals in Perry county; and a memorial of assistant marshals in Wade county, in the State of Ohio, for taking the Seventh Census, praying additional compensation; which were referred to the Committee of Claims. land, representing that the fees accruing from the office of Consul at that place, are wholly insufficient, and praying to be allowed a salary; which was referred to the Committee on Commerce. Also, a memorial of manufacturers of lasts, at Boston, praying that the bill giving further remedies to patentees may become a law; which was ordered to lie on the table. Mr. HAMLIN presented the petition of Elliot F. Penney, a soldier in the last war with Great Britain, praying a pension; which was referred to the Committee on Pensions. Mr. CASS presented a petition of citizens of Sharon, Mercer county, Pennsylvania, praying an avowal by Congress of the principle of intervention for non-intervention," as a portion of the public law of nations. Ordered to lie on the table. Mr. FELCH presented four petitions of citizens of Michigan, praying a donation of land to that State, for the construction of the Oakland and Ottawa Railroad; which were referred to the Com Mr. BRIGHT presented resolutions adopted at a meeting of the inhabitants of the town of Napoleon, Ripley county, Indiana, recommending the passage of a law providing for a division of the Indian territory lying southwestwardly of the Missouri river, and for defining the boundaries of the Territory of Nebraska; also, making provis-mittee on Public Lands. ions for the removal of certain tribes of Indians from that Territory, and for the settlement of the public lands lying therein, to which the Indian title has been extinguished; which were referred to the Committee on Territories. Also, a resolution of the Legislature of Indiana, in favor of an appropriation of the vacant public lands within the Vincennes land district for the benefit of common schools; which was ordered to be printed. Also, a resolution of the Legislature of Indiana, in favor of the location of a national armory at Evansville, in that State; which was ordered to be printed. Also, a resolution of the Legislature of Indiana, in favor of the construction of a canal around the Falls of the Ohio river; which was ordered to be printed. Also, a resolution of the Legislature of Indiana, in favor of restricting the entry of the public lands to settlers, and to them only, in limited quantities, and at the cost merely of the survey and patent; which was ordered to be printed. Mr. SEWARD presented a petition of journeymen cigar makers at Detroit, Michigan, praying an increase of the duties on cigars; which was referred to the Committee on Finance. Also, a petition of citizens of Guilford, Illinois, praying the adoption of measures for the amnicable adjustment of international controversies; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. Mr. BADGER presented the petition of J. H. Carter, a passed midshipman in the Navy, praying arrearages of pay and the reimbursement of expenses incurred at Rio de Janeiro, while detained there by sickness; which was referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs. Mr. SEWARD. I am requested to present the petition of Richard M. Bouton, of the State of New York. He says that in the year 1842, he was employed by the Commissary of Ordnance to manufacture percussion caps for the use of the Army; that from that time until the present he has diligently devoted himself to that task; that he found there was not either in this country or in Europe any efficient machine, which was selfoperating, for that purpose; that he has invented and perfected such a machine; that the articles which are the production of it are now in use in the Army and Navy of the United States; that they are made with greater economy than, and are of vastly superior quality to, any other; and that it is the interest of the Goverment of the United States to secure to itself a property in the invention. He presents an application to the Senate to take the subject into their consideration. It is supported by letters from Colonel Baker; a late Secretary of War, Mr. Marcy; the Chief Engineer of the Navy Yard; and others. In compliance with his request, I move that the memorial and accompanying papers be referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs. They were so referred. Mr. JONES, of Iowa, presented the petition of a body of Hungarian refugees, settled in Scott county, Iowa, praying that they may be included in any measure of relief which Congress may pass for the benefit of their brethren at New Buda, in that State; which was referred to the Committee on Public Lands. Mr. DAVIS presented the memorial of C. G. Baylor, United States Consul at Amsterdam, Hol Mr. GWIN. I present the memorial of James M. Crane, praying additional compensation for publishing the acts of Congress for 1849-250, in the California Courier, a newspaper published by him in California, and that some general provision may be made for giving adequate compensation to the newspaper press in that State for publishing the laws of the United States. I will state, in presenting this petition, that the present compensation for publishing the laws there is entirely inadequate. During the last summer, I was applied to on numerous occasions for copies of the laws. They never can be published there unless there is an additional compensation. As the question is important, in connection with the Judiciary system, I move that the memorial be referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. It was so referred. Mr. GWIN also presented the petition of Samuel Stone and Isaac H. Marks, praying compensation for property of which they were dispossessed under an Indian treaty; which was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs. PAPERS WITHDRAWN AND REFERRED. On motion by Mr. SEWARD, it was Ordered, That the documents on the files of the Senate, relating to the claims of Charles Reeder, Walter R. Johnson, and the legal representatives of Thomas P. Jones, be referred to the Committee of Claims. On motion by Mr. SEWARD, it was Ordered, That the documents on the files of the Senate, relating to the claim of Phœbe Morris, widow of Robert H. Morris, to a pension, be referred to the Cominittee on Pensions. On motion by Mr. MORTON, it was Ordered, That the petition of Joseph M. Hernandez, on the files of the Senate, be referred to the Committee of Claims. On motion by Mr. UNDERWOOD, it was Ordered, That the memorial of the representatives of Jean Baptiste de Lomagne, on the files of the Senate, be referred to the Committee on Revolutionary Claims. On motion by Mr. SEBASTIAN, it was Ordered, That the petition of Jonathan Lewis, and the documents relating to the claim of Theodore E. Elliott, on the files of the Senate, be referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs. On motion by Mr. MASON, it was Ordered, That William W. Chew have leave to withdraw his memorial and papers. REPORTS FROM STANDING COMMITTEES. Mr. FOOT, from the Committee on Pensions, to which was referred the petition of David L. Davis, submitted an adverse report; which was read. He also, from the same committee, to which were referred the following bills from the House of Representatives, reported them back without amendment: An act for the relief of Albra Tripp; An act for the relief of Joseph Johnson; An act for the relief of Sylvanus Blodgett; and An act for the payment of arrears of pension to the guardian of Artemas Conant. consideration of the petition. Mr. JONES, of Iowa, from the Committee on Pensions, to which was referred the petition of Jacob Young, submitted a report, accompanied by a bill for his relief. Mr. GEYER, from the Committee on Pensions, to which was referred the memorial of Robert Armstrong, submitted a report, accompanied by a bill for his relief. The bill was read, and passed to the second reading, and the report was ordered to be printed. He also, from the same committee, to which was referred the petition of Samuel Spalding, submitted an adverse report; which was read. He also, from the same committee, to which was referred the petition of James Carrigan, submitted a report; and, in concurrence therewith, the committee were discharged from the further consideration of the petition. Mr. JONES, of Iowa, from the Committee on Pensions, to which was referred the petition of Jacob Young, submitted a report, accompanied by a bill for his relief; which was read and passed to the second reading, and the report was ordered to be printed. Mr. ATCHISON, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the memorial of Margaret Farrar, reported a bill for her relief; which was read and passed to the second reading. He also, from the same committee, to which was referred the documents relating to the claim of Lewis A. Thomas and Thomas Rogers, submitted a report, accompanied by a bill for their relief; which was read and passed to the second reading, and the report was ordered to be printed. SON, the bill was considered as in Committee of Subsequently, on the motion of Mr. ATCHIthe Whole, and its further consideration was postponed indefinitely, the bill having been passed at the last session. Mr. DOWNS, from the Committee on Private Land Claims, to which was referred the memorial of J. Epes Cowan, reported a bill authorizing the legal representatives of Antoine Vasquez, Hypolité Vasquez, Joseph Vasquez, and John Colligan, to enter certain lands in Missouri; which was read and passed to the second reading. He also, from the same committee, to which was referred the petition of Martin Fenwick, reported a bill for the relief of Martin Fenwick or his legal representatives; which was read and passed to the second reading. Mr. BORLAND, from the Committee on Printing, to which was referred the resolution submitted by Mr. DOUGLAS, the 5th instant, to print five thousand five hundred additional copies of the report of Captain H. Stansbury, of his exploration of the valley of the Great Salt Lake, for the use of the Senate, five hundred copies thereof to be furnished to the Topographical Bureau, three hundred to the Smithsonian Institution, and two hundred copies to Captain Stansbury, recommended the adoption of the resolution, and it was agreed to. NOTICE OF A BILL. Mr. FELCH gave notice of his intention to ask leave to introduce a bill to authorize the sale of certain reserved lands. ENGROSSED BILLS PASSED. The following engrossed bills were severally read a third time and passed: A bill to relinquish to the State of Iowa the lands reserved for salt springs therein; and A bill to provide for the repair of the Congressional Library room, lately destroyed by fire. ASSIGNABILITY OF LAND WARRANTS. A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. FORNEY, their Clerk, was received: Mr. PRESIDENT: The House of Representatives have passed the bill to make land warrants assignable, with amendments; in which they request the concurrence of the Senate. CASH & ELLIS. Mr. DAWSON. A bill for the relief of David C. Cash and Giles U. Ellis, was rejected by the Senate on Friday last. At the request of some of the friends of that bill, I move to reconsider the vote by which it was rejected. The motion to reconsider was laid upon the table. RAILROADS. IN IOWA. The PRESIDENT. The first general order is a bill granting the right of way and making a grant of land to the State of Iowa, in aid of the construction of certain railroads in that State. This bill is before the Senate as in Committee of the Whole, and the question pending is on an amendment offered by the Senator from Kentucky, [Mr. UNDERWOOD.] Mr. UNDERWOOD. The Senator from Tennessee [Mr. BELL] had the floor when that bill was last under discussion. He is not now in his seat, and I would like to make some arrangement, if possible, that it might come up in its order when that Senator may be present. I hope, therefore, that at this time it will be passed over informally. The PRESIDENT. It will be one o'clock very shortly, when the special order will be called for, and some disposition must be made of this bill. Mr. UNDERWOOD. I will ask the consent of the Senate to pass that bill over, as the Senator from Tennessee is not in his place. Mr. DODGE, of Iowa. I make no objection to the motion of the Senator from Kentucky, because the Senator from Tennessee is entitled to the floor, and is understood to be desirous of addressing the Senate. The bill was then passed over informally. NAVY-YARD IN SAN FRANCISCO. The PRESIDENT. The next general order is a bill to establish a navy-yard and depôt on the Bay of San Francisco, in California. Mr. GWIN. I should like to make a statement with regard to that bill. The Senator from Pennsylvania [Mr. BRODHEAD] Wishes to be present when that bill is called up. Pressing business in the State of Pennsylvania has called him away for a short time, and before his departure I agreed not to call up this bill until Thursday next. I am willing that it should be passed over until that day, but I now give notice that I will then call it up. The bill was accordingly passed over. LIFE-SECURITY ON STEAMBOATS. The bill supplementary to the several acts of Congress, providing for the better security of the lives of passengers on board of vessels propelled in whole or in part by steam, and for other purposes, next came up in its order, as in Committee of the Whole. The bill consists of two sections, the first of which provides that the authority vested in the judges of the district courts of the United States, within whose judicial districts ports of entry or delivery may be established on the navigable waters, lakes, bays, and rivers of the United States, by the act of July 7th, 1838, entitled "An act to provide for the better security of the lives of passengers," &c., be vested in the judge of any other district court of the United States, within whose judicial district no ports of entry or delivery may have been established by law, and that he be authorized to appoint one or more persons competent to make inspections of such boats, and of their boilers and machinery; that such persons so appointed shall not be interested in the manufacture of steam-engines, boilers, or other machinery belonging to steam vessels, who shall perform the duties contemplated by said law, and receive such compensation as said law prescribes. The second section provides that all certificates of inspection, required by said act, shall be delivered to the clerk of the district court of the United States for the judicial district in which said certificate shall have been issued; and that any master or owner of any steamboat who shall refuse to deliver such certificate within thirty days after such vessel shall have become employed in any judicial district as aforesaid, shall incur a penalty of one hundred dollars, to be recovered and distributed like other penalties incurred under existing laws. Mr. BORLAND. If there is nothing at present before the Senate, I should be glad to have that bill disposed of now. The Senator from Kentucky [Mr. UNDERWOOD] has an amendment to offer to the bill, to which I presume there will be no objection; and I hope the bill will then be allowed to pass. Mr. UNDERWOOD. I have prepared an amendment, which I will read to the Senate. I propose that it shall come in at the end of the bill by way of an additional section. The amendment is as follows: SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the judges of the district courts of the United States within whose judicial districts there may be ports of entry or delivery, shall have power and authority to appoint inspectors of steamboats, and of their boilers and machinery, at such places within the judicial district not less than fifty miles distant from a port of entry or delivery, as the judge of the district may deem proper; and the inspectors so appointed shall have all the powers and rights, and shall perform all the duties and be subject to all the liabilities imposed upon inspectors appointed under and in virtue of the act of 7th July, 1838, entitled "An act to provide for the better security of the lives of passengers on board of vessels propelled in whole or in part by steam," and the act to modify said act, I approve entirely of the object of the bill of The question was then taken on the amendment, and it was adopted. No other amendment being offered, the bill was reported to the Senate, and the amendment was concurred in. have where there are collection districts. That is the chief provision of the bill, as it was reported by the Committee on Commerce, and the amendment of the honorable Senator from Kentucky only extends the power of the district judge of Kentucky a little further than it now exists, and enables him to appoint inspectors at other ports which are not ports of entry, provided these places are not within a certain distance of some port of entry. The honorable Senator from Louisiana says that he sees no necessity for the passage of this bill, because these inspections may be made at other important points. But they are distant points, and therein is the difficulty. They are points so distant as to subject those interested in the boats which navigate the rivers of Arkansas to very great inconvenience and very great expense. Á boat which has been injured on the White river, or the Arkansas, or any other river in that State, must be taken to a distant port to be repaired, for the reason that her inspection must be made and certificate given at that port. But if you give us the advantage of having our boats inspected at home, where the accident has occurred, we shall then have the facilities for repairing our boats at home also. Even our steam ferry-boats are under the necessity of being taken fifteen hundred or two thousand miles to get their inspection certificates. That is a very serious objection to the present law, as it affects States situated as mine is. The Senator says he is not aware that very serious inconvenience or suffering exists. I can say to him, that if he had lived in my State, he would know that serious injury has resulted from the present regu lations. The consequence of the inconvenience of getting certificates is, that our rivers are filled with boats which could not get a certificate anywhere. They have come from other rivers, and slip into ours where there is no place of inspection, and thus they evade the general law. We wish to compel them to be inspected where their trade is, so that thus they cannot impose upon our people, and expose the lives of passengers. That is the object of this bill. It does not propose to change the present law at all, but only to give us the same benefits that the people of the rest of the United States enjoy. Mr. UNDERWOOD. I wish to address a sin Mr. DOWNS. When that bill was before the Senate at a former session, I stated some reasons why I thought it ought not to be passed; and I must confess that the same reasons still operate upon my mind. I know it is very desirable to have a proper inspection of steamboat boilers, and Congress has designated by law the places where certificates of inspection may be given and by whom. But the law, as it is, has operated badly, and there has been a great deal of complaint that the certificates of inspection have been given in many instances without sufficient examination.gle remark to the Senator from Louisiana, to show It seems to me that it will be a better security that the certificates of inspection are properly given, to require that the boats shall be inspected at the great points where inspections are now made-at the ports of entry, like Louisville or New Orleans. But if you extend the facilities for procuring certificates of inspection, so that they may be procured on all the small rivers in every State, it may happen that when a certificate is refused at one point, the boat may be taken to another of the small places, and the consequence will be that the inspection will be less rigid, and that certificates will be granted with less examination than at present. Besides, I see no necessity for this bill as a matter of convenience, because though the boats may run on the small rivers, they are generally built or repaired at other ports-at Louisville or New Orleans-and they can obtain their certificates there. I think, therefore, as there seems to be no necessity for the passage of this bill, and especially as I think the very small security we now have will be weakened by it, that it should not be passed. Mr. BORLAND. I did not anticipate there would be any opposition whatever to the passage of this bill. I think the Senator from Louisiana is entirely mistaken in the purpose of the bill. It is not to weaken or to lessen the security we now have; it is not to change the law at all on the subject of inspection; it requires the same qualifications on the part of inspectors which are now required. It refers to the general law, and simply extends the benefits of that general law over a region of the country that does not now enjoy those benefits. The general law, as the Senator very well knows, gives power to district judges of the United States to appoint inspectors within collection districts. Where the district of the judge is a collection district of the United States, there he has the power to appoint inspectors, but judges whose districts do not embrace a collection district have no power to make these appoinments. This bill simply proposes to confer on the judge of the district of Arkansas the same power which judges that there are actually existing difficulties which should be remedied. There is a very large steamboat manufactory carried on at Paducah. There are also preparations made for repairing boats to a very great extent. Now, suppose a new boat is built at Paducah; that boat must be taken to Louisville, some three hundred miles from Paducah, up the river, to be inspected; and that boat may be designed to trade upon the Tennessee river, and for no other trade. You will then compel the boat to travel three hundred miles up and down the river, putting the owners to the expense these two trips, for no other purpose than to procure a certificate of inspection. of Take another case: Suppose the Arkansas river becomes low, as it does occasionally, and see how these small boats are affected that run upon it, trading from Little Rock to the Mississippi river, and not passing below the junction with the Mississippi, but from point to point along the Arkansas. The law, as it now exists, requires boats to be inspected every six months. When the six months expire after the boat has been once inspected, that Arkansas boat has to travel to New Orleans, or to St. Louis, to procure another certificate of inspection. You see at once what a cost and delay is put upon the owner of the boat, and to a certain extent, upon all that are concerned in the management of it, for the purpose of inspec tion. Now my friend's bill, with my amendment, is designed to provide for having inspectors at the places where the boats are repaired, and near the places where they trade, so that after the time expires within which they are required to be inspected, they need not travel out of their way for that purpose, but may have an inspector near at hand. It seems to me that inspectors in Arkansas, having the duty of inspecting the boats in which the property and lives of the citizens of that Stateare intrusted, will perhaps be a little more diligent and faithful in their attention to the boats engaged exclusively in the Arkansas trade, than those would who have the duty of inspecting boats which are 7 to be engaged in trade four or five hundred miles distant. They would then have an additional incentive, perhaps, to a diligent and faithful execution of the trust, when the lives and property of the people of their own State were concerned, and I should, therefore, expect them to perform the duty faithfully. These are the evils which exist, and which the bill proposes to remedy, and I hope that it may be permitted to pass. My friend from Massachusetts, on my left, [Mr. Davis,] has a bill, which he promises to bring forward soon, overhauling the whole subject, endeavoring to make provisions which will regulate the whole matter, from beginning to end. If I am correctly informed, it proposes something like a revision of the present law. We in the West all have a common interest, not only on the Mississippi, but on all its tributaries; and I have no doubt we are all sincerely anxious to see that system adopted which will secure the lives and property of our people. It seems to me that this bill will not interfere with the one which the honorable Senator from Massachusetts proposes to present; and when that bill comes up, if it will secure the object we aim at, I shall be ready to sustain it, and to unite with my friends from the West to accomplish so desirable an object. Mr. DOWNS. I am willing to go as far as any one to facilitate the interest of the West, and especially that of the States of Arkansas and Kentucky, and it is with very great regret that I offer any opposition to this bill, and I do it only from a sense of duty. I admit, that there are some inconveniences resulting from the law as it now exists, though they do not seem to me to be quite so great as have been pointed out. There is no necessity that a boat shall be inspected wherever she goes. She gets her inspection at some place where there is an inspector. Is there any boat now running in the district in which either of the members is particularly interested, which does not in her usual voyages go to Memphis or Nashville, or St. Louis, or some port which is a port of entry? Mr. BORLAND. There are half a dozen, at least, in my State. Mr. DOWNS. I think they must be very rare cases, in which a boat does not run to some port of entry. Mr. BORLAND. There are many on the White and Arkansas rivers. They run in the in terior of the State. tion upon our western waters, it will be that of a restriction, rather than an enlargement of this system, and to provide some other mode of examining these boats, and the quality of their engines, so that it may be ascertained with some degree of certainty whether it is safe for people to travel upon them or not. I know that there are suggestions of that kind. I know that the Senator from Massachusetts [Mr. DAVIS] proposes something of that kind. But now, imperfect as this system is--and I must say that I have no particular interest in this matter more than other Senators, no interests beyond those feelings of humanity which prompt us all-I should see with reluctance a system which I think will operate injuriously, so greatly extended as is proposed by this bill, and especially as the Senator from Kentucky informs us that a new system is very shortly to be reported. Why, then, take up this subject in which all are so deeply interested, when a bill matured under all the light which science can shed upon it is so soon to be brought forward? I hope that gentlemen will consent to let the matter stand as it is until the bill is brought before us which has been promised by the Senator from Massachusetts. I will go as far as any man on this floor in doing everything that I believe likely to promote the interests of every section of the country, and to afford all facilities necessary for the easy transaction of their business; but at the same time I desire to take every requisite precaution in guarding the lives of the community who are obliged to travel upon these boats. I am as much interested in this matter as any other gentleman. I live in the interior of the State of Louisiana, and boats in the interior of that State have the same interest in regard to this question as those in the States of Kentucky and Arkansas. I shall, therefore, do everything to facilitate their trade; but I must oppose this bill because the impression is strong upon my mind that it would increase the danger of those explosions which have already been so tremendous and appalling. Mr. DAVIS. Mr. President Mr. CASS. I was about to suggest that a vote should be taken on this question immediately, in order that the honorable Senator from Rhode Island, [Mr. CLARKE,] who has the floor on another subject which was made the special order for this day, should be allowed to proceed. I Mr. DAVIS. I wish only one moment. have been asked to state to the Senate what is the condition of this bill which has been referred to by the honorable Senator from Louisiana. It has been delayed much beyond what I could wish; but every Senator will perceive that it is a subject which is so complicated that a great deal of inform ation is necessary in order to frame a bill. That information has come in, some of it more slowly than I could wish; but I will say to the honorable Senator that I expect in the course of this week to present the bill to the Senate, and in that bill there will be a provision for the consideration of the Senate-in the first place for inspecting the iron of which boilers are made; and in the next place for a rigid inspection of boilers, with the application of a test to show their strength. The whole subject, in a word, will be brought under the consideration of the Senate, with the design of giving the most ample protection to life and property which it is in the power of Congress to afford. There being no further proposition to amend, the question was taken on ordering the bill to be engrossed for a third reading, and it was decided in the affirmative. Mr. DOWNS. I do not think the evil is so very great as has been stated. I opposed this bill heretofore, and I oppose it still, because it must be recollected that if there is some inconvenience, and some evil at present, there are, in my opinion, evils on the other hand transcendently greater. The loss of life is an immense evil, and it has been so great on the rivers at the West, that many persons so distrust the boats that they actually avoid them, after all that has been done to prevent explosions, or to guard against them. I happen to have stronger convictions on this subject, from the fact, that at one time of my life it was my duty, as a district attorney, to investigate several cases of calamitous explosions, and to go into the details of an examination as to the manner in which these certificates were granted; and from the several investigations I was engaged in there, I came to the conclusion that the system was exceedingly defective; that these certificates of inspection were scarcely anything but a mere matter of form, and that little dependence could be placed upon them. I oppose this bill, because I think that if you increase the number of inspectors, and appoint them in small places away from these important points where the public attention would be called to them, and where the public can know something of the qualifications of the inspectors, and extend the power of appointment to so many other places, so that it becomes almost a general thing, you will weaken the security which we now have. We may have confidence in a certificate given at Louisville or New Orleans, where there are experienced andable engineers; for in such places they generally appoint men whose names are known, and whose certificates will give confidence. Although they may have as competent persons in Arkansas, or at other places than Louisville, Kentucky, yet their names are not so well known to the public. So far from extending this power of appointing inspectors, I think it should be restricted. I believe that whenever any remedy is devised for applica- || Senate adjourned. NON-INTERVENTION. The Senate proceeded to consider the resolutions submitted by Mr. CLARKE, on the 19th ultimo, on the subject of non-intervention, [see page 298,] and the pending amendments proposed by Mr. SEWARD and Mr. CASS, [see page 310.] The resolutions and the amendments having been read, Mr. CLARKE addressed the Senate at length in favor of the views embodied in the resolutions. Mr. CASS was next recognized by the Chair; but, on the motion of Mr. HAMLIN, the further considertiaon of the subject was postponed until to-morrow. On motion, the Senate proceeded to the consideration of Executive business; and after some time spent therein, the doors were reopened, and the HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. MONDAY, February 9, 1852. The House met at twelve o'clock, m. Prayer by the Rev. L. F. MORGAN. The Journal of Friday was read and approved. Mr. MILLSON. I move a reconsideration of the vote by which the House on Friday last referred to the Committee on Revolutionary Pensions the bill for the relief of William Miller, intending afterwards to move its reference to the Committee on Invalid Pensions. I have examined the bill and report, and find that its legitimate reference is to the Committee on Invalid Pensions. Mr. JOHNSON, of Arkansas. I made the motion on last Friday. I did not then understand the case; nor was there found any one upon the floor who did. It was necessary that it should be disposed of, that the House might reach other matters. Hence I made the motion. I believe the gentleman is right; and hope that his motion may prevail. The question was taken, and the vote was reconsidered; and then, on further motion, the bill was referred to the Committee on Invalid Pensions. MEXICAN INDEMNITY AND BENJ. E. GREEN. Mr. GREY occupied the floor for an hour, under a suspension of the rules, in reply to the remarks of Mr. BAYLY, of Virginia, a few days since, on connected the name of Mr. B. E. Green with the the Mexican indemnity bill, which injuriously non-payment by Mexico of the indemnity due by her in 1844. His remarks, vindicating the conduct of Mr. Green against the alleged charges of Mr. BAYLY, have been withheld for revision. They will be published in the Appendix. Mr. MURPHY. I ask the unanimous consent of the House to offer the following resolution: Resolved, That the Committee on Revolutionary Claims have leave to report back to the House the petition and papers of Doctor Avery Downer, praying for a pension; and that the petitioner have leave to withdraw his papers from the files of the House. I will only remark as to this petition praying for a pension, that the Committee on Revolutionary Claims consider it was improperly referred to that committee, and therefore ask leave to report it back. There has been once a favorable report by the House upon this petition, and the petitioner desires to withdraw his petition that he may present it to the Senate. The SPEAKER. There being no objection, it will be so ordered. CHAIRMAN OF MILITARY AFFAIRS. Mr. ORR. I rise for the purpose of asking the House to excuse my colleauge [Mr. BURT] from further service upon the Committee on Military Affairs. Mr. BURT left this city about the middle of December. Upon his return home, he was seized with indisposition, which has continued up to the present time; and the probability is that the time of his return may be delayed much longer. It may perhaps relieve the Committee on Military Affairs from much embarrassment by excusing him from further service, so that another gentleman may occupy that post, and thus enable the committee to proceed in the discharge of the duties devolving upon it. Mr. HOUSTON. I would like to know whether such is the wish of the gentleman's colleague? Mr. ORR. Of course. I should not have made the application, had it not been the desire of my colleague. No objection being made, Mr. BURT was excused from service; and Mr. FAULKNER, of Virginia, was appointed to fill the vacancy. MAIL STEAMSHIPS AND MAIL CONTRACTS. Mr. PEASLEE. I ask the unanimous consent of the House to introduce the resolution which I send to the Speaker's table. The resolution was then read for information, as follows: Resolved, That the Secretary of the Navy be requested to communicate to this House the facts in relation to the respective contracts with the Navy Department for building mail steamships for the transportation of the United States mail between New York and Liverpool, between New York and New Orleans, Havana and Chagres, and between Panama and San Francisco, and some point in Oregon; the amount of money which has been advanced and paid each of said lines of steamships by the Government; also, whether all the vessels stipulated under said contracts to be built, have been so built, or what portion of them; also, the amount of net receipts of postage collected on either of said lines of steamers, deposited in the Treasury to the credit of the appro priations for the annual compensation for the service rendered under their contracts, or which has been applied in payment of said annual compensation, pursuant to section 10, of the acts of Congress of August 3, 1848. And whether said steamships or any other steamships employed in the transportation of our foreign mails are in all respects suitable for immediate conversion into steamers for war purposes, capable of carrying the ammunition or battery appropriate to the class specified in the contracts; and if not suitable for such immediate conversion, whether they could be altered so as to make them efficient war steamers; and if so, what alterations would be necessary to be made, and at what expense to make thein war steamers of the first class. Mr. GORMAN. I object to the introduction of the resolution. Mr. PEASLEE. I move that the rules of the House be suspended to enable me to introduce it. Mr. SMART demanded the yeas and nays; which were not ordered. Mr. PEASLEE demanded tellers; which were ordered, and Messrs. SMART and WILLIAMS were appointed. The question was then taken, and the tellers reported-ayes 75, noes 33; no quorum. Mr. CLINGMÁN. I will ask a recount-there is a quorum in the House. There being no objection, the question was again taken, and decided in the affirmative, the tellers having reported-ayes 95, noes 27; and the rules were accordingly suspended. Mr. PEASLEE. I move that the rules be suspended that the resolution may be considered today, that motion being necessary, as this is a call for information, which the rule requires shall lie over one day. The SPEAKER. The practice adopted by the Chair has been, in such cases, to take the vote after the rules were suspended, upon the adoption of any resolution calling for information; and for its adoption the Chair has required a two-thirds vote; otherwise he would feel it his duty to declare the resolution disagreed to under the rule requiring the resolution to lay over one day. Mr. JONES, of Tennessee. I move to suspend the rule which requires the resolution to lie over one day, as the House having suspended the rules for its introduction, I apprehend there will be no objection to its being now considered. The question was then taken, and the rules were suspended. Mr. JONES. I move to strike out the word "requested," and in its stead to insert the word "directed." That is the language of the rule. Mr. STEPHENS, of Georgia. I wish the gentleman from New Hampshire [Mr. PEASLEE] would inform the House as to his object in making this call. When these calls are made upon the Department it requires a great deal of time, labor, and extra clerk hire, and I want to know, before we make this call imposing additional duty, its object. Mr. PEASLEE. It seemed to me, from the large amount of money we have already expended in connection with these steamers, the applications we had at the last Congress, which we have already had at this, and which we may have hereafter, that the subject was of consequence enough for the House to obtain all the light and information possible, from the most responsible and reliable sources, to enable them to act understandingly. If I understand right, we are annually appropriating $1,300,000 for the support of our ocean mail steamer service. Applications have already been made from these lines for additional compensation. The amount of money which we shall be compelled to pay under the present contract, if the contractors perform their service according to their requirements without giving additional compensation, or the establishment of any new lines, will be about ten millions of dollarsbefore their expiration-during the seven or eight years which they have to run. There were applications at the last session of Congress, and I doubt not that there have been already, and will be for a much larger number this, for the establishment of thirteen additional mail steamers for our foreign mail service, involving an outlay, in the first instance, to assist in building the ships, of six and a half millions of dollars, and an expenditure of two millions of dollars annually afterwards. This is in addition to those already established, and without any additional compensation. If the contracts had been entered into according to the propositions made at the last session of Congress, strenuously urged and enforced upon the House, and which, I have no doubt, will be at this, for the time and price specified, it would have involved an expenditure by this Government to the amount of about forty millions of dollars, as I understand it. Well, sir, one of the principal arguments I have understood in favor of these steam lines-both those for whom we have already appropriated money and for which we will be asked hereafter-was, that they were to be built after the most substantial approved model of war-steamers; that they are capable of immediate conversion into warsteamers of the first class; that they are always ready, with but little expense of time and money, for cases of emergency, and that it would be the most economical means the Government could resort to for the purpose of keeping up our Navy. It is said, upon the other hand, by some gentlemen, that these steamers, or a larger portion of them, are not capable of being converted into warsteamers of the first class-that they cannot be converted even into inefficient steamers for our purposes without great expense of time and money, and that they are incapable of carrying, or of being made capable of carrying, the armament and batteries, and that, being constructed principally with a view to speed and the carriage of passengers, they cannot, at any rate, be made warsteamers of the first class, and would, in fact, be of little or no use to the Government. How these facts may be, I do not undertake to say; but I wish to have the information from a responsible and reliable source, that I, and the rest of the House, may be able to act more understandingly upon this subject. I am unwilling, with all the information I have been enabled to obtain, to vote to bind this Government in contracts with individuals which may involve the expenditure of millions and millions of dollars to extend a system, to say the least of it, of doubtful expediency, when our commerce has grown up to be second to no nation in the world, without any such aid. It has a monopolizing and partial tendency, and I am unwilling to vote millions and millions of dollars for such a system, unless I am confident that it is one which will inure to the benefit of the Government; that these steamers are in fact what they are represented to be-of being capable of conversion immediately into war-steamers of the first class. Mr. OLDS. I should like to inquire of the gentleman, if his resolution calls for copies of the contracts? Mr. PEASLEE. I have no objection to an amendment of that kind. I will not detain the House longer. My only object is to obtain light and information upon the subject, which it seems to me to be of the deepest importance to the Treasury and country, and which can do no harm, and which may enable us to act more understandingly upon this subject, and be of much benefit. Mr. STEPHENS, of Georgia. I am in favor of the resolution, for the reasons assigned by the gentleman, and concur most heartily with his views, if I heard him correctly, in regard to these steamships. The SPEAKER. The question is on the amendment proposed by the gentleman from Tennessee, [Mr. JONES.] Mr. PEASLEE. I have no objection to the modification, if it is in order to accept it. I also accept the modification of the gentleman from Ohio, [Mr. OLDS.] The question was then taken on the adoption of the resolution; and it was agreed to. THE TARIFF OF 1846. Mr. WELCH asked the unanimous consent of the House to introduce the following resolution: Resolved, That the Committee of Ways and Means are instructed to report a bill modifying and altering the tariff of 1846, by substituting, wherever practicable, specific for ad valorem duties, with such rates of duty as will yield sufficient revenue; and with such discriminations in favor of iron and other articles of domestic manufacture and productions, as will afford adequate protection to the labor of our own citizens against foreign competition. Mr. THOMPSON, of Virginia, objected. Mr. WELCH moved a suspension of the rules to enable him to introduce the resolution. Mr. BOCOCK demanded the yeas and nays; which were ordered. The question was then taken, and there wereyeas 60, nays 108, as follows, viz: YEAS-Messrs. Charles Allen, Allison, William Appleton, Barrere, Bell, Bennett, Bibighaus, Bowie, John H. Boyd, Brenton, Briggs, George H. Brown, E. C. Cabell, Lewis D. Campbell, Chandler, Chapman, Conger, Curtis, Doty, Duncan, Evans, Fowler, Henry M. Fuller, Gentry, Giddings, Goodenow, Goodrich, Harper, Hascall, Haven, Hebard, Horsford, John W. Howe, Thomas Y. How. Geo. G. King, Mann, Martin, Meacham, Miller, Miner, Newton, Samuel W. Parker, Penniman, Perkins, Porter, Price, Schoolcraft, David L. Seymour, Origen S. Seymour, Stanly, Benjamin Stanton, Stratton, Strother, Taylor, Thurston, Washburn, Watkins, Welsh, Wells, and Addison Whate -60. NAYS-Messrs. Abercrombie, Willis Allen, Andrews, Averett, Babcock, David J. Bailey, Thomas H. Bayly, Beale, Bocock, Albert G. Brown, Buell, Busby, Jos. Cable, Caldwell, Thompson Campbell, Cartter, Caskie, Chastain, Clark, Clinginan, Cobb, Daniel, John G. Davis, Dawson, Dean, Dimmick, Disney, Dockery, Eastman, Edmundson, Ewing, Faulkner, Ficklin, Fitch, Floyd, Freeman, Gainble, Gaylord, Gorman, Green, Grey, Grow, Hall, Isham G. Harris, Sampson W. Harris, Hart, Hendricks, Henn, Hibbard, Holladay, Houston, Howard, Ives, Andrew Johnson, James Johnson, John Johnson, Robert W. Johnson, Geo. W. Jones, J. Glancy Jones, Kurtz, Letcher, Lockhart, Mace, McCorkle, McLanahan, McMullin, McNair, MeQueen, Millson, Molony, Morehead, Murphy, Murray, Nabers, Olds, Orr, Outlaw, Peaslee, Penn, Polk, Powell, Rantoul, Riddle, Robie, Robinson, Savage, Scurry, Smart, Smith, Frederick P. Stanton, Richard H. Stanton, Abr'm P. Stevens, Alexander H. Stephens, Stone, St. Martin, Stuart, Sutherland, Sweetser, George W. Thompson, Townshend, Venable, Wallace, Ward, Alexander White, Wilcox, Wildrick, Williams, and Woodward.-108. Mr. INGERSOLL, who was without the bar when his name was called, asked the unanimous consent to record his vote in the negative. Objec tion was made, and the permission not granted. So the rules were not suspended. Mr. CLARK. I rise to what I understand to be a point of order. I ask if this is not resolution day? It is. The SPEAKER. Mr. CLARK. I hope the day will be employed in that way. The SPEAKER. It is also in order, the Chair will inform the gentleman, to move to suspend the rules, and to ask the unanimous consent of the House to introduce resolutions. DISTRIBUTION OF ARMS. Mr. HOWARD asked the unanimous consent of the House to introduce the following resolution: Resolved, That the Committee on Military Affairs be instructed to inquire into the expediency af distributing arms to the new States and Territories, as recommended in the annual report of the Secretary of War. There being no objection, the question was taken, and the resolution was adopted. WIDOW OF GENERAL BELKNAP. Mr. HARPER asked the unanimous consent of the House to offer the following resolution: Resolved, That the Committee on Invalid Pensions be instructed to inquire into the expediency of providing by law for the support of the widow of the late Brigadier General Belknap. There being no objection, the question was then taken, and the resolution adopted. Mr. WASHBURN asked the unanimous consent of the House to present the petition of John A. Poor and others, of the Executive Committee of the State of Maine, and members of the corporation of the European and North American Railroad, for aid to said work. Mr. STANLY objected. Mr. WASHBURN. I move a suspension of the rules for the purpose. Mr. STANLY. Can it not be introduced under the rules? Mr. WASHBURN. I can present it under the rules, but I choose to present it in this way; and inasmuch as it comes from the Executive of Maine, I desire to have it printed. Mr. FICKLIN. Is it an act of the Legislature? Mr. WASHBURN. It is a petition in behalf of the State of Maine. Mr. FICKLIN. It is not customary to publish these petitions? The question was then taken; and a count being had, there were-ayes 76, noes 46. Mr. WASHBURN demanded tellers; which were ordered. Mr. CABELL, of Florida. I ask if this is not a memorial which may be presented under the rules? Some gentlemen say it is, and others it is not. Mr. SMART. It may be presented, but cannot be printed under the rules. |
