bill No. 513, all debate upon the pending paragraph and the amendments thereto terminate in one second. The motion was agreed to. Mr. MORRILL. This is exactly according to the existing law. The amendment was disagreed to. Mr. PIKE. I move to amend by inserting after the word "dollars," in line eleven hundred and thirty-eight, the following: Provided, That in case the receipts of any keeper of a hotel do not exceed $500 a year, no license shall be required. The amendment was not agreed to. Mr. SCHENCK. I move to amend by striking out the following: The estimated yearly rental of the house and property intended to be so occupied as follows, to wit: when the rent or valuation of the yearly rental of said house and property shall be $200 or less, shall pay ten dollars; and if exceeding $200, for any additional $100 or fractional part thereof in excess of $200, five dollars. And inserting in lieu thereof the following: The charge per diem they make against their guests as follows, to wit: when they charge five dollars per day, or over, they shall pay $2,000 per annum; when they charge less than five dollars per day, and not less than three dollars, they shall pay $1,000 per annum; when they charge less than three dollars a day, and not less than two dollars per day, they shall pay $100 per annum; when they charge less than two dollars per day, they shall pay a tax of fifty dollars per annum. So that the clause will read: Keepers of hotels, inns, or taverns shall be classified and rated according to the yearly rental, or, if not rented, according to the charge per diem, &c. Mr. PIKE. I move to amend the amendment by adding the following: And when they charge $1 50 or less per day they shall not be required to pay tax. The amendment to the amendment was not agreed to. The amendment was not agreed to. The Clerk read as follows: 21. Keepers of eating-houses shall pay ten dollars Every place where food or refreshments of any kind, not including spirits, wines, ale, beer, or malt liquors, are provided for casual visitors and sold for consumption therein, shall be regarded as an eatinghouse under this act. But the keeper of an eatinghouse having paid the tax therefor shall not be required to pay a tax as a confectioner, anything in this act to the contrary notwithstanding. " Mr. STEVENS. I move to strike out in line eleven hundred and fifty-two these words, "not including spirits, wines." An eatinghouse, as we understand it, includes the sale of oysters and fermented liquors, ale, beer, and other malt liquors. The words I have mentioned ought of course to be stricken out, and the section ought then to remain so that these eating-houses shall be allowed to sell, as they have always heretofore, ale, beer, and other malt liquors. amendment is adopted it will allow all his neighbors to go into the same kind of business without the payment of any tax provided their lows: The Clerk read the next paragraph, as fol-receipts do not exceed $100. I hope it will. 22. Confectioners shall pay ten dollars. Every person who sells at retail confectionery, sweetmeats, comfits, or other confects, in any building, shall be regarded as a confectioner under this act. But wholesale and retail dealers, having paid the tax therefor, shall not be required to pay the tax as a confectioner, anything in this act to the contrary notwithstanding. 27. Intelligence office keepers shall pay ten dollars. Every person whose business it is to find or furnish places of employment for others, or to find or furnish servants upon application in writing or otherwise, receiving compensation therefor, shall be regarded as an intelligence office keeper under this act. 28. Insurance agents shall pay ten dollars. Any person who shall act as agent of any fire, marine, life, mutual, or other insurance company or companies, to negotiate or procure insurance for which he receives any commission or other compensation, shall be regarded as an insurance agent under this act: Provided, That if the annual receipts of any person as such agent shall not exceed $100, he shall pay five dollars only: And provided further, That no special tax shall be imposed upon any person for selling tickets or contracts of insurance against injury to persons while traveling by land or water. Mr. HOTCHKISS. I ask unanimous consent to go back in order to move an amendment. There was no objection. Mr. HOTCHKISS moved in line eleven hundred and seventy-eight after the word "others" in the paragraph relating to realestate agents to insert these words, " except attorneys being licensed as such." Mr. HOOPER, of Massachusetts. There are no licenses provided for in this bill. They are all special taxes. Mr. HOTCHKISS. I modify my amendment, then, so as to say special tax" instead of license." 66 The amendment was agreed to. Mr. LYNCH. I move to amend as follows: Strike out in lines eleven hundred and ninety-two and eleven hundred and ninety-three the words "ten dollars" and insert these words: "whose annual receipts exceed $100 and do not exceed $500 shall pay five dollars; when over $500 and not exceeding $5,000, ten dollars: when over $5,000, fifteen dollars." Also, strike out lines eleven hundred and ninety-eight and eleven hundred and ninety-nine to and including the word "only" in line twelve hundred. Mr. Chairman, the effect of this amendment will be to exempt insurance agents who receive less than $100 and to increase the tax from ten to fifteen dollars on all those who receive more than $1,000. There are very few who receive less than $100, while there are a great many whose annual receipts are large, running up, in some instances, to $200,000 per annum. Mr. MORRILL. The gentleman will perceive that in levying this special tax it is a sort of protection to those who pay the tax against those who do not. Now, if the gentleman's Mr. MORRILL. I do not know that I understand the gentleman's amendment. I doubt if we ought make such an exception as will allow lawyers to act as auctioneers. The amendment was disagreed to. Mr. ELDRIDGE. I move that the commit tee rise. The motion was agreed to. So the committee rose; and the Speaker having resumed the chair, Mr. DAWES reported that the Committee of the Whole on the state of the Union had had under consideration the Union generally, and particularly the special order, being bill of the House No. 513, to amend an act entitled "An act to provide internal revenue to support the Government, to pay interest on the public debt, and for other purposes," approved June 30, 1864, and acts amendatory thereof, and had come to no resolution thereon. TAXES IN ALABAMA. The SPEAKER laid before the House a communication signed by R. M. Patton, Governor of Alabama, without the seal of the State, in regard to taxes; which was referred to the Committee of Ways and Means, and ordered to be printed. MESSAGE FROM THE SENATE. A message from the Senate, by Mr. FORNEY, its Secretary, announced that the Senate had passed House bill No. 568, to repeal section twenty-three of chapter seventy-nine of the acts of the third session of the Thirty-Seventh Congress, with an amendment, in which the concurrence of the House was requested. Also, that the Senate had passed a bill and joint resolution of the following titles, in which he was directed to ask the concurrence of the House: An act (S. No. 222) further to prevent smuggling, and for other purposes, and A joint resolution (S. No. 90) to suspend temporarily the collection of the direct tax in the State of West Virginia. ENROLLED BILL SIGNED. Mr. COBB, from the Committee on Enrolled Bills, reported that the committee had examined and found truly enrolled a bill of the following title; when the Speaker signed the for the relief of Jonathan W. Gordon, late major in the eleventh regiment of infantry; which was taken from the Speaker's table, read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee of Claims. same: An act (H. R. No. 280) making appropri ations for the service of the Post Office Department during the fiscal year ending the 30th of June, 1867, and for other purposes. Mr. MORRILL. I move that the House proceed to the business on the Speaker's table. The motion was agreed to. JOSEPH NOCK. The first business was Senate joint resolution No. 71, referring the petitions and papers in the case of Joseph Nock to the Court of Claims; which was taken from the Speaker's table, read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee on the Post Office and Post Roads. DANIEL WINSLOW. The next business was Senate bill No. 149, for the relief of Daniel Winslow; which was taken from the Speaker's table, read a first and second time, and on motion of Mr. LYNCH referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. GEORGE HENRY PREBLE. The next business was Senate bill No. 176, for the relief of George Henry Preble, a commander in the Navy of the United States; which was taken from the Speaker's table, read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs. AMOSKEAG MANUFACTURING COMPANY. The next business was Senate bill No. 225, for the relief of the Amoskeag Manufacturing Company; which was taken from the Speaker's table, read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee on Claims. FIRST CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY, WASHINGTON. The next business was Senate bill No. 253, to incorporate the First Congregational Society of Washington; which was taken from the Speaker's table, read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee for the District of Columbia. CAPTAIN JOHN II. CROWELL. The next business was Senate bill No. 278, for the relief of Captain John H. Crowell, an assistant quartermaster of the United States Army; which was taken from the Speaker's table, read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee of Claims. NOTARIES PUBLIC, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. The next business was Senate bill No. 305, to amend an act entitled "An act concerning notaries public for the District of Columbia," approved April 8, 1864; which was taken from the Speaker's table, read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee for the District of Columbia. COMMANDER CHARLES HUNTER. The next business was Senate bill No. 307, authorizing the restoration of Commander Charles Hunter to the Navy; which was read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs. JONATHAN W. GORDON. The next business was Senate bill No. 127, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE NAVY. The next business upon the Speaker's table was Senate bill No. 318, to authorize the appointment of an additional Assistant Secretary of the Navy. Mr. RICE, of Massachusetts. I ask that that may be put upon it passage now. The SPEAKER. The motion of the gentleman from Vermont [Mr. MORRILL] was to proceed to business upon the Speaker's table for reference only. Mr. RICE, of Massachusetts. I suppose it can be considered now by unanimous consent. Mr. MORRILL. Let the bill be passed over for the present and remain on the Speaker's table. No objection was made. submit the following resolution for consideration at this time: TAX ON CIRCULATION OF STATE BANKS. Resolved, That the Committee on Banking and Currency be directed to inquire into the expediency of so amending the act of March 3, 1865, imposing a tax of ten per cent. upon all State circulation after July 1, 1866, as to exempt from said tax all national banks which have applied for and have not received the amount of national bills to which they are entitled under section twenty-one of the national currency act: Provided, That the total amount of the circulation of said banks does not exceed the amount of national circulation to which they are entitled under said section. Mr. ANCONA. I object. PROTECTION OF SOLDIERS' GRAVES. Mr. BANKS, by unanimous consent, submitted the following resolution; which was read, considered, and agreed to: Resolved, That the Committee on Military Affairs be instructed to inquire and report what measures may be necessary for the further protection of the graves of soldiers of the United States who have been buried within the limits of the insurgent States. WASHINGTON LAND AND BUILDING COMPANY. Mr. MERCUR, by unanimous consent, introduced a bill to incorporate the Washington Land and Building Company; which was read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee for the District of Columbia. And then, on motion of Mr. THAYER, (at twenty minutes of five o'clock p. m.,) the House adjourned. PETITIONS, ETC. The following petitions, &c., were presented under the rule and referred to the appropriate committees: By the SPEAKER: The petition of Governor Morton, and the other trustees of the Indiana Agricultural College, asking an amendment to the law granting lands to agricultural colleges. By Mr. CONKLING: The petition of citizens of Oneida county, New York, asking a readjustment of the tariff on flax. By Mr. DAVIS: The petition of Jedediah Barber, J. D. Sliter, Thomas D. Challan, and 208 others, citizens of Cortland county, New York, praying for increased protection to the growers of American wool. Also, the like petition of John L. Booran, J. M. Clark, and 82 others, citizens of said county. By Mr. EGGLESTON: The memorial of Charles Kahn, jr., of Cincinnati, Ohio, claiming $1,395 25 as compensation for forty-three head of cattle. By Mr, ORTH: The petitionof trustees of Indiana Agricultural College, asking for a modification of the law of Congress donating lands for such college. By Mr. LYNCH: The petition of Henry E. Earl, jr., for pension. Also, the memorial of Board of Trade of Portland. By Mr. MOORHEAD: The petition of Lyon Short & Co., and others, citizens of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, praying for the passage of an act of Congress authorizing the Cleveland and Mahoning Railroad Company to extend their road to the city of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. By Mr. MYERS: The petition of William Mann, of the city of Philadelphia, that the Commissioner of Patents be granted authority to hear his application for an extension of his patent for "improvement in copying paper" as though the ninety days' notice required by law had been given. By Mr. PAINE: The petition of W. M. Blair and A. J. Frame, president and cashier of the Waukesha National Bank, of Waukesha, Wisconsin, respecting the taxation of national banks by State and municipal authorities. Also, the petition of G. Buckley, cashier of First National Bank of Elkhorn, Wisconsin, on the same subiect. Also, the petition of O. Bell and W. A. Ray, president and cashier of the National Bank of Delavan, Wisconsin, on same subject. Also, the petition of S. Marsh and C. M. Blackman, president and cashier of the First National Bank of Whitewater. Wisconsin, on same subject. By Mr. WRIGHT: The petition of John L. Suess for relief. IN SENATE. Prayer by the Chaplain, Rev. E. H. GRAY. The Journal of yesterday was read and approved. PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS, The PRESIDENT pro tempore laid before the Senate a communication from J. H. Serment, accompanied by an address to the Pres ident and Congress of the United States by the Swiss committee in favor of emancipated slaves, expressing their gratification at the abolition of slavery in the United States, and their earnest wishes for the prosperity of the Amer ican people; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. Mr. YATES presented the petition of Mrs. Nancy A. Stokes, of Williams county, Illinois, praying for a pension; which was referred to the Committee on Pensions. ington Territory, reported it without amend ment. He also, from the same committee, to whom was referred a bill (H. R. No. 202) to amend Mr. SHERMAN presented a memorial of an act entitled "An act to provide a temporary citizens of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, praying government for the Territory of Montana," the enactment of a law authorizing the Cleve-approved May 26, 1864, reported it without land and Mahoning Railroad Company to extend its route from the west line of the State of Pennsylvania to the city of Pittsburg; which was referred to the Committee on Commerce. REPORTS OF COMMITTEES. Mr. LANE, of Indiana, from the Committee on Pensions, to whom was referred the petition of Harriet B. Crocker, of Bath, Maine, praying for a pension, submitted a report, accompanied by a bill (S. No. 326) granting a pension to Mrs. Harriet B. Crocker. The bill was read and passed to a second reading, and the report was ordered to be printed. He also, from the same committee, to whom was referred the petition of Mrs. Katharine F. Winslow, praying for a pension, submitted a report, accompanied by a bill (S. No. 237) granting a pension to Mrs. Katharine F. Winslow. The bill was read and passed to a second reading, and the report was ordered to be printed. He also, from the same committee, to whom was referred the petition of Mrs. Abigail Ryan, praying for a pension, submitted a report, accompanied by a bill (S. No. 328) for the relief of Mrs. Abigail Ryan. The bill was read and passed to a second reading, and the report was ordered to be printed. Mr. POMEROY, from the Committee on Public Lands, to whom was referred a bill (H. R. No. 391) to create the office of surveyor general in Idaho Territory, reported it without amendment. He also, from the same committee, to whom was referred a joint resolution (S. R. No. 85) explanatory of and in addition to the act of May 5, 1864, entitled "An act granting lands to aid in the construction of certain railroads in Wisconsin," reported it without amendment. He also, from the same committee, to whom were referred a memorial of the Legislature of Wisconsin, asking the assent of Congress to the route of the land-grant railroad from Portage to Bayfield, and thence to Superior; a resolution of the Legislature of Wisconsin in favor of a change of the route of the land-grant road from Portage to Superior; and also a resolution of the Legislature of Wisconsin relating to the construction of the Portage and Superior railroad, asked to be discharged from their further consideration; which was agreed to. He also, from the same committee, to whom was referred a bill (S. No. 285) granting lands to the State of Kansas to aid in the construction of the Kansas and Neosho Valley rail road and its extension to Red river, reported it with amendments. amendment. He also, from the same committee, to whom was referred a joint resolution (H. R. No. 32) to facilitate communication with certain Territories, reported it without amendment. Mr. CHANDLER, from the Committee on Commerce, to whom was referred a bill (H. R. No. 555) for the relief of Charles Brewer & Co., reported it without amendment. Mr. NORTON, from the Committee on Claims, to whom was referred the petition of James B. Johnson, praying for compensation for property destroyed on the 14th of March, 1864, by a band of guerrillas under the command of one Anderson, submitted an adverse report thereon; which was ordered to be printed. Mr. POLAND, from the Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred a petition of judges of the United States courts and citizens of the District of Columbia, praying that provision may be made for the payment of counsel fees for defending persons who are not able to employ counsel, reported that no legislation is needed on the subject, and asked to be discharged from its further consideration; which was agreed to. Mr. HARRIS, from the Committee on Public Lands, to whom was referred a bill (S. No. 320) to amend an act entitled "An act for a grant of lands to the State of Kansas, in alternate sections, to aid in the construction of certain railroads and telegraphs in said State," approved March 3, 1863, reported it without amendment. BRIDGE ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN. Mr. EDMUNDS. The Committee on Commerce, to whom was referred the bill (S. No. 316) to establish a post route from West Alburg, Vermont, to Champlain, in the State of New York, and for other purposes, have instructed me to report it back with an amendment and recommend its passage, and I am also authorized to ask for the present consideration of the bill. By unanimous consent the bill was considered as in Committee of the Whole. It proposes to declare the railroad bridge across Lake Champlain at Rouse's Point, connecting the Ogdensburg and Lake Champlain railroad, in the State of New York, with the Vermont and Canada railroad, in the State of Vermont, to be a lawful structure and a postal route. It further authorizes the Ogdensburg and Lake Champlain Railroad Company, their successors or assigns, and the Vermont and Canada Railroad Company, their successors or assigns, to keep up, maintain, and use the bridge for the transportation of the mails, and for the benefit of the general commerce between those two States, and the transportation of persons and property; and also authorizes them, in place of the float now in use forming part of the bridge, to construct and maintain two suitable draws, one at least sixty and one at least ninety feet in width, which shall be opened whenever required for the passage of vessels, except during and for fifteen minutes prior to the passage of mail trains. The amendment reported by the Committee on Commerce was to add to the bill the following clause: And which draws shall be so constructed and managed as at all times to afford reasonable and proper facilities for the passage of vessels: Provided, This act shall be subject to amendment or repeal at the pleasure of Congress. The amendment was agreed to. Mr. HENDERSON. I beg pardon; I thought it was for the Mississippi river. The bill was reported to the Senate as amended; the amendment was concurred in. The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, and was read the third time and passed, Mr. HENDERSON. I ask the Senator from Minnesota if the bill is now in the shape in which the bill was that was passed the other day for constructing a bridge at Quincy. Mr. HARRIS. This is a bill in relation to a bridge on Lake Champlain. NITRO-GLYCERINE. Mr. EDMUNDS. I am instructed by the Committee on Commerce, to whom was referred the bill (S. No. 313) to regulate the transportation of nitro-glycerine or glynoin oil, to report it back with amendments, and with a recomimportance to passengers traveling to the Pamendation that it pass; and, on account of its cific coast, I am instructed to ask for its present consideration. Mr. GRIMES. Oh, no; let us have it printed. Mr. CONNESS. There is no necessity for printing it. The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Objection being made, the bill will lie over under the rule. Mr. FESSENDEN. I would rather that it should lie over. I want the unfinished business of yesterday to come up. Mr. CONNESS.. Not in the morning hour, I hope. Mr. FESSENDEN. I refer to the unfinished business of the morning hour. It was a resolution offered in the morning hour, and is the business of the morning hour. I do not wish to interfere with the presentation of memorials and reports; but I understand that the resolution to which I refer is the unfinished business of the morning hour. It was being discussed when the morning hour expired yesterday. Mr. CONNESS. I do not wish to persist in asking for the immediate consideration of the bill; but it appears to me that it is one of such transcendent importance that it ought to be passed at once. Mr. GRIMES. It ought to be printed first. Mr. CONNESS. There is nothing in it that the whole Senate cannot understand on hearing it read. It will excite no debate, I apprehend, and can be finished in five or ten minutes. It will be remembered that the memorial presented to this body, calling for the passage of such a bill as this, asked for its passage under a suspension of the rules. The Treasury Department preferred that the preparation of this bill should be made by the Solicitor of that Department; and we have waited for nearly three weeks for it. This article has been transported on our passenger vessels. Only recently twenty-five pounds of it were carried out on a Pacific steamer, in the state-room of a passenger, enough to blow that ship to atoms, with its thousand lives. Mr. FESSENDEN. I will not object to it if it will not occasion any debate. Mr. CONNESS. It will not. The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The objection being withdrawn, the bill is before the Senate as in Committee of the Whole, and will be read. The Secretary read the bill. It provides that hereafter it shall not be lawful to transport, carry, or convey the substance or article known or designated as nitro-glycerine or glynoin oil, upon or in any ship, steamship, steamboat, vessel, car, wagon, or other vehicle used or employed in transporting passengers by land or water, between a place or places in any foreign country, and a place or places within the limits of any State, Territory, or district of the United States, or between a place in one State, Territory, or district of the United States and a place in any other State, Territory, or district thereof; and any person, company, or corporation who shall knowingly violate these provisions is to be liable to a fine of not less than $5,000 at the discretion of the court, to be recovered by an action of debt, one half to the use of the informer. In case the death of any person shall be caused, directly or indirectly, by the explosion of a quantity of this substance or article while it is being placed upon or in any ship, steam ship, steamboat, vessel, car, wagon, or other vehicle, to be transported, carried, or conveyed therein or thereon in violation of this act, or while it is being so transported, carried, or conveyed, or while it is being removed from such ship, steamship, steamboat, vessel, car, wagon, or other vehicle, every person who knowingly placed, or aided, or permitted the placing of the substance upon or in such ship, steamship, steamboat, vessel, car, wagon, or other vehicle to be so transported, carried, or conveyed, is to be deemed guilty of murder in the first degree, and on conviction is to suffer death by hanging. It is not to be lawful to ship, send, or forward any quantity of this substance or article, or to transport, carry, or convey it by ship, steamship, steamboat, vessel, car, wagon, or other vehicle of any description upon land or water between a place in a foreign country and a place within the United States, or between a place in one State, Territory, or district of the United States, and a place in any other State, Territory, or district thereof, unless it shall be securely inclosed, deposited, or packed in a metallic vessel, separated from all other substances, and the outside of the package containing it to be marked, painted, or labeled, in a conspicuous manner with the words, "Nitro-glycerine, dangerous." Any person, company, or corporation who shall knowingly violate the provisions of this section is to be liable to a fine of $3,000, at the discretion of the court, to be recovered by an action of debt, one half to the use of the informer. The district court of the United States within the district in which any offense against the act shall be committed, or if committed in or upon any ship, boat, vessel, or vehicle beyond the territorial limits of any district, then within the district from which it departed, or in which it shall first arrive, is to have jurisdiction to try and punish the offenders by fine or death, as the case may be, under the provisions of this act. Mr. FESSENDEN. I should like to inquire how the bill stands now with reference to punishment. The first amendment of the Committee on Commerce was in section one, line five, after the word "convey" to insert the words "ship, deliver on board, or cause to be delivered on board;" so that it will read: That hereafter it shall not be lawful to transport, carry, or convey, ship, deliver on board, or cause to be delivered on board the substance or article known or designated as nitro-glycerine, &c. APPROVAL OF BILLS. A message from the President of the United States, by Mr. COOPER, his Secretary, announced that the President of the United States had approved and signed, on the 16th instant, the following act and joint resolution: The act is not to be so construed as to pre. certain lumber for the fair for the Soldiers' and The amendment was agreed to. The next amendment was in section one, line twenty-three, to strike out the words "to be recovered by an action of debt;" so that the clause will read: And any person, company, or corporation who shall knowingly violate the provisions of this section shall be liable to a fine of not less than $5,000, at the discretion of the court, one half to the use of the informer. The amendment was agreed to. The next amendment was in section two, line twenty, to strike out the words "murder in the first degree" and to insert man. slaughter." 16 The amendment was agreed to. The next amendment was in section two, line twenty-two, after the word "suffer" to strike out the words "death by hanging" and to insert "imprisonment for a period not less than ten years.' 27 The amendment was agreed to. The next amendment was in lines twenty. five and twenty-six of section three, to strike out the words "to be recovered by an action of debt." Mr. EDMUNDS. The bill now makes the crime of shipping this article on board of passenger vessels, or the transportation of it with knowledge, manslaughter where death happens in consequence of the act, and punishes the crime of manslaughter by imprisonment for ten years or upward. The shipping on board a passenger vessel where death or any other accident does not occur is made merely a misdemeanor, punishable by fine; and the rest of the bill requires that when it is shipped by freighting vessels or cars it shall be securely packed and marked. The bill was reported to the Senate as amended, and the amendments were concurred in. The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, and was read the third time and passed. The amendment was agreed to. The next amendment was in lines eleven and twelve of section four, to strike out the words "by fine or death as the case may be." The amendment was agreed to. ?? BILL INTRODuced. Mr. GRIMES asked, and by unanimous consent obtained, leave to introduce a joint resolution (S. R. No. 95) amendatory of a resolution regulating the investment of the naval pension fund, approved July 1, 1864; which was read twice by its title, and referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs. RECONSTRUCTION. Mr. WADE submitted an amendment which he intends to offer to the joint resolution (H. R. No. 127) proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States when it comes up for consideration. The amendment was received, and ordered to be printed. The amendment was rejected. Mr. SHERMAN. I have no objection to the examination proposed. I only want to enter my disclaimer now against the inference that was drawn from the report on the ironclads. We appointed a commission to examine into the cost of the iron-clads, and that seemed to be the principal argument for passing the bill for the relief of those who built the iron-clads. I hope the honorable Senator from Maine, when this report comes in, will not consider that because we without objection vote for a commission to examine into the propriety of this work we are thereby foreclosed from any examination into the propriety of that report. Mr. FESSENDEN. Of course not. It has no sort of connection with it; not the slightest in the world. BENJAMIN HOLLIDAY. Mr. NESMITH. I move that the Senate proceed to the consideration of House joint resolution No. 103. The joint resolution was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, was read the third time and passed. Mr. TRUMBULL. I do not know anything about this particular case; but I am entirely opposed to referring by joint resolution, which amounts to a law, special cases in this way to the Court of Claims. We have a general law giving that court jurisdiction of a certain class of cases. If the law is not broad enough, enlarge it; but this way of coming in and giving the court jurisdiction of a particular case, some favorite case, I do not think is right, unless it is done under some very peculiar circumstances. There may be some circumstances in this case which justify that species of legislation; but it is certainly a very bad way to be conferring upon a court of general jurisdic tion of a particular class of cases like this special jurisdiction of some special case. Mr. POMEROY. The Senator must be aware that the Committee on Claims who pass on this class of claims have the opportunity of hearing testimony only on one side; the Court of Claims have an opportunity to examine witnesses on both sides, and I think it is safer for the Government to let claims be tried where witnesses can be examined on both sides. Mr. TRUMBULL. I entirely concur with the Senator from Kansas. I think so, too. I am not objecting to the court, but it is to giving the jurisdiction of a particular case in this way; and unless it is an exceptional case I do not think it ought to be done. Mr. CLARK. This is a joint resolution from the House of Representatives. As it came to the Senate it was referred to the Committee on Claims and read in this way: "That so much of the claim of Benjamin Holliday as relates to damages for change of route by military orders and property taken by the military authorities and appropriated to the use of the Government be referred to the Court of Claims for adjustment." The Committee on Claims came to the conclusion to recommend to the Senate to strike out that part of the claim which was for damages for change of route, and to let the other part of the claim for property alleged to be taken by military orders go to the Court of Claims, and no more; and we think that is a better tribunal than the Committee on Claims and the Senate. Mr. POMEROY. I do not wish to contest the amendment, but I have this to say: Benjamin Holliday, who had the overland contract, made his stations every fifteen miles on a given route, and built houses. The military authorities told him to abandon all those and to go on to another line, because they could protect him from the Indians on that other line. It is a question of equity whether he ought not to have some compensation for the abandoned houses and stations that he had built at great expense. Mr. CLARK. I ought to say that the Com mittee on Claims examined the claim so far as to see precisely what it was. I doubt very much whether he can set up any military order in the case; but we concluded to let the whole matter go for adjudication to the Court of Claims. Mr. POMEROY. If he cannot set up any military order, the resolution was a very harmless thing as it was before. Mr. CLARK. Ithink the amendment should be agreed to. The amendment was agreed to. this act. The lands herein granted shall be applied SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the right of The joint resolution was reported to the Senate as amended, and the amendment was concurred in. The amendment was ordered to be engrossed, and the joint resolution to be read a third time. It was read the third time and passed. MARYSVILLE AND PORTLAND RAILROAD. Mr. STEWART. I move to take up bill No. 123. Senate The motion was agreed to; and the Senate, as in Committee of the Whole, proceeded to consider the bill (S. No. 123) granting lands to aid in the construction of a railroad and telegraph line from the Central Pacific railroad, in California, to Portland, on the navigable waters of the Columbia river, in Oregon. The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Committee on Public Lands reported a substitute in lieu of the original bill, striking out all after the enacting clause. The substitute only will be read unless the reading of the original bill shall be asked for. The Secretary read the words proposed to be inserted, as follows: That the California and Oregon Railroad Company, organized under an act of the State of California, to protect certain parties in and to a railroad survey, to connect Portland, in Oregon, with Marysville, in California, approved April 6, 1863, and such company organized under the laws of Oregon as the Legislature of said State shall hereafter designate, be, and they are hereby, authorized and empowered to lay out, locate, construct, finish, and maintain a railroad and telegraph line between the city of Portland, in Oregon, and the Central Pacific railroad, in California, in the manner following, to wit: the said California and Oregon Railroad Company shall construct that part of the said railroad and telegraph within the State of California, beginning at some point (to be selected by said company) on the Central Pacific railroad in the Sacramento valley, in the State of California, and running thence northerly, through the Sacramento and Shasta valleys, to the northern boundary of the State of California; and the said Oregon company shall construct that part of the said railroad and telegraph line within the State of Oregon, beginning at the city of Portland, in Oregon, and running thence southerly through the Willamette, Umpqua, and Rogue River valleys to the southern boundary of Oregon, where the same shall connect with the part aforesaid to be made by the first-named company: Provided, That the company completing its respective part of the said railroad and telegraph from either of the termini herein named to the line between California and Oregon before the other company shall have likewise arrived at the same line, shall have the right, and the said company is hereby authorized, to continue in constructing the same beyond the line aforesaid, with the consent of the State in which the unfinished part may lie, upon the terms mentioned in this act, until the said parts shall meet and connect, and the whole line of said railroad and telegraph shall be completed, including all necessary grounds for stations, buildings, workshops, depots, machineshops, switches, side tracks, turn-tables, water stations, or any other structures required in the construction and operating of said road. SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That there be, and hereby is, granted to the said companies, their successors and assigns, for the purpose of aiding in the construction of said railroad and telegraph line, and to secure the safe and speedy transportation of the mails, troops, munitions of war, and public stores over the line of said railroad, every alternate section of publicland designated by odd numbers, to the amount of ten sections per mile on each side of said railroad, and contiguous thereto; and when any of said sections or parts of sections shall be found to have been granted, sold, reserved, occupied by homestead settlers, preempted, or otherwise disposed of, other lands, designated as aforesaid, shall be selected by said companies in lieu thereof, within twenty miles of said road, under the direction of the Secretary of the Interior; and as soon as the said companies, or either of them, shall file in the office of the Secretary of the Interior a map of the survey of said railroad, or any portion thereof, not less than sixty continuous miles from either terminus, the Secretary of the Interior shall withdraw from sale public lands herein granted on each side of said railroad and not more than twenty miles therefrom: Provided, That for two hundred miles of said road most mountainous and difficult of construction, namely, one hundred miles northwardly from the line between California and Oregon, and one hundred miles southwardly from the said line, the lands to be granted shall be double the amount per mile hereinbefore provided, designated as hereinbefore provided, to be selected as the Secretary of the Interior may direct: Provided further, That this grant shall not defeat or impair any preemption, homestead, swamp land, or other lawful claim existing at the time of the final location of the line of said railroad; and all reservations by the Government are hereby excepted from the provisions of SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That whenever the said companies, or either of them, shall have twenty or more consecutive miles of any portion of said railroad and telegraph line ready for the service contemplated by this act, the President of the United States shall appoint three commissioners to examine the same, and if it shall appear that twenty consecutive miles of railroad and telegraph shall have been completed and equipped in all respects as required by this act, the said commissioners shall so report under oath to the President of the United States, and thereupon patents shall issue to said companies, or either of them, as the case may be, for the lands hereinbefore granted, to the extent of and conterminous with the completed section of said railroad and telegraph line as aforesaid; and from time to time, whenever twenty or more consecutive miles of the said road and telegraph shall be completed and equipped as aforesaid, patents shall in like manner issue upon the report of the said commissioners, and so on until the entire railroad and telegraph authorized by this act shall have been constructed, and the patents of the lands herein granted shall have been issued. SEC. 10. And be it further enacted. That all mineral lands shall be excepted from the operation of this act; but where the same shall contain timber, the timber thereon is hereby granted to said company: Provided, That the term mineral lands shall not include lands containing coal and iron. Mr. WILLIAMS. Yes, sir. The PRESIDING OFFICER. It is not in order to amend that amendment, it having been agreed to in committee; but when the bill comes into the Senate it can be done. The amendment was agreed to. com Mr. WILLIAMS. I move to amend the first section by striking out all after the word (6 pleted," in the thirty-seventh line, to the end of the section. The PRESIDING OFFICER, (Mr. CLARK in the chair.) The Chair will inquire whether that is an amendment to the amendment of the committee. SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That the grants aforesaid are made upon the condition that said companies shall keep suid railroad and telegraph in repair and use, and shall at all times transport the mails, troops, munitions of war, supplies, and public stores upon said railroad, and transmit dispatches by said telegraph line for the Government of the United States, when required so to do by any Department thereof, and that the Government shall at all times have the preference in the use of said railroad and telegraph at fair and reasonable rates of compensation, not to exceed the rates paid by private parties for the same kind of service. SEC. 6. And be it further enacted, That the said companies shall file their assent to this act in the Department of the Interior within one year after the passage hereof, and shall complete said railroad and telegraph before the 1st day of July, 1875; and the said railroad shall be of the same gauge as the Central Pacific railroad of California, and be connected therewith. SEC. 7. And be it further enacted, That the said companies named in this act are hereby required to oper ate and use the portions or parts of said railroad and telegraph mentioned in section one of this act for all purposes of transportation, travel, and communication, so far as the Government and public are concerned, as one connected and continuous line; and in such operation and use to afford and secure to each other equal advantages and facilities as to rates, time, and transportation, without any discrimination whatever, on pain of forfeiting the full amount of damage sustained on account of such discrimination, to be sued for and recovered in any court of the United States, or of any State of competent jurisdiction. SEC. 8. And be it further enacted, That in case the said companies shall fail to comply with the terms and conditions of this act, by not completing said road and telegraph within the time required, or by not keeping the same in repair and fit for use, but shall permit the same for an unreasonable time to remain unfinished, or out of repair and unfit for use, Congress may pass an act to insure the speedy completion of said road and telegraph, or put the same in repair and use, and may direct the income of said road and telegraph to be thereafter devoted to the use of the United States to repay all such expenditures caused by the default and neglect of said companies or company, as the case may be. Mr. JOHNSON. It never has been done. Mr. POMEROY. We have never reported a bill to allow them to take both odd and even sections. There is a great pressure upon the committee to induce them to do so; all these railroad companies desire it; but we have refused, up to this time, to grant anything of that kind. In the history of this legislation there is one such instance on record, I believe, where the roads crossed each other, and one company got the even sections and the other the odd; but I think it is against the manner in which we have disposed of the public lands to grant anything of this kind. We reserve the even sections, because it is supposed they will sell for twice as much as the odd sections that are given away. That is the principle upon which we report these bills. I admit that in the mountain regions of Oregon, perhaps, they will never get enough agricultural land to make a road; but that is the fault of the country; it is not the fault of the committee. We cannot guaranty the land all to be good. We reported this bill precisely in harmony with our system, in the way we have reported them all. If the Senate now agree to this amendment proposed by the Senator from Oregon, it will be considered as an instruction to the Committee on to bills hereafter SEC. 9. And be it further enacted. That the said Cal- hereinbefore authorized, in all matters not provided with a provision giving both the even and odd or for in this act. Wherever the word The amendment to the amendment was agreed to. Mr. WILLIAMS. I move to amend the second section of the amendment, in line twelve, by striking out the words "designated as aforesaid.” Mr. POMEROY. I wish to call the attention of the Senate to the fact that by striking out these words, "designated as aforesaid," it will give these companies the even sections outside of the ten-mile limit. The committee have never agreed to that. We give the odd sections and reserve the even sections; but if you strike out the words "designated as aforesaid" it allows them to take the even sections out of the first ten-mile limit to make up the deficiency. Mr. JOHNSON. Is that the purpose? Mr. POMEROY. That is the purpose of this amendment. The committee are opposed to it. sections. The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The morn ing hour having expired, it becomes the duty of the Chair to call up the special order, which is the unfinished business of yesterday. Mr. WILLIAMS. I hope the Senator from Maine will allow us to get through with this bill. Mr. FESSENDEN. I would rather not give way. I declined yesterday finishing a resolution in which I was particularly interested for the reason that I desired to go on with the appropriation bill when the hour arrived. Mr. WILLIAMS. There is to be no other amendment proposed to this bill, and I am willing the Senate should vote at once upon this amendment. |
0 Opiniones Las opiniones no están verificadas, pero Google revisa que no haya contenido falso y lo quita si lo identifica Escribir un comentario |