Mr. Stevens desired to amend the bill by striking out the limitation to three years given the possessory titles conferred by General Sherman, and rendering them perpetual. This amendment the House were unwilling to accept. Mr. Stevens further proposed to strike out the proviso "unless as punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted," giving as a reason for this amendment, "I know that men are convicted of assault and battery, and sentenced to slavery down there. I have authentic evidence of that fact in several letters, and, therefore, I propose to strike out those words." This amendment was adopted. Another important amendment proposed by the committee was the limitation of the operation of the bill to States in which the writ of _habeas corpus_ was suspended on the 1st of February, 1866. Mr. Eliot closed the debate by answering some objections to the bill, and presenting some official documents proving the beneficent results of the bureau, especially in the State of Kentucky. On the 6th of February the question was taken, and the bill passed by the following vote: YEAS--Messrs. Alley, Allison, Ames, Anderson, Delos R. Ashley, James M. Ashley, Baker, Baldwin, Banks, Barker, Baxter, Beaman, Benjamin, Bidwell, Bingham, Blaine, Blow, Boutwell, Brandegee, Bromwell, Broomall, Bundy, Reader W. Clarke, Sidney Clarke, Cobb, Conkling, Cook, Cullom, Darling, Davis, Dawes, Defrees, Delano, Deming, Dixon, Donnelly, Driggs, Dumont, Eckley, Eggleston, Eliot, Farnsworth, Farquhar, Ferry, Garfield, Grinnell, Griswold, Hale, Abner C. Harding, Hart, Hayes, Henderson, Higby, Hill, Holmes, Hooper, Hotchkiss, Asahel W. Hubbard, Chester D. Hubbard, Demas Hubbard, John H. Hubbard, James R. Hubbell, James Humphrey, Ingersoll, Jenckes, Julian, Kasson, Kelley, Kelso, Ketcham, Kuykendall, Laflin, Latham, George V. Lawrence, William Lawrence, Loan, Longyear, Lynch, Marston, Marvin, McClurg, McIndoe, McKee, McRuer, Mercur, Miller, Moorhead, Morrill, Morris, Moulton, Myers, Newell, O'Neill, Orth, Paine, Patterson, Perham, Phelps, Pike, Plants, Pomeroy, Price, William H. Randall, Raymond, Alexander H. Rice, John H. Rice, Rollins, Sawyer, Schenck, Scofield, Shellabarger, Smith, Spalding, Starr, Stevens, Stilwell, Thayer, Francis Thomas, John L. Thomas, Trowbridge, Upson, Van Aernam, Burt Van Horn, Robert T. Van Horn, Ward, Warner, Elihu B. Washburne, William B. Washburn, Welker, Wentworth, Whaley, Williams, James F. Wilson, Stephen F. Wilson, Windom, and Woodbridge.--136.