He regretted exceedingly, and knew not why it was, that the gentleman from Mississippi had assumed this an-tag-o-nis-ti-cal (he believed that was the fashionable phrase) position towards him. He was willing, at all times, and on all occasions, to acknowledge his own inferiority to that gentleman. The triumph was his. Let him be at ease, then; and when he quoted other avowals, quote this also.

Mr. WALKER replied that he had only a single remark to made, and that merely in reference to the concluding observations of the gentleman. He was not the first to commence this warfare. The Senator from Kentucky, in a speech of great eloquence and ability, had opposed a measure of his. As to mental powers, he readily, not in a spirit of irony, but with the most perfect sincerity, admitted that Senator's infinite superiority to him.

[MAY 5, 1836.

some of these books, till his attention was called to the subject; but since then, he had strongly resisted all such appropriations. He presumed, as the books had been printed and paid for, that they must be distributed; but he was opposed to that part of the distribution which referred to their worthy selves, and he would therefore move to strike out that part of the amendment which gives one copy to each member of Congress.

Mr. WEBSTER said the distribution would be made in the usual way. The question involved in the amendment was merely whether they should be distributed, as they were already ordered and paid for, or whether they should remain in the lumber-room. He hoped the amendment would not prevail.

Mr BENTON replied that they did well to appropriate money for the transportation of these books, for whoever they were to be sent to would, cheap as transportation now was, hardly be willing to pay for getting such useless lumber. He had, therefore, no objection to pay for sending them away; but he was opposed to

GENERAL APPROPRIATION BILL.

On motion of Mr. WEBSTER, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill making appropriations for the civil and diplomatic expenses of Government for the year 1836.

The amendment making an appropriation of $2,500 to enable the Secretary to distribute, as ordered by a resolution of the Senate, a compilation of documents relative to land titles, being under consideration-

Mr. BENTON moved to strike out the provision for giving one set to each Senator. He thought it had been considered as settled, for two sessions past, that they were done with giving themselves books at the public expense. It had been stated in the other House by Mr. Johnson, of Tennessee, that it would take about one thousand dollars to each member, to put him on the same footing, with respect to books, as the old members. He was aware that it was an exceedingly ungracious task to oppose giving the same books to the new members that had been given to the old; but the thing had been commenced two years ago, by his friend from Georgia, [Mr. KING,] who deserved the thanks of the country for calling their attention to one of the grossest abuses. This was one of the greatest impositions that had ever come to his notice, with the exception, perhaps, of one enormous and flagrant abuse--a work that was to go on for years, to an unknown extent, and then to be distributed to those who were members of the 22d Congress. He did not know whether it was proposed to give copies to the legal representatives of such of the members as have died; but it was certain that they would, under the provision of the resolutions, have a right to them. They might go to the assignees of these members; and it had been stated by the Senator from Georgia, [Mr. KING,] that a member of Congress had sold to a bookseller in this place, for ten dollars, his share of that which was to cost the United States hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Mr. B. here spoke of the uselessness of the work proposed to be distributed, and the shameful waste of public money in printing such a mass of worthless matter. The principal part of the publication related to the preliminary proceedings in investigating the titles to lands, which were not worthy of preservation, as every thing relating to land titles was merged in the patents which had since issued. There were, Mr. B. said, in an office in this city, about five hundred volumes of documents, which he apprehended cost the Government far beyond $1,000, and he should consider them a dear bargain at $100. He had, it was true, voted at first for

give them away to anybody that would take them. They might be useful to the grocers, if the leaves had not been cut; but as it was, they were hardly worth having to wrap a herring up in. Such had been the enormity of the abuse in printing worthless documents, that he had been told by the servants of the boarding-houses that the mass printed during the panic session had glutted the market, and that their perquisites had fallen to about two cents per pound. The gentleman near him smiled at what he said; but he would tell him that if he would take his little children to a shoe store and buy a pair of shoes, he would find that they would be wrapped up in public documents. Buy whatever he would in any of the stores of this city, he would find his purchases wrapped up in papers that had been printed by order of Congress. Indeed, such had been the profusion with which these public documents had been printed, that they had greatly depreciated even as wrapping-paper; there was no doubt of there being a surplus there. If no other disposition could be made of these documents, they might put them to the same use that the Ottoman conqueror did the books of the Alexandria library-distribute them among the public booths, to be used as fuel. There were public booths in this city, where these documents might be found useful in the same way. Mr. B. was opposed, out and out, to giving these documents to the members of Congress, and be therefore asked the yeas and nays on his motion.

Mr. HILL said the number of volumes was five, and they were not worth, for anybody's use, the trouble of carrying them home. There were, at a former session, 850 additional copies ordered out of the contingent fund, by a simple resolution offered by Mr. Poindexter, and the cost of which amounted to $57,000. They were made up of mere notes taken in relation to the public lands, and he believed were not even of any value to the Territories; and if this was not extravagance, he did not know what was.

Mr. BENTON here read extracts from one of the volumes, taken at random, he said, from the pile, and opened in the middle, which were a fair sample of the whole publication. There never was, he said, a grosser imposition practised than was done in the publication of this work. Here was a sample of the five volumes, and the whole related to land titles thirty years ago, which were all merged in the patents, the only titles now necessary to be looked at.

Mr. EWING of Ohio had not examined these documents to ascertain their value, but he had found some of a similar kind very useful and valuable as books of reference to members, on the subject of public lands.

Mr. WEBSTER observed, that this was a subject of

which he professed to have no knowledge. Whether these books were useful or not, could better be judged of by gentlemen coming from the States where the public lands were. All he rose to say was, that he thought it unnecessary to delay the appropriation bill in questions of this kind, and that the best way would be to reject the amendment at once.

Mr. WALKER did not concur with the Senator from Missouri in his opinion as to the value of these books. As books of reference, he had found them very useful while on the Select Committee; and although there might be a great deal in them that was not worth printing, yet he did not think that he could have got on without them. As regarded their distribution, he thought, with his friend from Missouri, that they ought not to be given to Senators individually, though it would be proper to give them to them in their official characters, to be retained while they were in the Senate, and to be handed over to their successors on leaving it.

Mr. KING of Alabama thought, at the time the resc lution was adopted, that they would be paying for a useless work. Some of the matter contained in the pub. lication might be useful, but a great deal of it certainly was not so. A great deal of it had been printed before in another work, as the Senator from Missouri had well observed, and they had therefore to pay double for the same matter. But the time had gone by, when it would be profitable to discuss this question--they had got the work; and the question was, what were they to do with it? As regarded the distribution, he was opposed on principle to the giving books to Senators. If the work was at all useful, let all the copies, said Mr. K., be thrown into the library of Congress.

Mr. BENTON referred the Senator from Mississippi to two publications-one being a compilation of documents relative to the public lands, by Matthew St. Clair Clarke, and the other a work now going on by Gales & Seaton, in which the Senator would find all the information he wanted in a more compendious form, without being cumbered with the mass of obsolete and useless matter that loaded this publication. He wished the gentleman to be informed that the type set up on this work was taken in the form already set up from another office; so that the Senate was paying for the same work twice. Let the gentle man refer to the collections relating to the public lands now going on by Gales & Seaton, and he would find all the information he wanted in a more compendious form.

Mr. WEBSTER wished the Senate to negative the whole amendment. He did not wish to be involved in a debate on the printing and distribution of documents, to the delay of the most important appropriation bill.

Mr. LINN could not entirely concur with his colleague as to the value of these documents. Although much useless matter might have been printed, yet he thought they contained a great deal of useful information.

Mr. BLACK said the only way in which these books were valuable, was, to Committees on Private Land Claims; when claims were presented, by turning to these books, the proceedings had in relation to them could be found, and attempts at imposition could be detected.

Mr. WRIGHT said, after the expression given by the Senate, he would vote for the bill as amended by the Senator from Missouri. He would, however, state a fact within his knowledge, which was, that three of these volumes were mere transcripts, word for word, and letter for letter, of three other volumes; and he remembered very well, when the resolution authorizing their publication was offered, (which he supposed, at the time, was for some temporary publication, and never dreamed that the whole expense would amount to $500; and never knew of the enormous expense incurred until his attention was drawn to it by an estimate made in the

[SENATE.

other House,) the Secretary of the Senate had complained that they encumbered his room. The books were already purchased, and the lumber was on their hands; and the only question now was, whether they should distribute it.

Mr. BENTON'S motion was then adopted; and the question recurring on the amendment of the committeeMr. KING of Georgia observed, that he had already said so much in relation to the printing of books, that he did not think it necessary to say any thing now, further than that he agreed with his friend from Missouri as to the utter worthlessness of these books. If useful at all, they could only be so to the Committee on Private Land Claims; and it had been well observed, that they might obtain all the information that was in these documents and in other publications that had been made by order of the Senate, in a much more compendious form. He did not want any of them to be on his table; and he would give them away to anybody that would take them.

Mr. KNIGHT moved to amend the amendment by providing for the sending of one copy of the publication to the Historical Society of Rhode Island, and one copy to a college in that State. Mr. K. said it seemed that these books were of no value to anybody, and yet they were extremely loath to part with them. He thought they would increase in value as they increased in age.

Mr. BUCHANAN did not care much about the distribution of these books; but as it appeared that there were books to be given away, he would only say that he left the House of Representatives in 1831, and came into the Senate in 1834; consequently, he found himself entitled to no books. He thought that when books were to be distributed, he and the gentleman from Georgia [Mr. CUTHBERT] ought to have a share.

Mr. BENTON observed that this showed what a vile thing it was. Here were members sitting on that floor who were entitled to no books, while those who had been out of Congress for four years could get them; and if they had died in the interim, the books must go to their heirs.

Mr. KNIGHT's amendment was rejected.

On motion of Mr. WEBSTER, the bill was further amended by the insertion of an appropriation of three hundred dollars for completing the medals heretofore voted to General Ripley.

Mr. PRESTON moved to amend the bill by adding an appropriation of 20,000 dollars for the erection of a court-house for the courts of the United States in Charleston, South Carolina.

Mr. BLACK moved to amend the amendment by adding an appropriation of 20,000 dollars for the erection of a court-house for the courts of the United States at Jackson, Mississippi.

Mr. BUCHANAN moved further to amend the amendment by adding an appropriation for the erection of a court-house for the courts of the United States at Philadelphia.

After some remarks from Messrs. PRESTON, BLACK, BUCHANAN, WEBSTER, and MANGUM,

Mr. PRESTON withdrew his motion, and the motions of Messrs. BLACK and BUCHANAN consequently fell with it.

Mr. MANGUM moved to amend the bill by striking out the appropriation of 340,000 dollars for the contingent expenses of the courts of the United States, which, he said, was extravagant and unnecessary, and insert 140,000 dollars.

After some opposition from Mr. WEBSTER, this amendment was rejected.

On motion of Mr. EWING of Ohio, the bill was amended by inserting an appropriation for the survey of lands lately acquired from the Indians in the Wisconsin Territory.

The amendments of the committee were then concurred in, and the bill was reported to the Senate; when

Mr. KING of Georgia moved to amend it by striking out the appropriation of $20,000 for the documentary history of the revolution now in progress by Matthew St. Clair Clarke and Peter Force.

Mr. BENTON hoped that the motion to strike out this appropriation would prevail. He was rejoiced to see the Senator from Georgia persisting in the good work, and he would enlist with him for the war. They had already paid $20,000 for this work, without seeing a page of it; and that, he thought, was enough to break up this improper contract. He thought that this work was stopped two years ago; but now it seemed that more money was asked for it." His attention had been called

to some remarks made in relation to this work the other day in the House of Representatives, which he would now read for the benefit of the Senate.

[Here Mr. B. read some remarks made by Mr. JOHNSON of Tennessee.]

That gentleman stated in his place that there was a bill brought in to print this work at $8 per volume, and that it was rejected by the House on account of the price; yet, at the succeeding session, another bill was brought in, which was hurried through almost without notice, at the heels of the session, giving $13 50 for this same work. The gentleman further informed him, that, on searching among the files of the House for this manuscript bill that had been thus rejected, they found the bills immediately before and after it; but that bill could not now be found. All this showed that the contract had been obtained in an improper manner.

I am to receive (said Mr. B.) $262 worth of this work; while the gentleman from New Jersey, [Mr. WALL,] who sits on my right, is to receive nothing. At least one-half of those who were now members of Congress would get no copies, while those who were members of the 22d Congress would get them; or, if they should not now be delivered, they would be given to their executors. Two years ago, (said Mr. B.,) we struck out this thing, and the next morning it was reinstated. This session it was struck out in the House of Representatives, and the next morning it was in like manner reinstated. Night work, sir, night work, (said Mr. B.;) what was done in the morning was undone at night.

The extent to which this work was carried was a great abuse. The contract was got through for a work professing to be a documentary history of the revolution, and they had got matter as far back as the settlement of the pilgrims; while they had to pay double as much as the work could be printed for anywhere else. He hoped the appropriation would be struck out. Every thing that these gentlemen had been compiling would be found in the library of Congress or in the library of the Department of State; so that the compilers had not been put to much trouble in making their collections. He was for putting a stop at once to the work; and if the compilers could show that they were damnified, he would readily agree to pay them, and pay them liberally. Mr. SOUTHARD said, that when a contract had been made, and the work commenced under it, it then would be a violation of the principles of justice in refusing to go on with it. This was an appropriation bill for items allowed by law, and, while the contract stood, it did not seem to him to be honest to withhold payment. If there was any thing wrong in the matter, the proper way would be to let a resolution of inquiry be offered, and a committee of investigation appointed. But when a contract was made for a work to be published, they could not refuse an appropriation to complete it. The Senator from Missouri had made charges upon mere allegations.

[MAY 5, 1836.

[Mr. BENTON said he had based his charges upon what a member had said in his place on the floor of Congress.]

The Senator, then, (said Mr. S.,) rests his charges upon the allegation of what a member of the other House had said in his place, although the House of Representatives had passed the bill in the face of the statement of that member. He would be unwilling, for his part, to proceed in any case on such evidence alone. He would first ask for the evidence, before he could do what he was here asked to do. Did it, he asked, dissolve them from the contract, because the work was worthless? The inquiry whether the work was worth the continuation of its publication, would be proper enough. But when the Secretary of State made the contract, it was in the power of Congress either to confirm or reject; but they confirmed it. He gave no opinion of the value of the work at present. He spoke of the importance of preserving the records of the early history of our country, and to which he cared nothing about the expense. He was not willing that the Senate, at a single jump, should violate the rights of parties; but, with the Senator from Massachu setts, [Mr. WEBSTER,] he was willing that a committee should be appointed to inquire into the matter.

[At the close of Mr. SOUTHARD's remarks, a sample of the work under discussion was handed to several of the Senators.]

Mr. HILL said he did not wish to consume the time of the Senate, to throw any obstacle in the way of the passage of the appropriation bill; but to prevent an improvident contract being fastened upon the nation, it was indispensable that the item of twenty thousand dollars towards the publication of the work of Messrs. Clarke & Force should be stricken out; if that item was retained, we would hereafter have no hope that an immense expenditure would be avoided.

The Senator from Missouri had said that the original bill which authorized this expenditure had passed without the attention of anybody. The Senator was under a mistake; and he (Mr. H.) would refer to the Senate Journal of 1833, to prove the fact. On the 27th of February, three days before the close of the session, three propositions of immense jobs of printing were brought up at the same time. Each of these propositions, as were many others of a like tenor, was reported and recommended by the Library Committee, who had always been exclusively of one political party. Reports from that committee had usually been made in whispers, in so low a tone of voice, that it had been impossible for him [Mr. HILL] to hear them when they were made; but all three of these propositions for printing had attracted his attention when they came up for a third reading. The first proposition was for a continuation of Gales & Seaton's compilation of State Papers, extending that work eight volumes, and involving an expense to the Treasury of $63,000. Mr. Foot, the late Senator from Connecticut, was then in the chair; and I called for the ayes and noes to be taken on the question. The attention of so few was called to the subject, and the question was so hurried by the Chair, that one-fifth of the Senate failed to respond to the call I then made. Then, almost in the same breath, came up for consideration the bill to provide for the publication of a stereotype edition of the laws of the United States by Duff Green. Although his proposition was nearly double the price at which the same work had been offered by several other printers, it was passed by a vote of twenty-five to seven. On this proposition, which involved an expenditure of at least $125,000, I was able to obtain the ayes and noes, and six other Senators voted with me against the bill. Then succeeded immediately the bill making provision for the publication of the documentary history of the revolution by Messrs. Clarke & Force; and on the ques

tion of its passage, my call for the ayes and noes was not sustained by one-fifth of the Senators present: the Occupant of the chair hurrying the decision, and evincing little disposition to gratify my wish to ascertain who was in favor and who against this extravagant expenditure for public printing. This third resolution, at the minimum calculation, involved an expenditure of about $500,000-it may amount to two or four millions; nay, there is no limit to it. The publication may include every thing connected with the time of the revolution.

It is worthy of remark, continued Mr. H., that all these extravagant projects for printing have been in favor of one side of the question exclusively. The three propositions to which I have adverted embraced each branch of the opposition. Gales & Seaton were to have a fat job, and Duff Green's friends insisted that he should have one also. When the proposition came to be considered in the House of Representatives on the last night of the session, Gales & Seaton's and Clarke & Force's bills passed--both belonging to and including one branch of the opposition. Duff Green's proposition to stereotype the laws and treaties failed; they disappointing the other branch of the opposition. But this disappointment was made up at the beginning of the next session, (1834,) by a resolution of a late Senator from Mississippi, (Mr. Poindexter,) authorizing the publication of land documents, which also passed without attracting sufficient attention of the Senators to call for a division of the question-probably when not half a dozen Senators heard the resolution read. The execution of this measure has involved an expenditure of $57,327 to be paid from the contingent fund of the Senate; and the result is, the publication of five folio volumes, sixteen hundred copies each--or eight thous and volumes in the whole--a lumber, which has been proved to be of no use to every nine hundred and ninety-nine in a thousand of the people of the United States--a publication so useless, as really not to be worth the price of transport for members carrying it home, and which now encumbers the rooms of the Capitol. Three of these folios were but a reprint of the very documents published by Gales & Seaton; and they were twice printed, in the same year, at the public expense.

The price of the proposed publication is said to be $13 62 per volume--about twice as much as the price of Congress printing; and this Congress printing is much higher than the prices of printing in all our principal towns. This matter of printing is alleged to be a small affair, not worthy of the attention of Senators. Although it is a subject of little interest here, it may be interesting elsewhere, to look into the expenditures for public printing at this point. From a report of the Secretary of the Senate, made at the commencement of the present session, I have taken the footings of the several years of the public printing, which I will pre

sent:

[SENATE.

85,342 22

1835, By this statement, it will be seen that the expense of printing for the Senate has been multiplied twenty times, and that of the House ten times! The Senator from Kentucky [Mr. CLAY] had reproached the administration for its "utter and reckless extravagance," and taunted it with its failure in making "retrenchment and reform." The extravagant expenditures by the Senate and House, of millions for public printing, could not be charged on the administration, or its friends; the Executive certainly is not responsible for them. From the Secretary's report, I have gathered the facts that Gales & Seaton, during sixteen years, from 1820 to 1835, have received from the Treasury $651,723 84, or an average of more than $40,000 a year; Duff Green, for nine years, from 1827 to 1835, $443,144 78, or nearly $50,000 per annum; and Francis P. Blair, for five years, from 1831 to 1835, has received $19,479 54, or about $3,900 per annum. These persons are editors of the three daily political papers which have been published at the seat of Government.

What

The first two are inveterate opponents; the latter is friendly to the administration. These expenditures show in what channel the patronage of the public press has been directed under the present administration. Before it was drawn into this temptation, the National Intelligencer was the faithful organ of the public voice; all who could remember as far back as the year 1812, could remember what the Intelligencer was. is that paper-whose organ is it now? The other opposition paper, the Telegraph, had pretended friendship for the administration until it had procured the printing; but it had instinctively turned to the party which always paid best. Here is a million of dollars paid to two printers, (a large portion of it since the present administration came into power,) whose newspapers have been constantly employed to batter down the administration.

How happens it (said Mr. H.) that all resolutions for extra jobs of printing have been on one side of the political question? Is it because the Committee on the Library have had no political predilections? That committee, I repeat, has for several years been exclusively of one political party; and the administration has not had so much as one poor representative in this body upon it. This Clarke & Force's is not less a political business than the other contracts. The persons employed in it are of one side; if it is carried through the Senate at this time, it will be carried as an opposition measure. The Senator from New Jersey [Mr. SOUTHARD] says it will not be honest now to refuse to carry into effect this contract. There surely can be no injustice, no dishonesty, in stopping this wasteful expenditure, if Congress shall indemnify Clarke & Force for the expenditures they have already made. Twenty thousand dollars have already been advanced to them; more will be paid, if more has been expended. There can be no hesitation in saying that Congress had been deceived and cheated into this measure, whether the publishers had or had not intended it. Mr. Livingston, the late Secretary of State, to whom the business of contracting had been referred, had been imposed on: he knew nothing of the nature of the contract himself; and it is now said the person who happened to be the agent to make a bargain with Clarke & Force was a person in direct interest with them.

Hence may we account for the raising of the price from eight dollars per volume, as first proposed by the publishers themselves, to thirteen dollars sixty-two cents, as prescribed in the contract. It is very evident we have been imposed on in some way. It now seems, as a matter of grace, that these contractors are willing to limit the expenditure to somewhere about half a million of dollars. There is yet no limit to this matter; if it proceeds, the present generation may not see the end to it. I have never consented to this contract, and never will consent to it. The work, when it is printed, is to be distributed among the members of Congress of 1833, who voted for the bill, and to members who have not been in Congress for two years. There surely is great impropriety in this part of the law. It cannot be said that injustice is done to these publishers if Congress remunerates them for their expenses until this time, and the work shall henceforth cease and be discontinued.

Mr. BENTON said, as he understood it, the House did believe what Mr. Johnson said; for they struck out the appropriation by a large majority; and that appropriation was reinstated next morning, after operating on the members the over night. He would now offer a resolution, which he hoped would be received by general consent, to appoint a committee to examine into the progress of this work, and to report to the Senate what ought to be paid to the compilers for what they had done.

It

Mr. KING of Georgia said that the resolution was unnecessary, as nothing could be due on the work. was impossible that the sum $20,000, appropriated last year, had been expended in collecting materials for this work; so tha', in fact, nothing could be due on the contract. His proposition was to strike out the appropriation of $20,000.

Mr. WEBSTER observed that it would be unjust to suppose that these contractors would print any thing not authorized by Congress. It was well known that they had offered to submit the selection of the matter to be printed to an agent appointed by Congress; and it was also well known that they had agreed to an important modification of the contract. The contract might be broken up; but the question was not now whether they should pay the money or not. The contract had been made-whether improvidently or not, it was not now for him to say; and they were as much bound to make the appropriation, as to appropriate money for the pay of salaried officers. He hoped that the progress of the bill would not be interrupted by the consideration of the resolution offered by the Senator from Missouri, [Mr. BENTON.}

In regard to the contract, the parties had a right to their pay under an act of Congress; and this was only appropriating the amount to be paid. He boped no new principle would therefore be involved in this bill; and he would demand the yeas and nays, to ascertain whether the Senate would sanction such new principle.

[As the resolution of Mr. BENTON could only be received by unanimous consent, the objection by Mr. WEBSTER prevented its being received.]

Mr. MANGUM, in reply to Mr. HILL, observed that the contract for this publication had been placed on party grounds; and this extravagant and improvident contract had been charged against the opponents of the administration. Now, was this just? Who was the first to make objections to this measure? He himself was the first that called the attention of the Senate to it two years ago; and he expressed the same opinion then that he held now-that the contract would lead to an extravagant and useless expenditure of money. It was said by the Senator from New Hampshire, that the yeas and nays were not taken on the adoption of this measure; and this circumstance slowed that it was not a party

[MAY 5, 1836.

vote; for when such was the case, there were always enough ready to order them. At all events, the resolution passed at the close of the session, authorizing the publication of a documentary history of the revolution; and the contract was to be made by the highest officer under this administration, (Mr. Livingston.) Now, if there was nothing else than this improvident and extravagant contract, that would, of itself, be enough to show that Mr. Livingston was utterly unqualified for the situation he held. The contract was not only to pay double for the printing, but was for the printing of an indefinite number of volumes; so that the contractors might draw millions from the Treasury. If this was a party measure, (said Mr. M.,) put the saddle on the right horse. As to this contract, he would be glad to get rid of it in any form. He would be willing to raise a committee to rescind it; but he would say that he would take it upon himself to abrogate it at once. He was ready, however, to do the parties full justice, and would pay them liberally; nay, he would even pay them more than they were entitled to. Taunts about this contract were wholly useless. For his part, he believed that no party was censurable for it. Mr. Livingston managed it, as he had done other matters, with great improvidence, though he meant not to impugn that gentleman's integrity. to the distribution to members, he had always opposed it. There was a degree of indelicacy in voting books to themselves, which he could not approve of.

As

Mr. KING of Alabama regretted very much the course, which this discussion had taken. He did not believe that this was ever considered a party measure. He believed that they were divided two years ago, not on account of doubts of the improvidence of the contract, but because they differed as to the mode of getting rid of it.

The simple question then before them was, whether they were to go on making appropriations without sceing where they were to stop. If they could see the end of it, or if they could know what they were paying for, they might with more reason be called on to make the appropriation. It was not necessary that they should now appropriate it; they had already appropriated $20,000, and there was no reason why they should appropriate more, without knowing whether a sufficient amount of work had been done to justify it. They had no evidence before them of what had been done, other than a single sheet of the work. He thought that the proper course would be to strike out the appropriation now, and appoint a committee to examine what had been done, and to report to the Senate the best way of stopping the work, and the amount that ought to be paid to the contractors. If they made the appropriation now, it would be at once sanctioning the continuance of the work; they would be called on to make the same appropriation the next year, and there was no knowing where they would stop.

Mr. BENTON merely wished to say, in justice to the Senator from North Carolina, [Mr. MANGUM,] that that gentleman was the first that ever called his attention to these abuses; and it appears from the Journal, Mr. B. said, that he has voted with us in regard to these matters ever since.

Mr. PRESTON wished the matter to be regulated to the satisfaction of the parties. They were not bound to proceed unless the other party had proceeded. He wished to know of the chairman whether any considerable progress had been made in the work.

Mr. CALHOUN hoped the Senate would agree to strike out the section, and allow the publishers liberal compensation for what they had done, and stop its further progress. They had made a most improvident contract. And, besides, he had strong constitutional doubts as to the power of Congress to contract for such a work; and