employee than this act applying to railroads and common carriers of an interstate character, and I am sure that the passage of the act would greatly relieve the courts of the heaviest burden of litigation that they have, and would enable them to dispatch other business with a speed never before attained in courts of justice in this country. WM. H. TAFT.

THE WHITE HOUSE,

December 6, 1912.

3d Session.

No. 1105.

REPORT OF COMMISSIONER FOR MARKING CONFEDERATE GRAVES.

LETTER

FROM

THE SECRETARY OF WAR,

TRANSMITTING

FINAL REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER APPOINTED TO CONTINUE THE WORK OF LOCATING AND MARKING THE GRAVES OF CONFEDERATE DEAD.

DECEMBER 9, 1912.-Referred to the Committee on Military Affairs and ordered to be

printed.

WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, December 6, 1912.

The SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

SIR: In accordance with the provisions of the act of Congress approved March 9, 1906, I have the honor to transmit herewith, final report of the commissioner appointed to continue the work of locating and marking the graves of Confederate dead.

Very respectfully,

H. L. STIMSON, Secretary of War.

WAR DEPARTMENT,

OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONER FOR MARKING GRAVES OF CONFEDERATE DEAD, Washington, D. C., October 23, 1912.

The SECRETARY OF WAR.

SIR: As commissioner appointed to continue the work of locating and marking the graves of the soldiers and sailors of the Confederate Army and Navy who died in Federal prisons and military hospitals in the North and were buried near their places of confinement, I have the honor to submit this as the report required by the act of Congress approved March 9, 1906, and continued in full force and effect by subsequent joint resolutions of Congress, the last of which expires December 23, 1912.

LEGISLATION.

The legislation. in connection with this work consists of the act of Congress approved March 9, 1906 (34 Stat. L., 56), as follows:

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Secretary of War be, and he is hereby, authorized and directed to ascertain the locations and condition of all the graves of the soldiers and sailors of the Confederate Army and Navy in the late Civil War, eighteen hundred and sixty-one to eighteen hundred and sixty-five, who died in Federal prisons and military hospitals in the North and who were buried near their places of confinement; with power in his discretion to acquire possession or control over all grounds where said prison dead are buried not now possessed or under the control of the United States Government; to cause to be prepared accurate registers in triplicate, one for the superintendent's office in the cemetery, one for the Quartermaster General's Office, and one for the War Record's Office, Confederate archives, of the places of burial, the number of the grave, the name, company, regiment, or vessel and State, of each Confederate soldier and sailor who so died, by verification with the Confederate archives in the War Department at Washington, District of Columbia; to cause to be erected over said graves white marble headstones similar to those recently placed over the graves in the "Confederate section" in the National Cemetery at Arlington, Virginia, similarly inscribed; to build proper fencing for the preservation of said burial grounds, and to care for said burial grounds in all proper respects now herein specifically mentioned, the said work to be completed within two years, at the end of which a report of the same shall be made to Congress.

That for the carrying out of the objects set forth herein there be appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury of the United States not otherwise appropriated, the sum of two hundred thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary.

And the Secretary of War is hereby authorized and directed to appoint some competent person as commissioner to ascertain the location of such Confederate graves not heretofore located, and to compare the names of those already marked with the regis ters in the cemeteries, and correct the same when found necessary, as preliminary to the work of marking the graves with suitable headstones, and to fix the compensation of said commissioner at the rate not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars per annum, who shall be allowed necessary traveling expenses.

The time limit of the above act was extended for two years by joint resolution approved February 26, 1908 (35 Stat. L., 567), as follows Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the act entitled "An act to provide for the appropriate marking of the graves of the soldiers and sailors of the Confederate Army and Navy who died in northern prisons and were buried near the prisons where they died, and for other purposes," approved March ninth, nineteen hundred and six, be, and the same is hereby, continued in full force and effect for two years from this date: Provided, That the provisions of said act shall not be construed to apply to the Confederate Mound in Oakwood Cemetery at Chicago: And provided further, That the compensation of the commissioner shall be fixed by the Secretary of War.

And was again extended for one year by joint resolution approved February 25, 1910 (36 Stat. L., 875), as follows:

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the act entitled "An act to provide for the appropriate marking of the graves of the soldiers and sailors of the Confederate Army and Navy who diel in northern prisons and were buried near the prisons where they died, and for other purposes," approved March ninth, nineteen hundred and six, and continued in full force and effect for two years by a joint resolution approved February twenty-sixth, nineteen hundred and eight, be, and the same is hereby, continued in full force and effect for one year from this date: Provided, That said act shall not be construed to apply to the Confederate Mound in Oakwood Cemetery at Chicago: Provided further. That the Secretary of War may cause to be erected at the head of each grave of a citizen or civilian prisoner of war who was buried among the soldiers a headstone of the size and dimensions of those placed at the head of the soldiers' graves, but containing no inscription except the number of the grave, the name of the occupant, and the word "citizen" or "civilian" placed thereon, and at an expense for each no greater than that for each soldier: And provided further, That the compensation of the commissioner shall be fixed by the Secretary of War.

By joint resolution approved June 11, 1910 (36 Stat. L., 882), the act was made to apply to the Confederate Mound in Oakwood Cemetery, Chicago, Ill., as follows:

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the act entitled "An act to provide for the appropriate marking of the graves of the soldiers and sailors of the Confederate Army and Navy who died in northern prisons and were buried near the prisons where they died, and for other purposes," approved March ninth, nineteen hundred and six, as heretofore continued in full force and effect, shall hereafter be construed to apply to the Confederate mound in Oakwood Cemetery, at Chicago, anything in joint resolutions heretofore passed by Congress to the contrary notwithstanding.

The joint resolution approved December 23, 1910 (36 Stat. L., 1453), extended the act two years more, and also amended it with respect to the manner of marking the unidentified graves, as follows:

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the act entitled "An act to provide for the appropriate marking of the graves of the soldiers and sailors of the Confederate Army and Navy who died in northern prisons and were buried near the prisons where they died, and for other purposes," approved March ninth, nineteen hundred and six, and continued in full force and effect for two years by joint resolution approved February twentysixth, nineteen hundred and eight, and for the additional period of one year by a joint resolution approved on February twenty-fifth, nineteen hundred and ten, be, and the same is hereby, continued in full force and effect for two years from this date: Provided, That where it has been, or shall hereafter be, found impossible to identify the individual burial places of Confederate prisoners of war, the Secretary of War is hereby authorized to cause to be erected central masonry constructions, or monuments, upon which bronze tablets shall be placed containing the names of the deceased prisoners of war who are buried in its immediate vicinity; and where contracts have been entered into for the erection of such central masonry constructions, or monuments, and have been executed in good faith, the Secretary of War is hereby authorized to cause the necessary payments to be made in liquidation of such obligations.

The limit of two years in the act evidently was placed there to guard against the office of commissioner being made permanent; and the necessity for the subsequent extensions was occasioned by reason of the uncertainty which existed as to the work still remaining to be done at the time the extensions were made.

COMMISSIONERS.

It will be observed that the act provided for only one commissioner, and that office was filled by Col. William Elliott, of South Carolina, from March 16, 1906, to the date of his death, December 4, 1907. Gen. William C. Oates, of Alabama, was then appointed to fill the vacancy, and his term of office extended from December 15, 1907, to the date of his death, September 9, 1910. The commissionership was vacant then until October 17, 1910, when I took office.

GENERAL OPERATIONS.

Under this heading the report of operations will deal with the cemeteries in the different States, not in the order of the performance of the work in connection therewith but by grouping the cemeteries in each State and taking up each State in geographical order, beginning with Massachusetts on the east and proceeding in a westerly direction.

MASSACHUSETTS.

In this State the Confederates were confined at Fort Warren, Boston Harbor, and the records show that 13 died, of which number 1 was a citizen. The remains of 2 of this number were delivered to relatives or friends and the others buried on the west side of the island. Reinterment of these latter remains was made in the new post cemetery at Fort Winthrop, Mass., April 20, 1891, and in 1908 they were removed from Fort Winthrop to the military cemetery on Deer Island, Boston Harbor.

The graves could not be identified, except in one instance a marble slab having been erected thereto shortly after burial.

No expenditures other than traveling expenses were incurred in connection with this cemetery.

RHODE ISLAND.

One Confederate prisoner of war died at Providence, R. I., but his remains were later removed to Cypress Hills National Cemetery, Brooklyn, N. Y.

NEW YORK.

In this State the Confederate prisoners of war dead were found to have been buried in the Cypress Hills National Cemetery, Brooklyn; in the church graveyard at Barryville; and in Woodlawn National Cemetery at Elmira.

CYPRESS HILLS NATIONAL CEMETERY, BROOKLYN.

Confederates were confined at a number of stations in New York Harbor, but the remains of the deceased not taken by friends are all supposed to have been removed to this cemetery, either as known or unknown dead. The register for this cemetery shows 510 known and 5 unknown, as follows: Cypress Hills National Cemetery, 482 soldiers, 1 citizen, and 8 removed; in addition to which 24 were not located, but were reported as having died at the following places: Harts Island, 8; Davids Island, 1; Fort Lafayette, 2; Fort Columbus, 12; and Willetts Point, 1.

Substantial headstones were found at the graves in the national cemetery, and by adding the requisite inscriptions they were deemed satisfactory markers. Several of the headstones were broken, however, and these were replaced with new ones.

The expenditures under this office in connection with this cemetery amount to $361.30.

BARRYVILLE CEMETERY.

Two Confederate soldiers died at this place after the railroad accident near Shohola, Pa., they having been wounded and brought here for treatment. Their remains were not removed to Elmira, however, as were the remains of those who were killed and buried near the scene of the accident. A marker has been placed at their graves in this cemetery, and the expenditures in connection therewith amount to $8.97.