Litchfield enquirer., 1860-12-06
NEWS OF THE WEEK.
From WashingtOn,

From Washington. WASHINGTON, Dec. 3-Good humor prevailed among the members before the Speaker called | to order.
 Prayer was offered by Rev. MT. Stockton, who implored the Divine blessing to quiet all distrac- tions and restore brotherly feeling. The roll was called.
 | About 200 members responded to their names Mr. Kentz of Pennsylvania appeared in place of MT. Schwarts. deceased.
 1 Mir. Barrett of Missouri, John Brown of Ken lucky appeared and were qualified. 1 Messrs. Moorhead, Bocock and Adams were added to the Committee of the Sennte, consist 1 ing of Msssrs. Bigler, Mason and Collamer, to wait OR the President and announce that both houses were ready to receive any communication 1 from him.
 1 Mir. Grow called up his motion of last session | to reconsider the vote OH the Homestead bill and moved the previous question, b,,+ withs rew 1 it afterwards.
 1 The members then procee a. for seats.
 1 A proposition is to-day diseased here that the Representatives of all the Southern States except South Carolina confer together and pre- pare a list of grievances, and statement of what 1 will satisfy them as a remedy. 1 This IS to be submitted to the Republicans and if favored by them, after tho reading of the Presidents Message. that portion of it which re fers to political troubles to be referred to a con mttse of one from each State.
 A majority of the Republican members voted Tn favor ot the compromise proposition.
 The members from North Carolina, Louisiana Tennessee and Kentucky. represent those States as strongly Cnon
 It is rumored that Seward vii! ofTor concila tory resolutions.
 The Supreme Court mot at noon. Chief Jus tice Fancy and all present but Wayne
 Representatives from Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi say that their States will positively follow South Carolina.
 | Breckinridge declined 8 serenade on Saturday evening.
 Several Southern delegations are holding con. sultatlons tonight to secure the cooperation of tho border States for secession
 The Treasury to-day is enabled to pay only quarter oftAe mileage due Congressmen
 The meeting of the Union members of the Senate is indefinitely postponed at the request of MT. Crittenden.
 TIE PRESIDENTS MESSAGE was delivered tc both Houses of Congress on Tuesday noon. In the House, after the reading of the Message had been concluded, Mr. Sherman moved it's refer ence to the Committee of the Whole. Mir. Bo telsr of Virginia, however, desiring to present 6 resolution, the motion was withdrawn, and the resolution read. It provided that 30 much of the Message as relates to tho present perilous condition of the country be referred to Special Committee of one from each State, with leave to report at any time. At the suggestion ofsev- eral members, MT. Boteler modified his resolu tion by striking out the words with leave to re- port at any time j" after which Mir. Morris, ol Pennsylvania, proposed an amendment, which was also rejected, pledging the members to sus. tain the Union at all hazards. The ground of objection to this resolution was that Mr. Botelers was distiactivsly before the House. After va. rious suggestions, none of which were thought available, vote was taken on Mr. Boteler's proposition, and it was adopted, 145 to 3s. Be- fore the vote was announced, a number of South. ern members, who had not voted, gave their req sons for declining, which were generally that their States had called Conventions to consider the same questions proposed to be discussed by the Committee, and that the people would decide l lima went further, however, and declared that his State was out ofthe Confectionery, except as to the mere form, and that therefore her delegation took no interest in the question. The House did nothing else of importance, and adjourned at 3 o'clock. In the Senate, after the reading of the Message, Mr. Clingman, of North Carolina, in moving it's publication, opened the discussion upon the disunion question, and expressed strong secession views. MT. Crittenden of Kentucky. followed him in strong Union speech. The Presidents Message. BRIEF sYxoPs1s l The President reviews the history of the anti slavery movement, and says that all that is nee essary to accomplish the object of peace is for the slaye-holding states to be let alone and man. age their domestic institutions in their own way.
 The mere election of any man to office is not just cause for dissolution of the Union. The an- tecedents of the President elect are calculated to excite fears in South Carolina. But is the question of contingent danger sufficient to justify the destruction of the government. He reviews the acts of the different northern states in the passage of personal liberty bills, and pronounces them unconstitutional. It should nst be presumed iu advance that the President elect will fail to enforce the fugitive slave law, as this would be unjust and contrary to Christian character. Let us wait for the overt act.
 He then declares against the right of secess- ion, and says to admit it the Union might be broken into fragments in less than two weeks. He quotes the language of Jackson and Msdl-