Mr. HOWE. Mr. President, I have looked at this bill this morning for the 1st time. do not know that I entirely comprehend it. I a ree with the chairman of the Committee on tinance and with others upon the propriety of getting back to what is called a specie basis as early as possible. I agree with the Senfrom Kentucky who has just taken his seat, that it will be avery glad ay for this Republic when there will not be found adollar of public, of corporate, or of personal credit that is not on demand convertible into a specie dollar. How soon that time will come, I take it we are none of us prepared now to say. I presume the 1st object to be aimed at by the Legislature Should be to bring about that day when there shall not be a dollar of national credit which is not convertible into as ecie dollar. The great obstacle in the way of this conversion at the present time, I suppose to be the existence of this large amount of credit in the sha o of Treasury notes which are made by our lhw a legal tender. Until that paperis retired, I suppOse we cannot look for the resumption of specie payments on the part of others. No bank and no individual will redeem their notes in specie as long as they can be redeemed in this paper; and they can be redeemed in this paperas long as this aperis extant. How to get the paperout of the way, then, seems to be the question. My idea was in the beginning that the only excuse for issuing this paperwas the fact that the Government had an urgent necessity for the use of money which could not be borrowed. Admitting the credit of the Government to be perfectly good and I never did vote for a law, and I never could vote for a law, which tolerated the idea that the credit of the government was below par the fact was that we had occasion to disburse an amount of money which could not be collected in coin if the Government could demand every dollar there was in the nation. The Government was driven, than, citherto make paperof its own or to bor rowpaper from somebody else. I always thought that the Government should place itself in the attitude of saying to the country, “ A certain amount of interest is fair to be paid; we are willing to pay that; whenever, therefore, individuals or corporation will loan us money at this fair rate ot interest we will borrow it; when we cannot borrow money at this rate of interest we will make it.” We never could say that we will not purchase wheat or meat, or hire soldiers or aborers because we have not the coin to pay them; provisions and labor we must have, and we demanded of the country to supply them, and they did. We were bound to pay them. When we could not command the coin with which to pay them, we had to make them who rk fOr us on our credit. If we made them take our credit in any form as an equivalent for their labor, for their meat, for their supplies, it Was only fair to say that their creditors should take the same form of credit from them. That necessitated the making of these notes a legal tender. I always thought, having settled what was a fair rate of interest t“o be paid, the Government should just say When you loan us this money at that rate of interest, we will borrow it; when on will not we will issue our own notes.” We adopted 1st 6 or cent. as a fair rate of interest. I thought it was a fair rate of interest, because by the legislation of nearly all the commercial States of the country that is the highest rate of interest individuals or banks are allowed to take, and having adopted 6%. as a fair rate of interest, I always regretted that we should have issued any form of oblivation which bore a different rate ofinterest. [here are several different kinds of these obligations out. In 1865 it seems that an act was passed authorizing the SecyTrensu to borrow a certain amount of money, I believe $000,000,000, and to issue among other thin any kind of bond not less than 50 dollars in amount, and running any length of time, I believe not more than 40 years, and varyingin the rate of interest up to 6%. in coin or 7 and 3 10ths%. in currency. Those are the kinds of bonds which the SecyTreasury is authorized to issue by the act referred to in the 1st section of this bill. The 1st clause of this bill now, as I understand it, authorizes the SecyTreasury to issue any bond that comes within this description in exchange for any other form of indebtedness outstanding against the government, whether it bears interest or whether it does not. An form of indebtedness out standing againstte Govenment be may take up and issue in lieu of it any kind of a bond authorized by the act of 1865. Now, I suppose we would rather either have bonds out bearing 6%. interest in coin or bonds bearing 7 and 3 10ths%. interest in currency. One of the 2 is preferable in the judgment of Congress today. My own opinion its at it would be better for the Government if it had no 7 and 3 10ths bonds out, and if all its bonds were reduced to 6%. interest and that payable in coin. Itink that would be the judgment of Congress today; but this bill, while it proposes to authorize the SecyTreasury to take up 7 and 310ths bonds and issue 5 twenties for them, also authorizes him to issue 520 bonds in exchange for the 7thirties; and it also authorizes him, if I understand it, to take up the ten40 bonds, the 5%. bonds, and issue in their place either fiie26%. bonds Or any other kind of bonds bearing not more than 6%. interest in coin or 7 and 3 10ths interest in currency. Now, is it possible that the Secretary will want to do this thing? Is it possible that the interests of the country will demand the doing of this thing, making this kind of exchange? If not, why authorize it? If you deem it better to get these 7 30 bonds all out of the way, why not authorize him to receive the 7 30 bonds and issue in exchange for them bonds bearing 6%. interest in coin, and let that be the extent of the authority you vest in him in the way of exchan e? But coming to the next c ause of the bill, which seems to be much more important, it is on that clause that I want some advice. As I 1st read iIt, thought it vested in the SecyTreasury authority to make any amount of bonds coming within the description of the act of 1865, and to sell them anywhere upon just such terms as be pleased; that he could sell them for 90%, 80%, 50%. if he saw fit, but the sat part of that clause provides that “ nothing herein contained shall be construed to authorize any increase of the public debt." Is that designed (I put the question for information) to deprive the Secrets of the authority to sell any of these bonds elow at?