evidence of the approbation of the Senate, for which he returned his thanks. It should be his aim and endeavor to discharge the duties imposed upon him in a manner satisfactory to the Senate, and with perfect impartiality to every Senator. Law of Bankruptcy. The Senate resumed the consideration of the motion of Mr. GRUNDY to discharge the Judiciary Committee from the further consideration of that part of the President's Message relating to a bankrupt law. Mr. SOUTHARD spoke with much earnestness against the Executive recommendation, and against the constitutionality and expediency of any bankrupt law, except in relation to merchants and traders, and for the exclusive purpose of preventing fraud, and an inequitable distribution of the property of bankrupts; dwelling at times on the present condition of the country, the causes which led to it, and the prospective designs of the administration. The question on discharging the committee was agreed to. MONDAY, October 16 On motion of Mr. NORVELL, it was [SENATE. appointed to join a committee from the House to inform the President of the United States that the two Houses had completed the business before them, and were ready to adjourn. Messrs. GRUNDY, CLAY of Alabama, and NORVELL, were appointed said committee on the part of the Senate. Mr. KENT offered a resolution granting to the Chaplain of the Senate the same compensation for this extra session as the House had voted to its Chaplain. The resolution was adopted. On motion of Mr. CLAY, of Alabama, the Secretary of the Senate was ordered to inform the House that the Senate, having finished the business before it, was now ready to adjourn. Mr. NORVELL, from the joint committee appointed to wait upon the President of the United States, informed the Senate that said committee, having waited upon the President, further communication to make the two Houses, had been informed by him that he had no and that the President wished the members, individually and collectively, health and prosperity. A message was received from the House of Representatives by Mr. FRANKLIN, their clerk, that the House was ready to adjourn. Whereupon, on motion of Mr. NILES, the Ordered, That a committee from the Senate be Senate adjourned sine die. . MONDAY, September 4, 1837. At twelve o'clock, the House of Representatives was called to order by Mr. FRANKLIN, the Clerk of the last Congress, who read the President's proclamation convening the present session of Congress. He then proceeded to call LIST OF MEMBERS. Maine.-George Evans, John Fairfield, Timothy J. Carter, F. O. J. Smith, Thomas Davee, Jonathan Cilley, Joseph C. Noyes, Hugh J. Anderson. New Hampshire.-Samuel Cushman, James Farrington, Charles J. Atherton, Joseph Weeks, Jared W. Williams. Massachusetts.-Richard Fletcher, Stephen C. Phillips, Caleb Cushing, William Parmenter, Levi Lincoln, George Grennell, George N. Briggs, William B. Calhoun, Nathaniel B. Borden, John Q. Adams, John Reed, William S. Hastings. Rhode Island.-J. L. Tillinghast, Robert B. Cranston. Connecticut.-Isaac Toucey, Samuel Ingham, Elisha Haley, Thomas T. Whittlesey, Launcelot Phelps, Orin Holt. Vermont.-Hiland Hall, William Slade, Heman Allen, Isaac Fletcher, Horace Everett. New York.-Thomas B. Jackson, Abraham Vanderveer, C. C. Cambreleng, Ely Moore, Edward Curtis, Ogden Hoffman, Governeur Kemble, Obadiah Titus, Nathaniel Jones, John C. Brodhead, Zadock Pratt, Robert M'Clellan, Henry Vail, Albert Gallup, John I. De Graff, David Russell, John Palmer, James B. Spencer, John Edwards, Arphaxad Loomis, Henry A. Foster, Abraham P. Grant, Isaac H. Bronson, John H. Prentiss, Amasa J. Parker, John C. Clark, Andrew D. W. Bruyn, Hiram Gray, William Taylor, Bennett Bicknell, William H. Noble, Samuel Birdsall, Mark H. Sibley, John T. Andrews, Timothy Childs, William Patterson, Luther C. Peck, Richard P. Marvin, Millard Fillmore, Charles P. Mitchell. New Jersey.-John B. Aycrigg, John P. B. Maxwell, William Halsted, Joseph F. Randolph, Charles C. Stratton, Thomas Jones Yorke. Pennsylvania.-Lemuel Painter, John Sergeant, George W. Toland, Charles Naylor, Eward Davies, David Potts, jr., Edward Darlington, Jacob Fry, jr., Matthias Morris, David the names of the members from a roll made up by himself in the usual manner. Election of Speaker. The House proceeded to the election of a Speaker. Messes. HAMER, MOKEnnan, and D. Wagener, Edward B. Hubley, Henry A. Muhlenberg, Luther Reily, Henry Logan, Dan. Sheffer, Charles M'Clure, William W. Potter, David Petrikin, Robert H. Hammond, Samuel W. Morris, Charles Ogle, John Klingensmith, Andrew Buchanan, T. M. T. McKennon, Richard Biddle, Wm. Beatty, Thomas Henry, Arnold Plumer. Delaware.-John J. Milligan. Maryland.-John Dennis, James A. Pearce, J. T. H. Worthington, Benjamin C. Howard, Isaac McKim, Wm. C. Johnson, Francis Thomas, Daniel Jenifer. Virginia.-Henry A. Wise, Francis Mallory, John Robertson, Charles F. Mercer, John Taliaferro, R. M. T. Hunter, James Garland, Francis E. Rives, Walter Coles, George C. Dromgoole, James W. Bouldin, John M. Patton, James M. Mason, Isaac S. Pennybacker, Andrew Beirne, Archibald Stuart, John W. Jones, Robert Craig, George W. Hopkins, Joseph Johnson, William S. Morgan. North Carolina.-Jesse A. Bynum, Edward D. Stanley, Charles Shepard, James McKay, M. T. Hawkins, Edmund Deberry, Wm. Montgomery, Aug. H. Shepperd, Abraham Rencher, Henry Conner, James Graham, Lewis Williams, Samuel T. Sawyer. South Carolina.-H. S. Legare, Waddy Thompson, John K. Griffin, R. Barnwell Rhett, Francis W. Pickens, W. K. Clowney, F. H. Elmore, John Campbell, John P. Richard son. Georgia.-Thomas Glascock, J. F. Cleveland, Seaton Grantland, Charles E. Haynes, Hopkins Holsey, Jabez Jackson, George W. Owens, George W. B. Townes, W. C. Daw son. Mississippi.-John F. H. Claiborne, S. J. Gholson. Kentucky.John L. Murray, Edward Rumsey, J. R. Underwood, Sherrod Williams, James Harlan, John Calhoon, John Pope, Wm. J. Graves, John White, Richard Hawes, R. A. Menifee, John Chambers, W. W. Southgate. Tennessee.-Wm. B. Carter, A. McClellan, Jos. L. Wil On motion of Mr. WILLIAMS, of North Carolina, Messrs. CARR and HUNTER were appointed doorkeepers to the House. On motion of Mr. CONNOR, Roderick Dorsey was appointed sergeant-at-arms. On motion of Mr. GARLAND, of Virginia, a committee of three was appointed on the part of the House to join the committee on the part of the Senate to wait on the President of the United States, and inform him that a quorum of the two Houses was assembled, and that Congress was ready to receive any communication he may be pleased to make. liams, H. L. Turney, Wm. B. Campbell, John Bell, A. P. Maury, James K. Polk, Eben. J. Shields, Richard Cheatham, John W. Crockett, Christopher H. Williams, William Stone. Ohio.-Alex. Duncan, Taylor Webster, Patrick G. Goode, Thomas Corwin, Thomas L. Hamer, Calvary Morris, Wm. Key Bond, J. Ridgway, John Chaney, Sampson Mason, J. Alexander, jr., Alex. Harper, D. P. Leadbetter, Wm. H Hunter, John W. Allen, Elisha Whittlesey, Andrew Loomis, Mathias Shipler, Daniel Kilgore, FRIDAY, September 8. Death of Mr. Standefer. [H. OF R. Mr. BELL announced to the House the death of his late colleague, the Hon. JAMES STANDEFER, in the following terms: Mr. Speaker: The melancholy duty has been assigned me, by my colleagues, of announcing to the House the death of one of our members. JAMES STANDEFER, while on his journey to this place, in order to enter upon his duties as a member of this House, was, on the 20th of last month, suddenly arrested by the hand of the Great Destroyer of human existence. By this unexpected event, the country is deprived, at a period of more than common interest and difficulty, of the services of a most devoted and patriotic public servant, and this House of an honest and worthy member. My late colleague was remarkable for an equanimity of temper, and a kindness of feeling, combined with a justness of perception in all the concerns of life, at least of ordinary occurrence, which, without the advantages of early culture, or of books, at any time, procured for him throughout a life which was not short, the respect and esteem of numerous friends, and raised him to the rank of a useful and meritorious citizen. The same qualities of heart and mind, aided by a reputation for honesty which he nobly earned, and continued to maintain by the most scrupulous regard for truth and justice in all his transactions, public and private, caused him to be repeatedly chosen to the Legislature of his own State; of which body he was a useful and respected member. He was, for many years, a member of this, and I am sure that his quiet and unobtrusive manners-his punctual discharge of all the duties assigned him, in the organization of the House, must have secured the respect of his associates. To these evidences of his worth, I might add, that in the late war with Great Britain, he approved himself an intrepid soldier. He was, above most men I have known, who have risen in any degree into public view, under similar circumstances, free from the pride and vanity of mere station; never anxious to appear what he was not; content to be classed with the useful and faithful, he made no pretensions; had no aspirations beyond his real deserts. If, therefore, my lamented colleague cannot be said to have possessed any of those shining endowments which are required to make a figure in this Louisiana.-Henry Johnson, Eleazar W. Ripley, Rice Garland. Indiana.-Ratliff Boon, John Ewing, William Graham, Geo. H. Dunn, Jas. Rariden, Wm. Herrod, Albert S. White. Illinois.-A. W. Snyder, Zadock Casey, William L. May. Alabama.-Dixon H. Dewis, Francis S. Lyon, Reuben Chapman, Joab Lawler, Joshua L. Martin. Missouri.-Albert G. Harrison, John Miller. H. OF R.] Business for the Session-Fourth Instalment Bill. [SEPTEMBER, 1837. The resolutions were severally agreed to; the committee rose and reported them to the House, and they were concurred in. House, which strike our fancy, or command our | sage as relates to a bankrupt law, be referred to the admiration, he might still justly lay claim to Committee on the Judiciary. other and humbler attributes, which, upon the whole, constitute a character of solid merit, and often one of more enduring fame; and that the due and usual tribute of respect be paid to his memory, by this House, I move you, sir, the resolution which I hold in my hand: Resolved, That as a testimony of respect for the memory of the deceased, the members of this House will go into mourning by wearing crape on the left arm for thirty days. The resolution was unanimously adopted. Mr. BELL then moved that the House adjourn. And it adjourned accordingly. MONDAY, September 11. Payment of Specie to Members of Congress. The resolution offered on Thursday last by Mr. BIDDLE, of Pennsylvania, and lying on the Speaker's table, having been again read as follows: "Resolved, That the Secretary of the Treasury report to this House whether a letter, purporting to be addressed by him to the Clerk of the House of Representatives, offering payment in specie to members of Congress, is authentic; if so, to what other claimants on the Treasury a similar offer has been made, and what principle of discrimination, if any, has been adopted in the medium of payment to the public creditors." The resolution, as modified, was agreed to. Mr. BELL, of Tennessee, offered the following resolution; which lies for consideration one day: Mr. CAMBRELENG submitted the following resolution, which was agreed to: Resolved, That so much of the report of the Secretary of the Treasury on the state of the finances, as relates to the finances of the country, be referred to the Committee of Ways and Means; and that so much of said report as relates to a bankrupt law be referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. Business for the Session. Mr. F. O. J. SMITH, of Maine, said that he wished to ascertain the sense of the House as to what was to be the business of the session before it; and asked leave to introduce a resolution. Leave was given, and the following resolution was introduced: committees of this House, on all matters not em "Resolved, That the action of the several standing braced by the Message of the President of the United States to the two Houses of Congress, communicated on the second day of the current session, be suspended until the commencement of the annual session of Congress in December next, and that the consideration of all petitions on such suspended matters be also postponed to the period above specified." Mr. WILLIAMS, of North Carolina, moved to postpone the resolution until Wednesday. son, he said, why the private bills which had been hanging here for years, should not be acted on, in the intervals of time, when the House was not otherwise employed. The amendment was lost. [After a debate, in which Messrs. Smith, Whit tlesey, Bell, Cambreleng, and Wise, took a part,] The motion to postpone was rejected. Mr. GARLAND, of Virginia, moved to rescind the resolution, by inserting "with the excepResolved, That the Secretary of the Treasury betion of private business." There was no readirected, with as little delay as possible, to communicate to this House the amount of the appropriations of the past and present year remaining unexpended: the amount required to fulfil all existing engagements contracted prior to the 1st day of June last, and all existing engagements contracted since that time. Also, the amount of moneys drawn from the Treasury and placed in the hands of disbursing officers or agents on the 1st day of May last, and at the present time. And that he also report what objects of public expenditure can, with the least injury to the public service, be either wholly dispensed with during the present year, or have any material reduction. Reference of the Message and Report. On motion of Mr. CAMBRELENG, the Message of the President to Congress was then taken up, and referred to a Committee of the Whole on the state of the Union; and the House went thereon into committee, Mr. J. Q. ADAMS in the chair. Mr. CAMBRELENG introduced two resolutions, as follows: The original resolution was agreed to. TUESDAY, September 12. Fourth Instalment Bill. Mr. CAMBRELENG, on leave, from the Committee of Ways and Means, reported the following bill: A bill to postpone the fourth instalment of deposit with the States. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre sentatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the transfer of the fourth instalment of the deposits directed to be made with the States under the thirteenth section of the act of June 23, 1836, be, and the same is hereby, postponed until further provision by law. 1. Resolved, That so much of the President's MesMr. CAMBRELENG would merely mention for sage as relates to the finances of the country, be re- the information of the House, that that was the ferred to the Committee of Ways and Means. only bill the committee could agree upon at this 2. Resolved, That so much of the President's Mes-morning's session. There would, probably, be SEPTEMBER, 1837.] The United States, Mexico, and Texas. [H. OF R. two other bills requiring the most urgent action | said Department with those of the Mexican Republic, of the House to-morrow morning. The above bill was referred to a Committee of the Whole on the state of the Union. Election of Chaplain. accredited to the Government of the United States. Mr. ADAMS observed that, as this was merely a call for information, if no opposition should be made to its adoption, he should content himself with simply asking a vote of the House upon it, without accompanying it with any re The House then, on motion of Mr. GARLAND, of Virginia, went into the election of a Chap-marks. lain. Mr. HOWARD (chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations) said that, if the gentleman from Massachusetts wished for this correspond On the second ballot, Rev. Mr. Tuston received 135 votes, which being a majority of the whole, he was declared duly elected Chap-ence merely that it might be printed and thrown lain to the House. WEDNESDAY, September 13. Order of Business. The SPEAKER stated that, having considered the extent of the resolution adopted by the House on Monday, touching the course of its business, and compared it with the 16th rule of order, which requires the calling for petitions, he had been constrained to come to the conclusion that it was his duty, under that rule, to call the House, by States, for petitions; but that, if any should be presented which had no immediate relation to the special subjects recommended in the President's Message to the attention of Congress, at its present session, the House could enter into no action concerning them, but that they must, as of course, lie on the table until the period of the regular session on the first Monday of December next. Under this decision, the States were thereupon called on for petitions, and a very few were presented, which had no reference to the currency; while a number were offered which did relate to that subject, and the prayer of which was either in favor of, or adverse to, the establishment of a national bank; and which were referred to the Committee of Ways and Means; several of them were ordered to be printed. Proposed Issue of Treasury Notes. The bill was read twice, and referred to the The United States, Mexico, and Texas. The following resolution, moved yesterday by Mr. ADAMS, was read, viz: Resolved, That the President of the United States be requested to communicate to this House, so far as may be consistent with the public interest, all the correspondence between the Government of the United States and that of Mexico, concerning the boundary between them, and particularly concerning any proposition for a cession of territory belonging to the Mexican confederation to the United States; and also all correspondence relating thereto between the Department of State and the diplomatic representatives of the United States in Mexico, and of the before the House and the country, he should make no opposition to the call; but if it was his intention to move for its reference to a committee, in violation of the plan which had been chalked out by the House for the course of its business at the present session, he should certainly oppose the adoption of the resolution. In the meanwhile, he hoped to be permitted to add a word or two in reference to the first of the resolutions. He would suggest whether the House, by merely passing a silent vote adopting the resolution, might not find itself to have established a precedent which might hereafter prove very inconvenient. He did not exactly comprehend what the object of the honorable gentleman could be in going back to the old question of our Mexican boundary, now that an intermediate province had been interposed between us and Mexico. No doubt the gentleman had good reasons, which would appear in due time. Mr. ADAMS said it was not his intention to bring the subject of our relations with Mexico into discussion at this time; but merely to obtain the information called for in the resolution, and have it printed for the use of the House and of the nation. resolution; his reason was that he was in posMr. WISE said he should vote against the session of information from a high source, and on which he could explicitly, positively rely, that the correspondence referred to was not in a condition to be made public, and that it might be injurious to the public interest should it now be disclosed. Mr. HAYNES suggested to the mover to modify his resolution by the annexation of the ordinary qualifying clause, "if the communication of the same shall, in his opinion, be consistent with the public interest." |