Mr. LANE. The history of this matter, as I understand, is this: at the last session of Congress the Senate passed a bill taking the appointment of pension agents from the Inte rior Dept and placing it with the President, subject to the confirmation of the Senate. That bill failed to be acted upon by the HoRep. At the beginning of the present session it was passed by the HoRep with the amendment to which the attention of the Senate is now called. They E.in that amendment to limit the number of pension agents so as not to exceed 3 in anyone State, and also to provide that the term of office of those appointed after the 1st of January, 1866, shall expire within 30 days after the passage of this act, and that it shall be the duty of the President at once to nominate others to fill their places. When the bill came back to the Senate with this amendment it was referred to the ComJudiciary, and they have reported an amend mont to the House amendment, extending further back the time at which the pension agents' offices shall expire, unless reappointed and confirmed by the Senate, so as to apply to all appointed since October 1, 1865. That is the present condition of the bill. At the last session of the Senate, upon a letter of the SecyInterior, Mr. Harlan, this subject was referred to the Pen:sion Committee. They then reported a bill providing simply that hereafter the appointment of pension agents should be by the Pres: ident, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Prior to that time the appointment was exclusively with the SecyInterior, and there was no limit as to the number which he might appoint. It was thought necessary that the nominations to offices which had grown so important should pass under the supervision of the Senate. At present there are 49 pension agents, and not exceeding 3 in anyone State. It is the opinion of the Dept that no additional officers are necessary. This bill restricts the appointment so as not to exceed 3 in anyone State. The history of the appointment of pension agents is simply this: on the passage of the act granting pensions to revolutionary soldiers those persons were paid and disbursed by the War Dept, and they appointed generally bank officers without compensation, supposing that the use of the funds in the interim would ia.y them for their trouble in the disbursements; when pensions were increased growing out of the Mexican war and the interior Dept was established, the payment of pensions was given to the interior Dept and pension agents were appointed whose salary was limited by the regulations of that Dept. In 1862 a law was passed making the maximum payment $2,000. Afterward another law was passed making the maximum $4,000, but still eaving the appointment unrestricted in the hands of the SecyInterior. We thought at the last session, and I think now, that officers so important should pass the super vision of the Senate, and the Senate with great unanimity passed the bill, but it failed, as I before remarked, to be acted upon by the HoRep. They send it here now, with certain amendments, and those amendments have been submitted to the ComJudiciary, and they report a bill which I think perfectly proper in all its terms. The addition made by their amendments, the only important addition, is, that the terms of officers appointed after a certain date shall expire within 30 days from the passage of this law; and as I desire to deceive no man and I will do nothing by indirection which i will not do directly, I will state my object at least in voting for these amendments. Honest, faithful, and competent men, simply because they have stood by the policy of Congress and refused to bow to executive dictation, have been removed. We propose now that the offices of the recently appointed officers put in their places shall expire within 30 days from the passage of this bill; and Congress surely has a perfect right to limit the number of officers, to fix the duration of their office and the compensation for that office; and i propose to do just that by this amendment, no more and no less, so that the men who have received their reward from the President shall not have the sanction of the Congress of the U.S. States, at least for any such arrangement or agreement. I doubt not in many in stances worthy men have been appointed to these vacancies; but they have displaced men equally honest, equally competent, and equally worthy, and for no other cause than simply the fact that they have been Republicans and Union men, and have opposed the policy of the president. I propose by this amendment to vacate those offices after 30 days, and that the President shall nominate to the Senate others in their place, and that the Senate shall pass upon them. This, is as I understand, the object and scope of the bill and the amendments.