Mr. FESSENDEN. Whatever we may do, if we should adopt the amendment proposed by my friendfrom Ohio, [Mr. Snsmussd the result, in my opinion, will be the same. We shall have, in a very short time, a statement that this rank of minister plenipotentiary cannot be supported on so small a salary with that dignity which the position requires. But I enter my entire dissent to the idea that the influence of our ministers abroad depends upon whether they are called by one title or another. The thing itself is preposterous so far as my own judgment is concerned. The influence which a man would haveat a foreign court depends, in the 1st place, somewhat perhaps upon his own capacity, but more, unquestionably, upon the power of the Government that he represents. It is the rank of his Government and the power that it has among the nations of the earth that gives him power abroad. The idea that it is required for the protection of the interests of this country in foreigncourts that we should change the title and the rank of our ministers is one that does not address itself with any sort of force to in mind. I have no doubt there may be some little matters of etiquette in which a higher rank would be convenient to the ministers themselves, and that is all there is of it. Now, sir, Iwill venture to as and the Senfrom Massachusetts and the Senfrom Ohio [Mr. WADE] will contradict me if Iam not right about it that there are but 2 men among all our ministers resident who have ever said a word on this subject. One of them is the minister to Belgium and the other is the minister to Portugal. I have never heard of anybody else that made any disturbance about it. I know that an effort was made here 2 years ago to force the minister to Belgium into a higher position because, as it was said, Lee pol was our great friend, although I believe it turned out afterward that he was not, and that his influence had really been turned against us, and because Belgium was such a very important country, having about 5 millions of people, although it is not so important in the way of trade to us as the Netherlands, having no foreign possessions. That was for his ben efit. e is the last man abroad that I would attempt to dignify or to please by raising his rank, for reasons which I shall not give. I would have said, until this morning, that I felt differently toward Mr. Harvey, the minister to Portugal; but if the statement which I have read IS true, which professes to be extracts from a letter of his published in the NewYork Times, he has been guilty of a indecorum; and instead of passing a bgilravbey which he could be by any possibility raised in rank, he ought to be kiced out, because it was an interference with what, being a foreign minister, it was improper for him to interfere with, if the letter was actually written and I suppose there is no doubt about it; an in the next place, it was a very unnecessarily impertinent letter with reference to some branches of the Government, he being a for eiariminister.