SENATE SPECIAL SESSION. 32D CONG.....3D SESS. IN SENATE. FRIDAY, March 4, 1853. Special Session-President's Inaugural Address. In pursuance of the proclamation of the President of the United States, the Senate of the United States assembled in the Senate Chamber at twelve o'clock, m. After prayer by the Rev. C. M. BUTLER, Mr. CASS rose and said: I have been requested to ask the Senators to come to order. NEW MEMBERS. eastern lobby, and Senators retained their own seats. The circular gallery was filled exclusively by ladies, and the eastern gallery by gentlemen, Every part of the Chamber, and every avenue by intermingled with whom were several ladies. which it was approached, was densely crowded. At half-past one o'clock, the President elect entered the Senate Chamber, leaning on the arm of the Hon. JESSE D. BRIGHT, chairman of the Committee of Arrangements. They were followed by the outgoing President, who was supported HANNIBAL HAMLIN, members of the Committee of Arrangments. MILLARD P. FILLMORE, Esq., Private Secretary of the retiring President, succeeded, accompanied by SIDNEY WEBSTER, Esq., the Private Secretary of the President elect. They were conducted to seats in front of the President's chair. Mr. BADGER. I submit this resolution, which by the Hon. THOMAS G. PRATT, and the Hon. I hope will be adopted: Resolved, That the oath prescribed by the Constitution be administered to the new members of the Senate by the Hon. LEWIS CASs, the oldest member of the Senate. The resolution was considered by unanimous consent, and agreed to. Mr. BADGER. I move that the roll of new Senators be now called. The motion was agreed to. The Secretary read the list, as follows: Hon. ROBERT M. T. HUNTER, of Virginia. PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE.. Mr. SHIELDS. With the unanimous consent of the Senate, I ask leave to offer the following resolution: Resolved, That the Hon. DAVID R. ATCHISON continue President pro tempore of the Senate. The resolution was unanimously adopted. Mr. ATCHISON, on taking the chair, addressed the Senate as follows: SENATORS: Permit me to return my sincere thanks for the honor that you have again conferred on me, and the evidence of your kind personal consideration, and also for your confidence in my integrity and impartiality. INAUGURATION CEREMONIES. The PRESIDENT. The Sergeant-at-Arms will proceed to carry out the arrangements made by the committee for the inauguration of the President elect of the United States, so far as the positions in this Chamber are concerned. The Sergeant-at-Arms proceeded to introduce gentlemen to the floor of the Senate, in accordance with the arrangements which were prescribed by the appropriate committee. Amongst the other gentlemen who accompanied the President elect to the Senate Chamber, were the Hon. WILLIAM L. MARCY, of New York; Hon. JAMES C. DOBBIN, of North Carolina; Hon. JAMES GUTHRIE, of Kentucky; Hon. ROBERT MCCLELLAND, of Michigan; and the Hon. JAMES CAMPBELL, of Pennsylvania. The preparations being complete, those assembled in the Senate Chamber proceeded to the eastern portico of the Capitol, in the following order: The Marshal of the District of Columbia. The Supreme Court of the United States. The Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate. The Committee of Arrangements. The President elect and the ex-President. The President pro tempore and the Secretary of the Senate. The Members of the Senate. Heads of Departments, Governors of States and Territories, the Mayors of Washington and Georgetown, and other persons who had been admitted into the Senate Chamber. After the oath of office had been administered the President delivered the following INAUGURAL ADDRESS: MY COUNTRYMEN: It is a relief to feel that no heart but my own can know the personal regret and bitter sorrow over which I have been borne to a position so suitable for others rather than desirable for myself. The circumstances under which I have been called, for a limited period, to preside over the destinies of the Republic, fill me with a profound sense of responsibility, but with nothing like shrinking apprehension. I repair to the post assigned me, not as to one sought, but in obedience to the unsolicited expression of your will, answerable only for a fearless, faithful, and diligent exercise of my best powers. I ought to be, and am, truly grateful for the rare manifestation of the nation's confidence; but this, so far from lightening my obligations, only adds to their weight. You have summoned me in my weakness: you must sustain me by your strength. When looking for the fulfillment of reasonable requirements, you will not be unmindful of the great changes which have occurred, even within the last quarter of a centu plexity of duties imposed in the administration both of your home and foreign affairs. The Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court, in their robes, were accommodated with seats on the right and left of the platform of the officers of the Senate. The diplo-ry, and the consequent augmentation and commatic corps, in their official costume, occupied the seats without the bar, on the left of the principal entrance; the Cabinet of the outgoing President, General Scott, and others entitled to admission, occupied the seats on the right. To ex-members of Congress and members elect was assigned the Whether the elements of inherent force in the Republic have kept pace with its unparalleled progression in territory, population, and wealth, has been the subject of earnest thought and discus SENATE. It sion on both sides of the ocean. Less than sixtyfour years ago the Father of his Country made the then "recent accession of the important State ted States" one of the subjects of his special conof North Carolina to the Constitution of the Unigratulation. At that moment, however, when the agitation consequent upon the revolutionary struggle had hardly subsided, when we were just emerging from the weakness and embarrassments of the Confederation, there was an evident consciousness of vigor, equal to the great mission so wisely and bravely fulfilled by our fathers. It was not a presumptuous assurance, but a calm faith, springing from a clear view of the sources of power in a Government constituted like ours. It is no paradox to say, that although comparatively weak, the new-born nation was intrinsically strong. Inconsiderable in population and apparent resources, it was upheld by a broad and intelligent comprehension of rights, and an all-pervading purpose to maintain them, stronger than armaments. came from the furnace of the Revolution, tempered to the necessities of the times. The thoughts of the men of that day were as practical as their sentiments were patriotic. They wasted no portion of their energies upon idle and delusive speculations, but with a firm and fearless step advanced beyond the governmental landmarks which had hitherto circumscribed the limits of human freedom, and planted their standard where it has stood against dangers which have threatened from abroad, and internal agitation which has at times fearfully menaced at home. They approved themselves equal to the solution of the great problem, to understand which their minds had been illuminated by the dawning lights of the Revolution. The object sought was not a thing dreamed of: it was a thing realized. They had exhibited not only the power to achieve, but what all history affirms to be so much more unusual, the capacity to maintain. The oppressed throughout the world, from that day to the present, have turned their eyes hitherward, not to find those lights extinguished, or to fear lest they should wane, but to be constantly cheered by their steady and increasing radiance. far fulfilled its highest duty to suffering humanity. In this, our country has, in my judgment, thus It has spoken, and will continue to speak, not only by its words, but by its acts, the language of sympathy, encouragement, and hope to those who earnestly listen to tones which pronounce for the largest rational liberty. But, after all, the most animating encouragement and potent appeal for freedom will be its own history, its trials, and its triumphs. Preeminently the power of our advocacy reposes in our example; but no example, be it remembered, can be powerful for lasting good, whatever apparent advantages may be gained, which is not based upon eternal principles of right and justice. Our fathers decided for themselves, both upon the hour to declare and the hour to strike. They were their own judges of the circumstances under which it became them to pledge to each other" their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor," for the acquisition of the priceless inheritance transmitted to us. The energy with which that great conflict was opened, and, under the guidance of a manifest and beneficent Providence, the uncomplaining endurance with which it was prosecuted to its consummation, were only surpassed by the wisdom and patriotic spirit of concession which characterized all the counsels of the early fathers. 32D CONG.....3D SESS. Special Session-President's Inaugural Address. One of the most impressive evidences of that wisdom is to be found in the fact that the actual working of our system has dispelled a degree of solicitude which, at the outset, disturbed bold hearts and far-reaching intellects. The apprehension of dangers from extended territory, multiplied States, accumulated wealth, and augmented population, has proved to be unfounded. The stars upon you banner have become nearly threefold their original number, your densely populated possessions skirt the shores of the two great oceans, and yet this vast increase of people and territory has not only shown itself compatible with the harmonious action of the States and the Federal Government in their respective constitutional spheres, but has afforded an additional guarantee of the strength and integrity of both. With an experience thus suggestive and cheering, the policy of my administration will not be controlled by any timid forebodings of evil from expansion. Indeed, it is not to be disguised that our attitude as a nation, and our position on the globe, render the acquisition of certain possessions not within our jurisdiction, eminently important for our protection, if not, in the future, essential for the preservation of the rights of commerce and the peace of the world. Should they be obtained, it will be through no grasping spirit, but with a view to obvious national interest and security, and in a manner entirely consistent with the strictest observance of national faith. We have nothing in our history or position to invite aggression; we have everything to beckon us to the cultivation of relations of peace and amity with all nations. Purposes, therefore, at once just and pacific, will be significantly marked in the conduct of our foreign affairs. I intend that my administration shall leave no blot upon our fair record, and trust I may safely give the assurance that no act within the legitimate scope of my constitutional control will be tolerated on the part of any portion of our citizens which cannot challenge a ready justification before the tribunal of the civilized world. An Administration would be unworthy of confidence at home, or respect abroad, should it cease to be influenced by the conviction that no apparent advantage can be purchased at a price so dear as that of national wrong or dishonor. It is not your privilege, as a nation, to speak of a distant past. The striking incidents of your history, replete with instruction, and furnishing abundant grounds for hopeful confidence, are comprised in a period comparatively brief. But if your past is limited, your future is boundless. Its obligations throng the unexplored pathway of advancement, and will be limitless as duration. Hence a sound and comprehensive policy should embrace not less the distant future than the urgent present. The great objects of our pursuit, as a people, are best to be attained by peace, and are entirely consistent with the tranquillity and interests of the rest of mankind. With the neighboring nations upon our continent we should cultivate kindly and fraternal relations. We can desire nothing in regard to them so much as to see them consolidate their strength, and pursue the paths of prosperity and happiness. If, in the course of their growth, we should open new channels of trade, and create additional facilities for friendly intercourse, the benefits realized will be equal and mutual. Of the complicated European systems of national policy we have heretofore been independent. From their wars, their tumults, and anxieties, we have been, happily, almost entirely exempt. Whilst these are confined to the nations which gave them existence, and within their legitimate jurisdiction, they cannot affect us, except as they appeal to our sympathies in the cause of human freedom and universal advancement. But the vast interests of commerce are common to all mankind, and the advantages of trade and international intercourse must always present a noble field for the moral influence of a great people. With these views firmly and honestly carried out, we have a right to expect, and shall, under all circumstances, require prompt reciprocity. The rights which belong to us as a nation are not alone to be regarded, but those which pertain to every citizen in his individual capacity, at home and abroad, must be sacredly maintained. So long as he can discern every star in its place upon that ensign, without wealth to purchase for him preferment, or title to secure for him place, it will be his privilege, and must be his acknowledged right, to stand unabashed, even in the presence of princes, with a proud consciousness that he is himself one of a nation of sovereigns, and that he cannot, in legitimate pursuit, wander so far from home that the agent whom he shall leave behind in the place I now occupy, will not see that no rude hand of power or tyrannical passion is laid upon him with impunity. He must realize that upon every sea, and on every soil, where our enterprise may rightfully seek the protection of our flag, American citizenship is an inviolable panoply for the security of American rights. And, in this connection, it can hardly be necessary to reaffirm a principle which should now be regarded as fundamental. The rights, security, and repose of this Confederacy reject the idea of interference or colonization, on this side of the ocean, by any foreign Power, beyond present jurisdiction, as utterly inadmissible. The opportunities of observation, furnished by my brief experience as a soldier, confirmed in my own mind the opinion, entertained and acted upon by others from the formation of the Government, that the maintenance of large standing armies in our country would be not only dangerous, but unnecessary. They also illustrated the importance, I might well say the absolute necessity, of the military science and practical skill furnished, in such an eminent degree, by the institution which has made your Army what it is, under the discipline and instruction of officers not more distinguished for their solid attainments, gallantry, and devotion to the public service, than for unobtrusive bearing and high moral tone. The Army, as organized, must be the nucleus around which, in every time of need, the strength of your military power, the sure bulwark of your defense-a national militia-may be readily formed into a well disciplined and efficient organization. And the skill and self-devotion of the Navy assure you that you may take the performance of the past as a pledge for the future, and may confidently expect that the flag which has waved its untarnished folds over every sea, will still float in undiminished honor. But these, like many other subjects, will be appropriately brought, at a future time, to the attention of the coödinate branches of the Government, to which I shall always look with profound respect, and with trustful confidence that they will accord to me the aid and support which I shall so much need, and which their experience and wisdom will readily suggest. In the administration of domestic affairs you expect a devoted integrity in the public service, and an observance of rigid economy in all departments, so marked as never justly to be questioned. If this reasonable expectation be not realized, I frankly confess that one of your leading hopes is doomed to disappointment, and that my efforts, in a very important particular, must result in a humiliating failure. Offices can be properly regarded only in the light of aids for the accomplishment of these objects; and as occupancy can confer no prerogative, nor importunate desire for preferment any claim, the public interest imperatively demands that they be considered with sole reference to the duties to be performed. Good citizens may well claim the protection of good laws and the benign influence of good government; but a claim for office is what the people of a Republic should never recognize. No reasonable man of any party will expect the Administration to be so regardless of its responsibility, and of the obvious elements of success, as to retain persons, known to be under the influence of political hostility and partisan prejudice, in positions which will require not only severe labor, but cordial coöperation. Having no implied engagements to ratify, no rewards to bestow, no resentments to remember, and no personal wishes to consult, in selections for official station, I shall fulfill this difficult and delicate trust, admitting no motive as worthy either of my character or position which does not contemplate an efficient discharge of duty and the best interests of my country. I acknowledge my obligations to the masses of my countrymen, and to them alone. Higher objects than personal aggrandizement gave direction and energy to their exertions in the late canvass, and they shall not be disappointed. They require at my hands diligence, integrity, and ca SENATE. pacity, wherever there are duties to be performed. Without these qualities in their public servants, more stringent laws for the prevention or punishment of fraud, negligence, and peculation will be vain. With them, they will be unnecessary. But these are not the only points to which you look for vigilant watchfulness. The dangers of a concentration of all power in the General Government of a Confederacy so vast as ours, are too obvious to be disregarded. You have a right, therefore, to expect your agents, in every Department, to regard strictly the limits imposed upon them by the Constitution of the United States. The great scheme of our constitutional liberty rests upon a proper distribution of power between the State and Federal authorities; and experience has shown that the harmony and happiness of our people must depend upon a just discrimination between the separate rights and responsibilities of the States and your common rights and obligations under the General Government. And here, in my opinion, are the considerations which should form the true basis of future concord, in regard to the questions which have most seriously disturbed public tranquillity. If the Federal Government will confine itself to the exercise of powers clearly granted by the Constitution, it can hardly happen that its action upon any question should endanger the institutions of the States, or interfere with their right to manage matters strictly domestic according to the will of their own people. In expressing briefly my views upon an important subject which has recently agitated the nation to almost a fearful degree, I ain moved by no other impulse than a most earnest desire for the perpetuation of that Union which has made us what we are, showering upon us blessings, and conferring a power and influence which our fathers could hardly have anticipated, even with their most sanguine hopes directed to a far-off future. The sentiments I now announce were not unknown before the expression of the voice which called me here. My own position upon this subject was clear and unequivocal, upon the record of my words and my acts; and it is only recurred to at this time because silence might perhaps be misconstrued. With the Union my best and dearest earthly hopes are entwined. Without it, what are we, individually or collectively? What becomes of the noblest field ever opened for the advancement of our race, in religion, in government, in the arts, and in all that dignifies and adorns mankind? From that radiant constellation, which both illumes our own way and points out to struggling nations their course, let but a single star be lost, and, if there be not utter darkness, the luster of the whole is dimmed. Do my countrymen need any assurance that such a catastrophe is not to overtake them while I possess the power to stay it? It is with me an earnest and vital belief, that as the Union has been the source, under Providence, of our prosperity to this time, so it is the surest pledge of the continuance of the blessings we have enjoyed, and which we are sacredly bound to transmit undiminished to our children. The field of calm and free discussion in our country is open, and will always be so, but it never has been and never can be traversed for good in a spirit of sectionalism and uncharitableness. The founders of the Republic dealt with things as they were presented to them, in a spirit of self-sacrificing patriotism, and, as time has proved, with a comprehensive wisdom which it will always be safe for us to consult. Every measure tending to strengthen the fraternal feelings of all the members of our Union has had my heartfelt approbation. To every theory of society or government, whether the offspring of feverish ambition or of morbid enthusiasm, calculated to dissolve the bonds of law and affection which unite us, I shall interpose a ready and stern resistance. I believe that involuntary servitude, as it exists in different States of this Confederacy, is recognized by the Constitution. I be lieve that it stands like any other admitted right, and that the States where it exists are entitled to efficient remedies to enforce the constitutional provisions. I hold that the laws of 1850, commonly called the "compromise measures," are strictly constitutional, and to be unhesitatingly carried into effect. I believe that the constituted authorities of this Republic are bound to regard the rights of the South in this respect as they would view any other 32D CONG.....3D Sess. legal and constitutional right, and that the laws to enforce them should be respected and obeyed, not with a reluctance encouraged by abstract opinions as to their propriety in a different state of society, but cheerfully, and according to the decisions of the tribunal to which their exposition belongs. Such have been and are my convictions, and upon them I shall act. I fervently hope that the question is at rest, and that no sectional, or ambitious, or fanatical excitement may again threaten the durability of our institutions, or obscure the light of our prosperity. But let not the foundation of our hope rest upon man's wisdom. It will not be sufficient that sectional prejudices find no place in the public deliberations. It will not be sufficient that the rash counsels of human passion are rejected. It must be felt that there is no national security but in the nation's humble, acknowledged dependence upon God and his overruling providence. We have been carried in safety through a perilous crisis. Wise counsels, like those which gave us the Constitution, prevailed to uphold it. Let the period be remembered as an admonition, and not as an encouragement, in any section of the Union, to make experiments where experiments are fraught with such fearful hazard. Let it be impressed upon all hearts, that, beautiful as our fabric is, no earthly power or wisdom could ever reunite its broken fragments. Standing as I do almost within view of the green slopes of Monticello, and, as it were, within reach of the tomb of Washington, with all the cherished memories of the past gathering around me, like so many eloquent voices of exhortation from Heaven, I can express no better hope for my country than that the kind Providence which smiled upon our fathers may enable their children to preserve the blessings they have inherited. The President having concluded his address, the Senate returned to its Chamber, and resumed its business.* * THE INAUGURATION attracted to the metropolis a greater number of persons from places more or less remote than any previous occasion of the kind, or indeed any ceremonia! whatever. Possibly the census of our district cities has been increased within a week upwards of twenty thousand, so that all our hotels, boarding-houses, and places of public entertainment, not to mention the great extension of private hospitalities, have been crowded as never before. Every contrivance that ingenuity and a spirit of accommodation || could devise has been put into requisition, in many establishments, to render the vast and sudden influx of strangers all the comfort possible. Though many persons residing within moderate distances from the city returned home after the conclusion of the ceremonies, by railroad and pri vate vehicles, still the places of public entertainment are , fully occupied. Special Session-Committees. HOUR OF MEETING. On the motion of Mr. RUSK, it was ordered that the daily hour of meeting shall be twelve o'clock, m. RECESS. On motion by Mr. WELLER, it was ordered that when the Senate adjourns, it adjourn to meet on Monday next. On motion by Mr. PETTIT, the Senate adjourned. MONDAY, March 7, 1853. Prayer by the Rev. C. M. BUTLER. The Journal of the proceedings in the special session on Friday last, embracing the proclamation of the President of the United States by which it was convene, was read. On the motion of Mr. FISH, the Journal was COMMITTEE TO WAIT ON THE PRESIDENT. Kesolved, That a committee, consisting of two members, Mr. WALKER and Mr. PHELPs were appointed the committee. CLAYTON-BULWER TREATY. Mr. CLAYTON. I submit the following resolution: Resolved, That the President be respectfully requested, if compatible in his opinion with the public interest, to communicate to the Senate the propositions mentioned in the letter of the Secretary of State accompanying the Executive message to the Senate of the 18th February last, as having been agreed upon by the Department of State, the British Minister, and the State of Costa Rica, on the 30th of April, 1852, having for their object the settlement of the territorial controversies between the States and Governments bordering on the river San Juan. Resolved, That the Secretary of State be directed to communicate to the Senate such information as it may be in the power of his Departinent to furnish, in regard to the conflicting claims of Great Britain and the State of Honduras to the islands of Roatan, Bonacea, Utilla, Barbarat Helene, and Morat, in or near the Bay of Honduras. I desire to say, that whenever that resolution can come before the Senate without interfering with the necessary business of the Senate at this time, it is my purpose to discuss the topics which are suggested by the resolution. I hope to have the At an early hour this morning drums beat and music re- opportunity of doing so at an early period. sounded in various parts of the city, as it were to arouse and prepare the people for the pageant of the day. The country adjacent poured in upon us from every point of the compass, by carriage, horse, and foot, until at length there must have been for a time approximating seventy or eighty thousand persons within our city limits. During the forenoon, Pennsylvania avenue was lined with patiently-expectant spectators, either standing at favorable positions on the widewalks, or thronging the windows cominanding the line of procession. The weather was not pleasant; a raw northeasterly wind, wafting a pretty con tinuous, though fast melting snow, made its effects felt. As per programme, the military companies of our own and other places (eighteen in number) met on the parade ground in front of the City Hall, where they were organized under the command of Colonel William Hickey, commanding the volunteer regiment of the District of Columbia. The other constituent parts of the procession took position upon the same ground. They then, about noon, marched thence down Louisiana to Pennsylvania avenue, to escort the President elect from his lodgings (Willard's Hotel) to the Capitol. Arrived at the hotel, the procession was joined by an open barouche, containing the President and President elect, the Hons. Jesse D. Bright and Hannibal Hamlin, of the Committee of Arrangements; the barouche being surrounded by the Marshal of the District of Columbia and his Aids, and followed by several Democratic and Firemen's associations. By prior arrangement, in order to accommodate the people as much as possible in their view of the ceremony of the inauguration, the large gates of the Capitol yard were closed to carriages. The President's party and the diptomatic corps were admitted by the north side gate, and a covered way to the north door of the Capitol. The remaining (pedestrian) portion of the procession, with the people at large, entered by the northern side gate. The President, President elect, and Committee of Arrangements, Marshals, &c., having arrived in the Senate Chamber, after the usual formalities there, they proceeded thence to the platform erected for the occasion over the steps leading up to the eastern portico. The President elect then stood forward, and, holding up his right hand, took the oath of office, which was administered by the Chief Justice of the United States. The new President then de1i vered his Inaugural Address.-National Intelligencer, HON. DAVID L. YULEE. Resolved, That there be paid out of the contingent fund Florida. REPAIRING OF CAPITOL ROOMS. TUESDAY, March 8, 1853. Prayer by the Chaplain, Rev. C. M. BUTLER. Mr. BRIGHT. It is necessary, to carry out the organization of the Executive session, to appoint committees. Each side of the Chamber has conferred and agreed upon the list which the honorable Senator from North Carolina [Mr. BADGER] holds in his hand. It requires unanimous consent to permit him to present that report, and to have it acted upon. The report which he makes will be temporary-for this session only; and at the next session of Congress there will be a reorganization. I move that he have unanimous consent to present that list, and that it be acted upon without proceeding to ballot, as is prescribed by the rules of the Senate. Unanimous consent was given. Mr. BADGER. I believe, since I have been a member of this Senate, this has been the usual custom which has been pursued. This list has necessarily been prepared in great haste, and, as stated by the honorable Senator from Indiana, for the purposes of the present session. The list is as follows. On Foreign Relations.—Mr. Mason, chairman; Messrs. Douglas, Clayton, Norris, and Everett, On Finance.-Mr. Hunter, chairman; Messrs. Bright, Pearce, Gwin, and Badger. On Commerce.--Mr. Hamlin, chairman; Messrs. Soulé, Seward, Dodge of Wisconsin, and Benjamin. On Military Affairs.-Mr. Shields, chairman; Messrs. Borland, Dawson, Fitzpatrick, and Jones of Tennessee. On Naval Affairs. - Mr. Gwin, chairman; Messrs. Mallory, Fish, Thomson of New Jersey, Mr. JONES, of Iowa, submitted the following and Toombs. resolution for consideration: Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate pay the amount which may be allowed by the Committee to Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses of the Senate, for the expenses incurred during the last session, in repairing and fitting up for use two rooms in the basement of the Capitol. SENATOR FROM LOUISIANA. Mr. SOULE. I present to the Senate the memorial of several members of the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana, protesting against the action of the Legislature of that State in electing my present colleague [Mr. BENJAMIN] to the seat which he now occupies. The question raised is as to the legality of that election by the Legislature of 1852. The Legislature has this year declined going into a new election, thereby either indorsing the action of the Legislature in 1852, or conceding that they had no right to proceed to a new election. Such being the circumstances under which the memorial has been sent to me, I comply with the request directing me to present it to the Senate, but shall decline taking any further action upon the subject. On Public Lands.-Mr. Borland, chairman; Messrs. Dodge of Iowa, Pratt, Pettit, and Thompson of Kentucky. On Indian Affairs.-Mr. Sebastian, chairman; Messrs. Walker, Cooper, Rusk, and Smith. On Claims.-Mr. Brodhead, chairman; Messrs. Adams, Pratt, Chase, and Wade. - On the Judiciary. - Mr. Butler, chairman; On Roads and Canals.-Mr. Bright, chairman; On the District of Columbia.-Mr. Shields, chairman; Messrs. Norris, Badger, Mallory, and Cooper. On Patents and the Patent Office.-Mr. James, chairman; Messrs. Evans, Dawson, Stuart, and Smith. On Territories. - Mr. Douglas, chairman; 32D CONG....3D SESS. Special Session-Personal Explanation by Mr. Badger. Messrs. Weller, Cooper, Houston, and Jones of Tennessee. To Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses of the Senate.-Mr. Dodge, of Iowa, chairman; Messrs. Foot and Bright. On Public Buildings.-Mr. James, chairman; Messrs. Badger and Hunter. On the Library.-Mr. Pearce, , chairman; Messrs. Bayard and Atherton. The committees were agreed to. HON. DAVID L. YULEE. Mr. MORTON. I desire to ask the Senate to take up for consideration the resolution which I submitted yesterday, in relation to the per diem and mileage of my late colleague, [Mr. YULEE.] I am anxious that it should receive the action of the Senate, one way or the other. Mr. CLAYTON. I hope the Senator will not press his request now. Mr. MORTON. If there are any other matters before the Senate, I will not press it this morning. Mr. CLAYTON. I hope the Senator will permit the resolutions I submitted yesterday, to be taken up. Mr. MORTON. I withdraw my request. CLAYTON-BULWER TREATY. The Senate proceeded to the consideration of the resolutions submitted yesterday by Mr. CLAYTON, as follows: Resolved, That the President be respectfully requested, if compatible, in his opinion, with the public interest, to communicate to the Senate the propositions mentioned in the letter of the Secretary of State accompanying the Executive message to the Senate of the 18th February last, as having been agreed upon by the Department of State, the British Minister, and the State of Costa Rica, on the 30th of April, 1852, having for their object the settlement of the territorial controversies between the States and Governments bordering on the river San Juan. Resolved, That the Secretary of State be directed to communicate to the Senate such information as it may be in the power of his Department to furnish, in regard to the conflicting claims of Great Britain and the State of Hon in my hand, taken from a political newspaper printed in the town of Wilmington, North Carolina, which I ask may be read as the basis of the observations which I have to submit to the Senate. The Secretary read it as follows: "THIS WEEK.-The close of business on Thursday night virtually concludes the present Administration of national affairs. At twelve o'clock on Friday, Franklin Pierce will take the oath of office as President of the United States. "The present Congress will also end at the same time, and there is great reason to fear that it will go out without having done anything for our river or bars. The only chance now is with the Senate, and both the Senators from this State turn their backs upon the affair and upon us. Whig or Democrat, Federalist or Republican, we must have a Cape Fear Senator, if we hope to have anything done for the interests of this portion of the State. Messrs. Badger and Mangum care for us about the value of a chew of tobacco. Perhaps, however, Mr. Ashe may yet be able to effect something through others; but it is an up-hill business, when even the urgent resolutions of the Legislature of their own State cannot induce our North Carolina Senators to cooperate with him. That they have refused to do so, we know." Mr. BADGER. The second session which 1 served in this body, I was called upon by the inhabitants of Wilmington, and others who were immediately interested in the navigation of Cape Fear river at and below that town, to endeavor to secure some appropriation furnishing lights and buoys for that river. I set myself to work, as of course I was bound to do, and endeavored to have that measure of just relief extended to the people of that portion of the State; and I was successful in procuring the first and, so far as I know, the only effectual measure for giving security to the navigation of that stream. On that and on every occasion, it has been my custom rather to endeavor to do what the interests of my constituents required, than to make a public exhibition of myself on this floor as their friend, always preferring to have measures adopted for their relief rather than to make speeches by which I might hold myself forth as their special champion. This winter my attention was early called to the necessity for an duras to the islands of Roatan, Bonacca, Utilla, Barbarat, appropriation in respect to the entrance of Cape Helene, and Morat, in or near the Bay of Honduras. Mr. CLAYTON addressed the Senate for more than two hours upon the resolutions, and without concluding, gave way to a motion to postpone the further consideration of the resolutions until tomorrow; which was agreed to. WEDNESDAY, March 9, 1853. Prayer by the Chaplain, Rev. C. M. BUTLER. Mr. BADGER. In proposing the committees yesterday, an oversight was made in regard to the Committee on Printing, which, as it may be necessary in the course of the Executive session, I ask the unanimous consent of the Senate to have now appointed. I propose that the following be the members of that committee: Mr. BORLAND, chairman; Messrs. HAMLIN and SMITH. The motion was agreed to. PERSONAL EXPLANATION. Mr. BADGER. I desire to ask a few minutes of the time of the Senate this morning, for the purpose of making what is commonly called a personal explanation. It is the first time in the course of my service in the Senate-which has now extended into the seventh session-that I have ever troubled myself with any matters which happen outside of the Chamber, and have ever thought any personal concern of mine important enough to excite the attention of this body. I am in the habit of looking on every assault made against me in the public press with indifference, bordering very strongly on contempt, and perhaps have carried the matter rather further than a just consideration of what is due to my position and to my constituents exactly warranted. But a case has now arisen which I feel myself bound to make an exception to the general rule of silence, indifference, and contempt, which I have observed, because it is necessary to do so, both in justice to myself and to Mr. MANGUM, my late colleague in this body. to Fear river, the case made being this: The Government of the United States had established certain jetties to protect the site of Fort Caswell, the effect of which had been to make that side of the entrance firm, but to turn the current to Bald Head, on the opposite point; and by washing loose sands to precipitate them into the channels, and so to promote a rapid filling up, the consequence of which was that the channel was shallowed from twenty to twelve feet, and was losing its present depth at the rate of nine inches a year. The Legislature of the State adopted a resolution on the subject, which I had the honor to present here, and had referred to the Committee on Commerce. I felt the absolute necessity for something being done, and done promptly; that it was a condition of things not only that required relief, but which did not admit of delay in affording that relief. I learned afterwards, from my friend who is at the head of the Committee of Commerce, [Mr. HAMLIN,] that the committee had declined to report any separate measure, and would allow these things to be considered only upon a general bill. I thought that was unjust to the particular locality of which I have spoken, and having provided myself with a communication from Professor Bache, showing not only the necessity of the work, but that it was indispensable that it should be immediately commenced, I procured the unanimous consent of the Committee on Naval Affairs to report an amendment proposing an appropriation of $50,000 for the object. At the same time the committee unanimously concurred in reporting a similar amendment for removing wrecks from the Savannah river, in the State of Georgia; and as I was called upon by you, sir, to relieve you in part from the oppressive labors brought upon the Chair by the close of the session, it was agreed between me and the late Senator from Georgia (Mr. CHARLTON) that the amendment should be offered by him. I signified to several of my friends on this floor, particularly my friends on the Democratic side of the Chamber-among whom it gives me great satisfaction to say that have many warm ones-that this was a measure not only right and proper in itself; not only requiring immediate provisions by law, but that I felt a personal interest and anxious personal desire that the amendment should be adopted. The SENATE. two amendments were proposed by the late Senator from Georgia. They were adopted. They were sent to the House of Representatives, which refused its concurrence. The honorable chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs, [Mr. GWIN,] who was upon the two Committees of Conference between the two Houses upon the Navy appropriation bill, knows, that at my earnest instance, he made it a point to insist upon those amendments; and my friend from Georgia, also, [Mr. DAWSON,] a member of the committee, who is not now present, joined him in insisting upon it; and feeling the present necessity, as well as yielding to my personal wishes and solicitation on the subject, offered in committee that he would surrender the appropriation for the river in his own State, if the House committee would agree to permit this appropriation for Cape Fear to pass. In all these proceedings I had the cheerful, hearty, and anxious concurrence of Mr. MANGUM, my late colleague, who in each and every respect acted as became an American Senator and as a North Carolinian, feeling it his special duty to provide for what was necessary for any and every portion of the State which jointly with me he represented on this floor. comes. In these proceedings, Mr. President, I discharged nothing more than I felt to be my duty. I desired no thanks. I expected no commendation. At least I knew I should receive none from the quarter from which the extract which has been read But I did think, and do think, that it is a little hard, when a gentleman has thus endeavored to procure what is desired for a particular locality in his State, that he should be falsly denounced as having utterly refused to coöporate with the gentleman who represents that district in the other House, in endeavoring to procure this relief, and turned his back as in scorn and contempt to the application. Mr. President, I feel desirous, now and ever, to vindicate myself from the suspicion that under any circumstances I could permit personal or political considerations, public or private griefs, to induce me to neglect any duty which belongs to me as an American Senator, and especially any duty which belongs to me as a Senator from the State of North Carolina. This communication remarks, that it is absolutely necessary, in order to have these things done, that the Cape Fear portion of the State shall have a Senator upon this floor. I have no doubt that there are many gentlemen there who could represent the State on this floor with far greater ability than myself, and possibly with greater ability than my fate colleague; but this I venture to assert, that no man from that or any other section of the State, can ever represent it with truer devotion, and more earnest and unfaltering attention to the promotion of every interest of North Carolina of which the General Government has charge; and I will add another thing, that, if any gentleman shall be sent here from the Cape Fear region, and he expects to procure the aid or assistance of the Senate in promoting measures of internal improvements, whether of harbors or rivers, which he may deem essential in his own State, he will have to adopt a different system of tactics, and avow a different system of principles from those which have generally been avowed by the representatives of that portion of the State. It is not the most persuasive method of getting gentlemen who represent other portions of the country to do anything for North Carolina, to announce that he who asks the assistance or favor is utterly opposed to doing anything for any other portions of the country. Mr. President, I am sorry to have trespassed upon the Senate, and especially that I have been obliged to make this statement, containing necessarily so much of egotism; but I felt that it was due to myself. I did not choose that my constituents in North Carolina, my Democratic constituents, who are just and honorable men, should, by anything in the party press, suppose me to be the unworthy person which I am represented in that publication to be. I take this method, in justice to my late colleague and myself, of putting this matter right, because the leading Democratic journal here, being one of the official reporters of the Senate, this explanation will appear in its columns, and be read by hundreds in North Carolina who never otherwise would see it. I believe I |