The daily union., 1852-09-04

the Office existed and the compensation bad moi
been the time OF the appointment Increased Ihen'
Was his person eligible Could he take the office
perfectly clear that he could take The oihce II was
not a new Office. Ii not ofhee which had been
created or the emolumens OF which had been increased,
during The lime he member Of Congress.
,on arises Have Congress the right 10 increase The
compensation OF the othce alter member OF Con.
grcss has been appointed 10 hold III Clearly they
have. There is no Limitation upon Congress They may
increase the compensation OF anybody in the public ser
vice. There is stipulation that they shall not do
so. There is restriction upon their power. They
may do il before the person appointed, afterwards
They may do it any time, and whenever they do Il
the is valid The only consequence that can arise is
that person claiming the office, or desiring TO get the Of
not be eligible after the act had been passed ba,
from the first day OF Congress until this lime there has
been day when they could not increase he compensa
ton OF the commissioner to China. The power oil Con.
gess increase that compensation exercised generally
does not relate 10 this particular indvdua but
aies to the Office and il exists forever afterwards until
| Mr.. HUNTER Will the senator allow me TO suggest
to hun that The Commlee on Finance have instructed
say that they willing that the amendment shall
be voted down. and the provision should Dc let ss
from the House. We have great many amendments to
o1er and hut very little time 10 acl upon them.
Mr.. SEWARD. II leaves IT, then, without aHy kind OF
question: What was going 10 say was, that The most
that could be claimed was that there abuse or
perveslon OF the constitutions clrcuous mode OF get
ting round it, But the constitution is express and we
be guided by it's terms, and the constitution is sat
lsfed. We presume that the President Of the n
ted States performed his duty appointing Mr. Marshall
TO be commissioner 10 China, because The compensation
had then been increased. We cannot know that II
at that time the contemplation OF The President or
the Senate, that that compensation should be increased
affected all by increasing the salary. II brings
about the question whether is expedent for us TO in
crease this Compensation So the question is reduced, 10
me, simply, OF expediency.
Mr. COOPER. Mr.. President, it seems to there is
no constitutional difficulty in the way OF the appointment
in question, OF the legislation which is now proposed
hall ali.
gble; the appointment was, therefore, constitutional
As TO the legislation proposed, there is cons,ilu
tionaI prohibition in relation to that
IDe object OF the constitutional provision was to pre-
vent the appointment OF persona in Office who might be
induced, not prohibited by such provision, to abuse
their position BY legisang for their own benefit 10 this
case no legislation had taken place during the period OF
the apponlees service in Congress lie does not there
lore to me, fall within the true meaning OF the
prohibition The Office was not created during the period
either oil the appointecs service, during the period
Tor which he elected. Nor the enoumen,s OF
the office previously increased repeat, therefore, that
there nothing prevent his appointment by the Pres
dent and also repeat that there is no provision any
in the constitution to prevent legislation TO increase the
emolamenls OF an Office filled by appointment previously
For these reasons ground Tor the constitutional
objection which has been urged against the passage OF
i the amendment IN question.
j MI. DAVIS. do not think the gentlemen have-got
easily around the provision OF the constitution the
senator from Pennsylvania suggests He says that this
does not fall within the spirit OF the constitution because
the member had resigned before the salary was increased
Now the constitution meant that, another phrase might
nave been used and might have been said, during the
time he member !" but the constitution has cautiously
time for which he was eec.eds Why, there is no mis-
taking the effect Of that The evil meant 10 be avoided
was, that man, while he a member of Congress- or
during the he might have influence there should
bring about scheme of this Sort and then resign and
cape in technical way the consequences which the
'S,0n M T5UcEg2 81 think there !. no foundation for the
constitutional objection that has been made II is neither
within the letter OF the constitution nor its spirit The
constitutional impedimeni, insist, must exist at The
time OF the appointment, and that is the letter of the
aruce referred 10. II is obvious. from the very nature
of the case, that the impediment must exist then
or it does not exist al ALL The letter OF The con-
stituon points TO that construction and you mus,
against s ieue, IN order 10 raise any objection says
l No senator representative shall, DUNG the Tune Tor
which he was elected be appointed to any civil office
der the authority OF the United States, which shalt have
been created, or the emolumens whereof shall have
been increased, during such time" Not (which shall
be increased" but :. which shall have been increased
Now the question is whether the President had power
to appoint this incumbent referred TO. Why. al the time
when he appointed him. by and with the OF the
Senate, there was no objection there was consiu.
uona impeachment IN the way He was eligible and the
President had the power TO appoint him. When the Ian
guage 10 shall have been created during such Tine" II
means from the commencement OF the term TO the time
when he was appointed not to period that accrued al
ter the appointment
Every word and every letter of this article OF the con.
sllulon excludes The idea that The subsequent ac of in
creasng the emolunens would impediment to
an appointment that already existed There is no found
Besides that the objection in,erposed by the honora.
BILE senator from Maryland Mr.. PRArrl is Of itself con.
elusive. IL would be transfer TO the legislative power
OF the government OF the power OF removing from office
persons consli,utonay IN othce That is unavoidable
because At would follow that il two thirds OF both
branches oil Congress should persist increasing the
emouments OF Office when the President refused 10
remove incumbent by that very they would dis
place officer who had been previously constitution
ely appointed.
think self iha, there ground either in the e,te
of the constitution in its spr for the objection made
by the senator from Rhode Island agree that there
may be question OF expedlency ii there has been any
undue manag gemeniIi there is any ground to believe
that ought not To acrease the emoument For such
reason as that IL might be proper to alege IT, Other
wise, we have nothing to do with il.
Tbe amendment was rejected.
Mr.. HUNTER There is provision in the bill "fol
outfit OF ministers OF the United States Great Britain
Prussia, and Mexico, S27o00" Upon consultation with
the department, the Committee on Finance have found
that II not desired to have outfit for minister
to Prussia. therefore to amend the amendment
by striking out Prussia and also by striking out "S27
00o," and inserting "sls, 900"
The amendment was agreed 10.
i MIR. HUN TER am also inrusted by the Committee
on Finance 10 TO insert s'for outfit Of chagt
d'aiares for Austria the present incumbent having ex
pressed earnest desire 10 be permitted to return home
a. ,5O0.n
The amendment was rejected
i Mr.. HUNTER give notice that shall offer The
smendent again after the bill shall have been reported
TO the Senate.
In the provision providing 'for the survey OF TO- e2s
TO strike out "ien," and nsert"two II has been mis-
. tak of the nrin thatf ,uaa ins erted