Papers Of Abraham Lincoln

In force, Jan. 12, 1839.

AN ACT making an appropriation for the completion and furnishing of the State House at Springfield.
1

$128,300 appropriated for State House.

Sec.[Section] 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly, That the sum of one hundred and twenty-eight thousand and three hundred dollars be, and the same is hereby, appropriated to defray the expenses of finishing the same, and the offices attached thereto, with necessary furniture for the use of said house and offices. Said sum payable out of any money in the treasury not otherwise appropriated.2

Duty of commissioners.

Sec. 2. The commissioners appointed to superintend the erection of public buildings at Springfield shall proceed, without delay, to cause the said buildings to be completed in the manner, upon the plan, and with materials heretofore agreed upon by said commissioners. 3

Apropriation how paid

Gov.[Governor] make an order on Auditor for warrant.

Sec. 3. The appropriation hereby made shall be paid out in the manner, and at the times hereinafter specified. The commissioners shall, upon the passage of this act, and quarterly thereafter, make a report to the Governor stating to him the amount of money which will be required for use during the next three months; and the amount expended during the preceding three months; and upon the reception of said report, the Governor shall make an order on the Auditor requiring him to issue a warrant upon the treasury for the amount so required. The warrant shall be payable at the State Bank of Illinois, to the order of the commissioners.

Further duty of com’rs[commissioners].

Sec. 4. The commissioners shall deposite all orders issued in their favor in the State Bank, and the money shall be paid out by the Bank upon the orders of said commissioners.

Com’rs to issue checks on State Bank.

Sec. 5. The commissioners shall, instead of paying out money, make orders or checks upon the Bank in favor of all persons to whom money may be due; and shall state, on the face of such orders or checks, the consideration for which they are given, and shall be so written as that the signature of the payee upon the bank shall make the order or check operate as a receipt from the payee to the State as well as to the Bank.

Gov. to appoint com’rs.

Sec. 6. In case any or all the commissioners appointed to superintend the erection of public buildings, shall die, resign, or refuse to act, the Governor shall appoint a successor, or successors.

Approved, January 12, 1839.4

1Job Fletcher introduced SB 6 in the Senate on December 11, 1838. On December 17, Robert Blackwell moved to table the bill because he had not been given sufficient time to review it, given its expense and importance. Richard Servant responded that the bill had been in possession of the clerk for several days, making it accessible to Blackwell, and recommended swift passage because worker salaries were in arrears. Blackwell noted the legislature had rushed previous legislation on the subject, only to find the appropriation insufficient. Orville H. Browning rejected this idea, anticipating the bill would take considerable time to pass the House of Representatives, necessitating quick passage by the Senate and the Senate voted not to table the bill. On December 20, the Senate passed the bill by a vote of 31 yeas to 9 nays. On December 21, Blackwell again rose in opposition to the bill, complaining that the original constitutional provision setting the capital at Vandalia provided a twenty-year term. He interpreted this to mean that a plebiscite would be held at that time, rather than the process interrupted by legislation, as was the present case. He also again voiced his objection to the state house's rising cost since its initial proposal. The House of Representatives referred the bill to the Committee of the Whole and made it the order of the day for December 22. On December 22, the House discharged the Committee of the Whole from further consideration, referring the bill to the Committee on Public Accounts and Expenditures. The Committee on Public Accounts and Expenditures reported back the bill on January 1, 1839, without amendment, and the House referred it back the Committee of the Whole and made it the order of the day for January 3. The Committee of the Whole reported back the bill on January 7 without amendment. The House rejected a motion to amend the bill by adding a proviso to the first section and by adding an additional section by a vote of 26 yeas to 62 nays, with Abraham Lincoln voting nay. The House also rejected a motion to change the amount of the appropriation in the first section from $128,300 to $75,000. On January 9, the House rejected an amendment which was, basically, a substitute bill, by a vote of 24 yeas to 58 nays, with Abraham Lincoln voting nay. The House also rejected another substitute bill by a vote of 23 yeas to 61 nays, with Lincoln voting nay. The House rejected a motion to amend the bill by adding a proviso to the first section by a vote of 23 yeas to 63 nays, with Lincoln voting nay. The House ordered the bill read a third time by a vote of 62 yeas to 26 nays, with Lincoln voting yea. On January 10, the House rejected Lincoln’s motion to postpone the special orders for the day and take up the bill. On January 11, the House passed the bill by a vote of 56 yeas to 26 nays, with Lincoln voting yea. On January 12, the Council of Revision approved the bill and the act became law.
Illinois House Journal. 1838. 11th G. A., 1st sess., 119, 122-23, 126, 137, 152, 181-84, 184-85, 185-89, 194, 199-200; Illinois Senate Journal. 1838. 11th G. A., 1st sess., 39, 74, 95-96, 159, 161, 168; Illinois State Register, December 1838, [2]:7 (reported on December 17, 1838, January 8, 1838, 1:2-3.

2In February 1837, the legislature had passed legislation moving the seat of Illinois government from Vandalia to Springfield.

3During the same legislative session, the Illinois General Assembly passed an act authorizing the move of public offices to Springfield.

4On January 7, five days before the final vote, there was considerable debate in the House of Representatives regarding questions about the 1837 law that led to Springfield’s selection as the new state capital and regarding costs associated with the building of a new state house.
Summary of Legislative Debate on Appropriation for Building the State House; Summary of Legislative Debate on Appropriation for Building the State House.