Report of the
Committee.

of the Legislature to consider it. The Constitu-
tion provides that the Congress whenever two-
thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary, pro-
pose amendments to this Constitution. The joint
resolution says: Be it 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 said Legislatures, shall be valid as part
of the Constitution.
The question is, did two-thirds of both houses
of the Congress, within the true intent and mean-
ing of the Constitution, concur in this proposi-
tion ? The Constitution says, " the House of Rep-
resentatives shall be composed of members chosen
every second year by the people of the several
States; and the electors in each State shall have
the qualifications required for electors of the most
numerous branch of the State Legislature. The
Senate of the United States shall be composed of
two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legis-
lature thereof, &c."
The Constitution proceeds upon the idea that
the direct interest of each State in the proceedings
of Congress, will, at all times, be a sufficient
guarantee of its representation therein. There
was no thought of compulsory representation, and
certainly none of forcible exclusion of the repre-
sentatives of any State, and least of all upon any
such grounds as those contained in the report.
A Congress in the meaning of the Constitution,
consists of Senators and Representatives of all the
States composing the United States, duly elected,
returned and qualified, who shall present them-
selves for the discharge of their duties in their
respective houses. A majority of each house shall
constitute a quorum to do business, but the Consti-
tution never contemplated that a majority should
assume to themselves the whole power of Congress
by the forcible exclusion of the minority, or any
portion of it, on any ground whatever not specially
provided for in the Constitution, yet the report of