Papers Of Abraham Lincoln

In force, Mar. [March]2, 1839.

AN ACT to amend an act, entitled “An act in relation to garnishees,” approved February 12, 1839.
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Sec.[Section] 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly, That the “Act in relation to garnishees,” approved February 12, 1839, be, and the same is hereby, suspended; and shall not take effect until the first day of January, 1840.

Approved, March 2, 1839.

1On February 19, 1839, Robert Smith introduced HB 337, originally titled “A Bill Further Defining the Duties of Inspectors and Warden of the Penitentiary,” in the House. On February 28, Smith, representing the Committee on the Penitentiary, reported a substitute bill to the House entitled “A Bill to Amend an Act, entitled "An Act in relation to Garnishees," Approved February 12, 1839,” and recommended that the bill not take effect until January 1, 1841. Isaac Walker proposed a substitute date of April 1, 1840. The House approved Walker’s effective date by a vote of 44 yeas to 34 nays, with Lincoln voting nay. On February 28, the House initially rejected the bill by a vote of 34 yeas to 37 nays, with Lincoln voting nay. However, Archibald Williams requested that the vote be reconsidered. John Read took the opportunity to further amend the effective date to January 1, 1840, which was approved. Afterward, the House passed the bill by a vote of 50 yeas to 24 nays, with Lincoln voting yea, and referred it to the Senate. On the suggestion of Robert Smith, the bill’s title was formally changed to “A Bill to Amend an Act, entitled "An Act in relation to Garnishees," Approved February 12, 1839.” On March 1, the Senate passed the bill without amendment. On March 2, theCouncil of Revision approved the bill, and the act became law.
Journal of the House of Representatives, at the First Session of the Tenth General Assembly, of the State of Illinois (Vandalia, IL: William Waters, 1836), 441, 551, 561, 562-63, 587, 598, 603; Journal of the Senate, at the First Session of the Tenth General Assembly, of the State of Illinois (Vandalia, IL: William Waters, 1836), 458, 489, 502.