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Appendix: Report of the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, 4 March 1840

Source Note

United States Senate, Report, , 4 Mar. 1840. Featured version published in Public Documents Printed by Order of the Senate of the United States, during the First Session of the Twenty-Sixth Congress, Begun and Held at the City of Washington, December 2, 1839, and in the Sixty-Fourth Year of the Independence of the United States, vol. 5, Washington DC: Blair and Rives, 1840, [1]–2. Transcription made from digital images obtained from Oxford University by Google Books in 2006.
The volume contains eighty-two documents, numbered 197–278, printed with an index on a total of 1,151 pages. The document featured here is number 247. The pagination restarts with each document.

Historical Introduction

On 4 March 1840, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary wrote a report to the Senate containing the committee’s resolution to dismiss the ’s memorial to Congress. Senator of had submitted the memorial to the Senate on 28 January 1840, at which time it was read aloud. The Senate initially voted to table the memorial, but on 12 February it referred the memorial to its Committee on the Judiciary. Though accounts of congressional proceedings do not explicitly mention the judiciary committee’s tasks, this report and other documents related to the memorial suggest that the Senate assigned the committee to determine whether the case fell within the jurisdiction of Congress before it considered the memorial’s merits.
Between 20 and 22 February, the committee heard testimony from at least four men: church representative , Senator of , Representative of Missouri, and a Mr. Corwin of . Higbee wrote to JS on 22 February that if the committee decided the Senate should consider the church’s memorial further, the church could send several witnesses to to testify. In this report, however, the committee stated that Congress had no jurisdiction over the church’s petitioning efforts and resolved that the committee—and by extension the Senate—should no longer consider the memorial. Even though this report is dated 4 March, Higbee reported that the committee had made its decision by 26 February.
The report primarily summarized the church’s memorial to Congress. It is unclear which of the five Committee on the Judiciary members composed this report. An extant manuscript draft of the report written in unidentified handwriting contains numerous phrases and entire sentences that were canceled with new text inserted in their place. On 23 March 1840, the Senate received the report, voted in favor of the resolution, and ordered that the report be printed.
Two copies of this report were apparently sent to JS—one by Senator John M. Robinson of and another by —although the report itself was not addressed to JS or any member of the church’s delegation to the federal government. An 1840 general of the church approved a resolution that declared this report “unconstitutional, and subversive of the rights of a free people.” This report and the conference’s official response to it were published in the March and April issues of the Times and Seasons, respectively. Later in 1840, the Senate published the final version of this report in a collection of other documents from the first session of the Twenty-Sixth Congress. The report as published by the Senate is reproduced here as an appendix because it represents the Senate’s response to JS’s and his fellow delegation members’ petition to the federal government.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Memorial to the United States Senate and House of Representatives, ca. 30 Oct. 1839–27 Jan. 1840; Journal of the Senate of the United States, 26th Cong., 1st Sess., 28 Jan. and 12 Feb. 1840, 138, 173; Congressional Globe, 26th Cong., 1st Sess., p. 149 (1840).

    Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, Being the First Session of the Twenty-Sixth Congress, Begun and Held at the City of Washington, December 2, 1839, and in the Sixty-Fourth Year of the Independence of the Said United States. Washington DC: Blair and Rives, 1839.

    The Congressional Globe, Containing Sketches of the Debates and Proceedings of the Twenty-Sixth Congress. Vol. 8. Washington DC: Blair and Rives, 1840.

  2. [2]

    Letter from Elias Higbee, 22 Feb. 1840; Historical Introduction to Memorial to the United States Senate and House of Representatives, ca. 30 Oct. 1839–27 Jan. 1840.

  3. [3]

    Letter from Elias Higbee, 20 Feb. 1840–A; Letter from Elias Higbee, 21 Feb. 1840; Letter from Elias Higbee, 22 Feb. 1840.

  4. [4]

    Letter from Elias Higbee, 22 Feb. 1840.

  5. [5]

    Letter from Elias Higbee, 26 Feb. 1840.

  6. [6]

    See Memorial to the United States Senate and House of Representatives, ca. 30 Oct. 1839–27 Jan. 1840.

  7. [7]

    At this time, the Committee on the Judiciary consisted of five senators: Garret D. Wall of New Jersey, Thomas Clayton of Delaware, Robert Strange of North Carolina, John J. Crittenden of Kentucky, and Oliver H. Smith of Indiana. (Journal of the Senate of the United States, 26th Cong., 1st Sess., 16 Dec. 1839, 11; Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 835–836, 894–895, 1937, 1990, 2107.)

    Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, Being the First Session of the Twenty-Sixth Congress, Begun and Held at the City of Washington, December 2, 1839, and in the Sixty-Fourth Year of the Independence of the Said United States. Washington DC: Blair and Rives, 1839.

    Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774–1989: The Continental Congress September 5, 1774, to October 21, 1788, and the Congress of the United States from the First through the One Hundredth Congresses March 4, 1789, to January 3, 1989, Inclusive. Edited by Kathryn Allamong Jacob and Bruce A. Ragsdale. Washington DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1989.

  8. [8]

    Substantive differences between the published report and the manuscript draft are noted in the annotation herein. (“Report from the Committee on the Judiciary on the Memorial of the ‘Latter Day Saints’ Commonly Called Mormons,” 4 Mar. 1840, Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives, Washington DC.)

    Memorial of Ephraim Owen, Jr. H.R. Doc. no. 42, 25th Cong., 3rd Sess. (1838).

  9. [9]

    Journal of the Senate of the United States, 26th Cong., 1st Sess., 23 Mar. 1840, 259–260.

    Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, Being the First Session of the Twenty-Sixth Congress, Begun and Held at the City of Washington, December 2, 1839, and in the Sixty-Fourth Year of the Independence of the Said United States. Washington DC: Blair and Rives, 1839.

  10. [10]

    See Letter from Elias Higbee, 9 Mar. 1840.

  11. [11]

    Minutes and Discourse, 6–8 Apr. 1840.

  12. [12]

    “Important from Washington,” Times and Seasons, Mar. 1840, 1:74–75; Minutes and Discourse, 6–8 Apr. 1840.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

Page 2

ment and the perpetration of many scenes of lawless outrage, which are set forth in the petition: that they were finally compelled to fly from those counties; and on the 11th October, 1838, they sought safety by that means, with their families, leaving many of their effects behind: that they had previously applied to the constituted authorities of for protection, but in vain. They allege that they were pursued by the mob; that conflicts ensued; deaths occurred on each side; and, finally, a force was organized, under the authority of the of the State of , with orders to drive the Mormons from the State, or exterminate them. The Mormons thereupon determined to make no further resistance, but to submit themselves to the authorities of the . Several of the Mormons were arrested and imprisoned on a charge of treason against the ; and the rest, amounting to about 15,000 souls, fled into other States, principally in , where they now reside.
The petition is drawn up at great length, and sets forth, with feeling and eloquence, the wrongs of which they complain; justifies their own conduct, and aggravate that of those whom they call their persecutors, and concludes by saying that they see no redress, unless it be obtained of the Congress of the , to whom they make their solemn last appeal as American citizens, as Christians, and as men. To which decision they say they will submit.
The committee have examined the case presented by the petition, and heard the views urged by their , with care and attention; and, after full examination and consideration, unanimously concur in the opinion that the case presented for their investigation is not such a one as will justify or authorize any interposition by this Government. The wrongs complained of are not alleged to be committed by any of the officers of the , or under the authority of its Government in any manner whatever. The allegations in the petition relate to the acts of the citizens, and inhabitants, and authorities of the State of , of which State the petitioners were at the time citizens or inhabitants. The grievances complained of in the petition are alleged to have been done within the territory of the State of . The committee, under these circumstances, have not considered themselves justified in inquiring into the truth or falsehood of the facts charged in the petition. If they are true, the petitioners must seek relief in the courts of judicature of the State of , or of the , which has the appropriate jurisdiction to administer full and adequate redress for the wrongs complained of, and doubtless will do so fairly and impartially; or, the petitioners may, if they see proper, apply to the justice and magnanimity of the State of —an appeal which the committee feel justified in believing will never be made in vain by the injured or oppressed. It can never be presumed that a State either wants the power, or lacks the disposition, to redress the wrongs of its own citizens committed within her own territory, whether they proceed from the lawless acts of her officers, or any other persons.
The committee therefore report that they recommend the passage of the following resolution:
Resolved, That the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from the further consideration of the memorial in this case; and that the memorialists have leave to withdraw the papers which accompany their memorial. [p. 2]
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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Appendix: Report of the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, 4 March 1840
ID #
19819
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D7:538–543
Handwriting on This Page
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Footnotes

  1. [3]

    At this point in the manuscript draft of this committee report, the word “urged” replaced the canceled word “presented.” (“Report from the Committee on the Judiciary on the Memorial of the ‘Latter Day Saints’ Commonly Called Mormons,” 4 Mar. 1840, p. 3b, Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives, Washington DC.)

    Memorial of Ephraim Owen, Jr. H.R. Doc. no. 42, 25th Cong., 3rd Sess. (1838).

  2. [4]

    Higbee was the only remaining delegate sent to Washington DC who presented the church’s memorial to the Committee on the Judiciary. (Letter from Elias Higbee, 20 Feb. 1840–A; Letters from Elias Higbee, 21–22 Feb. 1840.)

  3. [5]

    At this point in the manuscript draft, the word “grievances” replaced the canceled word “acts.” (“Report,” 4 Mar. 1840, p. 4.)

    “Report from the Committee on the Judiciary on the Memorial of the ‘Latter Day Saints’ Commonly Called Mormons,” 4 Mar. 1840. Committee Reports and Papers of the Committee on the Judiciary from the 26th Congress. Committee on the Judiciary, Committee Papers, 1816–2011. Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, 1789– 2015. National Archives, Washington DC. The LDS records cited herein are in SEN26-AD7.

  4. [6]

    At this point in the manuscript draft, the word “relief” replaced the canceled word “redress.” (“Report,” 4 Mar. 1840, p. 4.)

    “Report from the Committee on the Judiciary on the Memorial of the ‘Latter Day Saints’ Commonly Called Mormons,” 4 Mar. 1840. Committee Reports and Papers of the Committee on the Judiciary from the 26th Congress. Committee on the Judiciary, Committee Papers, 1816–2011. Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, 1789– 2015. National Archives, Washington DC. The LDS records cited herein are in SEN26-AD7.

  5. [7]

    At this point in the manuscript draft, “full and adequate redress, for the wrongs complained of and doubtless will” replaced the canceled passage “and the Committee cannot doubt their disposition to.” (“Report,” 4 Mar. 1840, p. 4.)

    “Report from the Committee on the Judiciary on the Memorial of the ‘Latter Day Saints’ Commonly Called Mormons,” 4 Mar. 1840. Committee Reports and Papers of the Committee on the Judiciary from the 26th Congress. Committee on the Judiciary, Committee Papers, 1816–2011. Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, 1789– 2015. National Archives, Washington DC. The LDS records cited herein are in SEN26-AD7.

  6. [8]

    At this point in the manuscript draft, “feel justified in believing” replaced the canceled phrases “will not permit themselves to doubt” and “are persuaded.” (“Report,” 4 Mar. 1840, p. 4.)

    “Report from the Committee on the Judiciary on the Memorial of the ‘Latter Day Saints’ Commonly Called Mormons,” 4 Mar. 1840. Committee Reports and Papers of the Committee on the Judiciary from the 26th Congress. Committee on the Judiciary, Committee Papers, 1816–2011. Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, 1789– 2015. National Archives, Washington DC. The LDS records cited herein are in SEN26-AD7.

  7. [9]

    The church had previously made several appeals for redress to the Missouri courts. (See, for example, the records related to the suits of Phelps v. Lucas et al., Partridge v. Lucas et al., and Allen v. David et al. housed at Jackson County Records Center, Independence, MO; Petition to George Tompkins, between 9 and 15 Mar. 1839; and Letter from William W. Phelps, 27 Feb. 1834.)

  8. [10]

    At this point in the manuscript draft, the word “officers” replaced the canceled phrase “her citizens.” (“Report,” 4 Mar. 1840, p. 5.)

    “Report from the Committee on the Judiciary on the Memorial of the ‘Latter Day Saints’ Commonly Called Mormons,” 4 Mar. 1840. Committee Reports and Papers of the Committee on the Judiciary from the 26th Congress. Committee on the Judiciary, Committee Papers, 1816–2011. Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, 1789– 2015. National Archives, Washington DC. The LDS records cited herein are in SEN26-AD7.

  9. [11]

    In response to this report, church leaders said that the committee’s referral of the Saints “to the Justice and magnanimity of the State of Missouri,” and its presumption that Missouri would treat the Saints fairly, was “a great insult to our good sense, better judgment, and intelligence; when from numerous affidavits which were laid before the committee: Proved, that we could only go into the State of Missouri, contrary to the exterminating order of the Governor, and consequently at the risk of our lives.” (Minutes and Discourse, 6–8 Apr. 1840.)

  10. [12]

    At this point in the manuscript draft, the phrase “Congress cannot constitutionally grant any redress upon the grievance set forth in the petition” was revised to read “Congress hath not any constitutional jurisdiction in the matter of.” The passage was then entirely canceled and not replaced. (“Report,” 4 Mar. 1840, p. 5.)

    “Report from the Committee on the Judiciary on the Memorial of the ‘Latter Day Saints’ Commonly Called Mormons,” 4 Mar. 1840. Committee Reports and Papers of the Committee on the Judiciary from the 26th Congress. Committee on the Judiciary, Committee Papers, 1816–2011. Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, 1789– 2015. National Archives, Washington DC. The LDS records cited herein are in SEN26-AD7.

  11. [13]

    Members of the church’s delegation to Congress submitted several documents in support of their memorial, including pamphlets and affidavits. (Journal of the Senate of the United States, 26th Cong., 1st Sess., 17 Feb. 1840, 179; Letter from Elias Higbee, 24 Mar. 1840.)

    Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, Being the First Session of the Twenty-Sixth Congress, Begun and Held at the City of Washington, December 2, 1839, and in the Sixty-Fourth Year of the Independence of the Said United States. Washington DC: Blair and Rives, 1839.

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