23 ^rd CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

IN SENATE

            MONDAY, December 9.

The President pro tem. presented the credentials of the Hon. Wm. C. Preston elected a Senator from the State of S. Carolina, to supply the vacancy occasioned by the resignation of the Hon. Stephen D. Miller.

Also the credentials of the Hon. Samuel McKean, elected a Senator from the State of Pennsylvania, in the place of the Hon. George M. Dallas, whose term of service had expired.

He also informed the Senate of the Receipt of the credentials of the Hon. Daniel Webster, re-elected a Senator from the State of Massachusetts. —Mr. Frelinghuysen presented the credentials of the Hon. Samuel L. Southard, elected a Senator from N. Jersey; in the place of the Hon. Mahlon Dickerson, whose term of service had expired.—Whereupon Messrs. Webster, Southard, and Preston appeared, were qualified, and took their seats.—On motion of Mr. Poindexter, the credentials of the election of the Hon. Mr Robins, were deferred to the special committee appointed on that subject.—On motion of Mr Grundy, the Senate proceeded to the election of a Secretary, when it appeared that Walter Lowrie was unanimously elected, he having received 39 votes.—John Shackford, having received a majority of votes was duly elected Seargent-at-Arms and Doorkeeper.

The Senate then proceeded to the election of an Assistant Doorkeeper, when it appeared that Stephen Haight was elected on the 6 ^th ballot.

Mr. Clay moved the postponement of the choice of Chaplain, which on motion of Mr Chambers, of Maryland, was appointed to take place to-morrow.

Mr. Benton proposed a resolution calling for information from the Secretary of the Treasury relative to the amount of public money deposited in the United States Bank.

Mr. Clay moved that the resolution be laid on the table; not that he had any objection to the resolution itself, but he wished that the country should have an opportunity of ascertaining the condition of other Banks as well as that of the United States.

The resolution was laid on the table.

Mr Calhoun, on leave, presented a bill to repeal the act of last session, providing for the collection of duties on imports; which passed to a second reading.

Mr. Benton, pursuant to notice and on leave given presented a bill granting to the State of Missouri a certain quantity of land for purposes of internal improvement, &c; which was read a first time and passed to a second reading.

Also, a joint resolution relative to an alteration of the Constitution of the United States, in relation to the President and Vice President of the United States—which, on motion of Mr. Bibb, was laid on the table and ordered to be printed.

Also, a bill to graduate the prices of the public lands longest in market; which was passed to a second reading.

Mr Webster gave notice that he would on to-morrow, introduce a bill to provide for compensating certain citizens of the United [States] for French spoliations upon their commerce.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Monday, December 9, 1833.

Messrs. Wise and Plummer appeared, were qualified, and took their seats.

Several Standing Committees were then announced from the Chair.

The Speaker announced that on Wednesday next, the several States would be called in their order for presentation of petitions.

Mr. Patton submitted the following:

Resolved—That the following shall be established as the 9 ^th rule of this House:

“In all cases the Speaker shall vote, and if the House be equally divided, the question shall be lost.”

The further consideration of the motion was postponed till Monday next.

The Speaker laid before the House two Messages from the President, which were appropriately referred.

IN SENATE

TUESDAY, December 10, 1833.

Mr Webster presented a petition from citizens of the City of Cincinnati, praying Congress to purchase all private interests in the Louisville and Portland Canal; which was laid on the table and ordered to be printed.

Mr Clay said that the bill contained no material alteration from that of last session, and on his motion, the bill was read the first time by its title.

Mr Clay moved to take up for consideration the resolution submitted by Mr Benton in relation to the amount of moneys deposited in the Bank of the United States; which was agreed to.

Mr Clay offered an amendment, as an additional resolution; which was read and agreed to.

Mr Clay submitted the following resolution; which was read and laid on the table:

Resolved, That the President of the United States be requested to inform the Senate whether a paper under date the ______day of September, 1833, purporting to have been read by him to the Heads of the Several Departments, relating to the deposites [sic] of the public money in the Treasury of the United States, and alledged [sic] to have been published by his authority, be genuine that he be also requested to lay a copy of said paper before the Senate.

Mr Webster, on leave given, presented a bill to provide satisfaction for the claims of citizens of the United States for French spoliations; which passed to a second reading.

The Senate then proceeded to the election of a Chaplain, which resulted in the choice of the Rev. Mr Hatch, on the 6 ^th ballot.

The Senate then proceeded to the order of the day, and resumed the consideration of Mr Sprague’s resolution to alter the mode of electing their Standing Committees by the Senate, instead of being as formerly appointed by the President pro tem.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

TUESDAY, December 10.

On motion of Mr McDuffie, the Report of the Secretary on the removal of the deposites [sic], was taken up and referred to the Committee of the Whole on the state of the Union.

Mr Pinckney, of South Carolina, rose and stated that he held in his hand certain resolutions which he would respectfully ask leave to offer for adoption by the House. He believed that it had always been customary for the House to adopt suitable tributes of respect to its deceased members. The S.C. delegation had heard, with deep regret, of the death of their colleague, the Hon. Thomas D. Singleton, and it was his painful duty to communicate that mournful information to the House. He died at Raleigh, whilst on his journey to the Capitol, whither he was hastening to assume his seat, and to discharge his duties, as a member of this body. ****

With these few remarks, which he had felt it his duty to submit, in justice to the character of one whose memory deserved a far better tribute than any he could offer, he now proposed the following resolutions for the consideration of the House;

Resolved, That we have received, with deep regret, the melancholy intelligence of the death of the Hon. THO’S D. SINGLETON, a Representative elect from the State of South Carolina.

Resolved, That this House tender the expression of their sympathy to the relatives of the deceased, upon this mournful event; and that, in testimony of their regret for the loss, and respect for his memory, the members will wear crape upon the left arm for thirty days.

The House then adjourned.

IN SENATE

THURSDAY, December 12.

A Message from the President was received by the hands of Mr Donalson, his Private Secretary, which was read as follows:

I have attentively considered the resolution of the Senate of the 11th instant, requesting the President of the United States to communicate to the Senate "a copy of the paper which has been published, and which purports to have been read by him to the heads of the Executive Departments, dated the 18th day of September last, relating to the removal of the deposits of the public money from the Bank of the United States and its offices."
The executive is a co-ordinate and independent branch of the Government equally with the Senate, and I have yet to learn under what constitutional authority that branch of the Legislature has a right to require of me an account of any communication, either verbally or in writing, made to the heads of Departments acting as a Cabinet council. As well might I be required to detail to the Senate the free and private conversations I have held with those officers on any subject relating to their duties and my own.
Feeling my responsibility to the American people, I am willing upon all occasions to explain to them the grounds of my conduct, and I am willing upon all proper occasions to give to either branch of the Legislature any information in my possession that can be useful in the execution of the appropriate duties confided to them.
Knowing the constitutional rights of the Senate, I shall be the last man under any circumstances to interfere with them. Knowing those of the Executive, I shall at all times endeavor to maintain them agreeably to the provisions of the Constitution and the solemn oath I have taken to support and defend it.
I am constrained, therefore, by a proper sense of my own self-respect and of the rights secured by the Constitution to the executive branch of the Government to decline a compliance with your request. ANDREW JACKSON

After the message had been read,

Mr Clay said, that a call had been made on the President for a copy of a document which has been published and extensively circulated by the papers in this city—a document intimately connected with the safety of the treasure of the country. The call for it was made under the full conviction that the Senate ought to have that document. It had been refused, under the pretext that the rights of the Chief Magistrate were invaded by it. He always would be disposed to respect the rights of every public officer, but the President could have no more confidence in his rights, then I feel in the rights of the Senate. The right of the Senate to call for this paper was founded on the ground that the whole world was already in possession of it. It was made because the document was sent forth to the American people upon an all-important subject, and because it was the right of the Senate to have it. Nor was it made because the call was in violation of precedent or an established usage. But the President has refused to give us this document, and it was not necessary to proceed further in the pursuit. One result happens from it. The President don’t deny the genuineness of the paper. It is before the world, and as we have endeavored to get it, and it has been refused, I have a right to take the next best evidence of the document, and that is as it has been published in the official paper. In every instance, therefore, where I have occasion to use it, I shall avail myself of that publication of it, as genuine.

Mr Grundy said he thought when the proposition was made, that it was a very unnecessary procedure.

Here the presiding office interposed that the debate was out of order unless some motion was intended to be made.

Mr Grundy said he intended to move, before he concluded, that the message be laid on the table; and then resumed—

That he thought it unnecessary, because we only wanted evidence when facts had not come to our knowledge, or when they are denied.—Now, he believed that both friends and enemies admitted this document to be genuine—to be what it purported to be. He therefore had thought that nothing beneficial could result from this proposition, and this was what induced him to vote against it. The President has given his objection to complying with the call, and what is it? Why, that the Senate has asked for a private communication from the Chief Magistrate to his Cabinet. He, [Mr. G.] would never question the propriety of the motives of the Senator who wanted this information. But the President has.

IN SENATE.

WEDNESDAY, December 11, 1833.

Mr Bibb, pursuant to notice given, presented certain joint resolutions providing or an alteration in the Constitution of the United States, in relation to the mode of electing the President, and Vice President, and then moved to lay the same on the table and print them. Mr. B. said he felt no disposition to press the consideration of the resolutions now, and therefore moved that the second Monday in January next be assigned for taking them up, and also the resolutions offered by Mr. Benton somedays since, on the same subject, at the same time; which was agreed to.

Mr Clay moved the consideration of Mr Benton’s resolution, relative to the amount of moneys in deposite [sic] at particular periods in the Bank of the United States.

Apparently a line is missing here

Said that it is a matter which you have no right to interrogate him about; and his opinion is, too, that to comply with the request would be setting a dangerous precedent. He [Mr G.] was not inclined to sat any thing on the subject of the removal of the deposits, when that matter should come up for consideration. But if he did, he could not, even if he were so disposed, speak of that paper as any other than a genuine one, or deny its authenticity. He therefore moved to key the message on the table; which was agreed to.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

Friday, Dec, 13, 1833

The Speaker presented to the House a memorial from Messrs. Gilpin, McElderry, and Wager, the three Government Directors of the Bank of the United State, in relation to the conduct of the Directors, and especially of the President of that institution.