Mr. HOWARD. While I am up, I beg to say one word, with the indulgence of the senate. The act of 1862 provides that every person a pointed to any civil office, or lecte to the HoRep or to the Senate of the U.S., shall, before enterin upon the discharge of his duties, take the oat rescribed in the act, and among other facts which the applicant is required to attest to in that solemn form is, that he has neither sought nor accepted nor attempted to exercise the functions of any office whatever under any authority or pretended authority in hostility to the U.S.; not only that he has not exercised the functions of such an office, but that he has not sought to exercise them. So strict and so stringent is the act of 1862. Now, sir, I infer from this statute that the applicant in such a case is not subjected to the taking of this oath as a mere empty, unmeaning formalit'. I do not understand that Congress referred} it to the conscience of the claimant, whether he would or could take this oath. I understand the statute to require that in each casethe facts required to be sworn to by the applicant shall be true in point of fact. t would be a very idle ceremony to require an applicant for office to take this oath if he, and he alone, were to be the judge of the truth of the facts required by the oath. In short, I hold that under the terms of this oath every individual is in point of law prohibited as plainly as if the proibition were enacted in the oath, from holding any office unless the facts stated in the oath are in point of fact true. I hope, therefore, that the ComJudiciary, when this case shall go before them, will make a full and complete inquiry into all the facts of the ease for toinformation of the Senate, showing us whether or not this appli cant has ever exercised an office under the confederate government, or whether he has ever sought to exercise any such office, because if he has done the one thing or the other it is plain to my mind that he is prohibited by this statute from taking a seat in this Chaniber. I understand I shall not, of course. vouch for the truth of the information that this gentleman not only sought a judicial office in the State of Tennessee under the late confederate government, but actually proceeded to the exercise of the functions of that office and acted as a judge under the authority of the rebel confederacy. If that should turn out to be the however much fact, I might esteem the persona character of the applicant and as to that I do not profess to have any knowledge I should be constrained to vote against his taking a seat in this Chamber.