slaves who enjoyed actual freedom by the chances of war at
any time before the end of the rebellion shall be forever free,"
but the individual owners, if loyal, shall be compensated at the
same rate that may be paid to those in States abolishing slavery.
The amendment also proposed to give to "Congress the right to
appropriate money for the colonization of the emancipated slaves,
with their own consent, at any place outside of the United States."

Congress had scarcely time to consider this grave proposition when
the President issued on the first day of the new year (1863) his
formal Proclamation abolishing slavery in all the States in rebellion
against the Government, with the exception of Tennessee, and of
certain parishes in Louisiana and certain counties in Virginia
whose population was considered loyal to the Government. Tennessee
was excepted from the operation of the Proclamation at the urgent
request of Andrew Johnson who, after the fall of Nashville in the
preceding spring, had resigned from the Senate to accept the
appointment of military governor of his State. His service in the
Senate, with his State in flagrant rebellion, was felt to be somewhat
anomalous and he was glad to accept a position in which he could
be more directly helpful to the loyal cause. He possessed the
unbounded confidence of Mr. Lincoln who yielded to his views
respecting the best mode of restoring Tennessee to the Union, and
her inhabitants to their duty to the National Government. There
is good reason for believing that both Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Johnson
afterwards regarded the omission of Tennessee from the Proclamation
of Emancipation as a mistake, honestly made in the first place by
Governor Johnson and too readily acceded to by the President.

The recommendation of Mr. Lincoln for a system of compensated
emancipation was taken up promptly and cordially by the Republican
members of both branches of Congress. The House appointed a special
committee on the subject. With but little delay a bill was passed
appropriating to Missouri, the first State considered, ten millions
of dollars with the restriction that the money should be paid only
to the loyal slave-holders. The Senate increased the amount to
fifteen millions of dollars and returned it to the House for
concurrence in the amendment. The measure had been thus passed in
both branches but with stubborn opposition on the part of some
prominent Democratic leaders from Missouri.