Слике страница
PDF
ePub

among the enlightened and cultured nations of the world. The ultimate settlement of all questions of the future, whether of administration or finance, or of true nationality of sentiment, depends upon the virtue and intelligence of the people. It is vain to hope for the success of a free government without the means of insuring the intelligence of those who are the source of power. No less than one-seventh of the entire voting population of our country are yet unable to read and write.

It is encouraging to observe, in connection with the growth of fraternal feeling in those States in which slavery formerly existed, evidences of increasing interest in universal education, and I shall be glad to give my approval to any appropriate measures which may be enacted by Congress for the purpose of supplementing with national aid the local systems of education in those States and in all the States; and, having already invited your attention to the needs of the District of Columbia with respect to its public-school system, I here add that I believe it desirable, not so much with reference to the local wants of the District, but to the great and lasting benefit of the entire country, that this system should be crowned with a university in all respects in keeping with the national capital, and thereby realize the cherished hopes of Washington on this subject.

I also earnestly commend the request of the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution that an adequate appropriation be made for the establishment and conduct of a national museum under their supervision.

The question of providing for the preservation and growth of the Library of Congress is also one of national importance. As the deposi tory of all copyright publications and records, this library has outgrown the provisions for its accommodation; and the erection, on such site as the judgment of Congress may approve, of a fire-proof library building, to preserve the treasures and enlarge the usefulness of this valuable collection, is recommended. I recommend, also, such legislation as will render available and efficient for the purposes of instruction, so far as is consistent with the public service, the cabinets or museums of invention, of surgery, of education, and of agriculture, and other collections, the property of the national government.

The capital of the nation should be something more than a mere political center. We should avail ourselves of all the opportunities which Providence has here placed at our command to promote the general intelligence of the people and increase the conditions most favorable to the success and perpetuity of our institutions.

DECEMBER 3, 1877.

The message was read.

Ordered, That it lie on the table.

Mr. Anthony submitted the following resolution :

R. B. HAYES.

Resolved, That three thousand copies of the President's message, with the reports of the departments proper and without the accompanying documents, be printed for the use of the Senate.

Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee on Printing, when ap pointed.

The Vice President laid before the Senate the annual report of the Secretary of the Treasury on the state of the finances.

Ordered, That it lie on the table and be printed.

The Vice-President laid before the Senate the report of the Clerk of the Court of Claims, communicating, in obedience to law, a statement

of judgments rendered by said court for the year ending December 3,

1877.

Ordered, That it lie on the table and be printed.

The Vice-President laid before the Senate the annual report of the Attorney-General for the year 1877.

Ordered, That it lie on the table and be printed.

The Vice-President laid before the Senate the annual report of the Commissioner of Agriculture for 1877.

Ordered, That it lie on the table and be printed.

On motion by Mr. Conkling, at 1 o'clock and 55 minutes p. m.,
The Senate adjourned until Thursday next, at 12 o'clock.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1877.

Mr. James G. Blaine and Mr. Hannibal Hamlin, from the State of Maine, Mr. L. Q. C. Lamar, from the State of Mississippi, Mr John R. McPherson and Mr. Theodore F. Randolph, from the State of New Jersey, and Mr. Preston B. Plumb, from the State of Kansas, attended.

On motion by Mr. Anthony,

Ordered, That the Senate now proceed to the appointment of the standing and other committees of the Senate.

On motion by Mr. Anthony, and by unanimous consent,

Ordered, That so much of the forty-sixth rule of the Senate as requires the appointment of the standing and other committees to be made by ballot be suspended.

Mr. Anthony then submitted the following resolution; which was considered, by unanimous consent, and agreed to:

Resolved, That the following be the standing committees of the Senate during the present session :

On Privileges and Elections.-Mr. Wadleigh, chairman; Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Cameron of Wisconsin, Mr. McMillan, Mr. Hoar, Mr. Ingalls, Mr. Saulsbury, Mr. Merrimon, and Mr. Hill.

On Foreign Relations.-Mr. Hamlin, chairman; Mr. Howe, Mr. Conk⚫ling, Mr. Matthews, Mr. Kirkwood, Mr. McCreery, Mr. Eaton, Mr. Johnston, and Mr. Wallace.

On Finance.-Mr. Morrill, chairman; Mr. Dawes, Mr. Ferry, Mr. Jones of Nevada, Mr. Allison, Mr. Bayard, Mr. Kernan, Mr. Wallace, and Mr. Voorhees.

On Appropriations.-Mr. Windom, chairman; Mr. Sargent, Mr. Allison, Mr. Dorsey, Mr. Blaine, Mr. Davis of West Virginia, Mr. Withers, Mr. Eaton, and Mr. Beck.

On Commerce-Mr. Conkling, chairman; Mr. Spencer, Mr. McMillan, Mr. Patterson, Mr. Jones of Nevada, Mr. Gordon, Mr. Dennis, Mr. Ransom, and Mr. Randolph.

On Manufactures.-Mr. Rollins, chairman; Mr. Burnside, Mr. Cameron of Pennsylvania, Mr. Johnston, and Mr. McPherson.

On Agriculture.-Mr. Paddock, chairman; Mr. Sharon, Mr. Hoar, Mr. Davis of West Virginia, and Mr. Gordon.

On Military Affairs.-Mr. Spencer, chairman; Mr. Burnside, Mr. Wadleigh, Mr. Plumb, Mr. Cameron of Pennsylvania, Mr. Randolph, Mr. Cockrell, Mr. Maxey, and Mr. Butler.

On Naval Affairs.-Mr. Sargent, chairman; Mr. Anthony, Mr. Conover, Mr. Blaine, Mr. Whyte, Mr. McPherson, and Mr. Jones of Florida.

On the Judiciary.-Mr. Edmunds, chairman; Mr. Conkling, Mr. Howe, Mr. Christiancy, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Thurman, and Mr. McDonald. On Post Offices and Post Roads.-Mr. Ferry, chairman; Mr. Hamlin,

Mr. Paddock, Mr. Conover, Mr. Kirkwood, Mr. Burnside, Mr. Saulsbury, Mr. Maxey, and Mr. Bailey.

On Public Lands.-Mr. Oglesby, chairman; Mr. Paddock, Mr. Booth, Mr. Chaffee, Mr. Plumb, Mr. McDonald, Mr. Jones of Florida, Mr. Grover, and Mr. Garland.

On Private Land-Claims.-Mr. Thurman, chairman; Mr. Bayard, Mr. Edmunds, Mr. Christiancy, and Mr. Grover.

On Indian Affairs.-Mr. Allison, chairman; Mr. Oglesby, Mr. Ingalls, Mr. Saunders, Mr. McCreery, Mr. Coke, and Mr. McDonald.

On Pensions.-Mr. Ingalls, chairman; Mr. Bruce, Mr. Kirkwood, Mr. Kellogg, Mr. Withers, Mr. Bailey, and Mr. Voorhees.

On Revolutionary Claims.-Mr. Johnston, chairman; Mr. Jones of Florida, Mr. Hill, Mr. Dawes, and Mr. McMillan.

On Claims. Mr. McMillan, chairman; Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Cameron of Wisconsin, Mr. Teller, Mr. Hoar, Mr. Cockrell, Mr. Hereford, Mr. Harris, and Mr. Morgan.

On the District of Columbia.-Mr. Dorsey, chairman; Mr. Spencer, Mr. Ingalls, Mr. Rollins, Mr. Merrimon, Mr. Barnum, and Mr. Harris.

On Patents.-Mr. Booth, chairman; Mr. Wadleigh, Mr. Hoar, Mr. Kernan, and Mr. Morgan.

On Public Buildings and Grounds.-Mr. Dawes, chairman; Mr. Morrill, Mr. Cameron of Pennsylvania, Mr. Saulsbury, and Mr. Jones of Florida. On Territories.-Mr. Patterson, chairman; Mr. Chaffee, Mr. Saunders, Mr. Kellogg, Mr. Garland, Mr. Grover, and Mr. Hereford.

On Railroads.-Mr. Mitchell, chairman; Mr. Dawes, Mr. Dorsey, Mr. Teller, Mr. Saunders, Mr. Windom, Mr. Matthews, Mr. Ransom, Mr. Barnum, Mr. Lamar, and Mr. Armstrong.

On Mines and Mining.-Mr. Sharon, chairman; Mr. Chaffee, Mr. Booth, Mr. Plumb, Mr. Hereford, Mr. Coke, and Mr. Hill.

On Revision of the Laws.-Mr. Christiancy, chairman; Mr. Matthews, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Wallace, and Mr. Kernan.

On Education and Labor.-Mr. Burnside, chairman; Mr. Patterson, Mr. Morrill, Mr. Bruce, Mr. Sharon, Mr. Gordon, Mr. Maxey, Mr. Bailey, and Mr. Lamar.

On Civil Service and Retrenchment.-Mr. Teller, chairman; Mr. Oglesby, Mr. Patterson, Mr. Booth, Mr. McCreery, Mr. Whyte, and Mr. Beck. To Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses of the Senate.-Mr. Jones of Nevada, chairman; Mr. Rollins, and Mr. Dennis.

On Printing.-Mr. Anthony, chairman; Mr. Sargent, and Mr. Whyte. On the Library.-Mr. Howe, chairman; Mr. Edmunds, and Mr. Ransom. On Rules.-Mr. Blaine, chairman; Mr. Ferry, and Mr. Merrimon. On Engrossed Bills.—Mr. Bayard, chairman; Mr. Withers, and Mr. Anthony.

On Enrolled Bills.-Mr. Conover, chairman; Mr. Paddock, and Mr. Armstrong.

Mr. Anthony submitted the following resolution; which was considered, by unanimous consent, and agreed to:

Resolved, That the following select committees be appointed for the present session, viz:

On the Levees of the Mississippi River.-Mr. Bruce, chairman; Mr. Blaine, Mr. Kellogg, Mr. Cockrell, and Mr. Harris.

On Transportation-Routes to the Seaboard.-Mr. Cameron of Wisconsin, chairman; Mr. Windom, Mr. Conover, Mr. Cameron of Pennsylvania, Mr. Davis of West Virginia, Mr. Lamar, Mr. Beck, and Mr. Butler.

To Examine the Several Branches of the Civil Service.-Mr. Chaffee, chairman; Mr. Windom, Mr. Hamlin, Mr. Merrimon, and Mr. Eaton.

To take into consideration the state of the law respecting the ascertaining and declaration of the result of the elections of President and Vice-President of the United States.-Mr. Edmunds, chairman; Mr. Conkling, Mr. Howe, Mr. McMillan, Mr. Teller, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Bayard, Mr. Thurman, and Mr. Morgan.

The Vice-President laid before the Senate a letter of the Secretary of War, transmitting a communication from First Lieutenant John C. White, representing the injustice that will result to him if the bill for the res toration of John A. Darling, late captain Second Artillery, become a law; which was referred to the Committee on Military Affairs.

The Vice-President laid before the Senate a letter of the Treasurer of the United States, transmitting, in obedience to law, copies of accounts rendered to and settled with the First Comptroller, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1877; also a copy of the annual report to the Secretary of the Treasury; which were referred to the Committee on Printing. The Vice-President laid before the Senate a letter of the Treasurer of the United States, transmitting copies of accounts rendered to and adjusted with the Sixth Auditor of the Treasury, for the fiscal years ended June 30, 1876 and 1877; which was referred to the Committee on Printing.

Mr. Anthony presented a memorial of national banks and other banking institutions of Providence, Rhode Island, remonstrating against the passage of the bill for the remonetization of silver.

Ordered, That it lie on the table.

Mr. Ferry presented a petition of citizens of Michigan, praying the passage of the bill for the coining of the standard silver dollar and restoring its legal-tender character.

Ordered, That it lie on the table.

Mr. Dawes presented a memorial of national banks of Boston, Massachusetts, praying that measures may be instituted looking to an international monetary convention, for the purpose of establishing the relative value of gold and silver throughout the commercial world; which was referred to the Committee on Finance.

Mr. Conkling presented the petition of Eben N. Horsford, praying an extension of his patent of a pulverulent phosphoric acid; which was referred to the Committee on Patents.

Mr. Mitchell presented a memorial of the legislative assembly of Washington Territory, in favor of the passage of a law for the setting apart of the Colville Valley as an Indian territory, and for the removal of all the Indians east of the Cascade Mountains thereto; which was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.

Mr. Windom presented papers in relation to the claim of Frederick W. Ruggles for relief from loss by the wrongful seizure of the British schooner Argonaut by the steamship Susquehanna, in September, 1861; which were referred to the Committee on Claims.

Mr. Withers presented the petition of Mrs. Elizabeth Wirt Golds. borough, widow of the late Rear-Admiral L. M. Goldsborough, praying to be allowed a pension; which was referred to the Committee on Pensions.

Mr. Wallace presented a petition of citizens of Pennsylvania, praying an appropriation for the encouragement of rifle-practice in the militia forces of the United States; which was referred to the Committee on Military Affairs.

Mr. Oglesby presented a memorial of the Board of Trade of Chicago, Illinois, praying an appropriation sufficient to insure a proper representa

tion of American interests at the Paris Exposition in 1878; which was referred to the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. Christiancy presented a petition of citizens of Michigan, praying an investigation into the reissue of a patent upon a new specification issued to one Cochrane, upon the surrender of a former patent, for an improvement in bolting flour; which was referred to the Committee on Patents.

On motion by Mr. Merrimon,

Ordered, That the petition and papers of Eliza Shelton, on the files of the Senate, be referred to the Committee on Pensions.

On motion by Mr. Merrimon,

Ordered, That the petition and papers of Delílah Kelly, on the files of the Senate, be referred to the Committee on Military Affairs.

On motion by Mr. Mitchell,

Ordered, That the papers of William C. Edmonston, on the files of the Senate, be referred to the Committee on Claims.

Mr. Dorsey presented a letter of William Tindall, secretary of the Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia, inclosing draught of a bill to amend section five of the act of March 3, 1877, for the support of the District of Columbia, which authorizes proceedings by the District to enforce its liens against property purchased by it at tax-sales; which was referred to the Committee on the District of Columbia.

On motion by Mr. Cockrell,

Ordered, That the papers of William L. Hickam, on the files of the Senate. be referred to the Committee on Claims.

On motion by Mr. Coke,

Ordered, That Mrs. Ella P. Murphy have leave to withdraw her petition from the files of the Senate.

Mr. Dawes presented a memorial of Langdou C. Easton, colonel and assistant quartermaster-general, and others, praying the passage of a law authorizing their promotion in the Quartermaster-General's Department, United States Army; which was referred to the Committee on Military Affairs.

On motion by Mr. Kirkwood,

Ordered, That the memorial of the governor of Iowa and others, in behalf of Maria L. Hammer, on the files of the Senate, be referred to the Committee on Pensions.

On motion by Mr. Christiancy,

Ordered, That the papers in the case of James Withrell, Rosa Wilins, and others, on the files of the Senate, be referred to the Committee on Claims.

A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Adams, its Clerk:

Mr. President: The House of Representatives has passed the following bills and joint resolution, in which it requests the concurrence of the Senate:

H. R. 5. An act prescribing an oath of office.

H. R. 318. An act to repeal sections forty-nine hundred and twentyfour, forty-nine hundred and twenty-five, forty-nine hundred and twentysix, forty-nine hundred and twenty-seven, and forty-nine hundred and twenty eight, of the Revised Statutes of the United States.

H. R. 1887. An act to entend the provisions of section thirty-two hundred and ninety-seven of the Revised Statutes to other institutions of learning.

H. R. 1890. An act to repeal section eight hundred and twenty of the Revised Statutes of the United States.

« ПретходнаНастави »