Mr. WASHBURNE, of Illinois. It is with great diffidence that I suggest any opposition to any matter that goes through an investigation by my distinguished friendfrom Ohio, Mr. DELANo] I know his great care and iligence in these matters, but I must confess that I am not clear as to the adoption of the principle involved in this JtResolution. It seems to me it involves this: that the government becomes liable to and must pay every dollar of money that shall be lost through the mail every 5 or one dollar greenback if the parties come here and make evidence that it is lost. Now, I can never forget a matter which came before us very much like the present one, when it was that certain bonds I think they were Oregon war bonds were lost on board a mail steamship from SanFrancisco. Evidence was taken, and it was shown most conclusively to the House that a large amount of these bonds were utterly destroyed. I resisted the passage of that bill, but the House saw fit to pass it. The bill passed the Senate and became a law, but a few days afterward the SecyTreasury wrote to the chair man of the ComWays&Means asking him to have that law immediately repealed, those very bonds, whose loss had been proved by evidence piled mountain high, having been presented to the Treasury for redemption. Now, we cannot legislate too cautiously in regard to all these matters, and I think if we undertake to adopt this principle we shall wade very deeply into the Treasury, and I do not know where we shall land. The insurance companies are open to all of these men, änd they could have got this money insured if they saw fit. But it may be said that the Government is not protected even in that respect, for I am told by the Gentfrom Pennsylvania and it must have been when I was not present, for I do not recollect it that the House went to the extraordinary length of passing a bill of insurance. It seems to me that we are very far at sea, and I do not know where we shall land. I submit the matter to the House whether they are prepared to adopt this principle at the present time.