Mr. WASHBURNE. of Illinois. That is precisely in the line of remark which I was making when interrupted. Here is a bill involving this vast sum of mono brought before the House, and we are calle upon to act in relation to it without a report and without any of the facts being placed before us. Why, sir, only the other day another committee to orted a hill giving a little pension of 8 dollars a month to some man, and because there was no written report accompanying it, the gentleman who offered it was obliged to withdraw it in order that a written report might accompany it and yet this bill is brought in here from a committee which had no jurisdiction of the subject, and we are asked to pass upon it when we have nothing before us which can enable us to act understandingly. Now, sir, I do not want to do injustice to the State of Missouri. I know how much that State suffered, and how much her gallant Union men suffered during the war. I desire to see full and ample justice done to them by the Congress of the U.S. But this bill, as it comes to us from the committee, I say it unhesitatingly, ought not to be passed by the House without further examination; and I trust that this committee, instead of passing upon it now, will rise and report it to the House, and that it will be committed to the ComClaims, so that it may be fully and fairly examined. I shall be willing to invest the ComClaims with authority to report the bill back at anytime and to have it made a special order. All I want is to get at the facts, so that we may act understandingly. As the bill now stands you could drive a coach and 6through every section of it. In the 1st place, it permits the President, not requiring the consent and advice of the Senate, to appoint one commissioner who is to pass upon all these stupendous claims. The resident is to appoint a man who is to have the vast power of examining and determining what amount of this sum shall be paid. There is no provision that testimony shall be taken and transmitted to the Treasury Dept to be there exam1ne d. There are no limitations upon this commissioner whatever. He can, by a mere stroke of his pen, cause $7,000,000 to be taken from the public Treasury. These are some of my objections to this bill. If the committeedetermiiies to go on with its consideration, Is iall move, when it is read section by section for amendment, several amendments in order to remove palpable objections to it which must be apparent to every gentleman here.