The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1852-04-17
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,.
THE PUBLIC pRIsTiSo

The SPEAKER stated, "a the business first IN
order, the motion made yesterday by Mr.. PAR
KER. Of Indiana. to lay the whole subject of the
pubic printing upon the table, which Includes the
report OF the Committee on Printing in relation 10
| the recent arran cement with Messrs. Donelson and
| Armstrong, and with Messrs, Gideon and Com
pany, for The execution, respectively, of printing
for the two Houses of Congress.
Mr.. EDGERTON moved that the House resolve
itseli into Committee OF the Whole upon the pri-
vae calendar, but the motion did not prevail, only
| thirty five gentlemen voting in the affirmative
| The question recurring on the motion to lay the
report OF the Committee on Printing upon the
table
Mr.. GORMAN moved that there be call of the
House. o..
Mr.. JONES, of Tennessee, presumed that the
view of the gentleman to give absent mem :
bers time to arrive, and therefore he asked for the
yeas and nays on the question, and this, he said,
wonld effect the object.
The roll was called. and the motion of MIR. Con
NAN was disagreed to--yeas 80. nays LOG.
| All further proceedings in the call were then
dispensed with.
! The question now taken on the motion to
lay the whole subject Of printing upon the table,
and { was determined in the negative--yeas 81 !,
nays S9-as follows
YEAs.-Messrs. Willis Allen, VIM. Appleton,
I. "a, Bayly, Bartlett, jr.. Bowie, Bovine, Briggs,
| Brooks, Burrows, Z. Cabell, Chastain, Clark,
Cobb, Cullom, j. q. Davis, Da wson, Dean, Disney
| Doc kerry, Durham, Faulkner, Il. j. ID Fuller. Gay
lord, Gentry, German, Hamilton, Hammond .Hav
| en-, Hcndrck s In gersol A Johnson, r. w johnson
q. w. Jones, q. G King. Landry. Letcher, Lock-
hart, Mace, Martin, McCorke, McLanahan, Nc
Mullen, Meacham, Miller, II. ID. Moore, J. Moore.
| Morehead, Nabers, Outlaw, S. w. Parker, Penn,
Polk, Porter, Price, Riddle. Ross, Russell, Sackett,
Savage, Schcrmerhorn, Schoolcraft Scurry, ID. l.
| Seymour, o. 5. Seymour, SHELTON, Stanly, +. p.
Stanton, K H. Stanton, Stone St. Martin, Suther.
! land, Taylor, Is Thompson, G.. w. Thompson,
Thurston. Ward, Watkins. Wells, Alexander
White. Wilcox, and Yates-sl.
NAYS.-Messrs. Aiken, Allison, John Appleton,
Ashe, Averett, Barrere, Bocock, Bragg, Brenton,
4 Ell nhan
Caske, Chandler, Chapman, Chngman, Curtis,
Dimmick, Doty, Eastman, Edgerton, Edmundson,
Ficklin, Fitch, Florence, Floyd, Fowler, Giddings
Goodcnow, Goodrich. Green, Grey, Grow, Hail.
Harper, |. Harris, S. w Harris. Henn, Hbbard,
Horsiord, Houston, j w Howe, Il. NJ. Howe, Hun
ter, Jackson, James Johnson, John johnson, ID. T.
Jones, J. G. Jones, p. King, Kuhns, Kurtz, Mann,
H. Marshall, Mason, Mcdonald, McNair, Nc
Queen, Meade, Mlison, Miner, Molony Morrison,
Murray, Newton, Odds, Orr, A. Parker, Peaslec,
i'enniman, Perkins, Phelps, Powell, Rantoul, jr.,
Robbins, lr., Scudder, Smart, Smith, Snow, Is.
Stanton, I. Stevens, Sweetser, Venable, Wall
bridge, Wallace, Washburn, jr., Addison White,
and Wood ward-S9.
So the motion to lay the subject of printing upon
the table did not prevail
Mr.. ORR demanded the previous question upon
the pending propositions; and, after same further
proceedings, it was seconded-yeas So noes 43
Many questions were asked a nd answered, in re.
lation 10 the business before the House, which
suited in the reading of the several propositions,
the better to enable gentlemen to vote understand
ingly.
Mr. POLK said it was evident that the House
were getting into confusion the subject, and
moved TO lay the whole of it upon the table.
The SPEAKER decided the motion to be out Of
order, for the reaeon which he stated.
And the main question ordered to be put.
Several points Of order were raised aud disposed
Of; when
Mr.. GORMAN said that he proposed to address
the House.
Mr.. CLINGMAN made a point of order. that
he could not do so at this stage of the proceedings;
and further, that the gentleman stated yesterday
that he had not made report from the Committee
on Printing. A voice: "But the House decided he
had."l
The rule allows a gentleman making a report
hour to open, and the length of time to close,
tho debate upon II.
The SPEAKER decided that the gentleman from
Indiana had right to make speech
MIR; CLINGMAN appealed from the decision Of
the Chair; but,
On motion of Mr.. BAYLY, the appeal was laid
upon the table.
coALITIoNs-THE SEwsPApER Press.
MIR. GORMAN, after few preliminary observa-
tons, said that II was the duty OF the Committee
on Printing to remedy any delay neglect which
may occur On the part Of the public printer TO ex-
ecute his contract. When the committee, by
unanimous vote, determined that Mr.. Hamilton
had failed in every essential particular, there
no remedy lett but 10 adopt such measures as their
Judgments dictated; and they did, under the power
granted in the law exercise discretion in the best
manner they could. il happened, In the effort to
make selection Of other printers, that no one in
diVldaal could command ma jority OF the votes Of
the committee, who found that there were seventy
Elk reports in the hands of the public printer
touched, and that not fingle printed copy pre-
sented Tor their examination and inspection came
up 10 the requirement. Of the contract. Therefore
IN consequence Of the total failure Of the public
printer, they adopted other measures for the per
fDrInance OF the work which he could not or would
not do. The motives Of the committee had been
called ia question. About these he bad something
v, should deal
operate upon others, as theirs did upon the CON
mittee, they would bear with bin. IL hs language
hurt, they should know where il came from.
IL had been said that the committee acted with
view TO party purposes, and 10 picndcr the public
treasury; not that the committee proposed Il, but
that Donslssn And Armstrong, If he understood the
gentleman from North Carolina, (Mr. CLISoMAN,)
bad combined with Gideon and Company TO plum
der the public treasury. Now. the editors OF the
Repubtc and the editors Of the JniOn, SO far he
(Nir. O. knew, had acted without the knowledge
Of the committee, whatever undertaking or con-
versaiion may have taken place among them
gentlemen. lie repeated, the committee had not
consulted with Gideon and Company, nor with
Donclson and Armstrong. from the beginning 10
the end Of the arrangement, so far as bis know
ledge extended.
The public printing has always been bono of
contention; and he would say again that the com
mittee had been acting on this matter for two
months, trying 10 adopt some mode 20 remedy
the neglect and delay Of the contractor. And
he would inform the gentleman from North
the end, until the final vote taken, been against
the Rptibiic. The gentleman said that the com
mittee bad endeavored 10 force public printer up
on tho House, but this they bad not Undertaken TO
do They say that they will hold the contractor 10
his bond, and make him pay whatever excess of
price there may arise in employing assistance Yet
the gentleman asserted that they are undertaking
70 destroy tho contract system, nd will ultimately
succeed. The committee have such power, IL
they were disposed 60 exercise it, They confined
themselves precisely within the letter Of their pow
cr, aud not one inch beyond il.
lie said, after further remarks, that he did not
know Gideon and Company until after the final
vote was taken in the committees and that If dis
position had been entertained by them TO enter into
a coalition, they could readily have dono 80 With
parties other than the Republic. The gentleman
from North Carolina, in an impcr.ous manner, and
with confident mir, charged a coalition; bot per
s'n who makes such a charge should himself have
clean hands, az they say when one Gomez into
. court Of equity. The National TnfeIiigenor s a
public press, belonging 60 the Wing party; the
southern Pr1Ss was kind Of quasi organ Of the
Southern Rights men. lie believed that this
press has one Wing and Democratic editor.
[ A voice: (Which 10 the WhigN'l lie believed
that Mr.. De Leonis, and never heard Of his having
han v.d rflf a., "A