frequently boasted that the people of Europe were so far dependent upon regular supplies of the great southern staple that, sooner or later, their governments would be constrained to take side with the rebellion in some effective form, even to the extent of forcible intervention, if the milder form did not prevail; that the rebellion is now sustained by this hope, which every proposition of foreign interference quickens anew, and that, without this life-giving support, it must soon yield to the just and paternal authority of the national government; that, considering these things, which are aggravated by the motive of the resistance thus encouraged, the United States regret that foreign powers have not frankly told the chiefs of the rebellion that the work in which they are engaged is hateful, and that a new government, such as they seek to found, with slavery as its acknowledged cornerstone, and with no other declared object of separate existence, is so far shocking to civilization and the moral sense of mankind that it must not expect welcome or recognition in the commonwealth of nations.

Resolved, That the United States, confident in the justice of their cause, which is the cause, also, of good government and of human rights everywhere among men; anxious for the speedy restoration of peace, which shall secure tranquillity at home and remove all occasion of complaint abroad; and awaiting with well-assured trust the final suppression of the rebellion, through which all these things, rescued from present danger, will be secured forever, and the republic, one and indivisible, triumphant over its enemies, will continue to stand an example to mankind, hereby announce, as their unalterable purpose, that the war will be vigorously prosecuted, according to the humane principles of Christian states, until the rebellion shall be overcome; and they reverently invoke upon their cause the blessings of Almighty God.

Resolved, That the President be requested to transmit a copy of these resolutions, through the Secretary of State, to the ministers of the United States in foreign countries, that the declaration and protest herein set forth may be communicated by them to the governments to which they are accredited. •

No. 137. Proclamation of Amnesty

December 8, 1863

THE proclamation of December 8, 1863, offering amnesty on conditions, was issued under authority of the so-called Confiscation Act of July 17, 1862 [No. 132]. In his annual message of the same date, Lincoln urged the propriety of the proclamation, and expressed the opinion "that nothing is attempted beyond what is amply justified by the Constitution." A supplementary proclamation of March 26, 1864, explained that the previous proclamation did not apply to prisoners of war.

REFERENCES. Text in U.S. Statutes at Large, XIII., Appendix, vii-ix. A circular to United States district attorneys is in McPherson, Rebellion, 148,

149.

[THE proclamation begins with a statement of the constitutional right of the President to grant pardons, of the existence of rebellion in certain States, of the authorization of pardon by proclamation under the Confiscation Act, and of the previous issuance of proclamations "in regard to the liberation of slaves," and continues:] and

Whereas, it is now desired by some persons heretofore engaged in said rebellion to resume their allegiance to the United States, and to reinaugurate loyal state governments within and for their respective states: Therefore

I, ABRAHAM LINCOLN, President of the United States, do proclaim, declare, and make known to all persons who have, directly or by implication, participated in the existing rebellion, except as hereinafter excepted, that a full pardon is hereby granted to them and each of them, with restoration of all rights of property, except as to slaves, and in property cases where rights of third parties shall have intervened, and upon the condition that every such person shall take and subscribe an oath, and thenceforward keep and maintain said oath inviolate; and which oath shall be registered for permanent preservation, and shall be of the tenor and effect following, to wit:

-"

"I, do solemnly swear, in presence of Almighty God, that I will henceforth faithfully support, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Union of the States thereunder; and that I will, in like manner, abide by and faithfully support all acts of congress passed during the existing

rebellion with reference to slaves, so long and so far as not repealed, modified, or held void by congress, or by decision of the supreme court; and that I will, in like manner, abide by and faithfully support all proclamations of the President made during the existing rebellion having reference to slaves, so long and so far as not modified or declared void by decision of the supreme court. So help me God."

The persons excepted from the benefits of the foregoing provisions are all who are, or shall have been, civil or diplomatic officers or agents of the so-called Confederate government; all who have left judicial stations under the United States to aid the rebellion; all who are, or shall have been, military or naval officers of said so-called Confederate government above the rank of colonel in the army or of lieutenant in the navy; all who left seats in the United States congress to aid the rebellion; all who resigned commissions in the army or navy of the United States and afterwards aided the rebellion; and all who have engaged in any way in treating colored persons, or white persons in charge of such, otherwise than lawfully as prisoners of war, and which persons may have been found in the United States service as soldiers, seamen, or in any other capacity.

...

. And I do further proclaim, declare, and make known that whenever, in any of the States of Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina,1 a number of persons, not less than one tenth in number of the votes cast in such state at the presidential election . . . [of 1860] . . ., each having taken the oath aforesaid, and not having since violated it, and being a qualified voter by the election law of the state existing immediately before the so-called act of secession, and excluding all others, shall reestablish a state government which shall be republican, and in nowise contravening said oath, such shall be recognized as the true government of the state, and the state shall receive thereunder the benefits of the constitutional provision which declares that "the United States shall guaranty to every state in this Union a republican form of government, and shall protect each of them

1 The omission of Virginia is explained by the fact that Lincoln had already recognized the so-called Pierpont government. - ED.

against invasion; and on application of the legislature, or the executive, (when the legislature cannot be convened,) against domestic violence."

And I do further proclaim, declare, and make known that any provision which may be adopted by such state government in relation to the freed people of such state, which shall recognize and declare their permanent freedom, provide for their education, and which may yet be consistent as a temporary arrangement with their present condition as a laboring, landless, and homeless class, will not be objected to by the National Executive.

And it is suggested as not improper that, in constructing a loyal state government in any state, the name of the state, the boundary, the subdivisions, the constitution, and the general code of laws, as before the rebellion, be maintained, subject only to the modifications made necessary by the conditions hereinbefore stated, and such others, if any, not contravening said conditions, and which may be deemed expedient by those framing the new state government.

To avoid misunderstanding, it may be proper to say that this proclamation, so far as it relates to state governments, has no reference to states wherein loyal state governments have all the while been maintained. And, for the same reason, it may be proper to further say, that whether members sent to congress from any state shall be admitted to seats constitutionally rests exclusively with the respective houses, and not to any extent with the Executive. And still further, that this proclamation is intended to present the people of the states wherein the national authority has been suspended, and loyal state governments have been subverted, a mode in and by which the national authority and loyal state governments may be reëstablished within said states, or in any of them; and, while the mode presented is the best the Executive can suggest, with his present impressions, it must not be understood that no other possible mode would be acceptable.

No. 138. National Bank Act

June 3, 1864

THE beginning of the present national bank system is to be found in the act "to provide a national currency, secured by a pledge of United States stocks, and to provide for the circulation and redemption thereof," approved February 25, 1863. This act, however, proved defective, and the comptroller of the currency, in a report accompanying the annual report of the Secretary of the Treasury, December 10, 1863, made numerous suggestions for amendment. A bill with the same title as the existing act was reported in the House, March 14, by Hooper of Massachusetts, from the Committee of Ways and Means, and after protracted discussion was laid on the table by a vote of 90 to 44. Another bill with similar title was introduced by Hooper April 11, and passed the House on the 18th by a vote of 80 to 66. A bill to the same effect had been introduced in the Senate, April 8, by John Sherman of Ohio, and referred to the Committee on Finance, which, on the 21st, reported the House bill with amendments. The amended bill passed the Senate May 11, by a vote of 30 to 9. The House disagreed to the Senate amendments, and the bill received its final form from a conference committee, whose report was accepted by the houses June 1.

REFERENCES. - Text in U.S. Statutes at Large, XIII., 99-118. Only the most important parts of the act are given below. The act has been many times amended; editions showing the various changes are issued from time to time by the comptroller of the currency. For the proceedings see the House and Senate Journals, 38th Cong., 1st Sess., and the Cong. Globe, where will be found the texts of all the important amendments proposed or adopted. A comparison of Hooper's first bill with the act of February 25 will be found in the Globe, March 23.

An Act to provide a National Currency, secured by a Pledge of United States Bonds, and to provide for the Circulation and Redemption thereof.

Be it enacted That there shall be established in the treasury department a separate bureau, which shall be charged with the execution of this and all other laws that may be passed by congress respecting the issue and regulation of a national currency secured by United States bonds. The chief officer of the said bureau shall be denominated the comptroller of the currency, and shall be under the general direction of the Secretary of the Treasury. He shall be appointed by the President, on the recommendation of the Secretary of the Treasury, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and shall hold