Mr. HOWARD. I concur entirely with the honorable Senfrom Illinois in the views which he has presented to the Senate in favor of striking out the 2nd section of the bill. I doubt very much the propriety of multiplying the subordinate law officers in the various Depts of the Government. It leads undoubtedly to a diversity of decision and opinion in those various Depts, whereas it is necessary that there should be harmony and uniformity in the construction given to the laws during the course of their administration. It is made the duty of the AttyGen, by law, to give advice and legal opinions to the various heads of Depts and to the POTUS whenever he is called upon to do so; and although we may appoint a Solicitor for the Dept of State, it will still be the right of the SecyState to call upon the AttyGen for his opinion upon any question that he may see fit to submit to him, so that the duty of the AttyGen is by no means lighter by the retention of the 2nd section of this bill, and the appointment of a Solicitor under it. Owing to the complicated nature of the Treasury Dept, Congress, many years ago, saw fit to create the office of Solicitor of the Trensu. I have heard no complaint, it is true, of Iliat; still, it has always appeared to me that the most consistent course would have been to confide all questions of law that arise even in that Dept to the AttyGen, of that his decisions may be uniform, and so that his construction of the various acts of Congress may be uniform, and be under stood to be uniform throughout the U.S. During the war, owing to circumstances of which we are all aware, Congress authorized the appointment of a Solicitor to the War Dept, and I believe the country has not complained of that appointment. There seemed to be a necessity for the employment of such an officer owing to the great multiplicity of questions that arose during the war and the pressing necessity of an immediate decision upon them from time to time. I think that necessity at present has ceased, and I think we may dispense with the services of the Solicitor of the “or Dept without injury to the public service. But, sir, the questions which ordinarily and naturally come before the SecyState are of n character on which, it seems to me, it is necessary there should be a decision of the highest law officer of the Government. In that Dept are considered from time to time questions of international law of the gravest and highest importance questions which of all others deserve to be submitted to the calm censideration of the AttyGen, and ought not to be left, in my judgment, to the decision of any inferior law officer. Questions respecting the true construction to be given to treaties, indeed all questions that relate to international law, must naturally come before the AttyGen of the U.S.; and I object to submitting those questions, or any of them, to an inferior law officer without the concurrence of the AttyGen of the U.S. I see no necessity, I must confess, for placinga Solicitor under the control of the SecyState. Ifany question of importance arises in that Dept, the AttyGen is the proper functionary to determine it for the Government. He, and he alone, ought to be held responsible for the decision of the question, in case the SecyState should eem it necessary to take his opinion. It seems to me the creation of this office of Solicitor to the State Dept is entirely an anomaly; it is without necessity so far as I can see, and I shall vote to strike out the 2nd section for that reason. I do not see the necessity of giving the SecyState a Solicitor to act under his especial instructions and control. It is generally supposed that the SecyState is, or should ) e, a gentleman of such intelligence and such information as to make it unnecessary torefer ordinary questions of law to the AttyGen; that he is competent himself to decide most of the questions which come before him; and I think undoubtedly that is true in the case of the present SecyState. I do not see the necessity, as I remarked before, of creating another office to accommodate some favorite, under the control and direction of the SecyState, and I shall vote against it.