W. A. Field to Henry L. Dawes, 27 June 1870

June 27, 1870. Hon. Henry L. Dawes, Chairman of the Committee on Appropriations, House of Representatives. Sir: In the absence of the Attorney General, I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of the letter of the Secretary of your Committee of the 22d inst. enclosing for examination an estimate of the appropriation required for the Commissioners appointed under the Act of May 4, 1870, for the revision and consolidation of the Statutes of the United States; and also inquiring whether any additional appropriations will be required by reason of the Act recently passed creating the Department of Justice. In reply, I beg leave to submit the following estimates and suggestions: For the salaries of three Commissioners appointed for the revision and consolidation of the Statutes of the United States, for one year, at the rate of $5000 each, $15000. For the reasonable expenses of the Commissioners for the ensuing year, for clerical service and other incidental matters, $2000. If the Committee shall be of opinion that the 6th section of the Act of June 27, 1866, 14 Statutes, 75, authorizes an appropriation not to exceed $2000 annually, for each of the Commissioners, I think that an appropriation of $4000 for reasonable expenses, for clerical service and other incidental matters for the Board of Commissioners, should be made. The following additional appropriations will be required by reason of the passage of the Act creating the Department of Justice. For salary of the Solicitor General, $7500. For additional salary of two Assistant Attorneys General, $1000 each, $2000. For additional salary of Solicitor of Internal Revenue, $1000. For salary of stenographic clerk authorized by Sec. 10, $2000. For three additional fourth class clerks authorized by Sec. 10, at $1800 each, $5400. The attention of the Committee is also called to the provisions of Sec. 3, of that Act, that the estimated appropriations for all the officers named in it, and transferred from other Departments, may be put under the control of the Attorney General. In addition to the estimated appropriations required for the office of the Solicitor of the Treasury, the contingent expenses of that office have heretofore been paid from the contingent appropriation for the Treasury Department, and are not included in the special estimates for the Solicitor's office. These estimated contingent expenses are as follows: For fuel, labor, and miscellaneous items, $3500. For stationery and books, $1000. For additional contingent expenses of the Department of Justice rendered necessary by the transfer to it of the Solicitor of Internal Revenue, Naval Solicitor, and the law office of the Department of State and for stationery and books thereby required, $1000. For the necessary expenses of the Solicitor General, or any officer of the Department of Justice when sent pursuant to the 5th section of the Act by the Attorney General to any State or District to attend to the interests of the United States, $5000; but this, I think, should be chargeable upon the Judiciary fund. These estimates do not include any thing for the hiring of rooms, as it is supposed that the Superintendent of the Treasury Building, or the Secretary of the Treasury, under Section 13, will provide rooms for the Department of Justice. The attention of the Committee is called to Sec. 2 of the Act of March 2, 1865, (13 Stat. p. 459,) which contains an appropriation, still unexpended, for furnishing and fitting up suitable rooms for the office of the Attorney General, if it shall be necessary for him to remove from the Treasury Building. I suppose this appropriation will be available for fitting up and furnishing rooms for the Department of Justice if it is removed from the Treasury Building. If not, or if the Secretary of the Treasury should choose to take the furniture from the office of the Solicitor of the Treasury, an appropriation will be necessary for furnishing all the new rooms that may be required by the Department of Justice. The estimates of the expenses for Assistant District Attorneys and special assistants to the Attorney General and District Attorneys required by Sec. 17, are understood to be included in the appropriation for defraying the expenses of the Supreme Court and District Courts of the United States, in lines 861-870, p. 36 of Bill H. R., 2165. The salaries of the Assistant District Attorneys are now paid from this fund. Whether any appropriation for special assistants to the Attorney General or to any of the District Attorneys employed pursuant to the 17th section, will be required during the ensuing year, it is impossible to determine; but I think some provision should be made for paying such assistants if employed, and that they should be paid out of the Judiciary fund. The attention of the Committee is respectfully called to the first two paragraphs of miscellaneous appropriations in Bill H. R. 2165, p. 32, lines 760 to 768, with the suggestion whether, if these appropriations are to be made, the intention of the Act creating the Department of Justice does not require that they should be disbursed under the direction of the Attorney General. It is also submitted whether, (p. 36, same bill, line 861,) the words "Circuit Courts" should not be inserted between "Supreme Court" and "District Courts," and (on same page, line 68,) it is suggested that the words "legal assistance to the Attorney General," may be held to authorize the payment of all Assistant District Attorneys and special assistants whom the Attorney General appoints or employs, as well as the necessary expenses of the officers of the Department of Justice when sent away; if not, the words, "and District Attorneys" can be inserted after those words—or any words can be inserted that will clearly enable the Attorney General to pay, out of the Judiciary fund, their accounts. Recapitulation of additional appropriations required by the Act creating the Department of Justice, the appropriations already provided for officers transferred to that Department from other Departments having been so far amended as to bring them within the control of the Attorney General. For salary of Solicitor General, additional salaries of two Assistant Attorneys General, and Solicitor of Internal Revenue, for salaries of one stenographic clerk, and of three fourth-class clerks, $17,900; for fuel, labor, and miscellaneous items $3,500; for stationery and books, $1500. I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obd't serv't, W. A. Field, Acting Attorney General. P. S. The enclosure of the letter of the Secretary of the Committee is returned enclosed herewith.