Mr. GRIMES. Mr. President, I have aban doned nearly all the political theories of the E.into which I was born; but there is someingering of that sentiment yet remaining in my breast which was the war cry of that party when I 1st became a voter, and that was, the curtailment of executive patronage and power. I am in favor of this proposition in accordance with that sentiment which I have always enter tained, and entertain as strongly today as at any past period of my life; but not because of any feeling that I may have against, or an hostility toward, the POTUS Personally he has treated me well enough, and I have no complaint to make about it. But here is an opportunity for me to record my vote upon a question which has a tendency in that particular direction, and I propose to record it in favor of the amendment proposed by the Senfrom Massachusetts. He proposes that every officer of the U.S. who receives a salary from the Government exceeding the sum of $1,000 shall be sent to the Senate for confirmation. We now have that law applying to the different Woo. throughout the U.S. Why should it not apply to other officers? The answer made to us is that they are too numerous, that we cannot attend to it, and that as the country expands and the population increases the necessity of investing this power exclusively in the POTUS will be increased. That argument, as has been well said by the Senfrom Wisconsin, instead of being in favor of the abandonment of this power on the part of the Senate to pass upon these confirmations, is, in my conviction, a reason why we should insist upon exercising it. I do not care if the nominations sent to us will fill a volume as large as a family Bible; I do not care if you do not pass upon the nominations critically or individually at all; the very fact that you have the right to do it will exercise a restraining influence on the appointing power. It is said that this will bring before us for confirmation appraisers and deputy collectors. Why should they not be brought before us? Why, sir, the office of appraiser in some of your cities is of vastly more importance than 3/4ths of the officers we are called upon to pass on. It is important that those appraisers should be men of integrity and character and worth; and who should know that better than the Representatives and Senators from the particular locality whence they are appointed? It is said, too, that we shall have the asst assessors and the deputy collectors and the inspectors sent here in this way. Very well; I want them sent here in this way. Do you suppose that if the power of confirmation or rejection had been lodged in the Senate in regard to these inspectors a man would have been appointed from my State as an inspector who only last year was guilty of smuggling cigars, and who oft his offense by the payment of several 1,000 dollars? I want the opportunity to put my seal of condem nation upon such men as that; and if there be only one man rejected in a whole State or in the whole U.S. for having violated your laws, that will have a moral influence and a political influence upon the President and upon others who make appointments. I know that if this measure passes it will throw great burdens upon your committees. That is no reason why we should not pass the law. Make new committees; organize your committees in a different manner; send some of these nominations that are now all thrust upon a single committee to other committees, and thus you will be able to transact the business. But the great point with me, and the great advantage in establishing this rule and passing this law is the effect that it will have upon the appointing power in the future and upon the appointees, when they know that they have got to pass the ordeal of the Senate. As I said before, confirm them in gross if you please; but leave to every Senator who knows anything about bad men being appointed an opportunity to select from that list those whom he knows to be unworthy of filling the places to which they have been appointed.