Mr. POMEROY. I think it my duty, at an rate, to inform the Senate what this amendment is, and how it changes the old law. It changes the old law only in one respect, I think. The old law obli es the person availing himself of the benefit of the homestead act to take an oath that he hits never been engaged in the rebellion. If thisamendmentshall be adopted and become the law, he will have to swear that he will bear, in the future, true allegiance to the Government of the U.S. In other words, it allows poor men who have been engaged in the rebellion to get 80 acres of kind of the public domain by taking an oath that they wi hereafter bear true allegiance to the Govern ntot the U.S. That is the essential modification. He is to occupy and cultivate and have continued possession of the land for 5 years before receiving title to it. It was discussed for some time in committee, and it was the opinion of the committee, nearly unanimous, perhaps quite so, that no better provision could be made for poor men who had been engaged in the rebelion than to let them have 80 acres of land on the public domain, evli though they take simply an oath that they will hereafter bear true and faithful allegiance to the Government of the U.S. As the law now is, all who have been engaged in the rebellion are excluded from the public domain. The committee were of opinion that this amendment might be justified under the circumstances. I thought I ought to state that to the Senate, because this amendment repeals. in fact, so much of the old law as debarred the rebels from homestead settlement on the public domain. The amendment was agreed to. The next amendment was to insert as an additional section the following: SEO3. Abife:, That all the provisionsof thesaid homesteadlaw and the actamend utory thereof, approved March 21, 1864.so far as the same maybe up licable. except s ofar as the same are modied bt e recedingEGQUOIoISf thisact. are applied to an m e part of this not as fully as if herein enactedand set forth. The amendment was agreed to.