On the more general point, I must say, Sir, that this decision of the President, not to hold communication with the houses of Congress after twelve o’clock at night, on the 3d of March, is quite new.  No such objection has ever been made before by any President.  No one of them has ever declined communicating with either house at any time during the continuance of its session on that day.  All Presidents heretofore have left with the houses themselves to fix their hour of adjournment, and to bring their session for the day to a close, whenever they saw fit.

It is notorious, in point of fact, that nothing is more common than for both houses to sit later than twelve o’clock, for the purpose of completing measures which are in the last stages of their progress.  Amendments are proposed and agreed to, bills passed, enrolled bills signed by the presiding officers, and other important legislative acts performed, often at two or three o’clock in the morning.  All this is very well known to gentlemen who have been for any considerable time members of Congress.  And all Presidents have signed bills, and have also made nominations to the Senate, without objection as to time, whenever bills have been presented for signature, or whenever it became necessary to make nominations to the Senate, at any time during the session of the respective houses on that day.

And all this, Sir, I suppose to be perfectly right, correct, and legal.  There is no clause of the Constitution, nor is there any law, which declares that the term of office of members of the House of Representatives shall expire at twelve o’clock at night on the 3d of March.  They are to hold for two years, but the precise hour for the commencement of that term of two years is nowhere fixed by constitutional or legal provision.  It has been established by usage and by inference, and very properly established, that, since the first Congress commenced its existence on the first Wednesday in March, 1789, which happened to be the fourth day of the month, therefore the 4th of March is the day of the commencement of each successive term; but no hour is fixed by law or practice.  The true rule is, as I think, most undoubtedly, that the session held on the last day constitutes the last day for all legislative and legal purposes.  While the session begun on that day continues, the day itself continues, according to the established practice both of legislative and judicial bodies.  This could not well be otherwise.  If the precise moment of actual time were to settle such a matter, it would be material to ask, Who shall settle the time?  Shall it be done by public authority, or shall every man observe the tick of his own watch?  If absolute time is to furnish a precise rule, the excess of a minute, it is obvious, would be as fatal as the excess of an hour.  Sir, no bodies, judicial or legislative, have ever been so hypercritical, so astute to no purpose, so much more nice than wise, as to govern themselves