Mr. TRUMBULL. Mr. President, I was not very well satisfied with the confiscation bill when weed it, as I suppose every Senator who was here at that time very well knows, and I think that the power. by the clause which it is now proposed to repeal has been very grossly abused; but I am not aware of any confiscated property that is now about to be restored. The report of the Commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau, made at the last session of Congress, shows that lands of rebels which had been taken possession of as confiscated property were subsequently, by order of the President, restored to their previous owners; but I do not know that at this time there is any property likely to be restored under this clause of the confiscation act. It is very probable that I shall vote for this bill repealing the clause under consideration; but I think there is very great force in the suggestion made by the Senfrom Maine, that it is always safer to refer a bill to some one of our committees. The committees are not yet formed. There is now no committee to which this bill can be referred. I know of no pressing necessity for the passage of the bill today. I will not commit myself to say that it ought to pass at all. I should like to be better in formed than I am today before voting upon it. My impressions certainly are in its favor; but I think we had better act deliberately and understandingly, and not under excitement, as if we had come together and were in a great hurry to repeal this statute which we ourselves passed only 3 or 4 years ago. I trust that the measure will not be forced to a vote at the present, time; I trust that, the Senate will not take it up for consideration now. I know of nothing to be gained by that course. I think it is a bad practice; and unless some Senator will show that there is danger of property being restored, that there is some pressing necessity for action today, I trust the motion will not be pressed, or if it is pressed before the Senate, that we shall not proceed to the consideration of the bill. If reasons were iven showing that this power is to be abused between today and tomorrow or next day, I would not object to considering the bill at once, but knowing no reason and none having been stated, I think we had better let the bill take the ordinary course.