網頁圖片
PDF
ePub 版

THE FOLLOWING IS PREFIXED TO THE FIRST TEN* OF THE PRECEDING AMENDMENTS.

CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES.

BEGUN AND HELD AT THE CITY OF NEW YORK, ON WEDNESDAY, THE FOURTH OF MARCH, ONE THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-NINE.

THE Conventions of a number of the States having, at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added; and as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government will best insure the beneficent ends of its institution,———

Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, two-thirds of both Houses concurring, That the following articles be proposed to the Legislatures of the several States, as amendments to the Constitution of the United States, all, or any of which articles, when ratified by three-fourths of the said Legislatures, to be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of the said Constitution, viz. :

Articles in addition to, and amendment of, the Constitution of the United States of America, proposed by Congress, and ratified by the Legislatures of the several States pursuant to the Fifth Article of the original Constitution.

The first ten amendments of the Constitution were ratified by the States as follows, viz.:

[merged small][ocr errors][ocr errors][ocr errors][ocr errors][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small]

* It may be proper here to state that twelve articles of amendment were proposed by the First Congress, of which but ten were ratified by the States,—the first and second in order not having been ratified by the requisite number of States.

These two were as follows:

Article First.-After the first enumeration required by the First Article of the Constitution, there shall be one Representative for every thirty thousand, until the number shall amount to one hundred, after which, the proportion shall be so regulated by Congress, that there shall not be less than one hundred Representatives, nor less than one Representative for every forty thousand persons, until the number of Representatives shall amount to two hundred, after which the proportion shall be so regulated by Congress that there shall not be less than two hundred Representatives, nor more than one Representative for every fifty thousand persons.

Article Second.-No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect until an election of Representatives shall have intervened.

THE FOLLOWING IS PREFIXED TO THE ELEVENTH OF THE PRECEDING AMENDMENTS.

THIRD CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES,

AT THE FIRST SESSION, BEGUN AND HELD AT THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, IN THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA, ON MONDAY, THE SECOND OF DECEMBER, ONE THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED AND NINETY-THREE.

Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, two-thirds of both Houses concurring, That the following article be proposed to the Legislatures of the several States as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States; which, when ratified by three-fourths of the said Legislatures, shall be valid as part of the said Constitution, viz.:

THE FOLLOWING IS PREFIXED TO THE TWELFTH OF THE PRECEDING AMENDMENTS.

EIGHTH CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES,

AT THE FIRST SESSION, BEGUN AND HELD AT THE CITY OF WASHINGTON, IN THE TERRITORY OF COLUMBIA, ON MONDAY, THE SEVENTEENTH OF OCTOBER, ONE THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED AND THREE.

Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, two-thirds of both Houses concurring, That in lieu of the third paragraph of the first section of the Second Article of the Constitution of the United States, the following be proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States; which, when ratified by three-fourths of the Legislatures of the several States, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of the said Constitution, to wit:

The ten first of the preceding amendments were proposed at the first session of the First Congress of the United States, September 25, 1789, and were finally ratified by the constitutional number of States, December 15, 1791. The eleventh amendment was proposed at the first session of the Third Congress, March 5, 1794, and was declared, in a message from the President of the United States to both houses of Congress, dated January 8, 1798, to have been adopted by the constitutional number of States. The twelfth amendment was proposed at the first session of the Eighth Congress, December 12, 1803, and was adopted by the constitutional number of States in 1804, according to a public notice thereof by the Secretary of State, dated September 25 of the same year.

34

ORGANIZATION OF THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS.

STATE DEPARTMENT.

THIS Department is managed by the Secretary of State, and one Assistant Secretary.

DIPLOMATIC BRANCH.

This branch has charge of all correspondence between the Department and other diplomatic agents of the United States abroad, and those of foreign powers accredited to this Government. In it all diplomatic instructions sent from the Department, and communications to Commissioners under treaties of boundaries, &c., are prepared, copied, and recorded; and all of like character received are registered and filed, their contents being first entered in an analytic table or index.

CONSULAR BRANCH.

This branch has charge of the correspondence, &c., between_the Department and the Consuls and Commercial Agents of the United States. In it instructions to those officers, and answers to their despatches and to letters from other persons asking for consular agency, or relating to consular affairs, are prepared and recorded.

THE DISBURSING AGENT.

He has charge of all correspondence and other matters connected with accounts relating to any fund with the disbursement of which the Department is charged.

THE TRANSLATOR.

His duties are to furnish such translations as the Department may require. He also records the commissions of Consuls and Vice-Consuls, when not in English, upon which exequaturs are issued.

CLERK OF APPOINTMENTS AND COMMISSIONS.

He makes out and records commissions, letters of appointment, and nominations to the Senate; makes out and records exequaturs, and records, when in English, the commissions on which they are issued. Has charge of the library.

CLERK OF THE ROLLS AND ARCHIVES.

He takes charge of the rolls, or enrolled acts and resolutions of Congress, as they are received at the Department from the President; prepares the authenticated copies thereof which are called for; prepares for, and superintends their publication, and that of treaties, in the newspapers and in book form; attends to their distribution throughout the United States, and that of all documents and publications in regard to which this duty is assigned to the Department; writing and answering all letters connected therewith. Has charge of all Indian treaties, and business relating thereto.

CLERK OF TERRITORIAL BUSINESS-THE SEAL OF THE DEPARTMENT.

He has charge of the seals of the United States and of the Department, and prepares and attaches certificates to papers presented for authentication; has charge of the territorial business; immigration and registered seamen; records all letters from the Department other than the diplomatic and consular.

CLERK OF PARDONS AND PASSPORTS.

He prepares and records pardons and remissions, and registers and files the petitions and papers on which they are founded. Makes out and records passports; keeps a daily register of all letters, other than diplomatic and consular, received, and of the disposition made of them; prepares letters relating to this business.

SUPERINTENDENT OF STATISTICS.

He superintends the preparation of the "Annual Report of the Secretary of State on Foreign Commerce," as required by the Acts of 1842 and 1856.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL'S OFFICE.

The Attorney-General of the United States is at the head of this office. ordinary business may be classified under the following heads:

Its

1. Official opinions on the current business of the Government, as called for by the President, by any head of Department, or by the Solicitor of the Treasury. 2. Examination of the titles of all land purchased, as the sites of arsenals, custom-houses, light-houses, and all other public works of the United States.

3. Applications for pardons in all cases of conviction in the courts of the United States.

4. Applications for appointment in all the judicial and legal business of the Government.

5. The conduct and argument of all suits in the Supreme Court of the United States in which the Government is concerned.

6. The supervision of all other suits arising in any of the Departments when referred by the head thereof to the Attorney-General.

To these ordinary heads of the business of the office has been added the direction of all appeals on land claims in California.

INTERIOR DEPARTMENT.

This Department is in charge of the Secretary of the Interior, and one Assistant Secretary, who have the supervision and management of the following branches of the public service.

THE PUBLIC LANDS.-The chief of this bureau is called the Commissioner of the General Land-office. The Land Bureau is charged with the survey, management, and sale of the public domain, and the issuing of titles therefor, whether derived from confirmation of grants made by former governments, by sales, donations, of grants for schools, military bounties, or public improvements, and likewise the revision of Virginia military bounty-land claims, and the issuing of scrip in lieu thereof. The Land-office, also, audits its own accounts.

PENSIONS.-The Commissioner is charged with the examination and adjudication of all claims arising under the various and numerous laws passed by Congress granting bounty-land or pensions for the military or naval service in the Revolutionary and subsequent wars in which the United States have been engaged.

INDIANS.-Commissioner of Indian Affairs, who has charge of all business connected with the Indian tribes.

PATENT-OFFICE.-To this bureau is committed the execution and performance of all "acts and things touching and respecting the granting and issuing of patents for new and useful discoveries, inventions, and improvements;" and the collection of statistics.

An act of Congress provided that all books, maps, charts, and other publications heretofore deposited in the Department of State, according to the laws regulating copyrights, should be removed to the Department of the Interior, which is charged with all the duties connected with matters pertaining to copyright; which duties have been assigned by the Secretary of the Interior to the Patent-office, as belonging most appropriately to this branch of the service.

AGRICULTURAL BUREAU.-In charge of a Commissioner, who has exclusive supervision of all matters connected with agriculture.

Besides the above principal branches of this Executive Department, the organic act of 1849 transferred to it from the Treasury Department the supervision of the accounts of the United States Marshals and Attorneys, and the Clerks of the United States Courts, the management of the lead and other mines of the United States, and the affairs of the Penitentiary of the United States in the District of Columbia; and from the State Department, the duty of taking and returning the Censuses of the United States, and of supervising and directing the acts of the Commissioner of Public Buildings. The Hospital for the Insane of the Army and Navy and of the District of Columbia is also under the management of this Department; in addition to which, by later laws, the Secretary of the Interior is charged with the construction of the three wagon roads leading to the Pacific coast.

Under act of February 5, 1859, "providing for keeping and distributing a public documents, all the books, documents, &c., printed or purchased by the Government," the Annals of Congress, American State Papers, American Archives, Jefferson's and Adams's works, are transferred to this Department from the State Department, Library of Congress, and elsewhere; also the Journals and Documents of the Thirty-fifth Congress. These valuable works are distributed to those who are by law entitled to receive them, and to such "colleges, public libraries, athenæums, literary and scientific institutions, boards of trade, or public associations,” as shall be designated by the members of Congress.

TREASURY DEPARTMENT.

The Treasury Department is in charge of the Secretary of the Treasury, and one Assistant Secretary, and the following is a brief indication of the duties of the several bureaus.

SECRETARY'S OFFICE.

The Secretary is charged with the general supervision of the fiscal transactions of the Government, and of the execution of the laws concerning the commerce and navigation of the United States. He superintends the survey of the coast, the light-house establishment, the marine hospitals of the United States, and the construction of certain public buildings for custom-houses and other purposes.

FIRST COMPTROLLER'S OFFICE.

He prescribes the mode of keeping and rendering accounts for the civil and diplomatic service, as well as the public lands, and revises and certifies the balances arising thereon.

SECOND COMPTROLLER'S OFFICE.

He prescribes the mode of keeping and rendering the accounts of the Army and Navy, and of the Indian and Pension bureaus, of the public service, and revises and certifies the balances arising thereon.

« 上一頁繼續 »