The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1849-02-09


siriced TO eera'a part Of the zmoans &ss,vsd fresh M
source The pay N the ts,-psssssss ss"n Their
missions Before ti Law haa brss passed -a.~-srss h..
away The motive for these high ehse~ asd r~srs sssu
TO reasonable and proper sum. u hled sPsa he mas
mum which they should receive fros this source sns
this was, therefore, totally distinct matter. having
| connexion with the laws ia relation eunmis~s,a.
He thought nefeor tina, view Of The case that there
was nothing IN T. had neither law nor eas'y 10 SOS
sons TO be made up. there were huaissis ri
cases which had an equal ca,m and for the
MIR BADGER rose TO point oi order. ANA consst~A
hat it not in order submit an amendment n,slv
fhs VICE PREsbss .ss .s s IL. vos, .. 3,
argument IN favor the rejection Of the xmsnamsi bat
It was the opinion OF the Chair that the point d order
could not be maintained.
Mr. WALKER said that the subiec, referred 10 in his
amendment was very similar to the under coasders
ton The land Offices Of the country heretofore before
the issue of these land had been scas uadef
one state OF laws and he wished members OF the senate
would permit their minds to advert to the peculiar cond
ION Of things at the present time IN the land otees Of
duties under condition Of the law; they received
certain per centage upon the amounts received in
payment for lands and by that per centaxe. to-
gether with the small salary allowed they obtain
pensaton for their services The government of the
United States had substituted another kind OF curfen
cy, by which the public lands may DO bought. and
the laws which exist in relation TO that currency
pessy exclude the officers from receiving any comTen
saon for the services they discharge in their location
he result was BEGINNING TO amount to this; that The
0hceTs get nothing but their salaries very little
more He had been informed very lately, by two OF the
land officers of the United States who paid, seven
the other eight hundred dollars for clerks and the rent
OF whose offices amounted to two hundred dollars each
per year. that they would get but the salary; and they
hold the Offices they will receive but five hundred dol
lars, and one will pay thousand, and the other nine
hundred dollars. for their office expenses That was the
state OF things, and remedy that OF things
that the amendment was proposed
The recommendation under the law that the lOca.
tor OF land warranS should be paid much should
be equivalent to the amount the officers have heretofore
received as commission on the money paid This amend
ment proposed to have retrospective effect and to
pensate those officers Tor the time they have spent in the
location of the land warrants; while the law had al
them 70 70! they are now ac,a.
much more in the amendment, which applied to
very similar in principle to the stated in the bill
pending Here an officer holding his Office under
one condition of the law and entitled to a certain com
mission. lie deprived OF portion OF that commits
sion He was not however, in the present made
| to discharge his duties at an absolute loss
MIR. w. was willing to say that he thought the post
master at New Orleans ought to be compensated. AT
the tme he was receiving certain amount by law, but
the law divided it into two parts the short and
the other overruns the maximum. The bill only pro-
to take from the one part and add to the other and
thereby make up the amount which he was to
receive. He could see nothing unjust in that, and he
could not understand why he should not be compensated
But here was case still harder; in which all
actual loss in the discharge of their duties and would be
continually subjected to that loss unless provision
was made He though. that quite as just q case g
hoped the senator would be as willing to pass the
one as the other 1t might ba said that the government
was to pay out sums which should have been paid BY
was true; but was now passed. These individuals had
been to the land office and located their lands would
fees Which hey should have paid Had Congress taken
the proper view. they would have provided for that in
the first instance They could not call them back now
but it was for Congress to say whether they would do
that justice to them WHICH i proposed do by this
bill to this postmaster. With this view he had offered
TIE amendment, which he hoped might be considered
no good cause for its rejection.
The question being then taken upon the motion to re-
coasde the yeas and nays We're demanded and ordered
Benton, Berricn, Boand Beesc CLARKE bavis Of Mss.
.saan. Hunter osasoa p Los.iana Jones. Msnga%.
Mason Sl Miller, Phelps Rass Sebastian, Sturgeon. Up
Dickinson. Dix. Eelch. Hale Hamn, King Mstcaiie,
Niles, Spruance, TurneY, Underwood, and Yulee-l6.
So the motion Ia reconsider was agreed to.
The question recurring upon ordering the bill to third
reading,
! Mr.. WALKER moved to amend the bill by adding the
| following section:
And be it farther enacted, That the Secretary of the
Treasury DO, and he hereby, directed to ascertain the
warrants issued for military services in the late war with
Mexico by other than tho persons whom such
pay 10 the several registers and receivers o the several
land Offices amount equal ich they would
been entitled to had such lands been cold for money, de-
Quoting thereom any which such officers may have
received according 70 law fees for the location Of land
the treasury not otherwise appropriated gM aUM
Mr. DOWNS agreed perfectly with everything that the
senator from. Wisconsin had said hut it now late
in the session. the bill had already passed the House,
and he hoped the senator would not cucumber it with his
amendment He had doubt that the claims which
the senator suggested would be settled and il this
long session ne would like TO have them settled
But it was question, and would require COM
mittees for reference in both houses,
! Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana would be much obliged
TO his friend from Wisconsin if he would not insist upon
his amendment II was very evident that if the amend
ment adopted it would be the of defeating the
BILL because there would not be time enough in the pres
en session for the bill amended to pass the other
branch asl
Mr. WALKER inquired if this was House bill
| Mr. JOHNSON II
| MIR. WALKER. Then will not insist upon my
amendment but will withdraw il.
Mr. BRIGHT. 1t is rather unusual. Mr.. President, |
believe bill TO be pressed under the circumstances in
which this bill presents ITSELF The committee to which
1t was REFERRED having had charge OF the subject have
examined the testimony and reported against it. The
bill wns before the Senate few days since, and by
decided majority they refused to pass it. reconsideration
IL granted; and the question now, Shall the bill pass
In the few remarks which | submitted upon the bill
the other day stated that this should not be singled
out and made an excepOn-that If this bill passed, it
should be made general in its provisions. There is
good reason why other PERSONS occupying precisely
the same situation, should not be included in its prov
sions nor is there any good reason why the bill should
not 20 further and include other branches of the public
service. The amendment of the senator from Wisconsin
Is just II the bill just The case presented by gen.
iemen is stronger than the under
sideraton. Here is officer whose maximum salary
should not exceed $4,000 in four years. The proof