Weekly Council Bluffs bugle. (Council Bluffs, Iowa) 1857-1860, 1860-02-15

k@ pGR10k1@&6 n4x9x3 Us F8&4MK@ = &aas =
> IN l0aaasn@ waTFansas khs s6zss gals
4 ccgapemssaaoa psopsded fa ahs I'D ase.s 8
II serviess lheSeaftes 70 be performed. D
!. This Sd sec, 90 Kak nxed the sum 10
y paid oas Of the Treasury, and no limi
: Il aarely pressgibes THAI foR wRrran
3 already located. the TSeasary shoal
|. pay aE The same rata kxed by the I'd 60
' OF the net OF 1851 Ls ia therefore pc
4 fsntly clear, that If the I'd SEQ. Of q
\ act Of 1852 and the 9th sec. Of the act (
o 1885, carried : Iinisstion With them, !
! did the Sd srss. of 1852, withoas ths pre-
|. yiso and THAI IL shs proyiso was urnse
/. aszary 10 the kWe foRmsg ssetIonss Ia 0T
, / der so restrain the ofhesFs TO q eompen
saGiou oa o., 900 per anDum, il wa
/ equally unnseessary, for she same pur
pose, 10 Ghs latter section OF Sue act D
1854 OongFsss, howsxsF, asszns to hav
been Of epinion that tbs pFoyiAe wa
necessary to the Sd ssetiOp, aAd il tha
body bad intended TO limit the compen
saaiou Of the officers, under the oths
&wo sections, Ehars can be no doubt tha
ths psoyiso woald have been annexed /,
them. .sg...
q Thars il no pgovisieE rSqaising Eh,
Rsgisseg end Receiver 10 pay Into Is
Treasury the suzplas fees received b
thea under the ssE Of 1885. Can "
believe that Congress would have failee
/ to make such proviaion, IL it had beer
intended that the excess above certain
sum shonld become part Of the public
revenue There ere eEanshss OF the pub
! lie service not connected With the land
ofice in which Congress has seen dt tc
| limit the amount TO be retained by ths
oHicsrs out Of the fees received by them.
In these cases express provision is made
requiring the payment Of the excess iato
the Treasury. Take, for instance, the
act of Feb. 26gh, 1853, regulating the
| fees Of clerks, msrshals, and attorneys
OF the U. S. Courts. In the Sd ssS. OF
that act, it is provided, that every auoh
sfhcer shall deposit In the Treasury the
surplus Of fees received By him, above
the amount to which he is enti tied by
law.
! We have 8 right to 20 into the histor-
! ic8l circumstances conn eoted With the
passage of the 9th section Of the act Of
1855. We have right to consider tho
exigencies upnneetsA With the sale Of
the public lands, for which it was the
| object Of Congress at that time to pro-
vide. 1t is we'll known that the rage Of
| speculation, growing out of the assign
ment of land warrants and other causes
had, at thAs time, reached g great height.
The land Offices were literally beseigsd, 4,
day and night, with multitudes Of pso-
pie, demanding, elamoTously, the loea-
lion Of their warrants. Many millions
of acres of the public lands we're dispos-
cd Of BY the Government in lows, in an
incredible short space of time. Nov, it
we'll known, that, under these oireum-
stances, no ordinary force Of clerks
would have been adequate, 10 the de-
mands Of the public service. VAS my
| self q spectator of the scenes that oc-
guFred at two Of the prineipa. land efh.
ces in this State, and am perfectly
confident, that three thousand dollars
per annum would scarcely have been
sufficient to pay the employees required
at these Offices. Owing to the great
! thrcng Of people and the scarcity Of pro-
visions il that new country, the means
of subsistence we're exhorbitAntly high.
The wages paid to clerks were therefore
very high. Now, ! have no doubt that
these historical circumstances were per-
fectly we'll known TO Congress. They
were, doubtless, communicative that
! body by the members from the new
/ States, and By the land officers them
/ selves. The alternative wga, therefore,
presented to Congress, either to provide
for the payment Of the wages of Sddi-
/ tionaI clerks, ETC., from the public
/ Treasury, or 20 provide that the holders
of land warrants should pay certain
| fees for services rendered, for their BEN
| eft. Congress chose TO make she pro-
vision less burthensome to the public
Treasury. But Of what avail would the
/ 9th sec. have been if it had been provid-
/ ed that the whole amount Of fees above
three thousand dollars per snDum sho'd
! be paid into the Treasury? By such q
| provision, the public service wo'd have
been left iust where it was before. The
| land officers would have been burthened
With immense labor, responsibility an d
expense, with salaries barely sufbeisnt
to pay the wages of the clerks required
in their Offices, by the demands of the
! public service. 1t is manifest that Con-
gress adopted the wiser, policy Of re-
curing the holders Of warrants, who
were generally specalAtors in the pub
lie lands, TO pay, indirectly, for the hire
Of clerks and other expenditures incur
red for their heneRt, and also TO com
pensate the officers for their labor and
| responsibility. We must arrive at this
coneiusiou, unless we are prepared ID
believe that Congress intended 20 leave
the land officers practically without any
compensation for most arduOus services,
in order to realize paltEy revenue eui
of the feos paid by third persons, foI
the privilege Of locating their land war
! rants.
We see, therefore, that justice FgquiT'
ed that the land officers should reeeiY'
these fees, as part Of their compenea'
item for the largely increased labor, re-
sponsibilIty and expense imposed upoI
I them by the land warrant system. w
see that thu fees waza paid by those fol
whose benefit the services were perform
ed, without cost to the Treasury. "
see that Congress passed no Law requIF
4 ing the excess Of fees over three thoas
and dollars per annum 10 Re paid int
the Treasury, Why, then, should We
by forced construction OF tie act g
1855, conclude that Congress intende'
20 require of the land officers what wo't
have been unjust and una eceSsary 70 th
protection of the public Treasury
en- nok able, after mature reflection
to agree With the counsel for the Gov
ernment, a. 70 the effect Of the pFovisio
found in the firat section Of the Appro
prialion Bill Of March Sd, 1883.
!, That provision is, 'sthat whenever th
amount received 81 any y. s. Land OF
fee, under the Sd sec. of the act sntitle
an aet to make land warrants assigna
BILE and for other purposes, approve
March 22a, 1855, aas exceeded or shal
/ | exceed the amount which the RegistsE
? and Receives Of any such land oihs'
are entitled 60 reserve undeg said thiE
; section, tbs surplus which shall rsmai
i after paying the amouns 80 due - afer,
, / said TO saia Registers aad ReeeiysEi
shall be paid into the TEeasuSy Of q
> United States as ether pablie monsgs'
Nov In oxdeE 10 give say sEEest 10 "a
: foxagoirg as against thsaa dsfsndane
; ii ia said By counsel that the Goara aazs
!. seneIads that Congress committed
& mistake Of fact, In The inseRsion of a
: woTd athird's Instead "a sseseondss
8 this sIaass and that the Court ma
Z substitute the woTd ssseeeaaRV EoT q
= we1a ssshirdn shsFsin. "a is admitss