Senate roll call 843 · 47th Congress · Feb 14, 1883
To amend H.R. 5538 by placing a duty of 15% ad valorem on books, pamphlets and all printed matter, by adding "wholly or partly in the english language." (p. 25
On Feb 14, 1883, the Senate voted 32–31 (HR 5538). Result: passed. By party: Democrats 4–30, Republicans 27–5, Independents 1–0. It was a split vote: the parties took opposite sides, with some members crossing over. 9 members voted against their own party.
During the 47th Congress (1881–1882), Chester A. Arthur was president, and Republicans held majorities in both the House and Senate.
- Yes
- 32
- No
- 31
- Did not vote
- 16
- Date
- Feb 14, 1883
By party
- Democrats4 yes · 30 no · 4 didn’t vote
- Republicans27 yes · 5 no · 11 didn’t vote
- Independents1 yes · 0 no
Who broke with their party
- Thomas Francis Bayard Sr. D-DE voted yes
- James Wilson Mcdill R-IA voted no
- John James Ingalls R-KS voted no
- Arthur Pue Gorman D-MD voted yes
- Charles Henry Van Wyck R-NE voted no
- John Sherman R-OH voted no
- John Inscho Mitchell R-PA voted no
- Henry Gassaway Davis D-WV voted yes
- Johnson Newlon Camden D-WV voted yes
How each senator voted: Yes
- John Franklin Miller R-CA
- Horace Austin Warner Tabor R-CO
- Nathaniel Peter Hill R-CO
- Orville Hitchcock Platt R-CT
- Thomas Francis Bayard Sr. D-DE
- William Boyd Allison R-IA
- David Davis I-IL
- John Alexander Logan R-IL
- Benjamin Harrison R-IN
- Preston B. Plumb R-KS
- William Pitt Kellogg R-LA
- George Frisbie Hoar R-MA
- Henry Laurens Dawes R-MA
- Arthur Pue Gorman D-MD
- Eugene Hale R-ME
- William Pierce Frye R-ME
- Omar Dwight Conger R-MI
- Samuel James Renwick Mcmillan R-MN
- William Windom R-MN
- Edward Henry Rollins R-NH
- Henry William Blair R-NH
- William Joyce Sewell R-NJ
- Elbridge Gerry Lapham R-NY
- Warner Miller R-NY
- Henry Bowen Anthony R-RI
- Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich R-RI
- George Franklin Edmunds R-VT
- Justin Smith Morrill R-VT
- Angus Cameron R-WI
- Philetus Sawyer R-WI
- Henry Gassaway Davis D-WV
- Johnson Newlon Camden D-WV
How each senator voted: No
- James Lawrence Pugh D-AL
- John Tyler Morgan D-AL
- Augustus Hill Garland D-AR
- James David Walker D-AR
- James Thompson Farley D-CA
- Eli Saulsbury D-DE
- Charles William Jones D-FL
- Wilkinson Call D-FL
- Joseph Emerson Brown D-GA
- Middleton Pope Barrow D-GA
- James Wilson Mcdill R-IA
- John James Ingalls R-KS
- James Burnie Beck D-KY
- John Stuart Williams D-KY
- Benjamin Franklin Jonas D-LA
- James Black Groome D-MD
- Francis Marion Cockrell D-MO
- George Graham Vest D-MO
- James Zachariah George D-MS
- Matt Whitaker Ransom D-NC
- Zebulon Baird Vance D-NC
- Charles Henry Van Wyck R-NE
- John Rhoderic Mcpherson D-NJ
- George Hunt Pendleton D-OH
- John Sherman R-OH
- James Harvey Slater D-OR
- La Fayette Grover D-OR
- John Inscho Mitchell R-PA
- Matthew Calbraith Butler D-SC
- Wade Hampton D-SC
- Howell Edmunds Jackson D-TN
- Isham Green Harris D-TN
- Richard Coke D-TX
- Samuel Bell Maxey D-TX
- John Warfield Johnston D-VA
Did not vote
- George Miles Chilcott R-CO
- Henry Moore Teller R-CO
- Joseph Roswell Hawley R-CT
- Benjamin Harvey Hill D-GA
- Daniel Wolsey Voorhees D-IN
- Thomas White Ferry R-MI
- Alonzo Jay Edgerton R-MN
- Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar D-MS
- Alvin Saunders R-NE
- James Graham Fair D-NV
- John Percival Jones R-NV
- Roscoe Conkling R-NY
- Thomas Collier Platt R-NY
- James Donald Cameron R-PA
- Ambrose Everett Burnside R-RI
- William Mahone O-VA
Other votes
From Voteview roll call records.
Cite or embed this page
Capitol Receipts, “To amend H.R. 5538 by placing a duty of 15%…: Senate Vote, Feb 14…,” https://www.capitolreceipts.com/vote/47-S-843/to-amend-h-r-5538-by-placing-a-duty (accessed 2026-10-17).