Mr. PERAM. I wish to state briefly the considerations which have actuated the committee in making the recommendation which they do make. t will be seen by the substitute, as it now stands, that it only up lies to the ComrPension and tot e chief clerk. The salary of the ComrPension now is $3,000, and that of the chief clerk $2,000. I need not say to any gentleman who has bad business with the pension Dept, that the ComrPension is one of the hardest worked officers in the whole of the Depts of the Government and I need not say that there has been a very great increase of business in that bureau during the last 3 or 4 years, and that it becomes necessary for the Commissioner, in order to a proor discharge of his duties, to work very muc outside of the regular business hours, even well into the hight, and that there is very great responsibility evolved upon him. We are distributing now through this bureau something more than 15 million dollars perannum more than the whole expense of carrying on the Government up to the time of John QuincyAdamssAdministration. the billsthat are now in process of passage in Congress will increase the disbursements tomore than 20 million dollars, and this is to be paid out in sums averaging less than 100 dollars each in all parts of the country, and in almost every town in the count, making, aside from the necessity of a care ul examination of all the cases that came before the Commissioner, avast amount ofbusiness in keeping all these accounts with such a large number of persons, scattered over so very large a territory. It is very true that the applications for pensions may now have reache the maximum and that there may not be so large a number of aplications for the next year as there has been or the last year. But it is also true that only the plain cases have been disposed of. There are a large number of cases remaining that are different entirely, cases that require a great deal of investigation and very much research, to which the ComrPension mustgive his careful attention. Many of the heads of bureaus have deputies but we give him none. He is obliged to attend to all his duties himself. When the salaries of these heads of bureaus were 1st established, they were just 1/2 the salaries of Cabinet officers, $5,000. the salaries of Cabinet officers being then 56,000. We have increased the pay of Cabinet otheers to $8,000, and this bill proposes to increase the pay of the ComrPension to the same extent, giving him just 1/2 the salary of a Cabinet officer, as we were in the habit of doing formerly. Now, we found, when we came to examine the salaries of these heads of bureaus, that the Superintendent of the Coast Survey, for in stance, receives a salary of $6,000 uyear. I am not familiar with the duties of that officer, but I resume they are very light as compared with those of the ComrPension. We give the Comptroller of the Currency, who hasqdepnty to and him, $6,000. We give the ComrIntRev, who also has a deputy, $4,000. When we come to the War Dept, the heads of bureaus there, I believe, are generally brigadier generals, receiving the pay and commutationpf brigadier generals, which, I think. amounts to $6,000 perannum. If I am wrong, some military gentleman will correct me. When we come to the N nvy Dept, the head of the Bureau of Yards and Docks receives $4,000 and then the ComrPatents receives $4, 600. Under all the circumstances the committee have come to the conclusion that it is very properthat the pay of this officer, who is obliged to stay here during the whole year, during the hot. as well as the cold seasons of the year, and attending to his duties so assiduously, as it is necessary he should do to discharge them, shall be increased. So faras the chief clerk of the Pension Office is concerned, we give the chief clerk of the Patent Office $2, 500. I suppose the duties of the chief clerk in the Pension office may be as arduous as those performed there. There is another fact connected with this matter. While you give many of the other heads of bureaus deputies, you give the ComrPension no deputy, and therefore the chief clerk must be a man competent to perform the duties of the Commissioner in case of his ab sence or sickness. The committee came to the conclusion that we need a man whose services are worth this salary. The chief clerk now is obliged to assist the Commissioner very much in his duties, and in case of the sickness or absence of the Commissioner would be expected to take his place and perform his duties. The committee have recommended the as sage of this bill, believing that on the who is it is about right, and I am willing to submit the question to the House.