Mr. DAVIS. I wish to say one word on this subject. I myself never heard of any movement or intention of secession as connected with the retrocession of Alexandria to Virginia. I voted against it, and JeffersonDavis voted against it at the same time. There was about as much blending of votes that had a tendency and an antitendency to secession on that'suhject as could occur upon almost any other subject whatever. The 1st movement, as I learn from a respected friend who is a citizen of this District, for the retrocession of Alexandria was made about the year 1820. The considerations upon which that movement was made were about these: there was one system of civil law for that portion of the District northeast of the Potomac, and there was a different system of law for that portion of it that was subsequently ceded to Virginia, southwest of the Potomac. There were 3 judges of the District court, and all resided either in Washington city or Georgetown. There was no judge resident on the other side of the Potomac, and when men bad business, either as lawyers or as parties to suits, and wanted to get a writ of injunction or any other restraining order, they had to come up from Alexandria to Washington city in order to get the order the proper judicial officer. This friend of mine in ormed me that the movement was made very earnestly at that time, and with the full sanction of all the people of Alexandria; and to operate upon the sentiment of the people of Alexandria in favor of the retrocession, some industrious lawyer or gentleman compiled all the appropriations of money by the Congress of the U.S. to the different portions of the District. There had been millions appropriated to that portion of the District on this side, and on the other side there was but a solitary appropriation, and that was to build a jail. To alleviate this inconvenience in some respect an act of Congress was passed requiring that one judge of the District court of the DistCol should reside in Alexandria; but before that law was observed so as to induce one of the judges to remove his residence to that city, or to procure the appointment of a judge resident in that city, the law was repealed. I have understoodfrom this respected friend of mine that at various times, 2 or 3 times at least, after the year 1820 and previous to the year 1846, there was a similar movement of the people of Alexandria to have a retrocession of the portion of the District that had been coded by Virginia, and never in connection with secession or with any political object whatever, but simply to detach that portion of the District from the government of Congress, and to throw it back to the government of Virginia. I make these statements of facts for the purpose of vindicating this actof retrocession from every imputation connected with secessionism or any other form of disloyalty to the Government of the U.S.; and having done this much I will take my seat.