Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1854-07-01

there was for the President and Senate TO make treaty
which did not touch the Legislative privileges Of the
House.
The message which the President had sent down to
them which, by its terms, precluded the House
from any consideration Of the Of the treaty.
or any power to act upon it. although 1t made an acqui
son Of territory the people of which were to have the
right to come into this Union equal footing with
the original States This had been done by the President
and the Senate and the House not allowed to say
yea nay upon question of giving to foreign territory
acquired the right of coming into the Union When the
treaty should be ratified it would be impossible to resist
the absolute right of the people nhabng this territory
become members of the Union thereby entirely evadng
and multiplying that discretion which the Constitution put
into the hands Of Congress admit refuse States
The message Of the President nothing in the world
but demand for their check for ten millions Of dollars
and that at brief notice and without the usual days Of
grace. Deliver the money tomorrow! This was too
much like " stand and deliver"
He considered the making of this treaty high nva
sion of the privileges Of the House, and said that these
ten millions to be given for the ragged listing of
Mexico for worthless, Godforsaken country He was
against giving millions of dollars for railroad track
outside the limits of the present United States.
Mr.. CAMPBELL raised the question that the motion
of Mr. JONES, of Tennessee to strike out the enactng
clause in order; when long debate ensued and
at length terminated by the withdrawal Of the point
of order
Mr.. BAYLY, Of Virginia, replied to Mr.. Benton, and
denied that it had been the practice in England and
to ask in advance appropriations from the legsla
tive power for the execution of treaties He did not hold
House, legally and eectuay to make appropriations to
carry the treaty out His idea of the Constitution, in
that respect that within the sphere Of their respective
orbits each department of the Government could act
without reference the other When treaty had been
negotiated by the authorities with whom the Constitution
invested the treaty-making powerthe President and
of the Senatehc held that the appropriations
necessary to carry should not be withheld except
in of trsitorous disregard of the rights of the
ton This brought him to inquire whether this treaty
in such papable derogation Of the rights of this
ton that losing sight Of all Difference to the
ing power constituted by the Constitution the House
should withhold the appropriation necessary tocarry it
into effect This he denied, and contended that it was
more beneficial to appropriate money after the negotia
tion of treaty than in advance thereof 1t was in
vasos of the privileges Of the House for the President
and Senate to negotiate treaty providing for appro
priaon and then ask the House to appropriate the
requisite amount to carry it into effect He charged that
the opposition of the gentleman from Missouri to this
y grew out of the fact that designed to secure
southern route for railroad to the Pacific.
Mr. B. then urged the benefits which would be derived
from this treaty. and stated that the number Of claims
already presented growing out of disregard of the
eleventh article of the treaty of Guadalupe Hda'go,
which the treaty Of last December abrogated amounted
| to morethan forty millions of dollars.
Mr.. JONES, Of Pennsylvania, then obtained the floor,
when the committee rose.
Mr.. CURTIS moved to suspend the rules to
BILE him to bring before the House joint resolution to
fix the compensation Of the employees in the Legislative
Departments of the Government and to prohibit the al
lowance Of the usual compensation to such
ceive the benefits thereof.
Pending which the House adjourned.