Part 19

“No slave shall be admitted into the said Territory from the United States or their Territories, who shall not be the property of some person bona fide removing from the United States into the said Territory, and making an actual settlement therein, or who shall not have passed by descent or devise to the person or persons claiming the same, and residing within the said Territory, from some person or persons deceased in some one of the United States or their Territories; and every slave who shall be brought into said Territory, otherwise than is hereby permitted, shall be forfeited, and may be recovered by any person who shall sue for the same; and the person or persons offending herein shall moreover forfeit and pay ---- dollars for every slave so brought in, to be recovered by action of debt in any court having jurisdiction thereof; one moiety to the use of the United States, and the other moiety to the use of the person who shall sue for the same. And in any action instituted for the recovery of the penalty aforesaid, the person or persons sued may be held to special bail:”

And a division on the question was called for, and that it be taken on striking out; and, on the question, Shall the words be stricken out? it passed in the negative--yeas 13, nays 15, as follows:

YEAS.--Messrs. Anderson, Armstrong, Baldwin, Breckenridge, Cocke, Condit, Jackson, Nicholas, John Smith, Samuel Smith, Stone, Venable, and Wells.

NAYS.--Messrs. Adams, Bradley, Brown, Ellery, Franklin, Hillhouse, Logan, Maclay, Olcott, Pickering, Plumer, Potter, Israel Smith, Worthington, and Wright.

WEDNESDAY, February 1.

Erection of Louisiana into two Territories.

The Senate resumed the second reading of the bill erecting Louisiana into two Territories, and providing for the temporary government thereof; and on motion, to agree to the last division of the amendment proposed on the 30th ultimo, amended as follows:

“And no slave or slaves shall, directly or indirectly, be introduced into the said Territory except by a citizen of the United States, removing into said Territory for actual settlement, and being, at the time of such removal, bona fide owner of such slave or slaves; and every slave imported or brought into the said Territory, contrary to the provisions of this act, shall thereupon be entitled to, and receive, his or her freedom:”

It passed in the affirmative--yeas 18, nays 11, as follows:

YEAS.--Messrs. Armstrong, Bradley, Breckenridge, Brown, Cocke, Condit, Franklin, Hillhouse, Logan, Maclay, Olcott, Plumer, Potter, S. Smith, Wells, White, Worthington, and Wright.

NAYS.--Messrs. Adams, Anderson, Baldwin, Dayton, Ellery, Jackson, Nicholas, Pickering, J. Smith, Stone, and Venable.

THURSDAY, February 2.

Erection of Louisiana into two Territories.

The Senate resumed the second reading of the bill erecting Louisiana into two Territories, and making provision for the temporary government thereof; and on motion to strike out the eighth section of the original bill, amended as follows:

“SEC. 8. The residue of the province of Louisiana, ceded to the United States, shall remain under the same name and form of government as heretofore, save only that the executive and judicial powers exercised by the former government of the province shall now be transferred to a Governor, to be appointed by the President of the United States: and that the powers exercised by the commandant of a post or district shall be hereafter vested in a civil officer, to be appointed by the President in the recess of the Senate, but to be nominated at the next meeting thereof for their advice and consent; under the orders of which commandant the officers, troops, and militia of his station shall be; who, in cases where the military have been used, under the laws heretofore existing, shall act by written orders and not in person; and the salary of the said officers, respectively, shall not exceed the rate of ---- dollars per annum. The President of the United States, however, may unite the districts of two or more commandants of posts into one, where their proximity or ease of intercourse will permit without injury to the inhabitants thereof. The Governor shall receive an annual salary of ---- dollars, payable quarter-yearly at the Treasury of the United States:”

It passed in the affirmative--yeas 16, nays 9, as follows:

YEAS.--Messrs. Adams, Anderson, Armstrong, Breckenridge, Cocke, Condit, Franklin, Hillhouse, Maclay, Olcott, Pickering, Plumer, J. Smith, Stone, Venable, and Worthington.

NAYS.--Messrs. Baldwin, Brown, Dayton, Ellery, Jackson, Nicholas, Potter, S. Smith, and Wright.

TUESDAY, February 7.

Erection of Louisiana into two Territories.

The Senate resumed the second reading of the bill erecting Louisiana into two Territories, and making provision for the temporary government thereof, and agreed to sundry amendments; and on motion to agree to a further amendment, as follows:

“SEC. 7. All free male white persons, who are housekeepers, and who shall have resided one year at least in the said Territory, shall be qualified to serve as grand or petit jurors in the courts of the said Territory; and they shall, until the Legislature thereof shall otherwise direct, be selected in such manner as the judges of the said courts, respectively, shall prescribe, so as to be most conducive to an impartial trial, and to be least burdensome to the inhabitants of the said Territory:”

A motion was made to strike out from the beginning, to the words “and they,” inclusive, for the purpose of inserting, “persons to serve as grand and petit jurors in the courts of the said Territory.”

A division of the question was called for, and that it first be taken on striking out; and on the question, Shall these words be struck out? it was passed in the negative--yeas 10, nays 18, as follows:

YEAS.--Messrs. Adams, Bradley, Brown, Hillhouse, Logan, Olcott, Pickering, Plumer, John Smith, and Stone.

NAYS.--Messrs. Anderson, Armstrong, Breckenridge, Baldwin, Cocke, Condit, Ellery, Franklin, Jackson, Maclay, Nicholas, Potter, Samuel Smith, Sumter, Venable, Wells, Worthington, and Wright.

On the question to agree to the original motion, it passed in the affirmative--yeas 21, nays 7, as follows:

YEAS.--Messrs. Anderson, Armstrong, Breckenridge, Baldwin, Cocke, Condit, Ellery, Franklin, Jackson, Logan, Maclay, Nicholas, Potter, Samuel Smith, Stone, Sumter, Venable, Wells, Worthington, and Wright.