Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, the ComForRel, as has been stated by the honorable chairman, were unanimous in thinking that the compensation of all the clerks in the Dept of State should be raised. They therefore authorized him, as he has said, to propose an amendment increasing them 20%. That was offered in good faith, and of course supported in good faith by all the members of the committee; bntwe have found that it is impossibleto have it done. The Senate entertain a different opinion; and the committee are not only now aware that in their judgment at least an additional compensation should be given to Mr. Hunter, but that the Senate almost universally concur in that opinion. I submit, therefore. to my friendfrom Indiana whether it is actually just, because he is unable to compensate all the clerks of the Dept, to refuseto compensate one as to whose services we all concur and in whose increased compensation we all unite. I agree with him that they are very badly paid, and I have often been surprised at their being able to live at all with the salaries they receive, not merely in the Dept of State but the clerks in the Depts generally. I think it very bad policy to keep them in the service of the country at a rate of compensation evidently not adequate to their support. It appears to me to present temptations that they may be unable to resist. I have no reason to suppose that they have not been able to resist them; but I think it is bad policy to have in the employ of the Government, particularly in the Treasury Dept, officers of this description who have very much to do with the actual administration of the finances of the country, upon salaries which are certainly inadequate to support even anyone of them who may be without a family; and how they live as some of them do, with families consisting of a wife and several children, how they even manage to feed them, much less to educate them, has always been a mystery to me. I would therefore unite most cordially with the honorable member from Indiana in having them all increased; but that we are not able to accomplish now. I hope he will permit us at least, and those who think with him that the chief clerk of this particular Dept is not paid enough looking to his long and faithful service, to adopt this amendment which gives him a rate of compensation by no means exaggerated.