of courts; and gave to the state, until the next apportionment, two representatives in congress. Mr. Douglas said he was ready to support the bill of Mr. Clayton, which had been defeated at the last session, and still more so to support a bill carrying out the Missouri compromise as proposed by himself. But if this could not be had, he was in favor of giving law to the people of that country by bringing them at once into the union. Amendments were proposed to this bill, one of which, (by Mr. Davis, of Mississippi,) was to annex New Mexico to Texas, with the view of immediately legalizing slavery in that part of the acquired territory. This proposition was prompted, probably, by the movement of the people in New Mexico. A convention of the people had been held in October, 1848, and a petition adopted, remonstrating against being annexed to Texas, and praying to be protected against the introduction of slavery into their territory. This petition had been presented by Mr. Benton before the introduction of the bill of Mr. Douglas. Mr. Benton moved the printing of the petition. Mr. Calhoun said he would not object to the printing, but he declared the petition to be a disrespectful and an insolent one. These people had been conquered by the very men whom they wished to exclude from that territory; and this they knew. He claimed it as a constitutional right to go there with his property; and he protested against being governed by the consideration presented under such circumstances as that under which this petition had been presented. Mr. Benton said that himself and Mr. Clayton had both been charged with the presentation of the petition; and he thought they were called upon to defend those who had sent so respectful a petition against the charge of insolence. Mr. Rusk, of Texas, claimed, as belonging to Texas, all that part of New Mexico lying east of the Rio Grande : and he protested against establishing over it a distinct and separate government. Mr. Benton's motion to print the petition was warmly opposed; but it was finally carried, 33 to 14; the noes being all from southern senators. The bill of Mr. Douglas was silent on the subject of slavery, and also that of boundary, leaving an indefinite portion of New Mexico subject to the claims of Texas, the validity and extent of which were to be left to the decision of the supreme court. The debate was continued till near the close of the session, without effecting the passage of the bill. In the house, on the 20th of December, 1848, Mr. Smith, of Indiana, “reported a bill to establish the territorial government of Upper California. This bill provided a territorial government of the highest class: A governor, appointed by the president and senate; a legislature, composed of a council and house of representatives; and the necessary courts of justice. It embraced the anti-slavery ordinance of 1787. The bill was a under debate till within a few days of the close of the session. Several motions had been made to strike out the restrictive clause, but without success. On the 27th of February, the question came up on a substitute previously offered by Mr. Preston, of Virginia, proposing to include all the territory ceded by Mexico, and to erect the same into a state. Mr. Col. lins moved as an amendment the anti-slavery proviso, which was adopted, 91 to 87. Mr. Preston being asked whether the bill embraced the country between the Nueces and the Rio Grande, declined making any explanations. Mr. Greeley, of New York, moved an additional section, providing that the state to be formed should include the territory east of the Rio Grande, and within certain described boundaries, (being the territory of New Mexico.) Mr. Kaufman, of Texas, inquired of the gentleman from New York, whether he wanted to steal land enough from Texas for his Fourierite bill to operate upon-[referring to a bill introduced by Mr. Greeley, proposing to give, on certain conditions, limited quantities of the public lands to actual settlers and cultivators.) Mr. Greeley replied, that it did not become the representative from Texas to talk about land-stealing; and proceeded to advocate his amendment. The bill, by leaving the boundary undefined, virtually surrendered a large part of New Mexico to the dominion of Texas. The object of Mr. Greeley's proposition was to protect the people of New Mexico, who had protested against being subjected to the rule of Texas. If it should form a part of Texas, it would be certain to fall under the dominion of slavery; if attached to the proposed state, there was at least a strong probability that it would continue free territory. The amendment was rejected : ayes, 59; noes, 63. Other amendments were offered and withdrawn; and the bill was passed, with the proviso clause, 126 to 87. The bill was sent to the senate, and immediately referred to the committee on territories. Mr. Douglas, the chairman, on the last day of the session, stated that he had been unable to get a meeting of the committee to consider this bill, and moved that the committee be discharged from its farther consideration, which was done. Mr. Douglas then endeavored to bring the house to act upon the subject without a report from the committee; there being a pressing necessity for giving to the people of California some other government than that to which they were now subject. He therefore made a motion to postpone prior orders to take up the lifornia bill; but the motion was negatived. After this, the question of territorial government came up again in the shape of an amendment to the civil and diplomatic appropriation bill. а The proposition was to authorize the president to hold possession of the and navy. And, until congress should have an opportunity, at the next session, of providing for the government of the territory, the existing (that is, Mexican) laws should be observed, the civil and judicial authorities heretofore exercised, to be vested in persons appointed by the president. No martial law was to be declared, nor military courts established, cxcept ordinary courts martial for the trial of persons belonging to the army or navy. This amendment came to the senate from the house, being an amend. ment there made to an amendment to the appropriation bill above mentioned, which had been sent to the house for concurrence. When the hour of twelve arrived, several senators, considering the session as having expired, declined participating farther in the proceedings. The debate, however, proceeded for several hours, when fears were entertained that the whole appropriation would be lost if the discussion were not speedily closed. Mr. Webster, disposed to disencumber the bill from this California amendment, said he was willing to withdraw his motion to concur in the house amendment, if gentlemen would then move to recede from the senate's own amendment, and let the bill pass as a mere appropriation bill. The question then arose, whether it was not necessary first to vote upon the motion to concur—which was debated for some time. Mr. Douglas contended that the motion to concur took the precedence, and renewed that motion. It was decided, however, that the motion to recede had precedence, and that if it prevailed, the bill would be freed from all amendments. The question on receding was then taken, and carried, 38 to 7. So the appropriation bill was passed; but no government was provided for California. At this session was established a new executive department, styled the “Department of the Interior," or home department, the head officer of which, called secretary of the interior, is also a member of the cabinet. The increase of business of the other departments had rendered the establishment of a new department necessary. To this new officer were assigned the supervision of the office of commissioner of patents, formerly exercised by the secretary of state; certain duties in relation to the general land-office, formerly performed by the secretary of the treasury; supervisory powers relating to the acts of the commissioner of Indian affairs, previously exercised by the secretary of war; also similar powers in relation to the acts of commissioner of pensions, formerly exercised by the secretaries of war and the navy. Certain other duties of the heads of the treasury and state departments were devolved upon this new department. CHAPTER LXII. THE CHOICE OY INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT TAYLOR.–CONTEST FOR SPEAKER.—THE COMPROMISE OF 1850. GENERAL Zachary Taylor was inaugurated as president of the United States, the 5th of March, 1849, (the 4th happening that year on Sunday.) The oath of office having been administered by Chief Justice Taney, the president delivered his inaugural address in the presence of a dense crowd of spectators. The address was a brief one, and, as regards the sentiments it expressed, considered unobjectionable. It partook much of the character of the numerous letters he had written previously to his election. He promised to make the constitution his guide in the discharge of his duties ; looking for the interpretation of that instrument to the decisions of the judicial tribunals established by its authority, and following the example of the early presidents, especially of him who was entitled “the Father of his country.” He repeated the assurance so frequently expressed before, that bis administration “ would be devoted to the welfare of the whole country, and not to the support of any particular section, or merely local interest." In the exercise of the appointing power, he would “ make honesty, capacity, end fidelity indispensable prerequisites to the disposal of office." He would also favor measures " to secure encouragement and protection to the great interests of agriculture, commerce and manufactures, to improve our rivers and harbors, to provide for the speedy extinguishment of the public debt, to enforce a strict accountability on the part of all offioers of the government, and the utmost economy in all public expenditures." He also indicated a purpose not to endeavor to exert any personal influence in controlling the action of congress. President Taylor selected for his cabinet officers the following: John M. Clayton, of Delaware, secretary of state ; William M. Meredith, of Pennsylvania, secretary of the treasury; Thomas Ewing, of Ohio, secretary of the interior; George W. Crawford, of Georgia, secretary of war; William B. Preston, of Virginia, secretary of the navy; Jacob Collamer, of Vermont, postmaster-general; Reverdy Johnson, of Maryland, attorney-general. The 31st congress commenced its 1st session December 3d, 1849, and continued the same until the 30th of September, 1850, a period of nearly ten months. Much time was spent at the commencement in unsuccessful balloting for speaker. The contest was chiefly between Robert C. Winthrop, whig, speaker of the late congress, and Howell Cobb, of Georgia, democrat. Each received, for several days, on different ballots, a plurality of from one to ten votes. The cause of the protracted balloting was the scattering of votes upon other candidates. The "free soil" democrats, unwilling to vote for a speaker so thoroughly pro-slavery as Mr. Cobb, cast their votes for Mr. Wilmot, as did also Mr. Giddings and several other free soil whigs, who considered Mr. Winthrop as having been too favorable toward the friends of slavery, during his speakership, in the appointment of committees. Mr. Winthrop also lost, the votes of five southern whigs, Messrs. Toombs, Stephens, and Owen, of Georgia, Cabell, of Florida, and Morton, of Virginia, who refused to vote for Mr. Winthrop without a pledge against the Wilmot proviso. After the first three days, the vote for Mr. Winthrop ranged from 100 to 103, while that for Mr. Cobb rapidly diminished, being at one time only five votes; the democrats having divided their votes upon other candidates. On one ballot, the highest vote given for a democratic candidate was forty-eight. On the thirty-second trial, Mr. Brown, of Indiana, was taken up as a democratic candidate, and received 53 votes, being a large plurality of the democratic vote. Mr. Brown's vote rapidly increased, until he received, on the thirty-eighth and thirty-ninth ballots, 109 votes; Mr. Winthrop, 100 and 101. Mr. Winthrop, desirous of terminating the contest, requested his friends to concentrate their efforts on some other candidate. On the next ballot, Mr. Brown received 112 votes; the whig vote was much scattered, the highest number given for any one being 26 for Mr. Duer, of New York. Mr. Stanly, of North Carolina, moved a joint committee of three from each of the two principal parties to confer relative to the choice of proper officers of the house. During the discussion of this resolution, the fact was elicited, that the high vote given to Mr. Brown had been obtained by a private pledge, in a correspondence with Mr. Wilmot, that he would, if elected speaker, “constitute the committees on the District of Columbia, on territories, and on the judiciary, in such manner as should be satisfactory to him (Mr. Wilmot) and his friends." Mr. Brown then withdrew his name, being unwilling to occupy the chair under circumstances in which his action would be liable to misrepresen. tation. The fortieth ballot was scattered upon not less than thirty candidates, of whom those receiving the highest number of votes, were Mr. Winthrop, (59,) and Mr. Cobb, (40.) Mr. Boyd, of Kentucky, then became the leading candidate. Messrs. Cobb and Winthrop were subsequently returned to their original positions, each having received, on the sixty second ballot, 97 votes. In pursuance of a previous agree |