The Portland daily press., 1870-02-04
XLIst CONGRESS---Second Session.
SENATE.

SENATE.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 3.-Mr Thurman, from
the Committee on Finance, reported bill to
authorize the funding and consolidation of the
national debt, to extend banking facilities and
to establish specie payments. The bill is prac-
tically the one introduced by Mr.. Sumner some
three weeks ago, though considerably amend
ed.
Mr.. Chandler introduced bill to reorganize
the marine hospital service and to provide for
sick and disabled seamen. Referred
On motion of Mr.. Morrill, of Maine, the joint
resolution authorizing the Secretary OF the
Navy to transfer to the use of the bureaus of
construction and repairs and of steam engi-
neering such appropriations to the credit of
other bureaus in that department as may be
required, was taken up. The resolution was
debated by Messrs. Sherman, Morrill,, Cragin
and Trumbull.
The morning hour having expired, the SUBJ
ject was temporarily laid aside.
The bill relating to the extension of time for
the completion of a lateral road of the Balt-
more and Potomac railroad, extending from
Washington to Baltimore, was then taken up.
The bill passed.
The naval transfer appropriation bill was
then proceeded with.
Mr.. Morrill, Of Vermont said the understand
ing in the Senate appeared to be that men
were to be employed as a matter of charity; he
therefore moved to amend by adding the words
shat the wages paid the employees shall be
at no higher rate than that which is paid by
private citizens in the respective locations"
The discussion was further continued by
Messrs. Davis, Salisbury Morton, Fowler and
Morrill,, in which the recent charitable appro-
priation of $4,000 for the District poor and the
eight hour law were again fully considered.
After adopting Mr.. Morrill, amendment the
whole subject was laid aside in order to allow
Mr.. Carpenter to address the Senate upon the
Iii Mr. Hn o.
more effectually to preserve neutrality by the
United States, by repeating the neutrality act
of 1918.
Mr.. Carpenter advocated repeating the act,
but confined himself mainly to reply to po-
sitions assumed by Mr.. Sumner in former
discussion relative to the fitting out of the
Spanish gunboats at New York. He COM
menced by stating the propositions asserted by
Mr.. Sumner; first, that the statute of 1918 was
passed for a specific purpose and was therefore
inapplicable to the revolt in Cuba; second, that
the statute applied to case of contest between
two parties, both of whom are acknowledged
as belligerent, and that the rebellion in Cuba
has not attained to a condition to warrant Gu
ba to be so regarded; third, that Cuba or the
Cubans NAV be levying war against Spain, but
that Spain is only proceeding in the exercise
of her executive functions to establish her au-
thority and is not levyng war against Cuba,
and therefore the United States was justified
in OBTAINING her, but would not have been JUS
titled in delaying the Spanish gnnboats.
Mr.. Carpenter then proceeded to show that
these propositions were wholly untenable, cit
ing at length from history, from diplomatic
correspondence and decisions of courts in IL
lustration of the fact that the act of 1913 had
applied to every rebellion and every war that
had arisen from that time to the present, in
Guiding the rebellion of Texas against Mexico
and the Crimean war. He contended that the
statute applied to any contest between re-
yolted colony and State as soon as it could be
said a state of war existed; that this state Of
war did exist when the civil courts were closed
and the government was unable to arrest and
deal with the offenders by civil process. Even
conceding the correctness of Mr.. Summers DO
stion, he held that the statute only applied to
a case of actual public war Such a state OF
things did exist in Cuba. He read at length
from the report of the Spanish war minister to
the Cortes of Spain, showing the number OF
officers sent to Cuba during the past twelve
months in confederation of his assertion that
the existing state of things in Cuba was public
war according to the definition of the law OF
nations.
He admitted the case of every traitor and
exhibited an instance of another meaning of
the municipal law of levying war against the
King, although the King might merely smile
at the attempt and make no effort to arrest the
offender; but if the King, in attempting to ar
rest the offender, was INSTRUCTED and was una
BILE to arrest him by civil means, and was COM
against rebels by military operation, then the
King was levying war against traitors as well
as traitors against the King. In other words,
there was contest of arms going on between
the two parties, and this is a state OF public
war; which condition of things, he claimed,
existed in Cuba. He also paid his respects to
Mr.. Summers theory of neutrality, as an
nounced in his speech on the Alabama claims,
and maintained that the doctrine there as
sumed was anti-American and could not be
maintained without tieing our hands from rec
oguzing the belligerency or independence OF
the various colonies on this continent which
might be expected to rebel against the tyranny
of the European powers.
Mr. Sumner denied Mr.. Carpenter in regard
to the applicability of the statute of 1918 to the
case of the Spanish colonies alone He said
his application of the statute was to the case
of the colonies, which had already achieved a
condition of b.lligerency, and that statute
was passed to meet such a case.
Mr.. Howard inquired of the Senator from
Wisconsin Mr.. Carpenter) for some informa-
ton concerning the present state of the insur-
rection iu Cuba. He was satisfied that there
was in Cuba hostile war-waging party, and
if they demand the name and rights of bellig-
erents it was high time the fact was known
and the policy of the United States shaped so
as to recognize that fact
Mr.. Carpenter replied that the condition of
things in Cuba was condition of war, not of
to the statement in the annual message OF the
President, that a people on Our border had
been struggling for more than year to achieve
their independence, and that to stay boodshed
between that struggling people and Spain this
great republic bad offered its good offices.
Mr.. Howard said that the President had not
spoken of the Cubans as belligerents. His own
recollection of the message was averse to any
such inter probation of its meaning. 70 be
entitled to the rights of belligerent people
a IF tkpi wit
attendant machinery of government Such he
understood the Cubans did not now and never
did possess.
The Vice President laid before the Sepate a
communication from the President in response
to the Senate resolution of Inquiry relative to
the trouble in Winnipeg Territory, which was
referred.
The Senate then at o'clock went into exec
utive session and soon after adjourned.
HOUSE.
Mr.. Cullom of Illinois, from the Committed
on Territories, reported a bill in aid OF the ex
ecution of the laws in the Territory OF Utab
The tenth section makes incompetent as CRANE
of petit Jurors all who believe in, advocate o.
practice bigamy, concubinage or pollgamy
The thirteenth section enacts that any man II
Utah Territory who shall live or cohabt VIII
one woman or more, other than his Lawful
wife, as his wife or wives, shall be adjudget
guilty of the crime of concubnage, and on con
viction thereof shall be punished by line no
exceeding one thousand dollars and imprisoned
in the penitentiary at hard labor not exceeding
five years. The seventeenth section authorize
the United States Marshal, if resisted or threat
ened in the execution of any writ or process
to apply to the commander of any militar.
camp in the Territory for posse.
The 10Th section enacts that no alien practic
ing btgamy, poligyamy or concubnage, shall
be admitted to United States citizenship, no
shall any polygamist hold any office of trust o
profit in the territory, vote therein or be emit
tied 20 the benefits of the homestead or pre-
emption laws. 80,
The ODD section enacts that marriage in tn
territory may be solemnzed only by justices G
the Supreme Court, 10y justices, OF the peac
duly appointed and qualified, and by any, prizes
or minister of the Gospel regularly ordaine
and settled. 1t declares all consanguineou
marriages incestous and void and punishabl
by twenty years Imprisonment in the peniten
tiary.