ul agent, and furnished me
important financial information, which aided me greatly in refunding
operations. His compensation and allowances, as well as those of
all persons sent to London in connection with the refunding of the
public debt, were paid by the syndicate, so that no expense whatever
was incurred by the treasury on this account.

I gave the following notice to the parties to this contract that
I would, on the part of the United States, terminate it.

"Treasury Department, }
"Washington, D. C., April 6, 1877.}
"Gentlemen:--I received your friendly cable message of the 10th
ultimo, and return my thanks and hearty good wishes.

"I am very solicitous to promote the funding of our six per cent.
bonds as rapidly as practicable, and feel indebted to you for the
aid you have given in placing the four and a half per cent. bonds.

"I propose no change at present; but it is my desire, if practicable,
to withdraw the four and a half per cent. bonds from the market
and substitute in their place the four per cent. bonds authorized
by the funding act.

"These bonds, as you know, are a very desirable investment, running
thirty years from the date of issue, with every guard and security
that has been given to any bond of the United States, and we think
as safe and desirable as the securities of any other nation. It
is probably the bond into which all the debt of the United States
will in time be converted. I hope you and your associates will be
able to engage with me to place this bond on the market when
$200,000,000 of the four and a half per cent. bonds have been sold.

"The public policy of the United States to resume specie payments
on or before the 1st of January, 1879, is fully established by the
law and by public opinion. It may be that the surplus revenue will
be sufficient to enable me to carry out this policy without the
sale of bonds. I am authorized by the resumption act to sell five,
four and a half, or four per cent. bonds to prepare for resumption,
and it may be desirable to sell through the syndicate, under that
act, a limited amount of bonds, not exceeding, I hope, $30,000,000
a year. I do not wish in the execution of this duty to disturb
the exchanges between Europe and this country. For this purpose
I desire to sell only the four per cent. bonds and must sell at
par in coin, but could receive in payment coin coupons maturing
within a limited time. I invite from you and your