The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1872-01-26
LXIID CONGRESS--SECOND SESSION.


/
attention of the English anti-slavery societies
had been directep to it and that he would call
up this bill at an early day and urge its pas
sage
A motion to reconsider the vote by which the
Chicago relief bill was passed yesterday was
taken up.
Mr. Chandler urged a reconsideration, saying
that the passage of the bill would work great
injury to the Western lumber merchants.
Mr. Scott favored reconsideration, believing
that the bill upon reflection, is unconstitutional
and really benefited only few spectators.
THE AMNESTY BILL.
Pending the discussion and without action on
| its reconsideration the amnesty bill was taken
up.
Mr. Morrill, of Maine, advocated the BILL but
opposed Mr.. Summers amendment
| Mr.. Morrill, said the government having pros
ecuted the war upon the principle which as
sumed the absolute political disability of H..
600, 900 of people, and the absolute overthrow OF
the legitimate governments, of 10 States the very
first step in the process of reconstruction was
necessarily amnesty in order to qualify those
who were to take part in the reOrganlzed gov
ernments. The assumed qualification made
amnesty great civil, political and moral neces-
sity at the end of the war and in accordance
with that principle the question of general am
nesty had been long ago settled. The question
now before the Senate was whether 1t Will pass
| bull granting amnesty not quite universal, but
so nearly so as to put an end to special legisla-
| ton on the subject. He was convinced IT would
| be wise to pass this bill. He had been brought
to that conviction by the President recommen-
dation, by the recommendation of the ku klux
Committee, and by his own Judgment. AS to
| the amendment proposed by Mr.. Sumner, he
| was not only opposed to its adoption, but be-
lieved it never ought to have been entertained
as an amendment to this bill; first, because 1t
| involved very delicate constitutional question.
1t had not been considered by the committee,
| but there was a still more conclusive reason
| why it ought to be rejected. 1t was unconsti-
| tutional The Senator (Mr. Sumner) had in
voked the declaration of independence and
| many high considerations in favor of his bill,
but had failed to point out any provision of the
| constitution which authorizes Congress to pass
it, and until he could show that such legislation
| was authorized by the constitution it idle
| to invoke the memory of great deeds of other
| times the doctrine of equal rights as justi-
| fcation for it. The Senator had attempted to
| place this bill upon the same ground as the
| civil rights bill, but there was no analogy be-
| tween them. The constitutional amendment
| upon which the Senator attempted to base his
| bill did not assert anything. 1t was simply
| grand negation But the BILL itself, was an as
sertion of equal civil political rights of all men
in hotels, churches, schools, theatres and every
| where else. This was all well and he hoped the
day would come when we should be also thor
| oughly imbued with the principles of justice,
humanity and christianity as to take all men
without distinction of color to our firesides and
bosoms; but certainly it would not within the
province or Congress to enforce them by direct
legislation.
MIR. Morrill, criticized in detail the provisions
OF Mr. Summers bill and argued that Congress
had no power to enact them into law except so
far as they applied to common carriers, and he
warned the Senate against disregarding the
constitutional line of separation cetween the
federal and State governments upon the preser-
walton of which the stability of the republic de-
pended.
Mr. Flanagan followed. He was in favor of
the amnesty bill and also of the amendment.
But there were men at the South for whose re-
lief he would not vote. jeff Davis for instance
There were also other persons in his own State,
all democrats, who were conducting themselves
very badly. To prove which he sent several
letters and kilograms to the desk to be read. On
the other hand there was one man who had
been member of the Secession Convention for
whose relief he would ask after the passage of
this bill. He criticized Horace Greeley for 60
ing bail for Davis. Eulogized Henry Clay and
Gen. jackson, and announced his own belief in
the good old doctrine that Americans should
rule America. The bill was then postponed
| until Monday. Ia1
A resolution to adjourn until Monday was
lost. ~
The apportionment bill was taken up for
short time, when the Senate went into execu-
tive session and soon after adjourned.
HOUSE.
After the reference of several petition, the
educational fund bill was taken up.
Mr. Hoar, of Massachusetts, supported it.
In response to the remarks of Mr.. Voorhees,, of
Indiana, yesterday, upon the Republican party,
Mr.. Hoar said that the Democracy ought to
fasten upon the South every thing that degraded
mankind-slavery, poverty, crime, disorder and
ignorance, however found in that party, was
efficient and antive allies. When measures of
redress were proposed in Congress that party
clamored that they should be left to the States.
When proposed to the States that party claimed
they they should be left to the counties and To-
calites and when proposed to the localities the
X Of nal hur tbn
houses and murdered or whipped the teachers.
In Tennessee to-day, under the rule of that
party, there were only twenty out of
ninety-one counties that had any schools, al
though there was a school system in the State.
Mr., Hoar continued at some length, giving sta
tlstics from the census. showing the ilteracy in
certain States and in response to the statement
made last session by Mr. McNeely, of Illinois,
that the per centage of illteracy in Massachu-
sets was on the increase, and said the census
showed that such thing as illiteracy of native
born children in Massachusetts is unknown.
He urged the gentlemen from States which are
shown by the census to be unfortunate in illt-
eraey to look the facts in the face and join in
the attempt to remedy the evil.
Mr. Burchard of Illinois, supported the bill.
Mr. Poland, of Vermont, reported from the
joint committee on Southern outrageS. The re-
port recommends the adoption of a resolution
calling on the President for the information on
which he acted and exercised in South COralina
the powers conferred upon him in the Ku KluX
imprisoned, with all the particulars; also such
other information as will convey a correct idea
of the state of society and the security of life
and property in that State and in North Caro-
lima, particularly as to the Lowry gang
Kentucky, Mississippi, Texas and Louisiana,
including the recent legislative conflict there.
Mr. Beck, of Kentucky, offered substitute
combining the information asked to South Caro-
lima, inasmuch as that was the only State
where martial law existed, as it would require
months to give all the information required in
the original resolution. He alluded to the fact
that many persons who had been arrested in
South Carolina had been discharged by the
army officers arresting them on PAYMENT of
money. In fact they had been blackmailed,
and he referred as authority to letter in the
New York Herald of Nov. 18th, giving the
names of the officers and challenging denial.
Mr. Stevenson, of Ohio, opposed Mr.. Becks
substitute because it contained statement that
was not true, namely, that the President had
declared martial law in South Carolina. Mar
tial law suspended the civil law and if that had
been suspended the recent trials in Columbia,
5. o., would not have been held, where two of
the ablest lawyers in the land were feed largely
| to defend Ku Klux wretches and actually left
| the Court room in shame. For his own part,
| he had no objection to seeing hundreds or thou
| sands tried by drum-head court martial and
| swinging to the highest trees,
Mi. Van Trump, of Ohio, questioned the
| statement as to the counsel for the Ku Klux
| prisoners having been driven out of the Court
| by shame at the developments made.
Mr.. Stevenson replied that one of them, Mr..
| Stanberry of Ohio, left the Court house while
| one of his clients was on trial because he was
| sickened by the facts developed, and another,
| Reverdy johnson, left Columbia while the cases
| were still ON trial
After further discussion Mr.. Beck's substi-
| tute was rejected and Mr. Poland's resolution
| adopted.
Mr.. Hale, eff Maine, from Committee on APP
| preparations, reported the naval appropriation
bill, which was made the special order for Tues
| day. The bill appropriates ST., 943, 347.
The House then went into Committee of the
Whole on the legislative appropriation bill In
| reference to the item for the punishment of
! frauds in the ~Pension office, Mr. Garfield, of
| Ohio, stated that the Committee on Ways and
| Means had been assured yesterday by the Secre-
tary of the Interior that fully one fourth of the
| pensions now paid were frauds. He had been
| so startled by such an extraordinary statement
| the Commissioner of Pensions, who was pres
/ ent at the time, confirmed the statement
Mr.. Butler, of Massachusetts, and Mr.. Hale,
| of Maine, made remarks confirmatory of the
| statement. The latter alluded to two or three
| hundred cases in New York of applications for
| pensions for the war of 1872 which were all
| found to be fraudulent, were got up by claim
| agents, some of whom had been arrested, tried
and convicted, while others fled to Canada.
| After progressing with the bill far as the ADD
| page the committee rose.
| The Speaker appointed Messrs. Dawes, of
| Massachusetts, and Brooks, of New York, as
| Regents of the deaf and dumb institution at