the main question ordered, and under the operation thereof the amendment of Mr. Barr was disagreed to. The amendment of Mr. Gurley as modified by him was then read as follows, viz: Strike out all after the resolving clause and insert: "That the Superintendent of Public Printing be, and he is hereby. authorized and directed to have executed the printing and binding authorized by the Senate and House of Representatives, the executive and judicial departments, and the Court of Claims. And, to enable him to carry out the provisions of this act, he is authorized and directed to contract for the erection or purchase of the necessary buildings, machinery, and materials for that purpose; said contract to be subject to the approval of the Joint Committee on Printing of the two houses of Congress: Provided, That the sum so contracted to be paid shall not exceed one hundred and fifty thousand dollars. "SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the said Superintendent to superintend all the printing and binding, the purchase of paper, as hereinafter directed, the purchase of other necessary materials and machinery, and the employment of proof-readers, composi tors, pressmen, laborers, and other hands necessary to execute the orders of Congress and of the executive and judicial departments of the city of Washington. And to enable the said Superintendent more effectually to perform the duties of his office, he shall appoint a foreman of printing, at an annual salary of eighteen hundred dollars, and a foreman of binding, at an annual salary of fifteen hundred dollars: but no one shall be appointed to said positions who is not practically and thoroughly acquainted with their respective trades. It shall be the duty of the said foremen of printing and binding to make out and deliver to the said Superintendent monthly statements of the work done in their respective departments, together with monthly pay-rolls, which shall contain the names of the persons employed, the rate of compensation and the amount due to each, and the service for which it shall be due. They shall also make out estimates of the amount and kind of materials required, and file requisitions therefor, from time to time, as it may be needed, and shall receipt for the same to the Superintendent. And the said foremen shall be held accountable for all materials so received by them: Provided, That the Superintendent shall at no time employ more hands in the public printing and binding establishment than the absolute necessities of the public work may require; and further, that the Superintendent report to Congress, at the beginning of each session of Congress, the number of hands so employed, and the length of time each has been employed. "SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That said Superintendent shall take charge of and be responsible for all manuscripts and other matter to be printed, engraved, or lithographed, and cause the same to be promptly executed. And he shall render to the Secretary of the Treasury, quar terly, a full account of the purchases made by him, and of all printing and binding done in said office for each of the houses of Congress, and for each of the executive and judicial departments. For the payment of the work and materials, there shall be advanced to the said Superintendent, from time to time, as the public service may require it, and under such rules as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe, a sum of money at no time exceeding two-thirds of the penalty of said Superintendent's bond. And the said Superintendent shall settle the account of his receipts and disbursements in the manner now required of other disbursing officers: Provided, however, That said Superintendent shall not be allowed credit at the treasury for payments on account of services rendered in said printing establishment at higher prices than those paid for similar services in the private printing and binding establishments of the city of Washing ton. "SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the said Superintendent to charge himself, in a separate book to be kept therefor, with all paper and other materials received by him for the public use, and to furnish the same to the foremen employed by him, on their requisitions, herein provided for, as the public service may require, taking a receipt in all cases therefor from the foreman at the head of the department in which the paper, or other material, has been used. ·SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That all printing and binding, and all blank books ordered by the heads of the executive and judicial departments of the government, or of the chiefs of the bureaus thereof; and all the printing and binding, and all blank books ordered by Congress, or by either house of Congress, shall, on and after the fourth day of March, eighteen hundred and sixty-one, be done and executed under said Superintendent, in accordance with the provisions of this act: Provided, That all the printing ordered, or to be ordered, by the thirty-sixth Congress shall be executed by the Printers of the Senate and House of Representatives, as now authorized by law; but no printing and binding other than that ordered by Congress or the heads of departments as aforesaid shall be executed in said office. "SEC. 6. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of said Superintendent to receive from the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives, and from the heads of the departments and chiefs of bureaus, all matter ordered to be printed and bound, or either printed or bound, at the public expense, and to keep a faithful account of the same, in the order in which they may be received; and when the same shall have been printed and bound, if the same is ordered to be bound, see that the volumes or sheets are promptly delivered to the officer of the Senate, or House of Representatives, or department authorized to receive the same, whose receipt therefor shall be a sufficient voucher by the Superintendent of their delivery. "SEC. 7. And be it further enacted, That the Joint Committee on Printing for the two houses of Congress shall agree and fix upon a standard of paper for the printing of congressional documents, to weigh not less than fifty pounds to the ream of five hundred sheets, of twenty-four by thirtyeight inches; and it shall be the duty of the said Superintendent of the Public Printing to furnish samples of said standard paper to applicants therefor, and to advertise annually in one or more newspapers having the largest circulation in the cities of. Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Chicago, Washington, Richmond, Raleigh, Charleston, New Orleans, and St. Louis, for the space of sixty days prior to the first of July, for sealed proposals to furnish the government of the United States all paper which may be necessary for the execution of the public printing, of quality and in quantity to be specified in the said advertisement from year to year. He shall open such proposals as may be made in the presence of the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives, and shall award the contract for furnishing all of said paper, or such class thereof as may be bid for, to the lowest bidder, for the quality of paper advertised for by the said Superintendent, and determined by the Joint Committee of the two houses of Congress. It shall be the duty of said Superintendent to compare the paper furnished by the public contractor with the standard quality; and he shall not accept any paper from the contractor which does not conform to the standard determined upon as aforesaid. And in case of difference of opinion between the Superintendent of Public Printing and the contractors for paper with respect to its quality, the matter of difference shall be determined and settled by the Joint Standing Committee on Printing of the two houses of Congress. In default of any contractor under this law to comply with his contract in furnishing the paper in the proper time, and of proper quality, the Superintendent is authorized to enter into a new contract with the lowest and best bidder for the interests of the government among those whose proposals were rejected at the last annual lettings, if it be practicable so to do, and if not, then to advertise for proposals, and award the contract as hereinbefore provided; and during any interval which is thus created by the new advertisement for such proposals, the Superintendent shall purchase in the open market, by and with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, all such paper necessary for the public service, at the lowest price. For any increase of cost to the government in procuring a supply of paper for the use of the government, the contractor in default and his securities shall be charged with and held responsible for the same, and shall be prosecuted upon their bond by the Solicitor of the Treasury, in the name of the United States, in the circuit court of the United States in the distret in which the defaulting contractor resides; and to enable the Solicitor to do so, the said Superintendent shall report to him the default on its happening, with a full statement of all the facts in the case. The said Superintendent shall keep a just and true account of all the paper received from the contractor or contractors, together with an account of all the paper used for the purposes of the government under this act, and shall report the amount of each class consumed in said printing establishment, and in what works or publications the same was used, to the Secretary of the Interior, at the end of each and every fiscal year. "SEC. 8. And be it further enacted, That whenever any charts, maps, diagrams, views, or other engravings shall be required to illustrate any document ordered to be printed by either house of Congress, such engravings shall be procured by the Superintendent of Printing, under the direction and supervision of the Committee on Printing of the house ordering the same. "SEC. 9. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the said Superintendent annually to prepare and submit to the Register of the Treasury, in time to have the same embraced in the annual estimates from that department, detailed estimates of the salaries, amount to be paid for wages, engraving, binding, and materials, and for any other necessary expense of said printing establishment for the second year. And the said Superintendent shall also, on the first day of the meeting of each session of Congress, or as soon thereafter as may be, report to Congress the exact condition of the public printing, binding, and engraving; the amount and cost of all such printing, binding, and engraving; the amount and cost of all paper purchased for the same; a statement of the several bids for materials, and such further information as may be within his knowledge in regard to all matters connected therewith. "SEC. 10. And be it further enacted, That neither the Superintendent nor any other officer to be appointed under this act shall, during his continuance in office, have any interest, direct or indirect, in the publication of any newspaper or periodical, or in any printing of any kind, or in any binding or engraving, or in any contract for furnishing paper or other material connected with the public printing; and any violation of this section shall subject the party offending, on conviction before any court of competent jurisdiction, to imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term of not less than one nor more than five years, and to a fine of five hundred dollars. "SEC. 11. And be it further enacted, That if the said Superintendent shall corruptly collude with any person or persons furnishing materials or bidding therefor, or with any other person or persons, or have any secret understanding with him or them, by himself, or through others, to defraud the United States, or by which the government of the United States shall be defrauded or made to sustain a loss, contrary to the true intent and meaning of this act, he shall, upon conviction thereof before any court of competent jurisdiction, forfeit his office and be subject to imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term of not less than three or more than seven years, and to a fine of three thousand dollars.” And the question being put, Will the House agree thereto? The yeas and nays being desired by one-fifth of the members present, Those who voted in the affirmative are Mr. Charles F. Adams Green Adams Cyrus Aldrich John B. Alley Mr. John Cochrane Thomas Co win John A. Gurley Mr. James T. Hale Thomas Hardeman, jr. Under the further operation of the previous question the resolution was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time. Being engrossed, it was accordingly read the third time and passed. Mr. Gurley moved that the vote last taken be reconsidered, and also moved that the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table; which latter motion was agreed to. Ordered, That the Clerk request the concurrence of the Senate in the said resolution. On motion of Mr. Farnsworth, by unanimous consent, the bill of the House (H. R. 656) to grant a pension to Mary I. Harris, widow of Colonel Thomas L. Harris, deceased, with the amendment of the Senate thereto, was taken up, and the said amendment agreed to. Ordered, That the Clerk acquaint the Senate therewith. Mr. Brabson, by unanimous consent, introduced a bill (H. R. 801) granting pensions to the soldiers of the war of 1812; which was read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee on Invalid Pensions. Mr. Branch moved that the vote last taken be reconsidered, and also moved that the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table; which latter motion was agreed to. |