ung in black
And let the Earth put mourning on,'

for in the history of no Free People, since the time the Persians came
down upon Athens, have I known as melancholy a period as this day and
year of Our Lord in our history; and if we can, by the blessing of God
and by His favor, rise above it, it will be by His special providence,
and by no act of ours."

The obstructive tactics were now resumed, Mr. Powell leading off by a
motion to amend, by adding to the Judiciary Committee's proposed
Thirteenth Article of the Constitution, the following:

"ART. 14.--The President and Vice-President shall hold their Offices for
the term of four--[Which he subsequently modified to: 'six years']
--years. The person who has filled the Office of President shall not be
reeligible."

This amendment was rejected by 12 yeas to 32 nays; whereupon Mr. Powell
moved to add to the Committee's Proposition another new Article, as
follows:

"ART. 14.--The principal Officer in each of the Executive Departments,
and all persons connected with the Diplomatic Service, may be removed
from office at the pleasure of the President. All other officers of the
Executive Departments may be removed at any time by the President or
other appointing power when their services are unnecessary, or for
dishonesty, incapacity, inefficiency, misconduct, or neglect of duty,
and when so removed, the removal shall be reported to the Senate,
together with the reasons therefor."

This amendment also being rejected, Mr. Powell offered another, which
was to add a separate Article as follows:

"ART. 14.--Every law, or Resolution having the force of law, shall
relate to but one subject, and that shall be expressed in its title."

This also being rejected--the negative vote being, as in other cases,
without reference to the merits of the proposition--and Mr. Powell
having now apparently exhausted his obstructive amendatory talents, Mr.
Davis came to the aid of his Kentucky colleague by moving an amendment,
to come in as an additional Article, being a new plan of Presidential
election designed to do away with the quadrennial Presidential campaign
before the People by giving to each State the right to nominate one
candidate, and leaving it to a Convention of both Houses of Congress
--and, in case of disagreement, to the Supreme Court of the United States
--to elect a President and a Vice-President.

The rejection of this proposition apparently exhausted t