Mr. Foote in reference to the policy to be pursued in the present war on the table. Mr. Trippe moved to amend the resolution by striking out the same and inserting in lieu thereof the following words, to wit: Resolved, That in the judgment of this House the war should be conducted with an energy and policy, offensive and defensive, commensurate with the great interests involved in its issue, and that the same generous confidence, which a great and chivalrous people have reposed in their civil and military authorities, will be continued and strengthened by the adoption in the further progress of the war of the most active and thorough measures which the late reverses and menacing advances of the enemy make imperatively necessary. Resolved, That the earliest practicable moment should be sought to supply all the means, whether of men, money, or arms, necessary to sustain the policy above declared. Mr. Lyons, from the joint committee appointed to participate in the arrangement of the ceremonies for the inauguration of the President and Vice-President of the Confederate States, reported that the committee had discharged the duty and presented the following: Programme for the inauguration of the President and Vice-President of the Confederate States. First. Col. Charles Dimmock to be chief marshal, assisted by four aids. Second. The Senate and House of Representatives will meet in their respective halls at 11.30 o'clock a. m., and then, with their respective officers, repair to the hall of the house of delegates of Virginia, which has been kindly tendered by the house of delegates. Third. The President and Vice-President elect will be conducted to the hall by the Joint Committee of Arrangements at 11.45 o'clock, and be received by the assembly standing. Fourth. The President of the Senate will occupy the seat on the right of the President-elect; the Vice-President-elect that on the left of the President, and the Speaker of the House that on the left of the Vice-President. Fifth. Invitations are extended to the following persons and bodies, to wit: Members of the Cabinet, who will be seated on the right and left of the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House; the governor of Virginia and his staff; the governors of any other of the Confederate States who may be in Richmond, and ex-Governor Lowe, of Maryland; the senate and house of delegates of Virginia, with their respective officers; the judges of the supreme court of Virginia, and of the supreme court of any other of the Confederate States who may be in Richmond; the judge of the Confederate district court at Richmond, and any other judge of a Confederate court who may be in Richmond; the members of the late Provisional Congress; the officers of the Army and Navy of the Confederate States who may be in Richmond; the mayor and corporate authorities of the city of Richmond; the reverend clergy, and Masonic and other benevolent societies, and the members of the press. Sixth. At half past 12 o'clock the procession will move from the hall by the eastern door of the Capitol to the statue of Washington, on the public square, by such route as the chief marshal may direct, in the following order, to wit: I. The chief marshal. II. The band. III. Six members of the Committee of Arrangements, including their respective chairmen. IV. The President-elect, attended by the President of the Senate. V. The Vice-President-elect, attended by the Speaker of the House of Representatives. VI. The members of the Cabinet. VII. The officiating clergyman, and the judge of the Confederate court at Richmond. VIII. The Senate of the Confederate States, with its officers, in column of fours. IX. The House of Representatives, with its officers, in column of fours. X. The governors of Virginia and other States and staffs. XI. The members of the senate and house of delegates of Virginia and their officers. CJ VOL 5-05- -2 XII. The judges of the supreme court of Virginia and other States, who may be Seats will be provided by the chief marshal for the governors of States, the judges, and, as far as practicable, for the other guests. The invited guests are requested to present themselves at the door of the hall in At the statue of Washington the President-elect, the Vice-President-elect, the Presi- dent of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the officiating clergyman, Confederate judge, governors of States, judges of the supreme courts of States, the chief marshal and his aids, and six of the Committee of Arrangements will take positions on the platform. Prayer will then be offered by the Right Rev. Bishop The inaugural address will then be delivered, after which the oath will be admin- istered to the President by the Confederate judge, in Richmond, the Hon. J. D. The oath will then be administered to the Vice-President by the President of the The several legislative bodies will then return to their respective halls, and the President and Vice-President will then be escorted to their respective homes by the Mr. Gartrell then moved to lay on the table the resolution in rela- tion to the policy to be pursued in the present war, and the amendment to the same, and thereupon demanded the question. Resolved, That when this House adjourns to-day it will adjourn to meet at half past eleven o'clock to-morrow to take part in the ceremonies of the inauguration of President and Vice-President of the Confederate States, and after said ceremonies shall be completed this House will stand adjourned until Monday at twelve o'clock. The House adjourned until half past 11 o'clock to-morrow. Mr. Trippe of Georgia announced the presence of Mr. Charles J. Munnerlyn, a Representative-elect from the State of Georgia, who came forward, was duly qualified, and took his seat. Mr. Foote moved to reconsider the vote by which the resolution was agreed to adjourning the House, after the inauguration of the President and Vice-President, until 12 o'clock on Monday. Mr. Garland of Arkansas demanded the question; which was sec- The amendment was agreed to. The resolution as amended was agreed to. The House then proceeded in body, in pursuance of the programme arranged for the occasion, to take part in the ceremony of inaugurating the President and Vice-President elect, and having returned to their hall, Mr. Foote offered the following resolution; which was read and laid on the table, to wit: Resolved, That a committee, to be composed of one member from each of the States, be appointed by the Speaker of the House, whose duty it shall be to request the Secretary of War at his earliest convenience to supply them with the fullest and most minute information in regard to the present condition of our armies in the field, the state of our defenses on the seaboard, along our rivers, and elsewhere, and report the same to the House with a view to enabling Congress to adopt such measures in cooperation with the executive department of the Government, as may be best calculated to facilitate the establishment of our national independence, and give peace, safety, and a sense of permanent security to our whole people. On motion of Mr. Smith of Virginia, The House adjourned until 12 o'clock m. on Monday. SIXTH DAY-MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 1862. OPEN SESSION. The House met pursuant to adjournment, and was opened with prayer by the Rev. Mr. Ford. Mr. Curry, from the Committee on Rules, offered the following resolution, viz: Resolved, That the Speaker appoint the following committees, to act with like committees to be appointed on the part of the Senate, viz: Committee on Printing, to consist of five members of this House; Committee on Buildings for the use of this Government, to consist of three members of this House; and Committee on Flag and Seal of the Confederacy, to consist of three members of this House. The resolution was agreed to. Mr. Swan of Tennessee moved the House go into secret session. Mr. Lyons seconded the motion, And Congress [the House] went into secret session. SECRET SESSION. The House being in secret session, Mr. Lyons offered the following resolutions, viz: Resolved, That the President be requested to cause an immediate survey of the fortifications on James River to be made by the best military engineer at his command, without detriment to the public service elsewhere, aided by an experienced military officer, for the purpose of ascertaining whether they are adequate to the defense of the river, and that he be also requested to report to this House in secret session the result of such survey, with his own opinion in the premises; and in the meantime, that he communicate to this House all the information now in his possession in relation to the land and naval defenses of this city. Resolved, That the President be requested to cause an immediate survey of the earthworks which have been erected around Richmond to be made by a competent officer, for the purpose of ascertaining whether they have been properly located or not, and will be of any material value in the defense of the city; that the said officer or some other be required also to survey the line from the new bridges on the Chickahominy to the confluence of that stream with the Brooke, and thence up each of those streams until he reaches the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad, for the purpose of ascertaining whether fortifications may not be judiciously erected upon such line for the defense of Richmond, and if so, at what points; and that the President be also requested to communicate to the House in secret session the result of such survey, with his own opinion in the premises. The following message was received from the Senate, by their Secretary, Mr. Nash, viz: Mr. Speaker: I am directed to inform the House that the Senate have concurred in the joint resolution approving the resolution passed by the legislature of Virginia, expressing her determination to vindicate the integrity of her ancient boundaries, and pledging all the resources of the Confederacy to uphold her determination. Mr. Burnett moved to amend the resolution in reference to the defenses and fortifications of the city of Richmond by striking out the same and inserting in lieu thereof the following words, viz: Resolved, That the President be requested to communicate to this House whether, in his judgment, the defenses about the city of Richmond and on James River are sufficient for the perfect defense of the same, and if not, what sum of money, in his judgment, is required for said purpose. Mr. Conrad moved to amend the amendment by striking out the same and inserting in lieu thereof the following words, viz: Resolved, That the President be requested to convene, as soon as practicable, a board composed of competent military and naval officers, whose duty it shall be to examine the defenses of the city of Richmond, with a view to determine whether they afford an adequate protection against an attack by land or naval forces, or by both combined; and if said defenses be found insufficient, to inform this House whether any legislation is required to complete them. Mr. Gartrell demanded the question; which was seconded, and the motion was lost. Mr. Miles moved to amend the motion of Mr. Burnett to amend by striking out the same and inserting in lieu thereof the following words, viz: Resolved, That the President be requested to inform this House whether, in his judgment, the defenses of the city of Richmond are in a satisfactory condition, and whether he desires any action on the part of Congress, either in the way of appropriation or otherwise, to aid the military authority in rendering such defenses complete and adequate. Mr. Smith of Virginia demanded the question; which was seconded, and the motion of Mr. Miles to amend was agreed to. The question recurring on agreeing to the amendment of Mr. Burnett, as amended, Mr. Smith of Virginia demanded the question; which was seconded, and the motion was lost. Mr. Pryor moved to amend the resolutions by adding at the end of the first resolution the following words, viz: and be requested to cause such obstructions to be placed in James River as will prevent the possibility of an attack by water on Richmond City, if, in his opinion, necessary for the public defense. The amendment was agreed to. The question recurring on the resolutions as amended, It was decided in the affirmative, (Yeas. 67 18 Yeas: Arrington, Ashe, Barksdale, Bell, Bocock, Bonham, Boteler, Boyce, Bridgers, Horatio W. Bruce, Burnett, Chambers, Chambliss, Chilton, Clapp, Clark, Clopton, Cooke, Curry, Davidson, Davis, Dawkins, De Jarnette, Dupré, Ewing, Farrow, Foote, Foster, Gardenhire, Garnett, Gartrell, Goode, Gray, Hanly, Heiskell, Herbert, Holcombe, Holt, Johnston, Kenan of North Carolina, Kenner, Lander, Lewis, Lyon, Lyons, Machen, Marshall, McDowell, McLean, McRae, Menees, Moore, Preston, Pryor, Ralls, Read, Russell, Sexton, Smith of North Carolina, Smith of Virginia, Staples, Tibbs, Trippe, Villeré, Welsh, Wilcox, and Wright of Texas. Nays: Batson, Breckinridge, Conrad, Crockett, Currin, Dargan, Garland, Harris, Hilton, Jenkins, Jones, McQueen, Miles, Pugh, Royston, Singleton, Strickland, and Wright of Georgia. The resolution as amended was adopted. Mr. Jones, from the Committee on Rules, offered the following resolution, viz: Resolved, That the Clerk of this House be authorized to appoint three assistants, and that the Doorkeeper be authorized to appoint one assistant and two pages. The resolution was agreed to. The House adjourned until 12 o'clock to-morrow. SEVENTH DAY-TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1862. OPEN SESSION. The House met pursuant to adjournment, and was opened with prayer by the Rev. Dr. Burrows. The Chair announced the following standing committees: Committee on Elections.-Messrs. Smith, of North Carolina; Vest, of Missouri; Staples, of Virginia; Crockett, of Kentucky; Gardenhire, of Tennessee; Curry, of Alabama; Clapp, of Mississippi; Dawkins, of Florida, and Trippe, of Georgia. Committee on Ways and Means.-Messrs. Kenner, of Louisiana; Jones, of Tennessee; Bonham, of South Carolina; Garnett, of Virginia; McRae, of Mississippi; Lyon, of Alabama; Machen, of Kentucky; Holt, of Georgia, and Graham, of Texas. Committee on Military Affairs.-Messrs. Miles, of South Carolina; Pryor, of Virginia; Kenan, of Georgia; Pugh, of Alabama; Davis, of Mississippi; Harris, of Missouri; Swan, of Tennessee; Bridgers, of North Carolina, and Batson, of Arkansas. Committee on Foreign Affairs.-Messrs. Foote, of Tennessee; Perkins, of Louisiana; W. R. Smith, of Alabama; De Jarnette, of Virginia; Barksdale, of Mississippi; McQueen, of South Carolina; Breckinridge, of Kentucky; Preston, of Virginia, and McLean, of North Carolina. Committee on Naval Affairs.--Messrs. Conrad, of Louisiana; Boyce, of South Carolina; Wright, of Georgia; Clopton, of Alabama; Currin, of Tennessee; Smith, of Virginia; Gaither, of North Carolina; Dawkins, of Florida, and Chambliss, of Virginia. Committee on the Judiciary.-Messrs. Gartrell, of Georgia; Russell, of Virginia; Dargan, of Alabama; Moore, of Kentucky; Garland, of Arkansas; Heiskell, of Tennessee; Gray, of Texas; Ashe, of North Carolina, and Holcombe, of Virginia. |