No. 130. Abolition of Slavery in the Ter

ritories

June 19, 1862

MARCH 24, 1862, Isaac N. Arnold of Illinois introduced in the House a bill "to render freedom national and slavery sectional." Another bill with a similar title was introduced May 1 by Owen Lovejoy of Illinois. The latter bill, with amended title, was reported May 8 as a substitute for the Arnold bill, and on the 12th passed the House by a vote of 85 to 50. The Senate, June 9, amended the House bill by substituting the text of the act as passed, the vote being 28 to 10. On the 17th the House concurred in the Senate amendment, and on the 19th the act was approved. The prohibition of the act was incorporated in the later acts organizing the Territories of Arizona and Idaho. REFERENCES. - Text in U.S. Statutes at Large, XII., 432. For the proceedings see the House and Senate Journals, 37th Cong., 2d Sess., and the Cong. Globe.

An Act to secure Freedom to all Persons within the Territories of the United States.

Be it enacted That from and after the passage of this act there shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in any of the Territories of the United States now existing, or which may at any time hereafter be formed or acquired by the United States, otherwise than in punishment of crimes whereof the party shall have been duly convicted.

By an act of August 6, 1861, all members of the civil departments of the government were required to take an oath of allegiance to the United States "against all enemies, domestic or foreign, . . . any ordinance, resolution, or law of any State convention or legislature to the contrary notwithstanding.” An act of May 20, 1862, required voters in Washington and Georgetown, if challenged for disloyalty, to take a similar oath, with the addition of a clause declaring that the subscriber had "always been loyal and true to the Government of the United States." An act of June 17 imposed upon grand and

petit jurors in United States courts an oath declaring "that you have not without duress and constraint, taken up arms, or joined any insurrection or rebellion against the United States; that you have not adhered to any insurrection or rebellion, giving it aid and comfort; that you have not, directly or indirectly, given any assistance in money, or any other thing, to any person or persons whom you knew, or had good ground to believe, had joined, or was about to join, said insurrection and rebellion, or had resisted, or was about to resist, with force of arms, the execution of the laws of the United States; and that you have not counselled or advised any person or persons to join any rebellion against, or to resist with force of arms, the laws of the United States." The so-called "iron-clad" oath of July 2 had its origin in a bill introduced in the House, March 24, by James F. Wilson of Iowa, "declaring certain persons ineligible to office." June 4 a substitute reported by the Committee on Judiciary, being a modified form of an amendment previously offered by Horace Maynard of Tennessee to a bill to free the slaves of rebels, was agreed to, and the bill passed, the vote being 78 to 47. The Senate, on motion of Garrett Davis of Kentucky, added an amendment excepting the Vice-President and Senators and Representatives, the amended bill passing the Senate on the 23d by a vote of 33 to 5. The House disagreeing, the Senate receded from so much of its amendment as excepted Senators and Representatives, and in this form the bill passed. The acts of June 17 and July 2 were repealed by an act of May 13, 1884.

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REFERENCES. - Text in U.S. Statutes at Large, XII., 502, 503. For the proceedings see the House and Senate Journals, 37th Cong., 2d Sess., and the Cong. Globe. On the loyalty of government employees see House Report 16, 37th Cong., 2d Sess. On the modification of the oath see House Exec. Doc. 81, 39th Cong., 1st Sess., House Report, 51, ibid., Senate Exec. Doc. 38, ibid., and No. 159, post.

An Act to prescribe an Oath of Office, and for other Purposes.

Be it enacted..., That hereafter every person elected or appointed to any office of honor or profit under the government of the United States, either in the civil, military or naval departments of the public service, excepting the President of the United States, shall, before entering upon the duties of such office, and before being entitled to any of the salary or other emoluments thereof, take and subscribe the following oath or affirmation: "I, A. B., do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I have never voluntarily borne arms against the United States since I have been a citizen thereof; that I have voluntarily given no aid, countenance, counsel, or encouragement to persons engaged in armed hostility thereto; that I have neither sought nor accepted nor attempted to exercise the functions of any office whatever, under any author

ity or pretended authority in hostility to the United States; that I have not yielded a voluntary support to any pretended government, authority, power or constitution within the United States, hostile or inimical thereto. And I do further swear (or affirm) that, to the best of my knowledge and ability, I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States, against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter, so help me God;" . . .

No. 132. Confiscation Act

July 17, 1862

A BILL "to confiscate the property of rebels for the payment of the expenses of the present rebellion" was reported in the House, May 14, 1862, by Thomas D. Eliot of Massachusetts, from the select committee on the confiscation of rebel property, together with a bill to free the slaves of rebels. On the 26th a substitute for the two bills, offered by Morrill of Vermont on the 20th, was rejected by a vote of 25 to 122, and the bill passed, the vote being 82 to 68. The House bill was more stringent than the act finally passed, but a substitute agreed to by the Senate, June 28, by a vote of 28 to 13, was thought by the House too lenient, and by a vote of 8 to 123 the amendment of the Senate was disagreed to. The report of the conference committee, being the Senate substitute with amendments, was agreed to by the House, July 11, by a vote of 82 to 42, and by the Senate, July 12, by a vote of 28 to 13. President Lincoln had intended to veto the bill on the ground that under it offenders would be forever divested of title to their real estate, and punishment would thus be made to extend beyond the life of the guilty party. To obviate this objection, a joint resolution explanatory of the act was hurried through both houses July 17. Lincoln, in communicating to Congress his approval of the act and the resolution, transmitted also the veto message which he had already prepared. A proclamation under section 6 of the act was issued the same day that the act as approved, and December 8, 1863, a proclamation of amnesty [No. 137] under section 13. The latter section was repealed, with the purpose of restricting the pardoning power of the President, July 17, 1867.

REFERENCES. - Text in U.S. Statutes at Large, XII., 589–592. For the proceedings see the House and Senate Journals, 37th Cong., 2d Sess., and the Cong. Globe. The texts of all amendments and substitutes are in the Globe. The debates called out numerous formal speeches. On the seizure of lands

under the act see a report by O. O. Howard, House Exec. Doc. 19, 39th Cong., Ist Sess.; see also Senate Exec. Doc. 58, 40th Cong., 2d Sess.

An Act to suppress Insurrection, to punish Treason and Rebellion, to seize and confiscate the Property of Rebels, and for other Purposes.

Be it enacted That every person who shall hereafter commit the crime of treason against the United States, and shall be adjudged guilty thereof, shall suffer death, and all his slaves, if any, shall be declared and made free; or, at the discretion of the court, he shall be imprisoned for not less than five years and fined not less than ten thousand dollars, and all his slaves, if any, shall be declared and made free; . .

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SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That if any person shall hereafter incite, set on foot, assist, or engage in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States, or the laws thereof, or shall give aid or comfort thereto, or shall engage in, or give aid and comfort to, any such existing rebellion or insurrection, and be convicted thereof, such person shall be punished by imprisonment for a period not exceeding ten years, or by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars, and by the liberation of all his slaves, if any he have; or by both of said punishments, at the discretion of the court.

SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That every person guilty of either of the offences described in this act shall be forever incapable and disqualified to hold any office under the United States.

SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That, to insure the speedy termination of the present rebellion, it shall be the duty of the President of the United States to cause the seizure of all the estate and property, money, stocks, credits, and effects of the persons hereinafter named in this section, and to apply and use the same and the proceeds thereof for the support of the army of the United States, that is to say:

First. Of any person hereafter acting as an officer of the army or navy of the rebels in arms against the government of the United States.

Secondly. Of any person hereafter acting as President, VicePresident, member of Congress, judge of any court, cabinet officer,

foreign minister, commissioner or consul of the so-called confederate states of America.

Thirdly. Of any person acting as governor of a state, member of a convention or legislature, or judge of any court of any of the so-called confederate states of America.1

Fourthly. Of any person who, having held an office of honor, trust, or profit in the United States, shall hereafter hold an office in the so-called confederate states of America.

Fifthly. Of any person hereafter holding any office or agency under the government of the so-called confederate states of America, or under any of the several states of the said confederacy, or the laws thereof, whether such office or agency be national, state, or municipal in its name or character: Provided, That the persons, thirdly, fourthly, and fifthly above described shall have accepted their appointment or election since the date of the pretended ordinance of cecession of the state, or shall have taken an oath of allegiance to, or to support the constitution of the so-called confederate states.

Sixthly. Of any person who, owning property in any loyal State or Territory of the United States, or in the District of Columbia, shall hereafter assist and give aid and comfort to such rebellion;

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SEC. 9.

And be it further enacted, That all slaves of persons who shall hereafter be engaged in rebellion against the government of the United States, or who shall in any way give aid or comfort thereto, escaping from such persons and taking refuge within the lines of the army; and all slaves captured from such persons or deserted by them and coming under the control of the government of the United States; and all slaves of such persons found on [or] being within any place occupied by rebel forces and afterwards occupied by the forces of the United States, shall be deemed captives of war, and shall be forever free of their servitude, and not again held as slaves.

SEC. 10. And be it further enacted, That no slave escaping into any State, Territory, or the District of Columbia, from any other State, shall be delivered up, or in any way impeded or hindered of his liberty, except for crime, or some offence against the laws,

1 See joint resolution of July 17 (U. S. Stat. at Large, XII., 627). — ED.